landslide [marauders era]

chapter three: embraces and embarrassments

CHAPTER THREE: EMBRACES & EMBARRASSMENTS

"and i naturally fled" - heaven knows i'm miserable now, the smiths

BY THE TIME THAT the darkness of the night had greeted the trio and the outskirts of Hogsmeade were in sight, they had just managed to stuff themselves into their uniforms and had somewhat cleaned up the sweet wrappers that littered the compartment. Too caught up in their conversation, the significance had somehow slipped Juliet's mind that all three of their uniforms were not adorned in the same colours.

Bonnie basked in the yellow that lined her jumper, and beamed with poorly concealed pride over her prefect badge, as she hurried back from the prefect's meeting. Kiernan's uniform was similarly adorned in the signature Hufflepuff colours, and already had some sort of stain on the bottom of his jumper to neither of their surprise. Juliet however, was saddled with the markings of Gryffindor, the red and gold bursting off the grey of her jumper.

See, Juliet had nothing against Gryffindor per say, but she often felt a significant disconnect with the house. In fact, she found the entire house divide, and subsequent house pride, quite disconcerting and couldn't understand why students would engage in genuine rivalries over such ridiculous things. Juliet also found that she didn't particularly get along with her fellow housemates, or at least those in her year, for most of them embodied the typical Gryffindor traits of obnoxious and conceited. There was no particular distaste for them, but she just found the company of Bonnie and Kieran far more alluring compared to the likes of more raucous teenagers. Besides she didn't exactly think she looked riveting in red.

Pushing aside her qualms, Juliet shifted in her uniform, not used to it after a long summer of Ruth Wells-sanctioned dresses and gowns. She was glad to be in something that didn't feel like it was weighing her down, and allowed her to move without the fear of taking down whatever was in a one-metre radius of her. The reality of being back at Hogwarts and being able to just be a normal teenager for a bit was starting to creep on her, and Juliet found her excitement to be immeasurable. She almost had to pinch herself during the train journey with Kieran and Bonnie, for the entire thing felt like one her many daydreams over summer.

The Hogwarts Express ground to a screeching halt and the three of them desperately scrambled to distribute their belongings amongst each other. Any friendly nature towards their peers was lost, as the three of them elbowed their way through the students in an attempt to get to the first round of carriages. Not even Bonnie's prefect status hindered her from shoving past a particularly large group of Second Years.

For five years in a row, the trio had been caught in the rain waiting for the last few rounds of carriages, and they were determined to end the tradition promptly. Managing to snag the last carriage in the set going up to the castle, they collapsed inside in a hurried pile of rumpled uniforms and scattered belongings, with a disgruntled Celeste meowing her complaints. Their victory of finding an empty carriage didn't last long though, for right as they untangled themselves, a handsome face popped his head through the door in greeting.