Closed First Year Entrance: Group 2 2023-2024

When the train arrived at the station, Meluna couldn't see anything but pitch black beyond the lights illuminating the train. She scrambled to her feet will the others, gripping her raven necklace as she was pushed and shoved to the steps off the train. In the chaos, Meluna felt a sense of panic as she wasn't sure what to do. She hadn't bothered to ask the people she had gotten to know what to expect. She didn't need to panic for too long it seemed. Above the chatter of upper class students, Meluna heard someone yelling for First Years. She took a deep breath to steady herself as drew near to a woman who called herself Finely Greer, a caretaker at Hogwarts. Lanterns lit the way to the docs where boats were docked. Many were fully already. Meluna didn't want to be alone. None of the other free boats were open. She guessed she would need to sit alone after all.

Looking from the boat to the dock, Meluna did her best to try to get in. When the Caretaker helped her in, she smiled at her sheepishly, heat coming to her cheeks, embarrassed. "It's my first time..." she managed to get out. Once she sat down the bow rocked a bit. Meluna had ridden horses, but horses she had a bit more control over. She found herself gripping the side of the boat and the edge of her seat with her other hand.

@Finley Greer

Joining boat 7

As Kate stepped off the Hogwarts express, she felt almost numb to what was going on around her. Overwhelmed by the events of the day, the cool night air was a frigid welcome to her hot skin and senses. Looking around, she saw that everyone else looked just as nervous as she felt, and relief flooded in quickly.

A woman who introduced herself as the Hogwarts caretaker gathered the other First Years into a small clump. The light from her lantern illuminated the sweaty, pale faces and excited eyes that surrounded her. Kate found herself unable to hear much of what the woman was saying, but found herself being led down a path to a large, black lake. A small swarm of narrow, wooden boats were bobbing up and down in the water- each with a lantern hanging off the back. As Kate found herself to be the first one in boat 7, she took the seat closest to the front, and found her breath completely missing when she looked at the scene in front of her.

A large, elegant castle sat upon a plateau in the distance- stars shining wildly above it in the barren landscape. Each window in the building appeared to be lit by a blazing, roaring fire that shone so brightly in the darkness, it seemed as if spotlights were hidden all over the exterior. As she sat in the quiet, lapping waves, she felt the first pang of true excitement spread to the ends of her fingertips, ready to see what lay in store.

Joining Boat 5:
The small, wooden boat carrying the first-year students glided silently across the dark, still waters of the lake. The moon cast an eerie glow over the scene, illuminating the towering turrets and majestic spires of the Hogwarts castle in the distance.

As the boat drew nearer, the students could see the flicker of torches in the windows and hear the faint sound of music coming from within. The castle was a magnificent sight, with its intricate stonework and imposing walls, and the students gazed in awe at the building that would be their home for the next seven years.

Among the students was a young boy, his heart pounding with excitement and nerves. He couldn't believe that he was finally about to begin his magical education at Hogwarts, and he felt a sense of wonder and anticipation as he looked up at the castle.

As the boat docked at the jetty, the young boy stepped out onto the rough stone pathway and made his way towards the entrance. He could feel the magic of Hogwarts pulsing through the air, and he knew that he was about to embark on an incredible adventure that would change his life forever.

Uri had been sitting in the boat for a minute waiting for either someone else to join or the boy he'd sat down next to to say something. He was just trying to figure out his footing here in terms of what to say and who to talk to. He didn't want to make a poor impression so he sat there, waiting, surveying his surroundings. His mother had told him about the castle and the grounds, but seeing it in person made him realize that she really hadn't done it justice. It was all truly majestic. The lush greens, the starry sky, it was all amazing. Being from Liverpool, he was used to the city lights and didn't get to see stars very often so this was a new experience for him. It was truly a sight to behold and he wished he could save the feeling of wonder he had now because he knew it would be a dragon for him to chase for the rest of his life.

As he was swept up in his reverie, he heard a voice talking to them from outside the boat. A pale-faced girl with shoulder-length brown hair joined them and asked if she could join, saying her name was Eleanor. Scarcely a minute later a blonde-haired girl named Clare also joined them and filled out the boat. After listening to them both for a moment he spoke up. "Nice to meet you both, I'm Uri," he said more looking at them as the other boy still hadn't spoken yet. "I get being nervous, I am too, my mom told me a bit about the school and I'm ready to get started, no idea what house I'll be in. Hopefully not Ravenclaw, bit nerdy for me if I'm honest." He finished with a smile and went back to looking up at the night sky.

It had been a long time since Kaito spent a school night not working on an assignment or piece of homework. And an even longer time since he'd been on a train or seen a lake so colossal. Actually, he'd never seen a lake so big. He wasn't the well-travelled sort, you see. And this moment — stepping off the train and getting his first look at that lake — was probably his top nature moment of all time. Something told him that more was yet to come. With the moonlight overhead and the clouds wrapping around it, Kaito felt like he was in a movie and he knew that if this was all so beautiful in the dead of night, it was bound to be next level by the time the sun peaked over the horizon.

He followed behind the group of students that were being drawn towards a yelling woman and almost immediately lost the people he spent the last few hours in a cramped compartment with. It was a disappointing feeling and that was odd to him. He was never one to enjoy the company of strangers, but the ride here was... nice, if he could describe it simply. Whatever. He could find them later if he needed. And maybe that was why he was so disappointed. Because he would never seek someone to just hang out. Maybe that would change at this school.

Or maybe not. As Kaito watched the first years quickly fill up the seats of a few boats, his eyes immediately flew to the ones remaining unclaimed. Hanging back for a while, he waited until many of the seats were taken before hopping into one. Hopefully there'd be enough boats and seats for the others so he could be left alone.

The journey from home to Hogwarts was a bit tiring yet exciting. Even so it did not stop the young boy from meeting amazing people while finding it simple to blend in with the crowd, and have great connections. Speaking of connections, the boy was welcome to engaging and forming relationships with other people from wizarding world. Since Atlas is a native of the Muggle world, everything done in the wizarding world would likely take him by surprise because he found it fascinating.

Having said that, it seems like first year students had to experience their first thrill and rush after getting off the Hogwarts express. When Atlas learned that they would need to travel by board and traverse the great lake in order to get to the castle, he became a little wary and anxious because this concept seemed scary enough as it was. However, what would adventure be without a little bit of risk or adrenaline?

When Atlas realized that Boat 10 was in need of members, he decided to sign up for it and then he met people who were already present.

“Hi there!” he said to the people present at the boat—who seemed ready to embrace the adventure with open arms. He kept asking himself why most of the students present were students around his age. Because he was not familiar with the culture of riding boats at Hogwarts—he didn't know that, this was how first years were welcomed. he chose to ignored the thought and concentrated on what is at hand as usual.

“Pleased to meet you, My name is Atlas Anderson, May I ask what your names are?” He said, politely.