Never Say Never

Never Say Never

Chapter 1 A Promising Future

Sitting all alone in an empty train compartment was not what I expected to be doing on my first day at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It was so...quiet, and I felt really lonely. I turned to look out the window and saw heaps of students getting ready to board the train. Some of them were saying their goodbyes to their loved ones; others were busy gossiping with their friends. A blond-haired guy was busy taking pictures of everyone with a really old-fashioned camera. I wonder if I'll make any friends.

I sighed and looked out the window again. Not even my pet owl Leister was there to comfort me with his soft hooting. I didn't even have him to cuddle! I hoped he was alright in the other carriage with all the other pets.

Oh, you must be wondering who I am. Well, my name is Anita James -- Annie for short. I'll be twelve years old on the seventh of March. I'm average in height. I've got long straight black hair, and I mean really black. It looks quite like the night sky -- in it's fact darker than the night sky. Well, that's what my mother says; but dad just calls me inky hair. I actually look a lot like my mother. I've got her dark hair, her facial features (except my eyes, which are like Dad's dark brown eyes), and I've got her smile (which I think is completely wrong because Mum's got this really beautiful smile...well when she's happy she smiles all beautifully and shows her lovely white teeth, while I on the other hand just grin sheepishly.)

My mom's really pretty (so I do hope I look like her). She works back in London as a fashion designer for wedding gowns and formal wear. Her label, Laura Taylor, is named after her. She is quite famous; she's designed a few gowns for some celebrities. You might be wondering if she is magically gifted. Well yeah, she is...but Dad isn't. At least he accepted it when they got married. Dad is good looking; he is really strong and all. Dad's a lawyer, a good one too. My sister Alison, whom we call Ali, is a year younger than me. She, too, is coming to Hogwarts when she's twelve.

She looks like Dad, and she's funny and odd like him, too.

After they dropped me off at the platform, they left. They looked really upset. I miss them so much already. The jolt of the train moving woke me up from my daydreaming.

Ah, we're leaving already.

I looked around the empty compartment. Great way to start the day...

All of the sudden the compartment door slid open. Two girls stood there.

Were they my age?? I hoped so.

My heart pounded like a gigantic drum. Maybe they could be my friends; the thought of making friends was amazing. My heart was beating so fast that I thought they might be able to hear it. They might say something like, 'Oh, what's that odd pounding sound?' 'Oh it might be some invisible bongos in this compartment.' 'Maybe we should leave.' And they would go, just like that. I can't allow that to happen.

"Hi," they said one after the other, nicely and cheerfully.

"Hi," I replied, trying to get my heart to stop pounding so loudly. I was afraid that my fear of not making friends would turn out to be real.

"Is there anyone sitting with you?" asked the one with big brown hair.

"Err, well no. You can sit here if you want."

"Oh, thank you. Everywhere else is full," said the one with red hair.

They both dragged their trunks in and stored them away before sitting down on the seat opposite me.

"So, you're new here aren't you? That explains why we haven't seen you around. I'm Hermione Granger." She seemed pretty friendly.

"I'm Ginny Weasley, and I'm in my first year here. Are you in your first or second year?" She looked really sweet and friendly, but she wasn't in my year, so that was quite upsetting.

"I'm Annie James, and I'm a second year," I said. Wow, not bad. I've kind of made some friends already. Ginny looked kind of disappointed when I said I was in second year.

"Great, hopefully we'll be in the same classes together or even better in the same house!" she said excitedly.

"Which house are you guys in?"

"Gryffindor! Though, the sorting hat must be sick of sorting all us Weasley kids out." Ginny laughed.

"How many bothers and sisters do you have, Ginny?"

"I've got six brothers -- way too many if you ask me. No sisters though. Hey, you'll be in the same year as Ron. He's the youngest brother."

"How about you, Annie. Do you have brothers or sisters?" Ginny asked.

"I've got a sister. She can be a little annoying at times, though."

"Well, at least you don't have monkeys for brothers."

"Hey, you could train them to do your chores and tricks all for a banana," I said.

"Or, you could send them off to a zoo or circus. Ron would do particularly well if you ask me," Hermione said, and we all laughed.

"Hermione, do you have any siblings?" I asked

"No, I'm an only child. My parents are dentists. They aren't, well, magically gifted."

"Hey, who cares. You don't need magic to perform a root canal," I said, and they laughed.

"Annie, I really do hope you'll be in Gryffindor with us," Hermione said.

"Yeah, it'll be great; you could meet Harry and Ron," Ginny said.

"Wait, do you mean Harry, as in Harry Potter?" I asked.

"Yeah, he's a really good friend," Hermione said. Wow, meeting the boy who lived would be a story to tell my grandkids.

"Where are Harry and Ron anyway? They were supposed to be here ages ago. I didn't even see them come through the gate," Ginny said.

"They could have gotten lost. So, Annie, what books do you enjoy reading?" Hermione asked. To tell you the truth, making friends now made this seem like a great beginning -- a promising future at Hogwarts.