Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. One thing was for sure, the appearance hardly even rivaled Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. Not that it wasn't beautiful in it's own way, the lake and the forest and the castle itself were extraordinary, a were a sight to see to say the least. The Palace of Beauxbatons, however, was absolutely stunning in a way that took your breath away. Gabriel could still remember the first day he stepped foot on the grounds, the beautiful chateau with all the gardens and the fountains, and the mountains that surrounded it all.
He'd only been nine the first time he was allowed to visit the palace, his parents insistent on the fact that he had to display a form of magic before he could go near the school, and even then he'd only been allowed to go with his mère for some school event he could barely remember at this point. Nor did he want to remember, because all those memories came with memories of his mère, and he'd rather block her out for the time being, focus on other things.
Like for example the twins who were currently trying to race to see who would be first to the large front doors of the castle. A small sigh escaped his lips as he continued after them, though a small smile peeked through close behind the exhale. He kept his pace no faster than a walk, watching the girls carefully while also not encouraging them. While it was probably best that they calm down, he decided to let them have their fun for now, Merlin knows they'd had a serious lack of it as of late.
They reached the doors in a tie and together pushed open the entrance to the castle, disappearing inside. Only then did his move faster, running the rest of the way in an attempt to keep sight of the trouble makers. To his relief they'd stopped in the entrance hall, rather than running rampant through the rest of the castle in a game of tag or something, when they ran into Lyra.
"Look what I found!" The younger witch spoke as he approached, "It's a Kitty Kat and a Bumble Bea!" Her words drew a giggle from the twins and the three girls were soon tangled in a mess of arms as they group hugged.
"Good to see you Lyra." He said with a small smile, giving her a quick hug once they'd all freed themselves from each others embrace. "How're you holding up?" He looked away from her, lifting his shoulders in a shrug as the only response to her question. "Anything I can do?"
He shook his head slightly before pasting on a smile again. "I don't know, I might just need some help with these girls. They've been growing again and I'm about ready to tie bricks to their heads to see if it would make them stop getting taller!"
This earned a laugh from Lyra, "Ohhh, you know, that's a really good idea! I'll help you!" There was a chorus of 'no, no, no!'s in response from the girls making both Gabriel and Lyra laugh, and it almost felt like everything could go back to normal. Almost.
Right up until a man in blue robes entered the picture, the way Lyra straightened slightly in a way he wasn't even sure she noticed about herself telling him that he was a man of importance. Gabe pulled the twins closer to him, partly feeling protective in the presence of the stranger, but more to signal to them to be on their best behaviors. His suspicion was confirmed as the man shook each of their hands and introduced himself as Mr. Kessler. Lyra had previously filled him in on all the teachers and houses and everything that would be happening once he arrived and he recognized the name to belong to both the headmaster and the head of Ravenclaw.
Gabriel would later hardly remember what all was said in the front hall, other than Lyra introducing him and the girls and them being led into another room. Four tables were set up, the ceiling high above his head reflecting the sky, and a small stool in the front of the room that looked entirely out of place. The hat that rested atop it confirmed that feeling. He was told that the room was called the 'Great Hall', and would be where they had events and ate meals, the hat on the out of place stool, the 'sorting hat'. The man went on to explain the hat's purpose, and how there were four houses of Hogwarts.
His thoughts, however, were once more on the twins. More specifically on what houses they would be in. After all, what if they were put in separate houses? He couldn't remember a single night in the last eleven years of their life in which they'd been apart. Sure, they might have separate daytime activities, but they'd slept in the same room as one another since they were born.
Before he had too much time to think about it though, Beatrice was practically throwing herself onto the stool, excitement evident in the way she could hardly keep still. The hat was hardly on her head before it spoke in it's booming voice. "Hufflepuff!"
"Just like Lyra!" She squealed, setting the hat back in it's place and skipping to the older girl's side and wrapping her little arounds around Lyra's middle. At least if the twins got separated Beatrice would have Lyra. She was the more dependent of the two anyways.
Katerina was the next one up, though she was much more wary than her sister, her move more precise as she crossed the space to the stool, sitting and placing the hat on her own head. This time there was a pause as the hat tried to decide before it spoke up once more. "Slytherin!" The single word drew a sigh from Gabriel as he closed his eyes, he'd hoped they wouldn't have to be separated... but if either of the girls could handle it, it would be Katerina.
"One of my closest friends is in Slytherin" Lyra supplied, beckoning the girl away from the stool. She seemed much less distraught then Gabriel would have thought, though Beatrice's eyes had grown wide. "You were supposed to be in Hufflepuff like me and Lyra!" Katerina shook her head, setting the hat back in it's place and crossing to hug her sister. "No I wasn't, I don't belong there. You do. But we'll be in the same classes and stuff, it's okay. We'll hang out all the time just like always."
The man motioned for Gabriel to take his turn and he stepped forward, going through the motions as he sat and placed the hat on his head, closing his eyes as he did to tune out the others. "Where to put you," asked a voice he was nearly certain the others couldn't hear, "Not a badger... nor a snake... not quite a lion I'd say... so that leaves..." The next word he was positive could be heard out loud. "Ravenclaw!"
His heart sank slightly. He wouldn't be with Kat, Bea, or Lyra. But, it was like Katerina had said. They could still see each other, they were in the same school after all. Merlin's beard, when had she gotten so wise?! He discarded the hat back onto the stool as he stood, stepping towards the others. "Gabe's not in Hufflepuff either?" Asked Bea with a slight whine, to which Gabriel could only think to respond with a one armed hug. "You'll be fine, you have Lyra and you'll be too busy making new friends to hang out with you big brother. He tried not to take it too personally that she only seemed mildly disappointed when it came to him vs. being genuinely sad when it came to her sister.
Lyra talked to the headmaster for a moment, something about her being available to show them around, which to Gabriel sounded much preferable to some stranger doing so. The man seemingly agreed, and after offering his condolences (which Gabriel would have rather he just left out) allowed Lyra to lead them out and into the hall.
The tour was fine, though all he really wanted to do was go unpack the things they'd had sent ahead. He was tired and didn't really feel like putting on a smile for the twins though he did anyways, just like always. Eventually they dropped the twins off one at a time to their dorm rooms to meet their house mates, Lyra promising Bea that she'd come back to introduce her to people. And then it was just the two of them.
The walk to the Ravenclaw dorms was made in mostly silence, Gabriel not wanting to talk and Lyra knowing better than to push it. "I'm here if you need to talk," Lyra said finally as they reached the door, "It's.. just know you don't have to be okay. Your parents died, I'd be surprised if you were okay." They hugged one last time before Gabe disappeared into his new home, glancing around the room with wide eyes before making a beeline for the dorms, only to have to have someone lead him to his dorm. This was his life now, so he unpacked and went to bed, not bothering to even go down to dinner. All he wanted was to sleep.
by 
