2038, 1 September 10:30 AM, Kings Cross Station, London
"You have everything Arthur?" Mum asked as we strode briskly in through the main entrance.
"Yes Mum, I've double-checked Triple-checked in fact."
"Ach, leave the boy alone already Cathy. Everythin's fine. Even that rat of his is here."
Goldy was hidden inside the massive amounts of luggage I carried, along with most of my other magical items. My clothes, they were all in one bag, while everything else was in Uncle's Never-Ending suitcase. Most of the other bags were only there as a decoy. The suitcase had been a farewell present from Uncle Stew, or a good luck present if you looked at it from a different angle. I was grateful, cause it was definitely better to carry that then multiple massive, muggle bags.
The days after going to Diagon alley had been largely uneventful. Mum had freaked out a bit when I came home with Goldy, but she fell in love with him or her pretty fast. I wasn't quite sure about which to call Goldy just yet.
Uncle Stewart had disappeared for a day or two after our trip to Diagon Alley and had come back a bit different. When I asked about it, he just walked away without a word.
It was he who went back for my robes, and he had also bought some Animal Care stuff for Goldy.
"Where are we going exactly?" I asked. After all the secrecy I had discovered around the Wizarding World, I highly doubted they'd have a magical train smack-bang in the centre of London.
"Platform Nine and Three-Quarters." Aunt Anita told me.
"Why would they name it that?" I laughed.
Once more, what I thought was a joke, seemed to actually be the truth.
In a few minutes time, we were standing between Platforms Nine and Ten. No Nine and Three-Quarters.
"All Clear?" Mum asked.
"All Clear." Uncle Stew replied.
"Come on Arthur, Let's go."
She started pushing my cart as fast as she could, straight at the brick wall, dragging me along with them.
I tried braking with my heels, but my Uncle and Aunt helped in pushing it, and no matter what I tried, it was to no avail. My Family had finally gone insane, and we would hit a brick wall. A Broken Wrist, maybe a few teeth.
Clenching my eyes shut, I waited for impact, yet the sensation eluded me.
I felt the cart slow down, and opening my eyes, I found myself looking at a new Train Platform.
Platform Nine and Three Quarters. It said it right there, on a little sign hanging from the wall.
Wizards of all kinds milled around us pointy hats, chirps and croaks just as audible as the conversation of those around us.
"And we're here," Uncle Muttered.
"What's the time?" Mum asked.
"Ten Forty-two." Aunt Anita Replied.
"Perfect. We won't hold you up for long dear. Otherwise, you won't have enough space to sit down."
I smiled.
"Take Care, Arthur." She kissed me on the forehead.
"Yeah, lad. What yer mother said. Magic is a dangerous thing tae play with. But ye'll do fine."
"Don't scare the kid now Stew, now that he's finally here." Aunt Anita Scolded him.
"Oh, I'm not scared. Rather, Excited." I smiled.
"Alright, now go," Mum said, rubbing my shoulder.
And like that, I took my first step forward. Then another. I looked back to see my family waving me goodbye. I smiled at them once more, before stepping up onto the first carriage I found.
It was a long corridor, with doors leading off into compartments. Kids of My age and older were finding compartments with Friends or Family, or whoever.
I wondered where to sit. One thing I was sure about was that I didn't want to be known as the random kid that was obnoxious on the train. Sitting down in a group of strangers and starting to talk with them, was in my mind, extremely awkward.
That was something that'd get me few friends.
I remembered the Girl from Diagon Alley, the one who I had shoved to the ground. Sarah, I think her name was.
The problem was there were easily three hundred kids onboard this train with me. Where could I find-
"Hey."
My head whipped to the Person who had spoken beside me, whilst simultaneously jumping back a step or two.
It was Sarah.
"What- How?" I asked.
"What do you mean?" She was confused.
"It was just... The thought that I should find you had just popped into my head."
She chuckled.
"It's nice that you're thinking about me." She smiled.
"What no I- I..." I shook my head, seeing it was useless to explain. I could feel my face burning from the blush I had. "How did you find me?" I asked, to change the subject.
"Noticed your Uncle in the crowd. Walking over there, he recognized me too and told me where you are."
"Oh. Cool?"
"Come, a few of my friends have already taken a cabin. I'll introduce you to them."
Without waiting for a reply, she pulled me down multiple carriages and past twice as many cabins, all of them filled with people.
We stopped suddenly, making me nearly fall over.
"And... Here we are." She gestured with big movements.
The door slid to the side, and a boy poked his head outside.
"Ah, Sarah. I see you brought someone with you. Was this why you went back outside?"
"He's the guy I was talking about. Arthur." She told him.
We stepped inside, and I threw my stuff up onto the luggage rack.
Other than me and Sarah, there were Three others inside.
The Boy who had poked his head out a few moments ago stretched a hand to me.
"Nice to finally meet you, Arthur. Sarah literally hasn't shut up about meeting Stewart Graham since then-"
"Oh, Shut up George." She muttered, blushing.
"But as Miss Williams has just pointed out, my name is George. George Fisher."
The Second boy also shook my hand. He introduced himself as Charles Potter.
"Your Uncle and my Granddad work together." He told me.
"Really?"
"Yeah, my dad's James Potter, and his is Harry Potter."
"Huh, Interesting," I said, not knowing who either of them was. Still, I didn't want to seem like I knew nothing.
The Other girl didn't shake my hand, however, she told me her name. Rachel Turner.
I sat down next to Sarah.
"Is it correct that you're not too versed in the wizarding world?" Charles asked.
"I literally learnt of its existence last month."
"Ah."
"And what's your wand like?" George asked.
I pulled it out and showed it to him.
"Is that Red Oak?" He asked the moment he took it in his hands.
"How did you know?" I said, surprised.
"My Father is a small wandmaker. Not as big as Ollivander's, but he can make a living. Learnt some stuff from him while he was making wands by hand." He told me, never taking his eyes off of the thing.
"Huh, that's cool."
"And what core does it have?" He asked.
"Can't you see that, George?" Charles asked.
"Shush Charlie. I'm not a wandmaker, am I?"
"Something along the lines of Threstral Hair," I said, interrupting their bickering.
"Thestral Hair, you mean?" Sarah corrected me.
"Yeah, that."
Everybody stared at me wide-eyed.
"What?" I asked.
"Dude, you literally have the rarest core out there! How are you not excited?" Charles started wiggling in his seat.
"It's not that big of a deal, Charlie. A Wands a Wand." George told him, composing himself.
"Pfft. Coming from you? I don't believe it."
They argued a bit more about if it mattered or not, up until the train lurched into movement.
"We're off?" I asked.
"Yep. I can't wait!" Sarah told me.
"But Arthur, on another note. You've fitted into this gang pretty well-" George started.
"George, this isn't a gang." Rachel Laughed, "It's just a bunch of kids that Sarah bumped into years ago and made friends with."
"Sounds just like a gang."
A knock came on the door, and a boy stuck his face in, holding a toad in one hand and a bag in the other.
"Yes?" Charles asked.
"Hi, is there any space here? I can't find a good place to sit."
"Sure, come in," Sarah told him before anyone else could protest.
"Thanks." He smiled and came inside. He sat down in between Charles and George, holding the Toad in his lap.
"So, what's your name?" Rachel asked.
"Oh, yes... Sorry. It's Robin. And this here is Frank."
Frank the toad croaked.
I could see Charles Visually Recoil from the amphibian, and I could guess that he wasn't too thrilled about sitting next to it in general.
"So which house are you guys planning to join?" Robin asked, stroking Frank softly. It seemed like the warty thing was enjoying it.
"Me and Charles are going to go Gryffindor. Sarah's planning on Ravenclaw and... I'm not too sure about Rachel or Arthur." George said.
"Oh me, I can't decide to be honest. I'll let the hat decide instead of me." Rachel said.
Everyone looked at me.
"I'm not sure about what the houses are."
"Really? Come on! Everyone knows about them." Robin said.
"Mate, he's new to everything around him."
"Muggle Born?"
"Nope just kept away from wizards," I told him.
"Ah. Well, in that case, I'm also planning on going Gryffindor."
"That's... Nice." Charles said, his eyes never leaving the Toad.
"You're looking at Frank weirdly? You wanna hold him a bit?" Robin asked, picking it up and putting it in Charles' lap before he could complain.
He stiffened instantly, not a muscle moved. I could see his face getting paler, and sweat dripping down his face.
"You might not want to do that. Charlie's afraid of Toads." Sarah muttered. It seemed like George had also known this information, but he was enjoying Charlie's Expressions too much to say a word.
"Oh, they're totally fine. Look there's nothing wrong with them."
He once again picked up Frank and held it up to his face. A squeak escaped Charles' mouth.
Robin moved it an inch closer, and Charlie slapped the Toad out of his hands and ran out the door. He stood outside, wiping sweat off of his face, and gasping for air.
All of us burst out laughing, except for Robin, who didn't understand what he had done wrong.
"That was not a nice move! NOT NICE!" Charlie yelled through the closed door.
"Wash your face off and come back!" George shouted back.
Charlie stamped off, more angry than scared now.
We talked for a few hours about various magic-based things, most of which I needed an explanation for, but Sarah provided those without protest.
A Trolley pushed past our door, laden with sweets that looked too nice to not try. I had been given a small pouch of coins to spend on stuff. If on anything, I'd spend it on that.
"Ah, Sweets! Come on, let's get some. Arthur, you have to try these." George told me. He opened the door and asked the old lady to stop.
The six of us together bought a horde of sweets anyone would envy. I was surprised the cart wasn't empty after the amount we bought.
I got given a tutorial on what a chocolate frog was, but they seemed to have left out the part where the Chocolate inside is actually alive and jumps out.
They laughed at my shocked expression, and I was so distracted by laughing along with them, that it jumped away and started making friends with Frank.
Not wanting to kill Frank's Friend, I left them like that. A Chocolate Frog, relaxing on the Green Toad.
Hours went by. Eating Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, and laughing at reactions was what was my favourite. That is until I had the unfortunate luck of picking a Soap Flavoured one. I could still feel it in the back of my throat when we had stopped.
I hadn't been the unluckiest in that game though. Rachel had gotten a Dirty Sock flavour, which she instantly spat out upon tasting it.
My sides were hurting from laughter by the end of it. I knew that these people would be my friends for a long time to come.
It was becoming night outside, and lights came on in the corridor.
"Where even is this place?" I asked.
"What place?" Robin asked back.
"Hogwarts."
"Huh, now that's a hard question. You see, it's Unplottable. You can't find it on a map, or really anyway else unless you know where to find it." Sarah told me.
"That's stupid."
"It has its uses." She told me.
"Okay, but whereabouts is it then?"
"Scotland. Near Aberdeen, I'd say."
"Wait, you serious?" I asked.
"Of course. Why?"
"It would've been easier to travel from Glasgow to Hogwarts, than going all the way to London and going by train."
"You live in Glasgow? You're Scottish?" Charles asked.
"No, I'm English. According to my Mum, I grew up in Oxford."
"Ah, so that's why you don't have an accent then," George said, "Explains a lot."
"Yeah. My Uncle does though. Why it's only him though, I have no idea..."
"That's interesting. But to answer your question, you technically can't travel to Hogwarts by yourself. Only through by the Hogwarts Express."
"But why?"
"So Muggles don't see you, my guy. That's not a good thing to go through. Ministry comes down on you like a sledgehammer." George told me.
"The Ministry?"
"Ministry of Magic. Every country has one. They are the Government for the Witches and Wizards of the Country. "
"But can't they see this train?"
"Nope. Enchanted. Everyone going there individually, that'd be harder to cover up. Not everyone is wealthy enough to buy a broom or an enchanted vehicle. And apparating with children is a bad idea if you want clean shoes. Not to mention the fact that my dad says you can't apparate there for protective measures."
"Now what's-"
"Please no more questions!" Charlie said, "You'll learn everything as you go."
"Sorry..." I muttered.
Silence fell upon the cabin, which was interrupted by a knock on the door.
A Familiar face stared through it, though I couldn't figure out where it was familiar from.
Blonde hair, Green Eyes. Pouty Lips.
George Slid open the cabin door.
"Yeah?" He asked bluntly.
"I know you." He pointed at me.
"So do we." George replied sarcastically, "As you can see, we're full so..."
"Your Uncle nearly started a Fight with my Grandpa." He clenched his fists.
Now I knew where he was familiar from. The Book shop.
"You're..."
"Claudius Malfoy. You know your Uncle is a liar, who just wants to hurt my family, right?"
"I... Uhm." I was taken aback by the sudden sharpness his words had.
"That's enough, it was nice talking to you Cloudy. Now bye."
George closed the door in the face of the boy. He stared at me for a few more minutes, before storming off.
"What's his problem?" Rachel asked.
"He's a Malfoy," George said as if that explained everything.
Seeing that I didn't get what that meant, he turned to me.
"The Malfoys are a very Famous, so-called Pure-Blooded wizard family. Lucius Malfoy, this Dipshit's Great-Grandfather, was a Deatheater for Voldemort. He was Pardoned after the Second Wizarding war, due to him giving away information about his fellow Deatheaters. Fairly certain that's what your Uncle's Problem was with his Grandfather. Draco Malfoy. He was a Deatheater too, but was pardoned like his father."
"Oh."
"How do you know all this?" Sarah asked.
"Mister Ollivander was kidnapped and imprisoned in the Malfoy's Manor back during the War. He still holds a grudge against them, and won't sell them wands, so the Malfoy's come to my father for wands. He was just talking about how Stewart Graham was a prick that day, so my guess is he was coming from there."
"That just shows how small the world is," Charlie muttered, "By the Way, just out of interest, when do we get there?"
Nobody answered, and Rachel rolled her eyes.
It was sooner than anyone expected. Another half an hour, and the train screeched to a stop.
We grabbed our stuff and stepped off onto the platform.
I noticed Claudius in the Crowd of People churning on the platform. His Shining Blonde hair was like a lamp in the night.
"Firs'-Years! Firs'-Years, over here!" It was the gruff, accented voice of a man. I saw a lamp swinging above the mass of children. That's where the voice was coming from.
We started walking that way, but it was so dark I could hardly see anything other than that single light. It surprised me when I bumped into a wall of fur, smelling of day-old meat.
"Hey, watch where you're goin'." Muttered the wall of fur, and I jumped back.
"I- I'm sorry." The Heavily Graying bearded face of a man illuminated above us. This man was a giant or something along those lines.
"Don' be afraid. I'm the Groundskeeper. Won' Hur' nobody."
"Okay, I'm sorry," I said, looking down at the ground.
Ten minutes passed, and only we were left on the platform by then. The First Years.
"Alrigh'. Follow me."
"Where are we going?" A boy asked from the crowd.
"To Hogwarts of course!"
"But why aren't we taking the same path as the others?" This time it was a girl.
"Why d'all firs' years ask so many questions? Issa secre'. You'll see soon 'nuff."
We followed the Giant man, at first walking along the path the others had obviously taken, but there were steps to the side, leading down to a massive glistening lake. That's where our journey continued. I could see a dozen or so boats bobbing in the water.
"We're going by boat?"
"Yep. I'll be fun, you'll see."
"Isn't it dangerous, without a life vest?" A Kid asked.
"Whatsa life ves'?" The Giant man asked.
I chuckled to myself but realized that his question was genuine a moment later. I had to stop laughing at things I found funny. They always turned out to be true.
We sat down in the boats.
"Alrigh'! Does everyone know how to row a boa'?"
It was much easier to see, now that there was more than one light. Every boat had a lantern on it.
A few hands went up into the air. There was at least one on each boat.
"Good 'nuff." He muttered and sat down in the largest boat of all of them. He easily took up half the room in it, and the other half was filled with first years.
All of us grabbed an oar and started following the lead boat.
"Jus' follow my ligh', and nothin'll go wrong." He shouted.
Moonlight glistened on the surface of the lake, and I took a moment to take in the scene. Absolutely stunning. I couldn't see the outline of the school, only the glowing windows.
The journey across this lake was over in the blink of an eye, and we soon found ourselves bumping against the docks. The entire thing was in a hidden cave, under the school.
The Giant helped us out of the boats, and we continued walking. I could feel my arms aching now, which I wasn't too happy about.
A short trip up stone steps brought us to the large entrance of a Castle. The size of the thing was covered by the darkness of night, but even from what I could see, it was big enough to make me gasp.
"In a line now. Hurry up. We're a bi' la'e." The Giant told us, and we quickly stood into the line. "And follow me."
A short distance later and we stood in front of closed wooden doors, strengthened with iron.
The doors opened as if by magic, which I then realized was most probably the truth.
A Hall, filled with students came into our field of view. At the far end was a long table, where I could see older people sit, the Teachers.
Everyone gasped as we entered, seeing the monstrosity of the chamber. Thousands of Candles floated in the air, and the roof seemed to not exist. It was as if there was a perfect view straight to the night sky. The moon glowed brightly. Now that... That was awesome.
"Come on now."
Our steps were much slower as we walked down the aisle that was made between tables. Two on each side, with each one decorated in a different colour. Yellow, Blue, Red and Green.
One woman stood up from the table and grabbed a cone. She wore the pointy witches hat, straight from a children's story, like so many other witches that I had seen in Diagon Alley and on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.
"Welcome First Years! Come on now, let's not keep everyone else waiting." I recognized the voice of the Witch as the one that had visited us on my birthday.
We picked up the pace and stopped in front of her. A silence befell the chamber.
"As I said, Welcome new students, to Hogwarts. To start off we will do the Sorting Ceremony, where the Sorting hat-" She held up the cone, which I now realized was, in fact, a worse-for-wear wizard hat, "Will decide which house you belong in. It will read your thoughts and traits and decide according to those. Now let us listen to the-"
A startled yelp stopped the Headmistress from finishing. With a splat, Frank the Toad landed on the floor.
Not a moment later Robin pounced on him like he was a wildcat. He looked at the Giant man, then the Headmistress. I could hear stifled laughter from both us and the crowd.
The Moment I heard Charlie snicker silently, I couldn't help myself and giggled along with him.
"I'm sorry..." Robin muttered, standing up.
"While the ceremony is in progress, I'll take that off your hands, Mister..."
"Robin... Colton."
"Mister Colton, please hold out your Toad."
Robin showed his outstretched hands to the Headmistress, who whipped out her wand, and pointed it at the amphibian. Robin flinched as she waved her wand.
I thought she'd explode it or something.
Instead, it morphed into a Goblet. Still cool, although anticlimactic.
"What?" I heard Rachel splutter.
"There. Now please stand back in line. Come over to me after the Ceremony and you'll get him back in his full Toadyness."
He nodded, and held the goblet, standing back in line.
"Anyway, we'll now listen to the Sorting Hat's song!" The headmistress told us.
I looked on, confused, as she placed the pointed hat on a stool.
Thinking this was some sort of inside joke played on all first years, I started smiling.
Then the Hat Burst into song.
Oh, a Ratty Hat I am,
Old, dusty and tattered,
But with age comes Wits and Wisdom,
Of which the likes you have never seen.
Come put me on, young students,
And learn of your upcoming House,
Do not worry about me,
I have not a single Louse.
With the decision, I will make,
It will decide here, your fate,
For I can see your thoughts and memories, oh so deep,
And with those, you shall not weep.
Will you be a Gryffindor?
Bravery in your being, Chivalrous and Courageous.
But with brave deeds come dangers,
Which are never foreseen.
Or are you rather a Ravenclaw?
Witty and keen to learn?
But even the best of mind must come to term,
That knowing everything is only a dream.
A Hufflepuff might suit you best,
Loyal to the bone, and patient beyond compare,
Friends of such folk, they are the luckiest of all,
But Saving a loved life is the hardest test of loyalty.
Slytherin is last if the others aren't for you,
Cunning minds gather there, and great wizards rise,
Yet be aware, that if you join this house,
The History behind it leaves a mark, that only you can choose to correct.
Here my song is coming to an end,
And as this old hat says his last words of the ode,
Have a fantastic time at Hogwarts!
And keep hold of that Toad!
The Song finished, and everyone clapped. I joined in.
How did the hat know about Robin's Toad? Or did it just make it up on the spot?
"Alright! The first student can come. Adams- Iris Adams!" The Headmistress told us as the clapping came to an end. She was reading off of a roll of parchment.
A Girl with shoulder-length red hair stepped forward and looked at the hat fearfully.
"Don' Worry 'bou' i'. Perfec'ly safe." The Giant man told her. His accent was interesting and becoming harder to understand.
She nodded and sat down on the stool.
The Hat was placed on her head, and I could hear humming, as the hat thought.
"RAVENCLAW!" It Exclaimed, a few seconds later and the girl stood up and walked to the table waving and cheering for her. They were dressed in blue.
One by one the people in front of me disappeared, each one being assigned into a house. George and Robin had both gone before me, and both had been sorted into Gryffindor.
Then it was my turn.
I stepped forward, and slowly walked over to the hat.
"Don't worry, Mister Graham." The Headmistress muttered to me as she noticed me hesitating.
Sitting down, I felt the heavy hat being placed on my head and sliding down, covering my eyes.
Instantly I could hear voices in my head. I closed my eyes.
"Another Graham, Huh? Pretty big family there. The last one of your family had gone to Slytherin. But you? You're special."
"Special?" I thought.
"Yes. This is something I've never found in my years. It's sometimes hard to decide between two houses, but all four?"
I didn't understand what the problem was.
"Is that a problem?"
"Not at all. I feel you're a Ravenclaw deep down, yet I can also picture you in any of the others. Incredibly strange."
I thought about it for a bit, recalling the Hat's song.
"You remember my family? Where did my Uncle go?"
"Stewart Joshua Graham? Gryffindor."
The lyrics of the song came back to me.
It was decided.
"I want to join that one, if possible. Please."
"Are you sure? I sense you'd do best in Ravenclaw. So much potential."
"I'm one hundred percent sure."
"Very well-" I heard it take a deep breath, which I didn't know hats needed to do, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The Hat was slowly lifted from my head, but there was no clapping or cheering. I looked at the Headmistress. She was looking at me with eyes wide open.
"A Hatstall for Gryffindor!" She exclaimed after a few seconds.
Then the cheering started. I joined the table that was decorated with red and gold.
A Boy much older than me, and wearing a badge with the letter P on it, greeted me with a handshake.
"Thomas Evergreen. Gryffindor Prefect. Welcome to the house!" He smiled.
"Thanks." I smiled back.
A Girl the same age as Thomas, and also wearing the same Badge waved at me. I smiled back, before sitting down beside George.
The rest of the ceremony ended quickly. Charles had also joined Gryffindor, Sarah had gotten Ravenclaw and Rachel Hufflepuff.
"With the Sorting Ceremony coming to the end, I wish to say a few words before the start of the Banquet. First of all, I wish to officially welcome all of our First Years, once again, to Hogwarts. and I hope you enjoy your stay here. From this point on, you are a part of the house you joined until you leave Hogwarts in the Seventh Year. Listen to the Prefects of your House, for their job is to help you. I also recommend listening to your Older Housemates, for they have much more experience, that I'm fairly sure they're willing to share. I'm also certain your prefects will tell you all the rules, and if they didn't have that in mind, please take it into consideration now." That part felt like it was pointed towards someone, "Onto more important information-" She cleared her throat, "The Forbidden Forest is off-limits, even more so than ever before. Professor Hagrid-" She pointed at the Giant, who bowed his head, "Will take special care in keeping this rule in effect. Furthermore, you will notice a massive influx of visitors over the course of the School Year. They are Aurors and other workers of the Ministry of Magic. They will be conducting tests on our School's Integrity this year. Be on your best behaviour, and be polite to the Ministry Workers. Let them do their job undisturbed, if possible."
She looked around at the table of teachers, all of them shook their heads.
"We also have our team of Teachers still here. One new addition is Professor Bradley Finch! He will be helping Professor Hagrid to keep all of you safe during your Care for Magical Creatures Lessons. This was requested by Professor Hagrid. But as far as I know, this is all I had to say. MAY THE BANQUET BEGIN!"
She flicked her wand, and instantly a mindbogglingly massive amount of food appeared on all tables.
My eyes widened.
"Come on, take whatever you fancy, or there'll be none left for you," Thomas told me, elbowing my shoulder.
I started shovelling food onto my plate.
Ten minutes went by before my first questions began coming up.
"Hey, Thomas?"
"Tom's enough, but yeah?"
"What does it mean to be a Hatstall?"
"It means the Sorting hat takes a long time to sort you into a house because there are multiple places it can sort you into."
"I wasn't even under there that long?"
"You think?" He raised an eyebrow.
I thought back on the events sitting on the chair.
"Well, maybe two minutes or so..." I muttered.
"Try Ten."
"Ten?"
"Time goes fast when you don't count the seconds."
I snorted, thinking about how absurd it was, before tucking back into a chicken leg.
Looking around the table, I couldn't help but smile. A Dirty Joke flew past one of my ears, a laugh past the other. The entire table felt like one big family. One that I was now a part of.
I was already in love with this place.