Helping Hands PV Gabriella Finished

@Gia Adelard

Gabriella groaned and stuffed her head in her hands. Why did History of Magic have to be so boring? Interesting, for sure, but the homework was incredibly arduous, and she had so much more to write... Her eyes scanned the page again. She told herself that it was because she needed to find more detail to get as many marks as possible - but she knew it was just yet another procrastination technique. There were so many procrastination methods she seemed to be using these days... who knows where I got them from, she said to herself. I was always so studious in primary school.

Suddenly, Gabriella heard an excited voice behind her. "I'm working on that essay too!" said the voice. Gabriella turned round to see a girl her own age standing behind her. "Oops, sorry," continued the girl. "I didn't mean to interrupt you."
"No, that's alright," said Gabriella, beaming at the girl. She was in Gryffindor, Gabriella could tell, and she was very pretty. Her hair was long, longer than Gabriella's own, and her sparkling eyes were so much more exciting than the dull grey of Gabriella's eyes, too. They seemed to tell a story, Gabriella thought to herself, counting herself lucky she hadn't said that out loud. That would have sounded really weird, Gabriella laughed, internally.

She had always held some unexplainable fascination with eyes, ever since she was young. She clearly remembered the day when her mum had brought home her adopted younger brother, Jacob, and the first thing she had noticed about him were his huge, deep, beautiful eyes. He had been such a cute baby... and he was still cute now, however much Gabriella tried to regard him as annoying. She turned her attention back to the girl.

"It's a really hard essay," said Gabriella. "My name's Gabriella, by the way. You can call me Gabby if you want. What's your name?"

Word count: 321

@Gabriella Haworth

24 January, 2021

Luckily for Gia, the other girl didn't seem to be very upset at being interrupted. Actually, she didn't seem upset at all - if anything, she was acting very warm and happy towards the eleven year old. "Oh." the Gryffindor said, her surprise evident in the tone of her voice. By that time, the other girl - a Ravenclaw, it seemed, from the colors on her robes - was looking at her in a curious manner. "Um. . ." the first year began, and then shook her head when the other student stopped whatever she had been doing. "Never mind."

The Ravenclaw introduced herself, saying that her name was Gabriella. Another g name, the brunette thought to herself. She hadn't met anyone else with a name that started with g. . . they seemed to be pretty uncommon here at Hogwarts. Back in Manchester, however, Gia had known plenty of others with names beginning with the same letter as hers, and multiple Gabriellas as well. The Gryffindor didn't say any of this out loud though, and instead gave the other girl a bright smile. "Gabby, nice to meet you," she said. "I'm Gia. And yes, I must agree, the essay is so hard!" The eleven year old was glad that someone else agreed with her on that and it wasn't just her who was having a bit of trouble working on it.

"I just can't seem to figure out how to phrase everything without seeming like I'm quoting directly from the books," Gia told the other first year with a small frown on her face. "What part are you struggling with?" she then asked, curious. Suddenly, an idea hit her. "Hey, do you want to work together? Like, do you want to help each other out with the essay?" The first year smiled brightly at the other girl, hoping she'd agree. Things were always much easier when you were working with another person. Or at least that's how she felt.

As she waited for Gabriella to respond, Gia glanced back over at the small table where she had been working a little while earlier. She hadn't been able to get very much of the written part of the assignment done yet, since her mind had felt as if it were completely empty of anything good enough to be written down on paper once she finished reading all the books she'd piled onto the desk. Talking to others had always cheered her up, though, and working with others - well, people that she liked, of course - was even better.

Turning back to Gabby, the eleven year old smiled when she received an answer.

434 words
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6
Evasive Maneuvers

Gabriella listened as the girl told her her name. Gia, Gabriella said to herself. Giiiiiiaaaaaa. She liked the way it sounded on her tongue, even if she wasn't saying it out loud. Gabriella had never met a Gia before, but she decided she wanted to meet a lot more of them - it was a much nicer name than a lot of common names, she thought.

"Do you want to help each other out with the essay?" Gia suddenly asked, beaming brightly at Gabriella. Gabriella couldn't help but grin back - the girl's smile was entrancing.
"Sure!" exclaimed Gabriella. "We would get it done a lot quicker then. Hang on - I'll come and sit with you."

She got up and closed her textbook, making sure to fold the paper on the right page. She rolled up her parchment. She screwed tight her bottles of ink and unbuckled her brown school satchel. Gabriella suddenly became aware that she was taking a very long time over this, and that Gia was likely to be watching her intently, waiting for her to finally finish.

No, come on, Gabby, she said to herself. You need to stop deciding other people's expectations for them.

She glanced back and grinned hopefully at Gia, before swinging her satchel over her shoulders and making her way over to the table where Gia had been sitting. Another table sat next to it, nobody sitting there, so Gabriella pulled over the chair and sat down, taking out her supplies again. Ink. Parchment. Textbook.

Gabriella leant over to see what the new girl's essay was like so far, but it appeared she hadn't written anything yet. Of course, Gabriella didn't blame her - she had seen Gia when she had come in, and she had only been in the room for twenty minutes, the same amount of time it took to read the long passage from the textbook that they essentially had to rewrite in their own words for History of Magic.

"Right," said Gabriella, suddenly deciding that, as the person who had written the most, she should be the one to take charge of the situation. "This is what I've got so far. You can see I've only really addressed the first part..." she indicated a large chunk of the textbook passage - "but it took me a while. You can take some of my ideas if you want."

Word count: 401

@Gabriella Haworth

24 January, 2021

There wasn't even a slight pause before Gabriella answered, saying that the two of them would get their work done much faster if they did so. Gia's face brightened even more. "Great!" the first year said happily. Then, when Gabby told her that she'd come to where Gia had been sitting a bit earlier, she nodded. "Alright." With that, the girl hurried back to her table and waited for the Ravenclaw to join her.

It took a few minutes, but Gia didn't mind all that much. When she sat down, the Gryffindor noticed that she hadn't done anything in preparation to write except for take out a piece of parchment and a quill. The brunette hadn't even gotten any ink out! So, as Gabriella quickly and carefully placed her stuff back into her bag, Gia was busy taking her things out. By the time she finished with that, the other first year was sitting on the chair next to the table beside her. "You ready?" Gia asked.

Seeing that Gabby was taking a look at her blank piece of parchment, the eleven year old blushed. "Sorry," she quickly apologized, although it wasn't clear what exactly she was doing it for until she continued. "I didn't get anything written down yet. . ." She knew for a fact that the Ravenclaw had already written several sentences, and felt a little bit like she was lagging behind. Which she was, of course. But only by a little bit.

The other girl didn't seem to mind at all though, something that Gia was quite grateful for. She knew that Ravenclaws were known for their creativity and wit, but she also knew that some of them could be a bit arrogant about it. She was almost certain that Gabriella wasn't one of those people, for she would most likely have said something to give that away by now. This assumption was proven by what Gabby said next: offering to let Gia use some of her ideas if she wanted to. No arrogant person would do that, so the Gryffindor figured she was in the clear.

"Oh, no, that's alright," the first year said, shaking her head. "I have a few ideas of my own, but. . ." She shrugged helplessly. "It's like, all of my thoughts sound so good up here" - Gia pointed to her head - "but when I try saying them aloud or imagine writing them, they sound really odd. Not at all how I want them to be." She sighed, looking over at the Ravenclaw to see what she thought.

"Would you mind if I read what you have, just to see if that sparks anything for me?" Gia asked eventually. She had scanned the other girl's essay and read enough to figure out that they were doing the same one earlier, but she hadn't been able to actually read or fully understand what had been written during that brief amount of time.

487 words
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6
Evasive Maneuvers

Gabriella grinned broadly. She didn't want to seem like a know-it-all - she knew Ravenclaws sometimes came across that way - but after all, Gia had just asked to read her work, it wasn't like Gabriella was forcing her to read it. "Sure," she said, handing her parchment over to the Gryffindor. "It's not perfect... but there are ideas, I guess."

She didn't know whether to be proud of her essay or not. Generally she did alright on History of Magic, but she didn't want Gia to think that she thought she was really good at essays... does that make sense? Gabriella asked herself, in her head. Oh well. I'm helping her. And if she wants to help me with my essay-writing technique... excellent.

Though she didn't dare speak it out loud, Gabriella felt that she and Gia really clicked with each other. They both seemed quite similar - both sociable (although there was no way Gabriella would have said that when she first joined Hogwarts) and both were nice, too.

You can't take that for granted, Gabriella thought to herself as Gia read the essay she had written so far, that someone sociable will be nice. Just look at those kids from my old school. They were sociable... just not with me. Reliving her worst memories of being bullied endlessly in primary school wasn't really something Gabriella felt like doing right at that moment - the flashbacks just seemed to unexpectedly creep up on her at random times. Well, she thought, they wouldn't be flashbacks if you had planned them. Imagine planning to relive bad memories? You must be really weird to do that.

Gabriella grinned sheepishly as she realised she had been ranting in her head again. Not that anyone knew - Gia was reading Gabriella's paragraph, and everyone else around the room was engrossed in their own work - but Gabriella knew, and that irritated her.

@Gia Adelard

Word count: 320

@Gabriella Haworth

24 January, 2021

Gia smiled back. "Thanks," she said when Gabby passed her the piece of parchment on which she had begun writing her essay. "It looks great, from what I've seen of it so far. Certainly much better than mine," she added with a laugh, gesturing at her own piece of parchment, which was completely blank. There was only about a paragraph or so, but Gia wasn't the fastest reader. Just from looking at it, she could tell that it was going to take her a bit to read through. It didn't bother her too much, luckily, but she knew that it might bug the Ravenclaw beside her so she hurried to dive in.

All of the other girl's sentences seemed to fit together perfectly, and Gia was able to get their meaning right away as well. The whole thing was only one paragraph, as they'd mentioned earlier, but it already showed Gabriella's skill for writing things like this. Making her writing clear and precise. . . that was something Gia herself was always trying to do when writing, but for her it simply just didn't seem to work. Note to self: the eleven year old thought silently, ask Gabby how she does that later. After thinking this, the girl went back to reading.

Once or twice, the Ravenclaw beside her moved, drawing the first year's attention. During one of these times, Gia glanced over to see Gabby deep in thought. Curious about what she was thinking, Gia stared at her for a few moments without actually realizing that she was staring. Finally, when she did notice, she hurried to turn back to the essay in front of her and keep reading. A few minutes after that, her gaze swept over the last sentence and. . . she was done.

Turning back to the other student beside her, Gia waited for Gabby to realize that she had finished. When it seemed like it might take a while, the Gryffindor finally spoke up instead. "Okay," she told the Ravenclaw, "I finished." Then, once she had the other girl's attention, the eleven year old asked a few questions, but started with a compliment. "Your essay is amazing so far!" the girl exclaimed with a bright smile. "I can never make my writing sound so. . . good, I guess. How do you do it?" She waited for a reply.

After a few moments, the first year could wait any longer. She knew that the other girl was probably thinking of an answer, but. . . patience had never really been a strong trait of hers. "One more question, sorry," Gia started. "Where did you get this information from? I couldn't find it anywhere in the textbook!" the brunette pointed to a line in Gabby's essay.

453 words
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6
Evasive Maneuvers

Gabriella smiled as Gia complimented her essay - it meant a lot to her, as she often struggled to determine her own level of skill. "How do you do it?" Gia asked. Gabriella tried to come up with a reply that made her sound intelligent, but that was impossible. How could she say something intelligent when there was nothing intelligent to say? And just saying I don't know probably wasn't the response Gia was looking for. Maybe, if she stayed silent for long enough, Gia might ask another question, and Gabriella could just push the first question aside and answer the second, instead.

Thankfully, a second question did come, one which Gabriella could answer. "Where did you get the information from? I can't find it anywhere in the textbook!"
"Oh," replied Gabriella. "I guess I just extrapolated the information... you know... incorporated some of my own knowledge from the lesson... expanded on what it said to draw my own conclusions..." Gabriella's speech died out. Extrapolated? Incorporated? Expanded? she asked herself. Is this really the kind of language you use to talk to a friend? No wonder nobody liked you in primary school.

Gabriella wasn't sure what to say next. She wanted to help Gia, but she didn't want to end up writing the essay for her, and she needed the Gryffindor to write something down so Gabriella could help her improve it. Plus, there was her own essay she needed to carry on with. "How about you write an introduction first, and then you can start developing some of the main points you want to make?" Gabriella suggested. "It will be much easier to write something once you've started, trust me."

Gabriella's heart was pumping - this was not the kind of social setting she was used to and she was beginning to feel impostor syndrome creeping up on her. Still, she was determined to be of help to Gia, even if she didn't know exactly what she was doing. Fake it till you make it, she said to herself. She had always thought of that as being terrible advice, but now she saw it in a new light. Maybe the idea wasn't so bad after all...

@Gia Adelard

Word count: 367

@Gabriella Haworth

24 January, 2021

The Gryffindor noticed that Gabby didn't really answer her first question but didn't say anything about it. She probably just didn't have an answer for it, Gia assumed. It wasn't all that important anyway, since the Ravenclaw answered her second question almost immediately after she asked it. "Oh." Gia said, unsure of what the word "extrapolated" meant. "Uh, what does - " Right then, however, Gabby explained. It was basically, Gia realized, just a mix of those two things: incorporating and expanding on information.

"Okay," Gia said hesitantly once Gabriella had finished. She noticed that the other first year wasn't saying anything, so the eleven year old gave her another smile, this one meant to encourage the Ravenclaw. "You're so smart," the eleven year old said with a laugh. "I'd never even heard of that word before!" You really do learn something new everyday, Gia thought to herself. It's just not always a new word you learn. She had a feeling that she was going to learn a few tips and tricks from the girl as well, and that was good. If she wanted to get any better at writing essays, she should probably keep listening though. At this thought, the Gryffindor turned back to face Gabby.

The Ravenclaw seemed to be thinking once more, and Gia stayed quiet. When the other girl spoke up again, asked if she could start working on her essay now, also telling her that it would be easier once she started. The first year nodded. "Sounds good! And sorry 'bout that," she apologized, realizing only now that Gabriella also had an essay tow work on. "I completely forgot that you were working on it too - it was selfish of me, I know." she bit her lip and waited a couple of seconds before picking up her quill and beginning to write. Or, more rather, beginning to try and write.

Searching her mind for an idea of what to start with, it took Gia multiple minutes before she actually put the quill to the paper and scratched out a single line. When that was finished, however, the eleven year old found that what Gabby had said earlier really was true. As soon as the tip of her pen touched the parchment, more and more words filled her mind. Ten minutes later, the young Gryffindor had written about as much as the girl beside her had. Glancing over, Gia waited until the Ravenclaw finished the sentence she was writing and then coughed to get her attention. "How's this so far?" the first year asked hopefully.

427 words
Stamina 8 ⋆ Evasion 6 ⋆ Strength 3 ⋆ Wisdom 7 ⋆ Arcane Power 5 ⋆ Accuracy 6
Evasive Maneuvers

Gabriella smiled weakly as Gia told her she was really smart. Now she was just nervous about moving their relationship out of this room - as soon as they were placed in any other setting, Gabriella knew her true nature would bleed through, and it wouldn't be a good impression.

Nonetheless, Gia's first impression of her must have been good, and Gabriella didn't want to waste this opportunity to make a better impression. Of course, she wanted to be a loyal and trustworthy friend, but she felt that would be hard to achieve if Gia didn't think highly of her already. She flinched a little inside, however, when the Gryffindor told her she had never heard the word 'extrapolate' before. It sounded like she was mocking Gabriella for knowing the word, and, although Gabriella was sure that wasn't the case, she was still a bit wary.

"Don't worry, it wasn't selfish," Gabriella reassured Gia. She dipped her quill in her ink and attempted to continue writing, but now she knew Gia's expectations of her were higher, she was beginning to struggle. Come on, Gabby, don't be like that, she told herself. Just - pretend Gia isn't there, and write like you were before.

After what must have been around ten minutes, a slight cough from Gia prompted Gabriella to stop writing. She wondered if the cough had been intentional - either way, she didn't mind, but it would have been interesting to know. How's this so far? Gia asked beside her. Gabriella beamed - Gia had written a decent amount, and Gabriella felt that her mentoring had actually helped quite a lot. Her social skills were definitely improving - she laughed internally as she compared how she was now to how she had been when she first joined. Now, she was able to let her personality run wild and free, and she was loving it.

She took the essay off Gia and scanned it through. The essay was good on the most part - much better than Gabriella had been expecting, if she was brutally honest with herself, as from what Gia had said, Gabriella imagined her not to be particularly skilled at writing. She was, however - there was just one tiny thing...

"It's good," said Gabriella. "You might just want to rephrase this one sentence, though." She pointed at a sentence in the essay. "It doesn't really make sense, that's all. Apart from that, it's excellent!"

@Gia Adelard