Chapter 2
Harry was just about to ask Ron about the card which came with his chocolate frog when a girl with bright red hair came bursting into their compartment. She took no notice of them when she threw her bags, and a squawking owl cage at Ron (which he caught with an 'oof!'), rapidly sliding open their window and searching the crowd.
She seemed to be saying goodbye to her father and didn't take notice of her surroundings until the train had already sped away from the Platform, during which all that time Harry and Ron didn't say a single word.
She finally turned away from the window, sighing, and abruptly took notice of Harry, her light olive eyes clashing with his bright emerald green.
Harry could feel himself turn pink, she really was quite...pretty.
"Um...Hello?" said Ron cautiously, obviously hoping not to get hit by anymore flying luggage, as he made himself small. She started, sincerely surprised since she had not seen the only other redhead in the room.
"Oh! How do you do? I'm Allison Hopewell, but you can call me Ally if you'd like." she introduced with light Scottish lilt, smiling at the both of them brilliantly, causing Harry to sprout rosy red blotches on his cheeks and Ron's ears to burn. But Ally didn't seem to notice as she prattled on, "I'm truly very sorry for storming in so suddenly, it was really, very quite rude of me and I should have checked to see if there was anyone in the compartment before just bursting in, especially in such a huffy manner and-"
"It's alright," interrupted Harry, hoping to put a cease to her rambling and calm her down, "and besides, we wouldn't mind it if you would like to stay, right Ron?"
"Right." mumbled Ron with a nod, his ears still rosy from before.
Ally looked at the both of them for bit before grinning at them softly, "Thanks!" She picked up her discarded bags and with the help of Ron (who quite tall and gangly) put them on the luggage rack with the others.
"So," began Ally, "who are you?"
Harry and Ron shared silent glances as Harry said, "I'm Harry, Harry Potter." Waiting for the usual eye flickering to his lightning bolt scar on his forehead when those words were uttered.
...
...
...Nothing.
Harry gaped as Ally moved on to a dumbstruck Ron with only a warm smile in his direction. He was confused. Maybe she was like him and had only just found out about magic until recently when he got his letter, and didn't know about him being a 'hero' and all. Yeah. That was probably it.
"So, what are you boys going to do with all this candy?" asked Ally, looking at mountains of sweets they had bought.
"If I were you I would save it for later since this is the only candy we'll be getting that's through owl order. Apparently first and second years aren't allowed to go to Hogsmeade. I've heard Honeydukes is the best candy shop there is, and I believe it, they have the best chocolate! Merlin, when I'm a third year I'm going to every Hogsmead trip there is and stocking up on candy. At least I was able to sneak in some Sugar Quills for class. You can have some if you'd like, I'm sure there's at least one class that's sure to be a snooze, so I think the sugar would help-
So much for being raised by muggles.
"So wait," interrupted Harry, making Ally glance at him mid rant, "you don't live with muggles?"
"What?" said Ally confusedly, "No, both of my parents are wizards, William Hopewell and Celeste Prewett."
Now, it was Ron's turn to gape at her.
"Oi!" he exclaimed, startling them all, "That means we're related! My mum is Molly Prewett so we're second cousins or something." he said with a grin as Ally grinned back too. "I'm Ron Weasley by the way."
"Brilliant! Nice to officially meet you, Ron" said Ally, turning back to Harry, "but, why do you ask?" He cleared his throat a bit awkwardly at her piercing green eyes, "Well, you're the first person I've met so far that doesn't have a strange reaction to my name, so I thought that maybe you didn't know who I was."
"Oh no, I know very well who you are Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, Savior of the Wizarding World and defeater of Voldemort." Ron flinched at the name nearly no one could say, and groaned, "Not you too..."
"To quote Dumbledore, fear of a name only increases the fear of the thing itself, Ron." She remarked. "And Harry, I thought that if I were in your position, I wouldn't like it very much if everyone I met freaked out just because of something I did as a wee baby. I wouldn't want people to assume they know everything about me just because they read it in some book they found at Flourish and Blots."
At that moment, while Ally was going on about how she wanted to meet him first before making any assumptions about him and how he was just like everybody else, Harry felt something spark inside him because he finally met someone who understood.
"Thanks Ally," said Harry, smiling softly at her as she grinned back the skinny bespectacled boy.
"So," she began with an impish grin, "do you mind if I take chocolate frog?" Harry and Ron grinned back at her, as Harry held out a box of her favorite sweet, and she didn't hesitate for one second before she took it out of his hand, and muttering a thank you, tore off the wriggling frog's head.
Yum.
It was good to have friends.
Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Harry take one of the very same candies she had asked for moments earlier and holding up a pack, ask,"What are these?" and looking at the label said, "They're not really frogs, are they?"
"No," said Ron at the same Ally said, " Of course not."
"But see what card it is. I'm missing Agrippa."
"What?"
"Oh, of course, you wouldn't know– Chocolate Frogs have cards, inside them, you know, to collect– famous witches and wizards. I've got about five hundred, but I haven't got Agrippa or Ptolemy."
Harry unwrapped his Chocolate Frog and picked up the card as Ally said to Ron, "Really! Five hundred! I've only got about four hundred, but I think I have Agrippa at home."
"So this is Dumbledore!" said Harry just as Ron was begging Ally if she found another to give to him. She agreed.
"Don't tell me you have never heard of Dumbledore!" said Ron. "Can I have a frog? I might get Agrippa –thanks–"
Harry turned over his card to read it as Ally opened another box of chocolate frogs. She heard him exclaim, "He's gone!" and she smirked at his surprise.
"Well, you can' expect him to hang around all day," said Ron. "He'll be back. No, I've got Morgana again and I've about six of her… do you want it? You can start collecting."
Ron's eyes strayed to the pile of Chocolate Frogs waiting to be unwrapped.
"Help yourself," said Harry as Ally went back to unwrapping her third frog. "But you know, in the Muggle world, people just stay put in photos." Ally stared, dumbfounded.
"Do they? What, they don't move at all?" Ron sounded amazed. "Weird!" Ally nodded in agreement.
"Hey, Ron, I got another Agrippa ," Ally said, showing the card that came with her frog. Ron's eyes bulged.
"I'll trade you every card I already have a double of that I unwrap for that one!"
"No need, consider it a gift. But if you'd like I'll trade you for Morgana."
"Deal!"
Both Ron and Ally were more interested in eating the frogs than looking at the Famous Witches and Wizards cards but Harry couldn't keep his eyes off them; which Ally found cute, how he seemed to be experiencing everything for the first time. He finally tore his eyes away from yet another card, to open a bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.
"You want to be careful with those," Ron warned Harry. "When they say every flavor, they mean every flavor– you know, you get all the ordinary ones like chocolate and peppermint and marmalade, but then you can get spinach and liver and tripe. George reckons he had a booger-flavored one once."
Ron picked up a green bean, inspected it carefully, and bit into a corner.
"Bleaaargh– see? Sprouts."
They had a good time eating the Every Flavor Beans. Ally though, seemed to have the worst luck in eating the beans, she got glue, caterpillar, wood, soap, grass, and even vomit. And was just about to give up until she finally got raspberry flavor one, and she almost cried with relief; much to amusement of Harry and Ron.
The countryside that was now flying past the window was becoming wilder. The neat fields were gone. Now there were woods, twisting rivers, an dark green hills.
There was a knock on the door of the compartment and round-faced boy came in. He looked tearful.
"Sorry," he said, "but have you seen a toad at all?"
When they shook their heads, he wailed, "I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!"
"I'm sure he'll turn up," said Ally, getting up, "If you'd like, I'll help you look for him..."
"Thanks," said the boy miserably, but brightening up a bit. "Well, if you see him…"
They left.
"I'm Ally by the way," said Ally, sticking her hand out for the boy to shake.
"N-Neville L-Longbottom," he stuttered, flushing scarlet as he shook her hand nervously.
"Well it's a pleasure to meet you Neville, and don't you worry, we'll find your toad. Does he have a name by the way?" said Ally, hoping to ease the poor boy into conversation and calm him down.
"Trevor."
"Trevor! What a lovely name! I wish I had a toad," she said truthfully, much to Neville's astonishment.
"Really?"
"Really. Anyways, I find them really fascinating creatures, and I heard that magical toads are quite loyal, so I'm sure we'll find Trevor soon enough."
Neville smiled at Ally, "Thanks Ally," And they continued their journey in a comfortable silence. Aside from when they peeked into each compartment asking for Neville's lost toad.
The majority of the students they encountered were older than them, and were no help at all. Especially not the Slytherins who told them to scram.
Although one student, Hermione Granger, actually helped them. She was bit bossy and seemed like a know-it-all, but Ally liked her kind attitude and intelligent mind, and accepted quickly as a friend.
"How about we split up? That way we'll cover more ground in less time, and have a better chance of finding Trevor," suggested Hermione, after a few more unsuccessful compartments.
"Good idea Hermione! You go with Neville that way and I'll double back to see if we missed any compartments," said Ally, and they separated, each going their designated way.
Ally trailed back as she said she would but to no avail, no one had seen Neville's missing toad. She decided to go back Harry and Ron, when she began to notice more and more students in their Hogwarts robes.
She met up with a huffy Hermione and a still saddened Neville a few compartments away from the one she shared with the boys and accompanied them both to Hermione's compartment where she shared the few chocolate frogs she took with her from her compartment; successfully cheering up Neville a bit before leaving him with Hermione and travelling back to her own compartment.
She knocked on the door and asked, "Harry? Are you and Ron done changing?" Harry nodded, sliding the door open. "Okay, give me two minutes, I also need to change." And the boys stepped out into the corridor, giving her some privacy.
Once Ally had finished changing, a voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."
Ally's stomach lurched with nerves and Harry, she saw, looked sickly green, while Ron looked pale under his freckles. They crammed their pockets with the last of their sweets and joined the crowd thronging through the corridor.
The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out on to a tiny, dark platform. Ally shivered in the cold night air. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students and Ally heard a booming voice: "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there, Harry?"
A big hairy face beamed at Harry over the sea of heads.
"You know him?" Ally whispered to Harry furiously.
"His name is Hagrid, he gave me my letter and took me to buy my things, we're friends I guess," he whispered back.
"C'mon, follow me– any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"
Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Ally thought there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke, though Neville sniffed once or twice.
"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here."
There was a loud, "Oooooh!"
The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.
"No more'n five to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Harry, Ally, and Ron were followed into their boat by Neville and Hermione, much to the delight of Ally.
"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself. "Right then– FORWARD!"
And the fleet of little boats off all at once, gliding across the lake, which was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.
"Heads down!" yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbor, where they clambered out onto rocks and pebbles.
"Oy, you there! Is this your toad?" said Hagrid, who was checking the boats as people climbed out of them.
"Trevor!" cried Neville blissfully, holding out his hands, and Ally patted him on the shoulder. Then they clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp, coming out at last onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.
They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.
"Everyone here? You there, still got your toad?"
Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door.
