Off We Go OPEN Closed

Hogwarts would be an interesting experience, and that was all Leaf knew about it. Interesting, and nothing more. As they'd been on the train from Ely to King's Cross (it was all one journey), their father had told them that it would be the most wonderful thing they'd ever be part of, and that they'd walk the same halls their mother did when she was their age. Leaf wasn't convinced.

So, reluctantly and wishing they could be anywhere but a bustling platform crowded with shouting and shoving of both parents and children alike, they boarded the train with a loaded trunk filled with clothes and a stash of books that wouldn't last long.

Leaf froze in the center of the aisle lined with compartments. People were in every one, chatting away like they had nothing else to do. What the hell? They thought, I'm supposed to spend the next how many hours in the same few square metres as these chatterboxes?

Slowly, they wandered down the aisle, having a quick look at every compartment. Eventually, they came across one with a single person inside; a girl at the window seat with blonde hair, looking at the surroundings.

This will have to do. Leaf walked in and sat on the opposite side of the compartment to the girl, then took out their book and opened it to page 147, where they had left off yesterday.

Being able to ignore people is such a useful talent.

Nellie didn't even bother to look up at the person who joined her in the compartment. She just continued staring out the window, not wanting her thoughts to be interrupted. She knew there wouldn't be a first time on this train, and wouldn't ever see these sights again for the first time. The sights were just so pretty and different than anything Nellie had seen before.

After a few minutes, Nellie looked forward. She had almost a blank expression on her face. She examined this person, as if she was trying to read them. She sat up straight in her seat. She adjusted her clothing.

"I'm Nellie," she said, a smile started to form on her face. "Nellie Bloodlust."

Nellie wasn't usually forward, and definitely didn't bother with people first, so this was a lot for her. She honestly gets quite annoyed with others, especially if they didn't share similar thoughts or feelings with her. She wanted to make friends here at Hogwarts and figured she would have to change her ways to be able to meet other people her age.

She examined them once more, before she spoke up again. "And you are?" She asked, leaning forward a bit.

The rickety motion of the train made it difficult to find where they'd left off on the page when they lost it (which happened a lot). But Leaf persisted. The plot was getting interesting, after all, and you can't just pause reading in the middle of the climax, even for a quick sip of water.

Maybe they couldn't see the other person in the compartment, but they knew she was there by the window, possibly completely oblivious to Leaf's existence.

That was, until, they heard a voice that snapped them out of their concentration. "I'm Nellie. Nellie Bloodlust." Leaf didn't reply. They were too focused on finding where they'd read up to before being disturbed. In their peripheral vision, they could see Nellie adjusting her clothes and sitting straighter. "And you are?"

Leaf shut their book, and carefully placed it on the empty seat beside them. "Leaf." Could Nellie even hear me? They weren't used to talking with strangers, meaning their voice was rather quiet when they were speaking with anyone but their father. They were thinking of what to say to Nellie, but they couldn't think of anything, so sat there in silence, staring at the seat behind her and trying to not make eye contact.

"Leaf?" She asked. "I have never heard of that name, it's really cool."
Nellie could tell they were on the shyer side. She didn't really care, she wanted to get to know them now. She eyed the book they were reading, trying to see the cover. Nellie wasn't much of a reader, but she was definitely nosy.
"What book is that?" She asked, leaning in a bit to get a better look. Nellie was feeling a bit nervous, especially about the sorting ceremony. When she gets nervous, she tends to get chatty. She leaned back a bit. She realized how close she was to Leaf, probably bothering them.
Nellie turned to the window once again, not really paying attention to what was outside. She was really in her head.
She turned back towards Leaf . "What house do you think you'll be sorted into?" She asked, almost impulsively. Her eyes widened a bit, realizing she was probably really bothering Leaf now. Especially with all these questions she was riddling her with.
Nellie sat back in her seat, very quiet this time. She began biting her nails. All she could think about is how her parents would react if she were sorted into any other house besides Slytherin.

But Nellie appeared overjoyed that Leaf had spoken. "Leaf. I have never heard of that name, it's really cool." Your surname is cool too. And I've never heard it before either. She glanced at Leaf's book cover, lying there on the cushioned seat. "What book is that?" She leaned in even closer, and Leaf moved to the side by a few inches to give her some space whilst maintaining some themselves.

To their surprise, Nellie leaned back slightly, as if actually realizing that she was bothering Leaf a little. Then she turned back to where she had been before, looking out the window at the stunning green landscape with rolling hills and beautiful meadows rushing past. "What house do you think you'll be sorted into?" What houses? There were houses?

"Um... I don't know." In truth, they didn't just not know which house they wanted to be in, but they also were unsure what each of the houses were. "Would you mind telling me what houses there are?" It was almost a whisper, and the continuous rattling of the train made it harder for it to be audible.

Nellie was definitely nervous- biting her nails, looking kind of worried. Leaf wondered why.

Nellie paid attention to Leafs' facial expressions as she spoke. She could tell Leaf didn't know what houses were. She was almost shocked, but then she remembered some students have muggle parents.
Nellie sat up a bit before she spoke. "Your parents never told you?" She asked. "There's four houses you can be sorted into depending on the kind of person you are, I guess."
Nellies' parents explained everything to her when she had her first magic incident, everything including Hogwarts. She didn't understand why Leafs' parents wouldn't tell them everything.
"Everyone in my family has only ever been Slytherins'," She said. Her whole facial expression changed almost instantly, as if she remembered she had a reason to be worried. She looked down, slowly.
"I'm afraid I won't get Slytherin," She said, quietly. "My parents would be so disappointed."
She looked back up to Leaf.
"There's Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin," She answered. "The sorting hat will choose which house you belong in."
She eyed Leaf, trying to see how they felt about this. Nellie was shocked when she found out there were houses, well, she was just as shocked finding out about Hogwarts. She had to learn about all of it on the same day.

From what they had said, Nellie must have assumed they were...muggle-born...if that was the correct term for it, when they were actually half-blood? (they hoped they'd got the term right). It's just that Leaf's mother, who had been a witch, had passed away when they were little, so magic hadn't really been a thing when they were growing up.

Nellie spoke, "Your parents never told you?" No. My mother is dead and my father isn't a wizard. "There's four houses you can be sorted into depending on what kind of person you are, I guess." Interesting. Then she went off talking about her family, and that they were all put in Slytherin, and how disappointed they would be if she wasn't also in Slytherin. I must be lucky to not have that kind of pressure on me. As she spoke, Leaf couldn't help but wonder which house their mother was in.

Then Nellie explained further. Gryffindor. Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff. Slytherin. The sorting hat will choose. Leaf didn't know which one sounded best, but then again, they didn't know what each house represented.

"If you weren't in Slytherin, which house would you want to be in?" Leaf asked. They stared out the window, watching as they crossed over the countryside and more hills appeared as they got further and further north.

Then a girl peeked into the compartment, and looked at them before speaking, asking if anyone else was sitting there. Leaf stupidly scanned the seats. As if someone would just appear out of thin air. "Um...um... no?" They replied, without any kind of clarity. "There isn't any- anyone else sit- sitting here."

Leaf looked down, embarrassed. When would they ever manage to improve their social skills? Would they ever even improve them?

So they just sat there, head down, in silence, waiting for someone else to break it because they certainly didn't have the courage to. Maybe that's why they'd never made any friends back home- because Leaf didn't have the courage it took to step up and start a friendship.

The train passed though dense woodland, and Leaf sighed. A nice woodland walk sounds much nicer than sitting awkwardly in a train full of loud and annoying teenagers running around like lunatics. It must have been very late afternoon, as you could see the weakening sunlight just penetrating through the trees' canopy.

Leaf was vaguely aware that the girl who had just entered the compartment was still there, and so was Nellie. It's going to be a long evening, isn't it?

@Nellie Bloodlust @Brooklyn Claymore