A/N: Finally, a new chapter! Hooray! Thanks so much to all of you who reviewed, you have no idea how much that helps. I really didn't expect so many, but I'm not complaining. ShadowKitten2, a.k.a. You-Know-Who, a.k.a. Nicole (Ha! I said your name, and you can't do anything about it!), I do realize that I was going fast, but I didn't want to bore anybody. This chapter is a bit longer (not much, though) and it's starting to get interesting. Thanks again, and enjoy!

Aria was slowly making her way up the winding stone stairs to the Ravenclaw commonroom, struggling under a load of books and scrolls of parchment. Figures in the portraits that lined the walls were watching her, some attempting to start up a conversation. She ignored them and panted onward towards a long afternoon of studying. She didn't feel much like talking to anyone, and anyway, she didn't think she had the breath for it.

Almost there, Aria thought as she rounded a curve in the stairs. Not too much further. Something flashed in front of her, causing her to jump. One of the scrolls she was carrying fell from her arms and began to roll down the stairs.

"Damn you, Peeves!" she yelled at the poltergeist. "Don't do that!" He laughed shrilly and floated back through the wall. Grumbling, Aria put her books down and went off in search of the runaway parchment. "Idiot ghost," she muttered.

On the way down, Aria passed several fellow Ravenclaws. She hoped they wouldn't knock over her stack of books. Oh well. Hyacinth came bounding up towards her, blond hair flying. She looked absolutely giddy.

"Aria!" the girl cried. "Guess what? No, don't, you'll never get it. Millard's just told me that that boy on the train — you know, the cute one with the weird eyes — is in Gryffindor with him, and he's a sixth year too!" Aria had almost completely forgotten about the yellow-eyed stranger. Unlike Hyacinth and the rest of the Filbus family, Millard had been placed in Gryffindor, but Aria didn't see how this other boy being a Gryffindor had any significance. "That's not the best part though," continued a very excited Hyacinth, "he asked Millard about the girl that was on the train with him. Can you believe it? Me! He asked about me!" Ah, now Aria saw.

"Is that all you ever think about," she asked Hyacinth accusingly. "Boys? There's more to life than that, you know."

"Yeah, but nothing else is as much fun." She turned to go up the stairs. "Oh, were you going somewhere?"

"I lost a scroll of parchment, thanks to a certain poltergeist we all know," Aria said. "It rolled down the stairs."

"Oh, yeah, I saw that at the bottom. See you later!" she called over her shoulder.

Thanks, Aria thought irritably. When she finally found the missing scroll, it had been crushed under several pairs of feet. Thank you very much...

After dinner that evening in the Great Hall, Aria decided to visit the owlry. She had a letter to send to parents saying that everything was going fine, and she wanted to make sure that Tyto wasn't getting into any trouble. She found the door and opened it, to be greeted by the sound of soft hooting and a blast of warm, fetid air. Owl droppings and feathers lay scattered across the wooden floor.

"Gross," Aria said to herself. "Doesn't anybody ever clean in here?"

"Yes, occasionally," replied a light, pleasant voice. "But being the party animals we are, it's hard to look after us. We're really a wild bunch, you know. Out at all hours of the night. Shameful, really."

"Hello, Tyto," Aria said. "I have a letter for you."

"For me, really?" the barn owl said, flying over to a perch near his master. "No, I suppose you want me to deliver it, as I am only a slave for you to use at your every whim. And what if I refuse?"

"You won't," she said. "You see, I know you much too well, old friend." She stepped closer to Tyto so that she could see him better in the dark room. "Yuck. You do realize that you have half of a frog hanging out of your mouth? That's disgusting."

"Does it make me look beautiful?" Tyto asked, turning his head to the side. "I was going for the natural look. Did I do so? If you want, you can have it; I know how much you love fresh food."

Aria rolled her eyes. "Same old Tyto. No couth at all." She tied the letter to his scaly leg, while he finished his meal. "Alright. You know where this goes."

"Yes, my lady," he said dryly. "Straight across the Atlantic and home to dear old Dad and that Muggle of a woman he's married to."

"Tyto..." Aria warned. The owl spread his giant wings and took off through the window into the night.She sighed and made her way carefully across the messy floor and back into the hallway. She nearly collided with someone. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" she cried. She looked into the person's face, then gasped. It was the yellow-eyed Gryffindor boy. His eyes were so familiar…so…so…Before she could remember, Aria fainted.

A/N: How exciting! Don't forget to let me know what you thought! Until next time...