Author's Note:

Yes, this is a Mary Sue fanfiction, another American girls travel into Hogwarts. I figured since I'm on a Harry Potter craze, I might as well writemy journey with my friendsagainst much of their objections(points and laughs at her friends HA!). Every girl needs a marysue of their own.

Each title of each chapter is the name of a song. The song is either selected to be played while reading the chapter, or it is selected to express or capture the mood of the chapter. Generally, the same reason it is picked. Instead of doing "Frou Frou - Let go" like the chapters in "That Away," I chose to just use the name of the song.

Song: Coldplay - Don't Panic

Muggle Stew

by Kiyda

Chapter 1. Don't Panic

Harry Potter wasn't expecting a weird year, this year. In fact, he was rather expecting a violent, bloody, angry, and "just as frustrating as last year" year. He presumed he would get mad again every other class period just like last year, and his classmates would think he was losing it again as they did last year, and he had a dark feeling someone else he knew was going to die as hisgodfather did last year. But he wasn't expecting this. And really, he doubted anyone else suspected the chaotic events of the year next.

Karen Hartholmes and her dear friend Cat Crescendo were both first time witches at the age of 16 and 18, rather peculier ages to just now show signs of magical capabilities. They were both having a difficult time with getting to the station, but with the help of Cat's father, they were able to get the station in London from their homes in America without every buying a airplane ticket.

"Okay, Platform 9 ¾," said Cat with a deep sigh. She looked up from the white card and looked around curiously.

Cat Crescendo had big hazel eyes with a small form and figure. She was attempting to grow out her boyish hair cut and bangs by placing bobby pins in her hair and tying back long ends with a ponytail holder. She had a small flutter of freckles over the bridge of her nose, but hardly noticeable. She looked to be rather young, as young as Karen, and indeed, she was spiritually.

"Right through there, Cait," said a rather burly man, tall and old, in a rather soft tone. He pointed to the wall of the arc between the two station. "What you want to do, is run into that wall right there, and you'll come out the other side."

"Okay, um, where's-" Karen popped into view, wheeling her basket.

"I'm on it!" she exclaimed, and began running toward the wall, and just like Harry and his friend in years before, smashed up against the wall, causing all her things to go traveling everywhere.

CRASH!

"Oh my god, Karen, are you okay!" Cat asked.

"Ow…" whined Karen, rubbing her head.

Karen Hartholmes was taller than Cat, startlingly, with small Asian brown eyes and black hair that reached just a little past her shoulders and long parted bangs. She was not too thin and not too fat, and continued to hold the air of a tomboy even as old of a teenager she was today. Ironically, she looked older than her friend who was, in actuality, older than her. To not much surprise, she acted even younger.

"Um. Wrong wall, Karen," said Mr. Crescendo, gesturing to the other wall behind it. Karen peered around to see a blank brick wall, just as similar as the one she just rammed into. She gave a vacant expression.

"Oh. Of course," she corrected herself. Cat helped her pack up her things back in the trolley, and after two great, big, bear hugs from Mr. Crescendo, they both ran through, and ended up just as he said, on the other side.

"Whew. For a minute there, I thought it was a fluke wall, again," sighed Karen in relief.

"Yeah, me too," agreed Cat.

And a glorious sight reached them, a titanic train, nostalgic of the 1950s and one of Agatha Criste's greatest books. It sat in front of them, like a panting, resting iron beast, ancient and furnished in curls and points. They stood there staring for a moment before looking at each other and grinning ear to ear.

This school year was going to be a real luxury.

After putting up their luggage, Cat and Karen wandered around through the walkway of the rain, searching for a cart of their own, confused and startled by how much they did not know existed or ever could be.

"Excuse me - thank you," Cat interjected between each push by and shove. She was so confused. So freaked out. There were so many students, were all of them witches and wizards? She couldn't believe it, and more importantly, she couldn't believe her own father had told her nothing of the magical world and who he was. She had always thought he was most normal father in the world, until she got her letter from Hogwarts and learned soon enough that although she thought when he said he taught at the U of M, he meant the University of Massachusets, but instead, he actually taught at the Univeristy of Magic.

What a big difference. Her father was a wizard all this time.

"Hey. 'Sup, dog," Karen shot a ghetto look at each passerby who often returned such with a weird look. Karen, of course, was not ghetto. She was just trying to deal with all the mixed up emotions inside of her waiting to explode with either excitement or desperation. She was finding it very difficult to interact with what was happening. I mean, she had no idea she had magical abilities. She hadn't seen any signs of them unless your count foreshadowing and foretelling, but she just assumed those were all lucky guesses. In the end, she didn't know what she was doing there, on the bus, riding to a boarding school of witchcraft and wizardy.

It was all just mind-boggling. Absolutely bonkers.

"Hey, how 'bout this one…?"Cat asked, stopping to open the door. Karen walked on, lost in her trivial thoughts. Immediately the throng of females stopped chattering and stared at Cat in threatening glare to leave.

"Oooookay, maybe not," muttered Cat, quickly closing the door and the stares. When she turned around, she was taken aback. Karen was not anywhere in sight, and she freaked.

"Fuck."

"Harry, don't be offended or anything, but you look awful," said a girl with curly brown hair. Harry, whose head rested against the window, slowly turned to look at her before turning back to look outside.

"I'm fine, Hermione."

"I'm sorry, but you do. You look like you've been stalked by dementers again," declared Hermione. "Are you sure you are okay?"

"Hermione, leave the boy alone. If he doesn't want to talk about his summer, then that's no excuse to bring up…stuff," said the red-haired, freckled boy sitting right beside her.

"I'm not using an excuse; I'm just worried, Ron!" snapped Hermione. And thus began another great debate between friends over Harry's depressing state. Harry rolled his eyes for the 400th time they've bickered over him. He was getting tired of it.

SHHLACK.

Suddenly the door opened, and he heard Cho Chang's voice. He didn't turn to oogle her, just continued to look out the window. Both Hermione and Ron broke the dispute to look up at her.

"Oh, um, I just came to tell you…" Cho began, and Harry felt her look at the back of his head before continuing, "to tell you the Prefects have a meeting today, in about four minutes in compartment 201. Headboys and Headgirls have to be there, too."

"Thanks, Cho. See you there," said Hermione, and she smiled before shutting the sliding door again. Hermione and Ron looked at each other before looking at Harry, noticing he didn't react in any peculiarly, attentive way.

"We're going down to a Prefect meeting, Harry-"

"I know; I heard," spat Harry. There was a quiet pause.

"Okay, then see you."

"See you, mate."

And the sliding glass door was opened and shut again. Harry felt a great weight lift off his shoulders and turned over from the window. He sighed, slumping against the seat. Harry was not mourning so much anymore. Nowadays, he was just very tired, attempting to deal with the guilt of how he had put his friends and others through danger and unnecessary suffering from the previous year. It was strange being there, in the same compartments of the train, on to Hogwarts like the year before. It was all so normal and dull.

SLLLLACK.

A girl in a black longsleeve t-shirt bearing a the faces of rock band and a jeans just opened the door. She looked oddly foreign, especially when she spoke.

"Oh, sorry. I thought this compartment was empty," she apologized. She a wore a most distinctive, rainbow scarf around her neck and sneakers. She seemed rather muggley, like this was her first year or something. "Um, is it okay if I sit here…with you?"

Harry attempted to smile, missing privacy and company all at the same time. That indecisive feeling had still not yet gone away.

"Uh, yeah, sure," he agreed, sitting up.

"Thank you. Uh, I've lost my friend," she said randomly as she sat down across from him. Harry sat awkwardly, placing his hands beside his pant pockets. She sat the same way, but awkwardly for the wrong reasons.

"Oh. What's his/her name?" he asked. She kept looking toward the door.

"Uh. Cat. Well, no. Her real name is Caitlin Crescendo, but I just call her Cat. No. Wait. Everyone calls her that 'cept her family," Karen corrected herself again. She stopped looking and turned to him, with an odd look of appreciation and indifference.

"Um, thanks again for letting me stay with you," she said. "What's your name?"

Harry was a little surprised she didn't know. It had been a while since he had introduced himself to anyone.

"Um, Harry Potter," Harry named himself, arrogantly brushing up his hair and flashing a glimpse of his legendary scar. The girl either simply didn't notice or didn't want him to know she noticed.

"Catherine Josephine Hartholmes, but my friends call me Karen: K, A, R, E, N," she spelled out for him. He nodded, wondering why she had to pronounce each letter of her common name when it was her last name that seemed more difficult.

"Um, excuse me, but are you American?" he asked. She blinked and then looked embarrassed but still declared rather loudly and leaped out of her seat.

"HELL YEAH!"

Harry jumped. He wasn't expecting that. Karen quickly sat back down, entwining her fingers in her lap, and looking patiently over to the door. Harry stared at her, wide eyed through a long silence. She glanced over to him, her face getting redder after noticing his bewildered, constant stare, then she muttered quietly enough for him to hear and hear alone.

"It was a dare," and she reddened some more in pure embarrassment. "Wanna makeout?"

Cat wandered around and around until she got to the front of the train and the end of the walkway with no sight of her lost friend. Frustrated and angry, Cat folded her arms over her chest and gave a big huff.

What a doofus, she thought, then as she turned around to walk back, she ran into another boy, younger but taller. And they both collided to the ground with an life-changing thud.

"Kyah!"

"Fuck!"

Cat slowly lifted her head from the space between the boy's shoulder, feeling awful in the pit of her stomache. He heard him groan from pain. She immediately sat up from him, looking at his pretty blond hair and face.

"I'm so sorry!" she apologized. "Honestly! I didn't mean to-"

"Ow…" he whined. "Just get off!"

Cat got off him, and stood up rubbing her bare knees and stroking back her messy hair. The boy got up and shook his head. He cracked his back.

"My spine…!"

"Oh, you don't need it," spat Cat, bitterly. She looked at him again, and realized how handsome he was, and he looked at her, possibly thinking relatively the same thing. It depended.

"What are you?" he asked, furtively. Cat stood there for a moment beady eyed and clueless in her Lotr pullover and green jean miniskirt and goth boots.

"Que?" she asked.

"Huh? I asked, what are you? Pure blood, mud blood, what?" he asked, stepping closer. Cat backed up as he approached her,

"A pure blood? You mean like having all homozygous genes?" she asked.

"Yeah. Haven't you ever heard of the term?" he asked, now only inches away from her face. Cat's few freckles were becoming lost in the red blush across her nose.

"No, not really," she admitted. She was up against the wall now; there was no escaping.

"Are you knew? Did you just transfer?" he asked, his face still as close as ever. Cat's heart was skipping beats, a butterfly had just began mitosis in her stomache.

"Um, yes, yes, I did," she replied, calmly as she could being cornered.

"So what is it-"

SHHHLACK.

"Draco Malfoy!"

Draco turned around to give whoever called his name a steely glare. Cat gave a huge sigh of relief and made a run for it. Well, she didn't really run, she more ducked into the nearest compartment.

When Draco Malfoy was done telling off whoever interrupted his interrogation, he turned back to find an outline of where his captive had once been. He looked around and when he didn't see her, he cursed, kicked the wall, then stomped off.

Harry stared wide eyed and frightened at the question she so casually asked. He gulped and turned a bright shade of red, gripping the seat beneath him. She continued to stare back at him, expressionless, as if it was no big deal at all. Harry could not believe that this was happening.

They made no sounds or movements for at least 5 minutes before she got up and sat down beside him, then smiled almost too cheerfully for such an awkward situation.

"So. What's up?" she asked. "Why do you look so scared? Ever made out before?"

Harry was petrified by the question alone.

"Wha-What do you mean!" he demanded, stuttering over his own words.

"Oh, it's okay if you've never done it! I've never made out with anyone before either!" Karen replied, slapping him on the back. Harry burned with anger, hateful to any pity given.

"I didn't mean that! I have made out with tons of girls!" he snapped, angrily. Karen looked surprised by his sudden change of mood.

"Geez, relax. I was only playing about making out," she claimed, "you know, break the ice? You look like a smart boy, I think you get on fine with girls."

Harry's anger faded with her explanation and her compliment. But he didn't all look too amused with her joke.

"But to tell the truth, I've never done it before. Is it fun?" she asked, with a very serious look of Barbra Walters. Harry blushed a little.

"Uh, yeah, I guess it is," he lied, looking at other things than her.

"Oh. You guess? Okay. That's fine. Got a girlfriend?" she asked, nudging him playfully.

"Is that really the kind of question to ask?" he asked, suspiciously, not enjoying her provoction. Then, not being serious, he added, "Besides, do you even have one?"

"Yep!" Karen declared so honestly and with a straight face, no doubt. She normally lokoed very pokerfaced over every frivolous thing she said. Maybe that was why Harry wasn't sure when she was kidding and being really serious as she looked.

Harry was baffled. He felt as if she had just ripped a tree out of the ground with a smile and smacked him with it.

"You-you do?" he asked.

SHLACK! SHLACK!

The door opened and closed in an instant and young girl appeared in the room, peaking through the fogged door into the hallway.

"Cat!" exclaimed Karen. Cat turned to look at her, most surprised. Karen jumped into her arms like a master's puppy.

But as soon as she lunged herself, Cat smacked her across the head causing her to fall over to the other side of the compartment.

"Owwwwwwwww!" whined Karen, rubbing her head. Cat put her hands on her hips and wore the look of an angry mother.

"Where were you? I turn my back for one moment, and you're gone!" she exclaimed. Karen rubbed her head, looking up from the ground.

"I was looking for an empty compartment!" Karen excused herself, looking just as angry.

"Fine, then fine. I forgive you," declared Cat, sitting down on the seat across from Harry, crossing one leg over the over, and still looking a little bit angry. Harry was surprised by all of this.

"Oh, thank you, my malady," crooned Karen, and in a pretend manner, got on her knees and continuous worshipped her.

"Oh, enough, enough, get up," Cat snapped, kicking Karen back. Karen got up and sat down next to Harry.

"Um, excuse me," began Harry, "but who are you?"

Cat looked over at Harry and smiled politely.

"Oh, I'm Cat Crescendo," she introduced herself.

"She's the friend I was telling you about," commented Karen. "She's my girlfriend."

Harry looked blankly at her for a moment before turning to Cat with a strange look of disbelief. Cat looked unamused and casual about it.

"Uh, yeah. She's my heterosexual girlfriend. It's this joke we have," Cat answered, "in America"
Harry grew quiet for a moment, thinking in his head how he ever got into this situation over girlfriends, and America, and making out, but then he remembered he was on his way to Hogwarts. He remembered how none of anything had ever made sense on the way to Hogwarts, and it would only make sense until the end of the year when he was about to leave. And now, after remembering the routine, he grew very tired and sighed before looking out the window.

"It's going to be a very looong year."