A/N

Hi I wanted to thank you all in advance for reading this fic! I have been slaving away at it for days and am excited to finally be able to share it with you. Most of the main characters in this fic are based off of my family and friends and I look forward to sharing them with you.

I want to start by thanking my resident Slytherin for typing up the original draft of this prologue and for all of his input and advice throughout the whole process of writing "Before All Was Well".

I am sad to announce that though I am the owner and creator of the storyline (though I do not hold sole credit, as I mentioned above), I am not J.K. Rowling and do not own any character that you recognize by name nor do I own Hogwarts.

Now without further ado, "Before All Was Well".

Prologue

Lewis inhaled sharply as he stumbled through the wall and on to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters for the first time. Despite his parents' assurances that he would pass through the barrier, and not bash his head in and fall unconscious, the young wizard had still harboured a few small doubts. It seemed that his parents were right though, and he had crossed from the Muggle station of King's Cross into the magical hustle and bustle of the wizarding world. Frankly, it was a breath of fresh air even after his short journey to the station.

The eleven year old had not yet done any magic, unless you counted the time he accidently hit his brother with an expelliarmus charm when he was eight, and after growing up with both parents in the Ministry, and being constantly surrounded by it, he was eager to learn as much as he could. Lewis was sure it would let him get away with even more things than he already had, and the potential he could feel at his fingertips was making him giddy with excitement.

Snapping back to the present, he remembered what else his parents had said, which was to get out the way as quick as possible, so that he wouldn't get run down by someone else coming through the wall. With a slight glance behind him and a side step, he neatly avoided a family of three who burst through with a trunk on a trolley in front of them. The group consisted of a young girl, probably about his age, and her parents, one of which was gaping at his surroundings as if he had never seen anything of the like before. After a few more moments of watching Lewis realised he probably hadn't. What was a muggle doing on the platform? It caught his attention for a minute until he realised with a start that his trunk was missing.

Bother. He was an idiot, and had left it at King's Cross. As the small family beside him walked away, he looked back towards the barrier. Would it let him back through the same way? It would make sense, but sometimes magic wasn't sensible. Lewis stood debating, but was suddenly interrupted by his trunk appearing his owl's cage on top. It stopped for a moment, then found Lewis and trotted over to stand beside him. The walking piece of furniture was a family heirloom, and his father had used it during his years at Hogwarts. Traditionally passed down to the eldest child, Lewis had inherited it, and would no doubt end up giving it to his firstborn when they went to Hogwarts as well.

Now that he had accounted for his trunk and his owl, the young wizard made his way towards the waiting locomotive. It was quite an elegant machine, especially since it ran entirely on magic. His eyes ran over the powerful red engine, and the passenger cars hooked up behind it. His mother had told him stories of the Hogwarts Express, and even given him a galleon and some sickles in case he wanted to buy some snacks on the way. He had decided to save it though, since he would probably find a better use for it once he arrived. What it was he had no idea, but Lewis believed in being ready for anything.

That family with the muggle was standing in the middle of the platform, and although he was being a bit more subtle about it, the father was still gaping. The girl's mother was trying to simultaneously explain everything, and get her spouse to close his mouth, and their daughter was giggling at it all. A small smile crossed Lewis' face, amusement mixed with a small amount of contempt. Who was that old, married to a witch, and hadn't seen the Platform before? With another look around the station, the Gaines boy grasped his owl's cage, boarded the train and began his search for an empty compartment. He wasn't too fond of large crowds, and wanted to enjoy the journey to Hogwarts on his own.

Lewis spent some time settling in and making sure his belongings were secure, when he was disturbed by the sound of the door to his compartment opening. The girl from the platform stood there, long blonde hair flowing over a green pullover. He looked up to see her staring shyly at him with blue eyes framed by rectangular glasses. "Do you want something?" He asked brusquely. The girl immediately looked a bit hurt, and he caught himself, speaking in a gentler tone, "Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude."

"Oh, it's… It's ok. Do you mind if I sit in here with you?" She spoke softly.

Lewis replied, "Yeah, of course. Come on in." He had wanted to be alone, but he didn't want to hurt her feelings too much. After all, she did have to put up with a muggle father. She set down her cat carrier, pulled her trunk in and sat down on the seat opposite him, looking out at the station. He looked at her for a second, observing her behaviour, before asking, "So, what's your name?"

She smiled at him, "Felicity McBree. What's yours?"

"I'm Lewis Gaines." He stuck out his hand the way his father had taught him, and she shook it firmly. "Nice to meet you."

"Is this your first year at Hogwarts?" She asked

"First year. Yours too, right? I'm quite excited to see what it's like. My mum's told me a lot of stories," He said, a grin appearing on his face. His fingers tapped a rhythmic pattern on his newly bought robes. He was very obviously eager to arrive at the school.

Felicity said, "Oh, me too! I really want to see what my classes are like!" Her shyness seemed to dissipate a bit as she talked about the school, "And I want to explore the school. I've heard lots of stories of how the stairs move, and the hallways change. It sounds really fun."

Her travelling companion suppressed a sigh, "What if you got lost though? That wouldn't be fun at all."

She paused to consider this for a moment, then shrugged. "I suppose. I'll just have to be careful with how I do it." Her glasses fell down a bit and she reached up to adjust them, "Anyway, I'm plenty smart enough to find my way there."

"If you say so, Felicity." The first year wizard had his doubts, but figured he'd be better off keeping them to himself. He jumped a bit as the train started with a jerk, and gave off a loud whistle. "And here we go…" He said under his breath.

Felicity was waving frantically to her parents as the train pulled away, and then collapsed against the seat. "Well," she smiled at Lewis, "This seems like it'll be a good year."

A/N

Thank you so much for reading! I will do my best to update at least every other week. Please let me know what you think! I crave your input!

Love,

Millie 3