The Boy Who Lived (Harry Potter x Reader)

Chapter 3

You waited nervously upon the dark platform, shivering when you really started to feel the cool night air. You shifted from one foot to the other, rubbing your hands together in an effort to keep warm. Suddenly, a single light appeared in the distance and began to bob over slowly to you. You watched curiously with the other students until it turned into a lamp, followed by a rather large figure.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" the voice boomed, waving at the lot of you. Assuming it was safe to follow this man, you and the other students began shuffling forward.

"It's Hagrid!" Harry exclaimed, tugging on your arm excitedly. You leaned in closer towards him, as there wasn't enough room to fully turn towards him, but you were curious as to why he knew this gigantic man.

"Sorry, who?" you questioned, frowning. "Am I supposed to know him?"

"The groundskeeper," Ron mumbled. "He's apparently a nice guy. Big, but harmless."

"Yeah, he's nice." Harry piped up. "He brought me to Diagon Alley and helped me buy everything I needed. He also brought me a cake."

"Was it good?" Ron questioned at the same time you asked, "A cake? Was it your birthday?"

Harry laughed before answering both queries. "Yeah, he was actually the only one that remembered my birthday, so it was the best cake I had ever tasted."

"Oh, Harry, when was it?" you asked, feeling sorry for the boy beside you. He had told you and Ron a bit about his family on the train ride to Hogwarts, and they didn't sound like the nicest people.

"July 31st," the boy in question said with a shrug, fixating his eyes on the large man who seemed to be scanning the gaggle of students. His dark eyes lit up upon landing on Harry.

"All right there, Harry?" the rather hairy man beamed at the raven-haired boy, who responded with a grin of his own and a nod. "C'mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"

"Well, happy late birthday then!" you said as everyone began following Hagrid down a steep, narrow path.  Ron nodded earnestly, showing he shared the same sentiment.

"Thanks," Harry mumbled before asking, "When's your birthday?"

"Oh, it's (y/b/d)," you said, glancing disdainfully at a rather large drop in the path. 

"I'll keep that in mind," you heard Harry's voice say as you looked up to see a dimly illuminated smile.

"Well, my birthday is March 1st," Ron's faint voice sounded, breaking the small moment. You shifted your gaze back to the ground and concentrated instead on not tripping. The rest of the trip was silent, only silent murmurs cutting through the otherwise quiet crowd. It seemed everyone was just as overwhelmed as you were, and were taking a few moments to let everything set in.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called suddenly, "jus' round this bend here."

All the students around you broke into hushed whispers of awe as the magnificent sight of a rather large black lake in front of a vast castle came into view. You stared at the many towers, stunned. Hogwarts was enormous! 

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid instructed, waving his lantern towards a fleet of boats near the shore. As you, Harry and Ron were settling into one of the small boats, a young girl with sleek black hair appeared at the foot of the boat.

"Hey, mind if I join you guys?" she asked, a tentative smile adorning her features. 

The three of you shared a glance to make sure you were all on the same track before you nodded and offered the girl a grin. "Not at all. I'm (y/n), by the way."

"I'm Esme," the girl responded as she stepped into the boat and sat down. "Nice to meet all of you."

She let out a small gasp as her eyes landed upon Harry, and he flinched. Instantly, the girl's eyes flashed with regret. "Oh, I'm sorry, you must get that a lot. It's just - it's pretty cool to be near the boy-who-lived."

Harry nodded in understanding. "I'm still not exactly used to it."

"I'm sorry," Esme repeated, genuinely apologetic. "I get what you mean. I'm a Rosier." 

At that, Ron glanced warily at Esme, as if he were seeing her for the first time. However, he was not subtly enough about it, and Esme seemed to take note of his disdain for her. 

"I am not like my parents." she stated, fixing Ron with a cold stare. 

Ron's face darkened, the red colour barely visible under the slight glow of the moonlight. "I wasn't-"

"I know that look." Esme said curtly. "I've seen it often enough."

A small 'sorry' was mumbled from the freckled boy, and Esme stared at him a moment longer before turning her attention back towards you. You were wondering what the whole exchange had been about, but it seemed like a sensitive topic. Your curiosity almost got the best of you as you opened your mouth to speak, but you abruptly decided against saying anything and stared out at the water as the boats began to move on their own.

"My parents practiced the Dark Arts, and were followers of the Dark Lord." Esme's voice cut through the air. Your head snapped towards her as you realized she must have known you had wanted to ask. "My family supported him in the Wizarding War." 

You nodded, acknowledging her words, but unsure of what to say in response. Instead, you watched as the cliff where the magnificent school stood upon drew nearer and the boats glided smoothly across the dark lake. 

"Heads down!" Hagrid yelled, and you obliged, feeling the curtains of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face brushing the top of your head. The boats then followed along a dark tunnel which lead to an underground harbor. "Everyone out!"

Students clambered out of the tiny boats then proceeded to follow the large man up a passageway in the rock which stopped right in front of the castle.

"Wow," you breathed out, craning your heads upwards in an attempt to see the top of the towers. You followed the rest of the students up a flight of stone steps and halted in front of the huge, oak front door. 

"Everyone here?" Hagrid bellowed, lifting his lamp and scanning the crowd, shooting a wink at Harry upon spotting your group. He then raised his fist and knocked three times on the castle door, which swung open at once. A tall women dressed in green robes stepped out, fixing the students with a stern look. "The fir' years, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." McGonagall said curtly, tilting her head as a gesture of appreciation.

She then pulled the door open wide, officially welcoming you to Hogwarts.