Rose stood at platform 9 ¾, looking around in awe. She had come once before, to see her cousin James off, but nothing could compare to this feeling off excitement, anxiety , and…apprehension? No – Rose quickly pushed that out of her head. 'Mum and Dad went.' Rose sternly reminded herself. 'And Aunt Ginny, Uncle Harry...everyone but Aunt Fleur, but she went to her school in France. And besides, Victori will be there, and James, and even Albus would be starting this year too! And she was sure e to make new friends! Now, I'm not dreading going to Hogwarts' she deiced. 'I'm just nervous'. She glanced over at her parents, and she saw her dad talking to Uncle Harry. They were looking at a tall man with a handsome cloak, with a boy who looked like him.

"Who's that?" Rose asked her mum.

"Draco Malfoy, and his son," Hermione explained in an undertone.

"He and your uncle go back to before they went to Hogwarts," Aunt Ginny added in an undertone. "And those memories aren't happy ones."

A few moments later, Rose and Albus were jumping on the Hogwarts Express and waving goodbye. "Common, let's go find a carriage." Rose suggests.

"OK..."Albus agreed, looking very nervous.

"Don't worry, Al! We'll be starting this adventure together! Not like James – he was alone, and now he has tons of friends!!" Rose said, pointing out James as they passed his carriage. He was surrounded by friends, all laughing at a joke he had told.

"We'll be like that too!" Rose assured her cousin.

Looking slightly comforted, Albus smiled as Rose opened the door to an almost empty carriage. "Hi!" she said. "I'm Rose, and this is my cousin, Albus. Can we sit with you?"

The brown-haired girl in the carriage nodded. "I'm Louise," she smiled. "This is my brother, Cameron. Are you first years, too?"

Rose grinned and sat next to the girl. "Yup. I can't wait! Albus's brother has been her for a few years, and our other cousin is in her last year, but our adventure's just beginning!"

"Wow…" the other boy, Cameron, said. "You have so much family here!"

"Don't….don't you?" asked Albus in confusion, looking at the boy.

Rose saw Louise kick her twin in the shin. "Never mind," she said quickly. Rose and Albus exchanged a look, but did not pursue the subject. "So what house do you want to be in?" Rose asked, steering the conversation out of a sticky situation. Louise gave her a thankful look.

"I don't know much about the houses," Louise admitted.

Rose and Albus were soon describing what they knew of the four great Hogwarts houses and their common rooms.

"And the only one we haven't told you about is Ravenclaw,' Rose was saying an hour later.

"House of the smarties, if you ask me,' Albus contributed. Rose rolled her eyes.

"Ravenclaw pupils are more….enthusiastic about their schoolwork, traditionally." She explained.

Louise and Cameron laughed.

"Well, based on all this," Cameron allowed hesitantly, "I think I'll end up in Hufflepuff. That's the friendship is very important/nowhere else to go, right? I think that friends are important. So far I only have one – Louise." He stated gloomily.

"No," Rose contradicted him firmly. "You have three. Louise, yes, but me and Al too."