Infatuation - Tom Riddle

Three

Abraxas and Merida approach the grand entrance towering over them as students pass by to enter the school. Merida thought Ilvermorny was beautiful but Hogwarts, Hogwarts was something else. The castle was unlike any building she'd ever seen before, and as Abraxas gently tugged her inside, a warm feeling bubbled in her chest. The thought of a new chapter in her life entices her and by physically standing in the great hallway of the castle, she's overcome with excitement.

Of course, Abraxas notices Merida's awed expression. Her face was practically glowing as she looked around at the new environment. Her face stayed glued with a smile and her cheeks flushed red as the tall blonde walked her up the grand staircase, occasionally telling her stories of the moving paintings and what rooms are on which floors.

"Where's the painting for the Slytherin commons?" Merida's brows furrowed as Abraxas continued pulling her higher and higher up the steps. He halted for a moment to answer her question, a small smirk present on his face once again.

"We don't get a painting, we're in the dungeons." He winked before continuing to drag the curious witch all the way up to the headmaster's office. That was rather peculiar, she kept that at the back of her mind as they reached the last few steps at the top. After all, what kind of school had dungeons?

Merida frowned once she realized she was deep in her own thoughts and barely noticed that Abraxas began to descend the steps, leaving her stood alone in front of a golden entryway, opening into a marble spiraled staircase leading to the office.

"Where are you off to?" She asked. Abraxas looked over his shoulder before the staircase he was on began to turn to the side. "They do that sometimes," she remembers the Malfoy boy telling her on the train ride.

"To the great hall of course, if the hat has any sense in it I'll be sure to see you at my table soon enough." With a small smile and the staircase coming to a halt, Abraxas continued down and Merida was left to speak to the headmaster on her own.

This was all incredibly new to the brunette. She noticed some of the students entering the school when they arrived already had robes on, while herself and Abraxas were still in their regular clothing. She smiled at the thought of the boy once again, he'd been of so much help to her already. A small feeling of guilt tugged at her heart but she quickly pushed it away as she continued to ascend the spiral staircase. He doesn't know why she really transferred and he never will, she'll make sure of it. Merida didn't want to lose the only friend she has so far. She managed to repress thoughts of what had happened the past year at Ilvermorny all summer, however as she continued to fantasize about her new life at Hogwarts, worry of the events repeating themselves crept into her mind. No, she won't make the same mistake as before.

Finally, Merida reached the top and stood in front of a beautiful landscape painting, she figured it was the entrance to the office.

"Oh!" Merida heard a man behind the painting exclaim before it swung wide open, revealing a beautiful little office. Stood at the center was headmaster Dippet, with a soft smile gracing his worn out face. "Ms. Waters! What a pleasure to have you here!" Merida smiled at the small man, taking in her surroundings. Potions filled up the shelves around the room, as well as a fair amount of large worn out books, and a small liquor bottle that sat atop his desk. What had quickly caught her attention was the worn out leather hat resting on a small stool next to the headmaster. Merida eyed the sorting hat carefully, unsure of how the next few moments were going to unfold.

Headmaster Dippet walked over to Merida and gently pushed her towards the hat. "Now dear," he began, "there is no need for you to be nervous, I know the house system is quite different here than what you're used to in America, however you will fit in just fine in whichever house you are placed in. The hat never lies!"