James - Year 1

It was a breezy day and the sun shone weakly on the tar road as the Potters walked into Kings Cross Station. Harry was pushing the trolley with the heavy black trunk and owl cage while Ginny walking next to him held tightly on the hand of their little girl, trying to keep her from bounding after her brothers. The two boys walked in front of their parents and had just started a rowdy argument about school houses when they reached the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. James Potter, the eldest of the three children was off to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for his first year.

"We'll go in pairs" Harry said pointing at the seemingly solid barrier. James and Albus hurried forward playfully pushing one another and in a blink of a second they had disappeared. Ginny and Lily went next hurrying through the barrier after the boys. Harry took the trolley and leaned up to the barrier wall and felt himself slip through.

The platform was already packed with people, mothers crying and hugging their children goodbye and children jumping with the excitement at the sight of their friends. Owls hooted to one another and cats of every colour wound between people's legs.

Harry set off to find his family that were standing at the edge of the platform, near one of the doors and he and James quickly packed his trunk and owl into an empty compartment. They stood on the platform for a while, each giving James hugs, Ginny trying without success to flatten his hair and Lily bursting out crying because she wanted to go with James.

When the whistle sounded that meant that the train was about to go James hopped onto the train, leaning through the window he ruffled Albus's hair and for the first time Al didn't even complain. He allowed his mother to kiss him goodbye and then the train started to move. He watched his family growing smaller and smaller on the platform. Lily chased after the train; till it gained too much speed and then she fell back and waved with the others. The train rounded a corner and James couldn't see his family anymore. He was alone.

James turned away from the window and headed back to the compartment were his owl and trunk were stored. Pushing open the door he saw that the rest of the seats were already full. There were two boys and a girl already filling three of the seats and James stood awkwardly in the door, not sure of what to do next. "I'm James" he said into the silence of the compartment and fell into the open seat.

"Mark" the curly haired boy said holding out a hand. James immediately liked him, he had an air of not giving a damn about what anyone thought of him and that was something that James sought to achieve. The girl was called Maya and the other boy was Luke, and they both seemed quite nice. Luke was obviously the bookish type while Maya was a quiet one who kept to herself mostly.

The country side flew by while the four children started talking and by the time the lunch trolley came by they were already very good friends. James realised he was absolutely starving when the plump witch pushing the cart opened their door and started riffling through his trunk for his money bag. His breakfast felt like ages ago and he paid the witch seven Sickles and four Knuts for a stack of Pumpkin Pastries and Chocolate Frogs.

While they ate their way through the mountains of sweets they played a game of Exploding Snap. The terrain outside the windows had also changed, gone were the neat fields, they were now replaced by forests and great lakes and the train kept moving onwards.

Suddenly the door opened and in it stood three people. At the front was a boy with yellowish teeth and dirty overlong black hair. He looked to be about third year and flanking him was a thickset boy who looked as if he could be part troll and a very tall girl with curtains of blonde hair hiding her face.

"We heard that the Potter boy was in this cart" the greasy one said with a snide smile. "And what is it you want with me" James said getting up and squaring his shoulders. The others in the cart looked surprised, James's surname and parents haven't come up in conversation and they were surprised to find out that he was in fact James Potter.

The greasy haired boy was just about to reply when a beautiful girl appeared behind him and cleared her throat. She was Victoria Weasley and she was also a prefect. The three in the door gave the tiny group one last fleeting glance and disappeared.

"Alright there, James?" Victoria asked winking at him, "I'd get into robes if I were you, we're nearly there." "Thanks" James called after her as she disappeared down the corridor. While Maya waited outside the three boys quickly changed and discussed Victoria. "She's bloody beautiful" Mark said, reminding James strongly of his uncle. "Yeah, her mother's part Veela" James said while pulling open the door for Maya to come in again.

Victoria was right of course, the train was slowing down and James felt a nervous knot in his stomach. Suddenly a voice could be heard, "We will be reaching the station in five minutes, please make your way to the platform as quickly as possible. "Leave your luggage on the train, it will be collected and taken to the school separately."

When the train came to a halt James and his friends climbed of and onto the platform and to his relieve James heard a familiar voice. "First years come with me!" it called and James spotted Hagrid over the heads of his fellow classmates.

When Hagrid spotted James he drew him into a bone crunching hug and they walked together at the front towards the lake. Hagrid asked out about his dad and his Uncle Ron and aunt Hermione, he wanted to know everything and made him promise to come drink some tea on Friday afternoon before commanding the children to get into the boats. James was followed into his by his compartment companions and together they sailed to the beautiful castle looming on the cliff side. The climbed onto the underground harbour piling untidily into a line and following Hagrid up some steps and onto the great lawn. Hagrid beat against the door and a second later in swung open. Professor Turpin was a severe looking woman, with deep set lines around her mouth, possibly from frowning and eyes the colour of the ocean. She led the bunch of first years into a tiny room where they stood closely together listening to her speech. She was going on about school houses and the friends you would make at Hogwarts but James was more interested in the sounds coming from the Great Hall and was truly thankful when she led them away from the tiny room and into the massive and magnificent hall.

The first years were all white and scared looking as they grouped in front of the staff table and the Sorting Hat began to sing to them. It was only when the sorting started that James started to get a little nervous. He has always been so sure that he would be in Gryffindor, but what if he wasn't? What if the hat stuck him in Hufflepuff or worse Slytherin?

He was just debating with himself whether he would leave; sneak away in the dead of night when a familiar name was called. Craven Megan, a girl with blonde hair tied up in a thick plait hurried forward. James knew her from school. Yes, he still had school, but not ordinary primary school, but a special school taught by a witch in their village where she teaches you to read and write but also every basic wizarding rule and law. Megan had been in his class and James watched with interest while she was sorted. The hat sat on her hair for quite some time and after a while the tear near the brim opened wide and shouted, Ravenclaw!

James was kind of disappointed, Ravenclaw definitely was the second best house to go to, but he would have loved for her to be in Gryffindor, someone he knew. Then he was reminded that he wasn't a Gryffindor just yet and the extreme panic set in again. The next name he recognised was Jackson Luke and Luke walked past him on the way to the chair. Luke sat on the chair for a couple of minutes, before the Sorting Hat pronounced him a Gryffindor. James cheered loudly, he had been afraid that he'd lose another friend to Ravenclaw.

Then the dreaded moment arrived as Professor Turpin called, Potter James and James had to force his legs forward.

The hat fell right over his eyes and he was staring at the black inside when a voice whispered in your head. "Potter, well there is no other place for you, it better be, Gryffindor" the last word the hat shouted at the crowd and James could hurry happily towards the Gryffindors, his heart light as a feather. He plonked down next to Luke and now he could see the staff table better. He saw uncle Neville waving merrily from next to Hagrid and waved back, smiling from ear to ear.

Price Maya was sorted just after James and she also became a Gryffindor. As the sorting continued a familiar someone fell into the seat next to James and gave him a hug. This boy was very odd looking indeed, his hair bubblegum blue. "Teddy this is Luke and Maya" James introduced, "guys this is my big brother Ted" If the others were confused they didn't say so. James loved Teddy, he was definitely one of his best friends in the world and he was quite sad that he would be leaving home next year to start work at Gringotts, the wizard bank that Uncle Bill had arranged for him. Teddy stuck around for a little while and then some of his older friends called him and he gave James one more hug and then left to go sit with them. The only one of their little group left now was Mark. The children left to be sorted were not that many. Redstone Mark was called and he hurried from the line. He was pale when his face disappeared into the hat, but almost immediately the hat declared him a Gryffindor as well. In Gryffindor, with his three friends at his table James was extremely happy. He wished the sorting would hurry up though, his stomach was grumbling and he couldn't wait for the feast to start.

James was talking happily to Mark, not really noticing the rest of the sorting when he heard another familiar name. Scremander Lorcan, and a boy with long white blonde hair walked forward and fell into the seat and put on the hat. Lorcan was my aunt Luna's son, he was in James's opinion a little on the strange side, but they still got along fairly well. He was sorted into Ravenclaw, no surprise since that is where both his parents are from, after him there were only three more to be sorted and then Professor Turpin carried the hat and the stool from the hall.

Headmistress McDougal stood up and looked over the hall, "let the feast begin" she called and suddenly the dishes were filled with food. James piled his plate with everything in his reach that looked delicious and started digging in. His mother wasn't a bad cook at all, but he'd never had such a delicious meal and he was just moving on to a desert of treacle tart when a girl with curtains of straight red hair fell into the seat next to him. His cousin Molly, she was a second year at Hogwarts and his Uncle Percy's daughter. "Long time no see Jamie" she said and he wished she wouldn't call him that, he didn't like that nickname. "Yeah" he said still heaping treacle tart into his bowl. Before their conversation could continue however Mark cleared his throat loudly and James quickly introduced Molly to Mark, Luke and Maya.

He didn't really like the look in Mark's eyes and was more than glad when Molly said something about other friends she wanted to see and hurried along. "What is it with your family" Mark said, still eyeing her as she retreated. James just shook his head not trusting himself to speak.

Drowsy, their legs as heavy as lead they followed Victoria and other of the prefects up the Marble staircase towards the dormitory. James whose dad told him all about Hogwarts and all the secret passages and staircases wasn't surprised at their route or the fat lady in a pink dress requesting their password. "Kobo Motor" Victoria replied and the painting swung away leaving the entry to a common room. Slowly climbing the spiral staircase they finally reached a door with a sign that read 'First Years' and they let themselves in. It was James, Luke and Mark, a pudgy guy name Donald and a tall black kid named Wayne. They each quickly chose a four poster and fell into bed the moment they had their pyjamas on. "Wonderful isn't it?" Wayne said into the silence. "Yeah" James agreed before turning around and getting lost in a dream.