A Puzzling Afternoon PV Cane Gordon Finished

I pushed open the courtyard doors and stepped into the open air, the sound of my footsteps echoing softly against the flagstones. The weather was lovely. Sun was out and warm and the lack of other students was surprising, but after a day of spells and parchment ink, the quiet felt like a relief.
The fountain stood in the centre, grand but silent, its basin dry and dull where water should’ve shimmered. I brushed my fingers along its edge as I passed, feeling the rough grooves carved into the stone. Someone had left a single feather floating in the bottom probably from an owl flying overhead. After meandering around the fountain I noticed someone of to one side.
A girl sat near one of the courtyard pillars, cross-legged on the cold tiles, parchment spread over a book on her lap. The sunlight caught in her hair as she bent over the page, her quill tapping lightly. I slowed, squinting slightly. The parchment wasn’t an essay or class notes...it was a puzzle, a grid of boxes with just a few numbers scattered across it.
A Sudoku. She’d only just started. Maybe two filled in, the rest blank and waiting. I hesitated, unsure if I should interrupt her. Then Mum’s voice came echoing back in my head, warm and certain: “Make lots of friends, as the ones you make at Hogwarts will stick with you.”
I took a breath and walked closer, the crunch of grit under my shoes giving me away. She looked up just as I stopped beside her, eyes curious. I glanced down at her puzzle, I always loved these sorts and I couldn't help my self.



I pointed gently toward the empty spot on the top left grid.
“A three goes there,” I said, a small smile tugging at my lips.

Then I met her eyes.
“Hi.”

"A three goes there" said a slightly nervous voice.
Natasha was slightly surprised at the sudden interruption, but it was in no way an unwelcome one. She had wanted to make many friends in Hogwarts, but was feeling a bit overwhelmed and shy, so she wasn't talking to a lot of people. She was glad this boy had come over, and decided that she would -hopefully- make a new friend today.
"Hi!" said the boy.
Natasha smiled slightly and looked up to meet his eyes, "Hi! I'm Natasha" she said, slightly nervous too, but the boy seemed pretty friendly.
She glanced at puzzle and realized that the boy was right. "You're right! I wonder how I missed that! There was just one number left after all!"
"Why don't you sit down?" she asked, patting the ground beside her, "You can help me solve the puzzle if you like. You certainly seem to be good at them."
"I had my parents owl this to me a few weeks ago, and only just got started on them, because of all the classes, and exploring the castle." she added, knowing that it was quite irrelevant to the conversation, but she sort of felt like it was a good conversation starter, and didn't know what else to say.
She turned to the puzzle again, " Well, If a 3 goes there, then a 5 goes here" she said, and wrote '5' in the top row.

@Cane Gordon

"Natasha."
Soft name. Fitted her.
"I'm Cane."

I watched her ink the number in, careful and certain. She had neat handwriting too—the kind you’d expect from someone who actually tried on their homework.
"Most people I know wouldn’t bother with a logic puzzle when they’ve got a thousand pages of History of Magic waiting to be read."
I cringed, knowing I had those very same pages waiting for me.
As I moved to take the offered seat beside her I shifted slightly, feeling the edge of something digging into my side. Reached into my own bag and pulled out a worn, thick puzzle book—the kind with creases in the spine and bent corners from being dragged around everywhere. The front cover had faded from blue to a sort of grey-blue, and ink smudges dotted the edges where I must’ve held it with inky fingers too many times.
"I've actually got one too. This one’s full of everything—Sudoku, crosswords, word searches, even some weird muggle anagram ones that make zero sense unless you’ve got a dictionary next to you."
I held it up a little, then set it beside me as I lowered myself onto the cold stone tiles of the courtyard floor.
"My mum gave it to me just before I left. She’s obsessed with puzzles—probably because she was a Ravenclaw too. Always said, 'A good puzzle keeps your brain sharp and your patience sharper'.'"
A small smile tugged at my lips at the memory.
I’m sure I was talking too much. No doubt she must think I’m being weird.
Well, in for a penny, in for a pound...
What would Mum say again?
‘In for a sickle, in for a galleon’—I think that was it.
"Anyway... I figured it’d be nice to have something familiar, you know? Something quiet. Not everything has to be exploding cauldrons and flying brooms."
I looked at her again, feeling a little more comfortable now.
I glanced at the puzzle sitting in her lap.
"Speaking of... that bottom row in the middle grid...?"
I took a pause, ensuring what I was seeing was correct. Didn't want to make a mistake—not with the puzzle, and definitely not with a potential friend.
I leaned in, tapping lightly on another square.
"...A six goes there—and the eight goes here. Well, I think so anyway."
"Umm...and no pressure, but if you ever want someone to help with any others I'd be more than happy too...my mum trained me like it was a sport."
A soft chuckle.
"Ravenclaw mums are no joke."



@Natasha Jones

"Umm...and no pressure, but if you ever want someone to help with any others I'd be more than happy too...my mum trained me like it was a sport."
Natasha couldn't help but chuckle, and said, "It would be fun to solve more puzzles with you, I do love a good Word Search, but anagram's are the bane of my existence too"
She glanced at the puzzle at filled in a few more boxes, finishing off the left column with a 1 at the 4th place, and a 5 at the 6th.
Then, adding with a sheepish grin, she said, "As for History of Magic, well, as much as I love Hogwarts, Homework is still homework, no matter muggle or magical, and I have a habit of procrastinating that.."
"To be fair though, I did complete my Potions and Charms assignment, so I'm not lagging behind nearly as much as I would be if it were Math, English and Science"
Then, realizing that unless he was a half-blood, he had mentioned his mum was in Ravenclaw so he couldn't be a muggle born, he wouldn't know much about what she was talking about, chastising herself, she hastily added, "Are you a half-blood, Nothing I'm saying would have been making sense to you otherwise."

@Cane Gordon

I laughed softly at her comment about anagrams, shaking my head in agreement. “Right? Can’t stand them myself.”

I watched her quill move across the page, filling in two more spaces with practiced ease. “Nice,” I murmured, eyes flicking to the puzzle. She really was good at these. As I eyed the puzzle something clicked—two empty squares caught my attention. Bottom grid, middle row, right-hand column. Middle grid, middle row, right-hand column.

“There and there!” I leaned forward, pointing quickly. “One and one… boom! We’re on a roll now!”

A grin spread across my face before I could stop it. For a heartbeat, I was beaming—then immediately realized how ridiculous I must’ve looked, celebrating over a pair of ones. The grin faltered, and heat crept up my neck. “Sorry,” I said with a sheepish chuckle. “Got a bit… overexcited about numbers.”

I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to recover. “I know what you mean, though. I’ve got Potions sorted, Charms halfway done, and History of Magic is… well, underway.” Another grin, this one a little crooked. “I’ve always liked the practical stuff better. Reading and note-taking isn’t really my thing.”

At her question, I nodded, straightening a little. “Yeah—half-blood,” I said, thumb hooking toward myself, a touch of pride in the gesture. “Dad’s a Muggle, though sometimes you wouldn’t know it. He’s a total Quidditch maniac. Game days at home get… loud.” A short laugh escaped me. “Especially when Mum joins in. Get's even worse when both their teams play each other.”

"What about you?.....well, if you don't mind me asking."



@Natasha Jones

“One and one… boom! We’re on a roll now!”
Natasha grinned and pumped her hands in the air, Cane's enthusiasm was definitely infectious.

“Got a bit… overexcited about numbers.”
"Well, numbers are pretty exciting when they're not a part of my math homework," joked Natasha
Then, acting like she was giving running commentary of a match, she said,
"The clock's ticking, will Cane and Natasha be able to finish the sudoku in time, or will the other team finish it first?"
"OH, What's this, Natasha seems to be writing something! A 1 in the second row, 4th box, and a 2 in the 6 th row, 5th box. This team seems to be on a roll, and the Crowd goes WILD!" laughing, she turned her attention back to the conversation
"What about you?.....well, if you don't mind me asking."
" I'm a half-blood too! Except my mum's a muggle and my dad's a wizard. I have an older brother too, but he's a squib. My mum's pretty involved with the wizarding world, but death-scared of quidditch. According to her, anyone who is foolish enough to go on a broom hundreds of feet in the air without a harness, and then start playing Catch of all things, should NOT be as foolish as to do so. Before coming to Hogwarts, she told me to NEVER play the game, but don't worry, I'll bring her around by the time I'm good enough to get on the team. WE wouldn't want Gryffindor to win, would we is just My brother's very into quidditch though,and supports the Harpies! My dad and I know better though, We are Magpies through and through!"

@Cane Gordon

"The clock's ticking, will Cane and Natasha be able to finish the sudoku in time, or will the other team finish it first?"

I couldn’t help laughing as Natasha cheered like a commentator, her voice echoing around the courtyard. “Brilliant!” I said, grinning. “I think we’ve officially made Sudoku a team sport.”
"Speaking of sport...a 5 in the 5th row 8th box and another 5 in the 9th row 4th box" I pop to my feet, raising my hands in triumph. "Ladies and Gentlemen a magnificent display, who would have thought a Gryffindor had brains. Over to my fabulous colleague for the next move of the game" continuing with the commentator joke.

My dad and I know better though, We are Magpies through and through!"

When she mentioned the Magpies, my grin widened. “You’re a Magpies fan too? No way! Finally, someone with taste. Everyone I’ve met so far either supports the Harpies or the Cannons and please don't get me started on the Puddlemere brigade.” I gave an exaggerated roll of my eyes.
“My dad got me into the Magpies ages ago,” I continued, leaning back a little on my hands. “He used to wake me up early to listen to the matches on the wireless, his excuse was 'it builds character.’ My sister went to join mum, so she's also a harpies fan. I'm sure my mum bribed her or something. She's a witch too but won't be at Hogwarts for another couple of years and she swears she’s going to play for the Harpies one day, and the way she throws that stuffed Quaffle at my head I can believe it” I shook my head, smiling.
I glanced back at Natasha. “I’m hoping to try out for the Quidditch team next year,” I admitted, a spark of excitement creeping into my voice. “It’d be brilliant to play for Gryffindor. And, well… if you make the team, maybe I’ll get to face off against you someday. Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw sounds like a good match, yeah?”

"Ladies and Gentlemen a magnificent display, who would have thought a Gryffindor had brains. Over to my fabulous colleague for the next move of the game"

Natasha quickly wrote a 1 in the 6th row 9th box, and another 1 in the 9th row 7th box and continuing the commentary, said, "Well, well, well, looks like with Natasha's next move, the magnificent duo will have officially completed all of their 1's. In no history of competitive quidditch has a number been completed this fast!"

"I’m hoping to try out for the Quidditch team next year"
Natasha could hear the excitement in Cane's voice. It was the same excitement that came in her head whenever she though about playing quidditch for Ravenclaw. "Me too! I hope I get on the team! Thought, I do have to convince my mom that I'm not going to fall of my broom and die first!"

“It’d be brilliant to play for Gryffindor. And, well… if you make the team, maybe I’ll get to face off against you someday. Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw sounds like a good match, yeah?”

"Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw sounds like an amazing match! Don't worry, I won't feel bad after beating you!"Natasha teased. "What position would you like to play? Have you chosen one or would you be happy playing any?" she asked, and then looked at Cane, waiting for him to answer.

@Cane Gordon

I watched Natasha filling in here chosen numbers into the Sudoku squares.

“Ah, an excellent placement by Natasha. The crowd is holding its breath as Gryffindor’s Cane Gordon lines up his next play. Can he do something amazing...” I went ahead and quickly put a 4 in row four, 2nd box, and a 6 in row 4, 9th box.

“And he goes for it—a daring six in row four, second position! What precision! What confidence! Truly, Hogwarts hasn’t seen Sudoku strategy like this in centuries!”

I leaned back, resting on my arms that had moved behind my back. I shook my head in mock amazement. “Honestly, with the way we play this we could turn it into a national sport” I couldn't help it but I let out an amused chuckle.

-"Me too! I hope I get on the team! Thought, I do have to convince my mom that I'm not going to fall of my broom and die first!"-

"I don't think you will have to worry, if you're as skilled at quidditch as you are at this then after a game or two I think your mum will be singing your praises. That or we get my mum and your mum together, and I swear by the end of that day she will be a Quidditch fanatic, my mum is very persuasive." the memories of my mum and her quidditch love came in a wave, my chuckle from early became a bellow because I could truly see that happening.

-"What position would you like to play? Have you chosen one or would you be happy playing any?"-

"I'm not to sure really, most likely chaser or keeper. I can't see my self having the skill for seeker, and although I'm game for a more physical sport I can't see myself actively hitting a bludger at people, so that rules out beater."

I tilted my head, studying her with a small smile. “What about you? I could actually see you as a Seeker.”



@Natasha Jones