Seeking Bathilda Bagshot (Kinsey)

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

September 6, 2024

Setting foot in the Hogwarts library for the first time, all that Kaylee could see was shelves upon shelves of books. She had all of the ones that she needed for her classes because she had bought them before arriving at her new school, but there was so much that she still needed to know, particularly about Hogwarts itself. One thing that she knew without a doubt was that she would be spending more time in the library; it appeared well-stocked with everything that she could possibly need, though she had gone in to look for one title in particular.

She had been advised by one of her classmates to look for a book called Hogwarts: A History, which seemed like a good primer, from its name alone. What Kaylee didn’t know, however, was who the book’s author was, which would make finding it a challenge. Summoning the book straight to her was one thought, but she guessed that Hogwarts probably had some enchantment in place to prevent people from just taking books without checking them out first.

Not seeing the librarian at their desk, she decided to see if she could find the book on her own. Approaching the shelves that housed the books on magical history, she realized what a task she likely had ahead of her and turned around to see if the librarian had come back.

Spotting another girl sitting nearby, Kaylee approached her quietly, not wanting to interrupt her more than necessary. She didn’t recognize her from Ilvermorny, so she guessed that maybe the girl would know about the book. “Um, hi,” she spoke at a whisper, pushing her hair behind her ear. “Do you know who the author of a book called Hogwarts: A History is? I’d ask the librarian, but I can’t find them.”

@kinsey

[Deleted]

Kinsey was turning to the library for refuge. She actually loved the library and Hogwarts and went there many times to escape Dom or get away from the strong intentions of people around her. There were so many chairs and tables hidden in the library that it was easy to hide. Today she wasn't necessarily hiding though, she just wanted the peace that was available there. She wouldn't have to deal with loud people, and since it was so early on in the term most people probably wouldn't be studying so she could just relax. 

She sat down at a table near the front of the library, already engrossed in a book, for pleasure not studying. She didn't even notice the few others that entered the library. She loved getting lost in a world where she didn't have to worry about her problems and struggles. That was one reason why Kinsey was such a bookworm. 

She jumped slightly when someone spoke to her, asking about Hogwarts: A History. Kinsey smiled. The girl's intentions were positive, which made her feel much more comfortable talking to her. "Yeah, the author is Bathilda Bagshot, but I can show you where the book is if you want?" The girl was definitely not a first year and her accent wasn't British either, so Kinsey figured she was speaking with one of the transfer students. She stood and started moving through the shelves in the library. "I'm Kinsey, by the way. Kinsey Bainbridge." Kinsey introduced herself softly as she walked. She didn't want to be rude.

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

Kaylee jumped back a little when the other girl startled. Fortunately, though, the girl didn’t appear to be annoyed with her for having asked what was probably a stupid question. Instead, the girl actually smiled and answered her. “Yeah, the author is Bathilda Bagshot,” said the girl, “but I can show you where the book is if you want?”

Grateful for the assistance considering the temporary absence of the librarian, Kaylee nodded. “Thanks,” she replied as the other girl stood up.

She followed the girl to the shelves, and then Kaylee was able to put a name to the face. “I'm Kinsey, by the way,” the other girl introduced herself. “Kinsey Bainbridge.”

Smiling, Kaylee nodded again, occasionally catching glimpses of the titles on some of the books’ spines in her peripheral vision. “I’m Kaylee Mahi’ai,” she told Kinsey, finding it slightly funny that their first names almost certainly started with the same letter.

“Bathilda Bagshot…” Kaylee mused aloud after a moment. ”She was a historian, wasn’t she?” Realizing that she was stating the obvious about a witch who had written a history book on none other than the very castle in which they were walking, she clarified, “Like, a really famous one, I mean.” Kaylee knew that she had definitely heard the name before. She wanted to become a historian eventually, herself, after all.

@kinsey

[Deleted]

The girl thanked her, which Kinsey took as agreement. That was a good thing, since she was already standing and such. Kinsey smiled at the girl when she gave her own name- Kaylee. "Nice to meet you," Kinsey said, glad to have another distraction. 

Kinsey nodded as she continued. "Yes, she was a pretty famous historian." She continued walking, turning down and aisle and walking towards a spot on the shelf. She like Bathilda Bagshot's work, so she came here more than once to read some of her books. "Here we are," she said, gesturing to the spot on the shelf where Bathilda Bagshot's books were. "What makes you want to read the book?" Kinsey was curious sometimes, and she figured she might as well try to get to know this girl a little bit at least. No harm in that, right?

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

With Kinsey’s confirmation that Bathilda Bagshot had been quite significant to the field of magical history, Kaylee nodded. She was on the right track, then. (That turned out to be the case both from the standpoint of Kaylee’s thought process and where Kinsey was leading her, as the other girl announced that they had reached the right place.)

“What makes you want to read the book?”

“Oh, um, I mean,” Kaylee began hesitantly, scanning the titles to grab a copy of the book from the shelf, “I’m new to Hogwarts, so I might as well learn about it…” She shrugged her shoulders a little as she grabbed Hogwarts: A History and looked at its cover. That was part of her reasoning, at least; the other part of it was that she thought it would be fascinating to know more about her new school beyond what information she could get from her classmates. “And I think that I’d like to become a historian once I’ve graduated,” she admitted, looking up and hoping that Kinsey wouldn’t find that too weird.

Even if the other girl did find it peculiar, Kaylee wasn’t about to be swayed. She hadn’t continued on about how much the very thought of being a historian meant to her; it seemed a little bit too personal to try to explain that to someone whom she’d only just met for the sake of finding a book.

@kinsey

[Deleted]

Kaylee seemed a bit nervous and Kinsey wondered if she was normally that way, or if something was just going on right now that was making her more skittish than normal. It could be the fact that she was in a new environment and that Hogwarts was way different than Ilvermorny. Kins would definitely feel uncomfortable being at a school that wasn't her own with a bunch of students she didn't know. It didn't matter that she hardly spoke with the students she did know. She smiled, "Well you're on the right track then. That book is a wealth of knowledge about Hogwarts Castle." Kinsey knew it pretty well and figured that it would help. Then the girl mentioned wanting to be a historian. "Oh, that's cool!" she said, feeling a little more interested now. "Is there a specific era you want to specialize in, or just learn more history?" Kinsey wasn't exactly sure how being a historian worked, so she might as well ask.

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

Kinsey agreed that she was on the right track—which had been her words exactly—and explained that the book was, in her own words, “a wealth of knowledge about” the castle. Perfect.

Luckily, if Kinsey thought that she was weird for wanting to become a historian, she did an excellent job of hiding any derision. “Oh, that's cool!” she exclaimed, and Kaylee brightened a little as she began to wonder if she had come across another history buff. “Is there a specific era you want to specialize in, or just learn more history?”

“I’m Hawaiian,” Kaylee replied, and—feeling the need to clarify—added, “Native Hawaiian… like, Indigenous,” just in case Kinsey didn’t understand the difference in being “from Hawaii” and actually “Hawaiian”. “So I want to be able to preserve the history of my people,” she explained and smiled just thinking about it. “All of our history and culture, our language… It all means so much to me, and I don’t want us to lose that.” Maybe she had gotten too sentimental, but Kaylee knew that she could have gone on about Hawaii for ages.

@kinsey

[Deleted]

Kinsey nodded when Kaylee started explaining. "That's cool," she said. She didn't really know what else to say, since she knew absolutely nothing about Hawaiians at all. Actually, she didn't know much about most cultures that were outside of her own home, England. Maybe that was something she could touch up on when she got a chance. It was probably a good idea, since there were lots of people in the school who were from other places now. "It's definitely a good reason to want to be a historian," she added, trying a little more to be sociable. Man, she was definitely not any good at this. Maybe she should just give in now. She waited a moment longer. "Is there anything else you need help with?" Kinsey asked. She didn't want to be in the girl's way now.

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

“That’s cool,” nodded Kinsey, though she seemed to have made the comment because she didn’t know what else to say about it.

Kaylee knew that being disappointed by it was a little bit unreasonable of her, but she couldn’t help but to feel a little bit hurt. Sometimes she had gotten the same sort of reception at Ilvermorny, but that was different. It was different now, even more so, because she was completely different from the students from Hogwarts. It hadn’t had the opportunity the really hit her yet, but it had hit with full force.

“It's definitely a good reason to want to be a historian,” Kinsey agreed with her, at least. She didn’t think that the British girl’s being at a loss for words was out of malice; she probably just didn’t have any context, Kaylee realized.

“Is there anything else you need help with?”

“Um…” Pausing herself, Kaylee took a moment to think. She didn’t really need any other help, but it was nice to talk to someone else—even if the library probably wasn’t the greatest place to be talking. Not wanting to keep Kinsey from whatever she needed to do, though, she hesitated. “I don’t think so, unless there are any other books you could recommend?” Some more reading couldn’t hurt.

@kinsey

[Deleted]

Kaylee wasn't really saying much, but Kinsey didn't judge her for that. Maybe she was more the shy type that didn't really know what she wanted to say or how to start a conversation with a stranger. Kinsey wasn't really the best at that either. She was making an effort though, which was kind of new to her. 

She waited to see if Kaylee needed anything. Then asked if there were other books she recommended. Kinsey smiled. "I like all of the Bathilda Bagshot books, but if you're looking for something different, the charm books and defense spells and stuff are right over here," she made her way two aisles down to show the girl. She liked mostly school books, but didn't know if that was what Kaylee was asking about. "What are your favorite subjects?" Kinsey asked curiously. Maybe she could help the girl find books that interested her.

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

“I like all of the Bathilda Bagshot books,” Kinsey explained to her, “but if you're looking for something different, the charm books and defense spells and stuff are right over here.” They had since moved down in the aisles of shelves a bit, as Kinsey showed her the books in question.

“I mean,” Kaylee considered, looking at the spines, “some of these probably wouldn’t hurt…” Sure, they learned charms and spells and all of that at Ilvermorny, too—they wouldn’t have been able to integrate into life at Hogwarts otherwise—but their subjects and curricula didn’t carry over exactly. Still, she had her textbooks for that.

“What are your favorite subjects?” Kinsey asked her, likely to figure out what to recommend.

To be honest, Kaylee liked most subjects at school. She thought that maybe she was taking too many, but she enjoyed them—as long as she never had to take Home Economics again. “History of Magic and Native American Magic are my favorites,” she started, something of a no-brainer in her opinion. She was, at her core, a history buff. “My mom’s a Herbologist, though, so I’ve done pretty well in that. And my dad used to be an Auror before he got injured, so I’m not too bad at Defense Against the Dark Arts, either.”

Kaylee laughed, realized that she had begun to laugh, and clasped her hand over her mouth to stop herself from disturbing anyone. “There isn’t much that I don’t like,” she admitted, “except I sucked at Home Ec.”

@kinsey

[Deleted]

Kaylee didn’t really seem too interested in the books that Kinsey was showing her so she shrugged, “Yeah, so that’s where those are, if you’re ever interested.” She wasn’t going to try and force the girl to take some of them now.

She nodded when Kaylee told her what her favorite classes were. “Well history books are over here,” she said, pointing to a different section. “I’m not sure if we have Native American Magic books, but if we do they should be around here,” she gestured to another row of shelves.

She chuckled a little, “What’s wrong with Home Ec?” Kinsey never took it before, so she couldn’t help but be a bit curious.

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

Kinsey was really helpful, which Kaylee appreciated, showing her where she could find the general spell books as well as the history books. She said that she wasn’t sure if they had anything on Native American Magic, though, but that was alright. Kaylee made a mental note to see what she could find at some other time.

After she had mentioned that she had sucked at Home Economics when she had taken it, Kinsey asked what was wrong with the subject.

“It’s one thing, taking care of my siblings and stuff like that,” she laughed. That, to her, wasn’t work, though; it was necessary. Maybe that, Kaylee thought, was what made it so difficult for her; it wasn’t something that she felt could be quantified in any way. The value of ensuring that her ‘ohana was taken care of was intrinsically important to her; it wasn’t something that could be graded in the same way as her performance in any other class. “The class, though?”

“I’m the oldest of five, and my youngest brother is six,” she explained to Kinsey, “so it’s not like I don’t know how to do most of that,” although she was used to doing things without magic at home because of the fact that she was underage, first of all, and also because she had never been able to bring her wand home with her from Ilvermorny. “I once got marked off because I focused so hard that I burnt my strudel in the process.” In hindsight, it was actually kind of funny. “I don’t think I have any use for strudel, and hopefully my siblings don’t ask for one.”

“Do you have any siblings?” she asked curiously.

@kinsey

[Deleted]

Kinsey nodded as Kaylee explained why she didn't like home ec. The girl was making sense, saying that it was easier to do stuff when you needed to for your family than doing it just with a class. Kinsey never really had to watch her siblings, so she couldn't actually know that first hand. She also never took a home ec class, but that was neither here nor there. She didn't really feel the need to right now. She shrugged, "Well I think as long as you can do the things you actually need to, that's what really matters." School was important, but being able to apply what you learned was infinitely more important as far as she was concerned.

She nodded when the girl asked her own question, "Yeah, I have six siblings. An older brother, two older sisters and three younger sisters." She didn't mention the fact that at the moment she wasn't getting along with half of her siblings. She smiled, "Only the triplets are still here at school," she added to give them something else to talk about, if Kaylee wanted to talk more.

kaylee māhealani mahi'ai

[kaylee māhealani mahi'ai]

As long as she was capable of doing what she needed to do, said Kinsey, that was what mattered—more than the grades she had gotten on her work in Home Ec. As competitive as she could be when it came to schoolwork, Kaylee had to agree with her there.

Kinsey then stated that she had six siblings, herself—older brother, two older sisters and three younger sisters, the last of whom were a set of triplets who were still at Hogwarts.

“Your younger sisters are in my year, I think,” Kaylee commented. She’d heard mention of a set of triplets, and she very well might have seen the girls for herself. She didn’t think that the triplets were identical; she would have remembered something like that, nor did she think that she had interacted with any of them yet.

Kaylee couldn’t imagine what it would have been like to grow up with so many sisters. It was something that she had thought about occasionally while growing up, the kind of thing that seemed to be every girl’s dream at some point or another. It was short-lived, of course; she was so used to having so many brothers, and she was still fairly close in age to her sister.

“My oldest brother and my sister are here with me at Hogwarts. My brother is in Fifth Year, my sister is in Fourth Year, and then our little brothers are nine and six and are back home with our parents on Kauai,” Kaylee clarified. “I’m used to not seeing them and our parents for so long because we’re usually at school in Massachusetts, but it feels like forever since I last saw them. The three of us stayed at the Leaky Cauldron pretty much all summer.”

@kinsey