SINCE THE last letter Jade had received, she had been a mess. She was overthinking everything in the letter, and she was analyzing every single detail about it. The ink splatters, the crossed out words, the way she dotted her i's with large, filled in dots, all of it was analyzed by Jade. She had even brought the letter in her bag so she could analyze it on the train.

However, as she walked through the wall, the letter was not the first thing on her mind. The first thing on her mind was her friends, and the first person Jade saw when she entered Platform 9 3/4 was Mandy. Her mother gasped and pulled the girl into a tight hug, grinning widely as she did so.

"Amanda! I haven't seen you since you slept over a couple weeks ago!"

Jade gave her friend an exasperated smile, but Mandy understood. They had known each other since they were four, so she was used to how loving and excitable Mrs. Evers was.

"I know Mrs. Evers, it's been a while." Her face started to turn a shade of red that was nearly as bright as her hair, which meant her mother's hug was too tight on the poor girl.

"Mother, I think you should let Mandy go. She's turning red." Jade said, tapping her mother on the shoulder.

She freed Mandy from her grasp and patted her on the head, then went over to her mother to make conversation. The two girls looked at each other and shook their heads, amused by Jade's mother's reaction. It had been a few weeks since the girls had seen each other, but Jade's parents had been busy and Mandy had gone to Italy for a week, so their free time had been very limited.

The platform started to empty, with children leaving their parents behind and climbing aboard the train. Mandy and Jade waved to their mothers, then climbed aboard the Hogwarts Express and headed for the closest compartment.

The girls put their luggage away, then pulled each other into a hug.

"I had to recover before I hugged you." Mandy laughed, releasing the hug.

"Understandable." Jade replied, grinning at her friend. "So, how was Italy?"

"Oh, it was absolutely amazing! We had a fantastic time. I got to explore so many places, and I rode a gondola in Venice! The cities are so beautiful there, I wouldn't mind living there after we leave Hogwarts."

The two chatted for ten minutes non-stop until the door slid open, revealing two figures in the doorway.

"I heard a peppy ginger girl's voice and just had to enter." It was Anthony Goldstein, one of Jade's good friends and Mandy's crush.

"Anthony!" Mandy squealed, jumping out of her seat to hug him. Jade exchanged a look with the other figure, Anthony's best friend Terry Boot.

"That look is the 'She is ridiculous and needs to reattach her head' look." Terry joked, sitting next to Jade.

Terry looked different, his bowl cut was gone and he instead had a completely shaved head. His blue eyes still glimmered with the playfulness they had had since the first day she met him. He ran his hand over his head, his forehead wrinkling as he remembered he had no hair to play with or push back.

"How was everyone's holiday?" Anthony inquired, sitting across from Terry and raising his eyebrows at the girls.

Mandy rested her head on his shoulder, her ginger locks falling over her face as she described the sights in Italy to him. She was vibrant, speaking at such a fast pace that Jade didn't know if Anthony could pick up every detail she described to him. But by the way he smiled and the way his cheeks turned red every time she glanced up at him, she could tell he was paying attention and taking in every detail.

"Well, while those two talk about Italy and fall hopelessly in love, how did your holiday go Jade?" Terry smiled at her, his eyes gleaming with happiness and interest.

"I didn't do too much. I hung out with Mandy, I saw Anthony a couple times, all the usual stuff. I did meet this new person..." She trailed off, thinking back to meeting Luna on the Knight Bus.

And then she remembered the letter.

"Wait, you met someone?" Terry exclaimed, jumping from his seat and nearly hitting his head on the ceiling. "Who? Please tell me it's not a Hufflepuff, I can't stand most of those insufferable bastards."

"First, not every Hufflepuff is an insufferable bastard. Second, this person is a fourth year Ravenclaw. Mandy knows all about her." Jade explained calmly, watching Terry pace around the compartment at lightning speed.

She giggled to herself, watching him freak out over this new information. He had a tendency to pace, yell, and jump when he got excited about something.

"Mandy, who is she?"

"Her name is Luna Lovegood."

Terry and Anthony both stared at her, jaws dropped in surprise. Jade wasn't sure if this was good, so she raised her eyebrows at Mandy, who just shrugged.

"Loony? You met Loony Lovegood? Jade, she's bonkers!" Terry exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "I mean, you do like bonkers though."

"She is not bonkers. She is a lovely person." Jade stated firmly, crossing her arms tightly against her chest.

Terry dropped to his knees, staring at the carpet floor. He was mumbling to himself, something about how his friends always go for the crazy ones. Anthony had still not said anything, just stared at Jade with eyes as big as her mother's pumpkin cakes.

Before he could begin to reply, the Hogwarts Express screeched to a halt, meaning the students had finally arrived at school. The four looked at each other and tore through their bags to find their robes.

"This is the third year in a row that we haven't put our robes on in time." Mandy sighed, yanking hers on as quickly as possible.

Jade shrugged hers on, dashing out the compartment door as soon as she looked somewhat respectable with the other three close behind. The aisles were packed with students, all chatting and trying to catch up with each other. Jade could not find Luna in the sea of people, and figured she would just have to wait until the Sorting Ceremony to see her.

That was what she thought until an airy voice spoke louder than the rest.

"Jade, is that you?"

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A/N: Now you've gotten to meet Jade's friends! I hope you really enjoy them, there isn't much to them in the Potterverse, so I really get to try and flesh them out and develop them.
The next chapter should be out soon!!