Katie arrived back at Hogwarts late one January evening. The snow that had covered the grounds all Christmas was melting, forming an icy, black sludge. Katie grimaced in disgust as she and Chris walked through the slush to get to the castle.

Upon entering the castle, Katerina found that the Great Hall was already packed with frenzied students. Everyone was talking loudly and merrily. Standing up on the tips of her toes, Katie looked over the heads of everyone at the Gryffindor table, but she couldn't seem to spot Harry, Ron or Hermione anywhere. She shrugged nonchalantly and decided that she would just greet them tomorrow in class.

Tucking her long hair behind her ears, Katie took a seat next to Pansy at the Slytherin table. Pansy said a quick hello before returning to eating her food. Katie picked up a knife and fork and dug into her own meal. She was incredibly hungry after her long trip to Hogwarts.

Someone sat down across from Katie so, naturally she glanced up from her food to see who had joined the feast. It took all of Katie's willpower to not roll her eyes when she saw who had taken a seat at the table. She discreetly scoffed to herself.

"Have a nice Christmas, Blair?"

"It was fine, Malfoy."

"Oh no, you didn't spend it with the Weasleys, did you?"

"Better them than you." Katie mumbled with a roll of her eyes. Draco was suddenly more alert. He sat up straight and puffed out his chest.

"What did you just say?" he demanded venomously, narrowing his eyes.

"She said you're a prat."

Katie recognised that voice instantly. A smile speedily spread across her face. She looked over her shoulder to find Harry, Ron and Hermione standing behind her.

"Harry! Ron! Hermione!" Katie beamed.

"Hi Katie." Ron smiled, but his smile quickly welded into a scowl when his eyes trailed back to Malfoy.

"You better watch your mouth, Potter." Draco spat. Katie awkwardly ran her sweaty palms across her thighs and bit her lip.

"Yeah, and you better watch your back." Harry responded, his voice just as threatening as Malfoy's. Katie could feel the pride radiating from Ron at Harry's words and it almost made her grin like an idiot. A hand landed on Katie's shoulder and Hermione spoke directly to her.

"We need to talk to you... now." she sounded both serious and urgent, so Katie didn't waste any more time before standing up out of her seat.

"Bye Pansy. See you later Draco." Katie said before turning to her friends. The four retreated from the Great Hall together.

"You just wasted two seconds of your life saying goodbye to that tosser." Ron growled. Katie let out a small chuckle of amusement but did not say anything in response to Ron's comment. The young students made their way down the corridor and rounded a corner, making sure there was no one nearby before they begun speaking.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" Katie asked casually. The three Gryffindors nervously glanced around at each other before Harry finally plucked up the courage to speak up. He gulped harshly before opening his mouth.

"W-We need your help with the Nicholas Flamel mystery. We were wondering, maybe, i-if your brother knew anything about him..." Harry refused to meet Katie's gaze. He simply stared down at his feet as he was tapped them together aimlessly.

Katie scoffed. "So now you want me involved because you need my help."

"Please, Katie," Hermione begged softly, "We're so close."

Katie glanced around at her friends through narrowed, angry eyes. She could feel the veins in her wrists pulsing with growing anger. Just as the girl was about to speak, her name was called from the other end of the corridor.

"Katie! We're going to the common room. Are you coming?"

Katerina's eyes flashed between the Gryffindors (Harry, Ron and Hermione) and the Slytherins (Pansy, Draco, Crabbe and Goyle). She spent many moments contemplating whether she should stay and continue the argument with her friends or go join her housemates. Finally, Katie came to a decision. With one last agitated look at Harry, she turned away from him and the others.

"Yeah, I'm coming." she finally responded to Pansy. Katie was mere metres away from Malfoy and the others when a tight but gentle hand wrapped around her wrist. Taken off guard, she whipped around, finding herself looking into a pair of warm yet sad evergreen eyes.

"You got my letter." Harry said quietly, though his statement sounded more like a question. "So you know that I'm — that we're sorry."

Katie slowly breathed in and out, trying to calm herself down and to put herself in Harry's shoes, but she couldn't seem to sympathise with him in the present moment. She came to the conclusion that she would just have to sleep her petty anger away.

"Let her go, Potter," Malfoy ordered harshly, "She's coming with us."

Harry's grip on Katie's hand loosened and soon her hand slipped from his grasp. Katie felt a sudden shiver of emptiness at the loss of contact, but she brushed it aside. The pair exchanged one final, intense, lingering stare, before Katie walked away from Harry without another word.

The journey to the Slytherin common room was completely and utterly silent. Katie knew that her housemates were pondering on whether or not they should ask about her confrontation with the Gryffindors, and she was very surprised that Malfoy had not started questioning her yet. As soon as they stepped foot into the common room, Pansy announced that she was going to bed. Katie told her that she would follow her up in just a few minutes.

Crabbe and Goyle had also gone to bed. The only people remaining in the common room were Draco Malfoy, Katerina Blair, and a small group of fifth years who were conversing by the fire.

"What did Potter want?"

And there it was, the interrogation. Draco Malfoy was once again poking his nose into other people's business.

"Nothing." Katie replied plainly. Draco let himself topple over, knowing that he would be caught by a green, velvet couch. He sunk into the comfortable cushions.

"It didn't seem like nothing." Malfoy continued to pester Katie.

"It's not important." Katie stood up and fixed her skirt. She was readying herself to go up to the dormitory.

"Are you sure—"

"Oh, just drop it, Malfoy!" Katie snapped, her sudden change of mood startling Draco and the group of fifth years. At a loss for words, all Malfoy could seem to do was blink frantically at the girl. Katie took a few moments to gather herself and her emotions. Once she had relaxed, she fixed her tangled hair and spoke again.

"Now, can I go to bed, or do you have any more interrogating to do?"

Draco did not respond.

"Thank you." Katie sighed in relief, throwing her arms in the air.