'Twas an Accident... I Swear! ((Kody))

[Bryce Alexander]

Bryce was having a very stubborn moment as he sat in the student lounge. He had his charms book in front of him, and his wand in his hand. For the past half hour or so, he had bee working relentlessly to try to master the charm from that day's lesson. It was the Transfigorus Totallus charm, which was known for its difficulty of combining advanced charm work with a twist of Transfiguration. The students had been encouraged to try the spell on their own and then bring the two items that the spell was cast on, which were supposed to transfigure themselves into a third item that was a blend of the original two items. All of it seemed logically easy, yet Bryce was becoming increasingly more frustrated as he failed time and time again. The items he had chosen, a pot of ink and a small Quidditch figurine of his favourite professional player, sat on the table, still both in their original form.

Bryce took another moment to make sure he was reading the instructions correctly. They called for a sideways flick, followed by a circular motion as the spell was being cast. He even read the tips for proper incantation before trying once more. Deciding that if it didn't work this time, he would simply go find Ash or Weetzie and demand that they show him what he was doing wrong. Bryce concentrated hard on the figurine and the bottle and then raised his wand. "Transfigorus Totallus!" he commanded in a clear voice. His wrist followed the spell's wand-waving patter, and Bryce watched with excitement to see both items levitate slightly above the surface of the table. His smile that quickly spread on his face as he watched for the items to merge quickly turned into a look of shock. Instead of merging to form a new iteam, Bryce watched in horror as the bottle of ink went flying across the room, crashing into the stone wall and splattering the black liquid everywhere!

After the fact, he couldn't help but laugh a bit to himself, despite his frustration. He walked across the room to where the mess was, only to realize that the ink had made a mess all over a boy who was sitting by the wall. "Oh... sorry," Bryce apologized, his eyes wide with surprise to see that he had caused such a mess all over the boy's clothes and books. "Spell went bad," he explained. Before the boy could make much of a fuss, Bryce raised his wand and attempted a spell he was more comfortable with. "Scourgify," he said, using the basic cleaning spell that was commonly learned during early Charms lessons at Hogwarts. The ink disappeared, and, much to Bryce's relief, seemed to leave no permanent stain on the boy's clothes. "Uh... Bryce Alexander," he said, offering his hand for the younger boy to shake. "I don't think I've seen you around before. What's your name?" Bryce wasn't one to normally socialize with younger years. It wasn't that he didn't like them, it just wasn't something he did. He felt bad though, and so he wanted to at least be kind with the kid. Afterall, he had just interrupted his studying with quite an accident.

[Kody Leuchten G3]

Kody woke up late that morning, and had been running around trying to keep up with all of his commitments. He barely had time for his friends that day, and felt guilty for not taking time out to see how they were doing. He finally got some time to himself, time to relax in the lounge and study for a bit. Maybe I'll actually get some real work done now, he thought to himself.

As he made his way to the lounge, Kody thought about the spells he had been learning in his classes and how he might be able to practice a few of them on his friends later that day. Of course, he wouldn't try the dangerous ones, but just some of the milder spells he had learned but not yet perfected. Ah, study time, he thought as he approached the lounge. He sat down in a chair near one of the large stone walls, and looked around to see who was in the building.

All of a sudden, a pot of ink came flying towards him and, before he had a chance to think, it had hit the wall next to him and a large portion of the black liquid landed all over him. At first he was in shock, then anger, and looked around to see who had done such a vile thing. Kody looked up and saw an older boy coming up to him, apologizing. Kody immediately realized it was an accident, and the anger subsided. As he got up to clean himself off, the boy performed the cleaning spell on him, and everything was like new.

The boy introduced himself as Bryce Alexander, and after some pondering of the name, and Bryce asking who he was, Kody responded, "I'm Kody Leuchten. Just started my third year in Gryffindor. Nice to meet you." Bryce extended his hand to shake, and Kody wearily shook it. "I know you're a lot further into Hogwarts than I am, so I'm curious why you actually took the time to apologize and help me clean up. I'm a younger student, and many of you older students don't socialize with us."

Kody wasn't sure what to make of Bryce, but he seemed nice enough. The accident wasn't intentional, yet it seemed odd that he would even come over and apologize.

[Bryce Alexander]

Bryce was caught off guard at first with Kody's forthrightness. A lot of younger students would have offered a nervous 'hello' and then said nothing more. Still, Bryce respected Kody's boldness to make quite an assertion. "Well..." he stammered, realizing it was true that older students rarely took time to converse with those in younger years. Plus, the fact that Bryce had only come over to apologize made it even more awkward. "...honestly, I just came over to clean up the mess when I realized that you had been here." Bryce bit his lip, trying not to sound rude. "I'd have naturally apologized though, as I'd at least like to think that I am a moral person." Bryce decided to sit across from Kody in the open chair, attempting to maintain his polite demeanor.

"I guess the reason that us older students don't tend to socialize with younger students like yourself isn't because we've got anything against you. We just... have our own groups of friends already. Take for example the first years; being older than them, a lot of third years might not socialize with them. I mean, some older students might get annoyed with younger students, but I don' think I fall into that category." Bryce smiled, hoping he had explained it well. He didn't think that a lot of younger students really minded being avoided by older students, but apparently it bothered Kody to an extent.

"So, Kody..." Bryce began, taking advantage of the opportunity while he was there. If anything, he was able to get his mind off the blasted spell that had been causing him so much frustration. "... a third year Gryff, eh? I can remember my third year. It 'twas a fun one. What's your favourite class? For me, I'd have to go with Charms." At that Bryce laughed, realizing that Kody probably thought this to be odd, considering it had been a charm that caused the ink to come flying at him in the first place. "The broken ink pot was a fluke," Bryce assured him with a grin. "Normally, I'm pretty decent at charms; one of the few classes I actually don't mind."

[Kody Leuchten G3]

Based on Bryce's expression after he had posed his question, Kody knew he had been a bit harsh. But maybe it was for good. He always did wonder why older students barely ever conversed with younger students, especially when he knew how much a friendship could mean to a person.

Bryce explained how he had come over to apologize, and Kody listened intently as he explained the reasoning for older students keeping to themselves. He took the seat next to Bryce, checking his clothes one last time to make sure there was no more ink to be found. Kody was glad to hear from Bryce that he, unlike some other students, didn't get annoyed by younger students like himself. His spirits lifted, happy to hopefully have a new friend.

Bryce asked him what his favorite class was, and Kody had to think about it for a minute. "I enjoy Charms class, when I can get them right!", he joked. "But my favorite class would have to be Potions with Snape. He's mysterious, and I get worried every once in a while in his class, but I enjoy learning about the different kinds of potions. It's what my dad does for a living, so I guess that's where I get my interest in it."

As he and Bryce kept talking about classes, Kody stole a glance at the table where Bryce had been practicing his Totallus charm. He took notice of the other object that Bryce had been trying to merge with the ink pot. It was a small Quidditch figurine. He immediately recognized it from the ones in the some of the shops down Diagon Alley. Is that..., Kody thought.

Kody looked at Bryce, who was looking at him with an odd face, and asked, "Where did you get that figurine?" He was worried that he might have to explain all about his mother's death to Bryce within the first ten minutes of meeting him. That wasn't a problem, but he wasn't sure he felt comfortable sharing that much information with someone he had just met. But Bryce seemed nice enough.

[Bryce Alexander]

"A Potions fan?" Bryce questioned rhetorically. "If you thought today was bad, you should have seen my last Potions class. Make a note... if you are ever using Ashwinder eggs, be sure to keep them frozen. They tend to catch things on fire if you let them thaw," Bryce explained with a guilty grin. "Needless to say, Snape was less than thrilled with that ordeal."

As Kody explained his father worked with Potions for a living, Bryce gave a look of interest. "Really? My dad actually is a potion scientist as well. He works for a nearby brewing factory." Like Kody, Bryce too had a fairly decent liking for Potions. He was much better in Charms though, but between the two classes, they were the ones he enjoyed most.

As Bryce was conversing, he noticed Kody's attention slip elsewhere for a moment. Bryce ended his sentence and glanced toward the place Kody was looking. "Oh... that thing?" he asked, referring to the figurine of his favourite Quidditch player. "Got it in Diagon Alley. It's a figurine of Kevin Broadmoor. He's a Beater for the Falmouth Falcons; a pretty tough team known for their hard play. Being a Beater myself, he and his twin brother are my role models when it comes to the sport, especially considering I'm a twin myself."

Bryce then smiled to himself as a thought occurred to him. "Instead of playing next to my twin though, who lives in Paris, I get to be Beater next to Ashley Hill." Bryce's smile widened at the thought of Ashley. He didn't bother explaining his involvement with Ash to Kody though, as Kody seemed to be deep in thought. "You okay?" he asked, giving Kody a curious look.

[Kody Leuchten G3]

Kody chuckled with Bryce as he told his story about the eggs catching on fire, but let his mind wander back to the figure sitting on the table. While Bryce was talking about his dad also being a potions scientist, it got Kody thinking about both of his parents, and how hard it had been for his father when his mom had been taken so quickly. He remembered about how hurt and nearly suicidal his father had become, but something kept the two of them going. They had pulled through, and things were better than they had ever been, yet it was still a huge hole in his heart, a hole that only a mother could fill.

Bryce was saying something, but Kody didn't hear it. He looked on at the figure, but then something hit the floor and jolted him out of his daydream. Kody looked down and saw his Potions notebook on the floor, and picked it up, shaking himself of his wishings. Bryce was still talking, and Kody looked up and met gazes with him. Apparently Bryce had noticed Kody looking at the figure on the table, and he explained that it was of his favorite player. Whew, Kody thought to himself. At least it's not a statue of my mother. That would have been weird to explain.

Bryce caught his gaze again, and asked if he was okay. Kody thought, Apparently I'm not too good at my poker face. He seems nice enough, I guess I could tell him. "Bryce, the reason I haven't talked too much during our conversation is because my mother was a Quidditch player," he confessed. "My mother was Sylvia Leuchten, a well-known professional in the sport. If you didn't know, she was killed by a bludger. She was hit and fell to her death. I don't tell many people just because a lot of my personal life hurts to talk about. But you seem like a genuinely nice person, and that's why I feel like I can open up to you."

Kody, the entire time he was explaining things to Bryce, wondered if he was doing the right thing, offering up his personal feelings and hurts to an almost complete stranger. Bryce had a look in his eye, but he couldn't figure out what it meant. Kody held his breath, preparing for the worst.

[Bryce Alexander]

Their light-hearted conversation soon took a turn toward a more serious one. As Bryce questioned him, Kody spilled what Bryce found to be some very sad and personal information. It all came rather quickly, and Bryce was caught off guard. He didn't do well with things like this, but he tried his best. "I... I'm sorry," he said first, never sure whether that was the best thing to say. It always felt like he was apologising for something he didn't do, but he realized that he was actually just showing some sympathy. "That must have been tough." Kody seemed to have been over his mother's death for the most part, but Bryce knew how he would often get upset just over the fact that his mother no longer lived in the same house. How much worse it must have been to know that she was gone forever.

"Your mother..." he began again, starting to make some connections, seeing that he was a huge Quidditch fan. "She was a seeker, right? Played on Pride of Portree. I remember reading about that match, I think. She is remembered for her talents though." Bryce hoped that his knowing about Sylvia might make Kody feel a bit better. At least he hoped it wouldn't make it worse. What else was he supposed to say though? "That's understandable that you wouldn't share it with many people. I remember when my parents got divorced, I didn't want people to know. But, this is a lot different," he admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

"So, do you plan on trying out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team?" Bryce hoped that the topic of Quidditch wasn't one that made Kody upset considering his mother's death. "Even though I play on the Hufflepuff team, I'd always be willing to give you a few tips. That is, considering you'd want to play as a beater. Other than the beater position, I'm not the greatest," he said with a laugh. "Figures, all I'm good for is flying around with a bat and making sure that those bloody bludgers stay away from my team." After he said it, Bryce realized that he might want to shut up now. The more he said, the more he realized that perhaps Kody wanted to change the topic. "Anyways..." he trailed off, leaving Kody to change the subject if he wished.

[Kody Leuchten G3]

Kody didn't mind talking about his mother, nor did he mind talking about Quidditch. It was just rough with people who didn't know him very well. But Bryce was growing on him, even in the short conversation they were having.

"I don't mind talking about my mother," Kody said, thoughtfully. "You're right, she was a seeker for Pride of Portree. I'm surprised you remember the match, it was so long ago. But thank you for being respectful in understand what I've gone through. It's easier to talk about than ever before, and each day I do talk about it, it helps."

Bryce asked about Quidditch, and Kody thought about it for a few minutes. "I'm not sure if I'd like to join the team," he said. "I don't know many of the third years that play on the team, many of them stick to themselves. I think it's too tight-knit of a group for me. Not that I wouldn't want to play, I'm just not sure what position I'd play. I have no idea what's open."

Bryce seemed to be a bit weary of what to talk about around him, so Kody figured he would calm his fear. "It's not hard for me to talk about things my mother did. She's gone, and I have, for the most part, accepted it," he said. "Say, do you want to go somewhere else, take a walk somewhere? I'm sure you probably have better things to be doing than talking to a silly third year like me," he chuckled. "Don't you have a girlfriend? I think I've seen you around with someone. Unless I'm mistaken."

Kody looked around the lounge and realized that it was nearly deserted. He wondered how long he and Bryce had been sitting there talking, since the ink pot incident. As he thought back to it, he was glad it had happened, because he had made a new friend out of it.

[Bryce Alexander]

Bryce was glad to see that Kody seemed open to talking about anything. In fact, in Bryce's opinion, Kody's willingness to open up, even if it was to few people, showed that he was beginning to accept his mother's death. Bryce didn't know a lot about psychology, but he had always heard that acceptance was a major part of the grieving process. Smiling, he nodded when Kody said that it was alright for him to talk about it all. "I thought the last name Leuchten sounded familiar when you first mentioned it... I just hadn't made the connection until now."

"Well, as for trying out for the team, you'll never know what position suits you 'till you try them out. What would you say your strengths are? I mean, you have ridden a broom, I'm assuming. Are you more quick or more agile? Do you work better as a team or by yourself? And, do you prefer offence to defence?" Bryce asked some basic questions to see if he could help Kody narrow it down to a possible position if he were to try out. "As for the others who are already part of the team, I'm sure they'd welcome you. It's important for the sake of the team that everyone get along. I know on Hufflepuff we are all pretty close... well, for the most part." Bryce's thoughts trailed to Weetzie and Ashley again. Had he not been on the team to act as a buffer between them, who knew what kind of mess the two of them might cause. Laser tag had been enough of a incident, and Bryce wasn't sure he wanted to know what would happen when you added flying dozens of feet in the air, plus the dangerous bludgers that he knew all too well.

"Nah, I'm fine here," he answered. "Turns out me breaking the ink pot wasn't so bad after all. Forced me to step out of my comfort zone and attempt to talk to one of those annoying younger students," he teased, obviously being sarcastic. At least he hoped that Kody would catch the sarcasm.

Bryce laughed when Kody mentioned his having a girlfriend. "Oh, Ash, you mean? Well, I wouldn't call her my girlfriend. We haven't quite established what our relationship is. But, I can say that I love to spend time with her. It's just... well..." Bryce didn't know if he should bother getting into the whole conversation about Ashley and Weetzie. It would take a lot of explaining, and Kody probably didn't care that much. "... let's just say that things are complicated as far as the relationships go in my life as of now." Bryce somewhat missed the days when he was simply a carefree flirt with all girls. Now though, with Weetzie as his best friend, and Ashley as a possible girlfriend, Bryce had mellowed out a bit. It took all of his energy just to convince each of them that the other was not as bad as they thought. "What about you? Any women in your life?" he asked, raising his brow and giving Kody a sly grin.

[Kody Leuchten G3]

Kody began to think of the things he excelled at, so he could figure out with Bryce what position might be best for him in Quidditch. He really wasn't sure he was ready to join the team, because of his mom's death, but Bryce's attitude about the whole thing was encouraging, so he figured it wouldn't hurt to talk about it.

"Well I think I'm more quick than I might be agile, just because I can get to places a bit quicker than others, when I've raced them on brooms." Kody chuckled. "There was this race last year, I'll never forget it. I can't remember the kid's name, but he challenged me to a race around Hogwarts, and I floored him so bad, he was so embarrassed. He thought I was a newbie to racing! But I wasn't too happy when the race ended. We were coming around the ending turn in front of the castle, and the kid was way behind me, and I turned and yelled to him, waving. All of a sudden I turn around and Snape is standing there! I barely missed him, but we both got two weeks of detention. Man, that was a rough couple weeks with old Snape."

Kody began to think of the other questions Bryce asked. "I work better by myself, but when it comes to playing with a team I can definitely hold my ground and keep other players in the game. Oh and definitely offense. Defense is there to protect the offense while they get the job done. I like getting the job done," Kody explained. "So where do I fit in Quidditch?"

Kody listened while Bryce explained his "involvement" with Ashley, and chuckled when he mentioned how he wouldn't consider her his girlfriend. He laughed out loud when Bryce asked him about any girls in his life. He had to laugh, because he had been quite unsuccessful in that department lately. "Well," he began, "I met this girl recently, this year in fact, but nothing really came of it. She acted like a snob most of the time, and I quickly lost interest. I guess that could change, but I don't see it happening. Maybe you could introduce me to some of the girls you know. It'd be nice to meet someone I can get along with, and someone I can meet without having an ink pot thrown at me!"

[Bryce Alexander]

Bryce listened as Kody tried assessing his own skills and informing Bryce what his strengths and weaknesses were when it came to flying and teamwork. The story about the racing around the castle and getting caught by Snape was rather humorous too. "Shoulda made ol' Snape get on a broom and chase you," Bryce joked, laughing at the thought of Snape flying on a broom. For some reason, the mental image just didn't seem realistic, but in all honesty, Bryce figured there was a lot more to Snape than what most students might think. He always seemed in a sour mood, but Bryce couldn't help but admire his knowledge at times. Sure, he was arrogant and condescending, but the man knew his stuff when it came to Potions, and Bryce had a hunch that Potions wasn't the only thing Snape excelled at. He pushed the thought from his head though as he still didn't like Snape much, regardless of how much he respected his abilities.

"I'd say that judging by what you told me, the most logical position for you would be seeker... like your mother." Bryce figured that, despite the situation with his mother dying as a Seeker, Kody might find some comfort in that or at least some pride in thinking he might be like his mother when it came to Quidditch. After all, her skills as a Seeker were nothing to overlook. Bryce wouldn't have minded having her Quidditch skills. "Yeah, seeker seems most logical. Since you prefer offence to defence, that rules out beater and keeper, though beaters do play a bit of each. And the fact that you are more independent and quick, as opposed to team oriented and agile would suggest you'd do better at seeker than chaser." Bryce watched Kody's face to see what his reaction might be. Currently, Gryffidor had a decent seeker in Ciaran Douglass, but there was nothing wrong with Kody practising to possibly fill Ciaran's shoes someday; perhaps sooner rather than later depending on his skill level.

After Kody told Bryce about the one girl he had experienced an encounter with, Bryce chuckled a bit. "Doesn't seem that it would be worth your time pursuing her," he said with a last laugh. Then, Kody asked for Bryce's input on any girls. "Weellll..." he said, dragging out his speech as he pondered it for a moment. "I know Ash... but she's sort of mine." Bryce gave him a taunting glare. "And then there's Weetzie. But for some reason, perhaps the age, and even moreso your personalities, I don't think she'd be right for you." Bryce laughed a bit to himself at the thought. Weetz was just Weetz, and there was really no explaining her. You just had to see her and spend time with her to get to know the real Weetz. "Really, my knowledge of girls is limited to older ones. As for someone your age... the only girl I can think of is that Gryff who has a heavy Scottish accent. I'd say she's in second or third year. She has an older sister, Hebe, who is a Ravenclaw I think. And the ink comment... I resent that," Bryce joked. "It's not like I did it on purpose, and I didn't throw it either..." He highly expected Kody was only joking as well, which is why Bryce gave him a subtle grin.

[Kody Leuchten G3]

"Yeah, Snape can be pretty demanding and sour at times," Kody said, in reference to Bryce's mention of the idea of Snape flying after them. "But I know there's more to him. I don't know him too well, but after all that this school's been through, in stories I've heard from the past, I applaud him for making it this far. What do you think of him? I get intimidated sometimes, just because of the knowledge I know he possesses."

Should have known I'd get stuck with the Quidditch Seeker gene, Kody thought to himself as Bryce explained that his best option would be a seeker. Maybe it's not too bad of a thing. I could make some new friends...just hopefully they don't turn out to be jerks. "Yeah, maybe I will check it out," he replied to Bryce. "I'll just have to figure out how to go about it. Doesn't the team already have a permanent Seeker though? I thought I heard a name fly around the table at dinner last night."

As the Quidditch topic dissolved, the girl topic came up rather quickly. The girl topic was something that Kody didn't really talk about with a lot of people, mainly because some of his best friends before Hogwarts had been girls. The reason he had asked Bryce if he knew any girls that might be interested wasn't because he was desperate, not by a long shot. Kody had asked because he wanted companionship. He wanted someone he could spend time with and get to know better each day, and just be with. Bryce mentioned a girl, a Scottish girl. He hadn't heard of any Scottish girls at Hogwarts yet. Maybe I should ask if he knows any more about her, Kody thought. He acted on the thought. "What's she like?"

Kody laughed out loud about the ink joke, and was glad to see that Bryce seemed to be warming up to him, even if Kody was a younger student. I guess there are some good people in this school after all, he thought. "I know you didn't do it on purpose. Some of those charms can really get out of hand, even the lower ones I'm working on. Now, if you try it again, I might have to get my own wand out and teach you a lesson myself!" he joked.

[Bryce Alexander]

“Snape’s just a grumpy old man who hides behind his hard exterior,” Bryce said with a nod. “But yeah, you definitely should check out the Quidditch team. Even if you don’t get a starting spot, you can train for upcoming years. They do have a seeker already. His name’s Ciaran Douglass, but don’t let that stop you from going for it. There’s always the chance of injuries, especially when you have me as one of the opposing beaters,” Bryce added with a sly look. “Of course, any Quidditch player knows that those bloody bludgers have a mind of their own anyways. Beaters or no beaters, the game would still be just as dangerous.”

Kody wanted to know more about the younger girl Bryce mentioned, but there wasn’t much more he could add. “Sorry I don’t know much more than that,” he answered with a shrug. “But shouldn’t you be the one finding things out? How are you ever going to get practice with all that relationship stuff if others do the dirty work for you.” Bryce gave another joking grin. His teasing of Kody felt almost like he was a younger brother. Only have Brianne as a sibling, Bryce never got the chance to be much of an older brother like he’d have wanted to. Sure, he was a protector of Brianna in ways, but they hadn’t spent the latest of their growing up together, and she wasn’t really younger than him anyways.

Once Kody mentioned Bryce trying again with his help, he realized that Kody was now trying to joke back. “Hey, only I am allowed to make the jokes here,” Bryce teased again. “You really need to learn your place, don’t you.” Leaning back a little more in his chair, Bryce threw his hands behind his head and let out a sigh. “I really should get back to work though. There’s so much more at stake when you know it’s your last year and you need to be ready to prove something of yourself before graduation.” He leaned forward again, resting his elbows on his knees. “Well, it’s been nice getting to know you Kody, and sorry again about the ink. Whatdya say we get together again sometime though? Perhaps I can teach you a few things on the Qudditch pitch. We’ll see just how fast you really are.”

[Kody Leuchten G3]

Kody liked being able to open up with Bryce about things, and appreciated his help with figuring things out for Quidditch. "Thanks for your advice with Quidditch, Bryce. I'll definitely have to check it out now. I'm looking forward to it."
Kody was also glad that he had found a new friend in Bryce, and was glad he enjoyed making jokes with him. "Darn, I wish that I didn't have to do any of the work. I guess it's more fun doing it yourself. But if you hear of anyone, let me know!" As they each laughed, Bryce made mention of his original work he had been doing. Kody was sad that he would have to leave his new friend so soon, but was also sure that he also had other things he should be doing as well. "Yeah, things are piling up on my end as well. We should both probably get back to things. And don't worry about the ink, I don't mind. Look, it's completely gone by now anyway." Bryce made some comment about Quidditch. "Oh, you're saying you'll school me? We'll see. Next time we meet up, you'll see that I did learn a few things before my mother died...."