AN: so here is the second part as promised! Please let us know what you think of it!

Cassidy (Cas) Walker

Chapter 8.2

It's different without Jo, sitting around doing nothing. I made an agreement to stay at Hogwarts this Christmas. Jo made no such agreement. Fred did though. That would have made the holiday bearable if it weren't for George, who is apparently incapable of being separated from his twin for more than a few hours. It's so clichéd of them, being the inseparable twins. Not all twins are actually like that. It's people like Fred and George who perpetuate those stupid stereotypes.

My musings are interrupted by said simpletons. I only half listen while they explain their dilemma. All I pick up is that they want something from me. I am not in the mood. I get up from my spot in the library and turn to leave.

"So, 7 o'clock tomorrow night in the potion's dungeon?" Fred calls after me. I wave at him. I know he'll take it as a yes. That will be his own fault. I go back to the Slytherin common room. There's nothing common about it. It's green and underwater and perpetually looks like a pirate theme park. I sit down on my bed and pull out one of my new spell books. I don't try any- just read them. I'll know them all by the end of the year- so why get ahead of myself by practicing?

I kill a few hours wandering the grounds, avoiding people for the most part. I do have friends. Not many, but that's irrelevant. The problem is, my closest friend is gone on holiday and my second and third closest friends are insufferable.

I see Fred again at dinner in the Great Hall. He tells me about his parents visiting one of his older brothers- that's why the twins are spending Christmas at the castle. He talks while I listen, and we both eat. It's nice, until he brings up the thing they were planning before.

"So we've had a change of plans- same time and everything, but I think me and George are going to play Quidditch-"

"No! Nonononono! No."

"Cas, we're not asking-"

"No. Not after last time."

"We're-"

"No!"

"Cas!"

"No!"

"Cas, just listen!"

"No!"

"We don't want you to play Quidditch with us!" He kind of races through this last sentence and also screams it. We get a couple of looks- at this point my hands are over my ears and Fred is trying to grab them and shout at me.

"...oh. Okay then...so what were you saying?" He grins and shakes his head.

"I was just going to say, you follow the original plan. It should still work." Oh. Considering I never actually heard the original plan, I just nod. I'm still not actually in the mood to help. We finish eating and go back to the common room together. I try to show him my spell books, and he tries to show me his book of prank plans.

"So wait, back at Halloween, how'd you and George pull off the paint thing?" Fred had told me about his little excursion to Gryffindor, and by the state of our common room I could only image the devastation Jo and George experienced.

"We actually didn't know- about what each other was doing. I mean, we told each other the common room passwords like the first week. And we are twins, you know, that look alike. So it wasn't hard to get into Gryffindor. Apparently George had the same idea as me." I laugh and decide to go to sleep.

The next morning I wake up tired. I go to breakfast, which I find disappointing. Fred doesn't show up, which I also find disappointing. I pretty much end up wasting the day wandering around, trying to read, and getting more and more annoyed with each little thing that happens to me today- from the meals, to the lack of classes and such distractions, to my company (or rather, lack thereof).

By nightfall, I know Fred and George are about to go out to play Quidditch, and that they are currently expecting something of me. I consider finding them and figuring out how I can help, but I decide instead to go to the library. I could use some silence. Because spending the entire day alone was not enough for me.

I go past the regular reading area back to the "restricted" section. It's quieter here, and there's only a dim candle light. It's perfect for my mood. There aren't any sofas, but I have no need for comfy chairs. I just need the books. I grab something off the shelf at random and sit down on a small wooden stool. I start reading, but almost immediately something feels wrong. I look up and see a cat. I try to shoo it away but it just starts whining. Loudly.

Then I hear the footsteps. And a gruff voice.

"Mrs. Norris? Mrs. Norris?"

It's Filtch. This is Filtch's cat. I look around for a place to hide, but this area is just rows of book cases. I make a decision and stand up on my little stool. Then I scale the bookshelves and perch myself on top. The book case is against a wall, so I lean against the wall and try to stay completely in the shadows.

Then Filtch walks in. He is greeted by Mrs. Norris, who is sitting at the base of my book case. Filtch calls out for me to "Show yourself!". As if. That just makes me hold my breath and stay completely still. But the cat scratches at my shelf, and Filtch looks up. And sees me. And starts laughing in a really creepy, offsetting way that is basically just wheezing.

"You're in trouble now, boy!"

No. He. Didn't. No way. What kind of idiot thinks I'm a boy? My hair is past my shoulders and I'm deathly thin and not muscular in any way. What kind of idiot is this?

"Come down, boy. There's no escaping now!" He keeps wheezing/laughing. This was supposed to be a quiet, calm night. Now I'm cornered, apparently in trouble, and deeply offended. And creeped out. I pull my wand as slyly as possible and focus really hard on making my voice deep.

"Run, Jo!" I shout in a really fake man's voice. Then I whisper and cast a spell to knock down a book case on the other end of the room. Filtch jumps and runs toward the noise, which is on the opposite side of the room as the door.

"Don't even think about running, Joseph! I've got the runner, Mrs. Norris, you watch this one!" He leaves, wheezing even worse now. This guy is way sexist. It's ruined my night. I slide back down onto the stool and start to walk off. Mrs. Norris hisses at me and tries to paw at my ankles, but I throw the book I was holding at her and walk calmly out the door.

Fred gets into the common room not long after I do. I'm sitting in a chair staring at a green fire. I look up when he comes in. He's beaming and sweaty and looks genuinely pleased to see me. I don't get it. He rushes over and hugs me. He smells bad and I don't like being hugged under normal circumstances, so, being caught off guard, I start flailing and end up falling out of Fred's arms and off the couch.

"You were perfect, Cas! We didn't see Filtch once the entire night, what'd you do to him?" I'm confused, and struggling to get up, and about to explain that whatever happened, it was not because I was trying to help them, when a clock strikes midnight. I didn't realize how late it was.

"Happy Christmas, Cas."

"What?"

"Happy Christmas." I hadn't realized.

"Happy Christmas, Fred."

I'm glad it's Christmas. I'm also glad the holiday is almost over. I've had way too much mischief for such a short period of time.

AN: Thanks for reading