25 Oct 2019, 08:22
A salve to my first-year jitters
Reducio
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This was Hogwarts.
Gwen's legs pressed against the dewy emerald grass, the smell of soil filling her lungs. Her back rested against a cool pane of the greenhouse as she collected her thoughts. It was a lot to take in.
Having spent her formative years in a farming province of China, she sometimes longed for the simpler times. The dry scratch of millet against her skin in the mornings, the frenzied clucking of chickens at noon, and the fragrant scent of tea as the evening sun dipped below distant mountains. A time before the chaotic wizarding world was revealed to her.
As much as it thrilled her to be a witch, she was intimidated by the hustle-bustle of the Hogwarts castle. The looming stature of seventh-year students and the eerie presence of the castle ghosts made her feel like a small speck, lost in a world beyond her understanding.
More than anything, her sorting as a Slytherin came as an abrupt shock. While she admired the ambition and cunning that the house valued, she felt like an impostor. Like she didn't belong. She was raised like a muggle, and thought like one too. Although her mother was a witch, it was abundantly clear that Gwen wasn't like the other pureblooded students.
The greenhouse was a salve to her nervous thoughts; the scent of the growing plants reminded her of nature's many comforts and of the family she left behind. She had developed an understanding plants through time spent sowing seeds with her Grandfather and brewing herbal remedies with her Grandmother. While she was ignorant about the history of magic or the workings of the wizarding world, she felt that herbology could be her opportunity to prove herself a competent witch.
More than anything, she wanted a companion. To feel less alone at this frightening new school.
Last edited by Guinevere Brand on 25 Oct 2019, 14:25, edited 2 times in total.
25 Oct 2019, 12:55
A salve to my first-year jitters
Jo wandered into her herbology class, books in hand and curls in her eyes. On the way into the classroom, she spotted a few of the older year Slytherin's that she'd met prior to today, and gave them a little salute. They gave her a nod of acknowledgement back, and that was good enough for Josephine. The older kids weren't so bad, really. As long as you could find a way to relate to them, they let you in pretty easily. Jo, being the rambunctious little first year she was, quickly won the affection of her older housemates through her activities on the day they decorated the common room. Sometimes getting into trouble worked in her favor.
Upon making her way inside, Jo looked for a place to sit. Most of the seats next to people she looked like she'd like at first glance were already taken, so she needed to figure something else out. Her eyes fell to a seat beside a little girl with straight, dark hair. Another girl friend surely couldn't hurt, and Jo was all for conversing. Besides, by the girls body language, she looked a little nervous. It was still so wild to her how nervous some of the other first years were about coming to Hogwarts. Being in new places with new people had never been an issue for Jo. After all, most people were in the same boat- coming here without knowing anyone. That meant everyone was sympathetic to it, and she was using that to her advantage.
The young Slytherin girl pushed her long curls behind her ears and walked up to the table where the other girl was sitting, sliding into the seat beside her. No questions on if the seat was already taken- cause if it was, it's inhabitants would have to find somewhere else to go. Finders keepers and all that jazz. Her head tilted to look toward the girl, giving her a bit of a slanted smile. "Hey."
Upon making her way inside, Jo looked for a place to sit. Most of the seats next to people she looked like she'd like at first glance were already taken, so she needed to figure something else out. Her eyes fell to a seat beside a little girl with straight, dark hair. Another girl friend surely couldn't hurt, and Jo was all for conversing. Besides, by the girls body language, she looked a little nervous. It was still so wild to her how nervous some of the other first years were about coming to Hogwarts. Being in new places with new people had never been an issue for Jo. After all, most people were in the same boat- coming here without knowing anyone. That meant everyone was sympathetic to it, and she was using that to her advantage.
The young Slytherin girl pushed her long curls behind her ears and walked up to the table where the other girl was sitting, sliding into the seat beside her. No questions on if the seat was already taken- cause if it was, it's inhabitants would have to find somewhere else to go. Finders keepers and all that jazz. Her head tilted to look toward the girl, giving her a bit of a slanted smile. "Hey."
Reducio
@Guinevere Brand
STA: 3 EVA: 7 STR: 4 WIS: 6 ARC: 8 ACC: 7
25 Oct 2019, 15:13
A salve to my first-year jitters
Reducio
@Josephine Salvatore
Guinevere awoke from her daydream as students started piling into the classroom, each clutching bundles of books and trinkets close to their chests. They looked remarkably like hermit crabs in oversized shells, their robes hanging loose and low from their appendages as they nervously scuttled to their seats.
The sound of dull chatter filled the room, and Gwen turned her attention to the front. Eager to make a good first impression, she slid her Herbology equipment onto the table and was startled to see a young witch sitting beside her when she looked back up.
The girl's coffee-brown hair hung in loose curls, framing her piercing pale eyes like a shroud of cotton candy. Her lips parted into a slanted smile as she met Gwen's curious gaze.
"Hey," the girl uttered.
"Hi," Gwen replied, instinctively sliding her books across the table to make room for the girl, "I'm Gwen. Brand. Well it's Guinevere, but that's just pretentious."
In the muggle world, Gwen felt at ease when surrounded by people; confident almost to the extent that she could appear slightly arrogant. But the wizarding world was completely out of her comfort zone. In ordinary life, she was a good student and track runner. But at Hogwarts, she was no-one and nothing. She hadn't the faintest clue about magic, save for her skim-reading of Hogwarts, a History.
"Nice to meet you," she smiled, trying not to appear nervous.
26 Oct 2019, 10:24
A salve to my first-year jitters
Josephine set her things down on the table once the girl moved her stuff. She had her cool and calm exterior front and center, trying not to appear completely intimdating to the girl. After all, Jo had to make a few friends, at least.
"You too," She responded, getting herself comfortable in the stool so she could slouch. Her mother would have hated the posture that Josephine was holding right at that moment. "I'm Josephine. But I mostly have people call me Jo because... Well, Josephine is also a bit too pretentious." Now that the girl had spoken more than a few words, it would become quite obvious to Gwen that Jo had a strange accent. It seemed to be a mixture of something posh from London and something else- Josephine had grown up and spent most her formative years in Spain, therefore she still carried quite a bit of the accent despite being fluent in English and having lived in London for the past two years. Gwen may not have known where the accent originated from, but at least she could understand Jo. "The third years told me that first year Herbology is a breeze. Maybe the professor won't give us any homework."
"You too," She responded, getting herself comfortable in the stool so she could slouch. Her mother would have hated the posture that Josephine was holding right at that moment. "I'm Josephine. But I mostly have people call me Jo because... Well, Josephine is also a bit too pretentious." Now that the girl had spoken more than a few words, it would become quite obvious to Gwen that Jo had a strange accent. It seemed to be a mixture of something posh from London and something else- Josephine had grown up and spent most her formative years in Spain, therefore she still carried quite a bit of the accent despite being fluent in English and having lived in London for the past two years. Gwen may not have known where the accent originated from, but at least she could understand Jo. "The third years told me that first year Herbology is a breeze. Maybe the professor won't give us any homework."
Reducio
@Guinevere Brand
STA: 3 EVA: 7 STR: 4 WIS: 6 ARC: 8 ACC: 7
27 Oct 2019, 07:32
A salve to my first-year jitters
Reducio
@Josephine Salvatore
"Honestly I hope you're right," Gwen replied, noticing the girl's unusual accent. Having moved to the UK from China at a young age, her own voice was thick with a Scottish twang.
"I already have two essays from history of magic," she added, "which is less than ideal considering that all this wizard stuff is brand new to me."
Looking down at her own robes, it occurred to her that they had transfigured after the sorting ceremony. Where her robes were once bare and black, emerald cloth now shone with silver trimming. The house of Slytherin, now that she thought about it, was a true fit for her personality. She aimed always to be a high-achiever, to strive for excellence. But the history that the house bore like a shameful stain on its prestigious crest posed a challenged for Gwen to overcome. Being raised like a muggle, she was unsure that she would easily fit in amongst the cohort, despite sharing their aptitude for ambition and cunning wit.
"Amazing, isn't it?" she sighed, "All this magic business, I mean." She glanced back up at Jo, and noted that the girl's own robes were embellished green as well. She looked towards her new acquaintance for just a moment, wondering how she seemed so calm and collected. Perhaps she was born and raised in the wizarding world, and so a new chapter at Hogwarts seemed nothing more than simply a rite of passage.