Boarding the Train (open to anyone)

[Nichole Ryan G4]

Nichole let out a sigh as she got to King's Cross Station. According to what her letter told her, she'd have to go through the brick wall between Platforms 9 and 10 in order to get to Platform 9 3/4. She hugged her parents and siblings goodbye before crossing the barrier, telling them that she'd be home for Christmas. Once she went through the barrier, she let out a sigh. Everyone already seemed to know each other and no one even spared a glance in her direction. Holding in her tears, she got on the train and started looking for a compartment. Luckily for her, she found an empty one rather quickly. Putting Eddie's cage on the seat next to hers, she took out the newest copy of Decibel magazine and started looking through it, resigning herself to a lonely train ride

[Melody Bang-Bala G6]

Melody was sad to be leaving home once again. It was a place of peace, love and affection, and her responsibilities there weren't daunting ones. They were responsibilities of being kind and helpful, not of keeping up with work or of making an effort to socialise with people whom she didn't know well enough to be accepted amongst without saying anything sometimes. Granted, though, it didn't have the excitement of the Muggle world, nor the exhilarating sport of Quidditch (although that could be made up for by country walks and playing cricket and football with the local lads). Melody would have liked the summer holidays to have lasted longer, but in the absence of such a fortunate event, she was getting herself a bit excited about going back. She still wouldn't be on the main Gryffindor Quidditch team, but Cassandra had promised her she'd get to play in the first game of the year against Slytherin, as a result of her good performance in their last game against Ravenclaw. Perhaps she could find someone to share her enthusiasm for music with this year, someone who'd join in. That would be fun. She could enjoy more Transfiguration lessons as well. There was much to be cheerful about.

In fact, she was even sufficiently back to her old self to be humming the theme tune to 'The Great Escape' to herself as they boarded the train, her head bobbing slightly from side to side, and as usual her bunches bobbing far more wildly as she did so. Hebe, helping to carry her numerous instrument cases (guitar and flute were what she was best at, but the trombone and violin had to be carried too), did not look particularly amused or indeed delighted. However, she had appeared rather glum on the way to King's Cross, so perhaps the look on her face wasn't the result of bad temper simply with Melody. The young Gryffindor gave her cousin an unsure smile, wanting to ask what was wrong but the nature of her friendship with the slightly intimidating older girl forbidding it. Both of them being only children, they did love each other almost like sisters, but Melody couldn't invite Hebe to confide in her: she had to wait for Hebe to choose to do so. Melody gave a small sigh to herself and with great fortitude mustered the cheerfulness to try humming Strauss' Radetsky March to herself. She tapped her foot in time as she and Hebe searched for a carriage.

"Oh, this one'll do me," she told Hebe as they found one that was empty save for one inhabitant, who wasn't wide enough to be taking up the whole cabin, and wasn't tall enough that putting stuff in the rack over her head would be restricting her head room, although were she sitting up straight she would still be pretty tall, Melody thought as she recognised the girl inside. "There's room enough fer all me clobber," she remarked to Hebe. " 'Ello Nichole," she greeted the girl inside the carriage, knowing her name in the way that one did tend to know those of the people in the year above. "Ah'm Melody, Ah think we 'aven't talked much afore now, but seems as good a time as any to start, eh? Thoo dunnot mind me joinin' thoo, Ah'm 'oping?" she asked. "Thanks muchly, Hebe," she called after her cousin who, having deposited her load, was already stalking grumpily out of the compartment. Melody watched her go a little mournfully. "Aye, she's not in the best of moods today, I dunnot think," she excused her elder cousin, plopping herself down on the seat opposite Nichole. "Did thoo 'ave a good summer, then?" she asked the older Gryffindor, who could have been excused for being a bit surprised by Melody's assumption of acquaintance since they had, indeed, never spoken before.

((Ah'm assuming that Melody could know Nichole's name since IC they've been at the same school for two years already. If thoo've any problems understanding what me ickle Melody is going on about - Ah know a couple of people do - then please send me an Owl and Ah'll translate for thee!))

[Nichole Ryan G4]

Nichole looked up from her magazine as she heard Melody join her in the compartment. She had seen her in the common room, but had never socialized with the younger girl. She nodded her head when Melody asked her if she had a great summer. "Yeah. My parents rented a beach house in Wales, so I spent the summer there and got a great tan. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to meet any cute guys. So how was your summer?" She blushed at this last statement. Ever since hitting her 14th birthday, she started to notice guys in a new light. Now they seemed more attractive than in other years.

[Melody Bang-Bala G6]

Melody listened attentively as Nichole gave details of her summer, her forehead creasing slightly.
“Whereabouts in Wales was that?” she asked, almost incredulously. “Thoo must tan easily,” she remarked slightly enviously, “ – to have managed to get a tan in Wales. It rains even more there than in Yorkshire, doesn’t it? Though Ah dunnot know whether it’s t’same in Sout’ Wales as in t’North; Ah’ve only been to North Wales, see. Not this summer, mind. We went to Devon for a week – rented a holiday cottage there. Ah dunnot tan easily – Ah’m more one fer frazzling t’moment t’sun decides to show itsel’. Ah got huge blisters on both me ears – it was a bit painful, Ah can tell thee! Ah’ll not be neglecting to wear a sunhat again,” she informed Nichole.

Melody wasn’t sure what to say in reply to Nichole’s comment about cute guys – it made her feel a little uncomfortable. She wasn’t sure about any of that sort of stuff yet. Other girls in her dormitory seemed quite confident to discuss it, often rating the boys in their year in terms of attractiveness. Melody didn’t feel qualified to join in – she didn’t find any boys attractive. She hoped it wasn’t because she was a ‘lesbian’ – not because she had anything against them, but because everyone seemed to giggle and whisper behind the backs of girls who were labelled as such. She thought it would be a rather uncomfortable position to be in. Plus she didn’t think her parents would like it very much. It would be just as bad an idea to admit to not having got to the stage of liking anyone – male or female – in that way yet, because that would mean you were seen as immature and naïve. And perhaps she was naïve, but because that was treated as a bad thing by the time you were thirteen, Melody was scared to admit it to anyone else.

“Aye. Ah’ve met ‘guys’ enough, Ah just dunnot think any of them are cute,” she replied honestly, blushing because of her previous thoughts. Anxious to change the subject, she pointed to the magazine Nichole was reading. “Is that a music magazine?” she asked.

[Nichole Ryan G4]

Nichole nodded when Melody asked her if she was reading a music magazine. "Yeah. It's all about rock and metal bands." She then changed the subject to classes. "So, what new classes did you sign up for this year?" As she finished talking, she took in Melody's words and appearance. Granted, the girl was a little on the weird side, especially with the comment about her ears getting sunburnt and blistered. She also noticed that Melodie was a bit reluctant to talk about other boys with her, so she secretly wondered if there was a chance that Melodie could be lesbian.

[Melody Bang-Bala G6]

‘The Great Escape’ was going round and round Melody’s mind again, and she tapped her foot absent-mindedly in time with the music in her head. It was a disadvantage of letting music take over your life – if you weren’t humming a tune aloud, it was still in your head and making you want to bop or tap along in time. Which, unless in the company of someone with the same sympathies, was considered a little strange. Although in this case, despite the highly rhythmical nature of the tapping, it might just have made her appear impatient. She realised what she was doing and desisted, although the music continued on in her head and she had to continue making a conscious effort to ignore it.

“Sorry,” she laughed, looking self-consciously down at the twitching foot. “Ah’ve a tune in me ‘ead. It’s a contagious one, so Ah’ll not share it unless thoo actually want me to. Ah appreciate that thoo probably dunnot!” She stopped awkwardly, and then started again a moment later on a different track. “May I take a look?” she asked politely, reaching across to take the magazine (lightly, not snatching it). Her eyes widened perceptibly as she saw the picture on the page Nichole had been reading. Innocence is easily shocked. She wondered if the music of this band was as extreme as their dress, and decided that she’d rather not find out.
“More metal than rock?” she managed to comment as she passed the disturbing thing back to Nichole. “Ah think we’ve mebbe not quite t’same taste in music,” she said, attempting to be diplomatic.

She looked out of the window. It was the safest thing to do. They were out of London, and the ugly concrete walls blocking out the view of the city were long gone. Then again, so was the city: the scarlet steam engine had left it behind a while ago. They were into the flat (to Melody’s eye, she who had grown up knowing the glories of the Dales and the Peaks, and knew that the foothills of the Pennines were far more impressive than any measly high ground that could be found down south), green landscape of South Hertfordshire, and it was going past at a frightening speed. She looked back at Nichole.

Ah, the glories of a change of subject! Melody seized the opportunity eagerly.
“Ah’m doing Divination an’ Care o’ Magical Creatures,” she told Nichole. “They’re me options, an’ of course Ah’ve to carry on wit’ all me old ones too. What options did you take?” she asked. “ ‘Ave Ah made t’right choice?”

((Ah've never been to South Hertfordshire, so apologies if anyone has and knows my limited knowledge of its geography to be incorrect!))

[Nichole Ryan G4]

Nichole laughed a little as Melody was tapping along to a tune in her head. "Relax. I've done the same thing plenty of times and even thrown in some head banging and air guitar. Makes for quite an interesting show." She then looked at Melody's face as she took the magazine from the seat. Apparently, Melody wasn't into music as extreme as her tastes. "I guess we'll have to disagree on the music part of our conversations." She noticed that Melody looked visibly relaxed at the change in subject matter. "I'm taking those same classes too. Of course, the Divination professor I had last year was completely mental." She let out a snort at this last statement. She still didn't know what in Merlin's name she was thinking when she decided to stick with the class. "All she loved to do was predict terrible things, including which student was going to die. I ended up making up my own predctions, which most of the time involved some sort of disaster."

[Melody Bang-Bala G6]

Melody smiled at Nichole gratefully, appreciating her attempt to make her feel a little more at ease but not sure how to respond. She couldn't really picture what Nichole was described. Playing 'air guitar' seemed a bit strange to her as well - why play air guitar when you could have the real thing? Melody glanced lovingly at her guitar case, and then laughed as Nichole suggested that they would just have to disagree when discussing music.
"Aye, that we will," she replied, and then unable to resist asking, she enquired, "Do thoo play guitar then? Ah've been guilty o' playin' air trombone afore, but Ah dunnot think Ah'd subject t'guitar to that. Ah dunnot think the air trombone were a very good idea. But per'aps thoo can pull off air guitar better than Ah could."

Melody grew a little worried as she listened to Nichole's description of Divination lessons, and unconsciously began to frown in disappointment. She'd been hoping that her new lessons would be fun.
"Is that Professor Trelawney thoo're talking about?" she asked. "Ah suppose she has always come across as a wee bit strange... Ah've not seen much o' her, though, mind. Ah dunnot think she cares for spending her time walking around t'castle where t'common folk go. Hebe - she's me cousin who was helping me with me stuff when we got on t'train - she didn't do Divination at all. She did Care o' Magical Creatures, though - she's still doing it fer her NEWTs, seems to really like it. Ah'm not sure whether Ah'll take to it in quite t'same way as she did, though." Melody sighed suddenly, slightly resentful that she was having to go through the uncertainty of her option choices this year. It could all have been been over and done with last year, had she not had to repeat her first year.

That wasn't a good train of thought to go down. She gave another sigh, looking as though she was making her mind up about something, and then sprang up, carefully taking her guitar case down from the overhead rack and taking the precious instrument inside the case out. She gave it an experimental strum and then looked challengingly at Nichole.
"Well, we've a whole train ride to find one song we've got in common," she grinned. "Thoo can be t'first to suggest one."

((Double apologies fer the post - its delay and its lack of quality. Ah'm 'opin' it'll give us summat to write about, anyhow.))