Trouble on the Train

In a deceptively short-seeming time, the summer drew to a close, and James and Sirius began preparing their suitcases for the journey to Hogwarts. James' mother took them both to Diagon Alley to purchase new school supplies, and the boys spent most of their time browsing Flourish and Blott's and the other, more obscure bookstores on the street, searching for books that could help them on the quest to become Animagi. Most of the information that they needed had already been given to them by Valerie Cleary, their latest Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, in the form of the comprehensive guide Animagi in the Making, but they were always on the lookout for more details about Self-Transfiguration. After purchasing Transfiguration Explained without the knowledge of James' mother, they threw the book into Sirius' suitcase to look over once they had reunited with Peter at school.

When the Potters left their house with Sirius at the start-of-term, the two boys glanced at Ms. Xu's flower shop on the way past. As usual, the store appeared devoid of customers, and James did not spot Ms. Xu through any of the windows before he had to crane his neck backwards. Emitting a sigh, he shared a glance with Sirius, who shrugged.

By the time they made it to London via the Muggle Underground, James' screech owl had taken to hooting every few moments, ruffled by the noisy journey. Walking to King's Cross Station as quickly as they could to avoid the sideways looks of passing Muggles, the small group passed through the metal wall to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters without drawing any more unwanted attention, and they waited on the platform for Remus' and Peter's families to meet them.

After spending several minutes in conversation amid the rolling smoke of the Hogwarts Express, James pointed out the forms of Mr. and Mrs. Lupin approaching from farther down the station, Remus leading them. Smiling, James' parents shook hands with the Lupins as Remus hugged his friends.

"It's great to see you again!" he exclaimed after breaking free. "I've been looking forward to this for weeks!"

"Have we got stories to tell you!" James told him. "Sirius almost burnt his own pants off a few days ago when my mum was making supper, and I had to splash water on his—"

"That's absolute rubbish, don't listen to him," Sirius interjected, shoving James (and his glasses) out of place. "It was James who nearly cracked his skull open during a small Quidditch scrimmage! I think he's lost his touch over the summer—I don't know if the Gryffindor team will take him back this year."

"What are you on about?" James inquired. "I don't remember being remotely injured!"

"Well, you wouldn't if you blacked out," Sirius responded, making Remus laugh.

"I never thought that I'd say this, but I've missed you," Remus said after James gasped and placed his hand over his heart in mock offense.

"James, Sirius, it's great to see you again!" Mr. Lupin interrupted their reunion, beaming. "You didn't grow too bored over the summer, did you?"

"No, sir," they answered together, each throwing the other a brief glower as Mrs. Lupin turned their way, her hair bouncing.

"Were you talking about Quidditch just now?" she prodded. "I've only ever seen pictures of players in those wonderful moving photographs, but I've always wanted to see a game in action! Do you play?"

"Yeah," James answered, puffing out his chest. "I'm a Chaser!"

"What's it like?" she burst before catching herself. "Flying on a broomstick, that is. I can barely manage one in the kitchen, and I can't imagine trusting my weight to one of them."

"It's easy, really," James told her. "Of course, it helps with the kind of model you have. Mine's an Airwake!" When Mrs. Lupin did not react, James looked back and forth between her and Mr. Lupin as Remus stifled a laugh.

"An Airwake?" Mr. Lupin repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Why, that ought to fly like a dream!"

"It's like riding a cloud," James replied, recovering his excitement with a grin.

Mr. Lupin opened his mouth to reply, but he was stopped by the sudden appearance of Sirius' family just to the right. Halting at the sight of Sirius and the Potters, Mr. and Mrs. Black stood behind Regulus, their youngest son, whose black-haired head stood a few centimeters below his brother's. The Blacks all had the same dark complexion, and at the moment, they all shared the look of someone who was being forced to deal with an unruly horde of pixies.

"Ah, Orion! Walburga! You have perfect timing!" James' father greeted the Blacks. "The boys were just about to board!"

Harrumphing, Sirius began to pull his friends away until James' mother spoke and stopped him. "Have you met Lyall and Hope?" she asked the Blacks. "Their son is a good friend of Sirius'."

Staying put, James, Sirius, and Remus watched Mr. and Mrs. Black as they eyed the Lupins up and down. Dressed in impeccably-suited robes, they curled their lips at the sight of the Lupins' Muggle attire, and Mrs. Black turned up her nose as if having caught wind of a Dungbomb.

"How do you do," Mr. Black finally said, failing to extend his hand. Hardening their jaws, Remus' parents merely nodded back. Noticing the tension, James' father quickly tried to recover the situation by turning to the boys.

"You'd better run along," he told them. "The train will be leaving soon."

Turning to leave the situation, they had taken no more than three steps when Mrs. Black's loud voice cut through the air like a Severing Charm.

"They're not Muggles, are they?"

As Remus froze beside him, James spun around to witness the Blacks and Lupins staring each other down. Gaping, James' parents did not have time to react before Mr. Lupin bared his teeth.

"I am a wizard," he told the Blacks with the sort of slowness that comes before an animal's pounce, "and my wife is non-magical."

At this, Mr. and Mrs. Black recoiled even more, but Mr. Lupin held their gazes unflinchingly. Reaching up to grab his arm, Mrs. Lupin tried to get him to step away, but he did not move, and Regulus kept his eyes trained on his parents for their response.

"You would turn on your heritage like that?" Mrs. Black huffed, and the hair stood up on Mr. Lupin's head.

"Marrying a Muggle is not traitorous!"

"I guess that depends where you're coming from," Mr. Black sneered, eyeing the Lupins' clothing once again.

"What do you mean by that?" Mr. Lupin barked, clenching his fists. Neither one of the Blacks answered him, and a few tense moments passed until Sirius' mother finally straightened and snapped out a command.

"Regulus, Sirius, come along!" she nearly yelled over the bustling station. "You can't be late!" Having only completed a half-turn, she quickly spun back around when she realized that Sirius was not following her. "Sirius! What did I just tell you?"

"I'm getting on the train with my mates," Sirius told her, folding his arms as he remained rooted in place.

"Your mates?" she hissed back, making no attempt to lower her voice. "Sirius, we don't associate with blood traitors!"

Flushing a deep scarlet, Remus looked down while his mother barely managed to keep Mr. Lupin from jumping forward. Sirius' glare only intensified, and James, expecting Mrs. Black to shout another retort, started when his mother crossed her arms and beat everyone to a response.

"Blood traitors? Are your opinions really that outdated?" she asked Mrs. Black, making everyone turn towards her. "The Lupins are a respectable family, Walburga—much more, in fact, than yours seems to be." As Mrs. Black's jaw dropped, James' mother quickly turned to Sirius with a gentle smile. "Excepting you, dear, of course. I meant no offense."

Taking a big gulp of air, Mrs. Black prepared to snap back at her until James' father cut her off. "I'm afraid that I have to agree with Euphemia on this one," he told the Blacks evenly, the towering heights of Sirius' parents making him look like a Puffskein staring down two mountain trolls. "Now, if you don't mind, I should really ask you to leave before this escalates."

Glaring at him, Mrs. Black curled her lip and gestured for Sirius. "Come here now, Sirius. I don't want you around either of these families again."

"I'm not leaving, Mum!" Sirius answered, still standing immobile.

"Sirius, you will do as she says!" Mr. Black snarled, but Sirius lifted his chin.

"I'm not leaving!" he repeated, and James' father spoke again before his parents could retaliate.

"I don't think I've ever met anyone quite as stubborn as Sirius, and I doubt that you're going to make him comply. Besides, he's old enough to make his own decisions."

Grinding her teeth, Mrs. Black whirled on James' father with her black eyes ablaze. "Don't pretend to know anything about my son!"

"There's no need for them to leave. We'll do it ourselves," Mr. Lupin interjected, grabbing Remus' hand and pulling him away. "We shouldn't have to waste any more time."

"No, don't go!" James called out before the Lupins could storm off, running after them. "We'll come, too!"

Promptly joined by Sirius, James threw one last glance over his shoulder as Mrs. Black bristled. "Get back here this instant, Sirius!" she yelled, but they broke into a jog to catch up with the Lupins, leaving James' parents standing alone with the Blacks.

Hurrying along at a near-run beside Remus, James threw occasional glances at his friend, but he kept his eyes averted as Mr. Lupin tugged him along. Finally, the small party came to a stop near one of the train's back cars, and Mr. Lupin pulled his son in front of him to say goodbye.

"Are you able to get on from here?" Nodding, Remus did not look up, and Mrs. Lupin threw her husband a pleading look. Giving his best smile, Mr. Lupin patted Remus' shoulder before pushing him on his way. "We'll see you at Christmastime, all right?"

"Have a great first day, boys!" Mrs. Lupin told James and Sirius before she and her husband vanished farther down the platform. After waving awkwardly, James and Sirius turned towards the Hogwarts Express with Remus in silence.

When they started to pull their suitcases onto the train, James finally cleared his throat and faced Remus. "So, how was your summer?"

"Oh, it was fine enough," he answered, shrugging. "We changed neighborhoods once or twice, but it couldn't be helped. What did you do?"

"Eh, nothing much," James replied, not wanting to mention that most of his and Sirius' break had been occupied by Animagus-related research. "Are you ready for classes to start?"

"As much as I can be, I suppose," Remus responded as he waited for Sirius to board the train in front of him. "Do you think that we should look for Peter? The whistle's going to blow any minute."

"Call me a Seer, but I don't think that's going to be a problem," Sirius spoke up from inside the train, peering down the hallway. Beckoning to the others, he added, "I think that you'd better come with me."

Frowning, James leapt after Sirius while Remus climbed up behind them, and he soon spotted three of his least favorite people just a few compartments away. Cackling with his fellow Slytherins Mulciber and Avery, Sebastian Wilkes was standing over Peter's fallen form with the heel of his boot pressing against Peter's suitcase. Breaking into a run, James rushed towards the scene and pulled out his wand for good measure, brandishing it as his friends followed closely behind.

"Oh, look who's here: it's Potter the Pig-Headed and his group of misfits come to rescue their mate!" Wilkes announced when he caught sight of them, and he smirked at his Housemates with a turn of his blond head. "This day just keeps on getting better and better, doesn't it?"

"If you had any amount of intelligence in that thick skull of yours, you'd be running away by now," James retorted, sliding to a halt just a few paces away. "Let our mate up, or we'll make you wish that you had!"

Turning his head at the sound of James' voice, Peter looked up at him from the floor, breathing a sigh of relief as his curly hair flopped over his eyes. "James! You found me!"

"Shut up, Pettigrew!" Mulciber commanded, giving Peter's leg a sharp kick with his massive foot and silencing him.

"Should we find a prefect?" Remus asked James from behind, wiping his forehead after having dragged his suitcase all the way after his friends. "It'll probably be easier than starting a fight in the middle of the hallway."

"And what? Have them let Wilkes get off with a harsh word and the loss of a few House points?" James snapped over his shoulder. "I don't think so!" Glaring back at the Slytherins, he demanded, "Back away slowly, or we'll blow you out of the train before you can blink!"

"Do you honestly think that we're going to do as you say?" Wilkes snorted. "You're not nearly as important as you seem to think you are."

Reaching down, Wilkes flicked open the suitcase at his feet and pulled out one of Peter's silk nightshirts while James and Sirius raised their wands. Turning over the salmon-colored fabric, Wilkes wrinkled his nose as he ignored the threatening wands pointed his way.

"Who even wears these anymore?" he scoffed, peering through the shirt's neck opening to the other side. "It's like you raided your mum's panty drawer!"

"Put it down!" James commanded, and Wilkes tossed the shirt to Avery.

"Go ahead, Conway," he told him, and Avery ripped the nightshirt in half with a grin under his beak-like nose. Snarling, James and Sirius each took a step forward, but Wilkes looked over their shoulders with a smile and said, "I think that we've stalled for long enough. Now, Severus!"

"Look out, James!" Peter called out as all three of his friends turned around, but it was too late. Stepping out of a nearby compartment, Severus Snape blasted James' and Sirius' wands out of their hands and sent them and Remus flying into the wall with just two flicks of his wand.

"Expelliarmus! Adfigo Murus!" the greasy-haired boy cried, and James felt the train's wall adhere to him as his back slammed against it. No matter how hard he struggled, he could only move a few centimeters in any direction before the wall sucked him back into place, pinning him down. Eventually, he had to admit defeat, and he glared at Snape as the greasy-headed boy paced in front of his prey with a smirk.

"Way to stick it to them, Severus!" Avery praised, and James felt the train begin to chug forward as the whistle blew, signaling their departure. Fighting against the unyielding wall, Sirius clenched his teeth as the Slytherins stepped in front of them.

"You're going to regret this!" he growled, but Wilkes only laughed as he continued to struggle.

"It looks like Lupin left his suitcase lying around, too!" he pointed out, stalking towards the abandoned case where it sat on the floor. "Let's see what sort of clothes he wears to bed!"

Next to James, Remus's eyes widened. "No, don't open that!"

"Hiding something, Lupin?" Wilkes provoked over his shoulder as he reached down to unlatch the suitcase.

"No, you don't understand!" Remus insisted. "You really shouldn't—"

Ignoring him, Wilkes lifted the lid only to jump back as a ball of gray fur came barreling out of the suitcase, yowling as it leapt at his face. Remus' cat had grown almost twice as large since the last time that James had seen it, and Wilkes only narrowly avoided the slash that the mottled feline aimed at his nose by leaping backwards into Mulciber. Taking off as soon as it hit the ground, the cat was briefly chased by spells shot off by Snape and Avery until finally stopping at the end of the hallway, quivering in place.

"Now look what you've done!" Remus admonished Wilkes, shaking his head as he stared after his pet. "It took forever to get Mussmug in there!"

Snarling, Wilkes regained his balance by shoving off of Mulciber. "You rotten little prat, you could have told me!"

"Listening really doesn't seem to be your strongest quality," Remus muttered under his breath, but Wilkes overheard and bristled.

"You'll pay for that, Lupin!" he spat, pulling out his wand and marching up to the three Gryffindors stuck on the wall. "Severus, watch Pettigrew and make sure that he doesn't get away! Nigel, you get the mongrel!"

Obeying swiftly, Snape moved over to Peter and blocked his path to the other end of the hallway, guarding him with his wand at his chest. Although slower to comply after Mussmug's attack, Mulciber nevertheless took out his wand and stomped towards the cowering feline while Wilkes continued glaring at James and the others on the wall.

"Hurry up, Nigel! Stun it and bring it over here!"

Grunting with a nod, Mulciber lowered his wand at Mussmug and held it steady. "Petrificus Totalus!" he said, but Mussmug sprang aside as a white light blasted from the Slytherin's wand-tip, hissing as she continued to shake. Scowling, Mulciber repeated the spell, but Mussmug dashed between his legs and sprinted for the other end of the hallway. Before she could slip past, Avery caught the back of her frazzled neck before she and held her at a safe distance from his body as she spat and clawed the air.

"Throw it off of the train," Wilkes commanded, raising his wand to keep James, Sirius, and Remus motionless as Avery began walking towards the nearest window. However, before Avery could lift the glass pane, Frank Longbottom suddenly stepped into the hallway with Dill Stewart at his side. Relaxing slightly, James watched as Frank stopped in front of the Slytherins and scowled.

"Hold it right there, Avery," Frank announced, narrowing his eyes beneath his wildly curly brown hair. "I don't seem to recall you owning a cat."

"What's it to you, Longbottom?" Avery sneered, and Frank turned his glare towards Wilkes.

"What are you doing with my mates on the wall?" he demanded, and the Slytherins shared glances.

"None of your business," Wilkes answered in a clipped tone, eyeing Frank and Dill up and down.

Despite the circumstances, Dill smiled. "I'd let them down if I were you."

"And who's going to make me?" Wilkes mocked.

"Oh, let's not be daft," Dill replied, grinning as if attending a Sunday picnic. "You seem to be forgetting one very important thing."

"And what's that?" Snape spoke up, narrowing his black eyes.

"It's our fifth year now," Dill told him simply. "You know what that means." Confused, the Slytherins exchanged glances while Dill crossed his arms with a beam. "Chances are that one of us is now a prefect."

Freezing, the Slytherins watched as Frank tapped a shining badge on his chest that James had yet failed to notice. "That's right, and you four just earned an evening of detention."

"You can't do that!" Wilkes exclaimed as the others cried objections. "We aren't even at Hogwarts yet!"

"Even so, I don't think that Professor Slughorn will be too happy to hear you were causing trouble on the journey," Frank replied. "Now give me the cat, Avery, or I'll see if I can make it two evenings."

Grimacing, Avery dropped Mussmug into Frank's arms while Dill grinned down at Snape, who was at least a head shorter than him. "Your wand away, if you please. It might accidentally go off and catch Peter in the face."

Glaring at him, Snape pocketed his wand, and Dill stepped forward to tap the train's wall with his own. Instantly, James felt himself unstick from the wall, and he, Sirius, and Remus dropped free. Scratching Mussmug between the ears to calm her, Frank nodded towards the far door.

"Detention tonight. Don't forget," he told the Slytherins, who slowly ambled off with matching scowls. As they passed the newly-freed Gryffindors, James grinned at Remus.

"Maybe next time we really should find a prefect!" he said while Sirius turned a snarl on the Slytherins.

"We'll finish this later!" he spat, and Snape glared at him before slinking after the others.

Scrambling up from the floor with the help of Dill, Peter teetered to his feet and beamed at Frank. "Thanks for the help!" he told him. "I don't know what would've happened if you hadn't come!"

"A prefect now, eh?" James asked, studying the gleaming emblem on Frank's robes. "It sure feels nice to have friends in high places!"

"In all honesty, I'm not sure if I can convince Slughorn to go through with the detention, but he's a pretty fair bloke most of the time," Frank answered, shrugging with a smile. "At the very least, being a prefect will help with situations like these." Glancing at the floor, he asked, "Is your suitcase supposed to be open, Peter?"

Shaking his head, Peter bent down and picked up his torn shirt with a sigh. "This really was my mum's," he moaned. "I must have packed it by accident."

"No problem, I can ask our roommate Frederick to fix it!" Dill announced, taking the nightshirt from Peter and tossing it over one shoulder. "He's great with a wand." Grinning over at Frank, he asked, "Are you going to keep holding that all day, or what?"

Starting, Frank glanced down at his arms as Mussmug let out a raucous snore, fast asleep in his grasp. Holding his arms out, he offered the pile of dirty fur to James and his friends. "Er, which one of you does this belong to?"

"You can put her in here," Remus told him with a smile and a half-shrug, dragging his suitcase forward so that Frank could place Mussmug inside.

"Are you sure it's safe?" James inquired as Remus locked his suitcase gingerly, trying not wake the sleeping feline.

"She wasn't cooperating with her cage this morning," Remus replied, itching the back of his neck. "This was the only way I could think of taking her with me."

"Let's go find a compartment that can fit all of us," Frank piped up. "I was looking forward to a relaxing train ride, and Wilkes and his cohorts aren't going to ruin it for me."

Voicing their agreement, the others located an empty compartment and stayed together for the length of the journey, catching up and trading laughs until the Honeydukes Express stopped by. After filling their pockets with jumping, dancing, shrinking, yodeling, and exploding candies, the boys snacked until they finally reached Hogsmeade Station later that evening. All six of them journeyed to the Hogwarts castle in the horseless carriages waiting for the returning students, and James grinned at the sight of the familiar double doors leading into the Entrance Hall as he passed between them.

Walking ahead of him, his roommates headed into the Great Hall with Frank and Dill, sitting down at the Gryffindor table while the other students filed in. Thousands of stars shined from the ceiling, magically representing the night sky outside, and James nudged Sirius before pointing towards the High Table at Professor Slughorn. The golden-mustached wizard looked as if he had put on a few pounds over the summer, and he was chuckling with the much shorter Filius Flitwick, the Ravenclaw Head of House. Leaning over, Headmaster Dumbledore added a few words to their conversation, making both Slughorn and Flitwick laugh as they waited for the feast to begin.

After another minute or so, the Great Hall quieted as the first-years entered and took turns being placed into their Houses by the Sorting Hat, a tattered, pointed hat that had a tear on its brim like a mouth. Having sat through the ceremony in years before, James ignored most of it while he chatted with his friends, but he and Sirius looked up and laughed when an especially small student tripped on the way up to the Sorting Hat. Pausing mid-sentence, the tight-lipped Deputy Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, narrowed her eyes and gave him a cold stare down her spectacled nose as he recovered.

"Diggle, Dedalus," she finished, and the tiny student beamed up at her before donning the Sorting Hat. To the amusement of James, the Sorting Hat soon let the name "Gryffindor" ring around the Great Hall, and he and Sirius both whooped loudly as Diggle sauntered towards their table.

After the queue of first-years had finally dispersed, hundreds of platters filled the tables, and Diggle let out a strangled sort of delighted yelp before everyone began to eat ravenously. For the better part of an hour, James and his friends filled their stomachs with the best cuisine that Hogwarts had to offer, including mounds of scalloped potatoes, juicy slices of veal, and countless sugary snacks that doubled as decorations. Finally, after James' midriff ached from over-consumption, Dumbledore stood up from the High Table, his half-moon spectacles reflecting the faux starlight back at the students and concealing his eyes. Unable to read his expression, James simply rested with his chin in his hand as he listened to the Headmaster's annual address.

"Welcome to Hogwarts for the beginning of another school year! Before you all head off to the long-awaited warmth of your beds, I must ask you to welcome our two newest members of staff: Septima Vector, who will be taking over the Arithmancy position, and Perdix Aven, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor!"

Clapping with the rest of the Great Hall, James watched as a witch and wizard stood from the High Table and waved to the students. Professor Vector looked rather severe despite her youth, her tight jaw reminiscent of McGonagall's; however, unlike the Transfiguration professor, she allowed her thin black hair to travel all the way down to her waist. Standing beside her, Professor Aven wore his hair in a short ponytail, and he sported a pair of thinly-rimmed spectacles. Frowning, James squinted as he spotted a thin object that seemed to be stuck to the wizard's head, and as Professor Aven made to sit down again, James realized that he had a pencil inserted over one ear. Mildly impressed, James briefly wondered if he had used a Sticking Charm to keep it in place before Dumbledore gestured for attention again. Glancing down at his pocket, James pulled out his wand and placed it over his ear, releasing his hands slowly as Sirius turned to stare at him. To James' delight, his wand stayed in place.

"What are you doing?" Sirius asked.

"It stays!" James exclaimed with a grin, pointing at his ear, and Sirius shook his head as he turned back to Dumbledore, who had started speaking again.

". . . which Argus Filch will explain to anyone who still has questions. Now, you are all excused to your dormitories, and the first-years can refer to the prefects for directions after everything is finished."

Raising his finger, Diggle objected in a squeaky voice, "But who are our pre—"

Before he could finish, the other students in the Great Hall rose from their seats, the quiet chatter of the room soon escalating into a dull roar as everyone began to file towards the double doors. Looking to the side, James laughed as he spotted Sirius drop his wand at the sudden commotion, having been caught with it halfway to his ear. Frank began to gather Diggle and the other first-years, and James grouped with his roommates on the way out of the Great Hall.