Chapter Thirty-Two
Scarlet
Harry was content. For the first time he could remember, he was awoken in a gentle manner, as opposed to some Dursley waking him with their noise, and he wasn't a pony at the same time. He certainly didn't mind being one – flying was incredibly fun – but he certainly would prefer if it wasn't a condition to having a good night's sleep.
The day had come. September first. Today they would be taking the train to Hogwarts. Of course, it would be three hours yet before that happened. He was still relaxed, just getting out of bed in Ron's room while not just Ron, but also all his siblings – those that were still attending Hogwarts, at least – were running up and down the stairs to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything. Harry got dressed, happy that he didn't need to waste time taking a morning shower ever since Sunset had started teaching them the basics of light magic.
The wizards had a popular cleaning charm of their own. They called it Scourgify. That charm was very unpopular, however, for use in personal hygiene. It wasn't dangerous, but it was very unpleasant. Sunset had theorized, after Mrs. Weasley had demonstrated the charm, that it was a side effect of it being little more than a selective vanishing charm and the empty space left behind by the vanished matter filling back up with air caused an unpleasant, cold sensation. The Weasleys had seemed confused and he himself had only understood the basics, but Hermione had claimed that it made sense, and he was inclined to believe her.
Using emotions to fuel his magic was an interesting idea. Drawing power from the bubble of happiness that always seemed to float around him since he had made friends a month ago seemed like such an obvious thing to do, in hindsight. The cleaning spell she had taught them was nowhere near as advanced as the one she had shown to the professors when they had visited, but for personal hygiene it was more than adequate.
He calmly made his way down the stairs, though he had to dodge Fred, George, Ginny and Percy on his way, and sat down in the kitchen where Mrs. Weasley was happy to offer him breakfast while she watched her children run up and down the stairs, shaking her head. Harry couldn't help but agree. He, Sunset, Hermione and their parents had told them, repeatedly, that they should get their things packed beforehand, but they wouldn't listen.
By the time he finished breakfast and Sunset brought over Dan, Emma and Hermione, materializing in the kitchen with nary a sound, they were still running up and down the stairs. From there he had a VIP seat to watch the following spectacle. Emma and Dan sat down beside him, expectant smirks on their faces.
Hermione leaned against the wall nearby and waved Mrs. Weasley over to join her. Meanwhile, Sunset was walking up to the stairs, her eyes glowing with magic. When she spoke, her voice reverberated throughout the house. "Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, Percy! The kitchen, now!"
The rumble on the stairs immediately stopped and a second later started up again. Within half a minute, all five siblings were standing before her in an orderly line. "Alright," Sunset continued, her voice back to a more normal volume but brooking no argument regardless, "I figured this would happen so we came prepared. Hermione?"
The girl in question snapped her fingers and five rolled up scrolls appeared in midair before her, three of them tied up with bands in different colors, the last two sharing one. In her usual pale green aura, she floated them over to the Weasley children, distributing them among them. The matching scrolls, unsurprisingly, went to the twins. After another second, she also distributed five fountain pens to match.
The latter was one of the muggle inventions that the Weasleys had adopted after becoming friends with the Grangers, all three of them and Sunset had argued that, magic or not, fountain pens were infinitely more convenient than quills. The Weasleys, ultimately, couldn't help but agree.
"These," Sunset explained, "are enchanted with a refilling charm. So long as someone with magic uses them, they will never run out. You can keep them. Now take those to your rooms with the lists, check off everything you have already packed and then take five minutes to think of anything you might need that isn't already on the list and add anything you think of. Then come back here."
The five took a few moments to marvel at the beautifully crafted writing implements. The mechanism was crafted from shining brass and the main body was made of beautifully carved wood. Each of them was engraved with a name in the flowing, twisted Equestrian script. Each was made of a different wood.
Ginny's was made from pale birch and engraved with the Equestrian word for 'Lightning', a reference to her ability to harness said element. Ron's was of dark walnut and engraved with the word 'Strategist', referencing his exceptional skill at chess. Percy's was made of elm, with beautiful, curly patterns in it, engraved with the word 'Authority'. Fred and George got matching ones made of ebony, carved with the word 'Trickster'. Their bright grins to Sunset upon seeing that were answered with a smile and a nod towards the stairs. Taking the hint, not only they, but all five siblings ran back up the stairs.
"We've got one for you and Luna as well, of course." Sunset kindly spoke, turning to Harry and snapping her finger, another pen appearing, held in her teal aura, in the air between them. Harry took the pen in his own brilliant green aura and pulled it closer. It was made of pale holly – a reference to his wand, he realized – and carved with an Equestrian word that, depending on context, could mean both 'Saved' and 'Savior'. He smiled sadly when he realized the double meaning.
In a flash of fire, Philomena brought Luna and Xenofilius to the kitchen. Once Sunset had explained what she was doing, she gave Luna her pen, made of mahogany and carved with the word 'Shadow'. With a smirk, Luna shadow stepped over to her and caught her in a hug.
Ten minutes later, Ginny returned as the first of the Weasley children, Hermione took her hand, took a look at her list and teleported the two away in a flash of pale green. Sunset did the same when Percy appeared a moment later. By the time Ron came down, Ginny and Hermione had returned. So the latter took Ron by his hand and teleported away again while the former went to double check her list, seeing if there was anything missing from it. Similarly Sunset took care of the twins when she returned with Percy a few moments later. In record time all five Weasleys had their things ready, and were prepared to head for King's Cross.
On Sunset's request, Molly took her hand and apparated the two of them to Platform nine-three-quarters. Shuddering, Sunset returned a moment later, mumbling something about having to teach her how to teleport properly, and took Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny to the Platform before disappearing again. A moment later, she returned bringing Xenophilius, Luna, Percy and the Twins.
On the platform, they saw her take a moment to breathe before vanishing again and making another two trips for the luggage. Hedwig and Hermes took the trip much better than they did last time. Errol had seemed quite happy to stay where he was.
Looking around, the group saw that the platform was still relatively empty. The train, however, was already in place. A bright scarlet steam engine stood on the rails before them, coupled to a set of seven long passenger cars. On the front of the engine, on its sides and on the sides of every car was a large green sign with polished brass letters 'Hogwarts Express'.
While Harry, Hermione, Sunset and Luna looked at the engine with interest, the Weasley children looked across the platform with slightly baffled expressions. Clearly they had never reached the train so soon. The clock above the platform informed them that it was half past ten.
Within a few minutes they had stowed their luggage on the train, handily claiming a compartment for the new first graders and one for the twins. Percy, already wearing his robes and proudly displaying his badge, brought his own luggage to one of the compartments at the front of the train that were reserved for the prefects.
They then returned to the platform where Hermione and Sunset were waiting with Mrs. Weasley, Emma, Dan and Xenophilius. Their shrunken luggage was safely stowed in their pockets. Harry's was too, but he had Hedwig's cage to take care of. Sunset still had Philomena on her shoulder, but the fiery bird was once more disguised as an eagle.
After talking on the platform for another twenty minutes, the kids finally boarded the train. The platform was much more heavily populated by now, so the twins had spotted a friend of theirs and dragged him off to the compartment they had claimed for themselves.
Harry, Ron, Ginny, Hermione, Sunset and Luna, meanwhile, took their own seats in the other compartment. When a shrill whistle sounded over the platform, they crowded around the window. And waved to their relatives. With a creaking of the axles, the train began to move. They continued waving until their car went around a bend and they lost sight of the platform.
Leaning back in her seat, Hermione sighed contently, then she stopped. "Say, Sunset?" When her sister looked at her expectantly, she continued. "How are mum and dad going to get home?"
Sunset looked at her for a moment, then buried her forehead in her palm. "I am such an idiot. Could you take Philomena for a second?" Once Hermione had let the 'eagle' perch herself on her arm, completely unfazed by the claws, Sunset blinked out of existence.
Emma and Dan had just come to the same realization as their daughter, and were about to ask Mrs. Weasley for help, when Sunset appeared before them, waved to Mrs. Weasley and Mr. Lovegood who were staring at her with wide eyes, much like many parents around, and blinked back out of sight, taking Emma and Dan with her.
When the startled pair reappeared in their living room, Sunset looked at them. "Sorry I forgot about you, you can thank sis for reminding me. See you." Before they got a chance to get a word in edgewise, she disappeared again.
After a moment, Dan turned to his wife. "I need to learn how to do that."
"Absolutely."
Sunset reappeared in the compartment and took her seat. After a moment all of them broke into laughter. "Well," Sunset finally managed, "now that that's sorted." They began to talk. After a while, Ron challenged Sunset to a game of wizarding chess. She was the only one who could give him an actual challenge. For many years she had occasionally played the game with the princess. While it had always been a humbling experience, it had also been fantastic training. Ron pulled out a box of enchanted chess pieces while Sunset conjured a floating board and her own pieces.
They kept up the conversation as they played. Around half past twelve, when Sunset was doing rather well, hoping to even the score which currently sat at three wins for her to Ron's four, there was a clattering outside and the door to their compartment slid open. Turning, they saw a smiling, dimpled witch looking back at them. "Anything from the trolley dears?"
Intrigued at the magical sweets, Harry, Hermione and Sunset, bought some of everything, the witch had. As it turned out, while magic was commonplace in Equestria, enchanting food was not. Ron and Ginny watched wide eyed as they carried it all back into the compartment in their magic. The witch looked at the floating candy in confusion. Luna looked at it with a slightly tilted head, about as close as she ever came to surprise.
While Sunset and Ron got back into their game, they listened as Ginny and Luna explained the various sweets. The chocolate frogs seemed a little macabre, but they didn't really mind. If anything, sweets that could jump into your mouths were quite convenient. The cards held some interesting trivia as well. Each card had a picture of a famous wizard or witch on one side, and some flavor text on that person on the other. Some of it actually wasn't mentioned in their books.
The Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans were another attraction, the name was taken quite literal. Curry, coconut, toast and sardine were only some of the flavors they encountered. Sunset was delighted to find one that tasted of hay, much to Hermione's amusement.
When Ron and Sunset were tied five to five, having just finished their latest game, a round-faced boy about their age pushed open the door. "Sorry, but have you seen a toad at all?"
Sunset turned to him, tilting her head slightly. "You lost your toad?" He nodded. Getting up, she walked over to him, taking his hand and turning the inside to face her. She looked at it for a moment, her eyes glowing faintly. "Hmm, that should be it." She turned to look up and down the train. "Now let's see here. Gotcha." She turned back to the boy. "What's your name?"
"Neville. Neville Longbottom."
"Well come on then Neville." With that she walked out of the compartment, Neville following her. She took him several cars back, before turning to one compartment in particular. It was filled with girls a few years older than they were. She pushed the door open. "Excuse me." Her hands glowed as a toad was lifted from under one of the benches. "There you are. Here you go Neville." Turning back to the compartment, she gave a quick, "Pardon the interruption," and closed the door again.
"You wanna join us, Neville? We do still have some room in our compartment."
"Uhh thanks, sure. Let me just grab my trunk right quick."
"Lead the way."
When they arrived back at the compartment a few minutes later, Sunset casually deposited the large trunk floating behind them under one of the benches and reclaimed her seat opposite Ron. A wave of her hand brought the board back into position and the two quickly started another match.
Meanwhile, Neville properly introduced himself to the others. He stuttered a bit at first, but their friendly attitude, even if Ron and Sunset were a little distracted, quickly helped him calm down.
im glad for nev making new friends
Neville enters the story, just please don't get him a new wand the wand was never his problem.
Great update! I cannot wait for em to arrive at Hogwarts, and I esp cannot wait for the sorting XD
9615080
Yeah, that's gonna cause discussions in the comments ... I can already see it coming.
9615088
Hypothetically speaking, what do you think would happen, if as a result of the hat being unable to place say Sunset, he makes a fifth house. The Equestrian house? (or some other related name)
9615093
I'm pretty sure that's not how the hat works, but hypothetically speaking that would be quite amusing ...
9615088
... Sunset's headed for Slytherin, isn't she?
9615115
What did I say? It'll be two more days before the chapter with the sorting even comes out and the discussion has already started ...
9615117
Of course the discussion started, we're readers! Discussing is about half the fun of it
Honestly though, I expect Hufflepuff. Friends-having Sunset is still ambitious, knowledge seeking and brave, but filling that void in her soul is what defines her at this moment, I'd say. That and not only would it create some interesting storytelling possibilities but it'd also have a rare something, a competent and powerful Hufflepuff.
9615178
Hufflepuff is ... interesting.
Obviously, Gryffindor is brave, Slytherin is cunning and Ravenclaw is smart. Sunset is all of those things. But Hufflepuff? Hufflepuff is a bit harder to pin down.
Of course, none of the houses are that easy to truly define.
Gryffindor is brave, but that isn't all, it's also defined by a strong sense of right and wrong and a strong drive to do what is right.
Slytherin is cunning and, to a degree, devious. But they're also organized, they're usually good at pulling the proverbial strings (or they're branless packs of muscle that didn't fit anywhere else, that's also an option)
Ravenclaw is smart, but there is more to it than that. They're also defined by a dedication to rules, a thirst for knowledge and a quick wit.
Hufflepuff, doesn't really have a stand-out quality like the others, but they, too, have some defining qualities. They're hard working, diligent, loyal, kind, usually honest as well as modest (which is something Sunset could still work on). All in all, they have less of a tendency to be exceptional, both towards good and towards bad.
Or at least, that's my interpretation.
9615250
Yeah ... gonna have to wait a bit ... that happens five years from now ... give or take
Nice to see Nev making friends quickly.
9615203
Hmm fair enough. This Sunset seems less driven by being a hero than post-demon one, dunno about honest or modest (when it suits her) and following rules is more like a suggestion, if needed be. But pulling strings, she's quite adept at that.
Still would like to see her in the "house of friendship", though.
9615396
That really would be funny, wouldn't it? Unfortunately, I can only see that happening if we can somehow send the tree of harmony back in time to become the fifth founder. And even I can't think of how I could bullshit my way to an explaination for that ...
Half an hour ahead of time and the train's already there?
... Interesting. I wonder how long they have it sitting there... and how many other trains might need to use that track. I mean, it's a very rare track indeed that's only used for one purpose. (I've seen real stations only served by one train, going one way in the morning and the other in the evening- but it shared rails with freight passing through the area... and the adjacent yard)
9615433
The problem is that it (and the Hogsmeade station) forms the only magical raliroad in Britain. It only drives twelve times a year. (From London (where its depot is apparently located) to Hogsmeade and back at the beginning and end of each holiday.) And there literally are no other trains that could use the platform. And what would a freight train be doing there anyway? That might not apply for the rest of KCS but platform 93/4 is a terminus.
9615404
I was actually referring to Hufflepuff as the house of friendship, but the tree going back in time and being a fifth founder would be hilarious
9615445
That is true, wizards are loathe to use muggle technology like steam-powered locomotives any more than they have to...
9615482
Unless the inventions were made long enough ago (they use quills, torches and brooms, after all) or they're cars. According to Pottermore wizards seem to have an odd fascination for cars. Apparently there are several pureblood families who are happy to publically decry anything coming from muggles, but privately employ a chauffeur for their enchanted Rolls Royce.
9615404
That would make an excellent crackfic.
9615491
That is true.
Fascination with cars aside, there is something in common with all the rest (quills, torches, brooms): They're simple objects, no moving parts. The fascination with cars kinda makes sense, even- the things are engineering wonders compared to other things- even from a muggle perspective- and they're so common.
I just had a thought... The Hogwarts Express probably only exists because it's the easiest (and most efficient) way to get a couple hundred students to Hogwarts... without having the parents take them straight to the gate. Gives them a nice, central terminus to gather all those far-flung students to. They'd probably do without the steam power, even... if that didn't mean pulling it themselves or using a handcar. (I doubt even magic can move that much steel very easily, for very long. Yeah, the Weasley's car could fly- it weighed one ton, many modern locomotives weigh thousands of tons, and said car also apparently required power from the engine to keep the enchantment working. No other reason the thing would've made so much heat the cooling system couldn't keep up, unless Mr. Weasley compromised it somehow. Nevermind they stomped on the throttle to accelerate- or climb).
9614857
Oh wait so you did a time skip from Fillydelphia (Btw it's Filly with a y, not i) to Manehattan? That was very jarring then, no indication that there had been a time skip.
9614969
Well you refuse to consider what's shown as fact in the show, only considering things that prove you're right, not what proves you wrong, so I guess there's no possible way you're wrong is there?
Hooo boy. If memory serves me correct, we get to meet the prissy boy witch next chapter. That will be entertaining to see Sunset deal with him.
SoD broken here...Sunset to OP pls nerf. It's like a fact of existence that the weasly's can't make it to the train early.
9616291
The thing is, why add it if it's going to be a thing that lasts a single chapter? Especially given it breaks away from what's already happening unnecessarily?
9615203
Agreed, and Sunset has qualities of every house in her at this point. Gryfindor is a bit cliche even of her hair matches, but Slytherin and Ravenclaw would also be interesting choices. It actually be kind of interesting if not everyone winds up in the same house.
I suspect that there is going to be some talk from Ron and Luna about the other houses and what they mean.
9616325
They could use it as a big discussion on the houses and famous or infamous wizards from them, and perhaps also have a pov of Dumbledore considering the ramifications of two muggles being turned into magicals. Might be enough for him to try and have Fawkes take him to Equestria.
9616522
True but at the same time the show has directly contradicted the idea on more than one occasion. In the movie Twilight had her magic drained but could still fly and in the season 8 finale all the magic was being drained from Equestria yet Earth Ponies and Pegasi were unaffected nor was it stated or implied they would ever be affected by it.
If we wanna go back earlier let's look at the winter wrap up episode from season 1 where no magic was allowed due to Earth Pony traditions yet Pegasi were not affected by this rule nor was it stated that Earth Ponies themselves used magic.
Hehe… I had the amusing image of Sunset deciding to send Celestia a few chocolate frogs. (The older you get, the rarer it is to experience novelty.)
Had a curious ponderance for a while now, but didn't know how to work it into a comment appropriately… I was wondering what some of the more unusual applications of light magic might be, in relation to creating “light” spells by starting with something relatively mundane, like the cleaning charm.
What might a light magic color changing charm do? Or a cheering charm? How about the levitation charm? The tickling charm/hex/whatever? The muggle repelling charm? (Weird as that question is…) How about the uh … “Point Me” spell?
And what about enchantments, like a undetectable expansion charm?
What is the silliest thing to make a light magic version of? The bat-boogie hex? *shug*
9615068
How can you even say the wand was never the problem? It was blatantly stated it was an unmatched wand in canon. While far from the ONLY problem, it certainly made it worse.
9624897
Exactly; Neville is a mess for the first few years. He was constantly belittled by being called a 'squib' when his magic failed to show, causing him to be pushed off a pier and dropped out of a window, among other things. He was also constantly unfavourably compared to his comatose father, on top of the pain of having his parents so obviously not themselves anymore. He was forced to use his father's wand, which isn't a match for him whatsoever. At Hogwarts, he's bullied by Snape and Malfoy, among others, and I doubt he makes many friends.
Neville lacks self-confidence and is miserable, until Harry befriends him in fifth year, I believe, and really only gets courage in seventh year, leading the Hogwarts resistance.
9675027
I see Neville as what Harry could have been, if he did not have the fame from his scar or the luck to find those first few friends. He had abuse, for the opposite reasons, but his potential and bravery were easily Harry's match.
If Voldemort had chosen Neville, I wouldn't doubt that he would have been defeated just the same.