A muddy meeting pv Haley Rose Finished

Hogwarts, now Haley was finally here. The place she had dreamed of for so long, the stage of life she couldn't wait to get to. But now the time had finally come, a new chapter, a new adventure, new things she would learn and discover. The first month had passed, better flown by and Haley used today just for herself. While she had been busy unpacking her suitcase, going to classes, learning and making her first acquaintances for the last few weeks, she had hardly had any time for herself to really arrive and process all the new impressions. And that was her plan for today, she had completed all her tasks and was on her way out of the castle, because where would Haley be found if not there?

Haley had always been the child who loved to be outside in nature. Going on little adventures through the woods and exploring for creatures of nature. She loved the feel of the soft grass on her bare feet, she loved the sun but also the rain. As soon as she stepped through the large door and the first rays of sunlight reflected on her face, a satisfied smile spread across her lips. She took a quick look around and as expected she was not alone out here, but who wouldn't want to enjoy some fresh air in this beautiful weather?

She walked past the many groups of students, grinning happily to herself, and made her way to the great lake, her destination for today. As soon as she arrived on grassy ground, she took off her shoes and socks and continued barefoot down to the lake. Down here there was already less activity and while she looked at the mirrored surface of the water, she wondered what was to be found in the depths of the water. As much as she would like to swim there in the summer, she didn't want to risk making the acquaintance of the giant squid.

As Haley got closer, she could make out a silhouette at the edge of the lake, driven by her curiosity she made her way straight there. It was a girl with brown hair, who by her size was probably also in her first year. Before Haley could have thought about if and what she wanted to say and whether she would rather leave the girl alone, she turned around slightly startled. "Oh, sorry and Hey!" Haley spoke a little uncertainly, but smiled happily at the girl. "Um, I didn't mean to bother you, but if you don't mind, I'd like to join you." Haley gestured with her gaze to the open space beside her, waiting for her reaction.

As soon as she would have no objections, Haley sat down next to her, put her shoes, which she had been carrying in her hands the whole time, next to her and also dangled her feet in the cold water. It took her a moment to get used to the temperature, but soon she was playing lightly with her feet in the water, kicking up little ripples that got lost in the lake. "Hopefully the giant squid won't be bothered by us." Haley joked, looking to the girl, "I'm Haley by the way. Gryffindor." She introduced herself and turned her gaze back to the lake.

The girl standing behind her had long wavy red hair, and as Cosmo looked up at her she was stunned for a moment by how brilliantly vibrant it was. She smiled happily back nevertheless, and waved off the apology.

"Not to worry! I really don't know why I didn't hear you... it's really pretty out here. But yes, of course! I would love some company," Cosmo looked curiously at the newcomer with her head tilted, trying to learn as much about her as possible in a short amount of time. She was already barefoot, her shoes in one hand which was a good indicator that she was just as outdoorsy as Cosmo. This gleaned a satisfied little smile. Once the girl was settled and looking out over the lake Cosmo deemed it time to stop staring, and she turned back to watch the small waves of water spreading out across the lakes surface. A beat of calm passed, and then the giant squid was mentioned. Cosmo forgot any sense of etiquette she had just had, instead turning her head, mouth wide open.

"A giant squid!?" She spluttered, then broke out in hearty laughter a second later, "you've got to be joking! How big are we talking?" If the new girl was telling the truth Cosmo would have to do a little more thorough investigating of the lake later. Coming back to herself Cosmo remembered her manners again.

"Squid aside, it is so lovely to meet you. I'm Cosmo, also Gryffindor," there was a friendly little nod of her head, "and may I just say your hair is absolutely gorgeous, do both your parents have red hair?"

@Haley Rose

At first it had been unusual for her that everyone introduce themselves with their house, but by now Haley had got used to it and did it without giving it a second thought. By now the water around her feet had become pleasantly cold and she contentedly put her head back, closed her eyes and took in the sun's rays. She couldn't help laughing and looked back at the girl. "Like really giaaaant," Haley joked, continuing to laugh heartily, "Don't worry, I think it's some kind of rumour that no one knows if it's true or not. One or two people claim to have seen it but I won't believe it until I make my own acquaintance." She shrugged her shoulders and looked back at the lake. Her gaze lingered there for a while, a little hoping that a tentacle would find its way to the surface but the water remained still.

"It's nice to meet you too Cosmo."Haley smiled, pleased to have met another Gryffindor. Her cheeks flushed a little at the compliment, but Haley loved her hair and it delighted her every time others liked her hair. She straightened up enthusiastically and smiled broadly, "Oh thank you! Actually no, my mother has black hair, my father more brownish, slightly red hair. I definitely inherited the hair from my grandmother." She rambled on, taking a strand between her fingers and sliding it down the entire length before releasing it.

"Are you in your first year too? How are you liking Hogwarts so far?" she changed the subject now, eager to hear the answer. Haley loved it here, she loved this world, the old, beautiful castle and everything there was to discover here. She couldn't imagine a more beautiful place where she would want to go to school.

Cosmo watched happily as Haley relaxed, and was glad to do the same; leaning back on the ground and staring up at the delightfully clear blue sky. If this was what Hogwarts was always like, the next seven years were going to be brilliant. Lying here in nature with her head buzzing full of knowledge about magic and the incredible new creatures that came along with it seemed like bliss.

"I have to say I kind of hope it isn't a rumour, wouldn't it be wicked to have a giant squid?" Her eyes sparkled with the notion, and her brain was already racing along all the opportunities that having a giant squid presented. "Although you are wise to not believe anyone til you see it," Cosmo took a moment to consider. "I think I'll do that too," she said in a decisive tone.

Listening to Haley talk about her family with so much enjoyment made Cosmo smile happily. It was nice to see Haley enthusiastic, which made Cosmo want to get her to talk about anything and everything that she loved. It was one of those days where it was easy to speak her mind, so Cosmo decided to say as much.

"I really love hearing you talk about your family, it sounds like you love them very much," she waited a short moment before answering Haley's questions.

"I'm a first year... and it is really lovely to finally be here. Hogwarts is- it's more than anything I could have imagined. I come from a really small town and this place is just so huge and theres so many people!" Cosmo's voice increased in volume very slightly as she got more excited. "The food is so good, and the classes have had so many new interesting things I really can't even begin to imagine how much we'll know by the end of the year..." Cosmo realised suddenly that she had been speaking for a while, and blushed a little.

"But yeah, I've only ever really had one friend before coming here, so having all these other kids around us is really nice." She finished up with a small smile, and turned her head to look at Haley.

"What do you think of Hogwarts so far?"

@Haley Rose

As the sun continued to shine on her, warming her skin and the cold water on her feet providing the appropriate balance, she began to laugh. "Yeah, I guess a giant squid would be pretty wicked." She turned her gaze back towards the water and thought about all the possibilities. What might lie in the depths of this lake? Was it really a giant squid, or just simple fish? Were there other creatures? All the questions remained unanswered for the moment, but gave free rein to Haley's imagination.

"I do." She paused for a moment, "I really do." She loved her family, they had a close bond, especially with her grandmother and her cousin Ian. He was like her big brother that she didn't have. "You should meet them sometime." Haley suggested now, lost in her thoughts. She smiled at Cosmo but feared it was strange, after all they didn't know each other at all and already Haley wanted to introduce her to her family. She had to laugh at herself, "Don't worry, I'm not the creepy murderer from the mystery novel." Haley laughed at herself.

As Cosmo told of her impressions, Haley looked at her smiling. The enthusiasm was clear on her face and Haley could see herself in it. It was nice to see that others felt the same way as Haley and she could hardly imagine that there was anyone who didn't find this place wonderful. She nodded her regular approval and smiled broadly at her tales.

"I love this place. It's better than I could have ever imagined. I'm really very happy to be here." Haley continued Cosmos gushing , gazing dreamily around the area. "I mean, look at this. This place is so magical. And then all the new knowledge we're gaining here. The new friendships we make and all the little adventures that await us." Haley now turned her gaze back to Cosmo, "I don't even want to think about the end of my time at Hogwarts." She confessed and started to laugh. She still had plenty of time, but at moments like this, time flew by far too quickly. As if she were in some kind of wormhole in which time passed 10 times faster.

As Cosmo listened to Haley speaking she closed her eyes to soak in the sounds and feels of being by the lake and under the sun. Something about the other girl's voice lulled her very bones into feeling heavier, and she felt as though she never wanted to move. Haley suggesting meeting parents shocked Cosmo a little, she wasn't used to people being so friendly quite this quickly, but she found she really liked it. A slow, but delighted smile formed.

"I think I would really like that, and hushh, you couldn't be a murderer if you tried!" She turned her head and blinked her eyes open at Haley. "Look, you practically radiate good wholesome energy," she chuckled, trying to imagine Haley as a character in a murder mystery.

"Okay, well if I'm meeting your parents you should meet my mum, I think you would love her," it was a little odd to be saying it to someone who she had just met, but Cosmo felt a kind of immediate kinship with this carefree yet thoughtful girl. "Maybe we should visit each other during break," she offered with a hopeful smile.

Watching Haley enthuse about Hogwarts made Cosmo really happy. She knew she hadn't made a mistake inviting the other girl to visit, she was truly delightful. After Haley finished talking Cosmo left a small, content silence rest in the air, which was very unlike her usual bubbly chatter. When she did talk her voice was soft and almost sleepy.

"I can't wait for all the adventures we'll have, but after Hogwarts..." Cosmo looked up to the castle that was looming over them, "well I already don't want to leave. I don't want to imagine leaving after seven years of memories," she laughed too, but the silence after she quieted felt a little too melancholy. Cosmo was ever the optimist and she couldn't leave the topic on a sad note. "I reckon as long as we have our friends afterwards we'll be okay, though. Then we'll have our own homes! Imagine using your favourite magic in your own house." She smiled, feeling much happier, and let visions of a cute hut in the woods float through her mind.

@Haley Rose

Fortunately for Haley, the situation did not develop into a strange atmosphere; to her surprise, Cosmo agreed to the proposal, and Haley nodded while she smiled back to the girl. "Oh, you don't know me yet." She winked at her new acquaintance and looked at her feet playing with the mud. "But I guess you're right, I'm too bad an actor for that." She laughed now, secretly very pleased with her words. It was one of the nicest compliments she had probably ever received.

Enthusiastically, Haley nodded again, "I'd love to meet your mum. And I think that's a great idea!" It was still a while until the vacations, but she loved making plans and was already happy to have made a new friend. Still, she pondered a bit, but tried not to let on. Cosmo had only mentioned her mother, what about her father? Did they live separately? Did they have no contact or did he no longer exist? One question, many possibilities and as much as Haley wanted an answer, she wouldn't ask. While she had always been one of the most curious children, she had learned where to draw lines and here was one.

Now as Cosmo talked about Hogwarts there was a slight smile on Haley's lips. She could relate to every word and was surprised at how similar they both thought. "I agree with everything you said and as much as I don't even want to think about leaving Hogwarts again, I believe that in seven years there will be new adventures waiting for us." Haley paused for a moment and sat up straight as she propped her arms on her legs and let her upper body fall forward into a relaxed position. She thought of all the places she would want to travel to someday and was sure that the end of her time at Hogwarts would be a start to a next adventure. "Seven years from now, I'm sure there will be something we'll feel the same way about as we do now about Hogwarts. You know what I mean?" She turned her head to the side and rested it on her legs as she looked to Cosmo. She wasn't sure if her words made sense but something inside her told her that Cosmo would understand.

Cosmo sat up beside Haley, stretching out her limbs and wiggling her toes happily. Although she had been known as sentimental before, Cosmo was most often rushing forward into the next adventure, and she rarely paused to think about her time running out. So as Haley talked Como sat quietly and listened, surprised to find that everything the other girl said made absolute sense. She sat up taller, excited by the conversation.

"I absolutely know what you mean! Like before Hogwarts I was most excited about rescuing wildlife, and I was really good at it," Cosmo ducked her head, realising she sounded slightly arrogant, and hastened to keep talking. "But now Hogwarts is my focus and even though I still definitely miss being able to help all the lil animals it's made much easier because of all the new things here," she looked back up to Haley, "what did you like doing most before coming to Hogwarts?"

Cosmo tried to guess what the other girl might have been passionate about but what Haley had said earlier was true, of course. Cosmo didn't know her yet at all. Did she actually read mystery novels? Had she gone to school before Hogwarts? What would she do if the giant squid just happened to be real? Cosmo grinned, thinking about all the interesting things Haley might have to share and an idea sparked, causing her to wriggle excitedly.

"Ooh! There's this game I used to play back home called two truths and a lie, we could see how bad of an actor you really are," a mischievous light danced in Cosmo's eyes, and she waggled her eyebrows, giggling. "Besides, I'd like to get to know you better and this seems like a good way, whaddya say? Do you know the game?"

@Haley Rose

Haley listened intently to Cosmo's words and it was as if her enthusiasm was contagious as she rambled on. "OH wow, rescuing wildlife." Haley said in surprise. It seemed they had one more thing in common, "Tell me more." She instructed Cosmo in a friendly way laughing. She couldn't wait to know more and had no urge to tell anything about herself as she was so eager to hear her stories.

As she was about to strike out to answer Cosmo's question, she made a suggestion. Two truths and a lie. Immediately Haley started laughing, "Great idea!" she clapped her hands together and sat up straight. "I know the game and if you don't mind, I'd like to start."Haley Suggested, waiting for Cosmo's approval. She remembered back to when she played the game with her cousins. They always made a sort of competition out of it to see who knew their own family best. It was a challenge every time as Haley didn't see them often, didn't go to the same schools and were all in different age groups. She had never managed to win against Ian until today, they often sat opposite each other in the last round but he had always blown her lie. He was like her brother and it was perfectly normal that he knew her so well but sometimes it scared her how well he knew her.

She thought for a moment about what she had told Cosmo before she considered two truths and a lie. "Mhh." Haley mused to herself for a moment. "Okay." She said and straightened so she could look at Cosmo. "I was kind of hoping to be sorted into Slytherin." - Truth. She wanted to be sorted into Gryffindor or Slytherin and sometimes still wondered if the hat had made the right decision then. "I can play the piano." Also a truth. She had grown up musically from a young age, learning to play the piano on her father's lap. She suppressed a smile at this memory and her face remained emotionless. "I have a Brother." Lie. Ian was like her brother, but he was her cousin.

She had tried not to change her facial expressions for all three statements, she couldn't judge if she had succeeded but she was all the more eager to see if Cosmo would guess right. It was unusual to play this game with someone you didn't know, but it was all the more exciting.