Riptide

[Xavier Jeffreys]

Xavier had heard many stories of the lake and more specifically the mermaids that lurked beneath the water's surface but it wasn't the stories nor the murky water that brought him to the lakefront that day. It was his desire to further ponder the environment of the school grounds he was going to spend the next seven years of his life in by upturning every rock on the shore so he could discover what kinds of bugs, small plants or crustaceans made a place as damp as the lakeside their home. His home in Brisbane was warm and dry and barely similar to the environment of the lake, if it was similar at all so he could honestly say his mind drew a blank to what he would find underneath every rock he turned over and quite frankly it only excited him more.

Xavier strolled along the shoreline, occasionally kneeling down and turning over rocks before standing back up again. He was yet to find anything of interest though he was determined to continue until he found something or until his stomach rumbled enough to convince him to return to the castle for a snack. His over sized gumboots made splashing sounds with every step he took and although the sound was probably loud enough to scare away any bugs he might have found, his elated mood meant the sound did nothing to phase him as he continued his search. The Hufflepuff boy was in his element, discovering things about the world first hand and enjoying every moment of it. He wasn't about to slow down because of a problem as small as the sound of his shoes. ​

 

[Freya Odegard]

Freya had made her way outside for what seemed to be the second time since she had arrived at the castle, which was shame really. It had been one the things she had wanted to do as soon as she got to the castle, however the weather hadn't been all too good and the library had also been calling her name. Looking around as she made her way across the lawn the first year hufflepuff was amazed by everything outside of the castle. She had seen already seen the grounds ofcourse and the castle itself was breathtaking as well, but finally being outside made her realize why she had wanted to wander around the grounds in the first place.

Freya had decided for herself that the lake was the first thing she was going to visit whilst outside, so that was exactly where she was heading. The size of the lake and some of the stories she had heard made her wonder what kind of creatures knew the lake as their home and if they would come to the surface from time to time. Not caring about getting a bit dirty she sat herself down as close to the water as she deemed good, hoping it was far away enough to not get wet. Pulling her legs towards her body the girl wrapped her arms around them, resting her head on top of her knees and closing her eyes to take in the sounds around her.​

<i></i>

 

[Xavier Jeffreys]

Xavier eventually discovered another person as he continued walking along the shoreline and upturning rocks. The sight of a girl sitting amongst the pebbles with her arms around her legs and her eyes closed was too curious for Xavier to ignore so he put his bug searching task to one side and sped up his walking to approach her. The weather today was not the warmest and the lakeside was not the safest place to be on the school grounds if the rumors about mermaids were true and while Xavier was happy to spend his time by the lake in spite of everything he knew, he did not understand why someone would willfully visit the lakeside and sit by the water's edge if they weren't looking for bugs like he was.

His gumboots continued to make splashing sounds with every step forward so it wasn't like he was trying to sneak up on her, but with her eyes shut and the general impression he got that she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings worried him slightly. He was worried that his sudden presence would scare her but he was also too curious to avoid speaking to the girl after he had made his way along the shoreline towards her. "Are you okay?" He asked with a soft voice. It sounded like more of a query than anything because he wasn't sure if she was paying attention. He stood a short distance away from the girl as he waited for an answer.​

 

[Freya Odegard]

Freya smiled when the only thing she seemed to hear at that moment was the sound of the water and muffled voices a long way in the distance. It wasn't very warm outside, which caused her to shiver from time to time. However, the girl was enjoying the peacefulness way too much to let a bit of cold air ruin it for her. The sound of feet splashing in the water made Freya listen even more carefully to the sounds around her. She was well aware of the fact that she was sat rather close to the water and if this person was just casually walking around the shoreline she might be in the way.

With every second that passed the muffled splashing sounds were getting louder and the girl was already preparing herself to pull in her legs a bit more, hoping she wouldn't be in the way and the person could pass her without splashing too much. Once the person reached her the splashing stopped and the sound of a soft voice now filled the air. Freya opened her eyes as she looked up at the person who belonged to the splashing sounds. "Yeah, I'm alright." She smiled at the boy, realizing that the way she was sat might have caused him to think something was wrong. The girls eyes fell on the boots he was wearing and she motioned to them, smiling slightly at him once again. "Nice boots."​

<i></i>

Sorry this is so, so very late