Tay glanced at Damon when he took her hand. She offered the tinyest smile and pulled him closer.

Belle did not mind her asking. She knew Arabella went through the same issues last year. "Well i have to take my NEWT's this year i heard. So i know i will have to work extra hard but enough about school, how was your summer?" Belle asked with a kind giggle.

Damon let her pull him closer and kissed her forehead lightly, "I love you."

Taylor looked up at him, "I love you too..." She glanced down.

He looked down at her and laid his head on hers lightly.

Taylor staed where she was, starting to smile again. "Mi corazon..."

Mon amour," Damon smiled back at her.

Taylor smiled at him and kissed her.

o_________O

This kid....he has to keep an eye on this kid. "No.... just no." he moves away for a second before doubling back "Are you taking Care of Magical Creatures this year?.... if you arent you SHOULD, I'll be your study buddy and we'll show you how we CARE for Creatures at Hogwarts." firm nod. No plank beating or neck strangling nope no sir.




Vicks? twitch. That sounded medicinal "Vic would do... and I'm not violent." in response to kicks ".... at least I have no reason to be that cant be sorted through calm, rational discussions." Its the Ravenclaw way.





O_______O

She called him a creeper. Again. In front of all these people "I already said I wasnt creeping around your bushes, how can I even do that when I'm at---" wait rewind "You received a Hogwarts letter?" Like THE Hogwarts letter? And she's not going back to France this year. "You're attending Hogwarts this term? " he murmured in realization. That got him to smile, a happy excited smile....

... but that vanishes rather quickly.


"I am NOT a creeper...." he said pointing at Vivi "....And stop giving me funny names..." points at Abby "....and--"double points between his eyes to the violent little girl "-- I'm watching you."

He turns for the door and just catches the flaming red-head that seemingly stayed quiet all this time "Nice to see you Addy." He picks up the bird cage, grabs the pet carrier handle and scampers down the corridor. That compartment is trouble. He knows it.

O_______O

This boy had gone sneaking around the bushes at her house? Wow...he really was a creeper wasn't he?

No matter how she tried to think it through there was just no logical way to think about someone sneaking around someone else's yard. That was just pretty....well pretty weird--even for a boy!

Woooooooow. So then this girl was french?! "I've never met a frenchie before!--Well...er...I mean, I met you, making me officially meet one--unless you aren't french but were just going there for whatever reason--" She would just stop talking now seeing as her sentences weren't making very much sense in all her excitement.

She knew this girl was different!

So this would be her first year at Hogwarts..."I guess that explains why you still have a brain. Do me a favour; don't hang with the older kids too much and lose it." That would simply have been tragic and a terrible waste of a good personality.

She would make a mental note to call her that sometimes....

Aww...so none of that either? Well that was fine seeing as Genevieve had already said they wouldn't be hurting the bird. She simply shrugged at his somewhat taken aback response. As if she was the first girl to want to take a whack at the thing. Meh.

She smiled over at him when he offered to be her study buddy. "Really?! Great! Then I guess you'll need my name; I'm Alexa!" BEAM. "Can't wait for the classes, then we can play with the animals!"...that was all they did...right??? o__O

Hmmmm...so he was a Ravenclaw. She didn't know that house could have creepers...


Her eyes widened slightly when he gestured and stated that he would be watching her. Watching her? What for? She hadn't done anything yet!...Maybe it was just one of those things older kids said to sound cool ; it might have worked.

"Okay, bye Vickers!" She said, watching him shoot through the door. He must have been in a hurry...

Kurumi tried not to look too pleased with herself when Oakey's teeth began to shrink, but a small smile did creep across her lips. Thankfully, she didn't lose her concentration on the matter either - because that could have been a mild disaster as well. Oakey's teeth being too small or....not visible at all.

Merlin.

"D-Don't mention it," Kurumi stammered as her cheeks rose in color again. "I am sure someone else could have fixed you too." It wasn't the most advanced magic after all and any of the other older students could have assisted him. "Just glad I could help but...I have to ask...why were you using a Teeth Growing Spell in the first place?"

Performing it nonverbally - maybe - was something to be admired. Kurumi hadn't really mastered any spells nonverbally at Oakey's age that she could think of. Well, maybe Aguamenti and the Hover Charm, but she couldn't entirely recall.

That didn't sound like a very lucky start of the term. Though technically it wasn't yet, without the Start of Term Feast. That thought only led Ari to feel hungry imagining all that food that would be waiting for them in the Great Hall. What was the boy saying? Oh, yeah. 'How can you get punished for running after a cat?' If that was a crime, she would be punished too. 'By whom?' Ari had heard rumours that the new Headmistress was on the train but she didn't think the woman would bother with petty things like that. 'Flyers? You don't mean...Selina's? Looking for her beater's bat?' Ariadne remembered seeing some.

First years. They agreed to everything. She could bet galleons that the boy would end up in Gryffindor. They were the ones who got in trouble from day one. Slytherins are mischevious too, but tend to have more common sense. Ravenclaws are cautious enough not to be caught and Hufflepuffs...well, he just didn't look like a Huffie. 'Lovely to meet you, DJ. The first firstie I've met this year.' the girl smiled. 'I'm Ariadne Marchbanks. Or Ari if you prefer.' She had been saying that quite a lot over the last few hours, so it started to sound like a poem.

Good guess. How'd he figure that out? Ari thought sarcastically, but decided to cut him some slack. He was a firstie after all, and a fine one at that.'Fifth year Gryffindor, that's me.' she replied with a hint of pride in her voice. 'You do know about the Hogwarts Houses, don't you?' Most firsties did, except maybe the Muggleborn ones. Still, it was worth checking.

Damon kissed her back, "I love you, Taylor." Nothing's going to change that... Not even me graduating." He gave her a kind smile.

Tay kissed him back, "I love you too." She sighed and turned to him, "Let's make Hogwarts rock this year." Taylor smirked.

Damon smirked back at her, "Let's..." He smiled at her.

Just like her previous train rides, Beezus has once again occupied a compartment all to herself. Was she just lucky or what? Perhaps her fellow Hogwartians were smart enough to understand that she didn't need any company whenever the Hogwarts Express hits the rails. That was a comforting thought. She really didn't another living soul, except her cat, to see how devastated she was at the moment.

"I can't believe I let that jerk get to me Davinci." the Ravenclaw said, rubbing an ear of her Siberian cat that was purring quietly on her lap. She sighed frustratedly and looked up at the ceiling, indicators that she had been just crying -- a puffy, red face, swollen eyes -- were etched on her young face.

A gray cloak that matched the colour of his eyes around his shoulder, Richard walked in the crowded corridors of the train trying to find the girl as soon as possible. As he passed by compartments, he peeked in every single one trying not to hit anyone, especially not to younger people (everyone here seemed to be younger than him), he did not want the cauldron cakes he was carrying to be damaged. They were too precious right now. No one was allowed to cause a damage on them or even set their eyes on them. Actually he thought of putting a protection charm on them but that could be more like wasting more time. He had already lost enough at the food trolley when he had gone to buy them.

When he saw her finally, a small smile formed itself on his lips. He watched her a bit from the outside before opening the compartment door. She really was a beautiful girl, even with a crying face. He closed the compartment door behind himself as soon as he had stepped inside, not wanting anyone to disturb them. Locking the door would be too much though. He did not want to scare the girl away.

''Hey!'' he greeted kindly with a light wave and sat down opposite to her.

She took her eyes away from the ceiling and focused them on her cat. Merlin, she was so tired.. All that outbursts and tears she had released a while back seemed to have taken with them all of her energy. She needed to sleep. Maybe that could help. She closed her eyes, welcoming the sensation of drowsiness slowly enveloping her senses when suddenly the compartment door slid open.

The Ravenclaw lifted her eyelids with effort and blinked at the figure who entered for a few seconds. Just as her sensibility had awoken, he greeted her and she returned it with a small smile, "So you found me." Beezus muttered as she shifted on her seat. So he did live by his words after all.

She rubbed her eyes to recover the clarity of her eyesight. As she did, she eyed him too. Why, she did not thought he was really going to find her. Beezus thought the Slytherin was just saying it for the sake of saying it, but she was wrong for here he was, in front of her..just like he said..that he'd comfort her. Oh, and what was that thing he brought with him? Food? Yeah, she could use some.

Moving a bit, Richard got himself comfortable on the seat looking at the girl's moistened eyes. It was not like he could not believe that Dylan would do anything to make her cry but still he felt like he was not approving of the behaviour, whatever it had been. He did think girls who were as pretty as her did never deserve to be and feel upset like that. ''Yeah, i did.'' he said with a grin that, he hoped, would brighten her mood a bit. He had already been too eager to find her anyway so it was impossible for him to miss the chance. ''I have to admit though; looking for you got me excited.''

Standing up for a moment, he placed the pack of cauldron cakes next to her and sat back down. ''And here are the cauldron cakes that i promised i would bring you.'' He gave her another smile and ran a hand through his hair and it was after that act that he remembered something. ''Darn!'' he exclaimed slightly hitting his forehead. ''I forgot my guitar.'' And that was a shame. He was almost always with his guitar unless there was something else that made him busy going on. ''See? You took my mind away and i even forgot my guitar.''

He found her alright. And somewhere in her subconscious, she was thankful that he did. Telling herself that she was better off alone after what happened was a lie. She needed someone to talk to, or at least even just the presence of someone. Looking for her got him excited? Beezus snorted, and smiled --this time, it wasn't forced, she found it quite funny. "Really? And why is that?" She wasn't a person of great significance in the school. She was just a common incoming fourth year Ravenclaw.

When he stood up, she gently placed Davinci on the floor where the lazy cat willingly succumbed and buried its face on the floor.

Upon sitting straight back up, she saw the pack of cauldron cakes beside her, her eyes immediately went to meet his. Merlin, that was just.....sweet. For someone who acted all jerky with other girls, he was one man who kept his word. Beezus took the pack and opened it.. Hmmm.... Perhaps it was because she felt so exhausted that she immediately grabbed a cake and devoured it whole without even thanking him. When she realized this, however, she quickly blurted out, "Oh. I'm sorry! Thank you for the cakes Rich! Have some, would you?" Yes, he should eat with her.

Meh. He forgot his guitar because she took his mind away? Great pick-up lines Slytherin, it made her grin and almost choke on her food. "Oh, it's not my fault you kept on thinking about me." ERR. Did she just say that? Heh. Oh well, she could use a laugh sometime. The guitar playing though, really intrigued her. Placing the pack of cauldron cakes on her lap, she patted the space beside her. Yes, you can sit next to her. Nod. It was okay. "So have you composed a song for me yet?" she asked, stuffing another cake into her mouth. He did promise her she was going to write her a song.

The Slytherin boy chucked upon seeing her smile. Very pretty, very pretty indeed. And especially on her i-just-cried face it looked...sweet. Even though she, again, sounded like she was still having difficulty with believing his words, he was glad that he had managed to make her smile. ''Well...well...'' he said with a confident smirk ''...it is impossible not to feel excited over the opportunity of seeing you.'' Also he was kinda not sure if she would welcome him like this but he was not going to mention that. It was not important anymore anyway. She was nice.

As she picked up one of the cauldron cakes to enjoy it, Richard's gray eyes went to the cat eyeing it a bit. Hmmm...it looked like girls in England liked cats a lot as every single girl he had seen so far had a cat with her. Actually, he thought now, cats could be a better option for a pet compared to his annoying owl that never shut up. At least they were not making annoying noises and the boy had not felt like kicking them yet. His owl? He wanted to kick her everyday. His thoughts about pets were gone though when she spoke to him. He smiled. ''No thanks needed at all. This service is hardly enough for what you deserve.'' After giving her a quick wink, he reached front and picked up a cauldron cake too.

He laughed at her next words. ''Yeah, you are right. It is not your fault at all.'' He did not even think it was a fault anyway. He was happy about thinking about her. When she patted the seat next to her, he smirked and glady and eagerly got seated there. Had he composed a song for her yet? ''Eh...when we were talking about that it looked like you did not think i would do that so not yet but we can call it a work in progress right now.'' yep, that was right. ''Do you want me to go and fetch my guitar?''

Beezus laughed. It was an opportunity to see her? The Slytherin sure was doing great in comforting her, for here she was, after crying her eyes out, laughing so much. "I told you, your antics won't work on me." She said, somewhat giving him an eyeroll but chuckling.

Meh. Why'd she felt like...a princess? From his promise of finding her, bringing her cauldron cakes, comforting her. He was making her feel like she was so important. Certainly, that was what she needed right now more than anything. With a serious expression, she thanked him. "No, really. Thank you.." He was the only one who had come to her rescue after what happened well, besides Davinci. Erin wasn't there, nor was Indy or Spike. But he was, and she appreciated that. Maybe there was a chance they could be friends.

Of course it wasn't her fault. Right now, she was still debating if she was going to believe his words. He was just too frank about things, and he often complimented her which makes her feel uncomfortable. Then again, he did say he was offended when she voiced out her thoughts on his compliments and took it as lies. So, she wasn't sure if she was going to throw him off or what. She ate another cake as he landed beside her. "I see..You should let me listen to it when its done." she replied after he told her about the song. Work in progress eh? Okay, that was acceptable. When he offered to get his guitar, Beezus immediately objected. "I mean..you don't have to...it's alright really." She didn't want him to leave her there. She didn't want to be alone.

Antics?

Richard looked at the girl for a minute, his eyes gazing into hers. To be honest he would not call what he was doing 'antics' but he was just not going to comment and maybe argue about this. He was there to comfort her anyway. He smirked. ''Whatever you say, pretty.'' he did a small and quick shrug ''I am here to comfort you after all. Not to prove myself.''

He slowly and silently finished his cauldron cake but did not take another. They were for her after all. For a moment, he looked up at the ceiling as he thought about what she was probably thinking of him. Unfortunately he had no idea as he did not find her predictable so he dropped it after a minute. ''You are welcome.'' he murmured while still looking at the ceiling, then with a smile, he turned to her. ''Of course. I hope you will like it.'' The song he would be writing for and about her...that is. He got a bit surprised for some reason when she did not want him to go and get his guitar. ''All right.'' he said anyway followed by another small smile.

''I can do something without it, anyway.'' And with that he started to hum a slow melody.

''To the sky i feel like my heart flies...
Everytime i see her pretty eyes...
Even though she thinks my words might be lies...
I want to push away the reason why she cries''

And with a smile, he kept humming the melody.

For a moment, when he looked at her, she stared back. Saying she wouldn't fall for his antics was definitely a retort to throw him off. She was curious as to how his reply was going to be. And when he did respond, Beezus was awed. He did not gave her a conceited answer, he was putting her in top priority instead. "You're not so bad, you know that?" If only Dylan was like that. Less self-centered. Then they wouldn't have been fighting from the end of the last term's feast until now.

She was discovering more wonderful things about Rich than she had expected. And it did not stop there because what he did next totally caught her off guard.

When he started humming, Beezus smile widened. What was this? He was going to sing for her? She took one last cake from the pack then placed it on her other side, then she moved a bit to the other side where the Slytherin was. Apparently, she gets excited when boys sing for her considering her late father had it as his personal hobby.

........Merlin......those lyrics just pierced through her...simple...but....

Beezus sighed as she brushed away a single tear that flowed down her left cheek. Maybe she has misjudged him. Maybe he wasn't really a jerk. "Rich, I'm sorry."

Not so bad...

That made him stare at her for one more minute. Not so bad. Then he laughed. Coming from her that was a good thing to say, was not it? It was actually compliment compared to what she had called him before; like...a jerk. ''Thank you.'' he said, grinning. He had liked interaction between them so far, it felt like it was going all right. Better than he thought it would turn out to be, to be honest. ''But no, i did not know that.'' Hehe. Simply because he did not know what she thought of him.

He could not help but grin as it looked like she liked the bit of a song he had just performed. Now he thought of it, he had succeded comforting her. He did, right? He could tell from the way she smiled. But then...there was a tear again which made him doubt his efforts for a moment. He needed to fix that. ''Now that i have you to inspire me, i can write many songs. Many of them.''

But sorry?

''For what?'