Unlikely Friendships PV Bridget Collins Finished

Bridget sauntered into the library. She had half an hour before dinner and hoped to find a good book to read. Exams were over and homework was light--she had already completed the Defense Against the Dark Arts essay back in the Slytherin Common Room. She had taken her books there to focus better, as she found it was much easier to focus in the cool, dark dungeon depths in the summer where she was away from the enticing outdoors.

She walked past tables where people were still studying. There weren't many of them--three Ravenclaws, a Gryffindor, and a Hufflepuff. No wonder the Ravenclaws and Gryffindor were here--it must be a nightmare to try and focus in one of the towers. The Gryffindor--a first year girl she recognized from classes--turned as she walked past (she must have had good hearing because Bridget was an expert at walking silently) but then returned to her work. Bridget let her eyes stray to what the girl, who she knew from roll call to be Katrina Walker, was working on. Katrina was surrounded by a sea of books on imps and had already filled up half of her roll of parchment with her essay.

Bridget continued on, finding an aisle on Potions. She picked up a book titled 'Achievements in Potionology' and set off to read in her favorite corner window. She was surprised Katrina had even noticed her, as it seemed most Hogwarts students didn't even know she existed. Few people had looked at her, and even less had bothered to talk to her.

Her stomach twisted as she remembered her exams. Until she received the results, there was nothing to do but worry and second-guess her answers. She felt she had done well in Potions, but she knew if she did badly, she would freak out (she wanted to pursue a career in Potions). Charms had gone well and she had performed all the practical spells with ease. She hoped History of Magic had gone well, but as magical history was new to her, she wasn't sure. Bridget thought Transfiguration had been pretty good but she was sure she had made a few mistakes...

'Stop worrying,' she internally told herself. 'All of your exams went just fine.' It was true, but that didn't stop her nerves.

A while later, she checked her watch. The hands on it told her it was 5:52. Eight minutes until dinner. Bridget decided she would pack up in a few minutes; she wanted to finish her chapter first.

She quickly glanced over the top of her book to see if everyone else had left. It appeared that everyone except Katrina had headed to dinner. Katrina rolled up her finished paper and put her books back in their respective places.

Bridget was just about to go back to reading when Katrina caught her eye and walked over to her. That was odd--Ruby Cazares was the only person who had initiated a conversation with her (unless she counted Thora Larkston waking her up so she wouldn't miss Astronomy). As the girl walked closer, she could better make out what she looked like. She was taller than her, but as Bridget was short that made Katrina average-sized. She had bright blue eyes, a small nose, and somewhat ringlet-y, long auburn hair.

She dismally checked the page number so she could finish it later and hurried to stand up. Then she awkwardly waited for Katrina to say something first--her social skills were awful and Katrina must have something to say if she walked over. Bridget's eyes wandered around the room--looking at people when they were this close made her uncomfortable.

'Say something,' she pleaded in her head.

"Uh, hi. My name is... Katrina," the Gryffindor girl said awkwardly. Bridget was confused. She was sure the girl had had something to say... if Bridget were to walk up to someone, she would have had a good reason. Katrina stuck out her hand for a handshake. Bridget quickly put her hand out too and they grabbed each other's hand wrong and the whole thing was really terrible.

Katrina picked up the book Bridget had been reading. She gave her a slightly quizzical look, as if asking what kind of person read books on subjects after taking finals. She snatched it out of Katrina's hand when she offered it back. She knew she was being kind of rude, but she was frustrated that someone could force her through another uncomfortable social interaction if they didn't even have anything to say. Also, Katrina had prevented her from finishing her chapter. Besides, who initiated a conversation they were tense about having, anyway? She took a deep breath to calm herself down, realizing that she hadn't introduced herself yet.

"I'm Bridget Collins," she said shortly. She glanced down at her watch again. It was 5:55 and high time to head to dinner.

"It's time for dinner," Bridget added, promptly marching towards the counter. She quickly checked out 'Achievements in Potionology' so she could finish it in her Common Room later. She shoved the book into her satchel and stalked off towards the door. Bridget had been told that she walked fast when she was frustrated and based on the pace she was setting (despite her short legs), she supposed that was true.

'What if Katrina just wants a friend?' she thought as she pushed the library doors open a little harder than necessary. 'Well, she's not the only one,' she answered herself. Bridget, in truth, was counting down the days until she could see Lizzy and Jemima, her best and only friends. Yes, Hogwarts was amazing, and yes, she loved learning magic and couldn't imagine how bored her friends must be learning pre-algebra and sitting through lectures. But that didn't mean she felt like she belonged at Hogwarts.

She forced herself to slow down. She hadn't been this mean to anyone at Hogwarts, and Katrina was one of the few people that had bothered to introduce herself. She'd be in the Great Hall any minute now (in just a few turns and long corridors), and she supposed she might as well give Katrina a chance.

Katrina exits thread

Bridget slowed down to allow Katrina to catch up so she could at least somewhat make up for her indignance. She had the inkling that she was acting just like a stereotypical Slytherin--no wonder many of the kids on the Hogwarts Express had been against being sorted into the House of Snakes. Regardless, Bridget was not going to apologize. She got like that sometimes--holding a grudge and refusing to admit her own wrongdoing. She would be nicer to Katrina, but she wouldn't say she had done anything wrong, not with the incident so fresh on her mind. Besides, her mind was already repeating all the reasons why it was Katrina's fault and not hers.

She turned around to see how close Katrina was just in time to see her accidentally ram her hand into the wall and her face to burn red with what Bridget was sure was embarrassment. Bridget may hold grudges, but she didn't laugh at people getting hurt, and she felt a wave of guilt when she saw the hurt look on Katrina's face.

Bridget doubled back to wait for her, mind racing as she thought of what to say. She wondered if Katrina would just avoid her and high-tail it to the Great Hall. However, Katrina froze, as though wondering what would happen next. Bridget knew she would only have one chance to make this up.

"Are you okay?" she asked, and Katrina nodded stiffly. She gulped--what now. She could feel Katrina's eyes burning into her, which did not help her stress levels. Maybe she could praise Katrina for something... what did she know Katrina was good at? Her brain raced as she replayed classes they had been into together, when she remembered. Katrina practically shone in Astronomy--she knew where a bunch of the constellations were and often answered questions in class.

"You're really good at Astronomy, by the way," Bridget added with a fraction of a smile. Then she gripped the strap of her book bag and headed off towards the Great Hall, settling down among her housemates (who felt like total strangers) and nibbled at her dinner, wondering whether she had just made an enemy or a future friend.

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Bridget Collins exits the thread.

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I got permission for all god-modding (I was informed over owl of how Katrina would react).