Lumos: Year Two

"Excuse me." A familar voice asked as the door to their compartment flew open. A short bushy-haired girl stood before them. "Have any of you seen Harry or Ron?"

"Sorry to say I haven't." Dean informed Hermione.

"Are they not on the train?" The Irish boy asked.

"If they are, I can't find them." She shut the door promplty and continued her way down the train. The sweets trolley followed Hermione, stopping at their compartment. Like their first year, Dean purchased a choclate frog, and Lanee got a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, which she would share with Seamus. She dumped them out on the seat and scanned for a particular flavor. Only one bean was several shades of green, and Lanee knew it was the bogey flavored one.

"Ew, are you really going to eat that one?" Seamus asked as she picked it up.

"Of course not." She repsponded as she slipped it into her pocket. "I collect the bogey flavored ones, like my mum used to."

"Why?" Dean laughed, examing the card from his frog package. "Dumbledore again."

"Well I'm not going to eat them." Lanee explaind with a smile. Seamus organized his beans by color like he usually did before eating them, trying to guess the flavors.

"Whoa." Seamus said she pushed her hair back. "Where'd that scar come from?"

"Spell gone wrong." She lied, trying to keep her red hair from shifting to white. She quickly changed the subject to her new cartilage peircings, the boys seeming to forget completly forgetting about the scar.

"So did you hear about the new Defense Agaisnt the Dark Arts teacher?" Dean asked a while into the train ride.

"Yeah, Gilderoy Lockhart. Me mum was pretty excited, she fanicies him." Seamus rolled his eyes.

"He wrote most of our book list. I started reading his autobiography when I went to Diagon Alley. He sounds like an arrogant prat to me." She stretched her legs across the seat she had to herself. Seamus sat on the other one cross-legged, Dean sat on the floor with a sketch pad in his lap and a pencil in his hands. "Whatcha drawin', D?"

"A tree. I'm trying to get it right but it sucks." He repsonded, erasing something. She leaned over to glanse at the paper. The drawing was amazing. Each branch had so much detail, each indent of the bark drawn perfectly. Every leaf was shaped differently, all slightly different sizes and layered over realistcally. The shading made perfect shawdows, showing obvousily which side the sun was shining from. The shawdow from the tree spread across the grass, so detailed that Lanee could see each blade of grass. The picture was flawed the perfect amout of times, make the drawing perfect.

"It looks great, really. My trees consist of a stick and a circle." Lanee smiled. The three friends relaxed and enjoyed the rather long train ride, sharing about their summers. The shorter boy started, talking about his new broom he won along with tickets to go see a proffessional Qudditch game, Britian agaisnt Ireland. The two friends listened intenly as Seamus told every highlight of the match, both being Qudditch fanatics, and how he didn't know which side he wanted to win. Dean had appaerently traveled to the states to visit his uncle who lived somewhere in a very huge city that Lanee didn't catch the name of. During the story, Seamus often laughed and pointed out 'how Muggle' something was, Dean only responding with amused and confused looks.

Once his story was over, the boys stepped into a different compartment to change into their school robes so Lanee could change in private, sticking a neon green glow-in-the-dark bow in her hair; she hated looking like everyone else. Both boys returned, embarassed as they asked their girl friend if she could tie their ties. Lanee laughed as she quickly started at Dean's, leave it to the girl to know how tie a man's clothing.

"How did you tie them all last year without my assitance?" She teased, turning to Seamus.

"Well we forgot over the summer holidays!" Exclaimed Dean, gathering his sketch pad and box of pencils. At this moment, the train came to a screaching halt as it pulled up in Hogsmeade Station. Kids were already bolting down the train, mostly excited first years. Hermione Granger passed, still walking solo and looking rather dissapointed. She must have not found Ron or Harry, Lanee thought. Yet again, she had time to search the whole train. Are they even on it? She pushed away her thoughts as the three exited the train, glancing over at the half-giant who was shouting for first years.

Lanee smiled with pride. She was no longer a first year, but now, a second year, who would be able to ride the carriages up to the school this year. Distracted by her talking friends, she appraoched where the carriages taking off, already noticing from a distant that the closest one was already full and they'd have to wait for the next one. She did not, however, notice who it was that got into the carriage.

"Still an attention seeker?" A far too familiar, annoying voice whispered coldly. The red-haired girl's head snapped, up to see none other than the, in her opinion, creepy green eyes of Helena Villar. The Slytherin was traveling in a group of her own kind, Lanee only reconizing Pansy Parkinson, another horrible girl with a stupid bob haircut. Seamus and Dean stopped talking, interested in hearing their friends response.

Lanee narrowed her eyes at the girl. "Still an arrogant snob?" She sharply snapped. Helena had no time to respond, her carriage took off, Lanee making a noise of disugst once her enemy was gone. "We better get the feast fast, I want some meat." She suddenly said in a serious tone. Dean laughed as he climbed onto the approaching carriage, two more girls dashing across the leaves to climb in before it took off.

Lanee recognized the girls as Pavarti Patil, whom she liked, and Lavender Brown, someone she did not. The girl with hair almost as bushy as Hermione Granger's, gave a nod of acknowlagdment towards Lanee, and then shot a cute smile and wink at Seamus, who turned a shade of pink before turning to Lanee to discuss the Qudditch match some more. Lavender, who didn't care about Qudditch, made a noise that sounded like 'hmph!' before she turned to talked to Pavarti about some fourth year that she liked.

The carriages finally arrived at the beautiful castle, a place almost every student called home. The five kids exited the carriage, making their way up the school, proffesors hurding the children towards the Great Hall for the sorting and feast. It wasn't difficult to hear all the chatter coming from all the students.

"Potter and Weasly have been missing! Wern't on the train or anything!" Some Hufflepuff was explaining to his friend.

"What-did they ditch? They obvousily didn't miss the train because the rest of the Weasly's are here..." His friend responded, glancing around and spotted a few older Weasly's.

"I hope they get expelled!" Goyle sneered, inserting himself into the conversation. At that moment, Peeves floated over, getting the noise before flying around, deciding to scream/sing a song about the news. Lanee rolled her eyes, as much as an annoying little shit Peeves was, she couldn't help but love him. Last year, he often sang about 'The Chamleon of Gryffindor', a song about herself, which she actually enjoyed.

Dean pulled Seamus and Lanee to a spacious part of the bench, sitting next to Oliver Wood about the upcoming Qudditch matches(which seemed to be a popular topic today), while Lanee turned over to Pavarti, who seemed to be ignoring a babbling Lavender. Once she realized her friend was not listening, Brown turned to Romilda and rebegan her story on the oh-so-exciting story of how she learning how to use an eye lash curler.

"I do love her, but she can be a little too much at times." Pavarti giggled, making sure Lavender wouldn't hear the statement that could be taken offensivily.

"She's just girly." Lanee responded, deciding to giver herself a pink streak. "That's why I'm not too fond of her. Who cares about curling your eyelashes? They're already curled." The other girl laughed before the first years filed in, standing around the sorting hat. Once again, the old dusty hat began to sing that was even more amusing than last year. Dean turned to Lanee with a smile, rolling his eyes as Seamus tried to hold back his laughter. The song ended with a quiet applause, mostly from the Ravenclaw table. What, are they impressed with the singing hat? Lanee thought to herself with smile.

The sorting began, Lanee recognizing a few last names from her current classmates. A partiuclar two stuck to her, the first being Ginny Weasly, a newly found Gryffindor. Honestly, how many more of them were there? But she couldn't deny that she was the most attractive one she had seen so far, despite the fact that the girl was only eleven. The second name is recongnized Annabel Villar. Crap, another one? She sighed. Not surprised when the girl was sorted in Slythering, Lanee relaxed a little knowing she wouldn't have to deal with another Villar.

Feast time, Lanee grabbing the first piece of meat she could find. The clear skies allowed the bright full moon to shine throughout the hall, even though lit by candlelit, gave the room a mysterious glow that was quite relaxing. She noticed Hermione Granger not eating much, still nervousily looking around for the only friends she had. Pavarti scooted away from Lavender, trying to comfort Hermione so she didn't feel alone, even though Pavarti didn't perticularly liked her.

Seamus, Dean, and Lanee then followed Percy Weasly to the common room, informing everyone on the new password, and then explaing how the dorms worked to the first years once everyone was inside the warm common room. Lanee parted from her friends, eager to get upstairs and plop onto bed, exhausted for no reason at all. She entered to find Lavender sitting on her bed, suddenly pipping up when Lanee entered, as if she had been waiting for her.

"Oh, Lanee! I've been waiting for you!" Lavender exclaimed, confirming Lanee's suspicions.

"Uh...what do you want?" She asked confused, heading over to open up her trunk and search for her pajama shorts and baggy t-shirt.

"You're good friends with See-mus, right?" Lanee sighed as she pulled out the clothes and tossed them on her bed.

"His name is pronoucned Shay-mus." She responded annoyed. Honestly, she had lived in the same common room with him for a year, she assumed Lavender would be able to pronouce his name, especially since she so obvousily fancied him.

"Oh. Well, I was just wondering if you could, you know, introduce him to me!" Brown squeeled. Lanee laughed under her breath as she pulled her shoes and socks.

"I'm pretty sure you already know him, Brown. You were in classes and in the same house all last year."

"I know, but I mean, like...personally. Or at least put in a good word for me? I kind of have a little crush on him! I was hoping he could be my boyfriend sometime soon-" Lanee cut off the girl off.

"You're twelve years old, honestly Lavender, why the bloody hell do you need a boyfriend? Seamus still think girls have cooties, because, well, he's twelve. You can try to be friends with him yourself-"

"He obvousily doesn't think girls have cooties, he's friends with you!" Lavender argued.

"Because I'm not a girl, and he's not a boy. We're two people, kids, who have common interests. There's a difference. Didn't even notice his obvouis denial to your flirting on the carriage? I'm sorry if I sound rude, but you needed to hear the truth. Gosh." Lanee finished before heading into the bathroom to change.

This was going to be a long year.