New Beginnings

[A/N at the end]

Thanks a million to my wonderful beta's for this story: Holly, AJ, 2D, and CP!

You can check out their amazing work and profiles via my bio! And believe me, their work will KNOCK YOUR SOCKS OFF!

~ x ~

Harry glanced around, squinting through the cool white mist that surrounded him. A soft whistling hum vibrated against his eardrums as the ground beneath him shook slightly. He had spent a while trying to find someone, anyone, in the fog, but to no avail. Not a single person had shown themselves, thus, he had been wandering aimlessly, for who knew how long, trying to get his bearings and find signs of life.

With a defeated sigh, Harry ran his hands through his hair. He had no memory of ever entering this strange place. One minute he was walking out into the backyard of the Burrow, cake in hand and ready to celebrate his Lily's forty-ninth birthday, and the next he was here.

Before he could continue walking, something shimmered in the white mist. A luminescent glow pulsated around him, distorting his view of the mist and disrupting the stillness. The deafening silence that had been his only companion gave way to a keen, high-pitched whistle as the world around him spun rapidly.

Harry had never enjoyed travelling by Floo, and whatever was spinning him around was a hundred times worse. He was positive that he was going to vomit, and he almost did a couple of times as an invisible force continued to spin him around in tight, violent circles.

What started as a high-pitched and continuous whistle quickly morphed into a earsplitting screeching sound that reverberated through his skull and assaulted his ears as he tried to cover them. The pain was nothing close to the worst that he had ever felt, but it was sharp and stung as his eardrums vibrated and throbbed. All the while, bile rose steadily up his throat as he shut his eyes and felt the familiar acidic taste of vomit fighting to get out.

And suddenly, as quickly as it had started, it spinning ceased, his body was freed, and the oppressively shrill whistle that had wreaked havoc on his eardrums and head dissolved into silence. Everything was still once more, and Harry emptied the contents of his stomach on what he noticed was a stone tiled floor.

Taking a few deep breaths, Harry took a moment to steady himself before he straightened and looked around.

He had expected to be surrounded by the same white mist as before, but as he gazed around he had no doubt in his mind about his whereabouts. He had been here countless times, after all.

Despite the flutter of familiarity that settled in his stomach, however, there was something odd about Kings Cross Station as the edges of the platform that he was on pulsed with the same luminescent glow as before.

Something shifted in the air in front of him, and suddenly the station, which had been bright, clean, and empty a second ago burst into life. Hundreds of people bustled around him as sleek white trains entered and left the station.

A bright red glow caught his attention in the distance and as he walked briskly towards the end of the platform, Harry noticed that everyone he passed stared at him wide-eyed. Some of them were people that he had known, but whom he knew couldn't be here because they were long gone.

Wherever he was, Harry had a strange feeling that he was in-between two worlds. How else could he explain the fact that Colin Creevey had just ambled past him, waving and clicking his camera?

As the red glow transformed into a gleaming scarlet train, a person dressed in silver waiting expectantly in front of it, Harry knew at once where he really was.

"Welcome back!" a familiar voice exclaimed warmly, as the figure dressed in shimmering silver robes fixed his half-moon spectacles atop the bridge of his nose.

More people materialised behind Dumbledore and a sense of giddiness spread throughout Harry's bones as his family waved at him from the train. And as his eyes settled on Ginny's beaming face, he knew what was coming. This wouldn't be like last time; there would be no going back to the land of the living. This was where he belonged now.

Another shrill whistle echoed throughout the odd version of Kings Cross, and a strange sense of peace settled into Harry's stomach. A conductor announced his final call for passengers to board the train and, with a calm resolve, Harry boarded the scarlet train, greeted Dumbledore as an old friend, and braced himself for a new beginning.

Author's Note

Word Count: 746

Written for Round 1 of The Houses Competition

House: Ravenclaw

Year/Position: Prefect

Category: Drabble

Prompt/s: Prompt/s: [Speech] "Welcome back!", [Sound] Whistle, [Action] Spin/spinning

I hope you all enjoyed this story x

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Until next time, Andy x