I Ain't Lost; I'm Explorin'

[Claire Aurelious]

When the sunshine had disappeared, and her surroundings had become slightly damp, Claire made the educated guess that she was down in the dungeons. She had been down there before for her potions class, so it wasn't completely unfamiliar territory, but she didn't know it all that well. Even knowing that she didn't quiet know where everything was, Claire still wandered through the corridors with a smile on her face and a skip in her step. Even after three weeks, nothing had faltered her mood. She still found herself a bit chilled quiet often, and was curious to know why. She was still chalking it up to the sudden switch in seasons, since she had came over at teh end of winter, when it was summer in Georgia. Though, Claire's boy may have been telling her something else. Since she had been skipping meals out of excitement and her own forgetfulness. Luckily, Claire had thought ahead. She had dressed in jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket, all of which were warmer than her normal cloths.

As she made her way deeper in the dungeon, she noticed less and less Slytherins, and less and less dirty looks. Some of them seemed to be mean, but, Claire was sure they were just having a bad day. Or that they were joking. She didn't believe that anyone had the capability to be mean, and thus far, she was pretty correct. She had met at least two people who were sweethearts; Sammy and Sadie. And a few more over the summer that she had been meaning to reconnect with. She took a corner and stopped, her thoughts broken as she nearly avoided running into someone."I'm so sorry, hun." She said, the southern accent almost prideful in her voice.
​

 

[David Pike]

David was wondering down through the dungeons, just getting a feel for the place. He really hated not knowing where he was living, so he went exploring quiet frequently, just so he wouldn't get lost. He also usually took that time to think back on his day, that is assuming he wasn't in a depressed mood. You see, that was the annoying thing about his depression. It wasn't constant, it just crept up on him, often at the worst of times.

Luckily, today he was in a fine mood. Nothing particularly wrong or anything. As he was wondering around pondering life, as he did quiet often for no particular reason, he suddenly almost ran into a little girl, probably twelve or eleven. It was hard to tell with the dim lighting, but he was relatively sure she was a Gryffindor. Possibly a first year. She spoke in a southern accent.

"Oh, it's fine. Are you lost?"

 

[Claire Aurelious]

Claire looked up at the boy, who towered at least a foot over her. He had black hair, and she moved from his hair to his eyes. They were either blue, or grey, or both; it was hard to tell with only candles or lanterns to light these hallways. She tilted her head slightly to the left when he asked if she was lost. In a way, this might make her stubborn, but Claire wouldn't admit she was lost. Ever. She wasn't one to ask for directions from anyone openly, something she had most likely gotten from her father. He had stubbornness, and her mom did too; it was a part of the southern culture, Claire believed. Most people down south were stuck in their ways, it was something Claire loved about her home. They would stand up for what they believed in, no matter what.

"Oh no, I don't get lost." she said with a slight laugh, waving the comment away with her hand. "I just wanna make sure I know every inch of this place!" it was half ways the truth. Claire did get lost sometimes, but she also was trying to get to know every inch of this place. She loved the school, the people, the classes, and the teachers. And she wouldn't ever stop loving it, she was sure. "Are you a Slither-in'?" She asked, putting a bit too much emphasis on the 'slither' part.
​

 

[David Pike]

David smirked a bit when she mentioned getting to know every inch of this freaking huge school, but frowned when she mentioned his house.

"I am a Slytherin, although I'm certainly not proud of it, nor am I mean like some of the others."

He spoke the truth. He didn't like all of the stereotypes that came along with being a Slytherin. Being in Slytherin didn't necessarily mean you were bad. Come to think if it, he wasn't entirely site why he was in Slytherin. He assumed it was his cunningness or subtle arrogance, but he could be wrong.

"Does it really matter?"

 

[Claire Aurelious]

She watched the boy smirk at the comment. maybe it sounded ridiculous, after all, this building was huge. Seven floors, if every floor was a story, then it was about 140 feet tall. And that was a lot of feet, in Claire's mind. She had rarely gone to the big city, and hadn't really done sight seeing with big buildings. The town hall and her house were the two biggest houses she had ever seen. This was like eight of those combined. "Why wouldn't you be proud of it?" She asked him. "i mean, you're special and magical. i don't think a house matters, as long as you're here!" She said with a grin. She wondered what he meant by mean; she hadn't actually met anyone who was mean just yet.

"oh, no, don't matter. I just wanted to know!" She replied still smiling. She looked down teh hall past him and saw a door. it had to be to the dorms. "Wanna walk with me for a bit. i do like company!" She exclaimed, still a little louder than she should be. Claire was always a little louder than she should be. "I'm Claire Adkins." She extended her hand out to shake the boy's.
​

 

[David Pike]

David raised an eyebrow, and than took the girl's hand and shook it.

" I'm David, and..."

He thought about it for a bit. He normally didn't get on well with kids. They tended to get on his nerves, but he was feeling kind of nice today. He took a second to brush some hair out of his face, revealing his eyes again. So, why not go with her.

"Sure, I'll walk with you."

 

[Claire Aurelious]

Claire noticed that the boy's handshake seemed to be a bit weak, as if he hadn't expected a handshake like that. Claire had always had a decent grip, when you road horses and worked on the farm, you had it. Her hands weren't the smoothest, callus in some places, and soft skin in others created an almost strange sensation when touched. "Nice to meet ya, David!" She exclaimed, her bright smile shining even in the dark. Claire always took great care of her teeth. She really just took great care of herself, since hygiene was just as important as the reason you were getting clean. That was something her parent shad been putting into her mind since day one. Her parents really had taught her good values all together.

She waited as David seemed to debate pros and cons of walking with her. To Claire, she couldn't see a downside. it wasn't that she was conceited, she just didn't think there was a downside with walking alongside someone who was friendly enough to offer the companionship. When he said yes, she smiled and started walking. "So where are ya from? Your accent sounds familiar?" She asked, the southern drawl taking letters and making them sound different than normal. The boy almost sounded like Sammy. Maybe he was from the same place. Then again, Claire didn't know very much about accents, other than the various dialects that were found in America. Like the New York accent; it seemed funny to her, where as hers seemed funny to them
​

 

[David Pike]

"Australia, specifically Sydney.

David smiled a bit, which he didn't do often.

"What about you?"

He was guessing somewhere in America, probably in the south. Based on her general demeanor he might guess a small town, but that might not necessarily true. She seemed nice, a bit nieve maybe, but generally nice. She was really young, but he didn't mind. He could use the friends.

Out of Character:

Sorry for shortness.

 

[Claire Aurelious]

"Australia! I have a friend from there! He's a prefect!" Claire's voice was excited as she spoke of her new best friend. She loved to talk about her friends positively, because then maybe they could make more friends and be happy the way that she is. She saw the older boy smile, and it made her smile. It may have been a small one, but a smile was a smile. Claire always valued them, even when she wasn't creating them. However, when she was making the smile, it was just that much better. "me? i'm from America!" She said proudly.

If there was one thing that Claire was proud of, it was definitely her home country. She loved everything about where she came from. The small town feel, the smell of country air, and the way her parents had a place all there own, almost a separate world. She missed it, in that very moment she felt a little more pain that normal in her chest. She felt the remembrance in her mind of what it was like to run through the tall grass, or to ride a horse with no cares. She missed all of it. "I'm from Crawfordville, Georgia to be exact!" She said, a smile on her face. "it's a pretty small place!"
​

 

[David Pike]

"So, your a small town girl than?"

She was quite the energetic girl, for once he didn't mind. She was actually talking to him, and she seemed happy about it. From his experience, he left people alone, and they left him alone. It was a nice feeling, socializing. A feeling he didn't experience often.

A prefect you say? You have some friends in high places.

He flipped some hair out of his eyes and actually smiled, well smirked, but you get the point.

 

[Claire Aurelious]

Claire looked at David with that perpetual smile on her face. "Well i guess ya can call it that!" She said with a giggle. She never labled herself as such, but it was pretty true. She wasn't just a small town girl, she was a southern girl as well. it was obvious that she was just the stereotype of it to. She was naive, lovable, and had an accent that got on some northerners nerves. She didn't mind though, in fact, Claire didn't even know she had an accent. Everyone else, in her mind, were the ones that talked funny.

Claire continued walking with him, about a foot away. Down the halls you could hear their footsteps piecing the silent and echoing in the dungeon. it was actually a neat sound, and interesting beat. Claire took about three steps to David's one, long stride. "Yeah, he's a doll!" She said with another cheeky smile. "High places?" She asked not entirely sure what David was getting at. Claire hadn't even thought of the fact that Sammy enforced rules, much like a police man.
​

 

[David Pike]

Nevermind.

David had froggeten he was talking with a little girl, it was supposed to be a joke, but she was too young to get it. She was so short compared to him, it was awkward having to look down at her when they talked; well, it wasn't that bad, but not something he was really used to.

"You looking forward to Holidays and all that?"

He wasn't, he had actually grown quite fond of this place. He wanted to stay, but he knew he couldn't. It was back to Sydney for him. Claire would likely go somewhere too, and all of the other friends he'd made, he'd probably come back and no body would remember him, because he's just not the special. Wait, he stopped himself, he didn't want the depression to come now, that would suck. Why did it always have sucky timing. He tried to put in a smile, but it was likely unconvincing.