A friend in need!

[Kate Archer]

Kate walked up the long steps to the North Tower.She knew she shouldn't be doing this as she was still weak from her lack of food even though she was recovering.But you see the thing was only her body was really recovering she was still mentally unstable.Sometimes she would burst into tears for no reason.But she was better then what she used to.She was still very thin and she could some curious glances but she ignored them because she was slowly but surely recovering.

When she got to the North tower she sat down for a few minutes to get her breath and vision back to normal.It annoyed her the way she was so weak.She had missed the chance to be on the quidditich team and this made her disappointed as she had really wanted to be on the team.Sighing she took a look around at her sister Sara's floor.She had never been up here before.She went to the window and took in the view,it was beautiful.She sat down on a near by bench and she took out a new book she had got called I am Number Four.It was a good book and Kate was eager to get to the end.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Needing to clear his head from the stressful and busy day he had just had, Jake decided to walk to the north tower. he hadn't been there before in his time at Hogwarts New Zealand and he thought it would be a good idea to go and explore some of the castle he hadn't been to yet. As Jake walked by himself, he noticed how empty the area was, it was a little unerving for him. Being as easily paranoid as he was, Jake started to think something bad was going to unfold if he continued on. He did still want to go, he had a good feeling about it but a bad feeling too. He knew he needed to get over his anxiety and he made a point to himself to do his best to ignore it that day. He did do his best and as he continued walking, Jake made himself forget about his feelings. It was working better than he thought it would and he felt a lot better because of it.

When he arrived. He paused for a moment to get himself together. He wasn't feeling as nervous and the stairs in front of him were empty. Was there anybody there that day? Jake thought to himself as he started to ascend the stairs. The tower seemed quiet. Jake would usually feel releived by this but the new confidence he had gained from his new friends made him feel almost as if he was about to be sucked into something he wouldn't be able to get out of. Luckily, as Jake got to the top of the stairs, he saw a familiar face reading a book. It was Kate, Jake noticed she had changed a little, actually, she had changed quite a bit since the last time he saw her. Either way, Jake couldn't help but smile when he saw her. He walked up to her and said "Fancy seeing you here, miss." before he sat next to Kate on the bench she was sitting on. This situation felt so familiar to Jake, motly because the same thing happened the last time he saw Kate.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate was at a very interesting part of the book.It was about romance but it also had action and adventure in it.She loved books like these and when she started reading one it was hard to get her away from it.She sometimes couldn't hear anybody else talking.But when she was a quauter of the way through she heard a familiar voice.She looked up "Jake"She said smiling and giving him a hug.She hadn't seen him in ages and she was happy to see him now.She nearly started laughing because the first time they had meet Kate had been reading a book also alone but last time she didn't like the book where as she liked this one. "Oh my god how are you I haven't seen you in ages"She said breaking from the hug.The truth was to Kate Jake was one of her best friends they had such a laugh together.She wondered would he notice anything about her weight but he hadn't said anything so that was good. "So how was your summer holidays"She asked putting her book away and smiling

 

[Jake Simpson]

One thing that Jake couldn't stop was the way he was smiling when Kate said his name and hugged him, they hadn't seen eachother in a good while and it was refreshing to see her, Jake did notice the difference in Kates appearance, he wqasn't going to mention it just yet, he wanted to catch up with her for a little bit first. He had a slight feeling that Kate wouldn't mind it at all. "I know, it has been a while." Jake said kindly, Kate seemed very fragile and Jake wanted to be delicate, just in case he might do something wrong. He was glad to see her again, after their meeting in the courtyard and her birthday party. She made him feel happy with who he was and she brought out confidence in him. So did his other friends, that's why he wasn't so scared of being social anymore. He actually wanted to talk to people instead of pretending like he was invisible. "My summer holidays went okay, how did your's go?" Jake asked, he was glad he had found somebody as nice as Kate in the tower, he continued to smile at her.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate was so happy to see Jake.There was just something about him that made her want to smile.He looked older since she had last seen him.She was glad to see him.The last time they had met was her party and that was a long time ago. "They have been good had a little party that you were invited to to but you never came"She said pretending to be hurt.She had invited him but she guessed he had something else on and couldn't make it."So how has life been without me"She asked teasingly. She was smiling glad that her day was turning out to be good.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Feeling a bit guilty about not attending the party he was invited to, Jake sighed. He had a lot of reasons to why he wasn't there but it wasn't the right time to tell Kate yet and Jake wanted to talk about her instead. Still, he needed to reply to her question. "Yeah, I was in England for the holidays, I usually go there every holiday." Jake said, stating half the truth, he was in London but he didn't tell her what happened. He didn't because putting a burden of stress on Kate was the last thing he had wanted to do, mostly because of how she looked, she looked more fragile than before and Jake didn't want to ruin that. "It was average, nothing really interesting happened." Jake said, he was telling the half-truth today for some reason, he didn't want to make a habit of it. Jake ran his hand though his hair and smiled back at her, hoping it would take attention away from how much he had grown while being in London, it wasn't much of a change but it was noticeable and Jake couldn't help but feel self conscious about it.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate frowned the party had been outside Lodon in her new house.There was obviously another reason for him not going.She could see he wasn't telling her the truth and Kate was a bit angry because nobody was telling her the truth lately "Jake please just tell me the truth"She said her eyes pleading.She was sick and tired of everybody not telling her the truth because they were trying to protect her. "And my house is outside London"She said raising her eyebrows.She wanted the truth and she wasn't letting the subject rest until he told her

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake felt uncomfortable because Kate obviously wanted to know why he wasn't there. He did trust her and he wanted her to be happy, which she obviously wasn't and Jake knew that he had to make her feel like he was a good friend worth trusting. Jake sighed "My grandmother died." He said looking at the ground. For some reason Jake didn't want to make eye contact with Kate, maybe because he didn't think that would be a reasonable enough excuse for not attending her party. Even though his whole family were flown to London for the funeral. He still didn't want to look at her, he felt guilty for not going but the closest thing he had to family was broken. Either way, Jake didn't want to make the attention of the conversation on himself. Kate was hurting too, Jake knew that from the moment he had seen her that day. Lying to her again wasn't an option, he was glad that he had told her the truth but he still wasn't able to talk about his holidays comfortably.

 

[Kate Archer]

"I'm so sorry Jake"She said giving him a big hug.She could see that jake had been quiet upset about it.She noticed that he didn't look her in th eyes.She could see he didn't want to talk about this she wanted him to understand that she didn't mind.So she grabbed both his hands "Jake look at me"She said "don't worry I would of done the same"She said looking at him straight in the eyes.She wanted him to understand that that was a perfectly good reason not to go,she would of done the same thing.She held that position for a few seconds then she let go of his hands and gaze and leaned back on the seat.She appreciated the fact he had told her it wasn't healthy to keep secrets no matter how bad they were. "So aren't you going to ask why I'm a thin as a stick"she said raising and eyebrow and indicating her flat stomach.It didn't look very nice and she wondered why models even bothered to feel this sick and bad.She certainly wouldn't want to do it again.she wasn't as a bad as before but she was still very thin because her stomach still was getting used to the fact that it had to work again.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake did feel somewhat appreciated when Kate showed sympathy for him, nobody else he knew did and knowing that Kate cared enough to actually try to make him feel a little better was so unlike what he was used to. He did hug her back but only half-heartedly, he was hurting from his loss but he wanted to focus more on Kate and why she seemed as depressed as him. Focusing on his own feelings was the last thing he wanted to do. "Thanks Kate, it means a lot that you actually bothered to try and make me feel better." Jake said still unable to look directly at her even though she was holding his hands and looking directly at him. He was looking past Kate, into the distance where everything seemed clearer. "I know you would've done the same Kate. You are so caring it would be weird for you not to do that." Jake said stating the truth through his eyes. He really did believe that Kate would have done the same. Jake had noticed how much weight that Kate had lost since the last time he saw her, he wasn't going to mention it until he felt like it was the right time but now that Kate had mentioned it, he was going to say something. "I didn't think you would want to talk about it, it seemed like something really drastic." He said in a caring tone, making sure Kate knew that he did care about her and how much she had changed over the holidays. "Anyway, what did happen?" Jake said, concerned. Kate was a really good friend of his and he couldn't help but worry. Even if he still couldn't bring himself to look at her in the eyes.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate smiled sympathetically.She was glad he knew she cared but she wasn't satisfied.She noticed that he was looking past her like he wasn't 'in it' but Kate would have to worry about that later.It was another thing to add onto her long list of things to do.Because of her little 'breakdown' she had a lot of school work to catch up on as well as coping with eating again and also all the visits she had to make to worried friends.She had crossed out some but there was a long way to go.Kate waved him off when he said drastic.It was but Kate didn't really want the sympathy she didn't deserve it.She still felt nervous talking about it but she knew jake deserved the truth too. "Okay so here it gos and please don't laugh"She said raising her eyebrows.She had got some 'thats it' looks from some of the people she had told she still couldn't believe that she had broke down over something so small but after a while that small thing became something much bigger. "Okay so during my first year a became good friends with someone called Stefan.we became real close and at the end of the school year we met to say goodbye and we kissed"She said her cheeks blushing slightly. "And anyway we agreed to meet in th Great Hall the first day we came back.So I went there and saw him there with a friend of mine.The minute I came up I knew something was wrong he didn't acknowledge me or Willow he just sat with his head done giving us cold glances.It was like nothing had happened and then he started saying things and I couldn't take it anymore so I ran off crying.For the rest of the day I just sat on my bed and didn't eat anything.It was like that for two days and then I said to myself this is stupid your doing this all over a boy.So I went down at breakfast and got it but I just looked at it.I couldn't eat it I felt almost sick looking at it.I became worried but I thought it would just blow over but it didn't it just got worse.I started ignoring mys friends and feeling more sorry for myself.I tried sometimes to force the food down but it just came back up.I know what to do.My weight feel fast and I soon began fainting.I could see I was causing all my family and friends pain but I couldn't bring to go up and ask for help.But then one day just a week or two ago I my brothers girlfriend Danielle came up and tried to help me but I got angry with her because what she was saying was write.She told me I was hurting my family and friends and that they were there ready to help.And it made me angry because I knew it was true.In the end the person who really helped me was Willow she got me eating and with Danielle's words ringing in my head I slowly started making me recovering journey.So I'm still on it"She said a little overwhelmned about what she had just said.She had never said it all in one go and it felt good to.She looked up at Jake wondering was his reaction would be. "Ummh well thats the story"She said bleakly nervous as to how he would react.

 

[Jake Simpson]

After hearing everything that Kate had just told him, Jake felt guilty. He felt like he wasn't worth any of Kate's time because he had been selfish enough to not talk to her during the holidays at all. His grandmother had died and he and his family were still sorting out everything that needed to be sorted out, granted, one would think that would be a decent reason not to pay much attention to any of their friends but Jake thought differently. He thought that since he had not talked to Kate at all during the holidays that it was his fault that Kate had been having such a stressful time. Although this wasn't true in any way possible. Jake still felt the horrible feeling of guilt take over again. He looked down at his feet and managed a sigh, he knew that he needed to say something, something that might help the situation. He couldn't think of anything to say, or do exactly so he decided to ask. Looking directly at Kate with a kind smile and warmth in his eyes Jake asked "Is there anything I might be able to do for you Kate?" Before he placed his hand gently on her shoulder in an attempt to make her feel like she had some sort of friend. Jake thought of Kate as one of his best friends but he wasn't so sure that she thought the same of him. He wanted Kate to know that she could trust him, no matter what and that he would tell her almost everything, since he had just told her about his grandmother, it was some sort of proof but he still wanted to make her feel like he trusted her. He moved his hand away from Kate's shoulder and moved his arms around her and hugged her. It was the first time that Jake had hugged Kate without her hugging him first and he was hoping it would show Kate just how much he wanted her to be better. "If you need me at all, I'm here." Jake whispered in her ear. He would make it a mission to help her eat right again and make sure that she would never go back to that state again. Even though she had mentioned that she was getting better, Jake wanted to help in any way he possibly could, even if it would hurt him in the process.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate smiled back at Jake it felt good to know someone out there was looking out for you.She felt comforted by his little gesture.It was like he was trying to tell her something.She smiled "Thanks"She whispered.Even though she had only met Jake twice before she considered him a best friend.She found it easy to laugh hurt around him and he always made her feel better.She knew he would never do anything to hurt her and that made her feel better.Kate was surprised when he hugged her.It was the first time he had done so first and she knew that he would always be there for her no matter what and his word only confirmed what she was thinking.She smiled up at him and hugged him back "I know and you are one of my best friends"She whispered back.she had never really had a close relationship during her earlier years other than Sara.but now she had two people that she knew would look after her but luckily Jake wasn't involved in the little drama between her and her three friends so in a way it made him extra special.She broke the hug after a long time and then looked at him in the eyes "I'll always be there for you too"She whispered while smiling.She would always be there and she knew they would both stick up for each other till the end.She decided to change the subject "So how life"she asked with a smile while resting her head on his shoulder

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake felt a sense of acceptance when Kate hugged him back, it was like he had a friend, a good friend, a friend that he could trust and spend a whole lot of time with and actually have a laugh too. Jake had never had a friend like that and now that he felt like he had one, the world seemed like a whole new place, like it wasn't an awful place where all you could feel and think about was pain. This was a different thing for him, it was a little scary, Jake didn't show it at all. He just whispered "You're welcome." Back at Kate and closed his eyes, it was a bit cold and Jake did regret not bringing his Slytherin jersey with him but Kate was warm enough so that it didn't bother him much."You're one of my best friends too." Jake whispered, he didn't know why but it felt like he needed to whisper, like they could be interrupted at any minute, which was unlikely for him. "I know that, silly." Jake said, he didn't whisper this time, his voice was just a little louder than a whisper, he felt comfortable enough around Kate to talk normally, but he still felt like somebody was going to interrupt. Now that their intense hug had been broken, Jake smiled at Kate. "I just told you my grandmother died and you are asking me how life is?" Jake asked as he rested his head on Kate's, he was making a joke and he hoped it would make Kate feel better, that was what he wanted after all.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate smiled as he whispered back.It made her feel better knowing she had a best friend that wasn't involved in her drama.It was a comforting thought.She wondered why he was whispering but that didn't matter it kind of made the moment feel more special.Kate smiled when he again spoke above the whisper "I sincerely hope so"She said with a smile.Enjoying those meeting.She was gad she had come up her.The day felt far brighter and she knew that this would start getting better even with the little argument with her friends.Kate laughed at his next comment "I was only curious"She said smiling.She was very comfortable at the moment.After a few minutes of silence Kate had an idea. "How about we play a game"She asked the more playful side of her was starting to come through now even though this game didn't involve standing up it was an interesting game that could sometimes get nasty if you played with the wrong people.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake was pleased that Kate seemed as though she was starting to feel better, it reassured him that he was actually a friend of hers. Kate's previous statement did confirm this, though Jake wasn't able to beleive her completely. Untill now. He smiled, he was glad that he had seen Kate that day, she had brightened up his day. Which before was something that he didn't think was possible, because of the grief he had been consumed in for the last few months. That was one of the things he liked about Kate the most, how she was able to change his day by only doing something so small. "Still, it's not that hard to pick up on something like that." Jake said, making another joke. He didn't really think that the joke was funny, he just felt like saying something funny, even if it wasn't that amusing. As soon as Jake heard kate ask him about playing a game, Jake smirked. He was interested, "Okay, why not." Jake said, shrugging. He couldn't wait to find out what the game actually was. He was just a little worried that Kate had changed the subject because she didn't want to talk more about her problems, he would understand if she didn't but it wasn't a good thing. He ignored it, assuming it was probably just him being paranoid again.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate was glad everything was clear between them.Jake was a great friend and a great person to go for for a laugh.he seemed much happier now then he did when she had first meet him.She remembered the first time they had talked it had ended with them in fits of laughter and quite a considerable people giving them strange looks.She was glad he had plucked up the courage to talk to her.She wasn't sure whether he knew but she had been watching him deciding whether or not to talk to her.Kate laughed even though it wasn't that fanny but Kate could barely keep a straight face.So she never won games that involved keeping a straight face.Luckily the game they were about to play didn't involve anything like that.In a way it wasn't exactly a playful game it was a way to get to know people.She smiled at him "Okay so.The game is called truth"She said grinning mischieviously. It was a hard game for some people because you had to answer the question or the other person won the game "Okay the rules are well theres only one rule 1 you have to tell the truth.So how it goes is I would ask you a question and you would have to answer truthfully and the way you win is if suppose I ask you a question and you don't want to answer you pass and you then ask me a question and if I answer I win but if I don't we ave to start again"She said slowly so he would get all she was saying.It was a pretty simple game and she wondered would he still want to play.She bit her lip "Still wanna play"She asked in a challenging tone.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake liked the thought of playing the game. He felt like he needed some form of distraction from his own pessimistic thoughts, playing a simple game with a friend was almost perfect in its own way, to Jake at the very least. "I know this game." Jake said in a purposely high-pitched voice, making fun of how Kate talked, even though she didn't sound weird to him at all. He wasn't actually sure why he had said it, it must have just been the confidence he had developed since he had been at Hogwarts. He did want to play the game, now that he knew what it was he was a little bit sceptical. If Kate asked him a question, a really personal question that he didn't want to answer, she might get angry at him. He didn't want that. Although, if he didn't answer a question, Kate would win. Losing was something that he didn't really care about so if he didn't answer a question, it wouldn't matter to him. "Of course I still want to play." Jake said, in the same challenging tone as Kate had used before, making it sound like he was going to win. "How about you start? I can't think of anything to ask you." Jake said. The game had now begun and Jake was ready for almost everything she could throw at him.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate was glad that they were going to play a game.It would hopefully take their minds off all their problems "You do"She asked eyebrows raised.It wasn't a game much people had heard about.But the world was a small place. "And that was a very bad impression of my voice"She said laughing.It had been funny but hopefully her voice never sounded like that.She gave him a punch in the arm.It brought back found memories and without knowing it she smiled.Kate smiled at his challenging tone.She purposely rolled her eyes a him.She pretended to b annoyed by his playful attitude but she wasn't really it was making her feel ten times better then she was before she came up here. "Okay"|She said thinking of a question.she would do easy questions first. "Wheres you favorite place in the world"She asked getting ready herself for whatever he asked.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake smiled at Kate and replied "Of course I do, silly." In a playful voice much like the one from before. It was a simple game and he had played it before, when he was younger and had Muggle friends. When Kate punched him in the arm, it reminded of him when they had previously met and laughed heaps. Jake laughed, it was a fake laugh, a sarcastic one. "Ow, that hurt so much, I'm going to cry now." Jake said sarcastically, making a joke of her punches yet again. After Kate had asked him the first question of the game, Jake raised an eyebrow and looked out into the distance, he was making a joke and pretending to be intelligent, in the way that people do. "That would have to be, my room at home." Jake said, he was surprised that his favourite place was his room, he hated pretty much anything that reminded him of home. But for some reason, his room wasn't one of them. Jake concluded it was the fact that his room was really dark and he loved the darkness. It was his turn to ask Kate a question, he looked back at her and smiled as he asked "What do you think of me?" before poking out his tongue at her.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate rolled her eyes at him.On the outside she may of looked annoyed but deep down she was so happy.She hadn't been this happy iin a long time and her cheek muscels were sore because they were so unused to be used.it was also a long time since she had heard herself laugh.She had forgotten what is was like to be out with her friends and have fun.She didn't think she deserved a friend like Jake.He probably didn't know it but he was the best thing since sliced pan in her eyes.He was so funny and playful a lot like her really.He was so different from her other friends at the moment everything was a doom and gloom.She sometimes wished she had didn't have a crush on Stefan.He was so different from her and it was because if him that all her problems had started but really it wasn't fully his fault.

Sighing she put those thoughts away for another day.She came back to the conversation at hand.Kate laughed at his reaction to her punch.It was a bit like deja vu.It had happened th first time they had met and obviously Kate hadn't increased in strength.Knowing her she had probably weakened.Instead on punching him she kicked him in the leg.She kicked harder to make sure it at least made a small bit of a mark.Kate smiled as he raised an eyebrow,she watched him look out in the distance.Kate nodded as he answered.that would of been one of her choices too but she had a lot of favorite places.Kate frowned as he asked the question and stuck his tongue at her."Thats rude"She said messing she then decided to stick her tongue out at him too.She then got serious and thought of her answer.In a way it was a tricky one.To try and think of the right words was hard. "Okay!What do I think of you?"She said repeating his question. "I think you are a funny, playful person,who is the best thing since sliced pan and I think you are my best friend"She said with a smile.It sounded so short out in words but she hoped he got the meaning through it.To her it meant a lot to have someone like Jake.She started thinking of a question,she decided to return his "What do you think of me?"She asked smiling,wondering what the answer would be.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Noticing Kate roll here eyes at him made Jake wonder what she was thinking about, maybe she was annoyed or maybe she was making fun of him, just like he was of her. In a friendly way of course. Jake had too much common sense to hurt Kate, especially now that she was in a fragile state. It was surprising for Jake that he had actually been sorted into Slytherin, he wasn't mean or sinister. Well, at least around Kate and his other friends, he just couldn't show them what he was really like. He wasn't lying to them at all in any way, he was being honest and genuine with them, it was just his other friends, and Kate of course, hadn't seen him at his worst, they hadn't seen him when he was at home. Jake was somewhat grateful that nobody had seen him like that, he knew they would most likely never speak to him again and think he was evil, just like everybody else in his house.

When Kate kicked Jake in the leg, it hurt a little, and it left a mark. But it didn't effect him at all. Jake didn't show this, he just pretended that it hurt, he pretended as well as he could, and seeing as he wasn't a good liar and had never been one in his life, it wasn't that believable. Jake did feel sorry for Kate, she must have been going through so much pain, Jake had always been the kind of guy to put others first and he was doing that now, he was ignoring his own feelings of pain and putting Kate first. "That's rude too." Jake said as he smiled at Kate. As he listened to Kate answer his question, Jake looked away, it might be considered rude that he was looking away when he was listening, that was just how Jake worked. He was able to focus on a conversation most when he wasn't looking at the person or people he was talking to. It was a weird trait of his, and he didn't want it to annoy Kate, although it probably didn't. He was contemplating his answer, he wanted to tell her without sounding weird. "I think that you are awesome, funny and interesting, you were one of my first friends here and I couldn't thank you enough for tolerating how annoying I can be." Jake said before he nodded in Kate's direction. He ran his hand through his hair as he thought of what to ask her next, this was always hard for him, he wasn't very good at thinking of questions to ask people. "Um, what is kissing like? If you don't mind me asking." Jake asked, it was the first thing that came to his mind, she said that her and that guy kissed and he wanted to find out what kissing was actually like, it might have been a weird question but Jake didn't really care, Kate was too sweet to think he was weird anyway.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate smiled "I guess we are even then"She said,wondering how weird this conversation must sound to other people though there wasn't anybody up here other then the moving portraits.Kate was touched by his answer it meant a lot to her to know somebody appreciated her.But that was a lie because people did appreciate her but she was annoyed at them at the moment so they didn't count.Kate's cheeks flushed a small bit when Jake asked his question.It was annoying when she blushed,she did it over the most simplest things which was quite annoying and embarresing and when she realised she was blushing she would usually blush some more because she was embarressed. "Well to tell you the truth I'm not really sure.I suppose it was nice"She said shifting uncomfortably she didn't handle this situations very well even if there was nothing to it. "Sorry about that"her cheeks losing some of their colour.She hated it when this happened,it was so inconvenient.When her cheeks were their natural colour she sat up and started to think of a question "If there was one thing you could change about yourself what would it be"She asked the question just suddenly coming to her head.It was a tough question but she didn't think it would pose a problem.

Kate suddenly remembered something "Hey Jake there are a couple of us meeting up to go to the Yule Ball would you like to come?"She asked smiling again hoping he could come.It would be nice to have him there as things still weren't right between some of the friends she was meeting with.

 

[Jake Simpson]

Jake smiled back at Kate, when she smiled at him, it was something he couldn't avoid, when somebody else smiled at him, he just had to smile back. This wasn't a trait of a typical Slytherin but it wasn't something that bothered him at all, it was just smiling and there was no harm in that at all. "You bet." Jake said, scrunching up his face in the most playful fashion possible for the situation, which wasn't very much. Jake wasn't so much making a joke, as he was being serious, this was something Jake didn't usually do, he was either making a joke or being serious, not both at the same time. "That's fine Kate." Jake said smiling again, he was trying to seem warm and kind, although he was probably failing, and badly at that. Jake didn't want to answer Kate's next question, he sighed and looked at the ground, something he did when he was uncomfortable. He had to answer the question honestly or he would lose. Which seemed like the best option. He would rather lose than burden Kate with what he was really like, and what he planned to do as soon as he had left school. If he told anybody, even Kate. It would be a disaster. "I can't answer that." Jake said, knowing he would lose the game. He was beyond caring at this point. "It's too personal and I don't want you to change what you think of me at all. I do trust you, it's just that this is too big to tell anybody." Jake said, with complete honesty. He couldn't tell Kate what he wanted to change about himself without having to tell her everything about him and his past. That was all too much for him now.

Jake looked back at ate when she asked if he wanted to go to the Yule Ball. He hadn't been invited anywhere like that before and it would give him a chance to meet some new people. "Um okay, sure. If you want me to be there." Jake said shrugging. He would like to go but he didn't have anything to wear. That could be sorted out easily though.

 

[Kate Archer]

Kate smiled at Jake again.His smile was contagious.Whenever he smiled Kate smiled and that seemed to be the same thing with Jake.Whenever she smiled he smiled it was kind of like a game in its own way.She laughed at his expression "Its almost an improvement"She said smiling.Kate's smiled faltered when Jake sighed and looked at the ground.She bit her lip wishing she hadn't asked the question. "Don't worry"She said reassuringly. "I don't think anything will change my view on you but if you don't feel comfortable thats fine with me"She said smiling.She was a small bit curious to see what it was but she wouldn't push him for an answer. "But if I answer the next question I win"She said teasingly.She was competitive even in these games though she was messing here. "So bring it on"She said smiling hoping for a challenging question.

Kate's smile widened "Thats great"She said happily,glad to have a best friend coming."We are meeting outside the Great Hall around eight o clock"She said looking forward to the night.She wondered whether he had gone last year.She hadn't see him but that didn't mean he hadn't been there "Did you go last year"She asked twideling a piece of her hair.

Out of Character:

I made up the part about meeting at eight o clock.Anyways I PMd you the link to the topic.There will only be four or five of us there!