A/N Urgh, could please get their shit together and make the website work again. Couldn't log in, couldn't see my views… It's been a rough week online and offline, hence the late chapter.

Thank you very much to DancingWithAngelsAndDemons for following, welcome to the story! And of course thank you to DorothyNightingale for her reviewing and continued support *high five*

JKR owns Harry Potter.

The trip to Hogsmeade on Hallowe'en was a welcome break for the fifth years, who had been working tirelessly since the beginning of the year. Even the twins had finally began to pay attention in their lessons, the OWL exams inching ever closer. Olivia however was working harder than most, desperate to make up for her less than average grades she had received each year. This year, she had vowed would be her best yet. She didn't have to do it all by herself though. At least twice a week, Marlo and her would sit together in the common room, working away in silence, only occasionally exchanging nervous conversation. It had become a competition between the two of them as to who could stay awake the longest, which Olivia would always fail. Katie had begun to get used to running down from the girls dormitory in the morning to the common room to wake up the sleeping Olivia and help her tidy up her books.

The vomiting bug she had struggled with had seemed to have disappeared, but it had left behind a rather queasy feeling in her stomach, and absolute exhaustion. Some days she could barely get her head off of the desk in lessons. Madame Pomfrey had insisted she was overworked, pressing her with Pepper-up potions every time she went into her office. The twins had almost ran out of jokes to tell about the smoke coming from her ears due to the frequency that she took the potion.

Hallowe'en however, was a holiday, and the Weasley twins respected holidays as much as they respected Peeves. On the morning of the 31st of October, the two of them had grabbed Olivia as soon as she left the girls dorm and the three of them raced to the station to take the short train ride into Hogsmeade. As they wandered about in the village, they stopped in front of the Hogs Head Tavern.

'Well, here we are my friends. Quite possibly the pinnacle of our time here. The first time that we will try Firewhiskey,' announced Fred, beaming up at the mouldy sign.

'Are we sure he'll sell us it? I mean, none of us look seventeen,' said Olivia nervously.

'Speak for yourself, tiny one,' said George, sweeping back his hair and pulling himself to his full height. 'I reckon we just go in, ask for three glasses of the stuff, down it and bolt before he's realised his mistake.'

'The only people who go in are crazy anyway, he won't give us a second glance,' reassured Fred, steering Olivia towards the door. He shoved her through, and immediately Olivia regretted ever going. The whole bar was empty, save for one fearsome looking old man behind the bar. His blue eyes flashed menacingly at the three of them, and as they sat down at a table, his gaze did not lift from them once. 'Nope, nope, nope, lets go right now,' hissed Olivia, but Fred shook his head and stood up, trying to be as nonchalant as possible as he strolled over to the bar. Both George and Olivia were staring at the table determinedly, barely wanting to breathe.

'So!' said Fred cheerfully, squinting at the grimy board behind the old man. 'I'll have three fire whiskeys please, and one butterbeer.' The old man didn't move. 'Er, how much is that then?'

'Two sickles for the butter beer and a galleon for the three fire whiskeys,' he rasped. Fred quickly emptied his pockets and handed over the gold, grabbing the four bottles he was handed and heading for the door. 'Come on guys,' he said in a low voice, and George and Olivia sprang up from the table and bolted out the door.

Honeydukes was always packed full of students, regardless of the time of year. In celebration for Hallowe'en, Ambrosius and Finella Flume had decorated with hundreds of orange paper chains, stark white skeletons hanging from the walls that moved eerily and bats that flitted around the ceiling. It took mere seconds for Olivia to push through the students crowding the shop and fling her arms around her father, the two laughing and smiling. 'I was wondering when you were going to turn up kiddo.'

'It's been too long papa bear,' she said, pulling out of the hug and turning to wrap her arms around her mother. 'Fred and George are here too,' she mentioned, and the twins waved from a far corner of the shop.

'Good to see they've not got you expelled yet,' joked Finella. Her greying hair was wrapped in a bun, freckles covering her entire face.

'We're going to head up to my room okay? Then we have to go back to the castle for the feast, because you know how good it is. Has everything been alright here?' she asked more seriously, looking from her mother to her father.

'Same old stuff darling. You don't need to worry about us,' said Ambrosius, his eyes kind.

'Promise me you'd tell me if there was?' Olivia insisted.

'Yes, yes,' her father sighed, shaking his head. 'Aren't the parents the ones who are meant to be doing the worrying?'

'I know, just… I want you to be safe.'

'And we are,' her mother said gently, patting her head. 'Now go off and enjoy your holiday!' Olivia turned reluctantly and called over the twins, and the three trudged up the stairs to her room.

As they sat cross legged on the floor, Fred emptied his pockets of their contents, rolling the four bottles onto the floor and chucking a few of the pastilles they had been inventing out too. They looked at one another, unsure how to begin. 'So, who's going to take the first sip?' asked George tentatively.

'Me,' answered Fred immediately, and he swept up a bottle in his hand and unscrewed the top. He brought it to his lips and took a large glug of the amber coloured liquid. He spluttered and coughed, laughing and held the bottle out to his friends. 'That tastes like pain.'

'Do you feel any different?' Olivia asked anxiously.

'Not unless you mean having a burning throat,' said Fred, rubbing his chest. 'Right c'mon George, your turn.' George hesitatingly picked up the bottle, and then without a second thought shoved it into his mouth and drank from the bottle, before almost throwing the bottle out of his hands and coughing with extreme force. 'That… is… awful.'

'Just you left then Liv,' said Fred with a large grin. He held out the bottle to her, and she winced at the thought of the taste.

'Oh fine, I'll do it.' She took a quick swig from the bottle, and gasped. The liquid tasted awful, almost how she would expect cleaning fluid to taste but with a strong smell of cinnamon that burned in her nose. Her chest felt like there was truly flame flickering inside of her, and for a single second, she was truly worried her torso might burst into flames. Then, it was gone, with only a strong aftertaste left in her mouth. Fred had picked up another bottle and opened it, passing the last bottle to George. 'Lets play ten fingers, chaps,' he said in a business like manner. He placed his bottle down on the ground in front of him and held up his two hands. 'Never have I ever kissed a bloke,' he said, and Olivia rolled her eyes, putting down a finger and taking a drink, grimacing at the taste. 'Who was your first kiss?' asked George curiously.

'Lee Jordan you moron, you were there! We were playing spin the bottle in like third year.'

'Fair enough actually, I remember that,' he admitted. 'Your turn Liv.'

'Never have I ever kissed a girl,' she retaliated, and the the twins both took a drink, Fred calling George a liar as he did so.

'Never have I ever… Hit the Quaffle instead of a Bludger,' said George quickly, and Fred immediately protested. 'That's not fair, it was rainy and I was ill, it was a miracle I could see anything!' he said, while begrudgingly taking a drink.

Several questions later, and the bottles were nearing empty, and the effects of the fire whiskey were clearly showing. 'Never have I ever,' pondered George, 'kept a secret between the three of us.' Both Olivia and Fred looked awkwardly around the room before sipping from the bottles they were holding. 'Excuuuuse me?' George said, mildly shocked. 'My two best friends…' he uttered, before promptly falling down onto his back, laughing madly.

'Come on then, what's your secret?' said Fred, his eyes a little unfocused.

'It's really boring,' giggled Olivia, her brain fuzzy as she tried to concentrate on Fred's face.

'Oh go on, tell us…'

'Okay,' she hiccoughed, and spread her arms out in front of her as if she was speaking to a large crowd, 'Ladies and gentlemen, I have made a new friend who I only see at midnight!' she announced, and George pulled himself back up to give her a confused look.

'And when you say friend, you totally mean a broom closet buddy?'

'No! He's not, no!' Olivia persisted while the twins fell about laughing. 'His name is Marlo, and he's really quiet, and-'

'Give it a rest, Liv, there's no one called Marlo in Gryffindor!' said Fred, still laughing.

'Just because you don't know him doesn't mean he doesn't exist,' Olivia said grumpily, and attempted to stand up but fell slightly, staggering into Fred. 'Shit, it's almost seven o'clock! We've practically missed the feast,' she said sadly, and George pulled Fred up from the floor so all three were standing (albeit shakily.)

'S'probably just as well, we couldn't have gone like this,' said George, looking down at his shaky hands. 'Lets just head back, it'll be fine,' he said slowly, attempting to open the door to exit Olivia's room. 'Hey,' said Fred, who looked like he was trying his absolute best to focus. 'If there's no dementors here Liv, that means the secret passage is open! Lets just use that, and me and George will go to the kitchens and everything will be fine,' he finished dramatically.

'That's actually not a bad idea,' admitted Olivia.

As they stumbled back to Hogwarts through the passage, carefully avoiding Olivia's parents as they did so, George went over the plan. 'Fred and I will head to the kitchens, we won't be seen as everyone will still be at the feast, which means that we have time to sneak some food into the common room and sober up before everyone else arrives. Questions?'

'Do we have to sober up?' asked Fred, and Olivia exploded into fresh giggles.

'You better, ugly or we'll all be in the shit,' said George, trying his best to muster all his concentration into opening the passage. They staggered into the corridor and Fred shoved Olivia in the direction of the common room, the twins heading off towards the kitchens. She was trying her best to walk in a straight line to avoid suspicion should she happen to run into any teachers, but was very aware of the fact that if she opened her mouth they would smell the strong alcohol on her breath. Almost in sight of the portrait hole, she sped up and focused on the fat lady. She could almost see it-

Someone grabbed her from behind, and put a hand over her mouth. The booze had slowed her reactions, and her kicking and muffled shouts were slowed and quieter.

'Shh, shh, please Olivia! It's me!' She turned around to face her attacker and came almost nose to nose with Marlo.

'What are you-'

'You need to be quiet, right now,' he hissed, ducking behind a tapestry and pulling her behind himself. Out of the shadows of the darkened corridor, a thin, tall stranger appeared and stood in front of the portrait hole, and Olivia could almost hear their voice.

'It's me, you have to let me in.'

'No entrance without a password.'

'Come on, you remember me don't you? Don't you?' The stranger was pacing in front of it, getting more and more agitated. 'For old times sake. Let me in. Goddammit, let me in!' the man screeched, and pulled his wand out at the painting. The fat lady shrieked and fled her painting, as large slashes appeared in the canvas, and Peeves, who had just turned the corridor, froze. The stranger turned around, and immediately she recognised the sunken face, the terrifying dark eyes.

Sirius Black sprinted from the corridor, Peeves yelling about an intruder, and she heard the deafening noise of hundreds of students who were trampling up the stairs, full from the feast. As more and more Gryffindors arrived at the scene, the terror amplified, younger students completely losing their heads and running off. Olivia could barely work out what was happening, different faces fighting to get away, panic rising as the students realised what had happened. 'Find the twins,' she thought desperately to herself, and in her panic induced state, she failed to notice that Marlo had slipped away, unnoticed by anyone.

It felt like hours later when Dumbledore had finally gathered all the students in the Great Hall, and Olivia was still shaking, waves of terror washing over her as she replayed it over and over in her head. If it wasn't for Marlo, she could have been dead, murdered by the man who killed all those Muggles… Even his best friend. Scanning the hall, she saw the two redheads and they rushed towards each other, George quickly wrapping his arms around Olivia. 'Fuck, Liv, are you alright? Did you see it? What happened?' he said very fast, letting go of her. Fred looked deathly pale, and he pressed Olivia into his chest, before turning away without another word, grabbing a sleeping bag and heading to a quieter area. George and Olivia followed, Olivia mumbling all she could remember, carefully leaving out the fact that Marlo was there. She didn't need to drag anyone else into it. George didn't press the issue, putting down his sleeping bag next to his brother and the three of them lying down quietly next to each other. Whispering slowly quietened as the hours passed, and Olivia had never felt less tired in her life. Nothing could shake the image of Black, almost translucent in the dark pulling out his wand and aiming at the painting from her mind.

'Liv?' Fred's hushed voice came from beside her. She turned to face him, and he pulled his arm out of his sleeping bag, gently taking her hand in his. 'I'm sorry we left.' Olivia looked at his worried eyes and his long nose and smiled, squeezing his hand slightly.

'It's okay.' He smiled a little too.

If a student had passed over the hall during the night they would perhaps not have noticed anything at all. George however, stirring in his sleep and looking over at his two best friends, definitely saw something unusual. Fred's hand still clasped tightly to Olivia's, though the two were fast asleep, counted as unusual. He smiled, and turned over. Fred might have been trying to keep a secret from the two of them, but when it came to George, he could never manage to keep anything that private.

A/N Shady Marlo and shippy Olivia and Fred. So much going on in this chapter.

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