MemeLord27 has been waiting on this for a while as is everyone else who requested something but I swear I'm working on them all it's just taking time and this one took a SHIT TON of time since I had to do some research
The train back to Hogwarts was always an exciting yet sad time. On the one hand, you were going back to the only place you could be yourself without the threat of townspeople gathering pitchforks and setting up a pyre. On the other hand, you were leaving for boarding school with the people who made your life hell and leaving behind all your home comforts including your beloved pets. Weighing them both up, it was better than staying home and going to a muggle school. Robin sighed as the train pulled into the station and looked over to Bruce, his guardian. "You've survived two years, at least now you know the school like the back of your hand," Bruce assured him, fussing over his uniform. He licked his thumb and rubbed some dirt off the teenager's face. "I've still got to survive a whole lot more. I'm not even allowed to take Peanuts," he complained.
"Master Dick, you may have trained a Swooping Evil to eat nuts instead of human brains but that hardly makes it safe for your fellow students," Alfred explained. The younger folded his arms and scuffed his heel on the floor.
"Who cares about them?"
"Oh Rob, you wound me so," Wally announced dramatically. Robin immediately perked up and whipped around with a grin. Standing behind him was the ginger Gryffindor he called his best friend and, depending on who you were, his boyfriend. "Fine. I care about one student," he replied.
"I trust you'll take better care of him this year Wallace," Bruce said in a bitter tone. The ginger gulped at the man's intimidating presence, finally nodding when Robin hit him in the arm.
"Y-yes, sir. Will do."
"Go easy on him sir. You know how people get when Slytherins and Gryffindors befriend one another," Alfred reminded him. People were still odd about these things even when it was hardly needed. Not every Slytherin was going to try and destroy the word and not every Gryffindor was going to save the world from the clutches of evil. "Indeed I do. Just keep safe this year, okay? I want letters every week and if you need to come home then I'll get you home."
"Same rules every year B. I'll be okay. See you at Christmas," Robin replied, hugging him tightly. Bruce held on tightly before the younger pulled away and grabbed Wally's hand to drag him onto the train. "I really hope things go well for him this time. He's one step away from removing all his bad memories. I don't want him to forget why he's with me," the billionaire wizard mumbled.
"I'm afraid only time will tell."
Robin and Wally found an empty carriage and quickly seized it as their own. They made sure to take off anything that connected them to their houses so those walking by wouldn't be able to see the vibrant colours through the warped glass. "It feels like forever since I've seen you," Wally complained, closing the curtains to the window facing the crowds of parents waving off their children. "You saw me last week," Robin giggled. The ginger sat back down and secretly held the other's hand out of view from any prying eyes.
"I'm used to seeing you every day," he argued. He received a chaste kiss on the cheek to ease his worries.
"And you'll see me every day during term."
"Yeah but only when no one else is around. When can we actually be public with all this?" he asked. He asked nearly every time they were together but Robin couldn't get angry at him. He was just affectionate and wanted to be no matter what. It's just that they couldn't afford for it to be public with it all. Not only were they from different houses, but they were also two boys in a relationship. Sure people were getting more accepting but there were so many people at Hogwarts that there was sure to be a loud minority of people who'd have something to say about it. If that weren't enough, Robin was born of muggle parents. That was still looked down upon. Wally came from a long line of wizards and even hanging out with Robin had already damaged their reputation. Not that they really cared but Robin did. He cared too much about it all according to his partner. "When things get better," he replied coyly.
"Things won't get better if someone isn't brave enough to do something," Wally pointed out.
"You're such a Gryffindor. Bruce doesn't even know we're together yet. It'll just be us against everyone else."
Before Wally could argue further, there was a knock on the door. They snatched their hands away from one another and Robin opened it. Four people stood in the crowded hallway with various faces of discomfort. "May I help you?" he asked.
"We don't mean to intrude but our usual carriage got taken over by the new kids and we don't know anyone so we're just going around asking for a place to stay for the trip over," the girl with the least discomfort answered. She looked to be the youngest of the group and wore a bright smile. He looked back to Wally who shrugged. "Uhm, okay. It's just us anyway," he answered, moving away from the door. The four shuffled in and found a sit with relieved looks.
"Thank you. You're the sixth person we've asked. I swear those Slytherins get more selfish every year," Artemis complained.
"I'm a Slytherin." A tension bomb hit the room at full force.
"I didn't - uh."
"Some of them are bad though. Especially on this side of the train," Robin added with a laugh. He offered her a smile to show his feelings weren't hurt. He shut the door and sat down beside Wally, now leaving a space. He immediately regretted letting these new students in but he'd have to deal with it now. "Are you both Slytherin?" the youngest asked. Obviously she was the most socially confident of the group.
"Nope, I'm Gryffindor. I stay up here though since it's mostly quiet up here. Everyone quietens down after the first hour," Wally answered. "So, who are you guys?"
"Oh, I'm M'gann, this is Artemis, Kaldur and Connor. I don't think we caught your names."
"We didn't throw them. I'm Robin and he's Wally."
Some awkward silence followed before M'gann once again tried to make some conversation. "I'm a Hufflepuff by the way, Kaldur is Ravenclaw and those two are Gryffindor." The friends glanced at one another then back to the group. They were all in different houses but were friends? Maybe they were foolish to think they were the only ones but it always felt like it. Plus they had the added history of competition between their houses which somehow always went a bit too far. That explains why they didn't say anything when they revealed they were in different houses. "Huh, I haven't seen you guys around before," Wally commented, studying the two Gryffindors.
"I'm in your Alchemy class," Connor deadpanned. "I sit behind you."
"And we're in a Snapchat group together for Fortune Telling," Artemis huffed. The ginger paused and shook his head.
"Nope, can't be, I never forget a face."
"He does. All the time," Robin corrected. They laughed as Wally pouted. He remembered the important things like their anniversary and all the good spells. He just had selective memory by taking out all the boring stuff and replacing it with the stuff he needed. It just so happened the boring stuff included the two other Gryffindors in the room. "You know, you look familiar," M'gann stated as she stared at the raven-haired teen. Her eyes narrowed as she studied his features. "You probably just saw me around school," he responded a little too quickly.
"Rob, how's Peanuts? Is she well?" Wally cut in, saving his boyfriend from being found out. People weren't supposed to know his real name other than family and friends, mostly for privacy reasons. He couldn't stand the thought of people googling his names and seeing his parent's fate in the results. It was too much to always explain what happened properly or deal with their sudden new behaviour around him so he just went by Robin. Bruce made sure every teacher abided by calling him Robin too. If they didn't then they better be looking in the jobs section of the newspaper. "Oh, she's doing well. What about Sticky?"
"I nearly lost him the other day. The guy decided to hide in a bush," he replied.
"Oh, you have pets?" M'gann inquired, forgetting her previous line of thought. The boys couldn't help but find her endearing. They always liked someone inquisitive, even if it nearly ended in a disaster. "I have a Bowtruckle and he has a Swooping Evil." Artemis suddenly looked very intrigued by the conversation.
"A Swooping Evil? That's awesome! I just have a Demiguise. They're sorta cool but a Swooping Evil trumps everything," she stated with a grin.
"Well I'm very happy with my Mooncalves," M'gann commented.
"I've got a Billywig. Well, it's more like my Dad's Billywig that I look after," Connor complained. He glared at the curtains with a glare that held more firey fury than the sun.
"I just talk to the Kelpie," Kaldur added defeatedly.
"Oh, so you're the guy I keep seeing out by the lake. That's a relief," Robin sighed. Last year he had the bed beside the window and kept seeing him out there. He honestly thought it was just another lost spirit which got rather depressing when he dwelled on it during the night. "You should come to meet us there sometime. We hang out around the lake a lot ever since they closed the main hall for repairs. It's our thing now," Kaldur suggested. The boys looked at one another with a shrug. It's not like they were the most popular school. They were just sort of known as the smart loner kid and the class clown. "Sounds like a plan. Our last hang out spot got raided so we need a new one."
The group didn't meet again until a few nights later completely on accident. Robin and Wally had a nasty habit of getting schedules that never went well together. When one was free, the other was in class. When they had lunch, their classes would be on opposite sides of the school so they hardly spent any time together before they had to walk to their next lesson. To counteract this horrible fate, they did what every rebellious teenager did. They snuck out. Robin had always been the master of sneaking out. He only got caught once in the thousands of times they must've done it and that was only because he was ill at the time and had to sneeze. They had a very specific meeting point. It had originally been the West bench of the lake but ever since Robin started seeing what he'd thought to be a spirit they moved to the East bench. There they would sit with just the moon and a small candle to light their surroundings. They'd talk about their day and stargaze. Sometimes they practised spells or did their homework. No matter what they did, they were just happy to do it together for once. This night wasn't different from any other. They snuck out their dorm rooms and met by the bench. Robin brought along his blanket considering how cold it was outside and Wally used it as an opportunity to cuddle up to his partner. "I missed you today. I swear the days are getting longer," the ginger complained. He rubbed his hands together and blew on them to get them to heat up. Robin took them in his and whispered a spell before warmth once again returned to the freezing digits. "New trick?"
"Read ahead a few chapters," he replied.
"Look at you being a bookworm," Wally teased. He received a jestful shove and returned it with a soft kiss on the lips.
"Oh my God, you two are dating! I told you they had vibes on the train. I'm the vibe master!" M'gann exclaimed. The pair jumped to their feet and whipped around to find the same four from the train lit by their wands. "Put those lights out and keep your voice down. Someone will see us," Robin ordered in a strained voice. They dimmed their lights ever so slightly but kept them on.
"You two are so cute together. You got together like like..."
"Like bees and honey?" Connor suggested.
"Yes!" She put a hand over her mouth when she realised she shouted that and silently apologised. Fortunately, that wasn't the worst thing to happen tonight. The worst thing was what was making Robin hyperventilate and Wally paler than the moon. "Oh God, we got found out," Wally stated.
"What if my roommates find out? I'll be bullied even more," Robin wheezed.
"They might not let you in my dorm at the weekend. We'll see each other even less."
"Both of you calm down," Kladur demanded. He put a hand on each of their shoulders to ease their concerns. They tensed immediately before realizing he wasn't going to throw them in the water to be Kelpie food. "We're not going to say anything to anyone," Connor assured them. The couple breathed a sigh of relief and lent against the bench for support. It felt like their hearts had just exploded then been reassembled again. "If we're going to be friends you're never doing this whole thing again. I think I just lost three years off my life," Robin said, just catching his breath. Their new friends laughed but he was deadly serious. At this rate, he wouldn't make it to retirement. "You guys should come with us to the forest. We're making the ultimate potion with every ingredient we can think of and we thought we'd mix it all together there just in case," Artemis suggested.
"Sounds like we'll all get blown up," Wally deadpanned. "Let's go, babe."
It did blow up but it was pretty cool.
Hope you liked it!