"Oh! Well I'm happy to help! My mom's a writer for the social column of the Daily Prophet, that's the biggest magical newspaper, so I know everybody." Lavender says smiling.
"That'll be great. Honestly, if any of you want to hang out at some point I'd like to make as many friends as I can. I already made one enemy, I don't really need more." Harry says, shrugging his shoulders.
"Ooh! Do tell, who has earned the ire of the boy who lived?" Lavender asks, a spark in her eyes.
"I had a bit of a disagreement with Draco Malfoy. He doesn't seem very nice." Harry says honestly. Enemy was probably an extreme word for Malfoy at this moment, but Harry simply didn't think he would get along with the boy very much at all.
"Unsurprising, no one in our age group is particularly fond of Draco. He's kind of a bully to all of us. The only ones who really hang out with him are Theodore Nott, Gregory Goyle, and Vincent Crabbe. I guess there's also Pansy Parkinson, but she doesn't seem too excited by the prospect." Lavender says, counting off people on her fingers.
"You really do know everyone." Harry says, mildly amazed.
"Well, my parents sent me here to learn as much as I can, that includes who to watch out for in the next generation!" Lavender says, puffing her chest out in pride. "Like you, you're someone to watch out for, as is Neville Longbottom. You two, along with Draco and Theodore, are the heirs of some big named families. So, we're going to have to try and see what you plan on doing with that. Draco is already throwing his name around like it's hot stuff. Nott has entered the base-line landscape and is trying to make some alliances but is being more careful with it than Draco is. Then there's you and Neville, who haven't entered that conversation yet. Neville's grandmother has been keeping him more or less removed from that conversation up to this point, but he'll be starting soon. You on the other hand are a total enigma, no one is sure what you're going to do, it's really exciting." Lavender rattles off. Harry notices that she is really into this.
"Well, I don't know anything about any of that. I'm just Harry." Harry says, trying to process this information.
"We'll find something to help you deal. Now get that toad out of here! Who's is it anyway?" Lavender asks.
"Neville Longbottom, apparently this is a toad of status." The car laughs together, and Harry bids them farewell.
The trip back to his compartment is a confusing one for Harry. His family is a big deal? Politics? He really doesn't know what to think about any of it. He's not even a wizard yet. Maybe he can find someone at the school to point him in the right direction of where to start with this stuff.
Sitting back down, he sees that Tracey and Hannah are still in the compartment, and Neville and Hermione haven't returned yet. Harry puts the toad into the small cage that Neville had brought with him, that gave the toad's name: Trevor.
"Well, Neville will be glad you found him." Tracey says, watching Harry put the toad in the cage. "Now we'll just wait for them to return. Since you're back, can you watch the compartment for us? Hannah and I both need the bathroom, and you need to change into your robes anyway."
"Yeah, I can do that. If you walk by compartment 16 on your way to the restrooms, you should say hi. They're the ones who had Trevor, they seem nice." Harry says, beginning to dig through his trunk for his robes.
"Will do! Make sure you close the curtains when you start changing, don't want to give the other girls a show they didn't pay for!" Hannah says, forcing herself and Tracey to laugh at the joke. Harry's face flushes, and they giggle more.
"You're too easy to tease. See you in a bit." Tracey says and the pair leaves.
Harry is left alone in the compartment and starts changing, quickly throwing on his new uniform. It's less colorful than the ones the older students were wearing, although they all seemed to wear the same specific color schemes. Red and Gold? Green and Silver? Blue and Bronze? Yellow and Black? What do they mean? Harry is unsure, and his current isolation allows his anxieties to flow back into his mind. He is relieved though, when he hears a familiar voice.
"Oh, you found Neville's toad! Good job Harry. Where's Hannah and Tracey?" Hermione asks, looking for their missing friends.
"Went to the restroom. They had me change while they were gone. You probably should as well. I'll step outside and make sure Neville or someone else doesn't come in." Harry says, raising himself from his position on the floor. When did I end up there? Harry thought, having lost track of where he was in his brief anxiety attack.
"Oh, well that is a good idea. Thanks Harry." She flashes him a smile, her teeth are exceptionally white.
"You're welcome. Your teeth are pretty by the way. Very white." Harry says, words coming out before he can think to not say them. Hermione flushes deeply and Harry cuts his losses, moving to the hallway.
Harry hopes all of Hogwarts isn't as overwhelming as this train ride. His heart can't take it.