Colourful fish ((Liam))

[cleo]

Cleo was glad that there weren’t any classes on the first day back to Hogwarts. Classes would start tomorrow. She actually almost looked forward to them. It would be a chance to learn, get ideas and add a few touches to the spells, curses and jinxes she already knew to make sure she could perfectly perform them.
Long stiletto heeled boots clicked on the stone floors and in some way Cleo almost enjoyed the sound that accompanied her when was moving. It somehow made her stand out, made her different from the rest of the school where most people seemed to prefer wearing sneakers or tennis shoes or just regular shoes. Only a selected few people seemed to share Cleo’s liking for high heels.

Pushing open the big door Cleo descended the few steps and entered the courtyard which was surprisingly empty already. Slowing her steps a little Cleo felt the gravel shift under her feet and grimaced now taking extra care where to place her feet. Breaking her heel – or leg- on the path-walk wasn’t Cleo’s idea of fun. Besides the pair of red boots were one of her favorites. Cleo didn’t walk very far stopping at the biggest fountain in the middle of the courtyard with a few fish swimming in it. With the wind playing with her bright red hair Cleo pursed her lips that had been painted the same red colour thoughtfully as she observed the fish swimming around for a while. Fishing around in the pockets of her jeans Cleo came up with a bit fattened bar of Snickers chocolate. Opening the wrapping paper Cleo lifted on of her legs onto the edge of the fountain and eating the chocolate continued to look at the fish. She liked being outside. There were flies and mosquitos and other annoying things in the nature, but Cleo could usually ignore them.

He actually preferred the grounds o the courtyard. The courtyard had potted flowers and plants and it seemed to… organized? But most people had chose to go out to the Grounds today. The weather was warm and the grounds were covered with thick snow most of the year, so Cleo didn’t blame them. But she wanted to get to tour Hogwarts again without the regular chatter that was going on everywhere on the grounds. Taking one more bite out of the muggle chocolate Cleo stared at the fish pondering what she could do today.

((Please don't ask about the title ))

[Liam Angelus G5]

Liam was excited that school was about to begin after a rather dull summer had filled his life. Sure, there had been several attacks during the summer holiday. Diagon Alley, the muggle universities, and then the attack on the train that claimed the life of a Hogwarts student and an Auror. Now, all anybody could talk about was how bold the Death Eaters were becoming. It sickened him to hear about it, sickened him to think what might happen to those he cared about while he was at Hogwarts.

Liam needed to get out of his common room for a while before class started the next day. Liam was not looking forward to having to sit through the lessons, but he was ready to welcome the distraction it would give to all the talk about the attacks. Liam thought about all of these things as he walked around the castle. Before he knew it, he was walking into the courtyard. He didn't really care where he ended up, but he knew he could not sit in the common room on the last day before classes started.

Liam walked toward the fountain without thinking about what he was doing. He had heard the clicking of heels before he had entered the courtyard, but he did not pay attention to where they had gone to. Perhaps he should have payed more attention, because soon he had bumped into somebody who was standing at the fountain. "Oh, excuse me," Liam said at once, "I wasn't watching where I was going."

[cleo]

Cleo finished the muggle sweet and crumpled the paper. Looking around in search of a bin Cleo was forced to suppress a grumble. Why would wizards never put anything naturally regular out? Like bins. They were a simple necessity, but of course no wizard would have such a thing. Rolling her eyes Cleo pulled out her wand and with a flick of her wand banished the crumpled wrapping paper. Thoughtfully staring at her now empty hand Cleo suddenly wondered where the wrapping paper went? Was it transferred to somewhere? Or sent neatly to some muggle bin or the closes bin? Or was it just dissolved to molecules?

A moment later Cleo’s pondering were rather rudely interrupted as someone slammed into her side. Maybe it was because of the shock and the fact that one of her arms was leaned on the edge of the fountain. But Cleo did loose her balance falling on her bottom. Not overly hardly luckily, but the recognizable ‘crack’ had sounded. Looking at the heel of her boots Cleo swore out loudly as she saw one of the stiletto heels being neatly snapped into two.
At least the boy had apologized but that didn’t mean Cleo couldn’t dissolve into a rant as she sat on the fountain edge: “This is the data in some little story or book where naturally people run into each other. It’s annoying – turning the corner to slam into someone, falling onto someone’s lap, passing out between someone’s arms – how much more cliché can you get? I am not going to fall in love with you, but honestly, what’s next? One of these fish jumping out of the fountain and offering to fulfill my 3 choices?” Cleo ranted out loudly not really even caring whether or not she seemed crazy to the boy or not.

Frowning at her boot Cleo pointed her wand at it and muttered “Reparo”. Watching with content how the heel of the boot grew back together Cleo made a few circles with her leg before looking up at the boy. He seemed to be about a year younger than her perhaps? Tossing her hair backwards Cleo half-frowned half-smiled at him: “Apology accepted.”

[Liam Angelus G5]

Liam had not wanted to bump into the girl, but his mind had been someplace else. The events of the summer had been hard to get out of his mind. Even now, it was all he thought about, dreamed about. It was as if he were having to relive all those horrid attacks, even though he was not around when they had happened. He just wished his mind could be someplace else than in the attacks that struck throughout the lands. He could not help thinking about all those who had been killed and injured, wishing he could do something about it, even though his was only a fourth year student.

When the girl started talking about mere coincidences and the such. But he could not understand what the problem was, he had apologized for his actions, and did not want a lecture on the subject. But what he got was a rather rude response, that he could not tell if it was sarcasm or not, but when the girl mention the fish jumping out of the fountain and fulfilling three of the girls wishes, Liam laughed a small laugh.

"I am sorry I broke your shoe," Liam said once the girl had fixed the heel. He was telling the truth too, he never wanted to cause any person harm or discomfort, and he never wanted to ruin somebodies personal property either. Liam smiled when the girl accepted his apology. "I'm Liam by the way, and you must let me make this up to you too."

[cleo]

Cleo sighed and stretched her legs out smiling at the top of her shoes: “What can I say. I’m awfully attached to my shoes. And as I already said – apology accepted. After all it took only a few hours for someone to make these shoes and a few more hours for me to find them and less then a minute for you to break them. Oh well, completely fixable in mere seconds with a bit of magic. Truly remarkable. Or should I say talented?”

Cleo looked up at the body with a smirk flashing across her features when he offered to make it up to her: “Make it up to me? How? Hand me a bottle with a genie? Now, wait… the genie was in a lamp, wasn’t it? Or catch me a gold-fish to fulfill my every desire?”
Cleo smirked towards the boy. She understood he hadn’t meant it quite the way Cleo had decided to take it, but that didn’t matter. His words could be interpreted in a few ways as Cleo held out her hand for the boy to shake: “I’m Cleo Hardwick. Ravenclaw.”

[Liam Angelus G5]

Liam raised an eyebrow at the girl as she spoke of what it took for her to get the shoes. He could not understand how somebody could be so attached to a pair of shoes. If the shoes were an heirloom from a family member he could have understood, but it did not sound as if they were. Still, Liam was sorry for breaking her shoe, and he did want to make it up to her, but what she had thought of was a little far fetched for him to pull off, after all he was only a fourth year student and did not have the knowledge to do something like that.

"I was thinking about something else, something I could actually do," Liam said clearly. "For one, I can not get hold of a genie, and I've not yet come across a goldfish that could fulfill your every desire. I did have a bird that talked to much, but he couldn't do anything else. Really though, I don't know how I could make it up. I could conjure up something, as long as its not to elaborate."

[cleo]

„Something you could actually do? You didn’t give that criteria when you first offered to make it up to me,“ Standing Cleo smiled and tucked her arm calmly in the crook of Lima’s elbow, „But then you can walk me. I wasn’t too fond of those fish anymore, but I didn’t want to risk breaking my leg while wondering forward on heels. You can pretend to be a living crutch for me. I don’t mind you doing it.“

Cleo smirked at the boy while touching the upper lip of her with the tip of her tongue. A habit of her that she didn’t like so Cleo spent the few next moments quietly berating herself over it, before hearing a slight rumble from her stomach.
„Or a nice lunch would do nicely as well. My body demands food. And who am I to deny such a pleasure to it? I live to eat after all. What brought you out here in the first place? And stop looking scared. You’re a Gryff. You’re supposed to be brave. Besides I don’t bite that hard. Haven’t tried cannibalism yet either, even though it might be an interesting idea. Solution for both world-hunger and over-populating earth.“