What a treat! What a glorious treat!

He had no reason to ever go back to his dorm or venture anywhere else for that matter because this right here was heaven.

Bentley had skipped the whole igloo bit. He didn't need that, this was place felt like an ice box to him so the hot spring was exactly what the 6th year Gryffindor needed.

He rest his camera on his folded uniform and slid into the warm water with an audible "Aaaaaaaaaaaaah.."

Man, this was the life...and his new favourite spot thank you very much.

Toe wiggle.

Althea was extremely grateful for summer ending - which was odd considering how much she loved the holiday - this meant that she wouldn't have to work for her father, deal with Levi's mood swings (not constantly, anyway), and she and her brothers could spend some time apart to...cool off. The Kenning household had been somewhat of a silent warzone - except it wasn't silent at all. Althea had hoped, with the start of the new term, that she could let go of all the negativity (please) and just focus on the impending exams at the end of the year.

With that in mind, she figured she needed a day to relax and think. She hoisted the strap from her bag a little higher up on her shoulder, and made her way to the grounds, excited to see the hot spring. She'd forgone her uniform earlier in exchange for something more casual - a summer dress - with her swim suit underneath. She shifted her bag strap on her shoulder - to distribute the weight evenly - and then resumed her walk over to the hot springs.

She thought she was going to be alone - the universe had so many jokes as of late - but instead she came face to face with one, very confusing yet still very interesting Bentley Moore. Hmm. "Hello, Benny," she greeted and contemplated briefly before taking a seat next to him. "Funny running into you here." And even though she smiled, she didn't actually find it funny at all. He also contributed to her stress, even though he claimed he didn't, which was all the more reason for her to just leave. And yet... After placing her bag down she took off her shoes and dipped her legs into the water.

Bentley didn't need to look up to know who had greeted him. Only one person called him 'Benny'. Usually it was Ben or just Bentley..Sweetheart....Love Muffin..or any other cutesy name his mother could come up with. He didn't mind this latest addition though.

"Hi Thea." He answered before looking up and greeting her with the signature dimpled Bellaire smile. His smile reached his green eyes.

"Should I report you to the headmistress for stalking me?" He was joking of course, as he didn't mind her company at all.

"I'm thinking of putting up a property of Bentley sign, so it's always free when I want to use it. What do you think?"

Althea made it a point to never let anyone use any nickname for her; her family and close friends (and her dorm mates, apparently) were the only exception. And, well, Bentley of course. Which was weird and she didn't want to think of the implications of that so she shoved the thought out of her mind. And she would have been fine if not for the fact that Bentley was smiling and she wanted to knock his dimples off his face.

Very complicated.

"Please," she drawled, watching him in amusement, "the other girls would bore you, if I wasn't around." Something she really believed to be true. "Besides, you like the attention." She rolled her eyes - something she found herself doing a lot whenever he was around - but it didn't stop another smile from appearing on her lips. "Brilliant plan, let me point out one thing: what's stopping them from ignoring the sign?"

Bentley chuckled. Her response was very Althea. He was amused.

"Funny enough I think most other girls around here would say the exact same thing. We all think we're something special and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact...I encourage it."

He used the water to slick his hair back and relaxed into a recline in the spring.

"I also cant deny enjoying the attention." And he didn't think there was anything remotely weird about that fact.

"Oh I figured we'd hit that little snag...I think the threat of severely ghastly things happening to them is enough deterrent for most." He closed his eyes.

"Are you not getting in?"

That response deserved an eye roll too but she saved it - with the way their conversations tended the go, she was sure she'd need it later. "I'm not concerned with what most girls are saying or thinking and you know that." If she were being smart, she would've let the comment go and shrugged it off. Unfortunately, Bentley's presence constantly had her in a state of stupidity and she really needed to fix that.

"Oh, that much is obvious." If he didn't, then she would've wasted so much time. Leave it to a Gryffindor to use bold and outlandish threats to get what they wanted. "Dramático," she said, laughing a little after. "That doesn't seems highly unnecessary."

She raised a brow and looked at him curiously. "Is that what you want?" She didn't wait for his response, and instead pulled off her dress. Althea quickly threw her hair up - into at messy bun, of sorts - before easing herself into the water.

Bentley almost gave her an eye roll.

"I think I know that by now but it's still something to note. Okay?"

He had expected that response from Althea since she had been singing that same tune since the day he met her.

"It's necessary if I want to keep this wonderful oasis to my self...and my company...whoever that is at the time." He went quiet for a second thinking of how completely opposite his life was right now compared to this time last year when he was in a completely exclusive straight laced relationship. What a curved quaffle.

"What I want is of no consequence. What you want will determine what you do--" But in she came. He gave her a little splash.

"That was a question you know.."

She highly doubted that he knew, because if he did he wouldn't be repeating the same thing over and over and over. She kept quiet about that though. "Duly noted, Benny. Duly noted." Again, she resisted the urge to reply with a snarky remark, and instead smiled. "Is that so? The single life looks good on you." He was much less uptight than he was last term at least. "Are you going to have girls on rotation, or,..." she intentionally didn't finish that thought as she was only slightly nervous for what kind of answer he might give.

Very, very, very complicated.

So complicated that Althea did not see anything wrong with habitually hanging out with him. Nothing at all. "Always the complicated philosopher, Benny," she said with a grin which turned into a giggle - gross - when he splashed her with water. "You know by now that I answer questions at my own pace and in whatever manner I please." And, because she really couldn't help herself (more lies here,) she splashed some water at him too.

Bentley laughed. Well there was something he had heard more than once. He thought he and Chloe were super quiet about the break up but it turned out news traveled faster than sound in water.

"I donno if it does but I do know it's weird. I'm not sure how to act...and I mean..."

Eh..he wasn't going to get into why this 'single life was weird. Not right here and definitely not with Althea. He was sure pursuing this line was conversation would do way more harm than good.

"On rotation? Who says I even have options?" He fixed her with an innocent smile.

And of course the very Althea comments followed and the retaliatory splash. He covered his face and laughed.

"Alright..alright.."

The eye roll she'd been saving? She used it at that very exact moment. Constantly plagued with insensitivity, Althea just did not get it. Did he not have months to sort out his unnecessarily complex life? She didn't understand. "Live your life, do what you want." Advice she frequently gave herself. There was no point in dwelling over it - he was either going to get back together with Chloe or not. His uncertainty unnerved her for some reason.

"Please, spare me the innocent act." Leave it to a boy to want to make himself appear less popular than he actually was. Not that it really mattered (it did,) but having multiple girls trapezing in and out of his life would probably do him more good than he thought. In fact, she definitely encouraged it. "You might as well get a good running list going." Because "friends" encouraged and supported their "friends" because that's what "friendship" was all about. Right? Right. She caught herself looking at him a little too long so she quickly turned her face and moved around in the water. "Good. I hope I don't have to repeat myself," she had a feeling that she might, sometime in the near future.

Bentley laughed and shook his head. Cute. Real cute. "Yeeeeah...no. That's not how any of this works. I think when you actually get some strong feelings for someone, you'll understand. Until then well..." He shrugged. "You can live your life and do whatever you want to do." It was good advice...great even, it was just not applicable to him.

Things with Chloe was far more complicated than he wanted it to be. It wasn't something he was happy with but he and his blonde ex were certainly struggling to really sort out how to move forward.

Bentley laughed and splashed her again because she most certainly deserved it. "Look I'm trying to work on my reputation. It's already not that squeaky clean." He gave her a look. "Friends are suppose to help friends get a good rep..not the other way around." He was amused though, very amused.

"I can't promise you that you won't..."

Oh. No. Nope. No. No. Althea fixed Bentley with a hard look, frowning a little in the process. She'd opened her mouth to speak but...nope - she pushed that thought and all those unnecessary feelings to the back of her mind. She did her best to bounce back and smiled a little. "I think I will do just that." And she would bottle up her heart and any unnecessary feelings that plagued that particular organ.

The water splashing had lifted her mood and so she, in turn, splashed him - because she was incredibly mature - and tried to keep her smile under control. Gross. "What reputation is that?" Althea certainly hadn't heard anything - outside of what her brother told her - about him. "Good reps are for those who want to live a simple, boring life though." Not that she knew anything about reputations and how to acquire or un-acquire them. "Please. Just admit you like hearing me talk, Benny," she teased, "it's perfectly fine and understandable."

"Aren't you already doing just that?" Althea seemed the type to do whatever she wanted to know even if she knew she shouldn't. He supposed if he was honest with himself he was like that too...with most things.

Bentley splashed her back because, clearly this was not going to end until someone tapped out and that someone was not going to be him. "Oh you know misogynist..player...alternative facts if you know me." He liked to think that he was a chivalrous gentleman.

"Or for people who don't necessarily want to be hated by the entire female population at Hogwarts.." He was among those people.

He chuckled. "Maybe I just like knowing how to wind you up."

Hypocrisy, it seemed, was an affliction that both Bentley and Althea suffered from. "Not really." Lies. "I do think about what I'm doing before doing it." Most of the time, anyway. "But, since you've already given me the go-ahead...," she said and flashed the Gryffindor a mischievous smile. "Might as well not hold back now, right?" Because it was important that she lived her life how she wanted to, right? Right. It probably wasn't Bentley's intention, but Althea took it to mean just that.

She tried her best to shield herself from the water, but she wasn't quick enough. In an incredibly mature act of retaliation, she splashed him again. And then a second time for good measure. "A player...well, I can see that. You're a shameless flirt, it's kind of ridiculous," she said, completely disregarding just how equally shameless (if not more so) she was. "Who cares if they hate you? I thought you didn't care about what people thought of you?" It was pointless to try and please everyone, and Althea, for one, was not about to bend over backwards for her peers to accept her.

His comment caught her off guard for a moment and she blinked repeatedly, trying to unscramble her thoughts. Bentley was saying things that he shouldn't and she had doubts about his ability to deal with the sort of consequences she would hand him. So, she moved closer to him, and looked at him carefully before grinning. "Is that so?" Really, she should've stopped there, and yet...she continued. "Is that what you're into? Winding me up, and all of that. Because if you are," she moved closer again, "I might be into that too."

"No you don't." His response was good natured and there was even a bit of smile because he knew that was a blatant lie. Althea did what Althea wanted no matter the consequences. He learned that through experience.

"Give you the go ahead?....What?" See this is what happened every time she hung out with Althea..she just took what he said how she wanted it and he literally had to deal with the consequences of that. he knew it shouldn't even matter now considering the fact that they were now both single. He Bentley McCartney Moore was a single pringle...so why was he unable to just go with the flow?

"I am not a shameless flirt....I'm...umm...charming...there's a difference."

Bentley shook his head. "I just don't want to be that guy. I don't want to be known for hurting girls feelings or anything like that...it's just not true to who I am." She could understand that, couldn't she?

And then she did that.

Wow..had the water gotten warmer that usual? Was he sweating? Did someone clock him over the head with someone because his brain froze.

"You're not going to make this easy for me are you?..."

Althea made a very conscious effort to not laugh, but she found herself giggling anyway. Unfortunate, really, as she was trying to keep up a cool sort of indifference. "I really do though, honest." But she knew that once Bentley had his mind set, he was hard-pressed to budge. Although she found herself constantly wanting to see him unravel, even for just a few seconds. She shrugged again, very innocently (as she if she hadn't said anything worth questioning.) There was no need to explain herself, she was very certain Bentley understood exactly what she meant.

His assertion that he wasn't shameless was laughable. With slightly narrowed eyes, Althea gave him a knowing look. "In your case, there's no difference. It's okay, embrace it. I certainly have." She took great pleasure in pointing out the holes in the things that Bentley said - because he was so stubborn, and really, he should just lighten up and accept the things she said without any fuss. "You're always going to hurt someone's feelings, though," she certainly did on a regular basis. "Besides, you can't make everyone happy, it's not realistic. There will always be someone who does not like who you are no matter how hard you try to convince them otherwise." Which was why Althea lived her truth with a reckless abandon. No use in pleasing people who couldn't keep up with her even on their best day.

It was exactly the sort of response she was looking for, so she had to give him points for delivering. "It wouldn't be any fun if it were easy, would it?" Not for her and certainly not for him. "I hope you haven't lost your nerve. I was really looking forward to see how exactly you'd try and wind me up." For research purposes, of course.

There was actually a hot spring at Hogwarts. Was there anything they could not bring to Hogwarts. Because at the start Marchand had brought a pool in the common room and there was a maze in the library. Théo was too scared to go in it because he would probably get lost. But here there was not way.

Good thing he brought his swimwear.

He looked around and wondered if he should jump in.

But well he decided against it and leasurely got into the water.

This was NICE.

While continuing her round about the grounds, Xavvie had come across the hot springs and while they were just as interesting as the igloo had been, she hadn't brought anything to swim in, therefore, at her next chance, she had come right back out and this time she was prepared. She stepped up to the edge and looked around, noting how many other students had had the same idea.

"Hi." She smiled at the boy who had seemed to just arrive as well. "How's the water?" Amazing, she was sure.

This was nice. It would be more fun if his friends were here and they could have a water fight or something because Théodore wasn't sure how long he could last here by himself.

Huh, was someone talking to him. He turned towards the hello and not someone he knows. "Hi and the water is great. See"

He cupped some in his hand and splashed her with it smiling.

She never in a million years thought she'd be able to get into the water at this time of year, but the hot springs were a whole different kind of magic for the Slytherin and she couldn't seem to stop smiling as she slipped out of her outfit and into the warmth of the water. She knew she packed her swimsuit for a reason. Now she just needed Etta to join her so they could talk boys. The Hufflepuff had lots to update her on, after all.

Etta hurried down to the hot springs, super excited to finally get some to relax.. and also to see Junia. Obviously. It was nice to not stress about OWLs for a change. On reaching her destination, she spotted her friend in the water already, definitely enjoying herself.

"Hey." She greeted cheerfully before slipping out of her dress. The girl slowly entered the water, feeling extremely glad that she had decided to pack her swimsuit this time. Phew. What a relief. .. and the water was just deliciously warm. Wow. This was definitely her new favourite spot in the grounds. "This is so great. I love it."

"Best addition to this school since I started here, that's for sure." The fourth year smiled some and splashed her friend playfully. They were in agreement on this one thing, yes?

"So, since you're taking a study break, I think it's time you fill me in on all things Levi." Her eyes lit up and she wiggled her eyebrows some, excited to hear about Etta's booooyfriend. She was a romantic at heart, after all.

"Mhm. I could stay here all day." It was a wonderful distraction, really. Anytime she needed to get away from her responsibilities, this was the place. "Have you been to the book maze yet? It's pretty wonderful too." Hogwarts seemed to have a lot of lovely new changes. "Hey!" She laughed a little and splashed back at her friend.

Levi? Her cheeks turned slightly pink at the mention of his name. How did he still do that? "Well.. we went on a date and he ended up asking me to be his girlfriend. I panicked at first.. but.. you know, I feel like I like him more and more every single day. He makes me smile." There. That was it, basically. Etta blushed even more so she ducked her head underwater for a few seconds before coming up for air again.

"Uh huh and I'm Nicholas Flamel." He countered. Not for one moment was he buying anything that Althea was selling. Nope. He had spent enough time with her to know different. Great attempt at a sale pitch though. A-.

"It is most definitely not the same thing. Flirting takes effort, being charming is effortless. I was born that way you know.." He waggled his brows at her.

He sighed....heavily.

"I know but I like putting some effort into avoiding that....especially if it's with people I actually care about." What and who were they actually talking about now because Bentley was sure he might be overthinking this conversation....a nasty habit he was picking up and needed to quit. People not liking him despite not knowing him? Ha, story of his life....he could name names.

"Mhm but it's not that deep and it's not about those people. I don't care about them." Okay Miss Kennings? Good.

Bentley sunk a bit deeper into the spring. "But I already have. Don't pretend you didn't realize that I got the rise that I was looking for."