September 1989

She had wandered alone into the station following the instructions she'd been given and grinned in surprise as she walked though the barrier. She got onto the train as soon as she could wanting to escape the crowds of strange looks at the eleven year old with no company. Company had been offered she had refused. Because what would be more embarrassing than arriving at a new school with a teacher. She found a compartment as the train was relatively empty it would seem most people were hanging around the platform to be wished off by family. She sat in the seat closest to the compartment door and looked out the window facing away from the people. She waited and waited and Katherine begun to wonder if she was on the wrong train. Then again how many magically concealed school trains could there be to catch. Eventually the train started to fill as excited kids her own age looked around squealing at everything they saw but really it was a train, an old fashioned steam train like the one Katherine had been to last summer on a trip with the orphanage. No one entered her compartment. She pushed her self away from the door she'd closed and back towards the window but closed her eyes so not to see the crowd. Too many goodbyes for her liking. Mothers crying over not seeing their children until Christmas or at worst next summer. Over reactions in her opinion. She kept her eyes closed and nearly drifted into sleep until the train jolted to a start and waked her immediately.

"Ah, told you, not asleep, I win George"

Katherine looked up to see to boys had joined her in the compartment just as the train left the station. Two identical boys.

"No, that's the face of someone who's been rudely awaken." Said George.

"Actually this is the face of a girl wondering why you are betting on her?" They looked suddenly surprised "and shockingly the girl can talk." She added with smile.

"Sorry, we couldn't find another compartment." The one not called George said. Both boys had striking ginger hair and freckle scattered over their faces. They were tall for there age which couldn't be much older than her if at all. They both had cheeky smiles as the other twin said this only George's remained central and his twin's curved up to the right.

"Oh that's fine but why the betting?" The boys both blushed slightly shifting in their seat before George spoke

"Well you know gotta make you're own fun don't you?"

"Yeah, sorry if you felt uncomfortable or anything." His twin added smiling again.

"It's fine, just a bit defensive, I'm Katherine by the way." She extended her hand out to either of them and the second twin shook it.

"Fred Weasley and this is my cousin," indicating to George.

"George Weasley,"

They weren't falling her but she could tell they were prober jokers so she played along.

"Wow cousins you look so similar I'd have thought you were twins," she over emphasised all her words and the boys both grinned.

"We are actually." They laughed to them selves.

"Yes I did get that." She looked at their clothes and saw that, like her, they were old and worn them in faded checked shirts and patched up brown trousers that showed their ankles. She now felt less awkward in her faded black mini dress that wasn't really mini as it was two sizes big and sat just above her knees. It hung oddly around her skinny limbs and her cardigan had holes in. They seemed to notice her looking their cloths and then to her own but said nothing. She leaned back against the window and watched as they left London and the skyscrapers turned to trees and fields. 20 minutes into their journey she felt her stomach grumble. The twins were talking to each other about hogswarts quickly using words she didn't understand she assumed they knew a lot about it already which didn't calm her nerves. She reached into her bag to find the paper cup stuffed with sweets, a gift from her old roommate and closest friend she had really. She popped the lid off and thought what Lucy has said. She sighed inwardly, Lucy could make a good situation out of anything which was an unusual trait in someone of their up bringing but non the less she took her friend making advice and offered the boys a sweet.
"Cheers." They said in unison each taking a sweet before examining it curiously before popping it in their mouth. They chewed curiously.
"Hey muggle sweets ain't too bad!" Fred exclaimed.

"Do wizards have different sweets then?" Katherine asked the conversation peaking her interest.

"You've never had wizard sweets, aww Kat just you wait, apparently a women comes along with a trolley full of wizard sweets," Fred said.

"We've been saving up." George added.

"It's Katherine, and what are they like?" The twins stared at her intrigued that she was new to all this. Of course their mum and dad had told them to be polite and considerate that not everyone was from a magical background, but she was interesting non the less.

"Just you wait and see Katty." Fred said his eyes sparkling.

"Fred had been right, half an hour later the three sat their bellies full of the sugary goodness. Every thing had been new and exciting to her,the first signs of magic since diagonally and the platform entrance, not that the sweets were magically in them selves, but everything knew showed her that this was really happening. She spoke to the twins for the remaining journey, they were from a wizarding family, nine of them in total, they proceeded 3 elder brothers,one of them, Percy entered there compartment dressed in school ropes embellished with a red and gold crest showing a creature with the face of a lion. His tie matched the crest and he quickly told his brothers and their new companion to change out of there current entire. He assessed Katherine briefly over the top of his horn rimed spectacles he quickly left their compartment.

"Pompous git," George muttered after him.

"only a third year and he's alre acting like a prefect." Fred informed Katherine. Next she asked them about Hogwarts, they explained houses and Quidditch, the different lessons and then, their faces a light with excitment, explained the rules, or more specifically how they intended to break them. Katherine left the compartment to change into her robes. In her absense the boys spoke together quickly.

"she seems cool," Fred said smiling, George nodded in agreement.

"we said we'd want to find a lookout."

"Yeah but is she up to the task?" Fred asked.

Outside the compartment Katherine smiled. She'd made friends. That was a good start and she knew she was up for the task.