AN: Constructive criticism is always welcome. I only own my OCs. Please Enjoy!

Pre-Samhain Fun

The year was not off to a great start. As it turns out, I could see the Thestrals pulling the carriages. And that got some rumors started, because a child having seen death is a great topic for gossip. I had read Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, I knew what they were when I saw them. I could have just ignored them, but no. My creature-loving brain said let's draw attention to ourselves by petting the invisible winged horse. And now Parkinson is going around saying I killed someone. Me! A twelve-year-old! The idiocy astounds me. It got better when Blaise and, surprisingly, Susan started hexing anyone that talked about me. They earned so many detentions, but they keep telling me that it was worth it. So now, my friend group has grown from three to five with the addition of Susan and Hannah. And-

"Miss Tremaine!" Oh shit. I'm in class and I zoned out. Again.

"Yes, Professor McGonagall?" I ask sheepishly.

"Would you demonstrate how to transfigure an animate object into an inanimate object?" McGonagall asks with pursed lips.

"Of course ma'am!" I respond eagerly. Luckily, I had done the work ahead of time for this class. If this were charms, I would be screwed. I quickly tap the beetle in front of me while whispering the incantation. It smoothly turns into a button.

"Mhm." McGonagall's lips quirk up ever so slightly. "10 points to Slytherin for a convincing transfiguration." I breathe a sigh of relief while Theo elbows me.

"Pay attention!" He hisses, "I don't want to give her another reason to take points from Slytherin."

"She wouldn't take points from me," I hiss back. "Hermione is the only one who can beat my grades in here."

"That's what you say now," Blaise joins the conversation, "Until you become a troublemaker like us."

"You mean, like you?" I scoff. "Theo is hardly a 'troublemaker'."

"Miss Tremaine!" Not again. "Don't make me take points for not paying attention in class!"

"Sorry Professor," I smile sheepishly at her. Once her back is turned, I whisper to Theo, "See? Anyone else and she would've actually taken points." Theo scoffs at me while Blaise grins. After class I turn to Blaise, "You're in a good mood, is tonight your last detention with Susan?"

"Indeed, it is!" Blaise walks beside me with his head held high. "And everyone has finally stopped talking about you so now we can enjoy Samhain next week in peace."

"I completely forgot that was so soon!" Theo groans, "I've been so busy trying to keep up with the two transfiguration prodigies, I've forgotten everything else!"

"You're one to talk, Mr. I-can-make-potions-with-my-eyes-shut." Blaise laughs so I turn on him next, "You too, Charms Master! Even Susan is amazing at Defense and Hannah is just as good as Neville at Herbology. All of us have a subject we're good at!"

"Okay, okay!" Theo laughs with Blaise. "You don't have to prove you're not special, even though you totally are."

"I hate you," I groan while almost falling into the trick step.

"Nope," Blaise grins, pulling me up, "You love us."

"I hate it when you're right." I smile regardless of my words.

"We know." Theo smiles softly as we continue to make our way to the courtyard to meet up with the rest of the group.

"What do you think you're doing?" I cringe at Hermione's voice coming from behind me.

"I'm just checking to make sure my potion is labelled correctly." I respond smoothly as I turn around.

"That isn't the second year's cauldrons." She retorts dryly. "What are you really doing?"

"Fine." I sigh, giving up easier than normal. "I was trying to see if the seventh years have made any Dreamless Sleep potions." I hadn't told anybody, but I'd been having trouble sleeping since we came back, and I can't keep asking Madam Pomfrey for more.

"Why didn't you just go to Pomfrey?" Her expression softens once she hears my explanation.

"I've already asked her a couple of times."

"How many is a couple?"
"Just a coupe of times," I mutter, "Per month."

"Aria Tremaine!" Hermione's voice goes shrill like it always does when she's mad. "Why would you keep it to yourself that long?"

"You know I don't like talking about stuff." I reply tiredly, the lack of sleep is catching up on me.

"Well, you're going to have to start, obviously your other methods aren't helping." She glares at me as if that'll force me into submission, which it kind of does. I hate when my friends are mad at me.

"Fine! I've been having nightmares every night!" I blurt out. "It's been getting worse whenever I don't take the Dreamless Sleep."

"Do Blaise or Theo know anything about this?" She asks in a softer tone than before.

"No," I sigh. "I haven't told anyone, even Shawn."

"Well, now you have me to talk to." She meets my eyes as she smiles.

"Thanks," I smile in return. "But maybe we should get out of here before Snape comes back?"

"Definitely." She grabs my hand and runs from the room, pulling me along with her.

"SHAWN!" I shout into the cold air of the dungeon with my abrupt awakening. I pant, kicking the covers off my overheating body. Another nightmare about my loved ones dying, this time featuring Shawn. It was Hermione the night before, probably due to our conversation that day, and Blaise and Theo, because even in my dreams they come together, the night before that. The pattern follows whoever I interacted with most during the day, which means it keeps alternating between Shawn, Hermione, Blaise, Theo, Susan, and Hannah. My parents have only appeared a couple of times, which is weird. I mean, people I became friends with only three months ago have shown up more than my own parents.

But the worst ones are the dreams of a pale, lean woman with long curly black hair like my own and a tanned man with a strong jawline like my own. I'm haunted by their images while I'm awake because no matter what I do, I don't know who they are. I check my watch for the time to find that it's still four in the morning. At least today is Samhain. I decide to spend the next few hours reading so I grab my copy of The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts. Before I know it, Blaise is knocking at my door telling me to hurry up while I rush to get dressed.

"What took you so long?" Theo asks curiously when we enter the Great Hall. "You're usually the first one up."
"I got lost in a book." I yawn as I sit down at the Hufflepuff table next to Hermione (Gryffindor and Slytherin are too proud for interhouse seating).

"Did you get any sleep?" Hermione looks at me with concern.

"Not really," I say quietly. "It's the same one as last time."

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Hermione responds just as quietly. I shake my head before grabbing a bowl of cereal from in front of me.

"It's probably nothing anyway." To no one's surprise, it was not nothing.