[ttd] where do we go from here

May 2004

"Go on, get back to your common room," Wini said in her stern 'prefect voice,' one hand on her hip as she held the confiscated items in her other hand. The seventh year loved being a prefect and had looked forward to doing her duties for the past few years. She had been more excited about mentoring the younger Hufflepuffs, taking them under her wing, and of course, the shiny badge was a nice addition to her uniform. She was surprised, however, at how good she seemed to be at the tougher parts too like reprimanding little Slytherin second years who were stupidly bragging about their Skiving Snackboxes and how they were going to use them tomorrow to get out of an exam. Wini (who still had getting a detention on her Hogwarts Final Year Buckletlist) couldn't say she was the best person to ask for advice on being mischievous, but at least she knew better than to blab about it right there in the corridor where anyone could overhear.

Once they scampered off back in the direction of the Slytherin common room, she continued her rounds. It was a late Tuesday evening that felt like more like a Friday and she was doing her Prefect rounds on the three lower floors including the basement level. It wasn't quite curfew yet, but it was close. She was a little distracted by some extra Potions work she was trying to memorize, using Ben's note cards that he had lent her so when she turned a corner, she almost didn't realize there was someone right there. "Ooh, sorry," she said automatically as she took a quick step back to avoid bumping into them, only to realize a second later who it was. Circe. Ezra's Circe. Or well, not his exactly according to Ezra, but that's how Wini thought of her. The girl that had caught Ezra's attention a few months ago when he had stopped owling Wini in favor of courting (?) Circe. Then again, Ezra had also 'fooled around' (his words) with Jet when he had been owling her. She wasn't sure what to think about it, but she knew it didn't feel good.

She smiled at Circe a bit hesitantly. While they were in the same year, they had never really talked beyond 'can you pass me the lacewing flies' in Potions and Wini wasn't exactly sure what to say to her. Did Circe know that Wini had kind of dated Ezra? Did she even care? She didn't feel any ill-will toward the Slytherin, or at least she didn't think so. Her cheeks felt hot as she remembered some petty things she had said to Marin when she had first found out about Circe and Ezra, but that had faded quickly to something more akin to self-doubt and self-consciousness. 

Wini searched for something to say, her gaze landing on the snackbox in her hand. "Confiscated another one of these," she mentioned, holding up the box, with an exasperated 'kids these days' kind of tone and a smile that hoped Circe didn't have any bad feelings toward her either.

@Circe Sutcliffe

Growing up around Sid, Ezra, Jam, and also Janae for what it was worth, had given Circe the innate ability to sense when someone was up to mischief, which had proved to be an asset in her position as Slytherin Prefect. Though, on the other end of the spectrum, she had never really been popular amongst her housemates and her position of authority over them had not been well-received. At least the 'Slutcliffe' whispers had died down a bit, or at least now they had the good sense not to say it in her presence after she'd given out a detention or two in order to avoid taking away too many points from her own house. Already feeling particularly low this evening, she did her best to push that from her mind. It wasn't really her fault, after all, that boys lied.

It was getting late, and only a Tuesday. Even after her disastrous visit to Paris, she found herself looking forward to the weekend. Tock had written her to apologize. She had, of course, written back with near lightning-speed. She'd always had a soft spot for him: a schoolgirl crush, if you will. They had agreed to meet for butterbeer and talk. She was almost afraid to mention it to Sid, though she was going to have to. Maybe tomorrow?

She'd been so lost in her head that she'd almost run right into another person. Circe quickly took a step back once she'd realized and offered an apologetic smile as well as a quick, "Oh, sorry!" Of all people, of course she'd almost ran over Ezra's other relatively recent love interest. They did have a similar look, she supposed. It made sense.

Letting out a breath that she didn't realize that she'd been holding, Circe was at least glad that Wini was being nice. I mean, they hadn't really done anything wrong to each other. Ezra was the one who struggled with honesty and treating people properly. She remembered seeing them together on New Years Eve, but she hadn't really spoken to either one. Were they even still a thing, she wondered. Hopefully Ezra was treating her better, if they were.

"Oh, yes. Those ones are popular." Circe smiled, then tutting a few times. "How's your night going otherwise?"

Wini felt a little relieved when she saw Circe's smile. She wasn't the best at picking up ulterior motives or manipulation, but she didn't see any outwardly signs of those from the Slytherin so perhaps the whole love-triangle trope that Wini had built up in her head was really just nothing. At the very least, she was glad that she didn't have to confront those fears and worries right here in the corridor during rounds. The Hufflepuff smiled and gave a huff of a laugh. "I've confiscated so many, I've been tempted to use a few for my next Potions exam coming up," she joked even though she would never actually have the gumption to do it. Too worried about getting caught, she supposed.

"Alright so far, nothing too much other than Myrtle flooded the first floor bathroom again and those two second years with this," she said jiggling the box at her side before she glanced down the corridor. "Would you want to walk with me?" Wini asked, her tone hesitant only because she wasn't sure what Circe's answer would be. She had known the girl for seven years and just now she was wondering how they had never had a real conversation. Wini almost felt bad about it.

A sudden crashing and a scream echoed down the hall and Wini turned with a gasp, glancing quickly at Circe before she started moving and fast. She hurried in the direction of the clatter, looking in each doorway of the potions classrooms along this corridor before she finally found the room that left no doubts in her mind this is where the noise and scream  had come from. "What is that?" she asked with a gasp as she saw a darkly gleaming red potion that looked almost like blood spilling across the floor, two students crouched on a table where it couldn't touch them. The potions was hissing and slowly eating away at the table legs and it sunk slowly before their eyes. The two students clutching the table in fear.

Circe laughed at what she assumed was a joke from Wini. "If you ever need help with Potions or.. anything, we could study together? I don't mind helping." She seemed like a nice girl, and she was funny to boot. She couldn't blame Ezra, she supposed, though she had been wounded to see him with someone else so quickly. It wasn't really that quickly, though, was it? Circe had broken up with him on Halloween. That was a couple of months. Anyway, she had been a little upset about seeing them together on New Years Eve. It would have probably not been so miserable if she had been able to get an actual date and not just Corey surprising her with a kiss at midnight. It had been really odd to bump into him again, when she thought about it, but she had been thankful for it in the end. Still, she rather hoped that, if Wini had witnessed the incident, then she wouldn't bring it up. Why was everything with boys so complicated? It was exhausting.

"I did see the bathroom, yeah." Circe scrunched up her nose a bit and grimaced. She could understand why Myrtle would be upset, but couldn't help but to think that the ghost could channel that energy into something more useful. The Slytherin was a little taken aback at her Hufflepuff counterpart's offer, but eagerly accepted. "Yes. Of course. That would be nice." She smiled and hoped that this meant that, perhaps, Wini didn't hate her guts after all.

She'd nearly jumped out of her skin at the crash and the scream and her face held an expression of both horror and confusion. What in the world could that possibly be? Circe followed Wini's lead and hurried in the direction of the noise. Once they were near, she aided in the search for the source. She tried to take slow, calming breaths as horrific thoughts plagued her imagination. She wondered if this was the start of something awful like the dome again. In. One, two, three. Out. One, two, three.

Circe stuck close behind Wini and covered her own mouth to keep from screaming at what she saw in front of them. "What did you do?" More importantly, she wondered what they could possibly do to stop it. It didn't look like any cleaning product she'd ever seen, but with the way that it was eating through the table like that and also taking into consideration everything that she'd ever learned in Potions class, she'd bet that they'd included Bundimun Secretion as an incredient. Idiots. Thinking quickly, Circe went to a nearby sink to fill up a bucket of water.

"Everyone, step back." She took another deep breath in and out. "Just in case." Hoping that she was right, she attempted to carefully pour the water onto the spill in an attempt to dilute it but without too much splattering. I mean, that was how they made magical cleaners. With any luck, at least the floor might look a bit shinier?

"Really? You wouldn't mind?" Wini asked, a tentative, hopeful expression on her face. She felt like she was getting help from so many people already - Marin, Lip, Ben - but honestly, she needed all the help she could get at this point. Especially because it was literally life and death. Or well, not literally, but it felt that way. She still had trouble understanding how one exam could determine the whole course of her life. "That would be really nice," she added, again the thought of how she and Circe had never talked, really talked, felt like a big oversight.

And the same elation and regret filled her again as the Slytherin agreed to doing rounds. A very small part of her really wished this wasn't some elaborate prank, but it was quickly chased away by guilt for thinking the worst just because she was a Slytherin or perhaps because of the whole stupid 'rivalry' she tried not to buy into with Ezra. It was difficult to erase entirely, but she tried not to focus on it.

The adrenaline and the horror of what was happening in the unused potions room was enough to chase those thoughts away though. Her wand was out and ready, but it was like she was frozen. She didn't know one Charm that would help stop whatever that potion was and Merlin help them all if they had to rely on her nonexistant Potions knowledge. She was suddenly very, very grateful to have run into Circe because she stepped forward and took charge in a way that Wini admired very much.

"It'll be okay," she tried to reassure the two younger students as Circe found some sort of solution. Wini was quick to step back at Circe's warning though. As she poured the water onto the potion, it stopped the sizzling. Or at least Wini thought it did. The table still seemed like it was still being eaten away, slowly sinking more towards the dangerous potion. "I think it's working," she said with a nod at the Slytherin. Good thinking on her part. "Maybe more water?" she asked, wondering if that would slow the process even more.

But the two stranded students were still a concern. They look terrified. Wini used her best calm and caring voice as she told them, "I'm going to levitate you over to us. One at a time, okay?" she said and then nodded at the freckled boy. "Just stay really still and you'll be alright," she pointed her wand at him and cast a gentle levitation charm, flying him right over the Potions spill and to safety just beside her. She touched his shoulder as he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yeah, of course." Circe offered another smile. "It's no problem. I didn't.. really have a whole lot to do aside from study, this year."  And keeping Sid out of trouble. "With the exception of holidays, of course." In years prior, she'd always spent a lot of time with Jam, Janae, and Ezra who were all out of school now. It had been a bit lonely with most of her close friends graduated and gone and some of them no longer speaking to her regardless. Nobody in her own house seemed to particularly like her, and she had very few Slytherin friends. She still heard that awful nickname, Slutcliffe, that Macnair had coined for her whispered in the halls and the common room. Maybe this was at least a chance to start over again with Wini?

Though, truly, Circe could have gone without having to prove herself in so dangerous a situation. The Slytherin could not help but wonder why there were not more safety features on this bloody castle. The potion slowly stopped sizzling and a wave of relief washed over her. "Just like I thought. Bundimun Secretion. It's used in a lot of cleaning products. Diluted, of course."

Surprised at her own apparent usefulness, she worked on pouring more water over it as her Hufflepuff counterpart calmed the younger students. She couldn't help but think that they made quite the team. With a few more goes with the bucket of water, she seemed to be having a good deal of success. The table would need to be replaced, but she figured that at least everyone's limbs were intact and she'd finally stopped shaking.

"...Well, that was exciting."

"Yeah, it feels like all we're doing is studying this year, right?" Wini agreed with a smile and then nodded again. The holidays for her.. hadn't been great so her smile wavered. She hadn't returned back to the family farm in Wales at the parent's request. It was nice to spend it with William, she supposed, but the reality of it all still laid heavily on her heart. New Year's, at least, had been a nice distraction, but she glanced at Circe, feeling a bit awkward all things considered. Wini thought Ezra had said he and Circe were over, but it's not like she had the full story so she wasn't sure what had happened and certainly didn't want to bring it up now, not when she and the Slytherin seemed to be getting on pretty well.

"Bundimun?" she gasped and narrowed her gaze on the boy standing next to her. He only had his eyes on his friend though and Wini decided to be really nice and hold part on the what-were-you-thinking lecture until she had levitated the other student over the still sinking table. Wini did that and a few moments later, she was facing both of them, hands on her hips, although since she was pretty short and they seemed tall for their age, she wasn't sure the intimidation and authority she wanted to portray were really coming across. "Honestly, what were you thinking?" she started with and then proceeded to detail how dangerous something like this was, going on until she ended with, "Detention, for the rest of this week, both of you."

She waved them with a hand out of the room and made sure they were really gone before she turned back to Circe and gave her a nervous look. "Think I was too harsh?" she sighed unevenly as she looked at the table and rubbed at her brow. "I'm not sure what I would have done if you weren't here, good thinking."

Circe began nodding in agreement, her hands on her hips, as she listened to Wini dole out the punishment. Detention for the rest of the week was absolutely fair. They were lucky that they hadn't been injured. Bundimun secretions were extremely acidic and were known to rot building structures. She shuddered to imagine what might have happened if any of it had gotten onto their skin.

The Slytherin let out a breath that she hadn't realized that she was holding. "No, you were completely fair. That could have ended very badly. They're lucky to not have made a trip to the Hospital Wing tonight." She assured her.  "Thank you. I'm sure that you would have managed, but I'm glad that I could help." Now, where to go from here? "I'm not sure what we can do about the damage already done. We'll have to just.. let someone know. Hopefully, it won't be too much trouble to fix."

She couldn't imagine that their professor was going to be pleased, but at least there weren't any student injuries to report-- just property damage.

Circe mentioned the Hospital Wing and she nodded, a little woodenly. Being the Mean Prefect always took a lot of energy out of her. She frowned as she glanced back at the mess the students had made. "You don't think they were hurt and we just didn't notice, right?" Wini worried with a look back out the doorway where they had last seen the little students disappear.

Now she wanted to call them back and make sure they were really alright before giving them the Prefect Look and sending them out again. She'd have to do better at the assessment part next time. Well, Merlin, she hoped more students would try this particular stunt. But next time in general.

Wini nodded again at Circe's course of action. "Good idea. I can let my Head of House know. They'll sort it out, I'm sure," she said as she took a step back from the mess and nodded toward the door, waiting until Circe had exited before charming it closed with a high level charm. Hopefully it would too advanced for the younger kids and hopefully the older kids would know better. "I'll go tell them about it now," she said with a step back that way and a tentative look at Circe.

"Would you maybe want to study tomorrow afternoon. I have a free period after lunch?" she asked, a hesitant but friendly smile on her face. It was weird and a little awkward to make friends with someone she thought she should hate considering the dating situation with Ezra and the two of them, but she couldn't help but think Circe was so nice. Even for a Slytherin. And Merlin knew she could do with a few more friends who appropriately appreciated the wisdom of Witch Weekly and all the other girl secrets that went right over the heads of @Marin Clare  and @Phillip Donnelly .

/end