A/N: I do not own anything Harry Potter. I'm typing this up as I watch the HP marathon on TV. Also, I know I've been playing way too much Lego HP because while I'm watching the movies, I keep thinking, "OMG that chest in the corner would totally contain character stud!" Yup, I'm the loser who thinks that. Anyways, enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 11

Annie came thundering down the stairs with Bandit running after her. She jumped the last three stairs and landed unsteadily in the living room.

"Dad! I can't find my Transfiguration book! Have you seen it?" she yelled now looking between the couch cushions.

"You mean the one I found on the kitchen table underneath your bowl of cereal?" he said appearing in door frame with the book in his hand. Annie grabbed it and ran back upstairs. "Hurry up or we'll be late and you'll miss the train!" he yelled after her.

Back upstairs in Annie's room, she was busy throwing any last minute things into her trunk. She tossed her Transfiguration book into the open trunk and turned to her closet. She grabbed her robes and threw them on top of her cauldron and books and slammed the lid shut. Annie grabbed her broom and dragged her trunk out into the hall. Sirius came upstairs and levitated her trunk downstairs and out the front door.

"Are you sure you have everything?" he asked lifting the trunk and placing it in the sidecar along with her broomstick. She nodded.

"Not forgetting anything are you?" he said nodding toward Bandit who was jumping up and down at Annie's ankles.

Annie looked down and smiled. "Of course! How could I forget to say goodbye to you," she said bending down and picking him up. She laughed as he started to lick her face. "Are you gonna miss me?" Bandit barked and continued his licking. Annie gave him a hug and set him on the ground. He ran back into the house and Sirius waved his wand and the front door locked.

Annie slid her helmet down over her head and clambered onto the motorbike. She wrapped her arms around Sirius's waist and they drove off down the road. When they arrived at Kings Cross Station, Annie jumped off the bike and ran to get a trolley. She helped Sirius place her trunk on the trolley and followed him inside carrying her broomstick. They found the barrier between platforms nine and ten and leaned against it. Once on platform nine-and-three-quarters, they found the Potters and went to greet them.

"Hey, Harry! Are the Weasleys and Hermione here yet?" said Annie.

"Not yet," said Harry. "Oh, hang on, here they are now." Harry nodded to the barrier and Annie turned around.

Ron and Ginny made their way toward them with Fred, George, Hermione and Mrs. Weasley behind them. Annie ran forward to greet Fred and George who wrapped her hugs that lifted her off her feet. "Hey, let's talk over here," she said after Fred placed her on the ground. She lead them over to a secluded corner where no one would be able hear them talk.

"So, what happened with the money?" she asked.

Fred sighed. "It was Leprechaun gold. It vanished after a couple hours but we didn't realize until we got home."

"Have you tried writing to him? Maybe it was a mistake."

"We thought so, too," said George running a hand through his hair. "He hasn't gotten back to us yet though."

Annie crossed her arms over her chest. "Maybe he's just busy, I mean, he does work at the Ministry. Mr. Bagman is probably trying to sort out the World Cup chaos along your dad, my dad and James," she said.

"We hope so," said Fred and George together.

Sirius and James were talking quietly when they spotted Annie, George and Fred talking in the distance. They had a look of mischief in their eyes and were also looking a little guilty as they looked over their shoulders for any potential eavesdroppers.

"I wonder what that's all about," said Sirius nodding at the group.

James looked over at them and smiled. "Probably nothing," he said shrugging. "Lily said we used look like that whenever we planned something big. My guess is that it's just some type of prank."

"Yeah, maybe," said Sirius taking his eyes off his daughter and her friends and went back to his conversation with James.

Just then the whistle of the Hogwarts Express blew and everyone rushed to say their goodbyes. Annie jumped on the nearest trolley and swung her legs up over the bar. Fred and George grabbed each side of the trolley and pushed hard before jumping on themselves. The people on the platform jumped out of the way as the luggage trolley came hurtling toward them. James and Sirius pulled out their wands and stopped it before the kids and the trolley went crashing into the train. Annie, Fred and George dismounted laughing. Lily and Mrs. Weasley looked out outraged as James and Sirius held back their laughter.

"Annie, really? You could have gotten hurt or hurt someone else! What were you thinking?" chastised Lily.

"See, that's the thing. I don't really think," she said hugging Lily goodbye.

"Relax, Lils, she was just having a little fun," said Sirius pulling Annie into a hug. "Have a good term, kiddo."

"I will," said Annie laughing. "I'll see you at Christmas then, I guess."

"I don't think you'll want to come home for Christmas this year," said James hugging Harry goodbye.

"Why not?" he asked letting go of his dad and giving Lily a quick hug.

Sirius laughed. "Oh, you're going to have an exciting year. I expect you'll find out tonight at the feast." He watched as all of the kids boarded the train and stick their heads out of the windows.

"What will we find out?" asked Ron as the train started to move.

"Tonight!" yelled Mrs. Weasley waving to them all.

The train sped around the corner and the platform disappeared. They walked down the corridor until they found an empty compartment. Fred and George went off to find Lee Jordan and Ginny went off to sit with her friends. Annie, Ron, Hermione and Harry sat down in their compartment and Annie took out a pack of Exploding Snap cards. Hermione buried her face in her Ancient Runes book while the other three played.

"What do you think dad and Uncle James were talking about before we got on the train?" asked Annie shuffling the deck of cards.

"I dunno," Ron said. "But Percy and dad know what's going on too. Percy kept going on about "you-know-what" at Hogwarts whenever he and dad brought it up. The stupid prat wouldn't let on about what's going on and wants us to beg him to tell us what it is. We just started to ignore him."

Harry picked up his cards. "Whatever it is it's supposed to be pretty exciting according to dad," he said.

"You mean to say that you have no idea what's going on at Hogwarts this year, Potter?" said a drawling voice near the door. Draco Malfoy stood in the door frame with his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, standing behind him cracking their knuckles.

"Either tell us what you're going on about or get out," said Ron.

"Oh, that's right, they must not tell the lower level employees like your father, Weasley, about important events like this one," said Malfoy as Crabbe and Goyle laughed stupidly behind him.

"I've said it before and I'll keep saying it until you get the hint: piss off, Malfoy," said Annie.

"You need to wash out your mouth, Black," she said pointing his wand at her. "Scourgify!"

Annie's mouth filled with bubbles and she spluttered and spat them out. Malfoy and his friends left howling with laughter and Ron got up and slammed the door shut. Hermione found a goblet and filled it with water with her wand and gave it to Annie.

"Thanks," she said taking the proffered goblet. "Merlin, that was disgusting. I hate Malfoy. One of these days I'll get him back."

They passed the time playing Exploding Snap, Wizard's Chess and eating the sweets they bought off of the trolley. Annie was just biting into a Cockroach Cluster when a thought popped into her head.

"I've been thinking," she said.

"Oh no, that's not good," said George entering their compartment and sitting down next to her. Fred came in followed by Lee Jordan who sat across from him.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Lee.

"Yeah, we don't want you to hurt yourself," said Fred as Ron and Harry laughed.

Annie pouted. "Very funny, you guys, but I was just wondering why we needed dress robes. I mean, they weren't on the list last year, were they?" she said biting forcefully into a Chocolate Frog.

"I don't recall them ever being on the school list," answered George reaching for a Cockroach Cluster. Annie slapped his hand away and smiled at him. George smiled back and they both blushed.

"I was wondering the same thing," said Lee. "Why now?"

"It probably has something to do with what's going on this year at Hogwarts," said Hermione from behind her book.

Annie scratched her head. "Huh. I guess I didn't think of that. That makes sense."

"Annie you never think. And when you do, it always ends with disaster or you hurting yourself," said Harry sifting through a box of Bertie Bott's. Everyone laughed including Annie.

"Well, anyway," said Fred getting up from his seat and stretching. "We'd love to stay and chat, but we really came by to see if you wanted to drop a couple of dungbombs in the Prefect's compartment, Annie?"

"Oh, I'm there! See you later!" said Annie waving goodbye to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. She followed Lee out of the compartment and down the corridor. They made their way to the Prefect's compartment and peered inside the window. Inside, there were three Prefects and the Head Boy and Girl. George knelt down and Annie clambered onto his shoulders. He stood up and Lee and Fred passed the dungbombs to Annie. She lit each one and slipped them into the open window above the door. She slid off George's shoulders and she and the boys took off running down the corridor. Behind them, the door to the Prefect's compartment burst open and the Prefects and the Head Boy and Girl ran out holding their noses. Annie, George, Fred and Lee ran all the way back to Annie's compartment laughing. Annie waved goodbye to the boys and went back into the compartment, clutching the stich in her side.

"Durmstrang and Beauxbatons are just among many of the other wizarding schools in the world," said Hermione as Annie sat down in her vacated seat.

"'Durmstrang and Beauxbatons?' Sounds like a couple of diseases," she said. Harry and Ron laughed while Hermione frowned.

"They're not diseases, they're wizarding schools. You think anything foreign sounds like a disease," she said. She stood up and placed her book back in her trunk. "We'll be arriving soon, we should change."

Harry, Ron and Annie each stood up and took their robes out of their trunks. Annie was just tying her hair back into a ponytail as the Hogwarts Express screeched to a stop. They exited the train and pulled their robes over their heads as a sudden downpour splashed on their heads. At the end of the platform, Hagrid waved to them under the lamplight.

"All righ', you four?" he yelled over the sound of pouring rain. "I'll see yeh later at the feast!"

Annie, Ron, Hermione and Harry smiled and waved back. They made their way over to the line of horseless carriages waiting to take the students up to the school. Annie and the others climbed inside the carriage and it began to make its way up the muddy path.

A/N: Thanks again to all the people who have added me to their alerts and favorites! You guys are awesome! Until next time!