Fourth Year

The morning we were to go back to school, Ben was very quiet. It wasn't like two years ago when he'd been very tired. We'd all gone to bed early. He'd slept in my room, so I knew he'd slept well enough. I was sure it was because we were all leaving him, but it was also because he was worried. All the way to the train station, Brianne had talked up a storm with Tasha. Even Brenda put her input in with the girls, and at times I thought she didn't like Tasha much, even if she said she'd forgiven her. I was quiet too, but it was because I was concerned about Ben. He just hadn't been himself. I wanted that hyper boy back, not this brooding boy.

I'd written to both Aunt and Helen and Sam. She'd finally relented to hire our tutor, and Ben would spend the days at her place until mum finished her contract. After that, I believed they were taking it back and forth where the boys would be taught. I'd ask Sam to try and keep Ben's mood up and I'd ask Aunt Helen to make sure he didn't brood too much. They'd both written back to assure me that they'd make sure Ben had fun.

At the train station, after we all hugged, I thought I saw unshed tears in Ben's eyes as he stared at Brianne but he didn't cry. He just stood closer to mum as we climbed onto the train. Brianne had chosen a compartment not too far from mine, so she came into mine so we could lean out the window to wave good-bye. Brenda had taken off to the front with Kendra, so clearly they were still friends.

"You'd think she'd want to stay with us long enough to say good-bye," Brianne said.

"You remember who we're talking about right?" I asked. "Besides, it's an unspoken agreement that we stay away from each other most of the time. I mean, sometimes it's okay but most of the time we don't talk.

don't need to follow those rules."

Tasha joined us at the window, and the three of us leaned out the window to say good-bye. I remembered a few years ago for my first year. Both Brianne and Ben had chased after the train. The year after that they'd been too tired, and last year they had but it'd been rainy too, so they couldn't run too far. Now it was just Ben, and I had a feeling he wouldn't chase it this year. He just stared at us waving and put up one hand.

"Move over," we heard someone say and I felt myself squished as Nick too leaned out the window to wave.

The train began to move moments later, and Ben stayed put, but he kept his hand up for a moment before I saw him turn and hug mum. It was a bit of a struggle to pull ourselves back inside.

"I left Harriet and Isabella in my compartment," Brianne said. "I should get back, but I might bug you lot later on."

"I might bother you for being an ickle firstie," Nick called after her as she went out the door.

The three of us sat down, Tasha and me on one side and Nick on the other.

"Heard Philip's mum telling him to stay away from Harry," Nick said as he sprawled out on the seat. "Harry wouldn't talk to him even if Philip wanted him to."

"And speak of the devil," Tasha said as Harry peered into our compartment with Ginny Weasley, and then moved on. "Hey Ginny!" She called out but the two didn't return. "Maybe she didn't hear me. I'll have to ask her. I hope they know we believe them. I'll have to talk to her tomorrow. Those of us who do believe should stick together."

"Well, Harry barely knows us," I said fairly. "He isn't going to want to sit with three people he doesn't know. After the summer he had?"

"You never said how his hearing went," Tasha accused me. "Obviously he got off since he's on the train and all. Last you told me was he was suspended and he might get expelled."

"He got off, but they didn't want to let him off," Nick said lazily. "Yes, my parents know people too. They actually tried him in front of the whole Wizanmagot! Dad thinks the Ministry is going to get even more corrupt and it will help You-Know-Who take over quicker."

"So does my dad," I said. "And I'm sorry Tasha, I've been distracted but you were at my place. You could have asked mum and dad at any time. Dad told me how it went one night when we had hot chocolate together but I've been so worried about Ben and everything else, I forgot about Harry."

"Ben will be fine," Nick said. "He's going to love being the only child for the next few years. Give him a few years to adjust. Soon he'll love that he is the center of attention."

Nick had a point and Ben was still young. He could act older all he wanted, but he was just eight-years-old (well, almost nine) and so he'd adapt. By the time we'd come home, he would be okay with us all being gone even if he did worry too.

Our dorm mates surprised us later on when they came into sit with us. They knew the three of us believed Harry and Dumbledore, so I'd thought for sure we'd all be divided. They tended to bother Luna for believing things that they were barmy after all, and this in their minds was barmy.

"You three aren't the mad ones, Potter is," Ivan said. "Even if you do believe him, we don't consider you mad, just a little naive. We're not going to hate you over it though," but then he sighed. "I wouldn't expect the same from Samaira and Gretchen though. They're very vocal about it all."

"What about Katrina?" Tasha asked.

"Not sure, she was quiet the whole time they were in our compartment. She might be like you lot," Darren said.

"Yes, well, I would think you and Kevin would be more open-minded Ivan," Tasha said. "You two are muggleborn like me."

"I don't want anyone, not even some famous bloke scaring me from Hogwarts," Ivan said. "Look, Potter got a taste of fame last year. Besides, all that stuff about his scar? I know people in his year. He was rolling around on the floor and clutching his scar! Whatever happened in that maze… well, I don't believe he was directly responsible, I mean it was that nutter who was impersonating Mad-Eye, but I think something happened and Potter is feeling guilty about it. Maybe he tried to save Cedric or maybe he saw him die. I think he just finds it easier to blame You-Know-Who."

"Exactly," Philip said. "Something horrible happened in that maze and Potter is just mad and what he saw will probably make him even more mad. He'll use his fame to get the attention he wants. We won't talk about it around you lot if you don't around us. We like you, so we're not going to fight with you over it. So end of discussion."

Nick and I glanced at each other, but we didn't say anything else. The four boys were the naive ones, not us. Anyone who didn't believe Harry was naive and they were going to regret it later on. Instead, I just did what they suggested and changed the subject. I asked them how their summers were instead. Ivan quickly launched into a story about how the four of them went to some muggle amusement park. I was distracted for the moment as they explained about roller coasters and other rides. It actually seemed like a lot of fun. I was jealous.

We were all a lot more cheerful by the time the train got to Hogwarts. The boys had left by that point, and the three of us were still discussing muggle amusement parks. Tasha was telling us about the times she'd gone with her parents to some.

We were all distracted when we got off the train however. Instead of Hagrid who usually led the first years to the castle, it was some woman. A woman, who according to Nick and Tasha had been the one who'd taken over for him the year before.

"Wonder what she is doing back," Tasha said as we picked a carriage. "You don't think he's been fired do you? Remember last year with all that half-giant rubbish?"

"Did your parents say anything?" I asked Nick as I followed him into the carriage.

"Well, I'd have told you by now if they had," Nick said. "But I might have an idea. I'll tell you later," he added as a few third year girls joined us.

"Hello Barry," a blond said grinning at me as she and her friends took seats across from us.

"Er-hi," I replied raising my eyebrows.

They looked familiar, but I knew they weren't Ravenclaws.

"You helped us in the library for our exams," she told me. "Remember when we were in our first year and you were in your second."

"Oh right," I said.

"We should have more of those study sessions," she added and she then started to giggle with her two friends.

I glanced over at Nick and Tasha with astonishment. I was used to girls being attracted to me by this point, but I felt as if they'd sought us out or something. Tasha looked furious for some reason while Nick looked amused.

"Remind me of your names again," I said turning back to them.

"Mary," the blond said and began blinking at me quickly.

"Rita, not to be confused with Rita Skeeter of course," a girl with dark hair told me and then winked.

"You always say that and it's never funny," Mary told her.

Rita just stuck her tongue out at her and then shrugged. I thought Mary had a point, but I wasn't going to say that. It was a rather stupid joke.

"I'm Monica," the last girl with red hair slightly darker than Ginny Weasley's. "You dated Mad Olivia."

"Yes," I said.

"Poor bloke," she said grinning. "She dated a boy in our year last year. He's still confused about her. I don't understand how she keeps getting dates."

"Because she's pretty," Rita said. "Bet that's why you went for her. It's why you went for the girl who could be a model. The one in Gryffindor."

"Well, I need to be attracted to someone," I said with a little annoyance. "You wouldn't date someone you aren't attracted to."

"Why else are you trying to get Barry's attention?" Tasha asked still annoyed.

"We're not trying to get anyone's attention," Monica told her with a smirk and then she looked straight at Nick and then winked at him.

Were they pretending not to flirt? I wondered. It was so obvious what they were doing. I looked over at Nick again who still looked amused. All three were rather cute, but I wasn't sure about them. They seemed almost flighty. Maybe they'd be okay for snog sessions but I wasn't sure about taking them on dates. Maybe that's why they were with us. They were likely hoping I'd ask one of them to Hogsmeade, or maybe even Nick would.

The rest of the ride felt awkward, and I was glad when we got of the carriage. The three girls called good-bye to us and then took off. I'd have to ask Brenda about them later. Of course she didn't like a lot of the people in her year, but she could still give me some input on them.

"So obvious," Tasha said as we walked up the castle steps.

"It was fun though," Nick said and then grinned at me. "So funny how your ex has a rep."

"Well, I hate to agree with them but they're right. The only reason why blokes put up with that is because she's pretty. I dunno why they even bother dating her. She'd be up for just a snog session and yet the blokes date her," Tasha said.

"Maybe they think there is fun in it," Nick said. "You know what they say about the mad ones, especially in bed."

"Right cause you know what that means," I said as I rolled my eyes.

"Don't have to shag to know what it means," Nick said. "I've heard the older kids talk and maybe by now she has shagged."

"No, but she wants to," Tasha said quickly. "I'll bet she's one of the first in our year."

"Really?" Nick asked.

"You're not ready, and you can't do that to Barry," Tasha snapped at him as we entered the Entrance Hall.

"I actually don't really care," I told her.

And I didn't. I'd be jealous that my mate had already shagged. It was something that had been on my mind lately, even though I'd promised my cousins I wouldn't. The year before I hadn't been ready but sometimes I wonder if I was yet. Maybe that meant I wasn't if I was wondering about it though. What about Nick though? Was he being all talk or was he actually ready?

"You two can't actually be thinking about…" Tasha trailed off but she just shook her head.

"I bet you do," Nick said as we walked into the Great Hall. "Most people our age do even if they aren't ready yet. You just don't want to talk about it with us because we're boys."

"This isn't the time for this conversation," Tasha hissed at him. "People are probably listening!"

And then she walked ahead fast over to the Ravenclaw table. We hurried after her, but I doubted people were paying attention to us. I looked around at the people around us scurrying to their seats. No one was looking at us or listening to our conversation. I noticed most people were discussing Hagrid or Harry. Many of them were looking at the Gryffindor table.

When we caught up to Tasha, it was to find her sitting across from Luna. Nick and I sat on either side of Tasha. The two were already talking about summer. Down the table not too far from us were Gretchen, Samaira and Katrina. They were whispering behind their hands and then smirking down at Luna and Tasha. I thought it was more at Luna though. So there would be no holding back when it came to them this year.

"How was your summer Luna?" Nick asked once we sat down.

"Oh it was great," she said with a smile.

"What's going on with them?" I asked as the three girls suddenly let out a high pitched giggled.

"Oh, I sat with Harry Potter and his friends on the train," Luna responded in her usual dreamy voice.

"They're being bitches about it," Tasha said. "They think they were talking about all sorts of mad things, especially since Luna has one of her Quibblers with her. They seem to think they've joined ranks with Luna, even Ginny."

"You got that in a couple of seconds?" Nick asked her.

"They were going at it until I sat down," Tasha said. "But you can bet we're on the same level too."

Luna just shrugged. "Don't sit with me, and they won't bother you. They think we're friends."

"I've told you many times that we are," Tasha told her. "We wrote this summer."

She looked hurt now. I didn't know why Tasha wasted her time on that. I didn't mind talking to Luna and we were never anything but friendly with each other. However, after all these years, Luna still didn't see us as friends. She just thought we were all being friendly with her to just be nice. Tasha took it personally that Luna just didn't see her as a friend.

"It was really nice getting those letters," Luna told her.

Tasha sighed but didn't say anything else. Our dorm mates went and sat with the girls instead of us. The moment they sat down, the three girls leaned forward to whisper to them, and then point down to us.

I thought to myself, but I saw Philip look over at us and then shrug before glancing up at the teachers table.

"Wonder who that woman is?" Nick said as he too looked at the teachers table. "That small one all dressed in pink."

"Must be the new Defense teacher," I said. "Wonder what she'll be like."

"Looks almost like a toad don't you think?" Nick asked.

"That's not nice!" Tasha said. "But that cardigan… it's a bit much."

"Oh it's okay for you to insult her cardigan but I can't say she looks like a toad?" Nick asked with a grin.

"Well, I mean, she can't help how she looks but she can choose her clothes. She's wearing way too much pink and that cardigan is awful. No one should wear it outside their house," Tasha told him.

I had to agree with both of them. She really did look like a toad, and while I didn't pay attention girls fashion (unless they looked really good in their clothes) I had to admit the cardigan was awful. As we discussed her, Brenda and Kendra sat not too far from us. I could hear them talking about the new teacher too. It seemed everyone was in agreement that her cardigan was awful. Even the three girls were giggling about the teacher now.

"Hope the first years hurry up," Nick said. "I'm hungry."

"I am too, but I want to see Brianne be sorted," I said.

"Oh your sister is here now?" Luna asked. "Is she like Brenda who is always very unkind?"

"Brianne is opposite," Tasha told her. "She is a sweetheart. She would never be mean to you if you meet."

Soon, the first years were indeed led in. I sat up straighter trying to locate Brianne. I found her in the middle with Harriet. The two were talking together, and Brianne pointed up at the ceiling. It was cloudy that night. The other first years were looking around the Great Hall looking terrified. I was surprised that Brianne didn't seem scared. The Great Hall, which had been full chatter was suddenly quiet once the first years stopped behind the hat.

Brianne and Harriet both stared at the hat now, and they now looked just as scared as the rest of the people in their year. The hat was quiet for a second, and the rip in the brim opened and it began a very long song. It was so long, and in fact, it actually even warned us! Usually the hat sang a happy song, but it seemed to be serious. How odd. Others looked as shocked as I felt. Even Luna who wasn't bothered by much seemed to find this different. I wondered if she had a barmy explanation for why.

When the hat finished its song, everyone around us began murmuring about the song.

"It knows he's back," Luna whispered looking wide eyed.

I figured she was right about that one. It did sit in Dumbledores office after all. It knew everything that was going on. Professor McGonagall was now glaring over at everyone who was whispering, and the Great Hall went silent again.

I clapped for every Ravenclaw that was sorted into our house. I glanced over at Brenda to see that she was sitting up straighter to watch Brianne. It took a little bit, but finally they called out:

"Hoofer, Brianne!"

I heard Gretchen snort.

"Hoofer's must be in competition with the Weasley's," she whispered really loud.

Thankfully no one laughed, but I did glare down at her. She knew how many siblings I had. She was just being a bitch for whatever reason. I looked back at Brianne as she made her way to the stool. She climbed on it and then Professor McGongall dropped the hat on her head. It saw on her head for maybe thirty seconds before it called out:

"RAVENCLAW!"

Brianne handed the hat back to McGonagall and then ran over to the end of the table. I clapped loudly for her as I watched her greet the kids around her happily. She was going to make friends so easily I thought. Some more kids went after her before Harriet went next.

"Keller, Harriet!"

Harriet went over to the stool just as enthusiastically as Brianne had. Professor McGonagall put the hat on her head, and it didn't on her head long before it shouted out:

"Ravenclaw!"

I was relieved about this. Brianne had a best friend already in her year. Harriet ran over to the table and took a seat beside Brianne. The two put their heads together and began whispering excitedly. Happy for my little sister, I watched the rest of the sorting, clapping at the right time. Sometimes during the sortings, the older kids would hiss at some of the Slytherin's. I couldn't help but notice that there was more hissing that year. The hat had just told us that we needed house unity, and this was the opposite. They were judging these kids before they had a chance.

"So much for house unity," I heard Tasha mutter.

Once everyone was sorted, Dumbledore told us that he'd give the speech later, and to tuck in. Nick let out an excited noise when the food appeared. Now that Brianne was sorted, I was excited about the food too. I began filling my plates excitedly just as he did.

"Hey Hoofer," Gretchen called down to us. "So are your parents trying to compete with the Weasley's or what? How many more are coming? Ten?"

She burst into loud giggles.

"You're not funny," Philip said. "You're a moron in fact. Shut up."

"What?" She asked. "He's got like twenty brothers and sisters."

No one else laughed though. In fact, I thought the four boys were regretting their decision to sit with them instead of with us. We may be naive in their eyes, but they still disliked Gretchen. She continued to try and get people to laugh while the boys told her to shut up. Finally, Philip slammed his fork down on his plate.

"I'm done," he said.

He grabbed his plate, and then stood up and walked over to sit with us. Ivan got up moments later to sit with us as well, but Darren and Kevin remained where they were.

"Stop," I heard Darren tell Gretchen. "Or else we're done."

"They're dating?" Nick hissed at Philip.

"It won't last," Philip said with a shrug. "Darren just thought he couldn't get anyone else. It started before term ended last year. We've told him we'll find him a better girlfriend, but he hasn't listened. I can't see him putting up with that attitude for long though. It's why we sat with them. He thinks that since they've- well, he thinks she's a good one just because."

"Tell me they didn't," Tasha said seeming to understand something I didn't, or Nick who glanced at her in confusion.

"They did," Philip said.

"No!" Tasha said. "No way. Is he stupid? Is she?"

"What happened?" Nick asked.

"Later," Philip said.

But given Tasha's reaction, something was dawning on me as well. I glanced over at Gretchen who was now poking at her food. Darren was glaring at her. He was with her because he didn't think he could get anyone, and given her attitude he was staying because-

"No!" I said. "So they're the first ones?"

"That we know of," Ivan said. "But keep your voice down. People are looking over at us now. We'll talk about it later."

"But they're fourteen!" Tasha said.

"Lucky bloke," Nick muttered finally catching on. He bit into a drumstick.

"It's Gretchen," Philip muttered.

"Doesn't matter," Nick said. "You would too I bet."

"Nope. I have standards. I don't care if I'm the last to ever have it. Never with her. Darren can do so much better and she threatens him with that now," Philip said in a low voice. "But I think he must be coming to his senses, especially since he just threatened her and he seemed so annoyed with her on the train."

"Why didn't you tell on us on the train?" I asked. "We could have talked about it then."

"I dunno. We'll talk later," Ivan said.

Luna was listening to our conversation but it didn't seem to disturb her or shock her. Maybe she wasn't too surprised knowing that two of our housemates had shagged already. I didn't know what to feel. Part of me felt jealous that Darren already had it, but on the other hand, it was with Gretchen. I wouldn't be able to snog her let along shag her. And not to be sappy, but shouldn't you feel something for the person, especially if it was the first time?

Darren didn't like Gretchen, I could tell as I looked over at him. She was whispering with the girls now and he was staring at her with such dislike. He was awkward, but he could do better than her! Forget the fact that she wasn't close to pretty. That could be made up if the girl was sweet enough, like Anita for instance. The two girls were probably close in looks, but Anita was such a great girl. If I hadn't gone for Glenda, and I just knew her personally, I could actually go for her.

"Dormitory then," Nick muttered.

"I'll have to sneak up then," Tasha whispered back. "I want to hear this too."

"Might want to warn him," Ivan said to Philip with a grin.

"Whatever, he deserves it for even dating that wench," Philip said. "Layla would be better than Gretchen. She's not so pretty, but she's actually not that bad as a person. He can do better than both of them though."

"Well, that will be our mission this year," I said. "We'll look for an appropriate girl for Darren."

"Your sister likes him you know," Luna suddenly said.

We all looked over at her with surprise. She'd been quiet for most of the dinner so far. She'd mainly listened in on our conversations, and maybe put in a word or two but for the most part she was quiet.

"She does not," I said. "Why would you think that?"

"She stares at him all the time but I overheard her telling Kendra about it last year," she told me. "She is very jealous that he's with Gretchen right now. Look at her."

I looked over at Brenda. She indeed was giving Gretchen the stink-eye.

"It's probably cause of the Hoofer comments," I said.

"No she likes him and she is angry about that, but she is also angry that he's with Gretchen," Luna replied.

"We could always find that out for sure," Tasha said.

"But she's my sister," I said. "She's too young."

"You were younger when you started to date mate," Nick said. "And Darren isn't a bad bloke. You know he isn't."

"But he has shagged," I said through gritted teeth. "She hasn't been with anyone. She's still innocent."

"Mate," Ivan began with a sigh. "It may be hard for you to believe, because it was hard for us too at first, but it was Gretchen who pressured Darren. He didn't think he was ready for it yet, but she kept pestering him. We didn't believe it because well, he's the bloke. How many blokes need pressuring from their girlfriends to do that?"

"But we think it was her way to manipulate him," Philip continued in a whisper. "Just think of the way she is. We believed him after a while. I dunno if he would go for Brenda, but maybe he might since he's putting up with Gretchen's attitude and don't hex me for saying this, but your sister is good-looking. He would never force her to do anything she isn't comfortable with. You can't judge the bloke for shagging."

I sighed.

"I suppose but it still makes me uncomfortable," I said.

"She's going to date sometime and it's better a friend than someone you don't know," Luna told me. "Darren won't hurt her. It would be the other way around."

"She's right," Tasha told me.

"We'll talk about it later," I said. "But the whole thing makes me uncomfortable."

I didn't want Brenda dating just like I didn't want Tasha dating. Someday Brianne would date too, and I would hate that. In fact, it bothered me more than it did with Brenda. I glanced down at my little sister who was talking happily with all the first years. She was still young but a year from now she'd probably show some interest in boys. I would rather Brenda date than her, and Luna was right after all. Darren was a good bloke and it probably would be Brenda who would hurt him, not the other way around.

"She can't stay single forever mate," Philip muttered. "And as much as she can be too much, I'd rather him with her and I know you'd rather her with him then some random."

"I guess so," I said. "I never thought Brenda would want to date this young. I always thought she'd wait until her fifth or sixth year at least."

"Well I thought the same thing," Tasha said. "You change your mind after a while. Just relax Barry. She'll be fine and he may not even like her."

But I didn't want her to get rejected either. I liked Luna, but I wished she had spoken up. I knew she just meant well though, and Luna always spoke the truth. She was just being her usual self, so I could be angry with her.

Dinner soon ended, and Professor Dumbledore stood up to make the usual start of term announcements. He told us the usual announcements involving the rules, and Filch's rules. He then moved on to the new teachers at Hogwarts. He introduced the new Defense teacher as Professor Umbridge. There wasn't much applause for either her or the teacher who would was taking over for Hagrid.

As Dumbledore moved onto tell us about Quidditch try-outs, Umbridge actually stood up and interrupted him. Some people began to snicker or smirk. Clearly she didn't realize that she should wait for Professor Dumbledore to finish. He, however was polite, and sat down to let her say what she had to say.

The moment she began to talk, I felt instant dislike for her. She was talking to us as if Hogwarts was full of a bunch of five-year-olds instead of teenagers. Ben was even too old for the way she was talking to us. Most people stared back at her unimpressed. I could see Philip and Ivan were exchanging looks. She cleared her throat and then went onto some boring spew about the Ministry of magic.

"Who is this woman?" Philip asked.

"Some Ministry hag," Nick said.

"I don't like her," Tasha said.

Around us, people began talking. I glanced down the table at Brianne again to see that she was trying to listen, but just couldn't. She stretched and then turned to talk Harriet. The other first years began talk as well. Looking around the Great Hall, it was to see that most people were talking. Professor Umbridge didn't seem to notice or even care. Luna was reading one of her fathers magazines.

"I have a feeling she is going to be a dud," I said with a sigh. "She's going to be one of those useless teachers I bet. Probably worse than Lockhart."

"Likely," Nick said. "Bet she'll make us learn wand safety or something dull."

"Considering she is talking to us like we're children, it will be how to hold a wand," Philip said.

"Why can't this school hire real teachers?" Tasha asked.

"Dumbledore didn't hire her. The Ministry did which explains everything," I said but I didn't elaborate on why, not with this lot around.

By the time she finished talking, barely anyone was listening and everyone was surprised when she was done talking, no one realized it at first until Dumbledore started to clap. Very few people joined in and then Dumbledore stood up to finish up the rest of the announcements. I just couldn't believe we had another horrible teacher. It was just a year before fifth year. We needed a good teacher, and unfortunately, it seemed that once again, we wouldn't.

Once we were dismissed, we all got up. Around us, people were complaining about Professor Umbridge. Some of the loudest complainers were coming from the fifth and seventh years, and I couldn't blame them. How were they supposed to be prepared for their OWLs and NEWTs?

"Maybe we're just judging her prematurely," Tasha said. "Maybe she is just nervous."

"She wasn't nervous," I heard Brenda say behind us once we reached the Entrance Hall. I paused to look back at her, people continued to walk around us. "I think I am one of the few who actually listened to her," she continued.

"Well, I mean, it was kind of hard," Nick said to her as he stopped as well.

"I know, but what she said we

be worried about," Brenda said in a lower voice. "Especially after what mum and dad said. Even the Sorting Hat senses his return but the Ministry is refusing to believe it."

"Well we already guessed that," I said. "What does what she said have to do with any of it?"

"Because," Brenda said in an even lower voice so we had to strain to hear her. People were still walking past us. "The Ministry is trying to interfere at Hogwarts. She basically said they are going to change things and get rid of certain things!"

"You got that out of all that gibberish?" Kendra asked her.

"Yes," Brenda responded. "And after what mum and dad said, we should all be worried! Which means," she hissed looked straight at me. "No rule breaking this year! Not with that woman around. I'm sorry Barry, I can't help you out this year. Even if you go through another break up! We all need to be on our guard."

And without another word, she walked off with Kendra rushing after her.

"In other words," Nick began once she'd disappeared, "she is going back to ratting people out again. So we're going to have to be very careful with her around."

"But maybe we should be careful," Tasha said who'd kept quiet. "I mean, if Brenda is right, what if she is the type to just expel people for no reason?"

"We should get to the common room," I replied dully. "I want to see how Brianne is."

I had a feeling that Tasha and Brenda were right. Not that I did a lot of rule breaking, but I did worry a bit. I wondered what Ralph and Chester thought. They were in the seventh year now, and they would be taking their NEWTs soon. We took the secret passageways until we reached the spiraling staircase that would take us up to the common room. I was hoping Brianne hadn't gone to bed yet, and if she had, that Chester and Ralph would still be up.

Sure enough, when we finally entered, it was to find the common room almost full. The topic of conversation was of course about Unbridge. I saw Brianne, Harriet, and Isabella whispering together, so I hurried over to them.

"So you're finally seeing the common room," I said to her with a grin.

"Three down, one to go," Brianne said to me. "I never imagined it to be this beautiful," she said. "I see what you mean about it being airy and all the bookcases! Ooh this is almost how I wanted my bedroom to look! Remember that? I mean not round obviously, but with the starry ceiling, the colour of the carpets and the bookcase niche!"

"I know," I said with a smile. "I kept some of it secret. I asked Brenda to as well, and I am glad she did. I remember when you drew that picture. You should keep some of it secret for Benny- er Ben now."

Years ago, Brianne had drawn a picture of how she wanted her room to look and it was similar to the Ravenclaw common room. She'd wanted glow in the dark stars on the ceiling, blue carpet, a little niche with bookshelves so she could read, and Ravenclaw banners. Brenda had thrown a stink about it however. Even with the divider, Brenda didn't want it. Now Brianne's dream was coming true, and I had a feeling that she was going to beg mum and dad to change her side of the room now. Brenda was across the room, and Brianne was staring over at her determinedly.

"Someday, my room is going to look like this," she said confirming my thoughts. "Even if I have to wait until I'm bigger and I have my own place. I'm talking to mum and dad at Christmas though! Maybe I can do it when Brenda moves out."

"Hate to break it to you," Nick told her. "But I think Brenda will be there much longer than you. From what she has said, she doesn't plan to move out until she is twenty-five."

"Wait what?" I asked looking at Nick.

"Why?" Brianne asked making a face. "I'm moving out when I'm done Hogwarts. I love mum and dad and I love our house but I want my own space!"

"I think I know why," I said but I didn't explain why in case Brianne hadn't told Isabella and Harriet about the trust funds we would get for our twenty-fifth birthdays.

I glanced over at my sister with surprise. She appeared to be arguing with a couple of second year boys now. She wanted to be a freeloader. I wasn't going to say anything to her or mum and dad. It would be up to them to say something to her. Our parents never wanted us to think we should rely on the family money. It was actually the reason why our late grandparents wanted us to wait until we were twenty-five. They wanted us to learn responsibility and to earn money on our own.

"Mum and dad won't like that," Brianne said, again, sensing what I had been thinking.

"Don't say anything to her or mum and dad," I told her. "Let them all deal with it on their own."

"Okay you lot," we heard someone shout to everyone in the common room and I turned to see it was my own cousin, Chester. "Time for bed. You have all school year to catch up!"

"He was made Head Boy?" Tasha asked. "I wonder how Ralph feels about that."

"Knowing Ralph, he turned it down," I said. "He likes being a prefect, but being a Head would take up to much of his time. I think he wants to work in the Department of Mysteries someday. He won't want anything distracting him. Chester just wants a Ministry job. We should go up," and then I looked back at Brianne. "Make sure you tell me how classes are for you."

"I will," she said smiling. "See you tomorrow, Barry."

There was a bit of a line up to get into the dorms. As we made our way, it made me remember that we were going to talk to the boys about Gretchen and Darren. I still wasn't too sure about pairing with him with my little sister, but the others were right, I had to get used to the idea of her dating. And perhaps a bit of snogging would calm her down.