2016
September 1st was always a busy day at Kings Cross Station. One of the guards had noticed that every year, not only was it busy but the people were very strange. It started back 25 years ago to this day when a scruffy, black haired boy with an owl had asked him where he might find platform 9 ¾, of course he thought that he was having a laugh and went back to his job, but every year without fail, somebody had asked him about this mysterious 9 ¾ and, usually, they had an owl -or a toad but that was rare. Once, he swore he saw someone run through a wall. This year, the weird kids were there again, wearing cloaks and saying strange things like "Hogwarts," "muggles" and whatever the phrase that sounded like "Expel your mouse," was supposed to mean.
Currently pushing through the crowd was that same scruffy boy, but now he was in his mid-thirties and with him was a beautiful red haired lady and 3 kids. The oldest of the three was a young boy with jet black hair, who looked excited and about to burst. He was almost a carbon copy of his father except for the warm chocolate brown eyes.
"James! Ouch!" Exclaimed the other boy who only looked about a year younger than James although he was short for his age. James hadn't been looking where he was going and ran over his little brother Albus' foot with his suitcase cart. Albus glared at him through his father's green eyes and James just laughed, the smallest of the group, Lily joining in with him from where she was perched on top of James' cart, her brown eyes twinkling mischievously.
"Alright, stop now, you're upsetting Al," Ginny chided, patting him on the head earning her an annoyed, childish pout.
"I can't believe you're actually going to Hogwarts next year, that is of course, If you get a letter." James teased his little brother mercilessly with a smug smile hinting at his lips. As always, Lily sat perched nearby (on his cart for now) watching the show with amusement, as though if she had popcorn at that moment she would have quality entertainment at it's best.
"I will get in, I will! You'll see!" Albus cried none too quietly as they reached the ticket barrier between platforms 9 and 10.
"Don't listen to James of course you'll get in Albus," his father, Harry hushed him, "James, listen to your mother, why can't you be more like Lily?" At that last statement the 8 year old's face brightened and she looked positively angelic as her father brushed a lock of her fiery red, shoulder length hair behind her ear. On the other hand the brothers scowled and sent glares at her which she saw.
"Thank you Daddy," she trilled and hugged him as an excuse to cross her eyes and stick her tongue out at the boys. They were thankful that she left it at that, they may be older but they admitted that they were no match for her evil genius ways.
"Right then," started their mother, "Harry dear, you go first to wait and then you can go after him James."
"Okay then mum," James replied, enthusiastically.
Harry walked straight at the brick wall at a fast pace and then suddenly, he was gone. Lily grinned to herself as she sat on the front of James' cart knowing she would actually be the first of the kids to see platform 9 and ¾ and not James. She may be sly and smart, but she was 8, childish pride in petty accomplishments was sort of required.
"Good luck," whispered Albus to James as he ran head first at the brick, not totally convinced he would get through. As the pair were about to crash... suddenly they weren't. They found themselves in the infamous platform 9 and ¾ full of excited young wizards and witches milling around saying goodbye and being generally loud. Most heads turned to the Potter family as they stepped through the archway and onto the cobblestone station and whisperings started but most people were too preoccupied with saying goodbyes that they didn't gawp like they were zoo exhibits for too long. After a few minutes of staring at the Hogwarts Express Lily got bored of listening to James' attempt to sound cool and their parents chatter and said that she was going to find Lucy Weasley.
James grabbed her arm and frowned, "are you really going to see Lucy. I mean, could you get any more obvious? It's Lucy," James questioned her, his tone full of suspicion. He was right of course, she didn't really like Lucy due to her uptight and bossy attitude but Lily knew for a fact that she would be there with Uncle Percy, Aunt Audrey and Lucy's older sister Molly so she just said her since she couldn't think of anyone else.
Lily smirked and tapped her nose knowingly, "yeah, would this face lie to you?" She giggled, making angel hands under her chin.
"yes," James bluntly replied, "y'know, some day Mum and Dad are gonna see through this game of your's. Look, just don't pick on Al, that's my job and it evens out since I always get caught, you on the other hand are like Slytherin re-incarnated!"
Lily blanched at the imagery, how dare he say that, she was a Gryffindor! How could he say she was a snake of all things!?
"I don't know what Al's so worried about, as if he'd be in Slytherin, you on the other hand... Look, just don't cause trouble, just try and get your daily fix of evil somewhere other than making him squirm.
"I won't, happen to enjoy watching you squirm," she replied and skipped into the crowd before he could say anything else. Lily was annoyed at James, he was the jokester -a mini marauder- not her! Just because she knew how to do what she wanted, get her own way and wasn't afraid to show it off while lying her pants off, did not make her a death eater. No matter what mum and dad said, Slytherins were horrible, no exceptions.
Lily saw Uncle Percy's greying, but still vaguely orange hair bobbing through the crowd towards her so she snapped out of her inner rant and ducked down, took a bag from someones cart -that she was sure they wouldn't miss for 20 minutes, tops- and looked back stealthily. She didn't really want to see her cousins, Percy and Audrey would just fuss over her and Lucy would be a bossy boots then Molly would get them to back off only to be her passive self and say that she should go and say goodbye to her brother with a kind smile that would make her turn back and forget her mission.
In truth, Lily would rather sneak onto Hogwarts Train and check it out so she could make bets with Al when she got home about what the train will be like and con him out of his pocket money for a week. As she crouched against the train, out of sight of the crowds Lily took the two elastic bands from her wrist that she had kept hidden under her pink cardigan sleeve. In an attempt to draw eyes away from her (since if anyone noticed "Harry Potter's kid" on the train she would be in trouble and the facade she had worked so hard on with her parents would be ruined), she tied her hair in bunches and left a portion of hair hang out to look like a long fringe covering her one eye. Lastly she got out her mother's light brown makeup pencil and dotted freckles all over her face rather than just her cheeks.
Standing up she looked like a different person, it was amazing what two strips of stretchy plastic and a dreaded facial trait could do to disguise a person. Eyes were averted and it felt nice not to have people stare for once. Finally, Lily took off her cardigan and untucked her baggy black band t shirt she 'borrowed' from Dominique to fit her look. Slugging the bag she had also 'borrowed' a few seconds ago she stepped aboard the train and explored, occasionally barging in on someone just for the fun of it. Lily was so giddy by now she didn't notice the train begin to move and she didn't hear it either over the chatty kids, only when she checked her watch to find that she apparently still had 20 minutes did the little girl realise something was wrong.
Lily ran to the door, desperate and froze next to it. through the glass she found herself in fields and mountains on a stone bridge above a fast running river, steam from the old fashioned train billowing in front of the windows blocking her view of the awe inspiring view of rolling green hills stretching further than she could see. Looking back, the station was nowhere to be seen and was getting further away the closer they got to Hogwarts.
Lily pulled at her hair, yanking it back to it's normal style as she racked her brain for everything she knew about Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which, being an evil genius (according to her brothers...), note the word genius, was a lot of information.
"The Hogwarts train, what do I know about it? Okay um, in their first year, I read that Uncle Ron, Aunt Hermione and my Dad had sat in that carriage over there by- no, that's useless! Think Lily, think!" She told herself off, banging her head on the wall. She didn't care when a student scurried past her and was just happy that they didn't recognise her, they probably didn't bother checking since she wasn't meant to be here anyway.
"That's it," Lily cried, "in 2011 the Hogwarts Express was upgraded with some new defensive charms to keep away intruders and calm the stress parents still harboured after the battle of Hogwarts. These charms include..." At this point Lily was purely reciting what she had read from a book, grinning with a crazed expression and ready to do a happy little jig then and there. How she could remember it word for word was a mystery but then she got to the bit she was so relieved about and resisted to urge to shout it down the corridor. "and at the point of 5km before the station is reached, all those without permission to be on the train will be immediately transported to whatever location they should be."
Lily smiled proudly and squashed her face against the window seeing how far she had to go before she would be sent home. seconds passed, then 5 minutes, then 10, then thirty, then an hour. At this point Lily had a frown etched into her usually cute features. She pulled away and was about to go and look through the train some more.
And then the train hit 5km from the station. But it wasn't home it sent her to...
"Well hey! yet another story for me to begin... I wonder if I'll finish this one?
Okay, I've decided, this one, I'll finish, that's why I'm uploading this to my fan fiction account!
Yup, here goes nothing, I'm uploading it riiiiight... no-"
TEASER FOR CHAPTER 2 (JAN 2nd):
"AAAAaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Screamed Lily as she tumbled down a bumpy hill and crashed into a round about. Where the heck was she?