Overthinking Finished

He really shouldn't have led with the girlfriend thing. He'd already known that, of course, but the expression that crossed both boys' faces confirmed it. Whatever. Clifton didn't particularly feel the need to explain himself to two strangers.

"Howlers. Those are the letters that yell at you, right?" he said. He'd given up trying to act like he wasn't an ignorant Muggle-born months ago. "It's a good thing my parents don't know about those things. I'd probably never get any sleep. Did one of you get one?"

Clifton couldn't quite tell if he was welcomed into the conversation or not, but he did his best to be friendly. He got the impression that neither of them felt comfortable socializing much and he probably hadn't helped, disturbing the peace like a crashing steam engine. All puffing for breath and off the rails.

It was something his parents occasionally warned him about. His energy. His dad told him that not all bulbs needed the same charge and, if he wasn't careful, he'd end up left in the dark in some circles.

So he toned it down. Straightened his scarf. And hoped that if he stayed hidden long enough the Quidditch player would give up on his chase.

@Alec Mason @Leonard Oaksworth

Alec laughed lightly, nodding, "That's a Howler" Alec said. Alec was just as oblivious to the muggle side of things as this boy was to wizarding things. Except of course the so called dreaded 'backpack' the thing really took a toll on your shoulders. He remembered because of the person he'd met on the Hogwarts express. Cassie or something. They were interesting a pureblood with a 'backpack' they said something about how it was to make their father upset. Alec had to stop himself from laughing then and there when they mentioned that. It made him wonder what his father would think if he wore a 'backpack'

Sure the things are dreadful. But he'd do it if it meant annoying his dad. And then the boy said.
'It's a good thing my parents don't know about those things. I'd probably never get any sleep. Did one of you get one?' Alec shook his head."N-not yet. I expect I'll have one by the end of the month though" Alec said with a small awkward laugh. It was a bit unfair that he was going to get a Howler for being placed in Gryffindor. It wasn't his fault. At least he hoped it wasn't.

And that's when he noticed the boy's change in energy or something a bit more calm now. It at first had seemed to Alec that the boy was just bursting with energy. What trouble did you get yourself into anyway to have some random kid from a random houses quidditch team follow you, anyway? He wanted to ask but decided it better not too. Maybe this was something Alec shouldn't get involved in

@Leonard Oaksworth @Clifton Troublefield

Leonard decided he liked these two.

They were interesting, of course. One was a pureblood who had potential for a troublemaker type, and the other made the enemy of a Quidditch player (presumably Beater, with how fast Clifton was running) and had romantic affiliations at age eleven. Sure, it didn’t fit at all with his Optimal Hogwarts Experience, but by now, the Optimal Hogwarts Experience was a faraway dream, which he accomplished in some alternate universe where he was the only person alive.

They didn’t fit the mould for Number One, not exactly. But it was quite obvious this would turn into a good story for family Christmas parties, so he opted to keep on talking. That was another thing he should have worked on, Leonard noted. How to get out of undesirable slash awkward conversations. It was a need by now, with how many he got into.

“Don’t worry, Alec,” he said, patting the boy on the back for whatever reason. “I’m betting I get one by the end of the week. And, Clifton, have you heard of the best places to hide one? I’ve got plenty.”

He wasn’t kidding when he said that. His mum would probably kill him by the end of the semester.

Clifton thought about the question. His first thought was the fireplace, until he remembered that howlers explode on their own and probably wouldn't need any extra encouragement to ignite the place.

"I don't know," he shrugged. "Maybe one of the abandoned toilets?" Or the library in the dead of study period, but he figured that idea was for a different conversation. "Didn't you say something about the Forbidden Forest? That sounds like a great place."

"Or you could also chuck it off the side of the quidditch stands. Might be fun to watch it explode on the way down."

Leonard's probably made more sense, but they had asked. And, come to think of it, why did Leonard know so many places? Was it normal to get lots of howlers throughout one school year? Clifton had mostly been joking about his own parents.

But the way Leonard tried comforting Alec clued Clifton into the fact that this might not just be any howler. Alec seemed genuinely worried about it. Clifton was sure some of those nasty letters had sharper tongues than others and he wondered what sort of family he came from. Especially since he seemed like such a nice kid.

In fact, neither of them seemed like the type to get into much trouble. The noisy kind, at least. He was glad they'd included him. It was a nice change of pace.

If short-lived. The sound of rumbling feet and an angry voice caused Clifton to inwardly groan.

The Beater was back. Determined to make Clifton rue the day he ever replaced his Beater's bat shaped trophy with a banana shaped one.

"Get over here, first-years," he growled. Clifton whirled around, not liking that he included the other boys. Clifton decided he'd had his fun. It was time to fix it before things went too far.

"Alright, save the beating for the big game. I'll show you where it is," he said, already approaching the older boy. "Besides, it's not their fault you don't corner well."

Which was how he ended up sprawled on the carpet with a swollen jaw.

@Leonard Oaksworth @Alec Mason Side note: I assumed this conversation was open, but I've made that mistake before. If I've interrupted anything and this is too much, I can take Clifton out of the conversation. I just liked your characters so I thought I'd give it a try.

Alec had watched the whole scene go down. He hadn't exactly been sure what to do when he saw this happen. Alec was a bit of a wimp, truth be told. And the fact that he didn't exactly go out of the way to help Clifton right away proved Alec either a coward or smart enough to know he shouldn't get involved till the guy left so he wouldn't get hurt.

"N-next time you ought to be more careful.." Alec said as he helped Clifton up. "Although y-you don't look that badly hurt" Alec offered as some kind of reassurance, but quickly got the feeling that his attempt wasn't exactly helping. Alec then also felt the need to apologize for not sticking up for Clifton. "S-sorry for not getting involved. Just got a bit shocked.. And I didn't exactly think this would happen, " Alec explained.

Although he wasn't exactly thinking at all at that moment in time. His mind was a blank slate. And besides that, if it hadn't been that, what would have happened if he'd actually stuck up for Clifton? Would he have gotten hurt too? Alec grimaced at the idea of being in the same position Clifton was in with a swollen jaw like that.

No doubt his parents would have been upset. Most likely because then they'd think Alec was too weak to defend himself. Which he was,, but that's besides the point at hand. It'd be just another thing to add to the list of why their son didn't meet their expectations. And it was not something Alec needed right now.

@Leonard Oaksworth @Clifton Troublefield I have no problem with it. I think this spices things up a bit!

Honestly, what just happened?

Leonard had no idea. Absolutely none. This was not part of handbooks and supposedly tell-all guides. Damn those authors, they were probably some washed up senile men who were the magical equivalent of those who peaked in high school. He had expected physical violence, of course. At least half of the students here were human (still a sentence he never thought he’d say more than once), and at least one quarter would be the type whose idea of casual recreation was turning people into punching bags. But he mostly expected him to be the punching bag, not somebody who was genuinely nice. Weird people, these were.

“Yeah, um, sorry about not helping you with that one. I don’t know if you noticed, but I probably wouldn’t be much physical help,” he laughed, a bit uneasy now, as anybody who witnessed an incident just short of assault would do. “Though your hair’s still fine, if that helps.”

No, that doesn’t help you idiot. For you, sure it would, because you’re selfish as hell. But Clifton? Probably not.

Shut up, self. Be nice for once.

“Need us to take you to the Hospital Wing? I mean, you’re not bleeding, but still.”

Clifton nodded in thanks at Alec for helping him up, then rubbed at his jaw. The Gryffindor was right. He really should've been more careful. But he just had to get in that last joke, didn't he. One of these days, it was going to hit him a lot harder than that.

At Leonard's comment about his hair, Clifton glanced up at his bangs with a short laugh. "It'd better be. My mom's a professional in the fashion world so I won't tell you how much she paid for it. Kind of embarrassing actually. Glad it's good for something."

"And no sweat," he smiled in response to their apologies as he straightened his robe and tried to gather some of his dignity back. "I obviously didn't see it coming either. Or put up much of a fight. Besides, it was my own stupid fault."

Honestly, he was grateful they'd just been present. There was no telling if the bully would've gone further without witnesses. Even if he didn't Leonard or Alec very well, he was impressed that they still stuck around.

He thought about Leonard's suggestion of the Hospital Wing. At his old school, he wouldn't have even bothered with the nurse. Not unless he wanted to come off as a wimp. But at Hogwarts--where they could cure things in a matter of seconds and save him the effort of having to come up with a good story--being a wimp was a lot more tempting. Just so long as the banana trophy never came up in the conversation. He'd already had enough close shaves with detention as it was.

"Thanks, that actually sounds like a good idea," he finally decided. "I think Hufflepuffs are supposed to be allergic to fights or something. And I really don't need every bleedingheart in the common room staring. Or worse. Helping."

Then, realizing he was probably shaming his whole house, quickly added. "I mean, normally its fine. They're brilliant. Family and all that. Just...not today." Just not after he was still trying to stay in the clear with the Head of House, was what he really meant.

"Maybe on the way, we could sort out what to do about your howler, Alec."

@Leonard Oaksworth @Alec Mason

With the most obvious recent events, Alec had completely forgotten that the possibility of getting a howler even existed. Being too caught up 'in his own little world' this happened often. He just only wished that it could have been that way longer. Who was he to say much about it, of course? The boy was offering to help out with his little howler issue.

It was dreadful truth be told. Having people offer to help, most likely out of pure pity. It really took a crack at Alec's already damaged pride. Even if he knew the somewhat troublemaker of a boy meant well.

And that's when Alec had a realization.

If he was going to get a howler anyway, why not make it worth his parents' time? Break a few rules, maybe even get detention. Of course he'd suffer the consequences later, and he knew that. But he was at Hogwarts for christ’s sake he could let loose for a bit. At this point there was nothing to lose. Except maybe getting expelled, but Alec was almost completely sure it wouldn't come to that.

What did getting a good grade mean to Alec, anyway? Not having his parents yell at him? Well, it'd stress him out enough to make him get a bad grade even if he tried. There was really no point. And of coirse his 'plotting face' as he called it seeped through from just his mind to his face, although he was just sure it was just him smirking. Nevertheless, this was going to be a year Alec would never forget.

Of course this brought Alec back to reality with that sort of evil grin on his face and look in his eyes. They'd all started walking, and throughout this Alec had managed to keep casual small talk. Although it being obvious, he was distracted. Alec cleared his throat before speaking, "Now I know this might seem crazy but hear me out" Alec said.

@Leonard Oaksworth @Clifton Troublefield Decided to leave this reply on a bit of a cliffhanger so I can get both reactions to this before Alec explains his poorly thought out idea.

Initially, Clifton had taken Alec to be a kind, timid sort of kid. But he guessed that would've been unusual Gryffindor. Maybe it was just the stutter. In any case, he was surprised to see a mischievous smile suddenly appear on his face.

"Now I know this might seem crazy but hear me out."

Naturally, Clifton was immediately interested. Not that he needed to land himself in any more trouble. As much as he liked a good adventure or a wild idea, he generally knew when it was time to slow down. But his usual curiosity kicked in and he wondered what Alec had in mind. Especially something as loud and obnoxious as a howler.

It went right along with the rest of his curiosity about Hogwarts. Half the time he never knew if any of his ideas would actually work, because he wasn't as familiar with the magic world. But to kids who were, he could only imagine what they could come up with. Clifton didn't know much of Alec's background, only that it would be hard to get howler from your parents in your first year unless they were magic too.

Whatever the idea was, it would be an interesting walk to the Hospital Wing.

@Leonard Oaksworth @Alec Mason

Leonard recognised the look on Alec's face immediately. The one the main villain did in cartoons, right before revealing his mastermind plan to his robotic lackeys. All the boy was missing was a pencil mustache and a cat to stroke. While Leonard did not think of himself as a mindless minion, he was intrigued greatly by the prospect of an adventure, something that might land him in detention. Back in his old school, the most adventure possible was climbing onto the roof by the rusty water pipes, and he wasn't keen to have tetanus nor fall off the bricks. Leonard was fairly sure they would break under the weight of a bird. Good thing the smell of the rust warded those off.

"Now I know this might sound crazy but hear me out."

Something crazy? That was brilliant. Just the existence of this school was crazy enough, imagining what mischief and mishaps could happen was thrilling. A trip to the Herbology room after-hours, and seeing what was in the more advanced greenhouses, perhaps? A trip to the Owlery, and sending some Howlers with the most unromantic love songs as his father did, perhaps? No matter, Leonard was going to do whatever Alec was about to say. He couldn't resist a good adventure. And Number Eight would be ticked off, finally.