Hey everyone, sorry it took me as long as it did to post this chapter, I had a computer problem and I had to back up my entire laptop then swipe it's hard drive. Needless to say, I wasn't able to actually type anything for a couple of weeks. Anyway, here be the next chapter! please read&review!

Warnings: mild language

Disclaimer: All but the characters you know are mine...

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Chapter three: First Day

Ron

Ron opened his eyes, blinking at the light that hit them. He sat up, looking around, and noticed that he was alone in the room except for another boy that was in his year. Yawning, he stood up and grabbed his clothes, going into the bathrooms where he took a quick shower and changed. He then headed down to the common room where he hoped that he'd be able to find Yoko or his cousin, Saya.

As it were, everyone had already headed down to breakfast. Mumbling to himself, Ron walked out of the common room distractedly. He hadn't even made it ten steps before he managed to run into Annemarie Goyle. She turned sharply and smacked him before he could even apologize. Cowering away from her slightly, Ron walked around his other cousin, giving her an extremely wide berth. He didn't even understand why he HAD to call her his cousin. Just because his idiotic aunt was her mother didn't mean he thought she was family. He supposed she wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't always beating the shit out of him every chance she got.

Ron's encounter with Annemarie put him in a dark mood and it was immediately noticed by Yoko when he entered the great hall for breakfast. Yoko watched worriedly as Ron picked at his food, not eating most of what he put on his plate, which was a considerably small amount of eggs and a piece of toast. Their head of house walked around the table, passing out their class schedules. Ron took his, glanced at it, grumbled something about History of Magic, and threw the schedule on the table, going back to moving the pieces of egg back and forth on his plate. Yoko wanted to know what was wrong, but he was too afraid to ask. Ron could have a nasty temper if he wanted, and Yoko wanted no part of being on the receiving end of it if Ron chose to show it.

Karin

Karin watched from Gryffindor table as Ron picked at his food. She was concerned for her brother and she knew that she needed to speak to him. But, the conversation with Lily had to come first. So, she began to scan the table in search of her. She spotted her near the end of the table with her little friend. Standing up, Karin walked over to Lily.

"Lily, can I speak with you for a few?" Karin asked, standing behind Gabriel. Lily looked up and, seeing who it was, nodded. Karin led Lily out into the entrance hall, where they could have some semblance of privacy.

"What's wrong Karin?"

"Lily, are you alright?"

"What do you mean?" Lily asked annoyance and confusion on her face. Karin sighed, knowing that Lily wasn't going to admit her feelings right away.

"How are you coping, being separated from James?" Karin replied patiently. Lily looked down, and then looked back up. She glared at Karin, as if the older girl had suggested that Lily couldn't function properly without her twin by her side. "And don't deny that you miss him. I noticed your behavior yesterday at the feast. It's okay to miss him. He's your twin. You two have never been separated before."

Lily turned her head, glaring at the wall. Karin sighed again, but didn't say anything. Lily had to admit how she was feeling on her own. Finally, Lily turned to face Karin again.

"It's odd, but I'm handling it."

"Lily, if it's any help or comfort, it took me a few weeks to adjust to not being around Ron all the time." Karin said, hoping that it did help Lily in some way. Lily nodded but said nothing more. Sighing Karin turned to go back into the great hall. She sat down and not long after, received her class schedule. Looking it over, she groaned when she realized that she had History of Magic class first thing.

James

James stared at his breakfast, listening to Ailbhe Monoamine and Thor Rivers discuss what all they might learn this year. Ailbhe was especially keen on learning about the Second War with Voldemort. The ebony haired boy said that his mother had been a part of the War but she never spoke of it. Ailbhe's father was from Japan, so he didn't know much about the War and Ailbhe couldn't go to him for information.

Of course, because Thor was a muggleborn, he had no clue about it. When he mentioned this to Ailbhe, the other wizard promised to explain it to the best of his ability. James refused to mention anything about his parents' involvement in the War, because he honestly didn't know much about it either. Plus, he felt that it was Harry's personal business what happened with Voldemort in the Final Battle, as well as Draco's.

The head of house came around to the table, passing out their class schedules. James took his, thanking her, and looked over it. He had Potions right after breakfast. Groaning he folded the piece of parchment and put it in his pants pocket, going back to picking at his breakfast made up of toast and a few slices of bacon. Ailbhe and Thor didn't seem to notice his response to their schedules. The two continued their discussion about what they might learn instead.

James looked up and smiled slightly as he managed to catch his sister's eye. Lily returned the smile from across the room and using the hand motions they developed when they were younger, told him to meet her in the great hall in a few minutes. He nodded, telling her that he got her message before he began actually eating his meager breakfast. When he was finished, he stood from the table and walked out to the great hall where he waited for Lily.

"James!" Lily called. James turned towards her and laughed when she managed to trip over her own feet in her hurry to reach him. "Oh, shut it you prat! Let me see your schedule!" Lily demanded. James pulled it out of his pocket and let her rip it out of his hands. He shook his head as she stared at it, comparing her schedule to his.

"Well, do we have any classes together? Or are we destined to be separated indefinitely?" James asked dramatically. Lily rolled her eyes at his antics, handing his schedule over.

"We have Potions, Charms, DADA, and Transfiguration together."

"Oh, wicked. I hope we get to chose partners in Potions."

"Why James, so you can choose me?" Lily asked mockingly, twirling around him and laughing. "Merlin knows you're horrid at potions. Dad says you get that from father. Apparently he sucks at Potions too."

"Oh shut it Lils, just because you got Dad's Potions skills and I got father's doesn't mean you need to tease me about it. Honestly, you'd think you'd've grown up a bit." James replied tersely. He'd never cared for his sister's teasing. Lily grinned and skipped off towards the Dungeons.

"Coming, brother?" Lily called. James groaned and ran after her, his green eyes sparkling with happiness.

Later that night, James was sitting on the floor in front of the fire place. Thor and Ailbhe were on either side of him. Thor watched in amazement as Ailbhe grumbled, James effectively beating him at wizard's chess. After several more minutes, Ailbhe groaned as his king was cornered.

"Checkmate!"

"Stuff it, Potter. How're you so good at wizard's chess, James?" Ailbhe demanded as they put the board and chess pieces away. James grinned triumphantly, causing Ailbhe to scowl and Thor to laugh.

"I play Ron all the time back home. He's far better at it than me, but playing with him must've improved my skills." James explained. Ailbhe rolled his eyes and tossed a balled up piece of parchment at James. James dodged it, laughing.

"Hi James!"

James looked over to where he'd heard the voice and smiled when he saw who it was. He patted the ground next to Thor invitingly.

"Hi Shardae, come join us." James said cheerily. Shardae nodded and sat in between him and Thor. "How're Uncle Fred and Aunt Pansy doing?"

"Mum and dad're fine. I don't think they fancied me coming to school, but seeing as you and Lily're here, as well as Ron, Karin, and Saya, they didn't say anything. I overheard them arguing over whether I should've stayed home and come next year." Shardae said her hands moving rapidly as she explained. James smiled and glanced at Thor, catching the boy staring at Shardae, blushing horribly.

"If you don't mind my asking, why wouldn't they want you to come this year?" Ailbhe asked curiosity evident in his voice. Shardae smiled tightly, blushing a bit.

"I don't exactly do well around large groups of people," she explained. James nodded, thinking back to the Weasley family reunion. Shardae had managed to have a panic attack, far better than the 

earlier years. "Of course, I'm doing alright now. I go to see Madame Longbottom, up in the Infirmary, before every meal. It's rather annoying, going up and down all those stairs for a potion, but it's worth it."

"Oh," was Ailbhe's reply. Shardae smiled and nodded, turning to talk to Thor enthusiastically. James watched in amusement as Thor stared at her, nodding here and there to let her know that he was listening. Ailbhe poked him in the side, and soon they were in their own debate over DADA lessons.

Lily

"Are you SURE you're fine? You didn't really eat much at dinner," Gabriel said softly, concern sparkling in his chocolate brown eyes. Lily looked at him, a bit surprised by how concerned Gabriel was for her. She smiled reassuringly, patting his arm.

"I'm fine, Gabe. I'm just a bit distracted. I'm not used to being away from James. I suppose I'd always assumed that we'd be like our Uncles, Fred and George." Lily explained. Gabriel nodded, trying and failing in his attempt to hide his curiosity. Lily smiled again. "Well, they're not really our uncles, but they might as well be. We're apart of the Weasley clan as much as the Weasley clan is a part of the Potter-Malfoys."

"But anyway, Uncle Fred and George were twins, like me and James, and they were both sorted into the same house. So…yeah, I guess that's why I'm acting a bit odd. Sorry to cause you any concern," she finished lamely. She wasn't entirely sure what more to say, so she just turned and stared at the fire in the hearth. Gabriel nodded, understanding her explanation somewhat. He looked up, catching sight of Karin, and tensed.

She did not look like a Weasley. Gabriel expected that it was Silhouette's influence on that one. She was still in her school uniform, lacking the robes though, but she was wearing black eyeliner, purple eye shadow, and dark, blood red, lipstick. Her hair color had been changed to black with white in the bangs. She seen Gabriel staring at her and sent him a scowl. He turned his attention back towards Lily, thinking about the picture of Karin of a couple years back that Lily had shown him earlier.

"What's wrong?" Lily questioned, looking over and seeing Gabriel's brooding expression. Gabriel smiled and shook his head. Lily shrugged and yawned a bit.

"You should go to bed," her friend said softly. Lily nodded in agreement and exchanged goodnights with him and Karin before going up to her room. She changed into sleepwear and crawled into bed. She fell into a semi-restful sleep.

General

Things continued much the same way. It didn't take Lily as long to adjust to being separated from James as she had originally thought. James grew closer and closer to Thor and Ailbhe. Ron and Yoko continued to grow closer as well. Karin and Silhouette, well, that will remain to be seen.

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Author's note: Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I hope to have the next chapter done and up for you by next week at the latest.