An ever growing party

An: Damn, I've been having a hard time figuring out how to write this novel recently. It happens from time to time. I transition between both my novels, where I find one much more interesting to write than the other, and I swap often. Not an excuse to put it off I know, and I deeply thank you for your patience. Tell me what you think and let the journey resume!

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The trained released puffs of steam that created little clouds that lingered around the sides of the carriages, some blocking the entrances, blinding students momentarily as they walked in. Quaffles would fly out and hit some students from time to time, causing a ruckus. The only trace of the culprit was the quick pitter-pattering of footsteps as they scurried off, hiding in one of the numerous carriages never to be found.

Chocolate animals would fly out of open windows, frogs, birds even miniature cats. Parents were casting some magic to fix their children's attire due to their earlier rushing in order to make it on time. This was most famously seen by the Weasleys, all of them untidy and disorderly.

I felt slightly bad for Molly, yet my observations were cut short by Padma, who tugged at my hand, pulling me up a short flight of stairs and right into one of the many corridors. What never ceases to amaze me is the feeling it gave me. The moment I stepped in, the seemingly cramped train expanded several fold, with wide corridors and big rooms.

Yet, somehow, the sheer amount of students still managed to make it look and feel small. The smell of different shampoos wafted involuntarily into my nose as I brushed past numerous people making me frown instantly.

The constant bumping and yelling reminded me of the peacefulness brought by my room, where I could dwell in peaceful solitude, reading silently, yet, that dream had been crushed under the foot of these overly enthusiastic girls dragging me along.

"Harry, hurry up, or we won't make it on in time!" a slight nasally voice yelled. I could discern who it was even amongst all this noise, for it belonged to the redhead Tom and I seemed to always have a feud with.

The boy in question was similarly dragging along a small and skinny boy with a thin face and knobbly knees, his Windsor glasses refracting the light as his hair split to reveal his trademark lightning bolt scar.

It was the trouble-making duo I would have to deal with on a daily basis, alone this time. Thinking about it gave me a headache, yet once again, that momentary thought was left behind by the incessant pulling of Padma as we squeezed into one of the empty rooms before anyone else.

"Hooo… that was suffocating," Padma exhaled as she sat down and rested her head on the backrest, "get comfortable, Hermione, it's a long ride," she said breathily with a giggle. I tilted my head momentarily before realising I was still standing. I looked around quickly before awkwardly taking a seat opposite Parvati and beside Padma.

"You're so far away, come closer," Padma said, tapping the empty space beside her invitingly. I looked at it before wiggling a little closer.

"Closer~" Padma said, stretching her neck and shaking her head. Unwilling to continue anymore, I wiggled a little bit more, forcing a sigh out of her, "seems that's as much as I'll get out of you." Yet, she continued to smile happily and turned to look out the window.

"Introverts tend to struggle when it comes to making connections with others. This is because they like to be alone. Put it this way, an introvert starts the day with 5 coins, with each interaction they have, they lose a coin, and by the end, they are exhausted. Now an extrovert, they start off with no coins, but the more they interact with others, the more coins they get, the happier they become. So take it easy, sister. She just needs to warm up to us, isn't that right, Hermione?" Patil said abruptly, surprising both me and Padma. She never once looked up from her book, seemingly entranced by it yet still capable of saying as much as she did.

"I forgot how much of a nerd you are for that psychology stuff," Padma said with a chuckle, turning towards me and tapping my shoulder with hers. An involuntary laugh escaped my throat, much to my shock.

"Oh? so you can laugh? And here I thought you were as cold as that Tom boy." Padma said, feigning astonishment. I tiled my head and gave her a 'come on now look.

"I'm glad you derive amusement from verbally insulting me…" Parvati said seriously, causing the room to turn cold.

"PFFFT! I'm just kidding; look at your faces!" She laughed, giggling madly as she turned back to her book.

I turned to Padma questioningly, only to have her wave me off, "that's just how her sense of humour works. I have lived with her my entire life, and she still finds a way to trick me into believing her words. So don't take her seriously."

"Seems it's working miraculously for you," I said jokingly, only for Padma to fold her arms over her chest poutingly, causing all three of us to laugh again.

"Hey, where do you think Tom is? I haven't seen him, how long will we wait here? We're going to miss the train at this rate," said a boy with unkept hair just outside our window. His uniform was scruffy and untidy, making him look like a slob.

I was surprised to hear them talking about Tom, yet looking back, I did see him hanging out with them often near the end of the year.

"Seamus?" I called. The two boys turned around with looks of surprise and excitement. They didn't exactly respond. Instead, they pulled themselves up enough to take a good look into the carriage before plopping down in disappointment.

"Hey, Granger, where's your boyfriend? Why isn't he here yet?" Seamus said indignantly.

My brows tightened the moment 'boyfriend' came out of his mouth, its always that word! I shook my head and quickly explained why Tom was absent. After repeating it so often, I got rather good at summarising events.

"So he went off to America without so much as a notice? I knew I should have told him to write to me over the holidays! How unfortunate." Dean said. Unlike Seamus, Dean wasn't sloppy with his attire, a sharp tie and unblemished clothes without the slightest crease. They are polar opposites if you ask me.

"Why don't you join us?" Padma said as she leaned her head out the window, a happy smile on her face as always. Like me, they couldn't find a way to refuse and quickly found themselves beside the ever-oblivious Parvati, who would probably or, better yet, was already psychoanalysing them.