Grounds: The Pumpkin Patch

[Wilber Winterbottom]

Graphic credit: FearlessLeader19

The Pumpkin Patch is situated within a fenced plot of land. Students are free to enter through the wooden gate and traverse carefully among the orange vegetables. The pumpkins are in varying stages of growth. They are well tended to by Professor Khanna but they have extended the invitation of the same to Hogwartians. This much is made clear by the neat sign perched on the outside of the Patch:

Quote:

Students and Professors are welcome to assist in the Pumpkin Patch. Clearing of weeds, removing dead leaves or withered pumpkins, watering and any other actions deemed fit are welcome!

[Kolyander]

A Pumpkin Patch!

Now this was something very different. Yet, Bryony liked it. It reminded her of being back at home when she was younger and they all went to pick out pumpkins together. Everyone would get to choose one and then when they got home they would either crave them or decorate them. Some years even Ary's family went with them and it was a whole big thing.. mess even for a lack of better words. A big crazy fun mess!

Those memories were what brought the small blonde into the pumpkin patch this first Friday after classes. Big bright blue eyes immediately wandered around taking in all the different pumpkins, some of them really looked like they could use some help!

[Chelliephone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

A Pumpkin Patch!

Now this was something very different. Yet, Bryony liked it. It reminded her of being back at home when she was younger and they all went to pick out pumpkins together. Everyone would get to choose one and then when they got home they would either crave them or decorate them. Some years even Ary's family went with them and it was a whole big thing.. mess even for a lack of better words. A big crazy fun mess!

Those memories were what brought the small blonde into the pumpkin patch this first Friday after classes. Big bright blue eyes immediately wandered around taking in all the different pumpkins, some of them really looked like they could use some help!

It was the sign encouraging students to help take care of the orange gourds that had drawn Drake's interest to this particular part of the grounds. He loved the greenhouses for the same reason, but they were far more crowded thus far - so when he was itching to get his hands in the dirt the 3rd year had grabbed some gloves and hadn't down here to the patch.

He hadn't been there for overly long when he heard feet crunching on some of the dried leaves on the ground, and the boys head (his hair hidden by a mopish hat) popped up over one of the largest squashes while he looked around for the noise. He has been expecting to see someone, but he was pleasantly surprised by the familiar blond. "Bryony! Are you down here to get dirty too??"

If so, he found the PERFECT patch of weeds he was about to tackle if she wanted to join!

[Kolyander]

Being in the center of the pumpkin patch surrounded by gourds of all sizes was much more fun than it sounded. It was like being in a sea of orange! Surely she had to stand out among everything out here in her bright pink overalls and stripped shirt.

The little blonde was spinning on the spot when she heard someone shouting her name. Someone she had grown to know quite a bit better over the summer while they hung out together when Ary wasn't around. "Drake! Hi!" Her fellow third year snake got a finger wiggle wave. "Not exactly.." She was down here for the memories and maybe to take a small pumpkin back to her dorm with her for decorating. However... "I never turn down an opportunity to get dirty. Whatcha doing?"

Bry headed towards him to get a better look of where in the patch he was and what he was planning on getting into. Were they clearing weeds away today or helping unhealthy pumpkins?

[Chelliephone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

Being in the center of the pumpkin patch surrounded by gourds of all sizes was much more fun than it sounded. It was like being in a sea of orange! Surely she had to stand out among everything out here in her bright pink overalls and stripped shirt.

The little blonde was spinning on the spot when she heard someone shouting her name. Someone she had grown to know quite a bit better over the summer while they hung out together when Ary wasn't around. "Drake! Hi!" Her fellow third year snake got a finger wiggle wave. "Not exactly.." She was down here for the memories and maybe to take a small pumpkin back to her dorm with her for decorating. However... "I never turn down an opportunity to get dirty. Whatcha doing?"

Bry headed towards him to get a better look of where in the patch he was and what he was planning on getting into. Were they clearing weeds away today or helping unhealthy pumpkins?

Bryony was in fact very obvious in the sea of orange, with her likewise bright colors. Not that he would have noticed her if it weren't for the sound though, considering once he started working with plants - he wasn't very good about paying attention to anything else around him.

But he did notice her now, so he returned the wave before scooting over to make more space for her when she accepted his invitation to join him. "I knew there was a reason we got along!" He replied good naturedly a small laugh. It's true that was only a recent development but... still. "Weeding! It looks like Professor Khanna left us some stuff to do. I'm betting they did it so we could use this as meditation too." Because in Drake's opinion, there was nothing calmer than this. "There's probably some pumpkins that could use some pruning on the stems too if you prefer to do that though!"

[Kolyander]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

Bryony was in fact very obvious in the sea of orange, with her likewise bright colors. Not that he would have noticed her if it weren't for the sound though, considering once he started working with plants - he wasn't very good about paying attention to anything else around him.

But he did notice her now, so he returned the wave before scooting over to make more space for her when she accepted his invitation to join him. "I knew there was a reason we got along!" He replied good naturedly a small laugh. It's true that was only a recent development but... still. "Weeding! It looks like Professor Khanna left us some stuff to do. I'm betting they did it so we could use this as meditation too." Because in Drake's opinion, there was nothing calmer than this. "There's probably some pumpkins that could use some pruning on the stems too if you prefer to do that though!"

Pink was a lovely color! And she looked amazing in it. Did he know? Well he probably didn't and that was alright cause he didn't need to notice things like that about her. Hmm, that's how she is with the creature! Totally loses herself among them. Okay, well that's actually true about many things for her. Keeping very busy was best for her.

"Cause we both like to get dirt?" Bry commented, laughing quietly as she looked around at where they were both standing. "Weeding, okay.. I can help with that." It was certainly an easy enough task that she didn't need magic for at all. "That's probably true, I hadn't thought about that but gardening can be very therapeutic... Just like working with creatures and my ninja training." Such excellent ways to relax and destress. "We can always get to that after we finish with the weeding.. and I planned on picking a little pumpkin to take back to the common room and decorate later if you want go do the same? We can get one for Ary too." Then they could all decorate them together.

[Chelliephone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

Pink was a lovely color! And she looked amazing in it. Did he know? Well he probably didn't and that was alright cause he didn't need to notice things like that about her. Hmm, that's how she is with the creature! Totally loses herself among them. Okay, well that's actually true about many things for her. Keeping very busy was best for her.

"Cause we both like to get dirt?" Bry commented, laughing quietly as she looked around at where they were both standing. "Weeding, okay.. I can help with that." It was certainly an easy enough task that she didn't need magic for at all. "That's probably true, I hadn't thought about that but gardening can be very therapeutic... Just like working with creatures and my ninja training." Such excellent ways to relax and destress. "We can always get to that after we finish with the weeding.. and I planned on picking a little pumpkin to take back to the common room and decorate later if you want go do the same? We can get one for Ary too." Then they could all decorate them together.

While Drake didn't have strong opinions of the color pink one way or another, he still would have said his friend did look good so on that part he could have agreed. It was a bright and cheery color, and it matched her outgoing, bubbly personality. Wasn't it nice to have something they loved so much it made time pass by quickly?

"Well... it sounds especially silly when said outloud actually I guess. But I did mean we aren't afraid to get dirty, more like!" He giggled too, leaning back down among the unwanted foliage and reaching down at the base of a handful and pulling as hard as he could. It was a bit too big of a section, because when it finally came out with a soft pop he fell backwards a little bit. "I agree! Well... at least about gardening and caret aking. The ninja stuff seems like it takes a whole lot more concentration!" Although, he supposed not for her at this point, since she had been doing it for so long. Oooh, pumpkin decorating!? Drake perked a bit, looking over the patch to see if he spotted any good ones. "That sounds like a great idea! If we find some good ones, I might grab a few to decorate to give to our other dorm mates too." They could just spruce up both of the second year Slytherin dorms! "How are things in your dorm this year? Do you like all your dorm mates?"

[Kolyander]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

While Drake didn't have strong opinions of the color pink one way or another, he still would have said his friend did look good so on that part he could have agreed. It was a bright and cheery color, and it matched her outgoing, bubbly personality. Wasn't it nice to have something they loved so much it made time pass by quickly?

"Well... it sounds especially silly when said outloud actually I guess. But I did mean we aren't afraid to get dirty, more like!" He giggled too, leaning back down among the unwanted foliage and reaching down at the base of a handful and pulling as hard as he could. It was a bit too big of a section, because when it finally came out with a soft pop he fell backwards a little bit. "I agree! Well... at least about gardening and caret aking. The ninja stuff seems like it takes a whole lot more concentration!" Although, he supposed not for her at this point, since she had been doing it for so long. Oooh, pumpkin decorating!? Drake perked a bit, looking over the patch to see if he spotted any good ones. "That sounds like a great idea! If we find some good ones, I might grab a few to decorate to give to our other dorm mates too." They could just spruce up both of the second year Slytherin dorms! "How are things in your dorm this year? Do you like all your dorm mates?"

That's alright! When it comes to most colors, Bry liked them. Pink just happened to be her most favorite. Oh! Well.. erm, that was really nice of him to notice and think so. She was bubbly and outgoing, wasn't she? Yesssss! Loves having so many different things to fill her time and keep her busy.

"It's not silly.. it's the truth. Sometimes getting dirty is all a part of the adventure." It was fun. "Oh!" Bry, reached out to try to grab a hold of Drake before he could fall backwards. "That one was trying to take you down.. I saw it!' She laughed even more. "Umm, sometimes but when I'm really in the zone I'm not thinking about anything but completely the course." It was a lot of hard work though.

Bryony smiled brightly. "I bet there's some really great ones further back in the patch." There were so many they could choose from. It shouldn't be too difficult to find a few to bring back with them to help make their dorms more cheery. Reaching down , she wrapped her hands around the base of some not so well looking weeds and yanked. The handful came up relatively easily and she dropped them into a pile. "Yup! It's a lot of the same girls since first year so I know most of them pretty good." True she was closer with a few of them than others, but that happened sometimes.

[Chelliephone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

That's alright! When it comes to most colors, Bry liked them. Pink just happened to be her most favorite. Oh! Well.. erm, that was really nice of him to notice and think so. She was bubbly and outgoing, wasn't she? Yesssss! Loves having so many different things to fill her time and keep her busy.

"It's not silly.. it's the truth. Sometimes getting dirty is all a part of the adventure." It was fun. "Oh!" Bry, reached out to try to grab a hold of Drake before he could fall backwards. "That one was trying to take you down.. I saw it!' She laughed even more. "Umm, sometimes but when I'm really in the zone I'm not thinking about anything but completely the course." It was a lot of hard work though.

Bryony smiled brightly. "I bet there's some really great ones further back in the patch." There were so many they could choose from. It shouldn't be too difficult to find a few to bring back with them to help make their dorms more cheery. Reaching down , she wrapped her hands around the base of some not so well looking weeds and yanked. The handful came up relatively easily and she dropped them into a pile. "Yup! It's a lot of the same girls since first year so I know most of them pretty good." True she was closer with a few of them than others, but that happened sometimes.

She had a very good point, though he had never considered as such. Getting dirty could be part of the adventure, whether that adventure was just one of learning something new, learning what NOT to do (in the case of falling down) and was a far more literal adventure in the sense of learning to sneak into the Prefects bathroom to clean up (not that he would ever). He appreciated her attempt to stop him, and Drake grinned up at her to show as much as he re situated again to balance on his feet so he could grab more weeds. "I suppose I can't blame them if they fight back. We ARE literally uprooting them from their homes." But they picked the wrong spot for homes.

Though... truthfully with the way he said it, he was suddenly feeling a little guilty about the task at hand. Oops.

"Does thinking about the course mean though that you're like really strategizing and stuff on how to do each obstacle? Or does your body just kind of take over and it's muscle memory at this point?" His attention turned fully to her for a moment, not bothering to grab another handful of weeds while his head tilted and he waited for Bry's response. When conversation turned further to pumpkins, Drake glanced over at the rest of the patch, straining his eyes to see those waaaay on the outskirts. "I think you're probably right! We'll have the whole place looking cheery in no time. Great idea, Bryony!" Because he wasn't trying to take credit for her good idea. As for dormmates? He could certainly understand and appreciate knowing some better than others. Drake wouldn't say he disliked anyone in his dorm, but of course he had made far stronger attachment bonds to Aryan and then Jansher. "Do you have a favorite dormmate?" He asked, quietly of course so no one could overhear their conversation. He wouldn't blame her if she declined to answer, but he was merely curious.

[Kolyander]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

She had a very good point, though he had never considered as such. Getting dirty could be part of the adventure, whether that adventure was just one of learning something new, learning what NOT to do (in the case of falling down) and was a far more literal adventure in the sense of learning to sneak into the Prefects bathroom to clean up (not that he would ever). He appreciated her attempt to stop him, and Drake grinned up at her to show as much as he re situated again to balance on his feet so he could grab more weeds. "I suppose I can't blame them if they fight back. We ARE literally uprooting them from their homes." But they picked the wrong spot for homes.

Though... truthfully with the way he said it, he was suddenly feeling a little guilty about the task at hand. Oops.

"Does thinking about the course mean though that you're like really strategizing and stuff on how to do each obstacle? Or does your body just kind of take over and it's muscle memory at this point?" His attention turned fully to her for a moment, not bothering to grab another handful of weeds while his head tilted and he waited for Bry's response. When conversation turned further to pumpkins, Drake glanced over at the rest of the patch, straining his eyes to see those waaaay on the outskirts. "I think you're probably right! We'll have the whole place looking cheery in no time. Great idea, Bryony!" Because he wasn't trying to take credit for her good idea. As for dormmates? He could certainly understand and appreciate knowing some better than others. Drake wouldn't say he disliked anyone in his dorm, but of course he had made far stronger attachment bonds to Aryan and then Jansher. "Do you have a favorite dormmate?" He asked, quietly of course so no one could overhear their conversation. He wouldn't blame her if she declined to answer, but he was merely curious.

Stick around with her more often and he would learn that most things she did could spiral into an adventure somehow. Preparing a lunch in the kitchen could end up with food all over them. A simple walk outside meant her climbing and jumping from things. Life was the adventure! "Probably not but it's not our fault it decided to grow in the grow spot and now it's helping us make some more room for some of its healthier friends to thrive." Yep, the ones they were uprooting were helping other roots grow for more pumpkins. It was a good way to look at it, right?

Bry grinned brightly at Drake's interest in her training. "That's actually an epic question. A lot of the time I'm so in the zone that I just know what I need to do but in my head I remind myself what's next, how far I need to jump or how many swings it might take to get across a certain area. I'm sorta than most still so that can be good for me but also bad." So much went in Ninja Warrior stuff. She had to train as often as she could which never seemed to be enough. Grabbing another handful of weeds Bryony yanked hard on them but these ones seemed to be stuck causing her to have to keeping pulling at them. "Thanks! It's partly your idea too to decorate the dorms." She had only suggested bringing ones back for Ary and themselves. Giving the weeds in her hands a good wiggle to try to loosen them free was helping a bit. "No, I don't think so. I get along with most of them. Etta and Phoebe are really nice." When it came to favorites that was reserved for her family and Aryan.

[Chelliephone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

Stick around with her more often and he would learn that most things she did could spiral into an adventure somehow. Preparing a lunch in the kitchen could end up with food all over them. A simple walk outside meant her climbing and jumping from things. Life was the adventure! "Probably not but it's not our fault it decided to grow in the grow spot and now it's helping us make some more room for some of its healthier friends to thrive." Yep, the ones they were uprooting were helping other roots grow for more pumpkins. It was a good way to look at it, right?

Bry grinned brightly at Drake's interest in her training. "That's actually an epic question. A lot of the time I'm so in the zone that I just know what I need to do but in my head I remind myself what's next, how far I need to jump or how many swings it might take to get across a certain area. I'm sorta than most still so that can be good for me but also bad." So much went in Ninja Warrior stuff. She had to train as often as she could which never seemed to be enough. Grabbing another handful of weeds Bryony yanked hard on them but these ones seemed to be stuck causing her to have to keeping pulling at them. "Thanks! It's partly your idea too to decorate the dorms." She had only suggested bringing ones back for Ary and themselves. Giving the weeds in her hands a good wiggle to try to loosen them free was helping a bit. "No, I don't think so. I get along with most of them. Etta and Phoebe are really nice." When it came to favorites that was reserved for her family and Aryan.

Well considering he didn't see any plausible future in which they could completely ignore each other (nor was he actively looking for one of those), Drake was certain he would at some point see exactly what she meant! "You think this can also be considered the circle of life? Just.... The circle of a plant life?" Pumpkins DID provide a source of decor, entertainment AND food which made them far more worthwhile to give the ground nutrients to than a cluster of foxtails, which were odious little plants.

It was important to her. And if Drake wanted them to be able to continue the path of their own friendship they'd seemed to have started without Ary's company during the summer, then he knew the best place to start was Bryony 's interests. And truly, her hobby WAS fascinating. "So sounds like in summary, a little bit of both?" From what he gathered, her body just KNEW what to do based on how often she trained it and yet her mind was still always thinking of the next task at hand while her muscles completed the current. It was truly fascinating, but even more so impressive. Drake couldn't imagine being able to so efficiently multitask at anything the way that she did. He watched her for a moment as she hugged a new clump, checking to see if she looked like she was also going to fall, before moving on once more. Drake's added suggestion had merely come from not wanting anyone else to feel left out. If he was bringing something for Ary, he'd like to do the same for Jan and even in Bry's dorm Pheebs would love to receive a plant while Etta could always use something to make her smile. "I like them both a lot." The ones she'd named were people he considered close friends as well. It was nice how well knit the Slytherins of their age primarily seemed to be.

[Kolyander]

Anything was possible if they really tried but it wasn't something she really wanted to do. They had come so far in their friendship so it would be very nice to keep things as they were and continue building on that. "Erm.. I suppose it can be? Most things like this somehow fit into that, right?" If they didn't clear out the weeds someone else would or else new healthier pumpkins wouldn't be able to grow. So they were helping.

With the time they had spent together over the summer, Drake should know by now that she could talk about her ninja training all day long. "Basically, yes. If you wanted to keep the details short," she replied laughing. For her, it was easy. With how active she always was this was the perfect type of training for her. It kept her moving constantly. And what she needed was constant movement. As for those weeds in her hands, she was still pulling at them with all her might. Nod nod. "Me too." Why wouldn't this clump of weeds come up?!

[Chelliephone]

Had Drake heard her thought, he would have been pleased as that was exactly how he felt. Even just outside of their shared connection of Aryan, Drake did like Bryony herself as an individual. Something that he wasn't certain he'd properly conveyed in their interactions together thus far. "That's what I was thinking. I've only ever heard it used for the animal world but... technically plants have their own specific circle too!" And humans too could also be part of the plant one, since vegetables existed and were something they consumed which later would become earth nutrients again too. Ahem.

He DID know that he could talk to her about that all day long, which is why it was the subject that he tended to bring up the most. It was safer, safer than speaking of Aryan even. "Extra details are good, but I usually need to summarize to make sure I understood something." he giggled a little bit, giving more yanks to other handfuls of weeds he'd now located. Spotting the difficulty she seemed to be having with hers though, he shuffled over towards her. "Want help? We could both probably put our weight into it and get them to pop up! Some of the roots are really strong!"

[Kolyander]

Was about to disagree when they had come so far over the past two years. It was quite alright, Bry quite understood that she hadn't at all made things easy. For if she had, they could've formed a great friendship waaaaay before this. Never matter though, it was better late than never. "Creatures, humans, plants.. we all have our own little circles that we move about in but we all still need each other." One way or another they all supported each other somehow.

Okay, that was a fair point BUT it didn't always have to be the topic of conversation. Bry was capable of chatting about many other things, like plants and creatures for starters. Oh, Aryan was a topic she could talk about for ages and ages, probably even more so than Ninja Warrior training. Would it be smart for the two of them to speak about him.. well.. that would depend on what was mentioned. Hearing Drake saying that he usually needed to summarize things to understand it, made all the world of sense to her. "Taking in too much information at once is stressful." Cue nods of her head and a smile.

"Alright, this one is really being super stubborn." Bry moved her hands to get a better grip and so that Drake would be able to grab at the weeds too. "Ready? On the count of three we can pull together.."

[Chelliephone]

Drake didn't blame her for that at all. Firstly, he could only imagine how difficult it was to share your person. In fact, he could imagine it quite well considering he had Gilly, even if it was still different. Plus, he had not been easy himself either. It wasn't like Drake had also made concentrated efforts to be outgoing and draw Bryony into more conversation or anything outside of Ary's presence. No, he was definitely just as much to blame for their delayed friendship. But the good news was, it wasn't delayed any longer! "The beauty of ecosystems!" He chirped in response, a giant grin her way. Wasn't it interesting how all of that worked?

There was a breathe of relief when she understood, and he gave a quick nod of his head. "That actually can be why I have trouble in lessons sometimes. If there's too much information thrown at us at one time, I have a hard time summarizing it in my own words to make it make sense. And then the rest of the lesson just kind of goes over my head." Creatures and Herbology were easier on this, because he usually had a foundation for what they were going to be discussing which meant he could summarize quickly. But... Arithmancy? Divination? History? He was beyond lost.

Grabbing a hold of the portion of the weeds she'd let go, Drake gripped firmly and nodded at her words - showing he understood and would wait for her count. He was geared up and ready to throw his whole back into it if needed.

[Kolyander]

Exactly! Ary had always been her person, since day one. Well, there was a time where she had followed around and clung to her big brother Logan but then he started Hogwarts and pretty much did everything in his power to keep himself away from her. That was really what pushed Bry even closer to Ary than she already had been (if that was possible). That boy always understood her and knew how to handle her no matter the situation. Then.. Hogwarts happened and things changed. It was like.. an entirely new world. So much happened all of the time. Some friends took more time to build than others.. like this one. Each day was another step forward. Bryony smiled in return, nodding her head. It was wonderful how everything had to work together in order to keep growing and changing.

Huh?! Drake had the same trouble she did with lessons? Taking in so much info all at once got confusing and it could be a jumbled mess. This was one of the many many reasons why she adored Ary the way that she does, he was a savior to her in always explaining things in a way that made sense. It was also why she took so many notes during lessons. "Ary helps me with that a lot and with my punctuation most times." Surely he had taken notice of that over the past few years. "I struggle to focus in some lessons too." Mostly the ones where she wasn't able to be constantly moving.

With Drake now gripping onto the weeds with her, Bry began to count. "One.. two.. three!" On three the blonde yanked at her portion of weeds with as much of her weight as she could, it finally coming free and knocking her backwards onto her bottom.