Jack Dursley was 50% scared and 50% excited. Two months ago he would of called you crazy if you told him that magic exists. But now he was on a train to a special school just for wizards. He was sitting in a compartment with his cousin Albus and some of Al's cousins and friends. They were all a year older than him which made him feel out of place. Jack was keeping quiet as the others talked. Finally Rose said:
"I think we should find Jack some other first years. Where is Lucy?"
Lucy was another one of Albus's cousins. This was her first year too. All of Al's cousins were around the same age; Teddy Lupin was the oldest at 18 years old, and Louis was the youngest at 9.
Nobody knew where Lucy was so Rose got up. "Come on Jack, let's go find her. You're coming too, Al".
The three of them walked down the train peering into compartments looking for Lucy. At one point Rose steered them off course so Jack could meet another cousin.
"Victoire, this is my cousin on my dad's side, Jack," Albus introduced, "Jack this is our eldest cousin at Hogwarts, Victoire. She's Head Girl."
Jack didn't know what that meant, but it sounded important. Victiore was easily one of the prettiest girls he had ever seen, with her long platinum hair and sparkling blue eyes. And when she smiled at him, her teeth seemed to shine.
"Nice to meet you Jack. As head girl you can come to me if you are having any problems with other students. Since you are practically family though, you can come to me for advice too! I'm great at advice, right Rose?" With that she winked, and turned back to her friends. Rose rolled her eyes and dragged the boys back into the corridor.
A few more compartments down they finally found Lucy. She was sitting with another first year girl named Ana. Rose and Albus left to rejoin their friends, leaving Jack alone with the girls. Jack was surprised to learn that Ana was a muggle born just like him. The three of them talked about what they were most nervous about and what they were most excited about. The time flew by, and soon a boy opened the door saying they should put on their robes, they would be arriving soon.
As the trio got off the platform, the first thing they saw a very large and gruff looking man. He was shouting "First years! Over here! This way, this way!" Jack and the girls walked over to him. When all the first years were gathered round, the man said, " Now which of you is this year's Weasley?"
Lucy raised her hand. "Shoulda known, I think I've seen ya' at Christmas sometime. Percy's kid?" Lucy nodded her head. The man then looked around once more and said, "Ok, Now where's the Dursley?" Jack slowly raised his hand. Hagrid laughed and said, "Your Uncle Harry sent a letter about you. Good man, he isn't. Met yo' father once too. We did'n get along too good, mind you..." Hagrid then looked at his watch and said, "Oh! We best be going, don't wanna be late!" The years followed him down a path into the night.
When Jack first saw the castle he almost stopped dead in his tracks. It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. He couldn't believe that he was going to live there. In front of the castle was a lake, that looked eerily pretty. Jack wasn't a very strong swimmer, so he was nervous when Hagrid said they'd be going by boat. He made sure to not look over the edge as they sailed for the castle.
"Jack Dursley".
Jack was shaking as he walked up to the front of the hall. He sat down on the stool in front of the entire school. Looking around he saw his cousin James giving him a thumbs up from the Gryfinndor table. He felt the hat being lowered onto his head. The hat was still for a moment before shouting:
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
A wave of relief went through Jack as he made his way to the cheering Hufflepuffs. Not long after, another first year boy was put in Hufflepuff and sat by Jack.
"Hi, I'm Renley"
"Jack"
"Do you like Quidditch?"
"Well I just learned about it a month ago, but my cousins make it sound like it's the best sport in the world."
"It is. You're a muggle born?"
"Yeah"
"Better stick with me then, I have an older brother here, so I know a lot about Hogwarts".
And from then on Jack and Renley were friends. The other boys in their dorm were nice enough. He really liked the twins Benjamin and Daniel, and Isaac was pretty nice. But Renley and Jack were inseperatable.
The next day the boys were almost late to their first class. Luckily, Prof. Longbottom was easy on first years.
"It's ok kids, I used to be just like you. Just don't make it a habit."
Professor Longbottom taught them the rules of the greenhouse, and then showed them some of the plants that they would be working with. Jack's eyes were wide with wonder at all the things they would be doing. Renley's not so much.
"I have half of these in my yard!" Renley shouted.
Neville looked at the boy sternly. "Some of these are common yes, but unless you know how to get the essence out of a belladonna, you better keep your mouth shut".
That did keep Renley quiet for the rest of the class, but Jack noticed throughout the day that Renley was very talkative. And he always had an opinion on something.
"My brother said that History of Magic is a joke. But Defense Against the Dark Arts, that's the best subject they offer!"
Jack wasn't so sure. He loved all the subjects, even History of Magic. It was all so interesting, and so different! Before he knew it, it was lunchtime. As the boys were eating, Victoire walked by with her entourage.
"Hey Jackie! How was your classes?" she beamed.
Renley dropped the bread that was in his hand, and stared mouth agape at her. Jack smiled, "They are great Victiore! I really like them!"
"That's fantastic! I'll see you later!" she said, and the girls walked over to the Gryffindor table. Renley turned to Jack with wide eyes.
"You know Victiore Weasley?"
Jack shrugged, "Well yeah, we are sort of related. My cousins are the Potters, and Victiore is their cousin..."
"Wait. Harry Potter is you Uncle?!" Jack nodded. "That's so cool! Maybe you could introduce me sometime! And introduce me to Victoire. Wow I could be on first name bases with her! My brother would be so jealous..." Renley went on for a good 5 minutes about Victiore, but Jack wasn't paying attention. He was more curious about how Renley reacted when he said that Harry was his uncle. He forgot about it though, until the last period of the day.
The last class was double potions with Ravenclaw. Lucy beckoned Jack to come sit by her and Ana. In front of the class was an elderly professor eating some crystallized pineapple. When it looked like everyone was here, he addressed the class.
"Good Afternoon class, I am Professor Slughorn. I am going to go around the room and you can tell me your name and someone in your family I might know. I've been teaching here since your grandparent's were in school, so I will probably know someone! Let's start with you in the front..."
Renley leaned in an whispered to Jack."He just wants to know if we are related to someone famous. He likes being friends with people with connections. My brother told me".
Soon Slughorn got to their table. Renley told him who his older brother and parents were, and Ana told him that she was a muggleborn. Slughorn was not impressed with either of them, but was a little more enthusiastic when he got to Lucy.
"Ahh, another Weasley! Now which kid are you?"
"Percy's daughter, sir"
"Oh yes, Percy. I remember fighting side by side with him in the Great Hogwarts Battle! Of course I didn't know his name..." Professor Slughorn talked for ten minutes about his courageous acts in the Hogwart's Battle, until he finally turned to Jack.
"What's your name boy?"
"Jack Dursley"
"Dursley? Don't think I know the name...are your parent's wizards?"
"No sir, I'm a muggle born. But you might know my cousins, James and Albus Potter..."
"Are you a relative on Ginny's side?" Slughorn asked confused.
"No sir, my dad is Harry Potter's cousin. My grandma was Harry's mother's sister."
Slughorn's eyes lit up. "How curious! I did not know Lily had a sister!" The class ended before Slughorn could even start to tell them about the potions they'd be brewing. That night Jack decided to ask Rose about why everyone knew Uncle Harry's name. She led him down to the library and showed him a biography called Harry Potter: A Hero's Journey. Jack took the book back to the common room and curled up in a chair to read. He was astonished when in the first chapter it mentioned his father and grandparents.
Harry Potter does not talk much about his childhood. We know that Potter was raised by his muggle Aunt and Uncle. He had an older cousin, who was also a muggle. Although we do not know much about his muggle relatives, we do know from anonymous sources that he was not treated very well, and did not know that he was a wizard until receiving his Hogwart's letter. Harry did not have any close friends as a boy, but that is not unusual for muggle-raised wizards. He wouldn't have any real friends until e was 11 years old.
Although he felt like he should, Jack wasn't surprised that Uncle Harry was treated poorly by his family. He had heard how angry Grandpa Vernon was when he found out his grandson was a wizard. The whole neighborhood probably heard it. As for Harry not having friends, that was sort of comforting to Jack. Everyone at muggle school thought he was somewhat odd, so he never had any close mates. His whole life he felt left out, and it was nice to know that he wasn't the only one.
While he was thinking, Renley came bounding down the stairs, two at a time.
"There you are! Come on we're going to start a game of exploding snap! Loser has to eat either a canary cream or this gross colored Bertie Bott that Daniel has!"
"But I don't know how to play?" Jack said.
Renley laughed, "I'll teach you of course!" and turned and ran back up the stairs.
Jack closed his book and smiled to himself before running up the stairs after his best friend.
