Slightly Amused

Chapter 3: So Many Kids But I Only See You

Just like every first of September before, King's Cross Station was filled with Muggles. The Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione rushed through the barrier between platforms 9 and 10, boarded the Hogwarts Express, and were off to Hogwarts for the sixth time. On the train, Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny all looked for an empty compartment and finally got to one at the very end.

After about two games of Wizard's Chess, the trolley came around and everybody got their share of sweets. Harry had one leftover chocolate frog from the summer, but some of it melted onto the collectible card. When Ron noticed it was Agrippa, one of two cards he needed to complete his collection, he hoped Hermione knew a spell to make the chocolate go away. Unfortunately, she didn't, but Ron kept the chocolate-y card anyways.

When the scenery outside the windows started to darken and become wilder, the compartment door slid open to reveal three people Harry didn't feel like bothering with at the moment: Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. Then something totally unexpected happened. Instead of starting trouble, Malfoy just walked into the compartment, looked around, and left. It was about a five second delay until Crabbe and Goyle followed him out.

"That was different," Ginny said. "Wasn't he supposed to say something like, 'Weasley, are you too poor to understand that even if the card has chocolate on it, you're not supposed to eat it?'"

Hermione sniggered. Ron glared.

"Well, I'm going to leave," Ginny got up. "Lavender has some new dress robes that I'm dying to see!" And she left.

The rest of the train ride to Hogwarts wasn't exactly exciting. Harry and Ron continuously played Wizard's Chess, Crookshanks eyed Pigwidgeon like a hawk as he zipped around the compartment, and the three tried some new hexes and counter-curses on each other. When the time came to change into their robes, Hermione was trying to take the antlers off of Ron's head with a bunch of counter-curses that wouldn't seem to work.

"Hermione!" Ron fumed.

"I'm sorry, Ron," Hermione quickly said. "I think I've lost my touch..."

For about five minutes, Harry sat there listening to them yell at each other about antlers and stupidity until Hermione sarcastically suggested Ron some Midol.

"It's just antlers, Ron," she assured him. "They'll go away! Calm down. My goodness..."

"What the bloody hell is Midol?!" Ron questioned frantically. "Will it help make the antlers go away?"

Hermione laughed. She looked through a book and found the counter-curse, and pretty soon Ron's antlers were shrinking away. They quickly changed into their robes just in time, and the train slowed to a stop.

Harry felt so at home; he was back at Hogwarts! The Great Hall was as grand as ever, and everybody at the Gryffindor table looked content, except for Ron of course. He continuously asked Hermione was Midol was, but she just kept telling him to never mind. Harry looked around the Great Hall and saw all of the first years lined up. They all looked so nervous, especially the one at the end. She was a lot taller than the others, and he wondered if it were possible to flunk at this school. He tried to see if she had a familiar face, but he couldn't get a good look at her from where he was sitting.

The Sorting ceremony began, and as the line got shorter, Harry could see the taller girl. She was very familiar, but why couldn't he place her? And why was she so tall if she's a first year?

Professor McGonagall neared the end of the list, and after "York, James" got sorted into Hufflepuff, she spoke.

"Students, you should already know that there are many schools of magic around the world. A lot of times, people don't stay in the same place. We have a student from another school for witchcraft and wizardry, and she is to join sixth years. She has already completed years one through five at her old home school, and moved to Britain over summer holidays." She looked around as though for a sign of approval, then continued, "Lacroix, Thalia, please sit on the stool and be put in place by our Sorting Hat."

There was a lot of buzzing around the room. People wondered where she could be from, and if things like this have ever happened before. Thalia tossed her shiny, straight, jet-black hair over her shoulder and carefully placed the old Sorting Hat on her head. She didn't look at all nervous, but Harry could see her mouth form an "ew," probably because the dusty hat subtracted from her cleanliness. The Hat was on her head for about a minute until it spoke.

"RAV - hmm, no. Wait," and the Hat was quiet again. "No, no... Wait. Yes; I've got it. GRYFFINDOR."

Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs looked disappointed; they wanted to know this foreign witch. The Slytherins seemed happy; they didn't want a student that hasn't even been in Hogwarts enough to already be a sixth year. Gryffindors cheered, and Thalia sat in a seat across Harry and looked bored. Dumbledore proposed his usual speech, and then the feast began.

Harry peered over some turkey to look at Thalia, and was then desperate to finally find out who this familiar girl really was.

"Excuse me," Harry said to her. "Do I know you?"

"Oh, of course you don't recognize me," she laughed. That laugh... that accent. It was that girl who sold him candy! "My hair is different all the time. But I'm -,"

"The girl with all of those sweets," Harry interrupted. "Why were you selling that stuff? There's Muggles all over where I live."

"Oh, I know," she laughed again. "I know where all these wizards and witches are though. I steered clear away from Muggles."

"Blimey, Harry," Ron whispered from beside him. "How do you know her?"

"I don't exactly know her, but you do too, remember?" Harry reminded him about the candy girl from summer holidays.

Pretty soon, Thalia no longer looked bored and was having a good time eating and talking with new acquaintances. She got introduced to Hermione, but Hermione didn't take on her well. Harry noticed that Thalia didn't eat everything in front of her. She took some salad and ate that, but didn't care to finish all of the other delicious food. Maybe she's really healthy. Ron stupidly asked her why she "talks like that," and she laughed.

"Well," Thalia finished chewing some bread and swallowed it. "I'm Canadian. My old school is in Niagara Falls, which is right on the border of New York, too. So I have a mixture of American and Canadian accent."

"So, you're from Canadia?" Ron, again, stupidly asked. Even Hermione laughed.

"She's from Canada, you troll," Hermione poked him. Ron muttered something under his breath about "know-it-alls."