Lake

[[deleted user]]

A high-pitched yowl broke the lazy noon stillness as Ace was struck. A streak of black-and-white bolted past Bruce, disappearing into the castle.

Bruce frowned slightly after the cat, more contemplative than concerned. Ace would get over his fright soon enough, but this Slytherin looked like he was ready to hex left and right.

"What, are you scared of cats or something?"

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

He rolled his eyes. “Of course not. But then again, most of them aren’t so annoying—a trait I’m sure yours picked up from, ah, someone.”

Daniel held his wand again. The incident from the common room was sure to have sprouted even more rumors. This time, he’d wait, and keep a level head. It would not do to blindly leap into a duel.

[[deleted user]]

"I didn't know my cat hung out with your mother." It wasn't meant to be extremely insulting - in fact, his tone made it sound like he wasn't all into it.

Bruce's eyes met his wand, in his hand. Feeling feisty already, eh? The corner of his mouth twitched, either in disgust or amusement. He retained his cool, almost bored complexion.

"God, we're not even two minutes into conversation and you're already threatened by my presence."

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

Childish, as common sense would put it. A very childish conversation that Daniel did not find particularly interesting, but was still egging on.

“Yes, I’m utterly terrified.” He was still sitting on the rock, perfectly calm, wand twirling between his fingers. Not quite at the ready.

[[deleted user]]

"Are you doing that to show-off, or are you just really so nervous that you can't leave your wand alone?"

This boy - wait - now he recognized him. This was that Daniel kid, wasn't it? The one famous for his hexes, the one who was rumoured to be not only skilled but also quite...dry.

Bruce's brow arched as he confirmed it to himself, then gave a slight incline of the head. It must be him.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"I'll pick 'none of the above.'" The wand paused, pointed upward between his index and middle fingers, then resumed its twirling.

The boy was either suspicious of had some sort of revelation. They were very similar in the current predicament. But Daniel still did not know the Gryffindor boy, and did not care enough to want to find out.

[[deleted user]]

Bruce said nothing to this. Not that he hadn't a comeback - lord no - but he wasn't really in the mood to play cat-and-mouse with Mr. Sunshine & Daisies over here.

His expression was critical for a few moments, then showed nothing. Bruce wondered why Daniel was acting as though someone had shoved a broomstick where it certainly didn't belong.

"You're Slytherin's prefect, right? Daniel?"

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"One of the prefects, yes." Daniel would have gestured to the prefect badge under the house crest of his robe, but decided against it. It was obvious enough.

He stopped twirling his wand.

[[deleted user]]

Phew. Bruce wasn't bad with hexes, especially if they dabbled with some transfiguration. But he didn't want to walk away with antlers for hair now, did he?

Bruce moved from in front of Daniel to the side where a small but sturdy tree stood planted in the ground. He leaned against it. His earlier stance was threatening; now it was almost casual. But he still had to be careful - it was like walking on eggshells.

"Yes, yes. I suppose I should introduce myself now, then. Name's Ackerman, Bruce Ackerman."

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"Well it's a pleasure."

No. He'd never heard of the Gryffindor. Regardless, Daniel made no move to face Bruce. He was comfortable where he was. He shut the sheaf of parchment he was writing on in his book, and allowed it to slide to the ground.

[[deleted user]]

We'll see, thought Bruce, but he kept it to himself. At least Daniel wasn't as angry as before - or, he just didn't show it.

"Yeah, so, sorry about my cat. Ace can be a pain sometimes - like he's still a bloody kitten. He tried to eat someone's massive toad last week, and mate, that was not pretty."

The toad was hissing louder than his cat. Bruce hadn't even known that they could hiss.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"I'm sure it wasn't." Disinterest plaintively mingled with his tone. Of course Bruce was sorry. It was obvious from his original reaction.

Daniel shrugged off the topic. "Right well, I'd better be off." He stood, flicked his wand, and caught his book as it came at him.

[[deleted user]]

It's Saturday. You'd better be off to where, the library? Bruce said nothing again, as this time he knew that he had nowhere to go and nothing to do which would just make his comment useless.

"Alright. May the rest of your Saturday be free of cats." Slight sarcasm there, but hardly detectable. A trick statement.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"Why thank you."

A roll of his eyes, and then Daniel headed off towards the castle. Perhaps the common room would be quieter today.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

~*~
((let's just say winter break hasn't happened yet)
Snow lined the grounds. Just a few more days, Daniel reminded himself. He had finished his packing hours before, and he had a free period at the moment. Just before lunch. He wasn't hungry. Perhaps he'd wait until dinner to get some food.

To be perfectly honest, Daniel was bored. He hadn't anything to do before the holiday, and he wasn't exactly dying to do the potions essay. He had his wand out. Birds were circling overhead (no doubt from one of his charms).

[*~Silvypoo~* (Chaser of Artemis), Witch of Rebirth]

[I got the HP spells app!!!]

A slightly familiar figure dressed in flare jeans and a flowing coral pink shirt quickly walked towards Daniel, nose stuffed in a book. Prim was glad to be out of her robes, and was now focused on her due assignments. She didn't have many: only two, but she didn't want to do them over winter break.

Prim, being her clumsy self, wasn't paying attention as she walked past Daniel. Well, she didn't exactly walk past them. She more walked into him, sending her book and his wand flying.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

The birds overhead disappeared.

"Watch it." A rather unfriendly swear was muttered followed. Daniel stood, scowling, brushing himself off. He made his way towards where his wand and her book had landed, just off the shoreline--not an inch too close.

He recognized her as his partner from potions. Wonderful.

[*~Silvypoo~* (Chaser of Artemis), Witch of Rebirth]

Almond-shaped eyes with irises of chocolate brown widened in surprise. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to bump into you. I was reading and not eat hung where I was going. Here, let me get that for you." The seventh year rambled on nervously as she made for her book and his wand. She turned back to offer the Slytherin his wand, face falling into a small frown.

Daniel. The mysterious charmer that her friend Arietta and her had talked about. The potion master. Oh, boy.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

((she knows?))

"You look so pleased." He took his wand back. "Watch where you're going, unless, of course, you're looking to have a row."

Daniel gripped his wand. Then he turned and started off. No use lingering where she could still bother him.

[*~Silvypoo~* (Chaser of Artemis), Witch of Rebirth]

[Oh, wait. No, they just talked about him. *edits*]

"I'm not looking to have a row, thank you very much. And I did apologize for not noticing you before. Though for someone with such a big ego as you, I'm surprised I didn't notice you." She crossed her arms over her chest, eyebrows knitting together.

She then recalled her conversation with Arietta. She had called him brooding. That was not the word she was thinking of, though the beginnings were the same.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

Obviously, she was, he noted, hence the contradictions. But he wouldn't respond. Instead her continued on his way, wand tip directing its attention towards the sky, where a few birds erupted from the tip.

"Ravenclaws like birds, right?"

And the birds began to dive at Prim, attacking like little angry green bullets.

((http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Opp... ))

[*~Silvypoo~* (Chaser of Artemis), Witch of Rebirth]

Prin shrieked, waving off the birds angrily. "Finite Incanatem!" But the birds had already advanced on her, pecking her skin angrily. Several curses uncharacteristically left Primrose's mouth. Finally, she aimed her wand and angrily muttered "Incendio." The birds turned to bals of flame.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

It made him chuckle. Just a bit. He tucked his wand away and continued walking, as if he couldn't hear the shrieking girl. There would only be a few minor cuts, nothing too serious, unless she managed to burn herself with her own charm.

[*~Silvypoo~* (Chaser of Artemis), Witch of Rebirth]

"Daniel!" Prim called out angrily, not even sure of the words that were about to come from her own lips. "You bloody idiot! Keep your damn birds to yourself!"

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

Perhaps the Clock Tower was open. The portrait there might let him through to the dungeons. The cold was beginning to settle in, and the snow was gradually getting heavier.

[*~Silvypoo~* (Chaser of Artemis), Witch of Rebirth]

Positively fuming and hair looking even worse than she she had arrived, Prim grabbed her book, and shoved it into the raggedy bag on her shoulder, all the while muttering under her breathe. Still muttering and ranting, Prim stalked away, splashing water around her yet seeming not to notice.

[.]

Plop.

"Seven," Dena muttered to herself, raising her wand and reclaiming the astonishingly flat pebble she'd skipped down to the lake. Settling herself down on the slightly damp grass, she traced a finger down the opened pages of her Arithmancy and Divination textbooks. The two had more in common than most people would have liked to think.

A sheet of parchment was covered in her raven's-scratch handwriting; she stuck her quill in her mouth, quietly sucking on it as she perused her examinations. Dowsing was a complicated process - she had been amazed to see the majority of her school treating Divination with such disdainful scorn. Her great-grandfather Marc would have been furious to see such a great art so contemptuously put down.

A warm breeze ruffled the tops of the great trees that fringed the lake; touching on the ends of her hair, partially hidden under a knitted toque that was close to slipping off her head.

[Usako]

The insufferable screeches from inside the castle drew Lilian to a quieter escape outdoors. Least here the music of the birds could still her growing headache. Yvette spent the past hour picking out the flaws in all the non-Slytherins to a point of being petty; it was well into the first quarter hour that the sound of the girl's voice compared easily with a dying cat. With a finger gently nurturing her forehead with a massage, it was times as these Lilian contemplated breaking her word. There had to be limits to friendships her mother demanded. But business is business and certain behaviors often were overlooked to get ahead.

Lilian's eyes gazed out toward the lake side as she carefully approached the slippery and sandy surface. Professor Nyx mentioned a new fungus growing at the edge which could be the key to a potion she wanted to test. The clip of her heels caused enough noise to startle the nearby rabbits which fled toward the woods. And she stepped out, she noticed Dena's crouched form.

Her thin brow rose to consider the weight of instigating a conversation. Would she be as impossible as Yvette? Judging by the objects by the girl, Lilian reconsidered and approached.

"Dena," she smoothly said with a faint air of smugness, "I didn't expect to see you out from the library."

[.]

For the past few weeks that Dena had been at Hogwarts, those staccato heels had developed into only the most terrifying of warning signs for most of the younger students. A few words of awkward conversation had been exchanged between the Slytherin Queen Bee and the newcomer; mainly in the library.

Dena raised her cloudy-green eyes to the indisputably gorgeous girl, her bottom lip quirking up in recognition to the sting of Lilian's comment. Her toque slipped off her head and fell into her lap, cowering from Lilian's fiercely calculative gaze.

And I'm quite surprised to see you within a fifty-metre radius to mud, Dena thought.

"Hello, Lilian," came her quiet voice. Dena was not a self-conscious person by nature but Lilan's impeccable style and grace had her disliking the contrast of the cultured English voice and her American drawl.

[Usako]

The indisputable divide between their cultures came to the notice of any pureblood since Dena's arrival. While the Ravenclaw's blood was undeniably sanctioned, the deplorableness of her birthplace was not. As the English nobles snidely looked down at the nouveau riche, so did the English purebloods to the American ones. Like with Yvette, there was a limit to how much Dena's blood would excuse.

A graceful swish of her wand cast a retrieving spell which delicately uprooted a nearby flower which fluttered to land softly upon the cup of Lilian's palm. "Playing at shamanism, again, I see? For a Ravenclaw, I'd expect more logic than whimsy."

[.]

A small flare of anger flung itself up in Dena's cat-green gaze. She watched the flower bloom up in Lillian's palm with the tip of her tongue pushed between her teeth.

Some bare little strips of gossip suggested that Lillian wasn't so cold-cut as her image would lead others to believe; an image of the tall beauty clad as a ballerina flushed through Dena's mind.

"Arithmancy is very like Divination," she said smoothly, adding a final number to the calculations on her sheet. "Some would argue that Divination is a much more fine-tuned version of Arithmancy with some magical or prophetic aid."

Gishem Marc's powerful glare manifested in his great-granddaughter's gaze, fixed upon the lovely Slytherin, as if she was intent on unravelling the facade of her profile.

[Usako]

Fingers slyly swayed in blatant dismissal. "And others would argue it's pure conjecture. Stare at any doe-eyed believer and you'll notice how she interjects herself into any prediction so it does fit. I honestly don't know why a student would waste their time on that class."

Sunlight glinted in tiny sparkling rays, reflected off a beaded white velvet pouch which now hovered before Lilian. She waved her wand to unfasten the braided silken ties to gracefully deposit the collected flower inside. Somewhat bored with the current drivel which Dena spouted, the Slytherin slightly focused her attention to the fungus and flowers nearby. Precise steps ensured her expensive shoes wouldn't get scuffed by the rocks or dirt.

"It's as though you seek ridicule by choosing Divinations."

[.]

Dena bit her bottom lip, pulling it slowly out from under her front teeth. She could easily prove to her how exact her Dowsing had become - for example, dowse the compatibility between Lilan and her famous boyfriend ... But it wasn't as if she wanted Lilian to approve of her. She couldn't care less what a girl a year her senior thought of her.And so, choosing to ignore Lilian's insulting tone, Dena pointed to the flower she'd collected in her little velvet bag. "Sylfaenia boroganza," she identified. "You'd best collect it when it's blooming and the pollen's been aerated under a full moon."Exhaling through her nose and weary of sidestepping boundaries with this snobby girl - younger, too - Dena collected her books and stood up, ready to finish the sketches she had to do for Care of Magical Creatures. The beasts living in the forest here were very different than the ones living in the abundant forests of her native land; a change of scenery was, however, very interesting, and Dena planned to make the most of it."Have a nice day, Lilian," Dena said coolly, shouldering her bag and stalking off towards the woods.

[Usako]

"That may be true when making known potions but this batch is specific for an experiment. As part of an examination, I am testing the varying effectiveness of popular potions ingredients when collected under different circumstances and then to see what new potions can be made with the addition of a newly grown herb from the Middleton gardens. It is an increasingly interesting experiment." Lillian touched down as deftly as a butterfly upon the next rock in order to gain a better advantage point over the pond. From there, she peered for that fungus Nyx spoke about.

And before Dena could finally escape any cutting remarks, Lillian called out, "You'd have a better time settling in by learning what is and what isn't acceptable in social circles."

[.]

"I'm sure," Dena muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes and trekking further out into the woods. Why some people lived for schadenfreude was beyond her. Some experiment that would make - unless the herb had incredible magical properties akin to a bezoar, the potion wouldn't have any use seeing as the very ingredients had lost their effect.

"You'd have a better time settling in by learning what is and what isn't acceptable in social circles!"

Turning around, chocolaty hair slipping in strands across her face, Dena shrugged, raising her hands, half-frustrated. "What social circles?" she said with a grin before resuming her walk to the woods.

A part of her was piqued, however - what social circles? What's acceptable? - for the girl who'd never felt comfortable in groups of close-knit friends.

[Usako]

The disbelief from Dena bothered Lillian very little. How could she expect the student to know how the new Middleton herb reacted to components that by the textbook states has lost any effects. Professors Longbottom and Nyx had seen the chaotic and currently unexplainable results from her family's early experiments which seemed to revitalize any herb; now they were testing even further. Lillian thought it was a red bull miracle growth. It seemed lucky that a Middleton made this new discovery. In turn, Lillian had a new project that potentially could earn her bigger marks in her favorite and best studies.

Lillian skipped past the shore to settle on the grass. Her elegant legs stretched out as she basked beneath the sun for a short rest. As she relaxed, she replied to Dena, "You'd have to be blind not to notice it isn't only Slytherin who have snickered behind your back. What's far too different becomes a target by students. And some Professors," a lazy shrug of her shoulders rolled over any exact details but, "You've given meaning to culture clash."

[.]

[Would she have heard Dena?]

Half-breed, twinkie, chugette. Ah yes, the ethnic clash of her background, so much more noticeable in a foreign land. Her back stiffening and the familiar sting burning the back of her throat, Dena's pace admirably remained at the same rate, though she was filled with the desire to sprint off into the forest and never come out. Spirits knew she was much better with the wild beings than any of these people ...

[Usako]

[I thought Dena spoke aloud and posed accordingly. If she muttered, then no. Lily wouldn't have heard. Funny though is this is a twisted way Lily is offering advice to help Dena. I love my broken girl.]

[.]

["I'm sure," Dena muttered under her breath

Mm, yeah. I would have liked them to become weird friends, you know? As such, I've been thinking of ways for Dena to get her revenge. A Cree shaman's curse? :3]

[Usako]

[Ha ha. I must have skimmed my eyes over MUTTERED. Happens when I'm sleepy. Sorry to have missed that! D'oh!!!

Weird friends is cool. I think this is going to be an amusing development towards that goal. PM me about the curse so I can pose it maybe in the Sly common room then later approach Dena about it. Bwahahhaa! So cool!]

[.]

[Yay!!!!!!!! :D]

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

The cool spring breeze tousled Cecil's hair as he made his way around the lake. The placidity of the water was soothing, and he sat on a smooth rock by the shore. He wore a grin on his face (to the average eye, it would seem as if there were no reason to his outright happiness, but, as with Cecil Graham, there was always a reason to grin as he did).

In truth, he had received top marks on a rather difficult quiz, to the surprise of both him and his classmates. Also, he'd pulled a spectacular prank on a younger housemate during breakfast.

[[deleted user]]

Pale sunlight set the lake to glittering as if someone had taken an armful of diamonds and scattered them into the waves without a second thought. Luthien leaned back against the gnarled trunk of the rowan tree that grew by the lake's edge, idly enjoying the cool shade that the branches offered.

His attention was drawn away from the lake when he heard the rustle of footsteps in the grass and saw an all too familiar face. And there was also an all too familiar grin on that face.

Sliding to his feet, he strolled over to the boulder that the Gryffindor had decided to sit on, perching on the edge so that they sat back-to-back. "Well, Mr. Graham. You certainly look pleased with yourself this morning."

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"My dear Windermere, it has been ages," Cecil drawled out, leaning back onto his friend's. He and Luthien hadn't spoken to each other for several weeks now, and to be frank, Cecil missed the old conversations with his friend. "But seriously, how're you?"

((sorry; short post but my phone battery is dying and my hands are freezing))

[[deleted user]]

"It has been quite some time, hasn't it?" He mused, gazing up at the sky. A slight smile curved his lips upward as he felt the weight of his friend lean back on him, and he in turn rested his head back on Cecil's shoulder.

But his smile faltered a touch at the question, and a quiet sigh escaped him. "Same as ever, I suppose. I'll admit, it's been a bit dull without you around." Before Cecil could comment, Luthien quickly changed the subject. Twisting his head, he met his friend's eyes. "But how have you been, mate?"

((No worries. =D ))

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"Oh I'm grand. Pulled off a prank and, get this, an outstanding grade--within an hour of each other." A simple transfiguration charm on the food had caused the poor second year's face into a mouse's. Unfortunately, the student hadn't realized until he came across a mirror, at which point he screamed like a banshee, earning him a few hoots from his housemates.

Cecil shrugged slightly. "Anyways. What about you?"

[[deleted user]]

"Well, now. That is surprising. Cecil Graham, getting an outstanding grade? I'd better mark the day on my calendar." He mocked lightly, prodding the Gryffindor in the face challengingly.

"As for me..." Luthien ticked each accomplishment off of his fingers. "I managed to stay awake during History of Magic, was nearly strangled by Devil's Snare during Herbology, and got bloody well molested by that gold-digger, Paula."

He groaned and let his eyes shut. "So I came out here to see if I couldn't escape my bad luck for a few moments."

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"Well the good nes is that you weren't suffocated to death Devil's Snare. Bad news is that you actually wanted to stay awake during History of Magic--seriously, why would you even try?" Cecil did not have a high opinion of History of Magic, let alone anyone who took it that was not required to. There was literally no point to the class other than napping with one's head turned the other way.

[[deleted user]]

"Hmph. If that's the only bright side I'll have all day, perhaps I should just return to bed." He was only half-joking when he said it.

"I honestly have no idea. Perhaps near asphyxiation scrambled my brains a touch." Unfortunately, History of Magic wasn't something he would be able to escape for some time, considering that his father expected him to receive a N.E.W.T. in the accursed subject.

[Iviana (The Sign Painter)]

"Who knows? You might get a nice dream," Cecil replied, shrugging once more. Sleep was forever invaluable, after all. Unfortunately, getting more of it was exceptionally difficult.

"Yeah probably," he scoffed. "Why do you bother with it anyways?"