User:Aeriesol/Bailiwick/Ships

If you've stumbled on this, know a character ship that is planned or possible/in progress/done, please owl me. Seriously. I'm trying to track down every ship on this wiki and put in roleplays that were VIEs (very important events, aka first kiss, date, etc. etc.). You an also owl me to move the ship name to a different category...


 * Currently there are so few in here...mainly because I have a terrible memory. OWL ME AND DON'T BE SHY -cue flailing-

Possible/Planned
Self-explanatory.


 * # Noise (Somewhat possible)
 * # Aven
 * # Sophiam
 * # Raviele
 * # Sethie
 * # Micarrison

Bagley



 * They had their first kiss in the Kitchen at Hogwarts during their 4th year (after Christmas), but I didn't manage to save the roleplay before Bond cleared out for the next term
 * Apparently they've had a crush on each other for a long time. Since second year, I think? Feel free to correct me.

Rhoyce


Fifth Year

 * Rheine learned how to blush for the first time in her life during their first encounter...which is probably a good omen.



Boyce=He had escaped Blake for a little while, not to mention the wrath of his sister, one of the Holyhead Harpy beaters, and his brother, the Heidelberg Harriers' seeker. They had been trying to get him to pick a side for when/if they go to the finals. He found it ridiculous and sighed as he managed to breathe in fresh air, or really just the sweat of others that clogged up potentially fresh air.

Rheine=After adventuring about with Victoria, Rheine had excused herself from the tent to get used to her surroundings. She hadn't quite adjusted yet, and was feeling so claustrophobic that she had taken off her Gryffindor scarf and tied it to her wrist instead. The corners of her mouth twitched upwards slightly at a vivid recollection of the last time she'd done that - her last Quidditch match against Ravenclaw.

Boyce=He moved his way to a clearing, where an unopened tent was lying. It might have been rude for him to just sit there, but he couldn't help it and the cup had started a while ago. If they hadn't come already, chances were that they never would. He sat himself down, which could also have been considered rude, but he still didn't care as he looked up at the sky, the sun beginning to fall.

Rheine=The Filipina teen stumbled onto a less-claustrophobia-inducing area and was grateful for the change. Untying her scarf, she wiped at her brow, wondering if underage magic could be detected in this crowd. Not likely, but she'd get a Howler if they ever found out. She did not need anymore screaming in the estate. "This is even a crazier lot than the last football World Cup..." The words came out without even thinking.

Boyce=Upon hearing the words, he chuckled and gave a nod, "I agree, but I got used to this crowd a while ago." He had gone to the Muggle World Cup several times before and it was always hectic, but it never compared to an event like this. He turned to see who said something and smiled as he noticed his fellow house member, who just so happened to be in the same year as him, "Hey. Rheine, right?"

Rheine=Spying the stranger, Rheine blinked. The thought that someone from Hogwarts besides Cecilie, Victoria, or Winston might recognize her had not occurred to her until now. "I still feel queasy and I've been walking around for almost twenty minutes," She finally said. "Yeah. Sorry...who are you?"

Boyce=He smiled at her, despite not being recognized which only brought the 'Not-So-Famous Schmidt' title back, "Boyce. Boyce Schmidt. If you're feeling queasy, I would suggest you sit down, but you can do whatever you choose." He glanced at the crowd around them as to not seem like he was staring. After all, he didn't want to appear creepy.

Rheine="I'd gladly accept that suggestion," Rheine muttered, sitting down nearby. "And nice to meet you." As the crowd milled about, she found herself mulling over Boyce's surname. It sounded really familiar. She shut her eyes, allowing the noise to overcome her for a moment before pulling herself back in her shell. "Merlin, I won't be surprised if someone's half-deaf after this."

Boyce=At the first part, he smiled, "It's nice to meet you too." To the second part, he laughed. He had been going to these games since he had been in his mother's stomach and had started very slowly losing his hearing around the age of eleven. It was nothing major and he probably won't go deaf for decades to come, but he still found it somewhat humorous that people joked about it and here he was, having lost part of his hearing himself, "Yeah, no kidding."

Rheine=Tapping her temple out of habit, Rheine looked at the increasing size of the crowd almost despairingly. The clash of colors gave her a headache, prompting her to blink rapidly. "Do you have a team you're rooting for? I still can't decide," She inquired, to keep conversation going.

Boyce=He frowned, sighing, "Hell no. Unlike everyone else here, I don't get the option. My sister she's Lena Schmidt, the beater for the Harpies, and then my brother is Ansel Schmidt, the seeker for the Harriers." He shrugged, "So, I can't pick one, but they're my top two."

Rheine=Rheine snapped her fingers, or at least, attempted to. She had never gotten the hang of it. "That's why your name sounded familiar. Schmidt. Two pro Quidditch players for siblings...that must get hectic," She commented offhandedly. "I can't decide between Tengu, Harpies, and Bats. Though overall, I can't decide for any of the teams. They're all too damn good."

Boyce=He nodded, "My mum played for the Harpies and then my dad played for the Harriers, too." He gave her a playful grin, "Sad thing is, I don't think you've met any of them. But you did manage to talk to the one who isn't famous, or cute." His younger sisters were cute, they didn't even have to play quidditch to become favorites by the people.

Rheine=One couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Pfft, cat gets my tongue whenever I stumble into famous people. It's annoying. Plus, fame isn't something to be all worked up about - you probably know that - and the cuteness matter is a matter of opinion," Rheine stated with a half-laugh.

Boyce=He laughed, "You and I might know that, but the rest of the world doesn't. I've been surrounded by fame and fortune for my whole life that's it's just there." He shrugged, "It's like oxygen for people who don't have the spotlights on them or their families. I hope that made sense?" He turned to her, giving her a hopeful smile.

Rheine=Rheine nodded her affirmation. "It does," was her reply. Recalling Fabian and the estate, she winced. It had taken less than 3 years for her to get used to it, and she still wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. "Speaking of oxygen...they need to start handing out oxygen tanks. How the hell are these people breathing?"

Boyce=He laughed, nodding in agreement, "I've always wondered how they do...Breath, that is." He turned to look at them again, watching them huddle away like penguins, "They kind of look like penguins when you look at them from this perspective."

Rheine=Making a face, Rheine shook her head. "Great. My friend's tent is going to be stampeded by Quidditch fanatic penguins in my nightmares tonight." She blew a stray lock of hair from her face, already imagining the scene.

Boyce="Yeah, uh, sorry about that." He ran his hand through his hair, "So, are you staying with a fellow student?" He turned his focus away from the people as they were starting to get annoying and the homemade 'Rica x Ansel' shirts were starting to bug him. His focus was brought to the multicolor sky, which he found absolutely beautiful.

Rheine="Eh, I've dreamed worse," Rheine dismissed with a careless wave, accidentally hitting a passerby. "Sorry! Anyway, yes. Friend of mine, Victoria, seventh year. Not sure if you know her." Her sight was growing hazy with the blur of movement in the throng, and she had to rub at her eyelids occasionally. In an attempt to find something that wasn't moving like crazy, she tilted her head upwards at the sky.

Boyce=He nodded, having heard of the older girl before, "She's a chaser, right?" His eyes began to feel heavy as he got quite tired, yet when he closed them, they would burn. It was quite painful, but not as painful as playing a friendly game of Harriers vs their families.

Rheine="Yep," Rheine confirmed it. A thought struck her and she stared more intently at the sky. She relaxed after a few moments, realizing the full moon wasn't for some time. "Stupid question. Do you play Quidditch?"

Boyce=He grinned, "It's not stupid. I haven't played at school, yet my whole family plays. It could easily go either way." He glanced over at her before turning back, "Yeah, I do. I'm a Beater for the most part."

Rheine=Rheine pulled her knees to her chest, trying to check what the heck she was still breathing. "It fits you, I guess. The position."

Boyce=He raised an eyebrow, turning to her again. He has heard that before from Lena several times before, but he always thought that was because that was the position she played. "In the stereotypical way or just you think it fits?

Rheine="Definitely not the stereotype," Rheine laughed softly. "Stereotypical Beater would probably something along the lines of a giant with a bat, but maybe that's just me."

Boyce=He chuckled, "That sounds about right. So, why exactly do you think I would fit as a Beater then? If it isn't the stereotypical reason."

Rheine=There went the tap of the temple as Rheine thought. "It isn't exactly logical. More of an intuitive response than anything. You have a little Seeker in you, you sort of look like one. You're not the angry, surly type that I suppose is commonly associated with Beaters, so more of a...passive but aggressive on field type? Maybe?" She observed, ending in a small laugh. "I sound like a psychologist or something. Never mind. It's probably just intuition."

Boyce=He had been staring at her in awe, a faint blush on his cheeks. He shook his head, "No, you sounded fine. I liked it, to be honest. Your 'intuition.'" He smiled at her, though she wasn't even looking at him.

Rheine=Glancing over once, Rheine gave a slight smile awkwardly. "Most people think it's weird. Thanks." She fiddled with her scarf absentmindedly.

Boyce=He frowned as he heard that, "That's because most people are idiots and I can tell you're not. It makes me question: Did you tell the hat not to sort you into Ravenclaw or something?"

Rheine=Blanching slightly in embarrassment, Rheine found it hard to reply. "Uhm, kind of, I guess. I told it I didn't think I was smart enough for Ravenclaw," She shrugged.

Boyce=He raised an eyebrow, "You believe that?" His eyes clearly showed something that could be compared with worry, "You're not supposed to tell yourself those kinds of things."

Rheine=Another attempt at trying not to blanch. Rheine was glad that she wasn't capable of blushing. She'd be tomato red from the subject, it was a little too related to her past. "My self-esteem's existence itself is questionable, so yeah."

Boyce="I suppose I can relate." He nodded, turning back to the sky. He decided it would be for the best if he changed the subject, and quickly that is, "It's beautiful, isn't it? The sky, that is."

Rheine=Relieved at the change of subject, Rheine nodded her agreement. "The heavens are a treasure to everyone who looks up at them." She paused to consider the words. "I think I read that on a poem somewhere."

Boyce=He nodded, looking at his watch, "Do you have to be back at a certain time?" He personally didn't, but he was worried that he was somehow keeping Rheine from getting back to where she had to be.

Rheine="No, not really. Unless I stay out until morning, which generally is worrisome." Her gaze returned to the crowd in partial disbelief - was it actually decreasing?

Boyce=He turned to see what she was looking at it before turning to her, "This is around the time where people starting heading into their tents and getting drunk. Things should get quieter, or louder depending on who's drinking."

Rheine="Oh, if it gets louder I don't care if I'm breaking the law. I'll be throwing Silencing Charms everywhere," Rheine muttered, not sure if she herself was kidding. "And are you sure you're not a Ravenclaw? You seem to have a good memory."

Boyce=He laughed at the Silencing Charms part, but shrugged at the Ravenclaw comment, "Part of me had wanted to be there. I always had a knack for statistics and the mathematics/scientific side of quidditch...And, like you said, I have quite the good memory." He gave her a proud smile, "But I wasn't put there and I don't really get why not yet, but maybe one day I'll discover that I'm stupid."

Rheine="Everyone's stupid at one point," She pointed out thoughtfully. "Maybe you are a Ravenclaw, just a little more Gryffindor." She debated on telling him about her Slytherin-ish problems, but decided against it. "Oh dear Merlin - please tell me they're not getting louder."

Boyce=He stayed quiet for a moment, trying to pick up any sound. All he picked up was German yelling, but that was far away as it was obviously coming from the Harriers' tent. "Nein. Alles scheint ruhig." He spoke, forgetting he was with someone who wouldn't understand.

Rheine=The sudden change of dialect caught her off-guard. "Well, the only thing I understood from that was "no", which is good enough for me," Rheine smiled lightly.

Boyce=Having realized now that he had switched languages, he frowned, "At least you understood. Damn, I'm so sorry. It's my main language, so it kind of just becomes a reflex when I hear others speaking it." He shrugged before smiling back.

Rheine=She dismissed it with a careless wave of a hand. "No problem. For the record, same happens to me, lolo," Rheine teased good-naturedly. Tilting her head to the side, she vaguely made out German yelling, which sort of explained the situation.

Boyce=He noticed her tilting her head and smiled softly, "They're not drunk, I promise. Everyone has kind of put everyone else on a 'no drinking' rule. They were slugs for the first week or so, but they seem to have gotten the hang of it." He laughed, shaking his head, "The moment all of this is over though, they'll go back to their stereotypical ways."

Rheine=She looked rather skeptical but eventually decided to be reassured. "Why do I have a feeling they've gone into games drunk before?" Rheine wondered out loud. The last two sentences made her laugh and make a face at the same time.

Boyce=He laughed, "Maybe because they have? Quite a few times actually and they've won everytime. I'm not saying it's a good idea to play drunk because they've gotten quite a few fouls for doing something they shouldn't." He thought for a moment, chuckling to himself, "The beaters play harder, Ansel just messes with the other seeker's head as she he's moving all over the damn place like a psychopath until he's actually found the snitch, the Gil and the chasers just play a lot riskier."

Rheine=Mildly interested, Rheine couldn't help but pay attention. "I'm stuck between saying "holy crap" and "how many people noticed they were drunk"," She informed him, evidently amused. "Oh, and "that's just insane.""

Boyce=He grinned, "Well, to answer your second question: no one. Only the families knew." He laughed, finding what he was about to say quite humorous, "The press, and the fans, think they just play like that sometimes. It's quite ridiculous how they can't notice."

Rheine="That's just...really, really ridiculous," Rheine agreed wholeheartedly, somewhat exasperated. "Are they blind or what? And that's saying something - I used to be nearly blind." Shaking her head, she couldn't help but manage a laugh at the incredulity of it all. "I'd say unbelievable, but I s'pose there's no such thing in this crazy universe."

Boyce=He nodded in agreement before turning his focus to the sky, which had gotten noticeably darker. He almost wished it stayed like this, the semi-quiet, beautiful sky, that is. That's when he began to process her words, "You used to be nearly blind?"

Rheine=She was mulling things over in her head and listening to the distant German yelling when Boyce's words startled her out of it. "Huh? Oh, yes. I had to get laser surgery. Now my eyesight is normal." It was a personal tidbit of information that she generally didn't like disclosing to people, but it didn't feel as embarrassing as it used to be.

Boyce="Laser surgery is that Muggle eye thing, I'm assuming?" He had only heard of it once before and based off the explanation they had given to him, it sounded terrible.

Rheine=She had to suppress a grin from spreading. For some reason, Rheine always found it quite amusing whenever a wizard was clueless of something Muggle-related. "Yep. It's that one."

Boyce="It sounds absolutely terrible." Her gave her a true look of concern, "How in the world could someone do that to their eyes?" He shook his head, slightly creeped at the thought of going through with a surgery even remotely similar to the one being discussed.

Rheine=One just couldn't help it. She burst into a peal of laughter before hastily calming down. "It's not actually too horrible. Sure, the ring part felt like the Cruciatus curse but at least I have my eyesight," Rheine recalled, doing her utmost best not to remember the ring part.

Boyce=He nodded, laughing at himself, "I probably sound like some dumb Pure-Blood, don't I?" He knew lots about the Muggle world, so he wasn't completely oblivious to what everything was. There were things like this laser crap, however, that scared him far beyond any of the unforgivable curses did.

Rheine="Not really. Dumb purebloods would go "Oh, I live in the wizarding world, how the hell do you expect me to know that?" almost automatically on Muggle topics," She noted, smiling. "I don't blame you guys though. Some aspects of the Muggle world are just plain scary even with magic at your fingertips." Just like how some aspects of the wizarding world are terrifying with or without magic.

Boyce=He nodded, "So is magic. There are some creepy things that hide within the awe of the wizarding world." He smiled, even though it wasn't the happiest of subjects, "Speaking of which, is wizard supposed to be gender neutral or do they just like cutting females out of things?"

Rheine=Caught mid-nod by the question, Rheine tapped her temple again. The question itself wasn't so strange, she had acquaintances online who varied in genders and the such, but it was the one who was asking that surprised her. "I'm fairly certain it varies," was her response.

Boyce=He nodded, "Okay because I find it quite rude to witches and other things that the call it the wizard world. It's like Muggles calling their world a 'Male world' and I don't think that would go well."

Rheine=Rheine couldn't help laughing. "If the Muggles called it male world I have no doubt they'd start World War 3. I quite agree with that...but "witching folk" and "witching world" don't exactly have the same ring to it. Maybe the original wizards were sexist or something. "Magical world" sounds too commonplace, unfortunately."

Boyce=He nodded in agreement, "Hm. Yeah, I agree. The World Wars are like the wizarding wars, but bigger, correct?" He had heard of them before during class. One of the Muggle-Borns had mentioned it and he had gone home at the end of the year to research it. He wasn't completely sure why, but he did anyways.

Rheine="Massive. In fact, I'm a tad surprised it hasn't affected the magical community that much. Their relationships, more specifically," Rheine nodded. "Germany was a big part in World War 2, in fact. Think you've heard of Hitler? Japan went for Asian countries, and Italy...well, sadly I can't remember what exactly Italy did. Generally, world domination was something they had in mind," She shrugged uncertainly.

Boyce="Of course I've heard of him. I live in the country he used to rule." He shrugged, "As for the relationship thing, it probably did change things. The Ministry probably kept it a secret though."

Rheine="I thought you might." Rheine's eyes flickered upwards once. "They kept the secret well, then. I have yet to see any leftover animosity in Hogwarts. Letting bygones be bygones." She frowned, tilting her head towards the German yelling. "Do you have somewhere you're supposed to be?"

Boyce=He shrugged as he checked his watch, "I have about an hour of wandering left before I have to head back to the tent. That's just because I need to check in and then I can leave again for another hour or so." He turned to her, smiling, "Do you?"

Rheine="No, not really. Maybe I'll circle back at one point to check if the penguins have finally stampeded." Rheine glanced towards the dwindling crowd, checking to see if anybody else heard it and nodded in satisfaction. "I wouldn't be surprised if I fell asleep outside." Noting that she wasn't too queasy anymore, Rheine folded her scarf and jammed it into her pocket. Conversation and fiddling with it had gotten rid of her claustrophobia.

Boyce=He nodded, chuckling, "It wouldn't surprise me if I did either. It gets kind of nice once they-" He pointed to the Harriers' camp, "go to sleep." He ran a hand through his hair, absent-mindedly.

Rheine=Turning to see him running his hand through his hair, Rheine shook her head. "In agreement. When do they even sleep? Also, you're messing up your hair." She stifled a laugh, finding the mannerism similar to her own temple tapping.

Boyce=He laughed as he stopped, "Yeah, it's a habit. As for them, they'll all knock out in probably thirty minutes since they have a game." He shrugged, stifling another laugh, "If they didn't, they might stay up until about three am. I don't know how they do it, especially since they don't sleep in or anything. It's ridiculous."

Rheine=As she had rather similar sleeping habits the prior year, Rheine suppressed a knowing smile. "Likely the instinct to keep from falling off the broom keeps them awake in games," She suggested lightly. This time she had to clap her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing - his hair was messy as heck.

Boyce=He nodded in agreement, "Yeah, probably." Upon hearing her clap her hand over her mouth, he turned to look at her, grinning. He already had an idea of what it was about, "It's that bad, huh?" He laughed as he tried to fix it, to no avail, but he didn't know that. In fact, it probably made it worse.

Rheine=Laughter bubbled up from her throat, though it was muffled by the hand. "Y-you're making it-t w-worse," Rheine stammered through the words, incapable of halting the giggles coming in between. The sight was too funny to ignore, even if she tried to do her best.

Boyce=He laughed at himself, a slight blush appearing on his cheeks. If they weren't outside, he might have been able to fix it himself, but that wasn't the case. He turned to her, grinning playfully, "Could you fix it then? I don't think I can make it any better." He half-laughed as he glanced to the huddle of people that had thinned out to a few couples having late night walks.

Rheine=Rheine had to roll her eyes at his antics, and upon noticing the blush had to stifle a laugh. Deciding to play along, she stood up and walked closer. "Fine. Boys...why can't you bring a comb with you?" She chided as she produced the object from a pocket. "Stay still," The warning came, the corners of her mouth twitching upwards slightly.

Boyce=He tried to stay as still as possible, which wasn't that difficult. He heard her stifling a laugh and gave her a playful grin, almost laughing despite having to remain motionless, "You're not supposed to laugh at people in distress, Rheine." His words had a joking tone to them as he continued to hold back laughter.

Rheine="Who are you to lecture me, German Boy?" was the equally playful retort. Rheine combed through once, trying to disentangle the mess that was his hair. This was going to to take some time. Even as she did so, she was inwardly cracking up and unbeknownst to her, the faintest of red color. The proximity made her nervous, it always did even if it was a family member.

Boyce=He managed to look up at her for a second before he had to tilt his head back down, still grinning like an idiot. He had noticed the redness that was on her face, but didn't say anything as she probably noticed that he was blushing, yet she didn't say anything either. After several moments of her brushing it out, he chuckled, "Is it really this bad?"

Rheine=The question elicited an eye roll. "Yes. It makes me want to question what you do with your hair to make it like this, but I'm afraid to ask." Rheine continued on with the combing, doing her best not to double over laughing. The red had faded somewhat, but a tint was still there. "Merlin, this is worse than Reynie's hair," She blurted out on an impulse.

Boyce="There's no point in asking anyways, I honestly wouldn't know the answer." His grin turned into a smile as his own blush began to fade. Upon hearing a name he hadn't heard before, he raised an eyebrow, "Who's Reynie?" He wondered if that was something he shouldn't ask and kind of felt guilty at the thought of it being rude.

Rheine="Boys," Rheine muttered darkly as she disentangled more hair. She wanted to ask how exactly he wouldn't know before remembering that he was of the opposite sex...and thus typically careless about hair. The hair was becoming smoother though, just some more time. "He's my cousin, more of a brother though," She answered absentmindedly. Reynie being alone back home dampened her mood slightly, but she still was ready to burst into laughter.

Boyce=He nodded, stopping in the process of doing so as he remembered: Stay still. He grinned again, "Don't judge my hair just because it's terrible during this point in time. I like to think it's rather nice every other day." He glanced up at her again, "Not as neat as yours, if I'm allowed the observation."

Rheine=Snorting with laughter, Rheine's hand actually trembled as she ran the comb through again. "I'll see it when I believe it," She replied, half skeptical. The compliment and movement nearly made her drop the comb, and the tint of red became ever so slightly darker, but mostly indistinguishable. This time she kept silent until she was done, pocketing the comb. "There, done," She stated, and instinctively ran her hand through his hair to check for any more knots without even thinking.

Boyce="I'll prove myself right someday." A light pink covered his cheeks again as she ran her her fingers through her hair, "Thank you." He looked up at her, not really noticing the redness in her cheeks. That or he was trying not to notice it, probably the latter.

Rheine=Realizing what she just did, Rheine withdrew her hand as casually as she could. Now she could feel the warmth on her cheeks, albeit its hardly visible appearance. What. The. Hell. Since when had that been possible? "I wouldn't put it past you," She mumbled, stepping away a bit. "And you're welcome."

Boyce=He noticed her behavior and, remembering the blush from before, checked her cheeks. Squinting slightly, he saw it and brought his attention to her eyes, "Oi." He said, being quieter than before as he stood, "Are you okay?" It was naive of him to ask as it had been quite obvious what the real reason had been.

Rheine=Surprised at his standing up, Rheine somehow managed not to look too startled and an awkward smile. "Yeah," She nodded, breaking the eye contact nonchalantly. What she did immediately notice that he was still a good few inches taller than her despite the growth spurt she'd gotten the past few months. The thought made her smile less awkward and she actually gave a small laugh. "Aaaaand thank you for standing up and making me feel like a midget again."

Boyce=He looked away, locking eyes with a stranger for a moment, which quickly made his attention snap back to Rheine. "What? Oh, yeah, sorry." He smiled before bending his knees slightly as if to appear shorter, causing him to laugh, "Is this any better?"

Rheine=The short Asian couldn't help laughing for like the twentieth time. "Yes, thanks. I'm actually surprised you're not taller than that." Curiously casting a glance to the sky, somehow she didn't feel that awkward anymore. She finally noticed that the crowd had dwindled into almost nothing, which probably explained why the air didn't smell of sweat and dust as much as before.

Boyce="I normally have growth spurts over the summer, so I might just come back to school being like 5'9"." He followed her gaze, watching the occasional person walk by, "I told you, it's nicer once it gets dark." He smiled at her, still bending his knees.

Rheine="So much for trying to make me feel better," Rheine retorted jokingly. Her dark orbs found the equally dark sky, though the stars were beginning to come out. A few hours ago this place would've been anything but peaceful and quiet...but now, save for the odd sound here and there, it was. Forcing her gaze back to land-level, she noticed that his knees were still bent and grinned slightly. "You can stand up straight now, you know.

Boyce=He hadn't been fully listening as he looked up at the stars, trying to find a constellation. He didn't know what of them other than the dippers looked like anyways so we wasn't that bothered as she spoke to him. "Are you sure? I don't want to make you uncomfortable." He stayed where he was, knees still bent. It was oddly not that uncomfortable, he noted, and he might have been able to remain that way for at least another thirty to forty-five minutes.

Rheine="It's fine, seriously," Rheine let loose another small laugh. Noticing that he'd been studying the sky, she glanced up again at the stars. "And...didn't you say you had to get back to somewhere? You'd have a hard time walking around with your knees bent like that," She pointed out thoughtfully, the image forcing her to stifle another laugh.

Boyce=He nodded, "Right." He then stood up straight, feeling slightly uncomfortable because, quite frankly, he had gotten used to being short, "You're not a midget, by the way. You're taller than some other girls." He smiled down at her for a moment before looking up at the sky again.

Rheine="Huh. That's funny. I've never come across anyone my age who was shorter than me," Rheine noted a little mournfully. The stars caught her eye again and she recalled constellations from Astronomy class with surprising clarity. Generally she couldn't remember such things. Now wishing she brought a camera, she just soaked in the view.

Boyce="I've never come across another boy my age who is shorter than me, if it helps." He smiled up in the sky, looking down at Rheine every-so-often, "Can you find any constellations? I can't."

Rheine=Rheine nodded with a small smile. "Just a few. I think that's Andromeda over there, Cassiopeia's by the north. Obviously there are the dippers, and that look kind of like Aries," She pointed them out uncertainly. "And...that one's probably Gemini. Astronomy has never been my forte."

Boyce=His jaw had dropped some as he looked down at her, listening to her words with the occasional glance into the night sky. He wasn't that great at Astronomy, in fact, it was probably his worst subject. "There's no way. That was really impressive." He grinned at her, still quite amazed.

Rheine=The slight tint of red found its way to the Asian's cheeks again before she blanched on instinct. "It isn't, really. I know some Ravenclaws who can name everything in the sky," Rheine said, shaking her head. "Plus there's absolutely nothing to do in summer but memorize everything."

Boyce=He nodded, "Maybe so, but that doesn't make what you know any less spectacular." He nearly ran his fingers through his hair before remembering earlier. He brought his arm back to his side again as he looked down at his feet.

Rheine=Screw you, newly found ability to blush. Rheine avoided looking at him after seeing his arm lift. "Thanks. And if you mess up your hair again, I swear."

Boyce=He nodded, laughing, "I know, you'll kill me if I do." His eyes looked at hers for several moments, despite her not looking back. The reoccurring redness that covered her cheeks seemed infectious as it began to decorate his own.

Rheine="Not kill. Just severely injure," Rheine mustered out, mentally cursing. What was going on? She risked a hasty glance at him, noting the viral blush before looking back up to the sky, willing her cheeks to return to their normal color. Probably to no avail, but she could try. The full moon wasn't out, meaning Reynie was probably playing video games back home. The thought reduced the warmth a little.

Boyce=He turned away when she looked at him. What was wrong with him? He rubbed the back of his neck, somewhat embarrassed as he looked at the dark tents. "Do you want to stay here or are you up for going on a walk?" He had always liked walking along the trails made by the stampedes at night. When he was younger, it was always kind of scary, but now, he thinks it's relaxing.

Rheine=Raising her eyebrows, Rheine suppressed a laugh. "If we see any penguins, I'm blaming you." The redness, for the most part, had faded, but it still lingered. She brushed a stray strand of hair out of her eyes, now managing to look at him without reddening any further. "Lead the way, and please avoid any paths that may contain ducks."

Boyce=He smiled, "I don't think will run into any, penguins and ducks alike." He then sidestepped past her, heading forward. He kept his eyes on the ground for the most part, looking up here and there to look at her, "Do you have a phobia of ducks or?" He didn't mind if she did as he shouldn't. It was her life after all, not his.

Rheine=Rheine herself avoided looking at him as she trailed after the guy. The night was surely quiet, and she let herself wonder where Tori was now, or if she was bantering with her sister. The question snapped her out of it and she looked back at him, the corners of her mouth twitching. "No, they're just really annoying," She responded. "Me and my cousin call them demons, or demon spawn. Seriously, if you've ever seen a duck jump up and down on your picnic table with that insane look in its eye..." She let the sentence trail off and left it to his imagination, grinning slightly before realizing she was looking at him again. Immediately averting her gaze, the grin faded.

Boyce=He shook his head, "No, I haven't. But I agree, they're terrifying." He turned away, keeping his eyes on the ground as to avoid any awkward eye contact.

Rheine=She also kept her eyes where she was walking - partly because eye contact, partly because she had long since proven it WAS possible to accidentally trip over a rock she was already paying attention to. It was proven yet again when she tried to check her empty wrist for the time - damn, she'd left her watch back in the tent - and stumbled and almost fell. Muttering a curse at every rock in the world, an exasperated Rheine continued following him.

Boyce=It wasn't too hard to hear her stumbling since it was basically silent other than the occasional drunken yell or bugs chirping. He turned, mainly out of instinct, and frowned. He would have said something if she has fell, but she seemed to have kept her balance, so he turned back, not saying a word.

Rheine=Continuing to pick her way, Rheine was trying not to fall over a rock again. Seriously, the earth hated her even here. Okay, inhale, exhale, glance at the sky. At the glance she just narrowly avoided tripping again. "What are the chances of something coming out of the dark and scaring the crud out of us?" She pondered out loud.

Boyce=Having heard her, he wondered if he should answer or not. She seemed to be thinking to herself, but it was a good question and he could easily answer it. "It's probably about a 50/50 chance that something will or that something will not jump out at us." He shrugged, figuring that was a good enough of an answer. He moved his focus from the ground, up into the sky, not really bothering if the possibility that he could trip.

Rheine=The idea was not so appealing to Rheine, and she glanced apprehensively at the darkness. Damn underage magic law. In an attempt to focus on something else, she leveled her gaze straight ahead just in time to see Boyce look up to the sky. The action reminded her of the earlier incident and made her duck her head in embarrassment.

Boyce=He looked back down, realizing that he could easily fall flat on his face if he didn't look where he was going. He reached into his pocket, as if to grab his wand, only to remember that it wasn't there. "They should allow us to use magic when we're here. It's not like there's a chance of running into a Muggle or anything and Lumos would be wonderful right about now."

Rheine=The beginnings of a grin made it to her face. "Tell me about it. I actually brought a torch for emergencies, but it's back at the tent. Which won't do us any go-" Rheine stumbled mid-word and once more nearly fell over. "Ugh. And speaking of tents...weren't you supposed to check in on yours?"

Boyce=He stopped as he heard her nearly fall over again, causing him to turn around and reach his arms out as if to help her get her balance, "Yeah, I should probably do that." He said it as if it was no big deal because he probably couldn't have cared less about that right now, "Are you alright? You keep nearly falling." Way to go Captain Obvious.

Rheine=Midway to being steady, Rheine was forced to grab hold of one of his arms as she stumbled again. "For the most part, I'm fine. The earth just hates me. I never fall off barely clinging to rooftops but I always end up tripping on solid ground." His nonchalant reply with her question made her want to ask another, but decided otherwise - it was probably too personal.

Boyce=He kept the arm she was holding extended, while dropping the other slightly. "I don't think the earth hates you because I don't think the earth can actually feel that way about anything." He gave a partial laugh, "It is just a planet, after all, but you never know...Maybe some pixies just like following you around with rocks, trying to make you trip."

Rheine=Eyebrows were raised. "At least they're not ducks. Actually, no, there is a vague possibility it's ducks. Special breed that's genetically and magically altered to keep everyone tripping and once the government's plans for world domination is up and running they'll release them in hordes to stop any rebellion." Rheine realized that she had A. been driveling again and b. been still holding his arm. Well, at least the dark helps hide stuff. Quickly letting go, she let her hand drop to her side. "Uh, sorry."

Boyce=He laughed, nodding, "That's actually a good possibility, but I don't think they would be able to get in here." He shrugged, raising an eyebrow as she apologized, "There's nothing to apologize for." He let his arms fall back to his sides as he continued to look down at her, his eyebrow no longer raised.

Rheine="E-eh, I ramble a lot without thinking. Generally it annoys people," Rheine stated awkwardly. She attempted to edge away slightly, but nearly tripped herself backwards if she hadn't stopped moving in time.

Boyce=He shrugged, "Well, for the record, it doesn't annoy me." It truly didn't, in fact, he found it the exact opposite of annoying. He stepped backwards some, making sure to look where he was walking by turning his head around and looking at the ground.

Rheine=Looking mildly gratified, Rheine nodded as she tried to check her footing. It wasn't that good, clarified when she stumbled backwards again. "It's either the ducks, gravity, or it's getting darker," She found herself muttering out loud.

Boyce=He looked away for a moment, being completely unaware of her words. He knew she had said something, but didn't actually make out the words. The longer they stood there, the more awkward it seemed to become, "Do you need me to walk you to your tent? I need to get going, but I should have enough time to do that..." His words began to trail off at the end as he glanced over to her again.

Rheine="Thanks, but I think I can manage on my own." This was immediately contradicted as she promptly tripped backwards, landing hard and wincing. "Oh, hell." It was quite late...and the Iglesias would no doubt be looking for her soon. Plus, Boyce did seem to have messed up his schedule or something of the sorts.

Boyce=Having two younger sisters caused his to immediately kneel down beside her, a glint of worry in his eyes, "Are you sure about that? My parents will probably just think I'm with the Harriers, right now. It shouldn't be a problem at all." He reached his arms out to her, so he could lift her up once he decided to stand.

Rheine=As much as she wanted help through the creepy darkness and from tripping all the time..."I don't want to impose on you," Rheine stated, however reluctantly grabbing the offered arm to get back to her feet.

Boyce=He nodded, if he was in her position, he probably wouldn't have wanted help either. He was just stubborn about these kinds of things though, it wasn't anything personal, though he doubted her reasons were either. "If you insist. Just watch where you walk." He reminded her, not really thinking twice about how she may or may not take it the wrong way.

Rheine=Dusting off her jeans, his comment made her roll her eyes slightly. "I'll try. And by the way...when you introduced yourself and made that comment about not being famous nor cute?" Rheine raised her eyebrows. "I disagree with the latter." Abruptly turning to leave, she narrowly avoided another crack in the ground. "Hope I didn't keep you out for too long and get you into trouble, see you in the stands or probably Hogwarts!" She threw him one last smile before departing, albeit clumsily.

Boyce=His mouth was left open for a moment before it quickly turned into a grin, quite overjoyed. "See ya later!" He called as he headed back in the opposite direction of where she was heading, a light shade of pink coating his cheeks.



Rheine=Rain was a nice thing back in the tropics. In Britain? Not so much. Rheine shivered under her raincoat, the hood up. What was she doing up so freaking early in the freezing rain? She was bored. And it actually was replacing her boredom with annoyance.

Boyce=He squinted as he made his way through the rain, trying to locate his moody sister. It was too early for this crap and he was quite tired, causing his to be slow and drag his feet through the dirt that was quickly turning into a mud-like consistency. Soon enough, he stopped, thankful that there weren't too many people around. If there were, they would probably end up knocking him to the ground and he definitely didn't want that.

Rheine=How ironic. Her name was a derivation of the damn thing but she disliked it. Then again, Rheine had always disliked her name...mainly because people kept misspelling it back at home. Shivering from any droplets that had gotten through, she finally surrendered and took shelter just outside the awning in the team merch shop. "Meteolojinx Recanto would be so freaking useful right now...But nooo, we can't trust kids to not randomly shoot sparks at Muggles."

Boyce=He made his way towards the shop, hoping he could rest there without getting soaking wet. His eyes were blurring, making him run into an older man and give them a rushed 'Sorry!' before moving on. Upon reaching the awning, he gave a tired sigh and rubbed his eyes, hoping that would somehow focus them more. When they did readjust, he noticed Rheine and smiled, "Hey, it's nice seeing you again."

Rheine=She nearly jumped from surprise. Luckily she didn't slosh around too much mud. "I would say "nice weather for it" but unfortunately that isn't the case..so right back at you," Rheine stated, taking in his appearance, slightly smiling. Her gaze drifted to the downpour irritably.

Boyce="I know, it sucks. Maybe it will change by the afternoon?" It was supposed to be a statement, but it didn't come out that way, "Uhm, have you seen a short, blonde girl who kind of looks like me, but also not at all?" He nearly facepalmed. That wasn't specific, at all.

Rheine="Here's hoping," She shrugged, sending drops flying at whatever poor soul passed by her. At his question, she looked fairly puzzled, rubbing at her eyes. "Nope, sorry. You're searching for a sister, I'm guessing?"

Boyce=He nodded, "Yeah, I am. Even though you didn't see them, thanks. It means they probably didn't go this way." He shook his head, "They just had to pick fights with eachother and I just had to be the one to go look for her." He yawned as he watched the mud, footsteps being filled with rain over and over again.

Rheine=	Concern crossed her expression. "She's a girl. She'll probably be back at your tent soon. On the other hand...why are you the one out looking for her?" Shouldn't your parents be looking too, at least...?

Boyce="Other than the twins, I was the only one awake. Surprisingly." He shrugged, deciding to change the topic, "So, why are you up?" He glanced at her for a moment, smiling, before watching the mud again.

Rheine=	Huh. She decided to go along with the topic change...probably personal matter. "Me? I may or may not have woken up at random during three in the morning and couldn't go back to sleep. Thus, my not-so-brilliant battle plan against boredom consisted of walking around to test if I don't get hypothermia again."

Boyce=	"Why would you want to do that?" He said it more out of curiosity than trying to act like a concerned parent. His eyes gleaming somewhat as he looked over at her once more for the answer.

Rheine="I'm still not used to this weather," she admitted, averting her eyes in embarrassment. "You'd think that after experiencing snow and nearly drowning in a half-frozen lake I'd start getting used to it but...yeah, nope."

Boyce="I'm not too fond of it either. The rain, I mean." His eyes widened somewhat at her last sentence, concerned even though it had happened in the past. He turned his gaze to the rain this time as he saw her look away, "If you don't mind me asking, what happened that nearly made you drown?"

Rheine=And cue reddening. Turning her head towards the rain as if interested, Rheine tried not to show how embarrassed she was now. "I-I don't know how to swim," She muttered, almost inaudibly. "Kind of stupid. I used to live on a bunch of islands and I can't swim," was tacked on soon enough.

Boyce=He turned to look at her, only to notice the reddening in her cheeks, "There's no need to be embarrassed." He gave her a kind smile, even though she wasn't really looking at him, "I can't swim either, but I guess I've never really had a reason to. I guess you might have, living on islands and all..."

Rheine=Waiting till the red had gone, she turned her head back to its previous position. "I can float...but that's it. And seriously?" She raised her eyebrows. "I'd think that by this time somebody must have pushed you into the Black Lake at school." Her eyes widened slightly. "Not that..I'd expect them to do that but uh..." She ended up coughing awkwardly. Why did she have to wake up so early?

Boyce=He rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling, "Well, yeah, they have. I just floated like I was dead, which was probably not the best move since there are so many creatures down there." He shivered at the thought of it, "I just waited until I teach noticed or until I floated back." He shrugged.

Rheine=Okay. Staring at him without incredulity was now hard. When she finally found the words, she shook her head while trying not to laugh. "What if you floated in the other direction? The grindylows would've gotten to you, at the very least." Her tone was somewhat shaky. "Luckily the squid doesn't eat humans, so that's one less thing to worry about."

Boyce=He grinned, "I guess I just got lucky. It was kind of miserable at the time...I kept thinking about how I was going to die and no one was going to notice because the boys who pushed me in wouldn't say anything."

Rheine=That got her full attention. "Well, I'm glad you didn't die, and that was horrible of them," She stated angrily. "Did you ever hex them back?"

Boyce=He nodded, "Of course I did. Who wouldn't?" He noticed the anger in her voice and frowned, "Thanks, I guess, for being glad that I didn't die."

Rheine=She relaxed somewhat. "Oh, good. Bullies," She scowled for a moment. "They just can't disappear off the face of the earth can they?" Easily thinking up a bunch of inappropriate curse words on the subject, she looked back to the rain, which apparently wasn't going to let up anytime soon. "Who wouldn't be glad that you didn't die?" It was more of a rhetorical question than anything.

Boyce=He shrugged, "The bullies, for one. Probably Sadie, but she's just a pest and she would probably regret it later." That reminded him that he was supposed to be looking for her, causing him to grumble, "Probably most of our school." He forced a smile, "But, hey, my family's fans would gobble that sh*t up, so more fame for them."

Rheine=Her gaze shifted back to him, noting that the smile was forced. "It was rhetorical, German Boy," She responded quietly, walking closer and waving her hand in front of him as if to snap him back to reality. "You still matter, you know. Famous or not."

Boyce=His smile, or lack thereof, vanished as she waved her hand infront of him, "I know that I matter. Everyone matters, but it doesn't mean their loss with be a big deal." He sighed, "You're right about the whole famous thing, too. I don't think I want to be famous, just notable. If that makes sense?" He gave her a hopeful smile, hoping that it did.

Rheine=His first sentence elicited a facepalm from her. "I feel like hitting you with a dictionary right now," Rheine muttered, glaring albeit halfheartedly and jabbing a finger at his chest. ""Matter" means be of importance, significance, etcetera etcetera. Anyone's death is and can be a big deal." Her glare disappeared. "It makes sense, in a way."

Boyce=His eyes widened as she jabbed him, almost grabbing her wrist to put it at her side. He nodded, kind of nervously, "I get it. The rather wise and beautiful Rheine is right again." He smiled down at her, a playful hint to it, before he realized what he said and the color drained from his already rather light skin, "Forget that I said that."

Rheine=Any dregs of anger drained away as Rheine stared at him in disbelief. Once her brain had registered what he had said, cue the flushed face. "W-would probably be easier with a Memory Charm," She finally stuttered out, somewhat trying to force the dark blush to go away.

Boyce="Maybe not, since you have to wait a few more weeks before we go back to Hogwarts." He pointed out, despite agreeing with her statement. His cheeks quickly went from pale to red as he noticed her rather obvious blush, "So, uh, I'm sorry."

Rheine=Why now? Seriously, why now? If it was possible, it seemed any attempt at getting rid of the redness failed. "Don't be," Rheine mumbled. GO AWAY BLUSH. "For the record, you're cute too." Okay, next thing she was headed for after the Cup finals was the nearest mental institute.

Boyce=He nodded, "Thanks?" He looked away, hoping his face would go back to normal. The blushing only made him more embarrassed, which only made the blushing worse. It seemed to be an endless loop of...disaster? Yeah, that seemed to work.

Rheine=A few appropriate curse words went through her mind on the stupid blush. ''Damn. It. All.'' When was the last time she had gotten into a situation like this? Two years ago. "Gee, thanks a lot, brain. Go useless when needed," She thought out loud before realizing what she had just said. "Oh crap." Eyes wide, she backed away a little more.

Boyce=He laughed nervously, "I think I can say the same about my own." He somehow managed to control the redness in his cheeks as she backed up, but he knew it wasn't because she did so. It was more of a timing thing, right? That's just what he wanted to believe, but somewhere he knew the truth and he wasn't going to admit it.

Rheine=Coughing awkwardly, she feebly tapped her temple out of pure habit. It was only when she was a half-decent distance away when she realized she was shivering. From cold or from nervousness, that was the question. "This is awkward, to say the least." Her eyes had suddenly developed the ability to see anything but him.

Boyce=He laughed, "Yeah, no kidding." He noticed her shivering and his eyes immediately filled with worry, "I think we should get you inside, you're shivering like crazy..." He stepped towards her as to give a comforting hand to lead her inside the shop, but stopped as he realized how awkward that might be.

Rheine="I-I'm fine...probably just hypothermia. Again." Oops. Okay, probably not the best thing to say. The color was beginning to fade, gratefully, when he stepped forwards and brought it back. One day I'm creating a stupid...amulet to control blood flow, I swear.

Boyce=He frowned, "Nein, Rheine. I'm buying you another coat." He stopped for a moment, frozen in his thoughts, "Okay, that wasn't the best thing to say, but I am." That probably wasn't the best reply to that. Crap, Boyce...I swear to goodness, you're an idiot.

Rheine=''Stop flaring red! Morgana's feathers...'' She shook her head rapidly despite the continuous shivering. "Y-you don't need to," was the half-mumbled response. "I think I still have some Pepperup back in the tent-" She was cut off by another violent shiver. ''Stupid rain. Or Rheine. Either works.'' "I'll be fine," She protested anyway.

Boyce=She shook his head, "How far away do you think your tent is? I say pretty far away based off the way you headed after the last time we talked..." If she wasn't going to let him buy her another jacket, then his would have to do. He wasn't that cold anyway, so he took it off and held it out towards her, "Take it."

Rheine=Ugh, she couldn't argue with his logic. The tent was quite far away but she'd been hoping he'd forget. Making a reluctant noise of assent, she hesitated and took his coat. "What about you? You'll get sick," She muttered, wrapping it tightly around her, trying and failing so badly not to notice how it smelled like him.

Boyce=He shrugged, "I'll be fine." His temperature seemed to drop instantly, but he didn't think much of it. He would just buy another coat from the store after their conversation. "If I do get sick, it would mean I wouldn't have to pick between the Harpies and the Harriers if they both get to the cup. I would just stay in the tent, probably sneaking food tart I'm not supposed to be eating."

Rheine=""I'll be fine" seems like the popular catchphrase of about every NOT-fine teenager these days," She couldn't help but observe out loud. The food comment made her clap a hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter, though she was still shivering albeit less. "If you do get sick, I'm hunting you down," She added in a half-warning manner.

Boyce="I don't use 'I'll be fine' like most teenagers." He smiled as she threatened him, "That probably won't be too difficult. Our tent is hard to miss."

Rheine="Oh, yes, you do," She grumbled right back, still shivering. It amazed her how her teeth weren't chattering along. Why was it so freaking cold? "Well, meet the girl who doesn't have a sense of direction and the ability to use common sense."

Boyce=He chuckled, "Okay, maybe this time I do, but other than that, I don't." His smile vanished as he noticed that she was still shivering. Was it really that cold? "Well, meet the boy who isn't afraid to help the girl with no sense of direction without it being a way of trying to flirt unlike other boys."

Rheine=Laughing, she was cut off with another shivering fit. "Touché, German Boy."

Boyce=Upon noticing her shivering fit, he took an instinctive step towards her in concern. "I know you don't want my help with the whole cold thing, but you're still shivering. You need to get warm again..." If it wasn't for the fact that she already had his coat, he would have offered it again, but that wasn't the case. He immediately felt bad for not having any ideas that wouldn't involve going back into the rain.

Rheine=His step forward reawakened her blood stream quite subtly. "I'll probably be fine...I've dealt with worse," She insisted automatically. Taking an irritated glance at the downpour, she wrapped herself tighter in the coat, giving up on trying not to inhale the smell. "Next time, I'll try to remember to bring some Pepperup. Knowing my memory, I'll forget again. Ugh. I need a Remembrall." Realizing she had been babbling again, her eyes widened, clamping her mouth shut.

Boyce=He raised an eyebrow as she clamped her mouth shut, "You weren't rambling, it's fine." He smiled, assuming that's what it was based on what happened before.

Rheine="...Salamat," Rheine muttered her thanks, glad that the cold was keeping her pale for once. She didn't know what would happen if it wasn't...probably something terribly awkward and disastrous, not dissimilar to previous situations. "Aren't you cold? Oh, right. Germany. Guess you're more used to it."

Boyce=He laughed, shrugging, "I mean, I still get cold, but I'm basically used to it."

Rheine="Which is, if you're not careful, a bad thing." She eyed him with obvious concern, also somewhat guilty for taking his coat. "Don't get sick, you hear me?"

Boyce=He smiled at her, "I won't, I promise." His eyes filled with worry and concern, "Don't get sick either, though."

Rheine="Me? Sick? The only time I ever get sick these days is when I accidentally swallow poison," She smiled somewhat nervously. It had happened before...she was sick the entire day. Luckily it was only one time. "It's you, mister I'm-fine-without-a-coat-in-freezing-weather, who you should be worried about."

Boyce=He laughed at her last comment before her first words sunk in and his eyes widened. "You've swallowed poison? Several times before?" She had said days after all, maybe if she hadn't, he would have shrugged it off.

Rheine=Definitely nervous now. "Uh...yeah, sometimes? It's only happened once so far. Probably will happen again unless I finally label my bottles. I keep forgetting to," She gave an awkward laugh. "Luckily I wasn't dealing with auto-kill poisons during that time, and I tend to remember to label those."

Boyce="Please label them." He didn't know why he said anything because he knew she would forget. She definitely needs a Remembrall. He thought to himself before actually relying, "At least it's only been once. And you label the ones that automatically kill you."

Rheine="Well, there was one time I forgot to label one of those-" She cut herself off, realizing that was probably not a good idea to relay. "Uh, but anyway, yeah, at least it's been only once."

Boyce= He ignored the first part, deciding it was for the better if he didn't worry himself about it because that would lead to him being all oddly motherly to her. He grimaced at the thought of it. Motherly Boyce Schmidt wasn't a thing he necessarily liked, at all. "I would hope it stayed that way. That it's only been once, I mean."

Rheine=She laughed shakily. "Me too. I personally do not like stumbling upon dead bodies when walking around the house." His grimace went unnoticed as she glanced at the rain...which for some reason was beginning to lighten. Which was good, because she was already so freaking cold.

Boyce=He smiled, but didn't laugh as he followed her gaze. At first it just seemed like it had been all morning, but then he noticed that it was stopping slowly, "Well, it looks like it might- Wait, I'm not going to jinx anything."

Rheine=Hearing him, she suppressed a laugh. "Saying you don't want to jinx anything technically is jinxing everything. Just a random thought," She pointed out as she tentatively held out a hand just outside of the awning. Well, it surely was clearing up. Speaking of clearing up...there was something nagging at her in the back of her mind, but she couldn't quite recall, as usual.

Boyce=He facepalmed, "Yeah, you're right." He mumbled before looking out at the rain again, "Are you going back to your tent once it clears up?"

Rheine=Shrugging, she herself was not quite sure. "It sounds like the option...too much mud to enjoy a nice stroll, sadly." She looked mournfully at the brown substance coating the ground, muttering something undoubtedly against mother nature. "Mud's okay and all....not too much when it's combined with litter from Quidditch fans."

Boyce=He nodded, "The only benefit is that you might find something valuable. Like a rare trading card." He shrugged, "Uhm, we could walk together, if you would like?"

Rheine="I'm not so desperate for trading cards, unfortunately. I did use to collect Pokemon cards though," She replied, almost absentmindedly. His offer pulled her back to attention. "It's a long walk. And if I recall correctly, our tents are practically on the opposite sides of the grounds," was swiftly pointed out whilst trying not to remember what she had told him in parting the last time.

Boyce=''Pokemon cards? Those are those Muggle, cartoon-looking things, right?'' He thought to himself before answering her, "Yeah, I believe it is, but I can't go back until I find Sadie, so." He shrugged, "I might as well, but if you don't want me to join you, then I won't."

Rheine="I don't want to impose on you any longer," She smiled gently. "Or postpone you for hunting for your sister. It's not that I don't want you to join me. But thank you." Before she could even start thinking at all, she walked closer, kissed him on the cheek, and stepped out of the awning's protection and made her way back to the Iglesias tent. Trying not to comprehend what she had just done, she completely forgot that she had his coat. Even as she began to remember that, it was quickly pushed away by the realization that Tori would be worried again.

Boyce=He had a slight blush in his cheeks before he walked off in the opposite direction. He was barely even cold anymore, so he too didn't notice that she had his coat. "Where are you..." He mumbled to himself as he searched for his sister.



Whitlake




Charlie=Charlie walked into the place and looked around, searching for a free table so she could occupy herself for some summer reading. With her, she'd have an assortment of books from text books from last year to the ones she'd recently bought. Out of all of them, there were more Astronomy and Charms books than the other subjects, with these being the ones she struggled the most in. Seeing a table near the entrance, she walked over and sat down, ready to immerse herself.

Henry=He entered minutes later, a pile of Astronomy books in his hands. His eyes looked over all of the tables, not finding a single empty one. He sighed as he settled on a table with a girl who looked somewhat familiar from school, "May I sit here?"

Charlie=Charlie's eyes glanced up from the book she was reading - one of last year's Astronomy textbooks - and smiled sheepishly as she recognised him from a few of her classes, "O-Oh! Sure!" She held her page with a finger as she used her free hand to shuffle some of her books out of the area where he'd sit, "You're, er, Henry, right?"

Henry=He smiled as he sat down, "That would be me. I'm the one with the six siblings in our year." He squinted as he tried to remember her name, as if that would help, "And you're, um, Charlotte?"=

Charlie=Her smile grew in confidence as she nodded, "That's me, the one with the lesser amount of siblings." Her eyebrow arched ever so faintly, more curious than anything as she tended to be, "I heard about that, isn't there a word for it?"

Henry=He nodded, "Septuplets." He tried to remember what house she was from, knowing for sure it wasn't Ravenclaw, "One of us is in your house, I think. You're a Hufflepuff, right?" He hoped he was correct, not wanting to seem like an idiot.

Charlie=Charlie said the word back to herself in her head, wanting to use it and impress someone next time the question was raised, which, she sadly doubted. She then nodded, "Mhm, Hufflepuff. My sister's in your house, I think - you're in Ravenclaw, right?"

Henry=He nodded, "Yeah, what's her name?" He had probably seen her Round the common room, but he wasn't quite sure. They were the Blake's, right?

Charlie=If she said she knew his last name of the top of his head, she'd be lying. An extremely playful and almost admirable smile played her lips, "It's fitting you're in Ravenclaw - from the what I've seen from the classes we're in." She waited a moment before running a hand through her hair, "And Felicity, though she's quiet so I wouldn't expect you to know of her. What's your sibling's name? I might them."

Henry=He shrugged at her first comment, "Fiona. She's one of the few of us who actually cares enough to attend class. And, no, I don't know her."

Charlie=Charlie's eyebrows furrowed a little as she thought back to those she knew of in her house. Seconds later, she'd nod, a smile adorning her face, "Oh! I've seen her around a few times, she seems to be really nice." Like him, she shrugged at his second comment, "Didn't expect you to, I'd be lying if I said I knew her completely myself."

Henry="But isn't she your-" He shut himself up, realizing he wasn't that close to Oliver or Eloise. Therefore, he didn't have the right to say 'But isn't she your sister?' He ran his fingers through his hair, "Nevermind, I get that. I don't know some of my siblings very well either."

Charlie=She nodded, "Large amounts of kids are good figuratively but in practice, not so much." Charlie sighed as she glanced down at her book, before looking up at him, "Are you here to read too, or?"

Henry="Yeah, pretty much." He nodded towards her books, "What are you reading?"

Charlie=She glanced over at her books before her gaze shifted back to him, "Astronomy and Charm textbooks from last year." Her face tinted a pinkish colour out of embarrassment as her hand covered her mouth.

Henry="I love Astronomy." He frowned as he noticed that she was blushing, "Are you okay?"

Charlie=She nodded as she retracted her hand from her mouth and ran it through her hair, "Y-Yeah, it's just, I'm really bad at Astronomy and Charms so I always reread the textbooks from last year and to say it makes me embarrassed is an understatement."

Henry=He gave her a kind smile, "It's fine. There's nothing wrong with rereading textbooks, if anything, it makes you seem more intelligent. It shows that you actually care to remember the information." He shrugged, "So, I think it's genius."

Charlie=Charlie returned a shy smile at him as she shrugged, "I guess, I think I just don't like promising myself each year I'll do better and then each year sitting in here and rereading it all." She then nodded at his books, "But what books have you got? Since you listened to me ramble on."

Henry="Well, if you would like, I could always help you during these next two years." He then looked down at the books, looking back up nearly immediately, "Just some Astronomy things. Textbooks, some Muggle ones, and a map somewhere." He shrugged, "It's not much."

Charlie=She arched an eyebrow, a grateful smile adorning her face, "You'd do that? I wouldn't want to be too much trouble though..." She then glanced at his assortment of items, "That much? No wonder you're top of the class..."

Henry=He shrugged, "I would be more than happy to help." He smiled back, "As for the top in my class thing, I wouldn't say it was because I'm carrying around this much."

Charlie=She continued to smile as she bowed her head a little, "Thank you!" She then lifted her head back up and shrugged, her smile turning into something more playful and jokey rather than with gratitude, "Maybe not, but I'm sure it helps a lot."

Henry= "No problem." He grinned in return, "Maybe so." He shrugged, truly believing that it had very little impact.

Charlie="Unless you know it all, wouldn't it give you more of a background knowledge of the subject, meaning you could excel better in class?" She shrugged back at him, "I always figured doing extra reading helped."

Henry="It does, just this-" He motioned towards the books, "Isn't extra reading, it's just reading." He smiled, "So, want are your best school subjects?"

Charlie=She widened her eyes a little, "That's just reading? That'd be extra reading for me for weeks." She laughed a little at her own joke before shrugging, "I like Transfiguration and I guess I'm not too bad at Defence Against the Dark Arts."

Henry=He nodded, thinking to himself, "Okay, then, we can go somewhere with that. For Charms, at least." He shrugged, "Uh..Do you have a muggle phone?"

Charlie=She looked to be in thought for a moment, muttering under her breath, "I think I brought it with me." She then rummaged through the main part of her bag for a few seconds before fishing out her phone and nodding at him, waving it slightly, "I knew I brought it!"

Henry=He nodded, relieved that she did, "Do you want to exchange numbers or something?" He got out his own phone, before realizing how awkward his last words were, "So we can meet up to study, of course."

Charlie=She arched an eyebrow at his first words, however it dropped at his seconds as she smiled, "Oh! Sure, that'd make it easier!" She quickly got a bit of parchment out and scribbled her number down and presenting it to him, "There you go."

Henry=He ripped the parchment in half to write down his own number, pushing it over to her side of the table, "Thanks and there you go." He smiled back, somewhat embarrassed now.

Charlie=She read the piece of parchment over once and smiled, putting it against her phone, "I'll add it in later...do you want me to text you so we know we have the right number, or?"

Henry=He had been in the process of putting her phone number in, "I'm creating your contact right now, so I guess I can." He finished her contact, being somewhat bugged that he didn't have a picture, but that was just his 'everything needs to be complete and perfect' problem. Sighing, he quickly sent her a text: ''Hey, it's Henry. :)''

Charlie="Oh okay." She flushed a little, seeing as he'd already started. When she got his text, a small smile etched itself onto her face as she replied back, creating his contact afterwards: Hey, it's Charlie :D

Henry=He gave a slight blush that was nearly impossible to see, thankfully. He gave a quick reply: ''You could have told me that you liked being called Charlie instead of Charlotte. :)''

Charlie=Charlotte smiled to herself, a pale blush of her own forming: I'm fine with either, it's whatever you prefer :)

Henry=He smiled to himself also, his cheeks beginning to feel rather warm: ''It's not my name, it's yours. :) You seem to like Charlie more, so I'll call you that. You're cool with that, right?''

Charlie=As a natural reaction, she nodded, typing in her response quickly: ''That's totally cool. It's easier to say as well :)''

Henry=He looked up at her, smiling despite knowing that she wouldn't see: It's a very pretty name, by the way. He had almost sent a winky face at the end of it, but had quickly deleted it before sending another text: ''So is Charlotte. :)''

Charlie=Again, a smile surfaced on her face as she read his text and hesitated on the wording of her's, before typing it out quickly: Henry's a nice name too, it sounds cute :)

Henry=He grinned, thinking a moment as to make sure she replied with the right thing: ''Thanks, my parents spent like two seconds picking it out. :) He paused after he sent it: Wait. You think it's cute?'' If Kole was there, he would tell him to punch him in the face because at this point, he felt like he deserved it.

Charlie=As she did before, she subconsciously nodded as she thought of her reply, typing it out: Well in those two seconds they made a good choice and, well, yeah - plus it suits you, if you don't mind me saying.

Henry=''No, I don't mind at all. They really confused me in the middle name department: Kenneth Torquil. How do you even come up with something like that?'' He laughed, looking up at her.

Charlie=She laughed as she looked up at him and caught his glance, choosing to say her next words rather than typing them, "Henry Kenneth Torquil - it has a nice ring to it. Better than Elizabeth Diana, they sound old fashioned if anything."

Henry=He turned his phone off and set it on the table, "I think it sounds wonderful. Charlotte Elizabeth Diana. It's old fashioned, sure, but Diana means divine. That seems to suit you quite well." He stopped for a moment, "Wait. Ignore that last part, sorry."

Charlie=She laughed as she smiled at him, "Thanks, though I don't know the meanings of your names off the top of my head, I'm sure they suit you too."

Henry=He shrugged, "Henry is estate ruler, which I guess works since I have a part time share in an apartment complex." He laughed, thinking about how is parents probably hadn't thought about that ever happening, "Kenneth is a name that suits my brother Kole more, meaning born of fire and handsome. Then Torquil means Thor's cauldron, I don't really know what to say about that one." He laughed again, wondering to himself why his mother had chosen those names.

Charlie=She retained her smile, "So me saying Henry sounded powerful was sort of, in a weird way, right?" She laughed, "You sort of live up to the second name's expectations." She then processed what she said and she flushed a pink colour, "Wait, ignore that part."

Henry=He smiled as he heard her words, "Thanks. I know I was supposed to ignore it, but-" He shrugged, "I couldn't help it." If he wasn't trying so hard not to blush, his cheeks might have been a deep pink by that point. It would probably just make him look like he was angry or something though, so he was glad that it wasn't showing.

Charlie=She laughed as she smiled at him, "Your welcome - give a compliment to a compliment; I'm living up to the meaning of Diana, and you're doing the same with Kenneth." She stopped herself and rolled her eyes playfully, "That sounded so cheesy I'm sorry."

Henry=He laughed, grinning, "You're right it was cheesy, very cheesy at that. However, the amount of cheddar or swiss words may contain has no affect on how truthful the statement was."

Charlie=At his words, she found herself laughing and smiling as she ran a hand through her hair, "Not cheddar or swiss? The words must be true then." She then looked over at the bartender and then back at Henry, "Do you want a drink or something?"

Kemi


Tealey




Carmas


This is copied from Emma's sandbox....Sorry for stalking, Emma!

First Year


In the Gryffindor Common Room - February 28th-March 6th 2014

Thomas= Thomas kicked back in the Gryffindor Common Room in one of the squishy armchairs near the fireplace. He had open in front of him his potions book, although he wasn't doing a very good job of actually reading it.

Carmen=Carmen entered the room, carrying several books. She was walking across the room when she suddenly tripped and her books flew everywhere. Her face turned red and she feared everyone was looking at her, but a shy glance across the room showed the only person in it was one of the boys she recognized from her classes.

Thomas= Thomas was startled a little by the sound of crashing books. He recognized the girl from class as well. He sat there, trying to decide if he should help her, and finally got up to do so, the voice of Charity echoing in his brain. Normally he'd ignore it, but the girl looked so helpless, he felt he should. "Are you alright?" he asked, getting down to help her gather the books.

Carmen=She stood back up after bending over to pick her books up and in a flustered manor she brushed some hair out of her eyes. "No...erm, I mean yes. Yes, I'm fine, thank you," she replied, not meeting his eyes.

Thomas= Thomas studied the girl. She sort of reminded him of his youngest sister, which was odd, because he'd never spent much time with Melinda. "You're... Carrie, right?" he asked, trying to remember. "No, no that wasn't it..." He stared at the ceiling, as though perhaps her name would etch itself up there. It didn't.

Carmen=Carmen tried to laugh it off to make it seem like she wasn't terrified and uncomfortable, but really she just affirmed the fact that she was. With a blush and still looking at the floor she said, "No, it's Carmen actually....you're Thomas," she said, remembering him even if he didn't remember her. It didn't surprise her, nobody remembered her over her sister.

Thomas= Thomas nodded. "Sorry, I've never been any good with names. Neither is my sister, actually." He grimaced, realizing a common trait that he shared with Charity... and that he had admitted it out loud. "Probably runs in our family. I'm better at remembering faces."

Carmen="How old is your sister?" she asked, hoping it was an appropriate topic for conversation and not something that would cause tension.

Thomas= "Fourteen." Thomas said, shrugging. "She's in Hufflepuff." He shook his head. "I am soooo glad I wasn't put there too. I'd have never heard the end of," he uses a high, mocking, girlish voice, "'Oh! You must be Charity's younger brother!'"

Carmen=Carmen laughed genuinely and for the first time looked up and met his eyes, "That's funny, my sister is a Hufflepuff too." she took a pause and her eyes fell to the ground again as her voice saddened, "A lot of people mistake me for her, so I guess I kind of know what it's like to only be known by your sister,"

Thomas= "I don't know who she is. I mean, not really. I've seen her in classes, maybe." he said, shrugging. "I only know you."

Carmen=Carmen sighed, "Oh, that explains why you're talking to me then and not her. If you'd met Kimi you'd prefer her company far better,"

Thomas= Thomas shrugged again. "I doubt it." he said. "One thing I've loved about Hogwarts is you don't really have to talk to people from other Houses unless you want to-- it's kept a nice distance between me and Charity. So," he continued, looking at her, " Unless I deliberately go seeking out Kimi, you're the only one that really matters to me, because you're also a Gryffindor."

Carmen=Carmen could kind of see the sense in that, but then she knew how badly people were drawn to Kimi and how hard it was to resist sometimes. There was also the question of way any of the students should need to speak to each other at all, she'd be much happier to never speak to anyone. "I suppose you're right," she said simply and quietly, hiding her feelings behind a weak smile.

Thomas= Thomas had tried to ignore Carmen's seemingly nervousness, but at this point, he felt compelled to ask-- it could be his fault, in which case he should just leave her alone. "Am I.... am I making you nervous or something?" he asked, hoping he didn't make it worse by asking.

She just had to laugh at his straight-forwardness and way he's just asked straight out. Normally people decided to side-step round her delicate nature. It actually made her feel safer and more at ease if people understood her nervousness so she was happy to talk about it, "No, it's not you. It's me, I have social anxiety disorder...it makes me...anxious," she replied with a nervous laugh.

Thomas= Thomas felt more comfortable knowing it wasn't something he was doing. "Oh," he said, a little unsure on how to proceed here. This is where Charity would've done better. "Um... I'm sorry?" he didn't really know what else to say, but to apologize seemed weird, too.

Carmen="What for?" Carmen laughed. She actually felt quite weird to not be the most awkward or nervous person in the room for a change, "It's not your fault,"

Thomas= "I know that." he said. "I just... I don't know. I've never met anyone with social anxiety before, I guess. I didn't know what else to say, so I said... sorry." he said, feeling less stupid, and starting to see the humor in it. A smile spreads across his face. "Pretty stupid, huh?"

Carmen laughed under her breath and then it hit her, for the first time in years she was having a conversation with a stranger and not freaking out. Somehow Thomas's attitude just made her feel at ease. She decided to test just how far she could take it before any real anxiety set in. "Yeah, pretty stupid," she teased, "Now I know why you're not a Ravenclaw."

Thomas= Thomas grimaced. "I didn't care where I ended up, so long as it wasn't Hufflepuff." he said, letting the light-hearted jab roll off smoothly.

Carmen="I always thought I'd end up a Ravenclaw, I guess I'm kind of glad I'm not. But I have no idea how I ended up in this house, considering...you know," she said thoughtfully, not wanting to bring it up again to make him feel awkward. "So you'd be okay if you'd been put in Slytherin?"

Thomas= "Hat knows best, I suppose." Thomas said, shrugging. "As for Slytherin... well, it would've been strange. But I probably could've got used to the idea. But I didn't, and I'm here, so that's what counts I suppose."

Carmen="Yeah I suppose," she said, lost in thought for a few moments. Then she snapped her mind back to Thomas and giggled, "I can't imagine you being a Slytherin, you seem too nice....if you don't mind me saying so,"

Thomas= "Oh, umm... well thanks," Thomas said, rubbing the back of his neck. He certainly hadn't expected that.

Carmen=Suddenly Carmen felt nervous again, had she said the wrong thing? She couldn't tell if Thomas really meant he was thankful or if she'd insulted him by accident. Her eyes started frantically looking around the room, as if looking for an escape route. She wasn't sure what she should say.

Thomas looked up to see her eyes flitting around the room, and he figured his response must've triggered her social anxiety... thing. This made him slightly uncomfortable, because he didn't really know how to react to that. He tried to find words to say, and ended up coming out with garbled sounds. "I- uh-- I didn't-- ugh-- You don't have to-- I mean..."

Carmen=Carmen looked away to hide the tears growing in her eyes, she almost laughed at his awkwardness again but only for a milisecond because the anxiety was coming over her too strong. She desperately wanted to beat it and stay to talk with Thomas for a little bit longer, but she really didn't want him to see her in full panic attack mode...it would only make her seem more weak. Clutching her chest and looking at the nearest door she said, "I'm sorry, I think I need to go," and she ran off, hoping she'd see him again and have the chance to say sorry.



At the Fat Lady's Portrait - March 6th


 * Thomas= Thomas stood in front of the Fat Lady's portrait. He knew the password. He really, really did.... although he wasn't entirely sure if it was last weeks password, or this one's. He hadn't said anything out loud yet, because he didn't want to be wrong.

Carmen=Carmen was walking along, holding books as she always was, and her eyes were glued to the floor. She didn't even realize it was Thomas until she was stood right next to him, and then it was too late to hide or run away. Her head tilted up and she saw him, her eyes went wide and she searched her mind for the right word to say, her mouth opening and closing like a fish.

Thomas= "Hey Carmen," Thomas said. He then realized she might think he didn't remember, so he flailed trying to cover his tracks. "I... I just wasn't sure I was ready to go in yet," he lies... badly. "I thought maybe I'd go for a stroll before actually heading in, or something..."

She bit her lip, hoping she could have gone in after him since she'd forgotten the password. "Hello, Thomas," she said, looking down at her feet and wondering if it would be weird if she said sorry about how she'd behaved last time they'd met.

Thomas= Remembering that humor had worked to relax her during their last encounter, Thomas joked "Is there something particularly fascinating down by your shoes?" he asked, exaggerating his own glance down to her shoes as well.

Carmen=If the question had come from most other people Carmen would have presumed they were either making fun of her or trying to make her more worried and conscious of herself. But when it came from Thomas she couldn't help but burst out with a short laugh as she looked down at her ugly brown shoes. "No, not really," she laughed.

Thomas= Thomas pretends to study her shoes for a moment longer, still exaggerated, as though waiting for something to happen. When it doesn't, he looks back at her. "Just as well. Shoes aren't known for being fascinating, now are they?" he said, with a smile.

Carmen="That's true," she said semi-calmly and slowly she raised her eyes, "Listen, I'm really sorry about how I left last time..." she started and realized she didn't really know where she was going with this or why she'd had to bring it up.

Thomas= "Given that you told me about your social anxiety... thing... I just figured it was that. I just hope it wasn't my fault," Thomas finished his statement with a slight upward inflection. It was a question, but also an apology of his own, of sorts.

Carmen=Carmen looked him directly in the eyes, something she rarely did to anyone, "I promise, it wasn't your fault at all," she said and then she feared she'd maybe been looking at him too long so her eyes shot back to look at the portrait of the Fat Lady, figuring it was better than staring at him or her feet.

Thomas= A sense of relief washed over him, and he smiled at her, finding he was almost proud of her for making eye contact as long as she did. He then turns his own gaze to the portrait. "I, uh, I'm not one hundred percent sure that I remember this weeks password," he admitted, reddening slightly. "I mean, I have a guess...."

Carmen=A giggle came over Carmen that she tried to hold in but soon found she couldn't, "You know what? I don't have a clue what it is! I mean, I did know, and then I saw you and my mind went blank," she admitted, laughing again to herself at how this didn't seem to worry her for some reason.

Thomas= Thomas grins widely. "I thought I was the only one that ever forgot passwords! Or got them jumbled up or something!" He turns to the portrait. "Well, I think I have an idea, anyway." He tries the password he thinks is right, and sure enough the Portrait swings open, revealing the common room. "C'mon!" he says, happily.

Carmen=Carmen let out a small sigh of relief, glad she'd found Thomas here else she might never have gotten in. She happily followed him and made a mental note to try and remember the password for next time.

Second Year


In the Gryffindor Carriage obviously - April 28th 2014

Thomas= Thomas walked into the carriage. He was beyond excited to return, especially now that he wasn't the new first year. He noticed he was the first to show up, and made himself comfortable.

Carmen=Carmen nervously made her way onto the carriage, she saw Thomas, but wasn't sure if this was the time or place for them to chat. She waved shyly at him even so.

Thomas= Thomas smiled at her. "Hi Carmen!" he said. "How was your summer?"

Carmen="It was...eventful," she said, biting her lip. She didn't feel like talking about it right now. "How was yours?"

Thomas= Thomas frowned. He could tell something unpleasant had happened-- he could also tell that she didn't wanna talk about it. "Not too bad," he responded, noticing the carriage was starting to fill. "Pretty quiet."

Carmen="Good to hear it," she said, looking at the floor. She wondered how Kimi was getting on in her carriage. "So...are you glad to be back?"

Thomas= Thomas nodded. "Yeah," he said. "My sister's freaking about her OWLS, but I'm just excited not to be a first year."

Carmen=Carmen giggled, "I'm glad not to be in the first year too, though I don't feel like I'm all that much older really,"

Thomas= Thomas shrugged. "Maybe not. I'm sure we'll feel it more when we arrive and there's a whole new batch of first years getting Sorted," he said.

Carmen="That's true, we'll be able to enjoy it this year without having to worry about which house we'll be put in," she smiled, feeling calmer than she had all summer now she was with Thomas again.

Thomas= "So long as I wasn't a Hufflepuff, I knew I'd be fine," he said. "Though, the idea of being a Slytherin never appealed to me too much," he admitted.

Carmen="Yeah," she said simply and quietly as she realized that she didn't actually care which house she would be put in and asking herself why she's spent so much time worrying about it.

Thomas= Thomas could tell something had happened to her over summer, probably. He looked around and asked in low tones, hoping to keep it private-- knowing her anxiety thing would probably surface if it wasn't private-- "Is everything ok, Carmen?"

Carmen="Yeah," she said, not wanting to make a fuss. Her voice went even quieter and stuck in her throat, "It's, erm...just that my parents might be splitting up, it's nothing really," she said added quickly.

Thomas= "You certainly know how to underexaggerate," he said, trying for humor, but his voice was serious. "That's not nothing, Carmen," he said, scratching the back of his head in the way that he does when he's not sure what to say.

Carmen=Carmen laughed half-heartedly, she didn't really know what to say now either. "It's...it's not me that I'm worried about really, it's Kim, it seems to have affected her the most,"

Thomas= "Your sister?" he asked distractedly. He hadn't even given a second thought to Kimi. "I didn't think her bubbly nature could be broken for anything... except perhaps, showing favoritism for someone who's not her," he said, a genuine smile crossing his face as he tried to lighten the mood. They could hash this out fully later, when there weren't a million students around.

Carmen=Carmen's face was blank, she was lost deep in thought. "Yeah, I guess," she mumbled, wondering if Kimi was upset about it or if she was just worrying for nothing like normal.

Thomas= "All righty, enough of that," Thomas said. "We are about to start our second year of classes. What are you most excited about?" he asked.

Carmen=Carmen shrugged, the first thing she thought of was getting away from home, "Uh, learning lots of new things I guess, I don't know. What about you?"

Thomas= "Easy, Potions," he said. "I really enjoyed that class last year, and I'm excited to go into it again."

Carmen=Carmen smiled as she eased up slightly. "Potions is quite fun," she replied and paused for a second, she added in a much quieter tone, "I...I've really missed you over the summer,"

Thomas= "I, uh," he stammered. "I missed you, too." he said. He paused. "But don't you dare let that get back to Charity! She'll think we're in love or something," he said making a face.

Carmen=Carmen giggled calmly, "Don't tell Kimi either, she already thinks something along the same lines,"

Thomas= "What?!" he said. "Oh come on! We're friends, obviously. This is ridiculous."

Carmen=She laughed, "I know, I'm fed up trying to tell her. I don't think she believes a boy and a girl can be friends without being in love, but that's silly, right? I mean, we're proof,"

Thomas= "Exactly!" he said emphatically. He shook his head. "They're all just being silly."

Carmen="Exactly," Carmen repeated, she'd ran out of things to say on the subject and quite frankly she was having all sorts of thoughts about what the two of them would be like when they were older.

Thomas= Thomas settled back into his seat and stared out the window. For now, he didn't have anything to say. Just sitting with Carmen was fine.



Owlery - May 20th

Thomas= Thomas made his way up to the Owlery. He was thinking about asking for an owl for Christmas, because hiking up here to reply to letters was certainly taking quite some time. He found the owl he trusted the most and coaxed it down.

Carmen=Carmen tiptoed up the steps of the owlery, a letter for the mother in her hand. Her face lit up when she saw Thomas, "Hi," she smiled.

Thomas= Thomas turned around at the sound of Carmen's voice his own face smiling wide. "Hey. What brings you up here?"

Carmen=She held the letter up a little. "I'm just...letting my mother know how things are," she said and went over to find her owl, Alaska. "What are you doing here?"

Thomas= Thomas pulled his letter for Mark out of his pocket. "Writing back to Mark. Kid literally writes me twice a week sometimes," he said smiling. He managed to get the owl down, but the owl was putting up a fuss about having a letter tied to his leg. "Oh come on, you never behave like this."

Carmen=Carmen giggled, she would go over and help him, but didn't think she'd be any better at it than he was. Instead she got her own docile bird and attatched her letter with ease, then set it free. Already she dreaded her mum's reply and hoped it didn't show on her face.

Thomas|Thomas= The bird finally flew away, much to Thomas' frustration. "Fine!" he said, staring up at the bird. He turned back to Carmen as he said, "I swear, that bird's giving me a triumpha--" he stopped. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Carmen=Carmen faked a smile as she realized that her emotions showed too easily, or maybe Thomas just knew her too well, "It's nothing, just...wondering how long it will be before my mother replies, she doesn't normally have time for me,"

Thomas= Thomas studied her face carefully. He didn't fully believe her, but that could be all that was bugging her. Charity would've been better at figuring out that distinction. He decided to crack a joke-- her response would be more telling. "Send her a Howler," he said with that feisty grin on his face. "She can't ignore that."

Carmen=Carmen smiled again, this time for real. "That's true, but I've never really been much of a 'howling' kind of person," she laughed and then her voice became more serious and quiet as if she were talking to herself and not Thomas, "She'll reply, when she gets the time,"

Thomas= That comment was telling. Thomas got another owl to cooperate-- he tied the letter to its leg, and sent it on it's way. He turned back to Carmen, and pulled out a scrap of parchment. "I'll send her a letter then, telling her she's not allowed to ignore the letter, and she better respond straight away." He smiled. "I'll even make it a Howler if you want. I'm not afraid of them," he said with a chuckle.

Carmen=Her eyes widened, "You don't have to do that! But, thank you even so," she said and then laughed and teased a little, "My mum would probably think you're my boyfriend or something, sending letters for me."

Thomas= "Not that everyone doesn't think that already..." Thomas thought to himself. He shook his head. "I'd sign it 'Thomas Bagman, FRIEND of Carmen.' In all capital letters, so she'd get the point," he said laughing.

Carmen=She giggled again, "Hehe, I suppose she wouldn't get the wrong idea then. Though, if she doesn't have time for me, I doubt she'd have time to reply to you. She tends to put things on a pile...and my needs are always at the bottom,"

Thomas= "So I'll tell her she doesn't need to respond to mine. Just yours. And that if she doesn't I'll...." he tried to think of something horrible. "I'll send her a great heaping pile of dungbombs!"

Carmen=That did it for Carmen, she bent over in a fit of laugher. When she finally managed to stop she looked up at Thomas, "You really don't have to go through all that trouble for me,"

Thomas= "What trouble?" he asked innocently. "I've been meaning to find something to do with that pile of dungbombs I've got hidden away in my trunk," he said. It was a lie, but he honestly would do it. Just not without her permission.

Carmen="Why have you got a pile of dungbombs in the first place?" she laughed and tried to change the subject. She wouldn't mind Thomas sticking up for her, but for some reason if her mother ever did find out about him she wanted her to approve and not be appalled by his behavior.

Thomas= "I... well...." he fumbled. "Well, I don't. But I'd go out and buy some for you to send to your mother if you wanted!" Thomas paused, realizing the ridiculousness of that statement. "There's a sentence about dungbombs I'd never thought I'd say."

Carmen=Carmen giggled, trying to hold in a huge laugh, but in the end it erupted out of her and she bend over in hysterics again. "You're so funny, Thomas,"

Thomas= Thomas grinned. He enjoyed making her laugh-- it made her forget about the other stuff she was constantly worried about. He took a mock bow. "Thank you, thank you, I'm here all week, folks!"

She continued to giggled. "Maybe that's what you should be when you're older, a comedian," she laughed playfully, thinking of the times in the past she'd said he should be some kind of advisor, but he'd always declined.

Thomas= Thomas scrunched up his nose. "Is that even a thing? A wizarding comedian?" He shook his head. "My Mum will want me to go into something a little more... stable." He laughed. "You're probably the only person who thinks I'm funny, anyway."

Carmen=Carmen nodded, unsure how to respond. "My sister thinks you're funny," she pointed out with a smile to try and make him feel better, and then she paused, "Although that's maybe more funny as in weird than funny as in humorous,"

Thomas= He shook his head. "Yeah, probably. Up until recently, I don't think your sister even liked me." He sighed. "Last chance for that follow-up letter..." he said, eyebrows raised.

Carmen="I still don't think she really likes you," Carmen laughed, hoping he wouldn't take it too seriously. "You don't have to do the letter." she smiled and looked at the steps again, "Are you going back to the common room?"

Thomas= Thomas nodded. "Yeah, I think so." He headed towards the stairs, turned and looked at Carmen. "You still don't think Kimi likes me?"

Carmen="Nope," she said, shaking her head with a smile as they started to head back, "But she tolerates you to make me happy, I think,"

Thomas= He wrinkled his nose again. His initial reaction was to return not to Gryffindor Tower, but to seek out Kimi and demand to know her true feelings for him. But, similar to Kimi, he didn't want to upset Carmen. So maybe he would do it later. He headed down the stairs. "Well, fine. Then I only tolerate her to make you happy," he said sarcastically.

Carmen=Carmen looked across at him, the fact two people -Thomas and Kimi- hated each other so much and yet pretended to like each other just for her was a strange thought, "Well, that's fine by me," she smiled gratefully and they set off towards the common room together.



At the Clock Tower Courtyard = June 5th-7th 2014

Thomas= Thomas wandered around the Clock Tower Courtyard. It was kind of chilly, and he had fun trying to make snowballs levitate.

Carmen=Carmen had come out for a little walk to get some fresh air, the common room seemed to be so full today. She was walking with her head down, watching her feet sink into the snow.

Thomas= Thomas noticed Carmen, and couldn't pass up the opportunity. He formed a snowball, hovered it over to her head, and dropped it square on the top, dissolving into giggles he tried to hide behind his hand.

Carmen=Carmen shrieked, as she looked up she was afraid it would be one of the older kids bullying her and she almost burst into tears. "Oh, Thomas, it's just you," she said giggling both with relief and at the situation.

Thomas= A wide grin is spread across his face. "Yup," he said, forming another snowball. "How're you?"

Carmen="I'm good," she said with a smile. She was watching Thomas carefully to make sure he didn't try to snowball her again, but in the back of her mind she was wondering if she should playfully plot revenge.

Thomas= Thomas raised up his snowball again, fully planning on dropping it on her again, but played with it first, making it dance in the air. "Seriously, I wish I could do this at home. Mark wouldn't have a chance."

Carmen=Carmen chuckled, but was thinking of how her siblings would gang up on her in snowball fights, if they included her at all. "I prefer calmer winter games, like building snowmen," she said happily.

Thomas= Eyes still on his snowball, he replied, "Charity and Melinda would build snowmen. Mark and I would attack them." He sent the snowball behind Carmen, sneaking it up close to her again.

Carmen=Carmen had seen what he was trying to do, but she was one step ahead. She bend down and scooped up a handful of light snow, flinging it at Thomas's face as she laughed.

Thomas= The snow caused Thomas' concentration to break, which made the snowball fall down, sending some snow down Carmen's back. He spluttered, and when he recovered, a mischievous grin slowly spread across his face. He pocketed his wand, and sent more snow in her direction.

Carmen=Carmen shivered as the cold ice when down her spine, but she was having too much fun to worry that her clothes were getting damp. She ran away a little, picking up more snow and forming it into a snowball which she then threw at Thomas again.

Thomas= Thomas ducked her snowball, and aimed another one at her, as he dodged around a tree, hoping to find somewhere safe to hide behind.

Carmen=Carmen was out of breath from running and laughing so much. She prepared a snowball and turned around but suddenly Thomas was gone. She stopped and took the opportunity to make some more snowballs, knowing Thomas could have an attack prepared any second now.

Thomas= Thomas noticed the giggling subside, which only meant one thing-- she was getting ready. Quick as he could, he formed a bunch of snowballs. He focused, grabbed two of them, popped out from behind the tree, and chucked them both at her, ducking behind the tree again, not bothering to see where they had landed-- he would know if they had.

Carmen=Carmen turned around and was startled to see the snow heading towards her. She didn't have time to duck so she let them hit her face as she screamed. She wildly threw her snowballs as a counter attack, her aim off because she had snow in her eye and was laughing too hard.

Thomas= Thomas laughed, he grabbed a snowball, and came round the tree again. "Truce?" he asked, though it seemed a bit inappropriate to declare truce when he was essentially dry.

Carmen="All right, I surrender," she laughed and held her hands in the air before flopping down to the ground, she was completely exhausted.

Thomas= "I don't remember the last time I had that much fun throwing snow around," he said, sitting down next to her.

Carmen="Me neither," she admitted and closed her eyes peacefully, trusting Thomas not to start another attack. She moved her arms and legs in the snow, creating a snow angel where she lay.

Thomas= It occurred to him that anyone watching would probably try to claim they were in love again. He looked over at her-- they were friends! He shook the thought from his mind. Friends. "How's Kimi?" he asked, not sure of how else to start conversation.

Carmen="I've not spoken to her in a while, we don't see each other much outside class. But I think she's okay, why wouldn't she be?" Carmen said, not knowing the news Kimi had just heard about Cloud's crush.

Thomas= He nodded. "Yeah, I suppose. I hardly ever see Charity." His mind wandered again-- what was it that everyone saw?

Carmen=Carmen opened her eyes again, seeing a snowflake softly land on her nose. She wasn't sure what else to ask, "So, are you enjoying class?"

Thomas= He grinned. "Yeah," he said. "You?"

Carmen="Yeah, it's fun. I'm spending a lot of time doing homework though," she said, knowing Thomas would think she works too hard all the time.

Thomas= Thomas rolled his eyes. "Finals are weeks and weeks away," he said. "Give yourself a break. Like now." He looked up into the sky, utterly content.

Carmen="It's still important to study," she replied, but she had to admit he had a point. She laid back in the snow again, relaxing.

Thomas= He shivered a little-- it seemed to be getting colder, now that he wasn't running around. "Getting kind of cold. Wanna go dry off in the Common Room? Probably warmer in there."

Carmen="That's probably a good idea," she said, looking down at her snow covered clothes, she stood up and brushed them down. Being in the common room wouldn't be so bad if she had Thomas to talk to.

Thomas= "C'mon, let's go," he said, leading with his head.

<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Unearthing Feelings & Finding Charity" data-collapsetext="Covered Bridge" style="width:100%">

Covered Bridge - 30th June 2014

Thomas= Thomas walked down the Covered Bridge, excited that it was finally warmer weather, which meant it was getting closer to summer.

Carmen=Carmen spotted Thomas from one end of the bridge, she held her hand up and waved, then lightly ran down the bridge towards him. Slightly out of breath, she smiled and said, "Hello, Thomas!"

Thomas= He smiled. "Hey! How's it going?"

Carmen="I'm good, thanks. I'm loving this sunshine," she said as she looked up for a second and let it warm her face, "How are you?"

Thomas= He nodded. "Doing well," he said. He remembered briefly that her previous holiday hadn't been overly enjoyable. "Are you... um...." Can't say looking forward to.... Saying "going to be okay" didn't seem right either... "What're your summer plans?" he asked. That seemed safe.

Carmen="Oh, um, I'm not really sure at the moment," she answered, thinking of her parent's impending divorce. "I think we're going to be spending half the time with my mother and the other half with my father." She paused for a second, wondering how she could lighten the mood, "Uh, what are you going to be doing?"

Thomas= "Headed home," he said. "I'll get to see Mark, which I'm really looking forward to!"

Carmen="That's good," she said, she knew how much he loved and missed Mark. "Are any of your siblings starting next year?"

Thomas= He nodded. "Faith will," he said. "And then Mark starts the year after her!"

Carmen="Cool, so you'll be able to be all big-brothery and show her around and stuff, and make sure nobody picks on her," she giggled, imagining Thomas was quite a protective older brother.

Thomas= He considered this. "Probably not," he said. "Not that I wouldn't want to, but I don't think she would want that," he explained. "Faith's... I don't know. She's super independent. She doesn't really like asking for help."

Carmen="Oh all right," she said, feeling slightly vulnerable for being less independent than someone that wasn't even a first year yet. "So, uh, I can't believe we're going to be third years soon,"

Thomas= He nodded. "It's crazy," he said. "Another few years, and we'll all be competing for prefects, taking OWLS... graduating..." he shook his head. "I'm getting ahead of myself."

Carmen=Carmen's chest tightened, he said it all so easily but the thought of it was already frightening her. She tried to shake it off and an interesting question came to her mind, "Hey, out of everyone in our year who do you think will be made into a prefect?"

Thomas= He laughed. "Well, it's supposed to be a guy and a girl from each house," he said. "So for Slytherin, that really only leaves Oz and Demi, but I can't picture either of them wanting that. But people change. Ravenclaw is easy-- I bet that'll be Kea and Niall. Hufflepuff? I guess Cloud and your sister are the only ones again. And probably you and I for Gryffindor."

Carmen=Carmen laughed, "Yeah, I guess it wasn't really that hard after all. I don't really want to be a prefect though," she said nervously, "I bet you'd make a good one, but not me,"

Thomas= He chuckled. "Oh, I dunno. I mean, like I said, people change, but I don't think I'd make a good prefect. You would, though. You're responsible and stuff like that."

Carmen=Carmen smiled, taking that as a compliment. "But you're really brave and could tell people off if they did something wrong, I'd just let them walk all over me," she said, with a slight laugh at how pathetic she sounded.

Thomas= "See, that's the problem," he started. "I don't think I would tell them off. I'd think whatever it is they're doing looks like fun, hide the badge, and join in!"

Carmen="...Oh...Yeah you probably shouldn't do that," she laughed. "I think Kea would make the best Prefect really, out of all of us that is,"

Thomas= He nodded. "I barely know her, but I know she'd be a good one," he said. "You honestly would, too, though."

Carmen="If you say so," she said, wanting to change the subject, but she wasn't sure what to change it to. Instead she just looked down at the ground.

Thomas= "So my sister got a boyfriend," he said, rolling his eyes. "And the both of them just tease me about how much we're supposed to get together."

Carmen="Good for her," she said with a smile, "Uh, about the getting a boyfriend thing...not about the...the other thing," she said, not wanting to say the words that they should be together outloud.

Thomas= He chuckled. "He's in Gryffindor," he said. "Theo Knight. But I think he's a sixth year." He paused. Everyone told them they were a couple, but all Thomas saw her was as a friend... sort of. No! She was a friend. A friend. She was probably too nervous about relationships anyway. Besides, they were just friends. What was it that everyone saw?

Carmen=Carmen studied Thomas's face, she knew him well enough to be able to tell when he was thinking about something. And she could probably guess what it was because it was the exact same thing she was thinking of. "Uh, I still haven't met your sister, you said you'd introduce her to me one day," she said, trying to get the questions she had about their relationship out of her mind.

Thomas= "Sister?" he said, snapping out his reverie. "Introduce? Charity. Right. Yeah." He scratched the back of his head. "You could, uh.... come meet her over summer? Or I can try to find her sometime and get the two of you to meet."

Carmen=Carmen smiled, glad the thought of their 'relationship' seemed to be out of both of their minds. "It's up to you, I keep thinking I'll bump into her, but I don't really get out of the common room much. And I don't really know what she looks like, so I don't think I'd know her if I saw her,"

Thomas= "Taller than me, lighter hair, brown eyes," he said, almost as though on auto-pilot. "She and Faith could be twins, if it weren't for Faith's blue eyes... though you don't even know Faith, so nevermind."

Carmen="Well, next year I'll be able to meet Faith too," she said with a smile, "Charity sounds nice though,"

Thomas= "Yeah," he grunted. Charity wasn't his favorite topic. Though, he wasn't sure which he liked talking about less- Charity, or his friendship/relationship...stuff with Carmen.

Carmen="So, um," she said, unsure of what they should talk about next and then a cool idea came into her head. "Hey, maybe you could come and stay at my house one weekend in the holidays, if you wanted to," she suggested wildly and then looked down, waiting for Thomas to decline.

Thomas= "Yeah!" he said, smiling. "Or you could come over to mine?" he suggested. He didn't want to leave Mark for longer than he had to.

Carmen=Carmen thought about that for a second, she didn't like inviting herself over to people's houses and seeming rude. "That actually would be quite a good idea. I could meet all of your silbings and get away from all of my siblings,"

Thomas= He nodded. "Yeah," he said. He wanted to say something about getting her away from the negative environment of her parents divorce as well, but he didn't want to upset her.

Carmen="It's going to be so fun," she said, partly because she did think it would be fun, but mostly because she was already feeling nervous about his family and was trying to convince herself not to be.

Thomas= He sensed her nervousness and tried to break it with a joke. "Y'know, if you do come to visit, you'll have to swear Kimi to secrecy. It won't do any good for these dumb rumors spreading about us dating," he said with a chuckle.

Carmen=At first she wasn't sure was Thomas was talking about and then she laughed when she realized it made it sound like they were dating again. "Kimi can't keep a secret though, the whole year will know in no time," she rolled her eyes.

Thomas= He rolled his eyes. "So.... say you're spending a weekend with your grandmother or something," he offered. "Nothing overly suspicious about that. Even though we have nothing to be suspicious of," he said quickly.

Carmen="Yes, nothing to be suspicious of!" she agreed, wondering why they had to cover their tracks if that was true. "I couldn't say Grandparents because we don't have any, but I could tell her I'm going to see our cousins in Ireland,"

Thomas= He nodded. "I'm assuming your parents would let you go visit them alone?" This sneaking around felt very strange. Maybe it wasn't a good idea?

Carmen=Carmen shrugged, "They'd probably not notice I was gone,"

Thomas= "I'm sure that's not true," he said. "They'd miss you."

Carmen=Carmen looked neutral about it, "I guess they would for a little, but then they'd remember that they have a 'better' identical replica of me," she paused, trying to bring the mood back to the happiness it was moments ago, "I can't wait to meet your parents though,"

Thomas= "Whoa, whoa, whoa," Thomas said. "Back up. A better replica? Carmen, that's ridiculous. In no way is Kimi a better replica of you!"

Carmen=She met his eyes for a second, tears almost forming in her own, but then looked away shyly. "No, I suppose not. But it's what everyone thinks, besides you of course,"

Thomas= He ran his hands through his hair. "Carmen, if anything, you're the better replica... twin, whatever." He banged his hands on the side of the bridge in frustration, staring out at the grounds. "It's not what everyone else thinks," he said. "It's... it's some idea you've got stuck in your head. I can't change it. I don't think anything that Kimi says will change it. You've gotta figure that out for yourself. The only one who compares the two of you is you. And probably her, but I don't know her that well." He wasn't a little scared he was going to upset her. But that's what he believed.

Carmen=Carmen felt his words like a blow to the chest. It hurt, yet she still knew he was right. He was her friend, he had no reason to lie to her about it. She didn't know what to say, but she had an immediate urge to hug him. She fought it off though, not wanting to add anymore fuel to the rumors, instead she just looked at him and gently/awkwardly touched his hand with hers.

Thomas= Thomas felt the instinct to recoil, and couldn't stop it. They were friends. He looked into her eyes, a little afraid, yet again, that his simple action might hurt her feelings.

Carmen=Carmen looked away and took quite a large step back. Maybe she was starting to see what people meant when they said the two of them should be together, but it wasn't like it mattered, because it was clear Thomas didn't see it too. "Uh, we...I mean, um," she mumbled, without a single clue what she was trying to say.

Thomas= Thomas stared at her, not quite sure what he was afraid of-- her reaction, his reaction, or his feelings. And, like the twelve-year-old boy that he was, he turned around, and ran the opposite direction. He was slightly afraid he was damaging his relationship with her forever, but everything inside him had told him to flee.

Carmen=Carmen watched him run, the tears properly filling her eyes now. When he'd gone she turned around, leant across a post on the bridge and cried into her hands because now she knew what everyone was talking about and it hurt that Thomas still didn't understand.

Charity= Charity came up walking the other direction when she saw a girl, clearly upset. Her heart breaking, she walked up to the girl. She looked a little like... "Kimi?" she asked.

Carmen="No, I'm Carmen," she said instinctively. Her checks were burning with the embarrassment of being caught crying, so she didn't look up.

Charity= "Carmen..." she muttered. "Wait, Carmen November?" she asked. "Thomas' friend Carmen?" She tried to contain her glee at finally meeting her.

Carmen="Yeah," she sniffed, though she wasn't really sure what her and Thomas were at the moment. She hoped the term 'friend' was still accurate. Carmen looked up in the end, through tearful eyes she saw a beautiful girl, "Are you...Charity?"

Charity= She could have laughed, but didn't, as Carmen still looked like a wreck. She nodded. "Yeah, I'm Charity. Did the mention of Thomas give me away?"

Carmen="Yes, partially. But also his description of you," she answered and tried to subtly wipe away her tears with her sleeve as she stood up.

Charity= A surprised expression crossed her face. "Oh," she said. She caught her wiping tears. "What's wrong?" she asked kindly.

Carmen=Carmen froze and tried to look as 'okay' as possible, but it was still clear she was upset. She couldn't tell Charity though obviously, it would be weird. "It's nothing," she lied, not very well either.

Charity= "Sweetie, it isn't nothing," she said, gently.

Carmen=Carmen gave up, it was no use lying when she was so bad at it. "No, it's not. It's about...Thomas," she said, looking away so she wouldn't have to see Charities reaction, whatever it may be.

Charity= Charity was startled. She thought Thomas liked Carmen. Had he lashed out against her to stop the rumors? "What did he do?" she asked carefully. She sat down next to Carmen.

Carmen="He ran away from me," she said, taking care not to allow herself to cry again, though she was aware of how childish and silly it sounded.

Charity= "Why did he run away?" she asked, still using the same gentle voice. "Or was the reason not overly apparent?"

Carmen="I'm not sure," she replied, but she had a pretty good idea. "Maybe I said something wrong,"

Charity= She shook her head. "Nope, nope, nope. Thomas is a boy. I'm sure whatever happened, it's probably on him."

Carmen="Oh...okay," she said, but she still felt guilty. "I can't believe the first time we got to meet each other you ended up see me cry over your brother,"

Charity= She tried not to laugh. "Oh, sweetie," she said, putting a gentle hand on Carmen's knee. "First thing you need to know about boys-- they are very, very stupid. Especially when it comes to girls."

Carmen="Really?" she asked, but something in her thought Charity was just saying this to make her feel better. She'd always thought Thomas was different to 'most boys'. "Thomas said you have a boyfriend now, is he like this too?"

Charity= "Um..." Charity tried to find a way to word this. "I guess we haven't been together long enough to know," she said. "Before we got together, I was actually the one who was being stupid," she said shaking her head. Honesty was usually the best policy. "But Theo's also sixteen. Thomas is twelve. He's still got a lot of growing up to do."

Carmen="That's true," she said, thinking to herself. "You seem really nice, Charity, I hope you and Theo stay together for a long time,"

Charity= She smiled. "Me, too, kid. You gonna be alright?"

Carmen="I think so," she said. But in truth she was already worrying about what she would say to Thomas the next time she saw him. Would he still want to be friends? And then there was the rattling question in her brain, 'How do I really feel about him?'

Charity= She smiled, watching all emotions cross Carmen's face. "Why don't you head back to the Common Room? If Thomas avoids you for any reason, tell me, and I'll handle him," she said with a little wink. She really hoped that they worked out. This girl had already captured Charity's heart.

Carmen=That seemed like a good idea, so she said, "Okay, I will do, thank you!" She got up and brushed herself down slightly, removing any evidence that she's been crying on the floor.|

Charity= "I'm headed back to the castle, too," she said. "Let's go."

<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Awkward Encounters" data-collapsetext="Exit of Common Room" style="width:100%">

By the Common Room Portait - Date Unknown

Thomas=Thomas swung open the portrait door very carefully. Carmen hadn't been in the Common Room, and he didn't want to be there when she did show up. He stepped outside the door.

Carmen=Carmen had just been heading up the common room, she was tired and still upset that Thomas appeared to have been avoiding her. When she reached the portrait her eyes widened when she noticed Thomas as just leaving. Her first though was to run and hide as her heart begun beating faster, but she wanted to be the more grown up one out of the two of them, so she stayed but pretended she hadn't seen him.

Thomas=Thomas's eyes also widened as he stepped through the portrait. His mouth went dry, and he had no idea what to say. "Car--Carmen. I-- um...."

Carmen=Carmen couldn't talk because she was biting her lip so much, he didn't sound particularly pleased to see her. She looked down at her shoes and tried to bring herself back together, "Uh, hello," she said quietly.

Thomas=Thomas vaguely remembered a time when he had once made her laugh by asking her what was so fascinating about her shoes, but now didn't seem appropriate. "I was just... going. To...." Nowhere? Hide? Run away?

Carmen="Um, yeah, I was just heading in too," she said and she tried to brush past him slightly. It didn't seem like he wanted to talk. A tiny tear formed in her eye, but she didn't want Thomas to see it. He obviously didn't want to be her friend anymore after-all.

Thomas=Thomas saw the tear, and suddenly it didn't matter anymore that things were awkward, as he assumed someone had been mean to her. It never occurred to him that he might be the problem. "Wait, Carmen. Are you okay?" he asked. "Did someone do something? Cause if they did, I'll go and set them straight."

Carmen=His need to protect her made Carmen smile, even though she was dreading having to answer him. She wiped the tear away though, maybe he did still care about her. "It's not like that, Thomas," she said, she didn't want to insult him and say it was him that as upsetting her.

Thomas="Then what were you crying about?"

Carmen=His bluntness and obliviousness made Carmen shake and she bit her lip even more, it was already red and sore from the amount she'd been biting it in the last week. She decided she couldn't put off telling him. "It's you," she whispered, and then added even quieter, "I...I didn't think you wanted to be my friend anymore,"

Thomas=Thomas stared at her for a full minute, completely unsure of what to say. "Carmen.... I...." he scratched the back of his head. "I never said I didn't want to be friends."

Carmen=Carmen took a long time thinking of what to say as well, before settling on, "Sometimes actions speak louder than words," She didn't want Thomas to think she was being mean, but she wanted to try and stand up for herself and how she felt as well. Even if the one person she thought she'd never have to justify herself to was Thomas.

Thomas="I've been busy..." he lied. "I don't know, Carmen. That was really weird the other day. I'm sorry I ran off. But... Carmen, I want us to be friends. I don't know what happened."

Carmen=Carmen stopped biting her lip, though it was still bleeding. "Okay, I want us to be friends too," she said. And only friends, nothing more, a voice said in her mind because she didn't want to scare him off again. And she daren't go down that road in her mind. But things still felt weird between them.

Thomas="Um, your lip...." he said gesturing. "And yeah. Friends. Friends is good." The sticky awkwardness that still hung in the air warned him that perhaps, somewhere down the road, a similar conversation would come up, but for now.... friends.

Carmen=Carmen nodded in agreement and looked around for something else they could talk about, this just felt too weird. "Oh, I met your sister, Charity, the other day," she said. The conversation couldn't possibly get any more awkward, so she thought, why not mention it?

Thomas=He groaned. "Oh no," he said. "What did she do? Did she give you the third degree?"

Carmen="No! Not at all, she's really nice," Carmen said, not wanting to mention the part when she'd consoled her for feeling sad about Thomas leaving, "So now when I come to stay with you in the summer I'll know two people instead of one. I....I'm still coming, right?"

Thomas="Yeah, if you, uh, still want... to," he said. "And I'm sure Charity'd love to have you," he added rolling his eyes.

Carmen="I'd love to come! Why'd you roll your eyes though?" she asked, looking happier and calmer than before. Surely his family approving of her presence was a good thing, wasn't it?

Thomas="You think the second years think we're dating? If we spend five minutes around Charity, I'm sure she'll start... planning the wedding."

Carmen="Oh..." she said, unsure how they'd managed to make the conversation awkward again, it seemed the idea of them dating would never be able to leave them. "Well, I'm sure she only means it as a joke. I'd invite you to my house instead, but you know Kimi would be just as bad,"

Thomas=He laughed. "She'd be three times as bad. I can shut up my sister, no problem. I could probably shut up yours, but I'd feel that's stepping out of bounds."

Carmen=She laughed, "I don't think anything could shut Kimi up for longer than three minutes, but you're welcome to try,"|time=19:39, July 8, 2014 (UTC))}} {{Thomas|Thomas= "That sounds like a challenge," he said, with mischief in his eyes.

Thomas=

Carmen=Caren giggled and smiled at Thomas. Finally everything felt normal between them again and she could fully relax. "I'd say that we should give Kimi a taste of her own medicine and see how she likes it being constantly paired with one of your friends, but I think she'd actually enjoy that more than despise it,"

Thomas="Give it like... two years," he said. "Everyone will have... paired up in their own way. And as soon as they do, they'll leave the two of us alone."

Carmen="Yeah, I guess," she replied. But her mind was questioning how true that was, because if it was fully true then it would mean that both Thomas and Carmen would be 'paired' with someone too. "Do you think my sister will end up with Cloud like she wants to?" she asked.

Thomas=He shrugged. "No idea," he said. "All I know is everyone is obsessed with seeing the two of us together, that I don't know if anyone else has... crushes... or whatever."

Carmen=Carmen laughed, "Well it's all I hear about from Kimi nowadays, she seems to be obsessed with who likes who. Including you and me,"

Thomas=He chuckled. "I don't know her well," he said. "But I could see her as that type."

<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Holiday Visits" data-collapsetext="Bagman House" style="width:100%">

{{Thomas|Thomas= Thomas slumped into one of the armchairs. He gestured behind him at the stairs. "There's nothing upstairs, really, except the bedrooms.... so that's pretty much it!"|time=14:45, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="It's wonderful," Carmen said, glancing across the room. "It's quite similar to my house really, only without Kimi," she laughed.|time=14:47, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He looked around mildly, "Yeah?" he said. "I bet your house is closer to human civilization though," he joked.|time=14:49, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen giggled, "Just a little bit. But I like it better out here, it's quieter,"|time=14:50, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He nodded. "There's also nothing to do," he said, rolling his eyes. "I've climbed the trees out back a million times. I've followed Faith outside the fence a couple of times..." he shrugged. "There's more stuff to do at school. Never thought I'd say that," he said with a chuckle.|time=14:52, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="I prefer school too," she said with a laugh, thinking that the reason she liked school more was because Thomas was there. "But at home in my spare time I usually read a lot,"|time=14:54, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= Thomas wrinkled his nose. "I, uh, read my potions book sometimes. What is it you read?"|time=14:56, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen giggled, she hadn't expected Thomas to agree. "I just finished reading the Jungle Book and I've started Alice in Wonderland," she said, hopefully they'd be titles he'd heard of.|time=15:01, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= Thomas frowned slightly. "Where'd you get them?" he asked. "I haven't ever heard of those. Granted I don't read a lot but... yeah."|time=15:03, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen shrugged, "Just places really," and for a second there was an awkward silence so she looked at him with a smile, "So what do you do for fun around here?"|time=15:07, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He laughed. "I had a pillow fight with Mark the other night," he said. "My Dad's got an old wizard's chess set somewhere. We pull that out if it rains."|time=15:09, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Haha, who won?" she asked with a teasing grin.|time=15:11, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He grimaced. "Dad does." He shook his head. "So, uh, what did you tell Kimi? And your parents?"|time=15:12, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen nodded, she was refering to the pillow fight but decided to move on and not point it out. "Oh, I was going to tell them I was visiting our cousins in Ireland, but then I realized that I can't get on a train and come here on my own because... you know, my anxiety. So I told my dad and he drove me up here on the way to somewhere he's going camping with Kimi and my brothers," she said, talking a deep breathe afterwards because she rarely said so much at once.|time=15:17, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "So... Kimi knows?" he asked slowly, unsure of how she would take that. He'd just tell Kimi to shut it. He knew Carmen would have a harder time, and didn't want her to suffer just for a visit between friends.|time=15:20, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=She sighed, "Unfortunately, yes. But hopefully she'll have such a good time on the camping trip that she'll forget the reason I wasn't on it with them," she said, it sounded like the kind of thing Kimi might do.|time=15:23, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He nodded. "That sounds like her. Unless the trip is miserable," he said, visions of the camping trip with nothing but rain, and a soaking wet Kimi. He chuckled a little.|time=15:26, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="She'd probably still manage to think it was a good time," she said and then noticed Thomas laughing a little, the sound made her smile too. "What's so funny?"|time=15:31, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= His grin widened. "I was picturing the camping trip completely rained out, and Kimi coming home soaking wet from head to toe."|time=15:33, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen grinned, trying not to laugh at first, after all it was her sister they were laughing at. But soon she was in stitches at the thought of a wet and angry Kimi. When she stopped laughing she looked across at Thomas, thinking of how much she loved how he could make her laugh.|time=15:36, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "She's just so... girly, I can't imagine her wet and with a smile on her face," Thomas joked, his eyes lit up and the smile still plastered on his face.|time=15:39, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Promise you won't tell, but she isn't always so girly. When she's at home she likes doing sports with my brothers. I don't think she wants people at school to know that though, for some reason," she said.|time=15:43, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Well that's dumb," he said. "People usually like the sporty types too."|time=15:45, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="I know, I'm not sure why she keeps it hidden," she said with a shrug. "I've told her she should be in the Quidditch team when she's old enough, but she isn't sure,"|time=15:48, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "I know Cloud wants to play Quidditch," he said. "I do, too, actually. Hopefully someday Quidditch teams will happen again at Hogwarts, and then we can all play!"|time=15:51, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="That would be cool. I can imagine Kimi just joining now to impress Cloud," she giggled. |time=15:54, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Whatever gets her to admit she likes Quidditch, I guess," he said, shrugging. "Hiding stuff about yourself just seems dumb."|time=15:56, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Yeah...just dumb," she said quietly. For a large part of her life she'd been too scared to admit things to other people and so she's done just that.|time=15:58, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= Thomas immediately felt bad. "Oh, Carmen... I'm sorry. I dunno. You have that social anxiety.... thing and Kimi doesn't and...."|time=16:01, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Ckohrs0221|Charity= "And what?" Charity asked, walking into the room. "Carmen! Hi! I didn't know you were here!"|time=16:01, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Hi Charity," she waved, glad to see a familiar face and that they'd already had the chance to meet. She hid her previous uncomfortableness in the way she always did around people she didn't know very well.|time=16:05, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "And... nothing," he muttered.|time=16:08, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Ckohrs0221|Charity= Charity gave Thomas a look, and then glanced between the two of them. She looked at Carmen. "He's being a gentlemen, right?" she asked, in a slightly teasing tone of voice.|time=16:08, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen wasn't quite sure what to say in response, she looked to Thomas but still wasn't sure. And her looking to him for approval would probably not help the 'they're going out with each other' theory. "Uh....yes," she replied, still unsure.|time=16:11, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Ckohrs0221|Charity= "Is that a question or a statement?" she joked, her eyes twinkling. She just knew this girl would become Mrs. Thomas Bagman. It didn't matter that they were only 13.|time=16:14, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Leave her alone, Charity," Thomas said. "Go... play with Melinda or something."|time=16:14, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="No, it's okay Thomas," she said casually. She was pretending Charity wasn't making her uncomfortable but really she just didn't think Thomas sticking up for her helped them with proving the rumor false.|time=16:18, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Ckohrs0221|Charity= "I'll just let you two kids have some... ah, alone time," she said, a wide grin on her face. "You have fun. Thomas, you be a gentleman to her. That's what she deserves." She wouldn't be able to contain her glee any longer, and she knew Thomas was about to get mad, so she left the room, and walked upstairs.|time=16:22, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He groaned. "Sorry about her. She just thinks that everyone's business is also her concern."|time=16:22, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Bye, Charity," she said politelty, though she wasn't quite sure what kind of 'alone time' Charity thought they needed. She turned back to Thomas, "It's okay, she's only trying to be nice...I think,"|time=16:27, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Prying is more like it," he said. "She got herself a boyfriend, and so she thinks everyone in the world should now be getting together. I know she's had friends who are boys, I don't understand why she can't see that we're just friends, too," he said, rolling his eyes.|time=16:30, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Yeah," Carmen nodded, not daring to think of them and the possibility of them being a couple. "So she's still with Theo?" she asked, hoping she'd remembered the name right and to try and change the conversation. |time=16:35, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Oh, right, I forgot I told you about him. Yeah, Theo. And yeah, he visited the other week."|time=16:36, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Oh cool. Erm...do your other siblings have friends over often?" she asked. If it was only Charity and her boyfriend then she could see how it might appear like she was Thomas's girlfriend coming to visit.|time=16:39, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Well, Charity and I are the only ones in school," he said. He grinned. "And I don't know how well Faith will make friends. But assuming she does this year, I bet they'd visit if they wanted to."|time=16:41, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="Oh okay," she replied, it didn't feel quiet so weird then. "So, are your parents around?" she asked curiously.|time=17:02, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "Somewhere, probably. Well, Mum is. Dad's at work, and gets home around dinner time."|time=17:04, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="What sort of thing does he do?" she asked, hoping she was prying too much. They'd spoken about his siblings a lot but she didn't think he'd mentioned his parents much.|time=17:06, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= "He works for the Daily Prophet," he said. "What about your parents?"|time=17:10, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="That sounds exciting. My parents both work at the Ministry, but I don't even know what department they're in. They think we're too young to understand," Carmen said, rolling her eyes.|time=17:13, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He rolled his eyes in kind. "Just tell them you learned about it in school or something, and that they should tell you."|time=17:15, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen shrugged, "There's no point really, it's not like they'll want to spend more time with us or anything just because we know what they do,"|time=17:17, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He frowned. "That's stupid," he said. "If you take an interest in them, wouldn't they take an interest in you, too? Do they even ask about school?"|time=17:19, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen=Carmen laughed a little, "You don't know my parents. Even if they did have some spare time away from work, they'd spend it with Kimi and then Derrek and then Rhys and then me. And they never have enough spare time for me," she said. It sounded kind of sad, but she was used to it by now so it didn't affect her anymore.|time=17:23, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= Thomas sat straight up. "What?!?!" he said. "Carmen, that's not ok!"|time=17:25, July 15, 2014 (UTC)}}

{{Emmatigerlily|Carmen="It's all right, I'm used to it now. It's not like I enjoy spending time with any of them anyway, it doesn't matter," she said. She wanted to add that as long as she had friends like Thomas to spend time with she'd be okay, but she didn't know if Charity was still lurking and listening.|time=17:44, July 15, 2014 (UTC))}}

{{Thomas|Thomas= He slumped back into the chair. He could've continued to argue it, but she clearly didn't want to.

Thomas=Thomas slumped into one of the armchairs. He gestured behind him at the stairs. "There's nothing upstairs, really, except the bedrooms.... so that's pretty much it!"

Carmen="It's wonderful," Carmen said, glancing across the room. "It's quite similar to my house really, only without Kimi," she laughed.

Thomas=He looked around mildly, "Yeah?" he said. "I bet your house is closer to human civilization though," he joked.

Carmen=Carmen giggled, "Just a little bit. But I like it better out here, it's quieter,"

Thomas=He nodded. "There's also nothing to do," he said, rolling his eyes. "I've climbed the trees out back a million times. I've followed Faith outside the fence a couple of times..." he shrugged. "There's more stuff to do at school. Never thought I'd say that," he said with a chuckle.

Carmen="I prefer school too," she said with a laugh, thinking that the reason she liked school more was because Thomas was there. "But at home in my spare time I usually read a lot,"

Thomas=Thomas wrinkled his nose. "I, uh, read my potions book sometimes. What is it you read?"

Carmen=Carmen giggled, she hadn't expected Thomas to agree. "I just finished reading the Jungle Book and I've started Alice in Wonderland," she said, hopefully they'd be titles he'd heard of.

Thomas=Thomas frowned slightly. "Where'd you get them?" he asked. "I haven't ever heard of those. Granted I don't read a lot but... yeah."

Carmen=Carmen shrugged, "Just places really," and for a second there was an awkward silence so she looked at him with a smile, "So what do you do for fun around here?"

Thomas=He laughed. "I had a pillow fight with Mark the other night," he said. "My Dad's got an old wizard's chess set somewhere. We pull that out if it rains."

Carmen="Haha, who won?" she asked with a teasing grin.

Thomas=He grimaced. "Dad does." He shook his head. "So, uh, what did you tell Kimi? And your parents?"

Carmen=Carmen nodded, she was refering to the pillow fight but decided to move on and not point it out. "Oh, I was going to tell them I was visiting our cousins in Ireland, but then I realized that I can't get on a train and come here on my own because... you know, my anxiety. So I told my dad and he drove me up here on the way to somewhere he's going camping with Kimi and my brothers," she said, talking a deep breathe afterwards because she rarely said so much at once.

Thomas="So... Kimi knows?" he asked slowly, unsure of how she would take that. He'd just tell Kimi to shut it. He knew Carmen would have a harder time, and didn't want her to suffer just for a visit between friends.

Carmen=She sighed, "Unfortunately, yes. But hopefully she'll have such a good time on the camping trip that she'll forget the reason I wasn't on it with them," she said, it sounded like the kind of thing Kimi might do.

Thomas=He nodded. "That sounds like her. Unless the trip is miserable," he said, visions of the camping trip with nothing but rain, and a soaking wet Kimi. He chuckled a little.|

Carmen="She'd probably still manage to think it was a good time," she said and then noticed Thomas laughing a little, the sound made her smile too. "What's so funny?"

Thomas=His grin widened. "I was picturing the camping trip completely rained out, and Kimi coming home soaking wet from head to toe."

Carmen=Carmen grinned, trying not to laugh at first, after all it was her sister they were laughing at. But soon she was in stitches at the thought of a wet and angry Kimi. When she stopped laughing she looked across at Thomas, thinking of how much she loved how he could make her laugh.

Thomas="She's just so... girly, I can't imagine her wet and with a smile on her face," Thomas joked, his eyes lit up and the smile still plastered on his face.

Carmen="Promise you won't tell, but she isn't always so girly. When she's at home she likes doing sports with my brothers. I don't think she wants people at school to know that though, for some reason," she said.

Thomas="Well that's dumb," he said. "People usually like the sporty types too."

Carmen="I know, I'm not sure why she keeps it hidden," she said with a shrug. "I've told her she should be in the Quidditch team when she's old enough, but she isn't sure,"

Thomas="I know Cloud wants to play Quidditch," he said. "I do, too, actually. Hopefully someday Quidditch teams will happen again at Hogwarts, and then we can all play!"

Carmen="That would be cool. I can imagine Kimi just joining now to impress Cloud," she giggled.

Thomas="Whatever gets her to admit she likes Quidditch, I guess," he said, shrugging. "Hiding stuff about yourself just seems dumb."

Carmen="Yeah...just dumb," she said quietly. For a large part of her life she'd been too scared to admit things to other people and so she's done just that.

Thomas=Thomas immediately felt bad. "Oh, Carmen... I'm sorry. I dunno. You have that social anxiety.... thing and Kimi doesn't and...."

Charity= "And what?" Charity asked, walking into the room. "Carmen! Hi! I didn't know you were here!"

Carmen="Hi Charity," she waved, glad to see a familiar face and that they'd already had the chance to meet. She hid her previous uncomfortableness in the way she always did around people she didn't know very well.

Thomas= "And... nothing," he muttered.

Charity=Charity gave Thomas a look, and then glanced between the two of them. She looked at Carmen. "He's being a gentlemen, right?" she asked, in a slightly teasing tone of voice.

Carmen=Carmen wasn't quite sure what to say in response, she looked to Thomas but still wasn't sure. And her looking to him for approval would probably not help the 'they're going out with each other' theory. "Uh....yes," she replied, still unsure.

Charity="Is that a question or a statement?" she joked, her eyes twinkling. She just knew this girl would become Mrs. Thomas Bagman. It didn't matter that they were only 13.

Thomas="Leave her alone, Charity," Thomas said. "Go... play with Melinda or something."

Carmen="No, it's okay Thomas," she said casually. She was pretending Charity wasn't making her uncomfortable but really she just didn't think Thomas sticking up for her helped them with proving the rumor false.

Charity="I'll just let you two kids have some... ah, alone time," she said, a wide grin on her face. "You have fun. Thomas, you be a gentleman to her. That's what she deserves." She wouldn't be able to contain her glee any longer, and she knew Thomas was about to get mad, so she left the room, and walked upstairs.

Thomas=He groaned. "Sorry about her. She just thinks that everyone's business is also her concern."

Carmen="Bye, Charity," she said politelty, though she wasn't quite sure what kind of 'alone time' Charity thought they needed. She turned back to Thomas, "It's okay, she's only trying to be nice...I think,"

Thomas="Prying is more like it," he said. "She got herself a boyfriend, and so she thinks everyone in the world should now be getting together. I know she's had friends who are boys, I don't understand why she can't see that we're just friends, too," he said, rolling his eyes.

Carmen="Yeah," Carmen nodded, not daring to think of them and the possibility of them being a couple. "So she's still with Theo?" she asked, hoping she'd remembered the name right and to try and change the conversation.

Thomas="Oh, right, I forgot I told you about him. Yeah, Theo. And yeah, he visited the other week."

Carmen="Oh cool. Erm...do your other siblings have friends over often?" she asked. If it was only Charity and her boyfriend then she could see how it might appear like she was Thomas's girlfriend coming to visit.

Thomas="Well, Charity and I are the only ones in school," he said. He grinned. "And I don't know how well Faith will make friends. But assuming she does this year, I bet they'd visit if they wanted to."

Carmen="Oh okay," she replied, it didn't feel quiet so weird then. "So, are your parents around?" she asked curiously.

Thomas= "Somewhere, probably. Well, Mum is. Dad's at work, and gets home around dinner time."

Carmen="What sort of thing does he do?" she asked, hoping she was prying too much. They'd spoken about his siblings a lot but she didn't think he'd mentioned his parents much.

Thomas="He works for the Daily Prophet," he said. "What about your parents?"

Carmen="That sounds exciting. My parents both work at the Ministry, but I don't even know what department they're in. They think we're too young to understand," Carmen said, rolling her eyes.

Thomas=He rolled his eyes in kind. "Just tell them you learned about it in school or something, and that they should tell you."

Carmen=Carmen shrugged, "There's no point really, it's not like they'll want to spend more time with us or anything just because we know what they do,"

Thomas=He frowned. "That's stupid," he said. "If you take an interest in them, wouldn't they take an interest in you, too? Do they even ask about school?"

Carmen=Carmen laughed a little, "You don't know my parents. Even if they did have some spare time away from work, they'd spend it with Kimi and then Derrek and then Rhys and then me. And they never have enough spare time for me," she said. It sounded kind of sad, but she was used to it by now so it didn't affect her anymore.

Thomas=Thomas sat straight up. "What?!?!" he said. "Carmen, that's not ok!"

Carmen="It's all right, I'm used to it now. It's not like I enjoy spending time with any of them anyway, it doesn't matter," she said. She wanted to add that as long as she had friends like Thomas to spend time with she'd be okay, but she didn't know if Charity was still lurking and listening.

Thomas= He slumped back into the chair. He could've continued to argue it, but she clearly didn't want to.

Aviara
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Avery & Ciara" data-collapsetext="Rivers & Scott" style="width:100%">

Kargo
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Keeva & Margo" data-collapsetext="Carroll & Thompson" style="width:100%">

RicSel
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Rica & Ansel" data-collapsetext="Fuerst & Schmidt" style="width:100%">


 * Official since: June 14th, 2025

<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="First" data-collapsetext="Kiss" style="width:100%">

Ansel=Ansel sat by the bar, drinking a bottle of beer as he looked around the place. Wasn't so bad, but nothing compared to bars back in Germany.

Rica=She had been trying to find a good bar, but this seemed to be the only nice one. She scanned the bar for Ansel, assuming that he was already drunk, and quickly located him. She mumbled something to herself before sitting down beside him, "Hallo. Wie viele haben Sie bereits?" (Hey. How many have you had already?)

Ansel=Ansel smiled slightly, and threw an arm around her shoulders. "Dies ist nur der zweite." (This is only the second one.) He replied truthfully, before his expression turned one to confusion. "Was machst du hier? Etwas könnte Ihnen wegen eines betrunkenen ass geschieht." (What are you doing here? Something could happen to you because of a drunken ass.)

Rica=She gave him an equally confused expression, "Entschuldigen Sie mich? Ich bin durchaus in der Lage mich zu sorgen, drunken Esel oder nicht." (Excuse me? I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself, drunken asses or not.)

Ansel=Ansel sighed, and shook his head, looking back ahead of him so he didn't have to look at her, "Uns Leid." (Sorry.)

Rica=She frowned, "Nein, Sie hatten gute Absichten. Es gibt keine Notwendigkeit, sich zu entschuldigen." (No, you had good intentions. There's no need to apologize.)

Ansel="Ich will einfach nur kick some ass," (I just wanna kick some American ass,) he groaned.

Rica=She nodded, "Du wirst." (You will.) She ordered herself a water, deciding that it would be for the best if she didn't drink.

Ansel=He shook his head, slightly frowning, "Technisch würde es jeder, aber ich sein, wenn man bedenkt, ich bin der Suchende," (Technically, it'd be everyone but me, considering I'm just the seeker.)

Rica=She shrugged, "Nicht wirklich. Es gibt viel Sie tun können, um ihre Esel, vor allem die anderen Seeker zu treten, aber wenn Sie nicht sehen, dass dann kann ich ihre Besen für Sie zu brechen." (Not really. There's a lot you could do to kick their asses, especially the other Seeker, but if you don't see that then I can break their broom for you.)

Ansel=She shrugged, "Nicht wirklich. Es gibt viel Sie tun können, um ihre Esel, vor allem die anderen Seeker zu treten, aber wenn Sie nicht sehen, dass dann kann ich ihre Besen für Sie zu brechen." (Not really. There's a lot you could do to kick their asses, especially the other Seeker, but if you don't see that then I can break their broom for you.)

Rica=She smirked, "Fühlen sich frei." (Feel free to.) She wrapped an arm around him, changing the topic, "Ich gehe davon aus Sie Ihre Familie wird sich in die Tasse zu gehen?" (I'm assuming your family is going to be going to the cup?)

Ansel=He nodded, throwing his free arm around her shoulders, "Auf jeden Fall. Lena's eine Holyhead Harpy, schon vergessen? Sie würden es nicht verpassen für alles." (Definitely. Lena's a Holyhead Harpy, remember? They wouldn't miss it for anything.) After a slight pause, he smirked and continued, "Außerdem würde Boyce nicht passieren, die Chance zu sehen, seine Lieblings- Harrier im Fleisch zu spielen." (Besides, Boyce wouldn't pass up the chance to see his favorite Harrier play in the flesh.)

Rica=She laughed, "Er ist der kleine, zwanghaften, nicht wahr?" (He's the tiny, obsessive one, right?) She remembered meeting him once, although they only spoke to each other for a minute before he ran away, whether it was from fear or excitement.

Ansel="Genau." (Exactly.) he laughed, nodding. "Arme Idiot noch nicht lebte es nach unten." (Poor idiot hasn't lived it down yet.)

Rica="Ich glaube, er weiß mehr über mich als ich." (I think he knows more about me than I do.) She laughed, "Er scheint auch wenn meine." (He seems to mean well though.)

Ansel="Er wird ... gewidmet." (He is... devoted.) he conceded, chuckling softly. "Ich hoffe, es ist nur eine Etappe." (I hope it's just a stage.)

Rica=She finished her water, "Ja, obwohl ich habe nichts dagegen, ihn als Fan." (Yeah, although I don't mind having him as a fan.) She shrugged, "Er wird über sie schließlich bekommen." (He'll get over it eventually.)

Ansel="Sie haben keine Ahnung, wie ärgerlich es ist, ihn fanboy über euch, Liebe," (You have no idea how annoying it is to have him fanboy over you, love.) He sighed, shaking his head, "Blake stimmt mir zu." (Blake agrees with me.)

Rica="Du hast Recht, ich habe keine Ahnung, so sagen Sie mir, die Liebe." (You're right, I have no idea, so tell me, love.) She smiled, saying the last part in a teasing manner.

Ansel="Ich würde gerne, aber ich kann meine bro nicht verraten einfach so."(I'd love to, but I can't betray my bro just like that.) He chuckled, shaking his head.

Rica=She nodded, "Richtig." (Right.) She smirked.

Ansel=He only smiled, letting them fall into a comfortable silence.

Rica=After minutes of silence, she decided to speak, "Ansel?" She looked up at him for a moment before turning away.

Ansel="Hm?" He frowned, looking down at her.

Rica="Jeder hält auf sagen wir zusammen sind, was ich verstehe. Und ich glaube nicht, dass die Dinge zwischen uns zu ruinieren, aber wie Sie es sich wünschen?" (Everyone keeps on saying we're together, which I understand. And I don't mean to ruin things between us, but how do you feel about it?) It hadn't been just the other team mates who had been saying things, she had noticed fans saying the same sh*t as well.

Ansel=He quickly opened his mouth to give her the usual just ignore it, but he couldn't. He chose his words carefully, before letting them all out. "Ich weiß es wirklich nicht." He whispered, shaking his head. "Ich meine, Ich mag dich so mehr als Freunde, aber.. was ist, wenn es nicht funktioniert? Ich will nichts zwischen uns ruiniert." He paused, before sighing and continuing with a softer tone. "Aber dann wieder, könnten die Dinge zwischen uns ruiniert, aus oder nicht." Translation: "I really don't know." "I mean, I like you as more than friends, but.. what if it doesn't work? I don't want anything ruined between us." "But then again, things could get ruined between us, dating or not."

Rica=She nodded as he spoke, pausing before answering him, "Ich bin damit einverstanden, mit allem, was Sie gesagt haben. Vor allem der letzte Teil. Es gibt viele Gründe, warum unsere Freundschaft, geschweige denn eine Beziehung wäre ruiniert, so dass wir bereits läuft Gefahr, indem er sogar noch etwas in der Nähe." (I agree, with everything you said. Especially the last part. There are plenty of reasons why our friendship, let alone a relationship, would get ruined, so we're already running a risk by becoming even somewhat close.) She sighed.

Ansel=He sighed, and nodded. "Ich denke, die wichtigste Frage ist, was sollen wir tun?" (I guess the important question here is, what are we going to do?)

Rica="Ich weiß nicht. Ich wirklich nicht." (I don't know. I really don't.)

Ansel=He sighed and closed his eyes. He just had a feeling they had already ruined it.

Rica=She had a similar feeling, looking up at him, "Es tut mir leid. Ich sollte eine bessere Antwort gegeben haben, aber ich kann nicht." (I'm sorry. I should have given a better answer, but I can't.)

Ansel=He waved her apology away, "Don't worry," He hadn't even noticed he slipped into English.

Rica="Nein. German." She hit his shoulder lightly.

Ansel="No," He stuck his tongue out childishly.

Rica=She furrowed her brow, acting more frustrated that she really was, "Fick dich, Schmidt." (F### you, Schmidt.)

Ansel=He grinned cheekily, "I love you too."

Rica="Ich kann dir nicht glauben. Schauspiel, wie ein Kind." (I can't believe you. Acting like a child.) She shook her head.

Ansel="I should take it as an insult, but I'll take it as a compliment." He grinned, shrugging.

Rica=Having not understood most of what he said, she got slightly more frustrated, "Was? Sie wissen, ich kann nicht das meiste, was Sie sagen, zu verstehen." (What? You know I can't understand most of what you're saying.)

Ansel="Ich weiß. Das ist, warum ich es tun." (I know. That is why I do it.)

Rica="Und ich hasse dich dafür." (And I hate you for it.) She had a hint of a glare in her eyes.

Ansel="Du liebst mich, though." (You love me, though.) He replied cheekily, his grin never faltering.

Rica=A tiny smile appeared at her lips, "Ja genau." (Yeah, right.)

Ansel=Ansel chuckled and shook his head, letting them fall into silence again due to the lack of topics.

Rica=She didn't disrupt the silence this time. She didn't want to. Some part of her wanted this moment to last forever.

Ansel="Hey Rica?" He asked nervously after a bit.

Rica="Ja, Ansel?" (Yes, Ansel?) She smiled at him.

Ansel=He saw the chance, and involuntarily took it. He leaned in, and kissed her softly. Moments had passed before he realized what he'd done, "F*ck. I- I'm sorry," He whispered, pushing her away lightly. He stood up, slipped his jacket on, and made his way out the bar. What have I done?

Rica=She remained frozen in her seat as he left. Once he was gone, or at least when she thought he was, she rested her head in her hands and ordered a firewhiskey.

<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Part" data-collapsetext="Two" style="width:100%">

Ansel= Ansel was sitting in the middle of the quite empty restaurant, drinking butterbeer. Must be because of the World Cup. At the thought, he sighed. He knew he'd have to face Rica sometime soon, but he just wasn't looking forward to it.

Rica=Rica entered, sitting herself down at a table. The past week or two, she hadn't really focused on how long it had been, she spent most of her time busying herself with fans. That hadn't seemed to help, however, as most were just walking around with Rica x Ansel signs or shirts.

Ansel=Instinctively, he looked up at the sound of the bell's soft tune, signaling the arrival of someone. His eyes widened as he realized who'd come in, and quickly grabbed a menu as to hide himself with. Now how do I get out of here?

Rica=Upon sitting down, she realized how empty it was. That was fine by her, if it wasn't for the fact that she noticed someone trying to hide from her. Her eyes narrowed, "Ich bin kein Fan von Stalkern." (I'm not a fan of stalkers.) She doubted that they were one, but she didn't really care. They could be some gossip magazine editor, for all she knew.

Ansel=His eyes widened even more, knowing it was him who she was talking to. He slowly put the menu down, faking confusion, "Entschuldigen Sie mich? Ich habe nur versucht, zu entscheiden, was für Abendessen." (Excuse me? I was only trying to decide what to have for dinner.)

Rica=Her glare vanished upon seeing him, her eyes showing very little emotion. Her eyes fell upon the butterbeer and her teammate instinct almost snapped at him, "Sie sind nicht zu trinken, sind Sie?" (You're not drinking, are you?") The words were soft, or as soft as her words could become.

Ansel=Ansel scowled, "Es ist nur eine verdammte Butterbier, Rica. Und wir wissen nicht, bis 4 Tage zu spielen ab jetzt." (It's just one f*cking butterbeer, Rica. And we don't play until four days from now.)

Rica=She opened her mouth to give a sassy reply, but quickly shut it, turning away. Her focus changed towards the menu, trying to ignore the fact that he was there. The more she tried to, however, the more she began to think about it.

Ansel=He frowned. He was expecting her to retort. Not turn around and ignore him... He looked down at the butterbeer, sighed, and took another swig.

Rica=She settled on butterbeer because if he was allowed to have one, she could too. Upon the drink's arrival, she glanced over at him before turning back and taking a sip. Her eyes were focused on the table, looking at the slurs people had cared to carve into it, too nervous to look anywhere else.

Ansel="I'm not going to kill you, you know." He called over in German, realizing the great Rica Fuerst was nervous. In that moment, he silently thanked Lena and Blake for being such difficult girls, forcing him to learn how to read body language.

Rica=She turned to look at him, managing to keep her facial features expressionless, "Ich hätte nicht gedacht, Sie würden." (I didn't think you would.) 'You already have.' would have been a good reply, in her opinion, but she knew she shouldn't say that, so she didn't.

Ansel="Then why so nervous?" He retorted in the only language he knew she understood, frowning.

Rica=She sighed, shaking her head as she turned away, "Das Spiel, meistens." (The game, mostly.) It wasn't a complete lie. She was worried about how she would play, but not because of the Americans.

Ansel="As long as you protect me, we should be fine." He grinned cockily.

Rica=She took a swig of her butterbeer, "Leif can do that on his own. He's never needed my help and that isn't going to start now." She replied (in German), turning back to look at him for a moment.

Ansel=His grin instantly vanished. It had always been her taking the position of keeping-Ansel-and-his-crazy-quidditch-addicted-stupid-butt. Why change that now? After a moment, he sighed, having realized it was probably because of what happened the last time, and his actions shortly after. You just had to run, you moron.

Rica=Without even thinking, which seemed to happen a lot when she was around him these days, she replied to his silence, "You didn't have to apologize, you know."

Ansel="Of course I did. You don't even feel the same way, Fuerst. It was out of line from my behalf."

Rica=She turned her focus on him again, "Who are you to say how I feel about you?" If it had been anyone else, she might have snapped, but instead, the words just sounded full of hurt.

Ansel=Ansel snorted, "Please, Rica, spare me the pain. If you even liked me you would have kissed back." He countered, frowning. The pain he'd been holding in since that oh so beautiful night finally reflected in his eyes.

Rica="You're telling me to spare you the pain? Before you even say anything, I know not everything is about me, but believe it or not, I have f#cking feelings too." She tried to keep herself from dealing with this like she normally would. She didn't want to hurt him, but that's all she seemed to do, "And by saying this crap...It's..."

Ansel=The seeker's eyes narrowed, waiting for her to finish.

Rica="It's...heartbreaking, I guess you could say." She looked down at the space of the floor that was between them, "I'm not saying you are or are not heartbroken either, I don't have that right. I..." She couldn't make out the words she wanted to say, mainly because she thought she shouldn't.

Ansel="Tell me one thing, Rica. One thing only." He replied quietly, closing his eyes as he did so. After a moment, he opened them again, "Look me in the eyes and say you don't return my feelings. Only then, will I be able to move on."

Rica=She looked up at him again, "I can't, Ansel. I really can't." Tears began to cling at her eyes, "I don't want to. I-"

Ansel=He pursed his lips. Women are really difficult. So from what he's gathered, she likes him but she's not exactly sure of it? Or is she afraid? "Fine, whatever." He sighed, shaking his head, causing a strand of his brown hair to fall atop of his eyes.

Rica=She sighed, not knowing what to say. She hadn't ever felt like this before and he wasn't making it any easier. At this point, it seemed like she cared more than he did.

Ansel=He leaned back on the chair, frowning. He was coming off as a jerk and he knew it. It's not like he could help it... Wait... Ansel brightened up significantly, a boyish grin appearing on his face momentarily, before it quickly vanished. Don't raise suspicion, dimwit.

Rica=A small smile crossed her lips as she noticed his grin, but she said nothing as she let it vanish.

Ansel=He stared at her weirdly for a few moments, before the look left his face, having been replaced by one of confusion. And why exactly is she giving that smile?

Rica="You're rather cute when you smile, well, grin. You know that?" She nearly laughed as she saw his look of confusion.

Ansel=He huffed and rolled his eyes, "I'm Ansel Schmidt. I don't do cute."

Rica=She laughed. Definitely don't look like it. "Would you prefer it if I called you hot instead?"

Ansel="Definitely. Wouldn't need to hear it to believe it, though." He grinned cockily.

Rica="Of course you don't." She rolled her eyes.

Ansel="You know it." He called over, laughing.

Rica=She laughed before letting silence fall between them. She didn't care to make a sound because she couldn't think of anything worth talking about.

Ansel=After a few minutes of silence, he finally broke it, "Why are we in an American-themed restaurant? They're our enemies, so to say..."

Rica=She shrugged, "That's a brilliant question, but I can't really answer it. I mean if you want, you could go elsewhere."

Ansel="Why me and not you?" He huffed.

Rica="I didn't say you had to. I was just saying if you didn't want to eat at an American-themed restaurant, then you could elsewhere." She shrugged, "I guess I could go."

Ansel="No need," He shook his head, a boyish grin ending on his face again, "I've gotta head out and do something," He called over as he dropped a few coins, just to head to the door, "Expect the unexpected." With that, he was gone.

Rica=What the hell is that supposed to mean? She thought, remaining there for about five minutes before dropping a few coins on the table and leaving.

<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Relationship Start!" data-collapsetext="Gilbert Schweinsteiger's Apartment" style="width:100%">

Ansel=He couldn't help but snicker as he stalked into his room, returning with a similar silver envelope to those that H sent Rica. Besides the letter, a rose rested in his hands. He handed both items over, and grinning cheekily, kissed her cheek. He moved towards the kitchen to throw away the now empty bottle of beer.

Rica=She set the rose in the empty beer container, reading the letter as she did so. After she finished, she glanced up at him, "I don't like roses, Schmidt."

Ansel=He shrugged as he returned, "Your favorite flowers are daisies, but kind of ran out because of that bouquet I gifted you with." He grinned sheepishly, running a hand through his hair, "Improvisation, of some sorts? Lena had been babbling to me about how romantic they were and figured hey, why not?" He shrugged again, plopping down by Leif, "So, Fuerst, what's your answer?"

Rica=This wasn't necessarily the right time for him to ask, but she didn't want to decline him. "You had the option to sit next to this @$$hole or your girlfriend, and you chose him?"

Ansel="Well I didn't want to risk getting hit! You can be aggressive, you know." He protested before he could actually process her words. As soon as he did, he blinked, "Wait, did you just?"

Rica=She nodded, on the verge of laughing despite being called 'aggressive.' Not like she would normally be upset by being called that anyways.

Ansel="Well, at least it's less the risk of getting hit." He finally chuckled, moving and sitting behind Rica, his arms wrapping around her as they usually did back when they were just friends.

Rica=She tilted her head towards him slightly so she could kiss him softly on the lips before turning away to take another sip of beer.

Ansel=He didn't hesitate on kissing back, smiling slightly and resting his chin atop of her head once she pulled away.

Princeman
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" data-expandtext="Ash & Charity" data-collapsetext="Prince and Bagman" style="width:100%">

Officially started: Unknown Married: June 19th, 2025