“Are you sure you don’t need me to drop you off at the ptform?” A good-looking ese man asked his daughter from the driver’s seat, watg as she stood beside the road with a backpack, a wheeled luggage case, and a birdcage.

  “I’m one hundred pert sure,” Scarlet replied, motioning for him to leave. “You ’t get into the ptform anyway. Don’t worry, you know hoable I am. It’ll be alright. Besides, worst-case sario, if I get expelled, I always go back tur school and proceed with my career pns, you know, the career pns?”

  “If you say so,” Kyle Hong sighed, “Remember to send me an owl once you’ve settled in, alright?”

  “Yes, I will,” Scarlet said, tinuing to shoo him away. “Now go before the guards chase you off for blog the way!” Finally, her father merged his car into the busy stream of vehicles.

  She had arrived at the station early to avoid potential crowds and have a more rexed timeframe to stroll around like a tourist. Well, she hadn’t had the ce to be here for a leisurely walk before, so why not take a look at this famous spot?

  She tried her best to recall this part of the story from her previous life but failed as usual. She wasn’t a huge fan of the Harry Potter series, though she did have some impression of it sihe series was a massive hit when she was young, and she had watched the first two films with friends. However, she had been too busy with her career to put much effort into remembering the story. If she had known she would one day be reinated into the Harry Potter universe, she surely would have memorized every siter in the books!

  Too bad she didn’t know about it beforehand. All she could t on was her vague memory of a story about a boy and a dark wizard. Probably a sad tale, as she recalled the colour tones of the posters for the ter series being rather dull and depressing, but it was still a children’s story, so there should be a happy ending, right?

  She thought she was just bei out of the memory-sing process after she died when she was tossed into this new world and reborn as a child. Being a child with an adult’s memories wasn’t an ideal position, as you’re stantly bombarded with all sorts of values that go against your beliefs. People would think you’re weird and treat you differently. Not that it was bad; she knew how to deal with it. It’s just that she sometimes felt quite lonely, as no one really uood her. Luckily, things ged when her dad adopted her from the orphanage. Finally, she could do whatever she wanted, and her dad wouldn’t object at all.

  However, she felt some odd aspects when paring this world to her previous ohe most obvious part was how the tial ptes looked, and some locations had different names from what she remembered. And the try she had beloo did at all! Most of the history was the same, but some parts were entirely different, as if this world with the Harry Potter story had the same source as her previous world but took a different path, thus resulting in a different developmental trajectory...

  Well, it wasn’t a big deal anyway, si didn’t cause her any problems. In fact, she didn’t even know this was the Harry Potter universe until she received the acceptater from Hogwarts, delivered by a dy who called herself Professonagall. Oh my Queen, that was quite a shock for her dad, who had been rather fused by her destined career path.

  After expl King’s Cross Station and buying some sandwiches and biscuits for lund tea orain, she finally began her search for the mysterious Ptform 9?.

  “Ptform 9?...Should be situated between Ptforms 9 and 10, so I’ll just head there and look for a hidden portal,” Scarlet muttered to herself, recalling Professonagall’s instrus. Holdiicket, she vaguely remembered a se where a boy, pushing his trolley, ran into the wall and hit his forehead...So, was there a secret password to ehe wall? And using the wrong password would result in hitting the wall? But Professonagall hadn’t mentiohat...

  While walking slowly, searg for Ptforms 9 and 10, the red-haired girl, alone, and so focused oask in the bustling station, that she startled when two teenage boys with widened eyes stood in front of her.

  “Oi, Gee! Look what we’ve found - our long-lost sister!” one of the boys excimed, his eyes twinkling with mischief.

  The other boy chimed in, “Blimey, Fred, you’re right! That hair’s as Weasley as they e!”

  Only then did Scarlet notice that both broadly grinning boys were red-haired. It surprised her as she assumed most redheads stayed in Sd and Irend, making it rare to see any red-haired individuals outside of thions...Well, probably not so rare in Engnd, but indeed unon in Asia, where she had just returned from.

  “Well then, our dear long-lost sister,” owin said with an exaggerated bow, “might we have the pleasure of your name?”

  “Bet it’s something posh,” the other added with a wink.

  Scarlet chuckled at their funny tones aures, “Hi, I’m Scarlet Smith. o meet you.”

  “Pleasure’s all ours,” the twins spoke in perfeison.

  “Fred! Gee! Where were you two? It’s time to get to...oh, hello?” A woman’s voice suddenly sounded nearby. Scarlet located the sourd saw another four redheads; whoa, a family of six, all with red hair!

  The twiured dramatically towards Scarlet.

  “Mum, you’ll never believe our luck!” oarted.

  “We’ve only gone and found our long-lost sister!” the other finished.

  “Re she’s a distant cousin at least,” one suggested.

  “Probably shares out great-great-gran's sed cousin’s he other added sagely.

  Three of the other redheads chuckled and giggled along, while oeenage boy rolled his eyes.

  “Hello dear, it’s lovely to meet you.” the woman said, approag Scarlet warmly, “I hope my boys didn’t frighten you off. They be quite a handful with their pranks and jokes.”

  “Not at all,” Scarlet replied, notig their old-fashiorunks. There were hints of the unusual, with a rge owl cage and a small cage likely for a rat, which she ected to the list attached to her acceptater. She asked, “Excuse me, could you poiowards the entrao the Hogwarts ptform? It’s my first time here, I’m a bit lost.”

  Initially surprised, the red-haired family soon uood. The woman motioned for Scarlet to follow her and said with a smile, “Not to worry, dear. It’s Ron’s first time to Hogwarts as well. e along with us, we’ll ehe ptform together.”

  The you boy, Ron, gave her a timid smile, while the you girl approached eagerly. It must have been fasating for them to see another young, unattended redhead witch here too.

  “I’m Ginny, Ginny Weasley.” the you daughter introduced herself, falling into steps beside Scarlet, “I’ll be at Hogwarts year.”

  “Scarlet Smith.” Scarlet smiled while pushing her luggage with her birdcage resting on top, “I don’t know much about Hogwarts. Do you all go there?”

  “Oh yeah, our whole family does,” Ginny nodded, reag out to steady the birdcage. “Most wizards in Britain end up there, really.”

  All British wizards attend the same school? Scarlet mused. It seems like a pretty small popution with not much popution flow.

  Ginny gnced around, her brow furrowing slightly, “Where are your mum and dad? Did you e on your own?”

  “Dad dropped me off,” Scarlet expined. “I told him I’d be alright, Didn’t want him getting lost in the crowd, you know?”

  “How e?” Ginny asked, looking puzzled.

  “Well, he’s...what’s the wain? Muggle?” Scarlet said while subtly watg for their rea, “I’m not sure if that would be a problem...”

  “That’s nothing to worry about!” Ginny said quickly, “Loads of students have Muggle parents. You’re perfectly fine.”

  “Yeah, but...” Ron cut in, his ears turning slightly pink because it’s his first time talking with a future sate, “Some gits care about that stuff. Best to steer clear of them, though.”

  Stereotype? Discrimination? Racism? The same old song sung in every er of the world, it seems. Scarlet mused with a nod.

  They soon arrived at the wall Scarlet reized as the ohey o run through, simir to what she remembered from the film. The teenage boy named Percy went through first, then Fred and Gee. Just as she was about to walk towards the wall, a timid voice came from behind, “Ex..excuse me, cou...could you tell me how...”

  All the redheads turned around to find a skinny boy with oversized clothes pushing a trolley, looking nervous.

  “How to get onto the ptform?” Mrs. Weasley, the Weasley matriarch, pleted his sentence kindly, “Don’t worry, dear. e with us, we have two attending Hogwarts for the first time as well!”

  The skinny boy still seemed nervous, likely needing some time to gather his ce. So Scarlet turned her head and walked towards the wall. As expected, she passed through a magical barrier and emerged onto a ptform filled with steam and the smells of old engines.

  Right, a 9-hour train journey now. It had better be nice. Scarlet thought to herself with a sigh. She had sidered going to Hogwarts from her p Sd, but Professonagall had rejected that suggestion, insisting that taking the train was the only way for students to enter Hogwarts.

  Fine, hopefully it will be a det school year, she mused, though she had her doubts. Scarlet turned her head to find the skinny boy’s face alight with excitement and wonder - the protagonist was here, the story beginning, so...it seemed there was a lot to look forward to in her uping school years, huh?