Chapter 5: Worry Train

:) Nothing much to say here except ENJOY!

"It been a realy really messed up week
Seven days of torture
Seven days of bitter
...

I don't know if I'll make it
But watch how good I'll fake it"

-Tonight Tonight by Hot Chelle Rae

Harry's POV:

And just like that, my son was gone. I put my head on Tom's shoulder. "Tom, I miss him already."

Tom smiled somberly. "But he is going to Hogwarts. He will be just fine."

I sighed and squeezed his hand that was still in mine. I hoped he would find friends. And I hoped he wouldn't have too much of a hard time with his fame. And that Snape wouldn't be mean to him as he was to me. And that he would show Scorpius a thing or two. I hoped he would have a great year, and enjoy it all while he could, no matter the grades he gets, or whichever house he's in, or what crazy adventures turn up on his path. I wanted him to have more than I had.

The train was long gone, but we still stood where we were, not bothering to leave just yet. Looking around, that seemed to be the case with many parents. And my eye caught blonde hair and a dreamy look in someone's eyes, and I did somewhat of a double take. I smiled and pulled Tom after me as I headed towards my friend. "Luna?"

The woman turned and smiled at me. She hadn't changed a bit. "Harry. How lovely to see you here." I went to her and gave her a hug. It had been ages since we had seen each other.

"You have a kid going to Hogwarts?"

"Two. They're twins. Rolf couldn't be here, since he's busy working, but I came to make sure they were off okay. Wouldn't want the Nargals to take their things without their notice."

I laughed. Same old Loony Luna. "Tom and I just sent off our son. It's his first year."

"My boys are first years too. It's always hard the first time, but I've been told it gets better."

I sighed. "I sure hope so."

"Well, it's been nice talking to you, Harry. And nice meeting you, Tom. I have to meet my father for some tea."

"Alright. See you again sometime." She smiled and disapparated. Many of the other parents were gone now, and the platform was very empty. I looked back to Tom. He had a small smile on his face. "What is that smile for?"

"I remember her. If one of my Death Eaters had not kidnapped her, we would not be standing here now, together."

It was almost a sad thought, to think about Luna being kidnapped, and how awful I felt about it then. But now that I have all this, I wouldn't change that for the world. I smiled, too. "Well, we had better be off then. We're the last people here." Truly, the platform was deserted. I pulled out my wand, and apparated us home. We landed in the dining room and I began to trudge back to our room. I wanted to fall onto the bed and burry my head in a pillow. And so I did. Tom followed me, and brought a book to read while he sat next to me. I was lost in my thoughts.

And I realized how Nanda was different, from both me and Tom. Hogwarts was our safe haven, away from the tortures of muggle life, but for Nanda, he was leaving his home to go to school, and he would miss us. We would come back to our horrible "family", and wish we were anywhere but there. But Nanda would love to come back and see us, and tell us what he had learned, and rejoin with a family who actually loves him. That made me truly happy that we could give him that.

Nanda's POV:

The two boys were staring at me with a blank expression, almost like they were looking past me. It was rather unnerving. "Who's your dad?" Lysander said.

"Um, I have two…" I said. I thought maybe they were looking past me, since I sat by the window, which now showed we were moving.

"One of them wouldn't happen to be Harry Potter, would they?" Lorcan asked.

This was what my papa was talking about when he said people would know who I was. "Yes." I looked down at my fingers and twiddled them. What I would give to be let my music free…

"I thought so. Our mom is a friend of his. She has told us so much about him. Has he, by chance, ever mentioned our mother, Luna?" asked Lorcan.

The name rung a bell. I had heard it somewhere…but where? "I think so."

"Our father talks about him, too. But he mostly talks about you." Lysander said, his pale eyes just a bit too close to my face (since I sat next to him). "You've been in the paper, did you know that?"

"Uh, no. I didn't." These two were very odd. I wondered if maybe they weren't all there in the head. It definitely was a possibility; something about the pair was off.

"Your other dad was the Dark Lord. But he's not dark anymore, is he?" said Lorcan.

"They call you 'The Grey'," said Lysander. "What an odd nickname."

That was new. "What?" I had a nickname? "Why do they call me that?"

"I'm not sure"

"But we can definitely find out for you." Lysander backed away, but I still felt as if his eyes were coming closer, only an inch from my face. They bore into me, and my nerves were startled. Lorcan was no different.

"Alright, then." I said, not knowing what else there was to say. Lorcan stood up, and left the compartment. I looked back over to Lysander, who was still staring through me, his eyes looking almost as if he was day dreaming. "Where did he go?"

"To ask one of the older kids if they know."

"You know older kids?" I was certain any older kids would more than agree with my thoughts about them.

"No."

So he's just going to walk up to some older kid and ask that random question? That's wonderful… I looked awkwardly around the compartment, trying to avoid looking at Lysander's piercing stare. Then there was a knock at the door. A girl with black hair and brown eyes opened the door. "Hello. Might I be able to sit with you? Some third years just kicked me out of their compartment."

"Uh, sure, I gues-" I started, but Lysander interrupted.

"Why did they kick you out?"

The girl blushed and looked to the floor. "I-I..." she bit her lip. "I may have accidently covered them in water."

"How did you do that?" Lysander's questions seemed a bit rude, but they didn't carry the tone for it; he seemed curious.

"Well…I was…and then one of them told me I wouldn't be able to do magic until…and then I pulled out my wand…and…" she sighed. "I'll just sit in another compartment."

She began to close the door, but I stood and stopped her. "No, it's alright. You can sit with us."

"Just as long as you don't pull out your wand. We aren't allowed to use magic outside of school." Lysander said.

The corners of her mouth tugged up, and she came inside and sat down. "My name is Marcie Codnor. Are you both first years?"

"Yes. Just like you," said Lysander, giving her that same blank stare he had been giving me before. She looked to me, and I just shrugged.

There were long minutes of silence, where none of us talked at all. I didn't particularly do anything but look out the window at the scenery, but found it was none too interesting. Definitely not as beautiful as the hills outside the manor. I never looked back at the other two, but I could tell when Lysander was looking at me. There was that feeling of being watched, and I guessed he was probably looking me over, applying my appearance to what he had heard about me. That's usually what people do when they have information about a person before meeting them. I tried with all my might not to look back at him.

"So, you never told me your names," said Marcie, breaking the silence, much to my relief.

"I'm Lysander Scamander." His eyes moved off of me to look at her.

"And I'm Nanda." I said and gave a half smile. She probably already knows me, I thought.

Her eyes went wide. "Nanda? The son of Harry Potter and…T-Tom Riddle?"

I sighed internally. Of course… "Yes. Apparently they call me 'The Grey', whatever that means…"

Her face turned to confusion. "Why do they call you that?"

"Well, I was wondering the same thing."

"My brother went to find out," said Lysander.

And he's been gone an awful long time… What on Earth had happened to him? "Where is he anyway? He's been gone a while now."

"Who did he go to ask?" Marcie had her head tilted slightly to the side.

"Some older kids. Knowing him, probably a sixth or seventh year."

Because they would probably know more about it than anyone else, and they wouldn't be so mean to curious first years, like others would, I thought. It made sense. But then why was he taking so long?

"Why on Earth would he ask them? I'm sure they wouldn't talk to first years unless they have to." Marcie said.

"You'd be surprised." Lysander smiled.

And the compartment fell back into a much dreaded silence. So far, I wasn't doing such a great job making friends. But then again, if they weren't in my house, I probably wouldn't see them much anyway. I would have to wait until I was sorted to make real friends. Hopefully I would be in Gryffindor, or Slytherin. I couldn't bear to think what my dads would think of me if I wasn't. They would be so disappointed of me. I wasn't sure I would be a Gryffindor; I wasn't courageous, and stubborn, and fierce. Maybe I could be a Slytherin; I was clever, but I wasn't really manipulative. Does one have to meet all the requirements to be in a house, or can they only have only some?

Lorcan came back into the compartment, interrupting my thoughts. Marcie murmured under her breath (something like "Merlin, they're twins"). "Hello, there," Lorcan said, his eyes looking through Marcie. "I don't believe you were in here when I left."

"Oh, no. I'm Marcie Codnor. You must be the brother he was talking about." She forced a smile, but it was pretty obvious that she was uncomfortable.

"Did you find out about 'The Grey', brother?"

"Of course." He sat down next to Marcie and his glossed over eyes looked at me. "I asked a seventh year. Gryffindor. He said that your dads were two opposite beings. Harry was the leader of the Light, and acted as a beacon of hope for wizards and witches who were threatened by your other father, who was the Dark Lord at the time. The Dark Lord was the leader of his Death Eaters, and acted as a destroyer of hope. They were so opposite, but they founded a singular party together. He said you were the middle ground between them, the Light and the Dark. You were 'The Grey' between them."

I sat in silence. It wasn't that I was shocked hearing this, but it was odd how they got the nickname. From what I knew, my dads were not so opposite. Sure, they had their differences, but everyone does. They actually agreed on a lot of things, and I had never once heard them argue. It was hard to believe that they could ever have been on opposite sides.

"Interesting…" Lysander said, and turned to me.

I now had two sets of pale, distant eyes looking at me, not to mention a pair of brown eyes. I was obviously very interesting to look at.

"Oh. Well, that makes sense." Marcie smiled. "Can I just call you Grey?"

"Uh…sure." I looked around at the eyes. It wouldn't be so uncomfortable if two of the pairs were not so blank and creepy. "I guess."

"Oh, and the seventh year asked me why I was asking, and so I told him that you were in my compartment, Nanda." Lorcan said.

"Brother, where are your socks?" Lysander asked. I looked down to Lorcan's feet, not noticing that his socks had been missing. Lorcan looked as well.

He shrugged. "I guess the Nargals must have got them."

"Nargals?" Marcie said questionably.

"Mother told you to watch for them." Lysander shook his head. "I suppose you'll get them back eventually."

"Well, shouldn't you be looking for them?" Marcie looked as confused as I felt. Nargals? There were no such things. Were there?

"No. Mum told us that lost things have a way of coming back to us." Lorcan said.

"I suppose that's true. At least somewhat." I said. If the deeper meaning was taken, it was fairly true, but I doubted lost socks would come back to their owner.

Marcie looked at me as if I was loony as well. "How is that possibly true? If you've lost them, then they're lost. You have to find them."

"Haven't you ever been looking for something, and you don't find it until later, when you're not looking for it?" Lysander asked.

"Well, I guess-"

"Then see? It is true." Lorcan said.

"But that's different. If I just misplaced something, of course it will turn up sooner or later, but if it's lost, it's lost." She crossed her arms. If I had to guess her house (based on her stubbornness), I would have said Gryffindor. But I wasn't stubborn like her. Why couldn't I be a Gryffindor?

"Think of it this way," Lorcan proposed. "When you lose something, and you don't find it after looking for hours, what do you do?"

"Well…" Marcie said. "I suppose I would wait for it to turn up."

"Exactly," said Lysander, "That lost thing turns up eventually. It comes back to you." His blank face finally had expression; it was smug and satisfied. I suppose that would be the cleverness of a Slytherin. I wouldn't have been able to convince her of that. Why couldn't I be a Slytherin?

Marcie just sighed and rolled her eyes. We all sat, the air around us a bit tense with quiet, glancing around at each other. The blank stare came back onto Lysander's face, and the oddness returned as well. After a while, I turned my face back to the window, wishing for something to take the anxiety out of me. What if I was a Hufflepuff? I would never be able to reach such greatness as my dads. Ever. No one has ever come out of Hufflepuff and done anything extraordinary. I would be such a disappointment to everyone who expected things from me. How awful it would be. Plus my eyes would be granted with the colors of a bumblebee every day. How terrible. That alone would cause me pain. Maybe I could convince the Sorting Hat…

I felt the train jump. I had been so wrapped up in my thoughts that I hadn't noticed the familiar surroundings of Hogwarts come into view. This was my first chance to prove myself, and I wouldn't ruin it.

"Do any of you, by chance, know how we get sorted?" Marcie asked. "The third years told me they make us preform a spell, and depending on how well it's done, they pick our houses."

Lorcan's face dropped from its blankness to a look of fear. "What if you can't perform it at all?"

I smiled. Lucky for me, my papa had already told me about the hideous rumors the other years liked to spread to the first years to scare them. Their parents, obviously, had not done them such a kindness. It was very tempting to let them think such things, just until they figure out on their own, but I figured it would be better for their consciences if I just told them. Wouldn't want them to wet themselves with fear.

Lysander bit his lip, and almost matched his brother's distressed expression. "Mother never told us we had to perform a spell."

"Guys, don't you know that-"

"I haven't practiced anything. I haven't even started reading my books yet." Marcie was getting tearful. "You don't think they won't let us in if we can't cast it, do you? I really want to go to Hogwarts."

"Guys, there's a ha-"

"Why didn't Mother tell us?"

"Maybe it's a new procedure. She couldn't have known about it, otherwise she would have told us."

"Or maybe she thought we could already cast it."

"Yes," Marcie agreed, but looked doubtful. "It must be an easy spell. What else would they give first years?"

"But I have barely touched my wand at all…"

"GUYS!" I shouted. They all turned to look at me. "There's no spell. That's just something the older years tell the first years to frighten them."

Marcie wiped at her eyes. "Then how do they sort us?"

"A hat. It looks into your head, and determines where you will go based on your characteristics."

Lysander and Lorcan looked at me with the same look I had been giving them earlier. "A hat?" They said in unison.

"Yes. It's called the Sorting Hat. And it's enchanted to talk, or something like that. That's how we're sorted."

Marcie sighed in relief. "Thank Merlin."

"Oh." Lorcan said.

Standing in the middle of a large crowd of other first years, just before the doors to the Great Hall, just waiting to be sorted; that's where I was. After we had gotten off the train, Marcie ran off to spread the word to other first years that there was no spell test. Lorcan and Lysander had hardly left my side (or sides, since Lysander was on my left, and Lorcan on my right…or was it Lorcan on my left and Lysander on my right?), and they stood by me now. I didn't dare look behind me, but I could feel their eyes on the back of my head. Looking down to my fingers, I noticed my thumb and forefinger were tapping a rhythm subconsciously, and I wished this would be over quick enough so I could escape and possibly make some music somewhere. I really needed that release right now.

There was a parting of the crowd, and through it stepped Scorpius Malfoy, with two other kids trailing behind him that I did not recognize. "Hello, Potter."

"Potter?" I hadn't really thought of a last name for me. It wasn't really a necessary thing around people you knew, whether your family at home, or when visiting friends. Now that I thought about it, if I had to have a last name, I would want both of my dads' lasts names, not just one.

"Yes. Your father is Harry Potter. (*gasps from the crowd, and murmuring*) Or are you too ignorant to remember who your own father is?"

I needed something to say. There were many options at comebacks; Witty, personal, kind, awful. But I needed one to make him feel bad for insulting me. "Well, yes. I know he is my father. But, being an orphan, there were more important things to care about than last names. Like having a family." I looked him straight in the eyes, but after what I said, he looked everywhere but mine.

"Oh." And that was all he said.

The crowd seemed a bit disappointed that there was no fight ensuing, but it was better this way. I may not have liked Malfoy, but I wouldn't risk getting in trouble on my first day of school just to get back at him. There were better ways to handle this, without attracting unneeded attention (like teachers). Malfoy turned and stalked away, his posse behind him. Guessing by his actions, he was hoping to irritate me, and possibly humiliate me. I knew he would be back, but not for a bit, and that was reassuring.

"Alright. All first years, please come this way." I looked to the source of the familiar feminine voice and smiled. It was Aunt Hermione.

Ooh! It's Hermione! :)

So I've been rereading the first book in the Harry Potter series, just to remind myself what the whole process of the first day was (if you can't tell). I hope you enjoyed it! Review if you can!