Remembering PV Saskia Nicholson Closed

Classes. They never seemed to end, did they? One hour (and thirty minutes) of one class, and then a few more until lunch break, and then some more until classes were officially over. And that wasn't taking Astronomy into account either. That class in particular was tiring, especially when Saskia was very busy during the day. She probably would have been better off asking the nurse at the Hospital Wing to give her some Wideye Potion to get through the rest of the day, or at least learn how to brew it herself so she didn't have to feel so groggy most of the time. It was a wonder how the girl managed to keep that high energy of hers sometimes.

Fortunately for her, she wasn't doing terrible in her classes. Despite having to balance everything in her schedule, she was doing rather well. At least for her, it was easy to keep up with her studies. She had been practicing both magic and her Quidditch skills, and sometimes, it seemed to be the only thing she did. Nowadays, it wasn't difficult for her to completely invest herself in things. As long as she kept working at what she did, she would have been okay. There were times when she would forget to take a break, but what else could she have done? She absolutely hated to sit around and do nothing, and she might as well do something useful with her time.

Just as she was about to head to her next class, she realized something. Something that was rather stupid. She left her notebook behind. And she didn't leave it in any normal place either. It wasn't in her dorm, or the common room. It wasn't even in the last class she attended. No, she left it in the abandoned classroom on the second floor instead. The Hufflepuff had been busy researching something important. While she normally would have been okay studying in the library, or the study room, or even outside, she had decided to use the classroom for this specific research subject. The room was perfect for keeping people away. Not many people noticed it, and it was unlikely that someone would have entered if she kept the door closed. The only downside to it was that the classroom was rather dark and maybe a bit creepy and isolating, but it was worth the silence and tranquility she needed. It was important that she kept this to herself. No one else needed to know about what she had been writing down. It was simply too personal.

How long had she left it there? Since yesterday night? Merlin, what if someone already stole it or did something worse with it? Hopefully they didn't, considering how not a lot of people went in the classroom to begin with. If she remembered correctly, she was sure she hid the notebook somewhere so it wasn't entirely noticeable by others at a first glance. She had been meaning to get it back as soon as she could, but things got in the way. She had other things to attend to, and her being the idiot she was, forgot to take it with her. To say that it was something she was extremely worried about was not an exaggeration. She needed to get it back. There were too many important things in there, and Merlin knew what would have happened if someone actually read through her things.

Without missing a beat, Saskia headed straight to the second floor, stairs be damned. She had to hurry, and time was running out. She just needed to get in that classroom, take that notebook, and run off again. It was a simple enough plan, and she could have done it in a second. But there was just one problem.

The door was closed. Had the door always been closed? Did she close the door before she leave the other day? What if someone did go in there? What if they already rummaged throughout the room and found it? Or maybe they didn't? Maybe they were using it for something else? Saskia sighed, grimacing to herself. She just wanted to get this over with.

With a quiet push of the door, she entered the room. It was the same as always. Desks and chairs were scattered, some propped against the wall, and others were on different sides of the room. There was no other source of light in the room aside from the natural sunlight passing through the windows. Nothing moved. Nothing changed. But there was something else that was a little more worrying. Well, someone.

Just as Saskia thought, there was indeed another person in the room. It was a student who appeared around the same age as her, maybe younger. She was slumped against the wall, and for Merlin's sake, she was crying. She was quiet though. If she simply passed through the corridors without checking in the room, she probably wouldn't have noticed something was wrong. But it was clear she was suffering in some way. Questions came rushing in her mind, but the girl knew she didn't have a right to ask. She didn't know this girl at all, and the second year's priority was still to find that damn notebook. But she was still concerned. She didn't want to give the other girl any pity for what she might have been going through, but this was still someone who might have wanted at least some support. That was something people did want, right? It wasn't something they needed, but people appreciated it when someone was there to support them. Maybe not everyone did, but it was still a nice sentiment.

"Sorry for barging in. I just came to get something in here. Is everything alright?" she asked the other student as she walked closer in the room. There was a firm, but quiet tone in her voice. She didn't want to make it seem like she was being patronizing to her, but she also didn't want to appear cold or distant. She genuinely did want to help the girl in any way she could, if the girl even wanted her help to begin with. She'd have to gauge her reaction on the question first before she could do anything else.

Gabby looked up when she heard the voice. It had been spoken in a clear, but not loud, tone, a tone Gabby might expect a teacher to use in class. But when she looked up, her visitor was a young girl, maybe a bit older than Gabby, with a tall, thin build she was instantly jealous of, as Gabby despised her own broad shoulders and short stature. The girl also had long dark brown hair, a shade lighter than Gabby's own; and rather pretty brownish green eyes. She was pretty, but the girl hadn't highlighted that in any way. From her looks and tone alone, she seemed to Gabby like a mature, unselfish type of person.

At first, Gabby wasn't sure how to react to this new visitor. While she seemed mature, Gabby wasn't in the mood for a lecture, even though she probably desperately needed one. She wiped her tears away as she thought, and wiped her nose with a sleeve. Gabby knew she looked pathetic, and despised herself for it. So, she got up, dusting off her robes, and now stood in front of the girl.

"Um - no thanks," she said, her voice still slightly wobbly from crying. "Honestly, thank you for asking, but I don't need help. I was just... tired. That's all. I've had a tiring day. Sorry."

Saskia nodded. It was understandable that the girl might not have wanted help, at least from a complete stranger like her. Though she did note the fact that the girl was insistent on saying that she didn't need help, when the Hufflepuff had asked if she was alright, rather than if she wanted any help. Was she that determined to believe she didn't need it that she wanted to make sure she got the message? Or maybe she just didn't pay attention to the question. Was she that used to hearing people ask if she needed help that she found an automatic response to those types of questions? If that was the case, how okay was she, really?

But the girl knew better than to pry further. If the stranger was telling the truth and saying that she was only tired, then it wasn't worth getting worked up over. Everyone had stressful days, and for some people, even the smallest things could have set them off. That was normal, and there wasn't much she could read into that. And even if there was something else that was bothering the girl, it could have been too personal for the other girl to share. It wasn't up to Saskia to force her to do anything she might not have wanted to do.

"That's fine. Do you want to at least talk about it to get it out of your system?" The girl had said she didn't want help, and while Saskia was willing to comply with that request, she still wanted to find some other way of comforting the girl with whatever issues she might have had. People usually appreciated it when someone offered to listen to what they had to say. Although now she was noticing that it might have seemed like she might have been imposing too much on the girl, and so, she hastily added, "You don't have to if you don't want to, of course. I could also leave you alone so you can have some peace and quiet to yourself." She did still have her book to find, and if the other student wanted her to leave, she could have easily done so. So far, she didn't show too much hostility, which wasn't an immediate sign that she had to leave immediately, and she didn't seem to tell her to leave either. Once again, she would have to wait and see how else the other girl would react before doing anything else.