The Journey From Platform Nine And Three-Quarters
Corey’s last month with the Dursleys was great. Dudley was now so scared of Corey he wouldn’t stay in the same room, while Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon didn’t shut Corey in his cupboard, force him to do anything or shout at him - in fact, they didn’t speak to him at all.
Half-terrified, half-furious, they acted as though any chair with Corey in it was empty. This was a large improvement in Coreys opinion, with Rex there he didn’t even feel lonely!
Corey kept to his room, since Rex was a large improvement of company. Corey thought his school books were extremely interesting. He would lay on his bed, with Rex, reading and discussing said books late into the night.
Corey thought Rex must have been some kind of magic, because he didn’t need to be in areas, like, rainforests where Emerald Tree Boas are usually found, and Rex didn’t sleep during the day either.
Every night before he went to sleep, Corey ticked off another day on the piece of paper he had pinned to the wall, counting down to September the first.
On the last day of August he thought he’d better speak to his aunt and uncle about getting to King’s Cross station next day, so he went down to the living-room, where they were watching a quiz show on television.
He cleared his troat to let them know he was there, and Dudley screamed and ran from the room.
‘Er - Uncle Vernon?’ Uncle Vernon grunted to show he was listening(?). ‘Er - I need to be at King’s Cross tomorrow to - to go to Hogwarts.’ Uncle Vernon grunted again. ‘Would it be all right if you gave me a lift?’ Grunt.
Corey thought that meant yes? ‘Thank you?’ He was about to go back upstairs when Uncle Vernon actually spoke. ‘Funny way to get to a wizards’ school, the train. Magic carpets all got punctures, have they?’
Corey didn’t know what he really meant, so he stayed silent. ‘Where is this school, anyway?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Corey, realising this for the first time. He pulled the ticket Hagrid had given him out of his pocket.
‘My ticket says I take the train from platform nine and three-quarters at eleven o’clock,’ he read. His uncle stared. ‘Platform what?’
‘Nine and three-quarters.’
‘Don’t talk rubbish,’ said Uncle Vernon, ‘there is no platform nine and three-quarters.’ Corey blinked. ‘Barking,’ said Uncle Vernon, ‘howling mad, the lot of them. You’ll see. You just wait. All right, we’ll take you to King’s Cross. We’re going up to London tomorrow anyway, or I wouldn’t bother.’
‘Why are you going to London?’ Corey asked, curiously. ‘Taking Dudley to hospital,’ growled Uncle Vernon . ‘Got to have that ruddy tail removed before he goes to Smeltings.’
Corey could tell he was very angry, which, well, fair. Why had Hagrid or any other wizard or witch not come to remove the tail with magic?
Corey woke at five o’clock the next morning and was too excited and nervous to go back to sleep.
He got up and pulled on his jeans because he didn’t want to walk into the station in his wizard’s robes - he’d change on the train.
He checked his Hogwarts list yet again to make sure he had everything he needed, he had Rex around his arm and paced the room, waiting for the Dursleys to get up, while speaking to Rex, who was trying to calm him down.
Two hours later, Corey’s huge, heavy trunk had been loaded into the Dursleys’ car, Aunt Petunia had talked Dudley into sitting next to Corey and they set off.
They reached King’s Cross at half past ten. Uncle Vernon dumped Corey’s trunk on to a trolley and wheeled it into the station for him.
Corey frowned at the nice action, thinking it must be a trick, but he didn’t know what it would be. Then Uncle Vernon stopped abruptly, facing the platforms with a nasty grin on his face.
‘Well, there you are, boy. Platform nine - platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don’t seem to have built it yet, do they?’
He was quite right, of course. There was a big plastic number nine over one platform and a big plastic number ten over the one next to it, and in the middle, nothing at all.
‘Have a good term,’ said Uncle Vernon with an even nastier smile. He left without another word. Corey turned and saw the Dursleys drive away. All three of them were laughing. Corey’s mind began to panic.
What on earth was he going to do? He was starting to feel like he was about to fall over. He was shaking a rather lot. Then Corey thought of something.
He put his hand in his pocket and let Rex wrap around his wrist. ‘Where are the other humanss?’ Rex hissed curiously. ‘They left me here. Do you know how to get onto platform nine and three-quarters?’ Corey asked hopeful, while pacing from platform nine to ten, and repeat.
‘I’m sorry, but I do not.’ Corey now tried hard not to curl up into a ball, and start crying. This was all Hagrids fault. Hagrid hadn’t even told him how to get on the platform. He put Rec gently back in his pocket.
After that a group of people passed just behind him and he caught a few words of what they were saying. ‘- packed with Muggles, of course -‘ Corey stopped in his tracks and turned around.
The speaker was a plump woman who was talking to four boys, all with flaming red hair. Each of them was pushing a trunk like Corey’s in front of him - and they had an owl.
Heart and mind still panicking , Corey pushed his trolley after them. They stopped and so did he, just near enough to hear what they were saying. ‘Now, what’s the platform number?’ said the boys’ mother.
‘Nine and three-quarters!’ piped a small girl, also redheaded, who was holding her hand. ‘Mum, can’t I go…’
‘You’re not old enough, Ginny, now be quiet. All right, Percy, you go first.’ What looked like the oldest boy marched towards platform nine and ten.
Corey watched, careful not to alert them he was here, just yet. But just as the boy reached the divide between the two platforms, a large crowd of tourists came swarming in front of him, and by the time the last rucksack had cleared away, the boy had vanished.
‘Fred, you next,’ the plump woman said. ‘I’m not Fred, I’m George,’ said the boy. ‘Honestly, woman, call yourself our mother? Can’t you tell I’m George?’
‘Sorry, George, dear.’
‘Only joking’ I am Fred,’ said the boy, with a flash of sadness? Hurt? And off he went. His twin called after him to hurry up, and he must have done, because a second later, he had gone - but Corey still didn’t get how.
Now the third brother was walking briskly towards the ticket barrier - he was almost there - and then, quite suddenly, he wasn’t anywhere.
Corey built up some courage. ‘Excuse me,’ Corey said quietly to the plump woman. ‘Hullo, dear,’ she said. ‘First time at Hogwarts? Ron’s new, too.’
She pointed at the last and youngest of her sons. He was tall, thin and gangling, with freckles,big hands and feet and a long nose.
‘Yes,’ said Corey nervously. ‘The thing is - the thing is, I don’t know how to -‘
‘How to get on the platform?’ she said kindly, and Corey nodded. ‘Not to worry,’ she said. ‘All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platform nine and ten. Don’t stop and don’t be scared you’ll crash into it, that’s very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you’re nervous. Go on, go now before Ron.’
‘Er - OK,’ said Corey, definitely not feeling OK. He pushed his trolley round and stared at the barrier. It looked very solid. He started to walk towards it.
People jostled him on their way to platform nine and ten. Corey walked more quickly.
He was going to smash right into that ticket box and then he’d have a broken nose - leaning forward on his trolley he broke into a run - the barrier was coming nearer and nearer - he wouldn’t be able to stop, the only way he calmed his nerves was by thinking - if he went head first into the barrier at this speed he would probably go unconscious by the time he hit it - the trolley was out of control - he was a foot away - he closed his eyes ready for the crash - It didn’t come… he was through the wall… he opened his eyes and stopped in place.
A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign overhead said Hogwarts Express, 11 o’clock.
Corey looked behind him and saw a wrought-iron archway where the ticket box had been, with the words Platform Nine and Three-Quarters on it. He was in the right place, great!
Smoke from the engine drifted over the heads of the chattering crowd, while cats of every colour wound here and there between their legs. Owls hooted to each other in a disgrunted sort of way over the babble and the scraping of heavy trunks. Corey felt a little overwhelmed.
The first few carriages were already packed with students, some hanging out of the window to talk to their families, some fighting over seats. Corey pushed his trolley off down the platform in search of an empty seat.
He passed a round-faced boy who was saying, ‘Gran, I’ve lost my toad again.’
‘Oh, Neville,’ he heard the old woman sigh. A boy with dreadlocks was surronded by a small crowd. ‘Give us a look, Lee, go on.’
The boy lifted the lid of a box in his arms and the people around him shriecked and yelled as something inside poked out a long, hairy leg.
Corey pressed on through the crowd until he found an empty compartment near the end of the train. He began to shove and heave his trunk towards the train door.
He tried to lift it up the steps but could hardly raise one end and twice he dropped it painfully on his foot. ‘Want a hand?’ It was one of the red-haired twins he’d followed through the ticket box.
‘Yes, please,’ Corey panted. ‘Oy, Fred! C’mere and help!’ With the twins’ help, Corey’s trunk was at last tucked away in a corner of the compartment, which also got Corey noticing that they looked good. ‘Thanks,’ said Corey definitely not blushing, pushing his sweaty hair out of his eyes.
‘What’s that?’ said one of the twins, which Corey thought was the one named Fred(?) suddenly, pointing at Corey’s lightning scar. ‘Blimey,’ said the other twin named George(?). ‘Are you -?’
‘He is,’ said Fred(?). ‘Aren’t you?’ he added to Corey. ‘What?’ said Corey. ‘Corey Potter,’ chorused the twins.
‘Oh.. yeah,’ Corey mumbled. The boys gaped at him and Corey felt like he was burning. Then, to his relief, a voice came floating in through the train’s open door.
‘Fred? George? Are you there?’
‘Coming, Mum.’ With a last look at Corey, the twins hopped off the train. Corey sat down next to the window where half-hidden, he could watch the red-haired family on the platform and hear what they were saying.
Which Corey knew was creepy and weird, but he didn’t have a clue on how to act to be normal in the non-magical world. How the hell is he going to act in a magical one that he has had no experience in?
Their mother had just taken out her handkerchief. ‘Ron, you’ve got something on your nose.’ The youngest boy tried to jerk out of the way, but she grabbed him and began rubbing the end of his nose.
‘Mum - get off.’ He wriggled free. ‘Aaah, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nosie?’ said Fred(!).
‘Shut up,’ said Ron. ‘Where’s Percy?’ said their mother. ‘He’s coming now.’ The oldest boy came striding into sight.
He had already changed into his billowing black Hogwarts robes and Corey noticed a shiny red and gold badge on his chest with the letter P on it.
‘Can’t stay long, Mother,’ he said. ‘I’m up front, the Prefects have got two compartments to themselves -‘
‘Oh, are you a Prefect, Percy?’ said George, with an air of great surprise? ‘You should have said something, we had no idea.’
‘Hang on, I think I remember him saying something about it,’ said Fred. ‘Once -‘
‘Or twice -‘
‘A minute -‘
‘All summer -‘ Oh, they were being sarcastic.
‘Oh, shut up,’ said Percy the Prefect. ‘How come Percy gets new robes, anyway?’ said George.
‘Because he’s a Prefect,’ said their mother fondly. ‘All right, dear, well, have a good term - send me an owl when you get there.’ She kissed Percy on the cheek and he left.
Then she turned to the twins. ‘Now, you two - this year, you behave yourselves. If I get one more owl telling me you’ve - you’ve blown up a toilet or -‘
‘Blown up a toilet? We’ve never blown up a toilet.’ ‘Great idea though, thanks, Mum.’
‘It’s not funny. And look after Ron.’
‘Don’t worry, ickle Ronniekins is safe with us.’
‘Shut up,’ said Ron again. He was almost as tall as the twins already and his nose was still pink where his mother had rubbed it.
‘Hey, Mum, guess what? Guess who we just met on the train?’ Corey leant back quickly so they couldn’t see him looking, Corey wasn’t sure he actually wanted to hear them talking about him.
‘You know that black-haired boy who was near us in the station? Know who he is?’
‘Who?’
‘Corey Potter!’ Corey heard the little girl’s voice. ‘Oh, Mum, can I go on the train and see him, Mum, oh please…’
‘You’ve already seen him, Ginny, and the poor boy isn’t something you goggle at in a zoo. Is he really Fred? How do you know?’
‘Asked him. Saw his scar. It’s really there - like lightning.’
‘Poor dear - no wonder he was alone. I wondered. He was ever so polite when he asked how to get on to the platform.’ What was that supposed to mean?
‘Never mind that, do you think he remembers what You-Know-Who looks like?’ Their mother suddenly became very stern.
‘I forbid you to ask him, Fred. No, don’t you dare. As though he needs reminding of that on his first day at school.’
‘All right, keep your hair on.’ A whistle sounded. ‘Hurry up!’ their mother said, and the three boys clambered on to the train. They leant out of the window for her to kiss them goodbye and their younger sister began to cry.
‘Don’t, Ginny, we’ll send you loads of owls.’
‘We’ll send you a Hogwarts toilet seat.’
‘George!’
‘Only joking, Mum.’
The train began to move. Corey saw the boys’ mother waving and their sister, half laughing, half crying, running to keep up with the train until it gathered too much speed; then she fell back and waved.
Corey watched the girl and her mother disappear as the train rounded the corner. Houses flashed past the window. Corey felt a great leap of excitement.
He didn’t know what he was going to - but it had to be better than what he was leaving behind. The door of the compartment slid open and the youngest red-headed boy came in.
‘Anyone sitting there?’ he asked, pointing at the seat opposite Corey. ‘Everywhere else is full.’ Corey shook his head and the boy sat down. Corey wondered how many kids went to Hogwarts for everywhere else would be full.
Ron glanced at Corey and then looked quickly out of the window, pretending he hadn’t looked, which made Corey think that maybe Ron lied about that because he wanted to sit with Corey.
Which was more believable. Corey saw he still had he still had a black mark on his nose. Corey was about to say something when- ‘Hey, Ron.’ The twins were back. ‘Listen, we’re going down the middle of the train - Lee Jordan’s got a tarantula down there.’
‘Right,’ mumbled Ron. ‘Corey,’ said Fred, ‘did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then.’
‘Bye,’ said Ron, while Corey contemplated if he wanted to go down and see the tarantula, but ultimately decided against it. He didn’t want to leave just to be stared at. The twins slid the compartment door shut behind them.
‘Are you really Corey Potter?’ Ron blurted out. Corey nodded. ‘Oh - well, I thought it might be one of Fred and George’s jokes,’ said Ron. ‘And have you really got - you know…’ He pointed at Corey’s forehead.
‘My scar?’ Corey asked. ‘Well… yeah.’
‘Mhm,’ Corey hummed.
‘Really? Can I see it?’ Ron asked excited, Corey didn’t really want to, but he supposed it may be rude if he didn’t. So Corey pulled back his fringe to show the lightning scar. Ron stared, and Corey flattened his fringe down again.
‘So that’s where You-Know-Who -?’
‘Yes,’ said Corey, not really liking how Ron was treating him differently now.
‘Do you remember any of it?’ He asked eagerly. ‘No, well, I remember a lot of green light, but nothing else.’ Corey didn’t exactly get why Ron was so eager about this like it was something impressive.
‘Wow,’ said Ron. He sat and stared at Corey for a few moments, then, as though he had suddenly realised what he was doing, he quickly out of the window again.
‘Are all your family wizards?’ asked Corey, who found Ron as a valuable source of information.
‘Er - yes, I think so,’ said Ron. ‘I think Mum’s got a second cousin who’s an accountant, but we never talk about him.’
‘Why don’t you talk about him?’ Corey asked, narrowing his eyes. He didn’t like how he said it. It sounded like he looked down on muggles just like Hagrid.
‘Uhm, I think my mum said something about him feeling jaloux about wizards having magic.’ Ron said, which Corey accepted as a reasonable explanation, at least for now.
‘So you must know loads of magic, already.’ Corey said, since the Weaslys were clearly one of those old wizarding families the boy in Diagon Alley had talked about.
‘I heard you went to live with Muggles,’ said Ron. ‘What are they like?’
‘Well, my aunt, uncle and cousin are horrible, but most Muggles are fine. I wish I’d had three wizard brothers.’
‘Five,’ said Ron. For reasons Corey couldn’t find in the context of the conversation, he was looking gloomy.
‘I’m the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts. You could say I’ve got a lot to live up to. Bill and Charlie have alreay left - Bill was Head Boy and Charlie was captain of Quidditch. Now Percy’s a Prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they’re really funny. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if i do, it’s no big deal, because they did it first. You never get anything new, either, with five brothers. I’ve got Bill’s old robes, Charlie’s old wand and Percy’s okd rat.’
Ron reached inside his jacket and pulled out a fat grey rat, which was asleep. ‘His name’s Scabbers and he’s useless, he hardly ever wakes up. Percy got an owl from my dad for being made a Prefect, but they couldn’t aff- I mean, I got Scabbers instead.’
Ron’s ears went pink. He seemed to think he’d said too much, because he went back to staring out of the window. Corey now understood all the gloom.
It sounded unfair and Corey could see how Rons parents probably could do better. Well, there was of course nothing wrong with not being able to afford new stuff but this was just a little too unfair for Ron.
Corey thought maybe he should talk about their similarities that they have between them, like, getting secondhand clothing, so he did so.
That seemed to lighten Rons mood. ‘… and I was a little suspicious about all the weird stuff happening but until Hagrid told me, I didn’t know anything about my parents or Voldemort -’ Ron gasped.
‘What?’ said Corey.
‘You said You-Know-Who’s name!’ said Ron, sounding both shocked and impressed. ‘I’d have thought you, of all people -‘
‘I’m not trying to be brave or anything, saying the name,’ said Corey. ‘I just never knew you shouldn’t. See what I mean? I mean its just a name. But I guess I’ve got loads to learn… I bet,’ he added, voicing for the first time something that had been worrying him a lot lately,
‘I bet I’m the worst in the class.’
‘You won’t be. There’s loads of people who come from Muggle families and they learn quick enough.’ That reassured Corey a little bit. While they had been talking, the train had carried them out of London.
Now they were speeding past fields full of cows and sheep. They were quiet for a time, watching the fields and lanes flick past.
Around half past twelve there was a great clattering outside in the corridor and a smilling, dimpled woman slid back their door and said, ‘Anything off the trolley, dears?’
Corey, who hadn’t had any breakfast, leapt to his feet, but Ron’s ears went pink again and he muttered that he’d brought sandwiches. Corey went out into the corridor.
He had never had any money for sweets with the Dursleys and now that he had pockets rattling with gold and silver he was excited to buy something - but there wasn’t anything familiar that he could find on the trolley, which put him out a little bit.
What she did have were Bettie Bott’s Every-Flavour Beans, Drooble’s Best Blowing Gum, Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes, Liquorice Wands and a number of other strange things Corey had never seen in his life.
Not sure what he wanted, he got some of everything. He hoped he would like some of it. He paid the woman eleven silver Sickles and seven bronze Knuts. Ron stared as Corey brought it all back into the compartment and tipped it on an empty seat.
‘Hungry, are you?’
‘Starving,’ said Corey, taking a small bite out of a pumpkin pasty. Corey didn’t like it, its texture was weird, it had a weird taste and an odd smell. He hated it.
Ron had taken out a lumpy package and unwrapped it. There were four sandwiches in there. He pulled on of them apart and said, ‘She always forgets I don’t like corned beef.’
‘Swap you for these,’ said Corey, holding up his pasties. ‘Go on -‘
‘You don’t want this, it’s all dry,’ said Ron. ‘She hasn’t got much time,’ he added quickly, ‘you know, with five of us.’
‘Well, I don’t especially like the pumpkin pasties so lets just swap.’ said Corey, who had never had anything to share before or, indeed, anyone to share it with. It felt nice in a way, having a friend.
After Corey had eaten the corned beef sandwiches, which he thought tasted very good, and Ron had eaten the pumpkin pasties, they then started eating the other stuff.
‘What are these?’ Corey asked Ron, holding up a pack of Chocolate Frogs. ‘They’re not really frogs, are they?’ He was starting to feel that nothing would surprise him.
‘No,’ said Ron. ‘But see what the card is, I’m missing Agrippa.’
‘What?’
‘Oh, of course, you wouldn’t know - Chocolate Frogs have cards inside them, you know, to collect - Famous Witches and Wizards. I’ve got five hundred, but I haven’t got Agrippa or Ptolemy.’
Corey unwrapped his Chocolate Frog and picked up the card. It showed a man’s face. He wore half-moon glasses, had a long crooked nose and flowing silver hair, beard and moustasche. Underneath the picture was the name Albus Dumbledore.
‘So this is Dumbledore?’ said Corey.
‘Don’t tell me you’d never heard of Dumbledore!’ said Ron. ‘Can I have a frog? I might get Agrippa - thanks -‘ Corey turned over his card and read.
Albus Dumbledore, currently Headmaster of Hogwarts.
Considered by many the greatest wizard of modern times, Professor Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the Dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon’s blood and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel.
Professor Dumbledore enjoys chamber music and tenpin bowling.
Corey turned the card back over and saw, to his astonishment, that Dumbledore’s face had disappeared. ‘He’s gone.’
‘Well, you can’t expect him to hang around all day.’ said Ron. ‘He’ll be back. No, I’ve got Morgana again and I’ve got about six of her… do you want it? You can start collecting.’
‘Well, yeah, I did, you know, buy them,’ said Corey taking the card. ‘Oh, yeah, sorry.’ Ron’s eyes strayed to the pile of Chocolate Frogs waiting to be unwrapped.
‘You can take one,’ said Corey. ‘But in, you know, the Muggle world, people just stay put in photos.’
‘Do they? What, they don’t move at all?’ Ron wounded amazed. ‘Weird!’ Corey raised an eyebrow at Ron, did he not know that moving photos required magic? Was he stupid?
Corey looked back at the card in his hand it was kinda cool that photos could move. Ron was more interested in eating the frogs than looking at the Famous Witches and Wizards cards, but Corey couldn’t be more amazed by them.
Soon he had not only Dumbledore and Morgana, but Hengist of Woodcroft, Alberic Grunnion, Circe, Paracelsus and Merlin. He finally tore his eyes away from the druidess Cliodna, who was scratching her nose, to open a bag of Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavour Beans.
‘You want to be careful with those,’ Ron warned Corey. ‘When they say every flavour, they mean every flavour - you know, you get all the ordinary ones like chocolate and peppermint and marmelade, but then you can get spinach and liver and tripe. George reckons he had a bogey-flavoured one once.’
Ron picked up a green bean, looked at it carefully and bit into a corner. ‘Bleaaargh - see? Sprouts.’ Corey was interested in it.
They had a good time eating Every-Flavour Beans. Corey got toast, coconut, baked beans, strawberry, curry, grass, coffee, sardine and was even brave enough to nibble the end off a funny grey one Ron wouldn’t touch, which turned out to be pepper.
The countryside now flying past the window was becoming wilder. The neat fields had gone. Now there were woods, twisting rivers and dark green hills.
There was a knock on the door of their compartment and the boy, Neville(?), Corey had passed on platform nine and three-quarters came in. He looked tearful.
‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘but have you seen a toad at all?’ When they shook their heads, he wailed. ‘I’ve lost him! He keeps getting away from me!’
‘I’m sure he’ll turn up.’ said Corey trying his best to cheer him up, but he didn’t know if he was doing a good job at that.
‘Yes,’ said the boy miserably. ‘Well, if you see him…’ He left. ‘Don’t know why he’s so bothered,’ said Ron. ‘If I’d brought a toad I’d lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can’t talk.’
‘You can’t just say that about someones pet, Ron, he’s obviously really attached to his toad. That’s just plain mean.’ Corey said angrily, how could he be this dense? Ron had turned red.
‘Right, uhm, your right. I guess that was kind of mean. Well, anyway, you know, I tried to turn Scabbers yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn’t work. I’ll show you, look…’
He rummaged around in his trunk and pulled out a very battered-looking wand. It was chipped in places and something white was glinting at the end.
‘Unicorn hair’s nearly poking out. Anyway -‘ Corey thought that sounded extremely unsafe. Ron had just raised his wand when the compartment door slid open again.
The boy, Neville, was back, but this time he had a girl with him. She was already wearing her new Hogwarts robes.
‘Has anyone seen a toad? Neville’s lost one,’ she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair, umber brown skin and rather large front teeth. ‘We’ve already told him we haven’t seen it,’ said Ron, but the girl wasn’t listening, she was looking at the wand in his hand.
‘Oh, are you doing magic? Let’s see it, then.’ She sat down. Ron looked taken aback. ‘Er - all right.’ He cleared his throat.
‘Sunshine, daises, butter mellow, Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow.’ He waved his wand, but nothing happened. Scabbers stayed grey and fast asleep.
‘Are you sure that’s a real spell?’ said the girl. ‘Well, it’s not very good, is it? I’ve tried a few simple spells just for practice and it’s all worked for me. Nobody in my family’s magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it’s the very best school of witchcraft there is, I’ve heard - I’ve learnt all our set books off by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough - I’m Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?’
She said all this a little fast. Corey looked at Ron and took his facial expression as he, thankfully, hadn’t learned all the books by heart either. ‘I’m Ron Weasley,’ Ron muttered.
‘Corey Potter,’ said Corey. ‘Are you really?’ said Hermione.
‘I know all about you, of course - I got a few extra books for background reading, and you’re in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century.’
‘What? How can they make books about me without my knowledge?’ asked Corey almost angrily. ‘You didn’t know? Well, I guess wizards don’t have a law about that. Uhm, I guess, I can’t be sure if those books are completely accurate or not, if you didn’t know about them…’said Hermione, sounding a bit put out by it, which Corey could understand to an extend.
‘Well, do either of you know what house you’ll be in? I’ve been asking around and I hope I’m in Gryffindor, it sounds by far the best, I hear Dumbledore himself was one, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn’t be too bad… Anyway, we’d better go and look for Neville’s toad. You two had better change, you know, I expect we’ll be there soon.’
And she left, taking Neville with her. ‘Whatever house I’m in, I hope she’s not in it,’ said Ron. ‘That’s just rude Ron, I don’t think she was that bad. Just because she can get excited about going to Hogwarts doesn’t mean she’s a bad person.’
Corey could relate to Hermione and he didn’t like Ron speaking about her like she was a nuisance. Corey liked Ron, but he couldn’t keep being his friend if he was gonna keep being like this.
‘Whatever, yeah.’ Ron muttered. ‘Stupid spell - George gave it to me, bet he knew it was a dud.’
‘Ron I just think they tricked you, but what house are your brothers in?’ asked Corey, he still wanted to try to be friends with him. ‘Gryffindor,’ said Ron. Gloom(?) seemed to be settling on him again.
‘Mum and Dad were in it, too. I don’t know what they’ll say if I’m not. I don’t suppose Ravenclaw would be too bad, but imagine if they put me in Slytherin.’
‘What’s wrong with Slytherin? It’s just a house.’
‘Well, You-Know-Who was in it and it’s the house know for the Dark-Arts.’ said Ron. He flopped back into his seat, looking unhappy (Sad? Angry? Depressed?)
‘So what do your oldest brothers do now they’ve left, anyway?’ Corey was wondering what a wizard did once he’d finished school.
‘Charlie’s in Romania studying dragons and Bill’s in Africa doing something for Gringotts,’ said Ron. ‘Did uou hear about Gringotts? It’s been all over the Daily Prophet, but I don’t suppose you get that with the Muggles - someone tried to rob a high-security vault.’
‘Really? What happened to them?’
‘Nothing, that’s why it’s such big news. They haven’t been caught. My dad says it must’ve been a powerful Dark wizard to get round Gringotts, but they don’t think they took anything, that’s what’s odd. ‘Course, everyone gets scared when something like this happens in case You-Know-Who’s behind it.’
Corey thought about this for a moment. He didn’t get why people were afraid of saying Voldemort, it’s just a name.
‘What’s your Quidditch team?’ Ron asked. ‘I don’t know any, you know since I wasn’t raised with magic,’ Corey said blankly. ‘What!’ Ron said almost like those two things hadn’t conected in his mind.
‘Oh, you wait, it’s the best game in the world -‘ And he was off, explaining all about the four balls and the positions of the seven players, describing famous games he’d been to with his brothers and the broomstick he’d like to get if he had the money.
He was just taking Corey through the finer points of the game when the compartment door slid open yet again, but it wasn’t Neville or Hermione Granger this time. Three boys entered and Corey recognised the middle one at once: it was the boy from Madam Malkin’s robe shop.
He was looking at Corey with a lot more interest than he’d shown back in Diagon Alley. ‘Is it true,’ he said. ‘They’re saying all down the train that Corey Potter’s in this compartment. So it’s you, is it?’
‘Yes,’ said Corey. He was looking at the other boys. Both of them were thickset. They were standing on either side of the pale boy they almost looked like bodyguards. ‘Oh, this is Crabbe and this is Goyle,’ said the pale boy carelessly, noticing where Corey was looking.
‘And my name’s Malfoy, Draco Malfoy.’ Ron gave a slight cough, which might have been hiding a snigger. Draco Malfoy looked at him.
‘Think my name’s funny, do you? No need to ask who you are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles and more children than they can afford.’ He turned back to Corey.
‘You’ll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don’t want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there.’
He held out his hand to shake Corey’s, but Corey didn’t want to take it. Draco talked like a person who loved classism and Corey didn’t like how it sounded like Draco wanted to tell him what to do.
‘I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks,’ he said annoyed. Draco Malfoy didn’t go red, but a pink tinge appeared in his pale cheeks.
‘I’d be careful if I were you, Potter,’ he said slowly. ‘Unless you’re a bit politer you’ll go the same way as your parents. They didn’t know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riff-raff like the Weasleys and that Hagrid and it’ll rub off on you.’
Ron stood up, while Corey just said, ‘I’m not friends with Hagrid.’ Ron’s face was as red as his hair.
‘Say that again,’ he said.
‘Oh, you’re going to fight us, are you?’ Malfoy sneered.
‘Yeah, unless you get out, right now,’ said Ron angrily. ‘But we don’t feel like leaving, do we, boys? We’ve eaten all our food and you still seem to have some.’
Goyle reached towards the Chocolate Frogs next to Ron - Ron leapt forward, but before he’d so much as touched Goyle, Goyle let out a horribly loud yell, which made Corey cover his ears.
It felt like his ears were being ripped out. Scabbers the rat was hanging off Goyles finger, sharp little teeth sunk deep into Goyle’s knuckle - Crabbe and Malfoy backed away as Goyle swung Scabbers round and round, howling, and when Scabbers finally flew off and hit the window, all three of them left at once.
Perhaps they thought there were more rats lurking among the sweets, or perhaps they’d heard footsteps, because a second later, Hermione Granger had come in.
‘What has been going on?’ she say, looking at the sweets all over the floor and Ron picking Scabbers by his tail.
‘I think he’s been knocked out,’ Ron said to Corey. ‘Don’t pick him up by his tail like that,’ Corey said worried about the rat. Ron looked closer at Scabbers and said,
‘Wait, no - I don’t believe it - he’s gone back to sleep.’ And so he had. ‘You’ve met Malfoy before?’ Corey explained briefly about their meeting in Diagon Alley.
‘I’ve heard of his family,’ said Ron darkly. ‘They were some of the first to come back to our side after You-Know-Who disappeared. Said they’d been bewitches. My dad doesn’t believe it. He says Malfoy’s father didn’t need an excuse to go over to the Dark Side.’
He turned to Hermione. ‘Can we help you with something.’
‘You’d better hurry up and put your robes on, I’ve just been up the front to ask the driver and he says we’re nearly there. You haven’t been fighting, have you? Or you’ll be in trouble before we even get there.’
‘No we haven’t, Draco did try to start a fight though.’ Corey said at the same time as Ron said, ‘Scabbers has been fighting, not us,’ Ron was scwoling at her, which Corey didn’t understand. Hermione seemed just to not want them to be in trouble, isn’t that a nice thing?
‘Would you mind leaving while we change?’ Ron asked still seeming annoyed. ‘All right - I only came in here because people outside are behaving very childishly, racing up and down the corridors,’ said Hermione in a almost hurt(?) voice.
‘And you’ve gor dirt on your nose, by the way, did you know?’ Ron glared at her as she left.
‘Why were you so rude to her?’ Corey asked a little angry that Ron was being so mean for no reason.
‘What? She was being all stuck up, about all that not fighting and all!’ Ron yelled, Corey flinched away at the volume.
‘She wasn’t even being stuck up or rude or even mean. She was just trying to be sure we weren’t going to get expelled or something on the first day.’
Corey didn’t think he wanted to be friends with Ron anymore. Ron scoffed. Corey peered out of the window.
It was getting dark. He could see mountains and forests under a deep-purple sky. The train did seem to be slowing down.
He and Ron took off their jackets and pulled their long black robes in silence. Ron’s were a bit short for him, you could see his trainers underneath them.
A voice echoed through the train: ‘We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes’ time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately.’
Corey stuck his hand in his pocket to pet Rex, who was peacefully sleeping. It helped to calm his nerves.
Corey took all his sweets that were left and put them in his pockets and joined the crowd thronging the corridor.
The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way towards the door and out on to a tiny, dark platform. Corey shivered slightly in the cold night air.
Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students and Corey heard a familiar voice, resisting the urge to groan.
‘Fir’s-years! Firs’ years over here! All right there, Corey?’ Hagrid’s big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads. Corey sighed annoyed by how Hagrid, apparently, thought they were friends.
‘C’mon, follow me - any more firs’-years? Mind yer step, now! Firs’-years follow me!’ Corey knew it was unreasonable, but he was finding it incredibly annoying how much Hagrid was saying “Firs’-years” Corey ground his teeth together wanting to punch the man.
Slipping and stumbling, they all followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark either side of them that Corey thought there must be thick trees there.
Nobody spoke much. Neville sniffed once or twice, Corey felt extremly bad for the boy. If Corey lost Rex he didn’t know what he would do, but it would probably include a lot of crying.
‘Yeh’ll get yer firs’ sight o’ Hogwarts in a sec,’ Hagrid called over his shoulder, ‘jus’ round this bend here.’ There was a loud, too loud for Coreys comfort ‘Oooooh!’
The narrow path had opened suddenly on to the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.
‘No more’n four to a boat!’ Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Corey was followed on a boat by Ron(eugh), Neville and Hermione.
‘Everyone in?’ shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself, ‘Right then - FORWARD!’ And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, which was as smooth as glass.
Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.
‘Heads down!’ yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy which hid a wide opening in the cliff face.
They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbour, where they clambered out on to rocks and pebbles.
‘Oy, you there! Is this your toad?’ said Hagrid, who was checking the boats as people climbed out of them.
‘Trevor!’ cried Neville blissfully, holding out his hands, which made Corey smile glad Neville got hos toad back. Then they clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid’s lamp, coming out at last on to smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.
They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door. ‘Everyone here? You there, still got yer toad?’ Corey thought he didn’t have to call him out, again.
Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door.