Chapter Two: In the Beginning

"Oi! Watch it!" Mairi's father yelled over his shoulder as he pulled his little girl through the throngs of travelers adorning the walkways of Kings Cross Station.

"Dougal, we need to get her to the platform! We only have a few minutes!" Mairi shrunk down as far as she could, tilting her chin into her chest. To say that the blushing young girl was nervous would have been an understatement – she was undoubtedly, completely overwhelmed. Not only was she going to live away from her more than protective and involved parents, this was her first experience being in the city since she was a young orphan. It was nothing like she had imagined it. The people were fast talking, moving, and the opposite of polite.

She wanted more than anything to take in her surroundings and gawk openly at the splendor of such a large station but her nerves dictated her motion.

So, Mairi was dragged by her seemingly impatient parents without fuss, staying quiet.

She was still lost to her own thoughts that she didn't even notice when her father stopped.

"Alright. This is it."

Mairi looked up, keeping her chin tucked firmly at her chest.

Melanie crouched down and clucked her daughters chin playfully. "Hey, would you like us to go through the barrier with you?"

Mairi thought for a moment about what they had told her about boarding – it seemed easy enough to her. "No mum, I can do it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yep."

Melanie looked up to her husband and sighed. He merely shrugged his shoulders at her and winked.

"So, let's make on with it then. Cant have her missing the train now can we?" Dougal laughed out. His tone and demeanor had been light through the journey but his was as torn any other parent would be.

"You need to make a running start kiddo so you best step back and charge." Melanie said with a slight jab of her fist to emphasize.

Mairi moved back with her trolley and took a deep breath. She pushed off with all the strength she could muster and started the trolley moving.

Moving faster and faster toward the brick mass, Mairi felt a prickle of fear. Would she go through? Was this all even real?

She squeezed her eyes shut, ready to at any moment smash into the solid burgundy block.

The last thing she heard was the sound of her fathers beaming voice as she passed through the famed barrier. "You'll be fine love!"

x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x

After getting situated on the train, Mairi found a place to sit and stared out to the blurred scenery as they moved toward Hogwarts. She was alone, lucky to have found an empty compartment upon her entry through the platform. She closed her eyes and pictured her mother face, trying to memorize her features and smell. She had never been away from home, never been on a train, and never been a student. She felt so nervous that she was sure that her heart was going to explode in her chest from all the things she kept thinking of.

Would she be good at magic? Would she make any friends? So many questions were going through her head that she didn't even hear when the glass door to the compartment opened and two young boys entered.

"Hello?" One of the boys said the sound of which pulled Mairi out of her thoughts.

She turned and jumped, the proximity of the ginger haired boy startling her. He was looking at her as if she were some sort of specimen rather than a girl.

"Hello." She replied back, her eyes downcast and her blond locks falling down in front of her features.

"I'm Ron. This here is Harry." The boy now known to her as Ron said sweetly as she noticed the young boy behind him.

"I'm Mairi." She offered back with an outstretched hand. The boy took it and shook enthusiastically, while the other, known as Harry, was much more gentle and careful.

"So, what year are you?" Ron asked, trying to make conversation.

"This is my first year." Her voice was timid, unsure. This was the first time she had ever really talked to a boy.

"Brilliant! Do you hear that Harry, another first year! Harry and I are first years too, but I have three brothers that go here to." As Ron began to speak rapidly, Mairi tried her best to keep up. She kept her gaze downward, occasionally letting herself look up to the brown haired boy across from her. Once, as she looked up, he caught her eyes and held them. He smiled to her so warmly, making her feel a little more at ease, despite the blush that graced her pale cheeks.

After a while, things in the compartment became quiet. Ron sometimes spoke to Harry, but not often as they all began to tire from the duration of the ride. There was a mention though that caught Mairi's attention though, because Ron's reaction had been so excited.

"You're Harry Potter! Good grief mums going to go crazy when she finds out that she met you today and didn't even know it!"

"You're Harry Potter?" Mairi chimed in quietly, looking at the two of them for the first time without any hesitation.

"Yes." Harry said quite simply.

"My mum told the Headmaster that she would only be happy for me going to Hogwarts if Harry Potter was going this year too."

"Really, but why?" Harry asked quizzically.

"I don't know really, I think I heard her say something about you parents. Maybe they knew each other." Mairi said more excited than ever. She was almost bursting out of her seat with the emotion. She actually had some sort of connection to someone, even if it was a strange one.

"Are you kidding?" Ron joined in. "He's Harry Potter! They probably felt safer knowing you would be at a school with the boy who killed You Know Who." He said with a proud glance at his scarred friend.

"Who is 'You Know Who?'?" Mairi asked with an innocent tilt of her head and a furrowed brow.

"He's the most evil wizard who ever lived, and Harry here is the only one that was able to defeat him."

Mairi glanced at Harry questioningly. He merely shrugged and replied, "I was only a baby when t happened. I don't know much about it, I'm new to the wizard world."

"Me too, I just found out I was a witch a few weeks ago. My mum and dad are magical but they didn't tell me." Mairi offered. "How about you Ron?" She was gaining confidence around these boys. They were funny and made her laugh and they didn't seem to mind that she was a girl.

"My family is from the wizarding world, but my dad is obsessed with muggle artifacts."

"Muggle?" Mairi was confused by the word.

"It means non-magical." Harry supplied kindly.

"Oh. I guess there's a lot for me to learn huh?"

"Don't worry, we'll help." Ron offered with a smile. Harry smiled to and nodded, his green eyes sparkling.

The trolley came and went, giving them ample sweets to eat and enjoy. They talked and talked, Ron educating them on the wizarding world, Harry talking of his experiences in Diagon Alley, and Mairi talking of growing up on her small Scottish Isle.

Before long, a bush haired girl came in, clearly flustered. "Have you seen a frog? A boy named Neville seems to have lost him."

"Nope, I haven't seen a frog." Mairi said with a smile.

"My names Hermione Granger." She announced. She looked about the cabin, noticing that Ron had his wand out. He had just been about to show Harry and Mairi some magic when the confident young girl came in.

"Are you doing magic? Let's see then."

Ron looked wide eyed for a moment before uttering under his breath.

That was the day that Mairi's life changed forever. It was the day that she made friends.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x.

The sorting had been long, the dinner delicious. Mairi had never seen something so beautiful when she arrived at Hogwarts. It was large and illuminated by candles, beckoning all that came near it to come inside and explore.

All of her new friends had been sorted into the same house, the mighty and proud house of Gryffindor which made her extremely happy, knowing she wouldn't be alone.

That first year had been an adventure, Harry proving to everyone that he was worthy of his placement when he saved the Philosophers' Stone from the clutches of Professor Quirrell. He and Hermione and Ron had become an impenetrable trio, fighting trolls and studying together in the library.

Mairi was their friend but realized very early during the year that she was nowhere near special enough to be one of them. They were all so, well, interesting. They were friends of course, Hermione and Mairi being the closest. They spent a lot of time together seeing as they shared a dormitory, so it was natural for them to become close friends. Hermione loved Mairi because she could keep up with her, often challenging the young witches magically knowledge.

Mairi had a thirst for knowledge, often being asked why she wasn't a Ravenclaw. She would just shrug and get back to her work, undeterred for her search of the origin of every magical entity that she came across.

The four of them, Harry, Hermione, Ron and Mairi were all good friends. It was just that they were adventurers, often seeking action whereas the young blonde liked to stay in the shadows. (Even Hermione was an adventurer, though she maintained that the boys talked her into everything.) Mairi was happy to not be apart of the spot light that the three of them often found themselves in. Although every now and then she did feel a bit left out.

Their next year at Hogwarts was similar. Harry again became a known hero, saving Ron's little sister in the Chamber of Secrets. Each year had its excitement, and each year had its ups and downs.

But that was just the start for them and for Mairi. The real story, if you would like to call it that, began in their third year.

That was when everything changed.

Sorry this took so long…..but I know what I want to happen now so hopefully it shouldn't be so hard now. I needed to make an outline! (I never need to do that!)

I know this is short, but they should get longer as I get them to when they are older! That's when all the good stuff begins to happen!

Please review and give me the love I crave! (Or not, then I may just jump off a cliff!)

Peace!

Trisky