The Marauders 2.0

First Encounters

Author's note:
This is my very first story. I apologize for any mistakes in advance. I have not uploaded on Wattpad before, and it is a new method of writing.
Before any of you come after me, I am well aware that frogs are different from toads.
I am also kinda making up the plot as I go along, so fair warning it might be a little chaotic.

My chapters are going to be relatively short. I do not have a regular update schedule.
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Aquarius liked facts. That was a fact. She knew that her father was not guilty of murder. That was another fact. She knew that her uncle was a Death Eater and Death Eaters were bad, but that her uncle was good. She knew that Draco Malfoy was absolutely, irrevocably gay. She knew that this was her first year at Hogwarts. What she didn't know was how to deal with the nerves that were bundling inside of her stomach like a mess of rowdy kittens.

She was standing on platform 9 ¾, hoping not to be noticed. She really wanted to just get through Hogwarts so that she could go back to Falaise Des Étoiles and read her way through the gigantic library amassed over centuries by the Black family. That was her plan. Her whole plan. That was going to be her life, and it would be wonderful. She reassured herself of this fact as she stepped onto the train, dragging her trunk behind her.

“Aquarius!” Her uncle was calling her back. “Yes, Uncle Regulus?” She asked. “You forgot to give me a goodbye hug.” She laughed and ran to hug him. He was the closest thing to a father she had, and she loved him, even if she did find him silly at times. The Hogwarts Express began pulling out of the station, and she leaned out the window long enough to see him disappear, Disapparating back home. She settled back into the seat of the empty compartment, rummaging around in her trunk to find the book she was reading.

Suddenly, the compartment door opened, making her jump. A boy poked his head in. He had kind golden eyes. They looked like honey. He had scars crisscrossing his face and arms and messy light brown hair that fell over one eye.

“Can I sit here?” he said in a Welsh accent. “I can’t find anywhere else on the train.”

“Umm. Sure.” Aquarius answered, feeling shy. It was weird, talking to people.

“Great!” said the boy, plopping down across from her. “I'm Caelus Remus Lupin. What’s your name?”

“I’m Aquarius Ursa Black.” She told him.

“Is it ok if I call you Ari?”, he asked.

“Umm, sure.”

“So. Do you know how long till we get there? I'm getting kind of nervous.” Caelus said.

“I'm nervous too. We have probably another few hours. That’s why I brought a book.”

“What book?” he asked, apparently curious.

She moved the book so he could see the spine. “Oh, Hogwarts: a history. I liked the myths in it, but the history was kind of dull. What house would you want?”

“I think I would make a good Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff’s not bad though, and I wouldn’t mind Gryffindor, though I don’t think I’d make a very good one. I’m not very brave.”

He leaned back as if assessing her, and after a few moments said “No. You’d make a great Gryffindor. You’d probably be brilliant in any house, Slytherin included. Me, though, I can probably only pull off Gryffindor colors.”

She laughed. They were suddenly interrupted by a croak. It sounded like it had come from a toad. A little green frog leapt up onto the seat next to Caelus, who shuddered and moved away.

“Is something wrong?” she asked. “Yes. It is a frog. Frogs are slimy and weird, and they don’t move right. I do not like frogs.” he said, glaring at the offending animal as if it had personally wronged him.

He was interrupted by the door opening again. A girl, clearly a first year like them, opened the door. She had bushy brown hair and bright brown eyes. “Have you seen a toad anywhere? A boy named Neville’s lost one.” She asked.

“Umm, does the toad look like that?”, asked Aquarius, pointing over her book at the toad. “Yes! Thank you. We’ve been searching for him all up and down the train. Yours was the last compartment to check.” She seemed relieved that the search for the missing pet was over. “Neville! These nice people found Trevor!” she called into the corridor.

A boy appeared beside her. He had a round face and looked much younger than he had to be. He had well-combed brown hair and had an anxious air around him, as if he was in a perpetual state of nervousness. “Oh, thanks. We were kicked out of the compartment by some kids who are definitely going to be Slytherins, and Trevor was scared so he ran off.”

Caelus, who had by now edged across the seat to the opposite wall from the toad, whose name was apparently Trevor, answered him. “You can sit here, but please move the toad away from me! They give me the creeps, and this one is slowly moving forward with malicious intent.”

“Malicious intent?” Hermione asked, sitting down next to Aquarius.

“Yes. He has an evil glint in his eye.” Caelus answered, very seriously.

Neville picked up his toad and put him back in a small terrarium that none of them had noticed. He sat down near Caelus and asked him about quidditch, while Hermione and Aquarius struck up a conversation about books. It turned out that they had read many of the same ones, despite Hermione being a Muggleborn and Aquarius being a pureblood.

The rest of the train ride was relatively uneventful. The trolley witch came by their compartment, and offered them cauldron cakes, chocolate frogs (Neville refused because they reminded him of Trevor), and Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans. (Hermione was fascinated by these. “How do they do it? Is it a spell on each bean individually or a whole batch?”) They changed into their robes and talked about various things.

The Hogwarts express pulled up to the station, the steam fogging up the cool evening air. The four of them, Hermione, Caelus, Aquarius, and Neville, took their trunks down from the luggage racks and stepped off the train. A cry echoed through the packed station:

“Firs’ years! Firs’ years over ‘ere!”

They followed the voice to a gigantic man. He seemed quite intimidating to Aquarius, but none of the others seemed to have any problems with him, so she ignored the feeling and followed him.

They were escorted down to a lake. It was so dark and smooth that Ari would have thought it a mirror. They boarded a small fleet of boats. As there was only room for three, Ari boarded another boat. The other two occupants of her boat were boys. One was a tall, gangly redhead, and the other had the messiest hair imaginable. He had green eyes, the color of emeralds, and seemed quite scrawny.

“Hi! I’m Ron Weasley. You?” the first boy asked her.

“I’m Aquarius. You can call me Ari though.” She mumbled. Somehow, he heard her, and so did the second boy. He introduced himself as Harry Potter. She knew of him, but it seemed rude to bring it up, so they sat in silence until Hagrid’s voice called from the front of the boats.

“Welcome to Hogwarts!”