This Train Don't Stop

The ceiling of the Great Hall was more active than usual. It seemed as if the clouds were rolling by at accelerated speeds – too fast than was possible. None of the students assembled really took notice, however. As usual, they had much more important things to worry about than the weather outside of Hogwarts Castle. Commencement exercises had already begun, and for once, there was complete silence resonating off the very stone of the walls.

Angelina Johnson nonchalantly wiped her hands on her scarlet and gold graduation robes. She had never before faced a task so daunting and challenging – not even on the Quidditch pitch during the Cup game against Slytherin. Rifting through her program, she exhaled a sigh of relief. Dumbledore still had to give his speech before she was to take the podium. Leaning back in her chair, she glanced around the Great Hall one last time. The Gryffindor banners were still hanging from the rafters advertising her house’s win in the House Cup. Angelina had to keep herself from tearing as she looked out over the great hall. The long house tables had been magicked into storage. In their stead were rows upon rows of old-fashioned Chippendale chairs, each occupied by a student or a family member. She let her eyes wander over her classmates. In only a few short moments they would all be going their separate ways, children no more. ‘And I,’ Angelina thought softly to herself, ‘will go back to the Muggles and leave the wizarding world forever.’ This time, she could not escape the tear from falling.

It was so hard to believe. For the last 7 years of her life, Angelina had hardly been separated from her fellow Gryffindors. Now she saw them sitting before her, mingled with the other three houses. Through her screen of tears it was only the bright colors of their graduation robes that distinguished them from the rest. Alicia and Katie. They were her best friends, neither of them Muggle born. If Angelina were to see them again, they would have to initiate the visit. Her aunt had made it quite clear that Angelina would be forbidden to do magic at home.

Turning her head toward Dumbledore, she realized quickly that he was quickly finishing her speech. Turning his head toward her, the old wizard winked. Angelina swallowed the lump in her throat and prayed that her god would give her the strength and courage to get through the task ahead. Dumbledore gestured to her. “And finally, I’d like to introduce Miss Angelina Bla—,” he coughed loudly. “Excuse me, I fear I’m coming down with some sort of cold. Now where was I? Ah yes, your Valedictorian and Head Girl, Miss Angelina Johnson!”

Angelina turned white with fear. She hated public speaking. Even at her elementary school, debate had been her worst subject. How had she gotten roped into doing this? As if sensing her apprehension, the boy sitting next to her, Head Boy Roger Harrington squeezed her hand. The Ravenclaw grinned. “You’ll be fine, Angie. Go out there and do your best!”

Angelina couldn’t help but smile back. Over the course of the year, she and Roger had to work very closely on planning various fieldtrips and celebrations. She appreciated his support. “Thank you,” she whispered as she approached the podium.

The first thought that came to Angelina’s mind was how different the Great Hall looked from the Professor’s table. She glanced back toward Dumbledore, who had sat in her seat. Receiving an encouraging nod, she let her gaze sweep the entire room. Her eyes stopped when she got to the end of the student section. Two identical red-haired boys sat next to each other, clothed in red and gold. The Weasley twins. She was close to Fred. He was, in fact, her best friend. Feeling her eyes on him, Fred nudged George and both of them waved frantically. Fred winked. ‘Please don’t pull any funny business during this speech,’ she silently willed them.

Tearing her gaze away from Fred, Angelina addressed the crows. “Today we are gathered here to celebrate our graduation from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Over the course of our four years here we have changed drastically from the first years that crossed the river with Hagrid. We have earned the right to call ourselves wizards, witches, and friends. We may not all be in the same house, and we may not always get along with each other, but when it really mattered we were there to support each other. Having been on my house’s Quidditch team I have experienced that camaraderie first hand. I have rooted for Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and, yes, I will admit it, even Slytherins.” Angelina paused as a light laughter shook those assembled in front of her. She was slowly but surely becoming more comfortable in front of the audience.

Continuing on, she looked pointedly at her best friend. “We have earned the right to call each other friends. Some of us…” Angelina faltered a bit, but continued on. “Some of us may never see each other again once we leave the school grounds today. We will, however, always carry in our hearts the memories of the love, laughter, pain, and tears that will forever be a reminder of our days here at Hogwarts. Some of us will become Aurors, some of us will become parents, some of us may turn away from the light, and some of us will continue to be the same funny, loveable, laughable people we are today. And some of us will never stop playing pranks.”

At this Fred stood on his chair and turned around to face the adults behind him. “That’s me!” He turned around and grinned at Angelina. “Oi, Angelina! Thanks for the free advertising!” Angelina giggled as she watched Mrs. Weasley’s face turn beet red.

“Not a problem, Fred. But despite all of this, no matter who we may become, where we might be, or what me may be doing, one thing will forever remain certain. We are Gryffindors. We are Ravenclaws. We are Slytherins and we are Hufflepuffs. We are Hogwarts. Our actions and accomplishments and memories will forever walk these hallowed halls and be an inspiration to those who follow after. And nothing can ever take that away. Congratulations.”

Angelina breathed a sigh relief as she turned around to face Dumbledore who had come up behind her. He held out his hand for her to take. On an impulse, Angelina grabbed the old wizard and enveloped him in a hug as the tears she had been holding back flowed freely down her face. She was only vaguely aware of the cheer and whistles that erupted after her speech had finished.

Professor McGonagall approached the podium. “Congratulations. You may now leave the grounds as Hogwarts graduates.”

~*~

Angelina returned to her seat to collect her diploma as the crowd filed out of the castle to the shore of the lake. She turned around as she heard someone call her name. She came face to face with her aunt. “Aunt Callie!! I thought that I was going to meet you outside?”

Callisto Johnson smiled. “I know, Angie, sweetie. I just couldn’t wait any longer to tell you how proud you made me this morning. Your speech was just wonderful. Your parents would have been very proud of you, you know that don’t you?” She pulled her niece into a hug.

Angelina buried herself against her aunt’s shoulder. “I know, Aunt Callie, I know. I just wish I could remember them. I can’t help but wonder how they would have reacted to me being a witch, you know? Would they have encouraged me to stay in the wizarding world? Would they have even let me come here to Hogwarts?”

Callie stiffened as her niece cried in her arms. “I’ve kept too much from you all these years, Angie. I’m sorry,” she whispered. She untangled her arms from around Angelina. “Go outside. Say goodbye to your friends. We need to catch the 8:00 tube from King’s Cross.” She smiled. “Let me hold your diploma and get out there!”

Angelina wiped her face and hoped her eyes weren’t rimmed too visibly in red. “Thank you, Aunt Callie!!!” She thrust the leather folder into her aunt’s arms and rushed out the door to say goodbye to her friends before she became a Muggle again.

Callisto watched her petite niece as she ran out of the Great Hall, robes hitched up to free her legs. “Orion and Jessie would be so proud of you,” she whispered inaudibly. She wondered briefly if Angelina had looked at her diploma yet. The girl hadn’t questioned her about the name inscribed on it yet, so Callie guessed no. Gingerly opening the folder that contained the document, Callie nodded in recognition. Dumbledore had done as she had asked. The diploma was correct, down to the last detail.

For those graduates who had parents that had attended Hogwarts, their child’s diploma held their house crests – the father’s on the left and the mother’s on the right. Callie traced her finger over the silver and green snake on the left side of the page. Orion had been so proud of Slytherin; it had been her house when she attended Hogwarts. Their youngest brother, however, had not been sorted as they were. On the right, the gold filigree in the Gryffindor lion. Jessie had been every bit the Gryffindor. Courageous and bold, it was no wonder that the Sorting Hat had taken only a moment to choose her house. It killed Callie to raise their child as a Muggle. The poor girl had no clue of her family history, but she would undoubtedly find out soon. It was for Angelina’s own safety that Callie had adopted a new last name. Voldemort would undoubtedly kill her if she were found as he had Orion and Jessie. Callie’s younger brother had been a great help to her in raising the child, but Angelina had never met him – in human form anyway. Before snapping the folder shut, Callie glanced at the name that was inked painstakingly on the parchment: Angelina Black.

~*~

Angelina walked in a daze to the bank of the lake, weaving in and out of the sea of people, glancing for any shock of bright red that would encompass her best friend. She bumped into another student and mumbled an apology before she was attacked from behind.

“ANGIE!!!” Katie Bell grabbed Angelina in a big bear hug. “Thank goodness! I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Mum and Dad are ready to Portkey back home! I couldn’t leave without saying goodbye! Alicia was nearly in tears when her sister forced their Portkey into her hand.”

Angelina returned the hug. “Alicia left already?” She frowned. “I did want to see her again before I left,” Angelina choked on the words. Katie could never guess her double meaning.

“Well, what’s done is done, I suppose. Well, I’d better go, Ang. Mum and Dad are started to look a little grated. I’ll come visit once I get my Apparition license! And you really should connect your fireplace to the network!” Katie waved frantically as her father handed her a light bulb.

Angelina waved as her friend and her family were whisked back to their home. Before she could continue looking for the Weasleys, someone bumped into her. “I’m sorry, I was – Harry!” Angelina had not seen Harry sitting in the audience when she gave her speech. She supposed that he must have been sitting with the Weasley family.

“Angelina, Fred’s been looking everywhere for you. He refuses to Portkey before he sees you. Ron says he has something important to tell you.” Harry grinned broadly as if he knew more than he was letting on.

Angelina shrugged. “All right then, where is that git? I suppose I can survive some sort of joke being played on me.” Angelina followed Harry toward the far end of the lake. “Say, Harry, I hear that you won’t be staying with your Muggle relatives this summer. Lucky, that. You’ll be able to keep up with your Quidditch then. I think you’d make an excellent captain next year. Fred’ll think so too, I reckon.”

Harry smiled. “Do you think so? I’m staying with my godfather this summer. He used to be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team so he promised he’d help me perfect some old feint of his that he used to do. Ah, here they are.”

Angelina couldn’t help but grin as she approached the group of very loud, very red-headed people. Almost immediately Molly Weasley pulled Angelina over to her. “Angelina, your speech was so touching. I was crying, it was so honest and true. I’m sorry my boys had to spoil it for you.”

“We didn’t ruin it, Mum!” Fred called out, coming over to her and grabbing her hand. “We just wanted to publicly thanking her for advertising Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes! That was your intention, right Angie?” Fred’s eyes sparkled mischievously.

Angelina glanced down at her hand and tried to swallow. Why was he holding her hand? Why did she care? He had done so many times before. She dismissed the butterflies in her stomach as nervousness over telling him sheÂ’d probably never see him again. Maybe it would be easier if she just pretended everything was going to be the same.

“Angie? Are you all right?” Fred dropped her hand when she didn’t answer. She suddenly felt a shiver and realized how nippy the air was getting. Why hadn’t she noticed before?

Angelina sighed. “Fred, I can’t stay and talk. We have to catch the 8:00 tube to go back home. My aunt moved while I was away at school so I can’t make a Portkey to take me.” She laughed. “I suppose we Muggles have to everything the old-fashioned way. I talk to you soon, I promise.”

Angelina’s throat burned. She could hardly bear to lie to Fred like she did. She would not owl him, she couldn’t visit him through the Floo, it would be highly unlikely that she would ever see him again. She memorized his features so that she would remember them after he was gone. “Tell Ron and Ginny to take care of the team next year. I’ve got to go.” She rose onto her toes and lightly pecked him on the cheek. “I’ll never forget you, Fred.” Angelina smiled sadly and said goodbye to the rest of the family.

~*~

She met Callie a few feet away and climbed into one of the small boats that had brought her to Hogwarts seven years ago. This time, however, Angelina couldnÂ’t help but notice the irony of the situation. The boats would also take her away.

Callie tried to keep up conversation, but understood fully what Angelina was going through. It was as if her world had died. Callie had felt the same feeling when Orion had perished and again when she herself had to leave the wizarding world to safely raise his daughter. “I suppose you’ll be pleased to know that your uncle will be living with us in the new house. I know you’ve never met my brother, Angie, but he adores you. He tells me that he waits for each letter I send him about you.” Callie was dismayed when Angelina only nodded in response. “Your cousin will be arriving with him.” Still no response.

The Hogwarts Express looked the same as it did every year at the end of the school year. This time, however, Angelina Johnson was not riding with her fellow Gryffindors. It would be a long ride home.

~*~

“Are you ready, Fred?” George asked quickly. One glance at his twin told him all that he needed to know. Fred was taken. With a girl. With Angelina Johnson. George couldn’t help but think it was a shame that Fred had only just now realized the feelings everyone in Gryffindor (except Fred and Angelina, of course) knew he held for the dark haired chaser.

Fred nodded in response, his hand on his cheek where moments before Angelina Johnson, his best friend, had just placed her lips. He quietly took the Portkey from his father. It didnÂ’t activate until the silhouette of the boat Angelina and her aunt had inhabited disappeared into the horizon.

~*~