Chapter 3

Whispers and murmurs filled the room, centered entirely on the Boy Who Lived. It seemed everyone knew he was to commence his magical learning at Hogwarts with the rest of the first years. Considering the front page of the Daily Prophet stated this, it was no surprise at all that each student knew. Harry yawned tiredly, his face resting on his left hand. He disregarded the blatant stares he was receiving from the females at the Ravenclaw table.

"Still sleeping, Harry? I would have thought you'd received adequate rest by now." Callista was seated next to him, clad in Ravenclaw robes, identical to his own. "You're okay, right?"

"Just a bit tired, that's all. I guess sleeping on the train wasn't enough for me," Harry yawned, discounting the squealing girls as he did so.

"Don't mind him, Callista. Potter is just lazy, he always has been. Why don't you just forget about him? He's no good to anyone." The haughty voice was from Roger Davies, who sat across from them. Each girl nearby glanced crossly at Roger.

Callista scowled irritably. "Mind your own business, Davies. Why do you have to butt in our conversations every time? And you know what, I never recall giving you permission to call me by my first name."

Hanging around with Daphne had converted Callista into an intimidating witch. Daphne continuously implored Callista into exploiting her temper, unleashing her fury as opposed to her gentle disposition. Also, Callista didn't care for Roger at all. Roger had always been envious of Harry, constantly referring to him as his nemesis and growing overly competitive in Quidditch tryouts, although he'd never made the team. But, Harry had never seen Roger as his competitor.

"Ignore him. He doesn't bother me at all." Harry situated his hand on Callista's own, squeezing it gently under the table.

Callista smiled, gently countering his squeeze. The reaction she got was another yawn and how callously her friend could reject her gestures. This irritated her more than anything and an angry vein popped in her forehead. Callista compressed Harry's hand between both of hers and squeezed very tightly. Harry snatched his hand back, rubbing it profusely.

"Bloody hell, woman! What the hell was that for?" The pain triggered Harry's memory, reminding him of Sheila's crushing hugs that so often left him gasping for air. Do all girls pack such strength?

"Well, now you're wide awake, aren't you?" Callista huffed. "Serves you right. And, mind your language, Harry, it's inappropriate."

"Geez... can't I ever get a break?"

Roger sent an irate glare to Harry, whose casual air bugged Roger considerably. He detested the fact that Harry Potter always ignored him. Not desiring to make a scene during the sorting ceremony, he did what anyone would, he moved to the end of the table, far away from Potter. And yet, Harry remained unaware of his departure. The grand door of the Great Hall opened, seizing everyone's attention, and Professor McGonagall led the first years in. Seeing the Scottish woman wordlessly place a four-legged stool in front of the first years, Harry drifted off to space, bored out of his mind.

His mind reverted to reality, a burst of applause erupted around him. He looked up to see patched, frayed and extremely dirty hat bowing to each of the four tables. Oh, that's the reason Harry had zoned off. Every year, without fail, the sorting hat's song bored Harry to death. As the transfiguration professor unrolled the scroll, Harry examined the first years idly. He caught sight of his little brother talking animatedly with the youngest male Weasley. The sorting commenced when Hannah Abbot's name was announced. As McGonagall positioned the hat on the girl's name, she was sorted into Hufflepuff. This process went on for several minutes and Harry sighed in boredom.

"Stop sighing at every person who gets sorted, Potter. Just shut up and clap your hands like everyone else." This emanated from Xi Li, Callista's friend and roommate. Like Daphne, her figure was slim and short, her eyes were dark as midnight, and her short, cropped navy hair was messy.

"Oh, have I irritated the infamous Li temper?"

Callista exhaled her breath noisily at her two house members, opting to pay them no heed and concentrate more on the sorting ceremony. It was just like Harry to deliberately infuriate Xi without any reason other than his own amusement.

Xi glowered at Harry. "Maybe Davies was right. You aren't any good to anyone."

Harry wasn't deterred by her glare. Daphne was much more of frightening figure when she was livid. A smirk graced Harry's lips once he spotted a young girl who looked eerily similar to Li in appearance. Pointing his finger, he asked Xi, "Is that your sister, Li? She looks a lot like you. She's starting this year, eh?"

"What of it, Potter?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing at all." Xi narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

Xi admitted to herself that Harry did look more handsome than in previous years, and she was stunned at the muscles peeking out of his shirt. Shaking her head, she felt her cheeks slightly hot. She focused her attention back to the ceremony once more, reproaching herself for such thoughts. Her careless act did not go unobserved by a pair of emerald eyes.

"Li, Su," McGonagall called, and to her sister's happiness, the young girl was sorted into Ravenclaw. Su eagerly rushed to her sister, timidly smiling at all the clapping. The timid smile died down as soon as Harry introduced himself to her with his best alluring smile. Su blushed heavily and looked down to her lap. Xi's enraged glare developed into a flush of embarrassment once he directed his smile to her. Here Harry thought the bad-tempered girl was familiar with his smile.

Harry ditched his game when a blond boy seized his interest. Harry recognized that boy from somewhere. He was the sole offspring of the Malfoy's. The Greengrass family was never fond of them on account of the first war. The head of the Malfoy family put an effort to turn them into servants of the Dark Lord, claiming that it was their duty as a pureblood family of great wealth. "SLYTHERIN!" the hat announced after barely touching the boy's head. Malfoy arrogantly swaggered over to the table to join his two friends, looking entirely too pleased with himself.

Instead of sighing, Harry snorted, setting his eyes back to the front. Typical for a Malfoy to be in Slytherin, they're more likely to sully the house than restoring it to its former glory. Daphne wasn't thrilled with this latest development. She couldn't easily forgive the Malfoy's for what they had done in the first war. The Malfoy's had caused the other families to be wary of the Greengrass. The sorting continued, and there weren't many kids left. "Moon," "Nott," "Parkinson," followed by a pair of twins, "Patil," and "Patil," then "Perks, Sally-Anne," and last, "Potter, Daniel!"

"So, that's your brother, Potter?" Xi reclaimed her seat back.

"Yes, it is," he confessed grudgingly.

"Well, he's nothing like you, that's for sure. You look more like your mother. He's scrawny, and those glasses are just... well, horrible! Why can't the Potters pick more stylish glasses? Honestly, there are plenty of other glasses that are much more suited for this day and age. Thank Merlin you don't have to wear any at all - it would definitely hide your good looks."

Harry's lips threatened to split into a grin at her words. "What are you saying, Li? That, I'm more handsome than the rest of the males? Is that it?"

"Are you daft, Potter? That's exactly what I'm saying." Her head bobbed firmly. Her face reddened once the words sunk in on her. "Wait... N-no, t-that's not it! I... You... Ugh! You tricked me, Potter! You'll pay for that!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

That wiped Harry's smile clean off his face. The cheers were louder than it had been all night. One Weasley, Percy the perfect err... Prefect, shook Daniel's hand vigorously and the Weasley twins chanted that they got Potter. Harry rolled his eyes. It wasn't like his brother was the only Potter in the Great Hall. Now, there were only four people left to sort. "Thomas, Dean," followed by "Turpin, Lisa." The youngest Weasley male was next, who, like Malfoy, undeniably abided to his family heritage and became a Gryffindor, joining Harry's brother. The sorting concluded with "Zabini, Blaise."

To Harry's astonishment, the girl smiled bashfully in his direction and procured a seat next to her sister. The Italian girl was one of the occupants in the train, and looked exactly like a miniature Barbara. Harry shook his head to clear his jumbled mind. The world is just getting more and more interesting by the day. Albus Dumbledore beamed at the students, his arms open wide, as if nothing could gratify him more than to see them all.

"Welcome," the headmaster said. "To a new year at Hogwarts. Now, please enjoy the banquet, all of you! Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"

Everyone clapped and cheered at the same time the food appeared. Famished, Harry loaded his plate. Eating elegantly, he savored the tasted of the delicious meals prepared by the house-elves. It was quite good, really good. Harry marveled why the Potters never had any elves. Not once had he stumbled across them in the Potter mansion. The Potters were one of the ancient and noble families. Logically, they should have had house-elves scurrying about the mansion. Harry shrugged inwardly. He didn't particularly care anyway. They probably just let the family handle their own home, bearing in mind that Lily was Muggleborn, and preferred to handle things the Muggle way.

When everyone had eaten to their fullest, the remains of the food faded from their plates and left them sparkling. Moments later, desserts materialized on the table, much to the delight of the first and second years. Harry was filled with pleasure at perceiving the many chocolate desserts and Callista stuffed her chuckles at his expression. It was no secret to the four girls that Harry loved chocolates. Slicing the enormous cake, Callista distributed it to Harry, who devoured the dessert. The girls reddened slightly as they caught sight of the bits of chocolate stuck to Harry's chin, so carelessly cute of him.

Callista chocked out a giggle, looking pointedly at the spot. She endeavored to cover her mouth with her napkin to limit herself from laughing too hard. It was futile. Harry noted Daphne's smirk at the Slytherin table and scowled at both girls, comprehending their meaning. Grabbing the napkin, he furiously wiped it off his face and continued eating his chocolate cake.

"Now that we are watered and fed, let us sing a song before we go to bed!"

The staff members' smiles had become rather permanent and several appeared to be force. "Before that, allow me to say a few words. First years, do take note that the forest on school grounds is forbidden to all students. I have also been asked by our caretaker Mr. Filch to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. And before my final announcement, I must ask all of you to take this very seriously. This year, the third floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone, unless you wish to face a most painful death. Everyone find their tune, now." Harry grunted, not looking forward to what would follow. "Off we go!"

Just like that, the whole school bellowed, singing the same song yet picking up at different times. The end of the song was trailed by the Weasley twins, as usual. They both slowed down their singing voices. Dumbledore's clap was the loudest after the song had concluded.

"Ah, music..." he said, wiping a stray tear from his eye."Now, then. Off you go. It's bedtime, so a very good night to everyone!"

Harry pursued Callista behind through the chattering crowd, oblivious to the giggling girls from other houses when he passed them by. Unenthusiastically, Harry dragged his legs in the direction of Ravenclaw tower, on the west side of the castle. People were still burbling excitedly about Daniel Potter. After a few days, the topic would be history and another would surface. Gossip came and went by in Hogwarts. The Ravenclaws came to a halt as they reached Ravenclaw tower. Harry failed to notice the Prefect lecturing the first years and proceeded straight to the bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle. It began to stir as Harry stepped up to it. "Get on with the riddle."

"At night they come without being fetched, and at day they disappear-"

"-without being stolen. The stars," Harry interjected briskly.

"Your intelligence always exceeds my riddles. Very well done."

It swung open, revealing the Ravenclaw common room, which was unlike any other House's. The midnight blue carpets were enchanted with stars underneath the silky blue tapestries. The room was a wide, airy circle with a domed ceiling covered in stars. The graceful, arched windows provided a spectacular view of the surrounding mountains. Filling the room were bookcases, tables, chairs, couches, and another door that led to the dormitories. Next to this door was a platform, upon which stood a statue of Rowena Ravenclaw wearing her diadem.

"Who's that?" Kevin Entwhistle asked, tone laced in admiration.

"He's handsome and smart too…" came Mandy Brocklehurst's feminine voice.

"I know his name. He's gentle, polite, and charming. He introduced himself to me when I sat with my sister. He said his name was Harry Potter," Su Li stated timidly, face flushing.

The prefect girl smiled at the children's wonder. "Yes, his name is Harry Potter, making him the brother of the Boy Who Lived. But they're both very different. He's our own star - the brightest member of our house. We Ravenclaws are fortunate to have him, since he is the pride of our house. He's the reason Ravenclaw has won the house cup and the Quidditch cup for three years straight. And, yes, he's quite fetching, isn't he?"

"Whoopee, looks like Potter's getting more fans," Xi grumbled, glowering at Harry. "I can't believe how quickly my sister has become smitten with you, Potter. If you hadn't introduced yourself to her back in the Great Hall, this would have never happened! So that's what you were planning, you sneaky bastard? You ought to have been put in Slytherin, not Ravenclaw!" She, then, continued in rapid-fire Chinese, complaining and insulting Harry in words he would never comprehend.

Harry merely flashed a smile of his own. "Come on, Li. I know how mad you are that I haven't been giving you much attention lately, and I'm sorry about that. Why don't you stop lying and just admit it? After that, what do you say to us spending a little time alone together in an isolated place and..." Harry trailed off, leaving the rest to her imagination.

"What?" Xi squeaked, blush crept up to her cheeks. She struggled for a moment to toss some insults in his way, but ultimately failed, and she darted towards the girl's dormitories.

"Harry, stop flirting, will you? It's growing to be a bad habit for you." Callista scowled in frustration, holding a book to her chest. "And, an annoyance for me."

Harry chose not to comment on the last part, terrified of what might happen to him if he did.

"But, it's fun..." The moment Callista threw him her signature look, he lifted his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay. I'll drop it, sheesh… Don't get your knickers in a twist. I think I'm going to bed."

"Good, you look exhausted. Just remember to wake up early for classes tomorrow."

Harry nodded his head wearily, feeling an incredible weight on his shoulders. "Goodnight, then..."

"Night, Harry," Callista offered softly.

Harry heard Penelope bid him a small "good night," and twisted his head to give her a brilliant smile, causing her face to burn red. Hearing Callista growl, Harry scampered off to the boy's dormitory. Ignoring his three roommates, he fumbled through his trunks for his pajamas. He closed the curtain of his four-poster bed and he plopped his body down upon the mattress.

"I don't know what's wrong with her, Padfoot." James Potter peered worriedly between the slight gap of the door.

"Maybe, she found out about your affair."

"What! I would never betray Lily, I love her too much to-"

"Easy, Prongs. I'm just trying to lighten the mood…" Sirius grinned mischievously.

"This is serious, Padfoot!" James hissed, not wishing to wake his sleeping wife.

"What you mean when you say 'serious' is not my name, 'Sirius,' correct?"

"Padfoot!" James warned. "You saw how she was! A complete mess when I got home... Thank Merlin, Rosaline was sleeping. Lily was clutching this photo really tight and crying hysterically, as if the whole wizarding world was about to meet its doom."

"Maybe you should take a look at that photo. That might give you a clue," Sirius advised solemnly.

"I tried, but she wouldn't let me see it. She threatened to hex my private parts and you know she's more creative than most when it comes to hexing."

Sirius burst out laughing. "Now that's the Lily I know!"

"Sirius, would you please focus on the job at hand? I'm really worried. She's been acting strange ever since Daniel left for Hogwarts. She keeps spacing out. D-do you think that's the reason?"

Sirius shrugged noncommittally. "You never know, James. Mothers can get awfully weird if it concerns their children. They have a special connection to each of them, seeing how they're the ones who gave their children life, and... Well, my mother is an exception, but maybe Lily just misses Daniel."

"Probably," James conceded uncertainly, although he disliked the way his heart was experiencing the same awful feelings as Lily's. Something was missing, James deduced. "But- but I don't know, Sirius. I feel like we're missing something here, something... I don't know! Just that, I don't like this feeling that I've done something I shouldn't have..."

Sirius clamped his hand on James' shoulder, squeezing it in support. "Look, I don't know what it's like to be a parent, but I do know that you need some rest right now. Your wife might need you more than you think. I have to go and meet Remus so we'll come by tomorrow to check on Lily." James nodded his head absently, not really listening to Sirius.

He entered the bedroom he shared with Lily and shut the door gently. Removing his glasses, he massaged the bridge of his noise. He placed the glasses back on and looked over the many albums scattered over the floor. Drawing his wand out, he cleaned up the mess and gazed back at his wife. She was crying silently on the bed, and his heart ached to see her so depressed. Even more saddening was that James didn't know the cause of it. He wasn't quite sure it was because of Daniel. His wife barely registered that Daniel was getting on the train earlier. Sighing at the frustrating lack of information, James resigned to comfort her instead of seeking out the reason.

15 September 1991

The second week in Hogwarts approached quickly and the biggest news in the castle was Harry's little brother. People leered at Daniel, often doubling back to watch him as he walked by. Words around Hogwarts were that Daniel was always seen with the Weasley boy, which didn't surprise Harry at all. Most students didn't ask Harry about his brother, probably out of fear. In previous years, any who had queried persistently him about it, usually ended up in the infirmary, much to Madam Pomfrey's disapproval. At least, they learned their lesson and fixed on dropping the matter.

After a few days, normal routine was restored to Hogwarts. The females learned to direct their attention to Daniel's brother, whom they realized was excellent in class, as the professors were bestowing more points upon him than any other student as they showered him with compliments, with the exception of Snape. The greasy bastard despised any person bearing the name Potter. Fortunately, Harry had inherited Lily's genius in potions and never lost house points in Snape's class, regardless of how much the professor pressured him. Harry brewed his potions calmly, smirking when the potions master blustered at the concoctions near perfection. His private lessons with Daphne in Potion, of course, aided him very much.

Harry had thought the man would have learned his lesson by now, but apparently Snape was incapable of maturing from his pettiness. Thankfully, though, the potions master was breathing down Harry's neck less frequently, as he had stumbled upon a new prey to torture. In the first week alone, Gryffindor house lost eighty points entirely, through Daniel Potter. Sheila complained each day about Snape's inequitable behavior and how unlucky it was for Gryffindor to house the Boy Who Lived. Snape had marked him like a hawk's prey. Daniel, for his part, relentlessly talked back to Snape, which only led to detentions. Everyone knew that talking back to Snape was a death wish.

Now, after two weeks of classes, the Quidditch trial was drawing near. Ravenclaw had booked the Quidditch field on Thursday for tryouts and as the day of the tryouts came closer, Harry's housemates were eager to participate. Harry was raring to go as well, though he refused to display the same silly excitement. He just slung his Nimbus 2000 over his shoulder and strolled across the pitch in his Quidditch uniform, Daphne by his side.

"I can't thank your parents enough for buying me this." Harry gestured to the broom.

"You've had that broom so long and it expired two years ago, Potter. When are you going to let it go?"

"Until I repay them."

Daphne scoffed. "It was a gift for your twelfth birthday, so suck on it. A gift, alright? Don't be so stubborn. You have to learn to forget the past. Gifts are meant to show people's gratitude and it was a way for my parents to show that they're grateful to know you."

"Grateful for knowing me?" Harry was in full disbelief.

"Yes," Daphne confirmed, tucking a strand of her blond hair behind her ear as the fierce wind assaulted them. "My parents are blessed at knowing you. It's a blessing to me too, Potter, and don't you forget it. Don't think your existence is pointless. If you do, I'll hex your brain out."

"You always know exactly what to say to me, huh?" Harry smiled, looking at her beautiful face.

"Toughen up, Potter. You'd lose without us by your side. You'd walk through life with no direction."

"I suppose so," Harry concurred softly. Silence conquered the air around them. Daphne stole a glance to her male companion, smiling a little at his handsome features, feeling the wind rush at them. It swayed their attire and ruffled their hair.

"Where are the other girls anyway? I thought for certain that Callista would be here with Regine to show their support. And Sheila... Well, that girl always makes up a reason to scout out her rivals or whatnot, and she never misses this," Harry voiced out in a slight morose tone. Daphne scowled in irritation at her friends' absences.

"I honestly don't know where they are at the moment," she said stiffly. Oh, those three would get an earful of shouting later on. Daphne would doubly ensure of that.

"Harry! Daphne!" The sound of their names being called out, had both fourth years to glance up.

"Where were you, Regine?" Daphne demanded.

Regine cringed visibly at that and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I'm late. I got hung up, helping Professor Sprout organize the greenhouse. I was lending her a hand, cleaning up the mess from the sixth year students' class."

"It's okay, Daphne. What matters is that she's here."

"Fine. Apology accepted. Now, where are Jonnet and Callista? They should be here by now."

"I thought I was the last person to arrive. They haven't arrived yet?" Regine asked in confusion.

Shaking his head, Harry kept on walking. The trials would commence in any minute now.

"I'll see you two later," Harry shouted over his shoulder. "Our captain doesn't react well to people being late."

That being said, both girls separated from him and walked to the Quidditch benches. Harry sighed, catching a wind of reproaching voice from Daphne. In spite of her closeness with the other girls, she was far too hard and strict on them. As Harry reached the middle of the Quidditch pitch, he came across a horde of people dressed in Quidditch attire. He wasn't too surprised to hit upon so many Ravenclaws attending for Quidditch tryouts. They could kiss their arses farewell if they were aiming to snatch his position as one of the main chasers.

Jeffery Barkain, a seventh year, extremely handsome student, captain and seeker of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, eyed Harry's late arrival in disapproval stern eyes. Harry shot the captain a bored look, standing behind a large batch of his housemates. He studiously ignored the competitive glare from Roger. He grunted when Jeffrey roared his welcome speech to all of the participants. Harry switched his attention elsewhere, to the stands, to locate his two friends among the crowd. It was somewhat uncommon for the Quidditch pitch to be filled with this many people.

His eyes took note of Regine and Daphne, who was reading a book she brought along with her. Typical for Daphne to read rather than focusing all of her attention to Quidditch. Regine met his gaze and she smiled, waving enthusiastically at him while mouthing 'good luck.' Harry's lips automatically curled into a smile. As he returned to his captain, his eyes snapped to attention, having caught a blur of blue hair next to a head of raven, spiky hair. He fluttered his eyes and swung both of it to the strange hairdos, eyes growing large. Both Sheila and Callista were advancing to the middle of the Quidditch field. What astonished him the most was that Callista was equipped in Quidditch gear, her right hand clutching a Nimbus 2000, identical to Harry's own broom. Harry recognized it to be Sheila's due to its red color.

20 September 1991.

"Sheila, what's this about? I have to meet Penelope in the library and you're delaying me right now." Callista attempted to beat a hasty exit, but her path was blocked by none other than Harry.

"Do you two have any idea what you've done!" Sheila said angrily, not heeding the students around her. She glared heatedly at the two girls in front of her. Her voice echoed all over the corridors. Harry threw a penetrate look at the students milling by. They cowered at the sight of him and hastened their pace. Extracting his wand out, he performed silencio around him and the three girls.

"What are you talking about, Jonnet?"

"Don't play dumb, you two! Do you have any idea what you've done?"

"Just get to the point, Jonnet! You're wasting my time here! I'm not deaf, so there's no need for you to repeat the same sentence twice! I don't want to be around a certain person right now," Daphne spat.

"Well, isn't that nice? What a coincidence. As a matter of fact, I don't want to be around a certain person either," Callista retorted.

"Watch it, or that tongue of yours won't be working for a long time. Don't forget how I taught you to duel and stood up for you whenever someone harassed you, or you got yourself in trouble."

Callista matched her glare. "I can show you that I don't need you watching my back anymore, Daphne. I'm not so helpless as to require people to attend to my needs. I could wipe you out anytime I want."

"Careful what you wish for, or that delusional desire of yours might be your greatest downfall."

"Want to bet?"

Both girls intensified their glares. They whipped their wands out, only to be disarmed by Harry. He glared furiously at them. The two girls were taken aback, never imagined that Harry would turn such kind of a look on any of them. "Do you even hear what you're saying? You both sounded ridiculous. When will this childishness end?" His patience for both girls was wearing thin.

"Exactly," Sheila affirmed. "It's been going on for five days now and it's all because of Quidditch? Why don't you use those intellectual brains of yours for once! Merlin, you two have been avoiding each other like a plague over something so stupid. What happened to you two? We aren't hanging out like we used to anymore…"

Callista and Daphne had been fighting each other for the past five days. They were both too livid of each other to remain in one room. Owning to both girls were evading each other, it resulted an effect to the entire group's friendship. It had started during the Quidditch trials. After Callista proved herself to be competent enough to get on the team, Daphne applied any means necessary to proscribe her from it, resorting to surreptitiously casting charms to give Callista a bad performance. By the end of the day, it was clear that Callista wouldn't be in the team.

Daphne was fueled with guilt when Callista spent the next day sulking, and opted to confess that Callista's bad performance had been her doing.

To say Callista had been angry was an understatement, she was beyond furious. She had an opportunity to be more than brains and Daphne had blown it all away. She didn't even care that Daphne had only done out of concern for Callista's health. Callista had yelled at the top of her lungs. Daphne, never fond of backing down from any argument, had raised her voice in the same manner to defend herself. Nevertheless, her protests were altogether dismissed by Callista. This led to a large quarrel wherein it resulted in both girls ignoring each other and refusing to be in the same room together.

"Oh, has the Gryffindor finally had some common sense?"

Sheila was flustered. "I'm here to set things right and repair our broken friendship, not to fight with you, Daphne."

"What's there to repair? I thought we made it quite clear that we're through."

"Callista, you don't mean that, do you?" Sheila pleaded, eyes glinting with sadness.

"If a certain Slytherin hadn't interfered my decision to join the team, then it wouldn't end up like this. Grow up, Sheila. None of us have expected this so-called beautiful friendship to last forever, don't we? It was a deluded thought, that's what that is."

"While I hate agreeing with you, it's true. Slytherin doesn't mix with the other houses. I was shunned by most members of my house because of it. Maybe that kind of thing should remain that way. I don't even know why I considered hanging out with you people in the first place. All of this was garbage to begin with, garbage that should have stayed in the rubbish bin and never been opened."

All three were stunned to hear this revelation. Daphne's eyes widened a little at her own words, but her jaws and eyes hardened. She faced away from the other girls. She didn't say anything as she moved to Harry, refusing to meet his emerald eyes despite how much she itched to do so. She merely acquired her wand from him and silently slithered away from them.

"She's right," Callista mumbled. "She's right. Never before have four houses united as one, especially if it would mean a Slytherin mixing with the other three houses. They watch their own backs. We are just a joke of the school, the five of us. This group should have never existed in the first place."

"What? Callista, you two are only arguing. It can't be that bad... I mean, what's important is the people, not the title, right? You said so yourself," Harry reasoned. Callista shook her head sadly, taking her wand from Harry and hurried her feet to the Ravenclaw common room.

"I never thought of that before," Sheila said, her enthusiasm gone.

"Not you too, Sheila..."

"Think about it, Harry. For once, I need to grow up. Gryffindor and Slytherin don't mix with one another, not even with a Ravenclaw. That's where all the braniacs assemble together, and it's not exactly compatible with the Gryffindors, who never use their brains since they're too impulsive. I should never have mixed with all of you. I was naïve, I always have been. Maybe this time… I should just stay with my own housemates." Sheila looked at Harry sadly. "I remember I was harassed by my housemates for hanging out with a Slytherin in my second year, but you made those people stop. I didn't understand why my housemates didn't like Slytherin. I thought that as long as I was with you guys, nothing else matters… Now, I understand that birds stick to their nests, and we stick to our houses. It's been that way ever since Hogwarts was built, that's what the house cup is for, right? And you know, it's because I hang out with you guys that my housemates don't trust me. They think I give our secret house information to the other houses." She chuckled humorlessly. "I'm sorry, Harry, but this is goodbye."

"Sheila, wait!" She sprinted off, leaving Harry by himself.

By mistake, Harry saw Regine hovering outside on the school grounds. She had been observing it the whole time. Harry was about to say something, but the girl clutched her books tightly to her chest and took off in the opposite direction. If he knew Regine half as well as he would like to believe he did, then she would blame herself for this, whether it was her fault or not. Harry blew out a heavy sigh. What had gone wrong? One tiny argument had severed all the friendship they had shared. Harry didn't care about some stupid rules or house rivalries. All he cared about were the girls. Without them, he would be lonely again, and that kind of loneliness was something he didn't have any desire to go through anymore.

He thought angrily that this only verified of how much pleasure fate took in twisting people's precious lives.

1 October 1991.

Daphne plopped down on her bed, staring at an old photo. A picture of four girls encircling a young Harry, was taken at the end of their first year. She hugged her feet to her chest and gazed ahead, lost in her thoughts. The curtain of her four-poster bed was seal securely, banning anyone from seeing her in such state. She couldn't believe she had said such unpleasant things to her friends, the same friends that had stood faithfully by her side for three long years. How could she blurt out something so recklessly without thinking? Sheila must have really been rubbing her the wrong way.

Chuckling soundlessly, she gracefully stretched her body across the bed, laying her head gently on the pillow. The back of her right hand rested across her eyes. Gnashing her teeth together, she tightened her grip on the photo, so cross with herself.

One simple, inconsequential argument between her and Callista had brought everything to an end. She hadn't heard anything from her former best friends for eleven long, lonely days. To think she shoved away the people she shared everything with was unbearable, and it was all her fault. She had only been concerned for Callista's health. She genuinely believed that the way Harry played Quidditch sometimes, was not at all a tremendous spectacle, given how easily he could injure himself. She grimaced at the thought of Callista going through all that. Of the three girls, Daphne was most close to Callista. She was willing to share every emotion she felt and every secret she harbored with Callista, they had so much in common. It was true, of course, that all three of them were her best friends, but if it was a matter of closeness, she would have select Callista.

Now they don't even talk anymore, and worse, Daphne had ruined their friendship. Daphne wouldn't be flabbergasted if Sheila never spoke to her again. Recollecting the way Harry had treated her in the last eleven days, it pierced her heart in the most painful way. What she feared most was Harry becoming a stranger to her. He had already done so the last time he'd seen her. He had given her a cold shoulder and didn't acknowledge her presence as they passed each other in the corridor. He probably blamed her, and she knew he would never forgive her for this.

Why couldn't she ever just swallow her pride? Callista had every right to be mad at her. If she hadn't meddled with Callista's personal business, none of this would have transpired in the first place. The one thing Daphne abhorred the most in the world was being lonely. And now, she was compelled to wear the same mask she had in her first year, faking her emotions because no one understood. She loathed every second of it.

Out of the blue, a small burst of fire flared into the cramped, stale air inside the four-poster bed. Daphne jolted upright. The fire abruptly died out and a single piece of parchment occupied in its place, hovering in the air. She snatched the parchment and inspected it, flipping it over. Her eyes tracked every word written on it, heart soaring as she recognized Callista's handwriting. Callista fancy meeting Daphne this afternoon at their usual spot by the lake. Little by little, the parchment fell from Daphne's hands, her grip slackened on it. This was her chance to repair their friendship. Her eyes hardened in motivation, bobbing her head confidently at the objective set before her. Opening the curtain briskly, she strode to the bathroom to freshen up.

If only Daphne knew the true, strange nature of the grand arrival of the parchment.

Callista was proud of her intelligence and never boasted about it. She had never been one to get conceited over the abilities she possessed. The only person that could give her a run for her money in the intelligence department was Harry Potter. For eternity, she was placed as second best when it came to her yearly studies. Of course, as exams loomed nearer, she became more and more competitive, studying fiercely day and night, with the sole purpose of knocking Harry right off of his 'Number One' pedestal. And yet, always, she was incapable of beating him.

Nibbling her bottom lip, she brooded over Harry. They hadn't talked for eleven days. Her mood dampened even further as soon as her mind waltzed over to Daphne. How could she have been mad at Daphne for caring about her health? This was all Callista's fault. All of it. She should have discussed her decision with Daphne and the others first, instead of just Sheila. How selfish she had been to confide only in Sheila, in the hopes that Sheila could train her and offer some much-needed pointers. If only she had informed the others of her choice as well, then none of this would have ensued in the first place.

She slammed her book shut, incapable of reading a single line from it. She surveyed the library around her, finding empty seats where her friends should have been. The last eleven days had been straight out of a horror story. She couldn't concentrate on her lessons, what with her mind constantly whirling back to the argument. No longer had Harry saved a seat for her, not in class, the main hall, or even the common room. What was worse was he no longer spoke to her. Her heart ached more each time he avoided her.

This whole thing was her fault, so of course Harry blamed her for damaging their friendship. She should have known of how much Harry cherished her and the other girls' friendships. He had spent most of his life wallowing in loneliness. Come to think of it, so had Daphne, although not due to any problems with her family. All Callista knew was that before they met, Daphne was lonely in the big castle of Hogwarts. She found it impossible to be social with anyone who didn't understand her. And now, Callista was left yearning desperately for their presence. She missed Sheila's enthusiasm, Harry's laziness, and Daphne's sarcasm.

Callista moaned depressingly. She dropped her forehead to her arms, folded on the table. She was murmuring to herself again and again of how brainless she can be. A bright witch in the class, her arse. When it related to friendship, Callista was an idiot of epic proportions. As she mourned this self-declared loss of intelligence, a burst of fire startled Callista, the same as Daphne. She straightened her back up, watching the blue fire with wary curiosity. The blue fire disintegrated before her eyes, leaving behind a single piece of parchment resting on the table.

Hesitantly, Callista retrieved the parchment and tried to decipher the writings, which she realized with wide eyes, belonged to Daphne. Daphne wished to meet her later this afternoon, by their usual spot at the lake. Smiling a little, Callista told herself that this was the opportunity she needed to mend her friendship with Daphne and the rest of them. Stuffing the parchment in her bag, she gathered her books to leave the library, hoping beyond hope that all would go accordingly.

Callista failed, just as Daphne had been, to notice the strange arrival of the parchment.

Elsewhere, Sheila lazed about in the Gryffindor common room, sitting on the large sofa near the fireplace. She stared blankly and glumly at the crackling fire, ignoring the few other students lounging around her. She wasn't in the mood to converse with any of them right now. Merlin forbid them asking her to participate in some kind of activity. She had lost her enthusiasm over the past eleven days, simply as if it was just some organ she had puked up in disgust at herself, and flushed it down in the toilet. Her Gryffindor friends were more concerned of her with each passing day. She heaved a sad sigh and her mind wandered back to her former best friends.

At this time of hour, they were normally hanging out together, laughing and teasing one another. Now look where they were, all of them up settled on never speaking to one another again. Sheila idiotically went along with it. What had gone wrong? In the previous years, she had been proud of her best friends. She had defended them vehemently, hexing those who insulted them, not caring if she got a detention for it. Admittedly, she hexed first before standing up for them. Such admirable loyalty would rival a Hufflepuff's. Helga would have killed herself to get her hands on Sheila. Sheila chuckled sorrowfully at the humor, only Daphne would have joked about something like that, and her tone would be positively dripping in sarcasm.

She ran a hand through her spiky hair, sighing. If only she hadn't agreed to train Callista in secret then none of this would have happened. At the very least, she should have prevented their argument from escalating. How useless of her. Not only did she fail to maintain their friendship, she had done nothing to avert it from shattering. Instead, she had admitted defeat, and give up entirely on the matter. She was completely hopeless to her friends. All this was her fault, yes, her fault. She had been the key to thwarting that awful disaster, and look where it had dragged her. That's right, she was to blame for tossing their friendship away so effortlessly, without putting up a fight. Because of what? House rivalry? Because her brain couldn't even compare to Daphne and Callista's? What a stupid reason.

She wondered if Harry would ever forgive her for this. Even if she was naive, she wasn't so naive as to not know how lonely he was because of how his family treated him. Their friendship was the only thing Harry had, and Sheila, who was supposed to be the most hopeful person in the group, had forsaken it. She recalled how he had refused to throw even a single glance in her direction when they met yesterday. Picturing his anger directed at her was something she couldn't face, let alone endure.

Sheila dropped her head into her right palm, thinking those words she'd spoken to Harry were right up there on that list of the most foolish things she had done in her life. She cried over how painful it was to remember the casual way in which Harry snubbed her whenever she neared him. When a burst of blue fire interrupted her, she clamped her hands over her mouth to stifle a scream. As with the other two girls, a single piece of parchment fell to her lap. Wiping her tears on the sleeve of her school robe, she picked up the parchment, eyes scrutinizing every piece of it. A smile crept across her lips. It had been sent by Daphne and Callista, a request.

Evidently, they fancy meeting her this afternoon, by their usual spot by the lake. She whipped her head from left to right, checking to see that no one was watching. Stuffing the parchment inside her robes, she stood and skipped from the common room. It was time to set things right.

How very typical for Sheila to overlook anything strange.

Regine Barberis wondered to herself if she had ever been suited in any place.

She wondered whether she belonged to Hufflepuff, or any other house, for that matter. One time, she had voiced the matter under the consideration of her head of house. Professor Sprout wholeheartedly disagreed with her, frowning as Regine confessed that she didn't belong to her house. The professor informed her she possessed every Hufflepuff trait there was. Loyalty, fairness, and her most valuable trait, hard work. Even so, this did nothing to elevate her sadness in Hufflepuff. Sitting in the library, she observed Callista entering. She had to restrain her body from moving toward her friend, refusing to submit to the temptation. She sighed in resignation as a group of first years chuckled silently at some joke or another.

She wondered if she had ever even deserved to have friends.

During her first year, she had been thrilled at the prospect of new friends. Gradually, others begun to isolate themselves from her. Hufflepuff was famous for their solidarity, and yet not a single student among them had been her true friend. Sure, on some occasions she had chatted to others, like that Cedric Diggory guy, but they weren't her friends. Regine was lonely. Ironic, really, how she was re-experiencing her childhood. Nobody liked her. Why? Was it because of her competitive nature? Or was it her existence that seemed to get everyone in such a tizzy?

From the moment she first heard of Hogwarts, she had thought of the place as the cure to her loneliness. All of that had ended up to be worthless dream. After meeting Harry by accident, her life had turned upside down. He was her hero. Through Harry, Regine was friends with the other girls. In due time, they became her best friends, and she was no longer alone in her days at Hogwarts. Each of them hailed from different houses, and being friends with each other fractured the whole idea of houses. They were the first group containing house unity, a fact that attracted many problems from the other less welcoming members of their houses.

These problems were swiftly solved by Harry, who trashed every single one of them - Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuff alike.

When he was made aware of the girls had been harassed by the upper years, he was furious. And when Harry Potter was angry, he was a frightening figure. History was created that year as the infirmary filled with people suffering from severe bruises inflicted upon their bodies and faces. What impressed everyone greatly at the time was the way he did it without using a wand, preferring instead the old-fashioned punch-and-kick. He paid for it dearly, however, with two whole months of detention and seventy points deducted from Ravenclaw. Now that she thought about it, Harry had broken free from his detentions and earned every last point back. How he did it, she had no idea. She supposed it was one of the reasons why he wasn't so popular with the males.

Regardless, he managed to resurface as his hero once again. Fumbling in the pocket of her robe, she extracted a photo. She sadly watched the motion picture - the same picture Daphne held - of a friendship that was no longer there. Her slender finger traced each face in the photo, loitering on Harry's. They weren't friends anymore because of her. If she hadn't accepted their friendship in the first place, then none of this would have occurred. She brought bad luck everywhere she went, she knew that. Her presence among them had caused a rift in their friendship. She recalled the way she had been doubtful at first. She had been sure that they would soon grow to dislike her, and she would become a burden.

Oh, right. She had. It was because of her they were breaking apart.

Tears welled in her yellow-gold eyes. She knew in her heart that she was in their way. Clutching the photo, she slunk it in the many pages of the thickest book she could access. She closed the book firmly. Standing up brusquely, she left it behind, never sparing it so much as a final glance. She ignored the looks from others and scurried from the library, walking aimlessly with no place in mind. Before she realized where she was heading, she found herself stranded at the large tree by the Great Lake.

She smiled. What a memorable place at Hogwarts.

She glided to the other side of the tree, craving for the view of the Great Lake. She sat on a large boulder and watched the water glisten under the sun, reflecting its light. She sighed in contentment, embracing the fierce rush of wind. For a long while, nothing disturbed the tranquility around her, and unexpectedly, a red owl perched on Regine's shoulder. She promptly whipped her head to the owl. Large, yellow eyes stared into Regine's as it hooted.

"Hey, girl. You got a message for me?" The owl shook its head as if it understood her words.

From the time Regine had been a child, she possessed the strange ability to interpret the meaning behind the movements and expressions that the animals made. Strangely, they responded likewise, apparently understanding her as well. She believed she was given this gift as a consequence of her loneliness, her lack of human companions causing her to seek other creatures to fill that morose emptiness inside her. That was the reason why she was so compassionate in studying magical creatures. It was this ability that hindered Mrs. Norris from reporting her to Filch whenever she felt like taking a stroll around Hogwarts late at night. In fact, the cat often accompanied her. Regine was fond of the cat, and was stumped why the other students thought of Mrs. Norris as nothing more than trouble. To her, Mrs. Norris was a harmless cat.

"Oh? Then what are you doing here?" The owl tilted its head. "Worried about me, are you?"

"Hoot!"

"Don't be. I'm fine… I just…" Regine swiveled her eyes back to the lake. "I don't know, girl... This is my fault. All of it... If I had never become friends with them in the first place, then their friendship wouldn't be destroyed right now. It's all because of me that they're not talking to each other. I-I bring people bad luck, that's it. Maybe, I'm better off by myself. I've been alone my whole life, so I'll be fine... A-as long as... as long as I'm far away from them, they'll go back to being friends again, right, girl? What matters is their happiness, not mine. I'll be fine. Because of them, I've finally grasped the concept of friendship. Now, it's time to return the favor. What do you think? Am I doing the right thing?" She transferred her attention to her owl, only to discover it was no longer there. "Girl? Girl, where have you gone off to? Ahh!" As soon as she rose to her feet, she was tackled to the ground by an unknown figure. Body lay against the thick lush, green grass, she peeked an eye and all she could discern was raven hair. "Sh-Sheila?"

Sheila lifted her head, stray tears on both her cheeks. "Regine, what do you mean by your fault? It was never your fault." The voice came not from Sheila, but Callista. Regine locked eyes with Callista, whose eyes were puffy red from crying. Her books lay forgotten on the grass, neglecting her beloved books, for once.

"I... I..."

"It wasn't your fault," soft voice interjected. Regine rotated her head to see a distraught Daphne kneeling beside her. Regine's eyes widened, seeing as she had never encountered a crying Daphne. Never had Regine witnessed tears trickling down the cheeks of the gorgeous blond, as they were now. "Don't say it was your fault... It wasn't. It wasn't, alright?"

Regine struggled to sit upright. "B-but I... it was my fault! How could you say it wasn't? If I h-hadn't met you girls then this - this wouldn't have happened! I-I..." Regine could maintain her composure no longer and her eyes became swamped by the ensuing sobs.

Daphne, not trusting her own voice, hugged Regine from the left. Callista, not wishing to be left out, rushed to hug Regine on the right. All three girls were appalled by how quickly they had forgotten how such a situation would affect Regine. She was as lonely as Harry. No words were spoken, no words were needed.

"It was my fault, actually..." Daphne whispered, ending the hug.

"No, it was mine! If I hadn't given up on your guys, then we wouldn't have to go through this!" Tears burst dramatically from her eyes and she assaulted Regine with another hug. "Now look what I've done! Regine blames herself when it wasn't her fault at all!"

"Must you be this noisy, Gryffindor!" Daphne cringed, covering her sensitive ears. When Sheila resumed her wailing into Regine's shoulder, it was the last straw for Daphne. "Shut up, Jonnet! If you don't shut it right now, I'll glue your lips together and you'll never be able to use that big mouth of yours again!"

Sheila stopped right away. "Just what I'd expect from a snake. Right in the middle of a charming reunion, she starts bossing me around. Well, I won't."

She childishly stuck her tongue out. Daphne, not fancying being outdone by her friend, stuck her tongue out just the same. The other two girls chuckled vaguely, before it transformed into a full blown loud laughter. It was so contagious that Daphne had to burst into a fit of laughter, suppressing it with the back of her hand, and Sheila gleefully joined in.

Callista gradually subsided. "The truth is, all of this happened because of me. If I had informed all of you that I was joining the team in the first place, we might have been talking in the last eleven days… I'm sorry for breaking our friendship. I'm so stupid."

"No one else can take the blame for this," Daphne announced with a scowl. "Didn't I admit it was my fault? If I hadn't intercepted Callista's decision then none of this would have taken place, ever. I should know better than to intrude in other people's choices. The fault is all mine."

"What? Oh no, you're not stealing this one from me! I should be the one to take the blame. I was the one who forsaken our friendship, throwing it away like it wasn't important. So don't say any of this is your fault, because it's mine! And I won't take 'no' for an answer." This launched the girls into a lengthy argument over whose fault it was. Regine frowned, weakly trying to placate them down.

"I'd say it was mine, but I can't come up with any reasons to take the blame, so I guess I'm clean, huh?" A new voice triggered the girls to terminate their argument instantly. Four pairs of ears perked up at the familiar tone and their hearts leapt to their throat. Frantically, they rose from the ground and searched for the speaker. "Up here, in the tree."

All four hoisted their heads to the sky. There, up on a branch, Harry Potter was leaning his back against the thick trunk of the huge tree. He gracefully jumped down from the tree. Feet on the ground, he dusted the dirt off his robes and approached the girls with a mischievous glint in his eyes. The girls tried to speak, but found it was very hard to. To Sheila's own frustration, not even her. Rummaging his robe for something, Harry handed an old familiar-looking photo to Regine.

"I believe this belongs to you." Tearing her gaze from those deep emerald eyes of his, Regine's trembling hands grip on the photo. She smiled at the photo before redirecting her teary smile to Harry, launching herself at him with a hug. Harry returned the gesture in full of awkwardness, still unease to being touched. Sheila grinned and involved herself in it, hauling Callista and Daphne in to form a group hug. "Okay... I'm pretty sure I'm the luckiest bloke around. I mean, how many guys would kill to switch places with me right about now, getting hugged by four attractive girls at the same time." Harry cleared his throat, blushing. The girls weren't listening to him. "Alright, that's enough. Can you let me go now, please? Four of you at once is plain uncomfortable."

It was true. Regine embraced him around the front, Daphne and Callista by his sides, and Sheila from behind. Their hugs were rather intimate, too, and their developing chests were mashed against him. Harry prayed to whatever deity that the girls wouldn't detect his member was stirring down below. Any guy would feel uncomfortable in this kind of position. Who wouldn't? The girls reluctantly separated themselves from Harry. The male puffed out a heavy sigh of relief, controlling his raging hormones and his hot face in check.

"I thought you were mad at me, Harry," Callista spoke in a soft tone.

"So did I..." Daphne murmured.

"Me, too!"

"If I was angry at you three, I wouldn't have busted my arse sending those pieces of parchment to you." By their staggering looks, Harry suspected they finally understood.

"What parchment?" The other girls soundlessly supplied their parchment to Regine.

"Oh, this... this is impressive, Harry. You managed to copy Daphne and Callista's handwriting?"

"Are you nuts? There's no way I could copy anyone's handwriting, not with ink and a quill. Only people who have lost their grip on sanity can pull off something like that. That's where magic comes in handy, Regine. I had to schlep through all sorts of books to find a charm that can alter your handwriting to imitate someone else's," he said the last part in a tone of annoyance.

"So, you went through all that because you missed us?" Regine concluded with a grin.

"Well, well, what do you know? Even the mighty Harry Potter has a heart." Daphne smirked. "Did you really miss us that much, Potter?"

"No, not really." Harry shrugged his shoulders carelessly and all four girls were taken aback.

"You didn't miss us one bit?" Callista asked, horrified.

"Nope... Actually, I've been pretty busy these days. I found some other... companions while you girls weren't around..." Harry treaded the words in a great care.

"What do you mean!" Sheila exclaimed. She couldn't believe what she was hearing and she wasn't the only person in a state of disbelief. The other three girls were also shocked by his statement. They had already been replaced by someone else?

Harry blinked, tilting his head and narrowed his eyes towards Hogwarts. The girls followed his gaze in bewilderment. Suddenly, with a whoosh of wind passing by them, they watched Harry Potter ran towards another girl. "Li!" Harry giddily waved his right hand at the girl.

The girl's eyes fluttered at the sound of her name. As she realized who it was, her face heated. "S-st-st-ay away from me, Potter!" she stammered, dashing away from him.

"Li, where are you going? I thought we were going to spend some time together!"

"I told you to stay away from me, Potter! Stay away! Are you deaf or something?" Xi cried out. "Damn it! Stop following me everywhere I go!"

"Well, that's a bit of a disappointment," Harry muttered, watching the Asian girl run. He transferred his gaze to a new prey, an Italian girl named Barbara. She walking by, accompanied by her two friends. Harry rushed over to her. "Zabini!"

The three girls abruptly halted in their tracks. "P-P-Potter, w-what do you want?" Barbara's cheeks flamed at having him eying her up and down with increasing lust.

"What can I say, your beauty is what draws me in. I just couldn't resist." The girl blushed harder at his words. "So, Zabini, there's a trip to Hogsmeade this weekend. Want to go?"

"Y-you're asking me to go with you, Potter?" Incredulity was written all over her face.

"Of course, why wouldn't I? You could bring along your two friends, as well. I don't mind being hogged by three girls. What say you?"

Who cared if she had to share him with the others? Barbara was not going to miss this opportunity. She was poised to answer him when the temperature around them plummeted. She quivered fearfully, eyes frozen over Harry's shoulder. "Sorry, Potter. Maybe some other time," she said hastily, yanking her two friends away in a mad escape. Harry scrunched his forehead at this, puzzled.

"Harry Potter." The sound of Callista's acidic tone had Harry straightening his back.

"You've been flirting around, haven't you?" came Regine's voice.

Gulping, Harry reeled around. "N-not likely..." He cursed himself for the stutter.

"So that's what you meant by 'company,' eh, Harry?" Sheila said sweetly, fury evident in her eyes.

"Sort of."

"How many?" Daphne said in a low voice.

"U-um, not many..."

"How many, Harry Potter?" the four of them chorused.

Harry backed away, his face pensive. "Don't know, I lost count. Though, there's this one time I flirted - I mean, talked- talked! with the head girl for a little while. You girls should've seen her face, it was all red-"

That was the last nail of Harry's coffin, causing Diffindo, a severing charm, to zoom his way.

He ducked his head to avoid the spell that almost cut his head clean off. Dodging another spell, Harry sprinted away from the girls, heading for the forest. He jumped to his right as another spell sped his way, one he didn't know. Watching where the spell hit as he ran for his life, he saw one of the many trees burst into flames. That was definitely from Daphne. Were they trying to kill him, or what? His lips instinctively curled into a smirk, as this indicated the matter had been resolved. It had taken quite a bit of time, but ultimately everything had gotten back to normal.

He had to thank Merlin for teaching him the spell that sent messages to anyone he wished. It merely required him to utter the right incarnation, followed by the person's name. One thing for certain, you had to love ancient spells. It was similar to owling, but faster, more or less instantaneous. He believed it was a waste of time during the summer, but it had finally proven its use to him. Yelping as another spell struck the tree beside him, he increased his pace. Right now, he really needed to survive. Seriously, mental note to self - seek the answer to this problem from Merlin. How do you handle four beautiful, furious girls?

31 October 1991.

After that horrid incident, things generally returned to normal. The girls became inseparable and Harry realized the incident must have dealt a huge blow to each of them. At the very least, it had dealt one to Harry. Who knew that without his friends, his life lacked the appeal they brought, not to mention how lonely he would be without them. He was immensely pleased that everything had gone back to the way it was. He still managed to find at least one time a day to spend time with the girls, despite his rigorous schedule of classes and Quidditch practice. Damn his captain, Jeffery Barkain! He's demanding as ever!

Halloween is just around the corner and it's by far Harry's least favorite holiday.

Glancing up, a thousand bats aggressively flapped their wings under the ceiling, above the other thousand bats that were swooping over the tables in black clouds. The wind caused the candles resting in jack-o-lanterns to flutter violently. Grumbling, Harry plopped his head into his right palm to inspect the decorations tediously. Oh, how he hates Halloween. Even the girls could see that it was going to be a very awkward day for them. Callista tittered nervously when Harry stuffed the baked potatoes down his throat furiously.

Without any sign of warning, Quirrell came racing into the Great Hall with his bizarre, smelly turban wrapped tightly around his head. His face was ashen white, as if the vampires he so desperately feared had come for him at long last. Inelegantly munching his food, Harry studied the man's movement as Quirrell reached Dumbledore, slumping over the table and breathing heavily.

He inhaled a rather large gulp of air before gasping out a breathy sentence, "Trolls... In the dungeons... Thought everybody would like to know..." And just like that, he fainted.

Chaos overtook the hall while Harry whistled in astonishment. Now that's not something you hear everyday. How the heck had a troll gotten into the castle? A troll? A bloody troll with a mindless little brain? If Harry had to guess, someone must have lead the beast in. Why must he waste so much time thinking for nothing? This didn't concern him at all. Why should he care? Shrugging his shoulders offhandedly, he helped himself to another load of baked potatoes, completely ignoring the chaos around him. Nothing could be done until the students around him calmed down, but not even the fireworks set off by the professors did anything to bring silence. It was only when Dumbledore hollered that silence finally fell over the hall.

"Prefects!" Dumbledore bellowed. "Lead your houses back to their common rooms!"

"Didn't Quirrell just mentioned it to us that the troll is somewhere in the dungeon?"

Callista's expression turned to worry and she peered at the Slytherin table to find Daphne's anxious face.

"Harry, we should tell the professors." Folding his arms together, Harry shut his eyes mildly and took a huge breath. "Harry! This is not the time to act calm!"

When Harry didn't respond, Callista ditched him with a rare scowl on her face and sped over to the professors' table. Meanwhile, Harry focused intently. A single bead of sweat streamed down his face. Knitting his eyebrows together, he tried very hard to sense where the troll was. That was one thing the old man had taught him. If you descend into a blissful meditation, you may able to sense other magical beings within a close range. It was very hard to master this specific technique, and had in fact taken Harry a month to do so. Every magical creature had a magical core which kept their life force sustainable. So Harry could use the troll's magical core to locate the beast. Harry sensed Hogwarts' own magical core, as well as the cores belonging to the students and professors. Dumbledore's magical core was the largest, without a doubt.

Then, strangely, Harry sensed two magical cores in Quirrell. Weird. That was just like his little brother. Harry scowled, that had nothing to do with the task at hand. The most surprising, however, was the Forbidden Corridor on the third floor. It held one of the largest magical cores in the castle, there was some kind of Cerberus guarding it. Harry had some fuzzy feelings gurgling inside him about the owner of that Cerberus. Veins sketched over his forehead as he sensed a larger one, a dark magical core on the seventh floor, giving him a real headache. Whatever it was, though, it wasn't his concern. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he concentrated on his objective. He grimaced when he discovered the troll. Out of all magical creatures, Harry abhorred the troll's magic. He snapped his eyes open, his breath labored.

"It's on the third floor, heading towards the girl's bathroom. Daphne will be fine, although there's another girl in that area..." Harry mumbled to himself, sighing lazily at the obligation to rescue her before him. Why was she there in the first place, anyway?

By pure luck, Harry caught his brother looking guiltily and longingly at the door. Little by little, a scowl worked its way across Harry's face. His brother knew something. Standing abruptly, Harry glided to his brother, avoiding the crowds. Percy Weasley was then completely in his element, ordered the first year to follow him. Not wanting to lose them, Harry trailed behind clandestinely. Harry sensed an opportunity when his brother became lost in his own thoughts, lagging behind his housemates. Harry grabbed the collar of his brother's shirt and clamped his hand over Daniel's mouth to stifle his scream. Yanking his small body away from the others, Harry hauled Daniel to the corner of the corridor.

"What did you do, brat?" Harry asked, shoving his brother into the wall.

"H-H-Harry! I-I haven't seen you in a while," Daniel stammered, so shocked to see his brother.

It was true. Ever since Daniel had arrived at Hogwarts, he and his brother hadn't exchanged a single word. Of course, he knew how many people talked about Harry. Mainly girls. Everywhere he went in the castle, someone was talking about Harry Potter. He hadn't known his brother was that popular at Hogwarts.

"Enough with the pleasantries. You know something that the others don't. I want to know what you've done now."

"What makes you think I did something?" Daniel snarled. "Is this how you treat the sibling you haven't spoken to in ages? Accuse him?"

"The only sibling I have goes by the name Rosaline Potter. Read my lips and open your ears - Rosaline Potter. There is no Daniel Potter in there," Harry countered, matching Daniel's tone.

Daniel was gob-smacked by the statement. He had known that he and Harry weren't that close, but for his brother to declare that they weren't even siblings caused a nauseating feeling in the pit of Daniel's stomach. Seeing that his brother had submerged into one of his daydreams, Harry grabbed the little boy's body and shoved him roughly against the wall a second time. Daniel winced in pain, his brother was just as strong as the rumors indicated.

"Stop changing the subject. What did you do? I saw you swallowing your guilt back in the Great Hall, so spit it out, brat."

This time Daniel answered stringently, defending himself, "It wasn't me! It was Ron! Ron said something horrible to Hermione. She wasn't supposed to hear it, but she did, okay? I didn't do it, I swear. I'm just worried about her. She didn't come to class and I didn't see her in the Great Hall, either. I was about to search for her, myself. She doesn't know there's a troll in the castle, nobody warned her..."

Gradually, Harry slackened his grip on his brother's shoulders. "Okay... go, then. What are you waiting for?"

"Parvati - a first year like me - said Hermione was in the girl's bathroom, crying. I'll go check there," Daniel said solemnly, already running in that direction.

Harry stood in disbelief. This was the first time he had ever seen his brother be so... so.. well, so damn noble. When Harry thought about it, though, he never had gotten to know his brother personally, had he? Pursing his lips, he shoved both his hands into his robe pockets. All this time he had assumed he knew his brother, just from the way he had judged him from afar. Harry would see if he was as noble as his actions suggested. Perhaps it was just an act.

"Effingo abl invisibilium," Harry muttered the incantation.

He was very much aware of his body becoming invisible to everyone's eyes but his own. This was probably the spell Harry had found most useful over the summer. Mischievous ideas had immediately popped into his mind when Merlin told him about it. It was the same as having an invisibility cloak, except that his movements were completely free and unrestricted by having to wear a cloak. Shaking his head, Harry casually walked behind his brother.

"Daniel, mate, there you are! I've been wondering where you were. I snuck out when Percy wasn't looking." Harry restrained a grunt as the Weasley boy suddenly appeared. Harry may have been invisible to them, but that didn't change the fact that they could hear, smell, or touch him. Face-palming at his own stupidity, he cast silencio around him.

"Ron, that's not important. It's Hermione."

"What about her?"

"She doesn't know about the troll!"

Ron bit his bottom lip uncertainly.

"Oh, fine," he snapped. "But Percy better not see us."

They hurried to the girl's bathroom when unexpectedly, Daniel glanced behind.

"What is it, mate?"

"Nothing," Daniel shrugged Ron's question off, looking over his shoulder and marveling at how quickly his brother had disappeared. As if on cue, Harry had to grin. As much as he hated to admit it, it was fun to be invisible. "Come on, let's warn her."

Ducking their heads, the boys joined a group of Hufflepuff, then slipped away, down into a deserted corridor and sprinted off to the girl's bathroom. Harry pursued not far behind, smiling nonchalantly with both hands shoved into his pockets. Along the way, they encountered Snape. Harry heard everything his brother and Ron whispered about the potions master. For whatever reason, Harry took extreme interest in this. As quietly as possible, the two boys crept along the next corridor, following after Snape's fading footsteps. And just like that, they all caught whiff of the foul stench. Building an ugly face, Harry pinched his nose. The troll was nearby. That was one reason Harry loathed having to sense the troll's magic, every bit of it was disgusting. Then, within a few seconds, there was a high, petrified scream.

Daniel and Ron shared a look as they shouted together, "Hermione!"

Harry rolled his eyes at their idiocy. Where they really this slow? He tagged along as the boys rushed to enter the girl's bathroom. Harry stepped inside and came upon a twelve-foot tall mountain troll, who was knocking the sinks off the wall and it was nearing Hermione. Harry blinked his eyes at the sight. One hit from that huge club and they would be goners. He looked at his brother's alarmed face.

"Ron, buy me some time to get Hermione out of there!"

"What should I do?"

"Distract it!" Daniel begged desperately.

Harry pursed his lips in disapproval of this plan, though he supposed it was a good enough thought for a first year. Observing the scene before him with interest, Harry leaned against the wall. Oh, they managed to confuse the troll well enough for Daniel to get Hermione out in time. Harry applauded them for that. The problem was that the poor girl was frozen solid, her mouth hanging open in pure terror, her face drained of color.

Harry's eyebrows shout up and he distanced himself from the wall he was leaning against as the troll went berserk. All the shouting and screaming had driven it crazy. Harry raised one hand at the troll, intent on casting a simple powerful cutting hex on its head. No matter how thick its skin was, it had no hope of holding off a direct attack to its head. He hesitated for few seconds. If he do this, then he will expose himself to the rest of the world and he truly didn't want that. The troll was getting angrier by the second. Just when Harry was on the verge of meddling in the mess, his brother did something that was both courageous and very, very stupid.

He took a great running jump and fastened his arms around the troll's neck. What the hell? Was he trying to wrestle the thing? However, what he did next was completely beyond Harry's wildest imaginings. Daniel stabbed his long wand up the troll's nose and screamed a reducto curse. The troll's head splintered to pieces as the rest of the occupants took cover from the splashing blood and yucky stuff. Harry evaded the mess skillfully. No way was he going to get his clothes dirty.

The troll plummeted to the ground with a great thud, shaking the entire room. Daniel was the one enveloped almost fully in the gross liquid. Harry was amazed at his brother's performance. To be fair, two high-ranking Aurors had nurtured Daniel since he was a child, so one of them must have taught him the spell. Nonetheless, Harry was astounded by Daniel's ability to perform a third year spell in his first year. He was beginning to realize that Daniel might have the potential to become a great wizard.

"Is it... dead?" Hermione was the first one to speak, gazing at Daniel in awe.

"Y-yeah, I-I think so..."

"Bloody hell, mate! That was wicked!" Daniel had the grace to blush at Ron's compliment. "You beat a troll! A bloody troll!"

Harry stared at the troll's body, half of the head was nowhere in sight. He gazed back at his brother, who was struggling to get the troll's blood off of him and wiping his wand over some lumpy gray glue on the troll's trousers. Harry's eyes lingered on his little brother. Perhaps, he ought to reconsider his opinion of his brother's character. The kid may enjoy the attention people basked him in, but he really was a great person at heart. Harry wheeled around to leave them by themselves. The brat sure was noble. No wonder he was in Gryffindor. Just in time, the professors rushed to the children. Harry took the opportunity to escape the scene.