*The red-head*

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September 1st, 1987

The first day of school couldn't come any quicker. Vernon and Petunia had told all their friends that Iris was going to a boarding school in London to lower suspicion. They weren't proud of her in any way, but her mother at least took her to King's Cross station. Her train ticket told her to enter platforms 9 and 3/4, and if she didn't read 'Hogwarts a history' she wouldn't know she had to run into a wall. They approached platform 9, and Petunia knew it was time to say goodbye to her daughter. She looked at her green eyes, the one that so resembled her deceased sister.  

"I guess I'll see you at Christmas," The mother said. Iris nodded a little confusingly. "Uh, thanks for driving me today... mum." Petunia would never admit it, but when her daughter called her mum, it made her feel special. She nodded and started to walk away. "Be safe Iris." She said quietly. Iris nodded awkwardly and after she had lost sight of her mother, she turned to the barrier and got ready to run into it. After a minute of bickering in her mind whether she would smash into it, she muttered a 'screw this' and ran with her eyes closed.

Just as she hit the wall, she prepared herself for impact. But none came. When she opened her eyes, she gasped audibly at the crimson train that said 'Hogwarts express'. There were tons of families there, waving their children goodbye. iris passed every one of them until she reached the train. Loading her luggage with some difficulty, she found a compartment to herself. She sat by the window and watched the crowd on the platform. A particular group caught her attention. There were 9 of them, all bearing red hair, and freckles. 7 out of 9 of them were male, all of them looked younger than 17 years old with the exception of one. Iris guessed one of the females was the mother, as she kissed three of her son's heads. Iris wondered how exciting it would be to have that many siblings. 

Instead of staring at the family, Iris decided to occupy herself with her book, getting a head start wouldn't hurt. About ten minutes later, the train lurched forward. Excitement erupted Iris. Another ten minutes later, one of the red-head boys's knocked on her compartment. Iris guessed he was the youngest of the three that their mother kissed, guessing by the height of the boy. He had horn-rimmed glasses, blue eyes, and very noticeable red hair and freckles. Iris noticed his posture was very upright, like her mother and father. "May I join you? Everywhere else is full." He asked. "Yeah sure, it's just me right now," Iris replied. The red-head boy sat across from her. "Thanks, can I ask what your name is?" "My name's Iris. Iris Dursley. You?" The boy cleared his throat. "Weasley, Percy Weasley. A pleasure to meet you." Iris almost laughed at his 'politeness'. "Nice to meet you too. First-year at Hogwarts?" She asked. 

"Yes, although I have two older brothers who already go there." "Yeah, I saw you guys from the window, must be nice having so many siblings." She said. The boy named Percy shrugged. "I guess, do you have any siblings?" Iris pinched the bridge of her nose. "Just one. He's younger than me and very spoiled. My parents can't get enough of him. It's always 'Dudley this, Dudley that.' But it's not all bad. I have a younger cousin that lives with us. He's good company." She decided not to say anything about Harry Potter, after all, he didn't know anything about himself. 

"Hm, wish I had fewer siblings. I mean I love all of them, but they can be a handful sometimes. Bill and Charlie are much more mature than all of them, after all, they are almost graduating. I think Fred and George, my younger twin brothers, are the most troublesome. Always causing havoc. Gives my mum a hard time. Ron's alright I guess, but he's not the smartest. Then there's Ginny, the youngest and only girl. Everyone in the family adores her and is protective." Something inside Percy made him chat so much, he usually didn't do that. 

"Sounds like fun. Are all your family wizards and witches?" Iris imagined what it would be like to live with the Weasleys. "Yes, we're pureblooded, not that it matters." Iris figured so. "Nice, I'm muggle-born. My aunt and uncle went to Hogwarts though. At least you have people to look up to. All I had was 'Hogwarts a history' to read, that's how I figured out how to get on the train." The mention of the book brought interest to Percy. 

"You've read it? I wish I could. Bill says it's a good book. Do you have it with you?" Iris shook her head. "No, couldn't afford it." The one singular phrase caused Percy to say something rather embarrassing. "You're poor?" It slipped out before he realized. "I mean- that's not-" He tried to fix himself, burning in the face to the colour of his hair. He thought he might die of shame. But Iris didn't seem to care much. "Not really, well I am basically. My parents have plenty of money, but they prefer to spend it on my younger brother. They don't like me too much. I think being a witch or a wizard is fantastic, but they think I'm a freak. I had to go through the student program at Hogwarts, they refuse to buy me anything magic-related. So much for being my parents." Iris sighed. 

Percy felt bad for her, but he could also relate somewhat. He had his parents, just not the money. He wasn't sure which situation he preferred. "Which house do you want to get in?" He asked changing the subject. Iris thought about it for a moment, while also being grateful he sensed her discomfort. "I think Ravenclaw. Maybe Gryffindor. What about you?" "Gryffindor. My whole family is in it. Although Ravenclaw doesn't sound too bad." He finished his sentence while the compartment door slid open. Two tall red-heads emerged from the crowded corridor. 

"There you are Perc!" Said the taller one who was wearing his robes and also had a badge on that read 'Prefect'. "We've been looking all over for you. We thought you might have missed the train!" The one who looked younger sat down beside Percy and messed up his hair. "Stop it, Charlie!" Percy said while launching his arm off his hair. Iris giggled causing all red-heads to look at her. Her cheeks flushed red. "Who's this pretty lady?" Asked the older one. Percy turned pink this time. "Uh, Bill and Charlie this is Iris. Iris, these are my older brothers." Iris muttered a shy 'hi'. Bill gave her a warm smile and Charlie said Hello back. "I'm surprised you could find someone who voluntarily wanted to sit with you, or did you force her? You know Perc, you should have more manners than that." Charlie teased. Percy struggled with what to say. "What! No- I didn't- I-" Iris interrupted him. "I wasn't forced, I let him sit with me." Then it was Bill's turn to tease him.

He hooked his arm around the first-year and brought him in a motherly way. "Oh, my Perc! You've grown so fast! Making friends with people!" He put on a high-pitched voice. Percy's face turned red again as he struggled to untangle himself from his older brother. Iris and Charlie burst into laughter. Once Percy was finally able to pry him off, the two brothers left the compartment. Iris smiled to herself. "They seem nice." Percy straightened out his clothes. "Try living with them for 11 years, plus my other siblings." Iris laughed, and the two connected all the way to Hogwarts.  

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