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'So how was last night?' Tessie asks from my bed.

'It was…actually quite good. Lily didn't kill James, though I suspect she may have tried to drown him at some stage.' I hold up a light pink dress. 'Do you like this one?'

'It's ok. Kind of short though. How did you and Sirius get along?'

I turn back to my wardrobe and hang back up the rejected dress. 'We didn't fight. I had fun. We had a sort of…bonding moment,' I tell her.

'A bonding moment?' she repeats incredously. 'What did he slip you?'

I roll my eyes. 'I found it hard to believe too, and it was happening to me. He took me to the roof and showed me the stars.'

Tessie giggles dreamily. 'That is so cute. Did he hold your hand?'

'No, Tessie, he didn't. We're not a couple, and friends do not hold hands,' I say sternly.

'You really need to make up your mind, Amy. You're 'friends' by the lake, you hate him in your bedroom, you like him in the garden, and now you're friends again on the roof. You can't keep changing your mind about him. It's not good for you. You need to acknowledge your feelings,' she says earnestly.

'Tessie, I change my mind on him so often because my feelings change often. And my feelings change often because his whipped personality changes so often,' I say with a note of complaint in my voice.

'I understand.'

'How could you? You're in a perfect relationship,' I say sulkily.

She smiles dopily and lays on her belly with her chin her hands. 'Andrew said he loved me.'

'What?' I yelp.

She giggles and nods excitedly. 'We were in town – May told me and Maddie to bring Andrew and Conor along- and we were sitting on this bench in a park while the others were in the toilets, and he said, 'You do know I love you, don't you Tessie?' and I just kind of stared at him like a complete dolt.'

'And then what did he say?' I ask excitedly, kneeling in front of her, dresses forgotten.

She sits up and says with a big smile plastered on her face, 'He said, 'I guess you didn't know that. Well, I do.''

'Oh my God! That's brilliant! What did you say then?'

'I said 'I love you too' of course!'

I scream and hug her as tightly as I can. 'I can't believe you're in love! I can't believe you've gone and fell in love!'

She laughs and hugs me back, pulling me up onto the bed beside her. 'I couldn't exactly help it!'

'I'm going to come second from now on,' I say, shaking my head sadly.

She puts her head on my shoulder. 'Of course you won't.'

'Promise?' I hold my pinky up to her. She wraps her baby finger around it.

'Pinky promise. Once best friends, always best friends. A boy can't take the place of a girl friend. He can't do what you can.'

'And I can't do what he can,' I smirk. 'Speaking of; have you done it?' I ask in a low voice, aware of the open bedroom door.

She glances to the door, hesitating. 'No, not yet.'

I cop on to her words. I lean over and flick my wand to the door so it flies shut. My room is the only one on this floor, but in this house, everyone is everywhere.

'But you're planning on it?'

'Well nothing's been spoken aloud, and Andrew has never pushed it, but I think, if, you know, the time presents itself, I'd be…ok with it.'

I nod. 'That sounds…reasonable. How close have you come?' I ask curiously.

Her cheeks redden. 'Why do you want to know?'

'We're best friends. In best friends, there's always going to be one that is…more experienced. You're that one,' I say logically. 'It's your duty to share,' I add seriously.

She stares at me. 'Really? You're…innocent?'

'Of course I am!' I say.

'How far have you come?' she asks.

'A snog where Sirius got a little touchy is all me and Sirius ever covered. What about you?' I demand impatiently.

'Well…no clothes have ever come off or anything. He did put his hands up my skirt and top before though.'

I snort. 'That's disgusting. Andrew is a perv.'

'I liked it,' she admits.

I burst out laughing. 'Well, good. I'm glad you enjoyed being fondled. At least it was by a hottie,' I say.

'You think Andrew is hot?' Tessie asks, surprised.

I look at her, equally surprised. 'Do you not?'

'Well of course I do. I just didn't think he was you're type.'

'Andrew is hazelnuts and chocolate! I think he's everyone's type,' I say with a chuckle. I pat her leg and then go back to my wardrobe, but she doesn't drop the subject.

'I just thought no one would ever measure up to Sirius in your eyes.'

'Well, guess you thought wrong,' I say distractedly. I pick out a floaty white dress with tiny rose quart buttons down the front of the chest.

'That dress is so pretty! Put it on,' Tessie commands. I pull it on over my tank top and slip off my sweatpants from under it. It has a low neckline and is loose. It comes above my knee and has an 'up and down' bottom. I twirl around and feel elated. The material swings with me and makes me feel like I have wings. I pull it back off so I can remove my tank top. When I put it on again it's slightly lower. 'That is gorgeous! Wear that!' Tessie says.

'Will you help me with my hair?' I ask, pulling the blonde curls down from their ponytail.

'Of course!' She hops up from the bed and pulls the stool out from my dressing table. She pats it, indicating I should sit.

Once I'm seated, she summons the big bag of hair stuff from a drawer with her wand. She brushes through my hair with a big brush first. Then she gently pulls a comb through each individual curl. It feels like heaven, and I resist the urge to tilt my head back, knowing it will earn me a thwack. She smoothes my side fringe and then runs her hands through my hair again, this time with some sort of smoothing cream on her fingers.

When she's done, my hair falls in long, sleek spirals dawn my back. The many usually shaggy layers are now soft and frame my face artfully. The crown of my head seems to shine as the sun hits it.

'You want me to put some mascara on? I don't think you need foundation. Your skin is clear and it's nearly thirty degrees in England today. I think you're better off without it,' she says.

'Yeah, cool. How did you get my hair to look so…not normal?' I ask, touching a curl carefully.

'It must be this stuff.' She hands me the bottle of cream she used. Then she puts on lots of layers of black mascara and then circles my eyes with white eyeliner. She strokes my eyelids with a pale pink powder and then announces that she's finished.

I stand and go to the full length mirror by the biggest window. I look like me, but…prettier. My eyes are dark and gem-coloured, with long, thick eyelashes. They look wider and sparklier, which Tessie puts down to the white eyeliner and eye shadow. My hair is artful and looks very soft. I touch the crown of my head and yes, the hair does feel like silk. The dress is great with the pink ballet flats Tessie found under my bed.

Maddie and Lily wander in, announcing Jelly's departure to her own mission as I'm inspecting myself. Maddie stops at the bed. 'Amy,' she says in a very serious voice. 'You know how I hate to sound cheesy in any way, but…you look like an angel.'

'Stop,' I beg, covering my blazing cheeks with my hands.

'You look amazing,' Lily agrees, staring. 'The wedding's in two weeks; you have to do your like that!'

'May wants it up,' I mutter, turning away from the mirror. I pick up my wand from the bed and stick it in the hidden thigh sheath that totally completes my look. It's a very comfortable thigh sheath, to be fair. Maddie's dad John got one for me and made me wear it around the house all day Thursday to break it in. As if it was a new pair of shoes! This thigh sheath is promoting violence and child labour! Well, it's promoting sneakiness, that's for sure. Still, it's better than Jelly having a secret compartment in her bra. Much more comfortable, my thigh sheath is.

'You all set?' Paul sticks his head in the room. His eyes widen for a second and then he clears his throat. 'Don't forget your wand.'

I pat my thigh. 'I've got it.'

He nods awkwardly. 'Ok, good. Come on then, you're going.' His head disappears again.

'You're going on your own this time?' Lily asks.

'Yeah,' I answer.

'That's scary. Good luck.' She hugs me.

'Yeah, be careful,' Tessie says, biting her lip worriedly, hugging me too.

'You look great, so do your job knowing you look hot,' Maddie says, giving me my last hug.

!

I pause at Matthew's garden gate. I can hear music coming from inside, many voices and laughter. The smell of the barbeque is strong and there is a lively, carefree vibe coming from the party scene. I feel so guilty, intruding on their family evening. But I have to.

I push open the gate and hesitate. Do it Amy. Go to the door and knock. Come on, do it. I put my hand on the gate and close it again. Then I push it open. Then I pull it closed. Oh for the love of God, where's your courage? This is no time for sentimentality! There's no time for 'feeling bad.' Just do what you've been told to!

The door opens before I can open the gate and Shay looks out. His eyebrows scrunch together. 'Amy Summers?'

I smile at him. 'Hi Shay. I'm so sorry; I didn't know you were going to have visitors. I wanted to see Matthew, but if now is a bad time…' I let the sentence hang delicately in the air. Angie said I have to be real. And who in their right mind would want to interrupt a family get together.

Oh that's right, a spy would.

'No, you should come in. Mum's been dying to see you again. She keeps harping Matthew to bring you over. She'll be happy to see you. Dad wants to meet you too.' He holds the door open and beckons me inside.

I go inside and follow him into the big bright kitchen. It's packed with people, as is the patio and back garden. Mrs. Jones is sitting on a couch in the conservatory with three other posh ladies, two of them with coffee skin like hers and two of them very white. They all sip glasses of wine and sit with their legs folded.

Shay goes to the women and speaks to his mother. She looks up, her eyes bright and fixes me a big smile. She excuses herself from the ladies and hurries over to me, leaving her glass on the coffee table. She greets me with a warm hug.

'Amy, I am so glad you stopped in. Just the other day I was wondering if we'd ever see you're face again!'

I smile at her, truly flattered that she wanted to see me so badly. 'I'm sorry if it's a bad time Mrs. Jones,' I apologise.

'Amy, sweetheart, call me Maia- and it couldn't be a more perfect time! Now we can introduce you to everyone! Shay, where's Matthew?' she adds to him.

'Outside with his friends,' he answers. 'I'll tell him she's here,' he adds, going to the open back door. A girl of about the same age joins him on his way out.

'Come on, I'll introduce you to Matthew's Aunties,' Maia says brightly, bringing me by the hand to the ladies in the conservatory. 'Michael so very badly wanted to meet you, but he's had an emergency at work and had to pop out. I do hope he comes back before you go!' The ladies look up with interest when we approach, stopping their conversation.

'This is Amy, a friend of Matthew. Amy, these are some of Matthew's aunts. Sylvia, Jennifer, April and Roslyn,' she says grandly, pointing to each woman as she says her name.

They all smile and nod. I fix a relaxed, charming smile on my face, the way I was taught and give a small wave. 'Lovely to meet ye,' I say, then inwardly curse myself. These are so not the kind of people that say 'ye'.

'What an endearing accent. Where are you from, darling?' Roslyn, one of Maia's sisters asks.

'Ireland,' I say with a smile.

'Oh, Ireland is such a splendid place! Martin and I spent Easter there!'

'Sylvia, I believe you spent Easter in Indonesia,' Jennifer corrects.

'Oh, yes, that's right, I beg your pardon!'

'Do you live on a farm, darling?' April asks politely.

I'm spared answering by Shay's reappearance. 'Matthew wants you in the garden,' he tells me.

'Alright Amy, we'll speak to you again later,' Maia says with a pleasant smile.

I head outside, relieved. Those women are so full of themselves! I catch Shay as he's running past with a group of other young teenagers. 'Where is Matthew?'

He points to a crowded table set apart from the ones filled with either children or adults. Late teens are seated around it. They're laughing loudly and absorbed in their own company. Some of the nearby adults watch them. I feel dread wrap around my heart at the thought of having to go to them.

'Amy!' Matthew calls from the table. He stands and beckons me over. I take a deep breath and head over to my doom.

All conversation stops as I reach Matthew's side and they all stare at me. I swallow uncomfortably, suddenly very sure that my 'charming' smile won't impress this lot. I don't know any of these people. Sensing my awkwardness, Matthew wraps his arm around my waist and says to the group, 'This is Amy Summers.'

The group doesn't acknowledge the introduction, but goes back to their previous conversation. I resist the urge to slump behind Matthew.

He frowns at the group a second longer and then looks down at me with a smile. 'I'm glad you dropped in,' he says.

I smile back, trying to recover my relaxed vibe. 'Well, I thought you might be missing me,' I tease.

He pulls a chair out for me and I sit. On my other side is a boy with light auburn hair. I watch every one of them as they get back into their conversation. It soon becomes apparent who's with whom. It also becomes apparent the ones who don't like me. Two girls the opposite end of the table switch from glaring at me to staring adoringly at Matthew frequently, while another girl in a super-low dress tries very hard to start conversation with him. When this fails, she joins the 'glare at Amy' club.

With Matthew deep in conversation with a boy with black hair, I listen to the conversation while trying to look like I'm not.

'It'll be after Luscious' wedding for definite,' the boy with black hair says lowly.

'I don't know what the wait is for,' Matthew mutters.

'I doubt any of them care about Malfoy's wedding,' the boy mutters back in dark agreement. 'The work is getting harder,' the boys continues, watching Matthew carefully. I listen intently.

'It is,' Matthew aggress neutrally.

'Mortmain's was close.' Matthew nods. I put my hand to my mouth to stop a gasp. 'Some think it is a test,' the boy says slyly.

Matthew looks at him, amused. 'Henry,' he chuckles and then says very quietly, so that even I have to strain to hear him. 'Of course it is.'

The boy next to me turns to look at me. 'Are you Paul Summers sister?' he asks.

I blink and turn my attention to him. I take him in. There's something about him that makes me think he was a Slytherin, though I don't know him. He's one of the older members of the group, early twenties.

'Yes, I am,' I say.

He nods. 'I work in the ministry with him.'

'Are you an auror?' I ask politely.

He smirks. 'No. But I know you're brother from school and I see him around work.'

I nod, not knowing what to say.

'You might want to tell your brother he should be more careful how he acts to certain people. Someday, someone could call him on it.'

I stare at him. Did this boy just threaten Paul? 'Excuse me?'

'That's enough. Rodolphus, shut it,' Matthew interrupts, a threatening note in his voice.

'Rodolphus' and Matthew stare at eachother for a few seconds before Rodolphus shrugs. 'Just making conversation, right blondie?' he says pleasantly.

I stare at him and am about to declare his rudeness and vileness before Matthew takes my hand and whispers into my ear, 'Just leave it.'

I stare at Matthew, realising that he's serious. I cast my eyes down to my lap and bite my lip, struggling to let the issue go. It wouldn't do much good to start a fight here. But what that asshole said…

Suddenly, Matthew stands and lets out a whoop of laughter and a catcall. 'Windsor, nice of you to drop by!'

My head snaps up and I stare at Shawn and, holding his hand and looking as shocked as I feel, Jelly. We lock eyes and hold gazes as the boys exchange hellos. Shawn pulls Jelly along after him as he sits down beside Matthew. Jelly sits in a chair on Shawn's other side, smiling serenely at Matthew in way of greeting and fixing her pale pink dress over her knees, dropping her eyes from mine.

I tear my gaze away from her, remembering where we are. I know for certain now that some of these kids around the table are death eaters. And I'm willing to bet ginger-asshole to my right here is one for sure!

'I need to go to the bathroom,' I say to Matthew, not caring that I'm interrupting his conversation with Shawn and Black-hair. I stand and tap Jelly's shoulder as I pass her. I head inside and pause in the kitchen to make sure she's following. 'Where's the toilet?' I ask Shay, who once again it seems has gotten stuck with giving me directions. 'Thanks.'

The downstairs toilet is taken when I try the handle, so I go upstairs, keeping my calm and casual cover around me like a blanket, smiling at anyone who acknowledges me. I open the door of the bathroom and slip inside, leaving it unlocked. The bathroom is huge and very grand, with a long marble counter with a sink set into it and a large mirror hanging on the wall over it. There's no bath, just a shower box and a toilet.

I jump as the door opens, wishing to God I'd locked it if this is a death eater. It's just Jelly. She locks the door after her and then leans against it, breathing out heavily.

'What are you doing here? This wasn't part of the plan!' I exclaim.

'Keep your voice down Ametha,' she says mildly, eyes closed. 'I know it wasn't part of the plan. Shawn was invited to a party, he insisted I come with him, and it would have looked terrible if I'd kept insisting no,' she says. 'I enter this party thinking it was some old friend's birthday or something, and I see you in the middle of a gang of death eater wannabes, looking like you want to punch the guy next to you's face off!'

'Jelly some of these are definitely death eaters,' I tell her. 'Matthew was talking about Lucius Malfoy, and he's a confirmed death eater. Ok, the guy next to me, threatened Paul. To my face! Who the hell does that?'

'What did they say about Malfoy?' she asks.

'They were talking about something that was happening after his wedding. They were anxious for it. They didn't like waiting. They said they felt like they were being tested! Sound like anything to you?'

'It could be anything,' she says logically.

'The guy with the black hair brought up that Muggle School that exploded last week! He said it was 'close'! Jelly, they were behind it! They had to have been!' I insist.

Jelly's face has paled and she sinks down onto the closed toilet seat, shaking her head. 'We have nothing solid.' She sighs. 'We need to tell the order about this turn of events. Can you cast a protronus?' she asks.

I laugh humourlessly. 'Yeah, and I can grow wings too.'

'You don't have to be a bitch,' she mutters, opening her bag and shovelling through it.

'And you don't have to be unrealistic. Of course I can't cast a protronus! Not until sixth year.'

'Ok, I'll have to send them a howler. You should go and look around. Try and find something that could be useful,' she says.

'Ok, don't get caught,' I say, unlocking the door. I close it behind me and hear the lock click.

I peer in the door of one of the many rooms along the hall. It's a very simple room with an attached bathroom. I guess it's a guestroom. I open the door of another one and judge from the exquisite French décor that this would be the master bedroom. I open the door to another one and am about to close it, assuming it to be Shay's bedroom because of the Quidditch posters when a report card catches my eyes.

NEWT Results:

I advance further into the room, glancing back into the empty hall. I pick up the report card with Matthew's name on it from the desk and scan through it.

Charms: O

Transfiguration: O

Potions: O

Herbology: O

Divination: E

Defence Against the Dark Arts: O

'Whoa, Matthew, you're, like, a genius,' I whisper to myself. I put the report card down, feeling a swelling pride in my chest, despite just minutes ago feeling frightened of him. I open the drawer of the desk and skim through the contents. A yo-yo, couple bottles of ink, sheets of parchment, quills. I move away from the desk, satisfied there's nothing evil going on there.

I look at the titles of the books on his shelf. The Chronicles of Narnia, the Lord of the Rings, Pride and Prejudice…Wha-a-t? I pick out one of the thick books and flick it open.

'Who in the hell is Gandalf and why is he grey?' I mutter, turning the page.

'He's a great sorcerer.'

I freeze and turn around slowly, fixing a smile onto my face. 'Oh,' I say in what I really hope is my charming voice!

'Why are you in my room?' Matthew asks.

'I needed to use the toilet and the one downstairs was occupied,' I say.

He leans against the doorframe and cocks an eyebrow. 'I don't have en suite and the bathroom is down the hall,' he tells me pleasantly.

'I was…curious,' I say lightly.

'Hoping to stumble upon my boxers drawer?'

'That's it,' I say, clapping my hands together. 'But, I instead stumbled upon…Rudolph.' I hold the book up.

'It's Gandalf.'

'That's what I said.'

He laughs and comes into the room, closing the door behind him. He sits on his bed and looks at me. 'You don't like those guys out there.'

I look away from his eyes and perch myself on the windowsill. 'I just…didn't know you liked people like that.'

'Like what?'

'Mean,' I say, looking up. I meet his eyes and something in them, so like the old Matthew, made me crack. 'That guy threatened my brother to my face! You heard him, and you told me to 'let it go,' I make quotation marks in the air with my fingers. 'They are not nice people. Not one of them said hello to me and that guy with the black hair-'

'Gibbon,' Matthew supplies.

'Gibbon!' I throw my hands up in the air. Guess I've found the face to go with the file! 'Why are you hanging with them when you don't even like them?' I ask tiredly.

'Because I have to,' he whispers, watching me. My anger subsides and with a sigh I sit on the bed beside him. I can relate to that. This is my chance; the vulnerability is there. Just gotta go with it. I slip my hand into his and press our entwined fingers into my stomach.

'Your hand is freezing,' I murmur.

He looks down at our hands and smiles. 'I like your dress.'

'Thanks. Tessie helped me pick it out,' I smile.

'Why did you need to pick it out especially?' he frowns.

I swallow. You stupid idiot! 'I didn't pick it out especially. She was just over at my house and, you know, with Matt and all, she's still kind of fragile. She liked this dress and,' I shrug. 'I liked it too.'

'Ok,' he says easily. He lies back and closes his eyes.

'Were you up early?' I ask, rubbing the back of his hand to warm it up.

'Yeah, I had a meeting.'

I watch his face carefully. 'Yeah? With who?'

'I'm doing an internship with my dad.'

'Your dad works in the ministry, doesn't he?'

'Yup.'

'What kind of stuff do you have to do?'

'Files, find information for people, sometimes if it's a good day, I'll get to go on location,' he says, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

'Do you do anything to do with the war?' I ask casually.

He sits up and grins at me, a strange glint in his eyes. 'Do you?'

I blink and let go of his hand. 'What would I be doing?'

He shrugs. 'Three months off school; you'd want to be doing something everyday.'

I smile. 'It's a secret.'

'Yeah, I think I have an idea,' he says knowingly.

I try to not over-analyze his words, for fear of going into a panic attack. I just look at him and then around the room. My eyes catch the clock. 'Oh crap! It's half eight! I'm supposed to be home. They'll be freaking out,' I mutter, jumping up. They'll think I've been abducted or tortured or…worse, by you, I add to myself.

'Yeah, Jelly's gone home already,' he says carelessly. I look at him. Why would he say that? What would make him link us two together? Does he suspect us of something?

'Well, goodbye Matthew,' I say.

'You always seem to be in a hurry to say goodbye,' he says, looking very amused.

I shrug. 'I always seem to be late saying goodbye,' I retort.

He smiles slowly. 'That would be a good thing, I'd say.'

I turn away so he won't see me rolling my eyes at his bad pick-up lines. He always was a terrible flirt. Guess some things don't change.

'Hey, why don't I apparate you home?' he suggests.

'No, Matthew, that, um, there's no need, that is, you don't need to-'

'I think I do need to,' he interrupts firmly. He takes my hand and pulls me from the room. We go to the kitchen, where he tells his mum he's dropping me home.

'Really? Now? Are you sure?' Maia asks, staring intently into her son's eyes.

'Yeah, tell dad, will you?'

He leads me out to the front of the house, past the gate and down the lane a bit. 'Matthew, you really don't-'

And then he apparates.

We land in my favourite place in the whole world. That god-damned field full of bloody cows! Matthew spins around and frowns.

'You hit a protection wall, idiot,' I snap, standing up and brushing dirt off my dress.

'I didn't think of that,' he mutters.

'Obviously,' I retort, rubbing my head where I banged it off the stone wall.

'Let me see your head,' he says.

'No,' I say sulkily. 'I'm going home. Goodnight.'

'You could have a concussion!'

'If I have a concussion, I know who I'll be bringing to the Wizengamot,' I mutter angrily under my breath.

He continues to follow me. 'I can't leave you alone with a concussion,' he says matter-of-factly.

'Matthew, seriously, just go home.' I try to keep the desperation out of my voice. There's a small order meeting tonight! Matthew can't be anywhere near my house. He could see something!

'Amy,' he looks at me sternly. 'You're not getting rid of me.'

I realise that he speaks the truth; he's not leaving. I speed up to show my protest and grumble angrily. I really hate that bloody field. When we reach my front garden, I stop.

'Now, I'm home safely. Satisfied? Go,' I command.

'Amy, I'd like to talk to your father, if that's alright.'

My mouth drops before I can stop it. 'You what?'

'Is that a problem?'

'You are actually serious,' I whisper. He nods. 'I'll just…get him,' I say. I turn and walk dazedly to the front door. I open it and look back over my shoulder at him. He's sitting on the garden wall pleasantly, swinging his foot, arms folded. I close the door and go to the dining room.

'Amy? Everything ok?'

'Shh,' I mutter to May. 'Not now.'

'Amy, you can't go in!'

I open the dining room door and they all look up.

'Amy, not a good time-'

'Dad, Matthew Jones wants to speak with you.'

Dun dun dun dun! Dont ya just love a cliffhanger? :P You're in for a shock next chapter! I dont think any of ye will have suspected it. If ye have any ideas, feel free to ask me! if you get it right, I'll give you a special shout out :) xx

Review please :)