Help a first year in need!
Jeremy Slater was NOT a liar.
Jeremy HATED liars. He didn’t even understand why so many other kids thought lying was just some fun thing to do. Sure, he’d lied sometimes. What kid hadn’t lied ever? But usually he only lied if there was a good reason (like to stop from getting in trouble), and even then he didn’t like doing it. He didn’t lie to people just for fun.
Which was why it was beyond unfair that Henry had basically called him a liar.
Okay, fine, he hadn’t called him that. What he had said was ‘A bit rude to lie about it’ (And Jeremy knew this exactly, because it kept creeping into his thoughts at night and when he avoided Henry’s eyes at breakfast). But Jeremy had only known Henry for a few days, and he could already tell that Henry was nice. And for nice people, saying ‘a bit rude to lie about it’ was kinda like saying ‘you’re a flipping liar’.
And the thing was, he hadn’t even really lied! All this was because Henry had come into the cabin, assumed that Jeremy was a first-year, and that he needed help. Jeremy only POINTED OUT that he might not be a first-year, and then had not corrected him when HE said JEREMY wasn’t a first-year. That barely counted as lying, if it even did. He was certain anybody would agree with him, if they would just listen to HIS side of the story. But probably Henry wasn’t that interested in listening to anything HE said at all. To Henry, he was just some liar or something.
Well, he didn’t really care if Henry thought he was a liar. Since HE knew that it wasn’t true.
But he did care a little about the way Henry had looked when he had said he was sorry.
He didn’t know WHY he cared. It wasn’t like it mattered. He hadn’t done anything that bad. He hadn’t meant for Henry to say sorry and he certainly hadn't meant for Henry to get all embarrassed about it. Henry had embarrassed HIM first. HE was the one who was right. Didn’t that count for anything?
Still, the look on Henry’s face was hard to shake off for some reason.
Jeremy hadn’t INTENDED to approach Henry today. But when he came out of his room and saw Henry sitting on the couch, reading a book, alone, he paused. He felt the strong pull to look away again. He couldn’t have that. Instead, he broke the silence.
“Hey…” Jeremy said, sounding more cautious than he meant to. He gave what he hoped was a casual wave (but probably was not). Unsure of himself, he approached him.
This had all started because Henry had wanted to help him and Jo, since they were first-years. Jeremy hadn’t wanted to be treated like a little kid. But if he’d made Henry sad just because of that, then maybe there was still a way he could make it better.
“Um…I know you maybe don’t wanna talk to me. But….it’s just. I wanted to ask you something. Uh, about school…” Jeremy said. He didn’t have to fake feeling nervous. Just talking to Henry made him feel uncomfortable. He really wanted THAT feeling to go away.
”The thing is I’m gonna be starting at Hogwarts this year and um…I don’t really know where everything is. My sister told me some things about it but…we don’t really get along so…” he shrugged, kicking at nothing on the rug. "Since you've already been there... I was wondering maybe… could you make me a map or something? I don’t wanna get lost. And can you show me where the library is? That’s the most important part.” he pointed out. He took a few steps closer, forcing himself to meet Henry's eyes, and trying his best to look hopeful.
Surely THAT would make Henry stop hating him, right?
@Henry Holbrook
Jeremy HATED liars. He didn’t even understand why so many other kids thought lying was just some fun thing to do. Sure, he’d lied sometimes. What kid hadn’t lied ever? But usually he only lied if there was a good reason (like to stop from getting in trouble), and even then he didn’t like doing it. He didn’t lie to people just for fun.
Which was why it was beyond unfair that Henry had basically called him a liar.
Okay, fine, he hadn’t called him that. What he had said was ‘A bit rude to lie about it’ (And Jeremy knew this exactly, because it kept creeping into his thoughts at night and when he avoided Henry’s eyes at breakfast). But Jeremy had only known Henry for a few days, and he could already tell that Henry was nice. And for nice people, saying ‘a bit rude to lie about it’ was kinda like saying ‘you’re a flipping liar’.
And the thing was, he hadn’t even really lied! All this was because Henry had come into the cabin, assumed that Jeremy was a first-year, and that he needed help. Jeremy only POINTED OUT that he might not be a first-year, and then had not corrected him when HE said JEREMY wasn’t a first-year. That barely counted as lying, if it even did. He was certain anybody would agree with him, if they would just listen to HIS side of the story. But probably Henry wasn’t that interested in listening to anything HE said at all. To Henry, he was just some liar or something.
Well, he didn’t really care if Henry thought he was a liar. Since HE knew that it wasn’t true.
But he did care a little about the way Henry had looked when he had said he was sorry.
He didn’t know WHY he cared. It wasn’t like it mattered. He hadn’t done anything that bad. He hadn’t meant for Henry to say sorry and he certainly hadn't meant for Henry to get all embarrassed about it. Henry had embarrassed HIM first. HE was the one who was right. Didn’t that count for anything?
Still, the look on Henry’s face was hard to shake off for some reason.
Jeremy hadn’t INTENDED to approach Henry today. But when he came out of his room and saw Henry sitting on the couch, reading a book, alone, he paused. He felt the strong pull to look away again. He couldn’t have that. Instead, he broke the silence.
“Hey…” Jeremy said, sounding more cautious than he meant to. He gave what he hoped was a casual wave (but probably was not). Unsure of himself, he approached him.
This had all started because Henry had wanted to help him and Jo, since they were first-years. Jeremy hadn’t wanted to be treated like a little kid. But if he’d made Henry sad just because of that, then maybe there was still a way he could make it better.
“Um…I know you maybe don’t wanna talk to me. But….it’s just. I wanted to ask you something. Uh, about school…” Jeremy said. He didn’t have to fake feeling nervous. Just talking to Henry made him feel uncomfortable. He really wanted THAT feeling to go away.
”The thing is I’m gonna be starting at Hogwarts this year and um…I don’t really know where everything is. My sister told me some things about it but…we don’t really get along so…” he shrugged, kicking at nothing on the rug. "Since you've already been there... I was wondering maybe… could you make me a map or something? I don’t wanna get lost. And can you show me where the library is? That’s the most important part.” he pointed out. He took a few steps closer, forcing himself to meet Henry's eyes, and trying his best to look hopeful.
Surely THAT would make Henry stop hating him, right?
@Henry Holbrook
Help a first year in need!
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| Location: C.O.M.B. Cabin | Date: August, 2026 | Word Count: 549 | Speech #1587A4 | Thoughts #1587A4 |
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────Even while in the midst of summer, truly sweltering days were few and far between in the Highlands of Scotland. This day, decidedly, was not one of them, which suited the second year Hufflepuff of the group just fine. The sky was a mosaic of gray and the air was in that Goldilocks zone where he neither too hot nor too cold, just comfortably warm, cozy, like being snuggled up near a fire while wrapped in your favorite blanket.
His perch of choice today happened to be one of the cabin's couches, and he'd tucked into the corner and maneuvered cushions and pillows until he'd assembled something of a nest where he could enjoy his book in peace and comfort. And so, there he sat, his nose tucked into one of the 6 volumes of Heartstopper his older sister gotten him for his birthday a few weeks prior - and judging by how fast he was flying through them, it was a good pick. Judging by the color of his ears, you could be forgiven for thinking he'd gotten a sunburn, but in reality the protagonists had just been walked in on while snogging... again... and the secondhand embarrassment was palpable.
One good thing about being in a cabin so overflowing with books, he'd told himself, is that everyone here would know how rude it is to interrupt someone who was thoroughly engrossed in their book. Surely, an avid reader would share his sentiment that it was a faux pas as dire as letting out a spectacularly obnoxious fart in the middle of a funeral.
“Hey…”
Henry's jaw tightened and his left eye twitched. His tongue moved to tease at the loose canine tooth wiggling in its spot in the bottom righthand side of his mouth, an attempt to distract himself from the initial jab of irritation. He knew that voice. It was in fact, one of his fellow bookworms, albeit a forked-tongue bookworm. You would think the other boy would obviously know the rules. He tried to ignore him, maybe he was talking to someone else he hadn't realized was in the roo-
“Um…I know you maybe don’t wanna talk to me. But….it’s just. I wanted to ask you something. Uh, about school…”
No luck, then, the little twirp was definitely talking to him and somehow had no notion of the sanctity of Book TimeTM. With a put-upon sigh, he retrieved his bookmark from where it was resting on the arm of the couch and gave the younger boy a look that indicated he'd have preferred to be eviscerated by a hag than deal with someone who'd decided lies were the best possible impression.
"I don't know how things work for well-off wizarding families like yours, but for future reference: in the nonmagical world, at least, interrupting someone while they're taking in the last quarter of a book they're clearly enjoying is generally discouraged."
Henry squinted as he heard the other boy's request, "Why ask me? I'm sure either of the Lamonts could answer you better than I could. One of them's even a prefect." Despite his misgivings, he reached over for the bag laying on the floor beside him and pulled out Hogwarts, A History. "I take it you haven't opened your copy? It's full of maps."─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
| Interaction: @Jeremy Slater |
| OOC Notes: None |
Help a first year in need!
Jeremy didn’t know EXACTLY how he thought this was gonna go, but part of him had thought that Henry would say something like ‘oh you want me to help you? sure, of course’, and then he’d smile, and draw a map, and all would be forgiven and everything would be just fine.
This wasn’t that.
Jeremy perhaps should have taken the hint from the sigh that Henry gave as he closed his book (Heartstopper, the words said on the front. Perhaps it was about a basilisk). Or maybe from the look he gave Jeremy like he couldn’t believe he had dared to breathe his air. But still Jeremy had foolishly continued on….
And instead of the smile, and the maps, Jeremy instead got a scolding. Jeremy stared. He had kinda hoped that maybe he was just imagining it. His parents always said things like just because he thought somebody hated him, it didn’t mean it was true. Oh yeah? Well then explain THIS one. Another point in the favor of Jeremy usually knew what he was talking about. He didn’t get why his parents always doubted him. Henry hated him.
But it wasn’t fair that Henry hated him! Sure @Kahira Valerian hated him, but that was different, because Kahira was evil and he hated Kahira too. Henry was supposed to be nice, so why didn’t HE like Jeremy? What kind of nice person didn't know how to forgive someone?
"I take it you haven't opened your copy? It's full of maps."
“What? Of course I did!” Jeremy insisted, unable to help himself. Henry thought he didn’t read Hogwarts: A History? Who did he think he was? Jeremy had read it just about as early as when he could read chapter books, which he bet was a LOT earlier than when HENRY could. He couldn’t hold back the scowl.
“Well I asked you cause I THOUGHT you were nicer, but guess I was wrong about THAT,” Jeremy muttered darkly. He crossed his arms. Did Henry think it was easy for him to do this? It wasn’t like he wanted to let Henry help him, so why was Henry making it so difficult? “I read Hogwarts: a History cover to cover 100 times. But maybe the school changed since somebody wrote it like a million years ago in 1984. Maybe Hogwarts changed? If the staircases change, who's to say that the hallways don’t change too? I thought you would know about it, since you’re there NOW. I thought you’d WANNA help,” he said. But clearly he was wrong.
Jeremy stopped for a moment. This wasn’t going well at all. The mission was to make Henry NOT hate him. He took a deep breath, and tried to simmer the impulse to argue with Henry (though it might have been too late for that). But what happened if he decided he hated Henry?
“Look, I know about not interrupting people when they’re reading, it’s just…” he trailed off, not knowing how to finish the sentence. What was he supposed to tell him? That it wasn’t easy for him to talk to Henry and he’d been so busy thinking about that and finally seeing him by himself that he’d forgotten to think about Henry reading? No way could he say that. Instead, he just moved past it without answering. “A-And my family isn’t that well-off, it’s not like we’re the Lamonts or anything,” who, he gathered, were much richer than the Slaters were, considering that they handed out their own autographs. But none of this was helping
“Look, I was gonna let you help me, can’t you just…help me?” the boy asked desperately, thrusting out his hands in a ‘cmon’ gesture.
How was he supposed to make Henry feel better if Henry wouldn’t let him?
This wasn’t that.
Jeremy perhaps should have taken the hint from the sigh that Henry gave as he closed his book (Heartstopper, the words said on the front. Perhaps it was about a basilisk). Or maybe from the look he gave Jeremy like he couldn’t believe he had dared to breathe his air. But still Jeremy had foolishly continued on….
And instead of the smile, and the maps, Jeremy instead got a scolding. Jeremy stared. He had kinda hoped that maybe he was just imagining it. His parents always said things like just because he thought somebody hated him, it didn’t mean it was true. Oh yeah? Well then explain THIS one. Another point in the favor of Jeremy usually knew what he was talking about. He didn’t get why his parents always doubted him. Henry hated him.
But it wasn’t fair that Henry hated him! Sure @Kahira Valerian hated him, but that was different, because Kahira was evil and he hated Kahira too. Henry was supposed to be nice, so why didn’t HE like Jeremy? What kind of nice person didn't know how to forgive someone?
"I take it you haven't opened your copy? It's full of maps."
“What? Of course I did!” Jeremy insisted, unable to help himself. Henry thought he didn’t read Hogwarts: A History? Who did he think he was? Jeremy had read it just about as early as when he could read chapter books, which he bet was a LOT earlier than when HENRY could. He couldn’t hold back the scowl.
“Well I asked you cause I THOUGHT you were nicer, but guess I was wrong about THAT,” Jeremy muttered darkly. He crossed his arms. Did Henry think it was easy for him to do this? It wasn’t like he wanted to let Henry help him, so why was Henry making it so difficult? “I read Hogwarts: a History cover to cover 100 times. But maybe the school changed since somebody wrote it like a million years ago in 1984. Maybe Hogwarts changed? If the staircases change, who's to say that the hallways don’t change too? I thought you would know about it, since you’re there NOW. I thought you’d WANNA help,” he said. But clearly he was wrong.
Jeremy stopped for a moment. This wasn’t going well at all. The mission was to make Henry NOT hate him. He took a deep breath, and tried to simmer the impulse to argue with Henry (though it might have been too late for that). But what happened if he decided he hated Henry?
“Look, I know about not interrupting people when they’re reading, it’s just…” he trailed off, not knowing how to finish the sentence. What was he supposed to tell him? That it wasn’t easy for him to talk to Henry and he’d been so busy thinking about that and finally seeing him by himself that he’d forgotten to think about Henry reading? No way could he say that. Instead, he just moved past it without answering. “A-And my family isn’t that well-off, it’s not like we’re the Lamonts or anything,” who, he gathered, were much richer than the Slaters were, considering that they handed out their own autographs. But none of this was helping
“Look, I was gonna let you help me, can’t you just…help me?” the boy asked desperately, thrusting out his hands in a ‘cmon’ gesture.
How was he supposed to make Henry feel better if Henry wouldn’t let him?
Help a first year in need!
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| Location: C.O.M.B. Cabin | Date: August, 2026 | Word Count: 425 | Speech #1587A4 | Thoughts #1587A4 |
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────Henry's lips pressed into a thin, pale line as soon as Jeremy started responding. The other boy's tone was teaming up with the scowl and developing into a spectacularly off-putting affront. He was preparing to snap back, when the interrupter managed to find his weak spot and claiming he wasn't a nice person. His eyebrows lowered, casting a cloudy pallor over his blue eyes as the irritated mouth trembled into a frown. He felt the compulsion to apologize almost immediately, to try and see if he could salvage the situation, but Jeremy clearly had more to get off his chest than just that initial barb.
He felt his throat tighten when he heard why Jeremy, supposedly, genuinely wanted his help. Still, the younger tween had been a Fibbing McFibberface before this, so he wasn't sure if he could trust that what he was hearing now was the real reason Jeremy was asking him for help.
His shoulders slumped after hearing the other boy out - to be brutally honest, he'd found himself only half listening, trying to think of a way this line of questioning could be twisted into some form of manipulation. He'd failed to see any way it could be, so either Jeremy was way better at scheming than he was himself (something that wasn't wildly out of the possibility), or he genuinely wanted help for innocent reasons. With a sigh, he wiped the heel of his hand against his eyes, muttering something about allergies. Why was actually making friends so hard sometimes. For that matter, why were his parents pushing him to be more social all the time when they knew how hard he struggled. Now, the boy who'd snapped at him for daring to stand up for him was... asking him for help with something? People were so confusing and he couldn't help feeling overwhelmed.
Eventually, after an awkward silence filled with a few more instances of him wiping nonexistent allergens from his eyes, he inhaled raggedly through his nose then raised his eyes to look back at Jeremy as he let out an equally rough sounding breath through his mouth. "Yeah." he sighed and opened the book, "I can help... if you really want the help. The maps in here aren't a million miles off from how things actually are, but yeah, I guess an actual person's perspective can be useful." He paused for a moment, then gave a shy, tentative smile, "I actually... found a room that's not in the book last year, if that's something you're interested in."─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
| Interaction: @Jeremy Slater |
| OOC Notes: None |
Help a first year in need!
Jeremy stared at the floor uncomfortably, not wanting to look at Henry 'cause even though the older boy said he had allergies, Jeremy knew what crying looked like when he saw it. He didn't really know what to do when other kids started crying, and so he just looked at the ground instead, since nobody really wanted to be looked at when they were crying, and nobody really wanted to look at somebody when they were crying.
Basically his trying to make Henry feel better was going about as horribly as it could ever go - He thought for a moment if he should do something to help, but that was kinda what had got them in this mess in the first place. Why could he not stop making people sad?
To his surprise, however, after a very long and very awkward silence Henry offered his help after all.
That had really worked...?
Jeremy tried to hide his surprise and looked up. If he made Henry cry did it still count as making things better? He would just have to take it.
"Um, yeah, well... I mean, if ya know stuff that's different...I do really wanna know," Jeremy said honestly. He hadn't known if Henry really WOULD have helpful information, of course, but as long as he tried, maybe it would make things right. It turned out though that Henry had more interesting information than Jeremy had even thought.
"Really, a room that isn't in the book...?" Jeremy asked, perking up, as Henry surpassed his expectations. "What kinda room?" he asked, leaning forward with curiosity and forgetting that it'd been hard to meet Henry's eyes just a few moments before. The light of genuine interest was shining in Jeremy's eyes now, and Henry might see that he had the younger boy's full attention.
Basically his trying to make Henry feel better was going about as horribly as it could ever go - He thought for a moment if he should do something to help, but that was kinda what had got them in this mess in the first place. Why could he not stop making people sad?
To his surprise, however, after a very long and very awkward silence Henry offered his help after all.
That had really worked...?
Jeremy tried to hide his surprise and looked up. If he made Henry cry did it still count as making things better? He would just have to take it.
"Um, yeah, well... I mean, if ya know stuff that's different...I do really wanna know," Jeremy said honestly. He hadn't known if Henry really WOULD have helpful information, of course, but as long as he tried, maybe it would make things right. It turned out though that Henry had more interesting information than Jeremy had even thought.
"Really, a room that isn't in the book...?" Jeremy asked, perking up, as Henry surpassed his expectations. "What kinda room?" he asked, leaning forward with curiosity and forgetting that it'd been hard to meet Henry's eyes just a few moments before. The light of genuine interest was shining in Jeremy's eyes now, and Henry might see that he had the younger boy's full attention.