A New Addition

[Paolo Ricci]

Paolo exhaled a sigh of relief as the Sorting Hat announced "Ravenclaw!" He was ecstatic to be placed in one of the houses that his parents were placed in and couldn't wait to write home about it. Lost in the moment, he wondered where his younger twin sisters would be placed when they came to Hogwarts in two years. They were not as studious as their older brother, and one of them had a knack for getting into trouble all the time. Either way, he looked forward to when they would be up here like him and he knew he would cheer for them no matter what house they were placed into.

The little first year's head came back to what was going on. He hopped down off the stool as the professor removed the hat from his head, and made his way to the roaring table of blue. Paolo had seen a few others be sorted into Ravenclaw ahead of him and he couldn't wait to meet new friends!

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Avaria looked over as someone sat next to her. She had been talking and hadn't noticed anyone else get sorted. Feeling a bit better now that the older girls had reassured her, Ava's natural optimism took over and she held out her hand to the boy, her blue eyes bright again and a friendly smile on her face. "Hi there! I'm Avaria, but you can call me Ava. What's your name?" She asked, blowing a strand of blond hair out of her eyes.

 

[Paolo Ricci]

Paolo sat down next to a blonde girl that he saw get sorted before him. At least she would be in the same boat as him! After she greeted and introduced herself, he replied "Hi Ava! My name is Paolo," with a big grin on his face. "Can you believe we got sorted into Ravenclaw? My father is gonna be so excited! He was a Ravenclaw when he went to Hogwarts," Paolo said, rambling on a little. He was very happy to have another first year to talk to while trying to process everything that was going on. "Is there anything you're really looking forward to this year?" Paolo asked.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

"Nice to meet you Paolo!" Ava greeted cheerily, pouting a little when he started on how his dad would be proud. "I don't know what my Papa will think, he was a Gryffindor and Mama was a Hufflepuff." She tucked her hair behind her ear. "That's okay, though, I think. I'll make Ravenclaw all my own and make him proud anyway," She declared, determination plain on her face. "What about you?" She asked, turning back to him. "What are your plans?"

 

[Paolo Ricci]

Paolo listened to her, making sure to maintain eye contact like his parents taught him on being polite. This was his very first friend he was making at Hogwarts, so he was very excited to get to know her! "I'm sure both of your parents will be more than proud of you, especially with that attitude," he said, patting her on the shoulder gently. He knew he would have felt the same way if he had been sorted into Hufflepuff or Slytherin instead, it looked like they may have come from similar home lives.

"I'm looking forward to learning as much as I can! I love figuring out how things work, so I can't wait to get into each one of our courses. If you ever want a study buddy, I'm always a yes!"" Paolo said with a big Cheshire grin on his face. He knew that he was a big nerd, but he figured being in the Ravenclaw house he would be surrounded by likeminded people and didn't mind sharing this side of himself. "Do you have any siblings that go here?" he asked, since she made it sound like she was the first in Ravenclaw in her family.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava smiled as he patted her on the shoulder, telling her he was sure both her parents would be proud. She decided not to tell him her Mama was dead and that's why she was living with Papa, listening to him talk instead. He continued, saying how excited he was to learn everything about everything, and it made her smile.

Ava smiled easily, but that was alright. She thought she looked rather plain, but she lit up whenever she smiled. And since she always had something to smile about, looking plain wasn't really a problem. She thought idly that she liked the way Paolo's eyes shined when he talked about studying. "If I ever have to study, I promise to find you first," She told him solemnly, placing her hand over her heart and raising her other one in all seriousness.

He asked about siblings then and she shook her head. "Mama and Papa were a short-lived romance, so I'm an only child," She told him with a shrug. "I live with Papa now that Mama's gone, but that's alright. He's a lot like me, so I don't miss Mama as much." She admitted with a small smile. She looked back to him. "Do you have any siblings Paolo?"

 

[Paolo Ricci]

Paolo chuckled a little when she raised her hand and promised to find him when she needed to study. He was glad to find someone as nice as her, especially so quickly! The gesture was much appreciated and he had a big smile on his face once again. It seemed to be infectious between the first years, which makes sense since it was such a big moment for both of them! The Sorting was full of all sorts of excitement, smiles and laughter everywhere.

His smile did falter for a second, however, when she responded about her mother. He couldn't imagine what that must be like, she seemed to be holding it together better than he think he would. "I'm sorry to hear about your mum, but I am glad to hear that your dad likes you a lot," he said with an encouraging smile. Paolo didn't want to bring her down at all, this was a happy moment! "I have two younger twin sisters who are two years younger than me, Sofia and Isabella. Isa for short. I miss them so much already, we have always been very close. But I have an owl that will let me send letters back and forth!" he said, starting to ramble on a little again. "I think you three would get along, you seem like a very nice person!" Paolo said, flashing his big Cheshire grin again.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

"Oh don't worry about it, but thanks," Ava replied with a laugh when Paolo apologized about her mom. He continued to tell her about his sisters and she smiled. She didn't have any siblings but she planned to make so many friends she wouldn't notice.

She couldn't help but laugh when Paolo told her she'd get along with his sisters because she was nice. "Then I have you thoroughly fooled," she teased. "For all you know I'm a dragon in disguise." She continued with a coy grin. "You should be careful not to anger me, for wizards taste wonderful when fried to a crisp and covered with ketchup." She winked playfully.

 

[Paolo Ricci]

Paolo was in a fit of laughter at her joke, he knew they would get along great. "I apologize o' great dragon, it is a great honor to meet someone like you," he said, continuing to laugh. "I will make sure to pass you the ketchup right away when the feast begins! Is there anything else you require, o' great one?" Paolo said, trying to maintain a straight face with this sentence. He could already tell they were going to be great friends, and he was lucky they were placed in the same house.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Avaria couldn't help but laugh with Paolo. This was definitely the start of a beautiful friendship, and she only hoped Philip was doing as well as she was over in Slytherin. "I shall forgive you, mortal," She tried to be serious again, "Only if you produce a cheeseburger to sacrifice in your place," She held back the laughter but couldn't stop herself from grinning. Today wasn't so bad after all, she decided. She wondered if every day was going to be like this, and it made her feel a bit better about being away from home thinking that it could be.

 

[Paolo Ricci]

"One cheeseburger coming right up! I hope it to your satisfaction, dragoness," Paolo said chuckling some more. This is what he was looking for when he came to school. Brilliant new friends. They would help with the sadness of being away from home. But then again, this would become their second home. Staying here all year with Avaria and any other friends they make was going to be great, and he looked forward to every second of it. He turned to Ava and asked, "How do you feel about making a pinky promise?" Paolo extended his pinky and continued, "A pinky promise is the most important of all promises! What do you say we promise to make the best of our time here, and make every day the best it can be? Let's try to make this day as awesome and amazing as this one!"

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Ava giggled, looking up as the last of the students walked up to be sorted. Good, that meant there should be food not long after that. She turned her attention back to Paolo as he asked about pinky promises. She considered his proposition seriously. Of course he was right, and it seemed like a good promise to make. She wrapped her pinky around his, her face serious.

"You have a promise." She grinned happily at him, her blue eyes sparkling.

 

[Paolo Ricci]

Paolo flashed his wide Cheshire grin one last time as she made the promise. He noticed how Ava's eyes were a very pretty blue, and he couldn't help but keep smiling. "Awesome, I can't wait to see what this year has in store for us and the rest of the first years," he said as the sorting had ended with the last student. Food now appeared in front of them, piles and piles of delicious food! Before he grabbed anything for himself, he snagged a plate with cheeseburgers and a bottle of ketchup for his new friend. "Dig in!" he exclaimed as he started pulling plates to him for his own food. The new Ravenclaw boy started eating voraciously as all the excitement stirred up quite an appetite for him.

 

[Avaria Lockwood]

Paolo'so enthusiasm rubbed off on Ava, and she couldn't help but wonder what the new year would hold for her. Her life had been so full of change lately, and most of it seemed good.

She turned her attention to the food as it appeared on the table, realizing how hungry she really was. She reached for her cup and was delighted to find it had filled with vanilla Pepsi. She wasn't sure if wizards got soda, and she was glad of it.

As she took a drink Paolo handed her ketchup and a plate of cheeseburgers and she couldn't help but grin again. "It seems I must spare you for now, mortal." She teased as she filled her plate and began to eat.

This was going to be a very fun year indeed.