"Daddy?" Lizzie woke up in the compartment, and her father was gone, but there were three students there instead. They looked rattled, particularly the boy with dark hair. "Where did my father go?"
The girl extended a hand. "My name is Hermione. Your father is Professor Lupin?" Lizzie nodded and shook the hand. "He'll be back, he's just gone to see the driver. This is Ron and Harry. Are you all right?"
Lizzie nodded. "What happened?"
Hermione sat beside the little girl, saying, "Dementors came on board."
"Oh," Lizzie responded. "Looking for Black. Yes, I'm glad I was asleep then. I hate those things."
Hermione blinked for a moment. Lizzie had seen this look many times before, from those who had never met her before. They usually took on a confused face before recovering and beginning to speak to her without the sickly sweet tone most children are privy to. Hermione recovered rather quickly. Quicker than most. She cleared her throat a little, saying, "Yes, well they're gone now. I didn't catch your name."
"Elizabeth," Lizzie responded. "But you can call me Lizzie. Everyone does."
Ron, who was resting comfortably again and shoving chocolate into his mouth said through puffing cheeks, "So your mum was okay with your dad bringing you all the way here to school was she?"
"She's dead."
The tone was so flat Ron stopped chewing for a moment. Lizzie didn't like talking about her mother. And for good reason. Her father never pressed her to talk to anyone about the matter, though sometimes she got the feeling he thought she should, to someone. Maybe if there had been family around. For the longest tie it had only been the two of them. Now it seemed she had relatives in spades. Lizzie turned to the dark haired boy, Harry and said, "You're Harry Potter aren't you?"
Harry nodded. Lizzie smiled and added, "Nice to meet you." Directly following this, Lizzie began smoothing down her burgundy hair, clearly not a trait of her fair haired father, and turned to Hermione asking, "I don't suppose you have a hairbrush?"
When Remus returned he saw his daughter sitting in front of the frizzy haired girl who was brushing the young child's hair and the boys amicably chatting with his daughter. At this sight, Remus smiled, saying, "Well Lizzie, you seem to have met your new friends. These are the third years you'll be taking lessons with this year."
"Lessons?" Hermione asked. "She's a student?"
"I finished years one and two at home. We had to start early because I'm too dangerous to leave untrained."
The remainder of the ride was quieter. Apparently the three of them had never met an actual prodigal child before. Now they were about to get a crash course.