Closed A difficult situation

Saturday was a day for relaxing, right? At least, that's what I think. Most people think of Sunday as a day of relaxation, spending their Saturdays finishing their responsibilities so they could do whatever they wanted on Sunday. But since I'm not smart enough to learn from my past mistakes of procrastination, I was back in the library. I'm so smart.

As I walked through the great wooden entrance, I noticed a young girl trailing through the rows and rows of books, looking slightly lost. I wondered what she was here for, maybe something helpful. I wouldn't know. Her curly hair was stunning, bouncing with every step she took.

I quickly turned my focus back to what I was here for. Return books, get new ones, leave. Simple enough, right? Hopefully. The lines of bookshelves were massive, with thick dusty volumes on each shelf. Other, older students and peers were sitting in secluded corners, crouching over homework and assignments. I groaned under my breath at the thought of my own homework sitting at my desk collecting dust.

I finally crossed the library to the return desk, quite literally dropping the heavy stack on the table. Surprising how it didn't break. I think as I laugh under my breath. As I turn back, I notice that girl is still wandering around the shelves, picking up books for a few seconds to flip through them then returning them back to where they belong. Maybe she needs help? I'm good at helping, so I should help.

I quickly straighten my clothes, smoothing my hair before walking towards her, hesitant but determined. "Hello? I noticed you were just trailing around the library and wanted to know if you needed some help." I pause, inspecting her. She's quite short, with a gorgeous dress. I made a mental note to compliment it later. "Are you looking for something specific? A book to help with homework, maybe?" I smiled sweetly at her, hoping to convey the message that I was, in fact, trying to help her and not desperate for someone to be friends with.

"I like your dress," I say in an attempt to seem nicer. "It reminds me of Belle from Beauty and the Beast. She was my favorite Disney Princess when I was younger. She still is, always will be." I grinned at the thought, wondering if she had a favorite Disney Princess too. If she has a favorite too, we can bond. If we bond, we become friends. Maybe. Probably. Hopefully.

OUTFIT AND HAIR

Thoughts - Italic ~ Nova's Speech - #a88400 ~ Anna's speech - #b14f1b

NOTES

So sorry for the time it took to finish this! I love your writing style! @Anna Blackberry

WORD COUNT: 453/200 words

Ruby slowly went into the library, smiling at all the books. She then noticed the girls. She had a knack for remembering people’s names through the Sorting ceremony. They were Anna Blackberry and Nova Astron.

She slowly creeped up and sat on an armchair relatively close to them and practically had a fight with her brain.

Should I go and talk to them? No, I’ll surprise them and traumatize them for life. But you can invite them to your Literature Club AND maybe become friends with them? But I’ll interfere with their conversation? Oh, but what’s fun without a teeny weeny eeny meeny little risk?

Ruby decided to listen to her open-minded and happy-go-lucky side of the brain and decided to, slightly loudly, to give them a warning, go to them.

THIS IS IT. NOW OR NEVER. But it may be better to back away. NO, I AM NOT A COWARD, AND RAVENCLAWS ARE NOT COWARDS. You may regret it. I DO NOT care, shut up.
As she crept towards them, she clenched her fists. She had to do this. After all, risk is very fun.

The three ribbons (like streamers) holding her hair back like a ponytail, slowly bobbed in the air with each step. Her white sweatshirt and grey pants ruffled a bit also. “H-Hi, I’m Ruby Diumme, a first year like you guys. I suppose you two are Anna Blackberry and Nova Astron respectively?” She laughed a bit.

“I always seem to memorize names, you know. I’m in Ravenclaw. What House are you two in?”

Anna was opening and closing every book she could find in the library's shelves, desperate for something that looked attractive to her. "Impossible! My standards aren't that high! There's no way there aren't any books I could enjoy!" , she thought with a panicked look, beginning to make a small mess on the shelves. Some books were too clearly made for the masses. Some had already been read by her. Some simply looked underwhelming in comparison to the book she just finished reading. Most simply didn't fit her reading style, which she could not fathom; back at home, she would basically devour books. One after the another, she'd read all of them and clearly remember their details, and it was inconceivable to her that the school wouldn't have a single book that attracted her. "This is nothing like the library back at home!", she thought with exasperation.
That's when another girl approached Anna, who, lost in her thoughts, didn't realize the other girl's presence until she heard a voice. She quickly turned around with wide eyes to see a tanned girl. Her hair seemed blond, but it was ever so slightly darkening, as Anna quickly scanned. Her outfit seemed so cozy, perfect for relaxing on a Saturday evening. The blonde seemed comfortable in those clothes, but Anna didn't have many like them back at home. "I wonder how that fabric feels like...", she mused, gazing at that mellow looking outfit. That other girl seemed to be inspecting Anna, too, though that didn't seem to be resulting in negative judgement... That's good. When the blonde asked what type of book Anna wanted, her mind stopped working for a second. Because she had no fu-- freaking idea. Although she had been worked up and searching for a book, she didn't quite stop to think what book she wanted, only that she wanted a book. Maybe the lack of direction was part of what was making her pursuits so fruitless. Anna then smiled when the stranger complimented her dress, since it had been her choice to buy that dress a few months before she entered in Hogwarts. Anna, too, thought it looked very cute on her, but wasn't really expecting any compliments because of it.
—...Thank you... I love your outfit too. It looks so warm and cute.
Then, when the black haired was about to admit to that pretty girl she had no idea what kind of book she searched for, yet another girl joined in the conversation, and immediately introduced herself as Ruby, and proceeded to correctly state both of the other girls' names... Although apparently neither of them ever met Ruby, who explaoned she had an incredibly good memory. Anna could somewhat relate to that, since she sometimes remembered small details that other people considered too irrelevant to even pay attention to. However, that sudden approach to the conversation still surprised Anna enough for her to take almost twelve seconds before answering Ruby.
—...Yes, I'm Anna Blackberry...In hufflepuff.
Normally, the girl would use the introduction she had prepared for any occasion, the introduction she had used for as long as she can remember: making a curtsy and introducing her name, family and House, but now she couldn't introduce herself on her own terms, given Ruby already knew both of the other girls' names and it would be pointless for Anna to say her own name again.
Ruby had said that the sweet blonde girl's name was Nova Astron. "Her name sounds like it could belong to a shiny star...", Anna thought, perhaps because Nova was already as radiant as a star. "And Ruby has the name of a jewel... I wonder if it's because she's pretty like them."

The girl had been going through the shelves, pushing books to the sides in frustration when I was talking. She really does need help, then. I smiled when she complimented my own choice of attire, and I stood up a bit straighter. "Thank you! I wasn't sure of it at first." I responded with a slightly proud tone.

I was about to continue, I was surprised to hear a second voice beside me. "I suppose you two are Anna Blackberry and Nova Astron respectively?” she had asked. That surprised me, how she remembered that, but I responded regardless. "Yeah, I'm Nova. It's nice to meet you." I pause for a long, awkward silence. What am I supposed to say now? I think before smiling brightly once again and turning back to the girl Ruby had said was called Anna.

"So, do you need any help? If you're looking for something like a fairytale or a storybook, I could help. The Hogwarts Library has a large selection of books to choose from." I gesture towards a section in the corner. "If you're looking for that, you could look over there."

I took a step away from the shelves we were standing between and walked past several rows before stopping in front of one particular shelf. "If you're looking for homework help, you might want to look here, though this particular section only has information on Charms and Transfiguration."

I pause to pick a book out from the shelf, sliding it from its place. "What kind of stories do you like, anyway? I mean, you’ve clearly got taste if nothing here is impressing you." I joke, trying to get a gist of what was going on in her head. She definitely likes reading, probably more than I do. "Have you got any suggestions? I could use one."

OUTFIT AND HAIR

Thoughts - Italic ~ Nova's Speech - #a88400 ~ Anna's speech - #b14f1b ~ Ruby's speech - #00008B

NOTES

@Anna Blackberry

@Ruby Diumme

WORD COUNT: 305/200 words

Anna watched the interaction between Nova and Ruby with certain curiosity, then turned her gaze to the ground to think about what just happened. Why had Ruby approached them? Was it to ask something or was it just a hello? That was... Intriguing. "Do people often do that?", Anna wondered, but Nova quickly snapped her out of it and continued to question the the black haired girl about what type of book she sought for. Anna opened her mouth to answer, but only stuttered as a response; as a matter of fact, she had yet to decide what exactly she wanted to read. "Well, I want to read a book about as well-written as the one I just finished reading!" she thought. But "being better than what she just read" isn't quite a category and hardly would it make her pursuit any easier.
Either way, before she could pretend she knew what to answer, Nova had already walked past numerous rows, leaving Anna with an open mouth attempting to process the situation. However, she quickly ran after Nova and gestured for Ruby to do the same, and stopped behind her in a shelf that had educational books.
—I...I'm okay with homework...
"Fairytales aren't my thing... I don't want to read non-fiction right now... Maybe..."
—Do you know any fantasy book? A good fantasy book? With twists and images and a complicated plot and details you'll only notice if you read two, three, four times?
Without realizing it, Anna stood on her tiptoes, leaning her body towards Nova and staring at the other hufflepuff with an overly intense gaze, wide blue eyes staring straight at Nova's soul as the black haired one began to talk just a bit louder than she was before, her rather high pitched voice becoming more noticeable as she spoke.
Growing up almost solely in her manor and in her relatives' houses, most of Anna's daily activities included reading. Although she also loved gardening and talking, books were a most fascinating thing; as a child, she had learned how to read before she could talk, and ever since she could do as much as interpreting letters she began to spend hours within her home's library. Books were much like water, just usually more likeable, and everyday would be spent reading in the library. Her father, too, would spend most of his free time analyzing thick books of extensive lore and sesquipedalian words, and of course he would only acquire books with the guarantee they would be of magnificent quality.
Even though Anna was no longer in her home and even though she had read umpteen, numberless books, she still could not help being excited with the prospective of reading yet another one that would trap her like so many of the other ones did.