"I'm good at that." The whole good choices thing. She'd made a few. Yep.

Hehe.

"Ah, it's not that easy, you know. For most people it is, but I get the feeling that you're not quite like most people." Not really, and it wasn't like he was going to tell her his life story, so why should she so easily give him details about her?

"How about this, you ask a question, and maybe you'll get an answer." Playing hard to get? A little. Testing the honesty of his interest? Quite.

"Eve." Evelyn corrected Lewis as she sat down on the grass beside him and folded her legs underneath her Indian style. She was so used to people calling her Eve that she felt really weird if someone called her Evelyn. Anyway. Um, wait. "You don't mind me joining you, right?" She knew that he wouldn't mind but..you know. In case, he was meeting up someone else. She ran a hand through her hair, staring at the creepy looking tree for a moment before Lewis's voice distracted her.

Could he ask her something? Evelyn turned to look at him and smiled. "Of course." She hoped she'd know the answer to his question though. "What's up?"

The Pygmy Puff was waddling further and further away from him, towards the tree. Darwin's pace increased as the little ball of purple's did, and he wondered WHY on EARTH his PET was in such a hurry to escape him. It didn't make sense! The little thing was usually so content, in his pocket or on his shoulder or even buried in his hair, and this was just out of character!

That, and the fact that it was FAST. Since when had it been FAST? Although its movements were still halting and jarred, it was speeding away from him faster than the twelve year old had ever imagined the stupid tiny creature could go, and he couldn't even catch up to it, despite being about one-million-billion-trillion! times it's size.

Darwin blamed the head start it had had whilst he'd been trying to eat his Skittles, which now lay all but forgotten about on the ground behind him, the now-empty packet still clutched tight in his fist.

Determined to catch up with the animal, Dar's eats barely registered the scream that came from behind him - after all, there were so many people at this school he was used to blotting out noises that he didn't think were directed at him. What he WASN'T used to blotting out, if blotting it out were even possible, was people ATTACKING him from behind. ATTACKING him SUPER hard and causing him to fall to the ground. "GERROFF ME!" was the boy's first shout, muffled by the mouthful of grass he was struggling to spit out. "GERROFF ME! I NEED TO GET PAUL!"

And he would have cursed the mean ATTACKER to HELL if he hadn't been scared or known how had been able to reach his wand, which was now pinned underneath him.

Sophie gave a small smile at Ella, still thankful she hadn't harmed Barny.

Ella seemed to have suddenly realised what she was doing and didn't seem too comfortable with it. Sophie's smile widened a bit in a reassuring way. She knew that Ella should at least try and teach her Pygmy Puff how to behave. What could happen with it if Ella wasn't around to watch him all the time?? He should learn that the Whomping Willow was not a good company for the ones who couldn't think properly.

Sophie frowned curiously. He's been acting weird for a while then? "Maybe professor Williamson can help?" And she couldn't help but chuckle at Ella' question about Pygmy Puff shrinks. That sounded crazy! But... "Dunno, maybe there is?"



And she saw with the corner of her eye two things moving really fast towards the Whomping Willow. She turned her head in that direction just in time to see Alec juping on someone. O_o she didn't know Alec was the fighting kind... then she noticed something else going towards the Willow.

ANOTHER PYGMY PUFF!!! WHAT WAS HAPPENING TO THOSE CREATURES???

Her eyes widened and she put her hands over her mouth to keep her from screaming. She didn't want to use the Freezing Charm on another Puff and risk to hurt it! And she was too far to run for it... OHMERLIN, NOWWHAT??

Ella nodded. "I was thinking the same thing. I think I'll try and see Professor Williamson after classes one day. Besides I adopted Barny after working with him in Williamson's class so maybe he has some ideas." She giggled at Sophie's reaction to her shrink question. "I know it's silly but it doesn't seem so crazy, not after coming to Hogwarts." Nope, after coming here anything seemed possible.

Ella followed Sophie's gaze and saw what could only be another runaway puff headed towards the willow. "What in the name of merlin!" She said, watching as Alec, her fellow Hufflepuff, seemed to tackle the thing. She looked at Barny and then over to Sophie in disbelief. What was happening to the puffs at Hogwarts?

The blonde guy slightly frowned. This girl was.. strange and stubborn. And Freak too. No one ever called him by silly nicknames. "I told you, Gary is only my nickname. My real name is Gerald." since there were two Geralds in his former school, so many people called him Gary and he was stuck on it.

"But.." He started to speak again. "That's okay if you want to call me by your silly nicknames. But just between us. You must call me Gary if we are in front of others." Gary was too lazy to have a silly argument with a girl. That's useless, and wasting time too. See? His theory was never wrong. Girls are weird, strange, noisy, annoying, stubborn, and etc. All girls except Zhenya, maybe. Okay, you didn't need to think about her again, Gary Rush!

Oh, she was also a fifth year, Slytherin too? Of course she was Slytherin, since he met her in Slytherin house table at the feast. "Well, we are same." said him casually. "And What do you mean that I didn't look normal?" asked him cold.

Now, Paulie had been visiting the Hogwarts grounds quite a bit lately, and today was no different. This afternoon, however, Paulie found himself ambling down the pathway the led to the infamous Whomping Willow. Of course it was dangerous and probably murdered, on average, about three-hundred birds a year, but it was still vaguely entertaining when one was bored and needed a break from the Hogwarts commotion or piles of homework.

So, after finding a spot on the grass that looked as good as any, Paulie took a seat on the cool ground and leaned back on his palms. He'd better take considerable care that he didn't fall asleep here!

"Can I call you Gerald then?" It was his REAL names so why not? Her uncle was called Gerald so it was old name. But Elisabet was also an old name and a long one too. The boy was annoying and tall. Too tall. He was like 6'2. The boy spoke. Ugh. He was annoying and whined to much about nicknames. He said he could call him Apple Monster and Rushman. Smirk. Big smirk.


"Never mind... How tall are you? Just wondering." she was tiny compared to hi. So tiny though she was better and more awesomer.

Lewis blinked a couple of times in surprise at her correcting him. Her name WAS Evelyn, though, wasn't it? It had to be or else she would have corrected him sooner. AND he was pretty sure she'd introduced herself as Evelyn to him. "Eve." He repeated slowly with a nod, making a mental note of that name. She would always be Evelyn to him though.

Simply nodding some more at her asking if she could join him, he was back to looking at Vanilla in the grass again. "Do you think it would be weird if I...assumed the same position Vanilla is in right now?" Lewis asked seriously, glancing back at Evelyn for a moment before letting his eyes rest on the sleeping feline again.

Evelyn noticed that he seemed a little surprised.. "Well, I like people calling me Eve..but you can continue calling me Evelyn, if you want." It wasn't like she didn't like being called Evelyn..Eve was preferable. Heh. Anyway. It was up to him. She didn't mind either way, really. Her eyes shifted to his cat, Vanilla. No, she didn't like cats in general but Vanilla..was different. In a weird kind of way. At least, she didn't behave like some of the other cats around school.

Hm? BLINK. Evelyn stared at him for a moment, wondering if he was serious. That's what he wanted to ask her? Yeah, he looked serious. Unfortunately, she couldn't stop the sudden burst of laughter that escaped her lips. She bit her lip for a moment, waiting for her laughter to subside. "Yeah." She looked at Vanilla before her eyes shifted back towards Lewis. "Yeah, I think it would be really weird." Evelyn said, a smile still playing on her lips.

The blonde guy thought a while. Gerald? No one ever called him Gerald since he was in Salem, except people in his family. He felt strange with the name, but it was his real name right? Better to be called Gerald than she started calling him but those weird and silly nickname.

"Deal." he smirked.

And why did she asked him about his height now? Was he too tall for his age? Maybe yes. "Around 6 feet, maybe?" He didn't remembered yet because he hadn't measure it since last year. "Why?" suddenly he asked.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cedric

Now, Paulie had been visiting the Hogwarts grounds quite a bit lately, and today was no different. This afternoon, however, Paulie found himself ambling down the pathway the led to the infamous Whomping Willow. Of course it was dangerous and probably murdered, on average, about three-hundred birds a year, but it was still vaguely entertaining when one was bored and needed a break from the Hogwarts commotion or piles of homework.

So, after finding a spot on the grass that looked as good as any, Paulie took a seat on the cool ground and leaned back on his palms. He'd better take considerable care that he didn't fall asleep here!

Gideon hadn't been lying when talking to Selina the other day, the weather had been pretty nice, far nicer then it tended to be most of the time around this time of year. So anyone and everyone was taking advantage of this good fortune and the sixth year prefect was no different. He had been hanging out down on the grounds for a bit before finally heading back towards the castle...and the whomping willow that was in the vicinity.

He paused in his strolling taking in the fresh air around the energetic tree and after awhile was about to resume his walking when he spotted a Gryffindor seated off nearby. Taking a few steps closer, the slight reconization of earlier was confirmed, a certain head boy apparently chilling near the grounds around said tree. "Enjoying yerself and the flash of danger?" he mused as he slowly ambiled closer to his housemate.

"N-no. It's fine. I'll call you Eve." He didn't want her to not like him because he was calling her Evelyn after all. That was the last thing he wanted. Since they were actually getting along quite well and all. He was just going to call her Evelyn in his head. "I...don't have any nicknames." That he knew of anyway. Not that she had asked but you know.

Okay, he had not expected her to laugh like that.

Lewis blushed furiously and bit his lip, this time deliberately not looking at her. What was so funny? Why was she laughing at him? "I thought so..." He muttered rather sadly, his gaze still on Vanilla. He then tilted his head almost 90° to the side so it was mirroring the way his cat's was right now. "But it looks so comfortable..." Plus, it looked so easy. So relaxing. Like you could just forget everything.

Alec didn't know why he did what he did. Maybe something inside of him just wanted to save this unknown, strange boy? Because there was no way he was going to let the boy get hurt by that vicious tree! It was a mean, mean tree and he was pretty sure that the boy was nice! Really nice! He shouldn't have a mean tree whipping him around like whipped cream!

... Except whipped cream was already whipped.

And another thing! Why was this boy running after the tree? Did he want to get hurt? The tree could squish him! He was only a small boy compared to the huge tree... And the boy didn't even have a broom! He was lucky that Superman Alec was here to save him from something that would have been really really horrible!

... Now he was just confused. This boy was slightly weird, wasn't he? Who wanted to get hurt by the tree and then stopped someone from saving them? That was just weird. And it didn't make sense to the young Hufflepuff. None of this made any sense. How did he go from chasing sweeties to being confused?

Is this what happens when you turn into a teenager?

AND WHY WAS HE CALLING THE TREE PAUL?! Alec shook his head and pinned the boy down some more. "I'm not getting off until you stop chasing the tree!" he said, "And why are you calling the tree 'Paul'?" ... Was that the tree's official name? Like his name was Alec and the boy's name was... something. He'll find out later.



Alec didn't really realise how weird this must look to people who were around the tree as well. All he had been concerned about was saving the poor boy from getting hurt! He was just doing his job and being like Superman! That's all! No one can say that he wasn't doing a good job because, according to him, he was!

It was just as Alec flipped his hair to the side that he noticed two people looking in their direction. ... What? Who were they? He squinted slightly as he tried to make out the two girls. They seemed really really familiar! As if he had known them for AGES and had talked to them before. ... Odd.

... IT WAS SOPHIE AND ELLA! And they were looking at him, Alec, and this strange boy! What were they going to think now? That he was being mean? That they were wrestling? That he had saved someone's life? ... He hoped it was that last bit! Alec smiled slightly and waved at the two girls. "HEY!"

Ella checked on Barny, making sure the scene in front of him hadn't renewed his interest in offing himself rolling towards the willow. He seemed unhappy but still content with sitting in the same spot which was a relief. Turning her attention back to what appeared to be a wrestling match, Ella was relieved to see Alec was okay. He didn't look like he was mad or anything which meant that they probably weren't fighting which was good. But what exactly was he doing then?

The second year smiled when she heard Alec calling out to them. She returned the wave and decided to walk over and find out what in merlin's name was going on. "Come on Soph, let's go see what happened! And you, Barnabus, you stay put." Cause he was in BIG trouble, mister!

When she got to Alec, she was able to make out another boy who looked to be around their age. Looking from one to the other, she raised her eyebrows. "What happened? It looked like-but you wouldn't-Is everyone okay?" Cause that was the most important thing, right? Plus, Ella knew Alec was a nice boy and probably wouldn't be partaking in a fight. And then there was the puff that they had seen. Had it tried to make a run for it like Barny had a short time ago? Seriously, what was up with those puffs?!

Paulie heard footsteps. Not too many students were interested in the Whomping Willow at the moment, so he picked up on the subtle squish of the grass coming from behind him. Soon after came a voice, one that he had recognized from the train. Upon turning, he saw that it was indeed the Gryffindor prefect.

"Oh, hey, mate. Yep, I guess so. Though I reckon I'm a bit far to be too worried about injury." Unless the tree were to swat some bird really hard and send the thing flying directly at Paulie Foster! That'd be quite the sight.

He padded the ground. "Take a seat, if you're in no rush."

Sophie's eyes were still wide as she watched the other Pygmy Puff run to the Whomping Willow. She didn't give much thought about the boys on the ground and when Ella went in their direction, Sophie made her way towards the Willow.

OHMERLINWASSHEGOINGTOGETHIT??? She didn't want to use the Freezing Spell! BUT WHAT SHOULD SHE DOOO??? Not being able to have a better idea, she kept running like mad towards the tree praying she wouldn't get hit.

"THE PYGMY PUFF!! IT'S GOING TOWARDS THE WILLOW!!!" AAAHHHHH!!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cedric

Paulie heard footsteps. Not too many students were interested in the Whomping Willow at the moment, so he picked up on the subtle squish of the grass coming from behind him. Soon after came a voice, one that he had recognized from the train. Upon turning, he saw that it was indeed the Gryffindor prefect.

"Oh, hey, mate. Yep, I guess so. Though I reckon I'm a bit far to be too worried about injury." Unless the tree were to swat some bird really hard and send the thing flying directly at Paulie Foster! That'd be quite the sight.

He padded the ground. "Take a seat, if you're in no rush."

Gideon met Paulie's gaze as the head boy turned, his footsteps soft but not absolutely queit. "Hey," he returns back with a simple nod at the greeting, listening to the answer to his musing. "Aye...true enough," he agreed once his new position gave him a better judge of distances. The branches were not overly too close to clobber anyone from where they were at the moment.

The prefect glanced at the spot on the ground as the older boy motioned to it as if debating if he should stay. He really had no further plans as anything scheduled had long past and they were free for the rest of the day. The boy finally moving to sit, folding his long legs beneath him. "Nae...no rush at all."

Milton raised an eyebrow. You're right," he said, smirking. "I'm better than most people." Heh. Anyways. This whole playing hard-to-get was kind of... hot? Sure. She was, anyway. Smirk.

"Fine. I see how it is," he said with a slight cock of his left eyebrow. But he wanted to play this game. He wanted to... get to know her. She was an interesting girl. Very intriguing. Very pretty. Compelling... Anyway.

Pressing his lips together, Milton took a deep breath and pondered. "If you had to chose between the dusty, dry sand of the Sahara, or those frozen terrain of Siberia... which would it be?" Because a normal, general, ice-breaker question was far too mainstream.

Right. "That's fine by me." Evelyn couldn't help but notice that he looked slightly..nervous? Or..was he just shy? She opened her mouth to ask him if something was wrong but decided against it. She didn't want to make things all awkward between them..like the last time they'd met in the Great Hall. Oh? He didn't have any nicknames? Evelyn couldn't but smirk. She could definitely help him out. "Okay. Let's see..." She pretended to think about the potential nicknames for Lewis for a moment, before she said, "How about..Lou?"

Oh, gosh. Evelyn was amused when she saw how red his face was. She'd never seen a guy blush like that..and it wasn't like she was making fun of him or something. She was a little taken aback by the question, that's all. Shaking her head, her eyes shifted back towards the tree, hoping he wouldn't notice the smile on her face. "Well, you can if you want to.." It would be incredibly weird if he lied down in the same position as Vanilla but..if he wanted to, he could.

For the first time in about a few years, João wanted to just sit somewhere without doing anything at all. Well, sure, thinking was an activity... for the lazy and 'philosophers'. It always bugged him to no end, for he was that capable to think of something else while doing another thing. This time though, with so much in his head, he had this sudden urge to sit and think. And he was going to sit by the Whomping Willow, of course, to watch the tree hunt trees at the same time. It inspired him, in a way.

With a heavy coat on in this weather--his hot Brazilian blood couldn't support the humid British air--he lay a blanket down on the grass by a tree--he couldn't afford his expensive jeans getting grass-stained--and sat down, facing the tree, doing absolutely nothing other than thinking.

It had taken nearly a week for Ellie to open the gift from her boyfriend. It was just strange that he wasn't there to watch. And she was afraid she would like it, as she most likely would, because he wasn't there for her to thank him. Besides the fact that the letter alone brought her to tears, and the gift itself couldn't be much better.

But it was, actually. It was amazing. And she was SO excited to put it to use. So the Captain, with Jacob's bag and binders over her shoulder, and her gift in her hand, walked down to the Willow to work. Because the Willow was the best place to do anything, in her opinion.

Only, upon arriving, she saw that someone else was there. Not that that was uncommon, students were always running around the Willow, but this particular person was exactly where she'd meant to go. That tree. Her tree, as she was declaring it. Ellie stopped walking and stared for a bit, weighing her options.

Finally, she decided to just...share the tree. Mhm. With the weird kid with the jacket. Surely he wouldn't be...disturbing or nosy or anything, right? The redhead walked up to him, "Mind if I sit here?" It was her tree, after all, he should let her.

Just in the middle of his remembering the events of the week, someone interrupted his thinking.

At first, João didn't register that the question was directed at him, despite seeing the girl right in front of him. He stared at some point in the distance for a second more, before blinking with a small frown, confused.

"S--sorry, what?" He looked up at her. Oh, he knew her! She was the Ravenclaw Captain, no?

"I mean, no. You can sit here." He offered her a small smile as he scooted over a bit to make room for her on the blanket. It was a revolution for him, actually, that he wasn't angry when someone had interrupted his thinking PLUS he was sharing something of his. She seemed nice though and asked it politely, maybe that was the reason. She wasn't like some others who tried to feed him to piranha plants.

"You're the Ravenclaw Captain." It wasn't a question actually, but he still expected a confirmation.

Oh....she....shouldn't have interrupted him. But, it wasn't like he was giving her LOOKs of any kind suggesting she back off. Which she wouldn't anyway cause...her tree. Just when Ellie opened her mouth to ask again, he seemed to have processed what she'd said. Or figured it out on his own. Whatever.

"Thank you," she smiled. It didn't occur to her to sit on the blanket, but she appreciated the extra room he made. So on the blanket was where she placed Jacob's bag, while she sat on the grass.

The tablet went in her lap and she was just unholstering her wand when he spoke again. "You're observant," she said. "You can call me Ellie, though, really." Although she really didn't mind 'Captain'. And...he was...?

Examining the things in her hand for a moment before it occured to him it was probably rude, João looked into her eyes for good for the first time and decided to keep his eyes there. He wondered for a moment if she was a friend of Louisa or that girl in herbology whose name he could never get. Her brother's was West, though. Would she know him, as well?

Shrugging off the questions, he chuckled at the 'observant'. Yeah. He took that as a compliment, actually. Trying not to look at the wand again, he said "I'm Jo-ah-oo." Pronouncing that as slowly as he could for her to get it on the first time. If she could, she would be the quickest one to get it. And his prejudice that Ranveclaws weren't that bright would probably be proven wrong.

Hopefully.