Chapter Three

A/N: I STILL OWN NOTHING!

Harry, Ron and Simba enjoyed the train ride. The two human boys ate candy while Simba mostly slept. When he woke however, they were still talking about candy.

"These aren't real frogs?" Harry asked.

"No, besides it's the card you want," Ron explained. "Each pack's got a famous witch or wizard."

The frog jumped out of the case on to the floor.

"Watch it!" Ron yelled and Simba pounced on the frog.

"Thanks Simba," Harry smiled at his best friend and brother.

Harry ate the frog and then picked up the card.

"I've got Dumbledore!" he said in surprise.

"I've got about six of him," Ron said. When Harry looked at the card again, there was no one there.

"Hey, he's gone!"

"Well, you can't expect him to hang around all day! Can you?" Ron said, eating some more candy.

Simba sniffed at the rat that was sitting on Ron's lap. He smelt funny. Timon had scurried back into the trunk when Ron arrived.

"This is Scabbers by the way," Ron said, pulling his pet closer to him upon seeing the lion cub's interest. "Pathetic little thing isn't he?"

"A little," Harry nodded and Simba snorted. That was an understatement.

"Fred gave me a spell as to turn him yellow," Ron said. "Want to see?"

"Yeah!"

Ron pulled out his wand but before he could say anything, the door to the compartment opened and a girl dressed in robes was standing in the doorway. Ron and Harry quickly covered Simba up in an old sweater of Ron's so the girl wouldn't see him.

"Has anyone seen a toad?" the girl asked. "A boy named Neville's lost one."

"No," Ron said. A little rudely in Simba's opinion.

The girl noted that Ron had his wand out.

"Oh, are you doing magic? Let's see then."

Ron, from what Simba could see, gave Harry a look that said what's with her.

"Sunshine, daises, butter mellow. Turn this stupid fat rat yellow!"

There was a flash of light that made Simba's fur stand on end.

"Are you sure that's a real spell?" the girl asked which made Simba think that the spell didn't work. "Well, it's not very good, is it?"

Did she often state the obvious?

"Of course, I've only tried a few simple ones myself. But they've all worked for me," the girl continued and then walked into the compartment. Right across from Harry.

"For example," the girl said and Simba could feel Harry tense. "Occlus Reparo!"

Harry seemed to relax after that.

"That's better isn't it?" the girl asked and then gasped. "Holy Cricket! You're Harry Potter! I'm Hermione Granger, and you are?"

"I'm Ron Weasley," Ron said….with what sounded like a mouth full of frog.

"Pleasure," Hermione said in an obvious attempt at being polite. She seemed nicer when she was talking to Harry. "You two better get changed into your robes. I expect we'll be arriving soon."

She got up but just before she left, she said "You've got dirt on your nose by the way. Did you know? Just there."

The door closed and the two boys uncovered Simba.

"Well, wasn't she nice," Ron said dryly. The two did in fact change into their robes, which was good as ten minutes later the train slowed to a stop.

"See you Simba," Harry said as luggage and pets had to stay on the train. Simba wouldn't have that. Grabbing Timon, he snuck off of the train and followed the mass of kids.

"Hey buddy?" Timon asked. "Drop me off here."

They could see Pumba in the distance.

"Kay Timon," Simba said and then ran to the castle. He decided it would be best to try the front doors. Luckily the only one there was a ghost, who was sleeping. Sneaking past him, Simba snuck into a hall full of people.

Oh Great Kings! he thought as he saw how many people were in there. And what was worse was the fact that he couldn't see Harry at all. But he did recognize a couple of red-manes from the station so he slipped under their table.

Just then the doors opened and Simba could see dozen of feet.

"Stop right there," a stern woman's voice said. "Now when I call your name, you will come up and I will place the sorting hat on your head."

Sorting…hat? Okay then. England was weird. And what was a hat anyway?

"Hermione Granger!" the woman cried. The hat took a moment and then said "GRYFFINDOR!" The table he was under cheered.

"Draco Malfoy!" the woman cried again. This time the hat only took a second before saying "SLYTHERIN!"

The table he was under hissed slightly, but not loud enough that anyone else could hear it.

"Susan Bones!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the hat cried.

"Ronald Weasley!"

Hey, that was Harry's friend! Simba snuck closer to the edge of the table to see this sorting. He liked Ron; he smelt of meat. Poor Ron looked terrified.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat cried and Ron relaxed slightly. He walked toward the table Simba was under and Simba moved away from the edge as to give him room. Simba would have rubbed up against Ron's legs but Harry was being sorted. Sticking his head out again, Simba saw his brother on the stool. He didn't like all the whispers that were spreading like wildfire.

What are you mouthing? Simba thought. The thought left his head when the hat cried "GRYFFINDOR!"

"We got Potter, we got Potter!" the two red-manes that smelled identical cried. Simba really didn't pay attention to much of the sorting after that. He caught a whiff of his brother's scent and rubbed his legs.

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The sorting ended and the woman said "May I have your attention?"

Then an old man, by the sound of it, said "Let the feast begin!"

Feast? Simba almost began drooling at the scent of food.

"Harry?" Ron whispered. "Is Simba under there?"

"Yeah," Harry whispered back.

The two friends said no more but as if by magic, a chicken leg dropped under the table right where Ron was sitting. Simba grabbed it and began to gnaw at it, paying no attention to what was going on. Ron and Harry kept dropping portions of meat when they could spare it.

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The next thing Simba knew, the hall was empty. Stretching a little, he realized that he had fallen asleep. Oh NO! Scrambling, he got to the doors only to see them closed.

"A lion—"

"—at Hogwarts? Now we've—"

"—seen everything."

It was the identical humans. Simba didn't want to be sent home.

"Who are you?" Simba asked, backing up slowly in case he'd have to run.

"A talking lion?" one of the boys asked. Now that Simba was just with them, he noticed that one of them had a thicker scent than the other. Almost an older scent.

"You can understand me?" Simba asked, surprised.

"Yep," the other human nodded. "And you us?"

"I've been able to since I was five," Simba said proudly and then froze. If they wanted to take Harry away, they'd know how long they'd been together.

"Meh, we'd report you but—"

"—then we'd be the type—"

"—of people that we prank and we—"

"—don't want to prank—"

"—ourselves."

Simba didn't understand a word they just said but figured that they weren't going to take him away from his brother.

"Can you take me to Harry?" he asked.

"Sure why not?" the older human chuckled. "I'm Fred Weasley—"

"—and I'm his twin brother, George," the other human said with a smile.

The trio made their way to Gryffindor tower, and the twins were even kind enough to show Simba what dorm Harry slept in. Simba hopped onto the bed and curled up next to his brother, who seemed to be having a bad dream. He didn't notice the twins leave or the blanket that Ron put on him.