A Bend in Time

The train compartment darkens for a moment passing through a tunnel. The light returns abruptly causing Severus to blink at the bright sunlight. He hands the card of the enchantress to Lily for a closer look. He arches his brow at his twin. "Must you eat as if you were in a hurry all the time, Rowan!"

A smug expression flashes across Severus's face. "Ah, but I enjoy watching you eat, Sev," she deliberately answered.

Severus's face darkens a fierce scowl sent at Rowan. Before the two can begin to squabble, Lily hastily intervened. "Now you two, please don't start!"

"Pfft," Rowan confidently retorts, "Please I win every time."

"No, you don't," Severus growled back.

"Want to bet?" Rowan smugly sneered.

Before the two of them can actually have a go at each other, Lily tugs on Severus's sleeve, while James reaches over and grabs Rowan's wrist. Rowan turns to face James with a dark gaze, who hastily pulls his hand back as if burned. "There, all done," James cheekily said.

Rowan rolls her eyes as Sirius snickers and says, "Yup, this one was just waiting to get his grimy hands on a girl."

"Sirius!" James roared back as Sirius poked fun at James.

Rowan ignores the two of them and unwraps another chocolate frog, before handing over the next card over to Lily and Severus. Seeing Rowan remain unflustered by his teasing, Sirius coughs and mischievously opens a bag of Bertie Bott's every Flavor Beans. "Care to try one?" Sirius innocently asked as he held out the open bag to Rowan.

Rowan narrows her eyes at Sirius and reaches into the bag and grabs a small handful. Sirius's eyes bulge as Rowan stuffs the handful into her mouth and swallows. Rowan slightly grimaces at one of the beans, but quickly finishes chewing. "There, happy now?" Rowan loftily said.

Sirius dumbly stares at Rowan as James snickers back. "Don't tell me, you can't do the same, Sirius?"

Sirius glares at James as Lily whispers to Severus. "What's that all about?"

"Those are literally any kind of flavored beans, literally any kind," Severus dumfounded whispered back not able to believe that Rowan is fine.

"You mean like you could get a blood flavored one or even a grass flavored bean?"

"Or worse."

"Oh, gosh," Lily whispered to herself rather aghast and impressed at Rowan's courage.

Grimacing Sirius sticks his hand into the bag and pops a handful into his mouth. Sirius doesn't even finish the first bite, before spewing the mouthful of jellybeans back into the Bertie Bott's bag. They all grimace as Sirius gazes accusatory at Rowan as Rowan innocently gazes back.

Breathing loudly, Sirius points at Rowan with one finger and huffs. "How did you do that?"

"I've eaten worse things before," Rowan truthfully answered, before turning to gaze out at the scenery. Severus remains rather quiet at the truth of the statement. Starving, they had learned to eat anything no matter how terrible the taste including half-eaten food from the trash.

Lily glances over at the twins and feels something is off but knows better than to ask. Sirius snorts in disbelief and turns back to James as he quickly changes the subject. Sirius and James talk all about all sorts of things as Lily looks intrigued and Severus adds the odd comment or two. Rowan, on the other hand, closes her eyes and just listens as the train comfortably chugs along. The sun continues to do the same as it too crosses to the other end of the sky and begins to wane.

The sun had long since started to set as Rowan suddenly gets up and grabs the neatly folded robe from her knit sack pouch. "What are you doing!" Severus exclaimed as he saw Rowan taking off her jacket.

Rowan grabs the black robe from inside the pouch. "It's sundown," gesturing at the darkening sky in the passing landscape. The sky is a lighter orange, pink with even glimpses of mauve growing darker at the edges.

"So, what?" Severus snapped.

"So, from what I was told, that means we're not too far off from Hogwarts," Rowan grumbled.

"We better do as Rowan says," Lily said. "It's better to change now, then to do so later."

Lily begins to take off her jacket as Severus flushes and says, "Wait, shouldn't you change elsewhere?!"

Rowan snorts and says, "It's just a bloody jacket, Severus."

Severus glares mutinously at Rowan but doesn't continue to protest as James and Sirius begin to change as well. By the time, they are finished dressing, Lily says, "Look!"

They all turn to gaze out of the windows to see Hogwarts gleaming in the distant moonlight. They all let sounds of exclamation except for Rowan, who had seen it all before. Severus catches Rowan's expression and sighs but doesn't dare ruin the moment.

Suddenly, a voice overhead says, "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes. Please leave your luggage on board as it will be taken to the school separately."

Sitting back down, James says, "We never did ask, but which house do you think we'll all be sorted into?"

Lily and Severus simultaneously look at Rowan. "Okay, what is that supposed to mean?" Sirius inquisitively asked.

"Rowan thinks she can accurately predict what house everyone will be sorted into," Severus drily replied with a roll of his eyes.

"Oh, please do us!" Sirius excitedly volunteered.

Rowan in a dry tone of voice answers, "You and James will both be in Gryffindor."

"Yes!" The two of them exclaimed.

"What about you, three?" James curiously asked after a minute.

Rowan once more points at Lily and says, "Gryffindor." Then at Severus, "Slytherin." And then at herself, "No idea."

"I thought you said you could tell, what house everyone would be in?" James wickedly grinned.

"Mostly everyone that does not include me," Rowan countered back. Before James could think of a comeback, the train begins to slow down.

Sirius tries not to gulp but his nervous face betrays him. "Err, but just in case, what if I'm not?" Sirius weakly asked.

"You'll do just fine," Severus confidently said. "If Rowan says, you'll be sorted into Gryffindor, then you will be. She's never been wrong before."

Sirius glances hopefully at Rowan, who sighs, "You're an arrogant sod, Sirius Black, moreover, considering given your pureblood lineage, but you have a good heart. And just that fact alone guarantees you'll be a Gryffindor."

"Is that how you see us?" James wryly remarked.

"Mm, mostly," Rowan grumbled as the train slowed down even more.

James grins and glances at Severus and Rowan. "Even if the both of you end up in Slytherin, you're a good bunch too," James chortled. Rowan rolls her eyes as Severus scoffed and Lily giggled in reply. However, all too soon those laughs fade away as the train comes around a bend and rolls to a stop. It was time.