Rose was nervous as her fifth year at Hogwarts set in. She had never tried to make any friends, and no one had tried to befriend her, but she was questioning if that was the best choice. Maybe just one friend would be able to help her.

But no, she would just hurt them in the end. She would end up hurting them like she did everyone outside of her family. And even her family was beginning to dwindle.

Ever since her father had died when she was young, Rose's mother had not been able to find anyone else to marry, or even court.

Her mother was all Rose had left, and if bringing in an outsider would endanger that, then it wasn't worth it, no matter how alone she may be.

As the train neared the school, Rose quickly changed into her robes, finishing right as a boy entered the small compartment she occupied alone. He looked around her age, and he smelt of metal and old books. A strange, if not welcoming, mixture of smells.

"Sorry, I didn't know that someone was in here." He apologized, turning around to leave.

"It's fine. You can stay. There's not much further to go until we get to Hogwarts anyway." She reasoned, knowing all the other compartments were probably full already. She may have wanted to be alone, but she wasn't cruel enough to force that onto someone else as well.

"Thanks. I'm John, but everyone calls me Doctor. I'm a Hufflepuff." He told her, sticking his hand out for her to shake.

She shook it as she introduced herself.

"Rose Tyler, Gryffindor."

The rest of the trip was silent, and Rose was glad the boy hadn't tried to fill it with meaningless talk about school or the weather. It would have only succeeded in making the ride more awkward than it already was.

-

As Hogwarts finally came into view, Rose began gathering her things. The train pulled to a stop and she saw Hagrid calling over the first years to the boats to be sorted. In the group, she saw a taller boy, around her age. Deciding he might need a little help, she walked over to direct him to the carriages.

"Excuse me," She tapped him on the shoulder. "This is for the first years. Anyone older than them is supposed to head to the carriages."

He smelt of daffodils and dust, another strange, but not bad, smell. She could also detect a slight tint of the metal she had smelled on The Doctor earlier. Maybe he knew the new boy.

"Oh, I'm new here. I was told by Dumbledore to go with the first years to be sorted." He informed her with a striking American accent.

"Where were you before?" She had never heard of a wizarding school in America, so he must have been homeschooled.

"I went to a school called Ilvermorny. It's a wizarding school in America. My parents moved here a few months ago. After that I got a letter from Hogwarts asking me to come." He explained. "Oh, but where are my manners? My name is Jack. What might yours be?"

"Rose Tyler. I'm in Gryffindor. I hope to see you at our table after the sorting." She called back to him, walking away from the first years to catch a carriage.

When she got over to the carriages, there was one that only had one other person at it. She pet the thestrals as she passed and jumped into the cart just before it began moving.

"It seems we meet again." The boy in the carriage with her joked.

Without even looking up, she recognized his scent.

"It seems we have, Doctor." She replied, finally looking up at him.

Once again, they were plunged into a comfortable silence, and neither tried to fill it.

She was a bit worried. This boy's scent had imprinted on her right away, and she had recognized it as his. She tried to play it off as remembering only because she had just met him, but she knew she was lying. This man was going to play some role in her life.

---

After the sorting, Rose walked with her house to the Gryffindor common room with the rest of her house. She had only been slightly disappointed to realize Jack would not be in her house.

She decided to go to sleep early tonight, since classes started tomorrow. As she laid down, she began to hear talking in her room.

"Is that her?" One girl whispered.

"Yeah. I heard her father died when she was young, and her mother hasn't found anyone since." Another spoke.

"How sad. I don't know how I would have lived without my dad around." Another girl added.

Rose felt a growl rise up in her throat, only holding it down as to not scare away her roommates, like she had last year.

"I heard she doesn't have any friends either. That she pushes away anyone who gets close." It was the second girl again.

"She probably has trust issues or someth-"

Not wanting to hear anymore, Rose covered her head with the sheets and fell asleep.

-

Word count: 863

Rose: I don't need friends

Doctor & Jack: *exist*

Rose: Shit