Years of the Marauders
Chapter One: On the Track to Hogwarts
It was a busy Monday morning at King's Cross Station. It was particularly busy as today was the 1st of September. A young boy, who was much taller than he was wide, was rushing along with his father. His short dark brown hair was shining in the sun. 'Dad,' he said, 'why isn't Mom coming?' They headed inside the station, carrying a large trunk and a cage that held a small black kitten with the cutest green eyes ever.
'You know how she is, Wade,' His dad replied. He was a shorter man, with hair to match Wade's; however it was flecked with grey. 'She doesn't feel comfortable around our people.' Thing was, Wade was a wizard. He was on his way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Wade's father was a wizard too but his mother… she was a muggle, a wizard term for non-magic people.
'Oh,' Wade said, 'Okay.' They loaded his trunk and kitten onto a trolley and rushed through the platforms. The Hogwarts Express was scheduled to leave at 11:00 from Platform 9 ¾. That meant they only had 20 minutes to spare. Wade's father, who had attended Hogwarts when he was a boy, knew that the only way to get to the right platform was to walk straight through the barrier that divided platforms 9 and 10.
They arrived there and noticed a young girl, about Wade's age also pushing a large trunk on a trolley. Balanced on top was a cage that held a beautiful Wood Owl, whose feathers were every colour of brown. She noticed Wade and his father, and strode confidently up to them. 'Hi, I couldn't help but notice that you have a very large trunk like me and a pet with you.' Wade's cat mewed. 'I was wondering if you are on your way to Hogwarts.'
Wade smiled, 'Yeah. Did you want to come with us?' He asked, struggling to make conversation and to find out the point of their encounter.
'Actually, yes,' she said, 'It says here on my ticket that the Hogwarts Express is leaving from Platform 9 ¾. But…' She pushed her long honey blonde hair behind her ear. 'I haven't got a clue where it is.'
Wade's father chuckled, 'Lucky you ran into us then. Well you see that barrier over there?' He pointed to the barrier that divided platforms 9 and 10. 'You just have to run at it. Try not to blink or flinch, and make sure that none of the muggles are watching. If you want, Wade can go first to show you. What was your name again?'
'I didn't give it to you,' she said smiling, 'It's Katherine Klaassen. It's nice to meet you.'
Wade held out his hand and Katherine shook it, 'My name's Wade Wiechenthal, and this is my dad Norval. Alright, see you on the other side.' He smiled and pushed his trolley down the platform. He looked around to make sure that no one was looking and broke into a run. From Katherine's view, He seemed to just disappear from sight when he should have smacked into the wall.
'Well, that seems easy enough,' she said. 'Thanks for the help Mr. Wiechenthal.' She mimicked Wade and rushed through the barrier. Emerging on the other side, she could see a great crimson steam engine that was spewing a thick cloud of smoke. There were people crowding the platform. There were parents and children who were also attending Hogwarts or just seeing their siblings off.
Katherine wished her parents could be here to see this. Katherine's parents were both muggles. She was surprised and a little sceptical when she received a letter of Administration from the school. She had read and re-read it so many times that it was memorized. It said:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Armando Dippet
Dear Ms. Klaassen,
We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
Deputy Headmaster
Naturally, the first thing that Katherine did upon receiving the letter was to 'Google' Hogwarts. Unfortunately, there were no results. She managed to get everything worked out, and she visited Diagon Alley to get her equipment.
Standing on the platform, Katherine looked around for Wade. It wasn't too hard to spot him, because he was so tall. She called out, 'Wade!' And his head turned around. She walked up to him and asked, 'So now what do we do?'
'Get on the train of course!'
Hannah was sitting in the little compartment on the Hogwarts Express. She had arrived earlier than most (9:30) so that she could get the best seat. That and she was just anxious. Hannah was of average height with dirty blonde hair. She wore rectangular glasses. She was sitting beside a boy whose brown hair was a little untidy and he looked a little pale.
'So Loopy,' She addressed the boy. 'Are you excited? I am. You're probably not as excited as me though because this is my first year.'
The boy smiled, 'You know I don't like you calling me Loopy, Call me by my right name, Remus. And don't worry; I was just as excited last year.'
The door to the compartment slid open and two people were standing at its entrance. It was Wade and Katherine. Wade stepped forward, 'Hey guys, do you mind if we sit in here? It's just that you're more our age. Everyone else just looks… sketchy.' He smiled.
Katherine added, 'If there's no room, then that's fine too.'
Hannah grinned, 'Yeah sure guys. Come on in.'
Wade and Katherine took their seats across from Hannah and Lupin. Lupin looked a little uncomfortable. He stood up and said, 'See you later Hannah, I'm going to find the guys.' He waved politely at Wade and Katherine and left the compartment.
Hannah smiled at the two of them, 'I'm Hannah Reinhardt. I'm a first year. You are?'
'Wade Wiechenthal.'
'Katherine Klaassen.' They said in turn.
Hannah, trying to strike up a conversation asked, 'So what do your parents do? My parents both work at the Ministry of Magic. My Mom is the head of the Magic Reversal Squad and my Dad's an Auror.' She blinked, waiting for the other's responses.
Wade spoke first, 'Well, My Dad works at the Ministry too. He works in the Department for the Protection of Magical Creatures. My mom is a muggle. But she is a veterinarian, that's kind of an animal doctor. Our family really likes animals. We have lots of fish and two dogs. I have a pet kitten too, his name's Pharaoh.'
Katherine, who was a little confused asked, 'What's a muggle?' She was greeted with some even more confused looks.
Wade answered, 'A muggle is like the opposite of a witch or wizard. They're people who have no magical history. My mom was shocked to find out that Dad was a wizard. She couldn't believe it and thought it was a joke.' He chuckled.
'So then my parents are both muggles?' She asked.
Hannah told her, 'So that means that you're Muggle-born. It's more common than you'd think. I always though it would be difficult for Muggle-born starting Hogwarts without learning that they're magic until they get their letter.'
Just then, the train lurched forward, and out of the windows, the people on the platform started to move backwards. 'Look!' Katherine said with glee, 'We're moving!'
They were too excited to talk. The first couple minutes went by in silence as they stared out of the window. There was a knock on the door that brought their attention inside the compartment again.
A girl was standing at the door. She had shoulder length black hair and a kind look on her face. She was wearing her school robes already, even though they had just left the station. She slid the door open and asked, 'Is it alright if I sit with you? Everywhere else is full.'
Hannah nodded her head and indicated that the spot next to her was free. 'Sit here.'
'Thanks.' The girl said and she sat down. 'I'm Wendy Arnold. I'm just starting here at Hogwarts. You guys as well?' She asked to be polite.
Katherine said, 'Yeah, we're all first years too. I'm Katherine Klaassen.' She waved.
'I'm Wade Wiechenthal,' Wade said as he smiled.
'And I'm Hannah Reinhardt. It's nice to meet another first year. Now we won't be completely without friends when we start school. But I already have Loopy to show me around.'
Wendy smiled, these people seem really nice, she thought. 'Loopy is an unusual name. Who are they?' She asked curiously.
'Well his name's not actually Loopy. He hates it when I call him that. His name's Remus Lupin, he's been my friend ever since we were little. He's a little shy until you get to know him.'
Wade asked, 'Was that the guy you were sitting with earlier?'
'Yeah.'
'Well, he's pretty good looking, know I want to get to know him.' He chuckled.
Hannah seemed offended, 'Well, even if you are attracted to him, I wouldn't allow it. He's like my little brother.'
Wade responded with a timid, 'I was just joking.' And the group laughed.
A woman pushing a trolley full of sweets was passing by their compartment. 'Would you like anything from the Trolley?' She asked.
Katherine looked up, 'Do you have any Smarties?' She asked excitedly.
Wade laughed, 'They only have wizard treats. Here, I'll get two packs of chocolate frogs and some liquorice wands.' He stood up and paid the woman with some Sickles (Wizard Money) and she handed him his treats.
Hannah stood up and got a bunch of stuff. Wendy was just fine with a treacle tart. The woman left and they sat down with their goods.
Munching happily, Hannah asked, 'What houses do you expect you'll be in?'
Wade noticing that Katherine had a confused look on her face said, 'There are four houses. When you get there, you have to do like a test thing and depending on your results, you get put into a house. The houses are Hufflepuff, Slytherin, Gryffindor and… ummm…' Wade couldn't remember the last house.
Hannah added, 'You've forgotten Ravenclaw. Anyway, each house has something special about them my Dad told me. Ravenlaw's for smart people, Hufflepuff's for hard workers. Gryffindor's for the brave and Slytherin… I'm not sure but there are a lot of bad witches and wizards who were in Slytherin. Loopy told me that the Slytherins are little whiners. My Mom and Dad were both in Gryffindor, so I hope I will be too.' She finished with a little nod.
Wade said, 'My Dad was in Hufflepuff.'
'I think I'd want to be in Ravenclaw,' added Katherine, 'They sound the best to me. I guess I wouldn't want to be in Slytherin. What house were your parents in, Wendy?'
Wendy thought for a minute. She didn't want to tell them that her parents had been in Slytherin. 'Ravenclaw,' she lied. 'I wouldn't want to be in Slytherin either.'
Wendy lived with her Mom and her Aunt. Her Dad was caught up in something and had to leave, Her Mom never told her exactly what happened though.
In the middle of thought, the doors to the compartment slid open again. Four guys were standing there this time. The first, Katherine and Wade recognized as Lupin. Then there was a handsome boy with jet black hair that stuck up in places. There was another guy with black hair. He was the tallest of the four. He looked a little excited. The fourth person was short with straw-like hair. He didn't look very confident.
'Hi Loo… I mean Remus. What's up?'
The handsome boy answered first, 'Hi I'm James Potter, Lupin was just telling us that he had a cute best friend and we though we would acquaint ourselves.'
They sat down, which made the compartment pretty packed. They introduced themselves. The tallest boy was Sirius Black and the short guy was Peter Pettigrew. So now it was Hannah, Lupin, James and Pettigrew on the right, and Katherine, Wade, Wendy, and Sirius on the left.
'So Wendy,' Sirius asked, 'What do you like to do for fun?'
Lupin shot him a look that said, Really?
During the train ride, the eight of them really got to know each other. The four boys were all in Gryffindor house. James was going to try out for Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.
Katherine asked, 'What's Quidditch?'
'Here we go…' Sirius said groaning.
James said proudly, 'I'm glad you asked. Quidditch is a Wizard's sport. There are seven people on each team and it's played on flying broomsticks. There's the Keeper, the three Chasers, the two Beaters and the Seeker. Then there are three types of balls. The first is the Quaffle. It's the Chaser's job to score by throwing it into the three giant hoops at the other end. It's the Keeper's job to block the Quaffle from getting in. The Bludger is the ball that flies around and tries to knock people off of their brooms. The Beaters have little bats and they hit the ball away from their teammates. And the last ball is the Golden Snitch. It's the Seeker's job to catch this tiny ball. When he does, the game's over and he automatically wins 150 points for his team.' As James was explaining this, he used large hand motions to help them understand.
'Well that took a while eh, James?' Asked Sirius. He turned to Wendy and said, 'This guy is a Quidditch fanatic.' He pointed to James.
The time was going by and the eight of them were having a ton of fun. They had all changed into their school robes when an announcement came saying they'd be arriving at Hogwarts soon.
They looked out the window. They hadn't noticed that it was already dark outside. They saw some light drawing nearer. They looked up to see a giant Castle looming over them.
James stood up, his arms outstretched and said, 'Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Hogwarts.'