September 2nd, 1996. Thursday.

Selena took a bite of buttered toast and looked up at the enchanted ceiling above the buzzing Great Hall. The ceiling today was a pure, promising blue.

The Gryffindor witch smiled. She loved the magic here in dining hall. The ceiling almost looked like a skylight, revealing the same beautiful day as the many windows lining the large room. Everyone was up early for the First-Day-of-Term and all the four House tables were full. Selena patted her hair in its French plait. She had woken up early to try a new style for the first day.

"She's coming," Renee hissed, snapping Selena from her thoughts.

She glanced to the right where her friend was looking.

Professor McGonagall swept down the Gryffindor Table, her emerald robes swirling around her black heeled shoes. The Transfiguration professor was the Head of Gryffindor House, and therefore distributing timetables was her responsibility.

"Fingers crossed we don't get Snape first period," Renee said. She shoveled a coop of eggs into her mouth and washed it down with a gulp of juice.

Selena flashed her crossed fingers. "With any luck we'll have Charms."

Professor McGonagall finally reached them, her gray eyes sharp behind her rectangular glasses as she scanned each student. "Right then, Fourth Year, let's see... Miss Underwood, Miss Hatten, there you are, Miss Hearts and Miss Pierce, and finally, there you go, Miss Malast."

The girls chimed their thank you before Renee yanked her scroll open, nearly elbowing Elizabeth in the head.

Selena giggled as she watched Renee's golden eyes feverishly scan the parchment before she groaned. "It's Defense Against the Dark Arts first!"

"Way to go, Ree, you jinxed it," Alisson grumbled.

Selena bit her lip. Having Professor Snape first thing in the morning wasn't exactly her idea of a brilliant start to the day, but at least now she felt a bizarre excitement for Potions. None of the Gryffindors had really enjoyed it before what with Professor Snape always taking points from their House and snapping at the Gryffindors. Now, though, Professor Slughorn might actually make the class interesting.

She scanned her schedule, pleased to see that Transfiguration, her favorite class, was second. Unfortunately, much to Selena's disappointment, they wouldn't have Potions until tomorrow.

"Divination today!" Tess said excitedly.

"Oh Merlin, Tess," Alisson replied as she rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me you're still hung up on that centaur still, are you?"

Tess pursed her rosebud lips. "I wouldn't expect you to understand, you always fall asleep in Divination anyways."

"Well, at least Firenze is better than that batty-in-the-head Trelawney," Alisson admitted. "Barely."

Selena stifled a laugh in her goblet as Tess shot Alisson a look.

20 Minutes Later

The door to Classroom 3C was open.

Bronwen was already there, peering inside curiously.

"Hey, Bronnie," Selena chirped as she reached Bronwen first. Tess and Alisson were quick behind her.

The Ravenclaw turned, her dark brows pinched together. She pushed a lock of "Hey, guys. I don't know if anyone's here. Should we just... go in? It's like night in there, but somebody lit candles. Maybe it's been moved to another classroom?"

Selena peered around Bronwen, realizing what she meant. Inside, the classroom was dark save for candles around the room lighting it in a gloomy glow.

Elizabeth bravely took a step into the classroom, blinking before turning and walking back out. "I think someone blocked off the windows." She shrugged. "Maybe it was Peeves during breakfast?"

"I thought Ravenclaws were supposed to be smart," a familiar voice called. "Can't figure out a door now, Lovell?"

Selena and the others turned to find none other than Maryana Callahan sashaying down the Serpentine Corridor like it was a catwalk. Behind Maryana was her ever-present shadow, Astoria Greengrass, looking almost as green as their emerald-striped ties. Astoria clearly remembered their exchange at the bookstore on Diagon Alley a week ago. Selena bit back a smug smile.

Maryana stopped a few feet away, folding her arms with a smirk. "I doubt Pierce can help you figure it out either."

Alisson put a protective arm around Renee just as Rolf and Hazel rounded the corner.

"Perfect timing," Maryana said. "Pierce, maybe can rub her two brain cells together, you might almost be as smart as a Hufflepuff!"

Rolf ran his hand through green fringe. "What about Hufflepuff?"

Maryana gave him a mocking smile. "Point made."

Selena stepped forward, not caring as more students from their class rounded the corridor corner. She'd had enough of Maryana's sniping. She knew she hated the other Houses, but Renee had always been a target since the hair-burning-incident-of-second-year. "When will you learn that no one wants to hear your opinion, Maryana?"

The Slytherin girl's bright green eyes flashed. "Your guard dog isn't here anymore, Malast." Her eyes drifted towards Tess, and for a horrible moment Selena thought Maryana was going to called her a Mudblood again. "I knew you liked hanging around lower classes of wizarding kind, but the mental Annabeth Black girl? Really? Set your standards higher, I don't need another bitch mouthing off to me."

Selena's jaw dropped open.

Alisson drew her wand. "You disgusting gargoyle-"

Rolf quickly stepped between them. "Ladies!" He spun on Maryana, throwing his hands up in a surrender sign. "I get it. It's the first day of Fourth Year, tensions are all a bit high this year, the classroom looks like a portal to Hell - hey, I get it. But let's all just calm down before someone takes an eye out, shall we?"

Maryana rolled her eyes at Rolf, nudging the lanky boy aside with her shoulder, and she walked into the classroom without another word.

"I'll take that as a yes," Rolf sighed, practically wilting in relief. He turned towards Alisson, who still had her wand drawn. "Alisson, you can't get another detention or else they won't let you go to Quidditch tryouts."

"Just let me hex her once," Alisson hissed, her blue eyes following Maryana and Astoria as they moved among the classroom's shadows.

The bell rang for class.

Elizabeth reach out, gently pushing Alisson's arm down. She nodded at Alisson. "Rolf is right, Liss."

Alisson glanced once more at Maryana before biting her lip. She looked down in defeat, tucking her wand back into her satchel bookbag. "Fine. But next time, I'm jinxing a pair of devil horns on her."

Selena took a deep breath, trying to calm her own anger. She almost wished Alisson had hexed Maryana, but Rolf had a point. The students all quieted, slowly shuffling into Classroom 3C. Selena took small steps, almost crashing into Tess in the darkness. The classroom had been turned into what looked like the former Potion Master's perfect lair. Dark curtains covered the windows that had previously overlooked the grounds, and paintings hung on the walls.

As Selena's eyes adjusted to the dim light, she frowned. The paintings depicted forms of what had to be the Dark Arts.

Her eyes were drawn to one of the images on the far right end. A man was twisting and screaming silently, writhing on the ground.

"This place is creepy," Alisson muttered under her breath.

"Beats the shrunken heads Lupin had, I guess," Elizabeth whispered. Selena watched as her gaze fell on the gruesome paintings. Elizabeth swallowed. "Mostly."

"Sit."

All the students jumped, and Rolf yelped, earning him a swift jab in the ribs from Hazel. Selena tried to keep her heart from skipping another beat as she looked up at the gloomy front of the classroom. Two candles flickered to life, the flames throwing light onto a frowning Professor Snape.

"I said, sit," he hissed.

The Third Years obeyed without another moment's hesitation. Selena fumbled for her chair in the dark, managing not to fall as she plopped down in her seat. A candle sat at the edge of each desk, flickering with just enough light to illuminate a sheet of parchment. Selena nervously watched her candle's flame dance as she settled at her desk. The dark room almost made her miss the drab decoration Umbridge had used.

Renee sat down to Selena's left, giving her a nervous look. Selena smiled and reached across the table, giving her friend's hand a quick squeeze of reassurance. Snape and Renee in particular didn't get along brilliantly.

There was a light giggle behind Selena.

She didn't have to turn around to see who it was.

"At least Snape will finally let Slytherin have some fun in this class," Maryana whispered. "Right, Malast?"

Selena dug her nails into her palms and forced herself not to reply.

September 3rd, 1996. Friday.

"Wendy, are you trying to cast a spell or trying to not explode?"

Selena looked over as Wendy shot Alisson a glare, her facing turning red with effort as she waved her wand at a gold goblet.

The Sixth Years were already knee-deep in homework it seemed, despite it only being the second day of term. Last night, Selena had witnessed Parvati Patil turning purple as she tried to charm a chair in the Common Room. Now with breakfast in full swing, the smell of savory bacon and eggs was floating around the Great Hall. The Sixth Years didn't even seem to notice, many of them pulling their wands out or flipping through textbooks.

Wendy sighed, dropping her wand arm to the table. "We're supposed to be able to cast non-verbal spells for Charms and Transfiguration."

"And Defense Against the Dark Arts," Avery said grimly next to her. She shook her head, tucking a wavy, blonde lock of hair back. "Snape is probably going to throw one of us out of the windows if we can't cast the spells correctly."

Selena smiled sympathetically. "I'm sure you'll both be fine."

Avery smiled back sadly. "Thanks, but I'm not sure. I need to keep my marks up if I'm going to be able to play Quidditch at all."

Alisson choked on her orange juice before leaning forward, blue eyes wide with surprise. "Avery, you're trying out for the Gryffindor team?"

"No, the Slytherin team," Wendy deadpanned.

Avery giggled before grinning. "Yeah, I'm going out for Chaser. I wanted to last year, but Mum didn't like it with Harry being on the team and, er, you know how it was... Anyway, what with Sasha Ramirez gone this year, there's an open spot. Fingers crossed, yeah?"

Elizabeth rested her hand in her palm, glancing between Alisson and Avery. "Liss here is going out for Beater."

Avery gasped with delight. "Wicked!"

Selena watched as Alisson and Avery began talking rapidly about the Quidditch season. Harry Potter was going to be the Team Captain, which was predictable. Selena didn't mention anything about Danny, Avery's ex-boyfriend and Wendy's ex-best friend, who had been a Chaser for the past five years. Instead, she turned towards Tess, Renee and Elizabeth.

"Potions today," she said, returning to her full plate of food. A ripple of excitement ran through her at the thought. Potions without Snape was the silver lining of the term.

20 Minutes Later

The dungeon smelled like spices, sweet syrup and crisp mint.

Selena sat at her seat, sniffing the air along with her other classmates. "The dungeon used to smell like mildew," she muttered in wonder.

"Mildew and sadness," Hazel agreed to her right. "Now it just smells like-"

"Heaven," Renee sighed at the end of the table, from Hazel's right. "It's like... it's like dessert at the End-of-term Feast."

The dungeon room itself seemed cheerier now, full of colorful candles lining the room, blue flames flickering from lanterns above them. Beautiful fabrics lined the tables around the space, crystal vials full of a rainbow of potions packed onto shelves. There was still the reminder that it was their old Potions classroom - including messages Renee had scribbled into the desktop a year ago - but Selena no longer had the desire to immediately leave.

The bell rang, and Professor Slughorn shut the classroom door. He smiled happily, his round cheeks pink as he walked up to the front of the classroom. He patted his large stomach, motioning to the steaming pots of Potions on the front desk. "I take it you all are enjoying the lesson so far?"

Bronwen giggled from across the aisle. Even Alisson seemed more attentive, sitting up from her spot in front of Selena's table. Selena found herself almost excited to open up her Potions textbook, still sat on her desk with a fresh quill and pot of ink. Professor Slughorn had to have been a good teacher for Dumbledore to ask him to take the spot, right?

Besides, Selena thought, her mind going back to Damon on the train. Maybe Professor Slughorn will have some answers about that lunch he organized.

"I think you'll find that my lessons will diverge from the former curriculum Professor Snape had planned," Slughorn began, his bushy mustache moving as he spoke.

"Promise?" Renee muttered, and the students in the classroom giggled quietly.

Professor Slughorn gave a good-natured smile. "Now, now, your former Potions Master is a gifted potioneer, Miss...?"

Renee hunched up her shoulders nervously, reaching up to tug on one of her golden spade earrings. "Oh, er, Pierce, sir. Renee Pierce. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disrespected Sn - I mean, Professor Snape. Professor, sir." She slumped down a bit, her honey eyes staring at the desktop.

Much to Selena's surprise, Professor Slughorn just laughed. "No need to worry, my dear," he chuckled. "Spirited students make for spirited lessons." He paused, tilting his head thoughtfully. "You said Pierce? You wouldn't happen to be related to Rayleigh Pierce, would you?"

Renee blinked in surprise, looking up at Professor Slughorn. "Yes, he's my father."

Selena raised her eyebrows, sharing a curious look with Hazel. She remembered Renee's father from Diagon Alley. How did Slughorn know him? Some of the other students shared their thoughts, turning to look at Renee with wide eyes.

Professor Slughorn's face lit up. "I taught Rayleigh years ago! Brilliant boy, he was. I've spoken to him a few times at Gringotts. He's working as a Curse-breaker now, isn't he?"

"Yes, sir," Renee said, nodding. She blushed as she noticed everyone watching her.

"Fascinating!" Professor Slughorn continued. "Well, give him my regards, will you, Miss Pierce?"

Renee nodded again, a smile breaking out across her lips. She grinned at Selena and Hazel, and Selena smiled back encouragingly. Potions usually involved Snape snapping at Renee, but Slughorn had completely flipped that. Selena found herself liking their new teacher even more, despite his odd train lunch.

Maryana muttered something to her Slytherin friends, shooting Renee a venemous look.

"Now, onto Fourth Year Potions, my potioneers-in-training!" Professor Slughorn announced happily. He waved his wand at the board, charming the chalk to write Intro to Intermediate Potions: Weedosoros in curly letters. "Open your textbooks to page fifty-two!"

Selena eagerly reached forward, opening her worn copy of Magical Drafts and Potions.

September 14th, 1996. Friday.

Selena shivered, pulling her cloak's hood up as it began to drizzle again.

Mist covered the Hogwarts grounds, obscuring the castle from the Quidditch Pitch. The enchanted ceiling had been rainy, but Selena hadn't felt the chill until they'd walked outside. It wasn't the nicest weather to celebrate the beginning of their second weekend back at Hogwarts, and it wasn't the nicest day to hold Quidditch tryouts either. But she wasn't about to abandon Alisson because of some rain and cold.

"I'm so nervous," Alisson said, jumping in place to keep warm. "There's so many kids!"

Selena looked over at the the growing crowd of Gryffindors holding brooms. Some tiny First Years were clutching their broomsticks, looking nervous as the older students chatted together or swung practice Beater clubs.

Alisson tugged at her orange-and-red striped turtleneck. "Tell me I can do this."

"You can do this," Selena said loudly, grinning at her friend.

"You can do this!" Elizabeth echoed, wiping the raindrops off her glasses.

Alisson grinned at them both. "Thanks. Too bad Ree and Tess couldn't come."

Elizabeth sighed and Selena shook her head, stifling a laugh. Renee had somehow managed to blow up a plant pot in Herbology, earning herself a detention this morning cleaning up plant scraps with Professor Sprout. Tess had offered to help her, hoping they would finish early to come see Alisson at tryouts.

"Speaking of Herbology," Elizabeth said, her voice becoming serious. "Did you both hear what happened to Hannah Abbot, one of the girls from Hufflepuff, yesterday?"

Selena shook her head. She had seen the blonde, older girl before at the Dumbledore's Army meetings last year. "No, what happened?"

"Apparently her mother was found dead," Elizabeth said. She dropped her hazel eyes to stare at the wet grass under their shoes. "I can't even imagine what she's going through."

Alisson's eyes met Selena's, both of their brows drawn in concern. Selena swallowed hard. Things had seemed hopeful at first once they got back to Hogwarts, but she'd quickly realized this week that school wasn't the refuge she'd hoped it would be. A few students had even already been picked up by their parents, withdrawn from school altogether. Selena's mother had already sent her a letter this week, fretting. Selena couldn't really understand the worry. Wasn't Hogwarts the safest place to be with Dumbledore?

Before she could keep thinking about it, Harry appeared in his scarlet Quidditch robes. Some of the throngs of students quieted while several girls began to giggle as he walked towards the crowd. Ron wasn't far behind, running a hand through his red hair. Selena watched as Hermione walked high up into the stands above them. Selena's eyes fell on Anne, her wild ginger curls visible beneath the hood of her jumper.

Anne paused, about to follow Hermione, before changing directions and walking towards Selena on the edge of the pitch.

"I better head over," Alisson said, checking the straps on her dragonskin padding again. She reached down, wrapping her hands around her broom handle until her knuckles turned white. "I think I might be sick."

"You're going to smash it," Selena assured her.

Alisson looked over at Elizabeth who nodded. "Since when you have been intimidated by anything, Liss? You're a Gryffindor."

"I'm a Gryffindor," Alisson repeated, taking a deep breath. She fidgeted with her brown hair up in a high ponytail before giving Selena and Elizabeth a nervous grin. "I'm gonna' be a Quidditch player by noon!" With that, she turned, dashing over towards the pool of prospective team members.

"Hey there," Anne said. She reached Selena and gave Elizabeth a polite wave. "Was that Alisson?"

Selena bobbed her head proudly. "She's going out for Chaser."

"Nice," Anne said distractedly, rubbing her hand.

Selena noticed red marks across her pale skin. "What happened?"

Anne sighed, waving her hands dismissively. She shoved them back into her jumper pockets. "We're taking care of Venemous Tentacular plants in Herbology class. They're horrid, but at least Professor Sprout lets us swear when they grab us. Seamus has started keeping a list of the most creative swears. Winner gets a free pint of Butterbeer." She kept her eyes on the pool of Gryffindor kids. "Honestly, it's like half the House. Who knew they all were Quidditch players."

"I think some of them just want a chance to get Harry's attention," Elizabeth said, shaking her head. "I can't believe they think this'll work."

Anne glanced over at Elizabeth, a scowl painted on her face. "Why?" She looked over at Selena. "I mean, it's whatever, of course, but you should see the way some of them look at him in the Common Room." She imitated someone gawking.

Selena shrugged. After the Ministry of Magic incident, Harry Potter's name had gone from "liar" to "hero." Or even more than that.

"The Daily Prophet is practically calling him the Chosen One," Elizabeth said, reading Selena's thoughts. "Now he's the Quidditch Captain. Whichever girls get on the team are going to be spending quite a lot of time with him. Hours and hours of practice, being close for team strategizing, running plays-"

"I get it, I get it," Anne said quickly. She sighed impatiently. "It's just... it's pathetic, don't you reckon?"

Selena watched her cousin glare over at all the Gryffindors. Surely Anne still couldn't have feelings for Harry? They had dated before, but they'd broken up two years ago during the summer. Since then, Anne had been with Fred Weasley, but now that was over. Selena couldn't read Anne's expression, whatever it was - jealousy or really just disapproving, like she claimed.

"Alright!" Harry called, waving at the Gryffindors. "I need you all to divide into groups of ten. We'll do flying drills first."

"I'll see you," Anne said, turning quickly and walking towards Hermione.

Selena and Elizabeth were quiet as they watched the first group of students get ready to fly around the pitch. It was composed of what looked like entirely First Years, and none of them managed to stay in the air longer than ten seconds. One boy managed to fly a bit but ended up flopping into the third goal post. Normally Alisson would've cracked up over it, but Selena noticed her just looking slightly green. The second group of ten was mostly giggling girls who didn't even bother to fly. They just grabbed each other, laughing, playing with their hair and glancing over at Harry.

"This is just ridiculous," Elizabeth muttered. Selena didn't disagree.

The third group didn't do much better. They ended up tangled together in a giant dogpile after crashing into each other in the middle of the pitch. By the fifth group, Harry suddenly began recognizing Hufflepuff girls among them.

"If there's anyone else here who's not from Gryffindor, leave now, please!" Harry bellowed, making Selena jump even from the edge of the pitch.

No one moved for a moment, but then a couple girls broke off from the crowd, sprinting towards the edge of the pitch.

Selena could hear them laughing. She shook her head. "How stupid are they to-" She trailed off, suddenly recognizing the taller of the two girls with her shoulder-length hair. "Ivy?" she spluttered incredulously. It was definitely not her sister, it couldn't be, it-

"Hullo, Sel!" Ivy called, waving her hand like they just saw each other in Hogsmeade. She tugged Raven's hand and the two girls ran over, giggling.

Elizabeth managed not to laugh, turning away to watch the other groups.

"What are you both doing here?" Selena asked, already knowing the answer but wishing it wasn't true. "You're in Ravenclaw!"

"We wanted to see Harry," Ivy explained breathlessly as Raven choked on her laughter. "He's so handsome when he's angry, isn't he?"

Selena gaped at her younger sister. "Have you gone mad? You're joking, right?"

"Relax," Ivy laughed. She turned to Raven. "We were coming anyway to see Ravenclaw tryouts after Gryffindor. We're going to cheer on Raven's brother."

"DJ is a shoe-in," Raven said matter-of-factly. She blinked her dark eyes, peering shyly over at Elizabeth before turning back to Selena. "He's Captain this year! It's his last year, so it was bound to happen. But we wanted to come see him anyway."

Ivy giggled. "So we had to come see Harry too."

Selena opened her mouth to explain to her sister why exactly she shouldn't have, but Elizabeth grabbed her arm instead. "Alisson!" she hissed, pointing to the next group - who actually looked serious - preparing for their flight drill.

When Selena turned back to her sister, Ivy and Raven were already heading up into the stands, giggling away again. She sighed inwardly before watching Alisson instead. High above the pitch, Alisson flew well, keeping up with the rest of her group. They did several laps around the pitch, and Harry sighed in relief. Tryouts were finally moving.

Over the course of the two hours, Selena and Elizabeth stayed dutifully. Tess ended up coming down to the pitch and letting them know that Renee had somehow, in some way, in some fashion, blown up yet another pot and was having to stay after for another round of detention. The girls sat down on the gravel ringing the pitch and watched as Alisson did Beater drills with the others. As one of two girls trying out for Beater, she was at a disadvantage, but made up for it with brazenness, flying in front of players when the Beaters were hesitant to bat a Bludger out of the way.

Selena watched as Avery flew her own drills, executing a perfect corkscrew to score a goal against Ron. Danny was in the mix too. When he managed to steal the Quaffle from a Third Year, it resulted in the younger student throwing a tantrum. Another kid ended up running into the goal post itself and crashing their Comet Two-Sixty broom and breaking several teeth. Ginny Weasley managed to outshine any of the Chaser hopefuls, though. 17 goals wiped the floor.

Finally, all the remaining players stood exhausted as Harry consulted his clipboard.

Selena watched as Alisson bit her lip, fidgeting nervously with her ear.

"I don't think I've ever seen her this nervous," Selena muttered to her friends.

Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't think she's ever been this nervous."

"I didn't realize she really was this good at flying," Tess said. She smiled admiringly. "Liss really wasn't kidding about all that practice."

"Alright, listen up!" Harry shouted. "First position! Keeper is Ron Weasley."

"That's predictable," Tess mumbled.

Harry pointed to the next players. "Chasers are Ginny Weasley, Danny McCalaster, and Avery Summers."

There was a little delighted "woo!" from the stands. Selena looked up to see Wendy standing up, clapping her mittened hands.

Harry gave her an irritated look before returning to his clipboard. "Finally, the Beaters. First is Jimmy Peakes."

Selena held hands with Tess and Elizabeth. Please be Alisson.

"And the second is Ritchie Coote," Harry finished.

Selena's heart fell.

There was an angry shout, and then the knot of rejected Beaters began to argue. Alisson stood stock-still. Even from here, Selena could make out her face frozen in shock. Alisson gripped her broomstick like it steadied her where she stood.

"Poor Liss," Tess said sadly.

Selena stood, and Elizabeth followed suit. "We need to go wait for her outside. She's not going to be happy." She started walking, but as she turned to walk into the tunnel leading out of the Quidditch Pitch, a familiar face rounded the corner.

Serenity Moon's eyes widened in surprise. "Sorry, Selena. Didn't see you there."

"No worries," Selena managed. She smiled. "We were just leaving."

"Were you girls trying out for your team?" Serenity asked the Gryffindor trio, scanning their plain clothes.

Elizabeth shook her head. "Supporting a friend. Are you going out for a Ravenclaw position?"

Serenity fumbled for words for a moment before finally forcing a shy smile. "Supporting a friend as well. Er, sort of. I'll catch you all later." With that, she hurried past them, her blue-and-bronze scarf fluttering over her shoulder.

5 o'clock

The Grand Staircase

"I wish I knew what to say," Renee said glumly.

Selena bit her lip as they paused, letting the staircase underneath them trundle along. She grabbed the cold stone railing as it finally shook into place and she hurried along down the steps. Behind her, Tess shook her head.

"I think we all knew she wouldn't actually get on the team." She held up her small hands in an innocent gesture. "Not that I mean it like that! It's just... well, those Beaters have to be strong. I'm the last person to say someone can't do something because they're a girl, but it's just a matter of Liss being at a... well, disadvantage to those older blokes."

"Still," Selena sighed. "She was so excited."

Elizabeth pushed her glasses up her nose as they slid down. "I almost wonder if it isn't for the best. I think we all know how often those Bludgers take out players."

"That won't make her feel better," Tess grumbled.

Selena sighed again. After tryouts ended, Alisson had gone up to the dorms and flopped on her bed without another word. Sierra had laid down beside her, settling in, seemingly aware that something was wrong. Alisson couldn't even be coaxed down for dinner, which to Selena was the most alarming thing about it. Ever since she, Tess and Elizabeth had caught Renee up to speed on Quidditch tryouts, they hadn't talked about anything else.

"She just needs time," Selena finally said as the got to the bottom of the Grand Staircase. Students moved around them, chattering about the upcoming meal.

Just as the girls rounded the corner, they nearly ran straight into the round stomach of Professor Slughorn.

"Ah!" he said delightedly, his lips curling into a smile beneath his silver mustache. "Just the lady I wanted to see!"

Selena exchanged a look with Elizabeth and Tess. Their Potions professor wasn't looking at her, or the other two girls. Instead he was looking right at Renee.

Renee raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Me, professor?" She got a panicked look in her honey eyes that Selena recognized as the usual kind of expression whenever Snape was about to reprimand Renee.

Professor Slughorn nodded his head. "I'm having a dinner tonight. I would be delighted if you joined, Miss Pierce!"

All the girls stared at him as if he just suggested they cast a Finger-removing jinx on him.

Professor Slughorn's face wrinkled in confusion. He glanced behind himself. "Something amiss?"

Renee recovered quickly. "Er, uh, yes, professor, sorry. I just, I - er... me?"

The Potions professor responded with a large belly laugh. "Is there another Renee Pierce in my Fourth Year class? I'm inviting some other students as well, so it's going to be a brilliant time. I'll see you at my office with the others around seven thirty sharp." He smiled and went to walk past the girls before pausing, glancing around and sniffing the air. "Is it just me, or does is smell... oddly like a burning ficus?"

Renee blanched. "I'll see you later!" she hollered, voice cracking, and hurried ahead up the steps.

Selena gave Professor Slughorn a polite smile before chasing after her friend. "Renee, slow down!" she hissed. When she, Elizabeth and Tess finally caught up to Renee in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, Selena heaved a breath. "Why are you running? What was that about?"

"Beats me!" Renee said, throwing her hands up. "All I know is that I smell a burnt ficus!"


Well! It's taken me long enough to finish this chapter.

I'm sorry it's taken so long, I genuinely struggled with this chapter quite a lot, but it's finally done! We're still at the beginning of this school year, so the drama will be beginning soon, I'm just trying to set the scene. So, expect more from Serenity, Damon, and some others moving forward. :)

I would also like to welcome back I am Gwen daughter of Arcus to the story! It's been a few years so it's super nice to see you in the comments again! You may see a certain Ravenclaw make a reappearance as well (*wink wink*)

Which brings me to the usual - thank you for reviewing:

CharmedMilliE- Karry Master

SakuraDragomir

I am Gwen daughter of Arcus

It's finals week for me, so I'm swamped with work a bit (pray for me lol) but I'll try to get started on the next chapter. This story is helping keep me sane right now.

See you all next time! Thanks for reading.

~Meghan

P.S. I hadn't realized that I had not updated this story since May 12th... it's December 4th now, so that's almost 7 months? Yikes. I really won't take that long to update this time! Also, happy December!