Quote:
Originally Posted by
debpetrisor
Daehyun could only blink in both confusion and fascination when, in a flash, Shera's towel had been discarded, and she was back in the water, looking like a mermaid that belonged in there, meanwhile he would've been a complete mess struggling to stay alive a moment longer. She gave him a look that he wasn't sure what it meant, but all he did was move closer to the lake, but stopped before his shoes could get wet. That was as far as he would go.
He smiled at Shera's description of her kitten. "Sounds like her human companion to me," he teased. He didn't fail to notice in the short amount of time he'd known her that she was either energetic or not, which he found fascinating how she could switch in between such polar opposites.
He couldn't help but laugh when Shera was telling him about her very effective way of befriending owls - and pretty much any creature. "That is so sad, but so true," he shook his head, smiling. "Just when you think they're your friend, they leave you for whoever's got the better treats." Little traitors. But he still loved them endlessly.
Daehyun nodded enthusiastically. "Father's told me about it. There's a room in the castle that models itself according to your needs!" How AWESOME was that? "We have to look for it!" She could use it whenever she got locked out of her common room, he could use it whenever he didn't want to be bothered by anyone (which was most of the time), and the possibilities were endless!
He sobered up when she'd mentioned her grandmother, unable to say anything - he only hoped she didn't take his silence the wrong way, but he also didn't feel like sharing that his whole family had that kind of mindset. He didn't want to share not because he didn't want to tell her, but only because he feared she'd think he was the same, and that couldn't have been farther from the truth.
Shera would have been lying to herself if she tried to say that she was not amused by how Daehyun moved closer, but still stayed out of the water. She would've considered splashing him to get him wet, except then he'd have to deal with being in wet clothes for who knows how long. Or worse, he'd leave to put something else on. Maybe she'd get him in the water before they graduated?
Her goal was to not drive him away.
Then she did laugh at the boy's comment, unsure if he was trying to mock her, but finding it amusing nonetheless.
"I burn a lot of energy," she defended herself, before shrugging and admitting,
"That is the reason I chose her though." Her defence was still very accurate though, to manage being as energetic as she was she needed a
lot of sleep and a
lot of food. Without either of those things she just existed in a state of almost always falling asleep.
"Then you've just got to raise the stakes and make sure you're the one giving them the better treats," she teased him lightly, thinking about all the owls that she had met so far.
"Or go alone, whenever I go by myself they know that I'm bringing them a snack and are super loving." "It changes to suit your needs? That's awesome!" she was grinning at him, and couldn't even begin to wrap her head around the possibilities or how magic like that even worked. It didn't matter.
"Do you know roughly where it is or how to get in?"
That was step one.
And he sobered up, and she immediately noticed the change because he had just been so comfortable with her. Shera's grin shifted to a sympathetic and slightly concerned smile directed at him, and she managed to reach her hand out to touch his shoe in an attempt at a comforting gesture. From the water that was the only part of him that she could reach, and honestly Daehyun would probably be thankful about that back.
"Sorry if the topic upsets you, but at least you know to avoid that painting? It doesn't really matter anyway."
Now how could she try to excite him again so he wouldn't be this stiff and uncomfortable again?
"Have you had a look at the Care of Magical Creatures syllabus yet? I'm not really that familiar with anything in it so I was hoping you might help me when it comes to classes and study... and maybe you can take me to that nursery soon to start to get to know the creatures and how to treat them? If you don't mind of course..."
Because he didn't have to help her, but she had worked out that he
loved these creatures.