20 Nov 2022, 15:10
Trains and Tribulations
As they got into the Train Station, Cathy huddled into herself, using her little scarf to protect herself from the cold wind that was lurking around that morning. God, this whole place was so unfamilar to the child, for barely a month she'd learned about this secret underground society that does MAGIC. Honestly, everything was just making her head spin. Now, she would need to attend some sort of magic boarding school instead of the secondary school of her home town. Nervousness filled her stomach, making her nearly sick. She remained in her little huddled state, both from the anxiety and the cold, until a hand found her shoulder.
"Chin up, sweetheart. This is gonna be exciting for you!" Her father bellowed. Cathy only managed a quiet nod at that. Her father wrapped his arm around her shoulder, in a comforting manner that Cathy gave a little smile at before muttering "Heh, my little nervous Nellie..".
Her darling mother on the other hand, looked like she was in a staring match with the very ticket that secured her entry to this place. Her eyes were narrowed and she looked unamused, a sign that something was wrong.
"Mam, Is something wrong?" Cathy spoke up, worry audible in her voice. Her mother continued to look at the ticket before finally answering her daughter.
"This is absolutely ridiculous! It says that this train to that magical school is on Platform 9 3/4 Quarters. There is no such thing!" Her mother remarked in a loud tone, making a few people near them give a quick passing glance.
"Easy, love, keep your voice down. Give it here," Her father soothed and her mother relented, passing over the ticket with an annoyed look on her face.
"Ohhhhh, Elle, you remember what that witch lady said? When Cathy got her letter?" Her father questioned.
Her mother gave a court nod, of course she remembered that night, Cathy could hardly forget it. Seeing her mother try to threaten a woman in witch robes with a broom will never leave her subconscious.
"It's a trick, you see. There's a secret passage way. That's what the woman said atleast, I guess we just follow by example, look around for any others?" Her father offered, and Her mother gave another silent nod. Then, the trio was off again to make the journey of finding this little passageway.
As they walked, Cathy felt the nerves bubbling in her. What if they never found the entrance? What if they got in trouble? What if this secret passage was dangerous? All of these little worrying thoughts danced in her head and she found herself twiddling her fingers in an effort to self-soothe. However, her anxious thoughts were put on hold for a moment as her father spoke.
"Right so it should be 'round here somewhere, the lady mentioned something with a pillar, and since I can read, I'm betting it's the one between platform nine and ten," Her father commented, looking around the both empty platforms and at the pillar in the middle. Her mother piped up in response.
"Well, it could be some sort of code rather than literal, perhaps it's something different. Maybe-"
Just as her mother had begun to go off into a lecture, a boy and his family had come up to the pillar as well, something they had not noticed until after the boy ran straight into the pillar. Fear exploded into Cathy as she watched the boy run, wincing at the splat that he was going to make. As Cathy was about to look away, not wanting to see the boy get hurt, she caught a glimspe of the collision. OR lack of one.
Huh? Wha- Confusion plagued Cathy as tried to understand what had just happened. Instead of a painful painful SMACK against a stone pillar, the boy had managed to phase right through it. Cathy blinked, once then twice, as she was trying to see if she was seeing things right. Then it clicked, magic. She hadn't really understood how well...magical...magic was, for lack of a better term. But now, she could only stand there in shock. Both of her parents also looked surprised, especially her mother but her father's surprise slowly grew into a smirk. Meanwhile, the boy's parents had done the same as their child, right through that same pillar.
"Told ya it was somethin' with the Pillar...,"He noted with a michevious grin and her mother rolled her eyes. Her father walking over to her mother and handed her the trunk that he'd been holding this entire time, then he made his way over to Cathy which surprised her. Her father took her by the shoulders, making her little out a little squeak of surprise, before aligning her up with the pillow where the previous family had been.
"Now, love, just ran straight into it, like that boy, ya hear?" Her father instructed, encourage strong in his tone. Cathy felt herself nodding but fear crept up into her.
"We'll be right behind you," Her mother reminded her, a serious tone but it was also soften slightly, meaning to calm her daughter's nerves. Cathy nodded again.
"o-ok...." She declared, before sucking in a deep breath and barreling towards the pillar. Her eyes were screwed shut, she couldn't even watch, she just ran in the straightest line she could and hoped for the best.
She felt herself pass through some sort of mist like substance, she felt the area around her darken, and finally she opened her eyes.
There, was the glorious Hogwarts Express.
"Chin up, sweetheart. This is gonna be exciting for you!" Her father bellowed. Cathy only managed a quiet nod at that. Her father wrapped his arm around her shoulder, in a comforting manner that Cathy gave a little smile at before muttering "Heh, my little nervous Nellie..".
Her darling mother on the other hand, looked like she was in a staring match with the very ticket that secured her entry to this place. Her eyes were narrowed and she looked unamused, a sign that something was wrong.
"Mam, Is something wrong?" Cathy spoke up, worry audible in her voice. Her mother continued to look at the ticket before finally answering her daughter.
"This is absolutely ridiculous! It says that this train to that magical school is on Platform 9 3/4 Quarters. There is no such thing!" Her mother remarked in a loud tone, making a few people near them give a quick passing glance.
"Easy, love, keep your voice down. Give it here," Her father soothed and her mother relented, passing over the ticket with an annoyed look on her face.
"Ohhhhh, Elle, you remember what that witch lady said? When Cathy got her letter?" Her father questioned.
Her mother gave a court nod, of course she remembered that night, Cathy could hardly forget it. Seeing her mother try to threaten a woman in witch robes with a broom will never leave her subconscious.
"It's a trick, you see. There's a secret passage way. That's what the woman said atleast, I guess we just follow by example, look around for any others?" Her father offered, and Her mother gave another silent nod. Then, the trio was off again to make the journey of finding this little passageway.
As they walked, Cathy felt the nerves bubbling in her. What if they never found the entrance? What if they got in trouble? What if this secret passage was dangerous? All of these little worrying thoughts danced in her head and she found herself twiddling her fingers in an effort to self-soothe. However, her anxious thoughts were put on hold for a moment as her father spoke.
"Right so it should be 'round here somewhere, the lady mentioned something with a pillar, and since I can read, I'm betting it's the one between platform nine and ten," Her father commented, looking around the both empty platforms and at the pillar in the middle. Her mother piped up in response.
"Well, it could be some sort of code rather than literal, perhaps it's something different. Maybe-"
Just as her mother had begun to go off into a lecture, a boy and his family had come up to the pillar as well, something they had not noticed until after the boy ran straight into the pillar. Fear exploded into Cathy as she watched the boy run, wincing at the splat that he was going to make. As Cathy was about to look away, not wanting to see the boy get hurt, she caught a glimspe of the collision. OR lack of one.
Huh? Wha- Confusion plagued Cathy as tried to understand what had just happened. Instead of a painful painful SMACK against a stone pillar, the boy had managed to phase right through it. Cathy blinked, once then twice, as she was trying to see if she was seeing things right. Then it clicked, magic. She hadn't really understood how well...magical...magic was, for lack of a better term. But now, she could only stand there in shock. Both of her parents also looked surprised, especially her mother but her father's surprise slowly grew into a smirk. Meanwhile, the boy's parents had done the same as their child, right through that same pillar.
"Told ya it was somethin' with the Pillar...,"He noted with a michevious grin and her mother rolled her eyes. Her father walking over to her mother and handed her the trunk that he'd been holding this entire time, then he made his way over to Cathy which surprised her. Her father took her by the shoulders, making her little out a little squeak of surprise, before aligning her up with the pillow where the previous family had been.
"Now, love, just ran straight into it, like that boy, ya hear?" Her father instructed, encourage strong in his tone. Cathy felt herself nodding but fear crept up into her.
"We'll be right behind you," Her mother reminded her, a serious tone but it was also soften slightly, meaning to calm her daughter's nerves. Cathy nodded again.
"o-ok...." She declared, before sucking in a deep breath and barreling towards the pillar. Her eyes were screwed shut, she couldn't even watch, she just ran in the straightest line she could and hoped for the best.
She felt herself pass through some sort of mist like substance, she felt the area around her darken, and finally she opened her eyes.
There, was the glorious Hogwarts Express.