Glancing over at the sound of his housemates voice Morgan shrugged," You're not the only one allowed to invade another house." He slid over so that he was now sitting next to the window "I remember that," He turned his face to continue talking to Jared."Gave us all a good laugh." His eyes quickly glanced at Anemone, there was something not right. Did she look a little paler then normal?

Anemone sat down quietly next to her brother, still thinking about what she'd been told over her card reading earlier. No, no matter how much she thought about it, it still didn't seem normal. Even the other girls in the compartment didn't think it had been normal, and that had been her biggest clue. They seemed to have been friends with the Gryffindor seer, so she felt her assessment of them was sound.

"Nem?" Jared asked quietly. Anemone looked at her and shook her head. She would tell him later. Jared watched her for a moment before nodding and turning back to Morgan. "We should be getting to Hogwarts soon," he said. "We should probably get into our robes."

So Jared had noticed the offness of Anemone too. If her brother wasn't going to press the issue he would just wait until they were either seated at their house table or back in the common rooms. She had been out wandering and since he hadn't found her with any of the other Slytherin girls what ever she was thinking about had to do with someone from another house.At the mention of changing into their robes Morgan remembered the war he had left in his compartment." Yeah I should probably head back anyway to see if there is any of Oliver left." Standing up he looked at Nem for a brief second, " You heading back or are you going to start a new fashion statement?" he waved his hands down at her jean clad legs.

"What, don't you like it?" Anemone asked, grinning teasingly as she stretched out her legs and crossed them at the ankle, showing off her jeans.

"Not like anyone will notice anyways, once she's got the overrobe on," Jared commented. Anemone made a face.

"I don't see why we even need the overrobes," she commented. "It's not like we don't have our House crest on our vests and sweaters anyways. The robe is just an extra layer."

"Nem, you waited six years to complain about the uniform now?" Jared asked, teasing her.

"Shut up, Red," Anemone replied. Getting up, she stretched and went into her trunk to get one of her uniform skirts, a pair of tights, and her uniform shoes. "I'm going to go change."

"You do that," Jared replied as Anemone left the compartment to find the girls' lavatory. Then he went digging in his own trunk for his uniform trousers and socks. Like his sister, he was already wearing the white button-up and sweater-vest with his House crest and colors on it.

Peace had settled over the compartment in the time he had been gone. Though it was now clearly divided by gender. The girls pulling their robes out of their trunks while shooting glares at the two boys who to their credit didn't appear to be pouting as much as he was sure they were. Slytherin girls were a force to be reckoned with. The girls slid out of the compartment as he slid in not even bothering to glance at him.Pulling his tie, vest, and overrobe out of his trunk he finished putting on the rest of his Hogwarts uniform. "So do I even want to know what you two did to piss off the girls this time?" At that the boys launched into a detailed version of what had happened after he left. By the end of their story the train was giving a slight jerk and a whistle alerted them that the train had reached it's stop.


Back in her robes Rooney bulled her trunk down from over head softly laughing along with a joke that had been told. It had taken the whole compartment gushing about their summers and the Gryffindor quidditch team but she was feeling a little better now. there wasn't anything that could be done anyways till she was back in the castle and able to work through it with the professor. Shifting her body weight when the train stopped she let her trunk hit the seat heavily. " This is it." one of the girl called out glee in her voice. "Yes it is." The black haired seer answered back laughing with the other seventh years.

(( Was going to add in Sebastien's part but I have to head out to work. He'll get a nice long part my next post.))

The Stone twins didn't even bother with their trunks. They knew that their things would show up in their dorms by the time curfew was called, just like every year, and so they focused their attention more on making sure they were presentable for school. They helped each other, flicking wands here and there to magically press wrinkles, straighten hems, and secure collars. When the train finally stopped, they looked at each other for a moment, and then nodded and left the compartment. Time to start their final year in Hogwarts. Unlike previous years, when they split up the second they left their seats to join their housemates, they walked together. It must have been an unusual sight for the younger years: a Ravenclaw and a Slytherin together, but a closer look told everyone that they were related. They would split up once it was time to sit at their house tables in the Great Hall.

The scenery blurred outside of his window as the Ravenclaw read through the large tome.He had already read through the book over the summer now he was jotting down notes, highlighting passages that caught his attention. Most of the book covered the life of the chosen one with some info on Tom Riddles life, or what was known of it before he started going by Voldemort.Personally he had learned all he needed to know about Harry Potter and how he saved the wizarding world. The final battle had taken place on Hogwarts grounds so there was little the students didn't know about it. It was the years, decades, that it took for Riddle to become Voldemort. A look inside of the death eater recruiting process, what they truly believed. He had read through some of the muggle wars and both sides could always be expressed through novels and history books. Maybe not during the wars but after both sides came into light. Few books talked about the inner working of Voldemort's ranks.

As the shrill sound of the whistle cut through the silence in his empty compartment Sebastien closed the book leaving the quill inside as a book mark.He'd come back to it latter. Tucking the book back into his trunk he straightened his robes before exiting the compartment. Students were swarming the train halls heading for the exits. " Sebastien. There you are." Turning to face the voice the tall Ravenclaw boy nodded his head at the Head boy- a fellow Ravenclaw." Hello Clyde. I thought you would be busy with Head boy duties."
"Yeah but I wanted to tell you that I heard about your uncle. I'm sorry, do they have any clue how it happened?" The blond looked nervous as if he was going to offend the fellow 7th year.In truth Sebastien didn't have an ounce of grief towards his muggle uncle's passing. The man had been horrible to his aunt and he had very much deserved his death. "The muggle police ruled it a death by natural causes."
Commotion from behind drew the head boy's attention." ugh I have to go deal with that. Let me know if you need anything. See ya Sebastien." Heading towards the gathering of second years the blond started demanding explanations. There was a sense of pride having someone from his house as the Head Boy, it wasn't a position he himself had ever desired. Soon the flow of student made it too hard to stay standing still and he was forced to follow the crowd as it spilled out of the train.


" Come on Rooney what did you forget this time." The impatient Gryffindor girl called back to her dark haired friend. Said friend was digging thought her trunk, her cards safely tucked back inside."I know I packed it...oh here it is." Pulling out the long crimson and gold scarf the girl wrapped it around her neck a couple of times before shutting her trunk." Ready." A choirs of irritated groans followed her statement before they made their way off the train. Breaking off to find friends from their own houses the girls made promises to meet up after the welcoming ceremony. Rooney had other plans. it had taken the rest of the train ride but she had decided that she wanted to do another reading for that Slytherin girl. There was to many gaps and room for interpretation in that card reading.



By the time they had made it off the train the boys had some how re grouped with the girls and Oliver was busy trying to apologize to Lain with out actually saying that he was sorry. It was really amusing to watch. However fights between those two almost always included the dragging other in to the mes. Morgan wished they would just shag and get it over with. It wasn't like everyone didn't already know they were head over heels for the other. Looking around for Nem he caught a few glares thrown his way by girls whose names he couldn't remember but was almost sure he had made summer plans with.Maybe it was better if his blonde friend wasn't around. He didn't want to start the year off with a lecture about morals and leading girls on.

For some reason, by the time Anemone was sitting with the rest of her housemates in the Great Hall, she still felt kind of distant from everyone else. It was her last year in Hogwarts. She wouldn't be coming back, unless she was teaching for some bizarre reason. Even the Sorting, which was usually amusing, if nothing else, didn't hold the same spark it usually did. Although, to be fair, it wasn't quite the crop of first years it usually was. So she sat there quietly as the Sorting progressed, periodically scanning the rest of the Great Hall. She spotted her brother right away, of course, but then her gaze fell on the Gryffindor girl from earlier. Something didn't feel right about the tarot reading from earlier, and it was still nagging her. Maybe she would find the girl later and ask about it.

Despite what was going on in her mind Rooney still cheered with the rest of her house each time the shorting hat yelled Gryffindor.She laughed with her housemates and talked about what they had done over the holidays. She acted as if it was any other welcoming ceremony.She didn't eat much though her stomach was still working the knots out of it's self and she wasn't sure she would keep anything down. What happened on the train ride over seemed to have been forgotten by her friends as they continued their conversation from earlier now dragging others from the house into it. Glancing around the great hall light green eyes scanned over the new first years and some old friends of hers from other houses. Her back however was to the Slytherin table. At first it had been a seating choice so she didn't spend the whole time looking for the blond girl.

He had grabbed a seat next to Anemone and the rest of their group of Slytherin friends had just followed suit. The hall was bursting with noise. Housing greeting their new members and old friends catching up. There hadn't been many first year Slytherins this time and something about that was kind of sad. It was of course the fact that it meant their numbers would be down at the end of the year when all of the 7th years left. That wasn't Morgan's main concern right now though. Nem still looked a little out of it and she kept staring at some black haired Gryffindor girl.he wasn't too worried that the girl had down something to his friend, she could very well take care of herself. But for it to have effected her this long. Resting a hand on her shoulder he lend over to whisper in her ear, " Mind telling be what is so interesting about the little lion over there?" He ignored the sounds Oliver was making at him leaning that close to Nem.

Anemone jumped when she felt Morgan's hand on her shoulder, one hand half-way to her wand before she realized it.

"Morgan!" she exclaimed, turning to face him. "Don't scare me like that." She gave him a playful glare and bumped his shoulder. She glanced back at the Gryffindor girl, and then at Morgan again. "It's nothing. I ran into her on the train, that's all." Because she wasn't going to tell him about the bizarre tarot reading. Most of the Hogwarts population didn't even believe Divination worked, so there was no way she was going to tell Morgan that it was still bothering her. "Don't worry, I'm a big girl."

Pulling back to stare once more at the girl who had caught Nem attention. " I know I know." And he did.Morgan knew that if the girl had really done something to her that Anemone would have easy handled her. Still it was all adding up in his head and he jsut knew he was missing a key peice. She had entered the compartment looking paler then normal and she had this look in her eyes that hadn't sat well with him. Now she kept staring at the Gryffindor girl instead of paying attention to those around them. "You know if something happened on the train..." Letting his sentence trail off he lowered his voice to make sure she was the only one that could hear him. " You were off when you joined up with me and Jared."

Anemone waved a hand.

"Morgan, you know me," she said. She gave him an impish grin, although it didn't quite reach her eyes. "If something had happened, I would have taken care of it. I can look after myself, don't worry." She pulled out her wand and twirled it around her fingers for a moment before sliding it neatly back up her sleeve. She didn't mention anything about how she wasn't herself when she met him and her brother earlier, though. She knew he was right about that.

Morgan knew when to give up and when to wait. Nem might not tell him what had happened on the train but she would tell Jared. Pulling away from her he cast her a disbelieving look." If you say so." Looking back towards the rest of their groups he let himself get caught up in their conversation.

The chatter in the great hall continued to rise till the student were dismissed by the head master.It had grown late an d the prefects had lead their respected houses back to their common rooms.

Rooney stretched out in her bed staring into her crystal ball. A dark smoky haze was all that she had been getting since she had retired to her bed. This along with the reading from earlier made the knot in her stomach tighten.

He had made a quick retreat to his bed soon after they had returned to the common room. All through diner he had heard condolences on his late Uncle. His worthless muggle uncle. The mans death had been just.

The Stone twins were having a relatively uneventful evening, after the feast. The new first years were all getting settled in, and Jared was sitting comfortably by the fire in the Ravenclaw common room with a Charms text. Some of the first years looked at him curiously, but he ignored them in favor of looking over some of the reading material. Anemone, on the other hand, was working on unpacking her things from her trunk. She always did that first, so she didn't have to try to live out of her trunk for the first month of the school year like some of her yearmates did. Once she was unpacked, she made her way back down to the common room to see if anything interesting was happening, and to get her class schedule from one of the prefects.

(( I'm skipping to the next morning if that's okay.))

Breakfast at Hogwarts was better then breakfast at her house, of course she would never tell her mother that. Her night hadn't reveled anything more about the reading but a good night sleep did settle her stomach. The knot of unease had worked itself out. Now she was looking forward to the first day of classes. Of course she had divination as well as Alchemy, Defense, Potions and Charms. She had also signed up to take magical theory this year. Finishing off her glass of pumpkin juice Rooney smiled at Ann as the blonde Gryffindor dropped her head onto the table next to her friend. " Still tired?"the seer asked laughing at her friends behavior. A grunt was the only acknowledgement she got.

The one thing that he enjoyed about living in a dungeon for most of the year was that lack of sun to wake him up. It was also a big down side when it came to making it to class on time. A charm took care of that though. The first day of classes. The last first day of classes.Morgan sat in the common room waiting for Nem and the rest of their group of friends.

Anemone had actually woken early, and was taking her time in getting ready. Occasionally, she would look out the window of the girls' dormitory to watch the fish go by (since, after all, the Slytherin rooms, common room and all, were actually in the lake) and sigh. The last first day of classes. It was heartbreaking, in a way. Turning away from the window, she picked up her bag, checked to make sure her books were in it, and headed down to the common room.

Jared was already at breakfast, sitting with the rest of his house and talking to them about the various study groups that were already forming. It was really very organized: first years were broken into study groups of four or so, and older students joined the groups that needed their guidance. It worked out for everyone. Absently, he practiced a few wand movements with his wand hand as he worked on his breakfast.

Looking down at his scheduled Morgan groaned at the sight of his first class. Charms.It wasn't his worst class that spot was reserved for care of magical creatures and luckily it wasn't a class he had to take this year. " Hey mate, I believe we have Charms together this year." A voice called over the back of the chair the dark haired Slytherin was sitting at. "I just hope Anemone has it too." Not that he couldn't pass with out her. The blonde just made the class fun and she was a great study partner. " Oh I'm sure you do,"
" Shouldn't you be pulling Lian's pigtails or pushing he in the mud?" Dark eyes narrowed at the fellow Slytherin who simply laughed.He didn't have a thing for their blonde friend and he just wished everyone would figure it out. Sure he did have a thing for her in their earlier years. " And here the girls come now." Turning in his seat Morgan watched as some of the girls in their year came into the common room.

Indeed, Anemone was pleased to see Charms first thing in the morning. It was definitely a plus, having her best subject first. The only thing better would be having it at the end of the day as something to look forward to. She grinned a bit when she saw Morgan.

"Ready for classes?" she asked when she got closer to him. She glanced at the other Slytherin as she spoke, automatically including him in the question. Slytherins were a family, after all; nobody got left out.

Jared, on the other hand, had double Defense Against the Dark Arts with the Gryffindors. Very rarely did Ravenclaws and Gryffindors get to have class together, and it was a refreshing change from having classes with their 'regular' counterparts. There were only so many classes Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs could stand together, after all.

Standing up from his chair Morgan waved at the other girls and smiled at Nem. "As ready as I ever am this early in the morning." He ignored the chuckling behind him. Oliver could think what he wanted. Of course this mature thought could have spawned from the I'll-hate-you-till-my-dying-breath- glare Lain was shooting him now. A group of first years had ganged up on Thomas one of the six year prefects. Morgan had to feel a little bad for the guy since it looked as if he was going to be late.Gathering up his stuff from the table he held his left hand out and gestured towards the exit. "Shall we?" He had never been much of a breakfast person and when he could get away with it he tended to skip that meal.


Peeling an orange Rooney pretend that she could understand the grumbled noises coming from her friend. of course the fact that she still had her head buried underneath her hands might have something to do with her lack of understanding. When the conversation around them shifted to classes the black haired girl started to tune in. Some of the other Seventh years were talking about the switch in the schedule. Since house prejudice was still going strong most of the Gryffindors were excited about having a class not paired off with the Slytherins.Rooney was torn. She had wanted a chance to talk to that girl again. Pooping the past slice of orange in her mouth she nudged Ann who had finally lifted her head. " Lets get to class. I want a good seat." Swinging her legs over the bench she picked up her supplies waiting for her friend.Waving to the others they walked off with a few other housemates taking Defense.

Anemone smiled a bit and nodded, heading for the Charms classroom. She usually didn't want breakfast before nine or so in the morning, so she had gotten into the habit of stopping by the kitchens after her first class.

She slid into her seat in Charms class with time to spare, taking out her wand and idly enchanting some parchment into fluttering origami dragonflies to pass the time.

Jared took a seat in DADA comfortably in the middle of the room. Not too close to the front, but not with the 'troublemakers' in the back, either. And Ravenclaw was not immune to troublemaking students; they just weren't as flashy as some of the other houses.

Rooney walked into defense with the other from her house trying to explain to Ann that no she couldn't see if what her score was going to be in the class. That that was not how being a seer worked. Rooney claimed a seat two rows from the front and on the left. Not too close that should a demonstration go wrong she was in the ' splash zone' but still closer to the front. Ann had decided to sit in the back, as she did in most of their classes. The room was quickly fulling up.




With out hesitation Morgan took the seat to Nem's right. He watched as her paper dragonflies fluttered around the room. Enchanting his own sheets into tiny origami swans he sent the small flock after hers. This was a trick her had picked up from hanging around her so much. It did prove to be amusing and a great way to entertain his younger cousins when they came over for holidays.

Jared glanced over when a Gryffindor girl sat in the seat next to him. The DADA room was small, so there were only five or six rows, so it didn't surprise him that the middle would fill first. The girl was familiar enough; after seven years, you kind of just knew all of your yearmates regardless of house. Absently, Jared pulled out his wand and conjured a simple bookmark to put into his book, and then closed the book. It was a Charms book, anyways, rather than his DADA book. Once the book was in his bag again, he pulled out parchment and a quill to take notes on the course outline. It would be useful when he made his study group schedule later.

Anemone grinned and flicked her wand again, quickly enchanting her dragonflies to cycle through rainbow colors. It was a trick she had learned how to do quickly; little enchantments like that were far more subtle than turning a desk into a pig and back again and besides, she'd been using them to amuse her father ever since she and her brother had turned seventeen at the beginning of the summer. She Vanished the paper dragonflies just as the professor came into the room, and slipped her wand up her sleeve innocently.

A pointed look from the professor had Morgan flicking his wand and ending the enchantment on the paper. Sending a mock glare at Nem who had escaped the professor's look he pulled out his charms book and some parchment for notes.He knew that he had to score high on his NEWTs to get into Aurora training. He hadn't cared much about his schooling in his earlier years, scored high enough that his parents never had to get on him.


Smiling at the Ravenclaw next to her, a boy who she knew she knew but couldn't place his face, Rooney took out her own quill and parchment.There were times that she really missed a good old pen and notebook. Rolling the quill between two fingers she let her mind wander.Last night had turned up nothing and she had been rushed back to the common room to great the first years so she had no time to stop and talk with the professor. Supporting her head with one hand the black haired Gryffindor girl began jotting down the reading she had down on the plan. Writing out the spread as well.

Anemone gave an impish grin and settled in for the class. She knew how to get away with things in Charms class, although she knew the professor probably knew what she did and just ignored it most of the time.

Jared was content to just take notes, but he was a little surprised when the professor broke them into pairs, saying that they would be in those pairs for the whole year. Apparently, they would be doing a lot of practical dueling work, and it worked best with set, stable partners. Jared was a little surprised to be paired with the Gryffindor girl next to him, but he supposed it was better than being paired with a troublemaker from the back row.

"I'm Jared," he introduced himself when they were paired up. "Jared Stone."

When the professor walked in Rooney snapped out of her musing. Pulling out a clean sheet of parchment she listened to Ann's voice from the back of the class room.Apparently she got paired off with one of the guys from their quidditch team.
Turning to her own partner she smiled"Rooney Dresden." She had heard of the stone twins. Violet, a Ravenclaw who hung out with her group of friends, had commented that the sister spending time in their common room.