Chapter One
Teddy Lupin was bored.
The members of his compartment, his friends Arty Thomas and Aidan Finnegan, had apparently stayed up very late the night before, and now were both fast asleep. As the Hogwarts Express whizzed through green fields, Teddy wished they would wake up. He was getting tired of playing with his hair, changing it from green to purple to blonde.
Teddy had spent most of the summer staying in the home of Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister of Magic. Because both of his parents had died in the Battle of Hogwarts, Teddy was cycled between ex-members of the Order of the Phoenix whenever he wasn't at Hogwarts.
His favorite by far was when he stayed with "Uncle" Harry and "Aunt" Ginny, but with seven-year-old James, five-year-old Albus, and three-year-old Lily, the Potters had their hands full. So Teddy has spent his summer with the Minister of Magic—or rather, with the Minister of Magic's sixty-year-old maid, Loretta, who smelled like garlic and was afraid that Teddy's metamorphosing was a sign of evil in his future. It had not been a great summer.
Now, when he finally had the company of people his own age, they were asleep.
Teddy got to his feet. He would go find someone else, he decided. He set off down the train, peering in each compartment. Each one was full of people, but he didn't see anyone he knew particularly well. He reached the last compartment in that section, and to his surprise, saw that just one person was sitting inside.
He couldn't resist watching her for a moment.
It was strange, he thought. She was all by herself, and yet she did not look lonely in the slightest. Her silvery-blonde hair was thrown back over her shoulders, her clear blue eyes gazing intently at the book she was reading.
She looked familiar, but Teddy couldn't place her. He decided that he might as well go in and pulled open the sliding door.
She looked up, surprised, and Teddy could immediately tell that she had recognized him, too.
"Hi," he said. "I'm Teddy."
"Victoire," she said, and suddenly, he remembered.
"Victoire!" he exclaimed. "You're James and Albus and Lily's cousin! They have a picture of you on their refrigerator."
"They have a picture of you, too," grinned Victoire. "Only in that one, your hair is green."
Teddy laughed. "You're a first year, right?"
"Yes," said Victoire. "And you're a second year."
Teddy nodded. He was about to say something else when the train began to slow down.
Victoire jumped up and looked out the window. "We're here!" she exclaimed.
Teddy grinned. "Ready to be sorted?"
Victoire did not look even slightly nervous. "Definitely," she said, grabbing her trunk.
"See you later," said Teddy.
"Bye," said Victoire.
Teddy walked quickly back towards his own compartment. He did not want to be late. For some reason, he thought this might be an interesting Sorting.
AN: Thanks for reading! I usually wait until I get a few reviews until I post the next chapter, so let me know what you think!