The Gryffindor Five: Year 1

Hogwarts

I feel a little better today. I think Rebecca is upset over something. She seemed exceedingly edgy last night, maybe she's... well, I was edgy last week... but she'd tell us if she was, I think. But maybe not, I didn't really want to, I just had no choice.

She seemed even more annoyed when Tessa and Melissa came in later giggling. But then she seemed a lot happier when they told her that they'd just let loose a couple of nifflers in the dungeons near the Slytherin Common Room and earlier in the day they'd put leprechaun gold in several of the Slytherins cloaks.

Those two are just too much sometimes, but at least they didn't loose any points for Gryffindor today and I imagine it must've been some sight to see someone like Dolores Umbridge dealing with a niffler trying to get at her pockets.

They're still cackling, but it's kind of nice to see Mel so happy after all this Bellatrix Black business. Even if the happiness is based on childish pranks. She'd of made a phenomenal Marauder if those boys accepted girls into their little club. Well, I'm going to take a nap. Yes, another one. But I have finished all my homework for the weekend and read ahead for the work this week. The other four think I'm nuts for doing that every weekend. Especially Melissa, whom I have not yet once seen her actually study by her own will. I mean, she does her homework and she pays attention in class, but she never studies unless I just about threaten her with death and even then, I have to watch her because she'll pull out a book and look like she's really studying, but she's not. She's reading something for fun. And she still passes everything somehow. I'll never understand how she manages that. At first I thought it was since her mum is a witch... but plenty of students from families where both their parents are magical spend hours studying. It amazes me.

Love from,

Lily

Hogwarts

I can't believe this. I just got a B in Potions. A B!

And what's this? Melissa just got an owl from home, with a package. Be right back, diary.

-

Oh Merlin, I hadn't realized that her parents actually encourage her eccentric ways. They sent her a shirt with a little note "Saw this and thought of you, knew you'd love it." Well, they were right. It's this hideously bright red Hawaiian shirt with big white flowery things on it... it's almost an eyesore just to look at. Oh bother, and it's the weekend, so she can wear it around and no one will yell at her for being out of uniform. Oh hold on, this is just too much, the shirt actually made her want to get done up for dinner. She actually agreed to let Tessa mess with her hair and face, so now apparently all of us are going to get done up a bit. I'll write later.

Love from,

Lily

Acid Pops

Oh my goodness, tonight has been so much fun and who would've thought that it was all Mel's doing?!?

Her mum and dad sent her this shirt that looked positively hideous in the package, but Melissa just about went mad over it. She actually let Tessa do up her hair, even though they fought over that bit. It was amusing.

"Mel, just let me slick it and wear it down, it'll look so good like that!"

"That's so impractical. I'll wind up eating my hair at supper! Tell them Lily, you like to leave you hair all practical, too."

Lily wouldn't answer though, she just looked torn between laughing and shaking her head at us behaving like such children.

"No, Tess. Pull it up or something. You always moan about how I don't even pull it up neatly, so just pull it up neatly, alright? And don't go overboard with that Maximus Factorius, I hate that stuff and I'm just gonna have to scrub it all off after dinner."

Well, I knew Tessa was good with hair and make-up, but I assure you, diary, she's a miracle worker. She'll easily have a career in cosmetics when she graduates if she wants.

First she dumped nearly half a bottle of Sleekeazy's potion into Mel's hair which made Mel sputter and yell. It was just too funny. Becca even took a few pictures, but I almost wish there was a way of recording it like a movie, it was just so amusing. Then she brushed it out and Tess was right, Mel's hair looks really pretty when it's all straight and shiny, it's this really weird shade of red and brown mixed together with blonde highlights, and you just don't notice it in the same way when she pulls it back in those ponytails the way she does.

So then Tess showed her a mirror and said, "See, I told you! It looks lovely that way!"

And Mel glared at her and said, "If you don't pull all this hair out of my face in the next ten seconds I will go shove my head under the faucet, I swear."

And the other three of us laughed, since we were sitting on Lily's bed across from the two of them and Tessa sighed and started pulling Melissa's hair into pigtails like Lily's, but higher on her head, since Lily's are usually so low. And just when she finished Mel was just about jumping out of the chair, but Tessa put her hand on her should and pushed her back down saying they weren't done yet.

The whole time Melissa was shooting Becca, Lily and myself looks like "get me out of here". While she was doing that, Tessa was winding the long pigtails into two buns on top of Mel's head and when she was done, they looked a little bit like bear ears, but on the back of her head. The strange thing though was, that they looked cute on her. Even Mel didn't have some sort of cynical comment when Tessa showed her her hair in the mirror.

"Practical and pretty, Mel. I keep telling you, it can be done." Then she starting rooting through her make up bag and Mel looked like she was ready to run. I think the hair and make up combination was a bit too much for her to handle. Finally Tessa straightened back up holding mascara and told Mel to open her eyes.

It took like ten tries since Melissa kept blinking but finally it was on. Heh, Mel looked so annoyed though. Then Tessa stood back up again and I think Mel was about to fight her but Tessa just said, "This is it, just a bit of lip gloss and it's a really light tint since that shirt is so..." and Tessa looked over at Melissa's bed like it had fungus growing on it, which made Mel laugh and agree to put on the lip gloss.

I thought we were done then, so I got up to move and Tessa grabbed my shoulders and said, "Next!" and pushed me into her chair. I was so surprised. Then she circled me like a hawk and I could easily see how Mel had been nervous before. She dove back into her trunk and pulled out another bottle.

"Never works on me, my hair is so straight it won't even give in to this potion, but it should work on you." She dumped some Crabby Christie's Cover-All Curls potion into her hands and worked it through my hair. "You're so lucky, Alice. You have such curly hair even without much work it still looks good, but with a little work, we can make it look spectacular." Then she chuckled and said, "Frank will never know what hit him."

So I gasped and said, "Tessa!"

And she said, "Oh what? We know you like him, so clearly you want him to notice you." Then she addressed Becca, "Really now Becca, can you think of a better girlfriend for your brother?" I turned so red and all the while Cortessa was just calm as a cucumber working that stupid potion through my hair.

Rebecca looked over at me and grinned and said, "Actually, I guess I can't." I think I went even redder, but in a weird was it was nice to have her approval to like her brother.

Then Tessa put on some blush and lipstick and said that my eyes were so pretty they didn't need any work and sent me over to my trunk to find something special to wear to dinner. She forbid me to pick anything Hawaiian though, even though I told her I didn't own anything like Mel's shirt (which by this time she was sitting on Lily's bed holding it happily in her lap).

Then Tessa grabbed Lily and made her over too. She pulled her hair down and dumped the rest of the Sleekeazy potion into her hair and brushed it straight out and pulled back part of the sides into braids and pinned them together in back with a barrette. She looked like a medieval princess. Then she put mascara on her and a little bit of green eye shadow and told her to wear that green jumper of hers.

After that she turned to put all her stuff away and then turned back at the last minute to Rebecca and said, "I don't suppose anything I'd say could make you want to act girly even for just one night?"

And then, to all of our shock, Rebecca just hopped up from Lily's bed and into Tessa's chair and said, "Do your magic... well, you know what I mean." I really don't know who was most surprised in the room, because even Becca looked shocked that she'd just done that.

Unlike with the rest of us, Tessa curled Becca's hair by heating up her wand, kind of a play on the Muggle hair curler things and left all these loose curls all around her head and then made two tight curls framing her face. After she finished Tessa's hair, she tossed her the same lip gloss she'd put on Melissa and told her to put on some and take the extra off her lips and smear it into her cheeks.

The rest of us all got changed while Tessa quickly fixed her own hair and make up. She did a lot more to herself than to any of us, but she's so practiced at it that she managed to do it very quickly.

What a sight the five of us were, standing in front of the door. Lily was wearing a very pretty green jumper and with her hair and make up the way it was, she really did look like a princess. Then she grinned and it was just the same old Lily. Becca pulled on a pair of jeans and an old peasant blouse that I'd never seen her wear before, and while it was really simple, it made her look so much older. Then she giggled and, just like Lily, she was the same old Becca. Tessa looked her normal pretty self, but for once we actually looked like we belonged with her. And Mel, wow. You'd think that she would've looked crazy with her hair looking like a bear and in that mad shirt, but she actually looked... she had some sort of... sometime about the way she looked made me want to go over and sit and chat with her. And when she smiled and laughed, she didn't quite seem like the same old Mel, she seemed, older, but not just that, like she actually was more mature. In that mad outfit of all things, if any one of the four of us had put it on, it would've looked crazy, but on her it looked just right. I had on a simple blue smock that I'd gotten over winter break for that stupid ballet thing, but I had managed to sever off those horrid bows.

Tessa turned around to scope us all out before we left the room and her eyes went wide and she made the strangest comment.

"This is us in ten years guys. You see why I like make up and hair potions so much now? Can you all see yourselves? I mean, I know you're exactly the same on the inside, but you're carrying yourselves in entirely different ways." Then she just smiled and opened the door and we all headed down to the dining hall.

I really think we turned every boy's head that we walked past. It was amazing. I've never felt so... pretty. Two Ravenclaw Seventh Years even gave us appreciative glances when we passed the library.

Anyway, when we finally got into the Great Hall, we sat down and the Gryffindor table was mostly empty, which I thought would've bothered Tessa after all the work she'd gone through to make us pretty, but she seemed perfectly content.

Then the Marauder's walked in with Frank. I think that the three of them nearly fell over. Sirius shook it off first and came over and sat down next to Tessa. Frank and James just stood in the doorway like they'd been hit by thunder bolts and at first I was sure that it was because Frank wasn't used to seeing his sister looking all girly, but then I noticed that he hadn't even glanced at her, he was looking at me. ME! Oh, I wanted to hug Tessa for making me look pretty and hug Melissa for getting that dopey shirt that made us all get dressed up and hug Mr. and Mrs. Denezyuk for seeing that mad garment and mailing it to her. Then he walked up and asked if he could sit next to me. And, so help me Merlin, I froze. But fortunately for me, Becca grinned at her brother and was like "Of course." And then I wanted to kick myself because I knew he would sit down on the other side of Becca, but bless her, she slid down, so the only seat open by us was in between the two of us and Frank beamed at her and then sat down. He really did want to sit down next to me.

A couple of seconds later, we all realized that James was still standing in the doorway, but none of us could figure out who he was staring at, so we think maybe it was just all of us as he's so unaccustomed to seeing us like this. Then he like shook his head a bit and walked over and sat on the other side of Becca. She turned bright red when he said she looked very pretty, but I don't think he meant anything more than the obvious, and she agrees.

The best part though was after dinner, we all walked out of the Great Hall and Tessa and Sirius were just... gone. I still have no idea where they went, I'll have to ask her in a bit. But the other four of us girls were just standing there with James and Frank and then James said, "I think I'm going to go visit Remus, goodnight guys. Well, girls. I mean... er..." and he walked away stammering, which made me giggle.

Then Peter Bell walked by with Alan Beamish, both of whom are on the Gryffindor Quidditch team and they asked Becca if she wanted to come out and fly with them for a bit, to get in some practice and, well, knowing Becca, she jumped at the chance to play Quidditch with people who really know what they're doing. And Lily, in her ever sensible mode, had nicked a hair scrunchie off her desk before leaving the dormitory and put it around her wrist, pulled it off and gave it to Becca saying her hair would probably drive her mad while flying. A second after that Becca was racing off after Peter and Alan shooting questions at them while pulling up her hair at the same time.

Then it was Lily, Mel, Frank and me left standing there awkwardly and Lily muttered something about homework and raced off... probably to put her hair back in pigtails and wash off any remaining make up. And Mel looked at me and grinned and said, "Alright then, Alice?" And it was like some code that I just intuitively knew she was asking me if I was alright to be left alone with Frank and... well, I was scared to death, but I was. So I said, "Alright then, Mel." And she said she was going to pop in and visit Remus, too. That boy is in for a very pleasant shock.

Then it was me and Frank and I was so sure he was going to go running off somewhere but instead he asked me if I wanted to go for a walk since we still had some time until curfew. Oh goodness, I nearly forgot how my legs even worked for a second.

We walked around the castle and even outside for more than two hours, we were even late getting back to the Common Room and we talked about everything, absolutely everything. From Hogwarts and teachers and classes, to our friends, to current events and that nutter Voldemort and that idiot Minister Fudge, to our pasts and our childhoods, to the future... I think I have fallen completely and totally in love with him. Of course, I didn't tell him that and he never tried to even so much as hold my hand, but I'm so glad he didn't because what's the likeliness of a relationship lasting six and a half years until we graduate? I'd rather wait for him... I fully intend to marry that boy. The others are going to think I'm nutters, but I don't think I've ever felt happier in my life. Oh, Lily is cross examining Melissa and Tessa on where they've been all evening. I want in on this.

Always,

Alice

Hogwarts

The complete and total lack of common sense that Tessa shows at times seriously worries me. Up in the Astronomy Tower snogging Sirius Black. She's lost it. She's not even twelve yet. And Mel is just amused. You'd think she'd be more worried about the virtues of her best friend. I suspect there may be more going on in Mel's love life than she lets on to also, if this doesn't shock her.

And Alice wandering the grounds with Frank until all hours of the night. Well, not all hours, till quarter after nine, but that's nearly three hours! What did they manage to do all that time?

I can't believe Tessa's kissed a boy. Oh how odd, and I do bet this is all only going to get odder as we get older. Who wants to kiss anyone, anyhow? It's all wet and what if they've got bad breath and really now, what is the point in trying to nearly eat someone else's face? This is all beyond me. But Tessa is over there giggling like a madman and Alice's head is off in Never-Never Land. How did boys manage to make them so mad?

And Melissa is rather happy for having just returned from visiting a very sick friend, you'd think she'd be more... just not so blasted happy. And Becca is looking far too happy too.

Why is everyone being happy driving me mad? That's just mad. Mad. Mad. Mad. Maybe I'm going mad and they're all normal. Or maybe it's just those blasted hormones at work again. At any rate... I feel the urge to resign from the human race.

Love from,

Lily

Quidditch

Oh Merlin, I had the best time tonight! After dinner (which was an ordeal itself, we all got dressed up because of some ridiculous shirt Mel got in the mail from her mum and dad) Peter Bell and Alan Beamish walked by and asked if I wanted to go work on some Quidditch moves with both of them. They both know I'm hoping to make the team next year as I've been rather loud about it. Bell is the shoe in for captain next term and he's really quite good. And Beamish is a fantastic Chaser. Anyway we tried out different plays for nearly two hours. It feels so much more natural for me to be flying on a broom getting knocked around by bludgers than it does wearing make up and curly hair, although that hair trick was rather cool. I may have to ask Tessa how to do it... just for future knowledge and all.

Anyway, the best part was when they both said if I practiced over the summer I'd probably be picked as one of the Chasers. How fantastic is that?!? And when we got back into the tower I saw Alan and Peter go over to Margaret Bell, Peter's little sister (a Fourth Year) and start talking excitedly, pointing at me. And Margaret looked like she was nodding in agreement, which would just be great, since she's a Chaser, too. Oh I really hope I make the teams.

I wonder why everyone else is so happy. I hope they all had evenings as good as mine.

-Rebecca

Hogwarts

It's been a few days, well weeks, really. You wouldn't believe the homework pile up we're getting recently! Sirius and James caused such a commotion today in Potions. They both claimed it was an accident, but I think they did it for some reason. You know, I almost feel sorry for Snape sometimes. Almost. Of course, then I remember he tried to hex more than one of my friends into oblivion on more than one occasion and that bought of sympathy tends to shrivel up. Easter holidays are coming up in a few weeks. I'm pretty excited about that. I liked all the free time to work on my studies. But I've really got to put in more work on Potions. Another B today. I nearly cried in class. Mel thinks I'm absolutely mad but she's got an A average in there and Alice was so nice that I felt like an idiot when I remembered that neither she nor Tessa tend to do very well in there.

Goodness, anyway.

Remus said he'll probably be out of the Hospital Wing in a few more days, which is nice.

I really can't spend anymore time writing this evening... I just can't believe the amount of homework I have this week. Alice looks like she's near ready to crack and Becca keeps staring longingly out the window, like she wishes she could just grab a broom and fly away. I'm already beginning to dread O.W.L.s. The Fifth and Seventh Years are beginning to get a little scary about their studies.

Love from,

Lily

Acid Pops

The Forgetfulness Potion can be very dangerous if brewed incorrectly. It can lead to complete and total memory loss like that of the obliviate spell. The side effects have not all been recorded yet, but they are numerous, the most obvious being that the person who ingested the potion become forgetful. How forgetful they get is increased as the amount of potion ingested increases.

The main ingredients for a Forgetfulness Potion are Abyssinian shrivelfig, essence of Belladonna, Erumpet tails and daisy roots. As with most poisons, this potion can be counteracted with a bezoar...

-

Oh goodness, I thought this was my Potions notebook. Oh... I need to go to sleep!

Always,

Alice

Acid Pops

It's Saturday! It's Saturday! It's Saturday! It's Saturday! Two full days to work on homework. Oh, finally the weekend. I thought I was going to loose it back around Wednesday evening. That horrid little Potions excerpt that wound up in here I only got a C on. Ugh. Frank and I are going to go work on our Herbology in the library.

Oh goodness, on Thursday I walked past the library and Frank was studying with his friends, the Robs, and he looked up when I walked by and he smiled and waved at me. I thought I was going to melt. I told Lily all about it (partially because I figured Becca would rather not know details about how I feel) and she looked at me like I was a lunatic. I guess she just doesn't understand.

Always,

Alice

Hogwarts

I keep falling farther and farther behind in Potions. This is absolutely horrible. I'm doing fine in all my other classes but now I've got a low B average in there and pretty soon it'll be a C, I just know it. The whole class is doing badly except for Potter, Black and Mel and Mel tries to help me, but she just... understands... so she can't explain it well. Ahhhhhh. I hate potions!

Remus is supposed to come back tomorrow. I went to go visit him today, but Madame Pomfrey said he was resting and I couldn't disturb him. How odd, she's always allowed us to go in and sit and wait for him to wake up.

I found some strange closet today while I was lost. You'd think seven plus months in a place and I'd know my way around, but I opened it and it was a small closet, but when I walked past there again latter, it was gone.

I overheard those idiots (Potter and Black) talking a few days ago in the corner. They were analyzing us, Sirius's silly little 'Gryffindor Five'. It was... odd. I knew I shouldn't listen, but I stayed low in the chair I was sitting in because I was curious. I mean, wouldn't you be? Most of the First Year girls are madly in love with those two goons. And, can you believe it, they started talking about me! Sirius was actually very nice... he thinks I'll be pretty someday. I think he's loony and that I'll never be what a boy like him would consider pretty, but it was a nice thought. Of course that jerk Potter laughed when he said that. Then Sirius said Mel would have boys after her someday when boys get over thinking that looks are everything, because Mel's everything else. And James actually agreed with that. So do I, so I hope for Melissa's sake, some of the boys get over looks really soon. Although, when she wants to Melissa can be very pretty. Sirius already thinks Tessa's pretty. I should really tell her that, I'm pretty sure she likes him. Apparently Rebecca passed the Black muster and for whatever reason, they didn't talk about Alice. But James said that he would probably want to date a girl like Becca, easy going and sporty like. He likes the way she handles herself on a broom, he said. Then Sirius started teasing him and James said he didn't like her, but if he liked anyone was what he meant and then the two of them left the Common Room.

Well it's nice to know someone like Becca is his type, that means I'm safe. Becca and I are complete opposites. I'm not the least bit easy going and sporty is the last word anyone would use to describe me.

Thank goodness I don't like any boys. They're so stupid, I swear.

-

Oh goodness, Mel just walked in with a black eye and her glasses are missing. She looks like she's out for blood. I'd best go try and calm her down.

-

She told me to shut up and then she left! Unbelievable.

Well I've got homework to do.

Love from,

Lily

Quidditch

I've been so busy with homework and Quidditch practices (the team lets me practice with them now sometimes!) that I haven't written in ages. I checked the group part and no one's even left a message or anything. I guess we've all been crazily busy. Me with homework and Quidditch, Alice with homework and Frank, and Lily with homework and... more homework probably. And some deranged argument she's been having with James Potter recently. Very odd those two. If they keep up like this, I don't think they'll both survive till Seventh Year... and my money's on Lily if that happens.

But now I'm sitting in the Common Room. Lily and Alice are upstairs trying to get through yet another Potions essay from the evil Nackle but Tessa and I are down here trying to calm Melissa down. Apparently she had another altercation out in the corridors and James and Sirius just walked in and are heading our way, I don't know if that's wise.

Well, there you go, Sirius has settled himself with his arm around Tessa and Mel seems okay with the boys being here. I don't have anything to really add to the conversation, but I figured I could at least sit here for moral support or something. Oh, good, she's finally going to give up details.

-

Oh Merlin, the look on Sirius's face when she spit out "that Narcissa bitch". Now Melissa is a whole lot more... forward thinking... than the rest of us, and hearing her swear occasionally is not all that odd, but that particular word, I've never heard her use. And I was even more surprised because usually it's Bellatrix.

Anyway, she said that she was walking back from the kitchens and ran into Narcissa and Goyle snogging in the hallway and she said it was just such an odd sight that she couldn't help but laugh.

"Well, the two of them jumped apart and then Narcissa saw it was me, she got so mad she walked right up to me and said, 'Got a problem, Denezyuk, or do you want your butt kicked again by another Slytherin?'"

"So I said, 'Clearly you heard an incorrect version of the story, because I kicked your sister's butt from here to Durmstrang. If I were you I wouldn't want to test that.'"

"Then she pulled out her wand and pointed it at me, but before she could even do that Goyle stepped forward and hit me with one hell of a right hook. Knocked my glasses off and I wound up right on the floor and the two of them walked away laughing, I heard a crunch and I'm betting they stepped right onto my glasses and crumbled them, but I wouldn't know since I couldn't find them."

Then Mel grimaced and looked in my direction and said, "I'm blind as a bat. What am I supposed to do about that?"

Well I didn't know and neither did Tessa but Sirius jumped up from the couch and just said "Wait here" and stalked out the door. Now we're all just sitting here waiting for him to get back.

-

Oh Merlin, Sirius looks worse than Mel... Tessa just ran off up the stairs to get Catriona Marsh, she said that she knows lots of medical spells and won't ask questions. He just crawled through the portrait and handed her her glasses and collapsed on the couch.

Good, here comes Catriona and she's got her wand. She'll fix him up in a moment. Thank goodness Tessa knows so many people.

Sirius and James just left to go upstairs and none of the three of us can figure out how he got Mel's glasses back. Catriona even fixed Melissa's black eye before going upstrairs shaking her head and muttering about 'mad First Years'.

Oh goodness diary, you know Mel just said?

"What do you suppose would happen if I turned those Black twins and that goon Goyle into flobberworm and slipped them in with the others in Care of Magical Creatures?"

And Tessa said, "There would probably be fees associated with that, maybe a little jail time."

And both of those lunatics just laughed and headed upstairs. They worry me. I'd best get some sleep too.

-Rebecca