Something Smoky PV Siobhan McCarty

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Stats: sta 7 ⊹ eva 9 ⊹ str 7 ⊹ wis 10 ⊹ arc 8 ⊹ acc 7 | Date: 04/01/26 | Time: A Chilly Evening| CC:#2E8B57
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Siobhan was stumbling out of the castle down to the Boathouse where Matt had summoned her to. The note that he had sent her had only asked for her help but not specified what it was that she could help him with. It also did not help that she was lightly... or perhaps less lightly focused on her feet at the moment and Toaster, her unfaithful and unhappy companion was helping her out of the castle with loud meows and protesting grunts. Aside from the fat cat in her arms, the only other things she carried were her potions kit and her journal tucked away in her purse. Matthew had been vague about what he wanted for her to bring but had said it was imperative that she bring some healthy herbs.

There where a couple of those he could have been talking about. Eitherway, she managed to make her way down to the boathouse and knocked on the door with her foot. The door opened without much resistance and Siobhan could hear the noises of another individual inside which prompted her to speak.

"Matt, darling, if you're going to send an Owl in the middle of the day- please do not send one that screams. This batch is not something that needs spooks and startles." Siobhan explained as Toaster wiggled more as she got closer to wherever it was Matthew was sitting. She had not seen him for quite some time, he'd disappeared shortly after the start of their third year and she'd not been able to look for him. For reasons or other- but now that he was here, she felt comforted that he had returned to her company and that her friend was safe. It was debatable at this school over whether a student would make it through an entire academic year wthout being maimed or injured in some shape or form.

"Alright Toaster. Behave... And for the love of gosh- Please stop yowling at me. You know Matthew." Siobhan chastised lightly as Toaster hmphed off somewhere away from the two teenagers. Leaving the two of them alone slightly, Siobhan turned in the direction of her friend and let out a reluctantly amused sigh.

"I would say it's good to see you. But- Circumstances." She attempted to joke. Knowing Matthew the joke might have gone one of two ways. Yes, it wasn't a secret to most of their class that he had been the one present with her when her blinding incident had occurred. However everyone had conveniently chosen to forget that he had also been the first person to search for help and get her to someone who could help preserve what little sight she had left. When she had returned to school- there had been lots of questions, lots of accussations towards Matthew that Siobhan had been asked about.

Siobhan had done her best to quell them and dispell any rumours that were just blatantly wrong. But she never lied to anyone about what had happened.

She had been angry, but after meeting with a Therapist at St. Mungo's and having her eyes restored to a point of "normalcy" from an outward perspective, she had learned that Matthew had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time and it was not his fault nor hers that the potion had backfired. It was simply an accident of mass proportions. It could have happened to anyone and had Matthew not slipped, it may have happened to him. It had taken a while and a deep heart to heart, but they had somewhat reconciled to the point where they could be in each others company without crying.

Siobhan was happy to have her friend back. Her first friend really. Had Matthew decided that nothing about their friendship was salvageable then-

Well...

Siobhan shook her head trying to get rid of anything pessemistic. They were going to spend time together now and that's what mattered.

Siobhan took a seat with her legs folded underneath her and opened her bag. Inside, there was a large almanac, some tissue paper, and a small selection of herba supplements that she had been cultivating as part of her extracurricular activities in the dorms. Normally, they were specifically reserved for herself and Alphonse Toussaint. However because Matthew had reached out and specifically named her garden by its existence, she had tentatively selected something she thought he would like.

I'm surprised you actually wanted some. But you can tell me if you like this formula. I tried a new combination of soil and calcium deposits to grow it." Siobhan said as she passed him a sample with practiced ease. She smiled sweetly as it left her hand and she pulled out a matchbox. True, with magic she could easily create fire with less of a struggle. But she needed control. Incendio out of a wand just wasn't a guarentee that a wall of fire would not erupt in front of her face.

The breath in was exquisite. Not too pungent and almost floral in taste? Interesting. She'd never accomplished that before.
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| Manx Translations: | 𝑴𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈: @Matthew Campbell ⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

Date: Late Evening, April 1st

Mistakes were the education for a better tomorrow, they were the pasts criticism of your actions and they provided the power to change a person completely. Still the mistake that lingered across Siobhan McCarty's eyes was one that Matthew was quite sure he would never fully recover from. In many ways it was a matter of circumstance, a horrible accident that did not need blame, in others, it was a reminder that his recklessness was dangerous to not just himself.

When the boathouse door groaned and Toaster groaned louder Matthew released a quiet sigh. Not one born out of frustration or annoyance but of relief. Somehow those groans, the creeks of ancient wood and disgruntled kittens meant that the very respite he had ordered had arrived. In truth Matthew had thought that Siobhan's herbs might be the cure to his ails, but in reality it was herself that provided such aid. Sitting up from his boat of troubles he laughed a shy little thing at her comment. The owl he had chosen practically barked his ear off getting the letter on so he found no surprise it had not yet understood silence.

Seeing her was a mix of emotions. It was the pain of knowing that someone that trusted you, someone that you relied so heavily on had been permanently scarred for that generosity. It was the blessing of the true endurance of friendship and the notion that Siobhan had not only forgiven him, but made certain they were still friends. It was the guilt that once again he had left her in the dark, both figuratively and literally. As he thought to himself, complicated to say the least. Still he could not argue that one emotion tore through them all, the bliss sense of comfort.

It had been something surely lacking in the boys life these last months and to have it revived so swiftly made his heart flutter, thawing whatever cold had settled in from his own hurt. She was the breath of fresh air he needed, even if he didn't deserve it. A thought he had to quickly vanquish, for he would not burden her any more than he already had. Jumping out from the rocking boat he rushed up to the girl and embracing her in a tight hug he giggled in a kind of defeated way, knowing she was joking but still feeling bad, "It's incredible to see you too, I can do enough for both of us."

Pulling back he felt a small tear run down the side of him cheek, chilling his skin in the late hour. Sighing with the relief of it he quickly rambled out an apology so that they might move on to topics of importance. "Sorry for not writing before, I know I'm the worst but let's just cut to the chase and skip past the apologies or we will be here all night and I won't get any sleep." A sentiment all to clear on his face but invisible to the blind girl before him. Matthew's eyes now wore heavy dark bags underneath them that spoke clearer than anything of his fatigue. In fact everything about him felt sunken with the weight of the world and although he was sure she would sense it, Matthew was thankful she didn't have to see its extent. To see the broken shards he had become.

Despite all that though, Siobhan seemed genuinely happy to see him. Like long lost friends reuniting. Taking a seat next to her on the ground the young snake was eager to see what the green thumbed witch had managed to grow. Siobhan was a natural in the horticultural world, a proficiency with herbology so immaculate that it went unmatched by their fellow students. If anyone could cook up the catharsis he so desperately needed it was her, and while he was no expert at smoking his time with a certain blonde badger had prepared him for the inhale. Taking a drag, Matthew was relieved to find the smoke did not catch his throat as it had when paired with the whisky. The floral bliss was a wave of serene joy that washed over him. It was a rare blend that spoke high to her skill.

Moving his bag to fashion it as a pillow beneath his head he lay back and let his hand drift into the waters beside them. The cold rush intertwining between one hand while the light heat of the lit roll filled his other. It was the kind of duality that reminded him of being alive, feeling two opposition's at once grounded him back to the world, a realisation just how aloof he had been before now. Giggling again he passed the smoke back and watched as Siobhan too succumbed to its tranquility. "You know you could make a whole business with that stuff, your talents know no bounds." For a second there was nothing but peace, the silence between them only disturbed by the light sloshing of the water. Just two friends enjoying the company, but silence was no friend of Matthew Campbell and before a train of thoughts could pull in to rob his serenity he filled the space with his wonders.

Drawing his hand from the water he dried it within his tangle of hair and turning to her with a small smile he asked, "So how have you been Sio, it's been too long. Dare I ask how your eyes are?"

Interacting with @Siobhan McCarty

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Stats: sta 7 ⊹ eva 9 ⊹ str 7 ⊹ wis 10 ⊹ arc 8 ⊹ acc 7 | Date: 04/01/26 | Time: A Chilly Evening| CC:#2E8B57
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Siobhan agreed quickly as Matthew asked to skip over their regularly scheduled apology session. She had cried enough over the last year and this being nearly the end of her third year, she wanted to finish it out on a wonderful note. If that meant pretending to ignore dumb situations then so be it. Siobhan pulled her sneakers and her socks off before dipping her feet in the chilly lake water that was underneath the dock of the boats near them. The last time she had been here, she had been in the boats hiding underneath her blankets. But now it was slightly warm enough that she could rest her toes in the icy lake.

Siobhan almost laughed as Matthew made a comment about selling her stash. That was an absurd idea. She had no desire to be caught over a hobby that truthfully wasn't all that terrible. She was 14. Muggle students her age where already ingesting far worse back in the other world. Though it warmed her heart to know that Matthew noticed her ability with the greenery that she cultivated- herbal or otherwise. Herbology was her passion and the art of growing plants was something she had been doing since she could walk. Her garden at home, which her sisters had been so painstakingly taking care of, was her pride and joy. Nowadays- her indoor garden in the dorm room which @Alphonse Toussaint was suffering through the existence of, was flourishing and her half of the dormitory had turned into a fairy like habitat for herself and Toaster.

"Matthew I love you, but that's the dumbest thing you've ever said to me. This shall forever be a "side-effect" of my skills. But thank you, there is a bit of mallowsweet and some rose in there. I'm glad you like it though. Alphonse prefers the truer more original taste I think. So he rarely tries these new ideas." Siobhan giggled as she gently nudged his shoulder with hers. Toaster had sat in her lap like the fat furball he was, demanding scritches between his ears. Even Toaster knew not to betray any of Siobhan's work by keeping people out of the dorm room. He was quite the skilled guardcat.

"I've been quite alright." She lied slightly. It wasn't a complete truth as no- she had been quite lonely this year despite the company that Prat and Alphonse had given her towards the beginning. The middle of the year had been increasingly rough with this being the first winter of no vision. The sting of the frozen highlands had been awful to her skin and her eyes where dry constantly. She'd gone through far too many eyedrops this past couple months now. However Matthews radio silence had bothered her lightly. He'd come back after a hiatus and then... just kind of faded into the background? Yes- okay, she should have reached out better. But communication worked both ways you know!

"It's been a busy year with duelling. I've only been knocked out once you know! Even with my eyes. They're okay I guess. Things are getting fuzzier but I can still see like -vague- shapes? Like your face is here and that mop of yours probably needs a haircut." She teased slightly as she poked his forehead. She let her feet continue to kick through the water as she talked.

"I've been worried about you, you know. I can't help it. It's just worry that even though you're back you're not... back." She explained as she took another deep breath of the sweet burn. With her action, it might have seemed a bit callous but she knew that whatever was eating up Matthew outside of Hogwarts was serious enough that he needed to be away occasionally. "I know you're probably not ready to talk about it yet but when you are, I'm here.

Her hand found his with relative ease. Something about Matthew was easy to find when she was looking. She'd learned quickly that defining their relationship as anything but something akin to siblings would only make things more complicated. But her hand covered his in a way that held a calming sense of sisterly affection. Despite their unfortunate history, they were slowly repairing their bond. But now they were closing the gap that existed between them. It would make her feel better, and Matthew hopefully would eventually realize how much of a twit he was being by ignoring her.

"My moir and air -my mum and da- have been asking about you. I've been using your quill to write to them more now that I can dictate everything. They want you to come visit for the holidays. My moir especially, she thinks you need some stability. Would you like to come? I have my farm, and there is a wonderful Lough where I'm certain a kelpie may live. We could go exploring and I can show you across Killarney?" Siobhan broached carefully. The subject of family was tough between the two of them. Siobhan intricately wrote to her parents about every detail of her life and her friends, but she wasn't sure if Matthew knew how detailed she became in her letters. She was sure that she had informally introduced her parents before but this would be the first time that she extended an offer to someone to venture into her safe space. Her family.

"Of course I understand if you would rather not. I just figured if I offered it to you first, then I would have an excuse to delay offering it to Prat. I'm getting an inkling of a feeling he wants to be more involved in my life but he has a funny way of showing it." She said, wrinkling her nose at the thought. Prat Pass, the persistent thorn in her side, was growing more dear to her as time went on and she feared that soon she would need to figure out what exactly they were trying to accomplish with their dates, occasional kisses, and shared hand-holding. Matthew's hand felt much different then Prat's.

She tried not to think about the latter at the moment.

If he ever caught her in such a state as where she was currently- she knew he would lose his mind. But not in a loud way. In that eerily quiet way that would genuinely make her feel ashamed of herself. He was rather good at that.

"Have you decided on attending the Ball yet?" Siobhan asked quickly to change the subject in her own head.
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| Manx Translations: | 𝑴𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈: @Matthew Campbell ⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅