To be Alone

[Vivian Brackenstall]

Vivian had been at Hogwarts long enough now that he had specific places he liked to go to at specific times of year. It was finally starting to warm up after winter, but there were a few quiet alcoves Vivian knew of that were the best places to catch the pale early spring sun this time of day, which was precisely what he wanted. Vivian had discovered a book about magical instruments in the library, jammed in amongst the history texts, and was excited to crack it open and see what it held. Making his way down the hallway, book in hand, he kept his head down and walked slowly, enjoying the prospect of a whole day to idle away with nothing to do but read and relax.

 

[Matt Rosemary]

It would come as no surprise to anyone who knew Matt well that he was walking around the castle with not much purpose, sometimes he just liked to stroll around the school and see what people were up to - everyone had different stories and Matt liked to observe without really wanting to know the details. As he continued on the second floor corridor, the Gryffindor spotted someone around his age, he was alone and had his head bent down. Matt frowned, not liking when people were alone and looked so lonely. Not even thinking whether the Hufflepuff actually wanted to be alone, Matt went over to him. "Um, hey," he greeted, sending the boy a smile. "I have a random, general question. What do you think of exploring?"

 

[Vivian Brackenstall]

Vivian was distracted enough trying to get where he was going that he didn't realise someone was approaching him at first. He looked up when he heard a greeting nearby, surprised that it had been directed at him. The boy's next question was even more of a surprise, and Vivian paused for a long moment, trying to switch mental gears from the book he had been thinking about to responding to this stranger. "Oh. Um... it's fine?" He said hesitantly, voice soft. "It's... nice to discover hidden places other people don't know about... are, um... is this... is this for the paper or something?" He asked hesitantly, not sure why else someone would be asking such an odd question of a stranger.

 

[Matt Rosemary]

The fact that Matt's question didn't have much sense to begin with didn't bother the third year much. He did understand why the boy would be surprised, after all not everyone would answer casually to a stranger, and this boy in particular seemed like one who didn't normally hang around a large crowd. "Hmm," he said, as he thought over the Hufflepuff's words. "Yeah, I guess that's true. I mean I explore like all the time," he admitted, shrugging. Matt furrowed his eyebrows at the question directed at him and he was about to shake his head when he got an idea. "Would it matter if it is?" he asked, trying to pass it off dismissively and wanting to see the older boy's reaction.