𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐥𝐞 | h. granger

v | he who must not be named

The Leaky Cauldron

── •✧• ──

𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐄𝐓 that night as he and Dakota ate dinner with Hagrid in the Leaky Cauldron. His cousin noticed this. She nudged him gently with her elbow, and he looked at her.

"You alright, hairball?" she asked, playfully ruffling his messy hair. Harry smiled weakly at the nickname she had given him when they were younger before turning to Hagrid.

"He killed my parents, didn't he?" he asked him. He touched the lightning scar on his forehead. "The one who gave me this. You know, Hagrid. I know you do."

"Someone killed Harry's parents?" Dakota asked, pouting softly. She looked down at her bowl of soup, no longer feeling hungry. "Is. . .Is that what my mum meant when she said that Aunt Lily got blown up?"

Hagrid sighed. He pushed his soup away and shifted so that he could face the two kids better. "First, and understand this, littluns, cause it's very important. . .not all wizards are good. Some of them go bad. A few years ago, there was one wizard who went as bad as you can go. And his name was V—" He sighed again. "His name was V—" He still didn't say the name.

"Maybe if you wrote it down?" Harry suggested.

"No, I can't spell it. .Alright. . .Voldemort," he whispered.

"Voldemort?" Harry and Dakota repeated loudly.

"Shh!" Hagrid hushed them. Harry glanced over his shoulder at the duo sitting at the table behind them. Bongo jumped up onto the bench next to Dakota. The girl brushed her fingers through his fur, and he purred softly. "It was dark times. Voldemort started to gather some followers, brought 'em over to the dark side. Anyone that stood up to him ended up dead. Your parents fought against him, but nobody lived once he decided to kill 'em. Nobody. Not one. Except you, Harry."

"Me?" Harry sucked in a deep breath. A single tear fell down Dakota's cheek at the thought that there could've been a possibility that her cousin wouldn't be sitting here next to her if Voldemort had successfully killed him. "Voldemort tried to kill me?"

"Yes." Hagrid nodded grimly. "That ain't no ordinary cut on your forehead, Harry. A mark like that only comes from being touched by a curse, and an evil curse at that."

"What happened to Vo— to You Know Who?" Harry asked.

"Well, some say he died. Codswallop, in my opinion. Nope. I reckon he's out there still. . .Too tired to carry on."

"I-If he's still out there. . ." Dakota began, gulping. "D-Does that mean that there's a possibility that he might. . .return?"

Hagrid inhaled sharply through his nose. He hesitated a moment before slowly nodding. "Yes. There is always the chance that He Who Must Not Be Named will come back."

Dakota pulled Bongo into her lap and hugged him close for comfort. She had been excited about this strange new world, but now, she wasn't so sure if it was safe. If there really was an evil wizard out there, what would that mean for her cousin? Would he try to kill him again? She couldn't bear the thought of losing him.

"But one thing's absolutely certain," Hagrid continued. "Something about you stumped him that night, Harry. That's why you're famous. That's why everybody knows your name. You're the boy who lived."

── •✧• ──

The next day, Hagrid escorted them to King's Cross Station. Dakota and Harry both pushed trolley's with their trunks and bags, their pets sitting on top inside their cages.

Dakota had barely gotten any sleep the night before, partially because of the upsetting story Hagrid had told them, but mostly because of her excitement for Hogwarts. She still couldn't believe that Aliyah also got accepted, and she couldn't wait to spend an entire year with her and Harry, but most importantly, away from her horrible home at Privet Drive.

She wondered what kind of people she would meet. What would her professors be like? Were magic classes hard? What if she was at a disadvantage coming from Muggles?

"Blimey! Is that the time?!"

Dakota was pulled from her thoughts at Hagrid's exclamation. He put his watch in his pocket and turned to the two children.

"Sorry, Harry, Dakota, I'm gonna have to leave you," he said to them. "Dumbledore'll be wantin' his, uh. . .Well, he'll be wantin' to see me. Now, uh, your train leaves in 10 minutes. Here's your ticket." He handed them their train tickets. "Stick to it, littluns. That's very important. Stick to your ticket."

Dakota nodded to show her understanding. She glanced down at her train ticket, furrowing her brows when she saw the platform number. "Platform nine and three-quarters?" She frowned and exchanged a look with Harry.

"Hagrid, there must be a mistake," Harry said, staring confusedly at his ticket. "This says platform nine and three-quarters. There's no such thing. . .Is there?"

The cousins looked up at the giant, only to see that he was already gone. They exchanged another glace. They were on their own now.

They walked through the train station. Harry inquired about the platform to one of the attendants, who gave them a rude response before walking away.

"It's the same every year. Packed with Muggles," a redheaded woman said as she led a group of redheaded children. "Come on. Platform nine and three-quarters this way."

"Muggles," Dakota and Harry said together, grinning at one another before following the family of redheads.

"Alright, Percy. You first."

The oldest redhead boy pushed his trolley forward and ran into the wall. Dakota gasped as he went right through it instead of crashing.

"Fred, you next," the mother instructed one of the twin boys.

"He's not Fred, I am!" the boy's twin said.

"Honestly, woman," the redheaded girl beside him said, shaking her head.

"You call yourself our mother," the other twin added, sighing in disappointment.

"Oh, I'm sorry, George," the mother apologized, correcting herself.

The redheaded girl giggled and exchanged a look with her brother as their triplet walked forward.

"I'm only joking. I am Fred." Fred smiled at his mum before running through the wall, George following, shouting over his shoulder, "C'mon, Hadley!"

"Seeya, Mum!" Hadley called over her shoulder as she followed her brothers through the wall.

"Be good, and don't start any fires!" the woman shouted after her daughter.

"Excuse me!" Harry announced himself and walked forward, Dakota following behind him. "C-Could you tell us how to. . ."

"How to get onto the platform?" the woman asked, smiling kindly at the two kids. "Yes, not to worry, dearies. It's Ron's first time to Hogwarts as well." She motioned to her youngest son, who smiled at them. "Now, all you've got to do is walk straight at the wall between platforms nine and ten. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous."

"Good luck," the youngest of the redheaded children, a girl just a year younger than them, said, grinning.

"Ladies first, Kody." Harry motioned for Dakota to go first. His voice wavered, showing his nervousness.

"If I die, I'm coming back to haunt you," Dakota threatened. Harry smiled innocently.

She pushed her trolley forward. She took a deep breath and ran forward, closing her eyes as she ran towards the wall. When she didn't feel a crash, she opened her eyes, breathing out in awe at the shiny red steam engine in front of her.

Harry appeared beside her a moment later, and together, they set off to board the train.