The Founders

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"There!" Grace Chen yelled. Leaning out of a train window, she pointed at her little sister, half concealed by the crowd of parents milling about on Platform 9 ¾.

Kyra Chen pushed down hard on the handle of the train door, and kicked it open, swinging her body half out of the train. Ignoring the yell of the porter, she reached out an arm to Nina, waving frantically. "Come on Nina, move!" she shouted over the confusion of smoke and noise obscuring the station.

Nina caught sight of her with a panicked look and started to dart through the maze of bodies, her small figure easily dwarfed.

The wheels of the train creaked slowly into motion, chugging powerfully. Nina pulled free of the crowd and broke into a sprint as the train picked up speed. Glancing to the end of the end of the platform, which was fast approaching, Kyra yanked her wand out of her back pocket. "This is your own fault, Nina," she yelled. Gripping one hand more firmly on the door post, she braced her body against the wind, robes flapping ridiculously, and shouted "Accio!"

Immediately, Nina was lifted from the ground, the surprise on her face comical, and flew into Kyra open arms. They both stumbled heavily back out of the wind, and against the opposite wall. Steadying them both, Kyra knelt down in front of Nina and gave her shoulders a shake. The hot sensation of panicky adrenaline subsided in the sway of the carriage, her heartbeat slowing.

At least their parents wouldn't kill them for losing their sister on her first day of Hogwarts. Although Kyra had been three when adopted into the Chen family, they had always treated her like family and she would be shouted at just like family if she didn't look after her baby sister. "What the hell was that?" she asked, in what she felt was an admirable show of self- control. "You almost missed the bloody train, you idiot!"

Nina didn't meet Kyra's eyes, letting her dark brown hair curtain her face and fall into her eyelashes. She muttered something to the effect of losing her hairband. Kyra looked down to see Nina twisting an elastic band between her fingers. She shook her head. "You're an idiot," she said emphatically, brushing a hand over Nina's untidy hair.

The door behind Nina was still open; it flapped loudly against the suburban scree of grimy brick houses, and the occasional name of a pub stamped in huge letters across a sheer brick wall. She stood up, staggered over to the frame and pulled the door shut, noise cutting off immediately.

The creak of the train reasserted itself, as well as the sound of chatter, muffled by the carpeted corridors winding away down the train. Kyra had the sudden sensation of standing by the sunny window on the upper floor of her grandparents' house, Sunday afternoon passing like syrup, the muffled hubbub of family downstairs.

She blinked. A pair of third years squeezed past with their trunks and continued down the corridor to a carriage, sliding open the door. It was a brilliant September day and sunlight lay in thick gilded squares on the carpet, heating the interior like a greenhouse.

The three of them started in the opposite direction, moving towards the front of the train and swaying against the walls.