Between Bells

Piper stepped out of the classroom and stopped. She couldn’t do this. Not today. Maybe not ever.

She glanced down the corridor, already crowded with students. All the people, all the noise, all the pushing and shoving - it was too much. After weeks of trying, she still hadn’t figured out how anyone managed to get around a place so big. The staircases had a mind of their own, the portraits were never where you last saw them, and everything felt slightly… off. Like everyone knew something that she didn’t and it bugged her more than anything.

She took a deep breath and held her books closer to her chest, as if they might somehow keep her anchored in this chaos.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like it here. Really, she loved it! There was something exciting about how different and unpredictable it all was. But there were moments when it felt more like drowning than anything else.

As Piper stood there, debating whether to try to find her way or just turn around and wait for the crowd to disperse, a boy rushed past her. She only caught a glimpse of the back of his head because he was moving quickly, like he had somewhere to be. He looked about her age. Probably a first year.

She hesitated for a second, then made up her mind. Directions. All she needed was directions. If he wasn’t in her year, she could still ask, right? Anything was better than standing around looking lost.

So off she went, trying to keep up without getting knocked over. The hallway was a mess of swinging arms and shouted conversations. Someone elbowed her by accident, and Piper muttered a quiet “Sorry,” even though it hadn’t been her fault. She ducked and weaved her way forward until she was just behind the boy.

And then… BAM!

He turned a corner sharply and crashed right into her.

Piper staggered back a step, blinking in surprise. Her books nearly slipped from her arms. The boy looked just as startled, his eyes wide, already blurting out an apology. Though all she heard was a brief, “Sorry!”
She blinked at him, still catching up. Her brain hadn’t quite registered what had happened yet, and all she could do was nod and smile. Whatever else he was saying wasn’t quite processed, but his tone of voice said enough - he hadn’t meant it. He looked just as overwhelmed as she felt.

She laughed, more out of nerves than anything.

“It’s fine,” Piper said, offering a small smile. “I’ve been bumping into people all day. I honestly don’t know how anyone can get around this place without ending up flat on their face.”

She looked up at the boy and then remembered why she had been following him. She took a breath, then asked, “Are you a first year too? Because if you are, I have no idea where we’re supposed to go next.”

Thread Notes: Reducio Interacting with: @Mikey Forville Word Count: 306/200

OOC Notes: Reducio Sorry for taking so long to reply Mikey. Also sorry that it is a lot shorter than my other one.

Piper noticed the Ravenclaw crest on the boy’s robes just before he spoke. This was her one of her first interactions with someone from Ravenclaw, and although they were from different houses, it felt nice to finally have someone who understood the maze-like confusion of this place - even if it was just the part about being hopelessly lost.

Piper chuckled at the boy’s comment about the armor. She hadn’t had anything that unexpected happen to her yet. It was ridiculous, but Piper couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for him. They had both only been at Hogwarts for a month, and already they’d managed to get lost and trip over things more times than they could keep track of.

When the boy mentioned about wandering aimlessly together, Piper chuckled again, this time more genuinely. She hesitated for a moment, considering whether or not to accept his offer. Then she smiled and said, “Sure. Why not?” After all, what was the worst that could happen? Getting even more lost together didn’t sound half as bad as doing it alone.

When he introduced himself, Piper blinked and realized with a flush of embarrassment that she hadn’t introduced herself yet. Where were her manners?

“I’m Piper,” she said a little shyly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “It’s nice to meet you, Mikey.”

He extended his hand, and she accepted. The gesture wasn’t much, but it felt like a small anchor in the overwhelming chaos of Hogwarts. They were both just two first-years, lost and trying to figure things out, and it was oddly reassuring to do it side by side.

Glancing down at her crumpled schedule, Piper frowned slightly, then looked back up.

“I have Defense Against the Dark Arts next,” she said, holding it up so he could see. “What about you?”

Piper felt her shoulders relax and the tension leave her when Mikey said they had the same class. She hadn’t even realised how anxious she had been until the words left his mouth. “Oh thank goodness,” she said with relief, “If I had to walk to one more classroom alone and realise I’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere in these corridors….” she trailed off. “Well at least we can get lost together now. Two is better than one, right?”

As soon as she said that she regretted it. But unlike usual, rather than letting her regret take over, she pushed it deep down before it could even surface. Instead, she listened to what Mikey had to say and laughed quietly at his comment about shattered quills, her eyes moving to the poor splintered thing that he pulled from his pocket. “That makes two of us, then,” Piper said, pulling out her own quill remnants from her pocket. “There must be a curse on our supplies,” she joked, putting her quill away.

As they reached the end of the hallway and Mikey paused, Piper looked in the direction he pointed. She glanced back at him trying to remember the general direction to class. Then she tilted her head and said, “I think you’re right… maybe. It looks more familiar than the other way I think.”

Piper stepped forward slowly, looked over her shoulder and smiled softly. “And if we do end up in the kitchens we can ask for directions there. I also wouldn’t say no to a snack.”

She adjusted the books in her arms, and for once, she didn’t feel the usual anxiety of getting lost. She wasn’t sure whether it was because she may just be going in the right direction or because Mikey was there with her. “I’m glad we bumped into each other.” Piper said quietly before she could second guess it. “It’s been a long day, but… this helped.”

Then, nudging his arm gently, she smirked. “Lead the way, Mikey. Worst case scenario, we accidentally walk into a secret passage and get even more lost.” And for the first time that day, Piper felt she might actually belong here.

Piper grinned as Mikey gave name suggestions for the secret passage that they hopefully wouldn't stumble upon. "I like the first one," Piper said, falling into step with Mikey. "It sounds... better."

In truth she didn't care much for naming the passage or even getting to class, although that was definitely a big thing. What Piper cared about most in this moment was that she wasn't alone, that she had someone talking to her, that he understood her. He understood her situation, her nerves, her fear. And it was nice to have that.

Partway through her thoughts, Mikey interrupted her saying how brave she was. Piper laughed at this. "Usually I'm not," she chuckled, "I think my survival instinct - or whatever you'd call it - just kind of took over. I had to get somewhere, and honestly, you seemed like you knew what you were doing, so I walked up and asked."

This, of course, wasn't completely true. Piper failed to mention the parts of constant deep breaths and inner thoughts, but she thought that wasn't necessary to mention, not right now anyway.

"I'm sure you would've come up to me if you needed directions... and if I looked like I knew where I was going." Piper smiled, glad that she had pushed into the crowd and ran into Mikey.

As they continued, Piper fell into silence thinking over this whole ordeal. It may've been short, but she sure was glad it happened. Mikey began to talk to her and she continued the discussion as they began to get more comfortable with each other.

Going round one more corner, they finally made it to the classroom. Piper looked over at Mikey and grinned, maybe their sense of direction wasn't so bad after all.