The Thunder in My Heart

The Hogwarts Express once more...

They didn't know how many of their year would come back until they actually arrived at Kings Cross Station and got on the Hogwarts Express. Harry and Hermione arrived early for the train to try to avoid the rush. There was a welcome awareness to the smell of coal smoke and steam mingled with the diesel of the muggle trains elsewhere on the station. The clatter of people and luggage and the squeaks of trolley wheels against a backdrop of shouts of children greeting each other after four months of separation almost covered the kind of hushed reverence that followed Harry and Hermione down the platform. They tried to ignore the people who pointed and stared and whispered but thankfully they were left alone and not mobbed for even Harry was not in the mood to engage with it all for once. He had kept his head down and had been strangely silent since they'd left Grimmauld Place and Hermione wondered whether it was here that he was going to have a change of heart.

The Auror on Harry's guard duty guided them towards a specific compartment near the rear of the train. The door held a sign which declared 'Reserved for Year Eights Only'. They were both slightly disturbed by it, admitting they would have quite enjoyed sharing the journey with Ginny and Luna again but Hermione supposed it was part of Harry's security detail. They stepped inside and hoisted their trunks up onto the racks before taking their seats by the window. The Auror remained in the corridor, policing who was trying to get near the compartment and shooing away intrigued first and second years who were trying to get a closer glimpse of the famous duo.

Mione ran her hand over the fuzzy velvet material of the seat, sighing with contentment as she reacquainted herself at it's comforting familiarity after over a year.

'We're actually going back, Harry,' she said joyfully.

'Yes,' he sighed and looked at her balefully. She could see the apprehension in his green eyes.

'It'll be okay, Harry.'

'Yes,' he smiled. 'I'm sure you're right. You always are!'

Crookshanks settled himself on her knee, purring noisily.

Blaise Zabini joined them shortly after and sat next to Hermione. Despite the slightly awkward initial greeting they settled in together, talking about who else they thought might be coming. Hermione felt a shot of sympathy for him when he admitted to avoiding contacting anyone over the past four months and to being quite unsure about coming back because of the Slytherin legacy with the Dark side. She was impressed when he admitted that he felt his qualifications were too important to miss out on for going forward.

She was also rather taken aback when the softly-spoken, tall, model-like man unabashedly admitted, 'I need my N.E.W.T.s, I can't end up like my mother, she's set up some openings for me but I won't rely on my looks to procure my fortune. It would turn me into no more than a hollow media whore and I'm worth more than that.'

Susan Bones joined them next, then Terry Boot, Hannah Abbott, and Neville Longbottom. Just as the whistle of train announced its departure and the familiar chug of the engine started to propel them slowly out of the station, the Auror slid open the door to the compartment and Draco Malfoy stepped inside bringing with him the strong smell of vanilla, green apples, and old books.

Hermione thought Draco's eyes betrayed a fleeting lack of confidence and nervousness before the Malfoy demeanour resumed and the door closed firmly behind him. He majestically took the final seat and crossed both his long lithe legs and slender arms, opting to stay in his denim jacket and grey baggy beanie hat and scarf which he almost wore defiantly as if challenging everyone to comment on his change of appearance. She smiled to herself regarding his unconscious defensive stance, then immediately turned her eyes on Harry. She strongly suspected some of the roots about Harry's openness regarding his sexuality lay in his antagonistic relationship with Draco Malfoy, even if he was yet to admit it.