Wow, I'm seeing people from all around the castle in these reviews! All four houses have come up, and that's wonderful for me; glad I've got a pretty diverse community reading my story XD for those of you who are curious, I am a Slytherin according to Pottermore, and I am finally starting to accept that that is the best thing ever. Now, for your reviews:

ShadowsOnTheMoon: I hadn't even read the username, but by the first sentence I could tell it was you! Yes, my Paily heart was certainly shattered during 4x09, but chin up! Sure, they probably won't be together after they graduate, but I'm pretty sure it'll be season 26 and these girls will still be in high school. Spencer said it herself! "Newsflash. Honey. None of us are graduating." You're a lot like me, a little bit of each house (although my Gryffindor bravery comes and goes as it pleases... and it hardly ever pleases).
Goldenheart11: Boy, your consistent reviewing is making my day! You're hilarious! And I have mixed feelings about Paily. On the one hand, I really miss Maya, especially after torturing myself with Emaya videos a little while ago. But on the other hand, Emily needs to move on and be happy. And since Paige is able to do that for her (and since Lindsey Shaw is, well, Lindsey freakin' Shaw), I'll ship it. Also, there are some CRAZY Paily fans out there. I wanted to please them! And well, I think the light being shined on Lily Potter's imperfections is coming from Emily's competitive side, and therefore negative perception of her. But I agree. As much as I want to believe the Potter kids are perfect, I doubt they are, so I'm not gonna write them like they are. And that joke was
far from terrible. I got it! Thanks again :)
erica: Thanks! And awesome! Right up there with Harry, Ron, and Hermoine :)
Junebug107: Thank you! And no worries. In just a few chapters, you will get your dose of Ezria, and in this chapter Ezra is on Aria's mind for some time ;)
Ava B: I actually haven't been on MNI, but I've been on Pottermore! I'll have to check out MNI now. Good for you for embracing your badger status; Hufflepuff is JK Rowling's favorite house, and there's an entire article on BuzzFeed on how Hufflepuffs are actually the most badass of them all! I have a large amount of respect for Hufflepuffs :) and I absolutely ship the Liars most of all; like, I like all of the ships, but the friendship of the Liars is the one that will overcome anything! And I've actually played Quidditch before: it was for Theater Honor Society, and it was Gryffindor vs. Slytherin (Slytherin ultimately won :D) and it was quite fun! I was a Keeper, which I enjoyed.
PrettyWitchyVamp: YEAH SLYTHERIN BROS FOREVER! Pottermore sorted me into Slytherin, and I've had my doubts because it doesn't seem like me at all/I was intimidated by the BAMF-ness of the house/I see myself as more of a Ravenpuff (that's Ravenclaw/Hufflepuff)... but you're totally right. Slytherin is a combination of ALL of the best traits from each house! We're the most worldly. And thank you for your review! I do in fact remember when Paige did that, but she did redeem herself when she pulled Emily out of the water in 4x02 when she was drowning again. I think Paige was definitely in a bad place when she was bullying Emily, and while that doesn't make up for what she did, I think Paige definitely feels horrible for it and is doing everything in her power to be there for Emily now. Yeah, life is complicated for Lily :/ but at least she has her brothers to be there for her, right? And alright, I guess it's time to make my confession: Alison will not be in this story. I couldn't find a way to fit her in, unfortunately :( I guess you can pretend she's another Moaning Myrtle and is just floating around the school at her leisure. That seems the most logical, right? And oh my gosh you are so right. Spencer's breakdown = a smaller scale metaphor of all the Ezria fans everywhere during 3B. And Spencer and Caleb can be co-anchors for the Ezria Fan Club! Too perfect.
Sgdp1261: Yep, everyone in the episode was batshit crazy... and I LOVED it! And aww, glad I could make you smile :) and dude, you should be MORE than okay with being in Ravenclaw! That means you're super smart/nerdy! I mean, you're on FanFiction, so we're all nerds here, but you're up there with the kings. Embrace it, nerds are in style now. We're too cool for the rest of the human population ;D thanks for the review, and hope you enjoyed Chamber of Secrets! It's my third favorite of the movies next to both the Deathly Hallows :)
LAs: Ahh Hufflepuff is such a great house to be in. I've always felt like a Hufflepuff because I'm really sensitive, but Pottermore didn't really see that side of me... haha. And yeah, A definitely doesn't play around! You'll see what the motivations are, though. You simply need to keep reading! :)
Titanium Wolf: Anytime! And I miss Maya so much :( but I like Paily too! Emily seems to really like Paige, and I think that's what matters. Can't wait to deliver!
GotASecret: Wow, what an appropriate username for this fanbase! Thank you, and no, it doesn't look like Alison is gonna be in this story. Sorry!

You guys are so awesome, that you've gotten me over 50 reviews already, and this is only the 8th chapter. I find that to be QUITE impressive, and it just shows that you're all the best reviewers ever! The best part? How LONG they are! You all apologize for how long they are, but honestly the longer the better. You could write a freakin' NOVEL on my page and I would read every word. So thank you. Thank you so, so much *insert heart that FanFiction will not allow*

Alright, I love this next chapter as well, because we've got more Haleb! Trying my hardest to soak in as much of him as possible before they ship him off to the place where birds die every five seconds from being blinded by the crappy Instagram filter that surrounds the town. So anyway, enjoy, and review/follow/favorite/WHATEVER to let me know you like it!


"God, I hate Muggle Studies!" Hanna whined as she leaned against the wall outside of Professor Jurgis's classroom, as Aria stood by with a few textbooks in her arms, laughing at Hanna.

"Then why did you take it?" she asked, amused, as she had just walked out of her Ghoul Studies class nearby to find Hanna in a repose against the wall. "You took it last year!"

"Because I hated it last year, too!" Hanna explained, as if it were obvious. "But I figured if I took it again, I'd know all of the material, and maybe find a way to enjoy it a little more."

"But..." Aria prompted.

"But that didn't happen," Hanna finally confessed with a sigh.

"So drop it!" Aria suggested, only to earn another long, pitiful sigh from Hanna.

"I can't! I didn't do well in it last year, but I need it to graduate. Wait!" Her eyes lit up as she turned to Aria, suddenly very eager. "Maybe you can tutor me!"

"Tutor?" Aria was surprised. "Aren't you in Spencer territory?"

"Spencer didn't live with muggles for the first 11 years of her life!"

Aria stood back, a little hurt by what Hanna was suggesting. "You think just because my parents are muggles that I know all about the culture in the real world?"

"I think that's exactly what she thinks."

Aria and Hanna froze, turning around to see Scorpius Malfoy walk toward them, a goofy grin plastered on his face, along with Jenna Marshall and Noel Kahn in tow.

"No..." Hanna said defensively. "I was thinking that since she got an O on her O.W.L. last year for it, she could help me raise my grade."

"That class if pointless anyway, Marin," Jenna said, chuckling to herself as she held onto Noel's arm. "It's only purpose is to try to prove to filthy mudbloods like Montgomery over here that they're actually good for something."

"Which they're not," Noel piped in, laughing along. Aria felt her face drain of color as she cowered back against the wall. But Hanna propped herself off of it as she walked toward them.

"She's a better wizard than all three of you put together," Hanna growled, "and at least she has a brain, a soul, and functioning eyes to work with!"

The group gasped at Hanna's comment, and even Aria's eyes widened. She appreciated Hanna defending her, but had she gone a little too far? Jenna put her hand up to her glass eye, as though to make sure Hanna's remark hadn't done anything to damage it. "You'll regret that, Marin."

"Like hell I will," Hanna said with an eyeroll as she grabbed Aria's arm, walking in the opposite direction.


"You okay?" Hanna asked as soon as they were out of earshot of majority of the student body.

Aria nodded her head as she sat down on one of the stone kiosks off to the side. "Yeah, I'm okay," she sniffled.

"Aria, Malfoy's an ass, Jenna's basically a robot, and Noel just does whatever the hell the robot tells him to do," Hanna said bluntly as she sat down on the kiosk right next to Aria. Aria nodded her head, trying to look like she was agreeing with whatever Hanna was trying to convince her of, but what they said still got to her. They had called her a mudblood. She could take whatever else they threw at her, but when someone pulled that word out, it struck straight through to any muggle-born's heart.

The minute she entered Hogwarts when she was just a first year, she made a promise to herself that she wouldn't let her family, her blood, or the environment she grew up in define who she was or how good of a wizard she was. She had worked hard to build up as much knowledge as she could about the wizarding world ever since she found out that she was one, and did everything in her power to make sure she didn't stand out too much. But it was hard when muggle borns were so mistreated at Hogwarts, and she and her brother Mike had their fair share of it.

It also contributed to her biggest fear: people finding out about her and Ezra. If people found out, she knew that it would lead to some messed up stereotype that only "mudbloods" engage in this type of behavior, but she knew deep down that even if she was a pure-blooded wizard, it wouldn't stop her from falling head over heels in love with Ezra Fitz. She knew it was wrong, but that didn't mean that it was wrong because of her genes.

Overall, Aria was just sick and tired of being made fun of all her life for not being a pure-blooded wizard like the rest of her friends, or being looked down upon or patronized by even some of her professors. But Ezra saw right through all of that crap. He was the only person in the entire school, besides her three best friends and their spouses, who didn't focus on who she was on the outside; Ezra loved Aria for her personality, and for everything that she had to offer to the wizarding world, pure-blooded or not. He saw something in Aria that others didn't, and she loved him for it.

"I know," Aria finally said, giving Hanna's hand a loving squeeze. "Thanks for standing up for me, by the way."

"Oh, anytime," Hanna said casually, waving her hand through the air like it was no big deal. "Besides, even Malfoy had it coming! Just payback for what he said to me yesterday!"

At this, Aria let out a giggle. "Just goes to show that you don't fuck with Hanna Marin."

"And don't you know it!" Hanna said loudly, giving Aria a playful nudge on her arm. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool my best friend, you're dead freakin' meat!"

At this, Aria laughed again. The girls shared a few more giggles, before Aria stood up from the kiosk. "Well, I better get going."

"Going where?" Hanna asked curiously. "It's study hall."

"Yeah, but I promised Spencer that I'd go to the library with her, remember?" Aria reminded.

"Oh, right," Hanna said, slightly deflated that Aria had to go so soon. But suddenly she remembered something. "Hey, what did you tell Caleb last night?"

"Umm..." Aria chewed on the inside of her cheek, a bad habit she had for when she was nervous. "I just told him that it was none of his business."

"And he went along with it?" Hanna said incredulously, her eyebrows raising in suspicion.

"Well, not at first, but I got him to," Aria said with a shrug.

Hanna cocked her head sideways, studying Aria. "There's still something you're not telling me."

Aria chewed on the inside of her cheek again, falling back into the bad habit. She knew that Caleb wouldn't forget what happened last night with the fang, and he would definitely ask Hanna about it. But she also knew that Hanna wasn't the best liar, so it'd be best to keep her in the dark so that she didn't have anything to hide.

"I've told you all I know," Aria said with what she thought was a convincing shrug, but Hanna could see that she seemed more than a little stiff. "Look, I've gotta go. Spencer's waiting, and you know how she gets when something's on her mind."

"Yeah, I know," Hanna agreed with a another sigh. Aria gave Hanna's shoulder a squeeze before parting ways with one final goodbye.

Something's up, Hanna thought to herself as Aria approached the far end of the hall, about to walk around the corner and saunter out of sight.

As if on cue, the minute Aria walked out of view, Caleb slid into the seat next to Hanna, sneaking a kiss on her cheek. "Hey, beautiful."

"Oh, hey," Hanna said softly, trying to hide her dismay at Caleb's presence. "How are you?"

"Now that you mention it, confused," he admitted as he as he sat slouched forward a little.

Hanna felt her heart sink as she slouched forward with him. "About...?"

He looked up at her, his caring brown eyes meeting her soft blue ones. "Last night, something happened in the common room."

Oh no, Hanna thought. Dammit, Aria!

"What did she tell you?" Hanna groaned, preparing for the worst.

"Tell me?" Caleb asked, perplexed. "Who?"

Hanna sat up, looking at him suspiciously. "Aria..." she said slowly. "I... I thought you meant that she told you something in the common room last night."

"No..." Caleb said even more slowly. "What would she have told me?"

"You know what? Nevermind," Hanna said, waving her hand through the air in a motion that was meant to metaphorically erase all she had just said. "What were you going to say?"

Caleb eyed her warily, but continued. "Well, I was with Aria, but it wasn't anything she said. It was what happened to her."

Hanna's back suddenly straightened completely, as though 300 volts of electricity were just shot up her spine. "What happened to Aria?"

"We were just sitting by the fire," Caleb explained, "and then the fire exploded, just out of nowhere, and out came this... fang."

A small, fearful squeak escaped Hanna's throat. "Fang?"

"Yeah," he said incredulously. "Do you know anything about it?"

"No," Hanna lied. "No, I don't."

At this, Caleb scoffed, surprising Hanna. "What?"

"You're lying," he said simply.

"What? Caleb, I don't lie," she said harshly, annoyed that he could even consider accusing her of that... even if that was somewhat close to what she was doing. "Why would you think that?"

"You just predicted that Aria and I talked, and now you're going to pretend that you don't know what's going on?"

"I'm not pretending," she said honestly. "I really don't know what's going on!"

"So why'd you think Aria said something to me?"

"I... thought it was something else," she answered, her voice faltering toward the end of the sentence, hoping Caleb wouldn't notice.

He did.

"What did you think it was?" he challenged.

"It's nothing, okay?" she answered, finality clear in her tone as she stood up from the kiosk. "Look, I've gotta go."

"Hanna." He stood up too, meeting her with a gaze that was supposed to be understanding, yet she just saw it as unwelcoming. "I'm here for you, okay? Don't shut me out."

"But whatever's happening doesn't have anything to do with you, Caleb!" she exclaimed.

"But it has to do with your friends, obviously!" he exclaimed back. "When you guys walked out of the hall last night during dinner... did Spencer get a similar fang? Is that why she was so freaked out?"

"No," Hanna lied.

"Hanna," Caleb said intensely, giving her a look that told her not to cross him.

Hanna sighed before nodding her head. Damn, he was smart. He wasn't sorted in Ravenclaw for nothing, that was for sure.

"Hanna," he said softly, reaching out to encase her hands in his. "Try to understand where I'm coming from. If this is happening to your friends, it could easily happen to you!"

"Are you suggesting I should stay away from my friends?" Hanna said testily.

Caleb was taken aback by this. "I'm pretty sure that's not what I said," he said rationally. "I'm just saying that you should tell me what's going on so that I can keep you safe."

"You don't need to keep me safe!" she said, throwing her arms up in the air, an unsuccessful attempt at being breezy. "It was probably just a stupid prank, okay? People love pulling those at the beginning of the year! Hello? The Weasleys?"

"The Weasleys are in a completely different house, Hanna!" Caleb said exasperatedly.

"So? Their uncle is, like, a champion prankster! He could probably get someone to sit on a whoopie cushion from 100 miles away, and chances are that talent passed on!"

"I'm telling you, this was no childish prank," Caleb said quietly, yet firmly. "First of all, it came out of the fireplace. Unless someone else in the school has found a way to rig the Floo Network, which I know they haven't unless they've come to me - "

"Then how the hell could it have happened, Caleb?" Hanna challenged.

"I don't know!" he answered honestly. "But whoever did it, they seem pretty serious. Aria looked pretty freaked."

"Caleb, she's Aria," Hanna said bluntly. "The girl weighs about 90 pounds and nearly passed out when we had to perform Unforgivable curses on spiders last year."

"Hanna, c'mon."

"I promise you, everything that I know, you know," Hanna said as sincerely as possible, and technically she was telling the truth. She truly didn't know what was going on, and she was giving up to Caleb everything she knew in the most optimistic way possible. Caleb still looked unconvinced, so Hanna tilted her head upward to give him a gentle kiss.

"You know I don't keep secrets from you," she whispered against his lips, figuring that if she couldn't be convincing, she could at least be sexy, and hope that passed off as convincing.

"Yeah, I know," he mumbled reluctantly against hers. She pulled back, then reached up to tuck his long brown hair behind his ear. "Don't get angry, okay? It's not a good look on you."

"Okay," he mumbled defeatedly, leaning in as a request for one more kiss. Hanna accepted, confident that she had won this battle, but then quickly pulled back, delivering a quick "goodbye" as she walked down the corridor, searching for a classroom to pretend to study in for the rest of study hall, as Caleb stared after her, still desperate for some answers, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.


Alright, I think this is an appropriate time to tell you guys: I'm leaving to go out of town presumably on Sunday, so my frequent updates are gonna be on a temporary halt. I won't be gone for TOO long, though! Just a few days, I believe. But it would be so cool if I could go out with a bang, so if you guys could do whatever you can to spread the word about this story, I would really, really appreciate it! You guys have been terrific so far, and I'm so grateful :) don't forget to review!