Sirius scowled under his breath as his mother urgently nudged him forward.

"Come on now Sirius, I don't have all day." She said with annoyance. Sirius had heard from his cousins and other Black family members that he'd have to run through a wall in order to get to Platform 9 3/4, but now as he stared at the solid brick, he couldn't help but be skeptical. He wasn't entirely sure if his cousins had tricked him in some way. He certainly wouldn't put it past them.

"For Merlin's sake, would you get going? I have to meet your father before work." Mrs. Black yelled from behind him, giving him another rough shove forward.

Not willing to test the boundaries of his mother's patience any longer, Sirius quickly closed his eyes, ran forward, and disappeared before he had a chance to think about what he was doing. Realizing that the smack of brick against his face never came as he'd anticipated, Sirius opened his eyes only to catch his breath in astonishment at where the run had taken him.

The sight of smoke, bustling people, and laughing children caught his attention as a giant red train sat idle on the tracks. Steam spewed from underneath it, giving the impression that it was anxious and growing impatient for it's journey. Sirius watched star-struck as older wizards in uniforms guided clueless school children onto the shiny locomotive. The dark and dreary house of Grimmaulds seemed to be in pitiful comparison to the magnificence of the place in front of him. He stood in his stupor, his eyes eagerly dancing across the unknown place.

When his letter came from Hogwarts, his parents had almost immediately sat him down to relay the importance of a good and productive first year. They made their opinions known on whom they thought Sirius should associate with, whom he shouldn't, which teachers he should gain the confidence of, and which professors were worthless in connections. The entire summer of conversations leading up to his inevitable departure had Sirius dreading this very day. Hogwarts' introduction meant that Sirius was finally going to have to take on the responsibilities that came with the Black name, something that he'd taken strenuous lengths to avoid over the years. It all seemed highly inconvenient for him.

But now, looking at his surrounding area, he felt a strange shift in his mood. Hard pressed, he wouldn't have been able to tell anyone what it was about the train station that made him feel so differently, only that the atmosphere seemed to be overwhelmingly full of life, energy, and somehow warming his entire body with preposterous promises of new beginnings. He smiled mischievously, as he truly new no other way of expression.

"Move along now, there are people behind us Sirius." His mother said curtly.

He jumped, not realizing that his mother had already followed through behind him. Gathering himself, Sirius made his way quickly towards the train, practically bubbling with energy at the discovery of these new feelings.

"Sirius, I don't want to hear of any nonsense, do you hear me? If I get one word of you acting up, you're coming home immediately and will be privately tutored for the rest of your days. Do you understand?"

Sirius was only paying half attention as he continued to glance around, walking quickly towards salvation from his mother's rant.

"Sirius! Did you hear me?" his mother cried at him.

"Yes, mother." He said obediently, a childhood instinct. He felt a grip on his arm as she angrily yanked him backwards, squeezing his arm tight as she forced him to turn around and meet her eyes.

"You better have," she whispered hoarsely. "This isn't home, where all you get is a scolding. This is the start of you becoming a man, like your father."

It took almost all of him not to roll his eyes. Sirius silently mourned the poor souls who would aspire to such a grim existence.

His mother glared at him sternly, as if to make sure her point was clear. Proper upbringing had taught him long ago to keep his comments to himself when they were outside of Grimmaulds. Public displays of disobedience were never worth the punishments that followed them when they returned home. A moment passed and finally satisfied with his silence, Mrs. Black let go and straightened herself up. She gave him one last glance as if to see if he was presentable enough to board the train.

"Make sure you watch out for the blood traitors, too. Narissa should be on the train by now, find her and I'm sure she'll show you around."

"Great." Sirius answered sarcastically. He was sure he'd do the exact opposite, but nodded solemnly to his mother, reassuring her.

She stood still for a moment and looked down on him as if waiting for something. Sirius wasn't sure what he should do. He knew his mother wasn't one for intimate contact but for some reason it seemed like he should hug her. All the other families around him seemed to be pulling each other closely quite liberally. He hesitated, afraid that if he did try to hold her she'd scold him for foolish behavior.

"Well?" She scowled down at him, "Are you getting on the train or not boy?"

Having secured his answer, Sirius picked up his bag and boarded on the nearest train cart. When he turned around to wave good-bye to his mother, he found that she had already walked away, loss in the mass of people still on the platform. He should've probably felt some sting of remorse at the obvious neglect, but instead another grin took form on his face.

XxxxX

"Mum, please." Remus begged as his mother continued to pull and tug at his jacket. He lightly tried to swat her hand away, but she was insistent in her task. He looked over to his father as a desperate plea for help, but the man merely shrugged back with unease.

Mr. Lupin stood rather slumped next to his wife and child, worry written into the tight close of his mouth and wrinkles of his eyes. It had taken Dumbledore five visits, and countless fights between the family before Mr. Lupin relented in allowing his only son entry to Hogwarts. Now the tall man fidgeted nervously, his hands stuffed into his trousers' pockets while glancing around the train station for any signs that some one had recognized him, or somehow connected his family with the horror story that read in the Daily Prophet years ago.

"Be a good boy Remus. No trouble okay?" Mrs. Lupin preached as she wrestled lightly with her son. "Dumbledores' been very accommodating and you should never be ungrateful for it."

"Yes, mum." Remus said, giving her a look of utter exhaustion.

She finished fastening the buttons of his jacket and took a hold of his shoulders, realizing she couldn't delay the departure any longer. Remus sighed quietly as she gave a watery smile and blinking back tears, pulled him into another tight hug, which Remus hoped was for the last time. Mr. Lupin, understanding of his son's annoyance, finally put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and squeezed it gently.

"Come on, let's get you on that train Remus." Mr. Lupin said half-heartedly as Mrs. Lupin reluctantly released him.

Remus gave his father a thankful grin as he ducked under his mother's hands and quickly grabbed his suitcase. Much like his father, Remus was full of jittery nerves. However, they were not a result of fear, but of possibility. Considering his state, Remus had been so often smothered by his parent's constant attention and love. It was a good love, a true familial love, but also an overbearing and sometimes, Remus knew, an unhealthy one. If Remus was truly honest, he often felt a burden to the pair. At Hogwarts, he was bound to find freedom as well as an ability to let go of the guilt that would often creep up on him at home when he saw his mother's tired eyes or his father's disheveled appearance.

With new liberties and independence tickling his senses, Remus made to step onto the train, just as quickly as his mother's hand reached out to catch his sleeve and pull him back.

"Remus, please be careful about who you make friends with." She whispered warningly.

"Mum, I already know." He said, exhausted with the repeated conversation.

He knew what it meant to be given this chance. He had already promised himself during late night conversations in his head, that he'd do nothing to muck up the opportunity. He was young, but he wasn't ignorant to the prejudices that followed his kind. He wouldn't tell. He didn't even plan on making friends to tell. He was convinced of keeping a very quiet existence, hoping to go mostly unnoticed and completing his education in several uneventful, mediocre years. And if there was anything Remus Lupin was good at, it was hiding.

"Just, be careful. And for Merlin's sake please, please don't tell anyone. I don't care how nice they are to you, or how much you think they're your friends. Some things are best kept unsaid, okay?" She gave him a half smile as he nodded. Mrs. Lupin reached to give her son one last kiss on the cheek just as the boarding whistle of the train blew.

"I have to go now." Remus said, squeezing his mother's hand in order to reassure her. He gave his father a quick and knowing smile before finally climbing onto the train's standing.

Remus turned around and gave one giant wave to his parents. Conductors were beginning to shout for last boarding calls and Remus turned away from the two concerned faces and went inside to find a compartment. He went all the way to the very back, already practicing his social avoidance, before he found one that was empty. He sighed with relief as he pulled the door open and made his way through it. Shortly thereafter, he felt the train begin to haul itself forward underneath him.

Twenty minutes later he was sitting quietly by himself, with 'Hogwarts: A History' out on his lap and was comfortably lost in it. Being a fiend for knowledge, Remus wanted to learn all about where he was going and what to expect. He had heard so little about it. His parents had tended to ignore conversations revolving around what Remus was most likely going to miss out on. But now that the impossibilities had become possible, he felt he had a lot to catch up on. He was reading about the line of Headmasters when a young girl slid the door open and distracted him.

"Hullo!" She said cheery, "Do you mind if we join you?"

"I-" Remus began, having already prepared a polite excuse if this precise occasion were to arise. However, the girl gave him no opportunity. Without hearing a word, she quickly made her way inside, smiling warmly at him. Another young boy with long black hair followed in after her, looking rather frustrated.

"All the other ones were full." The red-haired girl said as she moved to put her bag in the overhang. The boy sat down across from him with a rough grunt, avoiding meeting Remus' eyes and the girl quickly sat down next to him, still beaming. "There were other boys in another compartment who were being very cruel, so we figured we'd try and find another spot. Thanks for letting us stay."

Remus only blinked at her, trying to remember when he had invited them to stay.

"I'm Lily Evans." She said extending a hand. "And this is Severus."

Out of pure politeness Remus found his own hand extending to meet hers.

"Remus Lupin." He replied, still rather surprised at their sudden intrusion.

"Lupin?" asked the boy curiously. He poked his head up from his slumped position. "I'm not familiar with that surname. Are you a pureblood?"

"I'm a half-blood. My mum's a muggle." He said unsure of himself. The black haired boy seemed significantly unimpressed by this information and sunk back into the cushions. "You?" Remus asked, not quite caring but feeling as though maybe he ought to.

"I'm a Snape." The boy said sadly, as if that was enough information.

"Well I'm from a complete muggle family." Lily said, still smiling and seeming proud of the fact. "First one in the family!" Remus gave her a small grin at the exclamation.

She was very pretty, with long red hair and bright green eyes, and she radiated happiness that seemed to penetrate through the whole compartment. Ignoring her would prove difficult, he thought, but not impossible.

"She's brilliant too." Snape added hastily, smiling crooked teeth at his red-haired friend. Lily only blushed in reply.

The boy seemed much more reserved than Lily. He had black greasy hair at odd angles and it was comforting for Remus to note that the boy's robes looked equally as worn as his own. He might have started a conversation on this, relaying background information of his rather poor upbringing and therefore somehow relating with the pair's own life. Instead, Remus quietly retreated back into his book, ignoring the other two inside the compartment.

"Do you have a pet?" Lily asked innocently. He looked up, slightly put off by her overly friendly nature.

"No." he said shortly.

"Oh neither does Severus, but I was lucky enough to grab an owl. Her name's Migda. Wanna pet her?" Lily held out the cage she was holding on her lap and moved it towards him. When Remus hesitated to grip onto it, she stood up and sat down next to him, invading what Remus considered all sorts of personal boundaries. Severus' sour expression indicated that he felt similar.

"She won't bite, here." Lily said, opening the cage. She gently took hold of Remus' hand, guiding it inside. Remus blushed, completely stunned with her abrupt manner. On the best days, Remus did not enjoy physical contact and he certainly did not condone it with a stranger – no matter how friendly.

Across the seat, Severus eyed him with envy. Remus was somehow managing to make both a friend and an enemy, all without his own active participation.

Just before Remus thought it wise to withdraw his hand, a loud bunch of boys came tumbling in quickly through the compartment door, scrambling over each other to gain entry. Two of the boys, one holding copious amounts of candy in his hands and the other clinging to the other ones leg, lost their balance and ended up falling onto the seat where Severus sat. A loud arrange of screeches, curses, and name calling came from their direction as both Severus and the two boys ended up falling from the seat to the floor. Remus turned his eyes from the commotion to the last boy, who was quickly closing the door and peering anxiously through the glass window of the compartment.

"I think we lost her." He said gleefully and turned around to reveal an armful of chocolate frogs. He barked a loud laugh when he saw what happened to his comrades. "Having a quick snog and cuddle?"

Severus was the first to untangle himself from the fray. He stood up from the floor angrily and ruffled out his robes before taking his seat again, obviously humiliated by the whole ordeal. The boy standing at the door gave a loud whistle, finally acknowledging that there were other people in the compartment besides himself and his friends.

"Potter, look. It's the two Slytherins." He said slyly and gave Lily, still sitting next to Remus, a wink. Another boy, presumably Potter, gathered himself from the floor to see for himself.

"Well, what do you know Sirius." Potter said mischievously after confirming his friend's remarks.

"Ah, and the ginger's already found herself a boyfriend." Sirius replied. Remus furrowed his eyebrows in confusion before realizing with slight horror that Lily was still holding his hand. He warmed, quickly stealing his hand away from her and shoving it under his thigh. Unfazed next to him, Lily gave a loud scoff of disapproval.

"What do you want?" She directed at Sirius, who was now making his way over to them. He purposefully shoved his body between the two of them, forcing his way into a seat, so thoroughly squeezed between them that the entire length of the right side of his body pressed against Remus'. Remus frowned at the incredible invasion.

"No need to be rude. I might just share some chocolates with you." He replied and began happily digging into the candy now sprawled across his thighs.

"You mean the ones you stole?" Lily said disgusted, trying her best to sit as far away as possible from the boy. It was a rather pointless task, since she had to squish her body against the window, a rather uncomfortable position. However Remus sympathized with the need. For him, there was nowhere to reposition himself that would allow for such room.

"Yup!" replied Potter, who had finally stood up along with the third boy and now sat opposite them next to Severus. The greasy haired boy had a scowl to match Lily's.

"Want some?" Potter offered Lily, oblivious to Snape's aggravation.

"No." she replied shortly and turned her face away from him.

The boy shrugged his shoulders and continued to share his stealing with the plumper boy next to him. Remus watched in slight envy; He loved chocolate.

"You're a Black," hissed Severus from the corner. "Don't you have enough money to buy out the whole trolley?"

Caught in a mid-chocolate frog chew, Sirius snapped his head up and stared at the boy across from him. An annoyance flickered across his face, before subsiding quickly.

"Where's the fun in that?" Sirius replied, shrugging his shoulders and leaning back into the seat, feigning nonchalance. He turned to look at Remus, as if just noticing him. "Pureblood or Muggle?" he asked.

"Sorry?" Remus stuttered at the sudden question. He had been trying to avoid all eye contact and conversation by staring at the floor in front of him.

"Are you a pureblood or a muggle?" he said slowly, as if it was obvious.

"Ah, neither. I'm half. Dad's a wizard, Mum's a muggle." He said quickly. He assumed the reaction would be similar to Snape's and he was caught off-guard when Sirius' face lit up with a wide smile.

"Brilliant." Sirius replied excited, "Want a chocolate frog?" he asked, already thrusting it into his hands.

Remus looked down at the delicious, delicately wrapped morsel. He could have politely declined, handing the treat back to its owner and reaffirming his control in social restraint. However, he did not, because if there was anything that would will him out of hiding, it was chocolate.

The rest of the train ride seemed to last forever. Every conversation started only thickened the animosity between the two groups. At first Lily argued that the three boys should leave, since Severus and herself had to leave last time. Sirius, claiming that they would be caught the moment they stepped out of the compartment, of course dismissed this as nonsense. Lily didn't seem to mind the idea of them getting caught for what they stole, but Potter and Peter (who Remus found out was the name of the third boy) did. When it was finally realized that neither parties would remove themselves, the dialog turned into which Hogwarts House was better. Remus, not caring or knowing much about what each house stood for, simply sat back and listened to the endless bickering tiredly. He thought about removing himself from the compartment alone, but found that it would prove difficult since Sirius' arm was now comfortably draped around his shoulder. He silently wondered how he managed to fail so miserably at going unnoticed. When the train stopped, he released a breathe of thankfulness, as he would soon have the chance to be on his own once again.

The First Years were shuffled off together and brought to boats, where he tried hard to lose the tailing group behind him. Just as he was about to get into a boat that looked like it had room for one more, he felt a tug on his robes.

"Remus, you can come with us." said a smiling Lily, with Snape close behind her. Before he could decline her offer, Potter interrupted them.

"Nonsense. Remus doesn't want to go with a girl. He's coming with us. Aren't you Remus?" he asked, nudging Lily roughly away from him.

"Er… actually," Remus began, but Lily, gaining her stance, came up behind Potter and harshly shoved him back, making Potter fall to the ground with a loud 'umph'. Remus heard Sirius' barking laugh next to them as James glared up at the young girl with hatred in his eyes.

"Serves you right, you arse!" she yelled at him.

As soon as she said it she clamped a hand over her mouth and looked around, panicked that a professor might've heard her. She quickly grabbed Remus' arm and dragged him away from the fallen boy, Severus following behind them. Once they found an unoccupied boat, all three of them bustled into it and took off towards the school.

XxxxX

"Sirius Black!" called out a middle-aged professor from the front of the Great Hall. Sirius felt himself gulp as he began stepping forward. His palms began to sweat and he was suddenly very jealous of James' confidence a moment ago when he had proudly bounded up to the sorting hat. James had gotten into Gryffindor, just as he said he would, but Sirius could not be so sanguine. He was, after all, a pureblood from a very long line of Slytherins. He wasn't sure if he was more afraid of getting into Slytherin and being that much closer into becoming like his father, or not getting into Slytherin and being guaranteed a brutal lecture from his father.

When he finally sat down, a hush ran through the Hall again as Professor McGonagall placed the hat atop his head. Almost immediately the hat began speaking to him in quick, hushed sentences.

"Umm, another Black, is it?" it said and Sirius closed his eyes, feeling slightly ill.

"Certainly not like the others though, no certainly not." Sirius opened his eyes. He looked over at the Slytherin table and saw Narissa sitting there. Hope shivered through him.

"Brave, very brave. Passionate too, but what anger..." It paused for a second, contemplating. "Well, I can't put you there. No, much too different. Suppose you'll be the first one."

Sirius felt a sudden panic and nausea hit him.

"Stop your worrying, there's been worse things. Yes, it's very clear indeed, going to have to be GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius practically jumped off the chair, a surprising feeling of elation taking hold. But his reaction was only met with awkward silence and coughs throughout the room. A wave of remorse went through him at the realization of what this meant. He was the first Black to ever be sorted into something other than Slytherin. Even Andromeda, who was supposedly the more eccentric one of the family, was in Slytherin. He had been in Hogwarts not a full day yet and was already tarnishing the Black name. He was going to be in very big trouble.

A loud, single clap, interrupted his thoughts and he looked over to where James Potter was sitting at the Gryffindor table. James' one clap turned into several, until the entire Gryffindor table finally stood up in excited cheering. Sirius sighed with relief, feeling eternally grateful to the young boy he now made his way too.

"Remus Lupin!" Professor McGonagall called as soon as Sirius had sat himself down next to James and Peter.

Sirius watched as the young boy from the train, who had so readily took his chocolate, marched up to the stand. Once the hat was on him the crowd waited patiently in anticipation. One minute passed, than another. The moments seemed to tick by and soon students began becoming restless. Remus' sorting was the longest of the day and every second that passed was making Sirius become increasingly more curious as to what the hat was contemplating over.

"Officially a Hatstaller!" whispered a boy excitedly next to him to another across the table. They apparently had both been timing it.

Sirius watched as Remus opened and closed his eyes at whatever the Sorting Hat was whispering. Remus shook and nodded his head a various points, arguing or agreeing with whatever their conversation was about. Finally, after what seemed like forever the hat finally cried out "GRYFFINDOR!" and Sirius' table sprang up once again in cheers.

Remus, who seemed to be blushing with embarrassment made his way over to the table. When his eyes met Sirius', Sirius quickly moved over to make room for him on the bench and smiled politely. But the boy quickly turned away and headed to the opposite end of the table. Sirius shrugged the behavior away, he was used to rude treatment.

After that it was Lily Evans' turn. The hat didn't seem to be on for more than two seconds before it declared her a Gryffindor as well. Her face fell at the announcement and Sirius watched as her eyes met Severus', who sat across the Hall at the Slytherin table. She quietly made her way over to the Gryffindor side and Sirius mockingly patted the seat next to him, wiggling his eyebrows at her. She gave him a loud huff of a reply and loudly marched past, finding where Remus had sat. Once realizing where she was marching to, Sirius watched as Remus' eyes widened, quickly trying to duck his head out of view. But Lily had already spotted him and Sirius saw her smile as she squeezed her way next to the boy. Sirius laughed as he saw Remus' forehead crease in annoyance.

Throughout dinner and much to his entertainment, Sirius found out that almost everyone surrounding him was a muggle born or half-blood. Only a few seemed to come from pureblood families like James was and none of them seemed to care either way. None of them were dirty, or filthy, as his mother had described. And despite the fact that his parents said he would be able to tell right away, Sirius had a very hard time seeing the difference in any of them.

As dinner ended and the group rose to find their quarters, a voice stopped James, Peter, and him in his tracks.

"Planning to bring the entire Black legacy down single-handed are we?" the girl's sharp voice rang through their ears.

Sirius turned around to find Bellatrix standing about a foot taller than him and with a wicked smile on her face. Sirius merely grinned back. He'd been playing this game for far too long.

"Try not to be too jealous, Bella." Sirius replied lightly. James and Peter gave small laughs behind him, but Bellatrix' smile only widened.

"It's all laughs now little Siri, but wait til your father hears…" she gave her last words in a sing-song voice and then spewed out a loud laugh before spinning on her heels to head toward her own dorms. Sirius felt the blood drain from his face as he watched her go.

"Don't listen to her." Peter said from behind him, noticing the drop in Sirius' face. "Nobody cares about that stuff anymore anyway."

"You haven't met my parents." was all Sirius could muster back before following them up the stairs to join the rest of the Gryffindors.

A/N:

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