First Impressions

The whispers around the halls drew Natty’s attention, as it was quite impossible to ignore them. She was on her way to watch the first-year sorting ceremony, and to eat dinner, when the first of them started up. Already, a student joining Hogwarts at year five is quite remarkable, but to have such an entrance was… certainly the first of its time.

“A dragon!”

“I heard a man died!”

“They shot spells at it until the beast went away!”

“Fell through the air-!”

“-must be from a powerful wizard family!”

“-disappeared?”

“-about Professor Fig?!”

So it would not be so far a stretch to guess that Natty was curious about this new student. The rumors were concerning, but she had never learned anything useful from rumor alone. But she still listened in when taking her seat at the Gryffindor table, next to Garreth, who was also making his own speculations about the new student. It seemed that every student in the hall was.

“-destroyed the carriage-”

“-even survive?”

“-rode the beast!”

“How could a dragon be so close-?”

She turned her head when Garreth had called her name, eyes alight with mischief.

“Do you think the new student will be in Gryffindor? Sounds like they’d be a perfect fit for our house!” If the rumors were true, Natty would agree. Even still she pondered the question.

“Is there anything that is for sure about what has happened?” Garreth shrugged, grasping a roll from the center plate as the large doors to the hall opened and the new first years poured in. They both kept an eye on the crowd for anyone taller or older, but there was no 15-year-old in sight with them. Natty furrowed her brow, remembering the whispers about the student and Professor Fig disappearing.

I do hope they are alright, she thought to herself while Garreth tried to guess who of the first years would go into their house from looks alone. He was always this wired, day and night, but Natty found his constant chatter and speculation a welcome distraction from other thoughts. So she played along, eyes scanning the 11-year-olds as she shot down or accepted Garreth’s guesses. Though, when her eyes caught onto a brunette girl, her eyes scanning the room with a straight posture and reserved smile, she’d told Garreth about her.

“That one?” Garreth asked, mouth full of roll, he swallowed to continue. “Isn’t she… are those trousers?” Natty glanced down and noticed that this girl was, in fact, wearing the boys uniform. Odd, no doubt, but bold in a room full of her future peers.

“I find it only proves my point,” Natty smiled assuredly. Garreth nodded his head side-to-side before blinking.

“That gives me an idea!”

“Oh no,” Natty replied, teasing(mostly).

“No, no hear me out. A potion that can cause the user to switch sexes for a day.” Natty was already shaking her head.

“It is one thing to make a person float, Garreth, it is another entirely to tamper with the human biology.” Garreth held his hands out as Professor Black began his annoucement for the ceremony to begin. 

“Sure, yeah, but,” he lowered his voice as Professor Weasely began calling names, “what if it was like a potion that only altered the illusion of the body-.”

“Garreth,” Natty cut him off, “we already have the polyjuice potion, yes? What is there need for something so similar?” With that, Garreth slumped into his seat, grumbling about concessions. Natty rolled her eyes for a moment as she continued to watch the sorting ceremony, cheering with her housemates when the hat shouted “GRYFFINDOR!”, but she always kept her eyes on the large doors, waiting. She could sense that she was not the only one, either, as students in other houses continued their whispers and their eyes trailed to the doors every so often.

It was when they had gotten down to the last 4 first years that Natty began to worry some. It is not as though she had met this new student before, but after the dragon and the carriage incident, she was rightfully concerned for the safety of the student and Professor Fig.

Surely if the student was tutored by Professor Fig, they would be adept enough to take care of the basics of safety, yes? Professor Fig was a strong wizard, too, so he should be able to protect himself and the student. Professor Black was continually checking his watch and getting impatient, so he much be expecting them. The last first year was getting off the stool, when-.

There!

The doors of the large hall opened ever-so-slightly and Natty’s shoulders relaxed to se Professor’s Fig, uninjured from what she could see, peering into the room. Natty strained to crane her neck to attempt to see any part of the new student, but Professor Black strode by and Professor Fig drew back from the doors only a couple of seconds later.

Her eyes stuck to the doors and only a few moments later, the curiosity of the last huor or so was mended when the doors opened again and Professor Black re-entered, grumbling. Behind him, Natty spotted movement and a whisk of brown. Black finally made his way back towards the hat and a shifting person nearly tripped over themself to follow.

As they neared, Natty found flickering blue eyes drinking in the entire hall, hands held close to the body, fingers rubbing against one another out of what is most likely worry, and a tall stature attempting to fold in on itself. This… was not quite what Natty was expecting, though she could not say what she was expecting.

Maybe it was the constantly wandering eyes, snapping around the room like a winged key, but not making contact with anyone; the hunched shoulders and awkward smile; the hints of wonder in the eyes. The eyes were telling, Natty knew.

As the whispers around the hall increased, Natty realized she was watching a mongoose curl in on itself, assessing the danger of a situation with its decieving looks. Soft disposition and sharp eyes, yes, this was a mongoose.

“Are they… a boy or a girl?” Garreth asked, breaking Natty from her observations. Which was a good question, unanswered even as they nearly tripped over the step up to the stool, awaiting the sorting hat. A sheepish smile stretched across their face as they avoided Professor Sharp’s scowl and quietly murmured something to Professor Weasley. The witch waved off whatever they said and the student raised their chin, remaining still to intercept the hat. Despite the longer hair, there was a sharp jaw and strong nose. The student was tall, not lanky, but lean.

“I am fairely certain it is a boy, but it doesn’t matter much.” Garreth ‘herm’ed as the entire hall went quite with anticipation, watching the hat comment on the student’s age before murmuring something about “fierceness” “death”(which was concerning), and “forge ahead alone-”. Sounds like the new student would be going into Slytherin from where Natty was sitting. Other students were leaning forward to get a listen when Natty saw the his mouth moving for a moment, eyes locked onto the fake stars and candles on the roof of the Great Hall.

“Hmm,” the sorting hat spoke up, “Yes, if you are sure… better be…” Garreth was crossing his fingers and all but demanding next to Natty, that the new student be in their house. Though, from the assured way his eyes lingered on the Gryffindor table, Natty felt a breath release in her own chest. “GRYFFINDOR!” Garreth screeched in joy, causing Natty to wince but she made sure to clap and cheer with the rest of the table as the student slipped off of the stool. Professor Weasley changed his robes and went to pull him aside while Professor Black took center stage once more.

“Ah ah! One more thing…” Professor Black clasped his hands behind his back, “due to the unforunate injury on the Quidditch Pitch in last spring’s final-.” As Professor Black went on to explain how Quidditch was cancelled, Natty groaned along with the rest of the entire hall. Quidditch was an integral and exciting part of Hogwarts, from which she has seen. If she wasn’t just guessing, Natty would say that Professor Black was simply looking for a reason to cancel the sport, as much work as it was to organize it.

Imelda Reyes would cause a clatter about it in Herbology, that Natty was sure of. Even from the Gryffindor table, Natty could see the steam coming out of Imelda’s ears.

“-said, I’m sure you all have plenty to do before classes begin tomorrow!” Natty’s eyes snapped back to Professor Black minutely before they drew towards the new student again. He was speaking with Professor Weasley, a half-smile on his face as she gestured a hand towards the main hall doors. The student glanced at Professor Black, who was already heading back to his office before nodding to her. The rest was obscured by students leaving to go to their common rooms, Natty cursed her height, and so she followed the rest of her peers.

She caught a glimpse of the student walking with Professor Weasley behind them.

Now that the attention was not so heavy upon him, he openly observed his peers, shoulders straighter, and possibly taking a moment to take in the school. Natty remembers the wonder she felt at Hogwarts for its own charm. It was no Uagadou, but the English school had certain… odd pieces that made it unlike others.

When rounding the corner, Natty decided to seek out the first year she had watched earlier in Garreth’s yearly guessing game. Surely she would see the new fifth year in her classes, and most definitely in the common room. She will introduce herself when the time comes.

No one ever saw a gazelle and a mongoose at odds with one another in the wild, Natty was sure it would be much the same at Hogwarts.