{Year} Chapter 2: Bickering On The Hogwarts Express & Arriving At Hogwarts

Draco sighed as Pansy and Blaise continued to bicker, the food trolley lady also sighed.

The two had been arguing about what’s the best on the cart ever since the trolley lady had asked them whether they would like anything.

They even brought the argument out in the corridor.  Now everyone else in the nearby compartments are peeking from their compartment doors at the racket the two were making.

“Acid Pops and Fizzing Whizzbees are the best ones!” Pansy insists.

“Well, unlike you, I don’t want to burn a hole through my tongue or consume something that might have parts of Billywig in it!” Blaise retorted.

“What?  Are you scared?  Is Blaisie scared?” Pansy cooed mockingly, “Don wowwy Blaisie, itz not tha bad.”

“I’ll go for Cauldron Cakes and Liquorice Wands over those any day!”

“Oh come on!  How about some Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans?  Do you dare to try it?”

“Seriously Parkinson, what is wrong with you.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me, I’m just more outgoing than a bastard like you.” Pansy shot back.  She then realized what she said when she heard the gasps from some of the compartments.

Blaise’s face darken. “Parkinson...” 

“Both of you.  Quiet down.”

They stopped at Draco’s words.

“Remember where you are and who you are.  Now, just pick want you want.  I don’t have time for your bickering, I need to catch up to my sleep.” Draco yawned, if one looks closely, they will see that he has some dark black shadows under his eyes.

“Ah...sorry Dray...” Pansy apologized.

“Hey!  You should apologize to me too!” Blaise rolled his eyes.

“Sorry to you too, Zabini.” Pansy said sarcastically, but her companions know she was being genuine.

“Oh, and get me some Chocolate Frogs...” Draco added as he returned to their compartment.

“Yeah, yeah.  Now shoo and go get your sleep.  I’ll tell on you and owl your parents if you can’t wake up when we arrive.” Pansy jokingly threatened.

Blaise snorted, “Like they’ll believe you.”

“What?  It’s not like they’ll believe you even if they don’t believe me!”

Pansy and Blaise each bought what they personally prefer, but of course, they didn’t forget to buy a bunch of Chocolate Frogs for Draco.

“My!” The trolley lady exclaimed, “That’s a lot of Chocolate Frogs!  Are you sure you can eat all of that?”

Pansy snorted, “I’m not sure either, but he just has a habit of purchasing chocolate in large quantities.  Pretty sure he has a secret room filled with different kinds of chocolate.”

“Chocolate helps me with my issues.” Draco drawled.

“Yes, yes.” Blaise said as he closed the compartment door. 

* * *

Harry recognized the blonde boy—wasn’t he called...Malfoy?  

“Who are they?” He asked Ron.

“Oh them?  They’re from those snobby pure-blood families.”

“Pure-blood families?”

“See the blonde one?  That’s Malfoy.  I've heard of his family," said Ron darkly. "They were some of the first to come back to our side after You-Know-Who disappeared.  Said they'd been bewitched.  My dad doesn't believe it.  He says Malfoy's father didn't need an excuse to go over to the Dark Side.  His family isn’t that great, but I’m not sure about Malfoy himself.  But then, he is a Malfoy, so he’s probably just as bad as his parents." He turned to Hermione. "Can we help you with something?”

"You'd better hurry up and put your robes on, I've just been up to the front to ask the conductor, and he says we're nearly there.”

“Then would you mind leaving while we change?” said Ron, scowling at her.

“All right—I only came in here because people outside are behaving very childishly, racing up and down the corridors," said Hermione in a sniffy voice. "And you've got dirt on your nose, by the way, did you know?”

Ron glared at her as she left.  Harry peered out of the window.  It was getting dark. He could see mountains and forests under a deep purple sky.  The train did seem to be slowing down.

He and Ron took off their jackets and pulled on their long black robes.  Ron’s were a bit short for him, you 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.”

Harry's stomach lurched with nerves and Ron, he saw, looked pale under his freckles.  They crammed their pockets with the last of the sweets and 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.  Harry shivered in the cold night air.  

Then, a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Harry heard a familiar voice: “Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here! All right there, Harry?”

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

“C’mon, follow me -- any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs’ years follow me!”

Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path.  It was so dark on either side of them that Harry thought there must be thick trees there.  Nobody spoke much.  Neville, the boy who kept losing his toad, sniffed once or twice.

“Ye’ all 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 take.  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 and Ron were followed into their boat by Neville and Hermione. “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 them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.

“Heads down!” yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbor, where they 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!” cried Neville blissfully, holding out his hands. Then they 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.

They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, Oak front door.

“Everyone here? You there, still got yer toad?”

Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door.

______________________________

Draco Malfoy (a.k.a. Xie Yin, our MC)

Harry Potter (I might make him OOC like some of those amazing fan-fictions in which Harry is a Slytherin or whatever)

*Is Draco x Harry a good ship for this story?  You know what, I’m just going to roll with it.

Hermione Granger (Smart)

Ronald Weasley (Short-tempered)

*Hermione x Ron?  Or something else?

Let this author’s imagination run wild.