September, 2010
Chapter 1: Compartment Three
"And suddenly you know:
It's time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings."
― Meister Eckhart
Which one was scarier: dragons or Platform 9 & ¾? Hazel Cross pondered this very question as she stared at the bustling scene in mild terror. While she initially believed that simply boarding the train to Hogwarts would be nothing in comparison to a childhood filled with Norwegian Ridgebacks and Romanian Longhorns, Hazel had begun to realize she was terribly mistaken.
The platform was a blur of color and sound, filled with masses of families coming and going through the singular entrance behind her. She could barely hear her own voice in the chatter of parents fussing over their children, mixed with the chirps of owls in cages and the clatter of trolley wheels. Gripping her charmed suitcase tighter, Hazel wished she had allowed her parents to see her off. She had been so sure – so stubborn – that she was finally old enough to find her way onto the Hogwarts Express. And she was!...Maybe. With her mother's job as a dragonologist, and her father a travel consultant, the Cross family frequently traveled from country to country through an assortment of muggle and magical transportation. At eight, Hazel realized she was decidedly not a fan of magical travel. Feeling nauseous at the mere memory of portkeys and apparition, the young soon-to-be witch murmured a quiet apology to a couple passing by as she moved Anu's cage out of their way. Her beloved owl had been given to her by her older brother, Ambrose, after she received her official letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. With the help of her muggle father – who had a penchant for Irish and Welsh folklore –they'd decided to name the fluffy ball of gray and white after a gentle goddess.
Something bulky suddenly pushed Hazel forward, causing her to trip over the hem of her robes and land ungracefully on her hands and knees. Hands quickly gripped her elbow, carefully pulling her to her feet. A young boy with pale hair and grey eyes smiled apologetically at her as two others rushed to return her fallen suitcase. "Sorry about that; didn't see you there," the third, shorter boy yelled over the commotion of the platform, grimacing, "Are you okay?". Before she could stutter out a reply, the whistle of the train cut through the air, and the pair seemed to disappear in the moving crowd of people. She'd rather face a Hungarian Horntail right about now...
It felt like ages before Hazel found herself and her small familiar in a compartment. The Hogwarts Express had been just as crowded as the platform, filled with new and returning students of all heights and hair colors. Thankfully, she'd finally spotted an open compartment...sort-of. "Hello," Hazel tried her best to sound confident as she greeted the three young wizards that shared the small booth, resisting the urge to smooth down her shoulder-length hair. Beside her sat a boy who introduced himself as Kestis. He seemed incredibly tall for a first-year and had lovely mismatched eyes, one blue and one brown. A young boy with hair a shade darker than hers sat across from her; she could've sworn he said his name was J-something...Jack, maybe? John? He easily took control over the awkward silence, filling it with questions and jokes and other general conversation. Strangely enough, he reminded her of Ambrose. Not that she would ever admit it, but she already missed her family's antics. Her final companion in the compartment was a shorter boy with long black hair and vivid green eyes, a cat sitting snugly on his lap. Introducing himself as Tim, the dark-haired boy seemed just as nervous as her, stroking the spotted fur of his kitten. With a total of three feline familiars in the small space, Hazel was suddenly grateful for Kestis's offer to move Anu's cage up to the luggage rack. The bird in question, however, spent the time audibly complaining about her position, often chirping in response to any attention she received on the ride.
For all her nerves, Hazel found she rather enjoyed the boys' company. They all seemed quite nice, and some of them had even expressed a similar interest in magical creatures. Jack, as his name turned out to be, was particularly looking forward to wandless magic; while she wasn't sure it was actually in the curriculum, Hazel enjoyed his exuberance. "So, what houses do you think you'll be in?" Jack asked with a grin as he picked up another chocolate frog. Examining the package, he held out the chocolate to Tim before returning to the impressive pile of sweets that he'd purchased from the trolley. "Personally," he continued, "I'll probably end up in Hufflepuff, maybe Gryffindor. Definitely not Slytherin like my brothers, though. They're utter wankers." Tim smiled as he unwrapped the candy, quickly catching the animated sweet before it leapt away, adding, "Hufflepuff." Looking over at...what was his name again?...Hazel wiped the remaining chocolate off of her own fingers. The taller, temporarily nameless, boy seemed to think for a moment, fiddling with the thin wand in his hands. "My mum says I could be in either Hufflepuff or Gryffindor, though I'd rather be in the same house with you lot."
The train ride had been a pleasant one; much to her amusement, Jack had insisted on buying the entire group enough candy to last them their whole first year. Not that she minded, Hazel grinned as she bit into her third Pumpkin Pastry. Feeling compelled to join the conversation, the girl tried to chew and answer at the same time, crumbs sticking to her hands, "Hufflepuff fo' sure." The boys seemed entertained by her antics, and the conversation moved towards where everyone was from. Before Kestis – that was his name! – could answer, a knock sounded on the glass as it slid open. At the door stood a young wizard with a shock of red hair that flowed to his shoulders, green eyes warm as he smiled at the eleven-year-olds. "Hello, how's everyone in here?" Each of the four let out a brief greeting as the boy introduced himself; Markus Ryker was a fifth year Gryffindor and prefect that was checking in on the so-called 'firsties'. After enthusiastically accepting an offered sweet from their collection, Markus waved goodbye, presumably, to check on the next compartment. "That was nice of him," Hazel commented with a smile.
Before she knew it, they'd arrived at Hogwarts and the Sorting Ceremony had passed. She noticed the grey-eyed boy from the platform smile at her as she had walked up to the hat; unfortunately, it seemed like the pale-haired wizard had been sorted into a different house. Sly-something, the one Jack had mentioned. Hazel officially became a Hufflepuff, alongside Kestis, Tim, and Jack. Despite her fears that she wouldn't know anyone, the three boys had waved her over to sit beside them. At the end of the meal, the brunette grabbed one last bread roll to bring with her, then almost cried laughing as Tim unceremoniously stuck a full drumstick in his own pocket. This move inspired a few other laughs around the table before the prefects – one whose name was Jane, or Janette...or something similar – stood to lead them to their bedrooms.
Downstairs, the Hufflepuff Common Room was absolutely adorable. The round room had a low ceiling that, combined with the honey-colored wood and plethora of plants, felt immediately comfortable. A lit fire sat in the hearth facing one of the many couches, and a moving portrait of the house's founder sat above a beautiful golden cup. As all the rooms were built for two, the boys quickly paired up; without the option of picking someone she knew, Hazel's roommate became an especially shy, bespectacled girl named Carly.
After a short conversation, Carly had decided to go to bed early – as their first day was tomorrow, after all – yet Hazel felt wide awake. Wandering into the common room, she realized she wasn't alone; Kes and Jack were there, and invited her to join them on a 'secret' trip. Unable to resist her own curiosity, and the desire to hold onto these new friends for as long as she could, Hazel readily agreed. As it turned out, the kitchens were easy to find. The brunette giggled as she tickled the pear, stepping back as the wall swept open to reveal a large space filled with counters and tables and energetic house elves. They met Kreatcher, a part-time house elf that talked slowly but had been more than happy to conjure a picnic basket full of leftovers from dinner. Despite Kes's offer to help, Hazel had stubbornly insisted on carrying the basket herself, using both hands to bring back the remaining food. All in all, it had been a good day, and the young witch fell quickly asleep in her new home.
It was her very first morning at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...and Hazel Cross accidentally slept in. Hopping on one foot, the witch frantically tried to shove on her shoes. Merlin, how could she have slept for an extra hour? While she wouldn't miss class, Hazel had been hoping to have time to eat. She barely made it to the Great Hall in time to grab a few pieces of bacon and toast, hardly paying attention to the news that was splattered across the front pages of the Daily Prophet. In bold letters, the feature article that morning pronounced "Five Dead in Attack: Theft at the Department of Ministries".
The rest of her day passed fairly quickly. At one point, Hazel found herself outside with Kes, Jack, and Tim. Jack had again suggested they sneak off somewhere; this time, the four tried to enter the Forbidden Forest. Unfortunately, Kes's nature as a half-giant was anything but stealthy, and they were discovered by the groundskeeper. Luckily, the groundskeeper was actually quite friendly. Hagrid, as the large man had introduced himself, had even appreciated their interest in magical creatures. Instead of getting into trouble – her mother would've killed her – Hagrid had shown them a small colony of misplaced bowtruckles. Hazel thought they were ridiculously cute, but they were warned that the small green creatures were rather disgruntled from the loss of their original home, though plans were in place to relocate them safely. They also met Fang '2.0', a relatively large and adorable dog. After nearly breaking her tooth on an aptly named rock cake, the first years promised to return to see more magical creatures with the groundskeeper – Hagrid had mentioned Thestrals, much to Hazel and Kes's excitement – and the four returned to the castle.
The Hufflepuffs learned the levitating charm the following day under Professor Flitwick with the Slytherins, much to Jack's general disappointment. Personally, she didn't understand why he was so against an entire house. However, Jack's stories about his brothers also painted a much more…violent home life than she'd ever experienced. She was lucky, she supposed. In class, Hazel was ecstatic when she'd successfully lifted her textbook a foot into the air, but quickly grew bored of magically lifting objects. So, instead, she studied her new classmates. Across the room, a pair of dark-haired Slytherin twins were teasing a familiar pale-haired boy; when all three glanced up at her inquisitive stare, however, the witch had turned bright red and refused to look at the opposite side for the remainder of the class.
That evening, Hazel and the boys ventured once more to the kitchen. Although she invited Carly, the girl had pushed up her oversized glasses and politely declined. Still, the brunette was determined to bring something back for her roommate. While she appreciated her growing comradery with Tim, Kes, and Jack, Hazel wouldn't have minded more female friends as well. During her very first weekend at Hogwarts, Hazel sent a letter with the small owl. She wrote to her parents about everything; her friends, classes, how much she missed baking brownies with her mother and her sister, the muggle card games she played with her father. Maybe she could bring a deck of cards next year.
To her delight, Hagrid had kept his word and led them to a small herd of actual Thestrals! Jack had been the only one unable to see the 'winged skeleton horses' and spent most of his time walking around with his hands blindly outstretched. Silly as it was, Jack's antics helped to lighten the mood after Hazel, Tim, and Kes had shared how they were able to see the creatures. For the young witch, she had quietly mentioned that, even with the best dragon handlers, accidents could still happen…It had grown quiet after that, until Jack tripped over an invisible hoof. Mom, Dad, it's not so bad here. I'm making friends, and classes are going well. I can levitate things with magic! It's not as impressive as training an Ukranian Ironbelly, but it's a start….Miss you. Love, Hazel Cross.