Welp. This was it. Ellie's last time on the Hogwarts express, castle bound. It didn't really feel any different than any of the other times she had been on it. But in the back of her mind, she knew she would only get to ride this train one more time.

Tugging her things down the almost empty train, she found a compartment in the middle. Ellie put her things up on the shelf above the benches and took a seat. She looked out the window, watching students say goodbye to parents and other family members. She smiled, remembering when her father took her to this very same platform for the first time. Six years ago.

Arabella-Marie made her way into the middle of the train dragging her heavy trunk behind her and carrying her owl cage as well and found an empty compartment and placed her stuff as best as she could on the luggage rack above and hoped that somebody would join her during the journey as she was going to be lonely

Free compartment!! Yaaayyyy!! Aurora fell into a seat and chucked her bag on the one opposite her, crossing her legs. Sebastian jumped onto her lap and curled up, his white fluffy body moving gently up and down. She breathed steam on the window and wrote her name in it, smiling slightly. She was excited to be going back to Hogwarts - she missed everyone - but she knew she was going to be cramming with all the studying. Music exam at Christmas, and then starting her OWL studies early so she could decipher the books properly... why were there so many WORDS? Not that it mattered right now; Right now all she needed was to see her friends... and Kennedy. Though Kenny and Kimalia would both be in the prefects compartment... pfft.

Logan found an empty compartment on the train and put his things up and away (except for his cat) he smiled and looked out his window. He was so happy to finally be leaving for Hogwarts! He then thought about Cardigan and hoped she'd sit with him. Out of all the people he had made friends with, her and Jezz were his best friends so far.

Hmm… middle of the train or back? Both were where the really fun stuff happened, but the middle was closer to the platform. Middle it is then. Having made this very important decision, Sky opened the door to an empty compartment, stepped in, stuffed her trunk in the overhead rack, and sat down. She was excited about getting to Hogwarts, wondering what this term had in store. She was determined to get out there and get in the middle of all of it. She leaned back with a sigh and a smile, curious to see who (if anyone) would join her. Hopefully, they wouldn't be a bore. Or a Hufflepuff.

Annabelle made her way through the train. She lugged her trunk and found a compartement. Charlene her owl was in the storage room at the back of the train and hopefully she was alright. She had a sigh of relief and finally got to her thoughts. Annabelle took out her little bag and a piece of parchement and was using penicls and pastels since she learned how to draw from her muggle grandmother. She loved it and found it very relaxing. As she was in her fourth year, she wondered what was in store. Annabelle began drawing the water and scenery as it flew by the train

Ryan found a compartment with only 1 boy in it so he opened the door and walked in a nd said''Mind If I sit here.''He said smiling.

Bastet seemed to have a mind of her own today.

He followed the bald cat who was swerving in and out of the crowds, determined to get to a spot where she wouldn't be disturbed. He ran after her, dodging the crowds that were already beginning to flood the train, apologizing to anyone whom he hit along the way. She made a sudden stop and the fourteen year old managed to scoop her up in his arms and make way back up to the front of the train where he had been perfectly content sitting and enjoying his first journey to the school. But he paused along the way, glancing into a compartment to see a familiar face, one of the very few faces that he actually knew. One of two to be exact.

He slid open the door, giving her a nervous smile before looking at the free space opposite. "Mind if I join you?" he asked politely, although it sounded a little odd in his strong London accent. He was trying his best to disguise it but so far it had gone drastically wrong. He placed Bastet down on the floor where she made her way over to the seat and sat there guarding her spot.

Cornelius Rune waltzed down the hallway of the train, one of his hands shoved absentmindedly in his pockets, and the other lugging a large duffle over his shoulder as he kept his lively eyes ahead of him. Well, that was a slight lie. He was looking ahead, but darting his eyes from side to side, glancing at each compartment door as though each held a pile of presents behind it, just for him. He bounced ever so slightly as he walked, moving down the hall at a casual, yet somehow energized pace.

Where to sit? The front? The middle? The back? SO MANY CHOICES! Cornelius finally chose an empty compartment in the middle of the train, throwing his duffle bag onto the floor before plopping down in one of the seats. Though sitting, one of his feet tapped absentmindedly, his hands neatly folded on his stomach as he leaned back into the seat. And then, as though deciding to fill the space around him with something because no one had come to join him yet, he began to hum. Loudly. "Hmmmmmm. HMMMMMmmmmmmMMMmmmmmhhhhhhhHHHHHHHMMMMMMMmmmmmm!"

Aurora glanced up as she heard the compartment door open, oh! "Hey, sure!" Aurora dumped the disgruntled Sebastian on the floor for a moment and grabbed her violin case from the seat across from her - as his bald creature had taken the only other free seat - putting it up in the above storage bit, then she sat back down and lifted the cat back onto her knees. He instantly forgave her for putting him down and began purring as she tickled him behind his ears.

"Excited now you're on the train?" she asked, grinning. She dug into her pocket and produced a white paper bag. "Jelly baby" she asked, holding it out to him.

Logan smiled and nodded. "Sure, go ahead." he said. "I'm Logan, by the way." he said.

Alyssa was tired so she went and looked for an empty compartment where she could just stow her stuff and sit back and rest for awhile. She walked until she came across one. Pulling her trunk into the compartment, she stowed it under the seat. Then she placed her owl's cage on the rack above her before sitting down and taking a place nearest to the window. She didn't expect that she would be experiencing so much drama on the platform today. First with her friends and then encountering Aaron on the platform. All she wanted to do was to close her eyes and hope that when she opened them, they would have arrived at Hogwarts. She sighed and tried to hold back the tears. She was still hurting inside from her encounter with Aaron. She thought that she was over him and she thought she was, until she found out that he had lied about why they needed to break up. Alyssa now wished that she had let Claudia stay after all. Letting out a big sigh, Alyssa just closed her eyes, leaned against the window and let the tears roll down her cheeks.

''Thanks.''He said sitting down.''I'm Ryan a second Year Gryffindor.''He said smiling.

Chelsea made her way to the middle of the train pulling her trunk behind her. She walked into an empty compartment (since she seemed to have lost Ryan when the train got here). Taking her wand she levitated her trunk and owl cage on the over head rack above the seat. As she sat down she looked out the window, hopefully someone would come by soon..or else it was going to be a boring ride to school.

Bradley smiled as she allowed him in, shuffling past her cat as he watched her move the instrument case away and then sitting directly opposite. "What do you play?" he asked, looking up at where she had now placed it. He could tell it was a string instrument, he wasn't stupid, but there were so many different sized ones that basically looked the same and musicians could get a bit annoyed if you got the name of their instruments wrong. He watched his cat plonk herself down, satisfied that she had indeed got the best seat in the whole train, it was always the case with her.

"Kinda. Ain't sure excitement's my thing but yeah, guess I am" his lips curled up into a small smile as he rested back against the seat. Comfortable. That was a good start. And he was satisfied he had good company. "Yeah. Go on then" he reached out to take one out of the bag. "Thanks" They were muggle sweets right? Wrong.

He took a bite and the thing squealed as loudly as he could. Slightly shocked he quickly swallowed what he had in his mouth and placed the rest on his lap. "What the heck was that?" he asked wide eyed.

Ryan was walking through the compartments when he noticed Chelsea sitting alone.He opened the door and said''Where'd you go.''He said laughing.He sat down next to her and said''I'm chatting to a boy In another compartment.''

Aurora glanced up at her case and back to Bradley. "Well, that's a violin." she said. "Which is my favourite. But I play flute and piano too." Yup, music she could do... music and potions. Anything else... eh, average... or below average when it came to Arithmancy and Astronomy... And Runes. "But yeah... I like music." she said, shrugging. "My father taught me to play." Until he decided she needed a proper tutor... and then Dr MacNally had happened. Heh heh.

"Well, there's nothing wrong with a bit of excitement." In fact, a lot of the time excitement was a very good thing indeed. She let Bradley take a jelly baby first, before taking one for herself.

Oh... Right. "Sorry... I... they're jelly babies..." she said, looking at him sheepishly. "I forgot you're muggleborn... they're harmless. And they still taste good, right?" Ooooops...

Quickly turning her head when she heard the compartment door slide open she jumped. "There you are! I couldn't find where you went. One moment the train is pulling up and the next I can't find you" she laughed. "Thanks for sneaking up on me by the way" she laughed. Sometimes she could startle easily. After a few seconds her heart rate was back to normal "Should I grab my trunk and go over then?" she asked with her trademark smile. Sometimes she wondered if Ryan ever got tired of seeing her, but she couldn't help it she loved being around him.

"Nice to meet you, Ryan." he said smiling. "Second year? That's cool." he said.

His eyes followed hers up to the case, lowering them back down as she spoke. "I thought so. They all look the same those viola's and cello's and whatever" he sounded so unintelligent when it came to classical instrumentation. He had always wanted to play the drums but his mum wouldn't allow for the kit to be in the house and disturb the neighbours. Electric guitar would be pretty cool too but he was a typical teenage boy, not into the classical music. "That's cool" he smiled, interested. "I ain't been allowed. Neighbours would hate it" especially as they were mid-terrace. The sound would just penetrate the walls so easily.

She was right. There was nothing wrong with him being excited about this new door opening up in his life. "I suppose. I'm lookin' forward to seein' what it's like you know?" he glanced out the window momentarily. "And seein' if I actually get what's goin' on." This would be his trial. To see whether the magic world would benefit him anymore than his muggle life was currently doing.

He stared down at the jelly baby. blinking in amazement and in shock. It made him not want to eat it. "Is it alive?" he asked rather stupidly. To him it looked like it was, and in that case he wouldn't touch another. He swallowed. "Yeah they taste good but.. That thing screamed at me" And that was just WEIRD! Who would think up that? What other strange foods did they have in this world?

Alec dragged his trunk along behind him as he walked down the corridor of the train. His grey blue eyes searched this way and that, trying to find an empty compartment. Somewhere he could rest after everything that had happened on the platform.

And then his eyes rested on a compartment. It had a girl in it. A girl who was... why was she crying? She was going to Hogwarts! He couldn't understand why anyone couldn't be happy about that. Alec did want to find a compartment to himself... but he couldn't just walk away from the crying girl.

Alec slid the compartment door open and poked his head in. "Erm, excuse me?" he asked, "Can i sit here?" Maybe he could do with some company after all. And this girl might need some company as well. He could help, couldn't he?

Aurora nodded, "I guess if you didn't know then it could look like a viola... but a cello is much bigger." she said, gesturing with her hand. "And a double bass is even bigger than that. They're taller than me, actually." She'd never had the urge to play one... violins were much prettier! "Hmm... I suppose that could be a problem. We don't have neighbours." she admitted. And if they did they would have to live a completely different life... or make sure the neighbours weren't muggles...

"It's beautiful..." she said, glancing out of the window as the train began to move. She glimpsed a shock of red hair, startlingly similar to her own, ten noticed it was Kryspin, stood on the platform, waving at her. Wait... he hadn't gone home when he said he had..? The cheeky so-and-so. Oh... he was stood with a very pretty looking blonde woman... she hoped, for her own sake, it wasn't someone's mother... Anyway, she waved at her idiot older brother as he disappeared from sight. "The castle I mean." she added, turning back to Bradley. "And you'll get it, most people have no idea what's going on when they first get there - everyone gets into it pretty quickly." She reassured him, tickling the sleepy, purring Sebastian's stomach as she spoke.

"Alive?! No! It's just a charm... hang on." Aurora produced her wand from a pocket - she could finally use it now that she was on the train. She took a fresh jelly baby from the bag and pointed her wand at it. "Watch. Finite Incantatem." she muttered, hoping it would work. "Now listen." She popped the jelly baby into her mouth and chewed it... silently. She swallowed. "See? Just a silly charm."

Alyssa quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and cheeks because she didn't want anybody to see that she had been crying. She turned to see who was talking to her. It was the younger boy that she had seen on the platform. "Oh hi there. Sure you can sit here. My name is Alyssa and it's nice to meet you. Didn't I see you with a couple of friends on the platform? Did you lose them again? "Alyssa smiled at him sticking out her hand to shake the boy's

Time had been an extremely important thing to Miss Valentina Kelly, in fact it always had been. Rarely was the brunette late any where and today was no different than usual. She had told her new friend Bells they were to meet up on the train at this place at this specific time and Val was naturally already there. Right on the dot, actually. Her eyes scanned around a bit, looking for her new friend but caught no sight of her. Honestly, Val hadn't expected her to be here just yet but it still would have been nice, yes?

Of course it would have been.

With a final look she snapped her head around and went into the compartment, her legs propped up on the seat. Yeah, now all she could do was wait and pray the blonde was timely, maybe not as timely as she was but at least had SOME sort of sense of time. It would have been a nightmare if Bells had been late and missed the train, not only a nightmare for Bells but also for Val. She'd be the one who would be sitting alone.

She waited.