Light and Dark

[Aaren Nightray]

Aaren Nightray tucked a strand of red hair behind her ears as she made her way down the dungeons. She had been meaning to visit her older cousin for a long time. She had not seen him during the holidays after all. She had visited her aunt, hoping to at least catch up with his cousins, but it was only the twins that she saw. Even sweet Ria was not there, which wasn't really that surprising as the older girl didn't seem to be welcomed in any of the Nightrays' manor. She never did understand though. Or she did, she just didn't want to acknowledge it. The older girl was too much associated with muggles and Aaren knew how much the Nightrays had prided themselves for being a pure blood family. It was actually a miracle that they had not disowned the poor girl yet. Perhaps, it was to honor the girl's parents. After all, the twins' and Ria's parents brought their family name a lot of honor. They were much loved by the older Nightrays, the way that her cousin whom she was supposed to be visiting right now was loved. Her, on the other hand, wasn't much favored by the elders. At first, she didn't understand why. She was a Nightray through and through, flowing red hair, pale complexion, eyes which seemed to see through everything, she had it all. No one would make the mistake of thinking that she was not a Nightray, yet, she still didn't receive much love for her family. It was when she attended school that she realized why. She was different from them, her opinions far too unlike their own. And when she was sorted into Gryffindor, her suspicions were proven true. The Nightrays before her had mostly been sorted to Slytherin. There are a few who were sorted to Ravenclaw. But never Gryffindor, not that house. There was never a hufflepuff too. Or perhaps there was and the elders had just buried that fact. Never to be heard or spoken of again.

The thirteen year old hummed a soft tune as she counted the steps that she had to make to go down the castle's cold dungeons. Despite staying in the castle for almost three years, she still hadn't gotten used to the chill that would always greet her every time she set her foot on the lowest ground in the school. It was summer and the world above these grounds provided a lot of warmth, warmth that to her, seemed to have not reached this place. Perhaps this was the reason why her cousin was too cold too. The cold and the darkness might have gotten into him.

The girl's footstep echoed as she walked, her shadows dancing around her. It was a little unnerving, having to walk and explore the area by herself. Aaren was a brave and bold child, yes, but she was still that, a child. She hugged herself to provide her more warmth. She turned a corner then another one. Every corner that she turned to looked the same. Sure, she had her potion classes down here, but right at that moment, she feared that she was lost.

Her pace quickened, trying to find the place where she had been before. There was no one there, which was surprising. Sure, there weren't much students who ventured down the area, but still, this is supposed to be the place where the Slytherin house was located. Surely, she would stumble into someone from the house. Yet, by some stroke of luck, she didn't. And the Gryffindor found herself alone. She tried to be brave though, tried to calm down and think back to the turns that she made. She bit her lower lip in determination as she started to walk blindly wherever her feet and instinct would tell her to. She might get lost even more, but she really didn't want to just sit around and cry and wait for someone to save her.
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[Killua Freecss]

Killua was finding himself once again wandering through the maze of Hogwarts. Mostly known as the dark and cold dungeons. It was a maze to all those who had rarely ventured or never at all set foot in its confusing walls. Even those who were sorted in Slytherin get lost once in a while throughout the darkness found in the lowest level of the castle of a wizarding school. Of course, Kil knew this for he himself had already gotten lost more than once in the dungeons, but he paid it no heed at all. For unlike those who had been scared of wandering and venturing the maze after getting lost once, Killua much preferred to familiarize himself with the whole territory of the school. After all, he found it shameful and embarrassing that seven years of his life would be spent in the old castle and yet he would not know every inch of it, especially the dungeons since it was mostly considered to be the territory of the Slytherin house. His house. And so, here he was again, wandering like he always was.

The fourteen year old took a turn right, then left and after passing two corners another right. He now knew most of the paths around the dungeons, most being a dead end and the others only a circled path that leads to where you had previously started, it took a while for the previous assassin to figure that part out. But then he had appreciated that a bit since whilst he walked on those well made paths, he had lots of time to think and remain to himself. It was only in the dungeons that he had a rest from his sister. Sure he loved his sister a lot but there really were times that he needed to be by himself and hide from the Hufflepuff. And the only place that Kil knew that Mitch wouldn't dare go was the dungeons. She had already gotten lost there several times after all whilst trying to find the Slytherin common room and Potions class as well. Thoughts were suddenly stopped as she saw a girl walking within the deeper parts of the dungeons. And at the path that circled around too. It seemed that the redhead was yet to realize that she had been going in circles, Kil stood there for a few minutes and after the girl had returned to the same point twice after he had arrived, he had decided to approach. The Slytherin cleared his throat and spoke, "Lost?" It was the only thing he could come up with! He was not a people person after all. Especially towards girls. Well, at least he tried.

 

[Aaren Nightray]

Aaren was beginning to lose all hope of ever fiding her way out of the confusing maze known as the Slytherin dungeon. She had been walking for quite some time now, and just when she thought that she was finally making some progress, she would realize that she really wasn't. She mentally scolded herself for forgetting to bring her lucky item for the day, an item that has a symbol of a snake in it. She really didn't see the need for her to look for one earlier as she had told herself that she'd be seeing her older cousin anyway. He was a slytherin after all, so that should count, right? However, it seemed that she was wrong for at that moment, she was beginning to get really tired of walking around aimlessly, and little by little, her pace began to slow down.

The Gryffindor hugged herself again as she made another turn. She wasn't entirely sure why but it seemed that the dungeon was getting a little colder. She had spent hours in the dungeons before but it had never been as cold as it was now. Perhaps, it was because she had been in it way longer that she had been used to. She made another turn, a right, a left and another right. She feared that she was in the deepest part of the dungeon now. The though of being stuck there forever even crossed her mind. Perhaps she'll be a ghost then and she'd hunt that part of the dungeons. That thought might have excite her should it be under a different situation. She had always wondered about how it is to be a ghost after all.

The red head rubbed her palms together, trying to generate some warmth. She was about to turn another corner when she heard someone speak. Aaren jumped in surprise, her right right hand on her chest, trying to calm herself down. "It's not a ghost, it's not a ghost, it's not a ghost." she chanted under her breath, not realizing how silly and stupid she sounded as she had been talking to the castle's ghosts for almost three years of her stay in the school already. But then again, the cold and dark dungeon could really work its way on someone's nerves. Slowly, she turned around to look at the source of the voice, already resigned to the fate that was awaiting her. What met her though, was far from being a misty and transparent creature. To make sure, however, Aaren reached for the boy's face and poked the student's cheeks a little before letting out a sigh of relief, a relieved smile gracing her previously startled features. "You're not a ghost," she stated the obvious, her hand then resting on the boy's shoulder. It was then, however, that she realized what it was that she had done and she quickly withdrew her hand away from the boy. "Sorry." She apologized quickly, bowing a few times before she remembered what it was that he had said earlier.

"I'm not lost. I'm just... exploring this magnificent structure. Yes, that's what I'm doing," she said defensively. She didn't really want to admit that she couldn't find her way out of the dungeon, after all, she had been in the castle for almost three years! It would be really embarrassing to admit that she was lost. She averted her eyes away from the boy before she sighed once again. She couldn't do it. She hated lying and besides, there was really no point in doing it. Pride might be one of those things that a Nightray values, but Aaren knew that it was also pride that could harm her. "I lied.," she started, flushing a deep shade of pink as she brought her hands together in front of her. "I'm lost." She said those words in a whisper, bracing herself for the laughter and mocking that she was expecting to come. "But I'm trying to find a way out. It hadn't been that long after all. I'll definitely get out of this place. Are you lost too? Perhaps we can find the way out together. That's if you wanted to. I don't want to impose though." It as another lie. It had hours since she started looking for a way out. But then again, this lie wouldn't hurt, would it? Though hating lying, she still wanted to save some of her dignity. She was still a Nightray after all. ​

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[Killua Freecss]

Killua found human interaction to be quite hard yet amusing at some points. He could very well remember when he had tried to talk to other people in the castle. It had been successful once. A girl he had met in the towers which happened to be Mitch's friend. But then, that girl suddenly disappeared. Either she moved schools or was avoiding and ignoring him. Either way, it was quite painful for he had thought he had met a friend when in the end, he just found someone that could hurt him. The following encounters were not much of a surprise. He was on speaking terms with other Slytherins, well, being in the same house it was quite normal of course, well except for interaction with one Slytherin in particular though. Someone who was older than him but knew not the name. Kil was quite frustrated with the lad for he had received some unexpected punches which the previous assassin was most certainly ungrateful for he was sure that he had gotten a bruise or two in his face which really made human interaction much more harder than it was previously.

Killua was already in front of the redhead and in the darkness of the dungeons that was only lit by the torches on the walls, he could see her features. Growing up in a dark mansion almost like the dungeons made it easy for the Slytherin to see and he was completely in awe for she had beauty, that much Kil would admit in his mind. Verbally? Not so much. He smirked a little though at the girl when she had told him that she was only exploring. The girl was obviously bad at lying that it was almost cute, if ever he would find out first the meaning of the word. "You sure? Then have you figured out that when you turn over here," Killua turned around, his hand gesturing to the path that the girl had been taking earlier twice he had seen, "you're entering a circled path that could lead back here?" he said before turning his attention back to the girl. If only it didn't seem that the unknown girl would die from the embarrassment of admitting the truth, the Slytherin would have already laughed at the scene, but instead he managed a small smile and spoke calmly. "It's okay, many people get lost down here," he said in the most gentle way his cold voice could muster, well, that was until the girl's next statements wherein Kil just had to be playful and want to tease the girl a bit. "Really? You've came back to this point twice since I arrived," the Slytherin voiced out teasingly as the girl told him that it had not been long since she had gotten lost. If the unknown girl had already walked twice around the circled path when Kil was around, how much more distance did the girl walk through when he wasn't around? "No, I'm not lost, but I could help you maneuver your way down here in the dungeons," Kil said as he shrugged his shoulders for it was not a big of a deal if he had to escort the girl around the dungeons. After all, he just had to tell her if she was taking a turn towards dead ends and circled paths. "That is, if you'd agree of course," the Slytherin suddenly backed-up his previous statement. He didn't want this girl thinking that he was forcing her. Of course he wouldn't, if she refused his help then it was fine. If she agreed, it was okay. Either way was fine with Killua Freecss.

 

[Aaren Nightray]

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<COLOR color="#5a70b3"><FONT font="Verdana">Talking had always been one of those activities that Aaren Nightray enjoys. After all, if one has big ideas, shouldn't one be allowed to express them? Aaren enjoyed being able to express her thoughts. It mattered not whether people was listening to her. In fact, she could go on a day with just her talking and the other person listening to her rant. Of course, she did understand that sometimes, she had to stop. She had been told a thousand times that it was inappropriate for a lady of her status to talk too much. Her mother had tried to drill into her the concept of how a proper lady should act. She should be sweet, she should be demure, she should talk only when spoken to. She tried to. Honestly, she did. But the thirteen year old wasn't really that comfortable acting the way her parents had wanted her to. In her thirteen years of existence, she tried to heed her parents' orders, she disliked disobeying them. But sometimes, it was too much. That was why the thirteen year old greatly enjoyed attending Hogwarts. It was only here that she was able to be herself. Sure, she was aware that her parents probably had someone tail her. But she didn't mind. The school was far too big and far too many people resides on it. She doubt that someone could watch her every actions. And she didn't really have to worry about her cousin either. Liam was.... for the lack of better word, quite uncaring when it comes to things like this. Watching over her would just be a stupid task for the fifteen year old boy. That being said though, despite enjoying talking, the girl found herself unable to form a coherent sentence around the boy that she had just met.

The girl's eyes followed the boy's hand. She didn't know if it was possible for her to blush a deeper shade of red than her hair, but at that moment, she was quite sure she did. She looked at the ground, too embarrassed to even look at the boy before her. Aaren was usually a confident child, she wasn't one to act shy in front of strangers. Yet, the boy was making her feel a little awkward. In fact, he reminded her too much of her own cousin. They have the same atmosphere, though the kid's aura was far gentler than Liam's. How she could tell, she didn't know.

Aaren pouted at the boy's next statement and crossed her arms defiantly in front of her chest. She looked away from the boy and focused her attention at the flame on those torches illuminating the otherwise dark dungeon. "That doesn't make it acceptable though." She started, still refusing to look at the boy. "Many people might have gotten lost here but that doesn't make it less embarrassing. I'm not a first year you know." She added, her eyebrows knitting together at the thought that the boy might have mistaken her for a first year student. Sure, she wasn't that tall, and next to him, she appeared even smaller, but that didn't mean that she was a kid, did it?

"How long have you been here?" She asked him, this time, looking directly at the boy. She hadn't really notice him there, and she hadn't really noticed that she had been walking in circles. If he had been there since earlier, he should have told her so she didn't have to waste her time circling the area. "Mother says it's rude to watch people. I don't really understand but I think I quite get it now." her voice has a certain edge to it which was quite rare for her. She liked observing people, yes, but now that it was her who was being observed, she understood why her mother would scold her for doing it. It felt quite uncomfortable indeed.

The boy's offer, however, had erased all those negative thoughts off the thirteen year old's mind. "Are you sure?" She inquired, bending forward a little so she'd be able to clearly see his face. "You're not just pulling my leg, are you? I really hope you're not. I'll be quite mad if you're just playing tricks on me. Though I'd feel bad about it too. I don't like hating other people, but being deceived isn't that great either." She told him, getting on to the habit of talking nonstop again.​

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[Killua Freecss]

It was times like these when Killua would wonder why his parents had never let him interact with anyone outside the household before. Interactions like this would never cease to amaze the young Slytherin. He would always find the other party's reaction to be very amusing and he would never get bored at all. He couldn't help but wonder why his family had chosen killing over this simple human activity which would have given them a very, very normal life. A smile was creeping it's way to the boy's feature without him noticing it. It was not a smile of mischief at all nor a smile that implicated playfulness nor the like. It was one of pure happiness indicating that he was really enjoying this simple interaction.

Aside from the fact that the interaction was simply amusing, he found the girl to be a complete beauty that she was nothing compared to any of the previous girls he had met and her personality was quite the amusing one too from what he had been seeing since they started talking. "Well, you look about the same age as my sister, so I'd guess you were a third year," he said more of a statement than a question. "And it's fine, even fifth to seventh years get lost at this part of the dungeons. Believe me, I saw it happen numerous times," he said almost like an afterthought as he continued to look at the girl in front of her. "Not too long, I suppose," Killua answered with a shrug of his shoulders. He wasn't really one to keep track of time after all so he barely knew how long he had been watching the said girl. "Should I apologize then? I was quite unsure at first of whether or not you were lost," Killua muttered but loud enough for the girl to hear.

Killua turned to slowly start walking back to the entrance to the dungeons. He had most of the dungeons memorized to maneuver his way out and he was sure his knowledge was enough to get both of them out from the deeper parts of the maze-like structure. The Slytherin couldn't help but emit a small chuckle though as the girl spoke a number of words during the first few seconds that passed but he couldn't help but smile a genuine smile as he thought about the girl's words. This is the first time someone's ever been reluctant about getting mad at me, he thought as he spoke. "I know the way back to the entrance and I have no intention of getting us both lost," he said as he continued his walking pace that was just enough for the girl to walk with him at a not so fast pace. "Just believe in me will you?" he whispered under his breath quite unknowing whether the girl had heard him or not.