Hey.

It's been only a couple of hours since I got here, and I'm already mortified. Just found out that I have to get in the line with first graders to get my house sorted out. Think about it; me, among all the little kids with hundreds of people watching. It will be really, really weird.

Bet it can't be worse than what I had to deal with back in France, tough. Hope you've understood why I had to leave, and hope your anger had simmered down since our last encounter. Because I really don't want to do it all over again, you are the only person in the world that I can talk to; the only thing that I have left to lose.

Looking forward to see you in the holidays,

Yours,

~A

As I've finished my letter, Nox lifted his leg in anticipation and gave me a depressed look. I knew flying all the way back was the last thing he wanted, but I had no choice. He was also not fond of seeing her, and I really couldn't blame him. Caressing his head, I felt just as troubled as he did, and I bribed him with some dried meat I keep around for him. It was a weird thing to carry, really, and I had to learn some good spells to keep my purse from stinking, but it was worth it. After all, Nox is the best owl someone could ever ask for.

Binding the letter to his leg, I kissed him lightly on the head and mumbled. "Don't come back here, okay? Let's meet at Hogwarts. They'll feed you there till I come."

I watched him fly away from the window with his ocean blue wings, and I got even more depressed. With him going, I was finally, completely alone in this strange place. And on top of everything, I still had a full week to kill till the school starts. At least my room was nice.. I took care of the shopping months ago, and have spent my last three months studying for catching up with Hogwarts standards, which is unusual for me. So I was determined not to think about any school related thing on my final week.

I decided to pay that 'Diagon Alley' place a visit. Judging from all the cheerful voices I overheard from my room, it would be unbearable without the help of an old friend named Ogden. Ogden's Old Firewhisky.

It's not even noon, you say?

Trust me, I have my reasons.

So I knelt down by my trunk and pushed my clothes around to find the half emptied bottle, and poured what's left into my flask. I always carry one with me, that, and some cigarettes. Back in France, it was nearly impossible to find a place to secretly smoke, or drink, or live actually, so I hope it would be better this year.

It didn't take me very long to get bored, for I was alone and the Alley didn't seem to have a comfortable pub where I can rest my head. It was all shops and fancy tea houses. There was too many of everything; too many people, too much noise and sunlight, so I got back to the Leaky Cauldron within an hour. It was always dark inside and everyone seemed to mind their own business, which always worked for me perfectly well.

I smiled at Tom on my way to the pub section, where couple of wizards drink and read quietly. Everyone was looking older than me, but I put a bold face on and find myself a table. Is it rude that I'm drinking out of a flask in someone's pub? Do I have to order something at least, to make that Tom guy happy? I didn't know but it's best to keep what I'm doing till I'm told otherwise.

For the first time that day, the pub resonated with some people's laughter, but no one seemed to care besides me. I looked in the direction where the laughter heard, and saw a couple of boys sitting across the room, chatting and laughing mindlessly. They were an interesting group, really, so I watched them on the sly.

The first one must be the most anxious guy I've ever seen. If he weren't clinking his tea cup to its plate ever time he tried to take a sip with his shaky hands, I wouldn't even notice his presence. He wasn't very talkative really, all he did was to giggle or make one word comments every once in a while. The boy sitting right next to him didn't seem so outgoing either, but at least he wasn't looking pathetic. He seemed.. Smart, I guess. And he had a smile much older than him, which was kind of nice. He must be the responsible one, the emergency brake of the group, if they are even one.

The last two were the source of all the laughter and fuss. The one with the glasses was constantly telling jokes, and occasionally punching the one with the black hair in his arm when he obviously was making some smart-ass comment or did not laugh to a good joke. They were using the words jerk and dumbass way more than necessary.

The one with the black haired.

His hair was longer than I used to see in France. They don't allow that kind of style in Beauxba- Well, screw Beauxbatons, they don't know anything.

He was leaning back comfortably and swinging back and forth on the hind legs of his chair. His leather jacket looked annoyingly like the one I'm wearing, and I don't like it when people wear the same things I really, really love. He also had this habit of ruffling his hair every once in a while, and I'm sorry to see that his friend next to him was copying that exactly, he was doing it even more frequent than the leather-jacket does, actually.

And then, shit, sudden eye contact.

The one with the leather jacket looks at me with a smirk on his face, trying to recognize me I guess. Well, good luck with that.

Before it all got more awkward, I smirked back and raised my flask towards them as he raised his beer bottle, and we kind of had cheers from across the room. I took a sip, and decided it was best for me to went back minding my own business. But I know something was up without even looking at their direction. They weren't noisy anymore, in fact, there was a suspicious silence where I hear one of them mumbling something and the other protesting with a whisper off and on. It was kind of funny you know, but I tried to keep a straight face as I drank and doodled some brooms on the napkin in front of me. This is what I do, when I get bored or don't know what to do, I doodle.

Napkin wasn't the best material though, it was sucking up all the ink and making my brooms unrecognizable.

"Nice jacket."

When did he? I didn't even hear him sneak up on me like that, but he was right in front of me. Pulling a chair for himself, even. The one with the black hair. Still the same smirk on his face, he tried to see what was I doing with the napkin.

"Nice jacket yourself." I said, and take another sip from my flask. He looked at me with his grey eyes and paused for a second, then raised his voice with a dirty smile.

"Now wait a second! I know this smell. You've been drinking some of that old Ogden's, haven you?"

I couldn't help but wink mischievously, "Why yes I am!"

"For breakfast I suppose," he laughed, with his eyes still laid on my drawings, and I answered with a flat voice.

"Oh, I don't do breakfast."

"Alright, what do you do then?"

His hand was going to his hair every other minute, and even though his hair was, well, gorgeous, I wanted to put an end to that gesture. What was he doing, sitting next to me uninvited and trying to drag this meaningless conversation? I didn't respond, instead, I stared without a word. He didn't lose any of his confidence though, he just stared back and I could tell that his smirk was about to form any second now.

Then I got pissed at myself for being this grumpy, he was obviously trying to be friends and since I didn't have any, I had to be nice. I broke my silence with a half-smile, and pushed my napkin in front of him.

"I do doodles. They were supposed to be-"

"Brooms, I can tell. In fact, that one's a Moontrimmer, and I guess the one in the left is supposedly a Cleensweep Three. You did the handle wrong."

I get defensive again as he pulled his smart-ass attitude on me, and rolled my eyes.

"I know what a Cleensweep Three looks like, OK, it's just hard drawing on a napkin."

"I bet it is." he said and I surprised at how friendly he sounded. Also, I wasn't sure but, was he impressed? It was written all over his face. He was looking at me differently now, and all of his cockiness was toned down a bit. "You like Quidditch?"

"Does Bombarda Maxima blow things up?!"

We both laugh, and he got all curious. In the mean time, I could feel 3 pairs of eyes lingering on us. Since their friend came and sat by me, I haven't heard a single noise from their direction.

"Then how come I don't see you in any of the teams at Hogwarts?" the boy asked, he looked really confused. I could tell that he was trying to remember seeing me around ever, he looked kind of cute when he did all the thinking, so I let him ponder a little longer before finally speaking up.

"Because I'm only starting this year."

The expression on his face was priceless, as his eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped at least five inches down.

"A-are you a first grader?! How's that even-"

I know it's cruel of me, but I kept a blank face as he freaked out on me. Trust me, it was almost impossible not to laugh, so you have to at least give me the credit. I couldn't keep going though, after two minutes of him stuttering, I gave up.

"Dude, stop. I'm a sixth grader, a transfer student."

And that was when I heard the laughter of his friend with the eye glasses. Smart one was cracking up as well, but I could tell he didn't like it. Because there was an annoyed expression on his face as he shook his head, but I could see he was trying to be cool about it since his friends were watching.

Hand to the hair, three times in a minute.

"Alright, you got me. Don't blame me though, you kind of have a baby face."

"You are the baby face!" I protested in a huff, but that was a complete lie. I realized that he was kind of- charming. There was no way I would let him know that though, figured his ego didn't need any more feeding.

"I guess we missed the place where I tell you my name and ask for yours," he smiled, and it was beyond weird that I didn't even recognize that we haven't properly met.

"Bet we have," I chuckled and took a big sip from the flask. "Felicia Wolf."

"Sirius Black. Nice to meet you, Wolf."

I could tell that he liked my last name and that he would often call me by it.

And I wasn't wrong.