Ethan's House party! (Iris first, then everyone!)

[Esmeralda Mendez]

((this is Ethan by the way, I forgot to log off and switch charries ))

The Hogwarts Express slowed down, and eventually stopped at King’s Cross Station. This was it. It was officially summer holidays now. No more magic, no more Hogwarts. No more common room, no more Great Hall. What he had now was no more homework, no more annoying teachers, and plenty of house parties with his muggle friends back in London. All this and more was gone, at least until September first arrived. Then he had to go back. He had exams next year, and wasn’t exactly looking forward to it. Ethan pushed his hair out of his face as he picked up his trunk and his owl Benny to leave. He hauled them out onto Platform 9 ¾ where he met his mother and father, who were waiting to see him again. They smiled and waved and his mother ran up and gave him plenty of hugs and kisses.

“Mum!” Ethan said, slightly embarrassed.

“Oh, we’re just so happy to see you again, honey!”

“Thanks mum.” He said, smiling at his parents.

“I’m afraid we can’t stay long, the Ministry has got a load of work for us and we’ve got to get going, so we’re going to apparate back home and we’ll see you in the morning.” Said his mother.

“And no house parties!” His father said sternly. “I’ve already ordered Marty to report back to us if anyone other than us walks through that door.” Ethan smiled. He could already see a loophole in this plan. Marty was like a robot. If you told him nobody can walk through the door, he wouldn’t mind if people came in through the downstairs window.

“Yes, dad.” He said, trying to conceal his mischievous smile. He grabbed onto his mother’s arm and the next second, he was at home, and his parents were halfway to the Ministry. Ethan immediately released Benny from his cage and gave him a small piece of parchment. He scribbled an invitation on it (Ethan’s having a house party! End of Term! Muggles will be present! Send an owl back if you don’t know where to find me. Although most of you do.) and told Benny to give it to every Hogwarts student he could find. The second he left, Ethan pulled out his cell phone. He called every one of his muggle friends (which was already about thirty people) and invited them over. He placed a sign outside the door that said “Through the Window…there’s stairs, no worries!” and twenty minutes later, his first guest arrived. She was in Gryffindor, in his year too. Ethan knew her and talked to her often, but they weren’t really good friends.

[Iris Eldridge G5]

Iris sighed as she rested the side of her cheek against the cool glass, her blue eyes staring vacantly out the window. The train was beginning to slow down, which build the anticipation for everyone to head home. However, Iris wasn’t exactly looking forward to going home. It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy that summer holidays were in place, but she just didn’t want to deal with another summer with her family. She loved her parents equally, even her oldest brother who lives in Switzerland, it was just, everything was stressful. The arguments, slamming of various doors, taunting from her brother, it was a miracle that Iris still remained sane. The train bolted to a stop, causing Iris’s forehead to slam into the glass. Groaning, she rubbed her forehead ignoring the laughs from the other girls in the compartment. Looking up from her lap she watched her friends take their trunks from the overhead compartments before saying their last goodbyes. “I’ll see you later Iris!” they all told her, bending down so each could get a hug. Iris just smiled, hugging back, but staying behind as everyone began to pile out of the train. She didn’t exactly feel like getting of the train to look for her father. Her mother of course was working, which left Iris’s dad to pick her up from the train station. Normally, Iris would take another train to Scotland, but she didn’t feel like traveling another long day just to get back home. Looking out the window, she saw at least a dozen parents hug their kids and others just waiting in the crowd. She couldn’t spot the tall, large build of her father, which meant he wasn’t here yet. Iris knew her father would be late. “Probably working on another one of his projects at home,” she mumbled to herself, her intense blue eyes still staring out the window.

When everything seemed to settle down, she finally stood from her spot on the seat. Taking her trunk out and setting it down on the ground, Iris than picked up her cat carrier, putting it on top of the trunk. Frankie was still sleeping inside the carrier, exhausted from his constant meowing from the beginning of the train ride. Pulling the trunk upright, Iris wheeled it out of the small compartment and out onto the platform. There was only a large group of students chatting to each other, looking almost old enough to apparate. Iris wished she was old enough to do magic outside of school, but she was still only fifteen. She would have to wait another two years before being able to curse her brother’s mouth shut. The thought excited Iris as she ran through the brick wall onto the muggle platform. Her father normally picked her up at the ticket booth of the station since he was too lazy to walk the extra way through the wall. Iris didn’t mind too much, since her father never went to Hogwarts, but Durmstrang. Her mother however, was the one who attended Hogwarts. “Iris!” called a familiar deep voice as she entered the small entrance to the station. Her father was easy to spot in large crowds, since he was tall. Smiling, she hugged him briefly as he took her trunk from her hand. “Hey dad,” Iris replied quietly, quickly taking Frankie’s cage before it almost tipped over. “Ready to go home?” Iris just smiled and nodded her head as they walked out of the station to someplace secluded before taking her father’s hand and disapparte into thin air.

It didn’t take long for the pressure in Iris’s lungs to expand as she stood in the kitchen of the Eldridge’s small cottage. Shaking her head, Iris watched her father out of the corner of her eye as he carried her trunk up the stairs. “There’s a letter for you on the table,” he yelled from upstairs as she heard the door to her room open. With a raised eyebrow, Iris took the piece of paper from the counter, heading up the stairs. “Whose the letter from?” her father called out from his work room just before Iris could even enter her room. Tearing the letter open, she let out a sigh of relief at the party invitation, happy that she could get out of the house for a while. “A friend…Hey I’m going to go to a friend’s house tonight,” Iris yelled back as she ignored his last mumble, entering her bedroom. Everything looked exactly how she left it. Her green and pink colored bed sheets all nicely tucked, along with the white carpet cleaned. Well, her room wasn’t going to stay like this forever. It would probably only take a couple days before there were clothes thrown all over the ground and her sheets were tossed aside on the floor. Opening her closet, Iris took out two black shirts; one long sleeved the other short with a white vertical strip on the side. Pulling the shirts on, Iris left on her dark jean Bermuda shorts as she grabbed her wallet and wand, stuffing them into her pockets. She ruffled her hair slightly, moving the bang so it was brushing into her eye.

Iris was slightly happy with her appearance as she finally reached her destination. Ethan was already waiting by the door as she reached the front steps. “Hey Ethan!” she called with a small smile on her face as she entered his house. “You never get tired of throwing parties do you?” With a raised eyebrow, Iris crossed her arms over her chest noticing that she was the first one there. “A party is a good way to start off the summer holiday…I’m just glad to get out of the house for a while.”

((Sorry it took me so long to get here. I kind of got carried away with this post, but thats what happens when I get a new charrie.))

[Ethan Jacobs G5]

Ethan waited outside in case the first guest didn't know better not to use the door. It was locked anyway. He wasn't going to get caught, no matter what. He greeted Iris with a wave as he opened up the window which had a small stool under it for those people who needed the reassurance that they wouldn't fall the two and a half feet. Iris smiled as she walked up to him. She was very beautiful, he had to admit. Ethan remembered the days at Hogwarts that he had flirted with her, he smirked.

"Right this way," He said, pointing to the window.

"We're going through the window for insurance that this will stay an unsupervised party. You see, mum and dad told dear old Marty the house elf to alert them if anyone other than me walks through the door; however, they said nothing about the window!" He gave Iris a mischievous smile as he climbed through the window. He looked around the house with a frown. The furniture was everywhere and there was no room to dance. The rooms had no locks or "Do Not Disturb Signs", there was no good music playing, and there were no refreshments.

"Now, this place looks hardly fit enough for a house party, does it?" Ethan leaned against the stairs.

"Marty! Can you do me a quick favor, please?" Ethan shouted, and sure enough, Marty popped in front of him within seconds.

"Can you please make this place party friendly? And please, make it fast, our guests will be here momentarily."

"Yes, master Ethan! Right away sir!" Ethan smiled.

"I love that little elf; I could never do all this without him." He smirked as he watched Marty move the furniture, turn on music, and place "Do Not Disturb Signs on the front table. He then popped out of the room and came back about a minute later with a large keg of beer, chips, soda, and other party refreshments.

"I have a secret stash of party stuff up in my room. I've been hiding stuff in that secret place for years and mum and dad still haven't found it." Ethan smirked.

"You're looking very lovely tonight, Iris. I must say, this is only a house party, not a beauty contest, but you know if it were, you would surely win my vote." Ethan put his hands in his jeans pocket and sat down on the leather couch, which was now pushed against the wall.

"You want to see something cool?" Ethan asked Iris as he got up to get a cup of beer. He sat back down, and without waiting for an answer, he poured it all on the couch. The second it was about to hit the furniture, it slid onto the floor, as if the furniture was protected by an invisible barrier. The second it hit the ground however, it turned dark, as if it was no longer beer anymore.

"The furniture barrier was mum's spell, and the beer to soda trick was my cousin's. Everything in this house is completely party proof." Ethan smiled as he grabbed a handful of chips.

"So how was your fourth year? Mine was boring as hell. I still feel I should have told Snape off for being such a git, but the smart side of me told me to wait until the end of seventh year." He smiled as he imagined himself hexing Snape.

[Carey Brighton H5]

Carey looked out the window and down to the ground, then let her eyes travel to her left at the trellis that was against the wall. She hated having to sneak out, but there wasn’t anything else she could do. With a small sigh, Carey dropped her shoes out the window and watched them land with a plop on the grass before swinging her legs out the window and leaning toward the trellis. She grasped it with both hands and then started the climb down, taking steady breaths as she did so. With one final look at the ground (which was now a good 6 feet away), Carey closed her eyes and let go of the trellis. Her feet landed with a slam against the ground and her knees buckled, causing her to slump to the grass with a groan. She regained her composure long enough to slip her feet into her flats and stand, making her way down the street toward the nearest wizarding village. It was how she got around during the school breaks. Everyone in her family could apparate except her because she was underage, and so when Carey had started to do business on her own – her parents had told her how to get to the nearest village so she could use their floo network, considering her parents weren’t connected to floo. She had asked about that once and her father had simply said Floo was a mudblood’s way of getting around. Carey had frowned but didn’t press it, knowing she’d get lectured by her father about how much of a waste of space the muggle borns were on the wizarding community.

She didn’t agree with her father one bit. Her views on blood were the complete opposite. She believed everyone was equal, including house elves, and her father knew of her beliefs. Oh well, Carey thought, tonight is not the night to be thinking about that. She kept her mind cleared as she made her way to Ethan’s, going through floo to another village near his house, and then walking the rest of the way. He had invited her while they were at the club and she figured why not give it a try? Of course, Carey had never really liked parties. Then again, all of the parties she had attended were dinner parties – and those were in turn business parties. A party that was unsupervised was something new to Carey and somehow she knew she wouldn’t like it nearly as much as she hoped she would. Regardless, it was a change for her to sneak out for something other than playing her drums, and that was something that fueled Carey – even though a little voice in the back of her head told her she was going to regret doing this. She finally reached Ethan’s and looked around. It looked… vacant. Carey raised an eyebrow before making her way to the front door, prepared to ring the doorbell before she saw the sign. The window? Well, whatever flew Ethan’s broomstick. Carey turned and climbed in through the window, landing inside the house with a little less grace than she had wanted. Immediately she spotted Ethan and Iris, and fixed her jacket with a small awkward smile, “You know, you could get sued for having people come in through the window if someone ends up breaking something,” she advised Ethan with a quick look and a bright smile.

She surveyed Iris’s outfit and smiled again, “You look great!” Iris was a friend of Carey, one of the only friends she had outside of Hufflepuff, and they got along great. Carey found that Iris was a fun person to be around and she always got herself into the stickiest of situations. Just a couple of days ago she had gotten her hand stuck in a trick at Zonko’s Joke Shop in Hogsmeade. It was amusing, but Carey figured not exactly something she would have liked to have happening to her. With that compliment given, Carey looked down at her own outfit. A simple pair of jeans with black flats and a nice purple silk spaghetti strap and a white leather jacket. Her brown hair was curled as usual and down with a purple headband. Carey always made it a point to look her best, but she didn’t care too much how she looked as long as she felt it was her best. As long as she felt comfortable. Carey was confusing like that. After a moment, Carey looked back up at them and then took a seat on the couch beside Ethan. “I hope this party is actually entertaining, Ethan, I had to sneak out to get here,” she raised her eyebrows at him and then laughed lightly. Carey was herself. She wasn’t being the good daughter because her parents weren’t around to watch. She felt herself relax and it was something she was enjoying.

[Kain Damien R3]

Kain sat in his room reading a book he got from his mother. He was relaxing after a long, tiring year at Hogwarts. He put the book away, it didn't really fascinate him anymore. He walked over to his cupboard and put the book in it. He opened his bedroom window for some fresh air when he saw a small owl approaching his house. He recognised the owl as Ethan's, a 5th year Gryffindor. He hadn't really met Ethan, but he did meet his girlfriend Esmeralda. He had seen Ethan around though on the schoolgrounds. The owl approached the window and dropped a small letter in Kain's room. He opened the piece of parchment and read: Ethan’s having a house party! End of Term! Muggles will be present! Send an owl back if you don’t know where to find me. Although most of you do. Kain smiled. " Wicked. "

He knew where he lived, Esmeralda told him earlier. He walked downstairs and looked for his mum. She was nowhere to be seen. Nor was his father. All he saw was his sister lying on the couch with a blanket watching tv. " Suse, where's mum and dad? " He asked his sister. " They're out. Dad had a conference in London, they're gone for the week. " She informed her older brother. Kain smirked. " Okay, well, I'm off to a party Ethan Jacobs is throwing, I don't know what time I'll be back, don't wait up. And go to sleep on time. " He told his sister. " You've got my cell number if something comes up. I'll see you later." He said and took off.

After a little while he arrived at the house. He walked up to the door and turned the handle, but it was locked. He knocked.

[Ethan Jacobs G5]

Ethan was having a great time talking to Iris, although he figured she felt quite uncomfortable being all alone with Ethan, who tended to be very intimidating with his upfront and shameless flirting. Suddenly, a figure appeared through the window. It was Carey, a friend of his from the pureblood only country club his family attended on Friday nights. Ethan smiled as he greeted her at the window. She looked quite beautiful in the purple outfit.

"Hello, Carey. It's very nice to see you. How did you dodge security?" Ethan was referring to Carey's parents, who watched her like a hawk constantly. Ethan rather disliked Carey's father, but he never said anything to contradict Carey's opinion on her father.

Carey went to sit next to Ethan. He smiled. "Wow, Carey, I didn't know you liked me like that!" Ethan chuckled, he knew Carey really didn't have any interest in him, and neither did he, but it was fun to just pop in those little comments now and then. "Ah, I'm just kidding. Anyway, everyone should be here soon, I just sent the owl out. In the meantime, grab yourself a drink. I bet you've never had a beer before. It's a muggle drink, plus we're underage. But while you're on your rebellious streak, why not make the most of it? Just not too much, I'm not dragging your drunk self back to your house, I'll be murdered." Ethan chuckled as he poured two plastic cups full of beer. He took a sip of his, and held out the other cup for Carey. Suddenly, he heard a knock on the door. Hadn't they seen the sign on the door? Ethan sighed as he placed the plastic cup on the table and went to the window. He had a clear view of the front doorstep. Standing there was a third year boy he didn't know, and a crowd of muggle teenagers walking up to the house behind him.

"Through the window, kid!" Ethan yelled out the window. Some people just couldn't read signs. But everyone was welcome at Ethan's. Just so long as they weren't over the age of twenty, and they didn't do anything to deserve being kicked out.

[Kain Damien R3]

"Through the window, kid!" Ethan yelled out the window. Kain looked up. " Got it, thanks!" He replied. He walked over to the window and climbed through it. He walked up to the stairs to go to the living room where he entered the room. " Uh, hi. I'm Kain Damien. " He told Ethan. " I know who you are, but you don't know me. "He said. " I'm a Ravenclaw. " Aron whispered, not knowing if Muggles were present. " I got your owl a little while ago, thought I'd check the party out. " Kain told Ethan. " Little surprised though, getting an owl at this time, I thought I wouldn't get any for a long while. " Kain explained. He sat down on a chair and relaxed.

After a little while a few sure-to-be Muggles came in and Kain started to conversate with pretty much all people, he was at ease. He looked at Ethan who was talking to a girl Kain didn't know.

[Ethan Jacobs G5]

Suddenly, guests started to pour in. Muggle boys shouted their hellos as they entered through the window with beer kegs, bags of chips, soda, and some even came empty handed. As the girls entered, they greeted him with winks and flirty hello's. Ethan welcomed them all in and the party was now in full swing. Ethan drained his cup of beer and got up to get another. He noticed that nearly all of the "Do Not Disturb" signs were taken, there was only one left. He smirked as he walked over to a muggle girl named Emily, who often enjoyed Ethan's company. She had blonde hair and blue eyes and was a complete pain in the neck as a girlfriend, but she was an amazing kisser. He walked up to her with a flirty smile.

"How about we go up to my room and have a little fun? We haven't kissed in ages! My lips are starting to get rusty! Would you like to loosen them for me?" Ethan gave her the sign and she followed him up the steps. They placed the sign on the door and entered. They had been there no more than five minutes when someone barged in on them. It was that stupid Ravenclaw kid that knocked on the door before.

"Hey man! I was a little busy! ...Whatever, just grab a beer, and maybe someday, you'll have a hot girl snogging you! It might be sooner than you think! Go downstairs and find yourself a girl while we get back to our fun!" Ethan smirked, but suddenly, Emily's cell phone rang. She picked it up, and by the sound of her angry voice, her mother was on the other end. She hung up and frowned. "I'm sorry Ethan! My mum's outside, she saw my stash in my room...looks like I'm busted!"She climbed out of the window and Ethan turned to look at the third year and smiled.

"Sorry about that, it's the price you've got to pay at a party I guess. How about we go downstairs? Is this your first party?" He said, looking at the boy and spotting Iris and Carey, who looked very angry at his friend Steve, who looked extremely drunk.

"Hey Steve."He said, without enthusiasm. He never liked when people got carried away at parties. Some people just didn't know their limits. "Ladies, is there a problem here?" He said, looking suspiciously at Steve.

[Isabelle Leynette R3]

Isabelle hummed softly to herself as she continued to unpack her heavy trunk. She decided she could leave her books alone, but knew she had to unpack her clothes. Most people her age despised cleaning and where very unorganized. Not Belle. She strived for perfection and sometimes toke it too far. She had a system in her room, in particular her closet. Her clothes where arranged in categories of size, color, and type; as well as her shoes and bags. No one really knew about her obsession with keeping her things spic and span, well maybe the maid did. But she never spoke to Eloise. Isabella wasn’t around usually and didn’t see a reason she needed to. The clothes seemed to be packed miles deep, but Bella was unfazed by the amount of clothes she had. It was sad really. You would think she would stop shopping after she couldn’t find enough room in her trunk her last two years, yet some how a few new items of clothing would appear in her trunk in every month. With in an hour of arriving she had already unpacked all the blues and greens and had just started on the reds. She was putting her red sweater on a hanger when her mother’s voice pierced the silence. “Isabella Renee.” Her mother’s voice called again. Belle picked herself up from the floor and headed down stairs sweater still in her hand.


“Yes.” She asked lazily as she entered the large sitting room. Her mother looked up from her magazine. “Two things.” Her mom said as she went back to reading. “One, that sweater is ugly get rid of it.” She said after finishing the article and turning the page. “And two, a house elf arrived dropping off an invitation to a party. Did you know about this?” Her mother asked absently as she went back to reading. Isabelle picked up the invitation and looked it over. “Uhm, no I didn’t, but I’m going to check it out if you don’t mind.” She told her mother as she threw the sweater down and headed towards the door. “Not dressed like that your not.” Her mom said with disgust. “Go back to your room and change.” She advised her. Bella sighed. “Fine.” She called as she run up the stairs. Isabella looked into her closet. What could she wear? She finally decided on a low cut green tank top and a cropped white jacket to go over it. She loved the way they looked with her dark washed jeans. She just didn’t like her dark brown hair up in a ponytail. She quickly pulled it out and headed down the stairs. “Better she asked her mother who was still reading. “Much.” Her mother said as she looked at her daughter. “Have fun.” She told her enthusiastically and went back to her magazine once more. But Isabella was already out the door.

By some miracle Belle found Ethan’s house. She was about to knock on the front door until she read the sign. She made her way to the window and climbed down. She made it to the stairs and tried following her amazing, or not so, direction skills. Some how she made it to where the guests where a. “So. I’m here.” She announced to all the unfamiliar faces. Maybe it was a bad idea coming.


{{ sorry it rushed, i have family over.}}

[Iris Eldridge G5]

Iris’s eyebrow rose at Ethan at Ethan as he said they were going to go through the window. Looking at the sign on the lawn she shrugged, the wave of shock passing by as Ethan first climbed through the window. Stepping onto the stool, she swung her legs over the edge, sliding down onto her feet. “Makes me feel more like a burglar going through the window, then to an unsupervised party,” she told him with smirk resting her hands on her hips as Ethan leaned against the wall complaining about the house not being party ready. Well he was right, unless he wanted to go for the whole, parents talking over cocktails with their friend’s party kind of vibe. Nodding her head, she jumped slightly as the house elf apparated in front of them. Her family didn’t have a house elf. Iris’s mother believed in her children cleaning up after themselves, and she didn’t like elves very much growing up. Watching as the elf disappear she cocked her head to the side as Ethan chatted on, throwing out one of his usual compliments. Iris wanted to point out the biggest flaw in her body, but instead just shrugged. “Me? Beauty pageant material? Have you gone bonkers, Ethan?” she asked looking down at her shoes then up at Ethan. “I’m not exactly Ms. World Peace kind of girl.” Looping her arms through the belt holder of her jean shorts she watched as Ethan tried to spill beer on the couch. The smell of the liquid made Iris wince as she smiled. “My mum has the same charm, but on the curtains instead of the couch.” When he asked about her fourth year, Iris just shrugged. “It was alright I guess…if you do try to hex Professor Snape, then you would end up in detention for the rest of the year. Merlin knows what kind of things he makes students do.” Iris had only been in detention ones and all she knew was it sucked. “So how’s the new girlfriend this week, Ethan? Are we going younger, or older?”

Turning her attention toward the window, Iris grinned as she saw Carey coming their way. Thank goodness she knew someone beside Ethan coming to this party. When he friend compliment her, Iris just wanted to snort and say yeah right, but kept it to herself. “Well, I don’t have the whole sophisticated mix with wild side completely down…love the head band though,” she told Carey with a grin watching as Ethan poured a couple of beers out. He knew Iris didn’t drink, and never would after she had gotten grounded for nearly a month by her mother. Taking the cup from Carey’s hand, she set it down on the table. “Trust me…it isn’t all that its cracked up to be,” she told her friend grinning as a knock flooded through the house. “If you drink as well, Carey, then I would have to lug you home…Ethan would be making out with almost every muggle girl that comes here.” Smirking at him as he stood from the couch, Iris took his spot beside Carey watching the cup. “I give him only ten seconds before he’s already got one girl hocked and ready to go,” Iris said with a laugh as she crossed her legs looking up at all the people now crowding the room. “It’s sometimes fun to watch drunken people, so much more entertaining then your parents at a party, getting drunk off wine.” Iris grinned as she looked over at her friend. “Maybe we could find something real to drink that doesn’t contain any alcohol…unless you wanted to take a sip of that beer,” Iris asked motioning her head toward the cup.

Before she could even say anything else, a boy was standing in front of them, the smell of beer clearly on his breath. Iris gagged slightly as she crossed her arms over her chest. “So…what…a couple of pretty ladies like you all lonesome,” he said making Iris contain a laugh that was forming in her throat. Looking toward Carey she sighed, “This is what I mean by how idiotically embarrassing drunk people are.” Iris nodded looking back at the boy who seemed quite confused on what she meant. He seemed to be saying something else, but Ethan came up to them. Looking over at Ethan, she noticed the girl he was hanging out with before was gone. Shrugging she sighed as the other boy left them. “I swear I was this close to punching that bloke in the face,” she said with a small smile standing up from the couch. “I’m gonna turn this music to something…that doesn’t quite make me want to throw up or take aspirin.” Glancing a both of them for a brief moment, Iris left looking for the source of the music.

[Carey Brighton H5]

Carey teased her hair over her shoulder and twirled it around her finger in thought as Ethan asked about how she dodged security, “I jumped out my window?” She shrugged with a small smile, trying to make it appear as if that was no big deal when in all actuality it was a huge deal. Carey wasn’t one to jump out of windows and sneak out of houses. She just wasn’t. She was a good daughter who always did what she was told to do. After she had taken a seat beside Ethan, he let out a remark about her liking him and all Carey could do was roll her eyes with an amused smile; “Don’t flatter yourself, Jacobs, I don’t think much of crushes, remember?” They had talked about how Carey viewed relationships and crushes. She thought they were a waste of time and energy. In truth, Carey figured she was just afraid of them. She was afraid of a new thing in her life. She didn’t know if she was more afraid of change or if she was more afraid of letting someone see every bit of her. Even though she was certain she didn’t hide anything from anyone. Well, no, she wasn’t certain because her thoughts just weren’t straight anymore. No matter, the point remained… she didn’t like anyone and she wouldn’t anytime soon.

When Ethan offered her beer, Carey raised her eyebrows rather high. She knew what beer was. She was pureblooded, not muggle deficient. Nonetheless, Carey wouldn’t want to drink it anyway. She wasn’t much for alcohol. She used to have a glass of wine at dinner with her parents or at a business meeting she’d have something with a lower concentration of alcohol, but after awhile Carey just started refusing anything alcohol and everyone respected that. Before she could tell Ethan she didn’t much like beer, he was off and away to greet some newcomers. Carey sighed and looked at the cup of beer in her hand as Iris took Ethan’s place, “Honestly, do I look like a girl who drinks beer, Iris?” She asked her friend with a confused smile on her face. Iris took the cup of beer and set it down, telling her it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Carey didn’t bother to tell her she knew that, she just sat back in her seat and laughed when Iris said she gave Ethan ten minutes before he was snogging some girl. “Nah, not even ten.” Carey replied as more and more people started to show up, “These girls are drawn to him like moths to a flame. If there’s a girl out there who’s dropped her brain somewhere, she’ll be with him in five…” Carey shook her head and pushed her hair over her shoulder again as Iris talked about drunken people. She wouldn’t know. She hadn’t ever seen any. She nodded at the suggestion to find something non-alcoholic, happily loving the idea.

She was about to stand when a guy came up and started to talk to them. Carey had to bite back a smart remark, when Iris said this was what she meant about idiotically embarrassing drunken people and Carey laughed. Ethan then appeared and Iris made her exit, “She would’ve, you know,” Carey told Ethan with a strong look, “punched him in the face. Iris is one tough chick, Ethan.” She looked around the room at all the people who were partying. It was definitely not her type of place. She didn’t belong with all the people who drank alcohol or danced or went snogging in an empty room. Carey belonged in board rooms and although she had a teenage side to her, she knew that it wasn’t one of these types of teenage sides. She wasn’t wild and rebellious, not to an extreme and she loved that. She loved that she could still be responsible and have fun. Carey looked at Ethan again, “Some party you’ve got here…”

[Ethan Jacobs G5]

Ethan was enjoying his party. He had everything he could ever want. He felt on top of the world. He was rich, famous, had tons of friends who liked him for who he was and not how much pocket money he had, (although he knew some of his 'friends' did) he had about thirty girls in this room alone who would gladly go on a date with him, and he had parents that loved and trusted him enough to leave him alone so much. Ethan never stopped to think that he took advantage of the situation far too much. He had betrayed his parent's trust by doing this, but that didn't matter to Ethan much, it was their fault they weren't around to watch him. Ethan's parents knew perfectly well what was going on in their homes while they were away, they just didn't take much time to care. They brushed it away as a 'phase' and continued on with their demanding careers. Parties were Ethan's way of coping with it all. The only healthy (or not so healthy) way to keep him sane. He looked around the living room. Everyone was having an excellent time, dancing or having fun. There was just one girl who had just walked in, that looked hesitant; almost as if she had regretted coming. She said something out loud, but to no one in particular. She was much younger than he; two years younger at the least. Ethan wasn't interested in this girl, but he did want to show her a good time. He would not have anyone having a bad time in his home.

Ethan barely noticed when Carey talked to him. He didn't want to be rude, so he'd give it another minute or so before it was time to go talk to the younger girl. He thought Carey had said something about the party, so he figured he'd just respond accordingly, so as not to be rude. If his parents had taught him anything, it's never be rude to guests in your home.

"Yea, my parties are pretty much always like this. Everyone must be having a good time, or else I don't have a good time. I like to keep a motto of 'all or nothing' when it comes to my parties. If my parents taught me anything useful, it was to be that I have to make sure my guests have a good time. It's all kind of engraved in my head by now." Ethan smiled at Carey and Iris and glanced over at the girl.

"Speaking of pleasing my guests, there is one girl just over there that looks like she could use some pleasing. Poor little thing. And no worries girls, she's just slightly too young for me." He smirked. Maybe he would ask her to dance? Or maybe she was one that needed to be shown where the snacks were. He knew Carey wasn't much of a dancer, and he also knew many other girls acted the same. Sometimes Ethan didn't understand what was so hard about dancing. You just swayed with the music. He knew some girls weren't like that though, some were just plain deaf. It was like they couldn't hear the music at all by the look of their dancing. Other girls insisted they couldn't dance, but had serious hidden potentials. Ethan had learned that not all girls were the same. They each had their own significant traits. That was why it was near impossible to understand girls in general. He learned that to understand women, you must first understand the specific girl. He walked up to the younger girl and smiled.

"I noticed you from across the room. You didn't seem to be having a good time. How about I show you one? Would you like to dance...umm?" Ethan hesitated. He didn't know her name, nor did she know his. Not as far as he knew anyway.

"I'm sorry, I don't quite know your name. I'm Ethan Jacobs by the way, welcome to my home."

[Loki Fen'Rolphus G6]

Loki just opened a book on ancient cultures of the Americas that he had been particularly excited to read when the owls started showing up. He sighed as he took each one from each owl, at least eight, knowing that these would be the only letters he’d probably get all summer from these friends. No one really wrote him too much because he had a nasty habit of not writing back. Well, no one but Carey, but he replied to her messages no problem. These people however? Where the kids who never wrote, the ones who only wrote when they needed something. This information in these owls however, was imperative. A party. Loki laughed. Ethan’s party. Wow that kid didn’t wait for anything. Loki had no doubt he was one of those kids whose parents just let him run rampant and do anything he wanted. Either that or his parents were never around. Loki thought about it for a minute and some part him said to give the kid a break. Loki hadn’t considered why Ethan might be the way he was, just that he was. Oh well, tonight if he ran into Ethan he’d make up for his attitude on the train. Loki wasn’t a jerk by nature…he just had his moments. He read each letter separately, every one of them wanted to know if Loki was going to show up at the party and each debated its author’s intentions of going or not going. Loki knew half of them probably wouldn’t show up, but he thought he’d make nice and go. Plus, he didn’t know if this was going to be the last party he’d go to all year. He might as well make the best of it.

Loki picked out the one letter he was interested in replying too and sent it off with it’s owl in a hurry. The other owls he sent off with simple messages; “I don’t know.” He didn’t really care who showed up or didn’t, surely someone interesting would be there. In a few moments there was a loud crack and his friend was standing in his room, looking around nervously. “Is Shaant here?” The guy said quietly. Loki laughed. “Nah, he’s working late. I really appreciate this.” The guy shook his head and smirked at Loki. “You’re such a kid, when do you get your apparating license anyways?” Loki grabbed a book and tossed it at him. “September, now let’s go you dim wit, I’m ready to see how this kid throws parties.” Loki stood and rolled his eyes as his friend gripped his shoulder, pulling him painfully along as they popped out of the room. When Loki came back to himself he looked around and found himself standing next to his friend in the middle of a street, a muggle neighborhood. “How did you know where to go by the way?” Loki looked at his friend questioningly and the guy shrugged guiltily. “Kid throws some pretty good parties.” Loki shook his head disappointed and shoved his friend. “Get home; your mummy’ll be worried.” The two laughed and soon enough Loki was heading up the street by himself towards the loudest house on the block. He got to the house and crossed his arms, looking at it and raising an eyebrow. He read the sign on the grass and shrugged carelessly before walking to the window and hosting himself through it.

He looked around the room and noticeably grimaced. He hadn’t realized how muggle the party would be. The music that was playing was bound to give him a headache and he found that he didn’t recognize anyone he saw at first. Ethan wasn’t anywhere in site and that disappointed Loki; he was hoping to apologize to Ethan. Oh well he thought as he looked for someone, anyone he recognized. It was far more complicated then he thought. He walked through the crowd of teenagers and dodged quite a few wobbly ones. He could honestly say he’d never seen this many drunk kids in his life. It was all rather sad actually. He shook his head at a few of him before he saw something, well, someone, who brightened his night. He grinned and skipped to the couch, hoping onto it and laying down, resting his head in Carey’s lap and looking up at her with a clever smirk. “Well hello there gorgeous, who would have thought I’d see you here eh?”

[Isabelle Leynette R3]

She folded her arms across her chest and frowned. She barely knew any of these people. She had been warned there would be some muggles, but this was pushing it. Most of them where drunk; and one person had thrown up behind her. Making her feel nauseas herself. She moved aside so he wouldn’t stain her shoes. She began to walk around so it looked like she wasn’t that bored. She just happened to walk by a group of muggles who where way past tipsy. They seemed to be playing a game where they screamed ‘woo’ in strange intervals. They where also blocking her path, for there where about ten of them. She sighed and put on a smile she used often, one that helped her keep her patience. “Excuse gentlemen.” She said trying to squeeze past them. They wouldn’t let her. She sighed as the group gave her a weird look. She sighed again on the verge of losing her cool. “Woo?” She tried unsure of the reaction she would receive. This time she was allowed to pass at the same time receiving cheers and claps on the back as she finally made it to the other side. She let out her breath slowly. Why had she decided to come? The host was no where in sight, there were too many drunken people here, and did she smell smoke? She was unnerved. Why had she been invited if the host wouldn’t even greet her? It was a stupid and selfish thought, but she was entitled to it. Belle let her eyes wander the room. ‘Hmm.’ she thought to herself. ‘The beer is over there so if I stay here I might be safe from any more throwing up.’ This thought was one of disgust. She knew this home would actually look rather nice if not for the kids throwing up and trying to demolish it. She finally spot a piece of wall that was empty, she decided she would occupy it for the time being. She leaned against it and looked around the room. She wondered which drunken idiot was they host. They all seemed to be drunken idiots who were only making bigger fools out of themselves. Yet even after they did something stupid like moon a random crowd member, the received more and more applause. Maybe this was a drunken thing. She was left out of that group. She looked the other direction. Some guy was dancing like a lunatic while his girlfriend was giggling next to him. She wondered if it would be rude to go home before speaking to the guest. ‘How would he know I was even here?’ the more logical part of her brain asked her. She agreed with herself and began to make her way back towards the open window that would lead to the street and back towards her house where there were plenty of clothes waiting to get folded. She got of the wall and walked into the heavy traffic of the party when something made her stop.

It was a voice. Damn, she had been found. She turned around a smiled trying not to show her disappointment of being discovered before she made a clean getaway. "I noticed you from across the room. You didn't seem to be having a good time.” The boy said. She thought to herself this was the host, after all who would care. She seemed to be one of the younger guests. Older people seemed to ignore younger people. “How about I show you one? Would you like to dance...umm?" he trailed of and she smirked. He didn’t even know her name. He didn’t know her name and invited her. Who even did that? ‘Ah, him?” her more logical side told her and she rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry; I don't quite know your name. I'm Ethan Jacobs by the way, welcome to my home." He told her. She smiled. So he was the host after all. “It’s Belle.” She said, but her words were lost with the rest of the noise of the party. She spoke louder this time, so he could hear her. “It’s Belle.” She told him having to lean in closer for she didn’t want to scream. “It’s quite a party you have here … Ethan was it?” She continued. The music switched to something weirder, less danceable then the last song. She frowned. It was of course muggle music. “Well I would agree, except this song is not one I could dance to. Its …” She decided to choose her words wisely. “Different.” She concluded.

[Carey Brighton H5]

Carey barely listened to Ethan as he spoke. His attention was elsewhere, so she could only let hers wander as well. She hardly noticed him leaving at all, but managed a small smile as he retreated away from her. Now, she sunk into the couch and closed her eyes, letting her head fall back against it. Carey listened to her surroundings. There was the music, obviously, loud and obnoxious- and Carey found herself hoping Iris changed it soon- and then there was the laughter and chatter of people socializing. Here and there a sound of vomiting could be heard, causing Carey to grimace noticeably. She took a deep breath and tried to focus on something else entirely. She tapped her fingers on the arm rest of the couch. Just tapping a rhythm out. She could amuse herself this way for hours if need be. It was just one of those things that Carey loved doing. She didn’t really notice how long she had been sitting alone, just tapping out a rhythm in her head (one completely different to that of the music that was playing, oddly enough) but she was quickly pulled out of her mind when someone hopped onto the couch and laid their head in her lap.

Her eyes popped open and she lifted her head to look down at the person, ready to spew a brush off from her mouth. When she saw who it was, however, Carey merely smiled brightly at Loki’s greeting. This party just suddenly became a lot brighter. She tapped Loki’s forehead once with her finger and smiled down at him, “You’re stalking me, Fen’Rolphus, I’ve come to that conclusion.” Without really much thinking about what she was doing, she relaxed into the couch and moved her hand to his hair. Carey was just comfortable with Loki, they had been hanging out nearly all summer long and it made it easy for Carey to be the way she was with him. Playing with his hair was nothing odd for her to do, not that she had done it before. It was new, a new step into their already touchy flirty jesty relationship – but she knew he wouldn’t mind and if he did – he’d tell her, no problem. “Welcome to the party of the century, Loki! Equipped with its very own pack of drunken teenagers, obnoxiously loud music, and flirty teenage boys…point in case…” Carey looked around and nodded toward Ethan, “Ethan Jacobs, the host of this luxurious shindig.”

She let her gaze drop on Loki again and smiled softly at him, twisting a strand of his hair around her pinky finger now; “How’d you get here, hmm? Not by Shaant, I presume. And your birthday isn’t until September so you didn’t apparate here alone…and I didn’t see you come out of the fireplace so you didn’t floo…”

[Loki Fen'Rolphus G6]

“Well what if I am stalking you Miss Brighton? Would you like me to stop?” He smirked as she tapped his head. She had a habit of tapping and drumming on his head, but he didn’t mind. He had a hard head anyways; best put it to good use eh? Carey’s drumming was good use. It was a funny coincidence he had run into Carey Brighton here, he could honestly say he hadn’t expected to find her at a party like this. Carey was far too proper to be seen in the presence of partiers like this, and to be honest, Loki was even probably above the crowd gathered here. Loki went to parties where people knew how to have a good time without the handicap of alcohol. He wasn’t a drinker, Loki. He didn’t do that sort of thing. Shaant kept wine in pantry on occasion, but Loki always refused a glass. It just wasn’t his thing, and drinking like this? Definitely not his thing. Drinking just for the heck of it just didn’t make sense.

He smiled brightly when Carey moved her hand began to play with his hair. It was a simple gesture, but a caring one, if that was the right way to describe it. Loki hadn’t had someone play with his hair since he was a child. He could remember his mother doing it, but that was it. He looked up at Carey for a few moments, just…admiring her. He smiled warmly at her before closing his eyes to enjoy her hand in his hair. Loki could feel his chest buzzing on the edge of a growl but he refrained. He found that refraining from growling when he was extraordinarily happy was very difficult. But…he had been told before that it was just a bit odd to growl in front of people. And as much as he knew Carey wouldn’t mind, heck, she’d probably get a kick out of it, he did his best to refrain. Lycanthropy was primarily a disease that affected men on the night of the full moon, but anyone who carried it could vouch and say that it did have side effects. Growling when happy, urges to run on all fours, and enjoying nearly all red steaks were just a few.

Loki opened his eyes when Carey spoke, smiling up at her again. He couldn’t deny that she was very pretty, probably the prettiest girl he knew. Not to mention smart, clever, fun to be around. Carey just had it all didn’t she? Oh, see, there was that wit again. He chuckled as she described the party and the teenagers, not to mention the music…and, last but not least…flirty boys. Loki looked in the direction Carey nodded, and frowned. So that was the flirty boy eh? Ethan Jacobs, how could he not have known? “He’s been flirting with you? Jeeze, that guy has no limits.” Loki questioned why he had ever been planning on apologizing to the guy. That Jacobs kid needed something far different then an apology…he could surely use with a good chat and maybe a nice foot up the…Loki let his mind trail off, he didn’t know why the thought of Ethan flirting with Carey bothered him so much, but it did. It wasn’t…jealousy…was it? No, no…Loki just cared about her…in clearly friendly ways and he wouldn’t want to see her caught up in a guy like Ethan… He looked up at her suddenly. “What do you think of that Jacobs kid anyways? You’re not like…in love with him like most girls seem to be are you?” Loki looked back at Ethan and watched him talk to a girl, who looked quite a bit younger. That same happy near growl he’d felt a few moments before was suddenly becoming quite a bit more negative. But then Carey spoke again and he looked up at her, smiling warmly again. He was happy that her attention was on him still, not on silly, flirty, little boys with no boundaries. Anyways, he closed his eyes again as she twisted his hair around her finger. “No, no. No Shaant, he’s out of town. Birthday’s on September 10th, see you at my party…” He smirked up at her, but the smirk immediately melted into a soft smile. “And I didn’t floo, hate flooing. Nah, had a friend apparate me. He couldn’t come though, grounded, bad O.W.L grades.” Loki chuckled and smiled up at her still. “What are you doing here ma’am? I didn’t think to see a classy girl like you at a place like this?” He thought and then looked up at her again, moving his free hands to take hers, playing with it as she played with his hair with her other. “And I’m guessing mummy and daddy don’t know you’re at a place like this either?”

[Carey Brighton H5]

“Hmm…no, I think you’re fine; as long as you don’t, you know, become a Psychotic Stalker. In that case, I might have to ask you to stop.” She smirked at Loki as she played with his hair. He really had become one of, if not her only, her best friends. Someone she could rely upon for anything; including witty conversation. He had been the one person Carey had really cared about seeing all summer long – and it was only luck that he was at the same party she was when she had been contemplating leaving at that particular moment. With Loki here, Carey had no doubt in her mind that she’d enjoy herself. It wasn’t that Ethan’s party was bad, it just wasn’t her place. She didn’t party hard like these people did and she never would. Carey was far too classy for that. She was sure that if she was like every other teenage kid at the party – she’d be having their idea of a good time, too. But she didn’t need alcohol for a laugh. In fact, she just needed Loki. And she had a feeling Loki wouldn’t be leaving her side now that he had found her. She was perfectly okay with that, actually – she was more than okay with that. She felt more at ease, now. She felt…happier. Loki just had that affect on her; and Carey loved it.

As she played with his hair, she looked down at him; smiling at him. He watched her for a bit and then closed his eyes and Carey had to control the smile that spread across her face; “I can feel that growl, you know; there’s no point in keeping it back.” Carey played with his hair still, thinking about their first meeting. She often looked back upon that conversation and gone over what she had said – what might’ve made her sound dumb or what might’ve made her sound…well, no, just dumb. Carey didn’t like being made to sound dumb in front of someone she cared about to the degree she cared about Loki and if she had sounded dumb in front of him – she would want to jump off a bridge. For the most part, Carey thought she had sounded very…well…Carey-ish. The one thing she had wished she had said something more on was him being a werewolf. They had talked about it a little bit more as they started to hang out more, but for the most part – Carey completely forgot that part of Loki. Except for when he growled or did something that just made her stop, smile, and remember. Actually, then, a lot of things Loki did made her stop and smile. One of them being when he told her to give him a kiss whenever they parted ways. The first time it had happened, had been when they had first met. She had mentioned it being improper, like Carey would. When he had done it again, it was in the form of ‘Gimme a kiss…’ and well, Carey had laughed at him and shook her head; calling him incorrigible. It was their thing. Sometimes Carey’d smile at him, kiss his cheek, call him silly, and then disappear because she would be leaving. It was a routine and she loved it.

Carey shrugged slightly at Loki’s question; “It’s Ethan, Loki, he flirts with every girl. I don’t know how he does it without getting slapped by every other girl. Oh well, there isn’t anything we can do about it.” She looked back at Ethan and then at Loki again with a small smile, running her fingers through his hair now easily. Loki was silent a moment and then he looked up at her and asked her a question that made her chuckle; “Why, no, Loki! I believe I’m in love with you.” She smiled at him softly and shook her head, “He’s not my type…” she looked over at Ethan again, watching him flirt with Isabelle – a girl she had met awhile ago, “I…well, I don’t think much of crushes, you know. Relationships are just a huge mess. A lot of work for something that probably won’t last past a year.” Carey’s eyes flickered to Loki for a second before choosing a different thing to stare at. She couldn’t look at Loki and talk about things like love or relationships. She wasn’t sure why, but it always made her stomach churn as if…as if…as if she… no. She didn’t. She wasn’t going to go there. “So, that set aside, I don’t go for the popular and famous type of guy. I go for simple, you know, someone who will be there for me whenever I need them.” Carey thought a moment and then looked down at Loki, “’Simple’ is used loosely.”

Carey smiled at him softly and twirled another strand of his hair around her finger slowly. He answered her question and she nodded when he said he’d see her at his party. She wouldn’t miss it for the world, but of course – there was always returning to Hogwarts that scared her out of her mind. Things could be so completely different once Hogwarts started up again. She was in a different house and year from Loki, seeing him would be more difficult than she would have liked – and their friendship had gotten to the point where she enjoyed seeing him as often as she could. She would go to his party, though, that was one thing she would do. Carey shook herself from her thoughts when he asked her a question and then smirked when he mentioned her parents; “Yeah, right, you think they would let me out of the house to come here? Well, they might considering the Jacobses are pretty much well known in the Wizarding business world. But, no, I don’t think they would. I climbed out my window and flooed here. After all, coming to this party was the least I could do after Ethan helped land that account I had been having issues landing beforehand.” Carey let her eyes drift to his hand playing with hers and she smiled kindly before running her fingers through his hair again; “And you? You obviously don’t seem to like Ethan, so why are you here?”

[Loki Fen'Rolphus G6]

Loki just chuckled at Carey’s statement of him being a stalker. Of course he wasn’t one, even though he would probably understand if someone had chosen to stalk Carey, she really was great. Loki simply kept his eyes closed, enjoying her touch, he found that her playing with his hair was five times more relaxing then he initially thought it would be. It might have had something to do with the werewolf, big puppy, thing…or it might have just been that it was Carey. And everything that was with Carey was enjoyable and relaxing. Loki honestly had no intention of getting up from this couch now that he was here on Carey’s lap. She was comfy, and her playing with his hair made this party really something. Loki smiled to himself; the party wasn’t what he was enjoying at all, just Carey. Loki could go anywhere and enjoy himself if he was with Carey, he was sure of that. He lay there, near a growl, and then laughed when she told him she could feel the growl, advising him to just let it out. And so he did. He let a soft, calm growl hum in his chest and throat as he relaxed in Carey’s lap. He would have no problems spending the rest of the night this way. Not a one. Carey was really the only person that had ever told Loki it was ok to growl. Normally he got odd looks or was told he was weird for doing it, but not Carey. She kind of…almost understood. Of course she couldn’t completely understand, but she was so much more open to his lycanthropy then most were. She didn’t bash him for it, she didn’t even think of him as ‘the werewolf kid’. That was the greatest part of their friendship. He was Loki to her. Not the werewolf. Loki first, then the werewolf. And she…she cared about him. She cared about Loki.

Loki and Carey discussed Ethan and again Loki let the angry growl out as well. He knew Carey wouldn’t mind. Loki smiled brightly however, his anger melting away, when Carey said she didn’t know how Ethan didn’t get slapped. For one reason or another just the fact that Carey had said allowed that she didn’t understand how Ethan didn’t get slapped, meaning that at least a part of her wanted it to happen, was good enough for Loki. Loki closed his eyes once more as Carey ran her fingers through his hair, just imagining seeing Ethan get slapped across the face. Oh what a sight that would be. Loki wouldn’t deny he’d laugh if it happened. He’d laugh a lot. Loki thought that would be the end of it, but Carey said something that made him completely stop all his imaginings and open his eyes, looking up at her again. It took him a few moments to realize she was playing when she said she loved him. She was smiling but he was just…looking at her. Wouldn’t that be something… He realized the look on his face might be taken the wrong way and so he replaced it with a bright smile as she told him that Ethan wasn’t her type. He listened to her tell him again, for it wasn’t the first time they’d talked about it, that she wasn’t into crushes or relationships. Loki continued to look up at her even after she looked away. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. He smiled as she explained that she needed someone to be there for her whenever she needed them. Ethan was definitely not the guy for Carey. “Ethan’s definitely not the guy for you. You deserve…well someone way better.” He closed his eyes again, thinking. Someone like… “I’m sure there’s a perfect guy for you just under your nose.”

Loki coughed lightly and then they sat in silence for a few moments before Carey explained how she had gotten out of the house. He smiled. “I honestly would pay to see you climb out of a window Carey.” He chuckled. He had taken her hand by now and was playing with it and then he looked up at her and smirked. “Show me sometime and maybe I’ll give you a kiss.” He smirked still, knowing that Carey would immediately say something clever. “Don’t deny you want it. I know you do. Deeeeeep, deeeeeeeeep, deep deep down maybe. But you still want me.” Loki let his smirk stay put as he shook his head when she asked why he was at a party hosted by a kid he didn’t like. “Nope, not really a fan of the Jacobs kid. See, you wanna know what honestly happened?” He looked up at her again, “My friend mentioned you’d be here and I thought ‘hey, what a great chance to stalk her…”

[Carey Brighton H5]

Carey smiled at Loki when he stopped holding back his growl. She placed a hand on his chest so she could feel the growl in the palm of her hand. A smile played across her face as he growled. She really didn’t mind when he growled, in fact; Carey kind of liked it. She knew that most people gave him funny looks, but Carey wasn’t most people. Carey was Carey and Loki was Loki. That wasn’t going to change, regardless. She had lifted her hand from his chest now and resumed playing with his hair, humming quietly as she did so. Her eyes never left Loki as she played with his hair, though, her smile did change from that to a smirk when his growl turned angry. Loki really didn’t like Ethan, and that was okay – she could understand that. A bit of Carey wondered how much of it was just Loki’s annoyance with Ethan and how much of it was something else…something deeper. Jealousy, maybe. A part of her wanted him to be jealous, but then another part of her thought that there was no reason for Loki to be jealous. They were just friends. They were best friends. They were not boyfriend and girlfriend. They were best friends. And that was probably all they’d ever be. After all, why would Loki even see Carey in that light? Oh well, Carey thought to herself, it doesn’t matter because I don’t like him in that way anyway…do I?

She had just said her love remark and was smiling softly at him, he was staring up at her – an odd look on his face and Carey started to wish she hadn’t said something like that. He seemed to catch what his face portrayed though, and broke into a smile at her next words. She spoke about relationships and crushes, looking away from him. Carey just didn’t know what it was that made it difficult for her to look at him and talk about those types of things. It bothered her a little, because she knew she could talk to Loki about anything – but she just couldn’t talk to him about this thing and look at him while doing it. She wondered if Loki had picked up on the fact that she couldn’t look him when she spoke of romance. She wondered what he thought about that. She wondered why she was wondering this. It shouldn’t be something she’d dwell on. It was just something she should deal with and live with and then not analyse it. Carey analysed things too much. Perhaps she should just let everything be the way it was supposed to be. Hmm, Carey thought again, when have I ever done that? Carey’s always analysed things to an extremity that they shouldn’t be analysed to. It’s terrible of her to do, but she couldn’t help it – she did it often before.

Carey jogged herself from her thoughts and looked down at Loki when he mentioned Ethan not being the guy for her. With a nonchalant shrug, Carey smiled down at him; “I didn’t have my heart set on that.” She told him with a small laugh. The idea that she would fall for Ethan Jacobs was above her head. The idea that she would fall for anyone was above her head. Carey ran her fingers through Loki’s hair still and listened to him talk about the perfect guy being right under her nose. He coughed then and Carey found herself raising her eyebrow and smirking; “Perfect guy, Fen’Rolphus? I don’t know. Is there such a thing as the perfect guy?” She smiled at him softly again, playing with his hair now instead of just running her fingers through it, and hummed quietly once more. Loki mentioned a few seconds later that he would pay money to see her climb out a window and this caused Carey to laugh, “It’s quite the sight to see, I assure you.” She knew that she must’ve been an odd sight to see climbing out of her two story window down the rose trellis that was beside her window. It was a very odd sight indeed.

Loki was playing with her free hand by now and he mentioned her showing him and getting a kiss in return. She smirked, quite used to these kiss remarks, and replied; “Keep the kiss, Loki, and I’ll climb out my window for you without payment.” Carey liked Loki’s kiss remarks – it made her feel like she was someone more to him than everyone else was. He didn’t go around telling every other girl to give him a kiss, but then again Carey also knew that she wasn’t just every other girl. They had a bond he didn’t have with anyone else; they had a bond that she didn’t have with anyone else. It worked. They fit. They clicked. Perfection. Carey laughed and shook her head, “Loki Fen’Rolphus, you are incorrigible. Deep, deep, down I might want you and that kiss but the keyword in that sentence is ‘might.’” Carey tapped his forehead gently and grinned at him. They were always teasing each other like this, him teasing her more than her teasing him – but it was something they did. Something that was familiar to the both of them. Loki answered her question about him being at the party then, and Carey couldn’t help but laugh again; “That was clever, Loki. Except there is one flaw in that little remark…” she eyed him, smiling brightly, “…none of your friends know me. So, what’s the real reason?”

[Loki Fen'Rolphus G6]

Loki smiled to himself as Carey rested her hand on his chest. He knew she liked his growl and while part of him was simply happy that she didn’t think he was a freak the other half…found that slightly attractive…ok really attractive. Carey did a lot of things Loki found himself attracted too. Loki was just…well…attracted to her in general. Of course…Carey Brighton was his best friend…and…well you just weren’t supposed to have crushes on your best friends right? Right. Best friends were just that, best friends. You weren’t attracted to them and even if you were you most definitely didn’t act on it….Loki found that last bit hard. Yeah, he flirted…he knew he flirted. But he couldn’t really help himself. Of course he wasn’t to the point where he would just tell her he had feelings for her. He knew full well that could mess up their friendship and Loki knew that if he couldn’t have her as…more…then a best friend, he most defiantly did not want to lose her as a best friend. He pushed his thoughts from his mind as the conversation furthered, it wasn’t the time nor the place to be debating his feelings for his best friend. That was something one did at home, alone, where they could yell and holler and be downright frustrated by the confusing situation.

The conversation went from Ethan, to love, and Loki had caught himself making a comment about the perfect guy being right under her nose. He had just…said it without thinking and then tried to cover it up with a lame cough. Loki was happy however, when Carey didn’t question his intentions, he really didn’t want to explain himself. He shrugged with a smile. “I think there’s a perfect someone for everyone.” He nodded and closed his eyes again as Carey continued to play with his hair and chuckled as she talked about climbing out the window. He took her free hand and was playing with it by the time he mentioned giving her a kiss for climbing out the window. Wow he really was on a roll tonight wasn’t he? He smiled brightly when she said she’d climb out of a window for him. “I’ll hold you to that.” And then found himself laughing when she called him incorrigible. She had a tendency to call him incorrigible didn’t she? He liked it, he couldn’t lie, it was one of their little things that they just…did together. Her next words however were a bit harder to not take too seriously. He just smiled and shrugged. “Maybe someday that ‘might’ will become a ‘do’.” He left it at that however and let the conversation move on to why he was at the party. Of course she saw through his clever remark and now he was forced to open his eyes and look around the pathetic party again.

“Honestly Carey?” He laughed and shook his head. “I don’t have a clue why I came. I mean…you and I weren’t meeting up and I was getting really lonely home alone…” He looked up at her and then sat up, holding her hand still. “Buuuut, now that I’m here with you? I really don’t want to be at this party.” He stood and looked around before pulling her up and heading towards the window he had climbed in at, a smirk on his face when he looked over his shoulder at her. “So I think, me and you? Let’s ditch this party, I saw a playground on my way here and I think we could have our own party chilling on those swings.” With that, Loki climbed out the window and waited on the other side for Carey. When she came out after him, he took her hand, not even caring how it looked, and led the way off down the street, a smile on his face as they made their way to the playground to spend the rest of the evening talking.