Louis gasped dramatically at Lux’s horribly inaccurate but playful guess. “Are you saying I sound like girl, Merpuff?!” he asked with mock offense, pulling his hands from her eyes and laughing. The girl didn’t even need to invite him to sit, as just a second later he was sitting beside her on the bench. Lou sighed softly into his hands to gather warmth and hid them in his pockets once again. This had to be one of the coldest winters he’d experienced in a while.

“How’ve you been, m’lady?” asked the boy, turning to Lux with a smile. He’d really missed her, it felt like ages since they had last spent time together. And it was especially sad due to the fact that they hung out so often just the term before.

LOL.

He SO knew what she was saying because he was clever. "Maybe I am." Was she going to get in trouble for it because he was a Prefect? Or would he be nice about it because she was his Lady? Lux preferred to think that it would be the second option since he was one of her best friends and knew she was joking.

As soon as he sat down beside her, she pulled him into a hug. "Louis Bolton, are you insane? You are barely wearing any layers in this freezing cold." It was worrying, and she didn't want him to get sick. "Here...." Being the nice Lady she was, she began blowing hot air on him with her wand so that he could warm up a little. "I've been amazing. What about you, Lou?"

Louis returned Lux’s hug and practically jumped in his seat when she suddenly exclaimed his name. “Wha—” Oh. Right. He was just wearing a sweater under his coat, and a scarf. “Well, I don’t usually get cold very easily…” he explained with a small smile, a little amused at the irony of his words seeing as he was freezing cold now. “Today might be the exception,” he added with a chuckle.

The Gryffindor eagerly welcomed the hot air Lux sent in his direction, bringing his gloved hands up to be warmed by the constant flow of warmth emitting from her wand. “Amazing, huh?” Louis raised an eyebrow at her choice of words, a small smirk curving his lips. “I’ve been good. I wouldn’t go as far as to say amazing, but life’s been kind to me…” he chuckled, teasing. “Anything special happen while I was away?”

Hugging was nice, but Lux started to feel bad for making Louis jump. It was probably the whole calling him by his whole name thing, but well... he should have been wearing more layers! Shaking her head in amusement, she was glad he was starting to warm up. "It's like Antarctica here." Immediately after she regretted saying that because it brought to mind those creepy Cold Ones that Professor Romanos had been teaching them about.

There are no Cold Ones at Hogwarts. Get a grip, Lux.

Thank Merlin that Louis had asked her a question. "I'm glad you're well, Lou. Me and Bay said the l word to each other, and he gave me a necklace, and I've been hanging out with him and my friends. Oh, and it was Valentines Day recently which is awesome, even though Peeves interrupted our date and poured cold tea on us." Stupid Peeves.

"I used to think that." Dora flicked the water, eyes briefly going to her tattoo as it flashed across her wrist. "But safe is exhausting. And it doesn't mean you won't get hurt, just that you hurt less for no bloody good reason." And Dora had made the decision a while ago that she'd rather have temporary happiness and be in pain after, than be in pain before for what felt like forever and have nothing to make it worth it.

Love. Her entire face wrinkled in disdain for the word, her eyes going back up to the other prefect. "I don't love anyone." Not in the way Elodie was speaking at least. In other ways.... well, yeah she got her point. The sarcasm was noted, but she wouldn't defend why she liked to travel alone, it wasn't that important and not something she'd done recently anyway what with all the time she'd been spending with friends on the road.

"But hurting is the worst..." And even though she understood Dora's point, she wished there had been a way that she wouldn't have been hurting as much as she did now. Coul, too. She wished there was a way that he wouldn't have hurt this much. Part of her wished things had never happened with him, just because it meant he wouldn't have ever let his guard down with her and he'd never be this hurt. Him hurting hurt her.

Her hurting hurt him. But she knew that he was probably pushing as much fo the hurt away as possible.

Like she'd tried. Hence Connor. But failed.

Els noticed the...what was it...the look? The reaction? Whatever. But she noticed it, and a side of her mouth tugged down into a frown. "Everybody loves someone.."

Lou laughed aloud at Lux’s Antarctica comment. “That might be a slight exaggeration…” He grinned cheekily at her, and listened as she went on to share some very interesting piece of news.

Waiiit wait wait, hold on a second. “You said what?!” Lou’s eyebrows raised high into his hairline. Baylux… they were.. this was… this was SERIOUS! “Looovee, huh? That’s a pretty big step, Merpuff,” said the boy, a large grin adorning his face. Naturally, as the Baylux number one fan, this was rather exciting news for him.

The whole bit about Peeves had him falling into another fit of laughter, though. Pouring tea on them. SNORT. “Why did he do that?” Louis asked between chuckles, though he doubted Peeves needed much of a reason to torture innocent students.

Antactica an exaggeration? LOL! "I think not, Lou. I wouldn't be surprised if penguins and polar bears showed up." Lux was not sure how she would feel about polar bears; they were really pretty but they were rather dangerous from her understanding. There were already plenty of dangerous creatures in the forest, Hogwarts didn't need bears added to the mix. The penguins were more than welcome, however.

Oh gosh. So not a surprise that he was focusing on that one word. "Well, you love Bay too," she teased before sticking her tongue out at him. Haha. She totally knew what he meant that it was a big deal. And she did love Bay, how could she not?

Eyeroll at the laughter even though she could understand why someone who hadn't been there might find it hilarious. It was maybe one of those things that would be funny to look back on. But that would be faaar into the future. "I'm not sure. Because he's Peeves I guess. I never even know he was here until recently," she admitted. Zander had told her about him.

SNORT.
“I’d almost forgotten how funny you are, m’lady!” said Louis, playfully poking Lux on the tip of her little nose as she went on about polar bears and penguins. “Why do I get the feeling that if such a thing happened, you’d have me trying to catch a baby bear for you?” he added with a chuckle.

Ooohohho, good one, Ms. Carrington. Louis narrowed his blue eyes at the third year’s logic. “Yes. But obviously not in the same way you love him.” Another poke.

“That seems like a perfectly sound reason, actually.” Peeves being Peeves was the only excuse behind all the trouble that sneaky poltergeist caused; and fortunately for Lou, he had yet to have the misfortune of bumping into him. Maybe, if he was lucky, he could even make it to graduation still unfamiliar with him.

Beam. Lux was happy when she made Louis laugh. "We haven't hung out as much lately. But I understand." She knew that he was busy and had other things to do. He was a Prefect and he was popular. He also had school work. OOOH, a baby bear!! "Could you do that for me? And a baby penguin?" They would be so very cute! She made sparky eyes at him.

Hehehe. Louis so knew that she was playing with him. "Well I would sure hope not!" Or else they would be having some problems. Bay was her boyfriend. Suddenly the memory of her thinking they dated last term came back and it was funny. Oh, she had been so silly back then.

"Peeves sucks." He ruined her date and damaged her sandwiches. That was not nice and she didn't like Peeves.

This icy, frigid, snow-filled virulent winter is beginning to esclate toward blizzard levels with a polar vortex wind chill suddenly sweeping the grounds on top of the already high snow drifts. Brrr! Best get indoors now before the snow covers you to your frostbitten nose! It looks like Hogwarts may already be in the process of being snowed in....

OOC: All grounds threads will shortly be locked in light of this snowpocalypse. You have about 24 hours to finish your RPs and get in the castle!

"Yeah....." Dora quietly agreed. But she rather have a reason to hurt, than to be hurting for none at all. It would be better if she knew for certain that he was feeling the same way, then maybe she wouldn't feel so foolish.

Her eyes flicked over to the other girl briefly before going up to the skies. "Not me. Not in that way." She never wanted to either. That was a pain Dora wasn't certain she'd survive.

The sky was looking dark again, and as much as Dora loved being out in the snow, she had no intentions of getting stuck in a storm. Carefully she rose to her feet. "I think I'll head back inside before it gets worse out here. Going to grab a hot drink if you'd care to join." If she didn't Dora wouldn't be fused either way.

No? She didn't love anyone like that? Elodie frowned, yet said nothing because she knew it wasn't her place to. As much as she wished she was unable to have the feelings she did have, she was certain that she wouldn't want to not have the chance to love someone. Something along those lines.... Instead, she sighed. She didn't understand Dora. She wasn't sure if she wanted to, but...she wasn't happy with the fact she didn't understand anything right now.

No love..

Travelling on your own..

Hurting..

Confusing.

As the Ravenclaw got up, Elodie looked between her and the sky and got up herself. "I think I'll go check on the rugrats in the common room. Make sure none of them have killed anyone, died or frozen to death. It's apparently fashion to wear little skimpy shorts in cold weather. I think." She gave her a grin, and started back into the castle at a pace that was easy for Dora to keep up with if she wanted to walk in with.

Rugrats? Dora raised one eyebrow but didn't comment. She had other names that were less appropriate for the first years in her house. "Mo is good about making sure our first years don't die when he's around." Nigel... not so much, he was more like her. But Mo was the unbadged golden student leader in their house and so she never stressed about the underclassmen in their house.

"Fire starters are more a common thing in our house apparently." Dora may have been just the slightest bit proud of that, since she herself enjoyed setting a nice fire as well. It was easy to fall into step with Elodie, them being around the same height, as she spared one last glance at the abandoned courtyard.

The icy wind that had been whipping around Hogwarts seemed to chill the students to the bone as it slammed the great doors to the castle behind them. None of this outdoor cold would be able to permeate that great warm fortress, surely. But even if it did, the snow was coming down in such great volumes that no one inside the castle would be able to get out.

Enjoy your close quarters, kids.