A/N: Essentially, what you recognize belongs to the goddess that is J.K. Rowling, and what you don't belongs to lil' ol' me.
•~0~•
A few weeks later, Genevieve boarded the train at Platform 9 3/4, still worried about her grandfather, but he had convinced her that he could hold his own till Christmas break, when she would get a chance to visit again. Though she had done her shopping for school supplies with the Weasleys (her father had had to work weekends to catch up on what he'd missed), she had refrained from telling Charlie and the twins about her grandfather's condition. She didn't know why, really. She supposed that she had wanted Hogwarts to remain an escape from the worries of life. For now, she would keep it to herself. For now.
Once again, she'd already read and annotated her books for that year so as to be ready for the upcoming term. The coursework was slightly more difficult, as work tends to be from year to year, but it was definitely more interesting. She was just itching to try Arresto Momentum.
Arriving at the station, Genevieve found that, instead of the boats Hagrid had taken them in first year, they rode what appeared to be horseless carriages. How did they work? Did they operate like Muggle cars? No, they couldn't. She reprimanded herself internally. Hogwarts, A History stated that, because of all the magic, electricity and the like went haywire around Hogwarts.
Seeing her fascination, Charlie laughed. "You want to know what pulls the carriages?"
She nodded.
"Thestrals."
Confusion flooded her. "What are thestrals? Are they animals? Why can't we see them?"
He laughed again. "Thestrals are like winged horses, but with a reptilian appearance. And you can't see them because . . ." He hesitated. "Only people who have seen death can see thestrals."
"Oh."
"Yeah, not exactly pleasant."
Quickly switching to a different topic, Charlie made sure to have the younger girl smiling by the time they arrived at Hogwarts. For some reason, the thought of death seemed to hit her hard.
•~0~•
After the Sorting, Genevieve dug into the feast, savoring the delectable food. She also introduced herself to some of the first years, knowing firsthand the anxiety that came with an environment as new and unusual as this. One first year, Katie Bell, seemed especially sweet, and the two quickly struck up a conversation.
"Is it true you caused a Hatstall last year?" The girl asked curiously.
"Er, yes, I did," Genevieve replied, surprised. "I didn't know it would make me famous or anything."
"Well, Hatstalls are really rare. They only occur about once every fifty years, give or take." Katie explained, eyes wide in wonder. "Can you tell me what it was like?"
"Honestly, the Sorting Hat spent most of the time in quiet deliberation. I didn't really know how long it took until I saw everyone staring at me. It was a little unnerving, to say the least. I reckon that it thought I might do well in Ravenclaw because that's what House my parents were in."
"It does tend to run in families," Katie agreed. "So, are you going to try out for Quidditch, now that you can have your own broom?"
Genevieve laughed, remembering the conversation she'd had with Charlie Weasley the year before. "No, I've got quite the penchant for clumsiness, you see. I'd fit in on a Quidditch team about as well as a Hufflepuff in Slytherin House."
"Oh," the girl commented, trying to disguise a laugh as a cough. "Well, I think I will. Not this year, of course, but maybe my second year. I've heard that a Chaser is leaving next year."
"Well, seeing as how my friend Charlie, the Seeker, is graduating as well, which effectively takes away my excuse to watch the matches, how about this? If you make the Quidditch team, I'll come for you."
Katie smiled. "Sounds like a plan."
