Meeting Again

[Indiana Night]

Indiana walked through the halls of the castle. She had just gotten done with her first ever Charms class and she found herself unsure what to with herself now. The homework for all her classes weren't hard so she did not feel the need to go and do it right away. Instead she wandered through the halls to find something else to do. She knew that she was really just walking around to see if one of her friends would appear. Tybalt had been in class and she had sat next to him like she had been doing in all the classes. She liked that they were both Gryffindors so she'd have every class with him until they detrimined the extra classes. Even though they were kind of similar to each other she was sure they'd have different interests later on in their schooling. Even classes which they'd prefer were sure to be different. Indiana liked charms so far, but she hated the idea of Transfiguration and that later on in the years she'd have to perform spells on animals. It made her sad to think that they animals would be changed and if go wrong the animals could be half plate half animal. That would not be pleasent to watch. Making her way around the corridor she kept her eyes looking around at the faces that passed. Eventually she gave up looking for a friend to talk to and decided to have a chat with one of the moving Protraits.

"So Who'e you?" She asked the person in the painting. Rudely the person got up and walked out of the frame and continued down a few frmaes before stopping at a table full of food and began to eat. Indiana followed the person curious. "I'm Indiana. What's your name?" She asked the person. Some of the older students who walked by laughed at her but she didn't care, she knew the protraits would talk to students. Her sister had told her so. But after her last question the person just glared and walked away once again. "You are very rude!" She said towards the retreating figure that was going through the different paintings along the wall. Standing there she watched it go with her arms crossed.

 

[Preston Paine]

Walking around the school in his free time had become something of a habit for the young Slytherin boy. He rather enjoyed peeking into classrooms and seeing the odd bit of magic being performed and he thoroughly enjoyed finding trick staircases throughout the school. Already, he had found one leading towards the first floor when he had sunk to his shins when he'd taken a step. He'd laughed his head off as he pulled himself up. That had been earlier after his class. Now he was just wandering around, thinking about heading to the library but not really having the motivation to do so. As he stepped off on the third floor, he forgot about the library.

As he wandered down the corridor, Preston caught sight of the first witch he'd ever met. He watched her silently, a curious expression on his face until he caught some older students laughing at her. A frown crossed his face as he stepped closer. What was she doing? When he stepped closer, he realized that she was speaking to a portrait. One of the cooler things about the school that he had discovered was that the school's many paintings moved. It was nothing like the pictures he'd grown up looking at in his home and at his school. Still, he'd never seen anyone speaking with the portraits. Stopping when he was right near her, Preston spoke in a low, urgent voice. "I don't know about here but in the muggle world talking to pictures is...not normal" he stated. It was the first time since he had arrived that he had mentioned being from the muggle world. To everyone else, he was very vague when he spoke about his family. Indiana already knew though. She was the only one who knew.

 

[Indiana Night]

Indiana was upset as she watched the person walk away from her. Obviously it wasn't one who enjoyed talking to non-paintings. Her older sister had told her that some enjoyed talking to the students and it would seem she needed her sister to take her to them. Annoyed with the Protrait she decided that she could try another, maybe more friendly looking one. She jumped at a low voice in her ear and reached out her arm to whack the person while she turned but stopped halfway when she saw who it was. A big smile appeared on her face and she quickly wrapped her arms around the figure to give him a hug. It seemed like forever ago that they had met in the Bookstore before school. "Preston!" She held him tight for a few moments before letting him and looking him over. She knew he had gotten into Slytherin which was disappointing but she had figured they wouldn't be in the same house from the beginning anyways.

A smile was on Indiana's face as she looked to her first wizard friend. She had spent a lot of time the past few days in the Common Room and making friends. Tybalt was the one she liked the best out of all of them, though some things he did annoyed her. Like being to concerned about others to worry about his own pain. The young girl had been thinking about going off and looking for the small Gryffindor but was glad she had stayed. Otherwise who knew how long it'd take them to run into each other. They did share a class or two but Indiana never really noticed anyone but the Professor and Tybalt in any of her classes. "You know in the Muggle world, Protraits don't have the chance to talk back," she answered him finally with a laugh. She hoped he didn't have a class he needed to get to soon and they could catch up. Ever since they first met she liked him. It hadn't been an awkward meeting like with Tybalt. And the fact he wasn't that bad looking helped him a bit. Not that any of the other students she had met were bad looking. He reminded her a lot of home based on his darker look. His dark hair and his brown eyes. It strangely enough reminded her of her Nana B. Mostly because they had similar features. It was almost funny how he looked more Native American then she did. She was actually very excited to see the boy once again.

 

[Preston Paine]

Preston was completely surprised and caught unawares by her response to his presence. He awkwardly patted her back, returning the hug that she had given to him. "Hey Indiana." Although he had seen her several times since they had initially met in the bookstore, Preston hadn't had an opportunity to speak with Indiana. It seemed that one or the other of them was always with people from their respective houses, and he had already learned that Slytherins and Gryffindors usually didn't get along very well. He still was kind of unsure as to why that was, but he hadn't really tried to figure it out either. It just seemed to be one of those things like Ravenclaw being the 'smart' house. Preston had met quite a few people from his own house and found them to be very like him except in one major way. Throughout the house, there was always this undercurrent of superiority because many of the students came from pureblood backgrounds. Preston always remained mum on the subject or would casually throw an 'uh-huh' out so as not to seem too suspicious. He knew, though, that he would not reveal his blood status to anyone else in the school and hoped that Indiana could keep a secret.

"Good point" he said good-naturedly as he stood beside her and glanced at the man in the portrait that had moved away. He was eyeing them to see if they would move so that he could return to his portrait. He really was rather rude. "So, I guess we didn't end up in Gryffindor together. Is it everything you thought it would be? " he asked with a bit of a smirk, hoping they would have some time to catch up. Preston sort of had missed Indiana's vibrant personality. He remembered how eager she had been to end up in Gryffindor and wondered if it was living up to her expectations. He hadn't had any expectations so he was happy about Slytherin. He especially liked his dorm mates.

 

[Indiana Night]

Indiana was slightly disappointed that Preston did not sound as excited as she was. But she figured he had spotted her first and perhaps took the time to get over the excitement. But then again it could be he didn't think of her as much as she had been him. She knew they only met once but they promised to meet up at school when they got there. However she spent most of her time with others from her house like Tybalt. She hadn't forgotten about Preston, and they had some classes together. It was more the girl who had purposely hit Tybalt was also in Preston's house and their year. So Indiana always made sure to sit near Tybalt in the classes they shared with Slytherin. Like a Protector of sorts, though he didn't know that.

The young girl smiled as her first Hogwarts friend agreed with her. She actually enjoyed being right, though she could sometimes be wrong and know it and admit it. Indiana wasn't focused on the man from the painting any longer. She had a real living being to talk with now. "I didn't think we would be from the start, I figured you were more of a Hufflepuff from what my older sister told me of the houses," she admitted. However she noticed the smirk on his face when he had spoken and had the thought he did seem more Slytherin now then when they had first met. But she didn't care what facial expression he had on she was just glad to have the time to talk with him again. "It is actually. I love it, everything is gold and red. The bed curtains are a little weird and annoying." She had missed Preston's dark features that reminded her of home. Tybalt was blondish like herself which wasn't bad but it was new for her to be surrounded by so many with hair and eyes like herself. Indiana hoped she'd get to spend more time with Preston, after all the times she's been hanging around with Tybalt she's been forgetting that she also has made friends outside of the one boy.

 

[Preston Paine]

Preston's eyes widened as he heard Indiana say she thought he would have been sorted into Hufflepuff. He didn't want to imagine the razzing he'd get from his roommates if he heard that. "Are you serious? Hufflepuff? Why?" he asked in a surprised tone. He supposed he was outgoing like a Hufflepuff but that was where the similarities ended. The boy wasn't sure yet whether he should be insulted or pleased with the comparison so he chose to be neither. He was simply curious as to why she thought so. He listened to her describe her house and was glad she seemed to enjoy it. "I like my house too. The colors are cool" he said with a smile. He wasn't sure what he would have done had he been forced to wear yellow for the next seven years.

"I tried to say hi to you the other day after Defense against the Dark Arts but you were with a guy from your house" Preston said with a shrug. It wasn't like he was bothered that she was talking to someone else. He wasn't. He knew that being in different houses would mean that they met a lot of other people. " What do you think of Professor Styx? Pretty scary guy, right?" he asked, proud to be from the house with the most feared professor leading it. His brown eyes twinkled with amusement. "His nephew is in my house" Preston added.

 

[Indiana Night]

Indiana laughed at the boys reaction to what she had been thinking when they first met. "Well you just seemed nice and sweet like how my sister told me Hufflepuffs are supposed to be. Plus you're a pretty good finder of things," she answered her friend with a laugh. It had only been a passing thought when they first met she hadn't really tried to figure out what house he'd be in. She never would have guessed Slytherin thougt. Indiana found it odd that they were practically the opposites of each other, they had gotten on so well when they were looking for books together. The young girl actually really did like Preston. He was nice and not bad looking at all. "Green?" She asked with her nose scrunched up. Then she laughed because she had only been joking. Plus the thought of combining their colors would make it seem like Christmas.

Indiana frowned when Preston mentioned him trying to talk with her. It was then she realised that he was a Slytherin like that girl then he would be in that same class. When he mentioned another person the girl knew he meant Tybalt. A small smile came to her face thinking about the Gryffindor. "Tybalt Archer. I met him the first morning here. I think you would like him,"she shared with her friend. Of course she hoped Preston realised that though Tybalt was her first Gryffindor friend Preston had been her first friend here in New Zealand. Indiana grew glum as Preston mentioned the Slytherin Head of House. He was a creepy and scary man, she did not want anything to do with him. She actually wished she didn't have to learn Defense Against the Dark Arts, surely she'd be perfectly fine with Charms. "I don't like him at all, no offense as he is your Head of House and all," she told her friend.

 

[Preston Paine]

If Preston’s skin tone was a bit lighter, it might have been easy to see that he was blushing after the compliment Indiana paid him. The boy was no stranger to compliments, but coming from a girl his age was something new. He couldn’t recall ever hearing himself called ‘sweet’ before but found that he rather liked the idea. Preston hadn’t known anything about the houses when he had first met Indiana. Now that he knew a bit about them, he figured that Gryffindor seemed a good fit for her. She was really open and friendly and she hadn’t been afraid to come up to him, a stranger, on the day they’d met. ”Red isn’t much better” he replied, sticking his tongue out at her so she would know he was only teasing.

The young Slytherin boy hadn’t befriended any other Gryffindors, so he was hearing Tybalt’s name for only the third or fourth time, the other times being during the sorting ceremony and the few classes they shared. He shrugged, not able to confirm or deny that he would like Tybalt since he’d never actually spoken to himself. The only thing Preston knew about him besides his name and house was that he was small. “Maybe” he said, though he was unsure. The change in his friend’s demeanor took Preston off guard, though he wasn’t terribly surprised. Professor Styx seemed to get a strong reaction from most people. He shrugged again. “No offense taken. I’m not sure he wants to be liked anyway. You should have heard what he told us during our house meeting” he replied, shaking his head before allowing himself to smile again.

“I saw you in flying class the other day. You were really good” he stated, scratching the back of his head. A shy smile came across his face as he continued. “Do you think you’d be able to give me some pointers some time. I hate being so far behind” he admitted. In his other classes, Preston was able to sit silently and pretend he understood what was going on as he took notes and tried to learn as much as possible. In flying, though, he couldn’t. All the talk about quidditch and broom types and learning to fly made it obvious, in his eye’s anyway, that he came from the muggle world. He could only hope that none of his classmates realized it.

 

[Indiana Night]

Indiana could see a slight difference in her friend's face but she knew better then to comment on it, just like with Tybalt. Her Gryffindor friend blushed all the time it was really cute Indiana thought. Of course she hadn't ever told Tybalt that, he'd just blush even more and be embarassed. One of the things she liked about Tybalt the most was that he couldn't ever see her own blush and comment on it, so how fair would it be if she constantly brought up his own? "At least Red and Green both have their benifits. But you have to mix colors to get green, Red is a natural primary color," she said sticking her tounge out back at him. It was funny how with Tybalt they wouldn't have this sort of interaction. "I think I got lucky with Professor Kingsley. My sister says she's a really nice person, even though it isn't likely I'll ever take her class," Indiana told her Slytherin friend. She hadn't gotten the chance to really talk with the Professor during their house meeting and the women had seemed to upset about some Prefects not showing up to stay very long.

Now it was Indiana's time to blush. She knew how to fly sure, and she was pretty good at it, she had gotten an alternate spot on the Quidditch team after all. But hearing her friend say that she was good enough to warrent him asking for help. It was to much kindness for her to take. "Well, you know I'm not sure if it's safe to help someone from another House we could be playing against each other someday. I can't have you knowing all my secrets," she stated in complete seriousness before laughing. She was actually glad he asked for help, it'd give them a good reason to meet up and talk more. Indiana already felt like Tybalt was her best friend but she knew she had to have more then just one friend. "We can go down to the Pitch anytime there isn't a class or practice," she told him so he knew she'd actually help him.

 

[Preston Paine]

"Why not?" Preston asked, wondering how she already knew she wouldn't take her Head of House's class. Preston didn't even know what subject she taught, though he was sure someone had mentioned it at the start of year feast. He had no choice but to take his Head's class because Styx taught a core subject. He put his hands in his pocket as he stood beside Indiana. They were far from alone in the hall. It seemed that there were a lot of students roaming around, in groups and alone. He saw one of the prefects from his house stroll by and his heart rate picked up a little even though he wasn't doing anything wrong.

Glad when Indiana began speaking again, Preston chuckled. "I don't think you'll have to worry about me giving away your secrets on the field. I doubt I'll ever be good enough to make the team" Preston said. He was somewhere in the middle in class. He wasn't so horrible that the broom wouldn't listen to his commands, but he was far from doing laps comfortably. The Slytherin much preferred having his feet on the ground, or in sand would be even better. He wasn't entirely comfortable with his feet off the ground and in the air. That's why he had been asking for assistance from Indiana. He knew the professor had offered assistance, but really, who wanted to be with a professor any more than they had to even when the professor was a famous quidditch player? Certainly not the Slytherin. "Cool" he grinned, his smile showing that he was pleased she had said yes. The guy liked spending time with Indiana even if she was a Gryffindor. "Maybe you can bring Tybalt" he suggested, not wanting anyone to get the wrong idea if he was alone with Indiana all the time. "Just don't tell him it's 'cause I need help" he added quickly.

 

[Indiana Night]

Indiana shrugged her shoulders at her friend's question. "Ancient Ruins doesn't really seem to be something I'll need to know to be a Pro Quidditch player," she told him. It did sound interesting but the core subjects plus Quidditch seemed to be a lot for her to handle already so she wasn't sure if she wanted to add any of the extra classes on top. But she have her hopes up in being a Prefect down the line so adding the classes or joining another club she figured might be a good job. Indiana was already jealous of her older sister in being a Prefect. She herself believed the older girl would be Head Girl, even though Georgiana knew it wouldn't happen. A housemate she had met a few times walked by and she gave the girl a wave and smile during the pause they had in their conversation.

The young girl named Indiana grinned at Preston's chuckle. She was glad he seemed happy. "You shouldn't say that!" The girl said tapping Preston on the shoulder with her hand, "It may take longer as you didn't have a Child's Broom like other people. But it isn't that bad once you relax and enjoy the flying." Flying was Indiana's favorite thing to do, which was why she tried so hard to be the best she could. She knew being just an alternate wasn't actually bad and she'd get to fly at somepoint during a game. She wasn't even the only first year on the team. The rainbow girl got a spot and so did Kyle. "Oh," was all that came out of her mouth when he said she should invite Tybalt. Indiana wasn't actually sure how much Tybalt liked flying. She knew he promised her to try out for the team the next year but he too didn't think he would be good enough. "I can ask, though I don't think he really enjoys flying much. I haven't had the chance to ask him about it since lessons started," she told her Slytherin friend. Even though she was with the young Gryffindor boy in every class and spent time with him outside of classes the subject of Flying hadn't come up once. She tried to make sure he shared more about himself so she wasn't the only one of the two talking. Since it seemed she talked a lot when it came to conversations with Tybalt.