Disclaimer: I do not own any of the rights to Harry Potter!

Sidenote: Sorry I didn't put a note in the last chapter. This is a fairly new story. I've only written up to chapter three and a little of chapter four, but I will be writing a lot this summer! So I hope you enjoy the chapter and I would love any reviews left!

I lost my breath gazing at the sights before me. People crowded around fascinating shops. Shop venders yelled the remarkable wares they had. Owls hooted, cats meowed, children yelled and ran about.

"There he is, the prat. See the girl James's with?" Sirius indicated a tall dark-haired boy talking to a beautiful red-haired girl.

"Yeah, who's she?"

"Lily Evans, the smartest soon-to-be seventh year. James has been in love with her since first year. Watch, she absolutely hates him! And there she goes." I watched as Lily raised her hand and slapped the boy across the face before marching away.

"Prongs!" Sirius yelled over to his friend.

"Why do you call him Prongs?"

"Nick name." His tone indicated that there was a very long story behind the name.

"Hey Sirius. Who's she?" He pointed at me, his face still showing a faint handprint on one cheek.

"Anastasia Nichols."

For some reason, James rolled his eyes at Sirius, but Sirius just muttered 'later'.

"She's going to be staying with us till Hogwarts."

James just shrugged and said that they needed to be heading home.

I followed the pair, running to catch up as the fascinating sights slowed me down. I followed them into a store, which seemed to sell only pieces of junk that looked like things given away as party favors. The boys led me to a gigantic fireplace at the back of the store. I watched with large eyes as James threw a fist full of powder into the fire, yelled 'Potter Manor' then disappeared in a whirl of green flames. It was only when Sirius snickered at me that I realized that my mouth was hanging open in amazement.

"It's easy," He said, grabbing up some powder and tossing it into the fireplace that had, just previously, been occupied by James. "Just make sure you speak clearly and keep your elbows tucked in. Here, watch me."

I watched as he did what James had done before him. Once he had gone, I stepped closer to the fireplace and threw in my own handful of powder. Carefully I stepped into the warm, green flames, which felt like a warm breeze. Opening my mouth I said 'Potter Manor' carefully.

I spun throughout the fireplace, gasping at the smoke and ash that hit my face, until I fell straight out into a large room. Something caught me before I hit the ground, I realized it was Sirius's arm.

"Thanks," I looked at him as he smiled, my breath caught in my throat.

"Ah, you must be Anastasia! I'm Mrs. Potter. Sirius just informed me that you needed a place to stay and we would love to have you." I was engulfed in a large hug from James's mother.

"Thank you for letting me stay, Mrs. Potter. I don't mean to be trouble."

"No, no, it's wonderful to have more people here. Anyway, I don't think it's even possible to be more trouble than these two here and it's nice to have another female about!" She smiled widely at me.

I smiled right back at her, suddenly feeling at home more than I ever had at mum and Pompous Arses's apartment.

"I'll show you where you'll sleep. Come one."

Mrs. Potter led me from the room. As I left, I noticed James turn to Sirius with a questioning look upon his face.

She took me up a pair of staircases and down a long hallway. "Now, you can stay in this room, Sirius and James sleep just down the hall if you need anything."

"Thanks, Mrs. Potter, I'm just going to take a rest if that's alright."

"Of course dear! I'll send one of the boys to wake you up in time for dinner." She smiled happily at me and went back down the hall.

I collapsed onto the bed. Everything that had happened in only the last two days finally hit me all at once.

When I was finally able to drift into dreamland, flashes of nightmares of memories came forth from my tired mind, more terrifying than any nightmare I had ever had before. I remembered watching my father taking his last breath in that horrid hospital. I remember standing at my father's coffin, realizing that I would never see him again. I remember Mum crying, everyone we knew trying to comfort us, feeling in the dark, remembering how my friends stopped calling the house because I would never return their calls. All of this dredged up from the lock box in my mind that I tried to keep shut, but here it all came, in a torrent of pain.

"Can you please get up now? I'm bored!" I jerked awake, pulling myself from my horrid thoughts. My eyes turned to see Sirius standing next to the bed.

"What time is it?" I sat up groggily, looking around.

"Nine!" I laughed at the whining quality in his voice.

"And you can't possibly entertain yourself, right?"

"Of course not!" He answered in a scandalized tone. "James is off with Mummy Potter and Mr. Potter is at work!"

"Fine. I'm getting up."

I took a shower, relishing in the warm water. I saw that someone had put a pair of clean clothes on top of the dresser, Mrs. Potter probably. When I finally found my way to the kitchen, I found Sirius bouncing around in a chair.

"What do you want to do then?" I asked as I munched on some cold pancakes he had given me.

"Well, I already sent an owl to Dumbledore and…" I looked up hopefully. "…He said it would be absolutely wonderful if you came to Hogwarts. But you are going to need a tutor."

I was so happy that I actually started jumping up and down, as Sirius watched with a very amused expression.

"Sorry." I muttered, sitting down again.

"It's fine, kinda funny actually." I pretended to pout at him. "So, we should probably go back to Diagon Alley and get all your stuff."

Diagon Alley was just as incredible as it had been yesterday. The interiors of the shops were just as fascinating as their exteriors.

I was very grateful of Sirius. He filled me in on everything magical, things that would have made me look lame if I didn't know them, things like Quidditch and Hogwarts. He told me about his friends, they were pranksters at Hogwarts and called themselves the Marauders. Everyone worshipped them, though. This became very evident by the amount of students who said hello to Sirius on the street and in the shops. I noticed that every Hogwarts female we passed, glared daggers at me.

"Hi Sirius! How's your summer been?"

A brunette girl pushed in between Sirius and I as we walked out of Diagon Alley. I noticed how shrill and irritating her voice was.

"Just fine," Sirius ran a hand through his hair, preening for her.

Once the girl had walked away, I burst into laughter.

"What?" Sirius looked very confused.

"Her…you…voice…" I couldn't finish my sentence as I howled with mirth.

"What?" Sirius asked again, indignant this time.

"Never mind," I said, smirking slightly.

The week continued on. I had never had so much fun in my entire life. James, Sirius, and I became extremely good friends. We swam in James's pool, walked throughout muggle London, and James and Sirius taught me a couple of pranks.

One morning, they thought it would be funny to wake me up by pouring a bucket of ice-cold water over my head. They were not prepared for my revenge. The two were eating their lunch calmly, until they noticed that their food was moving. Let's just say that there are a lot of bugs to be found in the garden…

I was sad when the time came to go to Hogwarts. I liked it here.

"Goodbye darlings. Ana, feel free to stop by any time! It was wonderful to have you! Could you try to keep these two out of trouble?" Mrs. Potter waved goodbye to us at King Cross Station.

Mrs. Potter and I had become good friends. She wouldn't let the boys in the kitchen because they always ate everything, but she let me come in there and help her cook. She would tell me stories about her time at Hogwarts and about all the classes. She even invited me to come visit over Christmas.

"Thanks, Mrs. P! I can't wait to visit again!" I waved back at her and followed the two boys.

The three of us climbed onto the train and walked down until we found an empty compartment. James immediately spread out on one side of the compartment, forcing Sirius and I to sit on the other side.

"So, then, we slipped into their dorms only to find that the Hufflepuffs had executed their own revenge by turning the whole room pink. But of course we couldn't just leave, so we decided to add our own touch."

"What did you do?"

James was telling me the most hilarious story, while Sirius sat and gazed out the window.

"Oh, we changed the colors to red and gold because that would definitely aggravate them more. Then we changed all their robes to say 'We love Gryffindor!'"

"How long did you get detention for?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

"Just a week." James answered easily.

I had learned that it was very common for them to have detention. They were actually having a competition to see who could get the most detentions in all seven years. While the two boys debated on who was actually winning, I watched through the door as people walked by, many of which were girls.

"Hey Siri!" A blonde entered the room and immediately sat herself on Sirius's lap. In the process, she knocked me to the floor of the carriage. "So, do you want to go somewhere a little more private?" She twirled a pointy finger around a lock of her hair, placing her other hand on his chest.

Incredulously, Sirius and the girl left the room, while James just sat there, shaking his head.

"Does he do that often with random girls?" I picked myself off the dirty floor, wincing at the bruise that was soon to rise on my bum.

"Yup. Sorry to break the news to you, but Sirius is a bit of a player. He's only had a couple of real girlfriends, other than that it's all random girls."

"Wow, I don't think I ever would have guessed it, actually, that's a bit disturbing." I realized that I was more disappointed in Sirius than I had ever been with anyone. Sirius and I had grown so close even in one week, but he just didn't seem like someone who would use girls like that.

"You get use to it after six years, but I had hoped he would change a little this year."

"Hmm." I murmured as I pulled a book of spells out of my bag.

"Hey, Ana, I have to go to the Head compartment for a prefects meeting. I'll catch up with you later, 'kay?"

"Sure James, see you later." I waved him off, immersed in my book.

"Hey, have you seen the Marauders?" I looked up an hour later. A boy stood in the doorway.

"Oh, sorry, you're new, you don't know who they are, sorry." The boy started to leave.

"Yeah I am new, but I know who the Marauders are. Sirius is somewhere with a random girl and James is at a prefects meeting."

"Oh, are you Anastasia?" The boy came back into the compartment and sat down across from me.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"James sent an owl to tell me that you were staying with him and Sirius. I'm Peter, by the way."

"Oh, hello, James and Sirius have told me so much about you."

I spent the remainder of the trip talking to Peter. James and another Marauder, named Remus, came in right before we got to Hogwarts. Sirius joined us as we were leaving the compartment. I tactfully ignored him. Sirius only noticed when he asked me a question and I gave him the silent treatment.

He grabbed my arm after we arrived at Hogwarts in the thestral-pulled carriages. I could see the creatures because I had seen my father die, but it seemed like James, Remus, and Peter didn't see the creatures.

"Ana, are you mad at me?" He looked sad as he asked me.

"Not really, I'm only a little disappointed with you." I answered truthfully.

"Why?" Sirius actually had no idea why I was upset.

"I guess I never would have thought of you as a person who would use females."

Understanding crossed Sirius's face. "James told you, didn't he?"

I nodded.

"I'm sorry, Ana. I don't really know what you want me to tell you. I guess I do it because I don't want to commit to anyone. It's easier to just be with someone for a day, instead of actually staying with someone."

Sirius was so honest with me that it was hard to stay upset with him. I could see exactly why he did what he did. And, I was crappy at trying to hold grudges.

"I guess I see why, not that I still like it."

"So, are you still disappointed in me?" He looked at me with puppy-dog eyes.

"How can I resist those eyes, fine, I'm not upset anymore." Sirius smiled happily at me and pulled me up the steps to the school.

"Ah, you must be Anastasia Nichols. I am Professor McGonagall, follow me." A tall, tight-lipped woman greeted me at the front of the school.

"Okay," I looked at Sirius for assistance, but he just indicated for me to follow her.

I did as he wanted and followed Professor McGonagall to the largest room I had ever seen. Four long tables stood separate lines facing the staff table. Sirius sat down at what must be the Gryffindor table while I kept going up the line. I noticed that everyone seemed to be staring at me and whispers came from various people around me.

"Put the hat on your head, it will sort you." McGonagall pointed to a hat on a stool in front of me.

Sirius and James had told me what the hat did, but I was still nervous as I put it on.

"Ah, I have been waiting for you to come. Your father would have wanted you to come sooner, but I see that your mother always had other plans." The voice surprised me, for it came from the hat.

"Yes," I answered in my head. "But dad should be glad that I'm here now."

"Oh, he is. Now, where to place you… Your father did well in Gryffindor, but your mother favored Slytherin." This was news to me, never once had they mentioned, in their stories of Hogwarts that they were from enemy houses.

"You though, like your mother said as she locked you in your room, you have much more of your father in you. GRYFFINDOR!"

I sighed in relief as I went to sit down next to Sirius.

The meal was quite fascinating. After Professor McGonagall had brought in the first years and they had all been sorted, food suddenly appeared on golden platters. All the students chatted happily with their fellows, catching up after having a summer apart.

I chatted slightly with the four Marauders, but mostly stayed silent.

"What's wrong?" Only Sirius seemed to realize that I was being quieter than usual.

"Nothing, just something the Sorting Hat said." Sirius did not press, though I assumed this was because of what the Sorting Hat was sure to have said to him about being one of the first Blacks to not be put into Slytherin house.

"Come on Ana, we're going up to Gryffindor tower." Sirius helped me up, but I leaned on him the whole way, I was exhausted.

The walk up to the tower would have been more amazing if I had been awake. At one point, Sirius picked me up and carried me because I was so tired. I made the walk up to the girls' dormitory on my own after a hurried good night to the Marauders.