Magnus and James came into the house one after the other. Tempesta was eagerly waiting, and hugged James tightly as soon as he walked in. "Hey Temp," he greeted breathlessly as she knocked all the wind out of him.

"Oh, James! Magnus!" she greeted nonchalantly, as though she had just now noticed he was there. "I'm so glad you guys are finally back!" Normally, at a comment such as this, James would have replied with 'Me too, Temp!', but that wasn't the case this time.

"I'm going up to my room to unpack," he said lamely, starting off. Tempesta watched sadly as he pushed past her and began to go up the stairs. She turned to Magnus.

"What did you do to him?" she asked angrily. Then she stormed up to her own room, not even giving Magnus a chance to answer.

James went up to his room and shut the door quickly, making sure to lock it as well. He turned and walked over to the desk that sat in a corner of his room, wiped dust off of it, and sat down, taking some parchment and a quill from the top drawer. He hesitated, unsure of who to write to first. Soon he decided and hastily began to write.

Dear Lily,

I've been home for less than five minutes, and already it feels like Hogwarts was years ago. I miss you, Peter, Remus, and Sirius as though I haven't seen you in ages, when in reality it's only been about a half hour.

I know at the moment things seem harsh, but I'll settle back in to life at home soon enough. I hope. I don't know if I'm ready yet to deal with constant Magnus and Tempesta yet; which is why I'm sitting here writing to you right now. Just so you know, you are the first person I'm writing to. I think Remus, Sirius and Peter would all laugh if I told them how I feel right now. Despite the fact, of course, that I'm sure they feel exactly the same.

So I suppose by the time you get this, it will be ample time to ask how you are doing. You never did tell me much about your family; you have a sister, correct? She's a Muggle, right? I hope you have an easier time adjusting to life back at home than I am.

If nothing else, I wonder if Remus will be all right. I know that I'll see him next year, but without us, his transformations over the summer will be even more unbearable. I do wonder though, what Snape and that Cynthia girl were up to all year. I believe she is a fifth year, so we've only got a matter of time to figure it out before she's out of Hogwarts.

Well, I suppose there's not much more left to say, is there? I do hope you write soon. My owl's young, so actually, I'm lucky you gave me your address. Be sure to get mine; he might get lost on the way home. Well, see you!

James

He read over the letter once, folded it up, and set it on his desk, preparing another piece of parchment for another letter. Again, he hesitated, thinking of who to write to next.

Dear Remus,

Hello! I hope you're doing all right, and adjusting well to your home. I'll admit I'm having trouble; but I'll get over it.

James took this moment to laugh at himself, comparing the two letters. He was much more honest with Lily.

So, I must know about your family! I just wrote to Lily, asking her about hers. Why is it one never thinks to ask these things until it's too late to in person? In fact, I know nothing about your family except that you've got a mum and a dad. Some friends we are, eh? So please tell me more.

I didn't plan on mentioning this, but what the heck. How are your transformations? Still painful I'm sure, but worse now that you're back home, or better? If you haven't had one yet, that's perfectly understandable, just write me when you do. I just want to know, you know, out of sheer curiosity.

Well, since there's no real news here yet, as I've been home only a short while, I'll write to you later! Bye!

James

He looked it over, laughed at himself again, and folded that one, too. And again, he picked up his quill and a new piece of parchment.

Dear Sirius,

How are things? I'll get straight to the point here; I want to know more about your family. I mean, we've known each other all year, and still I have no idea as to whether or not you've got siblings.

I've only been home for a very short time, so I've no new news for you as of now. But whenever something comes up, I'll write! I promise!

James

He didn't even look over this one, just folded it and laid it down. Now for the shortest one yet: Peter's.

Dear Peter,

How are you? I hope you're still all right, considering I sent this quite early. I was wondering; what is your family like? Brothers, sisters, anything? I just want to know, you know, because I've known you all year and know absolutely nothing about your family. Rather odd, don't you think? Well, nothing's new with me yet, so write to you later!

James

Again, he didn't even proofread it; he just set it down on top of the others. Then he rummaged through his things and dug out all of their addresses. He hurried out into his parents' room and got their young owl, Noel. It was an eagle owl, and was fairly new to the family; they had purchased it to keep Tempesta satisfied over the long school year.

James walked slowly back to his room, gently stroking and speaking softly to Noel. "Now," he said soothingly, "I need some letters delivered. Do you think you can handle it? You are, after all, an owl." Noel hooted softly, and James smiled contentedly.

He set the owl on a perch in his room (there for that very purpose) and collected the letters. He decided to be 'Muggle-ish' and put them in envelopes, being careful to write the correct address on each one.

There's something few people know; usually a person can just tell an owl who to take the letter to. But, didn't you know, owls have got to be trained! Once they know an address, they know it for life. But first, like most creatures, they have to be taught. By putting the addresses on the letters, the owl knows just where to go.

"Deliver to one to LILY first!" he said, pronouncing Lily very clearly. Noel hooted softly and took flight with all of the letters. James watched the little owl until it was out of sight and turned back to his bed, walking over to sit on it.

'I miss Hogwarts so much; it's like I never even went,' he though dismally, glancing wistfully out of his window. He slowly rose and went downstairs to endure his family's questions and so forth.

Tempesta was waiting for him. "James! You ran off so quick, I couldn't talk to you!" she said accusingly.

"Yeah, sorry," he said insincerely. She scowled at him.

"No you're not. I know you just got home, but for me it's been a long year!" she complained angrily. James looked at her with compassion.

"Okay, Temp! I am sorry," he said, exasperated. She still frowned. "Why don't you tell me about your year," he prompted, sitting next to her. A slight smile met her lips.

"All right, but only if you really want to hear, not just to humor me." He grinned.

"I really want to hear." She sighed.

"Let's just say I'm glad I'm going to Hogwarts next year; these Muggles are really getting on my nerves!"

~*~

Lily arrived home with her parents, positively dreading the coming summer. Her parents would interrogate her about the entire year; Petunia would loath every word openly; and Lily would have no one to run to when things got bad. What if James didn't even write? What if he had already lost her address? She sighed.

Luckily, her parents had had the sense to keep quiet in the car. Lily just wanted to be alone; the end of any school-year is always hard. That's a fact. Right now Lily just wanted to sit in her room, write letters to Hestia, Jenny, Crystal, and James, and not talk about the year.

She started for her room, and was halfway there when she was met by Petunia.

"Back already?" she asked spitefully. Lily didn't say anything, but tried to push past her. "What's wrong? D'you miss turning people to toads all ready?" Petunia scoffed. Lily still ignored her, trying to get by.

"Have all the magic tricks worn you out? Don't even have the strength to get by me?" Petunia was thoroughly enjoying tormenting Lily. She didn't notice that Lily was getting red in the face.

"Oh, by the way," Petunia said, the sarcastic tone suddenly leaving her voice, "you little friend called. She wants you over." Petunia changed again to sarcasm. "She probably just wants you to show her your latest magic card games!" Lily had had enough.

"WHY DON'T YOU GET THE BLOODY HELL OUT OF MY WAY AND JUST LET ME GET TO MY ROOM SO I DON'T HAVE TO PUT UP WITH YOU!!??" she screamed. She didn't even care that her parents had undoubtedly heard her say 'bloody hell'; just so long as Petunia moved.

And, sure enough, Petunia numbly moved out of Lily's way and she continued to her room.

She opened her bedroom door, walked in, and slammed it shut, noting that Petunia still stood, unmoving, in the hallway. She moved to her desk and sat for a moment, staring at it. Suddenly an owl fluttered into her room. Her heart leapt as she snatched a letter from it.

'James!' she thought excitedly, looking at the envelope. She let the owl perch itself on her windowsill and began hurriedly writing a reply.

James,

I've already had a horrible start to my summer, thanks to my sister. I hope it doesn't get any worse (though I know it will).

You want to know about my family, do you? Well, one sister, yes, Muggle, yes. She is my only sibling, and her name is Petunia. She's two years older than me. She's dreadful! She absolutely loathes me because I got to be a witch and she didn't; I mean, she'd loathe me anyway, but this makes it much worse.

I suppose I'm doing all right, though believe me, I've been better. Like you said, I'm sure I'll adjust to home life soon enough, though it won't be easy. Until next time!

Love

From Lily

She looked over it again, and regretted how bad the scratched out 'Love' looked. She was sure he'd be able to read it, but she just wasn't ready for anything of that sort.

The owl he had sent sat restlessly on her window, hooting softly as she approached again. She was careful in writing his address on an envelope, as she knew what new owls were like.

She hastily dug some owl treats from a nearby drawer, gave them to Noel and let him chew while she tied the letter to his leg, and waved a solemn goodbye to the little owl. She then moved back to her desk for more letter-writing.

~*~

James was getting more than tired of listening to Tempesta endlessly talk, and soon excused himself; not realizing he was being rude. She frowned angrily after him, and stormed off to her own room.

About an hour later, he grasped how foolish he had been and rushed to her still closed door. He knocked loudly.

"Temp! Temp open the door!" he called through it. There was no reply. "Seriously, Temp! I'm sorry about what I did!" No answer. He jiggled the handle, and the door slid open. He wondered if she was sleeping.

He opened the door to find the room empty. He turned, not looking around the room, and searched the rest of the house. She was nowhere to be found. He returned to her empty room, and entered warily.

After careful penetrating of her room, he discovered a note on her pillow. It read:

Dear Family,

I'm sorry, but sense (he was sure she meant 'since') I can clerly (he supposed this word was to be 'clearly') see that I'm not wanted here, I've left. I don't know where I'm going, and I don't know if I'll ever come bak (she wasn't very good at spelling). I don't blame James for couzing (causing) me to go, but…well, bye. If you miss me, I'm even more sorry. May be I'll come bak soon. May be not. Bye.

Love Tempesta

James gasped and took notice of her open window. It was all his fault! How could he be so inconsiderate? What was he going to do? His mother would punish him to no avail, his father would be stern no doubt, and his brother…probably wouldn't care all that much. There would be search efforts, and all fingers would be pointed at James!! Unless…

He looked down at the note in his hand. They didn't have to know there was a note; did they? He could just claim that he was searching for Temp to play a game, and she was nowhere to be found! Either that or he could write a new note, taking careful efforts to trace her handwriting.

He decided the second one would be the best, but the first one required less effort. Soon he was diligently tracing her handwriting onto another sheet of parchment.

It didn't take long, so he hastily shoved the original note in one pocket, and the fake in the other. Thinking this over, he switched the original to his back pocket so he wouldn't mistake it with the fake, and hurried to find his parents.

"Mum! Mum!" he called through the house urgently. He soon found her in the kitchen.

"What is it James?" she asked calmly.

"Tempesta's gone!" he said dramatically.

"What do you mean?" she asked in the same tone.

"She's run away!"

"How do you know she's not just at a friend's house?" she questioned. James, suddenly very grateful he had taken the time to compose the fake note, began reaching for a pocket.

"Because," he continued, pulling the parchment from his back pocket, "she left this!" He held it up gloriously, saw the part he was careful to leave out in the fake note written there, and quickly hid it from view.

"James, what was that? Give it to me!" his mother ordered.

"Uhh, wrong pocket," he said, digging in the correct pocket this time, "that was an old assignment!" He handed her the fake note. It was identical to Tempesta's note, except that it left out the sentence, I don't blame James for couzing me to go, but…well, bye.

"Oh my heavens…" Phyllinda said, staring at the note. "James, when did you last see her?" James shifted his weight from foot to foot, looking intently at the floor.

"Uh, this afternoon. We were talking."

"Well what were you talking about? Not about leaving home, I daresay!" The pit in James's stomach was steadily growing, and he began to feel sick. He had no idea what Tempesta was talking about! He had tuned her out before he had rudely left.

"Er, no," he said plainly; guiltily.

"That's a relief!" Phyllinda said, still gaping at the note. "Well, we've got to find her. I'll call your father first, inform him of what's going on, and then we'll get you and Magnus to go down to the R.A.M.C.A. Understand?" James nodded.

The R.A.M.C.A. stood for the Recovery Agency of Magical Children & Associates.  James didn't like the idea of going anywhere with Magnus, but for Tempesta, he'd do it.

Soon Phyllinda had Magnus downstairs, gave them both a handful of Floo Powder, and saw that they safely departed to the R.A.M.C.A.

Once they arrived, Magnus looked uninterestedly around. "So just what happened to Tempy, James?" he asked casually, as though talking about a dog or stray animal.

"She ran off. Didn't you catch why we're here?" James asked impatiently as they began walking toward the front desk.

"Yeah, I know she's gone, I'm not that dense," Magnus said exasperatedly, "I just know you're the one who found the note and you're probably the reason why she left." James felt himself turning red.

"That's not true! She left on her own accord!" he spat angrily. Magnus shrugged.

"It doesn't matter. We'll just ask her when we find her." James stopped suddenly. Magnus looked back at him. "What's wrong? Recognize the lady behind the counter or something?"

It hit him. Tempesta would tell them she had left because of him. The note didn't even matter, because it was nothing to what she would say when they found her! He didn't even notice Magnus was approaching him again.

"Hey, come on, people are looking," he muttered, grabbing James's arm.

"Maybe we should just go home. I mean, she'll come home when she's ready, right?" James asked hopefully.

"James, don't be ridiculous. Now come on," Magnus said firmly, pulling hard on James's arm, causing him to begin walking again.

They went up to the desk and were met by a strange look from the woman behind it. "Names, please," she said mechanically, opening a nearby book.

"We have no names, please just help us find someone who we're completely not related to-" James began quickly, before Magnus's hand covered his mouth.

"Magnus Potter and James Potter," he said clearly, keeping a firm grip on James.

"How old are you? Old enough to be here by yourself? Gotta be older than eighteen." Magnus was now even happier James couldn't talk; James knew he was only seventeen, and would tell her if he had the chance. He seemed eager enough to get out of there.

"I just turned eighteen," Magnus lied swiftly. Suddenly James bit down hard on his hand and he yelped.

"No he's not! He's-" James was again silenced by Magnus's hand, while Magnus forced a laugh.

"Heh, heh! My little brother, never can tell when my birthday is," he turned to James, "remember that party last week? That was for my birthday!" James tried to bite again but Magnus's hand wasn't positioned right.

"All right, all right," the woman said, getting annoyed, "just give me the name of the child you're looking for."

"Tempesta Potter. She's 10 years old, going on 11, she's got dark brown hair, about shoulder-length, and bright, ice blue eyes," Magnus explained. James had stopped struggling to hear how Magnus described Tempesta. The woman was hastily writing down Tempesta's description, and looked up suddenly.

"Did you say bright ice blue eyes?" she asked with wonder.

"Yeah, here let me show you," Magnus said, dragging James closer to the counter. Thinking fast, James clamped his eyes shut to make Magnus angry.

"Do you have bright blue eyes?" she asked Magnus, seeing how stubborn James was being. Magnus scowled.

"No, but he does!" Magnus growled. He leaned in to James's ear; maybe a nice guilt trip would make him comply.

"This is for the sake of your little sister. If you don't show this woman your eye color, how will they know what to look for? Do you really want to leave Temp out there all by herself for long?" James slowly opened his eyes, thinking about what he had just heard.

He felt the woman looking intently into his eyes, and felt them tearing up.

"I've never, in my entire career, heard of, or seen an ice-blue -eyed child!" she said wonderingly. James grimaced. He didn't like all this fuss over his eyes. They weren't even the same shade as Temp's…Magnus just called them bright, "ice-blue" to sound impressive. They were actually more turquoise, and changed color often. His mum even said they'd be a whole new color when he had children.

Magnus let James go and began talking to the woman again.

"So, do you think you can send a party out to find our Tempesta?" he asked hopefully, watching her write something else down in her notebook.

"We'll send one out this afternoon, after we assemble it. It'll cost you 5 galleons total." Magnus, being ready for this, grabbed a small bag from his pocket. He counted out five gold galleons and handed them to her.

"Thank you. Come back in about an hour if you'd like to confirm the party. Try to have a nice day," she said, turning briskly back to her work. Magnus smiled and tugged on James's arm for him to follow.

"Now," he began sternly once they were back home, "what is it you don't want Tempy telling about you when we find her?" James wouldn't look at him.

"Nothing!" he said.

"No, it's something James, otherwise you wouldn't've gone off about 'not having names', 'we're not related' and 'she'll come home when she's ready'!" Magnus said knowingly. James was gazing at the floor again.

"Nothing! I just think she might need some time away from our family to cool off!" he said.

"No, because you and I have been at Hogwarts all year!" He studied James. "What did you do to make her go?" he pressed.

"I walked out on her while she was talking!" James admitted painfully. "And I ignored her when we first arrived home. I must've gone too far; I should've at least said hello and pretended to listen to her…" Magnus was gaping at him.

"That's it? Man, I thought you broke her favorite toy or something, but she has got a temper!" James looked at him irritably.

"It's not a temper! She's a girl, girls get emotional. Sure she's young, but then the littlest things get on her nerves. Don't go saying she's got a temper, because she hasn't!" James said heatedly. Magnus backed away defensively.

"Okay, sorry! Sheesh I didn't know you two were so close." James decided it wasn't worth the effort to retaliate, and went off to his room instead.

~*~

Lily laid on her bed, unable to do anything but think. Finally a small knock came on her door. "Lil? We need to talk." It was her mother.

"S'open," Lily said lazily. Her mother approached her warily, as though afraid she might attack at any moment.

"Uh, about what you said earlier, I just wanted to make sure that you know that sort of language is not to be tolerated in this house," her manner was calm, but her voice was stern, "what are they teaching in that school nowadays?" she asked; though it was more of a general question that Lily shouldn't answer.

"Petunia wouldn't get out of the way," Lily said stubbornly.

"That being so, there will be no more of that language around here. Understood?"

"Understood," Lily said moodily.

"Good. I'm going to make dinner; be down in a half hour." Lily gave no reply, and Violet left. Petunia then came up to Lily's door. She began to chant, "You got in trouble…you got in trouble…" in a singsong voice, when Lily turned viciously on her.

"You think I won't say it again?" she asked dangerously. "Cause just give me a reason." Petunia stopped momentarily.

"You got in trouble…you got in trouble…"

"Get-the-bloody-hell-away-from-my-room!!" Lily muttered.

"MUUUUM!!!!!!!!" Petunia wailed, but Lily didn't care. She slammed her door in exasperation and returned to thinking on her bed. Soon there was another knock. Lily quickly summoned tears, thinking of Hogwarts, and opened it to her mother again.

"What did you say to her?" she demanded. Lily let the tears flow.

"She-she said that I had no friends!" she cried. "Th-then she said she was going to go lie to you and say I had said that again!" Violet looked outraged.

"I'm sorry dear! Neither of you will be punished," she decided heatedly, stalking off. Lily closed her door and laughed.

"She'll believe anything," she mumbled, collapsing back onto her bed. She wondered what she was going to do all summer.

It was then another owl flew in through her window.

Dear Lil,

Temp's run off. We don't know what to do. I think it's my fault. You need to come over. Fast. You already know my address.

James

Why on earth would she need to go over there? True, she was ecstatic at the idea, but one can't help but wonder. She decided to ask her mother at dinner.

"Lily, dinner!" Violet shouted. 'Perfect timing,' Lily thought with a grin.

"Mum, I've got a question. Can I go to James' for a while?" Her mother looked skeptical.

"Why should she get to go anywhere?" Petunia burst, "after what she said!"

"I have to agree with Petunia, Lily. You have to be punished for how you've acted all day." Petunia shot Lily a satisfied smile. Lily gaped at her mother and stormed back up to her room, leaving her dishes and uneaten food behind.

She angrily wrote back to James.

James,

Can't come. Sister's stupid; so is Mum. I'll find a way. Can you sneak me out tonight?

Lily

Short and to-the-point. She sent the owl back without a second thought and watched it flutter out of sight. Her stomach growled suddenly. What was she going to eat, anyway?

~*~

About a half hour later, the same owl flew into James' room. "What've you got there?" he asked it, clutching the letter. He opened it, read it hurriedly, and scowled. Then he went to Magnus' room and knocked loudly.

"Magnus! I need a bit of a favor," James said, frowning at the letter. He showed it to Magnus.

"You want me to help you sneak your dumb little girlfriend over here?" Magnus asked incredulously. "You've got to be joking."

"Magnus, Mum and Dad won't do it, you've got to!" Magnus rolled his eyes.

"Give me one good reason why I should." James stood there in thought. Then he grinned.

"I'll tell Mum about your new girlfriend," he said, a glint in his eye. Magnus went pale.

"Fine. When should we do it?"

"Tonight. I'll send her a reply at once." Magnus rolled his eyes again and shut his door.

Dear Lily,

James wrote,

We're coming tonight. We'll make a plan. At least, I will. See you soon, be ready!

James

He sent the owl off, yet again, with her reply. Then he sat at his desk to devise an escape plan for Lily.

~*~

It was midnight. James knew that soon he and Lily's paths would cross again. "Magnus, should I go over the plan once more?" he asked.

"No, you stupid git, I've got it," he said irritably.

"Fine, sorry," James said, mounting his new broomstick. His parents had bought it for him as a welcome home present for the summer. Magnus mounted his own, looking James over.

"You're sure you know what you're doing?" he asked doubtfully. James shot him a loathing glare.

"I'll be Seeker next year; just you wait," he said. They took off for Lily's house without further talk.

~*~

A loud tap awoke Lily from her light sleep. She turned towards her window, and was overjoyed at the sight of James' face looking in at her. She opened her window wide, allowing Magnus and him to enter and land. "I thought you wouldn't come!" she said excitedly.

"I said I would, didn't I?" James asked. "Now, what're we taking?" Lily motioned to a bag on her floor.

"How long are you planning to stay?" Magnus asked suddenly, eyeing the bag. Lily shrugged.

"Perhaps all summer," she said sadly.

"What happened?" James asked. Lily shook her head.

"Can we just go?" she asked wishfully. James nodded, and mounted his broom again. Lily climbed on after him and soon they were off again.

~*~

They arrived back at the Potters' house, and James led Lily into his room. "Why did I have to come, again?" Magnus asked, yawning.

"In case something went wrong," James answered lazily.

"Oh, all right. Just checking," Magnus replied, shutting his own door. James followed Lily inside his room, and watched as she surveyed her surroundings.

"Where am I to sleep?" she asked.

"Oh, right," James said, as though just remembering something. "Inicioso!" he muttered, making a bed appear.

"Are you allowed to do that outside of school?" Lily asked wonderingly. James shrugged.

"I suppose so." They climbed into their respective beds, and both stared up at the ceiling. "So, Lily," James began, "you never did tell me why you wanted to leave so badly."

"Well…my parents got really angry at me for saying 'bloody hell', and Petunia convinced them not to let me come. So, I got really angry, and insisted you rescue me."

"Oh," James said simply.

"What's wrong with your sister?" she asked in return.

"I made her mad by 'not listening' to her, and she ran off." He sighed. "We've got the R.A.M.C.A. looking for her."

"R.A.M.C.A.?" Lily asked with interest.

"Recovery Agency of Magical Children & Associates," James said hastily. "They should be able to find Temp." Lily was silent for a moment.

"I'm sorry she's gone," she said sympathetically.

"Don't be; she'll come back. I'm not worried. I'll just apologize to her in secret, so my family doesn't realize I'm the reason she ran off."

Soon after they fell asleep.

~*~

The next morning, James was awakened by the tapping of an owl on his window. He opened it quickly and eagerly snatched the letter from its talons. "It's from Sirius!" he said excitedly, ripping it open.

Hey James,

You may call me lucky, but I've got no siblings. Can you imagine if I did? I know your brother goes to Hogwarts and is in Ravenclaw, but that's all I know. Haven't you got a little sister?

Nothing new here. Haven't heard from Remus yet. I'm getting a little worried, but I hope it's just a late reply. Have you written to Peter? I never told you this, but he gets on my nerves. Maybe if he would try a bit harder at his work…maybe next year will be better. I hope it will be for Remus, at least, now that he's got his problem worked out.

Have you heard from Lily yet? Be sure to write and tell me whatever's going on. I feel so alone here, no siblings around, just my parents…sound fun? I think not! Ha, ha! Anyway, see you later, James! (Perhaps we can get together soon; I'm about dying of boredom)

Sirius

"Lily, you wouldn't mind if I-" James began, but she waved a careless hand towards him, signaling she still wanted to sleep. He sat at his desk and began writing a reply.

Sirius,

My brother's name is Magnus, and next year is his seventh year. Then he'll be gone for good! Yes, I have a little sister who'll be in Hogwarts next year, Tempesta. Unfortunately, she's run off. I'm afraid I'm the reason why. Not to worry, though, we've got the R.A.M.C.A. looking for her. I do hope they find her soon, and my parents don't find out what I did!

Yes, I've written to both Remus and Peter, neither of which have replied as of yet. Peter does rather get on my nerves too; perhaps we should push him next year? I'm sure Remus is just fine…he's probably so busy he hasn't the time to reply yet.

My mum will be quite lenient on having you over; considering Lily's over right now. She left her house because her parents were being dreadful, so Magnus and I rescued her, so to speak, last night. So yes, feel free to come over for a few nights or so; we'll have a great time!

There is at least one good thing about this summer; no Snape until school starts again! I could sing! But I won't, of course. No more meddling little slimeball…I'm so happy!! Yes, but see you soon (hopefully). Write back before coming.

James

He grinned and sent the owl back after feeding it some owl treats. "Have you written to anyone besides me yet, Lily?" he asked.

"No, not yet. I have to write to Hestia; she'll be ecstatic," she replied lazily. He flopped back down onto his own bed, staring again at the ceiling.

"You never did seem too close to your friends," he pointed out cautiously.

"I wasn't. Their lives aren't all that interesting. Not like yours, Sirius' and Remus', anyway," she said, giving him a strange look. James turned slightly red.

"Oh, come now, it's not all that interesting…" he insisted.

"Oh, but it is! Remus a werewolf, Sirius betrayed you all, and you managed to forgive him, you being wondrous at Quidditch…" she trailed off.

"Yes, well…" he tried to find something to say, but there really wasn't anything. "You have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen." She sat for a moment in silence.

"Seriously?" she asked in a flattered tone. He jumped on this opportunity.

"Seriously! They're a shade of green that is positively astounding!" They both sat up on their beds and peered into each other's eyes.

"Yours are nice too," she said, feeling a blush rising in her cheeks. He shrugged it off.

"Nothing to yours." He paused. "Your children are going to have lovely eyes." Silence again met this statement.

"How many do you think there'll be?" she asked with a slight giggle.

"Oh, seven or eight," he said expectantly. She giggled fully at this, covering her mouth with her hand.

"I don't think I can handle that many."

"All right all right, five!" James said submissively. She laughed harder.

"I was thinking more along the lines of two or three!"

"That's all? But you've got to spread the eye color!" he said incredulously.

"What if the first one's got it?" she asked.

"You still have to spread it! What are you thinking?" he asked. She lay back down on her bed, laughing softly.

"I don't know what I'm thinking," she said, completing their joking manner. He laughed slightly too.

~*~

A week passed event-lessly. There was no sign of Tempesta; Lily's parents seemed much happier without her; and James hadn't heard from Remus or Peter, or further word from Sirius. Lily was getting very irritable, not hearing anything from home. She finally decided to write, much to James' relief.

"I've been gone a bloody week, don't they even care?" she raved, breaking the tip of her quill.

"Did you tell them where you were going?" James asked wonderingly. She turned suddenly red.

"Oh, no…" she admitted quietly. Suddenly they heard the front door downstairs burst open. They ran, Lily's broken quill forgotten on the desk.

"What's going on?!" James' mother asked demandingly.

"Ma'am, we're from the R.A.M.C.A. We've gotten word there is a 'Lily Tayfor' currently residing here," a squad member answered. Lily turned a violent red and stepped forward.

"I'm Lily Tayfor," she said feebly.

"Young miss, were you brought here by force?" the same squad member questioned, making a pad of paper appear. Lily shook her head. "Did you come here of your own accord?" She nodded. The pen and paper disappeared.

"Your parents are very worried. I'm afraid I have to take you back home now." Phyllinda stepped forward intrusively.

"Now, I can take care of that. Certainly if I had known-" she shot Lily a penetrating glance, "that her parents had no idea she was here, I would have taken her sooner." Another piece of paper appeared in front of the squad leader.

"Please sign this," he said, handing her a quill. She quickly did, and he said, "All right. Glad we got everything cleared up." He smiled warmly at Lily.

"No, wait a second," Phyllinda said expectantly. "My daughter Tempesta has been missing for over a week! Why haven't you found her yet?" The leader looked uncomfortable.

"Complications, ma'am, I'm sure you'll have her back soon enough." Phyllinda looked like she was going to argue more, but the representatives from R.A.M.C.A. left too quickly for another word of protest.

James was in awe, and he told Lily so on their way back upstairs. "I thought they were just ordinary people, not like a Police Squad," he said in wonder. He was referring to their outfits, which greatly resembled those of Muggle police officers. Lily looked downtrodden.

"That was awful. I should've known Mum and Dad would send a bloody force after me." James put a comforting arm around her.

"Don't worry, Lily. I'm sure they're not all that mad." She gave him a disbelieving look.

"You don't know my parents," she said gloomily.

~*~

Soon Lily had returned back home, and James was stuck again by himself and bored out of his mind. What was he to do with no Tempesta around? And where was she, anyway? The R.A.M.C.A. had recovered Lily quickly; it had been a week! So what was keeping them from bringing back Temp…?

He proposed this same question to Magnus. After much persuasion, Magnus finally agreed to go back to R.A.M.C.A. headquarters and find out just what was going on.

"I'm doing it for her, it's too quiet around this house," he said complainingly.

~*~

"Hello, my name is Magnus Potter. A week and a half ago we sent for a squad to recover my little sister, Tempesta." The clerk jumped. James was surprised.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"N-nothing!" the clerk said worriedly. Suddenly she rushed off to a back room, leaving them standing there. They exchanged befuddled looks as a much more important person came striding towards the desk.

"What can I help you boys with?" he asked kindly.

"A week and a half ago, we sent for a squad for our little sister, Tempesta Potter," Magnus explained again. This new man dropped his glass eyepiece, which he had been holding arrogantly.

"Tem-Tempesta Potter?" he asked fearfully. Magnus nodded, looking strangely at James. James shrugged. Then this man rushed off, getting who seemed to be a manager of some sort.

"Hello there young men. What seems to be the problem?" he asked, just as politely as the previous man.

"We're here," Magnus began irritably, for the third time, "to find our sister, Tempesta!" An audible gasp was heard from the manager.

"Follow me, please," he said gravely, coming out from behind the desk. He led them down multiple corridors, as their stomachs dropped, dreading whatever they might find. Finally he led them into an empty room.

"Boys, boys…" he began mournfully, avoiding their eyes, "your sister was a brave soul…" James couldn't believe his ears. If Tempesta was dead, why hadn't they just said that at the desk?

"What happened?" Magnus asked shakily.

"We found her, oh yes," the man continued, "but we could not save her. She was already in the clutches of the sorcerer, Romulus." Magnus gasped, but James was confused.

"Who is Romulus?" he asked with interest. Neither answered, so he pressed further questions. "Why did you take us all the way out here?" Again, neither answered. It appeared as though Magnus knew the answer, but his hand was over his mouth in fright.

"Will someone please tell me what is going on?" James demanded. Magnus grabbed James hard on the arm and they began leaving the building. He didn't say a word until they returned home.

"Romulus is the most evil sorcerer of our time," he explained unsteadily. "Once he's got you, you're done for. His dark magic is unequaled by anyone in our world."

"Why did that man take us so far into the building?" Magnus breathed heavily.

"He obviously has Tempesta's soul back there." Seeing James' obvious confusion, he elaborated. "Romulus extracts the soul of his victims and they become mindless drones. Their soles can be rescued, if they are found fast enough after removed, and are given a big living space. This will allow the person to be saved if their bodies are recovered. I'll bet my life that behind one of those walls in a huge glass container with-" he choked, "Temp's soul in it." James felt cold and scared.

"We should tell Mum." Magnus laughed mirthlessly.

"Be my guest. I don't want to break her heart!" James hadn't thought of that. He left to his room, going over everything in his mind. Finally, he decided on one thing.

He would save Temp's soul and bring her back.

~*~

            Abrupt end, I know, but I couldn't keep you all waiting any longer for the next chapter!! Many thanks to my reviewers, be sure to write more, please!! Next chapter in progress!!