Why had she agreed to come along again? Brynn liked Brietta, a rare thing for the antisocial girl, but she was not in the mood to go out into the world today. All she really wanted to do was sketch in her journal and study her book of dueling spells. She didn’t even like cats! Well, that wasn't entirely true. In reality, she was more resentful of the fact that her parents wouldn't allow her to have a cat, but the Slytherin didn't particularly care about the difference between the two feelings, and wasn't willing to admit that she secretly did like cats.
In truth, the only reason she'd come along was because Brietta had bribed her with food, and Brynn wasn’t one to pass up anything that was free, especially food. Unlike some of the other students, Brynn's parents didn't send her any pocket money, and the stuff she'd stolen in August had long since run out. The fact that someone was willing to pay for her food had given her more than enough motivation to agree to go, and she had to remind herself of this multiple times as they'd walked to the shop. She snuck irritated glances at the annoyingly cheerful girl waiting on them while looking for the absolute cheapest thing on the menu before Brietta reminded her that she was paying, and that Brynn could get whatever she wanted. "I'll have the same thing as her." She said, nodding in Brietta's direction. "You're welcome," she said simply, once the other girl was gone. "and thanks for lunch." She was about to ask what the big deal about Annika's cat was anyway, but Brietta spIke first, her words catching Brynn completely off guard.
"I do not go behind people's backs!" she said defensively, "Or at least not all the time." It was a lie and she knew it. The girl was sneaky by nature, and much preferred learning about other people's lives and secrets that revealing details about her own. Indeed, she rarely talked about herself, and even when she did, she only sometimes told the truth. "And nothing is up with me either." Another lie, though this one was considerably more obvious. Brynn had started out the year happier and more talkative than ever before, but around Christmas her attitude had changed. She'd stayed at the school during the holiday like she always did, but with with the new year came the letters. Of course, Brynn had received letters from home during the first half of the year, but those had come considerably less often and weren't nearly as angry as the newest notes. They came daily, each one berating her for stealing money and sneaking off to Hogwarts and not even having the nerve to come back for Christmas. But after three weeks, the letters stopped suddenly, and she hadn’t heard from her family since then.
For three months the third year had been left to worry about what would happen when the school year ended and Brynn had slowly become sullen and withdrawn once more. While she'd foolishly hoped that no one has noticed, it was clear that Brietta had. Brynn glared at her housemate through narrowed eyes for a moment, debating what to tell her. Yes, Brietta was the only person at Hogwarts that Brynn would truly consider a friend, but she wasn't quite sure that the other girl would keep her secrets well, secret. Still, it might feel good to talk about her fears, and Brietta might even be able to offer her advice. Besides, she didn't have to tell her everything if she didn't want to.
With a heavy sigh her features softened and her expression turned to one of wariness instead. "Do you promise not to tell? I don't want this to get out." It was the first true thing she'd said since they'd entered the café, and though she didn't have a valid threat to make against the girl, Brynn wold most definitely have her revenge if the other Slytherin betrayed her trust. "Did I ever tell you why I randomly showed up at your house that one day in the summer?"
