XXXXX𝓜eiyu had been raised to affirm her beliefs regardless of whether they were incorrect or simply mundane or wrong. More often than not, she believed her beliefs had always been correct.
Having made her way to join an odd-looking compartment consisting of Gryffindor's most useless, Harlan Montgomery, and a few fresh faces, Meiyu had soon left the compartment far beyond irritated. The upperclassman had refused to succumb to any ounce of authority she had, though such authority was likely to exclude the carriage to the wretched school as they embarked on a New Year. Still, the odd grouping, which had consisted of two Gryffindors and two fresh faces yet to be sorted, failed to serve any fruit to the young girl who sought to wreak havoc, affirming her belief that any further participation within this carriage compartment would prompt her to rip her hair out. Perhaps it was likely that had she joined her younger brother in whatever carriage he found himself in, the journey would have proven to be an efficient use of her time.
Instead, Meiyu found herself striding through the train corridor, her bag dragging behind her as she made minimal effort to hold it correctly whilst in searc of another compartment, likely in search of another familiar face, or a new one. As she manoeuvred through the many students loitering in the corridors, she had only grown more agitated at the vast number of students on board. It had never made sense to the young girl as to why the train never stopped and instead, forced almost an entire school on board at once. Meiyu swore to demand use of the Floo Network next year, given the train ride had already become unbearable; besides, had it not been for her younger brother's admission into the horrid school, she likely would not have had to accompany him onboard.
Kensington, who always had a peculiar inkling as to Meiyu's emotional outbursts, evidently sensed her sour mood and crawled up to her shoulder, in what Meiyu had always presumed to be his efforts to ease her mood. A few light taps on her should have been enough to indicate for Meiyu to move further through the train in search of a quieter area onboard.
For a brief moment — she hesitated.
Akin to the feelings she had felt last year, a sudden thought had sparked her mind, as though once more, she was being watched by something or someone. Beginning to feel herself heaving at the thought of being observed, Kensington moved around with urgency on her shoulder, bringing her back to reality after mentally checking out for a few seconds. With such urgency compared to her movements earlier, Meiyu moved once more, striding past a few students, a few shoulders meeting with her own harshly until she had firmly uttered, "Move," commanding students to simply move out of her way. After a few seconds of brushing past others, she had found a much more secluded place by the end of the train carriage, far quieter than the bustling atmosphere from other carriages, likely accredited to this carriage consisting of upperclassmen who clearly did not anticipate their return to the castle.
Securing a moment to herself, Meiyu moved towards the window, gazing upon the alluring view consisting of hills and distant mountain peaks. Though vastly different from Oxfordshire, the familiarity of open fields brought her ease, her anxieties calming instantaneously. In this very moment, she had felt as though she was back at home, gazing upon the nearby reservoir, similarly to the few days she had been home prior to her hospitalisation. It came as no surprise that the bouts of paranoia she had exhibited the previous academic year only heightened once more, regardless of her portrayal as clinically sane, a mere ploy used to escape the psychiatric ward sooner rather than later. Despite her discharge coming sooner than her parents had anticipated, at times, the aftershock of effects lingered like an unweeded garden, similar to Hamlet's interpretation.
Meiyu had quickly grown detached from her own reality over the course of her month-long hospitalisation. Had it not been for Kensington, a Black Webber she initially never cared much for, her perception of reality would only continue to dwindle into a mere state of nothing. She would never deduce to grow a likeness to an arachnid, namely accrediting their likeness to shared senses, yet contrary to her initial displeasure towards pets, Kensington had proved himself worthy in more than many ways, which Meiyu had deemed to be worth keeping the creature close to her, even if it meant protesting at the platform to not part ways with the creature for the journey ahead.
Given their likeness, both Meiyu and Kensington seemed to sense another presence in the secluded area, as though being intruded on as if the two were encased in a private compartment. Refusing to tear her gaze away from the enticing scenic views as the train embarked further into the Highlands, Meiyu outwardly questioned the unfamiliar presence, her mood having blatantly shifted from her earlier irritation.
"I've never come to appreciate the Highlands this much; the view is rather calming, don't you think?" Meiyu commented with almost a whisper, taking a different approach than she had in the earlier compartment. For once, she did not bother with a brash tone, having reached a point of the journey where she simply wanted its end.
