Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl Chapter 48: The January Express
DISCLAIMER: Daria was created by Glen Eichler and is the property of MTV Viacom. Harry Potter is the creation of JK Rowling and is the property of JK Rowling, Warner Brothers and Wizarding World. I only own the original characters you see flittering in and out.
This work is written for my amusement and ego gratification, not for profit. I neither expect nor deserve any sort of financial remuneration for this work of fiction. Please gratify my ego with a nice review if you're enjoying what I wrote.
Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl*Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl*Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl
Despite the fact that it was only a couple of days into January, Daria and Anahita knew that it was time to go back to Hogwarts. While Daria would have liked to have done more shopping in Muggle Britain, she was ready to return to school: she and Anahita had spent the last part of their Christmas holiday working on their reading assignments and writing essays for Professor Snape and Professor Bins. They'd had their assignments reviewed and critiqued by Mrs. Waring and also by Jessica Wainwright, who'd returned from visiting her relatives to mind Dana. Daria now had more luggage; she now had her own pair of rubber boots: a fashion accessory she hadn't needed back in Texas that she definitely need here. She'd managed to raid a Muggle bookshop in Birmingham and came away with a dictionary and a planner as well as a couple of murder mysteries.
Daria closed and locked her suitcase. Despite the inconveniences, it had been a good holiday. Daria had enjoyed the Warings' company and had found her introduction to life in Magical Britain interesting. It had been so different from Mundane life back in Texas. Both of the elder Warings taught her things about the Wizarding World she hadn't known before, such as how some of the things she'd learned at Hogwarts had uses in day-to-day life, at least day to day life if one chose to remain in the Wizarding world. Still, it was often frustrating: despite the fact that she was anti-social and liked books more than television, Daria wasn't about to cut her ties to the larger world: she found the lack of things like television and telephones bothersome. And despite the fact that she was no shopaholic, she would have enjoyed shopping at a Mundane clothing store. And she didn't like not having access to Mundane bookstores.
"Anahita, Daria," Mrs. Waring called from downstairs, "Are you two packed and ready? You don't want to miss the train back to school."
Daria had spent a quiet New Year's Eve with the Warings. The Warings' holiday activities diminished after Boxing Day: neither Mr. or Mrs. Waring thought that New Year's Eve was that important a holiday. They spent it quietly at home, with Mr. and Mrs. Waring toasting a glass of champagne while Daria and the Waring sisters toasted with glasses of Butterbeer. Daria would have liked to have doled out black-eyed peas like Mrs. Johnson did back in Highland, but neither the grocers in Diagon Alley nor the vegetable wholesalers next door on Charing Cross Road had any.
Daria opened her suitcase again, making sure that she'd packed her scrollwork. She'd worked hard on her essays and didn't want to lose points because she'd lost them. She found them, smiled with satisfaction, then closed her suitcase. She was ready to go.
Anahita came upstairs. "It's time to go, Daria," she said.
I'm ready," Daria replied.
The Warings took a floo to London: the Ministry had installed several fireplaces near King's Cross Station for the use of magical families wishing to access the Hogwarts Express. They'd also provided luggage carts for the families to load their children's school luggage: Mr. and Mrs. Waring had a pair in hand when Daria emerged from the floo. Daria and Anahita put their luggage on the carts and followed Mr. and Mrs. Waring out the door and across the street.
The atmosphere at King's Cross was far different than it had been when Daria and Anahita got off the train less than two weeks before. The atmosphere at the Muggle part of the station was tense: the entrance and the platforms had a heavy police presence: the authorities feared a terrorist attack in response to the Coalition's troop build-up along Iraq's border, Saddam Hussein had been issuing threats, decrying foreign aggression and threatening to turn Iraq into a graveyard for foreign invaders. Despite the tension and the troops, Daria did manage to persuade the Warings to stop by a news stand where she picked up a copy of the Times, a couple of magazines and a couple of bottles of water.
To her surprise, she learned that she wasn't the only witch standing in line at the cash register. Lita Ashworth was standing two places behind her.
"Hallo, Texas!" she said. "Did you have a good holiday?"
"Surprisingly, I did," Daria replied. "I spent it with the Warings."
"I'm glad to hear that," said Lita. "I'd have hated to think of you rattling around the castle all by yourself."
"Say, Texas," she said teasingly, knowing that Daria disliked the nickname, "Why are all these heavily armed-policemen standing around?"
Jeez, what is it about some purebloods, thought Daria. Are they that clueless?
"They're worried about trouble," she. "Could I tell you on the platform or on the train?"
"Why not now?" said Lita.
"This isn't a good time," said Daria. "People are too jumpy. See you on the train," she added, rejoining the Warings. Mr. and Mrs. Waring were talking to another couple, a couple with a young Slytherin boy she'd seen in a couple of her classes but didn't know very well. The Warings then made their way to the tracks. Daria noted that there were not only heavily-armed troops in the concourse but also on the walkways and the platforms, too. Daria didn't begin to feel safe again until she'd crossed the barrier and was again standing on Platform 9 ¾.
The Hogwarts Express was already standing next to the platform, even though it was the better part of an hour before the train would depart. Some students were already boarding. Daria and Anahita chose a compartment and put their luggage on the overhead racks. They then sent back out to the platform to do some people-watching as other students and their families arrived to board the train or say their goodbyes.
Mr. Waring said that he had a business appointment and said his goodbyes. Mrs. Waring then said her goodbyes, telling Daria that she'd been a good guest and wishing them the best of luck during Spring Term. She then left, taking Anahita's sister Dana, who'd tagged along to King's Cross.
The Violet and Dahlia Banks were the next to arrive: they greeted Daria and Anahita, then set their luggage on the overhead rack. They'd had a pleasant family holiday, mostly spent in Britain, but also in Ireland by way of portkey. Majda Paderewski came in at half-past the hour; she smiled and said Hello to Daria and Anahita and told them that she'd had a happy holiday with family. Megan did not sit with them: she'd met up with some fellow Hufflepuffs, but did stop by to say hello. Marietta Edgecombe opened their compartment door while looking for Cho Chang: she gave a pro-forma hello, then gave Daria a frown of disapproval before resuming her search for her friend. At twenty til, there was a knock on the door and Daria recognized Elspet Tulloch, a quiet Scottish girl from Slytherin. After Violet teasingly asked her if sitting with mainlanders, Elspet smiled and told them that she didn't mind them that much, causing Daria to smile and the other girls in the compartment to chuckle. Elspet sat down, pulled out a book, and started reading.
At Eleven o'clock, the locomotive gave a loud toot and the Hogwarts Express began its long journey back to the Scottish Highlands. Daria and Anahita watched as the kids on the train waved goodbye to their parents.
For the couple of hours, the girls did little but talk about their Christmas holiday: what they'd gotten, who'd they'd seen, and whether or not they'd gone to any parties. Majda said that her family had welcomed her back with open arms and that she'd attended Christmas Mass. She'd also been to a couple of movies, as had Dahlia and Violet, making Daria jealous.
After an hour or so, Elspet relaxed enough to join the conversation. Daria and Elspet had never conversed with each other; nor had the other girls. The Ravenclaws learned that Elspeth lived in a tiny wizarding community dominated by a handful of wizarding families and was quite sensitive about it. Daria thought that it sounded remote with a capital R. After the other girls shared about where their parents lived and where they grew up, Elspeth admitted that she lived in a small village on one of the Shetland Islands. She was quite sensitive about it.
"The other girls in your house give you a hard time about that?" Violet said gently.
"Aye," said Elspet.
Interestingly, Elspet had heard of Daria, although what she'd heard about her had been garbled by either carelessness or malice. She'd heard of a strange, uncouth Ravenclaw girl from Texas who claimed to be a highlander—Daria suspected that her Barksdale cousins were at work—who had no business being at Hogwarts. Daria scowled, then politely told Elspet that her current hometown was named Highland, but that it was named after an American politician when the railroads were pushing their way across West Texas. She then told Elspet that Highland's economy mostly depended on ranching, the Veteran's Administration hospital and petroleum. That was when Daria learned that oil companies drilled offshore near some of the islands and that some of the oil workers were known to visit the islands on their time off. They did not have a good reputation: "They drink and carouse past midnight," Elspet said disapprovingly. She then asked Daria if any of her relatives were oil workers and was relieved to learn that they weren't.
"And your Highland," said Elspet, "how close is it to Pearland or Pasadena?"
"Hundreds of miles," said Daria. "I'd say that Highland is at least 450 miles from either place."
"Do any of the oil workers from Highland work on the ocean platforms?" said Elspet.
"I don't think so," Daria replied. "Most of them work on dry land. Besides, if they wanted to work on the rigs, they'd probably want to live near the water or a big airport."
Elspet thought about Daria's answer. Daria could see her processing the information and wondered what she'd make of it. Purebloods had some very weird ideas about how the Muggle world really worked.
"I see," said Elspet.
Elspeth then asked Daria about Highland's wizarding community. Daria told her what little she knew: that Highland's wizarding family was dominated by several large, extended families, and that those that weren't were usually people who'd moved there from somewhere else. Daria then told Elspeth that most Highland-area witches and wizards either went to Ilvermorny or the Instituto down in Campeche.
Elspeth was surprised to learn that some American magicals went to a Spanish-speaking school in Mexico, but relaxed when Daria told her that those that went there had grown up speaking Spanish.
"So why didn't you go to this Instituto?" said Elspet.
"I don't speak Spanish," said Daria.
-(((O-O)))-
With that, the conversation paused. Daria got up to use the bathroom. The loo in her car was in use so she used the vestibule to use the one in the next car.
She opened the door on the next car's vestibule, and sensed that she'd walked into trouble. Two boys were quarreling with each other and Daria could tell that the emotional temperature had passed the boiling point.
"Stay away from me and stay away from Alissa," said one of the boys, a tall, older boy wearing Hufflepuff colors.
"Alissa's mine, you shit," said the other one, an older Ravenclaw. "Alissa's my girl and I won't have you spreading any shite about her, me, or her friends."
The emotional temperature might not have set the kettle to boiling yet, but it was too high for Daria's comfort. With a Highland childhood's experience and instincts behind her, she decided that she wanted to be out of the blast zone if the boys started throwing spells at each other. She opened the nearest compartment and went in.
"You don't belong in here, Firstie," said an older boy. Daria turned around to see several Slytherins looking at her disapprovingly.
"I was looking for shelter," said Daria. "I'd rather not get hexed by those two idiots out in the corridor."
One of the boys, a brown-haired boy with the looks that Daria was learning to associate with English pure-bloods, studied her expression, then said "Which two idiots?"
"Older guys, Caucasians," said Daria. "One's a Ravenclaw, the other's a Hufflepuff. They're quarreling about some girl named Alissa. "They're pretty pissed off with each other. Where I come from, this is where they draw weapons and people duck for cover."
The Slytherin looked at his mates and grimaced. "Those bloody idiots," he said. "We should probably separate the two to keep them from blowing up the bloody carriage. Lowett, you should probably hunt up a prefect to help separate them." A couple of the boys stood up, drawing their wands. Crowding Daria over to the side, one of them opened the compartment and yelled "Oi, you two! Put your bloody wands down and shut it!". Despite her indignity, Daria noted that the older wizard had bulk and sounded scary.
That didn't silence the boys. The boy who pushed Daria aside raised his voice again. "I don't care about your bloody quarrel. I don't want to listen to your shite, so shut it!"
That seemed to get results. The corridor was silent.
"Lowett, get a prefect," said the first boy. "Firstie…"
"Thanks," said Daria. "G'Day." She left the compartment, then went back to her carriage. She found that the loo was free, did her business, then return to her compartment.
"Anything exciting happen on your excursion?" asked Anahita.
"A couple of older boys quarreling," said Daria. "It was getting ugly enough that I ducked into the nearest compartment to avoid becoming an incidental casualty if they pulled their wands."
Violet giggled, then raised her eyebrows. "Daria, is that something they say in your part of the world?" she said.
"Yeah," Daria reluctantly admitted.
"That sounds like something from a cowboy movie," said Violet.
"Some of the Highland wizards watch too many cowboy movies," Daria replied.
-(((O-O)))—
Daria got up again to look for Lita Ashworth. The Slytherin witch had asked her about the armed guards and added security at King's Cross Station and Daria figured that she owed the older girl an explanation. A walk up the train found Lita in an animated discussion with several other girls three cars up, causing to Daria decide that this was not the best time to interrupt. She returned to her compartment and, since a couple of the girls had dozed off, decided to pull out the copy of the Times she'd bought and started reading.
The Times had little in the way of good news. President Bush was demanding that the Iraqis withdraw from Kuwait while Saddam replied with saber-rattling. Diplomats and other parties tried to pour oil on troubled waters. The Allied military build-up continued, causing Daria to think of Colonel Bellows, the soldier she'd met on the flight from D—FW Airport to New York. Things were going to get scary for him. She then wondered about her schoolmates: did any of them have family in the British Army or the RAF? Were any of them related to people in Iraq waiting for a war to start? She felt something shiver and then felt a sinking feeling in her gut. War was coming: she was sure of it.
She put her newspaper down after she read the obituaries: mostly famous Britons whose names and accomplishments she hadn't recognized. She wasn't quite sure just when it occurred, but she dozed off not long afterwards. She slept until Dahlia nudged her awake.
"Daria, wake up! We're about fifteen minutes out from Hogsmeade station!" she said.
Daria roused herself, then started patting around her seat looking for anything she put down that she wanted to repack. There wasn't much except for a textbook, some notes, and the two Muggle magazines she'd bought in London. The train's public address system came on and Daria was relieved to learn that her trunk would be taken to the school. She would have hated to have wrestled her luggage off the train in the cold and dark
The train slowed to go around a curve and Daria caught a brief glimpse of the lights of Hogwarts Castle across the lake. The train then came to a halt at Hogsmeade station and Daria and everyone else got up to get off the train.
The weather was cold and a little windy when Daria stepped off the train. Hagrid was there. And he and the prefects directed Daria and the other students to the sleds waiting to carry them across the frozen surface of the lake back to school. Daria noted that they were being pulled by Thestrals, not horses; she wondered how many of her fellow students could see them.
Daria took a couple of deep breaths. Despite the chill, it was good to breathe the fresh air. She smiled: despite the commotion and scurry on the station platform and the loading area, it was beautiful and seemed peaceful, despite the war clouds gathering far away. For now, things around Hogwarts looked peaceful enough. She wondered how long the illusion would last.
Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl*Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl*Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl
Sorry about the long delay. I thought I'd be able to swing into finishing up Daria's first year at Hogwarts, but I had difficulty recovering my Wizarding mindset and the real world had lots of other distractions.
A word to my readers: I am using JK Rowling's canon Harry Potter dates. In Rowling's books, Harry Potter first came to Hogwarts on September 1st, 1991. The events that occurred in Daria Ravenclaw: The Year of the Owl happened during the previous school year.