The start of a new chapter
"This should be it." Ana's father said, looking sceptically at the brick wall separating platforms nine and ten at the bustling London station. Their family looked distinctly out of place among all the muggles, though they had done their best to dress down. But the people here seemed to be used to strange looking people, or else they were simply too busy with their own lives. None of them as much as gave them a sideways glance. Not even when her father pulled out his wand and tapped the wall, then nodded to himself.
"Yes indeed. Just walk right through and don't dawdle. We don't have much time."
A second later he had disappeared through the wall. Ana followed on his heels with her brothers in tow, while her mother brought up the rear with the trolley.
The other side was just as bustling as the station outside, but in a completely different way. Owls circled overhead as parents hugged their children goodbye, some dressed more in the muggle fashion like themselves, some she didn't know how they hadn't drawn attention on the way in. A few older students had arrived on their own, clearly familiar with the voyage, but most had their families with them.
Ana clutched her suitcase tightly as she gave her mother a last hug before getting on the train. She was trying but failing to put on a brave face. It was the first time she'd be leaving her family for more than a week. She was excited to go to Hogwarts, but would miss them terribly. A childish part of her wished that they could all come along, but she knew that was silly.
"You'll be fine, khoshgelam*!" Remember to owl us as soon as you get there, don't forget your manners and stay on top of your lessons.” her mom reminded her, gently nudging her onto the train.
"And make some friends!" Her father added, waving proudly.
"I'll miss you!" She shouted over the noise of other goodbyes, before dragging her heavy suitcase onto the train. Maybe she shouldn't have packed so many clothes. But then she wouldn't be back until Christmas and didn't know when she'd have the opportunity to bring more of her things. Hopefully Hogwarts had a lot of closet space.
With a last wave to her parents and siblings, she hopped into a carriage and weaved her way through knots of students greeting old friends in the hallways on the lookout for an empty compartment or one with students her own age. She didn't want to spend the entire trip being the third wheel to a group of upperclassmen. Finally she found a compartment that was still empty and plopped into a window seat. She tried to catch another glimpse of her family before the train rolled out of the station, but couldn't find them in the crowd.
As the train started to pick up speed, she smiled as she remembered that her mum had packed some sweets for her to have on the trip. Heaving her suitcase onto the seat opposite herself, she started rummaging through her things, bending down further and further into the clearly magically enhanced piece of luggage until she had disappeared nearly to the waist. She was so engrossed in her search she didn't even notice when the compartment door slid open.
(*Persian term of endearment)
"Yes indeed. Just walk right through and don't dawdle. We don't have much time."
A second later he had disappeared through the wall. Ana followed on his heels with her brothers in tow, while her mother brought up the rear with the trolley.
The other side was just as bustling as the station outside, but in a completely different way. Owls circled overhead as parents hugged their children goodbye, some dressed more in the muggle fashion like themselves, some she didn't know how they hadn't drawn attention on the way in. A few older students had arrived on their own, clearly familiar with the voyage, but most had their families with them.
Ana clutched her suitcase tightly as she gave her mother a last hug before getting on the train. She was trying but failing to put on a brave face. It was the first time she'd be leaving her family for more than a week. She was excited to go to Hogwarts, but would miss them terribly. A childish part of her wished that they could all come along, but she knew that was silly.
"You'll be fine, khoshgelam*!" Remember to owl us as soon as you get there, don't forget your manners and stay on top of your lessons.” her mom reminded her, gently nudging her onto the train.
"And make some friends!" Her father added, waving proudly.
"I'll miss you!" She shouted over the noise of other goodbyes, before dragging her heavy suitcase onto the train. Maybe she shouldn't have packed so many clothes. But then she wouldn't be back until Christmas and didn't know when she'd have the opportunity to bring more of her things. Hopefully Hogwarts had a lot of closet space.
With a last wave to her parents and siblings, she hopped into a carriage and weaved her way through knots of students greeting old friends in the hallways on the lookout for an empty compartment or one with students her own age. She didn't want to spend the entire trip being the third wheel to a group of upperclassmen. Finally she found a compartment that was still empty and plopped into a window seat. She tried to catch another glimpse of her family before the train rolled out of the station, but couldn't find them in the crowd.
As the train started to pick up speed, she smiled as she remembered that her mum had packed some sweets for her to have on the trip. Heaving her suitcase onto the seat opposite herself, she started rummaging through her things, bending down further and further into the clearly magically enhanced piece of luggage until she had disappeared nearly to the waist. She was so engrossed in her search she didn't even notice when the compartment door slid open.
(*Persian term of endearment)
The start of a new chapter
Nia sniffed and raised her chin. She would not be seen crying on her first day at a new school – especially not at a magic school, for goodness sake!
Yet, when she looked out of the old window of the Hogwarts Express to see her nanay1, dad and sister waving enthusiastically from the platform, wearing muggle jeans and coats amongst a sea of robes and other rather fascinating fashion choices, she couldn’t help but think this was a huge mistake.
Yes, she understood that she was not the first and only muggleborn witch to ever attend Hogwarts, but it sure felt like it now! Every single compartment was packed full of kids who all seemed to know each other, laughing and talking about stuff she had never even heard about before! (what on Earth was Quidditch anyway?). They all seemed perfectly comfortable in their uniforms, while Nia had spent way too long that morning trying it on and turning around in front of the mirror to see how the robes flowed. She couldn’t say she was a fan of the black.
“You’re gonna be Hogwarts’ prom queen, I just know it!” had said her sister, hugging her tightly around the middle before Nia had hopped on the train. She was smiling broadly without a trace of tears, excited for Nia’s new adventure. Nia didn’t think her sister realised yet that this new adventure meant not seeing her at all for months at a time, but she wasn’t going to be the one to remind her.
“Maya, it’s a magic school, not an American one. I don’t think they have a prom.” Nia had said, ruffling her sister's long hair with a smirk. She insisted on growing it out with the idea of one day having it touch the ground while she walked.
“What?! What kind of magic school doesn’t have a prom?” Maya squeaked indignantly.
“Maybe you can start the tradition, iha2.” interrupter her mother, snatching her from her sister’s arms to get a hug herself. Nia was already taller than her nanay, and she could smell the aloe vera in her hair and the honey in her skin as she hugged her tighter. She sniffed her discreetly, trying to memorise the smell of “home” before leaving.
“Is that a challenge? I could totally do it, you know.” answered Nia, swallowing the knot in her throat.
“We know dear”, assured her dad, hugging her and her nanay at the same time with his long arms. “If anyone can, it is you”
“Les voy a echar de menos3”, Nia said in a low voice, burying her face in her dad’s chest and reaching for her sister.
“You’ll be back home before you know it” her dad answered, stroking her short hair carefully so as to not disturb her hairstyle, even though Nia knew he couldn’t tell the difference at all.
“Te queremos4” said her nanay, kissing her hard on the cheek. Maya nodded enthusiastically in agreement.
“Y yo a ustedes5” answered Nia, tightening her hug and kissing each of their cheeks in turn.
Nia shook her head and waved from the window of the Hogwarts Express one last time before putting on her confident smile, straightening her skirt, and strutting through the narrow corridors as if they were part of a runway show.
She could do this. She was going to be Hogwarts’ first prom queen, or something equally amazing, and Maya and her parents would be proud. She just needed to pick a compartment, enter it with a smile, and be nice to whoever was in it, and she’d have friends in no time at all.
She stopped in front of the Chosen Door (which, really, was just the first door she saw after making her resolution) and closed her eyes.
She had this.
With a deep breath and a big smile, she opened the door in one fast movement before she could second-guess herself.
However, when she looked into the compartment, it took her a second to understand what she was seeing:
The velvety seats looked comfortable and clean, but they were empty except for what looked like a pile of clothes on top of an open suitcase.
Had she, somehow, managed to enter the only compartment on the train with nothing but laundry in it?
However, when what she thought was just clothes started moving, and she saw that it had legs, she realised what it actually was:
A small, skinny girl, being swallowed alive by some sort of enchanted suitcase.
She was sure the scream of pure terror that abandoned her lips could be heard quite clearly from the platform.
Yet, when she looked out of the old window of the Hogwarts Express to see her nanay1, dad and sister waving enthusiastically from the platform, wearing muggle jeans and coats amongst a sea of robes and other rather fascinating fashion choices, she couldn’t help but think this was a huge mistake.
Yes, she understood that she was not the first and only muggleborn witch to ever attend Hogwarts, but it sure felt like it now! Every single compartment was packed full of kids who all seemed to know each other, laughing and talking about stuff she had never even heard about before! (what on Earth was Quidditch anyway?). They all seemed perfectly comfortable in their uniforms, while Nia had spent way too long that morning trying it on and turning around in front of the mirror to see how the robes flowed. She couldn’t say she was a fan of the black.
“You’re gonna be Hogwarts’ prom queen, I just know it!” had said her sister, hugging her tightly around the middle before Nia had hopped on the train. She was smiling broadly without a trace of tears, excited for Nia’s new adventure. Nia didn’t think her sister realised yet that this new adventure meant not seeing her at all for months at a time, but she wasn’t going to be the one to remind her.
“Maya, it’s a magic school, not an American one. I don’t think they have a prom.” Nia had said, ruffling her sister's long hair with a smirk. She insisted on growing it out with the idea of one day having it touch the ground while she walked.
“What?! What kind of magic school doesn’t have a prom?” Maya squeaked indignantly.
“Maybe you can start the tradition, iha2.” interrupter her mother, snatching her from her sister’s arms to get a hug herself. Nia was already taller than her nanay, and she could smell the aloe vera in her hair and the honey in her skin as she hugged her tighter. She sniffed her discreetly, trying to memorise the smell of “home” before leaving.
“Is that a challenge? I could totally do it, you know.” answered Nia, swallowing the knot in her throat.
“We know dear”, assured her dad, hugging her and her nanay at the same time with his long arms. “If anyone can, it is you”
“Les voy a echar de menos3”, Nia said in a low voice, burying her face in her dad’s chest and reaching for her sister.
“You’ll be back home before you know it” her dad answered, stroking her short hair carefully so as to not disturb her hairstyle, even though Nia knew he couldn’t tell the difference at all.
“Te queremos4” said her nanay, kissing her hard on the cheek. Maya nodded enthusiastically in agreement.
“Y yo a ustedes5” answered Nia, tightening her hug and kissing each of their cheeks in turn.
Nia shook her head and waved from the window of the Hogwarts Express one last time before putting on her confident smile, straightening her skirt, and strutting through the narrow corridors as if they were part of a runway show.
She could do this. She was going to be Hogwarts’ first prom queen, or something equally amazing, and Maya and her parents would be proud. She just needed to pick a compartment, enter it with a smile, and be nice to whoever was in it, and she’d have friends in no time at all.
She stopped in front of the Chosen Door (which, really, was just the first door she saw after making her resolution) and closed her eyes.
She had this.
With a deep breath and a big smile, she opened the door in one fast movement before she could second-guess herself.
However, when she looked into the compartment, it took her a second to understand what she was seeing:
The velvety seats looked comfortable and clean, but they were empty except for what looked like a pile of clothes on top of an open suitcase.
Had she, somehow, managed to enter the only compartment on the train with nothing but laundry in it?
However, when what she thought was just clothes started moving, and she saw that it had legs, she realised what it actually was:
A small, skinny girl, being swallowed alive by some sort of enchanted suitcase.
She was sure the scream of pure terror that abandoned her lips could be heard quite clearly from the platform.
Reducio
1· Nanay: "mum" in tagalog
2 · Iha: endearment for "daughter" in Tagalog
3 · Les voy a echar de menos: "I'm going to miss you" in Spanish
4 · Te queremos: "we love you" in Spanish
5 · Y yo a ustedes: "me too" in Spanish
2 · Iha: endearment for "daughter" in Tagalog
3 · Les voy a echar de menos: "I'm going to miss you" in Spanish
4 · Te queremos: "we love you" in Spanish
5 · Y yo a ustedes: "me too" in Spanish
| "𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐫-𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬." |
STA:5 | EVA:7 | STR:2 | WIS:6 | AP:7. | ACC:8 | |
The start of a new chapter
Suddenly there was a scream. Ana bolted upright, slamming her head against the heavy lid of her trunk and scattering clothes everywhere. She groaned and rubbed her scalp, then turned towards the source of the noise. Judging by the scream she had expected to see someone being murdered or worse, but all she could see was a girl her own age.
"You arrite?" she said groggily, shaking her head to try and clear the fog. That would definitely leave a bruise. "What happened?" she asked, looking around for anything that could have caused the girl's reaction. Everything seemed perfectly in order as far as she could tell. Apart from the fact that the compartment now looked a complete mess, of course.
"Someone put a spider down your robes or something?" She asked concernedly. That was probably one of the few things that would get that kind of a scream out of Ana. She absolutely loathed creepy crawly things with a passion. And her brothers were always trying to find slimy or crawly things to scare her with. Of course they wouldn't be able to do that anymore now she was going to Hogwarts. She wasn't sure whether she was happy or sad about that at the moment.
A glint caught her attention out of the corner of her eye and with a loud "gotcha!" she dipped one arm back into the suitcase to the armpit and pulled out a rather large tin cookie jar with a grin. "Finally! Been searching for this for ages." It had been five minutes at best, but Ana wasn't exactly the most patient person in the world.
She screwed open the lid, revealing an assortment of her favorite Persian sweets. "Want some? I got Sohan and Zoolbia and some honey Baklava... My mum made them herself without even any magic!" The fact that this girl possibly had no idea what any of those things were never crossed her mind. She stuffed some Baklava into her mouth, the pain all but forgotten. Sugar could cure just about anything.
"I'm Ana by the way. You a first year too?" She said between bites, still holding out the tin.
"You arrite?" she said groggily, shaking her head to try and clear the fog. That would definitely leave a bruise. "What happened?" she asked, looking around for anything that could have caused the girl's reaction. Everything seemed perfectly in order as far as she could tell. Apart from the fact that the compartment now looked a complete mess, of course.
"Someone put a spider down your robes or something?" She asked concernedly. That was probably one of the few things that would get that kind of a scream out of Ana. She absolutely loathed creepy crawly things with a passion. And her brothers were always trying to find slimy or crawly things to scare her with. Of course they wouldn't be able to do that anymore now she was going to Hogwarts. She wasn't sure whether she was happy or sad about that at the moment.
A glint caught her attention out of the corner of her eye and with a loud "gotcha!" she dipped one arm back into the suitcase to the armpit and pulled out a rather large tin cookie jar with a grin. "Finally! Been searching for this for ages." It had been five minutes at best, but Ana wasn't exactly the most patient person in the world.
She screwed open the lid, revealing an assortment of her favorite Persian sweets. "Want some? I got Sohan and Zoolbia and some honey Baklava... My mum made them herself without even any magic!" The fact that this girl possibly had no idea what any of those things were never crossed her mind. She stuffed some Baklava into her mouth, the pain all but forgotten. Sugar could cure just about anything.
"I'm Ana by the way. You a first year too?" She said between bites, still holding out the tin.
The start of a new chapter
Nia watched dumbfounded as the girl emerged (alive, thank goodness) from the trunk and hit her head on the lid with a rotound thud. She repressed the urge to flinch again as she watched the girl's clothes fall from the trunk and hit the floor with the sudden movement.
“You arrite?” asked the girl, rubbing her head to ease the pain. Her big, brown eyes were looking at Nia in perplexion, and Nia was still so shocked she couldn’t even find her voice to answer the question. “What happened? Someone put a spider down your robes or something?”
She stood there, frozen in place, mouth gaping open and closing a couple of times while looking for some words to say as the girl exclaimed a “gotcha!” and reached into the suitcase again. Nia watched with wide eyes as her arm disappeared all the way to the armpit, only to reappear holding a big jar. "Finally! Been searching for this for ages. Want some? I got Sohan and Zoolbia and some honey Baklava... My mum made them herself without even any magic!"
The girl took a bite of some very delicious looking Baklava, and offered the jar to Nia as if it hadn’t just come out of the insides of what appeared to be some sort of bottomless trunk.
"I'm Ana by the way. You a first year too?"
The question seemed to finally wake Nia up. She looked at the scattered clothes on the floor and winced.
“Oh dear, I am so sorry! You scared the pants off of me! Are you alright?” Nia asked, entering the compartment in a hurry and starting to pick up clothes from the floor. She could feel her face burning, embarrassment tinting her ears red. What an absolutely delightful first impression.
“I’m Nia”, she offered with a tentative smile. “Sorry for all the screaming, I’m new to this whole… magic thing”, she said, waving her hand as if to illustrate the “whole magic thing”. “I thought your trunk was eating you alive! How on Earth does that work?” She finally asked, getting to her feet with an armful of clothes, unable to contain her curiosity any longer. She tried to look into the trunk discreetly, but she didn’t want to come off as too nosey after she had already made a scene and caused Ana a literal headache. “Does it have an end? Is it heavy?”
She stepped back towards the seat in front of Ana, a thousand questions running through her mind at the same time, all fighting inside her to be the first to come out. She sat down without asking if the seat was free first, completely oblivious of what may be considered proper manners, as she straightened her clothes and left her backpack carefully at her side. It was covered in little embroidered details she had been making for a couple of years now, and she was very proud of it, especially since her sister had insisted on adding her own little memento to it: a very wonky orange cat that could have very well been a rabbit or a squirrel. It looked cute enough surrounded by flowers, bees and other animals, and it always brought a smile to her face.
She was about to speak when her train of thought was rudely interrupted by the growl her stomach made at the smell of the sweets. In the end, the one question that managed to win the race to come out first was just a sheepish:
“Also, is the offer for sweets still standing? I love Baklava.”
“You arrite?” asked the girl, rubbing her head to ease the pain. Her big, brown eyes were looking at Nia in perplexion, and Nia was still so shocked she couldn’t even find her voice to answer the question. “What happened? Someone put a spider down your robes or something?”
She stood there, frozen in place, mouth gaping open and closing a couple of times while looking for some words to say as the girl exclaimed a “gotcha!” and reached into the suitcase again. Nia watched with wide eyes as her arm disappeared all the way to the armpit, only to reappear holding a big jar. "Finally! Been searching for this for ages. Want some? I got Sohan and Zoolbia and some honey Baklava... My mum made them herself without even any magic!"
The girl took a bite of some very delicious looking Baklava, and offered the jar to Nia as if it hadn’t just come out of the insides of what appeared to be some sort of bottomless trunk.
"I'm Ana by the way. You a first year too?"
The question seemed to finally wake Nia up. She looked at the scattered clothes on the floor and winced.
“Oh dear, I am so sorry! You scared the pants off of me! Are you alright?” Nia asked, entering the compartment in a hurry and starting to pick up clothes from the floor. She could feel her face burning, embarrassment tinting her ears red. What an absolutely delightful first impression.
“I’m Nia”, she offered with a tentative smile. “Sorry for all the screaming, I’m new to this whole… magic thing”, she said, waving her hand as if to illustrate the “whole magic thing”. “I thought your trunk was eating you alive! How on Earth does that work?” She finally asked, getting to her feet with an armful of clothes, unable to contain her curiosity any longer. She tried to look into the trunk discreetly, but she didn’t want to come off as too nosey after she had already made a scene and caused Ana a literal headache. “Does it have an end? Is it heavy?”
She stepped back towards the seat in front of Ana, a thousand questions running through her mind at the same time, all fighting inside her to be the first to come out. She sat down without asking if the seat was free first, completely oblivious of what may be considered proper manners, as she straightened her clothes and left her backpack carefully at her side. It was covered in little embroidered details she had been making for a couple of years now, and she was very proud of it, especially since her sister had insisted on adding her own little memento to it: a very wonky orange cat that could have very well been a rabbit or a squirrel. It looked cute enough surrounded by flowers, bees and other animals, and it always brought a smile to her face.
She was about to speak when her train of thought was rudely interrupted by the growl her stomach made at the smell of the sweets. In the end, the one question that managed to win the race to come out first was just a sheepish:
“Also, is the offer for sweets still standing? I love Baklava.”
Last edited by Nia Greenwood on 24 May 2022, 00:29, edited 1 time in total.
| "𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐫-𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬." |
STA:5 | EVA:7 | STR:2 | WIS:6 | AP:7. | ACC:8 | |
The start of a new chapter
"Scared the pants off of you?" Ana pondered the girl's words as Nia picked up stray pieces of clothing, wondering what in the heavens she might have done to scare her. It was much the other way around in Ana's eyes. She'd been doing nothing but minding her own business when...
The knut finally dropped when Nia mentioned that she was new to magic. "Ooooh, you're muggleborn? How exciting! I've never known anyone who wasn't magic. Mum and pops always said it would be too complicated to have muggle friends. With them not supposed to know about us and all." She said disappointedly. She had of course met muggles before. Unless you lived in a magic only community like Hogsmeade that was inevitable. But she'd never conversed with one beyond a polite hello to the neighbors. And it was impossible to know which children would end up muggleborns until they got their letter. So it had seemed so much simpler for her family to just stick to their own kind and ignore the muggles around them and let the muggles ignore them. She had always found them fascinating, however. They must be so smart to find all these ways to get by without magic.
"Eat me alive? Oh Merlin no. It's not actually alive or anything." The girl's next question stumped her, however. She had never really questioned how magical things worked. They just did and that was that.
"To be fair, I don't know. We bought this one in Diagon Alley when we got my school supplies. I'm sure it has some kind of limits but I haven't tested it. And it has a featherlight charm on it to make it easier to carry. Not that it's weightless, mind." Her curiosity was piqued and she'd definitely have to look into this later. Who knew, maybe they were going to learn the kind of magic needed to create one of these soon. But that could wait until they got to Hogwarts. For now, she simply tossed her clothes back into the trunk and shoved it under her seat for safekeeping.
"Sure, help yourself." She said, taking the seat opposite Nia and placing the open tin of sweets between them. There was plenty to share. And she was sure her mum would owl her more if she asked. She reached in and took another piece herself.
"So what are you most excited for at Hogwarts? I can't wait to start learning spells. My parents wouldn't allow me to start practicing at home. Though I've helped with a few potions before." Mostly just helping her mum grind and weigh ingredients, but it was better than nothing. If it was up to her she'd have been casting spells left right and center since the moment she got her wand. Which is why it was probably best that it was not up to her.
The knut finally dropped when Nia mentioned that she was new to magic. "Ooooh, you're muggleborn? How exciting! I've never known anyone who wasn't magic. Mum and pops always said it would be too complicated to have muggle friends. With them not supposed to know about us and all." She said disappointedly. She had of course met muggles before. Unless you lived in a magic only community like Hogsmeade that was inevitable. But she'd never conversed with one beyond a polite hello to the neighbors. And it was impossible to know which children would end up muggleborns until they got their letter. So it had seemed so much simpler for her family to just stick to their own kind and ignore the muggles around them and let the muggles ignore them. She had always found them fascinating, however. They must be so smart to find all these ways to get by without magic.
"Eat me alive? Oh Merlin no. It's not actually alive or anything." The girl's next question stumped her, however. She had never really questioned how magical things worked. They just did and that was that.
"To be fair, I don't know. We bought this one in Diagon Alley when we got my school supplies. I'm sure it has some kind of limits but I haven't tested it. And it has a featherlight charm on it to make it easier to carry. Not that it's weightless, mind." Her curiosity was piqued and she'd definitely have to look into this later. Who knew, maybe they were going to learn the kind of magic needed to create one of these soon. But that could wait until they got to Hogwarts. For now, she simply tossed her clothes back into the trunk and shoved it under her seat for safekeeping.
"Sure, help yourself." She said, taking the seat opposite Nia and placing the open tin of sweets between them. There was plenty to share. And she was sure her mum would owl her more if she asked. She reached in and took another piece herself.
"So what are you most excited for at Hogwarts? I can't wait to start learning spells. My parents wouldn't allow me to start practicing at home. Though I've helped with a few potions before." Mostly just helping her mum grind and weigh ingredients, but it was better than nothing. If it was up to her she'd have been casting spells left right and center since the moment she got her wand. Which is why it was probably best that it was not up to her.
The start of a new chapter
Nia reached towards the jar and grabbed one of the sweets with a genuine smile.
“Well”, she said, taking a bite of the Baklava. She repressed a sound of delight at the taste. It was delicious: light, airy and perfectly sweet. She made a mental note to ask Ana for the recipe – it never came out this good when she had tried to make it. She swallowed the sweet, and continued: “Then we’re on the same boat. I’ve never met anyone who was magic! Apart from myself, I guess.” Nia shrugged with a smirk. “I went to Diagon Alley for the first time a couple of months ago to get my stuff for school and I almost fell on my butt. My parents, too. It was something else, I’ll tell you that! I can’t even imagine having grown up with these kinds of things!” She said, motioning towards the trunk. A featherlight charm, Ana had said! It was just genius! She would have loved to have a trunk like that, but when she’d gone to Diagon Alley her parents had been so overwhelmed that they were not up to exploring much– they went straight for what they needed to buy, and then immediately went back home without looking around. Nia didn’t even get to see the trunks!
(Although, to be fair, it was probably for the best she didn’t have a bottomless trunk. God knows what she would have ended up bringing with her. Her whole closet, probably. Maybe she’d have tried to fit in her sister too, if she could manage to stay quiet for a couple of months.)
She ate the rest of the Baklava while listening to Ana talk about Hogwarts and spells, and suddenly all of the insecurities she had had when boarding the train came back to her with full force.
“I have no bloody idea” she answered truthfully when asked about what she was looking forward to the most, toying with her right earring and looking out the window of the train. All she could see was the green blur of vegetation, rapidly moving away from her home. “I don’t really know what to expect from the classes. I’m not usually one for self-deprecation, but let’s be real, I’ll probably be holding my wand backwards for the first month or so!” she laughed at her own attempt at a joke. Gosh, she really hoped she wasn’t actually that inept. She’d never had trouble learning anything before — she’d always been a quick study — but magic was completely new! Who could know?
“I guess I’m excited about the sorting” she continued, and found as the words left her mouth that she meant it. She really was looking forward to that part. “I’ve read a little about the different houses and It makes it feel more real, y’know? Belonging somewhere.” She opened the smallest pocket of her backpack and took out a packet of paper tissues to clean her sticky hands with. “Do you like making potions? Is it anything like cooking?”, she asked, offering Ana a tissue with a gesture.
“Well”, she said, taking a bite of the Baklava. She repressed a sound of delight at the taste. It was delicious: light, airy and perfectly sweet. She made a mental note to ask Ana for the recipe – it never came out this good when she had tried to make it. She swallowed the sweet, and continued: “Then we’re on the same boat. I’ve never met anyone who was magic! Apart from myself, I guess.” Nia shrugged with a smirk. “I went to Diagon Alley for the first time a couple of months ago to get my stuff for school and I almost fell on my butt. My parents, too. It was something else, I’ll tell you that! I can’t even imagine having grown up with these kinds of things!” She said, motioning towards the trunk. A featherlight charm, Ana had said! It was just genius! She would have loved to have a trunk like that, but when she’d gone to Diagon Alley her parents had been so overwhelmed that they were not up to exploring much– they went straight for what they needed to buy, and then immediately went back home without looking around. Nia didn’t even get to see the trunks!
(Although, to be fair, it was probably for the best she didn’t have a bottomless trunk. God knows what she would have ended up bringing with her. Her whole closet, probably. Maybe she’d have tried to fit in her sister too, if she could manage to stay quiet for a couple of months.)
She ate the rest of the Baklava while listening to Ana talk about Hogwarts and spells, and suddenly all of the insecurities she had had when boarding the train came back to her with full force.
“I have no bloody idea” she answered truthfully when asked about what she was looking forward to the most, toying with her right earring and looking out the window of the train. All she could see was the green blur of vegetation, rapidly moving away from her home. “I don’t really know what to expect from the classes. I’m not usually one for self-deprecation, but let’s be real, I’ll probably be holding my wand backwards for the first month or so!” she laughed at her own attempt at a joke. Gosh, she really hoped she wasn’t actually that inept. She’d never had trouble learning anything before — she’d always been a quick study — but magic was completely new! Who could know?
“I guess I’m excited about the sorting” she continued, and found as the words left her mouth that she meant it. She really was looking forward to that part. “I’ve read a little about the different houses and It makes it feel more real, y’know? Belonging somewhere.” She opened the smallest pocket of her backpack and took out a packet of paper tissues to clean her sticky hands with. “Do you like making potions? Is it anything like cooking?”, she asked, offering Ana a tissue with a gesture.
| "𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐫-𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬." |
STA:5 | EVA:7 | STR:2 | WIS:6 | AP:7. | ACC:8 | |
The start of a new chapter
"I always enjoy trips to Diagon Alley as well. We don't go near as often as I'd like. There's nothing that quite compares to it." She agreed. There was a smaller wizard shoping district in Oxford much nearer to home, but it wasn't half as grand or full of people. And of course there were things you could only find in London. She didn't think there was anywhere else in England where you could buy a wand, for example. At least not at the quality that Ollivanders provided. And who would ever buy a low quality wand.
"Only downside is taking the floo there. I wish there was another way. But we won't be able to apparate for ages. I guess you and your parents had to come in from muggle London?" She'd never entered Diagon Alley from that side. There was simply no reason to. But they'd stopped at the leaky cauldron for food on a few occasions and watched as people came and went. She'd asked whether they could go to the muggle stores as well, but her parents had seemed disinterested in the idea, sadly.
"Awe, don't be too hard on yourself." Ana said when Nia mentioned her fear of not being able to keep up at Hogwarts. "All of us are starting from the same place, really. I only got my wand a few weeks ago myself, and none of us are allowed to actually use magic until we're at Hogwarts. So the only subjects I might have an advantage in are things like History of Magic. Although..." she leaned in and lowered her voice to a whisper, just in case there was a professor listening nearby. "I haven't even opened that textbook since I bought it. Can you imagine anything more boring?" She was much more interested in the practical subjects. What was the point of learning about something that had happened eons ago.
"What kind of wand did you get, by the way? I got chestnut with a kelpie hair core. Powerful but hard to control, he said. But I think I'll do fine." She took the description as a challenge. And clearly the wand would not have chosen her if it didn't think she was up for it.
"Yeah the sorting will be interesting. My parents didn't actually go to Hogwarts, so I have no idea where I'll end up. I hope all my housemates are nice." The only thing that could ruin her Hogwarts experience would be not having any friends. But that hadn't really been an issue for her in the past so she was only a little bit worried about that. Surely with so many children in one place there were bound to be people she got along with. Nia certainly seemed pleasant enough.
"Thank you." She said, grabbing a tissue and wiping her hands clean. "Cool backpack by the way. Where did you get it?" She doubted you could buy something like that with the embroidery already on it, but you never knew. It was a muggle item after all.
"I guess potions is kinda similar to cooking?" she said, a bit unsure of herself. She'd never done either of them unassisted, after all. "Except you've gotta be way more careful with potions. You can change a recipe a bit when you're cooking and it's not a big deal, usually. But with potions you gotta do it the exact way you're supposed to or Merlin knows what could happen. Like if you stir clockwise instead of counterclockwise it actually makes a difference." Ana actually liked that about potions. She was a perfectionist by nature, so following instructions very precisely was never a problem for her. The only problem were the ingredients. For some reason it seemed like every potion contained something slimy or poisonous or smelly. Or all of the above. Not cool.
"Only downside is taking the floo there. I wish there was another way. But we won't be able to apparate for ages. I guess you and your parents had to come in from muggle London?" She'd never entered Diagon Alley from that side. There was simply no reason to. But they'd stopped at the leaky cauldron for food on a few occasions and watched as people came and went. She'd asked whether they could go to the muggle stores as well, but her parents had seemed disinterested in the idea, sadly.
"Awe, don't be too hard on yourself." Ana said when Nia mentioned her fear of not being able to keep up at Hogwarts. "All of us are starting from the same place, really. I only got my wand a few weeks ago myself, and none of us are allowed to actually use magic until we're at Hogwarts. So the only subjects I might have an advantage in are things like History of Magic. Although..." she leaned in and lowered her voice to a whisper, just in case there was a professor listening nearby. "I haven't even opened that textbook since I bought it. Can you imagine anything more boring?" She was much more interested in the practical subjects. What was the point of learning about something that had happened eons ago.
"What kind of wand did you get, by the way? I got chestnut with a kelpie hair core. Powerful but hard to control, he said. But I think I'll do fine." She took the description as a challenge. And clearly the wand would not have chosen her if it didn't think she was up for it.
"Yeah the sorting will be interesting. My parents didn't actually go to Hogwarts, so I have no idea where I'll end up. I hope all my housemates are nice." The only thing that could ruin her Hogwarts experience would be not having any friends. But that hadn't really been an issue for her in the past so she was only a little bit worried about that. Surely with so many children in one place there were bound to be people she got along with. Nia certainly seemed pleasant enough.
"Thank you." She said, grabbing a tissue and wiping her hands clean. "Cool backpack by the way. Where did you get it?" She doubted you could buy something like that with the embroidery already on it, but you never knew. It was a muggle item after all.
"I guess potions is kinda similar to cooking?" she said, a bit unsure of herself. She'd never done either of them unassisted, after all. "Except you've gotta be way more careful with potions. You can change a recipe a bit when you're cooking and it's not a big deal, usually. But with potions you gotta do it the exact way you're supposed to or Merlin knows what could happen. Like if you stir clockwise instead of counterclockwise it actually makes a difference." Ana actually liked that about potions. She was a perfectionist by nature, so following instructions very precisely was never a problem for her. The only problem were the ingredients. For some reason it seemed like every potion contained something slimy or poisonous or smelly. Or all of the above. Not cool.
The start of a new chapter
"The floo sounds convenient, honestly'', Nia said. She'd heard about the floo network, and being able to travel between places in mere seconds sounded brilliant. "Never actually tried it myself, mind you, but I think it probably beats the Leaky Cauldron. That place was greasy!" she shuddered, remembering the dark pub with old furniture that looked like it could use a deep cleansing or two. "The bartender was really nice, but you could tell he was tired of having to open the passage for muggleborns every time one came in."
As she heard Ana talk about her views on all students starting on the same page at Hogwarts, she wasn’t entirely sure she agreed with her: she thought you ought to pick some things up from having been around magic since you were born, like the words of certain spells and their effects, or some base knowledge about magical creatures and history, but she didn’t say anything. Even though she was feeling insecure, she knew that once she got over herself she could prove that she was able to do just as well as any kid born in the Wizarding World when she got to Hogwarts.
However, she couldn’t help throwing her head back in a laugh when Ana mentioned the school subject. “Oh god I’m so glad you said it! I’ve been dreading that subject since I got the book and saw how ridiculously thick it was. History is just history, isn’t it, magic or not… It’s just so dull” she grimaced. “And here I was, thinking I had finally managed to get rid of boring subjects. Anyway, it’s nice to see I’m not the only one that’s definitely not looking forward to that.”
She stretched in the compartment, wondering how much longer they'd have to wait until they reached the castle. Her belly gave a flip of excitement at the thought of it.
“My wand?” She asked when Ana finished describing her own, and took it out of her pocket to show it to the girl. Its wood, polished and smooth, reflected the light of the window in an inviting way. Nia obviously hadn’t been able to do much with it apart from trying it in Ollivanders, but she couldn’t wait to learn how to use it properly. “It has a phoenix feather core, which sounds brilliant, but I can’t remember the type of wood. I can’t really tell the difference. Cypress, I think?” she said, more to herself than the girl. “Anyway, Mr. Ollivander said it was really good for healing. And for “unjustified insecurities”, apparently, although he didn’t really explain how.”
In all honesty, Nia had been a little offended when Mr. Ollivander had said that. She considered herself to be very self-assured and confident, thank you very much. However, now that things were actually happening and she had to face the reality that she had no idea whatsoever about this world or even about magic… She did find herself second-guessing everything she thought she knew. She was often worried and self-conscious, and it was just not a good look on her, she believed. So she had to accept that maybe Mr. Ollivander did have a point, and if so, the fact that he’d said that her insecurities would be unjustified was quite comforting. She smiled a little at the thought, while listening to Ana talk about the sorting.
“Your parents didn’t go to Hogwarts? How come?” asked Nia, suddenly curious by what she’d heard. She thought all witches and wizards went to Hogwarts! Maybe you could be homeschooled? Or maybe, and as she thought it through this theory made more and more sense, there were different magic schools! She guessed it wouldn’t make much sense for people that lived in other countries to travel all the way to Scotland just to go to school.”Anyway, I’m sure everyone will be cool, no matter what house we get into. I don’t think I’d like being in Gryffindor very much though, based just on what I’ve read about them.” Bravery, nerve and chivalry? Sounded like the type of popular people that would disrupt class thinking they were real funny, when in reality, they were just plain annoying. “Do you have any preferences?”
To be fair, she thought she’d like any other house. She considered herself to have qualities of all of them… And also, blue, green and yellow just worked way better with her complexion than red. She just hoped she’d fit in with her house mates. She didn’t know if Ana and her would end up in the same house or not, but she liked the girl, so she hoped they could still talk even if they didn’t.
And then, Ana addressed her backpack, and Nia smiled broadly.“Oh, this? I actually made it myself!” She said proudly."Well, the backpack itself is store bought, I just embroidered it. My nanay and sister helped, but it’s mostly me.” She looked at the different details with fondness. “I embroider something new whenever I make a new good memory, meet a new friend or just feel really happy. See this one here?” She asked, pointing at a tiny envelope with a golden seal that was embroidered towards the right of the biggest pocket. “That was from when my Hogwarts letter came. I think seeing this here the next day was the only thing keeping me from thinking it had all been a dream.”
It still felt like a dream, really, even inside of the Hogwarts Express listening to another witch talk about potions. She was kind of expecting to wake up any minute.
“I mean… It sounds cool enough.” Nia said finally, unsure, but picking up on the contained enthusiasm of Ana’s voice when she started speaking about the specifics of potion making. “I think I’ll probably keep preferring cooking. I like to listen to the voice of my heart”, she said dramatically and with an airy voice, placing a hand over her forehead in a theatrical pose, “and my heart doesn’t really like being told what to do very much.” she finished, returning to her normal voice and posture with a shrug. “Also, when you cook you get to eat whatever you made in the end!”
As she heard Ana talk about her views on all students starting on the same page at Hogwarts, she wasn’t entirely sure she agreed with her: she thought you ought to pick some things up from having been around magic since you were born, like the words of certain spells and their effects, or some base knowledge about magical creatures and history, but she didn’t say anything. Even though she was feeling insecure, she knew that once she got over herself she could prove that she was able to do just as well as any kid born in the Wizarding World when she got to Hogwarts.
However, she couldn’t help throwing her head back in a laugh when Ana mentioned the school subject. “Oh god I’m so glad you said it! I’ve been dreading that subject since I got the book and saw how ridiculously thick it was. History is just history, isn’t it, magic or not… It’s just so dull” she grimaced. “And here I was, thinking I had finally managed to get rid of boring subjects. Anyway, it’s nice to see I’m not the only one that’s definitely not looking forward to that.”
She stretched in the compartment, wondering how much longer they'd have to wait until they reached the castle. Her belly gave a flip of excitement at the thought of it.
“My wand?” She asked when Ana finished describing her own, and took it out of her pocket to show it to the girl. Its wood, polished and smooth, reflected the light of the window in an inviting way. Nia obviously hadn’t been able to do much with it apart from trying it in Ollivanders, but she couldn’t wait to learn how to use it properly. “It has a phoenix feather core, which sounds brilliant, but I can’t remember the type of wood. I can’t really tell the difference. Cypress, I think?” she said, more to herself than the girl. “Anyway, Mr. Ollivander said it was really good for healing. And for “unjustified insecurities”, apparently, although he didn’t really explain how.”
In all honesty, Nia had been a little offended when Mr. Ollivander had said that. She considered herself to be very self-assured and confident, thank you very much. However, now that things were actually happening and she had to face the reality that she had no idea whatsoever about this world or even about magic… She did find herself second-guessing everything she thought she knew. She was often worried and self-conscious, and it was just not a good look on her, she believed. So she had to accept that maybe Mr. Ollivander did have a point, and if so, the fact that he’d said that her insecurities would be unjustified was quite comforting. She smiled a little at the thought, while listening to Ana talk about the sorting.
“Your parents didn’t go to Hogwarts? How come?” asked Nia, suddenly curious by what she’d heard. She thought all witches and wizards went to Hogwarts! Maybe you could be homeschooled? Or maybe, and as she thought it through this theory made more and more sense, there were different magic schools! She guessed it wouldn’t make much sense for people that lived in other countries to travel all the way to Scotland just to go to school.”Anyway, I’m sure everyone will be cool, no matter what house we get into. I don’t think I’d like being in Gryffindor very much though, based just on what I’ve read about them.” Bravery, nerve and chivalry? Sounded like the type of popular people that would disrupt class thinking they were real funny, when in reality, they were just plain annoying. “Do you have any preferences?”
To be fair, she thought she’d like any other house. She considered herself to have qualities of all of them… And also, blue, green and yellow just worked way better with her complexion than red. She just hoped she’d fit in with her house mates. She didn’t know if Ana and her would end up in the same house or not, but she liked the girl, so she hoped they could still talk even if they didn’t.
And then, Ana addressed her backpack, and Nia smiled broadly.“Oh, this? I actually made it myself!” She said proudly."Well, the backpack itself is store bought, I just embroidered it. My nanay and sister helped, but it’s mostly me.” She looked at the different details with fondness. “I embroider something new whenever I make a new good memory, meet a new friend or just feel really happy. See this one here?” She asked, pointing at a tiny envelope with a golden seal that was embroidered towards the right of the biggest pocket. “That was from when my Hogwarts letter came. I think seeing this here the next day was the only thing keeping me from thinking it had all been a dream.”
It still felt like a dream, really, even inside of the Hogwarts Express listening to another witch talk about potions. She was kind of expecting to wake up any minute.
“I mean… It sounds cool enough.” Nia said finally, unsure, but picking up on the contained enthusiasm of Ana’s voice when she started speaking about the specifics of potion making. “I think I’ll probably keep preferring cooking. I like to listen to the voice of my heart”, she said dramatically and with an airy voice, placing a hand over her forehead in a theatrical pose, “and my heart doesn’t really like being told what to do very much.” she finished, returning to her normal voice and posture with a shrug. “Also, when you cook you get to eat whatever you made in the end!”
| "𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐫-𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬." |
STA:5 | EVA:7 | STR:2 | WIS:6 | AP:7. | ACC:8 | |
The start of a new chapter
"Floo's convenient but tends to get a bit sooty depending on where you go. And I always get queasy from the spinning. I suppose your parents could get your house connected, assuming that you have a fireplace. Floo powder's dirt cheap, and I'm pretty sure muggles should be able to use it. Small kids who can't use magic yet can." She wasn't sure what the rules were about connecting muggle households, but Nia's was technically a wizard household now as long as she was living in it. She knew they'd have to register it somehow, but had no clue how that was actually done. Her parents handled that kind of thing, of course.
She was glad the other girl shared her opinions about history. It was probably universally the most disliked subject at Hogwarts. At least she had never met anyone who actually looked forward to it.
"I think I'm looking forward to charms most. It's just so useful. And flying of course! I've been on a broom before, but was never allowed to fly much for fear of muggles seeing. But that isn't a problem at Hogwarts. My mum will kill me if i try out for quidditch though. She thinks it's too dangerous." She wasn't particularly wrong, of course. Quidditch players got injured all the time. Though there hadn't been any deaths recently that Ana was aware of.
Ana pondered how much of her family history to go into when Nia asked why her parent's hadn't gone to Hogwarts. "They grew up in Persia, you see. And went to a small school there. But things are hard there at the moment. The muggle government doesn't like magic. At all. So their school had to close and wizards had to go way underground to survive. That's why my parents came to England when my dad was offered a job here. He's really smart and works for the ministry." She said proudly. Ana absolutely adored her father and thought he was the smartest man on the planet. "That all happened before I was born, of course. I grew up near Oxford."
"What do your parents do?" She asked curiously. She had no idea what muggles did for a living. She supposed that they'd have shopkeepers and the likes as well. But beyond that?
The day grew later as they rolled past the countryside and talked, but Ana barely noticed. She wasn't the looking out the window type when there were more interesting things to do. Like make friends. "I'm not sure where I'll end up. Ravenclaw would be nice. That's where all the smart people go. And Hufflepuffs are really kind. Gryffindor have a reputation for being jocks, but a lot of famous wizards have come from there. I suppose Slytherin might take me since I'm a pureblood, but they have a bad reputation. I don't think I want to go there." She would be fine regardless, she supposed, and didn't have a strong preference.
"Ooh, I wish I could do something like that." She said, looking more closely at the backpack. "My mum does all her embroidery and such with magic, so I'd have noone to teach me how to do it by hand. I scrapbook though. Maybe I can show it to you when we're at Hogwarts. It's somewhere in my trunk." She was not about to go digging through that mess at the moment to find it. "Which reminds me. I totally need to take some pictures of the trip. I only got one of the train so far. Do you want to be in it?" She asked, pulling a small magic camera out of her purse. It would have been rude to just take a picture of someone without asking.
She was glad the other girl shared her opinions about history. It was probably universally the most disliked subject at Hogwarts. At least she had never met anyone who actually looked forward to it.
"I think I'm looking forward to charms most. It's just so useful. And flying of course! I've been on a broom before, but was never allowed to fly much for fear of muggles seeing. But that isn't a problem at Hogwarts. My mum will kill me if i try out for quidditch though. She thinks it's too dangerous." She wasn't particularly wrong, of course. Quidditch players got injured all the time. Though there hadn't been any deaths recently that Ana was aware of.
Ana pondered how much of her family history to go into when Nia asked why her parent's hadn't gone to Hogwarts. "They grew up in Persia, you see. And went to a small school there. But things are hard there at the moment. The muggle government doesn't like magic. At all. So their school had to close and wizards had to go way underground to survive. That's why my parents came to England when my dad was offered a job here. He's really smart and works for the ministry." She said proudly. Ana absolutely adored her father and thought he was the smartest man on the planet. "That all happened before I was born, of course. I grew up near Oxford."
"What do your parents do?" She asked curiously. She had no idea what muggles did for a living. She supposed that they'd have shopkeepers and the likes as well. But beyond that?
The day grew later as they rolled past the countryside and talked, but Ana barely noticed. She wasn't the looking out the window type when there were more interesting things to do. Like make friends. "I'm not sure where I'll end up. Ravenclaw would be nice. That's where all the smart people go. And Hufflepuffs are really kind. Gryffindor have a reputation for being jocks, but a lot of famous wizards have come from there. I suppose Slytherin might take me since I'm a pureblood, but they have a bad reputation. I don't think I want to go there." She would be fine regardless, she supposed, and didn't have a strong preference.
"Ooh, I wish I could do something like that." She said, looking more closely at the backpack. "My mum does all her embroidery and such with magic, so I'd have noone to teach me how to do it by hand. I scrapbook though. Maybe I can show it to you when we're at Hogwarts. It's somewhere in my trunk." She was not about to go digging through that mess at the moment to find it. "Which reminds me. I totally need to take some pictures of the trip. I only got one of the train so far. Do you want to be in it?" She asked, pulling a small magic camera out of her purse. It would have been rude to just take a picture of someone without asking.
The start of a new chapter
“I’ll have to look into that, it’d be nice to be able to have something related to magic back home since we can’t really use magic there. And maybe then I’d actually be able to have some actual contact with people from school!” She pondered, wondering if she'd make enough friends to justify getting a tool she'd use mainly to visit them. She hoped she would. Letters were really fun, but they were too impersonal for certain things. It just wasn't the same as being there.
And then, Nia heard that word again. "Quidditch". Some guys in another compartment had been talking about that in what seemed to be a very passionate argument when she had gotten on the train, and she had heard the word thrown around different compartments with an astonishing frequency. "What is Quidditch anyway? Everyone is talking about it! I'm guessing it's some type of sport?”
Nia guessed she probably could have read about it in one of her books, but she had never been the athletic type, so she had skimmed everything related to sports in hopes of getting to more interesting stuff.
When Ana started talking about her parent's lives, Nia listened attentively, but inside she was seething with rage, frustration and impotency. "That is terrible! I’m so sorry they had to go through that!" She said instead, though, knowing her anger towards the world's injustices was not what Ana needed to hear in that moment. "I don’t know much about Persia, but your parents sound like some very strong people. You must be very proud of them." She offered with a warm smile, and suddenly missed her own family as well. "My nanay moved from the Philippines to Spain when she was little, but it was nothing like that, her parents were just looking for jobs. I grew up in Gran Canaria, have you heard of it?"
"Nanay is a seamstress. She taught me to sew when I was little, just to shut me up." Nia snickered. "I can be very persistent when I want something, you see, and she was tired of hearing me whine about wanting to help. She makes gowns for formal events, mostly, but she can sew anything." Her nanay was one of her role models. The way she created those beautiful clothes out of some scraps of fabric was the closest thing Nia had seen to magic before hearing about Hogwarts. She was determined to be as good at sewing as her when she grew up."My dad is a software developer, so he works with computers all day."She yawned loudly and stretched in her seat. "I think it’s the most boring job ever, but he seems to enjoy it, and he does earn some good money from it, so you know, good for him."
She nodded as Ana talked. She too had heard of Slytherin's bad reputation, but for some reason, Nia didn't mind it too much. It wasn't unusual of her to cheer for the underdog, and she guessed that was probably a big reason why she was so unjustifiably fond of the House of Snakes.
“I really like scrapbooking too!" she exclaimed, excited to have found something they had in common. "I don’t do it very often because I take too long to decide what I want to put on each page, but I love little crafts like that." She had once spent so much time trying to decide where exactly to put down a sticker in a page that when she finally did, the glue was so dry and full of fuzzies that it wouldn't stick to anything anymore. She could never understand how people did it.
Which gave her a wonderful idea! She clasped her hands together near her chest in an excited gesture.
"Tell you what," Nia said, smiling a knowing smile. "I’ll give you some embroidery lessons if you give me some scrapbook tips!" She suggested, unable to contain her excitement. If Ana liked the idea, they'd have something to do together when they reached Hogwarts! And that meant friendship! Probably!
Her point was furthered when Ana waved a camera between them and asked to take a picture together. That was some friend behaviour if Nia had ever seen one!
“Well, duh!" Nia agreed with a laugh, getting up from her seat with a smile to sit next to Ana, making it easier for them both to fit in the picture. "I love photos! However, I have two conditions:" she started, holding up two of her fingers as if to illustrate her points, "first of all, I would like a copy, please! And secondly… Can you take it from my right side? It’s my best angle.”
Nia stared at the camera for a second. Up close, it looked a little strange, not very alike the rest of the cameras that she had seen before, but she figured a camera was a camera. She took out a small mirror from her pocket, confirmed her hair looked good and there were no embarrassing bits of food between her teeth, and shrugged off her doubts about the camera before getting ready to pose for her headshot.
And then, Nia heard that word again. "Quidditch". Some guys in another compartment had been talking about that in what seemed to be a very passionate argument when she had gotten on the train, and she had heard the word thrown around different compartments with an astonishing frequency. "What is Quidditch anyway? Everyone is talking about it! I'm guessing it's some type of sport?”
Nia guessed she probably could have read about it in one of her books, but she had never been the athletic type, so she had skimmed everything related to sports in hopes of getting to more interesting stuff.
When Ana started talking about her parent's lives, Nia listened attentively, but inside she was seething with rage, frustration and impotency. "That is terrible! I’m so sorry they had to go through that!" She said instead, though, knowing her anger towards the world's injustices was not what Ana needed to hear in that moment. "I don’t know much about Persia, but your parents sound like some very strong people. You must be very proud of them." She offered with a warm smile, and suddenly missed her own family as well. "My nanay moved from the Philippines to Spain when she was little, but it was nothing like that, her parents were just looking for jobs. I grew up in Gran Canaria, have you heard of it?"
"Nanay is a seamstress. She taught me to sew when I was little, just to shut me up." Nia snickered. "I can be very persistent when I want something, you see, and she was tired of hearing me whine about wanting to help. She makes gowns for formal events, mostly, but she can sew anything." Her nanay was one of her role models. The way she created those beautiful clothes out of some scraps of fabric was the closest thing Nia had seen to magic before hearing about Hogwarts. She was determined to be as good at sewing as her when she grew up."My dad is a software developer, so he works with computers all day."She yawned loudly and stretched in her seat. "I think it’s the most boring job ever, but he seems to enjoy it, and he does earn some good money from it, so you know, good for him."
She nodded as Ana talked. She too had heard of Slytherin's bad reputation, but for some reason, Nia didn't mind it too much. It wasn't unusual of her to cheer for the underdog, and she guessed that was probably a big reason why she was so unjustifiably fond of the House of Snakes.
“I really like scrapbooking too!" she exclaimed, excited to have found something they had in common. "I don’t do it very often because I take too long to decide what I want to put on each page, but I love little crafts like that." She had once spent so much time trying to decide where exactly to put down a sticker in a page that when she finally did, the glue was so dry and full of fuzzies that it wouldn't stick to anything anymore. She could never understand how people did it.
Which gave her a wonderful idea! She clasped her hands together near her chest in an excited gesture.
"Tell you what," Nia said, smiling a knowing smile. "I’ll give you some embroidery lessons if you give me some scrapbook tips!" She suggested, unable to contain her excitement. If Ana liked the idea, they'd have something to do together when they reached Hogwarts! And that meant friendship! Probably!
Her point was furthered when Ana waved a camera between them and asked to take a picture together. That was some friend behaviour if Nia had ever seen one!
“Well, duh!" Nia agreed with a laugh, getting up from her seat with a smile to sit next to Ana, making it easier for them both to fit in the picture. "I love photos! However, I have two conditions:" she started, holding up two of her fingers as if to illustrate her points, "first of all, I would like a copy, please! And secondly… Can you take it from my right side? It’s my best angle.”
Nia stared at the camera for a second. Up close, it looked a little strange, not very alike the rest of the cameras that she had seen before, but she figured a camera was a camera. She took out a small mirror from her pocket, confirmed her hair looked good and there were no embarrassing bits of food between her teeth, and shrugged off her doubts about the camera before getting ready to pose for her headshot.
| "𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐫-𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬." |
STA:5 | EVA:7 | STR:2 | WIS:6 | AP:7. | ACC:8 | |