The Silence Is Killing Me (Mack)

[Bryan Sangert H6]

Bryan couldn’t figure out what he wanted to do. It had started to get colder out, and the leaves were turning to darker colors, signaling that fall was arriving. He loved this weather, and he loved this time of year as well. He knew the time of the year always came with the dread of starting a new school year, and most of the students he knew didn’t have time to enjoy the world, because of classes and homework. Bryan, however, made it a point to enjoy himself and get out of the common room more than ever this year. He hated being stuck inside and doing work for extended hours, and today was no different. He had finished a good chunk of his homework, and wanted to do something outside. It was still light out, but not for long. Dusk, the most beautiful time of the day, when this side of the world gets ready to sleep.

Bryan sat on his bed in the nearly empty common room, debating whether to go to the student lounge or to venture outside. Suddenly, he realized how stuffy it was in the room, and decided immediately that his decision was made for him: outside. He grabbed his heavy robe and quickly walked out to the front of the castle. The wind had picked up a bit, but it was still decently nice out. Bryan tied the robe at the front and began his walk down the pathway to the gates of the school. As he walked somewhat briskly, he noticed some people sitting by the lake. He remembered hanging out with friends there last year, and games he and Finn would play in the lake. He remembered one time they were playing a muggle game he had learned while home a couple years back, Marco Polo. That had been a great day, indeed. Now, as he looked out over the lake, he saw that there were a few people, but no one he recognized. It seemed that his main friends were no where to be found on this day. That gave him some more time to himself, which wasn’t too bad, but he thrived on relationships and friendships.

As Bryan approached the gates, he saw a few people walking towards the gate as well, behind him. They were too far for him to make out who they were, so he decided to ignore it and pulled open the left gate, letting himself out of the grounds and onto the path to the nearby village of Hogsmeade. He tightened his robe a bit more, because the wind had indeed picked up more since he had stepped foot out of the castle. He admired the sunset over the lake, taking in its beauty. He kept walking, and just by accident, peeked a look behind him and saw that the three people that had been behind him had changed to one, a slightly tall girl, someone who he couldn’t recognize because she hadn’t reached the gate yet. There was a bench coming up in front of him, and he was curious who this mystery girl was. So he quickly walked over to the bench and sat down, waiting for her to pass. Maybe she would recognize him, or he would recognize her. He pulled out his small journal and began to write, but not really paying attention to his writing, he kept glancing to see who this girl was.

[Mackenzie Holden]

She had been at Hogwarts visiting her brother-in-law because she hadn't been able to get a hold of Dixie for lunch. It was through him that she found out Dixie had a new shop up in Hogsmeade, and thus was on her way to visit this new shop and her very pregnant older sister. It had been hell to get into Hogwarts, and she had stayed for less than ten minutes before she was on her way out. It was strange being back at her old school so many years later. She hadn't been there since graduation, and she hadn't had any intention of returning. Hogwarts held too many bad memories for Mack, especially those concerning Jack Rendel - the one boy she had fallen for so hard that everything he did when he left crushed her into tiny pieces. Of course, she got loads of inspiration for songs out of it once she had gotten over the pain, but still - these halls held secrets far too great for Mack to want to return to.

Shoving her cold hands into her leather jacket's pockets, Mack held her head high as she followed some current Hogwarts students out of the grounds toward Hogsmeade. She remembered how that had been, the weekends - the only way to escape the school's dismal walls. She would give nothing to go back. School had been terrible. She felt no need for it, no desire to actually deal with the learning aspect. The only reason she had was because Dixie hadn't been too keen on Mack following in her footsteps and dropping out after her. So, for once, Mack was selfless and she did something for her sister. Besides, Dixie had been through so much that Mack felt she should at least give her sister something that makes her happy. Especially since she felt bad for being in New York while her sister was in England dealing with a pregnancy and a frightened husband. Adam seemed to have come around, though, and that made Mack feel mildly reassured. Only mildly, though. Men just didn't cut it anymore.

Pulling herself from her thoughts, Mack let her eyes focus on what was going on in front of her. The couple that she had been following a few feet behind was now gone, and there was only one person ahead of her now. She pulled her cold hand from her jacket pocket and brushed her hair out of her eyes before stuffing it back in and heading toward Hogsmeade at a quicker pace, her heeled boots clicking against the gravel. If she were to fall, it would be disastrous. Mack kicked a piece of gravel from beneath her boot and continued the walk, trying to remember where Adam had said Dixie's shop had been. She would find it, eventually.

Her eyes locked on the person ahead of her suddenly changing directions. He had moved and sat down on a bench, quite swiftly, and pulled out a notebook. Well, that was interesting. Not quite as interesting as him glancing at her every now and then. Mack stopped walking as she approached in front of him, her arms crossed over her chest; "Do you know me? Or do you just randomly keep an eye on girls as they pass you?"

[Bryan Sangert H6]

Bryan still looked down at his notebook, in which he was writing random nonsense. Apparently she could see through his facade, and he felt a sly smile creep onto his face. He looked up, seemingly surprised that she was talking to him. “Do I know you? Probably not. And do I keep an eye on girls? Sometimes, if I think they’re attractive.” He chuckled to himself, and explained what he was doing. “I just decided to sit down and write in my journal for a little bit. It’s beautiful out here, and it was getting a bit too stuffy in the common room.” He looked her up and down, and also studied her face a bit. He vaguely remembered Finn or some other friend talking about someone that had the same striking features as the woman in front of him did. “Someone may have told me about you before though. You look like someone I’ve heard much about. Are you a musician?” He seemed to remember something about music with this possible person, and figured it would be worth a shot to try and guess who she was.

Bryan stood up and walked past the slightly older looking woman, still trying to place who she was. “It’s gorgeous out here, isn’t it? Haven’t had one of these late afternoons in a great while. This happens to be my favorite time of year, save for the returning to school part. Do you go to Hogwarts? I mean, you must, otherwise you wouldn’t be on school grounds, correct?” He shook his head, chuckling at himself. Being impulsive the way he was, he tended to say and ask things before he really thought about it and because of it, got the look of stupidity quite often. “Sorry, the impulsivity kicks in and I say things without thinking sometimes. Of course you go to Hogwarts. Why else would you be on the grounds? Unless you’re some spy from another wizard school trying to figure out our practices and class materials so your school can be as good as Hogwarts. Is that it? You’re a spy?” Bryan squinted his eyes at the girl, faking looking interested.

“Well, spy or not, where are you headed on this particularly cool afternoon? I myself was on the way to Hogsmeade and decided to stop and write while there was still light. Also, I stopped to see who you were, if I may be honest.” He took a direct approach, as there was a possibility some women liked immediate and direct flirtation. He couldn’t be sure with her, but it didn’t much matter to him at the time. Bryan didn’t know her, or at least he didn’t know her well, so what did he have to lose? There was his impulsivity kicking in again. Oh well, it didn’t matter really. The least he could probably get out of this would be a decently intelligent conversation. After all, she did give him quite the attitude when she first walked up to him. “Would you care to join me on my trip to Hogsmeade?” he asked politely, hoping she would oblige and he could get at least something out of this random encounter.

[Mackenzie Holden]

There they were. Those words. Are you a musician? Well, that said a load full in so little. Was she a musician? She had been. She didn't know if she was anymore. Things with G-Major were still rocky. But wouldn't that make her a celebrity? So, Mack figured that yes she was a musician because she had never given up on music and she did spend her spare time writing music whenever she could. She just wasn't doing any concerts or anything of the sort. "Yeah," she finally replied after a moment, realizing she hadn't said anything since his question, "I'm a musician." She didn't say much else, though. She figured that if he was going to recognize her, it wasn't going to be with help from her. She hated when people recognized her. It made her feel itchy. Mack was never one to enjoy the spotlight like most of the starlettes had been. She just wanted to make music for those people.

He had stood now, and was talking about the season and the time of the year; and then he asked if she were a student. Mack cleared her throat and looked down at her feet, a smile tugging at her lips. She didn't look that young did she? She was only 20, soon to be 21, and she supposed that she could still look like a student age... but she had thought she had grown up a little. Perhaps if he had met her years and years before, she would have looked like she was a 4th year when she was a 7th year. Mack had always looked younger than she really was, but she hadn't known by how much. A laugh fell from her lips, "Uhm. No, I'm not a spy. But I'm not a student either. I haven't been for four years now. I was actually visiting my brother in law, Adam Greene...he's the Arithmancy professor, I believe."

He was definitely flirting with her. Mack found that amusing. She was at least four years older than him, even though she didn't look it. Oh, well, she supposed it did no harm. She tucked her hair behind her ear and shrugged, "Sure, why not? I have to stop at my sister's shop, but you can come along if you want." A smile flickered across her lips and she started to walk at a leisurely pace back toward Hogsmeade, her boots clicking against the gravel again. After a moment, she offered her hand for him to shake, "Mackenzie Holden, but I go by Mack." Or Kenze, but only Nelson and Trevor ever called her that. She shuddered whenever they did. It was condescending the way they used it.

[Bryan Sangert H6]

“Ah,” Bryan said when she finally replied about being a musician. He could tell something else was on her mind, maybe when he asked her about being a musician it triggered something. He hoped he hadn’t offended her, even though it didn’t appear that way. She was in another place when he asked her the question, and she was still there. As he searched his mind to try and think of who had told him about such a beautiful music, he admired her. She was quite beautiful, but she also seemed to have quite a good head on her shoulders. He was speculating of course, but he sometimes had an intuition about some people. “Well,” he began slowly, “I can’t seem to remember who you might be, even if some of my friends have mentioned a beautiful woman who became a musician sometime during her time at Hogwarts. Someone may have said something, but it really doesn’t matter right now, does it?” He intended to leave the subject there. He didn’t recognize her right off the bat, and that’s all there was to it.

She looked down, smiling slightly at his words. Bryan did have a way of making women blush, but this one was different for some reason. She looked like she could be a student, but as they talked, she explained how she used to be a student. She’s a graduate, he thought to himself. Wow, guess I barked up the wrong tree. Better cool it a bit. He had that bad impulsivity to immediate flirt, and he had no idea that she was, what, 21 probably? Heck, she even said she was visiting her brother-in-law, his Arithmancy professor! This was definitely an interesting turn of events. He wondered if she appreciated his advances or not. Either way, he decided to turn down his charm, out of respect. He likely would still try to flirt a bit, but he had no idea where she was coming from. Of all things, she could have a boyfriend. He didn’t feel like dealing with that kind of situation right now, especially which someone who didn’t even go to Hogwarts anymore. “Well isn’t that interesting,” he said simply. “Your brother-in-law is my Arithmancy professor. I mean, there is only one, isn’t there?” He chuckled as he realized what he just said. Think, Bryan. Think.

“Your sister has a shop?” he questioned, immediately curious. “What kind of shop does she run?” She smiled at him, and invited him to accompany her, which he returned a smile to, as well. “It’s a beautiful day for a walk to Hogsmeade, isn’t it?” he remarked as they began to walk the completely empty path in front of them. He heard the clicking of her boots on the gravel, and got quickly lost in the sound. It was something that didn’t happen often, but he marveled for some odd reason at the clicking noise. He shook it off of his mind, and realized she had extended her hand to shake and introduced herself. “Mackenzie Holden, but I go by Mack,” she said. He smiled again and shook her hand, “Bryan Sangert. Sixth year Hufflepuff. Obviously you don’t need to give me your year because...well, you’re not here anymore.” He laughed, and let go of her hand.

As they walked further, he wondered what kind of music she played, or what kind of musician she was. He figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask. “So, Mack. You said you’re a musician. Do you write and play your own music, or are you in a band, or what?” He hoped he wasn’t prodding her. “I’ve never really been completely into music. I mean, I listen to it, but I can’t play anything. So congrats go to you, because for you to be a musician you must play something, and that’s much better than I’ve ever been!” They kept walking, and he realized it had begun to get darker, so he pulled out his wand and spoke “Lumos,” and immediately the ground in front of them brightened up so they could see a bit better. “I’ve always loved that spell. Comes in quite handy.”