𝐑𝐄𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒-ℍ𝕒𝕣𝕣𝕪 ℙ𝕠𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣❥

𝐎𝐎𝐓𝐏 𝟖

"Maybe because you're a weirdo and got drunk off of a butter beer." Harry shrugged "Just a thought.

Mrs Weasley wrenched open the front door and stepped out into the weak September sunlight. Harry, Emily and the dogs followed her. The door slammed behind them.

"Where's Tonks?" Harry said, looking around as they went down the stone steps of number twelve, which vanished the moment they reached the pavement.

"She's waiting for us just up here," said Mrs. Weasley stiffly, averting her eyes from the lolloping black dogs beside Harry and Emily.

An old woman greeted them on the corner. She had tightly curled gray hair and wore a purple hat shaped like a porkpie.

"Wotcher, Harry," she said, winking. "Better hurry up, hadn't we, Molly?" she added, checking her watch.

"I know, I know," moaned Mrs. Weasley, lengthening her stride, "but Mad-Eye wanted to wait for Sturgis. . . . If only Arthur could have got us cars from the Ministry again . . . but Fudge wouldn't let him borrow so much as an empty ink bottle these days. . . . How Muggles can stand traveling without magic . . ."

But the great black dogs gave a joyful bark and gamboled around them, snapping at pigeons, and chasing there own tails.

Harry and Emily both couldn't help laughing. Sirius and Eric had been trapped inside for a very long time. Mrs. Weasley pursed her lips in an almost Aunt Petunia-ish way.

It took them twenty minutes to reach King's Cross by foot and nothing more eventful happened during that time than Sirius scaring a couple of cats for Harry's entertainment and Eric jumping on top of his father and biting his ears.

Once inside the station they lingered casually beside the barrier between platforms nine and ten until the coast was clear, then each of them leaned against it in turn and fell easily through onto platform nine and three quarters, where the Hogwarts Express stood belching sooty steam over a platform packed with departing students and their families.

Harry inhaled the familiar smell and felt his spirits soar. . . . He was really going back. . . .

"I hope the others make it in time," said Mrs. Weasley anxiously, staring behind her at the wrought-iron arch spanning the platform, through which new arrivals would come.

"Nice dogs, Harry!" called a tall boy with dreadlocks.

"Thanks, Lee," said Harry, grinning, as Sirius and Eric wagged their tail frantically.
"You alright Em?" He shouted once again. Emily hummed in response as Eric and Sirius went from happy dogs to growling at the boy "Oh behave." Emily whispered tapping them both on the noses.

"Oh good," said Mrs. Weasley, sounding relieved, "here's Alastor with the luggage, look . . ."

A porter's cap pulled low over his mismatched eyes, Moody came limping through the archway pushing a cart full of their trunks.

"All okay," he muttered to Mrs. Weasley and Tonks. "Don't think we were followed. . . ."

Seconds later, Mr. Weasley emerged onto the platform with Ron and Hermione. They had almost unloaded Moody's luggage cart when Fred, Ethan ,George, and Ginny turned up with Lupin.

"No trouble?" growled Moody.
"Nothing," said Lupin.
"I'll still be reporting Sturgis to Dumbledore," said Moody. "That's
the second time he's not turned up in a week. Getting as unreliable as Mundungus."

"What the hell?" Lupin whispered under his breath staring at the dogs.

"Leave it Lupin." Mad-Eye said in his usual deep voice.