As is only natural, for him at least, Fred had been in a compartment packed to full capacity on the trip here, with three people in each bench. Occasionally, another person would stop by and join in on the fun that was inevitable in the compartment, squeezing in and crowding the place a bit. For his part, Fred never minded- he revels in the presence of others and the liveliness of conversation and jokes with good friends. Besides, more people meant it was easier to give away the snacks his mum had packed him for the trip. It wasn't that his mom hadn't given him good stuff --it was sort of reminiscent of a lunchbox-- but that he isn't really one to eat lunch. He never has been- the young man typically eats medium sized breakfasts, skips lunch, and has a small dinner. Despite the fact that every moment seems to be filled with animated gestures and actions, he runs on relatively little fuel. He once jokingly told someone that he feeds off of atmosphere, and doesn't need something so common as physical sustenance. It was a typical sort of Fred thing to be said, really.
His spirited attitude persisted as the students changed into their robes and were dropped off at Hogwarts, to be taken in the carriages up to the main castle. While others may cringe at the deafening roar that the Great Hall contains, he contributes to it, telling jokes and greeting friends as he walks by. By seventh year, its only natural that one should have friends in each of the houses. This includes Slytherin, despite the old rivalry between Gryffindor and the ambitious house. Seeing one friend, who has been called Beaks for so long that no one can actually recall where he got the nickname in the first place, as his nose is rather run-of-the-mill, Fred walks up to him with a grin.
"Hey, man. How was New York?" he asks, knowing his friend's family had visited the family across the pond over the summer. Beaks talks about some show or another that his mom made him go to [but that Fred thinks sounds pretty interesting], and about other such things. He cracks a joke towards the end that gets Fred laughing for a good couple of minutes- a reason for why Beaks and Fred get along so well. That, and Beaks has let Fred copy his homework on more than one occasion, making him golden as far as Fred's concerned.
Spotting his cousin across the way, at the Gryffindor table, Fred bids the Hufflepuff ado and makes his way through throngs of reunions and chatting, only to end up at the table of his own house. He manages to catch the corner of one of Louis's killing looks, and raises an eyebrow at that. Taking the long way around, Fred sneaks up behind Louis as quietly as he can manage, before suddenly putting his hands on the boy's shoulders. "Keep scowling like that, and it'll stick that way. That's what happened to Filch," he cautioned Louis, referring to the Hogwarts' caretaker, whom students are expecting to suddenly drop dead someday, given how ancient he is by now. There have been petitions signed to encourage his retirement- all of them were denied. He's a permanent fixture of the school, at this point. Fred is quite certain that Filch will come back and still be the caretaker once he's died, as a ghost.
Minah is quite happy when she sees Cara waving at her to catch her eye, and is none too apologetic in excusing herself from the conversation between Cynthia and Robert. The two had started leaning in slightly while speaking, despite the fact that they were standing, and she had begun to worry that they would start snogging right in front of her. It's very concerning stuff, really, and what with all of the first years about and whatnot. If it does start happening, Minah will have to be the one to break them up --which is why she is more than happy to distance herself from the looming threat.
Besides, she had been looking for Cara in the first place. "Cara! How've you been?" she says cheerily, only just then realizing that the Gryffindor girl is technically in the middle of a conversation with a couple of other students. She smiles at them, tongue sort of sticking out between her teeth, which is just a little sort of habit she has.
"Ah, sorry for the interruption," this is what she says, but based on the fact that she doesn't move away, and is still smiling quite amicably, she isn't planning on exiting the area. This throws doubt about the sincerity of her apology, but she doesn't seem overly concerned. She might've been, if she'd at least known the names of the people before her. The girl is social, but quite atrocious with names and faces, easily being someone's best friend for the length of a party, and completely forgetting their face the next day.