Let me forget, just for a day PV Lavinia Cloven Finished

@Haley Rose

If you were to ask the school population what they knew about Lavinia Cloven, you probably wouldn’t find much more then the fact that she plays quidditch. She was a third year but hadn’t been making friends or doing much of anything so far. It was as if she was antisocial but, she wouldn’t describe herself that way, she would describe herself as a very friendly person who just doesn’t get out much.

So when she found herself walking outside towards the owlery with a letter in hand, she couldn’t help but put on a small smile. It’s not like she never walked around the school it was just that the owlery was not a normal place that she visited. She wasn’t very fond of telling her family all about the happenings of Hogwarts because the school had become a place of havoc and she didn’t want to get pulled out. But today she was holding a letter to her little sister that was about all the fun that happened at Hogwarts, sugarcoating the bad of course.

Lavinia now was walking up the steps of the owlery and could hear the hooting of all the owls above her, for how she missed that sound. This was another reason that was reminding her why she needed to get outside of her dorm more often. The owls were so loud and distracting that when Lavinia entered the owlery she didn’t notice a certain red head was there too. She found the closest owl and sent her letter away.

Turning around to get a good look at the owls before heading back, she saw a young girl standing against the wall looking towards the horizon. This normally would be fine for Lavinia and give her a possible chance to make a friend but, even from a distance away she could see a tear running down the girl’s cheek.

The thing that scared Lavinia the most was how sad the red head looked. She knew that a fair portion of the school was known for bullying or discrimination and even remembered a stupid article that was published about how dangerous dhampirs could be. I mean this school was meant to be a safe place for students of all backgrounds and all races. If we couldn’t get over the fact that some people are different then us, then why was there even a school at all? That was another reason Lavinia didn’t go out, the school was full of people who liked drama and sparking rumors.

Lavinia turned to the girl who looked as though she had been through some bullying and said in a soft voice; “Hey are you okay, wait no that’s stupid. I mean do you want me to leave so you can be alone?”

trying not to be akward@Lavinia Cloven

Haley stood there motionless for a while, looking at the horizon. If she didn't see the sun moving, she wouldn't know if it had only been 5 minutes or an hour, she had lost all sense of time as she struggled there with her thoughts. Deep inside she knew that the day would come when everything would be forgotten. When she would no longer get strange looks and when no one would start whispering as she walked down the hall, but that day was too far away. It was intangible to Haley and so she had nothing to hold on to.

Haley had been so absorbed that she hadn't even noticed that she was no longer alone up here. When she suddenly heard a voice speaking, she turned around, startled, and saw a girl with beautiful brown, curly hair. They didn't know each other and Haley was sure she was at least a year or two older than Haley. Haley quickly wiped away the tears on her face and covered the fact that everyone here, meaning the two girls, was aware that Haley had been crying. Her question made Haley snort slightly, are you okay? Hell no.

But something about the girl was different. She didn't look at Haley with fear or contempt. She was asking if she was okay. Haley was sure that she had probably just bumped into the only person at Hogwarts who didn't know Haley and her rumours and that feeling was refreshing. "Um, don't worry!" Haley wasn't quite sure how to handle the now unfamiliar situation. "You can stay, with all the owls you're never really alone here anyway." She joked, nodding her head at all the feathered creatures making their noises to themselves - huh-huhuu.

"I'm Haley Rose," she introduced herself to the girl and held out her hand, "First year, Gryffindor." She added, as she wasn't currently wearing a school uniform and it wasn't immediately obvious which house she belonged to. It was unbelievable but Haley felt like she had forgotten how to interact with other people. She had always been a social person and had never had any problems approaching strangers, but now it seemed as if she was a different person. She stood there uncertainly, not knowing what to say, looking furtively at her hands and just hoping that the moment would not be awkward.

It was as if recent events had shaped a new Haley and she didn't like it at all. She wanted to be the Haley who infected others with her laughter, who always had some nonsense in her head, was warm and had an open ear for everyone. She didn't want to let others get her down and stop being who she really was. And that was a moment when she decided that this was her goal from now on.

@Haley Rose

As soon as the words left her mouth, Lavinia knew that she shouldn’t have said anything. Why would she ask someone who is crying “are you ok”? That’s just so stupid of a thing to say, it was obvious the girl wanted to spend some time alone in the owlery and was definitely not ok. When she asked her that she noticed how the girl snorted a little at the question and Lavinia about to leave so she didn’t make a bigger fool of herself when the girl spoke up.

The red head said that she didn’t feel alone with all the owls here and Lavinia wholeheartedly agreed. The owls were so loud that it felt like there could have been 10 people or zero people and you would never tell over the hooting. Then the girl introduced herself as Haley Rose and held out her hand. Lavinia was quick to shake it saying; ”Nice to meat you! I’m Lavinia Cloven, 3rd year Ravenclaw.”

She could tell that the girl, now known as Haley, was not entirely sure what to say and Lavinia understood. This girl must have gone through a lot recently to cause her to be crying and it made sense the school even though it was trying for diversity there was still those who were unable to accept it. She didn’t want to assume anything that Haley was going through but she seemed very cautious as to how she was talking, as if one wrong word could send Lavinia turning in her.

To make Haley feel more comfortable with her and to get something that had been on her chest for a long, off of it, Lavinia said; “You know I just sent a letter to my sister telling her how great a school Hogwarts is and talking about all the good stuff that goes on here. Now that I think about it, I wish I didn’t say anything because this school is so messed up with all the “accidents” and discrimination that goes on.”

What sister would want her younger sibling to grow up looking forward to coming to a school that is no where near what she hoped for. Lavinia didn’t want to give her sister false hope and she just did that. The one thing that Lavinia was hoping for was that she didn’t say too much to Haley, she didn’t want to scare her away. Haley seemed so far like a nice young Gryffindor and Lavinia was wishing that she could, in time make a friend out of her.

talking about Hogwarts@Lavinia Cloven

When the girl who introduced herself as Lavinia took Haley's hand, she was sure. She really hadn't heard any of the rumours about Haley. It was surprisingly refreshing to meet someone who didn't judge her on whispers without really knowing what was true and what was not. She gave Lavinia a brief smile, but it was hard for her. Haley was actually a girl who always laughed. If you could hear someone laughing out loud somewhere, it was most likely Haley, but that was in the past. She hadn't laughed once in the last few days and even the small smile felt unusual.

Haley still didn't quite know how to act and was all the happier when Lavinia started to speak. At the first part of her sentence, Haley again couldn't suppress a sarcastic laugh. She didn't mean to be rude, but in her current situation it was just a joke to think about Hogwarts being so great. But as the girl continued, Haley began to nod in agreement.

She considered for another brief moment. She could have given a two-hour presentation on the subject, but she wasn't sure if she should share her thoughts. She didn't want to scare away the next person again and so she decided to say something but not to mention the recent events. "You know, if you had asked me a fortnight ago what I thought of Hogwarts, I would have told you that it was the most amazing place." She stopped short, inwardly mourning those carefree times.

"But here and now, I agree with you. I loved Hogwarts. I called it home and was overjoyed to be here but Hogwarts can also be horrible. The students here can be horrible and just the slightest misstep can make you feel like the loneliest person and treated unfairly." And with those words, Haley looked down at the floor in shame. Had she said too much? Was it obvious that Haley was talking about her own feelings? But she was sure that she was not the only one who had to go through such experiences. There were many before her, there will be many after her and probably at this moment there were many who had a hard time here.

It hurt Haley's heart to talk like that about this place that she loved so much just a short time ago. She wished it was like it was before, but that was not possible. And now she was standing here with the Ravenclaw girl who probably thought Haley was out of her mind and was no longer the happy person she had been a short while ago. And as she thought about it, she would have liked nothing more than to just cry and shout out her anger and then be taken into a comforting hug. But surely Haley wouldn't just start screaming now, many thought she was nuts but she really wasn't. Crazy in a good way but she hadn't lost her mind yet.

These were the moments when Ian was always there for her. Her rock, with whom she could talk freely and who always assessed the situation impartially, even when it came to Haley. So he was always honest with her and also told her when she was the problem. But this time it wasn't her, which she wouldn't admit herself. But this time she didn't have Ian either, or rather, she didn't want him. In the letter she had sent a few minutes ago, she had told him that she was mad with him and needed some time to herself and at this moment she would have liked to have a big sister to go to school with her here at Hogwarts, but she didn't have that. Haley was an only child and her cousins went to another school.

@Haley Rose

As Haley spoke about how she used to love Hogwarts, Lavinia couldn’t help but feel the same way. When she came to the school over 2 years ago, she was so enthusiastic about the school and now after gaining some experience she knew it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Then Haley continued on and it troubled Lavinia a bit because she was only 11 and to already know that much insight must have meant that something had happened to her or a friend.

She watched as Haley’s gaze turned down to the floor as if she had done something wrong or said too much. That was the key to her that this much have been a first hand experience and Lavinia assumed that the tears she’d before there meeting were probably from that. Even though she had only meet this girl for a few minutes, Lavinia knew that she had to, and wanted to say something to make Haley feel more comfortable with her. If they took that attention off of Haley for a moment she knew the topic on her mind could not go away for good but maybe it could go away for a little bit.

So, Lavinia said; “If I’m honest with you, nothing like that has ever happened to me because I never give it a chance to. I’m too scared on the things and people who lie out there that I don’t even go anywhere, the only real thing I do is play quidditch and I only do that because I know I’m good at it.” She felt like she was getting a little bit of a weight off her chest so she continued.

“The thing that I’ve learned a lot about the people here is that they normally have a side of them that is frighted of difference and change. Quite often, without thinking they act on that side instead of the side that builds people up for being unique.” Ok, Lavinia now felt as though she leading some sort of kindness campaign and she had no idea where it came from. She just wanted to make Haley feel as though she wasn’t alone and it’s not like she was asking Haley what was on her mind. She was just trying to give her some advice on the way people work.

If Lavinia thought about it most of her spew came from all of those days listening about what people were doing and the happenings of the school. Another part of it came from when her family believed that she was a squib, it was a few years ago but they had never said anything rude about not having magic. They had always told her that it was a rare thing to be in a magical family and not have magic, so she was unique. That had taught her that every person on the planet deserves the same respect. Now she could only hope that she had not said too much stuff about human psychology to Haley and that it could help her move forward from what was bothering her.

talking about Quidditch@Lavinia Cloven

Haley didn't really feel better but she felt comfortable with the situation. And it wasn't because Lavinia couldn't find the right words, she did indeed, but there was just too much going on inside Haley. She would like to forget for one day what was going on in her life but it was not that easy. Still, she was very grateful for Lavinia's words and openness towards Haley. She smiled slightly at Lavinia's words, but did not completely agree with her. Haley didn't want to hide out of fear of people. She realised that at that moment and she didn't want anyone else to have to do that either.

"But I don't want to have to hide for fear of the reactions or the other people." Haley now replied to her words and it almost sounded like she was trying to justify herself. Haley thought for a moment before she continued. What would she say to a friend in this situation if they were in Haley's situation? "There will always be disagreement between people and that's fine, I guess. But I want to be who I am, no matter what anyone else thinks. The important people in your life will stand by you no matter what and if they don't, then they weren't real friends." And it was only at that moment that she realised that this was the case. All her friends were there for her only Haley had never seen it from that perspective. All she saw were the students talking about her, looking at her fearfully or with contempt, and the rumours that were told about her.

This realisation, of course, would not make all well. Applying one's own advice, or any advice in general, was not as easy as one might have thought. There were still the feelings that simply made it difficult. But this would help Haley to put all this behind her.

Haley realised that again she had let herself be led by her words and suddenly she felt uncomfortable that she was so obviously talking about her own problems in front of Lavinia. But it didn't bother her as much as it normally would with a stranger. She felt comfortable in her presence and something told her that they could become good friends. "But Quidditch," Haley now started to pick up the conversation again, "that sounds great! I signed in for our team too and I'm currently on the waiting list. I really want to be on the team and I really hope it works out."

Haley's eyes seemed to sparkle at this topic of conversation. She loved flying and had developed a passion for this crazy sport from the start. She hadn't asked about it, but she hoped she would hear a little more about it from her new acquaintance and for a brief moment she forgot why she had been shedding tears a few minutes ago.

@Haley Rose

When Haley spoke of not wanting to run away from other people’s opinions, Lavinia realized how much that applied to her and how much Haley was teaching her. The only thing Lavinia did was run from her problems and her fears. Maybe it was time to start meeting new people and getting what Haley called the important people in her life so that she could have some friendships that were as good as the ones Haley described. “Your one hundred percent right, we shouldn’t just live in fear, . . . I shouldn’t just live in fear of the possibilities.”

Not wanting to say much more that could be taken in a different way then intended Lavinia just wondered how it was that this first year knew more about relationships then her. It made sense though, even as a first year she didn’t do much so someone like Haley probably already had those people to lean on. Now, Lavinia was going to make it her goal to try and get herself some of these people for herself because being afraid of the what if’s wasn’t going to get her far at all.

The only thing Lavinia wasn’t afraid of doing was playing quidditch but why was that? In quidditch there were people hitting bludgers at her, teammates falling from the sky, and most importantly a great portion of the school was watching. So why did she not get fear of the unknown then. It was because playing quidditch was something she practiced for her whole life and it came naturally to her. Also, whenever she grabbed her broom it was as if all of her worries went away and she was on top of the world. Then as if she was reading her mind Haley started talking about quidditch which made Lavinia thrilled!

Haley was on the waitlist for Gryffindor but for what position? Excited for the quick change of topic Lavinia started talking about quidditch; “I hope it works out for you too! I may not be the best dealing with fear but quidditch is my forte. So, what position did you apply for?” She was trying to talk in a tone that old friends might use because for some reason that’s what Haley felt like to her when talking about quidditch, an old friend that she was catching up with. “Oh and do you have a broom yet because those school ones are not the best to use. I know that most of the houses have a broom fund for the players, at least that’s where I got mine from.”

With the talk of quidditch a new spark was lit within Lavinia and the previous talks of emotions and people were pushed aside as she dived into one of the sides she liked much more about herself.

@Lavinia Cloven

Haley was surprised for a moment that Lavinia agreed with her but was happy about it. Finally, someone with whom she could share an opinion and who could see her as Haley really is. Without prejudices. But as she said it, Haley revealed that there was probably a lot going on with her too. Not only was Haley talking about herself, Lavinia was doing the same. At least that's how it came across to Haley. "If you want to talk about it, I'm a good listener." And for the first time in a long while, Haley smiled honestly. "I've got a lot going on right now too, obviously, and I think especially for this topic, I'm a good listener."

And as so often, in fact always, Haley meant her offer sincerely too. Even though they hadn't known each other long, Haley would be there for her to listen and maybe try to give her some helpful advice. But Haley wouldn't blame her if she didn't want to do that either. Haley could understand only too well that sometimes you just don't want to talk about it and just want to forget everything for a day. That was how she felt herself at the moment. Forgetting for a day was what she wanted.

Haley could see Lavinia's excitement rise when they started talking about Quidditch. At that moment, she decided that she really needed to watch her next Ravenclaw game. "I hope so too!" laughed Haley, "I applied as Chaser. What position do you play?" asked Haley now eagerly. "Yeah the broom is another one of those problems. I don't have one of my own and not enough money to buy one. Maybe I'll have to look for a job. Maybe as a writer for the Hogwarts Newspaper. But I haven't heard of the broom fund yet. But I have to get on the team first, so all in good time." But as Haley spoke, the excitement kept rising in her and this was something she really wanted badly, to play for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

@Haley Rose

Haley said that she was a good listener and Lavinia felt comfortable with her even though they had met mere minutes ago. So, she decided that she wanted to trust Haley and instead of leaving her little probably bottled up inside her, Lavinia let it out; “My issue isn’t really that big, it’s just that some of the things that have happened in this school over the passed few years I’ve been here have been pretty scary. So due to that I spend most of my days either cooped up in my room or practicing quidditch. It’s just this fear I have of something happening to me prevents me from living my life and having fun here.”

So now there it was, out there in the open, Lavinia decided to try and lightly ask Haley if she wanted to talk about what was bothering her too. “Thank you for listening to my issues, now I’d like to extend the same offer to you, if you want to talk about it, I’m here and I won’t judge you about anything. If you don’t feel comfortable yet, then that’s fine too, I now know that it’s nice to let it out.” That was just a slight little way to tell Haley and to be honest Lavinia felt a lot better now that her small issue was out in the open. She could just hope that Haley trusted her enough or trusted her enough to say that she wasn’t ready for that yet.

Then Haley was back to talking about quidditch and she had applied to be a chaser, which was the same position that Lavinia played! Oh how Lavinia was looking forward to stealing quaffles from Haley whenever she would get the chance to play against her. This was the stuff that really got Lavinia excited, the chance to talk about the sport that meant so much to her was one that didn’t come up often enough. She would have to make an effort to get more friends just so that she could get excited over quidditch.

Another thing that she was confused about was the fact that Haley as a first year, was thinking about getting a job. Even Lavinia didn’t have a job yet and that was mainly due to the fact that she didn’t see a need for one. If Haley did decide to be a writer for the Headliner, she was excited to view her work and search the whole paper for her article. In response Lavinia said; “I play chaser too and I can tell you it is the best position on a quidditch team! If you do become a writer for the Headliner I look forward to reading your articles. Also, I bet you’ll get on the team soon enough, I’m not sure about Gryffindor but I know for a fact that our Ravenclaw team changes so often it’s like your an applicant one day and a first string player the next. I really hope you do get on your team because I might be a little excited to steal some quaffles from you.