The first day of September was rather warm, in all honesty. You were dragging your feet along the floor, a trolley with many books upon it in tow. You hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night, due to an excessive amount of stressing. It wasn't everyday you got a letter via owl inviting you to an all-magical school. 

"Platform nine-and-three-quarters," you recited under your breath, (e/c) eyes flitting about.  That was the location on your letter, and you were starting to think it was all a cruel joke. After all, you had taken the train with your parents many times before, and although there was a Platform 9, you had never even heard of nine-and-three-quarters. 

You came to an abrupt halt, standing in the space between platform nine and platform ten, beside a large brick pillar. 

This can't be right.

You lifted your hands off the metal cart with your belonging and reached into your pockets to search for the letter. Feeling smooth parchment, your fingers closed gently around it and eased it out of your sweater's single pocket. You scanned the letter multiple times, making sure you weren't just imaging things. Sure enough, the instructions clearly said Platform nine-and-three-quarters. So how come such a place did not exist?

I knew this was a prank.

As luck would have it, once you began to despair and considered just booking it home, you managed to catch a snippet of a conversation between a rather large man and a skinny boy near you who had a cart beside him, a small trunk placed on top.  

"-boy. Platform nine - platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don't seem to have it built yet, do they?"

You felt your heart flutter in excitement. Could it be this gangly boy was looking for the same platform as you? 

The older man left the boy behind, allowing you the chance to walk up to him and gently tap him on the shoulder. The raven-haired boy turned around, panic and surprise flashing in his eyes. 

"Hello," you said, "I'm (y/n) (l/n). I couldn't help but hear what that man you were with was saying. He was quite loud. Anyway, correct me if I'm wrong, but are you looking for platform nine-and-three-quarters as well?"

The young boy seemed relieved as he replied. "Yes, I am," he said, "I thought I was the only one!"

"Don't be silly, it's a school, of course there's going to be other people!" you said jokingly, flashing him a friendly smile. "But I get how you feel. I thought it was a prank."

Suddenly, a rather large group of people with similar striking red hair passed by, talking and giggling. There was a plump woman who seemed to be speaking to the four boys that were with her, a small girl clutching her hand tightly. Startled, you noticed that each one was pushing a cart - not only that, but one of them had an owl on it!

It was quite possible that they would also be attending this 'Hogwarts'. You quickly turned to the boy, excitement flowing through your veins, mouth already open to inform him of what you had observed, but you could tell by a certain look in his eye that he had had the same thoughts. With a simple nod of agreement, the pair of you followed the family.

You arrived just in time to see a boy vanish into the dividing barrier between the two platforms. You blinked, not quite believing your eyes. Had that boy just disappeared? You looked over to see how the raven-haired boy was faring, but he seemed as dumb-stricken as you. 

"Excuse me," he called out, dark eyebrows tightly knit together.

The plump woman turned, eyes lighting up when she saw the two of you. "Hello, dears. First time at Hogwarts? Ron's new too."

She gestured to the only boy of the four that was still standing with her. He waved awkwardly, aiming for a smile that ended up looking more like a grimace. You smiled back to be polite, then directed your attention back to what the woman was saying.

"- to worry. All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Don't stop and be scared that you'll crash into it, that's very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous. Go on, go now before Ron."

"Er - okay." The boy beside you thanked the woman.

You weren't quite sure what to do. For all you knew, this woman could be completely nuts! She could be trying to get you to run into the wall to knock you unconscious so she could kidnap you and -

And there went that boy you had just met, trusting the lady. You watched in bewilderment as he walked quickly towards it, starting to break into a run. Oh, he was going to smash right into that barrier! You wanted to close your eyes, but you couldn't.  You watched as he leaned forward onto his cart and he grew closer - and closer - and even closer to the barrier - and -

He disappeared. Just like the other three. 

The boy called Ron took a run start - then he was gone as well. The lady smiled kindly at you while her daughter whined about not being able to attend Hogwarts with her brothers. You took a shaky breath before gripping the trolley tightly, knuckles white. And then, you made your way to the barrier. As you grew closer and started speeding up, you couldn't help but think about what a terrible idea this was. Trusting a woman you had just met had essentially told you to run into a bloody wall. But the raven-haired boy was no longer here, and neither were the four red-headed boys...

As the barrier became closer, you closed your eyes, bracing yourself for the impact...that never came. You just kept running. Eventually, you slowed, opening your eyes.

To your astonishment, a scarlet red engine was resting in front of you, people who seemed to be about your age already boarding. Nearby, a sign hung that read 'Hogwarts Express'. Without a second thought, you boarded the humongous train, relieved that you hadn't gotten a concussion in the process of arriving. You walked along the centre, trying to find an open compartment. The first few had already been packed, and you were worried you wouldn't have anywhere to sit. While idly glancing over your shoulder to count how many kids were in a compartment that had been on your left, you felt yourself collide with something.

Or rather, someone.

"Watch where you're going, will you?" a voice snapped irritably, annoyance evident in their tone. You whipped your head around only to come face to face with a blond boy who was currently glaring at you.

"I'm so sorry!" you apologized, flustered. You rushed to explain yourself. "It's just, I was looking for an open compartment, and - "

"I don't really care what you were doing." The boy sniffed haughtily. "Just make sure it doesn't happen again."

The blond stalked off without sparing you so much as another glance, his robes whipping behind him.

He's nice.

And so, you continued your search for a place to sit. While looking through the glass doors of each compartment, you found the raven-haired boy you had first encountered sitting with one of the red-headed boys. Sliding the door open, you brushed your hair out of your face.

"Mind if I sit with you?" you asked tentatively, fingers still curled around the door. 

The two boys paused their conversation as the raven-haired one looked up, the corners of his lips lifting upon seeing you. "No, I don't mind at all. You alright, Ron?"

Closing the door behind you, you took a seat across from the dark haired boy after the freckled one had given a short nod. You twiddled with your fingers, not one of you daring to speak. To you, the silence was suffocating. You decided to take the initiative once again and strike up a conversation. After all, you'd likely be sitting with them for the majority of the ride to Hogwarts, and you didn't want it to be as awkward as it currently was.

"I don't believe I know your names."

The freckled boy gave a small start before his gaze transitioned from the window to you. "I'm Ron Weasley."

"And I'm Harry, Harry Potter." The one with glasses said. "It's...(y/n), right?"

"That's correct," you said, letting a small chuckle escape. "It's nice to meet you - both of you."

"Likewise," Harry replied, grinning as Ron flashed you a smile.

There was a small pause, then the dark-haired boy opened his mouth to speak. 

"You know, you're the first person I've met who hasn't blatantly stared or whispered." Harry said casually, leaning back onto the cushioned seat. "It's nice. I don't really like being in the centre of attention."

You nodded, agreeing with him. "Yeah, I get what you mean. But why would people whisper about you? It's quite rude."

"You're joking, right?" Ron spoke up, curiosity evident in his voice.

"No," you scoffed, "Bullying sucks. Spreading rumours about someone is not cool at all."

"No, I mean about the whispering. You really don't know?"

"Don't know what...?"

Ron glanced at Harry, surprise written all over his face. Harry just gave a small shrug. "Why didn't you tell (y/n)?"

"I didn't think it mattered much. I didn't really know myself until a few weeks ago." Harry replied, squirming under Ron's astonished gaze.

"Tell me what?" you snapped impatiently, hating the feeling of being left out, especially since the two boys were talking about it in front of you.

"Okay, here goes...(y/n), Harry's famous." Ron exhaled, eyes scanning your face for a reaction.

"What, are you like a pop star?"

"No, no, nothing like that." Harry said with a laugh. "I wish I had the voice, but unfortunately, I don't. I think I killed a cat when I tried to sing before. Anyway, apparently I killed some dark Lord when I was a baby."

Ron nodded solemnly. "He-who-must-not-be-named."

"I'm sorry, what?" You let out a bark of laughter. "What kind of name is that?"

Ron, however, did not seem to share your amusement. He simply stared at you with a dark expression as your smile began to slowly fade.

"It's no joking matter. He killed many people, (y/n)."

Suddenly, the air felt tense. Clearly, this was important or serious to Ron, and you felt quite awkward considering you had just laughed at it. Feeling a need to relieve the tension, you quickly changed the subject, asking if he had any embarrassing stories of his siblings.

Immediately, the freckled boy smirked, and launched into a tale of a notorious prank that his twin brothers got in a ton of trouble for.

Easy laughter filled the compartment as the three of you talked about anything under the sun. A couple of embarrassing elementary school stories were shared by you and Harry, while Ron talked about his crazy household life. After some time, a loud clattering was heard outside the door as a lady with a kind smile pushed it back and asked if you three wanted any snacks from her food trolley. Harry graciously bought the three of you the entire cart - you couldn't help but wonder about the poor kids who would have nothing to eat when the woman who was selling these treats arrived at their compartments. Not to mention you hadn't really payed for a single euro - er, sickle - of it. However, you couldn't feel guilty for too long; candy was candy, after all.

You soon discovered magical candy was quite different from the ones you had back at home. Harry had offered you a green jelly bean which you popped into your mouth, only to spit it out a few seconds later.

"That's disgusting!" you exclaimed, frantically wiping at your tongue. "It tasted like snot!"

"Then it probably was," Ron said, not seeming fazed in the slightest as he bit into chocolate that was shaped like a frog.

You looked at him, blinking in confusion. "What? That's a thing?"

"Didn't you know, (y/n)?" he asked with snort. When he garnered no response, Ron lifted in eyebrow in amusement. "They're not called 'Every Flavour Beans' for nothing. Have you never had one before?"

"Actually, I haven't. I come from a non-magical family," you explained sheepishly, looking at the green bits of the floor instead of Ron.

A soft 'oh' was uttered from the freckled boy. There was a pause, then something whizzed past your ear. Your head whipped up and searched for whatever had just flown by, until your gaze settled on an unwrapped chocolate frog. You grasped it in your hand, smiling at the freckled boy who was sporting a competitive grin. "Wanna see who can eat the most chocolate frogs?"

"Oh, you're on."

You, Harry and Ron gobbled the chocolate frogs until you felt sick. There were still a few more - due to Harry buying the whole bloody frog - and you were reaching for one in order to beat Ron, who was currently in the lead, when the compartment door slid open once again.

"Has anyone seen a toad? A boy named Neville's lost one."