Too Loud

[Miya Bell]

Attending the Yule Ball had proven too much of a daunting task for Miya to undertake, and the small Hufflepuff had taken refuge in the entrance hall to get away from it, while also being close enough that she could watch from a safe distance. She should have been used to so many students in one space by now, but the music and decorations and overall loudness of everything had started making her head spin the second she stepped into the event and Miya had been forced to flee.

Unlike the previous year, Miya had been able to gather the courage to leave her dorm room on the night of the ball. She had wanted to make an effort in going after receiving the package from home, containing the dress she was supposed to wear. The dress itself was simple, with a gauzy white layer covered in what Miya assumed were supposed to be flowers. They looked more like eggs than flowers - a result of her mother's unique painting skills - but Miya loved her outfit regardless and was initially excited about the ball until she'd arrived and subsequently bailed.

The egg-flower dress swished around Miya's knees as she rocked slowly while standing in the hall, resuming her usual position of observation, watching the few other students slowly filter past. Miya stayed close to the wall and did her best to not look like she was standing around doing absolutely nothing. She didn't want to bother anyone with her lack of participation, and the risk of letting one of her well-meaning classmates drag her into the ball was not a pleasant thought for the young Hufflepuff. Hiding in a corner and watching other people have fun was just fine, after all.​

 

[Twyla Rothery]

Even though her incident at the punch bowl had ended more or less peacefully, Twyla's upset feelings about it boiled up in full force as soon as she was out of the Great Hall itself. By the time the doors swung shut behind her, she was already pacing about with a grumpy pout on her face. The entrance hall was empty enough that Twyla would've felt safe ranting to herself about it - right up until she saw the girl staring at her from the corner.

Twyla stopped in her tracks. It was the girl who had stolen her cat! Miya or something. Twyla stomped toward her and put her hands on her hips. "You're the girl who stole my cat. Why are you watching me? Are you stalking me?" She glared down at the Hufflepuff girl, her stance demanding the other girl to talk.

 

[Miya Bell]

Miya blinked at the redhead who had approached, her mind clicking away as it tried to understand the cause of the sudden intrusion. She flinched slightly at the tone of voice, and grew worried as she recognised Twyla outside of uniform. She looked really pretty, and Miya wanted to compliment her, before she remembered she wasn't on the best terms with the Slytherin after their first meeting. "No? Not stalking." she murmured, shrinking in on herself at Twyla's hostility. She avoided mentioning anything about the cat, as starting a fight would be terrible when she already regretted leaving the dorm tonight. She liked Twyla's cat, or had done so on the occasion of their meeting, and wondered how it was doing. "It's the Yule Ball?" Miya added needlessly, as she nervously smoothed down her dress.

 

[Twyla Rothery]

Twyla was taken aback by Miya's statement. Or was it a question? She could never really tell with this girl. "Um. Yes it is. Were you just waiting out here all night like some kind of..." Twyla gave Miya's dress a look, her eyes pointing out the strange flower-egg design. "...shrinking violet or something?" She smirked at her own joke, before glancing around the entrance hall.

There was no one else here and Twyla realised that Miya was hanging out here alone, just like she had been that day in the garden. "Didn't you have any friends to go with?"

 

[Miya Bell]

Miya examined her dress critically, twirling slightly so the flowers spun around her. "I think they're meant to be daisies, not violets?" she said earnestly, before she got the joke. "Oh!" she giggled. Miya shrugged when Twyla asked her about having friends. "Yes? I have friends?" she said, although she sounded even more unsure than usual. Miya generally considered everyone who wasn't outright mean as her friend, so in that respect she did have them. On the downside, she was also too scared to talk to any of those people without a lot of prodding, so it was difficult to maintain friendships. "Are you here with friends?" Miya asked quietly. She guessed Twyla probably had lots of friends and Miya was just being annoying and in her way.

 

[Twyla Rothery]

Miya's giggle was actually sort of a nice sound, but not nice enough to cheer Twyla up. Especially after the other girl's question, which Twyla could tell was a proper question this time. "No," she said bluntly. "Everyone I wanted to go with already had a partner."

She crossed her arms and looked away from Miya, glaring back at the Great Hall. Maybe if she had gone with a partner, that whole punch bowl thing wouldn't have happened. Maybe she would've had a nice night of dancing or someone who could teach her about ice skating without judging her for not knowing how to already. Maybe, maybe, maybe...

Twyla let a "Hmph!" escape her pouting lips, already distracted by the fantasy of what could have been.

 

[Miya Bell]

Miya was surprised at Twyla's statement, and it was a little sad to hear. "Oh." she said, frowning. "I'm sorry." She felt bad that the other girl was unhappy. Miya would have offered her some candy, if she hadn't been wearing a dress without pockets, but her candy-holding robes were back up in her dorm room. Without that buffer, Miya was at a loss for ideas of any way to help Twyla feel any better about going to the ball alone. She squeezed at the fabric of her dress as she watched Twyla carefully. "Are you okay?" she tried. It seemed like the polite thing to ask, even if Miya felt uncomfortable speaking. She was still a little afraid of Twyla after their list meeting and didn't know the girl well enough to know what to expect from a conversation.