Elliot had her backpack slung over her shoulder, some of her books tucked under her arm...her wand tucked behind her ear...it was just so convenient right there.

She let her blonde hair swing behind her as she walked swiftly..she had placed to go...things to learn...no time to dawdle. She felt lousy, still, about her fight with Presley. She wanted to make up...without saying sorry...because she REFUSED to apologize...Hmph.

Cora skipped down the hallway. Classes had gone well (well, mostly) and Cora was even going to help out with animals in the barn. Carrying only a book and her wand, she intended to find a quiet place to read.

She stopped skipping when she saw Elliot ahead. Walking quickly to catch up, Cora realized this was the first time they would really be talking since Elliot got angry in the common room. She had seen Elliot in classes, but every time they wanted to chat the professor would ruin it by beginning class. Cora had completely gotten over the whole thing, but they still needed to talk.

"Elliot! Hi!" Cora said with a smile. "How's it going?"

Elliot whipped around, knowing that voice, and her face broke into a wide smirk. "Cora! I'm fine, now...better than the other day..." she sad, trailing off, since she knew Cora would know they were talking about Elliot's little rampage..

"How about you?" she asked casually...the apologizing was coming...ish...she shifted her books into the opposite arm and she leaned against the wall.

Cora smiled. She was glad Elliot was better than the other day. So genuinely glad, that it took a while for her to notice that something was still bothering Elliot.

Elliot seemed uncomfortable, almost. Not wanting her friend to stay out of sorts, Cora was about to ask what was wrong. Then, she thought better to not bring it up and just see what would happen.

"I'm glad you are doing well," Cora said. "I've been doing well, too. It's good to be back, and I'm glad we are in classes together. Too bad our professors keep seeming to interrupt right when I wanted to talk with you."

Elliot nodded.."How is, being back? And I bet you missed it...I would." She smirked over at her.

"Hey..Cora?" she asked, since she needed to start this whole apologizing process...Ugh. Elliot hated the words I'm Sorry. UGH.

The blonde merely tried to stretch out the process...as much as she could...because...she just hated it...

"So..you know how I was...being a complete witch the other night..?" She obviously did...duh...who didn't know?

"It's a bit overwhelming, to be back. But it's wonderful, too. I love it here." It was true. She DID love it here. And even though she had been trying to be less...nice, as Elliot put it, (which had sort of been failing by the way), she was becoming less invisible somehow. She saw Elliot and others in classes, the common room...

Cora finally realized why Elliot was acting so strange. She was trying to apologize? Cora didn't quite understand. Why would Elliot be trying to apologize? "I wouldn't say 'witch', Elliot." Honestly, her friend was being too hard on herself. "You were just angry, that's all." Cora realized she probably shouldn't be interrupting Elliot. She added politely, "But, go on." Clearly Elliot needed to say whatever she was planning on.

After spending some time at the library, staring at those pages full of numbers, trying to crack that stupid code, the Ravenclaw found herself walking quickly along the corridor. With the notebook in her left hand, the fifth year made her way towards the stairs. Maybe the best idea would be to head back to the common room? Or perhaps spend some time outside? While trying to make up her mind, Gwendolyn suddenly stopped herself.

She glimpsed back at the notebook and immediately started flipping the pages, trying to find something. The piece of parchment on which she had written everything. She spend so much time working on that diary written in code, which her bestie gave to her and now… The piece of parchment, containing all the notes…

…was gone.

Great. This is just great.

Gwen tried hard not to roll her eyes. Where was it? Even though she was almost that she had probably dropped the piece of parchment on the floor, or forgot it at the library, the fifth year flipped the pages of the notebook one more time, hoping that she would manage to find what she was looking for.

No such luck.

Elliot grinned. "Yeah..Hogwarts has a sort of...magicalness to it, doesn't it? Weirdly enough...seeing as it's a magical school..." she rolled her eyes and chuckled at her own pun. Elliot was just suuuuper funny.

Witch! Elliot was being a complete and total witch! But whatever Cora said...e

"Angry...yes. I was extremely angry. But I don't even know why...It's just..." she sighed. "I was angry at that girl Presley, but I directed it at you. Which was completely unfair. So I hope you will excuse my behavior..." she thought that was a decent apology, coming from her! It waaas!

And she suddenly felt the need to spill out all of her confusing feelings onto Cora...but she didn't. She just stood there, and waited for Cora to respond. Maybe she would ask...and Elliot could explain herself...but the blonde wasn't going to just open up without being asked.

That was for pansies.

Milton had been making his way towards his next class at a casual pace. He had plenty of time and certainly didn't want to be to class early. Because he wasn't a nerd and nerds did that. So he wasn't going to do that.

As he walked down the hall, he kicked up a piece of paper that caught his attention. Bending down, Milton picked it up and scanned it over to see what it was, maybe even looking for a name to see who it belonged to. But it was just numbers. Like a code or something. Or just garbage. Milton was about to throw it away, when he spotted a girl who seemed to be frantically searching her notebook.

"Is this yours?" Milton asked, walking up beside her with the numbered paper out before him.

How could she have lost that piece of parchment? Gwen flipped the pages of the notebook on more time, before she decided that it was useless. It had to be somewhere on the floor, since she was quite sure that she hadn’t left it at the library. Just as she took a few more steps, continuing to look for the piece of parchment on the floor, she heard someone say something.

Raising her eyes, the fifth year noticed the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain… holding the piece of parchment she had been looking for. ‘Yes’, Gwendolyn said curtly, willing to take the paper from his hand. Well… he did find the piece of parchment… might as well thank him for that. She could be nice… for less than a minute… How hard could it be? ‘Thanks’, the Ravenclaw said simply.

"You're welcome..." he said slowly. Milton eyed the girl momentarily before handing the paper over to her. Maybe he was over analyzing, but she seemed a little... snarky. But he decided to ignore it when his curiosity took over. "What is it?" he asked, referring to the paper. It was just a whole bunch of numbers, which was either really weird or random, or some special code or something.

Cora chuckled a bit at Elliot's joke. Elliot was always able to make jokes in a sort of sarcastic way, and Cora found this quite amusing.

Yes. Elliot was apologizing.

In response to Elliot's apology, Cora smiled and said, "Thank you for saying that. You know, though, I forgave you right away." For some reason, Cora could always seem to see right through Elliot's meanness. Cora would expect herself to be super upset by anything rude someone said, but Elliot was different. "It helps to hear that, but I knew you didn't mean it from the beginning, so it's okay." Cora didn't want Elliot to continue to feel guilty or upset.

Noticing that Elliot still looked uncomfortable, Cora wondered if she wanted to chat. "Are you doing okay, now? If you'd like to talk about it, you know..." Cora debated whether she should continue, but she did like to listen, "...I'm all ears." Adding in her slight smile, Cora really did want Elliot to open up. But ONLY if Elliot wanted to. Cora wouldn't pry.

Gwendolyn took the piece of parchment, placing it between the two sketches she had done on the train ride. Good. So she hadn’t really lost it. ‘Hmm?’, the fifth year mused, raising her eyes from her notebook, looking back at the other student. What was it? ‘Eh… Arithmancy work’, she said simply, though looking a bit puzzled. Well… at least that was true. The code cracking had to do a lot more with Arithmancy than she even thought when Ari gave her the diary.

Expecting that he would leave shortly, Gwen drew her attention back to the notebook, making sure that the piece of parchment was there. Alright. She could return to the Common Room now.

The girl didn't look like she even totally believed her answer. But Milton had no idea. He didn't take arithmancy because it was weird and boring and totally uninteresting. "Okay," he said simply with a small shrug. She SEEMED suspicious, though. Did people really care that much about arithmancy? She was a Ravenclaw, though. Like him, but she was obviously more nerdy.

"You're welcome," he said, taking a step back before realizing he had already said that. "Again..." Yep. Awkward.

Elliot shot Cora an odd look. "You forgave me right away?" Elliot was a bit...shocked. She could never forgive someone that easily. It was so strange. "I don't know why I like you, Cora," she sighed, shaking her head.

That was a bit of a joke.

Cora was just one of the first people Elliot had met in Diagon Alley...and she admired Cora for her extreme niceness. Elliot didn't WANT to be nice like that, but hey, she could admire it, right? And Elliot wanted to teach a few evil ways to Cora anyways..

*Smirk*

She sighed again..."I...don't know, honestly, Cora. A lot's going on right now." And she would only start spilling if Cora REEEAAAlly wanted to hear. Because there was a LOT. Elliot was just a ticking time bomb lately.

Her date with Maxwell had helped, a bit, but it also had made her more confuse than ever...so in some ways, it hadn't helped.

Cora was caught off guard by Elliot's comment, but she could tell by her expression that it was a joke. But Cora honestly wouldn't have been able to answer that question either. Why did Elliot stay friends with Cora? Cora knew why she was friends with Elliot. She SO wanted to be more like Elliot. And she would. She had decided. She was probably the nicest person in Ravenclaw, and it would have to stop. But she would NOT be mean to Elliot. Someone else, maybe.

"Yeah, me neither. You should've just abandoned me back in Diagon Alley," Cora said. A JOKE.

Cora wouldn't drag anything out of Elliot, but maybe it was the Ravenclaw in her dying for more info. She wanted to know what was bothering Elliot. "Like what? Maybe I could help. Anyway, I'm curious now." See? Cora could change...a bit.

Elliot smirked. Merlin, Cora made a joke. That was new. And she graced the other Ravenclaw with a chuckle. "I should have, but maybe I saw potential in you." Heehee. Cora could be moulded. But maybe Elliot didn't want to taint her. Cora was everything Elliot wasn't...

Curious. Elliot had every single emotion possible except maybe curious. Sigh. Cora had, after all, told Elliot about her crazy mother...

She took a deep breath.

Sigh.

"Well, I guess I'll start with my family. Are you familiar with their...craziness?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Because she didn't think so. "Well...my father gave me and my two sisters boys names because he really wanted a boy. To, you know, inherit the family fortune and carry on the Morganzo name." She didn't think Cora was part of the pureblood nobility...which was weird, to Elliot, that things outside her little pureblood world existed. "IT's a big deal to us..." meaning ancient purebloods, "to have a boy." She sighed again..."Well, until he had a boy...I was going to be the heir. But last March my mother had...my brother." DUN DUN DUUUUUN.

She shifted her weight, still leaning on the wall, and she crossed her arms over her chest. "And my parents don't give me the attention...I deserve. Hmph." She pursed her lips. She couldn't believe she was telling Cora this..."and my father...I haven't seen him in three whole months because he went on a business trip right after I get home. So of course I miss him." She never used that word, miss. But she did. She really did. "And my sister Dani just started at Beauxbatons, and it's driving me nuts...her not being here! She's only eleven..how is she going to ever learn over there?!" Because Dani was only as good as the person telling her what to do...

She scowled..."Sorry I just bored you to death. We can stop talking about me if you want..." it felt nice, this whole talking thing. Elliot had confided in almost all of her friends, now. And it felt nice. It felt nice to not be alone for once.

Ronnie walked with Adam down the fifth floor corridor, carrying Oliver in her arms. Oh boy, exploring! It was always so fun to explore, especially when you had someone to be with. Ronnie really liked being with Adam, he was fun to be around! And the fact that someone her age actually wanted to explore with her was so awesome...'cause most of her friends her age just weren't into that anymore. *sigh*

"I think the rooms just a bit more up this way.." Ronnie said to Adam with a nod. She had passed by it several times before while just walking around the castle in her past four years and had never really tooken the time to actually look into it because she wanted to explore it WITH someone. Not by herself. That just wasn't fun. Not at all.

Potential? Cora perked up. Hmmm. She didn't know about that, but hoped Elliot was right. Cora then noticed Elliot sigh but had trouble placing the reason. Usually so good at reading other's emotions, Cora chalked all this up to Elliot's concern about opening up, which was only natural.

Cora remembered discussing Elliot's family a bit first year, so she knew a bit, but did not want to interrupt what would probably be a one time only occurrence. She nodded slightly as Elliot began, and listened intently. She had to know what was bothering her friend.

Cora thought it was a bit odd to want a boy SO much, but she didn't know much about it anyway. Cora was indeed a pureblood, but not one which felt the need to stand above the rest, so Cora was tolerant of all sorts. With her father gone the whole inheritance thing was irrelevant; they weren't poor at all but they weren't rolling in money either. Still, Cora's face fell as Elliot continued. How awful would it have been to know that your father didn't want a girl? Cora sympathized immediately.

Remaining silent contently while listening to Elliot, Cora felt so bad for Elliot. It wasn't her fault at all she was a girl. "Oh no! That really stinks." Cora replied, thinking anything she said would sound stupid. She understood the feeling of not getting enough attention. "You deserve more than that, just so you know. It may seem like that, but I'm sure they still love you." Cora's attempt to reassure Elliot were probably not helpful. Nonetheless, Cora was pleased Elliot had finally opened up. The girl seemed more, well, human, now, and she was more like the girl Cora saw beneath the mask. "Do you like your new brother, despite everything?" Sometimes you could love someone and still hate the situation.

"You have not bored me for one second. I'm sorry about these..problems. And I hope you know you can always talk to me if you want. I'm here," she said with a small smile. "Have you tried to talk to your family about this?" Cora wasn't sure just how close a family this was, but it was always worth a shot, right?

It did more than stink, but Elliot remained quiet. Her brain was ticking along..as it always did when she talked about her family...

But she did manage a small grin at her net words...she deserved more than that..."But...I have a great life...I guess." She just had some...issues. "Maybe I'm being overdramatic..." sounded like something her father would say. Overdramatic.

And Cora's next question didn't have a straight answer, either...Darius Jr...did she even like him? No. Did she love him? No. He was a baby. Babies had no personality. So therefore, Elliot didn't think she loved him yet. She tried to explain this to Cora without sounding completely heartless. And if she did...oh well. "No. He's...a baby. he cries and stuff all the time. I can't like something that doesn't talk...or have feelings...or thoughts...or anything. I'm not a baby person," she added, thinking it would sound good..."And the fact that my mother and father forgot my birthday last year because of him...doesn't help his case," she growled...looking a little angry now. Forgotten her birthday....HMPH.

SNOOORT.

Elliot rolled her eyes, laughing..."Merlin, no. My father would tell me to suck it up...my mother would say I was overreacting, and my sisters are too little. Dani is eleven...and she helps me a lot. but an eleven year old...still doesn't completely understand these feelings." End.

Only, it wasn't the end. "Oh, and the fact that I'm aboooout to have a boyfriend...has my emotions on raw," she added, smirking a bit, thinking of Maxwell...

Adam grinned as he and Rons walked into the vast corridor. She seemed reeeeally excited about this! No wonder she and Hazel got along so well!! It was great to get to hang out with Ronnie, she was an expert at this exploring kinda thing. As they arrived at the scary looking door, MEL came. The blue puff must've gotten lost or something. Adam grinned and put her on his shoulder. "You wanna come exploring too?" He patted the puff, and she made a cute puff-nod. "Let's gooo then!!!!"

Ronnie laughed at what Adam said to the puff. "Yay! More explorers!" she said with a grin. Even though inside she wanted that puff to GO AWAY. Because... she really liked it being just HER and ADAM. She really liked him. Heheeeheee....erm. Anywho. The door. The room. Right.

Without thinking, Ronnie grabbed Adam's hand in hers. She was a little surprised at doing this but thought she'd just keep holding it. For one, it felt real nice. And two, well...it'd be awkward to just yank her hand away, wouldn't it?

She smiled at Adam and walked over to where the door was. "Ya reaaady?" she asked with a grin, looking at him, an excited look on her face.

"I think it's perfectly reasonable to feel that way," Cora replied. She did. Even though she had no idea really how it would feel to be Elliot, she understood.

Cora could tell Elliot didn't actually WANT to like her brother, but she was sure Elliot would warm up to the baby when he got a bit older. She loved babies. They were so easy to please, so simple. "That's understandable. I'm sure you might like him eventually. I guess babies aren't for everyone." Cora's mouth fell open when Elliot mentioned her forgotten birthday. "Oh no! They forgot your birthday? You must have been upset." Then, curious, she added, "When's your birthday?" Cora would NOT forget. "I know what it's like to be forgotten," she said mostly to herself. She had been starting to feel differently lately. Like people actually cared. But she had been invisible for most of her life.

Cora spent most of the time Elliot spoke trying to comfort her and understand. But she shifted gears when Elliot mentioned a boyfriend. "Ooooh! A boyfriend?" Cora said in her most girly tone. "Who? What happened?" Cora wanted to hear the details. Her enthusiasm would probably be mistaken for simple girl gossip attraction, but it was actually for a different reason. Cora had actually met a boy who she possibly sort of maybe had a small crush on. Of course, Cora was a long way from admitting it, but hearing details about things like this could educate Cora. While she DID have an older sister, she would NEVER be able to talk to her about things.

Elliot merely nodded..."Yeah...my sisters remembered...so that was nice." And Dani had sent her a crown...well, it had been Sam's idea. Her eight year old sister was indeed a little princess. Whereas Elliot wasn't so much a diva. But she had appreciated it all the same. "And April 13th." She added. Thirteen was such a magical number! "When's yours?" because Elliot haaaad to get Cora something for her birthday! She just had to! Poor girl had been stuck in her house for the past two years with probably a worse birthday than Elliot!

And...OH MERLIN.

Elliot rolled her eyes, her cheeks flushed a bit. "He's a Gyrffindor. His name is Maxwell Lupin. And..." she sighed, she couldn't believe she was talking about this. but she trusted Cora...and Cora seemed eager to know..."Well...we met outside one day, and we talked and I ended up offering to do him a favor. Then it just went from there. And on Sunday..." she stopped, though. Did she really want to tell Cora?

YES.

But then she didn't...so she stopped leaning on the wall and shifted her position, fixed her bookbag again, and smirked. "He took me on a date on Sunday." Yep. it had been so...NIIIIICE!