A/N: Hey, guys! So once again I do have another story for you-and I will update everything, along with this very soon this time, I swear on Sirius and that is legit for me. But anyway, so I've been working on this idea for awhile and finally decided to get on with it and just write it. As always, reviews and the like are appreciated!

Disclaimer: I claim no ownership to anything in the Harry Potter universe. The only things I claim to own are the character of Cassiopeia and her story.

A loud commotion echoed up from somewhere far below, seeming to shake the foundation of the entire building as it did so. From somewhere amidst the fourth floor, a dusty old mirror began to shake on the wall it was so precariously hung from, and the old dresser immediately underneath began shaking immensely, rattling about against the dusty floor as it did so. From where she had been sitting in the middle of an old bed-that, although it didn't look necessarily comfortable or clean by any means, was actually quite the opposite-skimming aimlessly through one of the few textbooks she had already received, Cassiopeia looked up from the pages at the commotion. She had grown fairly accustomed to loud and random noises all over the years, all thanks to her years at Hogwarts, but somehow it seemed to be different occurring anywhere around the Leaky Cauldron where she had been staying.

Closing the book assigned for the first alchemy class Hogwarts would be seeing in nearly a century, Cassiopeia pushed off of her borrowed bed and slipped on her shoes before pulling the creaky door to her room for the time being open slightly and peeking into the hallway. Hearing nothing, but intrigued all the same, Cas glanced down the hall both ways before stepping into the hallway, pulling the door shut as she did so. Taking a few steps down the hallway in the direction of the staircase that led to the bar, whispers from the room that neighbored hers directly stopped her in her tracks. Though the door was barely cracked, she could still make out the conversation that was being held on the other side, particularly the fact that Mary Cattermole, her godmother, seemed to be in great distress over something.

"Mary, don't you think that if that noise was the work of Sirius Black arriving in Diagon Alley that there would be hundreds of dementors swarming the streets? That the Aurors would have locked down the Leaky Cauldron and sanctioned to tell everyone here that the most wanted wizard in Great Britain had been captured?" She could hear Mary's husband, Reginald, saying to her in a hushed voice, clearly trying to ease whatever panic Mary seemed to be in.

"He could have been coming for her, Reg. Harry Potter isn't the only young wizard he'd gain to finding while he's on the loose. If he somehow found out-"

"He wouldn't have. How would he have had any way of finding out anything about her at all? She's safe here, Mary. Nothing is going to happen to Cassi. Sirius Black is not here."

From the outside of the door, Cassiopeia's eyebrows drew together in both confusion and curiosity. Not once in her sixteen years had she ever heard the name Sirius Black. But, she did know, from the brief conversation she was overhearing alone, that whoever he was had to be someone that she did not want to know. Not if her godmother, the woman who had always taken care of her, seemed absolutely terrified of him. Especially not if he would be any threat to Harry.

Choosing not to allow either Mary or Reginald to know that she had overheard them, Cas continued down the hallway, making her way down the four flights of stairs that led to the bottom floor of the Leaky Cauldron. The Cattermoles had arrived three days prior, ensuring that they would have enough time to gather all of Cas' school things for her sixth year before the first of September, when she would be returning to Hogwarts. It wasn't until she had very nearly reached the bottom of the last flight of stairs that Cas began to pick out voices from somewhere below. She could only assume it was somewhere near the bar, somewhere obscured from view where she was still standing on the stairs.

"Really very sorry, Tom," a voice Cas recognized from very brief encounters over the years traveled up to her where she had frozen with her hand on the railing, four stairs from the bottom. "Molly's absolutely horrified, we hadn't expected the boys to bring...well, whatever it was with them."

"Boys will be boys, Arthur, boys will be boys." The familiar voice of Tom, the barkeep and owner of the Leaky Cauldron, replied. "What's a bit of a bang around here now and then? Surely they didn't mean any harm."

A sigh traveled up the stairs towards her, and next she heard a reply from the next man. "Yes, I had imagined you to say as much. Still, Molly asked I bring our apologizes for them."

From down below, Tom spoke up yet again, but Cas had no longer taken to paying attention. Her mind was in other places, the wheels of her brain turning as she did so. She knew perfectly well of who was down below, and who he was speaking of; Cassiopeia was very familiar with Arthur and Molly Weasley. If they had arrived in London, it could only mean one thing: the Weasley family had returned from their trip abroad to Egypt. And, if they had returned, then that had to mean that-

"I've heard it's rude to eavesdrop." A voice sounded from directly behind her ear then, causing her to jump nearly a foot into the air. "Haven't you, Fred?"

"Mum must have said it once or twice-"

"-Or fifty-"

"-Hundred-"

"-A day-"

"-A minute-"

"-All summer-"

"But when have any of us ever been known for following any sort of rules?" Cas spoke up then, raising an eyebrow and incapable of smothering the grin that spread across her entire face as she turned around. The joy of seeing the twins again had elated her, tearing any memory of the conversation she'd heard upstairs from her mind for the time being. "Boys."

Cassiopeia and the Weasley twins had been as thick as thieves ever since the boys' first year at Hogwarts. They were called for the Sorting, one after the other, both immediately sent to Gryffindor table before the hat even sat upon their heads, pulling Cas' attention immediately from that alone. Despite the fact that Cassi was a year ahead of them, a beautiful friendship was formed that night, one that involved hundreds upon hundreds of pranks and rebellious behavior, much to the dismay of their respecting guardians and the Head of Gryffindor House.

"Oh good, George, look at that, she remembers us." Fred lilted, mocking her with a grin nearly as wide as hers spreading across his face. "He was worried you'd spend all summer snogging Diggory and forget all about us." He continued, clearly mocking George but receiving no response short of a typical response.

"He lies, of course." George said, rolling his eyes towards his twin but grinning towards the darker of the three as he spoke. "What I really spent all summer doing was worrying that you'd be so tragically bored stuck with that bugger that we'd have to cut the trip short just to come save you from the misery."

"My heroes." Cas replied in a sarcastic tone that was no short of typical for her, laughter in her voice even as she spoke. "Was that your grand entrance earlier that your dad's setting straight for you?" She asked, nodding down in the direction of the stairs they had to finish getting down still.

Looking towards each other with identical, proud grins, the twins then looked back towards Cassiopeia. "Saw it, did you?" Fred asked.

"Sadly, no." Cassiopeia admitted, looking upon the disappointed looks that fell onto the twins faces with amusement as she spoke. "I heard it, though. All the way up by four stories-got me curious enough to see it that I came all the way down. What was it?"

"Classified information, that is, McKinnon." Fred replied with a grin that was soon matched by his brother. Seeing the protest that was very clearly about to erupt from their friend, he held up a hand and continued to explain. "You said you didn't see it. And that gives us a chance to make it even better for the next time we set it off. The time you do see it."

"And when will that be?" She asked, raising both eyebrows as she looked between the both of them.

"You'll see." George spoke then, sending a wink in her direction before walking past her to get down the stairs. "Oi, Dad!" He called out as he reached the bottom, Fred and Cas following behind him. "Look who's here!"

Arthur Weasley, who had acquired a newspaper and a spot at a table in the back corner of the pub, looked up as he was called, a look of fear flickering in his eyes briefly before his view settled onto Cassiopeia. "Oh, Cassi, hello." He said, setting the paper down on the table in front of him as the three approached. "What a delight to see you, as always. Reg and Mary are here as well, I presume?"

"Yes, sir." Cas said, flashing a smile towards the Weasley father. "They're still upstairs, but I'm sure they'll be down sooner or later."

"Fantastic, fantastic…" Arthur muttered, and though the twins and their attention had clearly gone elsewhere, Cas wasn't oblivious to the evident stress that seemed to be taking Mr. Weasley over again as he glanced down at the paper in front of him. Following the direction his gaze seemed to take ever so subtly, Cas could see the front page quite clearly, along with the headline: MASS MURDERER STILL MISSING FROM AZKABAN. Underneath the caption lay a photo of a man, shaggy and disheveled, with hollowed looking eyes and a familiarity that Cas couldn't quite place. Drawing her eyebrows together in confusion, Cas looked up from the paper towards the Weasley father once more. "Sir?" She asked, watching as he glanced up from the table towards her again. "May I borrow that for a bit?" She nodded towards the paper that sat in front of him. Blinking, Arthur seemed to remember that the paper was still in front of him.

"Oh-Oh, yes, of course. Do your folks not get the Prophet here?" Arthur held the paper out towards her, and she took it, the photo on the front page seeming to stare straight through her entire being as she folded it and tucked it underneath her arm; even without looking at it, she seemed able to feel the gaze.

"I'm not sure if it's in yet today, sir." Cassiopeia told him, "I'll be sure the boys get this back to you if I don't happen to run into you again." She promised with another smile in his direction. It seemed as if he hadn't heard her at all, lost in his own private world, as she walked away. She hadn't been downstairs more than a couple of minutes, but already she was headed back for the stairs, towards her bedroom. The paper stayed tucked in her arm. Maybe if she didn't look the picture dead in the eye, the horrid feeling she got from looking at it would fade before she had to face it again.

"Why'd you want Dad's paper?" Fred's voice travelled from right behind her yet again as she climbed higher and higher, towards the fourth floor. Cas didn't answer, and the twins shared a look behind her, one lacking the usual joking grin that passed between them.

Once she had reached her room, the twins behind her, Cas glanced towards Mary's door to be sure it was sealed before opening her own and entering, allowing Fred and George in as well.

"Okay." George said, leaning against the door as it shut. "Now are you going to tell us why you wanted the ruddy Prophet?"

Moving to sit on the bed, Cass moved the textbook she'd been so curiously looking through earlier and pulled the paper out from her arm, unfolding it before setting it down onto the bed in front of her. There, again, the photo on the paper glared back at her, reaching her in a way she could not really explain.

"This man," She said, her voice much lower than she had anticipated as she spoke, pointing at the photo moving on the paper beneath her. "This man, who is he?" She asked. The thought of reading the entirety of the article had not once crossed her mind since she had laid eyes on the photo. All common thought seemed to have disappeared from her altogether.

The twins shared a look again, this time from opposite sides of the room. It was starting to seem to them as if Cassiopeia may have gone mad over the summer holidays.

"Cas." Fred said in a voice that was much more sober than was typical. "That's Sirius Black. The bloke who broke free of Azkaban a few weeks back."

Cassiopeia's head whipped up so quickly that both twins took a step back in shock. "Sirius Black?" She repeated, her voice sounding hollow and unfamiliar in her own ears.

"Yeah." George answered, looking towards his brother before back towards their friend. "Why?"

"I heard Mary and Reg talking about Sirius Black earlier...they think he's escaped to come after Harry." Cas said in a very quiet voice, looking towards her door in a paranoid sense, as if expecting her guardians to burst in at any minute and tell her she had heard it all wrong-she wanted that to be the case.

"That can't be possible, Cassi." George said with a shake of his head, moving to sit on the bed, on the other side of the paper. "Nobody in their right mind would go near Harry. Not when Dumbledore's looking after him."

"But there's more," She said, nearly cutting George off as he spoke. "I could've sworn that Mary thinks that…"

"What?" Fred spoke up, sitting next to his brother.

Looking back down at the newspaper in front of her, down into the black hollow eyes that seemed to be staring straight back at her, through her, Cassiopeia spoke again. This time, in a voice she herself barely heard. "He may be coming for me too."