I looked at the clock. 8:45. Five minutes until I got out of here. I ran around my room, gathering my stuff. I threw everything in my trunk and it closed with a click. I thought it was better this way. My parents didn't care much for me, and I was always under the influence of "dearest Mycroft." In theory, this year I would get to choose my classes. Oh, I hoped so. Ancient Runes was incredibly interesting. And it would be useful for taking notes without Muggles understanding. Almost like a secret code.

Mycroft called out a five-minute warning and I shot down the stairs, my trunk on my back. He was waiting for me, wand in hand. My parents were there, but I ignored them. They returned the example and went straight to Mycroft, telling him not to be seen Apparating, how proud they were he was Head Boy, and "oh yeah take care of Sherlock too". I scowled at them and grabbed Mycroft's hand, a sadly necessary action for what was about to happen.

"Let's go," I snapped. He gave me an annoyed look but Apparated us into a stall in King's Cross Station. He stepped out first and I waited a moment to follow. The station wasn't full yet, so we didn't use as much caution as we went through the brick to get to Platform 9 ¾.

The train wasn't quite there, so instead, I put my bags down and made myself a seat. I pulled out my muggle phone, one I'd gotten with my own money- it was simply too useful to not use- and pulled up Worm on my phone. It was a rather interesting read so far, over a million words long according to the internet.

I had only gotten a few chapters further when the train finally arrived. Mycroft went off to the prefect's cabin, accompanied by a few of the kids who wanted to be on time as best they could- and in one person's case, possibly to hit on my brother. Irene Adler was the one prefect who didn't get there, which I thought wasn't odd. She was always fashionably late. I wasn't sure how she got to be a prefect. Needless to say, I wasn't a big fan of the prefects. They thought Mycroft was the next Minister, and always tried their best to sleaze up to him through gifts. In all honesty, they were probably right. He could get any place in the government he wanted- muggle or wizarding.

I kept reading on my phone, noting interesting plot points and what may have been references. Although I'd had my phone a few years, I didn't have much time to get immersed in muggle culture. I was thinking of taking Muggle Studies alongside Ancient Runes if I could get a Time-Turner rented from the Ministry. But they were all out this year, so I may just have to wait until next year to figure it all out.

I had been sitting for an hour and 20 minutes when a boy about my age walked in, followed by a girl-his sister if genetics had anything on them. I'm sure I'd seen them before, but in all honesty, I didn't care. They sat down and cast annoyed glares at each other. The boy, probably a Quidditch player, looked up at me it, but I ignored him. He was my age. John, possibly. Likely a Gryffindor, unless he was wearing the wrong robes. A small girl walked in and immediately blushed before looking away. That was Molly, wasn't it? She was a girl in the Ravenclaw dorm. She seemed to like me a lot, but I didn't care for her. It had been a summer though, so it was likely that I didn't evoke emotion other than shame for the past in her. Then one of the Slytherin prefects walked in. Irene Adler. The girl who walked in with the Quidditch player looked up and blushed, causing Irene to smirk. A blonde and a Hufflepuff prefect followed. We were silent for a while before Molly spoke up. "So… it's a long ride. Why don't we get to know each other?"

A silent nod passed around the cabin before the blonde boy said, "I'll start. My name is John Watson. I am a Gryffindor chas-"

I interrupted. "Chaser on the team but not the best broom as your Muggle family cannot afford it. Your father is in the Muggle war that is going on, I believe in Iraq, and he recently moved to the war zone, where you spent the summer. You were hurt, and have a limp which doesn't affect you often, due to it being psychosomatic. The girl next to you is your Hufflepuff sister, who is dating Irene Adler. Or at least secretly. Sorry."

Everyone stared at me before Irene gave me an extra glare. She started to tell me off, and I ignored her. She was my brother's friend, alike to him in many ways. And I had enough of him on my own. I just went back to my phone until she was done, and she apologized to everyone for my behavior. Usually, she wouldn't care, but her girlfriend was there. She did like to make good impressions. Slowly, the others picked up their introductions. After John, who I was right about, Harriet, his sister, went. I was right about her too. Then the blonde, Mary, from Gryffindor, our year- I thought I'd recognized her- and Gary-no, George-no, Geo- let's just go with Lestrade, who was Hufflepuff, and Irene, the Slytherin. She introduced me as "Sherlock the Ravenclaw asshole." I glared at her for that but didn't comment. She wasn't entirely wrong. During the ride, Irene and Harry flirted. Molly was right in between them, Lestrade having moved to continue a conversation with Mary and John. I checked my watch. Had it only been 15 minutes? Great! Just great.

About 3 hours later, I finished Worm. I started to get bored, so I deduced what I didn't know about those in the cabin with me. There wasn't much, as all of them were as easy to read as a book. That leaves me with… Socializing. Everyone but John was asleep, and he was trying to make eye contact. I ignored him until he finally asked, "So how did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Know everything about me."

"It was obvious. You have the build of a chaser and look like one of them. I have seen you before, even if you haven't seen me. Also, you have a broom with you, in a small case with the insignia of one of the cheaper brands. Your trunk is second hand, and your sister looks enough like you to know that easily. So I know that your family is poor-ish. You still have a slight look of amazement on your face when you see magic, like the chocolate frogs, and so you are still not used to magic. Half-bloods are not that amazed, as most are used to it by now, since their parents are allowed to use magic at home, so you're a muggle-born. You have a tan and a limp, and your family is too poor for a vacation, so you must have moved. There is a small jerk when you move your shoulder, like when people get shot and have a problem with their limbs, so there's that. Your limp isn't obvious when you're excited, and so it's psychosomatic. Your sister is like you, with the same build, and Irene sometimes brags about her Quidditch-player Hufflepuff girlfriend to my brother, and Harry blushed when Irene came in, so there. It was either that or a crush, but it was more likely from the build and the fact I'd seen her on the field it was said girlfriend."

"Wow. I… I've never thought about all that."

"People never do."

"That was amazing!"

"That's not what people usually say."

"What do they say?"

"Piss off."

As per his usual timing, Mycroft popped his head in at the worst time, right when John's contagious laugh was getting to me. "I see you've found yourself a… friend." I rolled my eyes. He had friends! If you count Irine and Lestrade. And the others who threw themselves onto him. I glared at him.

"Good thing he's a Gryffindor. You'll be needing friends there. After all, you did sign up for the exchange program, right? Oh, wait. That was what I did!" He walked away snickering as I grit my teeth.

"Prick."

"So was that…?"

"Not your problem.

John looked suspicious, but let the subject drop.

"How did you learn how to do the deduction-thing?"

"Time and dedication. And boredom. This summer, my parents were so excited about their Head Boy son I got away with whatever I wanted, which was mostly spending all my time at the Muggle library picking up tips on reading people. Wizards are terrible at it."

John hummed in response, obviously getting tired. Likely of me. I stopped talking and waited until his breathing evened out before stealthily getting out of the cabin to go find Mycroft.

"Sherlock! There you are," he exclaimed, feigning excitement.

"Mycroft," I said, my voice dripping with annoyance.

"Won't you introduce me to your new friend?"

"Why did you sign me up for the exchange program? And with Gryffindor, too! You know they don't study. It's so loud! I've been in there a few times, and I swear, once Quidditch season starts, I'll need earplugs."

"It's every other week, to give you a break. And we've decided something else. Due to the exchange program, Hufflepuff and Slytherin will be sharing classes. Which means…"

I groaned. Why was I always stuck with Gryffindor?

"You shouldn't be complaining. You've made a 'friend' faster than I've ever seen with the Gryffindor, and won't you like staying with him?"

"Mycroft! You know better than that. I thought you were smarter than to assume anyone I talk to is my friend."

He looked me dead in the eye with a knowing look in his eye. "Trust me, he's not just anyone to you. See you in the Great Hall!"

He left before I could get another word in, so I gave up and went back into the cabin. I pondered my fate in a very dramatic way, before giving up and just watching the scenery.

We finally arrived at Hogwarts another hour later. I got into the carriage and, surprisingly, was followed by John. Two other kids, a 2nd year Ravenclaw and a 4th year Gryffindor, followed us. John was still desperately trying to make small talk with me, clearly wanting a companion for the ride. "Isn't it cool how how they're invisibly pulled?"

"No. They are pulled by thesterals. You can see them if you've seen death." I wasn't in the mood for a better explanation. The boys across from me exchanged a look. I guess they'd seen death at a young age and didn't realize the carriages were pulled in that way. It pained them to learn this. They were siblings, only a few years apart. Single parent had raised them, and they had to move all over this summer. I wasn't sure why. They looked stressed from travel and relieved to be somewhere for longer than a month if I could read them right.

We finally arrived at the castle a few minutes later. The younger brother followed me from the carriage to the Ravenclaw table, and I sat down near Molly. I didn't bother watching for John and instead focused on deducing "Adler, Nick," who was sorted into Slytherin with his sister. There wasn't much to deduce about "Bauer, MJ," the first Hufflepuff, or "Bodette, Lydia," the first Gryffindor, but there were some interesting ones. "Doctor, David," was the first Ravenclaw, followed by 3 other "Doctor"s, all Ravenclaw. During all the commotion, I ended up surrounded. A dark-haired boy in my room, Cas, came over to say hi to the second year- Sam Winchester, as I learned- and the Doctors, as I was calling them, all sat by me in the empty space. Another boy in my room, Felipe, came over to flirt with Cat-I mean talk to her- I mean flirt-, as she was sitting with Molly. Another "Ketarkus" became a Slytherin, and I started to get bored. I tuned my ears to the conversation around me. Cat and Felipe had roped several other of the kids in my year into a conversation about color-coding. Cas, the 2nd year, the Doctors, Cecil and Carlos were all talking about Potion's color. "It's green!"

"It's yellow!"

"It's blue!"

Even Horuss, Aranea, Kanaya, Ashley, and Ashmin joined. I gave up, and said, "Potions is green, obviously."

Cat smirked at that before Felipe said, "No! It's yellow! For acid!" Nearly the whole table was in on the conversation when Dumbledore took the podium. For the first time since I sat down, I surveyed the teachers. Flitwick was missing! Odd. And there was a new person. Thin and pale, and… if I didn't know better, I would've called him American! The Great Hall quieted down as soon as Dumbledore tapped his wand. The silence was only broken when Dumbledore said, "There was a great tragedy over the summer. Professor Flitwick passed away. Let us have a moment of silence for him."

Everyone stayed silent, except for some of the Hufflepuffs, who were crying. I nearly rolled my eyes at the sudden change in everyone but managed to put up with it until it passed. "The replacement is the new Ministry-approved teacher, Mr. Pardo." That explained the American at the table. I should've deduced that… I was too busy with the people around me to be paying attention.

"Since he will not be replacing the head of Ravenclaw, Chuck Allah will be in the position temporarily." Chuck, a seventh year, looked surprised. There were congratulations, but they were over quickly. "I feel no need to go over the rules, so a few final words: ereyesterday, susurrus, and troglodyte. Now, you-"

"I would like to say a few words. The Ministry has a speech they wish for me to share with you." The new teacher spoke up. The fact he wanted to speak wasn't as surprising as the fact he spoke over Dumbledore. However, Dumbledore was calm as ever as the man began speaking.

"The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the wizarding community must be passed down the generations lest we lose them forever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching. Every headmaster and headmistress of Hogwarts have brought something new to the weighty task of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. There again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between permanence and change, between tradition and innovation because some changes will be for the better, while others will come, in the fullness of time, to be recognized as errors of judgment. Meanwhile, some old habits will be retained, and rightly so, whereas others, outmoded and outworn, must be abandoned. Let us move forward, then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness and accountability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfecting what needs to be perfected, and pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited."

The entire speech took about a minute and a half. I was listening the whole time. Some of the other Ravenclaws were, but not many. This was going to be interesting. The Ministry was trying to fuck up Hogwarts, was it? Good luck with that. Finally, we started eating the feast, but there was an air of anger in the room. Who did this teacher think he was?

No one talked to me during the feast, but that was unsurprising. Okay, that may have been a lie. Everyone around me was talking, and even asked my opinion a few times. But I was too busy mulling over the new teacher. What was the Ministry trying to do here? Which of the practices did the government not want us to use anymore? And was that good or bad?

When it was finally over, I was swept up with the other kids in different years. One of the prefects passed me a note about the exchange program, but I put it in my pocket for later. I didn't get up to the front to put in the password, but I got in. Everyone had slept on the train, so they were all full of energy. I doubted they would be sleeping until late tonight. The first-years were quizzing some of the older kids about Hogwarts, the second- and third-years were in a chess tournament, and the remaining kids were on the second floor playing some muggle game. Aranea, a sixth-year, was in the center, with the lights out. She had her wand lit and was calling people out if she saw them moving. One of the 4th year girls told me the rules, and I joined in. It was a slow game until one of the sixth-years (my bet is Marco) yelled "fire!" When we figured out that there was not a fire, Aranea got everyone out except for Nicodemus, Bill Nye, Roxy, and myself. The others waited on the grand staircase for the game to end, and it ended quickly enough. Bill won, and the muggle-borns started chanting his name, ending with "Bill Nye the Science Guy!" and laughing their asses off. I had seen a few references to some TV show by that name, although I doubted anyone would've seen it. Huh.

One of the half-bloods asked why they did that, and one said something about TV. We moved onto a game called "Silent Ball," in which the rules were obvious from the title. From there, we played Frogger, which I won. Finally, at around one in the morning, when the first-years had finished interrogating the older kids and gone to bed, when the older kids had joined the rest upstairs, when the second- and third-years had joined and congratulated Kevin Tran, Sam Winchester, Angelica Schuyler, and "Professor" Xavier, for boring everyone with their chess game that took forever, everyone had broken off into groups. The other fourth years were all down by the large fireplace playing "Honey I Do." There was lots of laughter and I joined in. The game was simple, but the other kids laughed as if it was the funniest thing to watch people play ever.

Eventually, the 4th years went to bed as a group, sort of. Cas and Jade had to be levitated upstairs by Cat and Kanaya, while Cecil and Carlos barely made it to a bed before collapsing. Ashley, Ashmin, Roxy, and the other girls seemed half asleep as they walked into their room. Alex Hamilton barely shut his curtains and I deduced them while they slept, pretending to adjust their curtains. There wasn't anything new that was noticeable, so I moved to focus on the others, who were still somehow awake.

"And murder, and death-" Felipe's rambling was cut off by Calvin.

"And Cat."

"Shut up."

"Don't deny it!"

"You lurrrve her," Sollux added.

"Whatever. I'm going to sleep."

Calvin and Sollux nodded, before retreating to their own beds. Felipe drew back his curtains before saying, "Night, Sherlock."

I hummed in response before getting into bed. I doubted I could sleep, but I might as well try.

I was right. I couldn't sleep. A thunderstorm kept me up. The rain made a pattern on the window, and I started to compose with my violin, "Muffliato" cast- a spell I'd found in an old book to quiet my own actions. Very useful for late night library trips. A flash of lightning showed a figure out the window, and I squinted to see who it was. But I couldn't tell, and by the next flash, it was gone.