Riddle

Chapter One

Ivy Green sat with her head bent over a book as the train rattled into Kings Cross station. She could vaguely hear the Orphanage Matron ordering the younger kids around trying to convince them to get off the train but was too wrapped up in her book to pay attention to what exactly was going on.

"Ivy! Get your nose out of that book and onto the platform" Matron ordered. Ivy quickly put her book away and made her way off the train. It was not hard to find the rest of the orphanage. She followed the noise.

She was immediately overrun by demands from the younger kids.

"Ivy can you as Matron if we can go home yet?" Leigh-Anne asked.

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" Ivy tried to ask nicely but her patience was wearing thin after the chaotic train ride.

"cause she is scary!" Leigh-Anne whined.

"It's just a day in London. We will be home soon enough."

"It smells funny here!" Jenny complained

"That's all the pollution! It can kill you!" Will said.

Ivy felt a little freaked out by how excited he was about it. Jimmy went as pale as a ghost and ran off. Matron tuned around catching a glimpse of Jimmy disappearing behind a pillar.

"Ivy! Watch them!"

The matron hurried off to go find Jimmy, her hair being pulled free from her tight bun and face red with anger. Ivy looked helplessly at the six children she had been left with. They were completely ignoring her for once and chatting amongst themselves. Harriet was pulling on Leigh-Anne's hair and Will was pretending to shoot Jenny who burst into tears.

Ivy finally managed to get all the kids to sit against a wall by platform 9.

"Ivy, Will said I was ugly!"

"Abigale said I was gonna be alone for ever!"

"I did not!"

"Did too!"

The noise built and Ivy tried to keep calm. Will took the opportunity to fling his lunch at her but missed and hit a red-haired boy who was with walking past with his family. She breathed. In. Out.

"If I hear one more word, I'll tell Matron that you told Mr. Biggins about Matron's photo wall dedicated to him," Will opened his mouth to plead with her, "Not another word!"

Ivy sighed as they were all quiet. She did care about them but sometimes they were such a handful. Leigh Anne shuffled over to where Ivy was standing and handed her an old receipt that had been clumsily folded into what Ivy could only guess was meant to be a heart.

'Thank you, Leigh-Anne.' The younger girl smiled happily and skipped off to join Abigale.

Ivy let out a breath of relief. She didn't mean to upset them, but she often did. Accidentally ignoring them to read or do homework. They were all a few years younger than her and did not understand the word privacy. She remembered when Harriet had walked into her room without knocking and Ivy had shouted at her causing Harriet to rush out the room and had not come out of the bathroom until Ivy traded her a chocolate bar.

She walked over to lean against the wall between platforms 9 and 10. She could keep an eye on all of them from there and give herself some space to breath. She could see Matron making her way towards them Matron caught sight of Ivy. She stopped still. Ivy closed her eyes and fell against the wall. And landed flat on her back.

Ivy sat up, suddenly surrounded by people giving her strange looks, she looked around in disbelief. There was the wall, but it was now in front of her. Had she fallen through a wall?

'Hey, don't block the entrance!' A blond boy appeared by the wall. Sneering at her. She stared back in disbelief and hurriedly got to her feet.

She turned slowly taking in her surroundings. She appeared to be in a train station filled with the oddest people wearing colourful cloaks and strange hats. They were bustling about saying goodbye to their kids who were all getting on the most magnificent train Ivy had ever seen.

It was mainly a deep red, but some parts were painted black. A crest was embellished on the metal at the front. Steam was pouring from its front. Ivy had never seen anything like it. She followed a group of people who looked to be around her age onto the train. Her curiosity the better of her.

"How was your summer Neville?"

"Ha! You were grounded all summer."

"Hey Seamus, blown anything up recently?"

Ivy wondered wide eyed into an empty carriage compartment and sat down. She wondered what Matron would do. Could she follow Ivy through the wall? Ivy smiled. She was sure a little time away from the orphanage would do her good. It had been a while since she had last been away.

The train started moving. Parents waved goodbye to their kids.

What an earth was going on?