Part 1
The train whistle echoed through the air as I jumped on the Hogwarts Express to make my final journey to Hogwarts. I waved goodbye to my parents and little brother standing at the station and I could swear that I saw a tear glistening down the face of my mother. I don't really know why though, I will be back at Christmas. The train was as usual filled to the brim with people and soon I couldn't see any of the floors in front of me. Instead I saw two children with fiery red hair looking petrified, staring up at me, the young girl grabbed my hand and as soon as she slid it inside of mine a huge grin appeared on her face.
"I can't believe it Hugo, we are actually going to Hogwarts! We are going to learn proper magic, not the stupid magic we do, and we will be able to do it whenever we want because our mummy's can't tell us off!" she said jumping up and down on the spot like a kangaroo.
"Okay Lils calm down, stand still," I said grabbing her shoulders and holding her firmly to the floor, she continued to bounce slightly but not as vigorously, "Where did James go sweetie, did he really just leave me with the two of you cause if he did I am going to kill him." A wide smile spread arcos Lily's face at the thought of me maiming her older brother.
"Fred came along and said he had something to show him. He said he would meet us at the compartment." Hugo said taking a swipe at Lily, pretending to hit her over the head. Lily giggled and punched him back, "He went that way." Hugo said pointing his cubby fingers in the direction of the fourth year's compartments.
"Right fine," I said under my breath, cursing James at the same time, "We will meet him there and he better be there."
"Vic don't get so angry with him, he is just having a bit of fun," a calming voice announced behind me. I turned around to see a huge smile spread across my cousin's face. "Rose was supposed to help too and where did she run off too."
"Molls I will calm down as soon as he gets his arse over here and help me with these two. Rose and Albus scarpered as soon as Ginny and Hermione were out of view. I am so telling on them." Molly laughed as Lily and Hugo covered their ears at the sound of my language. "Sorry Lily, I mean gets his bottom over here." Lily nodded and pulled her fingers out her ears, gesturing for Hugo to do the same.
"Look I'll give you a hand, I don't have to do prefect duty for a while. Come on you two this way, just follow the sound of elephants at the other side of the train." She took Hugo's hand in hers and led the three of us down the corridors to the Weasley/ Potter carriage at the end of the train. It so unfair that Molly is good with the younger cousins, I should be the best as I am supposedly the nicest of the bunch but I am not always the most tolerant.
Being in Seventh year did have a few perks. All the students in the years about moved out the way as the four of us passed by but sometimes I don't always put that down to the fact I am the oldest in the school. It mostly has to do with the fact that we are Weasley's and that I am holding the hand of the 'boy who lived's' daughter. As we neared the end of the train I started to hear the familiar sound of shouting coming from the furthest part of the train. Molly pulled open the door and unleashed the sound into the corridor. We could barely get all of us into the booth but we just about fit everyone in if half of us were sitting on each other's laps. We had all the cousins in there as usual. There was James, Dominique and Fred sitting in the corner playing exploding snap, and by the looks of it may have gotten slightly out of hand, there was Rose and Albus buried over a book in the corner, highlighting sentences and noting down pages, and there was Roxanne and Lucy trying to fit all of their stuff into their bags. However we also had the multiple friends of everyone jammed in here too. Lorcan and Lysander were arguing over a piece of clothing, a pair of socks by the looks of it, Scorpius was sitting next to Albus cutting up an apple with a pen knife, offering slices to people, Jessica was humming and playing with her thumbs next to James looking slightly disappointed, Molly mentioned being a prefect so that meant that Jess hadn't made it, Frank was sitting with Alice talking intently about something which I couldn't hear, Grace was laughing on the floor at Lucy's failed attempts of closing her suitcase and finally we had Kimberly standing next to the door waiting for me. I gave her a quick hug after letting go of Lily's hand and sat down on the bench next to her.
"So how was your holidays? You and Dillon have fun together?" I said nudging her with my elbow while winking.
She gave me a look and lifted up her finger to stop me. "No, daring, you're not doing that. You know how my holidays were, I sent you letters every day. I want to know what is going on with you and Teddy."
At the sound of Teddy's name the entire compartment froze and stared straight at me. Grace got up from the floor and sat next to Lucy, who had abruptly commenced jamming items into her suitcase. Frank and Alice finished talking, Frank went over next to Dominique and waited while Alice went to sit at Rose's feet. Rose held a highlighter in her mouth and watched me keenly while Albus stopped writing to face me. Scorpius froze mid-crunch, while Dominique halted mid-snap. All eyes in the room faced me.
Everyone knew that Teddy and I were on the rocks and they all hated it. They loved the fact that Teddy was going out with me because it would mean that he was a proper member of the family. They all silently, and not so silently in other people's cases, hoped that we would get together and marry after I finished Hogwarts but I hadn't had any hints of any kind from him so I assumed that he didn't want that.
"Nothing happened. He didn't write, nor call, nor visit. I haven't heard from him all summer expect that one time and we got into a huge fight." Kimberly nodded but everyone else still looked confused.
"Do remind us what that huge fight was again because I think I forgot. No... wait..., you didn't tell any of us." Dominique said quietly enough for everyone to hear but not loud enough that it sounded like a demand.
"We got into a fight that's it. It was over nothing, a stupid fight about nothing," Dom raised her eyebrow at me saying 'really is that it'. I hated my sister sometimes but she really has a way of getting to me. "Well as you all know Teddy went off on a year break to get his mind straight and we really struggled to keep in contact while he was away. He was never free when I was and a few months before the summer holiday's he stopped writing. I kept on sending letters and I even went down to that old phone box in the Hogshead to try and call his mobile but he didn't pick up.
"A week before we finished school he sent me a letter saying that he wasn't coming home for the holidays and that he thought it was best if we went on a break while he was away. He said that he still cared about me that way but that it was too difficult. I sent him one back asking if he had met someone else and he replied saying it was 'complicated'," I said using air quotations, "I tried to reach him over the holidays but I got nothing. About two weeks ago he turned up at Shell Cottage and asked me out for a coffee. We talked about his trip and how school was but I could tell something was up, you know the way he won't look at you in the eye and the tapping he does when he is nervous," James and Lily nodded understandingly, like they had seen it a hundred times before, "I asked him what was wrong but he wouldn't say anything, so he walked me home and just before he left me at the door he said he wanted to break up with me, like properly. I asked him why and he told me it was because I was too young and not mature enough from him. I told him that that was just utter crap and he just couldn't think of a good enough reason. I got really angry at him and he shouted at me. After I had said everything I regretted it but he left before I could take it all back. I haven't heard from him since." I looked up from the ground to find that they all had the same sympathetic and apologetic expression on their faces.
Surprisingly it was Fred that got up first and gave me a hug. He towered over me by nearly a whole head but his hug was warm and soft, as soon as his arms wrapped around me I broke. I let out every single emotion I had been keeping in all holidays. First I scream and shouted, scratching my arms, then I laughed, crying out tears of joy and then as James and Dominique joined the hug I started crying like I had never cried before. The tears streamed down my face, falling onto the ground. Some got caught in my hair and eyelashes, others soaked into Fred's t-shirt turning the navy top a black colour. When I opened my eyes to face them I found that I was being hugged by everyone in the compartment and somehow they had made it that at least one part of their bodies were touching mine. I could feel Albus glasses digging into my side, I could sense Rose's hair tickling my nose, I could smell Molly's shampoo on my right, I see out the corner of my eye Roxanne's frizzy hair, I would taste Grace's perfume in my mouth, I could hear the distinctive sound of Lily crying at my feet and I felt the warmth radiating off my friends and family.
After what seemed like hours Molly screamed bring everyone back to reality.
"Oh my Gods, I am so stupid. I completely forgot about prefect duty. Oh I really hope they don't kill me," Molly picked up her bag with her uniform inside and left the room. She poked her head around and announced, "First guys really sorry about breaking up that lovely moment and second please get changed into your uniforms so I can at least pretend that I was doing something. Thanks guys, see you later!"
I laughed at her and turned around to see that everyone was doing the same. Only Molly, I thought to myself, would be so overjoyed at become a prefect but would end up forgetting to go and do her duties.
"Right you heard her everyone, jump to it," James hollered to the mass. "Hugo here's yours, Lils get changed with Lucy..." James always took charge when it came to giving out clothes. He kept most of them in his bag, keeping them all in separate brown carriers, which he would throw around the carriage to the designated people. "Vic look out!" I quickly turned around and grabbed my clothes out the air, while receiving a quick wink from James for my amazing catching skill, my Chaser attitude is coming into play again.
