pardon me pv closed

Aodhan was quick to grab the hand presented to him, using it to hoist himself up quickly, almost looking like the personification of a spring. Even with his embarrassing position, he acted like nothing was amiss. Because he definitely wasn't lame and definitely had not landed flat on his ass like that. To really sell this, he dropped his hand back to his own side, and rapidly nodded his head along to Kim's statements. That is, until his own well-being was brought into question.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not hurt! I mean, my backside kinda stings and my lungs burn, but that's fine. I've had falls down the stairs way worse than this, y'know? Nothing could compare," he assured, even if he was greatly exaggerating the aftermath of those falls. If anything, he received a scolding and sprained wrist at most.

"Also! I'm not running away from anything. I'm making a tactical retreat, and it has been greatly successful! Right now, I'm just, uh..." After trailing off, the boy turned his head left, then right, then left again. The hallway was empty for the most part, save for a handful of other students lingering about. With this information in mind, he gestured for Kim to come closer, already bringing up a free hand to cover the side of his mouth.

Then, while on his tippy-toes, he whispered, "I might be lost though... Do you think you could, well, guide me back to our dorm?" It took conscious willpower to stop himself from tacking on a "pretty please." His position was ridiculous enough as is; there was no reason for him to add fuel to the flame. Still, he looked expectantly at his upperclassman with widened eyes, greatly hoping that luck was on his side and the other would say yes to his request.

At the other's willingness to help, Aodhan's face took on a wide, cheerful grin. He shouldn't have expected anything less; from what he could vaguely recall, Kim was a pretty nice guy. Still, he was also aware of the obligations said fourth year had to juggle around. How anyone could manage so many things at once was quite a mystery to him, but he respected the dedication all the same. Which, speaking of... was the older boy busy with yet another activity when they had run into each other? Surely not. Surely, he simply interrupted a random... afternoon stroll, or something. Because otherwise, he'd have to consider the possibility that his roommate was superhuman. Or an alien? An alien that had to be studied.

These thoughts prompted him to carefully eye his companion as they walked. However, the question he then received caused his expression to falter, and morph into something far more pleasant. Ah, an opportunity to discuss his escapade! Not many people bothered to ask what he was up to, save for perhaps Gekko, but now Kim was showing interest too. The same person in charge of an entire pranking group! Was his genius so recognized that he had a club leader asking for his ideas now? The youth could only smile.

"I dunno, could you use it for Mischief Makers?" he chirped happily before adjusting his pace, as he needed to walk faster to make up for his smaller legs. "I'm not saying that because it's complicated, since it's actually pretty simple. I'm just saying the process was long. For my target this time, I had to really figure out where they would be and at what time, and I had to make sure no one would interrupt, and I had to make people point out their jacket pretty much floating in the lake—"

Noticing his rising volume, he cut himself off almost instantly, even slapping a hand over his mouth for extra insurance. Really, he was just too excitable for his own good. What if that brute of a girl was still lingering about somewhere, listening in and preparing to jump him at a moment's notice? On instinct, the boy moved in closer to Kim and tried grabbing onto the other's shirt, a subtle pinch on the edge for mental comfort. His fear was irrational, yet impactful all the same.

"Anyway, what I mean to say is that I did a double trap," he continued in a far quieter tone, "Run them through someplace empty with two exits, one set up with a glue hanging above and the other with feathers. Then, boom. They end up looking like a chicken. Real tame stuff, but it's still kinda funny."

Of course, there were various other factors and potential ideas he could discuss. For the moment, however, Aodhan figured he could save those things for another day. Dumping everything at once would kill any future excitement, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.

"What about you? What were you doing?" he asked once they reached the steps, a lone brow raised with minor suspicion. After all, the possibility of Kim being an extraterrestrial was not off the table...

"Of course. You doing anything today? It's a Sunday, I'm sure you have lots of plans being a first year."

Oh. Well, outside of bothering that one Slytherin girl for entertainment alone, did he really have much to do? Would it be... disappointing if he didn't? For a moment, Aodhan was unsure of how to read the situation. There was a certain level of respect he wished to garner from Kim after all, acknowledgement equal to the wonder he himself possessed for the older student. Which—it was perfectly reasonable to have. This guy was doing so much.

But for all he could see on the outside, there wasn't much for him to go off of personally, so... Maybe he could just twist the truth.

"Telling you everything would spoil the fun, wouldn't it?" he responded vaguely, the corner of his mouth quirking upwards, "For all you know, a genius like me could be plotting world domination. That means blabbing off could make you an accomplice, and I would never do that to you. You're too nice and might not survive in jail."

Yup. Perfect logic in his books.

It was as he started walking down that Kim proceeded to ask him another question, this one focused on his relationships or lack thereof. No, that was dramatic. He had enough friends to properly address this, right? Gekko counted as a friend, whatever the criteria was for that, and maybe Vanilla Ice. Queenie too, though he was sure the girl would punch him for saying that.

A part of his brain recalled his days in grade school, when his parents were far more concerned about his day-to-day activities. They had quizzed him similarly back then, and he always, always felt as if he failed somewhere in answering. That wouldn't happen today.

"Uh, yeah! Yeah, the school is cool enough. Real big and medieval-looking but with talking paintings, so that's nice. And if by 'friends' you mean 'loyal subjects,' I'm building my army one by one! You can join as my right-hand if you want."

He very consciously excluded the word "should" from his vocabulary there. No matter how capable his senior was, he didn't wish to scare anyone off. A right-hand man had big shoes to fill! ... Traditionally speaking, that is. In the context of his royal court, which was a convoluted way of presenting his budding friendships, Aodhan wasn't quite sure what a "right-hand man" would entail. But asking Kim to be present seemed right, so he did.

At Kim's statement, the youth released his delicate hold on the older's top—quickly because he didn't realize it sooner, which was embarrassing—and lifted his chin up in a show of faux pride. "Hah! You think geniuses get caught? You have much to learn, my overly nice roommate," he declared, somewhat pleased that his companion was playing along instead of contesting his words.

In fact, the boy was slowly noticing that perhaps the student body at Hogwarts was far more... receptive to his antics, in contrast to individuals he used to call his peers. Those people typically ignored him, or chose to laugh from a distance, as if he was a strange creature they wouldn't dare approach of their own accord. Was the addition of a magical environment all he needed to come across as more to those around him? More tolerable, more entertaining, more "friend" worthy?

The change was most definitely subtle, an idea that hadn't crossed his mind until Kim openly agreed to his request. Did the older gryffindor understand what was being asked? Well, Aodhan himself couldn't fully comprehend what was "being asked," yet he felt as if the response came too easily. Or—no, he was overthinking this entire ordeal. He should have felt ecstatic, so he allowed himself a moment to digest the information provided, to give the situation room to color his spirit in brighter, blinding tones.

Above all else, this person agreed to be his right-hand. That was a win in Aodhan's book, one that would definitely provide a boost to his growing, but delicately crafted ego.

"You—" he stopped, took a breath, licked his lips and then started up again, "Yeah! Of course! Glad to see you have such a good eye for who to hang out with."

But then Kim kept going, outright inviting Aodhan to hang out more, and the ginger-haired boy did not fight the joy he felt upon comprehending those words. Still, he had to act cool, as nonchalant as possible, which meant he took a second to scrunch up his face and play at thinking oh so extremely hard.

"Hm, I don't know, my schedule is pretty busy. Mastermind stuff and all that," he fibbed while tilting his head to the side, "But y'know what? I'll make room just for you. How does that sound?" He ignored the small part of himself that wished it sounded more than just "good" to the older lion.

He pushed so hard to ignore it, actually, that his attention quickly shifted onto something else he could bring up. Anything to help ease the entire conversation, make his own responses smoother and more natural sounding. Yes, didn't Kim mention something about dueling?

"Hey, so, what do you mean by duel? Are you talking like, professional Yugioh? Because I don't really play that one; I'm more of a Pokémon kind of guy myself," he chatted, feeling more in his element at the mere mention of muggle-esque activities. Well, he didn't exactly play with Pokémon cards in the way one was expected to. He more so... sold them at school when he shouldn't have, but those were minor details.