James frowned when he heard tapping at his window. His eyes widened in shock when he saw Arie's face peering at him through the glass. He threw the window open. She was on her broom and hovering.

"What are you doing? How did you know what window was mine?"

"I flew by and saw you," Arie replied, grinning. "I think Sarah saw me peeking in her window too."

It was foolish to fly all the way here on her broom, but Arie couldn't help it. There was something about James that she liked. She had never liked a boy before.

"How did you get through the wards?"

"Sarah added me in anticipation of the sleepover. I can't get in the house, but I can get on the grounds."

James grinned and leaned out the window. Her hair was all windblown, but it was always like that. Half the time she just threw it up in a ponytail. She didn't wear any make-up, but James liked knowing what someone really looked like. Hannah didn't wear much either, but girls that were naturally pretty didn't need to in his opinion.

Arie drifted closer to him and placed a hand on the windowsill. They saw one another every day at the bakery, but they rarely had a chance to talk or be alone. He was very careful to avoid that, but not now.

James started an easy conversation about nothing that had her whispering back and laughing at the odd comment. They two of them kept drifting closer and talking more softly. James had never met anyone who he conversed with so easily.

Their faces were so close that it sort of seemed natural for him to lightly press his lips to hers. James didn't even mean to. She played it off as if nothing had happened, replying to his question then punctuated with a kiss of her own. They continued to talk that way for a while.

Didly approached Blaise. "Master James is being hanging from his window with a broom."

Blaise blinked and looked at his house elf in confusion. "The boy is doing what?" Without waiting for an answer, he headed towards James' room. There was an empty one beside it that was there in case James ever invited friends over, but it hadn't been used.

Very quietly, he pulled the window open and leaned out. Blaise had to bite his lip to stop the laughter. James wasn't the one hanging out the window on a broom, but the Warbeck girl he had been crushing on was certainly on a broom outside his window.

When there was a lull in conversation, he leaned out of the window completely with a grin. "Have you ever, oh I don't know, considered using the front door?"

Arie screamed and fell off her broom. Luckily James and she had been talking rather closely, so he grabbed her jacket and pulled her in his window while her broom fell to the shrubs below.

"My broom-"

"Is fine," James answered, pulling her fully into his bedroom and waiting for Blaise to come through his door.

Arie still had a hold of his shirt, so he was able to note that she used apple shampoo. She was looking around his bedroom with a grin on her face.

Blaise rolled his eyes and closed the window, heading over to James' room. He didn't even bother knocking but walked right in.

"All joking aside, the front door really is the best way to go. I can't imagine you'd like to have your little tryst while balancing on a broom."

"We weren't..." James was turning red.

Arie grinned. "So I could come and call after dark anytime I want?"

"Depends," Blaise said, crossing his arms. "Do your parents know you're here?"

Arie snickered. "I'm staying the summer with my aunt. She has been distracted by a guy in a skirt with a Scottish burr. I could have lit myself on fire, and she wouldn't have noticed it, much less me taking my broom and flying in from Hogsmeade."

Blaise's eyebrow went up. Damn MacDougals.

"You can come over as long as you let your aunt know and we know you're here. And next time either use the front door or the floo." He looked at his watch. "Right now though, you can say goodbye. It's late and I don't want to get in trouble because I helped smuggle in a girl, although there are much easier ways to do it."

"I can't stay the night?"

"No," James snapped, turning more red. "Come on. We'll get your broom and floo you to Hogsmeade."

He practically dragged her from the room. Sarah giggled as they passed her.

"Was that Arie Warbeck? What is she doing here? Did you know she was here?"

"She came to visit James. Didly told me she was here." Blaise sighed. "I think we're going to be seeing much more of her. She lives in Hogsmeade and her aunt doesn't give a flip if she flies over here in the middle of the night."

Blaise glared at Sarah. "And don't get any bright ideas. You sneak off once and I'm bolting your door shut."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Do you know who Arie's aunt is?"

Blaise's face said he didn't.

"Hera Warbeck. Arie's father is gnashing his teeth that she wants to stay there this summer. Her aunt's all free spirit and stuff. It's not that she doesn't care, she probably just lost track of time or forgot Arie was there or something. Arie says she's sweet as anything, but a total flake about responsibility." Sarah leaned out the window to look down. "And apparently this is to be the summer of love."

Blaise was confused and he leaned out the window, promptly rolling his eyes. He let Arie and James lip lock a bit longer before whistling to get their attention. "Oi! Get a room!" Blaise started to get back inside the bedroom and shut the window, but quickly leaned back out. "And no, that does not mean you can stay the night, Warbeck!"

"Be nice," Sarah said. "Arie's a good person. She'll keep James out of trouble. She knows all about the gambling and stuff. She likes him anyway. You know the type... loves her some reformed bad boy. The kind of guy who you know can just be wicked evil, but chooses not to."

She could tell Blaise was uncomfortable with the turn into girltalk.

He glared at her. "Shut. Up. Talk boys with Hannah, and give up on Avery already!"

When was Dolohov going to knock some sense into Sarah anyway?

"I don't care about Xander Avery." Sarah grinned. "If you wanted to let Arie stay, she could in my room. Since she's all unchaperoned tonight and could very well come back over here after you've gone to bed."

Blaise snorted. He was putting alarms around James' room. If a window or door opened, he'd know. But he wasn't about to tell Sarah that, because he was considering putting the same wards on her room. Merlin save him if Mina ever started looking at the opposite sex.

"She's not staying. Not tonight. I have no problem with her staying, but I want permission from her aunt. No permission ends badly. I speak from experience."

"You could always floo Hera and ask, but you run the risk of seeing more of Duff MacDougal than you might want. Which, by the way, do they all look like that? Are there ugly MacDougals?"

Sarah was grinning and thinking about Argyle.

Blaise sent Sarah a disgusted look. "Oh not you too." Jodie was always downright chipper after coming from the Three Broomsticks, and having a MacDougal be in his wedding was tough enough. Did everyone adore that family?

"What? They're all scruffy and dirty and like to fight. There's something appealing there, and the accents..."

James was making a face in the doorway.

Sarah turned on him suddenly, mocking. "Oh no, I don't like Arie THAT way. We're just friends."

James drew his wand.

"Hey!" Blaise snapped. "No hexing your sister." He paused. "Unless it's Mina, and she hexed you first."

Sarah made a face at him before walking out and back to her room.

"Which floo?"

"Do I look like a mind-reader to you? Have I started mumbling about an inner eye? No? Then I need a bit more to go on than 'what floo'," Blaise snapped. He was still very flustered about Sarah liking the MacDougals a bit too much.

James made a face. "Which floo do you want me to send Arie home in? The one in your rooms or the one in the main sitting room?"

"I'll just go to Three Broomsticks. There's always a place to sleep there."

James made a face. "Are you kidding? You don't have a bed?"

"Aunt Hera was out when I left. I don't want to stay in the cottage alone. Even though the wards are good."

James made a face at Blaise then.

"Don't look at me like that," he growled before closing his eyes in irritation. "Fine. Send an owl to your aunt telling her where you are and then I'll take you to Sarah's guest room. She probably has some clothes you can sleep in there."

Arie squealed and jumped. James grabbed her arm.

"Don't do that." He grinned. "I'll show you where the owlery is."

Hannah shuffled down the hall in her robe and jimjams looking bleary-eyed. "I thought you were coming to bed? What in the heck is going on?"

Blaise glared as James tried to inch Arie by. "Trust me, I was more than ready to come to bed, but I was informed of pressing matters elsewhere. James decided it was an okay time for visitors."

Hannah blinked at Arie. "Does Hera know you're here?"

"She's about to," Arie said sheepishly.

"Did you ask Duff to distract her so you could sneak out?"

Arie blushed.

"I suspected as much. You will be staying in Sarah's room and Blaise and I will know if you leave it or James leaves his. Be a bit more kind to your aunt, Arie, or I'll be owling your father."

Arie looked down. "Yes, ma'am."

"Now go send your owl and tell Hera if she needs to floo me she can. James has the grate number."

Blaise was downright pissed as James and Arie left. "James is getting another tour in the dungeon. Why does no one take me seriously? Am I going to have to start chopping off limbs?"

"Blaise, I take you seriously," Hannah replied. "He's almost eighteen and has his first serious crush. I'd say what were you like at seventeen, but I don't think we want to go there."

He hid his grin. "No, we really don't." They started walking back towards their rooms. "Did you know Sarah has a crush on all things MacDougal? It's quite sickening."

"Oh you mean Argyle? She'll get over that. They all do. Everyone thinks Argyle is wonderful until they get to know his ways. He's a good kid, but likes to shop around if you know what I mean."

"Why does Sarah fall for the shitty men?" Blaise asked with a groan. It was ridiculous.

"Argyle isn't a total loss. He's like you. Only unenlightened. He's a bit of what you used to be."

Blaise just rolled his eyes.


{SUMMARY} Blaise catches James with a "friend".