Magical Music or Musical Magic? PV Simon Closed

Ever since Henry had shown him the way to the Rehearsal Room, Simon seemed to be dividing up his free time that was so often spent only in the library but now was also spent in this room as well. He could hum a tune there without someone staring at him from their book, strum on his guitar, or even practice the piano.

It also offered him a large sort of openness that the other students probably got to experience while they were on the castle grounds that he usually avoided. On his way there, he stopped to admire some of the portraits until something caught his attention.

Was that music?

Now and again he would come to the room to see a group of girls practicing a dance or something of the sort but honestly the room was usually left underutilized. Simon's curiosity was sparked and he proceeded down the hall until he got to the doors of the Rehearsal Room. He pushed them open to see Gia Adelard sitting with her guitar in her lap.

"Gia! It's you!" he said brightly, smiling as he came closer. The two sat together on the train ride to Hogwarts and then he lost her in the shuffle. He was able to hear her name called out and saw her sorted into Gryffindor and that was about the end of their adventure. He was glad to see her again. "Congratulations on making Gryffindor!"

location rehearsal room, hogwarts date september 6, 2020

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====outfit click this link ====hex code #ac1f3

Gia didn't notice that another person had entered the room until they spoke, greeting her. "Oh!" she looked up, startled. The girl was even more surprised when she saw who it was. "Simon!" she exclaimed as she placed a hand gently on the strings of her guitar to quiet the noise they were making. She grinned back at him, happy that they'd ended up meeting again. When the two of them had disembarked from the Hogwarts Express almost a week before they had become separated, and the last time she'd seen him was at the Sorting Ceremony. That was from a distance, however, and it was a lot different than being able to talk to him up close.

Simon congratulated her on being sorted into Gryffindor, and the eleven year old smiled even brighter. "Thanks," she said. "You were sorted into Hufflepuff, right? That's a great house too!" Gia gestured to the stool a little ways from them. "You could use that stool, if you're staying for a bit longer," the first year offered her friend. The girl was hoping he'd stay, she wanted someone to talk to. Even though the Hufflepuff didn't have an instrument with him, she did recall learning that he played piano as well. There was one in the Rehearsal Room already - because no one would be able to lug a whole piano around with them just to practice - so it was possible he had come to play that instrument.

"So, how are you liking Hogwarts so far?" Gia asked Simon. Hopefully he liked it as much as she did - although really, how could someone not like going to a school for magic? "You were right before, when we were on the train. We really didn't have anything to worry about, did we? Although. . ." she paused, remembering that classes hadn't started yet. "Although we can't be sure about classes yet, can we?" The eleven year old shrugged. She was pretty sure those were going to go perfectly fine as well, based on how amazing the rest of the place was so far. "Oh sorry, I'm talking too much, aren't I?" she apologized, realizing that Simon had barely been able to say a word.

367 words
@Simon Kincaid
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6

"I'm liking it so far," he said, with just a slight hesitation. Then he felt he should explain. He walked passed her and the stool that she offered to sit on the piano bench and sighed. "I am liking it, I really am...but it's a bit overwhelming. I went and checked out the Library and you should see all the books they have in there. Ones on...flying on brooms and making potions and werewolves and vampires and merpeople."

How on earth could these things be real when all of his existence up until now told him otherwise? It was still that surrealness that he felt with it all. "It's good to see you again. When I lost you, I wasn't sure I'd see you again," he said and smiled. The Hufflepuffs didn't always have classes with the Gryffindors so it was difficult when two people knew each other but were in different houses.

Simon brought his hand along the piano, playing a series of notes. "I came to play but I certainly don't want to interrupt you on the guitar. I heard you some outside and you play quite nicely. Maybe there's a song we can try to play together?" It was a suggestion but again, he really didn't want to interrupt. If she'd rather play something by herself there then by all means he didn't mind just staying and being a good audience member.

location rehearsal room, hogwarts date september 6, 2020

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====outfit click this link ====hex code #ac1f3

Gia smiled. "Me too," she agreed, once it seemed like he wasn’t going to say anything else. Simon then walked over to the piano bench instead of the stool she’d offered, but she didn’t really mind. He certainly looked a lot more comfortable there, she thought. The young Gryffindor knew her friend played piano as well as a few other instruments - so he probably was more comfortable sitting there than on a random stool in the middle of the room. The eleven year old rotated slightly so she was still facing him, just catching his soft sigh. "You okay?" she asked. Barely even a second after she said that, the boy began to explain a little more about how he was feeling.

While Simon was talking, a small grin appeared on the girl’s face. When he was finished - actually finished this time, don’t worry - Gia nodded. “I understand exactly what you mean! It’s all just so. . . different from home, you know?” Then, she added, “I actually haven’t been to the Library yet, but it sounds pretty cool from your description. I’m not as much of a reader, but I do enjoy it whenever I end up doing it.” The first year smiled, knowing that she would probably stop by the room later since she was getting quite curious about it. Plus, based on the Hufflepuff’s description of it, the Hogwarts Library was so much more interesting than the ones back in Manchester. Like, books about flying? And on brooms? Yeah, she was definitely going there next!

“Oh, sorry about that!” Gia apologized. “I got out of the compartment and then the crowds just completely swept me away.” She probably didn’t need to apologize, but the girl did it anyway, thinking it was her fault that they’d been separated. “And it’s really good to see you too! It’s been a bit. . . lonely, I guess. I haven’t really had that many people to talk to for the past few days, if I’m being honest.” The Gryffindor student then gave her friend a quick grin. “No one seemed very interested in talking to me - but that’s alright. You’re my best friend here, and at least I got to talk to you today, right?” They had agreed on this near the end of their ride to Hogwarts, and the first year had been very glad Simon had offered. Then, doubt struck her. “I mean, if that’s still okay with you, of course. I bet you’ve already met a bunch of other people here, and. . .” she trailed off and looked down at her feet.

The Hufflepuff boy told her that he’d come to play the piano, like she’d guessed earlier. After explaining that, Simon complimented her guitar playing, making Gia blush slightly. She’d never really played in front of anyone else before - besides her family, that is - and it was nice knowing that he’d enjoyed listening. “Thanks,” she replied. “And don’t worry, you’re not interrupting me at all.” Her friend then asked about playing a song together, and the girl thought for a moment. “I would love to try that! I’m not sure what songs we could play though. . . do you have any ideas?” It was like they’d talked about on the Hogwarts Express, doing some sort of practice session together, and she was very excited.

565 words
@Simon Kincaid
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6

Simon smiled at her. It was amazing how little time he had spent with Gia and yet it seemed every step of the way she seemed to know what he was thinking and how those thoughts affected his emotions. "It's crazy, G," he said to her and sat down, wanting to make sure she knew nothing was wrong. Nothing big, anyway. "It's like you can read my mind and mimic every little thing it's tell me. I guess you and I are just two peas in a pod," he laughed, but he meant it. It was a good feeling too to have someone understand and he hoped she knew he could be there for her in support, even if he didn't always have solutions to things currently going on.

"No need for apologies. I tower over most of the other first years and I couldn't see you. So many incoming. And then there was that moody guy," he shook his head, remembering it. "A bit of chaos, but it was wonderful all the same." To see the castle for the first time...to be sorted and then having each section cheer. "I'm glad you got Gryffindor. Secretly, it was kinda where I wanted to be placed but I think now that Hufflepuff was the right choice. It suits me." Almost completely.

"And yes. We might still have a ways to go to get to know one another but you're still my bestie," he smiled to her, liking the title. Everyone needed a best friend and honestly with the way she seemed to be feeling as he felt every step of the way, it truly only made sense.

"I don't know what song we could play," he said looking back at the piano and then to her guitar, admiring it for a moment. It was lovely. "Ever listen to any of The Beatles?" There was current music he liked that fell into the alternative world but it didn't seem a huge amount of people listened to that. He supposed if it was what everyone listened to then it would be more mainstream and not alternative. Then there was the American oldies that he loved, especially the big band jazz, some of the jazz greats, and the cronies era but again, not well known amongst those from the UK. But everyone, and it very well seemed that EVERYONE knew of The Beatles and Simon hadn't met a person that didn't like at least one of their songs. "We could try one of their songs."

location rehearsal room, hogwarts=================outfit click this link
date september 6, 2020==========================hex code #ac1f3

The first year smiled brightly when her friend told her that it was almost as if she could read his mind. "Really?" she asked, her tone showing that it wasn't a question she meant for him to answer. It was obvious that what he was telling her was something he actually meant, but she had decided to say it anyway because those very same words were perfectly true on her side as well. Like Simon had said himself, it was crazy that even though they had only met a few days ago, they knew what the other was thinking."It's like that for me too," she said with a grin. "I'm glad we met on the train a few days ago coming here." The Gryffindor added softly. And she really, truly was.

Simon told her that she didn't need to apologize, and Gia nodded. "Okay," she said in reply, laughing a little bit when the Hufflepuff said something random about someone he'd met after they'd unintentionally split up that day. "Moody guy?" the girl couldn't help but ask as a grin slipped onto her face. Then, her friend admitted that he'd wanted to be placed in Gryffindor and congratulated her on making it into that house. The eleven year old tilted her head to one side. She'd had no idea about that. . . "Oh, thanks!" she replied. "I wish we were in the same house, that would be fun. But you're right, I do think Hufflepuff suits you perfectly, to be honest." Gia sensed a tiny bit of hesitation from Simon, but didn't bring it up. Not now, anyway.

Now that her thoughts were on the Sorting Ceremony from a few days ago, the first year remembered how excited - and nervous - she'd been. Of course, she had also been quite confused then, since she wasn't used to magic at all, and she also hadn't remembered which house was which either. Well, at least until the Headmaster explained it all, obviously. Then she was able to remember each house's name and traits, but only then. "I didn't mind which house I got into, really, I actually forgot which was which the moment we walked into the Great Hall." The Gryffindor student laughed again, almost teasing herself if that was possible.

When their conversation moved on to the subject of their friendship, Gia was very glad to hear that Simon still agreed that they were best friends. "Alright," she said, not knowing what else to add. Eventually, she just smiled back at him. He was right though, they should probably start getting to know each other better, if they wanted the term "best friends" to actually be true. Best friends - or even just close friends, honestly - knew each other very well. At that moment, Gia thought of Alayna, back in Manchester. They were certainly best friends. . . or had been, when she'd left. Still, it wasn't like Alayna was a witch as well, and Gia really needed a good friend here at Hogwarts, especially since home felt so far away.

Simon didn't know what song to play either, and the two first years both thought about it for a bit. Gia couldn't seem to come up with anything, but her friend did. "The Beatles?" she repeated, and then nodded. "Yeah, my father listens to them all the time! I like them too, though. Not just him," she clarified with a smile. "Ooh, that's a good idea!" Trying to remember any specific songs, she quieted for a bit, thinking. "Hmm, my father's favorite song was Let It Be, maybe that one? I learned that a while ago. . . what do you think?"

605 words
@Simon Kincaid
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6

"I might know it if you give me a second," he said and laughed. Simon placed his fingers on the keys of the piano and hit a few notes, thinking of the song in his head. He knew it, he just never really had attempted to play it before that he could remember.

Soon a few notes turned into a few more and he was getting the generalized melody of the song. Simon had a gift for playing by ear so all he had to do was think of the song and with little effort he could figure it out.

"Are you close with him?" he asked her, pausing for a moment in the song. She had mentioned that Let It Be was her father's favorite song and he figured she wouldn't have suggested it otherwise. The moment he asked it though, he felt rather silly. On the train she had mentioned that her mother died when she was five, leaving just her father and her brother and her.

It was almost common sense that they'd all be very close. Sometimes when you had a smaller amount of people to depend on, that didn't mean you had less, it just meant you held onto those individuals a little more - like he with his Aunt Maggie.

Simon gave a small smile, hoping she'd forgive his foolishness. Simon quickly moved on to another question. "Do you think it's hard for him? To have you come here?" He already lost her mother and now it probably felt like he was losing a daughter - to this whole different world he knew nothing about and he didn't get to see her as often anymore.

Simon imagined that it was quite like that for his aunt. She had lost her parents and a sibling, and now Simon was an entire different country away.

That missing went both ways though, as Simon also missed his aunt. He looked over to Gia. She probably missed her family as well. They would have to remedy that. "Okay, we're going to attempt our first ever cover version of Let it Be but then I've got an idea."

It would be silly and maybe it wasn't the best idea, but it would be something for these two to do together and still interact with their families. It would be good bonding too for he and Gia. He just waited to see if she was interested in all to ask what it was before he would tell her of his little scrapbook adventure idea.

@Simon Kincaid

6 September, 2021

The Hufflepuff seemed to recognize the song she mentioned to him, and he immediately placed his hands on the piano keys to try and figure it out. In only a few moments, she could hear the melody of the song coming from the instrument, and Gia's eyes widened. "Wow," she said with a small laugh. "That was fast!" The girl gently lifted her own instrument back into her lap and began strumming along softly to his music, not too loud to distract him as his fingers started getting more comfortable with the notes.

When Simon paused, Gia did as well. His question startled her, since it was a completely different topic, but nonetheless, she answered quite quickly. "Yes," was her response, the tone of her voice certain and confident. "The three of us - my brother, father, and me - are really close." She almost added that they had to be, but then stopped herself for some reason. "Are you close with your aunt?" the eleven year old remembered her friend mentioning his Aunt Maggie on the Hogwarts Express a few days ago, and was curious about the two of them. She was pretty sure that they were, but had decided to ask anyway.

The boy sitting a few feet away gave her a small smile, and the Gryffindor smiled back. It seemed like he thought his question was a bit silly, but she didn't mind. Her old best friend back in Manchester had had her mother die as well, but Alayna's father was anything but kind to his daughter. Instead, he basically pretended like she didn't exist, something that Gia didn't understand. The two of them, they only had each other. It just didn't make sense. . . it was then that she realized how she'd referred to Alayna. She'd said "old best friend." If she was the old one, then who was the new one? Simon? The first year pushed those thoughts away as the Hufflepuff opened his mouth to say something else, but they stayed in her mind for the next few moments afterward.

"I - yes." she admitted. "I think part of the reason he still didn't want to believe about this whole magic thing even after seeing Diagon Alley was because he wanted me to stay." She sighed. Saying it all aloud made it seem so much more real, and a small pang of guilt hit her chest. Gia hadn't fully considered what it must be like for her father, not really. Her smile slipped away and was replaced by a frown as she realized this. "I write to him often, though.
. ." It sounded just like it was: a pathetic excuse for her leaving the rest of her family, and she knew it, although the girl didn't think Simon would judge her very much, if at all.

As if he knew just what she was thinking, the other first year told Gia that it was time to begin actually playing the song. Then he mentioned that he had another idea as well, and the frown slowly disappeared once more. "Ooh, I'm in!" she said. Her curiosity was certainly piqued, and she couldn't wait to see what he was planning. Strumming the strings of her guitar a few times to prepare, the Gryffindor student counted off the beats and the two of them began playing.

Simon was very, very good at the piano, and the pair sounded great together. Much better than she'd thought they would on their first try, at least. Sure, she made one or two mistakes, but it was still a fun couple of minutes. When the song was over, Gia looked over at her friend and smiled brightly. "We should definitely do this type of thing more often," she told him. "Do you want to try one more time, or should we get on with your surprise idea?" The eleven year old wanted to see what his idea was more, but she also wouldn't mind playing the song once again, since she had enjoyed it a lot the first time.

Then, she thought of something else. "If we do whatever you're planning first, then maybe we could practice this song for a few days and come back to play again some other time? So we know it better?" Wondering what he thought of her offer, she waited eagerly for his answer.

724 words
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6
Evasive Maneuvers

"That'd be great, G," he smiled to his friend. "One more time and then we'll get on with it," he said to her. The two played it through and it was alright for two that weren't even planning on playing music together in the first place. It could be really great though if they put in the time to rehearse and get on the same page. She was a talented musician.

"Alright," he said as he set his guitar down in the corner, propping it up against the wall so it wouldn't fall. He was pretty sure it would be safe there because it seemed to him that students at Hogwarts respected others belongings and wouldn't steal it. He even trusted the Slytherins that some might have apprehensions about.

"I thought maybe you and I could go looking for some of the secret passages that people talk about. You've had to hear the whispers in the halls as well, right? I know I have. I THINK I saw some older students mysteriously appear towards the East Wing of the Fourth Floor here," where the rehearsal room was located. "It makes me think there must be something there to investigate. Are you in?" and he smiled, hopeful that his friend would say yes. Adventures like this were always more enjoyable with someone.