First Year Entrance Open

⊹ ࣪ ˖⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆﹏𓊝﹏ᨐᓗ

Jen stretched as she stepped off the train, drinking in the highland chill. After being cooped in the stale carriage air for nine hours, she was glad to leave the coal smoke of the platform behind. Her newly equipped dark robes fluttered with the mountain’s breath. She traipsed behind first years as they approached the banks of the Black Lake.

The lake was an obsidian expanse that encircled the jutting rocks from which the castle’s spires soared, hemming the panorama of fields and the flanking forest. Despite being a freshwater loch, in the cornflower-blue dusk it appeared more like the stygian maw of the mountains, slumberous and opaque.

The rising moon dribbled light along its surface, illuminating the dark water in dazzling bursts of white. Wooden dinghies flocked nearby, wafting with an enchanted serenity under the deepening twilight. Vega twinkled overhead.

A crow cawed, taking flight over the treetops. The murder broke into a cacophony of calls as more crows departed, black wings slicing through the sprawling clouds. The peaks of tall pines swayed, and the shadowed foliage rustled in the travelling breeze. Cicadas burst into song amid the swishing grasses. But the lake remained silent.

Jen settled at the stern. The boat dipped minutely.

Date: 1 September 2026

Evening :Time

Reducio

2026-09-1
Great Lake, Boat 4
Year 1
Interacting With @Solène d'Estienne
open to interaction

For now. That was interesting, this girl was already thinking about her future and although she seemed to have a developed sense of the traits that led her to seeking knowledge, she didn't yet understand her own depths. It took an intelligent person to admit that - she appeared to be the type of person who explored her inner world deeply. Casimir was intrigued by this himself, nodding along because both the things she'd said and the things she hadn't made sense. He wasn't sure how he felt about knowledge meaning more freedom, but not because he disagreed. It was something he'd never considered, so he tucked it away in his mind to examine the concept when he was alone and could think through it.

"I didn't know that about Beauxbâtons, do you happen to know what it is they're doing differently?" He knew quite a bit about Hogwarts, but when it came to other schools, he only knew what he'd heard vaguely through other pureblood families who had children in them. "And speaking of that, I noticed your accent leans more towards their area of the continent. Is there a reason you're coming to Hogwarts instead of going there?"

The quote struck something in that lit up his eyes, although his face remained calm and neutral. Yes, that was exactly right, she got it. People were terrified of change but refused to consider that sometimes staying the same could be even worse. "She sounds like a wise person, this Grace. When it comes to passion..." A crease formed between his brows, an unidentified emotion making his chest tight.

"No, there's nothing I'm passionate about, but that quote falls in line with my beliefs and intended specialization. I haven't decided precisely what I want, but I'm leaning towards perhaps specializing in the law and getting into the Wizengamot. The world is becoming a dangerous place for wizards; we've had too many wars in recent history. Something needs to change to prevent that, although I'm not sure what. I intend to use this education to find out." It would be a worthy pursuit to his father as well, he was sure, if he actually decided to go that route instead of take after his parents. He might earn a 'good job.' "Do you have passion about something? People don't usually ask that, I'm curious why you'd prioritize that question."

𝙱𝚊𝙳 𝚛𝙴𝚙𝚄𝚝𝚊𝚃𝙸𝚘𝙽

A BOAT!?

She stared at the man in disbelief as he spoke. The first thing she disliked about his stupid little speech was that he told them to leave their luggage behind. How the hell was she suppose to know that they aren't going to go through it. But no matter how much she wanted to fight and argue about this statement it came down to one thing. Everyone else was doing it and she's not going to be the idiot who fights about something as little as her luggage. grumbling, she leaves her things where they're at. The second thing she disliked was that they're boarding a boat. Originally it sounded cool. She's never been on any sort of boat before. In her naive mind she pictured some sort of big fancy boat that you'd see at the docks by the beaches. Instead when she finally got a glance of what they really looked like, she felt like screaming. The 'boats' if that is what you could even call them, were these little weird wooden things that you'd find in movies and had to row. From where she was standing, she could not find anything that could be used to move the boat.

This is stupid she thinks as she rolls her eyes, Four people to a boat. Okay..... which boat though? Even though she thought it was stupid, she had one decision she needed to make. Which boat? One boat was already completely full. Obviously that was crossed off of her list. But still which one? Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock She felt stuck and a panic set in. If she stood there forever she would look like a complete idiot. Is this what captain hook felt when he heard that tick tock of a clock? Tick tock tick tock In the back of her mind the tick tock repeated. Drawing her shoulders back she stands up straighter, putting on an image that she's confident. Looking around once more she spots a boat with only two people. Next to it was an empty boat. Drawing her bottom lip into her mouth, she drags it out slowly as she makes a decision. She'll go into the one with the people in it. Therefore, if I went into the empty boat, I wouldn't face the embarrassment of no one else going into it.

Starting forward, she makes her way to the boat. A couple of feet before it, a thought crosses her mind. What if they reject her? The devil child shakes her head ever so slightly as she forces the thought out of her mind. Not gonna happen Going up to the two other kids, a boy and girl, she forces a confident smile onto her face. "I hope you don't mind me intruding whatever conversation you have going on, but I would like to join this.... boat" Smiling once more, she leaves no room for questions, judgement or for someone to argue. Carefully, she climbed in, avoiding any sudden movements to not rock it or god forbid, tip it over.

Word Count 515

Ooc notes Open to interaction Boat~4

Mentions @Casimir Beaumont @Solène d'Estienne

Solène was so often lost in the thoughts of the future that she occasionally had to remind herself to live in the here and now. She had been told many of times that one day she would wake up and realize life had passed her by, and she would have no fun memories or friends to look back upon. She was told it would be a lonely existence. It only ever left Solène wondering how she was supposed to miss something she had never experienced in the first place. Though she had experienced someone calling her a friend, they had just met, and surely it took more time than a few hours to be what a friend was defined as.

The information on Beauxbâtons had come to her through high-society gossip, which was often enough based in truth but rarely ever the full account. The disappointment in her voice was almost palpable. “No, unfortunately, I don’t know what it is that they have changed. I suspect no one except their staff knows until it happens.” However, she could answer why she was going to Hogwarts. “Oh, that’s rather simple. My first instance of magic happened while we were at our London home. I also have other family members who reside in the area for much of the year. So, it was logical to relocate and attend Hogwarts.”

In the short time between her school shopping and boarding the train to Hogwarts, Solène had decided not to flaunt outright her family ties to the current Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. She would not go out of her way to hide it, which would be hard to do if anyone saw them in the same room, since she was practically his carbon copy. But her academic success was extremely important to her, and she was not going to give anyone an outright reason to accuse her of receiving special treatment. If anything, she would be scrutinized much more closely than the other students because he knew what she was capable of.

Solène listened and focused on one key phrase that the boy said: “dangerous place for wizards.” That in and of itself was a polarizing phrase, but she would not react any differently than the matter-of-fact way she had been. So, he’s either a blood purist or an equalist, likely on an extreme end. Noted.

“Law is an interesting branch, and using your education to figure out your path is exactly what it was designed for.” She suspected his mornings would be consumed by reading the news. Then he flipped her question back at her, and while she had asked it, she hadn’t been fully prepared to answer it. Her father was a Ministry of Magical Affairs of France employee, her late mother was an auror, and her closest uncle had been an auror, hit wizard, and now professor. Working for the government clearly ran in her blood, but it just wasn’t something that seemed appealing to her currently. “I can’t decide if I’d li-" Saved from having to come up with an answer by the newcomer. For now, at least.

As the other girl appeared and announced her intention, a small, amused smile formed at the corners of Sol’s mouth at the way she had said the word boat. “I have no objections.” Her voice was dry, soft, and matter-of-fact. Looking at her first boat acquaintance, she realized she never introduced herself. Granted, neither had he. Regardless, she had been raised better. “I’m Solène d'Estienne.” She offered to them both.

Edith had taken a moment to gather her belongings and send them off. She didn't mind having her belongings carried up to the castle for her, but she had gotten fairly comfortable on the train and had a bit of repacking to do before she was ready to hand off her whole-life-in-a-trunk. By the time she had everything in order, she was racing up to the nearest boat as quickly as she could.

In the boat, packed awkwardly together and swaying slowly with the light push and pull of the water, were three other kids. All upcoming first years, just like her. As she approached, she overheard a bit of their introductions.

"Solène!! Oh wow, what a lovely French name! This is so exciting-- oh!-- I hope you don't mind if I join you on the boat!"

She climbed over the edge a bit clumsily, trying her best to be careful but snagging her cloak on the peer nonetheless.

"Sorry!" she announced, blushing embarrassedly. Edith never stayed embarrassed for long though. She sat down promptly and looked back up at the pretty, dark-haired girl in front of her.

"What I wanted to say," she continued, "was that I am SUPER invested in French culture. I'm learning French and I love visiting France and it's always been my dream to become an ambassador to the French Ministry of Magic one day. So anyways... enchanté." she grinned awkwardly, extending a hand for Solène to shake.

"I suppose I should introduce myself aswell... I'm Edith! Edith Phence-Moakley. I'm English, no matter how much I would love to have been born French." She gave sigh of mock defeat. "But honestly I'm quite fond of where I'm from. I've got a little cottage in a town in the Cotswolds. It's certainly hard to beat. My mum and dad live there with me, and my mum's a wizard but my dad's not. Bit odd I think. I feel funny like I'm split between the two worlds sometimes, but I imagine I'll be fully in the wizarding world here at Hogwarts! Are you lot excited?" She gestured to the others in the boat, hoping excitedly that she might make some new friends right off.

boat: 6
mentioning: @Núria Serra-Coromines
date: september 01, 2026
open to interaction! | dialogue, thoughts ; reply

Mari tried her best not to look as lost as she felt while following after the other first years towards somewhere she doesn't know. It just happened so quickly that not even she could follow through. One moment she was walking alongside the other girls she was with during the train ride, but she lost them as students started coming out of the train and being ushered to different direction. And as much as she wanted to call out, her voice will just definitely be drowned out from the noise around her.

So she did the most reasonable thing to do at the moment: follow the crowd.

Her fingers curled against the sleeves of her uniform robes as she managed to reach the boats with other first years, hazel eyes wandering over each one in search of people she knew, but she still can't spot them around the rows of nervous first-years being ushered towards the lake. And it made her to hesitate for a while. The thought of getting into the boat that looked almost close to sinking or tipping over with strangers isn't a good idea at all, but staying behind seemed considerably worse. Why do we have to do this anyway? Can't we just go with the others?

Her eyes darted over a boat near where she is, containing one student whose grip on the side of the boat was so tight she can somehow see her palm whitening against the rough wood. Perhaps it's not just her that felt frightened about getting tipped off of the boat into the dark waters of the calm lake. With those thought, she quietly approached the boat and carefully boarded on it, trying her best to climb in a way that won't make it shook or tip over. The moment she managed to sit properly by the boat, she gripped the side of the boat as well. "U-Uh... hello. I hope... you don't mind me joining... you... in the boat, I mean..." she cleared her throat when she realized how painfully awkward she sounded. "I-I'm Marigold... Marigold Wesley..."

Reducio

2026-09-1
Great Lake, Boat 4
Year 1
Interacting With @Solène d'Estienne, @Willow Starch, @Edith Phence-Moakley

It was disappointing that this girl didn't have the information on the Beauxbatons changes, but Cas supposed he could find it for himself if he investigated thoroughly enough this year. He'd heard sometimes there were events with school crossovers, and if that happened he'd take advantage of it to quiz students from every other school to understand the differences between Hogwarts and them. He watched steadily as she spoke about her reason for going to Hogwarts instead of the French school, and wanted to ask more. Yes, it made sense logically, but she'd said nothing about her feelings about the matter. He was always intrigued by people and what currents ran underneath their outer façade, but the moment ended without him getting a chance to ask.

Before he could respond or hear what her decided specialty was, they were interrupted by another student joining them, her tone sounding not too thrilled about the craft they were taking to the school. What was that about? To him, it was a cut and dry cheap mass-produced boat for a quick ride that didn't require comfort. Did something about that not make sense to her? Did she want something more luxurious, or was it deeper than that? Fear about what was in the lake? If he had any reservations, the lake creatures were probably the biggest ones.

Solène d'Estienne.

He turned back to Solène - yes, that last name was familiar. A pureblood at least on her father's side then, which would've made him relax if he wasn't wary about the newcomer. You never could tell. But... that was... if you couldn't tell the difference... Hm. That was a thought problem for later.

Cas opened his mouth to introduce himself when another girl charged into the boat and completely changed the feelings of being in it. He'd never met someone with so much exuberance, and he recoiled slightly with a grimace as she started talking, rambling on with entirely too much excitement. His stomach bottomed out as she mentioned her father not being a wizard, and he surreptitiously tried to scoot away a bit, tucking his hands into his robes and suppressing a shiver. Dangerous, her family was dangerous to wizarding society. They didn't believe there was any issue mixing blood, and she was the product of that. It wasn't her fault, technically, but it made him edgy all the same.

"Casimir Beaumont," he muttered, sliding his eyes to the water and desperately wishing he had chosen another boat. "No. Not excited." That was all he said, deciding to interact as little as possible with her.

Boat 1
Pestering interacting with @Mahdi Hassan

Finally, the night had come. After months and months of agonising wait, after endless days of camp, sleeping close enough to school that Jo could stare forlorn at the castle, it was finally time to go to Hogwarts. She was so excited, she could barely feel her hands as she navigated the crowd towards the loud voice calling for incoming first years, trying to snake or shoulder her way to the front of the assembled gaggle of children.

In the years that she'd been waiting for this moment, she'd asked her granda to tell her the story of his own arrival at Hogwarts so many times that she could easily recite what was coming--boats, hat, feast--but nothing felt quite real as she followed the script, nipping at the heels the strange man who must be the groundskeeper--in the stories, it was always the groundskeeper--to the small fleet of rowboats moored at the edge of the lake. The water, in the dark, looked unfathomably deep and Jo found herself wondering what kind of things lurked beneath that so many rules were necessary. Surely, they wouldn't keep anything too dangerous in a place that was meant to be a school, not when the lake wasn't even out of bound (at least, she didn't think so). Magic could fix a lot, but Jo was reasonably sure it couldn't fix being eaten alive.

"What kind of creatures?" she asked the (presumptive) groundskeeper, trailing him to a boat as she talked. "My granda said that there's a giant squid in the lake and also merpeople. Is that what you're worried about or something else? Has anyone ever fallen into the lake during the boat trip? It has to be the case, right, if they do it every year? Though I suppose I don't know when it started. The tradition, I mean. It's class, though." Her eyes immediately cast for a small rock in the ground around them. Maybe she could try to skip it across the water when the man wasn't looking and see if anything stirred. He had to keep an eye out for everyone, so she figured she would be able to find a gap in his watchfulness.

Unfortunately, she couldn't find anything that would serve, so she stepped gingerly into the small boat, trying her best not to get her robes wet. It wasn't until she sat down that she finally went quiet; and the night was quiet enough to notice the sound of the waves lapping gently at the side of the boat. She felt like the world had suddenly hushed for their arrival at school, to underscore the momentous beginning to their lives as actual witches and wizards.

It was an illusion that didn't last long, but it still made Jo smile.

date.	⟶ September 01, 2026.
time.	⟶ night, just as students begin boarding the rowboats.
location.	⟶ Boat 6, at the edge of the Great Lake.
speech.	⟶ #70949e english.
	#000000 cantonese.

A boat ride. Charming.

March let himself be guided along in the crowd of students, all of which were led like rowdy little lambs by a man with a strong voice and a very serious looking beard. It was a good distraction, dodging tromping feet and mud flecks from soiling the brand new robes that had given his father a brand new wrinkle at the cash register. He keeps his head down, eyes on the dimly lit path in front of him, even as other students stared upwards, starry-eyed, at the brilliance of the sky unhindered by the city smog and polluting light. His stomach twisted, and his mouth twisted in turn, a lock and key of displeasure. He was not afraid. He was not afraid. He was a big boy, first time away from home, and he would not be afraid.

Whoops rose into the air. March’s eyes flicked up to see the celebration in question: Hogwarts castle. It was visible from where they were, just a boat ride away. Even with the distance warping its size, he could tell that he was gazing upon a monument of incredible proportions. It was beautiful. It was terrific. The nausea clawed up, and he let out a slow breath. Then, March looked away.

“Four to a boat. Choose your boats. Once you board, you stay in the boat."

A choice. March’s eyes scanned the boats available, counting them. Some of the students were much faster, or perhaps, much less discerning, hopping into their respective wooden vessels, one by one. Then, like a dam broken, boats began filling up, full to the brim. Surely there were enough seats for all of them, right? His blood pressure ticked up. He didn’t want to test his theory; better to choose a boat, fast.

How about this one… he watched as a student stepped all over a disgruntled girl on their way into the boat. No. It was full anyway. Or this one? They’re already talking to one another, and I don’t want to break into their conversation. Then, how about this one? Two meek looking girls, one sitting and the other one just having boarded, occupied the boat that he stood a short distance from. ...Alright.

March made his way over, scuffed sneakers toeing close to the edge between solid, dry land and cold moonlit waters. It suddenly occurred to him, belatedly, that he had never been on any sort of watercraft before. And importantly, he had never even learned how to swim. If anything happened out here, he would have to rely on the kindness of strangers to fish him out… and that was something that was absolutely, one hundred percent-ly not allowed to happen. He pushed the thought from his mind, unwilling to entertain it further. Here goes.

One foot. Then the oth— his right foot catches as he steps down into the unsteady wooden thing, not anticipating it to react so easily and obediently to the shift in weight. The boat rocks to the left, and March’s hand catches the edge, body careening. There’s a glimpse of his wide eyes in the reflection of the water for just a heartbeat. But what comes up, must come down, or vice versa, and at the last possible moment, the boat rocks back and rights itself, almost as if by magic. March finds himself, knees bent, arms held out for balance, looking down at the water where he had almost taken a headfirst plunge into. His head snaps back to look at the other two in the boat.

The ordeal had lasted less than four seconds (and to be honest, the boat had been nowhere near to fully tipping over), but it had been more than enough to get his pulse jumping. Hopefully, the darkness of night and the yellow glow of lamplight was enough to mask the way his ears were beginning to burn red hot. He straightens up from the embarrassingly wide stance, slowly.

“...S-sorry.” His voice is a little breathless, strained to remain composed, but genuinely apologetic. He coughs. ”Are you two alright?”

March carefully positioned his feet in the middle of the boat as he moved, not wanting to lean it towards one side or the other again, and took a somewhat shaky seat on the center thwart. There. As long as he didn’t budge an inch, the rest of the ride should go smoothly. March would be like a stone statue atop his wooden base.

“I hope they won’t make us row this thing…” he muttered hotly, glaring down at it.

After the heart attack he just had? No, thank you.

“I'm March Yeung. It's...” The introduction felt a little lame in the aftermath of the fumble earlier, but he pressed on for the sake of being polite. “...nice to meet you both.”

March boards Boat 6.