Ugh. This chapter did not want to get written. I blame it on the holidays. They suck. Also, I'm tired of going through and adding in indents when they don't copy over so screw it, there just won't be indents anymore. Huzzah.

By the way, I do not own Harry Potter or anything that you may recognize from another source within this story. Harry Potter is the property of the lovely J K Rowling, and I will never stop being grateful for the wonderful world and characters she created.

September 1st, 1973

"Mum, stop!"

"Oh James, calm down. You've just got a bit-"

"Muuuum!" With exasperated huff, Mrs. Dorea Potter stepped back from her son and lowered the cloth she'd been rubbing against his face.

"Excuse me for trying to be the doting mother," she said, but she had a wide smile on her face and James knew she wasn't actually upset. "Now you're all packed? Robes, books, toothbrush? And plenty of pants?"

"Yes, Mum!" James cast a furtive look around, hoping that no one was overhearing. "You double checked last night, and again this morning."

"Oh alright" She leaned forward and pulled James into a tight hug. He stepped back after a moment and turned towards his father.

"Remember to owl us," his father said, leaning forward for his own hug and James heard the jingle of coins landing in his pocket. His father stepped back, and gave James a wink while wrapping an arm around his mother's shoulders. "We'll let you know about Christmas when we're a bit closer."

"Thanks Dad," James said and turned towards the steaming train. "Bye!" he called with one last wave. His parents waved back and then headed back towards the barrier to Kings Cross. James hefted his bag a bit higher on his shoulder and made for where he was sure he'd caught a glimpse of Sirius when he and his father had been loading his trunk.

James hadn't heard from Sirius since the beginning of August, but from his last letter he seemed to be doing well. Apparently he'd been shipped off to his Uncle Alphard's, but Sirius had said that it was loads better than being at home. James just hoped he'd been able to have at least a halfway decent summer. Sirius never said anything, but James suspected his home life was far from ideal. The dread on Sirius' face on the train ride home last June proved that more than anything.

James dodged around several families and as a large woman in florescent green robes moved aside, he could see his friend next to a tall man in fine robes and hair the same inky shade of black as Sirius'. James hurried over and as he came closer he could hear the older man seemingly lecturing Sirius while handing him what looked like a large coin purse.

"-managed to get your mother to sign your permission slip for Hogsmeade. Don't spend it all at once, and for Merlin's sake, answer your mother when she writes to you," said the man, pulling Sirius in for a short hug. Sirius pulled back after a brief moment, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Sirius!" James called, raising a hand in greeting. Sirius spun around, his face lighting up when his eyes landed on James. He stepped forward to meet James and pulled him in for a rough hug, the purse slapping into James' back with a heavy thud.

"Alright, mate?" he said, stepping back. James nodded and repeated the question back to Sirius, though he could already see how much better he looked than he had last September. There was no drawn look to his face, and he didn't look as though he'd lost any weight. In fact, Sirius looked healthier than James had ever seen him.

"Fantastic, actually," Sirius replied with a grin. He drew a breath to no doubt launch into an explanation, but a throat being cleared interrupted him. The two teens turned to see the man from before, standing with his arms crossed loosely over his chest and a look of wry amusement on his face.

"Are you going to introduce me, nephew?" he said. Sirius grinned up at him unabashedly.

"Right, right. Uncle, this is James Potter," he said, waving an arm in James' direction. James just barely remembered himself in time and quickly grasped the man's hand when he held it out for a shake. "James, this is my Uncle Alphard."

"It's nice to finally meet you, James," Alphard said, "I've heard a lot about you."

"Only good things, I hope," James replied, shooting a look at Sirius. He was distracted when Alphard leaned forward suddenly and rested a hand on his head. They locked eyes for a moment, and then Alphard stepped back with a sardonic smile.

"You'll have to excuse me, James. You just remind me of your mother," he said.

James blinked and shared a confused look with Sirius. "My mum, sir?"

"Oh yes. You have her smile," Alphard said, and then when they continued to look confused, moved to explain. "Your mother, before she married your father, was a Black." James had known that already but found himself surprised by Alphard's next words. "She's my aunt, though we're close enough in age we were more like cousins. I spent many summers with her at Grimmauld Place causing trouble, especially for your mother, Sirius."

After a moment of silence, where James stared up at Alphard in surprise, Sirius spoke. "So wait, if James' mum is your aunt, then that means James and I are, what… second cousins?"

"First cousins, once removed actually," Alphard clarified. James and Sirius stared at each other for a moment before wide smiles appeared on both of their faces.

"Wicked," they said together, causing Alphard to give a huff of laughter. The three chatted for a few more minutes before the warning whistle from the train interrupted them.

"You two better be off," Alphard said, nodding towards the train. "It was nice meeting you, James."

"You too, sir," James replied, resituating his shoulder bag as Sirius gave one last hug to his uncle. Alphard turned towards the barrier, and James and Sirius made their way to the front of the train, fighting past the crowds of parents.

"Do you reckon Remus and Peter are already on the train?" Sirius said as they clambered aboard. James opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by a voice from around the corner.

"Yes, we are actually." James and Sirius turned to find Remus and Peter, both wearing large smiles and carrying their bags. Sirius pushed past James to throw his arms around them, which resulted in all three of them slamming against the opposite wall. Amidst Remus loud complaints and Peter helpless giggling, James could hear the last whistle blowing and irritated grumbles from the doorway behind him.

"Alright, let's go," James said, yanking Sirius back and shoving him none too gently towards an empty looking compartment. Peter followed, still snickering, and after a moment to hike up his bag and straighten his clothes, Remus did as well.

"Oi, move it up there!"

"Yeah yeah, keep your hair on!" James called back, following his friends. He found them clustered around the outside of the compartment having what looked like a whispered argument. "What's the hold up?"

Sirius nodded his head sharply towards the inside of the compartment and when James peered inside, he could see it wasn't as empty as he'd thought. Inside sat Hadrian Moores, head propped on his fist as he stared out the window.

"There isn't an empty one, Peter and I already checked!" Remus was whispering fiercely.

"But with Moores? Really?" Sirius said, making a face. Peter glanced apprehensively at James and then took a breath to speak.

"I don't think he'll mind, Sirius," he said hesitantly.

Sirius shot a dark look at Peter. "That's not what I'm worried about," he said, and then rolled his eyes when Remus glared at him and then glanced pointedly behind James where a line of disgruntled students had formed. Sirius followed his gaze and then looked at James, who just shrugged.

"Fine," Sirius snapped, and slid the door open with a loud crack. Inside, Moores jumped at the sound and then stared at them in surprise as they filled inside. "Sorry, Moores, looks like you're sharing with us," Sirius said, without a hint of apology in his tone.

"Er- No, that's fine," Moores said, scooting over as Peter dropped down next to him. His auburn hair was longer than it had been in June and James watched as he flattened his fringe against his forehead, made a face, and then brushed it out of his eyes.

After a bit of shuffling, James ended up next to Sirius, who sat across from Moores, with Remus on his other side. An awkward silence descended on the group as the train left the station, punctuated by Sirius staring moodily out the window and Moores glancing uncertainly between them and the scenery outside. James shared a look with Peter, who looked extremely uncomfortable, and then jumped as Remus suddenly cleared his throat.

"How was your summer, Hadrian?" he said, pointedly ignoring the strained atmosphere. Moores glanced at Sirius and then resolutely turned towards Remus.

"Not bad. How was yours?" he said. Remus responded and the two struck up a conversation that James mostly tuned out. Moore's didn't seem like that bad of a guy, but this certainly wasn't how James wanted to spend the next eight hours. Beside him, Sirius was still doggedly staring out the window and trying to appear as though he was ignoring all of them, but James could see the way his fist was gripping his trouser leg and knew he was listening.

As long as James had known him, Sirius had always been passionate. He threw himself whole-heartedly into everything he did, and that included disliking someone. He could also hold quite hold a grudge, although surprisingly he wasn't the worst about such things in their group. That dubious honor went to Remus, as James had found out in their first year when he'd transfigured all of Remus' underwear to be bright pink and frilly. Remus hadn't spoken to James for a week, and James had found all of his robes had been spelled to smell of bacon. It was nice at first, but as the days wore on and James couldn't find a way to stop it, it had grown more and more nauseating.

James was brought back to the present when Remus jabbed him sharply in the side. "Ow! What?!"

"I was asking you whether your parents were in Gryffindor," Remus said, lowering his absurdly pointy elbow. James glowered at him and rubbed his side.

"My dad was," he said after a moment, sitting up straight with a wince. "Mum was actually in Slytherin." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Moores look up sharply.

"Really?" Remus asked, surprised.

"Yeah, though she said she only went for Slytherin because of her parents. The Sorting Hat was also considering Ravenclaw," James replied. He felt Sirius sit up a bit at that and when James looked over he saw him staring at the floor contemplatively.

"I almost did the same thing," Sirius said slowly and James saw the other three look over, surprise clear on their faces. "But the hat decided on Gryffindor. It said I showed a lot of bravery for 'sticking to my morals and defying my family', or something."

"Well there you go. Clearly, you're the white sheep of the Black family," James said, bumping his shoulder with Sirius teasingly. Sirius grinned back gratefully and then his eyes cut over to Moores.

"What about you, Moores? I thought I saw you talking back to the hat when you were being sorted," he said after a moment. Moores blinked, clearly taken aback and then shrugged uncertainly.

"It was a bit confused when it was going through my head," he said, tapping one of his temples. James looked around and judging by the looks on the others faces he wasn't alone in his confusion. Moores sighed and then his lips twisted into a self-depreciative smile.

"I have amnesia," he explained and James felt his eyebrows shoot up. "I have no memory of anything earlier than the summer before last." James opened his mouth, and then closed it again when he couldn't think of anything to say. Peter however, didn't seem to have this problem.

"Was it a Memory Charm?" he said, and then flinched when Remus swatted his knee. "What?! I'm just asking!"

"Sorry, Hadrian," Remus apologized, but Moores waved him off.

"It's fine," he said. "And no Peter, it wasn't. I was checked out at St. Mungos, but they couldn't find anything." Remus opened his mouth, eyebrows furrowed, but Moores went on. "They don't think it was any sort of potion either."

"What about your parents? Do they have any idea?" Sirius said suddenly. When Moores didn't answer for a moment, James glanced over and saw that he was shifting uncomfortably. The silence went on for another moment before Moores shrugged one shoulder and took a deep breath.

"I don't have parents," he said and James wanted to kick Sirius, hard. "Or if I do, I don't know who or where they are. I was found alone, and so far we don't know where I came from."

It took a long while for anyone to think of something to say after that.