Bloom

Nixon Mercury

Freelance Writer | Emotionally Unavailable
 
Messages
472
OOC First Name
Anna
Blood Status
Mixed Blood
Relationship Status
Single
Sexual Orientation
Bisexual
Wand
Curly 10 Inch Sturdy Willow Wand with Meteorite Dust Core
Age
23
Evenings were always the best and the worst parts of Nixon's day. It was a time that felt like home to him since he grew up waiting for the stars every night, and alternately a time where he felt the most lonely since it was when his friends were usually in their respective common rooms, or somewhere else he wasn't able to talk to them. The worst part was that without them, the stars he thought of as home were a reminder of what he didn't have, the loneliness sinking in at the end of the day where he had nothing but his thoughts to distract him. The stars were as much a home as they were a reminder of the home he was missing, and after a long day of attending classes Nixon was not sure how he would be able to handle it. It was one task to focus on how familiar the sky was to him and why the evenings were one of the best parts of his day, but another task entirely to focus on the positive side of it all when it reminded him that without his friends the time of day that was supposed to be his best could also be his worst.

Caught in a weird state of mind, Nixon had headed to the north tower with the intention to read with the stars in view as last resort to make himself feel better before he went to sleep. He figured if he focused on winding down from a long day and thought about what he enjoyed about the evenings instead of letting it remind him his friends weren't able to keep him company, he would leave feeling better or possibly even happy. He at least wanted to feel content, so after arriving to the tower he wasted no time sitting on one of the windowsills, opening his book, and alternating his attention between reading and looking out to the setting sun as the different stars slowly appeared in the sky.​
 
Evenings were a peaceful time for Stella, when she could relax with her friends, or read a book, or watch the stars. Stargazing had always been one of her favourite things to do, and it reminded her simultaneously of home and of the vastness of the universe that was out there, so far from home and so endlessly fascinating. Lately home was on her mind more than usual, as the knowledge that her sister would be joining her at Hogwarts next year made Stella miss her more than ever. The two of them could always look up at night and see the same stars, shining reassuringly down the same as ever. It was strange how burning balls of gas millions of light years away could make her feel comforted, could feel like home.

Tonight the sky was clear and the stars were bright, and watching them from Ravenclaw Tower with all the distractions that entailed just wasn't enough for Stella. For the first time she had ever done so deliberately, she broke curfew and took her telescope up to the North Tower. When she reached the top of the staircase, somewhat out of breath after the long climb, she saw there was someone already sitting at one of the windows. She came further into the room, realised who it was, and smiled. "Hi Nixon," she said, softly so as not to startle him. "How's it going?" Stella hadn't spent much time with the Hufflepuff boy, but she enjoyed his company. She set her telescope down at the window next to his.
 
The book in Nixon's hands was a muggle story, and one he'd borrowed from the library for no other reason than the cover intrigued him, as it pictured four children and a fairy flying around in the sky. With every word he read the more he realized how comforting the story was to him, each of the children following the stars to a faraway land and never wanting to grow up. He smiled as he turned the page, but before he could continue reading he was interrupted by someone saying his name. He looked up to see Stella Wright, a familiar face from his classes, and smiled. "Hey, I'm alri-" Nixon paused his words when he saw she was carrying a telescope, and watched as she set it up in the window next to him. With that prompting he closed his book, placing it on the windowsill before moving to stand next to her, suddenly more energetic with the opportunity to view the stars properly on his mind. "A telescope? Are you watching the stars?" The answer seemed obvious but he wanted to make sure before asking if he could join her. Nixon had not spent much time with Stella in the past and considered them friendly acquaintances at best, but seeing her with a telescope and the possibility she was as much of an astronomy nerd as he was made him reconsider that. If she was going to look at the stars he wanted to be her friend so they could look at the stars together.​
 
Stella chuckled softly as Nixon paused mid-sentence to stare at her telescope. She'd thought he might be interested - in fact, she'd thought he might be stargazing up here himself, until she saw the book in his lap. It seemed an odd place to go to read; the common room or the dorm was much more comfortable for that purpose in Stella's view, but she refrained from commenting on that. "I sure am," she said cheerfully. "Would you like to join me?" Stella had intended to spend some time on her own, but since there was someone up here already she was more than happy to share her enthusiasm and her telescope with him. There seemed to be precious few people at this school who were truly interested in science, and if Nixon was a fellow astronomy nerd she was eager to talk about it with him. Stella knelt down and busied herself with setting up her telescope properly, smiling at Nixon as she did so.
 
Whether it was because of his clear interest in the telescope, or Stella simply being inclusive, Nixon was pleased he did not need to ask to join her and show how desperate he was for company. Instead she was the one to ask if he wanted to join her which he responded to with a smile paired with an enthusiastic nod. "Hell yeah, are you trying to look for a constellation or just seeing what you can find?" Nixon asked, watching as she set up the telescope. He was tempted to also ask if she needed help but she looked like she knew what she was doing, and despite being used to telescopes, Nixon had not used one that wasn't hand held in a while, and he worried if he did try to help her he would accidentally break it. In the meantime he settled for continuing to ask Stella questions while she set everything up. "So you're interested in astronomy? Do you star gaze often?" Considering how much time Nixon spent in the school towers, it would surprise him that he had not run into Stella with her telescope before if she star gazed frequently, but nevertheless he was glad he had run into her that evening. Helping someone else star gaze was in many ways the perfect distraction from the loneliness that brought him to the north tower in the first place and he was thankful for it.​
 
Stella grinned at Nixon’s enthusiasm. Had she finally found someone who was as excited about space as she was? She certainly hoped so. ”No, I’m not looking for anything specific. I just really enjoy taking a look, and there’s so little light pollution here compared to back home.” Dunedin was a small city as cities went, so the view of the night sky was still pretty good there, but Stella had been thrilled by how much more she could see at this isolated school. She finished setting up the tripod and knelt to peer through the eyepiece and adjust the focus as Nixon watched. ”Yeah, it’s my favourite subject.” She refrained from mentioning the disappointing aspects of Astronomy classes at Hogwarts; no point in being negative, especially since it had been good last year. ”I do stargaze a lot, but I usually just set up in the dorm. Ravenclaw tower is plenty high enough, it’s just a bit too busy sometimes. How about you?” If Nixon came up here to stargaze often and Stella had missed him because she couldn’t be bothered to leave her house, that would be disappointing. Still, if this went well, maybe they could arrange to do so together other times. It would be nice to have company that didn’t want to distract her every now and then.
 
Nixon continued to nod as Stella answered his countless questions and he grinned at the fact circumstance had brought her to the north tower that night. If she had set up in her dorm they would not have ran into each other, Nixon would have remained lonely as he read his book, and clueless to the fact someone else in his year was as much of an astronomy nerd as he was. It was like the stars had metaphorically and literally aligned to bring Stella to the north tower and provide him with the perfect distraction from his woes as well as an opportunity to make a new friend, and he could not be happier, which was a stark contrast to how he felt earlier in the night. "I stargaze sometimes with my mum's old telescope." Nixon left out the fact that he was gradually stargazing less as other things in his life picked up, sure that if Stella wanted to stargaze with him regularly none of his previous commitments would matter and he would drop everything to join her. "We should stargaze together sometime, after tonight. It would be fun to have company." He added, hoping that the suggestion was welcomed. The stargazing had barely started, but he still wanted to suggest the possibility that stargazing with each other could be a regular thing. Their situation seemed too perfectly timed to not take full advantage of their mutual interest in astronomy and spend more time together.​
 
The stars were just as bright and beautiful tonight as Stella had hoped, and now she even had a friend to share them with. Tonight was turning out even better than she had expected. She trained her telescope on a star-spangled section of the Milky Way, and just drank it in for a moment before turning back to Nixon. "Oh, cool, so you'll know pretty much how to use this, then." Stella wouldn't take such skills for granted, even though telescopes were pretty simple to use, and her trust in her fellow students' ability to understand muggle technology had fallen a long way since taking Muggle Studies. "Your turn," she added, and moved aside to let him look as she continued the conversation. "So, your mum's into astronomy too?" Was she a muggle, Stella wondered? Or even better, a witch who was interested in science? Stella had met disappointingly few scientifically-minded wizarding adults, but she was certain they must exist. How could they not, when the intersection between science and magic was so fascinating? "Yeah," she agreed, grinning. "I'd like that. It'd be really cool to hang out with someone who's as into this stuff as I am."
 
Nixon watched Stella peer through the telescope at the sky, and nodded again when she said he would know how to use it. Though despite knowing how to use it and his constant willingness to stargaze, he couldn't mask the way he hesitated as she said it was his turn, waiting and looking between her and the telescope with a hint of uncertainty before deciding to eventually peer through himself. Even if he had grown up around telescopes it had been a long time since he looked through a telescope that wasn't the old handheld one he stole from his parents' study before he left for his first year at school. A real telescope was different and expensive compared to the one he kept with him and he didn't want to break it accidentally. It was reassuring however that Stella kept the conversation going and the view she set up of the milky way was breathtaking. He answered her question after stepping away from the telescope with a smile on his face. "Both my mum and dad are astronomers actually. Is your family into astronomy, too, or is it just you?" Further reassuring was Stella's agreement to spend time stargazing with him, and their thoughts being akin with both their interest in astronomy itself and a willingness to spend more time together with this interest in mind. "It's settled then. We're stargaze friends. No backsies." Nixon stated matter of factly, shoulders squaring as he spoke.​
 
Stella noticed Nixon's moment of hesitation, and wondered about it, but refrained from comment. Was he less certain than he was implying about his ability to work a telescope? But the way he handled it looked practiced and reasonably confident. Maybe he was out of practice, if he didn't have one at school? That would explain coming up here with a book, and the blissful look on his face when he stepped away. Stella's face lit up when Nixon told her his parents were astronomers. "Real astronomers? As their actual job? Oh my gosh, that's so cool. That's what I want to do when I finish school." Stella's mind was already swirling with questions she wanted to ask about them, but Nixon had asked her a question too, and it would be rude to ignore it in favour of her own curiosity. "My family is into it too, but not as much as me. We do go stargazing and to the planetarium and stuff as a family. Mum's a chemistry professor at the university, so she got me into science in general - are you into other sciences, or just astronomy?" Stella asked suddenly, as the thought occurred to her. Of course she was keen to have an astronomy buddy, but she was always looking for more people who wanted to talk about science. Stella chuckled at Nixon calling them 'stargaze friends'; it was a lovely term, and she didn't think she'd ever had someone declare themselves her friend in such a sudden and forthright manner. "No backsies," she agreed, nodding.
 

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