I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
date: September 4th, 2024
time: midday, afterclass
interacting/mentioning: @Bailey Glade
OOC note:
Before Sage knew it, the summer was over and she was back at school. But that didn't mean her mind had stopped stressing about the letter...
She still carried it around with her, debating whether or not to reply. On one hand, he had acted like her dad, once upon a time. But on the other hand, he had kicked her out of his house. He refused to acknowledge her talent as a witch. It only made him think of her late mother. Sometimes it made Sage think about her, too.
Thankfully, Sage had figured out a way to take her mind off that stress: visiting the Herbology class area. She never went inside the greenhouse, not wanting to disturb anyone inside. Instead, she roamed around outside, admiring the land in front of the greenhouses.
Herbology easily became her favorite class back in the first year, and it continued to stay that way into her second year. Being around the plants comforted her. Gardening back home in Kent was a hobby of her's, and now she could spend time at school learning about different plants and their uses.
Sage wandered out to the area outside the greenhouses and took a seat. She had brought a notebook filled with class notes to study. Between the pages was the letter. She also brought with her a quill, ink, and her homework. Sage wasn't one to procrastinate her lessons. It was a beautiful day, slightly chilly, but nevertheless a wonderful day to spend outside.
No matter how hard she attempted to focus on the words in front of her, it didn't work. Her mind kept traveling to that dark place whenever she thought of her family... She set down her quill and stared straight ahead, pondering the decision she'd have to make regarding her father.
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
╔════════════.♥.══════════════╗
Credit: @Damion White
Bailey was a 5th year ~ and she was having a hard time realizing, or rather comprehending that fact.
It felt like just yesterday that she had stepped off the the Hogwarts Express and into the wonderful, magical world that was now her life. Just yesterday that she had met @Colin mccoire and @Kim Sato, just yesterday she and Kim had been paired as quill palls.
Deciding she needed to do something to decompress, something for herself, she slipped on her blue loafers and slipped out of the Castle. Wandering onto the lawns, Bailey really was trying to avoid thinking about him . Things had been… weird. Better than lash year she thought, but it had only been a few days since they got back to school. Too early to tell… Bailey thought, hands in her pockets.
As she leisurely wandered outside, she realized she had unconsciously walked to the herbology greenhouses. A favorite spot of his, and she had (maybe?) wandered there to find him… or maybe simply because it reminded her of him.
Looking around, Bailey spotted another person, whom she had not noticed in her romantic thinking day dreaming. The girl was pretty, with long brown hair and pale peachy skin. She looked … not quite troubled, but like something was going on. Bailey being Bailey, she approached the younger student and, pointing to the grass besides the girl, asked softly mind if I join you? You look like you might want someone to talk to… or for someone to talk and distract you.”
A small pause, as Bailey sat down before continuing. “Sorry if that was too forwards… my name is Bailey, Bailey glade! I’m now a 5th year Ravenclaw, which is SO crazy to think about! Anyways, what’s your name? And is it ok if I stay?
╚══════════════.♥.════════════╝Tag: @Sage Willows
Words: 302/200
Action: wandering (absentmindedly) to the Greenhouses, and meeting Sage
Date: September 4th (2024) midday, after classes
we are all born beautiful. it is a tragedy we are convinced that we are not”
iNPC: Lloyd Matthews Thomas
Main account: Bailey Glade
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
date: September 4th, 2024
time: midday, afterclass
interacting/mentioning: @Bailey Glade
OOC note:
Lost in her own thoughts, Sage hadn't even noticed an older girl walking through the Herbology areas. She seemed to be looking for something, or someone. When the girl spoke, Sage nearly jumped out of her skin.
Oh- geez!" she slammed her notebook shut and tossed it aside.
She looked the girl up and down once she was over her initial surprise. She was tall, leading Sage to guess that she was at least a fourth year. Her eyes were a startling shade of blueish green, sort of like sea glass. Her hair was long, a mix of blonde and brown.
There was something about the way the girl held herself that Sage couldn't name. It reminded her of how her step-mum, Cassie, would stand and speak. Oh, there she went comparing people she didn't even know to people she loved dearly like Cassie. Sage was a master at getting ahead of herself.
Once she realized she hadn't replied to the girl yet, she threw on a smile and repositioned her notebook she tossed aside. "Sorry, zoned out." She waved a hand at the ground where she sat, then up at the girl. "Yes, of course. Sit, stand, do whatever you please."
She didn't say anything about the girl's comment about her expression. But she wasn't wrong. Sage hadn't talked to... Well, pretty much anyone about the whole thing with the letter... or anything that had happened recently.
The girl introduced herself as Bailey Glade, a Ravenclaw. Sage's eyes widened and she stopped herself from gasping. That made Bailey one of the oldest people she had met at Hogwarts, and for some reason that made her suspicious. She wasn't sure how the older kids acted, but Bailey seemed different.
"No, you're fine. I'm Sage Willows, first- no, sorry, second year Hufflepuff. And of course you can stay! I was just working on some... homework."
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
╔════════════.♥.══════════════╗
Credit: @Damion White
Bailey sometimes forgot that she could- and did- sometimes walk really quietly. Partly due to being an oldest child, partially due to the martial arts training, she could be almost silent.
So she really shouldn’t have been surprised when she startled the younger girl, who literally started and then threw her notebook. “Oh my goodness I am SO sorry” Bailey said, a hand flying to her mouth.
The other girl then apologized for zoning out and Bailey said “no no worries, I am so sorry for startling you!”
Taking the girl up on her offer, Bailey settled into the soft grass.
A few minutes later, as their conversation progressed, Bailey smiled slightly at the shock in the girl’s eyes when she realized bai was a 5th year. Bailey still wasn’t used to getting this reaction, and she could still remember the days that she had that exact reaction to older students.
“well, it’s really nice to meet you sage! I love your name, it’s so pretty!”
At the mention of homework, Bailey made a slight face. She did enjoy homework (most of the time) and she probably should be doing some herself.
Noting sage’s silence on her comment about needing a distraction, Bailey decided to distract them both (because I think we all know where Bailey’s mind had been stuck for…. Something like two years and counting)
“ what brought you out here to the Greenhouses? Is herbology a subject you enjoy?”
╚══════════════.♥.════════════╝Tag: @Sage Willows
Words: 242/200
Action: meeting Sage + starting to chat
Date: September 4th (2024) midday, after classes
we are all born beautiful. it is a tragedy we are convinced that we are not”
iNPC: Lloyd Matthews Thomas
Main account: Bailey Glade
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
date: September 4th, 2024
time: midday, afterclass
interacting/mentioning: @Bailey Glade
OOC note:
"It's alright! Really!" Sage insisted after Bailey apologized for startling her. "Don't worry about it; we're all good now!"
Sage tucked the letter back into the pages of her notebook as it had fallen out a bit. She flipped through the pages until she was back at her page. She bookmarked it by folding the corner down. She set her notebook back down in the grass and turned back to Bailey, noticing she was now sitting next to her.
"Oh, thank you!" she replied to Bailey's compliment about her name. "My mum picked it out. She was also the first person to give me a nickname-" Sage stopped herself quickly. No one had called her nickname in ages. Not even her step-mum acknowledged it frequently. Why did she bring it up then? That nickname died with her mum.
Sage noticed a grimace slide across Bailey's face when she talked about homework. Part of her found that funny, a Ravenclaw not enthusiastic about homework. Then again, she didn't know many Ravenclaws. Maybe they were all secretly not fond of studying or homework.
"Oh, yeah I love Herbology. I try to come out here whenever I can- nature is a comfort to me. My step-mum's got a garden back at our house, and I garden with her when I'm not at school. Being here distracts me from... stuff... and it reminds me of all the fun times I've had gardening with her." She ran her hand over the spiky blades of grass. "What about you? Do you like Herbology? Fifth year means you'll probably have to start thinking of a future career, right? Think you'd be interested in a path towards Herbology?"
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
╔════════════.♥.══════════════╗
Credit: @Damion White
“well, it’s really nice to meet you sage! I love your name, it’s so pretty!” Bailey said, smiling. She was sitting next to sage, honestly excited to get to know another person better and to make a new friend!
Sage accepted the complement, but while talking more about how her mum had given it to her, seemed to shut down (on some level). Bailey decided they weren’t quite close enough friends for her to inquire more about it.
Bailey wasn’t quick enough to stop her grimace at the mention of homework. She did honestly enjoy doing her school work but also honestly needed a distraction at the moment.
Her mind currently was going Kim Kim kimmmmmm Kim Kim KIM!! and she was almost frantic to get it to stop.
“I do enjoy herbology! My grandmother, my mum and I do garden together and it does remind me of that… but my best friend, Kim, he’s way more into herbology- he has this like natural green thumb, and it’s like his comfort subject..”
Twisting her fingers, Bailey sighed internally on the fact that she brought the conversation right back to @kim Sato.
“I don’t see myself going into a field with herbology, I’d much rather be a professor of history or be a chef and own a bakery, but I mean I wouldn’t be super mad if I ended up in the herbology field at some point!”
╚══════════════.♥.════════════╝Tag: @Sage Willows
Words: 236/200
Action: meeting Sage + starting to chat
Date: September 4th (2024) midday, after classes
we are all born beautiful. it is a tragedy we are convinced that we are not”
iNPC: Lloyd Matthews Thomas
Main account: Bailey Glade
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
date: September 4th, 2024
time: midday, afterclass
interacting/mentioning: interacting with @Bailey Glade, briefly mentioning @Kim Sato
OOC note: Sage was pranked by Kim at 2023 summer camp, but she doesn't know it was him
Sage's hands danced over the green grass that was beginning to yellow alongside the fall leaves. Soon those leaves would fall and restart in the spring. Leaves were lucky. They got a fresh start every year.
Sage loved fall. She loved the falling leaves forming piles on the ground, the chillier weather, it was all comforting to her. Fall would start in a few weeks, and Sage couldn't wait. She just had the rest of September, all of October, and then her birthday would be in November. She hadn't really celebrated in her first year, so she was looking forward to celebrating the start of her teenage years.
"Nice to meet you, too!" Sage agreed. She was already feeling comfortable around Bailey. Something about her was comforting, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what made her seem so.
"Oh, you like it too?" exclaimed Sage. "Is it still fun in the older years, or does it get impossibly hard?"
Sage tensed briefly at the mention of Bailey's grandmother. She only had one living grandma, Grandma Iris, who was her mum's mother. It had been a long time since Sage had seen her. Her other grandma, Grandma'am Catherine, died before she was born. Sage wasn't quite sure why she was getting tense about someone else talking about grandparents. She normally didn't get anxious about stuff like that...
Bailey mentioned her friend Kim, and Sage raised an eyebrow. The name was unfamiliar to her, but something about the way Bailey spoke of her friend made Sage feel like she should have known about the two's friendship.
"How long have you and Kim known each other?" While she waited for Bailey to answer, she remarked about Bailey saying she'd be a baker or professor. "That sounds cool! Do you like cooking or baking?"
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
╔════════════.♥.══════════════╗
Credit: @Damion White
Bailey watched the younger girls hands dance over the grass with a little smile. It was such a small thing but it was clear the girl was thinking about something, and Bailey found it enduring.
Bailey beamed at the girl, feeling at ease. To be honest Bailey was able to feel comfortable around most people, but something just felt right about sage.
“Not impossibly hard, but it does get more difficult as you learn more- simply because the professors have slightly more trust in us, and because, well, you’re learning more and more and it has to increase in difficultly at some point!”
Later when Bailey mentioned Kim for the first time, Sage lifted an eyebrow. Bailey immediately thought has she heard of the rumors too?!
It seemed that everyone in a 50 mile radius or generally 80.467 KM knew about their supposed relationship- or rather baileys monumental crush/ love for her best friend and Kim’s…. Lack of returned feelings
Maybe this year will be different she though, hoping this would become true.
“Kim and I have been friend for … something close to three years I think? He was a first year and I was a second year … we were originally paired as quill pals, and mer in person and became friends then too. It was only until a few weeks later that we realized we had been writing one another letters too! It’s a tradition we’ve… continued decently well, though we spend a majority of our time together so they’re not too necessary anymore.”
To answer Sage’s other questions she said “I do love baking- Kim does more of the cooking, and we’ve thought of opening a bakery or cafe when we graduate school- it’d be nice to spend my life with my best friend, working together!”
A few seconds passed, and Bailey’s cheeks colored a pink, as she processed what she had said.
“Not.. not like in a relationship … Kim really doesn’t see me like that —“ she stammered, trying to set what she said right. It’s more likely that if she hadn’t reacted that Sage wouldn’t have noticed, but Bailey HAD reacted and now had to deal with what she had said and done.
╚══════════════.♥.════════════╝Tag: @Sage Willows + a brief mentioned of @Kim Sato
Words: 366/200
Action: wandering (absentmindedly) to the Greenhouses, and meeting Sage
Date: September 4th (2024) midday, after classes
we are all born beautiful. it is a tragedy we are convinced that we are not”
iNPC: Lloyd Matthews Thomas
Main account: Bailey Glade
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
date: September 4th, 2024
time: midday, afterclass
interacting/mentioning: interacting with @Bailey Glade, brief mentions of @Kim Sato
OOC note:
Sage nodded along, somewhat absentmindedly, as Bailey spoke. That was good news about the Herbology lessons; Sage wasn't sure if she'd still love it as much if the lessons became impossible. But it was probably good that she would be challenged more. She would need a full understanding of the class if she wanted to continue with her interest in being a healer.
"Three years is a long time. And writing letters is cool! Sometimes written words can say more than spoken ones can." She paused to listen to the rest of what Bailey had to say. She and Kim sounded like good friends- best friends. But it wasn't Sage's place to think they were dating or something.
"That would be so cool! I'd definitely visit if it ever became a reality, and it sounds like it will! How long have you been baking? I lack any talent in the kitchen- I can hardly put butter on bread without ruining it!"
Sage wasn't quite sure what to say when Bailey's face turned pink and she explained she and Kim weren't dating, but she had to say something. "No one said you were. Besides, it's stupid that people always think that two good friends must be dating or something. But, even if you were, I think dating is just two people that are better friends than they are with other people."
Now, Sage had never been in a romantic relationship- she wasn't even sure if she wanted to be- but she did think she knew what she thought about it. At least she did somewhat. But she didn't want to think about that right now. What was so cool about it anyway?
Unsure why, Sage wanted to pull the conversation away from Bailey not dating Kim. "So, um, you're a Ravenclaw, right? What's that like? I only know from my step-mum what it was like to be in Slytherin. But I don't know what Gryffindor is like- that's the house my mum was in; my mum never got the chance to tell me."
I've Never Had An Older Sister Before
╔════════════.♥.══════════════╗
Credit: @Damion White
The girl - Sage - nodded as bailey spoke, seemingly in agreeance or maybe she simply was relating to or understanding baileys statement about classes and their difficulties.
Bailey smiled wishfully at the mention of the letters that she and Kim used to trade- now it was a lot more one sided, Kim rarely replying to her letters.
“letters do make it easier to say things sometimes, even if I don’t end up sending the letters.” bailey said, coming closer to admitting her secret stash of love letters than she ever had before.
Baileys heart warmed when Sage mentioned her dream of opening a bakery seemed like it would become a reality. “I’ve been baking for my whole life- I grew up being in the kitchen with my family, especially my grandmothers and with my mum too!”
She said, before continuing. “I’m sure you’re just fine in the kitchen- I’ve found that cooking savory dishes give you a bit more forgiveness and baking is a lot more strict rule following - so if you’re better following instructions baking might be a better fit, like it is for me, or if you like having a bit more freedom, savory cooking might be the way to go!”
Her thoughts turned to Kim, and her cheeks colored. She was doubtful that he would ever think of her as anything more than a friend, but she had harbored feelings for him for what seemed like AGES. The rumors about them dating didn’t help matters either.
“the rumors about us- Kim and I- dating have been around for forever. I mean, we do spend a fair amount of time together but don’t all best friends? It definitely gets on our nerves, but we don’t exactly do anything to discourage them” bailey laughed thinking of all of the things that she and Kim had done that definitely would turn heads and spark the rumors.
“but I agree, people shouldn’t just assume that we’re dating cause we’re friends of different genders who are close” bailey continued, grateful for the younger girl understanding.
“Ravenclaw is a lot of fun, but I’m sure all of the houses are.” bailey said, more than happy to share her thoughts on her house. “We definitely can be obsessive about grades but we also can totally disregard grades when we’re really focused on learning about something we find interesting. It’s a constant search for knowledge, it’s like we have this NEED to know things.”
Taking a breath and reflecting slightly on what she had just said, she continued “not all of us fit the stereotypes, but a love of knowledge is pretty constant in ravenclaw.
You said you mum was in Griffindor? I’m sorry you didn’t get to hear about it from her” bailey smiled a little sadly, feeling sad about the fact that Sage never had the chance to talk to her mum about her magical history.
“Honestly sometimes I think I should be in Hufflepuff - what do you think of your house?” bailey asked, giving Sage the chance to not talk about her mum if she didn’t want to. Bailey would be more than willing to hear about Sage’s childhood and family situation, but she understood that Sage might not want to talk about it.
╚══════════════.♥.════════════╝Tag: @Sage Willows + a brief mentioned of @Kim Sato
Words: 545/200
Action: wandering (absentmindedly) to the Greenhouses, and meeting Sage
Date: September 4th (2024) midday, after classes
we are all born beautiful. it is a tragedy we are convinced that we are not”
iNPC: Lloyd Matthews Thomas
Main account: Bailey Glade