Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings

Chapter 4 At 1 o'clock

It felt like the rest of the holidays had been skipped as Harry found himself waking up on the morning of September 1st. He dressed silently as Ron was still asleep and crept down the stairs to the dining room. Harry wasn't surprised to find Hermione sitting at the table reading. The day seemed to go by in an instant as before he knew it he and rest of the Weasleys where in the back of a car supplied by the Ministry of Magic and on their way for the first time in two years to Kings Cross Station. They put their luggage on trollies and wheeled over to platforms 9 and 10. At that moment he noticed a small crowd of people walking rather fast towards the barrier between platforms 9 and 10 that lead to platform 9 and 3/4 with trollies full of luggage.

'Okay, walk straight at the wall between platforms 9 and 10, you'll get on the platform and then wait for me there,' the girl spoke fast as though urgent to get on the platform. Harry had a sudden horrible feeling they wore going to be late. The girl turned around to check the clock.

'Alice?' he said as he walked towards the group.

'Oh, hi, this is Harry, Harry Potter. Harry, this is Frodo, my brother, Merry and Pippin, our cousins and Sam my old neighbour.' Merry, Sam and Pippin one by one shook Harry's hand politely but Frodo looked at him with an expression that looked as though he wanted to say something, but couldn't for whatever reason, after a while he stuck out a hand with only four figures and Harry shook it.

'Why are you rushing to get on the platform?' Harry asked. 'We're no late are we?'

'Not at all,' replied Alice. 'I just like watching the sign change.' Harry looked at her with a puzzled look on his face. 'I did the trial year.' She added quickly. 'Come on. let's get on the platform before we miss it.'

Harry wasn't entirely sure what Alice meant. What was the sign change? But it didn't take long until he found out. After he and the rest of the Weasleys had gotten on the platform he looked up at the sign over head that read Hogwarts Express, 11 o'clock. No sooner had he glanced at it the words began to change until it read Bogwarts Express, 1 o'clock. Then he heard the familiar sound of a train stopping and smock drifted over the platform. They stood there for about half an hour watching people come and go, talking about Bogwarts and what it would be like.

Harry began loading his trunk onto the train and he, Ron, Hermione and Alice went to find a compartment to share. When it finally became 1 o'clock the train began to move and they all began to talk excitedly about Bogwarts.

'All the teachers will be nice, of course, after all they do work at Hogwarts as well,' said Hermione.

'How do they manage?' Ron looked more confused that that one time the other day when George accidently cast stupefy on him.

'The time table is set later in Bogwarts than Hogwarts,' said Alice knowingly.

'Speaking of teachers,' said Harry finally. 'Who's going to teach us Defence Against the Dark Arts?'

'No idea,' said Alice. 'They don't tell me that sort of stuff because I've already said whoever teaches at Hogwarts will teach at Bogwarts as well, no questions asked.'

'And Wandless magic?' asked Hermione.

'That's different, they only teach that at Bogwarts or had you forgotten?' Alice fixed Hermione with a piercing stare.

'You two don't like each other much do you?' said Ron in an attempt to keep the peace.

'We like each other enough,' said Alice. 'It's a long story; and one for another time.'

Harry looked out of the window and watched the field's wiz by. Of course he was exited, but he couldn't help thinking that if it weren't for Bogwarts he'd be able to become an Auror. But going to Bogwarts wouldn't exactly stop him from becoming an Auror. Going to Bogwarts wouldn't stop him from getting a job ether, just look at Alice. For the rest of the journey Harry sat there listening to the conversation the others wore having. He only moved when the trolley lady came around asking if they wanted anything. Alice began to stand but Harry stopped her, getting up himself and asking if they wanted anything. Harry ended up buying four boxes of berty botts every flavour beans, 8 chocolate frogs, several cauldron cakes, some fizzing wizzbees, a couple of jelly slugs, some lickerish snaps, several boxes of peppermint toads and many pumpkin pasties.

Harry and Ron watched open mouthed as Alice successfully caught and ate both of her chocolate frogs while there's leapt away, Ron's out of the window and Harry's out of sight somewhere behind him.

'Hang on,' said Ron suddenly. 'Who's teaching us transfiguration?'

'Professor McGonagall,' said Alice.

'But I thought she was headmistress,' said Harry.

'She is,' said Alice. 'She just didn't want to stop teaching.'

'What about Wandless magic, who teaches that?' said Ron.

'You'll just have to wait and see,' said Alice. She turned her head and immediately slammed her cupped hand against the wall before pulling it towards her and offering it to Harry. 'It's your chocolate frog, don't worry, its clean, I cast a spell on it to make sure.' Harry smiled, took the chocolate frog and began to eat it, he felt like he could trust Alice.

None of them said anything for the rest of the journey and it started getting dark outside. It felt like no time at all before Harry found himself getting off the train and onto the rather familiar platform at Hogsmede station. There where carriages waiting for them a little way past the platform. They all began wondering towards the carriages and clambered on. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Alice managed to get on one carriage together and Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Ginny and a girl with brownish curly hair got on another.

'Who's that?' asked Ron pointing at the girl who was now sitting next to Sam holding his hand.

'Her name is Rosie,' said Alice, but when saw them she added. 'She and Sam have been going out for a while.'

The journey was rickety and unfamiliar though Harry enjoyed every bit of it. They seemed to be going around the forbidden forest and to another castle.

'How come we didn't notice that thing for all those years we went to Hogwarts?' asked Ron.

'they have a hiding charm silly, it's so Hogwarts students don't try and go through the dark forest to get to Bogwarts as a bet or something,' said Hermione.

At last the carriages stopped and they all got off. Harry and the others began following some of the older students towards the castle. Harry noticed Alice whisper 'good luck' to Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin and Rosie before slipping away down another path to the side. Harry didn't have time to be puzzled as he walked along the path towards the main entrance to the castle.

The Entrance hall was just as big as it had been at Hogwarts if not larger. The rest of the students made their way towards the great hall and so Harry followed. He noticed Professor McGonagall to the side of the room beckoning Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin and Rosie towards her. But Harry didn't care, he was home, he was back with all the other witches and wizards and he was home. He followed the others into the great hall and sat down at what was obviously the Gryffindor table. He saw Dean, Seamus and Neville and waved before sitting in between Ron and Hermione. After a little while the hall doors opened and he watched and Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin and Rosie walked in behind Professor McGonagall, and then he realised, they wore wearing robes with a black crest on the front with the letter 'B' on it similar to the ones Harry had worn all those years ago when he was only eleven. They hadn't been sorted.