Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any characters, plots or settings of J. 's creation
Chapter 1
"Come on Beren, you can't miss the train!" One of the nuns, Matron Josephine (the nicest and youngest nun in the orphanage), called from downstairs. He stood in front of the mirror, all the other boys of the orphanage had gone outside to play in the last few days of summer. He had his second-hand robes on, just to see what they looked like before he would get changed back into his regular clothes. They were baggy and a size to big but beggars can't be choosers. His bright green hair fell in an unruly mop around his head, dutifully covering his similarly coloured eyes slightly.
He had managed to convince Matron Josephine to drive him and his stuff to the station. Although the orphanage was religious Matron Josephine wasn't. This was why she had been the only person to learn of his wizarding abilities, the other nuns would have rejected the idea and beaten him like when he had done those strange and wonderful things that the strict witch from before had mentioned, accidental magic, and then handed him a bible as an afterthought.
He got changed again back into normal clothes packing his robes into his trunk before lugging it downstairs.
The drive was rather uneventful but once they were there Matron Josephine had to go to sort out some job back at the orphanage. She had left after a hug and a goodbye. Beren would certainly miss her this year, she was like a mother to him and most of the other children.
He made his way through the crowds of kings cross station between platforms nine and ten getting strange looks because of his hair. There seemed to be a mistake. He looked again at his ticket: 'platform 9 and 3/4' was clearly printed on the ticket in gold lettering. Was this some sort of joke? Damn that letter for not telling him anything, there was a wizard who came to pick him up from the orphanage five days ago to get his equipment in Diagon Alley but no one had arrived for getting to the damn train itself.
Which then led him back to his original problem, how to find platform nine and three quarters. Looking around the station, he spotted a boy not so far off with shaggy black hair pushing a trolley stacked with similar things as his own and an owl so he decided to catch him up and ask what to do. He caught up to him easily as the boy was lagging behind the rest of what looked like his family. "Hey, do you know how to, you know, the train?" He asked before blushing slightly, embarrassed at his own naïvety.
"Yeah, sure." He said warily, keeping one cautious eye on his mother ahead of them and the other on Beren's strange appearance. "Just follow me and do what I do." He told him.
They walked down the centre of the two platforms until they came to a barrier, completely blank from any fly posts or other advertisements unlike the others in the station. But the family didn't stop and kept walking towards it, unconcerned that they would crash and hurt themselves. As soon as the boy's looming mother was about to hit it she disappeared. That couldn't be right?
The rest of the family were close behind. Looking closely, as the boy's father and what looked like his brother touched the barrier they went through it. As if it was some illusion of some sort. All the other travellers in the station didn't even notice the group of people who disappeared into the wall.
Once the boy's family had gone through he turned to him. "All you have to do is keep walking towards the wall, and don't stop. Trust me, ok?"
"Yeah sure, after you." He said, if there was something the matrons at the orphanage had beaten into him it was manners. The boy nodded and ran to the wall before disappearing like his kin.
He took a deep breath and picked up his pace and soon he began to walk in a brisk pace to the very solid looking wall, he closed his eyes cowardly just as he was about to make contact. But the crash never came. Beren opened his eyes again, a crimson coloured train was resting at the platform while families said their goodbyes to their children. A twang of longing overtook him as he watched another boy his age with black hair and glasses get hugged to death by his mother as his father put an encouraging hand on his back.
Beren spotted the boy from before and made his way towards him. It seemed that he had managed to lose his family and looked pretty happy about it as well. The boy caught sight of him and motioned for Beren to follow him.
"Let's go in here." The boy said smiling once he had reached the carriage door. The two boys lugged their trunks up into the carriage and pulled them over to an empty compartment where they sat down, exhausted.
"Names Sirius." He said grinning wildly.
"Beren." He said offering his hand, Sirius took it firmly. Another boy, the one with the glasses he saw earlier, opened the compartment door.
"These seats free?" He asked.
"I think so." Sirius said.
"I'm James, good to meet ya."
"Sirius, and this is Beren." He introduced them both. He smiled slightly at the newcomer while Sirius offered him a seat. Beren noticed the top that Sirius was wearing: a t-shirt with the Beatles printed in the front.
"Are you a fan?" He asked Sirius, pointing to the logo to his top. Sirius grinned.
"Yep, you."
"I've listened to every album. I've brought a few records with me, dunno if there's a player at Hogwarts though." Beren said slightly embarrassed at his lack of knowledge.
"There could be." Sirius said with a thoughtful look.
The train pulled out from the station, James and Sirius went to lean out the window to wave at their families as they left them for a year. Beren just sat there awkwardly thinking about what life would be like with a family to wave to.
A few more people entered the compartment, filling it up, a boy and two girls, all in first year like the previously alone members of the compartment. The boy had greasy hair that fell past his ears and a pale face while the girl contrasted him completely. She had fiery, long, ginger hair and startlingly green eyes. The other girl looked almost identical; they were probably twins or something. She had the same green eyes and face but her hair had a black streak in it.
"You better be in Slytherin." The greasy haired boy said to the sisters, sitting down.
"Who would want to be in Slytherin, I'd rather leave, wouldn't you?" James asked Beren, he had no idea what Slytherin was but nodded in agreement anyway.
"If you had choice, where are you headed?" James asked Sirius before he made a fool of himself, "I want to be in some house like Gryffindor but my entire family is in Slytherin." He said glumly.
"And you seemed like a cool guy, hopefully you won't go there then!" James said kindly. He thrusted an imaginary sword into the air. "I want to be a Gryffindor too, where dwell the brave at heart! Just like my dad." He said proudly. The boy gave a snort of laughter. "What's so funny?" James asked, snapping his head round towards him.
"Well if you'd rather be brawny than brainy" He said unconvincingly.
"And seeing as you're neither where do you hope to go?" Sirius interrupted, James and Sirius howled with laughter and Beren involuntarily let a small laugh escape.
"Come on Serverus, let's find another carriage." The first girl said with anger covering her features. She pulled Serverus out of the compartment before anyone else could say a word. This caused Sirius and James to make smooching notices after them. The girl's sister looked at them sort of apologetically.
"What's your name?" James asked. They settled down again, still slightly hot from laughing.
"Rose but I hate the name, call me Ro, that was my twin sister, Lily, and her friend Severus." She said nervously. "I should probably go after her, I'll see you later." She said smiling before leaving.
"So, Beren, where so you come from?" James asked him.
"I've not got wizard parents if that's what you mean." He said not understanding his question. "I'm from an orphanage in London."
"That's cool." He said surprisingly.
Beren couldn't remember his parents at all, nothing, nada. They were a great big grey smudge in his mind where they should fit.
"When did you find out that you were, well, different?" Sirius asked, not finding a better phrasing.
"Uh, once a few months ago I was chased down an alleyway by some muggers at night, I went round a corner and I had changed appearance." He remembered sprinting away from the men down a dank street, it turned out a dead end and He had stopped, frightened. The muggers caught up, but instead of taking his money like he expected, they asked if a young boy had ran here. Beren had been really confused but he just shrugged his shoulders unsure what else to do. He made his way back but before he went out of the ally he looked in a puddle to see what caused their actions, I had been older looking, with dull brown eyes and a beard. The memory past in his mind, as clear as if it was only yesterday.
The other two boys were agape with wonder. "You're a metamorphmagus!" James said incredulously.
"What's a metamor... whatever it was?" He asked.
"It's a wizard who can change his appearance at will!" Sirius explained excitedly. "Try it, see if you can!" He encouraged. Beren was surprised, he thought I would be an ability that all wizards could do.
Beren screwed his face in concentration. He had done it before but it didn't always work. He had figured out though, that if he focused on a single part of his body it would usually change. His eyebrows, he focused on his eyebrows. A round of applause sounded from the two boys in the compartment after a few tense seconds when they turned bright purple.
"That's really rare," James pointed out, Beren blushed, "you must have a metamorphmagus in your family then as it's a skill past down by blood."
"So I-I have a wizard in my family?" Beren asked in wonder.
"Probably, I've never heard of a muggleborn who can do that." James said factually.
"What's a muggleborn?" Beren asked.
"A wizard born from muggle parents." James explained.
"And a muggle is a none wizarding person" Sirius added after seeing Beren's confusion.
Someone was making their way down the corridor outside. "Anything from the trolley boys?" A plump woman in the forties with a trolley of confectionaries asked after opening the compartment door. James drooled at the sight of the sweets, he asked for three pumpkin pasties, two liquorice wands and ten chocolate frogs. He dug out an amount of silver and bronze coins, sickles and Knuts if he remembered correctly. He couldn't help but feel hungry at the sight. He picked a few spare Knuts from his trip to Diagon alley to buy a box of every flavour beans, just to try them even after the warnings from his two new friends. He sat with a dubious looking grey/green one in his hand, he gave it a nibble. "Ah, that's horrible!" He exclaimed.
"Let me have a bit?" James asked. "Merlin! That IS disgusting." He said passing it on to Sirius.
"You're right that is horrible!" Sirius gagged. "I think we've found the worst every-flavour-bean in history. Mould." He announced. Beren was almost too scared to eat anymore, almost.
"I'll give you a galleon if you can eat all of it." James wagered.
"Fine, give it here." He said after a moment's hesitation.
"You have to chew it well!" James said much to the disappointment of Beren who had thought of doing just the opposite. He popped it into his mouth and chewed, his face contorted with disgust. He swallowed and almost threw up.
"There, now just give the galleon." He said in a foul mood, James laughed and tossed the coin.
After that there was: sour milk, toffee (extremely rare according to James), bark, coffee and sweat, the last one thrown in disgust. "You know apparently they use the real thing when making these sweets." James said an honest look on his face. Beren blanked. James and Sirius howled with laughter. "I'm kidding, man your gullible."
"That wasn't funny! I'm new to all this, of course I'm gonna be gullible!" He insisted. It began to grow dark outside, "we should get changed into out robes." He advised, hauling his bag onto the seat and looking inside for his uniform. They got changed and were ready just as the train neared Hogsmead, the small town near Hogwarts.
They got off the train, looking for where to go when they heard a loud voice shout out. "Firs' years, firs' years over 'ere." A giant man was stood on the platform with a lantern in his hand. They made their way over and Ro joined them, she and Beren gawped at him, the man towered over them but surprisingly Beren didn't feel scared. The man and shaggy hair and a wild beard making him look feral or dangerous but his eyes twinkled with kindness, which must have been the deciding factor in Beren's judge of character.
"Alrigh', this way." He called cheerfully, leading them down a path apart from the older students. "You'll see Hogwarts just round 'ere" Hagrid announced
They turned round a bend and a large flat lake came into view, so flat it mirrored the stars and the crescent moon perfectly. Then they saw Hogwarts. Beren gasped, along with all the other first years at the sight. Thousands of lights shone getting reflected of the water.
"Alright, four to a boat everyone." Hagrid announced, they all got in a boat.
Sirius, James, Beren and Ro all got in a boat for themselves. "Forward!" Hagrid ordered, and the boats started to move smoothly forward. They glided onwards until they came to a low tunnel in the small cliff below the school.
"Mind yer 'eads!" Hagrid warned as they entered. They pulled to a stop and they all got out onto a platform by the side. A stern faced woman stood waiting for them, she told them to follow her up some stairs. They came out in a large hall with winding staircases that ran up the height of the school. She shepherded us over to a pair of great doors which from behind they could hear an exited hubbub of noise.
She turned sharply, stern features stiff and wrinkled. "Through these doors is the great hall, where you have your meals each day. I will call your names one by one and you shall be sorted into your houses. Your house will be like your family for your time at Hogwarts, you eat and sleep with them and you have lessons with them. I will give you a minute to neaten yourselves up." She said, glaring at Beren's bright hair. After the minute in which James attempted to flatten his hair and Sirius quickly finger-combed his own mop she turned again to the doors, the opened as if pushed by invisible hands. Probably magic, Beren thought. They stepped into the great hall.
The roof was missing, he first thought, the stars they had seen outside were clearly visible from indoors. Floating around above them were thousands of candle. He heard someone behind him whisper to someone next to them. "The roof is enchanted to look like the sky outside." Well that solved one mystery, he thought happily.
Four long tables full with children of all ages spanned the hall with a table at the far end for teachers. All heads were turned to the new first years as they filed through the centre isle of the hall. There was a hat on a stool near the teachers table, it had rips and was very dirty. All of a sudden it straightened up and the largest rip in it opened and started to sing:
"In times just after Merlin
The greatest of our kind
Four wizards came with offers
To train an eager mind
They took up Scottish residence
Of castle and of land
They named their new home 'Hogwarts'
And that is where you stand
They took the young and taught them
They guided them to bloom
Each wizard had, however,
A different type to groom
They split the children four ways
According to their skill
They looked at personality
At power and at will
The youngest man, one Gryffindor
Sought hearts of solid steel
He favoured those with bravery
And bold, heroic zeal
Ravenclaw, however,
Sought logic in her group
She chose bright minds intelligent
They formed a brainy troop
The oldest man, Sir Slytherin
Decided he would take
Those people with ambition
Whose greatness wouldn't break
The youngest girl, Miss Hufflepuff
Preferred those true and loyal
Her charges felt that things came best
With hardest work and toil
The four worked well together
But sadly time had passed
They knew that in their absence
Something had to last
So Gryffindor took from his head
A hat to fill with wit
You see that's me, I read your mind
So under me come sit
I'll figure out the best place
For you to flourish well
I'll seek out skills and character
So your house I can tell!"
There was a huge round of applause to the song, so that was how the houses were sorted, Beren thought, he had been worried that there would have been a magical test of sorts to prove yourself.
The stern woman raised her arm for silence. She pulled out a scroll of names. "Anise, Jessica" she called clearly, the girl nervously made her way to where the hat was waiting, she put the hat on her head and after a few seconds it shouted "Ravenclaw!" the list of names went shorter. Sirius got his wish and went to the Gryffindor table and after him Lily and Ro much to Severus's disappointment. James got sorted into Griffindor almost before the hat ha even touched his head before a Richards, Fenrick got sorted into Hufflepuff. Next Snape was sorted into Slytherin despite Lily's almost negligible hope that he too would be in Gryffindor. Then, finally, Zhou, Joe was sorted into Ravenclaw.
"Beren." She said awkwardly at his missing surname, a few mutters followed him as he walked down the hall up to the sorting hat and slipped it onto his head. At once a voice rose in his thoughts.
"Ah, very unusual to have no second name." The hat hinted in his head. "I have no doubt where to put you though, it's in your blood, Gryffindor!" he shouted, and with more loud claps he took off the hat and made his way to sit between Sirius, Ro and opposite a boy named Remus, James and a boy called Peter. Lily was sitting further away nearer the second years and another girl.
Dumbledore rose to say a few words, he cleared his throat. "A heart filled welcome to all new students and an equally warm welcome to all those returning for yet another year, I don't want to keep you from the wonderful feast. So without further ado, begin!" He announced. Suddenly piles upon piles of food appeared on dishes in the middle of the tables, roast beef, chicken, lamb. Parsnips and potatoes, Brussels sprouts and gravy. He began to dish himself some food while serving Sirius and Ro too. They all stuffed themselves full to the brim, and finally after dessert, all the plates and dishes disappeared for the final time. Dumbledore stood up again to make a speech.
"Ahem, before you all go to bed there are a few notices for the beginning of the school year: the forbidden forest, as its name implies is forbidden and is off limits to all students. James and Sirius shared a look with identical glints in their eyes. I have also been asked by Mr Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Proffesor Finch.
Now, off to bed!" He dismissed them, they all followed a prefect to the seventh floor, where the common room entrance was.
The common room was a large but comfortable room, there was a roaring fire and squashy armchairs. There were also a few desks for doing homework. Two stair cases lead up to the dormitories, one for boys and the other for girls. They ran upstairs to dibs their beds. Sirius got there first and directed everyone about on where to sleep. Beren was on one side of him nearest the door while James was on the other, Peter was after him and then Remus after him. A boy called frank Longbottom took the bed opposite Beren near the door on the other side.
"Oi, Sirius." Beren called, they went to the side. Discreetly he showed the mould bean to him which he had faked eating on the train. Sirius roared with laughter, almost falling over while James looked over with a suspicious frown on his brow.
XxXxXxXxXxX
Later that night Beren lay awake in his bed, thoughts racing round at a hundred miles per hour. He was usually the last one up at the orphanage, whenever he couldn't sleep he would Sui at the window and stare up at the stars, losing himself in the never ending blackness.
Suddenly he heard sniffling from the bed to his left, Sirius's bed!
"S-Sirius?" He asked nervously. The figure in the bed next to him turned sharply, facing him. "Sirius are you alright?" He asked again.
"Yes, I'm fine." He insisted but at that moment a sob escaped his lips. He looked angry at himself for crying in front of someone.
"What's wrong?" Beren asked again ignoring Sirius's claims.
"Nothing." Sirius raised his voice slightly before giving in. "It's just, my whole family are in Slytherin, I don't know what's gonna happen when they find out."
He didn't know what was bad about being a Griffindor but it sounded bad for Sirius. "I'm not to good at making things better but if you wanna talk we can talk." Beren said reassuringly.
"Thanks but not now." Sirius said managing to get Beren off his case. "Why are you up anyway?" He asked curiously.
"I-I can't sleep." He said simply.
"Because?" Sirius pried.
"I can't help but think when I sleep it will all be a dream and I'll wake up in London."
"Don't worry, it's not a dream." Sirius said with a small smile.
A/N WOOH! first chapter done! it shouldn't take long for my next chapter as it very very almost done! Please review!
Note that first years ARE allowed their own brooms. We'll pretend the rule was established a few years later.