The whole way down to the lake, in the back of her mind, Sophie was contemplating whether or not she'd really have to get someone to go through Cat and Mo before she could marry them. Of course, Soph valued their opinions very highly, so she'd want to know if they approved, but... what if they didn't, and she REEEEEEEEEEALLY liked him? What would she do then? Not marry the guy? Or turn him down because of Cat and Mo's opinions and assume they could see something about him that she couldn't?

As they neared the lake, Sophie forgot about her marriage worries and swung Cat and Mo's hands quite cheerfully, a bounce in her step. She didn't know what they were doing, but it was EXCITING JUST TO BE WITH THEM. But then it got even better when she spotted where they were going, and who was there waiting for them. "Nuh uh, you did not - you invited my Tooooobes!" Her whole face had lit up and she surged forward, tugging Cat and Mo along with her. "He looks good, too," she whispered to Cat, having slowed down to lean close to her, and giggled shortly after.

Did she look like the happiest kid they'd ever known? Because she was. Undoubtedly.

Smiling around at all three of them when they reached the tea party, she pulled Cat and Mo in for a hug and used her head to beckon Tobes over, too. "Before we proceed, a group hug is in order. This is the best. My three favorite people in the whole entire world. I dunno which of you thought this up, but..." The 'thank you' caught in her throat, and she was unsure if she could get it out without crying on accident, so instead she finished with, "You guys are the greatest. Best friends I could ever ask for." In case she didn't tell them enough.

It was definitely getting interesting with more girls getting involved. Nigel fist bumped Ascanius back when Penelope went to join Vesper in yoga. It worked. And then came the time when he regrets him saying anything. Of course he would like Deliah to join in with the rest of the girls. But it is not like he can say no. Well, Nigel guessed if you are going to watch girls do yoga. Do it with style and do not be shy about it. Or let girls watch with you.

Just something to think about.

Look who finally shows up. You had to grin at that comment because it was true. Not like they were hiding and watching with magic. Now that would be more creepy. Still just look at what they were doing and at what Ascanius just said. Brilliant.

"Forget about us girls. Just clear your minds"

And that is all he knew about Yoga other than everyone participating could be called a Yogi right now and for some reason that was hilarious. "Oh Sugar Quills. Awesome and Thanks." Nigel replied to Benjy who had food. Food was always appreciated.

Despite the warmth emerging from the student's mouths, a breeze spread forth on the grounds sending chills over all present. And in the stillness of the grounds, not even a spider seemed to present . . .

As Cris waited to hear Jasmine's reply, he suddenly felt a chill come over him. He frowned and looked around. Even though the sun was out, for some reason he couldn't seem to warm up. The breeze had gotten more chilly. Then there was that sudden stillness. What happened to the birds? He had heard them singing a little while back. But all he could hear were the voices of the students nearby.

Nothing else. No birds singing, not even a frog croaking. It was as if all the creatures had suddenly gone silent. Cris' hand tightened on Jasmine before he relaxed.

Maybe it was his anxiety that was making him imagine things. It was natural for the weather to change dramatically. They were now into Fall season.

Despite the fact that this fall seemed colder than last year, Layla had decided to take her homework outside besides the lake, just for a break from the castle. Well, that and the fact that the Slytherin dorm seemed louder than normal and it was breaking her concentration.

As she was jotting down her next to last answer on her Astronomy questions, something weird happened (though, weirdness seemed de rigor for Hogwarts). A chilly breeze spread across the grounds, one that seemed colder than it really should have been for the time of year. And everything was still, eerily so.......

What the heck?

Adelaide smiled as Vesper duplicated the mat. "Thanks Ves." She quickly grabbed one and set up next to Derry. Because why not.

Addi stretched into the first pose, loving the pull on her muscles. She suppressed her giggle at Ascanius. She pulled out the pose and looked over at the onlookers. Oh look. There was West. Now the gang seemed to be all here.

Adelaide nodded. She bent down and wrapped her arms around her legs, mimicking Vesper perfectly. It did help that she had done this before. And then Nigel said something. She turned her head slightly to look at the group. "You know if you boys are gonna be so chatty you should just join us." Or she might make them. That would be interesting.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Narrator

Despite the warmth emerging from the student's mouths, a breeze spread forth on the grounds sending chills over all present. And in the stillness of the grounds, not even a spider seemed to present . . .

The red head had already gotten used to the chilled air. But then it got colder. She could see the goosebumps on her arms.

"No one is getting married," Mo growled as he was pulled into a big old bear hug by Sophie. So he'd done something right, which was good, but all this talk about growing up was really distressing. No Sophie growing up. No Toby growing up. Definitely no he and Cat growing up. They could just sit here and pretend that this was a picture of forever.

But it wasn't. Who would celebrate with Soph when they were gone? Nope. Not thinking about this today.

"Hey, Tobe. Sorry to make you wait, but girls like to primp. Might as well get used to it now." Or their girls liked to primp, at least, and that was enough. He ruffled the younger boy's hair before gesturing toward the chair that Sophie would occupy.

And watch how this is done, mmk? Mo pulled out Cat's chair and gave a little half bow in her direction. And then shivered. Was it getting really chilly, or was he coming down with something? "Are you cold, lovely?"

Hope move about the lake searching for the highest tree she could hide in. She did miss being able to fly and enjoy the experience of being so high up from the world and its usual mundane issues, but since the ban she had found other creative and adrenaline pumping ways to escape.

She shivered against the sudden chill but shook it off as just a normal change in the season and found the perfect perch. Jumping with a good push, she grabbed the lowest hanging branch, and with ease pulled herself into the tree. With light steps and quick work, she found herself among the slimmest of limbs, and when content with the height she had achieved, placed herself comfortably on the sturdiest one she could find.

With careful steady work she pulled from her bag a book and settled in for what would be another average day doing nothing.

It was a relief for Jasmine to put all of her cards on the table. Now Cris knew exactly how she felt about him. When he went on to say the sweet things that said next, she was almost overcome with emotion. She felt the tears forming in her eyes, but she managed to hold them in check. She couldn't believe that Cris wanted HER to be his girlfriend. HER! Inside of her head, Jasmine was screaming.

Jasmine was just about to give Cris an answer when she noticed him frown. She felt cold all of a sudden and pulled her jacket tighter. It was strange because it seemed eerily quiet when it hadn't been just moments ago. Jasmine gave Cris a puzzled look and asked, "Do you feel that? What was going on and why was it going on now?

Oh, the comments were starting now, were they? Ascanius' got a little eyebrow raise, though West's got a little chuckle. Especially since he was sorta calling himself one too considering he joined them. Boys were weird.

Vesper (sorta) "threatening" Ascanius was pretty amusing though, and Penelope couldn't help smirking as she slowly straightened up out of the triangle pose to get ready for the next one - which came pretty quickly. So, following along, she bent forward as far as she could which, though not completely perfect, was fairly close. She wasn't quite THAT flexible right now.

And then Nigel was adding to the comments. Addi got a smirk of approval from Penelope for her reply before she added, "It'd be a lot easier to forget about you all if you were silent, y'know." Had they ever heard of subtlety?

Probably not.

It seemed like the warmth she'd built up from the running was fading though because it suddenly felt like it had gotten colder, a slight shiver running up her spine. Brrr.

Where was this giant squid that she heard so much about? For a moment she thought that maybe the girl that told her about it was trying to play on trick on her. It wouldn't be the first time that somebody tried to see her a story solely based off of her lack of knowledge of all things magical. As she walked towards the lake she had a major chill. "BRRR!" she said to no one in particular. Was it that cold earlier?

As she walked on she noticed a girl who was alone and who looked about her age who had climbed a tree. Excellent. That was right up AJ's alley. The first year leaped and drug herself up the tree next to the girl. "Is there such thing as a giant squid? How do you get it to come out? Does it talk? Have you ever seen it?" She rambled on as if it were completely normal to climb a tree and interrogate a stranger.

Cris waited with abated breath to hear Jasmine's reply. He tried to read the emotions on her face but failed. Then he saw the tears in her eyes. Why was she crying? Had he upset her when he asked her to be his girlfriend? Was she crying because she felt bad saying no to him.

Cris felt like the bottom had fallen under him. His insides felt like an empty pit. His heart? His heart felt like it had broken into a million pieces. But he had to be strong. He couldn't let Jasmine see how much her refusal affected him. He just hoped that they could still be friends despite that. He knew it would be hard but it was better than not seeing her any more.

Cris silently berated himself. How could he have been so foolish to think that someone as beautiful as her would want to be his girlfriend? He found he was lost for words.

But then he didn't need to say anything. He could see Jasmine shivering, wrapping her jacket closer around her. She was feeling the effects of the cold breeze too. Unable to make eye contact with her, Cris swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and replied,"Yes it is getting a bit chilly isn't it? Maybe there's a storm brewing. We should head back to the castle," he suggested to her.

Rounds on the grounds were almost up, except for the lake. Kennedy left that one for last since it was still one of his favorite spots in all of Hogwarts. Almost as if it was the most normal thing to do, Kennedy's green eyes raked around for his sister. He knew how much she loved the water, so a part of him thought she'd be here. Then again, the little snakette could probably be hiding out in the library.

There was, though, a group of students -- where the doing yoga? -- and other stragglers. It seemed everything was at ease, at least as far as safety went. That is why when the temperature suddenly dropped, as if someone had cast a chilling charm, Kennedy's gaze was quick to rake the area, taking in each student to see if it was a prank.

Eyes peeled, senses sharp, the YATI surveyed the area. Paranoia much? Well, it was Hogwarts.

Hope had almost completely lost her focus in the book where out of nowhere there was someone next to her. She looked up at the girl over her book and just stared. This girl was definitely invading her personal space and time and what she really wanted to do was decide whether or not she should go old Hope and give the girl a long lecture or if she should just bite her tongue and be the new Hope and play nice.

"That's a stupid question. If you have ever read your textbooks, especially Hogwarts, A History, you would in fact know that there is a giant squid. No I have not seen him but from what I understand he can speak and he is very pleasant so long as you are pleasant in return." There. That answered the girls questions and was snarky and polite at the same time. "Who are you?"

Yes, young one. Who are you and why have you invaded the space for which she had decided to hide in.

Jasmine had been momentarily distracted by Cris' concerned facial expression and the sudden drop in temperature. When he suggested returning to the castle, she was taken aback. Wait. She hadn't given Cris her answer. Had he changed his mind? Before she allowed herself to totally panic, Jasmine turned to Cris and took his hand. "Wait, I have something to say. You have made me the happiest girl in the world and I would be honored to be your girlfriend.......that is if the offer is still on the table."

Jasmine held her breath, hoping that Cris had not changed his mind. If he had, she didn't know what she would do. She couldn't lose her very first boyfriend before she ever really had him.

Right now, Cris just wanted to be anywhere but here. All he wanted to do was jump into bed, bury his head under the pillows and not come out until it was time for them to go home. He didn't know whether he could feel any lower than he did now. But when Jasmine took his hand, Cris sensed that she was going to say something. He knew he had to speak up. To stave off any possible unpleasant moments that might cause further embarrassment to Jasmine and to himself.

Shaking his head, Cris blurted out, "It's okay, Jasmine. You don't have to say anything. It was dumb of me to have even asked you. Just forget I sa...," and then it dawned on him what Jasmine was saying to him. He had made her the happiest girl in the world? She would be honored to be his girlfriend?

Wait! What did she just say? Cris turned to look at Jasmine, surprise written all over his face. The look in her eyes told him all he needed to know. She did want to be his girlfriend. Cris just couldn't believe it. The joy he felt at the very moment totally overwhelmed him and he began to smile.

"Of course the offer still stands. I just thought....," Cris broke off what he was going to say. For the second time that day, he found himself speechless. All he could was lean over and pull her into his arms and hold her tightly, burying his face in her hair.

"You don't know how happy you've made me, Jasmine. Thank you." he whispered tenderly as he closed his eyes and savored the moment. Leaning back, he placed a finger under her chin and tilted it up as he leaned forward and softly kissed her soft, warm lips.

It may have been frigid cold here on the lake, but Cris felt warm all over. All was well with the world again.

Grace hardly had time for herself lately. Who would have thought second year would be this bad? she was trying to keep ahead of her studies, but that had resulted with her spending a lot of time in the common room. But today she had decided that she was going to spend some in the grounds. She hadn't really been out there much since coming back to school. So she was excited. Grace resisted the temptation to skip down to the lake. She'd grown up since last year. She was 12 now. She had to be big girl now.

A smile spread across her lips as she came down and saw Donny. She hadn't seen Donny for a while. it was the bad thing about staying in the common room so much. But she could see him now. Yay. "Donnny!" She giggled, as she hurried over to er friend. "hi."

Jasmine was surprised by Cris' sudden change in mood. She looked at him trying to understand. Dumb of him to ask? He didn't seriously think that she would say no, did he? Noooooooo, you misunderstood.

When the light went on in Cris' head and he finally understood what Jasmine was trying to say, she was incredibly relieved. She could breathe now. "Please don't ever doubt how I feel about you", Jasmine said as Cris pulled her into an embrace. Then another kiss.......they just got better every time. Jasmine couldn't believe that she actually had a boyfriend and an amazing one at that. She didn't think that anything could erase the mega-smile on her face.

Then the breeze picked up and it continued to get colder by the lake. As much as she wanted to stay there and enjoy the moment, Jasmine was starting to get an uneasy feeling about her surroundings. It was strangely cold and way too quiet. "Cris, do you mind if we go somewhere else? I'm starting to get a little chilly." It was feeling very weird by the lake and it was messing with her love vibe!

Was somebody having a bad day or what? AJ could sense the attitude in her response, but at least the girl answered her. "Actually, I haven't have the chance to read all of the textbooks considering this is my first year and I only just found out that I was a witch." There were so many other things to do once you found out you were magical. "Besides almost everybody has been nice and helpful so far." Maybe not counting this girl, she wasn't too sure yet. "So you know that a giant squid exists and you have yet to see him?" AJ would be all over that. "Is it hard to get him to come out and play?" Maybe he needed coaxing or something.

She rummaged around in her bag, and pulled out a marshmallow peep. "Here you go. Sometimes I get cranky too when I am hungry." AJ handed over the fluffy goodness. The first year decided to take one for herself too. Mmm... that is some good stuff.

"Oh, my name is Aubrey Valentine, but I like to go by AJ. What's your name?" She kept forgetting that people normally liked introductions before she went into twenty questions mode. "So, whatcha reading?"

Cris nodded and smiled down at Jasmine. "No I won't. And you have no reason to doubt how I feel about you. You are so very special to me," he whispered as he tucked her hair behind her eyes.

Then he noticed the look of uneasiness on her face. He had to admit that he was feeling the way himself. It was getting colder. Cold weather was nothing new to him. He had experienced colder days like these back home and while he was attending Durmstrang. This however was different. Cris couldn't quite put his finger on it. This cold brought to mind that saying, Something Wicked This Way Comes.

So when Jasmine suggested they go somewhere else, he was already to agree with her.

"No I don't mind at all. In all honesty, I was actually going to suggest that we head back to the castle. Maybe we can head up to the Room of Requirements and see whether we can conjure up that dance room," Cris smiled at her as he got to his feet and stood up.

Reaching down, he offered his hand to her pulling her up when she did so. He pulled her close to him, opening up his track top to wrap one end around her, hoping to use his body's warmth to warm her up.

Vinnie gave a little wave to the girl that was holding the lesson and smiled. That was Vesper right? Yeah probably...Hmm...maybe they could have a little chat later. Looking over at Charlie, she checked if her friend was ready too. Seemed like it. Vinnie and Charlie were good to go.“All warmed up and ready!“ They had gotten here a bit late but oh well, didnt seem like they had missed much.

Besides some inappropriate comments. Snort.

Okay, time to concentrate. Eyes set on the girl in front the brunette copied her move and bend over all the way. Now the boys certainly would enjoy this one. And then she saw West had joined the perverts audience. Smiiiiirk. This was just about to get interesting. Boys...give them a bunch of girls doing sports and they come out of their holes like rats.


The fifth year couldnt help but chuckle a little at Charlie's comment.“ You would never kill me.“

Still in her pose Vinnie felt a cold wind pass by and shivered slightly, was it the fact she was wearing super tiny yoga pants or had it just gotten colder?!

Before he could send his paper boat off he needed to add some colours. Donny got a blue marker and had just uncapped it when he changed his mind and put the cap back on. Blue would just make the boat harder to spot when he finally did put it in the water. But pink.. pink was so... pink. Y'know? He examined his selection... orange... green.. purple... brown.. CHOOOICES. If Donny could choose between never having to choose anything again or making ALL the choices... he'd probably choose the first.. probably..

Grace! Donny jumped up and turned to greet his friend, Grace Grace Grace. She was..... Grace. LITERALLY. Heh. He beamed at her, long time no see!
"Graaaace!" He grinned and hugged her. He had missed her, okay??? "How are yooou?" Donny ruffled his hair and sat back down again.

Jasmine was on the verge of tearing up again when Cris expressed how special she was to him. She managed not to cry and gave him another smile. "I'm so lucky", she whispered. Despite feeling ecstatic about everything that had happened with Cris, she still couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that she had being at the lake. She was seriously feeling that they should leave. Jasmine was relieved when Cris said that he was fine with leaving. She felt even better when he suggested going to the Room of Requirement. She realized that Cris' brother must have told him where to find it.

"You know where the Room of Requirement is?", Jasmine asked. "By all means, let's go there. You lead the way.". Cris helped Jasmine up, then held her close to keep her warm. She snuggled closer to him and felt warmer immediately. Jasmine was going to enjoy their walk back to the castle very much. This had been the best day of her life, so far.

"Yes. Yes, we are." Ascanius grinned from ear to ear. And considering West hadn't done anything but, y'know, sit down with the rest of them it seemed he was the same. Something Ascanius already knew. Whatever. He was a guy. He didn't care what names he was called. Testosterone was not something he was going to be ashamed of yeah?

And no matter what Vesper said would change that. 'Sides he didn't think much about her empty threat. She loved him right now. He knew 'cause he got nuzzles before, which was Vesper speak for you're annoying but I love your dumb face.

He shook his head at Beny's offer and kept his eyes on all of the bending and the contorting a mass group of girls were currently doing. Did they all not see this happening? He didn't want a distraction.

Ahem. Girlfriend was telling him to shut up. Done and done. But if he was going to do less talking she needed to do more of that yoga thing. For her health and whatnot.

The other girls seemed relatively more well behaved then his vocal girlfriend. Following Vesper's moves to the letter. Champions, that group, yeah? He appreciated a good, hard work out.

.....hello wind. He appreciated its presence....but they were wearing shorts today. Its services were not needed.

"You're all terrible." That was Derry's first comment to the boys right now. Because they were, did they realise that? Not that the girls were... y'know... dissuading them.

Anyway. Yoga. Derry's eyes followed Vesper's movements and she copied them, stretching out her legs right down to her toes. It was relaxing. Who knew, eh? .. Apart from every single person who had ever done yoga...

"Yeah, thanks, Ves... Both feet on the ground." Or neither. Since she was more graceful on a broom than she'd ever been on her own two feet. But that wasn't the point... DON'T THINK ABOUT QUIDDITCH. It messes with the zen.

.....

And then there was some weird kind of chill. Derry was regretting the shorts thing... she should've just worn leggings. But it hadn't been so bad earlier...

WELP. She'd just have to FREEZE. Unless... "Y'know, if one of you boys could cast a warming charm that'd be much appreciated." For now. She couldn't do it, she was relaxing... besides, the amount of charms she'd cast this morning for stuff... she didn't really feel like making any more effort.