"Ah, Rox," sighed Louis, draping an arm around his cousin Roxanne, "back to school it is."
The two stood side by side in the narrow corridor of the Hogwarts Express.
"Maybe we should move out of everyone's way," suggested Roxanne, acutely aware of a third year girl waiting behind them.
Louis glanced over his shoulder.
"You might be right," he said.
He then shouted an apology over his shoulder as he gestured for Roxanne to follow him into an empty compartment.
The third year girl went bright red in the face and rushed away in the opposite direction. Roxanne could have sworn she had even heard the girl giggle, which would not have been an uncommon reaction to Louis Weasley among the female population of Hogwarts.
Shutting the compartment door behind them, Roxanne turned to face him.
"I just wanted to say goodbye before I went off to find my friends and you went off to find Othello," said Louis, pulling her into a hug.
Roxanne laughed, hugging him back tightly. Louis had always been her favourite cousin.
"You can sit with Othello and me if you like," she offered, breaking free from their hug.
Louis made a face.
"What?" she said.
"It's just… I don't really know him, do I?
"He's in your house," she pointed out with a frown.
"Yeah, but he's so quiet," said Louis. "He doesn't really talk to the rest of us. He just hangs around with you."
"He just doesn't really talk to people he doesn't know."
"Well, he doesn't know me so it's going to be a very quiet train journey if I spend it with you two."
Roxanne scowled and Louis stuck his tongue out in return.
"I'll leave you two alone," said Louis. "I wouldn't want to get caught in the middle of your young love."
"Young love?" Roxanne snorted a laugh. "Maybe if I had a bit less going on here," she said, gesturing to her chest.
"What do you mean? You've barely got enough as it is."
"Do you want me to kick you?"
Louis flinched.
"Besides," she said. "It's still too much for Othello, isn't it?"
"Why? Does he have tiny hands?"
Roxanne frowned, taking in Louis' expression for a moment.
"You really don't know?" she asked.
"What?"
"Louis, Othello is gay."
Louis' eyes widened.
"What?" he cried.
"Othello is gay."
"Since when?"
"Since around the time of his birth."
"But," Louis stammered, "I thought he was into you!"
That was when Roxanne burst into peals of laughter.
"It's not funny!" he cried. "How was I supposed to know?"
Roxanne was doubled over laughing, but managed to choke, "I'd have thought this was something you of all people would know."
"It's not a club, Rox! Anyway I'm not gay. As long as someone's pretty, I couldn't care less about what genitals they have."
Just then, the door opened from behind them. They both turned to see a boy their age with a very pretty and curious face.
"Hi, Othello," said Roxanne, trying to hold back laughter. "I was just coming to find you."
"What's so funny?" asked Othello.
Roxanne glanced from Othello to Louis, and burst out laughing once more.
Othello looked at Louis questioningly, silently asking why his best friend could not stop laughing.
Louis appeared to crumble under Othello's gaze, his previous air of confidence vanishing almost instantly.
"I should probably go," he said quickly, not meeting Othello or Roxanne's eyes as he fled the compartment. Roxanne could have sworn Louis had gone bright red in the face.