Platform nine and three-quarters was always the place of smiling faces and joyful departures. Some would associate the word departure with sadness and dread, but that wasn't the case on this platform. Wizarding families bid their children goodbye knowing that they were one hundred per cent safe on their journey and will be at their destination. There was no need to worry for their innocent souls and only had the worry of them forgetting their owls or a particular textbook that their Potions teacher wouldn't appreciate.

Making her way through the smiling faces was Blair, keeping her head low from natural habit. If anyone were to see the small girl pushing her trolley, they would assume that she had already bid her parents goodbye and was slightly disheartened to be leaving for yet another school year. Blair was content with this view of herself and quietly packed her trunk into the compartment that held tons of other trunks, taking the handle of the box that rattled from the feline inside becoming restless.

She then started to head towards the door closest to her to board the Hogwarts Express, looking up just in time to see the redheaded family she saw every year. Ever since her first year, she would spot the crowd of orange that always had a plump woman, an endless amount of tall teenage boys and one small girl. It had become a custom for Blair to spot this family, the Weasley family, and admire the warmth that radiated from their closeness. If there was always smiling faces on this platform, the Weasley family would be the one Blair was sure to see every year.

Tearing her eyes from the scene, Blair made her way down the corridor and searched for an unoccupied carriage. Most students were still bidding their families goodbye, leaving a range of choices. She settled into one that coincidentally had a view of the same redhead family still on the platform. Blair first opened the whimpering box that sat next to her and pulled out the black cat that mewled when being grabbed.

Pushing the box under the seat, the cat settled its paws on Blair's jean-covered thighs. It perched it's backside down and lazily surveyed the carriage with its yellow eyes. Blair watched as the redheaded woman gave her last kisses to her children and sent them on to the train, waving while scolding one of the boys about the blue and pink sweet he held in his hand.

The train began to leave the station and students started settling into their carriages. Multiple people passed the one Blair sat in and shot in wary looks, soon moving off to double up in occupied carriages. No one wants to sit with the dark girl that didn't talk or smile. They also didn't want to associate themselves with a Rosier, daughter of a known Death Eater.

Being sorted in Ravenclaw, even the Slytherins didn't want to associate with Blair. Many of their families were known Death Eaters too, but they barely spared the girl a glance.

Soon reaching the countryside, Blair sat in silence as she sunk deep into thought. She scratched absently behind the ear of her cat and found comfort in his purrs and yearns for more. He pushed his head deeper into Briar's palm and closed his beaming eyes, unaware of his owner's rushing and corrupt mind.

The Weasley twins made their way down the corridor in search of an unoccupied carriage. They had decided to hand out some of their new Nosebleed-Nougats instead of securing a seat for the journey, meaning most of the carriages were now full. They stood tall among the first and second years that ran up and down the length of the corridor, still unaware of the unspoken rules of not being a moron on the Hogwarts Express.

"Maybe we should just run up and down for four hours. Seems to keep them entertained," Fred seethed as another first year shoved past him. "Oi watch it!"

"Surely there's gotta be one that has one person minimum," George called up to his brother, looking in yet another packed carriage.

Fred passed the next window and glanced inside, beaming at the sight of a singular figure. But the hope quickly deflated as he caught sight of the black cat that sat on the lap of the motionless girl in the corner. He ditched the possibility of sitting in that particular carriage and continued to walk on. George passed the same window moments later and stopped, seeing the same singular girl inside.

"There's one right here," George announced as he pointed at the carriage on his left. Fred looked over his shoulder and stared at him with an odd expression.

"Rosier's in there," he said.

"So?"

Fred raised an eyebrow, ready to ask if George had hit his head while getting on the train. But he was shoved to the side yet again by another careless first year and found himself sighing loudly, motioning his head towards the carriage that George stood in front of. The twins stepped inside wordlessly and were relieved to be out of the chaos in the hallway.

Blair looked up at the sound of the sliding door and saw the tall redheads that stepped in unannounced. She continued to scratch her cat's head and raise an eyebrow as the boys sat down facing each other on the edge of the seats. It wasn't too odd of an occurrence to have someone willingly sit inside the same carriage as hers, but it was usually only people who continuously chatted and barely noticed Blair's presence. She wasn't sure if these two were like that but they hadn't come in while talking avidly.

Fred awkwardly shuffled in his seat and glanced to his right, checking to see if the girl was staring at him. He saw her look between him and George before turning back to her cat, making no move to hex them or demand that they leave. Fred looked to his brother across from him with the urge to ask why on Earth he wanted to sit in this carriage.

George didn't seem bothered by the girl in the corner but was unnerved by the eerie silence. Usually he and Fred would start chatting away about their new plans for the school year and which teacher they could annoy into early retirement. He didn't see why sitting in this carriage should change that tradition and was now curious on why Fred was being so different.

"Why are we in here?" Fred tried his best to whisper but it was pointless in the empty room.

"Everywhere else was full," George shrugged and trained his eyes over to the girl who had heard the exchange, but hadn't changed her emotionless face. "You're Blair right?"

Blair didn't expect to be spoken to at all and looked up with wide eyes and parted lips. The boy looked at her with a small smile and even adjusted his position so that he was facing her. She stared back at him and even contemplated lowering her head in nod, only to have her instincts force her head away from his gaze. George's shoulders sagged as the girl looked away from him and stared out the window, his question unanswered and the air even more tense.

"Good chat," Fred sniggered and George glared at him.

The three didn't speak for the whole train ride. This was usual for Briar but near torture for the twins. Fred slouched in his seat with his arms crossed over his chest, glaring at his brother for choosing the carriage in the first place. George occasionally glanced up at Briar in the corner and only ever saw her looking out the window or down at her cat that had fallen asleep in her lap.

He knew of the Rosier girl ever since his first year at Hogwarts. She was in a few of his classes and she was a Ravenclaw, and that was about all he knew. There was always the unspoken rule of avoiding the girl at all costs because of her father's reputation. The man was a Death Eater working in the Ministry of Magic during the first Wizarding war and had fed information from within the Ministry to You-Know-Who. The man had fortunately died during the war and his only remnant was the Ravenclaw girl who never spoke or smiled.

At one stage, the black cat had decided to wander away from Blair and sniff curiously at Fred's fingers that sat next to him on the seat. The boy immediately yanked his arm close to his chest and ended up crossing his arms, glaring down at the feline with a scowl. The cat then turned to George and jumped down on to the floor, padding towards his shoes cautiously.

Unlike his brother, George didn't mind cats. He watched as it sniffed at his shoe and glanced up at him, before nuzzling its head against his calf. George let the corner of his lip hitch up into a lop-sided smile and reached down to scratch at the feline's head. The cat only stayed for a moment before turning around and padding back towards Blair. He jumped up on to seat and curled back up on to Blair's lap, acting like he had never moved.

George kept his small smile as the cat fell asleep and trailed his eyes up to girl's face. He had never really looked at Blair throughout his years at Hogwarts but noticed how immaculate her skin looked. Her porcelain face stood out against her jet black hair and noticed how slender her cheeks were. The Ravenclaw was a professional at sinking into crowds and going unseen in her classes, making George acknowledge why he had overlooked her for so long. But now that he was seeing her, he found himself wanting to talk to her and be the first to hear her voice. He hadn't even heard her cast spells, which was obviously a key process in Hogwarts. How had she been able to blend in so well?

"Oh thank Merlin", Fred breathed out and jumped up from his seat, drawing George out his trance. He lightly shook his head to rid himself of the daydream and realised that the train had pulled into Hogsmeade station.

Blair stayed still in her seat as Fred pulled open the sliding door and quickly left the carriage, relieved to be out of the tense and painful atmosphere. Students started to appear in the corridor and create a stream leading on to the platform, heading up towards the castle that sat in the distance.

George stood up also and headed for the door, glancing over his shoulder at Blair who still sat staring down at her cat. He wondered if she was ever going to stand and bit his lip, itching to say something. Maybe she would speak if Fred wasn't there making it crowded for her. He was known for being brutal and intruding. Blair hadn't even changed into her school robes yet, making George think that she was embarrassed from being in a carriage with two boys.

"I-I'll er... meet you in hall."

The words left George's mouth before he could stop them and found himself merging into the crowd in the corridor. He made it as far as on to the platform when he realised what he had said and felt his cheeks grow warm. Why would she ever meet him in the hall? They didn't know each other. She ignored him when he had asked for confirmation of her name, yet he told her he was planning to 'meet' her in Great Hall. What possessed him to say such a thing?

George ran a hand down his face and hurriedly went to find Fred, dreading the complaining his brother was bound to emit from being in a silent carriage for hours.