Harry Potter 1. Carolina the Beautiful

"Bitch"

"Bitch". The hissed word that seems almost a part of Carolina's life. It was like her name. There seemed to be not one girl that was not jealous of her as she wandered down the crowded corridor at school. So what if her shoes were Marc Jacobs, or she had only the most expensive makeup covering her delicate skin. With her brown hair pulled up into a chignon and her blue eyes circled with the lightest kohl, she was easily the prettiest girl at school. But something stopped her from being the most popular at Hogwarts, jealousy. Even her best friends tried hard to conceal it. It seemed stupid really, because the simple fact was, Carolina Bell was better than everyone else.

"I think someone spat at me when I left potions. I wouldn't be surprised if they did though."

"Why do you put up with it? Go to McGonagall, or if worse comes to worse, Dumbledore." Carolina fixed her kohl stare on Oliver Wood, the only boy that seemed oblivious to the fact she was gorgeous, the only boy she wanted to notice she was gorgeous.

"I don't think either of them would bother if some unlucky fourth year was being bullied by the rest of the female population. I think my little sister's friend Leanne started on me the other day."

Carolina turned her head to where a small blonde girl sat with her best friend. Katie looked up at her elder sister, her gaze fixed steadily like her sisters.

"She's going to turn into you, you do realise that." Oliver pointed to the row of boys sat opposite the younger Bell.

"Whatever Oli. We have practise to get to, Charlie will kill us if we miss it, we are the oldest there." She threw a glance at a group of second years. "I mean, Angelina _could_ be trusted, but the Weasleys?"

"Scarily true, but when you're captain next year, you'll be able to keep them under control, won't you Lina?"

"Bull and you know it Oli, you're soo gonna be the next Captain, I'll probably quit under the pressure, or choose Katie to be the next seeker. We'd be crushed, not that we aren't already."

The two laughed and followed the same well tread path from the packed hall, through the empty entrance hall and onto the path outside. In the distance they could see the quidditch pitch rising up below the mountains. The sun streamed through the gaps in the castle, lighting up the ground below. Students lazed by the lake, basking in the late September sun.

"I bet that by the time we get to June it will be cold and wet, that's what happens round here." Oliver gestured to the sun and the bodies on the grass.

"That's what Charlotte said, but then again, when is Charlotte ever right? Last week she tried to tell me that neon's were on the come back. Charles was very excited, which is quite scary actually."

Charlotte and Charles were Carolina's older brother and sister, twins in seventh year, and the fourth eldest children in the Bell family.

The Bell family, who easily surpassed the Weasleys in children, had four boys and four girls.

The eldest, a boy, was Jack, who had left Hogwarts the same year Charlotte had started.

Then in the same year as Bill Weasley came Peter, a sporty, yet short-fused lad.

After Peter came Thomas, the pride of the family, the ministry boy.

After Thomas came the two 'innocent' twins Charlotte and Charles, who had the misfortune of being in the same year as Charlie Weasley. Charlotte was the first of four girls born to the Bells. Of course followed by Carolina. Not long after she was born came Susannah, the bitch of the Bells.

Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond her control (and an extremely short-tempered seventh year) Susannah had become the first student at Hogwarts to be transferred from one house to another, after the Sorting Hat remarked to Professor Dumbledore one evening that the best punishment would be to move the then first year into Slytherin just in time for her second year.

The youngest, Katie, had the most potential. Only first year and at the beginning of a long journey through education, she had already received top marks in her introductory exam in Transfiguration. It was no secret that she was the only Gryffindor that Snape liked. She was the reason Carolina was quitting quidditch in fifth year.

It was a Bell tradition to play quidditch at school. All the males, with the exception of Andrew, had been captains, and everyone had played. When Katie started Hogwarts, Carolina had realised she would have to quit. Not only so Katie could get on the team, because that would be achievable with Charlotte leaving, but so she could concentrate on other things.

Already on the team there was one girl being kept back as a reserve. Alicia Bell could out-fly Charlotte and Carolina, and complimented little Angelina Johnson perfectly. If she were to finally be allowed to play, both Alicia and her friend Angelina would benefit Katie, should she ever get on to the team.

"Charlie still thinks Charlotte and I are feeding Susannah with Gryffindor's strategic plays." Carolina informed Oliver, who looked shocked to see she was sill there.

"Seriously? She's only been on that team for five minutes, why would she be already working for Harrow? That guy still doesn't allow his favourite chaser to offer helpful tips about game-play."

Carolina smirked as the pair passed two Hufflepuffs getting… _intimate_, believing they were hidden by a rose bush to their left. She still couldn't get it out of her head, the whole Oliver situation of course, not the two Hufflepuffs.

It escaped her, why didn't he see what every other bloke at this school saw? She feared that their constant companionship from being babies had placed a restriction on how far they could venture to that great place beyond 'friendship'.

She came back from her slightly depressing musings as they entered the Gryffindor changing room and witnessed a bizarre sight.

On the bench in front of them sat Charlie, holding in his hands a piece of parchment. His face was downcast, his hands white from gripping the paper, and sat to his right was Charlotte, looking almost apologetic.

She looked up as Carolina and Oliver entered the room, shaking her head and smiling as Carolina raised an eyebrow at Charlie.

"I'm glad you two have managed to make it, that brings our grand total to six. Any news on Susannah's try outs by the way? I haven't seen her since the morning of her trials."

"She got chaser, Harrow was greatly impressed by her skills. Didn't Charlie tell you? He's worried that she may spill all our great Gryffindor plays to the Slytherins. By the way, what's up Charlie?"

Charlotte removed the parchment from Charlie's hands and passed it over to her sister. A quick scan of the letter, as that was it was, told Carolina that poor Charlie had been unsuccessful in his trials for The Chudley Cannons. It had been the only team he had tried for, and now it appeared Charlie Weasley's dream of playing for his favourite team had just flown out the window.

"Right laps everyone, without brooms. Oh and could someone go get Angelina Johnson, all team members should be at practise." Charlotte stood up, turned, and helped her boyfriend to his feet.

"Out there, now!"

The quidditch team, minus George who had gone to get Angelina, trudged out to the pitch. As soon as her feet touched the grass an unknown energy took over Carolina and she found herself able to jog around the pitch at a steady, but speedy, pace. As she overtook Oliver for the second time she grinned at him, sticking her tongue out at him. What she didn't count on was running into the goalpost.

"Caro watch out…" Charlotte ran at top speed to the teenager that had just collided with the post.

"Oh good you are alive. Sit up then" she poked her younger sister into a sitting position and ran her wand over her. Planning to follow her mother's footsteps, Charlotte started a Magic Medic course with the school nurse for her NEWTs. It helped with quidditch injuries, a point that had helped her choose it. Carolina always thought it was slowly turning her into her mother. A thought that played over again in her head now.

"Ow, watch where you're poking that wand, I'd hate to have to tell mum I'm unable to have children after a spell went aride." Carolina pushed the wand away and stood up.

"I'll be a lot better when I get up on my broom, can we start practise now, _Charlie_" she asked as her sister began to protest.

Charlie nodded and moved back towards the broom shed just as Angelina arrived.

"Erm sorry Charlie, I realise its my first official full team practise but I had a detention with Snape that sort of overrun. Won't happen again."

"Don't worry, if it were any teacher but Snape I would probably be a bit pissed, but no Gryffindor can help but incure his wrath."

"Except maybe Katie" Carolina came up behind them and grabbed her broom off the rack, grinning at Angelina.

"Wow is that what I think it is?" Angelina pointed to the broom in Carolina's hands.

"A diamond glory? Yeah, not the best I've had…"

"But it's got loads of good reviews in '_Which Broomstick' _and it's pink, with a diamond tipped end and diamond-hard polish."

"There's a lot more to brooms than looks." Oliver grabbed his broom, a slightly scruffy two sixty.

"Yeah but it helps. People choose this broom because of its looks, girls that aren't particularly into flying, and they love it. Half the female teams in the UK and the US have put in an order for these. The Salem witches academy uses them in flying lessons." Carolina could see that Oliver was trying to come up with a reply to Angie's well informed answer, however the boy was saved by Charlie finally taking control of the practise.

"Right on you're brooms and into positions." Charlie shouted across the pitch from the stands. Carolina mounted her broom and got into position between Charlotte and a slightly nervous Angelina.

"You'll be fine; I've seen you practise with Alicia." Carolina shouted to the girl next to her, who smiled and focused on the red ball in Charles Bell's hands. Charles, the ex-beater, acted as referee in practises.

Today the Gryffindor team were practising with Hufflepuff. The three Hufflepuff chasers grinned at the Gryffindors and blew kisses towards the two Bells, who, in Bell style, flipped their fingers at them. The whistle blew and Carolina sped forwards to catch the ball, the Hufflepuff chaser missing it by inches. She pressed forward, swerving to avoid a bludger sent at her, as she reached the goals she threw to Charlotte to avoid the opposing chaser who was speeding towards the quaffle. Charlotte threw the quaffle to Angelina who slammed it into the centre hoop. The practise carried on like this, with Gryffindor winning 340-20 by the end of it.

The Hufflepuff captain held his hand out to Charlie who shook it.

"Er mate? It would be helpful if you didn't play that well in our coming match, give the Hufflepuff fans something to be proud of?" the other captain asked.

"Well you see Tom, my team weren't playing their absolute best today, so it could be hard." Charlie grinned and signalled to his team.

The Gryffindors smiled politely at the Hufflepuffs and left the stadium for the changing rooms. At the entrance Carolina, Charlotte and Angelina split, heading for the female showers, whilst the lads pushed their way into the door.

"Hey Angelina, I love the route you took in the Parkins pincer, really inspirational, I don't think the great Gwenog Jones could have come up with that in her first practise."

"Er thanks, I just thought it would be the best way to go"

"How right you were, you'll be a valuable asset to the team this year, and coming years." Carolina stepped out of the shower, pink towel wrapped around her, and moved over to the lockers.

Charlotte watched as she put on a pair of pink velour 'chav' pants and pulled on a pink Quiberon Quafflepunchers t-shirt.

"You are such a chav"

"As if…I've never stolen anything." Carolina slipped on her flip-flops as Angelina shuffled out of the shower.

"So? You're main label at the moment seems to be Juicy Couture."

"My dear you are thinking in terms of muggle clothing again, this is pure Morgana designs. I only wear the best in magical designers." Carolina led stood in the doorway and turned back to her sister, "now come on, I need to get to the common room before Oliver to steal his transfiguration homework."

The two sisters said goodbye to Angelina and began up the slope up to the school.


	2. Susannah the Strong

There were two certainties in Susannah's life, one being that she was going to get into major trouble one day for her short temper, the other that one day she wouldn't be able to rely on Severus Snape to get her out of trouble, like he did when she 'accidentally' spilt pumpkin juice down Marcia Ayreton's school shirt that morning. It wasn't that she had meant to soak the Ravenclaw's shirt with the orange liquid; it wasn't even that she had heard that morning about Marcia spreading rumours about her involvement with the Weasley's recent prank. It was purely down to the physical factors within the great hall that day that had limited Susannah's movement between the two tables, causing her to lose her balance, unfortunately whilst carrying her juice over to see her sisters on the Gryffindor table.

The first factor had been Marcus Flint deciding that it was the perfect time to show Roger Davies just how well his aim had improved over the summer, the second that Susannah's shoe wasn't quite on properly and the third, most important factor, was that poor Marcia was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Had this been her defence before Marcia had opened her mouth she may have had a better chance of surviving with just a lecture on clumsy behaviours within school. However that silly Ravenclaw had to voice her unappreciated opinions on the reason why her uniform was turning a strange see-through orangey colour and no matter how loudly Susannah pointed out to Professor McGonagall that it was unreasonable for  
Marcia to call her a clumsy, idiotic Slytherbitch, it was still quite clear to any witnesses that the red blood mingling with the orange stain was not an unfortunate side effect of spilt pumpkin juice.

And so, after twenty minutes of arguing, protesting and trying to appeal to McGonagall's better side, Susannah found herself shoved unceremoniously into a potions classroom with a scrubbing brush and a bucket of oddly brown coloured liquid.

"But I still don't get it Professor, how in Merlin's name is this actually better than writing two hundred lines of 'I will not punch my fellow students in the nose and assume that shouting louder than a teacher will get me out of trouble'?" Susannah gestured wildly around the slightly grubby, extremely disused classroom. "I mean, I actually have to get my hands dirty for this."

Snape shook his head at the irate teenager in front of him.

"Miss Bell may it please be noted that had I not intervened then you would be forced to complete those lines under the watchful eye of our dear transfiguration teacher, possibly wasting several hours that could be better spent improving your quidditch skills, or even doing homework. May it also be noted that I do not expect you to clean this classroom." He paused and raised his eyebrow at Susannah, "You may be new in my house but I see very beneficial, Slytherin based qualities in you that you might actually one day put to good use. If for the next few hours you can manage to keep out of McGonagall's way you might actually be able to get away with no punishment, this time. However if I do find out that you have injured another student again within say, the next month or so, I will be forced to allow her to carry out whatever punishment she finds fit."

With that he swept out of the room, leaving a confused but happy girl in his wake. If there was one thing that Susannah knew, it was that by now her parents would be well aware of her behaviour at breakfast, as her great-aunt Minerva never wasted time in telling her favourite nephew when one of his many children put a toe out of line.

However she had the next few hours free to do whatever she wanted. Of course hanging out with Fred and George was out of the question. In fact leaving the dungeons was really out of the question. What she needed was a place to chill out, that didn't involve being spotted by most of the teaching staff at Hogwarts and didn't involve bumping into Frank Harrow, the scariest Quidditch keeper at school.

Harrow kept trying to get her to agree to dawn practices, which were completely out of the question considering she had hoped on getting some sleep whilst at school and she had enough trouble staying awake through her lessons without adding physical exercise to her morning routine.

For some strange reason it was then that it hit her. Where she should spend her newly acquired free time, and who she should spend it with. It surprised her that it hadn't been clear when she had initially found out about the free time, especially as she had already made plans with him before Ayreton incident.

She checked silently if anyone was hanging around in the dark corridor outside the potions room, before leaving the classroom, and her punishment, behind in favour of the basement corridor. Thanks to the ingenuity of her great ancestor, and co-founder of the school, there were several secret passages dotted around the school. Although maybe it was more thanks to being friends with the Weasley twins in her first year that allowed Susannah to know the best way to the corridor outside the Hufflepuff common room without having to go up stairs, cross the entrance hall and go down another set of stairs into the basement near the great hall.

She pushed aside a tapestry of the wizard flying on the back of a giant duck and slipped into the dark passageway hidden behind it. After lighting her wand and checking for spiders, Susannah hurried along in the dim light hoping that no one had seen her.

At the end of the passage Susannah met what appeared to be a dead end. She tapped the brick right in front of her eyes and waited whilst a small doorway appeared in front of her. Magic, she thought, should be introduced to muggles, at least then they might be a bit happier.

On the other side of the wall she stepped into the corridor, again checking for any lurking Huffleduffs that might be waiting to snitch on an innocent Slytherin. When she found none she proceeded, with a slightly heavier heart, towards the picture of flowers that signified the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room. It was here she stopped dead. Despite having made it this far she realised that she might have trouble actually getting Cedric from his common room. Susannah sighed slightly, before sliding down the wall and taking a seat on the cold stone floor.

After ten minutes of waiting, and seeing whether or not she could carve her name into the floor with just her wand and a hair clip, the painting opened quietly and a boy with light brown hair poked his head out and grinned at the sight of the pre-occupied girl sat on the floor.

"You know Susie, if you ask the portrait above your head very nicely; he will actually come to his other portrait above the fireplace and tell me you're sat outside attempting to excavate the floor beneath our common room."

"Cedric don't do that! I was scared you were someone else, specifically someone who had witnessed my altercation with Ayreton this morning and was about to go inform McGonagall of my obvious detention skipping." She stood up quickly, reinserting the clip into her messy bun and slipping her wand back into her skirt pocket. Cedric grinned at her, stepping out from the portrait hole and onto the corridor.

"I heard about that, I was actually quite sad I had an early breakfast for once. So you really punched her?" Cedric smirked slightly as Susannah began to protest.

"In all fairness she deserved it! She completely overreacted to the whole spillage incident and then called me a bitch! Sometime I think this school has no real justice system. I may have to write to the board of governors."

"Really, and tell them what? You are not happy with the way certain students are always seen as the bad guy? Susie you punched her, you were bound to get in trouble. I realise you're a Bell but there is only so far that your power extends at Hogwarts. Add to that the fact that you're only a second year, and a Slytherin and you have seriously no reason to complain."

Susannah stared at him for a second; trying to absorb the load of rubbish he just threw at her. She debated asking him to reiterate, before realising that he meant she was too complacent.

"How can you say that I am clearly resting on my family name? I do not react like that when someone insults me just because I think being a Bell can get me out of trouble." She paused, wondering why a friend as good as Cedric would suggest she was a liability to herself, before opening her mouth to continue her rant.

"Save it Bell, I'm not going to pick a fight with you. I'm sorry if I sounded like I was having a dig, but it's only because I care. Why don't you head back to the Slytherin common room, there's less chance of someone seeing you there and informing the teachers. Plus you can use the free time before lunch to lie down and cool off before having to face Marcia again." Cedric moved to hug the brunette but was rebuffed when she stepped back and turned on her heel. She paused before setting off down the corridor back to the passage. It was there that she stopped, turned to look at Cedric and smiled. It was hard to be pissed at him, when he always had that look on his face, like no matter how hard he criticised he would always be there for her. She nodded curtly at the boy before tapping the same brick as before and slipping off back to the common room, where she fully intended to climb into bed for a sleep before the stress that would be lunch.


	3. Katie the Intelligent

It was amazing how quickly a reputation could be built up at Hogwarts. In her eldest sister Charlotte's first year it was clear the red-head would become the matriarch of Gryffindor. In Carolina's first year she had managed to prove herself worthy of the Miss Hogwarts title. In Susannah's first year, well everyone was well aware that Susannah hadn't transferred to Slytherin for the good of her health.

It was this fact, the fact that a reputation would most likely stick until everyone received their NEWT results, which scared Katie slightly. She didn't want to be known as the brain box, the nerd. She wanted what every other little girl with four older brothers wanted. She wanted to be a Quidditch champion.

It wasn't far fetched, not really. She was only still a first year, so it wasn't like Hogwarts had had the pleasure of seeing her skills where a quaffle was involved. It also wasn't like she didn't have the skills to become a chaser. Charlie had always remarked how able the Bell girls were, especially as they had always some how managed to thrash the Weasley clan when they got together in summer to play their traditional friendly.

Unfortunately, due to circumstances, and a few well answered tests, Katie had managed to show her abilities in lessons before her abilities in Quidditch. Now for some reason everyone in her classes believed she was some kind of child prodigy. They weren't even comparing her results to her best friend Leanne, who often struggled when it came to finding the right answers. Susannah had remarked that at least she had the teachers on her side. Which is true, Snape now treated her less like something he had stood in and more like, well more like a Slytherin.

She should be grateful. She should be happy. She shouldn't be stuck in a library on a Saturday doing transfiguration work either. But there you are.

Katie looked up from the set of problems in front of her and glanced longingly around the room. She could see from her table the finest in Hogwarts nerds. There was Percy Weasley, writing the longest essay with no apparent intention of finishing any time soon. On the far side of the room was a group of Sixth year Ravenclaws who seemed to holding some kind of study group, whilst trying to avoid the projectiles fired at them from the table closest to Katie. Ok this table was the exception to the nerd content in the library.

There sat three Slytherin fifth years, Marcus Flint, Terence Higgs and Finella Raporly. Katie had to admit that she was slightly amused when an ink soaked wad of paper landed on the cheek of a rather evil Ravenclaw. She sniggered behind her hand, before looking up and catching Flints slightly confused face. Great, catching the attention of the fiercest chaser in the most unforgiving house.

Flint turned his head at an angle whilst he stared at Katie, who was beginning to feel very uncomfortable. She was ready to run when he stood up from his seat and wandered over to her table.

"Alright Bell? Ten points says that you can't get this ink ball onto her homework." He grinned at her in a slightly off putting way. It wasn't, however, off putting because he looked like he was trying to freak her out. It was off putting because he wasn't smiling at her in a threatening way.

"Er, hi Marcus. Nice shot." Great, she sounded like she was bricking it. "As for the whole me trying to ruin her work, not right now. After Susannah's wonderful attempt to ruin Marcia Ayreton's face at breakfast I think its best I don't appear to be following in my sister's anti-Ravenclaws campaign."

Marcus snorted loudly, drawing attention to the pair and causing heads to shake from several of their fellow students. He raised his right hand above his head and motioned at Katie. She paused for a second, wondering if he was about to pummel her, before realising he wanted a high five.

"So what work are you doing? I'm trying to plough my way through a backlog of about three months of holiday work. Unfortunately my friends aren't quite helping. Don't suppose you know anything about the use of dragon's blood?" Marcus leant back to his table and grabbed a pile of parchment.

Katie stared at the pile of work, realising that her reputation was going to be the death of her. She sighed slightly, placing her quill down and looking back up at Marcus.

"I understand now." A confused look reappeared on his face and she continued, "as it is, I'm a first year and so don't really know that much about OWL stuff, but there's a great section on potions in the right corner, near Percy Weasley's table."

"I wasn't looking for help; I was just trying to make conversation. Susannah was telling me how you were starting to feel a bit lonely, especially as your best friend has managed to get herself lumped with catch-up within the first weeks of school."

Katie didn't know at that moment whether she wanted to kill her sister or thank her. Sure she had someone to talk to, but he was a Slytherin, and renowned for trying to destroy Gryffindors. But why would Zanni tell Marcus of her plight if she didn't trust him?

"I understand if you don't want to talk to me. Your family is primarily Gryffindor and I don't reckon many of you have found time to actually get to know a Slytherin all that well. Susannah has only been one of us for about two weeks, although I have to say she is amusingly evil." Katie smiled at the way he described her sister, silently thanking Susannah for not sending a boring, nice Slytherin to keep an eye on her.

"Don't worry, it's not that I don't want to talk to you, it's just that I don't like the evil glares we're getting from Pince. I realise it's a lot to ask but I don't suppose you want to go for a walk or something? I said I'd meet Leanne in ten minutes at the potions lab."

The pair got up from the table and Katie stuffed her work back into her bag. She looked up at Marcus, who nodded towards the exit and grabbed his things as Katie led the way.

Once outside the library she turned towards the main staircase, checking for Marcus as she began to descend.

"Just to clarify, this isn't part of some evil scheme to one by one take down the Gryffindor first years?"

"What do you take me for? If I was planning to take down Gryffindor first years I wouldn't bother trying to befriend you."

"Befriend me? Did Zanni ask you to do that too? Thanks, I guess." She paused at the foot of the stairs, waiting as a group of Hufflepuffs rushed past heading for their common room. "So aren't you worried your credibility will go down? I mean, you're hanging round with a first year, a Gryffindork at that. It can't help the whole, bad boy Slytherin image."

"If anyone asks I'll just use the excuse that I was attempting to ruin your life, or something along those lines."

They reached the first classroom in the dungeons, stopping just short of the door. Katie raised her hand to knock, hesitating just in time for the door to be pulled open and Leanne to appear. The brunette grinned at her friend, turned round to pull the door shut and turned back. It was at that point she paused, taking in the image of the two students in front of her.

"Hi Katie, are you aware that Marcus Flint is lurking over your shoulder?" Katie gasped, turned to look at Marcus and raised her hand to her mouth.

"Oh my god! Wow, how did he get there?" She raised an eyebrow at her friend. "Don't worry sweetie, we bumped into each other in the library. I needed Slytherin protection to come get you and he had been coerced by my sister into keeping an eye out for me." Katie grabbed her friend by the arm and turned back to Marcus.

"So I guess I'll be seeing you around then Bell." Marcus mock saluted the pair and set off down the corridor towards the Slytherin common room.

The two girls watched him leave, before heading for the stairs and leaving the dungeon.

"What was that all about? Since when did scary fifth years talk to little firsties? How do you know he wasn't just talking to you whilst his friends did something terrible to something you own? Don't you think he's got a certain quality that could be quite fit?"

Katie stared at her friend as they climbed the grand staircase, beginning to wonder if insanity was contagious and if so should she be walking to close to her. She shook her head at Leanne, who was still firing off crazy questions at a rapid pace.

"Lea! Shush! I don't think I have answers for all your insane questions but all I do know is that Susannah asked him to keep an eye on me in case I was lonely and needed someone to talk to. Also please don't ever suggest Marcus Flint is attractive again, it's too disturbing for me to handle."

"Like, sorry dude. So how long do we have before lunch? I'm secretly hoping there's a Bell: Ayreton part two. I think the Weasley twins were taking bets."

"I bet that nothing happens. Susannah may be angry, but she's not stupid. Besides Charlotte will have caught up with her by lunch and would probably have warned her off getting into another fight on pain of my mother coming to school. Mum seems to think that just because we live near school she needs to come here every time one of us does something. She may as well have lived here last year what with the whole Susannah thing. Dad was beginning to think she was having an affair with Flitwick or something."

Leanne pulled a face at the image as they reached the Fat Lady. She muttered the password and the two girls climbed into the portrait hole. They stepped into the warmth of the common room and crossed towards the staircase. Katie slowed down as she noticed her two sisters sat at one of the tables in the corner.

"Here could you take my bag up? I need to talk to them two." She stepped over what appeared to be two Weasley twins and pulled up a chair next to Carolina.

"So how was practise? I do hope you showed those Hufflepuffs who was boss."

"Oh most definitely, we thrashed their little yellow behinds and looked stylish whilst doing it."

"What Caro means is that we played as best we could and she wore more makeup than the counter at Sandersons can hold." Charlotte pulled a face at her younger sister and stabbed at her parchment with her wand, rearranging her first paragraph.

Carolina glared at Charlotte, picked up her quill and dripped bright blue ink onto her sister's homework.

"Well done, though there's no need to destroy each others work because you each witnessed practise in a different way. Has anyone seen Susannah since breakfast? Last I saw she was being dragged off to detention by Professor Snape."

The other Bell girls shrugged before each turning their attentions back to their work. Katie sighed and stood up from her seat. She bid her siblings goodbye before heading up the staircase to the first year dormitory.

**Authors note: So I don't know whether or not I want to do a chapter on Charlotte…any thoughts?**

**Also the UK got thrashed in the Eurovision tonight! **


	4. Carolina the Short Sighted

There was one thing always guaranteed to put the fear of Merlin into any respectable young woman studying at Hogwarts. It wasn't the extreme difficulty of the frankly pointless subjects, it wasn't even the high calorific content in the temptingly delicious start of term feast. It also definitely wasn't the innumerable young men that stalked the corridor looking for innocent witches to cheat on.

It was of course, the early morning rush to be the first to get a shower in the shared bathroom in each house. Thankfully there were two bathrooms for the opposite genders, otherwise that would possibly have caused major damage to the school. Unfortunately, if you don't get up before a certain hour, you will probably find that the first years have taken up all the showers and the only toilet left would be the one with the dodgy chain that always took three pulls to flush.

This toilet was possibly the most famous loo in all of Hogwarts. Of course fortune dictates that it would of course end up in the female bathroom in Gryffindor tower.

It was in this cubicle that Carolina sat staring, bleary eyed, at the graffiti covering the door.

'Patricia Newman luvs Severus Snape 4 eva since 8T4'.

This was Carolina's favourite piece of nonsensical rubbish. It was either the spelling, or the fondness for numbers that attracted her to this sentence. Even better was the writing beneath it, which incidentally was the entire sentence written in perfect English, suspiciously in what looked like Susannah's handwriting. This was quite a feat for her little sister, as it had obviously been written in her first year, before that unfortunate incident involving Finella Ayreton and the amazing flammable bed curtains. Carolina would never admit it, but her little sister had style, and a point. It was slightly unfair to move her to a different house, especially as Finella was in her seventh year. But somehow Slytherin suited her, not just because she had a habit of attempting to bring down the other girls in her year, but because she was extremely cunning and clearly destined for something other than the brainless bravery that the Bell family was known for. Trust Susannah to break tradition.

A small scuffle beyond the cubicle door drew Carolina out of her stupor. She tried to focus on her surroundings, a bit difficult when you were slightly short sighted and had left your glasses in the dormitory.

She stood up, yanked the chain three times and left the cubicle. Thankfully she had showered about one o'clock this morning when she had finally decided to give up with her transfiguration homework, which had taken from just after Quidditch practise to beyond dinner time.

At the sinks stood a gaggle of little first years, all fighting to brush their teeth. Why the founders decided that five sinks, five toilets and five showers would be enough for 35 teenage girls escaped Carolina. She leant over one of the midgets to open the fourth year cabinet to get her toothbrush. The young girl widened her eyes, spat out her toothpaste and hurried out the bathroom. She was quickly followed by three of her friends. Carolina didn't need her glasses to see that the only first year left was Katie.

"Morning Kates, where have the other small creatures gone?" Carolina leaned close to the mirror to inspect her face for spots as she methodically brushed her teeth.

"No idea, think they might be a bit intimidated by you."

Carolina snorted as she rinsed her mouth out and placed her toothbrush back in the cabinet.

"Whatever, I'm off to find some clothes, in a bit Kates."

She wandered out of the bathroom onto the first floor. She grinned at a little first year before turning up the staircase heading for the fourth floor. When she reached the little landing she bumped into a fully dressed Charlotte on her way downstairs.

"Skipping out on breakfast or cutting it close Caro? You better hurry up and get dressed if you want to eat this morning."

"Thanks for the sisterly advice Charlie, I'll bear that in mind, or just go straight to the kitchens if I happen to spend five minutes too long trying to find my mascara."

She nodded to her older sister and pushed open the door to her dormitory, where the other four girls were each ripping apart their drawers in search of clothes. Carolina walked over to her bed and located her glasses, incidentally where she'd left them when she had given up trying to read last night. Thanks to the invention of a lovely temporary fix charm she hardly had to wear them, and she was pretty sure half the school didn't know she wore them.

She stuck them on, before searching for her wand to perform the charm. When she had finally restored order in the universe, she dressed quickly, not paying much attention to detail as she shoved on a clean pair of jeans and a reasonably ironed t-shirt. She then plonked herself at her mirror and, deciding she could do without makeup, shoved her hair into a ponytail.

That would show Charlotte, all that worrying and she's ready in less than ten minutes.

She stood up, grabbing her wand and the small pile of homework she intended to finish sometime today. As she turned for the door a small hand slipped through the crook of her elbow. She looked round into the face of her friend Imelda, grinning about something that was beyond Carolina.

"All right Caro? Did you have a good time last night? Tanzia said you didn't get to bed until about half one this morning, and when Olivia went to see Damian this morning he said that Oliver didn't get in till gone one either."

Ah of course, that's what she was after, gossip.

"Well far be it from me to deny my best friends the information they so sorely desire. If you really want to know," she paused for effect. "Me and Oliver were doing our transfiguration homework. You know the one you all did whilst we were at Quidditch."

Carolina watched with a strange satisfaction as Imelda's face fell slightly. The pair carried on arm in arm out of the dormitory, heading down the stairs in an odd, four legged creature kind of way. By the time they reached the ground floor the two girls were in stitches, holding on to the other to prevent themselves from falling over with laughing too much.

Carolina wiped her eyes, thanking Merlin that she decided to forgo the mascara. She looked up into Oliver Wood's mildly confused face and set off laughing again. This time it was Charlotte muttering something about over excited children that stopped the onslaught of giggles in her throat. She grinned at Imelda one last time and turned to the boys in front of her. She indicated towards the door in a way that she hoped suggested going to get breakfast in the great hall. Damian, the food fan of the group nodded and bounded over to the portrait hole. The rest of the fourth years, and the stragglers left from other years, followed him slowly down the grand staircase and into the great hall.

Carolina plonked herself down on the bench next to Oliver and reached over him to grab two pieces of still hot toast. She spread them both with copious amounts of jam and settled down to chew and stare, like she did every morning. Around her students shoved fry ups and cereal down their throats, whilst trying to hold full conversations with their friends. It was this time of the day that made Carolina wish she was at home. All the Bell children had been brought up to eat meals like human beings, which meant she had never been forced to look at half digested porridge as someone argued the chances of Puddlemere United winning the league that year. She grimaced as a bit of bacon went flying from Damian's fork as he debated Quidditch versus football with a third year. Carolina looked up and caught Charlotte's eye. The two sisters pulled a face and Carolina decided it was time to grab her toast and get an early start on Sunday's homework. She stood up at the same time as Charlotte and the pair left the great hall, heading towards the library.

"Pigs, the lot of them. Why is it so hard to eat with your mouth closed?" Carolina vented to her sister as they climbed a set of stairs. "Seriously, what's the point of eating with your mouth open? All your food ends up on the other side of the room anyway."

Charlotte nodded in agreement as they finally reached the library doors. Carolina quickly finished off her last piece of toast before they walked in, as no one wants to incur the wrath of Madam Pince that early in the morning. They sat down at one of the many free tables and each dragged out their respective homework. Carolina noted with disdain that Charlotte only had one essay to finish, and even that appeared to need just five inches more writing. Charlotte caught Carolina's look and shook her head.

"There's no need to complain just because I actually do my work when I get it, you have to remember this is NEWT level potions. At least I can finish earlier and help you with all your work."

Carolina shrugged her shoulders in defeat and began to tackle the final question on her transfiguration just as the doors opened. There, framed by the, well by the door frame, stood Katie and Susannah. The pair appeared to be in some sort of argument as they crossed the library towards their sisters.

"Katie keeps having a go because I tried to help her out."

"She told Marcus Flint to keep an eye on me."

"I mean, it was only a friendly gesture."

"He just scares me sometimes."

"She's way over reacting."

"She's just sticking her nose in."

"Well you can both shut up can't you, before Pince catches a whiff of raised voices." Charlotte pointed to two chairs on the other side of the table and indicated to the girls that they should sit down.

Carolina silently thanked Charlotte for intervening, before adding a final full stop to her work and picking up a set of short Charms questions.

"I don't understand why they load you with OWL based stuff in your fourth year, I mean I don't even want to start thinking about next year. I just want to enjoy my final year before exam stress hits us."

"It's to prepare you, so it doesn't all come as a big shock next May." Charlotte tapped at her essay with her wand, checking for spelling mistakes, before picking up Carolina's finished transfiguration work.

The younger girl raiser her eyebrow at her sister, before scribbling in the answers on her charms work.

Finally she picked up her potions homework, which thankfully was only filling in the blank spaces in the ingredients list. When she had finished Charlotte grabbed the completed work, and as she had done with the transfiguration and charms work, checked it for mistakes.

"I don't know why you're complaining, it's not like you can't do the work. It's just because you can't be arsed making the effort." Charlotte began on her motherly like rant, which could continue for hours if the sister it was directed at didn't take the initiative and stop her mid flow.

"Charlie! I get it okay? If you don't mind I'm going to go lend this work to Oliver, no doubt he still hasn't found time to finish it. Oh and Charlotte don't forget, practise after lunch."


	5. Susannah the Pensive

At precisely half twelve on the third Sunday of September the Slytherins gathered in the common room took a welcome break from their second week's homework. The great green and black mass merged from the dungeon staircase in a way described later by young Nymphadora Tonks as a great snake, weaving its way to the great hall. Of course a young first year nearby described it as a load of Slytherins going to lunch.

Within a matter of seconds the long table was filled with Slytherins of all ages, with the little group of second years taking the prime seats near the exit. Strategic seating being, obviously, Susannah's best skill. From this seat she could see right over to the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff table, but also had the benefit of easy escape if she got too bored with the mad ramblings of her two friends, Caitlin and Dawn. The pair next to her struck up a conversation that appeared to centre around their favourite subject, boys. Susannah was always shocked at how precocious the two twelve year olds sounded talking about boys in a way she was sure was strange for young girls. Nothing dirty of course, they were twelve. Carolina had always suggested that these feelings of superiority came from being nearly a year older than them both, having been born in September. Although Susannah did wonder how Carolina knew how someone older than their friends felt.

"Because it's like how I feel about you and Katie, duh."

Susannah tuned back into the conversation being held by her friends, grimacing slightly at the way they were talking.

"I mean, Marcus is ok, a bit immature though."

"Yeah, but at least he's got the benefit of three years knowledge on us."

"Immature? Benefit of three years of knowledge? That's slightly contradictory; he can't be immature and have benefited from three years more knowledge. Besides, he isn't interested in midgets like us."

"Are you kidding me? Rowena Fallows told Clara who mentioned to Petey that Marcus was talking to your Katie yesterday, and she's a first year!"

"Dawn, Marcus was only talking to her because I told him to. She was having a bit of a tizzy since her mate got stuck in detention with Snapey. I saw her going in as I was skiving it, so I told Marcus that Katie might need some company. Their friendship, if that's what it is, is purely platonic."

"Sure, for now. I can't believe it though, she's been in this school five minutes and she's already pulling a Carolina! The cheek of it!"

Susannah raised an eyebrow at Dawn before reaching over her to grab a bread roll off the plate. Deciding instead that her soup was far more interesting than arguing whether or not her two sisters were becoming the Hogwarts slut duo, she began to eat her soup with the attitude of someone who knew they should be somewhere else.

Unfortunately she had forgotten that she was sat next to two girls who had never observed subtlety to be a very important part of conversation.

"Oh my god look Marcus is coming over here!"

"Agh I look a mess! Quick Dawn, pull out a book so it looks like we're doing something worth while."

Susannah tried very hard not to slam her head face first into the bowl in front of her, deciding instead to smile and wave as the fifth year wandered up the table towards them.

"Alright Susannah? Alright Dawn, Caitlin? Listen, Zanni, don't forget about Quidditch practise after tea tonight. The Gryffindorks have managed to book it for just after lunch so it looks like we are lumped with practising in the dark again. Harrow also said to remind you that you need to get gloves, or summat. In a bit pipsqueak."

Flint set off from their little group, heading off back towards the Dungeons. No sooner had he disappeared from sight before Dawn and Caitlin began whispering about how fit and manly he was. At the word manly they dissolved into giggles and Susannah saw this as her opportunity to escape. She grabbed her book bag from next to the bench and made a quick detour towards the Gryffindor table.

"Yo yo Caro, Charlie, Kates. Oh and Charles of course. Did you all enjoy the simply wonderful carrot and coriander soup? I really feel the house-elves have outdone themselves today, it actually tasted like some sort of vegetable."

"If it only tasted like some sort of vegetable, how did you know it was carrot and coriander?"

"It was orange? I'm only assuming, especially as I've never had carrot in soup form before. Anyway, I didn't come all this long way to talk about soup, that's something Charlotte would do."

Charlotte glared at her younger sister for a second before turning her attention back to a sheet of parchment in front of her boyfriend.

"What's that?"

"Susannah, you don't half know when to be nosy do you. It's plays for the team if you must know."

It was at that the atmosphere of the table changed slightly, not unnoticed by Susannah who sighed in a defeated sort of way.

"Ok, I get it. I'm off to do homework, or something equally boring and unrelated to your Quidditch team." With that she turned on her heel, wondering if she should have got a better look at that parchment, and pushed open the doors into the entrance hall.

Once through the doors she stopped and inhaled the fresh air floating in from the entrance. It was times like this that Susannah really enjoyed being at Hogwarts. It was funny that one of the few places she could enjoy solitude was a school containing over two hundred students, but maybe that was the result of thirteen years growing up in a small five bedroom cottage in an equally tiny village.

Well, ok, the cottage was slightly modified inside, what with the addition of the extra two bedrooms, one huge ballroom sized basement plus bar and an extra large kitchen. Of course the bedrooms were all huge as well, big enough to fit two Bell children in each without inciting world war three.

But Susannah always felt Hogwarts had something else, all those floors, empty rooms, so many secrets. But then again every single one of her ancestors had passed through these walls, several leaving behind a little clue to their descendents of their existence. There were several hundred portraits of Bells, Carahornnes (her Mother's family) and other families that had contributed to the great Bell line. Although maybe it had to be mentioned that the Carahornnes, though greatly depleted in name, still overthrew the Bells in power within the wizarding world. After all the Carahornnes were direct descendents of the Ravenclaws, a fact that always lead people to wonder why it was the Bell children had ended up in Gryffindor.

Susannah snapped out of her reverie slightly, moving across the hall to sit on her favourite bench, hidden just behind a statue of a Witch looking bemusedly at a parchment with a bird bursting from it, which Susannah was sure had something to do with her family.

People always treated the Bells with regard, even more so since Thomas Bell had married Maria Carahornne and produced eight extremely different children. Perhaps that's why they had always been regarded as something spectacular in their first year, because of this great family connection. It was difficult, though, to grow up being known as a Bell. Susannah had always felt a need to act up to the image, maybe not as much as her sisters of course. Carolina, for example, always used her last name as an excuse, or a bargaining chip. There was not one shop in Hogsmeade that wasn't aware of who Carolina was, yet they never treated her with disrespect. Susannah supposed it was because, with the exception of wand buying, the Bells always did their school shopping in the small village, as it was only a short bus ride away from their equally tiny village Kilrainey.

The thought of being not only a Bell, but a Carahornne as well, brought Susannah's thoughts to her favourite aunt, Allegra. Like Susannah, Allegra (her mother's sister) had been brought up in a large family, and was regarded as the short-fused one of the ten children. So of course it was natural that the young teenager got on quite well with her thirty year old aunt, who had recently given birth to her technically third daughter. Aurelia, for that was her name, was the technical third daughter, because her eldest sister had been put up for adoption aged two, something Susannah was well aware that Allegra regretted, but considered a necessary evil in order to move on with her life after an event that she hardly ever spoke of. Except of course, to her favourite sister Maria. And her great aunt Minerva. It had never struck Susannah as odd that there were things in her family that people never spoke of. It was just something that happened in a family as large as hers, and she wasn't one to ask irritatingly nosy questions. Susannah knew one day that everyone would know the truth, but waiting for it was causing all sorts of speculation.

Not wanting to sit and think about the facts behind her Aunt's decisions, Susannah stood up from the bench. She looked round the statue as the great hall doors opened and students poured out, with the seven Gryffindor Quidditch players heading out to the pitch, and her two best friends running off giggling down the dungeon stairs, no doubt off to stare at Marcus across the common room. After pondering what she should do until tea time, she spotted Cedric and moved across the crowded entrance hall to meet him.

"Hey Ceddy! Did you enjoy the soup? I'm afraid to say it's the only thing I can greet people with at the moment."

"Ha, yeah it was nice, cant work out what it was though. Someone said something about pumpkin."

"Right, well enough soup talk, I'm bored now. How about we go and spy on the Gryffindorks, reckon we can each get some hints for out teams."

Cedric grinned at her suggestion and turned to the group of Hufflepuffs stood waiting for him, informing them of his new found plans.

Once he had returned Susannah slipped her arm into the crook of his elbow and they both stepped out into the still brilliant sunshine waiting for them.

"So what do you reckon to your chance against Gryffindor? I realise it's not until November, but I'm pretty sure there are Ravenclaws taking bets on the outcome."

"Well you know how keen on gambling that lot are. Any chance for them to make money and work out odds on stuff and they're there. I think there's some maths and complicated thinking involved or something."

"Yeah, if it was easy they wouldn't bother and it would be you lot taking bets right."

"Oy! Well, ok you have a point. Besides we already take bets, just not on the outcome of our own matches, it really ruins the whole experience."

"I like how you talk like a seasoned Slytherin, especially as you've only been in that house for, ooh two weeks?"

Susannah shoved Cedric off the path, laughing, as they passed the lake. It occurred to Susannah how great he actually was, in the two seconds between him mocking her and her attempt to push him over. Of course, she would never think of him in that way. He was Cedric for goodness sake, he insulted her, kept her on track, possibly fancied that pants off her older sister.

"So what did you reckon to the USA thrashing Japan in the world cup? I reckon that had Japan actually used a decent defence they could have had some sort of chance." Susannah moved on to their favourite subject of Quidditch in order to move away from the strange thoughts in her head.

"Nah, it was all about the US seeker, she was too good for anyone to deal with. I mean, she managed to catch the snitch two hours into the match, that's possibly a record."

"For the US perhaps, their track record is terrible when it comes to any sort of ball catching."

"But she was new that year, fresh pickings you know, brilliant."

"Yeah she is, she's also one of my Cousins. Dad's brother's eldest. Virginia, like the state apparently. We were there at the match, top box."

"Right next to the American minister for magic, yeah I know, I know. You are getting as bad as Carolina you know that? Next you'll be insisting I carry your book bag because your delicate Bell shoulders can't take it."

Susannah snorted in a rather unladylike manner as they approached the base of the stands at the pitch.

The pair climbed quietly over the joists holding up the hundreds of seats above their heads and sat down behind the space between two seats. From their position they had a brilliant view of the Gryffindors practise, their second that weekend.

"Ha the Gryffindorks have got obsessive practise disorder," Susannah whispered to Cedric, "although why they think constant practise will save them from being annihilated by us Slytherins in November escapes me completely."

Cedric sniggered under his breath, before settling down to watch the Gryffindors practise.

Unfortunately, due to her eldest sister having brilliant eyesight, Susannah's hiding place was soon discovered by the team. She was pretty sure they didn't believe her 'getting off with Cedric' cover story either.

So slightly unceremoniously the pair were thrown out of the stadium. Once out of the doors they agreed to part ways and followed their separate paths back to their respective common rooms.


	6. Katie the Over Labelled

It had been less than 24 hours and the rumours had already worked themselves around the school. They got more ridiculous over time, with the final rumour Katie heard before seeking refuge in the common room with Leanne was that Marcus was threatening to tell her mother about her cheating scam unless she helped him to pass OWL Potions.

Why was it so odd that a Gryffindor first year should be friends with a Slytherin fifth year? Though Katie would definitely have to find Susannah if the rumours got any worse. There was no way she could continue for the next year being seen as the little first year that was helping a fifth year to cheat. Three students had already approached her since breakfast asking if she had the answers to charms, transfiguration and divination exams respectively.

"It's driving me mad! I feel like I'm a part of some great crime ring and someone's forgot to tell me about it. I can't work out who I want to kill, Susannah or the flaming kids who think that someone can only be friends with a person in the other house if they're up to something."

"You have to admit though; it is quite strange that a first year is friends with an older student within the first few weeks, not matter what house they're in."

Katie stared into the fire, wondering why it was she had been labelled as a nerd and a cheater in the first month of school. Surely this was too much for a first year to handle. She considered going to her aunt, complaining about the way people treated her, but she realised that would not help the situation to complain. Aunt Minerva wouldn't be able to stop the rumours and she would be able to add snitch to her growing list of labels at school.

Leanne shifted in her seat, bringing Katie back into the real world. She looked up at her best friend, who in the short silence had pulled out a mirror from her bag and was now attempting to calm down the frizzy mess that was her hair. She looked up at Katie and grinned.

"Does Susannah still know how to get into the kitchens? I'm feeling a bit hungry and I overheard the Weasley twins talking about how the elves got you anything you wanted. Wanna test it?"

Katie nodded, feeling that some butterbeer could cheer her up a bit, and stood up from her chair. The two girls were about to head out of the portrait when it swung open, revealing the entire Quidditch team, plus Susannah.

"All I'm saying is you have no right to be spying on us."

"Why? It's not like any of them listen to me on that team. They're all too busy sucking up to Harrow to notice any good plays."

"That's always been their downfall I feel."

"Nah that's just cos they're crap."

"Thanks Fred. Anyway I think we need a team meeting. Right now. In fact I don't even care if the entire common room hears."

"What are you on about brother dearest? Ooh you're not coming out are you? Sorry Charlotte."

"No, shut up George." Charlie Weasley collapsed into the seat Katie had previously inhabited and put his head in his hands. Charlotte cuffed George over the head and sat opposite Charlie.

Katie wavered near the door, debating staying to hear what Charlie had to say. Her decision was made when Leanne grabbed a spare seat at one of the tables near the sofa Charlie was now using as a pseudo-throne.

"I went to see McGonagall this morning, and she thinks that I have a good reason for doing what I'm going to do."

Carolina raised her eyebrow at Charlie, whilst the rest of the team shared equally confused looks.

"I have decided that, and this after receiving that letter yesterday, I'm going to hand over my captaincy, and in fact quit the team.

"What? You can't do this!"

"You're the best we have!"

"Thanks for your support, but there's really no point, I'm not going to be playing Quidditch next year. If I quit I have more time to focus on my school work, in particular Care of Magical Creatures. Kettleburn has already agreed that I can help him out."

"But we can't have a team without a captain."

"Or a seeker."

"Mark Peters is going to be seeker this year, he's been a decent reserve and he's leaving this year anyway, so you can find someone better. As for captain, I've decided that Oliver Wood is going to replace me. McGonagall has already agreed. Apparently my first choice, Carolina, has already expressed a wish to quit next year."

Carolina gave Charlie a sheepish grin, as Oliver sat down silently, clearly in shock from Charlie's decision. Katie heard her stomach rumbling and decided it was time to go. She edged over to Susannah, found out the way to the kitchens and turned to go.

"Hold on Kates, I'll come with you. I don't reckon I can stay in this room for much longer, people are giving me terrible death glares."

Katie nodded, grabbed Leanne and moved off to the portrait. The trio stepped out of the common room and set off down the hallway. Katie glanced out of the window, it was around three yet people were still basking in the afternoon sun. It was still two and half hours until dinner time. It was that lovely time of day when, being Sunday, no one had anything to do. The corridors were not as crowded as they were on a weekday. Students were either finishing homework, gossiping in the common rooms, or trying to get a last minute tan before the violent Scottish winter set in. Susannah began to ramble on about how she was sure that Charlotte had some kind of sister radar, as there was no way any normal person could have found her and Cedric.

"Why were you spying anyway? It's not like their plays are any help to you. Don't Slytherin do what Harrow says, no questions asked."

"Yeah, he's quite the dictator. I was bored though, what can I say. If they hadn't have been practising I could have hung out with Fred, George, Angie and Alicia. But no. Gryffindor has to practise every weekend from the moment they have a full team to the moment they win the cup. It's way boring."

"I guess, but maybe they won't now. I mean Oliver never seemed happy with the constant practises. Still can't believe Caro's quitting next year. I also thought she could make a career out of it."

"She could still, just as a sports journalist or something. Dad was talking about how well she'd do working for Grandpa's Quidditch magazine."

"Well she's entitled to make her own decisions in life. I personally wouldn't quit if I was that good. I mean, having a shot at professional Quidditch, it's a once in a lifetime thing."

"Speaking of which, has Charlotte said anything about her trial for The Holyhead Harpies yet. Such as when it is?"

Katie shook her head. During the summer Charlotte had received a letter about trying out for the all-female team. No date was given, so the Bells were beginning to wonder if the trial existed. There was no doubt that Charlotte was good enough. But Katie wasn't sure that she would want to continue with her dream of being a professional, especially after Charlie had got a resounding no from the only team he had ever wanted to play for.

The three girls reached the ground floor, where Susannah made her farewells and split off down to the dungeons. The two Gryffindors turned in the opposite direction, checking for teachers as they descended into the basement corridor.

Luckily the corridor was devoid of teachers, or Hufflepuffs for that matter, so the girls started up a conversation about Quidditch. They began arguing the chances of England beating France in their friendly on Thursday evening just as they reached a painting depicting a bowl of fruit.

Katie stared at it, wondering if Susannah was having her on when she told her to tickle the pear, before moving her hand up towards the little fruit. She tickled it, then watched as the pear giggled and the painting swung open to reveal a busy kitchen. House elves were leaning over boiling pots of soup, passing large plates of chicken between themselves, preparing the four long tables in the middle of the room for the dinner that was still two hours away.

One little house elf spotted the two girls and came hurrying towards them, shouting offers of sweets and butterbeer.

Leanne grinned at Katie, before following the small creature to another table at the back of the kitchen. Here the two girls sat, watching as food was piled up in front of them. Katie grabbed a butterbeer and stared into space. As Leanne grabbed handfuls of food off the table, clearly forgetting that dinner wasn't that far away, Katie drifted off into her mind, an unfortunate habit of hers.

She was still dwelling on the Marcus situation. Why was it she had only been at the school for two weeks and people were already talking about her. Carolina called it the curse of the Bell, though to be more honest it was more curse of the Carahornne. Her aunt Allegra had told her stories about how her school life was like a constant discussion of her social life, and that it never stopped, even when she left school. Katie did have to admit that this desire to discuss Allegra was possibly founded on her aunt's ability to get herself into slightly questionable situations. Having three children by three different men often doesn't help a gossip situation. Especially when one of those men was now in prison for murder. And the best friend of one of the other men. But Katie's mum had always said that Allegra's past was just that, done and dusted. People had began to accept Allegra for something other than the outspoken girl she had once been, and more as the brave woman that had been through a lot more than most since leaving Hogwarts.

Katie grabbed a pumpkin pasty from the slowly dwindling pile in front of her and looked up at her best friend. Leanne had stopped eating, deciding instead to chat to a house elf that had appeared on a chair next to her.

"Hey Lea, reckon we should be going soon? Its getting to four, Caro and Charlotte are probably wondering where I've disappeared to. Plus we have to get back so the Gryffindors can speculate about which exam answers I've nicked this time."

Leanne snorted and got up from her chair, grabbing a handful of home made biscuits and sneaking them into her bag. Katie shook her head before leaving the kitchen quickly, a stuffed Leanne shuffling slightly slower behind.

They made their way to the common room, reaching the portrait just as it swung forward and Carolina climbed out looking like Christmas had been cancelled.

"What's up with you?"

"Tasha Katridge."

"Why? What's she done? Please tell me she hasn't spread round another rumour that you had sex with Flitwick."

"Dear God no. I think I could handle her if she had done that again. It's so much worse than that. She's going out with Oliver."

Katie felt bad for Carolina. Ok so it wasn't really that bad when your best-boy-mate-who-you-also-happen-to-love announces that he's got together with your sworn enemy. But Katie viewed this as a special circumstance. Carolina had been in love with Oliver since possibly the dawn of time. The duo hung out together every summer, sharing their time between the Wood's kitchen and the Bell's lounge. Everyone had assumed that one day they would announce their engagement and get married in Kilrainey's little church, with the pictures taken on the green.

Katie could almost see Carolina's dream of happily ever after with the boy smashing around her feet. She smiled sympathetically and rubbed her sister's arm, thanking Merlin that she was still young enough to view boys without any ideas of love entering her mind. Carolina's eyes misted over, a sure sign that she was on the verge of tears. Katie knew better than to allow Carolina to show emotion in public, something that the women of their family never did. She stepped aside and watched as her sister rushed off down the corridor, no doubt heading to a private bathroom somewhere.

Katie and Leanne looked at each other before climbing into the open portrait hole. Once inside they grabbed chairs nearest the other first years, and were slowly dragged into a conversation about teachers and homework.

Not long after sitting down Katie glanced up at the clock above the fireplace. It was 5.25, which meant they had five minutes to get from the seventh floor to the great hall. She nudged Leanne, who immediately stood up and announced that the Gryffindors should set off for dinner. Katie was slightly amazed at her friend's determination to get to tea, wondering how it was she could fit all that food in her stomach through the course of the day.

Not wanting to waste too much time questioning her friends bottomless pit, and on the insistence of her now growling stomach, Katie followed the first years down to the great hall.

When she entered she noticed Carolina sat talking to Susannah. Her makeup was well applied, yet Katie knew that she had been crying. That was the way Carolina dealt with her emotions. The sisters all differed. Carolina would find a quiet room somewhere and cry for hours, providing no one walked in on her. Charlotte took her emotions out with cleaning or studying, depending on whether she was at home or school. Susannah, who never cried, panicked or showed too much happiness, had a tendency to let her emotions build up until something drastic set her off. When this happened she took on the persona of an old romantic heroine who had been jilted by her lover. She would wail, faint, and sometimes vomit from stress. Of course this hardly ever happened in public. The Bell's did not show their emotions in public, but there was no doubt of their great emotional behaviour when around family.

Katie would like to think herself different, but she was certain that nothing but the death of a loved one would ever tempt her to show emotion. She preferred to take deep breaths when faced with something that had the tendency to make other humans explode.

She took the seat in front of her two sisters. Wondering if Carolina kept a secret supply of makeup in case of emotional outburst, Katie grabbed a chicken leg and looked up at her older sister.

"You ok?"

"Yep, never better. I'm just being silly as usual. Oliver would never fancy me anyway. He thinks I'm just one of the lads."

"Has he said that? Cos if he has I'm going to have a few words with that boy. Starting with the difference between sluts like Tasha and decent, honest girls like Carolina."

"It's not that he's said it, it's more that I can feel it in the way he talks to me. Oh well, I'm sure he'll be happy with Tasha. She will never argue about Quidditch with him, so he'll be happy about that. A dumb blonde girl who will agree with anything he says."

Carolina stopped talking, watching as the new couple made their way down the space between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables. Susannah looked up at them, made a face, before standing up and walking off to the Slytherin table.

"Susannah's decided she's going to blank Oliver until he finally chooses to be sensible and pick me."

"Her words or yours? I can't help but thinking that maybe she won't be talking to him for quite a while."

Carolina nodded vaguely, her eyes still staring at the side of Tasha's head. Katie sighed, accepting that for the next hour she wasn't about to get any intelligent conversation out of Carolina. She picked up her fork and started to eat. Next to her Charlotte appeared, hand in hand with Charlie. They sat down, Charlotte throwing a questioning look at Carolina. Katie shook her head, not really wanting to get into another conversation about men with yet another sister. Carolina turned back to her sisters, her eyes now focusing on her plate as she ate half heartedly.

Katie was beginning to see the downside of being around her sisters 24/7. Last year she had the benefit of being the only child left at home. She had the house to herself, her own room and her parents were always there. Even during the summer she didn't see her sisters quite as much. The girls tended to separate, each choosing to do their own thing and only returning home to eat and sleep.

But now it was like she had been thrown head first into her sister's strange complicated world. She felt like she knew more about Carolina's boy troubles, Charlotte's determination to do right by her boyfriend and Susannah's constant altercations with varying members of the female population at school, than she ever had when she was at home. The upside of this, she supposed, was that she now knew her sisters better. Going to school had allowed the elder Bell girls to grow closer, something Katie had never really understood until now.

She glanced around her, at each of her sisters. Carolina had stopped eating and was now having a debate with her older brother Charlie about whether or not their mother would know if they popped in at home for a second during the next Hogsmeade village. Charlotte was giggling at something Charlie Weasley had said, looking like a girl very much in love. On the far side Susannah was twirling her fork in a bored way, before looking up and catching Katie's eye. She stuck her tongue out at the younger girl before yawning and pointing at her two friends. Katie laughed, earning several strange looks from people around her. Katie realised that despite Susannah's attempts to cheer her up turning into gossip fodder, she really had meant well. It dawned on Katie that it really wasn't that bad to be at the beginning of a year at school with her three sisters.


	7. Carolina the Nosy

It was the first Friday since Tasha Katridge and Oliver Wood got together, the rain had finally decided to attack Hogwarts and Gryffindor were no closer to the first match of the season.

Carolina sat in the window next to her bed, watching as the rain washed a bird out of a tree near the lake. She put her forehead up against the window, wishing that it wasn't six in the morning and that she had actually been able to sleep. But something kept preventing her from staying in bed every day since Sunday. Maybe it was having to sleep in the same room as her only rival in the school. Tasha had been Carolina's only enemy, to a point, for the past four years. The girls were the prettiest in the year, which of course meant that they had been set against each other since the first time they met. Which normally wouldn't bother Carolina but she had to share a room with the girl. Now she felt that Tasha had taken it to an unnecessary level. All the Gryffindor girls were aware that Carolina liked Oliver, in fact most of them felt that the pair were destined to be together. Not Tasha though. She clearly never considered the unspoken agreement made between friends that prevented a friend nicking another friends man, official or not.

Carolina watched the same bird from before beating its tiny wings against the strong winds that blew around the grounds outside. Behind her one of the girls stirred in her sleep, muttering about toast, before resuming her snores. The bird had now given up trying to fly and was pecking at the ground near the whomping willow.

She gave up watching the doomed bird and slipped off the window ledge. Creeping past the other girls she headed out the door and down the stairs into the common room. As it was six in the morning, and only the beginning of term, the room was dead. Carolina basked in the silence, grabbing the best seat in the room and opening a book someone left on the coffee table. She didn't intend to steal the book, she just wanted something to read. Reading the cover she found out it was a Quidditch book. Checking the inside of the front cover she read Oliver's name. If there was one thing Carolina knew, it was people often wrote things they felt in books they used often. Well she did, as did the people who used the spell books in the library before she did. She reopened the book at the first page. So far all there seemed to be were scribbles about plays. Flicking through the pages she noticed more and more sentences appearing. There was a short statement about Percy Weasley and his inability to be interesting, in so many words. Turning the page over she was disappointed to find no more personal confessions. Giving up out of boredom she replaced the book in its position on the table and curled up on the chair. She watched a mouse run across the skirting board behind the bookcase. This of course made her wonder how many small animals she was destined to witness today, whilst hoping the mouse had a better future than the poor bird.

Above her someone stirred in the boy's dormitory. She glanced up at the ceiling, trying to work out if the peaceful silence was about to be interrupted by a group of loud first year boys. The early mornings tended to go a lot better when she wasn't badgered by that McLaggen boy asking her awkward questions about Quidditch. There was a slight sound on the staircase, followed by a slightly tousled looking boy appearing at the foot of the stairs. Carolina paused for a second, debating the point of having a conversation with Oliver. Their contact over the past week had been varied, from a long conversation after Quidditch practise to several short questions in lessons. She decided that she couldn't be bothered and got up from her seat. Without a last glance at Oliver she climbed the girl's staircase, pausing at the bathroom to brush her teeth before the early morning rush.

Half an hour later she was washed, dressed and sat in the great hall with the other early risers. It was clear from looking around the hall that half six in the morning was not a popular time for breakfast, favoured only by the most extreme nerds of Hogwarts. The Ravenclaw table was half full, whilst there was not a soul to be seen on the Slytherin table. Breakfast was the only meal a day that experienced staggered arrivals. Students drifted in at varied times, from those arriving at six to those who rushed in at ten to nine to grab a piece of toast before lessons started at nine.

Carolina grabbed another croissant from the pile in front of her, wondering where they were stashed those times when she didn't get up at dawn. She nibbled at the edges, brushing crumbs off her shirt as they fell. Over the years Carolina had developed a well rehearsed eating routine. Normally she was forced to substitute the croissant for toast, but it all followed a strict order. Once the croissant was finished she grabbed her glass, draining the pumpkin juice as she stared around the room for a final time. Now she had finished there was no reason to hang around, increasing the risk of being forced into a conversation with either Tasha or Oliver.

It was amazing how badly a friendship could be affected by two people getting together. Until Sunday Oliver and Carolina had been inseparable, spending every spare minute chatting and not really noticing that other people existed. Not now though, now he spent every minute attached at the lips with Tasha and Carolina found herself having to put up with Imelda and her incessant chattering about all the eligible young men Hogwarts had to offer. One such man was a seventh year called Greg Thompson, who was six foot four, single, dark haired, blue eyed and Imelda's idea of what a Greek god looked like. Sure he was nice, friendly as well. But Carolina wasn't sure if he was her type, or if he liked her for that matter.

She reached the entrance hall and began to climb the marble staircase. There were times when she wished that she was in Hufflepuff. They only had one staircase to climb and even that was very short. Still, the long climb gave her time to think, recently about Oliver. Carolina supposed that it wouldn't have annoyed her, or even shocked her, had her other friends never made a big deal about it. She was well aware that he didn't like her, and was perfectly content with just being friends, but the other girls always made a big deal out of the whole thing. Imelda had been convinced that one day Carolina would end up with Oliver, which unfortunately began to make Carolina convinced that maybe she was right. She decided that the next time she fancied someone she wouldn't tell her mates, at least then she wouldn't get so involved with the idea of actually going out with the guy.

With one final turn she found herself outside the common room. She slipped in the portrait, finding the room just as empty as how she left it. She climbed up the staircase and entered the fourth year bedroom. One sweep around the room told her Imelda was up somewhere, Tanzia was sat up in bed trying to finish homework, Olivia was still snoring away and Tasha was stood at her mirror, trying to twist her hair into a bun. She glanced back at Carolina, sneering slightly at her. Carolina raised her eyebrow before crossing over to her bed. She debated waking Olivia up, thinking that seven in the morning offered ample time for the little blonde to get up and start on her makeup routine. She was saved the effort of having to wake her up by Olivia's alarm clock beeping shrilly. Carolina turned back to her trunk, pulling out the books she'd need for her morning classes and hunting for her half finished potions work. She collapsed onto her bed, drawing her legs under her as she began to work on the set of questions Snape had set them. As she worked the door opened as Imelda wandered back in. Over the top of the parchment Carolina watched her best friend glare at the back of Tasha's head, before returning to the work in front of her.

After half an hour of working out the surprisingly easy questions Carolina glanced around the room. Tasha was gone, off to see Oliver no doubt, whilst Tanzia was still glaring at the parchment in front of her. Imelda had just finished doing her makeup and was now staring at Carolina in a way that suggested the other brunette was starving and had no intention of going to breakfast alone. In the corner Olivia was trying to convince her cat Oscar to chase a sock, with poor results. Carolina heaved herself off the bed and suggested going to breakfast to the other girls, who all jumped at the idea of food. At least she could use the extra time to think up ways of ignoring Oliver.

She followed the rest of her dormitory out of the door and down into the common room. Once they had collected some of the males of their year they continued to the great hall. On entering the hall it was clear to Carolina that half six really wasn't a popular time for breakfast. At half seven however, it seemed, most of the school felt the need to eat. On the Gryffindor table Carolina noted Tasha and Oliver, sat chatting to the Weasley twins and their elder brother. Katie sat a little way off the group, looking bored as Charlotte lectured her about something. On the Slytherin table Susannah was waving her arms around as she explained something to her friends, every now and again acting out something from her tale.

Carolina moved towards the Gryffindor table, feeling Tasha's eyes watching her as she chose a seat with the rest of the fourth years. She didn't want to give the girl the satisfaction of seeing her unhappy about the situation, so she trained her eyes away from the couple. Joining in a debate about broomsticks gave her an excuse not to watch the boy she loved with the girl she hated.

After breakfast had finished Carolina had joined her friends in the hunt for Imelda's other shoe, and at nine o'clock joined the rest of the Gryffindors in Charms. She sat next to Imelda, noticing that Oliver had chosen to sit next to Damian. This left Tasha to grudgingly sit next to Olivia, who had always made Tasha believe that she was from a different planet. Carolina snorted behind her text book, sharing a knowing look with Imelda as Tasha became victim to Olivia's mad ramblings.

The pair were denied chance to gossip as Flitwick entered the room, setting their instructions for the lesson on the board. Carolina stared at it, trying to take in the information. In the end she gave up, choosing instead to watch Imelda as she attempted the charm, failing slightly as the pillow she was attempting to summon flew across the room and slammed into Tasha's face.

"Miss Riecroft, it would be nice if you paid attention to what you were doing." Imelda nodded before leaning over to Carolina.

"I was paying attention, I just used wingardium leviosa instead."

Carolina snorted as she muttered Accio whilst pointing her wand in the general direction of the pillows. She looked in amazement as the pillow landed neatly in front of her. Flitwick cheered and offered her the chance to summon her prize. Never one to turn down chocolate she repeated what she had just done, with thankfully positive results. Tasha glared at Carolina as she shared the bar with Imelda.

Two hours late the Gryffindors were settled down in a spare classroom on the second floor, watching the rain batter the windows. Every so often Peeves would drift in and out of the little room, looking for a first year to bully. So far Katie was his firm favourite. The last time he had floated in he had brought with him a large jug of icy cold water. After dumping it over the little blonde's head he zoomed out, no doubt hiding from the bloody baron, a constant threat he was receiving.

Carolina decided that she had kept silent for too long. Not meaning, of course, that she was going to say something to Gryffindor's new wonder couple. Just that she wouldn't sit in the corner silently fuming over Oliver's choice of girlfriend. During the half an hour break she staged a mass game of charades, which ended with the bell and Charlie Weasley's terrible attempt to mime a famous muggle film.

The group of fourth years split in the corridor, with several heading outside for Care of Magical Creatures with the Slytherins, whilst Imelda, Carolina and Olivia set off for Muggle Studies with the Ravenclaws.

The rest of the day passed by in a boring, slow manner. The Gryffindors had to sit through History of Magic, a Defence against the Dark Arts with the latest incompetent witch who happened to write a textbook on the subject, finishing the day with a thankfully single lesson of potions. Carolina was extremely happy to get to dinner, before wolfing it down and settling in the common room for a Quidditch and homework free evening. She noted that the Quidditch book from this morning seemed to be a permanent feature in the common room, as its owner had still not claimed it back, choosing instead to share a small armchair with his girlfriend. Carolina sat sideways, facing instead her older sister and brother, who had taken up an intense game of chess. Every so often Charles would manage to get one of Charlotte's pieces, only to have one of his key figures taken by Charlotte. Carolina cheered Charlotte on, whilst Katie decided to back her brother, clearly feeling any support was worth something.

The match ended with Charlotte as the winner, and the pair went their separate ways to bed. Carolina glanced up as the clock, noticing that it was past curfew and that the common room was mostly empty. The wonder couple had retired to their beds (separate of course), leaving a small pile of books, including Oliver's Quidditch book. Carolina couldn't face going to bed just yet and picked up the book instead. She flicked through it, trying to pick up a few tips on goal scoring. She turned to the last page, wondering if there was an order form from the company so that she could get her own. There, written on the back page, opposite the order form was the sentence that Carolina had been looking for that morning.

'_Oliver Wood, too scared to tell Carolina how he feels, September 1990'_


	8. Susannah the saviour

It had been a week since Susannah had been caught in the stands with Cedric and her sisters were doing everything they could to keep her away from their practise. This surprisingly suited her quite well.

She had spent the week bored out of her mind; classes were an unfortunate break in the whole social aspect of school. At the start of the week, after a mind numbing lecture from Charlotte about sneaking into team practises, Susannah had tried to find out why it was the Gryffindorks were being so secretive. She knew about the new captain, so they couldn't have been hiding that from her. Plus they wouldn't have had time to come up with any new plays over the past week. Susannah knew for a fact that Oliver had decided to start his captaincy by using the same plays that had led the Gryffindors to victory over the past few years.

She stared out of the window in her dormitory. It was a fake window of course; which used the same charm as the great hall ceiling to mirror the outside. The view wasn't a real view, but it did contain the weather that was currently raging around the battered castle. Clearly the founders only believed that students would use the windows to determine the weather and to provide some light.

The rain battered against the window, hammering in Susannah's desire to stay in her room for the rest of Sunday. Unfortunately she had a homework list longer than her arm and three sisters who would no doubt look down on her attempt to hide in her room when there was work to be done.

With a sigh she dragged herself off her perch on the window ledge and grabbed her bag. She bypassed Harrow and a group of lads in the common room before the captain had a chance to talk her ear off about practise.

Once on the stairs to the library she prepared herself for facing her sisters. She lifted herself out of her sour mood and stood up straighter as she wandered down the corridors. There was one nice perk to being a Slytherin and that was the fact that there were two corridors in the dungeons. One led to the potions rooms and the other led to the common room. Susannah always felt like the minute she left the dungeons she was swallowed up by Hogwarts countless corridors.

The door to the library was wide open, something that only happened on a Sunday when Pince got sick of the door slamming shut every five seconds as students poured in to do their work.

Susannah slipped into a seat next to a very studious Charlotte. The older girl barely looked up from her work as she acknowledged her sisters presence. Across the table Carolina raised an eyebrow at Charlotte before pulling a face. Susannah snorted in agreement at Carolina's bored expression. She glanced round the table, trying to locate the small blonde. Carolina wordlessly pointed over to the corner of the room where Katie sat with Marcus Flint.

"Nice development. Since when did Flint actually listen to any suggestion I make?"

"Yes well he seems to be taking it in his stride to actually make an attempt to do some work."

Susannah stared at Carolina, not really believing what she was saying. She opened her mouth to say something but was cut off when Carolina drew a sharp intake of breath and ducked behind a huge book in front of her. Susannah looked round confused, before catching a glance of Oliver and Tasha as they walked into the library hand in hand.

"Seriously Caro, you need to work on your indifference. You cannot hide from them every time they enter a room. It completely defeats the point of being a Bell."

"I can hide from them if I want. If people ask why I'll just tell them I nicked Oliver's favourite Quidditch book or something."

Charlotte looked up from her book and glanced at the pair. She shrugged at Susannah's questioning glance.

"You can't fault her logic Zanni. Although she has a point Caro, you do arouse some suspicions. Including Oliver's. You can't explain your way out of blanking him if he asks can you?"

Carolina slowly nodded, before gathering her books up around her.

"I'd love to stay and chat but this means that the common room is currently safe from them. So as I've finally finished my charms work I can hide in the common room and do my potions work in peace."

The tall girl shouldered her book bag and tossed her hair back. She grinned at her sisters and left the library, leaving behind a sea of male faces staring after her.

Susannah glanced after her sister before turning to the red head next to her.

"Don't even think of asking me what's up with her Zanni."

"I wasn't going to; I was just going to say that she looks in a better mood." Susannah opened her notebook and began to jot down the necessary ingredients for some none descript potion. Charlotte sighed and put her quill down on the desk. She turned to Susannah and motioned her to come closer. Intrigued by her older sister's odd behaviour she leant in.

"Are you telling me you haven't heard? Carolina found hope on Friday. In the form of a sentence at the back of Oliver's book." Charlotte glanced around them before continuing, "Turns out the boy has been confessing his deepest thoughts in the back of a play book."

Susannah raised her eyebrow at Charlotte.

"What the balls are you on about? Are you saying that Oliver actually has feelings for Caro and won't tell her?"

Charlotte smiled slightly. Susannah squealed loudly, causing heads to turn in their direction. She composed herself quickly before leaning closer to her sister.

"You know what this means. We need a plan." Susannah scribbled something on a spare piece of parchment before tapping it twice. Across the other side of the room Katie unfolded a piece of parchment as it appeared in front of her.

The blonde glanced up at her two sisters before whispering something to Marcus.

Within a second she was sat next to her sisters. Charlotte unfolded a scrap bit of parchment in front of the three girls.

"First off we need to decide who's going to persuade Oliver that Carolina is the girl for him. Then we need to build up his courage to actually ask her out. Someone also needs to make sure Carolina doesn't do anything stupid like rebound with some oddball." Susannah and Katie stared at Charlotte with a look of mild confusion. The other girl sighed and tapped an item on her list twice.

Susannah watched as the words flew upwards off the page and landed in a neat sentence on her long abandoned work. Another item did the same, this time landing on an open page in Katie's transfiguration notebook.

"You best hope that's her copy Charlie."

"Okay so everyone knows what they're doing now. I say we start at breakfast tomorrow. Your list of instructions are numbered, so please do them in order."

Charlotte stood up and gathered her books up in her arms. She nodded in turn to her sisters before sweeping out of the Library. Katie turned to Susannah with an amused look in her eyes.

"Do you reckon she was actually finished with her work or do you think she just wanted to make a dramatic exit?"

Susannah took her seat at the breakfast table the next day, thankful that Dawn had been too tired from chasing boys and had collapsed in bed at a reasonable hour.

After her refreshing sleep she had climbed out of bed and made it to her seat at the table with time to spare before Carolina made it to breakfast.

She gulped down a glass of juice before reaching into her skirt pocket and pulling out a folded bit of paper. The depressing list hadn't disappeared since she glanced at it last night. It seemed that Charlotte thought it was a good idea for her to deal with the girlfriend. Perfect. It would take her two seconds to convince Oliver to dump Tasha.

She glanced up at the Gryffindorks. Tasha was obviously applying the half ton of makeup she needed to make herself look half way presentable.

Susannah picked up a bit of toast before making her way over to Oliver. He had his head buried in a Quidditch book when she took a seat next to him. After staring at the back cover for two minutes Susannah reached over him and grabbed a pot of jam. She was mildly disconcerted to see that the Gryffindors were given strawberry jam instead of the vile rubbish left for the Slytherins.

It was only after Susannah had demolished two slices of toast and drained her second glass of juice that Oliver actually noticed she was there.

"Hi Susannah. You're sisters aren't actually here yet."

"Gosh you're on the ball today aren't you mate. Yeah I can see that my lovely siblings are missing. I actually came to chat with you."

Oliver smiled in a confused sort of way that Susannah took as an indication that she should continue.

"Dump Tasha."

"What? You came all the way over here to tell me to dump my girlfriend? Is this some new prank you've got going with the twins or have you actually lost it?"

"Listen Oli, the whole world can see you're in love with my gorgeous older sister. It's no great secret that she has the hots for you too. So do everyone a favour and dump the ugly leech that's attached itself to you. Once you do, the little light bulb in your head will light up and you will finally grow a pair and ask my sister out."

Oliver blushed slightly, prompting Susannah to sigh as she stood up. It was difficult talking sense into people when they still saw you as the annoying kid sister who occasionally got into fights. She glared at Oliver in what she hoped was a prompting sort of way.

Just as she was about to carry on her lecture about making the right decision Carolina appeared with Katie. Susannah exclaimed in delight, claiming that she had just come to ask Oliver where they were. She made up some rubbish about whether or not they would be going home for half term before bidding farewell and hot footing it back to the Slytherin table.

As she grabbed a final slice of toast she congratulated herself on her persuasive skills and made a mental note to badger the house elves about strawberry jam for the Slytherin table.

By lunch time Susannah had fully decided to ask her parents if it was too late for Muggle School. She really felt like she had collided with a brick wall. It wasn't that her subjects were hard; quite the opposite in fact. However they were boring. Magical education was all well and good, especially for the muggle-borns and half-bloods who have grown up in a none magic home. However for someone who had grown up with magical parents and six elder siblings who have mastered the art of wand waving, magical education was beginning to seem like a gloss over.

She sighed and stabbed at a piece of chicken that was trying to escape her soup. At least there was one good thing to come out of today; Oliver Wood had dumped Tasha Katridge. It was all over school. There was nothing like a public breakup in the middle of the entrance hall to really fuel the gossip mill. Reports of Tasha cheating on Oliver with every single male teacher going had reached Susannah by the end of break. This was quite a feat when they had only broken up at the start.

She placed the chicken in her mouth and stared at a spot on the wall opposite. Though she knew she should be happy for her sister conflicting thoughts were edging through. Why, after all these years, was Carolina the lucky one? She chewed thoughtfully, wondering if it was worth complaining about something that had been a part of life since before she could remember.

Before she had time to contemplate leaving the dining hall to finish some work a figure dropped into the seat opposite her, bringing her back down to earth. Cedric nodded mutely and grabbed a bread roll off the pile.

"You do realise that they are prepared solely for the occupants of this table, and Slytherins do not appreciate having their bread stolen by members of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team."

He shrugged and continued to chew on the bread. As Susannah raised her eyebrow he gave her a cheeky grin and jumped up out of his seat. The second he sat back at the Hufflepuff table Susannah resigned to doing homework and grabbed her bags.

On her way out of the hall she passed Carolina, who looked like Christmas had just come very early three days in a row.

"Hey sis, you seen Oli anywhere?"

"Sat at the end of the table trying to avoid the death glares Lady Slut is sending him. She's obviously untrained in the art of dirty looks. Everyone knows you don't send them unless you have at least two allies with you."

"Erm, ok that's nice. Well see you later love."

Susannah watched her sister manoeuvre her way around students littering the gap in between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor.

She smiled to herself; her previous feelings of jealousy washing away as a new feeling of happiness washed over her. She was happy for her sister and slightly proud that she had helped bring about this happiness.

Susannah turned and wandered off down the corridor, barely taking in the people around her as she climbed the stairs to the library. Her escape, her safe house, her sanctuary, lay just beyond the double doors in front of her. Say what you will about Susannah Bell; no one can deny her love for peace and quiet. Oh and honey dukes best chocolate.

Taking a spare seat in the furthest stacks she opened her transfiguration homework and scribbled her answers down in silence. To any unsuspecting person it would look like a normal lunch time event. Susannah Bell rushing to finish last minute homework, the confused look on her face being mistaken for panic. This just wasn't true today. After her success at helping her sister she had fully decided to turn over a new leaf and was now doing her homework two days before it was due. Though mainly it was because she had practise tonight and tomorrow.

She finished her work just as the bell rang and forced her out of her seat. She had to admit she had found the warmest part of the library. Susannah followed a group of fourth years out of the room and took the stairs slowly, knowing she had ten minutes before she could be classed as late for potions.

Two hours and a mind numbing lesson on aconite later, Susannah was actually happy to be going to charms. At least in charms she could chat with Dawn whilst appearing to be concentrating on whatever simple incantation Flitwick had decided was just beyond their level.

She sat down next to the blonde girl, who was trying to curl her hair around her wand.

"Dawnie, what the balls are you doing?"

"Curling my hair."

"I can see that. Why are you doing it with your wand?"

"Caitlin told me her sister always does it. Plus the magical properties in your wand instantly charm the hair into acting the way you want." Dawn stopped winding a piece of hair around her wand and glanced at Susannah. "You know a better way, don't you?"

Susannah smiled and reached into her bag. She handed over a wand specially designed to do hair.

"It's simple; you touch the strand of hair and the roots whilst making a winding motion." She demonstrated on her own hair before giving it back to Dawn.

The other girl nodded slowly and set to work on curling her hair. As they sat at the back of the classroom it was easy for the girls to avoid being seen by the tiny Flitwick, who was currently telling the class about some boring charm involving fire and stones.

Though to be fair, it wasn't like the Slytherin second years ever paid much attention to the small teacher. The five lads had a habit of staring off into space or arguing about Quidditch, whilst the girls worked on their makeup or finished homework for another lesson. Currently Caitlin was busy staring at the rain lashing the windows, as two of the boys had a sleep on their desks.

It was the usual Monday afternoon. Susannah tried to pay attention to Flitwick, although it was hard when he was only recapping a charm they attempted last week. Dawn had finished her hair and was now returning each lock to the poker straight look that had served her for the majority of the day.

Susannah stared at the board, which was being constantly scribbled on by a floating piece of chalk, whilst drifting off into her thoughts.

She hoped that by now Oliver had done the smart thing and asked Carolina out. She also hoped that Tasha would get over herself before Susannah had a chance to force her to.

Unfortunately before she had a chance to imagine the awful things she could do to Tasha if she attempted to sabotage her sister's relationship, Flitwick drew her out of her reverie and forced her to answer a question.

With the end of the lesson came a relief that only arrived with the end of Monday. Susannah wolfed down her dinner before pelting across the school grounds in a bid to avoid the rain. She wasn't sure why she did that, seeing as she had Quidditch practise in it. She sighed once she reached the changing rooms and reluctantly pulled on her sports kit. Within ten minutes she was out getting drenched in the rain.


End file.
