Remembering the Magic

Chapter 3 The Magic Train

  It was finally September 1st,  I heard my alarm clock and shot up. Meanwhile, Gandalf greeted me with a hoot.  I smiled and grabbed my suit case.  I packed all my books and drawing tools.  I placed my violin in its case; I hadn’t stopped playing since I got it.  I threw on a black hoodie with orange converse and ran downstairs.  “Well aren’t you up early this morning,” my aunt chuckled.  I rolled my eyes and grabbed an apple.  “Aren’t you going to eat something besides an apple sweetie?” I groaned, annoyed, about how slow we were going. I swear she was going to make me late!  I ate the breakfast she made me and grabbed everything I needed.  

    After a long drive in our car, we made it to King’s Cross Station.  I looked around the crowded station.  “Um, what platform are we on?” I asked.  “9’n 3/4, c’mon hurry up before you get lost in the crowd”.  I ran after my aunt with a cart that she insisted I put everything in, although I felt ridiculous pushing around a shopping cart at a train station. I felt as if everyone was staring at me.  We stopped in front of a brick wall that had the number 9 on it.  I just stared at it. “Well,” my aunt said, “Off you go now”.  

“Erm, go where?” I looked around confused, my aunt was just staring at the brick wall.  “Through the wall of course!”

“But, thats a wall!” I exclaimed.  My aunt laughed “No it ain’t, now run through the 9 and 10.  I sighed, knowing for sure my aunt was insane, and ran to the wall bracing for impact.  I felt nothing, I opened my eyes and saw I was somewhere completely different.  There was a sign that said 9 3/4.  “Huh” I said mostly to myself “My aunt isn’t crazy”.  

I looked around not knowing where to go and pushing my cart.  “Hey!” someone exclaimed as I bumped into them.  “Sorry!” I said feeling my cheeks heat up, “Oh, I don’t mind, I usually tend to get hit a lot,” said the person.  She was a girl with short blonde, curly hair that fell down to her chin in perfect ringlets, her eyes were a pale brown and her smile warm. She was small, if not smaller than me.  “I’m Sophie by the way, whats your name?” she asked, “Oh, its Raine…is this your first year?”.  She smiled and bounced up and down. “Yup my brother is loading all of my stuff on the train, you should too”.  She grabbed my cart and started pushing it along, I had to run after her to make sure she didn’t crash my cart.  

    She left my cart outside the train and I saw a big burly man lifting my things onto the train.  Sophie grabbed my hand and dragged my inside the train, “Lets sit here, the candy cart always comes here first”.  I glanced around and sat down on the plush red seats.  “So,” she said “What house do you think you’ll be sorted into?”  I just shrugged my shoulders.

  “I think I’m going to get into Ravenclaw,  both my parents were, thats how they met.  My parents say I’m very smart, but sometimes I get B’s on tests…”.  

    She continued to talk non stop until a boy our age knocked on the compartment door.  I opened it up and let him in. “Sorry, all the seats were taken up. May I sit here?”  Sophie stopped talking and looked at the boy.  She moved out of her chair and sat right next to me.  “Psst, hey do you know who he is?” she whispered in my ear excitedly.  “Em no?” I said.

“SHUSH we can only talk in whispers!” 

I sighed, “Well who is he?” I whispered. 

“Its James Potter!” she was practically squealing now and the poor boy seemed uncomfortable.  “Sophie stop you’re making him uncomfortable!”.  She calmed down and started talking about other things and again wouldn’t stop talking.  I just sighed and grabbed a book I had kept with me from the train station and started reading it.  

    I heard someone walk nearby and call, “Sweets for the ride children?” 

“Oh, yes please!” said Sophie.  She bought 3 chocolate frogs, a sugar quill lollipop, exploding bonbons, and acid pops.  Sophie gave James and me one chocolate frog each.  I opened mine and a frog came jumping out all over the place.  Sophie started laughing and so did James.  

“How am I supposed to eat that!” I whined.  They started laughing even harder and my cheeks turned crimson.  

“Oh look!” James pointed out the window, “I can see Hogwarts!”    

  “Guess we should all put on our robes” said Sophie.