Tracy and Blaise eyed Pansy warily as the dark haired girl passed their group. They've known Pansy for so many years, yet they never imagined that she would have the guts to tell on Ash, who definitely was the stronger personality.

"I still can't believe that she tried that!" Tracy sighed and shook her head in disappointment - she was actually having way more fun than Ash with thinking up nice little tasks for Pansy.

Ash laughed at her friend's dismay and gave her a small side hug. "Oh, don't worry, we'll still have our fun with her," she chuckled and looked in Pansy's and Daphne's direction. "But first, I have to go to my wonderful detention," she added and stood up from her place on the couch.

"Oi, Pug-face! Are you coming?" she yelled at the other girl.

"Where should I go with you?" she snarled, her eyes narrowing as she looked at the Weasley.

Ash raised an eyebrow, "detention?"

Pansy scrunched up her face in displeasure and sigh, "we have that together?"

"Duh, we had our little misunderstanding together. I bet that we will have to do some kind of pair therapy activity to make sure that we become friends once again," Ash speculated and rolled her eyes.

Pansy groaned, but slowly stood up to follow Ash out of the common room.

"You know, this all wouldn't have happened if you hadn't tried to rat me out."

"I wouldn't have had too, if you wouldn't have blackmailed me."

"Well, I wouldn't have been able to if you hadn't given me a chance if you wouldn't have tried to hurt me."

"-and succeeded," Pansy added grinning. "But you wouldn't have given me a reason to do that, if you hadn't stolen Draco from me."

Ash stopped short and turned around to look at Pansy. "Stole Draco from you? Hell, you all but pushed him at me. Or do you honestly think that a guy like Draco wants a girl that crowds him every second of his life?"

Pansy glared at Ash with hateful eyes. "I did not crowd him," she spat.

"Course you did. Draco here, Draco there, 'Oh Dracie look over here!'" Ash rolled her eyes and started walking again. "You crowded him, that's a fact."

Pansy glared at the blonds back as she began trailing after her again. "Why did you have to come to this school? My life would have been so much better if you would have just stayed in Germany where you belong…" she muttered.

Ash tried to ignore the comment as she walked into the direction of Professor Snape's office. Nevertheless, the comment hurt. It wasn't because of what Pansy said, but what it made her think about. It reminded her of her parent's death; it reminded her of friends in Germany, Kat and Jeremy that forgot all about her; it made her think about what life she would be leading now, if she had never met Patrick, if Kat and Jeremy could still remember her…

Would she still be best friends with Kat? Would they be joking around and playing pranks together right now? Would she be impatiently waiting for school to end and to finally go home, meet her parents again?

Did her friends – even though they couldn't remember her – miss her? Miss their long forgotten friend? Did they know that they forgot somebody, who was once important to them? What were they doing right now?

She couldn't answer those questions. Not any of them and it hurt trying to think of the possibilities.

Ash sighed silently and quickened her pace to detention. The sooner she had something to do, the sooner she could block out those thoughts.

"Hey don't walk so fast, Weaselbe!"

"Oh, shut your trap Pug-Face."

When the two bickering girls reached Professor Snape's office and entered, they saw something that scared the wits and any comment that was about to be made out of their mind. When they entered they saw a smiling Snape.

"Ah, just the girls I've been looking for," he chuckled.

Seeing their shocked faces he sobered up once again, returning to his usual monotone voice. "No need to look so scared."

"Sorry Professor, but a detention that makes you smile… has that effect," Ash told him truthfully and Snape raised an eyebrow at her.

"Really? Well, I guess one would not really want to do what I have in mind for you two," he agreed and held back a snicker by slightly shaking his head.

"Now, you two will be serving detention with me in this room for the next three days – there aren't any classes or something similar on Friday. Therefore, no detention on Friday either. For the next three days you two will be standing outside of my office door at stroke five and will be serving your detention until you competed the task that I have in mind for you, is that understood?"

Pansy nodded, while Ash bit her lip, "but Professor, I have Quidditch training and extra-curricular courses," she argued.

"Well, it's your own fault then for getting yourself into trouble, isn't it?" he snapped at her.

With a guilty face she looked down at the floor, "yes, sir."

Snape eyed the Beater of the Slytherin team. He always did like this girl. She was one of –if not the – best students he ever had and she was part of his houses Quidditch team. Also, she plays the part of the rueful student quite well, he thought.

"Alright, you can forget about your little extra-curricular courses, but your excused for the Quidditch practices," he sighed. "But," he added, "I want you to come here straight away when your training ends. Do you hear me?"

Ash's eyes lit up as she looked at him and nodded enthusiastically. "Yes sir!" she cheered, while Pansy's jaw dropped about ten feet.

"But sir!" she tried to reason, but Snape cut her off with a glare.

"Now, as for your detention task, its sitting over there," he said sitting back down at his desk and nodded towards a gigantic pile of paper on one of the back and tables that was threatening to fall down any second now. "They are the end of semester tests. You will be correcting and grading them," he told them and turned to his own pile of paper, she guessed the seventh year papers.

Slowly Ash turned to the piles and started walking towards them, Pansy right next to her. "Oh, and before I forget, Miss. Weasley you will start with sixth grade, while Miss. Parkinson will be in charge of the first year papers."

"Why does she get to do the sixth years?" Pansy said angrily, she was about to take the sixth year papers.

"Because you're too stupid," Ash chimed while she took her designated papers.

"Who asked you?" Pansy glared and turned back to the teacher, who had been watching them out of the corner of his eyes.

"She's correct, Miss Parkinson," Snape answered her and turned back to his papers. Pansy's mouth was hanging wide open, before she snatched her pile of papers and raced to a seat.

Snickering Ash walked to her own table and started correcting the papers.

1. What do you need to do a Polyjuice Potion?
lacewing flies, 2 leeches, 10 scruples of fluxweed, 3 drachms of pulverised Sal Ammoniac, Pulverised blades of knotgrass, a pinch of powdered horn of a Bicorn, Salpeter, Mercury and Mars, dried skin of a Boomslang, Extract of person you what to transform to.

Ash started at the answer with a scowl. Then she checked how many points where possible. 15… Ash gave the person 5. He had forgotten one fatal ingredient – the Antimony – and had forgotten a few important details in the named ingredients or had failed to say the right amount of ingredients needed.

2. Name two characteristics of Amortentia.
1. They smell differently to everyone
2. The color

Ash stared at the answer. This person didn't want full marks do they? She asked herself as she gave the student 2 out of 4 points.

It went on like this. Every time she read the answers of her peers, she started to understand her Professors more and more. Finally she understood why they always were in a bad mood. Even she was starting to get in a bad mood, and it wasn't her that tried to teach these people about Potions.

After two hours, Ash finally finished correcting the papers of the sixth years. Thinking back, she only gave full marks at 10 questions or so, and the papers alone had 30 questions added that to the 40 students in the sixth year… she didn't grade easy.

But hey! It's Snape's class, she was allowed to.

Sighing, she let her head fall onto the desk. "I don't ever want to become a teacher!" she cried, earning a chuckle from the Professor.

"You finished?" he asked, raising and eyebrow.

"Yes," she answered and took her head of the papers, as Snape levitated one of the tests over to look at it.

Quietly he scanned over the paper. "Good job, Miss. Weasley." he said. "Miss. Parkinson, how far are you?"

"I'm halfway done," she said proudly. Silently Snape levitated one of her own corrected papers over to him and scanned through them as well.

However, unlike his expression as he read through Ash's grading he started to look angry. "Miss Parkinson! Did I really let you pass the O.W.L.S? How can you be so stupid! You can't even answer first year questions!" he screamed and smashed the paper into the desk.

Pansy looked at him scared.

Ash saw how he tried to calm himself by clutching the table, before he ripped a piece of paper and started to scribble something on it angrily.

"From now on you will serve your detentions with Filch. Go to him and help him clean whatever he is cleaning right now!" he fumed and threw the note he scribbled at her.

Pansy fetched the note and ran out of the classroom, crying.

Ash stared after her quietly.

"Quit the act, Weasley. I know you want to laugh at her," he said, slowly calming down.

Ash smiled at him. "Is it really that bad?"

"You'll see soon enough, you'll be re-correcting her stuff." he said and allowed Ash to levitate the paper over to her own desk, together with the pile of papers on Pansy's desk.

Slowly she read over what Pansy failed to correct.

1. What is a mixture of ingrediants called?
concoction.

'Correct' Ash thought, then she looked at Pansy's points. 1 of 1 points.

2. Where is moonstone used?
Moonstone is used in various potions, for example the Draught of Peace.

'Wow, a seemingly intelligent student!' Ash thought happily and then saw that Pansy had only given the girl 0 out of 2 points for a correct answer.

Ash shook her head in dismay and changed the points from 0 to 2.

3. What does the elixir of life do?
It lengthens your life. If consumed frequently you are near to immortal.

Again, Pansy gave the student 0 of 3 points. Ash sighed and gave 2 out of 3 points.

And it went on and on and on. When she looked at the pile of papers that still sat on the desk she sighed in defeat. This will be a long night…

When the clock stroked 12 o'clock, Ash was still sitting in front of the papers correcting them. She had finished re-correction and correcting Pansy's pile of papers as well as the second year and was currently in the middle of correction the third years papers.

"How is it going?" Snape asked her when he saw her stifle a small yawn.

"Quite well, I guess. In nearly finished with the third years."

"Alright, then finish them up and you can go for today." Ash nodded with a smile and turned back to the paper in front of her. She had vaguely noticed that a pile of papers had levitated to her professor at one point in time, and guessed that he had had mercy with her and corrected the fourth year papers and the fifth year papers himself.

The groan that came from his desk every now and then confirmed her suspicion.

About an hour later she had finished her task and let herself sit back with an content sigh.

"When does your Quidditch training end tomorrow?"

Ash turned to look at Snape, "At seven."

"Alright, come here as soon as possible after the training." Ash nodded courtly while she stood up and stretched.

"Good night, sir," she said with a small smile.

"Good night, Miss. Weasley," he told her, before she walked out of his classroom.

Tracy woke up when Ash entered her bedroom.

"Hey," she said, not caring if she woke up the others.

"Hey."

"What time is it?"

"Um... I think somewhere around 1.30," Ash told her casually.

"1.30!? Isn't there like a rule that says their only allowed to keep you until 12?"

Ash shrugged with a frown. "No idea."

"What did you do any ways?"

"I corrected the midterm papers."

"What did I get?"

"You don't have potions."

"Ha! You're right!"

Ash rolled her eyes at her friend while she finished changing into her night gown. Then, with a short stop at the bathroom to wash her teeth, she got into Tracy's bed.

"I'm not tired," she told her friend, who scooted over and closed the curtains after Ash, preparing for one of their nightly talks.

Not uttering a word Ash made the curtains sound proof.

"Is Pansy already here?" Ash asked.

"Yeah, she came about two hours ago. True, why didn't you come at the same time? Didn't you have detention together?"

"Well, yes and no. You know Pansy. That girl doesn't have and ounce of intelligence in her. Well, she couldn't even correct first year papers. Hence, when Snape saw her incompetence, he threw her out and made her go work with Filch," Ash laughed.

"Wow, Snape really thought he could make her correct things?"

Ash nodded with raised eyebrows and a smirk.

"But enough of the detention! What did I miss?"

"Nothing really. We're quite boring when you're not around." Tracy sighed. "We just kind off sat there and talked about our Christmas plans."

"Oh! What are you doing for Christmas?"

Tracy frowned at her friend. "I didn't tell you yet?" Ash shook her head no. "Well, I'm going home and then me and my parents are going on a trip to South Africa. Its the first family trip since I started attending Hogwarts! I'm so excited... just me and my parents! Hey, did you know that they have summer when we have winter! Hence, I'll come back crispy brown" Tracy grinned and laughed.

"Wow, that sounds awesome! I'm jealous!" Ash sighed.

Tracy laughed, "You should be!"

"What are Blaise and Draco doing?"

"Um, Blaise was going home, but I don't think he had any specific plans yet. As for Draco... he's going home as well. His parents had something important to tell him or something like that."

"What about Crabbe and Goyle?"

"Crabbe and Goyle? As far as I know they're going home as well." Tracy shrugged. "What are you doing?"

"Well, I don't really have anywhere to go, so I was planning on staying here."

"Here? As in Hogwarts?"

"Yeah."

"All alone?"

"Well I wouldn't really be alone... Ron, Ginny, Harry and Hermione are staying here as well. I guess I'd be hanging out with them."

"But you'd be all alone in Slytherin!" she cried.

Ash giggled, "I'm sure someone from Slytherin will be staying here."

Tracy pressed her lips together, signalising her displeasure. "No, no, no. Not good. You will not be stuck here over the Winter holidays!" she declared and got out of her bed. "Come," she said and took Ash's hand.

"Where are we going?"

"Where having a crisis here! We're going to discuss this with the boys."

Ash frowned at Tracy. "Tracy, really it's no problem for me to stay here. I like it here."

"Not an option," she declared and pulled Ash out of the bed, when she didn't make any move to get out herself.

Briskly Tracy raced out of the door, pulling Ash after her, and down the hallway. In the boys hallway she silenced the screaming portrays and raced to the boys door. Without a warning she threw it open and walked up to Blaise's bed first.

Pulling away the curtains, she revealed an contently sleeping Blaise. Ash would not have been able to wake him, he looked so happy in his sleep, but Tracy mercilessly spurted ice cold water out of her wand and onto his face.

Shocked his upper body flew upwards and he looked around frantically - not seeing the two girls standing right in front of him. "Wha- What?" he asked confused as he finally found a glaring Tracy and an guilty looking Ash next to his bed.

"We have a crisis. Wake up." Tracy told him before storming over to Draco and waking him in the same brutal way.

"I'm sorry," Ash whispered to Blaise as he yawned and wiped away the water from his face. Silently he shook his head and got off of his bed. Slowly he and Ash walked up to Draco's bed, where a half asleep Draco - with brutal bed hair - yawned at them in greeting.

"Didn't you sleep well?" Ash asked as she let her fingers softly run through his hair. He smiled up at her.

"Why do you ask?"

"You look as if you've been rolling around a lot."

"No, I actually slept quite well." he told her with an tired smile. She didn't quite believe him, but didn't comment any further. He'd tell her if he wanted to.

Quietly she sat down on his bed, cuddling into his arms. The other two also sat down and pulled the curtains shut and sound proof.

"So, why did you wake us? Whatever it is, couldn't it have waited until tomorrow?" Blaise asked.

Ash nodded, "I tried reasoning with her, but no chance."

"It's terrible! Ash doesn't have any holiday plans! She was actually thinking about staying here!" Tracy gasped, making the boys look at her with raised eyebrows.

"That's why you woke us up? At 3 o'clock in the morning?"

"2.37," Ash corrected her boyfriend with a cheeky grin. The correction was received with an tired roll of the eyes.

"Whatever."

"It's horrible! We can't leave her here all alone."

"I wouldn't be alone! My family is here!"

"Not good enough." Tracy dismissed that argument.

"My family isn't good enough?"

"Nope, not good enough a reason to actually spend it here in Hogwarts. Nobody spends their holidays in Hogwarts."

"My family does nearly every year."

"We've already had that. You will not be the only Slytherin that'll be stick in Hogwarts with the teachers and a couple of Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. No, no, I won't allow it."

Ash sighed and looked at Draco for help.

"I agree with her," he said "You shouldn't have to spend your time here alone."

With wide pleading eyes Ash turned to Blaise. Unlike the other two, he already knew her whole story and looked at her with concerned eyes. "I think it would be better not to leave her here alone either."

With her last hope gone, Ash let her head hang low and just listened to the three of them discussing what to do with her.

"Draco, how about you take her with you? She's your girlfriend after all," Tracy said, but Draco shook his head in despair. "I would love too and had the same idea before tonight, but they said that it was essential for me to come alone. I have no idea what they want. Although they did say that they would like to invite her over to dinner one evening." he said, squeezing his girlfriend a bit tighter. "That means that you can't stay here anyway," he whispered into her ear.

"Meet your parents?" Ash said, with a light frown on her forehead. "Are we already at that stage?"

Draco chuckled and nodded into her neck.

"OK..." she said, getting a couple of goosebumps. Meeting the parents... somehow that thought scared her a bit.

"But she can't stay the whole time?"

"Sadly not, although I'd love to have her there." Ash looked up to him with a smile and placed a small kiss on his lips.

"No problem."

"How about you Tracy, can't you take her?"

Tracy shook her head. "I'll try asking my parents..."

"No way, Tracy!" Ash said determined. "You were looking forward to just spend time with your parents! I will not ruin that for you!"

"You wouldn't be ruining it!" she argued, but Ash just raised her eyebrow at her.

"Whatever, I'm not going with you."

Tracy frowned, "that means, there's only one option left." Six eyes turned to Blaise.

"Sure, why not. I'll write my mother tomorrow that I'll be bringing a friend over for the holidays."

Ash looked at Blaise. "Are you sure that's not a problem?"

Blaise nodded with a small smile. "Definitely. We don't have any plans and if Draco will be busy with his parents, I wouldn't have anything to do anyway. Hence, you'd actually be doing me a favour!"

Ash smiled at Blaise. "Thank you."

"Your welcome."