Great Hall
The Great Hall certainly seems to be the heart of Hogwarts,
as every day the four houses of Hogwarts and professors alike join together in
this magnificent corridor. Even the
elitist wizard or witch would be bedazzled by the sheer brilliance of this
hall.
The room seems to be lit by an endless number of candles
floating atop the five tables set up here.
Four of the tables are evenly placed beside each other, measuring at
least a hundred meters each. These
polished tables seem to possess an endless number of golden goblets and
platters, which are empty at the moment, but rest assured; any decent magical
institution would fill them with many eats as breakfast, lunch, and dinner each
roll around. The walls adjacent with the
four tables are decorated with elaborately ornamented flags of the four houses:
Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Of course, seated at these four tables would
be the students of these houses.
At the front of the room is another table, identical to the
other tables in the room except for the fact that the professors at Hogwarts
dine there. Above that table is the
crest of Hogwarts, proudly displayed in all its glory. The occasional suit of armor is placed around
the room, as well as a few framed pictures, but it's not like the room really
needs to be decorated by things such as those.
Above the tabletops is a magnificent ceiling, if it's a
ceiling at all. It seems to be the
starry sky itself; the ceiling stretches upward so high, it certainly is hard
to tell if there's a rooftop covering the room or not. Although someone who has been reading his or
her books about Hogwarts would tell you it's bewitched to look like the sky
outside. Nevertheless, the room as a
whole certainly is a breath-taking place.
Yay for dinner time in the Great Hall. Well... it's dinner
time for the students who have decided to feast early, one of them being Draco
Malfoy, which shouldn't be much of a surprise, as he does tend to have supper
before everyone else most of the time. The boy sits all by his lonesome at the
Slytherin table, kinda. He's accompanied by Crabbe and Goyle, as always, who
have taken up a seat on either side. Okay, so he's all by his lonesome when it
comes to people of intelligence. The two bigger boys just ramble about stupid
things, Draco occasionally interupting to correct them, but otherwise, content
to smile smugly in between bites of his potatoe.
Why does Draco eat early? Is it just to avoid the strange
looks he sometimes gets? Is it to avoid /Potter/? Or perhaps Cho? Or something
else? Either way, it seems he isn't the only one who happens to be eating
early. Fresh out of a study session with one of the Professors (trying to get
ready for the end of the year exams, considering the way her test scores had
plummeted during the fall, she needs it) the Ravenclaw Seeker has opted to get
food early, not out of avoidance, but because she's starving. (She was working
on Curses, hexes and jinxes, and she's always found them highly exhausting.) As
she starts towards the Ravenclaw table, she blinks, noticing a certain blonde
boy over at the Slytherins, surrounded by the two large 'boys'. She pauses for
a moment, then heads over, moving to the opposite side of the table, so they
see her coming before she gets close enough to say anything. "Good
evening, Draco. Crabbe. Goyle." She can't remember their first names, so
she'll just say their last names. She offers a friendly smile to all three
(though longer to Draco, and a bit longer to Goyle than Crabbe, she's seen him
more).
Isn't this the way their conversations always start? Just
simple greeting and things just start on a roll from there? Not that it's a bad
thing, really. Just making an observation. He looks up from the impaled on a
fork potatoe, staring bewildered straight into the face of Cho Chang, not that
he couldn't of recognized her by just that voice alone. Crabbe and Goyle
immediately fall into a state of silence, both glancing to the blonde haired
Slytherin seated beside them as if seeking an order or direction. Draco then
purposely eats that piece of the potatoe and swallows before responding with a,
"Well, don't just stand there and act like some sort of stranger, Cho.
Take a seat if you want to." That causes his two goons to look rather
surprised. A Ravenclaw at the Slytherin table? Well.. it isn't unheard of, in
truth.
If anything, the smile brightens. Cho moves to seat herself
directly across from the blonde Slytherin, "Thank you." she responds
politely, even if it really isn't unheard of anymore. She's eaten at this table
at least once as it is. She stays silent for a moment, then asks, "Don't
mind if I eat here, do you?" He said she could sit, but she wants some
encouragement before she starts taking their food. If he gives a nod, she
immediately starts to put some food onto her plate. If he does say something
against it, she won't, of course.
Walking next to Lee, and still shivering in his
slightly-too-big-for-her coat, Angelina pauses to peer into the Great Hall and
flick a wet lock of hair from her eyes. The thought of hot chocolate sounds
good, but maybe they should have it in a more private place. Someplace where a
lot of questions won't be asked concerning where she's been, or why she's all
wet and cold. There seem to be a few students still here eating lunch, so at
least they won't look completely out of place. She turns to regard Lee.
Lee, wet and cold himself, really could not care less
whether someone came up and prodded at him.. He'd simply use his usual excuse
that it had something to do with a prank of sort he was planning and that would
commonly free him of the annoying questions. However, he wondered just exactly
how he could explain both Angelina and him looking as if someone had dunked
them in a pool? Oh well, it really didn't matter. Once examining the almost
completely empty hall, it was obvious that the students her probably wouldn't
even bother. Most of them were under classmen anyhow, so it didn't make to much
of a difference. Lee grinned at Angelina's glance and pushed her forward.
"What, do you think they're going to eat you, Angi? Don't worry about
it."
Encouragement, eh? How's this for encouragement? Draco gives
Cho a big roll of the eyes and then... well... He nods, looking rather
irritated while doing so but still, meaning that she may indeed eat here if she
has the desire to do so. The Slytherin table sits practically empty, anyways,
so it's not like there'll be any whispers travelling about. Crabbe and Goyle,
on either side of the blonde, just begin to snicker. "You don't need to
ask, you know. I pretty much said that you can sit here if you want to."
And in his own mind, the offer of being able to eat with him is also included.
Heh.
"I know, I just figured I should ask..." Cho
responds, still managing to smile, despite the look that he's giving her. What
else is new? He always looks irritated. Well, most the time anyway. She starts
to cut up the food that she grabbed, letting her eyes wander towards the door
for a moment. The appearance of the two drenched Gryffindor's earn a small
raise of her eyebrows, but she's obviously too far away to really do much more,
so as she takes the first bite, her eyes return to the blonde Slytherin. "Having
an eventful day?" is what she decides to ask. Smalltalk, gotta love it.
No, I'm afraid I'm going to eat them! Err, ahem *cough*. At
Lee's prodding, Angelina straightens and starts walking toward the Gryffindor
table. Indeed...they probably could pass it off as a prank gone awry to the
other students. It's not like Lee and Angelina are Gryffindor's perfect little
angels, is it? They've both got more than enough tricks in their past to
account for this. Still, the girl can't help but glance warily up at the staff
table, and then up and down the other house tables. Hey, and there's Malfoy and
his two stooges and...Cho??
Us? Not angels???? What lie is this..? Lee certainly is the
perfect example of an angel! ... really! Despite Angelina agreeing to walk
forward, he still pushed her lightly and he tried not to be surprised as he
follows Angelina's sight line. After all, it wasn't as if the Daily Prophet
hadn't already flaunted half of the school's speculation on this oddly matched
two. He turned his eyes back to Angelina and muttered something along the lines
of how ironic it was before they sat down at the Gryffindor table, which wasn't
exactly bustling with many people. The announcer grinned at Angelina. "So,
exactly what shall we say to explain what happened to us? The toilet we
exploded somehow drenched us?"
Aren't Ravenclaws sorted into that house because of their
intelligence? And if so, what happened to it? Why must Cho insist on the small
talk when there is a much broader range of topics to be explored... like the
two Gryffindors who come strolling into the Great Hall, soaked to the bone. The
icy blue eyes belonging to Draco Malfoy of the Slytherin house follow the pair
as they move to sit at the Gryffindor table... A thin smirk works its way across
his lips. Well well well. "I suppose, though it just got slightly more
interesting right now." His two cronies start to snicker. Just wait. The
insults will start, soon. Draco may not be the type to pull stupid pranks, but
he has a sharp mind and an even sharper tongue. When it comes to insults, there
is no denying that the blonde Slytherin is.. well.. the master! HA HA! In his
own mind, at least.
Well it obviously went right out the window the minute she
decided to befriend a Slytherin like you, Draco. So there. And as for the Daily
Prophet's embarassing article... arg... just friendship! Miss-interpertation of
the events! Sigh... Cho casts her eyes over to the two Gryffindor's again,
apparently understanding his meaning, even if he doesn't give her much credit
for her intelligence. She herself returned from the outdoors just a few days
ago soaked to the bone though, thanks to a snow-ball fight that she really
shouldn't have been having anyway, but... those two might have been up to
something else all together. If the Weasley twins were with them and in a
similar state, she would certainly opt with a prank going fowl. "Suppose
so... venture to guess?" she inquires, before she takes another bite.
Sulk. Sulk. Grumblemutter. Well, if Angelina and Lee get to
be soaked then Fuuma gets to smell heavily of soot. And boy does he ever. The edges of his robes and the tips of his
bangs still hold a grey tinge to them as the exchange student makes his way
into the Hall, bag slung over his shoulder and looking none-too-pleased with
himself...Well, to a greater extreme than usual. Eyes firmly glaring at the
floor, he moves with swift steps to seat himself quietly enough at the
Gryffindor table. Just leave him alone
with what little dignity he has left. Mutter.
Angelina nods as she takes a seat next to Lee. Ironic...and
poor Harry! Angelina can remember the looks he was throwing Cho during their
match in 3rd year, and she'd caught a glimpse every now and then last year too,
even if you *boys* didn't =P. Oh well. At Lee's question, she grins, feeling
more and more like her old self. "Nah, not toilet explosions...that would
make us sound like amateurs! Mmm...maybe we snuck into the Potion's classroom
and decided to experiment a bit--" But wouldn't they be covered in purple
goop if they did that? Or at least have oddly colored fingernails, "Or
maybe one of Professor Trelawney's predictions came true, and the giant squid
tried to eat me, and you had to risk hypothermia to save me." Not that she
takes Divination anyways, but..."Fuuma?" she calls, recognizing the
boy heading toward them. What happened to you?
Lee smirked at her, pushing away a dreadlock from his eyes.
Of course he caught Harry's looks! In the announcer booth, it's sort of hard to
miss anything, including the lovely gesture a Slytherin once gave him when he
had said some profanity in describing there team. Hey, he was just stating the
truth! "What, are you kidding? Trewlany's prediction's coming true? You'd
think the world had come to the end..! Besides," he said in mock
dejectedness, "I *did* risk hypothermia to save you, Angie.. It's got to
be below -10 Celsius out there!" He was about to comment on something else
when Fuuma came in, looking.. well, worse then them. "Good question..
Fuuma, did you try to blow yourself up or something?"
"Failed drowning attempt." Draco immediately
guesses, Crabbe and Goyle snicker again. He skewers another potatoe onto the
end of his fork and lifts it to his lips with a nice mumbled drawl, "Pity
that it didn't work. Would've been nice to be rid of a them both in one fell
swoop. Hogwarts could probably function just fine without an irritating
announcer and a no good Gryffindor chaser." And then he... well... Draco
eats his piece of the potatoe on the fork. ~.~
Come over here and say that, Draco! Angelina just might be
in the mood to hit you. >:D Well, probably not, as Lee has done a masterful
job of calming her nerves. In any case, she's completely unaware of the
conversation going on behind her at the Slytherin table as she leans over and
grins at her fellow Gryffindor. "My heeero," she purrs, trying to
sound like the female protagonist in old muggle american Western movies, and
not precisely succeeding. The girl taps the table, and a mug of steaming hot
chocolate appears. Finally! Something to warm up her insides. And...Lee! Be
nice to the poor exchange student. The boy doesn't seem to be having that great
of a time so far at Hogwarts.
There are times when it's very difficult to be friends with
this particular Slytherin. This just happens to be one of them. His words cause
her to look up from her food, smile faded, eyes narrowed. But then, what can
she really do? The Gryffindor's seem to insult him at every turn, so at least
the hatred that they feel for each other is shared. Cho lets out a small sigh
and refrains from saying anything really against his insults, but she does say,
"Amazing. She's so horrible a Chaser that their team has beat yours every
year you've been on the team..." Should she really be saying this when she
happens to be a guest at the Slytherin table? "Of course they beat us
too." Just so he doesn't have the option to point that out. And she won't
even go into how he shouldn't wish people dead, especially after his 'loss'
this year... she's tempted though.
...And speaking of the world coming to an end-Well,
nevermind. Fuuma glances up slowly, and expressionlessly, "Good
evening." He says, since it seems everyone's decided to forsake manners
for questions regarding his current state,"...No, I did not." Scowl.
Glare. Sigh,"...I was practicing my charms..." Big Sigh. No, that
sentence needs revision, "...Trying to practice my-" And his eyes
narrow as he for the first time becomes conciously aquainted with the lovely
humor of Draco Malfoy,"-Charms." He finishes stiffly. Grr-Eh? Well,
there's one way to wipe that surly look away, Angelina. Confuse the poor boy. Blinkblink.
Aww, I'm not being mean. I really thought he'd tried to blow
himself up! ;P Spontaneous combustion! It's a faaaddd...! At Angelina's.. Well,
rather interesting use of tone, a flash of red flickers across his cheeks and
for once he loses his grip on his nerves before nursing his own cup of hot
chocolate, trying to ignore Draco's comments. He silently wondered how many
points he would have taken off if he just went over then and smacked the snobby
under classman over the head. What a git.. But, oh well, the best thing to do
against this is to pretend he's not listening. "Ohhhh, I see. Charms
aren't exactly friendly to new people, especially if Fred and George attempt to
teach you." He rolled his eyes at the memory of his first year.. He had to
suffer walking about with poka-dotted dreads for weeks!
Oooh. That was not one of the most wisest things to say...
especially to a Slytherin, even if she did happen to point out that the
Gryffindor team beats Ravenclaw just as often, too. It's honestly a pity that
he can't actually respond to that comment right at the moment, mostly because
of having that bit of potatoe in his mouth... so... Draco scowls, instead, and
looks more like a really pissed off chipmunk, his cheeks sorta full with food.
Grumble. Oh, swallow, right. He does, then follows up Cho's remark with a
retaliation, "They only win because Potter manages to fluke out. Oh,
wonderful Potter with his ruddy Firebolt. It's a pity he didn't fall off the
broom in first year and break his neck." HISS. His hands set down on either
side of the empty plate, forcing himself to rise from the seat, Crabbe and
Goyle looking rather started by the sudden motion. The pale, blonde haired
Slytherin looks down at the Ravenclaw with a rather nasty, severe expression.
Perhaps he's been taking tips from Professor Snape. "Enjoy your
meal." He snaps, lacing the words with plenty of venom, turning to leave.
Oh, she pissed him off? Yay! What else is new? Boy, if the
Prophet was right and they /are/ in a relationship, it's a pretty disfunctional
one. Instead of apologizing though, Cho looks up at him, putting down her fork
and sitting up in her chair a little bit. "Perhaps you're right. Though
Potter is hardly the only reason their team wins. As we're both Seekers, we
know that a team is not able to function well without us, but our role isn't
the only one." She starts to stand up as well, obviously not going to
remain seated at this table with just Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dumb for company.
Angelina tries to flash Fuuma a comforting smile. "Aye,
my first year, I set Flitwick's head on fire. Charms can be really
tricky." She takes a sip of her hot chocolate and basks in the warmth.
Draco's finally raised his voice enough to attract even her attention, and she
turns around; curious, but not at all surprised at his outburst. "Even
more of a pity his Patronus didn't do anything more than make you and your
cronies wet yourself in your third year, Malfoy. Did the dementor costume need
dry cleaning after? Or did you just burn it?" Ohh yeah, that just sort
of...came out. She's afraid and she's angry and she's just not in the mood to
deal with dysfunctional Slytherins today, especially younger ones.
Fuuma nods, slowly,"So I have been learning...."
Trial and error. It's all about trial and error. Oh well, at least Charms are
interesting. Unlike, say, Divination Homework. Not that he has anything AGAINST
the subject-he just finds it hopelessly BORING.
(Tea leaves read=Uneventful life. Whoo.). He glance back down at the table, and seems
to begin the motion of summoning up something to ease the nagging his stomach
has begun to give him-Then pauses and glances back up as the volley begins-Or
is continued. Or something. All he knows is that the skinny blond kid said
something nasty about his housemate.
Lee nods gravely. He remembered that lovely incident.. Poor
Flitwick. o_o The announcer is a bit surprised at Angelina's sudden outburst,
something even he had not expected from her.. Then again, with all of her
already pending stress, an added push from Draco seemed all she needed to
explode.. And, compared to Draco's own shout out, it just might end up to be
something of a quip contest. Lee sighed, took another sip of his drink, not
even bothering to look behind him at the blonde.. What a waste of energy to look
at the little dork anyway.. Or talk to him, but Lee said something anyhow.
"Or maybe the other countless times he managed to embarrass you in some
way or another.."
The boy's face immediately begins to burn with
embarrassment. Funny to see how red his normally pale cheeks can get whenever
he's being humiliated, isn't it? Ron Weasley would pay to see this, one can
bet. And they didn't wet themselves! Or at least, Draco didn't. Dunno about the
other three. Passed out in fright for a moment, yes, but the fright didn't
happen to involve anything that serious. His hands shake with anger, mostly
because of Angelina, practically ignoring Lee, but it's not as though the
Slytherin will put up with such comments without firing back something, of
course. The bad thing is that he can't think of anything to say at the moment,
so the boy reaches into his robes and brandishes the wand. Swish. Flick.
"Petrificus Totalus!" He bellows, firing off the body-binding spell
at the mouthy Gryffindor chaser. Welp. Draco does have a certain disregard for
the rules. This isn't the first time he's tried to hex someone in the Great
Hall.
Now, that was hardly called for. Angelina's humiliation
earns a deep sigh from the Ravenclaw. Cho shakes her head, wishing that this
wasn't going on. "That's hardly--" called for. That's as far as she
gets when Draco... has his moment. Ack! "Draco!" Cho's eyes widen and
she starts to move towards the nearest end of the table, obviously trying to
get on the same side as Draco as if she might be able to stop him. Of course,
she won't get around in time. If she'd really wanted to stop him, she'd have to
jump over the table, and why she is athletic, she's better on a broom than on
her feet. Maybe she can stop him from doing more though...
In the moments between Draco's spell and when she is hit,
Angelina sighs inwardly. Yes, she could have avoided that; ignored it. She
should have. But she hasn't been thinking clearly at all recently and
well...you had it coming ferret-boy =P. She doesn't have her wand either, so
there's no way to defend against the hex. The Gryffindor collapses against the
table, hit square on, and then--what? Aggh! She's not paralyzed immediately for
some odd reason, but instead feels a horrible burning sensation as the hex
seems to come into conflict with...something else. The girl can't help crying
out with the sudden pain, but as quickly as it happened, its over, and the
familiar effects of the body binding spell take over. She's on the floor now.
Kill him Lee, pretty please?
It was almost as if time had slowed momentarily when Draco
raised his wand arm. Maybe it was either Lee could not believe that this boy,
supposedly whispered as simply a tongue lasher, actually had the nerve to do
something of that context. But that thought was broken as Angelina fell to the
floor, straight as a board. He gaped and slid from his seat, facing Draco, fury
flashing across his features. "How dare you?! You little -" He sacrificed the moment of profanity to fall
to his knees and grab Angelina's frozen body.
It was almost as if time had slowed momentarily when Draco
raised his wand arm. Maybe it was either Lee could not believe that this boy,
supposedly whispered as simply a tongue lasher, actually had the nerve to do
something of that context. But that thought was broken as Angelina fell to the
floor, straight as a board. He gaped and slid from his seat, facing Draco, fury
flashing across his features. "How dare you?! You little -" He
sacrificed the moment of profanity to fall to his knees and grab Angelina's
frozen body.
Oh, save the melodramatics for someone who gives a damn
because he certainly doesn't. In a sense, the blonde Slytherin's just kinda
glad that he's being screamed at, rather than, for instance, being turned into
a ferret, taking a moment to reflect on the last time he attempted to hex
someone in the Great Hall. Draco is quick to sheath the wand back in his robes,
then make a move to leave as quickly as possible. Hey, it's what he had
intended on doing so in the first place. The boy moves without even showing the
least bit of remoarse or regret for zapping Angelina with the body-binding
spell, she provoked him, after all. Cho comes around one end and that means
Draco immediately darts around the other, making a break for the door, not
wanting to be caught by the girl, leaving Crabbe and Goyle behind to sit and
blink in a puzzled manner at one another before they shrug and return to their
meal. n_n Mm. Food. Almost as wonderful as shiny stuff. n_n
"Draco..." Cho sighs after a moment, still moving
around the table, even if now she has to walk all the way past Angelina's
paralyzed body and the other Gryffindor. She continues towards the doorway
after him, but she does stop as she gets to Angelina. "Do you know the
counter-curse?" She asks Lee, "I'm really sorry. I'll talk to
Draco... Make sure she gets up to Madam Pomfrey, okay?" That's the most
she can offer to clear up this situation, so without really waiting for any
answers, she starts after the Slytherin's exit. Hopefully they won't go and
tell one of the Professors on the Slytherin. Though he probably deserves to get
a few points docked for that.
How very like Lavender to walk in after a situation has
ensued. Particularily one she isn't paying much attention too. As she is just
stepping through the doors, she stands another chance of having a yet another
untimely encounter with the blonde Slytherin, if he doesn't see her first. Her
bag is considerably lighter than it was the other day, but still it drags a
little on the girl's shoulder.
Ooohh, you just wait, Draco Malformed. You've picked on the
wrong Gryffindor. Expect some particularly nasty prank within the next week or
so. She has connections! Exploding toilets, hexed hair gel, canary creams,
wizard glue...thinking of it is enough to sooth Angelina's embarassment at
being caught like this. She'd utter something about being so brave you can
attack an unarmed witch, but of course she can't. Sigh. And she can be grateful
that your hex didn't provoke any more serious reaction by the spell she's
already under...unless you literally want to get your head bitten off. >.<
As much as Lee would like to go and wipe that stupid smug
look off of Draco's face with a few points from his nhouse, the whole prospect
of running off to tell a Professor seemed.. well, immature. So he simply fumed
as Draco and Cho disappeared from sight and he dug his wand from his robes.
Muttering the counter-curse took only moments and he felt the muscles of
Angelina's back loosen in his hands, yet he let his eyes trail back to the door
to which the two had disappeared and he frowned. But at least the spell wasn't
one which caused pain, yet the whole concept that the Slytherin seeker would
use his wand just to.. It just pissed him off. The joker sighed and looked down
at Angelina in silence before wandering to ask, "Are you alright..?" Clearly
she was okay, but probably in the mood to do something in revenge..
Draco has never and will never be frightened of meaningless
threats from the Gryffindor house. Slytherin power all the way, man! Just be
glad that he does have a little mercy for those who aren't members of Potter's
fanclub. He could have done MUCH WORSE. MUCH MUCH WORSE and they should know
it! The boy brushes right on by Lavender without even a second glance back,
hearing Cho's words, but refusing to make his pace any faster than it already
happens to be. She'll probably catch up with him outside. After all, if he's
going to leave, though he will rather quickly, the Malfoy heir will hold his
head high with pride and arrogance the entire way out. That's just the type of
person he happens to be.
Arrogant little bastard. Well, if he wasn't that way, he
wouldn't be Draco, so let's just leave it at that. Cho continues after him,
offering a nod to the Gryffindor as she nears the door. At least the girl isn't
a Prefect or anything, so at least she won't have to worry about her seeing the
scene and deducting any points from Slytherin. She may think he deserves it,
but... well... he did kind of reliate. To something said in reliation to
something he said. Ah. This is what she gets for befriending a Slytherin.
Unless I get my hands on a wand before you're out of sight!
Grr! Well anyways...its Lee to the rescue again as Angelina feels her muscles
slowly beginning to relax and feeling return. Finally...that was terrible. Now
that she can open her big mouth again, she does so. "It takes a big man to
attack an unarmed opponent, Draco! I'm sure your housemates will praise your
courage!" She could really care less if he even hears her, she just HAD to
say that, its been wanting to come out for what seems like an eternity.
"I'm fine," she mutters to Lee, though its obvious she's not.
"Ugly prat didn't do anything harmful." And YES, she fully intends to
get revenge. But not just now. Anyways, she DID push him. But he had no right
to say that about Harry, especially after she knows what the younger Gryffindor
has been going through lately.
Shudder. There goes the Ravenclaw seeker chasing after the
evil Malfoy. @.@ Blinking in confusion at the door to the Great Hall, Lavender
turns her head to stare after the departing students, then looks over to the
Gryffindor Table and rushes over when she notices Lee and ... ? "What
happened?" Lavender asks, dropping her bag in alarm.
Courtyard
This is the courtyard to the prestigious and established
wizard school known as Hogwarts.
Of interest besides the giant towering school is the cabin
of the Keeper of the Keys, Rubeus Hagrid, the Forbidden Forest (now tell me
that that isn't intriguing), and the lake over which is the way off the
Hogwarts campus. (watch out for the
giant squid, please) The courtyard
generally consists of a well kept lawn, various trees dotting the area to
provide shade and a nice resting place for a student who enjoys studying
outdoors. The sparkling crystal blue
lake sits a bit of a walk away from the castle (considering most of the castle
is set upon the cliffs which overlook the lake), it's small but somewhat sandy
shore providing a nice place to rest as well, once you get down there. Although the lake appears to be calm, there's
more than the eye can see under those waters.
A small cave leads to an underground dock in which only a small boat
would fit through. Hogwarts is a very
interesting place indeed.
He doesn't head for the dungeons, no... that'll be the first
place people'll come looking if the Gryffindor students do happen to rat him
out to the professors. He'd rather be somewhere else where it'll be rather
difficult to locate him right away, so out the door Draco storms, right into
the snow, trudging through it as he had the other day without a care. It
doesn't even matter to him if Cho's still following, but he was kinda hoping
that she had veered off, somewhere back there, found something better to do
with her time.
Of course. He had to go out into the snow, when she doesn't
have her winter cloak handy, and only the thickness of her robes to ward off
the cold and wind. But then, most likely, the same is true for him, so she
carries on after him, trudging carefully and following the path he leaves in
the snow rather easily. Did he honestly think that she would just let him leave
like that? Well, she probably should have. He likely wanted to be left alone.
Since when has she ever done what she should where this 'relationship' was
concerned? She starts to speed up in the snow to try and catch up to him,
finally calling out after a minute or more, "Draco, please stop."
"Go back to the castle, Cho." He calls back after
a moment, still pressing on through, refusing to stop, but he does get slowed
down by the snow. The further away he gets from the school, the higher the
snow, making it much harder to make trenches through, meaning more work.
"After all, you're not dressed for this sort of weather. I'm sure you'll
be rewarded with a warm fire if you go and tattle like those stupid ruddy
Gryffindors are probably doing right now." Not that Draco cares if they
rat him out,either. As said before, he's flung out hexes in the Great Hall
before without a concern or worry for the consequences. Of course, it resulted
in his being turned into a ferret, but, eh... he wasn't just attacking Angelina
when her back was turned?
"Draco, I'm not going to tell on you. If they do...
I'll say that she provoked it." Cho continues to trudge through the snow,
still trying to speed up so she can close the distance between them. And she
doesn't know about the ferret incident, so the fact that he did it before is
rather meaningless to her. All she wants is to make sure he's alright and not
going to do anything stupid, like sit out in the snow and make himself ill. As
she gets a little bit closer, thanks in part to him being slowed down, she
reaches out a hand, as if she's going to grab him. But that would work better
if she wasn't still about five meters away. "Draco, please stop." Or
that's what she started to say. It comes out more, "Draco, please
sto---ow!" because she tripped over an unseen tree branch that must have
blown over from the forest during the snow storm and stumbles into the snow,
catching herself with her hands before she falls face first into it. Ow...
ow... ow... remember that potion? The one he gave her? The one she's been
taking religously for a month now? Remember the side effect? Well, she's really
starting to notice it now.
Go figure that she just had to hurt herself. Why is he not
surprised? With a soft sigh, he comes to a halt just a few feet away, followed
by turning around in order to face the girl, looking... hardly amused. Who can
honestly blame him, though? He did tell her to go back, after all, though not
very nicely, but still! It's her own fault she got hurt because she didn't
listen to him like she should've. "Stupid git." Is the first thing
that Draco says before he begins to walk over in the Ravenclaw's direction.
What else can he do? He can ask how he can help, or something like that, but
the Slytherin isn't that nice. "I told you to go back."
Yeah, well, Draco, sometimes you can't go back. And perhaps
that doesn't just mean the castle in this instance. The pain that's shooting up
her legs and arms is far more than it should be, and for a second she doesn't
even realize why. A few moments later her brain unfuzzes and she recalls. Oh
yes. The potion's side effect. Cho's eyes close as she remains bend over, cold
from the snow, and hurting from the fall. She's had injuries before, a lot, but
for some reason the added sensitivity is enough to make a few tears leak from
her eyes. Now, if this was worse than a sprained ankle and cut and bruised
hands and knees, she'd probably be a lot worse off. And at least the cold helps
numb it a little. His words cause her to grit her teeth, and she starts to push
herself up, head remaining lowered. Ow. She really shouldn't try standing.
Ow... ow... ow... But somehow, despite the pain, she manages to get to her feet
again, snow covering the sleeves and lower half of her robes. When she looks
up, her eyes still have some tears (of pain, not sadness) in her eyes and she
says, "Yeah, I know." That's it? No, 'At least you stopped'? or
'thank you'? Hmm.
Now, if the blonde Slytherin were a true gentleman, he would
have swept the girl immediately off her injured foot, just like in a love
story, then carted her off to the castle. It's unfortunate that there never was
a love story that has ever dealt with a character like Draco; he probably
couldn't carry Cho and trudge through all this snow at the same time. He could
TRY, but it'd result in them both being freezing cold by the time they both got
inside. It crosses his mind to offer a shoulder, but for now, that jerk
mindframe kicks into play and Draco asks, with a bored drawl, "Can you
walk or are you too injured because of your stupidity?"
"Stop calling me stupid." Cho says, through her
teeth as she stands there, weight shifted obviously in favor of one foot over
the other. She opens her mouth to say that she only tried to stop him out of
friendship and compassion, but decides against it because she doesn't really
think she can manage to get all the words out right now. Probably for the best
anyway. Those conversations never end well. Instead she just says. "I can
walk wherever you go." She doesn't really want to lean on him, but she
doesn't want to leave him out here by himself either. So if it means that she
has to trudge around in the snow and risk further injury... so be it. She knows
the proper healing potions anyway, so it's not as if she's going to risk
anything permenant. ... It just bloody well hurts.
"Why?" His tone changes into that of a challenge.
Draco's a fair enough distance away, far enough that she certainly can't reach
out to slap him without taking a few steps forwards, first. "Why should I
stop calling you something that you are? You should've thought before you
decided to follow me out here, otherwise, you might not of ended up hurting
yourself." Along with that challenging tone comes arrogance. He lifts his
head a little as well, to support it, getting that perfect angle which reflects
it best.
Eyes still gripped with pain, Cho retorts immediately,
"Like you care if I hurt myself at all?" That wasn't really his
question though, and while it might be taken as a statement, there's a distinct
tone of questioning. Perhaps she does have a mental blind-spot when it comes to
this particular young man, though she doesn't think of it as stupidity. She
just couldn't let him run off, to who knows where, when it's late, cold, and
they aren't even supposed to be outside in the first place! "I'm not
stupid." she adds, almost in a childlike 'am not' kinda tone. She can
blame it on the fact that she's still in pain here.
A blink of the blue eyes. Follow by another. And another.
It's all done right before the expression on his pale face just seens to scream
'Huh?'. That sure did make a whole new world of sense to him. Really. It sure
did. "You are stupid. You came out here after me and hurt yourself just
after I said to go back." The oddly phrased question is completely ignored
in favor to be nasty some more, still not making any offers to help, nor
showing any signs of sympathy. Now, Draco just folds his arms across his chest,
partially because he's cold, partially to appear even more arrogant than
before.
"You make it sound like I had every intention of
hurting myself when I came out here." Cho responds, still trying to manage
a coherent voice that isn't being drowned out by pain. She closes her eyes for
a second, but when they open, at least they're mostly dry. Standing still helps
with the pain a bit. Plus the colds seeping in more and numbing it some.
"I can't just leave you to wander out into the snow this late, especially
after-- I just can't. If you want to think that makes me stupid then..."
Well, she doesn't want to say go ahead, because she doesn't want him to think
she's stupid, so instead she shakes her head, and murmurs almost too soft to
make out, "I didn't stand around and call you stupid the many times you've
hurt yourself around me..." Why does she even bother? He said he liked her
and he can actually be rather sweet at times, but then he does... things like
this... What does he like about her? What does he consider like exactly? She
likes him enough that she's willing to trudge in the snow to chase after him
out of concerned, but she's not sure if she likes him enough to continue to
stand in the snow with a sprained ankle and no winter cloak. Not to mention put
up with being insulted during it too. Why doesn't she just walk away? .. .. ..
Maybe she is stupid...
That's when he moves, breaking away from his spot a few feet
away and strolling over with a leisurely pace. Well, if he's going to be help,
then he has to go about it as... Draco-ish as possible, which means, he'll do
something nice while being a complete dick about it. "Did you think I
wasn't going to come back or something? Why, Cho. I'm touched." But for
someone who's touched, he sure don't sound it. "It would've been a short
walk, stupid." Don't be surprised if this becomes a pet-name. Once close
enough, one hand reaches out for hers, while the other moves to slip around the
girl's waist. He'll be a shoulder to lean on, to use for support, if she allows
him to be. "I wouldn't of worried, I'd be fine, but now look. I have to
cut my walk short to help you back inside. Maybe it's you who shouldn't be
coming out here into the snow this late." Stupid.
How is it he can make her feel like everything she believes
she's supposed to feel is wrong? Cho /knows/ that following a friend when they
might be upset or angry to talk is something that is generally acceptable. It's
what friends are supposed to do, aren't they? Then why does she feel like...
like this... She closes her eyes again as his hand touches her and arm around
her waist. It takes her a few moments, but all she says is, "I can walk
myself." It's said, but she doesn't try to pull away from him, or take any
practice steps. Probably because she really probably can't walk by herself, she
knows it, but she'll manage if she has to. "You can continue."
"I bet." He says with a nice air of sarcasm. If
you want to be like that, forget the help, then. "Have it your way,
then." Draco shrugs his shoulders in indifference, then, releases the
girl's hand, but doesn't drop that hand around her waist... mostly because he
needs it there, especially because he... well... Draco immediately attempts to
sweep the girl right off her feet and into his arms, knowing full well that it
could cause him to fall right over, but he's willing to take the risk. Of
course, this is all if Cho allows him to do so... and if not, he'll do it
anyways!
You know, it's probably a /really/ good thing that she's
rather tiny. Not just in height, but in general body size as well. This isn't
to say she's stick thin or anything, she does have a figure, but the body
weight she has is well below average for her height, either way. When he
releases her hand, Cho lets out a sigh and starts to brace herself for having
to walk back to the castle when... what the--? Her eyes immediately open as she
finds her feet no longer on the ground. Luckily, she's too shocked to try to
fight it at all, so she doesn't struggle, which should help him keep his
balance. She does however immediately move an arm over his shoulder, as if she's
thinking he's just picking her up to drop her into a snow drift or something,
"What-- what are you doing?"
He might consider dropping the girl into a snow drift if she
really wants him to, or annoys him enough that he just might have to in order
to get her to shut up. Those are about the only reasons as to why he'd commit
such an act. Having a single arm around his shoulder won't exactly help, but
hey, whatever makes you comfortable. It just surprises him a little when she
does it, is all. Draco dawns a rather charming, but innocent smile. Well, as
innocent looking as it can get. "I'm carrying you. What does it look like
I'm doing?" With that said, he begins to walk towards the castle. It's a
good thing she isn't too heavy. He may be able to carry her all the way there,
unless she happens to freak out or something. @.@;
Now that the pressure is entirely off her ankle, the pain
starts to fade some, though it still remains sore. Cho doesn't squirm, and she
doesn't freak out on him, but she does smile almost tiredly and close her eyes
again. She's almost tempted to say that he probably could have managed this
with his wand and not have to resort to physical methods. Spelled stretchers
aren't that difficult, though she's not sure how much weight he's able to
manage yet. Some students are better with levitation than others, after all.
"Just be careful," she says after a moment. "It wouldn't do for
both of us to be hurt..."
And just at that exact moment, it's like he's been jinxed!
The boy slips and falls into the sno--Kidding. Honest. "Wouldn't that be
quite the sight?" Draco muses, making sure to check his footing for each
step, just so he won't make the same mistake. "That would make me stupid,
too, then, wouldn't it?" And he tacks on a little chuckle to the end of
that, nearing the school slowly but surely, taking his sweet time in a sense,
but also hurrying to get out of the cold.