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[The Blue Lady]

Blue was slouched in her frame far more than she usually would knowing the students were back now. They all always looked so harried and busy the first few weeks back, which Blue understood. She imagined if she had feet and places to go, she'd be just as flustered running around the castle. But as it were, she didn't, and not having much to do or anyone to talk to in all the fuss had left her feeling rather well. Blue.

She traced a finger along the edge of her canvas, busying herself with watching a branch of sunlight from the adjacent windows track its way across the floor in front of her portrait. Objectively, Blue knew she could go visit the Ravenclaw common room for a good chat, but she'd only just woken up from a months long snooze over the winter break and she was sure she was far too big a mess to bother all those Ravenclaws or dear Professor Josephs. So she'd just watch her sunbeam and try to enjoy the sounds of life back in the castle instead, which was a small comfort at least.

 

[Celia Vuong]

There were a lot of things Celia disliked about Hogwarts, but even she had to admit that the school's art collection was impressive. It was almost impossible to find a hallway without any paintings or sculptures, and best of all, the portraits moved. Celia had spent hours last year sitting in empty corridors, watching the portraits move from frame to frame in a swirl of color. They were infinitely more interesting and pleasant to talk to than any of the students or teachers here, and they had made her isolation last year a little more bearable.

Celia had spent much of her morning wandering the castle, saying hi to her favorite paintings. Maybe it was a little pathetic that she didn't have many human friends to catch up with after the break, but she really did enjoy talking to the paintings. She was especially eager to find Blue. The portrait was a good listener, and Celia had always admired her style — the bold brushstrokes of color reminded her of a Van Gogh. Thankfully Blue was in her frame on the fifth floor, and Celia hurried over. "Hi Blue!" Her smile was short-lived as she realized that Blue was slouching and looking a little melancholy. "Are you okay? What's wrong?" she asked, taking a seat across from the painting.

 

[The Blue Lady]

This isn't two weeks late shh
Blue lifted her head up when someone actually addressed her, smiling warmly when she recognized the student. "Oh hello!" She said, straightening up more in her frame. "Nothing nothing, still shaking off the fog after sleeping all Winter, you know how it is," she said with a vague smile, moving to fuss with her hair now that someone was actually paying attention to her. "It's lovely to see you though, how was your holiday? Or.. first week back? I'm afraid I've lost track of what time it is already," she said sheepishly, settling herself better in her frame as Celia made herself comfortable in the corridor. She wanted to comment how it mustn't be very comfortable for her but at the same time Blue would much prefer Celia didn't leave even if it was just to get a cushion. Perhaps Professor Summers had a conjured one nearby Celia could borrow she thought, leaning forward somewhat to try and check down the corridor before looking back at Celia.

 

[Celia Vuong]

Celia returned the smile, glad that Blue no longer looked so down. "Is that what the portraits do all break? Sleep?" she asked curiously. It sounded quite boring. There were so many portraits in the castle that Celia had always assumed they spent their free time visiting each other and chatting. But apparently that wasn't the case. She wondered if Blue ever felt trapped in the castle, too.

"First week back," Celia confirmed, adjusting her skirt as she shifted into a more comfortable position. "My break was okay," she said automatically because that was her first instinct when it came to talking about her family to anyone in the castle. But this was Blue, and she'd proven to be trustworthy. And there was something different about confessing her woes to a painting instead of a person. "Actually it sucked," she admitted. "I was grounded for most of it because of, you know, the field trip..." Her cheeks burned in embarrassment, and she forged on, determined not to dwell on that unfortunate incident. "My mom found a job near our new place, so I guess we're not moving back anytime soon." That had been her last hope, that they'd be forced back to Boston because of visa issues. But her mom had found a way for them to stay in Hanoi. "And I think all of my old friends are going to forget about me." She'd texted and called and video chatted with them over the break, but it just wasn't the same.

 

[The Blue Lady]

Blue nodded her head vaguely, trying to remember if she had managed everything else, but her memory of passed timed always seemed so muddy, days and weeks all blurring together with little else to mark it. Was she remembering this Winter or the Winter three years ago? Did it matter? "More or less. Sometimes I chat with the sparrows that live in the eaves if they're about. But I mostly keep to myself," she admitted. Blue had never been very good at making friends with the other portraits and after so many years she rather felt it was too late to try.

She nodded indulgently as Celia started talking about her break, her smile faltering some when Celia admitted it hadn't gone very well. "Oh dear... Well I hope you won't try anything like that again," she murmured, well aware that Celia had probably gotten enough scolding for last year. "Well, I'm glad to see you back, for what it's worth," she offered, frowning at Celia's concerns. "Maybe you could visit them over the next break? Assuming you behave yourself," she added with a firm nod. The incentive might do Celia well, to have something to work on so she didn't try running off again.