Bored Stiff ((Anyone))

[Sita Mehadi H7]

By the age of seventeen, it might be expected that a girl would know how to entertain herself for a few hours. But Sita had never really been one for reading - well, the odd bit of light fiction was okay, but when she was in one of her impetuous moods a book simply wasn't sufficient distraction from boredom. Being in the confined space of a compartment was the problem. She wanted the chance to run around, or a good steep hill to climb. The latter was not available on a train, and the former not really appropriate, especially not at her supposedly mature age. It was all very annoying.

The problem, she decided after some reflection on the matter, was her lack of company. Gavin was off doing his Prefect duties, whatever they were, and Billy was... well, she never really knew where Billy was nowadays. She might have offended him at some point - at times this year she hadn't been in the best of moods, so it was perfectly possible. She'd write him a letter over the summer and by next year he'd be talking to her again. She couldn't have said anything that bad.

Sita stood up and pushed open the compartment door: a stroll down the train would be the perfect antidote to her restlessness. Conducted in a composed, ladylike fashion, of course... she resisted the urge to skip along wildly. It was good to be going home. She missed her parents, and she missed her hometown - the hills, the steep cobbled streets, the disused mills with their towering chimneys, the babble of fast-flowing water under the bridge. The chance to enjoy some of the simpler pleasures of life during the holidays, rather than studying until her brain ached.

"Oh, hi there!" Sita said as she noticed someone else standing around in the corridor, looking a bit indecisive. "Do you know which way the sweets trolley went?"

[Thomas Lightfellow G7]

“My last day....” Thomas said while trying to fight back every tone of a depressed voice. “I'll miss you bed and walls as well as everything else here.” He muttered as he packed up his trunk with everything he could. It was hard trying to sneak out over fifty shrunken copies of books from the library as well as all his clothes and personal belongings. The clothes he probably could have left behind but knowing that there were tons of books left to read that he wasn't allowed to read wasn't acceptable. Finally after one big push he was able to close the latches and prayed that they wouldn't break, which they seemed to be holding. He sat on his bed and pulled one last book out from under his bed and looked at it. “Hopefully you'll save some first years some pain and suffering.” Thomas said to himself with a slight laugh as he looked at the book in his hands.

He had written the book himself in his last couple months here, if he couldn't stay then maybe a part of him could for just a little bit longer. The book wasn't anything special but Thomas had put a lot of effort into finishing it before the year was over, all that was left was to put a title on it. Thomas had worked out a charm that would change the title based on the age of the reader. It toke plenty of time but it worked and Thomas was proud of it. To anyone older then fourteen it would appear to just be a first year spell book from the cover but anyone in there first few years of school it would be different. “Thomas's tricks and tips for surviving your first years at Hogwarts.” Was what they would see along with what Thomas saw but that's because he was the one who enchanted it. With a final sigh he placed it back under his bed and picked up his trunk, which lucky he enchanted also since he knew how heavy it would be.

After dealing with a few tear full goodbyes from friends all the while Thomas just smiled and promised to owl each of them all the time. He finally made it out of the common room in one piece, it was always bad but it probably just seemed worse because this was his last goodbye. He couldn't say he would see anyone next year because he wouldn't be coming back. It seemed quick as he made it to the train compared to getting out of the dorms and the Common room. With all his goodbyes out of the way Thomas felt a little bit better about leaving this place. He stood outside the train as everyone crowded around it and boarded. Talon, his owl, was flapping around in his cage and Thomas just smiled. “Okay, okay just go tell Brent I'm on my way home before you do anything else.” He said with a smirk as he opened the cage and his owl flew off within second.

Finally the group seemed to be less thick and Thomas made his way onto the train but not before looking around one last time and back to the castle. “Goodbye my second home and thanks for all the memories.” Thomas thought then boarded the train, which was his least favorite part of the trip. Thomas disliked crowds he disliked being a part of them even more. As soon as he could he found an empty compartment and stored his trunk away. Just as he was about to sit down four, what seemed like second years, walked in and didn't even bother to ask if they could sit down. Not like he would say no but it would still have been nice if they asked. Thomas just sighed and walked out leaving his trunk behind him, he knew it would be fine. His trunk was enchanted and charmed with so much stuff to keep people away just looking at it might curse you. Thomas liked not having to worry about someone going through his stuff while he was in class but it worked equally well while traveling too.

He soon started walking around the corridors, waving a couple times when he saw someone he knew but for the most part he was just killing time till the train was at the station. He kept walking around the train corridors as he looked out the window. Every time he did something or saw something the thought that this would be the last time crept up in his head. As Thomas looked out the window he heard a voice, he ignored it just assuming that the person was talking to someone else but when they said something again it was clear the voice was talking to him. “Oh sorry.” Thomas let out with a slightly embarrassed smile and laugh. “Yeah I think I passed it a few compartments back.” He said as he made a slight pointing gesture behind him. “I'm more then happy to lead the way, I should probably get a much as possible anyway.” Thomas said with a laugh as he walked back slightly, then looked back at the girl. “By the way I'm Thomas.” He said with a smile as he realized he forgot to introduce himself.

[Sita Mehadi H7]

Sita didn’t receive an immediate reply, and she wondered whether she was being intentionally ignored. Maybe the boy was a Slytherin and he was just calculating the most hurtful riposte to being asked where the sweets trolley was. Or maybe the person was deep in thought. She couldn’t remember ever being so deep in thought that she’d not heard someone speaking to her, but then she wasn’t really the thoughtful type.

Her initial worries were dispelled as the boy finally replied – it appeared that she had just caught him in a bit of a reverie. He seemed a bit awkward at first, his laugh sounding a bit nervous for some reason, and Sita felt a bit bad for disturbing him for something so trivial (in all honesty, she’d only asked because she felt like saying something to the first person she’d come across on her walk of boredom). But he didn’t seem to mind, and the smile he gave as he introduced himself was genuine enough. So presumably it was all okay.

“Nice to meet you,” she replied, smiling back brightly, “I’m Sita.” She followed him down the train as he started leading the way to the sweets trolley. “Lots of sweets just for you to eat?” she asked. “You’ll be hyper by the time we get to Kings’ Cross…” She gave him a knowing smile, and then frowned. “Not that I can talk,” she added. “I ate so many Fizzing Whizbees on the train ride back at the end of first year that I was almost sick by the time we arrived. I stick with Chocolate Frogs nowadays. The cards give you something to do, as well… I get really bored on long journeys,” she admitted.

[Thomas Lightfellow G7]

Thomas recognized the girl as he introduced himself, she was the Hufflepuff captain or vice captain. Thomas shrugged as he was sure it was one of those but wasn't sure which one and didn't feel like saying the wrong one if he said something about it. Thomas just smiled back as she introduced herself as they started walking back to the sweets trolley. “That's what it was, Sita.” Thomas said with a slight laugh then looked back. “I knew I remembered you, your on the Hufflepuff Quidditch team I just couldn't remember your name.” Thomas said with and embarrassed laugh and smile once again. “It's not just you I'm just awful with names in general.” He added laughing at how sadly true his statement was.

He just laughed as she asked him if he was going to buy a lot just to eat all by himself. “I'd might as well. It's going to be my last trip on this train I might as well go out big.” Thomas said with a laugh as they kept walking. Thomas looked into a few of the compartments just out of curiosity, nothing but students talking and laughing. “Just for laughs I might even try and buy the whole thing before it gets all the way to the last section of the train. That's normally where the more nasty Slytherins go to sit.” He said looking at Sita and smiling saying it as a joke but it all seriousness he could actually do it. Now that he was out of school and of age he had access to his late families bank vault. It wasn't anything compared to some of the richer families in the Magical world but there was more then enough to buy a sweets trolley and have Thomas set for years to come. “Of course I'll share if I do that, don't worry.” Thomas added with a smirk.

As they made it to the next section of the train he finally saw the sweets trolley in front of one of the compartments and he smiled. “Sweets Trolley Ahoy.” Thomas said attempting to sound like a pirate the best he could, then just laughed. “Sorry I couldn't help myself.” He said with a smirk as he looked back to Sita. “So want to race? Last one to the trolley buys the other one a chocolate frog?”

[Sita Mehadi H7]

Sita smiled easily at Thomas as he apologised for not remembering her name. "Well, I'm glad I'm not singled out," she laughed in response to his apology, "although really given that I don't remember ever having talked to you before, I wouldn't expect you to know my name. I didn't know yours - in fact I don't know which house you're in. So if you have to apologise for forgetting a name, what's my punishment for not knowing yours in the first place?"

She grinned a little wickedly at his suggestion of buying up the sweets trolley before it got to the Slytherin end of the train. "Sounds like a plan," she told Thomas. "But how do you know that it doesn't automatically replenish itself? Other than the whole no food Transfiguration rule of someone or other - I'm quite impressed with myself for remembering that much, by the way, I never was any good at Transfiguration. But just in case, perhaps we ought to set up a train-blockade instead? More effective. And cheaper." She grinned again. "And better for your teeth!"

Sita looked at Thomas askance as he did a rather lacklustre pirate impression. "Well I don't mind the talking like a pirate," she told him sternly, "but if you're going to do it, you must do it properly." It had been one of Ingrid and Sita's favourite ways of passing the time, so she wasn't bad at it at all. Ingrid had always been better, of course, but Sita had learnt off her. "You don't say 'Sweets Trolley' if you're a pirate. That's far too mundane," she told him seriously. "Avast there matey, I see vittels yonder!" she said, pointing to the sweets trolley with wide eyes. "First one there gets the booty, last one there pays fer it! Or something like that. The Chocolate Frog being the booty in this case. You're on," she told him, accepting the challenge to a race. He was a guy, and taller than her, so he did rather have the advantage, but Sita was a pretty decent tennis player and she could run very quickly when she wanted to. It might not quite be evens, but she was in with a chance.

"But no tripping me up! Even if you're going to be a pirate, winning 'by means fair or foul', no underhand tactics!" she warned him. "Ready or not, go!" she shouted as she started sprinting towards the sweets trolley. How indecorous, but she'd forgotten all about the attempt to be ladylike...