Morning mist clouded the air. Footsteps rang out as feet hit the hard floor. Shouts rose above the clatter. Chatter muddled together into a roar of noise. People took up every inch of space, pushing through the crowd.
The commotion on the train platform overwhelmed Albus, who was on high alert as the world seemed to rush around him. He felt like a fish trying to swim upstream—no, not upstream, up a rapid river—the water trying to overtake him. His own beating heart only added to the noise in his head.
Albus tried to keep up with his family, navigating through the hoards of people who rushed around, pushing trollies piled high with trunks, broomsticks, cauldrons, and owl cages. He pushed his trolley in front of him, swerving through small gaps and trying his best not to run over anyone. Returning students raced down the platform to greet their friends with cries of glee and enveloping hugs. Parents looked over their children with teary eyes, instructing them to be good and promising to write.
Albus' heart slammed against his chest as he gripped onto the handle of his trolley for support. He chewed at the inside of his cheek, his stomach churning, despite the little breakfast he'd eaten that morning. He could barely hear his family, who conversed with a certain cheer and exhilaration that could only be brought by the excited thoughts of the year to come. James ran ahead to meet up with his friends, leaving their mother to push his trolley.
"This is it~ the start of my journey," said Albus, taking in the grandeur of the view.
"Wow," Lily clung to her father's arm, looking at the train with starry eyes, eagerly awaiting the day she would be able to board along with her older brothers. "Where are they? Are they here? Maybe they didn't come?"
"Where are they?" Lily asked eagerly, her head swiveling as she scanned the bustling platform. "Are they here? Maybe they didn't come?"
Harry leaned down, pointing toward a familiar group near the train. "Over there, Lil."
The moment Lily spotted them, her face broke into a delighted grin. Without another word, she took off, weaving through the crowd as fast as her legs could carry her.
"Uncle Ron! Uncle Ron!"
Ron Weasley turned just in time to catch her as she barreled into him, scooping her up in one swift motion.
"Well, if it isn't my favorite Potter!" he declared, grinning from ear to ear.
Lily giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Have you got my trick?"
"Ah," Ron said, his voice lowering to a mock-serious tone. "Are you aware of the latest Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes invention? Certified nose-stealing breath?"
From behind them, Rose groaned loudly. "Mum! Dad's doing that lame thing again."
Hermione raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed but amused all the same. "You say lame; he says glorious. I'd say it's somewhere in between."
Ron ignored them, putting on an exaggerated show as he waved his hand in the air. "Hang on. Let me just munch this... air. Now it's just a simple matter of... excuse me if I smell slightly of garlic."
He leaned in, blowing a puff of air into Lily's face. She squealed, her nose wrinkling as she giggled.
"You smell of porridge!"
"Bing. Bang. Boing!" Ron cried dramatically. "Young lady, prepare to never smell again!" He reached for her nose, pretending to pull it right off her face.
Lily gasped in mock horror, her hands flying up to her face. "Where's my nose?!"
Ron held his empty hand aloft with a triumphant grin. "Ta-da!"
Despite the simplicity of the trick, everyone around them burst into laughter, charmed by the silliness.
"You are so silly!" Lily said, shaking her head but still laughing.
Meanwhile, Albus shuffled closer to his parents, tugging on his father's robes. "Everyone's staring at us again," he muttered, his face flushing.
Ron caught the comment and puffed out his chest. "Because of me! I'm extremely famous, you see. My nose experiments are legendary."
"Legendary indeed," Hermione said with a sigh. "They're certainly something, at least."
Harry chuckled. "Parked all right, then?"
Ron gave a satisfied nod. "I did. Hermione didn't believe I could pass a Muggle driving test, did you? She thought I'd have to Confund the examiner."
Hermione crossed her arms with mock indignation. "I thought nothing of the kind. I have complete faith in you."
Rose smirked. "And I have complete faith he did Confund the examiner."
"Oi!" Ron shot her a playful glare, but his smile gave him away.
Even Albus couldn't help the small grin tugging at the corner of his lips. As he glanced over at Rose, she caught his eye and gave him a wink. When his older brother, James, started at Hogwarts just a year previous, he was overcome with jealousy, so much so that his parents had to buy him a book filled with moving pictures of the castle and its magical origins. But now that the long-awaited day had finally arrived, everything seemed so much more daunting.
"Be careful, Al!" said James, returning from wherever his friends were. If you're late to class, they hang you in the rafters by your cloak!"
"James," Ginny said with a warning tone before taking her youngest son's hand and squeezing it, "Don't listen to your brother, Al. He's just trying to scare you. Hogwarts is a wonderful place."
James didn't listen to his mother, leaning over to whisper in Albus' ear, "Watch out for the Slytherins! They'll jinx you in the halls if you even look at them the wrong way. They sense fear." He snickered at Albus' sudden intake of breath.
"Kidding!" James dodged a flimsy punch and ran away, but the damage was done.
Slytherin.
He'd heard the cautionary tales and rumors. The Dark Lord's house. An aura of darkness and fear surrounded it. But James insisted on teasing Albus about it, claiming that he could be sorted into Slytherin. Albus tried not to think about the possibility. A Potter in Slytherin? That couldn't be possible.
Could it?
Albus' daze was broken as he stopped abruptly, nearly crashing his trolley into his family, who had come to a halt. It took only a second to realize why they had stopped.
"Hi, Al!" A chipper voice greeted him.
He turned to see his curly-haired cousin, Rose, who practically glowed in exhilaration--the opposite of how Albus felt. She rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet, her hands clasped together, and a smile overtaking her face.
"Aren't you thrilled? I can't believe it's finally here! I've reread Hogwarts: A History at least twelve times this week, just to prepare." Rose rambled, not sensing that Albus didn't mirror her excitement.
Albus looked passed his cousin to see his aunt and uncle, who greeted him and his parents.
"Are you ready, Al? Big year ahead of you!" His uncle Ron grinned.
Albus managed to muster a smile. "Yeah." He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to hold back the quiver in his lips so as not to show his family how he truly felt. Ron seemed satisfied by that answer and turned back to talk to Harry. Hugo(Rose's younger brother) broke away from his mum's side to chat excitedly with Lily about their future Hogwarts houses.
"I'm positive we will be in Gryffindor, of course," Hugo boasted with confidence. He placed his hands on his hips and jutted his chin in the air--the stance of a true Gryffindor.
"If you're not in Gryffindor, we'll disinherit you," Ron said to the younger ones who weren't going to enter Hogwarts this year, "but no pressure."
"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed, giving him a light slap to the arm.
Rose and Albus exchanged an uneasy glance.
"He doesn't mean it," Hermione reassured them, placing a hand on each of their shoulders.
Rose brushed it off, used to her dad's sense of humor, "Doesn't matter. I know we will be in Gryffindor. Right, Al?" She elbowed him in the ribs a little harder than she meant to.
"Mhmm," He nodded but his thoughts drifted back to what James' had said.
The train whistle broke through the family's conversation.
His father glanced down at his watch, "It's nearly eleven, you'd better get on board."
Rose skipped away to say goodbye to her parents. Hugo jumped into her arms before she could even get to her mum and dad, engulfing her in a hug.
James rushed back over to give his farewell. He hugged everyone goodbye but stopped in front of Albus.
"See you later, Al. Watch out for the thestrals." He said with an impish grin, giving his little brother a small kick to the shin.
Albus' heart dropped into his stomach, "I thought they were invisible? You said they were invisible!"
James laughed before dashing off to join his friends, who waved him onto the carriage.
Harry turned to Albus, giving him a soft clap on the shoulder and a gentle smile. "Thestrals are nothing to worry about," he said. They're gentle things; there's nothing scary about them. Anyway, you won't be going to school in the carriages; you'll be going in the boats."
Albus swallowed the lump in his throat with a small nod.
His mother came over to pull him into a tight embrace and gave him a peck on the cheek, "We're gonna miss you, Al. But you're going to have a great year. I love you. Be good, and watch over your brother. Make sure he doesn't cause too much trouble." She chuckled, knowing that wouldn't be an easy task. "We will see you at Christmas. Don't hesitate to send an owl if you need anything." She let him go, allowing her husband to wish him off.
"I'm sure he'll be much too preoccupied at school to send an owl," Harry chuckled to his wife before turning to his middle child, "Have a great first year, Al. It will certainly be one to remember. Don't forget Hagrid's invited you to tea next Friday. Don't mess with Peeves. Don't duel anyone till you've learned how. And don't let James wind you up."
Albus took a step back, his fears still clouding his head.
"What if I'm in Slytherin?" He muttered for only his father to hear.
His father took a deep, pondering breath then kneeled before his son, looking him right in the eyes.
"Albus Severus," Harry said quietly, "you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew."
"Bravest? Harry, I sacrificed myself to a giant chess game to you when I was just eleven years old," complained Ron.
"But did you die though?" said Harry with a straight face.
"But just say--" Albus started speaking when he heard a similar question being uttered from behind him.
"Dad, what if I'm put in Gryffindor?"
Inside the Malfoy manor, Scorpius searched his room. Not finding what he was looking for, he asked," Clyde, where is my wand and its holster?"
Clyde apparated to him," Young Master Malfoy, Clyde has put everything in your trunk according to Mistress'es orders."
Scorpius sighed," All right, you packed the extra items I asked for right."
"Yes Master Malfoy," said Clyde, but his ears drooped," Is the young master sure that Master Malfoy should not be told?"
"Father doesn't need to know Clyde," said Scorpius," so don't tell him unless he asks."
"Yes young master," Clyde hastily saluted and apparated away.
Scorpius took a last look at his room. For the past seven weeks, there has been no update from the game panel. The only difference between then and now was a new line that read,' Talk to the Sorting Hat.'
'Hopefully, the next task unlocks full access to the game panel,' thought Scorpius.
"Scorpius, we are leaving." said a voice down the corridor.
"I'm coming Dad!" Scorpius responded.
Scorpius walked down the stairs and asked," So how are we going to Platform 9 and three-quarters? Are we taking the Knight bus, or are we arriving directly there?"
"We are using a portkey," said Astoria, adjusting her black Derby's Felt hat.
Draco opened a letter and took out a plastic card. On one side of the card, it was ruby red with the letters Crown Plaza written on it. Draco let out a grimace at the Gryffindorish color scheme and flipped the card around. On the other side was a logo resembling one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight families. It was a shield with a snake coiling around a witch's hat. On either side of the shield was a black and white fox.
"The Parkinsons," guessed Scorpio.
"That's right," said Astoria, pleased that Scorpio recognized the crest.
"But something is different. The shield was supposed to have a crescent moon. Instead, there is a snake and a hat."
"The snake represents Slytherin and the hat… let us say you'll understand after the Sorting Ceremony," said Draco cryptically.
'Got it, it's the sorting hat,' thought Scorpio while remaining clueless on the surface. Draco held out the portkey while looking at his pocket watch. Astoria and Scorpio touched the card.