Heheh...Yep. Another version of chapter 1. And 2 on the way!
If you've already read this, re-read the whole ting again, because along with a major change at the end I've also made a few more subtle changes as well. Enjoy.
Platform 9 and ¾. It wasn't quite as large as he had imagined, but Remus suspected that in his excitement he could have imagined just about anything. Still, he couldn't believe he was actually going to Hogwarts. Remus had been sure that for him, anything close to a normal life was out of the question. But here he was, headed off to school like any 11-year-old should. The small, brown-haired boy stood next to his trunk with his amber eyes fixed on the crimson monster of a train that was the Hogwarts Express.
Beside him, Remus’ mother must have noticed the anxiety on his face, because she began offering a continuous stream of reassurance. "Now don't you worry about a thing... Dumbledore has got it all settled... We'll pull you out the second we need to... But, I'm sure we won't have too."
Remus wondered who she was really reassuring. "Mum," he interrupted. "I know, but the train'll be leaving soon."
He turned out to be correct. As if by fate, the final warning whistle sounded after the words had barely passed his lips.
Mrs. Lupin accepted this in inner-defeat. “Oh, all right.” She gave him a final hug goodbye before turning and vanishing between the walls of platforms 9 and 10.
As Remus started towards the train, he fought a sudden urge to run back to his mother and have her take him home, back to his room where he could hide in the corner and read books all day long pretending he was them instead of himself… But he shook his head. “I can’t live in fiction forever.”
He took another step forward, but was almost knocked off his feet when a boy with shoulder-length jet black hair ran into him, and spilled the contents of his trunk all over the floor of the station. The boy had not even looked back. He had run straight into him and onto the train. Remus was utterly astounded that he hadn’t at least look at him, let alone stop and apologize. He looked at his things a moment longer, spell books now cracked and broken at the spine, paperbacks with dog-eared pages, hand-me-down black robes. Then silently, he bent down and carefully put everything back where it was before.
The unfamiliar emotion of rage filled his chest, though he did his best to quash it. Someone like him didn’t have the luxury of reacting angrily. He wandered down the narrow hallway of the train looking for an empty compartment, but found none. He silently cursed getting on the train so late, wondering if he would ever find a place to sit.
He was just about ready to give up, when there was a loud BOOM. Remus turned in time to see two boys running out of a nearby compartment (which was now spewing emerald green smoke into the corridor), laughing hysterically. One he recognized instantly as the boy he encountered at the station. The other boy he did not know. He had short, messy, dark-brown hair, and glasses that seemed at least 3 sizes to big.
Forgetting about the fact that he had no idea who these mischief makers were, Remus faced to them and half yelled, “What on earth did you DO?”
Still laughing, the boy with glasses turned to him. “Dung bomb! Sirius here thought they needed one after what they said about his-”
“Shut up, James!” said Sirius. “They wouldn’t even have known if it weren’t for your big mouth!” He sounded angry, but he was still smiling.
The smoke was quickly spreading to the other compartments, and their occupants could be heard yelling their complaints into the hall.
“What the hell?”
“Oh, it smells!”
“Someone call a teacher!”
Suddenly, a woman’s voice was heard over those of the boys and girls, “What’s going on out there?”
Remus watched as the boys smiles vanished, replaced by looks of terror before-
“Quick!” Sirius grabbed Remus by the arm. “We can’t be spotted here!” Remus suddenly found himself being dragged down the corridor by the two boys.
“In here!” James pulled open a compartment door and ushered Sirius and Remus inside. All there though, was a small, blond boy who jumped at the sight of the three boys toppling, complete with luggage, into the small room.
“Wh-who are you?” he stammered.
“Just cover for us, okay?” Sirius said quickly.
After several seconds a smart tapping came at the door. It slid open to reveal a strict-looking woman wearing dark green robes, her salt and pepper hair tied back in a tight bun. She examined the scene, and upon seeing three boys very much out of breath, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “I don’t suppose any of you boys happen to know what happened in the hallway a few moments ago?”
“Did something happen?” Sirius looked to James, eyes widening unconvincingly.
“I haven’t heard anything.” Replied James, sounding curious.
The woman remained skeptical. “Perhaps I should take you back to my compartment for the remainder of the ride.” They looked horrified at the thought.
“Ma’am,” said the blond boy, making them all jump. “Ma’am, they were in this compartment with me the whole time.” The woman looked over at him and he seemed to quiver visibly, but all the same he kept her gaze.
Sirius looked surprised only for a moment, “That’s right, we’ve been in here, right guys?”
“That’s right!” James answered.
After a painful nudge in the ribs, Remus answered with “Right…” He tried to smile, but it looked more like a grimace after an particularly painful throb from his chest.
“Very well,” she snapped and shut the door. After her footsteps had died down the corridor, James and Sirius burst out laughing again, clapping the blond boy on the back.
“Thanks, mate!” James said gratefully.
“Yeah, you really saved our hides,” said Sirius, beaming at the small boy.
Remus sat in a nearby seat, stunned. What was he doing?? He’d just lied to a teacher for two troublemakers he’d only just met! Not to mention they literally dragged him down half the length of the train before shoving him unceremoniously into someone else’s compartment! He’d never experience boys like this before. In fact, he’d never really experienced children his own age. He’d been home schooled up until now and had only really experienced the company of his parents and the fictional characters from his books. Watching these boys laughing over their childish antics made him wonder if he had missed something.
“I’m Sirius.”
Remus looked up, to see the black haired boy, hand outstretched. “Sirius Black.” He took Sirius’ outstretched hand, though somewhat half-heartidly; he was still in shock. Sirius then pointed to his companion. “James Potter.” James waved in greeting, before turning to their savior.
“Who’re you?”
The blonde boy looked utterly terrified at suddenly being addressed by these two. “P-P-Peter Pettigrew.” He stammered shyly.
Satisfied, they all turned to look at Remus, who it seemed was intently examining his sneakers. Remus could feel them all staring at him, and when he could stand it no longer, said shyly, “Er…Remus Lupin.”
Before they could say anything else to him, Remus had pulled out a book, opened it to the crease, and hid behind it. If he could stay like this for the rest of the train ride, it would be all right…
But instead, the rest of the trip was filled with the four of them talking merrily. It hadn’t been long before Remus’ curiosity had gotten the better of him, yet again, and he had forsaken the safety of the pages to venture out into this new world. He soon found himself slipping into an almost comfortable familiarity with them.
James and Sirius had apparently been friends for ages already having lived in the same area. Today’s little stunt had been pretty mild compared to some of the stuff they’d all ready done. Peter, who lived no where near any of them, sat opposite Sirius amazed by the amazing tales they wove. He gasped out loud at one they told involving a broom, a set of exploding snap cards, and an unwitting teacher. “That was you? I read about that in the Daily Prophet!” James and Sirius took this as praise and practically glowed.
“What about you, Remus?” Sirius turned to him. “What were your school experiences?”
“Oh, I’ve never been.” Remus replied. The boys all looked at him with shocked faces. “I was home schooled.”
“Why?” Peter asked.
Remus faltered. He could hardly tell the truth. These seemed to be the first people to ever really like him outside home... Imagine their faces if he told them his mother preferred him to stay home, by her side, where she could protect him. No, protect others from him. He imagined how their faces would twist in horror as they discovered the truth…
“Oh, my Mum,” he said weakly. “She just thought she could do a better job,” he forced a laugh and felt a little sick inside. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice. They merely nodded and began changing the subject. Before long, there was a knock again on their door, which slid open this time to reveal an older boy with curly sandy-blond hair. He puffed out his chest so as to further reveal the already visible red and gold Prefects Badge.
“We’re nearing Hogwarts,” He said importantly. “Everyone needs to get their robes on.”
“Of course,” they replied. The boy nodded, closing the door and heading down to the next compartment.
The four preceded to open their trunks and gather their uniforms. Pulling the robes over his head, Remus fastened a few buttons and stowed his wand in the right pocket. Looking up, he saw something he could tell didn’t happen often: Sirius annoyed.
“I don’t know why you insist on doing this, James.” He snapped. “You’re only going to get shot down.”
“I didn’t ask for loving advice Sirius. I only asked if you would save me a seat on the boats.” his friend retorted.
“Fine. Just be quick about it.”
James ran a hand through his hair before vanishing down the corridor of he train.
“Where is he-” began Peter, but was silenced by a murderous glance from Sirius.
‘If looks could kill…’ thought Remus,
“It doesn’t matter.” Sirius said quickly. “Come on, get your things together. The train’s finally stopping.”
They left their re-packed trunks in the compartment and headed down the corridor.
“Only the Sorting left, I think.” Said Sirius, apparently eager to start a new conversation. Remus’ heart sank into his shoes. He’d forgotten there was still another test coming. He started to panic, thoughts and emotions passing fast, heart beating faster. What if he wasn’t sorted? What if he wasn’t even allowed to attend? What if Dumbledore –a man he had only heard of- came up to him in front of the whole school and told him to get out before he put the other students in peril? The horrified faces of his new friends floated into his mind again, and he found himself so heavy he could hardly move.
“oh, come on!” Sirius began pushing him off the train. “It’s only a stupid hat, no big deal!” Though Sirius had misinterpreted his fears, Remus felt a little better knowing someone was helping him along, even if it was only the occasional shove on the back.
They exited the train, jumping on to a small, dark platform. Remus shivered in the cold night air.
“Look!” Peter hissed quietly. They looked to the direction he was pointing to see a lap bobbing up and down, a golden dot on a black canvas.
“First years!” came a woman’s voice. “First years this way please!”
“Let’s go.” Said Sirius, and they started towards the light.
Slipping and stumbling, the first years followed the woman down a steep, narrow path. It was pitch black, aside from the trees illuminated in a sphere of golden light from the lantern. No one spoke much, until-
You’ll get your first sight of the castle in a minute.” The woman shot over her shoulder, before taking a sharp turn around a bend.
Suddenly, there was a loud, “Ooooh!”
On the other side of an enormous black large, a castle sat perched on a tall mountainside. The moon was hidden behind a cloud, causing the windows to shine and sparkle in the dark light, and the many towers and turrets to draw a faint outline along the sky.
This time it was Remus’ turn to push a wide-eyed Sirius along.
“No more than four to a boat please!” the woman called, pointing to a fleet of tiny boats along the shore. As Remus and Peter climbed into one, Sirius remained behind.
“James!” He called. “JAMES!”
‘I’m coming, I’m coming!” James emerged from the crowd, a heavy frown on his face.
Sirius only raised an eyebrow. “What’d she say to you?”
“She called me incorrigible!” James said loudly. “I don’t even know what that means!”
Sirius sighed. “No one does, mate, no one does.” He and James climbed into the boat.
“Unruly.” Said Remus from his corner of the boat.
“Hmm?”
“Incorrigible means unruly. Disobedient.”
They stared at him like he was mad. It was going to be a long year...
Preview of Chapter 2
Sirius’ heart skipped a beat. ‘Oh, man...’
He began walking towards the tattered old hat, and almost involuntarily looked back at James. James was smiling, giving a silent thumbs up to him. Reassured, Sirius sat on the stool and placed the hat on his head. It fell over his eyes, which he was very thankful for. The last thing he wanted was to watch everyone staring at him.
‘Here we go.’ He thought.
“That’s the spirit!” Said a voice in his head, making Sirius jump.
“I don’t bite.” Said the hat casually, as though people were accustomed to having conversations with 1,000-year-old wizard hats. “Now let’s see, another Black, hmm? Not surprising… But where to put you…?” The hat sounded puzzled.
This was his chance. ‘Not Slytherin,’ He pleaded with the hat. ‘Not Slytherin, not Slytherin, not Slytherin…’
“Not Slytherin, eh? But it’s in your blood, boy. Slytherin is where you are meant to be!”
‘I don’t care; put me anywhere, just not Slytherin!”
“Very well,” said the hat slowly. “If you’re sure that’s what you want. Then you’re a…
If you've already read this, re-read the whole ting again, because along with a major change at the end I've also made a few more subtle changes as well. Enjoy.
I Solemnly Swear that I am up to No Good.
Chapter 1: Many Meetings
Chapter 1: Many Meetings
Platform 9 and ¾. It wasn't quite as large as he had imagined, but Remus suspected that in his excitement he could have imagined just about anything. Still, he couldn't believe he was actually going to Hogwarts. Remus had been sure that for him, anything close to a normal life was out of the question. But here he was, headed off to school like any 11-year-old should. The small, brown-haired boy stood next to his trunk with his amber eyes fixed on the crimson monster of a train that was the Hogwarts Express.
Beside him, Remus’ mother must have noticed the anxiety on his face, because she began offering a continuous stream of reassurance. "Now don't you worry about a thing... Dumbledore has got it all settled... We'll pull you out the second we need to... But, I'm sure we won't have too."
Remus wondered who she was really reassuring. "Mum," he interrupted. "I know, but the train'll be leaving soon."
He turned out to be correct. As if by fate, the final warning whistle sounded after the words had barely passed his lips.
Mrs. Lupin accepted this in inner-defeat. “Oh, all right.” She gave him a final hug goodbye before turning and vanishing between the walls of platforms 9 and 10.
As Remus started towards the train, he fought a sudden urge to run back to his mother and have her take him home, back to his room where he could hide in the corner and read books all day long pretending he was them instead of himself… But he shook his head. “I can’t live in fiction forever.”
He took another step forward, but was almost knocked off his feet when a boy with shoulder-length jet black hair ran into him, and spilled the contents of his trunk all over the floor of the station. The boy had not even looked back. He had run straight into him and onto the train. Remus was utterly astounded that he hadn’t at least look at him, let alone stop and apologize. He looked at his things a moment longer, spell books now cracked and broken at the spine, paperbacks with dog-eared pages, hand-me-down black robes. Then silently, he bent down and carefully put everything back where it was before.
The unfamiliar emotion of rage filled his chest, though he did his best to quash it. Someone like him didn’t have the luxury of reacting angrily. He wandered down the narrow hallway of the train looking for an empty compartment, but found none. He silently cursed getting on the train so late, wondering if he would ever find a place to sit.
He was just about ready to give up, when there was a loud BOOM. Remus turned in time to see two boys running out of a nearby compartment (which was now spewing emerald green smoke into the corridor), laughing hysterically. One he recognized instantly as the boy he encountered at the station. The other boy he did not know. He had short, messy, dark-brown hair, and glasses that seemed at least 3 sizes to big.
Forgetting about the fact that he had no idea who these mischief makers were, Remus faced to them and half yelled, “What on earth did you DO?”
Still laughing, the boy with glasses turned to him. “Dung bomb! Sirius here thought they needed one after what they said about his-”
“Shut up, James!” said Sirius. “They wouldn’t even have known if it weren’t for your big mouth!” He sounded angry, but he was still smiling.
The smoke was quickly spreading to the other compartments, and their occupants could be heard yelling their complaints into the hall.
“What the hell?”
“Oh, it smells!”
“Someone call a teacher!”
Suddenly, a woman’s voice was heard over those of the boys and girls, “What’s going on out there?”
Remus watched as the boys smiles vanished, replaced by looks of terror before-
“Quick!” Sirius grabbed Remus by the arm. “We can’t be spotted here!” Remus suddenly found himself being dragged down the corridor by the two boys.
“In here!” James pulled open a compartment door and ushered Sirius and Remus inside. All there though, was a small, blond boy who jumped at the sight of the three boys toppling, complete with luggage, into the small room.
“Wh-who are you?” he stammered.
“Just cover for us, okay?” Sirius said quickly.
After several seconds a smart tapping came at the door. It slid open to reveal a strict-looking woman wearing dark green robes, her salt and pepper hair tied back in a tight bun. She examined the scene, and upon seeing three boys very much out of breath, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “I don’t suppose any of you boys happen to know what happened in the hallway a few moments ago?”
“Did something happen?” Sirius looked to James, eyes widening unconvincingly.
“I haven’t heard anything.” Replied James, sounding curious.
The woman remained skeptical. “Perhaps I should take you back to my compartment for the remainder of the ride.” They looked horrified at the thought.
“Ma’am,” said the blond boy, making them all jump. “Ma’am, they were in this compartment with me the whole time.” The woman looked over at him and he seemed to quiver visibly, but all the same he kept her gaze.
Sirius looked surprised only for a moment, “That’s right, we’ve been in here, right guys?”
“That’s right!” James answered.
After a painful nudge in the ribs, Remus answered with “Right…” He tried to smile, but it looked more like a grimace after an particularly painful throb from his chest.
“Very well,” she snapped and shut the door. After her footsteps had died down the corridor, James and Sirius burst out laughing again, clapping the blond boy on the back.
“Thanks, mate!” James said gratefully.
“Yeah, you really saved our hides,” said Sirius, beaming at the small boy.
Remus sat in a nearby seat, stunned. What was he doing?? He’d just lied to a teacher for two troublemakers he’d only just met! Not to mention they literally dragged him down half the length of the train before shoving him unceremoniously into someone else’s compartment! He’d never experience boys like this before. In fact, he’d never really experienced children his own age. He’d been home schooled up until now and had only really experienced the company of his parents and the fictional characters from his books. Watching these boys laughing over their childish antics made him wonder if he had missed something.
“I’m Sirius.”
Remus looked up, to see the black haired boy, hand outstretched. “Sirius Black.” He took Sirius’ outstretched hand, though somewhat half-heartidly; he was still in shock. Sirius then pointed to his companion. “James Potter.” James waved in greeting, before turning to their savior.
“Who’re you?”
The blonde boy looked utterly terrified at suddenly being addressed by these two. “P-P-Peter Pettigrew.” He stammered shyly.
Satisfied, they all turned to look at Remus, who it seemed was intently examining his sneakers. Remus could feel them all staring at him, and when he could stand it no longer, said shyly, “Er…Remus Lupin.”
Before they could say anything else to him, Remus had pulled out a book, opened it to the crease, and hid behind it. If he could stay like this for the rest of the train ride, it would be all right…
But instead, the rest of the trip was filled with the four of them talking merrily. It hadn’t been long before Remus’ curiosity had gotten the better of him, yet again, and he had forsaken the safety of the pages to venture out into this new world. He soon found himself slipping into an almost comfortable familiarity with them.
James and Sirius had apparently been friends for ages already having lived in the same area. Today’s little stunt had been pretty mild compared to some of the stuff they’d all ready done. Peter, who lived no where near any of them, sat opposite Sirius amazed by the amazing tales they wove. He gasped out loud at one they told involving a broom, a set of exploding snap cards, and an unwitting teacher. “That was you? I read about that in the Daily Prophet!” James and Sirius took this as praise and practically glowed.
“What about you, Remus?” Sirius turned to him. “What were your school experiences?”
“Oh, I’ve never been.” Remus replied. The boys all looked at him with shocked faces. “I was home schooled.”
“Why?” Peter asked.
Remus faltered. He could hardly tell the truth. These seemed to be the first people to ever really like him outside home... Imagine their faces if he told them his mother preferred him to stay home, by her side, where she could protect him. No, protect others from him. He imagined how their faces would twist in horror as they discovered the truth…
“Oh, my Mum,” he said weakly. “She just thought she could do a better job,” he forced a laugh and felt a little sick inside. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice. They merely nodded and began changing the subject. Before long, there was a knock again on their door, which slid open this time to reveal an older boy with curly sandy-blond hair. He puffed out his chest so as to further reveal the already visible red and gold Prefects Badge.
“We’re nearing Hogwarts,” He said importantly. “Everyone needs to get their robes on.”
“Of course,” they replied. The boy nodded, closing the door and heading down to the next compartment.
The four preceded to open their trunks and gather their uniforms. Pulling the robes over his head, Remus fastened a few buttons and stowed his wand in the right pocket. Looking up, he saw something he could tell didn’t happen often: Sirius annoyed.
“I don’t know why you insist on doing this, James.” He snapped. “You’re only going to get shot down.”
“I didn’t ask for loving advice Sirius. I only asked if you would save me a seat on the boats.” his friend retorted.
“Fine. Just be quick about it.”
James ran a hand through his hair before vanishing down the corridor of he train.
“Where is he-” began Peter, but was silenced by a murderous glance from Sirius.
‘If looks could kill…’ thought Remus,
“It doesn’t matter.” Sirius said quickly. “Come on, get your things together. The train’s finally stopping.”
They left their re-packed trunks in the compartment and headed down the corridor.
“Only the Sorting left, I think.” Said Sirius, apparently eager to start a new conversation. Remus’ heart sank into his shoes. He’d forgotten there was still another test coming. He started to panic, thoughts and emotions passing fast, heart beating faster. What if he wasn’t sorted? What if he wasn’t even allowed to attend? What if Dumbledore –a man he had only heard of- came up to him in front of the whole school and told him to get out before he put the other students in peril? The horrified faces of his new friends floated into his mind again, and he found himself so heavy he could hardly move.
“oh, come on!” Sirius began pushing him off the train. “It’s only a stupid hat, no big deal!” Though Sirius had misinterpreted his fears, Remus felt a little better knowing someone was helping him along, even if it was only the occasional shove on the back.
They exited the train, jumping on to a small, dark platform. Remus shivered in the cold night air.
“Look!” Peter hissed quietly. They looked to the direction he was pointing to see a lap bobbing up and down, a golden dot on a black canvas.
“First years!” came a woman’s voice. “First years this way please!”
“Let’s go.” Said Sirius, and they started towards the light.
Slipping and stumbling, the first years followed the woman down a steep, narrow path. It was pitch black, aside from the trees illuminated in a sphere of golden light from the lantern. No one spoke much, until-
You’ll get your first sight of the castle in a minute.” The woman shot over her shoulder, before taking a sharp turn around a bend.
Suddenly, there was a loud, “Ooooh!”
On the other side of an enormous black large, a castle sat perched on a tall mountainside. The moon was hidden behind a cloud, causing the windows to shine and sparkle in the dark light, and the many towers and turrets to draw a faint outline along the sky.
This time it was Remus’ turn to push a wide-eyed Sirius along.
“No more than four to a boat please!” the woman called, pointing to a fleet of tiny boats along the shore. As Remus and Peter climbed into one, Sirius remained behind.
“James!” He called. “JAMES!”
‘I’m coming, I’m coming!” James emerged from the crowd, a heavy frown on his face.
Sirius only raised an eyebrow. “What’d she say to you?”
“She called me incorrigible!” James said loudly. “I don’t even know what that means!”
Sirius sighed. “No one does, mate, no one does.” He and James climbed into the boat.
“Unruly.” Said Remus from his corner of the boat.
“Hmm?”
“Incorrigible means unruly. Disobedient.”
They stared at him like he was mad. It was going to be a long year...
Preview of Chapter 2
Sirius’ heart skipped a beat. ‘Oh, man...’
He began walking towards the tattered old hat, and almost involuntarily looked back at James. James was smiling, giving a silent thumbs up to him. Reassured, Sirius sat on the stool and placed the hat on his head. It fell over his eyes, which he was very thankful for. The last thing he wanted was to watch everyone staring at him.
‘Here we go.’ He thought.
“That’s the spirit!” Said a voice in his head, making Sirius jump.
“I don’t bite.” Said the hat casually, as though people were accustomed to having conversations with 1,000-year-old wizard hats. “Now let’s see, another Black, hmm? Not surprising… But where to put you…?” The hat sounded puzzled.
This was his chance. ‘Not Slytherin,’ He pleaded with the hat. ‘Not Slytherin, not Slytherin, not Slytherin…’
“Not Slytherin, eh? But it’s in your blood, boy. Slytherin is where you are meant to be!”
‘I don’t care; put me anywhere, just not Slytherin!”
“Very well,” said the hat slowly. “If you’re sure that’s what you want. Then you’re a…
