After finding out that Hagrid had a dragon egg, Celesta spent most of her time in the library. After all, secrets meant to be kept, needed to be protected, so she looked for those options. While skilled at occlumency, being only eleven she had no idea how to teach it. Not to mention the gruelling training needed, and Gryffindors weren't...most of them weren't very patient.

It was during her readings when she found out about blood pacts, and she stewed over her thoughts for a few days, before finally cornering Hermione.

"Hermione...I need a favor. But you see...it'll be unbreakable." she warned, biting her lower lip. "Will you do it?" she asked almost nervously. "It's a type of vow, honestly. Well, it's a pact. A blood pact." she explained when Hermione only blinked at her. Perhaps she was speaking too fast, but she honestly needed a friend, and her friend was getting too observant over her occasional nights off, looking at Maera's tail and her own when she caught her in Animagus form.

Finally, she had her answer. "Honestly, Celesta. You're my best friend, of course I'll help. What do we need to do?" Hermione had inquired. Making sure nobody was watching, Celesta dragged Hermione to a dusty classroom and locked the door with a charm they'd learned, listening for several seconds.

"So, we need to cut our palms and hold them together, interlacing our fingers. I need your pact to be that you'd never reveal my secrets without my explicit permission, and I'd promise the same. But you see...much like the unbreakable vow...well if you break the pact...it's not pretty." she explained, gulping a little. "My secret...it's killing me keeping it from you, honestly, and you're far too observant for me to keep it much longer, but it's needed. For my safety. Please? I'm too young to ask about the Fidelius charm, and that's a bit too risky what with secret keepers and such."

"I already said yes, Celesta." Hermione had answered, almost laughing, if it wasn't such a serious request from her.

Pact made, the two girls left the room with two unbreakable vials that would only appear when they wanted them to. Hermione knew that Celesta was an illlegal animagus and wouldn't report her, unable to now, even indirectly.

The next morning they received news that Hagrid's dragon was hatching. Ron and Hermione argued about missing class to go see it, but finally agreed that after would be better. Draco however, heard them mention something about a dragon, eavesdropping on them. The minute class ended, all four of them dropped their trowels, Celesta grabbed her parasol, and they rushed to Hagrid's hut.

"It's nearly out!" He'd rushed them inside, everybody rushing to the table where it lay to watch with bated breath.

All at once the egg burst open and the baby dragon spilled out.

Unfortunately they didn't get to enjoy the moment very long before they found out Draco too, had seen the dragon. Over the course of the next week, they kept trying to convince Hagrid to let Norbert, as he'd so affectionately called the Norweigan Ridgeback, go. To send him to the dragon reserve in Romania.

Wednesday they hit a snag. Ron had gotten bit by the dragon, but was too nervous to go to Madame Pompfrey. By the time he needed to go, Draco found out about their plan on getting Norbert to Charlie and his friends, who were coming to the tallest tower on Saturday night. Not only that, but before they could come up with a plan, Pompfrey kicked them out saying Ron needed rest.

The night the plan was to take place, Celesta used her Animagus form to follow after her friends. Hermione would catch sight of her from time to time, though Ron and Harry had no clue that it wasn't Maera, her fox kit who finally grew a third tail. They passed Professor Mcgonagall dragging Draco by his ear for being out of bed after curfew, her friends under Harry's cloak.

Celesta had shifted back too soon to see what had happened, getting caught by Mcgonagall on her way back to her office. She'd dragged her off by her shoulder, ranting and raving about students being out of bed as they headed to the office. Once there, she saw her friends there too, her eyes widening.

As a result, Gryffindor lost one-hundred and fifty House points, and all of them had detention with Draco, scheduled a few weeks ahead as this time was to be used for studying.

Hermione and she kept their heads down in class those few weeks.

A week before exams were due to start, they all received an owl with the same message. Their detetion would start at eleven o'clock that night, and they were to meet with Mr. Filch in the entrance hall.

Filch had led them in the dark, only Celesta able to see decently. Both with her albinism making her accustomed to dimmer and darker lights, and her animagus form being able to hunt in the dark. As such, she saw that they were headed to Hagrid's hut, though Filch must've seen Harry growing relieved, informing them all that they'd be going into the forest.

Celesta shared a look with her brother, both of them agreeing that they'd not share this experience with their Father, though Draco seemed to be in a state of disbelief, saying that they couldn't go in there because of werewolves and the like. He seemed panicked.

Celesta kept her mouth shut for the most part, sighing occasionally. She was one of the things in the forest at night, and while she was small for a fox, she wasn't without her own strengths. By now most of the creatures in the forest either left her alone, or knew better than to antagonize the young fox.

They were to be hunting for a hurt unicorn, it seemed. She, Hermione, Ron and Hagrid went one way when the trail forked, Harry, Draco and Fang the other. It couldn't have been more than an hour before Draco found them, screaming his head off about some black-cloaked creature drinking from the Unicorn. Not long after, they ran to where Draco had left Harry-who he still detested, but wouldn't want to see dead. At least not by his actions.

They found him with Firenze, a centaur who had saved Harry. Detention ended very shortly after that, Harry waiting to explain what had happened until they were in the common room. Celesta, however refused to participate in the discussion about Snape, dismissing herself to go to bed shortly afterward.

Exams were tough, but due to her reading ahead and practicing when she had the time, Celesta thought she'd done decently. At least all E's, if not O's. Flying lessons, thankfully, were not examed as such, but a demonstration of the basics to Madame Hooch. Finally, their exams were over with, everybody retreating outside. There was a week before they'd find out their scores, classes for a few days would be introductory lectures into second year, summer homework getting assigned, but then the rest of the week would be the seventh year's graduation and then they'd have the end of term feast.

Harry's scar had been hurting, but due to the sunny day, while her friends ran off to Hagrid's and off on their little adventure, Celesta went near the lake to hang out with Fred and George Weasley, they and Lee Jordan tickling the tentacles of the Giant Squid who was resting in the warm shallows. While she watched them, she sat under the tree by the lake, the late May air finally letting it bloom leaves and delicate white flowers in it's branches.

After a while Lee went off to speak with Angela Johnson, Chaser of their quidditch team while the twins went to Celesta.

"Now what do we have here?" George questioned, his nose slightly shorter than Fred's, a freckle on the left side of his neck while Fred had a freckle on the right.

"A pale beauty enjoying the sunny day, it appears." Fred answered, the two taking residence on either side of her, playing with her hair. While some might make fun of her colorless locks, they instead seemed to enjoy them, their attentions always making her blush a little bit.

"As long as I'm in the shade, I'm perfectly fine," she responded to the two of them, Maera settled in her lap as she stroked over her fur.

"And why, pray tell,"

"Aren't you with our brother? You lot've been pretty much tied at the hip since Halloween."

"Well, for one they're on a hunt for answers, while I'm being sensible and taking a well deserved break after exams," she'd teased them. They spent the rest of their break getting to know each other, Celesta learning they wanted to open a joke shop when they graduated, hence their pranks throughout the year, they learning about her asperations to become a Potioneer.

At dinner, the twins had snagged her once again, introducing them to their friends, Alicia Spinnet, Angelina, and Lee, more properly. By the time they retired to the common room, they were old friends.

She'd noticed her friends acting weirdly, but she got distracted before too long, Everybody giving her their addresses for her to owl them over the summer. By the end of it all, she was exhausted, going straight to bed, not realizing Hermione didn't join her.

Author's Note: To the almost end of first year! Oh my gosh, I never thought I'd be able to get this much done, and in less than a week too! I hope you guys are enjouing the story so far. It's becoming a rather passion project of mine, though I am blending the movies and books. Gotta use what I have, right? I'm trying to get more dialogue in my writing, but it's a bit difficult for me, so forgive me. I am attempting to get more. But still.

Again, thank you to those that've reviewed, as well as those that are following my story. You guys are my inspiration to keep writing! I love you all!