Closed A Late Christmas - Or Whatever

[Asphodel King]

Asphodel King enjoyed Holidays at home as always, but sometimes being away from the home that contained just her and her father wasn't so bad. Especially now that Pho was in the process of learning how to not be so intense that she scared away every potential friend. The ginger haired Slytherin moved to the beat of a song that was mostly in her head, but also a quiet vibration on her lips as she hummed. Finally making it to where she had directed Vader, her only semi-friend in the school, she laid down a plaid blanket to cover the ground. OPnce things were situated for the makeshift picnic, Pho felt silly. She was just sitting there alone waiting for some kid to come sit and them probably not talk much. She groaned to herself - why had she even decided they should meet instead of bumping into each other organically. This was going to be strained, and awkward - and now the ginger felt like an a$$ for even planning this.

 

[Vader Hume]

Vader had been a bit surprised to get the note from Pho to met her upon returning to school. He wasn’t sure if he should go or not. They’d somewhat repaired and formed a tentative bond but he was still occasionally a little wary of her. But recently he had no reason to think anything bad about her, so he had agreed to go. After all it was the beginning of the year and he was feeling pretty well rested. He had quite had as much sleep over the holidays as he’d wanted, some lingering concerns and worries had made his sleep just that little bit worse. However given the state of it at the end of the last semester, any more sleep was something he’d kindly welcomed. The gryffindor had his camera in hand, and various camera supplies in the bag on his back and was venturing to where she had said to meet her. He wore the usual red cap which Ava had given him for his birthday, he had a jumper with him, but he wasn’t wearing it, the nice sunshine making him feel nice and warm. He spotted Pho and her blanket on the lawn. ”Hey Pho!” he greeted with a warm tone, it was a little tentative and he quickly approached her, ”Sorry I was a little delayed, with accio and stuff,” he’d not actually had anything was mostly just a bit tentative about meeting with her. He stood at the side of the blanket and looked towards the space beside her, ”Can I?” he motioned to the space, not wanting to sit down without her permission.​

 

[Asphodel King]

Pho had to wipe the regret out of her shimmering orbs when Vader actually decided to show up. The young Slytherin couldn't wipe the small smile off her lips as she saw Vader approaching. It was obvious by the boy's body language that he was still frightened that she'd be taking a piece out of him, but Pho had a new years resolution not to start any fights with anyone. "Hey! Good to see ye survived." The Aussie girl spoke with a laugh. "Great lawn is right treacherous." The girl scooted over so as not to force close quarters with someone who was only her friend a little. "Yeah of course, unless you're afraid it's got germs. it might." She said with a laugh, though the way her sarcasm melded with her normal voice made it hard for most people to tell if she was serious or not. "How were Holidays then? get into trouble?" She asked, though Pho doubted the kid caused much of an issue as reserved as he seemed to be.

 

[Vader Hume]

Vader gave a little smile before nodding, he gave a little chuckle to her joke, ”I’m a gryffindor Pho, I can survive lots of things,” he joked back with a little smile before nodding and sitting down next to her on the blanket, he crossed his legs under him and smiled at her question before shaking his head. Vader placed the camera down in front of him and then took the bag and jumper off, from within the bag Vader pulled out the camera’s tripod and placed it on the ground in front of him off the blanket, ”My holidays were good, no trouble, but caught up on sleep and took pictures,” Vader told her with a small gesture to his camera. He adjusted the red cap, moving the blonde curls out of his face. ”How was your break? I bet you got up to loads of trouble,” the gryffindor returned with a little glance towards her before focusing on setting the tripod and camera up. Pho hadn’t stated what she wanted to do, just hang out, so he thought it would be a good place to get more shots of the grounds, of the castle and lake. Maybe he wouldn’t end up taking any but he didn’t want to not have the camera or his set up with him in case something happened that required him to take some pictures. ”You don’t mind right?” he asked somewhat lately, given that he’d half set up before even asking her if she minded the camera.​

 

[Asphodel King]

Asphodel watched with a smile as he got out the camera he seemed so happy to have. The camera's that took magical photos were quite the amazing thing, and while Pho stunk at taking photos, she loved to look at them. "Woah didn't think it was that warm!" She joked as he took off his jumper. "Don't gotta try and impress me." She added with a chuckle. "You say you can survive lots, but an English lesson must not be one of those." She teased, referencing his use of the word lots. "Nah, my dad would have a panic attack if I so much as broke a window. You'd think he didn't know how to fix it with magic." Pho didn't often share details about her home life, and hadn't much told anyone about her mother dying when she was young. After all wouldn't that just be an excuse people placed on her for her attitude? She must be bad because she has no mom.

Asphodel brought herself out of the thoughts with a smile and a shake of her head. "Nah I don't mind!" She insisted. After all, maybe he might teach her how to use it a little. Not that she would ask, she didn't want him thinking she was inept or something. "Sorry to call you out here short notice and all, just thought it might be nice to talk to someone getting back. My roommate's aren't the best. I'm bedded next to a snobby girl - reminds me of me when I was younger and you know how ***t I was." She said, making a joke out of her former self. "What class ya looking forward to this year?" She inquired, half looking at him and half glancing at the camera still, intrigue written on her freckled face.

 

[Vader Hume]

Vader rolled his eyes a little at her, he thought it was warm, it was the height of summer after all, so why wouldn’t he take the time to really absorb the sun. He smiled a little at her joke, but shrugged at what she said about the window, ”I think most parents would go mad if you broke a window, my parents would go mad if I broke a window,” the gryffindor replied with a little chuckle, he thought it was more to do with how it could be a little dangerous, and all the broken glass wasn’t good. He could maybe figure it to be because of that that was why her dad would freak out, but he didn’t say anything more about it. ”Did you just spend the break threatening to break glass then?” he added, asking more about what she’d done over the break, keeping the conversation light. ​

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Vader was pleased when she didn’t mind him setting up the camera. He secured the camera to the tripod and adjust the height slightly. At her words he nodded, he didn’t mind speaking to her, but he stilled a little at her words. They’d put behind them the fact they’d gone to school together, he didn’t bring it up and nor did she. Vader knew she would know about how he was widely treated at that school. ”Let’s not talk about it,” was all he replied, his voice quiet, avoiding looking at her directly and instead focusing on the camera and adjusting settings. At her question he shrugged, ”I think Divination will be fun but I like Charms too. I want to take more pictures of spells and I think charms would be good for that,” the boy looked at her as he spoke this time, still a little shy after her comments about before but with a clear eagerness given his interest in photography. ”What about you?”​

 

[Asphodel King]

Asphodel shrugged at what Vader said about breaking a window. "Don't understand having a manic about it, just wave your wand." She said, pointing at hers which sat beside her pointed opposite of them. "No, dad and I spent it mostly having awkward conversations about school - and he tried to give me the talk. Which I swiftly deferred by breaking a window." She joked, not elaborating on what the talk was supposed to be about. Vader was a boy, he probably got it much earlier than Pho did - frankly the slytherin couldn't even imagine kissing anyone. She hated everyone around her too much, except maybe Vader - at least he wasn't exhausting to be around.

Asphodel watched with a great amount of curiosity in her over-sized eyes. Her curiosity only changed when he made a comment about not talking about the past. Pho gave a nervous giggle, "yeah, course." She spoke, wondering why he didn't want to joke to move past the situation - after all to her it seemed natural in her mind to joke through hard times. Nodding and grateful for the conversation moving, the girl offered herself as a charms caster. "I know a few extra spells than you if you need someone to cast some for the camera - just promise not to get me in any photos!" It wasn't something Pho was willing to discuss, but she felt self conscious in the thought of being in any photographs. But spells were beautiful. "I look forward to potions every year, but I suppose that runs in my blood with dad being a potioneer." She replied. "Plus the ingredients are all so interesting. Still photography for those would be cool." She offered, unsure how much he was interested in still versus moving photography. After all, the more classes he was interested in the better right? Then her friend could be successful.

 

[Vader Hume]

Vader shrugged at her point, she seemed to just forget that he was from a muggle family and it really wasn’t that simple to fix a broken window, but then if her father, a wizard, was getting annoyed it, maybe it was the principal of breaking a window rather than something else that had spurred Pho’s father’s frustration. He listened as she talked about what she’d done over the holiday, his cheeks reddening deeply when she mentioned the talk. His own parents hadn’t spoke to him about it at all, and he hoped to never. So, he also opted to not even acknowledge what she had said about it, just nodded in understanding of what she had said. He was also pleased when she agreed to not bring up the past. There was generally enough of it sitting just on the forefront of his mind, that thinking or talking about it, brought it rushing back and Vader didn’t enjoy that at all. Especially since his mind seemed so preoccupied as of late to be constantly making him think, and think in part about all of the things that had once been said to and of him with such hatred and malice.​

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Vader lifted the red cap and readjusted it on his head when he’d run a hand nervously through the thick blonde curls as if brushing the thoughts from the front of his mind to the back. Vader looked back at her as she offered to be in a few of the pictures, or well, offered her magic up for a few of them, he frowned a little at her choice of words, ”You can also be in the pictures if you want, I’m sure the way the spells emit different colours when cast would really nicely light your face,” Vader could understand not wanting to get in the pictures, he didn’t really like being in pictures himself, he much preferred being behind the camera, it was just easier there. ”You don’t need to, I can just take pictures of the magic,” he added, depending on what she’d rather would depend on how he’d set up the camera, so he was keen to know. The gryffindor listened as she talked about Potions, nodding along lightly. He had still pictures but those were generally from the muggle world. ”I don’t think the potions professor would appreciate me wasting time lining up the ingredients to take a picture of them instead of making a potion with them. Potions is fun though. I forget that’s what your dad does,”​

 

[Asphodel King]

It was strange to Pho, that there was such a dichotomy between she and one of her only friends at the school. The way they lived was so different that it almost seemed they shouldn't be together - as friends that was. The ginger felt her face light up to a pink hue as he mentioned the way spells might light her face. She immediately looked down at the blanket, avoiding any sort of eye contact after the compliment. Sure her father called her pretty, but it was different to hear any sort of compliment from a boy. Especially one like Vader.

Pho picked at the blanket as he kept speaking, and once her skin was less inflamed she looked up with a smile. "Well I can always sneak into Professor Pendleton's room and 'borrow' some." Of course Pho would never do that, after all, the girl respected the man. He knew her father, and had kind eyes that made Asphodel enjoy his class. But she had to keep up her appearances. "What if I took photos of you casting spells?" She asked in a teasing tone.

 

[Vader Hume]

Vader looked at her in surprised, ”No!” he didn’t want either of them to get into trouble by stealing potion supplies. If he really wanted to take them in pictures he was sure that if he asked, he would say yes, maybe with some supervision but stealing or borrowing them was just not an option. ”I can’t get into trouble Pho,” he told her with a certain tone. There was a whole bunch of things that Vader had to do, people relying on him, he couldn’t get into trouble and jeopardize that. He knew that she was just trying to be nice with him, and likely hadn’t meant it but he still thought it best to assure her that it wasn’t at all necessary. When she suggested he be the one in front of the camera, Vader shook his head shyly, busying himself with the camera instead. He didn’t get in front of a camera if he could help it. Why would anyone want to see his face in a picture when there were dozens of others. ”I take the pictures, I don’t get in them,” the boy replied sure of his tone, sure of his words. He knew that it was likely the same argument that she’d had when he’d suggested her, ”No one wants to see my face in front of a camera, they want to see yours or just about anyone elses. Plus, I have to line up the picture, make sure things are in focus, it’s a whole job being back here” the boy added with a little shrug, finally meeting her gaze, a little blush on his cheeks and a faint smile. ”I do want to see how well that writing spell we learned in charms would be in a picture,” the boy said, hoping that she might agree to doing that with him.​