"Well, somebody gave us a boost back there," Ralph said. "I felt it happen."
Lucy opened her mouth to respond, and then stopped. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"Wait a minute," Zane said, pointing at Lucy and looking at James. "She's this year's Rose, right? She's the smart one!"
"What, Lucy?" James asked, bumping her.
Lucy shook herself. "Well, like I said, it's impossible, but still…"
Ralph threw up his hands in exasperation. "So tell already!"
"I think it might have been Petra," Lucy said, looking at the three boys.
James felt a shiver coil at the base of his spine. "Why do you say that, Lu?"
Lucy's face was tense as she thought about it. "I was in the same car as Petra. Back in the middle of it all, even when those dark flyers were blasting the engine with their wands, Petra stayed unusually calm. Uncle Harry and Professor Longbottom were firing back at them and there was no end of confusion, what with everyone screaming and the train crashing along the street, but Petra just sat there, holding Izzy's hand. The two of them were just looking out the window, watching everything happen. And then, when the train leapt up, aiming for the tracks, I saw it…"
"Let me guess," James said quietly. "Petra closed her eyes. Like she was concentrating on something."
Lucy looked at James. "No," she replied meaningfully. "They both did. Izzy and Petra both. And that's when it happened. That's when we lifted up onto the tracks. That's when we didn't crash."
There was a long awkward moment of silence as everyone considered this. Finally, James heard the approach of footsteps from the railway bed in front of them.
"James, and the rest of you," Neville called up from the side of the tracks. "The other train is finally ready for us. Go and alert Professor Remora and the others in our group, will you? Tell them we're boarding a different train for the remainder of the trip. With any luck, this journey may still end tonight."
James nodded. Along with Lucy and Ralph, he climbed to his feet and threaded back through the rear doorway, into the dark train.
The second train wasn't as nice as the Zephyr, but it was quiet and moved with similar speed. James found himself in a sparsely populated passenger compartment with most of the rest of his traveling companions. The rocking of the train, and the darkness outside the windows once the city was behind them, lulled him into a mild doze. Finally, an hour or so later, James was awakened by the screech of brakes as the train began to slow. He looked around blearily as his fellow passengers began to stir and collect their things.
"Finally here," Ralph muttered, cupping his hands to the window as a railway station lumbered slowly past. "Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."
"At least the journey's done," Albus commented grumpily.
Near the head of the passenger compartment, James saw Professor Remora sleeping awkwardly, leaning across two seats with her mouth hanging open. One of her students nudged her experimentally.
"I thought vampires loved the night," Lucy mused idly.
"Who, you mean Remora?" Zane said, glancing at Lucy. "Yeah, that's a real puzzler, ain't it?"
Ralph yawned and asked Zane, "How far is the school from here?"
"Just a few blocks away. It's almost right downtown, but you have to know where to look."
Franklyn shouldered his leather attaché and patted his pockets, apparently looking for his glasses. "I'll arrange for our trunks and bags to be delivered to our various quarters via porter. Tonight, you shall all stay in the Alma Aleron guest house. Tomorrow, I will show you all to your residences for the duration of your stay."
Harry stood up, carrying Lily as she slept, her head on his shoulder. Ginny followed, and the group began to shuffle toward the car's doors. It was an unusually quiet group as they filed out onto the deserted platform. A cool mist hung in the air around the huge terminal nearby. In the distance, a clock tower began to toll the hour. James counted the chimes and discovered that it was ten o'clock. Slowly, led by Chancellor Franklyn and Professor Georgia Burke, the group made its way off the platform and into the huge brightly lit terminal. Tall windows framed the space on either side, showing inky black sky.
"This is the 30 Street Station," Zane announced, too tired to be particularly enthusiastic. "They were going to rename it Benjamin Franklin Station a decade or so ago, but there was some political mish-mash and it never happened. Do yourself a favor and never bring it up with the Chancellor."
As the group made its way through the bank of doors at the far end of the marble floor, they were met by a sweeping view of the city where it huddled on the other side of a broad river. Without stopping, Franklyn led the travelers across the street and onto a wide bridge. Cars and a few buses moved back and forth on the bridge as the travelers made their way along a footpath on the right side.
"It isn't far," Franklyn proclaimed over the noise of the traffic. "No Disapparating this close to the station, unfortunately. Not that we could anyway, with so many underage witches and wizards with us."
Ginny pulled her hair into a ponytail as she walked next to her husband. "I don't mind stretching my legs a bit, actually."
"Not the most beautiful city I've ever seen," Albus remarked. "But the river is a delightful shade of orange."
"That's just the streetlamps," Lucy sighed.
"Enjoy the view while you can," Zane instructed. "Once we get on campus, it might be months before you ever see it again."
Albus frowned. "Is it a school or a prison?"
"Yes," Zane quipped. "But the point is, there's no reason you ever really need to leave. The Aleron's got everything you need, and quite a few things you don't. I've been there a whole year already and I still haven't seen the whole campus."
Shortly, the group left the traffic bridge behind and descended into a warren of densely populated city blocks. Small businesses and gas stations eventually gave way to crowded residential areas. The houses and apartments pressed together like patrons at a bar, shouldering for room in front of the narrow streets. Cars and trucks lined the pavement, glimmering softly in the glow of the streetlights. Trees ranged along the streets as well, huge and old, their roots pushing the footpath into unruly hills and valleys. Finally, the group crossed a narrow intersection and approached a stone wall, just high enough that no one could see over it. Bits of broken glass were embedded into the mortar along the top.
"Here we are, then," Zane said, nodding approvingly.
Albus was unimpressed. "This is it, is it? I see what you mean about the size of it. You could get lost bending down to tie your shoe."
James looked back and forth along the cracked footpath. The stone wall was no longer than a Hogwarts corridor, with leaning brick pedestals at either end. Embedded in the center of each of the brick pedestals, worn almost to illegibility, was a stone block with a stylized symbol engraved onto it. The symbol appeared to be a shield with two letter 'A's on it, perched upon by an eagle with spread wings. A wrought-iron gate stood in the middle of the wall, facing the street, but the gate was so choked with vines and weeds that the view beyond was completely hidden. Franklyn approached the gate and pulled some of the vines aside, peering in.