Oliver was ready! Fifth year at Hogwarts. OWLs year. Okay... so maybe he wasn't exactly ready for that but he would be.
This year he'd be focused on subjects he needed for Wandlore, only last year he was all about being an Auror.. but that wasn't exactly what he wanted anymore. Wandlore gave him this passion that nothing else really did.. it made him think and the cogs in his head spin.

Churchill was sat on his lap, perfectly content with the attention he was receiving. Large blue eyes shut and purring emanating from the white cat.
Seeing the white fur brought Oliver's thoughts back to the White River Monster he should be getting around Christmas. Hmm.

Hopefully the train would start soon. He wanted to get to Hogwarts and see Katy, he hadn't seen her yesterday on his Birthday and he was trying to think about seeing her and not trying to think about his sister being in California..

Katy had already burst into three carriages and scared the pants off some firsties, so she was getting very tired of dramatic entrances. Not tired enough not to burst into this carriage, but enough that she was sulky-faced even as she bounced through the door. "Happy birthday! Why didn't you sit somewhere easier to find? You're practically hiding from me."

Which was rude.

"Hi, Church, you handsome rascal. Hi, Lupin, you pest." Katy immediately released Miaow, who took up position next to Churchill and Lupin and stared at them both unnervingly. Good kitten.

Oliver had heard the bursting into other trains before she'd popped into his, mostly the doors opening over and over.. But then there she was! "Thank you!" The fifth year shrugged. "I like the view from the back of the train better, you can see the whole thing as it takes a turn." He loved the sight of the vibrant red agains the green backdrop of the hills and the blue of the sky. "Besides, i knew you'd find me." which was followed up by a wink.

Churchill's eyes opened upon hearing his own name, he hopped from Oliver's lap onto the floor and made his way to Katy, rubbing himself against her ankles and purring a little louder than before. "Me? A pest?" Faking offense and injury before turning to her cat. "Hello, Miaow." Did he dare pet her?

Summer had been bittersweet for reasons that Althea did not care to think about. She really thought her parents would've insisted on homeschooling them for the upcoming term, but Levi and Declan were persuasive and, of course, she'd been coerced to corroborate their assertions that the school was, indeed, still a safe place. Still, she did not appreciate the abruptness of the summer holiday, and also did not appreciate how much she'd had to sneak around. Is this how her brothers felt? Constantly plagued with the need to be free? She mulled over this once she found an empty compartment - which was surprising, as it seemed that people had a tendency to flock to the back cars more often than not - and sat down next to the window.

Ironically enough, she was not with her brothers. Declan had wandered off somewhere, Takeru the enigma was probably sleuthing around in silence, and Levi...well, knowing him and how social he'd become as of late, probably was chatting up a storm with a fellow house mate. She didn't mind, though, the quiet suited her just fine. If someone happened to stumble into the compartment she'd chosen, she wouldn't bat an eyelash - as long as they didn't bother her.

Quote:

Originally Posted by thekraken

Summer had been bittersweet for reasons that Althea did not care to think about. She really thought her parents would've insisted on homeschooling them for the upcoming term, but Levi and Declan were persuasive and, of course, she'd been coerced to corroborate their assertions that the school was, indeed, still a safe place. Still, she did not appreciate the abruptness of the summer holiday, and also did not appreciate how much she'd had to sneak around. Is this how her brothers felt? Constantly plagued with the need to be free? She mulled over this once she found an empty compartment - which was surprising, as it seemed that people had a tendency to flock to the back cars more often than not - and sat down next to the window.

Ironically enough, she was not with her brothers. Declan had wandered off somewhere, Takeru the enigma was probably sleuthing around in silence, and Levi...well, knowing him and how social he'd become as of late, probably was chatting up a storm with a fellow house mate. She didn't mind, though, the quiet suited her just fine. If someone happened to stumble into the compartment she'd chosen, she wouldn't bat an eyelash - as long as they didn't bother her.

Levi had deemed it necessary, at last, to finally go on looking for somewhere to nap for the entirety of the train ride. A wise thing to do considering he'd woken up that morning feeling like he needed a holiday from his summer holiday; but he was willing to overlook the feeling because, ultimately, that it existed was no one's fault but his own.

It wasn't like someone had held a wand to his back and forced him to work. Or volunteer. Or spend time with people. Or do everything in his power to avoid spending time at home.

He yawned, openly, pushed open a compartment door and the considered the possibility of ooohh, my bad, didn't know it'd be occupied! which would have been stupid, because most of them would be at this point. Also embarrassing and ridiculous; Althea did not own the train and he could not avoid her or Declan forever.

Takeru should have been part of that equation but it wasn't like Levi could avoid someone he felt actively avoided him. And everyone else, for that matter.

But, anyway, time to put that renowned Gryffindor courage into practice.

"I'm sleepy so I'm gonna nap." And so he strolled in, plopped himself on the seat across his sister's, leaned against the window and closed his eyes.

Nailed it.

The realization that she was now in her fifth year, that she would be going through an intense year of studying, and that she would have to run into certain people finally hit her. Althea groaned, a frown settling onto her face as she continued staring out of the window. She didn't know what she hoped to find by looking through the glass - answers, perhaps? There were so many questions that ran through her mind. And, if she were being completely honest, she just wanted to forget.

Preoccupied with her thoughts, she didn't bother turning to look at whoever had entered the compartment. Again, as long as they didn't bother her, she was fine. Mostly, anyway. Their voice gave away their identity and Althea's head turned quickly. Levi. Well, she they couldn't avoid one another any more than they did over the summer. She watched as he dropped into the seat in front of her. Her frown had left but she wasn't smiling either. "Levi," she said in a careful, even tone - she didn't want to run the risk of getting into another argument with Levi, she didn't have the energy today. "Are you really sleepy? Or is that an excuse to continue avoiding me."

The compartments were filling up quickly – that was always the problem with the Hogwarts Express. It always seemed to fill so fast like a sink with a leaky faucet; still everyone it seemed loved to sit further back on the train like that would lengthen the trip and keep summer with them just a little bit longer. Finding a compartment that seemed to be empty was the hardest part of the trip. Still, there she was standing in a compartment that looked devoid of life until she set foot into it.

Where should I sit? she wondered as she raked her fingers through her still tangled hair. This time, this time she’d ask someone for help braiding her hair as she didn’t want to end up looking like the bride of Frankenstein on the first day back from summer break.

Pulling a blanket and a little squishy pillow from her bag the Gryffindor began to curl up against the window. ”I’m so nervous,” she muttered the words to the small pygmy puff that sat nestled in the ruins of her braided hair.

The whole way following behind Mel as they left the luggage compartment, Hadley Denaker could not stop snickering at the attempted braid. Merlin in mustard, what had Melon been thinking? I mean they literally sell potions to give you perfect hairstyles and that still happened. Classic.

Finally Mel found an empty compartment and slipped into it. By the time Hads caught up, Mel had already set up a little nest for herself. Sold effort, but the one on her head was still better. Hadley set up her own space on the opposite side of the compartment, snickering still. Once she settled in, she set Asher down so he could burn off some energy. Then she pulled out her camera, and grinned. "Smile!" After a handful of photos were snapped, the camera disappeared into her bag again.

Hads looked over Mel's braid, snickered one last time and composed herself. "Alright. Come here, and let me see if I can fix it." She patted the seat next to her.

Bentley had a routine, every year since his brother started Hogwarts; get both their luggage on then ensure Heath was situated okay. His brother was now a third year but that did not stop him from being a bit overprotective with his younger sibling.

The now 6th year had no intentions of sitting close to the front or anywhere near the prefect compartment so he made his way to the back of the train, checking each compartment for familiar faces. Those he knew got a nod from him but he kept it moving, until he came to a particular compartment with two familiar familiar faces.

"Oh look, a Kenning compartment." He said leaning against the compartment door. "Wah gwaan?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by thekraken

The realization that she was now in her fifth year, that she would be going through an intense year of studying, and that she would have to run into certain people finally hit her. Althea groaned, a frown settling onto her face as she continued staring out of the window. She didn't know what she hoped to find by looking through the glass - answers, perhaps? There were so many questions that ran through her mind. And, if she were being completely honest, she just wanted to forget.

Preoccupied with her thoughts, she didn't bother turning to look at whoever had entered the compartment. Again, as long as they didn't bother her, she was fine. Mostly, anyway. Their voice gave away their identity and Althea's head turned quickly. Levi. Well, she they couldn't avoid one another any more than they did over the summer. She watched as he dropped into the seat in front of her. Her frown had left but she wasn't smiling either. "Levi," she said in a careful, even tone - she didn't want to run the risk of getting into another argument with Levi, she didn't have the energy today. "Are you really sleepy? Or is that an excuse to continue avoiding me."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davvy_Wavvy

Bentley had a routine, every year since his brother started Hogwarts; get both their luggage on then ensure Heath was situated okay. His brother was now a third year but that did not stop him from being a bit overprotective with his younger sibling.

The now 6th year had no intentions of sitting close to the front or anywhere near the prefect compartment so he made his way to the back of the train, checking each compartment for familiar faces. Those he knew got a nod from him but he kept it moving, until he came to a particular compartment with two familiar familiar faces.

"Oh look, a Kenning compartment." He said leaning against the compartment door. "Wah gwaan?"

Levi's eyes remained closed but a frown decided to make an appearance because Althea decided to ignore his remark and go on about whatever was bothering her. Which was fair because she was absolutely right but that didn't change the fact that Levi did not want to open that particular can of worms anytime soon.

He opened his eyes, folded his arms across his chest. Levi considered his answered but didn't for long, in the end; he was willing to ignore problems and annoyances as long as they were out of their face. But Althea was there and she really wasn't an annoyance, anyway. Not really.

"It's both."

Then Bentley decided to show up. Levi surveyed him for a moment, went on to continue with more truths. He smiled, let his arms drop and his hands rested on his lap. But he did not relax. "Not much. You?" At least he'd surmised that's what Bentley had asked. His knowledge of Jamaican Patois was severely limited; whatever he'd been able to grasp was only acquired after much late night reading once he found out he'd be visiting his fellow Gryffindor's Caribbean home. And after some struggling once he got there, too, of course. "Except I think that Althea and I were about to start a staring contest. Or a verbal spat." He shrugged. "It's good you've arrived to interrupt it, anyway." Or witness it. Or become a part of it. Whichever came first.

His theatrics were not surprising - this was Levi's whole schtick for the past six months or so - so Althea did not expect him to fully give her an answer. She did, however, expect some kind of courtesy even if he had to force it. He was her older brother and yet he treated her like she was a nuisance that he had to deal with. With pursed lips, she continued to watch Levi, hoping for some kind of breakthrough.

Oh. And so it continues.

Althea exhaled deeply, shaking her head at Levi ready to respond when Bentley arrived. She glanced up at him and flashed him a small smile. "Hey," she tried to sound enthused but just the brief (one-sided) conversation with Levi had drained her. "Come sit if you want," she offered before staring pointedly at Levi. "You can't avoid this forever, y'know. At some point you'll need to stop being childish," which was rich, coming from her, but she didn't see it that way. Her hands, she noticed, had been balled up into fists as she spoke, so she relaxed them and tried to will away any negative thoughts. Levi probably wanted to keep his front up while Bentley was there, so Althea would let him. She turned to Bentley and asked, "How have you been?"

Bentley was definitely impressed with Levi picking up on something during his visit. He gave the guy an appreciative nod and the infamous dimpled Bellaire smirk.

"Oooh..."

It seemed like the sixth year lion had walked in on something. He certainly hadn't picked up on it when he got there but now...now he could feel it. He shifted a little and looked between the both of them. "I swear you two are worse than Heath and I." And those two were almost always arguing. As far as Bentley was concerned, he was cursed with the most annoying sibling in the world.

He took the window seat across from Althea at her invitation in. "I've been good. Cut Levi some slack. It's a long ride back." He put his feet up on the spot next to where Althea was sitting and folded his hands behind his head so he could rest against it.

And as tradition would have it, the Tenacius was struggling with all his pet carriers in tow looking for the compartment where his besties were at. Because these pets were like his children-- he's not gonna just dump them in a corner-- or worse, leave them at the luggage car. That is for luggage. Inanimate things. His pets were neither inanimate nor things. They carry the name of Salander. And Salanders always ride in style.

Also they are in the care of the most credible handlers, and his pets deserved no less. "Heyy there you are! All the way to the back really?" he blundered his way into the compartment. Yeah its gonna be a long trek up to the Prefects but whatever "Ok ladies you know the drill...." he started to place the pets in their habitats on the seats. "Ey Mel, Scorpion Queen didnt like the-- oh hey whadya do to your hair?" it looked different, not the same way she always does it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by thekraken

SPOILER!!: big L & lil Benny

His theatrics were not surprising - this was Levi's whole schtick for the past six months or so - so Althea did not expect him to fully give her an answer. She did, however, expect some kind of courtesy even if he had to force it. He was her older brother and yet he treated her like she was a nuisance that he had to deal with. With pursed lips, she continued to watch Levi, hoping for some kind of breakthrough.

Oh. And so it continues.

Althea exhaled deeply, shaking her head at Levi ready to respond when Bentley arrived. She glanced up at him and flashed him a small smile. "Hey," she tried to sound enthused but just the brief (one-sided) conversation with Levi had drained her. "Come sit if you want," she offered before staring pointedly at Levi. "You can't avoid this forever, y'know. At some point you'll need to stop being childish," which was rich, coming from her, but she didn't see it that way. Her hands, she noticed, had been balled up into fists as she spoke, so she relaxed them and tried to will away any negative thoughts. Levi probably wanted to keep his front up while Bentley was there, so Althea would let him. She turned to Bentley and asked, "How have you been?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davvy_Wavvy

SPOILER!!: Kennings

Bentley was definitely impressed with Levi picking up on something during his visit. He gave the guy an appreciative nod and the infamous dimpled Bellaire smirk.

"Oooh..."

It seemed like the sixth year lion had walked in on something. He certainly hadn't picked up on it when he got there but now...now he could feel it. He shifted a little and looked between the both of them. "I swear you two are worse than Heath and I." And those two were almost always arguing. As far as Bentley was concerned, he was cursed with the most annoying sibling in the world.

He took the window seat across from Althea at her invitation in. "I've been good. Cut Levi some slack. It's a long ride back." He put his feet up on the spot next to where Althea was sitting and folded his hands behind his head so he could rest against it.

He was being purposely antagonistic which was wholly unbecoming and the sort of behaviour he'd usually deem both unnecessary and exhausting. But Levi was a little tired of Althea assuming things about him or calling him dramatic in from of other people. It didn't matter that the only reason why his sister tried to come up with her own explanations about his behaviour were because he had not wanted to speak up to her or Declan.

Sometimes it was better to stew on things. Or not. It made no difference at this point; too long had passed for him to back down now, not that Levi thought any of it was his fault.

The boys smiled at his sister, openly and innocently. "I don't have to do anything." Which wasn't really true. There were plenty of things Levi had to do if he didn't want daily howlers from home. Or worse, for his parents to show up, barge into one of his classes and lecture him in front of everyone. But, anyway. Bentley would just have to be the buffer for now. Fortunately for everyone. "Oh, yes, cut Levi some slack, Althea. It is a very long ride to the castle." He'd always wonder why portkeys weren't just used. Seemed faster, more efficient. Though he supposed less opportunities for teenagers to mingle and be social or whatever it was adults expected them to do. "I like the way you think, Bentley. Anyway, how was paradise after we left it?" He had some fond memories.

Althea had grown used to being outnumbered by boys - her brothers took turns playing the authoritative figure in her life, and she did not appreciate that one bit. However, she didn't think that Bentley would've taken up for Levi. Her eyes followed him as he walked in and sat across from her. It seemed he was a tad bit too comfortable around her to just be propping his feet near her. She allowed it, only because there was no need to have be petty when the King of Pettiness was also present in the compartment with them.

"Please, this is a one-sided thing, where he is antagonizing me." Which was all she would say on the matter lest she invoke the even pettier side of her brother. Levi's ability to hold a grudge was incredible, she had to commend him for his determination. "Oh, really," she said coolly, trying her best not to incite an argument - but old habits die hard with those two - "I'll remember that." Which was code for: this will come back to bite you harder than you think it will. She would have been done with the matter but, just like her bull-headed older brother, Bentley weighed in on the matter, saying careless and meaningless things. The Hufflepuff cut Bentley a severe look - one that she reserved solely for Levi and Declan - before sighing and fixing her face to a more neutral expression.

There were a few choice words that she'd wanted to say to both Levi and Bentley but she kept them to herself. She had no need to be agitated, but the day was still young. "I really wish you wouldn't, Levi. But I won't cause a scene in front of your dorm mate, I can respect your desire to come off as the good guy here." She didn't, but there was no need to say that out loud. She turned her attention back to Bentley as she was also eager to hear how the rest of his summer went.

Bentley's eyebrows rose up and down while the siblings spoke. Tense..so tense. He sighed inwardly. Was this how he and Heath sounded to other people? He made a mental note to work on that. It probably wouldn't help at all but he'd attempt to change it.

Althea's tense look was met with a smile though. He was used to dealing with moody girls.

His summer? Well...his summer was..confusing. Yes, that was a good word..that summed up his summer perfectly...or maybe tumultuous was a better word for it...yeah he'd go with that.

"It was okay I guess....enlightening...glad it's over. Never thought I'd ever say that.." He thought about what he said for a bit. "What about you guys? How was your summer?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by thekraken

SPOILER!!: big L & lil Benny

Althea had grown used to being outnumbered by boys - her brothers took turns playing the authoritative figure in her life, and she did not appreciate that one bit. However, she didn't think that Bentley would've taken up for Levi. Her eyes followed him as he walked in and sat across from her. It seemed he was a tad bit too comfortable around her to just be propping his feet near her. She allowed it, only because there was no need to have be petty when the King of Pettiness was also present in the compartment with them.

"Please, this is a one-sided thing, where he is antagonizing me." Which was all she would say on the matter lest she invoke the even pettier side of her brother. Levi's ability to hold a grudge was incredible, she had to commend him for his determination. "Oh, really," she said coolly, trying her best not to incite an argument - but old habits die hard with those two - "I'll remember that." Which was code for: this will come back to bite you harder than you think it will. She would have been done with the matter but, just like her bull-headed older brother, Bentley weighed in on the matter, saying careless and meaningless things. The Hufflepuff cut Bentley a severe look - one that she reserved solely for Levi and Declan - before sighing and fixing her face to a more neutral expression.

There were a few choice words that she'd wanted to say to both Levi and Bentley but she kept them to herself. She had no need to be agitated, but the day was still young. "I really wish you wouldn't, Levi. But I won't cause a scene in front of your dorm mate, I can respect your desire to come off as the good guy here." She didn't, but there was no need to say that out loud. She turned her attention back to Bentley as she was also eager to hear how the rest of his summer went.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davvy_Wavvy

[spoiler =Levi and Thea]

[/spoiler]

Bentley's eyebrows rose up and down while the siblings spoke. Tense..so tense. He sighed inwardly. Was this how he and Heath sounded to other people? He made a mental note to work on that. It probably wouldn't help at all but he'd attempt to change it.

Althea's tense look was met with a smile though. He was used to dealing with moody girls.

His summer? Well...his summer was..confusing. Yes, that was a good word..that summed up his summer perfectly...or maybe tumultuous was a better word for it...yeah he'd go with that.

"It was okay I guess....enlightening...glad it's over. Never thought I'd ever say that.." He thought about what he said for a bit. "What about you guys? How was your summer?"

Levi was pretty sure Althea's favourite past time was playing victim. For whatever reason, his sister always seemed to be under the impression that she was the wronged party; even when she most definitely was not. If someone were to ask him, and they seldom did, Levi would have been the first to blame his parents or more specifically, his father. Althea tended to get away with saying certain words in certain tones that were often brushed off as, that's just the way she talks, Levi.

But if he did the same, well--it was best not to consider that now.

His smiled widened but it became harsher and he very much felt like walking out. "It's good to know, Thea, that one constant in my life is how easily you point out all the ways in which I've supposedly wronged you." He slid down on his seat and began to loosen his tie, a show of making himself comfortable though he was not. "Anyway, it doesn't matter--you will do and say as you please, as always, and the rest of us will just have to follow." Or Declan would. Or maybe Althea would do as Declan said. It wasn't important. He was tired of decisions being made for him; decisions that directly affected him. His consent, apparently, was not necessary. "But go ahead, little sister. Remember this." He studied his nails. "In fact, if you forget, I will remind you."

"My summer was eventful, too," Levi turned to Bentley, only missing a beat and a half. "I think all of our summers were." Don't. "How interesting." Levi rummaged through his pocket and retrieved some of the sweets he'd acquired earlier. "Candy?" At Bentley.

It must've been strange, for Bentley to bear witness to their argument-that-wasn't-quite-an-argument. This was more or less normal for Levi and Althea, but, again, she supposed that since people rarely saw them fight, that it might seem out of the ordinary. Bentley's smiling did not make her feel better, but she softened and gave him a small smile nonetheless. Any hope for her mood picking up was shattered the moment Levi opened his mouth.

His words struck a nerve - the one of her last ones left - and to add salt to the wound, he kept talking. And talking. And talking. Impressive, given how little he'd spoken to her throughout the summer. She crossed her legs and fiddled with her bracelet. If she let him get to her, then there was no telling what she'd do. Her gut told her to leap over to where Levi sat and let her fists take care of the rest - but, thankfully, she was reminded of the sort of consequences she'd face if she did hit him. So, she sat still, jaws clenched as Levi berated her with the assistance of his superior passive aggressive skills. At some point she had bit down on her lower lip, and had been so intent on not saying anything that she started to feel a sharp pain.

"Alright," she said quietly, exhaling deeply. Her face relaxed, because it was just too exhausting to deal with the whole ordeal without alerting others outside of the compartment to their siblings quarrel, and she glanced back at Bentley. She would not give Levi the ammo to continue his merciless attack, so in an attempt to appear unaffected by her brother, she smiled at Bentley. "Summer was overwhelming, but bearable." Understatement. "But some of it was fun."

"Merlin you can cut the tension in here with a knife. You two need to cut it out." He closed his eyes and relaxed again. He was a firm believer in 'No problem...no worries, hakuna matata...all that jazz. These two needed to not mess with the good vibes that he intended to start the term with.

He'd be content to sit there and listen to stories of their summers but it seemed neither Kenning was in a good mood.

He opened his eyes again to peek at them and shook his head at Levi.

"I'm not big on sweets." In fact he hardly ever ate them.

"Why was your summer overwhelming?" He asked. HIs brows furrowed in the process.

Melbourne’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as the camera’s flash blinded her for a moment. Good do…no! Natalie would see that and there was one thing Melbourne knew more than anything – her Denaker cousins would laugh their at her for days on end after seeing that picture. ”Hadley thank…” the words hadn’t fully left her throat as Tenacius walked in.

PILLOW CASE! She needed to hide her head in something to drown out the awkward feeling of shame and mortification and…and oh god was that guilt? She had nothing to be guilty of still as he made his way into the room she couldn’t look away.

She was in the middle of dreamily staring at his face a dopey grin in place of her usual cheeky smirk when it happened…he had noticed her….oh he’d noticed her, the butterflies in her stomach thumped their wings in time and merlin…no! The shame.

”noooo Hadley I’m dead…just bye” with that she stood up and flopped on the floor in front of Hadley….”save me cousin…save me or I’ll have to live my life in shame and attempt the unheard of and escape the Hogwarts express….” yes, they had all heard the stories about how the Trolley witch would go all Whovian villain on them if they tried to leave but her hair…this was a dire, DIRE straight.

Looking up at Tenacius her dopey smile appeared once more, ”Hey…Ace, you know I decided to blow dry my hair with a snow blower today…my hair dryer broke and well…after that Wyatt really wanted to help with my hair” she smiled, ”he gave me these wonderful bits of paste that made my hair look like I was part weeping angel…you know living moving statue come to Hogwarts to attach the unwitting population” she grinned her cheeky nerd side having sassed her dear dear friend….well, more than friend he was her something.

Zarina finally made it to the Hogwarts Express. This train was soo cool. She actually never been on a train before believe or not. She was just exploring and trying to find a seat. She didn't want to sit in the front because only losers sit up there. The newly second year slytherin decided to try the back of the compartment. Her cat was even walking around and sniffing. She had a choice between an owl or a cat and she prefered a cat. Cat were more to snuggle with. As she was walking, she almost tripped over Minka. Yup that was her cat's name. She figured it was adorable enough for her.

Minka was sitting there eyeing this group of people. She felt kind of awkward making the first move for a conversation. Minka was just waltzing right in, "Minka...noooo....don't bother these guys.." she told her but she was already staring at the owls in the room.

It wasn't really a conscious thing actually, the whole thing where Abey automatically moved as close to the back of the train as he possibly could. It was just that, actually, maybe, he was quite possibly even less eager to go back to school than he had been last year, when he had cried and sobbed and begged mama to be able to stay home with her.

But it was quite a confusing matter really because actually he definitely did want to go back to Hogwarts. He wanted to go back to where he belonged with his cousins and his friends, just like his whole family before him... but he was kind of sort of actually completely terrified at the same time.

His hair had grown some since he had last travelled on the Hogwarts express, and the sun had lightened it just as much as it had tanned his skin. Having spent so much of his time on the beach and in the ocean back in his home country of Egypt, it felt all the more jarring to be back in (cold) England, journeying to (even colder) Scotland. The drastic change of scenery had been exactly what Abey had needed, after the events at the end of last term, but even then he had still dealt with nightmares and panic attacks striking out of nowhere, especially as September had drawn near. But now he would be going BACK there, back to where it all happened, and it... well... it...

It was so hard. And it didn't seem like it was going to get much easier any time soon.

Sat alone in his compartment, Abey pulled his feet up onto his seat so that he could hug his legs to his chest, and rest his chin on his knees while he watched the countryside go by. Hopefully a friend or a relative would pass by here soon, because company was always good, but being right at the back of the train meant that that was unlikely to happen unless someone was looking specifically for him. Abey hoped that someone would, but... well, suffice it to say, thoughts of the monster and the portal and... and everything... hadn't been the only anxieties on his mind lately actually.

He would just wait here, yes. And hope someone he knew would soon turn up. Like a Derf. Yes. He wanted a Derf, and if a Derf did not appear, then he would go looking for one.

... After this anxiety passed. Yes. Maybe.

Oh, and what perfect timing Salamander had. Hadley bit her lip from laughing, especially at Mel's reaction. When she could trust herself to speak without laughing, she nodded at Ace. "What's wrong with the back? The back is lovely. Far away from the prefect compartment and that rooster." That should have been obvious to Ace.

Finally, Mel slipped her way onto the floor in front Hads and...what? What did weeping angel statues have to do with anything? "Seriously, have you always been this dramatic, and I never noticed before? Or is this new? Hold this." Hads handed Melon a small, ornate hand mirror to hold while she got out her wand. For a few seconds it simply reflected Mel's face and messy hair back. Then it shimmered, and was reflecting Hadley...? Wait no, her hair was too long. Natalie.

"Hey, Hads, what's....?" Natalie's eyes widened and she tried, and utterly failed to contain her laughter. "Oh God, Mel. What did you do? Tell me you took pictures."

"I did," Hads replied, sounding quite pleased with herself. "Hold still." She aimed her wand at Melon's head. "Scourgify!" There that took care of the glue. Now for the hair. Hadley started to undo the attempt at a braid. Natalie was still laughing.

And then there was a cat. "One of yours?" She asked Ace, but the answer came in the form of a little girl appearing in the door. "Ah, so yours then? Minka? Cute name." Hadley paused from undoing Mel's braid long enough to scoop Asher off the seat. "I'm Hadley, and this is Asher. That's Mel, my cousin. And that's Salamander, her boyfriend, and those are all his pets."

It had been unexpectedly hard saying goodbye today. Much more difficult to any of her previous years; at one point she'd almost considered pulling her trunk back out of the luggage cart and just not going. He wouldn't have let her though, offering a variety of reasons including it being her OWL year, and she would have missed the castle despite it's weird and often dangerous quirks.

It was funny how a person could enter your life, and make you see things so differently. She'd gained a lot of family since she'd first set foot on this train, but no-one quite like her brother. She'd barely scratched the surface of understanding him, and the world as he encountered it.

The Ravenclaw waved to Robin until she was sure he could no longer see her, only leaving the window when the urban landscape had given way to golden fields of corn ready for harvest. "C'mon Olly," she said quietly to her rat as she started down the corridor of the train. "Let's go find a seat."