~Is Anyone There?~ Closed

Going to the lake to study or read was a normal thing for her. Today she brought no books. She just needed to be alone for a while. Looking for a place to sit, she noticed a large willow tree by the edge of the lake. Everything was still, except for her. She laid down on the soft grass and closed her eyes.

Wherever she looked, no matter what direction, it was only her. Everyone else had already made friends, but she was all alone here in this strange world. She missed her sister. She missed her books and her bed and the park. Here there was nobody. She hated it when she cried. But still, the warm tears poured down her cheeks. She didn't try to stop it. There was nobody here anyway. Just the willow tree she was lying against and the water. Will this be the whole year for her? She could easily picture herself sitting alone at lunch for the rest of her time here. At this rate, she'll probably fail all of her classes and get kicked out of school because of it. This just made the tears come faster. As usual, she was alone with her silent tears. Why wasn't anyone there?

Lifting her head to see where the voice was coming from, she saw a young boy. A Slytherin also, she had seen him during classes or in the common room. She never knew how to reply to 'What's wrong?' Today there seemed like a mountain of things, all that she kept inside. "Just feeling a little homesick I guess." She turned her head and wiped the tears from her face. She hated when people saw her like this.

Kaegen walked softly over to the girl, he wasn't very good with things like this but at least it was pretty obvious. Sympathy was something Kaegen had never appreciated. It didn't help things at all.
But there was something that did work in times like this. Assuming she was telling the truth about homesickness. His soft voice carried out over the lake as he talked to the girl.
"You know, getting sand in your eyes sucks. Try to tear up so it gets out." Kaegen hoped the girl would take the out, and not make things too awkward. "Can you hear it? Imagine the lake's music, a song so quiet you can never hear it unless you try really hard. Focus on the melody, and when it becomes perfectly clear to you, hum it."
Kaegen suddenly felt stupid. He never saw anyone else listening to the water like he did, but maybe she would find it funny, at least? Then she would laugh, and it would take her mind off of things. His eyes flash up at the boy standing next to the girl, and he tries to find a way to hint to the boy that talking about other things would probably help more than hollow sympathy. If he could get his point across, the boy would probably do a much better job of helping her than Kaegen could. He seems nice, and funny. Now how would you pantomime the need for a timely joke...

Lancelot, his hands on his hips, shot a glare at Kaegen and pursed his lips. Don't try to change the subject. Things will never get better for her if she doesn't talk it through. Taking in a deep breath, he put his hands in his pockets, his glare softening despite his frustration of the intrusion. Maybe Kaegen knew what he was doing more than Lancelot did. Sighing and shrugging, Lance went with Kaegan's idea and crouched down beside Edith. "Yeah, and try to hear the answers to the next exam in the lake while you're at it," he murmured, mostly to himself for his own amusement. He then looked at the girl, trying to figure out if he recognized her or not. She looked familiar. Was she in Slytherin? He probably saw her somewhere in his classes. Deciding to ask later, he looked up at the other boy, whom he did not recognize at all. But he seemed friendly enough, so he didn't mind his company, despite the fact that Lance still believed that ignoring the girl's emotions was unhelpful, and would only make her feel worse in the long run. But maybe talking about it should be something that came with time anyway.

Kaegen looked at the slytherin as he shot him a glare. He studied the pursed lips, hand on the hips and intense gaze and had no idea what the other boy was trying to get across. Why did this have to be confusing?
When the slytherin started to go along with Kaegen's plan, he decided that the stare from earlier must have been a OK from the other student. Kaegen didn't have much else planned, so he decided to sit there and see what happened. What really struck him as odd was that the other boy's vest had slytherin's S but he acted nice. Like a hufflepuff or gryffindor. But the hat was never wrong, so what was he missing?
Was this just an act? Or maybe he put the wrong vest on by accident or maybe something else that he hadn't thought of yet. "Are you actually in slytherin?"
He then fell silent and his eyes slowed down, focusing on the lake, staring out over the water. Whatever the girl was upset about, the last thing she needed was for a couple of strangers to ask her about it. Perhaps after she calmed down that other guy could talk with her. But not now.

A bit startled by Kaegen's question, Lance stood up, glancing over at him with curious eyes. Everyone always seemed so shocked that he was a Slytherin. Whether it be the fact that he was just more extroverted or that he wasn't spewing insults constantly. It didn't bother him too much, but why did everyone expect Slytherins to be bad people? "Heh, there's a difference between being ambitious and being a jerk. Yes, I'm Slytherin." Putting his hands on his hips again, he gave Kaegen a sly smirk. "Surprised that stereotypes are untrustworthy?" Then again, he had met some Slytherins that aren't exactly friendly. But just because they aren't doesn't mean none of them are. There are a good few that are quiet, intellectual, and would rather read a book about spells than go to a social event, but that's not what defines a Slytherin. Slytherins are cunning, intelligent, and determined. It's why they're chosen to be in the house. The people from other houses can't seem to grasp that concept, they think that if you're friendly you're instantly in Gryffindor or Hufflepuff. In fact, at first, even Lancelot was a bit surprised. But he was proud to be a Slytherin nonetheless. What house was Kaegen in, anyway?

"I think it's a pretty thin line" Kaegen keeps staring ahead, across the water. "you could just be the exception to the rule. There is always an exception." He thinks about it more, trying to piece two and two together. This boy came over to try and help the girl. He was slytherin for a reason, there was no doubt about that. That at the very best meant ambitious, at worse downright evil. So what could he gain from helping someone? Was he looking to gain followers, to expand his power? He seemed too nice to do that, but what did Kaegen know? Maybe he got everything all wrong, maybe the houses were not as defined as he thought. Were the clearly defined lines in the school coat of arms actually just barely existing blurs? If that was true, then it would be a lot harder to sort everyone into groups. Maybe that's why they had to have a sorting hat. What did the sorting hat go off of anyway? What you will become? What you are?
"So you were chosen because you are ambitious? People from other houses have strong ambitions, why do you think they weren't chosen?"
He wondered what was going on beneath the surface of the water, and started humming his quiet, broken tune.

"I don't know..." Lance muttered. "Maybe it depends on what they're ambitious of..?" What if there was a mistake? What if he didn't belong in Slytherin? Or what if he did, and people just didn't like his personality? Narrowing his eyes at the lake in thought, he felt his positivity drain momentarily, and his smirk faded rather quickly. I can't just be an exception, right? I'm not so different from everyone else... I can care about emotions and success at the same time. Why do people expect me to choose one or the other? Do they see the world so black and white that they think every house has exactly the same morals and goals? Or am I the incorrect one? Swallowing thickly, he cleared his throat, pushing his thoughts deep in the back of his head. Now wasn't the time to think about this. He was here to help cheer up the girl, not reminisce. The lake just seemed to have an effect on everyone. Why else would people come here just to be sad? "I don't think we need to be talking about this right now," Lancelot said quickly, feeling uncomfortable with the topic. He shouldn't, it didn't make sense. But it just brought up unnecessary insecurities. For him, at least.