THREE

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THREESeptember 1976

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THREE
September 1976

The girls' carriage felt like a breath of fresh air compared to her anxiety around the marauder boys. It's not that they were particularly unpleasant boys, but Linny's anxiety was already abnormally high thanks to the stress of the day and meeting so many new people, but flirting (even obvious, somewhat comical flirting) spiked her anxiety even further. Perhaps it was just thanks to the attention focused on her, but the difference in the girls' carriage was staggering.

For the time being, it was just Lily, Marlene, and Alice. All three of them were in Gryffindor as were the Marauders. The thing that most shocked Linny about the trio was that Lily was, if anything, the quieter of the bunch. On the walk to the carriages, she had immediately admired how easily Lily could slip into conversation with someone she'd just met, but Marlene and Alice were on a different level.

Marlene was the personification of confidence. She somehow made a Hogwarts robe look devastatingly fashionable and immediately started filling Linny in on all of the drama of Hogwarts. And just like Lily, she'd readily presented the fact that she was muggleborn. Back at Beauxbatons, Mateo's position as muggle studies professor made Linny anxious daily and caused her to heavily isolate herself (even more than her condition already did). Each person she met, she was afraid could betray her any moment. Yet suddenly, she wondered if Hogwarts could be different.

Alice was just as boisterous as Marlene and terribly kind. Though Marlene was clearly a touch-oriented person, Alice would subtly remind Marlene of Linny's aversion anytime she reached for the new girl. While Marlene would continue uninhibited through her wild stories, Alice would share a kind smile and a wink.

They finally reached the school and made their way towards the Great Hall, the three Gryffindors pointing out landmarks and classrooms as they made their way through the huge building. Linny suddenly wondered how she'd ever find her way through this maze.

As they entered the Great Hall, though, all of those thoughts were banished, replaced with pure astonishment at the sight. She was used to Beauxbatons where the walls were made of white marble and accented with pale blue that matched their uniforms. It always felt so regal, so proper. Conversely, Hogwarts felt warm. With sandstone brick lit by orange torch light and dark wood, it felt less like a school and more like home.

The four girls approached the Gryffindor table where Miah and the boys were already sitting down, an older woman standing above them with a tall green hat and matching robes. "Professor McGonagall," Lily greeted. "How are you, Professor?"

"Yes, Minnie, how are you?" Sirius mocked in a higher tone, earning a slap to the shoulder from Lily.

The older woman smiled fondly. "Much better with your presence, Ms. Evans. I came to fetch Mr. Robinson, and I see you've also brought Ms. Robinson along with you. How do you do?"

"Wonderful, Professor," Linny said. "Your school is quite lovely."

McGonagall nodded and told the siblings to follow her to where they would be waiting for their sorting once the first years had concluded. Miah and Linny slowly trailed after her, looking back at their new friends who yelled encouragements after them.

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