There had been much debate in the Lupin house over the past year as to whether or not Rosemary and Remus would actually attend Hogwarts. It was at first uncertain that Hogwarts would even let Remus in regarding his condition. But when they both received their letters in early June, Rosemary set her heart on going to Hogwarts...with her brother or not at all. Their parents were wary to send him, would he be safe? What about the safety of the other students? So Rosemary did the only thing she could think of: she wrote a letter to the headmaster and sent it by owl in the dead of night. Needless to say, her parents were shocked when the headmaster had showed up at their house in the middle of July. Albus Dumbledore exuded authority and wisdom. He was a tall man with long grey-white hair and a beard to match and his bright blue eyes were filled with depth and knowing. Rosemary answered his knock and showed him to the sitting room.
"Good evening Mr. and Mrs. Lupin. I am Albus Dumbledore and I am here to discuss the education of your children. It has been brought to my knowledge that you are having doubts on sending young Remus to the school, am I correct?"
Her parents didn't know what to say. They weren't sure if they could trust this stranger with the secret, Remus' secret, their secret... the one they had worded so hard to hide since they were five years old. Her parents, who were sitting on a couch across from the headmaster, looked at each other. Her father took my mother' his wife's hand in his own and squeezed it.
"Yes, Mr. Dumbledore, we are very much debating sending him to school. You see, Remus has a condition that would pose a great difficulty at school, and not to mention cause a safety concern for him and the other students."
"Ah yes, I know all about young Remus' condition. But that is no matter, arrangements can be made. It is no reason to prevent a young wizard from recieving his proper schooling."
During all this, Rosemary and Remus had been hiding outside the door, listening attentively. As soon as she heard Mr. Dumbledore say her brother could go to Hogwarts, Rosemary was filled with immense joy. She threw open the door and ran into the room, Remus shyly following behind.
"You mean Remus can really go to Hogwarts?"
"Yes Rosemary, Remus can go. Well, I must be off. Many things to do before start of term. Remus and Rosemary, you can come to my office after the start of term feast and we can discuss all the arrangements. Goodnight all."
And with that, he stood up and walked out the front door. They heard a faint pop as he apparated down the street. Rosemary grabbed her brother's hands and twirled him around.
"Remus, we're really going to Hogwarts. Me and you, together!"
That night she saw her brother smile genuinely for the first time.
She was going to Hogwarts. Platform 9 3/4 was bustling with activity...there were people everywhere. She stopped for a moment, drinking in the sights and sounds. So many colors blurred around her, but none were as bright as the gleaming scarlet engine that stood majestically on the tracks. Her heart raced with excitement, because she was actually going to Hogwarts.
She and Remus said goodbye to our parents and dragged our trunks onto the train. They quickly located an empty compartment and made ourselves comfortable. Remus pulled out a book to occupy himself while she watched people pass by the door. So many interesting people passed by during the first hour or so on the train. Eventually the crowd thinned out, and she turned my attention to her brother. He had fallen asleep with his book in his lap, and looked so peacefully content. She smiled, it was rare to see such a look of happiness on her brother's face.
BANG
"What's your name greasy git?"
"Severus."
"Severus? Sounds more like Snivellus to me!"
"Snivellus! Snivellus! Come on Snivellus, what's wrong? Can't handle a little fun?"
"You two better leave me alone."
"Oh, Snivellus! And why would we ever do that."
"Yes Snivellus, you see there are two of us and one of you. I don't see you getting the upper hand anytime soon."
"Oh Snivellus! Why are you running from us Snivellus?"
"Yes, we could all be great friends, isn't that right James?"
"Of course Sirius! Great friends indeed!"
The two boys broke out into hysterical laughter, finding great joy in the other boy's pain. Rosemary felt bad for the other boy and hoped that, wherever he was, he was safe from these two prats. The laughter continued outside until suddenly it cut off..
"What do you two think you're doing. Loitering in the hall outside compartments is not permitted! Do you two want to lose points before the term even begins?"
The two boys in the hall had encountered a prefect, who probably witnessed the whole 'Snivellus' ordeal. Although the boys deserved any punishment they got, for some reason, Rosemary felt as if sh should help them. ot even thinking, she quickly stood up and opened the compartment door.
"There you two are! Remus and I were looking for you two everywhere! I can't believe it took you this long to find us, I told you exactly where we'd be."
The two boys stared at her wide eyed and confused. She raised her eyebrows, hoping they'd get the hint. They did. Smiling sweetly she turned to the older boy.
"I'm so sorry if these two have caused you any trouble. They're not always the brightest and it took them much longer than expected to find me."
"Its quite alright. Just see that it doesn't happen again and try to keep these two in line."
"Oh, I will. Now you two, come on now, into the compartment. And be sure not to wake Remus!"
The prefect, satisfied with her lie, turned and walked away. She shut the compartment door and turned to see two grinning boys sitting in the bench opposite of where Remus was sleeping.
"That was bloody brilliant!"
"Your acting was absolutely superb!"
"Teach us to lie like that!"
"You two are just lucky I was there. You shouldn't go looking for trouble like that. And from what I heard outside, you were just down right terrible to that Severus boy."
She gave the two boys in front of her a glare. They were absolutely rediculous, reckless, careless and everything that irked her. Though the one with the long hair was kind of cute... She sighed. The two boys were grinning madly in front of her, trying to defend themselves. The long haired spoke as his friend laughed.
"Aww, Snivellus deserves it, trust me, er... what's your name again?"
"Rosemary Lupin. And this is my twin brother Remus."
"Well, Rosemary, thank you. Without your aid, we'd have started our first year at Hogwarts in detention."
"Right you are James. I believe some thanks is in order. Wait, I have a perfect idea."
And with that, the long haired boy (whom she deducted was Sirius) dashed out of the compartment into the hall, leaving Rosemary with the other boy, James, and a still sleeping Remus.
"You know, I don't understand how your brother can sleep through Sirius' big mouth. I mean, I've only known the boy for a few weeks and I want to tell him to bloody shut the hell up sometimes."
"Remus is a heavy sleeper. We've had a frantic week and he's just catching up on some well deserved rest. How did you and Sirius meet?"
"Oh, it was a few weeks ago in Diagon Alley. I think we may have met one or two times before, we're both from really old families so we've attended some of the same functions. But when I went to Flourish and Blotts to pick up my school books, I found him about to knock over a row of shelves. Needless to say, I got him out of a lot of trouble that day. Once we discovered we were both starting Hogwarts this year we sort of just clicked and began writing each other. We've become right good friends since then."
"Thats sweet, James. Are you excited to be starting Hogwarts this year, I know I am. Remus is absolutely thrilled, though he won't show it, he's ecstatic... "
"I HAVE RETURNED GOOD FRIENDS! AND I BEAR GIFTS."
Sirius barged into the compartment holding a bag that looked as if it were about to burst. He reached in and pulled out an armful of chocolate frogs, dumping them on Rosemary's lap.
"For you, dear friend. As thanks for saving our sorry hides earlier. And some for your brother for putting up with our ruckuss. Blimey, he's a deep sleeper, I've never met anyone who could ignore my loud mouth."
Rosemary snickered, at least Sirius knew how obnoxious he was. From the short time she had spent with the boys, she decided that they were pretty good natured people, and had the potential to be good friends.
Friends. That's what Remus really needed. Since they were children, Rosemary and Remus had been the best of friends. They had never been exposed to other magical children, most parents wouldn't let their child near them once they learned of Remus' condition. But here was an opportunity for Remus to make friends. Because even though she loved her brother dearly, she knew that he needed to hang around other boys his age. He needed friends. And maybe, these two boys would be able to be just that.
The three chattered on for the rest of the train ride. Remus didn't wake up until right before the train entered the station and had just enough time to change into his robes. Right before they left the train, the conversation turned to houses.
James was telling them all about Gryffindor, and how his parents had both been Gryffindors. He was confident that he would end up there.
"I really hope we're all in the same house. It would be really great to already know some of my housemates. Gryffindor's really great, my dad used to tell me all these stories..."
"Well I probably won't be in the same house as you James."
They all turned to look at Sirius who was looking glumly at his shoes. Rosemary felt her face soften at his downtrodden expression. Reaching out she placed a hand on his shoulder.
"And why is that Sirius? You don't know what house you'll fit best in."
"Yes but that won't matter for me, Rosemary. I'm a Black. All the Black's have always been in Slytherin. Even my cousin Andromeda, and she was disowned."
"Sirius, I'm sure that you'll be sorted wherever you truly belong, regardless of your family name."
"Do you really believe that Rosemary?"
"Yes Sirius, yes I do."
He smiled at her, and she felt her heart flutter. Shaking her head, she laughed.
Soon the train pulled into Hogsmeade station and they got off the train, following a large man named Hagrid to where a fleet of boats awaited them.
"SIRIUS BLACK"
Rosemary watched with apprehension as Sirius walked from the line of waiting first years to the stool where the hat sat. After a few minutes of silence the hat finally announced its decision:
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Sirius, in a state of disbelief slowly took off the hat and stood up. After a moment, the previous events sunk in and a wide smile broke out across his face. He gave out a loud cry of joy and raced to the Gryffindor table, where he took his seat looking like the happiest boy alive. Rosemary smiled, glad that her new friend had gotten his wish, and now had a chance of being in the same house as James.
Rosemary grabbed her brother's hand squeezing it. She looked at him reassuringly because she knew how nervous he was to be around so many people.
"LILY EVANS"
Rosemary recognized the girl that had been fighting with Sirius and James earlier. She looked to the Gryffindor table and caught Sirius' eye, and he smiled sheepishly. Moments later the girl was sorted into Gryffindor and took a seat at the end of the table, as far away from Sirius as she could manage.
The sorting continued and pretty soon, the list was in the L's. Rosemary knew it wouldn't be long.
"FRANK LONGBOTTOM"
She breathed deeply, it was almost her turn. But she wasn't the only one who was nervous. Rosemary heard a squeak and turned to see a small boy trembling with fright. He was tightly clutching his hat and looked as if he was about to cry.
"Hi, I'm Rosemary, what's your name?"
"P-peter Pe-ettigrew."
"Peter Pettigrew?" The boy nodded.
"Well Peter, whats the matter?"
"I'm af-fraid the other kids w-won't like m-me. I've n-never had many f-friends."
"Well Peter, how about this, I'll be your friends okay?"
"R-really? Ev-even if we're not in th-the sa-ame house?"
"Yes Peter. Even if we're not. I promise."
A genuine smile spread across the boy's face. Rosemary returned the smile and then turned back to the sorting ceremony. The boy Frank had just been sorted into Gryffindor which meant...
"REMUS LUPIN"
Rosemary watched apprehensively as her brother slowly shuffled up to the stool, his face sheet white. He was petrified, of not only being in front of the entire school, but of the hat. He had confided in her earlier that he was afraid that when the hat was placed on his head, it would see what he was and demand he leave the school. Rosemary, of course saw how ludicrous the idea was but understood his fear. She gave her brother a warm smile to encourage him.
Remus sat on the the stool and Rosemary held her breath, wating for the moment when the hat would call out his house. Suddenly, the hat came to life again.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Rosemary shouted and cheered louder than anyone else in the room. Her brother was going to Gryffindor, house of the brave. She watched as Remus, dumbfounded took off the hat and placed it on the stool, pausing as if not sure what to do. Then she heard a voice from the crowd of Gryffindors.
"Oi Remus! Come sit by me!"
She looked over to see Sirius Black moving over to make room for Remus. She smiled, recognizing the look of joy on her brother's face when he realized that Sirius was actually being friendly to him. She beamed as she watched the two chatter away as the applause died down.
"ROSEMARY LUPIN"
The sound of her own name surprised her. She almost hadn't realized that once her brother was sorted, she was next. She slowly approached the stool and took her seat, allowing the hat to gently slide over her head.
"Ahh, Miss Rosemary. I have been looking forward to meeting you. You have a very interesting mind, you know. You are very intelligent, you far surpass many of your age. You'd do quite well in Ravenclaw. But wait, you also have a strong sense of equality and fairness. Hufflepuff would be happy to have you. However, you also possess a resourcefulness and cunning that marks you worthy of Slytherin . But wait now, I see it. Above all else, you possess a stronge sense of loyalty, especially to your brother. You are willing to do anything for him, no matter what the risk to yourself. That sort of bravery belongs in only one place:
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Rosemary pulled off the hat with wide eyes. She was sorted into Gryffindor. She was going to be with Remus and their new friend Sirius. She ran over to the Gryffindor table and happily sat down across from her brother and next to the Lily girl.
The sorting continued on until only a few remained. When Peter was sorted into Gryffindor Rosmary clapped louder than anyone else there. And when the shy boy reluctantly hovered by the table, unsure of where to sit, she offered the seat between herself and Lily. Lily, noticing the boy's uncertain behavior immediately began speaking to him, to make him feel welcome. Right after Peter, James was sorted into Gryffindor as well and joined them at the table. Rosemary introduced Peter to the boys, who immediately included him in their conversation. She looked at the scene around her and smiled. She was at Hogwarts, had been sorted into a house and surrounded by people who had definate friend potential. Hogwarts was going to be amazing.
"And so my first year began. Remus, Sirius, James and Peter became best friends and Lily and I got quite close. I introduced her to James and the rest of the boys after about a month or so. And things between them were great, for the first week. And then Lily realized that James was the boy who was tormenting Severus. And that's when her opinion of your father turned sour, Harry. There were times when we believed Lily would never forgive James for what he did to Severus, but in the end she always did. My first year of Hogwarts was one of the greatest of my life, and if I could do it over again, there is very little I would change. Except, well, maybe I wouldn't have been so nice to Peter, knowing what he would become. It has become one of my greatest regrets, welcoming him into our lives that first day. I guess you could say that it was all my fault"
The portrait hung her head ashamedly and began to tear. While Ron and Harry looked bewildered, Hermione looked at her with compassion.
"Oh Rosemary, you could have never known what Peter was to become. He tricked everyone, including you. But you shouldn't blame yourself, because I'm sure Lily and James wouldn't."
Rosemary smiled at the girl. She took a deep breath and looked at the three Gryffindors in front of them. There was so much of the story that even now, they were unaware of. And, she decided, it was her duty to tell them. So she continued on.
"Anyway, the six of us, we were the best of friends. We looked after each other, we always had each other's backs. The boys had a knack of getting into trouble and I had a knack of coming up with excuses to get the boys out of trouble. I was very close with not only Lily and Remus, but Sirius too. I suppose you'd like to hear about that?"
She looked up and saw the expectant looks on the three's faces. This was the part of the story she knew best, yet was hardest to tell: how she got to know, and grew to love Sirius Black.