𝒯𝑜 𝒩𝑒𝓌 𝐵𝑒𝑔𝒾𝓃𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈

September 1st, 1993

𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝐹𝒾𝓋𝑒

Everything after the dementor encounter on the train was one big blur of motion and forgotten actions.

Eventually, the girl must have made it back to the compartment. Having been stirred to leave the train when it had finally come to a stop. Separated from Theodore Nott as he disappeared from her sight in the crowds that formed in narrow walkways.

Eventually, she left the train, taking advantage of being blessed with a taller height than most. Her eyes darted around the mass of students, all seemingly funneling one way. But before she could mindlessly follow the crowd, the shouting of a man stirred her mind again. A heavily accented voice, one you can so easily mimic in your own mind, "Firs' years this way!" Iris seemed to think she was included in that grouping.

Eventually, the group she had so quickly joined up with was led to the edge of a lake. If Iris had paid any mind to the details of what was happening around her, she would have realized that the poor first years she joined in a boat looked anything but happy about the older girl's presence.

Iris was beyond zoned out. Her expression perfectly empty as she simply stared ahead... hand hovering over the water, fingers just gliding through the icy water with the faintest of touches.

The man that led the group hollered out once more sometime in the slow crossing of the lake, preparing the children to duck their heads for the upcoming cave of sorts they were about to pass through.

Iris, of course, complied. Finally seeming to break free of whatever abyss she had been lost in as she grumbled to herself. Back having to ache as she lowered herself enough to awkwardly avoid slamming her face straight into a rock. It was a trip better suited for the smaller first years, a simple bending of the neck for them.

Iris was slow to raise back up... gaze preparing to just continue staring blankly ahead... then there it was.

A castle. Up on a hill, surrounded by a seemingly endless stretch of forest and mountains... the castle.

With nothing but the glow of the moon to shine upon the stone walls, one would lose themselves on the exact details. But you didn't need to know the color of the stone to take in the sight.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was one of those sights that imprint itself so deeply into your brain that even a strange lapse in memory could not kill it. It was a grand castle with tall towers that reached the sky, arches that were nothing but welcoming, and statues of gargoyles to offer a watchful sense of protection.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was... magnificent. And just looking at it, one would have to know that it was a place you had to be extremely lucky to set your eyes upon.

Iris' lips had parted the slightest, eyes wide as they took in just what she was seeing. Her hand remained in the water, fingers frozen in their endless glide. The air brushed through her hair, allowing her to see without interruptions.

Iris was completely lost in that moment, staring up at the gold glows of the windows. Staring at the way the moon bounced off the walls.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

A school, of course... but also a home for the generations of students that walked its halls.

Her new home...

~~~~~~

The path from off the boats and up to the castle was sketchy at best. Hell, the small eleven-year-olds needed a hand just hopping off the boats and onto the rocky surface that made up the ground. Clocks snagged. Shoes slipped. Children fell.