Closed Hopeful for a Chance Encounter

[Alice Holland]

Alice had realized over the break that she really did have a crush on Phineas Ellis. Or at least, that she had what felt like she thought a crush should feel like, which was pretty much the same. She had heard Diana talk about her boyfriend in the past, and while her sister could be dramatic, Alice figured her own feelings were fairly similar to what Diana had described. Alice was now back at Hogwarts, and wondering what would be a good way to talk to Phineas. Last time she had seen him she had delivered a rose to him, but this time she didn't have such a convenient excuse. So her plan today just consisted of hanging out around the Slytherin common room, hoping to run into him. If she was questioned about it, she would just claim she was waiting for her sister. It was a pretty foolproof plan. While she leaned against the dungeon wall, Alice scribbled ideas for the study group she was planning in a notebook. She was rather hoping Phineas would join, but also knew that was unlikely. She glanced up from her scribbling occasionally to see if she spotted him anywhere, but so far he was nowhere to be seen.

 

[Uno Bear]

Coming back to Hogwarts was always bittersweet. It was obviously, much much better than staying at home, but ughhhh all the homework! There were so many boring classes as well, she wished she could just stick to the two or three that she did actually like. Still, Uno didn't have to think about that just yet, and she planned to spend most of the day outside, even though it was still cold. She'd rather be cold outside than cooped up inside.
Upon leaving her Common Room, however, she happened to run into a person she discovered she didn't really like all the much. "Ugh, what are you doing down here badger? Please don't tell me you're trying to recruit us all to your study group again." Uno said with a frown on her face.

 

[Alice Holland]

As Alice saw Uno approach, she was a little hopeful Phineas would be with her. The two of them were close friends, so Alice looked around hopefully for a moment before her gaze settled on the other girl. Alice had wanted to be friends with Uno, but it seemed like the Slytherin was determined not to like her and to be mean to her. It wasn't a big deal, as Alice knew how to deal with that. Diana had been good practice. A bright smile appeared on her face as she looked at the grumpy Slytherin. "Don't worry, I wasn't going to ask you again." She said, her voice chipper and bright. "I was just waiting for someone, but I can do that on my own." She said with a small shrug and a little wave to indicate Uno could leave.

 

[Uno Bear]

Uno didn't miss Alice looking around past her, and she narrowed her eyes. Uno snorted when Alice said she wasn't going to invite her to the study group - it was the stupidest thing she had ever heard of. The Puff went on to say she was waiting for someone, and it took a moment for Uno to think about who it may have been. "Wait, hold up, you're waiting for Finn, aren't you?" Uno said, with a bark of laughter. "You know he's not going to join you either, right?" She said, folding her arms. She didn't like how Alice had waved her to leave, and there was no way she was going to be shooed out of her own territory by this girl. Uno was definitely not one to feel intimidated.

 

[Alice Holland]

Alice had tried to be open to Uno, but there came a point where she got fed up with being talked down to. Though she had learned from Diana that it was often very irritating for the people mocking you if you pretended not to notice, so that was a strategy she happily employed. Alice kept her expression neutral even as Uno laughed at her, and shook her head. "I'm not expecting him to join my study group." She said calmly, giving the girl another smile. "And I do have a sister in Slytherin, you know." She added, not confirming or denying she was waiting for Phineas.

 

[Uno Bear]

Uno frowned when the girl smiled at her, her brows furrowing. She was the most infuriating person ever - and that was saying a lot compared to the family Uno had. The Slytherin cocked an eyebrow, when Alice said she didn't expect Finn to join her study group - sure, but she wanted him to. What was with her anyway? When the Hufflepuff said something about her sister, Uno crunched her eyebrows again, confused. "That's nice...but if you're waiting for me to care, I hope you brought something to eat, cause it's gonna be a really long time." Uno said, her arms still folded, as she looked the girl up and down. Merlin she was frustrating.

 

[Alice Holland]

Alice fought the urge to roll her eyes at Uno's words, but only tried to smile at her more brightly. "Well, I thought you were asking me why I was here, so I was giving you a reason. So you could be on your way without having to wonder." She said, her smile unwavering. "You did wonder why I was here, right? I didn't misunderstand?" She cast one last look around, but Phineas wasn't here. She sighed, a little disappointed. She was tempted to ask Uno where he was, but felt like it wasn't in her best interest to disclose any information the Slytherin could potentially use against her. Her crush on Phineas wasn't something she was extremely keen on hiding, but she wasn't going to just tell the girl either.

 

[Uno Bear]

Uno snorted at Alice's reply, growing more and more frustrated at the girl's stupid smile. Why did she have to act so sweet and innocent all the time?! "You one hundred percent misunderstood - I really did not ask you why you are here. You're just mad because I caught you out, pathetically waiting around, hoping to find Shark-Boy. Don't worry, I'll go in the Common Room and tell him to never come out." Uno replied with a smirk. She hoped at least that comment would get a rise out of the girl.

 

[Alice Holland]

Alice could tell Uno was getting frustrated, but she honestly felt like that was the girl's own doing. Alice was just standing here, minding her own business. If Uno wanted to be annoyed with her so badly, she could knock herself out. "Well, you did ask what I was doing here, so I must have misunderstood what you meant by that." She said, still smiling. "I'm not mad at all, actually. So don't worry." She glanced down at her notebook before putting it in the pocket of her robes. "I would have liked to run into Phineas, as he's my friend, but if you want to tell him he can never come out you can do that." She shrugged. "I doubt he would listen, but you never know. It would be tricky at mealtimes and during classes though." She pondered her next move for a moment, but decided it was unlikely that she would run into Phineas today. Even if she did, Uno wasn't going to just let them chat together it seemed. "But I'll talk to him some other time. It was nice to catch up." She said, pretending the girl hadn't been insulting her the whole time. In her experience, ignoring it was more frustrating for the person insulting her, because she knew they only wanted to get a rise out of her. "I'll see you around, okay?"

 

[Uno Bear]

Uno rolled her eyes dramatically at Alice's response, scoffing when she said Finn wouldn't listen anyway. Sure, but he'd probably go along with hiding from the stupid Hufflepuff for a bit, just to pretend that he did listen - just for fun. Probably. Right? Uno was angry that this girl was now also making Uno judge the friendship she had with Finn. But when Alice mentioned she'd talk to him some other time, Uno grinned. She fully just admitted she was waiting for him! The Hufflepuff continued to talk and the Slytherin girl shook her head. "For f**ks sake Jennifer, why don't you just stand up for yourself? You obviously were waiting for Finn, it definitely wasn't nice to catch up, so what the hell are you playing at? Why won't you fight back?" Uno scolded.

 

[Alice Holland]

It seemed like Uno had had enough, but Alice had already decided she was done with this. She would leave this on her terms, not on Uno's. So she waved cheerfully. "My name is Alice, actually. Though Jennifer is nice!" She said brightly, still keeping up the happy facade. "I was waiting for someone to spend some time with, either a friend or my sister. Phineas is one of my friends, so he was included in that." She then laughed, as if Uno was making a joke. "And we're not fighting, silly. Fighting is so childish, don't you think? Almost as childish as calling someone by a wrong name on purpose. But we're above all that, aren't we?" Alice shot Uno one last smile, making it as sugary sweet as she possibly could. "Bye Uno!" Then she waved again, and started walking away, humming. If Uno wanted, she could keep talking angrily at the wall, but Alice was heading to her common room.