I do not own Harry Potter
"Gather round you lot!" Neville roared, standing in the middle of the common area of the Leaky Cauldron. "There's twenty of yeh I need to get organized and ready to go, now listen up!"
Lily looked around her as the other muggleborn first years fell silent and stared up at their soon to be professor and escort. Each had their trunks and various assortment of odds and ends, which made the room seem smaller than it really was. Neville proceeded to use the silence by pulling out a parchment and ticking off names of those that were present. Satisfied that all were accounted for, he tucked the parchment away and pulled out a tattered old scarf from the folds of his cloak, and, pointing his wand at the item, muttered some spell under his breath, causing it to glow blue for a brief second.
"Alright you lot," Neville said, looking up, "we'll be traveling by portkey today. There's too many of you for me to drag through the barrier at King's Cross Station, so we have permission to travel to the platform by magic. Only problem is I can only take five of you at a time, so split up into four groups and we'll get going."
Lily stayed in place as the others whispered and rushed to form groups. She ended up in a group with three boys and one other girl, all of whom were whispering excitedly about the journey ahead, as were the other groups. Lily kept her eyes on Neville, who was trying to get everyone's attention again.
"OI!" he bellowed. "Do you want to get there or not? Let's get moving! Miss Marcus, your group will be traveling with me first. Mr. Callahan, your group will be next, so be ready. Mr. Burke, you'll be third, and Miss Kensington, your group will be last." Lily stared at him, surprised that he had made her leader of her group. "Now, listen up. A portkey can be near about anything, and for now we'll be using this old scarf. The rules, you must be touching it, so hold tight to your things. You'll feel a jerking sensation at first, may get dizzy a bit, and then be prepared for the landing. It can be a bit harsh your first time. Miss Marcus, your group please."
They watched fascinated as the first group tightened their grips on their luggage and crowded around the professor, scrabbling to touch a piece of the scarf. Too short to see what was going on, Lily sat on her trunk and rest her elbows on her knees, waiting. Who knew how long this would take before her group was up. There was an audible gasp as the first group vanished in a flash of light, and then the room broke out in excited chatter.
"Can't wait to get to the school!" one of the boys in her group started. "I always knew I was different somehow, and now look! A wizard!"
"Exactly," another boy chimed in. "I hope I'm in Gryffindor. I hear it's the best house to go into. Courage like a lion!"
"I hear Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad," the girl said thoughtfully. "I mean, cleverness is more likely to save you in a pinch than just being bold."
"No way," the first boy said. "Who wants to stick their nose in their books all day? Besides," he said, his voice dropping to a whisper, "Harry Potter was in Gryffindor. He's the most famous wizard alive!"
Lily tried to shut it out. Harry Potter was famous, but he didn't want all the attention. His story still sent chills down her spine; how had he managed it? "You lot don't know what you're talking about," Lily whispered, unknowingly speaking aloud.
"Oh yeah?" the second boy sneered. "How would you know?"
Lily looked up, ice in her eyes. "I met him, you dimwit. Whatever others have told you, it's not what you think. He speaks as though he were a soldier. He paid a great price just to be alive today."
The girl snorted. "Who wouldn't want to be famous? I think you're full of –"
She was interrupted as Neville walked into the room. "Ready, Mr. Callahan? Grab hold of the scarf and off we go!" There was another flash of light, and the second group was gone.
The other group turned to face Lily's. "Are you all ready?" The boy Neville had named, Burke, asked.
Lily's group nodded vigorously.
"I'm Matias Burke," he said smiling, sticking out his hand.
The first boy of Lily's group took it and shook vigorously. "Jacob Martin."
"Elijah Coney," the second boy introduced himself.
"Eliza Applewood," the girl stated, glancing at the three girls in Burke's group.
"Josiah Carson," the third boy in Lily's group said, speaking for the first time.
"And I'm Lily Kensington," Lily said finally. "And their names?" she said gesturing to the others standing behind Burke.
The other boy in Burke's group introduced himself as Zachary Birch, and the three girls were Jennifer Malone, Kelli Osborne, and Lydia Smith. Just as they finished introductions, Neville walked in again and gathered up Burke's group. Lily watched them go, her heart sinking as the others turned on her to continue their previous conversation.
"I think you're bonkers," Jacob Martin said. "You probably never met the bloke; you're just making up stories. Why would Harry Potter talk to a girl like you anyways?"
Lily's face burned with fury and embarrassment. Of course they didn't believe her. Nobody ever had. "Don't believe me then. I hope I don't share a house with the likes of you."
"Don't say things like that!" Elizabeth cried. "You'll still have classes together either way, but we shouldn't be making enemies. We're not even at the school yet!"
"She's right," Josiah said softly. "Why don't we just shut up and wait for the professor?"
And that's exactly what they did, spending five long minutes in a dreadful silence until Neville returned for them. Without a word, they collected their trunks and grabbed hold of the ratty old scarf. Neville counted down from three, and when he reached "one," Lily felt an unpleasant jerk behind her neck and her stomach did flips as they seemed to sail in dizzying circles. Just as Neville had warned, the landing was rough, and Lily's legs gave out beneath her when they hit pavement. Struggling to her feet, she looked around at all the students bustling around the platform.
"This way, this way!" a frantic mother half screamed at her children. "You've got ten minutes to board! Hurry up!"
Another family nearly knocked into Lily as they dodged around a pudgy old man trying to pass out fliers and yet another gaggle of students passed while playing a shoving game. Lily soaked it all in, especially the scarlet engine that whistled and puffed, waiting to pull out of the station. Lily grabbed her luggage and began to drag it towards the first door she saw, struggling with its weight. The trunk caught on the edge of the step and Lily tried fruitlessly to pull it up on her own. She needed help, but was too self-conscious to look up and ask for it.
"You, huh? Need a hand?" A familiar voice asked from behind her, making her jump and drop her trunk loudly back onto the platform. She looked up at Merlin and nodded stiffly, her face turning red from embarrassment. With a heave, he pulled her trunk up into the train and gave Lily a wink. "First years always have a hard time with their trunks."
"Thank you," Lily choked out.
"Not a problem," Merlin chortled. "Come on, you can join me and my friends in our compartment. We're a mixed lot, mind you, but I think you'll fit in alright."
Lily followed him numbly down the aisle as he dragged her trunk to a compartment midway down the train. Sliding the compartment door open, Merlin was greeted warmly by two other boys and a girl, all of varying ages. When they saw Lily, the girl gave a catcall and winked at Merlin. "Look what the cat dragged in! A firstie! I knew you'd find a sweetheart eventually." The girl cackled and gave Lily a comic wink.
Blushing, Lily entered the compartment and sat on the edge of the nearest seat. Merlin, with the help of the other two boys, heaved Lily's trunk up with the others and sat down together, grinning like fools. Lily examined them all, wondering what their connection to Merlin was. The first boy had a mess of straight black hair, skin almost as fair as Lily's, and piercing brown, almost black, eyes. He was lean and lanky, leaning back casually in his seat, lazily flipping through a magazine entitled The Quibbler. The other boy was nearly albino with white blonde hair, pale blue/grey eyes, and the palest skin Lily had ever seen. The girl was easily the most outgoing of the group with a mischievous glint in her amber eyes, twirling a russet curl around her fingers with one hand and spinning her wand in her other hand. She was tan and well dressed, leaning forward in her seat as her eyes flitted between Merlin and Lily.
"Right," Merlin said with a grin. "Introductions! You already know me, but I'll remind you anyways. I'm Merlin, third year, Ravenclaw, etc. Oh, and the world's biggest klutz."
"That's not a joke either," the girl jumped in. "Last year he tripped over his robes and spilled Professor Slughorn's entire collection of Scarab beetles on the floor. I'm Carissa, by the way. Also a third year, but I'm in Gryffindor. Met this lout when he fell down two flights of stairs his first week at Hogwarts on his way to breakfast."
"Hey!" Merlin protested. "Can I tell my own embarrassing stories, please?"
The dark haired boy rolled his eyes and set his magazine aside. "Jacob Campbell. Slytherin fourth year. Never a dull moment with these two, I can promise you that."
The albino boy snorted. "Jacob is the serious one. I'm Reese Campbell, his twin brother. You can tell who got the looks in our family," he said with a wink. "I'm in Gryffindor too. Makes for quite the sibling rivalry, don't you think?"
Lily was startled by the direct question. "Um . . . I wouldn't know, really. I know Gryffindor and Slytherin have always been at odds with each other, but I don't know much about Hogwarts in general, other than what I've read over the past two weeks. I'm a muggleborn."
"Oh yeah!" Merlin burst out. "Found her yesterday in the Transfiguration section of Flourish and Blotts – "
He was interrupted by screams out in the corridor as a flood of students ran past in a thunder. Reese got up and poked his head out only to slip back into the compartment as a dark haired boy Lily recognized whirled past the door, slapping at his robes which smoked as if it had just been on fire. Reese poked his head back out after he passed and laughed wickedly. "Potter seems to have gotten himself in a mess again with those cousins of his. Wonder who he pranked this time."
"That lot's trouble all right," Merlin said with a grin. "Anyways, tell us a little bit more about yourself, Lily."
Lily flushed and refused to meet anyone's eyes. "Um . . . not much to know really. Grew up in an orphanage and found out I was a witch about a month ago."
"Oh, you poor girl!" Carissa said, moving to put her arm around Lily's shoulder, effectively booting Merlin from his seat. He slid easily into Carissa's vacated seat and watched Lily closely. "I can hardly imagine what you've been through. Stick with us; we'll be your family."
Lily looked up into those warm eyes and smiled faintly. "I'd like that."
They spent the rest of the early afternoon telling Lily stories about Hogwarts, describing the teachers and different classes to her as well as some of the students. Each of them was a misfit in their own little way except for Carissa, who seemed to be with the boys just for the excitement of it. Every now and then a girl would poke her head into the compartment and chat with Carissa for a few minutes before winking at the twins, or saying hello to Merlin, and then moving on down the train. Lily liked watching the twins interact with each other. Their differences in appearance reflected the differences in their personality, and she found them extremely amusing. Lily hadn't noticed the time passing until a knock came on the compartment door and a kindly woman asked if they wanted to buy anything off the trolley. Lily's stomach growled as she examined the assortment of sweets and pastries. Merlin noticed and passed her a sweet bun with a foolish grin. The others spent the next hour having her try a various assortment of sweets. Lily discovered she was particularly fond of Chocolate Frogs.
"Can I have the card?" Jacob asked.
"Sure," Lily said, handing it over after reading the back. "Who's Grindelwald anyways?"
The group exchanged glances before Jacob answered. "He was a dark wizard. Brilliant, but not the greatest. He was murdered in his prison cell just over 20 years ago, during the wizard war."
"Oh, right, I know about that one. Voldemort, right? Harry Potter said the war was awful."
There was a gasp from all of them. "You've met Harry Potter?" Carissa whispered. "I mean, the Potter kids are one thing, but the Harry Potter?"
"Yeah, I met the whole family when Neville Longbottom took me to get my school stuff in Diagon Alley. When he found out I was an orphan, he told me about his experience at Hogwarts and the war." Lily shivered, remembering the terrible things he had recounted. "It was awful. I don't blame him for not wanting attention."
They stared at her, openmouthed, but eventually got over the shock. "Well, that was a long time ago. We don't have to worry about it," Reese said, then changed topic. "So which house do you think you're going to be sorted into?"
They spent the rest of the journey cracking jokes, changing into their Hogwarts robes at one point. It had grown dark outside and Lily began to feel the kindling of excitement once more when Carissa told her that they were almost to the castle. She wouldn't be making the ride with them, Reese told her, because first years always took the boats across the lake while the other students were seated in the great hall. Lily adjusted her sweater under her robes nervously as the train slowly came to a halt and the others began pulling the trunks down.
"We'll take your luggage with us," Merlin told her. "It will be waiting in your dorm for you after the feast."
"How will they know where to put it? I haven't been sorted yet," Lily asked.
Jacob smiled at her for the first time. "Trust us; it will be there."
They made their way through the crowds and onto the platform where they were to part ways. A loud, gruff voice called over the babble of excited students, catching Lily's attention. "Firs' years, over here please! Firs' years, this way!" A lantern swung high in the air, gripped in the hands of an enormous man with a thick moleskin coat and shaggy mane of hair and beard. The others had tried describing Hagrid to her on the train, but seeing him in person was a completely different thing. Pulling her cloak tighter around her thin frame, Lily made her way over to the giant man along with the other first years. She found herself next to Lily Potter, who grinned at her and invited her to join her boat with her cousin Hugo and two other students.
"Are you ready?" Lily Potter asked excitedly.
"I think so," Lily said, but her stomach was doing backflips as the boats began their slow procession forward, the lights of the castle gleaming in the distance. She was almost there.