A/N: Oh my goodness it's been forever! Please don't kill me. I haven't been on fanfiction in ages, and if you enjoyed this story, I'm so sorry that I haven't updated in forever. Oh my gosh, it's been two years! I'm such a bad author.

Anyhow, I forgot how much fun I had writing this story. I just re-read it, and I plan on going back and fixing all the errors and trying to make this less confusing. I'm quite a bit older now, and I've learned a lot more about English and life, so you can expect this story to get a little bit more interesting. I may just take the last chapter out, because I totally forgot where I was going with that. :-D

I welcome you people who are just starting to read this story now. If anyone out there started reading it from when I last updated (two years ago *cringe*) I'm so, so, so sorry for the wait, and I'm genuinely surprised and pleased you've returned to read more.

Alright, let's go.

Claire and Eve walked down the staircase on their way to the great hall with the Golden Trio in tow. Harry and Ron were arguing about the size boxers that trolls would wear were they to wear boxers, and Hermione had her nose in a Charms book, studying for an exam she had later that day. Claire wondered for an instant how she did not trip down the stairs, but realized that Hermione had most likely had much practice walking and reading simultaneously. They passed several first years who stared at Harry like he had a third eye, but that is the cost of fame.

"Eve, you're being awfully quiet," Claire pointed out. "Is something up?"

"No, everything is fine. I just got an odd letter this morning, that's all," she said, offering a weak smile. At this, Hermione looked up from her book.

"From whom?" she asked. Ron and Harry now seemed interested in the topic as well. Eve struggled to come up with a suitable lie before telling the group that it had been from someone anonymous, and that she assumed it to be a prank letter.

"That's odd. Student's normally only receive mail in the Great Hall at breakfast," Hermione muttered, almost to herself.

"I know," Eve said. "I woke up this morning and there was an owl tapping on the window."

"That really is weird, Eve. Maybe you should get the letter looked at," Harry said, concern for one of his newest friends clearly evident in his voice.

"It'll be okay. It was probably just someone trying to pick on the new first years," she explained. Her argument held logic, so the group let it drop and Harry and Ron went back to their conversation. Hermione, however, did not withdraw her suspicious gaze from the back of Eve's head. This worried Claire greatly, so she quickly drew Hermione into a conversation about her first Transfiguration class, and asked her if perhaps Hermione could give her some tutoring after the classes.

Once they reached the Great Hall, Claire sat with the group at the Griffendor Table and spooned a healthy amount of hash browns onto her plate. She was very involved in the conversation, so she gave a start when someone tapped her shoulder. She turned in her seat to see Kory standing behind her.

"Hey," he said casually. In fact, casual was the very word that described him. He was wearing, she noticed, jeans and a loose fitting T-Shirt under his Ravenclaw cloak, which had been pushed aside to allow his hands entrance into his pockets. He also wore a small smirk that widened into a smile when he saw the surprise in Claire's eyes.

"Hi," she said with a smile. "Why don't you have a seat?"

"Is that even allowed?" he asked. Claire shrugged.

"Probably not, but we're already breaking one of the biggest rules on campus today, so I see no point in you not sitting down," she said quietly so only he heard. Personally, she was really excited to be sneaking off campus. She had never been much of a troublemaker before, but this new life was offering her thrilling new opportunities, and she was all too willing to take them. He smiled and sat down beside her, causing stares from several of the surrounding Griffendors. Claire noticed Eve's glance, as if she was sizing up an opponent when she looked at Kory.

"Guys, this is Kory. He's in my Transformation class," Claire told the group. Hermione smiled knowingly at her. Ron looked confused. Claire saw him glance at Harry, who had suddenly become very interested in his scrambled eggs.

"Nice to meet you, Kory. I'm Hermione."

"The pleasure is all mine," he said. Claire had to hold back a laugh at his remark. It just sounded so. . . Proper.

Claire quickly finished breakfast and went with Kory out of the Great Hall. He led her down a few winding hallways until he was sure that no one was following and turned to her with a grin.

"So, how are we doing this?" she asked, her eyes shining with excitement. He turned to her.

"I know a secret passage way. It'll lead us straight into Honeydukes."

"I think that I've heard of it," she said, smiling to herself. He glanced at her, confused, and then grabbed her hand, leading her down the maze of hallways once more. When they reached a rather familiar statue, he instructed her to close her eyes. She did so smiling, and within seconds they were running down a dark and narrow tunnel, holding back laughs as they tripped and stumbled.

They emerged into a dark cellar, and Kory grabbed her hand to help pull her out. He put his fingers to his lips as an indicator for her to stay silent. They snuck up the stairs and came to a colorful, busy room with every sweet imaginable, all of them familiar yet foreign to Claire, who had seen them before in movies. She danced around excitedly, taking small samples of this and that and calling Kory after her. Despite it being a Thursday, Hogsmeade was packed. Kory and Claire did seem a bit young among the crowd, but no one seemed to notice or care.

On their way out of the store, bags overflowing with sweets to bring back to their friends, Claire began to notice something rather odd. She had noticed before, but now it seemed especially strange to her. People crowded the street and yet no one seemed to notice them, not even a glance. She glanced at Kory at her side and noticed that he seemed to be concentrating on something very hard.

"Are you doing that?" she asked, very surprised. He looked at her.

"Doing what?"

"Those people aren't even looking at us. It's like they can't even see us," she said.

"Don't be silly, Claire," he said, and for a slight moment, his tone changed to something that scared her greatly. But it vanished in an instant. "They are probably used to people sneaking out of Hogwarts. Plus, we're only first years. They may just think that we're younger than we are and that we're walking around town without our parents."

"That makes sense," she said.

"Stop worrying. Come on, there's something that I want to show you."

And so they set off down the street. Claire didn't notice how the streets began to become less populated, or how Kory kept glancing over his shoulder. She didn't notice how the clouds overhead began to gather or how she was being watched from several different windows.

"Are you ready?" Kory asked her.

"For what?" she asked in return.

"For something I want to show you. I want to show you something, Claire," he said. This time she noticed the way his smile turned suddenly dark, the way that he seemed to look down at her.

"What do you want to show me?" she asked, attempting to hide her sudden nervousness.

"Come on, Claire. Come with me." He stepped closer, and she stepped back. Suddenly this situation was a lot more real than she wanted it to be.

"There's something that you need to see." And he leaned even closer. "Let me show you something." His voice by now was a raspy whisper that sounded almost like. . . like hissing. Claire was now backed against the wall, and she watched in utter horror as Kory, a boy that she was suddenly not sure was a boy at all, moved ever closer, and his voice became more quiet and raspy. And his eyes! Were they. . . were they turning. . . yellow?

"I want to show you someth--"

"Miss Stones!" Claire whipped her head to the left to see Professor McGonagall staring in horror at her, wand drawn.

And when she looked back at the place where Kory had been, he was gone.

Claire could not think of anything better to do at that moment than scream. And so she did. Things around her started to blur in and out of focus, and she knew instantly that for the first time in her life she was going to faint. She collapsed on the ground, trembling silently, eyes wide and scared. She was only slightly aware of a person crouched beside her, wrapping a cloak around her and muttering words that were meant to be comforting.

But all she could see were those yellow eyes. . .

A/N:

-Z

First attempt at writing something dramatic. Help, tips, and criticism would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!