Emmaleigh had been wandering around the castle grounds looking for her friends when she heard it. It was a sound she knew so well, the low soft mooing of a calf. She headed towards the sound, hoping it wasn't just her mind playing tricks on her. As she got closer, the sound of other animals met her ears. There was the gentle bleating of sheep and goat, and the occasional clucking from a chicken.

Em saw the enclosure, and shed sanding beside it. She rushed towards the shed, looking for a notice of some kind telling her she was allowed to enter. There wasn't anything there,so she checked the gate. Nothing. She decided to try opening the shed and looking in there. It was a tidy little shed, with all of the items needed to care for the animals. She also found a list telling here which animals got which food. She smiled, She didn't need that.
Hmm. It looked like it was ok to enter, but she wanted to make sure. It wouldn't do to go somewhere she wasn't allowed, and loose house points, Or, gulp, detention.


Emmaleigh had asked the professor, and she had said that students were allowed to be in here. So she entered the shed, and grabbed some hay to feed some of the animals. She entered the enclosure, and ensured that the gate closed all of the way. It wouldn't do to let the animals escape. She headed to the little calf, and gave it a little pat on the head. She fed the hay to him by hand. Then she wandered over to the side of the pasture, and sat down. As she was sitting there, on of the rabbits hopped over to her, so she picked him up and stat him on her lap. As she sat there, a tear ran down her cheek.

It had taken her a while to actually make it to the new shiny creature play area, but the girl had to check on her babies first to make sure they were still there and give them loooove. She could tell by their greeting that they had missed her. Which made her feel loved. Hehe. The bouncy puff stepped through the small door and suppressed the strong urge to squeal in excitement.

There were chickens!! This totally made her year, and making her like professor Saylen even more. Giving the girl in the side of the pasture a distracted smile, not realizing she was in any distress, she turned her attention to the farm animals that were making there way over to her. "Hai guys." She said to them softly. Arya bent down and picked up one of the little kids, and gave him snuggles.

He wasn't 100% sure why he had chosen to follow Arya, or why he had been looking for her in the first place. Maybe it had something to do with missing his friends over the break, or with his most recent endeavor of putting his name in the Goblet of Fire. That, or it was simply that Arya was one of the ones who knew things the others didn't and he felt safe, comfortable, around her. Perhaps, it was a fear of something happening to her, so he felt the unquenchable urge to make sure she was okay.

Whatever the case, he slipped in behind her, unable to suppress the small smile as he watched all the farmyard animals gather about her. "You never told me you had adopted children."

Arya hadn't noticed Sabel following her nor did she know how he had managed to find her here, but she didn't bother asking. All of her friends knew where to find her if they needed to, and knew her usual hangouts, this one was being added to the list. She peeked up from the baying kid at Sabel, grinning. "Are you sure? I could have sworn I mentioned them before."

She snuggled the kid some more. "This one is, Nemo." Cause he was cute, and needed a cute name. "Are you here to adopt a child?" Then there babies could play together, see?

"Pretty sure you didn't." Smiling, he moved up beside Arya and looked down at her adopted child. "Nemo. From Finding Nemo? Cause if that's the case I might just have to adopt one and call it Dory." He cast a glance about. "Can any of 'em speak whale?"

"Well now you know, but he's not the only one. There are others in the nursery, and in here of course." They were ALL her babies now. Hehe. The girl nodded her head. "Yup. He's cute like him, so the name fits." She gave a few pats the the chicken sitting beside her. cuuute chicken. "Dory is a good name, I don't think any of them can speak whale. Since there not fish." She giggled glancing at the other animals.

Chuckling, Sabel dipped his hands in his pockets and looked around. "I'm sure if we found a calf or something, it would be suitable enough." He was relieved that Arya got most of his references to the muggle movie world; most of the wizards just looked at him strangely. Speaking of strange... "Are you okay? I mean...after the whole Goblet of Fire thing..." A possibly touchy subject, but she had appeared extremely worried the entire procedure and he didn't like seeing her that way.

A calf. She had seen one when entering, though he seemed to be preoccupied with the other girl on the far side of the enclosure. When he brought up the incident at the Goblet, she kept quiet for a moment as she stroked Nemo's fur. After the moment passed she shrugged her shoulders gently. She hadn't been so worried about the tournament before, excited in fact. It was when she realized that her friends and not some random students that attended Hogwarts would be entering their name that she began to worry. "I'm just worried about you and Rai." She looked up at him. "I didn't think ya'll would enter your names since you could get hurt." Or die. That was what really worried her, but she wouldn't mention it to him again.

"Why did you enter the tournament?"

Emmaleigh had totally spaced out as she sat petting the little rabbit and crying. She wiped the tears out of eyes, and looked up. Thats when she noticed she wasn't alone. Oh well, she thought, people had to find out about this place eventually. Hmm, maybe should go get some more food for the animals.
Em got up and headed out the gate, and pulled it closed. She entered the little shed, and grabbed more hay and some earthworms too. She headed straight towards on of the cute little goats, and offered it some hay.

Sparing a quick glance at the girl on the other side of the enclosure, he frowned lightly at the expression on her face. Had she been crying? He might have asked, checked to see if she was okay as she headed to the shed, but Arya's words held him tight to the spot. For a moment he turned his frown somewhere distant, not really seeing or hearing the animals shuffle about in the otherwise silence of the enclosure.

"You really want to know..." With a sigh he plopped down beside Arya, glancing at her from the corners of his eyes; he owed her that much at least. "Well, I can tell you I didn't do it for fame, or the reward, or the attention, or for kicks and giggles." Resting back on his elbows he considered his friend with a soft expression. "I may be a fool and thick-headed, but I am not one for actively seeking out death. It's crossed my mind, what it's like, as I'm sure it has for all people both young and old, but I am not so foolhardy as to rush knowingly into danger for the purpose of glory."

Shaking his head he let out a brief, light laugh. "You know me Arya, I have no desire for winnings or rewards." Tilting his head back, he regarded the other animals in the pasture. "If one of these creatures were in danger, you would go and help it yes? Without thinking, you would go?"

Arya nodded her head slowly, eyes following him as he plopped down beside her. She did want to know, needed to know almost. If only to ease her worries. So far he was telling her things she knew, for the most part. Sabel wasn't one for participating in activities for fame, money, or attention. She felt a lot better when he said it wasn't for kicks and giggles, a reason behind many of their adventures around the castle.

He was right about that as well, she did know him. But he still hadn't really answered why he had entered the contest. Wrapping her arms around Nemo, she snuggled him a bit, almost protectively, and nodded her head at Sabel. If it was one thing she would do without thinking, it was help any of her creatures, including little Nemo who she had only just met and was already attached to. "Of course I would." She responded softly, still unsure of where the conversation was leading.

A small smile touched Sabel's lips as he looked back at Arya, his expression soft. "It works the same for me and people. People are to me what your animals are to you. If there is a chance, any chance that I can help, that I can lend a hand against danger, no matter how small, I have to take it."

His smile strained a little, some of the pain showing through again. "I would not be able to sit in the stands and simply watch as students put themselves in peril, as they face death, when I could have had the chance to circumvent it. If there's a way to stop someone from dying, no matter how small, I have to try. I can't just sit and watch and do nothing."

She kept quiet as he explained his reasoning for entering his name in the cup. Though it seemed like a Sabel thing to do, she couldn't stop from worrying. It was in her nature to worry about those she cared for. Just like it was in her nature to care for animals; just like it was in his nature to care for people. "I wouldn't just sit there and watch if something bad was happening to you." She said softly after a long moment of silence passed between them.

Just sit and watch helplessly as one of her best friends was dying. So not in the young puff's nature.

"Its not gonna stop me from worrying......your reason for joining..." He had basically told her that he would jump into harms way to save someone else, and she had seen what happened to those who threw themselves into the line of fire. ".....But I will be there to cheer you and Raiden on.....if your chosen." She ran her fingers through Nemo's short fur, eyes on Sabel.

"I am sure there will be times, when even the onlookers can't get to the contestants fast enough to help them." His smile was kind and understanding as he watched her. "Sometimes, there has to be someone on the inside."

Reaching out, he gave the girl a one-armed hug, his voice quieting. "I appreciate the understanding...and the support. Though I doubt there will be anything to worry about. Goblet probably knows why I'm entering and will spit my name back out shredded into a thousand pieces."

"Doesn't mean I wouldn't try." She said with a small smile. Though she didn't know what help a thirteen year old would be in a tournament for adults, even if the adults were still in school. "Tate's on the inside, Sabel." She reminded him. It wasn't a secret that Arya trusted the man wholeheartedly. "He's more than capable of defending his students."

Leaning into the hug, she loosened her grip on Nemo. Shrugging one shoulder gently, she peeked up at him. "You don't know that," Her voice was soft. "And I guess no one will until the champions are picked." A day she wasn't as excited about as she was before the term started.

Letting out a small half-chuckle, half-sigh, Sabel gave Arya a small squeeze. "He is, I know...but I just couldn't sit there...I just couldn't." His voice softened even more as his eyes dropped to the ground. "No...I don't know if I'll get picked or not, but at least if I do, I can do something to help. I can be active...no like with.......home...."

She knew he couldn't just sit there like she would unknowingly have to do if something happened to one of the champions. Particularly to either of her best friends. That. His last statement. He had said so much and finally answered her question of why he had entered his name. Letting Nemo run off to play with the other kids, she wrapped both arms around Sabel, squeezing him tight.

"Arya...." It began as a protest when she hugged him tight, began as a request for her not to do so, but it was cut off short from the exact thing he was protesting. Tears pressed firmly against his eyes, clouding his vision as his throat constricted with them. He didn't want to cry, not again, not in front of her. He was supposed to be her rock, her supporter. How was he supposed to be strong for her, if he couldn't even be strong for himself. So he sat there, numbly, staring at nothing as the tears threatening to break free turned his vision to a watery, distorted world.

When he called her name, she peeked up at the older boy and her expression sombered. He was about to cry again. One of the things she was realizing was that she hated to see him cry. "Don't cry," She pleaded softly. Arya kept hugging him for a moment, not realizing that she was causing him to cry. She wanted to say that it would be okay, but his home situation wasn't something that simple words could heal, so she did the only thing she could.

It took another moment of her holding him before his body slackened in defeat and he rested his head on her shoulder. Classes hadn't even started, and already he was a mess emotionally, already he couldn't get a grip on it. Weakly, he wrapped his arms around Arya, his body trembling slightly as he fought the tears. She asked him not to cry. He wouldn't cry. For her. He couldn't let himself cry, because it would hurt her. And that's what he tore his focus to; not hurting her.

For a long moment she just sat there, wondering if he was going to cry. It was easier to tell someone not to cry than it was to not cry. She would know, she had done her fair share of crying. Maybe...he needed a distraction. It had always helped her. "Have you met the new creatures professor?"

He spared another short moment of hugging her before pulling back, focusing his eyes elsewhere. Somewhere that he could concentrate on ridding them of their remaining tears. A small shake of the head brought a slow breath in. "I haven't."

Slowly she pulled away from the hug, pulling one of the bunnies nearby into her lap. "She's....different than Lady Lawson.....not as nice." She mused, stroking the brown bunny. "But I think that she's just not used to being around so many kids. She seems like she can be really nice once she settles in." Not Lawson nice, but still nice enough to hug.

He nodded slowly, letting himself return his eyes to Arya to watch her cuddle a rather cute looking bunny. "Lawson is...on maternity leave...right?" The words were difficult enough to get out, but he managed a small smile for it. "I'm guessing...this new professor...doesn't have any kids of her own?"