American Girl: Chapter Two
Kirsten Mullon stepped onto the Hogwarts express, taking in the amazing sights around her. Never in America had she seen anything like this. She had thought that her American wizarding school had been nice, but this made her school look like an outhouse. Anxious to see what the actual school looked like, Kirsten grabbed her trolley and began to seek a compartment.
Peeking through the frosted windows, Kirsten saw a group of kids who she thought looked friendly. She straightened her Abercrombie skirt, fixed her hair, and slowly opened the compartment door.
A girl with bushy hair, a boy with glasses and messy hair, and a red- headed boy looked up at her as she entered the compartment. All three seemed shocked at who they saw. "Hello!" Kirsten said, walking forward to shake their hands. "I'm Kirsten, an exchange student from America. What's up?" She attempted a typical American handshake, but none of the three were familiar with this common ritual. A little shaken, Kirsten sat down next to the girl.
"What're you're names?" she asked, her different accent loud and confident.
"I'm... Harry. Harry Potter," Harry answered hesitantly, intimidated by her audacity. "And this is Hermione Granger, and Ronald Weasley."
Kirsten stared at him in disbelief. "Oh my God. You're Harry Potter? Like, the Harry Potter? Shut up! Shut the heck up!"
"All I said was I was Harry..." he trailed off. She was much different than all the other girls at Hogwarts... more outgoing and blunt, but in a charming sort of way.
Ron now approached Kirsten. "Like he said, I'm Ron. Where're you from? I've never seen you here before."
"Yeah," agreed Hermione. "I think I would have noticed you."
Kirsten laughed. "I'm an exchange student from America. We have a wizarding school over there too! It's great, but I decided that it would be off the chain to travel to England. What's Hogwarts like? I've heard it's, like, really tight. I was reading Hogwarts: A History and it said all this crazy stuff like how there are houses and points and you get to go downtown and there's, like, a competition and quidditch teams and tons of awesome stuff. I love quidditch by the way I'm a keeper. Do you have a keeper position open? That'd be so cool! It really sucks because America doesn't have a national quidditch team, but the schools still let the kids play. I don't know what house I'm going to be in yet, I'm getting sorted with the first years which will probably be a little embarrassing but I hope that I'll get Gryffindor! It sounds awesome. Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad I guess. What houses are you guys in? Ooh, I hope the people in my house are nice! Wow you guys sure are quiet people why don't you say something?" she babbled on and on, scarcely pausing for breath.
'How does she do that?' Ron thought. 'She just talks and talks without even stopping to think!'
"Wow," Hermione said, flabbergasted. "You sure can talk!"
Kirsten took a deep breath. "Well, we Americans tend to talk a little on the too much side, but most people get used to it. Oh you hate me now don't you? I always do the wrong thing! I talk too much or too little or not at all or say the wrong thing or look at people weird or hurt people's feelings or something stupid! I knew I wasn't going to make any friends! I'm just going to be the freaky outcast American kid who everybody hates and makes fun of behind her back. Maybe I should go back to good old NorCal..."
All three kids laughed. Ron put his hand on her shoulder. "I think you'll fit in just fine with us."
'Wow, these kids are nice!' Kirsten thought, straightening her skirt yet again. 'Maybe I will fit in!' She looked over at Ron, looking at his long, curly, red hair and striking blue eyes. He was pretty dang hot! She at up taller and lifted her chin. "So," she began again, straining to talk slower and more clearly this time. "You're Harry Potter. I've read a lot about you. You sound so amazing in writing! I didn't imagine you looking quite the way you look though, maybe a little more buff and big and strong, not that you're, like, not or anything, just a little smaller than normal children but not, like, malnutrition or anything like that, and I imagine you're not anorexic or something. Okay I'll stop talking now. Umm, oh gees, how was y'all's summer?"
Ron leaned in closer, looking straight into the girls eyes, forgetting that Hermione, his love, the one who he belonged with, was sitting next to her. He breathed in her scent, making a memory of this moment, when he first spotted her. She had a perfumey smell, but not overpowering, like she had frolicked through a meadow full of scented flowers. Her face was natural, very little makeup or glitter, which made him think that she was self- confident and comfortable with how she looked. Ron liked that in a girl. Unaware that people around him were talking and having a good time, Ron let loose a deep sigh.
Harry looked over at Ron. "Umm, are you okay?" Ron snapped back into the real world and scooted back next to Harry. He had unconsciously slid unnaturally close to the girls on the bench in front of him. He sat up straight, and brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Yeah, great." He smiled at Kirsten.
Hermione examined Ron curiously. He had never acted like this around girls before. It was funny that he had chosen now to fall in love, with this new girl he had never seen before. She knew it was love, for she had seen that look in his eyes many times before, the glittering diamonds that shone in his eyes making his whole face light up and with a slight smirk in the corner of his lips. She knew it was love because it was the look that she had accepted from him every day since the fourth year. The look in his eyes that she looked forward to every day, and missed while she was sleeping. The look she missed dearly for when she was away from him for more than a few minutes, the look she lived for. And it was no longer for her. It had been given away, thrown to the first skirt he had seen on the train ride, the first ass that came walking into the compartment. But she was going to have to accept it, and accept it smiling. And that's what she did, look over at Kirsten with a smile on her lips, and glistening tears in the corners of her eyes. But who was to notice? Not Ron...
Kirsten Mullon stepped onto the Hogwarts express, taking in the amazing sights around her. Never in America had she seen anything like this. She had thought that her American wizarding school had been nice, but this made her school look like an outhouse. Anxious to see what the actual school looked like, Kirsten grabbed her trolley and began to seek a compartment.
Peeking through the frosted windows, Kirsten saw a group of kids who she thought looked friendly. She straightened her Abercrombie skirt, fixed her hair, and slowly opened the compartment door.
A girl with bushy hair, a boy with glasses and messy hair, and a red- headed boy looked up at her as she entered the compartment. All three seemed shocked at who they saw. "Hello!" Kirsten said, walking forward to shake their hands. "I'm Kirsten, an exchange student from America. What's up?" She attempted a typical American handshake, but none of the three were familiar with this common ritual. A little shaken, Kirsten sat down next to the girl.
"What're you're names?" she asked, her different accent loud and confident.
"I'm... Harry. Harry Potter," Harry answered hesitantly, intimidated by her audacity. "And this is Hermione Granger, and Ronald Weasley."
Kirsten stared at him in disbelief. "Oh my God. You're Harry Potter? Like, the Harry Potter? Shut up! Shut the heck up!"
"All I said was I was Harry..." he trailed off. She was much different than all the other girls at Hogwarts... more outgoing and blunt, but in a charming sort of way.
Ron now approached Kirsten. "Like he said, I'm Ron. Where're you from? I've never seen you here before."
"Yeah," agreed Hermione. "I think I would have noticed you."
Kirsten laughed. "I'm an exchange student from America. We have a wizarding school over there too! It's great, but I decided that it would be off the chain to travel to England. What's Hogwarts like? I've heard it's, like, really tight. I was reading Hogwarts: A History and it said all this crazy stuff like how there are houses and points and you get to go downtown and there's, like, a competition and quidditch teams and tons of awesome stuff. I love quidditch by the way I'm a keeper. Do you have a keeper position open? That'd be so cool! It really sucks because America doesn't have a national quidditch team, but the schools still let the kids play. I don't know what house I'm going to be in yet, I'm getting sorted with the first years which will probably be a little embarrassing but I hope that I'll get Gryffindor! It sounds awesome. Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad I guess. What houses are you guys in? Ooh, I hope the people in my house are nice! Wow you guys sure are quiet people why don't you say something?" she babbled on and on, scarcely pausing for breath.
'How does she do that?' Ron thought. 'She just talks and talks without even stopping to think!'
"Wow," Hermione said, flabbergasted. "You sure can talk!"
Kirsten took a deep breath. "Well, we Americans tend to talk a little on the too much side, but most people get used to it. Oh you hate me now don't you? I always do the wrong thing! I talk too much or too little or not at all or say the wrong thing or look at people weird or hurt people's feelings or something stupid! I knew I wasn't going to make any friends! I'm just going to be the freaky outcast American kid who everybody hates and makes fun of behind her back. Maybe I should go back to good old NorCal..."
All three kids laughed. Ron put his hand on her shoulder. "I think you'll fit in just fine with us."
'Wow, these kids are nice!' Kirsten thought, straightening her skirt yet again. 'Maybe I will fit in!' She looked over at Ron, looking at his long, curly, red hair and striking blue eyes. He was pretty dang hot! She at up taller and lifted her chin. "So," she began again, straining to talk slower and more clearly this time. "You're Harry Potter. I've read a lot about you. You sound so amazing in writing! I didn't imagine you looking quite the way you look though, maybe a little more buff and big and strong, not that you're, like, not or anything, just a little smaller than normal children but not, like, malnutrition or anything like that, and I imagine you're not anorexic or something. Okay I'll stop talking now. Umm, oh gees, how was y'all's summer?"
Ron leaned in closer, looking straight into the girls eyes, forgetting that Hermione, his love, the one who he belonged with, was sitting next to her. He breathed in her scent, making a memory of this moment, when he first spotted her. She had a perfumey smell, but not overpowering, like she had frolicked through a meadow full of scented flowers. Her face was natural, very little makeup or glitter, which made him think that she was self- confident and comfortable with how she looked. Ron liked that in a girl. Unaware that people around him were talking and having a good time, Ron let loose a deep sigh.
Harry looked over at Ron. "Umm, are you okay?" Ron snapped back into the real world and scooted back next to Harry. He had unconsciously slid unnaturally close to the girls on the bench in front of him. He sat up straight, and brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Yeah, great." He smiled at Kirsten.
Hermione examined Ron curiously. He had never acted like this around girls before. It was funny that he had chosen now to fall in love, with this new girl he had never seen before. She knew it was love, for she had seen that look in his eyes many times before, the glittering diamonds that shone in his eyes making his whole face light up and with a slight smirk in the corner of his lips. She knew it was love because it was the look that she had accepted from him every day since the fourth year. The look in his eyes that she looked forward to every day, and missed while she was sleeping. The look she missed dearly for when she was away from him for more than a few minutes, the look she lived for. And it was no longer for her. It had been given away, thrown to the first skirt he had seen on the train ride, the first ass that came walking into the compartment. But she was going to have to accept it, and accept it smiling. And that's what she did, look over at Kirsten with a smile on her lips, and glistening tears in the corners of her eyes. But who was to notice? Not Ron...