September: 7ths Need To Study Too (Great Hall - 7th years)

[Charlotte Fudge]

"Yes, I do know it's only the first week, Alex," the quiet Gryffindor said to her friend, a sigh in her voice as she looked up from her supplementary Transfiguration text. "If I stay ahead from the start, taking advantage of given work time, then I'll have more time outside of here to talk," Charlotte rationalized, giving her friend a slight teasing smile. She was going to need all the work time she got, having loaded up on interesting, advanced classes this year, and this study period was time to free up space in her weekend. For the first time she would only be worrying about completing her own homework, her brother Cole having graduated and, as such, taking away his need for her to "help." Although her own work had never suffered due to having to complete his too, her time had been rather constrained, tight, these past years. She didn't mind terribly, being more of an academic than a socialite, and she had gotten a preview of what was to come, but she hadn't had much of a choice in the matter.

Oh, yes you did, you always have a choice.

Fine, but if the choice is between doing extra work for the brother who loves you or putting strain on your one positive familial relationship, it's not much of a choice at all, is it?

But it was a new year, and it did feel new. Being the oldest class in the school was terribly odd, and knowing that they were the next to leave was even stranger, but it was a good sort of feeling. There was a new Head Boy and Head Girl who were causing much less controversy in their appointments than her fellow Gryffindors James and Lily had - things had turned around for the pair eventually, of course, but their appointment hadn't done much for the tense nature between their house and the Slytherins. She hoped things would feel more stable with their new leadership - not that she had anything against James or Lily personally, as James was a teammate and roommate of Cole's she knew him decently, and Lily was practically a sister, but none could deny that in the last year it had been difficult to maintain any semblance of toleration between the Houses as both Heads were from the same one, one that was at such odds with another.

Beyond that, though - it was a new year.

Cole was off playing for a professional team, leaving Charlotte...to her own devices. For the first time.

It had been incredibly strange, not seeing him about the castle this week, but rather freeing, all the same. It hurt her to admit this, as all that he'd done for her had come from love, but in her heart she knew that she needed this year to not be Cole's untouchable little sister. To be herself.

And start to honestly determine who that really was.

[Deleted]

Although it was the first week of the academic year, Carolyn was already feeling the pressure of school work. Alchemy was quite the step back due to them only going over the essays they had completed over the summer holidays, and she had finished her worksheet for Astronomy in no time at all as it was on astronomical techniques they had learnt years before. However, she wanted to get a head start on all of her Mermish pronunciation for Care of Magical Creatures, had essays on electricity for Muggle Studies, and she still had to think of which antidote she would be brewing for the month's project in Potions.

So, yes. She was a tad overwhelmed by it all.

And she didn't even seem to have someone to distract herself with to take some of the edge off. Not that she really knew how to go about finding someone to help her with that. Was she supposed to take the chance and ask someone out? Or was she meant to sit back and wait for someone to ask her? She had been offered one date before, set up by her brother, but she found out that she had been expected to lie about being muggleborn, and so she cancelled last minute. So Carolyn was a seventeen year old witch that had zero experience.

How positively thrilling.

What's more, she had never truly felt comfortable studying or completing assignments outside of the library, which was why she always abhorred these study halls. Every Thursday afternoon for an hour and half, from two o'clock to three thirty, Carolyn was forced to sit alongside her fellow seventh year students from all four houses, despite her wishes to be tucked away somewhere in the quiet legal section of the library. There was far too much chatter in here - after all, what could you really expect from Professor Kettleburn, who only had one arm and half a leg to work with? She could hear the two chatty Gryffindors speaking across the table from her the most, and tried her best to tune them out. Education is more important, education is more important...

[Benji Fenwick]

Already the days seemed to be dragging by, there had only been four so far in the year, and it felt like four months. Benji felt particularly listless so far, which put him in a bad way. He had been looking forward to seventh year since his first year, and now that it was here he wished it would end already. For several reasons he was not properly enjoying being in the senior class. First off, how was he supposed to continue on with lessons like nothing of major import was happening on the outside of these ancient walls? It didn’t help that he was still hung up on a certain former puff, and he had been avoiding his best friend, Arnie, because of it. He couldn’t really blame the boy for his poor luck but he couldn’t face him either.

Benji was still sore over the fact that Dorcas choose to stick with her beau after she graduated and Willa had not. It just showed his affection ran deeper than his former girlfriends. His mood had been poor to say the least since the end of last year and he could often be caught sulking about and avoiding the world. But now he could not, now he had to attend study hall, which was more like a social hour for the seventh years than an actual study break. He hadn’t spoken two words together to anyone yet this year and being forced into a room with chatty classmates was not on the top of his list of things to do.

He entered the hall as inconspicuous as possible, and chose a seat at a table with only girls. He was less likely to be forced to entertain this way, he could say as much or as little as he liked and he doubted they would care. Well the Gryffindors wouldn’t, Carolyn would require at least a greeting as it would be rude not to. They had known one another for six years and there was no reason not to address her. “What’s up Caro?” he said voice uncharacteristically flat. He pulled out his Defense essay, his quill, ink, and book. But they sat there untouched as he stared off, simply not in the mood for work.

[Arnie Peasegood]

This year, if judging by the previous few days, was going to take an eternity to pass.

One of the few redeemable qualities Hogwarts had to offer - as it didn't have his girlfriend or the freedom he'd had over the summer or - was his best friend, Benji. Now, Arnie had known of his friend's struggles over the past few months, had seen him a bit over the summer, stayed in touch - but knew he hadn't been as diligent as he should've about it all. First Willa breaks up with him - after Arnie had pushed for that relationship, figuring that the Hufflepuff would be a safe bet, sweet and funny and not the sort of girl to let a certain to-remain-nameless Gryffindor interfere with what she had between herself and her boyfriend - and immediately following were exams, and then over the summer was that horrific attack...

Arnie'd been distracted by the good that he had, and he knew it. But the majority of the time that he had reached out to the other Ravenclaw, the replies he'd gotten - if he even received one - were curt, and most of the invitations were given some excuse or other as to why Benj couldn't come. Even as Arnie expressed that neither of the incredibly rude parties who'd ruined his last week at school - and seemed to be flaunting their whatever-they-had all summer, much to Arnie's chagrin - would be around, he was still often met with a slightly apologetic return.

This was Benji's first break-up, and Arnie did want him to recover, but - Merlin, he and Willa hadn't been together that long! What it was that was bringing Benji down exactly - because seeing him at Hogwarts over the past few days showed Arnie that he was definitely still dealing with something - he didn't know. As Benji was completely avoiding him since they arrived back - the other boy was keeping such odd hours that even though they shared a room there hadn't been much overlap - he couldn't be much assistance helping him get over whatever-it-was.

So when he saw his best friend - granted, this was assuming that he wasn't the cause of the weirdness - enter the hall, seemingly trying to look shorter than he was, what with that ducking his head down and all, and sit with a group of girls with his back towards him, he had to do something. So he swept up his things and headed the few tables over to sit across from Benji and, as he now saw, Carolyn.

"Hello," he said, giving the girls - Alexandra at his side, Charlotte on her other's, and Carolyn across - small smiles before trying to meet Benji's eyes. Although he was already pulling his things back out of his bag, he asked, "Mind if I join?"

[Deleted]

What was going on here, Alex wanted to know! Wasn't it just a week into school, and barely that? Why was she sitting here, with Char, trying to study? The mere thought of it made her cringe. For all the arguing and complaining she'd done with Charlotte, she'd not managed to get anywhere. This was supposed to be a glorious year of parties, and fashion. How books and homework fit into that, she didn't know. At her friends words, the blond frowned and let out an exasperated sigh. She knew her friend was right, but she hated admitting it. "Oh fine. Make me suffer, but it's going to cost you at least two knew outfits, and that includes accessories." the girl said grinning with her usual determined expression.

Looking up from her friend, she noticed that it wasn't just her and Char at the table. Not that she'd thought they were alone, she just hadn't bothered acknowledging the others. There was a Ravenclaw girl, she thought her name was Carol, or something with a C, she couldn't be sure. Then there was Benji, and before long, Arnie had joined them. Honestly, the place was turning into a birds nest. Far too many Ravies to deal with in one space. Luckily the girl seemed quiet, but when you got these boys together, Merlin only knew what would happen. They were like the Ravenclaw's own attempt at Marauders, and Alex laughed inwardly at the thought. Who knew where Rita was, probably doing something far more enjoyable than this, the girl thought with a slight frown. Then again, her other friend might be doing some actual work, and the thought of that was dismal. At least this was just studying the seventh year lion told herself.

"Not at all, we could use someone entertaining!" she said seriously before moving slightly to give the boy some room. "Don't fail us, Arnie."

[Pandora Nott]

Study hall wasn't exactly Pandora's favorite place. She preferred the library with the the smell of the books. Unfortunately, the library also meant distractions and reading that generally kept her from getting her work done on time. And after she had started to pay more attention to the other gender at the end of the last year, she was determined to not fall behind. So, four days into the school year, she wandered into study hall (late, of course) with her bag full of books and her head off in space. Without much of a thought she dropped down next to Arnie and laid her parchment on the table.

She realized that someone was speaking, and as she removed herself from her thoughts she glanced down the table. There was Alex and Charlotte, two Gryffindor girls. Pandora enjoyed the company of Charlotte, but Alex was sometimes more than she could handle. And there there was Carolyn, her best friend. Pandora gave her a smile as she dug through her bag looking for a quill and some ink. She had to get started on this essay for Muggle Studies before she completely lost her train of though about electricity. She nodded to Benji, and then turned to join the tail end of the conversation.

"Don't fail us, Arnie,"

Pandora titled her head, unsure of what Arnie was supposed to be doing. This was not uncommon, she spent most of her time in her own mind and often didn't pay attention to the conversations of others when she was forced into large groups. "Hello everyone, isn't today lovely?" Pandora asked, as she stuck the end of her quill into her mouth. Quite frankly, she wasn't entirely she what today was like. She hadn't looked at the weather, and the vibe at the table didn't exactly feel lovely. Nonetheless, she was only trying to be friendly.

[Charlotte Fudge]

Char raised her eyebrows at her friend’s conditions, but couldn’t keep the mock-stern expression up for long.

“Whatever you say, love,” she said good-naturedly, smiling as she slid the other girl’s essay towards the reluctant studier.

Of course Alex would use such things as bait, as punishment - the girl lived for friends, fun, and fashion, after all - but Charlotte couldn’t help but wonder when she would realize that this tactic didn’t work incredibly well on the other Gryffindor. Not that Char wasn’t concerned with her looks, but she was not anywhere near wanting to put the amount of thought and effort Alex did into her daily routine. That hadn’t stopped Alex from using her as a mannequin over the summer holidays or Hogsmeade trips, and Charlotte didn’t mind terribly, glad to have a friend as wonderful as she was. And, as much as it was odd to admit sometimes, she had learned a thing or two about herself from these experiences.

That she could do her own make-up - all natural colors, she insisted - quite well, with the steady hand she had. That she did carry herself better on days she took a little time to fix her hair, pay attention to her outfit. That maybe all the hype around the girlier things in life were really just about having time to dote on you, and that that...really wasn’t a terrible thing.

It wasn’t as if she’d ever looked poorly - Alex liked to describe her look as librarian chic - but she had taken to tending to herself more in her sixth year, finally conceding to a little daily make-up, and a few more ways to style her long hair. Alex would happily take credit for her winning that boy’s heart after all of her advice on looks, but Char knew that Remus…

That boy - that darling boy - would compliment her if she was in a ballgown or a paper bag, if she was all dolled up or had left her face bare, had meticulously curled her hair or just pulled it into a ponytail.

Charlotte did owe Alex for lending her the confidence to strike up conversation - and keep it up - with him, though, for which she was immensely grateful. She couldn’t imagine not having what she did with the ex-Gryffindor, as it surely had been a great change for her. Being with him - simply making that choice - had begun a healthy change for the young woman, helping her shift away from who she had felt she had to be and allowing her to open herself up to who she could be, who she really was. And it was rather lovely, starting that discovery with such a supportive fellow by her side.

A number of birds flocked to the study table, and Char gave each a welcoming smile as they arrived. Benji, a nice boy she didn’t know terribly well, seemed out-of-sorts, and she hoped that Arnie’s arrival would help alleviate whatever was going on. The two had been inseparable these past few years, that at least she knew - well, nearly inseparable. Being one of the quieter Gryffindors, Charlotte had spent many nights in the common room studying, all but ignored by others in the House - which had suited her fine, as she’d needed to work. But Arnie Peasegood had caught the ire of a few of the more, er, fiery members of her House, and it was often that she’d hear complaints of him. Never having had a negative experience with him herself, she wasn’t about to pass judgement on the boy. And then there was Pan - sweet girl, grand study partner. For as often as Pandora did have her head in the clouds, she could just as often be counted on for unique insight, and Charlotte knew that her essays were done better when they were working together. So she had no qualms in immediately responding to her greeting, friendly as they were.

“Lovely, lovely day,” she said, her small smile spreading into a grin. What had made the seventh year’s day deserving of two lovelies? Why, a letter tucked into her bag. From a boy. Her boy. She quickly looked away from the group, back into her book, hoping that Arnie would do as Alex had said and distract even her inquisitive friend from catching on. Not that she’d be hiding this from her - she lived with the other girl, and they were so close, that would be just silly - but she didn’t exactly fancy going into details of her love life with such a large company.

[Deleted]

As she was mostly staring off into the distance instead of studying, Carolyn was fairly startled when Benji sat down next to her. She was having much difficulty deciding what it was that was off with her old friend today but while she attempted to figure it out, the Ravenclaw girl gave him a soft smile. "Having a grand old time - you of all people know how much I love these study halls." Anyone that was in her house was privy to the fact that she could not stand being there. Work was hardly ever completed, and when it was it was always subpar. At least by her working standards. They hadn't made her the top of the class in most subjects due to her pretty looks, though most of her brother's friends liked to tease her about that. She held in a huff of annoyance. Slytherins.

Caro shrugged indifferently as Arnie took a seat across from her and Benji and watched as the curly haired blonde seemingly flirt with her Ravenclaw companion. Never being very good at the task of creating sexual tension with someone else, this was extremely interesting to the girl and she tilted her head to consider the pair of them. Was it more the words that made it flirting or was it more about the person's body language? Did a romantic attachment to a person outside of the current flirtation make things better or worse for each party? There were so many fascinating questions she wanted to ask - and yet she knew she would remain an outcast for the rest of her life if she asked them outright. No, she thought, best to save your questions for a more private time....and perhaps when you know everyone's name. She had, of course, seen the bubbly Gryffindor around the corridors and in lessons, but had never gotten to know her - something she was now regretting immensely, if just for the benefit of more information.

A vibrant young lady wandered into the Great Hall next, this particular blonde girl making her smile immediately. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes! It's definitely brighter now that you're around, dear." Pandora knew nearly all of her secrets, was always there when she needed encouragement, and Carolyn was all of those things for Pan as well. Just being in the other Raven's presence made her feel more at ease, especially when she was surrounded by other who were so much more worldly than she was.

Not that she would ever admit that out loud.

Carolyn gave the quieter Gryffindor girl a smile as well. She looked like the people she read about in novels - the ones who had met someone special and had promptly fallen in love with said special someone. Chances are she was wrong, but the Ravenclaw enjoyed creating stories about people in her head - rounding them out into characters she could continuously learn about. Since she was so closed off from most people, this exercise put her mind at rest - thinking that she knew at least a couple "real" things about them.

[Benji Fenwick]

Benji stretched, he was bored already; and confined he wanted to go for a walk. A long walk. Off a cliff. Or that’s how he felt when Arnie arrived. Some things just couldn’t be avoided. His chest hurt at the site of the other Ravenclaw boy; he missed his friend. He was still cross with his friend though. Not by any fault of Arnie, it was Benjis own inner struggles eating at their friendship. Still. It only made his mood worse; he was positively mopey. He hated himself for it, but he didn’t know how to get out of the funk. “Sure.” He agreed scratching his head and inspecting the grain of the table. “Entertain us.”

What he needed was a diversion. Lately that’s all he needed, something to occupy his mind so he couldn’t think. All he wanted was to not think. He surveyed his options around the table, considering each one; except Arnie who was not on the list of people he wanted to talk to currently. Defiantly not Alex, he couldn’t keep up with her enthusiasm right now. Charlotte was nice, and usually quiet; they could be silent together. But there was Alex again, how those two were best friends he would never know. They seemed so different. But they were and they were currently chatting and Benji wasnt really interested. Then there was Carolyn, she would do just fine. She never failed to amuse him.

“Oh I know how much you adore this place.” He mockingly agreed, glancing around the room of chatty students. “I’m going to start ditching this thing.” He said a little forcefully. God he wanted to get out! ”We should start ditching this thing.” He amended giving Caro a raise of his brows and an almost Benji-ish smile. He tried to make it sound like a joke but he was serious on the inside, he didn’t want to be here as much as Carolyn did. But at least she was still well with her best friend, while Benji had to sit awkwardly across from Arnie trying not to catch his eye. “Oh yea lovely.” Well that was sarcastic. “Now that you’re here Pan dear.” That sounded more honest.

[Arnie Peasegood]

Oh, Alex.

Arnie gave the Gryffindor a grateful grin, getting as comfortable as he could as his best friend rather determinedly avoided him. Even as they were - what? a foot-and-a-half apart? - so close together, his dormmate would rather inspect the table than give him the teensiest look to let him know that he didn't completely hate his guts. Arnie hadn't ever seen him so...mopey. A little lightness came to the table in the form of the adorable Pandora Nott, a girl he had grown rather fond of over the years, and he gave an automatic nod to her question. Although -

It is chilly in here - or is it just me?

"Here, Alex - you’ll appreciate this one," he said, knowing - as he assumed all Hogwarts students did - the girl's proclivity for all things shiny. Whether or not she routinely paid attention in Care of Magical Creatures wasn't something he knew, but he figured her interest must've been piqued when they'd seen this particular creature. Besides, he'd used this joke on Dora ages ago and she'd given him a great laugh - hopefully it'd brighten up this damn awkward table. "What side of a fire crab has the most jewels?" He gave the group a few moments before answering, "The outside.”

Okay, he wasn't an idiot. Arnie knew it was a bad joke, and chuckled anyway. But sometimes a really, really bad joke could break the ice. However, he felt a surge of affection towards his mate as he saw Benji carrying a conversation with Caro - although when had they become close enough that Benj would 1) be comfortable talking with her and 2) suggest leaving together? That affection was soon overshadowed with a shooting pain of loss, as he...really began to worry.

Just because he's not inviting you along doesn't mean -

    Yes, it does. When did he stop giving a damn about you? It's always been the two of you with this sort of thing.

You know that's not entirely true.

    All right, well, okay - even when Dora was here, I still made time -

Was Benji...done with him? The Ravenclaw tried to neutralize his expression, knowing he'd slipped and had let his face fall, hearing the two across the table, before looking over to Benji. What's going on?
    

[Deleted]

Well that was far easier than Alex had expected, and she grinned. When Pandora commented on what a nice day it was, Alex rolled her eyes. She didn't wish to seem mean, but she found it upsetting that this Ravenclaw had said something so silly when they were cooped up in study hall. Where was the loveliness in that she wanted to know! Shocked by her friends agreement, the blond turned her head to stare at Charlotte. Two lovelies? Merlin, her friend needed to get out more than she thought, if she was saying a day locked away was so wonderful. Alex put her elbow up on the table and plopped her head into her hand. She might die if something didn't happen soon.

When Arnie spoke, she perked up a little, smiling at him. Maybe he would fix this tiny matter of the room being so dull. Her hopes were squashed quick when he said the lamest joke she'd ever heard. She had been so hopeful too when he mentioned jewels. Now there was a topic she could get into. Why he had to ruin it with a stupid fire-crab was beyond her.

"Oh my. The life of the party is here. Whoo hoo." she said sarcastically before giving the Ravneclaw boy an 'are you serious' look.

[Pandora Nott]

Pandora wasn't dissapointed that there was conversation during study hall. In fact, she much preferred it. While she wasn't one to completely ditch the study hall period (at least not on purpose) she could always finish her school work another time. So when she was greeted by her friends and classmates, Pandora was more than happy to smile at them and continue the conversation. She gave a nod to Charlotte, before turning to face Carolyn.

"Thanks Carolyn. How are you doing today?" she asked, even more pleased that her best friend was there. Having someone as a best friend was something Pandora had never expected, but Carolyn was the perfect fit to fill the position. Pandora told Carolyn everything, something she didn't do with anyone else. It was nice to have a person who could know exactly what you needed when you were off in your own little world.

Hearing Benji's reply, however, she glanced toward him with a frown. His original tone hadn't been over excited, but he'd adjusted it. She wondered what was wrong with him, as she hadn't exactly talked to him much since the school year started. They had become good friends over the last year. He could just be in a bad mood because of study hall, that was something that was possible. She gave him a smile, turning to Arnie as he began to tell a joke about fire crabs. She covered her mouth as he finished, trying her best not to laugh loudly. While it was cheesy, it was still amusing.

However, it was apparent that the other members of the study hall didn't seem as amused, she she looked back down at her parchment, starting to scrawl words across the page, "I thought it was funny Arnie," she said quietly, content to not draw much attention to herself.

[Charlotte Fudge]

When will you learn?

Even a slight change from last year's Charlotte - speaking up in this group - had drawn the attention of her friend, and she looked back as innocently as she could, not wanting to draw any more attention to herself than she already had. I'll tell you later, she silently told the other Gryffindor, hoping Alex would accept her temporary silence on why today was so special. She'd just felt oddly off, being here without Remus - of course, they'd known this would be their reality as soon as he'd graduated (well, and once they'd exchanged those three words had known they'd remain together through this lengthy-but-in-the-grand-scheme-of-things-temporary physical separation), but knowing and experiencing were quite different entities. Receiving his letter that morning, hearing his sweet voice speak those words in her mind as she read it over, pulling it out between classes to commit it to memory (All my love, Remus - honestly, how this boy hadn't been snatched up before she came along was a mystery to her), had just been such a comfort, and she was looking forward to writing him back - and reassuring him that he could never bore her with his stories, kind-but-occasionally-daft man that he was.

It was with a slight chuckle that Char watched her friend dramatically drop any feigned interest in her essay, her palm the only thing keeping her chin from hitting the table. She was quite certain Alex would rather be anywhere than here, but no matter how many times she reassured the other girl that this was their last year of study, Alex wasn't much encouraged. It wasn't unusual for someone to slip into an academic slump in their seventh year, but this was their N.E.W.T. year - one couldn't completely lose steam! Char would just have to work harder to keep her on track.

The Gryffindor directed most of her attention to her essay after Pandora arrived, but kept an ear out for the table's conversation. Her hope that Arnie's arrival would calm the other Ravenclaw boy down seemed to be in vain, as Benji's usually pleasant voice changed to a sarcastic drawl. Arnie, perhaps sensing the tense mood that she was, tried to engage the group in what really was a rather flat joke, but nonetheless had her quietly chuckling along with him and Pan, especially at Alexandra's remark. Her light eyes flitted up from her essay to find her friend's, giving the girl a slight nudge in the side.

"What've you got then, Alex?" she teased playfully. Her friend was quite the gossip source - not that she wanted anything to spread, but maybe she'd have a quip of her own to share to get the spotlight off of the Ravenclaw, who hadn't had the success she figured he'd been anticipating.

[Deleted]

The tiniest of smiles graced her features as Benji joked around with her. They had quite the rapport over the years, but then again, how could someone fail to have a rapport of some sort after living in the same tower for several years? However, before she was able to say something back to him, he spoke again, surprising her with the might behind them. What shocked her even more was when he extended the invitation of his devious behavior to her. Carolyn Wilkes. The girl that was known for locking herself up in the girl's dormitory tower to study instead of celebrating over the latest Quidditch victory. The girl who made a point to speak out against people who wanted their grades to come to them easily, without any effort put in.

I'm no fun, what are you asking me for?

After considering each possibility for a very short period of time, Caro came to the conclusion that this was a trick. It must be. After all, they had never spent any time alone together before, he knew her academic history and dedication to her marks. So she laughed. "Ditch study hall?" She became momentarily distracted from her conversation with Benji and looked over to who she assumed was his best friend, Arnie. She listened to his...joke...and tilted her head in consideration of him. Why had the sorting hat chosen him for Ravenclaw again? She had started to develop possible ideas about this somewhere within her fifth year, but the notes she had made were all upstairs and tucked away safely in her trunk. If she remembered correctly, he was notorious for dating girls in their house - it would not do for one of his girlfriends to find her notes on his house allegiance.

Apparently she was not alone in her thoughts on the boy's joke and she had to smirk a bit at that. It wasn't often that others held the same opinion as her. However, you could always leave it to Pan to understand the things she herself could never fathom. Perhaps that was why they worked so well together as best friends. For all that, Carolyn decided that the scintillating conversation between the Gryffindors were not worth her time. 

She grinned at Pandora and put her quill down for the first time since arriving to speak with her. "As well as I possibly can be doing while being held hostage in the Great Hall." The Hogwarts staff clearly assumed that everyone studied in the exact same way. Carolyn would prefer to just be given a long spare period. Her spare time consisted of studying, attending scheduled club meetings or spending time with Pan anyway...perhaps she could speak with Professor Dumbledore...she had to hold back a laugh at herself. The Headmaster of the school had better things to do with his time than speak with a young Ravenclaw girl.

[Benji Fenwick]

Benji shook his head a found the urge to smile. What a lame joke. It was just like Arnie though. He wasn’t sure the rest of the table even got it, as no one laughed. Though Pan did say it was funny. Alex however seemed none to pleased. Now Benji was fighting a scowl, that girl there. Normals he could tolerate her just fine, but sometimes she just rode his nerves. Even more of a reason to split.


Restlessly he tapped his fingers on the desk. There was just nothing for him to do here. He had never been as investing in studying as his fellow Ravenclaws and now he cared even less. He was sure is grades woulnt suffer too bad as he was never a big studier in the first place. He was pretty good at retaining knowledge on the first go. And when he didn’t understand something, well there was Arnie for that. They would usually figure it out together. Now, he felt he was on his own, but it still didn’t make him enthusiastic to be stuck in a study hall for what felt like forever.

He looked across at Arnie, quickly looking away again for fear of making eye contact. It was hard avoiding his best mate, but it was even harder to face him. He had what Benji did not, love. And maybe that was a big part of why Benji was trying so hard to avoid him. Arnie had everything and Benji had nothing and the selfish bit in him was making the other boy suffer. It wasn’t nice, it wasn’t right, but Benji was too far gone to stop himself. Carolyn seemed a little nervous, Benji was not. “Ditch study hall?” she was saying. “Yes, ditch study hall. It’s not a real class, we aren’t learning anything new. No one would notice, no one would even care.” Arnie would care. Benji visibly flinched at his thoughts. This just wasn’t fair; life wasn’t fair.