A Missing Echo

[Theodore Westwick]

The return home after the yule ball had been a hopeful time for Theodore. The boy had been hopeful that a return to familiar surroundings with Edmund would make his twin go back to normal, that maybe he would forget all about the yule ball. But things had been a little strange since their disagreement, and the stupid girl Edmund had taken to the ball always seemed to be an invisible presence in the air. At least Edmund hadn't really mentioned her over the break, but as soon as they returned to Hogwarts, his brother had resumed being distracted and distant the way he had before the holidays. It made Theodore feel off-balance, like the world wasn't quite the same. But he wouldn't tell Edmund how nervous he was, even if he would have before. Now, it just felt like a weakness because his brother clearly didn't have this problem.

All Theodore needed right now was a book from the library, a book on Herbology for the new semester. Usually, he would have walked here with Edmund and they would have found a bunch of interesting books back to the common room. But today he was alone, and planned to simply grab the book and leave. The library wasn't the worst place in the school, as it was at least quiet, but it was still crowded with strange students. He hadn't forgotten the weird girl he had run into the night of the yule ball, and he was eager to avoid situations like that. Quietly, he headed over to where he thought the Herbology book would probably be. He stopped in front of the shelf, trying to quickly scan the titles of the books. But he didn't see it. Nervously, he scanned them again. Maybe he had just missed it? But no, it wasn't here. Uncertainly, he looked around. Should he find a librarian? He really didn't want to ask for help, but he also didn't want to stay here longer than was necessary. Edmund would have known what to do.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire was spending some rare time in the library. Once she had been sure Kira had slipped out, she had made her way in to find something interesting. She had found two or three that seemed like they could be interesting when she spotted one of the Westwick twins. Seeing the lack of Diana, she assumed it was the other one... not Edmund, but... Theodore? She offered him a small smile. "Hi," She greeted, knowing of his prickly reputation. He might or might not be receptive to company at any point in time. "There's a lot of interesting books in here." She offered, wondering if he'd pick up on the chance to talk to someone.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

Theodore frowned a little when a girl approached him, a girl he didn't know. She said hello to him, but he didn't understand why. Was she trying to make fun of him? Did she notice how lost he was? He didn't know her, and assumed she didn't know him either. "That's the point of a library." He said shortly, his frown deepening. "It wouldn't be a very good one if it had no interesting books. What do you want?" He assumed the girl had some reason for speaking to him, but he was wary. The last time he had spoken to a girl, she had started crying for no good reason. Hopefully this one wouldn't do that.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire raised a brow at the boys' curt response. It suddenly made more sense as to why they weren't very popular. "I suppose this is one of the better libraries then." She quipped, her lips raising in a small smile. "As for what I want, I was under the impression when you run into people it's polite to make conversation." She was tempted to say she wasn't afraid of the boy, but decided against it. "You seem to be missing the other twin. And from the lack of Diana, would it be safe to assume that you're Theodore?" She asked instead. It occurred to her after that it may be a bad idea to bring that up, but she had never been one to think anything through. What's done was done, and she would just deal with the consequences like she always did.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

Theodore hated how the girl looked at him after his response. He hadn't said anything bad, he had simply stated a fact and asked what she wanted. Clearly there was some reason she was talking to him. "Your impression is wrong." He told her. "It's more polite to leave people alone." At least, as far as he was concerned that should be the case. When she continued to talk, it made him uncomfortable how much she knew about him. He had made a habit out of ignoring everyone but his brother, and barely knew the names of the boys he shared a dormitory with. But this girl knew about Edmund, knew about Edmund's friend, and knew his name. He stared at her for a moment. He could pretend to be Edmund, which was something he had done countless of times. But every time they had switched names to confuse others, it had been together. Edmund wasn't here now, so what was the point? "Why do you know my name?" He asked her with a frown. "You're not in my year." His eyes narrowed slightly. "You know Edmund's friend?" He didn't want to say her name. It was all so stupid and she didn't deserve to be acknowledged like that. She wouldn't matter for long. Edmund would get sick of her quickly enough.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Well, he had a point. She supposed the definition of being polite changed from person to person. Still, she didn't bother to apologize. He didn't seem like he would care even if she did. So, she just moved on to the next thing. He asked how she knew his name, and she shrugged. "I pay attention. Edmund's friend is my roommate and when she's not ignoring me she talks about your brother. I got curious and a Ravenclaw told me that he was your twin and that you two were fairly private people." She left out which Ravenclaw as Kira said the twins had threatened her the first time they'd met. Sapphire didn't really consider that part her business since nothing had ever come of it. All bluster.

Still, she WAS curious. It wasn't often she ran into someone similar to her. He seemed to share her distaste for people, though she was beginning to think maybe hers was more from lack of other options than any personal reasons. The twin thing intrigued her as well. What was it like growing up with your twin? She almost asked but managed to bite her tongue. He probably wouldn't appreciate a question like that.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

The situation was uncomfortable, and Theodore could really not understand why Edmund was willingly hanging out with a girl when he could be hanging out with his brother the way they used to. He stared at the girl as she explained how he knew who she was. "I don't know you." He said after a moment. "And I don't see why I should." He added before the girl would think he wanted a lengthy introduction. "I was looking for a book. I did not find it." He added, then was unsure why he had. It wasn't like he had to explain what he was doing here to her. "Do you think you could make your roommate stop being friends with Edmund?" He asked. Though he had no idea why the girl would do such a thing just because he asked. The question had popped into his head, and asking probably wouldn't hurt.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire smiled. Well, this one really was just a ray of sunshine, wasn't he? She didn't bother introducing herself. If he didn't care, then she had no reason for it. "I could help you look if you want. What were you wanting?" She turned to look at the shelf when he asked his final question, and she couldn't help but laugh. "Sorry," She told him, "But she's not talking to me right now. Even if she was, she's proud and stubborn. I doubt anything other than your brother telling her to bugger off will change her mind." She told him wryly, her eyes sparkling.

 

[Theodore Westwick]

Theodore scoffed at the notion of needing this girl's help. "No. It's fine." He said coldly, not wanting her to bother him for any longer than she already had. "I'll find it later, someone else probably has it." He really wanted to get out of this conversation, but the fact that she knew Edmund's friend had given him some hope that she could help make things normal again. That hope was quickly crushed. "So you're useless." He told her. "I'm going to leave now." Edmund would get sick of his friend soon enough, so he just had to wait it out. Hopefully.