Piper chatted most of the beginning of the train ride, but her enthusiasm wore off slowly as her poor previous night's sleep begun catching up on her. There wasn't anything all that eventful that happened during the ride; Elliot the Gryffindor was a man of his word and gave Piper his chocolate frog card. Piper bought a bit of sweets herself, too, since she knew it would be a while before she'd have the chance of buying more from Hogsmeade. They wouldn't have any time stopping by at Honeyduke's when they reached the station. None of the cards Piper got were new, they were all duplicates. Elliot's card had yet to show up at all, so Piper wasn't sure of it yet. She was grateful either way, remembering to thank the boy and giving him a flashy "if this turns out to be the one to complete my collection, I owe you one."

---

The rest of the way went by Piper like an old film; she already knew the drill, and really, the train ride got quickly boring after the excitement of catching up with friends wore off. So, it really was a relief when the train finally stopped and all the students all but rushed out of the train, eager to get out of the moving vehicle and into the next one. Piper herself occupied that odd space between wanting to be the first person out and finding the people who were too impatient to wait for their own turn extremely bothersome and annoying. She stayed to make sure Halle, Jax and the other people of her compartment got out without getting pushed into the mass of people who tried to rush outside as soon as possible. The narrow aisles weren't made for this magnitude of people, Piper thought with a sigh.
Only a sleeping Damian was left behind in the cart, something which Piper thought was kind of funny. No one had seemed to bother to wake him up in the hurry, but Piper felt like it wasn't really her job either, since there were better friends of Damien's in the compartment than her.

The usual groggy rush of students awaited Piper on the platform. From somewhere further off, she could hear Hagrid's familiar voice roaring above everyone else, instructing first years to follow him. The others, of course, would be transported by the invisible carriers, as usual. Piper had managed to lost sight of some of the people in her comparment. With a curse under her breath, she tried to look for her friends, but only found the Gryffindor that had generously given her his chocolate frog cards. Piper gave a quick smile before trying to find Halle with her gaze. Or even Jaxon, for crying out loud. But there were too many people on the platform, all scrambling to get to the carriages first. Piper sighed, making a mental note to find her two closest friends as soon as the feast was over.

---

As Piper approached the carriages, she walked further ahead to find more of the empty carriages. Most of the people had picked the very first carriages to sit on, naturally, not wanting to walk further. Down the road were the first carriages of the line. She could only see one girl next to a carriage, petting thin air. Piper frowned, quite puzzled by the Ravenclaw's actions. Why wasn't she on the carriage, and why was she patting the air and speaking fondly to it? Was there something Piper was missing?
Piper glanced at Elliot briefly with a questioning look before approaching the carriage.
"Whatcha doing?" Piper asked curiously as she reached the carriage, mounting it. The Ravenclaw looked vaguely familiar; she was on her year, for sure. But Piper couldn't put a name to the face. She was really pretty, but not someone to really stand out of a crowd. Despite what one might think, Piper's words held no snark, only slight amused curiosity. I guess she was thinking the girl just had a rather wild imagination or something. That, or she had a few bolts loose in there.

---

Hogwarts looked as glorious as ever. Glorious, and old. Piper chuckled at her own thought as she climbed the stairs of the main hallway in time with other students, marvelling at the fact of how good it was to be back. Sort of bittersweet, really. On one hand Piper had had the most boring summer, but on the other hand being at Hogwarts meant another year of merciless studying to appease all the expectations placed on her. This year was the year for OWLs, too. Piper shivered at the thought.

The Great Hall looked as great as ever. The tables were filled with beautiful tableware and the candlelit sky had the familiar illusion of a glorious nightsky. The tables were swarming with people, the flock of nervous first years yet to arrive. The ceremony would begin soon.
Piper gave a wistful glance at the Hufflepuff table. She used to look at the Hufflepuff table and wish with all her heart she wore those robes with yellow etchings instead of green. Those had been sad times for her, feeling like her whole self was being torn apart. Who she thought she was.
Now she looked at the table for an entirely different reason, however. She was looking for a sight of Halle, with no luck, unfortunately. Nowadays she was proud of being Slytherin, more at peace with who she was. It had taken her a long time and she still wasn't quite there yet, but at least now she could accept that the Sorting Hat had made its choice and it must've known what was the right call.
Sitting down in the Slytherin table, Piper settled on waiting for the ceremony to begin. Not with a sense of joy, but with a sense of slight unnerve and dread. It never failed to ruin her mood to see all the first years, many of which were already whispering so loudly about their absolute fears of ending up in the house Piper herself was in. At the same time it reminded her of her younger self, and the fact that the prejudices for house Slytherin were strong as ever.
Piper rest her cheek on her hand, looking at the illusion of the nightsky above them.
Okay, maybe she wasn't all okay with the house she was in, even after all these years. Sure, her years spent in the house of snakes had shaped who Piper was now, but looking at many of her fellow housemates... Piper couldn't help but feel ashamed and disappoined. Many in her house had a very strict pureblood mindset. Others were infamous for being the worst bullies of the school. Some, like Piper, were simply ambitious and determined beyond their peers. It was still that you only needed a few rotten apples to ruin the whole batch. Maybe Piper hadn't glanced at the Hufflepuff table just because she was on the look for her friend - she had also looked for what she didn't get.

---

"Whatcha doing?" Those two words were all it took for Lara to tense up as she momentarily halted her petting. She knew that there was a rather large chance that people would see her and wonder whether or not she was barking mad, but foolishly she had hoped that none would confront her about it.

Desperately trying to push down her nerves while stubbornly ignoring the red blooming across her cheeks, she turned to face the girl who just boarded the carriage. At first, her nervousness spiked when she saw the familiar green of Slytherin robes, but the girl didn't seem to be mocking her or looking for a fight...

Calm down, Lara, she doesn't seem overly malicious, just don't forget how to human and you'll be fine...maybe...

As if sensing her brief moment of panic, the thestral bit her robes, pulling them slightly and earning a final fond pat for his efforts.

"I-I was just, um, just s-saying h-hi to, um, the thestral..." The invisible thestral... "W-we'll be learning about them i-in c-class this y-year, um, s-sorry..."

Ducking her head, she bid the thestral a quick goodbye before scrambling into the carriage, hands wringing and eyes firmly planted on the ground...

---

Entering the great hall after so long was amazing, the cheerful atmosphere enough to put a smile on anybody's face. Glancing around for a familiar face as she walked along the Ravenclaw table she recognized several of her year-mates, though none whom she was able to consider as more than an acquaintance.

Taking a deep breath, she ignored her nerves and took a seat a few seats away from where the first years would be sitting, sending a smile towards the teachers' table, excitement for her classes bubbling up inside her(barring divination, of course), before focusing her attention to the fine wood of the table in front of her as she waited for the opening ceremony to begin.

Elliot

As the train stopped at the station, Elliot got up and left the compartment, floating a long with the crowd not really paying much attention of who he was with. He was just happy to be able to stretch his legs outside of the train, even though it was slow going as everyone waited for a carriage. When Elliot finally arrived there he was still with Piper. The whole time he was on the train with her, he'd never have guessed that she was a Slytherin from the way she acted which was a positive in Elliot's eyes. When they reached an empty carriage a girl seemed to be stroking thin air at the front of the one they were about to get on, Elliot had heard stories that there was invisible creatures that pulled them but he didn't really believe thinking it was just a charm that moved them along. Piper looked at him confused as they both watched her. Elliot just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head not really knowing what to do as Piper went to see if she was okay whilst he got onto the carriage.

The roof of the great hall never failed to make Elliot smile as he wondered in there with the rest of the students. Every time he looked up at the night sky with the candles floating above them, it always reminded him of the first day he walked into there. All the sense of magic and amazement he felt when he first saw it just always starts to flash through his mind.

He took a seat on the Gryffindor table with some of his quidditch teammates and it was great to see them all again, he'd missed most of them and he'd missed all the laughing. He enjoyed spending summer with his family and going on holidays with them but it was good to be with people his own age again.

The ride to Hogwarts had been mostly uneventful for James. Aside from having to calm down a few over-eager first years teaching their new muggle-born friend how to play Exploding Snap, most of the compartments that James passed on his patrol were quiet. He did have to revisit the first-years and remind them to calm down an hour later, but that really was the only noteworthy event of the nine hour train ride.

The ride from Hogsmeade Station to the castle was likewise uneventful. James got on a carriage with a few of his Quidditch teammates and they shared their enthusiasm for the upcoming season. They had come within a hair's breadth of winning the Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor last year, only for it to slip through their fingers at the last game by a measly 10 points. James was determined not to let that happen this year, and he was already formulating strategies and planning weekly training as soon as he decided who was going to be playing for them this year. They needed a new Keeper and one new Chaser this year as the previous players had graduated, but James wasn't going to shy away from picking other new players if some of his current teammates weren't up to snuff.

Arriving at the castle, James headed into the great hall with the rest of the students. He noticed a few friends and acquaintances from the other houses as they entered and nodded or waved to them if they happened to look his way. He took a seat next to Elliot and the rest of the current Quidditch players as well as a few prospects who were hoping to ingratiate themselves with the rest of the team in the hopes that it might better their chances of being selected for one of the open positions.

"You excited for Quidditch this year?" James asked Elliot as he took his seat next to the seeker.@josephb

@TheHangedMan

"Are you 'fucking retarded'?" Said Hugo, raising his eyebrows, with a sarcastic impression of curiosity. He mocked her voice with an offensive British tone.

"No, I'm not a fucking 4th year, you cunt. Oh, I'm betting you're one of those stuck up 'prefects', probably kissing the teacher's ass. Nah, I'm pretty fucking sure you're eating their ass for a grade. You could practice on me if you need help." Hugo clearly wasn't angry nor annoyed of it. Rather, he would want to poke the bear. He laughed after this, Marvin shaking his head at him in a nervous way. Weird for Marvin to not join in.

" And you, Marvin? You scared of her? I knew you were a pussy, didn't know it was genetic." Hugo said, rolling his eyes. He could feel the daggers being stabbed at him by Marvin, and maybe the girl too. Wanting to annoy them further, to see the limits he can reach, Hugo drew his wand. He grinned ear to ear as he did, yelling with the top of his lungs:

"Lumos maxima!"

The wand, at first would flash on and off, like the way a light would turn on in a shitty motel room. The flash would happen for a second, before the light would stay on, and gradually grow brighter and bright- with the small space of the carriage, they would obviously see the light. In that time, Hugo made a turtle-like motion into his robe. His neck looking down and his shoulders raising up to his ears. He turned his head towards the outside to avoid the light.

Yes, this was easily avoidable to not look into the light, though he knew they had to stay in that position for the rest of the ride.



The sight of the castle had interested him more than than the spell. The wand would probably be slapped out of his hand or anything else, though his main focus was the castle. As he looked at the place he would be staying, his eyes squinted, he would twitch at the mouth, malicious thoughts going through his head.

---

With every word that came out of the newcomers mouth, Elspeth felt her rage peak higher and higher. Her initial, stunned reaction quickly gave way to a seething anger that she had no wish to hold back. Clenching her teeth, the Slytherin prefect was about to utter a few choice words for the troglodyte sitting in front of her, when he drew his wand.

Several things happened went through her mind at once, but predominant among them was an instinct carved into her by nearly half a decade of being the top duelist at Hogwarts:

When a wand is pulled at your face, you pull yours out right back.

The light might have made it impossible for her to look at him, but sitting in carriage and knowing where he sat made the rest of it easy.

"Petrificus Totalus," she uttered, her voice much calmer than she felt. The spell shot out immediately, and made a beeline for the offending party.

Elliot

Elliot sat there laughing with all of his friends talking about what each of them had been up to over the summer, he was glad to be back with them all. Even if it did mean having to study again and with each year there seemed to be more and more work. People were already starting to talk about what they were going to do after they'd finished Hogwarts, Elliot didn't have the faintest clue what he was going to do with his life. All he enjoyed was playing quidditch, the occasional defence against the arts class when they were practising spells and sometimes a book depending on what type of mood he was in. Elliot just spent too much time thinking of how he could do as little studying as possible and still pass, so he could spend more time with his friends getting up to mischief.

"So do you have anything big planned for this year Elliot?" One of his friends asked him excitedly.

Elliot let out a massive grin and then shrugged his shoulders. "Whatever do you mean?" He replied innocently pretending that he had no idea what his friends were talking about.

"Oh come on Forrester you always have some pranks planned that will get you into trouble again... I just don't want to be with you when it happens." Another of friends said shaking his head in annoyance. "We had to spend a month in detention last time!"

"You have to admit that it was funny though." Elliot replied with a smirk thinking back to when he managed to get a bunch of snooty Gryffindor girls in his year to eat a load of puking pastilles.

"Not when one of them was my girlfriends!" His friend shouted defensively before letting out a laugh. "Okay, I'll admit it was funny when Flitwick started to throw up when he saw the state of them all." They all started to laugh when they thought of horrid scene.

A minute later James, the captain of the team sat next to him and started to about Quidditch. "Oh without a doubt I'm excited." Elliot said confidently. "That cups coming home with us this year though! Just let me know when we start training and I'll be there."

@Sedjwick

@TheHangedMan

This was unexpected. Hugo- from his past experiences with students he assumed they would imitate him and try to avert their eyes from it. Though as the wand emitted its bright light, Hugo had heard the noise of a similar spell he used when he was back in Russia. It was then he knew he was fucked.

From his position and how close they were together, there was no way to block the spell, or stop the caster from even conjuring his fate. He had to enjoy the ride- like if it was a ride at all.

" Oh shi-" Spat out Hugo from the second the Witch had said those words. It was cut quick by his lips being sealed, both of his arms stuck to his side and his face planted on the wall that he was facing, no way to move in any way. His wand would drop, the Lomus spell still going, though exponentially fading away in light. It would be in a quick minute that the wand would just be... well, a wand.

From Hugo's perspective, he was seeing nothing but half a wall, and the window that showed their progress into Hogwarts castle. Marvin had widened his eyes, reaching for his wand before looking back at Elspeth let go, afraid to be a still board as Hugo is.

Hugo seemed to know this- or assumed it was what he did- from the movement of his neighbor. Hugo's nose flared, and as the bind of his body would continue to go away, he would think of ways to get back at that damned girl.

It was soon that the carriage came to the stop, they had reached the castle, and now are going to this "Great Hall". Hugo finally began to move his limbs by the time his peers exited the carriage, leaving him a minute at sake his own hands in a harsh way, wanting more feeling in them to knock some sense into someone. He grabbed his wand and exited the carriage.

A brisk walk would make him catch up to Marvin, who seemed to notice. He grinned a cheeky smile and began to say something.

"I-" Marvin's excuse would be interrupted by Hugo's hard right hook across his jaw.

"What was that for?!" Yelled Marvin, rubbing his jaw and doubling over. " Why he FUCK didn't you help you dipshit cock sucker?" Asked Hugo, flicking right hand in a way, still having little feeling left in that fist.

"It- Ugh - It was the girl! Look, I know you're knew here, H. but you have to learn the people to mess with, and the people that will kick your ass." Marvin said, standing straight and still rubbing his jaw.

"Exactly why, Marvin, I have to do this. It's fun! And I was right about you being a pussy."

"At least my mother actually has one." Said Marvin, poking fun and doing a half smile. This also, would bring him into a smile, " Hah. How about we do something 'fun'?"

Marvin had smiled, nodding.

---

It was with a huff that Elspeth exited the carriage. She had payed him back for the insult, and hopefully that was the last of that. She had no desire to waste her time on someone like him, and if he decided that he wanted to continue antagonizing her, well...

It was him against her, and for Elspeth, that was all that really needed to be said. She was no a bully, she did not bully, but she was a true-blooded Slytherin. Pettiness and bullying were an ill-fit on her, but a thirst for vengeance came as naturally as breathing.

She made a mental note to ask the House Head about that boy. He was not a 4th year, but she knew 5th years and above, and still did not recognize him. He might simply be a very delayed 3rd year, but somehow she doubted that.

Making her way through the Great Hall improved her mood greatly. The familiar setting and charged atmosphere never failed to excite her like it did when she was a first year. Making her way through the flock of students taking their seats, Elspeth spotted a familiar face in the crowd, and took a seat next to her.

"Hello Piper," she greeted. The girl was a talented dueler, and a wonderful sparring partner for her; possibly the only one more unpredictable that her was Jaxson, and even then, he was a dedicated duelist whereas she was not. "You look troubled." The girl did indeed look ill at ease, a stark contrast to her usual demeanor.

---

---

---

---

---

It was definitely an interesting train ride, one that Jaxon felt for sure would be remembered even after he graduated the magical school. It turned boring near the end but what long time travel didn’t at some point. When the conversations filtered to a stand still, Jax actually felt a bit more comfortable. He enjoyed companionable silence, and got a lot of work done in such environments.

With such a quiet company, Jax figured he might as well get in some of the last bits on his extra credit Charms assignment that he took on during the summer. It was simple in theory, a ten parchment thesis on a particular Charm, how it’s useful, its weaknesses, and potential additions that could be used to make it better. Jax had chosen the explosion charm, Bombarda and wrote on its bits and pieces while also applying a flashing charm instead of a bang and a caterwauling charm as well. The theory was that the loud bang and flashing light would disorient.

With his attention fully on his ‘homework’ Jaxon lost any space left in whatever conversations did go on. He didn’t buy any sweets either, his quill just scritch scratching when he was asked. It was a common Jaxon move, to completely zone out when he was focused on a particular thing. Multi-tasking was a skill he had, but not when he put his entire being into one subject or task.

He finished the assignment with about three hours to spare and excused himself from his compartment friends to change into his school robes. After finished the simple change he wrapped a blue and black scarf around his neck, adjusting it to a more stylish look and then making his way back to the compartment.

For the rest of the trip, Jaxon just read from his copy of ‘dueling through the age’s, a compleat history of the wizarding worlds finest.’ Sandstorm was still curled up beside the sleeping Damien and Jaxon had to resist messing with his sleeping friend. It didn’t take long for the train to reach hogsmeade and as the locomotive pulled into the station Jax had stood and stretched for a few while everyone filed out of the compartment. He didn’t like to fight big crowds so he as patient and woke Damien up while putting Sandstorm back in her cage. A short trip to his luggage with his pet and he was ready to disembark himself.

As one of the last people onto the hogsmeade station it also meant he had to get one of the last carriages filled with some second years and third. He made no motion of acknowledging the thestrals. He knew it wasn’t their fault but looking at them reminded him of just ‘how’ he was able to see them and some things weren’t worth thinking about. Instead he simply let his mind wander to the feast, the sorting, and the start of classes. He was quite looking forward to getting back into the school time routine, though still in the back of his mind was the ‘please have fun this year son’ from his parents. It would be interesting for sure.

As the carriage stopped outside the front entrance, Jaxon was more than ready for the ride to be over. He entered the great hall while his stomach protested how hungry it was and the 5th year tried to console it with thoughts of how amazing the feast was going to be. Again, being one of the last to enter, he was stuck near the end of the table. He wouldn’t get to welcome any of the first years right away, but that was fine with him. He briefly scanned around the room, a smile coming to his face at all the familiar faces. He was truly looking forward for this year to begin.

The carriage ride was short and boring. Probably because she fell asleep, she had been stuck in a carriage of 2nd years and got bored quickly.

She walked into the hall as one of the last people there and noticed one empty seat next to Jax. She quickly sat down there “hi Jax! How was your summer? We went to Arabia, it was great but I’m so glad to be able to do magic again. And quidditch.”

Piper's musings came to a halt when a familiar voice greeted her. It was Elspeth Macbain, a highly valued Slytherin from Piper's year. And far more accomplished than Piper, too. The girl seemed like a natural academical talent to Piper, although she was sure the platinum blonde did a lot of work to achieve her high marks. And not only was Elspeth good in school, she was an exceptional dueler too. Piper couldn't help but wonder where the Slytherin prefect got all her free time from. Someone as busy as Elspeth must've had little time for any social activities. Nonetheless, Piper respected the girl a whole lot. Elspeth was determined, focused, pretty, and overall the perfect Slytherin. A dream student and any parent's dream child, too. Piper smiled - albeit slightly caught off-guard - as the blonde Slytherin took a seat next to her.
"You look troubled," Elspeth observed as she sat. Oh right, Piper added as a mental note, she's very observant too.
Piper sat there for a beat to mull over the words, head in the clouds, before nodding in agreement and replying:
"...Yeah. I suppose I do." Rather than elaborating by telling what was on her mind, Piper redirected the conversation away from her like an old pro. Sharing didn't come to Piper naturally.
"Did your train ride go smoothly? I didn't see you anywhere on the way here," Piper inquired with a kind smile dancing on her lips. There was always something eventful happening aboard the Hogwarts Express, but Piper hoped Elspeth had managed to avoid any unpleasant encounters unlike Piper herself.

---

Elspeths' reaction was a slight shrug as she recalled the girls back at the train. They weren't worth mentioning. "A bit more eventful than yours perhaps, but it's a given, considering I'm a prefect." She didn't really have to do that much. Thomas took care of most of the rowdier ones that weren't cowed by her appearance.

"I would have dropped by if I'd seen you, sadly it seemed I just didn't have the time." Her words were not so much as apologetic, but more a statement of fact. Much as she enjoyed Pipers' company she'd hardly slack off on her responsibilities just to spend some time with her. Still, it might have been worth it to check up on her, back at the train - the girl quite swiftly redirected the topic to prevent her from digging deeper, so she'd respect that and let it subject lie.

For now, anyway.

That being said, she may as well redirect the subject further. "So, have you decided on finally joining the Dueling Club for real? We'd be more than glad for your company after all. It'd be quite interesting to see you as a dedicated duelist after all."

---

Hundreds of students filled out the hall, some older than others, and yet no less expectant. The Great Hall simply had that kind of atmosphere. In a moment, the first years were lined, and ready to be sorted. With a flick of his wand, Deputy Headmaster Filius Flitwick had floated an worn and - to the older students - recognizable old hat upon a high stool.

Silence reigned as the rip on the brim turned into a mouth, and the Great Hall was filled with the sound of its' singing:



The whole of the hall burst into applause as the Sorting Hat finished it's song, and with a flourish bow for something with no body or neck, it returned to absolute stillness.

It was when Professor Flitwick took a stand at a foot stool that the sorting truly begun. Names where rolled out one after another, and soon everyone was sorted, some more pleased with their selection with others, but sorted nonetheless. Everything proceeded without incident, barring a small reaction to the names of one of the students - "Malfoy, Delphini", stood out, as anyone with that last name would. As the last of the names was called, the Headmistress stood, and looked around at the assembled crowd. Her hair was white and she was wizened beyond belief, yet her eyes contained a youthful vitality that many would find hard-pressed to match.

"Seven years," her old voice was stern, but nonetheless contained a quality of warmth in them, "a very powerful number, magically. Seven years since the most momentous event in recent memory - I feel that is important, and yet there is another number that runs alongside it, in my mind. Lucky number eight. Eight years since the passing of, I daresay, the greatest Headmaster to have graced these sacred halls."

"Albus Dumbledore would have been happy beyond all measure to see all of you here now, happier, I would say, than receiving a pair of new socks," the old witch's' eyes crinkled as though she had told a joke, "I am a very different sort of Headmistress than he was, for he would have been quite done with this little speech in a moment, but I will not take up your valuable time for much longer; I'm sure you're all quite famished! That is all, thank you!"

Another round of applause and cheering resounded, until it tapered off as food suddenly piled in front of the students, and they began digging in.

---

Throughout the hat’s song, throughout the sorting and most importantly, throughout the headmistress’s speech, Lara has been listening with rapt attention. It was only the applause ended, the feast appeared and she secured a nice helping of drumsticks, potatoes and some salad that she allowed her thoughts to drift. It was hard to imagine anybody other than the current Headmistress in charge of the school, but Lara often tried, not because their headmistress was anything except exceptional! They’d be hard pressed to find anybody better than McGonagall in Lara’s opinion! But, people are always talked about how amazing Dumbledore was! It’s impossible not to wonder what it was like when he was still alive and the headmaster of the school and Lara often found herself wondering what he was like as a person.

Naturally he was a great wizard, one of the best in fact, but was he arrogant about it? Humble? People would probably be less willing to shower him in praise if he was a prick, so he had to be at least a little nice, and he probably had a good sense of humour as well from what she could pick up from the occasional comment from the professors, like the Headmistress’s comment about the socks! Well, that or he probably just liked socks a lot, maybe both? Sighing as she took a bite of her food, she abandoned her character-study for the moment. A mystery such as the true character of Dumbledore is not one that she’ll be able to solve easily and will require much of her attention, something that she probably shouldn’t give in the middle of the welcoming feast lest she misses something important. No, it can wait until she’s in her room, instead her mind wanders to her first class. A smile crosses her mouth at the thought. She couldn’t wait!