FIRST OF SEPTEMBER 1972 10:30AM. King's Cross Station. Regulus Black was not happy. He was positive he had never once been happy in all his eleven years. And now, as his older brother, Sirius, practically left him on the platform, he was in an even worse mood. He could see some people he knew - Barty Crouch Jr, what his mother had called "a disgrace" and the Rosier siblings... Pandora said hello to him, and he scoffed without a word before walking off to the train. He made his way through the carriage of chattering students. He could see some parents, waving goodbye to their children, other un-sorted first years like himself crying and clinging on to their mothers. Pathetic, thought Regulus. What has England come to, that even those with power in their names resorted to showing emotions like that. Then he saw one girl, maybe his age. Scowling at her older brother and parents. Regulus was sure he had seen her parents before, or at least heard of them. The first impression of her scowl was then tarnished by her last name he remembered. Potter. Traitors to the most noble wizarding families. Supporting Dumbledore. And then, almost as quickly as he'd formed a second opinion on her he gained another. "Shut up, James!" scowled the pretty young girl. "I don't want to sit with you and your blood traitor friends, not after the summer!"

Regulus smiled. He didn't know who she was. He didn't know why she was different from the rest of her family, but he liked it. He could see his mother standing at the platform still (making sure Sirius didn't embarass the family any longer even with half an hour until the train's depart) and he saw Walburga's lips curl up into a thin line as the young girl shoved her brother and ran off onto the train before she could even be told off by her parents or bid them farewell. It was almost with his mother's approval that Regulus Black thought to himself. Perhaps James Potter's sister isn't so bad after all, despite her name.

You made your way through the train. Past the Ravenclaws, past the Hufflepuffs and past the Gryffindors. You had no idea where she was going. You just knew what she wanted - an empty carriage where she could read her book about dark magic. As if Hogwarts itself was trying to make your day worse, every other carriage seemed to be full. You'd gotten glared at by Ravenclaws. Thrown food at by Hufflepuffs. Mortified and particularly peeved now, she walked into Slytherin's carriage, muttering something about "blood traitors" and the "Gryffindor stench" she couldn't get out of your hair.

It was in the third carriage to the left you saw a young boy. Dark black hair, pale skin, green eyes. Sitting primly by the window with a rather judgemental look on his face. Madison thought perhaps she should have been petrified by this aristocratic eleven year old, but you weren't. Not after having some Hufflepuff squibs throwing Chocolate Frogs at you. "Do you mind if I sit?" she asked quietly. The boy stared at her, eyes narrowed as if burning a hole through her would tell him why you talked to him in the first place. "Everywhere else is full."

"Sure." Said Regulus.