Snakes in a Room

[Alana Finch]

Alana was in a bad mood. She was seated in the classroom on top of a desk, her feet swinging as she stared at the ground. Light filtered through the window, illuminating the dust in the room. The dust was everywhere, on the books stacked in the corner, on the shoulders of the dummies that were damaged and in need of repair, and covering the dusty flasks in their holders, some liquid concealed along the bottoms. The door was wide open, but Alana didn't expect to see anyone for a while yet. Most people were still at dinner, but Alana had skipped it, quickly grabbing a peanut butter and banana sandwich from the kitchens. It was still beside the girl, still in its wrapping.

The semester had been going well so far. Rumours about her had died down. At least, she hadn't heard anything lately. Nothing except what Matthew had confronted her with. Alana hadn't appreciated that at all. She didn't think she owed him or anyone an explanation about her actions, especially when she really didn't have a say in them. The Slytherin did have to admit that her time at Chaos' home hadn't been a completely terrible experience. His parents were nice, and once Scarlet had left and the whole closet incident had been put behind them, Alana had been slightly more cordial to Chaos, her anger transferred to Havoc and what he'd done. It still didn't change her feelings about being engaged to him though. Quidditch was going well too. Avie had ended the match before she'd been tested by the other team. So, she had no reason to be grumpy. Yet, here she was. Alana unwrapped the sandwich and lifted it to her mouth, taking a quick bite.

 

[Gabriel Fletcher]

Despite it being a school, which by definition ensured it to be at least slightly unbearable, Hogwarts New Zealand was turning out to be more pleasant than Gabriel had anticipated. His Professors were less insufferable, his peers less pretentious, and, perhaps most importantly, his reputation less splintered. As the young Slytherin had hoped, transferring schools had provided him a chance to amend his ways, and he was determined to do himself proud. Himself, of course, because he had nobody else to please, which he found to be both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, he had no unrealistic expectations to rise to; but on the other, he was forced to rely almost entirely on self discipline to get anything done.

For the second time that week, the Slytherin had chosen to skip dinner. The lively atmosphere of the great hall only got on his nerves. Instead, he was making the most of the quiet hour in which the corridors were mostly empty by meandering slowly through the castle. His route seemed aimless, though there was almost certainly a motivation behind his early evening stroll. Gabriel rarely exerted himself without purpose. Whatever it was he had been intending to do, however, would soon be long forgotten. His journey led him down the second floor corridor, where he peered through open doors, and, upon finding behind them vacant rooms, closed them. There was something about an open door that possessed the power to agitate Gabriel to no end. He continued this way until, with his hand already poised over the doorknob, he stumbled across a room that wasn't empty at all. He smiled, advancing half way through the arch and hanging in the empty space. "Are you dining alone, or may I join you?"

 

[Alana Finch]

The Slytherin girl spotted the boy before he seemed to notice her. He had his hand on the door, to do what, Alana had no idea. But, as he smiled at her and took a step forward, the grumpy girl found herself nodding her head to his question. She'd noticed this boy in the common room and in her classes, curiosity about him in the same way that people tend to be curious about new students. It helped that he was fairly good looking too. "You can join me, I guess. You might want to shut the door though. I think dinner's probably just about done" she rolled her eyes. Where there was one student, there were usually many. The noise would begin to grow until it became nearly deafening with students rushing to and fro to get things done before curfew.

Looking down at the other half of her sandwich, Alana pondered if she would even get to it. She didn't think so. The Slytherin just wasn't very hungry this evening, but the sandwich was hers and she wasn't going to share with someone she barely knew. "Are you liking Hogwarts so far?" she asked, not bothering to ask if he was new. She knew that he was a transfer. Picking at her sandwich, she broke off a small bite and placed it into her mouth, chewing very slowly while she waited for his reply.

 

[Gabriel Fletcher]

Sounds of post-dinner chatter were already beginning to drift down the second floor corridor, and so Gabriel sensibly heeded the girl's advice and closed the door behind him, submerging the abandoned classroom back into a peaceful quiet. "Good thinking," he said as he crossed the stone floor, moving with a casual air of nonchalance. He made a seat of a nearby desk and pulled out the chair from beneath it to rest his feet on. Unfamiliar company didn't tend to put the boy ill at ease, and had the blonde not interrupted the silence with a question, he would almost certainly have filled it with one himself. He gave an indifferent shrug, leaning back on his hands. "It's better than Scotland," he replied. "Marginally, anyway. The Professors aren't complete tossers, so that's something." The dark haired Slytherin smiled then, as if what he'd just said might have been a joke. It was difficult to tell. His eyes, which he allowed to rest on his acquaintance's face, didn't give much away. "So how come you're hiding away here by yourself?" he asked nosily, curious as to what a girl with such prepossessing features was doing eating alone. She must have had more people trying to be her friend than she could bat away with a broomstick.

 

[Alana Finch]

Alana watched the boy move closer, her red eyes following him as she took another bite. He settled at a nearby desk, but he wasn't so close that the Slytherin felt uncomfortable. She listened to his response,learning that he had attended Hogwarts Scotland in the past. The teenager wondered why he'd transferred, but she didn't ask the question on her lips. If it was anything juicy, she was sure it would eventually come out. News like that never seemed to stay hidden for too long. Instead, she nodded her head politely. Alana was rather indifferent about most of the professors. None of them were her favorite, though she did admire her Arithmancy professor's intelligence. She allowed his question to linger in the air as she finished her bite. "There are people I'd rather not deal with today" she stated with a half shrug, a smirk on her lips that quickly disappeared. That was the simplest explanation she could offer.

 

[Gabriel Fletcher]

The girl didn't say very much. Gabriel liked that. It gave her a sense of reservation; as if she knew in every situation far more than she was willing to let on. His assumption may not have been accurate, but he did find it tended to be the case that quieter people were much more insightful than those who blurted the first words that came to their lips. He smiled at the brief silence, able to analyse nothing from the girl's expression, and then nodded as she gave him an answer with predicted ambiguity. "That's fair enough," he said, looking across the room at an empty portrait on the wall. Everything about the classroom seemed to have been abandoned, from the dusty brass frames to a stack of cobweb ridden books on the windowsill. Gabriel felt quite at home. "I'm sorry people are giving you grief." It wasn't his place to offer help, so he sat silently for a moment before looking at the blonde again. "I'm Gabriel, by the way. Or Fletcher. Whichever you prefer," he told her, and then smiled expectantly to receive her name in return.

 

[Alana Finch]

Alana was glad that her housemate didn't push, didn't try to force more information out of her. She appreciated that, especially since so many others around her always seemed as if they were seeking something from her. Sometimes she could figure out what it was. Usually, they were trying to get her to give Chaos a chance, to love him. As if love or even like was something that could be forced. No, it had to grow on its own.

Alana gave a small nod as he apologized to her. It was such an odd thing to her when people apologized for things they had no control over. "Unless your name is..."she paused. With a sigh, "Never mind. You've got no reason to apologize. But thanks." She waved her free hand, dismissing the well placed apology. After taking another bite of her sandwich, Alana spoke. "Which one is your first name?" she asked, figuring it was Gabriel but wanting to be sure. She waited a beat hearing his answer before finally giving him her own. "I'm Alana" she added with a smile.

 

[Gabriel Fletcher]

Gabriel frowned, wondering idly who did owe the girl an apology, and then tried not to think about it any longer. He was prone to over protectiveness, and since it would have been rather out of place to show hostility over someone he barely knew, he thought it better to keep quiet. It would nag him for the rest of the day (and probably half the night, too), but at least the blonde would not discover his quickness of temper so soon. Besides, she didn't seem like the type of girl who needed a gallant knight fighting her battles for her. She looked quite capable of doing that for herself.

"Gabriel," he clarified, smiling, and then nodded as she gave him her name. Alana. It suited her. "Well, the pleasure is all mine, Miss Alana," he teased, his smile broadening into a playful grin. "What's in your sandwich?" he asked nosily, peering at it from the desk where he sat. "Not peanut butter, I hope. That stuff's horrible." The Slytherin was still only messing around, having guessed from the scent in the air that peanut butter was precisely what was in her sandwich. He didn't even mind the taste of it - he just enjoyed poking a little harmless fun at people.

 

[Alana Finch]

Alana listened to him and then fought the temptation to show him her chewed up food as she might have done to her brother. Instead, she finished her bite and then took her time breaking off another bite. "Horrible?" she stated, her eyebrows rising as a smirk crossed her face. "Excellent. Now, I don't have to worry about sharing with you." The Slytherin had been worrying about whether to offer him a piece or not. "Unless you want to take that back, Gabriel. I don't know if I can be friends with someone who thinks peanut butter is horrible" she continued smirking.

The Slytherin surely wouldn't base a friendship on something as silly as liking or not liking peanut butter, but it was fun to joke around. It didn't happen nearly enough for her in this castle. Alana always felt like she was going from one drama to another here, always worrying about someone catching her doing something unpleasant to them. "What kind of sandwiches do you favor?" she asked. With that, she took another bite wishing that she'd thought to grab herself a drink as well.