Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my OCs and the plot. JKR owns the rest.

Thanks to my awesome beta everybody-knows55!

June 6, 2018

Lisa's Dorm

"Thanks for getting them to let me in, Alex," Lisa told her friend as she packed her trunk. "I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to get in and get my things."

"No problem. They just had to be reminded that I know some of their secrets from back when I was friends with them. Not that I was going to actually do anything with them." Alex leaned on the bedpost, rolling her eyes. "They should know me better. I did hang out with them for three months, not to mention that I'm a Hufflepuff."

"I do think that was a bit mean though," Lisa said as she reached under her bed for some runaway socks, "They looked upset."

"Lisa," Alex gave her a look, "they've been horrid to you all year and to me since January. They deserved it."

"I guess. I just understand why they wouldn't want their secrets told. I wouldn't want mine, and neither would you. They had no way of knowing you were faking."

A strange look passed over Alex's face when Lisa mentioned her secrets, but it passed before Lisa noticed it. "Fine. It may have been a bit mean but they deserved it."

"I think I'm done now. Do you see anything I missed?" Lisa stood up from the trunk and glanced around the room.

Alex looked as well, as she knew that anything of Lisa's left in the open would probably be destroyed. She didn't see anything though so she returned her gaze to Lisa's trunk. It was in poor condition, even worse than her own trunk (Alex's had been used by many of the orphanage's former charges). The trunk was only half-filled with all of Lisa's things in it: worn and torn robes, a few casual clothes (mostly gifts from Celia and Rose), used textbooks, and not much else. Alex at least had a few personal things in hers: a picture of her parents (always hidden) and a worn copy of her favourite book.

"I think I got everything, then," Lisa said, breaking Alex from her thoughts. "If they don't let me in again, I'll sleep in the common room, probably. If that happens, could you bring my trunk down tomorrow?"

"They wouldn't dare," Alex growled. Lisa was used to this and just gave her a look.

"Yeah, they would. They've done it before, they'll do it again. So will you?"

Alex gave an angry sigh and nodded.

"I'm going to go see the group. Do you want to come?" Lisa said as she walked toward the door, 'the group' referring to Rose, Scorpius, Celia, and Eric.

"No thanks. I'd be intruding on your special thing." Alex had noticed, as had Tabby, that the five had that 'thing' between them, that indefinable thing that made the best friendships. The Marauders had had it, the Golden Trio still had it, and the 'group' had it.

"We don't have a 'special thing'." Of course, no one from the group could see that they had 'it'.

"No one will mind, Alex. You've hung out with us before," Lisa continued. After everyone had gotten over the whole 'ignoring Lisa for three months' thing, Alex had made friends with the others. She and Rose had particularly hit it off, bonding over the whole injustice thing.

"No, you go. I've got to finish packing anyway." Alex gestured to all of her clothes that were still strewn around the room. "We'll hang later."

As Lisa left the room, Alex called from behind, "You know, if they won't let you in, I think I'll join you for a slumber party in the common room!"

Lisa just grinned.

Celia's Dorm

Of course, Celia was already finished packing. Her trunk was filled with neatly folded robes, matching pairs of rolled socks and alphabetized textbooks.

It was for this reason that she was grinning as she watched Tabby run around panicking as she tried to pack.

"You shouldn't have left it this late. I told you–"

"If you finish that sentence, I will never talk to you again," Tabby interrupted, as she began to search behind her bed.

"Is that a threat or a promise?" Celia teased.

Tabby's only response was to glare.

The door opened and Alisa and Tanisha walked in.

"Oh, is she still tearing apart the room?" Tanisha rolled her eyes, though she carefully avoided looking at Celia.

The pug twins (Celia had started using Tabby's name for Vadim and Viola) had kept up their ban on Celia, and Tanisha being who she was still followed it. Celia knew though that Tanisha really didn't believe it, as she would talk to Celia in the dorm though she tried to avoid looking at her. (Tanisha thought that the twins had ways to know what went on in the dorms.)

Alisa didn't take it that far. She didn't openly talk with Celia as Tabby did, but she would chat and gossip when they were alone and she would study with them.

"What is she even looking for?" Alisa asked Celia.

"I don't even know," she admitted. "Hey, Tabby!" She called to the girl under the bed.

"Ow!" Tabby banged her head as she tried to get out from under her bed. "What do you want, Celia?" She rubbed her head, annoyed.

"Alisa wanted to know what you're looking for."

"My wand." She glared at the others as the burst out laughing. "What? What's so funny?"

"It's….just…wand," Celia managed to choke out while laughing.

"Spit it out!" Tabby cried.

"It's in…your…."

"Where!"

"Hair!" Alisa burst out. "It's in your HAIR!" The girls collapsed into laughter again.

Tabby had styled her hair into a messy bun this morning and had complained about the lack of styling sticks to hold it. She had improvised…

Her face turned red as she reached behind her head and felt her wand holding her bun in place. "Oh…well, problem solved then…"

"Well, as amusing as this has been," Celia started as she stood up from her bed, "I have to go meet with the group. Want to come, Tabby?"

"Nope," Tabby muttered, still looking away from the others, "You're going to tell everyone about this and I don't want to listen to more laughing at my expense." Celia rolled her eyes. Tabby always tried to get sympathy by acting hurt, though she obviously wasn't.

"Anyway," Tabby continued, "I have to finish packing."

"Is that what you call packing? Throwing all your things and some of ours into your trunk in no order at all and then slamming it shut?"

"Yes. Now leave with your hurtful criticism before I throw this heavy History of Magic textbook at you," she threatened, lifting up said textbook.

"I will then. And that's my textbook," Celia pointed out.

"I'll make sure she only packs her things." Alisa stepped in before a fight between the two friends started. Celia smiled at the look of fake outrage on Tabby's face and left the room.

She just heard, "Alisa, I'm hurt that you would even suggest…" before the door slammed shut.

Scorpius and Eric

Scorpius muttered the locking charm over his packed trunk as Eric did the same on his. Hopefully, it would stop their dorm mates from ruining their possessions.

"Let's go before they get back from lunch," Scorpius said.

"I think you should just let me hex that Will. It's the last day of the school year. What can they do?"

"Professor Flitwick would just give you detention for next year. And probably ban you from the end of year feast," Scorpius pointed out. Eric gave up in the face of this logic, and then brightened.

"I'll get him on the train!" Eric smiled at this thought.

"How will you find him?"

"Must you rain on my parade?" Eric glared at his friend.

"That's my job," Scorpius replied cheerfully.

"To ruin my fun?"

"No. To keep you from carrying out your stupid ideas. For a Ravenclaw, you seem to have a lot of them."

"My ideas are not stupid!" Eric protested, "They are just feared by a world that is not ready for their brilliance!"

"Right."

"Shut it!"

"Let's just go find the others, O Brilliant One. I bet we're late."

"And whose fault is that?" Eric asked sarcastically.

"Yours actually. You took forever looking at that picture of Carey Collins," Scorpius pointed out.

"Shut it!"

Rose's Dorm

Rose looked at her watch impatiently. It was nearly time for her to go hang out with the group and she was stuck here pretending to pack so her family wouldn't be able to grab her. They had been getting better at that, mainly because James had stolen the Marauders Map over Christmas Break.

She really needed to find the Room of Requirement next year so she could hang out with her friends without her family charging in, grabbing her away, and tormenting her friends. It was a huge pain.

The only one who wasn't actually taking part in this was Victoire. She told James that she was busy with Head Girl duties, though Rose could tell that Victoire didn't really approve of what the rest of the family was doing. She didn't count on Victoire doing anything though as Vic had a very strong self-preservation instinct and nothing was more harmful than going against the Weasley family. Luckily, Rose didn't have that instinct.

Rose took out her To Do list and added something to it. The list read:

Things to do before second year

Steal Map from James

Find out Room of Requirement location from Uncle George

Find a way to meet up with group at least once

Try to get Teddy to meet group

Get Teddy to get Victoire to meet group

She peeked out the door to see if Roxy and James were still waiting in the common room. They were.

I guess it's time to work on #1, Rose thought as she opened her window. She made sure she had her wand ready and secure. Then she climbed out on the outside ledge that circled the tower.

Don't look down, don't look down…Rose thought as she carefully edged her way over to the open window of the second year boy's dorm. Thankfully it was empty, as everyone was probably still at lunch. She climbed in and went over to James's trunk. She didn't even have to search long, as it was in the first place she looked: the secret compartment in the lid of his trunk. She rolled her eyes, because everyone in the family knew about that compartment as James kept bragging about it. Git.

So now, she had it, the Marauders Map. With an "I solemnly swear I am up to no good" the map appeared and showed Scorpius and Eric waiting under the tree, Lisa walking across the grounds toward it, and Celia walking through the halls. It also showed James and Albus in the common room and Roxy walking up to Rose' dorm. Looked like she had gotten out just in time.

She made sure the room looked exactly the same as it did before and climbed out the window and onto the ledge again. This was not the first time that Rose had done this and she thought she probably wasn't the only one who did it, though she was almost certainly the only first year. The roof of the castle was actually a great place to hang out because no one bothered you up there. No teachers, so there was no one to catch you after you were supposed to be in bed and no ghosts or Peeves either. She wished her friends would join her up there but Lisa and Scorpius would never be able to do it and Celia and Lisa weren't in the towers anyway. And Eric…well, Rose had enough sense not to mention it to him.

She walked over to the edge of the roof, near the astronomy tower. On one side of the tower, nearly hidden by ivy, was the opening to a slide that would carry a student all the way to the grounds, charmed so no one would get hurt. Rose jumped, in hoping that she wouldn't be the last one there so they wouldn't tease her about her tardiness as well as her supposed clumsiness.

There's no way I'm clumsy! I can make it all the way around a narrow ledge that's at least nine stories high. So not clumsy! Rose thought as she made her way toward the tree.

And then she tripped.