Morning came quickly and with the rise of the sun came absolute chaos.
All of those who were at the dinner last night elected upon staying the night at the Burrow, as it was closer than anywhere else to King's Cross. It was a tight squeeze, but everyone managed to find a place to sleep.
As soon as dawn broke, Hermione and Ron left with Hugo and Rose, as Ron had an early appointment with a Muggle driving tester, as he was going to attempt getting his Muggle driver's permit.
The togetherness was partly in celebration, but, it was also a way to protect that which mattered most.
"JAMES SIRIUS POTTER!" Ginny hollered, as she hurried down the stairs holding Albus, who had warts on his hands as a result of a badly casted spell, by the collar. "GET YOUR SCHOOL THINGS TOGETHER AND GET DOWNSTAIRS NOW!"
Ginny hustled Albus, who by this time was crying about his hands, into the kitchen. She paused in the doorway and saw that Percy and Molly were seated at the table with Mrs. Weasley.
"Mom, I need your help with Albus," Ginny said, leading her crying son to the table. "James was trying his wand out this morning and he accidentally gave Albus some hand warts."
Mrs. Weasley rolled her eyes and, standing up, she walked over to her kitchen cupboard. While she rummaged through the cupboard, Ginny took a seat at the table and pulled Albus on her lap.
"How are you doing this morning, Percy?" Ginny asked, as she gently bounced Albus on her knee to calm him.
Luckily, Percy, who obviously looked tired, didn't have to reply as Mrs. Weasley came hurrying over to the table with a bottle of "Magical Wart Remover" in her hand. She opened the bottle and began smearing it all over Albus's wart-covered hands. Albus whimpered, but didn't say a word.
Within minutes, Albus's hands were wart-free and he was smiling, "Thank you, Grandmother Weasley," he said.
Mrs. Weasley smiled, "You're welcome," she replied. "Now, go off and get your stuff ready. We'll be leaving in about half an hour."
Albus smiled and ran off out of the kitchen. Percy looked at Molly and managed a half-smile.
"Molly, you had better go and bring your stuff downstairs," Percy said kindly to Molly.
Molly nodded and, standing, she hurried out of the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley placed the bottle on the table and not bothering to sit, she pulled Percy close to her and stroked his hair.
"I can't believe it, it was just yesterday that I was seeing you and your siblings off to Hogwarts, and now I am seeing my grandchildren off to school," Mrs. Weasley said, gazing down at Percy. "Including a daughter of yours….Oh, Percy."
Percy sighed, "I wish Audrey could have seen Molly off to Hogwarts this morning," he said, allowing tears to suddenly fall from his eyes and down his face. "She would have loved it."
Mrs. Weasley gently pulled Percy to his feet, "Yes, she would have," she spoke, looking him in the eye. "However, even now, you are not alone in seeing your eldest daughter off to school."
For the first time since Audrey died, Percy allowed himself to cry. Mrs. Weasley just stood there and held him tenderly. The healing process had finally begun for Percy.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In what seemed like no time at all, everyone had arrived at King's Cross and Platform 9 ¾ was in chaos.
Harry and Ginny had taken their children off to visit with Ron and Hermione and to all watch their children board the train together. Kaysar and Amythest had taken Adeleina off to the train to get her properly settled, but Mr. and Mrs. Weasley walked with Percy and Molly to the platform.
Lucy had not come to see Molly off, mostly because she was very afraid of Percy. She had stayed back with Fleur, Bill, and Charlie at the Burrow. Percy missed Lucy, but it was her decision, so he accepted it.
"Molly, enjoy Hogwarts, but do be careful," Percy spoke, his voice trembling. "Your mother would have been proud of you, but I want you to remember that I am here for you and love you very much."
Molly nodded and gave her father a gentle hug, "Love you too, Father," she said, walking over to the train and joining the masses of children getting ready to board the Hogwarts Express.
As the whistle began to blow, Molly stepped on board the train. She gazed back at her father, who was silently watching her with tears in his eyes and being held up by her grandparents.
Molly turned away and stepped into the train. It was time to start a new chapter of her life.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Half an hour later, Molly sighed in frustration as she trudged down the train corridor. She had dragged her trunk all the way through the train and was getting worn out.
All of the compartments were full and she was near the other end of the train by now. She hoped that the next compartment wouldn't be full, as she didn't want to spend the entire ride to Hogwarts in the corridor with nothing to do or nobody to talk to.
Luckily, she came upon another compartment right away.
Molly entered and saw a pale man, who was dressed in a dark green travelling cloak with the hood up, asleep on one of the seats. On the other side of the compartment, Molly saw Adeleina and smiled.
"Hey, Molly, how are you?" Adeleina asked, seeing that Molly had entered the compartment.
Molly walked over and sat next to Adeleina, placing her trunk on the floor, "I'm good," she replied. "Hey, who is that man and why is he sleeping in the compartment?"
Adeleina smiled, "That's my dad," she confessed. "He is wearing the cloak with his hood up because he doesn't want people to recognize him and think he's weird for riding on the train with students instead of already being there with the Headmistress and other Professors."
"Your dad is a new professor?" Molly asked, wide-eyed. "What does he teach?"
Before Adeleina could reply, the compartment door opened and two hassled-looking boys and a red-headed girl entered the compartment. Their clothes were scuffled and they looked like they had been in a fight.
"Some older kids were bullying Scorpius because his father is Draco Malfoy and we got crap for even coming to his rescue," Albus said, as he and Rose helped the shaken Scorpius sit down next to Molly.
Molly gazed at Scorpius, "That's not right for people to bully you just cause of who your dad is," she told him. "It's okay, you'll be safe with us."
"The young Miss Weasley is right, Mister Malfoy," a deep, yet very kind, voice suddenly spoke.
Startled by the voice, the three looked up from their conversation to see Adeleina helping the man, who was now awake and smiling, sit up. He had obviously been waking up and had heard their conversation.
"I firmly believe, young Mister Malfoy, that nobody has the right to judge you based on the actions of your father or grandfather," the man said, taking care to keep his hood up. "You are a new generation and it is up to you to choose and act according to what YOU wish to become and only learn from past mistakes."
Scorpius was baffled, "Who are you and how do you know me?" he asked, slightly nervous that the man seemed to know so much about him and his ancestry.
The man did not lower his hood, "I am someone who will have a great influence on what you learn and how you could possibly develop your potential during the next seven years of your life," he said in a grave tone. "You are only a small fraction of what you could be. You have seven years, make the most of your time."
Scorpius swallowed heavily, the man was right. He HAD to do better than his father and grandfather in life.
Without another word, the man rose and quietly strode out into the corridor.
Adeleina merely smiled and gazed out the window, she completely understood what was said.
"Who was that crazy bloke?" Hugo said, sitting on the vacant seat.
Adeleina ignored the comment and turned to face Scorpius, who had suddenly sat next to her, "You should listen to what the man told you," she insisted. "You do have a lot of good potential and you should live up to it without worrying about the past. Focus on YOUR future."
Shocked speechless by what Adeleina had said, Scorpius could only nod and immediately gazed at the compartment floor, deep in thought.
Even though they still had a ways to go, Molly decided to get into her uniform and robes so that she would be all ready to go when the train arrived. She opened her trunk and rummaged around for her clothes.
While Scorpius quietly meditated, Adeleina, Rose, Albus, and Molly went through their trunks and helped each other into their school uniforms, being careful not to catch each other unclothed, and also into their robes, which would soon have distinguished House emblems on them.
Scorpius wasn't sure that he wanted to be sorted into Slytherin, considering his father and grandfather had been there and also the fact that it had a reputation of being a breeding ground for Death Eaters. In recent years, that had slightly changed, but feelings of the past were still very rampant.
Rose wanted to be in Gryffindor, so that his father, an esteemed Gryffindor alumni, would not be disappointed. His mother would love him regardless, but his father preferred he be in Gryffindor.
Ever since he and his father had had that special conversation on the platform about how history's heroes even came from a House like Slytherin, Albus no longer had any preference to what House he desired.
Both Adeleina and Molly had no preference to where they wanted to be Sorted. Each wanted to do their best and live up to their potential, regardless of where they were.
There was a flurry of noise as the group finished dressing themselves in their Hogwarts attire and then re-arranged things in their trunks so they could be found easier once in their dorm rooms.
Hogwarts was the next step in their journeys of life and they were all excited to move forward.