A Cold Day in Hell PV Liana Kerr Finished

Yet again, Liana found herself spending the evening in the library. It was slowly turning into a habit, one which she did not mind having. The irresistible allure of the endless knowledge-filled shelves was a pleasure to give in to. This was also the place where she went to soothe her nagging doubts about ignoring the Sorting Hat's advice and choosing the wrong house for herself. Yes, Ravenclaw had studious housemates and at least one library of their own, but she didn't have to be in that one specific house to fulfill her academic potential, right? Studious housemates she may lack, but there were more books in Hogwarts Library than even Nicolas Flamel could have read in his lifetime of nearly seven hundred years. She had all she really needed right here, and if a demand for a study partner arose... well, who said she can't join a flock of Ravenclaws for that purpose?

Today, however, she did not come to the library to seek solace from her uncertainties. Today she was bubbling with barely-suppressed excitement, and needed a place to calm down before she could give in to the silly desire to brag to someone; nothing wrong with bragging, but in this case she would also reveal having severely disregarded one of the main school rules, and thus give the other person the power to turn her in or blackmail her, or whatever else it was that true Slytherins would do to each other in their political mind games. Her safest choice was to try and focus on something else entirely until her excitement subsided. Which was why, after picking up a bunch of parchment rolls with DADA notes, she headed to the library for some extracurricular nerding.

The three books she picked out of the shelves were all non-being related - one on Dementors, one on Boggarts, and the final one on Poltergeists. While only mentioned during one of their lessons in passing, when Professor Rion was introducing the first-years to Ghosts, the topic caught Liana's interest, and she was not willing to wait until her third or sixth year at school to learn more about them. This was already the second week of her individual research, and she found the activity rather enjoyable.

Unfortunately, even delving into the subject of non-beings wasn't enough to take her mind off the duel that had occurred less than an hour ago. Try as she might to focus on the hefty tome of Dementor-Wizard Relations Before the Founding of the Azkaban Prison, the memory of successfully blasting the strange Noah boy with a Dancing-Feet Spell kept playing in her head, bringing a slight smile to her lips and forcing her to reread the same line of text over and over again before she could comprehend it.

On any other day, anyone who dared to push her study materials aside and place their behind on the table she used for studying would have been met with a glare and quite a few sharp words. Today, though, the redhead was far too happy and not nearly enough focused on her reading to snap at Matthew for disregarding the academic setting and proper norms. She was still glowing about what she considered to be her very first duelling victory, and against a second-year student, too; therefore, when she looked up at the boy, there was still a trace of a smile in her eyes. Even the overly-familiar greeting did not irk her too much.

''Mat-Mat, what a pleasant surprise,'' she retorted, hoping that he'd find her greeting as distasteful as she found his, and refrain from coming up with nicknames for her in the future in exchange for her doing the same. That was a risky bet, though. Liana didn't exactly see herself referring to the boy as Mat-Mat on a regular basis. That would be highly unsophisticated.

''I was just reading up on Dementors, they seem like fascinating entities. I'm hoping to learn the Patronus Charm by year four at least, since I'm not sure how much control the Ministry has over them anymore.'' That was far more than a simple 'Whatcha up to?' warranted, but, apparently, Liana turned chatty when she was feeling elated. ''Sure, I'd be happy to answer your questions.'' And it was true. She had actually been passively seeking an opportunity to invite Matthew for a studying session, one less chaotic than the one they had experienced in the Slytherin common room, so she could examine his personality better. Clearly, her first impression of him had been wrong, but it wasn't simply due to her miscalculation - he had seemed to consciously pretend to be frivolous and inept just so he could shock everyone with his knowledge before departing. That heralded an intriguing personality, and hopefully one that wasn't as education-averse as the mask he was trying to display. Perhaps he could be the study partner she was seeking? It must have been her lack of effort, however, because the opportunity to converse with him hadn't arisen in the ten days since that first encounter. But today seemed to be Liana's lucky day, as Matthew approached her himself. ''Though I'm not sure you need my help with anything, you seem to be doing pretty well on your own. What sort of questions do you have?'' she inquired while carefully placing a thin slice of parchment she used as a bookmark into the tome on Dementors, before respectfully closing the book and putting it on top of the other two.

The returned greeting sent a flash of amusement across the boy's face as he dropped his eyes and gave his head a quick shake to stop from laughing. Coming from Liana, it sounded pretty unnatural to a point that he found delightful - he made a mental note to continue calling her by the new nickname if only for the various reactions she'd offer. If they were anything like this one, it'd make things interesting until the cows came home. It was times like these that made him remember why he enjoyed interacting with the prim and proper.

Looking back up when she next spoke, Matt nodded thoughtfully as the amusement faded away. A good idea - his own readings had touched on Dementors and the thought of some soulless creature sucking the life from you (another one, anyways, since professors were basically that) was terrifying. He still didn't know wizarding politics well, but he doubted a 'hey you, I'm the prime minister, stop that!' would be a sufficient means of controlling things that probably wanted to eat said prime minister.

"Lovely choice of studies, I applaud you, really. As for what I was meaning to ask you... Well," Matt began as he scooped up the book Liana had just set down, idly thumbing through it to give him time to think. There was still a distinct lack of disgust towards him that was making him shift in discomfort. Studious types shouldn't like him, it was like... breaking the laws of the universe or something. "I've heard there's a dancing thing that usually happens in October and I love to party. I figured you did too, so I came to find you here and ask if you wanted to party together."

It was quite possibly the stupidest thing he could think to ask someone in the silence of the library, and he completed it with a bright grin as if he'd asked some genius question, eyes flicking to hers to gauge her reaction. "Although, although, although..." Each word progressively quieter as the full scope of what she'd said seized his awareness, distracting him from even his own first question. "I also need you to answer for saying I'm doing well on my own. You must've seen I'm not after that last study session - according the professors, every question I answer is wrong and those are what I would've put on paper. I've gotten a zero on nearly every assignment I've done, which is apparently no mean feat since I haven't heard of anyone else in the entire school failing everything. Unless you mean I'm beyond help? Which is understandable."

Having accepted the positive remark on the topic of her research with an appreciative nod - even the slightest implied compliments on her DADA-related efforts were inflating to her pride - the redhead watched Matthew curiously, wondering what impression he was trying to create. There was now no sign of that vacant look he'd displayed during their study session, even though he was acting distracted by flipping through the book on Dementors. Liana was sincerely intrigued as to what his question would turn out to be. And what it turned out to be was highly unexpected. She took a moment to decipher his words, just to double check whether her first impression was correct. He was inviting her to the ball, right? Granted, it wasn't the most direct way of phrasing it, but boys were supposed to be a bit shy about their invitations, right? And besides, what else could uttering the words 'dancing', 'party', and 'together' in such close proximity mean?

''As a matter of fact, I do enjoy partying, yes,'' she concurred finally, although at the back of her mind there was a suspicion that the two of them had different interpretations of what a party was. For her, it would be a sophisticated event with well-dressed well-mannered people where she wouldn't have to talk to anyone for too long, could have a few dances with efficient partners, and then retreat to her rooms to read an enlightening book well before the event was finished. That's how it went in the more pompous gatherings at Kerr Manor went, at least. This Samhain that they were organizing this year, however, would have her stuck there until the very end, as one of the people responsible for it. Well, at least she could spend her free time there trying to crack open Matt's shell of mysteriously shifting behaviour and perhaps make a friend of him. Or, optimally, a study partner. ''I'm actually one of the students in charge of the ball, I was recommended for the committee for exceptional grades and active participation in classes.'' That was a bit of a boast, yes; but Liana felt that not enough people knew how big of a deal it was to be noticed by one of the staff so early in the year and to get to organize a bi-annual event like that. ''And yes, I'd like to party together, it sounds like a splendid idea.'' It really did, too. Ever since she first heard about the ball, she'd been slightly worried that nobody would invite her to go together. She wasn't exactly the outgoing type, and the number of male acquaintances she had here so far was rather limited. Making the first step for herself was out of the question, too - girls didn't invite boys on dates - that would be a massive breach of etiquette. Now she wouldn't need to worry about finding a date and she could use the Ball as a way to get to know Matt better. Two birds, as they say.

What came out of the boy's mouth next only served to leave the girl utterly bemused. The professor marked the answers he'd poured out in their study group as wrong? That... was impossible; she'd given the same answers on her papers and got full marks. And what was that talk about zeroes?

''Zeroes? I don't think I- there's no such grade as a zero,'' she began slowly, trying to make sense of his confession, the gears in her brains refusing to spin as if they were jammed. ''The worst grade is T, which stands for Troll, and there's no way it would look anything like a zero because... OH,'' the gears seemed to have crushed whatever was blocking their movement and snapped into full motion. ''You mean Os. You're getting Os, Matt, that means Outstanding, it's the highest- grade-'' and just like that, her mind got stalled with confusion again. How in Merlin's name could someone be so smart as to get mostly Os, and then so dumb as to think they were zeroes? Did he say he was failing - which would actually mean he was passing with flying colours - every subject? Was he getting better grades than her? Liana had been under the impression that her own academic average was among the highest in their year; there were a few misfortunes in the Flying class that prevented her from having a solid O unmarred by those pesky Es, but all the other subjects were going just perfectly. How could someone who thinks an Outstanding grade means a complete failure be getting higher evaluations than her, one who studies so diligently and has had actual pre-Hogwarts schooling by private tutors? The girl's confusion was quite evident in her expression as she tried to gather her thoughts, calm down the rising indignation at his lack of knowledge about the grading system three weeks into the studies, ignore the envy about his possibly higher scores, and tether the soaring respect towards him that was beginning to feel quite overwhelming. What a mixture of conflicting emotions. ''Were you thinking this whole time that the Os on your assignments were zeroes? Didn't the lack of additional comments by the professors tip you off?'' Liana took a few breaths, shaking her head as if trying to scatter some of the thoughts that were cluttering her brain. ''So here, look, this is the grading system,'' she continued, reaching for a roll of parchment and a quill that had been dipped into the inkwell. As always, the best way to clear her mind was to make lists. ''As I said, O is Outstanding, the best grade; then it's E, which stands for Exceeds Expectations; then A, Acceptable. These are pass grades,'' she spoke as she scribbled. ''And then there are the fail grades...'' When the girl finished, she turned the parchment around so Matt could see it without craning his neck.

[font=Lucida Console]Pass Grades:
Outstanding (O)
Exceeds Expectations (E)
Acceptable (A)

Fail Grades:
Poor (P)
Dreadful (D)
Troll (T)[/font]

''So yeah, if you're mostly getting Os, it's great. I figured from your answers back then that you're a good student, but I didn't realize just how good. Wow, Matthew, that's really impressive.'' This boy might truly be what she's been looking for among her housemates. A student as good as her. Or... better? That wasn't such a pleasant thought, for some reason. ''So, how often did you say you get Os on your assignments, again?'' she pried, trying to sound as inconspicuous as she could.

Hearing that she did, indeed, enjoy parties snapped Matthew's head up in surprise, but her next words confirmed for him that their versions of a 'party' were different. If Miss Overachiever was helping to head the committee of a Ball, she was probably one of those types who knew how to preen and hold head high at fancy high-society types of parties. She certainly wasn't a social dropout by any stretch of the imagination, and with boast of good grades and class participation (why someone would actively participate in torture, he had no clue), he could place her in a party in mind's eye. Probably a good little girl who flitted from rich-parent-friend to rich-parent-friend to schmooze. He'd met the like at some parties from his own father's invitations.

The thought that they'd gone to similar events was amusing, especially since he himself actually did the angelic-kid schmoozing thing as well. Except instead of doing it with good intention, he approached judges his father pointed out and showed them card tricks. Easy things he'd learned when he was five, only so he could mess up in front of the judges and explain in a tremulous, near-tears voice how it worked and how he didn't understand what he got wrong. Since they were tricks even the village idiot could do, the judges would demonstrate the trick back to him without a hitch and he'd thank them vehemently, all shining-eyes and "wow, sir, you're incredible, sir"s.

All a lie, of course. He didn't mess up anything card-wise, his father had just told him that if you made someone feel superior (by making yourself look bad) then it put them in a better mood. It really buttered people up, especially if you nicked their Rolex when handing the cards over and gave it back at the end of the night saying you found it. Half the judges in London thought he was the most honest kid ever to 'find' and return a 15,000 GBP watch.

"Then it's done, I'll see you at the Ball," he answered, glancing back at the book in his hands and flicking pages between his thumb as he wondered what kind of dancing they did there. Whenever they played the most pumped up song there, he'd have to find her and see if she could dance more than a fancy waltz. The thought of her trying to do breakdancing or something in a dress did put a smile on his face.

That smile froze when she began explaining the grade system, though, and his never-idle hands stilled completely. He moved in slow-motion like he was trying not to startle a small animal as he painstakingly set the book back down, reaching out to touch his fingertips to the parchment she'd written on. He kept his gaze on the letters while she spoke, expression betraying nothing as his eyes darted over it.

Oh. Oh fuck.

It all clicked into place with dizzying speed and his thoughts sparked through his head like nerve endings being set alight, rushing off in all directions. For a second there was a streak of pure panic through him at the thought that he'd accidentally signed up for Great Expectations for the rest of his time here, and he drew in a single quick inhale.

The upwards curve of Liana's voice into a question shattered the moment and he went back into motion, pulling his hand away from the paper to reach into his robes to pull out a deck of cards. "Ahhh," he drew out, his eyebrows doing something complex before an effortless smile sprang across his mouth. "Gotcha. You think me of all people is getting perfect grades? I'm messing with you." Kings, queens, and jokers sprang between his palms at a frenetic pace as he shrugged. "Occam's Razor. It'd be a complete contradiction to get O's and mistake them for zeroes. You'd have to be insane not to read through comments if you thought you were utterly failing. Who wants to fail? Sorry to make a fool out of you, but I got you good, Li-li. Sure, I get a couple O's, but I'm mostly in the E and A range. Sorry to disappoint. I got maybe... two? What about you? You said you're organizing the Ball for good grades and participation so clearly you're doing incredible, I wasn't even in the consideration for that."

The reaction Matthew displayed was curious at the very least. His expression seemed to have gotten locked on 'smile' mode, his movement slowed, and then he started playing with a deck of cards. What. In. Merlin's. Name. Liana couldn't really read his face, but the very fact that emotions seemed to leak out of it was betraying an attempt to hide something. Why would someone act so odd after being presented with such good news? He wasn't failing his classes, he was acing them. That would have made most people dizzy with joy, if also somewhat flustered about having been so naive about the grading system. She watched him as he played with the cards; was this something he did when he was nervous or attempting to hide something? Now that she thought of it, she remembered him manipulating a set of cards during their study efforts the other week, too; back then he was pretending to be a lazy nitwit only to shock them by revealing that he actually had all the answers to their Herbology questions. Or was he intending to shock them? If he really thought his answers were wrong, was he perhaps just trying to reinforce their belief that he was merely a dummy? But then... what was he to gain from everyone looking down on him?

Then the boy started talking, and his words only served to add to Liana's confusion. He's not the type to get perfect grades? Well, his pre-exit performance during their study session indicated differently. He was just messing with her? That was something a part of her wanted to believe, if only to retain her status as one of the top students in their year; however, it was far more likely that he was merely making a last ditch effort to make her believe he was just someone average, whatever reason he may have for that. And what on Earth was 'Occam's Razor'? Did it have anything to do with Occamies? Probably not - winged serpents didn't possess any razors that she'd know of; it was likely some Muggle phrase, and Liana did not want to appear uninformed by attempting to obtain a clarification. Instead, the redhead cast down her eyes, making a quick decision while the boy babbled on. Should she call him out on his evident dragon-dung? Or should she play along? The latter option seemed far more exciting and Slytherin-like - if he wanted to fool her, let him think he succeeded; observing him when he thought he'd tricked her would very likely grant her more information than confronting him directly. On any other day, someone endeavouring to deceive her would have irked Liana; today, however, she was high on her success in an impromptu duel, and so she was feeling playful.

''I actually believed you were clueless about the grades, I mean if you come from the Muggle world they could be confusing. You had me write the explanation out and all,'' she complained, eyeing the piece of parchment with ink still glistening on it, hoping it looked like she was trying to hide her anger by not making eye contact. ''But... yeah... it's impossible for someone to get passing grades and not comprehend the grading system. Can't believe I fell for that.'' She pushed her eyebrows together into a frown as she finally looked up at him. ''I guess you did get me good, though that's not very nice. Please don't do that again.'' The girl sighed and shook her head as if dismissing the unpleasantness of being fooled. Lying and faking body language wasn't exactly difficult; especially when you could incorporate some of your actual emotions, attaching them to twisted half-truths. Liana was still quite confused and slightly annoyed at him for both, apparently being a better students and trying to lie about it. That could easily be converted into appearing annoyed about having been deceived.

''Anyway, if you wish, I can help you study. You could probably average a strong E if you put effort into it,'' she suggested. ''Raising your average to O may be a bit tough if you already got a lot of Es and As though, and I'm not sure you'd have the patience for it.'' The wording was a bit blunt - intentionally so. If, for some mysterious reason, Matt wanted her to have a low opinion of him, she could easily make it seem like he succeeded. She only needed to revert to the way she felt about him back in the Slytherin common room. ''As for myself, yeah, I'm doing pretty well. Mostly Os, a couple of Es here and there.'' Both 'here' and 'there' being Flying classes. Ugh, how she loathed those. ''So if you ever have any question about assignments, feel free to ask me. The better your grades are, the more points Slytherin gets for the House Cup, after all.'' She flashed him a smile. Making it seem like she was condescending and wanted him to get more house points; that was bound to seem believable. After all, it was what she would have done had she really fallen for his deceit.

''Maybe you'll get to organize the Spring Ball, if you study extra hard. There's time; and the Balls happen twice a year, too. Being on the Committee is time-consuming though, and it's a very responsible job. We'll be blamed if anything goes wrong, after all. Not everyone is cut out to handle such pressure, I think.'' Was she overdoing it now with the implied attacks on his person? Honestly, it felt like she'd be saying exactly that if she thought he was a lazy average student. At the same time, however, she wanted to maintain an amicable relationship with this odd boy who thought being academically apt was a weakness. Her statements needed some softening. ''I'm sure you'd have some great ideas, though. Perhaps you can give me feedback after the Ball, so I'd know what could be improved?'' Did she really intent to be invited to more organizing committees? Absolutely. Now that she knew this sort of honour was available, she would strive to be granted it again.

The next words out of Liana's mouth were comforting, and Matt pulled his feet up onto the table to hop on the toes of them and crouch instead of just sit. Crouched there, he studied her face as she talked, hands absently working a Sibyl Cut on the deck. She was slowly reverting back to the way she'd treated him previously, and knowing she felt so poorly about him eased the cautiousness of the past few weeks. The not-so-subtle biting comments, the looking down, the arrogance. He was ready to believe it was all behind them until she finished, and he rolled the words around in his mind as his eyes flicked between hers.

He kept silent for longer than necessary, the Cut falling into a Werm cascade. If she looked down on him so much, why would she still try to stay on his good side? There was no niceties like this back when they'd first met, before she thought he had more than half a brain. And why would she even invite him to study? Answering questions about assignments he could understand, but someone who was going for the grades she wanted - and with her outlook - usually looked for someone equal to study with. Plus... He'd really messed up with the backpedaling considering she'd heard him spew the (apparently) right answers in Herbology.

The statement about getting her good when it seemed he actually hadn't was hypocritical enough to make him laugh internally. Now that he'd calmed from his original babbling and had had time to think things through, he realized just how badly he'd messed up. Liana wasn't an adult, so she wasn't prone to underestimating people their age. Not to mention that if she was getting good grades and picking up on his attempts to redirect then she was clever. It put him in quite the bad situation.

If he called her out on lying back, it'd be an admission on his part. If he just accepted it with relief, it'd also be an admission. Right now all she had was circumstantial evidence from the common room study group and his basic recanted statement that he got O's. She could believe what she wanted, but if he gave off an idiotic aura for the rest of his years here then she wouldn't be able to prove anything to anyone that mattered. He made a mental note to burn his papers when he got back to his dorm. With the amount of arson in the Snape Dorm, no one would notice anyway.

It still left him with the same basic problem though. Any kind of response on his part would basically be giving her ammo. And the consequences if she confirmed it and was able to convince anyone? People would expect him to be a smart, studious kid, maybe even the leaderly type who organized Balls like Liana and whoever else did well. They'd pick him to do things and ask him questions, they'd go searching him out and interrupting his naps. Fellow slackers would find him suspicious, they wouldn't join his skipping plans. It would be hell for seven years.

Never in all his life had he faced such dire consequences, and as it all collided into the bigger picture, pure adrenaline spiked through his veins. This was high stakes. One wrong move, one wrong word or expression could send his entire life here crashing down. It was terrifying and... exhilarating. Things were always so boring and mundane with uninteresting consequences, but this would have a massive impact on the future. He felt alive with the danger of it, and he rocked back on his feet with a delighted laugh, uncaring how it looked.

The only thing that had felt close to this was watching poker games at his father's parties. People betting huge sums of money, and that wait for the cards to be flipped. This entire conversation was a gamble and even though he didn't want to lose it, the gamble itself was addictingly exciting.

"Liana," he declared, springing to his feet on the table, unreasonably fired up. "I would love to study with you someday." He'd have to watch what he said around her from now on, which meant even studying with someone as perceptive as her would be risky. The rush hummed through his veins, making his fingers tingle. "You're absolutely brilliant. I'll be sure to have lots of questions, let's each do our best to win. The Cup, I mean. As for the Ball, I'm certain you've got it covered and it'll be loads of fun. I'm having fun just thinking about it." He hopped up on a book, balancing and do a couple more card flourishes before leaping off the table and slapping a hand down on it, grinning wolfishly down at her. "Let's get to know each other better through our years here, yeah? We may come from different worlds, but let's not let that stop us. I'm sure there's some common ground to find somewhere in there if you go searching."

The reaction that Matt offered was so hyperactive that the well-mannered heir of an esteemed pureblood house founds herself shocked. The boy climbed on the table. That probably broke several dozen etiquette norms and even a few school rules, too. At least library rules. Nevertheless, she did not get outraged. The high spirits were still there, as was the resolution to figure out this mysterious boy who seemed like a great partner for trickery and manipulation practice. She scooted back with the chair so he wouldn't fall on her if he overbalanced and looked up at the boy with a satisfied smile. His sudden energetic demeanour was a clear sign that he was doing his best to seem like the opposite of a model student. Which meant he probably suspected she only pretended to have believed him. And now she had to pretend to not realize he was simply overcompensating for his previous lapse. This was getting pretty complex. What a wonderful mind game!

''Great. I think if you bring some of your assignments that were graded with As and Es I could help you figure out where you make the most errors. For when we study together, that is. How does that sound?'' Of course, Matt would likely have some assignments graded with Es (he had to have some of those, if it were humanely possible to get straight Os from every subject Liana would be doing just that) so he could offer her those and claim he didn't feel comfortable showing the ones that were graded poorly. She wasn't asking for a proof that he was a mediocre student. She was simply letting him know that the game was on.

His next action forced the redhead to wince, however. The boy planted his feet on a book! That was plain sacrilege. Books deserved respect. At least the trio of books that were currently on this table. She did her best to regain control of her facial expression, not wishing him to pick up on her horror at the mistreatment of information sources and to repeat the same action again at some point. To prevent that, Liana took the book off the table and hugged it protectively to her chest, almost as if she was consoling it.

''Careful now, the librarian is quite strict about how books are treated here. I have these three checked out on my name, if I return them damaged I could get a ban from the library or have to pay some fine.'' Most of that was made up. She had not heard of the librarian being stern, nor about having to compensate for the damage dealt to books. Much less about being banned from the place where plenty of assignments required pupils to go. But she had to somehow explain her protectiveness of the book that he likely noted, or probably even tried to actively provoke with his disrespect.

''Anyway, getting to know each other better does sound like a wonderful idea. I think we do have some things in common, although that's not really necessary for a friendship, is it?'' As long as he could challenge her cognitive abilities without being too much of a prick, he was welcome to being as different from her as he wished. She would even play along and let him pretend like he was just an Average Joe, while at the same time sniffing around for more proof that he was anything but average.

Ah, the stipulation of bringing homework along was not only clever but caught him in a bit of a bind. His writing style wasn't exactly the lazy scrawl he usually used at muggle school - annoyed with getting zeroes, he'd fallen into a lawyer's sharp precision, taking after his father. But it wouldn't be too hard to nick a fellow dormmate's crappy paper and scribble his name onto it. Stealing, lying, cheating... Doing all of it to play this game with Liana was going to be bloody fun. This was a new level to the playground kind of mischief he'd previously caused and he couldn't wait to become immersed in it.

"Done deal." It was hard to not to smirk at the girl's reaction to him stepping on the book, and he leaned back to twine his fingers behind his head as he studied her once more. He wasn't sure if the library had genuine posted rules - not that he noticed those kinds of things, anyway - but with the way she was clutching the book like he'd somehow managed to hurt it already, he doubted it was simple fines she was worried about. Especially for someone like her - she had the air of someone from an uppity, rich family... one of those 'purebloods' he kept hearing about, maybe? The whole blood status area of the Wizarding World and its importance was lost on him, but if he wanted to play games with other wizards then maybe he should learn more about it.

Besides, if Liana was aiming for getting ammo on him then he should also try to ferret out any secrets of hers while they were at it. In a magic school with a bunch of kids who came from prestigious wizard families, it would be odd if there weren't a ton of secrets floating around. He wasn't sure what kind of things the people around here liked to keep hidden, but eventually he'd have to find out. Learning and exploiting other people's weaknesses was half the fun of interacting with others.

"We'll find out just how much we have in common, won't we?" he asked, cocking his head to one side with eyes that shone with amusement. You look for my secrets and I'll look for yours. He hoped she had some, it would up the stakes for everyone involved.

Nodding half to himself, he did an about-face, choosing not to comment on the 'friendship' part of her sentence. That was still a concept that made his skin itch, since 'friends' were more emotion-based than allies. He loved mind games and getting into mischief with people, but he'd still never cared enough about anyone to consider them a friend. Caring about someone who wasn't family was weird in general. But some people used the terms friends and allies interchangeably, so he decided he'd just pretend allies was what Liana meant. Friendly allies.

"Anyways, see you at the Ball, Li-Li. Can't wait to see you bust a few moves." He'd definitely be watching out for that, hopefully she wasn't too busy with her Ball coordinating to do some dances. A soft snort of laughter exiting his nose, he wandered out of the library before a professor could come in and think he was doing something as dumb as studying.

Matthew Exits the Thread