Fandom Always: Hogwarts Roleplay (Outdated)

[Red_Delta]

Nellie Nellie rushed across the platform, her cart squeaking as she ran through the crowd. Why had she thought driving was better than apparition? The drive had taken so much longer than she had expected. Leaving her trunk with one of the wizards loading the train, Nellie hopped up into the train and attempted to find an empty seat.

“Promise me you’ll write more this year,” her mother had begged her earlier. “And don’t spend so much time alone. For a girl almost done with school, you should really start making connections.”

Driving those words from her mind, Nellie pushed further into the train. She finally found a compartment, completely empty. Sliding open the door, she seated herself next to the window and stared out at the slowly departing station. Her mum and dad had probably apparated home already, but it was nice to see all the families saying goodbye.

Turning back to the compartment, Nellie pulled her legs up to her side and thought back to her conversation with her mother in the car.

“So, are you ready for your OWL year?” Her mum asked. “I actually loved my OWL year, it was so much fun. I think you’ll enjoy it. Be sure to pay extra attention in Potions, your mark is slipping.”

Nellie groaned, “Mum, Professor Hiddleston told me he would help me through this year. It’s not like I want to actually use potions in life. I want to do something with Defense Against the Dark Arts.”

“Nell-Bell, when are you going to get this in your head?” Her mum exclaimed. “If you ever want to be an Auror you need Potions. Not to mention, you can’t just pick and choose what you want to learn or not learn.”

“Nellie, what your mum is trying to say is that we want you to succeed in everything, not just one area,” Her dad explained calmly, looking at her through the rearview mirror. “You can do it. You’ve got your mother’s brains and my looks.”

“No wonder I’m single,” Nellie muttered, smiling.

“Hey, you can solve that problem on your own,” Nellie’s mum replied sweetly. “Maybe try talking to more people. Branch out. Promise me you’ll write more this year,” her mother had begged her earlier. “And don’t spend so much time alone. For a girl almost done with school, you should really start making connections.”

“I promise.”

Shaking her head, Nellie woke herself from her own thoughts. There was a knock on the compartment door and she turned to see who it was.
anne w. Ravenclaw Verdance C CaptainFailure Waffles with Sprinkles

 

[Ravenclaw]

Sophia Ollerton

Walking onto the platform, Sophia checked her bag once again to make sure all her books were in order. Guide to Advanced Transfiguration—she couldn’t wait to get started. Plus, Transfiguration meant Professor Kate Gellert, and Sophia was always excited for that.

Spoiler: Flashback

During their first Transfiguration meeting, as expected, Professor Gellert’s eyebrows shot into her hairline the moment Sophia opened her mouth. Fifty times. In one hour. Sophia was left feeling rather dejected, to be honest, particularly since she hadn’t received an exceptionally warm welcome from the three girls whose compartment she’d barged into on the Hogwarts Express. As it transpired, people her age did not take well to that sort of (arguably rude) interruption, and accidentally kicking one girl in the face certainly didn’t help her case.

Sophia ate dinner alone while others who had made friends on the Express chattered away happily. Thinking of Ewan and her parents, she suddenly felt so homesick she had to get to her feet and make a run for the girls’ bathroom before she broke down in front of the entire Great Hall—and if she’d already made a less than ideal impression, crying over her big brother was no doubt the final step in How To Not Make Friends And End Up Sad And Alone With A One-Eyed Cat.

Before she could open the door, however, Sophia heard footsteps behind her and slowly spun around. If it was one of the girls from the train...

“Kate?” she asked, taken aback, then clamped a hand over her mouth. At home, she always called adults by their first names, because they were always treated as equals. Now, it had been made abundantly clear that Rule One of respecting your professors was not to do precisely what she had just done.

But Professor Gellert didn’t mind, and Sophia spent that evening, and every evening for the next few weeks, quietly hiding away in her office. She still dutifully called her “Professor Gellert” in class; nobody else noticed or cared, which Sophia supposed was one of the benefits to being virtually invisible.

For her part, Professor Gellert pretended not to approve of Sophia’s presence, but she left Transfiguration books in conveniently accessible locations, and did not complain when Sophia tested out spell after spell, and gave the room (which just happened to have Sophia in it) feedback such as “hold your wand a bit tighter” and “try that again with less of a flourish at the end.”

Sophia miraculously made friends in October and stopped relying on her time with Kate. But she still used the professor as a touchstone, still showed up at her office for a cup of tea late at night, and, as she got older and life got harder, still trusted Kate to be there for her.

And Kate was.

​

Sophia glanced up from her bag to see Jasper Kingston standing alone on the platform. He looked like he was waiting for someone. For a split second, her mind went to Ruth, a pretty and charismatic and only slightly intimidating Gryffindor who she knew was also friends with Jaz. Not that she particularly cared, but she felt like the two of them were maybe getting a bit too close.

It really didn’t matter, though. Sophia shook her head, thankful for some reason that Jasper hadn’t spotted her yet, and wondered whether Ruth was here. Everyone knew that Sophia and Ruth had a bit of a love-hate relationship; it was natural, therefore, that Sophia would feel competitive. This inexplicable twinge of jealousy had absolutely nothing to do with Jasper.

Merlin, where was Ewan when she needed him? He’d left in mid-July, and Sophia was more than a little tearful when it turned out he wasn’t going to be able to make it to see her off after all.

Anyway. She and Jaz had gotten closer over the years: while initially they didn’t know one another very well, he helped her actually survive History of Magic, and in return she swooped in and saved his arse during exams in their third year when he swore he physically could not reach the ten-page minimum (she, of course, had written 40 pages on Transfiguration already). He annoyed Sophia on many levels—then again, so did most people—but deep down she knew that he was a genuinely good guy, and thus did what she could to maintain a friendship.

In fact, the two of them had gone back-to-school shopping together three days ago. It was an impromptu trip and possibly the greatest fun Sophia had all summer. Jaz was funny (though she may be alone in thinking that) and nice, for the most part. She had been forced to punch him in the stomach after he tried to hold the door for her, but otherwise he treated her with noticeably more respect than most guys his age. He wasn’t exactly bad looking, either—

Sophia almost walked straight into the wall.

It would be perhaps more accurate to say that she did walk straight into the wall.

Wincing, she rubbed a hand over her forehead and felt blood there. Wonderful. Never too soon to break out the Healing spells. After uttering a few choice words under her breath, primarily verbal abuse aimed at the wall, Sophia made a U-turn and reached for her wand. Just as she had its tip pressed to the small gash on her forehead, however, she happened to make eye contact with Jasper and froze.

“Um, hi,” she said, trying to act as casual as possible given that she was currently bleeding from her head.

Jasper Kingston | Waffles with Sprinkles ​

 

[Verdance]

Casimir Fenn

Both of his parents liked to come with him to the platform, and as much as he loved them, every year Casimir found himself more and more self-conscious about being dragged around by his Muggle parents. His mother stood only to about his shoulder, but she was noisy and refused to act differently when people were watching than she did at home. He didn't mean to be an ingrate, but it was embarrassing.

She fussed over him in Arabic, touching his face and hair and telling him that she had better not hear a whisper of trouble from his professors this year. He stood stock still with his hands clasped behind his back. Blush was creeping up his face. It was only the soft and indulgent smile on his father's face that made him bear with it; still, he kept flickering his eyes around the platform and wondering if any of his housemates were watching.

"Mama, please," he whispered with a cringing smile. He knew it must hurt to see her baby disappearing for so many months at a time into a world she would never understand. But that didn't mean she had to be so... smothering. "Je serai prudent, ben? I will write to you."

She looked to start crying at any moment, so he took her by the hands and kissed her forehead. She wrapped him up in a final hug, and his father handed him his luggage once he was released. He dashed through the false wall without saying goodbye, still feeling his face burn.

Casimir would swear for anything that magic had a taste. On the other side of the platform, the air was so different, so inviting. It had a quality that reminded him of static. A smile curled the ends of his lips.

He wove his way between all of the other students on the platform, milling around and wishing goodbye to their magical families, and hopped onto the train. He needed to get a decent seat, before all of the boxes filled up and he was forced to endure an awkward ride with people he didn't know, or worst of all-- first years.

His smile bloomed as he caught sight of Nellie, sitting alone. She was a nice girl. They didn't talk so much, but they had studied together plenty, and she wasn't the type to hold his parentage against him. He knocked once and then slipped inside and shut the door behind him.

"Hello, Nell. Are these seats taken?" He gave a little wave, but didn't sit down yet. He did, however, open the door of a cat carrier sitting at the top of his luggage pile. A large white-and-grey tomcat jumped out, disgruntled, and sat near the window. "I hope you don't mind Loki being out, but he would have started being insufferable otherwise. How was your summer?"

 

[Waffles with Sprinkles]

Jasper
Jasper quickly approached the barrier between the platforms, walking at a steady pace. He was only four feet away from the platform when he felt his mother pull against his arm. They veered to the right, stopping next to a muggle couple who were seemingly trying to glue their lips together.

“Mum,”Jasper began to plead. “Please, just come onto the platform this time. No one stares at me. I doubt they'll stare at you. I want you to meet my friends. There's this girl, she's-”

“Jaz, darling, you know how they make me feel,” his mum argued. “They don't stare you because you've gotten out of your father’s shadow. But me? I was in the news this morning.”

Jasper sighed, there would no convincing his mother once she got her mind up. In the years prior to this, his mum had always had some excuse to excuse herself from entering the platform. He had always found it strange. Usually, his mum was strong and determined to not be judged. She could walk through Diagon Alley without batting a lash at the glares they would receive; but apparently stepping onto the train platform with them was just too much.

“Okay, I love you Mum,” Jasper said, kissing his mum’s cheek. “I'll see you when I get home for Christmas.”

“I love you so much, darling,” his mum whispered back. She stood on her tiptoes to kiss his forehead and then walked away from the barrier towards the bathroom. Jasper assumed she was going to disapparate home.

Once again, Jasper turned towards the barrier and walked through to the platform beyond. The platform was loud and filled with people in different types of clothing ranging from full robes to muggle attire. Jasper couldn't see anyone he knew so he began to walk towards the middle of the platform. He stopped to scan the crowd.

"Chester, why did the Clydesdale give the pony a glass of water? 
Because he was a little horse!" Jasper said to his owl, filling the silence that seemed to surround him. Chuckling at his own joke, Jasper wished that his mum had come with him. Being alone made Jasper antsy. He hated feeling like this. He wanted to crack jokes and smile, not stand awkwardly waiting to board the Hogwarts Express.

After another minute of standing alone, he decided to just go find a compartment. As he turned to grab the handles of his cart, he caught sight of a familiar head of blonde hair. Sophia turned and Jasper's caught her eye.

"Uh, hi," she said.

"Hey, Sophia," Jasper exclaimed, smiling. Sophia had been one of the people he had wanted his mum to meet. "I've missed you, it feels like it's been years. I've gotten new jokes since I last saw you."

Ravenclaw

 

[CaptainFailure]

MadgeThe platform was filled with all different colours. Crowds of young witches and wizards were standing about waiting to board the train. There were families saying goodbye and friends saying hello. The mix of emotions made Madge feel slightly overwhelmed; she’d never like crowds or large groups of people.

The train let out a loud whistle, signaling that it was preparing to leave. Madge turned to her Dad with a sad smile playing on her lips. She loved Hogwarts but hated leaving her dad behind. Madge knew that he was going to mope around the house, unsure of what to do. He would probably catch a show or two. But when he couldn’t find another distraction he would drive himself mad with worry.

“Are you going to be okay, when I leave?” Madge asked him cautiously, her eyes never leaving his.

“You worry too much, Doll,” her dad told her. His lips stretched in a smile, but his eyes were still filled with anxiety and despair. “You should be out learning all about your mother’s world. Not worrying about an old man.”

He laughed and pulled Madge in for a hug. She returned the hug squeezing him as tight as she could, not wanting to let go of him. Perhaps if she held him tight enough they could just stay in this moment forever.

“You have to let go, Doll,” he told her. Carefully, prying her arms off of him. Madge sighed heavily and turned to steady the things on her cart. Her owl, Sherlock, hooted softly and nipped at the bars of his cage.

“I love you, dad. I'll write when I can. This time, please don't call the RSPCA on Sherlock this time,” Madge asked. She vividly remembered the time she had gone home for Christmas to find her owl was in an animal shelter. Apparently, her father hadn't known how to get the letter off of Sherlock and several muggles ended up obliviated.

“I'm still, so sorry about that,” he apologized with a light red colour rising in his cheeks. “I understand it better now, I think. Don't worry about me. Have a good school year.”

Madge watched from one of the windows as her father walked to one of the platform workers and spoke to him for a moment, before being escorted through the barrier and back to the muggle side of the station. As she watched his familiar shape disappear through the bricks, Madge felt a slight pressure relieved from her shoulders. It always worried her- him getting back through the barrier.

“Let’s go find a seat, Sherlock,” she said, more to herself than to the owl.

 

[anne w.]

James

“Promise me that you’ll owl, Jay.”

“I'll owl you every chance I get, mum. I promise," James assured his mother, his arms wrapped around her in a tight embrace. He pulled away slightly, expecting her to release him from her grip when he did so. She did not.

"Mum, please, I've got to go. I love you. I'll owl you as soon as I'm settled in my dorm, I'm serious."

She sighed and let James go.

"I love you, Jay. Have fun with your friends and don't get into any trouble."

"Okay, mum. Love you," he responded, giving a last small wave at his mother as he turned to advance toward the platform.

James shook the painfully fresh memory from his thoughts, instead attempting to distract himself by seeking out any familiar faces among the crowd. He, of course, recognized most of his schoolmates from the past five years running, but couldn't pick out any that he was particularly close with. That is, close enough to randomly approach and ask about sharing a compartment with himself and his strange cat.

James finally surrendered his efforts and boarded, assuming he could find someone to ride with on the train. He began marching the aisle between compartments, glancing through windows to search for friends. As he was passing by a compartment door, James caught a glimpse of a familiarly curly head of Slytherin hair and made an immediate U-turn back to the door. He cracked it open carefully, not wanting to disturb his friend or the other person sitting with him. And James, the socially graceful chap he was, asked very smoothly and calmly if he could join them.

"I, uh, sorry, is this compartment full? I don't mean to, uhm, inconvenience you."
​

Verdance Red_Delta

 

[Red_Delta]

Nellie
“Hey, Cash,” Nellie greeted the boy with a smile. She reached to scratch the cat behind its ears before settling back in her seat.

“Summer was fine,” she added. “Mum and Dad are on my case again. But, I suppose it's kind of their job, as parents. I just wish they would stop pushing me to be so much like them. You should have seen my mum when I told her my potions marks.”

Leaning back in the seat she pressed her spine against the cushions behind her. Reaching into her pocket, her fingers played with the outline of her wand. The smooth surface of the wood gave her a tiny burst of excitement every time she thought about it. It was a nice feeling; knowing that soon she'd be able to actually use her wand.

Every part of Nellie was itching to pull out her wand and cast spells. She couldn’t wait to be back inside the confines of the Defense Against the Dark Arts room. She had heard so many rumors about the theatrics of D.A.D.A. for fifth years. While it was hard to admit, her mother may have been onto something about the excitement of fifth year.

“How about you? Any arrest warrants issued?”Nellie asked, cocking an eyebrow to ridiculous angle. Before Cash could answer, the door to the compartment slid open to revealed James Hall. Nellie didn’t know him personally, but he was in their year.

“I, uh, sorry, is this compartment full? I don’t mean to, uhm, inconvenience you,” he said. Nellie looked to Cash, he was friends with this newcomer. Wasn’t he?

“I’m fine with it,” she said, shrugging. “Cash?"

 

[Verdance]

Casimir Fenn

He rolled his eyes in sympathy. God, did he know a thing or two about parents who didn't understand why their child couldn't be like them. Loki purred, nipping at Nell's fingers affectionately.

"You aren't exactly hopeless at Potions," he conceded, "but it might help if you at least pretended to be interested. You could always come and study with me if it bores you so much, and I'll try to keep things lively."

At the tease, Casimir pressed a hand to his chest and made an affronted noise- as if he would be so sloppy! He was about to make a smart retort when the door behind him slid open, and his voice caught in his throat when he turned to see James. He blinked twice, getting a tight, warm feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Jay." He smiled wider and sat down on the seat behind him to let his friend through. "Please, you're no inconvenience at all. Have you met Nellie? We were just talking about how we fared over the summer. Mum and I went to visit her relatives in Marrakesh, which was lovely, and it's made me curious since then about other styles of magic, you know, from outside of Europe."

Pulling his own wand out from the pocket of his jacket, he levitated his luggage into the carrier overhead and sighed, "Of course, I couldn't really practice anything. One or two spells alone at my aunt's, and I actually got a warning from the Ministry. I'd heard the Trace wouldn't catch you if you were out of the country. But-- what about you?"

 

[Ravenclaw]

Sophia Ollerton

Jasper smiled when he saw Sophia, which was nice—but not exceptionally so, obviously. "I've missed you, it feels like it's been years. I've gotten new jokes since I last saw you," he informed her.

"Have mercy on us all," Sophia groaned. Jaz's jokes were truly horrible. Then again, so were her own puns, and she was beginning to suspect that she was the only one around who genuinely (deep down) (hidden very thoroughly beneath eye rolls and disparaging remarks) appreciated his poorly executed—and simply not funny—sense of humor. She jerked her head in the direction of the Hogwarts Express. "Wanna find a compartment?"

Two seconds later, however, she realized that despite them being good enough friends to hang out from time to time, it was probably more than presumptuous of her to assume they were on compartment-finding terms. In the past, Jasper had found one with his own friends while Sophia had either holed up with Kate or spent time with people who could vaguely tolerate her presence.

"I mean, you don't have to," she added hurriedly, then paused and grinned. "Although I kinda want to find out how bad your new jokes are."

 

[Waffles with Sprinkles]

“I mean, you don't have to," Sophia said, then paused and grinned. "Although I kinda want to find out how bad your new jokes are."

“Oh, get ready for a whole new level of amazing,” Jasper insisted. “My mum gave me a book full of them. You’re in for a real treat.”

Jasper smiled, running his hand through his hair. His mouth had gone dry. She actually wanted to sit with him? He hadn’t expected this. He tried to think of jokes to tell. Why was it that he forgot his best lines when it mattered most? Cursing silently, Jasper grabbed his cart handle an gestured towards the train.

“I imagine that most of the compartments are taken now. But, there may be one or two with open seats,” Jasper theorized. “I swear, if we get stuck with a bunch of first years, I might just have to find another way to Hogwarts. I got trapped with a whole gaggle of them last year. The entire experience was painful in unimaginable ways. Shall we?”

 

[Ravenclaw]

Sophia Ollerton

“I swear, if we get stuck with a bunch of first years, I might just have to find another way to Hogwarts. I got trapped with a whole gaggle of them last year. The entire experience was painful in unimaginable ways. Shall we?”

"Hey, be nice," Sophia protested. "I was one of those first years once. And let's be real, I probably made everyone else's experience painful in even more unimaginable ways." She followed Jaz onto the train, then abruptly whirled around and faced him very sternly in the entryway. "But you should beware that if you try to help me through a single door, I will jinx you," she warned. "Seriously, mate, your 'chivalry' is out of hand."

Sophia knew, of course, that teenage guys who were respectful of women were somewhat few and far between. But honestly? Holding doors, helping her up steps, sliding out her chair? As though she wasn't a strong, independent woman? Who even did that?

Jaz, evidently.

Okay, maybe it wasn't that annoying. Giving him a hard time for it, however, was much more amusing.

"Anyway," she continued, glossing over her not at all menacing threat, "have I ever told you about my first ride to Hogwarts?"

Spoiler: Flashback

Sophia, who (predictably) was last to board and running late, sprinted down the hall, trying to find a compartment that was open. Finally, she located one that only had three occupants and, without further ado or consideration for those in the general vicinity, came barreling in, yelling much more loudly than necessary, "Did I miss anything?!"

Before anyone could respond (as is custom when someone asks a question), Sophia took it upon herself to sit next to one girl and start chattering away, acting for all the world as though she had always been part of the conversation. This was typically acceptable behavior from the spunky 11-year-old, who'd been interrupting dinner conversations with adults for years, but—as she later realized—was slightly problematic for peers who wished to talk amongst themselves at a normal volume and speed.

"Are you all first years? I'm a first year, if you couldn't tell because I look about six years old. It's taken forever to get my acceptance letter and my older brother Ewan works with dragons, you know, so he's been off getting into trouble in Merlin knows where... an owl would be nice, since he could be dead at any time. I mean, dragons are cool, but they're not the most benign creatures... well, they're always kind of a liability, aren't they? The number of dragon attacks, Ewan could be next... Mum said she doesn't appreciate me pointing that out. I dunno why. Obviously, Ewan isn't gonna get attacked, he's way too awesome, and besides, they all like him."

Sophia heaved a long-suffering sigh. Rather unfortunately, it did not even begin to occur to her that absolutely nobody else knew anything about her brother—or anything about her, for that matter. Nor did they sign up for a rant about familial conflict. And so she continued cheerfully,

"At least I got to learn some Transfiguration spells. Mum says they're 'dangerous' and 'irresponsible' and claims I'm gonna kill someone"—she rolled her eyes—"but honestly, it was only that one time that I turned our cat into a teacup, which was really harmless if you think about it, and I got quite good at extinguishing fires... anyway, Mum's hair was barely singed, she sent Dad after me and we had a row but I'm pretty sure he thinks it's funny. He was 'well-behaved'—what a concept, really—in school, head boy and everything. I reckon he still acts well-behaved for Mum's benefit, but personally I think that's total hogwash... whenever I get in trouble he always pleads the fifth, even though he knows it was almost definitely my fault." She beamed fondly, then informed the compartment at large, "He works at Gringotts but he's not boring."

At this point, Sophia found herself too winded to speak, which resulted in a brief respite while she tried to catch her breath. This act of mercy was only transitory, however; as soon as she could breathe again (after a series of exaggerated gasps that were vaguely reminiscent of a beached whale), she flashed her friendliest smile and concluded, "So, what were you guys talking about?" as she swung her legs happily back and forth, nearly kicked the shin of the girl opposite her, and looked at her compartment-mates expectantly.

 

[Waffles with Sprinkles]

“You actually haven't,” Jasper told her as they made their way through the train. “Although, I can hardly picture you as a first year.”

Jasper turned to look into one of the compartments. It was stuffed with first years. They reminded him of sardines, all crammed into a tin. He smiled, while they all looked terrified they did remind him of his first ride.

“You know, I heard a really foul joke about Hufflepuffs the other day,” Jasper announced, his head turned to look at Sophia. “Want to hear it?”

Jasper was about to start his joke-without waiting for a response- when he suddenly slammed into someone.

“Bloody hell, I'm sorry,” Jasper said automatically. He looked to see a very blonde girl standing in front of him who he'd evidently just crashed into.

 

[Ravenclaw]

“You know, I heard a really foul joke about Hufflepuffs the other day,” Jasper informed Sophia. “Want to hear it?" However, he was also about to crash into a girl headed the other direction, but before Sophia could tell him to watch out, it was too late. “Bloody hell, I'm sorry,” he apologized.

"Yeah, looking where you're going is usually a good rule of thumb, but O for effort," Sophia commented, smirking, and patted Jaz on the arm. Then she turned to the blond girl and held her arms out for a rather intrusive hug. "MAGS!"

 

[CaptainFailure]

MadgeMadge was walking down the corridor when she felt someone slam into her back. She stumbled and nearly lost her balance. But, once she regained her footing she turned to see who had knocked into her.

"Bloody hell, I'm sorry," he exclaimed. Madge nearly laughed; his mix of explicative and apology was so typical of a teenage boy.

"Yeah, looking where you're going is usually a good rule of thumb, but O for effort," a very familiar voice said. "MAGS!"

Madge spotted Sophia and let out a small squeal, "Sophia!"

Accepting the hug, Madge squeezed her friend warmly. It was good to see a familiar face on the train. After leaving her dad on the platform, Madge had been left in a melancholy mood. An old friend was the perfect solution to her mood. Especially an old friend like Sophia. Loud, proud, and genuinely hilarious.

"I'm so glad you ran into me. No pun intended. I hate to intrude, but may I join the two of you?"

 

[anne w.]

James opened his mouth to greet the two, but could not get a word in as Casimir continued. He smiled warmly at his friend, listening to him speak fondly about his summer.

"But—what about you?" Casimir asked as he put away his luggage.

"Oh, nothing eventful. Mum and I don't really do a lot of traveling," James responded, following suit and also packing up his things.

He took a seat next to Casimir, placing his cat carrier carefully on the floor, so as to not disturb the feline's sleep. That would not be fun.

"Bloody animal," he muttered, memories of her last attack still on his mind.

Pulling his attention back to the two accompanying him in the compartment, he offered the girl sitting across from him a polite smile.

"Nellie, was it? Nice to see you, I'm Jamison Hall, but you call me James or Jay. I think I might have had Potions with you last year."

Verdance Red_Delta

 

[Ravenclaw]

"I'm so glad you ran into me. No pun intended. I hate to intrude, but may I join the two of you?"

"Good thing you didn't make that Hufflepuff joke," Sophia said in an undertone to Jasper as she relinquished her grip on her friend. Then she beamed. "Um, duh? Here," and she yanked Madge's luggage from her grasp unceremoniously. Why Sophia thought this was a good idea remained to be seen, given that she was already trying to balance several things, and squeeze through a tight corridor, and was only 4'11"—which, even though she wasn't exactly weak, did pose some limitations.

Limitations that became evident when she gracelessly lost her balance and fell over half onto Jasper and half onto the wall, sending baggage and books tumbling and trampling everyone's toes in the process. Well, that was... predictable.

"Sorry!" Sophia yelped. Scrabbling for her wand in order to rectify this entire situation, she hopped to her feet, dragging Mags and Jaz with her. She suppressed a grin (she may have just grievously injured two of her classmates, after all) and cleared her throat, then casually tossed her hair out of her face and attempted to look Very Serious.

"Maybe I shouldn't have done that... you both okay?" Neither friend had a chance to respond before she proclaimed, "Swell! There's a free compartment up there, I think—er... if anyone wanted to take one of these bags, you know..." Leave it to Sophia to threaten to jinx Jaz right when she actually really could use someone willing to be her personal caravan. She grimaced, and rather more weakly added, "...not that I can't handle it all."

 

[Red_Delta]

Nellie
"Nellie, was it? Nice to see you, I'm Jamison Hall, but you call me James or Jay. I think I might have had Potions with you last year," James introduced himself. Nellie shot him a smile.

"Yeah, it's Nellie Lane. It's nice to officially meet you," she said, a smile still fixed on her lips. "We did have Potions together. If you remember someone's cauldron bursting into flames, well, that was me. I hate that class."

Nellie reached into her bag and pulled out a package of gum. Her parents had brought her to Muggle London over the summer and she had instantly become addicted to the minty substance. It was different than any of the candy she had ever tried before. According to her father, when he was in Hogwarts they had a serious gum problem. Students would chew it and stick it under the desks. Filch, the caretaker, had nearly had a heart attack trying to get remove it. They had apparently banned the candy.

She popped one of the sticks into her mouth, then offered the pack to the others. "Gum anyone?"

 

[Verdance]

Casimir found himself inordinately pleased when James sat down next to him. Tucking away his wand, he thought carefully for a moment, then reached out and bumped James with his elbow. "I suppose you did nothing but read during your holiday, then," he teased. "No wonder you're as pasty as ever. Anything interesting?"

He had heard that James' cat was a nightmare, but the delicate way he handled the carrier seemed a little silly. The thing wasn't going to explode. He and James ought to trade- the worst Loki did was wail when he felt ignored or cooped up. But, he supposed, cats were like wands. Each one decided who its person was, and you lived with it.

He crossed one leg over the other, watching James even as Nellie started to talk. He normally didn't care much for being smiled at; too often, people were only friendly with you because they wanted something. James' smile was unassuming, genuine. It was a nice smile.

"Tragically, Nell doesn't appreciate the art of potion-making, but she's a crack shot in a duel. If we have Potions together again, you can help me prevent further disasters. And--" at this, he turned to Nellie and pulled a stick out of the package-- "yes, thanks, as long as it's mint. I didn't know Muggle sweets were fashionable now."

From the front of the train, the whistle blew one last time, and the Hogwarts Express lurched into motion. Out the window, Casimir could see parents on the platform, waving to their children. A pang of homesickness hit him, the way it always did right at the start of a trip, and he pocketed the gum. He would write home that night, once he was settled in.

 

[Red_Delta]

Nellie"I didn't know Muggle sweets were fashionable now," Cash noted, as he pulled a stick of gum out of the pack.

"I'm not sure I would call them fashionable. I think my dad is trying to bring them back into style at Hogwarts," Nellie admitted. "He actually taught me a spell that makes the wrappers fold into little shapes." Nellie slid the package back into her bag. Placing her wrapper on the seat next to her, Nellie withdrew her wand. She cleared her throat and clearly said, "Origameito."

However, instead of folding into a swan—like she had imagined—it had started to smoke. Suddenly, the paper sparked and lit on fire. Nellie moved to smother the flame with her sweater, but the seat cushion had already caught fire.

"Bloody hell," Nellie shouted, scrambling away from the flames. She cried out, "Aguamenti!"

Nellie produced a thin jet of water to put the fire out. However, the fire refused to be quenched and the compartment filled with dense black smoke. Nellie coughed. The smoke was filling her lungs and causing her to retch.

"I think we need to get out of the compartment," she called to the other two. "I can't put the fire out."

 

[CaptainFailure]

MadgeMadge barely had time to react as Sophia pulled her bag from her grasp. She made a reach for the handle but missed as the girl went tumbling. Through the scramble, Madge noticed that the hallway smelled of burning fabric. Was someone trying the new Weasley hand warmers? They had very clear warnings that instructed not to use them in while wearing gloves.

As the group righted themselves from the small scrap, Madge's eyes found the source of the smell. Sophia was saying something about empty compartments, but all Madge didn't hear a word. All she could focus on was the black smoke she could see trickling out from under one of the compartment doors.

"Um, I think something's burning in that compartment," Madge announced, her eyes not wavering from the smoke.

 

[Ravenclaw]

"Um, I think something's burning in that compartment," Madge announced.

Sophia followed her friend's line of sight. "Galloping gargoyles!" she exclaimed, dropping everything to the floor and reaching for her wand as she sprinted down the hallway and wrenched open the door of the compartment, revealing three occupants: James, her longtime family friend and someone she may have mistakenly snogged and then shot down this summer; Nellie, a Slytherin she never really talked to; and her arch nemesis (in her mind—of course he was nothing but coldly polite to her), Casimir. God, she hated that kid.

"...can't put the fire out," Sophia caught the tail end of Nellie's comment. She made brief eye contact with James, an uncomfortable and vaguely guilty feeling shooting through her stomach, but the fact that the Hogwarts Express was possibly about to go down in flames took slight precedence over any social drama that might be hanging between them.

After the transitory pause, Sophia reached in and hauled everyone out roughly by their collars. "Are you STUPID?" she yelled. Honestly, she may have almost broken her friend's toes, but at least she had the dignity not to set anything on fire. Yet.

She glared straight at Cash, hands on hips. "Potions isn't doing you much good here, is it?" To be fair, neither was Transfiguration, but she still outperformed him in Charms. "Merlin, it's like I have to do all the dirty work around here"—she rolled up her sleeves expertly and held her wand aloft—"Aguamenti, why didn't you try that, I was doing that when I was twelve"—she looked critically at Nellie—"there ya go. You're welcome."

The fire successfully extinguished, Sophia swept away the ashes to discover an enlarged and singed origami swan that looked as though it had been fashioned out of a gum wrapper, using a spell that had gone horribly wrong. It must have been origamieto, and based on the evidence before her, Nellie had likely swapped the "e" and the "i" in her incantation. Rookie mistake.

Sophia slowly turned to gawk at Nellie. "Really? All that for a gum wrapper?"

 

[Waffles with Sprinkles]

"Really? All that for a gum wrapper?" Sophia asked the three students she had just pulled from the compartment.

"That's quite fabulous, actually," Jasper noted, looking at the swan in Sophia's hand. "Does the fire always happen? Or can it be done with less theatrics?"

Jasper blushed slightly, realizing what he had just said. He coughed and scratched his nose, trying to play it off as nothing. He risked making eye contact with Sophia. He knew that she would most likely have some sarcastic remark about his exclamation.

"This actually reminds me of a story I heard of over the summer. Did any of you hear about the famous oragmist, Jean Pierre?" Jasper asked, his tone light despite the smoke that was slowly fading from the compartment beside them. "Well, he got into a world class poker championship. He almost made it to the finals. But, surprisingly, he folded."

 

[anne w.]

"I suppose you did nothing but read during your holiday, then. No wonder you're as pasty as ever. Anything interesting?"

James gasped dramatically and feigned offense, placing his hand delicately on his heart.

"How rude. Have you no respect for dear friends?" he asked jokingly, nudging Casimir back.

Hearing Nellie's voice, James turned to listen to the girl. Laughing pleasantly at her teasing of her own performance in Potions, he made a note to himself about helping her study in the future. He held up a simple hand to decline her offer of the Muggle sweet (he had heard of it before and had no intention of being caught with a banned substance at school). James watched as she placed the sweet's wrapper on the seat nearest to her and cast a simple spell that she was attempting to demonstrate.

Oh, Merlin.

James' vision was shrouded by the quickly spreading cloud of black that filled their compartment.

"I think we need to get out of the compartment. I can't put the fire out."

He was about to agree when the door of the compartment was swung open roughly and the trio was met by a very cross looking girl whom James was painfully familiar with. The girl, known as Sophia Ollerton and the girl who had broken James' heart the past holiday, had been having similar thoughts evidently as the two shared an uncomfortable silence and James began to feel an unpleasant weight settling on his chest.

"Are you stupid?"

James didn't have much more time to react after that, as he was being roughly dragged from the smoking compartment by his shirt collar. He watched for a few moments in shock as Sophia began to harshly scold Nellie.

"Really? All that for a gum wrapper?"

James furrowed his brows in a slight annoyance at Sophia. Was she not better than this? Displaying her open anger at these two for an honest mistake, most likely solely because of their house was just plain pettiness. He ignored Jasper's joke, barely listening as he spoke anyway, and glared at his friend.

"That's enough, Soph. It was a simple mistake. No reason to insult her."

 

[Verdance]

Casimir Fenn

Casimir felt a flush start to creep up his neck, and made a mental note to ask James later what sort of studying he had done.

He was briefly excited to receive a demonstration of the new spell, only for horror to dawn when the poor unassuming gum wrapper burst into flames. He bolted out of his seat and fumbled for his wand, casting a hasty protego off of which the acrid smoke bounced, billowing against the surface of the shield like glass. Only a moment later, he felt himself hoisted by the collar of his shirt and dragged out, the sudden motion dissipating his shield and making him stumble into the far wall. Loki dashed out of the compartment at the same time, and ran down the hall, fur puffed out almost comically.

He pressed a hand to his throat to feel his heartbeat, which was thudding a little too quickly to be comfortable. Taking a few breaths, he turned a dark glare onto Sophia. God, she was a thorn in his side. She acted like she had never been taught to mind her own business, and seemed to take it upon herself to stick her nose into Casimir's. He had half a mind to think that she had some kind of twisted crush on him. He was prepared to let everything go and ignore her, if she hadn't turned then on Nellie.

"She did cast it, Ollerton," he snapped, drawing himself up to full height- it was less than impressive next to just about everyone else in the hallway, but it was taller than Sophia. "She's a fantastic witch, and I've never seen anything like this happen to her before. Don't you dare take that sort of superior tone with her, as though you've never cast a spell that went wrong."

 

[Ravenclaw]

"That's enough, Soph. It was a simple mistake. No reason to insult her." James was scowling at Sophia in disapproval, and she did not appreciate it one bit. Neither did she appreciate the awkward tension that hung between the two of them. Her fear-based anger at Nellie and the entire group sufficiently tamped down at his comment, she fell silent.

On the one hand, Sophia felt as badly as ever when James acted disappointed in her; deep down, she honestly cared a great deal what most people thought, especially a friend like James. But on the other hand, she couldn't help but feel irritated with him for fancying her in the first place, irritated with herself for not being able to feel the same, and horribly guilty for having kissed him at all. Ever so assertively, therefore, she stared down at the floor and pressed her lips together, avoiding all eye contact with James.

However, when Cash opened his mouth, Sophia snapped. Being called out by James was painful; being harassed by Cash was infuriating and, unsurprisingly, sparked both defensiveness and anger.

Fuming, she glared daggers at her arch nemesis and shot back, "Who are you to be accusing me of acting superior? Sorry, have you ever heard yourself? Besides, at least I tried to help—I saw you, you only tried to shield yourself, couldn't have grabbed your wand and tried to put out the fire, could you—and anyway, you're only bitter because you know I'm better than you at Transfiguration, you little dipsh—"

Whoa there, Soph, Ewan's voice echoed in her head. Take a breather. The world's not always out to get you, you know. Sophia stopped before she could go too far with regards to some choice words, but was certainly not about to let the situation rest.

"Fantastic witch," she scoffed. "You only care about saving your own arse and we both know it, so don't you dare go all knight in shining armor on us."

First her (ex?) best friend siding against her, and now Casimir? Merlin, this entire trip was already getting off to a horrible start. Worse still was the fact that the harder Sophia argued, the more others would come to Nellie's defense, which meant attacking her. Even if the Slytherin witch tried to absolve Sophia of blame, it would only come off as gracious and altruistic. Honestly, there was no way to win at this point, and as such Sophia found herself turning to Jasper helplessly.