Chapter Two:
The taxi took Allison to King's Cross Station with ample time to spare. The driver was polite and got her a trolley and helped her with her trunk. He wished her a good day before driving into the mass of cars and pedestrians.
With a heavy heart, Allison pushed the trolley into the station, taking the familiar route to platforms nine and ten. Allison pushed on the cart, thrusting herself forward and through the gate.
The Hogwarts Express awaited Allison, the scarlet engine gushing smoke. Despite the heaviness in her chest, Allison smiled at the sight and found herself a compartment. The platform and train was quiet, but was filling up quickly.
Through the compartment window, Allison watched as families flooded the platform, mothers and fathers kissing their children goodbye. Allison traced the lines on her skin and longed for the black box, now locked safely in her trunk. As Allison closed her eyes and heaved a sigh, the door to her compartment swung open.
Allison opened her eyes to three very familiar faces, three faces that had expressions of anger and worry.
"I—uh—I, I'm so sorry," Allison choked, sitting upright as her friends closed the compartment door and joined her.
"What happened to you?" Hermione asked.
"Huh?" Allison blanked, unsure of what to say. Her mind reeled.
"We sent you tons of letters," Ron said.
"Oh—my parents," Allison stammered, realizing that a lie would be so much easier to explain then the truth, "they took them from me. All of them."
A look of shame washed over Harry's face and his expression relaxed.
"Oh," he said, "I didn't—I should have figured—the Dursley's, you know –I."
"It's okay Harry," Allison said, smiling in spite of herself.
After that Allison fell into a comfortable state of mind, talking and laughing with her friends. As the train moved through the landscape, Allison all but forgot everything that had happened over the summer.
The train pulled into the platform several hours later and Allison was ushered from the train, followed closely by her friends. The four of them gathered in one of the horseless carriages and were whisked off to the castle. Small drops of rain splattered the roof of the carriage and the smell of wet concrete filled Allison's nose.
As Hogwarts castle loomed closer, Allison felt anxiety flutter in the pit of her stomach. As happy as she was to be back with the people who accepted her, she couldn't shake the horrible realization that she had no home to go to, that her school was now her place of solstice.
The carriages came to a rumbling halt at the foot of the staircase that led up to the doors leading into the Entrance Hall. Ducking her head against the sudden onslaught of rain, Allison hurried alongside Harry, Ron and Hermione into Hogwart's, shaking beads of water from their robes.
Allison let out a huge sigh of relief. Warmth touched her cold face and she shook her sleeves free of water. Allison followed the crowd into the Great Hall and sat beside Hermione. Harry and Ron sat across from them.
As the sorting started, Allison rested her head on her hand and stared at the hat as it was placed on the first year's heads. She thought back to her sorting. Truthfully, Allison was surprised when the hat yelled Gryffindor. She was sure it would place her in Hufflepuff. Allison still didn't understand the hats decision. It said little to her during the time she had it on. In fact, the hat said near nothing and the next thing Allison knew, it was belting out her new house.
Dumbledore stood at the front of the four house tables and addressed the school at large. Allison stared up at him then to Harry, wondering what it was like to be known personally by the Headmaster. She sighed.
Allison wondered a lot of things.
What would it be like to be brilliant like Hermione, to know without having to think about it? What would be like to have a family like Ron's, to know you are loved and cherished? Even Harry, who is, despite him accepting it or not, watched out for by the adults in his life.
In many ways, and she hated herself for such thoughts, Allison felt it would almost be easier if her parents were dead instead of completely denying their daughter the love that she so desperately needed.
As the plates filled with food and drink, Allison's mind wandered up to her trunk, which was certainly in her dormitory at that point, and the little black box that seemed to call out to her. Allison could almost feel the blade cut through her skin.