Arcane [Sirius Black]

Chapter 6 - Sorted & Spotted

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AFTER A LONG journey, Diana was dressed in blank robes and clambering off the train that had finally arrived at Hogsmeade station.

She had to suppress a loud laugh when she saw an extremely large man escorting first-years toward the dock.

She wasn't laughing at him, but rather the ironic fact that Hogwarts had giants (or at least half-giants) working there.

Her parents had come up with some god awful excuse for her leaving Beauxbatons, saying they were disapproving of the new appointment of one Madame Maxime as a teacher. The woman was a half-giant too and although her parents did have something against the idea, it was blatantly obvious now their excuse was just that; an excuse.

It was clear they hadn't done their research in cross-referencing who Hogwarts appointed for staff before blaming their escape on the fact.

No one called for her, so she assumed she was safe to continue traveling along with Marlene and Lily, who she had finally remembered were the girls James was staring at outside Florean Fortescue's.

They ambled along a dimly lit dirt path, coming to a stop near a long line of carriages. They were not as intricate as the Beauxbatons carriage, but still ornate. Leading the transport were great skeletal horses with a reptilian hide and vast leathery wings.

Diana's mouth parted at the sight and her eyes widened slightly.

"What are those?" She asked in a hushed tone.

"What are what?" Marlene asked back.

"The things leading the carriages? The horses?"

"You winding me up?" Marlene laughed, "They're meant to lead themselves."

"Oh," Diana furrowed her brows, growing silent. Was she seriously hallucinating right now? That's embarrassing.

Lily, however, looked contemplative and gave Diana a quick squeeze to the shoulder before hopping into the nearest carriage. Diana and Marlene followed.

Two more girls climbed in shortly after. One had shoulder-length, fluffy caramel coloured hair and the other shorter, brown strands.

"Mary! Alice! Where were you two on the train?" Said Marlene.

"We were sitting with some Hufflepuff friends of Alice's," Said Mary, the girl who had the shorter locks. Marlene hummed.

"I was hoping you'd say you were hiding out in Frank Longbottom's compartment or something," She smirked.

"Of course not!" Alice blushed.

"I'm sure you would have liked that, though," Marlene continued.

"I won't admit nor deny anything."

Marlene chuckled and sent Alice an over-exaggerated wink.

The ride continued pleasantly and Diana was introduced to the two girls. Alice seemed proper sweet while Mary seemed genuinely interested in getting to know her better.

Diana felt queasy thinking about that.

She didn't understand what was wrong with her. These girls all seemed so kind and accepting, yet here she was brainstorming ways to get away. She must have just been nervous about getting split from them during her sorting...yeah, that must be it.

When they arrived at the castle, Diana was once again brought to silence at the sight. There'd been a lot of that lately.

Its expanse was immense and captivating. Turrets reached the stars and warm lights flickered in small stained-glass windows. There were courtyards and bridges, towers, and grand entryways. It was like something out of a fairytale.