Don't Leave Just Yet (Aurora)

[Bryan Sangert H6]

Bryan walked out of Potions, anxious to get away from Snape’s class. It hadn’t necessarily been a bad day, even though Snape was acting like his usual self. He just wanted to be done with classes for that day so he could relax, chill with some of his friends, and get out of the grind of classwork for a bit. After all, it was Friday. He had plans with his best friend Finn later that night, and wanted some time to relax before running around again. The weekend would be to catch up on schoolwork, especially since he had some major projects due next week. It wouldn’t take him long to get them done, and he just wanted to sit in the lounge and scope out people for a while.

Bryan had a habit of staring, or watching intently (as he called it). He found himself sitting in the lounge numerous times and just watching his classmates and friends walk by, engrossed in their own conversations and schedules. Today would be no different, as he made his way through the crowded hallway. He had Potions right after lunch, and the classes changed once more after his class, even though it was his last class on Fridays. He saw a few friends and waved, but knew they had one more class left, so he kept on, heading toward the lounge. As soon as he entered the well-lit and spacious room, he heard numerous echoing crashes of doors being slammed shut for most of the student’s last classes of the day. Bryan snickered, knowing that his weekend had started. He threw his bag down onto the end of one of the couches and collapsed comfortably next to it, next to the fire brewing in the fireplace that jutted out of the wall.

He pulled his wand out of his pocket in his robe and reached down to his bag, pulling out five marbles he kept with him all the time. Getting a good fist around them, he threw them quickly into the air and pointed his wand at them. Speaking a spell he knew quite well, the marbles stopped in mid air and floated, moving wherever he directed his wand. This was a spell he had learned in his fourth year, and he loved playing with it. He liked to show it off to new students, especially first and second years, because they got so envious of him and he loved that feeling. He brought the marbles back down and put them back in his bag, sitting up against the arm of the couch. There were only a few other people in the lounge, which didn’t surprise him. Most students had classes right now anyway.

The fire was dying down, so he took his wand and spoke another spell, bringing the flames to a better intensity so it would stay hotter longer. He heard footsteps behind him, and was tempted to look and see who was coming. Sometimes Finn liked to sneak up on him, and usually he wasn’t so careless as to let his footsteps be heard. As the footsteps got closer to the back of the couch, he jumped up and yelled, “HA! Trying to scare me again? Didn’t work so well, huh?” But it wasn’t Finn.

[Aurora Chan]

Friday afternoon! Thank goodness, Aurora thought gladly as she breezed through the corridors of the Hogwarts castle, almost skipping from her delight that the weekend was finally upon her. She was one of the lucky few who had free periods during her Friday afternoon; in fact, her free periods this year were pretty good. Normally right now she would have a lot of work, but for once Aurora didn't have anything to catch up on, so she had decided already that she would finish the book she was reading, and the best place for that was either the Student Lounge or the Common Room. “The Student Lounge,” she decided; it was closer and there was more of a chance that she’d bump into her friends there. The annoying thing about Common Rooms was that they limited it to people in your house, and although most of Aurora’s closest friends were Hufflepuffs, Ariane and Leo were in Gryffindor, and the Student Lounge was a much easier place to convene. Not that Aurora would see her best friend or brother right now. Ariane was in a lesson – Herbology – and Leo, as a first year, didn’t have free periods. Already, Aurora could see that her little kid brother was going to take after her natural abilities for Transfiguration and Charms. His best subject was Defence Against the Dark Arts, though, which had come a bit of a surprise for some. However, to Aurora, it made sense. Leo wanted to be an auror, after all.

Arriving at the Student Lounge, Aurora entered it to find barely any students; some were working, a few chatting in their corners, but none she recognised. There was but one person she knew, and that was Bryan Sangert, a fellow Hufflepuff in his sixth year. He was sitting alone in front of the fireplace, and Aurora decided she might as well say hi to him. She didn’t know Bryan extremely well, but since they were in the same house and he was only a year younger than her, they had spoken several times, as well as shared some lessons. Aurora knew she could never grow close to someone like Bryan, though; he was too much of a flirt. She didn’t want to think of him as shallow, but he was certainly too shallow for her – or to deal with her, as a friend or as a boyfriend. Bryan was famous for his flirtatious attitude and flippant chat-up lines, and it didn’t matter who that girl was, or what age she was, or even what house she was in (yes, apparently he liked his fair share of Slytherin girls, but no doubt they looked down on him just because he was in Hufflepuff). As long as you’re female, the chances of Bryan strolling towards you was pretty high. More than once Aurora had had to suffer the attentions of Bryan, but she’d always laughed it off as a joke, and she was sure he realised it would never be anything more than an acquainted friendship.

Bryan’s best friend, on the other hand, was a different story. Finn Miles was extremely different – opposites, really. Also in sixth year, the other Hufflepuff boy was less extroverted and bold than Bryan, and he barely seemed as interested in women. That was probably why Aurora liked Finn and why they were such good friends. He was more like her; he didn’t really know what love and all that stuff was – they were both rather naïve that way. Aurora had met Finn years ago, when he had first entered Hogwarts a year after herself. Aurora had always been a friendly, bubbly person on the outside, and it didn’t take long for her to bound up to all the first year Hufflepuffs and introduce herself. There were some who took a shine to her, and those who didn’t, and Finn was one of the former. They didn’t see each other a lot, but often enough for him to be classed as one of Aurora’s friends. They spoke sometimes at the dining table, sometimes in lessons, sometimes in the Common Room, and all in all, he was a lovely boy. Aurora still didn’t understand why he and Bryan were best friends. Boys would always elude her when it came to such things. Maybe their friendships worked differently to girls’…

Aurora approached Bryan from behind with a friendly smile, about to say hi to him, when the Hufflepuff boy jumped up with a shout. It made Aurora blink, but it wasn’t enough to startle her, and after the initial confusion and surprise wore off, she laughed in amusement. “Steady there! Hello to you too, Bryan,” she teased, walking about the sofa and sitting down. “Mind if I join you? I wasn’t trying to scare you. Let me guess – you thought I was Finn? You boys and your games never change.” Shaking her head, Aurora dropped her bag by her feet and fished around for her novel. “No lessons for you this afternoon, Bryan?” she asked as she searched. “Where is Finn right now anyway? Does he have a class?” Aurora felt some hope that she’d be able to speak to Finn, but even if he was free, which she doubted, their conversation would be cut short too often by Bryan interrupting. The boy just had too much charisma, too much of a presence, but Aurora enjoyed being with him now and again, even if he wasn’t Finn, with his quiet airs and soft smiles. “How’re you finding your NEWTs anyway? What’re you taking? Finn might have mentioned it to be before, but I can’t remember what he said. I haven’t really spoken to you since last year, huh? Oh yeah, how were your OWLs results?”

[Bryan Sangert H6]

As Bryan refocused, he felt the redness rush to his cheeks. The person standing in front of him was definitely not Finn. It was the beautiful Hufflepuff girl, Aurora Chan. She said hello, and he could do nothing but stammer. “Aurora! H-h-hi. Sorry about that...uh...surprise.” He was thoroughly embarrassed. Bryan did that kind of thing with the guys, and especially with Finn, but he had never jumped up and tried to scare a girl. At least not on purpose. Aurora walked around the sofa and sat down. He took a seat near her, and she asked if she could sit with him. “Of course you can,” he replied smoothly. Bryan had a knack for rebounding from embarrassing moments quickly, and right now was no different. She asked if he thought she was Finn, and he nodded. “Yeah, we play our games. He always does that to me, so I figured it was him trying again and I barely ever get to scare him. I’m sorry if I freaked you out at all.” Bryan took out his wand and aimed it at the dwindling fire, spoke the spell, and the fire burned to life once again. “It’s getting a bit drafty in here, why not turn up the heat?” he chuckled as he spoke. He saw she was fishing around for something in her bag. “What are you looking for in there? It’s gotta be a mess, how are you going to find anything?” He laughed, hoping Aurora would catch his sarcasm, as he put his wand back in his robe pocket.

Aurora asked about his lessons, and then about Finn. “Yeah I have Fridays pretty much free. While the beginning of the week is pretty nuts, I like how it’s set up. I only have one lesson on Fridays, and I just got out. Finn on the other hand, he’s busy right now. I don’t remember what class he’s got, but the guy is always busy. Haven’t even seen him for a decent amount of time this year so far. We had some fun with polyjuice potions in the library a week or so ago, but other than that, the guy is a ghost. I’ll let him know you were looking for him though, if you want.” He smiled at Aurora. Bryan had always been a flirt, and he had turned his charm onto Aurora a few times, but she pretty much laughed him off. So they just basically were friends. She was a great person though, and he knew he had a lot he could learn from her, being the diligent student that she was. She asked about his NEWTs and then about his OWLs. “Ah yeah, my OWLs went pretty well. I did better in certain subjects, but I decided to take some NEWTs in subjects I really didn’t understand completely, so I can continue to do my best to understand them. Charms is good as usual. Finn and I like to try different charms on each other to see how they work, and of course many times they go horribly wrong!” He waited before continuing to see what Aurora thought of the image of Finn and Bryan casting spells on each other.

Bryan laughed as he thought of the image himself. He and Finn had had some fun with spells, and have even needed Professor Snape to get some of the charms reversed. That hadn’t been the best experience, but he and his best friend were able to laugh it off not long after. He pondered what else he was taking, and continued. “I’m taking DADA, obviously. I really love it, because I love having spells in my arsenal ready in case I need to defend myself. Divination has been going pretty well, that comes somewhat naturally to me, and Transfiguration with Professor Granger can be fun. It amazes me how much she has been through, what with Harry dying and everything. What about you, Aurora? How are your NEWTs? You’re graduating this year, right? I’m sure it’s a bit surreal for you, being here for almost seven years. I know this place has really become home for me.” Bryan leaned back on the sofa, awaiting her response.

[Aurora Chan]

"It's okay," Aurora laughed away Bryan's embarrassment easily, finding his reaction amusing. Aw, some of the boys in the year below in Hufflepuff really were very sweet and adorable. It wasn't long, though, before Bryan had recovered from the surprise of Aurora walking in on his playful antics, and had resumed his suave, charming and confident air. Grinning at the change, Aurora took a seat next to Bryan. "Like I said, not a problem," she repeated again teasingly. "It's not the first time someone's mistaken me for someone else or tried to scare me. The latter usually works, by the way." Aurora laughed, aware that she was gullible girl. Sometimes manipulative people could take advantage of it, but on the whole, Aurora wasn't friends with such manipulative people, and therefore did not have to worry about being used. "It's nice to have little games and gestures between each other that only you know if," Aurora continued with a knowing smile, thinking about her relationship with Ari and Leo. With her best friend they had secret hand signals and eye movements that showed to each other how they felt, and only they could decipher them. With Leo, it was the same, but they differed to the ones she used with Ari.

"Sure," Aurora nodded her agreement as Bryan turned up the fire, smiling her gratitude and curling her legs under her so she could sit more comfortably. The Student Lounge had the softest, squishiest sofas, which she revelled in whenever she spent her time here. Who wanted to sit on those hard chairs at the desks, away from the warm fireplace, when you could be with your friends here? Aurora looked up at Bryan's inquisitive question and drew out the novel she had been searching for. "This." She handed the book to Bryan, then poked him jokingly in the arm at his sarcastic jibe. "Actually, I'll have you know that my bag is very organised! It's you boys who are the messy ones! Don't you pretend I don't know. I've been in your dorm, it's an absolute wreck, Bryan!" Aurora tutted and shook her head in amusement, gauging a reaction from her friend. "Maybe you need a lady friend who'll help you clean up after your slobby selves," she joked.

Aurora watched Bryan assess her novel, and so explained. "It's 'Birdsong' by Sebastian Faulks'. He's a muggle, and he's written a few books on World War I." Aurora's expression saddened. "I'm halfway through and it's very... moving. The images of the battlefield, violence and death are so gripping and ghastly, you know?" She suppressed a shudder that wanted to tiptoe across her spine. "It's not an uplifting book, by any means, but it's good literature... and it really gives you an insight into the history of the muggles, and Britain, and how horrific the conditions those men endured were." Aurora cast a sympathetic, sad smile at the book in Bryan's hands. "I'd fully recommend it, even if it's not your type of read. It's just so insightful and moving. Do you read much, Bryan?" Aurora had to admit she didn't see the younger Hufflepuff as a bookish person, because whenever she saw him he was always mucking around good-naturedly, but she didn't want to assume that without asking.

Aurora nodded as she took the book back from Bryan and slipped it into her bag again. It was unneeded for now if she was to focus on talking to Bryan - she didn't want to distract herself from his eagerness to be social. Anyway, she never saw Bryan, so now was a chance to catch up, as it were. "I have a Friday afternoon free too, so it is very convenient. It's the time of the day when you think, Yes, the weeks' over and the weekend has finally arrived." Aurora grinned in amusement at this. "I never do any homework on Fridays," she admitted. "I'm too tired, too lazy... I spend it reading, writing songs, writing something... Practising, the usual." She smiled fondly at the mention of her favourite pastimes. "That's NEWTs for you," she laughed when Bryan said he barely saw Finn anymore. "They suck you in and take up all your time. It's quite a jump from OWLs, but you settle into it eventually. There's so much more work to do. It's typical of Finn - you know how conscientious he is." Aurora smiled. "No, it's okay. I wasn't looking for him, just wondering where he was. I like to say hello, since I don't see him much either. Even less than you! At least you share a dorm! Be grateful for that."

Aurora nodded as she listened to Bryan talk about his subjects. "Sure. That's not a bad idea, it's good you're so hardworking! I chose all the subjects I could do. I hated Herbology and Potions, so I dropped those the minute I could. Charms and Transfiguration are my favourite, and I've always been good at those. Charms gets better, trust me, so you and Finn will enjoy that." Aurora nodded enthusiastically, then laughed. "I can imagine that," she commented in amusement. "It's so Bryan and Finn. Just be careful you don't do something irreversible to Finn, otherwise you'll change him for life, and I wouldn't want that." Aurora nodded again as Bryan elaborated about Defence Against the Dark Arts, and smiled. "Yeah, D.A.D.A. is good, but the part you like so much is why I struggled! I don't like the offensive spells. Still, I got an E in my OWL. I just do better when I'm not attacking people," she chuckled wistfully. "I'm awful at Divination and looking into the future and what, like Ancient Runes. Um, well, I do Muggle Studies and Arithmancy along with the others. They're all good, I really enjoy it, if it wasn't for the work load." Aurora grimaced at the thought. "Graduating this year is a bit daunting, since I've been in Hogwarts for almost seven years, which is a long time, and all my friends and memories are here. Still, I'm looking forward to the future and what it might bring. I've no idea what I want to do but it's all so exciting. I like new things." Aurora grinned excitedly. "It's my second home too," she agreed, "but one day, the bird has to leave the nest, right?"