Nadie Lee and The Ghosts of Ilvermorny (Completed ✔️)

The Ilvermorny Ferry

The docks were swarming with children and their parents. Getting to the place had been a nightmare; so much so that Nadie had almost jumped into the driver's seat of her parent's minivan and drove there herself. However, this was not legal and Nadie had a slight suspicion that if she ever learned to drive, she would not be all that great at it. It had taken them a long time to even get out of town. Sophia had to say her tearful goodbyes to her many friends. In the meantime, Nadie checked and rechecked her luggage. Anyone the Lee family knew was told that the girls were going to a boarding school in New York for gifted children. Yes, Nadie hated to admit it, but both her and Sophia were pretty bright. (Nadie was smarter though, she always asserted). Making their way through hordes of students, the Lees arrived, exhausted, at the loading area. Nadie's mom began to cry. She cried about everything.

"Please write!" She begged, and Nadie promised that she would. Suddenly, she spotted Gretchen out of the corner of her eye.

"Mom, I've got to go!" She exclaimed.
"Wait!" Her mom hugged her, and Nadie tried to breathe.
"Goodbye, Nadie, see you soon," said her father, reaching an arm around her. Nadie escaped him and hurried towards Gretchen, who was disappearing from view.

"Nadie!" Gretchen shrieked and flung her arms around Nadie's neck. Nadie stood awkwardly, trying not to drop her stuff. Carmen meowed furiously. Gretchen released her and started chattering. "I met two guys in Griffin Alley. I said we would meet them in a cabin on the ferry. Is that alright?" Nadie nodded and shifted her bags, struggling to keep up. Suddenly, Nadie was inside the giant ship. She began to feel anxious as hordes of children surrounded her, but pushed the feelings aside.
"Gretchen!"

"Oh, that's Malcolm!" Gretchen said. They followed the voice into one of the cabins. At the entrance stood a pale boy with flaming red hair.
"Hi, I'm Malcolm. Malcolm Santoro. You must be Nadie!" Nadie gave an awkward smile and tried to shove her stuff under a seat. Then she noticed a boy with mousy-brown hair in the corner, picking notes on a small guitar. Nadie was intrigued. She didn't know if there were rules against bringing instruments to wizarding school, but she had brought her violin anyway. She had been playing since she was 4 and 3 quarters, and felt no need to stop now. Besides, music was the closest thing in her life to magic before she found out about her abilities. The boy suddenly noticed her staring and stopped abruptly.

"I'm Nadie..." she stuttered.

"Hugo," he said, and went back to his guitar. Nadie sat down in the seat with her stuff.
"Is it okay if I let my cat out?" She asked quietly.
"Sure!" Said Gretchen, and soon, a disgruntled Carmen was curled up next to Nadie. She stretched her aching back and reached into her backpack to pulled out the guide to Ilvermorny she had purchased in Griffin Alley. It was a bit hard to concentrate with Malcolm singing randomly in the background, and even though she was eager to learn as much about the wizarding world as possible, she eventually put her book away.

"The bookworm has emerged," Malcolm exclaimed, and began firing questions at her. "So, were your parents wizards or No-Majs?" Nadie considered the term 'No-Maj'.

"Um... No-Majs," she replied.
"Mine too! Gretchen's parents are both wizards, and Hugo? Hey, Hugo! How about you?"
"My mother is a witch. My father is a No-Maj..." his face darkened for a moment, but then returned to normal. "Nadie, I overheard a girl in the shops say her name is Sophia Lee. Any chance you're related?"

"Yep," Nadie answered.

"She seems... different," Hugo commented.

"We are..." Nadie said. "Very different, that is." She hoped no one would press on the subject. If they met Sophia, they might decide that they liked her better. Everyone else had. Luckily, Gretchen interrupted.

"YOU GUYS! WE'RE FLYING!" The children raced over to the window to see that the boat was not on the water, but indeed, was in the air. Nadie gasped. The boat's reflection sparkled on the clear water. The other children sat down, but Nadie stood by the glass for a little longer before sitting down. The boat lurched, and suddenly, they were flying at an incredibly fast speed. Nadie was glad that she had already changed into her uniform, because she predicted that they were going to arrive sooner than she expected. Gretchen and Malcolm kept up a consistent banter, and Nadie reorganized her bags, putting the essentials in her backpack. She took out her wand for the first time that day. She had already learned a few basic spells, but she figured she had better not practice them now. Just holding the wand made her feel powerful, though. Suddenly, she noticed that the boat was slowing down.
"We must be getting close..." she commented, sliding her wand back in her pack. She stepped back up to the window, and forgot how to breathe.