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astrocat · 04-29-2025, 12:22 AM

SPOILER!!: Nyle

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie

Nyle would have been positively mortified to learn that he had mishoused her - something he would surely find out soon enough, particularly considering she would not be seated at the same table at the feast nor wearing robes with gold trim and accents. Maybe he’d just wanted her to be one. Someone rooted and golden, a quiet sunflower in the back row. He thought of the way she used to crouch beside plants like she was listening to them speak, her fingers gentle even with the most temperamental stems. That had always felt like Hufflepuff behavior. But maybe he was projecting. Maybe he just liked the idea of her being in his house—of the greenhouse crossing back into the common room.

Except it wasn’t just that.

He might recall the strange tug he used to feel on certain afternoons when he’d bring back pots or clippings from the greenhouse for weekend grafting experiments. The sense of something else lingering. The almost-familiar yet melancholy comfort that settled in the corner of the room when he set his gloves down. Like echoes. Feelings that weren’t his but curled up beside him anyway. Bits of her energy clinging to shared tools, to old clay pots she’d handled before he inherited them from the discard shelf. She’d left impressions like pressed flowers, and he’d mistaken them for kinship. He would never say any of this aloud, of course. That would be… well...weird. He barely understood how it worked most days and any time he attempted explaining it, even with Unspeakables and his own mum, usually made people look at him sideways.

And knowing that she had noticed him, back then—even just a little—sparked something fragile and bright inside him, like the first seed cracking open underground.

Spared for the time being, he smiled a little crookedly, softening when she offered to let him help. "Oh," he said, gently, "yeah, I can definitely help. I know where they keep the school kits. And dad and mum gave me some tips on picking out the bes phials and other things. They're healers, so they're both very particular on what does and doesn't end up in their supplies." He stepped aside to walk with her, holding his bottle of Murtlap essence in his hand delicately. His heart was still doing that odd stuttery thing, but it wasn’t the same as earlier—when he thought she might be the terrifyingly elegant shop girl with the pale skin and impossible eyes. "And, well, welcome back to Hogwarts, Phoebe," he added, more sincerely this time. "I mean. Almost. In a couple weeks and after a train ride and the carriages and everything. So, a premature welcome back. Er, it will be better with you in the greenhouses again."

He still didn’t ask where she’d gone. He just handed her a basket, adjusted the strap over his shoulder, and quietly matched his pace to hers.

Phoebe liked the idea of being without a Hogwarts house- if she could abandon her common room and her school uniform to live exclusively in the greenhouses and wear plant-graphic clothes, she would in a heartbeat. Or even just live in the greenhouses in her green uniform- Merlin knew that most people wouldn't notice, and Phoebe would get to be permanently in an element.

Had Nyle told her that she left her energy behind in the greenhouses, she would have believed him. Only, Phoebe didn't want her energy rubbing off on someone like him- he might see her as a kind, positive presence, but she thought of herself as a gloom-bringer. (In many ways, Phoebe was like rain.) She would have assumed that her echoes must have been lonely, and she wouldn't have liked the idea of a younger year absorbing them.

She took the offered basket with a small smile. "Lead the way, then." She probably could have found everything herself, but this was easier and probably much better, and Nyle clearly wanted to help. Phoebe looked unmistakably... alert, for a moment, when he mentioned his parents being healers. They might have known or worked with her father, which she immediately resolved not to mention, because she liked that Nyle liked her and, well- her parents were dark wizards. She was guilty by association in more minds than just her own. "I'll let you help with my plant projects when I get back. If you want, I mean." She mostly worked alone, but that wasn't because she only liked solitude. She would very much like to work with a younger year- just like how she did with the younger residents at Stemp House- and honestly, she would have offered already if she'd thought he was interested.

04-29-2025, 12:22 AM	#40 (permalink)
astrocat Puffskein Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: New York City Posts: 2,177 Hogwarts RPG Name: Cameron Rhodes Ravenclaw Fourth Year Hogwarts RPG Name: Phoebe Calypso [s]Dupont[/s] Slytherin Seventh Year Hogwarts RPG Name: Charlie Fox-Matthews Hufflepuff Second Year	Which came first, the phoenix or the flame? SPOILER!!: Nyle Quote: Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie Nyle would have been positively mortified to learn that he had mishoused her - something he would surely find out soon enough, particularly considering she would not be seated at the same table at the feast nor wearing robes with gold trim and accents. Maybe he’d just wanted her to be one. Someone rooted and golden, a quiet sunflower in the back row. He thought of the way she used to crouch beside plants like she was listening to them speak, her fingers gentle even with the most temperamental stems. That had always felt like Hufflepuff behavior. But maybe he was projecting. Maybe he just liked the idea of her being in his house—of the greenhouse crossing back into the common room. Except it wasn’t just that. He might recall the strange tug he used to feel on certain afternoons when he’d bring back pots or clippings from the greenhouse for weekend grafting experiments. The sense of something else lingering. The almost-familiar yet melancholy comfort that settled in the corner of the room when he set his gloves down. Like echoes. Feelings that weren’t his but curled up beside him anyway. Bits of her energy clinging to shared tools, to old clay pots she’d handled before he inherited them from the discard shelf. She’d left impressions like pressed flowers, and he’d mistaken them for kinship. He would never say any of this aloud, of course. That would be… well...weird. He barely understood how it worked most days and any time he attempted explaining it, even with Unspeakables and his own mum, usually made people look at him sideways. And knowing that she had noticed him, back then—even just a little—sparked something fragile and bright inside him, like the first seed cracking open underground. Spared for the time being, he smiled a little crookedly, softening when she offered to let him help. "Oh," he said, gently, "yeah, I can definitely help. I know where they keep the school kits. And dad and mum gave me some tips on picking out the bes phials and other things. They're healers, so they're both very particular on what does and doesn't end up in their supplies." He stepped aside to walk with her, holding his bottle of Murtlap essence in his hand delicately. His heart was still doing that odd stuttery thing, but it wasn’t the same as earlier—when he thought she might be the terrifyingly elegant shop girl with the pale skin and impossible eyes. "And, well, welcome back to Hogwarts, Phoebe," he added, more sincerely this time. "I mean. Almost. In a couple weeks and after a train ride and the carriages and everything. So, a premature welcome back. Er, it will be better with you in the greenhouses again." He still didn’t ask where she’d gone. He just handed her a basket, adjusted the strap over his shoulder, and quietly matched his pace to hers. Phoebe liked the idea of being without a Hogwarts house- if she could abandon her common room and her school uniform to live exclusively in the greenhouses and wear plant-graphic clothes, she would in a heartbeat. Or even just live in the greenhouses in her green uniform- Merlin knew that most people wouldn't notice, and Phoebe would get to be permanently in an element. Had Nyle told her that she left her energy behind in the greenhouses, she would have believed him. Only, Phoebe didn't want her energy rubbing off on someone like him- he might see her as a kind, positive presence, but she thought of herself as a gloom-bringer. (In many ways, Phoebe was like rain.) She would have assumed that her echoes must have been lonely, and she wouldn't have liked the idea of a younger year absorbing them. She took the offered basket with a small smile. "Lead the way, then." She probably could have found everything herself, but this was easier and probably much better, and Nyle clearly wanted to help. Phoebe looked unmistakably... alert, for a moment, when he mentioned his parents being healers. They might have known or worked with her father, which she immediately resolved not to mention, because she liked that Nyle liked her and, well- her parents were dark wizards. She was guilty by association in more minds than just her own. "I'll let you help with my plant projects when I get back. If you want, I mean." She mostly worked alone, but that wasn't because she only liked solitude. She would very much like to work with a younger year- just like how she did with the younger residents at Stemp House- and honestly, she would have offered already if she'd thought he was interested.