Evening Dinner Private Closed

Interacting with @John Wolfe

That evening Adlai had dragged herself from her class and back to her dorm where she swiftly changed herself into a pair of more comfortable clothes, these clothes being a Herdmans Linen washer victoria onepiece with linen wool twill washer goose pants underneath for extra warmth against the late seasons cold. Which reminded of the upcoming break and how she needed to swiftly complete the making of her friends gifts so that she may give them to them before she leaves for home, to see her family and celebrate a possibly late Arba’een.

Once she had arrived to the Great Hall for dinner she had slumped into a seat where she only regained her energy when she had her first bite of food. Her plate was an array of fruits and vegetables due to the fact that unlike most students at Hogwarts, Adlai had to watch what she ate. After all she didn’t know what was and wasn’t Halal approved.

As she was about to pop another bite of broccoli into her mouth a voice from behind her chimed in her ears. "Evening Adlai. Do you mind if I join you?"
Turning to see who it was Adlai was surprised to find John, her acquaintance from the Owlery. Her almond eyes began the size of a does as she moved to the side and gestured to the seat next to her. “Of course!” She cried. Why wouldn’t she let him sit next to her?

At Adlai's response, John quickly seated himself and gazed over the food on the table. "Thanks." He grinned at her, feeling a little less like he had to be formal.. a strange feeling for the boy. He always felt so tense around everyone else but having met Adlai prior it made him feel a bit more relaxed, like he didn't have to be so put together. Plus, with how hungry he was he didn't have the mind to really stay in proper form.

"You look nice." John mentioned as he began adding food to his plate, first off potatoes and chicken for sure... "Seems like a cozy outfit." He hadn't seen anyone wearing clothes like Adlai before but did wish he had brought a couple more sweaters for himself. He had expected his parents to send along more of his things but they had been far too busy to. Having to switch between three various shades of earthy toned wool sweaters had made him feel underdressed most of the time once the colder weather had settled in. "I hope I wasn't bothering your meal? It just was well.." Another roar of laughter from the Gryffindor table made his point for him. Plus it would give him a chance to apologize for earlier. Carefully cutting pieces of chicken and sectioning his food into tidy little piles on his plate, John gave a sideways glance at Adlai.

"I'm sorry for the other day." His voice wavered a bit. It felt strange to apologize, he had rarely done it.. his father always mentioning he should never be sorry unless of course it was some ridiculous atrocity he committed against his father... like waking up far too late on a weekend day.. or not pushing his chair in at the end of supper too loudly. "Rushing off like that, I apologize." John continued. He wasn't sure if he should really explain why.. he wasn't entirely sure how to explain to her how it had hurt his pride more than anything. In fact it had taken him days to even get over himself and feeling embarrassed. He wasn't in any hurry to relive that experience.

“Thanks.” He said before sitting beside her. Adlai began to eat again paying no mind to the other noise around her, which mostly came from the Gryffindor table. She hadn’t spoken with many Gryffindor but they seemed generally loud from what she knew, they’d fit right in with her family. Especially on her fathers side.

“You look nice." John said as Adlai shoveled in a fork full of salad into her mouth. "Seems like a cozy outfit." He added soon after. Adlai washed down her food with some water before thanking him for his complement with a simple nod and smile. She watched him arrange his food, she had never seen anyone do something like that before. Her family just had everything mixed together.

"I hope I wasn't bothering your meal? It just was well.." he was cut off by the boisterous laughter from the Gryffindor table. In all honesty if they didn’t hush soon she’d end up getting a head ache as quick as you could said “Quidditch.”
“You can’t bother me. I like eating with others more than eating alone anyway.” She said before shoving another fork full of Salad into her mouth.

"I'm sorry for the other day." John said, though Adlai was confused as to why. He hadn’t done anything wrong that she could think of. To her luck he explained what he was apologizing for, "Rushing off like that, I apologize."

“Don’t worry about it.” Adlai said plainly as she slipped her hand under her hijab and rubbed the back of her neck. “We’re both human, we make mistakes. That’s what life is about. Besides homework has been stacking up for all of us so I’m sure you had better things to do then just chitter chatter with me.” She said laughing a bit afterwards and giving him a smile that revealed her crooked teeth.
@John Wolfe

John smiled halfheartedly as Adlai laughed. She wasn't wrong though homework had been consuming a great deal of his time. Granted he still felt a pang of guilt even if she seemed to laugh it off. It hadn't been that he had anywhere better to be... John patted the pile of potatoes on his plate in contemplation.

"Yeah.. I sort of holed up in the Library the past week. Transfiguration really is taking up a lot of my brain power." John let out a sigh and caught a glimpse of Adlai. He wondered if she was just as overwhelmed as he felt with some of his classes. Most of his time was spent studying or researching and practicing spells. He wanted to ask about studying with her possibly at one point but he wasn't really sure if she would decline another offer from him again. Maybe he could just start with actually getting to know her first. John wracked his brain for an interesting enough topic to talk about.

"So I heard all the news about the ball. I was going to attend but..." His voice trailed off as he adjusted the cloth napkin in his lap. He wasn't all too sure what had been rumor or not but giants and kidnappings.. fire.. "Did you go?"

Adlai froze at the mentioning of the ball. Her smile faded and she swiftly lost her appetite. All those flames, all the screaming, she had never experienced something so horrible. If her friend Leah hadn’t been there to aid her, she would have most likely left Hogwarts.

Her parents had made it their life goal to shelter their daughters from the world, from anything they deemed could hurt them. They never told Adlai of kidnapping or the suffocating smoke that fire produced. “Yes I went.” She said.

“Though I think the school needs to better control those kinds of parties. I find the administrations lack of help in the situation absolutely disgusting.” She sneered, her generally positive, shrill and nasally voice turning dark and spiteful. This showing her distaste in how the administration handles things around the school.

Even so she didn’t tell her parents of what happened, she still loved Hogwarts nonetheless even if she had sobbed for hours that night repeating to Leah through her tears that she wanted to go home. That she never wanted to deal with magic again. Those were of course false statements. She regrets them and hopes Leah never mentions them to her. For Adlai was still but a child, who was thrown into a new world where fear could so easily consume the weak willed.
@John Wolfe

Cutting a couple pieces of chicken up to be more manageable on his fork, John set his knife down to one side. He looked over to Adlai as the tone in her voice did not sound all too happy about his mention of the ball. By the look on her face, he assumed all the rumors he had heard were true.

"I'm sorry." John murmured. He hadn't meant to bring up any awful thoughts for the girl and felt badly.

“Though I think the school needs to better control those kinds of parties. I find the administrations lack of help in the situation absolutely disgusting.”

Adlai did not sound happy at all and it made John curious. Had the Professors really lacked in helping the students that night? It had been a bit strange that such things had occurred. John did feel a bit uneasy knowing that the Hogwarts staff would let people slip in that intended to cause such chaos.

"Agreed." He pushed around a couple pieces of chicken on his plate in thought. "You didn't get hurt though.. did you?" John wasn't sure if he was overstepping any boundaries but the words had left his lips before he could stop them.

Adlai allowed the topic to roll off her. She hated being negative. When she heard John’s question she looked up at him. An eyebrow raised and a dopey grin on her face. “Why? You worried about me?” She asked leaning into him some.

Adlai had always been one to poke at people, of course with good intentions. Mostly using this habit as a simple joke or a chance change any topic she didn’t like. “I am fine though. Only some smoke in the ol’ lungs but nothing extreme.” She reassured him.

She shoveled another fork full of salad into her mouth before she filled her cup with water. Hogwarts had left its first scar on her and she would cover it for now. But as the traumatic experiences begin to build over the school years she’d crack at some point.

Until then she’d joke about and due her best to make friends who may one day carry her through that dark time. Who may hold her when she sobs much like the night of the masquerade. More friends like Leah, who had saved her from the flaming room that anyone else would say was the mouth of hell where one would burn forever.

@John Wolfe

“Why? You worried about me?”
John choked down a helping of green beans, his cheeks burning bright. "I uh-" Grabbing at his napkin he dabbed away some spit at the corner of his mouth. "I just meant well.." Clearing his throat the boy continued, "I mean.. we're friends..?" His voice more of a question at the end of his thought. They had only really talked once before, was this the right thing to ask? How long could you run into someone and chat with them before you were considered friends? John looked at Adlai trying to gauge her reaction.

Prodding at the neatly piled carrots at the edge of his plate, John wriggled his lips in thought. Maybe if he had gone to the Ball they could have been a bit closer? He could have possibly helped the girl, she seemed quite upset just thinking back on the event. "So.. how are your classes going? Did you finish up that paper for History of Magic?" John hoped possibly a change of topic would help shift the mood the ball had created. "I have to still finish up a bit of reading for that... and Transfiguration..." His voice trailed off for a moment, "If you're heading to the Library anytime today maybe.. we could sit together?" Another flush spread across the boy's face. The lack of social connection throughout the first half of the year must have gotten to him... he couldn't ever have seen himself so flustered trying to make a friend at Hogwarts but.. here he was. May as well start somewhere.

Adlai grinned up at the suddenly flustered John. She had never seen anyone react like that when she implied they cared about her well being. Most people would brush it off or jokingly impersonate her in a childish manner, then again they were children.

“I mean... we’re friends?”
Adlai’s eyes widened at that word, friends. “Absolutely!” She exclaimed her cheeks burning with a tint of red. She lived making friends, Leah and Virgil were currently the only friends she had aside from the book full of acquaintances she had made so far this year.

She listened as John began to speak of their paper for History of magic, a chill going down her spine. History of magic was not her favorite subject especially since it seemed to get so dark and sad very quickly, on top of that most things she was being taught her classmates already knew from growing up in the wizarding world.

“If you’re heading to the Library anytime today maybe.. we could sit together.”
Her heart jumped. “Of course!” Having a study buddy was always fun, though Adlais study sessions always ended up being social sessions. She didn’t mind though, she studied on her own in her dorm anyhow. She wondered what kind of a study mate John would be.