The last of that school year was calm, which Samantha might normally dislike, but after all that had gone down in the Chamber, she thought it was nice to spend the last few days before she had to see the Dursleys again in peace with her friends. Samantha also vowed to spend more time with Lauren, which is what she did. She tried to persuade Lauren into sneaking into Hogsmeade with her, but was unsuccessful, so instead they played around with some spells outside like Samantha had done with her friends at the end of their first year.

The group of them all, which included Samantha, Max, Leslie, Damon, Connor, Elias, Hudson, Bella, Riley, and Ellie, spent the afternoons together, telling stories of the year and swimming in the Great Lake.

Defense classes had been canceled, seeing as they no longer had a professor, so during those free periods, Samantha would hang out on the grounds with whoever else didn't have class, one time visiting Hagrid with Max and Leslie.

Samantha was also informed by Harry that the diary had been slipped to Lauren by Lucius Malfoy that day in Diagon Alley, and that Harry had then freed Dobby from the Malfoys. Plus, Lucius Malfoy had been forced to resign from being a school governor.

All in all, it was a very nice final few days. However, as all things good and bad do, it had to end. All too soon, they were packing their trunks and saying their goodbyes to the castle until the next year.

Samantha and her friends decided to meet in the compartment Damon, Elias, and Connor were sharing at noon, which gave them enough time to get settled before they met up and spent the rest of the train ride together.

In the meantime, Samantha, Leslie, and Max had managed to find a compartment to themselves, and they practiced some of the spells they had learned that year, having fun turning random objects into other random objects and disarming each other with no warning.

"We actually should meet in Diagon Alley this summer," Ellie said when they had all been seated in their compartment for a while. "I know I've said that before and it didn't happen, but I have a good feeling about this year."

"Alright. I'm going on holiday to Ireland for a while, but I can make it in the three weeks before term starts," Bella replied.

"I can probably make it whenever, if the Dursleys comply," Samantha said.

"I can come anytime after July," Leslie said. "We're going to Greece to celebrate my brother leaving Hogwarts, but I'm available after that."

"I'm free all summer," Max revealed.

"Really? You're not taking some fancy holiday?" Samantha questioned.

"Nope," Max answered casually. "Margot might do something, but I'll be home all summer."

"Hm," Samantha replied. "Well, can everyone else make it within the last three weeks of break?"

There were a bunch of scattered answers of "Yes", and so they worked out a date of August 25th, when they would meet at The Three Broomsticks at eleven and then spend the rest of the day together as they shopped for their books for the next school year.

Soon enough, they were back at King's Cross, and Samantha found Harry and Lauren, both close but in separate groups, and followed behind them, Leslie and Max at her side. She saw both of them make it through the barrier to the Muggle area, but she hung back a bit.

"Leslie, can you go ahead? I want to talk to Max for a minute," Samantha said.

Leslie looked at Samantha for a second and then nodded and walked through the barrier.

"What do you want?" Max asked, looking at Samantha. He almost seemed worried.

Samantha handed Max a piece of parchment she had written on the train. "Here. This is the Dursley's address. You said you'll be home all summer, so I figure you could come at some point," she said.

Max raised his eyebrows, reading the paper. "Even the name sounds boring," he said.

Samantha grinned. "I know. But I'm sure we can find something interesting to do around there," she told him.

"I'm counting on your word," Max said.

"Right," said Samantha, smiling cheekily. She looked around them and saw the station was nearly empty. "We should probably go through before people think we're missing," she said.

"Alright," said Max, and the two walked through the barrier together, once again in the Muggle world.

The beginning of the Potter siblings' school vacation was fairly uneventful, with nothing much happening. About a week in, though, one of the most eventful things to ever happen at the Dursley household occurred.

Samantha was reading a library book in the living room when the telephone rang. She didn't bother getting it, knowing she would get in trouble with the Dursleys if she did. Instead, her Uncle Vernon answered it.

"Vernon Dursley speaking," he said into the receiver.

"HELLO! HELLO! CAN YOU HEAR ME? I WANT TO TALK TO HARRY POTTER!"

Samantha could tell the voice on the other side of the telephone was Ron Weasley, and she couldn't help but burst into laughter when she heard it. Harry also happened to be in the room at the time, and Samantha could see him turn red and his bright green eyes widen.

"WHO IS THIS?" Vernon yelled right back into the phone. "WHO ARE YOU?"

"RON WEASLEY!" Ron screamed through the phone. "I'M A FRIEND OF HARRY'S FROM SCHOOL-"

Samantha cringed, knowing that was not going to go well for Ron or Harry.

"THERE IS NO HARRY POTTER HERE!" Vernon shouted while looking right at Harry. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT SCHOOL YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT! NEVER CONTACT ME AGAIN! DON'T YOU COME NEAR MY FAMILY!" And then he threw the receiver back onto the telephone.

Samantha slunk down in her chair, sitting so her knees were almost blocking her face. She didn't want to think about the reaction the Durselys would have when Max showed up on their doorstep.

While Uncle Vernon shouted at Harry, screaming so loud the whole neighborhood could probably hear him, Samantha crept up the stairs to the room she shared with Lauren.

"Heard what happened down there?" Samantha asked.

Lauren nodded, a frightened look on her face as she pet her cat, Meadow, who was curled at the end of Lauren's bed.

"Don't worry. Nothing's gonna happen to you. It'll… well, they can't… the point is, we'll be fine and Harry will be fine," Samantha reassured her little sister. "Now, I have a letter to draft…"

Samantha pulled out a piece of paper and an old book from the shelf and began writing a quick letter to Max, just to let him know that when he did come, he should make no indication that he knew Samantha. Once she finished, she walked to the cage of her owl, Athena, and tied the note to her before giving her directions of who to give it to, and then watched as she flew out into the sky.

"Who was that to?" Lauren asked. The yelling downstairs had calmed down, but there was a door slam and some loud talking.

"Max," Samantha answered.

"You're quick to tell him about it," Lauren observed.

"I wasn't telling him about it," said Samantha.

"What were you saying, then?" asked Lauren. "And don't lie. I can tell, remember?" She played with her gloved fingers, making motions to pull the gloves off.

"I gave him the address and told him to come. I was warning him that whatever he does, he cannot let them know immediately that he is a friend from school," Samantha revealed.

"You gave him the address?" Lauren cried, and then clasped a hand over her mouth, knowing she needed to keep her voice down. "Have you gone mad?"

"I love you and Harry, Laur, but I have to get out. I have to see him, okay? You understand, right? You're not going to get hurt, and I'll try not to get hurt myself," Samantha said. "We'll be smart. No offense to Ron and Harry, but Max and I are arguably more intelligent than the pair of them."

Lauren tried to hide her grin but ended up failing. "Alright. I just… don't want to see you getting hurt," she confessed.

Samantha sighed, and sat on the edge of Lauren's bed, stroking meadow softly. "You don't need to worry about me, Laur," she promised.

Lauren didn't reply, and instead just made eye contact with her older sister, watching her carefully.

The next few days passed without too much happening. But then, while Samantha was reading a book on her bed, she heard something hitting the window repeatedly. Curious, she stood up and walked over, looking down to the yard.

She gasped when she saw that Max was standing there, having used pebbled from the garden to get her attention. She grinned as she shook her head, and then pulled on some shoes before practically sprinting down the stairs to the entryway.

"I'm going out!" she called to whoever was listening, and then opened the door and left before she could get a response. She ran over to Max and grabbed his hand, laughing. "You're here! You complete idiot, you came!" she said happily.

Max laughed too, hugging Samantha. "Of course I came. You think I wouldn't show up?" he asked.

Samantha scoffed playfully, and let a smirk reside on her face. "Come on, let's get out of here before anyone sees us," she said, and, taking Max's hand, she began running, practically dragging him behind her.

"Where are we going?" Max asked loudly as they raced down Privet Drive.

"I don't know!" Samantha replied. "The park, maybe."

That was where they ended up, sitting under a tree at the local park.

"Why'd you throw the pebbles?" Samantha asked Max, weaving a strand of grass between her fingers.

Max shrugged. "A classic way to get a girl's attention, forbidden romance style," he answered, a small grin playing on his lips.

Samantha chucked, ripping the strand of grass into tiny pieces. "Forbidden romance. I like that," she said. "It sounds… exciting. Like Romeo and Juliet."

"We don't want to end like them," Max pointed out.

"You've read Romeo and Juliet?" Samantha asked curiously, looking Max over.

Max nodded. "My parents really like literature, so we have an overabundance of books. When I get bored, I read one. Some happen to be Muggle books. I read it last summer," he explained. "When did you read it?"

"Good to know," Samantha said. "I read it a few years ago. I found it in the local library."

"So you agree we don't want to end like them?" Max asked, raising his eyebrows.

Samantha nodded. "We definitely do not want to end like Romeo and Juliet," she agreed. "But that doesn't mean our story can't have similarities…"

Samantha was surprised when it began getting dark a few hours later, because she felt as if they couldn't possibly have been out there long enough for it to be getting dark already. She wondered if the Dursleys even noticed she hadn't been home in hours. Probably not.

"Do you need to get home now?" Max asked, also having noticed the setting sun.

Samantha groaned. "I never want to return there," she said. "But I guess I have to. Walk me?"

"Of course," Max said, standing up and offering a hand to Samantha. She took it, and they didn't drop the connection once she was standing up.

The next few days looked something like that. Samantha didn't know how Max was getting there, but she didn't question it too much. He was there, and that was all that mattered.

They were eating dinner one night when the first problem occurred.

"I saw you with a boy today," Dudley said to Samantha as they were all seated at the table.

Samantha felt her stomach drop, but her face remained neutral. "Did you really?" she asked. Petunia narrowed her eyes at Samantha.

"At the park. Under that big tree," Dudley added.

"What are you getting up to?" Uncle Vernon asked her, not looking too pleased.

Samantha shook her head. "Nothing," she replied casually. She locked eyes with Harry, who looked slightly confused, and then Lauren, who looked scared.

"Why are you sneaking around with a- with a boy? Is he one of your kind?" Uncle Vernon practically hissed the last few words.

"Why would you think that?" Samantha asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Who else would want to hang around you?" Uncle Vernon sneered.

Samantha took a deep breath. "I like to think I'd be a rather pleasant person to hang around," she said coolly. "And it's none of your business who I hang around."

"As long as you live under my roof-"

"I'm not under your roof when I'm at the park, am I?" Samantha questioned with mock curiosity.

"Don't you take an attitude with me, girl," Vernon said.

"I'm just pointing something out," said Samantha. "I don't know how much goes through your thick head, so it feels imperative I spell things out for you."

"UP TO YOUR ROOM! NOW!" Vernon bellowed.

Unphased, Samantha stood up, picked her plate up, and walked up the stairs to her bedroom without another word. Harry and Lauren joined her a few moments later.

"Is that what you've been doing the past few days?" Harry asked.

Samantha nodded. "I need to get out of this house. I can't be here all day," she said.

"You better hope he doesn't kick you out," Lauren said softly.

"He won't do that," Samantha said. "He's not that powerful."

"Sam, you have to be more careful than that. We don't know completely what he's capable of," Harry said. "I mean, you saw how much he freaked out when I got my Hogwarts letter-"

"And you saw him when Hagrid came and got us," Samantha replied. "Look, he may think he's powerful and a force to be reckoned with, but when he's actually facing something, he loses all of his backbone. He won't kick me out. I'll be fine."

Samantha did send a letter to Max, however, warning him to not come to Privet Drive until she told him he could. That was more for his safety than Samantha's though. She was already banned from leaving the house, and she didn't need Max being screamed at added to her list of reasons why this summer was turning out terribly.

The next day was Lauren's birthday, which passed unnoticed by the Dursleys. Ginny Weasley sent her chocolates through their owl Errol, who arrived nearly passed out, and Sarah Fawcett, another friend of Lauren's from school, sent a book she enjoyed and thought Lauren would enjoy too. Samantha remained under a sort of lockdown at the Dursleys.

At first, Samantha had allowed herself a bit of hope that her uncle might let up and allow her to leave before the school year started, but three weeks later, he showed no signs of letting up anytime soon.

It was that day that the next interesting thing happened. Samantha was getting herself a glass of water when someone knocked on the door. She brushed it off as one of Dudley's friends, probably, and continued filling the cup with water as Uncle Vernon opened the door.

"Hello, sir," the boy at the door said.

Samantha dropped her cup of water, and the glass shattered all over the floor. She ignored it, jumping over it on her way to the entryway of the house. There, standing face to face with her uncle, was Max.

She knew he saw her, because they made quick eye contact, but he didn't make any sign that he recognized her.

"Are you selling something? We don't need anything," Vernon told him.

Max hesitated, clearly not having thought much about what he would say when faced with her uncle. There was silence as Uncle Vernon looked at Max struggling to speak.

"What are you here for, boy?" Uncle Vernon asked.

Samantha rolled her eyes, deciding to go for it. "Move over," she told her uncle, surprising him a bit because he hadn't realized she was there. She pushed past him to stand in the doorway and took Max's hand. "This is my boyfriend," she announced, her eyes daring her uncle to do something.

Vernon spluttered a bit, and then his face grew red. "You- you dare give this- this- boy- our address? Is he one of your kind?" he hissed those last few words as always, as if Max wasn't standing right there and could hear them.

"Yes, he is one of my kind," Samantha replied. Her uncle's face grew even redder, and he looked as if he were about to explode. Biting back her laughter, she turned to Max. "Let's go, shall we?" she said to him. "See you soon!" she told her uncle, and then smiled at Max as the pair of them walked away from the house, leaving Vernon speechless in the doorway.

"You aren't going to get in trouble for this, are you?" Max asked, looking anxiously at Samantha. "I wasn't really thinking when I came, I just wanted to see you again-"

Samantha put her finger over Max's lips to silence him. "I'll be fine. The Dursleys can't get to me."

Max met her eyes. "Good," he said softly. He began walking to the park, but Samantha stopped him.

"Let's go somewhere else today," she suggested.

"Where?" Max questioned, looking at her curiously.

Samantha shrugged. "I don't know. I just don't feel like going to the park again," she said.

"Alright. Let's go on an adventure, then," Max agreed, and the two of them set off in the opposite direction of the park.

Samantha got in a lot of trouble for Max that night. She was banished to her room without dinner, once again a prisoner in her own house. The next day was Harry's birthday, though, and she wanted to be with him for it.

She knew he would still be awake at midnight, because that was when all the kids did their schoolwork so the Dursleys wouldn't throw a fit. Samantha had to wait until she knew the Dursleys were certainly asleep, however, and she and Lauren didn't make it to Harry's bedroom until nearly one in the morning.

"Happy birthday," Samantha whispered when she and Lauren walked in. Samantha handed him a card she and Lauren had made.

Harry flashed a smile. "Thanks," he said. And then he looked out the window and furrowed his eyebrows.

"What?" Lauren whispered.

"That," Harry said, pointing out the window. Soaring towards them was some strange, lumpy creature that was sinking lower and lower. Harry's hand was on the window as he looked ready to lock it shut, but then the creature came into the light, and all three backed away from the window to allow it in.

Three owls landed on Harry's bed, one of them appearing to be unconscious, or close to it. That was the gray one. The other two were Hedwig, Harry's owl, and an unrecognizable tawny one with the Hogwarts crest. Each owl had a package attached to its leg.

The gray owl was the one that belonged to the Weasley family, the same one that had been sent to give Lauren her birthday present. Harry took the package from the Hogwarts owl, and it flew off into the night.

"Open them," Samantha told Harry.

He ripped the paper off of Errol's package to reveal an envelope and a package wrapped in gold. Harry opened the envelope and dumped it out, two pieces of paper falling from it. One was a letter, and one was a clip from a newspaper. Samantha and Lauren watched Harry read it.

"What does it say?" asked Lauren, looking curiously at the paper in Harry's hands.

"The Weasleys won a bunch of gold in the Galleon Draw. They're on holiday in Egypt for a month," Harry said, showing his sisters the piece of newspaper. There was also a picture of all of them together in front of a pyramid, smiling and waving at the camera.

"That sounds fun," Samantha said, grinning. She could recognize

Harry then read the letter to himself before setting it to the side. "Percy got Head Boy," he revealed as he started to tear open the gold wrapped parcel Ron had sent.

"Of course he did," Samantha muttered, but she was grinning.

Harry pulled what looked like a small, glass top out of Ron's present and then read the note Ron had attached to it. "It's a Sneakoscope," he said. "It's supposed to light up when something suspicious is happening." Harry placed it on his bedside table where the three of them watched it stand still for a few seconds before Harry moved on to Hedwig's package.

"Who's that one from?" Samantha asked.

"Hermione," Harry replied. He opened her letter and read it over. "She's in France. Hedwig just showed up to her."

"Smart," Samantha commented, looking at the proud snowy owl.

Harry then unwrapped Hermione's present, which turned out to be a broomstick servicing kit.

"Wow, Hermione!" Harry whispered as he examined the kit. Opening it up revealed that inside was a jar of handle polish, a pair of tail twig clippers, a compass that cold clip onto your broom, and the Handbook of Do-It-Yourself Broomcare.

"That's a nice present," Samantha commented, staring eagerly at it. "What's that last one?"

Harry shrugged and began to open it. "It's from Hagrid-" he began, but stopped when the parcel seemed to bite at him. The siblings glanced at each other, and then Harry poked at the book again. It snapped again.

Sighing, Lauren pulled off one of her gloves and set her bare hand on the parcel. She drew her eyebrows together and looked up at Harry and Samantha. "It's a book," she told them. "The Monster Book of Monsters."

"What do I do?" Harry asked.

"Open it and hope for the best," Samantha said.

Harry ripped open the rest of the package and the book fell out. The book walked strangely, almost like a crab walking across the sand. It went under the desk in Harry's room, and the three of them followed it quietly. Harry reached his hand out to grab it, but it bit at him and he quickly pulled his hand back. The book then rushed out from under the desk and Harry threw himself on it.

"Get a belt!" Harry said as their uncle snored extra loudly. Samantha rushed over to Harry's dresser and tossed him a belt, which he buckled around the book.

"Well, that was an adventure," Samantha muttered. "Open the letter and see if Hagrid explains anything."

"He just says it might come in useful next year," Harry said after a moment of reading the short letter Hagrid had sent.

"That can't be good," Lauren said.

Finally, Samantha, Lauren, and Harry opened their letters about the next school year.

"I'm allowed to go to Hogsmeade," Harry said. "But only if the Dursleys sign the slip. How did you get them to do it, Sam?"

"I didn't," Samantha answered.

"What did you do, then?" asked Harry.

Samantha grinned, mischief sparkling in her eyes. "I have my ways," she said.

Uncle Vernon gave another loud snore.

"We should get back to our room, Sam," Lauren suggested, eyeing the wall that separated them from Vernon and Petunia.

"Alright," Samantha agreed. "Good night, Harry."

"Night," Harry replied, and then his sisters snuck back to their bedroom.

This was not how I originally planned for this chapter to go but here we are. I actually don't mind it. I'm really trying to get on a better schedule for writing, so updates might become more regular from now on, I hope. Have a nice day!