Hey, guys, I'm so sorry that I took so long to update! I've recently been a lot busier than normal, so I haven't had as much time as I normally do, also, as I said, I was away from home for a bit. I promise I won't abandon this story though! I will try to update more regularly from now on. For now, though, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

"Oh, I have an idea," Hailey suddenly says. "We don't really know Kimmy and George and you clearly don't know much about us so let's fix that. We can all ask each other one question at a time, and we have to answer. Unless it's too personal or something else like that."

Everyone agrees so we all sit down in our normal spots.

"Alright," Hailey says. "Let's begin."

Chapter 7

September 7, 2020

"I'll go first," Hailey says. "Kimmy, George, who's older?"

"I am," George boasts.

"Only by seven minutes," Kimmy adds indignantly.

We all chuckle at Kimmy's reaction.

"Ok. Me next," George says. "Explain the whole related thing," he points at Ciena, Anica and Xinia.

"Well, I'm glad you asked," Xinia responds. "Anica and Ciena are twins, but the three of us are super close and we treat each other like sisters. Plus, we share our birthday."

"So what does that make you?" Kimmy asks me.

"Is that your question?" I reply, eyebrows raised.

"For now, yes."

"I'm sort of like an annoying cousin, I guess," I answer.

"Our best friend and closest cousin," Anica smiles, semi death staring Kimmy.

She seems to notice and doesn't ask anything more.

"What about you, Dylan?" George asks. "Don't you have a sister?"

"Yeah, Kylie," he says, glancing over the room at her where she is currently sitting with Parkinson and his group. "She's, well, a bit annoying. We're twins though," he answers.

"A bit annoying?" Ciena scoffs. "She hates Xinia and me, a lot."

"Don't forget about me," I add cheerfully. "She hates me too."

"Yeah, well, at least you don't have to share a dormitory with her," Xinia scowls.

"True," I relent.

"Why does she hate you?" George asks us.

"Good question," I say. "But that's like asking why don't you like a certain food. Doesn't taste nice. Kylie doesn't...feel nice. Every time I see her I'm tempted to just rip her head off. No offence Dylan," I add.

He shrugs.

"I'm pretty sure the feeling's mutual," he says dryly.

"Moving on," Owen says. "Are you guys purebloods or what?" she asks the other twins.

"Umm yeah," George says. "But Dad left us when we were young so he could work more at the Ministry."

"Yeah, it's just us and Mum now," Kimmy finishes. "What about all of you guys?"

"Well, we're purebloods," Anica answers for herself and Ciena.

"We also have an older brother in Gryffindor. Finn," Ciena adds. "He's in seventh year."

"I'm a half-blood," Nick tells them. "Dad's a wizard. I also have a younger brother Lincoln.

"Me and my sister, Priya, are purebloods," Owen says. "She's a Gryffindor as well, fifth year."

"Wendy, Alison and I are half-bloods. Wendy's in Hufflepuff, second year, and Alison is two years younger than me," says Hailey.

"Pureblood," Dylan stated. "And you know I have twin sister, she's in Ravenclaw."

"I'm a…" Xinia pauses for a second. "Muggle-born."

"Really?" George asks.

Xinia nods.

"I was introduced to the magical world four years ago though when my older brother Xander was Sorted into Gryffindor," she explains, fiddling with her necklace a little.

"Oh, okay," George nods. "That's cool."

She stops playing with her necklace and gives him a small smile. I clear my throat, looking pointedly at Xinia.

"Anyway," I say. "I'm a pureblood. I've got an older brother, Bailey, he's friends with Xander. That's how we met," I nod at Xinia. "And an older sister Wyrene. She's a third-year Slytherin. Oh, and I've got two younger brothers, Quinn and Jamie. They're twins, they'll be coming here next year."

"Wow, you have a big family," Kimmy says and I detect a note of judgement in her tone.

"Is there a problem with that?" I ask, maybe a little harsher than necessary.

"No," she says quickly. "It's just...interesting."

Just then, I remember someone say something similar. Or something.

"Another Dinnick eh? Very interesting."

The Sorting Hat.

Everyone goes silent for a moment and my mind begins to wander.

She's right. My family is quite big. But that's not unusual, is it? I mean, heaps of families have loads of children. Especially wizarding ones. But then why did the Sorting Hat find another Dinnick interesting? Something else the Hat said nags at me.

"Ah, but of course. Ambitious and cunning too. A mind like your predecessors. Yes, I see. I know just where to put you."

At the time, I didn't think anything of it, too distracted by everything else. But then it dawns on me. Wyrene and I are the only Slytherins in our family recently, with only a few before us. So what did the Hat mean?

"So, do you guys like Quidditch?" George asks, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Yes!" Anica exclaims. "Well everyone, but Hailey and Ciena."

"I don't mind it," Hailey pipes in. "I just don't like actually playing it."

"Well, I don't like it," Ciena says. "There's no point to it."

"The point is to have fun, Ciena," Anica rolls her eyes. "Something you wouldn't know about."

"Well, we're allowed to use the school broomsticks and no ones on the Quidditch field, let's go play," Dylan tries to turn away from an argument.

"Good idea," I say quickly. "Anyone else?"

"We can talk in the stands," Hailey links her arm with Ciena's.

We all stand and begin the walk to the field. My mind is still caught in my previous thoughts, however. It's only when Kimmy joins us and Xinia starts speaking to her I'm pulled back to the present.

"So do you like Quidditch?" Xin asks the brown-haired girl.

"Yeah, George and I play all the time," Kimmy replies. "I'm surprised you know much about it."

I notice Xinia's smile drop a little, but she picks it up again.

"Well, my brother is a Chaser on the Gryffindor team. I help him practice at home."

"Oh," Kimmy says. "That's cool."

When we finally get to the field, we are the only ones there. With only eight players, we decide to play without a snitch and in teams of four.

"What positions do you guys want?" I ask our team.

It consists of me, Anica, Xinia and George.

"Keeper," George says instantly.

"I'll be Chaser," Xinia says.

"We'll be Beaters," Anica finishes, looking at me.

I nod, then turn to face the rest of the group.

"What positions are you guys playing?" I ask.

"Nick and I are Beaters," Dylan says. "Owen will be Keeper and Kimmy Chaser. You guys?"

We tell them, then grab brooms and the equipment we will need. Ciena and Hailey walk up to the stands and call the start of the game. George and Owen take their places at the goal hoops and Xinia and Kimmy race after the Quaffle. Anica and I stay near each other, following Kimmy around. I notice Nick and Dylan marking Xinia.

Anica and I have played together before, so we quickly fall into a familiar rhythm. Anica flies around the left side of Kimmy while I take the right. We try and keep the bludgers between us, hitting at Kimmy, but Nick and Dylan are pretty good. It quickly becomes clear that Kimmy and Xinia are both very good, although Xinia's better in my opinion. George has some good skills as well. He's blocked three out of four of Kimmy's shots so far whereas Owen has only blocked two out of five of Xinia's - leaving the current score thirty to ten in our favour only ten minutes in.

We play for another half an hour before Ciena calls out.

"Can we go now it's starting to get dark, and I have extra homework I want to do."

"Five more minutes!" Anica calls back.

"But you're already at one hundred to sixty," her twin complains.

"She actually knows what we're on?" I joke to Anica.

"No, actually it's one hundred and ten!" Xinia laughs as she throws the Quaffle into a hoop Owen wasn't watching.

"Yes! Good one Xin!" Anica cheers.

"Yes, very good," I hear suddenly.

We all look down and see Coach Wood standing in the middle of the field.

"For first years you played a pretty good game," he continues.

We fly to the ground, landing around Wood.

"Thanks," I answer, not knowing what else to say.

"What are your names?" Wood asks. "I'll put in a good word to your Captains for try-outs."

"Really?" Owen asks, unbelieving.

"Xinia Ren! Ravenclaw!" Xinia yells excitedly.

He nods, quickly writing it down on a piece of parchment.

"You got an older brother in Gryffindor?" he asks.

Xinia nods.

"Well if you play anything like him, you'll give us a run for our money," Wood smiles.

Xinia's face glows red and she can't seem to stand still. She's speechless, for once in her life.

"I think she's gone into shock," I comment. "Gena Dinnick, Slytherin," I add.

"Ah, another one huh? You're brother and sister are also quite good. I'm sure it runs in the family. Your parents were also quite good. Won us more than a few matches."

I smirk at the others.

"Anica Wore, Slytherin."

"George Jones, Gryffindor."

"Kimmy Jones, Ravenclaw."

"Dylan Freign, Gryffindor."

"Nick Gougley, Gryffindor."

"Owen Kent, Gryffindor."

Wood looks at Owen in excitement.

"Your sister is the Captain of our team," he smiles widely. "We'll be so good with all this new talent!"

We thank him before he walks off. Hailey joins us, full of happiness. Ciena, on the other hand, looks less than happy.

"Xinia, calm down," she chides. "It's just a stupid game. School is much more important."

Everyone turns to stare at her, even Xinia getting a little angry with her statement. Anica rounds on her.

"It's not a stupid game," she starts. "Just because you can't play it, doesn't mean nobody likes it."

"I can so play," Ciena scoffs.

"Oh yeah, sure," Xinia says joining with Anica. "Hop on, go do a few laps," she holds her broom out.

"Xinia, Anica. Stop it," Hailey says, trying to diffuse the situation.

"No," Anica says. "I'm sick of her constantly putting us down. All she cares about is school. Nothing else."

"What's wrong with that?" Ciena retorts.

All three of the girl's faces are now as red as their hair.

"Because you don't care about us." Xinia cries. "I love school just as much as you, but friends and especially sisters come first."

"Woah," I say, deciding it's time to step in. "Xin, that was harsh. You know she cares about you. Both of you."

Xinia glares at me, but I don't look away.

"Whatever."

Xinia and Anica storm off leaving Ciena shaking with anger.

"How dare she say that?!" she yells.

Ciena grabs Hailey and starts up to the castle.

"Wow, sisterly love!" Kimmy comments, laughing a little.

I glare at her.

"Are you serious?" I snap. "All day, hell, all week, you've been making snide comments about us and I've had enough of it. You don't have the right to say anything about them. You certainly can't say they don't love each other."

"Gena," Owen whispers, noticing my fiery red hair.

"Look, why don't we both just cool off -" George starts.

"Stay out of this," Kimmy and I snarl.

I point at Kimmy.

"I don't want to fight. But if you're going to keep being rude, I will."

"Me?" Kimmy scoffs. "You're one to talk. Every time I ask even a simple question, you act like I'm trying to start an argument."

As the yelling increases, I notice Dylan and Nick run after Xinia and Anica.

"I've had enough," I say abruptly. "I need to look after my friends," I linger on the last word, then run after the boys, leaving Kimmy alone with her brother and Owen.

I quickly catch up to Dylan and Nick.

"Do you know where they went?" I ask.

"Only somewhere in the castle," Nick shakes his head.

I run ahead of them, just in time to see Anica and Xinia disappear up the hidden Ravenclaw stairs. I dash inside just before it closes, leaving Dylan and Nick behind.

"Xin! Anica!" I call out.

Xinia rounds on me.

"Why didn't you defend us?" she yells.

"I did," I say, trying to keep calm. "I had a go at Kimmy."

"Not Kimmy," Anica says quietly. "Ciena."

They begin to run up the steps until they reach a t-intersection like the one we found down the Slytherin tunnel. I reach them before they disappear again.

"Guys, come on," I say. "It's not like I defended Ciena. You were right."

"Mhm," Xinia grabs Anica and turns right to head up more steps.

I run after them, determined not to let this finish on a bad note. I catch up to them, grabbing Anica's arm, making them turn around to face me.

"Look, you're right," I sigh, my hair turning blue. "I didn't defend you. I should have. I'm sorry. But what you said to Ciena, that would've hurt. You know how much she loves you guys."

Xinia turns again, only to find herself below another trap door.

"Anica, help me -" she starts.

She's cut off by a clear voice.

"To enter you must answer this riddle," it begins. "How many seconds are in a year?"

"Is it serious?" Anica asks.

"And this is why you are not a Ravenclaw," Xinia comments.

Then to the voice.

"Twelve. January second, February second, March second, and so on."

"Righto," Anica says in shock.

We begin to rise and I notice that the floor below us is moving so that we can reach the trapdoor. Before it opens Xinia signals for us to be quiet. She peeks in and the sound of Ciena's complaining leaks through.

"I don't care for them? How can they say that? They're the ones who ignore me and forget about me," she cries.

"See?" I can't help but say.

"Guessing this is your common room?" Anica asks at the same time.

Anica slaps me, quite hard, but we become distracted by Kimmy comforting Ciena.

"It's alright, Ci," she says. "They're not worth it anyway."

"That little -" I hiss, my hair turning red again.

Xinia cuts me off with another slap. I try not to glare at her.

"It's your fault she's saying that," she says.

I fight down a retort, turning back to the conversation.

"Why do they never include me?" Ciena continues. "They treat me like I'm an outsider."

We miss the rest of their conversation as Kimmy takes her out of the room. Xinia turns to Anica.

"Ok, so most people will be in the library so we won't have to worry about being caught," Xinia says, ignoring me.

She climbs out, Anica following after her. I call out to them, but the passage seems to decide I'm not wanted, and it lowers back down.

"Hey!" I shout. "Let me in."

I concentrate, growing taller. I bang on the trapdoor, but it doesn't budge.

"Let me in," I yell. "Ask your stupid riddle!"

Nothing happens. I keep banging, but eventually, I sigh, slumping back against the wall.

"Damnit."

Knowing I won't be let in, I start back down the passage. When I reach the T-section, I decide to turn the other way then what we came. Like I suspected, I eventually reach the trapdoor to the Community Hall. I put the code in and quietly climb through. Luckily for me, everyone is either somewhere else, or having an early dinner. I sit for a bit before I hear the trapdoor open again.

Xinia and Anica climb out, but instead of sitting with me, they continue out the door to the Great Hall. I know chasing after them is futile, and will only create a scene, so I stay where I am.

My hair changed blue before, and I don't bother changing it back.

After a bit, I grow restless and get up, pulling out my wand. I move into the empty space surrounding the couches, then practice a few of the charms and spells I had learnt in the past week.

Doing magic helps relax me, so after about half an hour I decide to head back to my dormitory. I remember how the Ravenclaw passage leads to Ravenclaw Tower, so I decide to see if I can get back to the Slytherin common room the same way.

I open the trapdoor and slip into it. Somehow I know I'm back in the Slytherin passage, so I follow it to the T-section, turning the other way. Before long, I find myself at another trapdoor, this time on the floor. I remember how Xinia and Ancia got in, and remember that was also how Ravenclaw's normally got into their common room. I say the password for the Slytherin Common Room, and sure enough, the trapdoor opens. A staircase shimmers in the air for a minute before solidifying, and I descend into the Common Room, which is empty.

I head to my dormitory, deciding to call it a night. I stay awake for quite a while though before I eventually fall asleep.

Hi guys! So I know I've already apologised for the late chapter but I'm sorry! I am trying my hardest to get these chapters out but life just keeps getting in the way. Anyways, as always, please leave a review and if you haven't already, check out my Instagram account. Thank you so much for reading!