The Courtyard
 

http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m.../courtyard.png

A stone square courtyard is the first aspect of the grounds that you come to after you travel through the corridor. Surrounded by magnificent stone columns adorned with luscious ivy and slight lily growth, the courtyard provides students with benches to sit on with their friends or for the one who just wishes for some peace and quiet. Also, in the middle stands a very illustrious Wishing Fountain.

For Dee ^_^
 

Caroline was in need of some fresh air. It seem like everyone was outside making there way to the boat, or the treehouse, the courtyard was empty minus the crowds of kids just walking thur to get to the gounds. She wondered around the fountain a few times. It was truely great to be back at Hogwarts and be outside on the grounds. At home she would always be outside, even if it was just laying in the grass taking a nap. She finally took a seat on one of the benches.

Had it really been three months since she had sat at this same bench, giving her summer farewells? The summer had flew by. She didn't think that three months ago the summer would have gone the way it did. She was sure that by the way that letter had sounded that she summer had be a distrester, although her mother still didn't explain much, like she said she would. All she did now was send her new husband goggley eyes. Eww. She did like Charlie, he was a nice guy.

It seem like it was the summer of weddings in her family, Casey also got married over the summer, and Caroline was the maid of honor. Quiet an honor that was too. Sarah dragging her around looking for dresses and any and every thing to do with weddings. As well as stealing her from spending time with her friends in Diagon Alley over the summer.

She seem to have been thinking too much about the summer because when she looked down she had just made the rip in her jeans twice as big. She shrugged. Oh well, she could fix it later or keep them to make cutoff shorts or just trash them. Taking another look at them she decided that the latter would be the best.

For Lucy (:
 

Being back at Hogwarts was something Kat was looking forward to since the day she left. Even though she did enjoy the modeling for her grandma's company and the touring with her new band, Hogwarts was where she was meant to be. It was really the only home she had other than her grandparents' of course. Since she was full of joy she cartwheeled out to the courtyard. This was quite a strange behavior for her since she would usually be pranking some first years by now.

As she cartwheeled over to the bench she always sat on she noticed someone she recognized. "Oh hey, Brig." She said as she flashed a smile at her.

Just as she was reaching the part when Mr. Darcy and Lizzy were dancing together at the ball, she heard someone approach the spot she was sitting at. Pulling her eyes away from the book, Brigid looked up to see she girl she had met on the train. She was actually surprised to be seeing someone she knew again. "Hi, Kat!" She replied more enthusiastically than she normally would. Kat seemed nice and Brig didn't want to be rude to her for no reason. Could Brigid Abigail Byrnes be growing a nice side? O: "Care to sit?" She scooted over and made room for her new acquaintance.

"Yeah, sure" She smiled and sat next to Brigid. "So what are you doing out here by yourself?" She asked and then she noticed the book. Kat hated studying more than anything! And now her new friend was a bookworm! Not good! Not good at all. Somehow Kat needed to change that.

"Do you really enjoy reading that" She asked as she pointed to the book. "It's so boring"

Since this was Bella's First Year here She wanted To Look around . She walked into the Courtyard and sat Down on a bench Staring at The Fountain.

It was Quiet A Peaceful place to be on stressful days and Days You just want to be with friends . She noticed Some Sixth years alredy There but Bella Didn't Mind She just Went with her Own Buisness. She also noticed The Stone Columns and The Ivy Growing On Them . It was Nice here she would Sure be Visiting The courtyard very Often .

Mmmmmm. First day back in school (as in, first day of classes), and Braeden was feeling better than ever. His first class had gone pretty well and he could only hope that all of his other classes this term would go just as well.
He knew that was asking for too much, though.

WELL. Enough thinking about classes. He was on break now and it was time to catch up with the school grounds, see what the trees have been up to and ask the grass what it did over the summer.
… That was a joke. Braeden chuckled to himself, probably the only boy that finds this narrator funny.

Just as he was making his way across the courtyard to head out to the grounds, Braeden caught sight of an all-too-familiar silhouette. He could recognize her from a mile away, even if her back was to him. The hair, the pose, the short height… Yeah, that had to be her.

"Caroline?" the Gryffindork called out with one of his lopsided grins. Merlin. He hadn't seen Caroline in a while. Felt like years, really.

Caroline picked at the bits of jean sheds. She really knew how to mess up a new pair of jeans. Hehe. Now she knew why her mother told her not to get them. Amazingly mum was right. who knew?

Caroline immediately jerked her head up when she heard a very familiar voice calling her name. "Braden!" She turned her head around. It was him. She saw the grin of his, that she prepared herself for after hearing his voice. It had been a while since she had seen him. "Don't worry, I don't have any books here today." She llaughed.

She just realized that they were at the place where they met for the first time. She laughed maybe just to herself but anyway. That was kind of like their inside joke. "How was your summer?" She asked.

The Gryffindor boy couldn't help but laugh when Caroline assured him she didn't have any books with her that day. Heh. He'd never forget that… who knew something good could come out of getting hit on the arm with a book?

As the girl then went on to ask how his summer had been, Braeden shrugged. "It was alright, uneventful. Full of… family members and muggles amused by my 'magic tricks'," he said with a chuckle. Yep, that was Braeden to his family: the ever so amusing little magician. Not many of them took his ability to perform magic (as a wizard, not a magician) very seriously. "What about yours?" he asked.

Caroline smiled and laughed. It was hard for her imagen everyone flocking at her to see her perform magic. In her family it was always making sure the magic was there. "Well I had two weddings this summer, Casey my brother and my mother." She told him. Her mother at the begining and Casey's near the end of summer. She didn't make it to her mothers. Because she had felt the need to do it before she came hoime from last term.

"And I spend two weeks in New York with my sister" Which was probably the best part of the whole summer. That is untill herm mother show up with her new husband. "There has been so much going on since the last time I saw you."

no robes? bwahaha...insert confused Kurumi XD
 

Kurumi made her way through the courtyard carrying a small box of Ravenclaw cookies and looking for a certain older boy. She weaved her way through the somewhat crowded courtyard looking for someone who looked official...namely someone wearing a badge...

Scanning the various students black robes and seeing nothing but house crests and the occasional food stain, Kurumi was beginning to think that someone was playing a practical joke on her.

Frowning, she spun around and nearly whipped herself in the face with her long black ponytail when she noticed a boy sitting and looking like he was waiting for someone. Perhaps he knew the Head Boy she was looking for?

Gathering up her lion cub courage, she walked over to him and tapped him on the shoulder.
"E-E-E-Excuse me," she stammered gripping the box in her hands. "I-I-I'm looking for the Head Boy...have you seen him?"

Mmmm. Finn could probably actually have a little nap here. The warm september sun was beating down, and yes a little sleep would be very good. He closed his eyes for a few moments, hopeing that when Kumuri got here, she'd like poke him awake. The thing was....it wasn't that long till he felt someone tapping his shoulder.

Opening his eyes, he smiled at the girl. She seemed a little nervous. It was kind of cute. Maybe this was Kumuri? He didn't know. "Hey..." Oh. It must have been seeing as she was asking about the headboy. "Well...I have seen him." He nodded with a grin, motioning for her to sit down with him. "Seeing as it's me." Yup. He was totally cool. Finlay smiled at her though. Hopefully she wouldn't be this nervous all the time....although it was cute.

Kurumi's jaw dropped and immediately began bowing over and over and over again as her cheeks flushed a deeper shade of pink with each bow.

"I'MSOSORRY!" she squeaked pausing long enough to apologize before she continued with her bowing. She felt so embarrassed for not knowing who the school's Head Boy was. Wasn't that the sort of mistake that only first years made?

"Um...th-these are for you..." she said offering the small box to him.

Braeden's dark eyebrows raised as Caroline shared with him she'd been part of two weddings over the summer. And that she'd been to New York. It sure sounded a lot more fun and eventful than his summer! Aw shucks. Everyone had had a more fun summer than the little Gryffindork. :[ Now he felt lame.

As Caroline went on to add that a lot had been going on since she'd last seen him, Braeden's brown eyes turned curious. "Well, I'm free for a couple hours before I have my next class," he said with one of his lopsided grins. "You should catch me up."

Story time :D *shifty*
 

Caroline smiled. I was nice to know that Braeden was always there to talk to. She nodded, "That's nice, Thanks." She cleared her throat to story the story of her mother wedding.

"Well a few weeks before term ended, my mother sent me a letter. It said that she was going to get married." Which she was okay with minus the fact that "I didnt't even know she had a boyfriend. She said that they would wait until the summer to get married. And that she would explain more later." Which were both total lies.

"So I get picked up from the train by my brother. He was the one who told me that she had went ahead and got married. She moved out and gave the house to Casey." She didn't understand why her mother couldn't have just told her, herself. She left it up to Casey to tell her. "I didnt even see she until a few weeks ago when I was in New York. She was there with him. I like him he is nice."

Braeden walked alongside Caroline at a slow pace (I'm going to assume they're at least walking around the courtyard and not just standing there in the middle of everyone's way), listening quietly and attentively to the story she shared with him. Wow. So her mum had gone and gotten married without even telling her? Without even letting her meet the guy first? Sounded… well, a little strange. But Braeden said nothing, taking on the role of listener here, not commentator.

But then Caroline shared that she eventually met the man in New York, and thought he was nice. Oh, good, so there was a good, happy part in this story. The corner of Braeden's lips curved up slightly in a half-smile, but he knew there was probably more coming so he shouldn't cheer just yet. "At least he didn't turn out to be a troll," he muttered with a smile, his brown eyes falling to their feet as they walked.

Caroline laughed . A troll? A troll is what she pictured him as in her head before their meeting. Actually the whole thing was a happy ending. Or so far everything was happy, happy, joy, joy. Suprisingly Mum and I are getting along." That is until she wakes up from the honeymoon stage and stops giving him goggley eyes, every five minutes. Eww and she made a face to go along with what she was thinking.

"I even got up enough courage to tell her about Carter." Whoa way did Brae even know about that she had a boyfriend. She clearified just in case. "My boyfriend. Since he's muggleborn" Seriously not like she cared what blood status anyone is. "You know how she is I've told you. She was like 'oh, that's great, dear'" which was so thing that her mother would never say to that. She looked over at Braeden who still looking at his feet. She looked down too and found a Knut. She picked it up and threw it into the fountain.

Okaay. THis girl was really cute. Especially with all the bowing. Now sure Finn loved the bowing, but he didn't think that it was necessary. Not at all. "Kurumi....stop bowing." He wasn't that big headed that he needed people to bow to him all the while. The house elves were for that, not lovely little gryffindors. "And you don't need to apologise either." Because well, clearly not everybody knew him. Maybe he should wear his robes, so that epople would be able to see his crest.

"Thank you..." He smiled, taking the box off of her. "And you can sit down you know..." Because it felt a little weird with her standing up there. Opening the box, he grinned. "These look really yummy."

The moment Daichi had opened up the huuuuuge doors with difficulty, he thought he would have been in the Great Hall but..he was outside. O_o

He could have sworn he had the right door! The door looked so much like the Great Hall one. "This place is so confusing~!" he sighed and decided to check this place out. He had already seen the Great Hall at the feast and he wasn't that hungry.

Walking over to the middle of the ..was it a courtyard? It looked like it. Daichi looked around. Students were chatting with each other and he felt a little weird standing all alone in the middle of a courtyard. Swiftly, Daichi made his way over to the side and sat down on the ground, his back leaning against the wall. His plushed duck like always close by him and he unconciously rubbed his eyes. It had started to hurt again and sometimes he thought he saw things a bit blury but...nah that must have been his imagination.

Zara, deciding to take a little walk around her new school, stumbled upon what seemed like a courtyard. Looking around, Zara searched for a familiar face. AHA! She spotted Daichi. Of course, she wasn't sure if he still remembers her, but oh well, Zara gave it a try. She went running to where Daichi was and shouted, "Daichi!" while waving her hand in the air.

Toby decided to walk trough the whole castle, because he wanted to know all the places in the castle as soon as possible. He saw the Slytherin boy and afer a few seconds looking at the boy, he walked to him. It was a beautiful day at Hogwarts. But he really wanted friends in here. ''Er...Hi!'' he said, because he didn't know anything else to say and he wanted a nice conversation. ''I'm Toby. Toby Jason.''

Just as Daichi had wanted to close his eyes a familiar voice was shouting his name. He opened them and looked to see...wait..what was her name again?! Oh no , he knew who she was! the girl from the trolley but ...Aaah what was her name!? O_o She seemed to remember his name of course anyone would. "Uhm ..Hi~! ..."

awkwaaard.

Come on Dai, you know her name it was something with the K right? "Kara ..right?" he asked unsure and prayed he had the name right.


Saved by the , well not bell, a student! Daichi was relieved another boy had walked up to him. He vaguely remembered seeing him in the common room but since the place had been so crowded he was not sure. "hi Toby, i'm Daichi" he looked at the badge on the boys uniform and his eyes twinkled. "Your a slytherin too? Awesome~!"

Zara raised her eyebrow. Something was wrong with Daichi. Hmm. He didn't seem glad to see her, he was thinking deep. 'So, Kara, huh?' Zara smiled and decided to play, "Yeap. Kara. I'm glad you remembered. I thought you forgot all about me," she grinned and stood beside him, looking at the other students having conversations.

If "Kara" was looking at him, she would have noticed that Daichi had held his breath and then breathed out in relief when she confirmed that her name was indeed Kara. "Oh good , i thought...ah nevermind" he quickly said, he didn't want to cross over as someone with a forgetful memory.

Thank Merlin he had the girls name right, he knew how scary girls could be when you said their name wrong... O_o "I can't forget you! Your the candy girl!" yes she was. Though Daichi had had more candy that day than her but whatever.

Now, he remembered the boy. ''Yeah, from Slytherin.''He looked at their robes for a moment. ''I need to walk trough the castle a lot, if I want to know all the places in here.''

Katelynn walked into the courtyard, her little ginger cat traling behind her. Noooothing to doooo...
She looked around, but then sat down on one of the stone benches. "Come here, Aurea!" she said to her cat, and waited for it to jump into her lap. So there she sat, second year, lonely in a courtyard accompanied by a cat....

Wanna RP? Then reply :)
 

Nika skipped into the court yard singing a song as usual. Today was just such a nice day so she had to get outside! Nika bounced around and noticed some other kids who were there as well, but they all looked busy. She just wanted someone to talk to.

Daichi smiled broadly at the boy and pushed himself up off the ground. He didn't want to sit down talking while the others where standing. It made him feel less..less what? He didn't know but he didn't like it.

He leaned against the wall and listened as Toby talked about walking through the castle. "Tell me about!" Daichi said and threw his hands in the air, Mr.Duckles hovering above him before he held his hands to his side again. "I mean, i have been walking around and in the castle today but..i got lost seven times!" he laughed and pointed at the huge door behind them. "I thought that door would lead to the great hall but...i ended up here.. this place is confusing" he sighed.

Thaliaaaa! <3
 

Karolina Walked Into the courtyard . She had No one to talk to and Nothing to do . So Why not take a little walk around to Get used to The castle . She saw Many people around and guessed they were older students so she just Walked to a bench and sat down . Karol Looked to her Right and Noticed a Girl in slytherin . She had no idea what year the girl was in but just introduced herself . " Hi , Im Karolina But you can call me Karol For short. What's Your name ?

Braeden raised his eyebrows slightly as Caroline shared with him that she'd been getting along with her mum. He wasn't completely, entirely familiar with that side of Caroline's personal life, of course, but he remembered the things she'd told him the last term about her relationship with her mother and it had sort of given the boy an idea of what that was like. He was glad to hear things between the girl and her mother were going well, though. He hoped they would continue to go well.

As Caroline mentioned something about a Carter character, Brae's dark eyebrows furrowed slightly. He was just about to ask the girl who she was talking about (assuming she'd been talking about a new pet or something), when the girl went on to clarify that this was the name of her boyfriend. Oh. Oohhhh! Braeden's eyebrows raised now in surprise. No wonder he'd barely seen Caroline through the last half of the term!

Braeden smiled and nodded his head slightly as Caroline explained how unusually accepting her mother had been of her daughter's new boyfriend. "I'm glad to see everything's been going good for you, Car," he said. She'd been a good friend to him, she deserved to be happy. "And congratulations on finding Mr. Right," he added a little more teasingly this time, nudging the girl playfully. "I can't believe I was so behind on news," he said, shaking his head slightly. Sheesh. Where had he been all this time, living under a rock?! He'd been so distracted with the sad news of Deus's graduation last term, that he'd kind of forgotten about the rest of the world.

" Well Hi There Karol . Im Isabella Evans But you can call me Bella . Im in my First year, I'm Guessing You are too ? " She Replied With a Smile . " I Like the courtyard alot what about you ? I Think it's My Favorite spot In Hogwarts Except I Like Sitting By The Lake too ! Isabella Said .

Samira picked at her skirt as she walked through the courtyard. She was mentally scolding herself. Over the summer, Samira had discovered a new love and obsession: fashion. But not just any kind of fashion. She liked out of this world, exuberant, daring, different fashion. Something unique. She spent days putting together several outfits, and now her confidence was starting to slowly diminish. What if people thought she was weird? Would they make fun of her? (She hoped not. She didn't want to get a detention on the first week for hexing another student.) Originally, it seemed like a great idea. But now...

She sighed. You never really could know what other people thought about you, could you? She would just have to walk with her back straight and head held high, just like she always did.

She turned a corner and kept walking. Her boots were starting to really bother her feet, so she looked for somewhere comfortable to stop. Suddenly, the Slytherin spotted Levi, a nice boy who she had briefly chatted with at The Three Broomsticks. He was reading some type of magazine, and had something small and black on his arm. Curiosity swept over Samira, and she made her way over. "Hi Levi," she said casually, still nervously playing with the hem of her skirt. "What's that on your arm?"

Levi flipped through the comic, sucked in by the different illustrations and vibrant action sequences on each page. It seemed like nobody around here had heard of DC or Marvel but he had been reading and collecting them ever since he was in first grade. The stories weren't exactly stimulating literary-wise but they could be pretty exciting. He had tried reading a few wizard comics but they never seemed to entice him as much as the muggle ones such as X-men and Batman. He wished he could find somebody else who shared the same taste as him but it was practically impossible.

As a voice spoke up nearby, he lifted his wide dark eyes from the comic and smiled at the Slytherin girl. Samira was one of the first new friends he had made in Diagon Alley and he was glad to see a friendly face for once. Most of the time, he kept to himself and avoided other students like the plague. He wasn't intentionally antisocial but he didn't trust a lot of people and he had several reasons why he couldn't. However, she had proved herself to be a decent person so he gestured to space beside him.

"Hi Samira!" the Gryffindor chirped, putting the comic down. It would have been rude to read while she was talking to him. "Oh, Vlad? He's my bat. I guess you could say he's my familiar since I don't have an owl or anything. Er...so how are you doing?"

Samira smiled brightly as she sat down next to Levi, now completely reassured no one would poke fun at her. She honestly didn't know how to handle that, since it has never really happened before.

The Slytherin let out a small gasp as she looked more closely at the creature on Levi's arm. It was a bat! "Oh, Levi," she breathed. "He is so adorable, and Vlad is such a cute name!" That was so cool, being different and having a bat instead of an owl. The thought was appealing to Samira. She wish she had thought of bringing a bat. She would love to see everyone's faces. Answering his question, Samira waved a nonchalant hand and said, "Oh, me? I'm doing fine. Just really happy to be back, you know?" Hogwarts was here home, here real home. Since she never really had a solid home outside of Hogwarts before, this was like her safe haven. "What about you? Been up to anything?"

Caroline smiled and nodded "Me too." It felt nice to have a somewhat of a normal relationship with her mother. She couldn't believe that she hadn't told him about Carter, until now. She had been so busy with her own life since last term. It was no wonder why her and Braeden had lost contact with each other.

Mr. Right? It sounded funny coming from Brae. She pushed him playful. "Yeah it seems that way." She blushed. She felt bad that they not kept an closer friendship later in the last term. "Don't worry about You've been caught up for the most part. So anything been going on with you? Have a Mrs. Right yet?" She teased, and nudged him as he did to her she glance up at him grinned and wiggled her eyebrows. hehe.

Zara grinned, he obviously thought she really is Kara, whoever she was. 'Candy girl. Hmm, fair name. I like it.' She pondered. "Well, what are you doing here?" She asked, but then her stomach roared like a mad lion. Now that was embarrassing. "Oops."

Kurumi stopped, midbow, as she began bowing in apology for bowing too much. Despite spending more time in London this summer, she never could shake the old habits and manners her mother had pounded into her head it seemed.

Okay, no more apologizing. "W-W-Well, then I s-s-suppose a proper introduction is in order," she said as her cheeks flushed. "I'm Kurumi, but, um, you already knew that..." She began playing with her hair a bit and tugged on her ponytail a bit forcefully. "I'm in Gryffindor...third year...b-b-but I suppose you already knew that too."

She was just bloody brilliant when it came to making first impressions on upper classmen, wasn't she?

Accepting his offer to sit down, she plopped herself down next to him and folded her legs up under her.

"I hope you like blueberry," she said shyly. "The icing is made from them."

*claims*
 

Katelynn noticed another girl skipping into the courtyard, who seemed about the same age as her.
She got up, and walked over to the girl. *awkward* The last few friends she had made, she had met by bumping into them. And she was horrible at starting conversations!
"Uhm.." She began; "Hi! I'm - I'm Katelynn" she said with a smile. so far so good

Still beaming, Levi held his arm out so she could get a closer look at Vlad. He was surprised she hadn't reeled backwards and started screaming at the prospect of having a pet bat. Most of the female students seemed terrified as he was walking down the corridor with the box and a few had asked him what was in it. When he truthfully answered their questions, the majority of them had made some sort of disgusted noise and fled the scene almost immediately. He was glad Samira was different...she was bolder.

"Don't worry, he doesn't bite or anything. I don't think he even has teeth yet so you can pet him if you want," the Gryffindor answered cheerfully. Vlad didn't move, he seemed to be too comfortable nestling on his owner's long arm to inspect Samira. "That's cool. Yeah, I'm glad to be back too. I haven't been doing much. Just sort of hanging out before the classes start."

What was that? a ..lion like growl came from somewhere! Daichi jumped up from the ground with a panicked expression and looked around. "Did you hear that? It sounded like a LION!" Not getting the fact that the sound was in fact the girls stomach, Daichi pressed Mr.Duckles against him as he looked around them , wondering when the lion would pounce on them.
"I-I was suppose to go to the Great Hall but i got lost and..now i'm here" he said absentmindly while still looking around. He didn't want to be lion food~!

Zara blinked as she watched Daichi, who thought a lion was about to pounce on him. Well, Zara was a Gryffindor--in short a lioness. But that was a different case. The sound he heard was her stomach, she sure was hungry starving. She hadn't ate breakfast yet since she was too busy exploring the place.

"Erm, Daichi.." she said, trying to get his attention since his eyes seemed to be panicking and looking for something at the same time. "Daichi.." she repeated, he still wasn't looking. "DAICHI!" she finally shouted and when she got his attention, she sighed and said, "There's no lion. That's my stomach." And to prove it, her angry and if I may say empty stomach began protesting that it be filled with food.

Oakey hadn't had much time to himself since he got here. He was so busy trying to find a cure for his curse (which he still wasn't sure was one or not). He found a corner in the Courtyard and began to cry. He had barely ever cried in his life, but in this case when he heard the news that his idle and foster father wouldn't be able to play Quidditch anymore because of a severe injury that wasn't healed in time. It must of been his fault, his bad luck was probably rubbing off on others now and it effected Harvey the most because he was closet to Oakey. He put his head in his hands and sat in a fetal position. He must've looked like a fool sitting by himself in the corner of the courtyard crying.

Ella jogged down the stone steps into the Courtyard, fiddling with the bracelets on her left wrist. That had looked like a rough fight.. she didn't need to go back to the Common Room just yet.

Suddnely she stopped. She could hear what sounded lik stifled sobs nearby. Ella looked around, squinting into the dark bushes and shrubs lit by the retreating sun. Eventually she caught sight of a boy. He was crying. Ella walked over carefully, her black plimsoles crackling slightly on the gravel. Her robes billowed behind her in the soft breeze.

Ella sat down on one of the steps next to the boy. 'A-are you okay?' Stupidly obvious question but it had to be asked....

Someone had found him, and was worried. Great he thought to himself.Oakey was in no mood for lying, and he finally found time to let it all out so he could get back to his routine of solving his dilemma. I-I thought this s-spot wa-was secluded enough to keep me out of e-eye shot. He didn't want to tell the girl his problems he really, really didn't. M-My problems a-are my own, you don't ne-need to worry bout me. Y-You wouldn't understand anyways.

Ella let herself smile. 'Well.. you were. I found you 'cause I coul hear you..' Hm.. maybe not the best thing to say?..

Tucking her hair behind her ear she swallowed. ' Um. Okay..' She really couldn't think of anything else to say to the boy. 'Well.. I'm Ella, First Year Gryffindor.' Ella smiled again.. he'd probably tell her to do one now.. and if he did fair do's... but she would be retaliating. It's how she rolled..

delete this post please

Oakey wiped his face off of his his tears with his sleeve. Time to toughen up, one should not cry in front of a lady. L-lets introduce ourselves out from behind the bushes. This is awkward . He stepped out from behind the bushes and outstretched his arm to help Ella up as well. If there was one thing Harvey taught him it was to treat girls properly even when you're at your worst.

'N'aw, that's a cute name.' Ella took his hand and got to her feet. 'Thanks.' Ella grinned and dropped her hand to her side again. Flipping her hair back she looked at the boy properly. He looked really upset.

'You sure there isn't anything I can do?' Ella bit her lip and rummaged aobut a bit in the pocket of her robes. She took out a crumpled tissue and handed it to Oakey. She stretched her arm out and brushed a bit of soil off his sleeve. 'There!' Ella grinned.

Ella noticed two Slytherin boys standing nearby and waved cheerfully, then she turned back to Oakey.

''Yeah, agreed.''he said while he was looking at the door Daichi noticed. ''I don't know where the Great Hall is, when I'm here. But I can walk from the Great Hall to the Slytherin Common Room and I won't get lost!''It was strange to be at such a huge place, where you didn't know where to go. But he was happy that others didn't know the ways trough the Castle too. He wasn't alone.''Daichi..''Toby said. ''Do you like Quidditch?''he decided to ask.

I'm a first year Hufflepuff, and the Unluckiest person alive. not sure how you can help with that but you're if you're willing to try. Go for it. Oakey didn't want to tell her that he believed he was cursed. She might just say what everyone else was telling him, 'everyones a bit clumsy', 'you're just paranoid', and 'it's not effecting anyone else.' Oakey knew otherwise he could fell it. like a terrible aura was surrounding him. Plus the strange roman numeral four scar on his right hand. There had to be something going on inside him.

Ella raised her eyebrows slightly. She was no expert, she sometimes could sense people's auras. It was weird.. her Mother could do it too. It was nothing special.

'Oh.. Well that's.. Ella couldn't really find and appropriate word to use. 'Unfortunate?..' Ella offered that word, shrugging. 'Have you been here all day?' Ella realise dher eyebrows were still raised. Quickly she smoothes her forehead out.. Hm.

Well no, I've been wandering around the Castle. This was the truth. I stopped by the DADA office. I thought that the Head Master taught the class? Apparently not though, Lord Berty Borr does. Oakey didn't know much about him only that he was really popular amongst those at the Ministry. Harvey told me never to trust the guy. Oakey's face grew a little more serious. He says anyone who calls them self a Lord with no actual royalty is trouble. He remembered back to the lesson Harvey taught him about the infamous wizard Tom Riddle.

Lailaaaaa! <3
 

Well, seeing as how walking through the school ended badly, Ellie decided to take a different route and head to the Courtyard. The weather wasn't too bad either and it was nice to get some fresh air after some... conflict. Ellie inhaled the cool air and smiled. Even though she wasn't super happy about being back at Hogwarts, she loved the Grounds. They were green and pretty and nature-y.

Ellie picked out a bench and planted herself there among the few other people scattered throughout the area. She fiddled with the strings on her scarf. Then fiddled with her thumbs. Then watched a bird fly across the green grass. She sighed. It was hard not having friends anymore. But being alone was good sometimes. At least, that's what Ellie kept telling herself.

Theodore had been wandering the grounds during the early hours of the day. Hogwarts and the surrounding campus were so beautiful; it made him grateful that he had been transferred here and not to another wizarding school where the landscape was much less green, like at Durmstrang. He probably would have withered there like a pansy, anyways. His school days had been improving; people were beginning to adjust to his distinctly American accent and he had already made a few good friends and acquaintances, save for a certain Gryffindor who seemed to hate Theo from the inside and out. What could he do? It would be impossible to please everyone. Besides, he was more of a loner by nature, anyway.

Walking along and coming to the courtyard, someone perched on one of the stone benches seemed to stick out from the other students that were near. Aside from being solo, the pale-skinned brunette had her eyes cast downward, as if she hadn't been having the best of times. Theodore grimaced; he knew how that felt. Back in New York, he had felt just the same. Maybe she needed someone to talk to? It was the least he could do. Most everyone had been kind to him, so why not return the favor?

Forcing himself to do something quite out of the ordinary, Theodore urged himself on and sat at the edge of the bench. "Erm, hello." He smiled and spoke softly, not used to doing such bold things with new people. Nervously adjusting the cuffs of his button-down shirt, he added, "Um... nice day we're having, isn't it?"

He could have face-palmed right then and there. Everyone knew that small talk about the weather was always a cover-up for one's true intentions. But the mistake had already been made; now, to wait and see if she would reject him or respond to him with equal kindness.

You know, maybe it was good not having friends anymore. They couldn't hold you back with expectations, right? Maybe now that Ellie's friendships had dissipated from one ounce of drama, she could completely change. Do something way out of the ordinary that changed her personality. Be a new person. Make new friends. It was an intriguing idea anyway. She could become Miss Popular. Dye her hair blonde again and wear pink all the time.... Ellie shuddered. No, never again will she dye her hair blonde. Worst mistake of her life. And pink was a disgusting color. Scratch Miss Popular.

Ellie sighed. Maybe she should just become a circus worker or something. Drop out of school and throw enflamed swords at people. Hm, not bad... Erm. No, never mind. Maybe being Ellie was all that she could do. She was good at it, at least.

Jerked out of her train of thought, her eyes were led to a figure who appeared next to her. She saw a somewhat awkward looking boy sitting next to her. Well, not quite next to her. Rather far away, on the edge of the bench. She saw him pull his cuffs down. "Hi. Stranger." Ellie said with a monotone voice. And.. the weather. Small talk, huh? Well, she didn't really mind that much. He was being friendly and she actually appreciated it. Ellie realized that she probably wouldn't survive living alone for the rest of her life. Even if it was just some random guy talking about the weather.

"Er, yeah. I guess it's kinda nice out." She looked up. It was actually kind of cloudy, but whatever. It wasn't raining at least. And for conversations sake: "I don't think I've seen you around before. And you have an American accent, so I'm guessing you're new?" She gestured with a faint smile.

Feeling quite relieved that the pretty stranger hadn't brushed him off like an annoying, curly-haired insect, Theodore's white-toothed smile widened. Maybe this whole business of initiating introductions with strangers, rather than waiting to be approached, wasn't too bad after all. Speaking to him seemed to lightened the dark look that had previously occupied the girl's face, which was an improvement. "Oh, yeah," He folded his hands on his lap, the toe of one of his trainers digging into a small patch of weed in the ground. "I'm from New York, so everything here's a bit... different."

Even though he was half-English, living in a different country for nearly the entirety of one's life could really distance one from their roots. "Oh," He chirped rather quickly, adding, "Different in a good way. It's much less crowded and... people seem to be much nicer." Theodore knew he sounded like an uneducated pre-teen, but what more could he say? It wouldn't be polite conversation to bring up the things in British culture that, for the moment, weirded him out.

"I'm... Theo." Sticking a friendly hand in her direction, he already felt like a different person. Since when had he introduced himself by his nickname? That Braeden kid had been rubbing off on him.

Louisa's hands were raised while she was fixing her hair. "Stupid portrait hole." She muttered under her breath. It wasn't her fault that she was getting taller and while she jumped out of the hole, her ponytail got in the way and made her fall face-first causing a bunch of firsties to laugh out loud so they made sure everyone stared at her.

Her hands still stretched out, her elbow hit something. Turning around scowling she saw it was someone. "Hey! wat-" She started but then her features softened quickly when her eyes met her friend's. Her hands lowered down, "Kita! How great to see you again!"

For Anna <3
 

"Hey, Salazar," Sierra greeted with a smirk, coming to a stop just behind her brother. She peered over his shoulder and studied his drawing for a few seconds, trying to figure just what in the name of Hades he'd tried to depict. Upon deciding that he'd drawn a floating cloak (for reasons she didn't even want to ask about), she moved around him and then took a seat on a nearby bench.

She absentmindedly kicked her feet against the dirt for a few seconds, knowing there were things lingering between them that needed to be discussed, but not wanting to bring them up just yet. "So, ...pretty day out, hmm?" Yeah, that was her cop out. Only, this time, she had an excuse for making small talk. There was a little something she needed to tell her brother, but she was holding back on it for as long as possible.

"HI!" Nika smiled at the girl who had come up to her. Normally it was Nika going up to random strangers trying to make friends. But this is a good change. Something she can get used to. "I'm Nika Adler!" The bouncy little gryffie exclaimed cheerfully. "Second year, Gryffie." She said pointing to her little Gryffindor badge.

Cove was going to conquer her fear and play by herself infront of people. She took a deep breath and took out her violin. She started tuning it, once she finished she poised her bow perfectly above the strings. She counted a measure before she started. 'Deep breath....and go.' She thought to herself as she started playing. It calmed her to start.

The grin on the face of the curly-haired boy was actually contagious and made Ellie smile. Quite a change from the past couple weeks. And it felt nice to smile again. It felt nice to have someone be nice to her. Her eyebrows lifted when he mentioned New York. "You live there? So does my boyf-" She stopped mid-word and froze Crap. Ellie closed her eyes for a second before recovering. "My, er... My ex lives there." She said, rubbing her forehead. That was a tad embarrassing. It was almost as if she had forgotten that he broke up with her. Guh.

"It's nice there, New York. It's quite different than London." Ellie agreed with him. The buildings were taller and shinier. There were more people, like he said. And it was definitely a faster pace than England. In New York it always seemed like everyone was in a hurry to get to somewhere. And Americans always seemed a little intimidating. "So you just moved here then? How do you like Hogwarts so far?" She asked with a half smile. Ellie normally wasn't one to ask all the questions. She was more the type of person to wait to be asked the questions and give the answers. But the curly-haired boy seemed genuinely friendly, so why not? Plus, it's not like she had anyone else to talk to.

Ellie smiled and shook Theo's hand. "A pleasure to meet you Theo. I'm Ellie." She said, somewhat formally and released herself from his handshake. "I'm in Ravenclaw. You?" She wondered, just out of curiosity. Too nice to be a Slytherin, that was for sure. Snort.

At her hesitation and forced admittance of what was plaguing her, Theodore felt a wee bit of pity. He had never been in a relationship before but from what he had seen in movies (his only form of romantic education, aside from what he saw with his parents), tiffs between couples always took extreme emotional tolls. Maybe he could elaborate on his wonky childhood, traveling back and forth across the pond of the Atlantic, to take her mind off of her troubles? It seemed to be the only temporary solution that would work. "Well, it's a bit of a long story," He chuckled, shaking a few curls away from his blue eyes.

"I was actually born here, in England, but I went to the States when I was young. So it's like I really never lived here at all; I can't really remember anything before New York." Theodore pondered for a moment, attempting to figure out which parts of his childhood to regale her with and which parts to leave out. Upon quickly deciding what to say, he continued, "I just moved back this summer and I've been here for around a month, so... it's not the most exciting story, but it's mine." He shrugged, twining his fingers together. Theodore had either succeeded with one of two possibilities: he had bored the poor girl to death, or, he had succeeded in taking her mind off of her ex.

"Hogwarts is..." He searched for a word, his analytical mind searching his extensive vocabulary. "Well, amazing sums it up." He involuntary grinned another one of his usual crooked smiles; the sixth year was still in a bit of awe over having been able to attend such a great institution in the first place. Thank Merlin that Headmaster Tate had accepted him as a student. "Lovely to meet you," Releasing Ellie's dainty hand, he continued. "I'm in Ravenclaw, too. I'm surprised I haven't seen you in the common room or at the table during dinner."

Like a few students he had met, she seemed slightly younger. "Are you a sixth year, too?"

I thought "dainty hand" said "dirty hand". xD
 

Ellie couldn't tell what was running through Theo's mind when she slipped up about her ex. For some reason she found it rather embarrassing that she messed up just then, but she just shrugged it off. And she actually a tad surprised that he didn't say anything more about the subject. Ellie assumed that he must have known from his past relationships that talking about them wasn't really such a fun thing to do. It was still too recent. So, she appreciated that he didn't ask her about it. Ellie almost chuckled. A long story. She was all too familiar with those.

Listening to his story, as average as it was, was still interesting. So Theo was basically an American. And for some reason, Ellie thought Americans were fascinating. They were like a different species completely different than these Londoners. "Do you miss New York at all? Or do you like it here better?" She asked curiously. "And it wasn't that boring, don't worry." Ellie said with a teasing smile. Her mind was successfully away from Alex now. See, maybe meeting new people wasn't such a bad idea. So much for become a flame-thrower at a circus. "Plus, it's much more exciting than mine." Well, that depended on which story you were talking about. As far as living, she was born in raised in the same spot her whole life. Not too exciting.

Hm, Hogwarts was definitely amazing. That was for sure. The school life had it's ups and downs, but the castle and the grounds were completely fantastical. "It really is, isn't it?" Ellie said with a faint smile while nodding her head. She looked around the courtyard again and at the greenery. It was beautiful, too. "I think you'll love it here even as the year goes on. It only seems to get better as you go." And Ellie earnestly hoped she was right about that. Optimism is key. Ellie laughed lightly and looked at the ground. "I actually just got here... today." She looked back up. "But now you'll probably see me so much, you'll get sick of me." She joked with a grin. Whaaat? Ellie cracking jokes...?

"Ah, no. I'm a fifth year." Ellie said with a nod, slinging one leg over the other and leaning back in the bench. And it was still hard to believe she'd be leaving Hogwarts in just two years.

Taylorrr! :P
 

Selina walked through the courtyard and just took in the sight. How she had missed the school, the grounds, the people. Now that she was back and not a first year anymore Selina was plagued with the thoughts of her life after Hogwarts. Although it was a long time away she was no longer the longest in the school. That meant she was getting older and if her first year had gone by so fast how fast would the rest go? She wasn't sure and tried not to think about it.

She began to fiddle with her bangles as she usually did when she felt awkward about something. Chris was not happy about Nathan. After their looonnnnggg talk in the Common Room she hoped that she had made her point that Violet really cared for him and not Selina's cousin.

Speak of the Devil, "Hey Vi!"

Violet heard a voice call her and when her violet eyes shot up from Witch Weekly her eyes settled on Selina! She gasped and waved eagerly saying,"Hi Sely!" Violet smiled and then gasped again saying brightly,"Ohh cute top Sely! I love it!" She patted a spot next to her for her best friend to sit next to her. Then Violet pushed some of her hair behind her ear.

Selina laughed and plopped down on the seat next to Violet, "Alright, alright I'm sitting." Then she looked over her friends shoulder and saw the picture of Emmeline and who she assumed was Rosalie on the front cover. She gasped at how beautiful her sister was, "Oh my Merlin! She is the cutest thing I have ever seen! Is that the baby?"

She knew it was. The front cover said The Veelas add a new Le Veela. Unless they meant the Le Veela's had gotten another cat the title meant Rosalie.

Cody walked into the Courtyard, once again, kicking a stone along the ground. "Hey Kat", he said to her. "How are you? I haven't seen you in ages", he told her. When was there time to catch up with everyone?

Hp princesss! :d
 

Alicia wandered aimlessly for the entire morning. She ended up finding herself at the courtyard, still in her PJs. What Am I Actually Doing Here? Hmm... Sometimes, she did not understand herself. Not even willing to move her feet anywhere, she stood there blank mindedly in the middle of the courtyard, watching other people doing their own activities.

Katelynn looked up as she saw Cody approaching, and could feel herself blush. The last time she had seen Cody, she had completely freaked out..
But nevertheless she smiled at the boy. "Hey Cody! I'm good" she said. "I know, it's been forever! Did you have a nice summer?" she asked.

Viola had a slight headache and she felt that a breath of fresh air will definitely make her feel better. After aimlessly wandering around, she found herself entering the courtyard. She stood near the entrance, noticing that there seemed to be lots of people around today. She spotted a girl standing alone at the centre of the courtyard. She slowly walked towards the girl and said rather awkwardly, "Hey."

Fee walked to the courtyard.The grounds of Hogwarts were amazing to hang around and you always found someone to talk to.So how much better could it really get?!With her pygmy puffs plum and marschmallow the girl sat down on of the benches. Very nice weather today.

Looking around the courtyard the Slytherin noticed a familiar brunette sitting there with her cat.As the third year recognized the girl she got up from her place and walked into the girl's direction."Lynnie",Fee smiled widely and waved.

He hadn't heard "Kara" calling him the first time , neither the second time. He was too busy with looking around in panic. This IS Hogwarts , strange things could happen and he should actually not be afraid of a silly lion ..who was..going to eat them.. *gulp*

Daichi literally jumped when Kara was shouting at him. "YA! NO NEED TO YELL , I'M NOT DEAF!" He shouted back but then saw her pointing at her stomach ..and that was the point where he laughed out loud.

He laughed and laughed and laughed until his stomach hurt, he gripped it with his arms and bend forward. "I thought it was a real lion! Sorry Kara~!.. i'm hungry too."

His attention was then brought back to the other boy standing by them. He smiled when Toby mentioned he got lost too in this big castle. "I'm glad i'm not the only one who gets lost~" And at the mention of Quidditch he smiled broadly and his eyes twinkled. "I doooo!" he half shouted in excitment. "I signed in for the quidditch team! ..but i've never flown before, i have NO IDEA why i signed up!" he then facepalmed himself. "But i'm going to train and train and traaaaiiin.. sjoeksjoeeek" Ok not funny say something else Daichi. "What about you? do you like Quidditch Coby?"

Zara blinked innocently as Daichi laughed himself to the point of losing his breathe. "Well. You can consider me a lion." Grinning wide as she pointed to her scarf to indicate she was a Gryffindor. That counts as something, right?

Zara looked up at the clouds in the sky. "I think I better go now." Then she turned her eyes back to Daichi's and smiled. "I'm just gonna head back to the library. I forgot my bag there, and then I'm off to our first lesson. See you there." Zara said as she gave Daichi an awkward pat on the shoulder, seeing as it's very embarrassing to give him an actual hug. Then she walked off back to the big doors on her way to the library. Stopping in her tracks halfway, she turned back at Daichi and waved, "SEE YOU LATER!" She shouted, still waving. "OH! AND MY NAME IS ZARA, OKAY? ZARAAAAA!" Without giving him the chance to respond to that, Zara ran off and was out of sight.

I already have confirmation from Cassirin with Violet being part-Veela!
 

Violet smiled when she sat down next to her and then said,"Thank you.." She giggled and then noticed Selina looking over her shoulder to see what she was looking at, Violet immediately moved it towards Selina so she could see as well. Violet smiled when Selina commented ont Rosalie and then she nodded back eagerly,"Yes, that's Rosalie! My little sister is absolutely adorable! What amazed all of us was that she didn't inherit our Veela traits, like no purple eyes or blond hair, she actually inherited my father's clear blue eyes and light brown hair!" Everyone in her family was completely shocked by that but that didn't change a thing at all. "But it makes no difference to any of us, we all cherish her! Not only that but is such a good little girl, she barely ever cries! And she has the cutest smile and laugh I've ever seen in my life!" Violet squealed saying,"She's too precious Sely!"

''My name's Toby.'' he said with a cold voice, and he smiled a bit because Daichi didn't speak his name well. Then he had a big smile on his face. "And about Quidditch...I'm IN LOVE with Quidditch.'' He thought about going with his dad to matches from the Falmouth Falcons and practising in his huge garden at his home.
''I signed up too..Keeper. What would you like to be?" he asked. And who are you supporting? My dad and I love the Falmouth Falcons!''

Samira was still amazed Levi had a bat. How original was that? She smiled when he said she could pet Vlad. It reassured her to know the small creature didn't have any teeth, and she leaned forward eagerly. She slowly reached out an index finger. Very gently, as not to disturb the creature, she stroked the top of its head with a feather-light touch. "He's so soft..." murmured Samira quietly, almost to herself. She loved animals, whether it be cute little bunnies, or dark bats. She looked up. "Did you buy him from somewhere? Or was he rescued?" Samira was genuinely interested.

Samira's eyes suddenly caught something on the ground. It looked like a book, but thinner, and had pictures on the front. Only, they weren't moving like she was used to seeing. Curiously, she said, "Hey, Levi? What's that?" she pointed at the little booklet. She assumed it was used by Muggles, once again looking at the unmoving illustration.

ooohhhh drama
 

Selina smiled at the baby and said, "Aww she is too cute. Seriously I mean just adorable. But I kind of see it, the Le Veela in her I mean."

Then Selina swallowed hard and looked deep into Violet's violet eyes (ironic) and tried to find the words to say what she had wanted to say ever since she had had that conversation with Chris. Taking a deep breath she said, "Um, Violet? What do you know about a girl named Cass?"

Violet then nodded again happily saying,"I know, I lover her tremendously! I see it too, the skin and the tremendously gorgeous blue eyes!"

Violet looked at Selina and noticed that there was something wrong in Selina's eyes when she stared deeply into hers. She saw her trying to find the right words to say what she needed to say. "Umm...Cass? Hmm....I don't believe that I know a girl Cass...Why do you ask Sely? Is she a friend of yours?" She thought for a moment trying hard to think of who this Cass person was, then she shrugged her shoulders when she didn't know.

Inwardly, the dark-skinned Gryffindor had to admit he was a bit endeared as he watched Samira approach Vlad with such caution and gentleness. She seemed like an animal person in a way and he liked that about her. She wasn't disgusted by the idea of somebody owning a bat. One the contrary, she seemed to think it was kind of cool. To Levi, that was an uplifting notion. He was generally considered an oddball and a troublemaker among his peers but he wasn't as bad as the rumors. He was just timid.

"Yeah, he was a rescue," Levi confirmed with a nod. "I kind of live near the woods and I found the little guy under a branch so I thought I'd take him in. His mom must have abandoned him or something--" Levi could relate but he didn't mention that. "--but here he is now. He makes a good friend." He smiled. When Samira pointed out the comic on the ground, he picked it up and handed it to her so she could see for herself. "Um, it's just a muggle comic. It's mostly about some heroes fighting crime and stuff. You know, for nerds like me," he added with a wink.

Selina looked down at the floor and said, "Cass isn't a friend of mine. Actually... it's a funny story really. I mean you are just going to laugh. Psh, it's like this, you see. And this girl, you know, is a girl and well..."

The next part she whispered, "She's a friend of Christopher's. Well actually she's a good friend of his..."

Violet watched Selina's every move intently trying to figure out what was going on. She then said,"Ohh, she's a friend of Chris...Isn't that good for Chris? He keeps telling me he doesn't have man-" When she said a good friend of Chris' Violet then did a little confused and whispered,"What do you mean by good friend of his? Like best friends?"

Kita's head was still pointed up towards the sky. What she needed was a friend. Just someone to talk to who would help her forget about... home. Ugh! Just the sound of that word!

The girl was lost in her own world as usual when it happened. "OOMPH!" Someone's elbow probably someone who wasn't paying attention to where they were going had suddenly came round and met Kita's head which only meant one thing: Kita was seeing stars. Completely blocking out what the girl was saying, she looked around at her surroundings and blinked several times. Ok, this was definitely an accident! Who goes around elbowing people in the faces on purpose?

And this person... knew her? WHAAT?! Blinking, Kita turned to look at the girl only to find... "LOUISA!" she squealed, forgetting about her thumping head and giving the girl a hug, "It's great to see you too!"

"Like really good friends. Like you and Nathan good friends." Selina hoped she was making her point. She knew that Chris was devoted to Violet, she did, but she was not so sure about this Cass character. Everyone knew that Cass liked Christopher, except maybe Violet, but Selina could not leave her in the dark. Her first allegiance was to Violet and no one else. They were best friends, sisters practically, and she was not going to keep her friend in the dark.

Assuming it was afternoon? :D
 

"So, what're you doing here?" She raised her eyebrows and sat down by her friend after returning the hug. "It's dark soon." Well, Louisa practically was trying to get to the common room.. but staying here with a friend sounded like a BETTER idea. "And you don't look so.." She wanted to say 'cheerful' which was the way Kita always was but she left the sentence hang. She didn't want to push things.

Sorry for any errors and the length; I'm a little sick and tired. "Dirty" hands, xD
 

"I..." Theodore attempted to find the right words to explain the mix of homesickness for New York, yet admiration for his new home. "I try not to think about home... or, the States, too much. I don't like being homesick. But... here, it's hard to even think about the fun, amazing things back in the U.S. when the U.K. has just as many cool places." Sighing deeply as a few images came back to him, from the Empire State Building to his quaint home back across the Brooklyn Bridge, the Ravenclaw tried to shake his memories from his mind.

Theodore couldn't help but smirk at her teasing smile and her minor self-deprecation, which reminded him of himself. It seemed that this encounter wasn't just serving to soothe Ellie's worried mind, but his own as well. Good karma, maybe?

As Ellie commented on Hogwarts, marveling at it's beauty just as Theo did, he narrowed his eyes as he peered far across the courtyard, a stretch of green, and to a large, gnarled tree that lay near the forest. "I definitely hope I can enjoy it as much as I can until I graduate next term. And don't worry, haha, I don't tire of people easily. It's usually the other way around. However..." His blue eyes remained locked on the tree in the distance, which oddly enough, looked like a boxer ready to step into the ring. "That bit of... vegetation over there, that tree in the distance?" Unclasping his hands, he pointed with one finger at the Whomping Willow. "It gives me the creeps. I can see it from the window of the boys' dormitory and it always looks... scary, I guess?" A quick thought flashed across his mind: what if she laughed at him for being frightened of a harmless tree? His middle name should have been 'anxiety.'

Yeah, alright! It's afternoon! xD
 

What was she doing here? Now that was an interesting question... "I just came out for a walk," Kita said, looking around her, "And i'm allowed to stay out later this year so i'm using that to my full advantage!" ... Or something like that anyways. But still, anyone in their right mind would stay out longer if they were allowed to. Some people did even if they're not allowed to. "And anyways," she said, a smirk spreading across her lips, "the real question is: what are you doing here Miss Carter?" And... Louisa was saying something... something that she didn't bother completing? What? It was about Kita's looks? She didn't look sick did she? Or scared? Or-or-or... "I don't look so what, Louisa?" she asked.

Sierra shrugged. Hadn't that been the point of saying his middle name? To have people accidentally overhear? Meh. She didn't see what was so bad about having Salazar as a middle name anyway. It wasn't like he was called Helga or something.

When he commented on the nice day, Sierra responded by rolling her eyes. Ugh. She knew she should tell him the big secret, but at the moment, she just couldn't bring herself to. She honestly considered it none of his business. At the same time, though, she was just dying to tell somebody, and if it was going to be anybody, it was at least going to be someone in her own family.

"So, uhh...," she started to say, almost gaining enough confidence to tell him everything. He interrupted her thoughts, though, and so she just nodded instead. "Oh, yeah. I just came from the pitch," she answered. "Okay, forget about Quidditch for a few minutes." She glanced quickly around her and then dashed forward, coming to a stop by Alex. "I should do this quickly before I change my mind. There's something you should know."

Then she leaned forward and whispered into his ear, "..."

AHA! He KNEW that she had something she needed to tell him. Hmmm, this looked serious. Alex folded his notebook and leaned in when she whispered in his ear.

He listened intently, and then he just...blinked. Stunned. He sat there, staring at her, blinking his big brown eyes at her in shock. That was just...no. No way. But she said it was true--she'd even anticipated him doubting it. Because, of COURSE, who WOULDN'T doubt that?!

After what felt like an eternity, he finally found his voice again. "But I...they can't...why are YOU telling me this?" he finally asked. She was not the primary party involved in this nonsense, so why was it her responsibility to tell him?

Gah. He couldn't think. His thoughts were just swirling in his head. This was too much to take right now...did Mum know? Oh, he hoped she didn't. Not yet. He'd get over the shock eventually but he wasn't sure about his mother.

Sierra jumped back, a look of annoyance spread across her face. Why was she telling him this?! "...because I thought you'd like to know, and I really needed to tell someone. If you're going to be all rude about it, though, I'll just leave," she snapped. She stepped away and eyed him for a few moments. As far as she was concerned, the battle lines had been drawn the second she and their father had gone one way, and Alex and their mother had gone the other way. He better not dare say anything bad about her father...

...or his new girlfriend for that matter.

"Yes, they can," she corrected, "and they are. I'm telling you I spent the entire summer with the two of them." A hint of a smile flickered across her face as she remember their vacation in Hawaii. "She's been good to us, you know. She even made breakfast for us..." Then a flicker of realization flickered across her face, and her tone changed completely. "Well, that's all I had to tell you," she abruptly announced. "Oh, and keep this between us, please." She suddenly had the feeling she'd said too much, almost as if she'd revealed too much of her new, private life. This was really none of Alex's business as far as she was concerned.

Alex wrinkled his eyebrows in annoyance. Gosh girls were so sensitive. "That's not what I meant!" he snapped. "I meant...why is it YOUR responsibility to tell me? I just...don't understand why I couldn't have heard it from his mouth. Or hers, for that matter," he explained. Although, he kind of understood why she didn't tell him--he'd probably keep his mouth shut if he was in her situation.

GOOD to them?! That was more unbelievable to him than the fact that they were dating! "Re--really?" he asked in slight shock. That just...didn't seem like her at all. He couldn't picture it. He really couldn't.

Suddenly, the realization of just how separate their lives were really hit Alex. It was like a stab to his chest. They'd gone and had an amazing summer together, as a big happy family, and what had he done? Gotten excited over the fact that he didn't faint when he touched a broom anymore. Whoop dee doo. It was like he wasn't even a part of that family anymore. His father shared some genes with him, and that was pretty much it. He'd replaced mum super quick and dropped his only son just as fast.

Well, at least Alex knew that, without a doubt, he'd made the right decision. He wouldn't fit in with that new life. Sierra did. It was simple as that. It didn't make him hurt any less, though.

"Oh yeah, of course, I won't say a word!" he assured her, his voice breaking a bit as he spoke. He didn't WANT word of this getting out to anyone in the school.

Okay, Sierra was seriously angry now. She glared at her brother, giving him one of those 'if looks could kill' kind of stares. "My responsibility? No one asked or expected me to do this, Alex," she spat. Something deep down inside of her was trying to tell her that she was starting to speak out of pure anger, but she wanted to say it aloud so badly that she pushed the other thoughts away. "He doesn't owe you anything, nothing at all, and neither does she, you traitor."

"I hate you," she softly said, turning around and leaning against the open sill that gave a view of the courtyard. With her back turned to him, she swiped away a stray tear. He'd angered her, and he'd hurt her, and she hated him for it.

Now Alex was the one who was angry. He glared at his sister, who couldn't get off her high horse for more than five seconds, and clenched his fist. "Why? Because I didn't chose to live with him, and subject myself to a life of never being GOOD enough because of where I was sorted?" he snapped at her. Traitor. He was anything BUT a traitor. He'd done what was good for him, which, in this case, had been living with his mother. Not only did he know life with his dad would be miserable, but he couldn't leave his mother alone like that. He just couldn't.

"Whether you like to admit it or not, I'm his SON. I'm your BROTHER. Just because I'm not like the rest of the family doesn't mean I'm not a part of it," he said quietly. Oh Merlin, he was going to cry now. He'd already been breaking up earlier, but now he could feel his eyes tearing up and his vision became blurred. "Is it too much to ask for an update every once in a while?" he added. Seriously, why hadn't he known until NOW if this had supposedly happened all summer? Sure, he was shocked--he probably WOULD be shocked for a while--but that didn't mean he didn't deserve to KNOW.

"Good, I hate you too," he mumbled. Like that was anything new. He'd been telling Sierra he hated her for years. Only this time, he was genuinely ANGRY at her. He blinked his eyes rapidly to try and push back the tears, reminding himself he could cry later when he got back to his dorm and no one was around. Crying now would just be embarrassing.