The seven people made their way to Diagon Alley many times that week, being that the train ride to Hogsmeade was only days away. At half past seven on the cool morning that was September 1. They were facing a troublesome mixture of anxiety, curiosity, fear, and, most of all, sleepiness. Even the trip to Gringotts couldn't wake up the six eleven-year-olds (A/N: Ariel and Sophie's birthday was July 28 ((They're twins, by the way)) ) come to their senses.

Though, at the sight of their tickets, they awakened. "I remember now why this seemed impossible! Our tickets say Platform nine and three quarters!" Sophie said enthusiastically.

"Don't judge Platforms nine and ten, dears," Mrs. Weasley warned, who'd come along. "Or, in this case, the post in between them."

They'd stopped their trolleys at the post, Ariel's owl, Raccoon, and Sophie's owl, Mark (Literally),hooting in their cages. Errial, Samantha's white bat, was sleeping peacefully in his covered cage. "Where do we go now?" asked Sophie.

"Walk straight at the wall between Platforms nine and ten. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous." Mrs. Weasley pushed Sophie slightly, urging her to go.

She closed her eyes, jogged a bit, getting a distinct feeling she was going to crash – but she didn't. She opened her eyes, and saw a huge, scarlet train marked "HOGWARTS EXPRESS" and a sign that said, "PLATFORM 9 and THREE QUARTERS" She stared around amazingly, and the other four appeared next to her between intervals of seconds. The adults followed shortly after.

"Amazin' innet?" A man with a bushy black beard that covered most of his face, twice as tall as a normal man, and at least four times as wide as Harry greeted them.

"Hagrid!" Hermione said joyfully.

"Hello, Hermione. Harry. Ron. Molly – and, who are thes' ?" He smiled happily, and his grin fell upon the cowering first years (Behind Samantha, who they thought bravest, abandoning her dad – but she was glaring at them) she looked up.

"Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of the Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts. " He lowered a trash can lid-sized hand, and Samantha shook it, grinning.

"Samantha Liz Malfoy." She added meekly, her voice cracking, feeling this man hated her father as much as she did.

"Malfoy?" He said, looking at Hermione and Ron and Harry.

Hermione nodded. "She was a Malfoy, but she ran away and we adopted her."
"'We'?" Hagrid added, clueless.

"Me and Hermione. Married…" His voice lowered drastically on the last word, barely a whisper.

He stared at them meaninglessly.

"We'll talk to you on the train." Hermione added hastily, looking at the large gold clock.

IN A COMPARTMENT

"Now, abou' that girl," Hagrid said, taking up a little more of the compartment than most would have preferred, "she said she was a Malfoy."

"She ran away, and fought her father – that's how she got a broken nose." Hermione explained. "Mighty proud of it, too."

Hagrid chuckled. "Tha' what this is all abou'? Malfoy's daughter turnin' on 'im? I say she's a great kid, then." He laughed.

"Mrs. Weasley?" Samantha popped her head in. "All the compartments are full, we can't find one."

"I better go, anyways," Hagrid stood up as the train started moving. "Nice meetin' yeh."

"Y—you t—too." She stammered, moving out of the way to let him through to the corridor.

"You and Ariel and Sophie? Where'd Roy and Lili go?" Hermione asked.

"Found the last two empty seats with the new Cryptozoology and Herbology teachers."

"Oh? And who're they?" Ron asked attentively.

"Professors… Lovegood and Longbottom, or something of the such." Sophie said, sitting down next to Samantha.

"We have a Cryptozoology class?" asked Ginny, who was teaching Astronomy.

"Yes, I put it in there to make sure that the students know about all creatures, even those not proven existent." Harry said, and everyone remembered he was now Headmaster and the teacher for D.A.D.A classes.

The lady in the trolley came, now very old and frail, but happy as ever, and Harry bought many sweets for the seven people in the compartment. By the time they had consumed all of the candy, and the first years looked through and traded Chocolate Frog Cards, especially Samantha, who got mostly Morgan Le Fay, the intercom was turned on.

"Arrival at Hogwarts in ten minutes. I repeat: Arrival at Hogwarts in ten minutes." The conductor slowed the train as people got their cloaks on, straining to get a first glimpse of the school.

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