'Are you sure? You're sure you want to go?'

'Mom. I HAVE to. I have to be with the other kids. I can't hide just because I'm different. I need to learn to be around them eventually. You know that.'

'I know baby. I'm just worried. What if they treat you different? And I'm not gonna be used to you not being here.'

'Mom….' Tamara trailed off. Letting go of her trunk, she quickly embraced her mother. Pulling away, she smiled. 'I'll miss you.'

Regaining her composure, suddenly looked stern. 'Now listen here. Don't go causing too much trouble, okay? If something happens, you tell your head of house, or Dumbledore, okay? Behave.' Quietly she whispered, "Be safe. I love you."

Smiling, Tamara grabbed her trunk once more, and walked towards the floo. Grabbing a handful of the powder, she threw it down, and said, as clearly as she could, "King's Cross Station!"

The world blurred around her, and she felt both dizzy and nauseous. 'But,' she thought, 'still better than apparating.' Quickly the world made sense again, and she saw what must have been hundreds of families saying goodbye to loved ones. Almost instantly, she felt small. How in Merlin's could she possibly survive?

Breathing deeply, she did her best to maneuver around everyone. Every once in a while she would bump into someone, and would mutter a quick apology, hoping against hope they didn't really hear her voice. If she were to create a scene before she even got on the train….

At last she reached the train, and couldn't help but marvel at it. She viewed it with excitement and trepidation. She had never been to Hogwarts at all, her mother preferring to homeschool her. Climbing onto the train she did her best to find an empty compartment. After what felt like an eternity, she had yet to find one. She was sure the people were able to recognize that she was an outsider, that no one had ever seen her before. She opened another door, internally crossing her fingers, and found (At Last!) an empty compartment. Smiling to herself, she put her trunk away, and made herself comfy on the seat. She looked out the window, wondering the time. She had no watch, but she was sure it would only make time go slower. Gradually, she saw less and less students outside the train, and her face paled. What if some of them came inside her compartment? What would she do then? What if they made fun of her? Her train of thought was interrupted by the door opening.

She could feel her heart pounding, and hoped to Merlin she didn't look nearly as nervous as she truly felt. A boy with messy black hair (Tamara thought it looked neater than a ravens nest) with square glasses and what looked to be brown eyes. He was handsome, and looked to be something of a leader by his arrogant expression. The boy behind him wore a similar expression, with neat, shoulder length black hair and silver eyes. There were two more boys, though Tamara couldn't see them as well. She could tell that they both had light hair, though one's was londer than the others, and he was quite taller as well. The other seemed to be quite pudgy in comparison.

She quickly focused her onto the messy-haired boy's mouth as she noticed he was talking. But he spoke so quickly, she could only catch a few words: "Excuse me" "kicked" "flower" "sit" and either "prank" or "wank"; she couldn't which word he truly said. The long-haired boy seemed to have noticed her gaze, and stared at her quizzically. The others remained oblivious, and were looking at her expectantly.

Hesitating, she made a fist and rubbed it in circles on her chest. Watching their collective confusion, she would have laughed had circumstances been different. Continuing, she pointed at herself, brushed her thumb underneath her chin, pinched her thumbs and pointer finger together on both hands, before pointing at herself again. She could have sworn she saw realization dawn on the tall boy's face. 'Sorry,' she signed. 'I don't understand.'