Chapter
Three
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T |
he next morning was
fairly uneventful. After a small bit of confusion, they made it to King's Cross
Station right on time. Once Danielle figured out how to use a Muggle telephone,
they phoned a local cab company and had them send a cab to the record store
right beside the Leaky Cauldron. The train left at 11:00 and they got to the
station at 10:33, which made Anna smile.
They quickly went through the barrier to Platform 9 ¾. A
very regal scarlet steam engine stood there with many people milling about,
pushing carts and some even carrying cages with owls of all kinds, hooting to
one another. Some of the students had even changed into their Hogwarts robes
already.
Anna looked around for anyone she might recognize. Right
away she spotted the silver-blond headed kid. He was standing with his arms
crossed, and that same sneer on his face. He seemed to think he was so much
better than everyone else around him. Two very large boys stood behind him.
They looked like bodyguards, but Anna assumed they must be friends since no one
else was really near them.
Then she saw Harry Potter and the two other people from
her dream. Also with them were three others. Two tall, muscular boys who looked
about 16 or 17 and a shorter girl in curly pig tails. The two boys were
identical, and all three of them had the same bright red hair as the boy from
Anna's dream.
"Well, here we are," said Danielle, breaking Anna's
thought. "Oh, it seems like just last week that it was me passing through that
barrier, excited about going back to school, my home away from home. You'll
love it there, Anna, trust me. That magic school in America is nothing
compared to Hogwarts."
"I know, mum, and I am excited, really," said Anna,
putting on her British accent. "I'm just worried, that's all."
"I know, sweetie, I know," said Danielle, pushing Anna's
hair out of her face and pulling her into a tight one armed hug. "It'll be
alright. You can write to me if you need anything. That is why I gave you an
owl, you know."
"Okay," sighed Anna, smiling a bit. She couldn't help but
trust her mother. After all, her mom was all she really had left. "You've got
to promise to write to me, too, okay?" asked Anna, looking up at her mother.
"I promise," said Danielle, kissing Anna on the forehead.
The train whistle blew, making everyone on the platform
jump.
"Well, run along, now. You don't want to miss the train.
Have fun! Drop me an owl a.s.a.p.!" Danielle called out, waving at her daughter
and she pulled her trunk towards the train.
A boy in dread locks helped Anna pull her trunk up into
the train. He introduced himself as Lee Jordan but didn't stick around for
long. Anna walked down the isle way of the train, searching for an empty compartment.
She finally found one, near the back of the car, pulled her trunk and cage in
and slid the door shut behind her.
Anna sat down by the window with January's cage on her
lap.
"How'd you like to be my new best friend, January?" Anna
asked the owl, still speaking in a British tongue. January cooed
affectionately. "You can teach me to fly and we'll soar away from Hogwarts,
over the clouds, and back to my home in America. You'd love it there, it's
absolutely wonder—"
The door to the compartment slid open suddenly and in
walked Harry Potter himself, talking so animatedly to his friends that he
didn't even notice Anna sitting there.
"Oh, hello," he said smiling. "Sorry, I didn't see you
there. I'm Harry Potter, this is Hermione Granger," he gestured towards the
girl, "and Ron Weasley. This is our usual compartment. You don't mind if we sit
here, do you?"
"Oh, no, go ahead, I'll leave," Anna said, almost
forgetting her accent. She stood up to get her trunk.
"You can sit with us if you'd like," said Hermione.
"Harry didn't mean that you had to leave! Please, sit with us, we'd love the
new company."
"Oh, ok, thank you," smiled Anna, sitting back down.
"What's your name? You're new around here, aren't you?"
asked Ron.
"Yes. My name is Anna Morgan. I used to live here, but my
family moved to America when I was seven. We just moved back a couple days
ago. I heard Hogwarts is the best
wizarding school in the world," she said, turning the subject away from herself.
"Oh, it is. We love it there," said Hermione. "The
teachers are wonderful; I'm at the top of all of my classes."
"She's a know-it-all, honestly," laughed Harry playfully.
Anna
smiled. It felt so strange to be sitting there with Harry Potter. Harry
Potter. It just didn't all click together for some reason.
As
the train began moving, the compartment door slid open again. This time it was
the two other boys who were standing outside the train with Harry and his
friends.
"Hello,
there!" one said.
"Made
a new friend, have ya, Ron?" the other asked, smiling at Anna.
"Yes,
actually, is that so surprising?" said Ron playfully. "These are my two idiot
brothers, Fred and George," Ron said to Anna. Each waved at his name. "This is
Anna Morgan," back to the twins. "She's from America. She's in… actually, you
never told us what year you're in."
"Oh,
sorry. I'm in the fifth year," said Anna.
"Just
an ickle fifth year… tut, tut, tut," joked George, shaking his head. "Too bad
you can't be seventh with us. Seventh years have all the fun."
"Oh,
I believe I'll be having fun, thank you very much," Anna laughed.
"You've
got a jolly good accent for an American," said Fred, winking at Anna.
"Well,
that's because I'm a jolly ol' Londoner," Anna said, in the purest cockney that
she could manage. She winked playfully back at Fred. "I moved to America when I
was eight."
"Jolly
well, jolly well," laughed Fred.
"Well,
we'll be going now. Just wanted to pop by and say hello. See you later!" said
George, leaving the compartment.
"Cheerio!"
said Fred, winking again and waving. Anna waved back and smiled, deciding one
wink was enough for today.
"You're
in the fifth year?" asked Harry.
Anna
nodded. She was feeling more comfortable now.
"That's
good. That's the same as us."
"Do
you know what house you'll be in?" asked Ron.
"Oh,
I already got a letter telling me I'd be in Gryffindor."
"Even
better!" laughed Harry.
"Why
is that?" Anna asked, chuckling at his out burst.
"Because
we're in Gryffindor!" cut in Ron.
"Awesome!"
said Anna, accidentally using the American word.
"Awesome…
that's a new one," said Hermione. "I like it." She even laughed a bit, too.
The
four talked like old friends, gabbing over anything they could think of. Anna
watched the scenery from the train window. She noticed how it grew scrubbier by
the minute. In the middle of the train ride, a rather tubby witch pushing a
food cart came by. They all bought a glass of butter beer, some cauldron cakes
and chocolate frogs. Anna swapped some of the collector's cards with Ron. Not that
he had any she didn't already have.
By
the time they reached the station in Hogsmeade, Anna was about to burst with
excitement. She wasn't even at school yet and she'd made friends. And with
Harry Potter, no less. She was sure these were the "right people" her mother
had been talking about.
"Where
is it? I heard it's a castle! Can you see it from here?" Anna was standing on
her tippy toes and jumping up and down trying to get a glimpse of Hogwarts.
Harry
put his hands on her shoulders. "Calm down, Anna! You can't see it from here.
We have to ride in little carriages to get there."
"Oh,"
Anna laughed. "Sorry for making such a fuss about it, then. I'm just so
excited!" Anna clenched her fist and jumped up again.
"Don't
worry about it, we were just as excited as you are, believe me," laughed Ron.
The
four of them found a carriage. Anna kept her nose pressed against the window,
waiting for her first view of the castle.
Right
as they were about the come up to it, Harry put his hands over Anna eyes.
"Oo!
Not fair, not fair!" she effortlessly pulled his hands away and saw Hogwarts in
all its glory. The two magnificent towers, all the flying buttresses and the
windows! Oh, my, the windows! All that escaped Anna was a very weak, "Wow…"
The
other three just laughed, remembering having the same reaction.
Anna
jumped out of the carriage as they pulled up to the huge stone steps. The
massive oak doors at the top flew open, and they had to run to keep up with
Anna. As she neared the top, she slowed down to a walk, with her hands clasped
over her chest. Another "Wow," leaked out of her as they walked into the Great
Hall. Anna pointed up at the ceiling, but before she could say anything
Hermione answered her question.
"It's
bewitched. It looks just like the sky outside."
"Oh,
awesome," Anna said, completely in awe.
They
took their seats at a table under a very large scarlet and gold flag, the
Gryffindor table. They sat down next to Fred and George, and Anna was also
introduced to Ron's sister Ginny, the pigtailed girl that was with them
earlier. She is only in the fourth year.
Suddenly
Anna saw the silver-blond headed boy standing with his cronies by a table under
a green and silver flag. He was wearing his familiar sneer, and smiled even
broader when he locked eyes with Anna. She looked away quickly.
"Who
is that boy over there?" Anna pointed to him, ducking behind Harry's shoulder.
"Who?"
asked Harry, half way standing up to get a better look.
"That
boy with the really light blond hair. He's got two rather large fellows
standing by him. Do you see him?"
"Yes,
unfortunately," sighed Harry, sitting back down.
"Why,
who is it?" Anna asked.
"Yeah,
who's she talking about?" asked Hermione.
"Draco
Malfoy." Anna recognized that name. Hagrid had been talking about him in the
Leaky Cauldron the day before.
"Oh,
ugh," said Hermione in total disgust.
"Who
is he?" asked Anna, wondering what the big deal was.
"He's
a great bullying git, that's who he is," said Ron, his face almost as contorted
as Hermione's.
"Well,"
started Harry, "for one, he's in Slytherin. Their lot isn't exactly fond of us.
Like wise for our lot. For two, ever since we got here, he's been nothing but a
bother. Making his snide little remarks, with all his many followers behind him.
Thinks he's Lord Voldemort or something."
Ron
cringed. "Harry…"
"Oh,
sorry, Ron," said Harry.
"It's
alright, just please, stop. You know I hate when you do that."
"I
know, I know. I'm sorry!"
"Why
do you hate it so much? I mean, I know everyone is scared of him and
everything, but I mean, Harry has a right to say the name doesn't he?" asked
Anna. "I mean, after all he's been through."
"Yes,
we know," said Hermione, "but last year, with You-Know-Who rising up again, it
just is worse, I guess."
Anna
nodded sympathetically. What else could she do?
"You
heard what happened, didn't you?" Hermione continued. "It was all over the
Daily Prophet."
"Yeah,
I remember reading about it the day after term ended actually."
"Dumbledore
still hasn't convinced everyone at the Ministry that You-Know-Who is back in
full power. I don't think even he knows anymore. Over the whole summer not a
thing happened, so maybe he didn't. But like I said, who knows. If Dumbledore
doesn't, it's for sure that no one else does."
The
hall fell silent and a very stern looking witch placed a stool in the front of
the hall and then sat a very ragged old wizard's hat on it. Just as Anna was
about to lose interest, the hat began to sing. She couldn't understand everything
that it said. The just of it, however, was like a story, about the four witches
and wizards that founded Hogwarts and the four different houses. As soon as it
finished it became a plain old hat again.
"What
was that?" Anna whispered to Hermione.
"The
sorting hat. Every year it has a different song. Now all the first years,"
Hermione pointed to a row of young children that Anna hadn't even noticed,
"will sit on the stool, put the hat on their head, and it will tell them what
house they are supposed to be in."
"Oh,
I get it. That's very interesting. At my old school we just slept with our
year. The girls with the girls and the boys with the boys of course. We didn't
have houses, though."
Hermione
just shrugged.
The
sorting was a long and rather tedious ceremony. Each table clapped when someone
was accepted into their house.
After
the sorting everyone cheered very wildly. The hall became quiet again, this
time very abruptly. Everyone's head turned to look up at a high table. Anna
followed suit.
A
tall, thin wizard in purple robes studded with bright yellow stars stood with
his hand in the air as though he were stopping traffic.
"That's
Dumbledore," Hermione whispered in Anna's ear.
"I
know, I've read about him, too," she whispered back.
Dumbledore's
long white hair nearly hit the floor, and the same with his beard. He had on
the smallest spectacles, in the shape of half moons, it seemed. Behind them
Anna could see his brilliant blue eyes, even from where she was sitting. They
twinkled with more magic than Anna thought there could be in the whole school.
Once he knew that he had everyone's attention he began speaking.
"Welcome,
welcome, welcome!" he said very cheerfully. He opened his arms wide as though
he were embracing everyone in the room. "Welcome to a new and exciting year at
Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Will you all please stand and join
me in singing the school song. Pick any tune you like!" The old wizard pointed
his wand into the air and little gold sparks arranged themselves into words.
"Any
tune?" Anna asked, quite puzzled.
"Any
tune," said Ron.
Anna
chose the death march. She sang deep and slow, and was surprised when she heard
Fred and George singing to the same tune. They all just laughed and sang even
louder.
The
three were the last to finish with Dumbledore following along with his wand.
When they were finally done, he clapped with the rest of the school.
"Bravo,
bravo!" he cheered. "I have a few announcements before we begin the feast.
First of all, I would like to welcome all the first years to Hogwarts."
Everyone clapped again. "And," he continued, yelling over the applause. When it
stopped he went on, "I would also like to welcome Miss Anna Morgan. If you
would please stand up, Anna."
Anna
blushed, and with the group's encouragement, stood up smiling and waved.
The
hall broke into applause again.
"Thank
you, Anna," Dumbledore said, and Anna sat down. "Anna is joining us from
America. I trust you will all make her feel right at home. Furthermore, I would
like to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Mr. Emrick
Giovanni." More applause. "I would like to remind you that the Forbidden Forest
on the edge of the grounds, is well, forbidden. And, to conclude, as I don't
want to keep you from your feast any longer than I have to, there will be a
curfew this term. You must be in your common rooms by 10 o' clock each night."
Instead of applause, there were moans and groans from every corner of the room.
"That will be enough," said Dumbledore, though not at all angrily. "The curfew
is to your benefit, due to our rather unfortunate events that occurred last
term. And now, without any further adieu, let the feast begin!"
Anna
looked down at the table as many wonderful foods of all kinds appeared. She
filled her plate up with all her favorites and ate heartily. The group chatted
about the new term and the new curfew ("I bet George and I'll break it before
the second night!").
Once
everyone had finished Dumbledore reminded them of the curfew and then sent them
up to their common rooms for the night.
They
walked up the stairs to the portrait, laughing at Anna as she fell through the
trick step they accidentally forgot to mention. They climbed through the portrait hole and
grabbed seven red armchairs in front of the fire.
They
all talked about the next day and told Anna about the teachers.
"Wait
till we have potions, Anna. Ugh, you'll hate it," said Ron, looking even more
disgusted than he had about Draco Malfoy.
"Why?"
Anna asked. "Potions has always been one of my favorite classes."
"Not
this year. We have the worst teacher. Snape." He cringed as though saying the
name made his skin crawl. "He's a great, greasy slime ball, and that's being
nice about it."
Anna
laughed. "Oh, I can't wait," she said very sarcastically.
They
stayed up till almost midnight talking. When they finally went up to their
dorms, Anna laid in her four poster and just smiled to herself.
This day couldn't have been more perfect, she thought, and let herself fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.