Much More

"Write us every day!" called Lily's mum through a sob as her and Mr. Evans waved her off at the entrance. Lily waved back and blew a kiss, then turned around with a sigh. This was it.

She carted her trunk and pulled the train ticket out of her pocket.

Hogwarts Express

11 o'clock

Platform 9 ¾

Lily did a double-take, and blinked several times. She swore there was something in her eye; there was no such thing as platform nine and three-quarters. But her eyes were not deceiving her; this she realized after she asked two news-stand workers for directions. "You're off your rocker," said the second one. "Where'd you get a ticket like that?" She dashed off, blushing to the roots of her hair.

Standing on platform ten, Lily looked around stupidly, her heart racing and a large, uncomfortable knot forming in her throat. Mum was right - this really is a big hoax, and I fell for it... Her eyes stung, and she received curious glances from passers-by. Diagon Alley must have been a set-up or something; magic really doesn't exist. And how am I going to get home? She gripped the handle of her trunk so hard it was in danger of breaking in her hand, had her hands been not so sweaty. Overwhelmed with panic, she leaned against a stone barrier, worried she might faint - but she missed. She fell right on the ground. Afraid of the crowd of people that might be laughing and pointing at her, she shut her eyes tight, allowing tears to accumulate on her lashes. But she heard no mocking laughter or askings if she was alright; instead there was an outburst of noise, the excited chattering of kids and the sobbing of parents. What - what's going on? Lily thought confusedly. That came out of nowhere...

She opened an eye just a crack, and then both completely. She was not on platform nine or ten anymore; she was lying with her feet touching a brick wall, on a smooth-stoned floor. As she pushed herself up to a sitting position, she glanced around behind her, where she saw a mob of nearly a hundred people crammed on a not-so-large platform, the parents hugging their children tearfully yet proudly, other students greeting familiar faces and slowly boarding the train, lugging their heavy trunks with them.

Before Lily got the chance to push herself up completely, someone walked straight out of the wall and stumbled on Lily's foot. "What's - whoa!" said a dark-haired figure in surprise, falling straight on their face. Lily sprung up in surprise and embarrassment. The person's trunk, having hit the ground hard, sprung open and various items tumbled out, including a bag of curious-looking powdery-grey balls with a white string emerged from each.

"Oh - god, I'm so sorry - I just fell - let me help you," Lily stammered, thoroughly humiliated. She lunged forward to pick up the things that had fallen from the person's luggage without even looking at who she'd tripped. She hoped she wouldn't have to, and could dash away as soon as she had picked everything up; she didn't want to feel worse than she did.

"It's alright," said the person. It was a boy's voice. Great. I've been away from home for a total of twenty minutes, and I've managed to look like an idiot in front of a boy already.

"I have no idea how I got here, so I was just lying there. I should have moved, how careless of me; I should have figured others would be walking around, too," she rambled. "But wait - you came through the wall - how - ?"

The mysterious boy laughed. "Well, if you ended up here, so did you," he said. Lily didn't remember her plan of running away unidentified; she glanced back at the boy who was now re-folding his clothing. He studied her too, with a smile. He had untidy black hair, a scrawny figure, and brown eyes covered by round-rimmed glasses. She blushed and picked up the bag with the odd grey lumps.

"I don't know. I have no clue where I am." She threw the package into his trunk, and looked down at her lap.

"Muggle-born?" he said simply.

"Mug - oh, non-magic, right? Yeah, I am," she said. She stood and brushed off her jeans. "But that still doesn't answer my question - "

The raven-haired boy laughed. "Yes, it does. You wouldn't know about the barrier, since you're Muggle-born. I'm surprised you weren't told. You step through that barrier that you must have leaned against or stumbled through - however you got here - in order to get to platform nine and three-quarters." He pointed past the mass of chattering people and toward a black, steaming train which displayed The Hogwarts Express in great white letters on its side. "That's how we're getting to Hogwarts. Now, c'mon, let's move before another person falls." He took his now-closed trunk, and Lily grabbed hers. He made for the crowd calmly, with Lily shivering nervously behind him.

They squeezed through groups of parting and meeting people and James stopped. "Where's the line - oh, there. C'mon, back here," he said, pointing to where a small gap way. "This is the end, I think."

Ready to follow, Lily gave her trunk a small tug - but it wouldn't budge. She looked back down at what was in the way, and noticed a wheel was caught in a deep crack between the stone which made up the floor. "You - whatever your name is - !" called Lily, pulling and looking about her. Unfamiliar people pushed past all around her and the end of the line had disappeared. The black-haired boy was nowhere in sight. Lily groaned and stomped her feet in frustration, and kicked her trunk crazily, causing the wheel to come loose. She wanted to scream.

Whoa, calm down, you're totally overreacting, Lily told herself, taking a deep breath. She glanced around for any possible trace of where the line was, but all she could really distinguish was a long, wiggling clump of jabbering students and their parents ready to escort them onto the train.

Successfully towing her trunk this time, Lily just stood next to a tall, slim, elderly witch with a great pink straw hat bedecked with three yellow feathers upon her head. Lily held her hand up to her mouth to keep herself from laughing and tore her eyes away from it. The crowd shuffled forward a bit, and Lily stepped along.

"Go on, go on, we've got hundreds to pack on, let's go!" said a man in a navy blue ensemble. He pushed and her back as she climbed the step, and she nearly fell forward into the pink-hatted lady. "Sorry," Lily muttered as the lady smothered a child with kisses and hugs, and brushed past.

It looked like any ordinary train, to Lily astonishment. There were several compartments and then a door leading to the next car. She peered through each of the compartment windows as she strolled along down the aisle in search for an empty one. She found one two cars later, and slid open the door. With an almighty heave, she lifted her trunk and stowed it on the rack. She sighed and rubbed her sore red hands - and with a loud crash, the rack broke and the trunk fell right on her right arm. "OOOWWWW!" she yelled, cradling her elbow, as tears of pain rose to her eyes.

"Oh my - are you alright? - these dumb racks are so pathetic," said a voice behind Lily. She spun around as her tears broke free and streamed down her cheeks. There stood a curly blonde-haired girl with bright pink cheeks staring at her with tremendous concern. She reached her hand into her pocket and pulled out a stick - a wand. "Watch out," she warned, and Lily watched in awe as she muttered something in another language and the rack was replaced on the wall and the trunk lifted all by itself and settled calmly on top. This time, nothing fell.

Forgetting her throbbing arm, Lily turned to the girl. "How - you - where did you learn that?" said Lily. She was almost about to ask "How did you do that?" but that would have sounded terribly stupid to someone else with magical powers.

The girl surveyed her quickly with a strange look, and then grinned. "You're a Muggle-born, aren't you?" Lily nodded and flushed a bit. That was the second time someone had said that in the past fifteen minutes. "It's just a spell. You'll learn it yourself - I can teach you now, if you want. It's really useful."

Lily's eyes lit up. "I'd love to!" she exclaimed excitedly. The girl stowed her own trunk, and fell onto the bench. Lily sat across from her.

"Do you have - oh wait, I haven't even introduced myself yet. I'm Ellowyn Thatcher," she said, extending a hand. Lily took it. "I'm Lily Evans," she responded with a smile.

"Very nice to meet you," she said, twirling her wand between her thumb and index finger. "Right - you do have a wand, don't you?" said Ellowyn.

"'Course - it's in my pocket," said Lily, glad she hadn't packed it in her trunk. She reached into her jeans and pulled it out.

"Okay, now repeat after me: Reficio."

"Reficio," said Lily, looking down at her wand expectantly. Nothing happened.

"It didn't work!" she cried. Ellowyn just laughed.

"That's because I haven't taught you the wand movements," she assured her. "So Reficio means to restore - to bring anything broken or messed up back to the way they were."

"You're really intelligent," said Lily. "How did you know all that?"

Ellowyn giggled again. "I grew up with magic. It's hard not to know." She cleared her throat. "Alright, and watch what I do with my wand - circle, and point," she said, moving her wand with her words. "You try."

"Circle...and point," said Lily, doing as Ellowyn did. "Did I do it?"

"Yes, very good. Now try the words with it. Here - I'll drop my wand on the floor, and you point down at it," said Ellowyn smartly.

"Alright," said Lily, concentrating hard. "Reficio." She circle-and-pointed at the wand on the floor. It gave a quick twitch, but did nothing else. Lily frowned.

"It's alright, you can never get it the first time," said Ellowyn comfortingly. "Give it another shot."

Lily inhaled and exhaled deeply, and held her wand steady in her hand, focusing intently on the wand. "Reficio!" she said once more, and to her shock and pleasure, the wand flew up and slid neatly into Ellowyn's hand.

"I - I did it!" Lily stuttered. "I can't believe it - I did magic!"

"Great job! I'm surprised that you got it on the second try. It took me weeks to learn that - then again, it was my dad's wand, and that makes spells harder. But you've got a lot of potential!"

"You really think so?" said Lily. Her heart was beating furiously.

"Of course. Not all Muggle-borns can just be shipped off to Hogwarts and learn a spell in two tries," said Ellowyn.

Suddenly, the train gave a shudder, and platform nine-and-three-quarters began passing by outside. "Are we leaving already?" said Ellowyn, undoing the hatch and opening the window. "BYE MUM! BYE DAD! I LOVE YOU!" she called, waving ecstatically. "I'LL WRITE YOU RIGHT AWAY!"

A wave of sadness came over Lily. Her mum and dad hadn't seen her off at the platform - they had just dropped her off outside King's Cross and drove away. Were they eager to get rid of her or something? No, Mrs. Evans had a dental appointment - but surely, they could have spared a few minutes?

"What's wrong?" said Ellowyn, snapping Lily out of her thoughts.

"Oh, nothing, I - just a little headache," said Lily, rubbing her temple. "Wish I had brought some aspirin."

"Aspirin? What's that?" said Ellowyn with a confused look. "A Muggle thing?"

"You don't know what aspirin is?" said Lily with wonder. "How do you survive? It helps headaches."

"We use Pain-away Potion," answered Ellowyn. "Aspirin - what an odd name. What does it look like?"

"It's a little white pill - about this big," said Lily, curling her index finger against her thumb to make a small circle. "You take it with water."

"How strange," said Ellowyn with interest, "to take a potion in pill-form."

An hour passed, and Ellowyn and Lily chatted on and on about wizard things and Muggle things. The interest level reached its peak as Ellowyn revealed that pictures could actually move, and Lily told her that Muggle photos couldn't. "How is that possible? How do you even take the photo?" Ellowyn gasped.

"How do you take a photo?" Lily responded, grinning. "It's supposed to be - like a - a frozen moment!"

They were interrupted as the compartment door opened. A plump woman pushed a wooden cart stood outside. "Anything from the trolley, dears?" she asked the two.

"Ooh, I am rather hungry - I'll take five Chocolate Frogs, a pouch of Bertie's, a Cauldron Cake, and - oh, a handful of Licorice Wands," said Ellowyn, eyes glowing eagerly. "You having anything?"

"Er - " said Lily, glancing at the two with bewilderment. "I'll - I'll have the same thing she's having."

"Alright," said the lady, sorting through the trolley and collecting sweets. She handed the first batch to Ellowyn, and then another to Lily. "That'll be ten Sickles and eight Knuts."

Ellowyn sorted through her moneybag and pulled out several silver and bronze coins. Lily dumped out her entire pouch and poked around. "Er - which are the Sickles, again?" she asked cluelessly.

Ellowyn giggled. "The silver ones."

"Oh, right," said Lily. She picked out ten of them, and then eight little bronze ones. "Here you go," she said, pouring them into the trolley-woman's cupped hands. "Thanks!"

"Enjoy, dears," she said, flashing a yellow smile, shut the door, and scooted off.

"Mmm - Chocolate Frogs, my absolute favorite!" said Ellowyn with delight. She tore a gold wrapper off a chocolate, frog-shaped sweet. It squirmed in her hand, and Lily gasped. "What - it's moving!" she cried in shock.

Ellowyn bit off a chunk, and the wriggling halted. Lily's stomach churned; she had the strong feeling that Ellowyn had just killed her snack. "It's charmed to do that. That makes up the frog part," she said.

"Oh," said Lily, still feeling a bit queasy. She examined her pile of sweets with distaste.

"Go ahead, try something!" said Ellowyn. "Ooh, try a Cauldron Cake - they're excellent."

Lily found a clear-wrapped golden-brown mound coated on top with vanilla frosting and multi-colored sprinkles. Lily took a closer look - the sprinkles were actually changing colors. Feeling fairly hungry now, she tore open the wrapper and pulled out the cake. Unlike normal cupcakes, the frosting didn't smear on the wrapper.

"The frosting's made not to smear," said Ellowyn, as if reading Lily's thoughts. Lily nodded, sniffed the cake cautiously, and took a bite.

It was like a cupcake, only ten - no, twenty - times better. The frosting was smooth and sweet, and the sprinkles tasted just as good as they looked.

"See? I told you you'd like it!" said Ellowyn. "I'm gonna have one myself, you're making me really hungry."

"What's this?" said Lily, who had just finished up the last bite of her Cauldron Cake and had picked up the red pouch.

"Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans," said Ellowyn, smiling mischievously. "Go ahead, have one."

Lily reached in and took a light green one. She popped it into her mouth, and chewed. Ellowyn laughed at Lily's expression of surprise, curiousity, and disgust. "Urgh - it tastes like - like avacadoes!" said Lily, picking it off her tongue and tossing it out the window. "That wasn't very nice!" she said false-angrily to Ellowyn.

"Oh, don't be such a baby - there really is ever flavour, like the name says," she said, sticking her fingers into her own pouch. "Here, I'll try this one." She had chosen a colorless one, and ate it. She raised her eyebrows. "Doesn't taste like anything at all. Must be air-flavoured," she said. Lily sniggered.

Neither noticed when the sky began growing dark and the scenery began changing from grassy plains to rocky mountains. They both jumped when the candles flickered on.

"Oh - we're almost there, aren't we? Might as well get changed into our uniforms," said Ellowyn. She stood and grabbed her trunk, carefully setting it on her seat. Lily did the same.

They closed the curtains on the door, dressed into their school robes and brushed their hair as the train gradually began to slow down. They had shut their trunks and brushed off their robes and exited to the already-packed aisle when the train screeched and stopped.

"I have no idea what I'm doing," Lily whispered to Ellowyn.

"Don't worry, I'll fill you in when we're in the boat."

"We're taking a boat?" said Lily. "You magic people have boats?"

"Of course us wizards and witches have boats," said Ellowyn, grinning. "They're enchanted of course. Just wait, you'll see."

They filed off the train along with the rest of the crowd of Hogwarts students, new and old.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" a voice boomed. Lily examined the mob for the source of the noise - and caught sight of a great, dark-haired and bearded man twice the size of a tall man, and triply thick. She hesitated before heading in his direction.

"Who is that?" Lily asked Ellowyn.

"My sister told me about him - his name's Hargard, I think - or Hergid - something like that. It begins with H," she said finally.

"A bit scary looking," Lily muttered to Ellowyn. They were standing among the other first year students now, and more were coming.

"Must have really eaten his vegetables - "

"And like seventy cows - "

"Firs' years!" called the gigantic, scraggly man. "'Ave we got all've yeh?" He counted the heads, and nodded. "Alrigh', this way."

They followed him nervously and silently in a long line of what looked like 50 or so students. Lily shivered, even though it was quite warm out.

They came to a large, glassy lake. At the shore was parked eleven boats (the one on the far right end considerably bigger than the rest), each with its own lantern, and the large man spoke up. "Four've yeh in each," he said after clearing his throat. "We'll be gettin' teh 'Ogwarts in these."

Lily and Ellowyn climbed in a boat along with two other anxious-looking boys, and the giant climbed into the bigger one. Once they were all settled, there was a jolt and the boats began to move forward. The giant's boat traveled to the front, and they all followed quietly, until Lily spoke.

"So, what else do you know about Hogwarts?" Lily whispered. "I have no idea what I've gotten myself into."

Ellowyn chuckled. "You haven't gotten yourself into anything bad, don't worry! Well, there's the headmaster, Dumbledore. Dad knows him pretty well, and says he's a good man, and very, very wise. And there's four houses - Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin." She said the latter of the four in quite a sour tone. "I myself pray I'll be in Gryffindor. I suppose I shouldn't keep my hopes up, since my sister's a Ravenclaw. But I'll kill myself if I'm sorted into Slytherin."

"What's wrong with Slytherin?" said Lily.

"The bad ones always go there. The dark wizards and witches. I'm not saying that they're all evil over there. Just most of them."

"Oh. Well, I hope I'm not in that house either. How do we know which one we're in? Who tells us?"

"I guess there's a hat," said Ellowyn, smiling with amusement, "that tells us what we'll be in. Sounds pretty ridiculous - I mean, what's a hat gonna do but sit on your head?"

There was a thump, indicating that the boats had struck land. Indeed, they were at the shore and the students began stepping out of their boats.

They all followed the so-far nameless giant up a steep path and to the school. So far, Lily hadn't seen it, she hadn't even bothered to look up while in the boats. As they got closer, it slowly came into view. First, she saw the tips of turrets - and then glowing windows - it was enormous - there were thousands of windows in this great stone school - no, castle. Lily gasped, and so did everyone else. It was enormous, and beautiful.

"I can't believe it. I'm going to a school that's a palace," said Lily.

"Paige never told me that it was a castle," said Ellowyn with equal astonishment. They trekked to the school with their mouths wide open.

The students followed the giant up some stone steps and through a pair of great wooden doors which opened by themselves. They stopped in the front hall, where, when Hagrid shuffled away, they saw a woman was standing. She looked very stern; she had straight brown hair pulled into tight bun, she was tall and slender, and was wearing a large-brimmed, pointed, green hat that matched her robes.

"Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," she began, looking straight into the eyes of each of the anxious students. "In a moment, you all will follow me into the Great Hall and to the very front. When I call your name, you will step forward, sit on the stool, and place the hat on your head. It will then select the proper house for you, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin, and you will sit at the house's table. Come along."

They walked through another pair of doors, and into the Great Hall. It was a tall room, with five tables - they walked along an aisle, with two tables on either side of them, and toward a table at the front. Candles floating all over the room above everyone's heads. Their attention, though, was immediately shifted to the ceiling; there was none. Or at least it appeared; there was a deep blue sky, twinkling stars, and even a sliver of the moon.

They gathered in a clump in front of a few steps which let up to the platform where the front table was, and where a single three-legged stool sat, on which was a tattered old hat. Lily looked at it in disbelief; she had been picturing a magnificent-looking hat, one with feathers or ribbons, or a top hat. But this was a pointed hat like the woman's who had led them in, but it was a faded brown and patched and worn.

There was a stillness in the hall as if everyone was waiting for something. Lily looked to the door in case someone was about to walk through, but she soon jumped and her head zipped the other way. The hat on the stool had opened its "mouth" and burst into song.

A tattered old hat, lain on a stool:
But this I'm not, though I appear;
I'm really much more than you may think.
To find this out, you must come here.
I will choose your destiny,
This isn't the time that you should dread,
But I will help you, come and see
So come and place me on your head!
The brave belong in Gryffindor
Where the noble proudly stand,
The clever go to Ravenclaw
Where your future can be planned;
Hufflepuff is for the loyal
For those true to their word,
The ambitious will in Slytherin fit
Where the cunning are preferred;
If you want to know your potential
Please, step forward, and you'll find
What capability and ideas
Lie inside your mind!

Everyone applauded intensely, and Lily joined. It wasn't every day that you came across a singing hat.

After it had quieted, Lily's attention turned to the strict woman, who held a long sheet of paper. She cleared her throat importantly.

"Alderton, Naomi."

A girl with short, flipped black hair ascended the steps, took the hat off the stool and set it on her head. After about ten seconds of suspenseful silence, the hat's mouth opened again. "RAVENCLAW!" it announced. Naomi took off the hat, replaced it on the stool, and skipped down to join the cheering table.

"Avery, Kevin."

Lily tuned out and surveyed her fellow first years. There weren't any familiar faces; not that she really expected any. She reflected on the people in her year at her old school, and to her surprise, couldn't really think of any. She remembered each of the teachers distinctly, but when she tried the students, it was all a blur.

Now that she looked back on it, it really was pathetic. Lily didn't have any friends - why didn't she? She certainly had time to. So much time was wasted studying things she had already learned and reading books she had already nearly memorized, and she hadn't bothered to befriend anyone except Petunia. She had hardly been at King's Cross twenty minutes and she had made two friends already.

"Evans, Lily."

Where was that boy, anyway? She hadn't seen him yet. She looked on the other side of her, the side she hadn't checked - but didn't get much of a chance. She heard someone call her name rather harshly.

"Evans, Lily."

She looked up at the strict woman. Her lips were pursed, and her eyebrows were raised. Lily's mouth opened as if she was about to say something, and she realized it was her turn to be sorted. She flushed scarlet and stepped up to the stool and pulled the hat onto her head.

She sat and waiting for something to happen. What was she going to do, sit there? Was the hat going to read her mind or something? Her question was quickly answered.

My, my. Very intelligent I see.

"What?" Lily whispered.

And Muggle-born. You'd do very, very well in Ravenclaw - but, with the things in store for you, there's probably a better spot for you. Very bold, but haven't quite proven yourself yet. Worry not, your time will come. With that, I'll be putting you in -

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily sighed. That was the house Ellowyn wanted to get in, and it sounded the most appealing, according to the hat's song. Lily stood up, removed the hat, and jogged down to the table of cheering Gryffindors. She took an empty seat near the front.

"Welcome to Gryffindor, Lily," said an Asian girl next to Lily. "I'm Loretta, Head Girl."

"Nice to meet you Loretta," said Lily, smiling shyly. She had no clue what 'Head Girl' meant, but whatever it was, it sounded important.

Hailey Frobisher was soon a Hufflepuff, along with Reid Lennox, Mara MacDougal, Rheanna Parrish, and Heath Paxton. New Ravenclaws sat at their appropriate tables, looking awkward but happy, and the Gryffindors sat by Lily contentedly, looking nervous but not as much as the other-housed students. The new Slytherins, however, had a totally different air. It seemed several of them already knew each other, and leaned against the table comfortably, chatting amongst themselves.

"Potter, James."

Lily glanced up at the stool. A black-haired and glassed boy sat down and put the hat on his head - it was him. Lily felt automatically excited, and waited as the hat pondered over his placement. She waited...and waited...for quite a while. It took nearly three minutes, and there were some curious whispers floating about the hall. Finally, the hat spoke up.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily smiled brightly. He came down to the table, grinning himself, and - sat down next to someone else. They patted each other's backs fondly, and James whispered something to him, and they both laughed. Lily sighed.

Why am I even upset about this? Lily thought. It's not as if we're extremely close or anything - I just met him today, and we were together for not even five minutes.

"Hey Lily!" said Ellowyn, who was taking a seat next to Lily. "Lucky we're both in the same house!"

"I know," said Lily with relief. It was great - both of her friends were in her house! "The house almost put me in Ravenclaw, too."

"Yeah, same for me. Like I said, my sister's a Ravenclaw. Both my parents were, too. I hope they don't mind I'm a Gryffindor - I'm sure it'll come as a surprise."

The sorting ended, and all attention was transferred to the table at the front. An elderly man with a long, grey bear stood from his seat and gazed about the room. "Whether you're a new or returned student, welcome to Hogwarts. This will be another wonderful year, I presume. So delightful to see such familiar faces, and fresh ones too." He beamed at them. Lily raised her eyebrows, and glanced at Ellowyn. She was surprised to see Ellowyn staring up at the man seriously. Lily turned back around, and mimicked her.

"Before dinner, I have a few things I'd like to address. First of all, our caretaker Argus Filch would like to inform you that the 'Prohibited Objects' list is posted outside his office. There are eleven new items on it this year, and you may check it if you please.

"I would also like to remind everyone that the Forbidden Forest is strictly off-limits to all students unless I give permission, and with that you must be with a member of the staff.

"I am finished. So, with that, all I have to say is: Bon Appetit!"

Students cheered, and Lily glanced at the platters. Food materialized onto them - piles of it. There were chicken drumsticks, boiled potatoes, carrots, peas, and numerous other dishes. Lily dug in.

I may not know much about this place, thought Lily as she sipped the pumpkin juice (which she had tried and loved after Ellowyn assured her 'there's nothing like it!"), but I do know that it has great food.