Reid about a phaidros Moon Closed

Another Wednesday night, another Astronomy lesson.

Despite its inconvenient schedule and frigid environment, Phaedra wholeheartedly enjoyed the lessons. They served as one of the few instances where she could dream up a life that could've been, or get caught up in wishes on a star whenever she was free to do so. A lost cause she knew, but a sweet escape nonetheless.

When the professor made his announcement, Phaedra gave a silent sigh through her nose, pulling her robes tighter around her for warmth. Phaedra was the type of student who preferred working alone; others just slowed her down. Still, she was not incognisant to the fact that some professors put a heavy emphasis on teamwork, so for now, she would have to do what was expected. She was not the first student to hate group work and wouldn't be the last.

Black shoes tapped lightly on the floor for the minute or two that Professor Barclay handed out his assignments, her leg bouncing both in impatience and in an attempt to combat the utter cold that she was feeling. Her own name was eventually called out, followed by another that she had grown to know through mutual connections; Reid Kovacs, a Hufflepuff in her year. His name was the gist of all that she knew of him, that and he was a damned good Quidditch player. But when it came to the boy's competence off-field, Phaedra was completely unaware of where he stood. Despite the many times that she had compulsively stalked the class rankings every morning after breakfast, not once had her eyes been drawn to a Reid Kovacs near the top. It was safe to assume that he was likely average in that area.

Regardless, Phaedra still had high expectations not only for herself but for anyone (un)lucky enough to get paired up with her. The badger house had surprisingly won the House Cup three times in a row now and although she still found the average Hufflepuff to be annoying and just as hoity-toity as they accused the other Houses of being, they definitely were not as useless as they were portrayed to be.

It was somehow alarming and a relief all at once, being paired up with Reid. Sure, he wasn't top ranking, but that also meant he was no mark-obsessed, wise-arse that she would have to butt heads with for creative control over the project. If she could take charge and get him to do what she wanted and do it well, it would all be worth it.

Following after Reid, her book bag swung loosely from her shoulder as she made her way to a pair of empty desks. Her brain was already buzzing with ideas by the time she sat down. After smoothing her parchment dead centre in front of her, she laid her quill and inkwell to its left side and zipped her bag shut again. An organised desk was an organised mind, after all.

"Professor said we can do whatever we want,"Phaedra reminded him while reaching for her quill, the feathers shimmering under the moonlight in magnificent hues of blue. The nib was placed into black ink where it collected, and without pause, Phaedra took to the corner of the parchment to brainstorm. "We could make a diagram or model of some sort, for example."

She took his mention of an essay to mind and listed it under the other in neat handwriting, a thoughtful curl tugging at the corners of her mouth. "But going off of what you said, we could write something. Can't fail at that," Phaedra commented after a second of silence, "Just a bit typical, I think," she said sincerely, of the opinion that a project should be more interesting than the usual short essays they were given for homework. Having a project based on visuals would be a great way of proving to the professor that the information was well-stored in their understanding. Going above and beyond for a better mark was her forte.

Raising away from the parchment, a blot of ink from fell onto her free hand and she was quick to rub it away with a slight grimace. For the first time in that night, Phaedra turned to the boy to look him in the eyes, straight-faced and likely coming across as more bored than she intended, features accentuated in the pale light.

"Any other ideas you've got to pitch in? We've got two weeks and I want to get started as soon as possible."

xxxxPhaedra sat there, waiting for his input until he suddenly whipped out a ballpoint pen. The action caught her off guard, yet the raise of her brows indicated quiet fascination. She somewhat recalled muggles using those stick-like contraptions to write with, but this was a first seeing one so closely that she could reach over and touch it. She would have asked the boy what the utensil was called and if it were really true that they were more convenient, but she did not want to seem silly for raising the question, and most importantly, it wasn't relevant to their assignment. Her curiosity would have to wait for later.

xxxxThere sat an air of silence between them as he seemed to ruminate over one of the classroom's models. Phaedra followed his gaze to it, but was unmatched in his enthusiasm. "A model it is, then," she said plainly, before taking it upon herself to lean forward and peer down at his notebook with the oddly thin paper. She could see through it that he had written something on the page previous— a bit messy, that and his handwriting, if she were honest.

xxxxAs he scribbled and talked, she pulled back as an excuse to eye the boy's features; not maliciously but rather in deep contemplation, understanding the likelihood that he must have been related to muggles to some degree. While many of lessons from her home tutors went in one ear and out the other, the same couldn't be said for Reid's explanation and Phaedra was able to follow along accordingly. It must have been the age similarity; kids just knew how to speak to another.

xxxxA model like a clock? Well, she didn't know what to make of that, but it was something to start with. Propping her elbow onto the table, she rested her head on her fist and stared at the eight spheres he drew in a circle. They were to represent the moon phases; that was easy enough to grasp. But how could they get the hands to work? She had no experience or even interest with clockwork. Reid seemed to have thought about that complication though, because before she could butt in and ask for clarification he was already on to his next idea.

xxxxPhaedra watched him draw some more, and after visualising a candle for the sun's rays she perked up instantly. "That one," she said with a simple nod of approval. "The one with the candle. I like it." She felt that the idea was a perfect blend of being visual enough for an onlooker to get the premise, interactive and daresay, even fun to work on. Maybe working with Reid wouldn't be so bad after all. He had already brainstormed so much already— maybe he could've had a place for him in Ravenclaw had it not been for the Sorting Hat's final verdict.

xxxxShe turned back to her own parchment, nearly empty compared to his notes. "I have things we can use - what, candles, a board, some paint? I'll just have to dig through my trunk for them. But I'm trying to think of what we can use to symbolise the Earth and moons..." she trailed off, reaching for her quill to roll the stem between her fingers.