Once the air between them was cleared, Tom became a surprisingly good host.

Every day, three times a day, the innkeeper knocked on his door to deliver a meal. Dazai accepted every one, though more than half of the meals ended up in Featherbrain 's stomach instead.

Tom would start every morning off with the latest Daily Prophet served beside a warm plate of breakfast, which Dazai then considered in the privacy of his room. The articles were only becoming more daring. Skeeter had taken to calling Dazai an 'evil, manipulative villain-type. ' Of course, this left Lockhart to be the people 's 'hero. ' Dazai didn 't know which moniker was worse.

Tom was insistent that the slander and lies would eventually die down, but with each passing day he grew less sure. The lack of authenticity in the Daily Prophet was a heavy blow to the man. Dazai couldn 't relate.

Still. They got on well enough, even if Tom still balked every time Dazai casually mentioned drinking all of the inn's ale and dying of liver poisoning.

When the day finally came for Dazai to leave for Hogwarts, Tom quietly saw him out the side-exit. 'If you ever need anything, write, ' Tom said. 'Even if everyone else is against you, I 've got your back, kid. '

Dazai nodded, already mentally cataloguing what uses he might have for a bartender/innkeeper.

'That reminds me! ' Tom said with a snap. 'Florence is still digging around the archives 'when they 're sober enough, that is. If they manage to snag anymore old papers about you, want me to send them your way? '

Though Dazai wasn 't sure how much use he would get out of them, he agreed nonetheless. 'If you could. Give Florence my thanks. '

' 'Course! '

Dazai shifted the luggage in his arms. Between books, robes, and Featherbrain, it was no easy feat.

Tom seemed to take his discomfort as indication of the time.

'Well, you 'd best be off. Hang in there, kid. It 'll get better. ' He turned to Featherbrain when Dazai merely nodded. 'Goodbye to you too, little lady. Take good care of each other, okay? '

Featherbrain cooed happily, and Dazai had to grab the cage tighter to accommodate her shifting around.

'Thank you for your hospitality, ' Dazai said, curt, but to the point. The looming threat of walking through a bustling crowd had him eager to get moving.

'Off you get, then! ' Tom grinned, brushing them off. 'Otherwise, you 'll miss the train."

Dazai dipped his head in a slight bow. Then, with a final goodbye, he turned from Tom and left the alley.

By the end of things, Dazai thought, Tom hadn 't been so bad. The man could be a little overreactive, but he had been helpful overall. So far, Tom had been the only stranger willing to look past Skeeter 's outrageous claims. Dazai silently thanked Tom again as he pushed through the London crowd.

Mostly keeping to the edges of the streets, Dazai tried hard to avoid the questioning stares of muggles. But with Featherbrain 's constant cacophony of hoots and coos, it was nigh impossible. Dazai was only really able to relax once he 'd pushed through the entrance at Platform nine-and-three-quarters.

The magical gateway burned at his skin painfully, but it was still a relief to pass to the other side. Surrounded by other wizards and witches, Dazai 's luggage and owl didn 't seem nearly as strange. No one gave Dazai a second glance as he beelined directly for the train to Hogwarts.

Still, Dazai was careful to keep his head ducked behind his luggage. The last thing he needed was to be swarmed about being this so-called 'Demon Student. '

Thinking this, Dazai kept his head low. He boarded the train and jumped into the first empty cabin he saw.

Dazai set Featherbrain 's cage down with a

thunk!

Without further ado, Dazai plopped down into the seat beside her. He took a moment to stare quietly out the window before eventually deciding better of it. It was nice to see the students wandering outside (Dazai would never pass up an opportunity to silently observe his classmates), but he didn 't want to risk drawing eyes. The last thing he wanted now was another incident like the one at Flourish and Blotts.

With a sigh, Dazai gripped the pale curtains and swung them closed.

It was inevitable, Dazai knew. Sooner rather than later, he would have to face the music. Skipping his classes to avoid prying eyes wasn 't practical, even if it did seem more enjoyable. Professor Snape would hunt him down if he even tried.

Shaking off the unhelpful thoughts, Dazai pulled a book from his luggage and promptly shoved his nose into it.

The Biology of Magic

was proving to be an interesting read. It also helped to keep his mind off of things currently outside his control.

'The impacts and interactions of magic on the human body are constantly under study, although more practical investigations, such as those into curse-breaking and artifact-handling, typically gain more media attention. This does not detract from the importance of study into magical biology.

'For instance, it is an observed quality that the practice of magic can increase an individual 's lifespan. Compared to muggles, powerful wizards can expect to live well past 100 years of age (Bates, 1890; Grubb, 1940). Gaunt 's (1776) research suggests this lifespan-altering quality may directly correspond to the wizard 's Magical Sensitivity (MS). '

Dazai read in silence, a contemplative frown pasted across his face. Magic and special abilities had very similar signatures, Dazai knew, but there wasn 't an excess of literature on the topic of abilities. Did ability users also lead longer lives? Did magic interact the same way with their physiology? Perhaps Mori could dissect a few ability users as a test '

'Is this seat '

oh! '

Dazai was torn from his readings abruptly. His head snapped up to see two girls standing at the compartment door. They weren 't changed into their school uniforms yet, but Dazai recognized them as being fellow Slytherin second-years. Millicent Bulstrode, a harsh-looking girl who Dazai thought might enjoy fist-fighting for fun, and Tracey Davis, who wore her eyes and mouth like a hyena's laughing smirk.

Silence lingered in the air. Dazai watched as their eyes grew wider and wider, until he wasn 't sure they could look anymore horrified. Then, with a frantic screech, they slammed the compartment door shut.

Dazai blinked at the door.

Faintly, from the other side, he heard hushed shouting,

'Milli, was that who I think it was?! '

'Th-the Demon Student! '

Damn.

There went his peace and quiet.

Dazai eyed the door with distaste. There wasn 't a lock on it, and he didn 't know any spells to keep it shut. Even if he did, it wouldn 't be wise to try it unless he wanted to be rushed off to Madam Pomfrey the second the train reached Hogwarts. He purposefully turned back to his book.

'MS, the innate ability to perceive and interpret latent magic, is a staple to be considered a wizard and, much like a fingerprint, cannot be altered throughout the lifespan ' the book went on to read. 'Without the ability to perceive magic, it cannot be manipulated (Abbott, 1920; Grimm, 1943; Jackson & Kama, 1980). Despite this, the practice of interpreting latent magic is largely theoretical and has no current reliable experimental basis. Notably, even the most incapable of muggles can sense some potency of magic (Bates & Calder, 1895). By using a Sensing Stone ' '

'What about this one? '

Dazai slammed his book shut, readying a glare at whoever had interrupted his reading a second time. Before he could, however, recognition stopped him short.

'Ron? '

Ron stared, eyes wide.

He was wearing a long, baggy sweater emblazoned with a stitched on 'R. ' Dazai recognized it as the one Mrs. Weasley had gifted her son last holiday season. Ron blinked several times before suddenly shaking out of his stupor. Hurriedly, he stepped into the compartment and slid the door shut behind him.

Ron nearly dove into the seat across from Dazai. 'You don 't think anyone saw me come in here, do you? '

Dazai glanced to the door. He raised a brow.

'What? You don 't want to be seen with me? I thought we were over those silly rules of yours. '

'Wha '

It 's not like that! ' Ron sputtered indignantly, but his eyes tellingly averted to the left. 'It 's 'I mean 'you 're

infamous

now! ' He flailed.

Dazai snorted. 'It 's good to see you again, too. '

Red bloomed across Ron 's cheeks and his mouth snapped shut with an audible click. The tension in his shoulders melted. 'S 'good to have you back, Dazai, ' he grumbled. 'Things weren 't the same without you. '

'I bet Professor Snape missed having me around, ' Dazai said with a laugh.

'Are you kidding? ' Ron smirked. It was the first smile Dazai had seen out of him yet. 'For the first time in a year, no one was melting his cauldrons. I think he must have cried a tear of joy! '

Dazai breathed out a soft laugh, imagining that. Though it was a little hard to envision the ever-serious Snape with a teary expression. Speaking of Snape, that was one professor Dazai wasn 't looking to reunite with. By the end of his first year, the potion 's master had taken it upon himself to dig his nose into places it didn't belong. Hopefully, their few months apart had deterred any further desire to pry.

'Did I miss anything else while I was gone? '

'Well ' '

'Ron! You shut the door on my face! ' A squeaky voice interrupted.

A younger, long-haired version of Ron Weasley had her arms crossed and cheeks puffed out at the doorway. She had thrown it open at some point in an affronted haste. Ginger hair swept all the way down to her hips. Her sweater had a 'G ' drawn across it.

Dazai remembered having seen the girl briefly at Flourish and Blotts.

'Ginny! ' Ron jumped. 'You startled me. Get in here before someone sees! '

With a petulant huff, Ginny slammed the door shut behind her. She crossed her arms instead of taking a seat.

Dazai looked between Ron and Ginny. Recognition lit his eyes. 'Your younger sister, Ron? ' He smiled at the girl, laying on the charm thick. 'It 's a pleasure to meet you, miss. '

Like flipping a switch, all the irritation in Ginny 's expression bled away as she turned to face Dazai.

He could tell the exact moment she realized who she was looking at. Dazai prepared himself for a fight. Or screaming.

Or both.

Ginny 's eyes widened and her mouth fell open. Unexpectedly, however, she didn 't scream or run away like the other students had. Instead, she steeled her shoulders. 'D-Dazai, right? I 've heard a lot about you from Ron and the twins. '

Oh.

Of course

the littlest Weasley wouldn 't be afraid of him! Her brothers were his most enthusiastic friends, and had been since day one. If anyone was going to believe he wasn 't a

demon

, it would be a Weasley.

Dazai gave a soft smile. It seemed to further put Ginny at ease as she finally uncrossed her arms and settled in beside Ron. 'Only good things, I hope. '

Ginny giggled. 'Only

mischievous

things, ' she corrected. Beside her, Ron rolled his eyes.

"Ginny is too good," Dazai took her hands gently in his. A proposition. "I would be greatly honored to commit a double suicide with you!"

A beat passed. Then,

"What?!"

Ron kicked Dazai in the shin. He dropped Ginny's hands without fanfare.

'Speaking of the twins, '

Ron butted in, 'Fred and George were pretty adamant about finding you, Dazai. It was their idea to search the train for your compartment. I just happen to find you first. '

'We

just happen to find you first, ' Ginny argued. Ron didn 't seem to be listening.

Dazai crossed his ankles under the seat. Unless something drastic had happened, Dazai couldn 't think of any reason the twins would urgently be seeking him out. Which left only one possible explanation. Dazai nearly rolled his eyes, but held back. Fred and George were on another one of their self-assigned 'older brother ' jobs again, it seemed.

Instead of letting his (admittedly fond) exasperation show, Dazai changed the subject, 'I don 't see Angel with you. '

Both Ron and Ginny blinked at the non-sequiter. Ron, evidently used to Dazai 's antics by now, recovered quickest with a shake of his head. 'He 's sleeping in my luggage. '

Dazai blinked. 'You zipped Angel up in your suitcase? And you 're always lecturing

me

about pet care. '

Flushing, Ron puffed out his cheeks. 'I know more than you about it. Besides, rats don 't require as much care as an owl does. '

'Angel is just a sick, little guy, ' Ginny told him. Dazai tried to recall if he had ever seen the rat ill, but decided he hadn 't seen Angel consistently enough to actually be able to tell. Still, Angel was always too creepy-looking to ever seem the picture of health. 'He needs his rest. '

'Well, Featherbrain is as healthy as an owl can get, ' Dazai said, tilting his head to the charcoal-colored bird. She looked up from preening her feathers. 'If you want to fuss over a

real

pet, you can start with her. '

A beam split across Ginny 's face. Taking the offer for what it was, she leaned forward to pet Featherbrain through the bars of her cage. Featherbrain ate up the attention.

' 'Her? ' '

Ron asked. 'You 've finally stopped calling your owl an 'it. ' '

Dazai shrugged. In all honestly, he wasn 't sure what the reason was for the shift. He had spent the entirety of the last year thinking of Featherbrain as nothing more than an obnoxious pest. Or, on his worst days, an extension of Mori 's long arm.

But then summer break came. Dazai 's days were spent in Father 's room, in Mori 's office, or wasting away in the pits of the Port Mafia's kennels. Everything there was empty and cold. It was nothing like the warm, if difficult to navigate, walls of Hogwarts. Nothing like the raucous mess of the owlery. Life in Yokohama felt empty, and compared to life in Hogwarts Dazai was alone.

Except for Featherbrain.

Dazai shook the memories off, feeling they were too bleak to discuss with Ron and Ginny. Moreover, he didn 't really understand the sentiment himself. Ron gave him an odd look when Dazai failed to explain.

Luckily, Dazai was saved from having to reroute the conversation when the train kicked to life beneath them. A sudden surge of motion had the trio shifting in their seats. Unable to see out the window, Dazai could only guess at how quickly they picked up speed. Before long, the

chug-a-chug

of train tracks filled the compartment.

'Ahh,

we 're off, ' Dazai noted, leaning back. He folded his hands across his lap.

Ron 's eyes immediately fell onto the black gloves Dazai wore. He blinked at them, then very pointedly did not comment.

Ginny spoke up in his place.

'Ooh!

I 'm so excited! A little nervous, but mostly excited. ' At some point, she had pulled away from Featherbrain to brace against the seat. Now that the train was worked up into a steadier rhythm, however, Ginny was eyeing the owl once again. 'Do you think I 'll be Gryffindor? '

'Weasleys are

always

Gryffindor, ' Ron informed her unhelpfully. She shot him a glare telling as much.

'What 's so interesting about Gryffindor? ' Dazai asked with a glint in his eyes. As expected, Ron was already scowling in his direction. The boy was too easy to rile up. 'Slytherin is perfectly nice, too. '

'You don 't know anything about house loyalty, Dazai. Just because you waltz around the Slytherin

and

Gryffindor rooms like you own the place doesn 't mean house distinctions aren 't important! '

Dazai stuck out his tongue.

Across from him, Ron 's face was the picture of exasperation. Ginny, however, had her eyes turned away as she shifted in her seat.

Oh,

Dazai thought,

she really is nervous.

Worry about house loyalty wasn 't something Dazai had ever partaken in. His only worry with the sorting ceremony had been about No Longer Human potentially nullifying the sorting hat 's powers. Ginny 's concerns were a bit simple compared to his own, but Dazai felt that he owed her a few kind words. The fact that Ginny hadn 't screamed upon seeing him had come as a great relief.

'I 'm sure everything will be fine, ' Dazai told her. She jumped, head snapping in the mafioso 's direction. 'If you want Gryffindor, then you 'll get it. If not, I 'm sure I could talk some sense into that ugly sorting hat for you, Ginny. '

Just a wiggle of his bare fingers in front of the sorting hat, and it would be begging for its magical life, after all.

"Otherwise, the option for a painless double suicide is always on the table for us!" He cheered, this time quickly dodging another kick from Ron.

Ginny blinked a few times before suddenly having to raise a hand to smother her laughs. 'Thanks, Dazai. That was nice of you to say. ' She paused. "Well. Most of it was. That last bit about s-suicide..."

Ron looked between them, bewildered.

At that exact moment, the door swung open once again.

'Hellooo? '

'Is there a wee snakey in here? Or our kid siblings perhaps? '

Three pairs of eyes turned to the entrance. Fred and George stared back.

'Oh,

hello you two, ' Dazai greeted.

'You finally found us, ' Ron intoned. 'Took you long enough. '

Springing into action, Fred and George shut the door behind them and stepped forward in perfect sync with one another. Just like Ginny had, however, they didn 't initially take a seat.

'There you all are! '

'Snakey, you got those bandages off! Good! '

Fred leaned forward to examine Dazai 's face. He seemed satisfied with his impromptu inspection, but still didn 't make to sit. Looking around, Dazai realized why.

Dazai wrapped his hands around Featherbrain 's cage, picking her up and setting her down by his feet. With the owl moved, there was now one seat remaining in the compartment.

One seat 'and two twins.

'My favorite twin can have a seat beside me, ' Dazai told them. A sharp grin poked at the edges of his face. 'My second favorite can sit on the floor. I 'll let you two decide for yourselves which is which. '

Fred and George shared a look. Then, without any words between them, they promptly squeezed into the same seat. Dazai scooted to the side as far as he could. Pressed up into the window, Dazai swatted Fred 's elbow out of his face.

'You love us both! ' Fred and George said together.

Dazai rolled his eyes. Across from them, both Ginny and Ron were smothering their laughter.

'Whatever, ' Dazai let out a not unfond breath. 'Stop poking into me. '

The twins moved around as if to readjust, but the seat was just too small for three. Dazai grunted when George stepped on his toe.

'Sorry, Snakey. This is the best we can do! '

'Then sit on the floor, ' Dazai deadpanned. 'Both of you. I 'd rather share with Featherbrain. '

Fred and George laughed, but didn 't move. Despite himself, Dazai didn 't protest any further. Though he

was

feeling cramped, Dazai noted that the twins had, in fact, made an effort to give him space. Fred was practically sitting on George 's lap.

Once they seemed mostly settled, Fred turned to Dazai. There was an excited glint in his eyes. 'We really missed having you around, you know. Ron here is no fun when it comes to pranks! '

'He didn 't even help us with out test answer-key stealing scheme last year! ' George bemoaned. 'Or with our plan to swap the labels on the potions supplies. '

'Or when we charmed the infirmary pillows to explode and accidentally blew a hole in the wall! '

'Or when ' '

'You two have been busy, ' Dazai cut them off before they could really get going.

Fred and George nodded, faux-serious. 'Well, it wasn 't all successful. Some of those were really more than two-person jobs. '

"Especially that pillow-bomb!"

The twins shivered. "Madam Pomfrey

really

had it out for us after that one!"

Dazai frowned. No one else in the gang had stepped up to help them?

'I 'm not doing something with you that will get me expelled. Specially not Madam Pomfrey! She's a beast when she's angry! ' Ron said. Beside him, Ginny rapidly nodded. Although she hadn 't been a part of their group the previous year, she must have been very familiar with Fred and George 's chaotic schemes.

'Fill me in later on the details, ' Dazai told them. 'Maybe we can give those plans another shot. '

The twins

whooped.

Ron looked utterly exasperated, but didn 't bother to butt in. He knew a lost cause when he saw one, it seemed.

Dazai considered asking the twins for prank ideas against Lockhart, but decided against it as soon as the thought crossed his mind. While he wanted little more than to torment the professor, it was probably best to lay low. What he had done at Flourish and Blotts was already brazen enough. Beyond that, Lockhart hadn't made any tangible threat to him yet. Until Dazai got a better feeling for the man, he didn 't want to retaliate. Especially not with this Demon Student title hanging overhead. The last thing Dazai needed now was people thinking he would kill Lockhart, too.

...not that he hadn't thought about it.

The frustrated contemplation must have been visible on his face.

'You 're thinking too hard about something, Snakey, ' George said, leaning all the way forward to peer around his brother.

'Yeah, lighten up! ' Fred kicked a foot out excitedly, accidentally smacking Featherbrain 's cage in the process. A peeved-sounding hoot answered in return. 'Sorry, Featherbrain! '

Dazai shook his head. He had a lot of things to worry about 'the Daily Prophet 's slander, Lockhart 's declaration, the Malfoys...

His laundry list of problems seemed to be never-ending.

But there was nothing Dazai could do about any of it right now. For the time being, all he had to focus on was getting to Hogwarts. After that, he would have the time and ability to slowly chip away at his problems.

Until then...

'You two play Quidditch, don 't you? Tell me the rules. '

Blaise

did

say they would go to a game together when they got the chance. It wouldn 't hurt to learn a bit before then.

-

When the train finally came to a stop a few hours later, Dazai knew all there was to know about Quidditch. The game sounded rough, messy, and a little bit too based on luck for his tastes. Why did any of the players even bother showing up if everything just came down to if their Seeker caught the Golden Snitch? When Dazai voiced this thought aloud, each of the Weasley 's gave him outrageously scandalized looks.

'Are you serious?! ' Ron squawked. 'I can 't believe I 'm friends with you. '

'Don 't give me that look. ' Dazai raised a brow. Then, noting how eagerly Ron defended the sport, he asked, 'Have you thought about joining the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Ron? '

Ron froze up, not having expected the question. He laughed nervously. 'Guess I 've given it some thought... '

'You should try out! ' Fred and George exclaimed. They eagerly leaned forward. 'Between

three

Weasley 's, the other teams wouldn 't have a chance! '

Blood rushed to Ron 's face at their enthusiastic support. He coughed into his fist. 'Well, maybe... '

Fred and George chuckled, clearly taking great joy in their little brother 's flustered expression. Ginny let out an exasperated breath.

Dazai didn 't understand what all the fuss was about. Maybe Quidditch was sort of like Hogwarts' houses: something people really,

really

cared about despite how idiotic it was.

By the time the twins had finally smothered their laughter, the train had come to a full stop. Peeking out the curtains, Dazai recognized their destination as the train station. He also caught sight of a familiar figure: tall, wide, and scraggly-haired, Hagrid stood just past one of the train 's doors. A second later, when students began exiting, Hagrid called, 'First years! O 'er here! '

'We made it, ' Fred let out a long, weary sigh as he slumped over into George. 'Finally. '

As though the words lit a fire underneath the compartment, the Weasleys and Dazai went into motion. Fred and George detangled from one another in a flurry of elbows and knees. With one particularly brash jerk, one of those elbows smacked directly into Dazai 's chest. Dazai was sure he would bruise.

'Sorry! '

'Yeah, sorry, Snakey! '

Across from them, Ron and Ginny snorted. They made no effort to help. Instead, they patted down their robes as they stood. A fresh pair of school robes hugged both of their shoulders. Ron 's was topped with a Gryffindor red tie, while Ginny 's had no such ornamentation.

Dazai brought a hand to his neck to carefully fix the green-and-silver bow there. Unlike everyone else in the room, his colors were indicative of Slytherin.

About half-way through the train ride, the group had split off to get changed into their robes. While the others had slunk of to the bathrooms, Dazai had stayed in the compartment to dress. He hadn 't been willing to brave the potentially crowded hallways. The others had been accommodating. Fred and George had even helpfully offered to keep watch of the room while Dazai dressed.

Now, a similar concern was rising up in Dazai.

The twins seemed to read his expression. 'You want us to stand around you? '

'Shield you from everyone looking? '

Dazai shook his head. Although it sounded nice to postpone the inevitable conflict... 'I 'll have to confront it at some point. Better not to push things off. '

Anyway, a mafioso didn 't cower. Even when they thought it might be easier.

The twins didn 't look entirely convinced, but also didn 't press any further. Dazai nodded to them.

Then, without further ado, he opened the compartment door. Their belongings would stay behind to be magically gathered up later. With nothing more holding him back, Dazai took a deep breath and stepped out into the corridor.

There were only about five people left in their train carriage. The second Dazai stepped out, their eyes all snapped straight to him. He recognized the two girls from earlier do a double-take.

Dazai pulled his shoulders back and lifted his chin. Confidently, her turned away from the eyes on him and walked straight to the exit. The tell-tale

click

of shoes on tile told him that the Weasleys were following.

As they walked, people stared, mouths agape.

If Dazai thought the attention would lighten up upon exiting the train, he would be sorely mistaken.

For only a second, he faded into the bustle of Hogwarts students. Just another body amongst the masses. A nobody.

Then, another student who had fallen into step beside Dazai looked over, met his eyes, and squeaked. They opened and closed their mouth rapidly, but no words came out aside from a stuttering,

'y-y-you '! '

Dazai very nearly slammed his hand over their mouth to shut them up.

Before he could, however, Fred and George manifested at his sides. They each slung an arm over his shoulder. Grinning sharply, they stared down the other student.

'Back off, kid, ' Fred said, simply.

'We 're escorting our friend here to the carriages. He doesn 't want any trouble. '

The student 'a third-year, perhaps 'nodded frantically, evidently fearing some awful retribution for even looking their way. They proceeded to scamper off, stumbling over every other step as they ran. By now, quite a few curious eyes had been drawn to Dazai 's little group. Whispers surrounded them.

The twins remained steadfast, however. Wrapped around Dazai, they paid the watchers no mind as they pushed through the crowd.

Whispers of The Demon Student followed them, terrified.

Dazai let himself be moved along, ducking his head somewhat. It wasn 't that he couldn 't handle the crowd on his own 'he had certainly done harder things in the past. But it was difficult to navigate confrontations at Hogwarts. While in the Port Mafia, Dazai could threaten bodily harm (or even enact it), here he was relegated to letting himself get backed into a corner.

And

he had to mind Mori 's instructions on top of that. Making too much trouble would jeopardize the mission... wouldn 't it? Or maybe not. Dazai needed to play his cards carefully.

Regardless. Dazai wouldn 't say it aloud, but it was always a nice feeling to have the twins rushing to his side.

After a second more of walking, he asked, 'Carriages? '

They 'd moved mostly out of the train 's crowd by now. It helped that, upon recognizing the twins ' charge, people gave them a wide berth.

'Second-years and up ride to Hogwarts in carriages, ' Fred explained.

'They 're pulled along by some invisible force! '

Dazai raised a brow. 'An animation charm? ' He asked, recalling the spell the twins used last year to make Ron 's books fly.

Someone cleared their throat.

'They 're called

thestrals

. '

Dazai blinked, turning his head to follow the voice. Over him, Fred and George did the same.

A young, bushy-haired girl smiled his way.

'Hermione, ' Dazai 's face split open into a smile, 'fancy seeing you here. '

She beamed, expression soft despite the odd looks they were getting. 'I 'm glad to see you all again, ' Hermione said. She looked from Dazai, to the twins, then to Ron, who had trailed behind somewhat. When her eyes landed on Ginny, she frowned.

'Oh!

I don 't think we 've ever met before. I 'm Hermione Granger. '

'Ginny Weasley, ' she greeted with a small wave.

'First year? ' Hermione guessed, as though Ginny 's small frame and wide eyes didn 't make it obvious. 'You 'll be taking the boats, then. Just over there. ' She pointed.

Ginny followed her finger to where Hagrid was widely gesturing to something. Students had gathered around him like wanderers at sea to a lighthouse. Hagrid was certainly tall enough to act as one, Dazai thought amusedly.

Instead of rushing off straight away, though, Ginny nervously shifted on her feet.

'Go on! ' the twins said, giving their little sister a light shove. 'If you 're late, the boats 'll leave without you, and you 'll have to spend all year living with the wild beasties in the Forbidden Forest! '

Ginny blanched.

Hermione tutted. 'That isn 't true, you two. Anyway, she would just ride in with us if something like that did happen. '

Ron nodded, though he didn 't look particularly interested one way or another.

Upon seeing the genuinely worried look on Ginny 's face, Fred and George seemed to sober up a little. 'Sorry, Ginny, ' they apologized.

'There 's no need to be so nervous, little sis! '

'Yeah, we 'll save you a seat at the Gryffindor table once you're finished being sorted. '

'Off you go! '

Ginny blinked repeatedly before nodding. She looked a bit dazed. She said a hasty farewell before practically running off to find Hagrid amongst the crowds. It looked to Dazai as if the boats were already being boarded. If Ginny had hesitated any longer, she might actually have been left behind.

Dazai took a step forward, eager to get the group moving again. After a second, the twins, Ron, and Hermione followed.

'What 's a thestral? ' He asked. 'If it's not a spell. '

Hermione shook her head, curls bouncing. 'It 's a type of magical creature. With all your research last year, I 'm surprised you 've never heard of them. '

Dazai shrugged. Outside of mountain trolls and dragons, magical creatures hadn 't exactly been a priority. 'An invisible creature,

huh?

' Good thing he had his gloves on. Dazai couldn 't risk an accidental nullification with this many eyes on him.

'Some kind of horse, ' the twins told him.

'An invisible horse, ' Hermione clarified. 'Actually, they 're quite interesting. Supposedly ' '

Before she could finish speaking, the carriages in question came into view. The sight seemed to steal her breath away. Dazai himself froze in place as he looked over the carriage. Confusion pressed between his brows. The carriages themselves were rather lackluster. Dazai would hesitate to call them carriages, really. Rather, they were functionally large, black boxes attached to wheels. Some of them were already packed full of students, looking to be able to carry maybe five to each carriage.

But what really captured Dazai 's attention was the big, black horses standing in front of them. They were massive 'taller than the average horse. They looked sickly thin, no thicker than their bones. Their skin looked no more than linen stretched taught. Ghastly. Huge, black wings stretched out from their backs. Their eyes were pitch black pools.

'I thought you said they were invisible, ' Dazai said, brow pinched. The horses towered over the carriages. Clearly visible. There was no question about that.

When no one responded for a second, Dazai looked back to face the others. He was expecting, perhaps, the twins to be sharing a laugh. Or Hermione ready with a lecture on her tongue. What he saw, however, was the gang watching him with wide, aghast eyes.

Fred and George shared one of their looks.

Ron looked to the thestrals, then back to Dazai. He raised a brow. 'They are. What do you mean, they 're not? '

'You can see them? ' Hermione asked. Then, with horror dawning over her, she looked pointedly to the ground. Guilt flickered over her expression. 'Right. Of course you can... '

Dazai frowned. Based on their reactions, Dazai was now sorely wishing he 'd just kept his mouth shut. He turned to Hermione, silently asking her to explain. Ron seemed to be doing the same.

Hermione wrung her hands together. 'Thestrals can only be seen by... ' she shot him an apologetic glance, '...by people who have witnessed death and understood it. '

Ron 's mouth snapped shut with an audible

click

. Dazai frowned, the reality of those words sinking in.

Oh.

Dazai had seen death many times. People died in the Port Mafia every day. Jobs went wrong, interrogations reached their natural conclusion. Dazai had led some of those interrogations himself in the past under Father 's watchful gaze. How to hold the knife just right, how to make your words into a knife sharper still... Death in the Port Mafia, more often lately, was a pointless thing. Father ordered the death of his subordinates seemingly at random and waged war on unimportant gangs. As the man 's mind slipped away, so too did his morality.

So, yes. Dazai had seen death. Had held it in his blood-red hands and cradled it close.

But that wasn 't what Hermione was referring to now. It wasn 't the reason the twins and Ron were watching him like he was about to break apart. Nor was it the reason other students kept shooting him subvert glances.

Quirrell.

The only person Dazai had ever killed out of nothing more than pure rage.

Dazai shrugged off their stares. 'I guess that makes sense. ' Hoping to clear the air, he asked Hermione, 'how does that work? Biologically, I mean. '

Hermione blinked, startled. 'W-well, no one really knows. ' She looked deeply relieved that Dazai hadn 't reacted negatively after learning about the thestrals ' true nature. 'Thestrals are often viewed as bad omens, so most researchers aren 't willing to get close to them. And that 's ignoring the fact that many researchers can 't even

see

them! '

Dazai hummed in interest, eyeing the skeletal horses as the group began to walk again. Hermione took the lead, guiding them towards an empty carriage, while the twins continued to send Dazai subvert, worried glances every few seconds.

The thestral leading this carriage was just as large and menacing as the others. Still, Dazai was careful to keep his hands to himself as he boarded. The thestral kicked the ground nervously, but otherwise didn 't attempt to run away from him.

The carriage was just large enough to fit everyone in their group and no one more. Ron and Hermione

oohed

as the carriage started to move underneath them. Dazai supposed he might have shared in their enthusiasm had he not been able to see the mechanisms at work. Meanwhile, Fred and George merely watched with amusement.

The thestral started off slowly, but quickly picked up pace. Soon enough, it was galloping at full speed over the Hogwarts bridge. Dazai braced himself against the seat to the muffled laughter of the twins.

"We're going pretty fast," Dazai told the others. "I might snap my neck if I jumped out right now."

If Fred and George grabbed his arms tightly after that remark, no one said anything.

Dazai peered out the side, where the first-year boats were slowly swimming to the castle. He was glad to have a private carriage this year, rather than a rocking boat surrounded by strangers. Dazai leaned back into his seat. All around them, thestrals were pulling students along towards the main gate.

With how fast the thestrals could run, it was only a matter of minutes before they arrived.

Dazai, Hermione, Ron, Fred, and George all hopped out of the carriage.

The thestrals needed no guidance. Within seconds of being unburdened, they spread their wings and flew off towards the Forbidden Forest. Dazai watched them disappear into the night with a contemplative frown.

'Thinking hard? ' Fred teased.

Dazai turned back to his friends, then shook his head. 'Just looking. ' He tilted his chin towards where the thestrals had disappeared to.

Fred followed his gaze, unseeing. After a second, he seemed to realize what Dazai was indicating. His mouth dropped into an understanding 'O. '

As they walked through the gate to Hogwarts, Dazai was almost able to forget that he was Public Enemy #1 in magical society. There was an excited air buzzing around the school. Friends reunited, people happily chattered, and magic danced around them. Dazai and his own gang were doing much the same, laughing amongst themselves.

He drew in a long breath of air, and the familiarly overwhelming buzz of magic turned in his lungs. It crackled and popped against No Longer Human. Dazai took a few more deep breaths before the sensation quieted to a more manageable dull hum.

Here we are,

Dazai thought,

second year.

Dazai waved goodbye to his Gryffindor friends as soon as they entered the Great Hall. He walked to the Slytherin table, eyes peeled for a sign of Draco or Blaise.

The illusion of peace hanging over him shattered immediately.

'You

did

come back, ' a Slytherin growled upon seeing him.

'Demon. '

Well. There went his good day.

Automatically, Dazai drew on a more suitable persona.

"I know... Unfortunately, I didn't die over summer break," he said, raising a single brow. He went to take a seat. "Not for a lack of trying, though."

But before he could sit, someone put their arm over the seat, barring him from sitting. It took a second for Dazai to recognize Crabbe...

or was that Goyle?

'Taken," the Slytherin grunted at him.

'I don 't want to sit you with, meathead. '

Although he would like to sit

somewhere

. Dazai looked up to the next empty spot, only for the blonde-headed girl there to block her seat as well. Beside her, a ginger-haired boy did just the same.

Dazai stopped in his tracks as every single Slytherin made an effort to indicate,

no you can 't sit here, Dazai.

Some of the students turned away as they did so, looking nervously at the floor. However, more than half of the Slytherins openly glared at him.

So this was how his year was going to be.

Joy of joys.

And to think he'd

asked

about returning to Hogwarts...

Dazai was unsurprised to see that Pansy was among the students staring.

'Look who it is... The mudblood

and

murderer, ' Pansy sneered when his eyes lingered on her for too long, 'You aren 't welcome at our table, Demon. '

'Pansy. I 'd say it 's lovely to see you again, but that would be lying, ' Dazai said, expression blank. Then, with a raised brow, he added, 'You of all people should know that the situation was Quirrell was more complicated than the Daily Prophet lets on. '

She scowled, clearly uninterested in Dazai 's rebuttal. Her lip curled, another insult poised on her tongue, but before she could loose it, her expression suddenly warmed.

'Draco! ' Pansy chimed. She sat up straighter and patted the empty spot beside her. 'Sit here. I saved this seat just for you. '

Dazai glanced over his shoulder.

Just then, Draco walked out of a throng of other students. His back was ramrod straight, looking just as tense as he had when he 'd been with his father the other day.

'Hello, Draco, ' Dazai greeted.

He waited for a response.

Waited...

Except Draco didn 't even stop to glance in his direction.

Instead, he walked, chin-up, straight past Dazai. He settled in beside Pansy without ever saying a word.

Ah.

Pansy gave Dazai a shit-eating grin.

Dazai couldn 't help the frown overtaking his face. Draco was acting as if he didn 't even exist, when just the other day they had chatted like old friends. Dazai 's eyes narrowed as he tried to make sense of Draco 's one-eighty. Meanwhile, Draco had tilted his head to the side so that his attention was fully on Pansy.

Dazai 's frown deepened into a full-on scowl.

Okay. So he was completely alone this year. S

hould I just go sit at the Gryffindor table?

he thought, fighting off an unwelcome wave of hurt.

Or use my Demon Student title to threaten someone out of their seat?

Only, he didn 't need any more trouble. Attacking students might get him expelled.

Course settle, Dazai turned on his heel. He tried to find one of his Gryffindor friends ' eyes over the tables. Before he could, however '

'You can sit with me, friend. '

Dazai froze in place. The words prickled his ears, familiar and warm. His eyes immediately shot to the voice 's source. It was easy to find 'every other Slytherin present also immediately locked-on to the betrayer of their cause.

Blaise!

Blaise sat at the very end of the table, one hand pressed into his cheek and the other open in a small wave. His hair had been cut short and he had gone through a somewhat noticeable growth spurt, but he was still Blaise. Dazai felt the ice rapidly cooling his gut melt.

He invited himself into the spot on Blaise 's left, ignoring how the other students shuffled away from them. With everyone giving them a wide berth, it almost felt like Blaise and Dazai had their own private dining area.

'It 's been awhile, ' Dazai greeted, cheeky.

Blaise's lips twitched upwards. 'So it has. ' His expression softened. 'I 'd ask how you 've been, but... '

Dazai followed his gaze to the multitude of glaring eyes faced their way. 'I 'm not the most popular these days. '

'Were you ever? '

Dazai snorted. 'You 're killing your reputation by sitting with me. '

Blaise gave him a pointed look. 'I don 't have a reputation. Besides, Pansy still likes me. '

'Does she? ' Dazai lifted his head. Pansy was still sitting with Draco, chatting angrily about something to a few other upperclassmen. Her eyes flashed to Dazai, as if having sensed his attention. When Dazai wiggled his fingers in greeting, she mimed throwing up.

'It 's hard to tell from your vantage point, but she can be quite friendly. ' Blaise paused. 'On occasion. '

Dazai thought that over, but couldn 't recall ever witnessing Pansy act something even

near

friendly. He shook his head. 'I 'll believe it when I see it. '

Blaise shrugged, nonplussed.

'And Draco..? '

Blaise glanced to Dazai, then to the individual in question. He made a noncommittal noise. 'He said you would understand. '

Dazai blinked in question.

'We rode in together on the train, ' he said by way of explanation. 'He told me that you would know why he was ' ' he gestured vaguely to where Draco was making an effort to pretend Dazai didn 't exist.

The words washed over Dazai. He frowned, parsing out their meaning.

Clearly, Draco had been vague on purpose. Moreover, he seemed confident that Dazai wouldn 't take offense. Which meant...

'I guess that's just how it is, ' Dazai said with a huff. Blaise raised a curious brow, but received no answer in return.

It was obvious 'Dazai should have figured it out right away. Lucius must have given Draco some instruction to stay out of Dazai 's way. If not that, then Draco was clearly trying to protect his reputation. Hanging out with the Demon Student could only bring negative attention, after all. To the Malfoy family, associating with the Demon Student was akin to social suicide.

Draco was protecting himself.

He was protecting Lucius.

Dazai leaned into his palm, a tired sigh escaping his lips. He cast a wayward gaze to where Draco was sitting.

'Blaise, do you still have my knife? '

When Blaise hummed, Dazai shifted his focus back to the other boy. Blaise patted his chest, where Dazai knew there to be an inside pocket. 'Always, ' he said, matter-of-fact. 'You aren 't planning to stab anyone, are you? '

A smile split Dazai 's face. He shook his head. 'No, no. Just wondering if you 'd kept it. '

Blaise rolled his eyes, fond. 'Of course I did, Boss. '

Dazai smiled and rubbed a thumb over his chest. Blaise clocked the movement and gave a warm smile of his own.

Before the conversation could go any further, the Great Hall suddenly went near silent. Dumbledore stood at the front of the room, arms out to quiet down anyone still chattering. Beside him, Dazai saw Professor McGonagall placing the sorting hat onto its stool. Near the wall, a line of first-year students were gathered, nervously awaiting their sorting. Dazai turned back to Dumbledore.

'Welcome! To another year at Hogwarts, ' Dumbeldore announced with a booming voice. A few cheers rose up at his announcement. Notably, however, the Slytherin table was dead silent. Tense, or maybe scornful. 'Before we begin, let me first introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor: Gilderoy Lockhart! '

Again, the student body broke out into cheers and applause. Dazai stayed silent, eyes searching out Lockhart among the other professors. It wasn 't hard to pick out the man 's garish robes when he was looking. Lockhart stood and waved to his fans. Dazai noted, with no small amount of amusement, that Snape seemed to be glaring holes into the author 's robe.

Dumbledore continued to impart his wisdom onto the students, but it was nothing particularly interesting. Dazai largely tuned him out. He kept an ear open for any discussion of himself or Quirrell, but heard nothing. It seemed Dumbeldore was still trying to keep that whole situation on the down-low, despite everything. Frustration prickled at Dazai 's chest.

Not long after, McGonagall stepped forward. She held the sorting hat aloft and began calling students forward. Among the new first-years, Dazai only recognized one name.

'Weasley, Ginny! '

Ginny jumped when she was called.

Then, taking in a deep breath, she strode across the stage towards the sorting hat. McGonagall set it down on her head. It fell down well over her eyes. The audience watched in silence for a short moment before the hat cried out, 'Gryffindor! '

Immediately, applause broke out at the lion 's table.

Dazai caught sight of Fred and George, who had jumped to their feet with whooping calls. Ron, sitting beside them, had his head ducked low at the twins ' antics. Still, Dazai noticed he was clapping loudly along with them. Ginny, a wide, toothy grin across her face, practically skipped to join them.

The rest of the sorting passed without fanfare. The only other student to briefly capture Dazai 's interest was a young boy carrying a heavy-looking muggle camera in both hands. Given his recent experiences with flash-photography, Dazai was only a little wary. But he was just as quickly drawn into his own private thoughts again, instead.

Dazai watched with lidded eyes, only coming out of his head when plates of food suddenly manifested in front of him. Blaise had already finished plating his food when Dazai finally reached out to serve himself.

Blaise 's eyes lingered pointedly on Dazai 's small serving.

Dazai stuck a crab leg in his mouth mulishly.

When the meal ended, Dazai trailed behind the mass of Slytherin 's as they walked down to the dungeon common rooms. Although he chattered with Blaise on the way, it lacked Dazai 's usual enthusiasm. He could no longer ignore the glares pointed his way. He couldn 't look past the way his peers looked at him with unmasked fear.

They were missing the bigger picture, Dazai knew. Blaise still walked amicably at his side, a monument to the greater plot between Dazai and Quirrell. But...

But.

Mori and the Port Mafia stood at Dazai 's back, a shadow that stretched for miles. It was a darkness that, even through it all, Dazai had yet to fully reveal to his Hogwarts friends. Only Draco knew of his involvement with the mafia. And now, Draco was keeping his distance. Refusing even to glance in Dazai 's direction.

And a mafioso shouldn 't care, but...

If Blaise knew the truth about the everything, would he look at Dazai with those glaring eyes, too? Would the twins?

Dazai felt the hateful and horrified eyes of his peers linger on him. Felt the animated portraits on the wall watch him from behind their watercolor prisons. The year had only just begun, and enemies surrounded Dazai at every turn.

This place is really starting to feel like home,

he thought with a grimace.