[thd] i am whoever you say i am

"No, no, I promise I'm Winifred Gwartney. I am. You have to believe me," a high voice pleaded though a note of distress shone through in her tone.

The aforementioned girl stood before one of the tall desks in Gringotts, staring up at a goblin who looked stern, but with a side of he couldn't care less. The Hufflepuff had forgotten her key to her vault and she couldn't believe she had done something so stupid. And yes, she knew the goblins were tough, but really, she promised she was who she said she was. And it's not like she had any great fortune in her vault either. Just a small pile of some galleons and a few sickles. Most of the money she used on supplies and books William had graciously given her. She saw a really, really nice 3Spelled tshirt that she just had to have and she knew she would feel bad if she used the money William had given for her on that instead of on the potions supplies she knew she should be buying. Her solution was to get a little money from her Gringotts vault, dip into her savings that were held here, because really when else would she be able to get that tshirt? She wasn't even sure if when she returned to the shop that there would be any left. That's how popular the group was. Wini was aware of that. She had appointed herself as President of the 3Spelled fan club at Hogwarts. Someone in her position just knew those things.

The blonde glanced around as if some form of divine help would fall into her lap. She needed to get into her vault. Luck was on her side and she spotted a familiar face and took a few steps over to the other blonde. "Éilis! Hi! Can you come here for just a quick moment?" she said, tugging on her Ravenclaw's friend arm before she had even finished her sentence. "Éilis," she started as they arrived back in front of the goblin who had denied her entry. "Can you please tell this goblin my name?"

@Éilis Healey

It was the only weekend Éilís had taken off from the summer school. As much as she missed her family, she had felt obligated to get as much from the experience as she could, and leaving for short visits to Dublin didn't qualify. A trip to Diagon Alley, however, with the new term looming, was justifiable, and Éilís had obtained permission to leave with Eir as her escort for the day in order to get her wand checked. Most other things Eir could have picked up on her own, but Éilís was feeling uneasy still even after three years with the wand and it only made sense to ensure that it was fully functioning before returning for her fourth year, when classes were bound to be more difficult than ever.

Éilís had no money of her own in Gringotts. However, whatever money her father could afford to give her each year was in pounds, and Éilís had to return here each summer to trade the notes out for the heavy wizarding coins. As soon as she walked in the door, though, she was intercepted by none other than a familiar face: Winifred. It seemed she wasn't the only one taking time off from the island. She thought she might be embarrassed to be seen with someone other than her father out and about, but after having visited Wini and spent the day at her home with @Sophie Scott, she felt a bit less apprehensive around Wini. The girl had grown up on a muggle farm, not knowing anything of her magic either; they were more equal than many of the others. Wini might understand.

"Hi," she barely had time to reply before Wini was dragging her over to the counter. "Er," she started, not liking being put on the spot. It was an easy question, but it felt like a trick somehow. Too simple. "Winifred Gwartney?" It came out as a question. She looked uncertainly at her friend, wondering if it had really been all she needed.

Wini stared at her Ravenclaw friend expectantly, impatiently patient, but as soon as Éilís uttered her name, Wini whipped around to the warty faced goblin and lifted in brows in emphasis, her hands motioning toward the other blonde. "See? I promise I am who I say I am," pleaded with the goblin. "Isn't there anyway that you could let me into my vault?"

It wasn't even a minute later that they both found themselves escorted out of Gringotts and left at the front door, a goblin telling them 'their foolishness wasn't welcome here' and slamming the door in their faces. Wini winced at the sound and then turned slowly to face Éilís with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry I got you thrown out. Are you mad at me?" she fretted. "I'm sure you can go back in there in a little bit without me and do whatever you came to do."

The Hufflepuff tugged at her braid in frustration and sighed heavily. "Guess I'm not getting that 3Spelled shirt now," she murmured under her breath as she looked down the narrow alley filled with witches and wizards hustling and bustling. She turned to Éilís and shrugged, asking, "Would you maybe want to walk around with me for a little while? If you have time that is? I didn't know you'd be here today too. We could have gone together."

Apparently her answer, though satisfactory for her friend, was not enough for the grumpy goblin to give in. Before she knew what was happening, long-nailed fingers were closing around her wrist and steering her toward the large, grand doors and back out onto the street. It all happened so quickly that Éilís didn't even get the chance to do more than look back at Eir in confusion, who simply waved her off in her carefree way and proceeded to a different goblin's desk. She was lucky, she supposed, to have back-up.

"It's okay," Éilís told her at once, rubbing her wrist where the creature had gripped her but offering a small smile to her friend anyway. "I'm not mad," she promised. "Those goblins are really scary." Admitting it was easier now that the small but strangely-strong employee was back inside. "I suppose this way, I don't have to deal with them at all. I can lend you some money if you'd like. What's 3Spelled?"

"We could go over to the menagerie?" Éilís suggested, indicating the shop just across the way. It would be easy enough for Eir to find her there in fifteen minutes, even if she didn't really have anything to buy. "Are you here by yourself?" She asked as she walked, looking curiously at her friend. Wini had such a large family that it seemed odd she couldn't have found anyone to come with. "I'm really sorry I didn't invite you. It would have been nice to travel together. But I suppose you're staying at home with your parents?"

As they approached the shop, Éilís hesitated. It was dark inside, to suit the owls' preference, but something seemed to be moving about rather abruptly inside. "What is that?"

Wini quietly sighed a short breath of relief as Éilís promised she wasn't mad and the Hufflepuff found her smile again. She glanced back at Gringotts and frowned. She really hadn't known it could go that wrong. Just one little thing forgotten and she had gotten kicked out of the magical institution. Embarrassment flared at her cheeks, but as she faced forward, she tried not to think of it. She should have brought Marin with her. He would've helped her remember her key.

She nodded as Éilís said the goblins were scary and she gulped thinking of them. She wouldn't be in any rush to return even though she knew she needed to access her vault. Maybe she could ask William to do it for her without somehow telling him she had gotten kicked out. As if the whole situation wasn't embarrassing enough, she didn't want her father.. step-father.. William knowing what had happened on top of it all. But then as her friend uttered two simple words, shock and surprise covered her face as she stopped in her tracks and turned slowly towards the other blonde.

"You don't know who 3Spelled are?" she uttered slowly as if that possibility had never occurred to her before. "Liam, Zack, Owen. 3Spelled. The best wrock band out there and ever to exist ever? You haven't heard of them? You had to have heard some of their songs," Wini said. "You have to know who they are," she said as if she still didn't believe, but that was followed shortly by, "If you don't know who they are, I will have to give you a thorough education right away. It's my job as President of the 3Spelled Fan Club, of course." Self-proclaimed title sure but she was deadly serious.

Wini nodded, her mind still reeling from the I-don't-know-3Spelled admission, but she moved along toward the menagerie anyway. She was mentally listing everything she needed to teach Éilís about her most favorite band so her answers to the Ravenclaw's questions were a little absent-minded. "No, I'm here with William," she told Éilís without remembering to mention exactly who William was. It's not like she had a good explanation of him herself anyway.

But as they slowed again, Wini glanced up and for the second time in a matter of minutes, she was surprised. "Are.. are those.. butterflies?"

Wini's amazed tone made Éilís raise her eyebrows in surprise, wondering if this was yet another instance of her muggle upbringing making her feel ignorant in the face of wizarding society. But Wini was from a muggle family, too, wasn't she? And then as Wini continued to talk, Éilís realized who the Hufflepuff was referencing and felt immensely stupid, blood flooding her cheeks as she suddenly remembered the enormous poster Wini had has plastered on their wall in Ravenclaw Tower all year long. How could she have been so silly as to forget something she had looked at every single day for an entire term?

"Right," she said quickly, trying to reassure Wini that there was no need to panic. "Your favorite band, right? I guess I've just never heard their songs." Éilís wondered if it would be enough to recognize the band name, at least belatedly, or if Wini would still be committed to teaching her everything there was to know about the group. She just didn't listen to music much, she supposed.

"Oh, okay," Éilís replied, nodding since it seemed like Wini expected her to know who that was. "I'm here with Eir, my neighbor," she told her friend, not really sure whether Wini wanted to know but feeling like the moment deserved a response, just in case. Eir was a lot more than her neighbor, but like Wini, Éilís felt it would be complicated to explain. Not worth it for the moment.

Éilís furrowed her eyebrows in response to Wini's comment, not ready yet to affirm or deny her suggestion. It was dark inside, but by putting her face up to the glass and blocking the outside light with her eyes she was able to see into the semi-darkness. At least a hundred little creatures were fluttering about the shop, and the customers inside were waving their arms wildly, trying to shoo the butterflies out of their hair. Éilís thought butterflies were rather lovely, but the way these were circling made her suspect they were a bit more menacing than the kind she typically encountered in the muggle world.

Before she could say another word, however, a customer threw the door open and ran outside, shielding her head as she dashed away from the insects. The butterflies began to pour out the door, their wings fluttering menacingly and filling the air with an unpleasant buzzing sound. "Run!" she managed to get out, tripping backwards before turning on her heel and hoping Wini would follow behind. While someone like Jaspar might have found such an experience interesting, Éilís wanted nothing more than to get away from the unknown but clearly aggressive bugs before anything bad happened to her or her friend.