Relaxing

[Zach Jordan]

Zach could never have anticipated how much homework he would have to endure when he started his new life at Hogwarts. His first two weeks at school had featured a lot of late nights in the common room and early mornings in the library. Zach felt confident that he was adjusting nicely to the magical world. There were times he missed his home and his parents. There was a lot of things that didn't exist in the magical world and it had taken time to adjust to being without the, the excess of homework had helped the adjustment. Zach had little time to think about adjusting between the two worlds when he was locked deep in the library buried under textbooks and rolls of parchment.

When the morning of the second Saturday of the term rolled round Zach found himself in the unusual position of being on top of all his homework. He had even managed to do a little studying and read a head a little. This meant he hadn't been as social as some of his classmates but he was happy with the position he was in. When he climbed out of bed he found that the dorm was empty, after dressing in silence he grabbed some quick breakfast in the Great hall before heading down to his favourite spot on the grounds. The lake. As most of the students were still at breakfast, Zach mostly had the lake to himself. He took a seat under a tree by the lakefront that provided him with a nice spot of shade and he leaned back.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence, the studious person she was, didn't feel the weight f her homework yet, though it was still early in the year. She had only had one hard assignment, and that was a short essay that she wrote within and hour or two. She heard so many people complaining about it that she could hardly believe how easy it was. She had only been to the library once since being at the school, as she had many of the books that she needed already handy. Some were gifts, and others were what was required, she did got for her essay, and also for a few fun books, but other than that, she hadn't had the chance. it was unfortunate. Prudence got up extra early that morning, and went to return the book and get another; one about magical creature. Then she decided she was going to relax and read.

Prudence couldn't think of any better area than the lake. She slipped into some jeans, and a brown t-shirt, and made her way down with a blanket in hand. She was going to lay out on the blanket, and read in the cool spring air. It was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday; a way she would spend it if she were home. The only difference was she didn't have her parents. Prudence felt a twinge of sadness when she thought of how much she missed home. But she shook that off, realizing that the perfect spot - a shaded area - had another student under it. Prudence was sure he would let her sit if she was polite and asked to join him. After all, she may make a new friend rather than read her book.

Prudence approached confidently, and smiled. "Hi, do you mind if I sit?" Her voice was light, almost airy as she asked the question. Her blanket was clutched under her arm, her finger marking off a few pages in the book, showing that she had already read just a bit.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach could have easily spent hours by the lake lost in his own thoughts. He had done it an a few occasions already, then again he also had made a habit of meeting new people whenever he came down to the lake, he wondered if today would be any different. Zach hadn't been at the lake long when someone approached him in the shade, for a moment he found it odd how at a time where he was the only one out by the lake yet someone would come sit by him but then he sat up to get a better look at the person who had just spoke to him.

Her face wasn't one he recognized. Then again, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor first years hadn't had classes together. Zach looked at her to try and get a sense for what kind of person she was, and two things stood out, she was clutching a blanket under one arm and holding a book in the other. She had clearly marked off a couple of pages in the book to show how much she had read. He suddenly realized that maybe she was a little like him, someone who enjoys reading. "No, no, by all means take a seat," He smiled warmly patting the ground next to him and shifting over slightly.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence was eager to not only sit down but to make a new friend. Her smile showed he easily trusting she was, and also her kindness. Prudence had never been taken advantage of, or even bullied, she had no reasons to be sad or to be worried that tis person would hurt her. She was like many children, young and naive. Again Prudence smiled, glad that he seemed happy to have the company. It seemed to her that there were a few people who enjoyed the quiet solidarity of the grounds, she knew etter than to disturb them.

While lost in thoughts, Prudence had picked a leaf to use as a bookmark, and then spread her blanket out next to the young boy. She then turned. "Feel free to sit on te blanket if you don't want to be covered in grass." She smoothed out the edges of the blanket, which had pugs lining the outside of it, as well as some words in french. It was something that Benjamin had gotten her in his travels. Another thing that made Prudence a little homesick, but she was happy she ad things that made her think of them.

"Oh I'm sorry!" Prudence had realized she had been in thought, staring at the book she had. "My name is Prudence. I'm a Gryffindor." She didn't know why, she only thought it was important for her to tell him what house she was from. Who knows, he may be from her house too, and in the same year as her or older than her.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach couldn't but but look out at the lake and admire how beautiful and peaceful it was. It was a perfect time of day to be outside, when most of the student population was still inside having their breakfast. Zach looked over at the girl by his side and wondered if she was, like him, out here because she preferred to be alone and had come looking for a place to read her book in peace and instead had found Zach. He watched her as she unfolded her blanket and even allowed him to scooch over and sit on it himself. Zach was a friendly person but it always amazed him when he saw someone who was so nice and seemed so comfortable with someone they had just met. After she had unfolded the blanket and took a seat herself she introduced herself to him. Zach smiled, Hi Prudence, I'm Zach a Ravenclaw," It wasn't usually neccessary to add your house to an introduction, but at the weekend it students didn't wear their robes and during the warmer months they didn't wear their house scarfs. It wasn't vital that new people knew his house, but the culture of Hogwarts seemed to dictate that a persons house was an important part of someone.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence, like the boy next to er, ad noticed just ow beautiful the view was once she was seated. She could smell the lake water as the wind blew it into her face. She had sat the book down beside her after taking her seat, after all, she didn't mind talking. In fact, company was nice since she hadn't made too many friends at the school. She nodded when h said his name and that he was a Ravenclaw. She had heard that house was the smartest, but figured it might not be wise to bring up "stereotypes" as her fathers put it. "It's great to meet you!" She said instead.

Only a moment of silence fell before Prudence began speaking again. "So, what brought you out here?" She was sure it was for the view, but aybe he was going to read in silence too. She always wanted to find someone who read muggle books like herself. After all, some people hadn't even heard of the books she'd read, because they weren't raised with muggle literature.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach hadn't made a lot of friends so far at Hogwarts, it would mostly be because he had spent most of his free time in the library trying to get his head round his new world. His lack of social activity could be the reason he had planned to spend his Saturday morning out by the lake on his own rather than in the Great hall with the majority of the students. Zach noticed that as soon as Prudence had sat down she had set aside her book, clearly she no longer intended to read it which meant the young Ravenclaw now had the girls complete attention. When he came to Hogwarts he never imagined that making friends would be this easy.

He found himself wondering what her background was like, wondering if she was like him and if she felt like she had just stepped into endless wonder like he had. She asked him what had brought him outside, he paused for a moment to consider his answer. Zach didn't really know why he had chosen to come outside, at the time it just seemed like the preferable choice to sitting by himself in the Great hall poking at his breakfast while the rest of his classmates talked among themselves. "I like it out here, especially early in the morning while everyone's still at breakfast, it's quiet and peaceful, helps me think," Zach wondering if her next question would be inquiring on what he was thinking about. He wasn't sure how much information he would unload on her given that he had only just met the girl.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence felt goosebumps on her skin, her back against the cold tree now. That chilly feeling was almost soothing though, so se didn't pull away from the bark. She listened to the water lap te edge of the earth, and heard some birds chirping before being whacked by the whomping willow. it was a gruesome thought, but Prudence supposed it must be the circle of life. When Zach finally answered her question, Prudence turned her deep, blue eyes to the boy and listened to what he had to say. She wanted, at that point to ask him why he was thinking so hard on a weekend. She didn't want to pry though, as her father's thought it was rude.

"I always think best with nature too." She commented, smiling. Prudence loved the outdoors, and loved to adventure as well. She had originally planned on doing so, before she'd decided on reading instead. "So, are you new to Hogwarts, or?" Prudence wasn't sure if he was a first year, after all, some people aged better than others. He could be a second or third year, and Prudence wouldn't know unless she asked. "I'm a first year myself. New to all of this." She motioned to t he grounds. She was new to everything magic, not just the school.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach felt a sudden chill breeze by and he shuddered slightly. It was unusual to feel such a chill at that time of year. He noticed that the girl beside him hadn't asked him what he was thinking about. He liked that, he didn't want someone he just met to try and pry, maybe when he knew her better she might be all up in his business. He did think she was a first year, she looked young. "'I'm a first year too, still getting used to my new surroundings," Zach still wasn't completely used to Hogwarts, or even to magic in general. "I am new to everything here," He waved his hand in a gesture similar to her own. "I'm actually muggle born so I don't know a lot about magic, it's a very new and strange experience," Prudence was the first person he told that he was muggle born, he wasn't ashamed of it, but he knew that there was still some lingering prejudice among some of the students in the school but he felt that he had a good read on the type of person that Prue was.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence hadn't even registered how chilly the wind was. As an outdoorsy person, she had become accustomed to all of the temperatures in New Zealand. Besides that, being near a lake meant the breeze would be colder. She did wrap her arms around her slightly, though, to keep out any further chilly winds. Prudence nodded at his comment about being a first year. "It really is a big place, isn't it?" Obviously she knew he'd agree with that statement, if he had to still get used to it. Then she heard something that was music to her ears. "You too? I am so glad I'm not the only one! I mean, I know I wouldn't be the only one, the school is so big, but it's still a relief. Where are you from?" It was obvious that his divulging being a muggle born, was going to open Prue up a bit more. Suddenly she felt more comfortable, like she wouldn't be prejudiced against. She knew that people in the school could be mean, so having someone who was like her, that could be a friend, made Prue feel much less homesick.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach suddenly felt relaxed when he found that he was in the same boat as Prudence. She was the first person he had met that was in the same position as he was, it was good for him to meet someone who knew what he was going through and felt just as much like a fish out of water as he did. "It's huge, there's still so much of the castle I haven't seen yet, I want to see as much of it as I can before next year, I don't want to be in second year and still be getting lost," By the size of the castle he knew that it would be extremely difficult to explore the entire castle just in the next few months. "I'm from Wellington, so I'm fairly local," He knew the school wasn't all that close to Wellington but he knew the school attracted students from all over the world. "Where are you from?" Zach was happy to have found someone he could open up to about his heritage and be honest with.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence felt the air warm a bit, and it was obvious the two of them were becoming a it more relaxed, especially with the discovery of their similarities. Prudence felt truly happy to have made a friend like her. She nodded in agreement wit what he said. "I've only really seen where my classes are, I don't know where to start when it comes to exploring!" Prudence was now facing Zach more, so that their conversation could continue. She knew that having open body language would make the conversation seem lighter, and friendlier.

Prudence's blue eyes lit up more as he mentioned being from Wellington. "Really? I'm from Gisbourne! I'm a six hour drive from you!" Se laughed a bit. "I've been to Wellington for one of my father's business trips." She then paused. "Do you live with your parents?" Prudence didn't want to bring up a sore subject, but it was more dangerous to assume he did, than it was to ask.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach was know giving Prudence his full attention. He could hear the sounds of students coming out of the castle and onto the grounds to enjoy the weekend in the gleaming sun. Like Prue, Zach hadn't seen a lot of the castle but he had explored a little beyond his common room and classes but he hadn't done a lot. He suspected that there were whole floors that he had yet to explore. "I've done a little, but I want to see more of it, maybe we should go and explore the castle sometime," Zach was now casting his mind to corridors and hallways that he had seen, maybe in the corner of his eye, but had never ventured down. He wanted to make a mental note of them so he could explore them later. "That's really not far at all, I live with my adopted mother," he said coolly She was the first person at Hogwarts he had mentioned being adopted to. Zach didn't want to go into too much detail, unless she asked.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence knew that she had Zach's full attention, and it felt nice. Since arriving everyone seemed so squirley, and Prue hadn't had anyone's attention for more than a few minutes. Heck, sometimes she couldn't keep her own attention for long periods of time. It's been a problem when reading, and that was why she had looked for a nice, relaxing area to be. Prue nodded at Zach's suggestion. "That sounds great, that way if we get lost, we wont be alone!" Prue wouldn't admit it, but she would most likely be afraid if she found herself alone in the castle. After all, who knew what waited in the dark corners of the school. Prue perked up at his adopted comment. "I'm half adopted." She said, smiling. "My dad Benjamin is my real dad, but Marc is my other dad, and he's just my dad by marriage." She continued, explaining a situation that was confusing to a lot of kids her age. What about your mother and father? Are they both adoptive or did one of them actually have you?" Prue might have been too curious for her own good, and she hoped Zach didn't mind.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach had never been totally comfortable talking about his adoption. It wasn't something he was ashamed off, but there was always questions that came up that he couldn't answer. Having been dropped off on a orphanage doorstep he knew nothing about his biological parents. When people found out he was adopted they always asked him about his adopted parents, the truth was he only had one. "I only have the one adopted parent, my adopted mother plucked me out of the orphanage when she noticed that I was magical, normally it wouldn't have been so easy but err she may have confunded a few muggles," It felt strange to be telling someone so much about his personal life and the circumstances of how his mother adopted him. "I don't know who my birth parents are, I never met them and I don't even know if they were magical," He smiled.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence could almost feel that Zach was uncomfortable talking about the fact that he was adopted. Only then did it strike the girl that maybe they had different situations. Prue was a very thought out pregnancy, and her fathers had both sorted through hours of women, to find the right one to surrogate for them. She was well taken care of from the womb to now, and didn't really have much that she could complain about. Prue listened to what Zach was saying, and laughed slightly upon hearing that his mother had used a spell or two to get him. It seemed that his mom really wanted the best for him. "It's okay that you don't know who is related to you by blood, because the best family is the family we choose." Prue said; it was a statement that she really believed too.

"Neither of the people who raised me are magical, and I don't think my blood mother is either. We were very surprised to find out that I was a witch; and it's been exciting since!" Prudence said, smiling widely at Zach. She enjoyed the company of er new found friend, and was glad to say that she had made at least one.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Prudence's words relaxed Zach a little, he didn't like talking about his past all that much. It made him think about where he might have come from or who his parents might have been and these were not comforting thoughts. Zach found himself looking around at the lakeside and saw that more and more students were leaving breakfast and coming out to enjoy the weekend in the grounds. The lakeside was now littered with groups of students and the collective buzz of their conversations carried even across the lake. "I love my mum, the fact she isn't a biological relation is just a minor detail in my eyes, if not for her I might not know what I am," Often Zach had wondered what would have happened to him if his mother hadn't seen his gifts from the corner of his eye. Would he still be in the orphanage, would he have gotten a letter delivered there, or would he have fallen through the cracks.

The loud conversation of two students shook him from his day dream and gave him something to focus on. The students were both girls, maybe fourth or fifth years by the look of them. As they passed Zach and Prue, he could make out the topic of their conversation. The Yule Ball. "What do you know about the Yule ball?" He asked curiously. It felt like a rapid change of conversation, but having exchanged parental information it was important to move on before they became bogged down in the details of Zach's adoption.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence could almost visibly see that Zach was relaxing around her. She was happy to have made a friend so quickly, and one whom seemed interested in the same things she was. She figured there would be others like her, but she had no idea that she would meet them and be friends with them. "That's the perfect way to view it." She commented, flipping the loose strands of hair over her shoulder. At that time, Prue happened to glance behind her, and see a group of older girls, all giggling and seeming quiet happy with something. Prudence overheard bits and pieces of their conversation, but didn't think it was important until she was addressed by Zach about the Yule Ball that was mentioned.

When it came to dances, Prue had almost no experience. She didn't even think she had a dress that would look good for a dance. She shrugged a bit. "I know it's a dance. My sisters at Heta Omega are all pretty excited for it, but I've never even been to a dance." She laughed slightly, thinking she might look ridiculous if she dressed up for one. She'd never been a formal type of girl. "Are you going to go to it?" She asked.

 

[Zach Jordan]

Zach had heard about the Yule ball from various different sources, students in his house, overheard conversations from older students, admittedly it was mostly girls who had been roaming the halls and grounds talking about the dance, who their going with and what their dresses were like. Zach hadn't thought much about whether or not he would go and if he did the idea of asking someone hadn't crossed his mind. After a brief distraction Zach turned his attention back to Prue. He couldn't help but wonder if she would go, he had never been to a dance himself but he did think it would be something he would enjoy. "Yeah I think I will, I think its just one of those things you have to go and do," Suddenly a thought came over him and it was something he had to stop and mull over. "Ermm, Prudence, maybe we could go together," Zach almost held his breath when he asked. He didn't know why he was so nervous, of course they would be going as friends, that was what they were. They were too young for anything else.

 

[Prudence Armstead]

Prudence shouldn't have been so surprised by Zach's question, but she was. It wasn't a bad surprise in which she wanted to run away, it was just odd to the young Gryffindor, who had only ever been to daddy daughter dances. Prudence didn't even think she had a dress to wear to the ball, so she would have to go purchase one. It wasn't going to be a big deal, as she was sure that her parent's would be swooning over the fact that she was going to a dance without bribery. Though, maybe it would be more enjoyable as this dance would include magic.

Prue looked at Zach with a smile, and nodded. "Yeah, we could have tons of fun!" She said with a grin. "I be their will be foods and drinks and tons of great music that I've never heard before!" She smiled a little wider, knowing the wizarding world probably had much different music. Then she turned around, and saw some people heading back up toward the school. It was probably close to dinner time. "Well, I'm hungry, I'm going to go up for dinner. Would you like to walk with me?" Prudence was going to leave either way, she really was very hungry.

 

[Zach Jordan]

When Zach noticed that a large number of students were heading into the castle and he couldn't believe that it was already dinner. The time had gone by quickly and now Zach felt like he had made a good friend. He smiled as his thoughts turned to the Yule ball, his muggle born mind couldn't contemplate the magical wonders that awaited them on Christmas day. "I'm really looking forward to it, I went to a couple of school discos when I was in primary school," Zach knew that Prue would know what he meant, that was one of the good things about talking to a fellow muggle born, he didn't have to clarify anything he said that related to the muggle world. "I think the music will be different, but it will be exciting to see what dances are like with magic," Prue too had noticed the in flux of students going into the castle on their way to dinner. She mentioned to him that she was hungry and that they should head inside. Zach stood up with her, "Yeah we should head back up," Zach felt a little twinge of disappointment as he knew when they made it into dinner they would have to separate. That was one of the downsides of making friends with someone from another house.