Valencia, June, Damon, and Noah were sitting together at the Slytherin table for breakfast on the morning of Saturday, November 2nd. Val had decided to tell her friends about what had happened with Draco in the common room only a few days ago, and so that is what they were talking about as they ate.

"Hey Val, say something in Partialtongue" Damon said as he looked at her expectantly. The four of them were sitting in their usual seats while they ate their breakfast; Val and June sitting next to each other on one side, and Damon and Noah sitting on the other.

"It's Parseltongue Damon, not Partialtongue" June said from where she sat.

"I- I can't just say something in snake language. I don't even know how I did it in the common room… I kind of just did. I mean I guess I did. Maybe Malfoy was lying" she shrugged.

"He was lying. Trust me," Noah began "there's no way that you are a Parselmouth."

Over the past few days Noah had begun to talk to Val again. Ever since he had found out that she was a muggle-born, he had done everything in his power to avoid her. Most of the time he would just listen in on their conversations and not say anything, and so the first time that he spoke directly to Valencia after ignoring her for two months had baffled her. It was unlike him to speak to her as much as he had been over the past few days, and even if what he was saying was nothing nice, at least he was speaking to her again.

"Okay wait, so you didn't know you were a Parselmouth?" June asked as they all ignored Noah's snide remark. "But you just… did? You told the snake to go away and it did?"

"I mean I thought I was speaking in English the whole time, but according to the blonde git, yes. I'm a Parselmouth." Valencia had obviously doubted that Draco was telling the truth about her being able to speak to snakes, but there was no denying that the way the snake had stopped at her words and went away completely was odd. She could find no other explanation for what had happened.

After another few minutes of Damon and June asking her questions, the mail arrived. Valencia hadn't received a letter from her parents all school year, so when she saw Aven flying towards her, a smile appeared on her face. The bird dropped two letters in front of her before giving Val a loving nudge in the face and flying off.

When she opened the first letter she saw it was from her mom and dad. It was a very short letter, but it got to the point; and it read:

Valencia,

We miss you so much! How has Hogwarts been? Have you made any new friends? Are you planning to come home for Christmas break?

We have been trying to get a letter out to you for almost a month now but Aven kept nipping at our fingers every time we attempted to give her a letter to bring to you. We hope you have been doing well at school.

We love you so much!

Mum & Dad

The letter was short but sweet. Although she absolutely loved Hogwarts, she missed her home and parents more than anything. She was so used to seeing them every day. She reread the letter once more before turning to open the other one. This one was from Luca, her older brother. Valencia and Luca had always been especially close. The two of them had grown up playing together and spending every possible moment with one another. Val had also been very close with her older sister Leah, but the two of them never got along like her and Luca.

Val,

I hope you aren't getting into too much trouble at school. I miss you loads. If I'm being completely honest with you, school here sucks. It's all just so boring. I wish I had magic like you. How have you been? Are there any cute girls at your school? There are absolutely none here. You should definitely hook me up with a hot third year witch. Leah would be so jealous.

Speaking of Leah… she tripped me in the hall of our school yesterday causing me to faceplant in front of everyone. What a little arse. I think I may have broken my nose or something but the school nurse just told me to put some ice on it. Oh look at that, she just walked into my dorm…

VAL. HI IT'S LEAH. I SHOVED LUCA OUT OF HIS CHAIR SO I COULD WRITE TO YOU. He really is easy to push around. What a baby. He's crying on the floor right now. HEY don't listen to what Luca wrote. You need to get ME a date with one of the hot guys at your school. Don't help him. Okay I have to go. Luca is yelling at me now, by~

I hate having a twin. Oh my god I'm going to kick her ass. Don't listen to what she wrote! Anyways, I hope you are doing well. Try not to get too many detentions. Stay safe.

Love, Luca (and Leah)

What a chaotic letter. She loved it.

"Hey what do you guys want to do until the quidditch game at eleven?" Val asked. They had finished breakfast and were now walking out of the Great Hall.

"Erm- we could play Exploding Snap?" Damon suggested.

"That sounds like fun," Noah agreed.

"Ooh. We should play up in the Astronomy tower. It has such a nice view and that way no one annoys us" June suggested.

They all agreed on playing the card game in the Astronomy tower while they would wait for the quidditch match. The four of them played Exploding Snap for nearly two hours before they grew tired of it, and so Damon and Noah took to attempting to levitate one another while Val and June sat near the edge of the tower and talked.

"-honestly you have to believe me when I say Noah will come around. I've known the kid since we were three" June was saying. "Both of our families were raised to hate all muggles and muggle-borns, but I developed a mind of my own. My parents despise me for it. They have always favoured Carson because he grew up to think exactly how they wanted him to. But I really do think Noah will come to his senses. He clearly doesn't hate you, if he did then he wouldn't even hang out around us."

"I mean I guess so. He has been kind of talking to me recently which is good. The only two people who truly hate me in this entire school are Pansy and Draco. Sodding gits" Val said.

June forced a small laugh before continuing. "Exactly. Clearly the two of them were raised by muggle-born hating idiots like my parents."

"Well it's a good thing I despise both of them" Val replied.

"Yea and having them like you really wouldn't be an accomplishment. More like a failure."

"Honestly."

"Oh hey, by the way, what did you get on-"

"OW! DAMON WHY DID YOU JUST TOSS ME TO THE GROUND?"

The two girls turned to look behind them to see that Noah was lying on the ground with Damon standing above him. Damon had wide eyes as he stared at his friend who was now clutching his right shoulder.

"I- well…" Damon started. He still had his wand raised to where Val assumed Noah had been floating only a few moments earlier.

"Hey nice one Hendrix. Care to do it again? We missed the show" June said with a sly grin.

"Urgh! Come here you tosser" Noah said as he got up. He then started towards Damon and tackled him to the ground. Damon was whimpering in fear as Noah glared down at him.

"Ah yes, true love at it's finest" Val said. Noah rolled his eyes before climbing off Damon.

"Alright come on, we should head down to the quidditch pitch. The game starts in about twenty minutes" June said as she began to stand up.

They all nodded in agreement.

"Hey Val, do you think I have a fat ass?" Damon asked nonchalantly as they began to make their way out of the Astronomy tower.

"Well I mean obviously… What made you ask that?" she replied with a smirk

"Oh, well Daphne Greengrass said if I had a fat arse then she would date me" he said while shrugging his shoulders.

"And she thinks you don't have a fat ass?" June asked as she raised her eyebrow at him. "Blind bitch."

"This is getting awkward," Noah said.

"Hey I mean he just asked a question and we were telling the truth" Valencia said as she threw her hands up in surrender.

They all laughed as they made their way out down to the entrance hall and then outside.

June nudged Valencia in the side to get her attention as the four of them stepped out into cool November air.

"What?" she asked, confused.

"I told you he would come around," June replied. Her lips grew into a grin as Valencia rolled her eyes.

"I don't think Noah's come around just yet" she replied.

"Well not fully, but it's getting somewhere. He's talking and laughing with us a lot more which is good. I'm just glad that we'll all be able to stay friends."

Damon and Noah were walking ahead of the two girls, shoving each other around so they weren't able to hear Val and June's conversation. When the four of them arrived at the Quidditch pitch they joined Daphne Greengrass, Tracey Davis, and a few third years including June's brother Carson in the stands.

"Why is she here?" Carson asked as they took a seat.

"Because she's a Slytherin dipshit" June said while giving her older brother a scowl.

"Why doesn't she just go sit with the Gryffindors? She seems pretty close with that other mudblood-"

"Watch your mouth Adams" Valencia said, interrupting him. She was fine with other people calling her a mudblood, but when they started to insult Hermione is where she drew the line.

"Yea whatever" Carson said. He then turned to talk to one of his fellow third years.

The first Quidditch match of the year was Slytherin versus Gryffindor, so while the section of the stands that Val, June, Damon, and Noah were sitting in was a sea of green, the other half of the stands was filled with students in maroon and gold.

A few minutes after they arrived, the two teams marched onto the field accompanied by Madam Hooch, the referee.

"Now, I want a nice fair game… from all of you" Madam Hooch was saying. Valencia could barely make out her words from where she sat.

The two captains of either team shook each other's hands before they all mounted their brooms. Madam Hooch blew her silver whistle, and the game began.

"And the Quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson, one of the Gryffindor's chasers. Oh wow look at her go, she is rather attractive isn't she-"

"JORDAN!"

Lee Jordan, a third year Gryffindor and a friend of the Weasley twins was commentating the game. Professor McGonagall was sitting close by him to assure he wasn't saying anything rash.

"Johnson passes the Quaffle to Spinnet- Oh no! The Slytherin's now have possession of the Quaffle. Captain Marcus Flint is carrying it down to the Gryffindor hoops- what a save by Gryffindor keeper Oliver Wood!" Lee Jordan shouted as Wood saved the ball from going into one of the three hoops.

The game continued and Valencia noticed just how rough the game was. Flint took every chance he could to smash into the Gryffindor chasers and bludgers were flying everywhere. She had seen Flint a few times in the Slytherin common room, but she had never talked to him. He was rather scary looking with his crooked teeth and sinister smile.

"-Quaffle taken by the Slytherins again, this time by Adrain Pucey. Oh! And Pucey is stopped by a bludger that was sent his way by one of the Weasley twins. God I can never tell the difference between those two-"

"Jordan" Professor McGonagall sighed beside him.

"Right, sorry professor- Johnson is now in possession of the Quaffle. She's speeding past everyone! Look at her go! Oi! Johnson what do you say we go out after thi-"

"JORDAN! This is no time to be flirting!" Professor McGonagall scolded him.

"GRYFFINDOR SCORES!" Lee shouted, ignoring the professor.

"Ugh. No way" June said from where she sat beside Valencia. She had her arms crossed on her chest and a grumpy scowl on her face. "We are totally better than these losers. HEY PUCEY, FLINT! SCORE WOULD YOU!" June shouted at the two Slytherin chasers, but they didn't hear her.

"Hey June, who's Slytherin's seeker?" Valencia asked.

"Oh that's Terence Higgs, pretty sure he's a third year. Kinda cute right?" June said, giving Val a smirk.

Valencia returned the smirk and only shrugged her shoulders to June instead of responding.

The game continued. Gryffindor and Slytherin each scored a few more goals making the score 20-30 Slytherin. Just after Captain Marcus Flint scored another goal for Slytherin, the Griffindor Seeker Harry Potter spotted the golden Snitch. Harry went zooming after the snitch, closely followed by Terrence Higgs. Alicia Spinnet scored one more goal for Gryffindor while Harry and Terence chased the small golden ball.

Harry had just lost sight of the Snitch when his broom all of a sudden started jerking in all sorts of directions causing him to almost fall off. The Gryffindor's all gasped in fear while Slytherin's like Malfoy only laughed as Harry struggled to stay on his broom.

Nearly two minutes passed, during which Marcus Flint scored five more goals for Slytherin, before Harry was able to regain control of his broom, and he once again caught sight of the Snitch and sped off towards it. And then, Harry had caught the snitch, ending the game. Gryffindor won, 180-90.

"We totally should have won! Gryffindor is just a bunch of cheaters. Did you see how Potter caught the Snitch? He swallowed it!" Draco Malfoy was saying as they left the stands. Every Slytherin was complaining at the outcome of the game. Even Valencia was disappointed that her house team hadn't won.

Val, June, Damon, and Noah then spent a few hours after the game in the common room on the couches near the fire talking. After a while, Val decided to go to the library where she saw Hermione already sitting in one of the armchairs the two always sat in.

"Hello Hermione," Val said as she sat down opposite her. She had opted for a large book about spells that she placed on her lap after she had sat down.

"Hey Val" Hermione said, giving her a smile. Valencia was about to start reading her book but Hermione spoke first. "Hey Valencia, can I ask you a question?" she began. "A-and it's fine if you don't have an answer. I just assumed you would be the best person to ask since you spend so much time in the library" she finished

"Of course, what is it?" she replied.

"Well, Harry, Ron and I are doing a bit of research on something and- well I was wondering if you had happened to know anything about Nicolas Flamel. I can't quite find out who he is, but knowing what he does and who he is is very important. I- I'm not quite sure I can tell you why, but… do you know anything?"

"Erm- I think I read about him somewhere. I don't remember too much about him, but I do remember reading that he was an alchemist who owned some important stone thing. That's probably not much help but it's all I remember" Val replied in a rather apologetic tone.

Hermione's eyes went wide at her words. Apparently what she had said helped Hermione loads.

"Thank you so much Valencia. R-really, you just helped me so much" Hermione said as she bolted up from her seat and clutched the book she had been reading to her chest. "Thank you thank you. And, erm- don't tell anyone I asked you about Flamel. Okay?"

"Oh uhm, okay. Of course. Glad I could help" Val said. She gave her a smile before Hermione scurried off to go find a different book.

Val was utterly confused. What could Harry, Ron, and Hermione want with information about Nicolas Flamel? She decided then that she would read more about Flamel later. After spending nearly three hours reading Significant Spells and How They Are Performed, the book that she had grabbed to read when she first arrived at the library, Valencia returned the book to its respective shelf and began her search for a book about Nicolas Flamel. When Val found what she was looking for, she checked out the book with Madam Pince and made her way back to the Slytherin common room to read. It was nearly curfew so she wouldn't have nearly enough time to read the book in the library.

Carrying Known Alchemists of the Modern Age in her hands, Valencia began to descend the marble staircase to the left of the entrance hall. When she reached the stone wall that led to the common room, she whispered the password and made her way up to her dorm. She changed into Luca's oversized sweatshirt and a pair of shorts, grabbed a blanket from her bed, and then made her way back down into the common room and over to one of the black leather couches to begin her research. Luckily, no one interrupted her as she opened the book and began to search for Nicolas Flamel's name. When she arrived on the page that contained all of the information that she would need, she began to read.

Nicolas Flamel

Nicolas Flamel is a known French alchemist who originally lived in the fourteenth century. Flamel is most known for having created the Sorcerer's Stone. The stone, with its incredible power, has the ability to turn any metal it touches into pure gold, and more importantly it produces an Elixir of Life that has allowed Flamel and his wife Perenelle to live an immortal life. Flamel is now known to be nearly six hundred years old, as is Perenelle.

Flamel is also a known friend of Professor Albus Dumbledore, who is currently Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Mentions of Flamel can also be found in Albus Dumbledore's chocolate frog card, Alchemists of the fourteenth century and The World of Alchemy.

Reading this caused another spark of curiosity in Valencia's mind, and so with the few minutes that were left until curfew, she rushed up to the library once more and checked out another book. This one was purely on alchemy.

With two minutes until curfew, Valencia raced down the marble staircase once more, this time with The World of Alchemy in both hands. When she reached the common room, Val went straight over to the couch she had been reading on before, only this time there was an unwelcome guest sitting on the couch opposite hers.

"What are you doing here Draco?" she asked as she sat down. She pulled her grey blanket up over her bare legs before placing her newly checked out book on her legs. The common room was bustling with people in the late hour, but she had been the only one near the couches only minutes earlier.

"Oh? Am I not allowed to sit on your couches?" he asked in a cool tone as he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Erm- well, as long as you don't try to steal this book from me like you did last time, then I guess you can stay. Just- no talking either" she replied. She was in too much of a rush to read about Alchemy and to figure out why Harry, Ron, and Hermione wanted to know about Flamel to talk to anyone.

Known Alchemists of the Modern Age was still sitting in the space beside her as she opened her new book that she had placed in her lap.

"What are you reading about?" Malfoy asked from where he was seated. He too had a book in his hand but he seemed far more interested in what she was holding.

"Alchemy" she replied dully as she held up the book for him to see.

He rolled his eyes but didn't say anymore so she began to read. She hadn't read much about alchemy in all of her time in the library, so she soaked in all of the words that she read. When she got to a section in the book about Elixirs of life, she read with the same intensity that she had when she was reading about Flamel.

The Elixir of Life is a potion procured from the Sorcerer's Stone that makes the drinker immortal. Not only will the drinker turn immortal and live longer than the expected life span, but the aging process of the drinker will also be slowed, allowing them to stay younger for a longer amount of time. The creator of the Sorcerer's Stone Nicolas Flamel is rumored to have made another stone with similar abilities. Although there is no evidence that said stone still exists, there was evidence that Flamel created not one, but two stones that had the ability to produce the Elixir of Life. The stone that Flamel currently possesses has given him and his wife Perenelle the life-span of nearly six hundred years, and it is rumored that the other stone he created had the same power. It is also rumored that Albus Dumbledore, a friend of Flamel's and the current Hogwarts Headmaster, was given this stone to then give to two of his own close friends. The names of these two friends remains-

"H-hey, what are you doing?" Val asked. Her reading was interrupted when Malfoy left his place on the other couch and made his way over to sit next to her. She hadn't noticed him moving at all until he plopped down next to her because all of her focus was on the words in front of her.

"Wanted to see what you were reading about" Draco said as he shrugged his shoulders.

"I- I already told you, I'm reading about alchemy," she replied. She was attempting to search for an ulterior motive as to why he would willingly sit next to her.

He was looking at her blankly so she continued. "Erm, you can read this after I'm done with it if you'd like."

"No, I think I'll just read it right now," he said nonchalantly.

"Well I mean unless you plan to stay sitting next to me, then you can't read it right now" she replied. She knew there was no way he would stay seated next to her for more than five minutes.

"Don't get any ideas Martin." Malfoy said when he noticed the way she was looking at him dumbfound. "I just wanted to read-"

"Ooh do we have two little love birds here?" June said as she approached the two of them and wiggled her eyebrows.

"No" Val and Draco said simultaneously.

"Well then why on earth would Draco Malfoy be sitting next to Valencia Martin? The girl he always tells everyone he despises. Hmm?" June continued.

"Well Draco here said he wanted to see what I was reading. No clue why though. Honestly he's a bit weird if you ask me. I liked it better when he avoided me at all costs" Valencia said as a cheeky grin formed on her lips.

"Hey-"

"Oh trust me I know what you mean. He really is a bit of a wanker. Complete arse hole as well" June said.

"Hey! I'm sitting right here!" Draco said. His cheeks were now flushed and his eyes were filled with a mix of embarrassment and anger.

"Why are you here Malfoy?" Valencia asked.

"Oh nevermind! I'm leaving" he said. He stood up from his place beside Val and stormed off to where Crabbe and Goyle were standing beside the round table in the secluded area.

Val and June both shrugged at each other. While Val still had her legs crossed underneath her blanket, June opted to rest her head on Val's lap and put her feet up on the arm rest on the other side of the couch.

"Well hi there" Val said with a grin. She moved her book out of the way so June could comfortably lay down.

"Okay so get this," June started. She then proceeded to tell Val about another idiotic thing that Damon had done when she was in the library. She did all sorts of hand movements while telling her story causing Val to giggle as she braided a strand of June's hair.

"Moral of the story, never trust Damon with anything. I mean this guy just doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut. Fucking idiot" June said as she rolled her eyes. This caused both of them to start ugly laughing, which in turn caused the other people in the common room to give them strange looks.

The two of them stayed like that on the couch until nearly 1 am. June continued to tell her stories about her childhood while Val just sat back and listened. By the time they decided to head up to the dorms, the common room was empty and Millicent, Tracey, Daphne, and Pansy were already sound asleep in their dorm.

"Goodnight" Val whispered to June as she crawled under her sheets.

"Night" June whispered back.

Although Val had listened to every word that June had said while telling her stories, she couldn't help but think about what she had read earlier. The one part that caught her attention the most was about how it was rumored that Flamel had made not one, but two stones that had the ability to produce the Elixir of Life. Who could possibly have the other stone? Even if it was just a rumor, it had said that there had been proof that Flamel made another stone. And so like usual, she fell asleep with a million thoughts and questions crowding her mind.