September the First of 1976

[Katie]

<sup>Vera Claythorne was glad that the first day of school had finally arrived. She missed her friends dearly and to her running into them once in Diagon Alley wasn't enough for her. She followed her cousin Gerry into her usual compartment where the two were going to wait for her friends. Gerry claimed that he was going to wait with her so she didn't get bored but she knew the truth. He didn't trust her. She didn't blame him though, she always found a way to get herself into some sort of mess. Why would today be any different?

She flopped herself down on the seat across from where he sat and proceeded to play with her hair. "I'm so excited for school! Aren't you?" she asked him, nearly bouncing up and down on her seat. As usual he just nodded. She rolled her eyes and continued on about how exciting school was going to be. She wasn't that much of an idiot and knew that he wasn't even listening to her. He had done it so many times in the past. She rolled her eyes again and said "I'm pregnant." just to see if he was paying attention. And of course, he just nodded and said "Mmhmm.". "Gerard Claythorne! Are you listening to me?" she asked and once again he only nodded. Sighing, she turned and faced the window. Gerry was no fun. She couldn't wait for the others to get here so she could just have some fun.

"Well, this is it." Gerry Claythorne said to his cousin. He had found the last compartment on the train where Vera had told him she was meeting the others and had settled himself in. He had already made plans to sit with his Ravenclaw friends but didn't want to leave Vera alone while she waited for Sirius, Shannon and the rest of the gang. Knowing his cousin, she'd probably find some way to get herself killed just by sitting in her seat. He had already thrown his trunk in the compartment where his friends were sitting and was just waiting on Vera's friends to arrive so he can leave.

He was friends with most of her friends and would probably be stopping by later to chat but it was tradition that he sat with his Ravenclaw buddies. They usually started the train ride by sharing some snacks and then talking about their summers. They called themselves "The Brotherhood of the Tracks" and it had been that way since their third year. He watched as his cousin threw herself down on the seat across from him and played with her hair, yammering away about something. He had tuned her out though and just found himself nodding and yes-ing her to death. He loved Vera dearly but wasn't in the mood for her jabber-jaws. "Are you even listening to me?" she asked him in a huff. He sighed and then nodded his head. He hoped the others showed up soon. He had had to put up with Vera for the last two weeks and wasn't sure he could take it any more.

"I love you too, Mom." Peter Pettigrew said as his mother constricted him with a hug. He felt his cheeks blushing at her public display of affection. He tore him self away avoiding looking at the nearby group of Slytherins who were snickering at him and with a quick and awkward wave started to drag his trunk with him towards the Hogwarts Express. "Make sure you write, darling!" his mother shouted after him. "I will!" he said hurriedly and hopped on to the train. He loved his mother dearly but she did have tendency to embarass him.

Once Peter got on the train he couldn't get the goofy smile off his face. He had been waiting the whole summer for this day and couldn't be more excited to get back to school and see his friends once more. He was going to be a big bad seventhyear and basically rule the school with his chums Remus Lupin, James Potter and Sirius Black. This year was definately going to be a ton of fun, he could tell already. He found the compartment all the way in the back where he usually met up with his friends and slid the door open. "Hell-" he began but then stopped. The smile was wiped off his face. There were already two other people in the compartment, Gerry Claythorne and his cousin, Vera. Peter liked Gerry, he was always so nice and so cool but he just couldn't stand Vera. She was just so irritating and was too much of a slut for him. He merely nodded at Vera and then waved to Gerry and then took his seat. The other better show up soon he thought to himself.</sup>

[Selena Belvidere]

A young, raven-haired girl shoved a large metal cart, filled with a suitcase, and owl cage, and some carryon bags, through the train station. “Miss Belvidere, do you know where you are going?” Mrs. Bermel, a stuffy old woman, the Belvidere’s maid, kept asking. She was very worried that, although Selena had done this six times before, Selena wouldn’t be able to find her platform. “I am fine.” The raven-haired girl huffed, throwing back a lock of her curly hair behind her shoulder. “You know you didn’t have to come.” Selena muttered, directing her statement toward Mrs. Bermel. It was nice of the old woman to come, of course, and Selena was thankful. At least someone actually cared what happened to her.

As predicted, Selena’s mum and dad were unable to make it to her last ‘seeing-off’ to Hogwarts. It was her last year at Hogwarts, her last year of safety within the large castle walls that were so familiar to her and her fellow classmates. And although her parent’s reasons for not coming were legit, it still hurt. As Death Eaters, Selena’s mum and dad had to do whatever Voldemort wanted them to, and right now, they were at a very important meeting. The Dark Lord was planning something huge, and only his most trusted knew anything about this plan. Selena had caught bits and pieces by listening in on her parent’s conversations, but all she got out of it was to thank her lucky stars that she was neither a blood traitor nor a mudblood. And if you are… well, goodbye.

“I wanted to come see you off. I thought it best.” Mrs. Bermel said, her voice leaking with excitement. As a muggle, everything magical was fascinating to her. She had come with Selena every year to see her off, just to go through the platform. Selena rolled her eyes at the old woman, believing her to be crazy. You never really knew, though. They were always a bit odd. Mrs. Bermel’s eyes glowed with excitement as they neared the platform. Platform 9 ¾. One of Selena’s most looked forward to destinations. Every summer Selena had counted down the days until the many stone walls of her amazing fortress, Hogwarts, would surround her. Ever since her first year, Selena had made her way to the top of the food chain in Hogwarts, giving her a very important role. It was her job, as a 7th year Slytherin, to keep up that role with fervor.

Selena pushed her cart through the barrier swiftly, managing to do it without anyone noticing. Mrs. Bermal hustled in, thankful to have some tie with Selena. Otherwise, she would not be able to get onto the platform. “Goodbye, Miss. Have a good year. And make sure you write.” Mrs. Bermal whispered into Selena’s ear as she gave the small girl a backbreaking hug. “Bye. I’ll miss you.” Selena replied just as quietly, returning the hug. Although she really did care for Mrs. Bermel, Selena was not much of a fan for showing affectionate emotions. Selena was more of the, hmm, take what you can get and use it for your own advantage kind of girl.

Turning from the old woman, Selena lugged her suitcase and her owl, Ploro, out of the cart, pulling them toward the train. The station, as always, was packed, leaving hardly any elbow room. It still wasn’t as packed as it normally was, and Selena couldn’t spot any of her friends yet. Deciding she would go reserve a compartment, Selena headed toward the large steam engine’s compartments.

As she headed down the long hallway, Selena didn’t spot any of her fellow Slytherins. Eventually, Selena would have to go back to the prefect corridor and find out about the scheduling and whatnot, but she could do that when everyone was actually there. She still had to change into her black school robes, which she was not looking forward to. Finding an empty compartment near the back of the train, Selena shoved the door open, slipping in gracefully and pulling her things behind her. Uncerimoniously, Selena threw her stuff and her owl cage onto one of the seats. A loud hoot came from a very ruffled Ploro, and Selena instantly felt bad about it. “Sorry Ploro.” Selena whispered as she set the cage upright. Reaching through the bars of the cage, Selena gave Ploro a little pat, receiving an affectionate nip in return. Selena smiled at her bird and heaved her large suitcase up above the seats, onto the holding rack. Selena left Ploro on the seat across from where she would be sitting, figuring it would be a little while until she actually saw any of her friends. Selena sat down gracefully onto the empty seat, letting out a sigh of relief that school was finally here.

Remembering Mrs. Bermel, Selena slid the small window open with difficulty and stuck her head out. Searching the crowd, Selena eventually found the woman and shouted out to her, waving. “Bye!” She cried, waving her perfectly manicured hand in the woman’s direction. Most people waited to say their goodbyes when the train was pulling out, but that was an urgent way to do it, making you seem unprepared. Selena was always prepared.

[Parker(The Twins)]

With eyes flashing a dull crimson one of the dark haired twins held the cart containing her sisters and her's luggage. Her sister gave one final hug to their ancient grandmother and smiled sweetly at the old woman. Their grandmother dropped a fairly large number of galleons into a bag and handed the bag to the other twin saying, "Nala, you keep up with this you hear? Don't let Evy get ahold of it because you know she will spend it all in one trip. Please send me an owl when you both get settled in. Oh and don't forget to write if you need anything from home or more money." The old woman hugged Nala and stepped toward Evy, "Now, please, don't be to difficult for your teachers this year. I don't want to get anymore owls concerning your behavior. Be good. Promise me that Evy." Nodding Evy hugged her gandmother quickly and stepped quickly out of her arms saying, "I'll be good." (((Under Constrution)))

[Molly]

Ed really had not been planning on making his sister mad, it was just a knack of his to irritate her at the most inopportune times. He was following Amelia, not looking as guilty as he felt as he talked with Molly. Of course, the twin red-headed Prewetts were out of sight already, probably raising hell with thier friends. Or plotting revenge on Molly and himself. A smile pulled up the corner of his mouth as he smirked, the two probably had other hobbies, just because they didn't do much else during the summer, didn't mean they did that all year at school too. "Did you remember Hermes? I seem to recall you left him at home last year," he teased Molly, she had been horror-struck when she realized she left her owl in her room. Mr Prewett had sent Molly an amiable letter along with her owl, reminding her not to forget to feed him. Ed smiled more fully as he thought of the brilliant shade of red Molly had turned, he had warned her that she was going to forget something.

As it was, Molly was a shade of red, not as brilliant, but he saw the blush color her cheeks. "Don't tell me you forgot him again, Molls. I didn't even think you... He let his sentence trail off, allowing her to darken a bit more as she filled it in herself. Ed pushed his cart towards the barrier smoothly, looking down at Molly with a wicked smile.

Molly could feel her cheeks reddening as she thought about Hermes. Of course Ed would bring that up, he had laughed loudly when he saw Molly's fist-sized owl land on her head and drop a letter into her lap. The owl had proceeded to ruffle Molly's hair, mussing it up as his way of telling her off, Molly smoothed her hair absently, and glared up at her childhood friend, inwardly cursing his height for the zillionth time. He would always tower over her, and often flaunt his height to bug her, and it worked. It was a stroke of luck, she thought randomly, that Gerry hadn't found out about that little irritant. She would always swear that the Ravenclaws were given some sort of growth potion to intimidate the other teams on the Quidditch pitch.

"Actually, I purposely left him at home this time. He never really liked the train, so I decided to have mum send him after we arrive," Molly fell into step behind Ed's trolley as he headed for the barrier, and followed him through thinking about the first time she had crossed it, panicking that some Muggle would see. She smiled inwardly, but stopped just inside the barrier when she saw Ed's trolley covered in water, along with Ed.

Before she could react, the sensation of a giant water balloon breaking over her head made her freeze for a second longer. Molly's face turned scarlet, but not in embarrassment this time, in anger. She whipped her wand out, glad she was through the barrier and not in front of Muggles anymore. Molly pulled her sopping hair out of her eyes, thinking gratefully of the two braids she had put her hair in that morning. Her light sweater felt three times more heavy as the enchanted water started seeping into it, but it didn't slow her wandwork. She knew her brothers were always too excited about their pranks to be very far away.

She saw Ed holding his wand out too. They thought alike much of the time, and at this particular moment, they both wanted to jinx Molly's brothers. She abandonded her trolley and darted around the nearest pillar, Ed close behind her. They both shot a jelly-leg curse at the red-headed pair before they could run. Standing over her brothers, hair and clothes dripping, she scowled.

Ed wasn't expecting the water to drop on his head as he entered the Hogwarts platform, and he hadn't had enough time to warn Molly when she walked through. Of course they both reacted the way they always did when Gideon and Fabian pulled something, they set out for immediate revenge. The thought out plans for a better prank would come later. Right now they each wanted instant gratification.

Ed's lips twitched as he tried to keep a straight face while looking down at the twins, but it wasn't going to last long. He glanced toward Molly, catching her look at him. He looked at her sodden hair and clothes, and couldn't help laughing. She looked so contradictory. And Ed was sure he looked much the same. Molly joined in his laughter, but he felt she wasn't keen on forgiving her brothers just yet. Still, they laughed and walked away to the protests of her brothers' asking them to reverse the curse before boarding the train.

Molly kept walking and gathered her things from her trolley, she knew the boys' friends would reverse it for them before the train left. Carting her trunk behind her, Molly climbed onto the train, glancing back to make sure Ed was coming too. He was, thankfully, not giving in to his random urge to reverse any curse, jinx or hex laid on Gideon and Fabian. Ed would ride in a compartment with other Ravenclaws as he always did, and Molly would head to the last compartment where she'd talk to her Gryffindor friend. "See you at the feast, Eddie." That was the sixth time she'd said that. The first year, of course, they rode together, but since then that statement had been their 'I'm going my way now. See ya later,' expression. And as expected, Ed replied, See you at the feast, Moll. Molly wasn't quite to the last compartment, but she knew Ed was already flopped on the seat on his, creating an Ed-sized wet spot. She smiled as she slid the door to the correct compartment open.

[Chase Wilkins]

“Mom, Mom? MOM! Chase shouted up the stair well. “Mom, I’m going to miss the train HURRY UP!” He tapped his foot impatiently. He knew that she was stalling on purpose. She hated to be alone during the school year. Sure, he wrote her whenever he found time, and he returned on the holidays, but she was a lonely woman. Chase had tried to get her to hang out with some other nearby Muggles, but she always found a reason to stay home or be sick. She didn’t want to be with other people. She was still afraid of getting hurt like his arrogant conceited father had hurt her years ago. “C’mon mom. I’m going to be late.” He called again, this time receiving a bit of a grunt in response.

After his mother was fully ready, he loaded Percival, his owl, into the small out of date car that his mother drove, and shoved his trunk in the trunk. He slid in the passenger side and buckled his Muggle seat belt. “Ok, Let’s go.” His mother wasn’t a bad driver, per se, but she did tend to drive well over the speed limit. Before long, a pair of twirling red and blue lights were following behind them. “Mom…” Chase grumbled, burying his head in his hands. The officer sauntered up to the door. The exchange lasted about fifteen minutes, resulting in a ticket and a seventy dollar fine. When the officer had left Chase spoke. “Can we go now mother? I don’t want to be late.” It didn’t come naturally for him to be mean, but school was his escape. He was away from his weepy mother, his quiet house, and the memorabilia of Leanne.

The scenery grazed by in silence. His mother was obviously angry. Chase’s mind wandered to Leanne. He thought of the small pink teddy bear that was concealed in the depths of his trunk. It was hers. He had given it to her for her fourth birthday. After she had been killed, Chase willed himself to retrieve it from her room, needing something to keep her memory alive. She had been his best friend, his solace in the midst of the terror he went through. God, he missed her. Now, all he had were two or three wizarding photographs, a scrapbook of Muggle photos, and her tiny teddy bear. This year was going to be harder on him, for she would have been eleven this year; a first year, had she not have been a Squib.

The whistling of nearby trains could be heard from his slightly open window. He rubbed his eyes, checking for any trace of tears, none were found. It had been so long, he had no more tears to cry over her. He needed to move on with his life, it didn’t hurt to remember every once in a while though, did it? His mom whipped into a space, Chase checked his watch, dang, only fifteen minutes… While his mother unloaded Percival, he ran to find a trolley for his trunk. He was unsuccessful. Everyone probably already had one on the Platform by now. He hoisted his trunk over his shoulder, balancing it there with one had. Thank Merlin for the Muggle gym, eh? He scooped up the cage in his other hand, and quickly began to make his way to Platform 9 ¾.

The two of them hurried through the crowded, Muggle-filled corridors, until coming to the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. He set his trunk and Percival down, giving his mother a hug, “Bye mom, take care of yourself.” He muttered. When he finally wormed out of his mother’s hug, he saw that she was crying. “Mom… I’ll come back, you know that.” He said with his famous crooked smirk. “I promise.” With a quick peck on the cheek, he swung his trunk over his shoulder and lifted Percival into his hand. The passage between the Muggle world and the wizarding one was short and unworthy of any mentioning. He smiled as he saw his bustling peers. This was his final year here… hopefully he could have some kids of his own one day, just to get to return here.

He shook his head, his jet black hair falling into his eyes. He had to get on the train before it left. The red engine whistled angrily, signaling everyone who wasn’t already on, to do so immediately. He began to jog towards the train, for fear of missing his only shot at freedom. He jumped into an open doorway; luckily, he had gotten on before it had begun to move. As skimmed through different compartments before he came to a relatively empty one. Only one girl was in the compartment. Selena Belvidere. She was probably sick of him, he had barged into her alone time in Diagon Alley… but she seemed to have enjoyed it, but maybe he was still as bad at reading girls actions and expressions as he had been.

He stood outside her compartment door for several minutes. His shoulder began to ache, but instead of just walking in, he lightly placed it on the ground beside him, setting his small owl cage on top of it. He ran his finger through his hair, trying to decide what to do. She was a Slytherin, he was a Ravenclaw. But that shouldn’t matter, should it? Just because teacher’s push that stupid house barrier thing, doesn’t mean that he had to. He re-hoisted his extremely large, and somewhat heavy trunk back on his shoulder. Who’s idea was it to continue to bring all of his textbooks with him all seven years?

He slid the door open. “Excuse me, Miss Belvidere, do you mind if I sit here?” But instead of waiting for an answer, he shoved his trunk into one of the holding racks, and set Percival down on one of the empty seats. He plopped down across from her and gave her a smirk similar to the one he had shown his mother.

[Miri Holbrem]

"Come on, Sophia, or we'll miss the train!" called a flustered Miri Holbrem, pushing her sister from behind with the tip of her cart. The summer was finally over, and it was time to go back to Hogwarts once again. For her final year. The thought that someday she would graduate from school had once seemed silly. She remembered her first year. It seemed so far away now, just as the opposite had then.

Miri realized she had stopped moving and started up a brisk pace; her sister was now ahead of her. She paused as Sophia pushed the silver luggage cart through the seemingly solid wall, then did so herself, stopping once she reached the other side to collect her bearings. The air wasn't clear, like usual, but she could make out the form of her sister disappearing into the crowds in front of her. The brunette sighed lightly and shook her head, then picked up her speed until she was nearer to the train. She glanced up and down at the row of cars, painted red, and a sense of joy filled her. She was finally going back to Hogwarts. She had seen her friends a couple of times this summer, but still, when you were used to seeing people several times a day, everyday, 'a couple of times' just doesn't cut it.

Miri abandoned her cart and hoisted up her large trunk from it. She was carrying her cat, Gracie, in her purse, which she also unloaded from the cart and slung over her shoulder. She had tried a spell she had seen scribbled on a note on her brother's desk on the bag, and now it could hold about as much a small suitcase. Useful spell, she thought, not for the first time. Her trunk was magicked in the same fashion, although the spell unfortunately did nothing to reduce the weight of objects. She climbed aboard the train and headed down the corridor, the back end of her trunk now dragging slightly on the ground.

She reached the last compartment and hesitated. She knew who would probably sit here, and she wasn't sure if she should join them. She wasn't quite a 'cool' or 'popular' person, although everybody knew who she was, and her looks were just average. She never felt quite good enough to hang out with Vera, Sirius... Anyone from that crowd, pretty much. Vera was gorgeous and both the life and queen of any party. Sirius was handsome and a Marauder. Miri was none of the above. She was just... normal.

She swallowed and pushed open the compartment door, stepping inside. Peter Pettigrew was there, along with Vera and Gerry. Miri neither particularly liked or disliked Peter. They were never on quite the same level. They spoke to each other, but she never went out of her way to talk to him. "Hullo, everyone," she said rather quietly, taking a seat at the end of a bench next to the door. She smiled slightly, sending her trunk onto the luggage rack opposite her with a Banishing charm and reaching inside her purse to pull out Gracie's carrier. She took it out, then took Gracie out, and set the small cat on her lap. "How are we doing today?"

[Sirius Black]

Sirius opened one eye, moaned, and closed it again, turning over, trying to ignore a shrill ringing. He swatted at something, which was thumping his head. He then sat bolt upright, his hair sticking out in all directions. The source of both the thumps and the ringing was his enchanted alarm clock - it was in the shape of the whomping willow and hit him around the head when he didn't wake up. He dropped the thrashing pot-plant into a small bag, where it lay still, and fell out of bed with a yelp. He tore around his room, swearing when he stubbed his toe on his suitcase, throwing things into his suitcase in a frantic hurry. He grabbed his owl Mirzam and unceremoniously shoved her into her cage, pointing his wand at the bottom and scourgifying it. He slammed the suitcase lid down, and swore again when it wouldn't shut. He pulled on some jeans and had one arm in his black shirt when he heard James' mother calling his name from downstairs. He hurried down, one sock half on and pulling his shirt on fully, to be greeted with a small stack of his things and some toast. He thrust the toast in his mouth with a muffled thank you and ran back upstairs, clutching some laundry, five books, three rolls of parchment, a packet of droobles and three quills. He deposited this in his trunk, sat on it and, with James' help managed to get it shut. He then brushed his hair, threw on his coat and levitated his trunk into the car, before dashing back upstairs to carry a complaining Mirzam downstairs.

At Kings Cross, he was greeted by the usual noise, hordes of muggles and rain. He heaved his trunk onto a trolley and put Mirzam on it, placating her with some owl treats. Mirzam wasn't the most sociable of owls and this was usually the worst part of the journey. Sirius hurried through the crowds of muggles, grinning. He got to the barrier and leant casually against it, winking at a muggle girl boarding a train before berating himself, a mental voice not unlike Lily Evans' was telling him off. A few moments later him and James were sliding into the magical world.

Mirzam joined the rest of the olws in the indignant hooting filling the smoky air. People were crashing into each other, tearful/excited first years were crying into their mothers' robes, friends were greeting each other and general chaos reigned. The scarlet stea enjine was a magnificent dight, and Sirius found himself almost feeling an emotion very close to sadness that this would b his last year as he regarded the tran-set-turned huge before him.

Sirius was pushing his trolley along, chatting amiabley with James, when it hit something that gave out a muffled "oof!" He peered down and let out his trademark bark of laughter, seeing the Prewett borthers sprawled on the floor, undoubtabley the victems of his cousin's jelly-legs curse. He bent down, still chuckling, and releived them of their water ballons, tuting.

"Boys, you should know by now not to mess with Molly. Especially if you're not me or James." he walked off, flashing them a charming, if infuriating grin. He whistled as he wove his way back to James' family, locating them easily by simply looking for his friend's distinctive hairstyle. He realised the Potters were saying goodbye to their son and made to veer off towards some fifth years he knew, to give them some privacy, but was both embarassed and incredibly pleased when Mrs Potter pulled him into a hug, beaming. "Now, you boys take care, wont you?" her eyes filled with tender concern, and Sirius felt a lump rising. What was wrong with him. He cleard his throat gruffly, meeting James' eye with a grin. "Don't you worry, Mrs P," he said gruffly, saluting her with two fingers, "We'll look out for each other. Thanks ever so much for having me, and.." Mr Potter shook his head, clapping Sirius on the back. "We're always pleased to have you, lad." Sirius ducked his head to hide his grin and blush, gradtitude eminating from him as he smiled and waved, lugging his suitcase towards the train.

[/size]

[Selena Belvidere]

((FOR CHASE))
Selena finished her wave, deciding it would be best to get back into the compartment and sit down. A gust of wind blew through the platform, sending Selena’s hair flying and throwing a few owls off of their course. A few students below mumbled angrily as hats and perfect hairdos went askew. Selena giggled and shook her head, allowing her curls to fall around her face. Retreating back into the compartment, Selena shoved the window down with difficulty. As it came down, the panes omitted a horrid screech that reminded Selena of fingernails on a chalkboard. Wincing, the raven-haired girl sat back on the red cushioned seat and adjusted her hair, making sure that her locks framed her face perfectly, giving the relaxed, fun look to anyone who would come by.

Ploro gave a loud hoot from his cage, startling Selena. Jumping out of her seat from the fright, Selena grabbed Ploro’s cage and stuffed her up where she had put her luggage. “Sorry, Ploro. If you are going to be loud, you must stay up there.” Selena nodded and sat herself back down onto the seat. Bored out of her mind, Selena pulled an 11” stick out of her pocket and rolled it around with her fingers. In fact, it wasn’t really a stick at all. It was her wand, crafted from a very old holly tree. The tree in question had been grown in her grandfather’s backyard. If you have connections as strong as Selena did, Ollivander would do anything to please you.

Giving the wand a flick, a small little puff ball came out of the end. A beak protruded from the yellow fluff, along with wings and two little orange legs. Flying around the small compartment, the little chick tweeted happily. Ploro, on the other hand, did not appreciate this addition to their party, and was therefore very angry. Giving out a loud, and annoying, hoot, Ploro made it very clear she did not care for the chick. Rolling her eyes, Selena flicked her wand at Ploro’s cage. A maroon colored sheet was whisked over the metal cage, muffling Ploro’s cries. Feeling better, Selena watched the little chick fall to the seat across from her and walk around.

Selena leaned back and rested her head on the seat, gazing at the ceiling above. A small lamp hung from the middle of the compartment, swinging back and forth a little every time the train was just a bit jostled. Selena closed her eyes, averting her attention from light fixtures. She reminisced the last few days, those spent in Diagon Alley, that is. It had been a wonderful trip, one that she would never forget. One thing had truly changed her though. It was odd, somehow Selena felt as if she was being changed, but not in a way she was expected to. Selena felt that she was straying farther and farther away from the destiny she thought she had, the one she would spend with the Dark Lord.

The Slytherin princess was crushing. But no, not on someone she should be crushing on. The boy in question just so happened to be named Chase Wilkins. Although he was a little shy around girls sometimes and possibly a bit wallow-some, something about him drew Selena toward him. At Diagon Alley, Selena had run into Chase, and had a pretty good time as well. Although she didn’t exactly get what she was secretly wishing for, Selena had flirted with him. That didn’t hurt anyone, right?

The only problem with liking Chase Wilkins was he was a Half-Blood, and he was a Ravenclaw. But being a Half-Blood, he was part muggle. If Selena were to even appear that she had more of a relationship than hatred with the boy, she might just very well be banished from her household. Selena was destined to marry someone with strong family ties to Voldemort, someone who actually wanted to follow him, and who had a good sum of money. Her parents had been looking into an arranged marriage, and they liked one Elijah Peterson. Selena couldn’t match the two together though. Selena Peterson? Ew. That didn’t sound right. Sighing, Selena slipped back into her dream world where Chase actually had a crush on her and spend just about every waking moment with her.

Woah, hold the phone. She had just started liking him. It was too early to wish that. Selena always seemed to jump the gun, so to speak. Maybe, with relationships, it was best to take it slowly. Opening her eyes, Selena felt another presence. Looking around, she noticed a figure standing outside of her compartment. Although she couldn’t exactly tell who it was, Selena had an idea. Speak, well in her case think, of the devil and he will come. Chase Wilkins entered the compartment, asking to stay but not bothering to wait for a reply. As he sat down across from her, the little chick jumped off of the seat, trying to save its own neck. Selena smirked ad crossed her arms, staring at Chase questioningly. “Well, hello there. And what, might I ask, brings you back here to my compartment?”

[lizzy]

Eli pushed his way through hundreds of sweaty muggles, receiving strange looks to his cart and to himself. But who wouldn’t?Anyone would stare at someone with a cart full of strange items. It was completely natural. And Eli loved the attention as well. He didn’t crave it, he just enjoyed being noticed. He loved to stand out. Difference was crucial to his lifestyle.

But it was quite annoying as well. Not only were the muggles loud (and some were quite large, adding to their sweatiness), but they were in the way too. They would push and shove and not excuse themselves. Although Eli wasn't the most polite boy himself, he didn't want others to be rude. Did they know what he was capable of?

Eli was quite relieved when he reached platform 9 and 10. He knew he would soon be with civilized people, people of his own kind. He didn't want to associate with muggles. It would make him a blood traitor and a muggle-lover, neither of which he ever wanted to be, nor that he was ever planning on being. Muggles were very interesting, yes, but you couldn't talk to them about anything you liked (magical-wise) without being disowned. Being disowned was also something Eli was not planning on doing.

As Rory played with Eli’s wand (after he constantly pulled her away, and soon gave in), he saw a small person with shoulder-length, raven-black hair walked by. Eli couldn’t see the person’s face, but he knew it was Selena. Eli waltzed over, readying his words. He cleared his throat, about to speak, when he realized the she had no cart. And that was sort of strange, of course, but then he thought of how Selena usually wouldn’t carry her own luggage. Eli smiled and opened his mouth to speak, when Selena turned around. And it was, in fact, not Selena, nor was he a she. The short man had a long black beard, and wore a t-shirt that read THE PLANET IS MY FRIEND, NOT MY DUMP in bold letters.

Eli rolled his eyes and walked away as if he had never crossed paths with the hippie. The phase was over, why wouldn’t he move on, give up? Muggles were the oddest of all human beings. The never moved on, never changed, started a new, as muggles would say. They were just ignorant, oblivious sacks of talentless body, right? That’s how Eli put it; muggles were typical distractions, just to be swept off of you, just like pests. Non-magical beings, psh.

Eli pushed his cart to an arched-brick-wall at platform 9 and 10. He took a deep breath (it was his last year of course, be prepared for all, as his mother always said) and walked right through it. Halfway into platform 9 ¾, Eli hear the hippie say “Man, did that crazy dude just go through that wall? Groovy.” Muggles.

[lizzy]

When Eli walked through the wall, he felt reborn, so-to-speak. It was almost as if he had woken up from a long, boring sleep. It was like home away from home to Eli. He took everything in, which was a very bad idea; naturally there were clouds of smoke wafting around from the train. Eli coughed so hard a first-year turned around and ran into another person. He laughed at that. Eli wasn’t really a bully; he just thought other people’s mistakes were funny.

He took his luggage out of his cart, kicking the cart away from him. As it rolled away, it hit the same first-year and knocked him down. Eli kept a smile from forming on his face. No one could prove he did it.

Rory meowed in dismay when Eli held her, because of her position. Eli’s clothes trunk hit her ribs the wrong way, and Rory wasn’t fond of wrong. Eli put her down on the ground, hoping she would follow. To Eli’s relief, Rory trailed right behind him, head high and proper. Eli knew the muggle “Pet-Perfection-Proper-Etiquette-Class” his mother made Rory take would put a bad influence on her. She could slouch a little, at least.

When Eli got inside the train, he felt awfully claustrophobic. You would too if hundreds and thousands of people with bulky bags surrounded you, constantly pushing you away. No one seemed to have a care about anyone but themselves. He hated that about people.

He moved to an empty compartment, halleluiah, finally away from the noise. Although he did feel lonely, he felt quite content as well. But he realized no one would really want to sit with him. Being the center-of-attention, he never really noticed how he didn’t have many friends. He had acquaintances, but no one he really wanted to hang out with. (Except Selena Belvidere, of course.)

But Selena Belvidere didn’t like Eli Peterson. She fancied Chase Wilkins, a half-blood Ravenclaw. He knew this because, for one thing, he was only a 6th year, and that Selena Peterson didn’t sound right. Eli always wanted to change his last name to something that fit her glorious name. But somehow she still didn’t seem to like him. It just didn’t fit. She would be a blood-traitor, no less. He was part muggle! But if he made her happy, that was an exception to Eli. Just not with Chase Wilkins. NOT Chase Wilkins.

Ruining his fantasies, someone opened the compartment door. It was a 6th year girl and boy that were familiar to Eli. The boy was in his Charms class in his 4th year, and the girl was Melissa Palladino. Eli had dated her for a few months, but he was really uncomfortable with her there. They had no luggage with them, so Eli knew she wasn’t going to stay.

She grabbed the other boy’s hand and pushed him to Eli. She smiled widely and nudged her companion so that he would smile too. A weak grimace formed on his lips, kind of menacing in ways.

“Look, Eli,” Melissa said. Her eyes grew wide. She was more annoying than Eli had remembered.

“This is my boyfriend, Nathan.” Nathan glared at him and turned away. Melissa waved goodbye and pranced out.

“Just rub it in,” Eli said to himself. It was like no one wanted to be acquainted with him. He wanted to see Selena, a glimpse. He prayed the trolley would stop near his compartment. Eli hoped Selena was hungry for some chocolate frogs or pumpkin pasties.

[Chase Wilkins]

Chase grinned as he settled into his seat across from the raven haired Slytherin beauty. A small yellow bird cheeped indignantly beside him. He stroked it’s soft feathers. “Sorry little guy. I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Percival hooted from his perch in his cage. It wasn’t an angry sort of hoot, it was interested, curious. “I take it you conjured up this little guy?” He asked, not turning to face her. He continued to study the small bird, scooping it up in his hands. He gave Selena a roguishly handsome grin, one that was becoming his signature smile.

He liked Selena. She was a cool chick. Whether or not his feelings had any sort of depth to them or not, he was unsure of, but it was at least a crush. Chase Wilkins did not crush on girls often, so this was kind of a big deal for him. He began to notice insignificant little details about her that he would not have noticed on any other passing female. Stupid little things. Selena smirked as he sat down, the way he rosy red lips curved up at the tips made Chase’s heart flutter. Whoa there big boy… this has just started… slow down. Chase had never been in a relationship before, nor had he ever wanted one, until recently… about a week ago to be precise.

The time that they had spent together in Diagon Alley had been an absolute blast. He had met up with her at the Leaky Cauldron, using his ‘dark mark’ sticker to allow the both of them to escape from the unforgiving heat of the August sun. A bit of innocent flirting had occurred, nothing to drastic. So perhaps the flirt level had been a bit higher than the first meeting flirting levels had been, but both of them had seemed to be having a good time. Catherine Grace, another Slytherin beauty, had interrupted their time together. She had mentioned something about only toying with Chase to get revenge on her for something that had happened earlier.

He didn’t know what to think there. He hated the fact that Selena may be using him, but at the same time, it had been fun hanging out with her and flirting with her. But had it been real? Or was it just to make Catherine rue something that she had done earlier on in their lives. He thought he had seen Eli Peterson walk by. He was a 6th year Slytherin. He was the match for Selena. It was sort of a Romeo and Juliet esque thing. Selena was promised to a Death Eatering, Pureblooded man, while this enemy of sorts was falling in love with her. He chuckled internally at the thought. So this is what happens when you spend the summer with your single Muggle mother.

Selena Peterson? No, that didn’t sound right. Did Selena Wilkins sound any better though? He wasn’t the one to choose now was he? Though it was neither were Mr. and Mrs. Belvidere’s decision to make either. It was Selena’s. She had every right to either go along with her parents, or defy them and follow her heart. He didn’t know her well enough to say whether or not she enjoyed following her parents choices, or being a rebel.

“Me?” He grinned. “Just chilling. Waiting for the Express to take me away from the stupid Muggle world if you ask me.” He set the bird down on Selena’s knee, returning it to it’s rightful owner. “What about you? How was the rest of your summer?” He asked, leaning forward, making less of a distance between them. The trolley slid by. “Anything from the trolley dears?” The elderly lady asked. Chase got a packet of droobles “Would you like anything Selena? It’s on me.”

[Molly]

Molly took a moment to wring out her braids before entering the compartment, moving to the side so Miri could get past her without getting wet. "I'm great, Miri, thanks for asking. And how've you been? Has your cat left your quills alone?" Molly cracked a grin at this, she remembered quite clearly the mental image she had conjured when Miri mentioned her cat attacking her quills. Shaking away the entertaining image, she laughed quietly, then glanced around the compartment to see more clearly who was there. She stepped through the doorway after Miri and registered the faces she saw.

Peter, Vera, Miri, and surprisingly, Gerry was there too. "Hey, Gerry. I thought you'd be hanging with your Ravenclaw friends. Or did they kick you out of their club?" Molly added the last sentence mockingly, a tone she used often with Gerry. Continuing her Pick-on-Gerry-Lifestyle that she had declared in Diagon Alley. Molly noticed, a bit late, Peter's obvious disdain for Vera. This wouldn't do. Not his dislike of Vera, no one is universely liked, but the tension in the atmosphere because of it. She hoped he'd be distracted by Miri and her own entrances, a tense compartment wouldn't be a great environment for catching up.

Ed had noticed Molly's far-off look as she kept on down the train corridor. He stopped and looked through the door to a luckily empty compartment. He lifted his trunk easily onto the shelf high above the seats, then flopped very uncerimoniously onto the seat. He propped his feet up on the seat opposite him, creating a barrier in front of the door, so in case he fell asleep, he'd notice someone coming in.

As it was, the sun was coming in at a very soothing angle. And he had been up for a very long time the previous night packing, he would have asked Amelia or his mother for help, but he wouldn't have been able to live that down. They always bugged him about his procrastinatory habits, and he actually deserved every bit of it. He leaned back in the seat, squishing his wet clothes into the upholstery, creating an outline of his torso in a wet print behind him.

[Katie]

<sup>Vera rolled her eyes at Peter Pettigrew who had entered the compartment five minutes aftter she had gotten there. She never did like Peter. And he never liked her much either. She was hoping that other people would arrive soon so she wouldn't have to be stuck with a sourpuss Gerry and an idiotic Peter. Vera looked up from the window and saw Miri Holbrem standing in the doorway of their compartment. She waved and stood up. "Miri! It's so good to see you!" she said with a grin. Finally somebody was there who wasn't an idiot or in a foul mood. "I'm fine. How are you?" she answered Miri's question before ushering her to the seat beside Vera.

Vera looked up again at the sound of a familiar redhead's voice. "Molly!" she yelled and tackled her friend with a hug. She looked to Gerry who would probably perk up now that Molly was there. He usually did which led Vera to have her conspiracy theories about the two. "Now I have two people to talk to!" she bubbled, motioning to Miri and Molly.

Gerry was glad that Peter was there so at least he wasn't alone with a now angry Vera. He knew Vera disliked Peter so he wouldn't be the only one to feel her womanly wrath. He grinned and waved at a very sullen looking Peter. "Hey Pete." he said hoping to piss his cousin off. She deserved it after the hell she's been putting him through. Not long after Peter's arrival did Miri Holbrem appear. He couldn't help but laugh as Vera nearly killed the girl with her greeting. "Hey Miri. It's nice to see you again." he said with a wave. Miri was always nice to talk to and he had fun when he met up with her in Diagon Alley over the Summer. But, of course, Vera was chattering away again like a chipmunk on crack. There goes his beloved silence.

"Well, being as you know have people to annoy, I'm going to book it and go chill with THe Brotherhood. Alright, V?" he said, standing up. But, of course, as soon as he did so Molly entered their soon to be crowded compartment. After being trampled by Vera, she asked Gerry if he was abandoned by the Ravenclaws. "Nope. I just had to babysit the Rugrat." he joked, pointing to Vera. "I was actually just about to leave and go meet up with the boys when you arrived." he added in. He always liked being with Molly. She was always so much fun to talk to.

Peter was glad that Vera had ignored him. The only time he could tolerate her was when she was silent other then that he couldn't stand her. At least Gerry greeted him which was fine. "Hi Gerry. How was your summer?" he asked, trying to muster up a smile. Of course, as soon as he was starting to enjoy being with the Claythornes, more people had to show up which sent Vera into a frenzy of tackling and squealing. Horrified, Peter curled up into his little corner and prayed that it would all stop soon.

The two girls that arrived were Miri Holbrem and Molly Prewett. Miri he didn't know very well but she seemed alright and of course everyone knew who Molly was. She was always so nice. He liked Molly and she was hopefully going to make this trip more bearable until his chumc arrived. He turned back to Gerry but to his dismay found that he was going to leave him for some Ravenclaws. Well, at least there was Molly and Miri.</sup>

[Selena Belvidere]

Selena watched as Chase played with the little chick, a smile on her perfectly shaped lips. Chase was one of those people who looked good with animals. Not out of place. His loving character and personality did not contrast at all with the little bird. It was cute to Selena, glad that he actually somewhat cared about animals. Selena nodded in reply to his question, not taking her eyes off of the little bird. Selena glanced up right when Chase grinned at her, making her heart flutter. She loathed the fact that this one boy had so much power over her. It made her feel completely weak.

Either things were about to get more serious between the two, or Selena would give up and move on. There was no way that she, the pure-blood Slytherin princess, would be under the power of an insignificant boy. Well, to Selena, he was no insignificant boy. In fact, he was very significant. He would probably never find out about that though. Selena wasn’t one of those girls who tells the boy she likes that she has any feelings for him. In her mind, the guy makes that move, and the girl does what she will with it. That was how the world was supposed to work.

Selena leaned back onto the seat, scooping up the little bird off of her knee. She brushed back the little yellow flowers with her forefinger, listening to the little chirping omit from its orange beak. How easy it must be to be a little chick. Nothing really mattered, did it? No boy crushes, no wishing for an easier life. Everything just happened, and you had no say. But with no say, you really didn’t have much responsibility. Responsibility was hard, having the ability to control things, hoping you don’t mess up. It would be so much easier to be a bird.

“Sounds enthralling.” Selena said, letting emphasis slide onto enthralling. It came out like more of a purr, though. Selena hoped that Chase didn’t take that in a wrong way, but she would let him take it whichever way he wanted to. Selena wanted to flirt with Chase, but she wasn’t sure how he would take it. If Chase took her actions offensively and didn’t want to talk to her ever again, Selena would have serious problems. “My summer…” Her voice trailed off as she thought about the rest of it. For the most part, she hung around her house thinking about Chase. She, however, would never tell him that, so something else had to be said.

“Boring. I hung around my pool for the most part. And I got a new swimsuit.” Hoping he would ask about it, Selena left her sentence at that. She had actually brought it with her in case they go swimming in the lake. Around this time of year it was warmer than it normally was any other part of the year. It was also in her suitcase in the event of swimming in the Prefect bathroom ‘bathtub’. It was really more of a pool though, and sometimes at night Selena and a few of her friends would go have a pool party.

Selena looked over at the old woman, thinking about what to get. She stood up gracefully, her short skirt still stuck up a little from sitting down. She didn’t care, though. If anyone wanted to look, more power to them. Walking over to the trolley, she searched for the pumpkin pasties. Those were her favorite. “A pack of pumpkin pasties, please.” As she waited for Chase to pay, Selena looked around at the nearby compartments. Selena spotted Eli one over and rolled her eyes flirtingly, making sure that Chase did not see that gesture. Selena had no feelings for Eli, but she did like to lead him on sometimes. It made her life more interesting.

[Chase Wilkins]

Chase scratched his chin as he watched Selena gaze at the small chick. He had no clue what could be going through her mind as of present, but she looked pretty intent on whatever she was thinking. The small bird continued to chirp happily as Selena resumed the stroking. Chase had never had a pet. Well, when he was five, his dad bought him a dog, but, after a week, the dog ran away. No one was horribly sure about where it went, but numerous times, Chase swore he saw the neighbors down the road walking a dog that looked awfully similar. He chuckled lightly, remembering the time. How stupid had he been? Really? Thinking back on it, he had been so naïve, that he didn’t stop to look around at what was going on around him. Had he really changed that much? Sure, he was older, but had he ever really stopped to look around at what was going on, the bigger picture?

Sure, Chase had feelings for Selena. But he would never tell her. He would become the laughing stock of the entire school. Thinking that a Half-Blood Ravenclaw could end up with a Pure-Blood Slytherin. He would probably be smite-ed by both the Slytherin boys, for trying to take their beauty from them, and by the Ravenclaw boys for even thinking that he could be with Selena. He’d probably get a few good hexes from the Gryffindors too, just for good measure. On the other hand, if Selena wanted to come out and confess that she had feelings for him, he would have no problem telling her how he felt, than they could plow through the awful house barriers together.

Chase shook his head, his jet black hair falling in his eyes. He didn’t bother to brush it away. His hair was overgrown, but he didn’t want a haircut. The old ladies would shave his head bald, and put some sort of an old lady wig on him. He did NOT trust old ladies with scissors. “Not really… My mum was on me the whole summer to clean my appearance up. Cut my hair, wear nicer clothes, y’know…” Maybe she didn’t. She always seemed to wear the nicest, prettiest clothing, and her hair, it was so… so… shiny. The way she enunciated her words, it almost sounded, playful. He didn’t want to misread her words, and mistake it for flirting, but at the same time.... They needed to offer a class at Hogwarts. Called UG. Understanding Girls, because Chase knew he never would.

“A new swimsuit eh? Bet it looks beautiful… not that you’d need it…” After thinking about his words he swore under his breath. “That’s not what I meant… I meant that you’re naturally pretty; you don’t need special clothes… I just… forget it.” After being sufficiently embarrassed, he buried his head in his hands, refusing to meet her gaze. Not much had changed; he was still awkward and useless around girls. For a split second, he cursed Leanne and her death. Immediately, a knot of guilt became present in his stomach. He loved Leanne, and she had nothing to do with his retardedness around girls.

Chase stood and paid for her Pumpkin Pasties and a Chocolate frog for him. “Thanks.” He told the older lady. As he looked out the compartment door, he noticed that Eli Peterson was sitting in a compartment by himself. Chase had neither liked or disliked the boy, until recently, when he had learned that he was a perfect choice for Selena’s perfect pure-blooded husband. Now, he felt as if a monster had reared up in his stomach, telling him to lunge, hex Eli within an inch of his life. What was this feeling? It couldn’t be jealousy. Selena didn’t have any feelings for him… did she? “Hey Selena.” Chase asked after he had sat back down “Do you want to invite Eli to sit with us? He looked kind of lonely.” He would wiat and see how she reacted. If she acted the way that she had in Diagon Alley, than he would know that she didn’t have an feelings for Eli, but if she acted differently, then something fishy would be up, and he needed to know.