Remus rushed through the wall; eyes squeezed shut, bracing for a collision that never came. Remus opened his light blue eyes, then they lit with wonder at the sight before him.

Platform 9¾ was bustling with families waiting for their children to board the train to Hogwarts. Owls were flying in every direction, some with letters and some without. Cats of practically every color weaved through the crowd, a few with their next meals clutched in their jaws. The sun streamed through the windows, giving the platform a cheery air.

Remus heard the excited chattering of children and nervously turned toward his parents, who had entered through the wall. Remus' mother smiled at her son, watching as the bright sun glinted off his soft, sand-colored hair. "Be good, Remus. I'll miss you," she said softly, smoothing Remus' hair.

Remus grinned and hugged his mother. "I will, mum." Remus turned to his father and threw his arms around the tall man. "I'll miss you, da."

Mr. Lupin hugged his son tightly. He bent down to look Remus in the eye. "Remus, you will be safe at Hogwarts. Dumbledore has a plan to, ah, contain your…condition." The tall, solemn father smiled at Remus and ruffled his untidy hair. "Be good. We'll be looking forward to letters, son."

Remus grinned even wider, and then began tugging his cart toward the train. Mr. Lupin laughed and took control of the cart, pushing it toward the train. He carried the luggage aboard and Remus followed after him, carrying his Long-Eared Owl, Rokov, in its cage. They stowed Rokov and Remus' trunk in a compartment and returned to Mrs. Lupin.

Mrs. Lupin hugged her son, tears in her sky-blue eyes. "I love you, Remus."

Remus nodded, and then dashed onto the train. Darting to the window of his compartment, Remus leaned over the side and waved to his parents. "Bye, mum! Bye, da!" As the train pulled away from the station, Remus kept his parents in sight for as long as he could. When he was convinced that they were finally gone, Remus sat down on the cushioned seat.

A tall, gangly boy with a mop of wild brown hair and chocolate-brown eyes poked his head into Remus' compartment shortly after the train left the station. "Hey," the boy said fairly loudly. "Is there any room for me and my friend James?"

Remus nodded. "Sure. I'm Remus. Remus Lupin."

The tall boy pulled another boy into the compartment and they sat opposite of Remus. "Nice to meet you, Remusremus Lupin," the tall boy said with a mischievous grin. "I'm Sirius Black." Sirius pointed to the boy he had dragged in. "That's James. Potter."

James, who was a couple inches shorter than Sirius, but a few inches taller than Remus, flashed Remus a smile. James had mischievous green eyes and messy, jet-black hair. "Nice to meet you," James said. He looked around the compartment awkwardly, and then decided to start a conversation. "What house are you hoping to be in?"

Remus cocked his head to the side and thought about the question. "Well, being in Ravenclaw would be nice. Or maybe Gryffindor."

Sirius puffed out his chest proudly. "I want to be in Gryffindor."

James nodded. "Me too. Wouldn't it be nice if we were all in Gryffindor?"

"Yeah, it would be," Remus agreed.

A young lady pushing a cart loaded with snacks peeked into the compartment. "Snacks, boys?" she asked.

"Yeah!" Sirius and James chorused, jumping up.

Remus looked down sheepishly and mumbled, "No money."

Sirius and James looked at each other and grinned mischievously. Turning their backs to Remus, the two friends each bought an armful of candy.

Remus gasped at all of the candy in his new friends' arms, but nearly imploded with happiness when they dropped a rough third of it on his lap. "Wow, mates. Thanks."

Sirius shrugged and James clapped Remus on the back lightly. "No problem, mate."