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There​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ were definitely some advantages to having foggy glasses, the best of which was the skill of rolling your eyes without anyone noticing. Mamori had just spilled so much info that it could have been the pocket guide to Hogwarts — info that usually comes with a hefty consulting fee — only to receive a cryptic "my surname is, oh would you look at that, truly a state secret" in return. Here they were, at a school where actual Athanatos heirs are walking around like it's their backyard, and this kid acts as if their surname requires Department of Mysteries clearance and a Fidelius Charm. Unless they were somehow the lost heir of Merlin, a secret member of the British Royal family, Morgana's time-traveling descendant, or Voldemort's secret love child, the whole act of being secretive about it was a little over the top. With a semi irritated look and unable to contain himself any longer, Mamori took the bait. "Okay, okay, you do your thing. But people will make assumptions regardless. Any reasonably intelligent person will start connecting the dots from the very first meeting. Your speech patterns, the way you carry yourself, what accessories you choose to wear; even your unwillingness to reveal your surname gives people enough material to write their own thousand-word story about you." Noticing the fog on his glasses beginning to clear which means the tea is cooling down, he took a long sip of sencha before resuming. The familiar aroma helped ease his irritation somewhat — trust good Japanese tea to keep one's composure in check. "Don't take this as me urging you to tell me your surname, I am just in that dangerous sleep-deprived overexcited state where my mouth is going faster than my brain. Honestly, I am the last person who would be interested in your surname." The last part was completely honest. He really couldn't care less. This school was overflowing with remarkable individuals. No need to act so precious about it. And what an interesting update to his initial assumptions about her, evolving from "poor neglected child living in a cupboard" to "privileged but strangely isolated and socially awkward youth with borrowed pride." The kind of exaggerated pride that wasn't earned but rather inherited, like an ill-fitted hand-me-down from ancestors. Along with her not-yet-firstie-status — having done absolutely nothing noteworthy under that tightly guarded name — the whole thing was turning into quite a funny situation. However, Mamori did admit to being a bit curious about which house would eventually get this particular oddity. The hat would surely need a lot of luck for this one. As for her concerns about Hogwarts being a battleground... it had probably been the norm at Hogwarts for ages, and he suppose it would be the same for Durmstrang and Ilvermorny. The complete lack of basic preparations from her godparents could only mean they were extremely out of the loop or simply didn't care enough to let her know. One had to wonder where these mysterious guardians had received their education. On another planet, perhaps? At least his mother had the sense to sit him down for a serious talk when he first showed interest in Quidditch, telling him the stories of her eighteen documented hospital wing during her first year on the team, not counting the times she faked illnesses to skip a class. Mamori was genuinely stumped for once. How can one possibly explain that subjects at Hogwarts rarely "go by logic"? Of course, Potions is very exact with its measurements and Charms has its specific incantations, but Transfiguration is partly a formula and partly the power of the imagination. Defense Against the Dark Arts and Herbology focus more on the practical side of things, where one has to improvise and observe. And those two other subjects he would rather not mention are pure memorization hell. Trying to explain all this made him feel like he was walking on a tightrope between disappointing her and being seen as an annoying know-it-all. Moreover, considering her previous reactions to his willingly given information... The shadow of a person at the compartment door offered a welcome break from the conversation. Mamori's expression full of lifelessness suddenly brightened as he thought it might be the trolley lady coming to rescue him from this conversational quagmire. Instead, it was another lost-looking first-year with a familiar accent who was timidly asking to join them. "Yes, of course, come in!" Mamori patted the seat beside him and gestured upward. "There is enough room for the luggage up there as well. However, I cannot assure you that it will be quieter here." He certainly was quite self-aware of his own chattiness. "But your timing's perfect, you'd have been stuck randomly picking a compartment once the trolley lady starts her rounds otherwise."

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tag @Tatiana Contraire @LK Wileyxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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Tatiana watched as the dark-haired girl sat next to Mamori. She introduced herself as “Luna-Katherine”, and she mentioned that she was new to Hogwarts too. Tatiana felt more confident somehow, at least now she had a companion during the sorting ceremony. She fumbled in her hands as she offered Luna-Katherine a chocolate frog and said, “That's cool, I'm new to Hogwarts too!”

It was nice to meet another person who was equally as nervous in being new to magic as she was. Her hand made its way to her quill and journal once again, scribbling another note, folding the corner of a new page for a new person. The girl seemed strangely self-conscious in Tatiana's eyes, she apologized even when she was being talked to, Tatiana felt sympathy for her, and to Tatiana, sympathy was never quite her game.

“And don't worry, you're not really interrupting anything, that conversation was pretty much an end, anyways,” she reassured the girl, “What about you? Are you worried of sorting?”, she returned the question to Luna-Katherine.

Suddenly conscious of how talkative she had began, she nervously tried catching the eye of the older student and said, “Er, sorry for talking too much too, by the way.” It was odd for the young girl to be this suddenly talkative, her godparents hadn't even witnessed this themselves, perhaps the pair had some sort of effect on Tatiana.

She gulped down another chocolate frog, trying to not address that fact and shift the attention away from her. She watched the horizon as the sun was beginning to fall, her eyes glowed brightly against the orange hue of the sunset.

@Mamori Anezaki
@ Luna-Katherine Wiley

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"So your name is Luna, surname Katherine? Or is the surname something else entirely?" The question was directed at the girl who'd just walked in, yet the tone indicated that Mamori was asking out of routine more than out of genuine interest. One of those families that gave their kids fancy compound first names, probably. His initial assessment placed the Luna girl firmly in the category of docile, well-behaved kids who are used to introducing themselves even before being asked, the kind who may have learned all the proper manners when meeting new people and actually practice them. A pleasant enough first impression. Then came the second observation, completely rewriting his analysis: the way she equated medicine with "fun" screamed nerd to high heaven. Except nerd and highly socialized were antonyms in most contexts, which meant Mamori needed to recalibrate. He gave the newcomer a more thorough once-over. Her slightly provincial vibe and apparent lack of effort in both clothing and makeup choices, combined with the fact that she'd been in this compartment for all of three minutes before producing a notebook covered in strange characters (suggesting either an extremely niche hobby or a constructed language), left absolutely no doubt about the correctness of his revised assessment. Definitely a nerd. Then Mamori watched as Tatiana, whose name he'd learned approximately five minutes ago, suddenly transformed into the world's most gracious host not only becoming incredibly chatty and dominating the conversation, but also offering the girl a chocolate frog despite the newcomer having done absolutely nothing to warrant such generosity. The two proceeded to munch away as if he achieved invisibility. He'd probably mentioned Gemini Johnson's name in his head enough times today to summon him thrice over, but right now Mamori found himself missing that socially awkward disaster of a boy. Sure, Gemini's socialization skills left something to be desired and he could be spectacularly oblivious, but at least he tried his best to make everyone in a conversation feel included, the kid understood basic human decency. But this? This was a demonstration in social incompetence. After spending the entire conversation drilling Mamori for information without a single word of thanks or offer of reciprocation, Tatiana'd turned around and freely offered treats to a complete stranger she'd known for less than five minutes, making her earlier 'you'll have to earn that one' comment particularly rich. Luna-whatever got a pass, being new and nervous was a valid excuse for temporary social blindness. The same courtesy couldn't extend to someone who clearly never learned the basic concept that when sharing food in a space with multiple people, you were supposed to ask everyone present if they wanted any. Unless, of course, deliberate exclusion was the goal — in which case he'd be happy to oblige. If not, then what kind of upbringing skips Manners 101? Perhaps he should revise his earlier assumptions, maybe Tatiana wasn't just neglected, maybe there wasn't even a surname to 'earn.' Parents unknown since birth, godparents probably made up — just another orphan bouncing between council homes too ashamed to admit it. That would explain the desperate pride, the guarded name, and quite a bit more. Mamori was, at this precise moment, exceptionally speechless. He didn't even bother hiding it anymore, after releasing a heavy sigh he muttered "This isn't worth my time" and proceeded to pack up his finished tea, rise from his seat, and pull all his trunks plus his owl cage down from the overhead. The universal posture of someone about to leave. Dealing with simpletons could occasionally yield benefits, but the mental gymnastic that you have to do to be able to cope with their cognitive shortcomings is hardly worth the effort. The constant recalibration of how to delicately point out someone's profound idiocy without shattering their fragile ego was exhausting. And really, why bother? He had no obligation to provide free pre-Hogwarts counseling services to ill-mannered orphans who couldn't muster basic gratitude. Though he did feel a bit sorry for leaving the new girl with the overly complicated name without proper introductions. But needs must, and it's time to find another compartment where he wouldn't risk an aneurysm from suppressed exasperation. "Feel free to continue whatever charming little moment you were having," Mamori drawled, executing a flourishing hand gesture. "Though it's not quite time yet, I shall take my leave. And if anyone here fails to see the reason… Well darling, I am sorry but that speaks volumes about your intellectual development." Before departing, he made a point of patting Luna-Katherine's shoulder with an exaggerated grin, every bit as artificial as Tatiana's hospitality. "Don't worry dear, this has nothing to do with you." The implication of exactly who it was could hardly have been clearer if he'd spelled it out in floating letters. Picking up Jugemu's cage, Mamori closed the door behind him and walked away without looking back. A wave of weariness hit him as he stared down the long corridor, where afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows, casting warm squares on the carpet. The muffled sounds of laughter and chatter leaked from each compartment he passed making his solitary figure in the hallway feel oddly conspicuous. Reaching the connection between carriages, Mamori spotted the trolley lady organizing her cart for her upcoming rounds, he offered a brief greeting before impulsively treating himself to ten chocolate frogs (a small consolation for earlier slights) and continued on his way, mentally calculating that they must be halfway through the journey by now. A nap was definitely in order. Perhaps if fortune smiled upon him, he'd stumble across Gemini's compartment and brazenly invite himself in. mamori leaves the thread

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tag @Tatiana Contraire @Luna-Katherine Waileyxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ooc note Disclaimer that Mamori is an arsehole and his in-character views do not reflect those of the author. Been a blast RPing with y'all

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Tatiana watched as Mamori stood and started packing his things, she dark eyes following the small, irritated set to his shoulders. She felt like the needed to call him back, but she didn't. Some people moved abruptly and suddenly when they feel something shifting in a conversation, and she'd learned before that attempting to stop them usually made the situation more worse than before. So she sat, her hands folded neatly in her lap, and let the boy slip past the doors without saying anything.

The older boy not being there had left the compartment oddly lopsided, almost as if the air around them hasn't quite caught up yet. Tatiana blinked once, slowly, then shifted her attention to Luna-Katherine, who was still marvelling at her chocolate frog as though it was the most incredible thing the had ever seen. Tatiana found the scene quite groundful, a joyful contrast to the sharpness of her mood.

“Siblings aren’t guaranteed the same House,” she said after a moment, her voice soft, not warm, but not cold, either. “The Sorting Hat makes the decision for each person individually. Some families all end up together, some don’t.”

She felt oddly aware that her tone was too formal, she knew this was normal for her, but using it with another person who was the same age as her felt strange. It was normal for her even if it wasn't to them;it was how she spoke, shaped by tutors and distant relatives who'd gone out of their way to see her.

Her gaze shifted briefly to the door that Mamori had exited through, she didn't sigh—she was never much of sighing person either—but her chest loosened a little once she had accepted that he was fully gone.

Tatiana adjusted a wrinkle on her shirt, smoothing the fabric with precise and controlled fingers. “And no, you weren’t expected to know anything about the Houses before coming here,” she added. “Most people don’t. They just… figure it out as the year goes.”

She watched as Luna poked suspiciously at the frog’s remaining chocolatey legs, the corner of her mouth twitched, not much of a smile, but close to. “If you eat the rest, be careful. The legs move until you bite them off.”

Her eyes then moved to the empty seat for a full minute, before saying out of the blue, “People leave compartments all the time.” She wondered whether the girl had found her quite odd, she herself, considered so. “He’ll find another place to sit,” she added in a flat tone, “At least it’s quieter now.”

@Luna-Katherine Wailey

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