Vidalia rolled over onto her side, her ever growing curls a mess over her face. Her hair looked as though tiny little birds had built nests in the middle of the night. Vidalia knew it was no bird. Only the mastermind of a small twig-like creature that Vidalia called Spur could make nests so extravagant using only that of its human companion's hair. Spur was a bowtruckle, and quite expressive for how young he was.

The girl had found him just days prior to her tenth birthday and had begged Cosima to keep him. Cosima complied, only because the girl hardly begged for things. Come to find out, Spur was quite sick. Only thanks to Vidalia's relentless nature was she able to nurse the creature back to full health. And Spur stuck around.

The two got on like a mushroom on a log. Spur had become Vidalia's second-hand man, although he hardly knew what he was doing half the time and he certainly gave the girl a lot of attitude about it.

This day in particular, Vidalia was waking up on the first of September, the day all Hogwarts students would be departing for school.

"Ugh," Vidalia groaned as she sat up in bed. Spur lurched forward off her head, but held tight to a thick clump of curls. "Spur... You've made a right mess."

Spur stuck his tongue out at her, their eyes level with each other. "So frightening, little one," Vidalia said. She took the bowtruckle gently in her hands and set him down on the duvet, where he made himself comfortable there.

"Vi—" a voice came from the threshold. "Good you're up." Vidalia turned to see her mother standing there, beaming and covered in flour. "Breakfast is ready. We've got an hour before we need to head for London."

"Okay, mum. I'll be out in a second."

"Will Spur be wearing a tie for his first day?"

Vidalia and her bowtruckle exchanged looks.

"He's already told me no. And it wasn't very friendly either."

"You'll have to watch it with him. He might grow up to think he's in charge." Cosima walked back into the kitchen, humming a song as she went.

"Alright Spur. We've got to figure out what we're going to wear. Well, not you. You've already made it plain and clear you're going nude."

Vidalia found a black pinafore dress, which she matched with a white top and light blue sneakers. She pulled her hair up into a messy knot at the top of her head, much to the annoyance of the bowtruckle.

"I can't leave it down all the time," she told Spur, who was now refusing eye contact. "Besides, you've got a pocket up front you can get settled in. I sewed pockets on all of my shirts just for you."

This seemed to ease his mood up and she helped Spur into the front pocket of her dress. Vidalia lugged her trunk out into the living room where she left it and then entered the kitchen for breakfast, where Cosima was finishing up pancakes. She'd put fruit into a bowl on the side and had set a tiny bowl filled with various insects on the window ledge for Spur.

As the family ate, Cosima voiced several concerns for her daughter, worried about what Vidalia's first year of school was going to be like.

"Mum, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. I'm more concerned about Spur. I don't think us two parting for class isn't going to go over well with him."

"He'll just have to deal with it, wunn'e?" Cosima said, sending a gentle smile to her daughter.

"Mum, I've got a plan for school already. I'm thinking I might be in advanced astronomy by fourth year. I might even be able to finish off some classes early and graduate ahead of my class. I've got it all mapped out."

Cosima frowned. "What about friends? Extracurriculars? Any job you apply to after Hogwarts is going to look into those types of things, you know. How about Quidditch?"

"Mum," Vidalia said, giving Cosima a look. "I don't care about Quidditch. I care about finishing school. What's Quidditch going to do?"

Cosima let out a heavy sigh. "There's no way of making this easy, is there?"

"Mum, just trust me," the girl replied.

Cosima had no choice but to listen to her gut. Vidalia was turning into a young lady and she was old enough to start learning to make her own decisions, despite her only being just over a decade now. Vidalia acted twice her age. She was incredibly smart and mature for her own age, something she couldn't say about a lot of kids her age in River Piddle.

"Alright, then. Are we about finished with breakfast?"

The girl nodded and scooped up Spur. Cosima magicked the dishes clean and the Strange family made their way into the living room.

"Alright, darling. You've got your robes and your books? Your wand?"

"I have everything."

"Bowtruckle with an attitude problem?"

"Of course. He's right here in my pocket."

"Well, he's not going to be too happy when we use Floo to the platform."

"He'll get over it," Vidalia shrugged. She grasped tightly to her trunk and carted it with her into the fireplace. "Spur, you're going to want to hold tight."

The bowtruckle's grasp on the pocket of her pinafore hardened. Vidalia took a handful of Floo Powder and stood up straight.

"King's Cross Station!" she shouted. Green smoke billowed up around her like a funnel and Vidalia was transported right onto King's Cross. She quickly stepped away from the fireplace and waited for her mother, trying her best to ignore the look Spur was giving her. The Muggles hardly noticed as the girl was standing oddly in front of the fireplace, waiting.

A minute later, Cosima arrived, the little witch nearly falling out of the grate as she landed. Vidalia took her trunk handle in hand and let her mother lead her over to Platforms 9 and 10.

"Alright, dear. You know what to do."

Vidalia nodded, smiling at Cosima. The girl ran straight at the wall, disappearing through to the other side, where the Hogwarts Express was waiting, the fiery red engine looking shiny in the sunshine. If you could describe magic with only one thing, Vidalia would have said the Hogwarts Express itself was that of true magic.

The girl smiled as she took in the glory of it. She hadn't let herself get too giddy beforehand, but now she was practically bouncing out of her shoes. Cosima appeared right behind her and placed a gentle hand on her daughter's back.

"Let's go." The two walked closer to one of the train cars. "Alright, darling. This is it."

"Oh, Mum, I'm going to miss you!" Vidalia threw her arms around her mother and Cosima held her tightly. They only broke apart when there was a sharp pain given to both of them, the culprit being the tiny twig tucked away in Vidalia's pinafore pocket.

"I'm sorry, Spur."

"Alright, Mum. I must board now. I'll see you for Christmas!"

"You behave!"

"I will—"

"I was talking to Spur," Cosima grinned. "And you—" she pointed to her daughter. "Write to me every week, okay? Tell me how everything's going. And please, for the love of Merlin, make some friends. Okay?"

"I'll try, Mum. You know I'm not a people person."

"That's okay. Now, go. Your train leaves soon, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Vidalia confirmed. "I love you, Mum."

"I love you, Vidalia Ray. Have a great time!"

Vidalia climbed the steps to the car and hoisted her trunk in after her. The girl headed all the way down the aisle until she found a near empty compartment. She tucked herself inside.

There were two other students inside, and they appeared to be first years as well. One, a girl, had fiery red hair and bright, curious eyes. Part of her looked scared, but another looked just as excited. She must be a Muggleborn, Vidalia thought quietly. How scary it must be to be raised a Muggle and get thrown into a world like this.

The other kid was a tall, lanky boy with black hair and eyes. His clothes didn't fit right and he looked dirty. He narrowed his eyes as he stared Vidalia down, scrutinizing her in every way that the kids in her village did.

The two couldn't be more opposite.

"May I sit here?" Vidalia asked, the boy making her nervous.

"Of course," said the girl, giving her a kind smile. Vidalia could tell, just by looking at this girl, that they were going to become very close friends.

Vidalia took a seat across from the others.

"I'm Vidalia," the curly-haired girl greeted, sticking out her hand.

"I'm Lily. This is Severus."

Severus almost refused to properly greet Vidalia until he received a painful jab in the side.

"Pleasure," he said, his voice harsh and forced. It seemed as though he didn't quite want to share Lily.

"Who's that?" Lily asked, her interest piqued.

Vidalia looked down and saw that Spur quite looked like this Severus kid with his eyes narrowed. He was not too fond of strangers.

"This is Spur. He's a bowtruckle."

Lily smiled at the creature, a smile so kind and welcoming, even Spur couldn't keep up his front. Lily stuck her finger out, as if to shake hands with the twig and, to Vidalia's complete astonishment, the bowtruckle accepted and he shook Lily's finger up and down.

"He's sweet," Lily grinned.

"He sleeps in my hair. He's a pain, but he's been my only friend thus far so I try not to fit about him too much."

"Well, we'll be your friends," Lily said, another smile adorning her rosy cheeks. "Won't we, Sev?"

Severus didn't say anything, but he shrugged, which was more than Vidalia had gotten out of him the whole time.

It was about five minutes to eleven when two boys entered the car, both of them looking more wild than the other. One boy had blue eyes and jet black hair, which he kept ruffling up to make it seem messy. He looked like a celebrity.

The other boy, who nearly towered over them all, had dark and wild, curly hair, which fell down over his dark brown eyes. He looked wild and dangerous, but also fun and adventure-seeking.

They didn't ask to sit down, but Vidalia wasn't going to tell them to leave. She just hoped they weren't like the type in her village who would immediately start picking on her. The two boys sat down next to her and began chatting animatedly to each other. They seemed to know each other quite well already, but there was no way these two were brothers.

Severus and Lily began chatting amongst each other as well, and Vidalia found it was just her and Spur, as usual.

Everything changed when Severus said to Lily, "you'd better be in Slytherin."

"Slytherin?" Lily asked cautiously, like even the sound of it made her unsure. This caught the other boys' attention right away.

"Slytherin's full of bad guys," the black-haired kid said from beside Vidalia.

"My whole family have been in Slytherin," said the other in a weak attempt to diffuse the tension.

"Blimey! And I thought you were alright."

The other boy smirked lightly. "Maybe I'll break tradition. Where are you going if you've got the choice?"

"Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart," he said proudly. "Like my dad."

Severus made a disgusted sort of noise.

"Got a problem with that?" the kid with glasses countered, turning back toward Severus. The two boys both began teasing Severus, Lily growing quite angry. The girl took Severus' hand in hers and the two promptly left the compartment. Vidalia watched as one of the boys tripped Severus on his way out.

"That wasn't very nice," Vidalia commented after the door had slammed shut.

"He's not very nice," one boy said, jerking his thumb in the direction Lily and Severus has disappeared. "Guy was weird."

Vidalia frowned deeply. "We're all a little weird, aren't we?"

"Yeah," said the boy with curly hair, turning to his friend. "Come to think of it, you're the weirdest bloke I've ever met."

"Aw, come on!" The boy grinned.

The curly-haired boy turned to Vidalia, a bright smile on his face. "I'm Sirius."

"Serious about what?" Vidalia said, eyebrows knitting together.

The black-hair boy busted up laughing. "That was funny."

"Come on, I've heard all those jokes before," Sirius said. "I meant my name is Sirius."

"Oh! Like the star!" Vidalia said excitedly.

"Yeah, exactly," Sirius replied, now grinning. He seemed surprised that she knew the names of stars.

"I'm James. James Potter."

"Guess that means I have to introduce myself, then?" The boys stared expectantly at her. "I'm Vidalia Strange."

"Strange name," Sirius said.

"Okay, mine was an honest mistake," Vidalia said, rolling her eyes.

"Who's this guy?" James Potter asked, pointing to Spur. Spur stuck out his tongue at James, then crossed his arms.

"This is Spur. He's got an attitude problem. Don't take it personally."

"Sounds like you, James," Sirius said with a grin. James sent a glare to Sirius.

"He doesn't really like strangers. He'll either learn to like you or he'll just tolerate you."

"We get that a lot," James smirked. "So, where are you from? Are you pureblood?"

"James," Sirius frowned, obviously bothered by the question of purity.

"What? I don't care. She could be half-troll for all I know. I'm just curious."

Vidalia shrugged. "I honestly don't know. I was adopted when I was a baby. I've never met my parents. But I was raised by a witch in a wizarding village, so I've been around magic my whole life." Vidalia purposely left out the part about her being a Seer. She knew that's what usually turned people away. Seers weren't too well respected. Even her mother was a Seer and she didn't quite like to tell people about her Inner Eye.

Once Vidalia was old enough to understand that the reason she was picked on was because of her ability to see the future, she stopped talking about it, except to her mother. It wasn't even the Seer part that people hated. It was that people couldn't prove that she could see the future.

If only people could see the things that she had...

"What village?" Sirius asked.

"River Piddle. It's outside Puddlemere in Dorset. It's quiet. You'd hardly know you'd even been there."

"Strange," said Sirius.

"Yes?" said Vidalia, making James crack up again.

The three got on rather well during the journey to Hogwarts. By the time Vidalia left the compartment to change in the bathroom, she'd forgotten all about Lily and Severus.

"I promise I'll sew a pocket into my robes," Vidalia was telling Spur as she entered the compartment again.

"Why do you need a pocket?"

"Spur has to travel in pockets, because if he's not in a pocket, he's in my hair. It's the same battle with him every day."

Spur made a noise of protest. "Spur, you can argue with me all you like, but there's nothing I can do about it right now, is there? You're just going to have to suck it up and quit being a drama queen."

Spur crossed his arms and took a seat on Vidalia's shoulder.

"He's quite the bowtruckle. I've never seen one that expressive," said Sirius.

"He's always gotta have his way," Vidalia sighed.

It wasn't too long before the train started to slow down and it came to a stop in Hogsmeade, the little town just down the hill from Hogwarts.

The students all filed out of their compartments and off the train. The first years stayed in a group off to the side while the rest of the students made their way up the pavement to some carriages.

"Firs' years!" A voice boomed over the chattering sea of eleven-year-olds. "Firs' years, this way!"

Vidalia turned, only to see a giant man with a thick, bushy beard. Little beady eyes could be seen between his beard and his hair.

The kids all gathered around the half-giant called Hagrid.

"Alrigh', now ter get to the castle, ya gotta ride in the boats across the lake, 'ere," the half-giant said. "We can fit three ter a boat, except one with me. And no rockin' it. I get seasick. Firs' years, come righ' over here."

The students gathered around, a sea of black cloaks and hats and tiny, excited faces.

Vidalia was finally feeling the exhilaration of all of this. She'd grown up with magic, so a lot of this wasn't as surprising as it would be to a Muggleborn. Still, no amount of magic could have prepared her for the thrill of finally attending school.

Vidalia followed the two boys she'd befriended into a boat, the three of them squishing themselves together, all of them wanting to be at the front of the boat. Ultimately, Vidalia won that fight and James sat behind her, poor lanky Sirius bringing up the rear.

"This is so cool," James gushed shoving Vidalia's hair out of the way so he could see over the top of her head. Vidalia paid no attention, her focus only on everything in front of her. Spur clung on for dear life on Vidalia's shoulder, terrified of going overboard into the Black Lake.

The boats all lurched forward, onward toward the great Hogwarts Castle. As they got closer, the magical silhouette became clearer, the lights beaming from the towers looking like stars against the black glass. Vidalia's jaw dropped in utter awe at the sight before her. It was liked nothing she'd ever seen before. Her mother had described Hogwarts in vivid details, but it was just something you'd have to see for yourself to believe.

Once in the boathouse, the students clambered out of their seats and gathered once more around Hagrid.

"Follow me," he said, black eyes twinkling. The children all followed close behind as the half-giant led them all into the castle through the two large oak doors.

There, awaiting them, was a tall, narrow witch wearing brilliant emerald robes. Her face was birdlike, eyes razor sharp like a hawk, and a long nose where a pair of spectacles sat. Her hair was pinned up and tucked beneath a large, pointy hat.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid," McGonagall said, her firm features never softening. Hagrid left, disappearing up a flight of stairs and through a set of large doors. "I am Professor McGonagall, your Transfiguration Professor and Head of House for Gryffindor. In a minute, I will lead you into the Great Hall where we will begin the Sorting Ceremony and you will join your classmates at your respective House table.

"During your time at Hogwarts, you will earn points for your house. At the end of the year, we celebrate the House with the most points. Any rule breaking will deduct points from your house." McGonagall took a good look at all the students staring up at her. With a subtle upturn of her mouth, she said, "Follow me."

Vidalia trailed after the two boys as they walked with the rest of the students behind McGonagall. She led them to the same door Hagrid had disappeared through. The doors opened wide and every student and faculty member at Hogwarts was there to greet them, along with the aroma of old books and sage, as well as the same smells as a large Christmas feast.

The Great Hall was adorned with huge windows and four very long tables, which held students from each House. Candlesticks floated from the ceiling, which was bewitched to resemble the night sky on a clear night. At the top of the Hall was another long table where all the professors and faculty sat. At the head was Dumbledore, whom Vidalia remembered meeting when she was much younger.

The new students trickled in after McGonagall, following her all the way to the top of the hall where a three-legged stool sat. Atop the stool sat what appeared to be a huge pile of old, ragged fabric.

When the students came to a standstill, waiting expectantly for the next step, they watched as features resembling a face formed on the front of what Vidalia could now make out as an old, dingy hat. The mouth opened, and the hat began to sing.

When it finished, the students watched in astonishment, unsure what to think. The rest of the Hall applauded the old hat, and the First Years joined in.

"When I call your name, you will step forward to be Sorted into your House," McGonagall announced, now holding
a long bit of parchment. She called out a name and a student nervously made his way forward.

Vidalia thanked whomever had made her that her last name was further down the alphabet. She'd hate to be the first one to be Sorted.

The old hat cried out, "Hufflepuff!" and the boy hopped off the stool, nearly forgetting to take the hat off, and ran to join the applauding students who bore bright yellow on their robes.

Hufflepuff wouldn't be a bad House at all, Vidalia thought. Her mother was a Hufflepuff and she said their Common Room was positioned right next to the kitchens.

Another student was called up and was quickly sorted into Ravenclaw.

Vidalia would have liked Ravenclaw as well. They're quite the creative type. Except, Vidalia wasn't much of a craftsman. For being a Seer, she rarely had ideas on how to make things. Really, her thoughts were on the future and how things could possibly work out in that way.

The next student called up was placed in Slytherin. Vidalia knew the reputation Slytherin had. But how could they be all bad? Merlin was a Slytherin and he was one of the greatest wizards of all time.

"Black, Sirius," McGonagall called. Sirius turned toward James and Vidalia, gave them a wide, toothy grin, and waltzed his way up to the stool. The hat was placed on his head; it slipped down over his eyes.

Unlike the students before him, the hat seemed to be having trouble placing him in a House. It was a full two minutes later when the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"

"Yes!" James exclaimed from beside Vidalia, giving her shoulders a hard shake. "That's great. We need to all be in Gryffindor."

"You say that like we're best friends," Vidalia claimed.

"Are we not?" James said, quirking an eyebrow at her.

Vidalia grinned.

It seemed to take forever to go through all the students.

Lily Evans, the red-haired girl she'd met on the train, was sorted into Gryffindor. The small girl walked quietly over to the table, sitting far away from Sirius.

Vidalia caught the glaring dark eyes of Severus, Lily's friend. She remembered the whole fiasco with him on the train. He was going to be in Slytherin. Vidalia knew their friendship wasn't going to last.

Finally, Potter, James was called and Vidalia's supposed new best friend left her side to go up and be sorted. Vidalia watched as McGonagall set the hat atop James' head. It barely seemed to touch him, however, when he cried out, "GRYFFINDOR!" and James, looking like Christmas had come early, bounded off to sit beside Sirius.

Vidalia caught their gaze and she saw Sirius send her a reassuring smile.

"Snape, Severus," McGonagall called. The dark boy walked forward. Just like with James, the hat barely had time to touch his head before it sorted him.

"SLYTHERIN!"

Severus sulked off toward his House's table and sat down, disappearing amongst the darkness of everyone's robes. She wasn't sure what it was, but Severus' aura was not a bright one. It was dark, almost like a constant rain cloud.

"Strange, Vidalia," McGonagall called and Vidalia felt her heart stop, a breath hitched in her throat. She tried to make herself seem small as she passed between the few remaining students to be sorted. Vidalia took her place on the stool, nervous as hundreds of eyes all fell on her.

The hat was placed on her head and it sank low, completely covering her eyes. "A Strange girl, eh. I sorted your mother into Hufflepuff, yes, years ago. No. Not Hufflepuff. I think Ravenclaw would be a magnificent place for you."

Vidalia found herself muttering "Gryffindor" pleadingly, as if her life depended on it. "Please. I want to be in Gryffindor. That's where I belong."

"Gryffindor, eh? You seem quite certain that's where you belong. Quite a remarkable young witch. Capable of things most experienced witches and wizards are not. You see yourself in Gryffindor, don't you?" The hat teased.

Vidalia nodded. "I've known that's where I belong since I was little."

"If you're positive. GRYFFINDOR!"

Vidalia felt a wave of relief flood through her body as the hat was removed and she was free to join her classmates. She spotted James and Sirius and grinned wider than ever as she and Spur ran to join them. The boys moved over, giving her a seat right in between them. She was exactly where she belonged. She was sure of it.