hogwarts au

[keythatconnects]

Sora was fifteen and it was his first day at Hogwarts. Students usually had their first days when they were eleven, but Sora had been taught by teachers back home. He had only transferred to Hogwarts the moment it was possible. He knew it would take some getting used to, but it was worth it to see more of the world. England was so utterly different than the Islands.

He felt like he was doing well, though, all things considered. He was even managing being away from his dearest friends once everyone retired to their common rooms. At least the Hufflepuff common room was cozy and comfortable and everyone had made him feel welcome.

The morning he had caught up with his friends before heading to his first class.

He was trying to find the potions room now, and he felt completely lost. He knew the class was in the dungeons, but the whole castle felt like a maze. He was probably going to be late, and that made him feel frustrated. He was terrible at potions, it required too much patience, and he was going to give the professor reason to dislike him right off the bat by being late.

Maybe someone nearby would be willing to give him directions?

Comments

[findingheart]

The castle takes getting used to, and even though it's easy to find most places, it would be almost impossible to know every inch of it in a seven-year stay. Riku knows how to get around, at least, and it's easy to spot someone that has gotten themselves lost. The stone passageways of the dungeon can seem like a maze if you don't know where to go. He shoves his book in his bag and clears his throat.

"Unless you're heading to the Slytherin common room, you're going the wrong way."

Says the Slytherin.

[keythatconnects]

"Uh... I was looking for the potions room actually," Sora replies and gives Riku the biggest grin he can while rubbing the back of his head in an embarrassed sort of way. "I'm probably going to be so late. What a great first day, hm?"

ohgod bear with me and my icons

[findingheart]

"..First day?" Riku squints at this short Hufflepuff for probably longer than necessary. There's no way he's not at least a second year, so he should know where the classrooms are by now. He realizes how uninvested in finding the answer he is and nods down the hall.

"It's down the hall this way. I'll show you- Professor Snape isn't one to be late for class to."

pppft as if i'll ever complain about looking at riku's face. XD

[keythatconnects]

Sora winces a bit at the name of the Professor. "So I heard."

"I'm a transfer student, so yeah, it kind of is my first day." He still looks embarrassed, but it's with a small little smile as he falls in line with Riku.

"I'm Sora, by the way. Thanks for the help."

[findingheart]

"We don't get many of those." Riku leads him down the winding halls, stopping just outside the Potions classroom. He doesn't think this kid will have much issue making friends- he's like the sun.

"Riku. Sure thing. I guess I'll see you around, Sora."

[keythatconnects]

"Yeah, I guess I'm a special case," Sora replies with a bit of a chuckle to his voice. He looks towards the classroom, realizing that this means he and Riku have to part ways and feels an odd sense of disappointment in his chest.

"Thanks for being my guide!" He flashes Riku another grin, shoving down the disappointment for now. "See you." Then he disappears into the class and tries to find a seat before he's counted as tardy.

He plans to seek out the Slytherin during supper. It's not like Riku is hard to miss. He's gorgeous and the thought of possibly getting to know him better makes Sora's chest flutter a bit.

True to that thought, once classes are done and everyone is back in the Great Hall, Sora scans over the Slytherin table to see if he can catch sight of Riku.

[findingheart]

"Oh. One more thing. Snape can be a jerk, but just read the potions instructions carefully before you do anything." Hopefully that helps Sora out. Snape isn't very understanding of mistakes if the answer is right there- especially for anyone over a second year. He leaves Sora there, throwing a wave over his shoulder as he heads for the library. Just because he has a free period doesn't mean there's not homework.

He keeps thinking about that Hufflepuff kid off and on until dinner in the Great Hall. Sitting at the end of the Slytherin table with a few of the others from his year, he briefly scans the hall and can't really pick him out of a crowd. Thankfully, Riku's not that hard to spot, which means he can't blend in worth a damn. Thanks, mom.

[keythatconnects]

Sora had had a miserable day in Potions, but that was really just a given. That subject was never going to be his strong point, no matter how much he tried at it. He just wasn't a very details oriented person and potions was all about details. Still, he had somehow survived without losing Hufflepuff too many House Points - it was amazing how much just a little competition made him care so deeply about that kind of thing - and now he was back in a place with a lot of people and the smell of good food.

More importantly, he found the beautiful boy who had helped him out when he was lost. He came over to the Slytherin table and sat down at an empty spot next to Riku, as if it was perfectly normal for someone to go to a different House's table. He at least was sitting with his back to the table and his legs on the wrong side of the bench, making the movement seem more temporary, but he seemed completely unaware at some of the glares such an action earned him.

Instead, his attention was focused on Riku. "Hi!" he said cheerfully. "I wanted to thank you for your help earlier."

[findingheart]

He's only half-listening to a conversation going on to his left- Larxene and someone else are talking Quidditch, when he spots Sora coming over and plopping next to him. Riku's eyebrows shoot up in surprise as he actually sits down, and that's enough to still the conversation on his other side momentarily.

"Oh, hey. Don't make a big deal out of it, it wasn't anything." Riku inwardly winces at how abrasive it sounded. Not quite how that should have been delivered. He clears his throat, giving Sora his full attention.

"Snape didn't take points because you were tardy, did he?"

[keythatconnects]

"I wasn't thanks to you! I barely made it in time, but I probably would have been late if you hadn't shown up." He leans a little closer to Riku then, still ignoring the fact that this is considered pretty abnormal. "I might have lost points for being terrible at potions though. Is is always like that?" His voice is low, because he doesn't want to get caught dragging a professor on his first day.

"It doesn't seem like the best way to teach..."

[findingheart]

Dragging a professor who happens to be the Head of House for Slytherin. Whose table Sora happens to be sitting at. Riku huffs a laugh, shaking his head.

"I'd say no, but I'd probably be lying. He's effective, at least... For the most part."

He nods over to the Hufflepuff table that Sora had just come from. "I'm not keeping you from socializing with your housemates, am I?" Ignoring the fact that Sora had come over here to talk to him.

[keythatconnects]

Sora looks over that the Hufflepuffs and then back to Riku. "You know, I don't get why everyone acts like the Houses can't get along. Back home, on my islands, everyone learns together. I know there's way more people here so they can't do that, and having a bit of friendly competition between the Houses can help everyone strive to be their best, but we're all still going to Hogwarts right? We're all in the same boat - or castle, I guess. If I want to come over here and talk to the cool Slytherin who helped me earlier in the day I should be able to, right?"

Then, after a moment, a thought seems to come to him. "In fact! If I want to eat supper with you instead of over there, I should be able to do that too, right?" He turns his body, swinging his legs over the bench to sit on it properly. Then he seems to realize how bold that action is.

"Unless... you don't want me to?"

[findingheart]

It's not a particularly common thought- most people tend to socialize with their own House around mealtimes, save for a few exceptions. Slytherins? Almost never.

"Yeah, I guess so." Still, Riku smirks at that and nods, passing a plate over to him. Sora is bold, and he likes that. Hell, he's a little embarrassed he didn't think of it first. Not that he'd even been looking too hard for him.

"Nah, I didn't say that." There might be a bit of gawking and side-eyeing from further down the table, but it's pretty easy for Riku to ignore. He doesn't buy into all of the Pure Blood stuff that a lot of the other kids are into.

eyyy

[alphaophiuchi]

Generally speaking, as a Prefect, it was Draco's job to give directions. But he was slightly wary of the young man who'd only just transferred in, a good four years after the rest of them started. There was something strange about that.

Of course, he wasn't even remotely confused about the fact that he ended up in Hufflepuff. That was no shock to anyone. The Hufflepuffs were glad to have him, strange boy that he was, and the rest seemed mostly all right with the fact that they didn't.

He, of course, knew where everything was in the dungeons - that was where his common room was, that was where everything was, for a Slytherin. Draco lingered by a winding staircase at the end of a hallway, watching Sora struggle, until it finally became too much. He'd burst into laughter if this kept up.

Draco cleared his throat.

hey you

[keythatconnects]

Sora started a bit and then turned to look at the boy who had cleared his throat.

"Oh! Hello," he said, by way of greeting. He managed to look a little embarrassed at the next part. "Sorry, I'm a little lost."

:> <3

[alphaophiuchi]

From afar, Draco sighed. Just a tiny one, in lieu of rolling his eyes. But that happened too, grey irises turning briefly skyward.

"Yes, I'm getting that. You've been passing the same hall for half an hour," he pointed out. "Which is hilarious, except you just keep managing to go in circles. At this point, it's not even amusing."

[keythatconnects]

Sora raises his brow, not pleased to being made fun of.

"You know, where I'm from, we don't even have dungeons. Why does a school need them anyway? It's not my fault all of these hallways look the same."

[alphaophiuchi]

"Because. It's a castle. Castles have those. You don't have castles where you're from?" He asked in return, voice mild as anything, sweet as candy. "The hallways look the same because you've been going down the same one. That usually has something to do with it."

[keythatconnects]

"We don't, actually," Sora explained. "Look, do you think you could just point me to the potions classroom?"

[alphaophiuchi]

He merely sighed at that, rolling his eyes once more, then sharply nodded towards a door across the hall.

"C'mon then," Draco replied, tone clearly exasperated as he moved towards the potions classroom. The class was just about to start anyway, and he ought to be there and ready, even if Snape would have likely forgiven him the trespass. Especially in the face of a Hufflepuff being late.

He pushed the door open, briefly holding it there - almost as though to invite Sora in first - then walked through. It was just to make sure Sora actually saw which door it was.

[keythatconnects]

Sora's eyes narrowed at Draco and he was just annoyed enough that he was still glaring a bit when he found a seat to take with the other Hufflepuffs.

This was not shaping up to be a great first day.

[alphaophiuchi]

No, it was not. But how weird was it that someone was even having their first day at this age? Come on. That's weird.

So Draco spent the full lesson, sitting with his friends, murmuring amongst themselves about the ridiculous new boy with the funny hair and the inability to find a simple classroom. And how was he possibly qualified to be here? Laughable.

If they spoke loud enough to be heard, then that was probably the point.

[keythatconnects]

Potions was never Sora's best subject, but Draco making fun of him motivated him enough to focus and do well. He even managed to mix the first potion up correctly. It wasn't the best potion ever, but even Snape could do nothing but nod at it wordlessly when he came to inspect Sora's cauldron.

By then, he still felt a tension in his back despite doing well enough in the class. At least next he had Charms, the subject he was best at - and that would get him away from this stupid dungeon and the stupid people in it.

[alphaophiuchi]

Draco had always been one of the better students, and even while making fun of Sora, he managed to brew a remarkably good interpretation almost effortlessly. His compatriots weren't doing so well, but at least he was. That was the important part.

And Sora was right, at least he didn't have to deal with them in his next class. That was purely Hufflepuffs: it would probably be fine for him. But towards the end of the day, they had Double Herbology. And then he'd have to see Draco again.

[keythatconnects]

By the time he got to Herbology he was feeling more comfortable again. He was hanging out with some people from his House. That and he knew Professor Sprout had something particular in mind with this class and was eager to partake in it.

When he came into the greenhouse and saw Slytherin colors his mood soured for a moment, but he decided not to let it get the better of him. Instead, he headed over to where Professor Sprout was moving boxes and set down his bag.

She seemed to be expecting him and she smiled as he came near. "Ah, yes! Class. Is everyone here?" she looked around to see if everyone had managed to filter into the greenhouse.