Closed Brotherly Advice

[Eric Holland]

Eric had been feeling vaguely guilty towards his brother ever since the incident in the hallway. He'd checked in on him since that day, but hadn't actually spoken to him for a longer amount of time lately. He knew he needed to get over his guilt and talk to his brother, as he knew Connor would need him as a guide at Hogwarts. He was hopelessly naive, and Eric knew Connor would need his guidance to navigate the school. So during breakfast, Eric made his way over to the Hufflepuff table. He glowered at another first year until he made room for him, then sat down next to Connor. "Hey, we should talk." He said to his brother. "Also you should eat more, you need to be strong." He added, putting another slice of toast on his brother's plate unprompted. "Are you okay?"

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor was about as hunched over his plate as it was possible to be. It was starting to get exhausting, hiding like this, but it was definitely still necessary. He didn't want a repeat of anything like the fight at the start of the year, and staying out of everybody's way seemed like the only way to prevent it. Connor didn't want to make his cousins mad, he didn't want to make his brother mad, he only wanted to get through his time at school as quietly as he could. So he was avoiding just about everyone, trying to keep from making any more problems.

That unfortunately wasn't enough to escape Eric's notice today, and Connor tensed as his brother sat next to him. He stayed silent as Eric put more toast on his plate, wincing slightly. Connor was already plenty full, and the nerves weren't doing anything for his appetite. He knew Eric would insist though, so he picked up the piece fo toast obediently, shrugging in response to Eric's question. "I'm fine." He said before taking a bite, avoiding looking at his brother directly.

 

[Eric Holland]

Eric nodded approvingly when Connor started to eat, though he sighed when Connor only said he was fine. He clearly wasn't, but at least he wasn't crying and that was definitely a good thing. "Right, cool." He said. "Listen... let's put that stuff behind us, okay? I'm not here to talk about that." He said, waving his hand as if to dismiss the whole subject of the fight they had been involved in. "We should talk about Hogwarts now that you're here. You should know who to be friends with, who to avoid. That kinda stuff." He said, crossing his arms. "Most of the people here are jerks. Ravenclaws are bossy know it alls, Slytherins are sneaky. You should definitely stay away from those. Gryffindors are mostly jerks too, all the boys in my dorm suck. Hufflepuff-" Eric stopped himself. He had been about to say that most Hufflepuffs were wimps, but then had caught himself in time. He didn't want to insult Connor and make him feel even worse. "Is... mostly fine. Bit dull, but at least they're nice." He said after a moment. "But if anyone gives you trouble in your house, tell me okay? I can make it stop." He could surely take any Hufflepuff, even if it was an older student.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor knew a simple 'I'm fine' wouldn't be enough for his brother, but his heart sank as he listened to Eric continue on. He had so much to say, and Connor just nodded nervously as he listened, heart sinking further and further. Was every house full of terrible people who wanted to hurt him? This was worse than Connor had feared. Why couldn't he just live with his brother to watch over him? He nodded quickly when Eric said to tell him if anyone was giving him trouble. "I will." He said quietly, looking down at the now cold toast on his plate.