I got the next chapter partially written so I just need to do this one and the next one is cakeish. Then I have the one after that all done and ready to go. Well, I do need to type it up. I have Band camp next week so I might be too tired to write when I come home after marching all day. So there might be a pause in writing then. ::Ducks as people throw tomatoes at her:: "Seems they opened the salad bar." I know it' pretty obvious who the secret admirer is, but oh well, some of us are hopeless romantics you know.

12/26/96

Ah the last remaining days for this year. Can't wait for it to be over. Can't say if it's been a good year or a bad one. First half of it we had o deal with Umbridge and with the whole taking Fred, George, and Harry off the Quidditch team. Second half was lots of fun. Fred and George are part of the Order of the Phoenix. For being part of a secret organization, they sure are loud about it. We're all going to join as well to help stop Voldemort. Hopefully some of the Aurors will train us up a bit since our dueling skills have gotten a bit rusty in the past year.

Now today is the day after Christmas and the day we exchanged gifts, but I think I should start with what happened after I wrote last time. Well on the 21st Angelina did her traditional Solstice ritual. She opens the circle with all of us inside and calls on the corners. Then we all sing a song or something. She does a spell of some sort but a spell is just like a prayer to God would be for me. Then we all sit down in the circle and do the talking stick. We all reflect on the past year and stuff, this part always has been my favorite. Then Angelina breaks out her Tarot cards. Fred and George are always asking to have their tarot read so she has no choice in the matter. We all got our fortunes told and it seems I'm I for a rather good year. I'm going to be lucky in love and in my career, always good. Actually, I think we all got that we're lucky in love. Angelina foretold she's going to have a lot of work-related stress this year and Alicia is going to have to find a new job at one point. Life can't be perfect.

Yesterday was Christmas Eve. We always open our gifts then instead of waiting. Oliver tells me that's how his family always did it. Fred and George said they always opened their gifts at 12 because technically it was Christmas at 12. So we opened gifts.

I got a "How can I miss you if you won't go away," t-shirt from Fred and a "List of Comparative Religions," from George. The two of them also gave me a bunch of goodies from their shop. Oliver gave me "Women who played Quidditch, a study of women in Quidditch, including interview with Joscelind Wadcock, Leopina Smethwyck, Jocund Skes and Gwenog Jones." It's part of a series; another one is Prefects who gained Power, a study of Hogwarts Prefects and their later lives. Fred and George tell me Percy has that one. Alicia gave me a sketchbook and some nice pencils. I swear this girl doesn't know me. She knows I can't draw anything past stick figures. Remind me to kill her. Angelina got me the Griffindor and Quidditch player beanie babies. They're so cute! Beanie Baby is a Wizarding company but it was so successful, they decided to expand it to the muggle market as well.

I'm going to forget later so I'm going to write down now who Joscelind Wadcock is and such. She's scored the most goals in a Quidditch season in the last century. I used to look up to her, but I'm getting close to being able to beat her record so now she's more of a rival even though she's retired. Maybe one day that book will say Katie Bell on it. Leopina Smethwyck was the first woman to referee a Quidditch match. Jocund Skes was the first person to fly across the Atlantic on her broom. Gwenog Jones is the captain of England's only all female team, the HolyHead Harpies and a rather annoying person. She turned me down when I applied for that team but now she keeps asking Puddlemere if they want to trade me.

I got the usual gifts from my family, but I got a strange gift too. It was just a plain brown box. The card was addressed to me.

Dear Katie,

I wanted to know if you wanted to meet me. I want to tell you how much I care about you, but whenever I try my stomach fills with my butterflies. And every time I try to talk to you I get tongue-tied. turns out. Everything I say to you comes out wrong and never comes out right.

How about on Valentine's Day? If you say no, that's ok. Just send an owl off, it will find me. Don't worry about transportation, I'll arrange that.

And that was it. So I opened the box and inside was a gorgeous necklace I had seen in the window of this shop. I had wanted to buy it but it was too expensive. I'm asking around other people's opinions, here's Angelina and Alicia now.

I think you should go

I think she should be cautious, it's all really sweet and such but what if there's really a dark wizard behind this?

Oh shut up Alicia, you were telling me last night how you thought the whole thing was sweet and you couldn't wait till she found out who it was so you could know.

There's nothing wrong with caution though.

I still don't understand why you want us to write in here instead of talking to you.

It's more exciting this year and she's using my gift to her so shut up Angelina.

FINE LISA!

You did not just call me Lisa. Need I remind you what happened last time you did, ANGELCAKES?

You wanna fight? Pillow fight, you and George's room, nine o'clock tonight. Last girl standing.

You're on!

Maybe I should get more opinions. Here's Fred and George.

Oh give the poor guy a break and go out with him. Whoever he is he must be really crazy to be doing this, wasting perfectly good energy on being all romantic

Perfectly shameful. So yo might as well go out with him since he did all this. If you don't like the poor sod you don't have to go out with him any more than once.

You sound like a girl, George.

Do not.

Yes you do.

You want to fight?

You and Alicia's room, nine o'clock.

Actually that's already being used, Angelina and Alicia have a pillow fight planned.

Excellent, you think we could rg up something to watch them?

Sounds like a smashing idea. Brothers?

Brothers!

Um yes, there's a lack of sane people in the house and Oliver is holed up in his room, woe to ther person who enters. I like my life, I'm not risking it.