Anya bounced on the balls of her feet. "Peter Pan? Really?" she asked excitedly. She loved that movie. There was just something to love about a boy who loved being a kid so much... that he didn't grow up.

Anya personally thought that grown ups needed to act more like kids more often.

"Sounds good." she said with a smile. She was a fan of eating. "Lead the way, Valentine."

Alec grinned. Anya was bouncing up and down like some sort of excited bunny. And that meant that she was happy about this! YES! He had done something else right! "Absolutely!" he said, still grinning. Now it was just a matter of whether she'll enjoy the movie or not.

Valentine? That sounded kind of nice. He could get used to being called that. "Follow me, Valentine," Alec said, leading the way towards the table. He grabbed two plates and handed one to Anya. "I think most of these are your favourites." Which meant gummy bears! Lots of gummy bears! "Take as much as you like!" he said, letting her take the first pick of everything the table had to offer.

Anya beamed. Peter Pan was one of her ALL TIME FAVORITE movies ever! And she couldn't wait to get it started.

But, food came first.

She followed Alec over to the table. He handed her a plate. Anya looked at it.

Then she smirked and set it on the table. She took the plate out of Alec's hands and set it back down as well. "Forget the plates." she said. She handed Alec the WHOLE bowl of popcorn, and took the WHOLE bowl of gummy bears.

Then she grabbed Alec's hand and dragged him over to couches. She plopped into it. "Movie time!" she declared.

Alec blinked. Anya had taken the plate and had set it back on the table again. What was she doing? Didn't she want to eat any of the delicious food? ... This was not like Anya at all...

But then she started speaking and Alec couldn't help but grin at her. Yep, that was very Anya-like. He gripped the bowl of popcorn tightly and let her drag him over towards the couches.

Right. Movie time! He stuck the movie into the little DVD player and walked back towards Anya and the couches. "You ready?" he asked, settling the bowl down on his lap. Now the movie needed to start so they can watch it properly. Just like they used to back at home.

"Yup." Anya sang as Alec started the movie. Once the movie started she scooted a bit closer. She helped herself to both the gummy bears and the popcorn.

And as the movie progressed she found her head on his shoulder.

She giggled a little after the part where Peter Pan saved Tiger Lily. "Do you think you'd notice if so many girls liked you?" she asked absent-mindedly. To her it was obvious. The whole movie was practically about an oblivious boy.

Alec wrapped his arm around Anya's shoulder as she scooted closer towards him. Just like the days back at home when they would go over to each other's houses to watch a movie. Mostly Peter Pan. He took some popcorn and stuffed them into his mouth. Mmmm!

He didn't know when Anya head found itself onto his shoulder but one thing he did know was that it felt nice. Nice and normal. So let her keep it there as he ate some gummy bears.

And... what? Would he personally? Alec looked from Anya to the screen and then back again. "Erm, i don't think so?" he said, "I wouldn't expect so many girls to be running after me in the first place." Not that any would. "Would you expect a lot of boys to be running after you?"

Anya munched on the popcorn thoughtfully. She was one of those weird girls that got philosophical when watching movies. Not that she called it being philosophical. She figured movies just helped her imagination.

She looked up and it and smiled. "Are you kidding Blakey? I fully expect to have to fight my way to stay your best friend." Yup. Anya Phillips was NOT going down without a fight. You hear that future Alec lovers?

She leaned her head back against his shoulder. "Of course." she replied. She then burst out laughing. "Did you really just ask me that?" she giggled. Did he expect her to say yes or something?

Alec ate some more popcorn as he looked sideways at Anya. She was taking this so seriously! His best friend was funny! He had never seen anyone concentrate on a movie so much! Shaking his head, Alec turned his attention back to the front and continued watching.

Alec rolled his eyes. "I think the other girls will have to fight to have to be my girlfriend," he said, grinning, "And do you think i'll let that happen?" No no no! No one's taking Anya away from him! Not that anyone could in the first place...

Of course? Alec let out a chuckle at Anya's answer. Trust Anya to make a joke about something like this. "I wanted to know, Rilez!" he said, still chuckling, "I think i'll have to fight to spend time with you when the boys start running after you."

Nate shook his head slightly and closed his eyes. "I'd honestly put five galleons on it, if I cared to bet. But I can't bet, because I need to save my money now that the parents are dead and such," he said flatly. As he said it, though, a troubling thought occurred to him. Had he gotten over his parents' deaths too quickly? No. he decided. It's just that now is the time to be strong, so I'm being strong, not heartless. His forming tears went along with the thought as he rolled onto his side--almost instinctively toward Jez and Pam--and fell asleep, softly crying into his pillow. He really couldn't care less whether Jez saw him like this: it wasn't good to hide things from people. Especially people that you counted on so much to know you, and the way you think and act.

Anya took her head off of Alec's shoulder and blinked. Fight to be his girlfriend? And he wasn't going to let that happen? What did that mean exactly?

She leaned her head back against his shoulder. Did that mean he didn't want a girlfriend?

Ooooh! Or maybe that meant that he had someone in mind already? She'd have to ask him about that later.

Anya laughed and shrugged. "I dunno." she said in a light tone. "You said I'm pretty, right? So maybe." It still struck her as odd that Alec was actually interested in what she thought about that.

She smiled. "Oh Blakey. I wouldn't worry too much about that. Other boys are boring." she said reaching over and grabbing some more popcorn. She couldn't imagine wanting to spend time with other boys.

Had... Alec... just confused her? It seemed like it because Rilez had taken her head off and had blinked at him. But then she was putting her head back in its rightful movie position; his shoulder. There. It was all better now. And maybe she wasn't confused or whatever it was she was before.

Alec nodded. "You are pretty," he said. He was the lucky one to have a best friend like her, really. "That's why the other girls should be scared." They might start to think of Anya as some sort of competition. Weird.

She wouldn't? Alec grinned. "And what if someone like Peter Pan came up to you and said they wanted to be your boyfriend?" he asked. Anya couldn't resist Peter Pan could she?

Anya chuckled. "Scared of what exactly?" she asked. "That I might take all the boys? Or get to you first?" She laughed again. That would be a sight.

Besides. She already had Alec. She was already his favorite.

She giggled. "Peter Pan? The boy that never grows up? Isn't a boyfriend kind of a grown up thing?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "I hardly think I'm worth growing up over."

Or maybe he was referring to someone that had a lot of adventures.

Jez watched Nate falling asleep, her own sadness welling up in her eyes and spilling over. She reached out and gently wiped the tears from his cheek. She hated seeing him like this. It wasn't bad for him to cry, and she thought no less of him for it, but she hated him being in pain. She was pretty sure Pam was asleep by now as well. Jez leant closer to Nate, her lips near his ear. "I promise you'll never hurt like this again, Nathaniel. I promise." With that, she settled back down into the bed, curling into a ball and closing her eyes, her hand still resting lightly on Nate's cheek.
She was asleep in seconds.

But Pam wasn't asleep. Not really. She had started to, but Jez brought up the letter, and instead of saying something, she tried to shrug it off. She wanted to know what happened to her dad, and Keegan had been avoiding her letters, or so she thought. So she had rolled onto her other side, and listened to what Nate and Jez were talking about.

Then she heard tears, and a promise. And finally she was glad about one thing. Her and Jez had the same thought. Pam didn't want Nate hurt again either. But she didn't know what she could do. She was a small second year, who wasn't even allowed to do magic outside of Hogwarts. How could she help? How could she keep the one she loved from getting hurt?

She brought her fingers up to her neck, and sighed with relief as she found her new locket still hanging around her neck. She hadn't told Jez or Nate about it yet, though she was planning on it. Eventually.

Alec grinned. The other girls should be scared, whether Anya liked to admit it or not. "Yeah!" he said, nodding, "The boys will be too busy looking at you to notice them." She was really pretty.

And what did she mean by 'get to him first'?

Alec let out a small chuckle. Right. Anya was really smart about all this. Mainly everything. He had a smart best friend! "Maybe..." he said, "But doesn't Peter Pan give Wendy a thimble?" That was pretty... grown up.

"If i was Peter Pan, i'd grow up for you," Alec whispered, letting a small smile cross his face.

Anya chuckled and shook her head. "Yeah right, Alec. Like that would ever happen." She nudged him playfully. "But thanks." She had a feeling that even if there weren't any guys interested later down the road, that she'd be just fine. She did have an amazing best friend after all.

"I think it happened the other way around. Wendy gives Peter Pan a..." Did Alec just say thimble? "Kiss. At the end." She smiled a little. Alec was afraid of kisses. Which amused Anya. And she totally planned on using it to her advantage in a tight spot.

She giggled a little. "I'd rather have a grown up Alec, honestly." she said. "Peter Pan wouldn't be as fun if he grew up." That was really the whole point of him.

Nudge nudge! Alec grinned. "I think it'll happen," he said, "I'll have to fight to get your attention soon." Anya could end up ignoring him if she was being followed by a lot of guys. Yeah, he needed his own plan around his now. "You're welcome!" he added in, still grinning.

The other way round? Alec blinked up at the screen as his mouth formed a small 'O' shape. Yeah, it was Wendy to give Peter Pan a kiss, as Anya put it. "So Wendy grew up before Peter Pan?" he asked. He was pretty sure Peter Pan had grown up as well.

"Like a man?" Alec said, trying not to snigger. "He could be the best grown up around." Especially if he still knew what it was like to be an awesome kid. "What would you do if he said that he had grown up for you, wanted to kiss you and take you to Neverland?" Anya couldn't say that she would be able to resist him then.

Anya laughed. "Please. You won't have to fight your way through anything. You're my best friend." Her number one. Her right hand man.

She probably wouldn't even notice if a guy liked her. She'd be too busy riding topiaries and playing quidditch and hanging out with Blakey.

She nodded at his question. "Yeah. They say girls mature faster than boys." And that they were smarter. But Anya wasn't going to rub that in.

She shook her head. "I don't think so. I think if he were to grow up, it would be weird. He'd be weird. You can't just go from being a kid forever to growing up." It didn't work that way. Which made it even sadder. She didn't think that Peter Pan could ever grow up. Even if he wanted to.

Anya smirked at Alec's question. "Are you trying to sell me off to Peter Pan, Blakey?" she asked with a laugh.

Alec grinned. Even though it was true, it felt nice when Anya said that he was her best friend. Really nice. No other boys could say that they were her best friend, now could they? "And it'd better stay that way, Rilez," he said, sticking his tongue out at her.

And of course, she would stay his bestest friend forever and ever and ever. Like it should be.

Alec nodded. That probably made a lot of sense. His dad had always said that girls tend to grow up faster than boys. "So you're going to grow up before me?" Couldn't they grow up together? Like it should be? It wouldn't be fair if Anya grew up and then left him behind.

... Really? Peter Pan and weird? "I think he'd be awesome!" Alec said, "He'd be like a kid but all grown up. And he'd still be able to have fun and not be boring!" That was important! Most grown ups were boring and always complained a lot. Peter Pan could set them straight and teach them to be fun.

Alec let out a chuckle. Sell her off to Peter Pan? 'No, because then you'll have to leave me!" And there was no way he was going to let that happen, even if Peter Pan came and said that he wanted to whisk Anya away. "But if he did come and kiss you, would you think he was being weird?"

Anya chuckled. "It will. As long as you never get weird on me." she replied sticking out her tongue too. Even if he did get weird, Anya still had a hard time picturing life without him.

She shrugged. "Maybe." she said. "Maybe I can try to hold off... and you can try to grow up quick." Maybe then they'd grow up around the same time.

She was quiet for a moment. Then she said, "I dunno. I think there's a difference between a grown up having fun and a grown up acting like a kid." Growing up was just something that happened. It wasn't a bad thing.

She chuckled again. "So why are you asking?" It seemed silly for him to ask about something that he didn't want to happen. She blinked. "Umm... no..." she said blushing a little. "I don't think there's anything weird about kissing..."

"Get weird? And me?" Alec said, chuckling, "You know you'll never be able to get rid of me." He was planning on staying her best friend forever and ever and ever, whether she liked it or not. He stuck his tongue out at her again.

Alec nodded. That didn't seem like such a bad idea. "Can you even do that?" he asked. Maybe if he did grow up quickly, they could grow up at the same time. And then they can both go weird on each other. "I think we should do this, Rilez."

Oh... Anya was kind of right. Alec looked at the screen and at Peter Pan. There was a big difference between the two. "Then grown up Peter Pan will just be a grown up having fun?" he asked, shrugging. He didn't really know what a grown up does to have fun but it can't be that much different from what kids do. ... Right?

Why was he asking? Alec shrugged. "I was just curious, i guess," he said. He grinned over at Anya just in time to see her... blush? Alec gave her a small nudge. "Even if it's Peter Pan?"

Anya smiled and shook her head. She was fine with that. But she wasn't going to let Alec know that. It was fun to watch him squirm. Squirmy Alec.

For added measure she stuck her tongue out too.

She shrugged. "It's worth a try, right?" And then they could be all growy uppy together. She nodded in agreement. They were going to grow up together. Perfect.

She giggled. "Curious? You were curious as to what I'd do if a boy wanted to kiss me?" Alec was silly. She rolled her eyes. "Especially if it's Peter Pan."

"Why? What would you do if you a girl wanted to kiss you?"

She'd just ignore the fact that she already had.

And Anya was just... smiling? She wasn't going to do or say anything else? Alec shook his head slowly. His Rilez thought he was going to turn into one of those weird boys. This was not good. So Alec stuck his tongue back out at Anya. There.

"Right!" Alec said, nodding, "Then we can grow up together. Like it should be." And they can spend a lot of time flying kites as well! As long as both of them still liked kite flying.

Yeah, it probably sounded weird to be talking about all this kissing stuff but he was curious. Really. "It sounds dumb but yeah, i was," he said, shrugging his shoulders and grinning cheekily at his best friend, "I know how much you like Peter Pan. Can you blame me for being curious?"

If a girl wanted to WHAT?! Alec blinked. "So a girl like Wendy?" His eyes drifted up towards the movie screen as he watched Wendy carefully. "Erm, i don't know?" He wasn't going to mention the fact that she was the only girl to have kissed him before. "I think it depends on the girl."

But kissing was ICKY!

Anya giggled under her breath. "I just thought it was weird that you were curious." She said with a shrug. They never really had this type of conversation before.

And they'd been friends for a long time.

But if they were just talking about Peter Pan... then that was fine.

Except... she wasn't just talking about that...

"No. A girl like... any girl." she corrected. She giggled once more. "You don't know?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Didn't he think kissing was gross?

Kurumi had tried to sit down in the library to write the essay, but her mind still didn't understand the concepts presented in the seminar and she had no clue how to write an entire essay on magical music theory since they really hadn't gone into details during the lesson. It seemed to be asking a bit much of them all. So, Kurumi had closed the books and decided that she needed to just do something to relax. With so many thoughts on her mind, Kurumi was surprised when she found herself in front of the Room of Requirement, but she took that as a hint that she actually needed to use it.

Stepping inside, and wondering just what form it was going to take, Kurumi was startled when there was nothing but a long wooden floor with tan walls and a grand piano in it. She did NOT want to play the piano right now...yet she did at the same time. The piano not only reminded her of her mother, but of Jonathan as well. She missed him terribly and really needed him more than she ever thought that she would.

Sitting down at the piano and placing her hands on the keys, Kurumi only played a few notes. Nothing in particular, just swept her hands across the ivories and then leaned back on the stool before removing some sheet music from her bag as well as her wand from her robes. Her heart just wasn't in the actual process of playing music herself, but maybe she could...

Wand pointing at the sheet music now, Kurumi took a deep breath. "Ludo Totalum," she whispered before turning her wand towards the piano and making circular movements with her wand. "Ludo Solus."

There was no glow and nothing out of the ordinary when she cast the spell. The piano remained as it always had been and no sound came from it. She should have know. Intent was half of the power of magic and hers was next to zero right now. Sighing, Kurumi leaned her elbows on the piano and buried her face in her hands. She.Was.Not.Going.To.Cry.