Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything related to it, just my characters.
King's Cross Station was bustling with activity. People moved in a great tide, too occupied with their ordinary lives to notice a young girl standing at the intersection of platforms nine and ten. If anyone thought it strange that the girl was staring intently at the wall between the platforms, no one commented. Nobody seemed to notice the sound of ruffling feathers emanating from the covered cage resting atop her trunk, nor the letter in the girl's hand that, if examined closely, seemed to be postmarked by no ordinary English boarding school to Ms. Pomona Pomeroy, Room 8, St. Glorys' Orphanage for Girls, London.
Pomona sighed; it was hopeless. She glanced down at the letter clutched in her hand to make sure she had read it correctly. There was no Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters at King's Cross, as the paper claimed audaciously. She'd been staring at the wall for at least an hour, and anyone who had even seemed like they were heading for it had disappeared as soon as she'd blinked.
She glanced at the huge central clock and winced, seeing that she only had fifteen minutes until her train left. Her eyes sought out the wall again, desperate to find a way to the elusive platform.
"Hello there, are you headed for Hogwarts, too?" Pomona jumped and whirled around. It was a boy who looked about her age who had spoken. A shock of shaggy auburn hair fell to his shoulders, and his smile was of a person who was always into something. Sparkling, verdant green eyes met hers, gleaming with amusement and mischief, as if he found her confused, slightly surprised expression very funny.
Pomona finally found her voice. "Ah…yes, I am, actually. My first year."
His face lit up with a smile that covered his whole face, as if he were genuinely pleased. "Well, isn't that something! It's my first year, too! I want to be in Gryffindor House, with my brothers. What house do you want to be in?"
Pomona was so relieved to find someone who could help her that she didn't even register the last part of his speech.
"Do you think you could help me?" She shoved her letter at him. "This says to go to Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters, but as you can clearly see, there is no such platform."
He stared at her for a moment with that grin, as if he thought she was joking. When her expression didn't change, his smile slowly dropped off.
"You honestly don't know how to get to the platform?" He asked it in a way that made it seem like it was obvious, and she was stupid for not knowing. Pomona blushed in humiliation, but shook her head no. The boy examined her carefully for a moment before the distressed look on his face faded into a smile once more.
"Ah, you're a Muggle! That explains it!" He put an arm around her shoulders and led her forward, trunk and all, until they were standing only a few feet from the wall.
"You see," the boy began, "you must go through the wall. Don't doubt it, and don't look back, or you'll end up smacking right into it."
Through the wall? Pomona thought indignantly. The boy is crazy!
Seeing that she in fact wasn't going to move, the boy sighed and closed his eyes. He took one step forward, then another, until finally he was racing toward the wall. And then…he was gone.
Pomona blinked. Had he just disappeared? Shaking her head, she stared at the wall a moment more before squeezing her eyes shut and racing forward. She braced for impact, and…hit something solid.
Slightly disappointed, Pomona opened her eyes and found not a wall, but the boy standing in front of her, grinning like a fool.
"See? Nothing to it!"
She wondered for a moment what he was talking about, but then she gasped. A huge, vintage train sat on a track that hadn't been in front of her a moment ago, the words Hogwarts Express painted on the side in luminescent letters. Owls squawked and cats hissed from various cages that were perched precariously on different trunks of luggage. Groups of people—hugging, crying, and laughing—were scattered about, saying goodbyes as a curious sparkling green steam poured from the engine's smokestack.
"It's…magnificent," Pomona breathed in awe, her eyes round with wonder.
"Isn't it, though?" The boy said proudly. "Been coming here since my oldest brother started, and he's a fifth year now."
Pomona realized she had no business with the boy now.
"Well…thank you for directions, and all that, but I must be going now—"
"Wait!" The boy grabbed her wrist. "You're all alone, aren't you? Why don't you come with me? You can board with my brothers and me! I've got loads of questions about Muggles—"
The boy faltered as a plump woman stormed into view. Her eyes blazed when she caught sight of the boy, and Pomona could have sworn she heard him whimper.
"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" The woman roared, charging forward. The boy scrambled to put some excuse together, and Pomona took the opportunity to detach his hand from her arm and slip through the crowd, her eyes never once leaving the spectacular train.
The steam whistle blew, and the train gave a shuddering jerk as it crept into motion. Pomona pushed a piece of hair from her face and looked out her compartment window. Parents and small children crowded the platform as the train moved past, hoping to get a final wave in to their children. A pang of loneliness hit Pomona as she realized no one was there for her, and she pulled her gaze away, instead focusing on her surroundings.
Before she could even get a good look around her compartment, the door was violently opened to reveal the auburn haired boy from before. His face split into a wide grin.
"There you are!" He strolled in and sat down next to her, not even bothering to close the door. "I've been looking all over the train for you, and here you are in a compartment all by yourself."
She stared at him, wondering if she was more shocked by his appearance or the fact that he'd searched the train for her.
"Oi! I haven't even introduced myself yet." He stuck out a hand, the grin still firmly on his face. "I'm Atticus Sharp, first year just like you."
Pomona took his hand, which he promptly pumped up and down vigorously.
"Pomona Pomeroy."
"Nice to meet you, Miss Pomeroy," Atticus said grandly, standing and executing a gentlemanly bow. Pomona forced herself not to laugh. "Ah! I almost forgot!" Atticus jammed his hand into his pocket and pulled out a slightly beat up pentagonal box. "I stashed some Chocolate Frogs from home!"
Pomona blinked. "Chocolate…Frog?"
Atticus's face fell. "Oh, that's right. You're a Muggle."
"I do wish you would tell me what that means." Pomona said somewhat testily. "I'd like to know if I should be offended or not."
"Oh, no, you shouldn't be offended at all!" Atticus stammered out, his eyes widening. "Muggle is just a term wizards use for non-wizards—you know, like slang."
"But clearly I am a wizard," Pomona said, confused. "I'm on this train, aren't I?"
"Actually, you're a witch," Atticus corrected, "and yes, I suppose you make a point. But you're parents were Muggles—err, non-wizards—right?"
Pomona flushed and said nothing.
"Still," Atticus went on, "I can't see how anyone hasn't heard of Chocolate Frogs, Muggleborn or not. You'll try one, won't you?"
Pomona found that Chocolate Frogs were indeed delicious, and they came with a collectable card. Atticus peered over her shoulder to get a look at the card, which depicted a bear of a man with long dark hair and red trappings.
"Godric Gryffindor." He said approvingly. "Not a bad start to your collection. My brothers are in Gryffindor House, and I hope to join them. What about you?"
He took one glance at her confused expression and realized his mistake. He then launched into a tale that encompassed the founding of Hogwarts, the four founding members, and their corresponding houses.
"I don't know how I'll ever remember any of this." Pomona muttered as he ended.
"Oh, you'll have it all in no time!" Atticus encouraged with a smile. "Trust me, the divisions between the houses are like night and day. There's no way you'll ever mistake one for the other."
They sat in comfortable silence for quite a while, chewing Chocolate Frogs and gazing out the window.
"Why did you come find me?" Pomona asked finally. Atticus turned to look at her, and she avoided his gaze, instead focusing on Godric Gryffindor walking in and out of his picture.
"Excuse me?"
"Why did you come find me after we boarded the train?"
The grin returned. "Oh, that's simple."
But before he could answer, the train was pulling to a stop. Pomona looked out the window at the most fantastic sight she'd ever seen.
So...? Did you like it? I really hope so! This is the first chapter of the first story I've ever published on FanFiction, so please, reviews are welcome! I hope you like Pomona and Atticus as much as I do, and who knows? Maybe their young friendship will blossom into something more in the future... ;) But not now. 'Cos they're only twelve. Anyway, next is the Sorting Hat!