Painted Scars // WOLFSTAR

Year One: James Potter

If there's one thing that Sirius Black is good at, it's complaining.

My food is too hot. This chair is too low. Regulus, stop talking so loud, you're annoying me.

Sirius Black, by nature, is a massive whiner. But somehow, when he stepped foot into the crappy muggle train station with bright lights and the lingering smell of rainwater, he had nothing to complain about. In fact, Sirius may have never been happier in his life.

When he had first heard of Hogwarts, he was skeptical. There was no school in the world that could be fun; that much he was sure of. Especially not a school that his parents would've gone to, two of the most rigid people he'd ever met. But when Andromeda, his big cousin that was much cooler than he could ever be, came home from her year with the biggest smile on her face and stories of the fun she had, Sirius changed his mind.

"Sirius," his mother said, effectively stopping him from running straight into the brick wall that read 'Platform 9 ¾.' He turned around and looked at her. She was a very beautiful woman; tall, and sturdy. Long, black hair that was a parallel to her last name. Sirius was incredibly frightened of her.

"Yes, Mother?" Sirius replied, rather hoping she'd keep it short. Could she not see how excited he was to leave?

"Your family is reflected in how you behave at school. You will not disappoint me." Sirius knew what this meant. Get sorted into Slytherin. Don't befriend any mudbloods or blood-traitors. Get good marks.

"I wouldn't dream of it," the young boy said with a cheeky grin. He quickly amended himself at the look in her eye. "Yes, Mother," he said instead. His mother gave him a stern nod and Sirius took this as permission to leave. He grabbed his cart, waved goodbye to his Mum and little brother, and took off in a run towards the barrier.

Though he knew he wouldn't hit the wall, Sirius winced as he ran. When he didn't run into anything, he opened his eyes to a massive platform with dozens of young witches and wizards. It was much warmer on the platform than it had been in the station. He watched as sons and daughters hugged their parents, but didn't give it much mind. How could he, when a large crimson train sat unmoving with beautiful gold lettering that read 'The Hogwarts Express' in front of him.

When Sirius found an empty carriage, he lifted his bags over his head into the compartment with some effort. With a sigh, he took his seat easily, taking precaution to remove his wand from his back pocket first. It seemed a pity that kids weren't allowed a wand until they were enrolled in school. Think of all the magic he'd already know had he been allowed one.

Though Sirius was excited for a trip in silence, his paradise didn't last long. A bustling outside of his carriage and the scraping of the metal door caused Sirius to look up.

"Hello," a messy haired boy with too much luggage said. He looked a wreck, but he had a grin on his face that didn't make Sirius lift his nose.

"Hello," Sirius replied coolly, just looking at the boy. He did not move, nor say anything, and Sirius ticked an eyebrow.

"Oh, right, yes, sorry, I'm James. Can I sit here?" Sirius tried not to laugh at the frazzled boy, deciding to just nod with a smile and watch as he lugged his bags over his head. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name."

"Sirius Black," he said, and did not waiver when James' eyes went big. "You're James...?"

"Potter," James replied quickly, as though he would get in trouble if he didn't answer quickly. This was not new to Sirius. People tended to have this reaction when they heard his surname. Not just kids either, which raised a few questions in his mind about what his parents did in their free time.