This is the first story in a trilogy that I'm working on. There are going to be eleven chapters in every single story, so I shouldn't have to say that again.

Oh, this is a Remus/OC/Sirius triangle story, so I'm not sure what characters I'm going to list. I don't really want to give away the actual pairing. This is not slash!

Um, I can't really think of anything else, so just read and enjoy.

England was very far from home, Mae Yokozuna thought sadly as she sat in the back seat of her parents' car. After staring out the window for several minutes, she leaned back and sighed. She didn't want to be here. She wanted to far from here. She wanted to be home, but Japan was miles away now.

Now she was stuck in England. Stupid England, with all their tea biscuits, with Shakespeare and Lionheart and the Magna Carta, with stupid Mary Poppins. Of all places to go, it was by far the worst. Alright, she had to take that back. She was sure there were worse places, even if she didn't have to go to them. But, despite that fact, she still hated England.

"Daddy, where are you taking me again?" she called up front.

"To King's Cross Station, dear. There, you'll get on a train to a school of people like us."

"Witches and wizards?"

"Yes."

After a moment of silence, she said, "Do you know where we're going? We aren't lost, are we?"

"No," said Mr. Yokozuna as they finally pulled into the station parking lot.

Not too long later, she was hugging her father goodbye on Platform 9 and ¾ before boarding the Hogwarts Express. "Bye, Daddy!" she called after him as the train began to move. She waved to him through the open window until he was out of sight.

Then, she moved to find a compartment. The third compartment she entered had one red-haired girl in it, getting ready to leave. "Hello," she said hesitantly.

The redhead jumped before turning round and looking at her. "Hi," she said pleasantly. "May I help you? Would you like to sit with me?"

"Yes please," she said quietly.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Lily Evans. I'm the Head Girl at Hogwarts this year."

"I'm Mae, Mae Yokozuna. I just transferred here from Japan."

"Oh, excellent. Professor Dumbledore told me in my letter about you."

"Evans, you're late!" someone hollered through the open door as he rushed by.

"Oh dear," she said, her brilliant eyes nervous. "I am a bit late for my Head duties."

"I'm sorry," said Mae, immediately apologizing. "That's my fault, isn't it?"

"Only a little bit. Well, make yourself at home. I'll return in maybe fifteen minutes." She left quickly, running toward the front of the train, after the boy that had previously passed.

After putting away her luggage, Mae leaned back in a seat with a sad sigh. The scenery outside the window was dreary. It was raining. The rain in England was so sad. In Japan, the rain was warm and happy. Damn, she missed dancing in the rain at home.

"Daddy, why did we move here?" she asked her reflection in the window.

She didn't need her father to answer that question. She knew already. After her mother died the previous spring, the family had never been the same. Her stupid father couldn't focus on his job and was fired. He wanted to start over. She didn't. But they had moved anyway.

And, as much as she hated Japan for constantly reminding her of her mother, she missed it ever so much. It was still home. And in a time of need—a time without her mother—she needed to the comfort of home. She needed her mother to hold and hug and so that she could cry on her shoulder.

At that thought, her eyes began to water. She took a slow breath, trying to calm herself, but the air came in gasps. Her throat tightened, knotted from holding back. With one last gasp of air, she burst into sobs and moans. She pulled her knees up to her face and hugged them tightly.

"Whoa," a masculine voice came, along with a short knock on the open door. "Bad timing?"

She looked at him, but all she saw was a dark blob with a pale splotch for a face. She tried to wipe away the tears and to clear her vision with her sleeve. "Maybe just a little bit," she said weakly.

The boy, clearer now, entered slowly and sat beside her. "The only girls I've ever seen crying were girls I was breaking up with," he said awkwardly.

"How did you handle that?" she asked curiously, laying her chin on one of her knees.

"Not very well, I must admit. I walked away from most of them. In fact, I can't recollect any that I've ever tried to comfort. Of course, there've been so many. But you'd think I'd remember if I did something different."

Mae looked him over. She could understand why he'd gone out with so many girls. He was extremely handsome. With a sigh, she said, "Well, thanks for just talking with me. It was nice to meet you." As kind as he appeared, she was wary of people now, untrusting. This boy was too nice for comfort. She desperately wanted him out of the room.

He got the message right away and moved to stand, but hesitated. "Wait, what's your name?"

"Just call me Yoko," she said on instinct.

"I'm Sirius." He put out his hand but then withdrew it, as he suspected she didn't want to be touched at the moment. He left.

Mae took another deep breath and looked at her reflection again.

Why had she just asked him to call her that? She had liked him right away, yes, but was it enough for him to call her that? The nickname was special to her. Was he worthy?

No one had called her Yoko since that past April. It was the pet name her mother had for her. Her father had sometimes used it mockingly. Now they all knew that she would be reminded of her mother whenever they called her that, so they had stopped.

Maybe all she needed was the comfort of someone calling her that again. Maybe she needed to be reminded of her mother. Maybe, as long as it was in a positive way, the memories of her mother could be… oh, she didn't know. Maybe not. She just didn't know.

"Mae? Are you alright?" came the worried voice of Lily. She entered the compartment and closed the door.

Mae sighed again. "For now," she said quietly. Looking around the room, she realized that they were the only two there, and there didn't appear to be any more coming. "Where are you friends?"

Lily looked away to the left, trying not to meet her eyes. "I, um… they—I don't have any," she admitted before slumping down beside her. "I have a few acquaintances, like Remus Lupin, but no real friends."

"Why? What's so wrong with you?" she asked, confused by this injustice.

"Because I'm a know-it-all," she said vehemently. "And because stupid Potter's a lousy git."

"Potter?"

"James Potter. He's a prat who walks around the school like he owns the place and hexes half the people just because he wants to!"

Mae clenched her jaw in disapproval. "Does he pick on you?"

"Not exactly," said Lily hesitantly. "Actually, he's been asking me out for the past few years, and he won't leave me alone. All the girls are jealous and think I'm just playing hard-to-get."

"Well, he sounds like a—"

"And now he's bloody Head Boy!" screamed Lily, picking up her book from the seat and throwing it as hard as possible against the opposing wall.

Mae was startled by this outburst and almost feared for her safety but then pushed it aside. "Well, he has to grow up sometime. Besides, I'll be your friend."

Lily looked to her in surprise. "Really?"

"Sure. As long as you'll be mine, I don't see why not," she reasoned.

She looked up to see Lily grinning. "I… I don't really know what to say."

"Well, tell me all about Hogwarts and all you've gone through. And you can rant about this Potter all you want. Just, please, don't hurt me."

They both laughed quickly before Lily began her long speech.

Thanks for reading this. Please leave me a review.

Anatui