First encounter, first impression
We finally said goodbye and Madame Emery told me that I would meet her again in person on September 1st so that the assignment ceremony would not be forgotten. Sometimes I have the feeling that my change of school is not as well thought out as it should be.
The weekend was otherwise rather quiet. I reviewed a few old textbooks and wanted to make sure I was well prepared. And of course I also got to try out my new broom, which was the best investment of my life. This way I can make sure it doesn't interrupt my nightly walks unnecessarily. And before I knew it, I was standing at platform 9 three-quarters of King Cross on September 1st. When I saw the Hogwarts Express train, I was, as always, very intrigued. I wondered how long this train had been around and whether I could try to follow it with a broom. The temptation was very much to my taste, but I didn't want to misbehave on the first day of school, even though I really liked the thrill. I left it to ride the train and took another deep breath of locomotive air before finding a nice seat on the train.
As I was quite early, I quickly found a seat at the very back of the train as I wanted it to be fairly quiet. I hoped that most people would get in at the front, as they would get into the building more quickly. But in my case, I wasn't in such a hurry, as my layout was more likely to attract more than enough attention. When I opened the cabin door, I saw four free seats. One of the reservation signs said: S.S. I briefly considered whether I should look for another cab after all. But in the end, I resigned myself to sharing the air with someone in a cab. And if I'm still luckier than good, they won't show up. I took the seat by the window facing the direction of travel, otherwise I'd feel sick. That way I won't disturb the next passenger, I told myself.
I spent my time before the train left with a lovely old book that my mother gave me before I started school. The title was Advanced Black Mage. Not that I already had the skills, it was just out of pure interest in how much black magic differed from normal magic. I just wanted to learn more about the subject. I had a lot of respect for black magic, but I didn't want to be ignorant. The train whistled for departure and I was surprised that the seat opposite me was still empty. I thought nothing of it and leaned deeper into a seat, stretching my feet out on the other seats opposite me.
The journey took a good 2 hours and it was already late afternoon. I thought to myself that I could take a short rest. So I closed my eyes and was surrounded in complete darkness. I didn't even notice when the car door opened during the journey. But I was woken up by the icy cold that enveloped me and I couldn't help but slowly open my eyes. To my surprise, it was almost dark, even the lights on the train were switched off. And I faltered when I realized that I was no longer alone in the carriage. I could only see a black blasted man sitting diagonally opposite me. His legs were crossed and took up a good two-thirds of the available space. It was definitely a man, from what I could tell. And he was watching me, only I couldn't say the same for myself. Because even the shadows were drawn around his face and I couldn't see him. I definitely wasn't afraid of him, I'd been through worse.
I found the situation with the Hogwarts Express rather unsettling. Something was very wrong here and I heard that the other students were also rather worried, it was getting louder and louder in the train carriages. And the situation was finally starting to worry me too, as the train had simply come to a halt in the middle of a bridge. My fingers were twitching with excitement and I wanted to summon my broom and look outside. I was very sure that there was more going on outside than in here. "It's about to go further," the person across from me finally said and I couldn't help but take in his very raspy and masculine voice with every cell of my auditory organ and feel a shiver down my spine. My mind just kept telling me, bingo, he's a little older and as quickly as the thought came, it left.
Before I allowed my other inappropriate thought, I pulled out my MP3 player and stuffed my headphones into my ear. The first track I was offered was fitting: Diabla by Izzy. Cold Like the ice on my Skin, i keep em Frozen. Oh yes, and how it just fitted. Finally, the Hogwarts Express actually moved and smiled into me as I heard Izzi sing: El le gusta Cuando Diabla se forma. And I couldn't help but catch another glimpse of the stranger. But I still couldn't see his face. I pressed myself back into my seat and had to say that I really enjoyed the darkness with a stranger. It was no longer a threatening situation and I finally caught myself dancing slightly in my seat. I had to move a little, otherwise I would do something rash. At that moment, I didn't care about the stranger either, as I didn't think much of restricting myself.
And when the next song played, Touche by Misha Miller, I cursed the fact that I couldn't sit on my broom and lean dangerously backwards to feel the cold autumn air on my skin. I missed that freedom and found it hard to stay calm. I bit my lips as I heard the chorus of the song: Tu ma´s touché, Je sais plus m´en passer. Although I had never been in love myself, I was in love with freedom itself. The feeling of not letting anyone tell you what to do and simply letting go and enjoying the moment. After all, life can't just want you to behave like a strictly bred horse all the time. I smiled from ear to ear as I imagined how wonderful it was to fly through the air.
And as soon as the next song on my MP3 player announced: Fly me to the Moon by Misha Miller again, the lights in the cab switched on again. I slowly opened my eyes, but my gaze was directed towards the window. I wanted to try and look at the unknown appendage of his reflection and was surprised to see that he had his eyes closed. I finally looked over at him and was pleasantly surprised by his appearance. A middle-aged man with black, medium-length hair that mostly framed his face. Prominent cheekbones. A few noticeable wrinkles like his lip lines, and then the prominent nose, big but overall really good looking on him. He was also dressed completely in black from top to bottom. Even his neck was completely covered. His posture was very strict and disciplined, he exuded authority and not a little. He still had his legs crossed and his arms were crossed in front of him accordingly. On the whole, however, he didn't seem off-putting, rather distant. Possibly a teacher, I thought to myself, but as he didn't introduce himself to me, I continued to skim my thoughts.
Since I radiate something pleasant despite my rebellious nature, I'm not surprised that the stranger keeps to himself. Perhaps I should apologize to him purely out of politeness for getting into his cad. I sighed to myself and chose the next song by Misha Miller: Up all Night, singing along to the lyrics in my head:
Hey,...breathe again, it's fading away
All the Pain is helping you Chance
I dońt See why yoúd Chose to run
Hey... life isńt always this way
All that You Need is some faith
Don't put them seal is away (away)
If you really heard me singing now, you would hear my beautiful nightingale voice. While I was singing in my head, the stranger finally watched me inconspicuously. It was far too late for me to notice it in the reflection in the window and just as I was about to look again, his eyes were closed again. I was slightly taken aback as he must have been looking at me as I sang inside. And before I knew it, I realized that we had arrived at the Hogwarts stop. I looked outside as I wanted to look around a bit. And in the next second, I heard the door in the carriage open and close again. I was so taken aback at that moment because the stranger left as quickly as he arrived.