Avni hated change. It was always so difficult to get used to something new.
Avni did not want to board that train. She did not want to study at that stupid magic school. She did not care about all the hogwash Professor Longbottom had said to her and her family—no, she wanted to stay at home with her mum and dad. This was too much, honestly. Why did she, at the mere age of eleven, have to leave her house for some school far, far, far away? She could not understand.
Avni's mother, as always, was unfazed and was already chatting with a brunette woman (probably a witch with how she was dressed, Avni guessed.) Her mum had the talent of being able to talk to just about anyone. It didn't matter if she had never met the person or if they were a witch. Avni's father, on the other hand, seemed slightly jittery. He was trying his best not to show it, but he was definitely having second thoughts about letting his dear daughter go to the magic school.
"Oh! So you people are muggles!" The witch Avni's mum was talking to cheerfully exclaimed. "Well, then this all must seem awfully strange to you, yes?" Avni replied with a small yes to that, and before the witch could continue speaking, a man's voice, coming closer to them, called out, "Astoria! Why did you stop there?" Upon seeing them, the man, who had white-blonde hair and grey eyes, introduced himself with a polite smile, "Draco Malfoy. And this is my wife, Astoria Malfoy."
Avni's father shook hands with him and introduced himself, "Hemal Mehta." He gestured towards his wife and Avni and said, "My wife Bhoomi and my daughter Avni." Draco smiled politely once again as Astoria introduced them to the boy who had the same white blonde hair like his father. "This is Scorpius. He's also starting this year at Hogwarts. I'm sure the two of them will be great friends! Right, Scorpius?" The boy, overwhelmed by everyone's attention on him, awkwardly nodded.
As Bhoomi asked Astoria about the dorms at Hogwarts and Hemal asked Draco about how owls exactly work, A group of loud redheads passed them, followed by some equally loud Black-haired people. "That's the Potter-Weasley clan. They're really famous here in the wizarding world." Avni looked away from the crowd to Scorpius, who had just spoken for the very first time, and raised her eyebrows. Scorpius comically raised his eyebrows too and continued, "They're like celebrities. They played a big role in saving the wizarding world back in 1998."
"Woah," Avni said as she looked at the family who seemed to be the cause of half of the noise at the station. "Is that why everyone is looking at them with stars in their eyes?" Scorpius affirmed with a small nod and said, "You see that black-haired man with glasses? That's Harry Potter. That red-haired man beside him is Ronald Weasley. I love his personality. And see that bushy-haired woman? That's Hermione Granger-Weasley. The brightest witch of her age."
The brightest witch of her age seemed to be fussing over her giddy daughter, and Mr Weasley was joking, laughing at something with Mr Potter. A pretty ginger-haired woman – she assumed was Mr Potter's wife – beside him was scolding her son. The family seemed normal enough. There was nothing too special about them, she deduced, and diverted her attention back to her family. Mrs Malfoy was still pleasantly chatting with her mum while Mr Malfoy had turned his back to where the Potter-Weasleys were and was telling her father about his potions business, which her father seemed very much interested in.
Avni turned to Scorpius and asked him about houses, to which he replied, "Gryffindor is for brave people, Ravenclaw is for the smart people, Hufflepuff is for loyal people and Slytherin is for ambitious people. I think I'm gonna be in Slytherin." Avni let out a small, "oh", before saying, "Well, I am not sure what hou—OW!"
A girl, another redhead, had bumped into her. Just how many redheads were there in the United Kingdom? The girl, flustered, quickly apologised and asked if she was okay. "It's alright; don't worry about it." Avni smiled and continued, "Are you okay, though?" The girl caught her breath before answering, "Yes. And sorry again! I am Leah Wood, starting third year. It's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too! I'm Avni Mehta! I'm starting at Hogwarts this year." Leah smiled encouragingly at her and looked at Scorpius, who introduced himself. Upon hearing his name, Leah's smile faltered as she looked at Scorpius' father and then back at Scorpius. "Well, I'm in Ravenclaw, and if you ever need any help, come find me!" Avni watched her go as the girl's father called her.
Soon, the horn of the train sounded, and all the kids rushed inside the train. September 1st, 2017, marked the day their magical years started at Hogwarts.