Tammy quickly boarded the train, as it was about to pull away, and went to the compartment she always shared with her group of best friends. None of them were in the same house as her (they were all in Gryffindor, and she was a Hufflepuff), but they were all really close anyway.

Angelina Johnson was sometimes considered the leader of their group of friends, not only because she was the oldest (although most of Tammy's friends were 7th years, Angelina had her 18th birthday in October, which was months before any of the other's), but also because she was the most controlling. She hated when people didn't do things her way, and never hesitated to let them know it. She was loud and outspoken, always saying exactly what was on her mind. She was also competitive, always trying to prove that she was the best at everything. She was in the most classes possible for 7th years, and worked hard to excel at them all.

Alicia Spinnet was Angelina's best friend, though the two girls couldn't be more different. While Angelina was often thought of as a tomboy, Alicia fit the description of a girly-girl quite well. She was never seen looking anything worse than gorgeous, and was always being followed by tons of hot guys. She was really popular, as well, for no one could bring themselves to hate her. Even girls whose boyfriends had broken up with them for her liked Alicia, because she was always sweet to everyone. She had had a tough life, unlike most of the girls her type, and she knew that there was more things in life to worry about than what shades of nail polish looked the best together.

Katie Bell was one of Tammy's two closest friends. She was the only one in her year, and therefore the only one she had ever had any classes with. Katie was known as the logical one of the group, never doing something unless it made perfect sense. She was very responsible, never breaking any rules or turning in her homework late. She was a prefect, just like Angelina, and she already had her whole future planned out (even though she was only sixteen).

Fred Weasley was Tammy's other best friend, even though he was a year above her, and in a different house. They had met in detention, and had instantly clicked. Fred was a huge prankster. He spent most of his time thinking up new pranks, though it wasn't uncommon to find him out with girls. He was a player, never dating a girl for longer than a week, and even then he would normally cheat on her at least twice.

Fred's twin brother, George, was a lot more serious than his brother was when it came to girls. He didn't date much, but to the few girls he had, he had been very devoted. Although the two brothers were very different when it came to dating girls, they did have a lot in common in other aspects. George adored pranking as much as his twin did, and they talked in such a way that it was difficult for most people to tell them apart.

Lee was George's best friend, and the third member of their pranking group. He was more studious than the other two, as he wanted to do something special when he grew up, not just run a joke shop like his two best friends. At the moment he was aiming for something dealing with animals, as his favorite class had always been Care for Magical Creatures, even with the way Professor Hagrid taught them.

Tammy herself was the fourth person involved in most of the pranks that occurred in school, though she wasn't as active as the other three were. She had a life outside of pranks, and had many dreams she wanted to fulfill. The guys loved it when she joined them, as she was very talented in performing magic, especially charms, which came in handy in many of their pranks. She was also a lot more patient and precise than the others, and therefore always looked over their pranks before pulling them, to make sure that they would go off without a hitch. The guys weren't nearly as patient, and therefore plenty of the pranks they pulled without Tammy's help didn't go off quite as planned. But Tammy was too busy to join them all the time; she was a chaser on the Hufflepuff Quidditch Team, plus she worked harder than the rest in her classes. She loved doing magic, especially charms, which was her favorite class (though Defense Against the Dark Arts came as a close second). She liked practical classes a lot better than theory ones, for she was very powerful and spells came easier for her than for most.

Tammy slid the compartment door open to find that only Katie, Angelina, and Alicia were in there. As soon as the three saw her, they stopped talking and jumped up to hug her. Tammy grinned, hugging them back, and then said, where are the twins and Lee?"

"They went off to start planning some prank or something," Angelina answered, rolling her eyes. Tammy laughed and sat down.

"How was your summer?" She asked Katie, who was sitting across from her.

"It was awesome, I was with Oliver practically every day!" Katie's eyes twinkled with happiness, at the thought of her long-time boyfriend, Oliver Wood. "He spent every second he wasn't on the job with me, it was so sweet!"

Alicia, who was a sticker for romance, quickly said, "Really? That is sweet! Give us details, what did you guys do? What did he give you for your birthday? How…"

Tammy drowned out the rest of her sentence as Angelina, who was sitting next to her, whispered, "Does she always have to know every little thing about every single couple?"

Tammy giggled and whispered back, "That's Alicia for you. How long do you bet she'll be pumping Kates for details?"

"An hour. Want to get up and find the twins? I'm sure they'll be more interesting that this, and I doubt Licia will even notice we're gone."

Tammy nodded, and replied, "Sure, but Katie is going to make us pay so bad for abandoning her." The two girls stood up and left the compartment, Katie glaring at them as they did so. The second they were out, they both breathed a sigh of relief, and Tammy asked, "Any idea where the twins are?"

"Nope," Angelina answered. "Let's start looking."

They searched inside a few compartments until they came to one with some familiar people inside.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Tammy Williamson and one of her faithful sidekicks," drawled the cold voice of one of Tammy's two biggest rivals.

Sitting in front of Tammy was Emmaline Flint, her best friend, Ida Parkingson, Ida's younger sister, Pansy, and Pansy's closest friend, Millicent Bulstrode.

Emmaline Flint and Ida Parkingson we're 6th years, just like Tammy, but in the Slytherin house. Pansy and Millicent we're also Slytherins, but they were only in their 5th year. They often hung around with Emma and Ida though.

Emmaline and Ida were very close, as they had a lot in common. Both Slytherins were tall, with pale skin and black hair. Ida's hair was much longer than Emmaline's, however, and she had eyes that were such a dark brown they were sometimes mistaken for black, while Emmaline, who's eyes were also unusual, were smoky gray. Both girls came from a rich, pure-blood line of Slytherins, and each girl had a sibling who also was, or still is, in the Slytherin house. Emmaline's older brother, Marcus, had graduated only a few years before. The last thing that the two girls had in common was their hatred for Tammy, which was started in their very first year.

"Well, well, well," Tammy retorted, "if it isn't Marcus's little sister and her faithful sidekicks. Have you been put on your Quidditch Team yet Emmaline? One would think they'd be begging you to join them, even if you are a girl, considering how great of a player your brother was. I guess the talent doesn't run in the family, huh?" Tammy knew that there was only two things Emmaline hated more than Tammy herself; being thought of as Marcus' little sister, and the fact that she couldn't make it on the Slytherin Quidditch Team, partially because they didn't allow girls on it. That was one of the main reasons Emmaline had began to hate her so much; Tammy had been placed on the team in her first year, though back then she was only a reserve. Emmaline hated being reminded that she could never play on her team, and the fact that her brother had played on it for four years, and been captain for two of them didn't help. Emmaline was insanely jealous of her brother, who was always thought of as the perfect Slytherin.

Ida glared at Tammy, and shot back, "Well, at least the Slytherin Quidditch team has some decent players, even without Emma. I seem to remember that your team hasn't won a single game in the last fifteen years, unless you count the game where Potter fell off his broomstick because of the dementors, but that was kind of cheating. And this, might I add, is with your help."

Tammy's eyes flashed, and she quickly took a deep breath to calm herself down. "Maybe not, but I seem to remember that the only time that you've defeated Angie's team in the last few years, was when one of their players was unconscious in the hospital wing. That's pretty bad, huh?" She nodded at Angelina, and they both quickly exited the compartment, and resumed their search for the twins and Lee.

"I hate them," Tammy ranted, "I really hate them!" She waited as Angelina stuck her head in another compartment, before turning back to Tammy and nodding. Tammy quickly followed her in, and continued her rant, "I swear to god, they are so going to regret messing with me. We're going to beat Slytherin this year if it's the last thing I do."

The three boys that had been in the compartment stared at the girls as they sat down, ignoring their presence. "Tammy?" Fred tried, but his best friend didn't acknowledge them.

"Good luck with that," Angelina replied, "They really are a good team. We've always had trouble beating them, and we're the best team around. And with Smith as a captain…"

Tammy glanced at her, confused, before asking, "Who said Zacharias was our captain this year?"

"Well, everyone else from your team graduated last year, he's the only one left. So it has to be him."

Tammy frowned, annoyed. Angelina was very competitive girl, especially with Tammy, because she was the only girl that ever beat Angelina at anything. Both of the girls were at the top of their classes, always scoring amazing grades. Also, Angelina was an awesome Quidditch Player, but Tammy was a talented chaser as well. Angelina was always trying to beat Tammy, and she wouldn't be happy that Tammy was the Hufflepuff Quidditch Team captain, especially if Angelina wasn't the Gryffindor one. Tammy decided not to broach the subject right then.

"Well, you know, you could be a bit more supportive here, instead of telling me how bad I am at Quidditch, and that I have no hope of beating the Slytherins."

"Sorry, Tams, but there aren't many talented people in Hufflepuff, it's like the extra house. The one where people go to that aren't smart, brave, cunning; that are shallow and weak. You're not like that; you were almost placed in Gryffindor, but you were too bloody loyal. I didn't mean you wouldn't be able to beat the Slytherins, but your team wouldn't. No offense, but you're a lot more talented than most Hufflepuffs; you could easily beat any Slytherin in a one-on-one match. I didn't mean you couldn't."

Tammy's face softened slightly, and she said, "Yeah, ok. But I'm still going to try my hardest to beat Slytherin this year; I can't stand all of the insults Hufflepuffs get."

Angelina grinned at her, and said, "I'm sure you will try, you never give up without a fight."

Tammy grinned back at her, and then turned her attention to Fred, who was trying to get her attention for the fifth time.

She stared at him in shock when she turned to face him; he had grown a lot since she had last seen him. He was taller, and had gotten his hair spiked. She couldn't help but admire how good he looked… and then chastised herself for thinking of him that way. He was her best friend, always and forever; nothing more and nothing less.

"Sorry, Fred," She said, quickly coming out of her thoughts, before embracing her close friend in a hug. He smiled as she pulled back and said, "We ran into Ida and Emmaline on the way here, I got really angry." She turned to George, quickly wrapping him in a hug as well, as Angelina hugged Lee.

Fred swore, and said, "Those girls are so annoying. I swear to god, if I ever get the chance to, I'm going to…"

"Fred, I'm fine," Tammy said, grinning at his concern for her. "Though I doubt I will be once Kates is through with me…." Tammy added, grin fading.

"What do you mean?" Lee asked.

"We left her alone with Alicia, talking about Oliver."

"Doesn't she love Ollie?" Lee asked. "Why would she be mad that you left her talking about him." Tammy rolled her eyes at his obliviousness, figuring there might be a reason he was best friends with George, who was the least observant person she had ever met.

"They were more discussing… personal details, that Katie probably wouldn't want to share with the school's biggest gossip. Alicia can't keep a secret for her life, but she won't give up until Kates tells her every little detail. Let's get back before she has a bigger reason to kill us, 'kay?" Angelina asked, and Tammy nodded.

"You guys coming, or are you too busy planning your next prank to be bothered with such little things as your best friends?"

Fred laughed, and said, "We're coming." As they made way to their compartment, Angelina asked the twins, "So where were you over the summer? Whenever I sent Prissy with a letter for you, she flew east, not west to your home." Tammy raised an eyebrow in surprise, as she could never mail letters over the summer, and therefore had not had any clue they weren't at their home.

"Uh, we were just…" George trailed off, and Tammy noticed him glance at Fred nervously. His twin instantly supplied, "Visiting a relative! We were just visiting a relative."

"Every single time I sent you a letter you were visiting your relatives?" Angelina asked disbelievingly.

"We stayed at their place the whole summer, actually," Fred replied.

Tammy narrowed her eyes as Angelina nodded, accepting his answer, and Lee started asking about any hot girls they saw. Tammy knew Fred well enough to know when him or his brother was nervous, and both Weasleys had definitely been so. Glancing at the twins again, she noticed the relieved look on their faces, furthering her belief that the two red-heads were hiding something.

Fred then turned to look at her, and he froze the second their eyes connected. Sighing, Tammy stared at her best guy friend, who had obviously caught on that she was still suspicious and was now pleading with his eyes for her to stay silent. She glanced at Angelina and sighed. If she said anything, Angelina would instantly tell Alica, who could not keep a secret for her life. Soon the whole school would know.

Sighing again, she glanced back at Fred and nodded, though not without giving him a look that clearly meant, 'you owe me!'. Fred grinned at her thankfully, and she smiled as he swung his arm around her shoulders while they walked into their compartment, laughing when the realized Alicia was still grilling Katie for details of her summer.

"Hey Kates, Licia!" Angelina chirped happily, sitting down next to Alicia.

"Hey Lina," Katie replied, somewhat somberly. Tammy threw a puzzled glance at her best girl friend as she and Fred sat down. "You okay Kates?"

"Well, yeah… I guess…"

"You guess?" Tammy repeated.

"Well… it's just, while Licia and I were talking, I couldn't help but think… this is going to be one of the last times that she's going to be here begging me for information on my summer with Ollie. This is the last time that Licia and I will be riding to Hogwarts together, because this is her, and Lina, Fred, George, and Lee's last year here. I mean, I just never thought this day would come, you know? It just seemed like I'd be here, in school, forever. But I won't. And I'm not ready to leave, or to have all my best friends leave." She paused as everyone else stopped chatting with each other and turned their attention onto her.

"What's going to happen next year, Tams? Is it just going to be you and me against the world, like back in the beginning of our first year, before we met everyone else? Or are you and I going to split up, it's hard being best friends with a Hufflepuff when you're in Gryffindor. Right now all six of your best friends are Gryffindors, but what about when it's only me… will we stay so close? I don't know if I can handle being alone again, Tams, not after I've had so many close friends living right next door. And I don't want to know. We've had so many great times together, all of us… I don't want everyone to just forget about me. But I can't blame anyone if they do… we'll all be living completely different lives soon. You can't say that doesn't scare you. I mean, Angie's probably going to become the Ministress of Magic, Licia will become a robes designer, or maybe join the Weird Sisters or something, Lee will go off and become some sort of dangerous creature trainer, and Fred and George will open their own joke shop. And you and me will be in school still. How the bloody hell can we stay so close, when we're so far away from each other?"

Tammy stared at Katie, blinking the tears from her eyes. She knew what Katie was going through, for she had gone through it everyday of her life. Tammy often felt left out when she was with her friends, because while they were all in Gryffindor, she was a Hufflepuff. Their lives were totally different. Katie and the other girls lived with each other… Tammy didn't live with them. Tammy's other friends were all Hufflepuffs, the rest were really friendly with Gryffindors that Tammy had never even heard of. Katie felt left out, now that the others were leaving, and she was worried that they would split up.

"Kates, how long have I been friends with you guys?"

"Five years," Katie said, throwing her a puzzled glance which showed that she had no clue where Tammy was going with this.

"Right. Ever since we met. But yet you're a Gryffindor, and I'm a Hufflepuff. We already live different lives, Kates, but that hasn't stopped us from becoming so close. If we can become best friends when we barely ever see each other, how hard can it be to stay that way?"

"But we still live in the same castle, we still are going through similar stages of our lives. What about when every one leaves?"

"Well, I can's speak for them, Kates, but right now I'm making you a promise. I'm not going anywhere, Kates, your stuck with me for life. There's no way I'm letting you get rid of me that easily!" Katie smiled slightly, and then Angelina cut in.

"You're not getting rid of any of us. We've manages to stay close through a lot of things… we can manage now. We'll stay friends, through whatever happens. We're too close to just throw everything we have away because we're going to do different things with our lives."

"You promise?"

"We all promise," everyone said in unison, and smiled at each other.

"Besides," Fred added, always one to lighten the mood, "I highly doubt Tams here would let any of us forget about her. I can just see her sending us nasty little charms with her owl that will make our lives a living hell!" Everyone laughed as Tammy punched Fred in the arm. "No need to get physical Tams!" She glared at him, and then grinned at Katie. She knew that it was going to be another year full of pranks, crazy adventures, romances, and a whole lot of fun!

Thanx for reading, plz review!