I sighed, smiling fondly at the sight before me. The train station, old yet beautiful as always, is once again full of parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles and children. So, so many children. The hustle and bustle of the people is background noise at this point, I've heard it before. My suitcase is next to me with Snowflake's cat carrier on top. My cat mewled lightly, so I poked my fingers through the cage door to let her know it was alright. I'd take her out for some lap time once I got situated on the train. She nuzzled my fingertips. I smiled.
"I'll let you out soon, Snowy. Just a little longer, okay? Then I'll see if the Trolley Cart Lady has some cat treats for you." I whispered to her. She just purred back.
"Um… excuse me?" Someone asked from behind me. I turned around to see a small eleven year old staring up at me with wide, nervous, brown eyes. She could barely hold her owl carrier in her twig-like arms. Her cases were on a children's wagon next to her.
"Yes? Can I help you?" I asked, bending down to her height.
"Can you please help me get to Platform Nine and Three-quarters? My parents aren't magic and they don't know how to get there."
"You're Muggleborn, then?" She nodded furiously, her black afro bouncing furiously as she did so. I smiled at her. "So am I! I had a little trouble getting on the platform the first time, but a Wizarding family helped me out. I'm headed there now, so if you want to tag along, be my guest! Go grab your parents first, okay?" She nodded again and ran off to get her parents. After about a minute, she came back dragging two men by their hands towards me. They smiled at their daughter.
"This is Daddy and Papa!" The little girl exclaimed, grinning enough that a missing tooth showed in her smile.
"Olivia here tells me that you're going to the platform as well?" One man asked me, crossing his dark arms once his daughter, now known as Olivia, let go of his hand.
"Yessir, I am. I'm Muggleborn as well, so I know getting on the platform isn't easy the first time." I answered.
"Can I ask you to look after Olivia on the train? She's a bit of a handful with her boundless amounts of energy." The other man asked, scratching his beard with one finger.
"Of course, it's my pleasure to help out fellow students, whether they're returning or brand new."
"Thank you so much…" The first man trailed off, leaving me to finish for him.
"Aurelia Devereux."
"Thank you, Aurelia."
"It's my pleasure, Mr….?"
"Zacarias Cordell."
"Amos Cordell."
"It's my pleasure, Misters Cordell."
Olivia grabbed my hand, and started to tug. "Come on, come on! I don't want to be late!"
"Alright, alright, I'm coming. But don't you want to say goodbye to your dads first? You won't see them until Christmas." I asked, and Olivia dropped my hand and hugged her dads tightly.
"Bye Daddy! Bye Papa! I'll see you at Christmas!" She waved the two goodbye and took my hand again.
"To the platform we go!" She exclaimed. I chuckled as I loaded her cases on my cart.
"To the platform we go."
Not even minutes later, I had explained how the platform works to the eleven year old, and soon after we were both on the train, heading off to one of my favorite places on earth.
Good old reliable Hogwarts.
~o0o~
HERE'S THIS YEAR'S UPDATE. I REMEMBERED THE DATE AND I ALMOST MISSED IT. THE ONLY FANFIC I UPDATE ONCE A YEAR.
