"You know, I'm glad you asked." Garreth admitted. "I was starting to think I'd have to spend the whole trip all by myself." He gave a mock frown and shot a glance up at one of the train's many windows. He looked back at Rachel when she bounced with excitement, agreeing wholeheartedly with her sentiment. Despite all his worries and fears about how it would all turn out, he was very much looking forward to Hogwarts. "I know, right? It's so exciting!"

He snickered when Rachel gave Effie her prefix. "If you saw the way she acts at home, you'd know why we already gave her that title years ago!" He ruffled the fur on the top of Effie's royal head. The cat seemed not to mind, but did make an effort to fix her lovely beige hairdo.

"But what if we end up in completely different houses?" Garreth asked, concerned. "You're so sweet and helpful, you might be a Hufflepuff. And you're not afraid to stand up to father, so you're brave enough for Gryffindor!" The boy genuinely wanted to be in the same house as Rachel, even if that meant he had to muster up Gryffindor levels of courage. His father had always told him he had everything he needed to get into Gryffindor, he just had to want it. On the other hand, he really wanted to get into Ravenclaw. Indeed, he was rather conflicted on the whole situation. Effie looked up at Garreth and meowed in protest, as if she understood completely.

"Well.. On the other hand, you're certainly clever enough for Ravenclaw, and Effie will probably find her way back, no matter how far she has to walk to get from dorm to dorm."