Chapter 1

John opened the door of an empty train compartment and went to sit inside, feeling lonely.
It was the first of September, and his sixth year at Hogwarts was about to begin. He'd been to Diagon Alley to buy his school supplies a few weeks ago.
Usually, he sat with Mike Stamford, but Mike was a Prefect and had to sit in the Prefect compartment. John didn't have many other friends at Hogwarts, as he was a bit of a loner. He didn't mind being alone, but at the moment it made him feel slightly uncomfortable.

The compartment door suddenly slid open, revealing a tall, pale boy with dark curls. 'Mind if I join you?'

'Er – no. I mean, sure. Fine by me.'

The boy nodded and sat down opposite John, gazing out of the window with intensity. He had blue, cold eyes. John guessed the boy was about sixteen. Why had he never seen him before?
'Are you new?' he asked. As soon as he'd said it, he realized it sounded rude.

The boy looked at him, his eyes boring into John's. 'Yes,' he said simply.

'Um, okay. I didn't know that was possible. People usually start school when they're eleven.'

'Clearly, I'm an exception,' said the boy, still observing John. 'Where're your friends?'

'I'm sorry?'

'You're sitting alone, yet I can see you're not feeling comfortable. Therefore, you're not usually alone. So where're your friends?'

'I only have one friend, actually. Mike's a Prefect.'

'Yet you're not very close, are you?' the boy mumbled. 'You don't easily trust people.'

John stared at him, wondering how the hell he knew this. He decided not to ask. Instead, he said, 'What's your name, then?'

'Sherlock Holmes.'

Strange name, thought John. 'I'm John Watson. So… you haven't been Sorted yet, have you?'

'No.'

'You've got quite some catching up to do. What year are you going to be in?'

'Sixth.'

'You've missed five years! How on earth are you going to cope?'

'I'm clever.'

John raised his eyebrows. This boy sure was self-assured. Well, after a week at Hogwarts he wouldn't be that confident anymore. The sixth year was difficult enough as it was. 'Hang on – Holmes, is it?' he suddenly realized. 'Related to Mycroft Holmes, that seventh-year?'

'Obviously.'

'Why didn't you go to Hogwarts before this year?'

Sherlock avoided John's eyes and didn't speak. Clearly, he didn't want to talk about it. John decided not to push him. 'D'you know what House you're going to be in? Mycroft's in Slytherin, isn't he?'

Sherlock ignored John's question and asked, 'What House are you in?'

'Gryffindor.'

'Good.' Sherlock nodded to himself. 'So how's your sister? Still drinking?'

'Wh-what?' said John, his eyes widening. How the hell did this guy know about his sister?

'Your sister. What's her name? Ah, Harry.'

'How can you possibly know that?' John exclaimed.

Sherlock shook his head, looking disappointed. 'Why, John, it's not that difficult. The label on your suitcase has your sister's name on it.'

'How d'you know she's not my brother?'

'Brothers don't draw hearts on labels,' explained Sherlock, a small smile on his face.

John stared at Sherlock's face for a moment before realizing he was being rude again. Embarrassed, he dropped his gaze. 'And the drinking? How'd you know about that?'

'Come on, isn't it obvious?' John looked up to see Sherlock was looking at him expectantly, as if he wanted to test him. John decided to try and inspected the suitcase.

'She didn't draw a bottle of wine on the label, did she?' he asked stupidly.

'No,' said Sherlock. 'Try using your other senses.'

Your other… Oh! John sniffed the air. 'The suitcase smells like alcohol.'

'Exactly,' Sherlock said again, leaning back. The smile had reappeared on his face and he looked at John approvingly. 'You're not as ignorant as most.'

'I'll take that as a compliment,' grinned John. 'So what are you, some kind of genius?'

'You could say that.'

'I bet you're going to be in Ravenclaw. All the smart-asses are in there.'

During the rest of the train journey, John talked some more with Sherlock and found out he was a strange guy. John didn't exactly fit in at school, but he was sure Sherlock wouldn't fit in, either. He was strange: sometimes very quiet, sometimes suddenly talkative. When he was quiet he wasn't shy, it was more like he was observing John. John found it kind of uncomfortable and tried to start a conversation again, but Sherlock didn't seem to like talking about useless things.

...

When in the end the train stopped, the two of them, having changed into their school robes, left the train. Sherlock looked up at Hogwarts in wonder and even John, who'd seen the castle many times before, was slightly awed.
Before them was a large lake, and on the other side of the lake was an enormous castle towering over them. There were many towers and windows.
'Firs'-years!' shouted a giant man John knew as Hagrid.

'I think you have to go with him,' said John to Sherlock, who was staring up at Hagrid. 'You're not a first-year, but this is your first time at Hogwarts.'

'Where're you going?' asked Sherlock.

'The sixth years go to the castle by carriage,' explained John, pointing at the carriages behind him.

Sherlock went to stand with the first-years, looking slightly uncomfortable. It was the first time John saw him really showing his emotions, and somehow it touched him. He almost wanted to stay with Sherlock, until he realized that wasn't possible. He quickly dashed up towards the carriages.

..

'I met your brother on the train,' John said. He was sitting in a carriage, next to Mycroft Holmes.

'Did you now?' said Mycroft. 'And what did you think of him?'

'He was… strange. Nice enough, though.'

'Strange. A lot of people call him that.'

'How come you didn't sit with him?' John asked, accusation creeping into his voice. 'He's your younger brother and it's his first time at Hogwarts.'

'He wouldn't let me,' smiled Mycroft. 'Me and my brother have a difficult relationship.'

'Oh.' John thought about that. 'So why's he only going to Hogwarts this year?'

'I'm not the one to tell you,' said Mycroft. Always so mysterious.

John sighed. 'Whatever. It's not my business, anyway.' But I wish it was.

...

'John, there you are!' Mike sat down next to John in the Great Hall. 'The first-years can come in any minute. I wish they'd hurry up, I'm hungry.'

Not only first-years, thought John, his mind still on the strange Sherlock Holmes.

The doors of the Great Hall suddenly opened and Professor MacGonagall entered the Hall, followed by a group of small, nervous-looking children. Sherlock was the last to enter. People pointed at him, whispering, no doubt wondering what he was doing there.

'Isn't he a bit too old?' said Mike.

'No,' John snapped. 'It's not his fault he's only going to Hogwarts now. Besides, he's going to be in the sixth year, not the first.'

Mike looked taken aback. 'Oh. I'm sorry – no need to be angry.'

'That's okay,' mumbled John, going red. Why am I protecting him? He doesn't even need protection. That guy can survive perfectly well on his own.

This seemed true, as Sherlock paid absolutely no attention to the people pointing at him. However, John had the feeling that he did care, he just didn't show it.
The Sorting Hat was placed on a stool. The first-years all stared at it, unsure of what was going to happen.

Mike grinned. 'Remember when we were that young, John? When the Hat opened its mouth, I thought it was going to eat me!'

John grinned too, looking at the perplexed faces of the first-years as the Hat opened its mouth – and began to sing.
As the Hat sang its song, John found himself looking at Sherlock again. Suddenly, Sherlock looked at him too. Their eyes locked and for a moment John couldn't look away. Then the song ended, and both of them quickly looked away as everyone applauded.

Professor MacGonagall stood up. 'Let's start the Sorting Ceremony!'

So what d'you think? (:

Edit: So I accidentally wrote down Moriarty was in Ravenclaw, while he's actually in Slytherin xD. I just corrected it.