(A/N) I'm not the biggest fan of Jalex, but I do love Selena and David together, sooo... result. (: Enjoy, hopefully?

Chapter 1

Alex Russo groaned and let the box she was carrying drop to the floor of Room 378. It landed with a light thud and tumbled onto its side. "Ugh, Dad," she grumbled, plopping into a nearby chair in her new, empty dorm room. "I don't see why we can't just use magic to move all this junk! We'll just have Max let his mice into the hallways or something as a distraction… no one will even notice me."

Jerry Russo's slightly balding head peeked out from behind the large cardboard box he was struggling with. "Alex," he panted, "please lower your voice when using the 'm' word in public. And I told you already, the answer is no." He set the package down in a vacant corner and wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"What 'm' word? Mice?" Max Russo appeared in the doorway, lugging two of Alex's giant suitcases. "Or wait. Do you mean Max?" He paused in thought. "Does this mean I should change my name? Because I've always thought Quesadilla would be a great name for me."

As usual, Alex widely ignored her little brother and did what she did best – whine. "But Dad," she whined, fingering the wand she had tucked in the belt loop of her dark blue jeans. "I'm so tired. I had to lug that box up two flights of stairs."

The eldest Russo sibling, Justin, entered the dorm room and all but threw his box at Alex's feet. It thudded heavily. "Oh please!" he scoffed, walking over to Alex's discarded box and ripping it open. Two champagne colored pillows tumbled out, followed by a white bedspread. "You were carrying a box of pillows! If anyone should be complaining, it's me! I think I pulled something just now." He rotated his shoulder, flexing quite impressively beneath his white polo.

"Oh, really?" With one swift motion, Alex extended a sharp fingernail and cut open the tape on the box Justin was carrying to reveal a messy collection of her painstakingly selected college wardrobe. She smirked, pulling out a floral camisole and dangling it mockingly upon one perfectly manicured finger. "And I guess carrying a box of your little sister's underwear makes you Macho Man, huh?"

Justin let go of his shoulder immediately, huffing indignantly. "Well, I never said it was heavy… just – you know – okay, and why am I even helping you carry your stuff? I have my own dorm room to move into!" He waved his hands in frustration and stomped out.

Alex chuckled and plopped back into her chair. "Heh. Heh. Oh, he's a funny one." To her dad, she added, "Aren't you glad I got the looks and the charm, eh, Dad?"

Jerry sighed and pulled the other chair in the room over to sit next to her. "And the brains too, now, I have to admit." He smiled. "Alex, I never got the chance to tell you this beforehand, but I hope you know how proud your mom and I are of you of getting into college."

"Pft," Alex scoffed, picking at her fingernail, "tell me about it. I have no idea how that happened." Granted, she was only majoring in Fashion Merchandising at NYU, and it was probably only that horrendous fashion internship four years ago that got her accepted – but still. Alex Russo had gotten accepted to college. Suck on that, Laritate, she thought with a grin.

"And to the same college as your brother, not to mention!" her dad was still saying.

"Dad," Alex interrupted. "Justin is majoring in Mechanical Engineering, with a double minor in Physics and Chemistry. You really don't expect me to believe that you're proud of me for getting into the same school for Fashion Merchandising."

Jerry opened his mouth to object, but Max – from the corner of the room where he had been setting up Alex's desk – supplied helpfully, "Hey, Mom and Dad thought you were gonna have to go to military school at one point. They'd be proud of you even if you went to college for Hamburger Flipping." He gasped. "Which would be so awesome, by the way. Do you think they really have that major?"

Alex rolled her eyes, but smiled. "Thanks for trying, Max." She turned to her dad. "And thanks, Dad. I really hope I make you guys proud."

They both hugged and stood up, pushing the chairs back to their original positions. "Speaking of Mom, where is she?"

"Oh, I think she's down the hall helping Justin move his stuff into his room," Jerry replied. "Apparently he has some fragile stuff that required her nimble fingers."

"What, don't tell me he brought along his stupid action figure doll collection to college!" Alex laughed – just as Justin passed her door, gingerly toting a box of plastic toys.

He stopped in his tracks. "They're not dolls, Alex!" he scowled. A pretty blond girl suddenly squeezed past him in the hallway, giggling. He watched her go, flustered. "No, they're more like collector's items, I swear!" he called to her back. He swung back to face Alex. "Thanks a lot," he huffed.

"Anytime, bro," she smiled sweetly, waving to him as he walked off.

When he was out of sight, Alex sighed dramatically and clasped her hands together. "Well, it looks like Mr. Macho needs as much help as he can get over there! Better go help him out, Dad."

"What – are you sure you have everything under control here?"

"Absolutely, Father. Max and I will get everything sorted out. It'll be fun. Bonding time. You know. I'm not going to see him for a year, so sad. Gonna miss him!" She grinned. Alex had gotten really good at bullshitting over the course of her life.

"Well, okay." Jerry made his way to the door. "I'll be back in about 20 minutes to bring up your bike…"

"Yeah, yeah okay, thanks, Dad!"

The second he left, Alex swung the door shut and turned the lock.

"We're not going to bond, are we?" Max sighed matter-of-factly.

"Nope. But I will actually miss you next year." Alex pulled her cherry oak wand out of her belt loop and chanted with a mischievous grin, "Look at this mess, junk all over this space, help me put everything into its rightful place!"

With a flash, Alex's previously barren dormitory morphed into a room fit for an Ikea catalog. Each piece of her extensive wardrobe was hanging neatly in her closet, organized by both color and season. Her sleek white desk and drawers were neatly filled with accessories like a tri-lamp, picture frames, and a Union Jack-patterned alarm clock. The left wall was lined with pictures of her favorite album covers; the right, a huge poster of the Eiffel Tower. Her favorite Victorian, black-framed mirror from home hung to the right of her champagne pillows and white bedspread. The last item, an off-white fuzzy rug, floated lightly into place at her feet.

Alex exhaled contently and tucked her wand back into her jeans. "That should do it," she smiled, turning to an otherwise bored Max. "Now, let's go see if Justin needs any of my expert assistance."

The two stepped into the busy dorm hallway, which already reeked of a mixture of sweat and new furniture. Alex mused about how difficult move-in day must be for non-wizards. She shuddered as she contemplated how hard it would be to have set up her room by hand.

She passed by her neighbor's door and scanned the name placard on the front. Kyle Scripps. Hm, my neighbor sounds potentially cute. She turned to the door directly in front of it. Rachel Bachman. Sounds potentially annoying. One by one, Alex read off names on doors until they reached Room 370 – Justin's room.

"Hello family!" Alex chirped loudly, startling her mother and father – who were practically sprawled on the floor trying to place risers under the bed. "I'm all done, just thought I'd come by to offer some uh, moral support." She plopped onto Justin's swivel chair and swung her Converse-clad feet onto his desk.

Justin looked over from hanging up shirts in his closet. "You can't possibly be done - " he started, then gasped in realization. "Unless! Wait. You – you used magic!"

Alex raised an eyebrow and shot him a smug smile. "Oh, Justin, please lower your voice when using the 'm' word."

"Uh-b-b!" Justin sputtered angrily and spun to face their father. "Dad! Alex used the 'm' word in public!"

Jerry and Theresa Russo both climbed to their feet. "Alex Russo…" Jerry groaned. "What did I tell you about the 'm' word!"

Before she could retort, however, Max cut in valiantly, "Okay, okay guys, I was there. I can vouch for Alex and honestly say that there were absolutely no mice involved today."

There was a brief silence before Alex shook her head slightly and said, "Look, there was no one around, and I had the door locked and the blinds pulled. It was only to organize what was already carried into my room. No one saw. No big deal at all."

"Fine. I'll let it go today, but never again this year, Alex." Her father pointed menacingly. "No magic. You hear me?"

"Loud and clear." She snapped her strawberry gum and saluted.

"Alright." Jerry seemed satisfied and turned to his wife. "Now honey, what about these bed risers?"

Theresa shrugged, wiping sweat off her forehead. "I guess. It's only fair."

"Fine. Max?" Jerry sighed in defeat and motioned for his son to take out his wand.

As Max recited a simple spell to raise the bed, Alex stepped to Justin's side. "Look at that," she chortled triumphantly. "Got you to get to use magic to clean your shit up, too. I deserve a thank you, don't I?" She extended her arms for a hug, all the while smirking her usual one-sided smirk.

"Aw," Justin smirked back and leaned in for the hug. "Thanks so much, sis."

Alex allowed herself to sink, letting herself fall into the capable and toned arms of her older brother. Her face was pressed against Justin's hard sternum, which smelled of sharp pine and what she vaguely recognized as library books (very vaguely). Her lashes fluttered closed and she smiled. She really did like her brother sometimes. The peaceful moment ended, however, when she realized that his grip was getting steadily stronger.

"Ouch. Dude, you're hurting me!" she mumbled, struggling against his death vise.

"Good." Justin smirked and let go. "I feel better now. Now get out of my room."

(A/N) How was it? I hope you liked it. Please feel free to review; it makes me super happy!