Was that a smile..? Nearly... Well it was better than nothing... It made her kind of sad to think that she was savouring a tiny almost-smile when six months ago she'd have passed over it as though it was nothing. But he took the gift... Maybe... maybe this meant things were getting better... right? She certainly hoped so. She didn't want him to just disappear out of her life.

Good. He knew what it was. "Yeah, it's enough for a day... but you can't use it in exams or quidditch..." Though he probably knew that - Felix was an awesome potion, she'd looked it up years ago so surely Kennedy would have too. Though maybe not. Hmm... she wondered if he knew how dangerous it could be. Then again, this wasn't enough for more than a day's luck so it couldn't be THAT dangerous.

But... what? He was giving it back, she closed the book on the stupid useless information and frowned, "No... you do..." she picked up the box and walked around the table, holding it out to him. "Just... I want you to have it." And we both know YOU did nothing wrong... she thought. What would she do with it anyway? She didn't want it... she had no real use for it... and her mother would make more if she did. "Please."

Kennedy smirked, yet tightly again. Of course, he wasn't going to use it for something as an exam or Quidditch. He was good at studying and great as Beater so far. "You don't have to worry about that," he said. Plus, he was going to leave it for when the right time came by.

The thought of keeping it felt wrong though. Technically, he didn't do anything wrong, but his behavior hadn't been the best and he was taught to act better than he had. Especially by his mom, a single mother, whom raised him to treat girls as if they were delicate flowers, but then there was his pride. Something his father enforced.

He followed her with his eyes as she walked around the table to him. Eyeing the box, he bit his lip in thought. It wasn't like she was presenting him with the key of the city. He took the box from her hands and grinned. Like, actually grinned. "Thanks."

It was time for him to make his own decisions. To think on his own without worrying how he was raised, or what his parents expected of him. It was time for him to develop himself and not based on what others expected of him. Yeah. That felt nice. "You sure, even if I've been a jerk?" Just making sure because there was no way he was going to let her take his liquid luck back. Heh.

Aurora laughed a tiny bit, yeah, she didn't think he'd be using it for anything as simple as that. She remembered the Aparecium and wondered momentarily if Sierra might have anything to do with his use of the potion... Suddenly part of her wanted to grab the box back and refuse to give it to him. Which confused her slightly - she had thought she didn't care about that. Weird. "Good... just felt like I should warn you."

Wow. He was actually grinning... It was weird the effect it had on her. Not like it used to - she didn't get butterflies anymore - but it made her happy. It made her smile. Genuinely rather than the weak, slightly submissive smile she seemed to be sporting so frequently recently. "You're welcome." she said. And he was...

A jerk..? Aurora was slightly taken aback by that. She didn't think he'd been a jerk... "I... I don't blame you for anything." she said, blinking. "I mean... It's not like I don't deserve it." She looked at the floor, wiggling her toes in her green pumps for something, anything, to distract her. "But... let me know how it works..?" she looked back up at him.

He nodded and looked down at the box. There were so many things he wanted to do with the aid of Felix Felicis, but it was only enough for one time. Crud. Oh well, he'd make it count when he did use it.

Kennedy didn't know why she looked taken aback. He had been a jerk and that's why he was admitting it. He nodded, he would let her know if it worked. Kennedy stuffed the box into his pocket as a small frown creases his forehead. "No. You don't." Even if at some point he wanted karma to hit her back and double, he never actually meant it.

Yeah, she had moved on faster than he did...too fast, actually, but being cheated on was completely different because she never did that to him.

Kennedy leaned against the table and crossed his arms on his chest. "Why do you say that anyway?" Whatever it was, he suddenly wanted to talk. Really talk.

Good. He was keeping it. Though she somehow knew he would - there was something about his new, confident demeanor that made her think he'd never pass up the golden opportunity that Felix presented... Though, to be honest, she didn't think anybody would pass up Felix Felicis. Except people who saw it all the time... and knew the sort of people who ordered it.

"I..." Oh. "Um... okay." she wasn't sure how to respond to that... did he really think she didn't deserve it? Because Aurora had been beating herself up about Milton since... well... probably since a few days after the relationship started. She'd always known that she'd done the wrong thing - even if she claimed that it was perfectly okay.

"Because..." Well? Now's your time Aurora. You might as well try and explain yourself. "Because I didn't try and fight for... for... us and..." Come on. Words, Aurora. Use them. You've practiced this over and over in your head. Just say it. "And because... I don't even know why I... I ran to... him..." She couldn't even bear to say his name. "I never... I never felt for him like I did for you." There. She'd said it. Somehow that made it worse - that she regretted the 'relationship' with Milton... or she thought it made it worse. Because she'd have been able to justify it if she'd enjoyed it. "And you did nothing wrong... you just... cared." Unlike Milton. Who hadn't even asked what was wrong with her. Who had run off to someone else because she wasn't enough. Who had never actually even asked if she was okay.

Oh.

That was more than what he had expected to hear from her. Honestly, Kennedy thought she'd leave and avoid the subject. Part of him had been hoping she had, but this was good. Time to get this all out and put it behind them.

"It wasn't all you," he said. Right about now he wished the study room was filled with students that'd provide distractions, but it was pretty lonesome. "I..." He what? He had been himself the entire time. "I should have fought harder too." Not that it mattered now. His affections belonged to someone else. "What I mean, is a relationship is based on two people and they have to work in sync to make it work and...we didn't. We grew apart." Sure, it didn't help that Milton worked his way between them, especially during the summer and complicated things. Still, it wasn't just one person's fault.

He grew quiet for a moment and then looked at her. Those green eyes that once made his heart flutter as if it was on high speed chase no longer did that. Brown eyes did that to him...and at times made him stare like an idiot.

"I really don't know what else to say," he said, honestly, while running his hand through his hair, ruffling it. That was something he would have kept to himself back then. Not now. If it was the truth, why not say it? "I just...don't want to always argue and be angry at you." Another truth.

It felt good to hear him say that, it really did, but she didn't exactly agree with him. Sure, she had, at one point, been angry that he was being so... whatever, but she didn't blame him to be honest. Aurora had hurt him... and she'd known she was doing it but had tried to justify it anyway, even though she knew there was no justification for it. She didn't know what she could say in reply to that. Because she did think he should have tried harder... but she knew she hadn't exactly made it easy. She was aware of her insane mood swings, of her quick temper, of all her flaws... and she still didn't regret having them... she just regretted letting them take over.

Aurora nodded and reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear. "I don't really think there is anything else to say." she said, shrugging and stuffing her hands in her pockets. To be honest she didn't want there to be anything more... because that might mean they'd end up arguing again. Then... oh. She blinked slightly, "Me neither..." Truth be told, she wanted them to be friends. Really. Though she didn't know if that was what Kennedy had in mind when he said that... she doubted it. That'd take time... Honestly, she just wanted to be happy. Selfish? Probably, but from recent experience she had decided it was necessary to be selfish to be happy in life.

This conversation seemed to have come to a bit of a halt... Probably time to change the subject. Because they weren't going to get anywhere if they kept talking about this. "Having a good birthday so far then?" she asked, smiling at him. Because she was pretty sure he'd have got some spectacular gifts, right? Especially now that he was of age and stuff... She wouldn't even be surprised if her own brother had sent him something... she vaguely remembered him mentioning Kennedy's birthday when she was at his flat... but she hat shot him a look so deadly that he'd just given up talking about it.

He nodded and accepted the change of subject. There was nothing to be said, right? That or let everything turn awkward again, which would mean that his effort to talk civilly with Aurora would go to waste, and honestly, he just wanted some peace of mind. Kennedy nodded once again. "Yeah. Your brother sent me a gift as well, actually." Not as interesting as hers, but still, it was something that he very much appreciated. Muggle sweets.

Kennedy stood up straight, stretching his back, when his eyes landed on the book Aurora had been reading. Was she studying for O.W.Ls? Or light reading? He guessed the latter was out of the picture.