Chapter Text
Remus Lupin followed his trunk onto the Hogwarts Express, and looked around with excitement brewing in his core. The train, all dark carpet and aged glass, held a sort of warm magic that Remus had seen only a few times before, in Diagon Alley. He made his way towards an empty compartment, bypassing several others, one of which held at least fifteen people laughing behind oddly fogged glass, and was about to drag his trunk in when he heard cruel-sounding laughing from a little way off.
Remus walked down the corridor to where two boys who appeared to be around thirteen were laughing, their wands loosely directed at another boy who was Remus’s age. The cowering boy’s small blue eyes were filled with terror, and Remus boiled with rage. Barely even knowing what he was doing, he walked up to them and yelled at the older boys to shove off. They glared at him, and one gave him a look as though he was thinking up what curse was awful enough for him. In a moment, Remus pulled his wand from his waistband and said an incantation, hoping that as this was the first spell he'd ever really cast, it would work.
“Anaticula!” After nothing happened, the boys sniggered.
“Didn’t work.” They jeered. “Flipendo!” One of them exclaimed. Remus smiled, but the other boy stiffened himself, and closed his eyes in terror. Instead of the spell working properly, however, a duck shot out of the boy’s wand. He gaped wordlessly at it. He raised his wand again, but another boy grabbed his hand and pulled him away.
“Leave it, Avery.” He muttered, and they walked away.
“I’m Remus Lupin.” He said to the blue-eyed boy.
“Peter Pettigrew.” He replied. “Erm...that was...er...that was nice of you.” “Don’t mention it.” Said Remus. As they walked down the corridor looking for a compartment, a teary red-headed girl stormed past them, pursued by a small boy with thin black hair.
“Are you okay?” Remus asked automatically.
“Fine.” She muttered, walking away.
Peter and Remus continued down the corridor to a compartment marked with a G that only held two more boys their age. One of them had bright hazel eyes behind round glasses and black hair that stuck up so much he might've just walked through a windstorm shortly after being electrocuted. The other also had dark hair, smoothed down neatly over his head, but as Remus stood in the doorway he brought a hand up and dragged it through his hair, making it casually messy in a way the bespectacled boy had clearly never heard of.
“Do you mind?” Remus asked.
“Sure.” One of the boys said confidently.
Remus and Peter sat down.
“I’m James.” He said, and sat up slightly as though to make a better first impression.
“I’m Sirius.” The other announced. In turn, Remus and Peter introduced themselves, and they had begun a conversation just as the Trolley Witch came by. Remus selected an assortment of Chocolate Cauldrons, and grabbed two Chocolate Frogs before he sat back down. Peter grabbed a few packs of Jelly Slugs, and James filled his arms with Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, and Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans. Sirius, it appeared, had purchased the whole trolley. After the Trolley Witch left, Remus looked eagerly at James’s stash of many more Chocolate Frogs than he had, and asked hopefully if he could have one.
“Help yourself.” He replied. “Just don’t take my cards.”
Remus gratefully opened one of James’s Chocolate Frogs, and gave him the card from it, as well as the cards from his own Chocolate Frogs as thanks. “Are you going to eat all of that?” Peter asked Sirius. “We are on our way to a feast.”
Sirius grinned, and gestured to half of his large mound of treats. “This is for eating,” he gestured to the other half, “and this is for keeping in the dorm for later.”
“Brilliant.” Said James happily, biting into an Every Flavor Bean. “Urgh!” He exclaimed. “Dirt.”
Sirius laughed and grabbed one himself. He chewed calmly, swallowed it, and said nothing. After a few seconds, James asked; “What’d you get?”
Sirius looked at him, paused, and said, “Earthworm.”
They all groaned and laughed, as it was common knowledge that the earthworm bean was one of the worst ones, far worse than dirt. However, once the laughter had subsided, they lapsed back into silence, and Remus was left racking his brain unsuccessfully for a topic of conversation.
"What's that called?" Peter blurted out eventually.
"What?" Remus asked, looking around as though there might be a clear explanation outside the window.
"With your eyes." Peter explained, looking embarrassed to have brought it up.
"Oh. Heterochromia." Remus replied.
"Oh." Said Peter uncomfortably, falling silent again.
"I think it's cool." Sirius piped up.
"Thanks." Said Remus awkwardly, looking down at his own twisting hands.
"Do any of you know any spells yet?" James asked hopefully, clearly uncomfortable with the unpleasant silence that had saturated compartment G. "I've heard a few but I don't know any."
"My mum is fond of 'Depulso'." Sirius replied.
"That's the banishing charm, right?" Asked Remus.
"Yeah." Said Sirius.
After a second, Peter nudged Remus. "You know one!" He said.
Remus smiled. "Yeah, I know 'Anaticula', 'Expelliarmus', and 'Episkey'."
"Brilliant!" James exclaimed.
"What's 'Anaticula'?" Sirius asked.
"It makes the other person's wand shoot ducks instead of spells." Remus replied. They laughed heartily.
"And you can do those other two?" Peter asked.
"I think so." Remus said modestly, before readying his wand. He pointed it at Sirius, and yelled; "Expelliarmus!" Sirius's pack of Jelly Slugs flew out of his hand, and the slugs flew everywhere, just as the door to their compartment opened.
"Magic already?" Said a drawling voice. Remus whirled around to see a boy with a green prefect badge leaning against the doorway of their compartment. "You know you're not allowed to use magic on the train." He said, and after a moment his face shifted. "You're the boy Avery mentioned! You did magic on him too!"
Remus shrank back and slowly sat down.
"I could give you detention for this." The Slytherin continued. "But I suppose I'll settle for speaking to your Head of House. When you get one, of course."
He slunk out of the compartment, and left the door open.
Sirius let out a whistle. "Man." He said. "Slytherins here..." His face fell. "I hope I'm not one of them."
"Don't worry, mate." Said James. "You're not a creepy crawly annoying git like that guy."
Sirius smiled faintly. "Yeah..."
A few minutes later, a duck waddled in. "What the..." Peter began.
Remus burst out laughing, and after a few seconds Peter understood and joined him. It wasn't until they both calmed down enough to speak that they explained the duck incident to James and Sirius, who ended up putting it back in the corridor.
————
"Where do we go?" Peter asked.
"Yeah, no one ever really mentions that part, do they." Sirius said.
Sirius carried his bag of treats off the train, and James, Remus, and Peter followed. They stood on the platform confusedly until they heard someone calling; "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! Firs' years!"
They made their way in the opposite direction of the older students, until James stopped them. "Why don't we go with them?" He asked, gesturing to the rest of the students around them. They were considering this until they heard the voice who had called for them said:
"Do we have all of ya? No, we're missin' four. Black? Lupin?"
Sirius and Remus looked at each other, and sped off towards a huge man with a bushy black beard and long, wild dark hair, who was surrounded by first years.
"All righ', that's all of ya. I'm Hagrid, Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds here a' Hogwarts."
A few of the first-years whispered a response, but none were audible.
Hagrid didn't seem to mind. "C'mon, four people to a boat."
They followed him to the edge of a huge black lake, where eleven small boats were docked. Remus got into a boat with James, Sirius, and Peter, and he watched as the redheaded girl and the greasy-haired boy got into a boat together, seemingly to the redheaded girl's dismay. As the boats rowed themselves across the water, James stuck his hand into the cold, inky black lake and held it there for a minute, until he yelped and pulled it back into the boat.
"What?" Remus asked.
James shivered. "Something big and slimy."
Sirius laughed. "Probably the giant squid."
"Oh..." James said, nodding.
Remus watched with awe as the Hogwarts castle came into view, barely believing that this was real. He couldn’t believe that he was finally going to Hogwarts, after all of the stories and the negotiations. He was going to Hogwarts where he would learn magic like anyone else.
“Ouch!” James exclaimed.
“What?” Remus asked, snapping out of his reverie.
“I don’t know.” James said, pulling his hand close. “There’s something sharp in there!” He extended his wet hand towards Remus, where there was indeed a small cut.
“Looks bad.” Said Sirius.
“No it doesn’t.” James replied. However, a minute later he saw that Sirius had been right. The cut was turning an awful shade of green.
“What do you think it was?” Sirius said nervously.
“Out of the boats!” Called the big man, stepping out of his own.
“Should we tell him about it?” Peter whispered, clambering out of the boat.
James said no, but Remus barely heard. Seeing Hogwarts this close up was enough to make him forget about James’s hand. It was a huge fortress, its topmost towers shooting what looked like ten stories into the air. This was happening. This was happening. Remus followed the tide of first-years into the castle, walking through the grand entryway and up a huge flight of stairs where a witch with dark hair, a tight bun, and a strict expression waited. Remus recognized her as one of the people with whom his parents had made his arrangements. As she looked over the sea of first-years, her eyes softened as they lingered on Remus. He looked at his feet, and when he looked up again, she was glaring at James.
“What happened to you?” She asked.
James looked up at her. “Me?” He asked.
“Yes.” She said. “Why is your hand green?”
James looked sheepishly at his hand. “I dunno.” He said. “I got scratched by something in the lake.”
The witch came forward. “A creature?” She asked.
James shrugged. “I don’t know, my hand was in there and then I felt something scratch me, and I pulled my hand out and there was this little cut there, and I figured it was nothing to worry about until it turned green.”
She inspected James’s hand. “I think this is the earliest anyone had had to go to the hospital wing. Our nurse will give you some dittany.”
Remus spoke up. “I actually have some here.” He pulled a bottle of dittany out of his pocket.
The witch smiled slightly. “Yes, well, just apply this and you should be fine.”
She walked back to the front of the crowd, and all chatter immediately subsided. “I am Professor McGonagall, Transfiguration Teacher and Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts.”
She paused for a moment, and continued. “When you walk into the Great Hall, you will try on the Sorting Hat and be Sorted into your House. You will earn and loose House points according to behavior, and at the end of the year the House with the most points wins the House Cup.” She quickly peeked into the Great Hall, before turning back around to address the students again. “I think they’re ready for you.” She turned around and opened the huge doors behind her. They parted to reveal an enormous hall, with high ceilings charmed to look like the dark, swirling sky outside, huge fires, four long tables packed with students, and one table at the front for teachers. Except for the sheer volume of people, the most impactful thing about this room was the candles, hundreds and hundreds of candles suspended in midair, hanging close to the ceiling and filling the room with a beautiful, magical light. If the magic of the train was palpable, the magic in this room seemed to make up the air itself. The Hall glowed with an incredible aura that despite its size made it feel cozy and warm. That is, until pair of eyes in the hall turned on the first-years. Remus swallowed thickly, and and almost flinched at the volume, terrified that everyone could hear. When they reached the front of the hall, Professor McGonagall walked up to a stool bearing an old and tattered hat, that looked quite unremarkable, as though its only achievement was to avoid being completely destroyed through decades of use. However, the hat clearly became more than this when it began to sing.
"Oh I may look ragged,
But once I was quite clean,
A thousand years or more ago,
I was pristine.
This great school was started by,
The famous founders four,
Ravenclaw, Slytherin,
Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor.
They did not know who they should admit,
To their new school,
So they would each choose their their own,
Students from the pool.
To Gryffindor went those,
Of chivalry and daring,
To Hufflepuff went those,
Who were good and caring.
Ravenclaw chose those who were,
Unique and wise,
And Slytherin took only students,
With shrewd and clever eyes.
A thousand years from then I am,
Sorting instead,
I stand in for the Founders Four,
To see what’s in your head.
So set me down upon your head,
And then I think we’ll see,
In which of the houses four,
You’d most like to be!"
Remus clapped with everyone else when the hat finished. Once the hat was silent, Professor McGonagall began to call people up to be Sorted.
“Alam, Amy!” She called. A girl with light brown hair hurried up to the stool and placed her hat on her head. After a moment...
“HUFFLEPUFF!” The hat shouted. The Hufflepuff table clapped, and she hurried over to them.
"Arnell, Ivory!"
A girl with shiny blond hair walked calmly up to McGonagall, who placed the Sorting Hat on her head. "SLYTHERIN!" She walked happily to the Slytherin table.
"Bagnold, Lucy!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
McGonagall checked her list. “Bates, Robin!”
A blond girl walked to the stool, and McGonagall dropped the Sorting Hat over her eyes.
After a minute, the hat yelled, “HUFFLEPUFF!”. Robin grinned and walked amid Hufflepuff cheers to her assigned table.
“Black, Sirius!” McGonagall called.
Sirius went up to the hat, and although he attempted to look cool and calm, it was clear that he was about to burst with anxiety. The hat paused, and shouted...
“GRYFFINDOR!” Sirius smiled a smile of pure relief, and walked through the mixed applause and whispers over to the Gryffindor table.
"Cole, Amy!"
A girl with long, straight black hair walked up to the Sorting Hat, and McGonagall placed it on her head. "SLYTHERIN!" It shouted. The girl sauntered to the Slytherin table.
The next person to be called that Remus recognized was the red-haired girl from the train, whose name he learned was “Evans, Lily”. She shakily walked to the stool, where the hat Sorted her into...
“GRYFFINDOR!” She smiled, and when she went to the table, Remus saw her avoid sitting next to Sirius. He heard a little sigh beside him and looked around to see the greasy-haired boy who had been with her. His attention was snapped back to the hat when it Sorted “Fairchild, Casey” into Ravenclaw. The next name Professor McGonagall called was;
“Lupin, Remus!”
Remus walked up to the stool, and she dropped the hat onto his head. To his surprise, the hat whispered in his ear.
“Cleverness, yes. Bravery as well, and exceedingly loyal. Where to put you?”
Remus wondered which of the Houses he would like the most. So many people, even James on the train, seemed against Slytherin.
Remus jumped as the hat whispered again. “Ah...yes. I think you are a perfect...”
“GRYFFINDOR!”
Remus walked over to sit next to Sirius at the Gryffindor table amid loud applause. From his seat at the Gryffindor table, he could enjoy the Sorting. Now that no one was watching him, his nerves had faded.
After a few minutes, including “MacDonald, Mary” becoming a Gryffindor, and "McGregor, Balthazar" becoming a Slytherin, McGonagall called; “Pettigrew, Peter!”
Peter stumbled up to the hat, and McGonagall placed it on his head. He sat like that for a long time, and Remus started feeling hungry. The Chocolate Cauldrons of the train felt like a long time ago. Whispers began to fill the hall as Peter’s time on the stool continued. It wasn’t until he had been wearing the hat for over five minutes that it finally shouted;“GRYFFINDOR!” Peter stumbled to the Gryffindor table and sat down gratefully beside Remus.
“Thank goodness.” He whispered. “The hat took ages to decide!”
“I know right?” Remus replied. “Well, I’m glad you’re a Gryffindor too.”
Sirius nudged them as McGonagall called; “Potter, James!”
James walked up to her. The hat had barely touched his head when it screamed; “GRYFFINDOR!” He smiled and came to the Gryffindor table with Sirius, Remus, and Peter.
“Prewett, Alice!” McGonagall called.
A round-faced girl came to the stool, and McGonagall dropped the hat over her eyes. After a moment, the hat shouted; “GRYFFINDOR!” She started to go to the Gryffindor table still wearing the Sorting Hat, and had to run back to return it. When she made it to the table, she sat down between Lily Evans and a second-year boy.
Remus sat, stomach growling, through several more people, one of whom was “Raven, Lyza”, a new Ravenclaw.
“Snape, Severus!”
The greasy-haired boy from the train came to the Sorting Hat, and Remus saw Lily quickly pay more attention. After barely a moment, the hat called; "SLYTHERIN!" He walked to the Slytherin table, where he sat rather uncomfortably next to the Slytherin prefect who had told off Remus on the train.
Remus's attention was drawn away from the Sorting by a mouselike squeaking beside him. He turned to see Sirius holding a pack of Ice Mice, delightedly chewing one. Sirius leaned across James, who was completely zoned out, to talk to Remus.
"I've never had these before." He said. "I swear my mum banned fun from our house." His mouth squeaked again. "These things are awesome."
Peter leaned towards him. "Can I have one?" Sirius passed him an Ice Mouse. "It seems kind of weird to eat something that looks like it’s alive, you know?”
Peter’s teeth had just finished squeaking when Dumbledore stood as to make a speech. Sirius and Remus groaned.
“How long will this take?” Remus muttered angrily.
“I don’t think it’ll be that long.” Sirius whispered. “At least, not according to Andromeda.”
“To our new students, welcome to Hogwarts! And to our old students, welcome back. A have a few words to say, but now is not the time. Enjoy the feast!”
As soon as Dumbledore sat down, a beautiful array of food appeared in front of them. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter eagerly filled their plates.
“Who’s Andromeda?” Remus asked.
“My cousin. She’s the only sane one in the family. She was a Slytherin though, so...” Sirius trailed off darkly.
“Your whole family have been Slytherins, right?” James asked.
“The whole lot of them.” Sirius replied. He gestured to a few Slytherin girls sitting together, whispering amongst themselves. “My being Gryffindor will definitely cause a stir. Look at them already!”
“Are those your cousins?” Peter asked.
“That's Narcissa. Bellatrix and Andromeda already graduated.” Sirius said, stabbing at his chicken. “We don't get on.”
They slowly brought the topic away from family, and once the feast was over, and Dumbledore had made his speech, they followed Margaret Thamlend, a Gryffindor prefect, up to the Gryffindor dormitories.
“Hippogriff.”
Remus watched as the painting Margaret had called “The Fat Lady” swung open to reveal a hole in the wall. Margaret clambered through, and the rest of the Gryffindors followed her into a large room full of big, cozy red armchairs and sofas, sprinkled with tables, lit by a roaring fire. It seemed to Remus like the coziest place in the world. Although he would’ve liked to remain in the common room, he followed everyone up to the boys’ dormitories, where he found his trunk beside one of five four-poster beds. His was between James’s and that of a boy he did not know.
James walked around his bed to stand beside Remus.
“Hi, I’m James.”
The boy turned. “David Gudgeon.” He responded, before turning back to his luggage.
That night, Remus went to sleep happy, because he had finally made it to Hogwarts, and met three people who thought he was worth knowing. Nothing in the world, Remus thought, felt quite like having friends.