On The Way Towards Hogwarts

Alice was about to answer Tess' interesting quandry when the food cart came bearing all sorts of delicious goodies. She was even more startled when the girl asked if she wanted something.

"Um, I think I'll have...." She pondered over the cart and smiled when the scones caught her eyes. "I'll have a scone." She said and dug around her pocket for the money her mother had given her. She handed it to the cart woman, taking in the scone in return.

"Floo Powder?" Alice returned to Tess' question after taking a bite. "No, we don't have those. We have cars and bicycles and metros (sort of like the train but with electricity) and planes and buses to get us where we need to go." She laughed. She then took her phone that she had placed beside her and handed it to Tess. "It's being a little weird right now but you keep looking at it like you've never seen one before. You can look at it if you want."

She held the phone out in her palm for the girl to take.

She was offering to pay, but seeing as the girl paid first, she was beaten to it. Nevertheless she closed the compartment door as the woman left and took a bite of her cinnamon roll.

As soon as she heard that she could she nodded. She tried to act casual, and not like the curious chimp that she felt like, and picked up the phone to inspect it. It was thin and light and apparently people talked through this?

"I heard Muggle objects don't work in Hogwarts because of the high levels of magic" she commented aloud.

Seeing touched the screen lightly and saw that the numbers were there, and as she pressed them, they were written down. Amazing! Her eyes were bright and she handed it back with a small satisfied smile.

"Fascinating" she said as she heard the forms of transportation.

She blinked a few times and leaned closer.

"Squibs....are offspring from Wizarding families that are born with no magic whatsoever. Mum said they are second class citizens, worst than muggles because...because muggles have no magic in them, it's not their fault that they aren't magical, but Squibs..squibs are a disgrace as sad as that sounds. No one says Squibs aloud"

She pulled back with an uncomfortable frown.

"Well, that's rather silly," Alice replied, wrinkling her nose. "it's not their fault that they were born that way. My mother said something about people calling her a mudblood. What does that mean? And is that something I should be saying aloud. Bother, there are so many rude things to say in the Muggle world and on top of that I have to learn those in the Wizarding World as well." She chuckled.

She ravenously ate her scone, trying her best to not inhale it all in one bite. "I do hope that they'll be a great dinner tonight." She thought aloud.

She was taking a bite of her cinnamon roll, that is until she mentioned that word. She stopped and put her cinnamon roll down and took a sip of water from her bottle, before answering.

"That word...it's not a good word" she said looking away.

She knew that while she never mentioned that word, nor had her parents, her great grandparents sure had. Being from a branch from Malfoy/Black family, prejudice was normal, but her mother, her sweet mother coached her of being politically correct in the magical realm.

"We don't use that word Mud-we don't use that word here at all" she whispered not being able to say the world herself.

She twiddled her fingers nervously and played with her hair trying to gain her courage to say it.

"That word is the worst insult you can say to a Muggleborn. Being Muggleborn...it's an insult to magic to some purebloods..some." she said softly meaning not her family, "Mud-um-that word means dirty blood, like if someone soiled magic" she whispered eyes ashamed at her heritage.

"That's what my mother told me the other students used to call her. And she just got sick of being treated differently. That and my grandparent's devout religious rules kept her from pursuing a life in the Wizarding World. And I feel awful now for using that word. That is just low to look down on somebody because of their birthright."

Alice finished up her scone and whipped her hands on her pants. She reached for her satchel and pulled a water bottle from it, throwing her useless phone into the bag as well.

"The Malfoys and the Blacks...should I know about them?" Alice shook her head. "Enough with the history lessons, actually. So, Tess, what do you like to do? Do you have any hobbies?"

She nodded about keeping 'mum' of the word and decided that she might as well eat to suffice her appetite and took another bite of her roll.


She shrugged at the mention of her genealogy.

"I'd rather not blather on about ancestry" she said wrinkling her nose. "But as for me, what I do? I-I like reading" she said shyly especially from her history lesson comment. "H-history more than anything but I have other hobbies? I-I like swimming, we have a lake in our land full of mermaids, it's quite lovely to hear them sing underwater. I suppose you also can guess I love music, its a passion of mine, as well as riding Abraxan horses" she said shrugging.

"This is crazy," Alice shook her head. "Half of the things you have just mentioned are merely fairytales where I come from. You have mermaids?"

Alice leaned forward on her chair as she digested the girl's words. "The only mermaid I have ever seen is in a Disney movie. Are they absolutely gorgeous like the Greek myths say?"

She felt herself laugh lightly, not in a rude way, but it was that Alice reacted the same way she reacted to phones.

"Mermaids! Oh they have the most beautiful singing voices, but they aren't as pretty as Muggles draw them out to be. I-I mean I have seen Muggle films...well a handful and that Little Mermaid movie, while beautiful is so unrealistic. I mean they are lovely on the inside but outside...well..no, not really" she said shaking her head. "And Abraxans are the most beautiful flying horses. My mum has a dozen of them that she has started since she graduated Beauxbatons"

She felt comfortable talking to this girl about her life and that was a big step for her.

"That is so strange. It seems that we Muggles don't understand anything about Magic." Alice laughed.

She paused for a moment however. "Although, I don't suppose I can call myself a Muggle anymore. It's so strange to think there is so much more to the world than what you last thought. Is there anything else that the Non Magical World gets completely wrong?" She chuckled.

She chuckled.

"You know, my mother told me that Muggles are decent enough people, but they are oblivious towards the magic around them. For example, our neighbors are Muggles, or so my mother says, they, they never wonder why the horses never whine for running time, and of course they never whine or neigh because they're off flying, mother told me a mere spell can disguise it all."

She thought about the question and thought before answering.

"Well...Einstein, he was a Squib I believe" she said wrinkling her nose. "He was ostracized not because of his status, but his wanting to aid the Muggles, in those times it was frowned upon. Oh! And there is no such thing as a Lochness monster" she said snorting "It's a giant squid! Very friendly from what I'm told. Oh! And Salem...no witches lived in Salem. Funny enough only one witch was killed during the trials, she was the first hung, and so, in revenge other witches from around took down the muggles." she said frowning "Salem is a sore spot for Witches and Wizards"

"So Salem is a Wizarding School much like Hogwarts is then?" Alice said. "How many schools are there around the world then? Is it according to where a person grows up is how is operates?" She asked.

Alice reached into her bag and pulled out a small piece of meat. She reached gently under her coat and pushed it into Nike's cage. The owl was being extremely quiet and she was glad of it. She didn't want to cause any more deress on Tess' cat.

She hummed in thought.

"Well Salem is a School, that is the one from America, the one my parents would never allow me to attend, there's Beauxbatons, for Southern France, Magi Academy for Magicos, and " she grimaced slightly "Durmstrang School"

She shrugged.

"I suppose so, we moved to London before my eleventh birthday so I could get into Hogwarts, so I believe that's possible"

Alice nodded her head in understanding. But her curiosity was returned with the face that her new found friend made when mentioning Durmstrang.

"What's wrong with the last school you mentioned? You look like you tasted something bitter when you brought it up." She inquired, tilting her head.

She looked at her incredulous and she saw that there was no real idea. She shook her head and immediately informed the girl.

"Durmstrang...Germany?" she said blinking "It's our rival school! They...they're attacking the magical realm, our magical realm! Why do you think Muggles say 'terrorist attacks'?" she asked her.

"I assumed they were terrorist attacks. I know nothing of rival schools I'm afraid." Alice responded with a frown. "There is another war, then, in the Wizarding World? What exactly are the Germans doing?"

That she was at a lost really.

"I-I don't really know" she said wrinkling her nose in frustration "but what I do know is that there are spies! And that we, we need to be careful who we trust, and I mean that" she said her eyes flashing do a darker shade of brown showing her seriousness. "That and we will show our loyalty to Hogwarts by being on the sidelines when necessary"

"This sounds like a story of the ages! Spies, intrigue, precaution, war! This should lead to an interesting year indeed! Think of the adventure that could unfold due to this!" Alice's eyes widened. She saw the seriousness in Tess' eyes but something about danger made her that much more eager to arrive at Hogwarts. "How much longer do you suppose this train ride is?"

She couldn't help but shake her head based on how Alice's excitement grew over something that she found frightening. They were definitely difference, but not necessarily a bad thing.

"How many minutes have we been on, two hours? Perhaps about half an hour more and we'll be there" she said softly.

She was excited, but at the same time nervous, after all, it would be a challenging seven years.

"I don't know how much longer I can take of this anticipation." Alice laughed as she looked at Tess. "I feel like jumping about in excitement. This patience is killing me, I guess I really am not cut out to be a Hufflepuff after all." She jested.

She laughed and shrugged.

"I'm a little nervous I admit" she said softly. "But I'm excited about sorting...I wonder what I'll be"

She shook her head and before they knew it, the train stopped suddenly. It shocked not only her, but poor Coeur who meowed in surprise as she hopped out of the satchel.

"Well...sooner than I expected" she said.

"Looks like we're about to find out!" Alice jumped to her feet. "Do we need to bring our things with us or do you suppose that they'll take care of it." She went to the door and found that some of the students were remaining in their seats while others were embarking off the train into the station.

"Oh I do wish I knew what was going on!"

She laughed at Alice's enthusiasm, but shrugged.

"I think they'll take it for us, just get the essentials" she said.

As if Coeur understood, she immediately hopped right into the satchel. Tess smiled and patted her kitten's head and stood up.

"Wanna go exploring?" she found herself asking with a smile.

"Do I want to go exploring?! Of course I do!" She said with a smile.

Crossing the car she removed her coat from the cage. "Unfortunately for you, Nike, you'll just have to stay here. Your cage is far too big for me to lug you around!" She laughed. She grabbed her satchel and after putting her coat on she placed it over her shoulder.

"Let's go see what we're getting ourselves into!" She said with a smile. "You're up to it right?" She winked at her friend.

She was surprisingly up to an adventure and nodded quickly.

"Y-yeah let's go!" she said and walked out of the compartment only to look both ways.

"Hey" she said turning back to Alice "Left, or right?"

"Let's go to the left." She said, glancing that direction. Fewer people were going that way anyways. It would be easier to navigate through. "This is the kind of school that I like. First stepping off the train into a journey. The Wizarding World is so much cooler."