DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Chapter Five – At King's Cross
For what seemed to be the most quickly passing two hours of my life, I explored Diagon Alley with Remus, getting everything that I needed, and quite a few things that I didn't. We talked and laughed and ate, and I learned quite a few things about Hogwarts and the magical world that I hadn't known before. This included the four houses that every Hogwarts student was sorted into. You were either a Hufflepuff, who were kind, hard-working, and loyal, Ravenclaw, who were clever and intelligent, Gryffindor, who were brave and bold, or Slytherin, who were cunning, ambitious, and always pureblood wizards.
"My whole mother's family was in Ravenclaw, but my father's were all in Hufflepuff," explained Remus. "I'll probably be in Ravenclaw. Don't tell my parents, but secretly I hope that I'll be in Gryffindor... anything other than Slytherin, though...I've heard they aren't the nicest people around. Of course, if I were in Slytherin, I'm sure I wouldn't feel that way... Wait-" He scratched his head. "Now I've gone and confused myself again..."
I laughed. "Well, I don't have to worry about being put in a house that doesn't accept muggle-borns. I expect I'll be in Ravenclaw as well. I mean, I've always gotten top marks in all my classes."
Remus and I jumped as almost every one of the hundreds of clocks in Perfecting Punctuality, the magical clock shop, went off.
"Oh no!" I said, "I was supposed to meet my parents half an hour ago! I'll see you tomorrow on the train?"
"Of course!" replied my new friend, and we exchanged goodbyes.
The next day, September first, my parents dropped me off with my luggage and ticket at King's Cross station. After a tight embrace, I pulled away from them. "See you in December!" I couldn't believe I was going to a boarding school! I was so scared.
"Goodbye, Sweetheart," said my mum. "Wait! I almost forgot! I got you something!"
"Show me! Show me!" I called eagerly.
"Here." She handed me a heavy white box. Inside were 200 sheets of stationary, decorated with lilies on the edges.
"Thank you! I love it!"
"I'm glad. But-" she added, taking them back, "You can't have them unless you promise to write!"
"Oh, I do! All the time!"
"I knew you would! There's something else, too." She drew a book out of her purse and placed it in my hands. It was a small diary with a velvety black cover, and a golden "L" was sewn on the front.
"Oh, Mum! It's beautiful, thank you!"
I hugged them both again.
My mother put her hand on my shoulder and said "Stay out of trouble, kid,".
"And don't blow yourself up!" added my dad, smiling.
"I'll try not to," I laughed.
"See ya," he said.
"Goodbye!" I cried, and I watched them drive away. I was on my own now. I would have to take care of myself until December seventeenth, when I could come home for two weeks.
I looked at my ticket. I had better get to the train before it left. I had fifteen minutes. Oh no. This had to be a joke! The platform listed was 9 ¾! I decided to ask around, and see if anyone could tell me how to get there. Even if the muggles didn't know, I was bound to find another Hogwarts student sometime! After asking about two dozen people, and getting nothing but laughs or stares, I finally figured it out, no thanks to the last two black-haired boys I asked. They were about my age, one's long hair was kept back in a ponytail, and the other's, though considerably shorter, stuck out in every possible direction. The one with shorter hair also had thick, round, black glasses. They seemed friendly enough, but what got me was what they were talking about – Quidditch! Remus had told me about it. It was a wizarding sport played high in the air on broomsticks.
"Excuse me," I said, tapping Glasses-Boy on the shoulder, "But could you two tell me how to get onto Platform Nine and Three Quarters?"
Apparently I was wrong about the 'nice' thing. They only laughed and ran ahead... straight into a brick wall! But instead of crashing, they disappeared! Now it all came together. That brick wall was the divider between Platforms Nine and Ten. Maybe, if I ran at it...
I didn't take the time to think. I think I knew that if I had, I never would have done it. Running headfirst into brick walls was not something I normally did just for fun. To my relief, it worked. I actually went into the barrier, and when I came out the other side, a large wooden sign overhead told me where I was – Platform 9 ¾! I looked to my left, and there it was, the old-fashioned red train, The Hogwarts Express. A clock near the barrier told me I had exactly three minutes until the train departed. Hauling my trunk behind me, I stepped on.
