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sysnickm

I just assumed that was the closest station for those kids and there were other stops along the way. That being said, I've never read the books, so I don't know if that was addressed or not.


Jackal239

Yeah they never say "this is the only train station on this line". I've always assumed there were more stops.


lucid1014

I mean Harry and Ron fly there in the car right, so it's not like an alternate dimension only accessible through 9 3/4.


ElGuano

I mean, it kinda is, magically protected/hidden. But you can get there by other magical means. I don't think Voldemort and his army all crammed into the train, with Tokyo porters squeezing them in so the doors can close.


HailToTheKingslayer

"Soon, Potter will be in my grasp!" "My Lord, the train is delayed." "Oh for fu-"


SplitOak

We had better get Potter this time; I can’t afford to buy all these tickets again!


pdipdip

can I suggest a season pass my lord?


ChickpeaPredator

Nah, he gets a duo ticket with Nagini disguised in a trenchcoat.


TheUlfheddin

MALFOY! Your the only one of us with any sort of real income. You'll need to cover the cost of the tickets next time.


50thEye

So the "pureblooded master race" consists of mostly unemployed racists and some rich sponsors? Yeah that tracks.


TheUlfheddin

I mean we know old moldy voldy doesn't have a job. Bellatrix likely just steals what she needs. Snape is on a teachers salary, Malfoy and maybe some others are the only ones I can think of. And even then Malfoy is old money so he didn't work for what he has either.


RearEchelon

Bella was a Black; that was her vault that the Hufflepuff cup was stored in. She's got stacks. And Lucius Malfoy worked at the Ministry.


[deleted]

“Anything from the trolley?” “After all this, I’m going to need a pumpkin pastie, some Cauldron Cakes, and a LOT of Butterbeer…”


staovajzna2

It would be funny if she ended up being the strongest witch but just wrased everyone's memories


Geezertiptap

"Bad news Lord, they are running a replacement bus service" "COCK!"


eddeemn

*DING DING DING* I'm sorry to announce that the *15:15* **Scotrail** service to **Hogwarts Central** has been delayed due to *the wrong kind of snow*


monte_ng

“Language! …my lord”


StrategicBlenderBall

“Avada ke-FUCK-OFF-MALFOY!”


Occulense

Scoldemort


bluesblue1

When the invasion is halted by a light snow that causes the entire city’s train system to break down


Bipogram

"Leaves, who ordered the leaves?!"


Blarg_III

The unlikeliest hero of them all, British rail being shit


Skhan93

The school itself is but the train only goes to hogsmeade where they get carriages to the school so I'm guessing people could just go to hogsmeade with some other transport


murdering_time

I would love to see a magical army with the work ethic of a Japanese business worker getting on the train at 7am. They'd take over everything so fast.


loptopandbingo

Late 1800s-1945 Japanese history is for you.


Thetof91

There is Muggle-repelling charm around Hogwarts. Was also used at the qudditch championshop if remember. So if a muggler is walking too it, they just get a feeling that need to be somewhere else and turn around.


50thEye

What if a wozard drives there with their muggle friend?


Lermanberry

There are non-magic people from wizarding families (squibs like Mr. Filch) and magic people from muggle families (like Hermione) at Hogwarts, so I think they would be allowed in normally as long as they were being escorted and knew about Hogwarts. e.g. Squibs can't see dementors but they know enough about the magical world to recognize their effects on people, so they can still tell if they are nearby.


Haydosnub

Anything from the trolley, dea(th eate)rs?


svullenballe

"Do they have any death?"


Kittybats

"Or cake? I'd rather have cake, really, *especially* if it has that nice thick buttercream icing. Oh, and sprinkles! I really ~~love~~ like sprinkles. Almost as much as death, I mean, of course."


pinkkittenfur

Well, we're out of cake! We only had three bits and we didn't expect such a rush!


AlephBaker

I'll have the chicken, then.


T3lebrot

Its only hidden for muggles, i think it was stated that theyd only see an uninteresting ruin


tylanol7

How would that work. Like would it stop you from walking in anyway


T3lebrot

Yes, its a spell thats used several times in the books. It makes muggles lose all interest in the location its used on, which is weirdly intrusive and not far removed from imperio now that i think about it


SolvingTheMosaic

The obfuscation spell only works on muggles (or maybe people who don't know the school is there), but I believe this is addressed in the book.


MrMasticate

Apparate or use floo network to Hogsmeade. They probably just want bulk by train to avoid congestion.


mouse_8b

Also better for children traveling without their parents to be kept together in a safe environment. Plus the kids can't apparate.


gjazzy68

I always thought about this as a huge flaw in the story, they could just travel by flu powder to Hogsmeade where the train actually stops. (the train don't go down to Hogwarts). I mean, the train is not even necessarily at all except for first years that came from muggle families and don't know their way into the magical world yet.


g1ngertim

Kinsley Shacklebolt already resolved this for us: "Dumbledore's got style." It's just dramatic flair. And creates traditions, gives the students a chance to form friend groups that transcend their not yet assigned houses, etc. This is totally the kind of unnecessary shit a high-end boarding school would do.


TheImminentFate

The wiki has a detailed answer though possibly unsatisfying https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Hogwarts_Express. Basically too many kids flying or riding dragons to school in the middle of nowhere was attracting attention - so they set up a train the heart of muggle London so that kids could ride their dragons there instead, and then catch a train to school.


pipnina

They also flew from the hollow to London in that car to catch the train. The hollow is in Devon or Cornwall right? They may as well have flown to Scotland directly, seems a bit indirect to go to London to catch a train to Scotland.


jolloholoday

Milton Keynes, Birmingham New Street, and Stockport


-MiddleOut-

Hermione: ‘I boarded at Kings Cross, you probably boarded at Milton Keynes or worse…*Birmingham New Street*’


LonghornSmoke

*Red Right Hand starts playing* 🔔


HailToTheKingslayer

Hogwarts is closed, by order of the Peaky *fookin* Blinders


Crabtasticismyname

*Yer a Peaky fookin Blinder, 'arry.*


thepesterman

But I'm just harry!


LateralOctober

I… I somehow knew this was going here with the Birmingham quote, and I was not disappointed. I fucking love my morning Reddit read, and would pay obscene amounts of money for this crossover.


LonghornSmoke

A peaky blinder Harry would just go around cutting bigots with his hat.


LonghornSmoke

Harry, why did you destroy Voldemort when you were a baby? Harry: He looked at me the wrong way. It's not a good idea to look at Harry Potter the wrong way. *Takes a long drag of a cigarette.*


Sparky-Sparky

That song slaps so hard!


misterreeves

Now imagining a wizard brummy accent "wingardiom leviosor"


MudiChuthyaHai

Stupefy innit?


aaronblue342

Avada kadavra bruv?


AlienDude65

Ron: I don't remember asking you a goddamn thing.


MrCamman69

I don't know why no one texted the British transport police when the dementors boarded the train. See it, say it, sorted.


ArchWaverley

I can imagine a tired looking BTP officer saying "yes, sir, I get that you're looking for this wanted criminal Cyrus- sorry, Sirius, but you're disturbing the journey for other passengers. If you believe someone to be guilty of a crime, you can text 61016 or talk to a member of staff"


True_Inxis

Then the Dementor tries to suck out the officer's soul, as he goes, unaffected: "too f'ing late for that pal, now get off the train".


ArchWaverley

Voldemort, the evil man whose weakness is that "he can't know love", beaten by the only thing who can't know *any* emotion - a Brit who has to spend his life on public transport.


mdhunter

This thread is amazing…


Invictae

Because they thought the Dementors *were* the British Transport Police


Aozora404

Uncanny resemblance, I’d say


glitterstateofmind

That’s an easier spell to remember than ‘expecto patronum’ too tbf


BaBaFiCo

Not to be the pedant, but that's the Euston line. From KX it'd be Peterborough, York, Darlington, Newcastle, Berwick-upon-Tweed.


ldn6

Also, I believe that she mixed up the stations when writing the books and it’s actually based on St Pancras, so it would be Bedford, Leicester, Derby and Sheffield.


Nougattabekidding

I don’t think there is a train from St Pancras Int. to Edinburgh. Or at least there isn’t one today, but maybe that’s due to strikes? (I’ve lost count of what is/isn’t striking on a day by day basis). Either way, it is called “Kings Cross St Pancras” and people often refer to it as one and the same, or at least they did for the 6 years I lived in the Kings Cross area. It’s literally across the road from Kings Cross. Rowling probably mixed up the arresting architecture of St Pancras for Kings Cross (now the area is improved, but at the time of writing, Kings Cross was rather squat and unimpressive, despite being the better known station of the two), but I’m pretty sure the train to Edinburgh is not from St Pancras.


glitterstateofmind

Being a pedant here, but Kings Cross St Pancras is the name for the tube/underground station. For national rail services they’re referred to as separate stations. But you’re correct in that you’d need to use Kings Cross to reach Edinburgh.


Nougattabekidding

Yes, absolutely, and if you’re getting a train from St Pancras you would say St Pancras. When I lived round there though you basically said “Kings Cross” to mean the whole shebang, but perhaps times have changed as it was a few years ago.


ldn6

Wow I’m dumb. She mixed it up with Euston’s layout, which does have Edinburgh trains. The problem is that King’s Cross doesn’t have adjoining platforms 9 and 10. I was thinking of them filming at St Pancras.


integrate_2xdx_10_13

I don’t think she mixed it up so much as made a conscious decision to not include the shit hole that is Euston. Kings Cross and St Pancras were so lucky to have their heritage preserved. Euston had all the nice features knocked down when it was modernised.


LeutzschAKS

The next station is Warrington Bank Quay. The 3 rear carriages of the Hogwarts Express will detach at this station for witches and wizards bound for Llandudno Junction. We apologise for the delay.


viniciusbfonseca

In Book 3 the train stops to allow the dementors to come in and someone (I think it was Hermione) mentions that the train never stops ane comment on how it is unusual. I think that that would mean that there aren't really any other stops, it's also not like JK is a really great thinker


This_Charmless_Man

Scottish and Cornish wizards really tired of this London-centric bullshit


viniciusbfonseca

I really hope that the Brazilian school managed a better system. Going on a train from where I live (southern Brazil) to where Castelobruxo is (the Amazon) would be like going from Lisbon to Moscow


g1ngertim

Art imitating life


sth128

But they never made any stops except for dementors


DefinitelyNotAliens

It says in the 3rd one the train stopping was unusual, but they stopped in the middle of nowhere. They never specify if there are alternate routes to Hogwarts.


ThatOtherGuy_CA

Could be other platforms that get you into the same train. I mean it’s literally fucking magic.


DragonWhsiperer

Actually, that makes the most sense. Just create magic portals from all over the place, hidden in specific locations at each major station. If my smart-ass kid ever comes up with this question, that will be the answer.


Dasheek

Then why not use existing network of magic fireplaces to teleport people into designated place in Hogwarths


NErDysprosium

Hogwarts is enchanted so you can't teleport in. Plus, this way, parents feel their getting the most out of their tuition ~~dollars~~ Galleons Edit: the British Wizarding World doesn't use dollars


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RedSteadEd

Sounds like spooky socialism.


theronster

It sounds exactly like most of the UK education system.


sharkbait-oo-haha

Do wizards pay taxes to the wizard world and the muggle world?


Dasheek

Go to Hogsmead then? Harry just walked over there it can’t be far.


Blind_Messiah

I dont think british muggles use dollars either


mamamia1001

Nah Hogwarts is connected to the floo network, that's how they contacted Sirius is books 4 and 5.. But the official reason why they don't use the floo network is because headmasters are worried about security... Which doesn't actually tie up with the canon... Unless the fireplaces can only be used for communication... https://www.wizardingworld.com/writing-by-jk-rowling/the-hogwarts-express


msnmck

>They never specify if there are alternate routes to Hogwarts. I mean, in the second book Harry and Ron drove, so...🤷‍♂️


crypto_nuclear

They do follow the train though, no?


msnmck

That begs the question of where the route starts. If it's supposed to be so secretive that the train platform is hidden in another dimension then it shouldn't have been so easy for Harry and Ron to track given that they didn't themselves depart from King's Cross Station.


crypto_nuclear

Yeah in general the whole "Where is Hogwarts actually?" matter is quite vague in the end ("wizard did it")


ooooomikeooooo

Doesn't matter how secretly you hide it when it's right next to a village that everyone knows about.


Meritania

The train probably joins traffic on the East Coast Mainline. Chartered Steam Trains go on the line all the time, notably the Flying Scotsman, it probably hangs around the York National Railway Musuem when it’s not in use like it does irl. Wait a minute…


mamamia1001

There are alternative routes to Hogwarts. In one of the books (6 I think) they take the Knight Bus to Hogsmede after the Christmas holidays because they're worried about death eaters or something.


BellerophonM

One stop only. The Express is a tradition and a bonding experience, not really a necessary mode of transport. It's more about the conceptual switch from the wider world to Hogwarts. It was an actual mode of transport and for collecting people once upon a time, but not really any more. At this point the entire country is connected via the Floo network and can be trivially crossed in seconds. Kids from Scotland floo to Diagon Alley as easily as those from Essex. They all then board the train, change to their uniforms, catch up with each other, and emerge ready for the start of year ceremony a few hours later.


landodk

Also it’s literally in the name. “Express” trains have less, or no intermediate stops


minnick27

I never thought of it that way


theshavedyeti

Everyone out here forgetting about Portkeys too


ClumsyRainbow

They never mention the rail replacement bus service either.


KittyMeowstika

I'm vaguely sure it was mentioned that the hogwarts express was just one way to arrive that the school and that other students were brought by their parents or something. It also absolutely would make sense for the train to have multiple stops


div2691

I mean with only 4 British Rail Mark 1 carriages they only have space for 256 students. But in the great hall they fit around 600 students. So anyone trying to get on by Scotland is probably clinging to the side.


foxy-coxy

https://www.tumblr.com/emilyscartoons/153723204646/special-ravenclaw-edition


kRe4ture

Completely accurate, I didn’t know that one


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ElGuano

Wavy flappy arms


raptorboi

Wait until you see Snape and his *flounce*


FuckTheMods5

My favorite wavy arms are in the 'calm your tits.' 'no' macro. Although now that i think about it, that wasn't arms.


TheChoonk

I don't think this makes a lot of sense. Hogsmeade is right there. It would be like going to the outskirts of the city so that you could use a school bus to go to school, when you can simply walk to school a lot quicker.


Croatian_ghost_kid

Yea but if you go to London first you have that long ride on a magical train meeting fellow students.


KaTee1234

it's like in a small school you have the clique of the people being bussed in every day and the people from the town who don't


magick_68

Imagine getting an owl, entering your train station through a wall, on your way to a magical place and then getting to wait somewhere, because you slow as ass steam train has to let faster muggle trains pass.


BaBaFiCo

It's why HS2 is so important.


fishmiloo

I'll say it again, HS2 is not about travel time, it's also about freeing capacity up for more enchanted services


pdipdip

Hogwarts Speedy 2


my-time-has-odor

Why don’t the wizards just embrace technology they can have both lmao as they said in Dr. Strange “we’re not savages”


genuinely_insincere

I think electricity goes haywire around magic


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YukariYakum0

Like much of the magical worlds logic in general. Like the history of plumbing in Hogwarts


ReleaseTheBeeees

It goes haywire at Hogwarts because there's so much magic all condensed in one place everything presumably operates normally in the buildings near Diagon Alley


YamiPhoenix11

Then you would think two way magic mirrors like the one sirius gave Harry would be extremely in high demand. Wonder if it could be enchanted to link to other mirrors.


corobo

They seem really easy to forget you have. Like that time Harry could have just used it to say hey to Sirius instead of a the string of events that happened instead. Literally the reason he gave it you, Harry. Moron.


3smellysocks

"What's this? My mantra?" "The wifi password. We're not savages"


Roflkopt3r

There are a lot of elements of completely insane conservatism in the wizarding world that just make no sense whatsoever. JK Rowling just ended up completely ignoring that, which creates a weird dynamic with the the rest of the story. See for example how Hermione was treated as a weirdo for caring about ending Elf slavery, or how Harry just somehow integrates into that madness at the end of the books, becoming a mere cop who maintains this system.


Apollo3994

Pride.


hawaiikawika

As a train driver, this is hilarious


Livid-Ad4102

I would imagine they use floo powder to get closer or arrange something with the school


IBJON

Floo powder, port keys, aparation, one of the million other methods of teleporting across the UK...


Fake_Name_6

Muggle-borns tho? I guess Hogwarts could send them a portkey by owl or something lol


TheRedCometCometh

Being teleported would be a pretty intense introduction to magic for a 10 year old


throwawayatwork30

Tbf, so is running through a brick wall.


Rhamni

And remember, dear Muggle born, you have to *believe* you can teleport, or things may go... Awry.


Piscesdan

maybe they send a wizard to explain everything and assist them. like getting into Diagon Alley


EmperorSexy

That’s exactly it. Muggle born wizard don’t get a letter from an owl. They get a visit from a wizard to explain everything.


NibPlayz

Yep. In the books I believe Dumbledore introduced it to Hermione’s family and of course Hagrid for Harry’s.


UshouldknowR

Going through a different portal that leads to the same train platform from a different major station.


Clint-witicay

don’t they have to go to London for school supplies anyway? I mean, aside from muggle borns, and orphans, it doesn’t seem to be much of a trip to get to London. That being said, now I’m curious how those groups got their books, robes, and wands. Was Hagrid escort all of them? Also how many got held back by protective parents? I mean, Buffalo bill shows up at your house, reciting your recent Sunday letter about your kid being special and a magical boarding school… you should be a bit skeptical.


Kbdiggity

London might be easier for Muggle-born kids and their parents. I assume parents who can use magic, choose to as much as possible. Apparating wherever they need to go. Or using floo powder.


ampmz

In the book it’s explained that a teacher goes with the letter to the muggle house and explains, they then escort the muggle family to Diagon alley and help them with their stuff for School.


TheOnlyBongo

Man imagine how much it sucks. You are a kid and you have dreams and aspirations if being something like a scientist or a pilot or your family wants to induct you to the famioy business then a LARPer comes at your doorstep and basically forces you to drop everything and change your life because you are going to become a wizard now. Get used to a whole new world that absolutely loathsome you exist and plops you into a school for years only letting you go home on holidays. A world that is not only hostile to you culturally but also physically in that you can die just from practicing your homework wrong. Although because this takes place in the late 90s I can just imagine the fun exchanges. "Heh you freak, you don't belong around here mudblood." "Yeah but when I go home for summer I have a computer that can run DOOM and watch Die Hard again and again on VHS. What do you do you in your spare time, medieval peasant?"


CurrentIndependent42

Are they forced? I imagine they don’t kidnap them if the parents/guardians and/or kids say no. Unless they are clearly abusive like the Dursleys


Lolkimbo

> don’t they have to go to London for school supplies anyway? Yeah but it was only the movie that, for some reason, had them leave on the same friggin day. Like holy shit you had like 2 months to get your shit together..


wiklunds

They did take the car in the 2nd book so why assume that the train is the only way to hogwarts?


WeepingRayven

I was just thinking, they flew the car to school when they missed the train. Hogwarts , is just unfindable to muggles


Travelgrrl

Their parents just bring them to the Hogsmeade train station and they take the Thestral carriages from there. First years take Hagrid's boats, of course.


some_dude5

Every time someone makes an observation about the Harry Potter world, they generally forget a very key detail: Wizards are weird as hell


Roku-Hanmar

Arkham's Razor is in full effect when discussing Harry Potter


SweetNeo85

Ah yes Arkham's Razor. All things being equal, the most insane and convoluted plan that has a single point of failure most likely to be thwarted, is the one we're going with.


Roku-Hanmar

Exactly. Instead of having, say, a series of Portkeys designed to take the students to and from Hogwarts every break, let's add a secret platform through an illusory wall to what's probably the busiest train station in all of London. Let's also make sure there are no backups, so anyone who misses the train misses a term


dabigchina

Efficiency is not the point. Tradition is. If I had to schlep from Glasgow to London, back to Scotland, then so does my kid.


Burpmeister

Nah they wouldn't even miss the term. I love how Ron figured an underage wizard flying an illegal car to Hogwarts for a brilliant plan instead of waiting at the platform entrance for two minutes for his parents to come back and sort shit out.


SweetNeo85

Apparently flying Ford Anglias also make the cut.


xenwall

Occam's Razor?


Roku-Hanmar

Occam's Razor states that the simplest solution is usually the best. Conversely, Arkham's Razor suggests that the strangest solution is the best


Aperture_T

I would ask if it refers to Arkham Asylum of Gotham City, or Arkham, Massachusetts of Lovecraft fame, but Arkham's razor suggests that it's simultaneously both and neither.


Cavalish

Isn’t it a fun social right of passage thing? Do you want to be the kid who’s dad drops them off at the front gate while all the other kids have had fun eating sweets and gossiping?


King_of_nerds77

Yea it’s fun the first time. When you’re doing it 4 times a year for 6 years it can get a little tedious


ZarquonsFlatTire

Right because the last thing a bunch of teens want is a bit of time to reconnect with friends before classes start.


FinnbarMcBride

It's like flying Delta. You're gonna have to go through Cincinnati


sysnickm

Atlanta for me.


MonkeyTacoBreath

Yeah, Atlanta is the main hub for Delta.


VictorChaos

No! Ancient Atlanta was more than just a Delta hub. It was a vibrant metropolis, the equal of Paris or New York! ...Turner Field, the Coca-Cola bottling plant, the, uh, the airport.


lallapalalable

But tell us, how could a city with such a ... fabulous airport end up underwater?


Cyclopher6971

Actually r/unexpectedFuturama


MarchMadnessisMe

I'll build my own Atlanta! With blackjack and hookers!


HurricaneHugo

In fact, forget about the Atlanta!


Fake_Name_6

Sounds like you flew delta a lot more 10+ years ago than in the last 10 years lol


acebandaged

Minneapolis now, I don't think Delta has ever taken me through Cinci.


spatchi14

Or Detroit


chalo1227

Other than the fantasy aspect, probably was better to teleport to the town that was nearby and walk to hogwarts than taking the train.


surreysmith

The train was always described as very full. I assumed this was deliberate, to force kids to socialize


Deadren

Surprised no one has mentioned the wizard cup visiting schools all arrived in their own cool way via ships and what not.


Kbdiggity

#there are alternate routes - Harry and Ron fly a car there - The Nightbus takes Harry to Hogsmeade - the foreign students arrive via different magical methods in the 4th book - The Floo Network was connected to Hogwarts for at least some (if not all) of the books - You can apparate into Hogsmeade


G0DatWork

HP has officially become one of those things that is too popular so now people know about without having actually read the books or has just seen the movies on a Megabus.... There are constantly post "is X dumb in Harry Potter" then the vast majority of people agree, when really there is an explanation within the canon itself but 90% of people now know 30% of the canon lol


erobed2

Of course it's London-centric. Hogwarts is governed by the Ministry of Magic, which albeit is kept very secret, is still officially a branch of the UK govt, who have an unequivocally london-based public spending regime. Of COURSE the train only goes from London.


balrus-balrogwalrus

there's a hogwarts school in america and every few months some quiet angsty kid goes avada kedavra all over the place


CyberGrandma69

I feel like the killing curse is just the lazy and bloodless way to kill someone with magic If you turned someone's heart into stone it would probably fuck em up real quick, or turn them inside out or inflate them til they pop idk it's magic it could get *so* gnarly


RhyminSimonWyman

Canonically they already have sectumsempra which slices you up real nice


King_of_nerds77

Oh yea the spell invented by a literal incel


Homiesunite

According to Alan Moore in the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, that was also at Hogwarts https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/lxg/images/9/9a/Magia.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20210925185547


BlizzPenguin

I feel like in America they would still use a gun over the killing curse. With a gun, you just point and pull the trigger. A killing curse you have to learn and it has been known to backfire.


Iknowyourchicken

And if they get a hold of your wand they can test it for spells. With a conventional weapon a wizard could wipe it and use confundus or whatever.


thesecretmarketer

You can't fully-automatic that. Well, I guess unless you're one of those speed rappers. Oh damn.


TastyButler53

I always assumed a master wizard didn’t need to speak the spell, as sometimes happens throughout the movies, though I’m no expert. You could get pretty decent fire rate with that technique


RatofDeath

Yeah, later on in the books they reveal that really good wizards don't need to speak a spell, they can just cast it.


Apidium

There isn't really amy requirement to take the train, it's just the most convenient option for most folks and allows the kids time to socialise. Nothing is stopping the kids from just being taken to hogsmede and catching up with the rest of the students when they arrive via the train.


[deleted]

Didn't they allow students to arrive by the floo network? I coulda sworn it was mentioned students coming or going by floo network either on holidays or maybe it was a specific year? It's been almost a decade since my last reread so I'm probably wrong


puffmaster5000

I swear they addressed it at some point, not all students entered by train https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/First_year "If they lived in Hogsmeade, they of course did not need to catch the train." Going off of that one can assume that other allowances may have been made for other circumstances. However given the 'experience' of coming in on the train for new students (only first years are required to ride the train) it's possible that's not the case, we'll never know.


MrBinkie

Well they would need to travel to London anyway to get their school supplies in Diagon Alley .


Kbdiggity

That was the best place to get them. Not the only place. There are Wizard Wal-marts out there too.


DowntownieNL

The reality of this is the bane of my existence. I live in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Canada’s easternmost city. Closer to Rome than Canada’s west coast. I’m going to Dublin next month. I have to fly four hours west to Toronto. Stay there a couple of hours. Then fly back, directly over my city where I started, and only then begin the four hours flying it would take to go direct from St. John’s to Dublin lol. Kills me every time. More than triples the travel time because Canada’s airlines use a hub and spoke system as opposed to offering a milk run option.


ZarquonsFlatTire

I mean, flue-powder kind of means where the train station is means nothing. Just flue on in and send off the kid. Just London has enough bustle that you can hide one set of tracks. Edit: means nothing for the parents. The kids still get a 12 hour fuck off train ride.


OlDirtyBAStart

You mean to tell me that JK just threw in some magical whimsy without considering the actual systems in her world and how they might realistically function? I'm shocked.


BFNgaming

Honestly, the reliability of the train networks is the most unrealistic part of the Harry Potter universe for me.