December 19th, 1993. Sunday.

Selena trudged out of Hogwarts Castle and made her way through the grass with the hundreds of other students waiting to get onto the train for Christmas holiday. She used a simple levitating charm on her trunk so that it floated beside her as she read her novel, and so that the trunk didn't get messed up in the pale snow, fallen on the ground. Crescent was curled up in her other arm, held close to her chest, wrapped up in Selena's coat and out of the cold wind.

She finally made it to the Hogwarts Express and got inside, smiling slightly in the warm air. As she made her way down the corridor, she glanced in the windows of the compartments. Most of them were full, students shoving their belongings onto the racks above the benches or laughing mid-conversation. She clutched her well-loved paperback book and cat, walking on to an empty compartment, near the end of the train.

Plopping down on the cushioned bench and setting Crescent free, she opened her book back to the page she'd left off on and continued reading.

A few seconds later, she glanced back up at the door and sighed through her nose. Wendy, Alisson, and Tess drifted through her thoughts. Selena rather wanted to avoid talking to them on a train with no where to go. Swiftly, she flipped the lock on the door, and went back to her novel, trying - and now struggling - to immerse herself in the story.

26 Minutes Later

There was a knock on the glass window, Selena lifting her head up. It was Hazel and Renee. She smiled and slid the door open, setting her book down. Her cat was napping at her feet, but meowed reluctantly when he had to move.

"Why'd you lock the door?" Renee asked curiously, unwrapping her Gryffindor scarf and putting her bag on the metal rack, along with Hazel.

"Because," Selena replied quietly.

"That's not a sentence, nor a reason," Hazel answered, sitting down with her own book - though this one was A Guide to Medieval Sorcery.

Selena smiled at her friend. "Are you sure that you're in Hufflepuff? You seem to be acting like Bronwen."

Hazel giggled. "Yes, I'm sure. I just happen to know some logic. That's all."

"Right. But, seriously - what's wrong?" Renee asked. She widened her honey eyes. "Were you scared that Trolley Cart Lady would come in. You know, saying, 'Any deer candy?'" Renee asked, doing an impersonation of the woman's voice.

Selena and Hazel laughed. "She doesn't say deer candy. She says 'any candy dears'..." Selena corrected.

"Oh..." Renee said quietly, glancing at the floor, spade earrings glinting. "Never knew that..."

"Hey, who's watching Shorty?" Selena asked her, trying to change the subject. But, she was curious. Renee's little pygmy owl was nowhere to be seen... not that Selena entirely minded. Short Stuff had a tendency to hoot when one was trying to read or nap.

Renee waved her hand. "I asked a Ravenclaw to watch over the darling for me during holiday."

"Why?" Hazel blurted, focusing on Selena. So much for changing the subject. "You still haven't told us!" she begged, sitting across from Selena, by Renee.

Selena sighed. "They said that I should stop talking to Damon."

"Who's they?"

"Wendy."

"And?"

"Alisson and Tess."

"Oh."

"Why would they say that? It's not their business. Don't they have lives?" Selena blurted, looking out the window. She was surprised at her sudden temper, but she didn't take back her words. She'd been thinking it over and... well, she didn't think she was in the wrong here. Didn't she have the right to be upset with them?

At that moment, the door slid open and all three students looked to see who it was. Selena's heart leapt into her throat as she silently pleaded for it not to be any of the aforementioned girls.

Fortunately, it wasn't.

A girl was standing in the doorway, though Selena didn't know her. The girl was slim, but looked athletic, as well being clad in a rebellious style. She smiled shyly. Selena noticed a familiar green House crest necklace around the girl's neck. She was in Slytherin. The stranger shifted uncomfortably.

"Hello. Er... is this compartment taken? The others are mostly full. May I sit?" she asked quietly.

"Uh... Sure," Hazel answered just as softly, going sheepish just like at the beginning of the year.

"Alright." The girl lowered herself into the seat beside Selena, adjusting her large shoulder bag. "I'm Kellie Jo Clark, by the way. But, you can call me Jojo. My friends do," she said, clasping her hands in her lap.

"I'm Renee, but you can call me Ree," the Gryffindor said brightly, waving a hand at Kellie, who waved back.

"Selena Malast."

"Hazel."

Kellie nodded to them and smiled lightly. She noticed Renee's scarf. "Are you all in Gryffindor?"

"They are, but I'm in Huffelpuff," Hazel explained. She looked intently at Kellie, shifting uneasily. "You're in Slytherin, correct?"

"Uh, yes. I am. But, funnily enough, I'm actually Muggleborn. I'm not mean, either, I know there are some more bristly students in my House," Kellie added hastily. "To be honest... I'm convinced that the Sorting Hat made a mistake." She laughed nervously.

"No worries. We don't think like that. Actually, two of my friends are in Slytherin. One other Slytherin I know is fairly nice, too," Selena said, hoping to reassure Kellie. It looked as if the girl might run from the compartment at any moment.

"Good," Kellie said, visibly relaxing. "You'd be surprised by the reactions I get when people find out I'm Slytherin, it makes me feel like our whole House is seen as jerks... I hate those stereotypes, like that all Huffelpuff's are duffers, all Ravenclaw's are elitists, and all Gryffindor's are show boats. It's not right." She glanced out the window, at the brick wall of King's Cross Station, steam floating by in white wisps.

The whistle blew, making the four girls jump. Then the Hogwarts Express started to move and they all joined Kellie looking out the window.

"Ready for our first holiday?" Selena asked no one in particular.

Her two friends nodded. "Totally."

2 Hours Later

Selena slowly rubbed her head as she woke up from a long nap. The train was still moving, but it was midday now, sunshine filtering onto the red carpeted floor. She could feel the windowsill imprint on her sore wrist, massaging it as she yawned. On the other side of the window pane, blurs of colors and a large forest that was full of juniper and pine trees stretched for miles.

"Are-are we there?" she asked tiredly.

"Does it look like it?" Renee asked. She was propped up on the seat's back cushion, upside down with her arms splayed out. It was a funny sight with her light-brown ponytail dangling, nearly brushing the floor, side-bangs flopping over her forehead, and black converse up in the air. Crescent was peacefully napping beside her head.

Selena gave friend a 'haha-you're-sooo-funny-being-sarcastic' look.

"I'm serious. Does it look like it?" Renee repeated. "I really can't see from here."

"We're not," Kellie piped up. "It takes a few more hours. Well... that is, if there aren't anymore dementor attacks." She and Renee giggled.

Selena shivered. She remembered the dementors on the train so vividly that it still brought chills to her. She shivered again, thinking of the decaying creature floating in the corridor. "W-weren't you scared?" she asked. Both Kellie and Renee stopped laughing, looking over at her.

Kellie smiled. "Of course. But, as my grandpapa always says, 'Don't think. Do.' You mustn't dwell on what's going on around you. Just... act. It was just like what happened on the train. I didn't think about the fear, I just did, I acted. Don't try to remember it, either." Kellie let her smile falter. "It will only add to the bad memories."

"Shhh! I think I hear a bell!" Renee shouted.

"So much for being quiet," Selena murmured.

But, sure enough, a bell was jingling a few compartments away. "Trolley! Anyyything from the trolley?" a warm voice called alongside the ringing bell.

"Sweets!" Kellie exclaimed. She jumped up and opened their compartment door before she began to rummage through her bag, drawing out some sickles and knuts.

"Sweets?" Renee repeated as she flipped her feet up into the air, over her head, and onto the floor with a thump. She stood up gracefully - so in a very non-Renee fashion - and adjusted her red hoodie.

"Ree! You're flexible!" Selena said loudly, grinning in bewilderment. She stood up looked at Hazel to find the girl sleeping on a pillow. "Should we wake her up?"

No one answered her question. Instead, they all rushed out into the corridor excitedly as the cart and bell stopped in front of them. The trolley dubbed the Honeydukes Express was overflowing with sweets: blue-and-gold packages of Chocolate Frogs, stands of lollipops, cool Pumpkin Juice, dozens of pieces of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, and even more that Selena couldn't name.

Vivid memories from the day before of Honeydukes in Hogsmeade floated through her mind, carrying the chill of the village and the scent of chocolate. Selena grinned, the hope for desserts taking over any lingering tiredness.

"Anything from the trolley, dears?" the plump witch pushing the cart asked, smiling sweetly.

Kellie handed over the coins from her bag. "I'll take... a Licorice Wand... and a Lollipop Fairy. Thank you very much." Kellie took her candy gratefully and handed the lady her currency. Then walked back in, unwrapping the Lollipop Fairy as if it were already Christmas morning.

"Just a pack of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans," Renee said, taking six sickles from her coin purse and handing them to the lady before she took her red-and-white striped box of jellybeans.

"Two Pumpkin Pasties, please," Selena said politely. Getting her little beaded bag from her pocket, she handed the correct amount of knuts over, hearing them clink in the lady's hand. Turning, she went back into the compartment as the trolley lady took up her battle cry again.

"Sel, Ray asked me about you," Renee said quietly, taking a red bean from the box as Selena sat down.

The dark-haired girl took a bite from one of her Pumpkin Pasties, the pumpkin filling spiced and delicious. "Really?" she asked innocently, swallowing.

"Yeah. He said something about needing to talk to you. About something he tried to say, but couldn't," Renee said, tossing the bean into her mouth. She smiled in pleasure, so the bean must have been good and not something like earwax or farm dirt - which Selena had gotten before.

"Oh... well, I think that's alright, but I haven't seen him around," she lied.

"No... That can't be true. He said that he saw you the other day, but you ran from him. Is that... true?" Renee asked, pausing from her jellybeans. Kellie glanced up in the corner of the compartment.

"No. He must've lied. See, he's a liar, you shouldn't talk to him," Selena said, nodding and taking another bite of her Pumpkin Pastie.

"Well, he's nice and, yeah, I'll still talk to him. You sound just like how Wendy and that lot must've when they said you couldn't be friends with Damon right now." Selena suddenly felt a wave of guilt, realizing Renee had a point. But, Renee continued. "Also, did you say something to Annabeth Black? The other day she was crying when she got back to the Common Room. Harry Potter asked her what was wrong, and she said that you, Selena, are - and I quote - ruining her life and that she hates you. Then, she rushed up to her dorm and Hermione Granger couldn't unlock the door. Wendy, Hermione, Parvarti Patel, and Lavender Brown all slept on the floor. Don't you remember?"

"About that..." Selena trailed off, lowering her baked treat. "I have to tell you something. I know why she's acting like this." She glanced over at Kellie and then down at Hazel, still peacefully asleep. Glancing back up to at Renee and Kellie, she sat up straighter. "Do you both swear that you won't tell anyone? I need you to agree, or else I won't breathe a word more about it."

She felt like she was being rash... was fairly sure was being reckless. But she couldn't take keeping what she knew to herself, she had to tell someone.

"Alright... Here's the secret..." Selena whispered. Both girls leaned in.

Selena took a deep breath. "Annabeth is Sirius Black's daughter..."

Wow, that was a long gap between updates! I will try not to ever take another break like that. It's just that, 2 days ago I clicked to update the story, but for some reason it didn't upload until today. I only saw today because I was home from school. So, yes. But, the longest time was 3 weeks of break, so this has only been a week and a half. Yeah, that won't happen again.

Well, here it is! It's kind of short, but there will be a LOT going in during Christmas break. And, after Christmas break, there is only 2 chapter left before the Selena's first year ends! Yay! I will continue this story HERE though. Alright,

BYE!

REVIEW! Thanks,

~Meghan

3/28/17: Well, Past Me, with all the editing I did, this chapter isn't that short anymore...