Still crazy…Maybe by Friday I'll return to a little normal writing schedule. I'll be writing in my free time. I still have another two weeks before I leave and switch computers. I'm hoping to get out a lot more chapters before then because I don't know what my college schedule will be like…or my updates.

Thanks for the reviews, Madmad237 (yes, I do…summer does that to me) , Sarah Liz B, LizziePixie-Aiko, weasleytwinslover87, marycaity, and kankananime123 (HI)! :D

A nice and long chapter, and a little backing story about one of my favorite characters…though for some of you, it's stuff you already know. ;]

Review if you're transferring to Pigfarts next year…review anyway, even if you don't get that reference. :P

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANY OF THIS, EXCEPT FOR ANY CHARACTERS YOU DON'T RECOGNIZE. JK ROWLING IS JESUS!

CHAPTER 49

September.

There was a flurry of chatter and the Potter house was in chaos.

"We're going to be late." said Sarah.

"No, we're not!" replied James

"Yes, we are you sod!" hissed Marlene

"Oh shut it, Marlene!"

"Hey! Don't tell my girlfriend to shut it." chimed in Remus

"Sorry Moony!" said James, Marlene stuck her tongue out at him.

"Marlene! Have you seen my step shoes?" Audrey called down the hallway.

"I put them in my trunk, you left them in my room yesterday…Do you have my spandex shorts?" She called back.

"Yup! In my trunk. I'll give them to you when we unpack at school."

"Excellent."

James and Sirius exchanged a look and snorted.

"What weirdos." said Sirius. "...Hey, do you have my black Quidditch shirt and my stink pellets?"

"Packed it. And you have my pants and dungbombs?" asked James.

"Yup." Sirius grinned, he was about to say something when he heard a snort come from the opposite end of the hallway.

"What?" Sirius asked, looking at Audrey and Marlene who were carrying Marlene's trunk down the stairs.

"And you think we're the weirdos?" Audrey raised an eyebrow.

"Russia!" Sirius scolded. "Just because you're special doesn't mean you can eavesdrop!"

"I can't help it if my hearing is really sensitive, Sirius." Audrey replied, a small smirk playing on her face.

She always knew how to toy with my heart, whether she meant to or not.

After eating a quick breakfast, they disapparated with Mr. and Mrs. Potter to a small wooded area near Kings Cross station. There, Remus met his parents, Lily met her parents, Sarah met hers, and Marlene met hers.

"Your dad's not coming?" Came a whisper in Audrey's ear. Audrey shook her head.

"He's got a job doing some building for a vampire colony in Italy this week, he feels awful. I went home last night via floo to say goodbye." said Audrey, giving small smile. "I'll see them over the holidays."

It wasn't actually that my father was not with me at the station which made me sad, it was my grandfather. He had come every year I had school to see me off with my father, part of the reason I believe that my father took that job this year was due to that as well. It would be too painful for the both of us.

"If it helps any bit, my parents only come to see my brother off." Sirius said quietly, squeezing Audrey's arm for a moment.

"That's awful. I'm so sorry." She frowned, looking at him. He gave a small grin and replied.

"It's fine, Henry and Elly are like my parents anyway."

"Well, I'd hope so. You practically live with us." chimed in Henry from behind them, Audrey laughed.

After everyone said their good byes and got situated on the train, Lily and Audrey broke off from the boys, as per tradition, and went to find Severus. They ignored whines from Sirius and James that said "Do you have to go?" and "Why?"

As usual, Severus always found and reserved an empty compartment for the three of them. They always spent the first half of the train ride together. Audrey ran into the compartment first, nearly barreling Severus over with a hug.

"I missed you." She grinned.

"Oh I know." Severus smirked. "I see Lily all summer and I don't see you. What a crime."

Lily snorted. "Sev, did she tell you what she's been doing all summer?"

"He knows everything, Lily." Audrey replied softly, judging by the deep purple color that her eyes went she didn't seem to want to talk about it anymore.

"You look like you've been sleeping." Severus observed, staring at her with his head slightly cocked. "Which is surprising…seeing as where you were."

"The door has a silencing charm, quite peaceful." Audrey replied, she didn't dare bring up the thing with Sirius. Severus was her best friend, and Sirius was one of his mortal enemies.

Lily seemed to give Audrey a look that told it all. She knew Audrey wasn't going to mention the Sirius thing, especially now that Audrey had mixed feelings. She still loved Karl, but Sirius was using a battering ram for the last five years to try and charge into Audrey's heart. And the walls were breaking, Lily could see it.

They spent the train ride laughing and catching up as they always did. Few people around Hogwarts thought that Severus Snape was capable of laughing, or smiling, but the few who did were sitting with him in that very compartment.

Their laughter was stopped by the door opening, in walked a familiar face, black hair, and familiar blue grey eyes. The only difference was the Slytherin robes.

"I wondered who was in this compartment." Regulus mused, looking at the three of them. "I'm alone next door, can I join?"

Severus scooted over for his house mate. Lily and Audrey exchanged a glance.

I had very few encounters with Regulus Black, he was harmless, yet he always chilled me to the bone. Perhaps it was due to his uncanny resemblance to his older brother.

That day, he was studying me quite a bit…and I wasn't comfortable at all.

After a few moments of chatter, Lily spoke Audrey's thoughts exactly.

"Regulus, might I ask why you're staring at Audrey?"

"You look different, Dalio." Regulus drawled, a smirk playing on his lips.

I thought I was going to be sick.

Lily checked her watch. "We're late, we've got to head back to the other compartment. Or Marly will chop our heads off."

Severus laughed at this. "Typical Marlene. Go, I'll see you two in the library."

"Bye Sev!" Audrey called, as soon as Lily closed their compartment door the two sprinted down the hallway.

"That was so creepy." Lily shivered. "I like Sirius a lot better than him, and that's saying something."

"I…I don't even know." Audrey shook her head, grateful as they made their way back into the Gryffindor compartment.

"Well it's about time!" said James.

"We thought Snivellus killed you." said Peter. Lily shot Peter a dark look, which he reacted with. "Relax, it's a joke."

"Not really." mumbled Sirius.

"Audrey, are you alright?" asked Remus.

"Yes, I'm fine." Audrey replied quietly, sitting next to Marlene, who said in unison with Remus.

"You're lying."

"I am not." Audrey shot back, Marlene gave her a skeptical look. After a few seconds, Audrey spoke again, cracking.

"Fine. Marly, Sarah, Lily…trip to the loo?"

The boys all groaned in frustration.

"What is it with you girls going in pairs?" Sirius asked.

"Honestly! It's annoying. Girls can't do anything by themselves. I mean...why?" James shook his head.

"Because." said Audrey.
"You could fall in." Sarah said next.
"Or get jumped." Lily chimed in.
"Or get raped." said Marlene, shooting Sirius a look.

Sirius was stunned. "I have never raped anyone, Marly. And I've never been in the girl's loo-"

The other three boys shot him a look.

"I've been in Myrtle's but that doesn't count, it's out of order!" Sirius protested, the boys laughed. They'd all been in Myrtle's.

The girls laughed and exited, heading for the lavatories. The train's bathrooms were small but affective for a quick chat.

The rest of the month flew by as quick as the leaves shed from the trees, a year prior I was not used to seeing so many faces in Hogwarts. Familiar and unfamiliar. This year, it was back to the way it was before…yet it felt more empty and barren then ever before.

It was an cold night and Audrey was making her way down the hallway into the West Wing, Hisoka had sent her an owl fifteen minutes earlier telling her to come as soon as possible. She wasn't sure what was going on, but her stomach was knotting up.

She knocked on the familiar door, and it opened right away. But Hisoka hadn't opened it, a man with brown hair and blue eyes did. He wore a suit vest, slacks and a robe.

"Um…Hello." Audrey said, not sure what to make of the stranger. He couldn't have been human, his clothing was wizard wear in the 1800s.

"You must be Audrey." He said, letting her in. "My name is Edgar, I'm a friend of Hisoka's."

"I figured." Audrey replied, looking around the room. It had changed again. "I don't think Hisoka would let a man into her quarters unless he was a good friend."

He laughed. "I suppose you're right. We've been friends for many, many, many, years."

"Were you friends before or after the change?" Audrey asked, still looking around.

"After. She's older than I am…technically." Edgar winked, Audrey grinned.

"So where is she?"

"She's in the bath, you know how she is, she takes an eternity to bathe and get ready." Edgar chirped.

"I can't argue with that." Audrey replied shaking her head. "Might I ask how you know each other?"

Edgar smiled, flourished his wand and a large object came moving towards him from across the room. It was a black cello case.

"Ah." Audrey grinned. Edgar nodded.

Finally, Hisoka had come out of the bath. She wore a plain blue cotton robe and was drying her long, long, hair with her wand.

"Ah, Ayla-san. I see you've met Edgar." Hisoka beamed.

"Oh…well, I called her Audrey. Whoops." He grinned, Hisoka giggled.

"Edgar, that's hardly a way to get someone ready for their debut." Hisoka replied. "How can she react to being called Ayla by patrons if she isn't used to responding to it?"

"I suppose that's true." Edgar replied, rocking on the balls of his feet.

"If you don't mind me asking." Audrey bowed to her mentor quickly. "Why have you called me so late in the evening?"

Hisoka smiled. "I have the date for your debut."

"Oh?" Audrey replied innocently, raising an eyebrow.

"Oooh, she's good." Edgar observed, looking from mentor to protégée.

"I know, Edgar." Hisoka beamed. "I visited an old friend in Osaka last night."

Audrey raised an eyebrow at her mentor. "That's where you were? I thought you were with the Headmaster."

Hisoka shook her head. "I visited my old fortune teller, she's about two hundred fifty now…anyway, I went to enquire about favorable days for your first performance."

"And?" Audrey asked, waiting.

"The seventh day of November." Hisoka beamed.

I felt my heart freeze up in my chest.

"You can't just say November 7th, like everyone else, can you?" Edgar mused, Hisoka smiled.

I hardly thought it would be ideal to make a debut on my late grandmother's birthday. I had too many conflicting emotions about to erupt inside of me at the moment Hisoka spoke of the date.

She may have jumped in front of me, but it was my fault that she was dead.

Audrey excused herself from her mentor and Edgar, making up a quick excuse that she had to finish her Transfiguration homework. She ran down the hallway, straight towards an open window and jumped from it, summoning a rock in midair.

She was allowed to fly around the Hogwarts grounds, as long as it was the evening. It was only the end of September and it was already becoming cold.

"Nice night, isn't it?" said a voice that made Audrey nearly fall off of the rock in surprise.

Back in the castle, in Hisoka's quarters, Edgar was pacing while Hisoka kneeled on the floor, sipping a cup of tea.

"Edgar-san, your tea is getting cold."

"I know, dear. I'll warm it up when I'm ready." Edgar waved her off. "She's rather advanced, far more so than I thought. However, it felt to me that she didn't seem thrilled about her debut. She did well to conceal it, but I saw it in the eyes."

Hisoka nodded. "She's half banshee, and a quarter veela. I knew she wouldn't need much training, little things here and there but nothing more. I'm surprised I didn't notice...but Masuyo did foresee that she would be upset. A birthday of a dead relative."

"Well, that would put anyone in a bad mood." He replied, deciding to change the subject. "And why did you call me now?"

"My time is running thin…if you know what I mean." Hisoka winked at her fellow vampire. "I'm supposed to be elderly and keel over any day, remember?"

"Yes, my dear. I'm aware, but when exactly were you planning on 'dying'?" Edgar made quotations with her hands.

"I'd say about a year from now, and then I will hand Audrey over to you. She should be well established by then with some clients."

"Where will you go when you die?"

"I plan on moving back to Osaka for a few years, back to my first apartment. My danna has been writing me non-stop about coming back…"

"Atsuo?" Edgar interrupted. Hisoka nodded and continued.

"Yes, he says he misses me terribly, though I keep telling him I must establish my protégée first before I take a break."

"I wonder how Albus will feel about you leaving." Edgar mumbled, Hisoka shot him a look.

"I cannot help it, Edgar. You know that." She was annoyed and had a slight sense of fear in her voice.

Edgar nodded.

Back outside, Audrey regained her balance on the rock and glared at Sirius.

"Really?"

"I'm sorry!" Sirius laughed, holding his hands up in surrender and balancing on his broomstick. "I thought you heard me…you and your superpowers and whatnot."

"I did…" Audrey replied distractedly. "I'm just a bit preoccupied at the moment."

"What about?" asked Sirius, dismounting his broom and climbing onto the rock with her. Audrey was surprised.

It was a rather bold move.

"It's nothing…don't worry about it, Sirius." Audrey replied, staring off into the distance.

"Russia, I'm already on your rock." Sirius replied pointedly. Audrey's eyes went yellow and she cocked her head slightly.

"Would you like to be shoved off?"

"No, Russia." Sirius chuckled. Audrey's eyes returned to normal. She sighed and sat down, her feet hanging off the edge. Sirius decided to join her. After a few moments of silence, she spoke again.

"Hisoka's set a date for my debut…"

"That's wonderful." Sirius said. "I don't understand why-"

"Please, Sirius. Let me finish."

Sirius clamped his mouth shut.

"I am more than thrilled that I'm going to be making my debut, but Hisoka summoned me to her quarters an hour ago after being gone for a day." Audrey flicked her fingers for a moment, sending tiny pebbles flying off the rock. "She said she went to see her fortune teller back home-"

Sirius snorted, he hated divination, and fortune tellers. Audrey raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry, sorry…continue."

"and basically, my debut is November 7th." Audrey finished, staring at the ground far below.

Sirius cocked his head. "Well…seven is a lucky number."

Audrey nodded. "It is…"

"Why are you not so happy about it then?"

"It's my grandmother's birthday." Audrey said, letting a tear fall. She turned her head away from him for a moment and wiped it away quickly.

Nothing escapes me.

Sirius wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into him. "I'm sorry, Audrey." He murmured into her hair.

"Thanks, Sirius…" Audrey gave him a squeeze back.

"She'd be so proud." Sirius said consolingly. He didn't know Audrey's grandmother at all, but he figured it'd be a good thing to say. What else do you say to someone after all of that?

"I hope so, Sirius…I really do." Audrey replied, staring out at the lake.