"Okay, what is going on?" Spring snapped, and I winced as she slammed her hands on the table. I glanced up, rolling my eyes slightly as I met yet another of Robyn's cold glares.

"Ask her." she said simply, and I shrugged at the Gryffindor's searching stare.

She sighed in frustration, scowling at the both of us. Potter looked up from his plate- a rare thing, that- and an eyebrow rose. "Oh come off it. Sumner, say sorry for whatever you did this time. Or at the very least leave, you're stinking up the entire table." I snorted.

"Fine." At this, everyone nearby looked up in shock, and I snatched a roll as I stood up. "Bishop, I deeply apologize for my parentage. I sincerely hope that you'll forgive me. Obviously I'm at fault."

"You could have just avoided coming here." she shot back. "And that doesn't change what you did before."

"You're right, how could I forget about your obvious resentment of me drawing unwanted attention to yourself. Oh, but I planned that, didn't I? Completely under the noses of my teachers? My bad." I shook my head, leaving. Over a week of stony silence, hostile glares, not-so-subtle comments- I could have received the same treatment at the Slytherin table. I might as well sit there and spare the others.

"Oi, wait!" I didn't turn as a pair of footsteps followed after me quickly. They didn't stop when they reached me; instead, an arm was slung over my shoulders, turning me in a different direction as Black's voice sounded to my right.

"You, my utterly hated Slytherin, owe me. Twenty galleons, if I'm not mistaken."

"Is that so." He led me outside, and I reflexively looked away from the Forbidden Forest.

"You see, I've been talking to quite a few people, including Bishop. She told me the most interesting things." He paused, and tutted when I didn't reply. "For instance, I discovered that almost every one of Evans' ties have disappeared. And all but one were not taken by James. You also have a liking for color- something that I'm not completely inclined to believe- and an unnamed but reliable source informed me that you've recently hurt your arm. Something that would be hidden by, say, an armband?" He grinned, tapping my bandages.

"So, why don't we reintroduce ourselves? I'm Sirius Black, and you are Ms. Ravenclaw, also known as Reed Sumner." He dropped something on my head, and I blinked as I realized that it was the hat I'd worn that day. A hat that had been in my locked trunk in my locked room in the girl's dormitories.

"And you got this how...?" I narrowed my eyes at him, and he shrugged in return.

"Unimportant at this time. Now, for that favor that you promised.." I snorted, interrupting him.

"You really expect me to keep my word? Take your money and leave, Black." I fished out his galleons and shoved them in his hands, walking away, only for him to grab my arm.

"Ah ah, Sumner, I figured that you'd say that. Which is only fair, I suppose, you are a slimy Slytherin after all. Which is why I'll be telling the other Gryffindors about how you snuck into our party and know the common room password. How do you think they'll feel about that?"

"I couldn't care less." I scoffed, feeling my heart sink. It was only our second year, but I would already have at least two if not three of the four houses out for my blood.

"You can't fool me." he shook a finger in front of my face. "And this is why I've decided to change the conditions of my winning. You are going to answer any questions I have, at any time during the year, and you'll do whatever I, James, or Remus ask. Or Peter." He added, as if as an afterthought. I actually laughed slightly at that.

"I'd rather take my chances with the rest of your house."

"You won't. Because, in exchange, I'll keep them off of your back. No more tripping you up in the hallway, stealing your stuff, dumping ink on your books and notes, invading your room, dying your clothes red-"

"What?"

"None of that." he grinned. "So what'll it be?"

I pretended to think for a moment. "No."

He grinned. "Excellent! So- wait, what?" he blinked owlishly.

"No."

"But.. What?" He shook his head slowly. "No?"

I snorted. "Do you need a hearing aid, Black? Can you not understand basic words? No, I will not accept your deal."

"I'm not sure what that is, and nothing you're saying is making any sense. No? It's a great deal!"

"You're threatening me. I'll deal with your house, but I'm not doing anything that strikes your fancy just because you threatened to run to your house." He just stood there, staring blankly into space. I slipped away while he tried to process my denial.

... ...

I gritted my teeth as I slowly rose from the grass, looking down blankly at my clothes. Ink covered my entire front, soaking into my clothes. My bag laid where it had fallen on the ground, and I didn't miss that the seams had split cleanly on the bottom, my things scattered on the grass. I flicked my wand, the bag repairing as I muttered the spell and began recovering my books.

As I reached out, the books scooted away from my hands, and I resisted the urge to sigh. This again? Laughter sounded from behind me as I tried to grab for my books and I felt my eye twitch. I turned, wand in hand, but before I could do anything someone offered one of my books.

Remus grinned slightly, kneeling to help pick up the rest of my supplies and handing them to me. I eyed him warily, accepting them quickly before he revealed the catch.

"What did you do?" He asked simply, shooting a glance at the group of Gryffindors- all of whom resorted to glaring to make their point while he was nearby.

"Refused to give into Black's blackmail." I glared back in return, continuing my walk to the tree. He laughed weakly.

"That explains it. He won't give up, you know. You might as well just give in." He said, his voice wavering slightly.

"Nah. They're no more annoying then he is." I hesitated, but didn't comment as I sat down near the lake. He sat down gently next to me, reclining back onto his arms.

"Fair enough. Did you understand McGonagall's assignment? I'm not so sure about my essay, I might not have focused enough on the actual physics of internal transfiguration. Do you mind-"

He kept up basic conversation, and we both avoided mentioning anything important as we ignored the group of Gryffindors watching us from a distance entirely.

"There's no way."

"I swear, he jumped onto the table and cowered. I'll carry the sound of him shrieking to my grave." He grinned.

"Seriously? Black, cowering at the sight of-? He's never living that down."

"Well, to be fair, he has his reasons. When he was little-" He winced suddenly, gasping. I stared at him curiously, and he shot me an apologetic glance before an explosive cough emerged, and he nearly doubled over as he coughed into his hand. I shot forward, hand hovering over his shoulder as I panicked. Was he choking? Should I hit him in the back? Get some help? But he could die by the time someone listens to me, or-

He gasped again, and I spoke hurriedly. "Look, you need to stand up, we've got to get to the Hospital Wing." He just kept his head down, coughs racking his body, and I hesitantly touched his shoulder. "Remu-" A hand shot up from the ground, fingers wrapping around my arm tightly. I winced, feeling the brand underneath his hand burn fiercely. His fingers were tight for a moment, and I could see the muscles in his hand spasming. His shoulders shook harshly, and I tugged on my arm slightly. He resisted, and I grabbed his wrist.

"Lupin, we need to get to the Hospital Wing." He didn't say anything and then, slowly, he nodded, gasping slightly. He shakily rose, leaning heavily as his grip tightened. We only made it a few steps before his legs collapsed, nearly sending us both to the ground before he regained his balance.

"So-" He stumbled again, muscles in his arms spasming. He collapsed, dragging me down next to him. His grip tightened even further before he suddenly let go, coughing once, twice, and then stopping.

"Lupin? Remus!" I shook him, ignoring the flash of pain in my arm as he slowly looked up. "Oi, we need to get up, come on!" He weakly shook his head, waving me away. I looked around, furious that none of the Gryffindors- or anyone, for that matter- was around, all closer to the Black Lake, taking advantage of the warm afternoon.

He remained doubled over for a long moment, his breath slowly evening before he looked up. Guilt and... another emotion I didn't recognize filled his expression as he glanced at my arm. "Oh Merlin.." He grabbed my arm, tugging on the bandages quickly. I choked, yanking it back and holding on the wrappings over my brand.

"What are you doing?" I demanded, but he was, if possible, even paler then before. Following his gaze, I realized that there were marks where he'd latched onto my arm, small crescent-shaped cuts where his nails had cut me. It would be alright in a few days, but he quickly scooted away, horror flashing across his face.

"Merlin, Reed, I'm so-" He clenched his jaw, shaking his head. I sighed, brushing off my skirt and glancing at him.

"Coming? You need some medicine, preferably before you kneel over, which would no doubt lead to me feeling guilty for the rest of my life and getting stoned to death for your death. It would be a short rest of my life." He nodded, keeping his head down as he rose. We walked in silence, and I rewrapped the bandages tightly as he kept a careful distance between us.

As we neared the castle I spoke. "Are you alright?" Even to myself that sounded annoyed and awkward, and I tried to soften my tone. "I mean, has this happened before?" Still awkward. "Are you going to be alright?" I winced, sighing slightly. This was another reason to avoid people.

He laughed slightly, but immediately stopped. "I'll be fine, but... I'm sorry that you had to see that." His shoulders were tense as he walked, and his hands were clenched tightly in his pockets. I caught snippets of him muttering quietly to himself. "Stupid... shouldn't have... should have known better..."

I shrugged, and we get the chance to speak further as we almost literally ran into Potter and Black. The later's eyes widened, and he rushed over to his friend's side.

"Remus! You look awful, what happened?"

"I'm fine, I just feel a little bit sick. We were just on our way to the Hospital Wing." He explained calmly, and I frowned at how easily he lied to them. Shrugging inwardly, I tried to walk away while they were distracted.

"We..?" Potter turned, eyes narrowing as he caught me in mid-step. "Sumner! What did you do to him?" I shot him a glance and made a point in rolling my eyes.

"He started to feel dizzy and almost collapsed. I tried to catch him and fell, leading to him insisting on the both of us needing to go to the Hospital Wing. You can clearly manage getting him there on your own, so I'll just.." I tried to slip away yet again.

"No! You need to see Madam Kingsley about the bruise from.. where you fell. It was my fault, I at least have to make sure that you take a potion for it." I stared at him for a moment.

"I'll go later. It's not nearly as important as your nausea, is it?" He flinched, and I walked away without another word.

... ...

I walked into the Great Hall, not even glancing at the Gryffindor table as I snatched a few rolls off of the table, glancing up out of habit- I froze. My luggage, everything that I'd brought with me, everything that was supposedly in my room, was floating above me. Clothes paraded above the spectator's heads, books zoomed and twirled above the Ravenclaws, the few letters that I'd kept remaining just in sight of everyone, pictures, sheet music, and my flute, all doing little tricks above everyone as they ate breakfast, laughing and pointing. Some people reached up, grabbing letters and laughing amongst each other as they read them. At least none of them were all that important. I sighed, flicking my wand and muttering softly. Nothing. Of course.

Panic grew as I caught sight of my flute- completely unprotected and separate from its case- whiz past, just overhead. I tried to catch it as it flew by, and heard laughter as I jumped to grab it, hoping that it wouldn't break-

It gently floated down, and an apologetic Spring handed it to me before going into a hushed argument with Black. She helped me return all of it to the dungeons.

... ...

I stared at the parchment in front of me blankly, watching as ink dripped from the table.

"Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry, that was a complete accident, I should have been watching where I was going-" she continued on and on, eventually getting out her wand and flicking it, causing the ink to disappear. Along with every essay that I'd finished. Stacks upon stacks of empty parchment sat there, mocking me, as I let the quill fall from my hand and onto the table. Ink again. Why do they always use ink? Every time, without fail... I looked up into the light hazel eyes of a Gryffindor girl, one I'd never seen before.

"Again, I'm really sorry-" the group behind her snickered "- Professor Dumbledore asked me to deliver this. Sorry!" She hurriedly finished apologizing, walking away quickly when I didn't respond. The open letter laid on the desk in front of me, the only paper remaining that was still legible.

... ...

A cheerful voice called for me to enter, and I hesitated for a moment before complying. Dumbledore stood near his desk, looking up as the soft whirring sound of his machines filled the room. On the desk, a familiar old hat sat, much more silent then it had been when I'd seen it before. He turned as I walked in, smiling cheerily.

"Ah, Ms. Sumner! You seem to be coming into my office quite often this year." His eyes twinkled. "With any luck, this time... shall not be quite as troubling as the last. Dramatic, certainly, but not-"

"For goodness' sake, Dumbledore, get on with it." An annoyed voice spoke, and the old man grinned as I stiffened. I hadn't noticed the second person occupying the room, hadn't heard or smelled them. That... had never happened before. But she was undeniably there, leaning against the wall, wearing a uniform and the colors of Ravenclaw. Dark, nearly black bangs slashed across her forehead, partly blocking one eye as she stared at me with a mix of annoyance and curiosity. Her face was lean, and the way he held himself was familiar. Almost like-

"But where are my manners? Ms. Sumner, this is... Angel Love." I glanced at him, raising an eyebrow slightly, and his mouth twitched upwards into a small smile.

"Is there a problem?" The girl snapped I looked back at her, eyebrow raising even further. Her voice was a little deep for a girl.

"Your name is seriously Angel Love?" I asked, skeptical. Honestly, it was stupid. Slightly funny, but still. She shrugged, scowling.

"My parents were cruel and have a poor sense of humor." His scowl deepened as I laughed. He started forward, but whatever he was planning on saying was interrupted by a quiet cough from Dumbledore. Both of our heads shot around, and he smiled slightly.

"Mr. Love, may I introduce you to Reed Sumner? She-" I choked, and he looked at me in polite amusement.

"M-Mister?" I glanced at 'him,' and my shoulders shook as I tried not to laugh. "You're a guy?"

"And you're a female, as far as I can tell. Like I said, my parents are cruel. Problem?" he snapped, glowering at me from the most feminine face I'd ever seen.

"No, not at all." I bit my lip as I tried not to laugh out loud. His scowl deepened, and I couldn't help but let a laugh escape before I could control myself. "Sorry Professor, you were saying?" I asked, struggling to keep a straight face. He smiled in bemusement before continuing.

"Ms. Sumner, Mr. Love has some... shall we say unique circumstances involved in his enrollment so late in the year. Mr. Love, if you would...?" he said, ignoring my snicker. The boy shot me another glare before complying, doing nothing when a new smell filled the room. I stepped back from him immediately, eyes narrowing as he stared at me with a bored expression. Whatever had concealed his scent before was gone, and now the scent of a demon emanated from him, filling the room and covering up anything else as my brand burned.

A/N I'm incredibly sorry for the long delay in between chapters, and I'll be sure to upload several more over the break to make up for lost time. Thank you Awesome PJOHarry, Nizuna Fuieda, FormofJane, Rima-chan, Ash Colored Wings, , KSVamp, ManyNamesMember,sarah0406, and tsukinoume11 for all of your reviews, I hope you review despite the long gap! ^.^"