The Gilded Margin PV Rosaline

Once they had descended the stairs once again she picked up one of the random cats that roamed around the house, it must have gotten out. Graci was not allowed to let the cats freely wander around the shop, lest someone allergic entered. Terpsichore was an odd mix of whites and browns, the smallest of the Laren's three felines, and decidedly the most cuddly.

"It really is, I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the spontaneity of it, but sometimes I would prefer not to get drenched impromptu." Terpsichore jumped out of her hands, going to her favourite step and watching the store like a queen observing her kingdom.

A breeze came through the door as another person went out, it had notably stopped raining, the smell of petrichor dowsing the place in the sweet aroma of a fresh world. Or something far less dramatic, but Graci liked to think life would be so dull without extravagance of ones words.

"I suppose I do. The first few months of my time at Hogwarts was rather uneventful, but utterly filled with exploring when I had free time. I wouldn't go so far as to say I know it like the back of my hand, but I can find my way around alright." Graci chuckled a bit, glancing at Rosaline and hoping she was not being too much of an annoyance. "And I'm in Gryffindor. While not expected, I'm finding it quite suits me. Or I hope so, at least. I really just want to fit in with the rest of them, you know?"

No one else was wandering at the store, just her dad re-organizing the books for what seemed like the fifth time that week. he liked to spice things up a bit, keep people on their toes. Whether the sections were arranged by colour, size, or last name of the author, people seemed to think it delightful when it changed from day to day.

"I didn't have a clue to which house I would be sorted into, I was hoping for Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff, but that's just because I assumed I would be in one of those. Ravenclaw is a bit too intelligent for me, and my sister got sorted into Hufflepuff instead of me. Well, not instead, but I think it would have made more sense if we were switched."

Somehow, without fail, almost every single time she talked to someone for more than five minutes Zoe was brought up. It made sense, Zoe was an integral part of Graci's life before Hogwarts, but for once she wished she could remember to have some sort of filter that judged what she was going to say before she said it.

Lack of filters in her brain aside, Graci did genuinely like talking to Rosaline, she was so lively, which was the way Graci preferred her people. She did have her fair share of more mellow people, and she could appreciate them for their capability of being serious, but it was nice to not have to worry about being too loud or hyper.

"I do love The Hobbit, yes, it's taken me a while to read it because it isn't what I normally read, but I'm really enjoying it. In fact, I'm almost done." Reading 'The Hobbit' had been quite the journey, one that involved starting and re-starting several times, till she eventually decided to just finish it and then she could feel accomplished. Thrilling was the word she most often used to describe the book, and she couldn't wait to read the next ones, no matter how long it took her. And considering the amount of time it had taken to just read that one, it could be assumed she only needed to bring the next one to Hogwarts, for even then she might not finish it.

"Hm, I might just have to try that. Well, if I was in town for Halloween, but alas, we get a formal ball at magic boarding school instead. Not a bad trade, if you ask me." Graci was still smiling, contagious, it seemed, in Rosaline's presence. She minded not, though, everyone needed a good smile once in a while it seemed.

"She is pretty cute. And her name is Terpsichore. Mum said I could name her and I just happened to have read a book on Greek Mythology, hence the cat named after one of the nine muses." It was that same cat that had inadvertently caused her first instance of magic, and Graci loved the old cat to bits. "I feel like it's the most endearing cats that are naughty. From my experience, at least." The Larens had only had about three cats in, like, ever, but all of them were just different degrees of mischievous.

"Huge is an understatement," Graci laughed. "In fact, I have probably explored less than half. But I am rarely one to look for things others don't want me to find, such as secret corridors or passages, and the like. But don't get too comfortable with the lake... you never know what's in there." Okay, maybe it was a slight over-exaggeration, but that castle was seriously huge. And she definitely loved meddling in business that wasn't hers, not that she got the opportunity to do so much.

Rosaline saying that she thought Graci was a good Gryffindor would have made her little first year heart just burst. During the first few months, she was struggling a lot with feel at home among all the bold, chaotic people. "Thank you, that means a lot! And really, whichever house the sorting hat thinks you fit in best with is usually where you fit in best, so it's better not to worry."

Rosaline was incredibly polite, to the point it had Graci wondering if she was just disrespectful. Or just had one too many years of practising anti-social tendencies. Graci's dad just smiled back and waved. Even though he ran a store and literally talked to people all day, once he was in the zone, he became incredibly reserved. Not rude, just like 'you're not dying, you seem to be having fun, now do whatever pre-teen girls do.'

"Uh, no, Zoe is not around today." If 'not around today' meant living with their paternal grandparents to continue her education as a homeschooler. And even if Zoe was there, Rosaline wouldn't have noticed... Graci and Zoe were almost complete opposites.

Ah, yes, conversation to books, my home turf. "My aversion to large books is literally just because of how large they are. My other aversion would be if they are excessively wordy. But usually they have a really good quality of writing, so I just have to actually pick it up and start reading." Most of Graci's troubles stemmed from her just not starting to do something, be it because she found it daunting or just forgot.

"Yeah, they have a ball in the Fall, and then one in the spring. I didn't go to last year's fall one, but the spring one was... interesting, to say the least. Eventful for others, but me? Not so much. I'm excited for this year's fall ball, though." Graci mostly liked it for the themes, seeing what they chose from year to year and how they brought it into being.

"I think, out of the two of us, I just got all her clumsiness and she got any grace I might have possessed. I'm like... the clumsiest person I know, which is saying something." Graci just shook her head slightly, a small grin on her face. At some point, she'd tripped over or fallen into the majority of the bookshelves in the shop, and some still bore the slightest nicks that her father hadn't noticed when fixing them. "And that's so cool, I had a similar thing with Terpsichore here, but a tree instead of the house." Her smile widened, hazel eyes lighting up.

Graci marvelled at the fact she could find someone so similar to her, and with luck only a few streets down. Then again, she hardly knew Rosaline but it felt as though they'd been friends forever. Ish. Forever was a big concept and Graci wasn't quite sure she wanted to ponder it just yet. Those kind of things were meant for in the late hours of the night when you couldn't sleep.

Trouble was a thing far too easy to find at Hogwarts, honestly more like it was trying to find you, not the other way around. "Unless you enjoy diving with the threat of death by lake creatures, I might advise against going too far into the great lake." The one time Graci had dared swim in the lake had ended up horribly, alive and safe for the most part, but horrible.

Graci was glad Rosaline was leaving the Zoe thing alone, though she felt rather guilty about that. It was a tough subject, unjustifiably so, because there were no hard feelings, not spoken ones anyway. The feeling that it was sort of her fault lingered anyway.

"I suppose there must be some people who much enjoy large books, otherwise they wouldn't sell. And I find those, like yourself, who do enjoy them quite admirable, even if sort of confusing." She shrugged, Graci was one of the people who preferred small books, but not because of the size, merely because you got to the happy ending faster. Sure, there was less time to make the happy ending more enjoyable, but alas, the girl had her preferences.

The fact that Rosaline had a phone most certainly should not have been shocking to Graci, who had a) grown up in a mostly magical household, and b) would not have been able to have a phone till sixteen anyhow. "It's alright," Graci peered around the bookshelf, knowing she wouldn't really glean anything from just looking. Intriguing, I wonder who's calling her. Graci didn't have great hearing by any standards, so all she had left was to wonder. Fortunately, the young girl did not have to wait long.

"Oh! Well, stay safe and have a good rest of your day. I, too, had a good time talking to you, and if you ever get stranded in the rain again... well, I'll still be here. See you at Hogwarts!" Graci waved as Rosaline left, almost sad she was gone but knowing they'd meet again remedied the unfortunate-ness. She pushed a piece of hair back behind her ear, going back to find Terpsichore before her dad noticed the troublesome cat was in the bookstore, while simultaneously wondering what her mum was making for supper.