Crazy Hobby-less Kid ((Kia))

[Maryn Livley]

Maryn absentmindedly twirled a piece of red hair around her finger as she walked reading the Daily Prophet. True, most of the stuff in the paper was trash, but Maryn didn't care. Just reading some of the obviously fake stuff in the paper made her laugh for some reason. Now, Maryn wasn't a writer, but she certainly had her own opinions about things. She laughed reading something completely ridiculous about Hogwarts carousel installed. Maryn just felt like rolling over in laughter. Were they really serious? True, some of the more serious articles were well written and true. But, for the moment, Maryn wasn't concerned with news about the newly dead Harry Potter or the obviously popular Neville Longbottom. Maryn had actually met him once, in the common room along with that Lavender Brown girl. Maryn sighed. It was only last school year but it seemed like light years away. Maryn eyed the paper. When had everything gotten so complicated? She sighed. Well, it didn't have to be. The happy and sad things that had happened to the world over the past few months didn't have to be in her head all the time. And she wouldn't let it happen. Maryn had a life to live. Sometimes, it was better to forget the past and focus on something fun and light. She knew it could be done. But, could she do it?

Maryn walked in her normal tiny step way as she turned a corner. Her eyes were still glued on the paper that she was gripping in her hands. She laughed turning the page. She was sure that Kia would get a good laugh from the article about the carousel at Hogwarts. Maryn smiled as she secretly thought that it would be a fun idea. Hey, Hogwarts could use more fun every now and then, Maryn was sure of it. She eyed the windows that were getting darker every few minutes. It was the end of the day and there was only like half an hour left until curfew. Maryn hated that they had to be in the common room at a certain time like a bunch of babies, but hey, rules were rules. They better to break them with my dear. She joked to herself. Maryn used to be the one who opted to sneak out of the house at any given hour of the day or night. Now, she was still that girl, just in moderation. What had changed her? Well, there were four answers for that. Number one, the train attack at the beginning of her third year; number two, Leon's death; number three, Nate's leukemia; and number four, growing up. It happened. It just did. Maryn sighed. That rebellious girl was still inside her. She was just, not ready to come out completely yet or maybe ever.

Maryn tucked the Daily Prophet under her arm as she entered the common room. "Night dear lady." Maryn said nicely. "To you too Maryn. Hey!" She called. Maryn stopped and looked back to the fat lady. "Yes?" she asked absently. "Where is that cute boy that you used to stalk around with?" She asked. Maryn shook her head and walked on. "No clue." She said quietly. Good question. Where was Baz? Maryn sighed. It wasn't meant to be she guessed. It never seemed to be. Maryn had always had bad guy trouble. They either died or left her life and disappeared. In this case, they left without any warning nor any news if their would be a return into her life. Maryn sighed. She gave up. Who needed boys anyways? She bit her lip.

Maryn walked into her dorm casually. She spotted someone in the room already. Maryn smiled and dropped her bag on her bed. Then she ran over and jumped onto Kia's bed. She giggled wildly for a minute. She looked around the room and then at Kia. "You know what I give up. No more boys. I can't keep them around." Maryn said seriously she eyed something hanging up by her bed. They were her old ballet point shoes. Maryn smiled for a millisecond. "Maybe I should get a hobby. Hmm, I could start dancing again. But, I won't go back to that academy in Birmingham again. I hated that place. They made you practice like 24,7. Plus, I heard at least five times a day that I should be anorexic like the other girls." Maryn shook her head. "I'm not going through that again." She sighed and eyed Kia. "Hmm, I need cheering up and what do you think I should do for a hobby? And don't say I should make glitter." She joked.

[Kia Brightstar]

Kia stared at the pile of sketchbooks lying on top of her trunk. She had been sitting on her bed, staring and contemplating, for at least an hour. Her sudden maturity had made her wonder about something but when she had pulled out the sketchbooks from the bottom of her trunk, where they had lain for months, completely untouched, her courage had deserted her. “C’mon,” Kia whispered to herself, egging herself on unrelentingly. If she didn’t do it now, she never would. “Where’s the Gryffindor courage?” Kia muttered, suddenly annoyed by her idiocy, reaching for the top book on the pile. It fell open, displaying one of her sketches from last year, and Kia bowed her head in defeat, acknowledging what she had been denying for years. She was a terrible artist, despite her hopes to be otherwise.

“Incendio.” It was almost fun to watch her once-prized sketches go up in flames. After all, the way in which she disposed of them was completely Kia. Spontaneous and considerably dangerous, considering they were burning on her bed and she was so close to them. Kia levitated them when the flames starting licking at her bed more ferociously than they had before but waited until the fire had died before starting to move. The ashes were easily disposed of but the burnt circle in the middle of her bed would be slightly harder to explain. Heh. Kia cringed slightly, for once regretting the rashness of her actions. She didn’t regret that she had done it, not when she felt that it had helped her. The only thing she regretted was causing the damage to her bed. How on earth could she explain that? Sorry, Professor, I got hungry in the middle of the night so I decided to cook something. Unfortunately, the fire got out of control… Hah. Definitely not. This would take a bit more thought than she usually put into her crazy schemes. And a lot more spellwork probably. Now…what spells could be used to help in this situation?

Kia rifled through her Charms textbook, making a note of possibly useful spells on the piece of parchment lying next to her. She could disguise it, but that wouldn’t hide the fact that she had a hole in her bedcovers. The house-elves would certainly report it to the professors, which led to her having to explain it. Undoubtedly out of the question. Hmm. Maybe, just maybe… The barest hint of a mischievous grin started at the corners of her mouth as yet another one of her insane ideas started to take form in her mind. If the parchment were transfigured into fabric, and she made use of the oh-so useful sewing spell her aunt had taught her in an attempt to make Kia into a useful person then she would have a whole bed once more! Maybe not an overly comfortable duvet but she would manage. And next time, she would take precautions before burning something on her bed. Not that she planned to do that again.

Done! Kia breathed a sigh of relief, jumping off her bed and turning to close her Charms book. Her eye twitched as her gaze settled on a spell. A spell that would have saved her from a lot of concentration. Kia sighed, making use of the spell before her annoyance overcame her. Well, at least her bed looked more presentable now. Yay? Kia sighed, moving into the bathroom to splash her face with cold water. Lately, she felt like stress was the most prominent emotion in her life. Stress over Cia, over the future and over her family. Where did a love life feature into her current life? Nowhere, that’s where. She had told herself that over and over and over again but still her heart skipped a beat whenever she saw Cia. If that didn’t stop soon she’d have to take action. She didn’t know what, but it was going to be dazzling and amazing.

Kia walked back into the dorm just as Maryn jumped on her bed, grinning instantly. Her dear friend made such a silly figure, sprawled out on a bed that probably still smelled like smoke that Kia started laughing, moving to sit on her bed, facing Maryn. “I think I’ll give them up too,” Kia murmured in agreement, thinking back to all the pondering and worrying she had endured over Cia and all for nothing, since she had decided a relationship simply wasn’t possible. “You could come to gymnastics with me,” Kia perked up instantly, the glimmer of sadness leaving her eyes the second she stopped thinking of Cia. “Though making glitter is a worthwhile hobby too,” Kia nodded in mock-seriousness. “As for cheering up,” Kia grinned and reached under her bed, pulling out a box of ice-cream and winking mysteriously. Maybe she should thank Adam for teaching her such a useful spell. Ice-cream available at all times!

[Maryn Livley]

Maryn smiled. She looked out the window and then at Kia. "I haven't seen Baz in forever. It's just not worth it." She concluded out loud. Maryn eyed her the floor for a brief moment. "Even the fat lady has noticed that he's pretty much nonexistent these days." Maryn said trying to act as calm as possible for her own sake. But, it wasn't really helping that much. "Oh, well. I'll just die alone and live forever in my sadness." Maryn said letting her head hit a pillow. Then, she sat up with a sad look on her face. After she second, she smiled. "Oh, well. His loss, right?" She asked not exactly sure. Anyways, Maryn had to be kidding herself. Baz was adorably cute and a musician. He had to have a ton of girls by his side. Plus, the fact that Maryn had no time to be thinking of boys. After all, Nate still needed her. He had been slowly getting better but his battle wasn't over. He was at a rehab center for a couple of months of low treatment. But, for the summer, he would be home again. She squealed inside. It had nearly been a complete year since her brother had ever seen the inside of the house. Maryn sighed. That's right, Nate needed her and Baz was gone. That was it.

Maryn smiled as Kia mentioned gymnastics. "Maybe." She shrugged. "I've never really tried anything like that before." She sighed. "What can I say, mum always wanted her first born to be the little primo ballet dancer that she wasn't." Maryn explained smiling a tad bit. She sighed. "Well, instead, she got Mercy, her talented little tap dancing prodigy." Maryn said laughing. She sighed. "I was thinking about learning to play piano or guitar or something. I'm really a singer, I just wanna try and see how I do with music." She said calmly. Maryn smiled. Nope, she wasn't that ballet dancer that she once was. Once upon a time, she had real potential. People told her that she could be a great ballerina if she tried hard enough, and she did. But, then her life got too complicated. It just had. She sighed. Nope, she wasn't a dancer any more. She just wasn't.

Maryn laughed as Kia pulled out a box of ice-cream from under her bed. Maryn smiled as she felt that the box was cold. "Killer charm." She said smiling. Maryn laughed and opened the top. She sighed and pulled her wand from her pocket. "Accio spoons." She said smiling and pointing her wand as she said the new spell that the fourth years had been working on. Maryn eyed Kia. "I hope they came from the kitchen and not from anyone's room." Maryn smiled knowing that she was probably wrong. She laughed as she heard the spoons hit the dorm room wall. She sighed and walked over to them. "Well, its getting there." She said laughing. She walked over to Kia and handed her a spoon and then dipped her own into the carton. She sighed. "So, is it true that ice-cream can heal the soul?" She asked lightly. "If so, I;m going to grow up and be an ice-cream man."

[Kia Brightstar]

"Sometimes it just isn't worth it." Kia agreed dismally, resting her chin on her hands and letting her eyes flutter shut as an image of Ciaran appeared in her mind. He was almost the exact opposite of the principals she had stood for and believed in. He worked hard, studied and received good grades from the professors, Kia was sure. She, on the other hand, goofed off as much as she could, thought studying should be banned and only received good grades on exams because that was the only time she actually applied herself to her work. Or, at least, she had. But over the summer, she had spent more time than usual at home and come to a realisation that had probably triggered her sudden maturity. Kae needed her; her dad needed her. After having to deal with a rebellious ten year old sister who had still shown no true signs of magic and was ashamed of that fact to the extent that she disappeared from the house for hours on end, Kia had been forced to devote most of her time to her family. It had been tiresome but perhaps it was the push that Kia had needed to grow up and take notice of the people and things surrounding her. Being the strong rock that her family could lean on when they needed to was worth shoving Ciaran from her mind and her life, right?

"Of course it's his loss!" Kia answered firmly, ripped from her thoughts by a determination to make sure Maryn knew that fact. "You're funny, crazy, intelligent and get good grades. Any boy should be happy to get even a second glance from you." Kia grinned devilishly, winking at her friend impishly. "Would I let you be my closest friend if you weren't at least as wonderful as I am?" Her smile turned slightly nostalgic, almost wistful, when the conversation turned to Maryns mothers hopes for her eldest daughter. It was hard to hear of other peoples mothers but hey, what other fifteen year old could say she'd raised a ten year old practically by herself? Independence was the key; not relying on everyone else for everything. Kia had lived by that motto for years and wasn't willing to rethink it now. "I don't know if I've ever heard you sing," Kia mused, trying to think back through the four years she had known Maryn. "Playing the piano is a good talent, but guitars are more popular nowadays. And if you want to sing then the guitar is probably better. Hard to sing and play the piano at the same time."

Kia nodded in agreement. "Adam gave me the incantation over the summer - have you ever met my cousin, by the way? - and I spent a few days working out how to cast it. Finally, it worked. I was getting bored of drinking melted ice-cream," Kia joked, snickering at the sound of spoons crashing against the dorm wall. "Someone's going to wonder why spoons are flying. Though I hope no one was hit by them. That might just hurt." Kia noted, imitating Maryn by dipping her own spoon into the carton. Ice-cream always made everything feel better and, just for a while, she would forget about boys and enjoy chatting, giggling and just generally having fun with Maryn. For just a little while, things would be back to the way they were before everything had gotten so complicated. "Ice-cream fixes everything." Kia nodded. "And ice-cream men should be given an award. Because what other job heals so many souls, even if only for a short time?"

[Maryn Livley]

Maryn laughed at Kia's comment. She always knew what to say it seemed. Maryn laughed. She had always admired that about her friend. True, Maryn and Kia were different in many ways. Kia was a tad crazier than Maryn, but then again, Maryn had her wild streak. Still, Maryn would be kidding herself if she said that Kia would always be the same. They were both getting older, it was as simple as that. They were both growing up, but still, they would always be some what the same. Maryn laughed. She didn't need Baz. True, she didn't need him, but she still wanted him as odd as it sounded. Maryn was young, yes, but she had really liked Baz. Oh well. She told herself. She had years to worry about boys, right? Maryn laughed out loud. "You know, I kind of miss the day when I thought boys had cooties. Those were simple times." She joked sounding like an old person. She laughed at herself. "Ha, maybe I am I bit wonderful, but I was stupid to think that I had a chance with Baz." Maryn said thinking as her eyes drifted out the window. She covered her eyes with her hand. Maryn hated the fact that she had let herself fall for him a little bit. She sighed. Oh well. She wouldn't let him ruin her night, now would she?

Maryn laughed. "Back at ya." Maryn said about Kia's wonderful comment. Maryn laughed. "Well, you have Kia. You are just over a tad wonderful for that. So, how is Mr. Perfect? Is he well perfect?" She joked with her friend. Cia was a nice guy, Maryn gave him that. He was nice to Maryn and Maryn could tell by the look in his eyes that he adored Kia. Maryn wasn't sure if Kia yet realized it, but Maryn could see it. Well, it wasn't hard to ignore, now was it? No, not at all. Maryn laughed when Kia said that she had never heard Maryn sing. "That's because I don't sing, crazy." She said lightly throwing a pillow over and hitting her friend softly on top of her head. Maryn laughed for a second. "No, no singing. I'll scare even more boys away and that's a fact." She mused. "I could play guitar though." She smiled. "That might be fun,a nd excruciating to watch." She said smiling.

Maryn smiled at Kia's ice-scream charm. "No, I don't think I met him." She said shaking her head. "Eww, melted ice-scream. Actually, Tommy adores it for some reason." Maryn laughed at the memories. "Mercy and me used to stash some in our closets for girl nights and Tommy would come in the next day and eat the left overs. I sware, that kid will never survive in the real world. He's bound to be one of those over crazy Hufflepuffs that you love, but sort of get on your nerves. He's going to make some Slytherin go insane." Maryn laughed knowing that it was probably near the truth. Maryn shrugged eying her spoon and dipping it into the ice-scream again. "Yep I bet that would hurt, but you know. I once got hit in the head with a book one time in the library." She smiled. "Now that hurt. Who would ever Accio a rather large book on History of Magic I don't know but that thing was heavy." She smiled. Maryn laugh. "Yes, Ice-should be a food group that and cookies." She nodded. Hmm, what else heals souls? "Umm, well defiantly not dementors."She shivered. "Those things scare me." She shivered again. "I heard years ago they had to bring them on campus to find Sirius Black. Now,t hat would freak me out just a bit." She commented putting the spoonful of ice-scream in her mouth.

[Kia Brightstar]

"You weren't stupid," Kia scolded seriously. "What would be stupid would be hiding away in your room and never even trying to find a boyfriend." Which was, essentially, something like what Kia had been doing. But that was different. Kia argued silently. Because...well, because Ciaran didn't like her in that way and Baz...obviously hadn't wanted Maryn as a girlfriend. Okay, so maybe it wasn't different in that way. Bad example. But it was different. The only difference, her mental voice drawled lazily, is that Maryn gathered her famed Gryffindor courage and actually tried to get somewhere with Baz, even if it led nowhere. You, on the other hand, scramble for excuses because you're terrified of what might happen. Oh, very brave. Very Gryffindor. Kia narrowed her eyes slightly. Was there a reason her mental voice was acting like a Slytherin? Actually, Kia mused, it sounded like a very serious, very mature Adam. Kia banged her head against the wall gently, hard enough to dissipate her frustration slightly but not enough to truly hurt. Because that would be stupid.

"Oh, I know." Kia grinned. "I'm absolutely wonderful and no one is as great as me." Kia hesitated momentarily when Maryn brought up Ciaran. Oh, so now she just had to think of him and he came up in conversation? Wonderful trick. Maybe if she thought about something else, she could change the subject? Kia paused for a second to try out that theory. Nope, not working. But seriously, Kia tilted her head slightly, observing Maryn critically. It wasn't fair to burden her friend with her own insecurities but neither was it right to completely block her out. It was just really bad timing, since Maryn was kinda...grieving over Baz. But she really felt the need to spill her thoughts and get some advice. She breathed in deeply, using the time to sort out her thoughts and form an answer. "Trust me, nothing is perfect. Don't ask unless you want a recap of my thoughts and frustrations over the last few days...weeks?" Kia warned lightly.

"You should sing," Kia encouraged. "You'll never know if you're good unless I hear you. And I so want to hear you play guitar." Kia whined playfully, poking Maryn childishly. "You haven't met Adam?" Kia bolted upright, staring at her friend wide-eyed. "That's the greatest crime in the world It has to be fixed!" Kia rolled off the bed and grabbed some parchment and a quill, raising the quill briefly to her lips as she decided what to write. "There!" Kia brandished the letter triumphantly. "I've ordered Adam to visit Hogsmeade soon. Because it's a crime for you not to have met him. He'll drive you insane within a few minutes but he is funny," Kia assured her, putting the letter on her desk for the moment. When they decided on a day, or rather if Maryn wanted to meet her insane cousin, it would be sent off. "All help toward making the Slytherins insane is welcomed." Kia laughed, dipping her spoon into the ice-cream. "Dementors are the worst." Kia agreed, her expression darkening. "Adam was still in Hogwarts when they came here to search for Black. He doesn't have many bad memories but he still avoided them at every opportunity. He wouldn't even go to Quidditch matches unless one of his friends were playing."

[Maryn Livley]

Maryn sighed. “Maybe, I wasn’t stupid, I just have some regrets about going after him I guess.” She sighed. “But, if it actually went some where, I wouldn’t have any regrets so I should just get over it and quit being a baby.” She told herself out loud. “Right? Right.” She bobbed her head like in that muggle show Bewitched and then laughed at herself. Maryn smiled and looked over at Kia. “Oh, my gosh. I’m crazy.” She said falling backwards onto a pillow. Slowly, Maryn pulled herself up and eyed Kia. Why was she so upset over a boy? After all, Maryn was newly fifteen. She had time for boys and dating. Right? Right. She sighed and lifted her hand to her head, then pulled it away slowly. She shook her head. Quit thinking about him, quit thinking about him. She told herself, but it wasn’t working. Maryn sighed. She could and would find some one else, but this is what girls did, right? They grieved over boys. True, Maryn had never wanted to be this kind of girl, but she was. She just was. And to think, Maryn had evolved from kid ballet girly girl, to tom boy with a rock tee-shirt, to the new Maryn. The mature, semi-afraid, lip gloss and converse sneakers, half girl, half tom boy Maryn. Maybe the new Maryn grieved over boys. She shook her head lightly. She didn’t like this; she didn’t like it at all.

Maryn raised an eyebrow at Kia’s comment about her and Cia. She shook her head slightly. She shrugged. “Okay, okay. Dropping it.” She said smiling lightly. “But you do know that you can talk tome about anything and moving on now.” Maryn added trying to move on in the conversation. She didn’t mind that Kia didn’t want to talk about it. Maryn often did that herself. No biggie. Actually, Maryn often screamed her frustrations out in the grounds. But that was her little secret. Maryn smiled to herself thinking about it for a moment. Maryn usually didn’t have a problem saying her feelings out loud. But, some things were just meant to be private. It was as simple and messy as that. Maryn eyed the window and looked out to the grounds for a moment before looking back at Kia. For a moment, Maryn swore she saw a flash of brown Baz hair. She shook her head slightly. Quit it. She told herself again, but it was just going to take time, right?

Maryn laughed when Kia said she should sing. She smiled. “Umm, maybe I will. I can get so sheet music and try and sing and play the guitar. Gosh, that’s two hobbies though isn’t it?” She asked shaking her head slightly. “Oh, well. I handled advanced ballet for years I guess I can handle two hobbies.” Maryn shook her head as Kia asked if she had ever met Adam. Maryn laughed. “Great guy, huh?” She asked already knowing the answer. Maryn wouldn’t say that Kia had picky taste in people, but she did know who she liked and who she didn’t like Maryn smiled. If Kia liked him so much, Maryn was sure that she would too. Maryn laughed as Kia wrote the letter to meet Adam in Hogsmeade. She smiled. “Okay, considering I have to choice in the matter it seems, I would love to meet him.” She joked. Maryn trusted Kia’s taste in people. Plus, he was Kia’s cousin anyways. “You know, some day, you should meet Nate. He knows more about you than Mercy and Tommy. Then again Tommy is young and Mercy has been acting quite weird lately.” She shrugged, sighing. Maryn shivered as Kia talked of dementors. “I’m such a frady cat, but they really scare me. And to think, I’m a Gryffindor.” She laughed to herself. “Well, I guess we all have our less than Gryffindor qualities. I’m afraid of dementors and murky lake water that I can’t make temporary clearer.” She laughed eying Kia. “What ever are you afraid of the great Kia?” She asked laughing.

[Kia Brightstar]

Kia shrugged, smiling lightly. "No matter which path you choose, there will always be some regrets about something. I regret not making my father pay more attention to Kae, but then I'd regret not knowing her as well as I do now. All the same, I can't help wondering if things would be easier if I didn't have to look after Kae like I was her mother, rather than her sister. I don't regret it, not as such, but part of me hates that responsibility." Kia sighed, thinking over the subject for a few more seconds before shoving it away fiercely. She loved Kaelyn, she did, and she'd gotten over resenting her sister a long time ago. There would be plenty of time to have a relationship and think about boys when Kae had grown up a bit more and was capable of looking after herself. Stop thinking of that for now, just stop it. She oredered herself, almost panicked. Everytime she thought about romance, Ciarans face came into her mind and that wouldn't do. Would not do at all. "Merlin," Kia sighed, tilting her head back against the wall wearily. "When did I become the type of girl who always has boys on her mind, Maryn? When did I stop thinking that only my opinion mattered to me?"

"Thanks," Kia flashed a grin at her friend gratefully, thankful that the subject of Cia had been dropped. She wanted to sort through her thoughts and Maryn would help with that, she knew, but Maryn had her own problems - only one of them being Baz, who was so going to get pranked by Kia - and something told her that it wouldn't be wise to jump into the pool of probelms that was her love life at that moment. The only good time to sort through her love life would be...never. Kia would be quite happy ignoring that pile of problems until it simply disappeared and she didn't have to worry about it anymore. But that would be too easy and her Aunt would definitely call that running away from her issues. Neither did Kia think she could deal with the look from her uncle that plainly called her a coward. She did kinda miss that look actually, since she hadn't received it since she was seven and refusing to face Adam after she had accidentally broken his arm.

"Yeah, he's great" Kia grinned, feeling almost foolish for being so obvious in her adoration on Adam. She just couldn't help it. He had been the first constant fixture in her life, since her mother died and her father was always working. Aunt Amelia had tried to be there for her but shed had work and a family of her own to look after. Kae had been too young to depend on but Adam had always been there, even arranging for her to visit Hogsmeade and meet up with him after he entered his third year of Hogwarts. It had been lonely for her during Adams first two years at school, but there had been lots of letters with plenty of descriptions of everything in them. He even described the professors and persuaded a friend to draw pictures of Hogwarts for her. Kia still had those letters and sketches somewhere at home. "He'll play nice, I promise." Kia assured her. "No pranks unless you prank him first. And I'd enjoy meeting Nate." Kia arched an eyebrow questoningly. "Knows more about me than Mercy and Tommy? What exactly do you tell your siblings about me, Miss Livley?" Kia demanded jokingly. Whatever Maryn had told them was probably the truth or close to the truth. "What am I afraid of?" Kia pondered the question seriously. It was a good question and made her think about her answer before giving it. "Pretty much everyone is afraid of dementors because they represent fear itself. I think I'm most afraid of being alone, with no one who loves me or even likes me." Kia confided quietly. "The idea of such an existence...it scares me. I don't think I could live alone. Humans were never meant to live alone."

[Maryn Livley]

Maryn nodded. "True." Everyone regretting different things. Kia's regrets scared Maryn to tell the truth. They were all noble regrets, but none that Maryn wished to have herself. Regret wasn't usually a fun thing, but Maryn found herself making them all of the time. She regretted not getting to spend more time with Nate as he recovered. She now regretted not be able to be by Mercy's side. "Life would be so much easier without regret. It would be better with just wishes." She said like a little kid. "I wish I could be with Nate and Mercy right now, you know? I mean you have a sister, you know sometimes you feel like you just need to be there. Like something is wrong or just different. I feel like that. I mean, I don't think either of them are in danger, I think things are just changing around the Livley household is all." Maryn sighed. "I hope it's for the better." She nearly said to herself as Maryn eyed the ceiling. She couldn't help thinking about her family. There was a lot to think about. ate with his leukemia, Mercy was the only girl at home, and Tommy was the youngest and the only wizard at home. Maryn wished she could be with all of them all of the time to protect them. But, it wasn't possible was it?

Maryn listened as Kia asked something. She sighed. "Probably when you started growing up like we all do." She said answering the boy part of the question. Maybe you stopped thinking only your opinion mattered to you, when other people's opinions started to matter." She said trying not to think too hard as she spoke. "Everyone wants to feel powerful and in charge, but when you love someone, their opinions matter. No matter who it is." Maryn said nodded. Sometimes, she could be completely serious without trying too hard. And other times, she could be insanely silly without trying to hard. That was just Maryn. That was who she was and as much as she wanted to be strong and say that no one influenced her as a person. She knew that was a lie. Nate influence her a great deal so did Mercy and Kia too. But, Maryn knew that no one could make her not herself completely. She would always be mainly Maryn.

Maryn smiled as Kia talked of Adam. Maryn herself only had two cousins. Her Aunt Nancy had three year old twins Jami and April, but that was pretty much the only family Maryn had besides her parents and her siblings. She had no living grandparents that lived on the same continent that Maryn had ever talked to. True, Maryn didn't have much family, but she knew she had to hold on to the ones she loves as long as she could. After all, you can not determine when they leave you. Maryn laughed. "Well, I tell Nate a lot about my life is all. He gets lonely, you know? He's in a rehab center still, but he just needs people to talk to. And I promise, no embarrassing stories well, not too embarrassing." She said laughing. Maryn nodded to Kia's response to her question. "Well, you won't be alone until I'm dead. Face it Brightstar, your stuck with me. And I won't die unless it's from chocolate cake." She said laughing. "Speaking of.." Maryn pulled out her wand. "Accio cake." She repeated and waved her wand. After a moment, and a few crashed, it came through the open door. "Eww, it's old." She said eying the moldy cake. "I think I haven't completely mastered that spell yet or the kitchen is getting dirty." She laughed.

[Kia Brightstar]

"I also regret not eating some cake last night," Kia added jokingly, lightening the mood. She didn't like telling people about her regrets - didn't even like knowing about them herself. It almost scared her that she regretted, on some level, being as close to her sister as she was. It would have been nice to play sister rather than mother but everyone had to deal with the cards that life dealt them. No matter what, she would win the game of cards she had been dealt in to. "Regrets are good things, I think. They give you a way to explore what could have been, without altering the reality of what is. Like I said, if I had forced my father to pay some more attention to Kae, I wouldn't be as close to her and that would affect me as well. I wouldn't be the same Kia Brightstar that I am." Kia paused to think, pondering what life would have been like if she wasn't as close to Kae. "I would be quieter," Kia decided. "Because I always felt that I had to be happy and upbeat for Kae and my dad. I'd probably read a lot more too, because I wouldn't be amusing Kae all the time. But I wouldn't be as responsible, nor would I be able to pick up on peoples feelings as well as I do now."

Kia nodded. "I know how you feel," she reassured Maryn. "I feel like something's changing at home too and I want to be there, to make sure everything's okay. I mean, Dad can't keep an eye on Kae because he's always working and Aunt Amelia can't look after her all the time. So I almost feel like it's something bad, but I can't bring myself to think that it is bad. Maybe Kae's finally shown some magic." Kia suggested hopefully. "Then I don't like growing up," Kia whined playfully. "I enjoyed not having to worry about what other people thought and I certainly don't want to always be thinking about Ci - about boys," Kia corrected herself quickly, not wanting Maryn to notice that she had almost said Ciaran instead of boys but almost hoping that she did. It was a complicated feeling. Kia wrinkled her nose. "I don't love anyone though. Well, I love my family and you're my best friend but that's all really. It's not like I'm in love with anyone."

"When Adam's around, I feel like I have a brother; someone I can get strength from and trust completely." Kia commented. "I closed up a lot after my Mum died; wouldn't speak to anyone and didn't even acknowledge that I had a little sister. I blamed her," Kia admitted wryly. "I blamed an innocent baby for taking the life of the most important people in the world. Because after my Mum died, it was like my Dad did too. He was never around. It was the first time in my life that I had ever felt alone. Aunt Amelia was always looking after Kaelyn and my uncle wasn't actually comfortable being around me until I turned eight. He doesn't know how to handle children so it's no wonder Adam's so wild. It was Adam who looked after me and made me talk again. He wasn't much older than me at the time but he still acted so much like an adult that even his mother was shocked. No one ever seems to realise that he's not just an idiot who plays around and never takes anything serious." For a second, Kia looked disapproving, anger briefly flashing in her eyes. How could anyone underestimate Adam's worth?

"You can tell Nate all about me if it keeps him entertained. Which it will, of course, because it's me." Kia winked playfully. "I entertain everyone because I'm just so wonderful. If you feel the need to share any embarrassing stories with him then just make sure it stays a secret. And don't forget that I have three generations worth of knowledge about pranks available to me if I need to use it on either of you." Kia threatened jokingly before smiling gratefully at Maryn's firm reply that she was stuck with her. "Aww. Stuck with you forever," Kia whined lightly. "I'll have to get some chocolate cake...but not that cake." Kia shuddered exaggeratedly. "No one deserves to have to eat that cake. But I do think it's your spellwork, and not the kitchens, that sucks. Unless you meant to get a moldy cake?"