Done with it all

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire just wanted to scream. With her hood up and her hands deep in her pockets she had wondered out here. She wouldn't cry, it just wasn't in her. She had sworn years ago she didn't care anymore, that she wouldn't let anyone else see that they'd messed with her. Ever. Not that she had bothered with anyone long enough for that to happen. At least, that's what she had thought.

This wasn't fair, she knew that. She shouldn't be reacting this way. She let out a frustrated groan and kicked a rock in front of her to the side, hard. She was startled by the splash that followed shortly after. She looked up for the first time in a while. Huh, she was at the lake. She'd been wondering for who knew how long and she hadn't been paying attention to where she was going.

She let out another sigh and pulled her hands from her pockets, uncrumpling the letter that had set her off and looking at it. It was from one of the volunteers back at the Orphanage. Casper, a six-year-old she had told stories to before bed, had been adopted and he'd asked the worker to tell Sapph goodbye for him. She grimaced. It wasn't the first time this had happened. Kids came and go from the Orphanage quickly, aside from her. She knew better than to get attached to any of them.

With another frustrated groan she threw the letter into the lake, chucking it as hard as she could, before sinking down onto her rear. She put her hood down and ran her fingers through her hair. She sighed, a single tear slipping down her cheek. She tangled both hands in her hair and whimpered softly.

"This is why you don't care," She whispered softly, "This is why you can't care."

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Hogwarts' lake was the perfect example why Alkander enjoyed being close to bodies of water. The tranquility there was one of the few things that could calm down the hyper gryffindor. He had found a willow tree the other day close to the lakeside. Back at home, Alkander was climbing trees at their courtyard all the time despite his father's aversion. He liked the view he was rewarded as soon as he reached as high as possible and he loved sitting on thick branches and just hide himself away. This willow tree was perfect for that. Its hanging branches with the lush canopy completely concealed his presence at one of the stronger, highest branches. He was sitting there with his body against the trunk and his legs stretched. On them he had set his grimoire, admiring his work so far of mapping the castle. The soft lapping of water against the shore a few meters away was so soothing. It was almost lulling.

Peacefulness was soon disrupted. Tramping, then a splash, someone had arrived at the edge of the lake. Alkander tried to discern the newcomer between the feather-veined leaves. She recognized the girl. It was his slytherin friend. She seemed troubled for something as much as he could tell. Maybe she wanted to stay alone but Alkander decided to make his presence known. He climbed down carefully to the lowest branch where he could be seen and sat on it. "Hey! Diamond!" He called, hanging upside down with his legs wrapped around the branch, his arms also hanging a meter away from the ground. He continued the name feud she had begun. "Beautiful day, isn't it?" He continued and wobbled a little bit.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire jumped when she heard his voice. She quickly swiped her cheek and turned her head, feeling vulnerable as hell and hating it. "Go away, you stupid Salamander," She griped, struggling to pull herself together. She didn't know why she kept running into this kid. Or, why she kept talking to him. Sure, he was smart, deviously clever, and he made her laugh. But what did it matter? He would get bored soon and forget about her.

She pulled her knees up to her chest and folded her arms over them, laying her cheek on her arms with her head turned away from the all-too-cheery Alkander. She was determined to ignore him until he left. Talking to him, she had nearly forgotten why she stayed away from people. She had been caught off guard when he had sat down at the Slytherin table instead of the Gryffindors', surprised when he had run her over before their encounter with Ms Fortune, and embarrassed when he found her after her tumble in the library. And now she was vlunerable and not looking for his snarky comments. Casper's adoption had reminded her just why talking to people was a bad idea.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

His kindhearted greeting wasn't regarded in the same light from the slytherin girl. Frowned, Alkander reached with his hands the branch his was hanging from and sat back on it. He tried to remember if he had done or said anything before that could have offended her. He had that unintentional habit sometimes. He jumped off the branch down on the ground, picked his grimoire he had dropped down earlier and reluctantly approached Sapphire at the lake shore.
"Erm, are you okay?" He asked her and sat down on the pebbles, close enough to talk with her properly but leaving some space between them in case she might wanted to hit him for some reason. She looked like she might do that if she got bothered but Alkander couldn't let her alone when she looked so agitated. Perhaps he could help her in some way. A look of epiphany crossed his face and shoved his hand in his pocket to take out a packet of chocolate peanut butter cups. "Want some? Freshly made by the kitchen elves." He offered, remembering that she liked peanut butter. They were a bit squashed for remaining in his pocket for some time but their taste should have been perfect. "What's the problem? Trouble with homework? I can help! Someone's bothering you? I can jinx them to fart from their mouths!" He tried to make her smile although that seemed a hard task at the moment. He took one of the peanut butter cups and tossed it in his mouth. "Come on! Say something!" He insisted with a muffled voice as he chewed.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire sighed, her resolve melting. It wasn’t his fault she was an idiot. She didn’t look at him until he offered the peanut butter cups, but she didn’t take one either. She was too gloomy for candy right now. She had to smile though when he offered to jinx kids for her. With a defeated sigh, she layed back, covering her face with her arms so she didn’t have to bother trying to not look as sad as she was.

“You’re stubborn, you know that?” She was quiet a minute, trying to find the proper wording that didn’t make her sound so weak. “I just got mad.” She started slowly, “I don’t normally get attached to the other kids at the home. They’re in and out too fast. But there was this one kid...”

Saph grimaced a little. “He’d been there a few months, and he was loud and hyper and always in trouble. His name was Casper, he was about eight or so. I don’t know, I told him stories.”

She spoke a little softer, pouting a bit and hating that she was. “I got a letter this morning from one of the volunteers at the house. He was adopted last week and he’ll be leaving tomorrow. He’ll be gone when I get back. I’m just being stupid.”

She moved her arm a bit to look at Alkander. “Can I still have a chocolate?”

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

His persistence had the girl finally talk about what was bothering her. He swallowed his mouthful and and his half smile stretched slightly his lips. "I might have heard that before." Alkander admitted about his persistence. He then listened to her carefully and everything started coming together as she explained further. He tried to put himself in her shoes and his usually cocky expression melted into a frown. He could empathize with her situation. When they moved to New Zealand, he lost a lot of friends he had made back home but he didn't let the it bring him down. Alkander was zoned out, his gaze was lost somewhere at the lake when she asked him for a peanut butter chocolate cup.

"Nope!" He said and quickly folded the bag of candies up before she was able to take any. "Not until you'll get rid off the negative thinking." He continued, with a serious look on his face. Alkander was lighthearted most of the time but when he was advising friends, he took the act seriously. He considered Sapphire a friend for that matter and he was going to be stern with her to make her see that this wasn't a reason to be so blue. "First of all, if you liked that kid then you should be happy for him and hopeful that his new family will treat him nicely." He started serious. Perhaps it was the first time he exhibited this side of him to Sapphire. "Secondly, thanks to owls we can communicate with one another for centuries now, and I'm sure you can find more erm.. muggle ways to keep in touch with your friends." He pointed out that now she had more than one way to communicate with that boy. "Last but not least, you are at a new school. You can make new friends! I'm sure there will be other cool people to hang out and kids from muggle families, to feel that you're not alone in this new thing." He concluded, hoping that she had realized that having a positive outlook was a choice.

He finally softened and his half smile returned on his features. "Now, smile or there is no chocolate for you!" Alkander threatened but his face wore a cordial expression.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire frowned a little when Alkander refused her chocolate, but she listened to him talk. He did make a few good points, but he was a little off. She stuck her tongue out at him half-heartedly and started ticking off her counterpoints on her fingers. "First, you're right about the being happy thing. Being adopted is a good turn for him." She looked at the sky before citing her second point. "Secondly, the lady that runs the place won't allow me to have contact with any of the other kids after they leave. She says I'm a bad influence and they're better off without me. I haven't found a way around her yet, since the only kids I ever like are too young to tell me themselves."

She looked at him then, silently appreciating his serious side. Not that she would admit it, but it was helping her keep grounded at the moment and that was probably a good thing. "And finally, as for your new school new life theory, that's all well and good in concept." She looked away again, ignoring the quiet pang in her chest. "Realistically, there aren't many people in life that will be able to deal with my personality. I never think before I act, I tend to blurt out whatever I'm thinking, and I'm so focused I'm scatterbrained. I tend to get in a lot of fights. Most people prefer the quiet kids or the more put together ones. I'm used to people talking to me a few times then taking off."

She covered her face again, not as accepting of the inevitable as she'd like to be. "I figure I've got one or two more conversations before you get fed up with me. Don't worry, though, I don't get mad or anything anymore. I'm used to it. You are pretty fun, so I might miss the intelligent conversation." She tried to tease him to make up for being so negative.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Alkander was glad that he had made her to open up. Discussing about a problem was the first step of solving it or at least trivialize it. Due to his laid back personality, his way of dealing with problems was pretty straightforward. If he could solve a problem he would do anything in his power to solve it. If he couldn't or it wasn't in his hand, then he had no reason to stress over it. This type of philosophy he wanted to transmit to his slytherin friend. "Thank you!" He replied with a smirk when she told him that he was right on the first one.

Alkander rolled his eyes as he thought that she was making a mountain out of a molehill. "You're a witch for Merlin's shake!" He reminded her and knocked softly with her index finger her temple as if to test if there was any brain left in her head. "I'm sure you'll find a way to see that kid. Owls, floo powder, two-way mirrors. That old hag won't know what are you doing while you're here." He named a few possibilities, not sure if she was familiar with most of them but surely he could inform her further if she wanted. Her next statement had him bring his palm to his face with an expression of mixed dismay and humor on his face. "Yeah, like you have met how many people of this world?" He pointed out that she had only met a few people in a house for orphans. "You sound fine to me, except from your dreadful mapping skills but you're lucky, I'm here for you." He pointed to himself, armed with humor.

He looked at her as if he was expecting more points coming his way and he was ready to deflect them as easily as the previous ones. "That's it? Anything else?" He prompted her with a smile. "Still, you haven't earned the right to have one of these awesome peanut butter cups." He stated and teasingly waved the bag of candies in front of her. She still hadn't smiled to earn one.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire stuck her tongue out at Alkander when he flicked her. "I wouldn't need magic to talk to them dummy, I am a bit smarter than that. I just don't have any bloody idea where they go once they leave." She wasn't going to admit she was losing focus. He was making her forget why she'd been mad in the first place, and whether he knew it or not the easiest way to fix her was to sidetrack her.

Sapph furrowed her brow at his comment on her map making skills. Well, he was going to pay for that. Her mind raced through a few options. Pushing him in the lake was too cliche, and possibly dangerous. Nothing seemed quite right. Violence wouldn't work this time, it was just too... violent. And she didn't have any supplies on her. No glitter, no flour, no baby powder, none of the quick and easy items that would stop anyone in their tracks.

She was stumped, until he waved the bag of candies in front of her. She grinned wickedly. Moving quickly she snatched them out of his hand and rolled away. She came up on her feet again before he could so much as blink. She flashed him a coy grin. "Well Salamander," She teased, bouncing a bit in place. "You've lost all your leverage." She winked playfully, stashing the treats in her pocket.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Alkander was glad that his pep talk was making her feel better. She might hadn't realized it but her expressions and her reactions to his jests and teasing were proof. For some reason, the boy had expected the bag of candy to be snatched out of his hand and he was fine by it. It might was a coy one but it was a smile on her face. "I've lost nothing." He said and jumped on his feet as well. "I achieved my purpose." He used his thumb and index finger in front of him mouth to perform a gesture that was imitating a smile and he smirked as well for tricking her to smile without realizing it. "You can have it. I'm very convincing with the house elves. I can get another one if I want." He admitted as she pocketed the treats. "Any other problems that are preventing you from doing a thousand more interesting things in this school?" He asked and shoved his hands in his pocket. He had enough spare time for today and he had no idea how to make use of it.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Well damn, that wasn't nearly as fun as she had hoped. Saph pouted a bit, pocketing the candy. She wondered briefly how you went about convincing house elves to do things, since she didn't really know anything about them to start with. The thought quickly passed, though, as all her thoughts did.

She shrugged at Alkanders question. "Well, I think I started a war with a second year Hufflepuff the other day, and I can't seem to find a single Slytherin that isn't all..." She thought for a second on how she wanted to put it. "Snooty? Maybe? I dunno, it's not that I don't like anybody, it's just that none of them are any fun."

She snapped her fingers as a thought hit her. "Hey, hey, your uncle does that traveling photo creature thingy right?" She began digging in her bag, letting out a triumphant laugh when she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a copy of Newt Scamander's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" and held it up, her eyes sparkling. "You gotta help me with this. It's all so... fascinating but I don't understand everything this bloke's saying."

She wouldn't flat out admit that she had found a recent fascination for magical creatures, one that was different than her other interests. It wasn't fleeting, for one, and it seemed no matter how much she learned about the matter it was never enough. Maybe Alkander could help her with that.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Alkander smiled at the next minor problems she mentioned. "I know, me neither." He responded with a tease when she mentioned her issue with other slytherins. "Wow, you must have done something really terrible. Hufflepuffs and war are polar opposites. What happened?" He asked and folded his arms against his chest, interested to listen that story.

They boy hadn't expected her to mention his uncle and his project. She must have been inspired from that time they met at the library. A smile stretched on his lips when he recognized the book she was holding. She had done her research. "Ask me away." He offered to help her, confident with his knowledge on the field of magical creatures. "My whole family works on magical creatures. I basically grew up around hippogriffs and winged horses." He said and rolled his eyes. He loved magical creatures but he wanted to do something different than what was used to in his family. To his father's disappointment, running the family's business wasn't in Alkander's future plans. Breeding, rehabilitating and reintroducing to the wild magical creatures was a great job but no enough thrilling for this gryffindor.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapph smiled wickedly at the memory. But, that wasn't something she would share with Alkander just yet- her glittery adventures were something he would learn about sooner rather than later. Not today, though, because she had questions and he had answers. "Well then, you're going to explain this to me." She dragged him over to the edge of the lake and sat down. For the next hour she peppered him with questions. Probably simple things for someone who had grown up around magical creatures, but Sapph still wanted to know.

Her questions ranged anywhere from "Are these things really that tall?" to "Well then how the hell do they reproduce if they're so aggressive?" Finally, though, she had only last question. She snapped her book shut and looked Alkander straight in the eye. "How did this Newt guy have a whole zoo in his briefcase?"

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

His eyes started from his sockets as he was unexpectedly dragged over to the lake's edge. "Oh, wow, someone's thirsty for knowledge." He commented as he sat down ready to answer any questions she might have. Alkander was the type of person that he loved helping out when he could but Sapphire had way too many questions in her head. Regardless, the boy answered them with no eagerly, his expression molding according to the question's gravity or levity. He also went on to elaborate when he thought it was necessary and not just stay on short 'yes' or 'no'.

"Oh, that's an undetectable extension charm." He said about Scamander's briefcase and went on to reveal further about the charm. "You can extend the internal dimensions of an object without affecting its exterior." He explained as simply as he could. "It is a very complex spell from what I know from my father and you have to get permission from the Ministry. My family's breeding facilities for magical creatures and our home is protected in that same way because, disillusionment charms on so many creatures is such a hard work." He explained why he knew too much about the particular charm.

Alkander wondered if she was going to keep bombarding him with questions so he decided to tell her about the class they were going to have in a few years. "We're going to study care of magical creatures in our third year I think, so you're going to learn more about creatures then." He revealed, hoping that he had reduced the amount of questions that were going to come his way. "What about photography? Are you good with a camera?" He asked as she had mentioned that she liked what his uncle was doing for a living. Knowing about creatures was half of the job, the other half required a good eye and technique with the lens.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapphire grinned the entire time, delighted to find someone who could actually tell her what she wanted to know. She slipped the book back in her bag, choosing to ignore Alkanders statement about the class in third year. Whereas she would be ecstatic to take the class, that was still two years away and she had questions now. His other question, however, she would answer.

"I dunno, I've never tried." She said plainly. "But I'm going to find out during break. I can get a camera and figure out the rest." She turned to Alkander then, reaching in and wrapping her arms around his neck. Before coming to school, the only people Sapph would so much as look at were the younger kids. She never touched anyone.

And now she was giving out the first hug she'd had in years. "Thanks Alkander," She muttered.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Alkander was about to tell Sapphire that most decent cameras were quite expensive when he received an unanticipated hug from her. He froze with a startled expression on his usually smug face but quickly melted into a hearty smile. He patted softly her back, realizing just then how much she needed a friend. He thought that he was really fortunate to have his father, sister and the few friends back home in his life. Sometimes he took them for granted but not everyone was surrounded with people who cared about them. The boy had developed a liking for Sapphire's strangeness and he considered her a friend.

"It's nothing." He said with another comforting pat. "That's what friends are for." He smiled genuinely when they broke apart. "But don't expect me to soften just because we are friends. I'm gonna beat you and be the first one to have explored the entire school." His smugness returned in an instance as he wiggled a finger and narrowed his eyes. Then he noticed that something was still bothering her and he abandoned his banter. "Come on! Cheer up! Look where are you now!" He shook her shoulder and pointed at the lake and its mirror-like, serene surface. He was convinced that the school was far better than the house she came from. Yet, there was ill-concealed sorrow in her eyes.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapph tried to laugh at Alkanders boasting, but she just wasn't feeling it. "It's very pretty Alkander," she told him as he gestured to the lake. The way her mind worked sometimes really irritated her. She had been all cheered up, but then she started thinking how cool friends were, and then she started thinking friends had birthdays, and then she started thinking she would need to find out when Alkander and Oliver's birthdays were, and then she remembered that next week was her birthday and no one would remember it this year either.

Not knowing if her next question would make her feel better or worse, Sapph asked the first thing that had popped into her head. "Hey, uh, Salamander, what are birthdays like here at school?"

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Alkander's attention was caught by a few freckled trouts, leaping and slapping the unruffled surface, hoping to catch one of the squadron of flies that buzzed about. He started wondering what other kind of creatures thrived beneath the surface, when his friend asked him something unanticipated. He looked at her puzzled at first, in an attempt to grasp how she came with that question. "I dunno." He shrugged. "I guess like everywhere around the world. Friends preparing a surprise with a cake and giving gifts." He added as he thought more about it. He wasn't going to find out himself since his birthday coincided with winter vacations. "That was a question out of the blue." He said and picked up a stone that he flung towards the splashing trouts. "Is it because your birthday is close?" He made a guess.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapph rubbed the back of her neck, feeling embarrassed for bringing it up. "oh, uh, you know what, it doesn't really matter," She chuckled nervously. "I was just curious is all." She tried to shrug the whole thing off, not really sure how Alkander would react if he did know.

Not like it had ever been a big deal before. Birthdays had never really been a thing at the Home. Hell, she doubted anyone there even knew when her birthday was. "When's your birthday, anyway?" She asked, trying to throw him off topic. She had forgotten that half the reason she didn't like talking to people was that she was so bad at it.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Alkander shook his head subtly when Sapphire attributed her question to curiosity. He was now convinced that she probably had her birthday soon and she was emotionally low for that reason. She tried however to change slightly the subject but Alkander wouldn't let her have her way. "Tenth of July." He responded about his birthday, deciding to be straightforward with her. "It's your birthday soon, isn't it?" He asked confident that he had figured out the source of her low spirits. He stopped studying her features and instead he gazed at the lake once again, picking another stone from the ground. "When's yours?" He asked her and tossed the stone towards the lake, in a failed attempt to make it bounce off the surface.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapph winced. She didn't think she was that easy to read. "Next Thursday," She admitted reluctantly, then snickered when he failed to skip rocks. There was something she was a little better at. She picked up a pebble herself. "You have to flick it with the wrist, Salamander." She told him, before doing so herself. The pebble skipped across the water four times before sinking beneath its surface. She turned and smiled at her friend.

 

[Alkander Avaskadiras]

Finally Alkander could see the root of her defeatism. He tried to put himself in her shoes and think of what would have lifted his spirits in the same occasion. Sometimes small things and a genuine act of kindness could make such a difference. In his head there was suddenly scheming but he didn't let any indication be reflected on his face. Instead he tried once more to distract her from her thoughts that were bringing her down.

Alkander raised an eyebrow as she did what he had failed to perform miserably.
"I can't be perfect in everything." He boasted with a hint of sarcasm as he stood up, in search for a better pebble. "Show me! How you do this?" He asked after another throw just sunk into the waters.

 

[Sapphire Michaels]

Sapph laughed and gathered a few pebbles before getting up and handing one to Alkander. "You have to have a smooth stone or it won't work," She told him, before skipping another pebble herself. This one bounced four times before dropping. "Try to throw level with the water," She suggested, smiling up at him.

His birthday was in July, huh? She would need to bring something back to school with her. A few vague ideas began forming in her head.