Winter Winds

[Asaiah Murphy]

Normally Asaiah Murphy would be jumping all over the place because of the Christmas holidays being around the corner, but this time he didn't feel like being excited for Christmas at all. He didn't feel like being excited for the Quidditch game his family would be going to in the holidays either. There had been something gnawing at him for the past few weeks and Asaiah knew exactly what it was that had been on his mind more than Quidditch or Christmas even; guilt. The Slytherin boy hadn't really talked to Marisol much after the Transfiguration professor escorted them back to the castle the night the two first years went into the Forbidden Forest. Even though Asaiah knew that the Gryffindor held no bad feelings towards him, he still felt guilty. If it wasn't for his curiosity and dying thirst for adventure Marisol might have never lost the house points Gryffindor worked hard for to get in the first place.

After dinner in the Great Hall, the first year made his way upstairs instead of down to the dungeons and the Slytherin common room. Asaiah decided that, rather than getting himself into more trouble, now would be a good time to go to the Library and return the school's copy of Wanderings With Werewolves by Gilderoy Lockhart, an author who was rather fond of himself - or so it seemed. At his arrival at the Library, the first year smiled at the librarian and brought back he book he had been reading for the past few days. After he was done in the dusty-smelling Library Asaiah walked out of the place and into the Fourth Floor Corridor only to turn right and walk straight towards the Student Lounge, one of the many places in the castle the Slytherin promised himself he would go to before his first year ended. Asaiah sat down in one of the what looked to him as very comfortable armchairs and stared out of the window, looking at the clear night sky and its thousands of stars shining brightly.

 

[Marisol Woods]

With exams coming up, Marisol was unfortunately spending almost all of her time in the library studying. Since she hadn't done too well in her classes she was hoping all her studying would help her make up for her subpar spell casting. The Gryffindor hadn't spent too much time with many friends since she was getting accustomed to her transformations every month and adjusting to her new life at Hogwarts.

But one afternoon she was too so tired of staring at the same dusty bookshelves and going over her useless notes, so she packed up all her stuff and was getting ready to head out. Marisol was about to head back up to the Gryffindor common room, but as she was exiting the library, she didn't really feel like heading back just yet. She sighed and looked around, wondering where to go, but then she saw the student lounge so she decided to go hang out there. It was just what she needed to wind down, she had worked herself up and stressed too much while studying.

As the Gryffindor entered the place, she looked around, taking it all in. She had never been here before so she didn't know what to expect; it seemed like a common room but for all students as opposed to broken down into houses. Just as the latina was looking around for a place to put her stuff down and sit, she saw someone she hadn't seen in a while, Asaiah. After making sure she wasn't intruding on him with another friend, she decided to walk over to him with a bounce in her step. "Asaiah!" she said with a huge grin on her face, "Hey, long time no see!"

 

[Asaiah Murphy]

Asaiah turned his head around as soon as his name was called out, and weakly smiled at her. ''Hey, Mari.'' the first year said still smiling weakly at her. ''Yeah, I have been busy studying for the exams.'' He hadn't. Asaiah had barely studied at all in the last few days, the Slytherin had too much on his mind to be concentrated and focused on studying for the, supposedly really hard according to an older housemate, exams. Seeing the grin on her face caused the guilt inside of him to rise up again. Although the boy knew she'd probably held no bad feeling towards him, Asaiah couldn't stop thinking about how scared she was when the stupid-shapeshifting-Transfiguration professor decided to scare the two first years by transforming into a bloody dog and slowly walking towards them, growling and snarling. He simply couldn't forget it. Still, even with the guilt, she was willing to lie with him about the real reason why they were walking in the Forbidden Forest, and he also hadn't forgotten that. ''You too, I assume?'' Asaiah said, already knowing the answer because every student attending Hogwarts had been busy studying for the exams. ''I don't understand a single thing about Astronomy.'' the boy continued while letting out a groan out of stress. ''Why do they teach us about the galaxy in the first place? It's not like I'm going to become a Astronomy professor myself someday, right?''

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol's face fell slightly when Asaiah didn't seem too thrilled to see her. She chewed on her lower lip wondering if perhaps she had upset him since the last time the saw each other in the forest. Was it because they had gotten in trouble? Maybe if she hadn't been so rude to an authority figure such as the Transfiguration professor, despite him absolutely frightening her, and if she hadn't been rude to him he wouldn't have taken points from them?

It was Marisol's turn to smile weakly back at the Slytherin boy as he said he was studying for exams. She nodded her head in agreement and chuckled lightly when he mentioned Astronomy. "I would help you, but I'm not taking that class this semester," she shrugged. "But you better pass the exam so next year when I take it, you can help me!" she said; she was mostly joking, since she didn't know if Asaiah actually wanted to be her friend, judging by how unenthusiastic he was to see her. "What does Astronomy even have to do with magic anyway?" she wondered out loud. All she knew about Astronomy was the cycles of the moon and there was nothing magical or fun about that at all. "What other exams are you studying for?" she asked, not wanting to leave just yet.

 

[Asaiah Murphy]

It felt like he was getting punched in the stomach when he saw the disappointment on her face. God, what did he long to have some kind of mind-reading ability at this moment, so he could figure out what she thinking about him. Asaiah wanted to tell her badly after seeing the disappointment, he didn't want the Gryffindor girl to think that Asaiah didn't want to be friends anymore because of what happened in the Forbidden Forest. It was quite on the contrary - she stuck to his story when they got into trouble and in doing so she obviously didn't care about what would happen to her. Asaiah wanted to be Marisol's friend because even though they had just met, she stood besides him when he needed her, and that was something the Slytherin would never forget.

With both quilt and wanting to friends with her in mind, Asaiah smiled brightly when she said that he would help her with her exams next semester. ''Well,'' he began. ''I'll gladly help you with it nonetheless, but don't expect to pass your exam if I need to help you with Astronomy.'' the first year said whilst shifting his legs to get into a more comfortable position. ''It also means that you'll have to help me with the classes I haven't got this semester and you do.'' Asaiah looked at her with a playful grin on his face, indicating that he was half-joking because he might really need her help. When Marisol made a comment on his problem with why they even had Astronomy in the first place he nodded, not really sure if Marisol asked him or was just saying it to herself. ''I mean. History of Magic alright, I get that. We're learning about what happened in the past and everything, but Astronomy? I don't care about when the moon and Venus will align and all that stuff. I'm here to learn about magic.'' Realising Asaiah was beginning to ramble on, he stopped talking and just listened to what she said instead. ''To be honest, I haven't really been studying lately. Way too much on my mind to focus on reading a couple of chapters. But to come back to your question. I've also got History of Magic to study for - and Defense Against the Dark Arts and flying of course.''

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol chuckled and said, "Deal!" when Asaiah suggested that she help him next year with the classes he didn't take this semester. "Although I can't promise I won't be much help - but I take great notes," she said, smiling widely at him. It was true that Marisol wasn't the best at spell casting, but she took more notes than anyone else to make up for her lack of ability. As Marisol listened to the classes he had to study for, the Gryffindor wrinkled her nose slightly. "Those all seem like tough classes," she admitted, scared to take them next semester. "Except flying, I think I'll do alright in that one," she added.

Marisol decided to take a seat next to Asaiah in a different armchair and said, "I hope you don't mind me joining you? I don't feel like going back to the Gryffindor common room just yet." She felt a little silly asking for permission but since she didn't know if she and Asaiah were good friends, she decided to be safe just in case. "Unless you want to be alone?" she asked cautiously. "I know you mentioned you had a lot to think about...do you wanna talk about it?" The girl bit her lip nervously.

 

[Asaiah Murphy]

Asaiah chuckled too and was beginning to feel a lot more optimistic about their friendship now that the two of them were in a good mood. ''I'll hold you to that deal.'' the Slytherin said with a smile. ''Great, then I will read through your notes next year!'' Asaiah told Marisol. He really needed her notes if he wanted to pass the exams next year too. The first year shrugged when Marisol said that his other classes seemed tough and said, ''Nothing I can't handle.'' to her with a grin appearing on his face. Although he was a bit worried he might actually fail, he kept good faith in himself. ''I hope so,'' He replied to her. ''Because I'm going to join the Slytherin Quidditch team next year, and it would be awesome if you knew how to fly too, so you could join Gryffindor's team and we could play together!'' He wasn't sure if he could convince her to join her House's team, especially with what happened last time Asaiah convinced her in doing something.

As soon as Marisol said down in an armchair next to his and asked him if he didn't mind if she was joining him, Asaiah nodded his head and smiled. ''I wouldn't mind at all.'' the boy said to her, lying because he did mind. He kept quiet when Marisol began to asked if he wanted to talk about what had been bothering him for the last few weeks but eventually opened his mouth to speak. ''How are you not angry with me that I made you come to the Forbidden Forest with me? That we got into trouble and both lost House points? Because I would be pretty damn angry with myself.'' Asaiah said looking at her.

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol smiled when Asaiah said he was going to join the Quidditch team and laughed lightly at his enthusiasm and confidence. When he suggested she do the same for Gryffindor House, she chuckled and shook her head. "Oh I just barely learned how to fly, I don't think I'm quite ready to be joining any teams," she said, although she wished she could. "I've never even played a pretend game of Quidditch, so I don't know how to play," she shrugged. She had to admit Quidditch was a pretty interesting sport, even though it looked super dangerous. "What position would you play?" she asked, wondering what Asaiah would be best at.

As she settled into the armchair, putting her stuff down, she sensed that things were still weird between them and she had half a mind to just get up and leave if he wasn't okay with this. But then suddenly he spoke up again, bringing up the last time they had hung out, venturing into the Forbidden Forest. Marisol's brows knitted together in confusion as he asked why she wasn't angry with him. She cocked her head to the side as she listened to him and then her mouth opened in a little 'o' as she realized what was bothering him. "Oh, Asaiah, don't worry about that!" she said immediately. "Trust me, I've lost House points before so it's no big deal," she shrugged; she was a Gryffindor first year, what else was expected of her? If she had stopped being friends with those who made her lose house points, she wouldn't be friends with Wyatt or Asaiah right now. It wasn't their fault alone that she lost points, so she didn't blame either of them. "I promise, I'm not upset about that," she shook her head, giving him a small reassuring smile. "The only person I'm angry with is Professor Summers," she scowled, still thinking about how he terrified them. She was not looking forward to Transfiguration next semester.

 

[Asaiah Murphy]

He looked kind of disappointed when Marisol replied to him and quickly said, ''I can teach you! Quidditch is the best sport ever, I'm sure you'll be good at it! Why don't you come and visit me during the Christmas holidays, me and my family can take you to the Quidditch game we're going to!'' As he was talking about Quidditch the excitement in his voice rose. A smile appeared on his face as soon as Marisol asked him about the position he wanted to play. ''Beater. The best position in a Quidditch team. You need to be rough and tough to be a Beater and I've been training to be one with my father and brother for quite some time now.'' Asaiah answered back.

''Yeah but y-you didn't see you, ok?'' Asaiah said with a stutter when he said she wasn't up set with him at all. ''You looked absolutely terrified. As if you were certain you would actually die - mind you I thought that too for a moment, but still. It was like you-..'' the first year Slytherin started making gestures with his hands when he couldn't get the right words out. ''And w-what was with the ''I can't survive this again'' thing, and don't tell me that you've been attacked by a dog-turning-into-a-human before because I'm not going to believe that!'' He added, a little out of breath. Asaiah had been thinking about what she had said during professor Summers - he didn't even know how to call it - ever since he arrived at his common room that night. Sure, he didn't know her that well but it was a strange thing to say. Asaiah nodded when Marisol said that the only person she's angry with was professor Summers, because he felt the same emotion towards the Transfigurations professor. The Slytherin hoped that he and Marisol would end up having Transfiguration together next semester so he wouldn't be the only one in the classroom who'd mixed feelings towards the adult.

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol smiled weakly when Asaiah invited her over the Christmas holidays. Although seeing an actual Quidditch game did sound really fun, she didn't think it would be able to go because it all depended on the moon cycle. As it was, she wasn't even going home for the holidays because she had to stay at Hogwarts to be safely secure in the Howling cavern. "Um when is the game?" she wondered, hoping it was not near a full moon cycle. When Asaiah said he wanted to play Beater, Marisol gasped, "But that's like one of the more dangerous positions!" she pointed out. Sure Beaters did a lot of the physical pain, but they were also targets to keep them from hitting the other team. Maybe Marisol was just basing this off of the one game she saw in Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw and it seemed really intense. So far both Asaiah and Wyatt seemed to like the Beater position most, but Marisol didn't seem too interested in that position.

The color drained from Marisol's face when Asaiah brought up her reaction that day in the Forest upon seeing Professor Summers' transformation as he was snarling at them. She did not expect him to remember her reaction since he too had been busy screaming and trying to run, but unfortunately he seemed to remember it well. Now she understood why Asaiah seemed to distraught about the thought of her being angry with him about that day. Marisol bit her lip and tried to think of what to say to him without letting him know she was a werewolf. The Gryffindor chuckled weakly and said, "No I didn't get attacked by a dog-professor," she shook her head. "But I have had this recurring nightmare where I get attacked by someone in a forest!" It wasn't entirely a lie, she did often re-live the night of her attack in her dreams which was really unpleasant. "And when I saw the dog growling at us in the forest, it seemed so real, like the way it looked in my dreams, so I freaked out," she explained. "I'm sorry I freaked and I'm sorry I made you worry," she said, embarrassed about it all.

 

[Asaiah Murphy]

Asaiah noticed the weak smile she put on and tilted his head to the right. ''If you don't want to you don't have to.. Altought it would be more fun if you were there too.'' He said to her with a bright smile. ''It's the day before Christmas Eve. Dad told us that it's a charity game and that the money is going to St. Mungo's, the wizard hospital.'' Going to Quidditch games with the Murphy family was big fun. Both he and his brother supported the Moutohora Macaws team and were probably their biggest fans as they would usually be dressed and covered in red, yellow and blue - the colours of the Macaws - and even going as far as painting their faces. The first year laughed when Marisol mentioned it was one of the more dangerous positions in a Quidditch team. ''Well yeah, it is.'' Asaiah said with a grin. ''But that is what makes it so exciting! Defening both yourself and your team!'' Sure, he knew what could happen to Beater's once a Bludger hit them but it didn't seem to stop him from pursuing the position he wanted the most on a Quidditch team.

He listened as she explained why she had been saying odd things the night in the forest and couldn't help but to feel sorry for her when Marisol mentioned she had been sort of re-living her nightmare when professor Summers scared them. ''I-.. I'm sorry. I didn't know that.'' Asaiah replied back. ''So that was the reason you..'' the Slytherin added, more to himself then to her, whilst thinking back on how she was lying down on the dirt path. Asaiah sunk deeper into his armchair, relieved it wasn't entirely his fault ever all. ''Sorry that I kinda pushed you into saying this.'' He began after a few moments of silence. ''Good thing you haven't been attacked by a dog-professor before though.'' Asaiah smiled at her. ''Otherwise I wouldn't have you as a friend.'' Now that everthing was sort of good again, the boy felt like he could take on the whole world - especially dog-professors. ''So, are you going to that Yule Ball thing?'' he asked the Gryffindor girl. ''Because I've heard it's pretty boring without a friend there with you.'' Asaiah didn't know how she would react to his sudden invitation to go with him to the Yule Ball, but why go alone when you have friends who could join you?

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol didn't want Asaiah to think she didn't want to go to the Quidditch game with him because she really wanted to, she just had to make sure it didn't interfere with the full moon, which she couldn't let him know about. But as soon as he told her when it was, she silently counted the days and recalled the calendar she had marked down and said, "Wait, I think I can go!!" If she was remembering correctly, the full moon will have passed by then so it would be perfect, she wouldn't even have to worry about taking her potion if had passed. "Where is the game going to be at?" she asked, wondering if she had to ask her parents to buy her a plane ticket anywhere. She still didn't know about wizarding transportation. As Asaiah said playing Beater was so exciting because you got to defend the team, Marisol giggled and shook her head. "I think I like the Seeker position best, I like the challenge," she said, spoken like a true Gryffindor.

When the Slytherin apologized, Marisol shook her head and said, "No it's okay, how were you supposed to know?" Even she hadn't known she was going to react the way she did, so there was no way to have warned Asaiah of her possible reactions. She knew she should've just said no to venturing into the forest with him, but she had to agree that the adventure had really made them bond closer. "I'm glad neither of us got eaten by a bear, or that we didn't get detention! And I'm glad we became friends," she said. Marisol smiled brightly at him now that Asaiah officially called her a friend and the awkwardness she felt earlier seemed gone.

But as Asaiah brought up going to the Yule Ball with a friend, Marisol's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Was this his way of asking her to go with him? Well, he had asked her as a friend so she shouldn't be making a big deal about it so she cleared her throat and spoke up again. "Yeah I've heard about it, all the girls in my dorm are pretty excited about it," she chuckled. "I hadn't really thought about it," she said honestly, "but I think it would be fun to check it out," she said, smiling at him nervously. She had missed out on the Halloween Feast because it was during a full moon, so she didn't want to miss out on the Yule Ball too. She wasn't going to let her lycanthropy dictate every aspect of her life, so she was glad she was able to go to the Quidditch game and possibly the Yule Ball with Asaiah too.

 

[Asaiah Murphy]

''Good!'' Asaiah exclaimed happily, almost jumping out of his armchair when she said she could go. Even though he still had to ask his parents if he could bring along a friend to the game, or even stay over for the holidays, Asaiah was almost a hundred procent sure they wouldn't say no.''In a stadium just outside of Wellington.'' the boy answered back. He knew she probably had to ask her parents for permission first so quickly added, ''If it is too far away from your house, I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind letting you stay over for the night!'' Asaiah really wanted her to come with him and see the Quidditch match, so decided that he would do everything he could to let Marisol join him, even if it meant convincing the girl her parents himself. He smiled as she giggled and told him her favorite Quidditch position. ''You wanna test your Seeker skills with me and my siblings if you're allowed to stay over during the holidays then?'' He asked, hoping she would.

He nodded and smiled weakly. Marisol was speaking the truth; how was he suppose to know she had been having nightmares about being attacked by someone or something in a forest? Asaiah was glad that everything that had been bothering him after their little adventure seemed to be fading away from his thoughts. ''Yeah, me too. We got really lucky that Summers only took away house points though, imagine if he would write a howler to both our parents.. Perhaps my charms worked after all?'' Asaiah said laughing.

He chuckled slightly and said, ''Yeah it's been the same in Slytherin House too, but some of the boys also seem rather excited for the Ball.'' Asaiah, however had never even been to a ''Yule Ball'' before so didn't quite know what to expect of it. He wasn't even going to attend the Yule Ball, but after receiving a suit and tie from his parents and a letter saying that if he wasn't going to he would be getting grounded once he'd be back home. Asaiah listened to her as she was talking and smiled back at her. ''Alright, cool, so ehh.. do you want to go with me to the Yule Ball?'' Asaiah asked her, getting nervous all the sudden as he waited for Marisol's answer.

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol laughed at Asaiah's enthusiasm when she said she could probably go to the Quidditch game with him over the holidays. She was glad to hear that the game was still going to be in New Zealand because it didn't seem too far for her. "I'll be staying at Hogwarts over the holidays so Wellington shouldn't be too far to get there!" she said happily, glad that all the plans were working out. "I'd still need to ask my parents though, just to be sure," she added, just in case. It wasn't her parents that she was particularly worried about, but rather the professors, to see if they would allow her to go after the full moon. She figured they would say yes since the full moon would have passed, but she had to ask just to be sure.

When he asked her if she wanted to practice with his family, Marisol shook her head and chuckled nervously. "Nooo not at all! I've never even played! I would suck so bad compared to you guys who probably play together all the time!" she protested. She would be too intimidated to play with them. "Although I am kinda looking forward to meeting the infamous Hannah," she teased, sticking her tongue out at Asaiah when she mentioned his older sister.

Marisol laughed and then rolled her eyes playfully when he said his charms probably worked on Professor Summers after all. "Yeah right, if anything we probably would've gotten in more trouble!" she joked. "And if my parents got a Howler from the wizarding world, they would probably freak out since they're Muggles," she giggled. She had seen a student at the Gryffindor table receive a Howler during breakfast once and it was an interesting experience. Her parents would be frightened half to death but she wished she could see that reaction, if only for the laughs.

As the two of them circled on the subject of the Yule Ball, Asaiah came right out and asked her if she wanted to go with him. Marisol's stomach flipped out of nervousness, but she didn't know why she felt this way. Asaiah was her friend so she had nothing to be nervous about! Mari beamed at him and said, "Yeah! I would love to!" Going to the Yule Ball sounded like it was going to be so fun, especially with her friend, now she just had to figure out what to wear.