Chapter 1
“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,” Uncle Vernon said with an even nastier smile. He left without another word. I turned and saw the Dursleys drive away. All three of them were laughing. My mouth went dry. What on earth am I going to do? I'm starting to attract a lot of funny looks, because of my owl, Hedwig. Oh, what was it that Hagrid forgot to tell me? Surely, a Wizarding family was going to show up sooner or later. I should keep my eyes and ears sharp and look for one. At that moment, a group of people passed just behind me and I caught a few words of what they were saying.
“...Packed with Muggles, of course...“ My insides flooded with relief. Finally, someone I can ask for help. The speaker was a plump woman who was talking to four boys, all with flaming red hair. Each one of them was pushing a trunk like mine in front of him. “Now, what’s the platform number?” The boys’ Mother asked.
“Nine and three-quarters!” A small girl exclaimed. She was also redheaded and was holding the redheaded woman's hand. “Mom, 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 platforms nine and ten. I watched, careful not to blink in case I missed it... But just as the boy reached the dividing barrier between the two platforms, a large crowd of tourists came swarming in front of me and by the time the last backpack had cleared away, the boy had vanished. “Fred, you next,” the plump woman said.
“I’m not Fred, I’m George,” the boy said. “Honestly, woman, you call yourself our Mother? Can’t you tell I’m George?”
“Sorry, George, dear.”
“Only joking, I am Fred,” the boy said, and off he went. His twin called after him to hurry up, and he must have done so because a second later, he had gone... But how had he done it? Now, the third Brother was walking briskly toward the barrier. He was almost there and then, quite suddenly, he wasn’t anywhere. There was nothing else for it.
“Excuse me,” I said to the plump woman.
“Hello, 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,” I said. “The thing is... The thing is, I don’t know how to..."
"How to get on to the platform?” She kindly asked, and I nodded. “Not to worry,” she said. “All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms 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... Okay,” I said. I pushed my trolley around and stared at the barrier. It looked very solid. I started to walk toward it. People jostled me on their way to platforms nine and ten. I walked more quickly. I was going to smash right into that barrier and then I’d be in trouble. Leaning forward on my cart, I broke into a heavy run. The barrier was coming nearer and nearer. I won’t be able to stop. The cart is out of control. I'm a foot away. I closed my eyes ready for the crash... It didn’t come… I kept on running… I opened my eyes. A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign overhead said Hogwarts Express, eleven o’clock. I looked behind me and saw a wrought-iron archway where the barrier had been, with the words Platform Nine and Three-Quarters on it. I've done it. 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 at one another in a disgruntled sort of way over the babble and the scraping of heavy trunks. The first few carriages were already packed with students, some hanging out of the window to talk to their families, some fighting over seats. I pushed my cart off down the platform in search of an empty seat.
I passed a round-faced boy who was saying, “Gran, I’ve lost my toad again.”
“Oh, Neville,” I heard the old woman sigh. A boy with dreadlocks was surrounded 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 shrieked and yelled as something inside poked out a long, hairy leg. I pressed on through the crowd until I found an empty compartment near the end of the train. I put Hedwig inside first and then started to shove and heave my trunk toward the train door. I tried to lift it up the steps but could hardly raise one end and twice I dropped it painfully on my foot.
“Want a hand?” It was one of the red-haired twins I’d followed through the barrier.
“Yes, please,” I panted.
“Oy, Fred! C’mere and help!” With the twins’ help, my trunk was at last tucked away in a corner of the compartment.
“Thanks,” I said, pushing my sweaty hair out of my eyes.
“What’s that?” One of the twins suddenly asked, pointing at my lightning scar.
“Blimey,” said the other twin. “Are you...?”
“He is,” said the first twin. “Aren’t you?”
“What?” I asked.
“Harry Potter,” chorused the twins.
“Oh, him,” I said. “I mean, yes, I am.” The two boys gawked at me, and I felt myself turning red. Then, to my relief, a voice came floating in through the train’s open door.
“Fred? George? Are you there?”
“Coming, Mom.” With a last look at me, the twins hopped off the train. I sat down next to the window where, half hidden, I could watch the redhaired family on the platform and hear what they were saying. 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.
“Mom... Geroff.” He wriggled free.
“Aaah, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nosie?” Teased one of the twins.
“Shut up,” said Ron.
“Where’s Percy?” The Mother asked.
“He’s coming now.” The oldest boy came striding into sight. He had already changed into his billowing black Hogwarts robes, and I noticed a shiny silver 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?” One of the twins asked, 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 the other twin. “Once--“
“Or twice--“
“A minute--“
“All summer--“
“Oh, shut up,” said Percy the Prefect.
“How come Percy gets new robes, anyway?” One of the twins asked.
“Because he’s a Prefect,” their Mother fondly said. “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, Mom.”
“It’s not funny. And look after Ron.”
“Don’t worry, ickle Ronniekins is safe with us.” Ron harshly glared at them, and by the gleam in his eyes, was glad to see the twins unnoticeably wince. He was almost as tall as the twins already and his nose was still pink where his Mother had rubbed it.
“Hey, Mom, guess what? Guess who we just met on the train?” I leaned back quickly so they couldn’t see me looking.
“You know that black-haired boy who was near us in the station? Know who he is?”
“Who?”
“Harry Potter!” I heard the little girl’s voice.
“Oh, Mom, can I go on the train and see him, Mom, 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 onto the platform.”
“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 exclaimed, and the three boys clambered onto the train. They leaned out of the window for her to kiss them goodbye, and their younger Sister began to cry.
“Don’t cry, Ginny. We’ll send you loads of owls.”
“We’ll send you a Hogwarts toilet seat.”
“George!”
“Only joking, Mom.” The train began to move. I 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. I watched the girl and her Mother disappear as the train rounded the corner. Houses flashed past the window. I felt a great leap of excitement. I don't know what I'm going to but it had to be better than what I'm leaving behind. The door of the compartment slid open and the youngest redheaded boy came in.
“Anyone sitting there?” He asked, pointing at the seat opposite me. “Everywhere else is full.” I shook my head and the boy sat down. He glanced at me and then looked quickly out of the window, pretending he hadn’t looked. I saw he still had a black mark on his nose.
“Hey, Ron.” The twins were back.
“Listen, we’re going down to the middle of the train. Lee Jordan’s got a giant tarantula down there.”
“Right,” mumbled Ron.
“Harry,” said the other twin. “Did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our Brother. See you later, then.”
“Bye,” Ron and I said. The twins slid the compartment door shut behind them.
“Are you really Harry Potter?” Ron blurted out. I nodded. “Oh... Well, I thought it might be one of Fred and George’s jokes,” Ron said. “And have you really got... You know…” He pointed at my forehead. I pulled back my bangs to show the lightning scar. Ron stared. “So that’s where You-Know-Who...?”
“Yes,” I said. “But I can’t remember it.”
“Nothing?” Ron eagerly asked.
“Well... I remember a lot of green light, but nothing else.”
“Wow,” said Ron. He sat and stared at me for a few moments. Then, as though he had suddenly realized what he was doing, he quickly looked out of the window again.
“Are all your family wizards?” I asked.
“Er... Yes, I think so,” Ron said. “I think Mom’s got a second cousin who’s an accountant, but we never talk about him.”
“So you must know loads of magic already,” I said, awed. The Weasleys were clearly one of those old Wizarding families the pale boy I had met in Diagon Alley had talked about.