Sapphira awoke to the sound of chaos and shuffling. She heard her older brother, Artemis, running up and down the hall, double checking that he had everything he would need for the school year, and triple checking it after that. Her parents could be heard from the kitchen, where her mother from the smell of things was making her special omelets for the family's last breakfast together for the year. Phoebe, the children's mother, was putting her all into this morning's breakfast seeing as both of her children would be out of the house, leaving her to her own devices and a whole lot of free time on her hands.
Sapphira finally rolled out of her comfortable bed and was about to walk out of her room when something caught her eye in the corner of her room. There in the far left corner of her room was a navy blue pet carrier with the door shut tight, but through the bars was a tiny black paw clawing at the air. Sapphira slowly slipped off her bed, tip-toed to the carrier and crouched beside it, bringing her face level to the door of the cage. Her face, unfortunately, got too close and the black paw darted out and quickly smacked her on the nose. A little yelp from the young metamorphmagus was heard, followed by laughter from the doorway.
"I see you've met you're new pet," Sapphira's father, Aristedes, stood there, openly chuckling at his young daughter and the surprised look on her face. Sapphira blushed, and her hair grew long enough that she could hide her face from her father. "Aw, come now, darling. Don't shy away from your dear old dad, I meant no harm." He knelt in front of her and lovingly brushed the hair out of her face before opening the door to the cage her new pet was in; he reached in and pulled out a black, long-haired kitten and held it out to Sapphira to take and hold. Carefully, Sapphira took the kitten from her father's hands and held it to her chest, stroking the furry creature between it's large ears. A soft purr rumbled from the throat of the kitten as she softly nuzzled Sapphira.
"Her name is Calypso, and like it said in your Hogwarts letter, she gets to go with you and she'll stay in your dorm during your classes and meals, but other than that she can usually accompany you where ever you go." Sapphira stared at the little fur ball in her arms and smiled, she had never had a pet of her own. Once, when she was much younger the family had owned a dog, a small yappy thing, but Sapphira never felt any real pull toward the animal. Now, her mother and father had been so kind to give her a kitten that would keep her company on the many lonely nights ahead while she spent the long school year at school. Her first real time away from home with neither her mother nor her father to guide her or tell her what to do; she was nervous. Sapphira gave a quick shake of her head to bring her back to her father and the kitten in her arms and beamed a beautiful smile up at the man who, at the moment, shared her eye color.
"Thank you, Papa. I don't know what to say or how to thank you," Sapphira nuzzled Calypso before setting her on the floor to let her run around for the brief time it would take her to pack the last few items she had. "I promise to take good care of her and to write you and mum every day!" Aristedes laughed and patted his baby girl on her brightly colored head, smiling down at her.
"Just try to write every week. Once a day is far too often and far too long of a trip for those poor Hogwarts owls. I love you, darling, you're going to have a wonderful school year. Just remember to actually get out of your dorm and make friends. It'll make the next seven years far more enjoyable for you," he briefly hugged Sapphira, and gave her a wink, adding, "Besides, it'd be a shame to deprive the other kids of your wonderful company." Sapphira blushed a deep red, which brought another peal of laughter from her father. He gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head before standing up, reminding her she only had an hour left before they had to leave, and he walked out the door. She watched Calypso pounce on something that wasn't there and smiled once more at her little, furry friend before turning to her desk to pack up the last few items she had.
Once the household was finally packed and ready, Aristedes magicked all the trunks downstairs and into the cars trunk, somehow making it all fit. The Iatroz family filed into their small blue sedan and it was off to Platform 9 ¾ they went. Trying to stay calm and relaxed like a normal witch or wizard, Sapphira opened a book, but was unable to concentrate. She felt like she had been over these worries and anxieties many times before, but she couldn't stop the panicked route that her mind always seemed to take. Though, of course, a part of her was also very excited; she had watched Artemis come home on the holidays with his books and homework, showing her the different things she knew she would one day be able to learn. Who could forget the year he came home for the summer and he was actually allowed to perform magic for Sapphira and the rest of the family? That was what had really made Sapphira excited to come to Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The trip didn't seem to take as long as Sapphira had originally thought it would be, she barely had time to finish the chapter of her book that she had brought with her before they were pulling into the parking lot. They all got out of the car and loaded the bags and trunks onto a cart that was conveniently placed near the front of the parking lot, and all was wheeled into the enormous train station. Thanks to accompanying her parents when they took Artemis to the train station, Sapphira was prepared for the archway that she had to run through and didn't panic too much. She wasn't surprised that after less than five minutes her friend, Leah, had caught a glimpse of her and rushed to her side with her trunk in tow.
"Sapphira! I'm so glad I found you before you got on the train and we were separated," Leah gushed excitedly, clasping her hands over the other small girl's hands. Sapphira watched Artemis kiss their mother good-bye and shake his father's hand before he patted her on the shoulder and made his way to the scarlet train. Leah, however, tried to regain Sapphira's attention. "Do you know where you want to sit yet? I haven't heard that any compartment is better than the next, I just hope we get to sit with some nice people, or get to have a compartment to ourselves. I heard that rarely happens, though, with the amount of students that are going to be on the train."
"I'm not sure where I want to sit, I kind of thought I'd stick with my brother, Artemis, but he seems to have plans of his own. Let me just say good-bye to my parents and we can board and find good seats." Sapphira ran back to her mother and father and pulled the two of them into a group hug, holding them as tightly as she could. "I'm going to miss you, Mum and Papa. You will write me back, won't you?"Both of her parents reassured her that they would write a response to her every letter and kissed their youngest child good-bye. Sapphira was determined to be strong and put on a brave face, so she smiled brightly at her parents, grabbed her trunk and the pet carrier that held her little Calypso, and went back to meet Leah so they could get on the train. Leah threw her a smile and a wink and hooked arms with Sapphira as they walked toward the crowds surrounding the many entrances.
Boarding the train they found that there really wasn't an empty compartment to be seen and finally came to the last compartment after being chased out of the previous one by Lucius Malfoy. Smirking, he left the girls and shut the door, closing off their only exit. Thankful that he had left them at that, Sapphira sighed a breath of relief but turned sharply as a cough sounded from the other side of the small room. There sat a dark-haired boy already dressed in his Hogwarts robes sporting a green 'S' on the left lapel. He had sharp features and a slightly over sized nose, accompanied by a quirked brow that made him seem unfriendly.