Those Ocean Eyes

Chapter 1

Remus stepped clumsily onto the shiny wood steps of the Hogwarts Express, hauling his large brown briefcase marked "R. J. Lupin" behind him. Rubbing his eyes blearily, he looked around in amazement. Who knew something as unremarkable as a train could be so remarkable? He had heard from the boys at the orphan home about trains that took people to amazing places, like across the globe or even to the North Pole! Remus didn't believe in Santa Claus, however. The older boys from the home told him it was all phony. After all, if there really was a Santa Claus, he wouldn't have let Remus been taken in by the insufferable orphanage.

Remus slid into the first empty compartment he saw, and heaved the heavy briefcase over his head. He grunted, struggling, but it didn't seem to fit. He sighed, about to give up, but suddenly a hand reached out of nowhere and lifted the case easily into the overhead cubbies. Remus turned to see his savior.

"Hiya. James Potter, at your service. What's your name?" A skinny boy with dark, messy hair that fell into his face smiled broadly at him, extending his hand to shake. Remus shook his hand slowly.

"Remus. Thanks for the help."

"No problem. This here is Peter." The friendly boy gestured at a small, mousy figure with sandy hair standing behind him. The squat boy, Peter, gave him a small wave. The two boys plopped down in front of Remus, quite uninvited.

They stared out the window for a while, watching the families saying goodbye to each other. The compartment door slid open loudly. A boy with long, black hair that almost reached his shoulders practically ran in. The boy glanced around carefully, landing his bright blue eyes right on Remus. The boy kept his eyes on Remus a little longer than Remus wanted him to. Remus looked away quickly. The boy sat down next to Remus and introduced himself.

"Hey. Sirius Black, part time model, full time charmer." Sirius flashed a winning smile at Remus, making it quite warm in the small compartment. The boy sitting across from Remus, James, grinned.

"James Potter. Peter's here, and this is Remus."

"Oh wow, a Potter! I'm glad I met you. My parents despise you!" Sirius said, his bright eyes twinkling.

James looked a little put out, but something clicked in his mind as he processed.

"I've always wanted to go against my parent's word, but my mother told me not to." James said, winking as Sirius laughed loudly.

Peter finally spoke up.

"Peter Pettigrew", he said hurriedly, "Joking about the model thing, right?" The small boy twisted his hands together in his lap, and glanced at James.

Sirius smiled. His dark hair framed his cheekbones perfectly. "Who knows? Might be lying, might not."

Remus smirked at this. Peter seemed slightly clueless, but loveable. He'd be the type the older boys at the orphan home would keep around just to run errands.

Sirius sat back and got comfortable as the train started moving away from the station. Remus couldn't help but notice the way his shirt wrinkled so perfectly around the bottom.

"So, what house are you going to be in, James?" Sirius said, brushing his hair to the side.

"Me an' Peter are going to be in Gryffindor, hopefully." James adjusted his round glasses and shifted in his seat. "What're you hoping for?"

"Gryffindor. All my family's in Slytherin, so I hope it'll piss 'em off." The boy grinned michivieusly. "How about you, o quiet one?"

Remus felt his eyes widen. He had no clue what they were talking about. He decided to go along with it. For some reason, there was an urge to seem smart in front of this group of people.

"Griffin door. Seems cool."

Sirius slapped him on the back. Remus flinched slightly at the contact, and a strange feeling fluttered in his stomach. Nobody seemed to notice.

"All Gryffindor, then! Good, I was worried I'd just chosen Slytherin friends and that'd make Mother happy." That made them all laugh.