Unfortunately, there were no more empty compartments.

Wren jostled through the aisles of the train until she found a vacant seat next to some older students. She pulled out her sketchpad and began to draw.

Sketching was always Wren’s first outlet for emotion. When she was younger, she often find that her drawings seemed to shimmer faintly with color even when she’d done them all in pencil. When drawing, Wren would let her mind wander, dwelling on all it’s anxieties and fears. Then, when she looked back down at the paper, she would find something she hadn’t expected to see. This is what she did now.

Flowing, dipping, and bending with the precision of an skater, Wren’s hand carefully crafted an image as she pondered. What will Hogwarts be like? I’m sure I won’t have any friends. Which house will I be in? I’d always thought I’d be in Horned Serpent, but instead I’m in Hogwarts… She sighed, and her hand came to a rest. Wren studied her creation. In it, a small girl held a wand which poured forth a story, although of what she couldn’t be sure. She continued drawing, her thoughts slowing down every minute.

She must have dozed off, because suddenly she was being shaken awake by a stranger. “New girl!” they said in a heavy accent. “You’d better change quick! The train’s arriving!” Wren jumped to her feet. She’d forgotten to change! Grabbing her suitcase, she started digging through it for a set of robes. She grabbed a pair and ran for the bathrooms.

Not a moment after she left the bathrooms did the train arrive. Wren fought her way back to her suitcase, and stepped out into the night. She had reached her journey’s end. A faint melody drifted from a warm-looking building. Pleasant scents wafted from another. But all Wren’s attention was drawn to the castle standing proudly on the hill. For better or worse, this was her new home. Hogwarts.