If you suffer from FOMO or just want to be in the involved with everything, then the middle passenger cars of the train are for you. Just like the other cars, a long corridor provides access to the many compartments, each labelled with a letter, available for you and your friends to hunker down in until the train has come to a complete stop. Cushioned seats and large windows, allowing perfect views of the British scenery on your journey, await.

Well, what are you waiting for? Slide open a compartment door and make yourself at home. Place any of your belongings not in the luggage car on the racks above you. Chat with your friends about what your summer plans, enjoy munching on the snacks you bought from the trolley lady, get ahead of the game by exchanging addresses, or take a long nap as the train travels over numerous hills and mountainsides. Whatever you do, exhibit your best behaviour -- the prefects will be regularly patrolling the corridors and poking their heads inside your compartment to make sure you are doing so.

As she boarded the train, Eliza turned and spared one more glance at her family. Instead of a smile or a wave, she smirked at them. She'd be just fine at her new school. So as long as she was sorted into Slytherin with the other members of her family, she'd be right at home.

With that, she turned and stared down the corridor of the train. She didn't care where she sat. Front of the train? Back of the train? They were all the same to her. She'd heard this ride was hours long, so maybe she could just get somewhere and take a nap. As she headed straight toward a random compartment, she tried hard not to look anybody in the eye. Random fluffy conversations weren't exactly her thing.

Yet at the same time, she prepared herself for the mass of questions that were bound to come anyway--Hi! I'm so-and-so! What's your name? How was your summer? What house are you hoping to get into? Maybe if she just stuck a note on the compartment door that said, "Eliza Bellerose. It was fine. Slytherin." people would get the point. She rolled her eyes to herself. She could just see her mother side-eyeing her over those thoughts.

She slid into an empty compartment, closed the door, and sat down quietly. Nine hours. This should be just peachy.

The unsettled sort of feeling in the pit of his stomach only grew stronger with each passing minute. He had managed a calm goodbye with his parents, grateful that he wouldn’t be taking this journey on his own. He’d have Brooks, some of the other kids from Woboldo’s, and his big sister to help him navigate all things new, but— But the train was already proving to be overwhelming on its own.

Mia had bumped into some friends and after a proud introduction of Alfie, tasked him with finding a compartment while she went to get them some snacks. It sounded easy enough, but already, the compartments were starting to fill up.

After finally having found an empty one he made his way inside. “Oh, s-sorry,” he took a few steps backwards, bumping into the door clumsily. So not empty. “Is anyone sitting here?” He asked quietly, his voice soft as he pointed to an open seat. “And here?” He pointed to another one. For Mia.

“……. And here, also?” For Brooks.

The little Adair was quite embarrassed indeed.

The youngest Montmorency was feeling confident about Hogwarts now that she was a second year. Even though her brothers weren't there, she had her Woboldo's friends and all the other friends and older kids that she befriended last year like Desiree. Only problem? Finding some of them seemed next to impossible. She probably ought to have written them to arrange as to where they should meet on the train but she didn't and now the blonde was stuck searching for an empty compartment (or her friends) whichever came first.

No friends. Or an empty compartment, but hello NEW friends!!

"Hiiii !! Room for a few more in here?" Because yes she was counting on her friends finding her and joining. Also by the look on their faces, Emma was almost sure these were NEW kids!!

Fynley supposed he ought to be feeling some sort of way about returning to Hogwarts for his final year but truth be told he was kind of numb towards it all. He had worked the entirety of summer right up to the day previous in order to save up as much money for graduation as possible, living in a run down hostel in a not-so-nice area of London to do so.

Looking a teensy bit dishevelled from the 2 hours sleep he had managed to get in in-between the sirens and noises of inner city life, his curls hung limply over his forehead as he stepped onto the train from the platform and sauntered down the corridors towards the back. He occasionally looked into the compartments for a sighting, preferably of Joseph but a close friend would do. Someone who wouldn’t judge him for looking a bit of a mess or if he fell asleep midway.

Giving up as he reached somewhere in the middle, the seventh year slipped into an empty compartment and flopped onto the seat. His head leaned against the window as he yawned and closed his eyes.

Five minutes. That's the amount of time it took for the compartment door to slide open and reveal---whoever this was. She side-eyed him with the one eye she'd bothered to open and watched as he stumbled back toward the door. Oh, come on. Socialization, although sometimes annoying, wasn't that terrifying, was it? She opened the other eye and sat up straighter.

Her eyes followed his pointed finger. Was...anyone...sitting there? Did it look like anybody was sitting there? From what she'd been told, even the Hogwarts ghosts were at least somewhat noticeable. Surely this was clear as crystal. Seeing as this was day one of year one of this seven year journey, though, she decided to shrug off those thoughts and shake her head no. "Just me," she replied.

Just as those sudden, unexpected events had unfolded, the door slid open again, and the sound of an overly-friendly voice shook its way through the compartment. Eliza stiffened a little but turned toward the source. How in the name of Merlin's polka-dotted underwear had she managed to attract every Hufflepuff within a certain distance? Okay, so to be fair, she had no clue what house these students were in, or even who they were for that matter.

Was the newest newcomer seriously asking if there was room for one more? Did any of these people see the emptiness of the seats around her? Then it occurred to her. What if...what if someone or something really was there, and it had been magicked enough to where she didn't even notice it? She gave a wide-eyed glance at the seats around her, eyeing them cautiously. "I...I think?" she replied. Nope. Have to sound more confident than that. "It's just me in here." Well, it was just her in there.

Goodbye Durmstrang, and hello Hogwarts Jamie recited to himself in silence as he boarded the train after saying goodbye to auntie Laurel, and uncle Aaron on the platform. It had come as a quite a shock this summer when his aunt and uncle had delivered the news that he was transferring to Hogwarts for his third year to be close to his sister; Emmeline. Jamie had tried to argue, shout and even slam some doors, but the descision had been made, and was final. He was going to Hogwarts whether he liked it or not.

Pulling a hand through his thick brown curls Jamie paused outside an empty compartment to stick a note on the door.

Quote:

This compartment is for third year's only.
I promise, I don't bite much.

-James Vance

Satisfied with his handiwork he headed into the compartment, kicked off his shoes, and got himself perched on one of the seats near the window with a copy of hogwarts a history. Now why did new students need to get sorted by an old hat?

The platform had been insanely crowded, and it was no surprise to her that the train itself was just as packed with everyone searching for their friends and settling into their compartments. The curly-haired girl's eyes darted left and right as she squeezed past a throng of students, scouting out a compartment she could step into before someone could claim it before her.

It honestly was a miracle that Gilly had found one that was empty in the middle of the train. Without any hesitation, she walked in and closed the door behind her, since her brother had gone to retrieve snacks and she had lost the other half of their group while on the hunt for a place to call their domain during the trek to school.

As she made herself at home, she wondered how long it would take for them to find her. Figuring it might be a while since Drake had beelined for the food trolley and the other two had a whole train to search, she pulled out a thick book from her bag and continued reading where she had left off.

Oi! Being a second year was pretty much the same as being a firstie when she hadn't grown all that much since last year! All these taller kiddos were so hard to see around and rushing about to try to find an empty compartment and all of her friends wasn't an easy task. She was going to accomplish it though, no one was going to stop her. Being small meant she could very easily move around others that got in her way, even if she had to duck out of the way of one or two elbows and jump out of the way of several running teens throwing themselves at one another like they had been apart for centuries.

She wasn't even going to give anyone mean looks either, not even when she was nearly knocked over. In fact this only made her continue her quest to find the others more urgent. Countless compartments had been checked before she finally spotted a very familiar head of curly hair and gave her signature knock on the door, sliding it open and slipping inside. Hi, hi," Bry greeted her fellow snakette and friend as she dropped down on the bench across from her. "Are the boys together?" Maybe they were, maybe they weren't.. she didn't know. All that mattered was that they all found one another for the ride, yes?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

Oi! Being a second year was pretty much the same as being a firstie when she hadn't grown all that much since last year! All these taller kiddos were so hard to see around and rushing about to try to find an empty compartment and all of her friends wasn't an easy task. She was going to accomplish it though, no one was going to stop her. Being small meant she could very easily move around others that got in her way, even if she had to duck out of the way of one or two elbows and jump out of the way of several running teens throwing themselves at one another like they had been apart for centuries.

She wasn't even going to give anyone mean looks either, not even when she was nearly knocked over. In fact this only made her continue her quest to find the others more urgent. Countless compartments had been checked before she finally spotted a very familiar head of curly hair and gave her signature knock on the door, sliding it open and slipping inside. Hi, hi," Bry greeted her fellow snakette and friend as she dropped down on the bench across from her. "Are the boys together?" Maybe they were, maybe they weren't.. she didn't know. All that mattered was that they all found one another for the ride, yes?

The cauldron, symbolizing the womb of creation, played a pivotal role in the heating and blending of alchemical substances. Alchemists believed that the transformative fires within the cauldron mirrored the cosmic forces at play in the universe. Meanwhile, the alembic, a distillation apparatus with roots in ancient alchemy, served as the conduit for

Her eyes shifted from the page to the door when an unexpected knocking sounded. Seeing the blonde on the other side, Gilly lifted her hand and gave her friend a few wiggles of her fingers. Then her attention went back to her reading, assuming that one or both of the boys would be close behind.

capturing and purifying the elusive quintessence — the essence of life itself. Together, these instruments formed the alchemist's sacred toolkit, providing the means to

Gilly looked up from her book once more. She took note that Bryony had arrived on her own, which was something she did find a little surprising. "Drake went to fetch us some snacks. As for Aryan, well, I thought he'd be with you." It was at this point she gingerly placed an ocean-themed bookmark inside the book and closed it, revealing the title Alchemy, Ancient Art and Science.

The plan for the trip was to find Dynah or Vesper (or maybe both) if she could and ride with them up to the little village outside of Hogwarts, and then hopefully find a carriage for them all to share together as well. But plans often seemed to go awry, because before Tam could even begin to hunt for either of her friends, she'd managed to catch her foot on someone else's luggage and went sprawling face first down the corridor. She'd jumped up quickly, trying to save herself further embarrassment, but there was an ache in her right foot she couldn't quite ignore and a perpetually red tinge to her face.

Could the train just swallow her whole or something?

She tried to keep going to find a compartment she could sink into on her own, but the ankle just continued to feel worse so she was forced to stop somewhere around the middle of the train. Spotting one with only a single person inside, she went to push open the door before pausing at the note. Third years only? ... Well, she was a third year but she wasn't sure if that wasn't also just a note meant to scare of anyone. She nibbled at her lip for a minute trying to decide if she should risk it, before deciding she had no choice.

Pushing open the door, she glanced at the guy already sitting there - another third year she supposed - before stepping inside and sinking onto a seat. "Um... hi." She said shyly. She would have asked if she could sit but... she would have been in even more of a pickle if he said no.

Better to ask forgiveness than permission this time.

Alfie hadn’t moved away from the doorway yet, so when someone else appeared it gave him quite a start - little blonde arm hairs sticking up pin straight. A warning would be nice next time, maybe. He wasn’t sure how that’d be possible, but maybe if everyone could just take that into consideration, he’d just really appreciate it.

Not wanting to be in the way (or in the center of this conversation, well, physically) he side-stepped to allow the other girl to properly make her way inside.

”Oh, um, okay. Thanks.” He was so embarrassed. About everything. Most notably for existing. ”Could I please sit with you?” He asked generally, not sure if he needed permission from the new girl as well. He also wasn’t sure that he wanted to sit here anymore, now that there was someone else (and the potential of her friends too).

Though he had a lot of seats to save, he was too embarrassed to simply walk out. He’d just have to commit. Maybe halfway through he could make an excuse to use the loo.

Octavius Jude Salander had bid his family good-bye and embarked on the first of many solo journeys. His mother and sister were in tears and he vowed to write to them as often as he could. Meanwhile his father gave him a big hug and was hiding tears behind his smile. He had promised his Dad not to worry.

So as he stepped onto the train and made his way down the carriages, he felt butterflies in his stomach. He was excited but also nervous. Excited because he would finally get his own experience at Hogwarts. His parents had always revelled in their time there but also had warned him to be wise and study well- he couldn't afford to put the Salander (or Holden) name in jeopardy. His father also had a few instructions for him to stop by and see Peeves and Miffy if they were still around as he had been Peeves' best man. He had no clue how he'd find the polergeist but he'd manage it somehow - he was resourceful.

After a solid ten minutes of walking, he spotted an empty compartment - or what he thought WAS EMPTY. "Coolio- " he said as he opened up the doors and with the biggest grin ever spoke LOUDLY. "HOGWARTS HERE I COME!" His hands were stretched out as if he had just finished the biggest musical number of his life on stage...

and that was when he saw the slumbering older year.

Ah... Ah... Was it too late to retreat? His bad!

It might have been a stupid idea closing his eyes for the risk of actually drifting off into a slumber was relatively high but that didn’t mean that some kid could come barging into his compartment and rudely wake him up. The seventh year didn’t usually have issues with the younger years, not that he chose to interact with them much but he wasn’t the type to go out of his way to intimidate the poor squirts but this kid had it coming. It had taken him a second to figure out what exactly had just happened as he shot back into the land of the living until the first year came into view through bleary eyes.

The look that was sent in the boy's direction was cold enough to turn anyone into ice. “Seriously kid?!” he croaked through gritted teeth, readjusting his position on the seat. “Hogwarts doesn’t need another loudmouth.” This one came as more of a grumble from under his breath.

It was probably a good thing that Joseph wasn’t present or the Sprog would’ve been hexed out of the compartment by now. Fynley had slightly more patience than his boyfriend when it came to interruptions.

Not really knowing what else to do or say, Eliza just sat in silence for a few seconds longer. In that time, the boy---again, whoever he was---had asked if he could please sit with her. Was everyone at Hogwarts always this nice? She'd kind of gotten the impression it was more 'every man for himself'.

To pass the time on the hours-long train ride, she'd started keeping track of two mental lists. One was called, "People Who Probably Owe Me Favors." The other was called, "Those Who Can Help Get Me Far in Life." She added this boy, by facial recognition only, to the first list. But in answer to his question, she simply said, "Yeah, sure." Although, he looked like he was embarrassed enough to disappear into a black hole any second now.

"I'm Eliza, a first year. What's your names?" she asked, looking at both the newcomers. Eliza wasn't an overly friendly person, but she wasn't a toad either.

Was that...was that someone screaming in the corridors?

Yep….. Octavius Jude should have known better. Well to be fair - he was so caught up in his own world that he hadn’t noticed the older boy and probably should have noticed him there…. anyway- yes, should have expected the ice cold reaction to be bone-chilling; however, the glare could have given him frostbite. He quickly glanced down at his feet, averting the older guy’s chill. “Sorry…. I… got caught up…. I’ll be… moving along… nothing to see here. Sorry siiiiiiiiiiiir,” he said VERY softly whilst making a grimace that matched the emoji to the T.

Yep, probably not great first impression…..

Jamie was reading up on the houses liking Gryffindor, and Slytherin best as the door to his compartment was pushed open to reveal a limping girl with a red tinge to her face. He watched in silence as she sank down on a seat near him. Jamie pushed himself up into a sitting position, putting his copy of Hogwarts a history down as he regarded the newcomer. "Hi," Jamie greeted with a small smile pursing his lips and eyes, before gesturing to the girls leg, and hurt face. "Are you all right? You look like someone who has been in an incident with something hard, like asfalt." Unless, well the possibilites were endless. She could have fallen or been attacked or, he didn't go there. It was his first day at a new school.

"I'm James, by the way. Transfer student from Durmstrang, and you are?" Hopefully the girl was entering third year so that he didn't have to kick her out when it was clear that her ankle was in bad shape. "Is it true that I have to get sorted into a house by some hundreds of years old hat with the whole school watching?" He asked nervously. He didn't want to make a fool out of himself on the first day so hopefully the girl wouldn't mind the pepper of questions.

There was something about being called ‘sir’ that rubbed Fynley up the wrong way. He was seventeen, not seventy and certainly not worthy of such an old fashioned sounding title. He might’ve been a bit short with the poor kid but that was only because he’d been rudely awakened from a slumber that he desperately needed after a terrible night's sleep. He didn’t make a habit of intimidating the younger years usually not that he ever actively chose to socialise with them either.

Upon seeing the sheepish expression on the kids face, the seventh year heaved a sigh and rubbed at his forehead. “It’s fine just.. keep the volume down will you?” It might have been all bright and exciting for the first years but for the seventh years it was normality.

She asked if there was room for one more, not who all was in here.... and technically speaking there were two people in there. Emma wasn't sure she liked this girl's sassy attitude but she also was in need of somewhere to sit. The last thing she needed was to be the only second year in the history of Hogwarts to be unable to find somewhere to sit because of some first year with an attitude. That would be pathetic and she was anything BUT.

"Good," she nodded satisfactory when she the sassy girl agreed to the boy sitting there (and subsequently them). "I'm Emma... This will be my second year so I'm happy to answer any questions you might have." She looked between the two. "Do you know what house you're hoping for?" The blond asked quizzically, thinking it would also be a good gauge of their knowledge of Hogwarts and the Wizarding World. If they didn't know what she meant by house, then they were probably ignorant of the wizarding world before getting their letter. Not that she was bothered by that.

Uhh... what was that screaming in the corridor? She glanced toward the compartment door, raising an eyebrow and wondering if she ought to investigate it but perhaps not? Maybe an alarmed first year or a prank by an older student. Yea, she didn't need to be a part of that.

Alfie sure hoped everyone at Hogwarts was nice. Though he had a very specific track record for being polite. Something that wasn't always the case with the other kids in primary school. He didn't mind the weird stares he received for his over-use of "please" and "thank you".

Relaxing slightly, Alfie stepped further into the compartment and sat down on one of the seats closest to the door (this way, when he made his loo excuse later, he could walk out quickly). Even though he wasn't sure that he wanted to stay in here anymore, he was relieved when the girl, Eliza, had said he could sit. Sometimes even he struggled to understand his own mind.

The first year shifted in his seat as Eliza introduced herself and then he shifted a little more as Emma introduced herself. And when both sets of eyes turned to him expectantly, he shifted even more. "Uh," he started off strong. Go Alfie go. "I'm Alfie," he offered, feeling? so? nervous? He paused to make sure he said the right thing, before he continued. They had wanted his name, his year, and now the house he was hoping for. He catalogued all of that right away so that he'd know what he was supposed to do when it came to his turn. "I'm a first year too," he briefly glanced over at Eliza before his gaze turned to his hands.

He slipped those same hands of his under his thighs, balancing on them and swinging his legs back and forth just ~so. "My sister's a Slytherin," he explained. .... Only then belatedly realizing he never directly answered the question. What he had meant to say was that he wanted to be in Slytherin House so that he could be with his older sister, aka his favorite person in the entire world of existence and that he was pretty nervous that he wouldn't end up there or worse yet, that he'd' end up in a house without anyone he knew. But for whatever reason, all that came out of his mouth was "my sister's a Slytherin" a sentence which answered none of the questions posed.

And now that he realized, it was most certainly too late to clarify.