Eating For Two

Chapter 2. Time for a Feast

A/N: hello again. This is a long chapter, 5000 words. So be prepared. Updating on Mondays if you haven't seen yet

Everyone in the compartment stood up, adjusting their robes and such as they did so. They could hear noise coming from different compartments on the train. Clearly all of the students were excited to get to the feast. The boys and girls on the train all began to gather their stuff and their pets and just generally getting ready to leave the train they've been on for hours. Ron and Hermione -as prefects- left to help the process and supervise. Leaving Crookshanks and Pigwidgeon with the rest of the compartments residents.

Harry grabbed Hedwig while Neville safely put Trevor in an inside pocket. Ginny went for Crookshanks.

"I can help with that owl, if you'd like," Luna asked.

"That would be great, thanks," Harry was glad that she had offered. He couldn't imagine carrying around two owls, let alone one had the enormous energy that Pig had.

Luna grabbed Pig's cage and soon enough they were all off of the train. The cold night air slightly stung their faces as they stepped off. The smell of pine trees assaulted their noses -that was how strong the scent was- while the ground was wet from the sporadic rain from earlier in the day. As they walked down the train station, Harry was anticipating Hagrid to yell for the first years. But something else happened instead.

"First years!" A brisk, female voice called out, continuing over all of the noise 7 years of students could make. "First years, please line up over here! All first years! Over here!"

Now that they were closer, Harry could see the very prominent chin and severe haircut of Professor Grubbly-Plank, who was the teacher that had taken over Hagrid's classes last school year after Rita Skeeter's article about him had revealed his half giant status.

"Where's Hagrid?" Harry asked.

Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, but we should get out of the way. We're blocking the door."

And indeed they were. "Oh yeah."

As a group, they made their way through the platform. Harry kept looking around and through the darkness to try to catch a glimpse of Hagrid. Maybe he just wasn't in charge of the first years anymore? He had to be here! Harry simply couldn't imagine Hagrid not being there. He was always on the platform, at the start of a term.

Harry had been expecting for Hagrid to be there, he's a constant fact despite what else happened each summer. That familiar, huge man had always been the friendly face that greeted them. But there was no sign of him anywhere.

There has to be a reason. He can't be gone. Maybe he's just sick, Harry thought as he was almost shoved through the doorway of the platform and onto the road outside. Harry looked for Ron and Hermione but he couldn't see them.

Once he was outside, Harry could see the 100 or so horseless stagecoaches that took second years and above to the castle. He had glanced at them quickly, not really paying attention to them at first, and went back to scanning for his best friends. Wait, what did I just see? Harry did a double take and looked at the coaches.

The carriages that were horseless like he had known for 2 years -having missed the train in second year, Harry has only been on them since third year. Now there was a creature that he could only describe as a horse. But it wasn't. It looked close enough at least. They had absolutely no meat on them, and a black coat hung on their skeletons. They also had black, leathery wings on each side. Their heads were dragonish with these pupil-less white eyes.

All the while Harry was taking in their form, they just stood there, motionless. In all honesty they were creepy. Strangely captivating with their bones on full display and wings that looked like they belonged on bats.