DISCLAIMER: This is fanfiction, yes? Not authorfiction—meaning I am not the amazing author and don't own any of her amazing characters.
A/N: Hello, all! First, thank you for reading. I'm so surprised to have so many viewers and to have people favoriting this story so fast. Second, please tell me if I'm doing anything wrong. I'm a bit of a perfectionist—actually, more than a bit—and I want to do my best. Third, enjoy as Cass rides the Hogwarts Express and sees a certain green-eyed fifth-year… Sorting will be next chapter, I promise!
OoOoO
Cass's last two weeks of summer were very long. She couldn't wait to go to Hogwarts and learn all there was about magic.
Cass devoured all of her textbooks, spending hours in her Thoughtful Tree. She read up on recent magical history, too. She read things concerning that boy Professor McGonagall had told her about; Harry Potter. Though she couldn't use it, Cass also spent a lot of her time studying her wand, running her hands over it, admiring its beauty and elegance.
She had practiced drawing with ink and quills, too. At first, she had been bad at it. After much practice (and a lot of frustration on Cass's part), she had finally got it.
Finally, the night before September first came, and Cass was packing her trunk. She packed all of her toiletries in the moving galaxy bag she got at Diagon Alley. All of her books, quills, ink, parchment, and notebooks went in one side of the immense trunk; her robes and other clothes went on the other. Cass had made sure to pack Muggle clothes like sweatpants and hoodies, too, because that was what she was most comfortable in.
That night at dinner, Grandma Joyce exclaimed, "Cass, I am so excited for you. A witch! How absolutely amazing! I am so happy that you get to see—and perform—magic!" Cass's grandmother was beaming at her. Cass smiled back, sharing her enthusiasm by a tenfold.
Grandpa Jimmy was grinning, too. "Kiddo…I don't know what to say. I am still trying to wrap my head around the fact that magic is real, I haven't even begun thinking about you being gone until Christmas."
Cass's smile faltered. In fact, she was going to miss her grandparents a lot. They had made her laugh when she felt like crying, they had helped her up when she was down. Grandma Joyce noticed her granddaughter take on a sad face and pulled her into a hug, saying, "Cassandra McGarther! Don't you be sad, you hear me? You are going to a school of magic. You'll be fine."
Cass nodded, and her smile came back in full force. Grandpa Jimmy joined the hug and the three McGarthers sat in silence, simply enjoying each other's company.
OoOoo
Cass watched the streets of London zoom by from the car window, excited beyond words. Her trunk was in the back, filled with spellbooks and robes. Cass wore dark jeans and a t-shirt, her hoodie on over it. She wore this instead of her robes because she didn't want to have the attention of the entire King's Cross station. Cass would change into her dress robes on the train. Her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail, and curly baby hairs framed her face.
Cass barely held in squeals of excitement for what would happen today. I'm going to Hogwarts! I'm going to be a witch! She chanted to herself. Cass started to bounce up in down in her seat as the car pulled up to King's Cross station. This is it. Grandpa Jimmy parked the car and Cass ripped her seat belt off, threw open the car door, and was out before either of her grandparents had unbuckled.
Cass sprinted to the back of the car and lifted open the trunk. She heaved her trunk from the car and set in on the pavement, panting.
"Well, I would have helped you, kiddo," chuckled Cass's grandpa. He and Grandma Joyce walked around to stand next to her. "Come on, dear, lets get you aboard a magical train," said Grandpa Jimmy, reaching for Cass's trunk.
However, Cass started to roll it herself, waving her hand to say that she could handle it. The small family entered the train station.
"So, Cass, do you know what to do?" asked Grandma Joyce as they came to platforms nine and ten. Cass nodded; Professor McGonagall has explained the barrier after delivering Cass back home from Diagon Alley.
"Do you remember how I said students ride a train to Hogwarts?" Professor McGonagall questioned. Cass had nodded.
"Good. To get to this train, you must go to platform nine and three-quarters at King's Cross station," the professor had told them.
"Platform nine and three-quarters? Is there a such thing?" demanded Grandpa Jimmy, eyebrows raised in confusion.
"Not for Muggles, there isn't," said Professor McGonagall simply. "But there is a magical gateway for wizards and witches. To go through this barrier, one must head straight at the wall between platforms nine and ten," Professor McGonagall paused, letting that sink in. "Although it will appear to be solid brick, if you run towards it, the wall will let you through to platform nine and three-quarters."
What? Cass had thought. Honestly, why am I surprised, she asked herself a second later. "The train leaves at eleven a.m. sharp, so make sure you get there on time."
Cass was nervous; what if she didn't get through the barrier? Beyond that, Cass was nervous about school; what if she was at a disadvantage because she had grown up in a Muggle home? Stop that, Cass. Don't be nervous, you'll be fine. Honestly, I'd be surprised if someone was better than you, after all that reading.
"We're going to go with you to the platform, okay kiddo?" said Cass's grandpa.
"Of course, wouldn't want it any other way," replied Cass, smiling.
The McGarthers reached platforms nine and ten. Cass steeled herself, taking a deep breath. Don't be a wimp, Cass scolded herself. She rushed towards the bricks between platforms nine and ten. Cass closed her eyes; why had she done this—she was going to crash, she was so crazy—
Cass emerged on the other side, blinking at the sudden change of surroundings. A scarlet steam engine waited next to a very packed platform. A sign above read Hogwarts Express, Eleven O'Clock. Cass had survived, she had gone through.
A few seconds later, Cass's grandparents came through, looks of bewilderment on their faces. I hope I didn't look like that, Cass thought, knowing she probably had.
Just then, Cass noticed a rather large—and strange—looking group of people. Among them were a heavily-scarred man, a very elderly woman, a plump and kind-looking woman, several red-headed children, a red-headed man, a bushy-haired girl, a massive black—is that a dog?—a tired-looking man, and a boy with untidy black hair and glasses.
Hmmm…Cass mused. So that is Harry Potter.
OoOoO
Sirius walked through the gateway behind Molly, Tonks, and Harry. The walk to the train station had been long, and Sirius had enjoyed every minute of it. The old man didn't let him live. He had been stuck in Azkaban for twelve effing years, he was tired of being stuck inside.
Sirius wagged his tail at the Hogwarts Express; how he missed those days. James…Remus…Peter. Sirius shoved off the thought of the traitor, the rat, the horrible—Sirius cut himself off, not wanting to waste his little free time thinking about why everything had gone wrong.
Soon, Mad-Eye and the others arrived with the luggage. Mad-Eye looked at Sirius distastefully. I guess I'm jeopardizing the mission…oops. Sirius couldn't bring himself to care. Did he worry about ole' Moldy Voldy? Yes. Did he see him everywhere, even in the most obscure things (like a misplaced book)? Hell no.
Somewhere, a kid yelled, "Nice dog, Harry!" Sirius wagged his tail happily and barked. Harry scratched him behind the ears, and he licked the boy's hand. Harry didn't know this, but that was the spot his James had always scratched him.
A young girl—maybe a first-year- caught his eye. Sirius's heart skipped a beat. Merlin's bloody pants…The girl looked like Lily so much it hurt. Same high cheekbones, same body shape, same brilliantly green eyes. But it wasn't her. It was just a painful reminder of what could never be.
Sirius turned his head to find an identical set of emerald eyes staring into his eyes. Harry wore a puzzled look on his face. Probably thinking why I stopped so abruptly, Sirius concluded. Harry's eyes moved from Padfoot's muzzle to the direction he had been looking in. Sirius watched as the boy's face took on a look of shock. Oh, kid…
Harry just looked at the girl. Sirius rubbed against his legs, as if to say 'Come on, kid. Just a coincidence.' Harry broke his eyes away from the girl and looked at Sirius with eyebrows raised. The boy shook his head and walked over to where his luggage was, pulling his trunk back over to Sirius.
"That is uncanny," Harry muttered from the corner of his mouth. Sirius just rubbed against his legs again in agreement. By now, everyone had gathered their things and Molly was herding the kids towards the red train. Sirius gave one last nudge to Harry with his legs before walking over to Remus. I'll miss him so much.
Remus was looking tired, too tired. Always so tired. Sirius felt deep sadness for his longest friend. At least he can go out, Sirius thought dryly.
The black dog nudged the werewolf's legs, pointing at the girl with his muzzle. He would like to see the similarities, thought Sirius. Sirius watched in amusement as his friend's mouth opened in surprise.
"That is uncanny…that girl looks so much like Lily," he murmured, not taking his eyes off of the girl. At these words, Mad-Eye turned towards the man and dog.
As he followed Remus's gaze, he growled, "Well, it's not. Stop trying to relive the past and start paying attention to your surroundings. CONSTA—"
He was broken off by a loud whistle from the train. Sirius barked a dog-version of a laugh, and it only increased when Mad-Eye glared at him. Remus, Tonks, Arthur, and Molly waved as the train rolled out of the station. Sirius took it a step further and ran after the train, causing Molly to scoff and roll her eyes.
As the train slowly faded out of view, Sirius became grumpy. For him, it meant more time hiding.
OoOoO
Harry searched for a compartment on the busy train. Ron and Hermione had gone to the prefects' carriage, so he walked with only Ginny. Walking up and down, he saw none that were empty. However, one had a fourth-year Ravenclaw girl in it, so Harry chose that one, and Neville Longbottom joined Harry and Ginny.
Harry could not stop thinking about the girl from before. She must be a first-year, Harry was sure he would never forget seeing a face so much like his. Harry recalled his mother's face from the Mirror of Erised and the connection his and Voldemort's wand had made, something Dumbledore had called Priori Incantatem. He recalled his mother's voice from the Dementors. I wonder if the girl's voice is like Mum's, Harry thought. Of course it isn't, don't be daft. It's just a coincidence.
Ginny introduced the girl in the compartment as Loony—er, Luna—Lovegood. Luna had stringy, long, blond hair and very wide eyes that made her look perpetually surprised.
The four talked for a while as the country-side zoomed by. Harry thought that Luna was very dotty, but he was surprised to find that she had very good insights to many interesting topics. After about thirty minutes or so, the conversation turned to everyone's summer.
When asked about his summer, Neville produced a strange plant. "Look, here, what my great-uncle Algie got me. It's called Quiritus Mimbletonia."
"That's quite impressive, Neville. Is your uncle a Mimbletonist? I hear the Snorkacks are attracted to them," Luna said in a singsong voice, fixing her bright eyes on Neville.
"Er…I—um, thanks. I don't know anything about…uh…" Neville spluttered, looking flustered. Harry didn't blame him, how do you respond to that? Harry decided to help out by saying, "So, uh, what does the…Quiritus…Mimblo—Mimbletongo—Mimbletonia do?" Great delivery, Harry deadpanned to himself.
Neville looked relieved despite Harry's stuttering. "Loads and loads of things. If you touch a certain spot, it'll blow mucus everywhere!" At his words, Harry and Ginny paled, while Luna looked delighted. Seeing their reaction, Neville continued, "I won't do that now! But it does so much more than that, its defense mechanisms are absolutely wicked!"
Just then, Neville touched a part of the plant towards the bottom. A horrible, high-pitched shriek filled the train car. Harry's hand flew to cover his ears as he grimaced. Ginny winced and grabbed her ears, too. Neville jumped about a foot in the air, throwing the Quiritus Mimbletonia across the compartment. As it came into contact with the window, slime erupted out of its pores, covering all of them in green goop.
"Ugh! Ack! Neville!" Ginny squealed, wiping the muck from her eyes. Harry spit and bits of the stuff flew from his mouth.
"O-o-oh n-no! I-I-I'm s-so s-s-orry. I d-didn't k-k-know," Neville blubbered. Luna merely looked interested; she held her finger in front of her face to examine the goo.
The door to the compartment across from theirs slid open. A girl with dark, curly hair, high cheekbones, and brilliant green eyes came out of it and looked around in confusion. Oh great, people noticed, Harry dismayed. Moreover, that girl noticed.
OoOoO
Cass had found a compartment towards the back. In it were a boy and two girls. The boy wore a black cloak, had brown eyes, and light brown hair. One girl had strawberry-blond hair and blue eyes, and the other had bright pink hair and…violet eyes.
"Hey, do you guys mind if I sit in here? Everywhere else is full," Cass asked after sliding the door open, wondering about the girl's strange eye color.
The girl with the bright pink hair smiled, "Of course! Come on in!" Cass grinned back at her before stepping into the compartment, dragging her trunk behind her.
The brown-eyed boy hastily got up, and stammered, "Uh…I can, um, get your trunk?" Cass nodded and beamed at him. He smiled back shyly before grabbing her trunk and dragging it below the holding rack.
Cass watched in amusement as he struggled to lift it. Finally, he got it and sit back down. Cass sat next to him and she noticed that both of the other girls were holding in laughter.
Cass extended her hand to the girl with strawberry-blond hair. "My name is Cassandra McGarther, but you can call me Cass. I'm starting my first year at Hogwarts."
"Nice to meet ya, I'm Brooke. First-year, as well," replied Brooke, shaking Cass's hand.
"I'm Rose Zeller, and—get this—I'm a first-year," said the other girl.
"My name is Bellerophon," said the boy shyly. He was also a first-year.
Cass could tell the boy felt insecure about his name, so she said, "That is such a wicked name! Like the Greek demigod?" Rose and Brooke smiled at her; Cass guessed they were glad she wasn't making fun of him.
Bellerophon's face lit up in surprise. "You know Greek myths?" Cass nodded; she had always thought they were interesting. "Uh, you can just call me Bello if you want," he finished quietly.
"Nice to meet you, Bello," Cass grinned. Rose was brushing her blue hair out of her face. Wait, blue hair? Wasn't it just pink? Cass's surprise must have shown on her face, because both Rose and Brooke started giggling.
"Huh? I'm so confused," said Cass. "Wasn't it just pink?" Cass was slightly annoyed, she didn't like people laughing at her (even if the face she had made was funny).
Even Bello was chuckling, but he managed to choke out, "I'm sorry! It's just you did such a double-take, I couldn't help it. Rose is a Metamorphmagus, so that is why her hair changed color," he said this so matter-of-factly, like he expected Cass to understand immediately. These kids must have been raised by wizards, if they know what a…Metamorphmagus is.
"Oh, I'm sorry, are you Muggle-born? I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable," questioned Bello quietly, his face taking on a look of guilt.
"Er…well, I don't know. I wasn't raised by my parents, so there is no way to tell if they were magical or not. But I was Muggle-raised. What is a Metamorphmagus?" Cass asked. No one asked more about her past, which made Cass like them. They respected her privacy.
"Well, a Metamorphmagus is someone who can alter their physical characteristics. The best of them can completely change their appearance, but I'm only half so I can just change my hair and eye color, and sometimes my facial structure," explained Rose. Cass just stared, open-mouthed. People who can change appearance at will? Wicked! Cass repeated these sentiments aloud.
The rest of the train ride—almost—passed without incident. The four first-years talked and talked. Bello and Brooke knew each other from their moms being friends, it turned out. Rose was raised by her mum; her dad being killed in the last wizarding war. The three wizard-born children told Cass all they could about Voldemort and Harry Potter. They seemed impressed that Cass had used his actual name, even if a little pale at the same time.
After about forty or so minutes of talking, a terrible shrieking noise sounded from the compartment across from theirs. Four pairs of hands flew to four pairs of ears, and Cass grimaced. What is that? She thought wildly.
Cass dashed to the door and slid it open. She watched the compartment across from theirs get covered in slime after an older boy threw a plant away from him. Her mouth fell open from shock and her nose crinkled in disgust.
A goop-covered boy noticed her watching. With a start, Cass realized it was that Potter boy. Again? Why do I keep running into him? And why was he staring at me back at the platform?
Cass heard a muffled cry of, "Evanesco!" and the slime disappeared. Unconsciously, Cass's face had formed into an entertained one, so she hastily rearranged it into a merely interested one, not wanting to make anyone feel embarrassed (although, if she was being honest, ther was probably no avoiding it at this point).
Harry stepped out of the compartment. "Uh…are you a first-year?"
Cass was taken aback by the abrupt question, but replied anyway. "Yeah."
Harry nodded; he had probably been expecting that. "I saw you back at the platform, I—uh—just didn't want you to—er…I'm Harry Potter," he finished awkwardly.
Cass lifted her eyebrows. Why was he staring like that? "Oh, I'm Cassandra McGarther. And, um, I knew that you were Harry Potter." Cass was amused by his stuttering—this was the boy who had won the Triwizard Cup? Her new friends had told her about the strange events that had occurred at Hogwarts last year (even though they themselves had not been at the school to witness it).
Harry looked glum about this. Sensing why he was upset, Cass said, "Well, um, just so you know, I don't believe that you're a—what did they say—oh, an attention-seeking brat." In fact, Cass didn't know what she thought about the matter, but she wasn't about to tell him that.
Just then, a red-haired, tall, and gangly boy and a very bushy-haired girl walked up to Harry and Cass.
"Bloody hell, mate, what was that? Sounded like Mrs. Black at her absolutely worst—" the boy cut off when he saw Cass. His mouth fell open as he looked between her and Harry. What is it with these people? I know we're both green-eyed but seriously? I'm not a display to be goggled at.
The bushy-haired girl nudged the boy saying, "Don't be rude, Ronald. Hi, I'm Hermione Granger and this is Ronald Weasley. We're fifth year prefects, so if you have any questions please ask us," she said kindly, smiling warmly.
"Oh! No, I was just wondering what the noise was…um, I'll leave now," Cass said hastily, sliding the door to the compartment open.
Inside, Brooke demanded, "What happened out there?" Cass just shrugged; what did she know about magical plants?
After that, the ride was relatively smooth. In the span of about two and a half hours, Rose changed her hair from pink to blue to green to purple to red and finally back to pink, to Cass's great amusement. An hour or so in, Cass changed into her school robes.
In the middle of Bello telling a story, Cass suddenly looked up. A few seconds later, the train rolled to a stop. Her new friends looked confused; how had Cass known they were stopping? But Cass didn't notice this, her mind was focused on something entirely different.
I'm at Hogwarts!
OoOoO
A/N: I know Quiritus Mimbletonia is not the name of Neville's plant in the book. I have changed some of it's properties from the original ones as well, so it is only fitting to change it's name. Quiritus means scream or shriek in Latin. As for why I changed it, well, that's for me to know, isn't it?
