Finding Father

Chapter 3- Hogwarts Bound

AVERY'S POV

On September 1st, we once again Floo to the Leaky Cauldron, and the plan is that we'll walk from there to Kings Cross station. The Inn is full of wizarding families from all over Great Britain heading for the trains station. We have to make our way past a particularly large family trying to get everyone together, and accidentally blocking the door in the process. Everyone except two of the kids are red-headed, but I don't have much time to think about it before Mom's pulled me out the door and onto the muggle street.

I can see a huge building in the distance, and Mom tells me that that is Kings Cross. We walk towards it quickly, as it's already after ten o'clock. The crowds of muggles are heavy, and it's already ten-forty when we enter the giant station. We weave our way through the platforms, finally arriving at Platform 9. Mom shows me where the barrier is, and when no muggles are watching we get a run at it. Instead of hitting the wall, we pass through onto another platform: 9 3/4. It's full of wizards; I've never seen so many other wizards in one place, except maybe Diagon Alley a few days ago.

"Here we are. God, it's been awhile since I was here," says Mom. I smile.

"It's amazing! The train is so shiny," I observe. She laughs.

"Are you excited?"

"You bet I am. What house do you think I'll be in, Mum?" Mom thinks for a second.

"Well, I was in Ravenclaw, and your father was a Slytherin..."

"Was he?" Mom never mentions my dad.

"Yes, he was a Slytherin. But you're not much like him. I think you'll be a Ravenclaw, just like me."

"I hope so. Or Gryffindor. The house of the brave!" I say excitedly. Mom laughs.

"Yep, maybe Gryffindor too! Now, you need to get on the train." We hug, and say our goodbyes. Mom promises to write, and I agree. Then I climb on the train with my trunk. As I do so, I see the red-haired family arriving just on time.

I walk down the train, pulling the trunk behind me, searching for a compartment. Most already have students in them. I stop in front of one that only has one student in it, and open the door.

"Hello. Mind if I sit here?" The blond haired boy shakes his head, and stands up to help me lift my trunk into the luggage rack.

"I'm Avery Carter. First year," I say. The boy smiles.

"I'm Neville Longbottom, Gryffindor third year," he replies.

"Good to meet you, Neville."

We're awkwardly quiet for a minute. Then the silence is broken by a girl with bright auburn hair poking her head in the door.

"Hey Neville," she says. She pushes the door open wider, and enter the compartment.

"Hey Ginny," Neville says back. The girl, who now has a name, sits down.

I introduce myself again, and she smiles, and says she's Ginny Weasley, also a Gryffindor but only a second year.

We talk for awhile about Hogwarts; all the teachers, and classes, and such. Ginny says the first year isn't bad, you just have to adjust and all. Our conversation is brought to a halt just as the train does the same thing.

We stare out the windows, trying to figure out what's going on.

"Guys..." Neville's voice reaches me, and I turn to face him. He's pointing a finger at the door of the compartment. Looking in at us is a huge, disgusting, robed figure. My insides go cold, and it feels like all of our joy has been removed from the air. I fix my eyes where it eyes should be, if it has any. It looks at us a moment longer, then glides away down the hall.

I turn to look at the other two. Neville is cowering in the corner, and Ginny's sitting straight up, with the same horrified look on her face. I sit numbly, trying to figure out what that thing was, trying to get my senses about me.

"What was that thing?" Neville squeaks. Ginny looks at us.

"I think it was a dementor," she whispers. "Dad's told us about them. They suck away all your happiness. The dementors guard Azkaban. I pity all the people in Azkaban."

We sit in silence for a few minutes, before the train jerks forward again. Our compartment door slides open, but it's no dementor, it's none other than Professor Lupin from the Leaky Cauldron.

He shoves a small chunk of chocolate in my hand, before saying "Hello, Avery. Eat this, it helps." He hands some chocolate to Neville and Ginny also, and then leaves us alone again.

I take a small bite of the chocolate, mostly because I'm just hungry. To my surprise, a warm feeling rushes through me, all the way to my toes. Neville and Ginny have also started on their portions, and look considerably better already.

The rest of the train ride goes well, we eventually get our spirits back up, and begin chatting again. Finally we pull into the school station, and everyone unloads. Most students are moving to the right side of the platform, but a I hear a loud cry of "Firs' years, this way! Firs' years!" over to the left. I follow the voice, and quickly discover where it's coming from: a gigantic man with bushy hair and a beard.

He herds the thirty-five first years, including me, in the opposite direction towards the lake. When we get down to the water, everyone in the front of the group begins to climb into what I take to be boats. The man is the last one to get into a boat, after helping the rest of us into one. The boats begin to row themselves across the lake.

I can see the castle very clearly, huge and gleaming with light. The Great Hall is unmistakable. It takes about fifteen minutes to make the trip across. On the other side, we all climb out of the boats, and start walking up to the school.

We reach the huge doors leading into the castle, and the man opens them. "I'll take it from here, Hagrid," an elderly teacher says. The man, Hagrid, waves at all of us before starting back where we came from.

"Everyone in here, come on now," the witch calls. We all follow her in the direction of the Great Hall. She walks up a flight of stairs, then stops and turns to face all of us. The whole group comes to a halt, everyone staggered on the steps.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," she begins. "I am Professor McGonagall. Now, when we enter the Great Hall, it will be time for all of you to be sorted into your house. Your house will be like your family, treat them as such. Over the course of the year, the four houses will compete in the House tournament. Misbehaving will dock points from your house, while good behavior will earn them. All right, come on now."

She turns and enters the hall. We walk down the center of the four tables. The students, who were previously making a huge racket, quiet down and begin surveying all the new first years. I see Neville and Ginny at the Gryffindor table and give them a small wave, and they return it, smiling. We reach the front of the front of the hall, and I can see a wooden stool with an old, ratty hat on it.

One by one, students names begin to be called, and shouts of "Ravenclaw!", "Gryffindor!" and such fill the hall. About ten students are sorted before my name is called, and I step up to the stool, and sit down excitedly. McGonagall puts the hat on my head, and I can hear a whispering in my ear.

"Well, what do we have here? Smart, brave, resourceful, with a rebellious streak... but not Slytherin, not Slytherin... It's going to have to be- RAVENCLAW!" I grin, hopping off the stool. The Ravenclaw table is cheering, and I jog down to take a seat at the front of the table. A black haired fourth year congratulates me.

I pretty much ignore the rest of the sorting and spend my time scanning the hall, taking everything in. I'm especially interested in the professors, wondering what each of them teaches. I see Lupin up there, and smile. Then I notice another teacher, on the other side of the table. His gaze is fixed on me. I stare back at him for a moment, examining him. Everything about him is black. His clothes, his hair, his eyes. He scares me.

The rest of the sorting, his eyes never leave me. I wonder why?