The sixteenth of May dawns cool and clear, but despite the ideal weather the mood of the third year Gryffindor boys' dorm is grim.

Their Quidditch match against Hufflepuff is that afternoon, and no one is feeling particularly optimistic about it.

"Why couldn't Abbott have gotten sick a week later?" Evera grumbles as the members of the Quidditch team trudge down to the Great Hall for an early breakfast. "At least our last game would be a win if we were playing Ravenclaw like we're supposed to be."

Laurel has scheduled an early practice for the team. In her words, they're going to put on a damn good final showing.

Myr gets it. This is Laurel's final chance to show her skills as Captain, and she wants to make sure it's a good impression. But with exams starting in two weeks Myr is having a hard time focusing on the game when his grades are barely scraping passed 'passing' in every class that requires more than just theoretical knowledge of their subjects.

Nonetheless he stumbles sleepily through breakfast and follows the rest of the team down to the pitch without a complaint. With the game being today, he wasn't realistically going to get much rest anyway. The whole school is likely going to the game as one last hurrah before exams, and Myr knows that even inside the crowd will be loud enough to be distracting.

"Come on team, brooms down, five laps around the pitch!" Laurel is already running, and Charlie cheerfully takes off after her. On the entire team only he genuinely seems to enjoy Laurel's nightmarish warmups.

The rest of them take off at varying paces and enthusiasm. It takes twenty minutes for Remi - always the slowest, though Myr thinks that these days it's more out of protest than actual lacking fitness - to finish his laps, and they they're up in the air and Laurel is calling maneuvers with every breath.

It's honestly quite an enjoyable practice - fast-paced and intense, the best kind in Myr's opinion. If you're dodging bludgers every few seconds you can't be distracted by academic concerns.

After two hours Laurel ends the practice and tells them to shower and change into their uniforms before lunch. Brandon catches up with the Gryffindor boys just outside the locker rooms.

"Hey, how'd it go? What would you say Kent's block score is? Any chance it's gone up because-"

"You really want your first date with Frannie as an official couple to be a win for Gryffindor, yeah, we know." Charlie grins, tired but still cheerful. "Though wouldn't a win either way be bad for you two? Or is she less intense about Quidditch so her House losing wouldn't sting as much?"

Brandon shrugs. Ever since he and Franziska had made things official the week before he's been nearly insufferable, talking about almost nothing else. Myr thinks it's kind of cute personally, and he wonders if his sister had been the same way about Dylan. It would certainly explain why his mother and Uncle were so annoyed with the man (even if Myr doesn't really like him either despite having missed this portion of their relationship).

"She's less intense than me anyway, but I guess she would be disappointed for Hufflepuff to lose, wouldn't she?" He frowns. "Maybe we should have skipped this and studied by the lake instead."

Charlie punches his shoulder lightly. "Don't you dare. You have to come support us, all of Gryffindor is."

"All the more reason we have to win." Evera sighs. She's been trailing behind the group slightly, with Fiona attempting to engage her in conversation and decidedly failing.

"We don't have to." Fiona offers uncertainly. "We just need to do our best."

"We does not really include you." Evera snaps, and Fiona frowns.

Charlie quickly steps forward. "Evera was that really necessary?" He asks pointedly. "Fiona is as much a part of the team as you are."

Evera mumbles an apology, and Fiona gives her a smile in response.

"We're all stressed out about this." Charlie says decidedly. "But all we can do is our best, and if we overthink it that best could be impacted negatively."

The group reaches the dorms at this point, and the girls split off to grab their uniforms out of their rooms. Myr heads to his own dorm to do the same, closely followed by the rest of the Gryffindor boys.

Brandon even tags along, and Myr can't help but laugh when he sees his roommate pull on a Hufflepuff scarf.

Brandon just sticks his tongue out, unashamed. "I gave mine to Badger a while ago, so she gave me hers to make sure I stay warm."

"Winter is over Young." Drake teases. "What good is a scarf going to do you?"

"I'm giving it back." Brandon rolls his eyes at him. "But just for a bit. She said she had an idea so I'm giving it to her at the game."

"Hey, which section are you sitting in?" Evera appears in the doorway, dressed in her uniform and apparently unbothered by the fact most of the boys are still changing. Myr dives behind his bed, blushing heavily and very nearly using a word his mother had strictly forbidden.

Drake doesn't have as much restraint, and Charlie gives a quick "language!" even as he scrambles to get his robes buttoned properly.

"What are you doing here Evera? This is the guys' room!" Drake hisses at her.

Evera waves him off. "Oh whatever, your pants are all on." She points out. "But seriously, Brandon, have you and Frannie talked about this? Holly mentioned it and I realized it's actually quite important."

Brandon hesitates. "Um, we're going to sit with you guys at lunch, but we're sitting with Leona and the other Hufflepuffs during the actual game." He mumbles. "Franziska said she wants to sit with Leona one more time before she becomes the commentator next year."

Evera frowns dangerously. "Seriously? This game is huge for Laurel and Gryffindor, and you're sitting with the Hufflepuffs?"

"I'm sitting with my girlfriend!" Brandon counters irritably. "You know what, I'll see you all at lunch. I'm going to go meet up with Badger." Her grumbles, draping the scarf over his shoulders and storming past Evera.

Drake frowns. "That was a little harsh Ev." He points out.

She huffs out an irritated breath. "It was a legitimate question!" She grumbles.

Myr blinks. "You're acting like Holly on one of her off weeks!" He accuses, and then frowns in confusion when Evera blushes instead of shouting at him.

"I... I am not! Ugh, finish changing, we'll see you in the Great Hall." She mumbles, suddenly in a hurry to get out of the room.

Myr blinks again before shrugging and proceeding to put on the rest of his uniform.

Lunch is a bit of a blur for Myr. He loses track of the number of unfamiliar faces coming up to him and wishing him luck. He knows Laurel sits to his left and he thinks Eric is next to her, but otherwise he's rather jumbled on who's seated where as everyone is discussing strategy in low tones while the non-players make extra-loud small talk to prevent eavesdropping.

Myr is pretty sure he's caught at least the parts pertaining to him, but all too soon they're in the air and he's swinging to drive a bludger away from taking off Cassidy's head with no real concept of what he's supposed to be doing.

"Good job Myr!" Laurel calls.

Apparently he's doing fine though.

The game is as intense as everyone had expected it to be, and Myr is glad he's already learned how to tune out the crowd because their screams are nearly deafening.

He's thankful for all the work he and Laurel have done with non-verbal communication on the field because he's pretty sure he wouldn't be able to hear any plays she calls through the pounding in his ears even if the crowd wasn't making verbal communication impossible.

He eventually is able to focus enough to process the game at a conscious level, though he's rather glad to learn he's apparently good enough to be able to hold his own even when flying on autopilot. He zones in just in time to deflect a bludger that one of the Hufflepuff beaters has fired at him, and Laurel redirects it again towards Lola, who's flitting around Charlie in a way that's clearly irritating the Gryffindor Seeker.

Laurel gestures to him quickly, and Myr dives as directed, looping back around and scanning the players over him to see if he can find the other bludger.

Too late, he spots it hurtling towards Evera, who's too distracted by a pass to Jacob to see it coming.

The whole thing seems to play out in slow motion, and it's not the first time Myr has seen one of his teammates fall off their brooms, but it's the first time they're unconscious. It's the first time they can't catch themselves.

Evera falls almost twenty feet before Laurel manages to get across the pitch to snatch her out of the air. Coach Crowell is blowing his whistle repeatedly, and all at once everything come crashing back down and time speeds up again for Myr.

Laurel has Evera held tightly against her torso with one hand, the other maintaining balance on her broom. She's spiraling down towards the ground slowly, where Madame Pompfrey is already waiting.

Myr stays aloft after checking what the rest of the team is doing. One of the Hufflepuffs is crying, and Myr spots the bat in her hand.

She probably hit the bludger. He realizes, and he coaxes his broom up a few feet so he's level with her.

"It happens." He offers quietly. "It was my bad not reacting in time."

She looks over, tears still falling and mouth still twisted downwards, not really responding.

"It's not your fault. Ev will be fine, she's tough." He states more firmly. "If you want you can go down and make sure." He's not sure she actually can, but he thinks she probably needs it. It looks like she's probably a second year and this can't be a great start to her time on the team.

She looks at him uncertainly, but then starts descending. His eyes drift past her to focus on Evera and Laurel, now on the ground, and it suddenly hits him that the pitch has gone rather quiet. Which is odd really, even when Kent had been taken out the year before the Quidditch pitch is never completely quiet, not when there are people in the stands.

Myr finally looks around at the rest of the players, and realizes with a jolt that Lola has her fist clasped around something, though she looks less pleased about it than she normally would. Charlie doesn't seem to have even noticed, eyes still locked onto the people below.

Finally, as Laurel begins to remount, Lola holds up her hand, the golden Snitch flashing in the sunlight, and the stands erupt once again.

Myr doesn't bother with the formalities, heading straight to the lockers as soon as his feet touch the ground.

"How is she?" He asks Laurel when she walks in behind him. Being captain, she had stuck around the pitch long enough to shake hands with the Hufflepuff captain and check in on the still-sobbing beater before coming in.

Laurel shrugs. "It could have been a lot worse. Coach Crowell would have caught her if I hadn't. She's staying in the Hospital Wing overnight but it looks like it's just a mild concussion." She smiles faintly. "She'll have to take her exams later most likely."

"She'll love that." Myr grins in relief.

Laurel laughs faintly. "Until she's inside taking tests while everyone else is enjoying the last week before summer." She points out.

Things simmer down pretty quickly after that. No one is feeling very celebratory, naturally, and most of the team check in with Evera in the hospital wing before heading to their common rooms or the library to really buckle down and get ready for the upcoming exams.

Myr is happy when Kent decides to buckle down next to him. Ever since the midterm exams, Evera's older brother has been doing his best to help Myr out with his studies whenever they both have time. It's been extremely helpful, and while practical spells are still often beyond Myr's capabilities, his written and theoretical work has improved noticeably.

He just hopes it's enough to pass the year. He's heard stories about people having to repeat years and he honestly really doesn't want to lose his friends and have to get to know an entirely new group of students. School is hard enough without the added social stigma of being a failure.

Kent is sympathetic, and as a sixth year he doesn't actually have any major final exams, just a few comprehension checks to be sure he's on track for his NEWTs, which means he's dedicating most of his time to working with Myr on the practicals for the third year's exams.

"You're doing really well, and your spell work is at least becoming more consistent." Kent encourages him after one of their study sessions on the weekend after the final Quidditch match. "And you're getting a new wand this summer, right?"

Myr nods, rubbing his wrist lightly.

Kent grins at the motion. "Break time?"

Myr just nods again.

The two decide to swing by the kitchens, which Myr hadn't actually known the location of until Kent had showed him after a Quidditch practice some weeks before. They grab a light snack from the house elves, who are helpful as ever and a few even wish them luck on their exams.

School becomes a blur from there, as classes begin to shift focus onto review material and the library steadily becomes more crowded as the procrastinators finally begin studying properly for the upcoming exams. Myr eventually moves his primary study spot to one of the abandoned classrooms on the fourth floor.

He can feel his stress levels rising as the exams creep closer: his temper shortens, his patience with his friends become more brittle, and generally socializing is far more exhausting than it's worth most days.

So he holes up and studies the same spells over and over again, praying it will be good enough to scrape by, praying that his new wand will magically fix him.

But he can't quite escape the voice at the back of his mind, whispering that no wand is ever going to make up for the many ways he fails.

Exam periods are always hectic, and third year even more so. But Franziska hadn't had midterms for all of her classes, so she's still taken somewhat off guard at exactly how much studying she needs to do for her eight finals.

On the bright side most of her core classes are simple, practical applications of the spells they've been studying, and applied magic is always easier than written essays or tests, but both Muggle Studies and Ancient Runes are theoretical at best, so with those and Potions she has at least three classes in a format she's far less comfortable with.

It's times like these she's particularly glad that she was sorted into Hufflepuff. Aside from the fact their common room is quite spacious, everyone is more than happy to help out with studying. The sixth years, being the least stressed out, are scattered between the younger years, helping with concepts that don't make sense and checking on wand technique.

Franziska is sprawled out on the floor the day before exams start, poring over her Herbology notes and checking her recollection by gazing around the common room and naming all the plants she can.

Leona is flopped over next to her, groaning over her Care of Magical Creatures textbook. She has three exams the next day and until about an hour prior she'd been reviewing Charms with Franziska in preparation for their other exam.

"Why on earth is this exam tomorrow? We don't even normally have Care of Magical Creatures on Monday." The brunette whines pitifully, rolling onto her back so her words aren't muffled by the picture of billywigs in front of her.

One of the sixth years overhears from where she's sat with a group of second years, coaching them on the unlocking charm and she looks over with a small smile.

"Professor Kettleburn is taking next week off for an expedition in South America." She explains lightly. "So he moved his exams. You'll probably be with all four Houses tomorrow so get ready for some chaos."

Not for the first time Franziska is quietly glad she got into Ancient Runes. Care of Magical Creatures sounds like a disaster waiting to happen most days as far as she can tell.

Leona glances up curiously. "Really? He didn't mention anything to our class."

The sixth year shrugs, quickly fixing one of the second year's grip before looking back over. "It was said in passing a couple weeks ago to the seventh years. I only know because Hunter helps me study during prefect meetings sometimes and he mentioned it. It sounds like it was all pretty last minute. I just hope he doesn't lose anymore limbs." She laughs.

Leona snorts, though Franziska fails to see what's so funny. Bodily injury doesn't strike her as particularly amusing.

Leona nudges her arm lightly. "Chill Frannie, it's a joke Professor Kettleburn always makes. We have permission." She teases gently.

The sixth year gives them one last smile and then returns her full attention to the second years, one of whom has set the floor on fire.

"That wasn't supposed to do that." She mumbles sheepishly, and Franziska bites down on a groan of annoyance when she recognizes Saundra Campbell as the perpetrator.

Thankfully the fire is put out quickly, but Franziska relocates from the common room after that. She needs full focus if she wants to get through the week unscathed, and Saundra has never been particularly conducive to effective concentration.

The next day she wakes up almost half an hour earlier than she normally does, the familiar knots in her stomach reminding her that it's the first day of exams. Instead of trying to fight for an additional few minutes of sleep she kicks off her blankets and pulls out her Potions textbook, going back through the recipes she'd marked the night before that she isn't quite confident with yet.

The dorm wakes up around her, and the girls are all more alert than usual as test stress awakens them faster than normal. Tonks joins Franziska on her bed, skimming the book over the German girl's shoulder.

"I'm going to fail." The Metamorphagus groans miserably. "Snape has it out for me and I can never remember the final ingredient for the Confusing Concoction."

"It is rather confusing." Kiera quips cheerfully. Of the group she's the only one who hasn't pulled out review material to look over while they change, a picture of relaxation amidst an otherwise tense room.

The rest of them groan as they finally pack up their study materials and head up to the common room. They spend a few minutes comparing notes with the guys before heading for the Great Hall. On the way there, someone tugs at Franziska's sleeve and she turns to find Roderik looking back nervously.

"Um, after exams today do you think we could go over some Potions?" He asks uncertainly. "I didn't do well on the midterm and Professor Snape scares me." He adds even softer, and Franziska smiles gently.

"He scares all of us honestly." She says warmly. "Of course I'd be happy to help Rod."

He offers a smile before hurrying away to sit with the other first year Hufflepuffs, and Franziska internally beams that he'd sought her out for help and not a prefect. She quite likes the reserved first year after all and is proud he sees her as a responsible and helpful older figure.

"Ready to die?" Kiera is still cheerily joking after they finish their breakfast and head down to the dungeons for their Potions final. She's met with several groans and Franziska thinks she sees Tonks threaten to throw something at her friend but she's not entirely sure.

Despite everyone's extreme nervousness, the exam really isn't that bad. Franziska pairs up with Jemma and while they nearly run out of time to complete their potion due to being the last two to finish the written portion, Franziska feels pretty good about their final product, placing the labelled bottle on Snape's desk and heading out of the room with less lingering dread than Potions class normally produces.

Of course, Snape had also spent less time looming over them menacingly so that may have contributed.

Charms is in the afternoon, and is significantly less nerve wracking. Franziska finishes early and decides to enjoy a walk around the courtyard before heading back to the common room to meet up with Roderik. She's not joined by anyone - Brandon is still in his Potions final - but the silence is honestly relaxing.

She works with Roderik for a little over an hour before Brandon insists on dragging her away to work on Ancient Runes for their exam the next morning. It's more efficient than their normal study sessions, as Brandon is significantly behind Franziska in comprehension for the class.

After dinner she retires to the common room as despite it being against her better judgement. She feels pretty solid about Muggle Studies though, so she's relatively certain that even if she is disturbed she'll still do well on the exam the following afternoon.

She goes to bed earlier than she normally would, but she wants to be properly rested, especially if her mind is going to keep waking itself up early from nerves during the week.

Her plan somewhat backfires when she wakes up a solid hour early. Sighing, she goes up into the common room and goes through her Ancient Runes notes one last time before looking around the room naming as many plants and their functions as she can. She's pleased when she's able to get a majority of them, and resolves to spend her afternoon going over History of Magic and Transfiguration instead of Herbology, despite the two exams not being until Thursday.

All in all the exams for the day go decently well, though she feels much better about Muggle Studies than Ancient Runes.

She ends up not studying at all in the afternoon, instead sitting by the Black Lake with Brandon, holding hands and discussing the Ancient Runes test. They also share the occasional kiss and Franziska thinks she rather likes those and will probably miss them during the summer.

"We should go to Diagon Alley together." She suggests, eyeing a suspicious rippling at the center of the lake. "Or do something about the distance. I don't want to overwork Rudi flying letters back and forth."

"We can use Muggle mail as well, I think I know how it works." Brandon offers, and Franziska beams at him. Of course, why hadn't she thought of that? "But yeah, it would be nice to see each other in person. Maybe I can talk to Charlie. We're all going to his house for the last couple weeks of summer vacation."

Franziska immediately shakes her head. She's heard Aidan talking about that as well, and she really isn't interested in imposing on what is clearly supposed to be male bonding time. "Oh no I wouldn't want to impose. I was just thinking I could come in a few days early and we could see the city together and do our school shopping then."

Brandon hums thoughtfully. "That does sound nice." He admits. "I'll talk to my dad. And Charlie, since if I'm meeting with you then I'll be leaving his house early."

They while away the time until the sun is dipping towards the horizon and Kiera and Leona hunt them down and announce that dinner is being served.

The next morning Franziska once again wakes up early, and immediately curses her brain for doing so.

"Frannie, why are you up? You don't have Divination this morning." Henry point out when she joins him, Tyler, Tonks, and Jemma in the Great Hall for an early breakfast.

She shrugs blearily. "Too into the routine. I'll learn how to sleep in again next week." She promises, and Tonks laughs.

"Girl your brain works in really weird ways. I don't know any other fourteen year olds who'd pass up a chance to sleep in."

Franziska retires to the library afterwards, doing a quick review of Herbology before diving into History of Magic. She doesn't quite have the dates of the European witch hunts in order and she's mentally kicking herself for letting herself get away with putting it off for so long. She ends up spending the rest of her morning focused on that and resolves to do her Transfiguration review in the evening after the Herbology final.

The Herbology exam naturally goes quite well. She pairs up with Jemma, and the two of them finish nearly an hour early so they take the time to double check all their work before leaving it in the greenhouse for grading and head back into the castle.

"I feel like I've barely seen you this year." Jemma smiles as they make their way back to the common room.

Franziska laughs awkwardly. "Sorry about that. It's been a crazy year." She observes, and Jemma nods.

"Study for Transfiguration with?" She suggests, and Franziska is happy to agree.

The two girls move to the library after Saundra Caldwell manages to somehow conjures a rainstorm in the middle of the common room, but aside from that distraction they get quite a bit accomplished before heading to the Great Hall for dinner.

"Where have you two been? Brandon was bugging me for hours." Aidan greets them with amusement. "Not straying already are we Frannie?"

Franziska blushes at the implications, feeling a twist of discomfort at the thought. Jemma however, just laughs it off and sits next to Henry, leaving Franziska to take the seat beside Aidan.

"I'll find him after dinner." She promises the red-headed boy, and Aidan grins and nudges her.

"Hey I'm just teasing. You and Brandon are cute, even if he has gotten way less fun since you started dating."

Jemma shoots him a look from where she's started to eat. "Backhanded compliment much?" She observes almost dryly, but she's smiling at her food.

Franziska keeps her promise anyway, finding Brandon at the Gryffindor table and chatting with him for nearly an hour in front of the Great Hall.

"See you in Transfiguration in the morning?" He asks hopefully as she starts back to the common room.

She smiles and gives him a quick peck goodnight. "Of course. Get enough sleep tonight, okay? I know you zone in the afternoon if you don't and you need to be focused for History as well."

He grumbles good naturedly but agrees and Franziska finally gets back to her dorm, taking her own advice and retiring early after an additional two hours of review with the other girls in their room.

The next day Brandon ends up following her for the entire day. Franziska lets him - they only have a little over a week before she's back to Germany after all, and she's going to miss him over the summer.

Transfiguration goes well, but she knows she tripped on a few of the dates for History of Magic despite her and Brandon going back over the important ones right before going in to the exam. She finishes her essay just as the allotted time finishes and she meets back up with Brandon outside of the classroom.

"Hey, how did it go?" He asks brightly, clearly much more confident in his own work than she is with hers.

She shrugs. "Decently I suppose. I'll pass at least but I think I'll need to redo my study schedule next year if I want to keep up."

He slings an arm around her comfortingly. "Well, only one exam left, right? Defense tomorrow afternoon, and I can help you study during lunch since I have it in the morning!"

She smiles at his enthusiasm. "Alright, but we're both studying for it now." She says firmly, and he easily agrees.

The don't really get all that much studying done, but Franziska is feeling more than ready for Defense as it's been her best class this year. She quite likes Professor Addison and will be sad to see him go, but he's already handed in his resignation. She just wishes he'd tell them why he's leaving.

"I heard his wife got sick and they're going Stateside to try and get better care. She's a Muggle so magic-ing it away isn't exactly an option." Brandon says when she brings up the topic during their 'study' session. "And America's medical system is faster if you've got money, which I guess they must have."

Franziska frowned. "Oh, that's awful! I hope she gets better then." She sighs. "And that next year's teacher is as good as Professor Addison."

Brandon nods idly in agreement and they move back to trying to actually study.

In the end it doesn't affect anything as Franziska breezes through the final with no problems at all.

"Go well?" Brandon grins when she practically skips out of the classroom.

She beams at him. "Let's just say it's a good ending to the year."

He grins in return, something mischievous lingering in his gaze. "It's not over yet Badger."

She laughs as he pulls her down the corridor and out into the Courtyard. Not a bad end to the year at all.

All in all Raj thinks it's a pretty good end to what has been a rather emotional roller coaster of a year.

Ed had burst into the common room Sunday evening, rudely interrupting what had been a very entertaining chess tournament to announce that he'd gotten a look at the final point count and Slytherin once again is in the lead.

Rajani really hopes they manage to win the Cup again - having both the Quidditch championship as well as the House Cup would really be something. Even her parents would be proud of that.

"Three years in a row? Not too bad a streak." Mayra grins from the couch. She'd failed out of the tournament early on, but unlike most of the other loser has stuck around to cheer for Sahana. "You kids have to keep it up, you hear?"

"No pressure or anything." Eugene quips from one of the loveseats that he and Queenie are sharing. The room laughs as the games Ed had interrupted slowly start back up.

Ed takes the open spot on the floor next to Rajani, who thinks idly that she might once have been embarrassed to be caught lying on the ground like a commoner but now she just grins over at her friend.

"Excellent news." She greets as he flips onto his back to match her position.

"Indeed." He agrees cheerily. "You look much more relaxed today. Exams go well?"

"My parents shouldn't know a thing." She confirms happily. While finals had naturally been extremely stressful, she's actually quite happy with all of them, and is confident her grades will be passable for her parents. "I feel bad for Sahana and Mayra though, they aren't getting their NEWT results back all summer and I just know my mother is going to drop in on them unannounced the moment the grades are released."

Ed snorts. "Hopefully it's not an inconvenient time." He grins knowingly, and for once Rajani wonders if she might finally know what that smile means.

Not that she's talked to Sahana about her suspicions, though she probably should before they get back home.

"Hopefully." She settles on the safe answer, glance over at where Mayra is shrieking in victory as Sahana gains another win in the tournament. "It will be odd, I think. Being an only child."

Ed grins lightly. "Hey, take it from someone who's already had one sibling move out - it's not as game changing as you think it's going to be. There will be a little more attention than usual for a while but then things fall back into their same old pattern."

Rajani grimaces. "I'm not sure even a small amount of time will be managable. My parents are rather intense."

"So I've gathered." Ed glances over, and then turns onto his stomach so he's right next to Rajani. "Tell you what, any time they get to be too much you can send me a huge rant about it. That can help, trust me."

She grins. "I may just take you up on that, but you remember that you offered, so no backing out when you get a mountain of letters."

Ed grins right back. "Well I will look forward to that." He responds cheekily, and Rajani can't help but laugh.

The rest of the weekend is similarly relaxed, and Rajani wishes school could always be this way. It's certainly better than the looming return to her parent's house - and without an older sister to talk to.

These thoughts are what push Rajani to finally ask Sahana if they can talk. She doesn't miss the way Mayra watches them leave, traces of concern clear in her expression despite her clearly trying to hide them.

"Rajani. What is this about?" Sahana asks once they're safely at the top of the Astronomy Tower, far from any possible eavesdroppers.

Rajani hesitates, and then clears . "Um, I was hoping I could stay with you and Mayra at some point during the summer? I think it would be good for me to get to know the city, and it's closer to Eugene and Queenie as well-"

"That wouldn't be a good idea." Sahana cuts her off immediately. "Mayra and I will only just be getting settled and who knows what the land lord will think. I'm sorry."

Rajani frowns, and then remembers her conversation with Ed. "If I stayed with you long enough our parents likely wouldn't see a need to check in often, if at all." She points out. "And they'll certainly not be opposed to the idea of me seeing Queenie and Eugene more often so it's completely up to you."

Sahana makes a face. "No wonder you manage to get away with so much." She sighs. "Look, you make excellent points..." She sighs again. "Let me ask Mayra. It's her place as well after all."

Rajani beams. "I promise you won't even know that I'm there!" She promises. "And um, Sahana?"

Her sister, who has started back down the stairs, turns with irritation clear on her features. "Yes Rajani?"

Rajani shifts slightly and then clears . "You know I won't tell our parents, right? I mean, I nearly failed a class this year but they have no idea."

Sahana blinks and then shakes her head in amusement. "I know Raj. You're finally growing up. But I really do need to ask Mayra."

Rajani smiles. "Right, of course! Just tell me what she says."

Queenie is thrilled by the idea when Rajani mentions it at breakfast the next morning.

"Imagine being only a few minutes walk from each other! We could hang out so much more!" She gushes excitedly. "I'll show you all around Muggle London! It's really something, even Eugene was impressed last summer by the castles we looked at."

"They were decently constructed. I still say they must have used magic for it." Eugene offers his input after swallowing the last of his English muffin.

Queenie rolls her eyes. "We've been over this sweetie, Muggles didn't have magic. Rules were more lax back then about the division between us and them but there were still divisions. Muggles did most things themselves."

Eugene shrugs towards Rajani, piling more food onto his plate. Rajani just laughs.

"That sound amazing Queenie, though perhaps we don't tell my parents we'll be looking at Muggle history during our visits." She smiles, and her friend laughs.

"Deal. I really hope Sahana and Mayra let you stay with them, this summer will be so much fun!"

Rajani doesn't get an answer from her sister right away though. While she's waiting she spends time out and around the castle with her friends - playing some final pranks with Elspeth and Nia, flying around the Quidditch pitch with Lenox and Eugene, and lazing around by the black lake with Ed. During this week of relaxing, their final grades are returned, and Rajani is thrilled to see she passed everything.

"Ancient Runes is my lowest grade, but an A is an A." She says happily. "And the rest of my grades are exceeds expectations or outstanding." She adds, "So my parents really can't make too big of a deal over one A."

Clary smiles ruefully. "I'm glad I don't have your parents Raj, if my dad was that strict on grades I'd probably be permanently grounded."

Finn - who for once is actually sitting with the rest of them instead of with the older or younger Slytherins - glances over her shoulder to take a look at her grades. "Well, at least Care of Magical Creatures is an elective." He states, and Clary yanks her grades away from him.

"Ever heard of personal space?" She grumbles. "But yeah, looks like I'm down to just one elective now. At least I like Divination more."

Eugene snorts. "You failed Care of Magical Creatures?"

Clary glares at him. "I got a P, so it's barely a fail." She grumbles. "At least I won't have to get all dirty twice a week any more."

Rajani smiles supportively over at her friend. "You always complained about that class anyway." She encourages. "Now you can focus on the stuff you actually like!"

Sahana chooses that moment to walk over to their group. "How did you do Raj?"

Rajani hasn't missed that her sister is using her nickname far more often since their talk in the Astronomy Tower, and she's hoping it's a good sign. "One A in Ancient Runes, but E or higher in the rest." She reports, and Sahana nods.

"Mayra thinks that you could stay with us for a few weeks in July if that's acceptable."

Rajani lights up. "Really? Thank you Sahana! I promise I'll be out most of the time anyway."

Sahana smiles faintly but it's clear she's still a little uncertain about the situation. "Well, good. I'll write mother and father to iron out details once Mayra and I are settled in."

As Sahana walks away Clary spins towards Rajani with wide, excited eyes. "You're going to be staying in central London this summer? Girl we need to hang out then!"

Rajani laughs. "I'll tell you dates then when we have them." She promises.

Queenie is pouting. "We already have plans though!" She points out.

Clary sticks her tongue out. "I'll join you then." She says with finality. "I'm bored in the summers anyway."

Rajani lets out a laugh as the two begin debating what they should actually do and which parts of Muggle London are worth seeing.

That afternoon finds her with Ed by the lake, and she happily tells him about her grades.

"Good job Raj." He congratulates her. "A lot of kids drop Ancient Runes honestly, it's one of the harder classes. Even Arithmancy doesn't really get intense until NEWT level."

Rajani beams at the praise. "Speaking of that, you better tell me when you get your OWL results back. I need to know which classes you at so that I know not to study for them your way."

Ed barks out a surprised laugh. "You are very different than when I first met you." He remarks. "It's a good thing." He quickly adds when she tosses him a look. "You're more confident with yourself."

Rajani smiles hesitantly. "Well, I wouldn't say you had nothing to do with that. So thanks I guess."

He grins in return and they laze in the sun for a while longer before Rajani heads to the training grounds to meet with Lenox for a quick flight around the castle. He'd invited her the evening before and it will be the first time the two of them have flown without Eugene around since tryouts at the start of the year. Needless to say, Rajani is looking forward to seeing if she can keep up with him this time.

"You're trying out for the team again next year, right? We need a good Chaser to replace Mayra." Lenox asks hopefully as they loop around the statues decorating the top of the West Tower.

Rajani hesitates. "Honestly I'm not sure." She finally replies. "After how close I came to failing a class this year I'm thinking I should be focusing more on school. Making the team would be wonderful, but also be an extra time sink that I no longer think I actually have the energy for." She answers honestly, and she feels a bit bad when she sees how disappointed the response makes Lenox.

"Oh, well, I'm sure Alas will be happy to hear that. If you don't try out then he'll almost definitely get the spot."

Rajani smiles at the thought. "That might be ideal actually. I think he's always cared more about Quidditch than I have anyway." She looks over. "I'll still bring my broom to school though, so I expect more of these flights around the grounds whether or not I'm on the team, okay?"

That lifts Lenox's spirits and the two spend the rest of their journey discussing their plans for the summer.

"I wish I lived closer to you all." Lenox sighs as they land back on the Training Grounds and head towards the castle. "I'd love to spend time with everyone over the summer."

"Well I know that if you sent Eugene Quidditch tickets he'd have no problem convincing his mom and uncle to let him stay with you up in Montrose for a few days." She points out, and Lenox looks thoughtful.

"I may just do that. Or maybe I'll invite Cad and Alas, from what I can tell neither of them are big on staying at home during the summers."

Rajani tilts her head curiously. "You're friends with Cadfael and Alasdair? I honestly didn't think that was possible." She jokes lightly, and Lenox grins obligingly.

"We're roommates at least, and they're not so bad when you get past the rough edges."

The next day is the last day of the year, and Rajani finds herself attempting to spend time with every single one of her friends before the Feast that night. Ed and the other prefects have officially confirmed that Slytherin has once again won the House Cup, and the whole House is in the common room having an impromptu victory party.

"Three year streak! You kids better keep it up!" One of the seventh years, who's clearly had too much firewhiskey, slurs as he stumbles over to where Rajani and most of the third years are seated.

"Sure thing boss." Eugene quips, and another seventh year hurries over to drag the drunk boy away.

"Sorry about him," Rajani is surprised when she recognizes the newcomer. She hasn't really seen Keaton Avery other than in passing since his family had come to her parent's party nearly two years prior. Keaton glances over at her and smiles briefly before leading his drunk roommate across the common room towards the dorms.

Eugene waves as they leave. "I"m surprised Keaton is even here, but I guess he was in charge of keeping an eye on Harold." He observes cheerfully.

"I think everyone is here. I mean we won the Quidditch and House Cups this year." Clary grins. "We've got a lot to celebrate!"

"And it's just about to do that formally." Sahana has appeared behind them, and Rajani jumps. "It's about time to wrap up and head to the Great Hall." She tells them, and upon looking around Rajani can see that all six prefects are gathering people up and sending them towards the door.

Queenie loops her arm through Rajani's, and grabs Eugene with her other.

"Gloating time!" Eugene cries cheerfully, snagging Clary into their little chain, which expands to include both Nia and Elspeth shortly after.

Laughing, Rajani decides to throw caution to the wind and grabs onto Lenox, adding him to their line up and giggling at his look of surprise. She ends up choking on her own amusement when Lenox pulls Alasdair into the mess, stunned to see her usually bored-looking Housemate grinning. Alasdair even grabs Cadfael, who looks quite irritated but Rajani thinks she might see the faint hint of a smile on his face when he turns away, sagging in defeat and letting himself be pulled along.

Finn joins them sometime between leaving the common room and entering the Great Hall, and the third year Slytherin class bursts into the silver and green covered dining hall laughing and shouting, and all linked together. They get several odd and annoyed looks from the rest of the Houses, though their fellow Slytherins all look amused.

But Rajani for once could care less about the anger directed at them from the rest of the school. There's a spring in her step and a lightness that she hasn't felt since her midterm examinations blew up in her face. Slytherin has had a great year.

And nothing is going to stop her from celebrating until it's time to go home.

Ana sits with the seventh year girls on the train ride back. She'd considered that they wouldn't want her around, due to them being fully graduated now and her still with four years to complete, but Hannah, Josie, and Sarah had all insisted she sit with them, and Eric had mentioned he'd like to see her during the train ride to say goodbye as well, so she's planning to find him on the platform before she leaves with her parents.

"I can't believe we're really done!" Josie cries happily, flopped across the seat so her feet are up against the window and her head is in Sarah's lap. "We're real adults now ladies!"

"Some of us are anyway. Jury is still out on your maturity levels." Hannah teases lightly.

Ana sits quietly by the window, uncertain how tactless it would be to mention that she's not done just yet.

"I do believe Ana is higher on that particular scale." Sarah notes wryly, grinning down at her friend when Josie makes and offended noise in the back of .

Ana smiles faintly. "I do think I'll miss you all next year. Aidan is quite a good companion but I can't exactly have meals with him."

Sarah looks up. "You should sit with Willow." She says, her eyes lighting up in the way they do whenever she's struck by a new idea. "She's Laurel's younger sister, prefect, likely  future Head Girl. I think you two would get along well enough to have meals together." She grins teasingly. "Unless you want to sit with your year mates?"

Ana grimaces. "Not every meal, no. Perhaps I will speak with Willow on the train ride in September."

Sarah grins. "I think you'll get along. She's a bit more on the outgoing side but she loves talking about politics and obscure knowledge."

Ana tilts her head to acknowledge her interest. "I can still owl you if I wish to discuss the outdated practices of Wizengamot though, yes? I feel you'll be better versed  than she would be."

Sarah laughs. "Of course, though I'm not sure how busy I'll be. I have a few interviews lined up and some of the jobs are more time consuming than others." She warns.

"Well I'll be nearby if you ever want to chat Ana!" Hannah pipes up. Josie looks up at that, craning her neck awkwardly so she can look over at the blonde.

"You got the job then?" She asks excitedly, and Hannah beams.

Hannah had been working on getting a paid internship at a Magical Observatory only a few hours away from Hogwarts in the Scottish Highlands, and while she'd been optimistic there hasn't been any solid answer one way or another for a few weeks.

Hannah shrugs. "Well, almost. I need an Outstanding on my Astronomy NEWT but I'm confident I managed it. I'll know for sure one way or another by month's end."

Ana nods. "I'm certain you'll get the job. I don't know anyone as passionate about Astronomy as you are." She says firmly, and Hannah beams at her.

"Thanks."

Ana looks over at Josie, the one person who hasn't really spoken about her future plans in any detail despite the looming need to do so. "So what about you Josie? Any interviews?"

Josie shakes her head, having returned it to it's nest on Sarah's leg. Her hair frizzes slightly as it rubs against Sarah's robes. "Not as of now, no." She admits. "I applied to a few higher education establishments during the year but unless my NEWT grades are mind blowing chances aren't great. I'm mostly working to rearrange my initial plans in case I don't get in anywhere. I'm thinking private tutor for some of the Pureblood families around London? They rarely send their kids to Muggle school before they head to Hogwarts so there's decent opportunities there."

Ana tilts her head, remembering her own tutor from childhood. "My parents stopped hiring tutors after I turned nine." She notes. "So you'll have to deal with really little kids more than likely."

Josie shrugs. "Well considering I intend to have a few of my own some day, I'll consider it practice." She grins. "And I figure in a few years I can reapply and work at an actual Wizarding school."

"Maybe you can teach Defense at Hogwarts! Goodness knows there's a limited supply of people who haven't already have the position." Hannah jokes, and even Ana cracks a grin at that.

Josie laughs. "I'll probably have to wait until everyone who knew me in school has graduated at least though." She notes. "But maybe I'll be back in seven years!"

"Stranger things have happened." Sarah observes thoughtfully. "And I think you'd be a good teacher at least. Goodness knows we didn't have enough of those. I would never have gotten an Outstanding on my Defense OWL if I hadn't studied everything myself."

Ana makes a face. "I understand that. In three years, only Professor Whits actually followed the full curriculum laid out in the OWL handbooks." She observes. "I've been doing most of my work for the Defense OWLs myself over the breaks."

"Somehow I'm not surprised." Josie notes with clear amusement. "Though Professor Addison wasn't bad. Trust me, you'll be missing him at some point, the Defense teachers can be very bottom of the barrel."

Ana makes a face. "I appreciate the warning." She sighs. "Though I'm not surprised. How long has the post been cursed for?"

"Little over forty years now I think?" Josie looks up at Sarah, who nods and specifies.

"Forty two as of this year." She confirms. "So Professor Addison was the forty-first Defense professor since Professor Merrythought's retirement."

"I bet the curse breaks at fifty. That's a magical number right?" Hannah pipes up jokingly, and Sarah rolls her eyes.

"Fifty three would be more likely since it's prime actually. But as we don't know the base nature of the curse formulating a projected length is a futile effort at best."

Ana perks up at the familiar Arithmancy mentioned. "Would the Marley Formula not be able to at least roughly approximate that though?" She asks curiously. She's only just started looking at the theoretical parts of her Arithmancy textbook, as they won't be touching on it in depth until after the OWL examinations, so she's curious to hear more about them from someone better versed.

Sarah shakes her head. "Marley's doesn't work with dark magic, and this is most certainly dark." She informs Ana briskly. "In fact, most Arithmancy has to be reworked when applied to dark magic - it's not clear why at this moment though there are several witches and wizards in the field exploring that very topic."

"Maybe one day you'll figure it out Ana! How cool would that be?" Josie grins, finally sitting up so she can address Ana face-to face.

Ana shrugs, though the idea does appeal to her. "Perhaps. I'm not sure what exactly I want to do with my life just yet, so it's certainly a possibility."

"Well you've got plenty of time to figure it out." Hannah assures her. "I don't think any of the Ravenclaws in our year are still hung up on what they want to do. Other Houses yeah, but we're good at thinking ahead so I know you'll figure it out sooner rather than later."

Ana nods confidently. "I'm already perusing possibilities during the summers." She informs them. "It's all casual for now - I'll be able to better focus my search once my OWL results are in."

Josie laughs. "Sarah two point oh." She grins.

Sarah grins as well, coloring slightly. "I suppose I was like that at fourteen wasn't I?"

"Nothing wrong with that." Ana frowns, feeling uncharacteristic defensiveness welling up.

Sarah quickly raises her hands. "No, not at all! Being prepared is a good thing - I made Head Girl didn't I?"

Ana tilts her head in acknowledgement. "I don't really want to be a prefect though." She admits after a moment. "It's a lot of interacting with other people and I'm not really keen on such things."

Hannah snorts. "You do fine with us."

"You're all Ravenclaws. And mature. First years are only sometimes the first and never the second." She says primly, and Sarah bursts out laughing.

"You're not wrong." She admits once she's calmed down. "There were definitely days I was ready to throttle some of the other prefects, especially the Slytherins and Gryffindors."

Ana settles back into the seat, listening distractedly to the familiar chatter between the three other girls as they discuss people she doesn't know and memories she wasn't around to share. She gazes out the window and realizes with the faintest pang that this will be the last time they do this. Sure she can write the three (not that she think she'll ever have a reason to write Josie), but it won't ever be the same as them all being in one area.

She'll miss it. Sure she can talk to Willow, and she's not incapable of interacting with some of the people actually in her year, but she's not really friends with any of them. And at some point she's come to genuinely consider most of the seventh years as her friends.

She sighs softly and tunes back into the conversation fully - even if she doesn't understand everything they're talking about she suddenly doesn't want to miss it.

They chat for the entirety of the train ride, and Ana can't really find it in herself to be irritated that she couldn't get any studying done before they're pulling into King's Cross.

"Agh I'm going to miss you guys." Josie is getting teary as she drags Sarah and Hannah into a hug, which the other two return. Then the lanky brunette turns to Ana.

"I don't know your opinions on hugs so you're getting a handshake." Josie laughs even as a few tears slip free and she holds out a hand to Ana.

Ana shakes it firmly. "It has been good getting to know you Josie. I will miss you as well." She says solemnly.

Sarah laughs and holds out a hand for a handshakes as well, which Ana gives. Hannah skips the formalities and steals a quick hug as her goodbye.

"Write me this summer okay?" The blonde insists, and Ana promises before the four of them finally depart from the train.

Ana scans the platform, looking for her one graduating friend she hasn't yet bid a proper farewell to. The station is crowded, and the steam from the cooling engine isn't helping whatsoever with identifying faces.

After what feels like an eternity of straining to look around, someone taps her on the shoulder.

She spins, instinctively reaching for her wand which isn't in it's usual place so her hands comes up empty.

Eric raises his hands in surrender. "Hey woah, sorry for startling you." He grins. "I didn't want you to go before saying goodbye."

Ana relaxes and nods. "I had the same thought." She replies, and then holds out a hand.

Eric raises an eyebrow, clearly amused. "No need to be so formal Ana."

She drops her hand, feeling a bit embarrassed. "Well, I will miss you, and I hope your future endeavors are successful." She hesitates, wondering if she should mention Laurel. While she's certainly gotten to know Eric's girlfriend in the past two years she doesn't really care about the woman one way or another.

Eric saves her the trouble of deciding when he takes her pause as the end of her thought. "And to you as well. If you need any NEWT books feel free to ask - mine are just going to be sitting around gathering dust after all." He hesitates, and then smiles. "Good luck Ana."

Ana nods, and the two part, leaving Ana feeling just slightly hollow. She can still write to them, she reminds herself. They aren't gone from the world, just from school.

Sighing, she drags her trunk down the platform, carefully balancing Dracula's terrarium with her other arm and scanning for her mother.

She finds Winona waiting near the entrance, and they make their way to the waiting car before her mother begins chattering on about their plans for the summer.

Ana half tunes her out, watching King's Cross vanish into the bustle of the city. School is going to be very different from now on.

Hopefully it will be a good kind of different.