Finally, the day had come to go to Hogwarts. Aidan was awoken at around eight o' clock that morning to make sure he had all he needed to get through the year. Packing was not an easy feat, as he didn't know exactly what to pack. He knew that he needed his wand, his potions supplies, and his books, but he didn't know if he needed his dress robes or his broomstick (that was leaning in the closet when he appeared). He decided to pack everything so he didn't have any regrets. He didn't want to be like Neville Longbottom, after all.
Aidan was ready to leave by ten o'clock. He was wondering how they were to get to King's Cross Station when Sam came around with a large vase filled with a fluid-y substance. "Travel Tonic!" he exclaimed as he took three measuring cups and placed them on the table. "It only just came out. The folks at the Ministry gave me a sample to bring home. All we do is drink about a half a cup of it and say were we want to go. Sounds a bit easier then Floo Powder, eh?"
By then, Aidan's stomach started jumping around again. Travel Tonic? "Come on, Aidan. Just drink a bit and say 'King's Cross Station'."
"I won't get sick will I, Dad?"
"Of course not. At least I don't think so… Well enough about that. I'll go first then." He then poured the silvery liquid into the cup, sniffed it, and sipped it. "King's Cross Station!" he shouted, and he disappeared.
"Do you think it worked?" Aidan wondered.
"I don't know, honey. There's only one way to find out. Now hold on to your trunk tightly when you drink it, dear. We don't want you to leave anything behind."
"Okay, here we go." Jennifer poured some more of the liquid into the remaining cups and handed one to her alleged son.
"Ready?"
"Ready," Aidan answered firmly. He then took the cup and tipped it upward, the liquid pouring into his mouth. It tasted cool and fizzy, like a pop. After the fizzing sensation taken over he shouted "King's Cross Station!" He heard Jennifer do the same. After he had shouted and the drink had taken full effect, his legs felt like they had been pushed backwards and his body fell into thin air.
He could see farms and cities, meadows and mountains pass him by as he whizzed through the air. The pictures of the places he passed seemed faint, as though he wasn't entirely there, only passing by (and he reminded himself that he probably was). It was quite amazing until he had the feeling that he was going to throw up.
Finally his feet touched down. He was extremely ruffled, though he had all his luggage. "Finally!" he heard a familiar voice shout.
He collected his bearings and when his vision cleared up he saw Sam (or was he "Dad" yet?) leaning against a barrier. "I've been waiting for ages!"
"How long did it take?"
"Oh, about ten minutes. Anyway, we have to hurry if you want a good seat on the train." Right then Jennifer (Mom?) appeared, her skin tinged green. "Darling, are you alright?"
"Sure, I'll be fine, dear. Just leave me here for a moment. On second thought, I better visit the little girls' room." And she dashed away holding her hand over her mouth.
"I think your mother is a little squeamish," Sam said matter-of-factly.
"I think you're right. I hope she gets to the platform before I leave."
"She will, I know she will." The two then set off at a run for Platform 9 ¾.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Oh, Arthur, come on!" Molly Weasley screamed for the thousandth time. "If George leaves anything else behind it's his fault and he'll have to go without!"
"Okay, Molly, dear, I'm coming." Six Weasleys and Harry were all smashed into the same car that had brought Harry to the Burrow the week prior. George had kept forgetting his things and they had returned to the Burrow five times that morning. He said they were his school things, though Harry knew better. The forgotten items were fake wand and charmed sweets from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Now there was more joke stuff then ever before, and Harry didn't need to ask were it came from. He had given the twins one thousand Galleons last year after winning the Triwizard Tournament.
"We really must go, Arthur. It's already ten-fifteen!"
"I know dear. We're leaving…now." The car then sped off, occasionally jumping cars and barriers. Harry clutched onto the seat for dear life. Frequently, Ginny or Fred would lean over with the car's direction and fall into Harry, causing the domino effect.
Just when Harry thought he was going to be sick, the car stopped on the white gravel parking lot of King's Cross Station. Everyone piled out immediately, in need of fresh air. "Could you drive any faster, Dad?" George asked.
"I wouldn't have had to if you didn't keep forgetting things!" a frustrated Mr. Weasley said hotly.
"Sorry," George muttered sheepishly.
"Come on, everyone! We have to get to the train. We have fifteen minutes. Hurry."
The five students grabbed trolleys, loaded their belongings onto them, and hurried to the barrier separating platforms nine and ten. As to not attract attention from Muggle bystanders, Fred and George went through the barrier first, chatting normally. Next went Ginny with Mrs. Weasley. Finally Mr. Weasley, Ron, and Harry went through.
Once everyone had reached platform 9 ¾, Mr. Weasley took Harry aside, much like he had done prior to his trip to Hogwarts before third year. "Harry, can I talk to you?"
"Sure, Mr. Weasley," Harry answered, a bit confused. What could he possibly want to talk about?
"Listen, you know that this summer has been the, erm, busiest for the Ministry since about fourteen years ago and, well, I just want you to be careful. Dumbledore is doing all he can, so I don't want you to go snooping around. Okay?" Mr. Weasley said.
"Oh, okay, Mr. Weasley. I really wasn't planning on 'snooping around,' I'll be careful."
"DAD! Hurry up, Harry has to get on the train!" Harry heard Ron yell.
"Oh, right," Mr. Weasley said, giving a slight jump. We must get you on the train, Harry. Let me help you with your trunk." Soon Harry's trunk was fastened down in the cargo carriage and Hedwig was secured nicely with the other animals. The five children bid Mr. and Mrs. Weasley goodbye and the train lurched forward…onto Hogwarts.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Goodbye, Dad," Aidan said, enveloping Sam in a tight hug that he had never done to anyone in his life, let alone since he got to Essex.
"Goodbye, son," Sam said, returning the hug though a bit surprised. Jennifer came up behind them and she looked a lot better now.
"I'll miss you, honey," she said. "Be sure to write. I want to hear all about Hogwarts, okay?"
"Okay, Mom! I, er, love you."
"Well, I love you, too, sweetheart." Then he was wrapped in the same type of hug he had given Sam. A few students were sniggering behind him. They obviously thought it was "fruity" to love your parents, but Aidan didn't care. He finally had a family.
"I'll see you at Christmas, okay?" Jennifer said, in between joy-sobs.
"Yea, I'll see you." Then the train lurched forward. "'Bye!" Sam and Jennifer waved as the train pulled out of sight.
"You know what?" Sam said as the Hogwarts Express pulled away. "I reckon, we're the best thing that happened to that kid."
"You know what? I think that kid's the best thing that happened to us." Sam pulled Jennifer into a tight one-armed hug and kissed her forehead then, they Apparated.
What do I do now? Aidan thought. Where do I go? He was standing in the hall outside the compartments. He didn't have any friends yet, so dropping in on a half-full compartment was out of the question. He wandered up and down the train to find an empty compartment. He finally did and with nothing better to do, he whipped out his spell book and practiced some more spells.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"All these compartments are full, and Parvati and Dean seem a little busy in that one," Ron pointed out as they went through what seemed like the twentieth carriage.
"Next one, then, come on," Harry answered. Hermione was giggling. "What?"
"Well, it's just, the way Ron put it…oh never mind!"
The next carriage was the last one on the train. They were bound to find an available compartment here. There were about ten compartments in the carriage, five on each side of the corridor. After they had gone through about eight, Harry was beginning to think it was hopeless and considered breaking up Parvati and Dean's little snogging session to use the compartment but Ron went ahead to check the last one. "Harry, come here. This one's nearly empty. Only one kid."
Harry went up to the compartment to find a tall, skinny boy, about his age, poring over a stack of spell books. "Hey, do you mind if we share your compartment?" he asked. The boy looked up. His eyes grew wide but he remained calm.
"Oh, sure, not at all," he answered, clearing the books away and putting them back in his back.
"Wow, you look like Hermione. She always studies," Harry said with a playful smile. Hermione returned it with a playful glare. "What's your name? I don't think I've seen you before."
"Oh, you haven't, I just transferred here. I'm Aidan O'Reilly." This time Harry's eyes grew wide.
"Aidan O'Reilly?" he asked. "Well that sounds a bit familiar." Harry was trying to sound as though he didn't know anything. "This is Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. They're my best friends." Ron turned red and Hermione's cheeks glowed pink.
"I know," Aidan said, mentally kicking himself immediately after doing so. "I mean, I know that they are your best friends, because they are with you," he said, quickly covering up.
"Oh," Harry said with a raised eyebrow. "So where do you come from?"
This was one of those questions where Aidan had wished he had done a little more research on himself. He knew that the magic-Aidan wasn't from England. "America."
"Really? You sound like you're from here," Hermione said.
"Well, I am, but my dad was transferred a lot."
"Oh, I see."
It was pretty quiet until the lady with the lunch trolley came around. Harry bought a very large stack of Cauldron Cakes for the four of them to share. Harry kept giving Ron sidelong glances. The same thing was going through each of their minds. This was the Muggle Dumbledore had told Harry about on his birthday.
"Harry, I think we should go and change into our robes," Ron said.
"Yeah, I think so too."
"But we're no where near Hogwarts yet," Hermione argued.
"'Mione, why don't you stay and entertain Aidan. I like feeling ready for school don't you?"
"Sure you do…" Hermione said with a raised brow. Harry and Ron left, though Harry heard Hermione say to Aidan, "Excuse them, they're idiots."
As soon as they were in the bathroom and out of earshot of the compartment Ron burst. "Harry, that's the kid Dumbledore was talking about. Did you hear what he said when you introduced us? 'I know!'"
"Well, he's not so well rehearsed, is he?"
"No! I think we should talk to him and find out how he knows about you, about us!"
"No, Ron. We need to show we have enough evidence to even talk to him. It has to be the right time."
"Do you have the letter from Dumbledore?"
"Yeah…"
"There's enough evidence!"
"Ron, we have to wait."
Harry and Ron returned fully dressed in school uniform. Hermione seemed to be having an interesting conversation with Aidan about America. Aidan was making it up.
"So what happened after you got that detention?" Hermione asked.
"Well, Jason Goridan never left me alone after that. He stuck worms in my potions and instead of a Likeness Potion, it made a Wart Potion." Hermione laughed.
"I see you have found something to talk about," Ron said as he reentered the compartment.
"Did you know that Aidan got in just as much trouble as his old school as you have here?" Hermione asked. Ron gave Harry the eye. He would have expected Hermione to figure it out. She was more clever than either of them. Perhaps Harry had never mentioned the "wish boy's" name.
They made somewhat normal talk for the rest of the trip. Harry found it odd to pretend not to know someone who knew him that was pretending not to know him. [A.N.:: If you get that…]
Finally the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade Station. Harry immediately noticed Hagrid's large figure outlined against the clear, dark, night sky. He was holding a lantern and beckoning the first years toward him. "Firs' years, way. Come on!"
"Hagrid!" Harry cried over the heads of his fellow students.
"Harry, how are you?"
"Fine."
"Yeh better come down to me hut later and collect yer present!"
"I will. See you." Harry then turned to Aidan. "Do you know what House you're in yet?"
"Not exactly."
"Well then you better go with Hagrid then. He'll take you to Professor McGonagall to get sorted."
"Okay, see you later.
"Bye." Harry felt just a bit worried around Aidan. The whole eastern world was now facing lies, and unfortunately, Aidan was full of them.