June 1st - June 19th
It's almost summer! The last few weeks of school have come, and students will need to study hard for their final exams! Don't let up yet, or your grades won't be what you want them to. Of course, the weather is almost perfect and pristine, in attempts to lure students away from their studies.
Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09
A large(not fat) girl sat at a table, hunched over a sizable book. Her dark bob fell over her face, obscuring the large eyes, rimmed with eyeliner. Her long white fingers slid over the dark words, her plump russet lips mouthing the words. Her red blouse clung to her figure, stretching as she moved around. The long black skirt she wore shifted as if alive and gave glimpses of high army boots.
Aly ran her hands through her hair, trying desperately to concentrate on the book in front of her. Her mind kepting drifting back to the letter she had received that morning, the words burnt into her brain.
Dear Aly,
I know you are going to have the greatest of fun this year, 'specially with me out of the way. I want you to try your hardest and not get too frustrated, I know you're smart, you know it too. You just had a few setbacks. I blame myself for that, although I know if you were here you would hit me and tell me to shut up for saying that.
Your parents understand your position and they want you to know they don't care what marks you get, as long as you try. I agree with them. Don't listen to anything people say unless it is a compliment, I know you best in the world and if they say different to me, they're wrong.
We all love you so much, especially me.
Now make us all proud,
Luce
Aly had blanched when she read that, knowing how much was depending on her good grades this year. No matter how much Lucian said otherwise, they were all looking forward to fantastic grades.
So she was now in the library poring over thick books, making her eyes see double while everyone else was relaxing. She fingered her earrings, tugging on the top one in her left ear. Transfiguration was much harder than she had anticipated. She had O.W.Ls this year and if she stuffed them up...she didn't even want to think of the extreme disappointment her family would experience.
Flicking her dark skirt over her knees, she pursed her lips and turned the page, willing the knowledge to jump into her mind.
sophielynette
Meghan Spire
1st Year Ravenclaw Where's the proof?
Jade Howe
4th Year Gryffindor
Reserve Beater And Howe!
Jade wouldn't be caught dead in the library. Well, usually. She didn't want anyone getting any funny ideas that she liked to study or nothin'. However, she wasn't adverse to reading. True, she preferred comic books to novels, but she wouldn't say no to a good science fiction adventure-in-space type thing. Literature wasn't what brought her here today, though. Oh no, she was drawn by something much more devious. Well actually, she was hiding. Apparantly, 7th years hated it when you put syrup in their ink well while they were doing homework. Who knew?
The 7th year had been quite livid, and as soon as he pinned Jade as the perpetrator (she never had been too skilled at keeping a straight face during a prank) he had advanced on her, wand raised high. In the choice between fight or flight, fleeing was definantly the best choice. He'd been studying curses, afterall.
You would have thought, with how busy that kid had been studying and all, he wouldn't have had the time to chase her; but he did, and man was he quick. Would have gotten her with a couple of curses too, but what with Quidditch and the fact that she got into trouble quite often, Jade was pretty agile. She'd managed to ditch him by ducking through a secret passage, but after nearly half an hour of diversionary wanderings, she still didn't think it safe to return to the Commons. Better to wait it out a bit, hide somewhere that noone would think to look for her.
Who would think to look for Jade in the library? Certainly not anyone that knew her.
Nonetheless, she was attempting to be incognito-- or at the very least, not Jade. She had wrapped a wool scarf over her face and pulled a knit cap down over her bushy black hair, making it appear that she'd either just come in from the cold, or had just attempted a bank robbery. Still, there was still the off-chance that someone had followed her into the library. She had to blend. Plopping herself down at a random table, she immediately launched into conversation with the girl sitting across from her, oblivious to the fact that the girl was deeply immersed in her studies.
Re: Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09
Aly was finally into her book. She had always loved studying, when there was a reason. There was a very good reason for this, so she was hard at it. She absently tugged her ears, only stopping when her earrings threatened to rip themselves out. She turned the page, mentally practicing a very difficult transfiguration. If she was interrupted now she would lose it all.
"So, how 'bout them Chudleys, eh?"
Aly jerked, ripping the page she was holding. "Damn!" She stared at it in disbelief before bringing her eyes up to the badly timed individual who had broken her train of thought. She raised a straight eyebrow. There was a girl in front of her wearing Gryffindor robes. That was where the normality ended. Aly snorted at the figure in front of her, eyeing the cap and scarf with a wary amusement. She wasn't sure whether to scream in frustration or howl with laughter at this strange sight. She chose the middle, having a strange coughing-laughing fit that left her breathless.
"Who? What?" She wasn't quite aware of the question. "Oh, what about them? Anything interesting happened? I haven't been able to keep up with them lately." She was an avid Chudley Cannons fan, but even her precious Quidditch had to be jilted in favour of study.
Deciding she could not concentrate on any book while this strange...girl...was in front of her, she closed it. Opening it immediately afterwards she flicked through the pages, trying to find her spot. Arriving at it, she drew her wand, trying to remember the fixing spell. "Reparo!" So she wasn't as obsolete as she had thought.
She drew her gaze back to the girl in front of her, waiting for an answer.
sophielynette
Meghan Spire
1st Year Ravenclaw Where's the proof?
Jade Howe
4th Year Gryffindor
Reserve Beater And Howe!
Re: Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09
Having grown up in a household that was predominantly muggle, Jade was something of a movie buff. She and her brothers had often thrown film festivals, where they would invite a bunch of friends over to spend the entire night watching movies and munching on popcorn. They devoured cheesy horror flicks and high budget sci-fi films with equal gusto. There was only one rule to the film festival; there would be no chick flicks. Just because Jade was a girl didn't mean she had to act like one.
Jade especially liked action thrillers with lots of chase scenes. How curious that she seemed to imitate those chase scenes a lot in real life. She was Jason Bourne in The Bourne Identity. She was James Bond in James Bond. The Pink Panther theme was playing in her head as she surveyed the library suspiciously, eyes darting to the doors and even the windows to ensure she hadn't been followed. Looked like she was home free. With a sigh of relief she tore the scarf from her face and tossed it down on the table.
"Damn!"
Jade started and turned back to Aly, blinking in confusion. She'd momentarily forgotten the conversation she had just initiated. She needed to keep her head, like a good fugitive. Jade relaxed and propped her chin up on one arm. Had to blend.
"Oh, what about them? Anything interesting happened? I haven't been able to keep up with them lately."
It took a second for Jade to remember what she had even asked, and then she snorted.
"Well, yeah, still surviving, you gotta give them that much." Jade was a Falmouth Falcons supporter. She was the kind of fan who would cheer to see an opposing team member seriously injured, if it meant that her team would win the cup. She was probably the sort that would riot at a sports game if given the chance. All in good fun, of course.
She watched in puzzlement as Aly charmed her book. Destroying the textbook seemed a strange way to be studying. Something about the girl was bothering Jade. She was a Gryffindor, obviously-- they wore the same robes. And they had to be around the same age. But Jade couldn't remember seeing the girl ever before the current year had started. Being in her fourth year, Jade figured she knew all the Gryffindors by now, by sight if nothing else. Yet this girl was a mystery. Was she a spy? Was she perhaps connected to the dragon pox epidemic that had hit the school right before winter break? The school had been infiltrated! But what to do? She couldn't tell anyone-- who knew who might be in on it? So it was all up to her. Jade crossed her arms in front of her and surveyed the girl warily.
"So.. you from around here?"
P34ce
Aleandra Pryce
5th Year Gryffindor The Slow One
Re: Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09
Aly looked down, waiting for an answer. So this girl was into Quidditch was she? Very good pastime. Aly was always interested in anyone who liked the sport, more so if they played rather than just watched. She wasn't too keen on watching, although the really good teams were exciting. She laced her fingers together and thought. I wonder if she's on the Gryffindor team? Aly would have been if she had had time to sign up. Perhaps it was a good thing she wasn't, practice and games took away from study time.
Realising the girl was not answering she looked up, about to make some vague comment. A snort interrupted her.
"Well, yeah, still surviving, you gotta give them that much."
Aly raised her eyebrow. "Just surviving eh?" Obviously the girl was not a Cannons supporter. Aly herself was not so much of one that she would ever wear orange to a match. She looked back directly as the girl watched her. She enjoyed the girl's directness, even if it was obscured by strange movements and funny clothing.
"If 'here' means Hogwarts, then yes, I am a student. If 'here' means Scotland, then no, I live in Wales. If 'here' means have I been a student the past four years, then no, I'm not. I had a private tutor and then I went renegade for two years and was suicidal until my tutor came back. I love him." She said all this with a totally straight face. She did love Luce but it was in a brotherly way, nothing more.
She shifted her position slightly and said, "so, are you normally like this?" She indicated her clothes and stance.
sophielynette
Meghan Spire
1st Year Ravenclaw Where's the proof?
Jade Howe
4th Year Gryffindor
Reserve Beater And Howe!
Re: Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09"If 'here' means Hogwarts, then yes, I am a student. If 'here' means Scotland, then no, I live in Wales. If 'here' means have I been a student the past four years, then no, I'm not. I had a private tutor and then I went renegade for two years and was suicidal until my tutor came back. I love him."
Jade couldn't help but grin. This girl was good. Oh, but was she good. Sure, she had an excuse for not being around before this year. Even threw in lots of angst, so Jade would feel bad for her and not ask any questions. Yeah right. She was good, but nobody could outsmart Jade.
"So you're a fifth year, right? When were you born?"
Sure, she looked to be the right age, but you never knew. There were tons of ways to change your appearance-- maybe she was even a metamorphmagus! Maybe she wasn't a she at all! Of course, any good dark witch or wizard would do their homework on when they were supposed to be born, but perhaps she could trip this girl up. The trick, of course, was rapid-fire questioning, so she wouldn't have time to think. Jade was a pro at that.
"Where were your born? What was your doctor's name? Your grandmother's maiden name? What is the square root of thirty-two? How long have you been practicing the dark arts?"
This girl was good, yes, but Jade was better. After all, she'd spent the better part of her childhood watching spy movies. She knew the ins and outs of interrogation. If necessary, she'd resort to torture. It was for the good of her school; nay, for the good of magic-kind.
P34ce
Aleandra Pryce
5th Year Gryffindor The Slow One
Re: Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09
Aly was pretty happy with her answer to the girl. Basically told her where she lived, she'd been tutored, was a bit behind and she added a strange quirk by adding her affection for Luce. Quite a nice answer, if she said so herself.
"So you're a fifth year, right? When were you born?"
So it was a strange question to ask someone you had just met. Aly wasn't that surprised. She had already figured out that this girl was strange. What with the furtive glancing around, strange attire and rapidfire talking. "Yeah, I am. December 13, 1993." Her answers were said much slower than the questions were, more normally.
"Where were your born? What was your doctor's name? Your grandmother's maiden name? What is the square root of thirty-two? How long have you been practicing the dark arts?"
Aly recoiled a tiny bit at the fast rate of questioning. She felt as though she wasn't trusted. Maybe she wasn't. She peered at the other girl closely, looking for any signs of dislike or mistrust. She couldn't see any, but maybe she wasn't looking hard enough. She would be on her guard anyway. She tried to remember the questions and replied;
"I was born in Penmaenmawr, Conwy County, Wales. The what of the what? Doctor's are for muggles. It was Bowen, like my mother's and her grandmother's. The Dark Arts? Are you some sort of dark wizard? I have never studied the dark arts by the way."
She was pretty proud of herself. She had remembered all the girl's questions and replied to them intelligently, except for the root-thingy one, she had no idea what that was. Some Ancient Runes thing or something? She folded her arms and leant back, wondering what would happen next.
Something unexpected, she was sure of that.
sophielynette
Meghan Spire
1st Year Ravenclaw Where's the proof?
Jade Howe
4th Year Gryffindor
Reserve Beater And Howe!
Re: Expectations (ISO anyone) 2/13/09"Yeah, I am. December 13, 1993."
Jade did some quick math and decided the birth date checked out. That didn't mean much though, just that this wasn't an amateur she was working with. She noticed that the other girl was taking the questioning in stride, even slowing to answer normally. Definitely a pro.
"I was born in Penmaenmawr, Conwy County, Wales. The what of the what? Doctor's are for muggles. It was Bowen, like my mother's and her grandmother's. The Dark Arts? Are you some sort of dark wizard? I have never studied the dark arts by the way."
Oh man, and what a pro. She must have done tons of research before taking on the role of student under-cover. Even threw in the expected amount of uncertainty and wariness that would be expected of a "normal teenager." Jade couldn't help but smirk as she folded her own arms and leaned back in perfect imitation of Aly.
"Ok, you check out."
It was a lie. Jade didn't trust the girl as far as she could throw a manticore. She just wanted the spy to think she trusted her, so maybe she'd drop her guard and slip up. Oh yes, Jade was going to keep an eye on this little sneak. It was her duty, as a Gryffindor. Obviously nobody else had caught onto the stranger's games-- after all, the girl was a master pretender. It took someone of Jade's wit and expertise in the field of deception to spot something like that. She relaxed her pose, offering a genuine smile as she stuck out her hand to shake.
"My name's Jade. What's yours?"
She intended to get nice and friendly with this girl. After all, everyone always said, "keep your friends close, but your enemies closer".
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