Laura was bored at the minute, she had no idea why that would be but she was bored and normally that would mean something bad but lately Laura had been thinking about the future and well unless she wanted to be a comedian, which would mean her coach left any minute now, she would have to find a career.

Laura couldn't believe it her sixth year was starting. She was sure that it was only yesterday her first year happened but well time was flying and as she was getting older she noticed it flew even more but for now she would continue on thinking about her life and spending sometime with some of her friends and especially her sister.

Adelaide had been spending all of her free time exploring the castle. She did not need to get lost on the way to any of her classes. That would just be completely unacceptable. Besides, this way she could find her professor's offices and get to know them. She made a mental note to find the kitchens so she could bake for them. Sweets were always the best way to anyone's hearts.

Addi turned a corner on the fourth floor and almost completely bumped into someone. "I am so sorry." She said to the girl who looked about her age. Gosh. She really needed to pay more attention to where she was going.

Laura smiled at the girl. "That's okay, accidents can and will happen." Laura was just happy there was someone around that could help her take her mind of things. "I'm Laura Hope Hyde, sixth year, Hufflepuff." Laura was wondering if the girl was going to comment on her appearance like everyone else did, because apparently she looked young and short.

Phew. At least this girl was taking Adelaide almost plowing her over in a good way. She smiled, relaxing a bit more. "Nice to meet you Laura Hope Hyde. I'm Adelaide Annabelle Adams. Fifth Year, Slytherin." Was it normal to introduce yourself with your full name, year, and house here? If so, Addi was going to have to make a note of that for future reference.

Laura was trying not to break into laughter when the girl copied how she had said her name. "It's okay Adelaide." Laura smiled. "You don't have to do that, I live in a big military family, my dad's brother was in the army and a few others have been in. I also remember when I was younger being taught just to give that sort of information out.

Laura decided to teach Adelaide. "You should only give out them details." Laura said so it's like this. "Yes Sir!" Laura stood to attention. "And when they say name, rank and number." Laura smiled. "Or in this case Name, House and Year, you go like this." Laura stopped before demonstrating. "Laura Hope Hyde, Hufflepuff, 6th Year." Laura then stopped. "Do you want to try?" Laura was thinking that Adelaide probably thought she was nuts.

Oops. Adelaide felt really, really awkward right now. She'd just made a complete fool of herself in front of a new person. "Oh okay. Thanks for correcting me. That would've been awkward to introduce myself that way to everyone."

She did her best to fight back her giggle as long as she could. That was just way too serious. Once she figured out how to control, Addi realized that she'd asked her a question. "Uh no thanks."

Laura looked at Adelaide and smiled. "It's okay." Laura started to giggle when Adelaide giggled, she was totally in awe of her new friends funny side, must people thought she was strange. "I might have to try that on a Professor one day, though I doubt I will don't fancy getting into trouble." Laura said truthfully.

Thankfully Laura wasn't offended by the fit of giggles that Adelaide had been unable to control. That would have made for an awkward situation that could have gone south very quickly. She quirked her eyebrow. "How would that get you in trouble?" She figured most professors would get a laugh out of it as well.

Laura looked at Adelaide and smiled. "They might think I'm being funny." Laura had no idea what to do next, so she just stood there and waited for Adelaide to decided what to say next.

Adelaide quirked an eyebrow. She didn't understand how being funny could get someone in trouble. "Do the professors here not have a sense of humor or something?" That would really suck because her favorite teachers were always the ones who had a little fun.

Charlie was totally a bad friend. She'd been so cooped up in her own quilt and bed that she hadn't spared a moment to seek out her friend and ask how she was feeling.

So she owed her sweets from Poland, and an ear. And maybe a shoulder, if that was needed.

She really hoped it didn't come to that, though, because it really wasn't nice to see Els cry. Or anyone for that matter. Crying sucked.

Armed with a HUGE bag of sweets, Charlie went a wandering around the castle in search of her first friend. Apology was ready. Almost as ready as she was to eat the sweets. Surely Elodie wouldn't notice one missing....?

Today was an okay day. Yes, yes it was.

She'd seen him yesterday. She'd done his hair yesterday. In silence, but still. There had been hair doing and cuddles. Which was more than she had expected to be getting ever again. She'd spent the morning sat on a window ledge up on the sixth floor with her knitting and with Gemini, to give herself something to do. Part of the fact the sixth floor was closer to the towers than the kitchens. Close. Enough. Not close enough to smell, but you know. Close enough to feel close.

She was heading back down to her common room though, when she came across one of the people she'd most needed recently. "Chooooo," she grinned, putting her knitting safely back into her bag and coming up behind the Ravenclaw.

Upon hearing her nickname -the nickname that only one person on this planet called her by, for reasons she'd never understand - Charlie turned, a GRINNED. "Els," she replied. And she JUMPED on the girl.

Okay, so she didn't jump, but she did pull the girl into a hug, and she was glad that Elodie had put the knitting needles away because otherwise she would have been stabbed. And being stabbed? Totally not good. "Are you okay? How are you? How are things?" She needed to know. "I'm sorry, I wanted to help but... I didn't know what to say and... And I suck." Suck with a capital S.

"I got you sweets, by the way." And she held the bag out to her. Did this help? They were really nice, even if the writing on the front looked scary.

Ugh. Gosh. A hug. Elodie pulled her arms around the other girl and held her as tight as she possibly could. "Hi," was all she managed, because she was too busy clutching onto her friend, whom she had missed and all sorts.

When she finally let go of Charlie, the other girl was asking questions. "I'm okay. I'm..okay...." She'd actually tried not to think about it today, but had failed pretty quickly. But it was okay. She was okay. But then came Charlie's apology, and Elodie could only look at her with her best sad eyes and shake her head. "You've had stuff going on though. I know you have. It's not like you to go silent...." Not even a written note, even.

"Thanks, Choo..." NOW WHAT SWEETS WERE THEY?!?!

Spaghetti?

"Missed you." Charlie mumbled against her friends shoulder. You know. Over Christmas, and everything. And with everything that had happened, for both of them. She clutched at the girls back, for their super extra long hug, and was kind of sad when they pulled away. Hugs were nice. Hm. She liked hugs.

"Okay... as in good okay?" Because, really, okay could mean anything, and Charlie was genuinely worried about the older girl. Despite having not shown it. Which she was working on, hence now. She slid against the wall to sit on the floor, and tugged at Elodies' hand. You know, so that she would join her. "Yeah. Stuff." Charlie shrugged a little. She really didn't want to think about that right now. It wasn't as important. Charlies problems weren't important.

Not to her, anyway.

"I'm here now, though. And no more silence from me, not any time soon." She would talk Els' ear off right now if it made it all better.

Crumpling the wrapper in her hand she hadn't stolen a sweet no way José! Charlie shoved it in her pocket as she nodded at the other girl. "They're from Poland." YEAH COOL POLISH CANDY NOW LET'S EAT.

Ahem.

She'd missed her. Oh. Elodie nodded a little, giving her friend an extra little squeeze to prove she'd heard her. "I missed you." Which was more important. It had been a hard holidays, but she'd seen everyone she really wanted to. Except for Charlie. Which had been kinda rubbish, but it was okay now. They could see each other everyday now, right? Or was this sadness and the sweet offering some sort of break up?

Elodie hadn't ever been broken up with before.

"Okay...as in okay." Really. She wasn't 'good', but she wasn't 'bad' either. She was just better than she had been at times, and it wasn't to a point where she was sobbing under her bed to Cat, ignoring Olly, or considering kissing Stan to get over it. She was in a 'me, myself and the butterflies a boy gives me' mode. It was doing her well. Els slid down the wall next to Charlie, and kept ahold of the other girls hand, giving it a squeeze. "You never tell me anything...." Weren't they supposed to be best friends? If Charlie couldn't talk to her, then who else would she talk to...? Unless she had another friend...

No silence was good, though. Els liked the no silence thing.

"Is there a huge difference? Am I gonna start speaking Polish or anything?" She didn't mind though, and so she took a peek in the bag and sniffed a little. Mmmmmm.

So they'd missed each other. Charlie was glad the feeling was mutual, and not just because it would have been super awkward if Elodie had laughed away her sentiment. That was the one thing that had sucked about being in Poland for the most part - when she'd got back, the few short days she'd had at home before school started had been spent feeling... well, being totally selfish and spending them curled up at the bottom of her bed.

But now she could see the Hufflepuff everyday. At lunch and in lessons and on the floor of random corridors like they were now.

Squeeze of the hand, now.

"You... you tell me if you need anything, yes?" And that meant anything. If Charlie jumping in the freezing cold lake would cheer Elodie up, she'd probably do it. Even if she'd swore she wouldn't go near it to Stan, she'd do it for Els, if it would make her best friend smile. "I never tell anybody anything." she mumbled quietly, almost inaudibly. "Nothingtotell."

Which was a big lie, but no one knew that.

No one could know that. Not in the past, not now, not ever. Charlie didn't plan on telling anyone. Not when Stan had asked, not now Els was asking. Because, like she'd said, there was nothing to tell. Nothing of importance, she considered, as she ran her free hand through the tatty ends of her hair.

"I doubt it.... but that would be so cool." You know, to speak Polish to someone? Maybe there were sweets out there that did that. She could learn another language! "They do taste nice, though." Or at least, she thought so.

Elodie was a fan of this missing thing. It probably seemed weird but she liked knowing she was missed. It kind of reminded her that she was still important to some people enough to MISS her. Plus she was just slightly egotistical and liked knowing she was so awesome that a short period of time left people missing her in leaps and bounds.

Choo, being one of them.

But Els missed Charlie the same. She was kind of lost without her 3 C's. Two being her best, best friends. And the other...well that wasn't going to come up. But her Catty and her Choo were the ones she missed on an hourly basis. YAY BEST FRIENDS.

If she needed anything? Els nodded, giving her friends hand yet another squeeze. "I will, yeah. Thanks..." She wouldn't though. Not until Charlie was able to tell her things. It wasn't fair, for one. On either of them. She didn't catch what Charlie had said, but sighed anyway. "Well you know where I am when you get your big girl boots on and want to talk..." She hadn't meant it in a sense that Charlie needed to 'grow up', more in a sense that she felt helpless herself because she couldn't do much to help.

When she knew something was wrong. She knew she hadn't done anything wrong. So this was the only reason. And she knew it couldn't be anything to do with Stanley Hastings because he obviously still busy reeling over the fact Elodie had called him her friend. She had that effect on people.

"Wellllllllllllllll, if I grow horns.." She used her fingers to imitate the horns on her head and wiggled her nose at her friend, "...then you have to make sure no one laughs at me. 'kay?" It was a very important job. NOW SWEETIES. MMM. Elodie rummaged a little through the bag.

Charlie had to take Elodies word for this. And so she did, with a nod, but deep down she knew that Elodie wouldn't come to her right now, and she didn't want to admit it. Elodie wouldn't come to her, because Charlie was keeping things to herself. And that was the younger girls fault, because she was being unavailable and sucky and lonely.

It wasn't that she enjoyed being lonely - no, there was nothing worse - but Charlie knew that most people would be better of without her company, and so that was why she was lonely, because if she had to be lonely to be a good friend then that was the way forward.

And the clever girl ignored how pathetic her own logic was and distanced herself.

Which was not good. That was stopping now, because of the missing thing, and the shoulder if needed. "You're welcome." Mumble mumble, and another squeeze of the best friends hand. "Big girl boots," she nodded. "Yes, I'll remember that." Maybe Charlie could grow up in the next few weeks, because it looked like she was going to need an Elodie. THIS Elodie. This one sitting right next to her on the rather uncomfortable floor of school. Y'hear that Hogwarts? Invest in comfier corridors for Charlie and El's to curl up on and have heart to hearts.

"I'm sure I can do that," she said with a laugh. "Hey, if you grow horns, I will do. We can start a new trend." Of horns. Even though it was after halloween. They could make it work, they could make the whole school do it, because they were that cool, and obviously people admired them. "I think I'm moving back this summer, though. So I'll try and find some sweets that can make you speak Polish, then."

Yeah, big girl boots.

Elodie felt bad after saying it, actually. But part of her was slowly building up a tolerance to feeling bad about saying things now. She obviously felt bad too much, or something. It went hand in hand with every time she felt sad now..she just felt numb. Incredibly numb. Crying over some things was getting harder, and she'd thought it was her heart turning itself off, but no. She still felt everything. By not feeling it. "I'll be waiting. Even if it's stupid o'clock." Forget curfew.

Friends were more important.

A new trend? Elodie giggled, leaning her head against her friends. "The horn club, huh?" She wasn't particularly a FAN of thinking she'd end up with horns though. But whatever. If Choo would have them too. Hehe. "Moving back? Permanently?" As in...the full year round?!

Whut.

Charlie hadn't actually been offended by Elodie telling her to grow up. In all honesty, she was used to it - not from Elodie, but a lot of people over the years had told her to do so, in one way or another. And it wasn't that she was immature, in fact, she was actually more mature than most, probably due to her only friend, her sister, being so much older.

That had changed, now, thankfully. Either way, though, she needed to grow up in the way she dealt with things, emotionally, apparently.

"Thanks, Els," she managed in a whisper, desperation to not cry quite evident in her voice. This was supposed to be her helping Elodie, not the other way 'round! The 'stupid o'clock' idea made her smile though, and she knew that sometime soon, there was a chance she was going to end up outside the yellow Common Room at such a time.

The horn club? "Yes!" Charlie laughed, putting her fingers up behind her head and wiggling them about, like horns, before settling it back onto her friends. Obviously having horns wouldn't be ideal, but they could make the most out of a bad situation, right? "Mhm. Full time. Maybe go to school there, I don't know."

Not that she wanted to leave Hogwarts, and go through the adjustment again, but.... Maybe it was for the best.

They probably looked like a pair of muppets, huh? Sitting on the floor in a corridor, all cuddled up and on the verge of being considered moping. Were they moping? Was this moping? Wasn't it supposed to be some sort of 'feel better' thing? They were probably doing awful at this. Cat would know how to put smiles on both of their faces. Food, yep. Fudge and spaghetti and cake and Catty things. They had sweets though. She was still rooting in the bag, because she kept getting distracted.

Elodie didn't comment on the fact she could tell Charlie was going to cry, because she knew from experience that when someone pointed that out...you almost always cried. Almost always. "Love you, Choo." You know, just so she knew about it. Because she needed to know. It was a thing.

She copied her friend with the horns and the wiggling of them and grinned. "We could be given very ugly nicknames for that, you know?" Not that she'd care. Or show she'd care. She'd be too busy decorating her horns with ribbons.

........

................... Oh.

The fifth year fell silent, only providing a shake of her head. Charlie couldn't..leave.

'Love you'.

The word, 'how' was on Charlies lips, but she kept them sealed, composing herself for a moment and letting her eyes dry. She was glad that Elodie hadn't seemed to notice, but the expression of affection was almost as bad as her asking what was wrong. "Love you, too, Elodie." she said softly, smiling at her best friend. She was glad that she was loved, and it made her feel better, and so she blotted out the questions and doubts that her subconscious wanted to express over the sentiment.

"Ugly? Us?" Ugly was not a thing that Elodie could be called, and Charlie was going to go along with the confident cockiness that she was pretending. They could not be called ugly, not even in a nickname, because they were bloody gorgeous and everyone knew it.

Or something like that. And she wouldn't talk about how she was jealous of Elodie for actually being so.

The shake of the head was noticed out of the corner of her eye, and Charlie sighed. "I don't want to stay with my dad anymore, though."

The 'though' was there because she knew that the shake of the head was Elodie not wanting her to leave, and Charlies admission that she didn't want to. Didn't want to start over, again, didn't want to go back to having no friends.

Sigh. Elodie felt almost at a loss with her friend for a moment, because she had nothing to say. Nothing to say because she didn't know what was going on. "I know you're not going to tell me what's happening, but...I'm not going anywhere, okay? I'm going to kick your door down if I don't see you every three days. I'm going to constantly ask you if you're okay. I'm going to be that friend." She wasn't just giving up on her because Charlie was keeping things to herself. Els wouldn't expect her friends to give up on her, and they hadn't yet. So she was only reciprocating the sentiment.

And part of her was slightly nosy to see what had shut Choo down.

She wasn't even able to keep up their little thing about not being called ugly, because the conversation of Charlie LEAVING knocked her for six. Then for seven. Then eight, nine and ten all at once.

"Then you're living with me. I'm sure Brais will say yes. And technically you'll be working with Tam all summer...and...and...you're not going. I'm not letting you. I'll cry or do something stupid like fall out of a tree and break all my bones."

Logical.