Closed Written In Stone

[Connor Holland]

Connor knew the NEWTs were almost a whole year away, but he also didn't really think there was such a thing as preparing too much in a case like this. The NEWTs were going to be the most important exams of his entire life, and he needed to know his subjects inside out. So he had dragged just about every advanced level Ancient Runes book he could find over to his table, wanting to get a head start before classes started. He didn't know what would be covered in any of his classes this year, but the better prepared he was for everything, the better. Trying to ignore the worry about the future gnawing at him, Connor put his head down and started to read, a quill and parchment off to his side as he jotted down notes as he went.

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy had managed to get by just fine in her lessons, if you didn't pay too close attention to the actual grades she got in said lessons. But now that her magical education was rapidly coming to a close she realized it would be impossible to make up for the lost time but she could at least make a solid effort while she still could. She entered the library with her potions textbook in hand and was determined to make some progress in it before the day was over. Poppy had weaved her way through the stacks to find her favorite spot when she ran in to Connor who was spread out over a whole table. She considered joining him but she hesitated. The drama that went down felt like forever ago but the hurt she still carried by her friend's absence still hurt. She had hoped that maybe someone would reach out to her but that day never came, so it looked like she would have to do it herself. "You've got quite a collection here." she said tentatively and poked and one of the many, many books on the table.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor had so many rune spreads swirling around his head he felt like he was going to be sick, but he did his best to stay focused. He had so much to memorise before the NEWTs, and the more he could cram in there before the semester really got underway, the better. He hadn't really thought about the repercussions of gathering so many books to himself until he heard a familiar voice, looking up nervously. "Oh... uh, sorry..." Connor said hesitantly, feeling the chasm of years between him and Poppy as he looked at her. They had been so close, but it had been so long... "If you need any of these, you can..." He shrugged, gesturing to the books he hadn't gotten to yet.

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy felt a little sorry for disturbing him. Connor looked stressed and she felt a little sorry for him. "It's ok." she said lightly and waved off his apology. "It looks like you need them more than I do." she added with a small laugh before silence fell between them again. Besides she had dropped Ancient Runes a while ago. "But I could join you....if you'd like?" Poppy suggested and nervously traced a figure eight pattern on the table with her finger but pulled away quickly. "Or if you need someone to unbury you when you get trapped under an avalanche of books?" she teased lightly and folded her hands neatly in front of her.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor's shoulders hunched very slightly when Poppy said he looked like he needed the books - was she making fun of him? But then she carried on, and Connor hesitated. Part of him wondered if this was some kind of trick from Nicole's friends, but... Poppy had never been like that, and... she sounded sincere. Connor had missed her a lot, and a pang hit him as she joked about him being buried, laughing out loud at that. "Go ahead." He said a bit nervously, still not entirely sure he shouldn't be expecting a dungbomb to the face or something. "If I get crushed give my Beaters bat to Freya, I think she'd get the most use out of it."

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy wasn't sure if Connor was going to let her sit with him. There was a guarded expression on his face that made her worry but she was relieved when he told her to go ahead. She was able to claim a small corner of the table but it was all she needed for her potions text book. "Thanks." she said as she got settled. Poppy chuckled at his comment even if the mention of Freya tugged at something inside her. She usually went out of her way to avoid the other girl but they had an unusually sincere conversation last year which had left her more confused than ever. She could never figure out what Connor saw in Freya or Kas but slowly she was warming to the idea of them at least. "I can do that." she said finally before looking at his books. "I didn't realize ancient rune's was such a dense subject." she said, not wanting to read her book quite yet.

 

[Connor Holland]

Wih the strain of their fouth year hanging between them, Connor was pleasantly surprised he managed to make Poppy laugh. He had never really thought of himself as a funny person before Hogwarts, and it was something he was pleased to have gotten better at over the years. At least he had one social skill somewhat in hand. He shrugged when she commented on his books, moving some aside more to give Poppy more space. "Well, the runes form a language, so first you need to learn to read that. Then each rune has its own unique meaning, so you need to memorise all of those. Then there are different reading styles, like tarot in divination. So each spread has a different purpose, and each position in each spread has a different meaning and different impact on the overall reading. It's... complicated. And that's not even getting into amulets and bind runes and all of that. And they don't even cover runes use in artificing or warding at Hogwarts. It's... a complicated subject." He laughed awkwardly, gesturing to his rune bag. "I could... do a reading for you, if you'd like? Show you a bit of what it's like..."

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy smiled as Connor made some room for her. Her own plans for studying were temporarily on hold while she indulged in some socialization instead. She hadn't expected her question to start a whole impromptu lecture but she did her best to pay attention. Even though her attention and ability to follow wavered the longer the Hufflepuff went. But she was snapped back to attention when he asked if she wanted a reading. "Sure..." she said tentatively. "If it would help." she added quickly, not wanting to be a bother. But she had to admit it sounded more fun than doing her own studying. She eyed the rune bag and slowly reached out her hand. "So I just pick one? Or how many? Do I need to think of a question before or after? Does it matter?" she asked, not realizing till too late that she got all her questions out in one go. She had picked up some knowledge of Divination from Iris even if she hadn't taken the course herself, but that seemed to just be confusing her more at the moment.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor was relieved that Poppy didn't seem bored by his lecture, even more pleased that she agreed to his offer for a reading. "It helps a lot, actually. Basically all of our classwork this semester has been reading practice." He explained, unable to suppress a small laugh at all her questions. "I'll draw the runes, you just ask a question." He smiled. "I'll do a three rune draw for you, it's a pretty simple reading but you can still get some fairly detailed answers from it."

 

[Poppy Perkins]

"Oh good!" Poppy said, glad to help. "Right." she added with a small laugh and pulled her hand away from the bag slowly. She hummed to herself as she tried to think up a question. There were plenty of things about her future that were uncertain but narrowing it down to a single question was proving to be more difficult than she expected. Instead she brushed those thoughts aside and decided to ask something more practical. "Will I like what they're serving for dinner tonight?" she said with a grin and waited with her hands folded in front of her.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor laughed lightly at the question, bouncing his rune bag gently in his hand. "Alright, let's see." He drew the first rune, setting it on the desk. "Pertho, representing the past. Pertho is the rune of the unknown, and things beyond our control. That makes sense, since it's not like we know anything about the meal planning that's been done already in the kitchens. And we couldn't control it, even if we did. So, the past is unknown." He reached into the bag again, drawing the second rune. "Uruz, the force of change. Creative power, the time to take action. This rune represents the present, so I guess right now dinner is being cooked. It can also mean your wish is coming to pass, so if you've been hoping for something specific this is a good sign." He grinned, setting the rune down before reaching into the bag a final time. "Eihwaz, for the future. Eihwaz is a rune of protection and wisdom, and it can represent reliability as well. So looking at these all together, I'd say that they're making something you like... maybe not your favourite meal, but something pretty normal that you always enjoy when it's there." He smiled, setting the last rune down with the others. "How'd I do?"

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy grinned as Connor laughed at her question. She knew it was silly but it felt like better than asking about anything too big. She had been worrying about her future and the weight of it being her last year enough. Besides she was getting hungry and wanted to know. She folded her hands neatly in front of her and waited as Connor pulled the stones and began the reading. Poppy nodded along as he spoke even though she couldn't really follow along. She did her best to pay attention but she did feel her attention start to slip here in there. When he was done she smiled but faltered when Connor asked how he did. She blinked a few times before answering. "It sounded good. Very confident." she said brightly. "And that does sound likely." she added thoughtfully. "I do like most food they serve in the hall."

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor grinned at Poppy's praise, returning the runes to his bag and pocketing it. "Thanks. I really enjoy the readings, they're pretty much all we've been doing this year. It's a lot more fun than just... writing essays." He hesitated, feeling the fragility of this moment all over again. After so long without Poppy in his life it was hard to know what this was. Were they making up, or was this just... a moment? But there was no way to gauge that without trying, so he collected himself and spoke. "Well, it's almost dinnertime." He hesitated, nervous despite his decided determination. "We could go check if the reading was right?"

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy smiled as Connor beamed at her praise. It had sounded right. Even if she didn't have the knowledge to actually know if it was or not. She nodded in agreement with his comment about essays. She wanted to say she would be glad when she would never have to write one again but the odds of her going to a muggle university after graduation was rather high. So while the sentient would be true it would be a while longer yet before it would actually happen. When Connor offered to get dinner she was surprised. After all this time it felt strange to fall into old habits but it also felt like the easiest thing in the world. "Yes! That sounds perfect." she said cheerfully. "No way to know if we don't see for ourselves." she added and collected her things. She hadn't gotten any studying done but she wasn't too upset about that.