1971

The Hogwarts Express

Steam billowed from the red train that lay anxiously on the tracks, ready to depart at any moment. The number 9 ¾ lay on signs spread throughout the platform. Several witches and wizards lingered there, saying goodbye to their children, siblings, and friends.

Little Lily Evans sat in her empty compartment, tears falling down her face into her lap. She turned her head to face the window, looking to see if maybe her family was still there, her sister ready to apologize. Though she did not sight her family, she still studied the platform. Outside the train, parents hugged and kissed their children and waved to them as they boarded. This made Lily's tears fall faster.

She tore her eyes from the glass and glanced at the grey watch that she always wore on her wrist. 10:58. Where was Severus? He couldn't miss the train or she would have to spend the entire first year at Hogwarts alone! No one would be there to help her deal with her problems the way he did. No one would understand her the way he did. She didn't want to be alone.

As if on cue, the compartment door slid open and four boys who looked around her age stood in the doorway. She quickly wiped the tears from her cheeks and tried her hardest to the stop the watering of her eyes.

A boy with glasses and thick black hair that stood in an untidy mess on his head spoke first. "Excuse me, would it be alright if we shared this compartment? Everywhere else is taken."

Lily forced a friendly smile as she briskly nodded.

"Thanks!" another boy added gratefully. He had dark brown hair that fell over his eyes slightly, but in a neat manner unlike the other boy's.

One by one, the four boys filed in. First came the boy with untidy black hair, directly followed by the boy who thanked her. Next came a tall, lanky boy with light brown hair and very pale skin. The last boy who walked in shut the door behind them. He was a short, squat boy with large front teeth and a jumpy manner about him. They sat a good distance away from Lily, giving her some space.

Lily turned back to the window, trying hard not to eavesdrop, but failed.

The messy-haired boy spoke first to the boy sitting directly across from him. "Oi, Sirius, you reckon that third year girl two compartments away fancies me?"

"Fancies you?" the boy named Sirius replied with a confused tone. "You only said two words to her."

"Yes, but she seemed to wink at me after I said them."

The tall boy spoke up. "James, she winked at me twice when I asked her if we could share a compartment with her and her friends. She also winked at Sirius when we were leaving."

"So… she fancies all of us?" James asked hopefully.

"That, or she's got pumpkin juice in her eye." Sirius added, followed by chuckling from the other boys. The boy who resembled a mouse laughed loudest of them, cackling in his whiny voice.

"Peter," James began. "Calm down, or you'll wet yourself."

Peter blushed slightly as the other three laughed.

Lily was so absorbed in their conversation, she had not realized that the train had already began to move. Severus had missed the train!

"So… do you guys like Quidditch?" James asked them as if it was on his mind for a long time.

Sirius shrugged. "I'm a fair Chaser, but I'm not a competitive player. Just for recreation, really. What about you James?"

James beamed. A wave of pride seemed to wash over him. "It's one of the most wonderful feelings in the world, riding a broomstick. I can soar above mountains, race birds, and let the wind guide me wherever it goes. I'm a Seeker."

The other boys seemed impressed. Sirius turned to the tall boy. "Do you play, Remus?"

But before the tall boy named Remus could respond, the compartment door opened. A hunched boy with greasy black hair entered, shutting the door behind him, and shuffled over to the seat across from Lily. The four boys watched him, mentally noting things that they already disliked about him.

He was already in his school robes, a sign that he was a complete prat. His hair and faced looked grimy, as if they had not been washed for days. His eyes narrowed protectively when he saw that they shared a compartment with his friend.

They sat in silence, listening to him speak to the girl.

"Lily-" he began.

"I don't want to talk to you," she lied.

"Why not?"

"Tuney h-hates me! Because we saw that letter from Dumbledore." Lily sniffled as she choked the words out.

"So what?"

"So she's my sister!"

"She's only a-" Severus stopped himself before he hurt Lily even more. With a sudden enthusiasm, he changed the subject. "But we're going! This is it! We're off to Hogwarts!"

He was glad to see Lily's face brighten up as he said this.

"You'd better be in Slytherin!" he told her.

"Slytherin?" James interrupted, scoffing a bit. "Who wants to be in Slytherin? I'd leave, wouldn't you?"

Sirius turned pink. "My whole family has been in Slytherin."

"Blimey," James chuckled. "And I thought you seemed all right!"

Sirius did not take offense. In fact, he grinned. "Maybe I'll break the tradition!" He paused, relishing the thought. "Where are you heading, if you've got the choice?"

James replied in a noble voice, "'Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!' Like my dad."

Severus choked back a laugh.

"Got a problem with that?" James snapped.

"No. If you'd rather be brawny than brainy-"

"Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" Sirius turned on Severus with an expression of deep loathing on his face.

James laughed the loudest of the boys this time, high-fiving Sirius.

Lily stood up and glared at James and Sirius. "Come on, Severus. Let's find another compartment."

"Oooo…" James and Sirius cooed as they walked past them, tripping Severus in the process.

"See ya, Snivellus!" Sirius called out just as the door slammed shut.

Sirius and Peter laughed harder than ever as they reflected upon this event, James laughing along rather reluctantly, Remus only faintly smiling. As soon as the laughter had died down, Sirius turned to Remus.

"What's wrong with you, Lupin? Snivellus shove a wand up your arse on the way out?" he demanded, seeing his pained expression. This made Peter giggle.

Remus shrugged. "I just… I think it was kind of wrong, what we did."

Sirius snorted. "Oh, come on, Remus! We were just fooling around!"

Remus's shoulders raised to his ears and fell back down, as he looked down at his feet.

Sirius dropped that topic rapidly. He would have rather faced a Chinese Firebolt than discuss his feelings.

"So, how d'you reckon the Sorting will go on? My cousin Bella said-"

James's eyes shifted from Sirius's face to the window outside. Though the calendar said it was autumn, the weather outside told him otherwise. With the leaves on the trees and the grass on the ground greener than anything he had ever seen, it appeared to be summer.

"Tuney h-hates me! Because we saw that letter from Dumbledore!"

Who was this Tuney? And what was this letter from Dumbledore about? Her acceptance letter into Hogwarts? Why would this Tuney person hate Lily for just reading her own Hogwarts letter.

"So she's my sister!"

So this Tuney was her sister. Well, why didn't she sit with her sister on the train rather than sitting by herself?

"Come on Severus. Let's find another compartment."

These words had nearly stabbed through his chest as he thought back on them. He had accepted the fact that he and Sirius were being a bit unfriendly to that Snivellus bloke, but why did she have to leave because of this? Were they going steady or something? The thought of them together made him turn pale in disgust.

"-and the Hat whispers in your ear to you! Spooky, eh? Oi, James! You alright, mate?"

James looked back at his new best friend, a bit flustered. "Er… yeah… stomachache…" he mumbled.

"You're hungry, I'm sure. The food trolley should be coming around soon." Remus assured him.

James waited a few moments before nodding. He listened to the rest of Sirius's story intently, exactly like the other two.

Outside the boys' compartment, Lily attempted to comfort Severus.

"Severus, just… just don't worry about them!" Lily put her hand on Severus's shoulder in a motherly fashion.

"Whatever…" Severus grumbled under his breath.

Lily continued. "That's just what they want, Severus: retaliation! You're ten times the wizard they'll ever be."

Severus gazed at Lily's face for a moment, taking in her words. At last, he had the resistance to pull his eyes from her as he muttered, "You get into the same house as them and I'll bathe naked in the lake."

He hadn't been joking about this, but Lily burst into laughter. It was the first time she had laughed in hours.

Severus's stoic face suddenly stretched into a wide grin, but this was not because of the thought of skinny-dipping with a giant squid. Seeing her throw her head back in laughter, her hair of deep auburn tossing about as she did so, that was what made Severus Snape smile.