finn sampson

“I want the first years from two weeks ago back. You know, the ones who couldn’t make a step without looking at their school maps. Now that they know their way around and how the teleporters work, they’re really rude”, Poppy said mostly to herself, her eyes fixed on a group of first years who were running over to the closest teleporter laughing. 

Finn didn’t see Poppy until he heard her talking. He was almost hesitant to go over there knowing how everyone else had treated him in these weeks. However, the desire to talk to someone who wasn’t going to be mean to him pulled through. “Which are worse in your opinion, the first years or the transfers?”

“Oh, that’s so sweet. Try not to let anybody take advantage of that caring quality you possess.” Willow found his tone of concern both annoying yet naive. “You’ll learn soon enough, transfer. I can take care of myself so you don’t need to worry about me.”

“Whatever.” Finn replied, closing his book. He was tired of everyone calling him that. He was tired of everything. “You can have your room if you’re going to be like that.” Finn grabbed his things and started to head towards the door. He was done being treated like he was nothing compared to the others.

“Oh! Good!” Margo clapped, a bit of a jump being added to her step, “This is fantastic! Wonderful! Splendid! You see, I’ve been having a bit of a hard time recruiting some members for my event committee- and it can’t be me because Poppy has had a pretty hard time, too. By the same token, they’re just missing out! So, first order of business will be reporting for duty when we decorate for the Welcoming Picnic! We’re talking banners, we’re talking streamers, we’re talking color!” Margo clapped in excitement again, her voice bouncing off the corridor walls. She giggled lightly, covering her mouth when she realized how loud she was being, “Woopsies.”

“Yeah.” There was a nod at her excitement as Finn was taken aback. He had no clue what exactly he was doing, what he had gotten himself into. It was strange but at the same time, he was worried about it. He had no idea that he was going to be helping with the Welcoming Picnic or anything else like that. It was going to be interesting to say the least. “This’ll be fun.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Finn, and it sucks that you can’t, but it’s nice to know there are other people just as lost as me here. It feels silly to run around with a map all day long, especially if you’re just trying to get to class and it turns out you went the wrong direction and took a fifteen minute loop around to your next classroom when it was actually only five minutes away. And that is the story of how I have already been late to class.” She shook her head, although her smile didn’t fade. “Not that you asked or ever needed to know that, but who knows. Maybe it’s reassuring for you. Sure as hell would be for me to know that some other new kid has done something entirely embarrassing before I have. But enough about me. What classes are you taking? Maybe we’ll be in something together. Or maybe we aren’t and you can be relieved you don’t have to hear me talk every other day,” she added, grinning at the other student cheekily. “I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“There’s actually teleportation pads at the back of the classrooms so you can get to them quickly if you’re running late or they’re across campus. They have some flower thing on it.” Finn explained with a shrug of his shoulders. Poppy had told him that much and if Nadia was lost and confused and running late, then Finn could pass the information onto her. It was only the nice thing to do. He’d want the same sort of information after all. “I uh... The same as every sixth year.” Finn replied. “I haven’t seen you in any of my classes though.”

“I’m not just unhappy kid, I’m pissed. This school for years invited only the best of the people from our area. Just like every other school, they always went with the areas around them. Maybe, maybe, had the headmistress asked the students, not just the staff, if it was cool to bring in new students from other places, then we’d be a bit more understanding. But this was thrown on us and they are expecting us all to get along, and you’re in my home. If you think you’re worthy of being here, you’ll have to prove it, pup.”

“Maybe you should take that anger out on the staff and not us then. I mean yeah we’re here but it’d be nicer if people were actually nice to us. It’s not exactly easy moving to a school that’s fourteen hours ahead of your home and then having to deal with everything else.” Everything came spilling out as Finn glared at Knox. The kid had been annoying since day one. Finn got it but that didn’t mean Knox needed to take it out on them. “I don’t have to prove anything to you. I was one of the best kids from my school and now I’m here. It’s not like they picked me outta the blue. I have every right to be here just as you do. And stop calling me pup. I have a name ya know.”

“Oh yeah… I’m fine. Just tired…” Using her bag as a pillow, Willow turned her head to fully face Finn, surprised by his question of possible concern. What did he care about anything that pertained to her, she honestly didn’t care about what he was doing or anything. “Why do you care?”

“Oh.” Finn was turning back to his Muggle Studies work when he heard the next question. Why did he care? Was he not suppose to care? Was that something else the school here didn’t do? “You don’t look good ‘nd I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

“Your loss, foreigner.”

“Really? I get not being happy that I’m here but that’s just uncalled for.”

“Pup, like a puppy. I guess you look more like a deer right now, but pup fits better for you.”

“I have to go.”

Laying on the ground, Willow opened one of her eyes as she glanced over at the transfer student. “Haven’t adjusted… To the accents…” She waved her hands around in the air as she mumbled her reasoning.

“Are you alright?” Finn asked, peering over at the girl. Even he knew it wasn’t right to lay on the floor mumbling about something. Whatever was going on, it didn’t seem that she was alright. “You don’t look alright.”

“Alright pup, hopefully so.”

“-- -- -- What’d you just call me?”

“Fine, but your cat doesn’t know this place like my rabbit.”

“Delilah is a quick learner.”

“I guess it might not be very polite to storm in here and start acting as if everything is terribly unfair here and there’s much need for something like a social justice club, but then again, you can never be too sure. Lots of people don’t know how insidious systems set up can be just because that’s how things have always been for them.” Pausing for air, Nadia realized (for once) that she had gone on and on without checking to make sure she was being followed, or even that she knew her poor conversation partner. “Hi! I’m Nadia. I’m new here and really excited, so sorry in advance if I talk your ears off. What’s your name? You’re not from around here, are you, because if you are I might make you show me all around the area.”

Finn shook his head the faster this girl seemed to talk. It was almost as if she didn’t have an off button and she just kept talking. How the hell did someone talk that much anyway? “Hi. I’m Finn.” There was a relief when he realized that she was, in fact, not from here as well. “I’m not. I’m from Salem in the States. So I can’t really help with the showing you around part.”

“You’re… You have an accent…” Willow was startled at the different dialect from the boy in front of her. Usually a little more cautious against the transfer students, her exhaustion left her in no position to really become that irritated against anybody as she relaxed and laid across the floor.

“I do have an accent.” Finn replied cautiously as he looked at the girl. He hated that look, that sound of her voice that many others had whenever he started talking. His gaze dropped back down towards the parchment he’d been writing on. “You sound shocked.”

“Alright then, Finn! Let me tell you about it.” Margo grinned widely, talking with her hands as she always did, “The event committee is a group of friends! We plan all the parties, dances, and events Eulesea holds! We’re quite highly thought of, honestly.” The banshee nodded, fully convinced the Event committee was the bees knees. In her mind, there was no way it couldn’t be the best. She put her hands into the hidden pockets of her skirt, “So, sounds like fun right? Want to join?”

“Oh.” Finn nodded when he was suppose to, gave appropriate answers when it seemed right. Even when she was finished talking, Finn didn’t really say anything at first. What was he suppose to say? There was a long pause before he said the only thing he could think about saying at the moment. “Oh, uh, sure?”

Gently shutting the door behind her, Willow pressed her back against the wall and slowly slid to the ground, letting her eyes fall shut. She definitely should not have stayed up so late the night before and with her early schedule, she was now regretting her decision. Glancing back up, Willow clutched her chest with a startled expression as she noticed the other individual in the room. “Oh, I thought this room was empty…”

It was one of the rooms where Finn managed to find that was empty between his break and one of his electives. It was quiet enough in here, away from everyone else. However, when he saw the other come in, FInn didn’t say anything, he was going to ignore her because he’d want the same treatment. That ended quickly when the girl seemed startled. “It’s okay. You’re not bothering me.”