Lost Again? To be Expected.... PV Zephyr Deakin

Zephyr was lost... again... It's not because he likes getting lost, it just happened to him a lot. Hogwarts was like a maze that constantly changed its own walls whenever it deemed like it. One day a staircase would take you where you actually wanted, and then sometimes it would decide it preferred the floor above the one you want. He tried following maps, asking directions, and even counting doors, but somehow, he always ended up somewhere new.

That morning, he was supposed to be heading to Charms too. He thought he had it figured out this time — third floor, left corridor, last door before the staircase. At least that’s what one of the prefects told him yesterday, and she sounded pretty confident, so he trusted her instruction. But here he was, ten minutes later, holding a couple of books under his arm and looking at a hallway he definitely had not seen before. The torches were dimmer here, and a suit of armour beside him gave a low groan, which made him jump, then muttered something that sounded like “Left turn, you daft boy.”

“Okay, thank you.” Zephyr replies quickly, not sure if it was being helpful or mocking him. Being new to Hogwarts was weird. It was amazing, that's true, but also confusing in every possible way. There were moving staircases, secret doors, and ghosts that thought it was funny to scare you in the middle of the night. He once followed a corridor that he swore led to the greenhouses but ended up in the kitchens, where a house elf had handed him a plate of biscuits for the effort. That had been the best mistake he had ever made here so far.

Another time, he walked straight into the girls’ lavatory by accident, a very awkward experience he didn’t plan to repeat. Still, for every frustrating moment, there was something about Hogwarts that amused him to no end. The floating candles in the Great Hall, the smell of pumpkin pasties from the kitchen, and the sound of owls swooping over the tables at breakfast. He was getting used to it slowly, despite the castle seeming to be playing a constant game of let’s see how long it takes him to get lost again.

Now, as he walked down what he thought was the right corridor for Charms, he could already hear faint chatter ahead; maybe he was close then. He quickened his pace, turning the corner, and that’s when it happened. Something, or rather someone, slammed right into him. His books slipped out of his arm and scattered on the floor. “Whoa!!!” He stumbled back half a step before steadying himself.

He saw a girl around his age looking just as startled as he felt. One thing he noticed was that she looked frustrated. “Sorry.” He said quickly and bent down to grab his books. “I'm not watching where I was going.”

@Madeline Tomlinson

Reducio Interacting With: @Zephyr Deakin

Reducio Location: On The Way to Charms

Reducio Dress: School Uniform

The impact sent her backwards, losing her balance as the apple went flying. For a brief moment, she thought she was going to faceplant in the middle of the corridor, which honestly would’ve just been the cherry on top of her very not-put-together day.

“Oh no no no no— I’m so sorry!” she blurted out in one breath. She crouched down to pick her books up and saw a quill rolling away. Ducking, she quickly caught it "Gotcha!" She huffed and got up. "I swear these Things are more faster and clever than us sometimes."

Finally she looked up at the boy she collided with. When she saw the familiar Hufflepuff tie. She breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, she had not bumped into a senior from another house. According to her experience they are very grumpy at this time.

"I swear the castle has it out for me today." handing him his books she added, "Every corridor looks exactly like the last one, and every staircase has commitment issues. Like, It cant even stay still on the same spot. Why does it has to change locations? It’s honestly a miracle I’ve survived this long."

Messing her hairs up more she looked at the boy, maybe he is a first year too. I mean I think he is, because I have seen him around. "I was supposed to be heading to charms class." she continued with a small frown, "But then I got......lets just say distracated."

Maddy waited to her Belle's voice saying 'way to go Maddy.....distracted?' but it never came. She sighed her tone lightened again almost immediately, like she refused to let the sadness linger. “Anyway! You’re in Hufflepuff too, right? and you must be going to charms too, so you are lost too.?"

She smirked looking at the almost empty hallway, "Since we both are lost, might as well embark on this lost journey together? Whatdya say housemate, lets go to charms?"

She held her hand out, "Maddy, nice to meet ya."

What in the world…?

Zephyr froze when he saw the apple went flying past his shoulder. It hit the stone floor and rolled away while he was still bent. As he did so, he was watching the girl scrambled after her things with the same energy he usually had when panicking over lost items. “It’s okay…really. Don’t worry about it.” Quickly telling her that even though she already apologized many times. He crouched too to pick up one of his other books she missed. “It’s…um… accident happens.” He didn’t mention that he once walked into a tapestry because he thought it was a hallway. That was staying a secret forever.

She caught the rolling quill as if she was snatching a snitch, “Nice catch.” At least she was chill about what happened. Some people were dramatic about hallway collisions. While handing him the books, he nodded way too fast. “Same. I think they move just to mess with us. Or…or maybe it has favorites and we’re not on the list yet.” He realized how ridiculous that sounded and his ears went warm. “I—I mean… maybe.”

What she said about the stairs having commitment issues, he laughed in surprise.“They don’t stay in one place. Yesterday one of them turned when I was halfway up and I almost went back to the first floor by accident. I thought it hated me.”

Though when she mentioned being distracted, he was curious, trying to look understanding and not nosy. “That happens. I get distracted too. Mostly by… everything. You okay though?” He didn’t say that sometimes the Great Hall ceiling distracted him for few minutes. Again, some secrets die with him. “Yes! First year. And yes, I’m supposed to go to Charms class..” He looked down the empty hallway. “But as you can see, I am epically failing.” He looked thoughtful for a second.

Her offer felt like an official mission suddenly. “Two lost Hufflepuffs are better than one, at least we won’t get lost alone.” He reached out and shook her hand in return. “I’m Zephyr, nice to meet you too, Maddy.” He glanced at the corridor ahead as if he was preparing for battle. “Okay… ready? If we walk confidently, the castle might think we know where we’re going.” He ended up chuckling. “Lead the way!”

@Madeline Tomlinson

Reducio Interacting With: @Zephyr Deakin

Reducio Location: On The Way to Charms

Reducio Dress: School Uniform

“You nearly got sent back to the first floor??” she snorted. “At that point I’d just sit on the staircase and accept my fate.”

She looked up at him with a look when he said maybe the place didnt like them. She noticed his ears going red with nervousness and smiled, "maybe you are right? It is a possibility."
She tried making him feel better, and it was good to finally talk to someone, she needed cheering up at the moment.

Her eyes snapped to his when he asked if she was okay. That caught her off guard. "Erm...yeah, just missing someone. Happens more than Id like it to really."

"I’m fine,” she added, waving her hand like she could shoo the feeling away.

When he shook her hand in return she beamed at him, "Zephyr sounds like a really cool name, like someone who was bound to know where he was going." She said with a smirk, her mischievous side showing again.

"Confidence!! Just the skill I am good at! We can rock that!! Leggo!!"

She gestured to the hallways, "A new adventure to find our class and not to end up on the first floor."

She moved forward and looking back at him winked and gestured for him to move along.

Zephyr didn't expect how casually she said she would just sit on the staircase and accept her fate without trying again and again. One look at her and he could tell she was someone who would not give up easily. He chuckled, nevertheless, trying to match her energy. “I cannot tell if that's the smartest thing to do. Might save some energy, that I can say with confidence.”

He was unsure if she had noticed anything unusual about him or if she was aware of how embarrassed he felt, but just seeing her looking at him made him shuffle his feet. Okay, calm. Don’t make it weird. He cleared his throat. "I don’t think it likes me very much sometimes.”

He didn't expect she would be so open that she would tell him she was missing someone. "Who is it? Do you...want to talk about it?" He didn't know if it was okay to ask further, but he had to try. She could use a nice talk. "If it's any consolation, you're not the only one feeling that way. I miss home sometimes, too… the farm, my little sister. Doesn’t mean I’m not happy to be here.”

Her comment about his name prompted a warm feeling in his ears again. “Really? I don't believe that if I'm always getting lost." Now he really laughed out loud. “Confidence? I don’t think I have much of that… but I can try. Let’s not end up on the first floor again.” He followed her lead down the hallway, trying to copy her energy without tripping over himself. “Adventure mode activated, you’re good at persuading people.”

He fell into step behind Maddy, hiding his grin as he watched her march confidently. They neared the staircase. Here we go again. He knew the stairs moved, but somehow it still made his stomach twist every time. “Ready for the moving staircase? I swear, they do this intentionally.” The staircase groaned and tilted slightly, as expected. He grabbed the concrete railing as he steadied himself. “There it goes again." Now he's the one groaning in annoyance. “I almost forgot it liked to move sideways at the last second. It’s like it has a sense of humour.”

@Madeline Tomlinson