Birth of the IC

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Geo hadn't seen her newly appointed Gryffindor best friend since she bid farewell to her prior to the pair being sorted into different houses during sorting. After spending over 6 months with Leila she had gotten to know the girl and her siblings well, and couldn't wait to see her again and give her an update on her new dorm mates, and just how strange some of them were. She had agreed to meet Leila and Jess in the towers, since it was near to their common room. She had also mentioned to Elizabeth they would be meeting up, and hoped the Ravenclaw would also join them. Geo had yet to see all her new friends in the same room together and hoped they would one day all get along.

She had found a large window overlooking the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch towards the north of the Towers corridor. As she looked out she imagined what it would be like to fly and play in a real game. While she had no experience of Quidditch yet, she did know someone who was willing to teach her. As a runner, Geo's coordination was on point and as a natural competitive athlete, she looked forward to the moment she would finally be able to try out a broom for the first time.

She had been standing, gazing out the window for a number of minutes when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned her head quickly to see if it were one of the student she was waiting for. Unorganised as ever, Geo had nothing planned for when the group did meet, but right now she wasn't worried about that, and just wanted to see her friends again.

 

[Leila Walden]

It had only been a couple of days or so since Leila had last seen Geo, but in the little Gryffindor's mind that was like weeks! The two girls had arranged to meet somewhere in the towers and Leila could barely sleep the night before because of the excitement. She had missed Geo so much and there was so much that the girls needed to catch up on. Once the agreed time had came Leila grabbed Jess and ran to the North Tower hoping to spot the familiar flash of pink hair. It didn't take long before Leila spotted her friend and she gave a little squeal and ran towards her friend. When she reached her she dragged her into a massive hug and spun her around. "Oh Geo! I've missed you so much! How's your house? Are the people nice there?" she asked her friend without taking a breath, she was bursting with questions and there just didn't seem to be enough time to ask them all.

 

[Jessica Cade]

After the initial excitement of the sorting ceremony had calmed down Jess had begun to miss Geo more and more. She had expected her to join her and Leila in Gryffindor and couldn't believe she was in Hufflepuff instead. Jess knew that Leila had got close to Geo since the girl had been living with her so it was no surprise how excited she seemed at the prospect of seeing her, if anything the surprise was that she was taking Jess with her. She didn't like to admit it, but she was a little jealous of Geo's relationship with her best friend, they were like sisters and she envied that.It got to the time that Leila was due to meet Geo and the girl grabbed Jess's hand and they made their way out of the common room and headed to the North tower. Jess wasn't sure why they were meeting in the tower but she didn't question it. The girl stood back as Leila squealed and went to hug Geo. Once she was done, Jess plastered a smile on her face and joined the pair, "Geo its good to see you," She said hugging the girl, though not with the same excitement as Leila. "I'm so disappointed you're not in Gryffindor with us,"

 

[Elizabeth Chatwin]

The first year had started for real now and she missed the friends she had met before Hogwarts. Yesterday she had received an invitation from Geo about a meet up that was supposed to happen today. Elly couldn't sleep and kept turning and thinking about what they were going to do and who were going to be there. Today Elly was wearing a pair of blue jeans with a striped sweater. This look was more undercover and comfortable. Elizabeth read her invite one more time and knew where she had to go at which time. It wasn't far from her common room so Elly decided to check if no one was following her. Not that it was a secret meeting, but somehow she always felt suspicious of others following her. When Elly arrived she saw Jess, Leila and Geo standing together. It was odd, she had met all three before. Elly didn't even know they knew each other. Elly her mouth almost fell open in shock. ''I am so happy to see you guys!'' Elly squealed out of happiness. ''I didn't even know you guys knew each other'' Elly paused ''Omg this is amazing!'' Elly was so happy now her day couldn't get any better. Firstly she decided to hug all three of her friends.

 

[Sophie Wilson]

When Sophie started school she hadn't had a preference for a house, as long as it wasn't Hufflepuff. Reflecting now, she felt like Ravenclaw really was the best fit. Mostly because she absolutely loved their common room, the airy feel and the relative silence made it perfect for her. She had heard by now that the Slytherin common room was in the dungeons, and was glad to have dodged that particular bullet.

She just really liked the towers and the feeling of being high up. Brooms had never done this for her, because they required focus and control, something she didn't like to rely on while high in the air. But she did greatly enjoy looking out of the different tower windows she came across, which was what she was doing now. In the distance, Sophie spotted a bright pink flash that looked familiar. She stopped and stepped back before Geo could see her. She had met the other girl in Obsidian Harbour a few months before the schoolyear started, and she didn't think she had made the best impression on her or the other girls she had met there. She still felt conflicted about that day. Part of her felt like she had done the right thing in forcing the other girls to exclude her by being rude, before they could exclude her themselves after she already grew attached. But another part of her felt like maybe she had missed out on something great, though she wasn't sure if that was ever on the table in the first place.

She felt a bit creepy watching Geo like this and was about to move on when she saw the dark haired girl she had met that day too approach Geo, the blond girl in tow. She scowled, so they were all friends now, huh? Their own little group, not bothered by the difference in houses. Sophie had been kidding herself if she thought she was ever going to be part of that. Then another girl joined them, and Sophie recognized her too. Elizabeth slept in the same dorm as Sophie, and was one of the more excited and outspoken (annoying) girls in her Ravenclaw in her year. She of course would fit right in here. Sophie was the only one that didn't. She scowled at the group from a distance and told herself to walk away, but somehow she was rooted to the spot.

 

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

Geo grinned at her friend as she approached with Jessica, and embraced her excited ex-roommate in an emotion hug. "I've missed you so much" She said, already feeling like it had been way too long since they last met. Spending so long with her outgoing and generous friend over the last few months had definitely found the girls growing closer, and it was easy to say that Leila was Geo's best friend. Geo hadn't even spoken to Riley as much over the last few weeks as she had with Leila, and as the days went past Geo thought that leaving her old friends behind wasn't such a tragedy afterall. If she had never left, she would never had found the wonderful people in her life now.

"I'm so happy you guys made Gryffindor", she said truthfully, extending an arm around Jess now too. She hadn't seen James's sister prior to sorting since the day in the Leaky Cauldron, but both girls had also gotten on extremely well, and Jess had taken a particular interest in Geo's hair. Looking at the girl now in the lighting of the castle, she was very pretty and her eyes always seemed to be sparkling. "You will have to look after each other!" She joked with a serious face. "There are some nice people in Hufflepuff, but they'll never be you guys" she said. Everyone seemed to be getting on well in the common room, and although she wouldn't say she'd made any friends in there yet, there were a few students she wouldn't resist spending more time with. That being said, the more time she could spend around those around her now, the better.

"You have to tell me all about your common room. What's it like? Do you have a fireplace like us?" The torrent of questions stormed down on the Lions and it was hard for Geo to hold herself back when she started. So long had she spent of dreaming of spending long evenings with her friends in the common room, and she just had to know what it was like for them. Just as she finished her questions, she spotted another familiar face over Jess' shoulder, and Geo's face lit up once more. "Elly!" She squealed, her arms extending once more to include the Ravenclaw. Geo and Elly had already managed to meet up after sorting, but she was one of the few people in the castle that Geo felt as though she could talk to, and was delighted to find out that the three girls had already met each other. The Hufflepuff had the intention of introducing the clans to one another, but now that it wasn't necessary she was glad they would all be able to enjoy some time together.

"I have to be honest," She said, the word "honest" almost getting caught in her throat as she realised why she'd been misplaced from Gryffindor. "I haven't got a particular plan for this afternoon. I just thought it would be nice to get to know each other better. Of course I didn't realise you already knew one another!" She mentioned, and gestured that they start walking down the corridor, in doing so linking arms with Leila and trying not to catch Jess's eye. She had a strange feeling that Jess was particularly protective of her Gryffindor friend, that and she didn't want to show herself blushing.

As they headed down the corridor, Geo's eyes headed in the direction they were wandering. As she looked down the stone castle wall, she caught sight of one of the other members from the Leaky Cauldron. Unfortunately she was the soul who had seemed undelighted at their presence, despite the girls best attempts to befriend her. Geo may have been in Hufflepuff, but she still had the courage of the red inside her. Unlinking her arm from her best friend, she stormed over to the girl, not entirely sure what she was going to say until she got there. She partly felt bad for the girl, but on the other hand she had completely disregarded everything that her friends had done for her. "Excuse me, I don't think we caught your name when you pushed our friendship away" She said, staring directly into the girls face. She wasn't against a little intimidation, especially if it got answers. She was in too much of a good mood to be angry, but Geo wanted to know why she had been so grumpy at the thought of their company. All they'd ever wanted to do was include her.

 

[Vilhelmine Dahl]

Vilhelmine was actually looking for the Owlery when she heard a familiar voice drifting down from the floor above. Geovanna, if her memory served her correctly, and though the girl's words were indistinct, her tone was rising and falling in that manner of somebody asking a great number of questions without pausing to receive the answers. Feeling somewhat as if she were intruding, but determined in her quest to find the Owlery, Vilhelmine crept up the staircase, dragging her fingertips lightly over the curved stone wall. Moments before she might have revealed herself, a sudden change in Geovanna's tone made her freeze on her step. She could hear clearly, now, though still could not be seen unless one thought to move to the staircase and check for spies. As a precautionary measure, the Hufflepuff sank down against the wall, pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging them. This was wrong. She shouldn't have been listening. Just as soon as they left, she told herself positively, she would advance up the final seven steps and look around for some owls.

 

[Leila Walden]

Leila grinned at her two best friends, she couldn't believe that the three of them were actually at Hogwarts, together. It seemed like only yesterday that they had all just met at the Leaky Cauldron but so much had happened since then and they had all grown so much closer. She closed her eyes as she savoured the hug between the other two girls, Leila couldn't believe how lucky she was to have such good friends around her. "Of course we'll look after each other" she replied grinning at Jess. "But I knew there wouldn't be anyone as good as us in Hufflepuff" she said winking at Geo. She wanted her pink haired friend to find people she liked but Leila didn't want her to forget about them which she was sure Geo wouldn't do anyway.

She nodded enthusiastically "yeah we have a fireplace, it's huge! It's so cosy though. It feels a lot like being back home to be honest" she chatted away "What about the Hufflepuff common room? Is it nice?" she asked, wondering if she would ever be able to see it. Leila was about to bombard her friend with more questions however, another person came over to join the group and Leila was pleased to see that it was Elly. Leila smiled at her friend and waited her turn to pull her into a hug "Hey Elly!! I know! Can you believe it?" she said excitedly. It was amazing how everything and everyone was coming together.

Following Geo's lead, Leila readily accepted her friend's arm in hers and walked down the corridor with her and Jess and Elly. However, it wasn't long before Geo had left her side and marched off somewhere further down the corridor. Leila shot her friends a confusing look and followed closely behind the Hufflepuff wondering what she had seen. As she got closer she realised that Geo had spotted the girl that they had all met at the Leaky Cauldron. The one who didn't seem to keen on them at all. Leila shot the girl a small smile and gently tugged on Geo's arm indicating that they should probably leave her alone. She very much doubted that the girl's opinion on them had changed in their favour.

 

[Jessica Cade]

Jess smiled at Geo as she said she hoped she and Leila would look after each other since they were both in Gryffindor. "Of course," She grinned, of course she would look after Leila whether Geo had asked her to or not. She nodded along as Leila and Geo talked about Hufflepuff. It was a house she didn't know anything about so she didn't saw anything on it until Leila mentioned no one would be as good as them. "You're right, I'm sure hufflepuffs are nice and all, but they got nothing on us," She grinned and winked at Geo. Soon someone else arrived, Jess turned to see Elly make her way into the room and by the reaction of Geo and Leila, both girls knew her too. "Merlin, everyone knows each other thats amazing," She said as she went over to hug Elly.

The four girls made their way down the corridor, Leila linked arms with Geo which Jess didn't like seeing so she didn't focus on the two of them and instead kept her eyes forward. Soon, Geo let go of Leila and marched down the hall as if she had spotted someone. Jess returned the confused look that was on Leila's face and the remaining three followed the Hufflepuff until he became clear who Geo had spotted. It was the girl from the leaky cauldron, who the one who had seemed less than impressed by them. "Geo, what are you doing?" She asked wondering why she was going after someone who hadn't seemed interested in being their friend.

 

[Elizabeth Chatwin]

Elly loved the fact that she already knew everyone. She felt safe in this group and somehow these people felt like her first bunch of real friends. They hugged her like they had actually missed her. Her old friends never hugged her or took notice in her. She just left after a year and putting much effort in such persons was too much apparently. Elly considered it as friendship though, they would always respond to her. Thinking back it wasn't friendship, this was. She looked at all her new gathered friends. A tear sprung into her eye and she quickly wiped it off unnoticeably. She hoped they could all stay together during their stay at hogwarts and beyond.

When Elly was done with her little moment, she noticed the other Ravenclaw girl. She was scared that she had been followed and she screwed over this meeting. She knew her name was Sophie. Sophie was different, but somehow she intrigued Elly. Elizabeth thought Sophie was just 24/7 grumpy, but there was more she was sure. Elizabeth walked up to Geo, she just hoped her friend didn't do anything stupid. ''Geo, that is Sophie, she is in my house.'' Elly muttered slowly. Elly looked at the others and back at Sophie, it seemed like they had already met. ''Did something happen the last time you guys met?'' She was curious, somehow the red was still in her.

 

[Sophie Wilson]

Sophie scowled at the happy scene in front of her. Everyone reuniting, becoming friends, having fun. And she didn't even know half their names. You didn't want to, though a small irritating voice told her. She crossed her arms in annoyance at her own reasonable brain. It wasn't fair. They all made it look so effortless.

She was surprised to be spotted as quickly as she was. In stories people eavesdropped all the time and they rarely ever were caught. Maybe Geo was very good at spotting people, or maybe Sophie wasn't sneaky enough. Either way, her heart did a little jump when the pink haired girl clearly caught sight of her. For a moment she was sure she would be ignored and was ready to be angry about that all over again, but then something worse happened. Instead of being ignored (which she hated), she was approached (which she was starting to find out, she hated even more). Sophie took an involuntary step back as Geo stormed at her, her eyes widening a fraction. For a wild moment she thought she was going to get hexed. She had assumed it would happen at some point in her school career, but not this early on. But instead she was hit with a question and stared down by this girl. What was her problem? Why did she care? Or pretend to care, which was more likely. Sophie swallowed and straightened her spine, not letting herself look away. "Excuse me." She said in return. "But I don't think offering someone shady drinks counts as an offer of friendship. At least, in my experience it does not." She scowled as she looked at the group of girls around them. They all looked at her somewhat warily, even Elly who she had sort of agreed with once. It wasn't much, but at least they both hated dead things in their bedroom, they had that much in common. "I can sense pity and falseness when I see it." She added. "You have your little group of friends, so leave me alone." Her eyes lingered on the two other girls she had met that day. The dark haired girl was tugging on Geo's arm as if she was afraid Sophie would attack her dear friend, and the blonde seemed just as unsure about Geo approaching Sophie. Elly muttered something to Geo that Sophie didn't catch, but she was sure it was about her. Her question about whether or not something happened, added to her annoyance. It was like she was some sort of scary lion Geo had decided to poke with a stick. If only, at least people tended to leave scary lions alone. "What happened between us is none of your business, Elly." She told her fellow Ravenclaw. "Though I'm sure they'll tell you all about it while you're having a little tea party or whatever." She couldn't stand the idea of them talking about her when she wasn't there so she averted her gaze, looking for anything else to focus on. Her step back had taken her closer to the staircase and she noticed something from the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she saw an odd looking girl sitting there, clearly listening too. She felt a moment of guilt before she snorted. "Seems like you have admirers everywhere, someone is spying on you." She didn't think it was a good idea to mention that she had been sort of doing the same thing, while being less good at it.

 

[Geovanna Adler-Cade]

As Geo stared back at Sophie, she felt Leila tugged on her arm. "I have to try" She mumbled towards her, pulling away from her friend. Apparently no one had updated Elizabeth, but it hadn't really been a point of discussion until they'd been reunited with Sophie. It's not like the group were particularly into gossiping. While Geo could understand that giving a stranger a drink could be seen as slightly ominous, it was the Ravenclaw's comment about about pity and falseness that struck a cord. "What are you talking about? We were trying to be your friend!" She said shocked. She'd never been claimed of being false before, if anything she was just known for being outgoing. Clearly this girl had some very high defenses if she considered everyone she met as a threat. She didn't particularly want to keep talking to this girl if she was going to have such a moody attitude.

Geo glanced back at Elly, "The day I met Jess and Leila, we also met Sophie. But she didn't want to know" She finished, before turning back to face the girl. "Fine, stay by yourself. Can't say we didn't offer" She added, noticing that the Ravenclaw seemed to have just been distracted by something. Geo followed her eyeline towards the stairs, not seeing anything there at all, until of course she glanced down to see another student crouched. Instantly Geo's stomach did a somersalt. She hadn't had the pleasure of this students company since the misfortunate event in the girls dormatory, and Geo quickly turned to face her friends, speechless and trying to catch her thoughts. She knew she would have to apologise for her embarrasing mistake one day, but it was made so much more difficult if she were being watched. She decided quickly on the spot that the best way to handle the situation was to help her friends not make the same mistake. In just a few seconds, Geo had walked over to the staircase, and offered her hand to the crouched Hufflepuff. No doubt Vil would be feeling somewhat awkward at being caught spying, but Geo had already noted that the girl was particularly shy. The least she could do was help her feel like this was normal. Unlike Sophie Vil had done nothing to warrant hiding in the shadows. "Vil come and meet my friends" She smiled at her aquaintance, hoping she would follow her out properly. Geo turned her head towards Jess Leila and Elly, as the first person she would be able to introduce to them from her own house. "Vil and I share a dorm" She announced, making it perfectly clear that no one else would make the same mistake she had.

 

[Vilhelmine Dahl]

Vilhelmine was straining so hard to hear the girls' conversation that she'd shut her eyes, and consequently she failed to notice that Sophie had stepped into her line of sight until the Ravenclaw made a remark on Geo's admirers. Suddenly Vil's eyes shot open, and she scrambled upright against the wall, looking at Geo's hand as if it might bite her. Meet her friends? The very last thing she'd expected to receive for spying on the Hufflepuff was an offer of friendship. Cautiously, keeping her hands straight at her sides, Vilhelmine followed Geo into the room, glancing uncertainly at the other girls whose conversations she'd been listening in on. They think you're a freak, the devil on her shoulder said. Why did Geo have to explain she was her dorm mate? It was much easier to explain being a boy with a shaved head than a girl with one. "Hi," she said, to nobody in particular. She briefly debated explaining that she'd actually been looking for the owlery, but then couldn't muster the courage. She might have sounded ingenuine, and somehow that was worse than everybody believing she was a spy.

 

[Leila Walden]

Leila was astounded that Sophie still didn't trust them, all they wanted to do was to make friends with her but she didn't seem to want to be included at all. Leila frowned as Geo and Sophie had a little argument, she decided to stay out of it as she didn't like confrontation and she didn't want Sophie to hate her even more. She turned away from the two girls and noticed something moving at the top of the stairs which soon materialised into another student. Geo seemed to know the girl and she introduced her as Vil, Leila smiled and waved at the girl who looked like she had seen a ghost when Geo picked her out.

 

[Sophie Wilson]

Sophie bristled a little at the description Geo gave of their meeting. In her mind the other girls had only sat at her table out of convenience, and included her out of pity. She never really had the idea that she had really been wanted as part of their little group, because she was so obviously different from them. It had honestly been a relief to her when none of the girls had joined her in Ravenclaw, though apparently Elly was part of their little crew now too. She frowned at Geo. "I just told you, I didn't think you really offered. I still don't really." She said, somewhat nervously. "You don't have to offer to be friends with me just because I happen to be hanging around." But it felt redundant already. Geo had clearly dismissed her now, and Sophie wanted to bang her head against the wall of the tower. If it had been a real offer of friendship, it was certainly ruined now by Sophie. She grimaced as Geo didn't seem bothered by the spying girl, her attempt at distraction clearly not working the way she had hoped. Of course she would know and like this girl too, of course. Sophie almost wanted to cry, all these girls were friends and she wasn't included. The worst part was that she now realized that it was largely because of her own actions and attitude. She also felt bad for singling out the new girl now, Vil. She hadn't meant to throw her under the bus, not really. "Hi." She said gruffly, wondering what she was still doing here, surely it would be better to lock herself up in her dorm now.