10 objects on which J.K. Rowling maybe wrote Harry Potter

LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 13: David Heyman (L), Emma Watson, JK Rowling and Rupert Grint pose in the press room after the Harry Potter film series was awarded Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema during the 2011 Orange British Academy Film Awards at The Royal Opera House on February 13, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Consider: the walls of King’s Cross Station.

To get to Platform 9 3/4, one must walk straight through the wall between platforms nine and ten. As Molly Weasley advises Harry in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, “it’s best to do it at a bit of a run, if you’re nervous.” Fans can visit the spot at the actual King’s Cross Station in London and have their photo taken with the trolley that’s permanently attached to the wall.

When J.K. Rowling first came up with the idea for the magical, muggle-proof platform, did she write her thoughts on the wall between platforms nine and ten? Possibly! Vandalism may not be her thing, but tables… walls…

Permanent marker surely comes off brick with a good power wash. No harm, no foul. At any rate, the idea of Harry’s first trip to King’s Cross Station being scrawled across its walls is oddly emotional. It was his first time meeting the Weasleys, his first time getting on the platform, his first time seeing the Hogwarts Express in all its glory.

Harry already knew some of what the wizarding world looked like, thanks to his trip to Diagon Alley with Hagrid, but the platform is something different. It’s a literal bridge between the muggle world where Harry has never belonged and the wizarding world where he always has, even if he didn’t know it.

In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry chats with Dumbledore at King’s Cross Station after Voldemort kills the horcrux inside him. It’s an important location in the series with a lot of power in it, emotionally and otherwise.