Fantasy Fictional Flatmates

[dropcap]S[/dropcap] o you’re starting university, moving away from home, leaning new things and meeting new people – you shouldn’t have a care in the world. But the first week of university can be scary and nerve-racking. Meeting your new housemates, the people you have to spend the next year with can seem the most daunting experience of all. In light of this momentous occasion we have compiled a list of ideal flatmates from literary history who are guaranteed to give you the best freshers’ year ever.

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1. Boo Radley by Becca Colmer

[dropcap]U[/dropcap] pon moving into a small-ish living space with complete strangers, it can be hard to find topics of conversation. However, lucky flats will have their very own Boo Radley – a flatmate who despite never actually leaving his room will provide a much-needed conversational topic: you never see him…but surely there must be someone in that room. Isn’t there…? The Boo will remain elusive for most of the year, allowing the flat to spend lots of time discussing just who he is and what he’s doing. Is he tending a small collection of opiates in his wardrobe? Is he hiding several family members under his bed? Like Scout, you can also make endless plans to lure Boo out, from calling out random names in the hope he answers to one of them, to staging a fire drill to just breaking down his door (not recommended). Especially in the first shaky hours or days when everyone still has yet to form any sort of bond beyond the fact that you’re sharing cupboard space, the Boo will do more to bond your flat than a whole week of festivities… until of course, he actually emerges. Then the mystical imaginary figure you have created will fade. But don’t worry – by that time, you’ll find that you no longer need your Boo Radley, having finally made friends.

[divider] 2. Haymitch Abernathy by Daniel Cope

[dropcap]H[/dropcap] aymitch Abernathy is Katniss’ drunken but loyal mentor throughout Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy. If you meet someone of his ilk during Freshers then I wouldn’t really be surprised. [pullquote style=”right” quote=”dark”]Like Haymitch, not everyone is a social butterfly and that’s okay[/pullquote] I hope you don’t encounter anyone as emotionally damaged as the Hunger Games victor, but his lack of concern towards his liver is a characteristic common amongst your average, party-going freshers. Katniss observes of Haymitch: ‘with all that alcohol in him, it’s probably not advisable to have him around an open flame’. Yes drunken fresher, I am looking at you. It is also suggested that Haymitch’s past means that he isn’t a people person. Like Haymitch, not everyone is a social butterfly and that’s okay. It’ll take time for everyone to settle into university life, you certainly don’t have to be extroverted to make an impression. Haymitch is often defined in the books by his turbulent relationship with his mentees Katniss and Peeeta. Katniss is often exasperated that her efforts to prove her natural ingenuity and worth are not acknowledged  This could be the dynamic you face when trying to prove that you are an asset to any societies or clubs you join during Freshers. In a similar fashion, society members WILL recognise and invest in those who are willing to make the effort. Luckily you won’t have to fight to the death in an arena to ultimately prove your worth. Although, some of the sports club initiations only just fall short of that…

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3. Hermione Granger by Helen Cornes

[dropcap]J[/dropcap] ust like in school, every course will inevitably contain the ‘Hermione Granger’ of students. They are one of the most irritating types of people, largely because you can’t help but be in awe of thir super-human brain power. Whilst you’re sat in the corner nursing a hangover from the Fresher’s party you’d rather not remember, and consoling yourself with the thought that you couldn’t have possibly done all the work even if you had wanted to, this student will be flaunting their lengthy knowledge of the novels of Austen, the wives of Henry VIII or Einstein’s theory of relativity, or most likely, all three. But, the Hermione Granger student isn’t all bad. Just like Hermione, they can always be relied to save the day. Who else would we be able to rely on in that dreaded 9am seminar where the words “so does anybody have any thoughts they’d like to start us off with?” is met with an excruciating silence and everybody suddenly becoming very interested in the floor. And, like Hermione, they tend to be wholly reliable and thoughtful people who are more than willing to help out a friend having a last minute crisis. Although their ability to power through their work might be terrifying, they will undoubtedly be as nervous about starting at a new university as you are so give them a chance. Just avoid taking them on in a debate.

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4.Ron Weasley by Lillian Hingley

[dropcap]T[/dropcap] his is the person who is so memorable, you will always recount the first moment you saw them; whether you happened to meet in the same train carriage or if they accidentally fell into your room on arrivals weekend, it will be a story you’ll be tenderly reminiscing about after one too many pints of purple. You’ll see the best of each other, the worst of each other, and the sheer weirdness of each other… and it will be beautiful. When it comes to holidays you will weep, wondering how you ever managed without them. Well, that’s until they invite you to their house and you become practically one of the family. Of course, they may not always be the trendiest person by society’s standards but who cares? They’re your best friend on campus and probably for life – that makes them the coolest person ever.

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