A/ N: Thank you for the reviews, everyone! They always make my day. For this chapter, I decided I wanted to focus on some other points of view that haven't had a lot of attention yet. This time, I chose Alicia. Mostly because I love her, but also because I wanted to include just a bit more of Michael. –Grins- Enjoy! And as always, read & review!

"Aliciaaaaaaaaaaa!"

Alicia Spinnet could hear Michael Bell barreling loudly down the hall, swatting at the walls with the oak cane he was supposed to be using to walk. Alicia felt the tug of a half smile play at the corner of her lips as he shouted her name again.

"Alicia Anne! Where are you?? I need a sponge bath!"

Michael Bell had healed from his injuries quite a bit sooner than anyone had predicted, and although with a referral to the hospital administrators Alicia probably could have secured him an early release, she had chosen to keep him the customary week's time. This meant that he was usually bored and came to her for entertainment, but Alicia didn't mind so much. She might go as far as to say she rather enjoyed the tall, lanky seeker's company.

"So here you are," announced his entrance. He stood in the doorway of the supply closet where she was stamping the release papers of a dozen or so patients, arm resting on the door frame, head cocked to the side. "How's it going, Stampy?"

Alicia blushed and hid her face in the stack of papers as Michael lazily hopped up on one of the nearby counters. "I'm not giving you a sponge bath, Michael," she said, trying to sound stern.

"Have to," he replied, lowering the stack of papers from her face. "I'm your patient."

"You know you're perfectly able to shower yourself," she replied seriously. "Why aren't you lying down? You're supposed to be resting."

He ignored this. "You've got ink on your nose," he said casually.

"I do??" Alicia gasped, stamp in hand flying up to her face.

Michael laughed, loose chestnut brown curls bouncing. "Well, now you do. Let me get it."

He reached out his thumb and wiped the ink from the side of her nose.

"You look cute in ink, Stampy," he grinned.

Alicia blushed again. "You're not supposed to flirt with your nurse, Michael," she reminded him for the thousandth time, though not being able to repress a smile.

"Sure I am," he cheerfully retorted. "You're my baby sister's best friend. I'm supposed to pick on you when you're young, and date you once you've matured."

"Maybe I want to wait until you've matured, then."

"Oh, ho! That cuts to the heart, Alicia!"

She smirked and set down her clipboard. "So are you going back to quidditch as soon as you're out of here?" she asked, backing up to lean against the counter he was sitting on.

"Sure am," he replied, scooting over to allow her room. "Kenmare is hopeless rubbish without me."

Alicia rolled her eyes. "If you were so great," she drawled, "Why did Charlie Weasley play seeker for Gryffindor when you two were at school?"

"Because Charlie was rubbish at everything but seeker," Michael replied easily. "So I switched to chaser. Taught Kates everything she knows. She could play on the team too, she's good enough. But she wouldn't have any of it. Always wanted to write."

"She's good at it," Alicia pointed out.

"Oh, sure, she's damn good. But you can always waste your life away with ink and parchment after you've achieved international fame, you know?"

Alicia laughed. "I don't know if you're internationally famous," she pointed out.

He shook his head. "Why do you always remind me of my defects, Alicia? I'll fall back into regression because of you."

She smiled, and looked away from his friendly brown eyes.

"C'mon, 'Leesh," he begged, turning to face her. "One more date. I promise I'll be a gentleman. As soon as I get out of here, you, me, a couple of brooms…we could fly down to the coast for a day. What do you say?"

"No, Michael," she answered firmly. "I can't date my patients! The administration would fire me in a second."

"So we'll wait 'til after I'm out," he said reasonably. "And I'll ask you as soon as you stamp my release papers. There can't be anything wrong with that."

Alicia didn't say anything, just turned away so he wouldn't see the smile that was threatening to spread across her face.

"I knooow you're keeping me in here longer than you could," he whispered, teasing as he leaned down behind her. "And I think I know why, too."

She smirked and blushed before whirling around and saying. "I need to get back to work. And you need to get to bad. Katie's coming to visit on her lunch break, and I know she'll be pissed at both of us if you aren't in bed resting."

Michael yelped. "My baby sister! The bloody terror!" And he grabbed his cane and flew out the door.

Alicia just laughed and shook her head as she grabbed her clipboard and headed out into the hall to check up on Artemis. Michael Bell. He seemed to make her laugh on days she needed it the most. Just that morning she had woken up with tears on her pillow, awaking from a memory of Hogwarts that seemed to have taken place forever ago…

XxX

Alicia Anne Spinnet, four foot eight inches and seventy five pounds, stood knock-kneed and terrified with eyes as big as saucers at the line before her leading to the future-holding Sorting Hat, the one object that would determine her destiny for the rest of her seven years here. She wasn't so nervous at the beginning, except that as the alphabet faded there were fewer and fewer of her peers and the eyes of the older students had less to focus on.

Alicia hated attention. She was eleven years old and had lived her life thus far under the radar. She had managed to secure a compartment on the Hogwarts Express to herself, and had yet to speak to anyone. So far, so good. Except that as one of the last first-years, and one whose banana-peel colored blonde hair was glowing like a beacon in the candle light, and further as a Muggle-Born seeing magic—really—for the first time, she felt as conspicuous as if she hadn't been the smallest first-year in the entire group.

Another boy was sorted. Alicia swallowed. There were only four of them left, now. Herself, another girl with straight black hair, and two identical boys with bright red hair. Alicia felt like she was going to faint.

The other girl was called forward, and Alicia was left with the two boys. She attempted to gain her balance, but instead nearly fell to the ground before one of the boys swooped in and grabbed her by the elbow.

"Hi," he grinned, face covered in freckles. "My name's Fred Weasley."

"And I'm George Weasley," said his twin brother, instantly at her other side.

"Are you okay?" asked the first.

Alicia nodded, mouth hanging open.

"Do you have a name, maybe?" smirked Fred.

Alicia nodded again.

"Do you want to tell me what it is?"

She recollected herself. "I'm Alicia," she answered. "Alicia Anne Spinnet."

"Well, Alicia Anne Spinnet, it's good to know you. Merlin, the Sorting Hat is taking forever with this lass, isn't it? Me and George will be sorted in a heartbeat. We already know we're Gryffindor, don't we George?"

George nodded fervently.

"Do you know what House you'll be in?" Fred asked.

Alicia shook her head. "No idea…" she answered. "I'm a Muggle-Born."

"That's okay," Fred said reassuringly. "Plenty of Hogwarts kids are. You don't have to know, the Sorting Hat can always tell."

Alicia simply nodded, exceedingly thankful for this reassurance. She noticed George struggling to put something inside his bag.

"We were going to slip a frog down your robes," Fred explained passingly. "But then I noticed you looked like you were going to faint, so I figured we'd better not."

"Actually, I told him not to," George challenged. Fred shot him a look.

"Erm…thanks," Alicia said, not sure how to respond. "Do you two know anyone here yet?"

"Just our brothers…oh and Katie Bell," Fred answered, pointing out a small brunette at the Gryffindor table. "Her mum's friends with our mum."

Alicia nodded, recognizing her from the boat that had taken them across the Black Lake.

"Fred fancies her," George laughed.

"Sod off, will you?" Fred frowned.

The two began to scuffle and Alicia noticed the frog hop out of George's bag. She hurriedly scooped it up and was about to return it to him when she had a better idea.

"Spinnet, Alicia!"

Professor McGonagall called out her name and Alicia's eyes got as big as saucers.

"Well, good luck," Fred said as soon as he and his twin had stopped fighting. "Hope you get Gryffindor! Then we can really be friends. Remember, no fainting, or you won't get put there."

Alicia nodded. "Thanks," she said, reaching out for a hug.

Fred grinned and wrapped his arms around her as she gently placed the frog down the back of her new friend's robes.

"ARRRRRGH!"

XxX

"Mum wants to know if you've been eating your vegetables."

"How can I eat that shit, Kates? It looks like it's already been digested."

Katie laughed. "Yeah, I told her you probably weren't. But I'll cover for you."

"Thanks, sis!"

"Only if you give me back my Cleansweep. You still have it from when you knicked it last summer."

"Oh, c'mon, Kates! You don't even ride anymore!"

"That's not the point, Michael!"

"Ahem?" Alicia cleared her throat as she knocked on the door. She smirked as the two bickering siblings looked up to where she stood in the doorway.

"Sorry," she apologized. "But your grandpa really wants to see you, Katie. Your aunt mentioned you'd be coming today when she was over earlier, and he's been issuing a string of swear words at me all morning demanding to know when you'd be in. And visiting hours close in half an hour…and honestly, I don't know how much longer I can take being verbally abused."

Katie and Michael both laughed. "Okay, can you tell him I'll be up in five minutes, 'Leesh? There's something I want to ask Michael about…"

Alicia nodded, and closed the door. She tucked her clipboard under her arm and climbed the stairs to where Artemis was stationed. Even if she hadn't had the room number memorized, Alicia could have found her way there by the coughing that was constantly coming from Room 312. Artemis had had a cold for about a week now, and the brief outing to the opening of George's shop two nights ago had seemed to worsen it. Still, the head healers had said, it was nothing to worry about and was probably due to a mixture of his being a very old man and a cooler than usual summer fading now into autumn.

But when Alicia entered the room, she gasped. The clipboard echoed against the white-washed walls as it dropped to the floor.

XxX