Tora pushed her trolley casually towards the barrier. There was quite a line-up and so she decided to take a little loop and come back in a couple minutes. She was a good while early after all and so there was time for these sorts of shenanigans.

It was really too bad Gram hadn't brought her all the way to the train this year. They had used side-along apparition to the Leaky Cauldron where she had stayed with Tora for the three days before the Hogwarts Express, but she had been called away back to the States for some serious Ministry business suddenly and so Tora was left at the Kings Cross doorstep to fend for herself. Really though, it wasn't that bad. As a second year she should be independent enough to get to Platform 9 and 3/4 by herself... right?

Quite honestly though, if it hadn't been for the streams of wizards dotting the crowd, generally heading toward the same platform, Tora would have been lost. Of course following wizards didn't necessarily turn out to be the best thing as she nearly walked through the wrong barrier. Luckily she noticed just in time that it was the 8-9 barrier instead of the 9-10 that she was about to collide with and thus avoided a rather embarrassing situation.

When Tora came back around to the correct barrier, and saw that the line of wizards waiting to get through had disappeared, she calmly waled toward the mass of brick and just leaned against it. She pulled herself backwards through the wall congratulating herself on a particularly sly entrance into Platform 9 and 3/4. Ahhhhhh. Hogwarts. Here I come.

Olly almost took a step back at the boy's excitement. Yes, that was her name. No, it really wasn't great to meet her. Okay, now she knew his name too. Great. At least now she wouldn't have to refer to him as, say, The Wall Boy. Not that she planned on having to refer to him as anything. Whatever. Just staring at him for a moment, she finally nodded slowly in acknowledgment.

Alec Summers, duly noted.

Despite the fact that Alec was quite vividly (for her anyway) describing a crash into the wall she was about to run through, Olly found his attempts of calming her nerves oddly amusing. His failed attempts, obviously. "Alec. You really are not very good at this, you know." She said with a small smirk, her eyes, which had up until now been focused on the wall in front of them, briefly flicking towards the boy next to her. Yeah, like really really not good at this. Though she oddly WAS feeling a little calmer about this now.

Okay, she had NOT been serious about her holding onto his shirt. And a piggyback ride? Olly regarded him for a moment, a genuinely amused smile playing around her lips. "I think I'll be fine." Her eyes resting on Alec for a second longer, she finally directed them back at the wall. Okay, deep breath. Gripping the handle of her trolley a little more tightly, she nodded towards the wall. "If I'm not with you after a couple of seconds-" She stopped though, a little unsure how to finish her sentence.

Come look for me? How lame was that?!

See, now they knew each other's names which meant that the girl could trust him. And his sweets weren't poisoned which was double awesome. And what was even more awesome was the fact that she was actually referring to him by his first name. What wasn't awesome were her words.

... He... wasn't good at this? The nearly seventeen year old let out a small, nervous chuckle as he looked down at the bag of sweets still in his hands. "I... sorry!" he said, reaching up a hand to ruffle his hair, "Does it... at least make you feel a little bit better?" He looked back over at the girl and gave her a sheepish grin. If not, he could try and recite a story of some sort. Maybe a funny one. ... Nah, he wasn't funny.

Alec almost wanted to say that he gave awesome piggyback rides, that his previous piggyback riders had had no complaints whatsoever, but... he remained silent. Especially since the girl had been saying something and then just stopped suddenly. "If you're not with me in a couple of seconds..." he repeated, stealing a quick glance over towards the wall before looking back at the girl, "I'll come back and... escort you?"

Alec the chauffeur. That's what he was.

Cutty paused at the funny vocal breathing sounds coming from the girls. His eyes slid unimpressedly at Jezzabelle and his usual scowl overtook and then just as quickly it was GONE. Heather Malfoy was ...touching him.

Heehhee. Something that doesn't fade after a bath or two? Like Cutty was really planning on bathing any spot Heather would sign. He clutched the autograph close to him and secured it inside of his robes overjoyed by the leverage it would give him...also the fact that Heather just kinda told Jezzabelle what for.

Aww, look at his happy face. It was really cute, wasn't it? Yeah, of course it was. Super adorable. Penelope grinned while watching him and watching Spot climb up onto his shoulder once he picked her up. It was also cute how her cat liked to ride on his shoulder too when usually she only liked being on Penelope's. Definitely a sign that Spot liked him a lot, which was good. The Gryffindor liked that they got along.

And as for what he'd forgotten, they needed to figure that out because they needed to- Oh. Heh. THAT was what he'd forgotten. Penelope quickly kissed him back, smirking as she pulled away. "Can't believe you almost forgot that," she teased him, poking his arm.

It felt like forever until she actually opened her eyes (or one at least) with an answer. Not that it was a useful answer, or anything. Theo raised an eyebrow, huffed, then stood back up straight. "Well," Great. "I don't really have time for this." Whatever THIS was... "I have a wall to walk through." He said that part quieter just in case any passing muggles would hear.

His eyes travelled to the clock and his heart leapt as 11am was fast approaching.

"Sooooooooooo, are you getting up, or what?" Because he needed the help and stuff, but he was too much of a MAN to say that out loud. Even in front of a weird little kid. Theo looked over his shoulder at Ariana.

"Ha, ha." FUNNY. Theo rolled his eyes but wasn't quick enough to stop her leaving for the wall without him.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooo.......

That meant that the weird girl was his only option for a hand hold.

D:

It was definitely his first time crossing to Platform 9¾. He would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous or scared. It was more of the latter because he was slightly afraid of the barrier to stop working and he would smash into the wall instead. Angeal stopped as he watched wizards and witches, parents and children, also teenagers crossing to the other dimension between platform 9 and 10. This is it. There many people like him, magical, unlike the mundane muggles he had to hide his magic from in everyday life. Not that he had anything against muggles. Except for those bullies who had to be hospitalised because of him. Heh! Serves them right! At least at Hogwarts, he is allowed to use magic without getting into trouble.

Roderick who was following his brother from behind didn't say a word to the younger boy. He knew Angeal very well not to agitate him in this kind of situation. Especially not in public. He knew very well how excited Angeal was to go to somewhere he can show his skills. He can't do that here. Roderick was always busy with work and barely had time or energy to play with his younger brother. For that, he felt sorry. "Don't forget to make some friends there, eh, shorty?" he said, patting the younger boy's shoulder.

Gwen paced nervously. She'd been told she needed to run through the wall, but every instinct screamed that it was a bad idea. She couldn't just run through a brick barrier. It wasn't going to move. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She began to run, but at the last second peeked to see how close she was to the wall, and chickened out. She took a second deep breath and just ran the last few steps. The worst that could happen would be that she hit the wall and got a headache. She'd had worse.

When she opened her eyes again she was standing in a magical place. There was a shiny red train, kids everywhere, animals and parents everywhere, and there was Gwen, standing there with one small trunk, unsure of what to do next.

Claudette watched the other girl carefully as she looked back to the barrier and seemed to hesitantly confirm what she had asked. Oh.. "Is this your first time as well?" At least that was the idea the French girl had gotten. She supposed she shouldn't have assumed otherwise, just by her age, because Claudette herself hadn't crossed this particular barrier to get to Hogwarts either.

"Yes.. we don't want to miss the train, do we?" Claudette bit her lip and glanced at the barrier herself before glancing around the immediate vicinity then looking back at the other girl. It was just too bad that she had gotten here as late as she did, otherwise she could have watched someone else so she would know how to do it properly and not have to admit that she didn't.

"It just.. seems like it could be some colossal joke.. or maybe there's a trick to it." She squinted at the brick wall. What if she did walk, or even run, at the wall only to crash into it? She could not afford such public humiliation.. not when she was new. But still.. she could also not afford to miss the train. She could only imagine what her mother would do if she had to return to fetch her. "Are you going to do it?" She turned back to the dark-haired girl and looked at her expectantly. One of them had to.. and then she supposed the other could follow, as long as the first did it correctly.

Just like last year her father wouldn't be able to stay with her until the train was ready to leave...if she remembered correctly he couldn't stay the year before either but what did that matter? She was no longer 11 and didn't need him standing beside her at all times. Lex knew fully well where she was going and how to get there on her own. This was no big deal. It was like no longer needing your parent to leave the car and follow you to your classroom when you got to school.

Alexa pushed her things over to the barrier, keeping a close eye on the muggles passing by. They never seemed to notice anything. How dull.

Felix was perched on the top of her trunk, looking more than just a little restless. She'd have to keep an eye on him in case he tried pulling another disappearing act. As she approached the barrier she noted a boy looking like he would take all day.

"Need any help getting through?" She offered so she wouldn't have to stand there all day waiting. The train waited on no one and neither did she.

It was one thing to appear having a pet owl, caged with muggles around. He was glad Terrant was asleep. For the moment, at least. Angeal wasn't sure if it would any longer soon when they entered the other side of the platform. He already seen enough ruckus of parents and students alike as they made their ways to the platform. When the word, THE word escaped Eric's mouth, the younger boy gave him the look like he was going to get hexed. "Don't. Call me. Short..." he gritted his teeth. His voice was soft, but firm.

Eric should consider himself to be lucky when a girl a few years older than him (Angeal) interfered them. Needed any help? Nooo~ Of course not. Eric couldn't dream of knowing how get to the other side, but Angeal had seen enough of wizards and witches running into the wall and not getting banged. To respond to the girl's question, he shook his head. Respect the elders. Except for Eric, if he keeps on calling him "shorty". "Muggles don't see a thing, do they?" said the boy in a muffled voice. He knew the answer to the question, but he'd want to hear a clarification.

No help needed, then he was perfectly capable of getting through the barrier but simply...making a note of it? Being fascinated...? Waiting? She didn't know. By all indications he was just standing there refusing a name that described his height. Didn't wanna be called short, she could respect that. She'd never liked being called that when she was younger.

The next thing to catch her attention was the owl in it's cage but only because her kneazle had taken a keen interest in it. Figuring her things wouldn't suddenly topple over, she released them and snatched him up into her arms. "Don't even." She murmured into his fur. There might no longer have been a Kurumi to worry about but that didn't mean she wanted to go kneazle hunting atop the Express again.

At his question she gave a curious look around their surroundings. "I don't suspect they do...but some might they just won't admit it because they think others will think they're mad." Seeing a kid run through a wall? Yeah, good luck getting hired.

"I'm Alexa by the way, and you are?"

Unlike Eric, whom Angeal liked to describe as a clueless bumblebee, was more of the observant kind. He noticed that the kneazle took a keen interest in his owl, but he couldn't care less when the girl let go of her things to catch the kneazle instead. As long as the feline won't make the lazy pigeon squawk like it had seen Lord Voldemort came back to life, he probably won't mind if there was a cat-like thing running loose at the King's Cross Station.

"... Or they might visit the doctors, telling them they have been seeing things thanks to the stress," the man in his twenties interrupted. He had watched more than enough muggle TV shows not to know this nonsense. Granted, it did save the wizarding world the trouble of Obliviating every single muggle who had stepped into King's Cross Station which means probably the whole London. Eric tapped Angeal's shoulder again, much to the boy's annoyance before he turned to smile at the girl.

"Hi there. I'm Roderick Phantom, but people just call me Eric," said he brightly. "This lad here is my brother, Angeal," he continued, tapping Angeal's shoulder again. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Alexa." Eric was different from Angeal. If Angeal was the quiet, cool and witty guy, Eric the open, friendlier and slightly more of a goofball.

Now he remembered why he wanted to go to Hogwarts so bad. He wanted to get away from his silly brother for at least several months. That didn't mean he respected Eric any less. He was still, after all, his brother and guardian. Not to mentian his brilliance at manoeuvering a broom and as a quidditch player. Yet, it didn't make him less annoying either. Angeal just nodded when Eric introduced themselves and he went into musing for a brief moment.

"You're not a first year, are you?" the question was intended for Alexa, not Eric. The latter seemed to be distracted by some pretty girls. Angeal sighed, scratching the back of his neck.

Olly hadn't originally intended to wait for a reaction from him but as it were she just so happened to catch it anyway. The way he ruffled his hair and looked down. His nervous laugh. His apology. She watched him with an amused smirk playing around her lips, her eyes following his every move subconsciously.

Something about this situation just struck her as absolutely hilarious. Though it might have also been her nerves making her feel just a little light-headed. She was about to run into a wall, after all. Nonetheless, when Alec asked her whether she was feeling better, Olly ended up shrugging. "...yeah. I guess." She admitted with her eyes back on the wall in front of her.

That didn't MEAN anything though. That didn't mean she owed him now or something.

Ugh. OF COURSE he had to finish that sentence for her. Great. He could have just nodded in silent agreement or something and save her the embarrassment of actually VOICING it. What had she been thinking anyway? She didn't need his help. It would work out. "Don't! I'll be fine!" Olly replied, a little more sharply than necessary as her eyes went back to staring at the wall.

Okay, Alec, after you.

Was it okay to suddenly start feeling incredibly happy at the fact that the Olly girl was feeling a bit better? Because he was! And it probably showed with the big grin that was now spreading across the nearly seventeen year old's face.

"Erm... I'm really glad that you are," he said, giving her a curt nod too. And what had they been talking about? Her trolley? Crashing? ... Yeah, he didn't know. "I hope you're excited about going to Hogwarts, at least," He wasn't going to scare the girl by mentioning anything to do with Dementors but Hogwarts was still an awesome place.

She'll be fine? "Okay! Don't take too long, yeah?" He gave her one last smile before turning back to the wall, both hands now gripped onto the handle of the trolley. He still didn't understand why he had to go first but okay. "Here goes..." he whispered, moving forward towards the wall. Over the years, this whole process of walking through the wall had gotten a lot easier but that didn't stop the Hufflepuff from closing his eyes right before he disappeared through the wall.

There. Easy as pie.

Yeah, he had forgotten to kiss his girlfriend. Whatever. If everyone else her judged him, he didn't care. Did they SEE her? It was exceptionally hard not to do that a lot 'cause he liked her face and stuff, yeah? Smirk.

Taking his hand in her own and squeezing it, he smirked at her to match her own and said, "Are we going through or not?" That was what she had been on about not a minute before, anyway. And he had gotten what he wanted anyway, so they were free to leave right now.

Well, not leave, but go through the wall. Yeah, she knew what he meant anyway. Yeah.

Heh. He was sweet, yeah?

But right, the going through thing. They needed to do that so they wouldn't miss the train. That would be bad. While she liked the home and loved spending time with him there, she didn't really want to spend her entire fifth year there instead of Hogwarts, and she was pretty sure he felt the same. It was nice, but the kids got a little crazy and wild sometimes. 'Specially Daryl. Strange kid.

Squeezing his hand back, she grinned. "Yeah, we're going. Together?" Might be fun to try it at the same time. Surely it would still work? It looked big enough to let two people through at the same time, at least to her.

She was new, and it was probably written all over her face in invisible ink, that was still somehow visible in certain light. Like when her face lit up, because she'd goofed up. Moments like that. "It is," First and last, Callidora thought. She had caught the 'as well' bit. "Yours too?"

"Nope." Of course not. It was kind of important to catch that train.. how else did one get to Hogwarts? Callidora had never asked, as it had never crossed her mind until now. It was an important piece of information, as it turns out. The in-coming seventh year eyed the barrier for a moment, considering her options.

A smile crossed her lips at the girl's words, her head nodding in agreement. "I'm hoping for a trick, because this is not funny." It really wasn't. Callidora had no intentions of running at a solid wall just for kicks. "And there must be. My sister and her boyfriend just finished up at Hogwarts." And Delphinia and Nathaniel had both assured her that the wall wouldn't stay solid. She was really counting on their words right about now. "It's not much of an option.." Callie said, smile still in place as she looked back to the other girl and gripped her trolley a bit tighter as she moved a bit to position. "I suppose we could do it together?" Or you know, one after the other.. just to ensure they both got through. Time was ticking.

Well, that was good in a way wasn't it? That the other girl was new too? They were sorta in the same boat.. even if she wasn't a seasoned expert who could just tell her what to do. It gave Claudette a sense of camaraderie, she supposed, to have to figure it out with another person. "Yes.." she admitted with a nod as the question was turned on her. "Transfer from Beauxbatons.." She supposed it would have been helpful to have arrived a little bit earlier.. or have her mother, who had gone to Hogwarts all seven years, give her a tad more assistance.. but that was neither here nor there now and she just needed to suck it up and get on with it.

Green eyes followed the gaze of the other girl and squinted at the brick barrier again. She was starting to feel a bit foolish. A sixteen year old witch should surely be able to get onto the platform unescorted.. She turned back to the girl as she heard her words and she mirrored her light smile. "My cousin as well.." Though he was really only there a few terms and never mentioned anything to her about how to get through the barrier. "We're probably overthinking it.. It's probably as simple as just walking through." If a first year could do it, she certainly should be able. But there was just that risk of public humiliation if she was wrong or she somehow did it incorrectly.

The French girl bit her lip slightly and nodded. She knew that didn't have much choice either and that their time was quickly running out. And then she gave her a grateful smile at her suggestion before eyeing up the barrier again. Yes.. it appeared wide enough that two teenage girls could go through at the same time, side by side. "Perfect idea," she said with a grin as she turned back to the other girl. Then if something did go wrong, she wouldn't be alone.. though she was beginning to think it would be just fine. She braced herself to go as she turned to face the barrier and gripped her belongings tightly. "On the count of three?"

Mitchell stared at the ticket in his hand. This. Was. Ridiculous. WHY was there a fraction on this thing? What was a Platform Nine-and-Three-Fourths? Why couldn't be just... 9? Or 10? He walked between both platforms. Why did those go to places he couldn't even pronounce?

The British were so... NOT American. And weird.

He straightened the beanie on his head and looked around. There had to be some kids around here that had... what was allowed at this school again? Toads? Right. Look for a weird kid with a toad. He could do that.

Lana was bouncing. BOUNCING. She was so excited to go to Hogwarts she practically couldn't contain herself. She was tugging her brother's hand - he wasn't walking fast enough. And he was just laughing. It wasn't nice.

"Come onnnn," she urged with more arm tugging. When Jake just laughed again, she sighed and dropped his hand.

"I have to go back, Lana. You know how to do this?" Jake waited for his little sister to nod before continuing. "Just run straight through the wall, okay? You got your trolley?" He smiled at the next nod. "Okay. You okay?" Another nod. "Alright. Love you, Lizard. Write to me, okay? Have a good term. You'll do great."

Lana could only nod again as she watched Jake leave. Hm. She was on her own, then. She looked around, pushing at her trolley to test it out. Not too heavy. She pushed it forward a ways before something more interesting caught her eye.

"MITCHIE!" She yelled. That was him! She bounced and waved a hand above her head, trying to catch his attention. Then she pushed her trolley over to him and BEAMED at the boy. "Mitchie! Hi! Are you by yourself again? So am I. My brother's not even around this time. Are you going to go through the wall? Are you waiting? Who are you waiting for?"

It had been a really long time since Adeline had been here, in this very spot, she remembered her first time here, she was only eleven years old, she was scared and excited at the same time about her new life. Adeline had grown up so much since her first year self, she had gotten wiser and older. Now she was headed to Hogwarts as a seventh year, she hadn't been to the castles since she was in her fourth year, that felt like it was so long ago. But she was back now, back to see all of her old friends, her boyfriend was coming back too.

She knew that her mind would flood with memories of the past and she hoped that they were all the good ones, no need for the sad time just the good times. She was very much read for this term, she knew what she wanted to do with her life once she leaves Hogwarts, she can't want to be an adult and have her own place to live in but right now she has to go on the other side of the wall. Adeline didn't want to go to the other side yet, she wanted to just relive some of the memories of four now five terms of seeing being right here.

People watching.

Ever since she and Michael had come to their little agreement over the summer, Rhodes took every opportunity to people watch as she could. And since King's Cross station was always filled with a load of people, people saying their hellos and goodbyes, she thought it was the very best place for her to learn. So far, though, she couldn't see anything that would help her. Probably because the place was too crowded now that school was about to start. And being short didn't help much either. Not to mention the fact that people continued to stop right in front of her and get in her way.

Like those two. She clicked her tongue a few times, just to get their attention before pushing herself off the wall she had been so casually leaning against and moving herself closer to them. She couldn't have people know she was watching them. That would be creepy.

"Are you two going to Hogwarts?" Yes. Yes. It was obvious that they were. They didn't need to answer. Not that she gave them any time to. "Because you're not going to get there by just standing around." Unless they were waiting for the wall to suck them in.. then they really would never get there.

Standing in between a sign that says 9 and 10, Mordred stared at the solid brick wall and held his breath. He felt like it was his first time again to pass through the barrier. This time though, he had a different reason why he’s feeling nervous. The young man pressed his lips and looked at his feet. “What should I tell her? I’m sorry?” Mordred winced and looked at the wall once more. He caught a kid with his parents go through it stealthily. “Merlin. You are pathetic, Mordaunt.” So…what should he tell her then? Mordred kicked an imaginary rock with his foot and made his way towards one of the pillars, leaned on it and waited for his target.

Maybe he should just…go with the flow this time. At least, he knew, that this day will bring some closure…so he will just have to be patient, and endure whatever’s going to happen next.

Alriight, her last ever train departure from platform 9 3/4. That was really strange. Sophie had mixed feelings about everything.On the one hand, it was brilliant because she could now do magic outside school - hence her trunk being so light now - and would soon be able to gofull timeinto Charm studies! On the other hand... no more Hogwarst after that year... which felt very, very weird.

The Hufflepuff smiled, though, as she thought of all the new spells and enchatments she would still learn that year, and pushed the trolley towards the magical platform. She checked her surroundings to see if any muggle was watching her, and pretended to lean against the wall absent-mindedly as she pushed her way through the platform.

When she was half way through the wall, she noticed.... HUH????

Sophie would do a double take, but she was already on the other side of the platform now with the most confused face EVER.