Belle Ame

Chapter 3: The Hogwarts Express

That night, Roxy and Jen stayed in a room in the Leaky Cauldron. Jen went to bed early and left Roxy to read her books under the moonlit window. She was fascinated by all the creatures and spells she would learn about, and she was especially spellbound by her Transfiguration book. Then she uncovered the book Jen had bought for her: The Answer Book, Version Twenty-Three. Roxy slowly opened the cover to reveal a completely blank book.

"How does this work?" she muttered.

Just as she began to close the book, she saw something intriguing appear.. A velvety, scarlet ink spread across the blank page, forming into curved letters across the blank page. It repeated Roxy's words: Question - How does this work?

Roxy was stunned, but then it became even more alluring. The writing continued, but the red ink turned to an enchanting, dark blue that read: Answer - To use The Answer Book, Version Twenty-Three, say aloud the question you wish to be answered and then wait for the answer to appear below your question. All questions and answers will remain in this book so you will be able to refer to them in the future.

This was incredibly captivating to Roxy. She had so many questions, and they could all be answered without so much as a moment's hesitation. Her mind was whirling about which question she should ask first. Who is Professor Dumbledore? Where is Hogwarts? Are there other schools like Hogwarts? She traced her fingers over the ink that was still damp from her question.

"Are there other schools like Hogwarts?" she eventually decided, staring into the book. The scarlet ink again marked the white pages: Question- Are there other schools like Hogwarts? Roxy lingered patiently until it replied, Yes, two of the more famous schools are the Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and the Durmstrang Institute. Few people know where these two schools are located. Durmstrang Institute is believed to be in northern Europe, where it is very cold. Its headmaster is Igor Karkaroff. Beauxbatons Academy of Magic is located somewhere in France. Its headmistress is Olympe Maxime.

This excited Roxy; it meant there had to be hundreds or thousands of witches and wizards in the world. Roxy slept very little that night, persistently asking questions and learning to a great extent of her newfound civilization.

* * *

Roxy woke suddenly, feeling that she had overslept for some sort of appointment. She sat up and looked at her surroundings; it all came flooding back to her. She was a witch, she was in Diagon Alley shopping for wizarding supplies, and, best of all, she was going to attend Hogwarts. Roxy stood up from the bed she had fallen asleep on the night before and picked up the book she had used as a pillow. Roxy studied the cover and recalled the endless questions that were answered; when she had fully woken up, she realized somebody was missing.

"Mum! Where are you?" Her voice echoed through the hall that led down to the bar. "Maybe she went down for some breakfast," she thought.

After getting dressed promptly, she wandered out into the hall; it had changed from last night. Something about it was strangely different. She started to feel unsettled as she slowly and quietly reached the stairs. When she looked down there was nothing there. The stairs had vanished during the night. Then she peered down into the Leaky Cauldron, and to her surprise, there was nothing there either.

Everything was black, an endless, bottomless black. It had taken the place of most of the floor, although there were still a few random blocks of stone floating in the air. Roxy spotted a possible pathway that might reach the courtyard that led to Diagon Alley. She slowly dropped to her hands and knees and reached out to one of the lonely blocks. She put as much weight as she could on it without fully standing on it, yet it still stood.

"That's it!" she thought. Roxy stood up and stared at the unstable rock she was preparing to jump to. With a breath of hope she launched toward the stone.

"OUCH!" she grunted as she climbed fully onto the flooring piece and balanced herself enough to stand. Roxy continuously leaped to each piece, stopping to catch her breath for only a minute or so before bounding to the next.

She was almost there. One more spot and then she would reach the door leading to the courtyard. She gathered all of her strength and launched herself into the air. Her mind was racing. "What am I doing here?" Roxy thought, "not only here, but here in this world. My life was fine before now. I was the average kid." Then, suddenly, she found herself on the block that led to the door. She entered the courtyard with the hope that everybody would leap out and yell "Surprise!" But when she swung open the door, it was empty. Just the ground, a few tables, and the wall that surrounded it.

"Oh no! I need my wand to get through to Diagon Alley."

Roxy took to speaking aloud, figuring that it didn't really matter right now. She patted her pockets and looked around.

"What?" she exclaimed in shock: the wand suddenly was there, in the courtyard. "But how?"

Now was not the time to be asking questions, so she snatched the wand and tapped the correct brick.

"Come on, come on! What's taking so long?" She pressed her hands against the wall, hoping to fall through into the loving arms of her mother. The gateway formed and she stumbled into an empty Diagon Alley. A heavy mist blanketed the alley. The air was cold and crisp, biting at Roxy's bare arms and face. The shops were dark and dusty; they were ancient, as if nobody had been there for hundreds of years.

"Hello!" she shouted. All that came in response was a wisp of air and a faint echo. She took a few unstable steps forward. She peered through the mist, where she saw a faded outline of a person standing near the end of the alley. It was just standing there, as if something was wrong..

"Are you okay?" Roxy called out. She hesitantly took a few more steps forward to see the person. But as she was stepping forward, she was yanked backwards, as if as if someone was pulling at the collar of her shirt. Things seemed to rewind themselves: she was back in the Leaky Cauldron, then upstairs, and in her room. She landed where she had woken up, then things began to spin and everything went black.

"ROXY! Roxy wake up!" Jen was shaking her daughter in a gentle, comforting way.

"Mum!" Roxy sat upright and wrapped her arms around her mother's neck.

"You were trembling and moaning. Were you having a nightmare? I bet all these new things shook you up, haven't they?" Jen rubbed Roxy's arm in comfort.

"Mum, it was empty, the Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley, there was no one. And the floor, it...it just wasn't there, like it had fallen away. Then there was this heavy fog in the alley, and there was somebody there. That person needed help, I know it, there was something wrong, Mum."

Roxy babbled as she jumped up to look out of the window. It was fine, there was no fog, the shops were in perfect condition, and everybody was cheerfully talking to one another.

"Dear, calm down, it was just a bad dream. Nobody needed help, it was all in your imagination." Jen set her arm around Roxy's shoulders and guided her away from the window. "Now, if you get dressed quickly we can have breakfast and then you can find Riley and go wander Diagon Alley."

Roxy decided not to argue with her mother, but she had a feeling that the person she saw wasn't a figment of her imagination and really was in desperate need of her help. But she pushed it aside, so as not to ruin her day with Riley.

She quickly got dressed and followed her mother down to the Leaky Cauldron. It was a long, interesting breakfast that was topped off with the most delicious tea. When they were both done, they wandered out to Diagon Alley. Roxy quickly spotted Riley jumping up and down on her toes to get a look in the window of Quality Quidditch Supplies, as there were many people crowded around the window.

"Mum, I'm going to go with Riley, okay?" Roxy asked casually, trying to depart from her mother quickly.

"Alright, I'm just going to do a little shopping and I'll be back in the Leaky Cauldron. Try not to be awful long and - here. Have some money with you in case you'd like something." Jen handed her a small purple, velvet sack of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts.

"Mum, I love this little bag! It's so soft," Roxy said running her fingers over the surface of the velvet bag.

"You can keep it. It can be a little something of me to take to Hogwarts," Jen smiled.

"Thanks, Mum!" Roxy kissed her mother on the cheek and went to get Riley.

"Roxy! One more thing, now that you're wandering around Diagon Alley alone, you should know something. Never go down Knockturn Alley," she said sternly.

"Knockturn Alley?" Roxy questioned.

"It's the alley across from Gringotts."

"Alright, I'll see you soon!" Roxy waved and turned with a smile, ignoring her mother's strange request. She weaved through the mass of people to cross the alley to where Riley was standing. She tapped Riley on the shoulder, just as she was about to jump up again to look over the crowd.

"Whoa!" Riley spun around, gripping her wand.

"Do you know how to use that thing?" Roxy asked nervously as she looked between the wand and Riley's frazzled face.

"Oh, it's just you, sorry. You scared me - and don't ever sneak up on me like that again!" Riley said.

"So, what are you jumping up and down for?" Roxy peered over Riley's shoulder to see, but all she could see was a crowd of kids, some around her age and a few older and younger ones.

"It's the new broomstick, the Nimbus 2000! I absolutely love to fly, but all I've got is a Cleansweep 7," Riley said carelessly as she bounced around on her toes.

"Nimbus 2000? Cleansweep 7? What do you mean, 'fly'?" Roxy questioned, trying to stop Riley from bouncing so much by attempting to hold Riley's shoulder.

"You really don't know much about the Wizarding World do you? No offense, but it's kind of common sense for us - I mean, us who have known about Wizarding World since we were born," she said uncertainly.

"None taken, but seriously, what are you talking about?" She waved aside whatever Riley had supposedly said wrong.

"Okay, the Nimbus 2000 and Cleansweep 7 are types of broomsticks. There are also Silver Arrows, but those are ancient, and Shooting Stars, but those are really crappy broomsticks. And, of course, we fly on them to get to places, as long as we're not seen by Muggles.

"Now - this is very important - you have to learn about Quidditch; it's a game we play on broomsticks. We play in Quidditch pitches, and they're generally oval, with high stands for the people to sit in. In a pitch there are three rings at different heights at each end of the field. You try to score against the other team, of course. On a team, the player positions are: one Seeker, one Keeper, two Beaters, and three Chasers. There is a large red Quaffle that the Chasers pass around and try to throw it through the rings on either side of the field. The Keepers try to keep the Chasers from scoring. There are two Bludgers, vicious black balls, a little smaller than the Quaffle. They basically have a mind of their own, and they try to knock people off the broomsticks. The Beaters hit the Bludgers with short, wide bats so that the Bludgers knock the other team off instead. The Snitch is the most important one of all, it's a tiny golden ball with wings, and it's super fast. It's the Seeker's job is to catch it. When the Seeker catches the Snitch, it ends the game and gives the team that caught it one hundred and fifty points, usually causing them to win the game. Get it?" Riley huffed, out of breath.

"Yes, but I'm not sure if I could play it that well. It's not hard to understand, but I imagine it's hard to play," she said, looking towards the window again. "Come on, let's see this infamous broom," Roxy dragged Riley through the cluster of people, to the window. It was marvelous with a sleek mahogany handle with perfectly straight twigs at the end. In gold, "Nimbus 2000" was written near the top of the handle. She pressed her fingers on the glass as she peered into the showcase.

"Beauty, isn't it?" came a voice from behind them. They jumped at the voice and turned around. Standing there was the boy who had knocked over Cassidy and then stormed off to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Hi, I'm Thomas Pratley. I saw you over here and I wanted to apologize for - uh - disturbing your owl yesterday," he said to Roxy with sincerity.

"It's fine. You seemed to be having a rough day," Roxy observed, putting emphasis on the word rough.

"I'm Riley Treller and this is Roxy Stone," Riley said, extending a hand. He shook it politely and then reached for Roxy's hand. After a moment, she couldn't help but shake his hand as she lost herself in his deep sapphire blue eyes.

"This is quite a broom; they just keep getting better. Do either of you like to play Quidditch?" He looked to each of them, attempting to lighten the conversation.

"I love it! I only have a Cleansweep Seven, but as long as I'm in the air, I'm happy." Riley seemed to jump right into the conversation when Quidditch was mentioned.

"How about you, Roxy?" He turned to her.

"Well, I've never really played Quidditch before," she said, trying not to reveal to him that she had not been informed about Wizards before yesterday.

"Well, you at least have a broom, don't you?" he asked, a little surprised.

"Um, no, not to fly on," she said, turning pink.

"You're kidding! No broom and you've never played Quidditch!" he exclaimed, awestruck.

"Let's just drop it!" Roxy said sharply. She was starting to get angry with her mother for concealing this world from her. At this, they ceased their conversation about flying.

"So, you're both in first year I suppose?" He asked happily. Roxy and Riley simply nodded in response. "What are you up to today?"

"Well, we don't really know yet. I just got here a little bit ago and we haven't had a chance to decide that yet." Roxy looked into his eyes again; she couldn't get over the perfect details of them.

"I'm free for the day, and it's not as if my parents would miss me much, anyway. If you don't mind, as I don't know many other Wizards our age, I'd like to hang out with you guys. You two don't seem to be vicious Slytherins or anything." He smiled, and even his smile was perfect to Roxy.

"Sure!" Roxy said quickly, grinning. "I haven't been in all the stores yet, so we could look around for a while."

With everything settled, they continued across to Eeylop's to buy some owl treats for Thomas' eagle owl named Oliver, Riley's barn owl named Nibbles, and for Cassidy.

When they had bought the treats and tucked them away in their pockets, they continued on to Gambol and Japes. Roxy hadn't been in this store yet; she had only seen it when they purchased her wand. She thought it was the most ridiculous-looking shop she had ever been in, but she very much enjoyed the items that were for sale. She especially admired Dr. Filibuster's Fabulous, Wet-Start, No-Heat Fireworks that were on display; she couldn't believe that they started without fire. She thought of how she hated sparklers because, when they got too far down from burning, the sparks would singe her hand. She also marveled over the dungbombs, non-explodable luminous balloons, and whizzing worms. Thomas bought a couple sugar quills, but Riley came out of the store with an arm full of different items.

"Do you think we could stop over at the Leaky Cauldron so I can put this stuff in my room? You guys can stay out by the gateway. I just don't want to carry this stuff around," Riley said with her chin holding down the pile of objects in her arms.

"Sure, then we could go over to Florean Fortescue's for some ice cream," Thomas said, sucking slightly on one of his sugar quills. With everyone in agreement, they walked towards the Leaky Cauldron.

Later that day, they agreed to meet Thomas on Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters on September first as he stepped into the fireplace and went home by Floo Powder. Then Riley went home, also by Floo Powder, promising Roxy that she'd send Nibbles as often as possible with a letter. And, finally, Roxy and Jen gathered all of Roxy's new supplies and went home. Ed asked them thoroughly about how Roxy adjusted to the Wizarding world. He was eager to see all of her books, her wand, and Cassidy. That night, she went to sleep in her own bed with a feeling of completion. She felt that she could make a difference, that she had more of a meaning in her life. She couldn't explain what she felt was going to happen at Hogwarts, but she sensed it would be a life-changing experience that she needed.

It was now about a month after Roxy's first visit to Diagon Alley; it was the morning of September first. Roxy and Riley were constantly sending owls back and forth. Riley would tell Roxy what was happening in the Wizarding world while Roxy told Riley how much she wanted September first to come.. Thomas sent Roxy a couple owls "just to catch up", and Roxy would send an owl back assuring him that she understood that he was busy.

For Roxy, the month of August was passing by rather slowly and dully. She would read her schoolbooks in the privacy of her room. She was so interested in her Transfiguration book that she read the whole thing and decided to read it again. However, she wasn't as interested in her Potions book. It was like chemistry - not that she had ever taken it - and she didn't like science at all.

The relationship between her and Jen had grown; she felt they had more in common. Now Roxy would ask endless questions about when she was a girl in Hogwarts. Jen seemed to be very happy to answer every question her daughter had. Over breakfast, they would have long discussions of the Wizarding world, although Roxy was always wrong, for her little knowledge could not put up a fight against her mother's extensive experience. But today was the day Roxy had been looking forward to for a month. She would finally be going to Hogwarts.

She woke with her mother gently shaking her shoulder. She was wide-awake instantly. She sat up in her bed and smiled at her mother as she looked at the large trunk on the floor, just waiting to go to Hogwarts. Then she glanced at her alarm clock that was only used to check the time. It was seven o'clock.

"I wanted to wake you early so you would have enough time to gather your stuff," Jen said in a kind, early-morning voice.

"Okay, Mum. We have to be there by eleven, right?" Jen nodded in response. "So could we try to get there by ten-thirty? That's what time I told Riley that I'd be there."

"Absolutely. Now, you just get dressed, make sure you've packed everything, and come on downstairs for breakfast." Jen left Roxy alone with her bulky trunk, which was mostly filled with books and other magical things.

After getting dressed hurriedly, she went through each trunk, making sure she had her wand, her books, her owl treats, her robes, and everything else she had bought at Diagon Alley. She finally was satisfied with what she had packed and tore herself away from her room to eat breakfast.

Jen and Roxy sat at the table eating breakfast slowly; Roxy's father had left the night before for a business meeting in Wales, and Roxy had promised him that she would write the two of them often.

"You've packed all of your books?" Jen prodded.

"Yes, Mum, I've checked twice this morning," Roxy sighed.

"And all of your robes, and your wand, are they all packed?"

"Yes Mum."

"And you've got plenty of underwear?"

"Mum! Do you think I'm stupid?" Roxy mumbled as Jen was still looking for an answer. "Yes, Mum, of course I have."

After that, they dropped their conversation and finished eating. It was eight o'clock when they finally finished packing the car. After a long drive, Jen pulled up to King Cross Station at ten-twenty. Jen and Roxy loaded a cart with her trunk and Cassidy, strapping down Cassidy's cage very carefully. As they continued through the station many people gave them strange looks, mainly because of Cassidy's continuous squawking every time a train blew its whistle. They reached the area between platforms nine and ten around ten-forty, and right away Roxy spotted Riley standing alone, leaning on one of the columns.

"Riley's over there, Mum, and you don't have to go with me all the way to the Hogwarts Express. I'll be fine. I promise tomorrow I'll send Cassidy just so you know I made it there okay, and I can tell you what house I'm Sorted in." Roxy was becoming more aware of how Hogwarts worked as she read Hogwarts, a History.

"Promise to stay with Riley until you get to Hogwarts."

Jen wrapped her arms around her daughter and held her there for a moment as she shed a small glistening tear.

"Mum!" Roxy gasped as she craned her neck over her mother's shoulder. "I can't breathe!"

Jen laughed as she let go of her daughter. With a soft hand she touched Roxy's flowing, brown hair.

"You be careful and owl me as soon as you can. I want to know all about your train ride and the Sorting ceremony."

With one last tight hug and a kiss on Roxy's cheek, Jen parted from her daughter. Roxy ran over to Riley, who was impatiently looking at the clock on the wall in front of her. She stood next to a pile of luggage that looked similar to Roxy's, with Nibbles sitting in her cage nibbling on its bars.

"Finally! I thought you'd never make it," Riley said as she spotted Roxy. "Are you ready for the most amazing train you've ever seen? I haven't seen it in person yet, only in the pictures."

Roxy nodded nervously.

"Don't you think all the - Muggles - will think it's a bit odd that we run into a brick wall and disappear?" Roxy said, glancing around at the busy station.

"That's why you have to time it just right," Riley said confidently. "Okay, so we'll do it at the same time? We only have ten minutes until the train leaves."

"Alright, I'm ready."

Roxy lined her cart of luggage up next to Riley's and gripped the handle..

"One, two, THREE!" Riley shouted.

Riley set off at a run and Roxy followed behind her instantly. Roxy could see the wall coming closer; nothing was happening to it. There was no archway forming, no entrance visible - it was still a solid, brick wall. There was no stopping now, she knew it, and within seconds, she would hurtle into the brick. She couldn't watch anymore; this would be painful. She shut her eyes tightly...

"Where's the wall? Shouldn't I have hit it by now?" Roxy thought as she slowly opened her eyes and screeched to a stop. There was the most extravagant red train she had ever seen; it was absolutely magnificent.. A large sign read above the train "Hogwarts Express 11 O'clock," and there were many people who all appeared to be Roxy's age or close to it.

"What took you guys so long?" Thomas' voice came from the side of the train. "I've already loaded my luggage in a compartment so nobody else takes it. Come on, don't stand there. Let's get out of everybody's way."

"Sounds good to me," Roxy said cheerfully. She was glad to see Thomas in person again. She missed the perfect details of his face and the friendly feeling the air had when he was around.

Roxy and Riley dragged their carts to the Hogwarts Express. After all of their luggage and their owls were loaded into the compartment, they settled themselves on the benches. Thomas sat by the window and Riley sat opposite of him, so Roxy took the opportunity and sat next to Thomas. They sat quietly, a little overwhelmed from the scenery of the platform full of people, listening to passing students who were chatting happily. At last, the train sounded its whistle and students scrambled to board the train as they waved good-bye to their parents and siblings.

Roxy sighed and let her head fall back against the seat. She felt a rush, everything was hitting her hard. She wouldn't see her mother for around ten months, she was going to a completely unknown place knowing only two people, and she would have to learn possibly hundreds or more new spells and other magical things. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Are you okay?"

Thomas' soothing voice reached her ears. She smiled and opened her eyes weakly.

"I'm fine, it's just -" she trailed off looking out the window of the now-moving train.

"It's just a little too much?" Thomas said comfortingly as he reached over and set his hand on her shoulder. "I've been feeling the same way lately." He looked to Riley for support.

"Oh, yes, I must say I've been - uh - feeling the same way," she said unconvincingly as she looked away. "I'm going to change into my robes early," she said quickly as she grabbed a black robe out of her suitcase and left the compartment.

Roxy shifted in her seat, feeling uneasy that she had these sudden overpowering emotions and that Thomas could see her in this weak moment. Then she felt it again, the rush of feelings that she was taking on too much, that she'd never make it at Hogwarts.

"Why? Why the hell was I chosen to come to Hogwarts?" she moaned. Thomas looked surprised and at a loss of words.

"Well, there's a reason for everything right? You just don't know why yet," he said, letting his hand slip away from her shoulder and back to his side. They sat quietly for another five minutes or so before Riley returned, flaunting her Hogwarts robes proudly.

"Look at her," Roxy thought. "She looks like she belongs in those robes, like it's her destiny to go to Hogwarts. Why don't I feel like that? Why don't I feel like I should be going to Hogwarts? It's something about me, I know it. My appearance: should I change the way I look? Or my personality: should I act differently? Wait, no, what am I thinking? Just like what Thomas said, there's a reason for everything and I just don't know yet." Roxy finally pulled herself out of her reverie to see Riley seated again and Thomas perusing his Charms book.

Roxy peered out of the window at the country scenery; London was long gone by now. Right then, the compartment door opened hastily as it made a loud clashing noise, and a smiling woman appeared in the doorway holding on to a cart full of interesting-looking food, much like what they had seen in Diagon Alley.

"Oops! Looks like you've got a stubborn door here," she chuckled slightly, tapping the door with a wand. "There we go. Fixed like new! Anything off the cart, dears?"

"Definitely! I heard the food is the best part of the Hogwarts Express." Riley jumped up and ran towards the door.

"Riley! Here, get me what ever you can with a couple Sickles...of the good stuff, of course." Thomas tossed her two silver coins. It appeared to Roxy that he didn't mind spending money carelessly.

"So, how's that Charms book?" Roxy asked, making a poor effort to spark a conversation.

"It's wonderful - as always! I love Charms, if you couldn't tell already. I can't wait to meet Professor Flitwick. He's the Charms professor," he said joyfully.

"The only professor I'm aware of is Professor Dumbledore," Roxy said hesitantly, not wanting to show how little she knew.

"Well, everybody knows who Dumbledore is! What about McGonagall? And Snape? How could you not know about those two?" Thomas asked, shocked.

"I have no clue who they are because I'm just looking forward to the classes. I don't mind who the teachers are," Roxy said in an irritated way.

"At Hogwarts, teachers are the classes. Like Potions class, I'm sure Potions could be fun, if Snape wasn't the teacher. The only way you can happily survive in that class is if you're Slytherin, because he's got the personality of a Slytherin - evil, and he's the Head of the Slytherin House. And McGonagall, she's the Transfiguration professor and Head of the Gryffindor House. She's got a short temper and she's tough in class, but she can be very nice sometimes." He took a deep breath.

"And how again do you know all this? Do you have a brother or sister who went to Hogwarts?" Roxy said very interested.

"Uh, I had an older brother. He went to Hogwarts and told me all about it when he was there. He was nine years older than me and he used to talk about Hogwarts every time he came home in the summer. He'd always stay at Hogwarts for all of the holidays. That was how much he loved it," Thomas reflected, suddenly losing all of his flair that Roxy saw in him normally. "Then, he went to Romania to study dragons and other native creatures. He found an abandoned house, and while he was searching it, a bunch of doxies attacked him when he moved a desk against the curtain they were living in. He was rushed to the nearest Wizarding hospital and we thought he was going to be all right, so they brought him back here to St. Mungo's. That night, the antidote they were supplying him got unhooked. We still don't know how, and when the nurse came in to check on him, it was too late," he finished in a sorrowful voice that was choked up; Roxy saw a distressed look on his face.

"I'm sorry - " She didn't know what to say, so she made a brave move on her part and reached down with her hand and placed it on top of his.

"It's not your fault." He smiled at her and slipped his hand out from under hers and, instead, patted her hand softly.

"Thanks," Riley's voice trailed into the compartment as she backed up so the cart could pull away. Roxy and Thomas quickly pulled their hands back to their sides and looked away from each other.

"Here, Thomas." Riley tipped a few treats out of her left hand between Roxy and Thomas.

"You want a chocolate frog, Roxy?" He held out his hand, (with) a small pentagon-shaped box resting in it, which was moving slightly.

"Sure, what is it?" she asked curiously.

"What? You don't know what a chocolate frog is!" Riley gaped at Roxy momentarily. "It's what it sounds like - a chocolate frog. Not a real frog, of course, but it moves like one, so don't let it get away when you open the box. And then you can collect Wizard cards from each box. I had a collection once, though I don't really know where it's gotten to."

"Okay, that's a little weird. Don't you feel guilty for eating something that's practically alive?" Roxy asked, eyeing the box she held in her hand cautiously.

"Not at all. It's not a real frog or anything, just enchanted," Riley said picking out a box. She opened it carefully and then she grabbed a hold of the frog and shoved it in her mouth. Her face looked like it was having spasms from an incurable disease. Instantly, Roxy and Thomas were laughing uncontrollably.

"Alright, I'll have one, but I refuse to stick it in my mouth whole.. I'd feel like it was suffering, plus I'd look like a complete- uh..." she trailed off and, again, the three burst into irrepressible laughter.

"It's fine, I know what you mean," Riley said, still suppressing her giggles.

Roxy unwrapped the chocolate frog she had picked out of the pile on the seat. She gripped the frog as it squirmed in her hands and bit the head off without a moment's pause. It was actually the most delicious chocolate she had ever tasted. As she finished the chocolate, she gave an approving smile to Riley. And all of the sudden Riley and Thomas started laughing hysterically.

"What? What is it?" Roxy said, bewildered. Riley was trying to clue her in by the wild hand gestures towards her face.

"It's - face - your face - " she wheezed. Roxy reached up and touched her face. Apparently, an astray chocolate frog leg had smeared across her face. She blushed and furiously tried to wipe it off her face.

"Here," Thomas said with a hint of laughter left in his voice, handing her a small tissue sympathetically.

"Thanks," she said, taking it quickly and ridding herself of the chocolate streak. She gave Riley a sideways shut-up look. Roxy hated being laughed at, even if it was just a few friends. Riley seemed to realize that Roxy was agitated, so she slowly stopped laughing. Thomas seemed to have previously noted this and wasn't laughing at all.

Quite a bit of time passed as the train traveled swiftly and placidly through mountains and beautiful scenery as the sun drifted below the horizon. Thomas was once again engrossed in his Charms book. Riley had drifted asleep, not so gracefully, with the left side of her face squashed strangely against the window. Occasionally, she would say a word or two or just make an unidentifiable noise in her sleep. This would cause Roxy and Thomas to look at her then at each other, but they would say nothing. They would simply smile at each other and continue doing what ever was occupying their attention at the time. Roxy browsed through a few of her books and then propped her feet on the seat that Riley was only half using and laid back, thinking to herself nervously.

"I guess we should get changed into our robes," Thomas said shortly after Roxy fell into her reverie.

"You're right, we have to be close." Roxy started to hear students that had already filled the hallway. Roxy and Thomas stood up and pulled their robes out of their trunks and turned to leave the compartment.

"Wait, should we wake her up, so she knows where we've gone?" Thomas said, looking back at Riley, who was still folded in the same position.

"I know." Roxy smiled and went over to the window, a large circle of fog forming around Riley's mouth. With every breath, the circle retracted slightly, but then she would exhale, steaming up the window even more. Roxy bent down and wrote, "Changing, R+T."

"I think that'll work." Thomas smiled and opened the compartment door, letting Roxy out before closing it behind himself.

They returned in their robes around ten minutes later to discover a conscious Riley, who wasn't looking very thrilled. As soon as Roxy and Thomas walked through the door, Riley gave them a very-funny look.

"Ha-ha. Very clever," Riley said, wiping the last bit of fog off the window.

"I thought so." Thomas grinned as he sat down.

"So you're the mastermind who left me this little message," Riley said accusingly, but all Thomas did in response was point at Roxy, who was sitting down next to Thomas.

"What? Why waste paper when you provide something else to write on - or in?" Roxy couldn't help let a small chortle escape her mouth.

"Wait! Shut up," Thomas said, peering out the window. Riley and Roxy looked at him unhappily.

"Excuse us," Riley said gruffly.

"Wait, I hear it too," Roxy said, holding up a finger. They could feel the engine slowing down and a slow noise of steam escaping from a small area. They didn't have to be graduates to know that sound. It was the train slowing to a stop.

"We're almost there," Thomas said, smiling as he turned away from the window and towards Roxy and Riley, who were sitting quietly, listening to the noise.

Just then, a voice echoed through the train's hallway and compartments: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train. It will be taken to the school separately."

"I guess that answers our question -"

Roxy was interrupted by the compartment door sliding open quickly and a small girl fell through the door followed by a larger girl. The first girl was very petite with long blonde hair, flipped over her face, giving her a sloppy appearance. The other girl was large in every aspect of her appearance. She had shorter black hair and eyebrows that seemed more like small bushes growing above her eyes, but she smiled embarrassingly as she poked the other girl in the back.

"I told you he wasn't in this compartment," the large girl said timidly.

"Sorry, I'm navigationally challenged. I'm Chloe Travers and this is my friend, Emily Brewer," she said, ignoring Emily's comment.

"It's fine," Roxy said.

"Are you all first years?" Chloe asked, while she eyed Thomas..

"Yes, I'm Roxy Stone. This is Riley Treller and Thomas Pratley," Roxy said, pointing to each person.

Chloe waved haughtily and quickly made her way to Thomas where she took his hand. "Hello, very nice to meet you," she said flirtingly. Roxy looked at her with disgust, hatred, and jealousy all at once.

"Don't mind her, she's just a flirt. Don't take it personally," Emily spoke for herself finally, but saying this to nobody in particular..

"So, who were you looking for?" Riley asked, glancing between Chloe and Emily.

"Haven't you heard? Harry Potter's on the train somewhere!" Chloe said as her eyes widened and she started to smile even more.

"Really?" Riley said with a shocked expression on her face.

"Did you see him?" Thomas said, looking at Chloe with interest, which made Roxy even more furious with her.

"Who's Harry Potter? Is he a friend of everybody or something?" Roxy asked, feeling hopelessly lost.

The compartment fell silent as four pairs of eyes looked at her in disbelief.

"What? What'd I do? What'd I say? Would someone say something? What the hell did I say?" Roxy said with anger starting to fill her voice.

"You don't know who Harry Potter is?" Chloe ridiculed, as she held back from laughing.

"No! Is he some sort of actor?" Roxy questioned.

"If actor means hero in the Muggle world," Riley finally found her voice, even though it was in a disbelieving tone.

"What about He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named? Do you know who he is?" Chloe shuddered.

"Why must he not be named? If you say his name, maybe I'll know who he is," Roxy said, now at the point of clenching her fists.

Once again the compartment came to dead silence. Emily looked at Chloe and Chloe looked at Riley who was motioning toward Thomas.

"His name is - Voldemort," Thomas said with a very low voice.

"See, that wasn't so hard now, was it? So, who's Vol - " but Roxy was quickly cut off.

"Don't say his name!" Riley gasped with a look of fright on her face.

"Why not?"

"Just don't!" Riley snapped.

"Could somebody just explain who these people are?" Roxy said, aggravation filling her voice.

"Alright, You-Know-Who went to Hogwarts a very long time ago. He was in Slytherin, real surprise there. I can't tell you much about his school years, because I don't know much about then. But I read somewhere that Dumbledore was the Transfiguration teacher while You-Know-Who was at Hogwarts. He was supposedly a good student, prefect, and Head Boy while he was there. He finished schooling at Hogwarts and I really don't know what he did between there and 1970, but during the seventies, he started to gather followers. His followers developed the title of Death Eaters. So the Minister of Magic assembled Wizards and Witches, which were called Aurors, who were allowed to use certain curses and spells to stop the Death Eaters from killing so many Muggles.

"In 1980, Harry Potter was born, the same year we were born, of course. Somehow, You-Know-Who knew that Harry was a threat to his power. Although You-Know-Who searched and searched, the Potters had somehow found out that he was after them and they were already in hiding. One year later You-Know-Who arrived on the Potters' doorstep. He killed Lily and James, Harry's parents, and then turned on little one year old Harry. You-Know-Who used the Avada Kedavra curse, which should kill the strongest Wizard ever. But, when he cast it on little Harry, the spell didn't kill him. Somehow, the spell bounced off Harry and caused You-Know-Who to become practically nothing. You-Know-Who hasn't showed since and most of the Death Eaters claimed they were forced to help him kill Muggles and gain power," Thomas finished at last, taking in a deep breath.

"Oh, my God, how is it that Muggles are so clueless about this?" Roxy said, finally closing her mouth.

"That's what the Ministry of Magic is for. There are many departments of the Ministry of Magic and there are, I think, a couple that are solely devoted to covering up any slips that us Wizards make around Muggles. A lot of times with You-Know-Who or the Death Eaters, they would kill Muggles with other Muggles around. This would call for the Ministry of Magic to come and erase memories and cover up how they died. It's incredibly complicated, but I hope to work in the Ministry of Magic someday. I don't know what department though," Thomas said.

The others had tuned out by now; they were already very familiar with it..

The five of them sat in the compartment quietly for the rest of the train ride, which was less than five minutes, thankfully. Every second that passed caused Roxy to feel more loathing towards Chloe; she was doting on Thomas every chance she got. The train pulled to a slow, steady stop, and the five of them filed out of the compartment and onto the cold, windy platform. It was so close, the destination they were striving for. Hogwarts was so close.