0033 The King’s-Cross Station

Words : 1133 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

After placing the luggage in the car trunk, Adrian opened the back door for Harry to get in, while he himself took the passenger seat. Lupin sat in the driver's seat, observing the steering wheel while muttering quietly, "So how do I start this thing again?" Seeing Lupin's fumbling, Adrian kindly reminded him, "Don't forget to turn the key." Lupin froze momentarily, then hastily followed Adrian's instructions, turning the key. The engine rumbled, the car shuddered slightly, and successfully started. "Oh—well, that was simpler than I expected," Lupin nodded with satisfaction, gripping the steering wheel with both hands, looking eager to try. Harry looked curiously at Lupin, "Mr. Lupin, have you driven a car before?" "Of course," Lupin said, patting his chest, "I tried it once, just yesterday." "..." Harry carefully turned to look at Adrian cautiously, as if asking whether letting Lupin drive was reliable. Adrian smiled and shrugged, "Don't worry, Harry. I'll be watching him the whole time. At least he didn't drive the car into a river yesterday." "That's really reassuring," Harry muttered, checking his seatbelt several times. ... Although they hit a few garbage bins and a squirrel that suddenly darted out on the way, Thankfully, Lupin reacted quickly, and they only lost one headlight on their small car. Finally, they arrived at King's Cross Station in one piece. The station was packed with people. Lupin left first, as a batch of herbs at the plantation was about to mature at this time, and he needed to complete the harvesting promptly. Adrian cast a levitation charm on Harry's luggage cart, reducing some of the weight. Now Harry only needed to pull it gently. "Where should we go?" Harry asked, looking at the people coming and going around them. "Between platforms nine and ten." Adrian hadn't been back to this familiar station for a very long time. King's Cross Station was almost identical to how it had been more than a decade ago. Except for the brick walls having darkened somewhat, with a few noticeable water stains on the red bricks, and the notice boards looking a bit aged, the basic layout hadn't changed at all. Adrian led Harry to a pillar between platforms nine and ten. Before them, a family was already gathered at the entrance to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. From their trademark red hair, it was clearly the Weasley family. Adrian stood behind this family, watching as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley busily sent their children into the station. "All right, all right, Fred, George, you must listen to your brother," Molly Weasley said, adjusting Ginny's collar while not forgetting to warn the twin brothers. The twins immediately looked up at the sky in unison. At this moment, Arthur Weasley, who was at the back, noticed Adrian and Harry who had arrived behind them. "Children, hurry up, there are people behind us," he urged the dawdling twins, then gave Adrian an apologetic look. Adrian waved his hand, taking out a silver pocket watch from his pocket to check the time: "It's no problem, take your time, sir. We're still early for the train's departure." Mr. Weasley relaxed a bit at this. Adrian looked at Weasley, with a hint of understanding in his eyes: "Having so many children must be quite tiring, right?" Unexpectedly, Mr. Weasley smiled. "Not at all," he said. By now, the twin brothers had entered the station one after another. "Ah, are you also here to see a child off to school?" Mr. Weasley noticed Harry standing beside Adrian, "A first-year?" S~eaʀᴄh the novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Indeed," Adrian said, "Today is this child's first day of school." Harry stood somewhat awkwardly beside Adrian. Hearing Mr. Weasley's words, he nodded. Mr. Weasley smiled, with a hint of curiosity in his eyes: "Oh, then you must be this child's father." He squinted at Adrian, then looked at Harry again, seeming to feel something wasn't quite right. "You look so young!" he exclaimed in surprise, then touched his own slightly balding head. Harry immediately felt embarrassed and coughed lightly, while Adrian laughed easily, explaining, "Well, actually, he is the child of a friend of mine." Mr. Weasley, hearing Adrian's explanation, understood this wasn't a good topic. After Mrs. Weasley sent the last child, Ron, into the station, she waved to Mr. Weasley, "Dear, we should go now." "Coming." Mr. Weasley responded, then nodded slightly to Adrian and Harry, "Well then, we'll be off. Best of luck to you both." After the Weasley family went in, only Adrian and Harry remained at the station entrance. Harry looked around at the crowd and noticed that passersby seemed not to see the two of them, hurriedly passing by. This was probably some kind of magic. "Alright," Adrian tugged Harry's hand, gesturing for him to focus, "let's go in too." Harry nodded, took a deep breath, pushed his luggage cart, and following the example of the Weasley children, ran towards the pillar. Although he knew he wouldn't crash into the wall, Harry still instinctively closed his eyes the moment he made contact with it. When he opened his eyes again, he had arrived at a completely different place. A red, old-fashioned steam locomotive appeared in front of him. Many children about his age were continuously boarding the carriages, their chattering voices was constantly swirling around him. Looking around, he was standing on a platform with a sign nearby that read: Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Clearly, this was the true departure point for the Hogwarts Express. Among the dense crowd surrounding him, Harry noticed that many people were wearing wizard robes like Adrian's, which gave him a sense of familiarity. When Adrian came in and saw Harry still in a daze, he gently patted his shoulder, reminding him, "Come on, Harry, it's time to board. You can still pick a good seat if you hurry." Only then did Harry snap back to reality. He looked at the steam train before him, then at Adrian, and a hint of reluctance appeared on his face. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end just scratched his head and said, "Thank you, Mr. Westeros, See you during the Christmas holidays. I'll write to you." Having already seen the Hogwarts schedule, Harry knew he wouldn't be able to return home until the December break. Adrian's lips curved slightly upward, "See you later, Harry." He wondered what expression Harry would have when he saw him at the Hogwarts opening feast. Adrian was looking forward to it a little.

0033 The King’s-Cross Station

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