An audible squeak was heard closely followed by the whistle of the Hogwarts Express. "Moooooom stop I need to get on the train!" A small muffled feminine voice was heard as a taller female figure stood above peppering the girl's face with kisses, small tears rolling down her cheek. "It's not my first year.. even though it might feel like it and be difficult to find things cause-" Her voice broke off and she pursed her lips, a lump forming in the girl's throat. She felt a small hand on her back and jumped before realizing it was her father's leading her to the train with her trunk in tow. Eiryk, her owl was sent ahead to Hogwarts so she had less to carry and wouldn't forget him on accident.

Her dad stopped walking which signaled that she too had to stop before potentially smashing into something, hopefully not face first. She didn't dare turn or else her directions might get mixed up so instead she said he goodbyes away from him "Take care of mom, tell her not to worry.. I'll manage somehow and have someone write letters to you for me." The brunette forced a smile onto her lips before boarding the train, relying heavily on the hand rails to make it up the stairs. Now she stood in the hallway, the sound of door closing behind her as the whistle blew a final time before the train took off to Hogwarts. Usually she would glance one last time out at her parents but a dull murky cloud took over her vision.

Before she could let her mood sink any further she awkwardly lowered her head, not wanting to be seen before slamming into a wall. "Time to start the running into something or someone counter.." The small joke made her chuckle while her shoulder ached slightly. Now with her hand on the wall she rubbed her thumb across the surface making sure to memorize the feeling and material of it. The wall was smooth but some parts had chips where paint had warn off or a trunk had banged into it. Her footsteps slowly made their way down the hall, lots of whispers around her telling her the compartments in this section were full. Outreaching her fingertips, they soon met a cool metal surface, the door to the next set of compartments. She started exploring where the handle might be before feeling a whoosh of warm air greet her as she awkwardly stepped into the next compartment.

This one seemed more quiet and empty, thankfully she wouldn't have to go through a ton more cars to get to an empty compartment or so she hoped. The brunette this time hugged the right wall where the compartment doors were and pulled open the first one. Chatter had abruptly stopped and she was about to say her apologies before backing into another figure. She wasn't sure if it was more frightening not knowing who she had run into or if she was more embarrassed about doing so. A small cough drew her from her thoughts as she scrambled to press herself firmly to the left wall so the passerby could well, pass. She hurried past the compartment she had just barged into and went a down a few more before hesitantly trying again, this time with a small knock. No answer. Her hand fidgeted around before she found the handle and hauled herself and her heavy trunk into the compartment. This time she spoke quietly to double check the area was clear "Hello..?" Still silence. "Oh gods I am lucky to find an empty compartment!"

The brunette didn't dare put her luggage up in the compartments above her, afraid she might hurt something or worse, herself. She plopped herself down on the familiar spongey cushions and a happy sigh escaped her mouth. Annie reached up her hand, unsure of what she was doing before placing it gently on the glass window, the cold enveloping her hand quickly. "I wonder if it's snowing.. I used to hate snow but I miss it- I miss everything." Her voice was barley above a whisper as she spoke to herself. She insecurely went to her robe, she had already pre-dressed just to get that hassle out of the way and picked up a small strip of black material her mother had given her before tying it over her eyes like a blindfold. Just in case anyone would come in, it would be a weird sight but she didn't need anyone feeling bad for her or panicking.

The brunette laid her head back wondering if sleep was going to come, but her head swarmed with thoughts. She began to hum a song and decided that it was safe to sing, no one was around and even if they were singing on a train was normal right? "I remember that night, I just might regret that night for the rest of my days-" Her voice broke off at the end but she quickly cleared her throat and her heavy heart and continued singing as the train kept chugging towards it's destination at a swift pace.

@Lamik Fillestar

Another break over. Lamik waved goodbye to his parents, both standing near the pillar leading in and out of Platform 9 3/4. Given the fact that they were muggles, neither of them had many opportunities to interact with the magical world, and so they didn't feel very comfortable getting too far away from the exit. On the other hand, Amber Fillestar was a lot less worried about her surroundings. It had taken quite a while to say goodbye to his 11-year-old sister, what with all the hugging and chasing and distracting conversation. Eventually, Lamik managed to pry himself away, and now that he was walking away all that he could do was wave goodbye at her as well.

Stepping onto the train, a small suitcase in each hand, the 13-year-old looked to either side, hoping to immediately spot a friendly face still wandering the corridors. Alas there were none to be found, but he wouldn't give up- instead, Lamik began walking through the train, stopping every few seconds to look left and right into each compartment. There were several times that he thought he recognized someone, but each time it turned out to be a stranger. Who he thought was Jake for a few moments turned out to just be a random first year, and who he thought was Saskia turned out to just be some other stranger.

Wait.

The third-year took a few steps back. he looks left and into the compartment in which the not-saskia was seated. It was worse than a stranger. It was... Annie. Of course, Lamik had good reason to feel animosity towards the Hufflepuff. He just couldn't remember what they were. But they were good- they had to be! Why else would he be so angry at the mere fact that she existed? He was just about to storm off when he realized a few things. The first, and somehow the least important one, was that she was blindfolded. For some bizarre reason, Annie had literally decided to wear a blindfold over her eyes. During a train ride back to Hogwarts. Maybe she hadn't gotten enough sleep last night and wanted the dark? Who knew. The second thing was her completely miserable expression. Even under the piece of cloth wrapped around her face it was clear that Annie wasn't having a very good day. And so, after losing a brief yet bloody battle with his moral compass, Lamik sighed and slid the door open. He couldn't help but feel a tiny bit of worry. "Annie...?" He said softly, partially due to a desire to be gentle and partially do to a desire to be ignored. The boy only really knew her name because of their shared time on the quidditch pitch, so he really hoped that he remembered it right. Or not. Maybe she'd think he was talking to somebody else in the empty compartment. "Are you alright?"

"And I know
He will never be satisfied
I will never be satisfied.."

She finished up the song, her throat tight with emotions, not just because of the song but some of the lyrics hit deeper now with everything that had happened. Annie sat in silence for a few moments and sighed wondering what else she could do to pass time although she had no idea how far along they were anyways. Her attention perked up at the sound of the door being slid open. Her heart started beating fast. Maybe they'll just leave? Or maybe I'm imagining things and their isn't another person in my compartment.. Unknowingly she held her breath for a response, reply or question directed towards her.

That's when she heard it, her name. She winced. So someone had recognized her. Worse for her, she couldn't identify the voice much less see the person. Although it did sound familiar and it was definitely a boy's voice, it was too hard to recall every guy she had ever talked to and she didn't want to in the first place. Annie held off on replying but then the question hit her in the chest, almost as if knocking the air out of her. Am I okay? A lump in her throat caused her to whisper out her answer. "Uhm.. I don't- no I'm not." The brunette paused, she didn't know who it was that was talking to her but lashing out wasn't a good option. "I'm sorry, I don't know who you are, can you leave me alone?" Her voice was soft but firm, trying to get a message through. Whether this person took the hint or not was their choice.

Annie brought her legs to her chest and spoke more to herself than the other person in the compartment with her. "It's lonely y'know? In the dark." A tear made it's way down her cheek and she wiped it away. Oh not now, no crying, pull yourself together woman! Annie mentally groaned, wracking her brain to try to change the subject. "Mind telling me who you are? I'd rather not take off my blindfold. Oh and you can stay here if you need a compartment.. I don't mind."

@Lamik Fillestar

He could have sworn that he saw her lips just slightly moving before he opened the doors, though whatever it was that Annie (a name that given her reaction he was now sure was right) was muttering about would probably remain unknown, especially now that she had admitted to not being ok. This admission, along with her supposed desire to be left alone, only made the inner conflict he was going through worse. Who was he to bother her when she didn't want to be bothered? Why would he bother to help her when she did all the awful things that she must have done to get him to be so bothered by her presence anyways? Then again, she was very clearly in some sort of crisis, and there was always the moral duty to help people who needed it. Of course, there was the soft voice in the back of his head, slowly growing louder, insisting that any grudge that he held was there for no fair reason.

He was just about to give in to his less empathetic side when Annie announced a change of heart. She didn't mind his staying, and now he'd just come off as rude if he walked away. So he stayed. "It's Lamik." He started, making a few clarifications as soon as he realized that she may not actually know him by name. "...Fillestar. I was Gryffindors first string seeker up until relatively recently. We played against each other once." After closing the door behind him, Lamik sat down on the seat directly across from her. He had spotted the tear that rolled down her eye, and had heard the cryptic declaration of loneliness, but didn't really know what to do about them. "You don't have to take it off. I can always appreciate an original fashion statement." He said in an attempt at a joke.

"Lamik Fillestar hm that kind of rings a bell, although I didn't know you were on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. My mind fails me sometimes to recall certain things." She spoke thoughtfully whilst trying to recall his face from her memory. Annie scrunched her brows together coming to the conclusion that she couldn't place his name to a face. "Well.. nice to meet you again I guess?" Could you be anymore awkward? Really.. She let a disapproving sigh escape her lips. Goodness she did not know how to socialize hm?

Her expression changed to surprise and then contorted to a smile as she tried to hold back laughter from the joke he made. "Ah, thanks for cheering me up even if it was unintentional. And no it's definetly not a fashion statement but more of a fashion yikes. Believe me I wouldn't be wearing this if I didn't have to, er well I don't it's just for comfort." And she had begun to ramble again. Annie fidgeted with the sleeve of her robe.

If he asked what she meant, she would tell him. For some reason even without being able to see him, her gut told her she could trust him. Sooner or later everyone would find out. In class she wouldn't be able to cast spells anymore and that would make people wonder. If not the fact that the teachers could potentially ask her to take her blindfold off. She shouldn't be ashamed of her eyes and she wasn't.. but she was nervous of other people's opinions and didn't need eye's boring into the back of her head when she walked down a hallway.

The brunette blinked and bit her lip as thoughts continued to race through her head. She really needed to learn how to shut them out. A normal thing to ask would be "How was your break?" but knowing that he might return the question would send her emotions into a flurry again. The wound was still fresh and she didn't have the courage to explain everything but she also didn't want to lie. Instead she sat in silence, it wasn't awkward nor comfortable but she just sat there, listening to the train chug along.

@Lamik Fillestar

It wasn't all too surprising that Annie didn't remember him. Lamiks quidditch career consisted of three official games, and between them, 0 snitches were caught. Failure didn't seem to be the kind of thing that brought on fame and recognition, and evidently, it wasn't the kind of thing that made you stick in opponents' minds either. Still... it served as a soft punch in the face (because those definitely exist) to have his suspicions and insecurities confirmed. He'd have to brush it off though- no weakness could be shown in front of such an opponent. Of course, any attempt at hiding the impact it had on him was a failure. Lamik was never very good at hiding his emotions, so to him, it was lucky that Annie refused to take off the blindfold.

"A fashion yikes." He repeated slowly. "I can't say that I've heard of those before. Care to explain?" He said the last phrase rather casually almost forgetting for a moment how personal this all seemed to the girl in front of him. Luckily, Lamik came to his senses rather quickly. "Not that you have to, of course. I don't mean to pry. Just... not something I expected to see you wearing. Or anyone, for that matter."

"A fashion yikes also known as a no-no. I would never recommend anyone to wear blindfolds unless you are playing the tail on the donkey or use one of those sleeping ones.." She chuckled a bit before taking a deep breath. "And sometimes, for special circumstances like mine they are also very useful." With a deep breath she reached her hands up to her hair and found the small knot she had tied before releasing it. Her eyes were closed for a second as she collected her heart beating so loudly against her chest she was sure Lamik could hear it before she opened them. She looked up, or at least in the direction Lamik's voice was coming from so he could see her. It was dark with the blindfold on, dark with her eyes closed and now dark with them open.

"Aren't I a sight for sore eyes huh? Well surprise I guess, your the first person who knows about this whole mess. Least I don't have the "fashion yikes" on my face anymore." Annie shrugged casually but was dying internally. Her feet shifted awkwardly and she clasped her hands together. "You can ask questions.. I don't mind." It felt like a big relief was lifted off her shoulders by telling someone, but that was only one of many people. How would he take it, how would others take the news? Sure she would be looked at differently but she hoped she wasn't treated in any special circumstances like her parents had babied her the first couple of days. "All I ask of you is to not feel pity for me, just.. support me please." Her voice was barely above a whisper, filled with sadness and pain that one could almost not describe. She had tried so hard to be strong, but her walls were finally coming down. So much had changed in so little time and she had no one to lean on and so much adapting to do. Her life would never be normal again, but the one normality she could control was her social life. Right now at the lowest point in her life all she needed was one thing. A friend.

@Lamik Fillestar

What special circumstances would make wearing a blindfold beneficial? By close analysis of her wording and the surrounding environment (in this case, close analyses meant not being as much of an idiot as he sometimes was), Lamik deduced that she wasn't trying to sleep, nor was she playing pin the tail on the donkey. Maybe it was meditation? Did the dark even help with meditation? Why would Annie meditate on the Hogwarts express anyway? Finally, Lamik came to the only logical conclusion there was- that it was part of some evil scheme. Another mystery that he'd have to solve some other day.

Then she took off her blindfold, and admittedly, Lamik still didn't figure it out. "Huh." That definitely wasn't what eyes were meant to look like, all gray and dead and blank. Contact lenses, maybe? Why would she try to hide contact lenses that she chose to use though? And why would she choose contact lenses that looked like that? Not contacts then, so it must be magic. Maybe she was jinxed? Lamik had never heard of a jinx that had that kind of effect, but he wasn't exactly a master of magic either. If it was a jinx, why wouldn't she get her eye color fixed? And why would she wear a blindfold? It's not like she could wander Hogwarts blind. "Your eyes are gray." He cleverly pointed out. "Why?"

What. The. Hell? Is this kid dumb? No no no give him a chance, maybe I'm just being vague?

Annie blinked her "gray" eyes in confusion. She just confessed her heart out, made herself as vulnerable as possible and this guy just asked why her eyes were gray. "You-your serious? You've got to be kidding me." The brunette placed her head in her hands and sighed. Fine. If he wanted to be clueless then she would put up with it. "Alright Lamik, wanna know why my eyes are "gray" now? Well I don't know if you remember but they were blue before."

She started off on a somewhat kinder note, not sure where she was heading with this. "Please tell me if I am talking to much, or going too fast since uh you didn't really understand what I was trying to say before." It was like trying to explain something to a toddler but Annie would be patient, for once in her life.

"Let's play a game, hold up a random number of fingers on either hand and I have to guess how many you are holding up. If I actually guess this I'll be surprised." I almost feel bad for not telling him directly, but I already basically did so- not really.. She lifted her head and attempted to face towards Lamik but facing a bit to the left instead. Yeah.. well this took a turn to who knows where. He probably thought she was crazy, and in a sense she was.

@Lamik Fillestar

Lamik raised his hands in surrender. Had he said something wrong? Had he missed an obvious answer? If so, what was it? "Well... I never really made a point of memorizing your eye color, if that's what you're asking." He said in response to her blue eyes comment. "Though that does make a bit more sense than you always having the gray." What gentleness he had been trying to go for before was mostly gone at this point due to a mix of curiosity and impatience. He did more than he had to, checking on her despite her pure evil nature that for some reason hadn't really shown itself yet, and she snapped at him in return! He was only more aggravated when she proposed a game, only for that aggravation to completely dissolve once he realized what the implications of the said proposition were. If she had to guess what number he was holding up... and if something had happened to her eyes... "Oh." The Gryffindor wasn't annoyed anymore. "Oh." In a once again soft tone, Lamik stated what he should have already realized. "You can't see, can you?" He didn't even wait for a response- it was so obvious what the answer would be. "What exactly happened...? If you're alright with sharing, that is."