When twilight drops her curtain down
And pins it with a star,
Remember that you have a friend
Though she may wander far.
Lucy Maud Montgomery,
"A New Interest in Life"

They made it to Platform 9¾ with time to spare, just as Brit's father had predicted. With a quick wave to the adult Montgomerys, the three girls clambered onto the train and quickly laid siege to the first empty compartment they came across. Carla sat close to the window, keeping an eye out for their fourth friend, while Ry and Brit discussed something that sounded vaguely like a Chocolate Frog card exchange. Carla decided to tune them out.

She stared out of the window, her eyes following people as they passed. It was always easy to discern the first years from the other students. They always clung to their parents, worry and dread evident in their small eyes. Their parents were the ones that refused to stop crying, even as they smiled and waved to their departing child. It was hard, she supposed, to bear the initial separation. She recalled her own, remembering how during her first week of Hogwarts she'd cried herself to sleep as she lost herself in fits of homesickness. It was only for that first week, though, and then distraction helped to settle her nerves.

There were always exceptions to the norms, however. A pure-blooded, potential Slytherin first year, for example, would prance down the platform as if they owned the cement they stood on. Their parents trailed behind at a reasonable pace, their pride-filled eyes watching their child board the train. They didn't wave, only observed. Smugness oozed from their every pore until one had to restrain one's self from cracking them across the face just to see their reaction. And it was those first years who were the first to react to reality upon the train. If they came across a group of Gryffindor upperclassmen, it didn't take them long for them to learn that not everyone thought the world revolved around a single spoiled brat. Thus, the hatred for the opposing houses was born, and it was at Hogwarts in which it thrived and multiplied. It had potential to be amusing, but it was mainly aggravating.

A couple stopped in front of the window, breaking Carla from her thoughts. Both had heads of black, elegantly swept back off of their faces in styles that enhanced both appearances. Their skin was fair, the woman's touched with a dusting of freckles across her cheeks. Her eyes were a deep blue, a shade that made the oceans jealous. The man's were a rich brown, the kind that bring the image of chocolate to mind—which only enhanced Carla's craving for chocolate frogs. She groaned in her throat; one was never enough, especially if a person was cursed with a blasted sweet tooth.

Between the couple stood a young girl, a first year by the look of her. She shared the same hair color as her parents, only hers was cropped short with the ends brushing against her shoulders. A deep blue ribbon was tied just behind the girl's straight bangs and complimented her eyes. Her body was in that awkward stages all preteens go through—to their dismay—and her height only enhanced her gangly appearance. It was obvious that in a few years she would grow to be a beauty, and that made Carla just a little jealous.

The two adults knelt down next to their kin and wrapped their arms around her simultaneously. Engulfed, her arms could barely wrap around her parents' necks to return the hug, joy written across her face. It was apparent how much love was shared within this family, and it made Carla just a little uncomfortable. She felt as though she were a Peeping Tom, a voyeur witnessing an event she had no business in witnessing. God help her, but she couldn't pull her eyes away.

That was the kind of relationship she longed for. Oh, sure, her family wasn't bad. It could definitely be worse, and for that she was grateful. Still, there was always room for improvement. The only time her parents had accompanied her to Platform 9 ¾ was the September before her first year at Hogwarts. Her father hadn't wanted to come, claiming he had pressing business to take care of and that Carla's mother was more than capable of escorting her to the train. However, she'd thrown a fit that day, locked herself in her room and threatened to jump out of her window if they so much as mentioned her leaving again. It had taken her father's booming voice to coerce her out of her room, and he'd been forced to—grudgingly—take her to the train station. It was a trip she'd gladly like to forget, the tension so high she could barely breathe. She knew her behavior was highly childish, but she had still been a child and was afraid of leaving home for the first time.

Never again had they accompanied her. They rarely wrote to her at Hogwarts, only on her birthday and any other holiday they deemed important. Naturally, she did the same. At first, the separation was hard to deal with, especially with the lack of communication. Eventually she got used to it and almost grateful for it. She'd seen some of her other friends get letters everyday, heard them groan over a reprimand after they'd accidentally let something slip that they shouldn't have. Without her parents writing her every week, it was easier to not talk about things… hide things. Not that she had anything to hide; Carla was a good student who typically followed the rules.

A sharp shrill filtered in through the window, causing her to jump a little. The family outside was equally startled as all three glanced towards the front of the train. It was nearing time to go, Carla knew, not that it was hard to discern. The little girl's eyes welded up with tears, and her arms tightened around her parents. She was the kind of girl who would get bunches of letters from her parents, and she was also the kind who would cry herself to sleep for the first week; Carla could see it now. The woman pressed a smacking kiss against the girl's cheek and shoved her towards the train. Her father gave her another encouraging shove when the girl hesitated, causing her to slip from view. When the couple stood, Carla presumed the girl had finally made it on the train. The tears were falling down the woman's cheeks now as the man held his back. Carla's heart caught as she once again felt like the worst kind of voyeur.

"What are you staring at, Carla?" a voice asked from behind her. Carla whipped her head around and found that both of her friends were watching her intently. She felt her cheeks heat up uncontrollably as she averted her gaze back towards the window. The couple still stood there, their arms wrapped around each other. Both were waving excitedly now as huge grins split across their faces.

"I wasn't staring at anything," Carla told her friends distractedly. "I was thinking."

"Well, snap out of it, okay? You still have a few hours before you have to concentrate that hard," Ry said with a shudder as she turned back in her seat. With a roll of her eyes, Carla turned her face away from the train station and focused on the two girls in the compartment.

Both Brit and Ry had a stack of Chocolate Frog cards out next to them and were diligently sorting through them. Brit, having quickly recovered from Ry's intervention of Carla's concentration, had her bottom lip caught between her teeth, her eyes squinting as she shifted through her cards. Ry, on the other hand, was grinning eagerly, constantly switching her gaze between the card she held in front of her to Brit's face. It was all Carla could do to stifle her groan; once they started a trading session, it would be hours before the two thought of anything else.

"Why is it that I never have the card you want?" Brit asked finally, exasperated. She set her cards in organized stacks on the seat next to her, shaking her head. "I have plenty of Circes, Dumbledores, and Morganas, but no Cliodnas."

"Nor Ptolemys!" Ry said in a sing-song voice as she waved the card she'd been holding.

Brit glared at her. "Nor do I have any Ptolemys," she said grudgingly.

"Got any Merlins?" a voice drawled from their compartment entrance. All three girls looked up simultaneously at the intruder, their shoulders tense. It took no more than a split second for the group to recognize the person, and grins broke out all around.

"El!" Ry shouted and jumped up to engulf her friend in a giant hug, similar to the one she'd subjected Carla to earlier. Ellen Matthews, or El as she is known to her closest friends, was shorter than Ry by a few inches. Her short, layered black hair rested gently against her collarbone—or as gently as Ry's embrace allowed it to. Her bangs were parted asymmetrically and concealed her left eye. El's gray eyes blinked rapidly, startled by the attack, but her lips gave into a broad smile.

"I've missed you! What's new?" Ry released her and returned to her seat. El leaned against the compartment door.

"I saw you two months ago; nothing's changed, trust me," she said, amused.

"Everything constantly changes," Ry returned. "And what's this about having Merlins? I thought you had a ton of them?"

"I did, but… they went to a better cause." She let out a long sigh and folded her arms. "Suffice it to say that I no longer have any."

"See, that changed! But you've come to the right place as I happen to have plenty." Ry picked up her cards and shuffled them into a neat pile in her hands. "Take a seat, and let the trading begin!"

"Who's your shadow?" Brit asked, her attention riveted on a spot behind El.

"Oh!" El exclaimed, pushing away from the doorjamb. She reached behind her and gently pulled forward a young girl. Carla gasped; it was the girl she'd watched on the train dock. She couldn't fight back a grin. "This is Jacqueline Mallory."

"What's up, Jack?" Ry said with a grin.

El smiled. "I've been babysitting her over the summer for the past few years. Her parents are Muggles, but it turns out she's slightly more than average." El gave her a swift squeeze around her shoulders. The girl looked up at her and returned her grin. "They weren't too comfortable finding out my special abilities, either, but I won them over. Anyway, I promised her family I'd watch out for her seeing as she's unfamiliar with the whole magic thing. D'you think you three can help me out?"

Carla nodded without hesitation. What's another friend? It'd distract her from her friend's trading antics, anyway. Ry, on the other hand, let out an exaggerated sigh, and said, "If I have to, I guess I can."

"I knew I could count on you!" El hastily made the introductions and situated Jacqueline in the empty spot between Carla and Brit before she quickly dug into her pocket and brought out her own stack of trading cards. The trading back on, Carla let her attention drift to Jacqueline.

She sat stiffly, her head bent down. Her hands were wringing in her lap as she fidgeted nervously. Carla smiled sympathetically and leaned down close to her ear. "Nervous?" she said quietly.

Jacqueline jumped, startled, and looked up at Carla. She nodded, catching her bottom lip in her teeth. Her eyes were wide, and her cheeks were pale. For once, Carla was grateful for her parents' knowledge on Hogwarts. She'd been forewarned, therefore forearmed. Carla was sure El had informed her of everything she'd needed to know, but she was still left facing the unknown.

"Don't be nervous; you're amongst friends now." Carla gave her a smile. The girl shyly returned the smile as she stuffed her hands beneath her legs. "Nothing bad can happen to you, promise."

Famous last words if Carla had ever heard any.