I polished the cover of "1000 Magical Herbs and Fungi" as I exited Diagon
Alley. Opening to the first page, I scanned down a list of strange "A" plants.
"Aari- when exposed to skin, Aari produces permanent red boils, but it is a good remedy
for high fever. It is most commonly found in South Africa..."
Before I could read any farther a yellowed hand reached out and closed the book.
"Don't go walkin' around with your nose in a book! You'll crash into a bus!" I recognized
this voice easily. It was my father's. "Not that it would be bad thing; I need some quiet
around home." He grabbed the collar of my shirt and pulled me into our apartment. "Go
to your room!" I paused to take off my sweater but that was a mistake. A hard boot caught me
right in the chest. "Go on! Git!" Wheezing, I dropped my book and scampered off to my
doorway.
A few minutes later I was hiding in my closet and clutching at my side. Breaking glass
could be heard. Undoubtedly, it was beer bottles. I couldn't wait for that train to take me away.
It would be my ticket away from home. Away from my dad. I turned the closet light on and
realized I had forgotten my book out in the dining room. The quiet was suddenly broken by the
sound of ripping pages.
"Oh, no!" I thought "My book!" Misery swept over me but I remained seated in my closet.
Tomorrow I would have to go Hogwarts with no book. My first day at a new school and already
I would leave a bad impression. Not that I didn't make a bad first impression at Durmstrang, but
there I could order a book and it would come the next day.
*************************************************************************************
"Coal!" An angry voice shouted, "Get out here this minute! You'll miss the train and it's not
like I want you here all year!"
I raised my head slightly. All around was darkness and I was squished into a small area. I had
fallen asleep in my closet the day before. My father was calling me about the Hogwarts Express and by
his sense of time we had most likely already missed it. But, not wanting to take any chances, I stood up
and ran to get my bag. We skipped breakfast and drove as fast as our small car could go to get to the
station. The car finally stopped and, with my stomach growling, I got out of car clutching my bag.
I walked through the platform with seconds to spare. The train's engine was steaming. Kids with
huge trunks compared to my small duffel bag walked by with odd looks on their faces. They were probably
wondering what a new fourth-year student was doing there. Or maybe because I was standing there so long.
Finally, I came to my senses and hurried to the train. I heaved my duffel onto a rack and went to look for a seat.
The train was packed and it seemed as though I'd never find a space where I wouldn't be too
cramped. At last I came to the end of the last car. I decided to sit in hallway although I didn't know how long
the trip was. A knock came from the glass next to me. I squinted to see inside the compartment. There was
a bushy haired girl sitting next to two boys. She opened to the compartment door and beckoned me inside.
"If you need a seat, there's plenty of room in here." She said. "My name is Hermione Granger. This
is Ron Weasley." She pointed to the boy in the corner. "And you probably know who this is."
"Uh..." The girl looked shocked.
"This is Harry Potter!"
"Who?"
She opened her eyes even wider. "You mean you've never heard of him?"
"Well, no" I answered.
The three companions gave each other odd looks but finally Harry stood up and shook my hand.
"What's your name?"
"Coal Black." He immediately looked worried and whispered something into Hermoine's ear, who
whispered to Ron. "What is this? Telephone?" I was so confused. What did they know that I didn't? I decided to
be direct. "What are you whispering about?" And sat down getting ready for a long explanation.
"Well" Harry began...
"It's just..."
"Nothing." Hermione cut off Ron. She gave the boys warning glances.
"Okay." I said, a little disappointed. Just in case they were going to say something else, I waited. But a
few moments later there was no sign of continuing to wait so I got out my book ("The Rise And Fall of Lord
Voldemort"). It was quite an interesting fantasy story. When I pulled out the book, I had an interesting memory of
the look on the book keepers face when I told him I liked fantasy.
" Lord Voldemort is now referred to as You-Know-Who or He who must not be named.......and killed and tortured
many people before his fall......Harry Potter managed to escape with only a peculiar scar." What? I paused and
read the sentence again. Harry Potter?
The boy who was sitting across from me was currently trading cards with Ron. I noticed his "peculiar"
scar. And realized the book wasn't fantasy.
Alley. Opening to the first page, I scanned down a list of strange "A" plants.
"Aari- when exposed to skin, Aari produces permanent red boils, but it is a good remedy
for high fever. It is most commonly found in South Africa..."
Before I could read any farther a yellowed hand reached out and closed the book.
"Don't go walkin' around with your nose in a book! You'll crash into a bus!" I recognized
this voice easily. It was my father's. "Not that it would be bad thing; I need some quiet
around home." He grabbed the collar of my shirt and pulled me into our apartment. "Go
to your room!" I paused to take off my sweater but that was a mistake. A hard boot caught me
right in the chest. "Go on! Git!" Wheezing, I dropped my book and scampered off to my
doorway.
A few minutes later I was hiding in my closet and clutching at my side. Breaking glass
could be heard. Undoubtedly, it was beer bottles. I couldn't wait for that train to take me away.
It would be my ticket away from home. Away from my dad. I turned the closet light on and
realized I had forgotten my book out in the dining room. The quiet was suddenly broken by the
sound of ripping pages.
"Oh, no!" I thought "My book!" Misery swept over me but I remained seated in my closet.
Tomorrow I would have to go Hogwarts with no book. My first day at a new school and already
I would leave a bad impression. Not that I didn't make a bad first impression at Durmstrang, but
there I could order a book and it would come the next day.
*************************************************************************************
"Coal!" An angry voice shouted, "Get out here this minute! You'll miss the train and it's not
like I want you here all year!"
I raised my head slightly. All around was darkness and I was squished into a small area. I had
fallen asleep in my closet the day before. My father was calling me about the Hogwarts Express and by
his sense of time we had most likely already missed it. But, not wanting to take any chances, I stood up
and ran to get my bag. We skipped breakfast and drove as fast as our small car could go to get to the
station. The car finally stopped and, with my stomach growling, I got out of car clutching my bag.
I walked through the platform with seconds to spare. The train's engine was steaming. Kids with
huge trunks compared to my small duffel bag walked by with odd looks on their faces. They were probably
wondering what a new fourth-year student was doing there. Or maybe because I was standing there so long.
Finally, I came to my senses and hurried to the train. I heaved my duffel onto a rack and went to look for a seat.
The train was packed and it seemed as though I'd never find a space where I wouldn't be too
cramped. At last I came to the end of the last car. I decided to sit in hallway although I didn't know how long
the trip was. A knock came from the glass next to me. I squinted to see inside the compartment. There was
a bushy haired girl sitting next to two boys. She opened to the compartment door and beckoned me inside.
"If you need a seat, there's plenty of room in here." She said. "My name is Hermione Granger. This
is Ron Weasley." She pointed to the boy in the corner. "And you probably know who this is."
"Uh..." The girl looked shocked.
"This is Harry Potter!"
"Who?"
She opened her eyes even wider. "You mean you've never heard of him?"
"Well, no" I answered.
The three companions gave each other odd looks but finally Harry stood up and shook my hand.
"What's your name?"
"Coal Black." He immediately looked worried and whispered something into Hermoine's ear, who
whispered to Ron. "What is this? Telephone?" I was so confused. What did they know that I didn't? I decided to
be direct. "What are you whispering about?" And sat down getting ready for a long explanation.
"Well" Harry began...
"It's just..."
"Nothing." Hermione cut off Ron. She gave the boys warning glances.
"Okay." I said, a little disappointed. Just in case they were going to say something else, I waited. But a
few moments later there was no sign of continuing to wait so I got out my book ("The Rise And Fall of Lord
Voldemort"). It was quite an interesting fantasy story. When I pulled out the book, I had an interesting memory of
the look on the book keepers face when I told him I liked fantasy.
" Lord Voldemort is now referred to as You-Know-Who or He who must not be named.......and killed and tortured
many people before his fall......Harry Potter managed to escape with only a peculiar scar." What? I paused and
read the sentence again. Harry Potter?
The boy who was sitting across from me was currently trading cards with Ron. I noticed his "peculiar"
scar. And realized the book wasn't fantasy.