Fresh Air

Leanne liked to cut through the courtyard to get to classes, especially on a windy yet sunny day like today. She loved to feel the gentle breeze present in the air, blowing her normally tidy hair into shambles; the pleasant ray of sunshine on her shoulder; and the sight of the maple leaves slowly turning brown in the weeks to come. The courtyard was quite devoid of people today, there was only a few small groups mingling in the corners. Pushing her way past an annoying Hufflepuff boy that blocked her (and giving him a sweet-looking fake smile in the process), Leanne stopped suddenly when her eyes landed on a girl huddled at a corner bench.

Since the 2+ weeks that she'd been at Hogwarts, Leanne seemed to attract a certain group of people: the "firsties-that-always-seemed-depressed-due-to-unknown-reasons", either it was family problems, had problems adjusting, or were friendless and lonely. She had met a couple of such girls (and boy) in the past weeks, not matter where she went, there was always one of them sitting around. Frankly, it was getting old. Her guilty conscience (or her 'helping people thing' ) would always push her forward to befriend them, and so far, she always did. (Leanne would never admit that she kind of liked to do this 'job' of hers.)

Why am I always the one doing it, she silently complained as she eyed the girl, her housemate, writing a letter to send back home. Glancing around to check whether another other than her had noticed the lonely girl at the corner, Leanne sighed. Guess I'm back to playing Befriender again. 

Walking up to the girl with practiced ease, she sat down quietly, honed from weeks of practicing the same thing. "Hi, you ok?"  she caringly asked, not looking directly at her housemate, instead at a nearby maple tree. It was from experience that she knew not to look straight at her,  and Leanne patiently waited for a reply. In the courtyard, a light gust of wind blew, ruffling her hair.

Brie looked up, startled. "Oh, um, yes I am fine." She would say warily. She watched as the girl looked at the trees around us. Sitting up, she also looked around, and started to notice all the different people in the courtyard. There were groups of girls just sitting and talking, like she was, and groups of boys chasing each other. Some older people even playing Wizards Chess. She decided, after seeing all this that, even if this girl that had just so happened to pop up and come say hello to her, to check if she was okay, if they ended up not being friends...she would be okay with that, for there are so many other people. Of course she would love to have a friend without her having to be the one to initiate. But if this girl did not want to be friends she would not blame her and not be upset. She smiled to herself proud of this new revelation she has made in just a few minutes. She looked back at the girl wondering what she was thinking. "I'm Brie by the way...it is nice to meet you I guess..." She held out my hand for a handshake as she awaited her response.

"Nice to meet you too, Brie! I'm Leanne." She had replied, twirling her black hair in her hands. She enjoyed the cool air of the courtyard as she shook the other girl's hand, feeling that they were smooth and soft, unlike hers. Brie looked so strangely similar to one of her former classmates, with the same mannerisms and about the same looks. She had the same wavy brown hair, the same familiar blue eyes...Leanne could almost see the reflection of her former deskie staring back at her.  She shook her head wildly, knowing that she was talking to a different person. 

 "So, you were writing back to your family? It must be difficult to spend a lot of time away from them." She mused, eyeing the obvious stack of letters Brie was trying to hide beneath her clothes. "I can't wait for the holidays to come; that's the next time we'll see them!" It was true, part of her felt missing, without the constant playful teasing from her brothers. Leanne wondered if the other girl felt the same. 

She straightened her robe, enjoying the wind that blew her face. Brie seemed quite niced, and she didn't mind making friends with her. The more, the merrier, she thought. "Umm...so how you find Hogwarts so far?" Leanne asked casually, using her words as a conversation starter. She looked back at the wavy-haired Ravenclaw, waiting for her response.