Crossing the Lake

Actually, children living in the wizarding world were usually very bored. The Weasley family's home, The Burrow, was hidden among the hills and trees south of Ottery-St. Catchpole Village, yet most Muggles had never even noticed there was a house there.

There were only four wizarding households nearby. The Diggorys lived closest to them, but they were still several miles away.

The only way to visit each other was by broomstick or some other means. In fact, the children of the four families barely interacted.

The Weasley children rarely went to Ottery-St. Catchpole Village, much less played with ordinary Muggles.

However, the Twins said their brother had a Muggle friend—a pretty girl.

"Most Muggles are hard to get along with. They always think we're weird, so we usually can't play together. And... my house is pretty far from town too."

Lee Jordan had it even worse. He was an only child, so sometimes he could not even find someone to play with.

Albert had it much better than them. He had a younger sister, a pile of books, and occasionally played ball with others. Usually, though, he would not play with a bunch of little brats. It was too boring.

Though he did not have any real close friends, Albert was quite popular at school. After all, he had excellent grades, was good at everything, was easy to talk to, and knew how to maintain relationships.

Albert had asked the three of them whether children in the wizarding world attended Muggle schools.

It was hard to imagine a family like the Malfoys letting their child attend a Muggle school. Obviously not.

Of course, some wizards were exceptions.

The Twins had never gone, though. Their basic education had all come from their family.

"By the way, is there a wizarding family called Smith?" Albert asked. His Grandfather's original family had been the Smiths. Later, after following his Muggle relatives, he had casually changed his name as well.

That showed just how much he had hated the person who had abandoned him.

"Never heard of them. What about you, George?" Fred looked at his twin brother.

"Me neither." Lee Jordan shook his head. "Why?"

"Nothing. I just don't know where I heard that surname before." Albert shifted his gaze out the window. Visibility was poor, and the sky was gradually darkening.

Come to think of it, he had not realized Lee Jordan was such a chatterbox. The guy loved talking nonstop.

The three of them did not find it annoying, though. The compartment was boring anyway, and listening to him ramble was practically hypnotic.

Albert opened his eyes again. He felt the train seemed to be slowing down.

"In five minutes, the train will arrive at Hogwarts. Please leave your luggage on the train. We will deliver it to the school for you." A voice echoed through the train over the loudspeakers.

"Merlin's beard, we're finally here." Fred lazily stretched. After sitting on the train for so long, he was not feeling particularly alert.

George helped clear the snacks off the table and put them into Albert's trunk.

The train finally came to a stop. The four left the compartment and were swept along by the jostling crowd in the corridor toward the doors.

Getting off the train was truly chaotic. They stepped onto a tiny, dark platform. Cold rain poured down, and the chill of the night made Albert shiver.

"I hate rain," Albert muttered. He took out his wand, pointed it at his Pointed Hat, and cast a spell. "Waterproof Charm."

"First Years! First Years, over here!" A booming voice shouted from the platform. He held a lantern high over the crowd and waved it to catch the new students' attention.

"What are you doing? Hurry up and follow." Fred reached out and pulled him.

"Wait a moment." Albert cast the Waterproof Charm on his robes as well. He did not know whether it would work, but it was better than nothing.

"Hurry up, Albert," Lee Jordan urged.

"Don't rush, I'm coming. Lumos." Albert held up his wand and headed toward Hagrid. He was truly a huge man, with a long beard, and looked rather frightening from a distance.

If you did not know better, you might have thought he was some dangerous criminal. He really did look intimidating.

"Any more First Years? If everyone's here, we'll set off!" Hagrid led them away from the platform. Once they lost the shelter of the platform, the icy rain struck their bodies, raising goosebumps all over the new students.

"Watch your step!" Hagrid shouted, but it was no use. The rain had turned the path into a muddy mess, and quite a few people fell several times along the way.

Albert tugged his Pointed Hat and robes tighter around himself. Fortunately, the Waterproof Charm had worked, so he did not end up drenched like everyone else.

Why hadn't I learned how to conjure an umbrella with a wand? No, Albert remembered that there was a folding umbrella in his trunk.

He was a little annoyed with himself.

Albert decided to find time to learn that useful spell. Then he would not have to worry about getting caught in the rain without an umbrella again.

"You all right?" Another unlucky fellow had fallen right in front of him.

"Thank you. This trip has been awful," the girl he helped up said gratefully.

"Keep moving." Albert let go of her hand, using his wand to feel out the path as he slowly made his way forward.

This was definitely the unluckiest group of new students ever. Many had fallen and were covered in mud.

He also heard Lee Jordan, not far away, cursing under his breath. He had just been dragged down by someone beside him.

Albert suddenly felt that staying at the back had been a wise choice. At least no one would drag him down.

"Be careful, it slopes downhill ahead!" Hagrid shouted from the front. After going down, he waited nearby to keep any students from slipping on the steep slope.

It proved to be a wise decision. Three unlucky ones nearly fell, but Hagrid caught them in time.

"Careful now, we'll be at the lake soon."

Once everyone had gone down the slope, Hagrid took the lead again. They stumbled around a bend and finally reached a black lake.

On the slope across the lake stood a castle. That was Hogwarts Castle.

Lights flickered in the castle windows, especially striking through the rain-darkened night.

"No more than four to a boat. Remember, no more than four!" Hagrid shouted at the newcomers, pointing to the small boats by the shore.

"Albert, over here." One of the Twins waved at him. Lee Jordan was there too. They were both splattered with mud and looked utterly bedraggled.

"You all right?" Albert could barely hold back a laugh as he climbed into the little boat.

"Not at all. I fell once and got dragged down twice."

"Get in the boats!" Hagrid shouted. Carrying his lantern, he made sure no boat was overloaded, then boarded one by himself. "Good, then... forward."

The boats moved without oars, gliding across the lake.

Albert looked up at the castle ahead, feeling a vague, inexplicable excitement. Hogwarts, here I come.