Vanessa told Ginny and Hermione what happened with the twins when she returned to the room that night. When she woke up the next morning she had a letter under her pillow. She recognized the handwriting immediately. It was written by George, but it was signed by both of them. They apologized for the night before, not only for the products that backfired but for the whole situation in the living room.

She got up, showered, and got dressed. She wasn't going to waste the last few weeks of her holiday fighting with her best friends. She was just going to put it behind her and move on.

Ruby had arrived at the Burrow sometime in the night, which also brightened her spirits.

Two weeks flew by. She spent most days outside playing games of Quidditch with Fred, George, Charlie, Ron, and Harry. She had even spent time talking to Charlie, talking about how she wanted to become a Magizoologist when she graduated Hogwarts.

The night before they were to head to Platform 9 ¾, Mrs. Weasley prepared a huge feast for them, with Bill finally joining them for only the second time since Vanessa had been there. He had been working so much at Gringotts and hadn't spent much time at the Burrow.

The night came and went and Mrs. Weasley insisted they all go to bed, as they had a big day ahead of them. Of course, no one listened. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny stayed up playing games of Wizards Chess and Exploding Snap, while Vanessa was helping the twins with the products they had been working on.

Mrs. Weasley eventually yelled at them to all go to bed or she was going to start hexing them.

They all awoke and got ready the next morning. Bill and Charlie were going to be accompanying Mrs. Weasley and the rest of the group to King's Cross.

When they reached the platform, Mrs. Weasley gave hugs to everyone, while Bill and Charlie also said their goodbyes. As they were boarding the train, they turned around to wave goodbye one last time, Vanessa catching Charlie winking directly at her. She blushed, turning back around and following the twins, hoping they didn't see what just happened.

She followed the twins to an empty compartment and stored her trunk and owl's cage in the luggage compartment above the seats. "Well, I'm off to the Prefects compartment. I'll be back soon."

After patrolling for most of the journey, she was finally told by the Head Girl that she could go back to her compartment and get dressed in her school uniform, as they would be arriving at Hogsmeade within the next half hour.

She went back to the compartment where the twins were eating what looked like their fifth or sixth Chocolate Frog each. She pulled down her trunk and got out her school uniform and robes. "I'm going to go get dressed, we'll be arriving soon." She picked up one of their uneaten Chocolate Frogs and took it out of the package, taking a bite.

"Hey, that was mine."

"Stop whining Fred, it's very unbecoming."

She finished eating the frog and threw the card down on the pile they had in between them. Another Slytherin. She seemed to get those a lot. She headed out of the compartment and down to the bathrooms where she quickly changed. She looked at herself in the mirror. Her uniform was fitting a little tighter this year, her skirt a bit shorter than it had been last year. She wished she could wear pants, but it wasn't part of the dress code for the girls.

Stepping out of the bathroom, she headed back down the corridor, saying hello to several classmates as she passed their compartments. Adrian Pucey had gotten out of the compartment she was just about to pass and smiled at her.

"Hey, Diggory." He leaned against the door of the compartment. "Sorry I didn't get to talk to you more at the Cup when I saw you. Lots happening and all. You look good."

What in the world was going on? She brushed her hair behind her ear and smiled. "Don't worry about it, Adrian. What a crazy night that turned out to be though. And thank you. But don't try to butter me up, you know it never works."

She knew most of the boys on the Quidditch team always tried to get on her good side so she wasn't so hard on them when they did something stupid during a game or practice. She went to pass him, but he grabbed her arm gently. They were standing inches apart from each other now.

"Would you be interested in going to Hogsmeade with me," he ran a hand through his hair before finishing. "On a date."

Vanessa blushed. He was asking her out? This all seemed so odd to her.

She placed her hand on his arm and smiled up at him. "Adrian, I can't. You know Quiddtich comes first. If we had a date and it went badly, it would make Quidditch a little weird."

"Understandable. But you know, you should get out and have fun every once and awhile. I'll see you at Hogwarts." He winked at her and turned back to join his friends in his compartment.

She walked back to the compartment and slid open the door. The twins were looking up at her with curious expressions on their faces.

"What, do I have something on me?" She looked down and smoothed out her robes.

"Why are your cheeks so pink," asked George.

She sat down on the seat across from them. They were both waiting for her to answer. She bit her lip before answering. "When I was walking back, Adrian Pucey stopped me, and um, he asked me out."

Their faces told her all she needed to know. They weren't happy about this.

"Listen, both of you. Don't go doing something stupid or start acting like gits." She sighed. "I honestly don't know what's gotten into the two of you. First, you get mad about me bumping into Charlie, and now you're upset I've been asked out. You're acting stupid."

They looked at each other and then back at her. It was as though they were having a silent conversation between themselves.

She honestly wasn't sure how she felt about any of this. Sure she liked boys, but between school and quidditch, she never really found time to care much about going out on dates. Not to mention, no one had ever asked her out or shown interest until now.

"So what did you tell him," George asked curiously. The air in the compartment seemed to shift and the two boys went back to acting somewhat normal.

"I told him I didn't want to go out with someone I play Quidditch with. Besides, I need to focus on school this year, what with the N.E.W.T.s coming up next year. I don't know that I'll have time to go out with him or anyone else for that matter."

The twins looked at each other when she had her back to them, as she pulled her trunk down from the luggage compartment. The train was slowing down, and she knew they were entering the station. "I've got to help with the first years, but I'll see you both later."

They said their goodbyes, as she took off down the hallway, her owl in one hand and her trunk in the other.

Vanessa didn't see the twins again until she was entering the Great Hall for the feast about two hours later. She had taken her usual seat at the Slytherin table next to Adrian and Graham Montague. The three of them talked about how excited they were to get back to playing Quidditch. She was glad Adrian wasn't bringing up asking her out again. She was the only girl on the Slytherin team, but she was also more intense than the boys. She would always yell at them during practices, and it intimidated most of them, even Malfoy.

The feast came and went, and then Dumbledore made his announcements. First, that Quidditch would be canceled for the season, and second, the Triwizard Tournament was coming to Hogwarts.

While the Quidditch teams were all upset by the cancellation, everyone seemed to perk up at the mention of the tournament. The school would also host students from fellow wizarding schools Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and Durmstrang Institute. The delegates of the schools would be arriving on October 30th, with the champions from each school being selected the next day at the Hallowe'en Feast. Also mentioned was the fact that no one under the age of seventeen would be able to enter, which the twins and several other students were not pleased about.

The final news, much to the excitement of the female population of the school, was announced last. The Yule Ball would be held on December 25, only for the fourth years and above. Those who wished to attend could stay at Hogwarts for the holiday, and Vanessa was sure most would opt to stay. She didn't see several sets of eyes looking at her during the announcement, her focus was on the headmaster. Suddenly the dress made sense.