Shades of crimson, yellow, and orange leaves littered the grounds of Hogwarts, signaling the changing of the season and the start of a new school year. Faculty bustle around finishing up the last touches to welcome the first year students as well as the joyous return of various other years. One would think from the state of the grounds, that the battle of years gone was only just a dream, or yet- a nightmare. Professors and headmasters alike exchanged greeting and praise of the hopes of this year, and exclaimed how the train was to be arriving quite soon.

Back at the station, the train roared it’s heavy engine. Witches and wizards alike gathered around it’s red exterior, bidding their families goodbye and gathering their belongings for the long journey ahead. Most of the older years were found with their friends they had made and kept the previous years, while the first years seemed a bit lost in the haze. With direction from some of the older men and women, they seemed to be getting the hang of it- and would hopefully be able to return this favor when the time came for it. Tradition had always been an important aspect about Hogwarts.

It was closing in quickly on the time for the train to depart and the loud whistle signaled to everyone that what they meant by quickly was this instant! The remaining people hurried onto the train and found a compartment of people to sit with. Once all aboard the train began to smoke, pulling forward steady as a sea of heads and hands stuck out the windows, waving goodbye to their loved ones.

This would be a year at Hogwarts they would soon not forget.

Magnus had received his letter a week ago when he arrived at his new home. The woman was nice at least and her name was Agnes Regulas. That night after he had been settled in she came up the stairs beaming with pride. She handed him the letter and began to explain what he was and how he could do some of the mysterious things he opened up to her about when the letter was completely read. A wizard...That is how he could change his hair, eyes, and most anything about him. He had never used those things for his own gain except when he had ran away a year ago. It was why he couldn't explain how things disappeared or how he ended up back at home when a bully was about to beat him. His other homes just thought he was trouble or cursed. Finally he had answers that he had been wondering about.

On the day he was to go to platform nine and three-quarters, he actually felt happy for the first time in a long time. He could finally be the not normal kid he wanted to be. He had his bags and everything on a trolley as he went through the barrier just as Agnes showed him. He saw everyone on the other side, the hustle and bustle of the crowd got him a little nervous and his hair started to shift colors. Agnes patted him on the back and his hair settled on an emerald green. She smiled at him and gave him and encouraging push towards the crowd. He got in line and gave his trolley over to a baggage man and boarded the train. He past by several compartments that were full, a couple that were half empty, and one that towards the back that. He smiled as he stood in the doorway. He sat down and looked out the window. Suddenly he heard screeching. A screech he knew all too well. His owl Merlin was having separation anxiety again and managed to wiggle through his cage and located Magnus. The owl screeched again outside the window. Magnus opened it and the owl flew in and nuzzled into his neck. Magnus had only had Merlin for about a week but him and the tiny owl had become the best of friends. Merlin hated his cage and hated being separate from his master. Finally the owl hoped onto his shoulder and sat there. If you could imagine an owl smiling Merlin was. Hopefully the conductor and maybe some of the teachers wouldn’t mind him sitting on his shoulder. Magnus’ hair finally settle back to its normal color and he sat there with Merlin waiting on the train to leave.

(Collab between Rune_Alchemist and Reem)

It was the beginning of a new day on the first of September. Luke was excited this new chapter in his life, school was about to start! Not just ordinary school, but Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Luke had been waiting a very long time for this day. All his dreams were becoming a reality as he walked with Karen, his mother, and John, his younger brother. Mother was holding his youngest brother Nathan who had somehow managed to be sleeping on such a joyous occasion. Dad was still at work, but he wrote Luke a letter of encouragement to stay focused on his studies, like he needed to be reminded. John, was oddly quiet. Luke suspected he was jealous of his older brother. He knew how much he yearned to go to Hogwarts even though he was only nine years old. Mother was dressed in a very expensive dress and had all her boys dressed in their finest clothes, all matching to mother's preference, of course.

After many photo's of "Luke's first day" the family exchanged hugs and good-byes as Luke gathered his belongings on a cart and headed between the wall-post of platforms nine and ten. It was now that Luke could feel the butterflies in his stomach. He was a bit nervous. Closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath as he heard mother's encouragement, Luke darted straight into the wall through the magically concealed entrance of platform nine and three-quarters. He took a look around seeing many students both old and new heading to the train to Hogwarts.

Luke made sure his pet Rosie was safe. He knew snakes were very mischievous, and masters of strategy. If Rosie felt she had the chance of escape, she would. Luke knew that, and always kept a sharp eye on his pet. It wasn't that Rosie didn't like Luke, snakes were solitary creatures. He understood that. Snakes would rather be alone than be bothered by humans. Luke thought he heard Rosie whisper something about hating children. Luke could communicate with snakes, it was a natural gift he had. Only his mother knew of his secret ability and encouraged him not to share it with others. "Snakes are very powerful, they have wisdom of anctient knowledge, it would be to your advantage to use your gift of Parseltongue," mother had told him. She had to learn the ability, while Luke was apparantly born with it. He noticed the other kids that were watching him. It was time to make friends, he thought to himself.

~~~~~~~
Finally! Finally, it was the start of the school year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry. Acacia was a little more than excited. She would finally be able to do magic herself and be able to show her two idiot brothers a thing or two about how it's really done. She was tired of listening to them how 'great' Hogwarts was and listen to them talk about their accomplishments. All she had to do was ditch them and find some...eh, friends of her own so she could start actually learning magic. That...might be a bit troublesome, however. They insisted on sitting in the same compartment, and Acacia was not at all going to even attempt to do that. She wanted to get some much needed time away from them, and she was going to get it. All she had to do, was first go through the brick collumn between platforms nine and ten. It would be easy enough. If her two brothers weren't arguing loud enough to be heard across the entire station.

"Ugh. Would you just shut up already Alex?" The brown haired boy said as he leaned on his cart full of belongings, obviously more than a little tired of whatever argument they were having. The cart was rather unassuming, save for the cat cage sitting on top of it. The resident of which, was sleeping soundly with one of its paws handing out of the cage door.

"I'm telling you, you should have bought everything on the list!" The older looking boy stated. On his cart sat a smaller cage, probably home to a rat or maybe frog. She hadn't bothered asking what pet Alexander, her brother had. She hadn't really cared that much. "That book-"

"Oh blah blah blah," Jackson interrupted. "Nag nag nag, is that all you ever do? I swear, you're like my wife or something." He replied, giving Alexander a glare, eliciting a sigh from Acacia. The two brothers used to be best friends until a little incident over the sumer break had distanced them. Acacia smiled a bit at the thought of that. The little incident had been her doing, actually. She had gotten tired of them finally and had framed Alexander for messing up something Jackson and their dad was working on. She wasn't entirely sure what it was, but apparently Jackson was going to try again this summer break.

"I'm just trying to help. Look, if you don't buy everything you'll just hurt your grades and..." Acacia started to tune the both of them out, giving the Owl sitting in the cage on her cart a friendly petting and a small smile.

"Let's say we ditch them while they're busy arguing?" Thatch, her owl simply gave her an unintersted blink in response. "Right then. Less talking, more doing, huh?" With that, she brought her cart inline with the pillar and rushed forward confidently. Success! In an instand, she had made it to platform nine and three quarters. Now she just had to get away from the entrance before her brothers followed her through. Shouldn't be hard to get lost in this crowd.

~~~~~~
Absolutely humiliating! If there was anything Luke hated more it was being the "new kid." Overhearing a conversation with an older student who was making fun of a group of new kids, Luke walked away hoping no one would detect his presence. "I bet you wont even make it back next year," the large blond haired student laughed as he pointed at the young students. "You won't make it back, you won't make it back, and you... definitely won't make it back," he finished pointing and mocking at his fresh victims. This guy must be a bully around here. He wore the colors green and silver the markings of House Slytherin.

"Looks like they are going to enjoy their first year," Luke whispered to Rosie as he turned his cart around. He would much rather be making fun of the fat student, but he didn't want to put his own reputation at stake let alone his future house, well at least he was sure of it.

The only friend he had around here was Rosie, and it was definitely time to change that, but who would he choose? Many people were dressed in street urchin clothing as mother would call it, and Luke wore his best suit, making eleven year old boy stand out, above most the crowd. It was a bit annoying, and not Luke's intentions to make himself look better than others.

It was Rosie's sharp gaze that caught Luke's eye. The snake surprisingly was not fixed on a rat or way of escape as per usual snake activity. No, this snake was people watching, and staring at a young, red-headed female student pushing her cart on the platform. It appeared the girl was in a hurry, as if she was getting away from something, or someone. Rosie wasn't simply observing, she was peering into the girl's soul. The snake paused as his forked tongue flickered out of his mouth."Find the girl." She said. "Ugh, of all the people, you want me to talk to a girl!" Luke had no sisters, and no female friends other than mother in his life.

"Do it!" Rosie hissed back. "Alright, I'm going." He said as he made his way to the girl. Rosie was acting particularly persistent, usually keeping to herself, as if the old serpent had an agenda of her own; but he knew, the relationship was symbiotic. Whatever was in Luke's best interest was her own, and Luke knew she was more than excited to be at Hogwarts. She was beautiful for a girl, and Luke couldn't help but feel a bit nervous. It was time for him to break out of his shell. Following the girl into the crowd, Luke casually waited for an opportunity to talk with her. "Hey, is it your first time on the platform?" He smiled as he couldn't help but notice her bluish-grey eyes.

Well. Someone was having a good time mocking the new students. How troublesome. Hopefully he was smart enough to not try that with her. Acacia's patience was wearing a bit thin after spending all morning with her quarreling brothers, and she had half a mind to get some practice on some spells before even getting to Hogwarts. Not a very good idea, but it might make her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. She shook her head with a sigh. She needed to find a seat on the trian. Preferably an empty one so she could get all of her things put away before some troublesome kid barged in. Might be fun to crash someone elses' compartment though.

It was Thatch's low hoot that caught her attention, the Horned Owl's gaze falling on a boy that seemed to be approaching her. He was dressed in a very expensive looking suit, which was the only real notable thing she could really say about him. Her parents weren't ones for such clothing, though her mother had made her put on a lavender colored dress before leaving. She didn't like dresses that much herself, and as soon as she got her robes it was coming off. She had to admit though, the boy looked rather important with his suit. It made him stand out a bit anyways. Now, just one thing. What did he want?

"Depends," She started. So he wanted to know if she was a first year. No reason not to answer, he looked to be one as well. "If you're going to annoy me, then I'm a dwarf whose a seventh year and I know some really fun curses. If not, then yeah, I'm a first year and this is my first time here. You?" Thatch continued to eye the boy until the owl spotted Rosie. Acacia had no doubt that if he wasn't in that cage, the snake would have been owl kibble.

"Oh no, I didn't come to bother you. Yes, this is my first time on the platform, my name is Luke. You looked like someone I could talk to without having to deal with these idiots." He said indicating with his eyes to the group of students who seemed like trouble. On the girls cart was an owl in a cage. His eyes brightened with his smile as he looked at the creature."That's a North American Great Horned Owl, I have never seen one before." He was so fascinated he almost forgot Rosie, who had coiled herself in her cage in the presence of her enemy. "Rosie is also from the Americas, but I don't think she is as excited as I am." Glancing at his watch, he figured it was almost time to store his gear and secure a seat on the train.

"Well, looks like you're not as silly as you look." She giggled. He certainly knew how to get on her good side at least. "Acacia Coronet," She continued, turning to give him a warm smile. "Third child of the Coronet family, who really doesn't want to be in the same house as her idiot brothers." She hadn't meant to add that last bit. Acacia had no real inention of being overly friendly, but perhaps it might come in handy later so she simply went with it and gave him an enthsastic reply when he mentioned Thatch.

"Mhm! my mom bought him for me. She runs a potions shop in Diagon Alley. A sort of 'Happy first year' thing. His name's Thatch," She noticed the owl eyeing Lukes snake and gave a small sigh. "I suggest you keep your pet in that cage. He can be a bit of a glutton." Acacia was obviously none to happy about her pets eating habits. He would probably demand a three course meal on their way to Hogwarts. "I suppose that's for later though. Want to sit together? We should probably find a compartment before they all fill up."

"Don't worry about Rosie, she isn't going anywhere with Thatch around. I think you read my mind, though, I was hoping to get a head start on choosing compartments. Let's sit closer to the front of the train. They are the better compartments." He said grabbing his stuff as he began to load onto the train. He helped Acacia with her things. Once the two had settled their luggage. Luke found the best compartment he could find to his liking, empty and window seats, far removed from the other rowdy students. As they settled in their seats, Luke couldn't help but ponder what Miss Coronet had said about her brothers. "Pardon me for asking, but you mentioned wanting a different house than your brothers... What house would that be?"

"Gryffindor." Acacia replied, taking a seat next to the window. "My family has been part of the Gryffindor house since my great-great-great grandparents or something. I stopped listening after the third great. That would include my parents and brothers." She sighed, taking a look out the window and watching a various people walk by. "Personally, I'd rather be part of a house with more...ambitious people. For example...Slytherin." Of coruse, she knew that if she was put into Slytherin, her brothers would probably have a heart attack and pass out. Especially Alex. She heard Jackson mention something about him constantly getting into trouble with them for some reason or antoher. "What about you?" She continued, giving him a curious look. "What house do you want to be in?"

Ahh, Slytherin, that must be the reason Rosie had such an interest in this girl. "My mother was Slytherin, and I also want to represent Slytherin. I don't have any doubts that is the house I will be in, I can feel it." A moment passed as Luke looked out the window of the train, it would be leaving at any moment. "Well Acacia, I'm glad we can be friends, I'm sure you'll make it into Slytherin. I don't think Gryffindor suits you." He wasn't trying to give any false hope, he meant what he said.

"Flatterer," She replied giving him a small smile. "But thanks. Since you have family ties, I doubt you'll have much trouble getting in. Since my family is traditionally Gryffindor...Hmph. Well, I'm confident I shall get what I want." With that, it was pretty much the end of the subject, though she had wondered if all siblings were annoying as hers. She didn't have many friends because she didn't get out much back home. She always had her nose stuck in a book, so that wasn't something she had much experience with. "What about you? Any annoying brothers?" She asked, changing the subject.

"I have two younger brothers, one of them is the most annoying little brother ever. He is always riding my coattails and trying to one-up me whenever he can. He is very smart for his age, but too cocky. Whenever anything happens he lies to my parents and I get blamed for everything. He never gets punished. He is arrogant and selfish." Luke stopped himself from his little rant. He loved his brother, just usually found that brotherly love was more full of irritation, fights, and anger than typical kindness type of love. "I'm just glad to be away from home, and starting a new life on my own."

After that, there was silence between the two of them as the Hogwarts Express began to depart. Acacia was filled with...excitement? Was this it? She couldn't ever recall looking forward enough for something to be called 'excited'. Hmm...well, she supposed it was alright. She was finally going to be able to make her mark on the world without her brothers, family, and hopefully without the Gryffindor house looming over her.

How often had she been to King’s Cross before, and never known about this? At the junction of Euston Road and York Way King’s Cross was bustling with commuters, travelers, vacationers, station agents… and wizards.

Caelum scanned the familiar scene for this unfamiliar attribute, though, she didn’t see any pointed hats. As she rounded a corner she thought she might have seen a large crow, but as a cloud of people passed between them it seemed to have vanished.

She was walking behind three adults: Her father, who was scowling and glaring at her acceptance letter; then Petra and Gwen, the neighbors from downstairs. The women walked on either side of her father, but unlike him they wore happy wistful expressions. They chattered excitedly to one another as they walked saying things like ‘Do you remember--’ ‘Yes, isn’t that where Donovan--’ ‘Oh my! And look, isn’t that the old--’ they basked in nostalgia. The two neighbors claimed to be Witches, and said that they had attended Hogwarts themselves (and had not been to King’s Cross since, Wizards and Witches had other means of travel...).

Caelum walked behind them carrying two of her five bags. She had a Prada luggage set bought by mother as a congratulatory gift. The luggage was subtle white and grey paisley print with a pink trim. Her mother had an important photo shoot and could not be there to see her off at the station, the luggage was a reminder that her mother wished her well anyhow. Her father dragged along the largest case, Gwen and Phedra carried her purse and tote respectively.

Gwen and Petra had taken her shopping in Diagon Alley, relieving her busy/weirded-out father from the duty. They offered to bring her to the station, but her father insisted on bringing her himself. This would be his first step into the Wizard World, the worried witches convinced him that they should came along as well.

Finally her flustered father crumpled the letter up and threw his arms out. “Never have I ever, seen nor heard of platform nine-and-three-quart-ers!” He was a very tall and handsome man, even anger did little to mar his smooth square features.

“Yet, here we are!” Exclaimed Gwen as she waved her hand toward a brick column between platform 9 and 10. “Now Little Cae… Step right this way with your things, and head straight-for-it!”

“Madness!” Her father jumped between Caelum and the wall. “That is a solid wall, mum, she’ll dash straight up against it!” He still hadn’t quite shaken the feeling that someone was pulling his leg, and at any moment the cameras would appear and it would turn out that his ex-wife had set him up on some terrible reality show.

“Doctor Liquin,” Petra was half as tall as her father, and touched his elbow gingerly. “Look there now, no need to fret.” She pointed to a young girl with dark curls being smothered by her mother, then the girl turned toward the wall… and ran for it.

Her father startled but Gwen touched his chest to still him. He and Caelum gasped as the girl disappeared through the brickwork.

Caelum smiled. “It’s magic father, real magic. Before he could stop her Caelum strode toward the brick wall and disappeared through it.

Stepping onto platform 9 ¾ with wide eyes. She beheld what appeared to be a steam-engine train, and what she could only assume to be an endless amount of wizards, witches, and of course fellow classmates.

In a moment her father, Petra and Gwen appeared also. Her father looking a bit dazed, the women had likely pulled him through.

“This way now dear.” Petra took her hand and lead her down the platform. Caelum said nothing, her mouth shut and her eyes wide, she saw gorgeous owls, broomsticks, smiling faces everywhere, magic faces.

They took her luggage form her. “We’ll manage this, Little Cae, time for you to step on.” Gwen leaned down to hug the young girl and kiss both her cheeks, Petra did the same.

Her father stopped blinking at the strange world around him, and set his eyes upon his only daughter. “Dearest…” He enfolded her in his arms, a rare display of affection. “Good luck… do well… write often.”

Caelum nodded into his chest. Then took her purse from Gwen and stepped onto the train.

She tried to look calm and passive, like her mother did when walking the cat-walk or through a party. She was one of the first on-board, and easily found an empty compartment by the front of the train. She settled in, deciding to wait before jumping into any social interactions. She preferred to watch things first.

She reached into her bag and took out a book, full of blank pages. She liked to have a fresh sketchbook when she started new endeavors. The cover and spine were dark midnight blue. She had three pencils, one black, one grey, and one white. Then she began to sketch the train...

Adjusting her hat on her wild set of ebony curls, Pearleane was not quite ready for her first year at Hogwarts, but with her mother by her side she felt more at ease. “You are ready my world.” her mother cooed, taking her hand and cupping Pearleane’s rounded cheek. She reached down and gave her daughter a kiss on her forehead before stepping aside, “Right there is where you need to go, get on the train, make friends, have fun! Hurry now, don’t be late!” she exclaimed as Pearleane turned and took in the glory of the wall. This was quite strange, but she would trust her mother about anything. Steadying her small pile of luggage upon a rather large suitcase, she picked up pace and ran right through the terminal.

What came into view on the other side caused the young girl lips to part in awe. ”Wicked.” she whispered, her dark almond eyes browsing all the witches and wizards that occupied the station. It was definitely a sight she would vow never to forget. She didn’t have much luggage with her, most packed into her one large and slightly ripped suitcase, and some packed into smaller bags.

Approaching the train she asked a gentleman if he would instruct her on what to do with her luggage, and he without hesitation he helped her, packing up her bags leaving her with only a small purse across her chest containing some of BB’s (Bertie Botts) and a few other muggle candy that would keep her occupied on the trip. Stepping into the train, she took off her hat before vowing to the young man that he would be blessed with a wonderful year. She was happy to have been treated so wonderful by him. She hoped everyone would be so gracious and kind.

With hat in hand she found a train car that she assumed had been empty. ”Score!” she cooed, slipping in quickly and sliding the door behind her. The petite woman sitting next to the window sketching in a book took her quite by the surprise. "Oh!" she gasped, her hat dropping out of her hands as she scrambled to pick it up. It was embarrassing enough to have the initials P.P whilst attending school, Pearleane didn't want to make it worst by being the girl who drops her hat on the floor, and ends up conking her head on something or worse yet; letting one rip. Grabbing her hat, she stood up and looked at the girl, "Do you mind if I sit here?" Pearleane asked, not waiting for the girl's reply before sitting down. She was often quite rude that way.

She then placed her hat gently on the seat next to her, whilst her hand dug into her small purse grabbing a mint to suck on. Pearleane looked over to the girl who she had barely let understand the chaos that had ensued in the small car.

"Um, so would you like a mint?" she asked, her round cheeks forming into a big grin.

Alistair nervously looked around as he wandered through the trolley. He constantly was between the two unsure where to sit as he felt extremely awkward doing so, and tried to conceal his... well embarrassment. He had previous gotten all his stuff before hand, with the help of his Merchant friends. They too also gave him the letter to this school called Hogwarts and had introduced him to the wizard world. That was his escape from his own world and into this new one, somewhere where he could definitely enjoy himself without the trouble of his life that he had before this. Now that he had this opportunity that he had, it must be used to the fullest since it would be the only chance that he would have, he would prove it by trying his hardest.

So his first step to succeeding in his new life, was to step onto the train, and to do he had to go to a weird place called 'platform nine and three-quarters' where he saw other students too going through. It had taken him a while to understand how they were going through and soon followed exactly like the others. He was one of the first arrivals but his pacing through the trolley was what he was doing for a while now. His luggage has already been put away and he had nothing else to worry about, now it was the trip to Hogwarts. It was frankly tedious trip for him as he had a lump in his stomach, he didnt know anyone on the trolley and had to find a seat sooner or latter. After wondering where he would sit, he finally decided that he would sit... sit in the middle of the trolley but that would only make it harder to move through the trolley, that was a stupid idea from him. So instead he decided to sit in the very back, taking a left he entered the cabin where another student was... He was about to leave as he suddenly became nervous when he saw the student but he mustered what courage he had and entered in and sat on the window seat looking out of the train. Behind his back he could feel a small metal behind his back surprisingly and glanced behind him noticing he was sitting in chair '16'.

His other companion that was in the cabin was a boy, around the general age of him and was definitely a 1st-year student like him. He sighed in relief before he began to study the guy. He had blue hair which was a unique color that he hadn't seen in a while as the last person he saw with the hair color like him was several days ago if he remembered correctly. But besides that his eyes too were a unique colors, like... whats the color... hmmm like wine but sightly brighter. How he knew what wine was don't ask him but he just knew that the other person in his cabin was someone that was going to be one special person. He started to blush when he noticed that he was staring, quite for a while now if the other guy noticed it would be awkward... but wasn't it already? He sighed sadly as he picked up his legs and brought them to his torso before he laid his head down on his knees looking at the window, and occasionally at the passing students in the hallway.

Devin felt like he wasn't on solid ground. The platform seemed plenty sturdy, but he was still shaken up over the whole running through a wall to get to said platform. It seemed the perfect example of how the magical communities he knew acted. Here in England there was an almost deliberate wall built between the magical and the muggle. In the case of Diagon Alley there was a literal wall. At home there was nothing more than a fence or bundle of trees blocking a vantage point. In his homeland of the pacific northwest there was an almost seamless transition between the two worlds. The abrupt division found in England was something he was still getting used to despite having been around it for nearly a month.

As his grandmother joined him along the side of the tracks she gave him a quick peck on the cheek and hurried the young wizard towards the trains compartment. "I already packed you a lunch but you have a few coin for a snack if you fancy a sweet." She said with a warmth that showed her love and excitement. Had it not been for his grandmother Devin was sure he would have been even more nervous then he already was. She had continued to talk nearly the entire month about what he might run into or out of at Hogwarts. The whole thing proved to be equal parts exciting and intimidating to hear. Devin honestly wanted to hear his mom and dads voice, but had done so just before he left for the Hogwarts Express. He bit back the need and instead focused on what his family had told him.

Be happy. Be friendly. Be fine.

It was a family motto of sorts in the Coal household. The warmth he got from this was enough to get him to take the first steps up the trains carriage. He turned to let his grandmother give him a big kiss on the cheek and forehead before hurrying him onto the car. "Just remember to grab a window seat. The view as I recall is simply divine." Her last words were incredibly normal considering just behind her a boy had chased a dark coloured frog and then proceeded to bite its head off when he caught it. After turning to find a seat Devin was repeating his family motto in his head several times over.

Turning to his left as he walked towards the back of the train Devin saw the first compartment was already half full with two kids talking about something. On the other side there was a young girl who seemed engrossed with her drawings. Viewing the two rooms as unapproachable Devin continued to the back where he saw one compartment free of anyone. Quick to jump on the chance to grab a window seat without being a bother to anyone he pulled the door open and tossed his messenger bag onto the seat next to the window. Sitting down (Seat #11) Devin reached into his bag and pulled out a few things. the first was his headphones which soon enough were playing music in his ears. It was loud enough that he barely heard the other people outside going this way and that. The next item was a magazine from home his parents had sent him in his last gift basket. It was the newest ESPN magazine with several articles on baseball, american football, and basketball.

Within minutes the young first year was completely engrossed in his own little world with music in his ears and sports on his brain. Devin would often travel to his own little world through the assistance of music; however, it was sports that was the true hypnotic force. Having become a fan through his dad Devin was somewhat of a prodigy athletically speaking. Recognising this at a young age his family got him involved in several sports camps and though he hadn't ever found one sport that he wanted to focus on Devin thrived at any sport he played. The only thing that surprised his ability on the field was his ability to draw up strategies. He enjoyed the feeling of solving a problem an opposing team was presenting.

The sound of the train blowing a horn to warn of its departure drew Devin out of his little zone out. He looked at himself through the window and saw that he wasn't presenting himself that great. He could hear other kids boarding and figured he was going to have at least one cabin mate for the trip to school. Devin could hear his mothers voice in his head from the conversation they had earlier. "Remember how well you got along with Michael. All you have to do is make the first step and say hello." Michael was a friend of Devin's from the magical community he had made during his time at the after school program. At first Devin had been 9 and beyond shy when around the magical kids, but after he made friends with Michael he grew a lot socially.

He felt the train lurch forward and decided to put his headphones back into his backpack. If he was joined by anyone he would try to say hello. If not he always had his magazine and fantasy football drafts to review. After that he had something much bigger to deal with. The impending date with the object called the sorting hat was never far from the front of his mind. From what he had been told it basically decided what the rest of your school life was going to be like and even choose your friends for you. The complete lack of control and infinite possibilities of the unknown were scarier then facing a major league baseball pitcher.

Be happy. Be friendly. Be fine...

"Move it, Shrimp! You're gonna be late then you can't go to school!" A tall blonde haired boy yelled at a boy who looked very similar to him. The other boy was tall for his age and if his family was any measure he was going to be even taller. Since his entire family looked the same he was going to. The boy was a bundle of nerves since for once the trip to King's Cross was for him and not just his brothers. For years he had been dragged to the Platform and having to watch them leave while he stayed at home. Now it was his chance to go.

"Oi! Ryan enough of that!" The boy's father yelled back at his sons. " There is no reason to be worried Jake. You'll be fine. " The man told his youngest son. Jake gulped and kept pushing his trolley. As he did he reached over and scratched the ears of a large black cat that was sitting on his bags. Martin, the cat, was going with him so he had a friend already. The cat only seemed to like Jake so he decided to take him to Hogwarts with him.

Then they were there. Jake waited till his family was through and quickly pushed his cart through the wall and there it was. The Hogwarts Express sat there expelling steam and looking exactly as it always did. He smiled as he picked up Martin as his bags were taken onto the train. His parents hugged him as his brother got on the train. "Be good Jakey." His mother said when it was time to go. Jake ran onto train grinning ear to ear as he did so. It was great to be here.

As he ran he noticed a train with only one boy in it. ((Delvin)) He seemed to be his age so Jake opened the door and let Martin go. The cat hopped up onto the window and looked out the window. Jake say down on a seat ((Seat 12)) and looked at the boy next to him. Something about him said muggle or partial muggle born. Jake had grown up with muggles so he could tell. He offered his hand to the boy. "Hey. I'm Jake! Nice to meet you." He said to boy clearly excited. "Hogwarts! I'm so excited. I know I'll be in Gryffindor like my brothers. What about you? Which house do you want? You seem to normal to be Slytherin. " Jake said looking the boy over. His inner lion told him that little fact. His whole family were of the same house he was biased.

"You're going to love Hogwarts, Rozie." Leo said Rozalia, glancing at her from behind his shoulder - she had insisted on one last piggy-back ride off him before she left on the train. He was feeling lucky - the Auror's office had been reluctant to let him go for a half-day, but there was no way in Hell he was going to miss seeing her off onto the train. Besides, he wanted to see the old platform again, and to see if there were any of his friends hanging around seeing off their younger brother's and sisters.
"It sounds amazing! I can't wait to see the Library! Ooh, and the Great Hall! Oh, and the ghosts! I bet they're way more friendly than they're shown on horror movies." Roze laughed as she went on talking about this, her previously brown hair shining gold with her excitement. Her father - walking alongside her and Leo - quickly took of his hat and hurriedly pulled it down over her shining curls, glancing around. They were just entering the station, with Roze's Dad pushing the luggage trolley; on it lay two large trunks, a smaller knapsack, and a wicker basket where her cat Sora was sleeping - and they were still surrounded by Muggles.
"Ah... nostalgia." Roze's father grinned as he looked at the very familiar ticket barrier. A child and his mother had just passed through it, unbeknownst to the surrounding Muggles. "Remember when me and your mum took you here for the first time? You looked fit to burst; either from excitement or tears, I still don't know." He said with a sly grin at his son, who nudged him playfully.
They were soon through the barrier and among the hustle and bustle of the various children and frantic parents, some fussing, some bored, some screaming after toddlers that had somehow snuck onto the train. Rozalia was now on the ground, staying close to her brother and father as they pushed towards the train. It was a magnificent scarlet, with steam already billowing out of the funnel at the front and the steam pistons gleaming. She gazed in awe at it, and then saw the various students already sat in the compartments.
"Will you stay until it pulls out of the station?" She asked, looking up at Leo and her Dad, removing her hat and letting her magically-changing hair fall free.
"Like you have to ask. C'mon kiddo, let's get you on there. I don't want it going without you." Her Dad said, ushering her forward and passing her trunks over to one of the porters. With her knapsack slung over her back and Sora's basket in her arms - he had mewled most grumpily when she awoke him - Rozalia took another look at the train, then back to Leo and her Dad. Her hair suddenly took on a blue tinge as a pang of homesickness hit her. She hated to leave them, she really did. But she knew that her brother would be heading back to the Auror's office soon, and her Dad was set to ship out to the Middle East tomorrow.
"I'll write to you every day, okay?" She promised, firmly and silently telling herself not to cry. Honestly - she wasn't a baby. Her Dad chuckled and knelt so he could pull her into a hug.
"I won't hold you to that. Besides, I don't think my bunk mates would enjoy coping with an owl every day. Every week, yeah? Then I can write back some decent replies other than a report on sand storms and sunburn."
"I'll be impressed if you manage to write us both every day, Rozie," Leo began, ruffling her curls as he always did, a bright grin on his face as the blueness receded from her blonde hair. ", the workload catches up with ya. Trust me."
"Pft. Like you know about work." She retorted teasingly with a grin.

Her goodbye's were swift, but heartfelt, and she was soon wandering down the train to find a compartment. She was hoping to find an empty one, or at the very least one that didn't have any second years or above within it. After a fruitless search of an empty compartment, she halted outside one containing two boys. Sliding open the compartment door (Quite a feat while juggling a heavy bag and an angry kitten), she smiled at them both as she pointed at a seat opposite them.
"Hey. Mind if I sit there?" She asked, and as if making a point, Sora leapt out of her arms and curled up on the window seat. (Seat #9)

Just as Devin had finished reviewing everything he needed for the train ride to school his solo compartment became a double. He welcomed the distraction as he had a habit of getting more and more worked up when left to his own thoughts. The newcomer was plenty active enough to draw his full attention with no more than a minute of his presences warranting two questions and an introduction. "Devin. My name is Devin." He replyed along with his own hand embracing the one offered by Jake. The two shook hands and continued the conversation about houses.

Devin was still a little unsure about the whole house system at the school. From what he could tell it might have been similar to what homeroom was in his time at summer school this past three months. The only major difference was he went home at the end of classes. Here he just went to a different part of the school. He wasn't sure how he was going to feel about this, but his grandmother said making friends in your house is as easy as learning your name. The only problem with that was Devin had no idea what each house meant. He knew his grandmother had wanted him to be in Ravenclaw or Griffendor; however, outside of her opinion he had no clue what any of it meant. Jake seemed to have a clear goal which interested Devin.

Griffendor had been mentioned in passing several times with the Slytherin one seemingly an opposite. Devin's grandmother had odd words to say with her being both pro and con to the house. Her husband had been in the house, but she seemed to paint him as a stubborn one lane highway sort of guy. Still she said that whatever house Devin was in would be the luckiest house in years. This often made Devin smile, but more out of embarrassment then any other emotion. "I guess right now I am just hoping to be accepted into a house." He didn't say this as confidently as he would have liked, but his voice was normal and he didn't stutter.

The carriage was then again invaded by another feline owner. This time a girl with brilliant blonde hair. She was somewhere between Devin and Jake as far as height went and was clearly already hitting her growth spurt like most girls her age. She seemed to have taken on a bit too much as far as carry on luggage so Devin stood up to help her get some of her things up on the overhead compartment. He turned to see both cats enjoying the window view from the same seat. "Yea sure..." He said with even less confidence to her request to join them in the carriage. Devin was starting to feel some pressure as he pictured both his new roommates as top tear wizards and witches who would start talking all things magical. Devin wasn't ready for that sort of oral exam and began to get nervous about saying something stupid.

He also saw that his sports magazine was still out in the open. Quickly he grabbed his leather messenger bag and stuffed the magazine into the main pocket. He then sat down as he put his own bag under his seat. The train was just starting to move from the platform as parents started to wave and blow kisses to their children. Instead of watching this Devin found himself drawn to the cats. Their presence was interesting to Devin who was said to have a surprise waiting for him at school. He knew it had something to do with an animal as his grandmother had written on his acceptance letter to Hogwarts that he would indeed have one pet for communication purposes. For now Devin figured he was going to have her old owl. He was excited to see a familiar face at school even if it was something with wings.

Just as Jake had finished reviewing everything he needed for the train ride to school his solo compartment became a double. He welcomed the distraction as he had a habit of getting more and more worked up when left to his own thoughts. The newcomer was plenty active enough to draw his full attention with no more than a minute of his presences warranting two questions and an introduction. "Devin. My name is Devin." He replyed along with his own hand embracing the one offered by Jake. The two shook hands and continued the conversation about houses.

Devin was still a little unsure about the whole house system at the school. From what he could tell it might have been similar to what homeroom was in his time at summer school this past three months. The only major difference was he went home at the end of classes. Here he just went to a different part of the school. He wasn't sure how he was going to feel about this, but his grandmother said making friends in your house is as easy as learning your name. The only problem with that was Devin had no idea what each house meant. He knew his grandmother had wanted him to be in Ravenclaw or Griffendor; however, outside of her opinion he had no clue what any of it meant. Jake seemed to have a clear goal which interested Devin.

Griffendor had been mentioned in passing several times with the Slytherin one seemingly an opposite. Devin's grandmother had odd words to say with her being both pro and con to the house. Her husband had been in the house, but she seemed to paint him as a stubborn one lane highway sort of guy. Still she said that whatever house Devin was in would be the luckiest house in years. This often made Devin smile, but more out of embarrassment then any other emotion. "I guess right now I am just hoping to be accepted into a house." He didn't say this as confidently as he would have liked, but his voice was normal and he didn't stutter.

The carriage was then again invaded by another feline owner. This time a girl with brilliant blonde hair. She was somewhere between Devin and Jake as far as height went and was clearly already hitting her growth spurt like most girls her age. She seemed to have taken on a bit too much as far as carry on luggage so Devin stood up to help her get some of her things up on the overhead compartment. He turned to see both cats enjoying the window view from the same seat. "Yea sure..." He said with even less confidence to her request to join them in the carriage. Devin was starting to feel some pressure as he pictured both his new roommates as top tear wizards and witches who would start talking all things magical. Devin wasn't ready for that sort of oral exam and began to get nervous about saying something stupid.

He also saw that his sports magazine was still out in the open. Quickly he grabbed his leather messenger bag and stuffed the magazine into the main pocket. He then sat down as he put his own bag under his seat. The train was just starting to move from the platform as parents started to wave and blow kisses to their children. Instead of watching this Devin found himself drawn to the cats. Their presence was interesting to Devin who was said to have a surprise waiting for him at school. He knew it had something to do with an animal as his grandmother had written on his acceptance letter to Hogwarts that he would indeed have one pet for communication purposes. For now Devin figured he was going to have her old owl. He was excited to see a familiar face at school even if it was something with wings.

Website is double posting on me.

Having obtained everything that she would need for her first year at Hogwarts a few weeks ago, Dani now stood in front of the pillar that the man from the Ministry assured her would take her to the platform where the train to the school, the Hogwarts Express, would be waiting. Unfortunately, that affirmation did very little to ease the anxiety that she was feeling. For someone who had never been away from home for more than a weekend at a time, leaving for an entire year was cause for nervousness and pangs of homesickness. And that wasn’t even considering the fact that she had been thrust into a world she hadn’t known existed until just a few weeks ago.

Her dad, sensing her anxiety using some sort of parental super power, placed his hand on her back, a gesture which did bring her some measure of peace and comfort. Her parents, always supportive, had been with her every step of the way, tagging along with her as the Ministry worker helped her purchase everything that she would need despite the both of them being just as clueless as their daughter. And they were both there with her on the day she would leave for the year.

Nodding, Dani followed the man from the Ministry as he stepped through the seemingly solid wall without flinching. Dani, however, was not actually able to suppress her reflexes and did end up stepping through the wall fully expecting to hit something solid, her eyes squinted shut and her body held stiffly. Of course, her parents were the exact same way, and the three of them together did attract a few glances from the other families around.

The Ministry worker was already instructing a young lad who would, presumably, load her possessions onto the train for the ride. Of course, she was permitted to grab her pink and purple backpack, which contained the whiteboard she commonly used to communicate, a few of her drawing books, and some snacks for the trip. The backpack itself had actually attracted a few eyes already, as it stood out rather sharply from the norm.

Before Dani could think further on that, the man from the Ministry finished instructing the lad concerning her luggage and turned to her and her family. “I’m dreadfully sorry,” he said, pulling out a pocket watch and glancing at the time, “but I’m afraid that she’s going to have to get on the train directly or she’ll miss it.” Her parents nodded their understanding, the man from the Ministry stepping aside so that they could say goodbye.

Bending over, her father picked her up and hugged her tightly before setting her down so that her mother could do the same. “Remember, sweetie, we love you and are very proud of you,” her mother said, clearly trying her best not to cry. “We know that you’ll do fine, but write to us every so often anyway, okay?” Dani nodded to show that she would, telling them that she loved her them both and would miss them terribly using sign language.

Her father, certain that he wouldn’t be able to speak very much without crying, merely affirmed that he loved her and would miss her as well. Then, after another round of hugs, she was stepping into the train and waving goodbye, trying to quell the pang of homesickness that hit. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to wave goodbye for very long before being pushed further inside by the wave of people before being pushed into a compartment where a boy with brown hair and a girl with reddish hair were currently sitting.

Unsure of her odds in trying to leave the compartment, primarily because that would involve fighting through the crowd of people, Dani sat down in the seat next to the girl, which, according to the plate above the seat, was seat number two. Figuring the logical next step would be to introduce herself, Dani reached into her backpack and pulled out her whiteboard and a simple black marker. “Hello. My name is Dani. May I ask what your names are?” she wrote on the smooth white surface before holding it up so they could see.

Jake looked out the window as the train started to lurch along. He was finally going to Hogwarts. He was going to live a dream he had since he was six. Finally he was on his way. He was going to have a life outside of being the youngest Masters boy. He was gonna have a life free of his older brothers watching his every move. He was gonna have it all now and that made him smile.

He looked at Martin who suddenly was bored by the window and decided to jump over into Jake's lap. The cat curled up as Jake scratched his head. "You are going to get into a house no matter what. It's how it works. My brother Henry told me it was based on the founders of the school. Each house takes what the founder wanted. Gryffindor takes people who are brave and chivalrous. My whole family is from that house. Uh Slytherins treasure purity of blood and ambition. Ravenclaw takes the intelligent. Hufflepuff takes the honest and kind. Each founder wanted those traits only at the school I think? Henry never did explain this well..," Jake said trying to put his new "friend" at ease. "You'll get in. " He promised not getting why Devlin was worried. This was great.

He then noticed the girl who came in. She seemed nice so Jake offered her his hand. "I'm Jake. Nice to meet you. " He said grinning slightly. "Are you excited?" He asked her to take some heat off of Devlin before another question crossed his mind.

Jake figured Devlin did not have anyone like Jake's brothers to explain how the school worked so he decided to back off a bit. "So uhh. Play any sports? I play Quidditch sort of.. My brothers make me play Keeper for them. Or goalie. That's the muggle term right?" He asked them both. He was naturally friendly and wanted to make as many friends as he could.

Felix was feeling different emotions at once. He was very excited to start his very first year at Hogwarts, and grew even more so as his older brothers told him about life there. However, the fact that he would have to use magic scared him. Even though his whole family was full of witches and wizards, Felix had always showed very little magical potential.

One by one, the Kenvern boys passed through the barrier. First went George, then Edmund, and finally John. "Alright Felix. It's your turn. Did you see how George, Edmund, and John did it? Just casually walk into the wall. I'll be right behind you," said Felix's older brother Ethan. Their parents were busy, so Ethan was in charge of escorting his younger brothers to the train.

Felix took a deep breath, glanced at Ethan, and jogged towards the barrier. Just before impact, he closed his eyes and braced himself. Next thing he knew, there were witches and wizards everywhere. He smiled to himself as Ethan entered behind him.

"Where should I sit...?" Felix muttered to himself as he walked down the aisle. Seeing an empty seat, he immediately grabbed it. Sitting in the carriage with him were two other boys ((Magnus and Alistair)). "Hello!" He says to them.

Alistair looked at the new boy who entered their cabin, and in response to his greeting he simply smiled to the other boy before looking back at the window. He was in a deep though but he realized it was rude to leave a person who just entered to himself, so he broke his stare from out of the window and looked at the newcomer.
'
"Hey there, my name is Alistair what is yours?" He asked politely to the other guy, kinda awkwardly as he was rubbing the side of his arm. He was indeed looking at the other boy, and was studying him silently while waiting for the answer to question. He made sure not to stare for too long and diverted his attention every so often before going back to study the guy. He seemed to be a normal person, he had a blondish hair which looked nice on him, he also looked like the kind of person who looked like he had siblings from more clues but he couldn't judge a person this early... but he was still doing it never the less.

His attention was split between the companions that he had in the cabin, as he was looking at the blue haired boy who hadn't said much and the newcomer who had greeted the two when he came in. So far the newcomer was the sociable one of the group, as right now Alistair wasn't talking out of friendliness it was for more like... pleasantries. He didn't want awkward tension even though he knew that it would be most likely between this group.... and there he goes again judging... He sighed as he waited patiently with his hands now in his pockets which he could feel his wand on his right pocket and a small notebook on his left. He never left the two possessions as it was best to never be caught unprepared. His notebook in his other pocket was a rough review on the more useful spells from the Standard Book of Spell: Year 1 and one or two spells from the Year 2 book that he had gotten and placed in his luggage along with his 1-year book as well. The notebook had the name of the spell as the Title, then the effect under that; at the bottom was the hand motion to preforming the spell. The whole notebook in all was a 3' by 5', a really small notebook useful for recording and notes if needed.

"Thanks!" Rozalia offered up a grateful smile as Devin helped her with her bag and Sora's basket. Once sat down - after removing Sora from the window seat, and mewing grumpily, had curled up on her lap instead - she began introductions.
"Nice to meet you too! I'm Rozalia, but you can both call me Roze. Less of a mouthful." She said with an dimpled smile, returning Jake's handshake. "And yeah, I'm pretty excited. I've done loads of reading up on the school once I got my letter, but I reckon it's never quite the same as really being there, y'know?" She glanced out of the window interestedly, managing a wave to her Father and brother - still on the platform - before the train pulled out completely. She petted Sora absent-mindedly as the mulled over Jake's second question.
"Um... I'm not really that sporty, to be honest. I like swimming and climbing, I suppose. I never really got much practice with a broom though. My Dad's a Muggle, and my brother was away at work." She answered, not even bothering to mention football - although she hated to stand with female stereotypes, she found the game immensely boring and a massive waste of time and money. Not wanting to make enemies on the first day, she didn't bother mentioning it.
"I like horse-riding too. I don't reckon they'll have any horses at Hogwarts though. I hear they have other things - like Hippogriffs, and Thestrals.. and Centaurs too. Although I don't think they'd let someone ride them." She mused out loud, shuffling backwards on the seat and tucking her legs underneath her, displacing Sora who jumped to the ground, glaring at her - well, as much as a kitten can glare - and then began sniffing at the boys' feet curiously.
"So, what houses are you both thinking of?" She asked, after considering taking out a book she wanted to finish, but then deciding it would be a bit rude this early into the journey.

Felix listened to the other boy as he got comfortable in the seat. "Hi, Alistair. I'm Felix." he asks, as he takes his pet rat, Norman, out of his bag. Felix could tell the fat little rat was hungry from his scratching. He takes a cracker out of his pocket and lets Norman nibble on it. "This little guy here is Norman."
He takes his wand out of his pocket, and begins to fiddle with it. I can't wait to learn how to actually use this! he thinks to himself. Suddenly, Felix notices his broomstick about to fall out into the aisle. He grabs it with a swift move of the arm, and places it under his seat. "Are you guys first years as well?" He asks.

Alistair nodded "Yes I believe everyone in here is a 1st year, I think" He said uncertainly looking at the Blue-haired boy before turning back to Felix. He smiled pleasantly at him when he took out his pet and watched him feed his rat, its name was Norman from what Felix said. It was interesting to watch Norman eat as he never had owned a pet before but he sighed as he glanced out the window again, wondering if he could get a pet one day... Maybe it could be a dog, or maybe a cat... hmmm he wasn't sure on what he would get when he had a chance

He looked at his wand before asking Felix "Isn't that a cherry wood wand? What kind of core do you have? Do you know?" He asked looking at the wand, before glancing at his broomstick, it looked like he was used to handling one compared to him. He didn't like the broomstick and considering that he feared heights made him shudder a bit but he kept his composure while waiting silently. He wandered if he had experience being a Quidditch player or whatever the sport was called, it didn't really mattered to him. He didn't like the sport because it took up so high in the sky.

The final train whistle blew and smoke filled the station as the train started to slowly move. People rushed to get on quickly and the conductor rang a bell screaming "All Aboard! Last cal for the Hogwarts Express!" Mothers and Fathers, little sisters and brothers too young to go to Hogwarts yet stood back as the conductor rang the warning bell once more. Grabbing the final car's railing. The train began to pick up speed as it pulled out of the station and was finally on the way to Hogwarts.

Magnus had been in a day dream for the while that he was in the cabin and hadn't noticed the other two boys that had entered and even started introductions. What finally snapped him out of his day dream was the train lurching forward. Magnus in the lurch snapped his head around to the other two and so did his owl. "Whoa! Bloody hell!!" He exclaimed as his hair shift to bleach white. His owl screech and hoped behind Magnus' head. "Oh my I am very sorry gents. It seems I was off in a day dream. I umm well Hello to you both and your mouse." He said as he gestured to Felix and Norman the rat. "My name is Cromwell, Magnus Cromwell and this..." He said as he pulled the terrified Merlin the owl around and placed him in the palm in his hand "...is Merlin. Please don't laugh...I realize who I named him after and well yeah. Merlin pricked up in his hand and tried to look tough. "So I am guessing I might have missed both your names. Might I ask you to repeat them?" Magnus asked.