Hi, all. I've been thinking about writing out a proper, full-length fanfic (I've got a couple ideas about when and when), and I decided to try out writing something a little smaller first. With some of the character I've got planned for it, I decided to write a scene with them on the Hogwarts Express.
Daedalus sat in the carriage compartment the four of them had always taken on their way to and from Hogwarts- indeed, if the Express didn't undergo strict cleaning between uses, they'd have carved their names into the door, or at least their little group name. The Knights, they'd elected to call themselves. They were heading into their sixth year now, so the uses had started running out.
As per usual, Daedalus was first aboard. He made sure of it, so that no-one else would get their carriage. He was always amused by the idea of assigning so much sentiment to a compartment on a train- though, he supposed, that kind of a thing was what Rowan lived for.
He sat, reading a newspaper- a copy of the Daily Prophet he'd bought at the little shop in Platform 9 and 3/4 before boarding. September 1st 1866, was the date displayed on the front, with a little clock displaying the current time- which, from the schedule of the train, meant that time was running out before they were to leave. Where were the rest of them?
As though his thoughts had been heard, his question was answered. Rowan Andersen entered the compartment, looking around it with a dreamy kind of smile before smiling broadly at Daedalus, and taking a seat across from him.
"Hey, Dae!" They said, the smile not fading one bit, "Glad you got our compartment, like usual."
Daedalus put down his paper, and responded, shooting back a brief smile as he did, "Morning, Rowan. And, tradition dies hard, I suppose. Not that this will be our last ride on the Express, of course."
"Ha, yes, I suppose so... do you, um, know when the other were getting here? I saw Allie with her brother and some others outside, but I've not seen Kas anywhere...?"
Aleksandra and Kasumi were the other two 'Knights'. One for each house, they'd always mused. Daedalus was Ravenclaw, Rowan was Hufflepuff, Aleksandra was Slytherin, and Kasumi was Gryffindor.
Aleksandra had always sort of fit in with being a popular type- something Daedalus could hardly comprehend- but she, fortunately, always had time for her 'true friends' as she always put it. Kasumi, meanwhile, was- as far as the others were concerned- the epitome of a Gryffindor. Fiercely protective, brave in the face of great danger, and, of course, a little... reckless. Indeed, none of them were in any rush to forget when Kas had gotten them all into detention for a month, and almost cost Daedalus his Prefect status, for her idea to 'spice up Potions Class'... with an Erumpent Horn.
"I... have no idea. Kas will show up, but, knowing her, it'll be in some grand fashion. And, Allie you said, was with Casmir and some others? She'll be a moment, I'm sure."
Rowan nodded, light brown hair covering over their face as they rested their head on their fist. They brushed it away from their eyes, but it soon floated back. Going back and forth like this for a little while, much to Daedalus' slight amusement, Rowan eventually huffed and conceded, letting their hair irritate them.
Fairly soon enough, after the two sat in contemplative silence, there was a knock on the compartment door, and it slid open. Aleksandra was standing on the other side, and with a slight waive to the two, she sat in the compartment, next to Rowan- who enthusiastically welcomed her.
"Hi, Allie! So, you managed to break away from the crowd, huh?"
In a much quieter voice than Rowan- which, admittedly, wasn't difficult, Allie spoke,
"Aha, yeah... that I did. Morning, Daedalus, by the way," Daedalus waived a hand slightly in response, as he was back to his paper, "Got busy, sorry. Romeo Goshawk insisted on speaking to me. Something about... I can hardly remember, he simply wouldn't stop..."
Rowan pulled a slightly disgusted face, "Romeo Goshawk? That annoying idiot? Does he think he's friends with you or something?"
"I... have no idea what he thinks, but he is probably wrong. Like he is with most things, aha. Then he brought all his friends over; Miriam, Theodore, and the rest. It was... a lot," Aleksandra said, shaking her head and relaxing more into the compartment's surprisingly comfortable seating, as she too pulled out some reading to do- some wizarding detective novel that she'd become obsessed with over the holidays.
And, for a while, the compartment was happily quiet; Aleksandra and Daedalus reading their respective materials, and Rowan sketching in an art book they'd kept since they were a first-year, and simply added pages as needed. So, with the three so deep in thought, they hardly noticed the cabin door being slipped open, and nor did they notice an unseen figure taking a seat next to Daedalus.
Eventually, Rowan put their down their sketchbook, and- checking the time on their watch- wondered allowed, "When is Kas getting here? The train's about to leave, for goodness' sake!"
"I'm right here!"
Came a voice from next to Daedalus, as Kas threw off the cheap invisibility cloak, which collapsed to the floor in a shimmering silver heap. The three others in the compartment screamed, with Aleksandra and Daedalus almost prepared to cast some kind of spell on the revealed Kas, before they realised who exactly it was.
Kas laughed uproariously at her excellent joke, and after some curse woods and general dismayed comments from the others, they too joined in the laughter- Rowan, at one point, laughed so much, they had began to get worried that they'd stopped breathing. Eventually, the laughing died down, with all four suddenly realising just how sore their throats had gotten.
"Merlin's beard, Kas... Where'd you get an invisibility cloak?"
"Oh, bought it off some guy in Knockturn Alley. I thought he'd ripped me off, to be honest, but all your reactions made it worth it to be sure. Oh, you should've seen your faces..." Kas almost broke into more laughter, before the soreness of her throat reminded her that that was a poor idea.
"So, sixth year, huh? Strange to think it's getting close to being over. Just this year and next to go?"
Daedalus sighed, and looked around the compartment,
"Mm, strange... Rowan, I'm going to sound soppy in a moment, so sorry for stealing your thing- ", "Hey! I'm not soppy", "- but when we are done, next year, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Us four have been together since we were first years. When it is all over, next year, we'll have to promise to keep in touch."
The three others agreed, with Kas and Rowan agreeing aloud, and Allie simply nodding her head enthusiastically. Sitting back in his seat and getting comfortable, Daedalus watched from the window as the Hogwarts Express left the station, and headed to Hogwarts.
Would love to get some feedback!