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[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob Kingsley was back to enjoying his time in the castle, his memories of the courtyard still present but slowly fading away. He had grown tired of seeing his mother frown at him as she tried to figure out what was wrong. Besides, he did have some friends, or some people who continued to speak to him in spite of what had been said. So it seemed that not everyone hated his family. Some of them didn't even care, and those were Jacob's favorite. He wanted people to like him for him. Like Boxers and Jacob two. He liked them both a lot. And the guys in the Brotherhood were fun too.

Continuing to wiggle his toes as they rested in the water, Jacob wondered if the rumors were true. Were there really merpeople in here? Dragons in the castle? Centaurs in the forest? He'd slowly learned that Hogwarts was a weird place where anything was possible.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia Manning wasn't doing so well lately. She hadn't seen her cousins as much as she would have expected, and she hadn't really managed to make many friends yet. The girls in her dorm were all very nice, but generally Emilia was too shy to approach anyone she didn't know already. It was starting to feel a little lonely, and she hoped a walk outside might help. What she hoped for even more was to run into Evelyn or Espen, or even Athena. Just anyone she knew and could cling to for a bit of comfort.

She had wandered out to the lake, a spot she had visited before. She had talked to Sophia for a bit here, which had been nice. But now she didn't see anyone she had been hoping for. There was just a boy with his feet in the water. Emilia watched him for a moment, she recognized him from classes. Actually, she was fairly sure he was the brother of Evelyn's boyfriend. Though she hadn't really talked to him yet. They had played that game with a group of first years after flying, but Emilia had mostly watched the others play. She stood for a moment, unsure of what to do. Then, she decided she should try to be more like Evelyn. Evelyn would approach him, she would talk to a stranger and make a friend. Taking a deep breath, Emilia approached the boy. "Hi." She said softly. "You're in my year, I think. Right?" She pushed some of her hair behind her ear and glanced at the ground. It was a stupid thing to say, as she was sure he was in first year. She just didn't know how else to phrase it. "Isn't the water cold?" She asked him after a nervous pause. It wasn't the best conversation opener in history, and she hoped he wouldn't mind her interrupting his thoughts.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob glanced up, pushing up his glasses as he did. They'd slipped slightly as he'd been looking into the water. He took in the girl, trying to place her and then he nodded his head. The Gryffindor recalled having seen her in some of his classes, flying and another though he couldn't recall which one right at the moment. "Yup, I think so. I'm Jacob" he said with a smile.

As she asked about the water, Jacob shrugged his shoulders. "It's not too bad" he lied. Really, his toes were pretty chilled but he didn't want to admit it which was pretty silly. "Wanna join me?" he asked hopefully. Jacob didn't much like being alone and always preferred a companion to flying solo.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia was relieved when the boy didn't react badly to her presence, and didn't seem annoyed to be interrupted. She twisted the end of a lock of her hair between her fingers as she listend to him introduce himself. "I'm Emilia." She said quietly in response, giving him a small smile as well.

She glanced at the water uncertainly as he said it wasn't too bad. She supposed it was spring here, so maybe the water had warmed up enough? When he asked her to join, her eyes went back to him and she regarded him uncertainly. She didn't particularly feel like putting her feet in the water, but now that he asked her she also didn't want to say no and be mean. After a silent moment she nodded and took off her shoes and socks before sitting next to him. Once her feet touched the water, she squeaked in alarm. It was much colder than she had expected after talking to him. Blushing, she glanced at him sideways, letting them dangle int he water despite the unpleasant temperature. She decided to ask him a question, just so she was sure of who he was. "So um, I could be totally wrong..." She started softly, "but are you by any chance Noah Kingsley's brother?" She turned her gaze away from him and looked at the water, hoping he wouldn't mind the question.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob watched as the girl seemed to be joining him. He almost wanted to warn her about the water, but then thay would mean him admitting he found it cold so he said nothing. He couldn't help but chuckle a little at her squeak, but he was impressed when she didn't shy away and instead kept her feet in. It was probably why he answered her question even though he didn't really want to. Jacob hadn't had a good experience the first time people found out about his family so he was a bit afraid of why she was asking. She'd asked about Noah though, not her dad or mom.

Jacob looked at the girl but she wasn't looking at him so it was hard to see if she had some bad intent. So he quietly answered. "Yes" he said, his tone flat but his curiosity betrayed him and he continued. "Why do you want to know?" Jacob wiggled his toes, the cold drifting between his toes even. "If it's because you have a crush on him...he has a girlfriend. Evelyn" Jacob added quietly.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia felt her cheeks heat up when the guy laughed at her, even if he didn't seem like he meant to be mean. She ducked her head slightly, making her blond hair cover her face. She was glad she hadn't asked the wrong about about Noah Kingsley, as that would be incredibly embarrassing, but then the boy said something that embarrassed her anyway. "What!?" She gasped, looking up at him in alarm. "Um, no. No! I don't have a crush on him. I don't even know him!" She said quickly, her eyes wide. "I know he has a girlfriend. That's why I asked. She's my cousin!" She said more and talked more rapidly than usual, eager to get this misconception cleared up. "I was just curious..."

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob realized quickly enough that he'd had the wrong idea about the girl and it was his turn to blush, the heat reaching to his ears and making them red. "Oh Merlin, I'm so sorry...I just thought...everyone always...I'm going to just shut up now" the first year stammered in between the girl's own sentences. And then she declared herself to be Evelyn's cousin and that seemed to make everything worse. Jacob felt terrible for assuming such a terrible thing about the girl.

"Sorry" he mumbled again, his feet swaying in the water through his agitation. Jacob stayed staring at the small waves and ripples he was making for a moment before he spoke up again. "Can we pretend that didn't happen?" he asked, his gaze still down.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia had to stifle a giggle at theboy's expression after he realized his mistake. At least she wasn't the only one mortified now. Crushes and boys were strange enough to talk about with her cousin, let alone a stranger. A BOY stranger. But she soon felt bad for correcting him as he was taking it quite hard. Emilia glanced at him and gave him ashy smile. "It's okay. Does it happen a lot that girls like him?" She asked with a slight tilt of her head. It was no surprise to her that even with a lot of girls chasing after him, he chose her cousin. Evelyn was obviously the best.

Giving him her best reassuring smile, Emilia tried to communicate that it really was okay."We can, if you want to," she said with a small shrug. Her feet retracted slightly from the water at the ripples and she averted her gaze. "Evelyn really likes him, I think." She added quietly. The two had seemed like a dream couple to her, perfectly matched. Crushes were still a somewhat foreign concept to her, and she glanced at the boy again. Maybe he already had a crush, and that's why it was on his mind? Part of her wanted to ask, but that would just make things more awkward. "You're good at flying." She said instead. "I noticed during class."

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob was glad the girl didn't yell at him or anything. She was really nice actually. Giving a small shrug, Jacob spoke. "Seems so. When we go out together, people always stop me and are like 'Ooh does your brother have a girlfriend?' And 'Ooh can you tell your brother' and then they tell me something stupid to tell him." Jacob made a face. Jacob had never asked his brother what he thought of it all or if he even noticed. He was sure he noticed. Noah was observant. "Evelyn's really nice" Jacob added with a smile. He liked her.

Blushing slightly, Jacob was happy when the conversation moved away from crushes and dating. It was weird to talk about out loud with someone who wasn't Jemma or Noah. "Thanks" he said, happy that was being noticed for his flying skills. "Do you like flying?" he asked, sorry that he couldn't tell her anything about her flying. Once he got in the air, he barely noticed anyone.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia was glad Jacob didn't seem to mind she had corrected him and gave him another small smile. His impressions of people talking about his brother made her giggle a little and she giggled more at the face he pulled. "I promise I won't have a crush on your brother. He's pretty old for me." She said shyly. "And he and Evelyn are perfect, I think." It pleased her that he said Evelyn was really nice, and she nodded. "I know!"

Soon, Emilia regretted changing the conversation subject to flying. It had been a simple way to compliment the boy, but she really should have expected the question in return. Her smile wavered and she shrugged as she averted her gaze. "It's nice..." She said vaguely. "But I'm not very good at it. I had a lot of trouble even in the first lesson." Emilia admitted, playing with her hair nervously. "But it's always fun to see you and some others fly. The ones that really like it and are good at it."

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob was glad to hear that the girl had no intentions of liking Noah. That was good. Maybe they could even become friends then since he wouldn't have to worry about her using him to get closer to Noah. Jacob thought his mom and dad had the most perfect relationship. They were always hugging and kissing and talking when they were in the same room. And everyone who knew them always said nice things about them together. But he still nodded politely as Emilia mentioned Noah and Evelyn being perfect too.

Jacob kept making mistakes as he spoke to the girl. It was clear she didn't love flying, not like he did. "It's hard but Professor Renner is a good teacher" he admitted, trying to reassure her even though flying had never felt hard to him. It seemed the polite thing to say, and he really did like the flying professor. "Maybe you'll be a natural at apparating" he shrugged. Jacob had side along apparated and he didn't love or hate it. It was kind of uncomfortable especially that moment just before you went. "Have you side alonged?"

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia was glad Jacob seemed to agree on Evelyn and Noah. She wondered if he felt similar admiration for his older brother, the way Emilia felt about Evelyn. Emilia wanted to be just like her, though she always seemed to fall short. She wasn't as pretty or as social, not as popular by far. This boy was one of the first people she'd had a long conversation with, and she was happy she had taken the step to go talk to him.

It made her feel a little bad that she wasn't able to agree with the boy about flying, but she knew she shouldn't lie either. At least he was nice about it, and she smiled at him. Surely, he didn't think it was hard, though she appreciated him telling her so. "It is a little difficult for me. But I'll get the hang of it." She said, even though she didn't feel confident about that at all. "And Professor Renner is really nice, he offered a lot of help." She said with a nod. The comment Jacob made about apparating was sweet of him, though Emilia very much doubted she would be a natural at that. She nodded. "I have, it's not very pleasant." She said with a shrug. "But maybe it's better if you do it yourself." Learning magic like that was so far off, it was hard to picture. Emilia still very much felt like a kid, and apparating was definitely something adults did. Her feet were starting to get cold, and after a moment of hesitation she took them out of the water. At this point, she didn't think Jacob would say anything mean about it. "I wish I was in Gryffindor, like you." She said after a moment. "I really wanted to be with Evelyn, and my other cousin Athena is in that house as well." She sighed sadly. "I knew I wouldn't be though. I'm not brave at all." She wasn't sure what made her open up like this, but she couldn't help the words pouring out. Jacob probably got exactly what he wanted, the house where his mother was head of house. That idea would be very comforting for Emilia, who missed her parents more than she wanted to admit.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

"Maybe" he said, though by his tone it was easily to tell that he was pretty skeptical. He'd asked his mom once if she actually liked apparating and she'd made a face, kind of like the one he made when she told him to eat his vegetables. Still, it was useful so he supposed that was why people dealt with it. It was far easier to pop into alleys than it was to find a place to store a broom or a carpet. Jacob imagined trying to stuff a magic carpet into an expandable bag and smiled widely at the thought, though he was quick to return his attention to the girl who was speaking on, now about Gryffindor.

He was in Gryffindor but the things she was saying hit close to home for him too, and Jacob found himself nodding. He slowly pulled his own feet out of the water, a shudder running through his body at the cold. He reached for his socks though he didn't pull them on right away. "I know what that feels like. I wanted to be in Slytherin like Noah. He's so smart and always knows exactly what he wants and then he gets it somehow " Jacob said quietly. He loved his brother a lot, but sometimes it was hard being his younger sibling. He was constantly being compared to him even though they were so different. And even when he tried his best, Jacob just couldn't be as good at anything as Noah was. "He's good at everything, and I'm just good at flying" Jacob shrugged. "Mom says Noah is purposeful just like our dad. He's always been more like our dad, and I guess I'm more like our mom, but I'm not brave like she is. I'm just..." Jacob thought for a second and then shrugged. "I'm just Jacob" he finished, not thinking it was a bad thing but not thinking he held any special bravery that other people simply didn't. "Hufflepuff is a nice house" he added. So far, he'd liked all of the people he'd spoken to from that house.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia had assumed the boy next to her wouldn't understand where she was coming from. After all, he was in the house she was longing for and he was with his mother. So when the boy said he knew what it felt like, she was surprised. Busy putting her own socks back on, she glanced at him with a startled expression on her face when he confessed he had wanted to be in Slytherin. Now that she remebered his brother was in that house, it made sense, and she nodded. It was sort of a relief to know she wasn't the only one who felt sort of sad about the house they were placed in. Slytherin wouldn't have been bad either, at least then she would have had Espen. She felt a stab of pity for the boy when he said he wasn't good at much, just flying. It was so close to how she often felt that it hurt her just to hear it. She shook her head. "Even if the same as your brother, you can still do things your way." She said, not sure where the words were even coming from. "I bet you're good at lots of things, but maybe you just haven't discovered them all yet." A part of her hoped that was true for her as well, though Jacob seemed a lot stronger than she was in her eyes. "If you weren't brave, you wouldn't be in Gryffindor. Even if you're just Jacob, maybe that means just Jacob is brave without having to try." She shrugged, looking down as she pulled her shoe over her foot. "You're brave to me, I've seen how fast you dare to fly. That may be simple for you, but for me that is being brave." His words about Hufflepuff were kind ones, though Emilia didn't feel all that cheered by it. Being nice wasn't hard, and she knew there were nice people in all houses.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob wasn't usually so open with strangers, but Emilia didn't feel like one. The Gryffindor didn't even think that she might tell someone else what he'd said. Those were things he'd me at voiced to anyone though he had a feeling his mother might have known because Emilia's first words sounded exactly like what his mother told him often. He looked down at his pants, brushing some grass from his knees as he listened to the pep talk, a faint smile on his face. He looked up quickly when she said his name, the words setting his heart to beating quickly. Brave without having to try? Jacob had never, ever thought that about himself.

Though usually quite verbose and gregarious, Jacob was at a loss for words. There was too much he wanted to say to that, so he started with the simplest bit. "Thank you." He spoke the words quietly, still very much caught up in all that she'd said. It was meaningful, poignant. And because it had come from a stranger, it perhaps might actually sink in. Brave without having to try. As the words rolled around, he found he liked that phrasing. "Do you always know what to say to make people feel better?" Jacob grinned. He hadn't even known the weight those feelings carried, but he felt lighter. "I do love Noah. It's just hard to be second" he added, wanting to be clear in that. "Maybe we'll both figure out our way over these next years."

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia really wasn't sure how she had thought of the words she said, but a part of her thought maybe she was saying things her mother had said to her in the past about Evelyn. When she heard it from her mother, it had never sounded quite true, but saying it to Jacob felt right. A small blush graced her cheeks, as she wasn't sure how the boy would take her words. After all, who was she to comment on his life? She hardly knew him. What if he got annoyed? But she soon saw that wasn't the case, he didn't look angry at all and then thanked her. Emilia felt her blush spread a bit, but she couldn't help feeling a little pleased with herself. But when Jacob asked her if she always knew what to say to make people feel better, she lowered her head self-consciously to hide behind her hair. "Not really. I've never heard anyone say that about me before." She said quickly. "I understand." She added at his second statement, it was really similar to how she felt about Evelyn. Though she wasn't even second. Athena was already a lot more like their cousin than she could be. In their family, she sort of fell to the background. As Jacob encouraged her too, she smiled and glanced at him again, pushing her hair behind her ear as she smiled shyly. "Maybe." She said softly. This conversation felt a little surreal, but she was very happy she was having it. Making friends wasn't easy for the Hufflepuff, but she felt like maybe she and Jacob could be friends and help each other out with this. Though she was too nervous to put it into words. Hopefully, he had a similar feeling.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob Kingsley was finding that it was truly a wonderful thing to be understood. And he really did feel like Emilia got him. They both had family that they really looked up to and wanted to mirror, but the reality was that they needed to work on learning to be themselves, even if they didn't know exactly what that loomed like at the moment. They were only eleven though so had plenty of time. "Maybe we should stop saying maybe" he snickered. "We will both figure out our way over these next years. We will" he added, bringing out the bravado that seemed to come naturally to Gryffindors. "Let's help make sure it happens for each other" he smiled as he looked at her, his brown eyes full of hope and promise for the future as he held up his pinky to signify the deepest kind of promise he knew how to make.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia was usually shy, but she was very glad she had managed to approach Jacob. It was strange to find someone that understood what she was feeling so well, but strange in a good way. She felt like this moment was very special, and could only hope he felt the same way. The words she had spoken had surprised even her, though now she wasn't sure what else to say. She giggled when he said they should stop saying maybe, nodding in agreement. "Yes."She said when he told her they should help each other. She wasn't sure how that would happen yet, or if she could be much help, but she would try. "I'll try to help you." She said, linking her pinky with his. She met his eye with a shy smile, feeling hopeful for the future. Today, she had started to make a friend, which was more than she had expected to happen in her first semester. And with Jacob's help, she would surely do even better in the future.