Closed crystal blue waters open

Perhaps her favorite part in all of Hogwarts, aside from the Library, was the Lake. There were few places around school where one could find proper quiet and solitude. She could perch herself on the massive rocks, and waste away the afternoon scribbling in her journal or scratching away in her sketchbook with rare disturbance. Of course, it wasn't uncommon to see one or two other students wandering about, but she didn't pay them much mind; and typically she was left well alone.

Today though, as she scribbled away in her journal with a book laid out in her lap, it seemed one less then graceful student took an unexpected dip. The struggled splashing about made the older girl look up from her work as she watched the girl slunk out of the water to the shore like a waterlogged cat. For sake of sparing insult to injury, she bit her cheek in an effort to suppress herself from smiling or laughing at the sight. After all, the girl surely had a shock from the icy water.

Illowy wasn't one to emit an air of warmth and comfort; not in tone, appearance, or presence. It simply wasn't in her nature. However, she wasn't totally heartless.

With a roll of her eyes, she shoved her things into her bag and made her way back to the shore herself. After all, it was getting late; and as an upperclassman she had some responsibility to make sure the younger student hadn't actually hurt more then her pride or something, or freeze before she got back to the castle, "I hope a lesson was learned from that display." she commented, looking the girl up and down as she adjusted her bag on her shoulder. It'd been said before that Illowy had a gaze that made one feel like she was looking right through a person as opposed to at them. Perhaps due to her general stoic nature, or simply because her eyes were a slightly unsettled shade of ghostly blue.

After blushing beet red from the comment of the stranger, Lexie looked closer at the person. With dark brown hair cascading down her shoulders, a slim figure and icy blue eyes, the girl was very pretty. Lexie guessed she was about 15, which made the situation much worse. An absolutely great first impression of Lexie for this older student. Realizing she was staring and didn't reply to the brunette's words, she just nodded. Whatever she said would probably make it worse. Lexie scampered over to her shoes, slipping them on under her socks and dug through her bag for a sweater to dry herself with. Once she felt warm enough, she stood and though for a second.

What to do now? She was still in the vision of the intimidating girl, but did she expect Lexie to walk back to the castle with her? Maybe she was supposed to introduce herself. Well, whatever it was, Lexie needed to make a decision quick, so she took a deep breath and walked over to the girl. With a slight quiver in her voice, she said, "Hi. I'm Lexie, Gryffindor. Sorry about..." She gestured to the Great Lake. "I suppose it wasn't the best of first impressions." Awaiting a response, Lexie forced herself to make eye contact.

Word Count: 224 | Interacting w/ @Illowy Magnard
Text colour: #452790

What was it with younger students these days? All trembles and nerves, all the time. How in the world could they be expected to survive in the wizarding world? She couldn't help but wonder that as the girl timidly approached under her sharp eye and introduced herself. It usually escaped the older snake that she might simply be intimidating without much effort on her own part.

The upperclassman furrowed her brow as the child made some strange attempt at propriety instead of common sense, "I didn't ask." Illowy informed perhaps coming off a bit more apathetic then she wanted, "March before you catch yer death." she then ordered, pointing a thin finger back towards the castle, "Yer lucky enough the squid didn't see ye as a cheery afternoon snack or somethin'." she took a step forward, trying to urge the first year cub back towards the castle. If one thing could be said about Illowy, it was that despite her demeanor, she did have some soft place in her for first years. They were so shiny and new and... well, clueless. Someone had to make sure they didn't accidently kill themselves in some foolish way. Part of her, secretly, envied their having such naivety still.

It was clear to Lexie that the older student wasn't a fan of her but she persevered. She was used to being less than liked, as her competitive nature was too much for some people. Was it so bad that she liked good sportsmanship? Repressing a sigh, she walked forwards towards the bright castle, which was extra illuminated as the sun was setting. The scenery looked as beautiful as usual, but Lexie had a hard time enjoying it. She wasn't sure if the girl was still watching her but after all, she had made it clear she was indifferent to Lexie. Though Lexie could've sworn she saw a bit of warmth in her eyes when she lectured her.

Kicking a few of the pebbles in front of her as she walked, Lexie decided it didn't matter that much what one girl thought of her. Well, unless she was a Prefect or something. Oh god, what if she was the captain of the Quidditch team? Lexie's chances would be shot if that was the case. Maybe she should've turned on the charm, she thought, though deep inside she knew it wouldn't have made a difference. This girl seemed sober and stoic in general, and Lexie was literally the least charming person she knew. Her thoughts eventually led to dinner plans and her stomach started to rumble so she picked up the pace to the castle.

Lexie wondered if she would see the older student at the feast that night, after all it was a small world. But judging from their interaction, it might've been better if that didn't happen.

Word Count: 280 | Interacting w/ @Illowy Magnard | Text colour: #452790

As the cub started back towards the castle, Illowy gave a roll of her eyes and adjusted her bag on her shoulder before starting back as well. After all, the autumn sun would set quickly and no good ever came of wandering about the grounds at night; no matter what year you were. That was a lesson she'd quickly learned, but she wasn't quite cruel enough to lecture the younger girl about every little thing that could ever go wrong. They had teachers for that, and they'd learn soon enough on their own.

As they made their way, Illowy wondered if perhaps she might've offered a bit of a friendlier tone. After all, the girl had taken quite a tumble, she might've at least asked if she was alright. Illowy often took the stance that as long as one was able to get back on their feet, they were probably fine, but maybe that was a bit much to expect of younger students. Then again, she seemed fine enough to get on her way, so the snake figured she was ultimately fine aside from being a bit wet. Even still, it would probably be more awkward then anything to question about wellbeing now.

When the Courtyard came into closer view, Illowy picked up pace slightly to be just a step or two ahead of the other, "Go straight to yer house and put on something proper warm and dry. It too bloody cold, and the castle is too drafty to be runnin' about in anything else when ye left yerself that soaked through." she instructed, meaning well, though... her tone was likely to always be her fatal flaw.