Chapter Twelve |Year Three|

The next day, Harry went up to Amelie, who was standing at a corridor, holding her books and looking extremely tired. Harry could guess that the young French veela hadn't gotten much sleep the past night.

If only Harry knew. He was ecstatic to show Amelie something, something that Fred and George had given him... and it was a keeper.

"You look tired," he told Amelie, commenting on her appearance.

Amelie yawned. "Well then, I feel as well as I look," she paused. "I look terrible, don't I?"

Harry smiled. "No, why would you think that? You're too self-deprecating, Amelie. You're - um, really - pretty," he said awkwardly. Amelie waved it off.

"I suppose you're right..." she said, then sighed. "But I'll never be beautiful. Not as much as my sister, Camille. She's drop-dead gorgeous,"

Harry was going to say that there were many people prettier than Camille, but then stopped himself. This conversation was turning too far away from where he was heading.

"Anyways - um, Fred and George gave me something yesterday," he said excitedly.

"And that 'something' was?"

"The marauder's map!" he exclaimed. Amelie's face mirrored confusion. He sighed. "Just look," the boy then took out a ragged piece of parchment. It was crisp and yellowed, faded from age. She looked at him strangely.

"This haggard piece of parchment is what you were excited to show me?" she asked quizzically. Harry ran a hand through his messy hair.

"No - here, let me show you," Harry tapped the piece of parchment with his wand and said, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good,"

At once, the ink lines began to spread like a spider's web from the point where Harry's wand touched. They joined each other, they crisscrossed, they fanned into every corner of the parchment; then words began to blossom across the top, great, curly green words that proclaimed:

Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Purveyors of aids to Magical Mischief-Makers are proud to present

THE MARAUDER'S MAP

Harry held it in front of him so Amelie could see it, who was gazing at the map with wonder. She was looking at the tiny ink dots that were moving around all over the map, with tiny, minuscule handwriting labeling each and every dot wandering the map.

"Now look," he said, and pointed his wand at it again. "Mischief managed,"

Everything on the map disappeared, so that it was just a ruddy piece of parchment once again. "Wow," breathed Amelie. Harry looked triumphantly at her.

"Wow, right? Hermione wants me to give it to McGonagall, and she said you would agree with me too. You don't, right?"

"Of course I don't!" exclaimed Amelie, giggling. "I love pranking. At Beauxbatons, I would prank all the time. I just... stopped when I got here,"

"Oh, okay," Harry said casually. "Well, you can join me, if you like!"

"I'd love to. Marauders of the second generation?" asked Amelie.

"Marauders of the second generation,"

***

Amelie was in the library, studying with her Blaise and Draco when they overheard some Gryffindor gossip. Yes, Blaise and Draco had become her friends. She was still best friends with Lexi and Daphne, they shared a dorm after all, but she studied some times with Draco and Blaise.

"Help me," groaned Amelie as she fidgeted in her seat. She was horrible at reciting and remembering charms, probably because of her very-French accent. The other two boys looked at her with amusement.

"This is easy," said Blaise, taunting her playfully.

"Yeah, really easy," added in Draco as he muttered the incantation for a simple charm and the book in front of her started dancing. "I could do this in my sleep!"

"In my sleep," Blaise echoed.

"In my sleep," Draco repeated.

"In my sleep?"

"In my sleep."

Amelie hit Blaise with a book. "Shut up!" She got back to work, but not before muttering sarcastically, "Your face is easy,"

The two laughed again. Amelie ignored them. This was usually how a normal study session went with them. Crabbe and Goyle didn't hang out with them when studying because they just... weren't good study partners.

They were dumb, to be frank.

The three heard a few footsteps walk past them, and voices started speaking. The Sytherins craned their ears so they could hear them. Amelie kept working, she didn't understand how they could be so nosy.

"You got a Firebolt?" asked a voice. Amelie could tell it was Ron. "Blimey, how I wish I could get one! If only mom and dad could aff- be, um, affable," Ron said sheepishly.

"Yeah. I don't know who sent it, though - " that was Harry speaking.

"You don't?" interjected Hermione. "You have to hand this in to McGonagall or any teacher right away! What if Sirius Black gave that to you? It could be jinxed, or worse, cursed!"

"Relax, 'Mione," said Ron lazily. "I severely doubt Sirius Black sent it,"

Amelie put a hand up to stop the boys from talking, and she shushed them. "I'm going to go down and see what they're talking about." Draco looked about to burst as he listened in onto their conversation, which was sprinkled with the word "Firebolt" many, many times.

"He got a Firebolt - stupid Saint Potter - " sputtered Draco, an Amelie clapped a hand onto his mouth.

"Shut up!"

Blaise cooperated far more well than Draco did, and Amelie morphed into her animagus form, a snowy white arctic fox. She waved her tail, and darted in between the shelves to avoid being seen. Sure, the Golden Trio were her friends, but they had gotten a bit frosty to her lately when they heard that Amelie had become friends (on a matter of speaking) with Draco. She had enjoyed Harry's company immensely when he told her about the Marauder's Map, and she was glad at the time that he ignored her relationship with Draco.

She didn't blame them, after all, Draco had bullied and taunted them since they arrived at Hogwarts. She only wished they could be more... relenting and adaptable.

When Amelie reached the three friends, the trio had become a duo. Hermione was stomping off with Harry's Firebolt and Ron and Harry were enraged. Ron's face had turned the pallid color of a purple lily, which certainly complimented his ginger hair, and he was sputtering out curses. Harry sighed, looking defeated.

"That was a Firebolt!" yelled Ron. "And she took it! Now she's going to give it to McGonagall, who's gooing to confiscate it - oh, I hope she doesn't strip it down,"

Amelie left before she could hear Harry's reply. She raced back towards the table holding her friends, and changed back into human form. They gaped at her, and she shrugged.

"Hey, I've had practice changing back and forth,"

"So, what did you hear?" asked Draco casually. Anybody with half a brain could tell he was a lot more than just curious.

"Hermione took Harry's new Firebolt and gave it to McGonagall to confiscate it," Amelie said to him, and then looked at Blaise for any expression.

"Oh, the mudblood?" asked Draco.

Amelie glared at him. "Yes, the muggle-born, Hermione,"

Blaise shrugged. "Why?"

"Because she thought Sirius Black had given it to Harry, and he had jinxed or cursed it or something," Amelie informed them, and then ran a hand through her hair. "Tomorrow, Christmas break starts. I'm going back to France... no more studying, cuisses de grenouille and escargots here I come!" (frog legs and snails)

Draco sighed. "Malfoy Manor. You, Blaise?"

"To my mum's rich mansion," he said dolefully. "You know, rich, murderer mum..."

"Yeah, we know," Amelie and Draco said together.

***

Christmas Break Day One

"Bye, guys!" called Amelie to Lexi and Daphne as she exited the train station with Camille, and her mum and dad. Camille was currently kissing her new boyfriend, a hot older sixth-year Slytherin named Jaxon Kyrie. It made Amelie sick everytime she watched the two of them together. Kyrie was a heartbreaker and a player, and she didn't want Camille hurt, no matter how vain.

They quickly apparated to their chateau in France, and had a nice family dinner and conversation. It had been a while since they had had one, Amelie thought bitterly, her bitterness mostly pointed at Camille.

[Speaking in French]

"How is Hogwarts so far?" asked Miss Santerre. Amelie grinned.

"Fabulous! The teachers are all really nice, and I've made a lot of friends - " started Amelie.

"Oh, what gives. I learned that it's called Hogwarts, not Pigwarts - " Camille paused to let the information sink into their brains with a smug look on her face, " - and I have a boyfriend."

Amelie and Camille's dad pretended to not be bothered, but inside, it did. "What's his name?" he asked casually, leaning on his fist.

"Oh, Jaxon Kyrie," gushed Camille. "And his name's spelled so exotically - J-A-X-O-N, to be exact," she said, and went on and on about Kyrie. Amelie was, to say the least, perturbed. Very perturbed.

They finished dinner soon, and Amelie went up to her room to wash up and go to sleep. Before she could do all that, however, an owl flew through her window holding a ribbon-tied piece of parchment. Amelie, excited, took the paper gently from the owl's beak and unrolled it.

---

Dear Amelie,

Merry Christmas! I hope you're doing alright, I am, I suppose you could say. Anyways. I'm hosting a Christmas Party for my Hogwarts friends on December 24, and you're invited... my parents have never heard of you, they don't know you're a blood traitor, so don't let it get known, okay? Anyways, dress formal. Oh, and, your friends, Lexi and Daphne will be there too. So will Blaise. They'll be disappointed if you don't come.

Yours,

Draco

---

Amelie smiled. A Christmas party? What fun. She'd just have to let Camille pick out her dress, and do her makeup and hair.

She walked down the stairs calmly, towards her parents lounging in the kitchen area. In her hands was the invitation, as she was going to ask her parents for permission to attend the party.

[French]

"Mum? Dad?" she called. Her parents looked up and smiled at her warmly.

"Yes, darling?"

"Well, I got invited to a Christmas party, can I go?"

"When is it?"

"December 24,"

"Christmas Eve?"

"Yes,"

"Where is it?"

"Malfoy Manor,"

Luckily, her parents had never heard of the Malfoys and they agreed readily. Her father had become a bit protective when he heard a boy/male (Draco) was hosting it, but he relaxed with Amelie assured them they were nothing more than friends.

"You may go," her mum told her, and Amelie silently cheered.

As she walked up the stairs, she pondered what she would wear. Time to ask Camille, she thought. She walked towards Camille's (locked) room, and knocked. The door swung open, revealing a Camille with a messy bun tied onto the top of her head.

"Camille?" asked Amelie.

"Yes?"

"Could you help me fine a dress to wear in two days' time and do my hair and makeup?"

"Why?"

"Er - Christmas party," Amelie told her sister awkwardly. It was a well-known fact that her sister hated not going to a party that Amelie went to.

"Am I invited?"

"Um... no..."

"Well, alright. Who's house?"

"Draco Malfoy's,"

"Oh, the blonde twerp. Well, then, c'mon, let's pick out a dress for you,"

Amelie smiled. She was so glad to have the old Camille back.