The Shrieking Shack || The Marauders (Book 1)

5. JAMES

James Potter had been to the King's Cross station before on various occasions- more times than he'd like to admit. For a child with such a long heritage of great wizards, the little boy really hated travelling by the Floo Network; he could never do it right.

So James Potter had been to the King's Cross many times using various wizard platforms for commute but he had never, in his eleven years of existence, been to the platform nine and three quarters. It took him by surprise.

A big red engine stood at the platform with hordes of kids milling about as white smoke drifted overhead. And right there in the fray cats of all possible colour and breed swept across their feet and owls hooted from their cages looking at each other with big beady eyes. Some of the kids clutched at brightly coloured toads which came in all sizes, ranging from tiny knut sized ones to giant ones almost as big as a fat cat. James was pretty sure he passed a kid holding a big jar with a huge surly looking neon blue tadpole inside and a squat girl with a toad-like face man-handling a bright pink kitty.

A few of the kids were showing their friends new spells they had learned over the summer while the others were busy whisking their trunks into various compartments.

A grin soon emerged on his little face and his hands moved towards his pockets.

"Oh no you don't." His mother snapped his hands away before he could reach his wand. "No magic til' you learn some. Remember hon, no mischief and no magic on the train."

James's lips pressed in a pout. "I was just grabbing my Berti Botts' mom," he said, taking out a small box of candies from his pocket.

"Oh don't be so cross Jamie, your mother's just worried you'll get expelled before you even make it to Hogwarts," his dad said with a snort.

James straightened his glasses and started pushing his trolley. "I will not!" he said indignantly, avoiding his father's hands, who was trying to ruffle his messy black hair.

He pushed past a group of seniors who were all talking excitedly about giant spiders.

"In the forest? No way!" 

"There's a whole family I tell you, thousands of 'em. Seen it with my own eyes," boasted a pale boy with blonde hair and pointed chin.

James struggled ahead looking for an empty compartment. The first few carriages were already loaded with kids but he found an empty compartment near the end of the train. Something rubbed against his legs and he looked down. "Oh there you are." It was only Ginger, a tiny orange kitty with a flat face and big copper coloured eyes his dad had given him as his going away to school present. Though if he thought about it, Ginger hardy qualified as a domestic pet, he was more of a free spirit and disappeared randomly only to appear later as and when he liked.

He caught the kitty, holding him by both his hands and threw him inside, much to the cat's displeasure as it scratched his hands and then ran away. "Stupid cat," James murmured as he tried to push and heave his trunk inside the compartment.

"Need some help?"

James turned around at the voice to find a nervous looking eleven year old, dressed in flashy Muggle clothes, with black hair and sparkling grey eyes.

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