Maynard Roque and the Last Death Eater (Dim and Sparrah)

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard had, as a ‘muggle,’ been completely unprepared to receive a letter from a school named Hogwarts. A magical school, the letter had claimed, and had listed all sorts of odd magical things he would need to bring with him. He had shown the letter to his father, who had of course initially believed it to be a hoax. The letters had been persistent, however, and eventually they had discovered the truth. Magic was real, and all the odd, unexplainable occurrences that had happened in Maynard’s life suddenly had a cause.

The next few months had been a blur of excitement and discovery for the young boy, but the most shocking thing, something he was still trying to recover from, was their ability to give him the body he had always wanted. He had been born a girl, but had known for some time that he was a boy. His father had been accepting of this, something he would always be grateful for, and had been just as surprised as his child to find out it was not as big of a deal in the wizarding world as it was among the ‘Muggles.’

Maynard had cried almost the whole day after his body was changed, and he was still getting used to it. It had practically wiped the discovery of magic from his mind, but now, standing on platform Nine and Three Quarters, it was starting to sink in. Many of the families there were obviously wizarding families, though he could spot the odd normal family (muggle family, he supposed) standing around, the kids looking as nervous as he felt, and the parents looking as confused as he was sure his father was. The thought that he was going to have to say good-bye to his father for the entire school year caused an unpleasant tug in his chest, but he pushed it back, keeping his face as impassive as he could manage. He turned to his father, hugging him tightly. Their good-byes were short, but heartfelt, and Maynard turned to his luggage, dragging it up to the train before he could have a change of heart.

He found himself an empty cabin near the back of the train, setting up and then defending his territory with what his father would call a trademark glare. He wasn’t trying to be mean, it was just the way he was. Besides, he was nervous beyond belief. Going to a new school where he knew no-one was one thing, but he wasn’t even sure he knew the rules of the world anymore. He was sure he’d make friends sooner or later, but for now he was just trying to deal with all the things that had been thrown at him in the last few months. At least no one would call him a girl, here.

[Nadir]

The woman and her child moved through the crowd, both dressed in rather forgettable muggle clothes, dull shades of grey, cream and browns meant to be overlooked and ignored, she pushing the trolley with his luggage, he trailing a little behind her, but close, watching the bustle with quick, curious eyes. “You’ll be fine,” she murmured over her shoulder. “I had a lot of fun at Hogwarts when I attended. You just need to remember what I told you.” She paused, glanced about them then stopped, a twist of her hand making her wand spring into her palm, a fluid flick making the sounds around them muffle to a soft blur. “Repeat it for me.”

He peered up at her with his eyes wide behind his glasses. His voice was whisper soft and hesitating as he said, “Lies are best with a pinch of truth, but being quiet is better than a lie. I’m not going to tell anyone,” he promised.

Her thin lipped mouth curved into a wicked smirk. “Good kid,” she said, her hand ruffling his dusty brown hair. “You’ll see me again before you know it. I’ll send you an owl soon. Make friends, Kai. You’ll need to use them later.”

He gave a nod, his brows drawing together slightly at the idea. Friends.

She flicked her wand and the charm broke, and the wand was hidden back up her sleeve. “Come on, the seats will be filling up soon. Better get there first.” They went to one of the carriages and she lifted the luggage up the steps for him, then stepped down. She kissed her fingertip and pressed it to her forehead, then left him alone.

Kai stood where he was for a moment longer, wanting to reach for her, feel her arms close around him in a hug... but she was gone.

He bit his lip, blinked quickly a few times and turned, focusing on getting his luggage into a compartment. The first he came to was empty but for one small looking boy. Perfect.

He slid opened the door and pushed his luggage inside. He gave a shy smile to the boy when his head turned towards him and lifted his hand in a wriggly-fingered wave, but the word hello seemed to be trapped in his throat.     

[Sparrowhawke]

Things were going well, most of the other students either went past the compartment without even looking, and the few that stopped to poke their heads in soon went elsewhere when confronted with his glare. It was looking like he might get to have the ride to himself, to give him more time to adjust to this whole situation. But then a head came around the door, belonging to a kid who looked about his age. The boy was taller than him, but most seemed that way, his shortness was not something they fixed when they changed his body, but maybe puberty would...

Maynard stared the boy down for a few moments, half out of habit, and half wanting him to leave. But what he got in return was a shy smile and a wave. A moment of confusion flickered across his face, not quite sure what to do with him. The shyness disarmed him somewhat, and most of the edge left his glare. It was still there, of course, it was practically a default setting, but a lot less severe. He sighed deeply, already resigning himself to his lost solitude.

Of course, that didn't mean he was going to be social. He barely even knew how, and he was far too stressed out by all of this change - even if it was good change - to try. He turned his head away, aiming his glare out the window instead. It really wasn't as if he had anything against the boy, he simply didn't know how to deal with all of this. Internally, he couldn't help but wonder if this boy was like him, or if he'd been born to all of this. He looked nervous as well, but that could just be the anxiety of leaving home. He was almost tempted to ask, but the silence was even harder to break now that he'd already turned away.

[Nadir]

Kai waited for a moment, wondering if the other boy would speak to him, greet him or growl at him to leave - he looked so grumpy, it wouldn’t have been a surprise. But he didn’t, he just turned back to look at the crowded station. The sigh was an unhappy one, and if Kai cared about anyone’s happiness but his own, he might have left then.

Instead, he took it as a sign the boy wouldn’t argue him being here, and sat in the seat closest to the door. They would be leaving soon, rushing away from London, from home, from boredom and loneliness, towards... towards Hogwarts. The ancient school, somewhere North, hidden away from the world. It was the scariest thing Kai had ever done.

His eyes, a deep shade of blue, were fixed on the disgruntled boy, his head tilted slightly and a smile of mingled giddiness and curiosity curving his lips. What could he tell about this person, just by looking? It was a game his mother made him play all the time, she said it was a good habit to keep, so he looked and looked, and saw... he was wearing muggle clothes. Wizarding children usually did, but these clothes had small amounts of wear to them, a dangling thread here, a lost button there. Not enough to suggest poverty, but just enough to make him think muggleborn - or squib-born. A wizarding family could cast a charm to neaten such small signs of damage away, and it was a simple one, too. A defensive posture, too, wanting to be left alone, annoyed to have company but not caring enough to say anything about it...

Was he scared, too?

Kai moved up a seat, wary but determined, leaning his head to a side, trying to catch the other boy’s eye. “Umm...” he murmured softly, reaching into a pocket and pulling out a small, pentagon box. An unopened chocolate frog. He held it out, toward the other, the purple and gold box on his palm, a peace offering.     

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard was torn as the boy made his way into the cabin. A large part of him, of course, wanted to be alone for now, but another part of him was curious. He couldn't tell if the boy was like him or someone raised around magic, though the fact that he wasn't even looking at him certainly didn't help. It didn't stop him from noticing out of the corner of his eye that the boy was still watching him, however. The scrutiny made him nervous, it always had, but he tried to reassure himself. There was no way this boy would be able to tell that he had been born a girl, right? The body he was in now was completely, 100% male. But still, it was hard to break the fear. When people had found out before they had mocked him. Of course, he stood up for himself, but it was still unpleasant, and he was terrified that somehow his secret would get out. Then this new school, in which nobody knew, would suddenly turn into the others. Magical school or not, he was sure that these kids could be just as bad as the 'muggles.'

He tensed further as the boy started moving closer, keeping his eyes firmly locked on the window, doing his best to ignore the fact that the boy was obviously trying to get his attention. When he spoke, however, Maynard gave up. He restrained the urge to give another side, letting his eyes flick over to the boy's face. When he looked down at the boy's outstretched hand, he couldn't help but look a little surprised. He'd been willfully ignoring the boy this whole time but he was still offering him something? Maynard felt a hint of heat in his cheeks as he reached out to take it, muttering an awkward 'thanks.' He stared at it for a few moments, ultimately deducing that it was chocolate. He shifted somewhat awkwardly, opening the package, expecting in his limited muggle knowledge for it to simply be a normal chocolate frog. He was wrong.

"Ah!" The frog leaped out of the package, which Maynard promptly dropped in surprise. His eyes widened as the frog began to jump around the cabin, and after a few moments he managed to regain his wits enough to get up and try to catch it. It took a few attempts, but eventually he was holding the squirming frog in his hands, staring down at it incredulously. He looked up at the boy questioningly, a little too confused to put anything into words. There was still a faint blush on his cheeks, and he was just glad this hadn't happened in front of a whole bunch of people. He supposed he'd have to get used to this sort of thing.

[Nadir]

The pleased smile on Kai’s face was wide and bright as the boy took the offered sweet, squirming a little with barely contained glee. He was not use to interacting with those his age - he wasn’t use to interacting with anyone but his mother and her few friends.

When the boy opened the box and cried out at the leaping, charmed chocolate, Kai couldn’t help but laugh, a stifled half choked sound. The sound might be quiet, but his grin was wide and his eyes danced with amusement until the frog was caught and the boy had his prize. The startled look the boy gave him almost made him start his laughing again, but he bit his lip and controlled himself. “It’s chocolate,” he murmured. “Can eat it. Um.” He reached out and snapped a leg off the treat. It wasn’t charmed to react to that, not squirming about as a real frog would. Kai ate the piece, showing the poor blushing muggle it was all right.

“Um. I’m Hart,” he said, not sure which of his two names he should give, not sure he wanted to hear anyone else call him Kai. 

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard's blush grew brighter as he saw the other boy grinning, even more glad that this had only happened in front of one person. He wondered how other muggleborns would fare, being introduced to all this weird stuff. At least the boy didn't seem to be mocking him. He watched in silence as the boy reached out and snapped off one of the frog's legs. It didn't seem like it was in pain, which was good, he wasn't sure he could eat it if it had, and he saw that it was indeed brown all the way through. A small frown returned to his features as the boy ate the leg, but it was a frown of thought more than one of annoyance, or anything like that.

He tentatively raised the frog to his lips as the boy - Hart - told him his name. The movement was beyond strange, but the chocolate tasted good, and, thankfully, just like normal chocolate. He ate the frog, then eyed the boy silently for a few moments. "...Maynard." He spoke softly, awkwardly shifting his eyes away again. He'd never really gotten used to talking to people, the only person he spoke to was his father. If only he knew just how much he had in common with the boy beside him.

After a few moments, he turned his attention back to Hart, resigning himself to at least trying to make conversation with the boy. "So... You're not a mu..." He frowned, the flush returning a little. All these words were hard to remember. "You knew about all this magic and stuff?" He huffed a little, frustrated that he'd lost the word, sure that he'd even thought about it only a few minutes ago. Conversation was hard.

[Nadir]

Kai gave the boy - Maynard - a wide smile when he told him his name, and nodded when he was asked about his blood, his dull brown hair flopping into his eyes. He peered out from under it for a moment before pushing it back. “Not muggle,” he said, giving the word without making a fuss over it. Words were hard. “Don’t know much though,” He dipped his head, smiling shyly. “‘s what school’s for.”

He rocked slightly in his seat, an energy in him that bubbled in his mind and itched at his tongue. He wanted to say so much, he wanted to ask so many questions and find out everything about this boy from the other side of their shared world, but the words sat in a bitter tangle in his throat and would not come.

“Um,” he whispered, his dark blue eyes dragging across the floor as he searched for some word that wasn’t caught. “Whatcha wand?” 

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard felt oddly reassured as Hart gave him the word he was looking for, without making any fuss over the fact that he'd lost it. He didn't know exactly what it was, but he was starting to like the other boy. He began to feel even more relaxed when Hart told him that he didn't know much either. He had been worried that he would be far behind the others. Most of the students here were certainly from wizard families, after all. But if Hart didn't know much, either, then maybe most of them didn't.

When Hart spoke next, it took Maynard a few moments to figure out what he was asking. He shifted awkwardly, before moving over to his bags, pulling out his wand. He stared at it with a mixture of nervousness and reverence. He had felt rather silly as he was trying them out, waving around a stick to see what would happen. But eventually he had picked this one up, and he had felt it. He still felt something when he picked it up now, though not nearly as strong. "He said it was blackthorn, with a phoenix feather core." His flush returned for just a moment as he spoke, staring down at the wand. It still felt silly to say things like that. Phoenixes and dragons. It was almost more strange to think those things existed than magic itself. At least he'd done some of it, before the letter arrived, even if they hadn't really let themselves believe that was what was going on.

He looked up, glancing at the other boy again, wondering if he should offer it to let him look. He didn't know what the etiquette surrounding these things was. But at the same time, he didn't really want to offer it to the boy. It felt like quite a personal thing. It had chosen him after all. "....What about yours?"

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Totally didn't google the things or anything

Core + Wood

Also Shavi is so Cedar and Azelia would be Cypress (Puts it here to remember)

[Nadir]

His gaze fixed on the slender wood rod, his thick brows lifting towards his hairline as Maynard told him inside it was a phoenix feather. They were a powerful core, rare to chose a wizard.  He didn't know about blackthorn, though it sounded dark and prickly, so suited the boy before him rather well. "Mmm," he hummed in admiration and wondered how it felt like, for someone who hadn't known what magic was, to discover it was real.

He smiled a brilliant smile as he was asked about his wand, and went to his trunk to get it. Maynard could see his trunk was neatly packed, books on one side and clothes to the other, the inner side of the lid covered with photographs that moved. Several were of his mother, though all of them were turned away or pulled their hat brims low to hide her face. Others were of quiddich matches, players zipping through the air.

Kai found the Ollivander box and brought it to Maynard, opening it reverently. It was a hansom wand, he'd been told, pale with the softest pink hue, long and "reasonably supple" whatever that had meant. He lifted it out, the warm rush of power through his arm making his smile turn to a grin. "Dragon, and beech," he said, pride thick in his soft voice. His mother had been so proud, and Ollivander had been impressed. It was a powerful union, and he'd been told, if he worked hard and practice, he'd make quite the name for himself. His mother had rolled her eyes behind the wandmaker's back but hadn't told him why.

At that moment, there was a piercing whistle - they were about to leave the station. Kai looked out of the window to the platform, but didn't expect to see his mother. She was long gone, he knew. "Heard about Houses?" he asked, turning away from the window. The conductor was walking down the length of the train, slamming the doors shut. Kai was getting more nervous by the second, but tried to ignore the sensation.   

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard watched in awkward silence as Hart reacted to hearing what his wand was made of. The wandmaker had made a bit of a fuss about the core, saying that it was quite rare. He wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing, however, and Hart's reaction was too vague to get any idea. The boy smiled brightly when he was asked about his own, however, and quickly went to his own luggage. Maynard didn't intend to peek, he really didn't, but movement caught his eye, and he couldn't help but stare a little at the photos. They, like the frog earlier, were moving. There was a woman in a few of them, Maynard assumed they would be the boy's mother, though she seemed to be hiding from sight. That realization made him realize he was looking at something that was no doubt quite personal, and he quickly averted his eyes, pink once more tinging his cheeks. He was beginning to wonder if he would be able to go five minutes during this trip without doing something embarrassing.

Thankfully his eyes had something else to latch onto, and he looked at the wand with interest. He could tell that the boy was quite proud of it, and his tone, mixed with the bright smile on his face, managed to bring out a small smile on Maynard's face as well. The boy looked so genuinely happy, Maynard was used to people either teasing him or just getting sick of his 'attitude.' Hart, however, didn't even seem liked he'd noticed.

A moment later there was a whistle, no doubt signalling that the train was about to leave. For a moment, he felt a spike of panic. He was really leaving, for almost a whole year. He fought the anxiety down, and he was thankful when the boy spoke again, giving him something else to think about. "A little..." He'd read through a few of the books he'd had to buy for the school year. He didn't understand a lot of it, of course, but the history book about Hogwarts had mostly been understandable. He could still remember vaguely what had been said about each of the houses, though he had no idea which one he might end up in. He stayed silent for a few moments, before talking again. "Do you have any idea which one you'll be in?"

[Nadir]

He felt choked by too many words again, all struggling to be said at once, too afraid to say any of them in case they all rushed out at once. He swallowed and lifted his narrow shoulders in a wordless shrug. "Not Gryffindor," he said with certainty in his soft hushed voice. "Gotta be brave for that one." Not quite why he was sure he'd not end up there, but it was better to be thought a coward. No, he was pretty sure where he'd end up going, a coin flip between Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Not that his mother had told him much about the houses, but based on the few things she had disclosed, he was sure he'd not fit the canon of Gryffindor nor Hufflepuff. He repeated it to Maynard, in case he didn't know. "Gryffindors are brave and fierce. Ravenclaws are thinkers. Hufflepuffs are friendly and loyal. Slytherins are... smart." That was the most words he'd ever said to anyone in one go, who wasn't his mother. He worried his lower lip. He'd said smart with the mimicry of his mother's inflection, as if a different word had been on her tongue but she'd pulled it back, twisted it like a length of wire into a different shape that suited her needs better.

For all that he'd been kept out of society, Kai still knew enough to be able to guess at what she may have hesitated to say. The deeds of Lord Voldemort and his Deatheaters were still made mention of in the Daily Prophet, still gossiped about in the streets. They were Slytherins, or enough of them were that no one cared to be correct, and what they had done was Evil. Therefore, Slytherins were Evil. Kai didn't think he was evil, but there were other words that fit him. Sly, ambitious, cruel. But because he was those things, he could see why his mother had thought to plant the idea in his head that he needed to avoid the house of the snake. If you were Slytherin in this day and age, you were automatically guilty in some eyes. It would hinder him, so it would be better to get a different house... but she'd thought better of it. At the last moment, she'd changed her mind. For what purpose?

He couldn't tell.

Up towards the engine, a man cried out "All aboard! All aboard!" Kai thought the train would start moving at once, but it seemed to be a last chance fore any lingering students to get in. "Never been on a train," he admitted, hugging himself a little. 

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard remained silent as Hart told him he was sure he’d not end up in Gryffindor, his brows knitting into a small frown. He didn’t really disagree, of course, the boy did seem to be quite timid, after all. He wasn’t even sure what about it was making him frown. Perhaps he’d already come to like this other boy enough not to want him to put himself down. It was a somewhat disturbing thought. Hart didn’t seem to be too bothered by his assertion that he wasn’t brave, though…
He listened with interest as Hart gave him a summary of the houses, brow knitting further as he caught the slight hesitation on the last word. It seemed as if he had been about to say something else. For a moment, he considered asking, but he decided to drop it. If the shy boy in front of him didn’t want to bring it up, that was fine. He could gather enough from the context that it probably wasn’t good. No doubt, if it was as common knowledge as the information on the other houses, he would hear it soon enough. He still wasn’t sure which house he would end up in. His dad probably would’ve been able to decide.
The final call for passengers came, and he watched as Hart seemed to curl in on himself. The boy admitted to it being his first time on a train, and Maynard opened his mouth, hoping to reassure the boy. He closed his mouth without speaking, however, realizing that saying it was ‘like a car but on tracks,’ might not mean anything to the boy. It seemed odd, but if the boy had never been on a train, maybe the he knew as little about the muggle world as Maynard did about the magical one. Besides, after the moving frog and pictures, could he really be sure that this train wouldn’t do something just as unexpected? With that in mind, he figured that the best way to help Hart’s – and admittedly his own – was to keep talking. “…Do you know how to do any magic, yet?”

[Nadir]

“Ummm,” Hart said at the question about magic. Was it a trap? “Some,” he finally admitted, because knowing magic wasn’t wrong, he’d seen his mother casting spells, had watched her closely. She didn’t teach him her spells, didn’t let him touch her wand, but sometimes she would move her hand slower, say the words out loud instead of in her head, so he could pick up what she was doing. It gave him a giddy thrill, and she knew how he loved it.

He drummed his fingers on the seat, plush red velvet under his fingertips, then stood, making a decision. Kai went to his trunk and took from ip a sheet of parchment, bringing it back to Maynard and sitting again. He folded the parchment with care, doing his best to line it up properly, but it was then that the train started moving, a sudden jerk at first that almost toppled Hart onto the floor. “Shit!” he squeaked, hair flopping into his eyes. He looked at Maynard, blue eyes wide, not sure it was meant to do that - but the people out side were waving frantically, not worried or afraid, and the train was moving, slowly gathering speed.

He looked out at the platform for a silent moment, a bitter taste in his mouth and a desperate ache behind his eyes. Stupid, he berated himself, blinking hard and looking at the parchment again. It was slightly crumpled, but he carried on, folding until he held a paper plane with slightly lopsided wings and a crooked nose.

“Multus Locomotor,” he said, twitching his wand at the plane. It gave a shiver and flopped over.

Kai frowned. “s’ment to fly,” he grumbled. He narrowed his eyes at his wand, lifted it to eye height and said, “Lumos.” The end lit with a soft light, so it did work. He’d worried it was a dud. "Nox." The wandlight died. Still frowning, he poked the paper again, “Multus Locomotor.” It didn’t move.

“I’m probably not getting into Ravenclaw, either,” he said, annoyed at his own failure but knowing it was amusing all the same.

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard felt a little thrill as Hart moved towards his trunk, excited by the idea of seeing more magic. Of course, he had already seen some, had it performed on him, in fact, but it was hardly the sort of thing you got used to quickly. He almost expected something to happen even as the boy was folding the paper, and the anticipation led to the sudden movement of the train to catch him off guard. Thankfully, he avoided making any noise, but he found himself grabbing the seat in surprise. The sound of Hart’s squeaked profanity brought another small smile to his lips, but it faltered when he looked back up at the boy. It was only for a moment, but he could tell the boy was upset, as hard as he was trying to hide it. But he wasn’t going to make a big deal of it. He was sad to be leaving his father behind, too.

Instead, he directed his gaze back down to the paper plane, Hart was making. His breath caught for a moment as the plane twitched. He could tell it wasn’t what Hart had been trying to do, but he was still amazed. Then Hart spoke another word, and the tip of his wand lit up, like a torch. The other boy didn’t seem to be nearly as impressed by this feat as he was, as after a few moments he was trying the other spell again. This time, it didn’t even move, but Maynard was still amazed.  He smiled again when Hart said he wouldn’t be in Ravenclaw, either, shaking his head once, firmly. “You’re just learning. That’s why we’re going to school, right?”

Maynard wasn’t only amazed by the magic, he was stunned by how much easier it was to talk to this boy than he’d thought it would be. He was even smiling. Was it because of his new body? Or was it just something about Hart? Maybe it was a mix of both. Either way, it seemed that he was finally making a friend.

[Nadir]

Kai looked at the other boy from under his fringe, a coy smirk twisting his mouth. Of course he was frustrated the spell hadn’t worked, it would have been cool to do magic - more than just simple-as-breathing ones like lumos - but having this stranger shake his head when Hart disparaged himself, no matter how lightheartedly, felt almost as good. His mother had told him failure only happens when you stop trying - or when you get caught.

Hart gave Maynard a grin. “I’ll practice and show you when I get it right. It’s my favourite spell!” He wondered what class would teach it. His gaze flicked over to the window, at the blur of scenery passing the window. Looking at it and feeling the motion of the train didn’t agree with him at all.

He bit his lip, dragging his gaze away and asked, “Musta done some magic, for a Hogwarts letter. What’d you do?”

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard smiled in return to Hart's grin, looking forward to when Hart would show him the spell properly. He couldn't help but notice the slight change in the other boy when he looked out the window, though he couldn't quite tell if it was because of the train or something else. It didn't really matter, though, it wasn't like he was going to bring it up.

He was caught by surprise by the next question, however, and his face reddened as he remembered what had happened. An older kid had managed to corner him and had been teasing him about the way he dressed and the way he acted. He had tried to fight back, but his small stature and lack of experience had made it impossible. But then the boy had said something that made something snap. He could still barely believe what had happened, but the next strike had sent the bully flying. The boy had hit the wall hard enough to leave a dent in it, and he ended up in hospital. He made a full recovery, but it was still awkward to talk about.

"I... Uh..." He shifted awkwardly in his seat, looking away from Hart. "I hit a guy so hard he went flying into the wall." He supposed he could have lied about it, but he didn't really want to. Maynard had never really had someone be so nice to him before, and so genuinely interested in him. He couldn't really bring himself to lie about it to him.

[Nadir]

His eyebrows lifted high, all but vanishing under his dull hair. “Wow, really?” The question wasn’t horrified but amusement edged with excitement. “That’s better that what I did,” he said. He twisted his wand in his hand nervously, tilting his head to a side. “I, um.” His tone was shy but his mouth was curved into a wicked smile. “... appeared in the middle of someone’s birthday party. A muggle’s.” It had been after a week of being alone. His mother had said she’d only be gone two days. He’d gotten so lonely that he’d shut his eyes and wished... only to open them surrounded by dozens of other children, all laughing and playing.

Hart hadn’t had fun, though, he had been terrified and had an awful time trying to find his way home again.

But he smiled and lifted his narrow shoulders in a wry shrug. “I really really wanted some cake,” he lied, flashing a grin. 

[Sparrowhawke]

The small boy gave an internal sigh of relief at Hart's reaction, glad that he didn't seem to look down on him, or fear him. He knew his temper could get the best of him sometimes, but he didn't want Hart to be scared off by it. And even his embarrassment was relieved as the brown haired boy started recounting his own embarrassing tale of how he had appeared in the middle of a muggle's birthday party. Maynard did his best to keep himself from smiling, but he could tell that, despite his best efforts, the corners of his mouth were lifting. If he'd known more about how 'accidental' magic worked, he might have put the clues together, but as it was, he just assumed that odd magic was a normal thing for young wizards, even those born to magical families.

The mental image of a bunch of kids reacting to the mousy haired boy appearing in his midst was an amusing one, but he did his best to hide it, not wanting the boy to be any more embarrassed by the story than he was. It was a relief, though, to know that those sorts of accidents weren't uncommon, that it wasn't just him. It had certainly been difficult to explain. He might have been a 'tomboy,' but he had still had the body of a rather small girl at the time, and the boy bullying him had been significantly larger.

Only his father had even said he believed him, and Maynard wondered if he truly had, or if he'd just been saying so to help calm him down, at least until the letter came. But Maynard had known it was he who had done it, and he'd worked hard to make sure nothing like it happened again. Of course, small things had still happened, when he was excited or upset, but nothing that blatant, and nothing that had gotten anyone hurt.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when there was a knock on the compartment door. He turned to look just in time to see it open, a bright red head poking through the gap. He looked around for a moment, before bursting into a bright smile. "Azi, there's room in here!" A moment later, another head, female but just as red as the first, poked in. She frowned down at who Maynard assumed was her brother, twins by the look of them, then gave the original occupants of the room an apologetic smile. "Sorry about him. Do you mind if we come in?"

Maynard shifted a little, looking over to Hart, not sure what to do or say. He had been enjoying his time with Hart, but he didn't want to be rude and turn them away.

[Nadir]

Seeing the dower boy struggle with a smile made Kai feel better. To make such a grumpy person smile - or almost smile - was a victory. He could do this. He relaxed viably, tension in his narrow shoulders easing but not fading utterly. He was about to say something, but then the door rattled open. He blinked at the two as they edged in, past his trunk where it was, still sitting where he'd left it, the lid open and he felt a hard, piercing jab of panic. What if they took his things.

They wouldn't. You didn't steal when people were watching. That was just common sense. So he smiled at the two, though he watched them closely. "Hello," he tried to say, but his voice died to nothing and the word snagged and tangled in his throat, so the sound was a simple "H-" He nodded though at the question, moving to his original seat and tossing the empty wand box back into the trunk before kicking it closed and shoving it to a side. The locks had snapped into place the moment the lid had come down, a sweet little charm his mother had placed that would repel most opening-spells. Nothing too heavy or violently defensive, as what he had wasn't worth it. His wand he slipped into his pocket. "Um," he said, his voice as hesitant and soft as it had been when he'd first started talking to Maynard. "I'm Hart. 'S Maynard," he murmured, nodding towards the other boy. "Y'firsties too?" He looked between both of the red-heads, gaze sliding up to their hair before he could stop himself and then to the dull brown flick of his own hair that had flopped, once more, over his eyes. He felt a twist of yearning in him that he wasn't sure about, and tried to focus more on the newcomers.

[Sparrowhawke]

The red haired male was either oblivious to the awkwardness his entrance had caused, or just didn't care. As soon as he was sure that the original occupants of the car weren't going to kick them back out, he made his way over to one of the free seats. His sister rolled her eyes, still looking somewhat apologetic as she made her way to sit next to her twin. She smiled at the mousy-haired boy as he spoke, doing her best to seem as non-threatening as possible, since he seemed shy. "My name is Azelia, most people just call me Azi, though." She turned to look at her brother. "And this is-"

"Shavain." He grinned, shifting a little bit, but seeming to think better of trying to offer his hand towards either of the two boys in the car. "Weasleys, if the hair didn't already give it away." He couldn't quite tell if either of the boys were from wizarding families or muggles, and he hoped that dropping their last name might give a clue. Azelia spoke up again, addressing the question that Shavain seemed to be ignoring. "Yes, we're first years as well."

Maynard remained silent, watching the two with guarded expressions. He had no idea what a 'Weasley' was, though with the reference to their hair he assumed it was either a family name or some other wizarding thing. He wasn't aware of it, but his usual scowl had reasserted itself now that he was faced with more strangers. He was a little disappointed to hear that the pair were first years, they might be able to tell him much more than he or Hart already knew, but that hardly mattered if he wouldn't be able to speak to them anyway. The girl seemed calm and reasonable, but the boy was far too energetic, and his grin just a little too mischievous, for Maynard's liking.

[Nadir]

Kai tilted his head, brows raising at the name. Weasley. An old house. Purebloods... mostly. His mother always use to roll her eyes a little at any mention of the magical elite. He wondered if he should bother trying to be friends with them, but then decided it couldn't do him harm. He grasped their names in his mind, determined to remember them. "Azelia," he repeated softly. "Shavain." They were good names, he thought. Smooth and sharp, like razor blades against his tongue, slicing free of the tangles that clotted his throat.

He twisted his hands together, feeling an uncertainty he'd not felt a moment before, when it was only he and Maynard. He flicked his gaze to the smaller boy, bit his lip and looked back to the newcomers. "Um," he tried. "W-w. Um. We were j-just talking about the school. M... my mother wouldn't tell me about it, beyond Houses, and he," Kai tipped his head in Maynard's direction, his plain hair flopping into his eyes. "um. He's muggleborn. So. Uh. Is it... how is it?" His voice had rasped and stumbled, but he forced himself to do it.   

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the mousy haired boy as he stammered out his responses. He was a little disappointed that Hart's initial shyness had returned, he'd actually been enjoying the conversation they'd been having. It was almost enough to make him want to tell the two strangers to leave, and he might have if he weren't feeling so out of place here. He didn't want to burn bridges here before he even had a chance to settle in, either, so he kept his tongue. He only hoped there would be plenty of opportunity to talk to Hart later.

Shavain opened his mouth to answer Hart's question but, perhaps sensing what he was about to say, Azelia quickly nudged her twin in the ribs, speaking instead. "Our older brother comes here, but he didn't want us in the same car." She cast a long glance at her brother. "No idea why." She turned her attention back to the other two. "But he said it's really good. The whole sorting thing can be a little daunting, but it's over pretty quick." She smiled a little. "He wouldn't tell us any more about that, though, and believe me, Shavi tried." Shavain grinned in response, and it was immediately obvious just what sort of tactics he'd attempted while trying to get their older brother to spill the beans.

Azelia smiled at Maynard comfortingly as she continued. "It must be pretty freaky, coming into all of this, but one of Eivan's friends is muggleborn as well. It's really easy to catch up. Even people from full wizarding families like us don't tend to know much when we start out."

[Nadir]

Kai felt Maynard bristle a little beside him, even though the two siblings had done nothing wrong. He flicked the smaller boy a glance, half thinking he’s done something wrong, maybe mis-stepping by disclosing his muggle heritage, but no, he wasn’t scowling at Kai. He was just grumpy in a rather general way. Kai gave him a smile, and looked to Azelia as she spoke, his smile broadening.

He relaxed as she went on, and nodded as Azelia told Maynard he’d not have much to catch up on. “Can’t imagine what it’s like, to suddenly find out.” He felt questions bubble at his throat, he wanted to ask how different it was, to be a muggle, to live in that world without magic. He wanted to ask what he’d liked most about it, so far, though that hardly seemed fair to ask, when he’d seen so little yet.

He squirmed a little in his seat, his grin with excitement. “S’gonna be so fun!” he exclaimed. It wasn’t magic he was excited for, though that was wonderful. It was the thought of having friends and being around people that made him almost burst with glee. “Y’think... y’think we could sit together, in class? Might not get the same House, but...” He looked hopefully, shyly, to the three.

[Sparrowhawke]

Maynard felt some of his grump melt away as he saw Hart smiling again, and hearing some of the confidence come back into the timid boy's voice softened his expression further. He still looked grumpy, of course, but in a more passive way, as if it was just how he was used to being. Both Hart and Azelia commented on how much of a shock it must have been for him to find out, and he thought back to when the letter had arrived. His father had suspected it was some horrible joke, but eventually he had been convinced. Maynard supposed it had been quite a shock, but the discovery that they could give him the body he wanted had been a much bigger one. He wasn't about to bring that up, though. Even if he had wanted to, he was scared that the wizarding world might still be as bigoted as the muggle one.

Before his silence on the matter could go on long enough to be noticed, Hart was talking again, squirming with excitement. He was so obviously happy that even Maynard cracked a hint of a smile. "I'd like that..." He spoke quietly, still unsure of himself with these two new strangers in the car. The idea that they might not end up in classes together worried him, but he'd already made up his mind that he was going to find some way to talk with this boy more.

Both of the twins smiled at the same time, exaggerating for a moment how similar they looked despite being different genders, though Shavain's held a touch more mischief than Azelia's. "Of course!" Shavain spoke at the same time as his sister said, "we'd love to." They were obviously used to moments like these, as neither of them batted an eye. A moment later, Shavain moved to reach for his suitcase, digging through it for a moment before pulling out a number of small pastries. "Anyone want some cauldron cakes? I'll eat 'em all if you don't."