Before the Dark Days
Episode I: Remus Lupin and the Curse of Secrets
A Marauders Fan-Fiction by Rotae
Contributors: Rach-The-Trollop and Medusa
For J.K. Rowling,
your imagination, humour
and hard work inspire me.
prej·u·dice n
1. a preformed opinion, usually an unfavourable one, based on insufficient knowledge, irrational feelings, or inaccurate stereotypes
2. the holding of opinions that are formed beforehand on the basis of insufficient knowledge
3. an unfounded hatred, fear, or mistrust of a person or group, especially one of a particular religion, ethnicity, nationality, or social status
4. disadvantage or harm caused to somebody or something
vt
1. to make somebody form an opinion about somebody or something in advance, especially an irrational one, based on insufficient knowledge
2. to cause harm or disadvantage to somebody or something
Chapter I: The Unexpected Voice
The smell of freshly baked biscuits wafted up towards the bedroom door of an eleven-year-old boy. The boy sleepily opened his eyes, and sniffed the air. Chocolate. He inhaled once more, closing his eyes and letting the glorious smell wash through his body. Sighing, he opened his eyes again, and looked at the small clock, placed on the bedside table in his neat and tidy room. It was nine fifteen, on a Saturday morning. He stifled a yawn as he slowly sat up in his bed, pushed down his doona and let his legs dangle over the right side of his bed. He bent down and placed his slippers on his small feet. The boy walked over to his window and pulled back the curtains. The sun washed over his pale skin and warmed him to the bone. He closed his eyes and imagined the sun smiling at him. He loved the sun.
He tied back the curtains, gathered his clothes for the day, and walked out of his bedroom and down the hallway to the bathroom. He would have loved to have run down the stairs and eaten some of his mother’s fabulous biscuits, but he knew that she wouldn’t let him have one until he’d eaten his breakfast anyway. He stopped in front of the closed door, and sniffed the air. He could still smell his mother’s biscuits, but he could also smell something else: his brother. He could smell his brother from the other side of the door. He carefully knocked.
‘Romulus, are you almost finished?’ the boy inquired. The door opened and Romulus stood in the doorway, smiling at his younger brother.
‘Yep,’ he replied, and as he walked past his brother he ruffled his hair. ‘All yours,’ he added as he started to walk down the stairs, and into the kitchen. Romulus Lupin was four years older than his brother. He attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and in just over a month he would be going back to the school to start his fifth year. He had deep blue eyes, like his father Faustulus, light brown hair, like his mother Ameli, and he shared the warm smile that the Lupin family seemed to inherit in every generation. As he disappeared down the stairs, his brother wondered for a moment what it would be like to be Romulus: go to Hogwarts, have friends, play Quidditch and not be a freak.
The boy walked into the bathroom and shut the door carefully so that he wouldn’t slam it. Sometimes he didn’t know his own strength. He placed his clothes on the chair in the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. He did look rather like his brother, the exception being he didn’t have either of his parent’s eyes. He had gold eyes, with dark brown rims. He was paler than his brother too, and slighter than his brother was at his age. The boy washed, stepped out of the shower and walked over to the basin. He prepared some shaving cream, brushed it over his face, picked up his razor and started to glide “Shannon and Shanley’s Magical Shaver” over his young face. The boy had been shaving for about four and a half years now, and was quite used to it. He finished, washed his face and got dressed, tidying up as he went. He opened the door to the room and quietly walked back towards his bedroom. He placed his pyjamas under his pillow, his slippers on the right side of his bed and eagerly walked down towards the kitchen. As he started down the stairs he could hear his mother, father and brother talking. But there was also another voice that he hadn’t heard before, an older man’s voice. Intrigued, he quietly walked down the stairs, along the hallway and carefully opened the door to the kitchen, where he had heard the voices coming from. He poked his head around the door as to inquire who the unknown man was.
The man looked tall, thin and very old, the boy judged by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes and high-heeled buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice. The boy recognised this man as Albus Dumbledore, his older brother’s Headmaster at Hogwarts. He’d seen his picture once or twice in the Daily Prophet, and the boy owned at least seven of his chocolate frog cards. Dumbledore’s head turned immediately at the sound of door opening. He looked kindly at the boy, and spoke in a soothing voice.
‘Ah, Remus.’ He smiled. ‘Why don’t you come and sit down here with me,’ he continued, motioning to the chair beside him at the kitchen table.
Remus wasn’t sure what to make of all this. He looked to his mother and father. His father looked apprehensive and his mother looked quite shocked. His brother was sitting down opposite Dumbledore and had a slice of toast in his hand, looking as though he thought the headmaster were extremely mad.
Remus slowly entered the room and shut the door behind him. He walked over to the seat next to Dumbledore and sat looking intently at the Professor who had just taken a chocolate chip biscuit from the plate in the middle of the table. The Headmaster took a bite and beamed in satisfaction.
‘You’re biscuits are still perfection, Ameli,’ he said sincerely to Remus’ mother, who was still looking shocked.
‘Merci beaucoup,’ she replied, finally coming to her senses. Her brown eyes flicked from the Headmaster to her youngest son. ‘Remuz, Professor Dumbledore ‘as come to speak wiz you about something,’ she said, gestured to the man Remus was sitting next to.
Remus was taken aback. Why would the Headmaster of Hogwarts want to talk to him? Remus looked at the Headmaster intently, waiting to hear what he had to say. Dumbledore placed the half eaten biscuit on his plate and looked at Remus thoughtfully.
‘Tell me Remus,’ he started. ‘What do you think of Hogwarts?’
Remus wasn’t really sure what to say first.
‘I think it’s brilliant,’ he replied honestly. ‘I love hearing Romulus tell me stories about Hogwarts and the people there. It sounds like a wonderful place… but I know that I can’t attend,’ he added hastily. He didn’t want the Professor Dumbledore to think for one minute that he had even contemplated the idea of being able to attend when he knew that he never could.
‘But,’ Dumbledore continued. ‘You would like to attend Hogwarts if given the opportunity?’
‘Oh yes sir, without a doubt.’
Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and looked thoughtfully at the young boy in front of him.
‘What would you say if I told you that I am going to give you the opportunity to attend Hogwarts for the next seven years of you life?’
Remus was astounded. Was the Headmaster really offering him a place at the school? Why? He had always been told that he couldn’t go to Hogwarts. What had changed? He suddenly knew why his parents and brother were looking shocked. After a few long seconds, Remus finally got a grip on himself. There were a lot of questions he wanted answering!
‘But I’m not allowed to go to school!’ he exclaimed. ‘I’m not even allowed to have a wand!’
‘That can all be arranged,’ Dumbledore said smiling at the youngster. ‘People such as yourself are allowed to have wands, provided that they receive proper wizard training. Something that, I think we can provide for you,’ he paused and looked directly at Remus. ‘Believe me Mr. Lupin, I have thought about this long and hard. There is absolutely no reason as to why you cannot attend Hogwarts like any other regular student. You have definite magical talent Remus; I understand that you have made quite a few things happen around the house without the aid of a wand already. We have the facilities that your situation requires and we are quite equipped to deal with any problems that may arise. All we need is your approval and my plan can go ahead.’
Remus felt an extreme urge to give the Headmaster the biggest hug he had ever given anyone, but a nagging feeling arose in the back of his mind.
‘Headmaster, what about the other children at Hogwarts? Won’t they realise that I go somewhere once a month? And where am I going to go? I can’t stay at Hogwarts for my transformations obviously. What about the silver cutlery, won’t people notice that I use something different?’ Remus was starting to panic; there were so many questions, with no answers that he could think of. There were so many things that could go wrong.
‘Remus, calm down,’ Dumbledore said soothingly as he placed a hand slowly on Remus’ shoulder. Remus jumped a little; he wasn’t used to people touching him other than his family. Most people who knew about his lycanthropy thought that if they touched him he’d infect them. Apparently not Professor Dumbledore. ‘We have everything worked out. Everything you need to know is in this letter,’ he continued as he handed Remus a letter with his name on it. ‘Everything except perhaps the cutlery question,’ he chuckled. ‘I hadn’t thought that you’d ask that one. But yes, we have done something about that. We no longer have silver cutlery or taps in the bathrooms. They are all gold, so there is no need to worry. Personally, I prefer gold, so everything works out quite nicely.’ Professor Dumbledore smiled kindly.
Remus looked down at the letter in his hand, and then up at Professor Dumbledore’s smiling face.
Remus smiled back. For the first time in a very long time, he actually let himself think that he could, and would be going to Hogwarts.
‘Now, if you’ll excuse me,’ Dumbledore said as he stood up, taking the rest of the biscuit with him. ‘I have one or two more things that I have to attend to before returning to Hogwarts. Thank you for your hospitality, I hope to see Romulus and Remus on the first of September. Please, feel free to owl me with any questions any of you might have.’
‘Thank you very much,’ Faustulus said as he held out a hand and shook Dumbledore’s. ‘We’ll be in contact.’
Dumbledore smiled at the Lupin family and Apparated out of the kitchen.
Ameli looked at her husband. ‘Well, fanzy that,’ she concluded.
Romulus still looked like a stunned fish with the toast halfway up to his open mouth.
Faustulus was shaking his head in disbelief.
Remus was looking down at the letter in his hand. He opened it carefully and began to read:
Dear Mr. Lupin,
We are pleased to inform you…
Chapter II: The Journey from Platform Nine and Three Quarters
A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign overhead said Hogwarts Express, 11 o’clock. Remus looked behind him and saw a wrought iron archway where the ticket box had been, with the words Platform Nine and Three Quarters on it. His father appeared behind him, smiling broadly as he looked up towards the gleaming Hogwarts Express.
‘Hasn’t changed,’ his father said brightly.
‘Come on you two,’ Romulus said over his shoulder as he picked up his trunk and started to move off towards his friends who were waiting for him.
Faustulus looked down at Remus and spoke. ‘So Remus, what do you think?’
‘It’s incredible.’
Smoke from the engine drifted over the heads of the chattering crowd, while cats of every colour wound here and there between their legs. Owls hooted to each other in a disgruntled sort of way over the babble and the scraping of heavy trunks.
‘I’m going to go and see Romulus off. If you want to go and find a seat to sit in, I’ll be with you in about five minutes, okay?’
‘Okay.’
His father walked to where Romulus was standing with his friends, who were laughing at something Romulus’ friend Annie had just said. Remus could hear them fairly well, despite the background noise.
‘So, then he says, “Mum, I’m going in the garden!”’ Romulus and his friends gave another whoop of laughter. Remus could see that Michael was wiping tears from his eyes.
Taking his father’s advice, Remus started towards the train, looking in the windows for free compartments, or at least, one with first-years in it. The first few carriages were already packed with students, some hanging out of the window to talk to their families, some fighting over seats. Remus pushed his trolley off down the platform in search of an empty seat. He passed a round-faced boy who was saying, ‘I’ve lost my quill again.’
‘Oh, Peter,’ he heard the women sigh.
Remus pressed on through the crowd until he found an empty compartment near the end of the train. He moved his trunk towards the train door, and lifted it up the stairs with ease. He probably should have gotten his father to do it, but he was busy talking to Romulus about the responsibilities of being a prefect. Remus didn’t have trouble with the weight, although certainly other boys of his age and build could not have lifted it at all. He moved his trunk into a compartment and put it in the baggage rack.
As he sat down, he looked out the window, to see if his father had come to say goodbye to him yet. Remus sighed; he could see his father, halfway up the platform still talking to Romulus and his two friends. Gazing along the rest of the platform Remus could see all manner of different people. People of different ages, sizes and colours milled about on the strip. But they all had two things in common: they were all wizards or witches, and they were all saying goodbye.
Remus was quite content watching the different people when he heard a loud clunk come from the outside of the compartment.
Looking through the window at the door he had just come through, he saw a girl, about his age, with thick curly blonde hair trying to pull her trunk up the stairs. She was giving it a very good go, but Remus could see that there was no way she was going to get that trunk, up those stairs, anytime soon. He watched her, conflicted as to whether he should help. He’d never been very good at making friends, in fact he found it terrifying, but she needed help, and he knew that he could help her. After all, he had done it himself, just moments ago.
The girl looked over her shoulder, and Remus saw two adults talking to another girl about his age, who had very short, spiky brown hair. They seemed to be giving the girl instructions, and the girl was nodding.
Probably a Muggle-born, Remus thought to himself. He looked back at the girl who was still trying to get her trunk up the stairs; every now and then she looked back towards the two adults with a look of hope that they might take some notice of her. Remus got up and went out to the door.
The girl was standing there; looking slightly flushed as she finally gave up and flopped down on her case, her back to the train. She sighed dramatically. Remus could see the initials E. P on the side of the trunk.
‘Do you need a hand?’ he asked timidly from behind her. The girl whipped around to face him. Remus felt a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach. So this is what meeting people is like. Scary, he thought dryly and he tried to suppress the feeling of butterflies in his stomach. The girl’s face broke into a wide grin. She was very pretty. Remus suddenly became even more nervous than he already was.
‘I thought no one was going to help!’ she exclaimed happily. ‘I was afraid I was going to be stuck here for eternity and miss the train.’ Remus smiled at her obvious dramatic nature. ‘My parents aren’t doing their jobs very well at the moment,’ she continued. ‘They keep instructing my friend Sam about everything magical, and not helping us with the important things, like trunks!’ She laughed. Remus had the feeling that he had a very stupid grin on his face, and had no idea why he was reacting like this. He walked down the stairs and came to a rest in front of the girl.
‘Elizabeth Palmer.’ She held out her hand.
‘Remus Lupin,’ he replied, taking her hand and smiling back at his new friend. Remus took Elizabeth’s trunk by the handle, and pulled it onto the first stair. Elizabeth raised her eyebrows.
‘Wow. You’re strong,’ she commented lightly. Remus blushed. He hadn’t meant to make it seem so easy for him. He muttered something about eating his vegetables, and moved her trunk up the rest of the stairs.
‘Is this your friend’s trunk?’ he asked, pointing towards the trunk that was resting next to where Elizabeth’s had been. It had the initials S. W on it.
‘Yeah.’
‘Do you want me to bring that one up too?’
‘If you can manage it, that’d be great!’
‘Okay.’ Remus walked back down the stairs and took that case up too.
‘Thanks,’ Elizabeth said, looking quite surprised at Remus. He could almost hear her thinking at how amazed she was that he could even lift her trunk a little. ‘Do you mind if we sit with you?’ she asked politely, again flashing Remus a big smile.
‘No, no you’re right,’ he replied as he pulled her friends trunk into the compartment he had previously been sitting in and hoisting it up next to his own. ‘I wasn’t sitting with anyone anyway. My brother will probably sit in the prefect’s compartment, so, it’ll be nice to have some company.’
‘What year is your brother in?’ Elizabeth asked, pulling her own trunk into the compartment, and helping Remus lift it up next to the two trunks that were already there.
‘Fifth. He’s a Ravenclaw prefect.’
‘Cool. Oh, my Mum is waving at me. I’m just going to go and say goodbye. I’ll be back in a second.’
She walked out of the door, and left Remus to feel very unsettled. He knew that meeting new people was an experience in itself, but he couldn’t help but feel that this was no ordinary meeting. Perhaps they would be in the same house. She seemed very nice.
Remus had no idea as to which house he would be placed. His brother, obviously, was a Ravenclaw, but his father, now a Healer, was a Slytherin when he was at Hogwarts. Remus had the feeling that he would end up in Slytherin like his father, because he was classified as a ‘dark creature’, and Slytherin had a reputation for turning out the darkest wizards of the four houses. They got a bad wrap, in Remus’ opinion. His father turned out all right. A lot of ambition and motivation were required if one wanted to be a Healer. The problem, in the Lupin’s opinion, arose when ambitions were put towards the wrong goals. Put towards the right goals however, ambition was a very powerful ally.
There was a knock on the window. Remus looked up and saw his father gesturing to the door. Remus got up and hastily walked out the door and down the stairs where Faustulus was waiting for him.
‘Now, are you all set? Got everything? Prepared? Not scared?’
‘Maybe not the last one,’ Remus admitted.
‘Yes, maybe not,’ Faustulus placed his hands on Remus’ shoulders, and he bent down so that their eyes were on a level. ‘You are a very bright boy Remus, and I’m very proud of you, you know that don’t you?’
Remus nodded. It might have been his imagination, but his father seemed to have tears in his eyes.
‘Now, what you’ve got to remember is this; it is a privilege to go to Hogwarts, and we’re very lucky that Professor Dumbledore has invited you to come, so you do everything he tells you okay?’
‘Yes Dad, of course.’
There was a pause, and Faustulus pulled Remus into bone crushing hug.
‘I love you Remus. I love you so very much.’
‘I love you too Dad.’ He was finally released from his father’s firm hug, and Remus looked back at his father, who now indeed, had tears in his eyes.
‘Now, the main thing to remember Remus is to have fun, and to make lots of new friends to tell your Mum and me about.’
‘Well, I think I have already actually…’
‘Really?’
‘I think so.’ Remus looked around for his new friend. She was standing, still talking to her parents. ‘That’s her over there,’ he said as he pointed towards her.
‘Oh. Do you have a girlfriend Remus?’ his father chuckled slightly.
‘No, don’t be silly.’
‘Just checking.’ He looked at his watch. ‘You’d better be off Remus; you don’t want to miss the train.’
‘Okay, I’ll see you at Christmas.’
‘Don’t forget to write to us and tell us what’s happening in your life okay?’
‘Sure.’
Faustulus gave Remus one final hug and Remus then turned to get back on the train. He climbed the stairs and sat back down in his seat. He could see his father standing out on the platform grinning and waving to him. A whistle blew loudly and people started hugging and kissing, and rushing back onto the train.
After a few seconds, the train gave a lurch, and sprang to life, sending Remus back into his seat a little. He looked out the window and waved at his father, until the train left the station, and moved into a dark tunnel.
The compartment door opened slightly and a tawny haired boy stuck his head in, looking at Remus with nervous brown eyes.
‘Ah – er – is thair ‘ny room in this heer compartment?’ he asked.
‘Yeah, there’s room for one more for sure,’ Remus replied.
The boy opened the door and dragged his trunk into the room. Remus jumped up to help him put it in the remaining space. Together they did it easily.
‘Ta for tha,’ the boy added.
‘Not a problem.’
The two boys shook hands and smiled at each other before sitting down opposite each other.
‘Ah’m Kevin Dunstable. Ah’m from Crieff in Scotland.’
‘Remus Lupin – er Hexworthy in England.’
‘Whair’s tha?’
‘Er… sort of near Plymouth, it’s in Dartmoor Forest.’
Just before Kevin was about to reply, the compartment door opened forcefully, and two girls entered, giggling slightly. One, Remus already knew, the other, had to be her friend.
‘Oh, I see we have another person to meet!’ Elizabeth exclaimed, shutting the door behind Sam. She walked over to Kevin and held out a hand. ‘I’m Elizabeth Palmer, and this is my best friend, Samantha Williams, but if you call her anything other than Sam, she’ll bash you up,’ she gestured to the girl behind her.
‘Kevin Dunstable. Ah’m from Crieff in Scotland. N this is Remus Lupin, he’s from Plymouth.’
‘Yes, we’ve already met haven’t we Remus?’ She flopped down in the seat next to him, and Sam did the same next to Kevin. ‘Is Plymouth nice?’
‘Um, well, yes, but I’m actually from Hexworthy. It’s near Plymouth.’
‘Oh, okay. Well, Sam and I are from Surrey, aren’t we Sam?’
Sam merely nodded.
‘You’ll have to excuse my friend,’ Elizabeth continued. ‘She’s finding this all a bit daunting. I think that we should tell her she’s a witch everyday. Normally she never shuts up!’
‘I do so!’
‘Ah, see, I knew it couldn’t last for long.’ She turned and grinned at Remus, who couldn’t help but smile. ‘Chocolate frog?’ Elizabeth asked as she pulled one out of her pocket.
‘Sure.’
The group continued talking and laughing for the next hour and a half. They discussed everything from Muggle pop-culture (‘I so want to see Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,’ said Sam), to Quidditch (‘I hope the Hollyhead Harpies do really well this season,’ exclaimed Elizabeth), to their families (‘Ah goot too sisters n a bruther, sept ee’s alreddy left,’ explained Kevin, and Remus was finding it difficult to keep up with his fast talking and strong accent), to what house they would like to be in.
‘I don’t know much about any, so I don’t really care,’ Sam was saying as a dimpled woman opened the carriage door and asked if they wanted anything off a food trolley. As they ate their lovely sweets they continued their conversation about the houses.
‘Ah whant to be in Hufflepuff,’ said Kevin before taking another bite of his pumpkin pasty. ‘Memah n da werinit.’ His full mouth was making it even harder to understand his accent.
‘Pardon?’ asked Sam.
Kevin swallowed and said ‘Me Mah and Dah were in it. Whair whir yours Remus?’
‘Well,’ Remus started. ‘My Dad was a Slytherin, my brother’s a Ravenclaw and my Mum didn’t go to Hogwarts.’
‘Isn’t she a witch?’ interrupted Sam.
‘No. She’s a Muggle, that’s why she didn’t see my brother and me off at the platform. I don’t really mind which house I’m in. I’m just glad that I get the opportunity to come to Hogwarts. What about you Elizabeth?’
‘Well, both my parents were Slytherins… so I wouldn’t mind being there,’ Remus noticed that Kevin’s eyes had dropped to the ground when she’d said that. ‘But I really wouldn’t mind any of the houses. Gryffindor sounded all right, but so did Ravenclaw. I don’t think I’m hard-working enough to be in Hufflepuff though. They have such high standards,’ she added. Kevin’s eyes flicked up at her comment. Remus was impressed with the way she’d handled the question. It was pretty obvious that she didn’t want to be in Hufflepuff, but she’s said it by complimenting the house at the same time.
Just as Remus was about to ask what they thought the Sorting Ceremony would entail (as his brother had tried to convince him it would involve a large pot of custard and general knowledge on the penguin family), the door to their compartment slid open, revealing the palest girl Remus had ever seen. She had straight jet-black hair down to her waist, and shocking green eyes. Even though she was obviously a first-year, she looked down her upturned nose at the four in the compartment with an air of superiority that suggested she owned the train.
‘Have any of you seen a chameleon?’ she drawled in a disinterested voice. ‘Mary seems to have lost it again. In more ways than one.’
The four occupants looked to each other, shaking their heads.
‘What colour is it?’ Elizabeth asked sarcastically, and started to giggle. Sam also started laughing, and Remus couldn’t help but let his mouth twitch at the comment. However, it occurred to him that this girl didn’t look the sort to be trifled with.
The girl looked at Elizabeth with every suggestion of utter dislike before speaking again.
‘Oh, aren’t we the clever one.’
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. ‘It was only a joke, Parkinson.’
‘Well it wasn’t very funny now was it?’ she snapped.
‘We seemed to think so.’
Suddenly a loud crash was heard outside. Remus, Sam and Elizabeth stood up and moved towards the door, but Parkinson, who was still blocking the way, just rolled her eyes, before flicking them along the train aisle.
‘Get up Mary,’ she spat at a dark girl, who had apparently tripped over in the corridor.
Remus made a move to go out and help the poor girl, but Parkinson was still blocking his way, and he wasn’t quite feeling brave enough to ask her to move.
Quickly getting up and dusting herself off, the girl called Mary looked down at herself and noticed that her knee was bleeding. She fumbled around in her pockets and pulled out a band-aid, with broomsticks on it, bent down, and applied it. Parkinson rolled her eyes yet again as the girl stood up straight.
‘Sorry Medusa,’ she replied in a thick Irish accent. ‘I just tripped.’
‘So it would seem,’ Parkinson replied flatly, taking a step back into the train’s aisle. She looked back at the occupants of the compartment, her eyes finally resting on Remus. ‘What’s your name?’
‘Remus Lupin.’
‘Lupin...’ she rolled his last name off her tongue like she had been doing it all of the life. ‘I think I know that name. Is your father the Resident Healer at Bridgewater?’
‘Um, yes,’ Remus replied. Parkinson was referring to a very old wizarding club on the outskirts of London. Few knew about it, and those who did were extremely well off. To his complete and utter amazement, the girl’s cool exterior faulted for a moment, and she smiled at him slightly.
‘Your father is very talented, Remus,’ she purred with an added emphasis on his first name, as if it was obviously an extension of friendship.
‘Yes, yes he is.’ Remus smiled back. He seemed to be making new friends left, right and centre!
‘My name is Medusa Parkinson, and this,’ she indicated to the girl who had fallen, ‘is Mary Monahan.’ She scowled once more at Elizabeth. ‘I already know you. And I know Dunstable, but who is she?’ Her gaze finally rested on Sam, with not so much curiosity as disgust.
‘She is none of your business,’ Elizabeth interrupted suddenly. ‘This conversation is over Parkinson,’ and with that sentiment she pulled the door shut forcefully.
‘What was that all about?’ Sam asked.
‘Trust me, you don’t want to know.’
‘She was just asking who Sam was…’ Remus stated questioningly.
‘Let me tell you something about the Parkinson’s Remus. They are what are known as “pure-blood fanatics”, they think that just because they’ve got so called pureblood that they’re above everyone else. Because Sam here is a Muggle-born, Medusa Parkinson and all of her little friends will put her down because she is different. They’ll call her foul names, and just basically go out of their way to make her feel bad about herself. The sooner you differentiate yourself from them, the better.’
Remus raised an eyebrow.
‘But I’m not a pureblood, and she seemed to like me.’
‘Your last name can get you very far in the wizarding world Remus. You just have to have the right one.’
The rest of the train journey was uneventful, and Remus stayed quiet for most of it. He felt rather naïve to the obvious rivalry between Elizabeth and Medusa Parkinson. Having not grown up with many friends, he was very limited in his experiences of other people outside his immediate family. He knew that there were people in the world who were very prejudiced, but bigotry was usually due to people being brought-up in an ill informed environment, and was normally due to no fault of their own, especially in someone as young as Medusa Parkinson.
He also had the feeling that Elizabeth was a bit angry with him for some reason. He didn’t like that feeling at all.
When they felt the train start to slow down, everyone in the compartment took off their jackets and slipped their long black cloaks over their normal clothes. Sam had a bit of trouble with the sleeves as she was obviously not used to their abnormally long length, but with a bit of help from Elizabeth she soon got them on without too much fuss.
A voice echoed through the train: ‘We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes time. Please leave your luggage on the train; it will be taken to the school separately.’
Elizabeth gave a nervous giggle. ‘Sorry, I feel like I’m about to play the Presto part of the Moonlight Sonata in the Albert Hall for some reason.’ She giggled again. ‘Without the sheet music,’ she added.
‘Elizabeth always talks in music metaphors,’ Sam said at the look of confusion on Kevin’s face.
‘I do not!’
‘Oh, so you saying “I feel like I got The Clown by Kabalevsky right” when you passed your ballet exam was just a fluke was it?’
‘Shut-up. Samantha.’
Remus smiled at Sam’s indignation at the use of her full name, when the train finally stopped. The four walked into the corridor of the train and almost got squashed by a tall blond boy wearing the Head Boy badge on his chest as they exited the train.
They stepped out onto the tiny, dark platform, when a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students and Remus heard a loud booming voice saying; ‘Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here! C’mon follow me! Mind yer step, now! Firs’ years follow me!’
Remus looked up in amazement at the man who was towering over the small first-years. His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy main of hair and a wild, tangled beard, but Remus could make out his eyes, glinting like black beetles under all of the hair.
‘I’m Rubeus Hagrid; Keep of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts. If we’re all ‘ere, let’s be off then.’
Hagrid turned on his heel and walked down the platform. Slipping and sliding, they followed him down what appeared to be a steep, narrow path. Nobody spoke much, but Remus could hear two boys near the back of the group whispering quickly to each other. Mary Monahan tripped at least four times on the way down the hill, cursing in what appeared to be Gaelic under her breath.
‘Yeh’ll get yer firs’ sight o’ Hogwarts in a sec,’ Hagrid called over his shoulder, ‘jus’ round this bend here.’
There was a loud ‘Ooooooh!’
The narrow path had opened suddenly on to the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.
‘No more’n four to a boat!’ Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Remus, Kevin, Elizabeth and Sam looked at each other and silently agreed to go into the same boat.
‘Everyone in?’ shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself, ‘Right then – FORWARD!’
And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake that was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, even the two boys had stopped whispering by this stage, as everyone was completely mesmerised by the sight of the castle looming overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.
‘Heads down!’ yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy, which hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbour, where they clambered out on to rocks and pebbles.
They clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid’s lamp, coming out at last on to smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle. Then they walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around a huge, oak front door.
‘Everyone here?’
Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door.
The door swung open at once. A stern, tall and black-haired witch in magenta robes stood there.
‘The firs’ years, Professor McGonagall,’ said Hagrid.
‘Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here.’
She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big you could have fitted a whole house inside it. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches, the ceiling was too high to make out and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors.
They followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor. Remus could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right, but Professor McGonagall showed the first years into a small empty chamber off the hall.
‘Welcome to Hogwarts,’ said Professor McGonagall. ‘The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.
‘The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
‘The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting.’
Her eyes lingered for a moment on the mud covered Mary Monahan before she said ‘Scorgify’ and Mary’s cloak returned to its original state.
‘I shall return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly.’
A small splattering of murmurs erupted throughout the group. That is until a boy at the back of the room said rather loudly;
‘Well cover me in egg and flour and bake me for 14 minutes! I don’t know about anyone else but I'm as excited as a really excited person who's got a special reason to be excited!’ the majority of the room laughed. Remus gave a small chuckle as he searched out the face for the voice. The bespectacled boy had black hair that stuck up at the back of his head, and it came as no surprise to Remus that he had been one of the two whisperers on the way to the boats. ‘James Potter is the name, mischief making is the game!’ he waved his hands and did a sort of half-bow, before gesturing to the boy next to him. ‘This is my new counterpart in crime and entertainment Sirius Lee Black!’ The room laughed louder this time.
‘That’s not my middle name!’ exclaimed the boy called Sirius. Until the announcement of his apparently false middle name, he had been looking extremely proud and smug. Now, he just looked annoyed.
‘Tis now,’ laughed James.
‘Thanks, Jimmy-boy,’ Sirius replied grumpily, before cracking a grin. ‘My mate Jemimah and I are going to be your entertainment for the night. But we need your help on one small matter. Can anyone tell me, what is the most ridiculous hat you’ve ever seen?’ The crowd went silent again. ‘Aw, come on guys! Surely one of you can think of something?’
‘A fez?’ a boy with blond hair and glasses suggested.
‘A turban?’ suggested a girl up the front.
‘A beret?’ said the boy who had forgotten his quill on the train platform.
‘Ah cowbouy hat?’ piped up Kevin.
‘A witch’s hat!’ yelled Mary Monahan. Everyone turned to look at her. Medusa Parkinson rolled her eyes and took a step away from her. ‘Sorry,’ Mary said.
‘One of those Carmen Miranda fruit hats?’ Remus suggested tentatively.
All eyes turned on him. Remus blushed, he shouldn’t have said anything. What on Earth could have possessed him?
And then to his astonishment, James and Sirius looked at each other with huge grins on their faces and started clapping.
‘I think we have a winner!’ exclaimed Sirius. Remus blushed even more when the room started clapping him and Medusa smiled openly at him.
When the clapping had died down, the boy with blond hair and glasses asked, ‘Why did you want to know suggestions for that?’
‘All in good time my man, all in good time.’
‘Move along now,’ said a sharp voice. ‘The Sorting Ceremony’s about to start.’ Professor McGonagall had returned. ‘Now, form a line, and follow me.’
Remus got in line behind Kevin, Elizabeth behind him, and Sam behind her. Unbeknownst to Remus, just as they were about to move, James Potter and Sirius Black sneaked in front of Elizabeth.
‘Hey!’ said Sam poking Sirius in the back. ‘That’s pushing in.’
Sirius turned to her and looked her up and down.
‘Bug off,’ he replied.
Sam was about to retaliate, when Professor McGonagall gave her a stern look, immediately silencing her.
The line moved out of the room, back across the hall and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.
Please Read & Review
Next Chapter: Chapter III: The Sorting Hat
Remus gets Sorted, Romulus makes his first real appearance, we meet the new Gryffindors and may see a few familiar faces along the way...
Peace,
Rotae
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