A/N: Hey guys! Sorry about not posting in the past couple of days. It was my dad's birthday, and it was hard to find time to write this while trying to gorge myself on cake at the same time. :D

Thanks to EVERYONE who reviewed. It really puts a smile on my face!

I feel like I should tell you all. This story only has a couple of chapters left, but I'm considering doing a sequel. If no one's interested, though, I won't pursue the idea. Thoughts?

Don't worry, though, I'm still doing my outtakes thing after this is completed. It'll probably be rated M though, as probably will be the sequel. NOT FOR BEING GRAPHIC THOUGH! That's just not my style. It'll just be more suggestive stuff.

Comments, concerns, whatever, just review or shoot me a PM.

I love every each and one of you for reading this and sticking with it for as long as you have!

Back to the story!

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

I ended up spending the next week in the Hospital Wing, which was exactly the amount of time it took my back to heal properly. I was still feeling the adverse effects of the spells that had hit me, which were mostly back pain and nausea, but I could now lie on my back and wear normal shirts. This also meant I could take the NEWTs with the rest of my class. I grumbled and groaned about this, but was happy that I was finally able to be with my friends.

Not that they hadn't visited me every day and night when I was on bed rest.

Hogwarts' end was fast approaching, and I found myself emotional at the most random times, like in the middle of lunch the day before finals.

Jane looked at me in alarm. "Lin, what's the matter? Are you in pain?"

"No," I muttered as I wiped my tears away. "It's just that this won't be my seat in a few weeks, and it never will be again."

Jane smiled and shook her head. "Yeah, but on the other hand, you'll have more than just a seat in our new flat."

I smiled. After arguments, begging, and pleading, my parents had consented to my moving in with Jane and Georgie. Carly and Jack were getting their own place together. I expected that we would be seeing each other a lot, though, considering their flat was one floor below ours in the same building.

A tap on my shoulder made me turn my head. "Oh, hey, Scor. What's up?"

He looked embarrassed. "I just wanted to apologize."

"What for?" I frowned as I took another bite out of the fish I was currently eating.

"For what happened," he said as he gestured to me. "You know."

I looked at him incredulously. "You didn't hex me." I paused. "Did you?"

"Oh, no. Never!" He shook his head and looked alarmed.

I eyed him curiously. "Then why are you apologizing?"

"Because it was my house that did it," he mumbled, examining his shoes.

I sighed and stood up, pulling him into a hug. "I never bought into any of this 'Slytherins are evil' garbage in the first place, Scor. I don't hold anybody responsible for what happened except for those who made it happen."

He frowned as we pulled away, but looked relieved. "Are you sure, Lin? Because we're not-"

"-All bad guys," I finished for him with a grin and clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Scor. See you around."

Jane smiled at me as I sat down. "You did a noble thing there, Lin. You should be proud of yourself."

I scoffed. "What? For not judging a book by its cover? Don't be ridiculous." I checked the snitch necklace. "Come on, it's time for class."

I mulled over the issue for the rest of the day. The Slytherins that were caught for attacking me had been suspended, and would have to repeat this semester before graduating. I had stopped the team from going after them personally, too.

The experience of being hexed that badly had put things in a new light for me, especially after I had had a chance to talk with Mrs. Wood, who came to visit me in the Hospital Wing the day before I left it.

XxXxXxXxXxXx

"Lin," she murmured as she hugged me carefully. "Are you alright?"

I nodded. "Yeah. They're actually going to release me tomorrow. Thanks for coming to see me, though."

Lizzie sat on the chair by my bed. "Of course. You've become another daughter to me, Lin, and I would do anything for you."

The emotion with which she said those words took me aback. "Thank you. I, I really appreciate that."

"Of course." She smiled at me. "Do you want to talk about what happened?"

I shook my head. "Actually, there's been something that's been bothering me, and I was wondering if you could help me."

"What is it?"

I sighed and told her about the dream I had had. The one where we were in the middle of war and I had to watch everyone I love die. I watched her carefully as I finished. She was looking at the wall behind me with a blank expression on her face.

After a few moments of silence, her eyes flicked to mine. "From what I understand, the Wizarding World in America wasn't affected by our war?"

"We were, but it wasn't enough that I had to stop living my life as I knew it." I bit my lip.

She sighed. "Lin, what are you looking for?"

"I-" I contemplated the question, "I guess I'm wondering what it was like. I want to know what it was like to live through that."

"I can't really help you then, I'm afraid." Her eyes went back to the wall. "I went into hiding during the war. I'm a muggleborn, you see, and by not going to Hogwarts for a year, and completely ignoring my wand, I escaped the worst of it."

I knew I was treading on dangerous territory, but I pressed forward. "But, Ary told me that you were kidnapped."

She smiled, but it was without humor. "Yes. Luna Scamander, nee Lovegood, and I were held captive for quite a long time. I've still got scars."

I shivered and she turned to me. "Lin, believe me when I say this. You most certainly do not want to know what it was like to live through that, to know people were alive one minute and then dead the next because a man who thought himself God decided it." She closed her eyes and I saw a tear escape, but her voice was strong when she continued.

"I am thankful every day I wake up that there is no new threat for you to have to fight. I am thankful that my biggest concern today is whether my daughter will have a boy or a girl, and not whether or not my daughter will even be alive tomorrow. I am very thankful, Caroline, that you and Ary and your friends do not have to do the unthinkable, and kill a man to save the world."

She sat down on the bed next to me and enveloped me in her arms. "You had a bad dream, but here, in reality, you are alive, you are whole, and you have friends and a man who loves you. You were badly hurt, yes, but you will heal. I suggest you put it out of your head, and enjoy the life you have, because it could be gone in an instant."

XxXxXxXxXxXx

Tears were pooling in my eyes as I remembered that conversation. I had promised myself then that I would live everyday as honest and as in the moment as possible, and that included forgiving those who had wronged me.

So, when the rest of the week flew by, exams and all, I was probably the only one of my friends that didn't freak out too much about it. I felt more confident in myself and my abilities, and as a result, I felt my grades would reflect it.

All of my introspection had turned me into a happier person, too, and I was finally able to just enjoy being with someone. I didn't worry about where our relationship was going, and that attitude was making my relationship with James much easier. We didn't shout at all anymore. It was really nice, to say the least.

Soon, too soon, finals ended and the final night we would spend in Hogwarts was upon us. We spent in the common room, having an end of year party. Every Gryffindor was there, even the first and second years, though they were content with mostly watching the festivities from the sidelines.

Jane and I were playing butterbeer pong when Jack stood up on a table and took a swig of his firewhiskey. I smiled and gestured to Jane, having a feeling that this was going to turn into a speech.

"Oi! Listen up, you lot!" Jack roared over the commotion. "I've got a few words to say, and you all better hear them."

Everyone quieted down. I moved so I was next to Carly and James, the latter of which wrapped his arm around my waist. I leaned against his shoulder and turned to Jack.

"Tomorrow, my fellow 7th years and I take the train, never to return as students again. We've spent 7 years inside these walls-"

Carly cleared her throat. He caught her gaze and then grinned at me cheekily. "Well, most of us have," he said, continuing. I giggled.

"We've spent years inside these walls. But, I reckon between the 7 of us, we still don't know every nook and cranny this castle has to offer. Hogwarts is a mystery. It always has been, and it always will be, and my friends and I will not be the first ones to leave, and we won't be the last. Hogwarts is also ever-changing in that way. From one year to the next, you're always meeting new people.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that, even though I'm pureblood, and I've been around magic for my entire life, Hogwarts is the most magical experience I've ever had, and will ever have. I've made friends here that are more family than friends, and I've met people I never would've been able to meet otherwise. I'm going to miss it like Hell here. We've spent more time here than with our parents, do you realize that?" He drew a deep breath and shook his head as several people tried to answer. He chuckled. "Rhetorical question, you wankers! What I'm trying to say, I suppose, is that even though Hogwarts is a lot of things to a lot of people, there is one thing we can all agree on. Hogwarts has been our home, and will always be our home. To Hogwarts!"

Those last two words were uttered with such ferocity that everyone in the crowd couldn't help but roar back and clink our glasses together with an energy that seemed to embody the Gryffindor spirit. After I had chugged my drink, I smiled up at James. He pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. "Love you, Lin."

"I love you, too." I snuggled closer to him. Once he had finally said those words to me, we said them all the time, and I never got tired of it.

"OI! OI! Pay attention, now!" Carly roared as she stepped up next to Jack. "Jack's not the only one that gets to speak, you know."

Everyone laughed. Carly grinned. "I've just got an announcement, actually. How many of you here are Puddlemere fans?"

The entire crowd began clapping and whistling. Carly raised her hands for quiet, with a sly grin. I glanced up in horror at James. He tried to pull me out of the crowd but we were stopped by Jane and Marcus. They grinned at us and held us in place. I gulped. Carly was still grinning like a maniac. "Well, I am very pleased to introduce you to the two newest members of the first line players, James Potter and Caroline Benedetto!"

A rush of people came at James and me. We were pulled apart and interrogated and hugged within an inch of our life. It went something like this:

"Oh my goodness, Lin, how could you not tell me?"

"Caroline! Do you realize you're going to be on a team with Freddie MacDougal? He's so dreamy!"

"Well done, Benedetto! Would it be too much to ask for you to get me a couple of tickets? For free, you know."

It seemed like hours later when the party finally broke up and I was allowed to breathe freely again. People went upstairs to bed, but I stayed behind with Georgie and Reg, who, as Prefects, were expected to keep the place clean.

I vanished several empty cups off of a sofa and promptly plopped down. I checked my snitch watch. "It's 3 in the morning," I groaned.

Reg patted me on the shoulder. "We can sleep when we're dead, Lin," he said with a grin.

"Perhaps," I smiled and moved so I was lying across the pillows, "but sleeping now sounds so much better."

"Have you packed everything yet?" he asked as he repaired a rip in the carpet with his wand.

"No, she hasn't," Georgie answered for me as she scrubbed at the tables. "Her things are still all over the place."

I closed my eyes. "Maybe I would have done it if you hadn't nagged me so much about it," I mumbled.

Reggie laughed. "Ah, poor Lin. She's so tired, Georgie. Are you really going to make her pack tonight?"

I heard Georgie sigh. "No, I suppose not. Besides, she's rubbish at the cleaning and folding spells, anyways. I might as well do it, since I did Carly's, too."

I smiled. "Georgie, you're my favorite."

"Come on, Lin. I think it's beddy-bye time." I was suddenly lifted into the air.

I inhaled and wrapped my arms around James's neck. "I thought you were already asleep," I accused him. Or, I tried to, but it came out as half-hearted.

"Nope. I just didn't want to get stuck cleaning up. G'night guys!" he called over his shoulder to our friends.

The next thing I knew, I was being dropped onto a bed, and having the sheets tucked around me. I frowned and felt around for James. I heard his chuckle as he moved things around. "Patience, Lin. I have to pack, too, you know, and my mates aren't as nearly as helpful as yours are."

I smiled and snuggled deeper into the blankets. "Love my friends. Love you, too. Sleepy."

"Sleep, then," he whispered as he finally slipped underneath the blankets with me. "We don't want to miss the train."

I sighed with contentment and wrapped my arms around him, placing a kiss on his shoulder. He in turn wrapped his arms around me, and, with that, I fell asleep.