A Befuddled Beginning
Day: Monday, September 1st, 2025
Time: Evening, shortly after the Sorting Hat Ceremony
Aisling sat down on a less crowded end of the Hufflepuff table. She watched the other students as they befriended each other. Less than half an hour ago, the Sorting Hat declared that she'd be the newest member of the Hufflepuff house. The decision was almost insulting to her. On the Hogwarts Express earlier that day, Aisling overheard some of the students talking about her new house.
"They're dim."
"I can count on one hand the amount of Hufflepuffs that have done anything important."
"What are Hufflepuffs good for anyway? Friendship bracelets? At least Ravenclaws have some wits."
Aisling frowned when she remembered what they had said. The last thing she wanted to be seen as was daft. Did her succeeding in muggle academics before mean nothing in terms of smarts? Was her adventuring, which was almost always unsupervised, around her bustling city a farce? Had her time in the city's library been a waste? Or was it because she didn't know much about the wizarding world? Maybe being muggle-born had come back to bite her. It wasn't until last year that her mother told her about her being a witch? Who knew her maternal great-great grandmother was a witch a long time ago? If she had learned sooner about the wizarding world, or maybe had she tried to learn about a world that was nearly inaccessible until she got supplies at Diagon Alley, maybe she'd be a Ravenclaw. Maybe she'd be seen as someone with wits.
Aisling looked at the Hufflepuffs on the other end of the table. They continued to laugh and chat while she was processing her sorting. They all just seemed put together, like perfect-fitting puzzle pieces. And she knew she was the odd piece out. Her heart thumped against her chest at the idea of talking to them. What did she have in common with them? She wasn't particularly sociable. She was lucky if she was able to say hi to someone, let alone hold down a conversation. Would anyone in Hufflepuff care what she had to say? Would they think she had some wits to her? Aisling picked at her plate as she unintentionally perseverated on the thought.
Time: Evening, shortly after the Sorting Hat Ceremony
Aisling sat down on a less crowded end of the Hufflepuff table. She watched the other students as they befriended each other. Less than half an hour ago, the Sorting Hat declared that she'd be the newest member of the Hufflepuff house. The decision was almost insulting to her. On the Hogwarts Express earlier that day, Aisling overheard some of the students talking about her new house.
"They're dim."
"I can count on one hand the amount of Hufflepuffs that have done anything important."
"What are Hufflepuffs good for anyway? Friendship bracelets? At least Ravenclaws have some wits."
Aisling frowned when she remembered what they had said. The last thing she wanted to be seen as was daft. Did her succeeding in muggle academics before mean nothing in terms of smarts? Was her adventuring, which was almost always unsupervised, around her bustling city a farce? Had her time in the city's library been a waste? Or was it because she didn't know much about the wizarding world? Maybe being muggle-born had come back to bite her. It wasn't until last year that her mother told her about her being a witch? Who knew her maternal great-great grandmother was a witch a long time ago? If she had learned sooner about the wizarding world, or maybe had she tried to learn about a world that was nearly inaccessible until she got supplies at Diagon Alley, maybe she'd be a Ravenclaw. Maybe she'd be seen as someone with wits.
Aisling looked at the Hufflepuffs on the other end of the table. They continued to laugh and chat while she was processing her sorting. They all just seemed put together, like perfect-fitting puzzle pieces. And she knew she was the odd piece out. Her heart thumped against her chest at the idea of talking to them. What did she have in common with them? She wasn't particularly sociable. She was lucky if she was able to say hi to someone, let alone hold down a conversation. Would anyone in Hufflepuff care what she had to say? Would they think she had some wits to her? Aisling picked at her plate as she unintentionally perseverated on the thought.
Reducio
Open to any and all! 
Reducio
Word count: 386