- Kayli -

Harry's improving, slowly but surely. He has to take a lot of time out of his practice for study and something called the DA and something else called Quidditch. So I, once more, have way too much free time, and I have no idea what to do with it.

Sleeping is, apparently, out of the question. I cannot sleep. I have already slept way too much, and I've started having funky dreams about home. Of course, it would help if my bedwarmer didn't insist on getting up at dawn and doing research that is getting us bloody nowhere. And the one truly pathetic thing about married life? You absolute have to have someone sleeping next to you, or you, very literally, can't sleep.

I, currently, hate my life.

I find Legolas in the library, hunched over a book with the creepy old guy. Once more, there is a whole group of girls huddled around, pretending to study. The library has probably never been this busy. And can I just say that the librarian does not look happy.

There is only one way to put a stop to this, and keep both me and the librarian relatively happy. I stalk over, glare at the girls, and immediately plop down on Legolas's lap.

I didn't know an Elf could turn that shade of red.

There's a disgusted muttering from the girls. If looks could kill, I'd be six feet under. But they'd be down there with me.

Legolas just shakes his head, wraps an arm around my waist, and pulls the book closer.

Hey, maybe I can take a nap.

He and Dumbledore start talking about some magical crap, and I tune them out and start flipping through the book to look at the pretty pictures. I stop to look at a portrait of a rather pretty witch wearing purple, and she smiles, and waves at me.

JESUS!

I let out a little shriek and chuck the book across the table, hitting Dumbledore in the chest. "SHIT! SHIT! Are they SUPPOSED to do that?"

They both look at me like I've cracked. "Um, dear girl, are you quite all right?" Dumbledore asks slowly, like he's checking my mental health.

That's okay. At the moment, I'M checking my mental health.

Or I will be, shortly. As soon as I can breathe normally. "It MOVED!"

Legolas laughs slightly. "Ah. The portraits."

I manage to nod. He laughs and kisses me.

OK, I'm better now.

Dumbledore clears his throat, looking rather intently at the ceiling, like it's the most fascinating thing he's seen in decades. "Yes, my dear, the portraits move. Have you not noticed that the pictures in the corridors do quite the same?"

Um...No?

Legolas shakes his head. "Sometimes, melisse, it amazes me that you have lived this long, not noticing such things."

I am very insulted. "Hey! I notice important stuff!" And I do, dammit. If someone's trying to kill me, I almost always notice. Unless I'm unconcious, which happens a lot.

Legolas pats my back in a very patronizing way. I want to hurt him. That could be the sleep deprivation talking. "Of course you do, love."

I stick my tongue out at him. This is not shaping up to be a good day.

- Ron -

This is not going to be a good day. I can tell already, and the sun's barely up. I overslept, I was late for breakfast, and whoever decided that NEWT Potions should be this bloody early in the morning should be killed. Or at least maimed. And since it was probably Snape who gave the Gryffindors the first class, I really don't have a problem with that.

Ten points from Gryffindor. Greasy, obnoxious bugger, he is.

And then Hermione doesn't even deign to speak with us, instead rushing straight off to the library to help Legolas with research. It's not that I'm jealous, it's that...well, it's actually that I'm so jealous I'm surprised my eyes aren't green. And if I told Harry, I know he'd just laugh at me. Or smile that sad, distracted little smile that's been his version of laughing since Sirius died.

And he wouldn't be laughing to be mean. No, he'd be laughing because I, apparently, am a daft git.

And I still don't know what he's talking about, so I'm starting to think he's right. I have no clue what he's talking about half the time, and the thing with Kayli, yesterday morning, that just confused me.

I slip into my seat next to Harry and Hermione. Neville is staring intently at his Potion, not letting Snape get to him, not letting anything distract him. He's been like that since the beginnning of the year. I think it surprised everybody - including Snape, and even the rest of the Gryffindors - when Neville got an E in Potions. I thought Snape was going to keel over when he found out Neville was in his class. Brightened by day, it did.

And, of course, Snape immediately starts to rip into the Gryffindors. Neville ignores him, which just makes him angry. He gets even angrier when Neville's potion turns out almost perfect at the end of the class.

Luckily, it's a small class. Me, Harry, Hermione, Neville, Malfoy, Parkinson, and Nott. Of course, that also means Snape has more time to harass the Gryffindors, but hey, we can't have everything, eh?

After the class, we file out, still blinking, yawning, completely out of it. Well, except for Hermione. How can I have such a big, giant, bloody ...INFATUATION with a morning person is sort of beyond me. She immediately starts reading out little snippets for our Potions assignment. Like we're going to remember.

We wave to Nearly-Headless Nick, dodge a couple of Dungbombs, and have to race for Professor MacGonagall's classroom. It's a LONG ways from the Potions dungeon to Transfiguration.

We're surprised when we get there. Kayli's sitting in the back of the classroom, deep in conversation with Pansy Parkinson, of all people. Pansy actually looks like she's interested in what Kayli's saying. Hermione would have a better word for it, but there can only be one genuis in the group. I don't know what position, exactly, I fulfill. Harry's the heart of the group, I know that. Hermione's the brain. I don't know what I am. I know Harry's my best mate, and I would die for him. Without hesitating.

I think that's when you know you love your friend. When you'll die for them, they're your friend. And when you know they're worth it.

When you're having thoughts like this, it's very hard to concentrate on Transriguration. I'll have to copy Hermione's notes later. She's a better lecturer than Binns, thank Merlin.

I wonder why Kayli's here. She's never sat in on a class before, but Professor MacGonagall doesn't seem to mind. I don't know why. I have the sneaky suspicion that if it was Legolas she'd pitch a holy fit.

Eventually, the class is over. These classes are way too long. Kayli stops to have a word with the Professor, and we wait for her outside the door.

It's odd to have a friend who's so much older than you. Brothers I'm used to. All my brothers are older than me, so it's not that hard. But friends are something different. I'd actually say that the only friends I have are the ones in my house, in my year. Oh, I have casual acquaintences in other Houses, a couple enemies in Slytherin, but no real FRIENDS.

Kayli comes out of the classroom. She smiles when she sees us, and her whole face lights up. She looks tired. Hermione peers at her intently for a second, and then asks, "Are you OK?"

Kayli laughs a little, but not like it's funny. "No," she says. "I am so many miles from OK it's not even funny. I haven't slept in days, my husband and I had a screaming fight, but I can't tell you how it ended 'cause I don't know that much bloody Elvish, but I'm pretty sure he wasn't saying how much he loved me."

We all exchange confused glances. Now how in the bloody hell do we handle THIS?

TBC...