Did You See That? ((Kris))

[will]

Will found that, after returning to school, his pride for Luce became an obsession. Every night he dreamed about that horse, every day he was reminded of him, and in every free moment, he thought of new tricks he could learn for the day they would become something more then just rookies. Champions. Will even took up drawing, which he was horrible at, and the only subject he drew was Lucifer. Yes, it became a paranoia for him, something uncontrollable. He missed the smell of horses, the whinny that filled the air like musical notes, and the steady sound of hooves hitting the ground. If anything, Will thought he would go crazy from this. His grades were probably dropping since his mind couldn't focus. Which was bad. He was a Raven - a smart kid - and his sixth year was very important. Luce was Will's whole world, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't let anything else in.

Hogwarts had always been Will's favorite place to be. Now, it seemed like an annoying obstacle that was separating Luce and William from each other. A very big obstacle, at that. The halls were no longer welcoming, and the classes just annoying. Will found that he was going outside more and more instead of staying inside and studying. He was like a hermit with people, avoiding talking as much as possible. Close friends were an exception, but acquaintances were all but forgotten. Will sat now outside, drawing on a notepad that was filled with rogue drawings of Luce. He was huddled under a willow tree, his sweatshirt being the only thing that kept him warm. He had cursed it to keep him warmer, but the whole thing couldn't help his legs and head. He wore a winter hat over his hair, and his gloved fingers weren't exactly what he would want for warmth.

He had been out here for, what, two hours? He was just working on the teeny details of Luce that made him Luce. The way his ears pricked forward, how his eyes always had that same tricky glint in them... Will's pencil carefully picked out the pieces of dirt that were always on Luce's hind legs when he was left alone. How his left front leg was always bent and hitting the ground. William smiled absently as he finished up and gazed at the drawing with a loving warmth. William was shaken out of his reverie when a cold breeze flipped the pages of the notebook, making Will hastily close it and put it back on the ground. He was tired, very tired, The days seemed to wear him down even more then ever before, and surprisingly Will was looking forward to leaving the school for the summer. Closing his eyes, Will snuggled closer to the trunk and found himself drifting.

His eyes opened into slits as the breeze turned into a chilly wind that rustled the dead grass. Will shivered and was about to close his eyes when he heard something else rustling that wasn't grass, but... paper! "No!" Will breathed as he jumped up, just in time to see his notebook somersaulting over the grass. "Just great.." If only he hadn't fallen asleep. While curled up under that comfortable tree, his bloody foot had fallen asleep, and now he was unable to run anywhere. With a grimace that made him look even wilder then normal, Will cantered after the notebook, which seemed to evade him the closer he got. Before Will could catch on to the plot, the notebook was just feet from the lake and another guy who looked about Will's age. Will looked up, realized what was going on, and took one large jump, planning to tackle the notebook. He did just that, landing in a heap next to the young man, his finger's wrapped protectively around the sacred papers. "Did you see that?" He asked him, annoyed that the man didn't grab it out of the air for Will. "I just barely got it..." He sat up and surveyed his knees, which had grass stains and felt grazed. "Kind of hurt too..."

[kris]

Kris moved quickly through the hallways of Hogwarts. Well, not quickly per see, as he simply sauntered. But maybe it was the fact that he had filled up and was old enough for people to give way to him so he didn’t have to slow his pace for any idiot getting in his way. Which really was very pleasant. Kris was feeling just a trifle irritated so bothering himself with some idiots would hardly make him feel much happier. Kris attached the heavy silver clasp of his winter-cloak the black velvet billowing lightly behind Kris as he swept out of the castle doors. Kris moved towards the Forbidden Forest years of romping in the wood at night having given him enough experience to know how to get there easiest and most direct way even while being blind. Kris missed his animals. All the 7… 8 horses, as a new foal had been born to Kris in the summer, Devil and Shadow and the other 26 dogs he owned - Rotveilers, German shepherds, Bernese mounts and Dobermans. Even though the lastly named dogs were kept mostly to make sure unwanted visitors stayed out of Kris’s grounds, even though Kris knew all of those dogs by name, sound, character and could identify them immediately. Even the 4 cats kept to keep all kinds of small pests like mice out of the stables and house were all familiar to Kris. The 5 eagle-owls and 2 regular ones, a crow that had refused to lave after Kris had nursed him back to life after the bird having broken a wing and the 2 falcon’s taught out for hunting. Perhaps a bit medieval, but Kris liked the two birds as well. Kris missed all of his animals. He wouldn’t mind even the silly fat rabbit one of the grand-children of his oldest human maid had brought to the castle, because she couldn’t keep the small animal at her own home.

But that didn’t mean Kris didn’t have his favorites at Hogwarts either. There was Morrigan here with him, the animals in the secret inner courtyard, the vixen he had saved as a cup, one of his owls was along with him and there were the thestrals. One alpha male, 3 females and one young colt making up a small herd that had taken a liking to Kris. After Kris had helped one of the females deliver the colt last year. It hadn’t been much different from helping a horse-foal born. Calling out for the thestrals Kris fed the animals pieces of meet before the older animals took off again, presumably retreating to the forest edge again. While the young colt stayed to play with Kris as the two moved to the lake edge. Kris grinned and stroked the thestrals long neck as they half-seriously battled to overcome each other. The cold using the help of wings and his long neck and strength to which Kris responded with his own intelligence, and much more agile movements. Playing with the colt feeding him scraps of raw meat from time to time Kris felt himself stiffen his wand out momentarily at the sounds of someone running closer.

Sneering coldly at the boys voice Kris snapped icily: “No I didn’t see it.” The young thestral colt reared behind Kris’s back screeching loudly in half-fright the sound cutting even into Kris’s ears who was used to the screeching of thestrals. Turning on his heel Kris was sure to position himself between the young colt and the boy. He would not want to put any distress on the small herd of thestrals by having the cold wound this stumbling idiot. Dropping his walking cane Kris caught the thestral’s head and using his right hand pushed his nostrils close until the colt calmed a bit and stood quietly again between Kris’s petting hands. “While groveling at my feet is a good start to an apology you will be hurt a whole lot more if you don’t gather yourself and get back again,” Kris growled at the boy over his shoulder feeling even more edgier because he didn’t like letting strangers behind his back. But he couldn’t hold back a fully-grown stallion who would think his colt was under a threat. Especially if he couldn’t see it. Kris murmured soothingly into the still shivering colts ear as he was still trembling with fear of the sudden movements of the boy while Kris’s arms caressed the thestrals long neck comfortingly.

[will]

"Oh." Will picked himself off the ground, precariously subjecting himself to peer at his bruised knees. "Oh." He said with more horror as he noticed a thing.... animal beside the boy that he hadn't exactly noticed before until it had broken his ear-drums. The sketch pad he was clutching was now cutting into his rib cage rather painfully. "Is that a.... thestral?" Will breathed, ignoring the boys' comment about him groveling even though it hurt his pride. He did however heed the boys' words, scooting on his behind farther back so that he was a good distance from the thestral and the boy, who hadn't seen anything, surprisingly. Will pushed himself up, grimacing as his knees knocked together. Had the sketch pad really been worth this? He noticed it was rather crumpled and some of his drawings were hanging loosely from the binding. Will hid his disappointment and sourly edged closer to the boy, curiosity dragging him.

"It is, isn't it?" Will couldn't keep his surprise and how impressed he was from his voice. A real thestral? Weren't they wary of humans, or at least most humans? Will had seen Hagrid tame them, but no one else. Hagrid had only been possible because of his size, or so he had thought. Will didn't think anyone else could do it - otherwise he would have tried a long time ago. They were like horses, except with wings and a very bony build. Will eyed the thestral, keeping a respectful distance between him and it, but he continued talking to the boy, his interest caught and sticking. "You must be really good with animals." William commented, his eyes now turning toward the boy. He had only seen him in halls and classes, but something else seemed to come into Will's mind besides that.

"You're Kris Graas, aren't you?" William bit his lip as if the words had burned. He wasn't good at names, but this one had been particularly easy to remember for specific reasons. Will felt himself shrivel inwardly as he remembered his words from later. 'Did you see that?' No wonder he had been snapped at. "I'm Will Senetta, and I'm really sorry for... um... stumbling upon your path." Will gathered himself and again his eyes shifted to the thestral. "Is he friendly toward all people, or is it just you?" Will asked, his intentions clear. He hoped he could get close enough to reach forward and touch it, if only for a moment. He shifted his feet in the grass and gave the boy a small hopeful smile, even though he knew he couldn't see it.

[kris]

Kris heard the boy scrambling backwards away fro m him and relaxed. By about a strand of hair. Maybe he would be paranoid old man one day, but better safe than sorry? He already experienced very harshly what it was like to be sorry. But it was partially his Slytherin nature, partially his dealings with animals, because you never turned your back on one and partially common sense that made Kris not like someone being behind his back. Especially someone he didn’t trust completely. His hands rubbed the dragon-like head gently as the cold trampled his wings still flapping from time to time but much more calm already. Rubbing the animals neck and back Kris silently wondered if the dark-brown stripes marking the colts foal-age were slowly starting to fade already or not.
“Smart one, aren’t you?” Kris sneered sarcasm dripping from his voice as he didn’t turn to look at the other boy as he commented about the thestral. Even if it did make Kris idly wonder who the boy had seen die. You had to have seen someone die in order to see thestrals, which might have been partially why so many people were afraid of the intelligent creatures. That and well, they did have eerie voices, even though they screeched very rarely.

Kris turned a bit with annoyance. The boy appeared somewhat smart. Maybe as a Ravenclaw he had at the very least read about thestrals. And a moment later he opened his big mouth again to proove his complete lack of knowledge. If thestrals were that hard to tame and that not-friendly towards humans, then how did the boy figure they would draw the Hogwarts carriages? The carriages were far from being as horseless as most people so foolishly seemed to believe. Really, the animals were smart and chose the people they liked, but that didn’t mean that were shy or afraid of humans.
“Of course, thestrals eat meat and they don’t mind if it’s living either. While this one’s stomach is rather full, feel free to step closer and scare him again so he’ll call out for his parents once again. I’m sure his father might enjoy a quick snack. You aren’t that fond of your arms anyway, right?” Kris asked mockingly knowing fully well that no thestral would eat a living human. Kris sneered lazily only to stumble forward a moment later as the colt had pushed his back harshly with it’s head. Reflectively grabbing hold of one of the horns Kris moved his position so that he fell onto his side. Pulling the head along and kicking the colts front legs away from under him, Kris rolled over and hopped to a crouch still holding the thestral’s head still. Kris wouldn’t stand a chance against a grown animal, yet the colt was still young enough that if Kris placed his body-weight, he couldn’t take off. The colt struggled for a few moments before Kris rose and his hands gliding down the long neck rubbed the thestrals shoulder-blades from where it’s leathery wings came out as the long neck was curled around his waist.

“What should I be charmed now that you know my name? You say you’re sorry for bothering me, yet to don’t seem to be in any hurry to get lost again either?” Kris commented his head turning sharply towards Will as his own voice and Morrigan’s insulted hissing helped as well. Kris falling had most certainly not been acceptable change of matters for the small fluffy kitten at all.

[will]

Will shrugged as Kris continued to just lay on the insults. He didn't mind - this one was a Slytherin. He couldn't expect anything more then sneers and icy tones. "I like to think of myself that way," Will said, fingering the pages of the sketch pad. The binding needed to be replaced sometime soon before all the pages fell out, and he would need to replace his pencil with a new, sharpened one in the meanwhile. The drawings of Luce that were beginning to fall out worried him. They were almost the closest thing he had to Luce right now, besides his memories. Will heard what Kris had to say, but didn't look up. It was obvious he was making Will out to be the fool. Will was nothing of the sort, and if anyone should know it, he should, not some blind stranger. Although the words were on the tip of his tongue, Will bit them back.

"Yes, my arms are very important," Will said, putting emphasis on the word very. After damaging his arm in the Quidditch game with Dawn, Will had felt like it was a very precious limb. He rubbed it ruefully in remembrance. It was easy being around Kris, even though he was a brutally critical blind Slytherin, because Will could do whatever he wanted. After all, body language was the main way to communicate with someone. Manners too didn't matter much in this scenario, but keeping your cool did. To explode must be Kris's prime mission, but Will wasn't about to. Yet. He paused from his absent stroking of the pad and looked up again. "I was just considering the possibility that this colt may have yet to interact with another human while being unafraid. I'm guessing you befriended him at an early age, so he trusts you very much now? Since it's at a younger age then most thestrals, I figured that he wouldn't pull the carriages quite yet, and that the only people he has ever been near enough was you and perhaps Hagrid." Will paused and breathed in. This was hard.

"Am I - " His sentence wasn't finished as the colt suddenly decided it would like to push Kris around a bit. Will stepped back when he realized that Kris seemed to have everything under control. They way he could dodge like that impressed William again, but this time he didn't voice it. The fact he had done it earlier didn't seem to warm Kris up any. If the thestral had attacked Kris brutally, Will would have gone to help him. Truth be told, Will disliked thestrals. The reason he could see them was not at all pleasant, and they didn't exactly look cuddly either. They were magnificent animals, sure, but Will could hardly look at them without his heart racing faster, and his mouth drying. He swallowed and shrugged again as Kris began speaking once more. The motion was for Will's own good, as he knew by now that Kris wouldn't see it. "Why should you be charmed? I don't believe I mentioned charming you was in my schedule, did I?" Will asked, letting some own sarcasm slip into his voice. "I'm much more interested in the thestral then you. Have you ever heard of the saying curiosity kills the cat? Well, curiosity has got me now, and I must ask, will you be the killer?" Will smiled. "Or will it be the thestral?" He took a step closer to them, but even his curiosity couldn't push off the wary voices in his mind.

"I don't plan on leaving any time soon as I'd really like to continue seeing this colt. Although touching it doesn't sound extremely pleasing any longer, I'm sure I can deal after a little while. Isn't it true that animals get used to you by just smell and sight? So perhaps if I stay here a little longer, I will be able to come closer, eh?" William smiled as he put his free hand in his pocket. Just then, he saw the kitten. "Oh, so I see you have two animal friends with you? Interesting." He watched the kitten hiss for a little while, but even though he looked like any normal kitten, Will didn't approach him either. If that animal stayed with Kris Graas, it was certain that it's temperament couldn't be any better either. "I'm curious, but with your disability, you can still handle the colt and yourself. Did you have lessons before this year on how to move like that, or do you just have an amazing capability to move with controlled movements?" Trying to keep a conversation intact, Will continued to watch the thestral with a far away look.

[kris]

Kris pushed the colt backwards a little. The animal was starting to get over it’s fear slowly but he still made sure to keep Kris between himself and Will. Morrigan however didn’t have any of such problems. Kris wondered lazily what had happened to the policy of keeping private problems for private times. Apparently Morrigan had the soul of a drama-queen who did not like to be ignored. Maybe it was jealousy. Maybe it was being insulted that Kris had been forced to drop her when the colt pushed him. But Morrigan hissed and using all the power in her small body jumped to attack Kris’s ankle as it was the highest she reached. Meowing furiously Kris sighed feeling long nails pushing into his skin. Pushing the colt back with one hand Kris bowed and taking hold of the skin on Morrigan’s neck pulled the small kitten away from his leg and dropped her on his shoulder. Morrigan meowed a couple of more times as Kris stroked under her chin a couple of times before Morrigan settled down on his shoulder once again. Sure the kitten had scratched him even though Kris didn’t deserve it, but she was a friend and a loyal companion to Kris. Besides Kris never raised an arm against any animal.

“He was born last September,” Kris finally drawled out after a mental debate, “He’s old enough to help pull the carriages coming September. And it knows people who don’t scare him, though he isn’t overly fond of either of them. ” It was true. Cleo had a better contact with animals than Dana but even her hadn’t gotten that close with the young colt. The older thestrals hadn’t minded her much, but the cold had. As for Hagrid the more thought brought a sneer on Kris’s lips. The old half-breed oaf hadn’t had anything new to teach to Kris so he had gladly dropped the class. Everything he wanted he already knew or would learn on his own. And he had always had a gentle touch with animals with all different animals always seeming to repay Kris’s care with their own love.

“Oh, I don’t kill, but I will very gladly test a couple of curses if you get any closer,” Kris replied easily turning his head and giving Will a sarcastic smile. He didn’t like the boy. But he could tolerate him for showing some respect for the animals, “As for what this one’s daddy might do I don’t give guarantees on. And I won’t be able to hold back a fully-grown alpha male, especially not with my disability as you so nicely put it.” Kris sneered turning his head back to play tug of war with the colt as Morrigan purred quietly on Kris’s shoulder rubbing herself against his chin in a way of asking sorry for scratching him earlier. Kris pulled easily thinking about Will’s comment. He could handle himself. Then again he had been roaming the forests and hills around his castle ever since he was able to get out of the castle. “I’ve been working with animals since I could walk,” Kris murmured softly not really knowing if his words carried over to the Ravenclaw or not, even though it was a quiet day so they might just as easily as not, “And 52 animals – well, 42 as ten are birds, do tend to keep me in shape.”

[will]

William nodded, keeping his mouth sealed carefully. If he opened it and spoke what he wanted, no doubt would Kris get even more annoyed, and at the moment William wasn't really looking for hostility, words or no. Maybe a civil conversation, but finding one of those was hard to catch with Slytherins these days. September last year? The colt must be about two years old then. Will smiled at Kris as he mentioned the the colt knows people who don't scare him, but doesn't overly like them. Sounds like the animal didn't much like attachments. Will could understand that. Although Kris seemed to have a bond with the colt, it seemed to be rather rough. But that might just be play. After all, the colt was getting big and it wasn't any surprise that it was rowdy.

"Well, I'll have to look forward to seeing him, of course. Although I'm sure it'll much prefer being outdoors. I know I wouldn't like hauling around people, even if it is only a few times a year." Will commented. True, who would like to pull around a different species like slaves? Riding was different though, riding a horse anyway. The rider had a bond between the horse, and anyway, the rider was a person, not a thing. Like a carriage. Will switch the sketch pad into the other hand, putting the now free one in his pocket for warmth. It was really rather nippy out. Will sniffled a bit and watched the colt, Kris, and the kitten on his shoulder. Will shrugged as Kris mentioned his disability with that same arrogance that was really starting to get on Will's nerves.

"Isn't it the truth though? Or - do you prefer to call it something else, or pretend it's not there at all?" Will asked calmly. "I don't mean to sound rude, but even though you've lost one sense, it strengthens your others, and you get a few other capabilities as well. I can see you have a stronger sense of hearing and touch, right?" Will referred to the time the colt had pushed him over and he had gotten up so quickly. Will smiled at Kris, but his lips were turned down as he was really rather annoyed. "Kay, Kay. No curses, and I'll wait a little while to approach the colt. If I ever do." Will nodded as he made the compromise, but stopped wagging his head upon hearing Kris say something. At first it was barely able to reach Will's ears, but in the end he heard most of it.

"That's impressive." William said after a rather pregnant pause. "Wow. I mean, I've never heard of anyone having that many animals around. I'm guessing you live in a mansion?" His voice suddenly turned to the bitter side and Will licked his chapped lips. How lucky some people were. Living in a large mansion, and yet they had no idea how lucky they were. Kris Graas might just have more respect for life then the other rich Slytherins, as he had been put through so much. Will had to live in an orphanage where people despised him. At least he had Lucifer. If he didn't, well, he would probably go insane. "I only have one animal as a companion." Will replied in the same soft voice as Kris had used before. "And he's my best friend in the world." Will paused before continuing. "It's a black stallion. Horse. Lucifer's just... the greatest. Do you have a favorite out of all those animals, or do you treat them all the same?" Will asked, truthfully curious of the answer.

[kris]

The word disability makes it sound like there is something wrong with my brain. Which I can assure you hasn’t been damaged,” Kris responded snappily. He had shown his cursed eyes to some people – his sisters, Sam, healers – but he usually did keep his eye covered. He knew well enough what his eyes looked like after the curse. It was just a bit eerie. Yet Kris raised his hand pulling his glasses to the tip of his nose before turning lazily and looking firmly towards the direction Will was at. His eyes were visible over the cover of black sunglasses now. A black cover that almost seemed liquidy covering everything – the pupils, the white part of his eyes. Kris let Will look for a few dragging moments before pushing his glasses up again, “I most certainly wasn’t born with such eyes.”

Considering the boys next remark – he simply didn’t know how do keep his mouth shut, did he? – Kris’s words had reached him. “I like animals,” Kris stated the truth simply. Actually it wasn’t truth. Kris adored animals and all animals. Sur,e, he had favourite species among animals that he especially liked, but in an overall view he liked all the animals. Animals never deceived you and treated you back just the same amount of respect and love you showed for them. “Castle. Inherited my castle and the couple of hundred acres of forest, mountains and ground when I turned 9,” Kris corrected absent-mindedly. He was rich even by Slytherin standards. When taken compared by muggle standards most likely a billionaire already thanks to intresses and investments Meredith and Julien had done with his money. Kris had given his signature so Meredith and Julien had directed it for him, but the money itself had always belonged to Kris. He had continued living in his castle as well after his fathers death, even though he usually preferred to live in the house of his legal guardians.

“I adore all my animals, though yes I have my favourites. Winddancer from my 8 horses, even though Cognac and Essaul’s new filly are promising as well. Devil and Shadow – my two huskies – out of the 28 dogs. Morrigan out of the 5 cats. Aeolus as my favourite owl is at Hogwarts with me, though I am also rather partial to my two falcons – Suroth and Sheriam – as well as my raven Moiraine are all my favourites. But each of the animals has it’s personality and character as well as a name, so they all receive the best care possible and I know them all. Including some of the animals in the woods surrounding my castle who are also cared for, even though not daily.” Kris’s lip corner twitched for a moment in a smile as he thought of his favourites. He could count the names of all his animals – who were mostly named after books and mythology – describe their personalities and appearances immediately. While he had his favourites, all Kris’s animals were treated the same. Perhaps his favourites were even treated a bit more harshly if anything. Kris had heard the bitterness in Will’s tone but didn’t care enough to comment. You had to make your own way… Kris had been fortunate enough to be born in a rich family, yet Will perhaps had some other bonuses. “Why Lucifer? Most people don’t name their animals – do you own it, or is he merely a companion? – after fallen angels,” Kris asked absent-mindedly his main attention still on the colt rather than on Will.

[will]

Will nodded absentmindedly. Disability does somewhat sound as if the brain has a problem functioning, if you think about it. Kris must be a real prickler when it came to such things, but could he really be blamed for it? William found that he liked getting to know people first and then make note of if he liked them or not after. Not the other way around. And Kris - well - was hard. Will had heard about him many a time before. Before he had been mentioned a few times, and in classes Will had seen him. Before the accident, anyway. After, he became somewhat of a celebrity. In a bad way though. The next thing Kris did was completely unexpected, and Will found himself taking a step back from the boy. His shades were pulled down, thus revealing the eyes, the damaged eyes. Something like a veil was laid over them, and Will couldn't see past into Kris's pupils. Everything was black, as black as the shades at the tip of his nose. Will found himself shivering, shaking. Whether to show sympathy or not he couldn't quite decide. After debating, he figured Kris wouldn't want it anyway.

"They couldn't get it off? The healers, I mean." Will was surprised to hear his voice sound strong, maybe too strong, as he was fighting the impulse to tremble. How could someone - a living human with feelings - do such a thing with a boy with a multitude of possibility like Kris? He still had a life to live. Sixteen wasn't very long to live (if Kris was sixteen) and it most certainly wasn't long enough to be satisfied. Kris still had things to see, things to do with his eyes, not to walk around blind to everything, not only to himself. Will breathed in deeply, bit down his tongue, and said no more about it except for his question. There certainly was more to say, and Will tried to pass it on to Kris mentally, but of course that never worked. Only super humans could do such a thing, and Will certainly was not one. He felt a new emotion now. Not fear, not awe, not remorse or revulsion, but respect. Kris was gaining his respect, through it all. The attitude, especially. Respect for continuing to live, instead of giving up hope like most everyone Will knew would. Kris was as close as a human could get to super. And Will respected it.

"Of course." Will replied with some amusement as Kris corrected him. Castle! Castle!? Surprise, surprise. Some respect dwindled in Will, possibly because of jealousy, but probably because Kris was just lucky. Then again, that lead to jealousy anyway... Will smiled idly at Kris, satisfied just to watch him quietly instead of voicing words. Troublesome, annoying words. When Will realized he was staring, he stopped. Kris probably wouldn't like being looked at like an animal in the circus. Will knew he wouldn't. With a sigh, he pulled his hands up his sleeves, giving up trying to keep them warm while out. Kris was naming all his animals now. Impressive names. Honestly, he must be a very intellectual guy. To have all that knowledge of books. Some of the names Will recognized as mythology stuff, others he had no idea where they came from. When he mentioned Luce being named after a fallen angel, Will wanted to shrug it off, but couldn't. Old anger and resentment rose inside him for the orphanage that he had to live with, deal with every day.

"Lucifer. The name was given to him because of a myth the orphanage I live at started to tell. They hold a bunch of horses in a pasture in the forest behind the orphanage. They kept the horses outside by themselves for several years, only sending the grounds keeper out to feed them once a week. They became... well, wild, I guess you can say, and almost trampled the feeder." Will smiled in remembrance; the man had quit his job after that. "I found them when I was five, and it took six long years to learn their trust. Only one didn't trust me then, and that was Lucifer. He drew me to him naturally by curiosity, and I began trying to win him over too. Just about two years ago did he finally trust me. The name Lucifer was given to him since he is all black, a wild stallion, and they thought he was equal to the devil. They called him the 'devil horse' and other names that did live up to the original. Once you know an animal, they treat you with as much love and respect as you do, you know? I found that Luce isn't anything close to a devil." Will stopped as he found that he was blabbing. "And that's the wonderful story of how he got his name." He grinned, rather annoyed that he had gotten carried away. But Kris had got him started on Lucifer, and once started Will had trouble starting. "I noticed," Will said, changing the subject a few seconds after his last comment, "that some of the names you mentioned were from legends and mythology. Is reading another hobby of yours or... are you an outside kind of person?"

((Kind of long. But you gave me lots to work on in your post. I just got a little carried away, I guess.... ))

[kris]

Kris sneered darkly at Will’s comment rather than his almost forceful tone of voice. “No, naturally the curse is reversible. I merely prefer to walk around with such eyes and not seeing anything. How could you ever doubt in such a small fact?” Kris snapped back with feigned innocence as he was annoyed by the question. Sure the cover could be removed. The only slight problem was that with the cover Kris’s eyes would have to be gauged out from his head as well. Kris stroke the colt’s head with affection almost feeling Will’s eyes on his back. You feel when someone is staring at you – it makes your skin prickle and the hair on your neck stand up. It’s not a feeling you can confuse with anything, especially when the stare turned your way is so intensive.

“Bad guys are always more stylish,” Kris quoted Dana absent-mindedly as he listened with half an ear to Will’s detailed explanation about the name of the horse he didn’t even know, smirking lazily, “Luce? You call a stallion Luce? Couldn’t think of anything else that sounded more like Lucy?” Kris smirked at the choice of name while turning and stepping back picking up one of the last ferrets on the near-by tree and feeding it to the alpha-male who had just curved his neck around his waist. ”And all the better for you. If the animal doesn’t give his affection to just anyone, then that makes the friendship between you two all the more special,” Kris mused lazily his fingers stroking behind the horns of the fully-grown thestral. The stallion walked around Kris snorthing towards Will as Kris’s hands glided down his neck. His hands positioned on the correct places Kris threw his leg easily over the thestrals back after pulling himself a little upwards and being sure to bend his knees correctly so they wouldn’t get in the way of the thestral’s wings the stallion taking off as soon as Kris’s weight was on his back.
The colt following them the thestral ran towards the lake the wide leathery wings spreading as he rose to air over the water. Kris leaned over the thestral’s neck enjoy the air on his face that pulled on his hair as the thestral made a quick few-minutes tour for him over the Hogwarts lake raising high and dropping to the water-surface form time to time before returning Kris to the very same place where they had taken off.

Kris climbed off with an impassive voice with merely a twitch of one of his lip-corners. Merely a twitch for him, where it would have been open full-fledged laughter for anyone else. “Your way of saying thanks for baby-sitting?” Kris murmured gently to the male thestral while feeding him the last ferret while stroking the boney head before the thestrals were off once again. His head tilted Kris listened to them go for a few moments as he absent-mindedly helped Morrigan climb out from the inner pocket of his jacket. The small kitten didn’t liked flying at all and so had seeked refuge from the pocket. Shaking hs head Kris brushed back his shoulder-length black bangs as flying had ripped off the black velvet ribbon that had held them back at the nape of his neck. Turning Kris retreated to the tree onto which he had earlier hung the now eaten ferrets and under which his leather jacket was. Dropping to sit on the jacket Kris broke off a thick tree-branch and leaning his back against the tree-stump pulled the long hunting-knife from it’s sheath at Kris’s left ankle. The knife stayed there 24/7 even though Kris was sure not all professors would be charmed of the idea of the long knife that could easily be used as a weapon always attached to him. But his father had taught Kris to wear one and even sleep with one since he had also started to teach Kris how to handle animals. Even though Kris had lawyas had a natural touch for them.

Still sensing Will’s presence, Kris tilted his head thoughtfully, having to remove the strands of hair form his face once again. “You can read outside,” Kris remarked coolly to the question Will had asked before turning his attention mainly to the branch he had broken and that he was now carving with his knife.

((The thestrals, didn't seem to fit. So sorry, I took the little tour away. And Ia dore this thread. And long psots are my ultimate favourites.))

[will]

((Ah, no more thestrals? Will was fascinated with them. And Kris took it away before Will could actually walk up to it! *pouts* Actually, it's okay. This way the two can focus more on each other. If that's a good thing. Oh, and I enjoy this thread a lot as well. It's fun! ))

William raised an eyebrow. Was it him, or was Kris slowly becoming more and more angry with him? Or was that just his imagination? It would be a really realistic imagination, if that was the case after all. Kris's answer only confused Will. What did he really mean to say? Through all that sarcasm, anyway? Will hated trying to translate Kris's words into meanings. It was twisted. Sometimes he meant it, sometimes it was just all fake. Talk about tiring. The liquid-like black covers on Kris's eyes (Will preferred to think of them as black shutters, shutting out the light) were reversible? Will got that out, but why weren't they off then? William was a smart kid, but this magic was clearly not his thing. Dark magic, and powerful too. Well, maybe not dark. How would Will know such a thing? He hadn't read about any curse that even came close to this, as it was indeed a curse, and so he had no inside knowledge to help him understand. He only had to take Kris's word, and half of what he said he didn't mean. Or had hidden meanings. Whatever.

Will raised an eyebrow as Kris said stylish. Maybe so. Will's hair wasn't nearly as long as Kris's, and apparently that was in style this year. William could figure out why Kris would say such a thing; he had felt his eyes on him. Well, that wasn't exactly good, but what could he expect? For Will to pretend like he didn't want to look at him? Nah, not at all. He glared at Kris when he mentioned Luce. "Yes, well your name's not any better, Kristina." Will retorted. He always hated when people talked about Luce's name. He hadn't named Lucifer, only given him a nick-name. Wasn't Luce better then Lucifer? Honestly, did Kris expect Will to walk around saying he owned a black stallion named Lucifer? Kris may not be superstitious, but other people in the world were. Will watched as he went to the tree near the father of the colt was standing. He was close to a dead ferret. Will felt a shiver go up his back. Disgusting. But he kept his mouth clamped shut and watched Kris quietly go about whatever he was doing. A smile crossed his lips at Kris's words, however. At least they had covered a little ground. The next thing Will witnessed was absolutely fantastic. The thestrals took off, with Kris on the stallions back, and flew around the grounds. "Wow." Will breathed out loud, impressed with Kris's familiarity with the animals. They obviously trusted him. Will knew that thestrals could be ridden by almost anybody, but they seemed to not mind Kris at all.

When Kris came back down, Will was surprised to see him not come back to where Will was standing. But, but... hadn't they been in the middle of a conversation? William didn't particularly enjoy watching Kris walk to the trees with the thestrals and then watch them take off. So what? Was it over already? He hadn't even gotten close to them, and Kris was letting them go? Ah, well, maybe it was better William hadn't gotten the chance to come closer. Thestrals could be dangerous when they wanted to. William frowned and hustled his way over to Kris, clearly annoyed. Why did he think he could just - go away without perhaps motioning for Will to join him? Manners, anyone? Will stopped a few feet from Kris, eying what he was doing carefully. Shredding the branch, was he? "Yes, I suppose so. I like to read outside very much, but I was saying that being with animals takes much more energy then reading a book." Will pointed out, sitting down close to Kris but just enough to give him room. "Do you mind if I ask why you have a knife with you? Don't people think you even scarier with a knife? I mean, with your... attitude, perhaps?... makes you seem formidable to innocent bystanders from the start, but a knife? Isn't that a little over-rated?" Will asked, half-joking and half-serious. Certainly, if Will had been younger, he would have been terrified of someone like him. Especially a Kris with a knife.

[kris]

Kris smirked and would have batted his eye-lashes towards Will if it would have shown from behind his sunglasses. Kristina? Well, it was a nickname he was yet to encounter. Actually people didn’t have nicknames for him. Except for Mary who insisted on always calling him Krissy bear, but then again – had anyone other than Mary called Kris that, then both of them would have cursed the poor mistaken person. “See, this is where the difference comes. When you say Lucy I expect a mare. I, however, aren’t so easy to mistake for a female, am I now?” Kris asked with amusement. Despite longer hair, Kris had enough self-confidence or masculinity or whatever you wished to call it, that in reality he had never been mistake for a girl. None the less the outcome would be amusing for Kris, while the other person would in the end enjoy a curse or two.

Kris bit back a sigh. What was he? An outside person or a bookworm? He didn’t know really. He had read and studied mostly during detentions and he wouldn’t exchange his huge library back at Italy for anything in the world. Well, maybe for his eye-sight now, but that was hardly a trade he would ever manage to make. But he adored camping, fishing and just romping in the nature and being with animals, even though he never hunted. Kris never raised a hand against any animal. “I read in the evening and go out in the night?” Kris offered a possibility in answer to Will’s question. Besides being out at night was better. More animals were moving then. And he had never cared much for curfews anyway.

Kris tilted his head as he heard Will sitting down but at the very least the boy didn’t violate his personal room. Kris arched a lazy eye-brow but didn’t comment merely listening to what the Ravenclaw had to say. While most certainly not going to become one of his friends – he didn’t exactly annoy Kris either (if you didn’t take into consideration his naivety in some points) which was more than Kris could say about most of the school.
“Father taught to carry one when I was 5. A wand can always be taken from you, but martial arts and a weapon will still give you a fair chance,” Kris mused lazily twirling the branch in his hand and starting to smoothen the wood on the other side, “I’ve had one attached to my ankle 24/7 since I was 6. The length of the knife merely grew as I grew – the only change that ever occurred. You get used to the feeling at one point.” Kris sneered lazily, recalling how the sheath had used to rub his skin to blood the first days, but it had healed and now the sheath was a natural part of him: “And it’s useful sometimes when cutting animals free. Besides did you know I carried a knife on my left ankle before I took it out?” Kris asked with a curious arch of his eye-brow his voice once again innocent. His clothes were all tailor-made. Which also meant that all his pants were made well enough to hide the this sheath of knife on his ankle as well as possible.

[will]

Will sighed. But it wasn't Lucy! It was Luce which rhymed with loose. Not Lucy! No. No, no, no. Will pulled a blade of grass out of the ground, examining the tip. Ah, if only Kris knew what William wanted to say. Of course, he would make a rather long speech, far too long for Kris's liking. Especially when all he was going to do was repeat himself about the name. It may seem amusing to Kris - as he did that really annoying smirk again - but it was dead serious to William. Don't mess with his horse. Especially Luce. Will would stick up for any animal, but Lucifer was something entirely different. His heart and soul, the puzzle piece to making himself whole. But William wasn't a poet, and he wasn't about to rant to Kris the many reasons why Luce wasn't the same as Lucy, and how if one was to see Luce, they wouldn't even imagine that he could possibly be a mare. So, no. The difference was not there, nope. Kris could be Kristina. Luce could be Lucy, but it wasn't. There. Similar in all points. Hah.

"That's a nice schedule." Will said with an approving nod. "I always like night better. I don't really know why. It just seems much more inviting then the sun and most of all, other people aren't around." Will never liked crowds. Always too busy, always too loud, and always, ALWAYS pushy. Never was it calm like the breeze of night-time was, never would it be perfectly quiet like it was when you laid in the grass and looked up at the stars. Stars. One of Will's favorite parts of the earth. They were just amazing - those little twinkles up there. Of course, Will learned around age eleven that every star blew up after a while. It was all a cycle. And like every star, the sun would blow up too, some day. And when that happened, human race would be wiped out. But had Will anything to worry? Nope. It wasn't going to happen in his life time. Maybe his grand-children's, but not his. Anyway - every time Will looked at that big bulb in the sky, like a light bulb, he knew that he was glad he wouldn't see it die.

As Kris talked about the knife, William nodded, interested. As a little boy, martial arts and knife throwing had always captured his interest, and he thought being a ninja would be cool. Except for the tights part. Did all ninjas wear tights, or was that just super heroes? Wearing a knife on his ankle had never really been a desire for William though. Being a ninja would be like growing your hair long and putting it in a pony tail, dying it red maybe, and then wearing a big shiny sword at your belt, maybe a knife up your sleeve. Kris was something like that, only he had the idea of protection, and - Will nodded his head until it almost fell off at that point - that it could free animals. A savior. To animals, Kris must be like an angel. For some reason, that seemed extremely amusing to Will, but he didn't dare laugh. He did laugh a little at Kris's last words. "No, I did not see it. So I guess you wouldn't be as dangerous as I said before, eh?" William mused, amusement trickling through his words. Kris did have some witty sayings, even if it was a sarcastic one. And maybe he wasn't doing it intentionally, just saying his thoughts? Will always knew people like that were good people indeed, or people with a sense of humor, anyway. Dark humor was no different, he supposed. "It's a good idea. Although if you did lose your wand, I doubt the knife would come in handy if your opponent had a wand. But at least it something." Will thought back to the time Kris had been attacked. He hadn't used his knife then... "I've never had to cut an animal free. I've only had to help a few horses out of a thorny bush, or get those little burrs out of their hair." Will had half-meant it as a thought, but it came out in words instead. He wrapped his arms around his knees and leaned forward, so his chin was on his hands, and slowly let his deep brown eyes roll around to Kris.

[kris]

Kris snorted. He had a nice schedule. Now this was new. Really now, he did what he wanted most of the time. He had no regards for school curfew. Sometimes Kris wondered if Dana had been made a prefect just so she would temper him, as she had enough detentions of her own. But if that had been one of the small ideas in Dumbledore’s head when Dana was appointed for the job – the old man was dearly mistaken. If anything Dana being a prefect help Kris roam the school even more freely as Dana would never tell on him. Why, she rather helped him get out sometimes. But really, no one had ever told him before that he had a nice schedule. Kris really used the schedule that worked for him. Will’s next few words didn’t sound even amusing however. He always liked the night. Maybe it was true. Or maybe he was just a sheep who repeated whatever the other person said around them. Kris’s eye-brow arched sarcastically as he weighted Will’s words in his head. Maybe the boy was such a ‘social windflag’. Then again he sounded fond of his Lucy so maybe he wasn’t a completely hopeless case either.

“Are you trying to say that you don’t like the sun and prefer bad weather?” Kris asked just a bit icily before dropping the topic from his part. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to know the answer. It might prove to him completely that Will wasn’t worth his time and Kris was in a shockingly accepting mood today.
“Who ever said I was threatening or dangerous? Why, I’m your angel extraordinaire!” Kris replied with sweet tone his second eye-brow rising to meet the first one which had never been lowered as Kris pulled on the most innocent expression he could, his face shifting from one mask to an other with ease. Yes, Kris could appear innocent. He had had to hide his fair share of troubles from his legal guardians and Meredith certainly had a sharp eye. That and it worked better if you looked somewhat morose after being caught red-handed by some professor.

Lowering his eye-brows once again Kris let the feigned expression drop from his face as he raised the knife and his left hand. Placing the side of his palm against the face Kris let out a slow thoughtful whistle measuring the length of the blade that went far beyond his palm. “More than something. Most people don’t have the nerve to calmly cast a spell to freeze a sharp blade flying towards their face. Or they wouldn’t possess the speed to stop it,” Kris murmured lazily, “And thorny bushes and burrs are regular. When animals roam forests freely, then they get caught under fallen trees, fall into traps – there have been some in the Forbidden Forest as well. Helping them isn’t as easy as brushing their fur.” Which Kris still had to do more then regularly. With the number of animals he owned and had befriended Kris brushed about 2-3 animals daily, even more when he was at his castle.
“Which makes it sound that your only experience with animals is with horses?”

[will]

Will raised an eyebrow the same time Kris raised his. How ironic. Pushing back his bangs, Will eyed Kris up and down surreptitiously. No one liked to be looked at, even if they couldn't see you looking at them. Kris might feel it anyway - one of his remarks had hinted toward it. With a sigh, Will shook his head. "Come now, do you think I would have this dark of a tan if I didn't like the sun?" Only after the words left his lips did they just begin to sink in. Will ran his hand through his hair. Had he really said that? Kris was blind; of course he couldn't see Will's tan! What was wrong with him? Will looked around the Grounds, unsure whether to apologize for his mistake or to just pretend it never happened. Agh, this was so hard a game to play. And Kris seemed to be making up the rules as they went! Will flipped open his notebook, seeking comfort from the rookie drawings. Yes, in every drawing he had drawn the sun. If he didn't like it, he couldn't have done such a thing, right?

"Yes, I love the sun as well. And no, bad weather is not my preference. I much prefer days where there's a slight breeze and it either hot or mildly hot, but never cold." Will bit his lip to stop himself from continuing. They were talking about weather. Weather, of all things. Will's gloved hands itched to pull up the grass again. He didn't let it though; Kris wouldn't enjoy hearing the ripping sounds, and that only showed that he had no idea what he was doing. Will clasped the hands in his lap. He could control them better from there. A smile brightened his face at Kris's next comment. "All you need is a halo and wings. Maybe a white tunic too." Will added, the idea taking place in his mind. An angel with shades.... amusing. William chuckled a bit to himself. Only for a little while though, as another rule to Kris's game seemed to be no repeating things. Whether it was laughing or talking too much. Will obeyed the rule by stopping at what he thought a reasonable time, as he only chuckled just a tad.

William nodded his head. He wouldn't be able to stop a sharp object suddenly being thrown at his face. Oh no. Instead, it would have been forget the wand and duck. William was not a hero, no. He didn't like to think of himself as a coward either, but when it came to life and death, he was on the cowardly side. He couldn't imagine what had been going through Kris's mind when he had gotten hit by the spell that would change his life forever. Some people said he had been protecting someone besides himself. Rumors were something William didn't bother himself with. Just a bunch of bologna. He passed a hand over his face with a tired expression. "Well, yes, that too." William didn't want to admit that Kris must have more experience then him at animals. He was only involved with horses, nothing else caught his interest. But Kris - now that was a totally different story, obviously. Helping trapped animals... my god, what does he do with his time? Maybe he is an angel. The thought was still amusing, even if it was true. If it was, it would have to be from an animal stand-point. "I.... Yeah, I guess so. I don't have enough money to buy myself an animal, and even if I did, I wouldn't. I'm saving my money so I can buy Lucifer when I become of age." Will informed him. It hurt to admit that he wasn't as good at Kris by just this. Stupid heart and fool-hardy pride, that's what. "Do you do an equestrian sport with your horses?" Will asked suddenly, very curious of what the answer would be.

[kris]

Kris’s eye-brows flew up as Will asked him about his tan. “I don’t really know how much of a tan you have,” Kris drawled out slowly adding just a bit of iron into his voice while he tilted his head almost curiously and smirked after a long pause while he wondered whether to take offence or not, “You don’t really have very good control over what you say and what you don’t, do you? A piece of free advice. Learn to keep your mouth closed instead of insulting people. Might save your life one day.” Kris lowered his head a bit as if looking at the piece of wood he was carving, even though he had to carve fully by the sense of feel. Blowing on the piece of wood to get rid of small wood-dust Kris returned to slowly smoothing the wood with the tip of his knife while listening to Will’s musing about weather. Boring topic. Yet one that was raised so often. Maybe this was why it was sometimes said that a person who can make a discussion of weather interesting and easy was a person who had perfected his or hers social skills. “Do you expect me to complain or comment about the weather we have today?” Kris remarked dryly letting the topic drop. He didn’t care enough to try to make this easier for Will. He was doing an effort for him as it was with actually responding to him instead of cutting off his overly curious nose.

“Half, wings and tunic,” Kris commented his mind flying back to the DADA class where Cleo ad blessed him with such an outfit after Dana had hand-cuffed them together. Apparently stories of it hadn’t circulated the school which was rather pleasing, “Why, oh why, doesn’t anyone give me a harp to finish the outfit? I think I might even be able to handle a song or two on Estonian harp - kannel. While a lot bigger the basic technique is much like a guitars.” And Kris could play the guitar. This was something his father had liked. He had sang and played guitar himself and had made sure his son would learn it as soon as he was able to play the notes and hold the guitar. A bit of western-like romantic – playing guitar while camping at hills and staring into slowly dying fire. While maybe a bit old-fashioned such kind of behavior still had the same amount of charm as it had back then. Most people had merely never experienced it. Just like most people had never danced in the rain. For a brief moment Kris’s memory flickered back to his meeting of Sam this year at the lake which had resorted in a rather… head-turning dinner in the Great Hall, but this was not the place nor time nor company for that kind of memories.

“Come of age? In muggle-world that’s 18, right? And how do you save money, cause I doubt the orphanage gives you fortunes to spend,” Kris commented recalling the careless comment Will had given previously, “Work? Where? Not much you can do during Hogwarts, unless you help out at Hogsmeade, which is only also a weekend job. Can’t pay very much either, so how do you plan on gathering the money? How much will the horse be sold for anyway?” Kris mused out loudly while already thinking about the breed, gender, appearance, ancestors and all those hundreds of other small details that came to play when buying a horse. His horses had all cost small fortunes. Kris wasn’t even mean. Having worked himself – not because he needed, but because his legal guardians had wanted him to learn what it feels like to build something with his own hands and therefore learn the value of money – Kris was merely curious.

“No. I ride only for my own pleasure, however I have a previous world-champion of riding taking care of my horses. Under his tutelage a boy from the near-by village competes with my horses just as the woman watching after my hounds competes in tracking competitions with them. My castle is in the hills near sea-shore so the horses get quite the work-out there and enough chances to show their abilities on shows. I don’t need the attention of competing myself,” Kris mused pausing his carving for a moment as he thought of his horses, “I have 8 horses. Winddancer is a long-distance runner who can go on for hours. 85% Arabian, 15% Tori horse. Big, pitch-black and moody, so he only tolerates me on his back. Essual and Cognac are the horses I mainly let visitors ride as those mares have the calmest characters. Cognac just had a foal this summer. Bandos for school-riding and he I have borrowed out to demonstrate tricks in western movies. Basques is also partially for visitors, but he and Carycyn have competed in races. And Aladdin is a great jumper who has also competed. So on the whole about 4 of my horses are known for a bit wider populace.”