Blueprints for a Friendship
It was Friday. Which meant Nova was officially allowed to be in a good mood. Friday meant two whole days of blissful peace, no suffering or thought of schoolwork unless she wanted to. Which she didn’t, of course. She had gotten lucky and finished most of what she had to do, and now she was free of responsibilities.
As she stepped out into the Courtyards, she looked up to the sky. It was an overcast day. The sun wasn’t visible through the thick blanket of clouds and it was a bit gloomy, but she liked it. It made her feel like a villain about to start an opening theme song. The thought amused her. Probably with lots of lightning. That would be fun. The evil villain flying in with a cape. A very big cape.
Maybe purple. Or black. With sparkles. Could villains wear sparkles? They should. Dramatic shimmer only added to the menace. She made a mental note: look into enchanted sparkly cloaks. For science. Or style. Or both.
She wandered further into the courtyard, her boots making soft, uneven taps against the stone path. It was quieter than usual. A few students were scattered around the edges, but no one was really doing anything. Just existing. Relaxing. Or hiding from homework. Respectable.
Nova stretched her arms out wide for a second like she was greeting the entire outdoors, then let them drop. This was nice. No noise, no chaos, no—
Click.
She stopped. That was definitely not the wind. Or a bird. Or anything nature was supposed to make. That was… a machine noise. A mechanical sound. A sound that said someone is absolutely doing something they’re not technically supposed to be doing. Naturally, she followed it.
Tucked behind one of the stone benches near the far side of the courtyard was a girl, hunched over something. Nova didn’t say anything, not yet at least.
Thoughts - Italic ~ Nova's Speech - #a88400 ~ Piper's speech - #044503
NOTES@Piper HartWORD COUNT: 317/200 words
Blueprints for a Friendship
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Piper had found that she preferred the quieter corners of Hogwarts. Not the ones without anyone there, but the ones where the chattering and other noises were dulled. The Courtyard was one of those places, especially on an overcast afternoon like this. It was a place where Piper could take a moment to herself, away from the bustling corridors and endless lessons. Not that she didn’t like the lessons, in fact it was quite the opposite. She loved the distractions they brought and the knowledge too, but what she didn’t like was how many people there were in each lesson. Sure it wasn’t as crowded and noisy as the Great Hall but still.
Piper crouched behind a stone bench, hidden enough to feel safe from any prying eyes but still with enough space to work. Her robes were pulled tightly around her, sleeves rolled up and fingers moving quickly and skilfully as she adjusted the tiny wires on the device currently in her lap. The soft click of a stubborn gear finally locking into place made her smile slightly. Yet the glow coming from it wasn’t quite right.
The device was so small and fiddly, full of exposed wires and gears. It wasn’t something she’d seen before but it was similar to something she made once, a long time ago. She wasn’t following instructions, just memory and what felt right in the moment. That is what made every tiny success feel even bigger.
Then a soft click sounded again as another gear locked into place. Piper watched with bated breath as the device began to glow again, faintly, hopefully, and then fizzle out. It wasn’t quite right.
She muttered in annoyance under her breath and reached for her tweezers, adjusting one of the wires that just kept slipping loose. And…there, she thought.
Her whole attention became focused on the creation in her hands. The noises of the courtyard - the footsteps, laughter, chatter - all faded into the background.
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed movement. Reluctantly she lifted her gaze and saw a girl, who she assumed to be in the same year as her, standing nearby.
Their eyes met briefly, but Piper looked away. Not in a rude, leave me alone, sort of way, but in a more, I’m still finishing this if you want to talk you can come here or wait, sort of way. Without waiting for the girl to do anything, she bent back over the device, her fingers already moving again.
| PC Piper Hart - Slytherin | |
Sta: x | Eva: x | Str: x | Wis: x | Arc: x | Acc: x |
Sta: x | Eva: x | Str: x | Wis: x | Arc: x | Acc: x |
Blueprints for a Friendship
The girl hadn’t seemed to notice Nova, which made her slowly inch closer, getting a glimpse of whatever was in her hands. It was a small thing, full of wires twisting out like a puzzle to solve. And the girl was doing pretty well, in Nova’s opinion, fingers swiftly moving from one gear to the next. The object seemed to glow as the girl brightened hopefully, then quickly ebbing away.
Wow, that looks hard. Nova thought as the girl grumbled in annoyance. She didn’t know whether to stay or go and watch her, choosing to stay while still mostly concealed by a tree close by. The girl reached for something near her, messing with the object for another moment. It didn’t change or light up in anyway, which made Nova raise an eyebrow in silence.
The soft hum of the courtyard continued, the occasional mutterings followed by laughter floating around. Unexpectedly, she felt a slight surge of panic. Am I stalking her? Does it look like that? She wondered with a small grimace. It felt weird, watching a girl who was completely unaware.
As if on cue, the girl’s head snapped upwards, giving her a quick glance before shifting away. Nova felt awkward, not knowing whether to leave or say something. She gathered up some courage, deciding to choose the latter and slowly walked towards her. The girl had already gone back to her object.
Her steps were slow, slow enough the girl could look up and stop her if she felt like it. She didn’t. Nova observed her for another moment before finally piping up. “How do you do that?”
Thoughts - Italic ~ Nova's Speech - #a88400 ~ Piper's speech - #044503
NOTES:@Piper HartWORD COUNT: 271/200 words
Blueprints for a Friendship
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Piper’s hands paused briefly as the girl approached. She had assumed this girl would come over - she seemed like the type who would. She seemed curious, and - dare Piper say - odd. But it was the kind of curiosity and oddness Piper could relate to.
She continued working until she heard the girl pause and then ask, “How do you do that?”
Deciding to give it one more try before responding, Piper adjusted a final wire and - there! It worked! The lights flickered on, the top spun around, and now all she had to do was build the shell. But before that, she would acknowledge the person standing behind her.
Piper turned slightly, just enough to look at the girl but not far enough that she couldn’t see her creation. However, her hands remained where they had been, hovering over the device protectively and waiting to continue her work.
“Trial and error,” Piper said, “but mostly error.”
She glanced down at the tangle of wires and half finished casing. For a moment, she didn’t say anything else, just gently cradled her work.
Figuring she should give more indication of this device’s purpose, Piper sat back more comfortably on her heels and looked back at the girl.
“I haven’t really got a proper idea but basically it’s supposed to read shifts in energy - small or large, magical or not. Right now, all it does is light up and spin around a little - that is, if it feels like cooperating.” Piper was a little annoyed at how it was behaving but it was all part of the process, she would get there eventually.
Hesitating once again, Piper added, softer than when she was explaining, “I’m Piper, by the way.”
Another pause.
“What’s your name?”
| PC Piper Hart - Slytherin | |
Sta: x | Eva: x | Str: x | Wis: x | Arc: x | Acc: x |
Sta: x | Eva: x | Str: x | Wis: x | Arc: x | Acc: x |
Blueprints for a Friendship
Nova watched curiously as the light of whatever the girl was working on lit up, hearing something whirring before it returned to being quiet. She shifted her weight from side to side, eyes flickering between the girl’s face and the object she had been cradling in her hands. It seemed so intricate to Nova.
“That’s really cool,” she managed to say, eyes returning to meet the girl’s gaze. “Do you make this stuff from scratch?” She asked, tilting her head as the object sat motionlessly. “I haven’t seen anyone else do stuff like this. Is it a hobby?”
She lit up when the girl told her what her name was, hesitating a bit before sitting down a small way away from her. Close enough to talk but far enough for comfort. She kept her hands to herself as she glanced at the girl, shooting a small, polite smile at her.
“My name’s Nova, in Hufflepuff,” she answered, fidgeting slightly with her fingers. Nova shifted closer, lowering her voice slightly. “I’d love to see it when it’s finished. Maybe even help, if you want.” She wasn’t sure why she offered—maybe for once she wanted to be a part of something that wouldn’t burst into flames. Probably.
Thoughts - Italic ~ Nova's Speech - #a88400 ~ Piper's speech - #044503
NOTES:@Piper HartWORD COUNT: 206/200 words
Blueprints for a Friendship
Word Count: 209/200
Piper's Speech: #044503
Nova's Speech: #a88400
Piper looked down once again, feeling like she had overshared. “And yes, you could say it's a hobby.”
It had been a while since Piper had last explained her creations to someone she just met, or to anyone really. As the girl, Nova, mentioned helping, Piper declined saying, “Thank you, but I don't think its going to work anytime soon, so I think I’ll move to something much simpler like a water filter or something fan powered.” Realising that Nova might just want something to do, for boredom or other reasons, Piper hastily continued, “Although, I guess you could help me with that if you'd like.”
Coming to the realisation that she hadn't said what her house was, Piper quickly added, “Oh yeah, and I'm a Slytherin. I keep forgetting to tell people that when I first meet them.”
Piper looked back over at Nova, curious as to why she wanted to help but unwilling to ask further.
| PC Piper Hart - Slytherin | |
Sta: x | Eva: x | Str: x | Wis: x | Arc: x | Acc: x |
Sta: x | Eva: x | Str: x | Wis: x | Arc: x | Acc: x |
Blueprints for a Friendship
Nova tilted her head, nodding in interest as the girl explained her process in detail before trailing off and looking away. "That sounds so cool! You make it sound so simple and easy." She grinned widely at her, tilting her body towards her as she continued. "If a water filter is something simple to you, I can hardly imagine what counts as difficult," she continued, laughing lightly.
The offer made her perk up. “I’d like that! Helping, I mean.” She hesitated, fiddling with the hem of her sleeve. “I can’t promise I won't accidentally break it, though!" She finished jokingly, putting her hands up in surrender. She brightened when Piper said she was in Slytherin. “That fits,” Nova said without thinking—but not in a mean way. "I only have a few Slytherin friends, anyway.
She lowered her gaze to the cobblestones for a moment, then looked back up at Piper with a thoughtful tilt of her head. "I don't mind just watching you work on that spinny thing, though," she said with a glance up at the overcast, grey sky. "It's so cool just watching you do it." She must have, like, a built-in blueprint brain. Nova snorted amusedly at the thought.
Thoughts - Italic ~ Nova's Speech - #a88400 ~ Piper's speech - #044503
NOTES:@Piper HartWORD COUNT: 211/200 words