Chapter Five The Hogwarts Express
Chapter Five
The Hogwarts Express
James was a horrible son. He realized this as he watched his mom wipe the tears from her eyes as she walked beside him though the hustle and bustle of King’s Cross Station and he tried to suppress his smile, fully giddy with excitement. His dad walked in front, pushing the trolley. Fleamont Potter was almost as enthusiastic as his son. He was a kind man, tall and good-natured, with a proper mustache that added some distinguishment to his face and helped to cover up his boyish excitement.
[10] “Here we are,” his father declared, grinning and coming to a halt in the middle of the station. James looked up at his father, confused. His father laughed and then bent down beside his son.
“You see that stone barrier? Right between platforms nine and ten?” he asked, pointing.
“Yeah,” James said.
“You need to go though it to get to the platform,” he explained. James grinned and his father moved aside for him to take the trolley. “Now you're going to want to take it at a bit of a run,” he added, “so that the Muggles don’t see.”
James started forward and his father grabbed the trolley, laughing. “Not yet,” he laughed. “Got to make sure no one is watching.”
James looked around and noticed a Muggle girl smiling at his owl Nimbus, who had just woken up and wasn’t very impressed by the station or his small cage. The girl passed by. His father held his grip, still looking around. “And… now,” he said, finally letting go.
James ran. His heart moved to his throat as he saw the brick getting closer. He closed his eyes and ran faster, bracing himself for the impact, but it never came. The sounds around him changed and he opened his eyes and saw the train—a crimson steam engine adorned with gleaming brass and polished wood. The atmosphere was alive with noise as, all around, kids wheeled their luggage through the station, the sound echoing through the vaulted ceiling and blending with that of shouted greetings and whispered goodbyes.
And they were like him, every one. Many of the children had angry hooting owls just like Nimbus, who were all shrieking and fluttering their wings in annoyance, eager to escape the tight confines of metal cages. Most everyone was clad in vibrant wizards’ robes. Some kids were sipping Butterbeer or chewing on the tail of a Jelly Slug, their trolleys laden with magical supplies, from cauldrons to spellbooks. All around him were things he recognized, a world he understood. James felt a lump surface in his throat as he realized that had finally found somewhere he belonged.
“Oi!” a familiar voice rang out through the noise.
James whipped around and grinned. Laetitia stood off to the side, her son in her arms and her daughter clinging to her skirt. Beside Laetitia was her husband Lachlan, and on his other side were James’s Nan, his Aunt Ophelia, and his cousin Theo—who was eighteen and had graduated from Beauxbatons the previous year.
“What are you all doing here?” James asked as he wheeled his trolley over to them.
“We came to see you off!” Laetitia beamed, passing Bellamy to her husband and wrapping James in a hug.
“It’s not too late!” she whispered audibly into his ear. “Dad said he can still get you into Beauxbatons. Don’t condemn yourself to seven years of ugly dormitories and bad cheese!”
James laughed. His uncle taught at Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, the school where both of his children had attended. He had offered James a spot but James had refused. He had heard so much about Hogwarts from his parents and had always looked forward to going. Besides, he didn’t speak a word of French.
Theo sighed and turned to his niece. “Better give James a hug, Amélie, it might be the last time you see him. Everybody knows there’s a monster that lives in the Hogwarts bathroom. I heard it killed a girl a few decades back.”
Amélie glared at him, still hugging tightly to her father's leg.
“Alright, enough!” Lachlan cut in, smiling. “You’re gonna love Hogwarts, James. I’d give anything to go back. The food’s great.”
Laetitia smirked then pursed her lips, clearly biting back a comment.
“What?” her husband asked.
“Nothing. It’s just funny to see the man I’ve watched eat the chewed-up crepes his son soaked in orange milk[11] expect someone to trust his taste in food.”
Lachlan rolled his eyes and Laetitia laughed. He set Bellamy down and gave James a hug.
“It’s great. You’ll see,” he promised. “Amélie? Do you want to say goodbye?” he asked his daughter. She shook her head and hid further behind her father’s back. Amélie wasn’t normally shy but she was clearly upset about something.
“Bellamy, can you give James a cuddle?” Laetitia asked, pointing at James. Bellamy toddled over and James picked him up. He wrapped his chubby arms around him. His soft golden curls smelled like shampoo.
“Bye, Bellamy,” James said.
“Buh bye,” he gurgled. Everyone cooed as James set him down.
Theo hugged him next. “See you at Christmas—that is, if you’re still alive.” He wiggled his eyebrows. James laughed and turned to his Nan, a woman who was as sweet as her husband had been cranky. She was in her early nineties but always told people that she had no intention of dying any time soon. She was more nimble than some people half her age and James was inclined to believe her.
“You be good,” she said, cupping his face in her hands then squeezing him in a tight hug. She pulled a bag of fudge out of her purse and handed it to him. “Thanks Nan,” James said.
James turned around and saw his parents watching him, his mum still crying but now smiling and his father just smiling. James walked towards them.
“This is it,” his father said, rubbing his hands together. He pulled a small envelope out of his pocket.
“I don’t want this to take priority over your school work,” he said, looking very serious, and James nodded, “but there’s been a long tradition in our family. I won’t say much now, but if you’re ever bored and looking for something to do, you might want to try to find what this unlocks.”
James took the offered envelope and felt something hard inside he assumed was a key. “Don’t lose it,” his father said with such intensity that James knew it wasn’t just some silly game but actually something important.
“I won’t,” he promised.
“Good,” James’ dad said, and although he smiled, his voice broke on the word. He threaded his fingers into James' hair and pulled him into a tight embrace.
He held on for longer than James expected and when he finally let go he had tears in his eyes. James felt his own eyes start to water; it all felt more real now. Then his mother pulled him in. He focused on the smell of her perfume; a sweet floral fragrance mixed with just a hint of raspberry. It had always been the smell of his mom. She let go then held his face in her hands.
“You better write every week, promise?” she said.
He laughed. “Promise,” he agreed, wiping his eyes and grabbing hold of the trolley. He took one last look back and waved to them. They waved back, all smiling. His mother had picked up Bellamy and was laughing through her tears as she tried to get him to wave. She was going to be alright they all were. James took one final look then stepped inside the train.
* * *
The platform was full of parents' tearful goodbyes. Not the Blacks, though, they moved through the station with purpose. Sirius was grateful for that. He didn’t like the awkwardness of tears.
“You have everything?” his mother asked.
“Yes,” Regulus said.
“Good,” she said, giving them both a kiss on the cheek.
“Stay with your brother,” she said to Sirius, setting her hand on his shoulder and looking into his eyes.
“I will,” he promised.
They turned to their father next, he gave them both a stiff hug. “Goodbye,” he said.
“Bye,” Sirius said, following after his brother who was already headed towards the train.
They got inside and Regulus cursed, patting at his sides. “I left my wand in dad’s jacket. Wait for me,” he said, then ran back out. Sirius sighed, looking around at the train. A boy came in behind him then, grinning like a little kid at Christmas. His eyes went wide when he saw Sirius’s luggage.
“Is that a Cleansweep?” he gasped.
Sirius grinned back “Yeah,” he boasted. The boy shook his head, not jealous but impressed. There was something so friendly in the gesture.
“That's so cool! Are you in second year, then?”
Sirius shook his head. “First.”
The boy grinned “Nice, me too. I wanted to bring my broom but my mum wouldn’t let me. What position do you play?”
“Chaser,” Sirius said proudly. “You?”
The boy's grin broadened. “Seeker,” he said.
Sirius groaned. “Of course,” he complained, rolling his eyes, “everybody thinks they're a Seeker until they actually join a team.”
The boy was unfazed. If anything he looked more confident. “I guess we’ll see then.”
Sirius was surprised again. He’d always thought of people as calculating or cowering, but this boy didn’t seem to be either. He didn’t need to prove himself, or secure a valuable connection. The boy seemed happy with who he was and wasn’t easily threatened. He wasn’t after power.
It was weird and refreshing.
“Should we find a compartment?” the boy asked.
Sirius started, looking back. Regulus would be back any moment.
“Oh, were you waiting for someone?” the boy asked, looking back too. The boy had a laid-back nature. Messy hair and expensive clothes. He seemed a bit cocky but genuine.
“No,” Sirius said in a moment of decision. “Let's go.”
“Alright!” the boy said. “I’m James, by the way. James Potter.”
* * *
They found an empty spot by the back of the train. It was entirely unremarkable. Two rows of plain black benches faced each other and the frayed red cotton curtains that adorned the windows looked like they’d needed to be replaced about seven years ago. A few empty candy wrappers had been left on the floor from the previous year. Above the seats were some tiny overhead racks, which James seriously hoped magically expanded: otherwise their trunks and belongings would likely take up most of the room in the compartment.
James lifted his truck with Sirius’s help and was relieved to find that it had been enchanted, and his trunk slipped in easily. He pushed it back then helped Sirius with his luggage. James grabbed his owl last and an older student took his trolley and added it to his stack. Nimbus had fallen asleep and James set his cage very carefully beside his trunk. He sighed with relief when he didn’t wake up and turned back to Sirius.
James couldn’t help but notice his new friend had been nervous as they walked through the halls. Sirius had kept looking over his shoulder and pushing his trolley faster so James had to run to keep up. His friend. He had been so anxious about this day since he got his letter, scared that he wouldn’t belong just as he never had, that he would ride the train alone, surrounded by people, but it had been so easy and Sirius Black seemed really cool.
Black breathed a sigh of relief when they finally sat down. James laughed.
“Were you scared someone would spot your Cleansweep and throw you off the train?” he asked.
Sirius gave a shuddering laugh. “No,” he said, lying back across the row of seats and taking steadying breaths. He put his hands to his temples and laughed again, relieved. There was something sad about it and James realized he had been genuinely frightened of something. Then Sirius spoke.
“So, James Potter,” he asked, “do you know what house you’ll be in?”
James shrugged. “Both my parents were in Hufflepuff. I guess I’ll see when we’re sorted—I’ll take anything but Slytherin,” he added. “What about you?”
Sirius gave a wry smile. “Well, my family's all been in Slytherin,” he said.
James felt his insides lurch. “Oh, dang. Sorry.” He laughed, then cut off awkwardly.
“No, you’re right,” Sirius said seriously. “It’s awful. I’ll go anywhere else.”
“I’m sorry,” James said, feeling ashamed. He shouldn’t have assumed.
“Don’t be,” Sirius said. There was a moment of awkwardness. Sirius seemed lost in thought staring up at the ceiling. Then he turned his head to look at James. “If there wasn’t a test and you just got to choose which house would you pick?” he asked.
“Gryffindor,” James said without hesitation.
Sirius’s eyes widened and he sat up and looked at James. “No way, me too!” he said.
“Really?” Jame said surprised, “Would your family be okay with that?”
Sirius laughed again, this one not sad but genuine. “Absolutely not. What about you? Will your parents be disappointed if you're not in Hufflepuff?”
“Nah,” James said, shrugging. “They don’t really care about my house, as long as I get enough OWLs.”
Sirius looked dumbfounded. “For real? That must be nice.”
They both jumped as someone appeared at the door. “Finally!” the boy said, looking exasperated. He looked like an older version of Black but with blue eyes instead of brown.
Sirius’s eyes went wide as if he had just been caught doing something illegal. He looked panicked and small, all of his previous bravado gone.
“I told you to wait,” the newcomer said, stepping in and looking annoyed.
“Sorry,” Sirius muttered.
The boy turned to James and looked him up and down. James couldn’t help holding his breath. He was strangely intimidated and suddenly felt like he was being appraised, but whatever the boy saw he seemed to like. At last, he smiled in a friendly way.
“Nice to meet you. I'm Regulus Black.”
“Black,” James said. “So are you two … ?”
“Brothers. Yeah,” Regulus confirmed.
James now understood why Sirius had been looking back. He had been waiting for someone, but why hadn’t he said? James didn’t have any brothers and didn’t pretend to know what was going on. He thought it was normal for them to fight, but Regulus seemed really cool.
“I’m James,” he said.
“James … ?” Regulus asked, raising his eyebrows.
“Potter,” James said quickly. The boy smiled as if he had passed another test and James couldn’t help but feel a little proud, though he wasn’t sure what about.
“Potter, pleasure,” Regulus said, nodding his head in approval. “You are welcome to join us. Now let’s go.” He grabbed Sirius by the arm and dragged him to his feet.
* * *
Sirius couldn’t help but resent the way his brother walked, confident and purposeful. He just expected you to follow him, because who wouldn’t?
Apparently no one. Not even James Potter. Hadn’t he just said he wanted to go anywhere but Slytherin? But now here he was following Regulus like an obedient dog at his master’s heels, off to go meet up with all the Slytherins as if that’s where he’d wanted to go all along. Sirius had thought maybe he had found something different—that maybe he could escape the life that was cut for him, be brave, choose something else for a change, but when his brother found him in that compartment he turned right back into that scared little boy.
They reached a compartment that was nothing like the one Sirius and James had found. The seats were plush and comfortable, upholstered in deep emerald-green velvet. The bench made a half circle surrounding a small round table made of polished mahogany. There were even matching velvet cushions. On one of these sat a boy with shoulder-length blond hair that Sirius recognized as Lucius Malfoy. He reclined against the cushion, resting his foot on the polished table. Beside him lounged a dark-haired boy Sirius didn’t know.
“Found him!” Regulus announced. Lucius gave Sirius a wry smile he didn’t return.
“Simon, this is my brother Sirius and his friend James Potter,” Regulus said by way of introduction. “James, this is Lucius Malfoy and Simon Lestrange.”
The boys nodded to one another and took their seats. There was an awkward silence which James eventually broke. “Are you guys excited for the feast?” he asked.
Lucius groaned. “Don’t remind me,” he said and the others laughed maliciously.
James looked uncomfortable and Lucius went on. “If Dumbledore starts blabbering about Hogwarts being a school for Mudbloods again, I swear I’ll chuck my largest book right at his face!” he vowed.
James no longer looked uncomfortable but stunned. “You can’t be serious?” he said.
Lucius laughed, misinterpreting James’ comment. “Yeah, can you believe it? Last year, he rambled on for a quarter hour about how we’re supposed to be all nice and friendly to the Mudbloods,” he said in a mocking voice.
James looked completely disgusted. “Good. ‘Cause you should,” he announced.
Lucius raised his eyebrows. “Excuse me?” he said.
“What makes you any better than a Muggle-born wizard?” James asked.
They all laughed. “James,” Regulus said sympathetically as if he was trying to teach something complicated to a confused child, “a Muggle-born wizard doesn’t exist.”
James looked at him like he was insane. “Umm … yeah, they do.”
Lucius looked back at him with mock surprise. “Oh really? Name one.”
James still looked angry and confused. “I can name a hundred! I saw at least ten on the platform today.”
Simon rolled his eyes and Lucius sighed like James was an idiot, but Regulus was ready, still convinced he could get James on his side. “Those were Muggles with magic, James. They definitely exist,” he said.
James narrowed his eyes. “They’re the same thing,” he said.
“No, they’re not,” Regulus corrected. “Wizards are born with magic. Muggles don’t have magic unless they steal it.”
“What?” James asked.
“Every Muggle-born with magic stole that magic from a wizard child,” Regulus explained.
“That’s mad! You can’t steal magic,” James argued.
“Then where does their magic come from, if not from magical blood?” Regulus countered.
James looked exasperated. “I don’t know they just have it, same as us,” he said.
Lucius laughed and looked at James with equal levels of disgust. “How thick are you?” he cut in. “Wizards are magical beings, they have magic. Muggles don’t. Any Muggle with magic stole it. It’s that simple.”
James threw up his hands “How?” he asked.
Regulus bit his lip. “There are lots of different ways. The more wizards interact with Muggles the more likely it is to happen. Why do you think more and more Squibs are being born?” he asked.
“They aren’t,” James said.
“Yes, they are,” Regulus insisted.
“Then how come I’ve only heard of one Squib in my life but know of hundreds of Muggle-borns?” James argued. Sirius had to give James credit he was brave. A first-year outnumbered three to one and he wasn’t backing down.
Regulus nodded. “It’s because they don’t always steal all of another wizard’s magic,” he said. “But Muggles have always been jealous of wizards. They tried to hunt and kill us for thousands of years, but now they’re doing something different, something worse.”
He lowered his voice, leaning in. “They are stealing our magic and taking it for themselves. No wizard child should ever be born without magic—that doesn’t make any sense—but the years of wizards interacting with Muggles and them stealing and corrupting our magic has taken its toll. Why do you think wizards are getting less and less powerful?” he asked.
“We’re not,” James said.
“We are,” Regulus insisted. “It’s just been a slow enough process that we don’t notice, and the Muggles are everywhere and trying to cover it up. They’ve changed the narrative and made it so the wizards look like the bad ones when they are the ones stealing from us and killing us. Name one wizard as powerful as Salazar Slytherin alive today.”
“Albus Dumbledore,” James said without hesitation.
This was too much for Lucius. “Dumbledore is nothing but a traitor! He only has power because the Muggles have taught him how to steal magic from proper wizards. He’s in league with them!” he seethed. “Telling us all to sit back and let the Muggles steal our magic, that we should accept the Mudbloods, that we’re the ones in the wrong for fighting to get back what they first took from us!”
Regulus nodded his head, very grave. “It’s true and he’s ruining Hogwarts. Not a lot of people know this, but Salazar Slytherin saw the danger and he put a monster in a secret chamber in Hogwarts called the Chamber of Secrets that would get rid of the Muggle-born children,” Regulus said, dropping his voice to a whisper. “They say he gave the key to his son and it’s been passed on for all these years so only Slytherin’s true heir can open the Chamber. No one knows who he is, but rumor is he’s somewhere on this train.”
James stared back at him, eyebrows raised. “Are you actually saying that you want some monster to kill all the Muggle-borns in the school?” he asked, astonished.
“No, of course not,” Regulus clarified. “They would leave the school before it got to them all. But they need to leave. They need to face the consequences of their actions and that will only happen if the Chamber is opened.”
“You’re all mad,” James declared. Then he stood up and left—just like that. The stunned look on Regulus’s face was priceless.
“Good riddance,” Lucius scoffed, lying back on his cushion and kicking both of his feet up.
Sirius looked at his brother sitting there stunned and couldn’t believe he was still in the compartment. His whole life he had been scared, afraid of standing up to Regulus or to his parents, scared of what it might cost him, but James Potter had done it in less than an hour of knowing him. And was this what he would lose? The chance to hang out with a bunch of stuffy boys complaining in the best corner of the train? He wanted no part of that, so, without another word, Sirius stood up and took off right after James.
* * *
James could feel the lump come up in his throat. His whole life he had wanted friends. Wanted to belong. And for a moment he had thought he would. Those boys had accepted him, welcomed him into their group, but he couldn’t fight the sick feeling in his stomach as he’d sat in that compartment. His mind kept going back to the Muggle-born kids on the train with him. The Muggle kids he had seen playing at the park, who were good and sweet just like wizard children. He couldn’t just sit and listen to someone talk about sending a monster after them. So here he was, alone on the train, just like at home.
He looked through the windows of the compartments he passed, but they were all full with no room left for him. He felt the threat of tears sting in his eyes as he watched their occupants laugh. He would have to go back to the compartment he had left, go sit alone the whole way to Hogwarts.
“Hey, wait up!” he heard a voice call after him.
James turned around and saw Sirius sprinting down the hallway. He caught up, breathing hard, and then grimaced. “I told you they were awful,” he laughed.
James smiled, relieved and grateful. He had assumed Sirius would stay with his brother. He laughed too. “I don’t know, ‘awful’ is a pretty strong word,” he said. “I mean, you heard them. They only want a few Muggle-borns to die—just enough to scare the rest away. Which sounds pretty reasonable if you ask me.”
They both laughed, but James’s laugh cut off abruptly when he met the eyes of the girl in the compartment ahead. She was very pretty, with dark red hair and a sprinkling of freckles across her cheeks and nose, but her eyes made him stop in his tracks, almond shaped and bright green.
It was the girl from the ice cream shop. The one who had waved at him. She had been so happy then and now she looked like she was about to cry. What had he just said? “He only wants a few Muggle-borns to die—just enough so scare the rest away. Which sounds pretty reasonable if you ask me.”
Oh no. She was Muggle-born. Did she think …
James' eyes went wide as he realized. She must’ve thought he’d been serious. He needed to explain! But she looked away immediately and started talking to the friend she’d been with at the ice cream shop, the one with long, dark chocolate brown hair, tanned skin and a purple ribbon tied around her hair.
James felt sick, he needed to explain but how? He didn’t think that telling her someone else wanted Muggle-borns dead, not him, would make her feel much better. Ugh. He felt horrible. Those eyes! He hated himself. Why was he so stupid? Why had he said that? Why hadn’t he thought? James was such an idiot. He wanted to sink into the floor of the train as they passed her compartment but he promised himself that somehow, someday, he would find a way to make it better, make it up to her and he knew those eyes were going to haunt him until he did.