”Thanks Lucas! I think I’m okay right now, but I’ll probably need help after the next class,” she explained. It was really nice to have someone who wanted to help her. Everyone else had so many friends here, so she was looking forward to having a friend all her own.

She let out a tiny gasp when he said he could show her how to get into the kitchens. ”Oh my gosh! Let’s do it! Want to go right now? I’m really good at cooking. We could make something!” she exclaimed as she immediately started packing up all her stuff and putting it back into her bag.

Lukas nodded. "Okay, just let me know if you do or not." Normally if he found himself needing any help he would go directly to his sister to see if she could be of some assistance. If that didn't work he would mirror call his parents or older siblings. There was also a ton of older students around that were always willing to lend a hand as well as the professors. "There's always somebody around here to work with." That was one good thing about coming to Hogwarts. There was never any shortage of people.

"Sure, we can go now," he nodded his head causing his brown hair to fall into his eyes which he fixed with a quick brush of his hand. "I'm not a great cook but I am great at eating." Lukas grinned at her. When it came to food he could cook on his own it was rather limited but he did enjoy helping his dad whenever it was nice enough out to use the grill.

Getting to his feet, he grabbed his bag and slung the strap over his shoulder while using his foot to push his chair back in. "Ready when you are."

Making a mental note to keep track of anything she needed help with, she nodded her assurance that she would definitely let him know if she needed help with practicing.

Ivy stuffed the last of her belongings in her bag, slung the heavy thing over her back with a thud, and beamed up at him. ”Let’s Do it!” she said cheerfully.

Lukas wasn't one to turn away friends. Or anyone for that matter. If he thought that he could help even in the smallest way possible, then he would try to. That's how he had been raised. Always be cautious but help whenever he could.

"Let's do this," he laughed lightly. "This way." The second year led the way from the library, giving the librarian a polite wave on their way out. "I'm kinda surprised you don't already know how to get into the kitchen... I sort of thought that every Hufflepuff knew." Like it was some known thing that all Hufflepuff's told one another since the kitchen was closest to their common room. Obviously that was NOT the case.

With her chin leaning on her palm, hair pinned up on her head using her wand, a white eagle feather quill dangling from one hand, and her other hand holding open a book that was resting open on the table - Serena was the picture of studious concentration.

People passing by her would think that she was intently studying for class, but no. She was not. The Slytherin instead was busy poring over a book she had picked up a muggle second hand book shop last summer. A collection of muggle fairytales, such as Rapunzel, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast; and the like.

Taking a break from her book, the blonde girl looked up and stretched. In the book, Belle was currently negotiating with the Beast for her father's freedom, and Serena figured it was a good of a place as any to take a little break.

Minjae could usually not been found at the library. He preferred being in the game room gaming with Joshua and Hero or outside with Noah just hanging out. So the fact that he was here now meant that he was in trouble again . Having neglected his homework till the last minute Again , the Hufflepuff found an empty table next to a slytherin girl who seemed to be reading a book.

He didn't care for books. Or reading. Or studying. So he didn't bother asking her what she was reading. He SLAMMED the heavy books down on the table and let out a groan when a few rolls of parchment fell on the floor. "Do you hate studying just as much as i do?" he grumbled before he picked up the parchment and sat down on the chair. Now what?

Serena gave a startled weird half-squeak and jumped an inch off her chair as heavy books were unceremoniously SLAMMED on the table. She quickly glanced towards the direction of Professor Eris, checking to see if the abuse that the books suffered through went unnoticed, before looking up at the person standing in front of her.

She raised an eyebrow at him, then chuckled "You seem to hate it much more than I do though" She said with a laugh "I don't recall slamming my books on the desk when I arrived." No, she had simply ignored them for a better book. "What did the poor thing do to you anyway? To deserve being dropped to the table like that?"

After picking up the fallen parchment, Minjae leaned back in the seat and just stared at the pile of books in front of him. This was not how he had envisioned his day to be. But he also knew that he only had himself to blame for procrastinating till the last moment.

"Well, obviously it has done nothing. Yet at the same time it has done everything you know?" he said after a deep sigh and opened up his Transfiguration textbook first , flipped to the page of the chapter they had to learn and let out a single non humorous laugh before he picked up the book and showed the girl the page. "I got the tip to highlight everything important and of course i highlighted the whole chapter LOOK at this" he wiggled the book in front of her face before placing it back down. "You don't seem to be doing homework..." he observed. "Yet you're in the library.... why?" He squeezed his eyes shut a little as if he were suspicious because he could not get why someone CHOSE to be in the library.

"I'm Minjae by the way." he should probably do his homework but BLEH.

The Slytherin rolled her eyes at the book he held in front of her face, seeing it practically colored neon from all the highlighter ink. Boys. "You're hopeless, honestly. You're only supposed to highlight sentences - not the entire chapter." She said with a chuckle, glancing back at the Transfiguration book that he had now set down.

At his next question, Serena laughed - why did he seem so suspicious of anyone in the library of their own free will?? Nonetheless, she offhandedly waved a hand at her own school books scattered haphazardly around the long desk "An attempt to study was made" She explained "But I got bored" She glanced down on the book of fairy tales that she had been reading earlier, earmarked a page, then closed it shut. She obviously was not getting anymore reading done.

"Nice to meet you Minjae, I'm Serena."

Hopeless. That was exactly how he felt right now as he stared at the highlighted textbook. He didn't even know where he was supposed to begin and the neon color was intimidating. Did he start with Transfiguration homework? Or that Herbology essay? or.... He gasped again. He also had to practice spells for charms non-verbally! With a dramatic sigh, Minjae put his head on the desk and mumbled something about getting too much homework.

"Hey" he said as he lifted his head back up and after a quick look around to see if the librarian was nearby he scoot his chair closer to her table "If i give you 5 Galleon will you do my homework?" he whispered before scratching the back of his head. "Is 5 enough? what about 7 Galleons? 10? you want it right now or in your Gringrotts bank?" he was deadly serious right now. He'd rather pay someone than do this himself and being the 'rich kid' or whatever people called him these days , getting the money was no problem.

"So you still decided to stay here after attempting to study" He shook his head. There were thousand other places he would go to before going here but who was he to judge. "Which city are you from?" he asked. "Have siblings? Do they go to Hogwarts as well?" talk to him T___T

Serena gave Minjae a deadpan look - one that would make generations of Slytherins before her proud. "I'm not doing your homework." She replied with a roll of her eyes and a chuckle. It was honestly very amusing to watch. "And I'm not short on galleons either, so that's not going to work on me." Instead, she removed her wand from its arm holster, and pointed it at his practically damp-from-highlighter-ink page, and whispered "Tergeo", watching as the luminescent ink was siphoned off from the page, leaving it clean and dry once more.

Now that his problem with the highlighted pages was fixed, she assumed that he would start to mind his own business. Not that she didn't mind the company of course - but it was mildly insulting to be offered money - as if she looked like she needed it.

But alas!

"Yes, I did." She replied with a sigh. What was up with this boy? Was staying in the library a crime?, "You would know, that the library is long trek from where we're from." Honestly, she spent a the good part of an hour climbing up to the fourth floor - and she was not about to repeat the process just because she didn't fee like studying anymore.

At his next set of questions, Serena turned to him in astonishment. This was starting to feel like an inquisition rather than a 'Hi, my name is blank, may I share your library table with you' kind of conversation!

"I'm originally from New York." She answered, a hint of a smile on her face, remembering the bustling city where wizards and muggles live side by side (without the muggles knowing of course). "But my mum and I moved to Brighton just last summer." She then turned to him and returned the question "What about you?"

She then shook her head and grinned "Fortunately, I'm an only child." No other siblings to compete with and what not. "And you? I'm assuming you don't have siblings here in Hogwarts either. " If he did, he'd probably be annoying them instead of her.

When Serena refused his money, Minjae leaned away from her and let out a scoff. "No one ever accepts my offers" he said with a sigh before he picked up a pen to twirl it around with his fingers when he watched as the slytherin took out her wand. Watching curiously, Minjae watched as she pointed it at his textbook and began siphon up the ink colored textbook. "Hey hey HEY!" he shouted , forgetting he was in the library as he made a wild grab to get his textbook away from her but it was too late, all the color was gone and it looked like any other textbook now. "What you do that for!? you can't just siphon up the ink from someone's textbook!" No matter how messy it looked.

The look of astonishment was returned with a confused look of himself. Had he said something weird again? Wasn't it normal to ask questions? What else was he supposed to do at a library? Homework? Pffft.

So she was born in New York? It was interesting how a lot of students didn't even seem to be from England or nearby. "I'd love to visit New York one day" he said . "I've never been anywhere in America. How old were you when you moved?" He did notice her comment of her mum and herself moving to Brighton and he figured her parents were either divorced or her father had passed away but either way, they didn't know each other well enough for him to ask right now.

"I'm from Gangnam but i moved near Windsor when i turned nine" he said with a small smile on his face as he remembered the fiasco of that year. His parents, both being muggles and knew nothing about the magical world, thought that Minjae was seriously ill when he started showing signs of magic. Long story short they came to England in the hopes of finding out what was wrong with him from the best specialists until a professor visited them to tell them about Hogwarts.

He personally wouldn't say it was fortunate being the only child because she would miss out on so much stuff and no matter how much he disliked his little brother and called him a 'nightmare' he still had fond memories of them playing together and he would literally protect him with his life.

His brother was still a brat though.

"You are correct" he said with a nod. "I do have a little brother but he will start at Hogwarts after i graduate next year" next year.....

Maybe he should study if he wanted to pass his NEWTS...

Serena almost laughed at Minjae's irritation at everyone's refusal to accept monetary benefits in exchange for manual labor favors "Maybe because you're being utterly daft about how you make it." She replied with a roll of her eyes "No one likes to feel like their being paid to do something - so try a little subtlety"

She set her wand down, tucking it back into its holster - but before she could finish strapping it back in, Minjae was shouting - shouting in the library! "Don't be so dramatic, Minjae!" Serena hissed lowly, keeping her head down, as she heard distant warnings of 'ssshhs' coming from fellow students in surrounding tables. "Honestly, I did your book a favor. It was practically damp from all the highlighter fluid you used on it." Picking up her own set of muggle highlighters - a pretty pastel colored set she purchased over the summer - she demonstrated, highlighting a word - then a couple of connected phrases after it. "See? That's looking less like a neon colored rag, and more like a book now, isn't it? "

Now, if only she would do the same to her own study material.

She continued highlighting key words for him, allowing with their explanation - keeping the highlights at a few words at a time. She skipped several pages as well, topics that went way over her head, NEWT level stuff that she need not worry about till she was 6th year.

At his declaration, she looked up and smiled. Talking about home was always a good topic. "Oh, you should visit sometime - maybe like in September. The trees in central park turn this lovely orange color, and its just overall a wonderful fall vibe." She suggested "Summer of course is equally lovely, but New York City is often packed with tourists - more than usual - so its a bit harder to get around."

Setting the highlighter down and replacing its cap, she leaned her head against her palm "We moved when I was three. My dad's company relocated - so we had to move with him too." Although, as far as she was concerned, America was the only home country she had ever known for the last 14 years of her life.

"Gangnam? That's in Korea, right? I've never been to Korea." Serena stated, she leaned forward, excitement and curiosity plain on her face to see "What's it like in Korea?"

She had been tucking away the books that were littering the long table that they had now commandeered for themselves when he mentioned that he had a little brother. She wouldn't have taken him for the older brother type! Much less an older brother to one that wasn't even Hogwarts age yet!

"That is if you graduate." She joked with a mischievous chuckle