Andrew Parra --- Stanley Buttons

Andrew grunted up the steps of the Astronomy Tower. He hated his brother, as soon as he went to see him he was sure to commit fratricide. His older brother named Liam who was in 7th grade at Hogwarts had signed him up for this stupid activity.

Young Parra continued to ruminate until he reached his destination. The room was nicely decorated, and the colors that dominated the room were mainly pink and red. Heart garlands were draped on the edge of the tables and paper hearts floating in the room randomly.

The young Ravenclaw walked slowly into the room, and found a sign inviting him to help himself. He looked carefully at the proposals, and opted for the cakes. As they picked up the small package, a number appeared on it, and Andrew noticed that there were picnic blankets scattered around the area, and beside each of them was a balloon floating with a number.

The first year found his number, and walked over to it. He sat down on the tablecloth, and tasted the cupcakes, waiting for his partner to meet him. Andrew had decided to stay because he didn't want to leave the person who had the same number as him alone, and at the same time, he was curious to know who his Valentine would be.

He bit into a cake, and stared blankly at the sky.

@Stanley Buttons sorry for my late...

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@Andrew Parra

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His hands fumbled together as his legs trudged up the stairs to the top of the astronomy tower. Stanley had signed himself up unknowing of what he was really getting himself into. The boy honestly didn't even know if he would last five minutes with another person let alone a whole dinner. "I can do this." He whispered to himself. It couldn't be that hard. Just sitting down and trying to carry a conversation for a few hours would be breeze. For anyone other than Stanley.

It was to late to turn back as his brain racked up ways to introduce himself without freaking out the other person. Stanley continued up the stairs with gloves on his hands and a bobble hat sat upon his messy hair. The trek was long and boring until he finally started hearing a mumble of voices and lights started to emerge from above him.

A sign was at the entrance with three things next to it. A vase of pink roses that seemingly had had their thorns cut off on purpose. A plate of cupcakes and a bag of sweets. Stanley's eyes trailed the bag of delicious goodness as his hand went for it. A number started to appear on the white label. The number that would lead him to his blind date.

There were balloons above every blanket. They also harbored numbers on them but none were the one Stanley had. He weaved in and out of the blankets eyeing up every balloon until he found his. His valentine was already there sat on the blanket, eating his cake and looking towards the sky.

"Hello." Stanley softly spoke up, "I think this is where I'm meant to be." A small smile appeared on his face as he studied the person in front of him unsure whether he was happy to be here or was just as confused as himself.. He sat down and crossed his legs before going on to introduce himself, "I'm Stanley."

Stanley lifted his hand in hope of a handshake with the person sat across from him. The boy used his free hand to move his hat off of his head and place it next to him. "I'm glad I didn't get here to find no one." He whispered to himself.

While eating his cakes, Andrew was having fun counting the stars one by one. "You might as well do something while waiting". He felt a presence behind his back when he was at his 31st star. He turned his head, and looked up: he saw a young man, with brown hair and green eyes. He didn't seem very sure of himself. "He's just as lost as I am, looks like ..." the Ravenclaw thought to himself, responding to his interlocutor, smiling slightly.
- Hello Stanley! I'm Andrew, Andrew Parra.
The young boy responded to his wrist, and moved to make room for the newcomer. Andrew heard the man named Stanley whisper to himself that he was glad he had found someone. The Ravenclaw smiled upon hearing this, and said to him:
- Here, take some, it's cakes.
He didn't know what to say to start a conversation, so you might as well start with something.
- I didn't register myself, Andrew began, picking up a cake. It was my big brother who is in his last year at Hogwarts who signed me up ... He thinks I'm much too dark as a boy ...
He sighed; family situations were far too complicated for him.
- For my part, he continued, looking at the sky, I was happy to come to Hogwarts. Indeed, I have a rather complicated relationship with my mother, which does not make life easy at home ...
Normally, the young boy was not that talkative. But suddenly, he felt the urge to speak. "Weird," Andrew thought, biting into his cake again.

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@Andrew Parra

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As the boy across from his introduced himself as Andrew, Stanley ruffled his hair and scrunched his eyes slightly trying to make himself look at least little bit more presentable. There was a small comfortable silence where Stanley looked at his lap and let out a shaky breath.

Andrew offered him a cake to which Stanley averted his eyes towards the person sat across from him and nodded his head slightly taking a cake. He peeled away at the wrapping and took a bite allowing the goodness to melt inside his mouth. Stanley smiled and let his shoulders drop from being in a perfect position for posture. It tasted a lot better than he had expected and silently thanked Andrew for giving him one.

"I don't know how to explain how I got here." Stanley muttered. Big Ted had initially thought of the idea however the Teddy Bear was just another part of Stanley's mind portrayed through an inanimate object. It was very complicated and had confused a lot of people he had met. His mind was a mystery to most people. "I signed myself up but it wasn't my idea."

Andrew continued to talk, thankfully carrying the conversation. "I live with my dad. I don't have any siblings." Stanley said giving the boy a small smile. He knew exactly how hard it was to have a relationship with a mother. Especially since they hadn't been around since he was a baby.

Thinking back to one of Andrew's older statements, the hufflepuff quietly whispered out, "You seem like a chipper boy. Does your brother not like you?" Stanley took another bite out of the cake and continued, "I wish I had a brother." His confidence had grown slightly startling the boy but he revealed in it hoping it would last long enough to survive the night.

Stanley had an element of mystery that Andrew particularly liked: talking about him, without really understanding him. The young boy explained that he didn't have brothers, but that he would like to have one. Before that, he asked the young Ravenclaw if the relationship he had with his older brother was bad, because he didn't seem to look good. Andrew looked at the package of cakes, then stared blankly at the sky as he answered:
- I don't have just one brother unfortunately ... I have four to be more precise. Three of them finished their studies at Hogwarts, and the smallest of the four is in seventh year ... I can't tell you if the relationship I have with my older brother is bad, but I'm having a hard time in general with relationships ... It's an abstract thing too complex for me and my conscience ... Being alone is one of my habits ...
He sighed; even if he had just explained that he was not comfortable with people, he found that the current went well with Stanley earlier. “Well, for now,” he thought, his gaze lost in the stars. No one could talk to the young boy for long. He continued to gaze at the sky for a few minutes, then said:
- The current does not go very well with my mother for one real reason: I have a Muggle friend with whom I get along particularly well. Unfortunately, being part of a Pureblood family, my mother is afraid that he will "influence me" and all the hoopla that goes with it ... It's frankly heavy.
He sighed again; sighing was a habit with him. He straightened up slightly so he could stretch and said:
- I think having a family with siblings without tension or conflict should be a joy. Unfortunately, this is not the case with me ... Why would you like to have a brother? Is it difficult to live as an only child?

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@Andrew Parra

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Stanley nodded his head slowly understanding that Andrew might not want to talk about his brother any more. It was the same with his own mother however he didn't even know that much about her in the first place to strike up a conversation with someone else to talk about her. He only wished to know why she had left. His father, Santino, felt just as sad that Ciara left than Stanley did but he still gave his son some hope in his mother which including telling stories, showing him pictures and her old belongings.

As Andrew said he had four brothers, Stanley's mouth slightly dropped. That was not something he had expected Andrew to say. By the sound of it, the boy in front of him seemed to be the youngest and it was pretty hard as well. If Stan had ever had a brother he would have wanted to be the older instead of the child that had to live up to the expectations of their sibling.

"I like company. Unless it's a big… crowd." He whispered out. "I can't breathe in them. They are so big." Stanley looked up towards Andrew and let out a small breath. The boy in front of him was looking up towards the sky. Before he could even think, he blurted out, "I like your company."

The hufflepuff bashfully put his hand over his face hiding his embarrassment. He really hoped it wouldn't scare off his new found acquaintance. "I have a two friends but I'm sure they have better friends than me." He lifted a finger to expose his eye to the world while his cheeks still blazed hot red.

He composed himself slightly while Andrew asked why he wanted a brother. "I sometimes feel bad asking for my dad's attention all the time since it's just us two. A brother would also be able to play on the slide we have in our garden." Stanley's soft voice said honestly. "It's not difficult. I just think maybe if I had had a brother I wouldn't have had to have Big Ted. A real person to talk to."

The thought of not having Big ted was preposterous but reasonable. If Stanley had ever gotten a younger brother he possibly could have been a completely different person! Who knows what he would be doing. Maybe being an only child was a good thing and had given him the opportunity to form bond with something so special to him.

Andrew listened carefully to Stanley: his point of view interested him. Indeed, young Parra was a boy with four brothers, and on the other side, his classmate was a boy without brothers and sisters. He explained that he liked the company, but not a lot of people, just the right amount. The Ravenclaw understood him and thought about Stanley's view of things, compared to his own. Lost in his thoughts, the Hufflepuff brought him back to reality by saying "I like your company"

Andrew swallowed his cake hard and scratched his head. In his life, he never really understood what love was. He was only a freshman, but he thought he should know what it was, at least with his family. Andrew experienced love with his best friend, or rather friendship. But, maybe it wasn't love Stanley said, maybe, it was just a compliment. The Ravenclaw looked at the Hufflepuff and saw him put his hand over his face to hide his embarrassment. Stanley added that he had friends, but he thought they had better ones than him. Andrew decided to let him speak, before giving him his point of view.

He explained that he wanted to talk and play with a person, a real person. Indeed, he had, from what Andrew had understood, a sort of imaginary friend. The Ravenclaw understood the boy and took pity on him. He took one last bite of a cake before saying:

- Compared to what you said about your friends, you must not think that. Since I only have one friend, I can't really put myself in your shoes, but I want to explain my thinking. In school, when I was in elementary school, some idiots used to make fun of me or say very mean things... It's not like you, but I want to tell you my story, maybe I can help you... So, some idiots made fun of me or said very mean things but I thought I was better than them, and that I would always be needed because I was important. You could say that I got a "big head" but, it helped me not to "drift"...

It was the first time in his life that he loved and wanted to confide in me. He was pleasantly surprised and ended by saying:

- I think I like your company too...

He looked up at the stars before asking:

- You mentioned "Big Ted"... Can you explain to me who he is? Some sort of imaginary friend?

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@Andrew Parra

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Nodding his head slightly, Stanley acknowledged the story Andrew had told to him and processed it slowly. He had never been to school before Hogwarts and had been taught by his father the basic necessities of life like reading and writing. The boy had never gotten the chance to try make those strong connections between two young children but from what he had heard it sounded hard. Trying to keep up with he liked you and who didn't must have been a stressful task on such a young person.

"Big Head?" Stanley questioned, "You don't have a big head just positive thoughts." He took in a deep breath and then looked down at his hands before connecting them and playing this his thumbs. As Andrew continued on to say he also liked the Hufflepuff's company he smiled sheepishly while his cheeks brightened slightly, "Thanks."

At the mention of the boy's life long teddy bear, he shot his head up and his small smile became a massive grin. "Big Ted?" He said with excitement however still used his normal soft voice, "He is my teddy bear. I love him so much. He helps me when I feel sad or when I feel scared. Big Ted makes me feel good about myself even if it is just my self-conscious giving him a voice."

Stanley gave a small laugh and brought his shoulders up to his ears, "He helps me when I want to talk to my mum but I can't. I don’t know who she is." His smile faltered but then went back to the size it previously was, "But that doesn't matter. I have my dad and Big Ted! I don't need anyone else."

After taking a deep breathing from speaking quite fast, Stanley took a little pause. He didn't want to over load Andrew with information and decided it was best to let it sink in as little bits.

"I've had him since forever. I normally take him everywhere I go but I was adamant that I wouldn't need him tonight and that seems to be working." He stopped and nodded his head agreeing with himself. He had gotten a surge of confidence once he had easily slid into conversation with the boy across from him. It was really comforting.