I remember the way the door to the compartment easily slid open and shut.

I sidled in, not looking into its contents, instead focusing on dragging my many trunks inside. I slammed the door shut, grunting profanities to myself. First my mother embarrassed me in front of all the rest of the first years, kissing me on the cheek. Santana Lopez doesn't show affection. Santana Lopez doesn't show emotion. I had a reputation to withhold, and she didn't seem to understand.

Why did I pack so much? Clothes, candy, and my screech owl weighed down my trunks, piercing my back with pain.

Shoving my trunks off to the side, I forcefully fell down onto a booth. Straightening myself up, my eyes flickered upward, and my heart dropped to realize that I wasn't alone in the compartment as I had hoped.

There was a girl sitting across from me. Her bright blue eyes stared at me warily, her hands folded calmly on her lap. She raised her eyebrows, "Nice to meet you too."

I made strong eye contact with her, to prove that I wasn't a weakling. I stared at her in a way that I hoped was intimidating, before reaching into my trunk and pulling out my copy of "Witches and Ways".

After a couple of minutes in silence, me absorbed in my book and the girl glancing from the window to me, the window to me, she spoke in a steady voice. "Witches and Ways. That's a good book. One of my favorites actually."

I looked up. She was smiling at me, a soft smile that made my heart purr. I ignored the purr and rolled my eyes, "Nobody asked your opinion".

"I just thought I would share." The girl was still smiling that stupidly sugary smile of hers, staring out the sunny window, "I think its an amazing love story. How Jane and Adam would do anything for one another, no matter what anyone else says. How Adam's mother says that if he marries poor Jane, he would no longer be her son. Adam is so in love that he does it anyway, and runs off with Jane."

The girl turned to me. Her electric eyes stared deep into my own, making me uncomfortable. "That's the kind of fairytale love story I've always dreamed of."

I swallowed hard, trying to break free from that captivating blue gaze, "Yeah, it's an okay love story I guess."

We stared at each other for a few moments. It was hard to be so cruel when this girl was trying to be so friendly. She was very pretty too, like Cinderella with those blue eyes and her perfect blond hair. She looked like one of my fellow first years. Glancing shyly at me, she extended her hand. "Hey," She whispered, "I'm Brittany."

I didn't smile, but I didn't frown. I made firm eye contact and shook her hand, "Santana."

The train ride seemed to go by very quickly after that.

I wouldn't say that Brittany and I became friends. We knew each other, and we liked each other, but were we friends?

"I plan on being sorted into Hufflepuff." Brittany announced, lying back in her booth, surrounding by the candy that we had just bought, "After all my entire wizard family has been Hufflepuffs. My mum says its because we are so hardworking. Its in our blood to work hard, do well, be nice to people. Plus friendship is so important to me, and that's a trait of a Hufflepuff isn't it?"

My heart sank a little. Brittany is the first person I have ever met that will be in my year at Hogwarts. I can't deny that I had a little spark of hope inside of me, hoping that she would be sorted into my house.

"Really." I didn't make eye contact with her and pretended to be very interested in scavenging the last of my Bertie Bott's Beans from the bottom of the box, "I expect I'll be in Slytherin."

"Slytherin?" Brittany stopped chewing on her candy and froze, "Do you want to be in Slytherin?"

"Yeah." I pretended like I was surprised that she didn't want to be in Slytherin, "Isn't that where they throw the best parties and the boys are the hottest? Who wouldn't want to be there?"

"I don't know." Brittany shrugged but eyed me reproachfully.

"Besides," I said smugly, pleased with her taken-aback reaction, "My family is a long line of Slytherins. We are the worst kids Slytherin House ever got. My oldest brother Javier was famous for his pranking...and lets just say he did a lot of it. My mom has never gotten over some of the things he did. There's nothing wrong with our family, we just appreciate a good party right?"

"Oh."

We had just begun to finish up our candy when the voice came over the speakers, announcing that the Hogwarts Express was about to pull into the Station. We were at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry at last.

Brittany and I pulled on our robes. I pretended not to notice how slender and graceful Brittany was with her petite body and those delicately long legs. She caught me staring at her as she pulled her Hogwarts skirt on, and gave me an odd little smile. I pretended like I was never looking.

We sat facing each other, just like when we had met. Our trunks were pulled up on either side of us. We sat in silence, until the voice ordered us to file neatly of the train and onto the platform where we will be given further instructions. Brittany glanced at me, an almost sad expression on her face. "Well, I hope to see you later Santana Lopez."

I didn't want to stay goodbye to her. I had become strangely fond of this girl, who I didn't know whether or not to call a friend. Santana Lopez is better at making enemies than friends. I swallowed, finding it slightly difficult to, and said simply, "See you later."

"I don't know." Brittany muttered as I followed her out of the compartment, "I think you're too nice to be a Slytherin."

There it was again. The purr in my heart.