Audrey White was a whirlwind of excitement as the 1st of September rolled around, and she prepared to depart to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She had been confused at first, when the woman, or witch she supposed, had arrived on her door and told her that she was magical, that the strange and wonderful things she could do meant that she was a witch, not that she was going mad. And her mother had seemed relieved too, probably grateful to know that her daughters abilities, were, well, not exactly normal per say, but at least not unheard of.
As the witch, who called herself Professor McGonagall, had explained all about Hogwarts, Audrey felt her eyes go wide at the thought that such a place could exist, such a place of wonders and, well magic. And the very idea that she, Audrey, would soon be going there, soon be learning about Transfiguration and Potions and Charms? It sent little shivers of delight up Audrey's spine every time she thought of it. She was sure her father would have been thrilled, not that she'd ever known him. She could just tell.
The day she had gone to Diagon Alley to get her school supplies had been one of the most exciting days of her life. Just experiencing it, seeing the goblins in Gringotts, the strange and amazing things on sale in the various shops and stalls, made it that little bit more real for Audrey. And when she had finally gotten her wand in Ollivander's, and the room lit up with soft golden light as it chose her, she had felt… complete. As if a part of her that had previously been untethered had finally settled into place. Her mother had even bought her an owl as a going away present, a beautiful Barn Owl with a white face and soft, brown plumage whom Audrey had christened Demeter.
Now, her trunk was packed, Demeter was safely stowed in her cage, and Audrey and her mother were hurrying across King's Cross Station, carefully following the instructions given to them by Professor McGonagall, no matter who bizarre they seemed. But, just as the professor had explained, Audrey and her mother were able to walk through what appeared to be a solid wall, and found themselves on a bustling train platform, with a bright red train with the words 'Hogwarts Express' emblazoned on the front in large, black letters readying to depart. Children from ages eleven to eighteen were running around in a mixture of muggle clothes and wizarding robes; some had already donned the crisp, black robes identical to the ones she kept in her trunk which were to be Audrey's school uniform.
As her mother seemed rather uncomfortable surrounded by all these strange people, Audrey thought it would be best if she made her own way onto the train, and reached up to hug her mother goodbye. Her mother embraced her tightly, and bent down to whisper in her ear. "I love you, baby girl, I love you. Enjoy yourself this year, and please, be careful."
Audrey reassured her mother that she loved her too, and yes, she would be careful, before stepping back, out of the embrace. After one final kiss on the cheek, Audrey turned around and, after one final glance of the proud smile on her mother's face, she grasped her trunk in one hand and Demeter's cage in the other, and made her way toward the train.
She hadn't gotten far, however, when she was almost bowled over by a boy who appeared around her own age, with the messiest hair she had ever seen, and glasses which had been knocked crooked by the impact. "Sorry," came the apology as the boy, who was quite a bit taller than her, straightened his glasses. "Didn't see you there." "It's ok," replied Audrey shyly. The boy then stuck out his hand, and, claiming her tiny hand in his larger one, introduced himself as James Potter. "Audrey White," she replied, as he shook her hand so vigorously she thought it was liable to come off at the elbow.
As he released her hand, James seemed to notice her trunk, which was, in all fairness, almost as big as Audrey herself. "Do you want some help with that?" he asked, before shyly continuing, "you could sit with me, if you like. My trunk is already on the train." Relief flooded Audrey, as one of her primary worries, as she lay in bed the night before, was what she would do on the train. It wasn't like she knew anyone else who would be on board. She smiled at James, who seemed nice, if not a bit hyper. "Alright, lead the way."
As they made their way towards the train, James elbowing people out of the way to clear a path for himself and the smaller girl in his wake, Audrey kept an eye on the people around them, occasionally apologising to those who had been on the receiving end of James' elbow. As she watched, she couldn't help but notice a boy, about her age, with short, black hair, standing on his own on the platform. Her eyes were drawn, not to his wavy dark hair, almost identical to her own, or his eyes of crushed, icy blue, but to the ring of bruises surrounding his left eye. She frowned, and made to move towards him, but his eyes suddenly snapped to hers, and with a wink and a smirk, he was gone, vanishing into the crowd. Blinking at his sudden disappearance, Audrey hurried to follow James onto the train.
As they made their way towards the compartment, James continuing to clear the way for Audrey, he chattered on about Hogwarts, and which House he hoped he'd be in (he staunchly insisted he would be a Gryffindor). As they entered the compartment, and James helped her stow her trunk in the overhead compartment with his, James changed tactics. "By the way, are you a muggleborn?" " A what?" Audrey had the familiar feeling she had heard the term before, probably in one of the books Professor McGonagall suggested she buy, but she couldn't quite remember what it meant. "A muggleborn," replied James. "someone with non-magical parents?" "Oh," Audrey squirmed uncomfortable. Was it a bad thing to be a muggleborn? Did it mean she would be behind in some way? "Why do you ask?" James seemed to sense the nerves in her voice, because he turned from poking owl treats through the cage of his post owl, Hermes, cage. "No reason. You just seemed a bit bewildered on the platform is all. It doesn't mean anything, really. Well," he hesitated, "not to most people anyway." What do you mean?"
"Well," James began, "there are some old pureblood families, horrible people, the lot of them, who think that purebloods are much better than everyone else. They especially hate muggleborns. They call them…" James hesitated here, as if he didn't want to continue, but a new voice from the doorway finished for him, causing both children to start and turn to face the intruder. "Mudbloods." To her shock, Audrey found the boy from the platform giving them a half smile from the doorway. "They call them mudbloods. And my parents are among the very worst of those heinous, bigoted idiots. Not that I share their ideals." At this the boy plopped gracefully down onto the seats. "I'm Sirius Black. We're friends now." James and Audrey shared a glance, which clearly said, Well, ok then. Suddenly, Audrey remembered she had been asked a question.
"Oh, I never answered your question. Uum, I don't actually know whether I'm muggleborn or, or…" "Half-blood?" Sirius supplied. "Right, that." "How can you just, not know?" James's face was the picture of confusion, his eyebrows drawn in to wrinkle his forehead. Sirius merely looked politely intrigued. If she hadn't been so uncomfortable, Audrey would have been amused. "Well, my dad, he died before I was born, and he never even knew mom was pregnant, so he might have been a wizard and he just, didn't mention it, or maybe he was just normal. Guess I'll never know." With that, she sat down beside Sirius, James across from her. "Huh," James frowned again. "Sorry about your dad." "Ya," Sirius agreed, who, true to his name, had become fleetingly serious. "That must suck." "It's ok," Audrey shrugged. "It's not like I ever knew the difference." The tension in the compartment was broken by the door sliding open, to reveal a boy the same age as them, who looked exhausted. "Is it ok if I sit here? Everywhere else is full."
Before the boys could say something less than friendly and scare the new boy off, Audrey jumped in. "Of course," she smiled. "I'm Audrey White, that's James Potter, and the idiot currently laughing at who knows what is Sirius Black." True to her statement, Sirius currently had tears of laughter streaming down his face as he howled. Ignoring Sirius, Audrey calmly advised the new boy to do the same before asking him for his name.
As the boy sat down, he informed them that his name was Remus Lupin, and after making polite conversation with the boy for a few minutes, Audrey finally turned to the still laughing boy in the corner. "What, exactly, are you laughing at, you idiot?" "White," Sirius panted, your name is White." "No, really? I had no idea," Audrey replied, her sarcasm eliciting a laugh from the other two boys. "What about my surname is so incredibly amusing to you Sirius?" "Mine is Black. We're Black and White!"
After letting the boy's statement sink in for a moment, Audrey sighed. "You really are a hopeless case." "But you love it." "That remains to be seen." As they quipped back and forth, Audrey found herself smiling. As Sirius struck ridiculous poses on the seat behind her, Audrey laughed. "Alright, you fool. New topic. What houses do you think you'll be sorted into? James, you're not allowed to answer," Audrey warned, as the boy opened his mouth to once more begin pontificating on the wonders of Gryffindor house. As the bespectacled boy pouted, Audrey, Sirius and Remus launched into a lively discussion on the merits of each house. Sirius, it turned out, wanted to be in Gryffindor purely to annoy his horrible, elitist parents. Remus said he didn't mind where he went, but Audrey could see the longing behind his eyes to be in Gryffindor. And indeed, to be brave and bold did sound exciting. But then again…
"I think I'd be happy with Gryffindor or Slytherin," Audrey said, to immediate outcry from James and Sirius. "Why would you voluntarily go into that snake pit?" Sirius' disbelieving voice was soon answered by a cool, cultured on from the doorframe. "It's not like Slytherin would accept the little mudblood, Black, so really, it's all the same to us. You can keep her, you filthy blood traitor." As Audrey flinched at the harsh words, Sirius only grinned.
"Hello, cousin. Nice to see you." "So," the older girl hissed, "you want to be a Gryffindor, do you? Want to join the mudbloods and the traitors? Want to disgrace and defile the good name of Black?" By this point, the girl was shouting at Sirius, her dark hair waving behind her. Sirius rose from his seat, and approached the doorframe where she stood. "Yes, I do. Do get with the program, Bellatrix." With this, Sirius promptly shut the door in his cousins face, and returned to his seat. After a stunned silence, Audrey spoke up. "Well, Gryffindor it is then."