Shimmer

Padma held her twin's hand tight in her own, gazing wide-eyed at the sheer number of people milling about on the platform.They were all so tall. She turned to her sister for reassurance, only to find Parvati's face lit with a bright, reckless smile. Padma had time for one small sigh before she was yanked unceremoniously into the crowd.

"Come on!" Parvati tugged at her sister's reluctant form. "Let's go meet people!" There was nothing for Padma to do then but stick as close as possible to her twin.

Parvati bulled through the thick crowd, Padma trailing behind like an awkward extension of her sister. Lost in a sea of elbows, it was hard for either girl to find someone of their own height. Finally, they came across a girl who looked about their age.

"Hi!" Parvati greeted her brightly. "I'm Parvati and this is Padma, my sister. What's your name? Is this your first year too?" The other girl turned and assessed them with cool eyes before answering.

"Blaise Zabini. Yes." Padma stepped back a pace, awed and frightened by the girl's brusque tone. Blaise was still staring at the pair, seemingly taking in every detail she could, from their identical features to their dusky skin. Her eyes stopped when she noticed the clasped hands. Before she could comment, Parvati turned away as if seeing someone she recognised.

"Well, nice meeting you, Blaise!" With that, Padma found herself once more pulled into the throng. Once safely away, the two girls turned to each other. "Oh, wasn't she awful!" Parvati exclaimed.

"I didn't like how she looked at us," Padma offered softly. "She didn't very friendly."

"No, but she's only one person! And look how many are left still to meet!" Padma didn't need to look; she was, in fact, acutely aware of the crushing number of bodies surrounding her. Sensing her twin's discomfort, Parvati smiled and tucked a piece of hair behind Padma's ear. "Look, it'll be fine! Just because the first person we met wasn't nice doesn't mean the rest won't be! I bet you'll meet tons of other nice girls, smart like you too."

"Sure," Padma stared at her shoes. "We'll talk Milton and Shakespeare while you're off having adventures." Parvati wrapped her arms around her sister and Padma almost felt like she was home again.

"You're still my other self," Parvati whispered. "Even if we're in different houses, even if we don't have classes together, you're still my sister. You'll always be my sister."