Books and Silence Open

Ainsley listened carefully, smiling at Allie’s enthusiasm when it came to classes. When she mentioned Flying class, Ainsley shifted slightly. Marshal had explained that was a class that was offered at Hogwarts, but he didn’t specify that she’d have to take it. Not that Ainsley didn’t want to learn to fly, because she most certainly did, she just wasn’t fully sure that she was ready to learn. Especially after just learning she was a witch.
She thought about what Allie had said. Toy broomsticks. Marshal had barely grazed the surface with what he’d explained to her. Ainsley had been right. All of the other students, all of the pureblood and half blood students would be so far ahead of Ainsley and the rest of the muggleborns. She just knew it.
“You've already gotten to fly?” Ainsley frowned slightly, glancing down at her bag. She paused for a second, worried that her wand, and her books wouldn’t be enough to get her through her first year as a Hogwarts student. What if she was expected to know how to fly by the time she got her letter? What if Marshal forgot to explain some spell or something that Ainsley would need? What if she failed her first lesson, and they sent her home to continue her schooling with muggle students? “Did you know any magic before you got your Hogwarts letter? Or...do we all start with the same knowledge of...everything?” she asked carefully, averting her eyes as she patiently waited for Allie's response.

Interacting with @Allie Lewis

Interacting with @Ainsley Thatchere

Allie noticed the worried expression on Ainsley's face. She knew that the other girl was Muggle born, maybe it had something to do with that? When Ainsley finally asked her about flying before coming to Hogwarts, Allie nodded and explained.

"Well, you see, it wasn't really flying, but yes, kind of." she knew that didn't make very much sense so she tried again. "What I mean is, well. . ." she didn't actually know what she meant. She sat there awkwardly. Allie had a feeling she knew what Ainsley was getting to, and she didn't exactly want the conversation to head there anyway, but it was unavoidable. She shouldn't have mentioned flying, she probably had worried Ainsley much, much more. The silence was deafening as she waited for Ainsley to ask the question. And when she did, Allie thought about her answer carefully and then responded.

"No, everyone starts at the same level, it's just our experiences that are different." She hadn't meant to say our, because it implied that she was different from Ainsley, and that's not exactly what she wanted to imply. She backtracked."I mean, some people might have experienced magic beforehand, but no one was able to perform magic without their wand. Well, no magic besides the accidental one that got us our letters in the first place, you know?" She shook her head, trying to come up with a better explanation. "I'm sorry. . ." she said, not really knowing why but feeling like she needed to say it. "I. . . there's nothing to worry about though, I promise."

Lyra was dressed in her usual galaxy hoodie and black leggings, heading to the library for a bit of reading. She wasn't feeling good at all, and homework had drained her energy during the past week. With this in thought, she had climbed the stairs to Ravenclaw Tower and laid on her bed, hoping to get a few hours of sleep. However, the girl had been woken by her own screams, luckily muffled since her head was in her pillow. She had woken up sweating after a nightmare, where she kept seeing him, his life slipping away right before her eyes- The Ravenclaw had dragged herself out of bed and showered, getting dressed before coming down here to keep herself awake, too scared of going to sleep again.

As she walked to her favorite section- Muggle books and fantasy- she came across two girls talking and mentally sighed. 'It would be rude to walk by them and they might keep me busy long enough to not fall asleep again.' the Ravenclaw thought to herself. Standing awkwardly by their table, she spoke up, showing a shy dimpled smile, hoping the bags under her eyes weren't too noticeable. "Hi, I'm Lyra, Ravenclaw. I was wondering if I could join you?" While speaking, the brunette pulled out a Muggle book that she had brought along, 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn', her all-time favorite book by Betty Smith. Lyra had read this book countless times, but found it equally enchanting each time she read it.

Interacting with @Allie Lewis and @Ainsley Thatchere

Hello, I hope you don't mind my joining!

Ainsley sighed when Allie explained that all first-years started at the same level. That piece of information had been bothering Ainsley ever since she’d gotten her letter, but she’d known that if she asked Marshal about it, he would’ve gone overboard about making sure she knew she wasn’t far behind the other students. When Allie mentioned accidental magic, Ainsley suddenly became curious.
“What was your first sign of magic?” she asked curiously, quickly adding, “If you don’t mind me asking, of course,” however, before Allie could respond, Ainsley noticed another student standing by the side of the table. The brunette appeared to be slightly tired, but she still smiled at them.
“Hi, I'm Lyra, Ravenclaw. I was wondering if I could join you?" Ainsley glanced at Allie, smiling at the girl - Lyra - warmly.
“It’s nice to meet you, Lyra. I’m Ainsley.” Ainsley eyed the book Lyra held and grinned. “Betty Smith, right? My best friend back home absolutely adored that book,” Ainsley’s smile wavered as she recalled just how Lily had lost her copy of ‘A Tree Grows in Brooklyn,’ but then she glanced back up at Lyra and realized that she was still standing. “Oh, I’m so sorry. Of course you can sit here. I mean…” Ainsley paused, looking to Allie. “If it’s okay with you, of course.”

I don't mind at all, welcome to the RP!

Interacting with @Ainsley Thatchere and @Lyra Lake

Allie gave the new girl - Lyra she had said her name was - a welcoming smile. She didn't mind at all that she joined them, she liked meeting new friends. Or at least hopefully friends.
"Hi Lyra!" Allie said, waving. She turned to Ainsley. "Of course it's fine," she said, standing up and motioning to her chair. "You can sit here if you want, I can move to the other side of the table. . ." she wanted to be polite and so she grabbed her bag and sat down in the chair on the opposite side of the table. Allie glanced at the book that Lyra was holding.

"Can I see that?" she asked curiously. "Oh, I mean, only if you want to, you don't have to let me. . ." she stammered. Allie knew that sometimes when she was trying to be polite she started to ramble so she just stopped talking and waited for Lyra's reply. Having grown up in the wizarding world, she had never exactly gotten the chance to read very many Muggle books, and she was curious about this one, especially since both of the other girls seemed to like it so much. . . to be honest, she did want to read it so that she wouldn't feel as left out, but it looked interesting as well. Then she remembered what Ainsley had asked her and turned back. "Oh, my first magical incident happened when I was six, and I unlocked a door by accident. . . I know it isn't much, but. . ."

It's completely okay, I like talking to new people!

Lyra felt relieved that she had gotten a more than warm welcome from both girls at the table. When both students introduced themselves, Lyra tilted her head respectfully as her grandparents had taught her to do. Well, in their country you were supposed to bow, but the Ravenclaw was fully aware that that was not the case in England. “Nice to meet both of you.”

Allie moved to the other side of the table and Lyra sat down, thanking her for being so polite. The table was made of a really nice wood that looked like white oak. At this the first-year was temporarily confused, since white oak trees were native to America, but there must be a reason as to why there was a table made out of the stuff here. Tracing the wooden designs, she shifted her attention back to the girls. Allie seemed to wonder what her book was, while Ainsley already knew the author. “Yes, this is the only book I’ve read by Betty Smith, but I absolutely love it.”

Allie, on the other hand, seemed eager to see the book for herself. ‘She’s most likely a pure blood or half-blood whose Muggle parent never showed her much of Muggle literature’. Lyra thought to herself. The Ravenclaw had this tendency to analyze new people she met and had gotten quite good, although she was careful to never judge someone right off the bat without leaving room for change, since no one is what they seem at first glance, whether that’s negative or positive.

With that in mind, Lyra flashed another quick smile, handing the book to Allie when she asked to take a look. “Yeah, of course you can look at it. Just remember to give it back since I’m currently re-reading it.” You could tell that the book was slightly worn, although it was still in pristine condition since the brunette had been an excellent caretaker of her books, to the point that they still smelled brand-new, a scent that the first-year loved.

Allie and Ainsley seemed to be talking about their first signs of accidental magic, so Lyra took it as an indication that they wouldn’t mind her joining in. “Oh, my first sign of magic happened with a stray puppy I found. He was trying to eat grass and I was holding him back from it, but since he persisted the grass turned into dog food when I waved my hand. Frankly, unlocking a door is pretty cool, especially if that came in useful, which it must have.”

Interacting with @Allie Lewis and @Ainsley Thatchere

Interacting with @Ainsley Thatchere and @Lyra Lake

Allie watched as Lyra sat down on the smooth wooden chair and smiled happily when she gave her the book to look at. Taking it gently in her hands, she looked at its well worn but still perfectly intact cover. Allie couldn't help but smile a little as she replied to Lyra.

Of course I'll give it back, and you kept it very nicely!" she flipped the book over so that she could see the back cover and read the small text there. It seemed really interesting, and so she looked around and said, "I wonder if they have another copy of this here in this section. You know, with it being a muggle book and all. . ." she pushed back her chair to look around and then caught herself. Allie knew that it was quite rude to leave in the middle of a conversation, so she sat back down again, blushing slightly and said in a quieter voice, "Sorry, I just. . . well, I get so excited sometimes about books. . . before I came here I really had no friends, so I would pretend I knew all the characters in the books I read." she explained. "I know it's silly." When it didn't seem like either of them were going to tease her about it, she looked up again.

Allie smiled when Lyra recalled her first magical incident and thought about what it would be like to have a pet of her own. She had wanted one since, well, forever, but her parents wouldn't allow it. "And yes, unlocking the door was pretty helpful. My father's an Auror, and one time I saw this glow coming from his office when he wasn't home." she remembered. "That was what I unlocked the door for."

Ainsley listened to Lyra and Allie speaking, suddenly surprised that she now had not one, but two possible friends sitting before her. When Allie mentioned wondering if there was a copy of ‘A Tree Grows in Brooklyn’ in the Hogwarts library, Ainsley glanced around at the shelves. She thought that she had seen a copy as she was looking for somewhere to sit, but she couldn’t be sure. However, Ainsley's attention was brought back to Allie and Lyra when Allie mentioned pretending she knew characters in books, and she grinned.
“I don't think it's silly at all. For the few years before Marshal adopted me, characters in books were the only friends I had, and even after he adopted me and I met Lily, characters in books were my closest companions,” Ainsley said quietly, frowning slightly. Ainsley couldn’t even consider her own sister a friend, she realized. Just like everyone else, Wren had never wanted to be around Ainsley. Ainsley had always been the odd one out, wherever she went. But it seemed that the moment Ainsley had opened her acceptance letter, that had begun to change.
Ainsley quickly said, “Listen, I’ll be right back.” and stood slowly, quickly skimming through the muggle books to find the book she was looking for. She silently approached the table, sliding ‘A Tree Grows in Brooklyn’ across the table to Allie and sitting back down. She listened to Lyra and Allie speak for a moment about their first accidental magic, but it was only when Allie grew quiet that she spoke. “I healed myself. I have to say, it seems pretty lame now.” she nodded toward the book that she slid to Allie, smiling slightly. "I saw it when I was looking for somewhere to sit earlier." she explained quietly, glancing down awkwardly.

As Allie spoke of ‘A Tree Grows in Brooklyn’, Ainsley walked off, coming back with the aforementioned book and handed it to Allie. When both girls mentioned having friends that were in books, Lyra nodded, completely agreeing. “Yes, me too. For a while, my friends were celebrities or book characters and I made up interactions with them, it was pretty realistic and fun.”

“Healing yourself sounds cool.” The Ravenclaw replied in response to Ainsley. As no one seemed to have anything else to say, Lyra drove her attention back to the white oak table. She examined it closely, wondering why the tables in this library had been worth all of the trouble of being shipped from America. White oaks didn’t grow in England, it was practically impossible, not that many people had tried. Although she probably seemed weird to the two girls around her, she didn’t really care. She pulled out a magical nature book out of the light blue bag she always had on her shoulders.

It was an enchanted book that held literally everything there was to know about plants and animals, whether in the Muggle or Wizarding world. You simply had to state the name of what you were looking and you would find it, an immensely useful object, especially when, like Lyra, one was interested in nature. It was leather-bound with gold lettering on the front, ‘The Magical Book of Nature’, quite a simple title. She flipped to a seemingly empty page and said ‘White Oak Imports’, as text appeared on the blank paper. Quickly reading in her head, she concluded that there had been a huge import of white oak in the 1700s, and that this wood and it’s limited quantity had been distributed around England, leaving Hogwarts with white oak tables.

Suddenly, Lyra remembered the two students in front of her and sheepishly grinned, saying “Sorry, I was just curious as to why there are white oak tables here.”

Interacting with @Allie Lewis and @Ainsley Thatchere

While it’s true that White Oak is native to America, the 1990s thing was completely made-up and I don’t think it’s true at all

Interacting with @Ainsley Thatchere and @Lyra Lake

Allie glanced at the book in front of her and smiled up at Ainsley and Lyra. "Thanks," she said as she put the book away and snapped her bag shut again. She couldn't wait to read it, and not only because both girls here seemed to love it, but also because she really hadn't ever read a muggle story before and she was really excited to know if it was any different that the wizard books that she had read.

She was also glad to learn that both of the girls sitting with her also pretended that they knew the characters in their books just like she had. It felt nice to know that they weren't so different from her, even if they all did have different backgrounds. When Ainsley mentioned healing herself, Allie's eyes widened. "Really?" she asked. "That's amazing. . ." she trailed off as she watched Lyra pull out a thick book from her bag. For a few moments, as Lyra flipped through the book, it almost seemed as if she had completely forgotten Allie and Ainsley were there. Allie had to stifle a laugh when Lyra apologized, because she herself had done the same thing many, many times.

"It's alright," she said with a small grin. "I actually noticed that as well. I thought that white oaks weren't native to England?" Allie's mother had a huge garden in the back of their yard and she had tried to grow almost every plant in the world there. Or at least that's what it seemed like. Allie remembered that White Oaks just didn't really thrive over in England. "What's that book you were looking at?" she added. Allie had seen Lyra whisper a few words to the book but she didn't know why. . . Then she remembered Ainsley and turned to her, feeling bad that she had practically forgotten her for a few minutes while she was talking to Lyra. This was one of the things Allie hated about herself, she could get so caught up in one thing that she forgot about another. Of course, it was an alright thing to do sometimes, but. . .

The White Oak thing totally sounds real! The way you said that, it made me believe it was real!