Part 1: Meetings
(First Year at Hogwarts)
It took them a while to get through the barrier and away from their parents, but finally Lyria and Casilda Strider were on the Hogwarts Express, searching for a compartment.
"May we sit with you?" Lyria asked the solitary red-haired girl in the compartment.
"Oh, sure!" she replied, relief evident in her expression. "I'm Lily Evans."
"I'm Lyria Strider."
"And I'm Cassi. We're twins," Cassi explained. It actually needed explaining, for the two didn't look much alike at all. Lyria was possessed of short brown curls, while Cassi had long straight blonde hair, although both had the same blue-gray eyes. "And if we're like the rest of the family, we'll be in Gryffindor."
"I don't know where I'll be," Lily said softly, sounding wistful.
"You have Muggle parents?" Lyri asked. Lily nodded. "That must be weird, I mean, all of a sudden finding out you're a witch."
"I'm afraid I'll be behind and won't know anything," Lily confessed.
"Don't worry, Cass won't know anything either," Lyria teased, ignoring her twin's indignant yelp. "And it doesn't matter to us that you're Muggle-born. There's some who'll have something to say—"
"—But that kind always do," Cassi finished.
At that precise moment, a boy with longish black hair came flying into the compartment, followed by another black-haired boy.
"Hide us!" The first yelped as a third boy, this one with brown hair and watery blue eyes, ran into the compartment. "We've got that greasy idiot's wand!"
"Hide somewhere else, Sirius Black!" Lyria snapped. "We aren't even at Hogwarts yet and you're starting trouble!"
"Well, Dad says to pick one thing and do it well," he smirked.
"Make sure yours doesn't get you expelled," Lyria suggested.
The other black haired boy, who wore glasses, said, "We might as well have a seat."
"Make yourself at home," Cassi sighed as the three proceeded to do just that.
"You could at least introduce yourselves!" Lyri fixed them all with a look.
"But you know me," Sirius pointed out.
"Sadly, yes," she muttered.
The glasses-wearing boy spoke up. "I'm James Potter, that's Remus Lupin—" he pointed at the brown-haired boy who had taken up watch at the door. Remus waved.
"And I, in case you didn't know," Sirius glared at Lyria, "Am Sirius Black."
"It's nice to meet you all," Lily said, looking a bit bewildered.
Cassi, who had taken watch with Remus, suddenly cried, "He's coming!"
"Umm... see you later!" James said, and the three took off.
"They're always like that," Lyria told Lily.
The girls talked companionably until the train arrived.
Lily sat at the Gryffindor table. All three of the boys had been sorted into Gryffindor with her, along with a fourth friend of theirs named Peter Pettigrew. Next to Lily sat a rather pointy-eared blonde girl named Lyndell Greenleaf. That left only Cassi and Lyria out of Lily's new friends to be sorted.
Before them, however, came a greasy-haired boy named Severus Snape, who was immediately placed in Slytherin.
"Strider, Casilda!"
Cassi—who cringed at her full name—sat on the stool. After a few minutes on her head, the hat cried "Slytherin!" Lyria looked anxious and a bit alarmed, but Cass walked confidently to the Slytherin table.
"Strider, Lyria!"
"Gryffindor!" The hat screamed out the second it contacted Lyri's head. Lyria stood and went to the table, but still looked rather sad.
After the feast—at which Sirius tossed carrots at Lyria in a vain effort to cheer her up—everyone went up to their rooms to get to bed early (except, of course, Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter, who were planning ways to torment the Slytherins).
Lyria flopped out sadly on her bed. How could her twin sister be put in a different house than her? And not just *any* different house, but SLYTHERIN? It wasn't fair, she thought to herself as she fell asleep.
When Lily woke up, it took her a few minutes to remember where she was.
"Lily? You awake?" Lyria's voice asked from somewhere on the other side of the room.
"Yes," Lily replied.
"We need to hurry—unless you want to skip breakfast! We've got Potions with Slytherin first." Lyndell informed Lily. The three of them, it turned out, were the only first year Gryffindor girls.
Lyndell stood waiting impatiently for the other two to pull on their robes. "Come on!" Lyndell sighed.
Lily and Lyria hurried as best they could, and the three ran down the stairs, meeting up with four boys.
"Did you even *try* to brush your hair?!?" Lyria demanded of James.
"Yes!" He snapped amid laughter.
After the breakfast, the group ran to get to the dungeons on time and just barely succeeded. Casilda, sitting with the other Slytherins, refused to look at her sister.
As the lesson dragged on, Sirius flicked something across the room, and it hit Cassi. Furious, she stood and whirled around. The professor, to put it mildly, noticed. "MISS STRIDER!"
Lyri stood up as well. "Which one, sir?"
Lucius Malfoy, Severus Snape, and several other Slytherins snickered.
Lyria fixed them with a withering glare.
Class went downhill from there.
It was about a week later when only three boys rushed down the stairs in the morning. "Where's Remus?" Lyndell demanded.
"His mom's sick," James explained. "He had to leave to visit her."
"Oh, I hope she'll be alright!" Lyndell looked concerned.
"I'm sure she will be," Lyria put in. Lily voiced her agreement.
And everyone accepted that Remus would be back again soon.
Until it happened the next time...
"He's hiding *something!*" Sirius insisted. "His mom just doesn't get sick for one night every month!"
"It's always on a full moon, too," James commented.
"L-leave it t-to James to notice that!" Peter said.
"You don't suppose he's—" Sirius stopped abruptly.
"W-what?" Peter asked.
James and Sirius seemed to be on the same wavelength, as usual, because James grew solemn. "I think we should talk to him."
When Remus slipped in the next evening, Sirius and James were waiting for him. (Peter had gotten detention for "accidentally" blowing up his cauldron during Potions.)
"How's your mom?" James asked.
"Huh? Oh, she's fine," Remus mumbled, not looking at his friends. Besides the three of them, the common room was empty. "What did I miss?"
"Not much. Although, y'know, people are saying the Shrieking Shack down in Hogsmeade was really loud last night," Sirius said casually.
"It always is on the full moon. You keep missing it, Remus," James added quietly.
The brown haired boy looked up at them for a moment before sadly slumping into a chair. "You figured it out."
"So?" The two asked at the same time.
"Don't you guys care? I mean, doesn't it *bother* you? I'm a—well, you know." Remus looked at them uncomfortably.
"We care, but it doesn't bother us," James assured him as Peter entered.
"Couldn't we go with you or something??" Sirius asked.
"I'm *dangerous* to humans. I'd bite you, you idiot, and then you'd be like me and it'd be all my fault. No way." Remus said flatly.
Sirius considered for a moment. "What if we weren't humans?"
Remus snorted. "Despite what Lyria tells you all the time, you *are* humans. And, while we're on the topic of things Lyria tells you, your head and your rear end are *not* the same thing."
"Well... can't we transform or something? We're wizards!" James pointed out.
Peter looked confused. "What's this about transforming and rear ends?"
The others ignored him.
"You mean, becoming Animagi?" Remus asked. "But that can be dangerous, and it's hard. Plus, you'd have to be registered, and then the Ministry would watch you..." Remus trailed off without adding that they watched him as it was.
"Well, you're not going to stop being a werewolf, so we've got time to figure something out," was James' confident reply.
"But there's so many rules..." Remus said.
"They wouldn't be the first rules we've ever broken," Sirius put in breezily. "And besides, I'm trying to break the school record for most detentions."
The year flew by, and the four of them kept Remus' secret, well, a secret. Not even the three girls knew. The spells they'd need to transform were easily found, but would take much longer to learn.
And before long, exams were over and they were on their way home for two months.
"Don't you go causing more trouble over the summer!" Lyria ordered the boys. "And Lily, if your sister gets too awful to deal with, owl me. My parents will let you stay over."
Casilda walked over to her sister. "If you're all set, I want to go home." The twins had moved apart as time in their respective houses turned them into complete opposites, but despite that, they were still twins, and Cassi tried not to be too snippy with Lyri.
Lyria sighed. "Let's go, then."
The friends scattered, planning to meet at Lyria's at least once over the summer. Besides, the holiday was only two months long. They'd be back to Hogwarts soon.
And then, James Potter thought to himself gleefully, who knew how much trouble they could cause...
(First Year at Hogwarts)
It took them a while to get through the barrier and away from their parents, but finally Lyria and Casilda Strider were on the Hogwarts Express, searching for a compartment.
"May we sit with you?" Lyria asked the solitary red-haired girl in the compartment.
"Oh, sure!" she replied, relief evident in her expression. "I'm Lily Evans."
"I'm Lyria Strider."
"And I'm Cassi. We're twins," Cassi explained. It actually needed explaining, for the two didn't look much alike at all. Lyria was possessed of short brown curls, while Cassi had long straight blonde hair, although both had the same blue-gray eyes. "And if we're like the rest of the family, we'll be in Gryffindor."
"I don't know where I'll be," Lily said softly, sounding wistful.
"You have Muggle parents?" Lyri asked. Lily nodded. "That must be weird, I mean, all of a sudden finding out you're a witch."
"I'm afraid I'll be behind and won't know anything," Lily confessed.
"Don't worry, Cass won't know anything either," Lyria teased, ignoring her twin's indignant yelp. "And it doesn't matter to us that you're Muggle-born. There's some who'll have something to say—"
"—But that kind always do," Cassi finished.
At that precise moment, a boy with longish black hair came flying into the compartment, followed by another black-haired boy.
"Hide us!" The first yelped as a third boy, this one with brown hair and watery blue eyes, ran into the compartment. "We've got that greasy idiot's wand!"
"Hide somewhere else, Sirius Black!" Lyria snapped. "We aren't even at Hogwarts yet and you're starting trouble!"
"Well, Dad says to pick one thing and do it well," he smirked.
"Make sure yours doesn't get you expelled," Lyria suggested.
The other black haired boy, who wore glasses, said, "We might as well have a seat."
"Make yourself at home," Cassi sighed as the three proceeded to do just that.
"You could at least introduce yourselves!" Lyri fixed them all with a look.
"But you know me," Sirius pointed out.
"Sadly, yes," she muttered.
The glasses-wearing boy spoke up. "I'm James Potter, that's Remus Lupin—" he pointed at the brown-haired boy who had taken up watch at the door. Remus waved.
"And I, in case you didn't know," Sirius glared at Lyria, "Am Sirius Black."
"It's nice to meet you all," Lily said, looking a bit bewildered.
Cassi, who had taken watch with Remus, suddenly cried, "He's coming!"
"Umm... see you later!" James said, and the three took off.
"They're always like that," Lyria told Lily.
The girls talked companionably until the train arrived.
Lily sat at the Gryffindor table. All three of the boys had been sorted into Gryffindor with her, along with a fourth friend of theirs named Peter Pettigrew. Next to Lily sat a rather pointy-eared blonde girl named Lyndell Greenleaf. That left only Cassi and Lyria out of Lily's new friends to be sorted.
Before them, however, came a greasy-haired boy named Severus Snape, who was immediately placed in Slytherin.
"Strider, Casilda!"
Cassi—who cringed at her full name—sat on the stool. After a few minutes on her head, the hat cried "Slytherin!" Lyria looked anxious and a bit alarmed, but Cass walked confidently to the Slytherin table.
"Strider, Lyria!"
"Gryffindor!" The hat screamed out the second it contacted Lyri's head. Lyria stood and went to the table, but still looked rather sad.
After the feast—at which Sirius tossed carrots at Lyria in a vain effort to cheer her up—everyone went up to their rooms to get to bed early (except, of course, Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter, who were planning ways to torment the Slytherins).
Lyria flopped out sadly on her bed. How could her twin sister be put in a different house than her? And not just *any* different house, but SLYTHERIN? It wasn't fair, she thought to herself as she fell asleep.
When Lily woke up, it took her a few minutes to remember where she was.
"Lily? You awake?" Lyria's voice asked from somewhere on the other side of the room.
"Yes," Lily replied.
"We need to hurry—unless you want to skip breakfast! We've got Potions with Slytherin first." Lyndell informed Lily. The three of them, it turned out, were the only first year Gryffindor girls.
Lyndell stood waiting impatiently for the other two to pull on their robes. "Come on!" Lyndell sighed.
Lily and Lyria hurried as best they could, and the three ran down the stairs, meeting up with four boys.
"Did you even *try* to brush your hair?!?" Lyria demanded of James.
"Yes!" He snapped amid laughter.
After the breakfast, the group ran to get to the dungeons on time and just barely succeeded. Casilda, sitting with the other Slytherins, refused to look at her sister.
As the lesson dragged on, Sirius flicked something across the room, and it hit Cassi. Furious, she stood and whirled around. The professor, to put it mildly, noticed. "MISS STRIDER!"
Lyri stood up as well. "Which one, sir?"
Lucius Malfoy, Severus Snape, and several other Slytherins snickered.
Lyria fixed them with a withering glare.
Class went downhill from there.
It was about a week later when only three boys rushed down the stairs in the morning. "Where's Remus?" Lyndell demanded.
"His mom's sick," James explained. "He had to leave to visit her."
"Oh, I hope she'll be alright!" Lyndell looked concerned.
"I'm sure she will be," Lyria put in. Lily voiced her agreement.
And everyone accepted that Remus would be back again soon.
Until it happened the next time...
"He's hiding *something!*" Sirius insisted. "His mom just doesn't get sick for one night every month!"
"It's always on a full moon, too," James commented.
"L-leave it t-to James to notice that!" Peter said.
"You don't suppose he's—" Sirius stopped abruptly.
"W-what?" Peter asked.
James and Sirius seemed to be on the same wavelength, as usual, because James grew solemn. "I think we should talk to him."
When Remus slipped in the next evening, Sirius and James were waiting for him. (Peter had gotten detention for "accidentally" blowing up his cauldron during Potions.)
"How's your mom?" James asked.
"Huh? Oh, she's fine," Remus mumbled, not looking at his friends. Besides the three of them, the common room was empty. "What did I miss?"
"Not much. Although, y'know, people are saying the Shrieking Shack down in Hogsmeade was really loud last night," Sirius said casually.
"It always is on the full moon. You keep missing it, Remus," James added quietly.
The brown haired boy looked up at them for a moment before sadly slumping into a chair. "You figured it out."
"So?" The two asked at the same time.
"Don't you guys care? I mean, doesn't it *bother* you? I'm a—well, you know." Remus looked at them uncomfortably.
"We care, but it doesn't bother us," James assured him as Peter entered.
"Couldn't we go with you or something??" Sirius asked.
"I'm *dangerous* to humans. I'd bite you, you idiot, and then you'd be like me and it'd be all my fault. No way." Remus said flatly.
Sirius considered for a moment. "What if we weren't humans?"
Remus snorted. "Despite what Lyria tells you all the time, you *are* humans. And, while we're on the topic of things Lyria tells you, your head and your rear end are *not* the same thing."
"Well... can't we transform or something? We're wizards!" James pointed out.
Peter looked confused. "What's this about transforming and rear ends?"
The others ignored him.
"You mean, becoming Animagi?" Remus asked. "But that can be dangerous, and it's hard. Plus, you'd have to be registered, and then the Ministry would watch you..." Remus trailed off without adding that they watched him as it was.
"Well, you're not going to stop being a werewolf, so we've got time to figure something out," was James' confident reply.
"But there's so many rules..." Remus said.
"They wouldn't be the first rules we've ever broken," Sirius put in breezily. "And besides, I'm trying to break the school record for most detentions."
The year flew by, and the four of them kept Remus' secret, well, a secret. Not even the three girls knew. The spells they'd need to transform were easily found, but would take much longer to learn.
And before long, exams were over and they were on their way home for two months.
"Don't you go causing more trouble over the summer!" Lyria ordered the boys. "And Lily, if your sister gets too awful to deal with, owl me. My parents will let you stay over."
Casilda walked over to her sister. "If you're all set, I want to go home." The twins had moved apart as time in their respective houses turned them into complete opposites, but despite that, they were still twins, and Cassi tried not to be too snippy with Lyri.
Lyria sighed. "Let's go, then."
The friends scattered, planning to meet at Lyria's at least once over the summer. Besides, the holiday was only two months long. They'd be back to Hogwarts soon.
And then, James Potter thought to himself gleefully, who knew how much trouble they could cause...