FIC: Moments on a Platform (PG)
Title: Moments on a Platform
Type: Fic
Age-Range Category: Two
Character(s): Snape, mentions of Lily and her family
Author: gracelessmary
Rating: PG
Summary: A series of snapshots travelling to school.
First Year
Kings Cross train station is the furthest place I have ever travelled. My mam had been visited by a strange old man with a silly beard and been given a battered bangle, which we had to be touching at 10.30am on 1 st September. I of course knew all about the Hogwarts Express, and had read in passing about portkeys, but even my mam's quiet explanation the night before didn't prepare me for the squeezing and whirling and unceremonious dumping onto the floor down the alley next to the heaving station. I didn't let my pain show on my face though - never let any emotion through or it'll be used against you. We hurried to the platform through crowds of muggles, my mam's hand clutching at my shoulder in a vicelike grip, spotting only a few fellow wizards by their trunks and strange clothing. I, of course, was the picture of ordinary - the more you stand out the bigger the target on your back is. Yes, my clothes were worn through, but they couldn't be described as anything other than normal. Getting onto the train was just like any other day at school, giving my mam a brief squeeze of the hand before stepping into the already crowded carriage. I'd managed to stash my battered old trunk, bearing the initials 'EP', up on the rack of a small half-size section, where several other students had already stashed their trunks before going to reunite with their friends. I joined the general crush of people wandering around as the train gathered speed, eager to find the girl from my town, Lily.
Second Year
I can't believe it's the end of summer. I had quite possibly the best summer of my life, spending long days in the park with Lily, talking about charms and potions and transfiguration and one memorable evening spent stargazing when we both snuck out after dark. This year, I travelled to King's Cross on the train with Lily and Mrs Evans, enjoying their quiet conversation and the rush of the country outside the window. It had been nice to feel included, even for a short while, a far cry from the dismal reception I got at home. As Lily and I settled into the carriage on the Hogwarts Express, I almost wished the summer wasn't over - the red train took me further away from uninterrupted time with my best friend the further north we pulled.
Third Year
Another good summer gone. The first week in August was the hardest, when the Evans family had travelled to the coast on holiday, meaning long days at home with my increasingly disappearing mother and my ever more violent father. Lily had mentioned last week that she might be sitting with her Gryffindor friends on the train, since she'd not seen them at all over the holidays. I understood, even though it hurt, as tensions between our houses was increasing with You-Know-Who growing in power. The train set off with me sat alone - unable to tell anyone why I missed my friend so much.
Fourth Year
What a strange time. Lily, Mr Evans and I travelled south by train ready to catch the Hogwarts Express, and I found that I actually looked forward to going back to school. The summer had been less enjoyable than I expected, with Lily visiting her Gryffindor friends for several weekends and returning each time even more distant from me. Whatever happened to sticking together? Her friends don't understand her like I do, don't know how sad Petunia made her, didn't hold her crying when she had news of her grandparents deaths in such a short timespan. What does she see in them? A load of loud, brash, abrasive tossers. Regardless, she did shoot me an apologetic glance over her shoulder as she left me alone once more.
Fifth Year
Ready. I am ready for anything this year. My abusive father finally dead, a portkey shared with Lily because her parents had an emergency with Petunia and they asked me to accompany her, and best of all a chance to prove my strength at the end of the year. The OWLs loomed over us all, but I relished the chance to show just how much I'd been underestimated throughout my time at Hogwarts. I resented Lily abandoning me as soon as we reached the platform, but as the Gryffindor Golden Girl I'm sure she couldn't bear to be seen with someone like me. No, not bitter at all, just ready to prove my worth once and for all.
Sixth Year
This year I travelled to the station alone for the first time. Things with Lily were… strained still. My mother far too ill to accompany me, Mrs Evans cool with me when I saw her in the street, as if her youngest daughter's disdain for all things magical had rubbed off on her. I disliked taking a portkey again - especially as I'd had to get one specially commissioned from the Headmaster due to the lack of funds in my household to purchase one from the Ministry, with me obviously not allowed to work magic outside of Hogwarts still. I caught the glances a couple of the younger Slytherin students as I boarded the train - my fights with the Gryffindor boys had become legendary over the last year and I increasingly had to avoid the young ones altogether just to get through the day. It didn't matter though - I had a group of sixth and seventh year Slytherins around me, who all respected my… talents for what they were. It didn't hurt that Lucius Malfoy had called on me over the summer, bearing a message from the Dark Lord showing his interest in my potential over the next few years. It would be worthwhile to be granted that protection and guidance, for I certainly didn't have any other adults interested in my wellbeing or scholastic prowess.
Seventh Year
The alley was deserted as usual. As I strode past the muggles milling around the station, I felt a few eyes on me. It seemed like the Dark Lord was indeed keeping an eye on his hopeful recruits, especially as I witness the clumsy oaf MacNair knocking a child to the floor in his hurry to get to the platform. I watched the girl be scooped up into her father's arms, gentle and comforting, as she cried over her dropped teddy bear. It looked nice, being cradled safely and crying into a shoulder with a gentle hand running over lovingly plaited hair. As I slid through the entrance for the final time, I spotted a gleam of silver shrouded in black watching from behind the next pillar. The platform materialised in front of me, causing me to shrink slightly to hide my too short trousers. Such a frustrating time, to be an orphan and looking after oneself outside of Hogwarts, but to be unable to perform even the most rudimentary mending charms due to the trace on underage magic! As the train pulled away from the station, sat in a carriage surrounded by my fellow Slytherin seventh years, I wondered what would happen in my very last year at Hogwarts.