A/N- Meeting with the exorcists next chapter! Hope your exciiiited :P I am. Apologies for the lack of length- next will be big I promise :) Hope you all had a phabby Christmas. Congratulating and surviving the Mayan calander...

Sonnenfrost- Good point... I will put one in actually, I sort have quite a nice idea in my head. I guess I am just a bit nervous, he isn't the easiest character to write but I will try :)

Raychael Dionzeros- Thank you! I tried to make that chapter as light as possible- I notice most my chapters are pretty depressing (this one is no exception) so its nice to throw in a few silly chapters :)

Guest- I didn't really forget, I just didn't really think it was useful to the story to add it in as an afterthought and I wanted the focus to be the run up to Christmas and the pranks rather than think up some birthday scene. I'm really glad you enjoyed the story :D

PoisonousDemon- I know, I'm really sorry- I've been laptop-less for a month now so I wrote and published that on my ipod which is not easy- they layout is pretty hard to figure out. Please tell me if its better this time :)

Oragamilotus- I WANT COOOOOOOKIES! Totally sympathise though- my plans for this weekend are also baking with my little sister :S Should be fun! Yeah, the twins are so much fun to write- though they are mean to poor little Allen :P

Diavo- Aww, hope your feeling better and I'm glad I cheered you up- Lucky you being in Africa though! Forgive me for getting a little fangirliish about it but I love Africa (I know thats rather broad- rather I love where I've been in Africa) I went on holiday to Botswana a few years ago and I'm away to Ghana this summers as a charity thing to build a hospital. My plan is actually to move out there for a while at least after I graduate from my nursing programme... anway enough rambling. Hope you had a great time and a wonderful christmas :)

Lisel- Oh I knew, Mai is pretty frightening and she seems to have a bit of an obsession with poor little Harry

Harry had ony been to one lesson with Proffesor Lupin when Allen returned early from one of his trips, trembling and even paler than he normally was. He didn't say much all night, just asked Harry if he could join on the next lesson and then fell into a brooding silence, staring unseeingly into the fire and shivering every now and again, as if some chilled breeze had swept through the room. Harry was rather relieved to see that it was not only him that reacted so strongly to the dementors presense but he very quickly began to rather regret having invited Allen along. By the end of his first lesson, he had already produced what Lupin called a 'corporeal' patronus and Harry was still struggling to produce so much as a vapor. His Patronus was a shining silver wolf and Harry couldn't help but feel a little jelous as it soared gracefully around the room a few times before trotting over to Allen's side like an obedient dog. Allen himself was to thrilled to notice Harry's annoyance and he seemed very taken by the animal, announcing to each of his friends separately- as Ron and Harry were still refusing to talk to Hermione- that it was in fact an Arctic wolf and then he continued to reel of a long list of interesting facts that bored even Hermione by the third or fourth repetition. Harry and Allen's roles however completely reversed when it came to fighting against the boggart. If anything, Allen's reaction to the faux dementor was more violent than Harry's. It's effects didn't seem to fade much either and Harry had been woken on more than one occasion with Allen crying out in his sleep from some nightmare or other. At the end of one of their lessons, after Allen had left, Harry asked Lupin a question that had been weighing on him for a while

"Sir, why do the dementors have such an effect on Allen and I?" Lupin sighed and sat down

"Both you and Allen have horrors in your past that most adults don't have. The dementors use your past as a weapon against you so it is no surprise that they effect you two more so than your classmates" Harry nodded thoughtfully then after a short pause he tentatively said "And why do they effect Allen more than me?" Lupin ran his fingers through his greying hair and seemed to think long and hard about the answer, choosing his words carefully

"Allen was older than you when his particular tragedy struck him, not only had he therefore formed a closer bond with his father (1) but he was also more aware of what was going on and therefore his memories are not only clearer but also hold somewhat stronger emotion than perhaps yours- not of course that this minimises your pain from your past. It's just different" Harry nodded, all feelings of jealousy completely disappearing

Allen was rounding the corridor to Mai's room when he bumped into Rhamnella. He apologised profusely but she waved away his niceties

"I've been meaning to talk to you anyway. Let's go in here" She gripped his arm and marched him into one of the empty classrooms, lighting the chandelier with a flick of her wand. She gestured wordlessly to a chair and sat in her own, ramrod strait, with a rather severe expression on her face

"I wan't Mai to go to a proper primary school" She stated with no preamble, staring expectantly at Allen, clearly expecting some sort of reply. Allen wasn't capable of speech for a few seconds, so stunned he was by the curveball. He mouthed wordlessly trying to come up with an elegant argument however, as usual, his brain failed him

"With all due respect ma'am, no. I made a deal with Dumbledore- Mai and I were not to be separated, I've had her taken of me once already and I will not let it happen again. She stays here. That is final" His voice shook slightly at the end and he struggled to keep his voice level. Rhamnella just shook her head and pursed her lips

"I was afraid you would take this stance. She is a child, not a plaything. She needs to be with children of her own age- it's not healthy for her to be surrounded by those so much older than her" Allen literally reeled with this verbal blow, leaning back on his seat, the blood draining out of his face and he replied in a tone so frosty you could practically feel the room's temperature drop

"I raised Mai on my own from she was but a few days old. I fed her and cared after her on the streets of Japan, slaving so that I could care for her and foregoing food so that she would have enough to eat. You have no idea what we went through. Plaything? I love that child more than my own life and you say plaything?" He let out a bitter laugh and before he did something he would regret, he strode out of the room, resisting the temptation to slam the door in a fit of rage

That night, Harry was struggling to sleep again, memories of his parents swirling maddeningly around in his head. He head a rustle from Allen's bed and he curiously poked his head around the curtains of the four poster. Allen was pulling clothes on over his pyjamas, obviously struggling to sleep. Harry rolled back over into his bed. He would never understand how Allen had the willpower to leave his warm bed to go outside in the wintertime. It struck him just he was settling down to sleep that Allen had looked rather strange- his usually ivory white skin had seemed almost... gray. Harry dismissed the thought as drowsiness finally crept over him. Must've been a trick of the light or something.

If he had continued to watch his friend, he might have been rather more concerned. Allen walked rather zombie-like, still half asleep to the end of the dorm, reaching out confidently for the door handle at the wrong part of the wall. His brow wrinkled slightly in confusion but after feeling about for one he eventually found the door and strode confidently through, nearly falling down the steps, completely misjudging where they were. He made his way down to the common room and seemed to get his bearings back and although it took some time to navigate his way through the portrait hole, he strode purposefully through the school, till once again he seemed not to notice a set of stairs. He jerked suddenly as he caught himself and he seemed to snap out of a trance. He looked around himself in confusion and slowly made his way back to the common room, glancing around him as if expecting someone to jump out and tell him it had been a practical joke. The moonlight shone over his pale face but he eventually seemed to dismiss it, sinking back into his four poster and falling immediately into a deep sleep

(1)- They still think Mana was Allen's father

for those of you who are interested, I chose a Wolf as his patronus as they are pack animals and are very loyal to their group. I chose arctic wolf purely because they are pretty. And white :P