Exploring the Grounds Open

Artemys had been outside already for a few hours. She had claimed a spot under a large tree by the lake, and had been sitting under it for a while. Her morning had been spent finishing her homework, and once that was finished she had taken out her sketchbook and started drawing the landscape. It was quite peaceful, really; the light breeze occasionally ruffling through the pages, everything green and pleasant, it was truly lovely.

The Ravenclaw first year had decided to wear some muggle clothing today, choosing a purple T-shirt, brown jacket, and a pair of jeggings. She had taken her Converse off, preferring to lay down on a picnic blanket that she had brought. She had come prepared to spend the day at the lake, bringing a lunch and blanket to lie down on.

Artemys sighed happily, looking off at the open waters. The silence had been nice while she was doing work, but she was starting to feel a bit lonely by herself. Hopefully, someone would come down from the castle. She had seen a few other students earlier, but they were all doing their own thing and she didn't want to interrupt. She sighed again, continuing to scribble in her notebook.

Anatole had just woken up. For some peculiar reason, he had engaged in a night of shenanigans and went to sleep relatively late. The sun broke his eyes open and he smiled, realizing he didn't need a winter coat, or, in fact, any sort of coat today. It was too warm and relaxing.

Of course, Anatole wore his cloak anyways.

With a breath of energy, he dashed down the stairs, through corridors and past doors he didn't have the time to explore, bursting out of the entrance hall doors...once again, almost tripping. Nice work, Mr. Clumsy, he remarked to himself.

Outside, he could already tell that there were other students enjoying the fine weather: playing, writing, drawing, maybe even sleeping. Just thinking about the possibility, Anatole wished he had slept out here last night. Well, if that was legal here. He wasn't looking for trouble.

The trees casted shadows like black imprints on whatever was below it, moving in time with the wind. The lake shimmered like a bowl of sequins, almost inviting enough to take a boat out and ride on the gorgeous blue masterpiece. The grass sort of danced with his cloak, both moving in the same direction at the same times.

But one thing caught Anatole's mind: where are the wizards? He was the only one wearing a heavy, bulky, black cloak.

Oh. Now he understood. People didn't have to wear them all the time.

Also, oh crap. He didn't bring anything to do out here. Well, he was almost forced to make some friends. Either that or sit alone.

Or go back into the cold, dark school.

Well, friends it was.

Cynthia headed off on a walk towards the Black Lake.  She really hoped to see the giant squid.  As she headed off down the stone steps and away from the castle, she noticed that several other students were also outside enjoying the warm, sunny weather.  There weren’t many older students around, but that was probably because they were all in Hogsmeade Village for the day.  Cynthia had been to Hogsmeade with her parents and she couldn’t wait to be able to go there herself during the schoolyear.  Unfortunately, students below third year weren’t allowed to go yet.  She was happy to wait a couple of years.  For now, there were many things around the castle to see and amuse herself.

Cynthia walked along the school grounds and spotted a boy wearing his black cloak.  She giggled quietly to herself at the thought of him wearing it.  She thought he might be cold, but couldn’t see how with the warm weather they were having.  She quickly caught up with him and decided to introduce herself.  “Hi, my name is Cynthia Evans.  Do you mind if I walk with you?  I’m heading to wards the Black Lake for a little exploring of the grounds.  You can join me if you like,” she said, pleasantly.

At first, Anatole was surprised to see a girl come up to him. She was slightly taller than he was and wore a casual yellow shirt and and a simple pair of jeans. Anatole's looked awkward juxtaposed against her look with his heavy black cloak.

Out of all the people here, somehow this girl chose to come up to him. It was flattering, somewhat. Once again, he was not looking for love here. He was eleven. That stuff, he thought, was absolutely gross.

Anatole looked into the girl's eyes, answering her question politely. "Oh, um...yes, of course! It's gorgeous weather anyways, I made the mistake of wearing this, and I don't want to trek back up to the Seventh Floor." Somehow, he flowed perfectly from subject to subject. "That reminds me!" Anatole outstretched a hand from his cloak. "Anatole Evans, Gryffindor. Pleasure's mine!"

Honestly, Anatole had no idea what the Black Lake held. It could be one of those lakes where students would float out upon, such as the ones where Muggles used to go. His parents never had a prestigious lake house, but does that mean that Hogwarts would count as a lake house?

Or maybe it was one of those lakes with an eerie backstory behind it. One elaborate tale no one could fathom except its creator.

Either way, it sounded pretty freaking cool.

"As for the lake, I would be more than happy to be your companion."

Sarafina was walking around the school grounds, needing some fresh air. She was nearing a lake. She turned a corner and accidentally ran into someone.
“Oh! I’m so sorry,” she hurriedly said, embarrassed and socially awkward. She thought she recognized the girl from earlier. She was a Hufflepuff too. She tried to change the subject. “Umm, Cynthia, right? I think I saw you earlier at the Hufflepuff table...” she trailed off, not knowing what to say. She hated talking to people. She felt her face turn red and looked down, thinking how stupid the other girl must think she is. A boy turned the corner following the girl. That didn’t help with the social anxiety at all. She thought he was probably a Gryffindor, but was to shy to ask. She had socially embarrassed herself enough for one day. Maybe this was good though. Maybe she’d make friends, she though. That would be better than just running off and having them think of her as some random stranger right? She decided to introduce herself.
“I-I’m Sarafina,” she hurriedly said, “but my friends call me Fina for short.” My friends that I don’t have anymore, she thought. “I’m also in Hufflepuff.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Anatole,” she said with a big smile.  She loved making new friends everywhere she went.  It was nice to have friends at school, even if they were in different Houses.

“Yeah, I don’t think you need to wear such a heavy cloak in this weather.  The weather can be unpredictable at times.  I remember once when I spent a day at the park near my house.  It was a day just like this.  Sunny and warm when all of a sudden the sky got real dark, the wind picked up and it started to get cold.  I started to make my way back home and got caught in a tremendous downpour of rain,” Cynthia told him, giggling slightly at the thought.

Cynthia and her new friend made their way across the grounds nearing the Black Lake when suddenly someone bumped into Cynthia.  It was another young girl about Cynthia’s age.  The other girl apologized profusely and seemed genuinely sorry for the incident.  “No harm done, I’m sure,” Cynthia replied.  She looked up at the girl and recognized her from the Hufflepuff common room.  She introduced herself as Sarafina and said that she was also in Hufflepuff.

“Hello, Sarafina.  It’s very nice to meet you.  I’ve seen you around the common room and such.  My friend Anatole and I were just walking around the grounds.  Right now, we are heading to the Black Lake.  You’re more than welcome to join us,” Cynthia said to the other girl.

Anatole nodded at the girl. "Yourself as well. Hope for more escapades, such as this, in the future!" He smiled back at Cynthia as they kept walking.

At first, Anatole forgot the other topic they were discussing: his coat. He thought the intense sweating in the heat was almost normal by this point. Well, then why wasn't she sweating?

As a delayed reply, Anatole responded, "Oh, yeah...it was a rather stupid move, if I admit. Even back at my home before this, the weather would change quickly." He laughed to himself, looking up into her eyes. "Maybe I expected it to change quickly? I'm not sure!"

After strolling past winding paths and trees in the gorgeous sunlight, a girl accidentally bumped into Cynthia. Anatole laughed to himself, reminding him of all the times he had accidentally ran into someone, like that Ravenclaw boy in the Corridors. And accidentally entering the "Private Lounge" on a girl. And, like the occasional idiot he was, running into a room with only a door to become trapped for who knows how long.

Thankfully, the intruder introduced herself. He found that polite and nice of her, even though she seemed just a little bit shaky. Anatole waved at the new girl, introducing himself to the newcomer. "This Gryffindor welcomes you to the lake journey!"

Sarafina was nervous after she introduced herself.
“Hello Sarafina, it’s very nice to meet you. I’ve seen you around the common room and such,” she went on, inviting her to join them. The boy also welcomed her, introducing himself as a Gryffindor. She was very surprised by their answers. She didn’t know what to say back. She thought maybe she’d made a friend or two.
“I-,” she stuttered, “Okay. Thanks,” she finished awkwardly. She glanced around at the grounds, noticing how pretty everything was. She looked back at the two people in front of her. “So, we go to the lake now, I’m guessing?” She said, more of a statement than a question. The lake was called ‘Black lake’ but Sarafina had no idea why. She pushed a strand of raven hair back nervously, shifting on her feet. Social conversations had never been her best.... she fought down the shakiness, and instead looked over at the landscape once again. She saw a rhythm in the swaying grass, watching a spider scurry purposefully across it. She wished she could hide in the grass like that spider. She didn’t know how she could survive months here, much less years, surrounded by tons of cool people. Evryone probably had friends and was doing nicely in their houses, but she didn’t feel at place anywhere. She didn’t think she would ever belong with the others.

Cynthia smiled to herself as she and her friends set off towards the Black Lake.  She was really enjoying the nice sunny day they were having and wondered about what this adventure would hold for them.  “My parents told me there was a giant squid that lived in the lake, but it was a friendly one.  I hope we can see it,” Cynthia told them.  She wondered exactly what else lived in the Black Lake.  Her parents had told her about dangerous creature living down in the depths of it.  She wondered what else might be lurking in the depths of the Black Lake.  Her parents did warn her about some of the dangers of Hogwarts and the school grounds.  That’s why she never went anywhere without her wand.  She wondered what lived in the Forbidden Forest, but was told never to go in there without one of her professors.  If her parents found out she went in there, they would definitely send her a Howler.  She shuddered at the thought.  She hoped her new friends didn’t notice her shuddering.  She certainly did not want to worry them, but then again there really was not anything for them to worry about.