337085

@Elena Jangleton

July 1, 2021

July 1st, the day where they finally went home from Hogwarts. Normally on this day, Lavinia would take a sigh of relief because it meant she had made it through another year of Hogwarts yet this year was a little different. She wasn’t rushing to the train to get as far away from the school as she had done in years but was more so taking her time to enter the train. This year had started out the same way as the last one in the fact that she was too scared to do anything but as the year progressed she started to leave her room and do more things.

The sigh was still the same, she had made it through yet this year it was different. Walking onto the train, she found herself in the same position as usual, she was one of the first ones here. Soon enough she found a compartment that she liked and entered it. Placing her trunk on the rack up top, she realized that she had no company. No pet to play with and no one to talk to. How was it that she had done this for so many trips? Could these lonely trips with no company then her brain been part of the reason why she was so paranoid.

She didn’t want to be a bother to the small amount of friends that she had and that’s why she was alone. This time though, she could think of some of the good things she did this year. First off, she had taken one little adventure to owlery that opened her eyes. That’s where she had met Haley and learned that everyday activities weren’t something to fear. That conversation had made her realize that just because something happened once doesn’t mean that it will happen again.

Somehow certain thoughts led to each other and she found herself attending the ball. That was new terrain for her and she couldn’t say it was good, for Merlin’s sake she kissed a random boy but she could say it was another step in the right direction. Another step past all the fear that dictated her life for years. Those were years she could never get back but maybe, just maybe she could turn it into something that made her unique.

Today was still a great day for Lavinia, she would get to see her family again and leave the school. Hopefully this ride could provide a sense of closure of the years spent afraid and help her try and put them in the past.

OOC note: If you just finished a year at Hogwarts and want to join us in our compartment on the ride home, we would be happy to have you. The max amount of people I’d like to have on this thread is 4, including me and Elena so, it is open for 2 more. This is planned to be a faster moving thread so keep that in mind before joining.

She stared at the steaming red engine as around her, students from all houses like burdened down by the sheer size of their trunks clambered aboard at a chance to snag an empty compartment. The last time she had been on this blasted train, it had resulted in a whole lot of tragedy and injuries courtesy of whoever those bandits had been so it was natural that Elena had second thoughts about getting onto the very train that had resulted in a plane ticket to the hospital wing. Flutters, in his own regard had very much voiced or in the owl's case hooted his protest to being stuffed back into a cage on this nightmare of a train but she reckoned there was no possible way the Hogwarts Express could fall victim to such things twice in a row. "You'll be alright." She told her owl walking down the length of the train before stepping foot onto one of the train cars, her trunk in tow behind her.

The chatter of voices among the flood of people who were still getting settled in came like music to her ears as the brunette brushed past the flood of students. It was always a chaotic mess boarding and departing the train but you just sort of had to navigate your way through the crowd without too much of a hassle, easier said than done. "Coming through, excuse me, sorry." A few annoyed looks here and there but the harder part was actually finding a compartment that was isolated or not packed to the brim. It was a sort of bittersweet moment honestly because these were the very same people whether Elena knew them or not that gave her a sense of belonging at Hogwarts, a reality she didn't have at home, the very place where the Hogwarts Express would deposit her in a couple of hours.

Deciding to investigate one of the compartments that looked like it had not been invaded yet, she'd slide open the door looking into it, her gaze settling onto a girl who had already occupied it. Well, not just any girl by the looks of it as the brunette thought her faced looked relatively familiar. "Hey.." Elena would give the girl a little wave before pointing to herself, her owl and the trunk which followed right behind. "You don't mind if we just..take up residence here, right?" Hopefully not, it was hard enough trying to find a compartment as bare as this and if the other girl would give her approval, the Jangleton girl conjuring up strength from some unspoken source would find it in her bones to heave her trunk up onto the top rack unlocking her pet's cage allowing Flutters to extend his wings a bit as the brown barn owl darted out settling himself on Elena's left shoulder, his perch for the remainder of the trip or for how long Elena would tolerate him. "I've seen you around, I think? At Haley's birthday party?" Perhaps that was where Elena recalled her face from, she was having trouble putting a name to her face however. Had it really been that long ago?

337085

@Elena Jangleton

July 1, 2021

Engulfed in thought, Lavinia almost didn’t notice the brunette opening the compartment door. The slight creaking noise did wake her from her mind and looking up, she recognized the girl opening the door. The new arrival who Lavinia remembered as Elena, carried an owl with her and it made Lavinia wonder if an animal would be a good companion. For now though, Elena would be good company on the ride home, maybe they could get to know each other more. Looking up at Elena she responded, “I don’t mind at all, it was getting a little lonely anyway.”

As Elena put her trunk on the rack, she let the owl out and fly on her shoulder and Lavinia noticed how the two of them were friends. She imagined what it would be like if she had an owl and could fly side by side with it. Maybe she could ask her parents if she could buy an owl soon. She had already put a name to the face, probably because that was one of her skills, due to not meeting people. Elena spoke about how Lavinia looked familiar and she was quick to confirm the notion. “Yep, I recognize you from there too. You’re Elena, right?”

If this wasn’t Elena, she was going to make a fool of herself but, she felt pretty confident in her ability to remember names. Lavinia didn’t really like the silence now that another person was here so she decided to ask Elena some questions for conversation. “So…. Are you excited for summer break?” Lavinia was definitely excited to get away from that school and see her family again.

Appreciative of the kind gesture and not the fact that she would have to go back to compartment-hunting again as Elena knew that some people were rather territorial about whom entered their little train cars but it seemed Lavinia was not one of those, a fact she was thankful for truthfully. "Thanks." The brunette replied having found her spot for the ride home as the comparment door slid shut behind her, a silent sigh of relief leaving her figure as the girl confirmed her own name. It would have been absolutley embarassing for the third year if she had incorrectly assumed who her companion was but it seemed her guess was right as she nodded encouragingly at Lavinia. "Yup, that's me. Nice to meet you..again." The girl said chuckling settling onto one of the seats facing Lavina content that she would be spending this ride not with a total stranger.

The topic quickly shifted to summer, an joyous time for most as it was the keystone moments that allowed them to get a break away from professfors and school and all the stress and mounds of homework that came for it. Elena personally was looking forward to it as this year had been rather eventful and she was much too eager to ride home although you could chalk that up to two reasons if you asked her. The first one being that Lamik would actually be going with her home, she'd have to hunt him down before the train reached King's Cross but the Gryffindor was sure he was roaming about somewhere on this train. The second one was the annual summer camp that Hogwarts put on and while most people would want to spend their break away from school, it was no lie to say that the castle actually put on some very intersting events over the duration of the summer so it was safe to say her plans were pretty well-set for the summer. "Oh,defintely. I'm having a friend visit and then there's the summer camp too."

The activites were bound to be fun,a way to sort of relieve all their stress before the new year kicked off. Start the year on a postive note and besides, it was a win-win for Elena. The longer she stayed within those confined halls of the Jangletone estate, the more positive she was that she was going to go nuts so any excuse to get away from that place was more than welcome. "You planning on going?" She rebounded the question back to Lavinia, perhaps the girl could make something useful out of this. After all, she didn't exactly fancy the idea of being tossed into a cabin with people that had never breathed in her presence, preferable to enjoy it with someone she was familiar with and the way this was going, Lavinia seemed like one of the good ones the brunette would not mind passing the time with if their pleasant little converstation here was any indication.

come on...

It seemed that every room had been filling up quicker than she could say "wingardium leviosa". Unlike the past couple of years, everyone was forced to leave Hogwarts for a month before coming back for summer camp. Bloom would have been on board if she enjoyed being at home. It was always a circus, what with her older sister, younger sister and baby brother. Her parents, still working hard to ensure that their family is holding strong financially, never really had enough time for Bloom.

Bloom began to bite her pink lower lip, nervous if there are space. Each compartment was filled as she walked down the train's corridor. It wasn't until she saw that there were only two people in a room. She could keep checking to see if there was a hopeful empty space, but what were the odds? The two looked like they were in deep conversation. Would she be interrupting something? Probably.

Bloom, in deep thought, was bumped by the person behind her to move and she opened the compartment quickly and jumped in. She moved a piece of loose hair from her brunette hair that was tied up in a bun behind her ear. She immediately became shy-- a new personality perk she earned throughout the years. She had once become so outgoing but it shifted with life's events.

"Sorry, I would have asked before jumping in, but it's a zoo out there," she said, slowly closing the door from all the noise of other students finding a compartment of their own to be a part of. "Do you mind if I join you both?" she asked, her chestnut brown eyes looking at the girls in the compartment. None of them seemed remotely familiar but they seemed like older than first years. She just couldn't pin point their year. Bloom was never good at that.

337085

@Elena Jangleton & @Bloom Silverton

July 1, 2021

Lavinia was pleased that she wasn’t spending the ride home alone and wondered what had made her think that she wanted to be alone. It was quite nice to have company and she also found herself lightly laughing at Elena’s statement before returning one of the same. “It’s nice to meet you again, too” It really was nice to have Elena join her in the compartment, she hardly knew the brunette but, maybe they could get to know each other better.

Switching the topic to summer was an easy thing to do for Lavinia because there was no real other things they could converse about. This train was taking them home and why not chat about the plans, or non-existent plans in Lavinia’s case, that they had for the summer. It seemed like Elena definitely had plans though and as Lavinia activity listened, she learned that they involved having a friend come over and going to summer camp. This caused her to wonder what it would be like if she had good enough friends to invite over to meet her family. Perhaps, if she kept taking risks then she could make some more friends.

Summer camp didn’t sound like the best idea in Lavinia’s head, she had heard just a little bit about what occurred last year and knew it wasn’t really something she wanted to attend. Anyway, it was a school sponsored event and everyone who had been here more than a day knew what that meant, something was bound to go wrong. It could go perfectly right and Lavinia was definitely curious about what could happen but didn’t really want to be caught in a bad situation. Then when Elena asked her if she was planning on going, she tried to answer truthfully. “No, I don’t think I’m going to go. I heard a good bit about what happened last year to know that it might not be the safest way to….”

At that moment, a girl with a bun walked in. Trying to finish her sentence, Lavinia quietly added “..spend summer” Turning her attention to the new arrival, Lavinia felt like she knew the girl. Her brain recognized the face but wasn’t sure where it was from. It could have been the common room, or quidditch, or just passing by in the halls. They definitely seemed familiar to Lavinia though. As the door was closed once more and the sound outside sound dulled, Lavinia went to welcome this new arrival with a kind smile. “No problem we have space. I feel like I know you from somewhere, I’m Lavinia by the way”

Introductions were always nice and Lavinia felt happy that her compartment was not so lonely anymore.

Their gentle chatter was going fairly well as the two girls settled in and the topic of their summer plans was brought up. Well, that was until Lavinia brought up the fact that she most likely was not going to be attending the summer camps but it wasn't because she was preoccupied or something to the best of the brunette's knowledge. It was because like maybe all other things at this castle, she had deemed it unsafe and while it might be true to some extent, the upcoming had to wonder how bad it had gotten last year. She personally herself had not attended but surely, it could not be worser than the antics at the Blossom Ball and as far as she knew, it couldn't be as bad as having a train blown off the tracks, a fact that she decided not to bring up just yet. "You're not?" She asked incredulously before contining on. "But then, what are you gonna do while school's out?" Before the Gryffindor could hear what answer the girl had, the compartent door slid open again and eyes flicked to see who else had arrived.

Another girl and it was clear people were still finding their way into compartments or not so Elena guessed this outcome was likely but not that she minded, the more, the merrier. "Have at it, takes three to tango anyways." The brunette would scoot over to make some space for the new girl as introductions began to go around the group again as she gestured to herself with a small pleasant expression. "Elena Jangleton." At the back of her head however, the girl was on a mission and that was to find out the root cause of what was so scary about these summer camps that people were shying away from attending them. The Gryffindor knew that strange things happened here and there but in her experience, these sort of crazy and chaotic things were only really rampant during the school year and for the most, the summer months were rather quiet and even if something did pop off, it would be something to talk about later. Elena realized it maybe wasn't a very good argument but she had this sinking feeling that perhaps Lavina was going off assumptions.

"Are you sure? I heard there's going to be a lot of fun games and stuff. It can't be that bad." She said posing the question. Maybe the other girl who had joined could help them, Flutters defintely couldn't as the owl simply blinked his bold yellow eyes at the three girls completely oblivious to the world as he nibbled on the treats that were stuffed in Elena's pocket quietly but she barely paid attention to it. "We were just talking about the summer camps and everyone's plans." She added not wanting to leave their new friend in the dark as the brunette struggled to process why anyone would want to miss such a positive experience. Sure, some people had their reservations but that didn't mean they should be restricted for enjoying something because of it. "You should go." Elena added kindly as she shot a glance out the window. If something had happened last year, that didn't mean it was going to be repeated this time or at least that was how she thought of it.

@Lavinia Cloven || @Elena Jangleton

It was definitely not a great first impression. She not only jumped into their compartment, but she interrupted their conversation. Bloom brought her things in a bit more and stored them above while listening to the Ravenclaw who mentioned that she knew of her. Did she? Bloom was certain that she did not know any of these girls.

Once she placed her heavy suitcase above the seats. "I'm Bloom Silverton," she grunted, getting the suitcase to fit in its space. When she finally got it in, she took a better look at the girl and smiled. Luckily, it was someone she sort of knew. It was Lavinia Cloven from the Quidditch team. They would not necessarily practice together often as their practice was primarily with their second and first string partners, but they were always around.

Bloom sat down next to the girl who introduced her as Elena Jangleton. She, Bloom was sure, was someone she did not know.

"I was on the Quidditch team for a hot second," she explained, sharing that she was not on the Quidditch team anymore. How she got on was a mistake. Though, it was an experience she would never forget. "Are you going out for the team next year?" she asked, wondering if Quidditch was truly her thing.

Oh right, summer camp... Bloom thought, thinking if she would actually go or not this year. Every time she participated in their summer camps, it was always so lonely. Her age of friends have already made their cliques or they knew what they were after. She felt like she was one or two years behind them. Maybe... Just maybe, this year would be different. Bloom listened to Elena about her knowledge of knowing that there would be a lot of games and fun. Maybe she was right... Maybe it wouldn't be that bad.

"Are you two thinking of going? Did they share what theme summer camp was going to be this year?" she wondered, thinking about last year's being in London and the year before having a cabin-like theme.

337085

@Elena Jangleton & @Bloom Silverton

July 1, 2021

The train ride was going pretty well so far and Lavinia was definitely enjoying the company. It was better than being alone, that was for sure. With the topic on summer, she thought about how she had spent the last few. They were all at her home in Dorking, England spent with her family. She enjoyed all the family time that the summer brought and was looking forward to it again because it was the only place she felt safe. Hopefully that was slowly changing for her yet the summer was her comfort time.

After Bloom had entered the compartment and the name exchange was finished, Lavinia went to respond to Elena about what she was going to do this summer, “Oh I’m probably just going to spend some time with my family and do some flying.” It was true, that what she normally did over the summer and it was what she assumed would happen this summer as well. When the newest addition to the compartment said that she was on the quidditch team for a short period, Lavinia remembered some moments with her.

Quidditch was where she made most of her friends and now she definitely remembered Bloom. She was a second string keeper for a little bit and happened to play in a game with Lavinia. Smiling when Bloom asked the question, she immediately responded excitedly with her feelings about next year’s quidditch season. “Yep! Next year if I make it, it will be my fourth year on the team.” If she didn’t make the team then that would be upsetting but she had a good feeling that she would make it.

Switching back to the topic of summer camp, Lavinia listened to Elena talk about the summer camp. She thought that her mind was made up but maybe she needed to think about it a little more. Elena mentioned that there were games and it could possibly be a chance to meet more people. Then there was the fact that always made her cautious of doing new things. This summer camp could go wrong and people could get injured yet, it might be worth the risk. It might be worth the risk to have a good time and make new relationships, she did need to get out of her bubble anyway.

Then Bloom asked about summer camp and as much as Lavinia wanted to deny going to it, she was now having doubts about it. “I wasn’t planning on going to summer camp but now I’m definitely thinking about it. Is there a theme though?” She was honestly questioning the theme part because she had no idea that there was one.

She could finally put a name to the new face nodding filing the moniker away for later reference. "Bloom, that's a pretty name." The Gryffindor said smiling watching as the girl handled her belongings before joining the two in their converstation which at the moment was consisting of Elena trying to sway Lavinia's opinions on the whole summer camp thing which she had so many reservations about. It appeared that the two were already familiar with each other to some extent through Quidditch, a fact that caused her to sit up straighter. "Wait, you guys played Quidditch? How is it?" She pressed curiously keen to know what gems of wisdom they had. The truth was, the brunette had been prepping all the way she could for her own house tryouts so a inside source into that sport even if it was a rival house was a welcome piece of information for her.

"I've been thinking about trying out, fingers crossed for a good outcome."

Maybe they would have something similar at camp. Hopefully, Elena still wasn't too sure what was in store for them aside from what the professors had already informed and that was perhaps the reason why she was unable to confirm nor deny if there was indeed a theme this year. Truth be told, the girl wasn't sure if there had ever been a themed summer camp, it was an interesting idea for sure. She hoped it wouldn't be a turn-off for Lavinia because after all, just because there wasn't a trend to the whole camp didn't meant it was any less fun. "I plan on attending though I'm not sure about the theme. They didn't mention anything about there being a theme if there is." Still, it was far better than counting down the days until she returned to Hogwarts so it was in Elena's best interest though if she had to spend it alone, the girl wasn't too sure how she would feel about that.

She leant forward a bit placing her elbows on her knees as she spoke. "I promise you'll have a lot of fun. You won't even have time to worry about what could happen." That was how you knew if something was worth it, if you got engrossed in it so much so that you weren't thinking about the cons, it was probably something worthy of attention and if something did occur at the camp, well, Elena reckoned they would cross that bridge when they came for it but for right now, they didn't need to think about all that, it would only dampen the mood more. Among the three of them, the girl reckoned she probably knew how to put the other two girl's worries at ease if they had any. "Why don't you all tag along? I don't know if we'll get paired in the same cabins but if we do, better to do it with someone you know."

Lavinia and Bloom were good company in her books and amongst the three of them, Elena reckoned they could survive a summer camp outing and even if they happened to be divided between cabins, she reckoned it would still be well worth the experience.