"Alright Harry, I am gonna have to leave ya to it. I've got some important Dumbledore business to attend to. You hold onto that ticket Harry- very important that one is," he stated firmly before turning to leave.
"But Hagrid, how is it I am supposed to get onto platform 9 and ¾?" Harry attempted, confused at the impossible idea. Looking up, he noticed Hagrid to be already gone. He glanced around at the numbered platforms, hoping to see the interesting numbers on one of the signs. He'd even tried asking the ticket vender, though was sent away quickly.
"Muggles. They are all over the place, without a care of being in anyone else's way. Hurry on Draco, we don't want to miss the train!" exclaimed an older woman with fair blond hair. It sat neatly just past her thin framed shoulders.
"Mum, does it hurt?" asked the young boy pushing his massive trolley with great effort.
"Of course not sweetie, now go on. Right between nine and ten," ushered the hurried woman. In went the boy, followed by both parents. Harry watched, shocked when nothing smashed to bits. Pushing his own trolley, he ran straight between the two.
Excited children and worried parents were stationed on the other side. Harry looked for the blonde boy and his parents, though couldn't find them in all of the hustling. Deciding to get a move on, he tugged his belongings up to the conductor and presented his ticket. The man only chuckled and took hold of the luggage- guiding Harry onto the beautiful train.
Harry made his way quietly towards an empty compartment. He was a bit nervous, but learned at a young age never to let on. He sat near the window, hands folded tightly in his lap. Harry was alone for a few moments, but it wasn't long when a young girl had found her way to the bench across from him. She had dark black hair and eyes, though fair skin.
"Hello," she began quietly, "I am Cho. Cho Chang."
"Hello there. I am Harry. Harry Potter," he replied out of curtesy. She stared, shocked at the simple manner in which he stated his own name.
"H-h-harry? As in THE Harry?" She questioned, eyes now bigger than Harry thought possible.
"Yeah, I'm Harry?" he replied, confused as to why she was making such a grand deal out of the ordeal. It was just a simple exchange of names. He decided to look out the window in order to calm his tinged cheeks. Why all of the sudden attention?
"I'm sorry. That was a little rude of me. My mother warned me about my big mouth. She thinks I'm going to be Ravenclaw for sure," Cho stated.
"Oh. What is Ravenclaw?" Harry asked.
Harry didn't think it possible for her jaw to drop any farther than when it had earlier, when saying his name. She spouted on, "Ravenclaw is one of four houses at Hogwarts. A house is a group of students you live, learn, and do things such as play Quidditch with. A family of sorts- for when you are away from home of course. Ravenclaw is known for their wit and intelligence, Hufflepuff for fairness and loyalty, Gryffindor for their bravery and chivalry, and Slytherin for their cunning and leadership skills. Many people don't like Slytherin very much, though I think it's a ridiculous thought. An entire house can't be considered that bad. In fact, my grandfather was a Slytherin- and he is a wonderful man." Harry watched her curiously as she rattled on about the houses. True, he was interested in learning more about them, but there was no reason to worry on about which house he would go into. They all sounded like good virtues to him, "…. It's during a grand feast put on when we get there tonight. My family won't tell me how the sorting works, though grandpa says it is a gruesome test. I don't believe him though. He will say anything to get a rise out of me," the young girl finally finished.
Before Harry could get in another word, the door opened for another girl. This one had big, unruly hair that fell in short, dark curls onto her shoulders. Her face appeared very small against the locks, and she already wore the robes assigned for Hogwarts.
"Hello. I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger. Are you expecting anyone, or is it alright for me to sit down here?" she asked politely.
"Hello, I am Cho Chang and this is Harry Potter," Cho gave the girl a warning glance before continuing on rather quickly, "and no! You are welcome to sit with us! I was just explaining the houses to Harry here. It seems he doesn't know very much about Hogwarts yet," she finished.
Hermione noted the warning glance, and didn't react wildly to the exchange of names, as Cho had done earlier. This couldn't stop her shock at the lack of Hogwarts knowledge. The boy would be spending the next seven years at this place, and he didn't even have the curiosity to look it up ahead of time? Surely he wouldn't be in Ravenclaw then.
"Oh, well we do have a long train ride ahead of us. I'm sure we could catch you up on quite a bit of it, if you'd like of course!" exclaimed Hermione. Harry very much wanted to know more about the place. Of course he wasn't going to stay with the Dursley's, so it didn't take very much for Harry to initially make up his mind to go to Hogwarts. Hagrid had been pretty quiet about Hogwarts, though let it slip that Harry's parents had once attended. Harry noted it in the back of his mind, intending to question somebody about that later. For now, he would take in as much as he could- in order to get a greater understanding of what he was up against.
Harry simply nodded. The girls both smiled excitedly, ready to share their knowledge.
"Okay. So you now know about the houses, but nothing about the classes. Am I correct?" asked Cho. Harry nodded again, waiting for her to continue on, "The classes we will be taking our first year are Transfiguration with Professor McGonagall, Charms with Professor Flitwick, Potions with Professor Snape, History of Magic with Professor Binns, Defense Against the Dark Arts – well, we don't know who that professor is, it changes yearly – and then there's Astronomy, Herbology taught by Professor Sprout, and Flying taught by Madame Hooch."
"After second year, you have to choose two or more additional classes. These can be Arithmancy, Muggle Studies, Divination, Ancient Runes, or Care of Magical Creatures. Then you take your O.W.L.s fifth year, good scores getting you into N.E.W.T. level courses. Once you get your scores, you meet with your Head of House and discuss possible career paths and what classes would be required for them. Sixth year you take your N.E.W.T. level courses, as well as become apparition certified – ability to pop in and out of places – if you'd like. Seventh year you take your N.E.W.T. exams, hopefully getting the scores you'd need for your choice in career," Hermione explained.
"Most of this stuff you don't have to worry about yet. This year is all compulsory classes. Just work on doing well in those so that when you get to choosing your classes- there won't be any issues," Cho encouraged.
This was a very useful conversation to be having, Harry thought to himself. He was sure most everyone had known this information. He hadn't gotten his textbooks until that morning, and Hagrid told him not to worry about it- just to be excited for the food. He smiled to the two girls, happy that they had chosen his compartment. He had hoped to stay in contact with them at Hogwarts. They didn't seem to mind explaining all of this to him.
"What was this Quidditch thing you said earlier?" asked Harry, his first words in quite a while. Cho smiled widely at him. Hermione sat back, not at all interested in the subject.
"Quidditch is only the grandest sport in all of history. It's played on brooms. There is one team per house, and they play for house points. At the end of the year the house cup is awarded to the house with the most points- though the points can also be added and deducted by professors and prefects for behavior. It's a sort of classroom management system," she laughed a little while saying the last bit, "but it really works. The houses are very competitive with each other. I would talk about Quidditch all day, but it seems Hermione here isn't very interested. How about this. At the first game, I will explain anything and everything to you. I'll even come sit by you in Hufflepuff, if that's where you end up," she finished, winking at Harry at the Hufflepuff jest.
"That sounds like fun Cho. I'd be happy to learn about it," Harry turned to Hermione, "what are you most excited about?" he asked, knowing full well she was bursting to continue the conversation on a different path.
"Oh my. I'm not really sure! I think the classes. I'm a muggle as they call it, and have never heard of these subjects before. I'm extremely interested in learning more!" she exclaimed excitedly.
Harry laughed at that, she did seem the type to be excited about school. Harry had to admit, he was fairly excited himself. It was a new school that didn't have any influence from Dudley. None of his teachers would think he was the horror of the class, tripping people and landing his lunch on them when in all reality it was always Dudley. Harry would even be able to get the good grades he had always desired. He use to played dumb at his old school, because his uncle always got very angry with him when he did better than Dudley- which in itself was extremely easy to do. Harry hoped his reports wouldn't make it back to his uncle.
"I'm excited for the classes too!" stated Cho happily, "I'm also excited for Hogsmeade visits - the local town full of shops and treats – the holiday decorations, the food, oh Harry. You have so much to look forward to!" she finished contently, looking extremely passionate about that fact.
By the time they had somewhat finished their conversation on Hogwarts, Hermione quoting Hogwarts, A History quite a bit, they had made it to the place of subject. Hermione and Cho bolted up and out of the compartment, saving a spot for Harry's slower self near Hagrid. It was announced they would cross by boat to Hogwarts as first years, while the other years loaded into carriages.
The air was cool, and it made the little hairs on the back of Harry's neck stand straight up. He sat with one girl in front and one behind, neither having to do any rowing for the moving boat. Harry held the lantern on his knees that sat to his chest, and pulled closer his outer robes. Not one of the first years made a sound, excited for their first views of the magnificent castle.
And it was quite magnificent.