More than Meets the Eye

The morning was gloomy and cold, and the children shivered as they walked toward platform 9 3/4 . The damp mist hid many of the other families who had arrived to bid farewell to their children. The sense of excitement rose in Albus’s chest as he paused at the brick wall which hid the platform from view.

“Don’t worry, just run at it!” whispered his brother, James. With firm resolution, Albus squared up to the pillar, and when he felt his father’s heavy hand on his shoulder, he ran. Opening his eyes, he laughed to find himself on the other side, unharmed. The sound of children’s excited patter and the fond weeping of parents was much louder here, next to the Hogwarts Express. Spying his cousins, Rose and Hugo through the crowd, he ran forward to meet them. Rose, in her pristine new robes was pale with nervousness.

“Hello, Albus...excited to be going at last?” Hermione’s question was asked with a strained smile, which brightened slightly as she noticed Albus’s Uncle Percy in the distance. A professor of the History of Magic at Hogwarts, Percy was long regarded the most tedious and dull member of the Weasley family, albeit the most dependable. Albus too felt his mood lighten at the sight of a familiar presence, one whom his mother had warned to take care of him. The rest of his family having now caught up with Albus, he felt the slight pressure of James’s hand on his, as he squeezed his hand reassuringly. James then turned to his parents, gave his mother a quick peck on the cheek, his father a nod of the head, and made his way toward the train.

As Percy descended on the small group, Albus and Rose shared a quick glance. Rose looked anxiously at her father, who had stiffened visibly at the arrival of his least favourite brother. The years since the war had had their toll on them all, and had done little to restore their relationship. Percy’s solicitous attention toward Hermione in recent times had added to their mutual ill-feeling. Sensing that this meeting would be uncomfortable, Rose pulled away from her mother, and announced that she was boarding the train.  

Harry beamed at the girl, mistaking her wish to be elsewhere for an eagerness to learn inherited from her mother.

 “Can’t wait to get started, eh Rosie? If only our James was so motivated!” Harry’s usually lack of clarity was greeted with a half-hearted smile from Rose, who nodded agreement. At the imminent prospect of being left behind, Lily began to cry softly to herself. Albus looked stricken as he watched his little sister cry, and put his arms around her.

“It’ll be okay...I’ll write, and you will come with me next time...” Albus trailed off, empathising with her misery as he remembered how he’d felt each year watching James leave for school. Ginny, noticing the attention she was attracting with her sobs, shushed the child. With a final glance at his sister’s tear-filled expression, Albus reached for his trunk. His mother kissed him quickly, and his father pulled him into a crushing hug. Tears sprang in Albus’s eyes and with a guilty feeling of escape, he boarded his train. Finding a spot in Rose’s carriage, he looked back at the platform, where his sister was crying inconsolably, and his parents watched wistfully as the train pulled out of the station. He was finally going – Hogwarts to Albus signified the beginning of a new life.