On September 1st, Ari woke up early and went to early shacharis. After a quick breakfast, he made sure his mother packed a lunch and supper he liked, and watched as his father put a spell on it to make his food stay fresh. Both parents floo'd to Diagon Alley with Ari and from there took a taxi to King's Cross. Ari's mother thought it was strange that the platform was 9 ¾. She was shocked that she could just walk through a wall. Ari was surprised too, but he didn't say anything. There were lots of noisy people on the platform. Ari didn't want to have anything to do with them. He found an empty compartment and sat down.
"See you on Friday," his parents called, waving to him. Ari waved back and pulled out his favorite book, The Rugby Yearbook. He sat, reading for a while when he heard someone come in to his compartment.
"You like rugby?" a black boy asked him.
"I love it!" Ari said eagerly. "Do you play?"
"I prefer soccer," the boy said. "I'm Dean Thomas by the way."
"Ari Goldstein," Ari said. "I play all sports really. My father shrunk my rugby ball, soccer ball, and basketball, and taught me how to enlarge them. I also brought my baseball and mitt."
"Your dad knows magic?" Dean asked.
"Yes," Ari replied. "He went to Hogwarts too. My mother is a muggle though, so I grew up in the muggle world."
"My mum's a muggle too," Dean said. "I never knew my father. Which soccer team do you go for?"
"Liverpool," Ari said.
"I go for the Hams," Dean told him.
"Maybe on Sundays we could get a game going," Ari suggested.
"Sounds good to me," Dean said. "Do you think we'll get enough people for a real game?"
"Probably not," Ari said, "but my cousin and I often play one on one. It's not the same of course. If we do manage to get four of us together, we do one goalie and one center per team. My friends generally play baseball, rugby, or basketball, so I only play soccer with my cousins or in camp."
"What about your cousins' friends?" Dean asked curiously.
"They're all girls," Ari pouted.
"You make that sound like a bad thing," Dean teased.
"In my culture, boys and girls are generally segregated if they're not related," Ari said.
"That's strange," Dean said. "Is that a magical custom?"
"No, it's a Jewish custom," Ari explained.
"I noticed your cap," Dean commented, "so I figured you were Jewish. Are there lots of Jewish magical families?"
"No," Ari said. "Most of them went to America, but there weren't that many to begin with. Were you surprised when you found out about Hogwarts?"
"Very," Dean said, "but it explained things that were happening to me."
The two of them talked about sports and magic for a long time, and only stopped when the trolley lady came in.
"Anything off the carts dears?" she asked.
"No thanks, I have my own food," Ari said.
"Do you have mars bars?" Dean asked.
"We only have magical foods," the lady said.
Dean cautiously picked out some of the safer looking foods. Ari excused himself to go to the bathroom and wash his hands. He made sure to bring a cup with him, knowing that people who see him would think he is strange. He walked back to his compartment quietly and took a small bite of his grilled cheese sandwich. They continued talking while they ate but were interrupted when a round faced boy came in.
"Have you seen my toad?" he asked tearfully.
"No," they both said.
"If it comes this way, we'll bring it to you," Dean offered.
"Thanks," the boy said.
"Do you play any sports?" Ari asked eagerly.
"My gram doesn't let," the boy muttered. "I have to find my toad."
He walked out of their compartment.
"Would you really touch a yucky slimy toad?" Ari asked.
"Why not?" Dean challenged him.
"I don't like animals," Ari confessed. "My father made me practice handling our owl this summer so that I could get packages from home."
"Owls deliver our mail?" Dean asked. "How does that work?"
"Owls are smart," Ari said. "You tell them who to bring it to, and they go."
They continued talking about the strange things in the wizard world. Ari told Dean what he knows about Hogwarts. While they were talking, a girl with bushy hair and big teeth came in.
"Did you see a toad?" she asked. "Neville lost his."
"We already told him we'll return it if we see it," Dean said.
The girl thanked them and left. Eventually, they both changed into their robes, making fun of how silly they look. They were both shocked at the giant who took them to the castle.