Chapter Text
Sunday, 1st September 1991
Betty Lupin hated the summer. She always woke up sticky and uncomfortable, her limbs tangled in the sheets and the morning sun glaring angrily through her curtains, making it near impossible to go back to sleep. But she’d try nonetheless, tossing and turning until the stuffy air and harsh sunlight became unbearable - which, at this time of year, didn’t take long.
Unfortunately for Betty, she did not have the opportunity to go back to sleep that morning, even if she had wanted to. Remus, her father, had woken her up by knocking on her bedroom door. He slowly pushed the door open, taking a small step inside.
“Hey, Bee,” he said softly, “You up?”
Betty let out a grunt and buried her head underneath the pillow. She heard her father chuckle softly, before feeling the bed dip beside her as he sat down.
“Big day, today,” said Remus.
“I don’t wanna go,” mumbled Betty, her voice croaking slightly from sleep. “I don’t wanna leave you.” She turned to face him, and he smiled at her, reaching out to brush a few strands of hair away from her face.
“You’ll be alright, I promise,” he smiled kindly. “You’ll have so much fun, you won’t even have time to miss home.”
It’s you that I’m worried about , Betty thought but said nothing. Instead, she returned Remus’s smile, fully aware that it most likely did not meet her eyes, and watched as he left the room and crossed the hall of their small flat to make them both breakfast.
With another grunt, she reluctantly swung her legs over the bed and stood up, stretching. Grabbing the clothes she had left hanging on her door the previous night, she padded to the bathroom.
Betty yawned, rubbing her eyes, and glanced sleepily at her reflection in the mirror above the sink. She didn’t look much like her dad, with her dark brown hair and blue eyes, as opposed to his mousy brown hair and golden eyes. Remus always told her that she had taken after her mother in the looks department, but what that actually meant, she would probably never know. Betty’s mother had died during childbirth, so she had never met her; Betty had also never seen any photos of her mum, either. Her mother and father hadn’t known each other that well, Remus always told her, so he didn’t have any pictures. She knew not to press further than that; her father was a very private man. There was a lot she didn’t know about both of their lives. Betty didn’t worry too much about it, however - she trusted her father enough to believe that if there was anything important that she needed to know, he would have told her.
The comforting aroma of cooking bacon drifted under the bathroom door, and Betty’s stomach grumbled eagerly in response. She quickly splashed her face with some water and pulled on her denim pinafore with a sudden urgency before heading to the kitchen, her mouth-watering at the thought of the bacon sandwich that was waiting for her.
Betty and Remus ate in silence, the weight of the day ahead of them resting heavily on their minds. In the whole eleven years that Betty had been alive, she and her father had not been apart for more than a few days at a time. The thought of at least four months away from each other worried both of the Lupins; not for themselves, but of how the other would cope with the change.
“Want me to do your hair?” asked Remus, once they had cleared away their plates. Betty nodded, passing him the black scrunchie that had been on her wrist. He had always done her hair for her, ever since she was a small girl - one of the perks of being a single parent, you had to learn everything. Of course, she was old enough to do it herself now, but occasionally he would still offer to do it for her. It seemed like more of a comfort for Remus than Betty herself, so she always let him do it whenever he offered.
Betty let out a small, content sigh as her father began to gently comb out her hair, before braiding it neatly down her back. She felt something furry and warm brush up against her legs and she giggled, glancing down at the black cat who had decided to settle down on top of her feet.
“There,” said Remus, planting a kiss on the top of Betty’s head, “all done.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“Right, well, I suppose we’d better start getting your stuff together,” said Remus, as he went to retrieve something from the cupboard in the hallway.
Betty scooped the cat up in her arms and brought her pet over to her father, who was waiting with the pet carrier. She gently placed the cat inside, before closing the hatch.
“Good girl, Maggie,” she said softly.
Remus took the carrier over to the living room fireplace, holding it away from him at an amusing distance, before carefully setting it next to the rest of Betty’s luggage on the floor. Maggie hissed at Remus as he walked away, drawing a small chuckle from Betty.
“That bloody cat hates me,” grumbled Remus.
“Not surprised, considering what you turn into once a month,” replied Betty, smirking, “Anyway, I don’t think she hates you… she’s just wary of you.”
“In my experience, I’ve come to learn that pretty much means the same thing.” Her father checked the watch on his wrist and whistled. “Okay, we’d better get a move on if you’ve gotta get the train at eleven. Go brush your teeth quickly and I’ll check we’ve got everything.”
Ten minutes later, Betty found herself clambering out of the Leaky Cauldron’s fireplace, laden with more suitcases and bags than an average eleven-year-old would normally be able to carry. Thank Merlin her dad had had the clever thought of putting the feather-light charm on all her luggage before they’d left.
It must have been a strange sight for the Muggles, watching a young girl (who was quite small for her age) carrying a large pet carrier and four bags on her back that were almost the same size as her, as they made their way on and off the Underground. Remus had the suitcases - all five of them. He had told her to pack light and complained profusely when he had first seen the vast collection of bags she had packed (but in Betty’s defence, her new school books took up an entire suitcase by themselves). And if she was going to be walking around a castle every day, she did need two bags of shoes. Remus still disagreed but knew he wasn’t going to win that particular debate. Although, he didn’t often get to win any debate with Betty.
They made it to Kings Cross Station with only ten minutes to find the platform and board the train before it left. Luckily, Betty’s dad seemed to remember where he was going from when he was at school, and they arrived at the entrance to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters in what felt like no time at all. Trying to look casual, the Lupins loitered in front of the barrier for a few moments, waiting for the gaggle of girls nearby to bustle past them. As soon as the group had hidden the two of them from sight, Remus and Betty stepped through the barrier and onto the platform.
If she’d had the chance, Betty would have just stood there for a few minutes, gazing around the platform and taking everything in. She had tried to imagine what it would all look like, of course she had, but it was nothing like what she had conjured up in her mind. It was somehow even better, even though she’d already had high expectations from everything Remus had told her.
Unfortunately, Betty only had a few fleeting moments to absorb her surroundings, as within seconds of crossing the barrier her father had grabbed her only free hand and started hurriedly dragging her towards the train. She glanced up at the clock on their way past and understood - the train was going to leave in less than two minutes.
They quickly unloaded all of her luggage onto the train, acutely aware of the time pressure. They only had thirty seconds left now. Betty quickly hoisted herself up onto the train and stayed at the door to say goodbye.
“You’ll be okay, won’t you? On your own?” asked Betty, quietly; so quietly that she wasn’t sure he’d hear her at all, especially over the sounds of the train beneath her. But of course, he did hear her, as he always did - one of the few benefits of being a werewolf, she supposed, having the heightened senses of a predator.
“Sweetheart, please don’t worry. I will be absolutely fine.”
“Do you promise?”
He raised his hand to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The height of the train’s floor had brought them up to eye level. “I promise.”
The train’s whistle sounded, and a sudden surge of panic bubbled inside of Betty as the door started to close.
“I’ll write tomorrow!” she said hurriedly.
“You’d better!” called Remus, grinning, just as the door clicked shut. She stayed at the door, waving at him through the window, and didn’t stop waving until they had left the platform well behind them.
Betty drew back from the window with a heavy sigh. Her father was a very complicated man, with a troubled past that Betty didn’t really know anything about. She presumed it was probably too hard for him to talk about, whatever it was. What she did know for certain was that he wasn’t very good at being alone.
Oh well, it wasn't much use worrying about that now. The more pressing issue at hand was to find somewhere to sit for the next nine hours.
From walking up and down the aisle, it appeared to be more of a difficult task than she had originally anticipated - almost all of the carriages were completely full. Fortunately, as she reached the back of the train, she saw a compartment with only two boys sitting inside. Swallowing hard, she softly knocked on the door and slid it open.
“Hey,” said Betty, her voice one octave higher than usual. Embarrassing. “Um... is it alright if I sit in here?”
The red-headed boy looked up at her and smiled, whilst the bespectacled, black-haired boy sat opposite him nodded eagerly and said, “Of course!”
“Thanks,” replied Betty, with a small shaky smile, and gingerly took a seat beside the redhead. “I’m Betty.”
“Ron Weasley!” said the boy beside her.
“I’m Harry,” said the other boy, “Are you a first-year, too?”
“Yeah!” She’d relaxed enough now that her voice was back to normal, thank goodness. Her eyes fell to something grey and moving in Ron’s lap. “Is that a rat?”
Ron’s ears went a faint shade of scarlet and he nodded, watching the wriggling animal. “Pathetic, isn’t he?”
Betty shrugged. “Not really. Must say, it’s quite a nice change to see an alive one - my cat has a fascination for rodents. Although,” she added quickly, noticing the panicked look on Ron’s face, “usually it’s just mice. I don’t think she’d be brave enough to go for a rat, she’s a big wuss, really.” She turned to the other boy, Harry, desperate to lead this conversation somewhere else, as she had a feeling she wasn’t giving the best first impression so far. “Do you have any pets?”
He nodded, his face lighting up. “I have an owl! Her name’s Hedwig.”
“Ohhh,” said Betty, dreamily, “I’ve always wanted an owl, you’re so lucky! I begged my dad for one for years, but he always said no - said we didn’t need one.”
“Why?” asked Ron, curiously. “Are you Muggle-born?”
“No, I’m a half-blood,” replied Betty, shrugging. “We just… don’t really talk to other wizards. My dad doesn’t like using magic much, either.”
“Why?” said Ron again, frowning. “My parents use magic all the time. For everything, really.”
“Oh,” said Betty, genuinely surprised at this. After spending very little time with other wizards, she just assumed the way she and her dad lived was how other wizards lived too. “I’m not really sure. What about your parents, Harry?”
Harry suddenly looked quite nervous. Ron’s mouth fell open, and he made a strangled sort of noise.
Betty glanced back and forth between the two boys, her heart pounding in her chest. “What?”
“ Betty ,” said Ron, in what he probably thought was a hushed, discreet tone, but wasn’t. He had a wide-eyed, manic look on his face. “He’s Harry Potter. ”
Betty just blinked back at him. Ron’s eyes widened even further, which Betty hadn’t thought would be possible, and he now resembled an odd-looking insect that she remembered seeing on a nature show. “The Boy Who Lived!”
She glanced back over at Harry, who was looking rather embarrassed now. “I’m sorry, I don’t…”
“That’s okay,” said Harry, quickly, “It’s actually nice to know there’s someone here who doesn’t know who I am. Everyone seemed to know before I did!” He smiled at her then, and she felt a pang of sadness for the boy. Poor lad , she thought, I wonder what happened.
As if reading her mind, Harry lifted up the hair on his forehead, revealing a jagged scar in the shape of a lightning bolt.
“Blimey,” said Betty. “Where’s that from? Although,” she added, “you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s fine, honest!” Harry smiled again and launched into the tale, with Ron’s help, of how You-Know-Who (a dark wizard) had tried to kill little baby Harry after killing his parents.
“I’m so sorry, Harry,” whispered Betty after they had finished explaining everything. In a normal volume again, she said in a voice she hoped sounded cheery, “Well, good to know I’m not the only half-blood that knows virtually nothing about the wizarding world!”
It was a comment that could have upset him, perhaps, which she realised with panic as the last word had left her lips. But it didn’t seem to upset him in the slightest - in fact, it did the opposite.
“Yeah!” Harry beamed, looking like Betty had just made his day. His smile was infectious; she grinned back at him, feeling relieved to know she’d just made a friend.
They all carried on talking for a while until their compartment door slid back and an old, smiling woman appeared, asking if they wanted anything from the snack trolley. Harry produced a handful of strange-looking coins from his pocket that Betty faintly recognised as wizard money, from the two times her father had taken her to Diagon Alley. As inexperienced as she was in the wizarding community, she was still able to work out that the amount of money in his hand was a lot. Clearly, she had been right, as when her eyes met Ron’s, the look of shock that she was sure was on her face was mirrored back to her. Betty stifled a giggle as Harry confidently asked the older witch for the entire contents of the trolley.
When they were only halfway through their handsome feast, a boy with a round face knocked on their door and asked if they’d seen his toad. Ron commented on how if he had brought a toad and lost it, he probably wouldn’t bother trying to find it again. Somehow, that had escalated to him trying to perform a spell on his rat.
To Betty’s annoyance, the door to their compartment door opened yet again. The boy with the toad (well, currently without a toad) was back, along with a bushy-haired girl who was already dressed in her robes. Bit keen , thought Betty.
“Has anyone seen a toad? Neville, here, has lost one,” said the girl, and Betty inwardly winced at how bossy her voice sounded. She didn’t generally like bossy people - in her opinion, they were exhausting. The other girl’s eyes fell on the wand in Ron’s hand, and she raised her eyebrows. “Oh, you’re doing magic? Let’s see it, then.” She promptly sat down on the seat next to Harry, and Betty made a conscious effort to not meet her in the eye.
Ron looked slightly scared but cleared his throat all the same. “All right. Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow. ” Unfortunately for Ron, this ‘spell’ did nothing.
The bushy-haired girl raised her eyebrows again, and Ron blushed. “Are you sure that’s a real spell?” she said and proceeded to give them a speech about how she’d already practised spells herself and read all her class textbooks. “I’m Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?”
“I’m Ron Weasley,” muttered Ron.
“Betty Lupin,” said Betty, giving her a curt nod and silently begging her to leave as soon as possible.
“Harry Potter,” said Harry.
“Are you really ?” said Hermione. “I know all about you, of course - I got a few extra books for background reading, and you’re in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century. ”
“Am I?” replied Harry, sounding rather tired of this conversation already.
“Goodness, didn’t you know, I’d have found out everything I could if it was me,” said Hermione, and launched into another grand speech about what house she hopes to be in. Betty tried her best to listen but honestly, her attention span was fleeting at the best of times and this girl spoke very fast . Thankfully, she didn’t have to wait too much longer for Hermione and the boy, Neville, to finally leave their compartment.
“Whatever house I’m in, I hope it’s not with her,” said Ron, as the door slid shut once again. Betty couldn’t help but agree.
The conversation had just turned to Quidditch, with Ron once again looking appalled at the lack of wizarding knowledge Betty and Harry had, when the compartment door slid open yet again . Betty was almost considering locking herself in the toilet for the remainder of the journey, as that seemed to be the only option she had left for a few moments of peace.
Betty felt slightly relieved to see that it wasn’t Hermione this time, but three boys who had just barged in without even a polite greeting. Betty’s patience was now hanging by a very, very thin thread, and she narrowed her eyes wearily at the new visitors.
“Is it true?” said the pale, blonde boy in the middle. “They’re saying all down this train that Harry Potter’s in this compartment. So it’s you, is it?” He looked pointedly at Harry.
“Yes,” said Harry.
“Oh, this is Crabbe and this is Goyle,” said the blonde boy, “and my name’s Malfoy. Draco Malfoy.”
Betty bit her bottom lip, fighting back a giggle. At least it wasn’t just her that had a slightly odd name, apparently it was a general wizard thing.
Poor Ron wasn’t quite as good at hiding a laugh as Betty, and let out what sounded like a strangled cough.
“Think my name’s funny, do you?” Malfoy sneered. “No need to ask who you are. My father told me all the Weasley’s have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford.” He glanced over at Betty like he had only just noticed her sitting there. “And what are you looking at?”
Betty cocked an eyebrow, hoping she looked more confident and unbothered than she felt and said nothing. Malfoy narrowed his eyes, in what was probably an attempt to look threatening, and turned back to Harry.
“You’ll soon find out some wizarding families are better than others, Potter. You don’t want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there.” Malfoy held out his hand for Harry to shake, but Harry just looked at him.
“I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks,” said Harry, and Betty didn’t even bother to hide her laugh this time. It took every ounce of self-control she had to not leap across to Harry and give him a high five.
Malfoy whipped his attention back round to her, his eyes blazing. “And who are you, then?”
Betty raised her chin slightly. “Betty Lupin. It’s a pleasure.”
“Wish I could say the same,” said Malfoy. “I’d be careful if I were you, Potter. Unless you’re a bit more polite you’ll go the same way as your parents. They didn’t know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riff-raff like the Weasleys, that Hagrid, and whoever this is,” he made a careless gesture towards Betty, “and it’ll rub off on you.”
Harry and Ron both shot up from their seats, absolutely furious. Before they could do or say anything themselves, however, Betty had already grabbed Malfoy by the shoulders and slammed him against the door, the glass shaking slightly from the force. Betty’s heart thumped with adrenaline as she glared into Malfoy’s eyes, which were bulging out of their sockets. Secretly, although she wasn’t proud of it, Betty was rather pleased she’d managed to scare him like this.
“You either say that again or leave right now. Which one’s it gonna be?” snarled Betty. She heard Malfoy swallow loudly as he blinked back at her, but he said nothing. Satisfied, Betty released him and took a few steps back, giving him the chance to retaliate. However, none of the three rude boys seemed keen to take their chances with the small girl. Malfoy shot one last glare around the compartment before marching straight out, with his two friends trailing obediently after him.
“Sorry,” said Betty, her gaze drifting downwards as she felt her cheeks heating up with shame. “My temper gets the better of me sometimes. Get it from my dad.”
If she was truthful, despite having had no control over her temper since she could remember, Betty hadn’t always been so quick to jump into a fight. That had come from her primary school - there, it had been either kill or be killed. Betty supposed she ought to start learning to control her temper again now, especially after what just happened.
“Don’t apologise!” spluttered Ron, and Betty dragged her eyes back up to meet his, which were staring at her in awe.
“Yeah, he deserved it,” agreed Harry, his cheeks still flushed from anger.
“At least we know to never get on the wrong side of you ,” said Ron, grinning widely. Betty winked at the two boys before her eyes drifted out the window.
“It’s getting dark, I’m guessing we should probably get our robes on.”
It wasn’t long after they had gotten changed into their uniforms that the train was pulling into the station. Betty smoothed down her robes and quickly glanced at the other two, feeling a huge sense of relief to see that they looked just as nervous as she felt. The train gently slowed to a stop and they joined the moving crowd of other students, stepping out into the cold air.
“Firs’-years! Firs’-years over here!” Betty squinted across the platform to see what could only be described as the largest man she had ever seen, holding up a lamp. “All right there, Harry?”
Betty glanced first at Harry, who had already started making his way towards the man and then at Ron, who just shrugged back at her.
“C’mon, follow me - any more firs’-years? Mind yer step, now!”
They followed the large man down a narrow path until they had reached a massive, dark lake, which is where first-years got their first sight of Hogwarts. Betty drew in a breath. She had thought Platform Nine and Three-Quarters was impressive…that was almost laughable now compared to the scene in front of her. The sight was absolutely magnificent, the lit-up castle a beautiful contrast to the dark sky behind it. An unexpected shiver washed over Betty, but she knew it wasn’t from the cold. If it had been allowed, she could have easily spent the entire night staring at the castle.
The man, who Harry had quietly told her was Hagrid, helped them clamber into small boats. Betty, Harry and Ron squeezed into one of the boats together, joined by - to both Ron and Betty’s annoyance - Hermione. Typically, Betty did not enjoy any form of water travel, and couldn’t understand why anyone sane would willingly choose to go on a boat. In order to survive the journey, she did her very best to keep her attention away from the dark water beneath her - which was proving difficult as the only sound she could hear was the waves lapping against the small boat. Ironically, the only time Hermione had stopped talking was when Betty actually needed a distraction. Instead, she had no option but to try and focus entirely on the spectacular view they were heading towards.
Once they had eventually reached the other side of the lake, Hagrid led the students up a flight of stone steps before stopping outside of a big oak door. A tall, stern-looking witch with dark hair, who Hagrid had called Professor McGonagall, arrived at the door to greet the first-years. She took them to a small room off of the Entrance Hall and shortly left to check that the Headmaster was ready to receive the new students.
After waiting in silence, for what seemed like hours but was probably only about ten minutes, Professor McGonagall returned. Betty and the other first-years followed the older witch to the Great Hall, where the rest of the school was waiting. The big double doors swung open as they approached, and the entire group simultaneously gasped as the Great Hall was revealed. There was no other word for it: it was magical .
The first-years walked up to the top of the Hall, where there was a small stool waiting near the High Table. Betty observed with curiosity as Professor McGonagall placed a very shabby-looking wizard’s hat carefully on top of the stool. For a few moments, nothing happened. Just complete silence. They were waiting for something, but for what?
And then the hat started to sing . Betty couldn’t quite believe what she was witnessing, almost entirely convinced that she was in a dream of some sort. When the hat had finished its song (which, in Betty’s opinion, could have been shorter), Professor McGonagall stepped forward, holding a long roll of parchment.
“When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted,” she said. “Abbott, Hannah!”
Betty watched, fascinated, as a trembling blonde girl sat down on the stool and pulled on the hat. After a few seconds of silence, the hat shouted, “HUFFLEPUFF!”
A table to the right of Betty erupted in cheers, and the girl ran over to take a seat. Okay, she thought, that doesn’t seem so bad.
As each name was picked, Betty felt her hands getting more and more clammy. She subtly rubbed them against her robes, her heart beating loudly in her ears. What if she didn’t get picked for any house? Could that happen?
Ron groaned beside her as Hermione was sorted into Gryffindor. Betty silently agreed with him - her dad had been in Gryffindor, and if Betty got sorted into Gryffindor too, she’d have to share a dorm with Hermione. That wouldn’t help her temper much.
“Longbottom, Neville!”
Oh, Merlin, Betty bit her lip, I’m probably next.
She watched as Neville took a seat at the Gryffindor table, and looked back at Professor McGonagall just in time for her to call the next name.
“Lupin, Elizabeth!”
Bugger.
She swallowed and started to make her way through the crowd. Betty hadn’t realised how much her legs were trembling beneath her; every step was now a game of whether she could remain upright. Miraculously, she’d made it to the stool without her legs giving way and she sat down, doing her very best not to take much notice of the hundreds of faces staring up at her.
Professor McGonagall dropped the hat onto Betty's head, and she silently gave her thanks to the fact it was now completely covering her eyes. Betty could at least pretend that she wasn't the main entertainment now that she couldn't see everyone.
Silence. And then -
“Well, well, well,” said a small voice in her ear. With a jolt of surprise, she realised it was the hat. “How interesting. Very interesting indeed. Slytherin would be a good fit for you… yes, very cunning... resourceful… and Slytherin does run in your family…”
Did it? Betty’s heart skipped a beat. She didn’t have time to unpack that new bit of information though, as the hat had already moved on to something else.
“Talented… lots of talent, yes, I see great things for you… you’ve certainly got nerve… such a clever mind in here, too… witty, but too lazy… just what I said to your father… I see loyalty, but Hufflepuff certainly won’t do… well, in that case… GRYFFINDOR!”
Betty noisily let out the breath she had been holding for the entire Sorting and half-ran, half-skipped over to the Gryffindor table. She reluctantly took a seat next to Hermione, who grinned a toothy smile back at her. Betty weakly returned it, not quite matching the other girl’s energy, before looking back up to the front to watch the rest of the Sorting.
Harry got placed in Gryffindor too, and he beamed as he slid onto the bench beside her. Chants of “We got Potter! We got Potter!” could be heard from further up the table, and Betty glanced down to see two identical red-headed freckle-faced boys grinning madly. Betty guessed they were probably two of Ron’s brothers.
Ron was also put in Gryffindor! Betty was delighted - both of her new friends are in the same house as her! Not a bad start.
The start-of-term feast was magnificent, Betty had never seen so much food before. She made it her mission to try at least one of everything. Unfortunately, her full belly started to protest after her third helpings.
A prefect named Percy, another one of Ron’s red-headed brothers (were they all ginger?) guided Betty and the other Gryffindor first-years up to their common room. After waving goodbye to Ron and Harry, Betty headed upstairs to the girls’ dormitories alone. As she had feared, she was sharing a dorm with Hermione, as well as two other girls she recognised from the Sorting - Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown.
To Betty’s immense relief, the other girls seemed just as tired as she was, and so they all got ready for bed in a silence that she welcomed gratefully. She pulled the drapes around her bed closed and settled down under the covers.
Betty stared up at the dark canvas, eyebrows furrowed as she replayed the evening’s events back in her head - specifically, her Sorting.
Why on earth had the Sorting Hat said her family had been in Slytherin?