| Details for First Friends |
| Summary: | Two Muggle-Born witches discover that not everyone in the Wizarding World is welcoming to them. This is a Back-dated scene in which Sammie and Maeve meet for the first time. |
| Date: | 25 August, 1937 |
| Location: | Diagon Alley, London |
| Related: | Related Logs: None |
| Characters |
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It's early afternoon in late August, about a week before the Hogwart's Express is due to depart. The weather in London is drizzly, which makes it a rather unpleasant day for going out and shopping. At the moment, Maeve is making her way along Diagon Alley, eyes wide as she looks around, the tiny muggle born girl just completely awestruck by the new world she's suddenly become a part of.
As it happens, another young girl is also in Diagon.. looking, well, a little like a drowned rat, dressed as she is in a light summer frock, no coat in sight, and a rather crumpled list clutched in her hand as she walks down the dimly-lit alleyway. She must of taken a wrong turning somewhere, as the alleyway isnt the main throuroghfare, and she has no idea where she should be going.
Maeve manages to tear her gaze away from the various wonderful stores, only to notice the other girl. Frowning as she watches Sammie moving away, she follows, immediately concerned. Unknowingly, though, the alleyway that both girls are taking is Knockturn Alley. Not exactly the place to be if you're Muggle Born.
Sammie has no idea where she is going, or that she is being followed. This being the case, she carries on down the smaller alley, going deeper into the murky smoke-filled passage, blinking a little as her eyes sting,a small cough escaping her throat.
Unfortunately, Sammie hasn't only attracted the attention of Maeve. Two young wizards, each about fourteen years old, are in the alley. One of them is rather heavyset, with a slightly dull expression, the other slightly taller, with somewhat curly brown hair. The taller boy smiles maliciously as he sees Sammie, and motions to his compatriot. "What have we here? Looks like some filthy muggle's found her way in, eh, Goyle?"
<FS3> Maeve rolls Stealth+Reaction: Good Success.
Maeve sees the two older boys, and stops suddenly, managing to slip into the shadows, just watching for the moment…
Sammie Isn't paying attention really to where she is going, her head flipping from side to side as she walks, realising that she has gone and gotten herself lost. Just as she is about to turn round, her head already heading in that direction, she walks into what she can only describe as a walking tree. LEtting out a squeek, she flies backwards a little, ending up landing on her rear on the floor with a thump. As she lands, her dress flips up a little, almost revealing things that she shouldnt as she sits on the wet floor, looking up at a pair of legs.
Goyle smirks down at the girl, unable to resist trying to get a peek up her dress as it goes up. As for the taller boy, he leans down, and takes the crumpled sheet of paper from Sammie's hand, and looks it over. "A Hogwart's letter," he says increduliously. "Father's right, their standards really are falling." He wads the letter up, and drops it into the puddle next to the girl. "What makes a filthy little mudblood like you think you can go to Hogwarts. Better go home to your little patch of dirt, girl." The words almost drip with contempt…
Maeve doesn't know what Mudblood means. At the moment, she doesn't care. She grits her teeth, temper starting to flare. Before she realizes it, she steps out of the shadows. "Why don't ye pick on someone yer own size?" Considering how small the irish girl is, the line is almost laughable. However the expression on her face shows that she's absolutely, deadly serious.
Sammie squeeks again as the letter is pulled out of her hand, trying to scramble back a little, but only ending up slipping on the muddy floor, the front of the dress lifting a little more, much to the delight of the shorter boy looking at her. "W..what do u want??" she stammers, a look of fear plastered across her face. She watches in dismay as the letter lands in the puddle, the ink quickly starting to spread, making the words inteligible, and with that the instructions on how to get her stuff billed to a 'scholarship' account dissapearing too. "I.. I c..cant…" she stammers again in response to the 'suggestion' from the other boy.
Then she breaks down into tears, sitting on the floor sobbing quietly, not even caring that from where they are standing the boys can see right the way up her dress, looking up in surprise as another voice starts, not seeing the girl it is comming from as its behind her.
Young Master Goyle is now openly leering at the fallen girl, not caring at all about her protests. The other boy, while he glances at Sammie, sneers when she says she can't go back. "Well, I don't care where you go, Mudblood. You don't belong at Hogwarts, and you don't belong…" He trails off as Maeve interrupts. "And who might you be? You look like another Mudblood."
Maeve's jaw is clenched. "I dinnae know what ye mean by Mudblood. What I do know is that th' two of ye are bullies. And I canna abide a bully. Leave her alone." The tiny girl's fists are balled up, and it's apparent that she's perfectly willing to start a fight, right here and now, even though she can't win it, and knows it full well.
Sammie sniffs again as she is called a mudblood, having no idea either what one of those is, but it doesnt sound good. She twists her head to see who, or what is behind her, blinking away some tears as she see's another girl… a girl even smaller than herself, who looks… well, almost like an avenging angel.
Now, that does attract Goyle's attention, and he looks up, ready to start trouble. Suddenly, it penetrates his rather thick skull and enters his tiny brain that he's dealing with another girl, and he gets an even more confused than normal look on his piggish face. As for the other boy, he sneers. "And ye expect t' stop me?" he says, making fun of her Irish accent. "I could break you in half without even having to break a sweat."
Maeve isn't intimidated at all. Yes, she's small, but she's incredibly determined. "Leave her alone. I won't warn ye again." She raises her voice slightly, which does have the effect of attracting the attention of a small group of kids from the main alley who are even older than the bullies. "Oy! Leave off them!" shouts one young man, probably a seventh year, and fairly large even then. The entire group comes up behind Maeve, glowering. This has the effect of intimidating the two Slytherins, who slink off…
Sammie blinks again, not sure what is going on… or why a strange girl who is smaller than herself is challenging the boys… boys big enough to, well, snap her in two. Then the situation disolves as she hears other voices shouting, and the sound of multiple feet comming closer, and blinks again as the pair glare at her before dissapearing. She doesnt move tho, staying where she is sat on the floor, the light drizzle coating her legs in fine droplets of water. "W..wha??" she stammers, not understadning what just happened.
The young man, satisfied that the bullies are gone, turns to the two girls. "Are you two all right? You'd probably better stay out of Knockturn Alley if you don't want to get in trouble. It's not a friendly place for most Wizards." He smiles, trying to reassure Sammie for the most part, as Maeve seems fairly calm. "At any rate, take care, you two." And with that, they are gone, making their way back to Diagon Alley proper.
Maeve, however, doesn't follow immediately. Instead, she goes over to Sammie, and offers her a hand. "Here. Let's get ye up. Least they did nae hurt ye." She grins. "M' name's Maeve. Maeve O'Brian. I'm guessin' ye're goin' t' Hogwarts too?"
Sammie looks from the group of older boys and girls, to the small girl, trying to follow what is going on, but gives up, dropping her head back down and crying a little bit again, her dress still where it was, not really hiding anything as its bunched round her waist at the front and rather… clingy due to the weather, one hand reaching out forlornly for her letter, holding it up and watching the ink drip off the now illegible mess. She doesnt even see that the other girl has come over and stands in front of her with her hand out, now able to see everythign that the Goyle boy could see previously.
As she hears the voice, now close to her, she looks up slowly, tears running down her face, but doesnt make any move to get up yet. HEr head nods a little as she looks down at the note again as you mention Hogwarts "I.. I'm sp..sposed to be…" she sniffs.
Maeve frowns, as she reaches into her pocket, and pulls out a handkerchief, then gently starts to wipe away the tears. "Here now. You'll be goin'. They dinnae have a way t' keep ye from goin'." She reaches over, and picks up the sodden letter, uncrumpling it, and sighing as she looks at it. "My, what a mess…"
Sammie sniffs again as her face gets wiped, making her look almost more pathetic if it was possible, "Y..yes they can… I…" she sniffs and hangs her head again as the letter is pulled out of her hands again "I.. I cant get anything now…" she whines, realising that she is going to be in sooo much trouble.. she cant buy her robes, wand or books or anything without the letter…
Maeve nods, as she looks more closely at the letter. "I think I can make out some o' what's written here. Samantha Thompson… Is that ye're name?" She smiles, as she turns from the letter to look at you.
Sammie nods her head again slowly, sniffing again, lifting her arm and rubs it under her nose, about the most un-ladylike gesture possible, and looks up a little more, looking up at the other girl.
Maeve smiles, and wraps her arms around you, hugging you. "Youe're gonna be all right, Samantha. Ye jus' stick with me. I'll take care o' ye." She gently wipes a few more tears away, then stands up, and takes your hand. "As for th' letter, I think I can read th' instructions on th' scholarship account.
Sammie stiffens up a little as you lean forward and wrap your arms round her, her eyes going wide in shock and surprise, before she unstiffens alightly, not much, but enough for it to be noticable. She looks up as you stand and grab hold of her hand again, blinking back the tears still in her eyes "W..who ARE you??" she asks, still a little in shock, dress still up round her waist. "Y..you c..can??"
Maeve smiles as she releases the hug, and nods. "Th' letters are blurred, but still legible. And as for who I am, I told ye. My name's Maeve O'Brien, and I'm goin' t' be attendin' Hogwarts too.
Sammie blinks again, somthing she seems to be doing a lot of "Y..you can…. Y.you are??" she stammers, still looking up at you looking down at her, almost for the first time realising how cold her legs are. Looking down eventually, she squeeks as she realises where her dress is, and tugs it down, though the cotton sticks to her legs rather a lot. "Oh my g..god..i..im so s…sorry!!!"
Maeve smiles reassuringly. "Ye dinnae need t' worry about it. C'mon. Let's go get our supplies. I assume we'll need t' get th' same things since we're both in th' same year." She thinks for a moment. "Oh, mind if I call ye Sammie? Samantha's such a mouthfull…"
Sammie sniffs once more before she climbs very slowly to her feet, her dress plastered to her, a very large dirty patch right over her whole rear. "Y..your first year??" she asks, tilting her head slightly at your question, and then shrugs her shoulders "S..sure… I g..guess"