True to her word, Madame Pomfrey let me leave the next morning. I decided it was best not to mention my dream to Remmy, and make him worry over nothing, after all, it was probably just due to the pain potion. I had also decided that the Weasley twins were just about the strangest people I had met.

As I walked into the Great Hall for breakfast, Ginny waved me over. Sitting across from her was safest for me, I figured, considering what I was going to attempt. "Morning, ginger snap," I greeted with a small smirk.

She gave me a look, then rolled her eyes. "That is not going to catch on, Deliah, so you may as well quit while you're ahead."

"Ah, I guess 'ginger snap' didn't go over well?" I looked over at Neville as he sat down to my left.

"Of course not. She's just a right prat, isn't she?" I earned myself a bit of cereal to the face with that comment. "Oi! What is with you and throwing food?"

Neville chuckled a bit as he made himself a plate. "So, what happened yesterday? We heard you were in the Hospital Wing, but Madame Pomfrey wouldn't let us in to visit."

Ginny pointed her spoon at me. "Yeah, I was getting rather worried, but then, of all people, Fred and George come back last night only saying that you're ok."

I laughed dryly, rolling my eyes. "Speaking of those two lovely individuals, did you know they've started up with sink steps? They had one at the top of the Entrance Hall's stairs. I got stuck in it, and my ankle got pretty messed up. Madame Pomfrey had me on a pain potion, so I was dazed pretty well."

"Those two! They normally just do the small, funny pranks on housemates," Ginny shook her head. "I guess that's why they went to check in on you, they didn't mean for you to be the one in the step."

Neville looked at her strangely, "They shouldn't have put a sink step there for anyone, though."

"Well, Fred, I think it was, had said something about it being funny if someone had gone up the steps. I assumed they were aiming for someone leaving breakfast," I shrugged, "Anyways, I'm healed up, and perfectly fine, no hard feelings."

"Honestly, Delly, gettin' trapped by the trickster twins. I thought you were more cautious than that, darlin'," Suddenly, Harper flopped down on my right.

I groaned, "I'm fine! It's over with, so just leave it be please, alright? You people act like I was nearly killed or something."

Harper laughed, "Nah, it's just odd," She picked up a muffin and took a bite, "You wanna come with me to the lake? I need to get that idiotic potions essay done for professor Batman tomorrow."

"Batman?" Neville and Ginny echoed, confused.

I chuckled, "Oh, she calls Snape that because of his robes being all black."

"And he has a freaking superhero cape like Batman," Harper grumbled before popping the rest of the muffin in her mouth.

"Oh Godric, Harper, that's a bit much food in one bite!" She smiled at me with crumbs around her mouth, and half-chewed muffin was clearly visible. "Ugh, you're just a ruddy princess, with those manners."

She stood up then with another muffin in hand, and pointed at me with the other, "Yer damn skippy, honey! Now get yer scrumptious ass up, so you can walk to the lake with me."

Ginny snorted, then burst out laughing at poor Neville, who was trying to recover from choking on his drink. Harper was so unique in the majority of stuffy teen witches and wizards. Such a much-needed breath of fresh air at times.

Shaking my head, I left with her after I snatched up a blueberry scone. We made our way slowly to the lake, as she chatted about her friend in Ravenclaw getting detention from Snape for something. Honestly, I was only barely paying attention, though I did feel a little bad about that. It was a rather nice day out, and most of the students had made their way outside to enjoy the weather. Something was off, though. I couldn't place it, but I just felt an ominous presence. Glancing around I didn't see anything off, but I still felt on edge.

The next week went by, luckily, with no more surprise injuries. The full moon came and went, and as promised I had left a large chocolate bar on Remus' desk before I went to bed the night of the full moon.

As October began, the halls filled with chatter of Quidditch. Nearly every student could be seen wearing more of their house colors, which I just grinned and shook my head at. Personally, I wasn't much for the game, a bit violent for my taste. At every meal for the next few weeks, a seventh-year boy named Oliver Wood could be seen with at least one or two of the Gryffindor team members, seemingly strategizing for an upcoming match.

"Ugh, can it get any colder here?" Harper complained from where she was huddled against a tree.

We had made our way to the lake right after Defense, at my insistence. I loved the way the water looked in the gloom of the oncoming winter.

I glanced over at Harper, then tossed another small stone into the water, watching as ripples spread across the otherwise glass-like surface, "You can go back inside if you want. I won't be much longer, but I'm more used to the temperature here."

I heard her groan, then her shift around, "Yeah, I'll head up to the tower. You be safe, ok?"

Looking back at her confused, I tightened my scarf a bit, "Why do I need to be careful? The Dementors aren't anywhere close to here, I should be fine."

"Durin' the summer, right before school started back up, I saw this news report. There's an escaped convict on the loose, Delly. Some guy... somethin' Black. He murdered a bunch of people," She looked around worriedly, "I also heard people talkin' bout how he wants somethin' in Hogwarts, that's why the Dementors are here."

A cold breeze suddenly whipped around us, making us both shiver. Harper smoothed her hair away from her face, and looked me in the eyes, "I just want you to be careful, and if you're not in the tower in 30 minutes I'm coming to search for you." She turned, and started walking away, "And I'm bringing your pops with me!" Was called over her shoulder, before she rushed over to the entrance hall, disappearing through the open doors.

I could tell that she was truly worried about me being out here alone. She tends to lose her accent when she's worried.

Looking around, I spotted a large rock that hung slightly over the water. I slowly climbed onto it, laying on my stomach with my hands crossed under my chin. Tomorrow was the first Hogsmeade weekend of the year. I was slightly excited about it, but also it wasn't really anything special. I had been around magical towns plenty of times, so it was just another town to me.

Rolling over onto my back, I stared up into the grey clouds. "Tomorrow's a full moon again, and Halloween is Sunday," I sighed, "I guess I'll get Remmy a basket of chocolates this time. Maybe some cockroach clusters, just to mess with him."

I chuckled at my little idea, then turned to slide off the rock. It was getting too cold and dark now, so I decided to head up to the common room, hoping there'd be a spot by the fireplace.

"Ugh, what should I wear?" Alicia all but whined out the last word as she rifled through her clothes.

I rolled my eyes as I threw on a pair of jeans and an overly large sweatshirt. "Someone you wanting to impress, Ali?"

She shot me a glare as Harper giggled. "Actually, yes. I'm going to meet up with a certain someone after a bit," After sending a quick glance across to Angelina, she continued, "Not that it's anyone's business, and I would like to look presentable."

This time, Harper rolled her eyes. "The girl wasn't tryin' to be nosy or nothin', honestly," she said as she was adjusting her oddly-colored, knit sweater. "You're the one that was makin' a big fuss about your clothes. 'Ohhhhh what AM I going to wear?'" She imitated nasally.

Shaking my head, I smiled at Alicia. "Well, good luck with your meet-up. You're lovely anyway, add your fashion sense, and this guy will be blown away." She quickly thanked me, looking at least a little embarrassed before heading into the bathroom.

Harper and I left shortly after, making our way to the Great Hall for breakfast. As we sat by Neville, like normal, we were quickly joined by a ruffled-looking Ginny.

"Honestly, you would think I would be used to the small pranks from the twins, and know how to avoid them by now." She grumbled, putting a pancake on her plate.

I chuckled at her. I still don't get the whole deal with everyone's either fascination or dislike for the Weasley twins. Then again, I hadn't been around very long, so maybe I'll see what the fuss is about.

Breakfast was quickly scarfed down, then Neville, Harper, and I promised Ginny that we'd bring her back some of our finds. We were walking down the path towards the town when Neville said that he would be meeting up with some of his friends from his year, but he'd see us later, leaving us girls to our own plans.

"Well, it's just the two of us then. What do you want to do?" Harper asked as we walked down the street.

It was rather busy with all the other students roaming about. Here and there you could see townspeople and a random bunch of grown witches and wizards. It was actually a really interesting place, but still, nothing compared to Diagon Alley, though.

I absentmindedly pulled a strand of my hair forward to play with. "I know we'll need a few supplies before we head back, but that can wait, I would think. I was wanting to take a look in Tomes and Scrolls, and then of course Honeydukes."

Harper clapped her hands together, "Alrighty! Here's the plan, you go to Tomes and Scrolls, I'll go pick up some food for Ryker at the Neep, and we'll meet up for lunch at Three Broomsticks. The rest we'll do together, then head back," She smiled at me, "Sound good to you, doll?"

"Ok," I chuckled and shook my head, "I'll see you at lunch then."

She waved a quick goodbye, as we went our separate ways. I didn't spend as long as I thought I would in Tomes and Scrolls, but I did find a rather interesting book to read in my very limited free time. Since I still had about two hours until lunchtime, I decided to wander into a few stores.

Barely entering the door of Madame Puddifoot's, I realized that was a mistake. All the pink, and frill was enough to make my head hurt instantly, so I backed out rather quickly. I did find some rather entertaining socks at Gladrags that would be hidden in Harper's clothes once I got back.

Checking the time as I walked past a group of boys outside Spintwitches, I decided to pop into Zonko's before heading to Three Broomsticks a little early. What greeted me as I entered the joke shop was rather amazing. Students were everywhere, looking at trick items, prank candies, strange items that I was sure would be interesting to look at another time. I, on the other hand, was intrigued by these small trinkets in a corner away from the crowds.

As I picked one up, turning it over in my hands, I heard a voice from over my left shoulder. "Might want to be careful with that, these aren't your everyday trickster items."

"Much more serious uses for these things, here," Another voice added as I turned to see who was behind me.

"Hello there, George, Fred," I nodded at each of them, quickly noting the slight confusion in their eyes, "What do these things do then?"

George gently picked the small, silver spinner object out of my hands. "Well, this here spins obviously and emits an extremely high-pitched squeal. Not many kids want to buy it anymore, too many temporary hearing loss issues," He explained before slowly putting it down where it had been on the shelf.

"This corner is really for the rejected items," Fred said shrugging his shoulders, "Even comic geniuses have their off days, I guess."

I nodded in understanding, still looking around past them. "So, oh brilliant prank masters of Hogwarts, what would you recommend for a girl like me?"

Both boys' chests puffed up a bit at the flattery, and Fred smirked at me before throwing an arm over my shoulders, "You've asked just the right people, Dels."

George dramatically gestured at the store in front of us, "We know this store like the back of our hands. Zonko is our mentor."

"One day, we'll have our own shop, even better than this one," they said together. Something about their voices made me look up at them, and I could see the yearning in their eyes.

Smiling softly, I looked back at the shop, imagining an even more quirky joke shop, "Let me know when it opens, I want to be the first customer."

I actually ended up leaving Zonko's in a rush, having lost track of time while I was in there. The twins had shown me their favorite products and told me stories of when they had used them between classes over the years. They also showed me some things they thought I would like, and how to use them 'properly'.

Honestly, I'm not much for pranking people, it's just how the things work, how they're made that interests me. Oddly enough, it seemed like the twins knew that. They would show me how to pair up a few of the items to make specific things happen. It was amazing how much they knew about how these things worked, how to make them, how to make them better, what trick treats were relatively safe. I really enjoyed talking about all of it with them.

As I was running down the street with my shrunken spoils in my pocket, I thought of what the twins' future store might look like.

"There you are! Godric, Delly, I was beginnin' to think you forgot to meet here," Harper laughed as I rolled my eyes, and sat across from her at a table. "I just finished orderin'. Butterbeer and a small shepherd's pie for the lady."

Just then my stomach grumbled, and I laughed as my cheeks were tinged pink. "Sounds perfect, darling, thank you."

"So, where all did you adventure to? I started to spend too much in Zonko's, so I went to the post office to send my parents some of the sweats," She chuckled, "I can just imagine how much fun they'll have getting' each other with 'em."

"I bought a couple of books, made a mistake by glancing in Puddifoot's," We both shuddered, "Popped in Gladrags for a bit, then completely lost track of time in Zonko's, ran into the Weasley twins in there."

Harper suddenly looked curious, "Really now? Did they get you again?" She looked me over, "No injuries?"

I rolled my eyes, "I'm perfectly fine. They showed me all kinds of things in there since I haven't been in a joke shop like it before. They didn't seem to mind my curiosity and even said Zonko is their mentor. It was really rather interesting whenever they explained things. Somehow, everything just seemed more amazing with the way they talked about it; you know?"

Our food and drinks arrived just then, and we thanked the waitress. "Seems to me like ya caught the Weasley fever," Harper laughed, before taking a big swig of her Butterbeer.

I swatted her arm lightly, "What are you talking about? I just talked to the two, maybe making friends, not flirting. Honestly, Harper! Just because they look nice, doesn't mean I'm going to throw myself at them."

We both laughed and chatted a bit more while we ate. Soon enough, it was time to head to Honeydukes, and thank Merlin, Godric, and whoever else for that wonderful place. I wanted to buy it all, but my meager money pouch was already light from the other buys of the day. I bought a couple of cauldron cakes for myself, and a small gift basket of chocolates for Remmy. Then I decided he did need some cockroach clusters, so they got added to his basket.

"Alright, now that I've nearly spent all the money I had, let's grab the supplies, 'n get back to the common room," Harper sighed as she shrank her bag, putting it in her pocket.

"I'm not sure about you, but I only need ink and a bit of parchment," I looked over at her to see her nod.

"Same here, thankfully."

We quickly grabbed what we needed, and made our way back to the castle, joining back up with Neville as we entered the gates. He chattered about what all he had done, which was mainly a trip to Dogweed and Deathcap, Three Broomsticks, and Honeydukes.

As soon as the two of us girls got back into our dormitories, we emptied our pockets and then fell onto our beds.

"I am so beyond tired, Delly. I dunno if I can make it back down to dinner," Harper whined from her bed.

I rolled my eyes at her, yet again, "Darling, all I have to say is pumpkin pasties, and pumpkin juice," There was a clatter, and a thud to my right, making me smile, "And you're up and ready to go."

As she walked by, she kicked my foot, telling me to come on. Slowly, I followed her back down for dinner.

The amount of noise coming from the Great Hall was enough to make me pause before going in. I was so tired from Hogsmeade, and the amount of effort to keep my senses controlled was taxing enough. I chewed on my lip a bit, trying to decide if I really wanted to sit in among all the ruckus.

I was just about to take a step into the hall when I suddenly had two arms across my shoulders.

"Care to join us to the kitchens?"

"Doesn't look much like you could handle the Great Hall tonight."

I looked to both my sides and smiled tiredly at the twins. "Well, that sounds lovely, but I don't think we're allowed in the kitchens."

They both smiled mischievously, "You are when you're with us."

So, the three of us turned around and made our way presumably to the kitchens. When we came upon a portrait of a fruit basket, I was rather confused.

"Umm, boys, what-" I started to ask, only to have a hand suddenly cover my eyes.

"Can't let you see, very secretive stuff here," was mumbled very close to my ear, making me jump a little.

"Oh, honestly, do you get entertainment off of being like this?" I huffed, shoving my elbow back, and feeling satisfied at the small 'oomph' I heard.

The hand over my eyes was quickly removed, and I saw an opening where the portrait had been. "Only a bit, Dels," Fred smirked from his spot beside the entrance, "Now, are you going in, or should we just close the portrait?"

I crossed my arms and shot him a look, which he just laughed at. "I'm going into what is hopefully the kitchens. If not, I'll do my own sink step for each of you." This only made them reel with more laughter.

I was instantly surprised as I walked in after the twins. House-elves were everywhere. A small group of them were huddled in front of Fred and George asking what they would like to eat and drink. To say it was odd was an understatement.

"What do you want, Delly?" Fred asked as he flopped onto a bench beside one of the tables that were in the room.

"Anything at all, these brilliant little elves will fetch it for you," George added as he joined his brother.

I looked nervously down at the giant, curious eyes of the house-elves. "Umm...Butterbeer and a small bowl of broccoli and cheese soup?"

A chorus of "Right away, Miss!" was heard before the elves shuffled away. Slowly, I made my way to the bench across from the twins.

"So, they're the ones that prepare all the food for the Great Hall?" I asked, watching as another small group bustled past with all kinds of vegetables.

George leaned over, propping his chin in his hand, and his elbow on the table, "Yep, and I reckon they'll be exceptionally busy tomorrow for the feast."

"Have to say, the Halloween feast is just unparalleled compared to the start of term feast. So much food, and so very tasty," Fred mused, looking off into the giant fireplace to the far side of the room.

I chuckled at him, shaking my head, "But Halloween has many more desserts available, doesn't it?"

He looked back at me with a grin, "Oh, absolutely!"

"More desserts than you'd actually think," George added right before the food, and drinks appeared in front of us.

We were relatively quiet while eating, though the boys were slightly noisy eaters. When I had finished my food, the plates vanished from in front of us.

"So, little Lupin, what's your story?" Fred asked crossing his arms over his chest.

George leaned onto the table, much like he had before we ate, "Not often that we get a new student after first year."

"Ah, well, Remus had been teaching me while he traveled," This speech had been so practiced, it flowed from my lips with ease. "When he was offered the Defense spot, he and Dumbledore spoke about me joining the school as well."

The twins both lifted a brow, glancing at each other. I could tell that they were suspicious of my story, it was rather vague after all, but most people aren't so curious that they try to find out the real story.

George motioned to his brother, and he nodded in return, "We'll leave it at that for now, but it's getting rather late, you should be headed back to the common room."

Fred smirked at me with such a mischievous glint in his eyes, it sent a shiver down my spine, "Wouldn't want you getting in any trouble, would we Dels?"

I watched curiously as they stood, Fred stretching as he did so, "Won't you two be going that way, also? "

He chuckled, "Actually, we have some...business to attend to before turning in."

They lead me out of the portrait again, then we went our separate ways at the end of the corridor. Those two were odd in more ways than one. I wondered why they were so curious about me and my 'story', as I walked up to the Fat Lady, and quickly said the password, making my way up to the dormitories. Still exhausted, I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

This has been edited, but I still feel like this is lacking. I have a lot going on irl, so I have been falling behind on all of my stories. It's really messing with me, though because I really want to be able to regularly update them, but my brain just hits a wall then gives up for some reason. Thank you to anyone that is sticking with this story, it really means the world to me.