Collision - Fred Weasley

Chapter four

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The train finally came to a halt, the nostalgic sounding of students gathering their suitcases and belongings, and rushing towards the train exit, excited and nervous first years waiting till the exit isn't over-flooded by the higher years.

Lyra stood up, adjusting her clothes as Astoria beamed beside her, her excitement to return to Hogwarts almost palpable. None of them had the time to change into the school robes, because of the incident.

"Come on, Lyra, hurry!" Astoria grabbed Lyra's arm, pulling her towards the door of the compartment. 

Blaise and Pansy followed closely behind, chatting about how they were looking forward to the Sorting Ceremony, while Draco trailed after them, his mood still sour. Lyra rolled her eyes at this.

Outside, the crisp evening air hit them as they stepped onto the platform. The dark sky loomed above them, covered with stars, and far off in the distance, the majestic silhouette of Hogwarts stood proudly on the hill, its many windows lighting up the dark brick walls.

"First years! Over here! First years, follow me!" Hagrid's booming voice echoed across the station as the group of younger students gathered around him, ready to take the boats across the lake for their first view of the school. 

Pansy and Astoria looked towards one another other and chuckled.

The two girls had fond memories of that journey, but this year they would actually take the carriages—that pull themselves, to the castle.

Astoria nudged Pansy her playfully. "I still remember our first boat ride. Draco was terrified of falling in."

Pansy recalled the memory and rolled her eyes, though a smile tugged at her lips. "I wasn't terrified. Just cautious. There's a difference." Draco suddenly chimed in.

Draco looked Astoria up and down, before scoffing, trailing quickly before them, still clearly irritated, but nothing more as they made their way toward the carriages.

"What's got your wand in a knot?" Astoria suddenly called out behind him, obviously tired of Draco's negative behaviour.

Draco turned his head at this, looking awfully guilty. "Can we not talk about this now?" He groaned, Astoria only gave him a quick nod in return. Lyra raised an eyebrow at them. The way he said that made it sound like they were in some kind of, something.

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Lyra shared a carriage with Pansy, Blaise, and Astoria, with Draco sitting stiffly across from Lyra, still brooding over the earlier conversation. He would let out long exhausting sighs by time to time, 

As the carriage creaked slowly into motion, Lyra could relax for a moment, the cool breeze brushing against her face. 

Despite the tension from earlier, there was always something reassuring about returning to Hogwarts. It was a constant—no matter what happened in the outside world, Hogwarts always felt like home.

"You guys have heard right?" Pansy started, looking at the group, "Sirius Black had broken out of Azkaban." She said in a hushed tone.

"You lot should be careful, he could be roaming around in this very forest now." Blaise joked, earning a scowl from Draco. "No chance." Draco stated.

"My parents were furious when they found out," Lyra breathed out, recalling the earlier incident. 

Pansy and Astoria gave her a pity-ful smile. They know how her mother can be sometimes, and the Arakan familiy didn't exactly have deep interest in the infamous Sirius Black.

The conversation moved on, Astoria talked about how excited she was for the new year and which subjects she wanted to focus on.

Lyra, on the other hand, gazed out in the dark forest. Her thoughts drifting as the towering castle grew closer. She felt the familiar pull of anticipation in her chest—Quidditch, classes, house rivalries, and a certain redheaded boy, everything was about to start again. 

She wasn't sure if she was ready for the chaos, but at least she had a sense of where she belonged in all of it. 

Suddenly, the carriage jolted to a stop at the entrance to the castle. Chatter growing louder as everyone prepared to make their way into the Great Hall.

As the five stepped out of the carriage, Lyra's eyes scanned the familiar scene. 

The warm lights spilling out from the massive entrance, the distant sounds of laughter and conversations, and sights of ghost roaming around—it was all so comforting.

Draco took a step forward, his usual smirk returning now that they were back on familiar ground. "Come on," he muttered, his mood lifting slightly. "I want to see who gets sorted this year."

Astoria looped her arm through Lyra's, practically bouncing on her feet. "I really hope there are a number of a lot getting sorted into Slytherin this year."

"numbers of a lot?" Pansy commented dryly, though her smile betrayed her playfulness. "That doesn't even make sense.."

The group made their way inside, joining the rest of the students in the rush towards the Great Hall. The tables for each house were filling quickly, students greeting their friends after the long summer break. 

The group, including Lyra took a seat by the Slytherin table, where they were greeted by Crabbe and Goyle, Theadore nott and Astorias elder sister, Daphne Greengrass, who's hair was a bit more messed up than usual, and her lipstick slightly smeared.

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