DISCLAIMER: Ms. JK Rowling owns the characters and most places in this story. Anything unfamiliar to you is mine.
Chapter 3: Aboard Hogwarts Express
"The dinner was awesome." Ron said as he dropped himself on the faux leather orange sofa in the apartment's living room. Hermione and Ginny prepared a sumptuous dinner for the four of them because Ginny would go back to Hogwarts at eleven o'clock the next day.
Hermione and Ginny followed the two boys into the room and placed four bottles of butterbeer on the coffee table.
"There's more?" Ron asked. He looked at Hermione and smiled at her. It's the first time the four of them actually got together alone. Though he's been dating her since their sixth year at Hogwarts, Ron always thought of Hermione as academic but never domestic.
Harry grabbed his bottle of butterbeer and sat on the mint green lounge chair near the window. Ron watched him as he gulp the drink, bottoms up. When Hermione and Ginny went out to the balcony to watch the people walking in the alley, Ron took the liberty of asking Harry what's bothering him.
"I don't know, Ron. I'm sort of confused these days." Harry shrugged. "I guess maybe because it's our first year away from Hogwarts."
"Well, yes. I think of it sometimes." He answered. "But are you sure that's all that's bothering you?"
He looked at Harry, closely following his gaze from the sky to his sister outside.
Harry nodded slowly and stood up. "I better go to sleep. We need to get up early to take Ginny to King's Cross." And he disappeared behind his bedroom door.
Ron looked at Hermione and Ginny. As for him, he knew exactly what was bothering his best friend.
They were outside the Leakey Cauldron, in the Muggle London side waiting for a cab to take them to King's Cross. Though Harry, Ron and Hermione can now use magic freely, Ginny is still covered by the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery that is why they chose to go to King Cross the normal way.
"Okay, Ginny, you go first." Ron said as they approached the barrier to Platform 9 ¾ . Each of them got in so that nobody would notice. Harry was the last to go into the barrier. Ginny was already putting her stuff in the train when he crossed.
"Ginny!" A boy's voice came from behind Harry and that too familiar flash followed. Without even looking at who owns that voice, Harry already knew that it was Colin Creevey.
"Oh, hello Colin!" Ginny waved and smiled at the tall boy with wavy blond hair.
"Harry! Ron! Hermione! So good to see you again!" And without warning, another flash came from Colin's camera.
"Nothing much has changed, huh, Colin?" Ron said, throwing a knowing look at Harry.
Colin just shrugged. The red train honked meaning it would be leaving soon. "Gotta get it. See you, Ron, Hermione, and Harry." Another flash and Colin went up the train.
"Go get in Ginny." Hermione said. "Take care of yourself and owl us as soon as you get there, okay?"
"Say hello to Professor McGonagall for me." Ron added.
Ginny hugged Hermione first and then Ron. Harry was making a move to hug her when Colin's head popped out of the train. "Jump in, Ginny!"
Ginny just smiled at him and waved. Harry did the same and muttered "Take care." And Ginny went in.
The train slowly moved and they saw Ginny through the window, with Colin. Both waved furiously at them, not stopping until the train disappeared northwards.
"Let's go." Ron said and wrapped his arms around Hermione's shoulders.
Harry couldn't make himself move. He gaze still in the horizon. A cold hand seem to squeeze his heart really hard. Specially after seeing Ginny with Colin inside the train.
"Are you coming Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Y-yeah." And Harry finally tore his gaze from the distant smoke of the steam engine.
"Excited about being Head Girl?" Colin asked her as the train moved towards the north.
"Very." Though she's ecstatic about being Head Girl and all, there was an empty feeling in her stomach that she can't distinguish.
"You're worried." Colin opened a box of Berty Bott's Every Flavor Beans.
Ginny smiled. "I guess so. Ron isn't at Hogwarts anymore. I mean, I'm so used to having my brothers around all the time." She watched as they passed by a huge sycamore tree. "And this new responsibility I have. I feel so lost."
"And of course you'll miss Harry." Colin added nonchalantly.
"I'm sorry?" She thought she heard him wrong. "Did you just say Harry?"
"Harry. Your brother's best friend, the Harry Potter." Colin smiled.
"Why would you think I'd miss Harry?" She avoided Colin's eyes but she knew that she was blushing furiously, which pretty much gave her away.
"Because you like him." A flash came from Colin's camera. "Did I tell you that you look so pretty with your cheeks that rosy?"
Ginny looked at Colin. She was often teased every time she turns red but this was the first time she was called "rosy".
"No, you haven't" She smiled. Colin smiled back. That was the first time she noticed that with those blond hair and light blue eyes, Colin was rather cute.
That's another installment to my story. Hope you liked it. Please r/r. thanks!!!