Lily and Arabella collapsed on their beds. They hadn't even started classes
yet, and they were already exhausted! Miracle of all miracles, they were
both in Gryffindor, along with all four boys. That knowledge didn't make it
any easier to stay awake. Though both girls were eager to talk, they found
that their tongues did not appreciate being moved and that their eyelids
refused to lift. They hardly even noticed when another girl dragged her
luggage into their little room and plopped down on the third bed.
CRASHBOOM! Lily sat straight up in bed. It was raining. She scooted over to look out the window. She touched the cool windowpane with one hand. Big drops of liquid were covering the glass, and puddles littered the ground far below. They didn't call it Gryffindor Tower for nothing; they were at least eight stories up!
Looking at the alarm clock she had brought from home, she saw it was only two-thirty in the morning. It figured that a storm would wake her up right before her first real day of school. Lily lied back down, resolved herself to falling asleep again.
The thunder and lightning seemed to disagree with Lily's purpose, for the next crash was extremely cacaphonous and woke up both Arabella and the new girl. "Hello," she said shyly. "I'm Hazel Weatherby. I would have introduced myself properly when I came in, but you two were both sound asleep by then. I got here late. My grandmother refused to let me take the Hogwarts Express; she's a bit overprotective," Hazel finished with a sigh.
"No big deal. I'm Lily Evans, and this is Arabella Figg." Lily looked at Hazel while she spoke. She was pretty, but in a timid way. She was very short and thin. A delicate pair of glasses covered the eyes that were apparently Hazel's namesake, and her straight hair was a soft tawny color that fell just past her shoulders. Her face was smattered with freckles, and she seemed very quiet.
"You're both first years too, right?" Hazel asked.
"Yeah, we are." Arabella said with a smile. Ara was pretty too, Lily realized. She was more beautiful than pretty though. She had very straight, fine, straw blonde hair down to her waist, and her eyes seemed to change colors with her mood, though they were blue most of the time. Arabella was tall, and more wiry than thin. You could tell she had some muscles in her lithe arms and legs.
"Have you made any friends yet?" Hazel said. She seemed very nervous about coming to Hogwarts.
"Yes, four!" Lily replied with a laugh. "James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter. You'll meet them all tomorrow at breakfast. They're very nice, all of them." Well, most of them, Lily amended silently. Peter seemed a bit weasley, and Lily could see already that Sirius had a mean streak. Still, she couldn't tell the girl that before she had even met any of them, could she? Hazel seemed like the type to be timid around boys, even if there was no reason to be.
"So, Hazel," Arabella asked, "are your parents wizards or muggles?"
"Oh, they're both wizards. My dad's parents are muggles, but there's at least one witch a generation on my mum's side. My mum isn't around anymore, though. She died a few years ago. Dad went to live with his family when it happened, so I live with my Grandmum."
"Oh, Hazel, I'm sorry!" Lily and Arabella said at the same time.
"Don't worry about it. I don't miss her too much anymore." An awkward silence hung in the still air while the storm raged outside. "Anyway," Hazel continued, trying to smooth over the conversation, "you don't know any magic yet, do you?"
"No, not that I haven't tried," Lily said, with a little disgust creeping into her voice. She had tried to make something, anything, happen, but to no avail.
"Same here," said Arabella, just as bitterly. "I waved my wand around for hours before I left, and nothing happened."
Hazel yawned loudly then, in perfect time with a flash of lightning. "I'm tired."
"Maybe we should get some sleep," Lily murmered.
Arabella didn't answer, instead falling back into bed and pulling the covers over her head. The other girls did the same.
CRASHBOOM! Lily sat straight up in bed. It was raining. She scooted over to look out the window. She touched the cool windowpane with one hand. Big drops of liquid were covering the glass, and puddles littered the ground far below. They didn't call it Gryffindor Tower for nothing; they were at least eight stories up!
Looking at the alarm clock she had brought from home, she saw it was only two-thirty in the morning. It figured that a storm would wake her up right before her first real day of school. Lily lied back down, resolved herself to falling asleep again.
The thunder and lightning seemed to disagree with Lily's purpose, for the next crash was extremely cacaphonous and woke up both Arabella and the new girl. "Hello," she said shyly. "I'm Hazel Weatherby. I would have introduced myself properly when I came in, but you two were both sound asleep by then. I got here late. My grandmother refused to let me take the Hogwarts Express; she's a bit overprotective," Hazel finished with a sigh.
"No big deal. I'm Lily Evans, and this is Arabella Figg." Lily looked at Hazel while she spoke. She was pretty, but in a timid way. She was very short and thin. A delicate pair of glasses covered the eyes that were apparently Hazel's namesake, and her straight hair was a soft tawny color that fell just past her shoulders. Her face was smattered with freckles, and she seemed very quiet.
"You're both first years too, right?" Hazel asked.
"Yeah, we are." Arabella said with a smile. Ara was pretty too, Lily realized. She was more beautiful than pretty though. She had very straight, fine, straw blonde hair down to her waist, and her eyes seemed to change colors with her mood, though they were blue most of the time. Arabella was tall, and more wiry than thin. You could tell she had some muscles in her lithe arms and legs.
"Have you made any friends yet?" Hazel said. She seemed very nervous about coming to Hogwarts.
"Yes, four!" Lily replied with a laugh. "James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter. You'll meet them all tomorrow at breakfast. They're very nice, all of them." Well, most of them, Lily amended silently. Peter seemed a bit weasley, and Lily could see already that Sirius had a mean streak. Still, she couldn't tell the girl that before she had even met any of them, could she? Hazel seemed like the type to be timid around boys, even if there was no reason to be.
"So, Hazel," Arabella asked, "are your parents wizards or muggles?"
"Oh, they're both wizards. My dad's parents are muggles, but there's at least one witch a generation on my mum's side. My mum isn't around anymore, though. She died a few years ago. Dad went to live with his family when it happened, so I live with my Grandmum."
"Oh, Hazel, I'm sorry!" Lily and Arabella said at the same time.
"Don't worry about it. I don't miss her too much anymore." An awkward silence hung in the still air while the storm raged outside. "Anyway," Hazel continued, trying to smooth over the conversation, "you don't know any magic yet, do you?"
"No, not that I haven't tried," Lily said, with a little disgust creeping into her voice. She had tried to make something, anything, happen, but to no avail.
"Same here," said Arabella, just as bitterly. "I waved my wand around for hours before I left, and nothing happened."
Hazel yawned loudly then, in perfect time with a flash of lightning. "I'm tired."
"Maybe we should get some sleep," Lily murmered.
Arabella didn't answer, instead falling back into bed and pulling the covers over her head. The other girls did the same.