Can't Escape The Feeling ((Heather))

[Justin Finch-Fletchley]

Justin stuck his hands into the front pockets of his jeans as he whistled his way downwards towards the Hufflepuff Common Room. They weren't stuck right in the dungeons submerged beneath the lake where all the Slytherins disappeared off too; neither were they located at dizzying heights as it would appear the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws were. They just kept everything in sensible moderation as was befitting for their house. He liked that. Today Justin was cheerful for no particular reason. He wasn't busy with work for once, unusual as that was for this time of year. He also just felt light-hearted today. He'd walked around the castle for a short while with Susan, who had now gone off to get her lunch. Justin didn't feel the need to eat twice so he was headed back to the Common Room with no particular purpose. Maybe that was the reason for his particular feeling of well being. He was at his leisure to do whatever he pleased, whatever took him on the spur of the moment.

It was a Saturday but he'd spent his time in the Greenhouse that morning. Professor Sprout wasn't his favourite professor but she hadn't been in the same Greenhouse at any rate. He was just cultivating a few plants and borrowing some of her space. One of the plants he'd cross bred from two Muggle ones had turned out to have a very pretty flower which had made him just a little excited when he first saw it earlier on. He would have to take a cutting of it when it was mature enough. Occupying his thoughts with the plants and observing absent-mindedly that the gentry usually left that whole sort of thing to their army of gardeners, Justin did not look around as he entered the Common Room but instead headed straight for the boys' dormitories. He'd made some endeavours to get the mud off his hands earlier but it took a thorough scrubbing if you wanted all traces of it removed. Mud was a stubborn thing. First though Justin changed into a fresh shirt and trousers before making his way to the bathroom to get all that mud out of the creases in his palms.

Justin came down looking a whole lot fresher but with his mood slightly deflated. It soon picked up again though since he espied Heather Foster over by the window. He liked her rather a lot actually - she really was a wonderful girl. Justin approached fairly quietly and leaned backwards on the windowsill so her view was partially of the Grounds and mostly a close-up of him. He smiled as charmingly as he could before leaning out of her view again because it just wouldn't be polite to stay there any longer. Not that it had been the most polite gesture in the first place. Justin put a hand on her shoulder and guided her over to a couple of wicker seats, taking a seat in the furthest one himself and leaning back in it easily. "Just for a minute," he explained. "I wouldn't pass up on a chance for your company, after all. I made that mistake for all of six and a half years, but no longer. No escaping me now." He smiled at her and met her eyes for a moment before looking over to where a couple of fourth years were working in another part of the room as he waited for some form of response. He didn't really mind what it was considering who it was coming from.

[Heather Foster]

Heather wasn't having such a good day as she normally would be. First, all her books fell off the library table that she had been working at. The pile landed on the floor causing her organization to be demolished. She had even lost her Charms essay because of it. It was a good thing it wasn't due until later on that week. Luckily, there were a couple of nice third years that helped her pick everything up. Why was she so clumsy? Could she at least go through a whole day without knocking something out of her own hands, or another person's? That would be a day Heather would mark down on a calendar and circle with a big, red, permanent marker. Second, her camera lens was cracked down the center. She had let a second year see the device and take a couple of pictures. But soon the girl had accidental dropped the camera on the floor, resulting to the lens breaking. Now she had to write a letter to her father explaining the situation. Heather would have asked her mother, but she wanted to avoid the endless list of questions. Honestly, why did mother's always have to ask you so much? They would ask your one question than another but than they would return back to the first question. Heather would answer it in a rather 'nasty' tone, which made her mother snap at her. She hated that, because when Jennifer thought Heather was using a smart-allelic tone, she would give her the silent treatment. For some odd reason, Heather just hated the quietness between her and her mother.

Making her way up the steps to the girls dormitory, Heather smiled at a couple of friends who passed by her saying hello. Once reaching the seventh year girl's dormitory, she threw the pile of books on her newly made bed. Heather wasn't mad at herself, just frustrated at the moment. As usual, one of the tops books began to slide slightly to the ground. Knelling down to pick it up, Heather set it on the bedside table. Feeling as if something was missing, she scanned the pile. Her blue eyes caught each and every title looking for something out of the ordinary. Noticing that her dolphin covered diary was gone, she groaned. How could she be so stupid? Leaving it at the library. Sighing, she just tried to put it in the back of her mind, while changing out of her Hogwarts uniform. Slipping on a black, long sleeved shirt, and a pair of light blue jeans, Heather also pulled on a grey sweatshirt over the black top. For some odd reason, she felt slightly cold. It was spring time yes, but the weather outside was still a bit freezing. Trudging on a pair of comfortable tennis shoes, Heather also pulled her dirty blond hair into a bun. Nothing extravagant or fancy, just a simple hairstyle for no special occasion. Grabbing the novel that she had set on the bedside table, Heather gave Oreo a quite rub behind the ears before leaving the dormitory. She didn't feel like working on any homework at the moment and her Charms essay could wait. Hopefully someone will find it and return it to her early this week.

The common room wasn't as crowded as usual. There were a couple of Hufflepuffs sitting in groups, talking about the Beltane Party. Heather didn't know whether of not she was going to go. It sounded fun, but Hannah would most obviously be with Ernie the whole time and Heather didn't know about Susan's plans. Leaning back on the wall causally, Heather rested the side of her head against the wall. Her blue eyes looked out onto the grounds watching everybody passing. Some of the students were running around playing while others were just simply talking in groups. Lost in her own little world, Heather jumped back slightly seeing Justin leaned back on the windowsill. Blinking a couple of times she smiled slightly as he led her toward two wicked chairs. Setting the book down on the table she took a seat crossing one leg over the other. "Well, I've been having a pretty bad day, but I'm really glad to hear that you want to talk to me and not any other girl," Heather said with another light smile. Justin was a flirt and so was she. It was something hard to tell whether they were either flirting or actually being real.

[Justin Finch-Fletchley]

Justin peered at Heather as she said she was having a bad day, his actions exaggerated as usual to put some amusement into them. "Well, I'm sorry to hear that!" he said, his voice a mixture of sincerity and playfulness as it often was. "I must say you don't look it though. Your smiles are still perfectly charming and your conversation... infinitely impudent," he said, spluttering the last words even as he smiled at her because he'd just heard what she'd said. "I can't imagine anyone I would want to talk to more at this moment in time," he said. "Well, maybe Tara, Dara, Zara..." he added ponderously, the quirky smile on his face and the ridiculous combination of names indicating how entirely far from serious he really was. "I will find some conquests if that makes you glad for my company though," he suggested, raising his eyebrows a tad in playful question.

"Now was your day bad before I intruded and I have merely worsened the situation or am I the main culprit for that?" He regarded her with concern before springing out of his own chair and crouching down behind hers, pulling her hair out of its bun. That left the long hair just hanging there so after a minute he straightened up again and started stroking it slightly. He hadn't done it for any particular reason but now he had he was surprised at how smooth and silky it was. "Well, if you're not having the best of days, I shan't contribute to that for too long," he said, walking round to the front of her chair and crouching down, using the armrests as supports. On the same level as her since the chair was fairly low, he looked her straight in the eyes, his own twinkling. "There's just a question I was wanting to ask you, that's all. See, I was struggling with my Transfiguration homework, and it suddenly occurred to me..."

[Heather Foster]

Heather crossed one leg over the other turning her head slightly at Justin. He began to talk in that playful, yet somewhat serious tone that made her smile a little. How could one pull that off was a mystery to Heather. "I don't look it? How are you supposed to look when you’re having a bad day? I guess I always put on a somewhat of a contanence so people really can't tell if I'm in a bad mood," she responded at Justin's first statement about her not looking like someone who would have a horrible day. What Heather said was true. She always tried her best to hide her anger and moodiness from people. Though, it led to her snapping back at people. But most of the time, Heather was her happy, lively self. Laughing at Justin’s made up names that sounded all quite alike she smiled at him slightly. “That’s quite a long line of girls. They must be quite jealous to know that you are talking to me and not any of them,” she said continuing to smile one of her playful smiles. For some odd reason, she liked to tease Justin. Maybe she teased him because she wanted to see what kind of witty reaction he made. In most times, it made Heather laugh and smile.

Watching with a curious look as Justin made his way over toward her she looked off into the far corner of the common room. “Of course you didn’t make my day even more horrible! You’ve made it a little better actually….Just keep a lookout for a Charms essay…I kind of lost mine.” As Heather answered his question, she turned her head around to see Justin pulling her hair out of its newly made bun. He than began to stroke it which made cold Goosebumps run along her spine. Why on earth was Justin stroking her hair? Her eyes upturned slightly as Justin made his way to the front of her chair, leaning his hands on the arm rest for support. Uncrossing her legs, Heather turned her head to the right slightly. Her blues eyes shined slightly while looking into the playful brown ones of Justin’s. “What are you trying to ask me Justin? For help on your Transfiguration essay or do you simply need some advice from a girl?”

[Justin Finch-Fletchley]

Justin smiled disarmingly at Heather since she was arguing with his comment. "I would suspect if one has had a bad day they would look tired and just a little grumpy. You merely look thoughtful," he said. "Me... I tend to look puzzled when I have had a bad day. Trying to work out why the world would be so cruel, you see." He frowned at her suddenly, as though trying very hard to work something out, and then smiled at her again, trying to relax her a little. "Like that." he explained. He gave her the very same expression again a moment later, but genuinely this time, as she responded to his question over whether he should find a string of girls with which to gain her attention. For a moment he couldn't think of a reaction to what she'd said, but then something came. "Jealous they stay, then," he said finally, with another smile for the other seventh year.

"You lost your Charms essay?" he asked in surprise, pinching his nose in thought. "Kind of lost... wait, did you lose it or not?" he continued, suddenly feeling slightly confused. It wasn't the first time he'd needed Heather to explain some figure of speech to him though. "How did you manage that?" he asked, trying not to smile. It wasn't something that happened everyday, surely. But he shouldn't be smiling at this - no, he musn't. Goodness, what was wrong with him? It must just be Heather's presence. Yes, he'd blame it on her. He shook his head in apology to Heather as a broad grin spread over his face. "We'll find it somehow," he said once he was able. "Cursebreakers are always good at finding hidden clues anyway."

He smiled at her reassuringly but then started up and took a couple of paces across the room as he realised he still hadn't explained himself. Suspense was one thing but keeping a girl waiting that long... "Ah yes!" he said, making no secret of the fact it had slipped his mind. "Well, I realised I was distracted from my Transfiguration because there was something more important to do... the thing is that I have still to ask you to come to the Beltane party with me, Heather! And all I can do now is hope no one else has asked you first. You'll come with me, won't you?" he asked, looking at her with some worry. It would be terrible if she said no now. But she wouldn't, would she? He certainly hoped not. "So... that was what I was going to ask you." he replied to her question finally. "Say you'll come?" he implored, grabbing her hands and this time pulling her out of the chair, spinning her round once before going and stealing the chair she'd previously been sitting in.

[Heather Foster]

Heather stared thoughtfully at Justin as he began to continue to argue the point of her not looking like she was having a bad day. If he argued over these kinds of little matters, than he would most defiantly become a great lawyer. In fact, Justin was even demonstrating how he looked when having a bad day. He gave a little frown which was making his face actually look puzzled. Smiling at his gestures, Heather tried hard not to laugh. Maybe he should become an actor. "The world isn't all that nice some of the time. But, others don't deserve to deal with your anger and attitude if you are having a really bad day. So I just try to act like everything’s fine, which in most cases, does turn out fine." Heather stated rolling the ends of the sleeves of her black sweatshirt up. "Have you ever thought of becoming an actor Justin? That was simply a brilliant display of acting." As Heather finished Justin said something about her earlier comment about jealous girls. She fell silent with an amused grin on her lips.

The topic of discussion soon changed to Heather's missing Charms essay. Justin was rather confused on the fact if she lost it or not. He sometimes didn't understand some of the words she said. It didn't annoy her at all but seemed more cute than annoying. With an heavy sigh Heather began to explain the story, "I lost it in the library somewhere. See I keep my essays in my textbooks so I won't lose them inside of my bag or forget them. I must of left it in the library or it dropped out of my textbook." As Heather spoke she stared off into space as she tried to think over how she lost the essay. Looking back at Justin she tilted her head slightly. Was he trying hard not smile? What would be so amusing about her losing a piece of missing homework? "Are you saying that you would help me find it? The word we'll doesn't just mean one person," Heather began smiling slightly. It would be somewhat fun to go around the castle in search of a missing paper, especially if she was with Justin. He would always find a way to make things seem rather more silly than it really was. "I don't think I would make a great curse breaker if I'm always going to lose something here and there."

Justin than was beginning to pace back and forth in deep though, not even explaining what he was trying to say. Crossing her hands over her chest she waited for a response. When he finally realized it had slipped his mind and began to explain himself she just simply smiled. Upon hearing the words of Beltane, Heather perked up slightly. Was he asking her to Beltane or did she just hear him wrong? Uncrossing her arms, Heather stared rather intensely at Justin as he asked her again, this time taking her hands and spinning her around. As he stole her chair, Heather smiled. "I don't know if I'm going to Beltane or not," she began taking Justin's hands and pulling off from the chair. Setting her hands in the right position for dancing she lead the way backwards. "I'm not much of a dancer and I simply don't have anything charming to wear," she replied twirling him away from her and making a run for her chair. Taking a seat, Heather grinned. "Of course I'll go to Beltane with you. I don't know anybody else who I would rather go with."