Out of Dormitories

[Laura Bridge]

It was already midnight on Friday when all of the students in the Ravenclaw Dormitory were already sleeping except for Laura. Laura couldn't sleep well. She was thinking about mermaids. She just remembered that her mother told her that she was once saved by a mermaid when she suddenly fell onto the ocean when she was only two and she wanted to meet her again. Her mother told her that it was very a unique mermaid, it has a blue hair and tail. Laura couldn't picture it inside her mind but she was sure that the mermaid was very nice. She looked at her watch, it was already 12:15am. She suddenly sat on her bed pulled her bag and took her David Copperfield book and started to read it.

It took 10 minutes when she suddenly got tired and put her book back inside her bag and laid on her bed. Still wide awake, she caught a glimpse outside the window.The bright crescent moon was shining through the window. It was very beautiful as she stared at it very long when she suddenly remembered her pendant that shaped like a crescent moon. She tried to take a hold for it but into her horror, it was missing. She quickly jumped off to her bed, run in tip toe and got outside the dormitory. "I'll be back, gonna find something!" said Laura to the portrait and strode off.

Laura was running swiftly as fast as she could but carefully. If someone caught her then, she might going to have detention or something could affect their house points. The pendant was very important to Laura. Her mother gave it to her because she was no longer going to wear it anymore and asking to to take care of it. Of course, Laura wouldn't want her to get mad. She search and search until she go downstairs and to her relief, she saw it near the staircase which goes through the seventh floor. She quickly put it in her pocket and gone back to dormitory. She was very happy that no one saw her but before she could enter she noticed that the portrait was empty. "Now what?" said Laura disappointingly. Well she couldn't stay any longer there, she might get caught by someone and might receive punishment so, she decided to wander around until she found herself in the Seventh Floor Corridor.

 

[Artemis Jackson]

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<COLOR color="#000"> Midnight. That was the only word that Artemis had in her insomniac mind. Her bed in the dormitories were comfortable but sleep could not take over her body. The air was chilly and the howls of different creatures in the lake were disturbing her. Or Artemis thought they were actually howls. What did those mermaids want from them anyway? They always made the strange noises that she heard at night. With a frustrated groan, Artemis sat up and pushed the silky emerald curtains aside. Artemis stomped out of the four poster bed and headed to the common room. The dim common room was isolated and no sound at all was uttered. Only the soft footsteps of Artemis was the only sign of life in the room. Artemis got out her wand and muttered the Lumos charm. She held it downwards and exited the common room. She saw that the torches of the dungeons were fairly lit, giving the dark place a creepy atmosphere to it. Artemis silently walked on, a bit intimidated by the darkness surrounding her.

The halls were isolated as well. The portraits surrounding the corridors were snoring soundly, grunting as Artemis passed them. She had after all, a small beam of light coming out from the tip of her wand. She ascended the staircase that led to the higher halls, not realizing that she had set her feet on the seventh floor. Artemis roamed around the moon lit hallway, passing a few armors and portraits that were snoozing. Whilst looking at the silver armors, the Slytherin teen sensed a presence of another human coming. With a hiss, she retreated back to a corner of darkness and extinguished the light from her wand. A silhouette came into the Slytherin's view and Artemis recognized it as the same ever Ravenclaw she met almost a year ago. "Laura Bridge? That's you right?" Artemis stepped out from the darkness and held her index finger a centimeter away from her lips and tugged her back to the isolated corridor. "What the heck are you doing here?" She asked whispering, her heart pumping wildly. The chances of having a professor around were slim but, being caught and reported to Professor Styx was still a scary thought. Artemis pushed away those thoughts, whilst biting her lower lip in nervousness.
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[Laura Bridge]

Laura's heart was pumping very loud. She had no idea wandering in the middle of the night. She's scared and her hands were feeling cold as ice. She's not really sure on where she was going. But she had an ability to hide herself since she was a very small girl; thin and only a five feet tall and her night gown were exactly the same color of the walls in the castle. But, she wasn't sure it would really work since there must be a ghost or a noisy poltergeist might shout that she wasn't in her bed. She took a long deep breath and took a grip on her chest since she can't breath because of her heart pounding very hard.

Just as Laura was walking, she saw a shadow figure walking towards her. Her heart suddenly fell. It must be a caretaker of the castle. Laura couldn't breathe anymore, she was sweating now. She was about to run but, she just closed her eyes and stopped moving, like a statue and then suddenly became stiff. She was ready to take the punishment now until someone called her name. The voice was very familiar and it wasn't caretaker nor anyone like staffs in the castle. She turned to her and saw the blonde haired girl. It was Artemis. Laura had met her two years ago. Her heart suddenly gone back to it's place.

"Oh, it's you Artemis." said Laura, very relieved. "Well, I was just, looking for something and you know, the portrait is empty. What about you, what are you doing here in the middle of the night?" she asked.

 

[Artemis Jackson]

Yes, it was confirmed that the silhouette was Laura Bridge, a girl whom Artemis thought was a bit strange. Their past memories together went back to her in a flash and she remembered the things they discussed, along with the immature personality Artemis had back then. Along with Quidditch, their families and a bit of wizard's chess, Artemis had enjoyed their last meeting. As a fourteen year old, she was quite different from her eleven year old self. Artemis had become more focused in Quidditch, making her competitive and intense because of the sport. Artemis also noticed that she towered over the girl, with a height of five feet and four inches. Artemis sensed the relief that came out from Laura but the blonde wasn't exactly relieved as well. "Wait, you're looking for something in the middle of the night?" Artemis whispered. It was strange for someone to be wandering in the middle of the night, much less, looking for something. It was too dark for Artemis to even see clearly and she wondered if the girl had owl like eyes. Artemis gripped her wand tightly and let go of Laura's arm. Fortunately for Laura, Artemis didn't have an iron tight grip. It was a gentle and urgent touch that had no pain in it.

Surely, it was damn odd to look for such a thing in the middle of the night. Whatever it was, it would have been really important and valuable. Artemis thought of it as something irrational but she didn't word any of her emotions. It was rude to do so, as her father said. "Portrait? Don't you have your own tower or something? And I heard that you have to solve this riddle before entering." Artemis whispered, barely above a mumble. Her voice was so soft, she just hoped that Laura was straining to hear her enough. Artemis took in deep ragged breaths to calm down her heartbeat. She was horrified to remember the patrols of the prefects and just hoped that they wouldn't be caught. Especially by the Head Girl! "I'm experiencing insomnia. It's nothing to worry about." The thought of venturing out was inviting for the Slytherin and she hoped that it would clear her thoughts of the new semester. Artemis flicked her wand and muttered, "lumos." She directed it just between them, giving both of them light to see one another's faces in the dim moonlight. She just hoped that her companion had her own wand, or else the circumstances would be difficult. She grimaced at the thought and told herself to calm down, with an uneasy frown.
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[Laura Bridge]

"Oh, I was looking for my necklace. Just found it." Laura said. At that moment, she noticed that she didn't use the Lumos Charm because, she can already see in the dark. She didn't know why, she can see clearly since she was a kid. Her parents told her that it was the reason she always eat vegetables that are reach in her eyes' vision.

"The person in the portrait hole is not yet there at the moment. That's why I'm unable to enter and wait for it's question." she explained, now in a whisper voice. Laura looked around, she don't feel anything that someone's wandering around but just then, her tension suddenly gone back. And now she's with Artemis, she didn't know if it would be easy hiding in this frightening night. She suddenly caught a glimpse with the light on Artemis' wand and looked at her. "Look, we couldn't stay here any longer. We should go anywhere in this corridor but not downstairs or upstairs otherwise, we will lost." Laura said.

 

[Artemis Jackson]

Whatever necklace it was, Artemis thought that it was valuable. If it wasn't valuable, then the Slytherin might have thought that Laura was going nuts, just to look for it in the middle of the night. Her companion was a Ravenclaw and Eagles did have the knowledge to know that it was dangerous searching for some accessory in the middle of the night. The prefects and the Heads, wherever they were, could have caught them. Artemis secretly thanked her huge luck that not a single presence was with them within the seventh floor. It was just strange for her to be in the seventh floor, when her common room was in the deepest floor of Hogwarts. Around them was only the suffocating darkness, with a soft touch of the moonlight. It was still dark though and Artemis did not really favor walking around the hallways during the night, without any source of light. "Do you want to share the light? Or do you have your own wand?" Artemis held her wand in between the two of them, giving her enough light to hold her eye contact with the Ravenclaw. The Slytherin's bright blue eyes narrowed themselves as she looked further in the darkness, satisfied that no other person was there listening to their conversation.

Nodding at her reply, Artemis just mumbled softly, "I hate riddles you know. No wait, I despise them." They were a pain in the mind and she wondered how the hell did Ravenclaws ever become so smart. And where they slept if they did not answer the riddle correctly. With a stupid blink, she slumped her shoulders and looked around at the darkness around them. It made her feel ill to think that she would need to go through the claustrophobic staircase again before she can reach her emerald four poster bed. The sudden statement of Laura made Artemis think about what they were doing here, twice, and she just shrugged off the comment lamely, not caring about what she said. "Well, I'm not a Slytherin for nothing. We have light and we know the castle enough. Perhaps we can just stay here until I have the guts to go back to the common room." Her fear of darkness did not stop anywhere at all, but the light at the tip of her wand helped greatly. She controlled her breathing and shifted uncomfortably whilst waiting.
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[Laura Bridge]

"No thanks. I have my own. I can see in the dark anyway so, no need to." Laura explained. The appearance of the moon was hidden now by the clouds and the room was getting more loom but, there was no sign that Laura was unable to see in the dark.

Laura was definitely not listening too with Artemis. She was looking around again, trying not to be caught by anyone. And then to her response, she heard Artemis answer. "Alright then." said Laura. "I'm going to walk around while waiting for the empty portrait to come back." and then she smiled and walked away without using the Lumos Charm.

The dark room was hugging Laura's body. She was always like that everytime as she walk through the dark. It was a bit creepy because she's not with someone. Just as she was walking, she suddenly heard footsteps and she didn't know who owns those footsteps. She ran swiftly through the corridor but quietly, wishing if Artemis was still there.

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[Artemis Jackson]

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<COLOR color="#000"> The dimness of the room suddenly decreased and it twisted Artemis' insides rather painfully. She hated the dark but the soft light from her wand was definitely helpful. The seventh floor did not have many portraits to chat with which was fortunate for them. Some of them were known to shout and report students that were out of bed to the professors. Artemis knew this, even though her stay in Hogwarts for her whole life was still a short time. It took only a year to explore the castle discreetly whilst maintaining a clean record all the time. She never got close to detentions and the blonde wasn't exactly a digger for trouble. Only Alliyah was a reckless fool in which Artemis disapproved off. The fourteen year old glanced at Laura, not exactly sure if she was making eye contact with the silhouette in front of her. She searched for the brunette's eyes and with the help of the lumos charm, she faced them easily but it was still to dark to even make out her eye colour. "You have a nice pair of eyes then." She commented dryly with a hint of awkwardness. Never in her life did she encounter people who had eyes that can see in a grayish dark place. It was pretty cool though, the way her eyes worked even at night. Artemis' intense blue eyes looked around the hallway which was supposedly isolated. Her heartbeat quickened when the thought of more darkness dawned her thoughts but she took in a deep breath and replaced her fear with the famous Gryffindor courage, even if she the Sorting Hat considered her as a Slytherin.

Walking around and leaving Artemis alone wasn't definitely the plan that Artemis wanted. Her eyes bulged slightly when she heard Laura's response which to her was nothing that she expected. She watched as Laura left her without any more words to say; in the dark and in the silence... all alone. "So you mean to say you're going to leave me." Artemis stated blandly without no emotion at all, once the Slytherin sensed that Laura was out of earshot. Did she really mean that? Artemis sensed her heartbeat's pace quicken immediately and the blonde took in a deep breath. She needed to relax herself and formulate a plan. Artemis ran to the direction that Laura headed to, not exactly caring if her bunny slippers would create some noise. It made a soft tapping sound on the floor that could alert anyone around. She saw a silhouette of a female which she assumed was Laura and the girl ran away from Artemis' soft footsteps.

The Slytherin ran as well, and she outstretched her arms to the girl who was only a few meters away. Inwardly, she grinned triumphantly whilst her expression had a small smirk on it. In a fast motion, she grabbed Laura's arm with her own pale left one and said with a ragged voice. "Stop. Why are you even running?!" It was supposed to be somewhat intimidating, but her voice failed to project the intimidation. Instead, it was ragged and out of breath and Artemis took deep gulps of air before even looking at the brunette. The Slytherin let her go after a few seconds and clutched her chest with her heavy breathing. She didn't care if the Ravenclaw would leave her again, because if she did, Artemis would surely walk away as well to go back to the dungeons. Her boost of energy decreased which seemed to cure her insomnia. Running or any physical activity that required action from the limbs (except for Quidditch) wasn't for the blonde to practice.
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[Laura Bridge]

"Oh, thank you." said Laura with a little smile. She didn't expect that Artemis told her that she had a nice pair of eyes. Because all Laura knew, people ignore black eyes since it was very common and the only color that people couldn't take their eyes off are brown, green, purple, and blue and blue was like, very hypnotizing once they tried to stare at them.

Leaving Artemis in the dark corridor wasn't really her plan or idea or anything else. She just thought that Artemis would be okay more than the minutes had passed to be left by someone. And now Laura was running through the loom corridor wishing that if Artemis was still there. She was not sure if the footsteps she heard in the other part of the corridor was a caretaker and Laura hoped that it wasn't really. All she wished was, that the footsteps were only from her imagination. But the footsteps she heard wasn't an imagination after all. It was a complete of a person's footsteps. Laura's heart was pounding very fast or worse, someone had placed a heavy rock inside her chest. Her sweat glistened just as the pale moonlight shine on it. She ran swiftly through the corridor avoiding for punishment.

And to her relief, Artemis was still there, now running towards her. Laura stopped running. The pale crescent moon was moving farther and she couldn't say if it would be more safe if the morning comes.

"I heard footsteps in that part." replied Laura, pointing to the left side of the corridor with her pale finger, breathing deeply. "I don't know who is it but we have to hide."

Laura couldn't help herself to calm down. Of course, who's gonna be alright trying to calm down and can breathe in a normal way as light as air if the punishment couldn't stop following?

 

[Artemis Jackson]

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<COLOR color="#000"> The hand that was on Artemis' chest comforted her breathing. Fast ragged breaths escaped the lips of Artemis and she breathed heavily for a few seconds. It was not difficult to catch some air, but she felt her heartbeat pounding against the skin of her chest. She continued breathing heavily for a few seconds and inhaled a sharp breath, at the same time, exhaling it sharply. Artemis felt a surge of adrenaline rush through her insides as she heard the words of Laura Bridge. Her brow furrowed and she thought about those footsteps that Laura heard. Artemis was quite sure that only the two of them had souls on the seventh floor whilst the rest were nonliving things. Professors and prefects always had no hesitation to approach them. It was always what they did whenever they caught students out of bed. The cliche action that those people did always stayed the same, no matter what year they were in. The prefects were probably in bed, and so were the Heads and professors. Artemis kept her calm and silently drove the nagging that once again repeated itself. Her head swirled with dizziness because of the thought and the chase. Artemis closed her eyes and just ran a pale hand through the blonde hair on her head and just sighed tiredly. "That would be me, if I'm not mistaken. I was running after you. So naturally, those footsteps are mine." Her remark was gentle but at the same time, sharp. She did not like explaining things to people because she was terrible at it but her temper was under her control. Being polite and civil was something necessary in the conversation and Laura wasn't exactly the person that Artemis knew so much. She only knew small facts about the girl, but she vaguely remembered the specifics. Artemis bore her own blue eyes onto those orbs that Laura had and looked away in a second. The darkness scared her and she wondered what time will she ever get back to the common room.

"You gave me quite a chase." Drawled the blonde, a single brow curving upwards with a hint of a smirk. Artemis held her wand loosely inside her fist and held it between them. The light shined brightly, giving Artemis the perfect view of looking into the brunette for eye contact. She disliked having a conversation without any eye contact from the person, making it seem awkward and uninteresting. Eye contact showed power and confidence, which was a necessity for a Slytherin like her. Being terrified her, but a companion was good enough. The thing was, were Ravenclaws witty enough to make an excuse if a professor spotted them? But the idea of having professors early in the morning was almost impossible, but possible enough for those desperate to catch students out of bed. "Is that necklace of yours important?" She asked conversationally, which appeared to be odd in the middle of the night. Artemis shifted her weight to the other foot and looked around before she even heard what response Laura would give her.
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[Laura Bridge]

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<COLOR color="#000">Laura looked apprehensively to the left side part of the corridor. She was sure that the footsteps she heard were not from Artemis at all. Since the footsteps were different. It was like a footstep from an unknown person and she knew what Artemis footsteps sounds like. She heard the footsteps again and suddenly became more anxious as it go louder. Laura's heart pounded so hard as if it her heart wanted to go out from her chest. Luckily, the footsteps walked away until she couldn't hear it anymore. She sighed. Laura did not reply on Artemis because she didn't want condemned her on such a small thing as the footsteps were completely gone.

After a few seconds, Laura looked at Artemis and gave a friendly smile as a sign to forget what she had heard from the other part of the corridor. "Yes. This necklace is very important. Mom gave this to me and she trusted me to keep it safe as long as I have it." explained Laura. Actually, she's not the only one who had a necklace, even her twin-like brother, Edward had one too but in a boy look type necklace which their father gave since Laura and Edward were almost like twins. The moon continued moving until it's luminous light reflected on her silver necklace which shined brightly.​

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[Artemis Jackson]

Silence remained, and all Artemis could do was to groan out loud with exaggeration. It echoed from their spot up to almost three meters away from them and Artemis doubted that anyone would hear them. Artemis' demanding blue eyes searched Laura's, her eyes narrowing in doubt. She did not like being tested by such things like this, and her current predicament made Artemis want to groan in desperation - again. She hated the darkness surrounding them, even though she had a wand to defend her own self. The space intimidated her because of the wideness and the almost never-ending illusion of it. And as a Slytherin, she rarely went on the seventh floor of the castle. She only did when she had a meeting with the sorority members or to visit Alliyah. And those occasions were still rare to let her remember every detail of it. "I don't hear anything." Artemis mumbled so quietly whilst looking at Laura's nervous expression. Slowly, she backed away from the place that Laura was looking at and nibbled on her lower lip. If the brunette was trying to trick her, Artemis vowed to herself that she will strangle the guts out of the Ravenclaw. But with her foul thoughts, she managed to banish them away by trusting the reassuring smile that was thrown onto her and she just nodded discreetly, careful not to show any sign of tenseness.

Artemis just nodded her head, and slowly thought of the things that made it so important and valuable. Artemis did not know if it were real silver or not, but if it were then her mind would have understood its worth faster. She did not want to intrude into anything personal but her curiosity still wandered. Carefully, she peered on the accessory and licked her lips, racking her brain cells to function accordingly. For some reason, her eyesight did not exactly comprehend the shape of the pendant but regardless, Artemis could say that it was beautiful by looking at the colour. "Is that a real heirloom?" Artemis regained her senses quickly, before she can even stare at it with her mouth opened. Her family did not entrust unto her the antique things that her great grand father even possessed which the Slytherin did not mind at all. Her care about her family's possessions was little, but she was aware that in the future, her sister and her would have to split those antique things.

OOC: Meh, I know it sucks. I don't have much time to type more things.
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[Laura Bridge]

The necklace was a heirloom. No wonder how many years was kept by the Hammelton family and also by the Bridge family. When Laura's mother, Beatrice was only eleven years old, her parents trusted her to give her a necklace same as her father, Ethan, his parents also trusted him to give him a necklace too. After many had passed, Beatrice and Ethan decided to give their own necklace. Beatrice gave her necklace to Laura and Ethan gave his necklace to Edward on Laura's eleventh birthday and Edward's tenth birthday on September 18.

"Yes, this is a heirloom." said Laura proudly. "Edward have one too but it was from our dad not from mom." she explained. Speaking of heirlooms, Edward and Laura both love antiques and they were very careful from taking care of it. For them, having an antique thing was such an honor. Laura gazed at her silver necklace admirably. "Do you love antiques?" she asked.

Out of Character:

It's okay. Actually I admire your posts. I think you're really good at making stories because of the words you use and the way you describe the things. It's really good.

 

[Artemis Jackson]

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<COLOR color="#000"> Just for a little necklace, Artemis stared at it for a few seconds with wonder. Heirlooms, were nothing more but old yet beautiful things for the Slytherin. They were old when handed down to the next generation, but they still kept their original spark of beauty to it. The Jacksons weren't very wealthy, but the family is well off to buy a huge and decent home for four people to live in. Artemis never really happened to think what age will her parents hand down to her some heirlooms, but regardless of this, she did not give a damn. Whether there were heirlooms to hand down or none, she would never really mind on giving it to Alliyah instead. Accessories that came as heirlooms were useless to her, for she did not fancy any jewelry that looked good on her. "It's beautiful," Artemis gushed that was uttered softly as well. But as the sudden mention of another person, Artemis cocked her head and felt her curiosity grow. "Sorry, but who is Edward? Is he your brother or something?" The Slytherin wasn't dumb to not know him. In fact, she heard that name already come out from Laura's lips but she just could not quite place it correctly. Edward? There were just thousands of Edwards that her family was associated with. But despite the question she asked, her feelings were strong to believe that her guess was correct.

What Laura asked was more of an odd statement for the blonde. Artemis' lips twitched amusingly in the dark, even if Laura did see it. Either she did nor not, she did not care. It was funny to ask such a question about antiques. Antiques were rather old, and they usually had no use for a person like Artemis Jackson. "It depends if they can be useful to me or not. Usually, I just admire them from afar but by Merlin's beard, I'm not really a big fan! You?" Antiques were one of a kind, really. And they never bothered to let Artemis wonder how many scenes have those things went through. It was actually strange having a conversation in the middle of the night, even if the view outside was gorgeous in the dark. The moon shone brightly, and Artemis glanced at the huge circle that the light was coming from. "Let's have a walk. I get anxious when I stay in one place here in the dark." Artemis motioned for them to walk forward using her wand, and smiled gently at Laura, assuring her that no plan or Slytherin-ish scheme would going to happen. Slytherins happened to be the most notorious house of Hogwarts after all. Perhaps Laura thought that her kind were bad and cruel to the other houses, especially to the younger students.

OOC: Wow. Thank you very much!
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[Laura Bridge]

The Bridge Family were sort of a wealthy family. No wonder that Beatrice was a middle class while Ethan lives in the orphanage when they were only kids. But because of their strong relationship and dreams they suddenly became a successful person. But even though they can afford anything, they always stay humble as before especially the four Bridge kids.

"Oh, thanks." thanked Laura with her usual sweet smile. She had no idea that Artemis admired her necklace to say 'it's beautiful'. Actually, this was the first time that Laura wore her necklace while letting it show without an occasion. Both she and Edward hide their necklace everytime when there was nothing special like parties or something like going outdoors or performing a band. Just hiding it when attending classes or communicating with friends since they try to protect it.

Who is Edward... Laura suddenly looked at Artemis. She had just mentioned it her twin-like brother's name when she was only a second year. But of course, it's been a year ago to remember the name from a long chat. Laura understands it. "Oh. Well Edward is my twin-like brother. He is one year younger than me but people and especially our family and relatives say that they we're absolutely like twins. And Edward was like older than me. We have the same birthday. And because of it, me and Edward treat each other as twins and we're so close like the other true twins." explained Laura proudly. Yes, she was proud. She was very proud having a twin-like brother like Edward. They never experience to fight nor argue and it was very heart-warming. They were very protective to each other and agree with anything. And the surprising and shocking was, they had the same birthday and attitude and of course, the facial features. They both have angelic faces but except for their eye color since Edward's eyes were brightly blue while Laura had a pair of doll black eyes.

Laura gave a gentle smile. Not all people loves antique or a huge fan of it. "Yes I am. Very much. I think it's very rare to have some plenty of vintage things. And it's very valuable." she explained. The words from Artemis was to walk around. Laura suddenly became anxious with this suggestion. But Artemis had a point. If they would stay in this corridor, there's a big chance that they might catch up. So, Laura agreed. "Sure! I would like to walk. And yes, I'm afraid that we might get catch up if we stay any longer here."

 

[Artemis Jackson]

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<COLOR color="#000"> Of course, how could Artemis forget about Edward Bridge? The Slytherin thought of it well, and she felt pleased that her guess was correct. It was no wonder why the name was familiar when it rolled off her tongue, and Artemis did expect the word brother to be said. However, Laura referred to him as a twin-like sibling, because of the said reasons. There was a brief explanation to why she thought of Edward as a twin, and Artemis could only bob her head up and down. The relationship of the two Bridge siblings were almost like Alliyah and Artemis, except for the twin treatment of the two. Artemis thought of her baby sister, and wondered how Ally was doing nowadays especially with that weird hobby of hers. Photography, it seemed, was an odd hobby to maintain. "What house does he belong in?" Artemis asked, just simply out of curiosity and respect. She did not want to shift topic all so immediately, thinking that Laura might find it odd to talk about something so rapidly. She made a guess again, that the Edward boy would be in Gryffindor or Hufflepuff. Either of the two. Or maybe Ravenclaw was a valid guess as well. But Slytherin was out of the question. She never knew any Bridge boy who was a second year in the Slytherin dormitories. Also, she doubted that any of Laura's family members would be Slytherin. Laura seemed too nice to be in Slytherin. Sometimes, Artemis even questioned why she was ever placed with the Snakes, besides from her father staying there.

"Well they are vintage so, it is indeed rare," Artemis agreed with a single nod of her head. "Unless you are part of a very old family that's members can be still noted till the present. Like the pureblood families. I bet they have antiques that are valuable." Being a halfblood, the line of their families have been banished. From pure, it mixed with non magical blood. Hence, Artemis and Alliyah were born. Artemis started walking baby steps to take their time. She did not need to cast Hominem Revelio, since she did not even sense anybody around. Artemis held her wand tightly in her grasp, and curled her right toes briefly and released it, savoring the fluffy surface of the slipper. The darkness was claustrophobic and it scared the teenager. To forget about it, she thought that it was better to just start a new topic. "Have you ever been to the dungeons for your own purposes? Excluding the times where you needed to attend Potions, that is."
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[Laura Bridge]

Laura could feel her eyes that they were already tired, the feeling that she's sleepy. But walking in a lonesome corridor made her feel very much awake as she and Artemis go farther in some part of it. She was thinking hypothetical. What if they found themselves walking inside a secret passageway? Yes, that's what she was thinking about and she was hoping that they could go in no time in that mystery place where they could find some interesting events which is very much exciting except for those dangerous ones. Laura suddenly yawned hiding her mouth with her pale hands.

"Oh, he was sorted in Gryffindor." said Laura with a smile. "We already knew it since we were kids. No wonder that he controlled his fear even he already knew that it might cost his life. He had saved a girl once from a hungry wolf by fighting with that ferocious creature by throwing big stones." she explained. Actually, Edward was about to be sorted in Ravenclaw because of his cleverness and wizened mind. But he was more than brave and he was daring nerve and he's a good example of a true Gryffindor person because of fighting his own fear. Laura was also brave. There are some of her attitudes represents also a Gryffindor, she's brave just like Edward but she belongs in Ravenclaw since her cleverness was more than her bravery.

It was getting colder inside the castle as the wind blew softly through the wide windows. Laura could feel it as the wind touches her pale skin. But her face didn't even show that she couldn't take the evening wind anymore. Instead of embracing her arms, she enjoyed the cold air as it blew her black hair since it lessens her stress which was a relaxing feeling.

At first, Edward and Laura were both worried of having heirlooms because they were scared that Vladymir and Mariana might get jealous - which it will make an argument. But lucky, their eldest brother and youngest sister didn't even think a thing like that since they understand the reason why the twin-like siblings have those antique things. Especially Mariana, she wouldn't care about it, she really wouldn't care since she don't have any interests with those vintage. "No I haven't." said Laura politely. Both she and Edward loves to wander around but the point of not going inside the dungeons makes their parents and siblings shrug. It was a big question especially for the twin-like siblings and it was a very mysterious thing. "Why? Have you ever visited the dungeons once? How does it looks like?" asked Laura, interested, as she clasped her hands very tight as if it she couldn't wait for the answer.

Out of Character:

Sorry it took so long

 

[Artemis Jackson]

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<COLOR color="#000"> A small part of her brain did not really want to continue walking, since all that was ahead was just pure darkness, along with the rustling sound of the trees that were planted nearby. The opened spaces that was located just a few steps away from them were giving Artemis the chills, and she did not really want to continue any longer. Artemis wanted to go back to the dungeons, since her comfort zone was there and all she really wanted to do was to plunge herself into the world of dreams. Perhaps Laura wanted some adventure and Artemis really did too, but the Slytherin felt her body's energy decreasing. The blonde was glad though that they were in castle, and no prefects were roaming around. "How old was he then? Eleven? Ten?" Immediately, Artemis felt the sincerity of Laura's words in her smile and the tone that she used. Her thoughts shifted to Alliyah, who was certainly sleeping in the Gryffindor dormitories. Alliyah was not as courageous, but she was always determined and persistent. For a whilst, Artemis thought that maybe the two knew one another. Or maybe not. But then Alliyah's social life was incredibly alive with the lights on, and there was a fat chance that the two were familiar with one another. After all, both were Gryffindors and Edward seemed to be a boy who was neither afraid nor shy anyways. "I have a sister and she's in Gryffindor. Maybe they both know each other." After all the people that Artemis' sister have met, a huge chance was there that Artemis believed in. If both did not know one another personally, then it would be automatic that both of them would be familiar with each other's age and features. It was a fat chance, though there were no guarantees at all.

The breeze swept in the corridor unexpectedly, giving the blonde a cold feeling. She liked how the air touched her natural pale skin, although it still gave her the chills despite her love for the cold weather. Unwanted, scary feelings and thoughts went to her and she hated how her mind easily believed those images. She was glad though that she had a cardigan that covered her slim form, or else she would surely be hopeless along the corridors with only a wand. Artemis felt that here feet were cold, and she purposely dug the nails of her toes into the furry texture of her slippers. It was odd walking around the hallway in pajamas and the teenager knew that it won't be the last time that she would be ever here in her sleeping attire. Artemis yearned to go back to the dungeons and drop dead on her four poster bed, but the conversation with Laura was just funny and at the same time, it was entertaining the Slytherin. The blonde felt her lips quirk, amused to see - or rather hear - that Laura was questioning her about the dungeons. That place was not just anything scary for her. For almost three years, she had been crossing the dungeons just to get to the common room for the Snakes. "Not once, countless of times. As a matter of fact, I live there." The teenager put a small pressure on the last word of her last sentence, to stress the location of where her common room is. Did not all the students know that in Hogwarts, the ever so-notorious Slytherins lived there, in one of the corridors in the dungeons? Their common room was deep inside, and it was usually illuminated by a dim light or a simple torch. Artemis decided to bring up the fact that she was a Snake, in case her Ravenclaw friend did not know that piece of information. It was actually nice getting to know Laura, even if they were communicating in the middle of the night. "I belong in Slytherin so er, our common room is in there." Artemis was not surprised as much when she found out that their common room was in the dungeons. The temperature there was cool, even if the weather outside was moggy. They were underground after all, and the lake was not far away from their dormitories.

The night was old, and Artemis knew that she needed to head back to the common room before the sun would arise in few hours. She felt fatigue wash over her senses and she wanted to just curl up into a ball and sleep peacefully. The thought tempted her to do so, but she considered the dark scene around her and Laura, who she thought needed to get going as well. Artemis rubbed the smooth part of the grip of her wand and she pointed it to the way that led to the towers. She found no other presence, and Artemis was quite sure that Laura could manage to arrive at the tower safely without tripping or doing something that would hurt her. She thought that despite Laura's good eyesight, she still needed to politely ask the girl if she could be any assistance to her. But the brunette surely had her wand... Or did she not? Either way, Artemis was willing to go through the dark corridor as long as her wand held the light it had on its tip. "I think we should get going. It's early morning already..." She gestured to the path that Laura would take to go to her dormitories. The Slytherin was capable of handling her own fears, even if the dark was crowding her senses and making her go mad. A little exaggerated but Artemis liked to stress things especially when it came to her own fears. Despite the scary chill that was crawling on her arms, she kept on an expressionless face which held nothing but tired eyes. Artemis glanced at her wand and looked at Laura with a small tired emotion showing from her blue orbs briefly, before flashing about into passiveness once more. "Er, you have your wand right? You know, it's a bit dark out there." She mumbled quietly and she did not like the tone of her voice. Artemis wanted to get rid of that irrational fear she had which was stupid as she thought of it. The darkness and blood - those two were the factors that scared the living hell out of the Slytherin so badly.
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