Cassia's POV (outfit in chapter pic)

This is it, I thought as I pulled myself out of bed this morning. Today was the day I'd be leaving for school. And I was all nerves. Which house will I be sorted in? Will I be in the same one as Harry? 

I got dressed quickly and started to get everything together. Dora was loaning me her trunk she'd used when she was at Hogwarts, but she used a spell to change the initials on it from N.T to C.H.P last night. I folded my clothes -- including my school uniform -- as neatly as I could on my bed, and then put Ivy and Ethel in their carriers.

"Ready for first year, Cass?" Dora asked as she came into my room, lugging the trunk behind her.

"You do realize you could've levitated it up here," I pointed out. "I'm just saying."

Dora chuckled. "Guess I should've remembered that..." She helped me put my clothes into the trunk, and she magically locked it with her wand. Then we moved on to my school supplies. My wand remained in its box so that it wouldn't sustain any damage when we packed it with my books. We packed those in a smaller trunk Andromeda had bought for me in Diagon Alley for that very reason. Then we quickly double-checked the room to see if we'd missed anything. Seeing that we hadn't, we figured, Let's get going.

"Ready, Cassia?" Dora asked.

I nodded. "Yep." We joined hands, and I felt the unpleasant sensation of being squeezed into a tube as the bedroom started to spin. Faster than you could say "Butterbeer", we were at King's Cross Station. Luckily, no Muggles had seen us appear. They were too busy trying to catch their own trains or they'd just arrived and were trying to navigate their way out of the station.

Dora and I walked through the station, until we came up to a brick column with the numbers 9 and 10 on either side.

"Well, Cass, this is our stop," Dora said, patting my back. "Now, remember what I told you about going through the barrier: don't think 'I'm gonna run into the wall'. If you don't think about running into the wall, it'll ease the worry that you will."

"Got it," I replied, nodding my head.

"Alright, let's do this," she said, gently grabbing my arm. Together, we ran straight at the wall, reappearing on the other side of the barrier, where the Hogwarts Express was waiting. 

Harry's POV

I pushed my trolley through the station, wondering where Platform Nine and Three Quarters could possibly be. I saw a steward and anxiously approached him. "Excuse me, sir, can you tell me where I might find Platform Nine and Three-Quarters?"

"Nine and Three Quarters? Think you're being funny, do you?" the steward questioned, before walking away from me. I heard him mutter, "Nine and Three-Quarters..." Clearly he thought I was crazy.

I was about ready to give up, but then I heard a voice behind me talking. "It's the same every year. Packed with Muggles, of course," they said. "Come on!"

I swung round. The speaker was a plump woman who was talking to four boys, all with flaming red hair. Each of them was pushing a trunk like mine in front of him -- and they had an owl.

"Muggles?" I muttered to myself.

"Platform 9 3/4 this way!" the plump woman called to her children. A little redheaded girl trotted alongside her. The family came to a stop in front of a particular barrier with the numbers nine and ten on either side of it.

"Alright, Percy, you first," the plump woman encouraged.

What looked like the oldest boy marched toward platforms nine and ten. I watched, careful not to blink in case I missed it -- but just as the boy reached the dividing barrier between the two platforms, a large crowd of tourists came swarming in front of him and by the time the last backpack had cleared away, the boy had vanished.

"Fred, you next," the plump woman said, nodding her head toward the barrier.

"He's not Fred, I am," one boy protested, jabbing a thumb at his brother. They looked exactly alike, so I knew they had to be twins.

"Honestly, woman, you call yourself our mother?" the other twin added.

"Oh, sorry George," the mother apologized. She jabbed a thumb at the barrier, urging him to get going.

'George' started to make his way up to the barrier, but then he stopped and made eye contact with his mother and his little sister again. "I'm only joking. I am Fred," he said. Then he ran straight through the barrier, his twin right behind him.

"Excuse me," I said, pushing my trolley toward the plump woman. "C-Could you tell me how to --?"

"How to get onto the platform, yes. Not to worry, dear. It's Ron's first time to Hogwarts as well," The youngest boy standing next to her nodded. He was tall, thin, and gangling, with freckles, big hands, and a long nose.

"Now, all you've got to do is walk straight at the wall between platforms nine and ten. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous," his mother instructed me.

"Good luck," the little girl added.

I pushed my trolley around and stared at the barrier. It looked very solid.

I started to walk toward it. People jostled me on their way to platforms nine and ten. I walked more quickly. I was going to smash right into that barrier and then I'd be in trouble -- leaning forward on my cart, I broke into a heavy run -- the barrier was coming nearer and nearer -- I wouldn't be able to stop -- the cart was out of control -- I was a foot away -- I closed my eyes ready for the crash --

It didn't come...I kept on running...I opened my eyes. A scarlet steam engine was waiting next to a platform packed with people. A sign overhead said Hogwarts' Express, eleven o'clock. I looked behind me and saw a wrought-iron archway where the barrier had been, with the words Platform Nine and Three-Quarters on it. I had done it.

Smoke from the engine drifted over the heads of the chattering crowd, while cats of every color wound here and there between their legs. Owls hooted to ne another in a disgruntled sort of way over the babble and the scraping of heavy trunks.

The first few carriages were already packed with students, some hanging out of the window to talk to their families, some fighting over seats. I pushed my cart off down the platform in search of an empty seat.

"Harry?" a familiar voice called my name. I turned around, and to my surprise, I saw that the speaker was my twin sister.

I had to do a double take. "Cassia?"

She nodded. "If you're, uh...looking for a compartment, there's room in mine."

I grinned. "That'd be great, thanks!"

"Here, let me help you with that." She helped me lug my trunk down the train, to her compartment. True to her word, there was plenty of room. It appeared she was the only occupant. Together, we pushed my trunk into a corner right by the door, without blocking it in case anyone wanted to join us, and then we sat down right next to each other.

Cassia's POV

I sat down next to Harry. "I didn't expect to run into you at Ollivanders."

"Me neither. I was shocked when Hagrid told me the news that you and I are related," he said. "Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon never told me I had a sibling, let alone a twin."

"What are they like, our aunt and uncle, if you don't mind me asking?" I asked, crossing my legs.

Harry sighed. "Want to know the truth? They're awful. They act like I'm a disease, and they spoil our cousin Dudley rotten."

"Oh, boy..." I muttered. "What did they do to you?"

He sighed again. "They have me do most of the housework, they've made me sleep in a cupboard for the last ten years, and I barely get anything to eat."

"That is awful," I agreed. I felt terrible for Harry, that he had to endure such horrible living conditions.

"And don't get me started on Dudley. He looks like a pig in a wig." His description of Dudley made me crack up laughing.

"A-Are you serious?!" I said through my laughter.

He nodded, laughing along with me. "Yep, he's pretty chubby."

He then launched into the story of how he'd accidentally set a python on Dudley and how, later on, when he'd met Hagrid for the first time, Hagrid had given Dudley a pig's tail. I was sent into silent hysterics at that.

After we both caught our breath, I spoke. "My adoptive parents told me that the two of us were separated for our own protection, after our mom and dad were killed."

"Who are your adoptive parents?" Harry asked.

"Their names are Ted and Andromeda Tonks," I answered. "And I assure you, they're much nicer than Dudley, Uncle Vernon, and Aunt Petunia sound."

Harry grinned. "I bet they are," he said, "By the way, Cassia...I'm really glad to have finally met you...properly, I mean."

I smiled. "The feeling's mutual." We hugged each other tightly, neither of us wanting to let go, though we did eventually. But the smiles never left our faces. As the train pulled out of the station, I could feel the anticipation building up inside me, and I could just tell Harry felt the same way.

A redheaded boy who looked about our age came to our compartment. "Excuse me? Do you mind?" he asked sheepishly, "Everywhere else is full."

"Not at all," Harry replied.

"Go right ahead," I added, gesturing to the seats across from us.

Grateful, the boy took a seat. "I'm Ron, by the way. Ron Weasley," he introduced himself.

"I'm Harry. Harry Potter," Harry said.

"Cassia Potter," I introduced myself.

Ron's eyes widened in shock. "So -- so it's true? I mean, do you really have the -- the --" He pointed to his forehead.

"-- scar?" I cut him off, "Yeah." Harry and I both pulled our bangs back to show the lightning scar on each of our foreheads.

"Wicked!" Ron exclaimed.

He sat and stared at us for a few moments, then, as though he had suddenly realized what he was doing, he looked quickly out of the window again.

"Are all your family wizards?" asked Harry, who found Ron just as interesting as Ron found us.

"Er -- yes, I think so," Ron said. "I think Mom's got a second cousin who's an accountant, but we never talk about him."

"So you must know loads of magic already."

"I heard you went to live with Muggles," Ron said. "What are they like?"

"Horrible -- well, not all of them. Our aunt and uncle and cousin are, though. Wish I'd had three wizard brothers."

I nudged Harry. "And what am I, chopped liver?"

"N-Not that I don't like having a witch sister," Harry tried to cover it up.

I giggled. "I'm just kidding with you, Harry..."

"I've actually got five brothers," Ron said. For some reason, he was looking gloomy. "I'm the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts. You could say I've got a lot to live up to. Bill and Charlie have already left -- Bill was head boy and Charlie was captain of Quidditch. Now Percy's a prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they're really funny. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it's no big deal, because they did it first."

"Are you excited to go to Hogwarts?" I asked, changing the subject.

Ron nodded. "Can't wait."

"Same," Harry agreed.

"That makes three of us," I said.

"So how exactly did you two meet?" Ron asked.

"We met in Ollivanders, on the day of our birthday. I was in Diagon Alley with my adoptive family, and I went to Ollivanders to get my wand. And Harry just so happened to be there as well," I explained. "It was Hagrid -- the Hogwarts gamekeeper -- who broke the news to Harry that we were siblings."

"I couldn't believe it at first," Harry added. "I mean, Aunt Petunia never mentioned that I wasn't an only child." He then proceeded to tell Ron about how he'd never had a proper childhood.

"...and until Hagrid told me, I didn't know anything about being a wizard or about Cass and I being sisters or about our parents or Voldemort --"

Ron gasped.

"What?" Harry asked.

"You said You-Know-Who's name!" said Ron, sounding both shocked and impressed. "I'd have thought you two, of all people --"

"I'm not trying to be brave or anything, saying the name," Harry said, "I just never knew you shouldn't. See what I mean? I've got loads to learn...I bet," he added, "I bet I'm the worst in the class."

I put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "You don't know that for sure, Harry."

"Cassia's right," Ron agreed. "Besides, there's loads of people who come from Muggle families and they learn quick enough."

While we had been talking, the train had carried us out of London. Now we were speeding past fields of cows and sheep. We were quiet for a long time, watching the fields and lanes flick past.

Around half past twelve there was a great clattering outside in the corridor and a smiling, dimpled woman slid back our door and said, "Anything off the trolley, dears?"

"No thanks, I'm all set," Ron replied, holding up a sandwich bag.

I got to my feet and approached the trolley lady. "Two Every Flavor Beans, three Chocolate Frogs, and three Pumpkin Pasties, please." She got me the candy and I gave her a couple of Galleons to pay for it. "Thank you." I came back into the compartment and dumped the candy onto one of the two empty seats, before taking a pasty for myself. The two boys were absolutely awestruck.

Judging by the expression on Harry's face, he'd clearly never seen these type of candy before. But if our aunt and uncle are as mean as Harry described them, odds are he's never had any kind of candy at all.

"Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans?" Harry wondered, holding up a bag of said candy.

"They mean every flavor," Ron warned. "There's chocolate and peppermint, but there's also spinach, liver, and tripe. George swears he got a bogey-flavored one once." I wrinkled my nose in disgust at the thought.

Harry picked up a Chocolate Frog pack. "These aren't real frogs, are they?"

Ron shook his head. "It's just a spell. Besides, it's the cards you're wantin'. Each pack's got a famous witch or wizard. I've got about 500 myself."

Harry opened the box and a brown frog jumped onto the window.

"Watch it!" Ron exclaimed.

"Whoa!" I said. The frog climbed up and jumped out an opening.

"Ah, that's rotten luck. They've only got one good jump in them to begin with," Ron said.

Harry took out the card so he could see who it was. "I've got Dumbledore!" he exclaimed. I looked over his shoulder at the card. It showed a man's face. He wore half-moon glasses, had a long, crooked nose, and flowing silver hair, beard, and mustache. Underneath the picture was the name Albus Dumbledore.

"I've got about six of him," Ron said.

Harry and I glanced back down at the card to see that Dumbledore had vanished from the picture. 

"Hey, he's gone!" Harry said quietly.

"Well, you can't expect him to hang around all day, can you?" Ron asked. "This is Scabbers, by the way," he added, gesturing to a fat brown rat on his lap. "Pathetic, isn't he?"

I looked closely at the rat, and saw he was missing a toe. Ugh. I hate rats. They're creepy.

"Just a little bit," Harry replied.

"Fred gave me a spell as to turn him yellow. Wanna see?" Ron asked.

Harry and I exchanged looks, and nodded.

He reached into his coat and pulled out a wand that had seen better days. It was chipped in places and something white was glinting at the end. He cleared his throat, pointing the wand down at Scabbers. "Sun --" That was all he got out before he was interrupted -- a girl had come to our compartment, already dressed in her Hogwarts robes.

"Has anyone seen a toad? A boy named Neville's lost one," she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair, and rather large front teeth.

Her eyes fell on Ron's wand. "Oh, are you doing magic? Let's see, then."

Ron cleared his throat.

"Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow,
Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow."

The end of Ron's wand glowed as it directed the spell at Scabbers, but it did nothing to alter his appearance. Scabbers' fur remained brown.

"Are you sure that's a real spell?" the girl asked, looking a bit skeptical. "Well, it's not very good, is it? Of course, I've only tried a few simple spells, but they've all worked for me." She plopped herself down across from Harry and I.  "For example --" she aimed her wand at Harry's glasses, "Oculus Reparo."

The tape wrapped around part of Harry's glasses vanished, and the glasses suddenly became unbroken. They looked just like new.

"That's better isn't it?" the girl asked. She then gasped as she took a good look at us. "Holy cricket, you're Harry and Cassia Potter! I'm Hermione Granger. And -- you are?"

"Ron Weasley," Ron replied around a mouthful of candy.

Hermione fought back a look of disgust. "Pleasure. You three had better change into robes. I expect we'll be arriving soon." She got up to leave, but turned back to face Ron one more time. "You've got dirt on your nose, by the way. Did you know? Just there." She rubbed the right side of her nose, before leaving.

<><><><><>

With my Hogwarts robes now on, I headed back to the compartment. When I got there, I saw that Harry and Ron were also wearing their robes. Ron's were a bit short for him, I could see his sneakers underneath them.

A voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."

Even though I kind of knew what to expect based on what Dora had told me about her first year and the Sorting, to say I was feeling a little nervous would be a total lie. Harry looked scared out of his mind and Ron, I saw, looked pale under his freckles. I stashed some of our remaining sweets into my trunk, while they crammed the rest into their pockets, and then we joined the crowd thronging the corridor.

The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out on to a tiny, dark platform. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and we heard a familiar voice:
"Right, firs' years, this way, please! C'mon now, firs' years, don't be shy! C'mon, hurry up! Out!"

Hagrid's big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads.

"'Ello, Harry! And 'ello ter you, too, Cassia!" he greeted.

"Hey, Hagrid," Harry and I replied in unison. We looked at each other and smiled a mile wide. 

Ron's eyes widened upon seeing Hagrid for the first time. "Whoa..."

"Right then, this way ter the boats! C'mon!" Hagrid called out, beckoning us onward.

Slipping and stumbling, we followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of us that I thought there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke much.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "Jus' round this bend here."

There was a loud "Oooooh!"

The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Harry, Ron, and I all managed to get a boat together, and -- much to Ron's dismay -- Hermione also joined us.

"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself. "Right then -- FORWARD!"

And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, which was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over us as we sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.

"Heads down!" Hagrid yelled as the first boats reached the cliff; we all bent our heads and the little boats carried us through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. We were underneath the castle, until we reached a kind of underground harbor, where we clambered out onto rocks and pebbles.

"Oy, you there! Is this your toad?" said Hagrid, who was checking the boats as people climbed out of them.

"Trevor!" a boy cried blissfully, holding out his hands. Then we clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp, coming out at last onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.