It's Cold Down Here

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen Blade liked to spend his time outside of class looking around the castle, but most days he found himself far too scared to venture outside after his curfew. Tonight he found himself in the dungeon, way after curfew. Why? He'd managed to get himself lost. He didn't really understand how, and he was more than a little bit confused about all of this. Normally he managed to find his way around the castle pretty easily, but he hadn't ventured down into the dungeons, so it was only natural that he'd find himself lost eventually. With a sigh, he slumped down onto the floor, and hoped that a student, or even a professor, would come by soon.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

Halloween had been a fun time for Anabelle. She had managed to help a few friends with their makeup and costumes. It cemented the fact that that was what she wanted to do for the rest of her life. Anabelle knew she was young, but she had done her research, and being a make-up artist just sounded right to her. But the excitement had quickly come and gone, and Ana found herself unsure what to do with her time. She still had yet to find a friend that she was really close with. Her favorite person at the castle was easily Rory, but he was always busy, and seemed to have many more friends than her. Anabelle often found herself going to the student lounge, like she did when she was in her First Year, just to feel the company of having others around her.
Tonight, she couldn't sleep. Usually she liked the noise, but for some reason, the snores of her roommates kept her tossing and turning. She had tried the Common Room, but the silence was getting to her. Anabelle knew what she needed. Even though it was after curfew, all she wanted was to go for a walk. The Slytherin had done it a few times before, each time venturing a bit further than the last. However, tonight she hadn't gone very far before she saw a person slouched in the distance. She froze, wondering who on earth it could be. The person didn't seem too much bigger than her, so she doubted it was a Professor, but it could easily be a Prefect. Anabelle hesitated, wondering what she should do. What if the person was hurt? Or just really tired? That could explain why they were on the floor. Ana took a few steps closer, trying to see who it was. If she did get into trouble, she could always claim sleep walking, right? "Are-are you okay?" Anabelle asked softly.

 

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen looked up as someone else approached and she asked if he was okay. Was he? Mostly, yeah, but he still faced the problem that he was lost and he had absolutely no idea if he could trust his girl. A vast majority of the bad stories he had heard in relation to the school involved Slytherin's and they were almost always rude people. But, at a glance, she didn't look like she was that kind of person and she didn't seem like she was going to curse him or lead him astray. Besides, the longer he waited the worse off he'd be if a professor or a prefect showed up. "I'm lost. I need to find my way to Gryffindor." He told her with a sad look on his face.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

Ana had an inward sigh of relief when she realized the person wasn't a prefect. The boy seemed to be around her age, give or take a year. This wasn't the first time she helped someone out of the dungeons - the last time it was a Gryffindor too. Anabelle smiled at the boy, nodding her head. "Well, I can certainly help you out of the dungeons - I'm not entirely sure where Gryffindor is though." She replied with a smile, hoping to get rid of his frown. "My name is Anabelle." She had long since believed in the so called feud between Gryffindors and Slytherins. Ana had met plenty of Gryffindors that she liked, and while she wondered if ancestors of old would be upset that she didn't play to their rules, something that she would usually do, but she couldn't bring herself to be rude to someone. Especially someone who didn't deserve it.

 

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen smiled brightly when she said that she could help him get out of the dungeons. He hadn't been expecting someone in Slytherin to be so nice to him, but for some reason she was. He hoped that there wasn't any funny business going on, but for the time reason she seemed trustworthy. "My name is Kristen Blade." He told her, not exactly sure why he had given her his whole name when she had only told him her first name. He liked the name Anabelle though. "Thanks for the help." He told her, a little embarrassed still that he had been forced to ask for help in the first place. "I can find my way back from outside the dungeons, it's just so confusing down here." He told her. He was glad that someone nice had come along.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

Ana was glad to see the smile reciprocated. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Kristen Blade." Anabelle responded. She would shake his hand, but he was still on the ground so it felt awkward. She nodded her head when he thanked her. "Don't thank me just yet. For all you know I could be leading you to a horde of angry Slytherins." Anabelle joked, her giggle definitely giving it away. "It takes awhile to get used to finding your way around down here. Don't worry, you aren't the first to get lost." Ana giggled. "Shall we get going?" She said, motioning towards the way the were going to walk.

 

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen froze when she mentioned that she could be leading him to a horde of angry Slytherins. What if she was? He knew that most people wouldn't reveal their plans like that, but what if that was just what she was expecting him to think? She had laughed just afterwards, so maybe she was just joking around with him.. but what if she wasn't and she was actually just luring him into a false sense of security. He wasn't sure what to do, and he was all of a sudden aware that he was still sitting on the cold floor of the dungeon. "Are.. are you?" He asked, his voice trembling as some of his old insecurities came to the surface. "P..please don't." He told her, a scared look on his face. She probably hadn't even been serious judging by her next words, but it was too late now.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

Anabelle's smile immediately disappeared as Kristen's attitude changed. Everything about him changed, even his voice trembled and stuttered as he asked if she was really leading him to an angry horde. Ana shook her head vigorously, kneeling down opposite the boy. She felt terrible, how could she have done this to him? She didn't know why he reacted so badly, she thought she was doing a joke right, but obviously she had failed. Ana half made to reach out to him, but second thought it in case he thought she was going to attack him. "I'm - I'm joking. I'm sorry, I didn't - there's no one else - I would never - " Anabelle managed to stutter out, completely horrified at his reaction. She left the sentence up in the air, not entirely sure what else to say.

 

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen looked up when she began to frantically try and figure out what to say. Maybe she had only really been joking? She didn't really know him very well, so she wouldn't know that it would have set him off. He'll, sometimes he didn't even know what was going to set him off. He gave her a weak smile. "I.. I'm sorry.. I'm okay.." He told her. He hadn't meant to make her feel like that, but he hadn't been sure if she had been serious or not. "I.. I didn't know that you were joking.." He told her, and he stood up and gave her a hug hoping that she would feel better. "It was a good joke.. but.. I didn't know.." He blurted out.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

At Kristen's small smile, Ana felt a spark of relief. She still was feeling terrible, but stood as he did and returned the hug, the two had obviously bonded quickly over freaking each other out. Anabelle shook her head as he claimed it was a good joke. "No, it was stupid, it wasn't even funny. I really am sorry. Are you sure you're okay?" Anabelle asked, wondering if it was the dark of the dungeons that was making him jumpy. "Perhaps if we get out of here, you will feel better?" She asked, desperately wanting him to forgive her for being so silly. This was not the way to make new friends.

 

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen could tell that she still felt quite bad, and he felt bad for her. He hadn't mean to freak out at her joke... he really hadn't. It was just how he was. "No.. no.. it was good! I just haven't had the best childhood so I don't really understand jokes so well, but I'm okay.. really!" He told her, mustering up all of the strength he could. He held out his hand for her to lead the way. He didn't want to be down in the scary dungeons anymore, but he was glad that he had his new friend to help him escape.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

The young Slytherin frowned at her new friend's answer. She wondered what kind of childhood anyone could have that would make them freak out so bad; although to be fair it was a terrible joke. Anabelle decided she'd have to write to her sisters and ask them if they knew any jokes, so she could work on her humor, and actually have people laugh next time. Though, she felt nervous about jokes now, and wasn't sure if she'd like to tell any again. Anabelle took Kristen's hand and started to lead him through the dark dungeons, keeping her ears out in case she heard any footsteps that weren't theirs. "Well, if you wanted to talk about it, I'm here to listen." Anabelle offered. "Only if you want to." She added quickly. "I know we've only just met. It might just help me to not make anymore stupid jokes."

 

[Kristen Blade]

Kristen considered her words as they walked through the dungeons towards the Gryffindor Common Room. There was a lot to be said about his past, and he did feel bad for the way he had reacted over a (mostly) innocent joke. With a shrug, he decided that he'd tell her some of the story. "When I was around 1 my family decided that looking after me and the rest of my siblings was too much work so they shipped me off to an orphanage." He told her. It was a sad story, and he hadn't told very many people. But he knew that it wasn't something that he could keep to himself his entire life, and maybe telling it to his new friend would help him feel better about it.

 

[Anabelle Williams]

Anabelle felt her heart sink when she heard what Kristen said. She continued to lead him through the dungeons, she was so unsure what to say. It was only a moment of silence, where all she could hear was their footsteps. Though Anabelle felt like she was a constant disappointment to her parents, and at Hogwarts she felt more free, she could imagine the heartbreak of her parents not wanting her anymore. The blonde squeezed Kristen's hand as they neared the stairs out of the dungeon. "I'm sorry Kristen. That's terrible." She had no idea what else to say. "Are - are your siblings at the same - orphanage as you?" Anabelle wondered how many siblings he had.