Two chapters in one day! Score.

Hope you enjoyed the first chapter, here's the second. There's not much James/Eloise action, but there will be in the next chapter. Promise.

"Ugh. Why couldn't I have been born with straight hair?" I moan, staring at my reflection in the mirror. My dark brown, incredibly curly hair has escaped its usual ponytail yet again, and I'm just about ready to shave all of it off and be bald for the rest of my life.

Even if I am obsessed with Quidditch, I'm still a girl. I do care about my looks (sometimes I care a bit too much, I must admit) and I even wear mascara on a regular basis.

But right now, nothing I can do with makeup will make me look any nicer.

I didn't tan at all over the summer, and my numerous freckles stand out against my pale skin. My green eyes have dark circles underneath them from lack of sleep, and I've got a brand-new spot on my forehead. But worst of all are my messy, shoulder-length curls. They honestly look like a rat slept in them.

And I have to be at King's Cross Station in an hour.

I grab a tube of concealer and dab some under my eyes, hoping to cover up the dark circles. After I look less like a zombie, I pull on a burgundy jumper and a pair of jeans.

"Eloise! We're leaving in five minutes!" my mum yells up the stairs. "Are you almost ready? Ricky's been ready for ages!"

"I'll be just a mo'!" I yell back, frantically running a brush through my unruly hair. I yank my high tops onto my feet and rush down the stairs. There is no way I'm going to be late for my last first day of school. Being a Seventh Year is such a weird feeling.

Shoving my nostalgia aside, I grab my cat, Winifred, and put her into the pet carrier. She stares at me reproachfully, and I sigh. "Sorry, Winnie. You'll have to deal with it if you're coming to Hogwarts with me."

"Oi! Elouise!" Ricky calls from the front door. "Stop talking to the cat and get your arse out here!"

I snort as I grab my rucksack and pet carrier. "Don't swear, Ricky. You don't sound cool." I tell my little brother as I close the door behind me.

Ricky just rolls his eyes. "C'mon, Mum and Dad are waiting."

Dad, who has taken the day off from coaching to see us off, decides that he'd rather drive to the Station than Apparate all of us at once, and it gives him the perfect opportunity to lecture Ricky and me on Quidditch. Not that I mind.

"Eloise, you need to perfect your Wronski Feint if you want to win the Quidditch Cup this year." Dad says, slapping the steering wheel for emphasis. "It's looking good, but it's not good enough, and I'm afraid you might get hurt."

I nod. "Okay."

"And Ricky, when the other team's Seeker has seen the Snitch, beat a Bludger at them. Highly distracting and almost always effective." Mum adds, turning in her seat to smile at us. "I'm going to miss you kids so much!"

"You can come see us at Quidditch games." Ricky says.

"What he's trying to say is 'I'll miss you too, Mum'. He's just too macho to say it." I tease.

"Can it, Eloise." Ricky says, bumping me with his shoulder.

"Hush, both of you." Dad says, eyes still on the road. "We're almost there."

We sit in silence until we arrive at King's Cross Sation, and Mum breaks the silence by saying tearfully, "Promise you'll write, darlings. I'll get Jared and Cy to write you, even if they are busy with Quidditch."

"Promise, Mum." Ricky and I say at the same time, and we all laugh as we pile out of the car.

Once we're on the platform, I look around for my best friend Isabelle. I spot her chatting with Adam and Casey, the Longbottom twins, and I momentarily abandon my family to run over to where they're standing.

"Isa!" I squeal, throwing my arms around my best friend.

"El!" she squeals back, using the nickname she gave me back in our first year of Hogwarts.

We stop hugging and grin at each other. Isa was visiting family in America all summer, so I haven't seen her in a few months. Sending owls is all right, but nothing compares to actually being with your best friend.

"How was America?" I ask.

"Hot." Isabelle replies dramatically, tossing her long red hair. "And crowded in some places. But the countryside is nice."

"Cool." I say, grinning. I suddenly remember Adam and Casey, and turn to smile apologetically at them. "Hi Adam, Casey. How was your summer?"
"Boring." Adam says at the same time as Casey says "Great!" They look at each other, then burst out laughing.

"It was actually really dull." Casey admits, tucking a strand of her short brown hair behind her ear. "Mum and Dad took us on all these magical plant-finding expeditions."

"It was bloody awful." Adam says, shaking his head. "But now Dad's got loads of new information to teach this term."

Neville Longbottom, Adam and Casey's dad, is the professor of Herbology at Hogwarts. He's a really lovely man, but his passion for Herbology sometimes cancels out everything else.

"That sounds terrible. I'm sorry." I say, wincing. I'm about to say more when I see my mom waving to me with an expression that clearly means Get your arse over here and say goodbye to me or you will not be recieving any owls.

"I'll talk to you later." I say apologetically. "Got to say goodbye to my family and all. Save me a spot on the train, Isa?"

"Of course!" Isabelle says. "Tell your parents I say hello."

Once all of our luggage is loaded onto the train, it's time to say goodbye.

"Remember, Eloise. Wronski Feints and endurance are what you need to work on this year." Dad says, then smiles. "But you're a bloody amazing Quidditch player, so I know you'll do fantastic."

He wraps me in a warm hug, and I hug him back. "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you, too."

Next it's Mum's turn. "Please write, love." she says, kissing my forehead and tucking a dark curl behind my ear. "And I know you'll be busy with Quidditch, but focusing on schoolwork is more important."

Dad snorts, and Mum gives him a look. "Oliver."

"Sorry."

She turns back to me and gives me a warm hug. "I love you, darling."

"I love you too, Mum."

After Mum and Dad have said their goodbyes to Ricky, the two of us board the train. I blow a kiss to my parents, and as the train starts to pull out of the station I feel a wave of nostalgia. This is my last time boarding the train to Hogwarts.

"You do realize that we'll be on the train again after Christmas holiday, right?" Ricky says, as if he read my mind.

"Oh, hush. I'm allowed to feel nostalgic, aren't I?" I say, sticking out my tongue at him.

"As long as you don't cry. That would be weird." Ricky says, turning his back to me and going off to find his friends in another part of the train.

What a strange kid.

Now, where to find Isabelle?

I open the nearest train compartment door and jump – Lily, Albus, and James Potter are seated inside, as well as their cousins Fred and Roxanne.

"Eloise!" Roxanne squeals, jumping up to give me a hug. The two of us have never been very close, but we're in the same year, and we'll be in the same dorm together this year.

"Hi, Roxanne." I say, smiling as I give her a hug. "Hi, everyone. I'll catch up with you later – I promised Isabelle I'd sit with her."

James smirks. "You wouldn't rather sit with your Quidditch captain?" he says, gesturing to his polished captain's badge.

The nerve of that boy. Never mind that he trimmed his unruly hair over the summer, and it looks… well, it looks good. Never mind that he's wearing a dark grey t-shirt and blue jeans, and I can see very clearly that he's been working out over the summer.

I avert my eyes from his biceps and look him right in the eyes. "I'll pass on that one, thanks. Nice seeing you all."

And with that, I turn on my heel and walk out of the compartment.

Face flushed and heart pounding from that little encounter, I open the next compartment door to see – oh thank Merlin – Isabelle. My good friends and fellow Gryffindors, Amelia Frew and Daisy Parker, are seated in there as well, and they jump up to greet me.

"Eloise!" Amelia cries, almost knocking me over with a huge hug. "How was summer holiday?"

"It was fine." I reply, smiling. "Congratulations on being Head Girl!"

Amelia blushes. "Thanks! I was jumping around the house for days after I found out." She twirls a strand of blonde hair around her finger. "What about you – are you Quidditch captain?"

I groan and sit down next to Daisy. "No. James Potter is."

Daisy puts her arm around me and squeezes my shoulder in a comforting gesture. "I'm sorry to hear that, El."

"Thanks, Daisy. It's good to see you." I say, giving her a hug.

Daisy smiles. "Same to you. Are you at least excited for a fantastic Seventh Year?"

I grin. "Yeah. We need to do something amazing before we leave Hogwarts."

"Agreed!" Isabelle says, bouncing in her seat.

"Well, all right. As long as it's not dangerous or against the rules." Amelia says skeptically, and Isabelle rolls her eyes.
"Stop being such a little First Year, 'Melia." Isabelle says, leaning back in her seat. "Of course it'll be dangerous and against the rules."

Daisy laughs. "Well, I'm in."

We all stare at her. Daisy has always been shy and quiet, never one to break the rules.

"What?" she asks defensively. "It's my last year. I might as well make it count!"

"Go, Daisy!" Isabelle cheers.

Amelia sighs. "I suppose this means the three of you are going to pressure me into doing something crazy, doesn't it?"

I laugh. "C'mon, 'Melia, it'll be fun. We've got all year to plan it."

"Oh, all right." Amelia sighs. "But if I get my Head Girl title taken away, I'm murdering you all."

"What a splendid idea, Amelia." a cool voice says in the entryway, and the four of us jump. "I'd be happy to help you with that."

And standing in the doorway is Daphne Goyle, Chaser for Slytherin and probably the most evil person I have ever had the bad fortune to know.

"Good to see you, too, Goyle." I say, rolling my eyes.

"Mhhmm." Daphne says. "So I heard that Potter beat you out for Quidditch captain. That's too bad." She gives me a saccharine smile and tosses her silky hair. Honestly, she and Scorpius Malfoy could be twins, with their pale skin and impossibly blonde hair.

I grit my teeth and stand up. "He didn't beat me out. He was chosen. And anyway, Goyle, you shouldn't be acting so high and mighty. I don't see you wearing a captain's badge."

Daphne smiles coyly. "Oh, that? It's in my rucksack. I took it off to polish it and forgot to put it back on."

I can only gape openly. Daphne Goyle is the Slytherin Quidditch Captain? "You're lying." I finally manage to say, but the smug look on Daphne's face tells me otherwise.

She throws her head back and laughs. "Oh, Eloise. You're funny. Too bad you're a twit and a Gryffindor – if you weren't, maybe I'd like you."

And with that, she struts out of the compartment.

Isabelle narrows her eyes. "That little… little…"

Well, this is odd. I've never seen Isabelle speechless before.

"She's such a Slytherin." Amelia says, spitting out the word "Slytherin" so venemously I take a step back. "I'm going to take five points from Slytherin because of that."

I give her a hug. "Thanks, Amelia. You're the best."

Amelia laughs. "Who knew being Head Girl could be so fun?"

We spend the rest of the train ride to Hogwarts eating Chocolate Frogs and reading muggle gossip magazines that Daisy (who is muggleborn) brought. We're laughing hysterically about a celebrity's crazy hair when there's a shout from another compartment.

"Hogwarts up ahead!"

I lunge for the window to catch a glimpse of a sight I haven't seen in what seems like ages – the Hogwarts castle standing tall above the lake, evening fog clouding the highest turrets.

Isabelle joins me at the window and wraps an arm around my shoulders. "Look," she says, smiling. "We're home."