Adam had been expecting Louisa to simply not reply at all to his comment, but instead she did quite the opposite. Adam watched as Louisa scooted around so that her legs were out in the aisle too, but the position wasn't as relaxed looking as Adam's. Well that was good that she didn't want an apology, but the end of the sentence made Adam have to try and hide how much that hurt him. "I wasn't trying to hurt you by my words Louisa, I was just trying to be honest. We made a promise to each other that we would always be honest with each other, and I hadn't been honest with. If my words hurt you...well...that I will apologize for because I don't want to hurt you." Of course a part of Adam questioned how Adam admitting that he liked he more than a friend was hurting her. Did she think he was going to never speak to her again if she didn't say she felt the same way back? "I won't ever just stop caring about you...no matter what happens," Adam mumbled back, not sure if Louisa caught that bit or not.

Adam thought for a moment before responding to her question, completely missing the fact that she had straightened up or that she was irritating. "How do I know? I don't know...I just do," Adam said with a gentle shrug. "Even when I was with Rubiey I never felt towards her the way I feel towards you. I tried to convince myself that we were just friends and that I didn't want it to be more, but I couldn't. And the whole time that you've been with..." Adam stopped. That was a person and subject he didn't want to bring up. "And the whole time you've been taken it's always been in the back of my mind as to..." Adam cleared his throat. "Why that wasn't me with you like that," Adam said, kicking the ground slightly with his foot.

He wasn't trying to hurt her by his words. Everybody who hurt her said that at one point. And even if she failed to see Adam Fitzergald hurt anyone at all, she couldn't just let him know that she was sure of this - that he wouldn't hurt her, not on purpose anyway. "Yeah, I know. It's not your words I was talking about." Louisa recrossed her arms and gazed down at her stretched legs, "Just.. never mind." It was the fact that he told her that hurt her - or unsettled her to be accurate. He put her in a situation where both decisions seemed hard to her, especially with the exams approaching.

But then Adam went on.

And Louisa's heart skipped a beat.. and doubled another beat as he spoke. Her eyes were staring determinedly at the ground making sure to try to hide whatever effect he was making on her. When finished, the Ravenclaw stayed frozen in place. How was she supposed to reply to that? It was very sweet and lovely... she loved it, too. The feeling that someone wanted you despite you being taken or them being taken, it had its own... forbidden sweet taste. Her mouth twitched once into a half-smile at the thought but Louisa quickly regained the straight face.

Clearing her throat, she uncrossed her arms and turned slightly toward him staring at the small space between them. There was another time when she sat down with someone and shared the same space that was separating her from Adam now; Dallin. "I... uh.. d-don't know what to say." And her cheeks flushed, Louisa felt a bit better with her hair falling onto her face concealing any unnecessary details. Maybe Adam wouldn't notice her cheeks? "You know that I like you a lot, Adam. I've told you this over and over again.." Her hands were now fiddling with the hem of her uniform skirt, "But I don't think it'll be fair to you if I.. uh.. got into a relationship when my head is still.. unclear." That was the slowest and most general answer Louisa could give with everything he'd said.

It'd be great if she just agreed to his words and declared that she exchanged his feelings. Maybe then she'd hug him in that way she fantasized when he taught her how to kick and punch - hugging him to really feel his arms around her waist and not just in a friendly way. Or she could look at his face and see the other side of Adam, not the supportive friend she was so used to but the attractive blondish boy. She could do that, and she wanted to but then the fear that he was turning into her rebound guy would overwhelm every emotion and Louisa then pushed the option away for the time being.

Adam had been expecting the silence so he let it pass between them without any tension or anxiety that she would respond somehow quickly. In fact Adam appreciated that she didn't just burst out with an answer right off the bat because it showed that she was actually taking the time to comprehend and let his answer sink in. He had wanted to ask her to continue on what she was about to say when she just mumbled never mind, but he let the words slip from his thoughts quickly. If she wanted him to know right then she would tell them. Probably the truth was too complicated to put into words and Adam could understand that. After all once you've been hurt, especially given the number of times that both Adam had Louisa had been hurt, it was hard to always open up and accept the truth when people told you that they never wanted to hurt you. Sometimes people did, and all Adam could do was hope that Louisa would know that he wasn't one of those people that said it and didn't really mean it.

Adam had kept his gaze off of Louisa during the extended time of silence, not really turning to look at her until he felt her shuffling her position next to him. He looked up to see a face full of hair but the very apparent redness of flushed cheeks coming through the gaps where there weren't any strands of hair. The look, although somewhat difficult to see, seemed to give Adam a bit of calmness that he hadn't realized he had even been looking for. He listened carefully as Louisa gave him what seemed genuine and thoughtful answers. When she finished Adam sat there a moment, looking at the books between them before nodding his head slowly. "I can understand all of that," Adam said, giving his throat a little clear. "I guess....I don't know...I guess I was just afraid that now that you know how I really feel that you would cast me off if you didn't feel the same way," Adam said with a little shrug of the shoulders.

In all honesty the words had given Adam a kind of hope that he never really thought he was going to have. He sat there, his expression thoughtful but not really giving away anything that he was feeling. After all he didn't want to build himself up only to have him crumble and fall all the way down. Louisa hadn't said that she wanted to be with him, but her answer had made Adam begin to wonder if maybe at some point in time Louisa herself had begun to feel something more towards Adam. He thought back to the day when he taught her self defense and how flustered she got whenever he had to touch her to show her a move. Adam all this time had thought it was only him that had an attraction to her, but maybe through all his doubts and insecurities he had missed Louisa's opinion of him changing too. "Maybe the summer will be good for us," Adam said after a moment with a small nod of the head. "Maybe it will kind of give you the time you need to figure things out and figure out what you want..."

" thanks taylor." nicki said with a laugh

Tay laughed and smiled, "Anytime."

" nice what are doing" nicki said with a giggle

Cast him off? Louisa pushed her hair away from her face to show him the frown forming on it, "I wouldn't cast you off ever, Adam. You're my close friend first and foremost." The flush was gone, her voice wasn't faint or gentle. It was urgent and firm. He needed to get this straight. "And I don't know how I really feel," she added as an afterthought. It was very tricky to actually confess that she did feel something a couple of times this term – something that she never acknowledge when she was with Adam, her friend.

Louisa turned back to face the empty aisle as he added about the summer. "Yeah, summer," she half-scoffed half-sighed, "It seems so long away with the OWLs havoc coming close." Passing a hand through her hair and let it linger at the end of a lock dangling off her shoulder, she went on "You know when I was at mom's at Christmas, she asked me to spend the summer with them. Like.. living with them for three months straight." Louisa looked at him sideways, her eyebrows knotted together, "Even Jason insisted I do that. I knew there was something fishy ever since she threw me that sweet sixteen puke party." Without meaning to, the Ravenclaw turned back to face him bringing one leg over the bench closing the distance between them. "I don't really want to worry about that right now," she attempted to smile, "How are things with grandpa?" His grandpa of course, she didn't have one. Also she wanted to talk about something other than herself. And she had only few minutes before she had to go to the library.

At the firmness of Louisa's voice and the stern look on her face, Adam accepted with much relief that Louisa would in fact at least try to still be his friend through all of this, even though it would possibly be quite difficult if she turned out to not feel the same way. However the fact that she now knew entirely and completely made the whole thing seem less stressful in a way, and gave Adam a bit of strength that when the time came, and if he needed to, he could. Her friendship was important to him above all else, and he supposed that maybe after a while the pain would start to go away again.

"Once they're finished with you will feel loads better," Adam said with a supportive nod, still not wanting to try and kind of physical gesture to show support. "And once you start taking them, they will go quickly." Adam knew. He had felt just as concerned as Louisa had when the time was nearing for him, so he could completely understand where she was coming from. He listened carefully as this new and unexpected news about her mother came out of her mouth. "Wow," Adam said once she had stopped talking. "That's...well...that's something," Adam said with a gentle shrug, feeling bad that he couldn't offer any more illuminating advice. "I mean, at least she's trying to make the effort to be better...unless...do you think there's some kind of ulterior motive behind it?" Adam asked, not wanting to suggest that their was, but thinking perhaps that was why there was some extra bitterness in Louisa's words.

How was grandpa? Eh...of course they would enter into that topic that Adam didn't really want to go into at all. The letter that was in his pocket seemed to be burning a hole through his pant leg as they sat there. "He's great," Adam said with a nod and a bit of a smile. "He's excited for me to come home for the summer, but...uh...I'm not really in any hurry," Adam said with a little shake of the head, gripping his jean pocket slightly before letting it go. "So...are you going to spend the summer with your mom?" Adam asked.

Quote:

Originally Posted by emmafan123

Cornelius's smile only widened as he saw Aspen's own smile appear, loving that she seemed to be enjoying his presence. He felt as though he hadn't been able to see her as much recently, with all the studying he'd been doing. He listened patiently as she explained her distaste for her summer plans, and occasionally took a bite of his roll. His eyebrows rose as she explained exactly who she'd be spending the summer with, but it honestly didn't impress him all that much. He wasn't one to keep track of names of important people.

He couldn't help but feel a bit bad for the girl before him as she stated simply that she wanted to go home. He couldn't imagine not spending his holidays at home, for at least part of the time. "The problem's not with you," he disagreed to her next words, lifting his free hand (which was now empty, since he'd finished his roll) to tuck her hair once more behind her ear. "You have every right to be upset." He wished he was better at this kind of thing. He wasn't sure what to say to make her happy, he just knew that he wanted her to be happy.

With her next words, Cornelius couldn't help but grin, his chin lifting just slightly from its resting place on his arm. "I'm your favorite?" he repeated playfully, a warm smile growing on his expression as he tilted his head to the side just slightly. But he fell into a more serious state as he really contemplated her words, "I'm gonna miss you too," he admitted honestly, flashing her a softer smile as he leaned in a bit closer. He waited until his expression was right before her own, his light brown eyes staring directly into her lighter ones, before he spoke once more. "Because you happen to be my favorite too." He flashed her a teasing grin before placing a warm kiss on her cheek and returning to his normal sitting position.

"Maybe that's why you should come visit me this summer," Cornelius muttered casually, the smallest hint of a mischievous smile on his expression as he began to eat off of his plate. "Or I could come visit you..." he muttered between bites.

Aspen laughed at him, "I know that," that she was his favorite. He wore her favoritism proudly and she was sure most people could see it on him, too. "As much as you smile at me, I have to be your favorite." It was just logical, and Aspen explained it as as much.

Oh....? Now that was an idea! Aspen would be lying if she hadn't already thought about it, but it'd be so strange to ask permission to see him from people that were not her father.

On the other hand.... maybe it'd be easier to ask them? Maybe... "It's a date," she promised, complete with a little giggle that was entirely ridiculous and worry-free. Date. Did he catch that? He did, no doubts. This was Cornelius.

"There's one more... thing. You know, weird reactions things." Was he ready for it? Aspen paused to make sure.

"Yeah, so everybody tells me. I hope you guys are right." She sighed and leaned on the table that was now on her left side. The open book was long forgotten now, Louisa wanted to talk to someone, like being social after so long! She was afraid to turn into a girl in the bubble when her fifth year finished. Hopefully, her friends were trying to help... you know, when they found her.

Louisa watched him struggle with his words about her mom. She couldn't help but snicker at his attempt. "Don't sweat it. I know she didn't remember, out of the blue, that she had a stinking witch daughter from a wizard lover who was left to live with someone who doesn't even believe in magic." Was that a lousy confusing sentence? Whatever. Louisa shrugged, "I don't think so. I know there's something brewing under all that sudden enthusiasm about me turning sixteen and trying to spend the summer with them. My brother, Johnny, says that mom and Jason spent a lot of time talking privately before I went for Christmas." Was she using her nine year old brother as a spy? Totally. "Not that I care. As long as Jason doesn't get on my nerves, I'm cool." she looked down at her half-bent leg on the bench.

However, her eyes caught Adam's hand move to clutch his.... pocket? She ignored his question and stretched her arm to poke his hand with her forefinger. "What's there?" Louisa raised one eyebrow at him, "You got me some yummy wands?" You know, the candy from Honeydukes! Her favorite this year! As for his reply, she had to backtrack and contain her silly squeaking. "Why not on a hurry? JB must've missed you! We should get him to meet Viola and see how they bond." She chuckled mischievously. How many dogs bonded with cats throughout history?

Cornelius let out a laugh as Aspen explained that she already knew she was his favorite, that she had to be with the amount he smiled at her. Utter amusement filled the boy's expression as he turned to look at her with mock offense behind his gaze. "Hey, I smile at a lot of people," he teased, but in the next moment he was flashing her, funnily enough, another one of his shining smiles and it was clear that what she said was true. He probably smiled the most at her.

But it was then that she seemed to think on his idea of them possibly meeting up over the summer, something he definitely liked the sound of. It just seemed a little ridiculous to not plan something with Aspen, who had become one of his greatest friends at Hogwarts. And...sort of, maybe his..almost-girlfriend? His brows furrowed. He honestly had no idea what they were, still, they didn't make a habit of defining their relationship during regular conversation. And her next words only threw him into further confusion. But good confusion, very good confusion. It's a date. She said it so simply, he almost didn't really evaluate her words at first. But it was through another bite of his food that he seemed to register what she had said exactly, and he turned to look at Aspen with mild interest on his features.

"It's a date?" he repeated tentatively, his light brown eyes searching her expression for some kind of information. Date as in...like a date. Like an actual evening out with Aspen; like he would be taking her out on an official date. He grinned.

As she told him that there was one more thing that was giving her a weird reaction, his eyebrows rose, his light brown eyes locked with her own gaze hesitantly. "Yeah?" he prompted curiously to the girl who was still less than a foot away from himself.

Quote:

Originally Posted by emmafan123

Cornelius let out a laugh as Aspen explained that she already knew she was his favorite, that she had to be with the amount he smiled at her. Utter amusement filled the boy's expression as he turned to look at her with mock offense behind his gaze. "Hey, I smile at a lot of people," he teased, but in the next moment he was flashing her, funnily enough, another one of his shining smiles and it was clear that what she said was true. He probably smiled the most at her.

But it was then that she seemed to think on his idea of them possibly meeting up over the summer, something he definitely liked the sound of. It just seemed a little ridiculous to not plan something with Aspen, who had become one of his greatest friends at Hogwarts. And...sort of, maybe his..almost-girlfriend? His brows furrowed. He honestly had no idea what they were, still, they didn't make a habit of defining their relationship during regular conversation. And her next words only threw him into further confusion. But good confusion, very good confusion. It's a date. She said it so simply, he almost didn't really evaluate her words at first. But it was through another bite of his food that he seemed to register what she had said exactly, and he turned to look at Aspen with mild interest on his features.

"It's a date?" he repeated tentatively, his light brown eyes searching her expression for some kind of information. Date as in...like a date. Like an actual evening out with Aspen; like he would be taking her out on an official date. He grinned.

As she told him that there was one more thing that was giving her a weird reaction, his eyebrows rose, his light brown eyes locked with her own gaze hesitantly. "Yeah?" he prompted curiously to the girl who was still less than a foot away from himself.

She knew he smiled at a lot of people. She'd known that before he ever wandered over to her in the Common Room that day they'd met officially. Cornelius was always wearing a smile, but she couldn't help but see a different smile for her. He could argue it all he wanted, but SHE was the expert on Cornelius Rune's facial activities. In fact, she'd probably studied HIM more than any subject at Hogwarts all term.

"That's what people say," Aspen hedged a little bit since ... Cornelius had. About dates. Or dating. From her understanding, he had asked her when he could ask. She was sort of saying he could ask now? Then she could ask.... Mr. Bole. Or maybe Mrs. Bole. "You know, when ... plans match up. It's a date. Or something."

..... or a date, like how Aspen had really meant it. How confusing.

But right, right - the weird. Or weirder than all of that. ".... Right... so. This letter." She paused and chewed on her lip thoughtfully, worriedly, and anxiously, "My little brother is coming to Hogwarts next term. Dad was supposed to take him to France with him, but he's coming here with me instead."

And...


"...and I'm trying to be happy about it. I should be. I love my brother." But...

Cornelius allowed his mind to race for a moment over what all of this meant. Did her father decide that it was alright for her to date? Had she asked him at all? Did she still want his permission? His brows furrowed just slightly at all of these questions. Either way, it was clear that Aspen was prepared to be asked on a date.

Just...how was he going to do that?

Before he could think on this too much, Aspen was explaining another thing that had been on her mind - a letter saying that her younger brother was coming to Hogwarts next term. His eyebrows rose at this. Another Odessa to fill the halls? Interesting. He couldn't help but be a bit curious to see what exactly this younger brother would be like; how similar he would be to Aspen. But it was her tone that caused the young Ravenclaw to look up from his plate of food, his light brown eyes searching her expression as she explained that she was trying to be happy about it.

"But...?" Cornelius added to her statement, knowing that it was coming. He couldn't see any problem with her little brother coming to the school; was he missing something?

Quote:

Originally Posted by emmafan123

Cornelius allowed his mind to race for a moment over what all of this meant. Did her father decide that it was alright for her to date? Had she asked him at all? Did she still want his permission? His brows furrowed just slightly at all of these questions. Either way, it was clear that Aspen was prepared to be asked on a date.

Just...how was he going to do that?

Before he could think on this too much, Aspen was explaining another thing that had been on her mind - a letter saying that her younger brother was coming to Hogwarts next term. His eyebrows rose at this. Another Odessa to fill the halls? Interesting. He couldn't help but be a bit curious to see what exactly this younger brother would be like; how similar he would be to Aspen. But it was her tone that caused the young Ravenclaw to look up from his plate of food, his light brown eyes searching her expression as she explained that she was trying to be happy about it.

"But...?" Cornelius added to her statement, knowing that it was coming. He couldn't see any problem with her little brother coming to the school; was he missing something?

"....but....," Aspen picked up after his encouragement, "I...," ..... How to say what she was thinking? WHAT she was thinking was kind of horrible and SO unlike her. "It's like... I was SO worried about coming here and leaving West. I told Dad everyday after he told me I was coming here that West would need me. In hindsight, that's probably why he sent me here." Because Aspen was playing Mom to West, and had been for years.

"..turns out, West is fine without me, and I'm worried less here. I think that was Dad's plan and it's working, and I hate to say it, but West was out of sight, so he was out of mind."

But now he was coming to Hogwarts. He could be in Ravenclaw even - And that SHOULD make Aspen happy... He'd be back in her sights.

"That's a weird reaction to the good news my little brother is going to get the same chance I got to attend this great school." Yes. Yes it was. "See?"

Cornelius listened patiently as Aspen explained the history she had with her brother - that she tended to worry about him a lot before she had come to Hogwarts, and was convinced that her father had sent her here partly to get her to stop worrying about her younger brother. That made sense. He could easily see Aspen fretting over a younger sibling, it wasn't a stretch at all for the girl he had grown to know over the past few months. But she was having a weird reaction to the news.

He couldn't quite understand exactly what she was worried about, but he got some kind of sense from the way she was talking about it. "It is a good thing," he reminded her softly, his gaze searching her own as he tried to pinpoint what exactly was wrong. Setting down his fork as he finished his food, he turned to her a bit more as he thought about it all. "Are you afraid you're gonna start worrying about him again?" Cornelius asked softly, once more resting his arm across her knees and placing his chin on his forearm. He searched her green eyes with his own light brown ones, interest falling into his features.

He brought up his other hand to absentmindedly tuck her hair behind her ear as he always did, letting his thumb linger on her cheek for a moment as he examined her expression. Her earlier words were obviously true - she was his favorite. And even if he was unaware of how he looked, it must have been obvious to anyone that looked at him that he had some kind of soft spot for Aspen Odessa.

Quote:

Originally Posted by emmafan123

Cornelius listened patiently as Aspen explained the history she had with her brother - that she tended to worry about him a lot before she had come to Hogwarts, and was convinced that her father had sent her here partly to get her to stop worrying about her younger brother. That made sense. He could easily see Aspen fretting over a younger sibling, it wasn't a stretch at all for the girl he had grown to know over the past few months. But she was having a weird reaction to the news.

He couldn't quite understand exactly what she was worried about, but he got some kind of sense from the way she was talking about it. "It is a good thing," he reminded her softly, his gaze searching her own as he tried to pinpoint what exactly was wrong. Setting down his fork as he finished his food, he turned to her a bit more as he thought about it all. "Are you afraid you're gonna start worrying about him again?" Cornelius asked softly, once more resting his arm across her knees and placing his chin on his forearm. He searched her green eyes with his own light brown ones, interest falling into his features.

He brought up his other hand to absentmindedly tuck her hair behind her ear as he always did, letting his thumb linger on her cheek for a moment as he examined her expression. Her earlier words were obviously true - she was his favorite. And even if he was unaware of how he looked, it must have been obvious to anyone that looked at him that he had some kind of soft spot for Aspen Odessa.

Aspen nodded, albeit distractedly. His chin and that thumb... and Aspen's personal Cornelius Rune smile. She gave a little sigh and another nod. Yes. He had it right. All of it. It was good, and ... "Yes..... I'm worried about impending worry. I told you it was weird. But I've never claimed to be not weird, so maybe that means I'm being normal."

Ravenclawy thoughts were getting tangled up there.

"We might have to work twice as hard on ACEs next year." You know, to keep the worry to a minimum. Or..... simply because Aspen wanted to spend more and more time with her shiny, favorite, charming Ravenclaw...?

...what was West going to think about Cornelius...?

"But not 'til next term. You look worked enough at the moment."

Cornelius couldn't help but laugh as Aspen announced that she was worried about impending worry. "You're not weird," he disagreed with a slight shake of his head, flashing her a small smile that only widened as she suggested that they work twice as hard on their ACEs next year. "More ACEs?" he repeated playfully, raising his eyebrows with a warm smile. In all honesty, that was already part of his plan for next year. More time with Aspen, both because he wanted it and now because he wanted to help distract her from her worry. He wondered if next year these would no longer be called ACEs but...dates. Hmm.

It was as Aspen decided this increase wouldn't happen until next term because he looked worked enough for the moment that Cornelius let out a soft chuckle. It was just funny to him that she made it sound as though ACEs were work. "Worked enough?" he repeated softly, raising his eyebrows. "Asp, you're not the work, you're the nice part of my school life," he informed her with a growing smile, leaning forward to place a kiss on her cheek before he returned to his normal sitting position and grabbed some form of dessert.

After a moment had passed, he glanced over at her with vague curiosity in his features. "So...this potential date..." he started with a small smile. "Is it...have you cleared it with...?" He didn't know exactly how to ask that, it seemed so...unromantic to blatantly ask about the date he had yet to officially ask her on, but... he felt it was necessary.

Adam gave a little reassuring smile at Louisa's hopes that they were right. Sometimes with exams as big and important as these ones it was better just to leave the person to see for themselves, and offer the words of encouragement when it seemed needed or appropriate. He listened carefully as Louisa continued on about her mother and stepfather, not feeling a hundred percent convinced either that there wasn't something suspicious behind all this new enthusiasm. Adam wanted to believe that maybe her mother had changed, but Adam knew that changes so big usually didn't happen quite so suddenly. "Well it never hurts to keep your guard up," Adam said with a nod. "Better to expect the worst and be pleasantly surprised as I like to follow." Yeah...perhaps that wasn't the best philosophy to have on life but it had gotten him along this far, hadn't it? "Although who knows...maybe they will surprise you," Adam said with a little shrug of the shoulders.

At some point in the conversation Adam became aware that he sounded more like he was trying to convince himself of his words than Louisa, and her thorough poking of his hand suddenly drew full attention to that fact. He looked down at his pocket a moment, giving Louisa a small smirk as she inquired whether her favorite candy was being stored there. "I wish," Adam said with a little chuckle, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the most recent letter of three from his grandfather. "Honestly I haven't really known how to respond to this. I found out that my father is now staying with him, and I'm not sure that I am ready to face all of that," Adam said. "I do miss JB though, and worst come to worst we can go and live in his dog house somewhere." Adam was silent for a moment as he stared at the letter in his hand, tapping it lightly against his leg. "I'm just not sure that I am going to be able to trust and believe that my father wants to be involved in my life the way my grandpa is willing to. I mean, my dad is his son so I can understand the want but..." Adam looked up at Louisa, realizing he was dumping on her about stresses that she really didn't need. "But it's alright...I'll figure it out eventually."