September 1st, 1992
"Have fun, sweetie, and don't forget to write!" Tina exclaimed as Bridgette boarded the Hogwarts Express. She smiled and waved before slumping down into her seat.
She could already tell that she'd like her American witchcraft and wizardry school better. This place was going to be so dull, no electronics at all!
"Mind if I sit with you?" Cedric asked from the doorway.
She rolled her eyes and turned away from him. "Yes," she said.
"Ok then," he said, coming in anyways and sitting across from her, a few of his Hogwarts friends piling in after him.
"Who's this?" one of them asked, nodding over to Bridgette whose nose was stuck in a book.
"Bridgette...she just arrived from America, friend of the family," Cedric said, glancing over at her.
"Yeah, I can introduce myself thank you," Bridgette said, taking her face out of her book and smiling at them, flashing him a quick glare.
While she was talking to his friends, she caught him glancing over at her. Every time she saw him, she immediately saw him as a three-year-old, his tiny arms wrapped tightly around her as she cried.
It made her mad that that stupid image just wouldn't go away. She didn't even like this guy, yet here he was imposing himself on her all the time.
Halfway through the ride, she found herself staring at him, not even noticing what she was doing. "Bridgette?" one of his friends said, waving their hand in front of her eyes.
She quickly looked away, muttering something as she picked up a magazine and started reading it.
She read for the rest of the ride until the train came to a stop. She stood up to get her trunk but Cedric stopped her. "They bring it in for you," he explained before walking out, Bridgette close behind him.
Another reason why this school was weird, she thought to herself as she walked out of the train. "Miss Peterson? Follow me please," a tall woman told her.
She followed the woman to the castle. "You will be sorted with the first years, as tradition states," she said sternly. "I understand your family and the Diggory's are quite close and seeing as you and Cedric are in the same year, he will tutor you to help you catch up."
"What? No!" Bridgette exclaimed before she could stop herself. The woman turned around and raised an eyebrow at her before continuing down the hall with her.
"There are the first years, go and join them," the woman said, before smiling at her and continuing, "And welcome to Hogwarts."
"Uhm…what's your name?" Bridgette asked, stopping and realizing she didn't know that yet.
"Professor McGonagall, Transfiguration teacher," she said.
"Ohhh...Transfiguration was my favorite subject back in America," Bridgette told her before running over to meet the first years.
"Wow, you're an awful big first year," one of the boys said, looking up at her with big eyes.
"I'm a transfer student, so I need to get sorted with everyone else, I'm really 15," she told him with a chuckle.
All the other first years were staring at her and she laughed, looking around the Hall. It was definitely bigger than her old school...she might even like it here.
"Follow me so that you can be sorted into your houses," she said before opening the huge double doors and leading them into the Great Hall.
Bridgette looked around her at all of the students sitting at four separate tables with humongous banners above their tables, but what drew her attention most was the ceiling, which looked exactly like the starry night sky.
"Gather around, everyone," Professor McGonagall said, motioning for them to form a line in front of the head table.
One by one the students walked up to the stool and sat down, the Hat sorting them into Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin.
"Peterson, Bridgette!" McGonagall called and she walked up to the stool, sitting on it and jamming the hat onto her head.
She felt her cheeks turn red as every eye in the school was on her, especially everyone sitting at the tables, wondering how she could be so big for a first year.
"Oh, this is a first...you don't want to be here?" the Hat said into her ear, causing her to jump slightly. "Well, don't worry, you're going to love it here...now let's see. Easily angered yet you have an amazingly sensitive side...well yes, I think you belong in HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat screamed the last word and the Hufflepuff table burst into applause.
She smiled until she saw that Cedric was sitting at the table, smiling as well. Her smile faded a little bit and she walked over to where some girls were sitting, sitting next to them.
"Wow, you are tall for a first year," one of them said.
"I'm fifteen...exchange student from America," Bridgette replied quietly as the rest of the first years were sorted.
"Oh yeah, I can tell by your accent, New Yorker?" the same girl asked.
"Yeah," Bridgette replied.
"I'm Alexis, 5th year also," she said, holding out her hand.
Bridgette shook her hand and said, "Bridgette...well, I guess you already knew that," she said, laughing.
"So, do you know anyone yet, at all?" Alexis asked, gesturing to all the students as they began to eat.
"Cedric Diggory," Bridgette said, digging into her food. "Our families are old friends...apparently Cedric and I were friends before we moved, I don't remember him at all."
"Oh that's too bad, he's so gorgeous," Alexis said, staring dreamily over at him for a moment before looking away.
"Whatever," Bridgette mumbled, smiling.
"No, seriously...once, last year, I saw him leaning against a wall...I swear it's like he's trying to show off how sexy he is," Alexis giggled.
"He did that while we were all in France this summer, it really bugs me. Professor McGonagall is making me get tutored by him! Of al things!" Bridgette exclaimed.
"I don't know why you're complaining," Alexis said. "I would trade places with you any day!"
"Feel free to! I'd so switch places with you any day if it meant getting away from him!" Bridgette said quietly so that he wouldn't hear her.
"Why do you hate him so much?" Alexis asked, looking up at Cedric who was talking and laughing with his friends.
"Well, when I was 3 I lived here, and supposedly we were inseparable, our parents were best friends see. So then one day I move to America because my dad like, got a really great job opportunity or something whack like that, so uhm yeah, after my piano recital, one of the biggest ones I've done…ever, my mom took me to dinner, and told me we were moving back! I knew that from the second I got back here, both her and Cedric's mom were going to try and set us up together, and I HAD a boyfriend, which my mom like made me break up with, it's just all totally not cool, and then he goes and hits on me when I totally exude that I could care less if he like died or not!" Bridgette said all in one breath, showing off her ability to speed talk, especially exhibiting how American she spoke.
"Wow, you've had a bad summer," Alexis said sympathetically. "And I can't believe how fast you talk...its crazy."
"You pick it up when after you've lived in the city that never sleeps for most of your life. See, it's also the city that doesn't let you get in a word edgewise while you're talking to someone," Bridgette said, giggling a bit, "Everyone is so rushed and impersonal, they're just handing you off order after order or so on, here people actually let you talk."
"Wow...I would never be able to live there," Alexis said, laughing. "What was your old school like? I actually had no idea there were wizarding schools in America...shows how much I know."
"Yeah, it was really sort of a like a public school, that's what they masked it as. Like people could just walk in there, but there was a charm that made them think we were learning normal things and stuff, and there were no uniforms either, casual dress everyday," Bridgette told her, getting up as everyone else did so.
"Oh my God, I'm so jealous!" Alexis exclaimed as they walked to the Hufflepuff dorms. "It's so different here...all the teachers are extremely strict...and we have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher every year!"
"Why?" Bridgette asked and Alexis shrugged.
"I don't know...there's a rumor that the post is cursed," she said.
"So, what are the teachers like?" Bridgette asked as the walked up the staircase to their dorm. Alexis took a deep breath and described every class, teacher and even the castle itself.
"Wow, that's so amazing," Alexis said, giggling as they walked over to a big couch in front of the blazing fire.
"Hey, Bridgette, we start tutoring tomorrow at 8," Cedric said from behind them. Bridgette groaned but didn't face him. "Whatever," she said, waiting for him to go away, "Uhm yeah...bye," she said, turning around after a second.
"How can you be so cold toward him?" Alexis asked as he walked away. "Like I said, I would love to be tutored by him...hell; I'd fail every class to be tutored by him!"
"Not if you were being forced into spending time with him. I bet my mom is paying off the school just so they'll have him tutor me," Bridgette mumbled, sinking down into the soft sofa.
"I would love to be forced to spend time with him," Alexis giggled. She stood up and offered Bridgette her hand to help her up. "Come on, you gotta see the dorms they're, like, huge!"
Bridgette took her hand and Alexis pulled her up, then leading her upstairs and to the girls' dorm rooms, Bridgette looking around in awe at everything. This school was definitely more spacious than her New York school.
"Aaand this is our dorm!" Alexis exclaimed, opening the door. There were 5 four-poster beds all in a circle.
Bridgette sat down on one and sighed. "These are so comfy!" she exclaimed.
"I know, it's like sleeping on a cloud. I think they enchanted the beds to do that, that way they ensured the students would be well rested in the morning and not have excuses for being sleepy," Alexis said, laughing.
"They think of everything, don't they?" Bridgette said, laughing and falling onto her back, resting her hands behind her head.
"I wouldn't be surprised, Dumbledore's brilliant," Alexis said as she gathered her pajamas from her wardrobe, "I'm going to change for bed."
"Yeah, me too," Bridgette said, standing up and moving to her trunk, pulling out pajamas before putting them on and lying back down on the bed, quickly falling asleep.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey, Bridge, wake up, it's close to noon!" Alexis said, shaking Bridgette awake softly. She mumbled something before opening her eyes slowly. "It's too early," she groaned, standing up and stretching before walking over to her wardrobe and taking some clothes on, quickly putting them on.
She ended up choosing a navy blue v-neck sweater, simple jeans and a long strand of pearls which she circled around her neck twice, doing her hair up into a French braid.
"I am going to give you the unofficial tour of Hogwarts!" Alexis exclaimed, pulling Bridgette out of the dorm.
Bridgette yawned and giggled, "Can't wait."
Alexis showed her around most of the school, mainly the places she would be going to a lot. They bumped into Cedric and his group of friends once during their tour, Bridgette simply standing very still, her nose high in the air as they exchanged stiff greetings.
Alexis had started to flirt with him and his friends until Bridgette dragged her away.
"Lexi, you do try and torture me," Bridgette said, sighing as she looked over at her friend. She and Alexis couldn't have been more different looks wise.
Alexis' hair was platinum blonde and chin length, stick straight, she had deep ocean blue eyes and a cheerful face, whereas Bridgette had her fiery red waist length wavy hair, emerald green eyes, and a very sophisticated face, always a look of dignity on it.
"Oh, Bee, I was just having fun!" Alexis exclaimed, giggling.
"You can have alllll the fun you want, just make sure to drop me off at the nearest exit though," Bridgette said, laughing a bit as they made their way to the Great Hall.
"So, are you trying out for Quidditch?" Alexis asked.
"Me? Sports? No WAY! There's this music program and dance one that I'm joining though, piano and ballet are my fortes," Bridgette told her.
"Ahhh...yeah I try out for Quidditch every year, never make it," Alexis giggled as they sat down at the Hufflepuff table. "I will make it this year, though...I think."
"Who's on the team?" Bridgette asked, putting some toast and eggs onto her plate.
"Cedric Diggory. He was appointed captain this year," Alexis said, a dreamy expression forming on her face. Bridgette nearly spit out her orange juice as she laughed.
"Cedric? Captain of the Quidditch team?" she asked in disbelief, though she kind of always knew he was athletic.
"Yeah, he's Hufflepuff's star Quidditch player, ever since he got on the team in his 2nd year," Alexis told her.
"Wow," Bridgette said, laughing a little. "What position does he play?" she asked, taking a sip of her orange juice.
"Seeker, what else? The seeker is the star of the game. They had Quidditch in America, didn't they?" Alexis asked.
"Yeah, of course. I just didn't really get all that into it," she told her.
"Here at Hogwarts, Quidditch is everything," Alexis explained. "So many duels have broken out because of Quidditch."
"That's stupid," Bridgette said, snickering a bit, "I'm going to go explore the grounds outside, want to come?"
"Nahh, I have some stuff to do after breakfast, have fun!" Alexis exclaimed as Bridgette stood up and left the Great Hall.
She traipsed around the grounds, marveling at the beauty of the building and everything around it. This place was so different from where she went in New York.
"It's pretty amazing, isn't it?" said someone from behind her.
She looked around and saw Cedric. "Go away," she groaned.
"Hey, I'm allowed to be out here, it's my school too you know," Cedric said, smirking at her.
"Fine," she said, walking over to the forest.
"Wait! That's not such a good idea," he called after her.
"Why not?" she called back to him looking inside the forest. "For one, there are dangerous creatures in there and two, it's off limits, didn't you hear Dumbledore at the feast?" Cedric asked.
"No," she said. "I didn't really pay attention at the feast."
"Well, Hogwarts doesn't tolerate people like that, you better shape up, kid," he said, laughing.
"Kid? What, all of a sudden you're all high and mighty Cedric who knows everything?" Bridgette demanded, going away from the forest anyways.
"I meant nothing by it, Bee Bee," he said, emphasizing his last words. She glared at him but he laughed. "Oh, come on, you started to remember after we watched the videos," he said.
"Remember what?" Bridgette demanded, folding her arms and tapping her foot as he leaned against one of the trees.
"Me, us, when we were little," he said simply, his smirk growing wider.
"No I didn't," Bridgette said, rolling her eyes.
"Sure you didn't," he said, running a hand through his hair.
"How would you know if I did anyways? You can't read minds or anything," Bridgette countered.
"Well, I remember you," he said.
"Yeah, well I don't remember you, and I plan to keep it that way," she told him angrily, walking away before he could say anything.