Another Trip Home Open for 1 more Closed

@Lavinia Cloven || @Elena Jangleton

Bloom blushed at the compliment of her name. She hadn't heard anyone recognize her name as unique or, in this case, pretty, in a long while. She was finally coming out of her shell and connecting with others and the fact that she felt recognized, made her unable to handle the compliment. She whispered a "thanks" to Elena and carried on with listening to the conversation.

Bloom saw the gleam in Lavinia's eyes when she began to talk about Quidditch. She could tell that Quidditch and flying was her ultimate passion in life. She wondered if it was a career that she wanted to pursue. Mentioning that she was going to join the team next year, Bloom was glad for her. She was a great player and Bloom couldn't help but to support her decision. "I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up being co-captain next year! You should try out for it if you can!" she said with a smile.

Bloom shifted her attention to Elena who was considering going out for the team. It seemed so new to her, just like it was for Bloom. Bloom could feel a lot of similarities between her and Elena when it came to the sport. "I played by accident... They needed someone and I was asked. But honestly, it was the best experience. I recommend going to try out for it for your house! You would then play against Lavinia," she said, looking to the Ravenclaw colleague.

It seemed that both of the girls were not necessarily going to join camp. Lavinia mentioned that she may be staying at home and practicing her flying while spending time with family. Elena, on the other hand, was planning to go to the summer camp. Elena seemed cool enough to hang out with. Maybe, if she was for sure going, they could partner together. Bloom didn't want to get her hopes up that she would not go blindly for the first time.

"It sounds like they are being very secretive this year than in the past. Usually they would tell us by now what the theme would be," she said, thinking about how everyone would know what to expect after they graduated their year. It was most likely because in the past, camp would begin right after they were done with school. Now, this year, it was different. They were all sent home and would come back for camp when it opened in the beginning of July.

Hearing Elena's thought about all of them being together made Bloom form a small smile on her face. It sounded like a lot of fun and as she was thinking about camp, she began to accept the unknown of the event. As long, however, she was there with people she knew. Granted, she only met and/or got to know these girls on their train ride back home from Hogwarts, but that did not stop her from fantasizing of what she hoped for during her summer camp experience.

"I guess only time can tell if we would be paired up or not," she said, hoping there was a chance to have them, the students, choose their partners versus the camp staff. Bloom moved some of her brunette hair behind her ear and looked out the window. The outside was filled with so much greenery. They for sure had a long way to go before heading back to King's Cross.

"I wonder if we are going to be with another school during camp like in the past," she said, aloud, however, really said it to herself. She was not a fan of the other school students. Some of them lacked manners or were full of themselves. There was never a positive moment she had with them. "It was very cool to connect with Koldovstoretz this year for the first time. They seemed to know their manners in comparison to Durmstrang," she joked, wondering if they thought the same or not.

337085

@Elena Jangleton & @Bloom Silverton

July 1, 2021

The conversation had shifted to quidditch which was good for her because that was one of the only things she knew about. Quidditch had been her life these past few years and she was definitely dedicated to the sport. Lavinia noticed that Elena seemed quite intrigued when they mentioned the sport and was hopeful that maybe they could begin to share this in common. “Quidditch is so much fun, it’s a great team sport that involves a lot of friendly competition.” she said with a gleam of passion in her eyes.

Lavinia was excited that Elena was thinking about joining her house team and thought that it would be nice to have a friend on an opposing team. “You should definitely try out for the team! It would be nice to play against you and if you need any help practicing feel free to reach out to me.” She needed to interact with people more so why not offer the option of helping out Elena. That’s when Bloom’s comment about being co-cap hit her. Lavinia would love to be a captain and to hear someone else say that she would be good for it left her touched. She had the experience and a fair portion of the time she didn’t agree with her captain. If she had a captain position then almost all of her dreams would have come true.

Smiling to Bloom she responded, “I would love to be co-captain and if the position ever opens I will be sure to apply!” Lavinia definitely would apply because she wanted to take on more of those leadership roles now that she was older. As summer camp was on-top of their minds, she tried not to think of all the things that could go wrong. The professors had yet to announce a theme and that almost made her feel better about the situation until Bloom added that they were being very secretive about the camp. Being secretive normally wasn’t a good thing yet Lavinia tried to think of it as a possibility of them hiding a good surprise.

She was silent for a minute as she listened to Elena. She barely knew her but was already trying to trust her. Somewhere deep in Lavinia’s mind she wanted to go to the camp and was trying to think of reasoning to convince her fearful thoughts that it would be okay. The point Elena made next was pretty good and swayed her brain, there would already be people she knew at the camp and they had the possibility of being in the same cabin together. Quietly speaking her thoughts out load she said, “That would be nice to know other people there and it would probably be fun.”

When Bloom mentioned that there was a chance of the other wizarding schools being there, she thought about her interactions with them so far. There were very little to none. She had seen a few at the ball and throughout the halls but had never made real conversation with someone who wasn’t from Hogwarts. If she went to this camp she could meet people from these other schools and possibly have a pen pal. Returning out of her thoughts, she said, “That would be cool if the other schools were to come to camp, I have yet to really talk to them and it would definitely be fun to.”

Pausing a moment she decided that she needed to just say something about whether or not she going to go to camp before her brain switched it up again. “I think you might have almost convinced me, going to the summer camp would be pretty fun. I’m definitely going to ask my parents if I can go.”

If Elena had known she had been talking to two seasoned Quidditch players, the brunette definitely would have seized this opputurnity as soon as it had presented itself. "I might just take you up on that offer one day." Elena replied nodding her head towards Lavinia, Merlin knew how horrendous her flying was and while the girl could manage to stay upright on a broom, that wasn't everything as it took a whole lot of effort and whatelse to zip and zag around the field like she had seen in the matches and yet still, there was a sense of thrill that came with it that she had yet to experience most unforunately. Shifting away from the sport of flying, Elena had to agree it was truly a wonder how the theme had not been widely spread around this year if there was one. It left an uneasy feeling in her stomach recalling the events of the year the Blossom Ball had been arranged in secrecy though this time, things were different.

She decided not to recall the facts of that particular night knowing it would only hurt her chances in swaying the opinions of the other two girls. "Honestly, I don't mind it. Maybe they're planning to surprise us or something, that would be nice." It certainly would given the turbulent year though the likelihood of such a thing happening in Elena's opinion was very slim. She was just relaxed at the fact that she was managing to sway their stances a bit especially after bringing up the fact that it was likely they could get put together but that was only something they would find out after the trio went to camp. "Well, the only chance we have at getting bundled together is if you guys come too so don't dissappoint." She said grinning. In the end, Elena just hoped they would at least give it some thought, she couldn't drag them off to it but she could at least put the thought out there which was just as powerful, words truly were a strong weapon.

Bloom put forth a name that Elena was not going to even try to pronounce. One of the neighboring schools though personally, the upcoming fourth-year hadn't had the pleasure or potentially displeasure of meeting those students but it certainly would be an experience. She might have seen a few of them moping about during the Blossom Ball and had to smirk at Bloom's comment. "Okay, but have you seen those fur coats that Durmstrang wears? They certainly know their style." She admitted the imagery flashing into her head. It was pretty appealing and practical too perhaps given the climate they came from and sometimes, she wondered how they weren't sweating under all that heavy gear, they probably were but perhaps too stubborn to shed it off, they certainly were the brazen type.

Gracing Lavinia with a pleased smile, she had faith that no parents would deny their children from participating in something like this so it wasn't something she was too terribly concerned about. "I'm glad. And if you don't enjoy it, you can say 'I told you so'." It was a bet that Elena was willing to take and come out on top because in her experience, she had yet any complaints to voice about the previous summers so this one shouldn't be any different.

@Lavinia Cloven@Elena Jangleton

Bloom was unsure, but from the way Lavinia responded to her co-captain comment, she seemed happier. Perhaps that was her goal from the start. Maybe she wanted to pursue Quidditch as a career and Co-Captain, and maybe even Captain, was her start in getting that position as an adult. Whatever it may be, Bloom felt good giving someone some confidence-- a trait she needed to boost for herself.

It seemed as though both of them were thinking about going to the summer camp. They seemed to all be connecting nicely together that maybe summer camp wasn't going to be that bad at all. When Elena mentioned about being bundled together and Bloom really hoped that it would be so. It would be a lot of social anxiety if she had to forcefully meet new people because she would be spending a whole month with them in a cabin.

Bloom couldn't stop laughing as she thought of Durmstrang and their fluffy coats. They were always so serious, yet they wore the most furriest of outfits. You could practically go up to a Durmstrang student and pet them. "Style? Are you telling me that you have no urge to take your hand and pet the closest furry Durmstrang student?" she joked, moving her hand to pretend to pet someone in thin air. Bloom took her other hand and covered her mouth, hiding her large smile and wiping some laughing tears coming out of her eyes.

Bloom cleared her throat from laughing too hard at the thought. She then couldn't help but to revert back to summer camp and ask a pretty controversial question.

"I think we've been here long enough... What do you think will go wrong at summer camp?" she laughed, knowing that there was always something that happens in any Hogwarts event. It was like the school was cursed. Someone always got hurt or a part of the castle got destroyed. There was never any normalcy in the walls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Then again, was it funny? What if something happened to her or people she actually knew? But still, all you can do is laugh about it because what other options were there?

337085

@Elena Jangleton & @Bloom Silverton

July 1, 2021

Lavinia was already looking forward to the next quidditch season and would love to help out a prospective player. Smiling when Elena said that she might take her up on the offer, Lavinia thought of all the ways that she could help someone out with quidditch. Whatever way she could help Elena would probably come to her in the moment when she saw her skills.

Having a surprise could definitely be good, right? There is no way that could go wrong or at least that was what she was convincing herself of. The staff probably just had something fun their selves that they didn’t want to share yet because they wanted suspense. It would be fine and it would hopefully be a lot of fun. Just as she went to the ball, this was her chance to keep going with her brave actions and attend camp. Hopefully they would get put together because that would make for a much nicer camp experience.

Lavinia had only seen students from the other magical schools in passing during the time that they were there and talked to a few at the ball. Durmstrang coats had somehow become the topic of discussion and she had no idea what to say. The coats did look nice from a glance and possibly soft but she hadn’t really thought about them being pettable. Trying not look too confused, she smiled at the conversation and let out a little laugh while joking, “They would probably be pretty soft. Why can’t we just wear fur coats around, then we could pet them whenever.”

Lavinia would honestly like to wear a fur coat in the winter, it would be so nice to just snuggle into. Noting back to Elena said, she really hoped that she didn’t have to say I told you so because that would mean summer camp did not go to plan. For now, as long as there was no super dangerous things then she was happy. “I really hope that I don’t have to say that.” she said with a smile.

Then Bloom asked the number one question that had always been on her mind. What could go wrong? Everything was the short answer in Lavinia’s brain but what really was there that made her so scared. Fire was a common theme, poison could happen, spells could be fired, people could get hurt, or kidnapped, the possibilities were endless. Every single thing that she had ever heard about were coming in on her, her smile was fading as her hands went to nervously fiddle with her hair.

Trying to joke about it and not think about the topic for much longer. Lavinia let out a nervous laugh and said awkwardly, “Everything… The possibilities are endless, it seems like something always goes on…” She needed to go though for herself, going to this camp was to help herself grow and thinking on what could be wouldn’t help her there.

Bloom painted a very interesting image in her hand as Elena let loose a chortle at her humor, she did admit those coats did attract some attention though she'd rather not know what fur those coats were dervied from. With faces as stoic and neutral like those, they probably wrestled bears for a living and ate bricks for meals because their personalites certainly echoed it. Among all the schools present, Durmstrang was probably the most strictest and while that really wasn't a bad thing, it didn't hurt to loosen up every now and then. "Well, if that's your thing, you'll have plenty of chances. Although, can't say they'd be too welcoming of the gesture." The brunette replied grinning, that comment would stick with her every time she saw a Durmstrang student though you had to be a certain type of crazy to wear that sort of clothing to a summer camp. She didn't recall if she had even seen any Durmstrang students in anything that wasn't winter clothing, maybe it was the climate. For some, it just never happened.

Than, the obvious question of the day was brought up that if something was to go wrong, what could it be. It was sort of affecting her little goal of swaying the girls into coming to the camp but she knew it would have to be addressed sooner or later. Elena nodded in silent agreement with Lavinia muttering her own concerns. "I think we've all seen enough Blossom Balls to get a grasp of what could happen." Mosps, spiked drinks and Merlin knew what else but it wasn't exactly a very comforting thought to think about as the train carried them home. They did not need a repeat of the ball to understand the gravity of the situation as she tried to bring some light into the situation. "Look at it this way though. We're all here in one piece still so I reckon we're doing something right. As long as we keep our wits about us, I think we'll turn out alright." It had helped so far.

Elena had been in more life-or-death situations here than she could count most recently being the train wreck which she was sure was going to spell her last year but even that had turned out postively for all of them. The girl refused to bring that up given the fact they were traveling on said train, it would only serve to make all of them uncomfortable. The brunette sort of felt like the motivational coach in all of this, the one sane person keeping everyone together. She firmly believed that no one should feel scared here of all places, at a school where kids were just supposed to be kids and any forces that sought to do the opposite hadn't succeeded yet. "You know what I always do when I'm in those sort of situations?" Merlin knew best she had developed a resume at this point for these sort of things but she was being serious right now. "I think." She said simply looking between the two. "I think about what I got going for me, what's waiting back home, at the castle, personal stuff and that sort of urges you to get a move on instead of just being frozen because this sort of stuff is gonna happen regardless. It's a big world out there." A very big world and not all of it was good, Hogwarts was teaching them a lesson how to cope with the not-so-good side of it even if they hadn't signed up for the free trial.

@Lavinia Cloven@Elena Jangleton

Perhaps Bloom should have lessened her judgement on the other schools considering that Lavinia really did like their outfits. It sounded to Bloom that she wished to have her own outfit like that. Now thinking about it, their uniforms were so plain. They had the usual skirt or pants and a nice buttoned-up shirt with a cardigan. It never screamed "fashionista" like the other schools who come to visit.

“Everything… The possibilities are endless, it seems like something always goes on…”

Bloom nodded. It was beyond true at how many things have gone wrong and what could already be going wrong. The most popular was the fires that burn down the castle or the Forbidden Forest. There have been some rumors that there were some students who were near death. It was beyond her. The worst follow-up question someone could come up with was 'Am I next?' Students that she was familiar with have been a part of the "action" and Bloom had her moment in her first year with Ben. But that was so many years ago... Could she be next to be a part of the terrible tragedies?

Bloom jumped out of her thoughts when Elena began to show optimism. She was right. We are here in one piece and we are fourth and fifth year-to-be. We have gone through so much and yet are still sane and able to keep going. Bloom couldn't help but the venture back into the dark abyss which was her mind. But for how long can that really last? To hear Elena surface personal connection to the stuff happening at Hogwarts versus at home made it all more real and intense.

She shook her head and laughed. "You know what? I bet the professors have a good handle this time. We have nothing to worry about." Bloom wanted to keep the positive energy going, if not for herself, then from the sounds of it, for Elena. Bloom had so many questions for Elena, but she felt it best to not ask as they seemed really personal and who knew if she wanted to share them with her or even with Lavinia.

"Well here's the real question... Summer camp usually means hookups. Anyone have a special someone in mind?" she joked, drastically changing the subject. They were a bunch of girls and girls had needs that needed to be met. In this case, for Bloom, it was just talking about boys. She never got so into them until lately. Before, they were just people, but now, they were more than that. They were connections that she yearned. But, of course, she wasn't going to tell anyone about that, not even herself. It was all too real about how her eyes have shifted in looking at people. It was probably a part of growing up, right?

337085

@Elena Jangleton & @Bloom Silverton

July 1, 2021

Lavinia had decided that she would go to summer camp, now she just had the task of trying not to doubt her decision. It was a regular occurrence for her to do that but she now needed to show up for Elena and Bloom. Having people that were going to count on her would probably help her show up at camp. Pondering on what could go wrong wouldn’t help with that though. Nodding at what Elena said, they all had seen/heard enough to get an idea of what might happen.

Wishing that she had an attitude like Elena’s, Lavinia let out a little chuckle at her words. They were still alive this far so, they had to be doing something right. The thing was, Lavinia just needed to change what she was doing because staying in her room wasn’t the right thing to do. At this point, Elena was spewing out knowledge for Lavinia to soak up. It sounded like she had more experience with school disasters than herself and had useful tips that could prove to be lifesaving. It was what she wanted, no needed to hear and it was a big world so stuff was bound to happen. Maybe Hogwarts was home to too many dangerous things though. “Yeah you’re right, thanks for saying that.” She directed at Elena with a slight smile.

Hopefully the professors did have a good handle on things or else this summer could get out of control super quickly. Bloom’s next question though made her take a double take. She hadn’t talked about things as simple as crushes in ages, she hadn’t had a ‘girl talk’ in what seemed like forever. It was just quidditch or school dangers conversations that she held. Love life was a new topic for her. Was there even anyone special in mind, anyone she had a crush on?

In short it was a no, no secret crush or boyfriend. In long would be to think about what happened at the ball. She lost her first kiss due to a love potion and as much as she tried not to think about it, it was a bit upsetting. “Oh wow… that’s a good question. I really don’t think so, I guess I just haven’t opened up enough to others to have a crush on anyone. On another note I somewhat had my first kiss at the ball.” Quickly she added, “I was under a love potion though so I’m not really sure that it counted.”

Well, they had at least had a positive outlook on the whole summer camp thing and while it was true that nothing was out of the question when they went, Elena liked to think that her words had some effect on the both of them. If anything, the brunette was willing to bet the likelihood of the entire thing burning up in their faces was probably as slim as stumbling upon a live unicorn, it wouldn't only be Hogwarts student's wellbeings they would have to account for but the other schools that would be attending and she was sure the staff wouldn't exactly leave anything to chance given the fact that their school would be hosting and Hogwarts reputation's would be on the line. Personally, the brunette thought the school had already developed somewhat of a reputation for things going wrong but that didn't mean they had to stick to it, it was probably better they started to shed off that skin anyways.

However, the girl's didn't linger long on such a dark and dreary topic as Bloom quickly brought up the idea of well, boys. Elena supposed in a compartment with a group of girls, the sentiment was bound to come up sooner or later. "Well, never too late to start." The girl admitted somewhat humorously grinning between them. The truth was, the Gryffindor had never really dabbled in such things, well, not until recently given the fact that Lamik was coming over. That in itself was going to be a test of the nerves and the subject matter of this converstation caused her mind to steer in that direction as they talked. "There might be someone depending on how things go." The female admitted rather shyly the recent happenings of that Valentine Day's event popping into her head. She really hoped everything would go swimmingly, fingers crossed for the best outcome.

Lavinia certainly brought an interesting revelation to the table, love potion at the ball though at this point, Elena was hardly surprised. It seemed like a normal thing at this point honestly, perhaps someone in pursuit of their soulmate had decided to resort to more extreme measures and not a ball went by that the trend continued. "Y'know, I don't think there's ever been a ball where someone hasn't tried to put in some sort of potion,it almost seems like a routine at this point." It could create awkward tension and interactions between people having their behavior influenced by potions and perhaps it was for this reason that the brunette was inherently curious on who Lavinia had shared her canoodles with regardless of whether it was the potion's doing or something else. "Who was it though if you don't mind me asking?" The girl pressed gently knowing not wanting to push too much knowing that perhaps for some people, such topics were probably better left in the back of their head.

Here they were, sat in a train compartment discussing love potions, boys and kisses, it seemed all perfectly normal for the three of them and anyone who would have heard an inkling of converstation probably would have guessed they were life-long friends or something given their interactions with each other and Elena found she liked that, the smile not leaving her face. "Okay, we've told you the deets of our love lives, what about you?" The girl said smirking slightly turning to Bloom. It was only fair in her head, she thought and Flutters almost seemed to bob his owlish head in agreement or so she thought.

@Lavinia Cloven @Elena Jangleton

Girl talk was always so much fun. The only downside is when someone thinks it was okay to share what they were told with others who were not a part of the conversation. Going further, gossip rises and stories change person by person. Though, Bloom thought that these girls were trustworthy to share about boys in general.

Bloom listened to Lavinia first who was unsure of what to expect when it came to boys. She did not have a crush. Though when she mentioned that she had her first kiss at the ball, Bloom lit up.

"Oh my goodness! How was it?" she asked after Elena had asked who it was, her eyes squinting in a half-moon smile. Though both of them asked a bit differently than one another. Elena was respectful and giving Lavinia a choice to answer or not, but Bloom was all in for answers. It just seemed so romantic!

Bloom was shocked that someone used a potion on Lavinia. Her mouth dramatically opened, terrified. "How rude that someone would do that though...!"

There it was: Bloom's turn. She began to think a little bit about boys that she knew or knew of. "Well there are some boys I got to know a bit this year like Alan Vanes and Howard White... Both of them are cute. Buuuut, who knows who else with the other schools coming!" she said, giggling a little bit.