"Well, private tutors are always available, all of us have a family member or close family friend who would be capable of teaching us the core subjects enough for us to get our O.W.L.s which is the most you NEED to be a member of our society. There are also other schools that just do day education and then send you home after, although I think the one here in the U.K. has been having enrollment issues recently and has been taking on some extra students from France, Belgium, and Spain." Hannah says, after a brief pause.
"Then why Hogwarts?" Harry asks
"Simple, we're expected to make friends with the elite, and likely find our future spouses." Tracey says, "Some of the pureblooded crowd like Malfoy are going to try and find other houses and make some betrothal contracts or something. That's almost certainly why he made Daphne sit with him. Not everyone still uses the contracts, they're a bit archaic, but the Malfoys have been trying to get Wizengamot seats for the past twenty or so years."
"Wizengamot?" Hermione asks, still trying to process the information dump.
"The voting seats for our legislative and judicial system, need to make a law or have a big criminal trial? Both go there. Having a seat there gives you real power in government. All three of our families have one." Tracey answers.
"So what about people like me? Muggleborns, how do they get their say?" Hermione asks.
"Well, they normally don't. Some of the 'Light' families have been pushing for them to have some level of representation although no one can agree about what it would look like. 'Light' families also tend to stop the anti-muggleborn legislations. Apparently, there's occasionally a bill that tries to either make muggleborns never be allowed to use magic, or to take them from their families to be raised as proper wizards. Not good stuff all around in my opinion." Tracey says, a bit of venom present at the end there. Hermione looks completely flabbergasted, and Harry is sure the confusion is prevalent on his face as well.
"Ugh, none of you guys happen to see a toad in here do you?" Neville asks, and the conversation pauses a beat.
"A toad?" Harry asks, doing a quick look around. "Not that I can see"
"Me neither." Hermione sounds off.
"Nope!" Hannah retorts.
"Chocolate Frog maybe, but no toads." Tracey chuckles to herself at her supposed joke. Harry doesn't get it.
"Oh no! Trevor! I know I've had him since we got on the train. Can you guys help me find him?" Neville asks, seemingly worried for his amphibious acquaintance.
"I'll help you look Neville." Harry says, standing up and doing a quick stretch.
"Me too" says Hermione, moving her book she'd been holding from her lap to sit on the seat next to her.
"We'll watch your stuff and keep an ear out for if anyone found a toad. Harry, why don't you take the back third of the train, Hermione the front and Neville the middle. Should increase your chances of finding him." Tracey says.
"Sounds like a plan. We'll meet back here in an hour or so, okay?" Harry says, looking to his compatriots. Four nods meet him, and he makes his way to the back third of the train.
Four compartments in, Harry met pay dirt. This compartment was lightly populated, consisting of only six occupants. Two of them were identical twin girls of Indian descent: one with her black hair loose and flowing, and the other who had it up in a high ponytail sitting on their side was also one girl of what appears to be Chinese descent with creamy pale skin and similarly dark hair done in two buns. The other three occupants were, per Harry's definition, far less exotic. One of them was a girl with golden blonde hair done in a long braid draped around one shoulder, the one sitting directly next to her was another blonde, although with a slightly rounder face, and hair unbraided. The final member of the cart was a brunette, who was currently reading a book.
"Excuse me, have any of you found a toad since you've been on the train?" Harry asks, gazing into the hands of the dark-haired Chinese girl, who was currently holding a particularly fat toad.
"Yes, we have, does Mr. Chanchu here have an owner?" The girl holding said toad asks.
"Yes, I've been helping him find him. He's a bit worried." Harry says.
"Oh, drat then. I had quite hoped I had made a friend. It'd be less lonely in the dorms with him around, although supposedly toads give you warts." She says, before handing the toad to Harry.
"Well, I'm sure your dorm mates will keep you company, supposedly Hogwarts: A History says that yearmates in the same house share dorms." Harry says, rattling off a piece of information Hermione had told him about the school.
"Yeah, I guess. Toad would've been cool though. Oh, I'm Su Li by the way!" She says giving a small wave.
"I'm Parvati Patil." The Indian girl with the ponytail says.
"I'm Padma Patil." Her twin with the untied hair says.
"Fay Dunbar," the braided blonde says.
"Lavender Brown!" The pigtailed blonde says excitedly.
"Oh, Mandy Brocklehurst." The brunette with the book says.
"I'm Harry Potter," Harry says before quickly realizing his mistake. He's trying to avoid people becoming friends with the 'Potter' instead of the 'Harry'.
"Ooh! You wouldn't be THAT Harry Potter would you? The one who defeated You-Know-Who?" Lavender asks, Harry can't really blame her but that doesn't mean he's overly happy about her bringing it up.
"Supposedly, I don't really know anything about it. I didn't even learn I was a wizard until a month ago." Harry says, trying to manage expectations.
"Oh! That'd be why I never got a reply to my letters. I sent you quite a few. I knew we'd be in school at the same time, so I wanted to be friends." Lavender says, looking kind of sheepish. Harry couldn't help but think this was kind of cute, and any anger he may have felt towards the girl went away in an instant.
"Sorry, didn't get any letters. If you still want to be friends though, we can try. I'm still getting used to this whole wizard thing, so I could use someone to help guide me through all of this." Harry says, trying his best to smile.