Came back for a good reason...

Wait...did that mean what he thought it meant? That Elektra had come back to Hogwarts for HIM? Gideon shook it off thinking he was probably thinking wrong about what she had said or maybe heard it wrong. "Um no...its not an issue, Elektra," he assured her, not wanting her to feel bad for doing something as simple as taking his hand. They were friends right? At least friendly acquaintances before she had gone. Then she went on about the what ifs and Gideon was back to wondering where this conversation was going.

"Aye...no sense lingering in the past."

Head down, ears pinned back, this lonely thestral made it's way across the not so familiar grounds of Hogwarts. Exposed, confused and feeling vulnerable, he moved toward the front gate at a glacial pace.

His skeletal frame jutted along, hooves clinking on loose stones uncomfortably. It was at this point he came to a halt, ears perking slightly, and nostils flaring. There was a gate in his way, technically though, there was nothing really keeping him here. He could always return to the forest, spread his wings and disappear like the ghost that he was to most people.

Feeling a little frustrated and out of place, he took to gnawing at the harsh iron gate, withers quivering as he did so.

Elektra looked back at Gideon. "Uhmm Gideon you know since we never really...you know...like got to hang out before I was thinking you know that maybe when Hogsmede opens up how about you and I go to the Three Broomsticks, you know...as...friends." She asked innocently to him. Maybe this was her chance now to have a little more one on one time with him. "Could be a lot of fun."

Vashti had wandered out to the grounds once more, hoping to get a little studying done out in the fresh air before winter finally set in and it would become too cold for her to willingly go outside for anything besides Quidditch. She wasn't sure where she wanted to go to study, but a little wandering around wouldn't hurt until she did. As she did though, she noticed something walking in the direction of the front gate. Curious, she moved closer to it and once it had reached the gate, she was near enough to recognize what it was, and she froze.

She had been able to see the thestrals since her fourth year, when she had been with her father when he died during the summer before, but she'd only ever seen them when riding the carriages. They sort of creeped her out, and they didn't exactly bring up good memories, so she had never tried to get near them except for those carriage rides where she couldn't avoid it - and even then she kept her distance and sat as far away as she possibly could from them.

She'd never seen any of them wander the grounds like this though. So why was this one here? And what was it doing to the front gate?

Should she stop it? Get the Care of Magical Creatures professor? What if it left while she was gone, so that when she returned she looked like an idiot imagining things? Vashti bit her lip as she contemplated her options. There was only one thing she knew for certain - she was NOT going to get close to that thing. Nope, not happening. A distance of several feet was as close as she was getting.

So...maybe she should try to stop it? How?

...

"Oi!" she said, waving one arm around. "Stop that!" Whether this would actually get its attention, she didn't know. She wasn't going to use her wand though, so her arms were the next best thing.

Coming back from her leaf pile adventure with Jezz, Kurumi decided to take Jonathan's advice some more and wandered around outside. Her textbooks wouldn't be going anywhere any time soon.

Turning the corner, Kurumi saw the Head Girl...scolding something? Oh dear...she was losing her mind, wasn't see?! Was it NEWTs? Was Ravenclaw really going to the birds? Fear of graduating? Boy trouble? These and many other thoughts ran through the Gryffindor's mind as she walked up to Vashti and leaned around her.

"Um...who...are you talking to?" she squeaked. Was that blade of grass doing something it shouldn't?

It seemed innocent enough, to be friends and hang out. And it would be public not anything out of the ordinary not to mention Gideon hadn't made any other plans during the Hogsmeade weeknd. Surely there was nothing wrong with that. "Aye...I think we can do that," he finally answered with a smile and a nod.

Muscles-- and bones tensing, the thestral froze, teeth still clenched around one of the iron bars of the gate. What was all that noise?

Slowly, and cautiously he removed his teeth from the gate and turned his head around, taking a few steps back in the process. Hooves shifting awkwardly against the stones.

He flared his notrils and raised his head-- eyes wide.

Scary human girl yelling, and then there was another slightly quieter girl.

Elektra smiles and she nods. "Really? Ok. Yay!" She said happily and just couldn't help herself but just hug him for a quick three seconds and then pulled back and she chuckles and tucks some of her raven hair behind her ear. "Finally we can hang out. Just you and me.

Vashti didn't have a chance to see whether the thestral had noticed her or not because just then a familiar voice spoke up behind her. Stopping her crazy arm waving, she glanced in the direction the voice had come from.

Oh. Kurumi.

"The...the thestral over there," she said, pointing to the creature that was standing there plain as day...at least, it was for her. "You don't see it?" That... That was a good thing, actually. Vashti wished she didn't have to see it. She glanced back over at it then-

HOLYMERLINONATRICYCLE.

It was LOOKING at her now. It had stopped whatever it was doing and backed away from the gate, and now it was looking at her with wide eyes and nostrils flaring. Oh Merlin...

"Okay," she said to the thestral now, trying to keep her voice calm and letting her arm fall back to her side. She might have failed her CoMC OWL - barely - but she still remembered enough that it was best to remain calm if you didn't want to make a creature freak out. "Okay..." Now what?

A thestral!? Really?! Kurumi had the selfish notion of wishing that she COULD actually see the creature, but that was only because she had momentarily forgotten what the implications were to such a skill. Thankfully, she remembered THAT detail before she had spouted out a bunch of nonsense about how LUCKY Vashti was to be able to see them.

"No, I can't," Kurumi replied, shaking her head. She did take a step in the direction of the creature, but she didn't know that she had done so - not being able to see it and all.

It was nice to know that the blade of grass hadn't been the problem though. "What...is it doing?"

And where was it standing exactly? Could Kurumi still touch it? Kurumi thought she felt something - breath released when the thestral had flared its nostrils - but for all she knew it was simply a warm breeze.

Once Ellie heard rumor of a thestral sighting, Ellie hopped off the couch and bounded her way down the seven flights of stairs. She hurried outside, not wanting to miss it in case it got bored and decided to leave.

For some reason, Ellie like thestrals a lot. They were so unique and different than any other animal. She had been able to see them since almost six years ago. The anniversary of her father's death was in just a few days. Ellie could still remember being with him that November just like it was yesterday...

Once she got to the front gate, she saw a couple other students already there. Ellie hesitated and smiled at the creature. It was pretty. Then she started edging closer to the gate, ever so slowly. "Hi there..." Ellie said, holding out her hand. Sloooowly.

Anya remembered that Mina told her that the front gate was an excellent spot to go and thing. And gosh, did Anya need a moment of clarity. Some of her homework was just so hard!

So, book in hand Anya made her way down to the front gate to find this rock that her older friend told her about.

When she arrived though, her eyes widened. "Horsie!" she exclaimed rushing forward. "What's it doing here?" she asked looking between the girl with the head girl badge, Miss Kurumi Prefect, and Ellie.

And more importantly... why did the horse have wings?

He hesitated a little, but decided to lower his head, still staring at the girl with his milky white eyes.

Tensing again, the thestral swished his tail nervously. Why was this one coming at him?! He let out a snort of hot air, his muzzle curling upward in alarm.

Oh so another human couldn't resist the stud. She smelt nice.. sort of pretty, but he still didnt like it.

Why where they surrounding him?!

Leathery wings flapping, ears pinned down and nostrils flaring wider than before... he was not happy.

Scary loud human girl!


The thestral continued to flap his wings, fanning them out to look a bit bigger, maybe even scarier.

WOAH....WOAH!

Kurumi may not have been able to see anything, but she sure felt THAT. Despite the calm November weather, a sudden burst of wind came out of no where and pushed her bangs away from her face. WOAH! Her attention was caught by none other than the little giraffe climbing Gryffindor and Kurumi reached out a hand to stop her from moving forward anymore.

"Anya, shhhh," Kurumi whispered. "Not so loud or you are going to startle it." At least, that is what Kurumi thought had just happened. Kurumi then glanced around at the other two girls and gave a mental sigh. Was she the only one of the four who couldn't see what was in front of them? "And, um, what you are seeing isn't a horsie...not exactly." She tried to pull the girl a little closer to her. Knowing this lion, she would try to climb up on its back and ride it. "It's a thestral and....I can't see what you guys are seeing."

Anya frowned and took a step backwards. What was going on? Horses usually loved her! And despite the fact that this horse had wings, it was still a horse.

Maybe she needed a carrot or something. She felt her pocket... but no luck. She hadn't brought any snacks.

Anya looked at Kurumi. Oh no! Was she being too loud. "Sorry." she whispered to the Prefect. "Sorry horsie." she said apologizing to the black and winged angry looking beast in front of her.

If she didn't love animals so much, she might have been scared of said black and angry winged horse.

"Well... I know it's not exactly a horse. It has wings." she wasn't blind.

But... apparently Kurumi was?!

"Umm... what do you mean? It's right there... Do you need glasses?" Because it wasn't a big deal if the Prefect did. Lots of people wore glasses.

Andddd, why did Kurumi tug on her like that? The thestral thingy was a bit away from them.

"It looks really skinny." she commented. "Like it hasn't eaten in awhile. Do you think it's a stray?" She didn't exactly know the dynamics of magical animals. She did assume there was such a thing as stray magical animals though.

Well...at least Anya was a little more quiet now? Didn't mean Kurumi was going to let the little Gryffindor out of her sight though. Kurumi knew that the moment she moved her hand that the little lion was going to run right up to the "horsie" and try to mount it.

Kurumi blinked at Anya a few times. Truth was that she did have glasses, only for reading though and even then she didn't really need them all the time...but that wasn't besides the point. "Glasses won't help me see it, Anya," Kurumi whispered in reply, looking over her shoulder at the other two. Anya's description of the creature only confirmed in the prefect's imagination to what was in front of her. At least textbooks had illustrations of what a thesrtal looked like, so Kurumi could imagine it standing there...doing whatever it was doing. "Only people who have seen...death can see them...thestrals."

Way to be overly blunt Hollingberry.

Anya blinked several times before blushing a deep red. The realization of what was just said washed over her. "Ohh..." she said quietly under her breath. She looked back over to the dark horse. "I... I didn't realize..." she said staring at the ground. Out of the corner of her eye she looked between the two other girls suddenly feeling a little bit awkward.

"I... uhh... guess it wouldn't be... er... proper... to want to pet it?" she whispered out of the corner of her mouth to her Prefect.

In fact... what was the proper etiquette for being in the presence of an animal that only people that have witness death could see?

"So... ummm... whatshouldIdonow?"

Because even if Kurumi couldn't see the horsie, she was supposed to be an example. And judging by the older girl's grip, running up toward it wasn't the appropriate response to seeing a wild animal.

MEEP.

Ellie panicked internally when Anya kind of squealed and went insane. Well, that was just Anya for you. Typical first year. Crazy. Overexcited. And apparently she didn't know what a thestral was, which was okay. But apparently she could see them and that made Ellie frown.

When the thestral flared his nostrils and spread his wings, Ellie backed up a little and held her hands up in front of her. Not that she expected it to jump over the fence and attack them or anything, but to show it that she meant no harm.

"Woah, hey, it's okay... We won't hurt you." Ellie kind of pleaded with the fascinating creature. They just wanted to watch it.

Just then Ellie had a thought. She reached inside her bag and pulled out a bag of dried meat. Beef jerky. She had gotten some from the kitchen for a snack, but maybe the thestral would like it.

Pulling a big piece out, Ellie held it out on her palm and extended her arm towards the animal. "Here. You want some jerky?" It was worth a shot, right?

The thestral watched two of the girls say things to each other. Despite the fact that he was incredibly uncomfortable in their presence, they were starting to bore him.

Maybe he could get back to tasting the gate?

Throwing caution to the wind he stomped his hooves a few times, because yes he was tough, and scary.. not a little show pony for petting.

But then the other girl caught his attention. He could smell something, and it certainly appealed to him more than the gate which was obstructing his path, should he decide he wanted to take it.

Relaxing his wings just a little -- still not at peace with his surroundings, the thestral lowered his head and sniffed at the air in the direction of the girl.

He took one very small step forward but decided not to go any further. Humans...

Instead he nodded his head vigorously before letting out a gentle snort of hot air. He wasn't going to go to her so easily. He was a stud, and fillies didn't tempt him easily, let alone human fillies.

Vickers made his way out of the castle, checking just how far his uncle mapped out the grounds of Hogwarts. Most of it was pretty general and lacked detail, so he decided to fill in a few gaps and update it himself.

He found his way towards the Front Gate and saw several students gathered in front of it... their Head Girl and then Kurumi, certainly they could answer some of his Hogwarts questions right?

But the question never got out of his lips when he saw a large, skinny, black winged creature. At the angle he was coming from he initially thought it was a black unicorn, a rarity indeed! But as he moved closer he realized it wasnt a unicorn at all.

He stopped short at seeing how its wings was flared up. He knew the creature was frighted or upset. Then he shot a glance at a fellow Ravenclaw (Ellie) offering what looks to be food...

"You sure its a good idea to feed a strange animal?" Nevermind the fact that he wasnt sure what kind of animal it was, although he couldnt shake the feeling that he's seen sketches of something similar to this in his textbooks. His hand brushes against his pocket robes subconsciously, the cockatoo's food bag was in there, and the leftover sausage he was saving for his dog was wrapped up along with it.

Maybe he should go back...

"Really," Gideon confirmed seeing as Elektra almost seemed to doubt that he would be willing to go with her to Hogsmeade. Was it really that unusual an agreement? "Aye, that sounds like a plan."

Elise's eyes widened as she stumbled onto a small crowd around a terrifying horse-thing. It took her a few moments to process that the creature was a thestral and that she was there. Without food for it.

Terrified, her face turned paler than it already was and walking a little closer, she blinked. "What... What is it doing here?" she asked, reaching in her pocket for something she could offer it. No point. A vegetarian Elise had nothing that a thestral would like.

"Pleasedon'teatme!" she squeaked, terrified eyes meeting the thestral's. "You won't eat me, will you?" she asked as her brain processed the fact that the skeletal figure wasn't vegetarian.

Anya took another step backwards as the thestral began stomping around. Of course, she ended up taking a step forward again seeing as how she was nearly on top of Kurumi.

Her eyes shifted in the direction of the new comers. Both were from that blue house that had the little birdie mascot. She made a mental note to remember the names of all the houses one day.

"Oh. I think it wants it!" she said excitedly to Ellie. Yeah... she kind of forgot the bit about staying quiet. She couldn't help it though! This was the coolest horsie ever!

Plus, it looked underfed. It needed jerky. And probably carrots. She could have kicked herself for not having such a treat on her.

She frowned at the new blue birdie girl. "Why would it eat you?" she asked. Horses most certainly didn't eat people. Horsies were nice animals.

She tilted her head to the side. "Why was it chewing the gate earlier?" she asked, remembering, this time, to lower her voice to a whisper, "do you think it wants out?"

O_O Maybe it lost it's mommy or daddy!

And if it did... it should just drop it's mean act and let her give it a hug!

Well, the thestral looked pretty interested in her jerky, and it took a step closer... but it seemed still wary of all the other humans around. Maybe if they would quit squealing and flailing it would relax.

Ellie frowned a little when a younger Ravenclaw - although not too much younger - questioned her about feeding the "strange animal". "It's a thestral, actually. And it can probably understand you and I doubt it appreciates being called strange." She wasn't necessarily trying to be snooty about it, but she was just trying to make the thestral feel welcomed.

Hearing Anya get excited again, Ellie couldn't help but smile. She was adorable, but Ellie pushed her finger to her lips. "Shh, you'll scare it." Or make it angry or something.

The thestral was now puffing out air and nodding his head. Pff. "Oh, don't be stubborn. I know you want it." Ellie took a couple more slow steps closer to the gate. "It's yummy, too," she told it with a smile. And if the thestral didn't eat it, then she would have to.

Alyssa came running up to see what the commotion was. She had heard that there was a Thestral seen here at the gates. But unfortunately, or rather fortunately, she couldn't see it because she had not seen anyone die. But she knew someone who had seen them and actually flew with them.

"Anya can you see it? Can you tell me where it is? I would love to touch it," she asked Anya.