WHAT was that smell?

Maddison had been wandering around, BORED because she'd done the homework that had interested her ALREADY and she didn't know where Dima and Kyroh were. THEN she suddenly smelled something that made her nose wrinkle. URGH, YUCK. From the way they dressed, the small brunette could have SWORN Slytherins were the type to keep themselves up but it STUNK down here in their territory. MERLIN.

The first year came to a stop just behind one of those Slytherins and leaned forward, sniffing. Well it WASN'T him that stunk, at least. Guess she could save her speech about showering for another time.

"WHAT'S that smell?"

If someone caught him here around his scent, someone was going to end up thinking that HE was behind it. Which he certainly WASN'T, thank you very much. Grayson Whitlock was a number of things -- amazing, smart and just an all round brilliant company -- but dirty wasn't one of them. Nuh uh. But still, he needed to get away from here before--

.................... There was someone here.

Oh no. Oh JEEZ, it was the bushy mane-d wild animal girl who was too sassy for words. WHY did he attract these people? Did he have a charm?

Of course he did.

ANYWAYS. "Dunno," he said, shrugging his shoulders, "It's certainly not me." In case she was going to try and pin the blame on him. Uh huh. You can get rid of those thoughts right now, tiny person. "I bet someone forgot to flush properly. Or they reaaaaaaaaaally need deodorant for their birthday." See? SMART. Hello.

"I know it's not." Shrug. "I already smelt you to make sure." No biggy. If it HAD been him, he better BELIEVE she would have suggested he go purchase something to rid himself of such a pungent odor. As for his guesses, she didn't know for sure but she assumed he was WRONG. Seemed silly to think something that happened in the bathroom could be smelt ALL the way out here.

Walking past him, she glanced one way and then the other, looking for the source of said smell. She wasn't TRYING to prove him wrong but if she just HAPPENED upon the source of the smell and he WAS wrong, that'd be a bonus.

"So what are you doing here, anyway?" Did he frequent secret passages often?

Simon had read about the secret passages but he hadn't realized how cool they were. They didn't have secret passages or various nooks and crannies around his past school. Hogwarts, on the other hand, had almost everything that a young adventurer could want. Simon felt like a top secret spy in a forbidden section.

This was so cool!

Kace decided to take an adventure down towards the dungeons. He never been here before so it was pretty cool. As he made his way down, he felt a chill in his bones. He shivered and felt someone was watching him. But when he turned around he noticed a kid was here. Wait...he looked to be the same age. He did a double take. He smiled and didn't wanna scare him. He started off with, "So I guess I am not the only one who was curious about the secret passage to the dungeons." he grinned towards the fellow student. "My name is Kace.." he said nodding towards him.

Simon jumped slightly when he heard someone approach him. He turned and then saw a boy about his own age down here. Woah. He hadn't even heard the guy approach him. He laughed and nodded. "Oh hey there," he said. Then he nodded again. "No, I haven't ever been down here before so I thought I'd give it a try. Nice to meet you, Kace. I'm Simon," he outstretched his hand towards him in a gesture of a handshake. "So what brings you down to the dungeons? Curiosity as well?" At least it wasn't too chilly down here. It was sort of murky but fortunately it wasn't like the rest of the freezing castle.

She smelt him? She actually good a good ol' whiff of his scent? What in the name of Merlin?! He understood that he was quite the looker, especially on a good day, but was that really necessary?

Apparently so.

He nodded slowly at her, almost as if he was saying that it was very normal of her to be sniffing people. "And? Do I smell bad?" He knew how he smelt and he knew that it was great so there was one of two ways that this could go: either he was going to get an ego boost OR the girl was going to lie.

And speaking of the girl, what was she DOING?! He watched her for a while, his head tilted to one side and a confused expression crossing his face. Girls were WEIRD, man. They looked GREAT -- not this one -- but man alive, they liked to be confusing. "I don't think the culprit's here, Sherlock."

"I was on my way to the common room. It's somewhere along the end of the corridor and round the side." Meaning, that this was a shortcut of some sort. "What are you doing here?"

Kace grinned when he noticed Simon. "Hey there." he returned the greeting. "Oh what a coincidence I never been here either. I thought I would give it a try and explore it.." he said looking around and noticed how creepy it was down here. Oh? His name was Simon? That was interesting. He thought he was someone else but nahhh he couldn't be. So what brings him here? He grinned and said the exact same answer Simon suggested, "Well curiosity brought me here so I am glad I am not the only one.." He began to walk down more, "Come on let's see what this passageway has to offer.." As he was walking down he asked Simon, "Does it feel really cold down here or is it just me?"

Simon raised his eyebrows. This kid hadn't been down here too. "Likewise. Well... Want to explore it together? There's bound to be several nooks and crannies," he explained, shoving his hands into his pockets rather awkwardly. He nodded. Curiosity was always a thing that brought people together. That's how he met two of his dearest friends here. Curiosity was an ally. It propelled people to do things that they may not normally do. To research. To learn. It was valuable. Simon nodded. "Awesome. I've read about some of the old passagways in here but some of them have been blocked off," he frowned. But perhaps there was a way to get into them? Even if it was impossible, it would still be worth the try. Simon shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah, it is really cold in here. It's also really muggy. The combination is weird. Do you like the winter weather?" He didn't at all. It was miserable.

Kace thought this kid would never ask. "Uh yeah! Let's go exploring!" he said walking through the passageway. Oh? So the kid did some reading? He grinned and said, "I know one passageway underneath the Whomping Willow is sealed and a few others that are blocked." he said if he remembered correctly. "Yeah it is cold and muggy...you don't think an house ghost is trailing after us..?" he asked and then turned around just to be sure. Then he heard his question, "Oh I love winter weather because that is the season I was born in ironically enough." he grinned sheepishly.

Did he SMELL bad? Well, not REALLY. She wasn't going to lie or anything but she DID make a big show of considering it as if she didn't WANT to HURT his feelings by saying the truth. Making him sweat it out, essentially. After a minute or two, she placed her hands on her hips and said, "You smell like a boy." THERE. That was true and vague so she didn't NEED to compliment him or anything. Merlin knew that if she DID, his ego might inflate and she was sure he already had a big head.

Sherlock? Was that supposed to be funny or something? "Who said I'm looking for a person?" PAUSE. "And if I'm Sherlock, what does that make YOU?" HUH?

Now THAT was good information. Not that she had any Slytherins to visit or anything but still, good to know. As for what she was doing here, she tilted her head and stareeed at him. Wasn't it obvious? "I'm exploring." DUH.

Simon grinned and nodded. He'd heard the same thing about the passage under the Whomping Willow. "Yeah, I've read about that too. It was sealed. It would be cool to find a way in there though," he said with an excited grin. Merlin, if they could, who knows what they would find underneath that great tree. Now that was a good question, Simon checked over his shoulder, pulling out his wand. He furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't believe so, but just in case... Maybe a little light would be helpful. Lumos," he said. Ah, the light was much better. Cool. They were both winter babies. "Ah, I see. I was born in the winter too- well in the hemisphere where I'm from. It's less cold there than here. Winter's from May to August-ish."

Why in the name of merlin was she taking so freaking long to reply? Not that he CARED but it was a matter of his smell, you know? Only people that wasn't HIM could tell HIM whether he smelt great. Which, by the way, he DID, thank you. He was SURE of it. He was sure that he smelt like.............

........................... a BOY?!

Well DUH. He WAS a boy. Of course he was going to SMELL like one but he response did throw him back. Considerably. "What does that mean?" He smelt like a boy. He smelt like A BOY. There was no hint of whether this was a compliment or an insult. Should his ego rise or was it going to be bruised? Who knew. "Is this a good thing or a bad thing?"

Who said she was looking for a person? The sassy side of him wanted to say that he did but he bit back that retort. "Well, someone has to be behind this." He was all up for pointing fingers, too. "Moriarty, obviously. We're not BFFs." Unluckily for you, little person.

Why was she staring at him? The better question was why not but whatever. "Uh huh," he said, nodding slowly, his eyes on her, "You do that often? Try to find as many secret places within the castle as possible?"

Kace nodded and agreed with him. "I like the way you think. We need to go under there one day. Well one day when prefects aren't on duty if you catch my drift..." he winked. Oooooh this kid was smart! Why didn't he think of that! He took his wand out and muttered, "Lumos!" and now LET THERE BE LIGHT! He could see SO much better now.

Wait a minute winter was May to August-ish? He gave him a quizzical look. "Wait dude my winter is in November to December....why is your winter in like when my spring time is?" It seemed a little confusing. Then his mouth developed into an O shape. "Unless you are in a different country.."

HEH.

He'd given her the EXACT reaction that she'd hoped for, did he know? Boys were predictable in that way. The small brunette TRIED not to look smug as she shrugged her shoulders. "It means exactly what it sounds like. You smell like a BOY." Did he not hear her the FIRST time. "And it could be good OR bad depending on WHICH boy you smell like." But she obviously wasn't going to tell him just yet. She quite liked the look on his face, it was amusing.

"Or perhaps the smell is coming from something without anyone else being involved." Sometimes things just stunk and especially in this dank and dark environment. She could see how there might be a smell down here. "CLEARLY." Maddie was NOT a fan. Not yet, anyway. ALSO. "So you fancy yourself a criminal mastermind, then? I don't see it."

"Maybe." Maybe not. "Why, do you know other secret places?"

Simon nodded. He wasn't the rebellious type but when it came to finding secret things around Hogwarts, he became all excited about it. If the Prefects were looking the other way that day then they could find all sorts of untold mysterious beneath the lively castle. "No worries. I know what you mean," he said, returning Kace's wink. He smiled approvingly when the Hufflepuff also figured out that using Lumos would be a grand idea. Good, good.

"Yep, I am. I'm from Australia originally. It's my first year here at Hogwarts. Having winter from November to February is all a bit odd," he added. Winter was strange in the UK. He liked the Australian winters a lot better for they were less harsh and definitely warmer.

Girls were so freaking weird. And it didn't matter if they were 12 or 20, they were still. Freaking. WEIRD.

Besides, what did that MEAN?! He smelt like a BOY?! People have different scents, didn't this tiny one know that? And if this was a bad thing, she was practically offending a whole gender. Grayson raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms across his chest as he kept his eyes on the girl. "Different people have different scents. Some people smell like they were born in a field of daisies and raised by the Norse Gods while others smell like they roll around in dung on the regular." JUST SAYING. "Sooooooo what do I smell like?" This was important, mkay?

Yes, that was a smart answer but no, he wasn't going to say it just yet. "Something being left around for too long?" Probably something muggy. Unless there was another swamp down here that had been left behind by someone or another. Not that he'd mind. Nuh uh. "'Course! Why not?" he said, shrugging his shoulders, "That just means I'm particularly good at hiding it, then." Smiles for you.

"Plenty!" In regards to the secret places, some he could mention and some he couldn't. That laboratory waaaaay up there was staying between him and Cutty. "Well............ it's not a secret but have you seen the swamp a couple of floors up?"

"Well we shall plan to go under the whomping willow one day. You down for that due because I know I am.." he asked the little guy just to be sure. When he heard he was a first year he did a double take. "No way dude I thought you were a second or third year.." No kidding. He looked older for his age. Oh? He was from Australia? That was pretty cool! CRIKEY! He wondered if he ever seen kangaroos there or koalas but that may be stereotypical. Maybe he could teach him some phrases?

"That is pretty cool mate! Maybe you can teach me some phrases!" he grinned. But if he didn't want to he totally understood. "Yeah I bet, so I am guessing it is sunny when it is christmas time over there?" Then he felt a slight cool breeze that made him shiver. "Did you feel that chill or was it just me?"

Girls weren't weird. Well, not the ones Maddie would be friends with. NOT that she had any, mind you. Boys were just easier to read which, let's face it, made them easier to torture. Like this boy, the small brunette could almost see what he was thinking by his expression and she found this VERY amusing.

"Well spotted." Really! Go him for knowing that different people had different smells. She CLEARLY didn't know that already. /Sarcasm. "You smell like fresh laundry." And fire, maybe? Had he sat by the fire recently? And was he going to stop harassing her about this now? YES? Cool.

"Maybe. Or stagnant water. Is it damp down here?" Because damp conditions caused mold which caused health problems and if they discovered something like THAT, they might be able to save ALL of Slytherin house and THEN be heroes or something! YEAH. Ahem. SQUINTING at him, the first year considered whether or not this guy was particularly good at hiding anything at all. He seemed pretty open about things, in her opinion. "Whatever YOU say." Maddie wasn't buying it.

"Is it customary for Slytherins to hang out in dark damp places?" Cause first the dungeon and now the swamp. Maddie was starting to see a pattern here. Also, "No, I haven't seen it yet. I read about it though. Clever to put a swamp in a hallway." Those Weasley twins sounded like masterminds, actually.

Well this guy was rather friendly. Simon gave the Hufflepuff a grin and an excited nod. "Sure. Definitely." Then all of a sudden, the boy around his own age did another take. Simon blinked his eyes rather quickly when he listened to the other boy's response. He was baffled. "I am a third year. I should have said that I'm a transfer student," he explained with a rather sheepish grin. Simon certainly wasn't a first year nor did he want to be associated with the crazy likes of them. First years set people on fire.

Phrases? "Uh, sure. No worries," said Simon who was rather surprised for Kace's enthusiasm to learn more about Simon's country. He figured that it was a rather kind gesture from the Hufflepuff boy. He nodded "Yep, sunny and warm. It's perfect weather to play cricket on the beach and just relax..." he began and then stopped when he felt a shiver crawl up his back. Was that a spider? He moved one hand to his back to feel around, but couldn't find anything. He felt the shiver pass again. As they walked further and further, the passageway became colder and colder. "I did. What do you think that was or is?" asked Simon, glancing at Kace.

Kace chuckled at his reaction and held up two hands. "Heyyy don't blame me. But it is cool mate that your a third year. Then I am close to you in age. I am a fourth year.." he nodded. Now the transfer student thing made sense since he told him earlier that he was from Australia. "Gotta a question, do you like Hogwarts better so far or your school back home?" He was just curious that is all.

Sweet!! He was gonna learn some Australian phrases. "Well i already know CRIKEY!" he grinned. He knew he was being stereotypical but he figured he would make him laugh. Oh? Cricket? "Hmm I never played cricket before, maybe one day we can play by the lake?" he suggested. He was glad Simon felt the chill too because then he wasn't crazy! He looked around and said, "Well I may be crazy but I think there may be a ghost here.." he said rubbing his arms up and down.

Was she being sarcastic? She was, wasn't she? PSH. THIS girl was weird, especially. And it had a little to do with that wall meeting. Uh huh. Just a little. SO, he didn't respond to her sassy nature and, instead, decided to address what she thought he smelt like. "Thank you!" Major ego boost because fresh laundry smelt freaking amazing. "That's a very good thing."

Stagnant water was a smart observation but AGAIN, he wasn't going to mention that. No. And was it damp down here? "WELL, the common room has a watery theme. The walls aren't damp," Just in case she got any funny ideas that they lived in bad conditions. "But it's like being in a giant aquarium but cooler. You can see the lake and all the animals swimming around." And, of course, he wasn't going to reveal ALL the secrets. She'd have to come into the common room for that. Or be a Slytherin.

Oh MERLIN, being in the same house as this one would be torture.

What? Was she trying to suggest that they were fishy creatures that liked the damp and mould? PSH. "No," he said, pointedly, "Some of us just like potions and watery areas." NICE watery areas, thank you. They may be snakes but they still had style. "Uh huh. Very clever spellwork too. Though, word of warning, it stinks there as well but it's brilliant."

Yeah, yeah, he smelled good. BIG whoop. She doubted he smelled that fresh ALL the time so she wasn't going to get all swoony or smiley like SOME girls might. Instead she simply shrugged, unimpressed. Clean people were SUPPOSED to smell good so it wasn't anything to toot your own horn over.

Well NOW he had her attention. A common room that was like an aquarium sounded amazing and with her current interest in the giant squid, it seemed like a place she'd need to see if she could manage it. Speaking of her favorite creature. "Do you ever see the SQUID from there?" She tried not to look TOO curious but her eyes were shining, a giveaway that she was excited at the thought of it.

Well SOMEONE had their wand in a knot. This made Maddie smirk and she shrugged. "I don't know what Slytherins like to DO in their free time." Apparently potions which she approved of, actually. "And speaking of Slytherins, WHAT do you think I'd need to do to get one to take me into the common room?" She KNEW he probably couldn't be convinced but surely there was someone she could con talk into it. As for the swamp, "Thanks for the tip. I'll keep that in mind." Though if THIS boy frequented the swamp, she'd probably be keeping her distance. JUST saying.

Simon chuckled. "No worries, it was my bad. I sort of forgot to include transfer student," he explained with a wry smile. Ah! So Kace was in his fourth year here? Cool. So they were almost the same age. He nodded. "I like it a lot better over at Hogwarts. The Professors are much nicer." Plus the Professors took a genuine interest in what you were researching. Ooh, he had to make a mental note about going to see the Potions master. It was almost February so he had to get that done soon.

He chuckled, thinking that Kace may have seen too many episodes of Steve Irwin shouting that phrase in his broad Queensland accent. Simon had an accent that was more similar to a British one as he was from Melbourne. He was a city boy. Not a small town boy livin' in a lonely world. He was the exact opposite of that. "Yep, that's one of them. We like to shorten words a lot. So my sister's name is Allison, but we call her Allie. And there's a huge shopping centre in Chadstone, but we call it Chaddie," he said, beginning his lesson on australianisms to the Hufflepuff boy. With Kace knowing some of these sayings then perhaps someone could understand him for once? Yes. That seemed good.

"A ghost down here? Exciting!" said Simon as he pulled his wand closer to him. If it were the Bloody Baron or Nearly Headless Nick that would be awesome.. If it were Peeves, then.... "I sort of hope its not Peeves. I've heard of people having rather unfortunate run ins with him."

Kace grinned and nodded. "Well Hogwarts is always much better. This is like my second home." It was true. He always dreaded leaving it. But he would always visit his parents during the holidays. So they weren't missing him too much. Ah so the professors were nice here. He chuckled at that statement. "Well some professors here you don't wanna cross like....Bellaire. Have you met her yet?" he asked curiously. He chuckled when he was giving him lessons on the Australian language. Ah so they shortened words. Made a mental note. "Can I learn some greetings?" he asked curiously.

Kace was glad Simon was on the same page. "Yeah ghosts down here are exciting. I hope it isn't the bloody baron because he kind of scares me. Nearly Headless Nick is my favorite. He is really nice. I hope it is not peeves...then we are in trouble..." He said looking around his shoulder making sure it's not him.