Exploring the Library CLOSED IC

After her first night in the dorms, and prior to attending her first classes at the school, Nat entered the library for the first time. She desired to simply see what it looked like, and to begin scanning the books to acquire a basic sense of what sorts of information she could take for essays and research projects. She was also curious as to what sorts of books she could find for fun.

Nat honestly didn't read very much at all, outside of for schoolwork of course. She preferred visual forms of entertainment. Nevertheless, Nat enjoyed the feel and aesthetics of libraries. Her fascination for, and love of, the feel of libraries went so far that she had once volunteered in a public witchcraft library for a summer, aiding a witch librarian back home in Gloucestershire. In that case, she'd needed to interact with quite young magical children, them being around five years old whilst Nat had been only eight-and-a-half at the time. She was generally asked to be in the children's section to help them out, since she wouldn't be required to be there while they were upset and so it was an easier job to keep them entertained than if she'd had to be with the children in their crabbier, tired hours. The librarian was always nearby to help out when the children went awry.

Nat's immediate reaction to the Hogwarts library was that it was massive and beautifully adorned. The architecture was gorgeous, and Nat wasn't one for architecture, which said a lot about the "type" of gorgeous it was to her. Soon she found a book she wanted to look at for a few minutes; it was a book on basic potion recipes, and, as her father mixed potions for his job, she already knew a little bit about the subject (not that she was necessarily good at crafting potions--she wasn't sure if she was yet) and wanted to see what she knew out of the book. She sat down at a table, a few seats down from a student who appeared as new as she was (and maybe she'd seen her at the sorting ceremony, but she couldn't exactly place if she had) who was writing on a piece of parchment.

"Dear Mum and Dad,

I'm here! The train ride was so much fun and it ran smoothly! I had even started chatting with a few students my age, and I think it might be possible for me to actually make some friends! When we got to the station, we approached the castle via boats on the Black Lake, and seeing the castle all lit up under the stars was so beautiful! It truly put a new meaning on the word 'magical'.

During the Sorting Ceremony, I was able to get a good look around at the Great Hall, and also the students. I was sorted into Gryffindor House, just like Mrs. Agatha! I cannot wait to have adventures like she told me about, and also make some friends! There are people from all around the UK here! I'm writing this owl from my favorite room in the whole castle...the Library! It's so magnificent...you would truly love it too if you could see it! I will do my best to take lots of pictures this week on my camera and send them to you with my next owl.

I miss you both! Please try not to worry, I am perfectly safe here!

Love you!

Kenzie"

I finished writing my letter and sat up, reading it proudly. I set the parchment aside for the ink to dry before taking another look around my surroundings. To my surprise, a young girl (about my age) had taken her place a few seats away from me. I hadn't noticed her sit down, and as far as I could remember, she hadn't attempted to talk to me. Not that I would mind, however, if she did try to talk to me. I noticed the book in her hands, old and well-loved (as a book should be, in my opinion), and the way her eyes scanned the text as if she was searching for something.

I wanted to introduce myself, say something, say anything. But she seemed too engrossed in her own independent study, so I decided to keep the silence between us. I realized I had been openly staring at the girl, so I snapped my head down to my now-dry letter and cleared my throat (earning a silent facepalm and internal scolding from myself).

While Kenzie was carefully observing Nat, Nat was absolutely consumed in the textbook; therefore, she didn't notice her staring right away. Presently, she had been reading about the ingredient of the flitterby moth, which a witch would crush up to place into such potions as the pompion potion. This was a very funny potion that turned a user's head into a pumpkin; Nat wasn't aware of how practical it was, but it certainly was entertaining to read about on its own page.

Nat developed a slowly-heightening sensation of eyes watching her, like a hawk would observe its prey; she glanced up, slightly awkwardly in her sudden awareness. She noticed Kenzie again, for the first time properly since she'd sat down and completely absorbed herself in potions and ingredients. She realized that, as the girl was staring at her, she was possibly interested in conversation. She realized it would be worth a shot!

Nat experienced a bubbly nervousness spread through her, as this would be one of the first people outside of her House she'd attempt talking to. However, just as much as she felt nervous, she felt really excited. Could this be a new, out-of-House friend? She smiled Kenzie's way, raising her hand up flatly with palm facing her, to indicate saying hello. The next time Kenzie glanced her way again, she managed a slightly quiet but still audible, and excitable in tone, "Hi! I'm Nat! What's your name?"

Still very much scolding myself for the stupidity I just exhibited (clearing my throat and therefore drawing attention to myself), I slowly looked back up at the girl as she spoke to me. She introduced herself as 'Nat', and I smiled. I observed her features, inspecting the way her hair fell naturally and how the pink in her cheeks brought out the color of her eyes. Yes, the name 'Nat' suits her. Then, I realized I had been staring at her again (a common problem for someone as observant as I am) and my own eyes widened slightly as I shook my head, embarrassed. I cleared my throat again (on purpose this time) and smiled once more.

"Hello, Nat." I said, my voice was quiet, almost too quiet, as I spoke so I cleared my throat again and took a deep breath before repeating myself in a louder and happier tone. "Hello, Nat! It's very nice to meet you! My name is Kenzie! I think I remember seeing you at the Sorting Ceremony? You were sorted into......Ravenclaw?"

I tried to ignore the pounding in my chest during our interaction. I had lied to my parents in my letter, about speaking to a few people on the train. In reality, I had sat alone in one of the smaller compartments and hadn't spoken a word to anyone at all, save for a few mumbled greetings at the Gryffindor table after my sorting. So this conversation is my very first, and that makes it all the more nerve-wracking.

Nat was excited the girl remembered her sorting, but felt badly because she couldn't properly remember the girl's. Nat had been too focused on herself during the sorting ceremony. She tended to get tunnel vision when she was focused on something in her own life; oftentimes, she was the opposite of observant, although when it came to reading people she was talking to, she usually understood them pretty well.

"Hi, Kenzie! I-I like your name." She smiled warmly at her new acquaintance, her kind-hearted demeanor and mood hopefully making up for her having stammered. It wasn't that she couldn't speak fluently if she wanted to; it was, more-so, that she was so used to acting dumber than she was in front of other people, and, connectedly, was so shy, that she had more of a tendency to awkwardly stammer when talking to people she wasn't yet comfortable with. (Well, additionally, she could speak fluently unless her brain was moving too fast for her mouth, or her mouth failed; this also happened in conversations, even with friends and family, decently often.) "Y-yeah, I was," she said, after a delay, about being sorted into Ravenclaw. Hesitating, deciding whether or not she should say it, she eventually added, "It's awesome you remembered." She smiled warmly at Kenzie again, wanting to make her feel comfortable and take the compliment to heart instead of making it seem like other people were dumb for forgetting or that she was jealous of Kenzie's ability, or something.

Nat noticed Kenzie's own demeanor, which came across as rather shy, and, although she was still nervous, felt a wave of relief. She reminded herself that a lot of first-years hadn't talked to anyone yet and were in the same boat as herself, resulting in an emotion not unlike her own.

Nat attempted to think of something to add to the conversation, such as a question; she took to looking around the library. "So...How d'you like the library? If you haven't been in here before, or anything." She grinned as a wave of excitement flooded her, taking in the beautiful, grand environment once more and beginning to daydream about her first classes to come.

I listened intently as she spoke, smiling kindly and nodding along. It was one of my few talents; listening to others and, of course, observing. Even back in my Muggle school, I never had much experience speaking to anyone who wasn't a teacher. It was common knowledge in the schoolyard that I'd prefer to read one of my romance or fantasy novels under the canopy of a willow tree than kick a ball around the grass, or even climb the monkey bars in a game of 'The Floor is Lava'. Oftentimes, if I had finished my book and hadn't brought another one with me, I could be seen sitting under my usual willow tree completing homework that had only been assigned earlier that very same day.

It is not to say that I was off on my lonesome by choice; simply that none of the other children were ever interested in asking me to join them on the playground. In fact, most of them avoided me completely, as they regarded me as very odd. I didn't mind, however. I had learned how to be quite self-sufficient in keeping entertained, and I truly did love reading. The only disadvantage this has given me, is my complete lack of experience in talking to others my age. But, there's no time like the present to start new things! And Hogwarts seems like the perfect place for new beginnings.

My smile widened eagerly when she commented on me remembering which house she was sorted into, and I felt a wave of affability wash over me as my cheeks flushed pink. Her compliment had begun to coax me out of my turtle shell of awkwardness and I felt more comfortable in the conversation. I looked around the corner of the Library, a steady smile on my face as I took a few deep, content, breaths.

"Oh I love the Library...it's my favorite part of the castle. Granted, I haven't seen much of the castle yet, but I have a keen fondness for libraries. It reminds me a bit of the library in the University where my parents work–they're both Muggles, you see–only more...." I searched my brain for the perfect word, and could only come up with: "magical, for lack of a better term!" I laughed a little at my own ironic joke. Of course it's more magical than a dull and simple Muggle library...it's a library for magic, in a magic school!

"A-Are you excited for classes? I heard that Gryffindors and Ravenclaws usually have Charms and Astronomy together, so maybe we'll see each other there! Astronomy is one of my favorite hobbies from back home in Maisemore, so I think that's the class I'm looking forward to the most!"

Nat's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement. "You're muggle-born? That's so cool! To be perfectly honest, my dad's a muggle-born, too, and it's making me feel like I've almost had an eye into the muggle world, but not quite! I...You'll have to tell me all about it!" Quickly, she added, "If you want to!--As in, everything muggle! I have to know!" She laughed, hoping to show Kenzie she meant it casually, without so much pressure which could be contained in her words alone.

Nat took in Kenzie's second comment about the library. "I have a fondness for libraries, too! I even volunteered at one years back!" She smiled. "I just love the vibes, y'know? And this one's...beautiful!" She really enunciated, and drew out, the word "beautiful;" she splayed her arms out, as though displaying the library, so they could both take it in again. She was the type to constantly be silly to make other people comfortable.

For a moment, Nat absorbed what Kenzie had said. She was pleased, as she now knew Kenzie's House. She was excited that this was, with confirmation, a multi-House acquaintanceship. Nat often utilized the strategy of casual conversation to pick up on details about other people she felt like she should know, but, in fact, did not, or had forgotten along the way. She wasn't the best at retaining information unless it was for school--until the test was over and she could forget it, of course. Her brain just wasn't being tricked into thinking other details were important, even if they were socially, such as with birthdays and names (both of which she was utterly terrible at; they were very in-ear, out the other for her). Having grown up being close to her mother's mother, who had attended Hogwarts, and both of her parents, who had also attended Hogwarts, Nat was well-versed in the Houses and their dynamics with one another. In this modern day, more people of different Houses tended to get along; for instance, there was less expectation for Slytherins to be Pureblooded and keep to themselves than back in her grandmother's day as a Slytherin herself. Nat understood the Houses on a deeper level than, likely, a lot of muggle-borns, and, as the little Ravenclaw she'd always been, she loved analyzing the Houses' traits on a deeper level. She knew that Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were both the idealist Houses, and knew that they could make great friends for this reason, especially when, on a surface level in how they reacted to their environment and thought about the world, they were opposites. Playing to each other's strengths, their values actually were more similar than they were different, and Nat knew a dual-House friendship of this nature could be very powerful and special. She smiled as the nerd she was to think of their possibilities as friends, if this really did result in a friendship.

"Ooh my gosh, I can't wait for classes!" Nat said, tightening her hands into fists and shaking them in front of herself to show off her enthusiasm. She smiled as she listened to Kenzie tell about her favorite class back home. "Astronomy is going to be very fun; I love outer space! As is charms--I've seen my parents cast many, so, I think I'm excited about that class because I want to find out how well I do at them!" She laughed, slightly apprehensively, but mostly eagerly. "Hey--Maisemore, you said? I'm from Gloucestershire! I think that's close!--I think--I have no sense of location," Nat added, giggling. (She was glad it was, potentially, close to her, because otherwise she would've immediately forgotten where Kenzie's location was.) "But, I've definitely heard the name Maisemore before--in the sense of it being in the proximity to my town--." The last word dropped off, which Nat tended to do to the ends of her sentences, especially when she was talking fast or anxious in some capacity. "...Hmm!" she concluded, mostly to be funny and display thought on the matter. Happiness flooded her at the thought that her first friend ironically lived nearby to herself! What were the chances?! Nat didn't really believe in pre-destiny, but it was still almost as though the world had set them up to be friends for a reason.

☼ A sheepish blush continued to find its home on my cheeks as Nat talked about my muggle origins. I nodded along with her, happily. "Yes! I'd be happy to tell you all about the Muggle world! I take it you grew up in the magical world, then? Perhaps you could tell me all about that?!

In Nat's kindness and excitement, I was growing more comfortable in the conversation, and my own excitement was also starting to seep through my shell. My eyes widened with enthusiasm when she mentioned that she used to volunteer in a library. "Really?! That's so cool! The closest I've ever gotten to volunteering in a library is when I help my parents clean out their classrooms during the summer holidays! What was it like?? You must've had so much fun–oooo was it a wizard library!?"

I folded up my previously discarded letter home and placed it in my bag as she spoke, my eyes shining brightly in the flickering candlelight. I was eager to listen to everything she said. I liked the way she spoke with such enthusiasm and energy; it made me feel...included. Her demeanor was contagious, and as I grew more comfortable (being not a strange girl in a normal world like before, but, rather, a normal girl in a strange new world), I felt myself beginning to finally break out of my shell of comfort and match her energy. My eyebrows shot up with delight at the mention of how close we grew up.

"Wait, you're from Gloucestershire?! That is really close to Maisemore! How cool is that?! My parents and I go to Gloucestershire all the time! It was really intriguing to me that the first person I happen to have a conversation with at Hogwarts lives so close by to me. I also giggled when she mentioned her lack of a sense of direction...it was another thing we shared, and that caused a genuine laugh from me, as the introverted walls of my outer personality shattered and crumpled further to the ground...leaving my true personality exposed and ready to be discovered.

This feeling was something entirely new to me. A sense of camaraderie and...feeling understood and accepted by a fellow student was never something I experienced back home growing up, so the reality of finding myself feeling these things was quite shocking to my core, but, strangely, not frightening in the least. Rather, it was almost exhilarating to know that I may have just very well begun to make my very first friend. Someone who was just like me. And, most excitedly, someone who actually lived close by. ☼

Laurie rushed to the library. She was really exhausted after the excitements of the day. The sorting, the train journey, and… well everything! But the library was the only place she could really be herself.
She had spent half her life cooped up living in the Muggle library after all. Books were the only things that helped her cope with life in Wales.
The library had a dim light, perfect for reading, researching and studying. She could hear the tap, tap, tap of fingers gently hitting the keys of a keyboard. And of course, the pages of a book flipping were music to Laurie’s ears.
She walked around, occasionally opening a book to see if it was interesting or not. She kept on reading books, one by one, and kept on keeping them back on the innumerable shelves.She reached a table and sat down there. Two girls were discussing and talking to each other, and Laurie could not help feeling sorry for herself. She felt left out as she listened to both of the girls laughing and talking to each other. She peered from over her book and listened to their discussion. She tried to concentrate on her book, “ Hogwarts, a history” but failed.
So Laurie took a deep breath, and in a voice which she hoped was confident, she said-
“ Hi, I’m Laurie Holmes. What is your name?”