A Million Questions

[Cairo Savage]

Cairo was having an unusual amount of trouble with his Muggle Studies classes that year. He wasn't sure if it was due to his issues with Charlotte, the professor, or his recent inability to sleep caused by all the stress. But regardless of the reason, it was bothering him to no end, and the worst possible scenario for the beginning of his fifth year. The OWL year was one of the only ones that actually mattered in school and with Cairo's luck the entirety of the first semester had shattered into a complete mess, socially and academically. Leaving him to pick up the pieces alone and study up excessively for an elective he thought would be a breeze. His spare time was spent in the library, copying down notes about the films they were taught despite how difficult it was for him to understand them. Writing with a muggle pen and notebook didn't help either, but the worst part of it all was the fact Cairo knew he should have understood everything. His parents were in the limelight after all, and he had an expectation to understand the way the media worked, no matter if it was Muggle or Magical.

As this thought crossed his mind, Cairo scoffed and threw his pen to the table in a bout of frustration. He was sick of everything, and wanted nothing more than to catch up on his many hours of lost sleep. But at the same time he couldn't do that, knowing if he gave himself time to rest and take a breath he would be even further behind than he had been before. It was a cycle of exhaustion and inner turmoil and Cairo wanted it to end. Or at least for someone to help explain his classes to him. But he would never admit that he did need help, and instead tried to return to studying, hoping the words in his text book would eventually make sense in his mind.​

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[Madeline Walden]

Maddie didn't particularly like the library but it was hard getting work done in the Common Room, there was always something or someone to distract her. Maddie knew that James Cade rarely ventured into the Library these days, he was preoccupied with Quidditch most of the time so she knew that she would get some work done while her Gryffindor friend wasn't around. She dragged her bag along behind her down to the Library and dumped it on the nearest table, squashing someone's paper as she did so. "Oops! I'm so sorry. This bag is so heavy!" she said sheepishly to the person opposite her. It took her a second to realise that it was Cairo, one of the Savage twins. The two hadn't spoken for a while despite being in a couple of classes with each other but they had generally positive encounters. "Oh, hi Cairo, I didn't realise it was you for a second" she explained moving her bag off of the table and onto the floor. "Are you okay?" she asked the boy, he looked a little stressed and tired which Maddie couldn't blame him for, studying for their O.W.L.S took up so much of their time.

 

[Cairo Savage]

Cairo moved his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration, resisting the urge to put his head completely in his hands and go to sleep in the middle of the library just to relieve himself from the stress, if not momentarily. Though he soon looked up, somewhat startled as someone's bag fell onto his paper. He frowned and looked up to the owner of the bag, then allowed his expression to change to one that was more neutral when he realized the person next to him was Madeline. Someone he did not know well, but still someone that he respected. The times they had interacted were enjoyable and she wasn't the most annoying person in the school. He would almost be happy to see her if he wasn't so exhausted from lack of sleep, and frustrated at not understanding his school work. "Hey, Madeline." He greeted her back, before looking to the place where her bag was sat on top of his papers and pursing his lips together in thought, wondering if he should ask her for help, or if that would be showing too much weakness in front of someone that could use it against him. He eventually decided on the former and looked back to Madeline with a sheepish expression. "Actually, I'm not okay." He said. "I've been trying to understand the stuff we've been learning in Muggle studies, and I just don't get it. Do you get it?" He asked, eyes scanning her face for any sign of recognition.
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