Closed A Staircase to Nowhere PV Catherine Drea

Cathy hummed to herself, happy to retreat back to her common room. She had just came back from a tough lesson on potions. Normally, she didn’t mind the class and she was good at following instructions. But the potions had to be precise, one little drop extra would mess with the results. She was dreadfully worried the entire time but now, with it all said and done, she could simply retreat back to the common room and relax.

As the tiny child hopped up ontop the staircase, thoughtfully so as to not trip on the steps, and she huffed. Why does this place have so many stairs? The thought popped into her mind as she trudged on. She felt the staircase move and she was relived that soon after this tiring journey she would be met with a warm, fluffy bed.

The stair suddenly stopped abruptly, throwing her foward a little. Huh? She looked over at the platform it was supposed to connect with, yet the stairs hadn't slid into place like normally. No, they were hanging off, on both ends of the stairs. it was like some sort of weird 45 degree angle, where neither side was connected, just floating mid-air. It was supposed to connect as the middle piece, sandwiching itself between two other staircases lined up along the wall, but currently? It was just, stuck.

Originally, the girl was more confused than scared, the realization of what had occured not fully reaching her. She looked over the railing and found herself immediately iching back after catching a glismpe of the fall. It was a VERY long drop, one that made her insides churn and she felt sick. As the staircase refused to move, the true beginning of panic began to seep in for the young girl.

Her eyes darted around in a frantic motion, looking for anything to help her. Soon, the child was shaking like a leaf, holding onto the railing for dear life. She remembered that she had her wand on her, but at-last, she was but an inexperience first year. She had never learned a single spell and now, now she was in danger as the thought of that drop presented itself in her mind again. She curled up, trying to remain composed before letting out a few whimpers, She was truly stuck up here. She tugged on her braids, a nervous tick she did. Fear began to take hold of her as she pondered the fates that could lay in store for her, all gruesome. She had only one thought running continiously through her brain during this stage of paralyzed panic.

This would not end well.

Simon had his enchanted satchel open and was digging inside it, trying to find a particular notebook inside when the staircase clicked. That meant it had met with the other part and he could continue walking and he almost did so, instinctively, without even looking - until a whimper caught his attention.

It wasn't very loud, and honestly if it wasn't coming from someone so close to him, he probably wouldn't have realized but it caught his attention enough that he glanced up. The first thing he noticed was that the end of the staircase had not clicked into place despite it coming to a stop. Simon glanced over his shoulder to the other end to see that it too had moved from its rightful spot, but yet still hovered unattached.

Well, that was odd.

Simon then turned his attention to the girl that was gripping the handrail as if she were about to fall and meet her maker within any moment.

"Hey, hey.... it's okay. We're alright. We've got this. We just need to wait a couple moments and this staircase will be moving again in no time," he said with an encouraging smile and then stood there, looking at the edge of the staircase that they were closest to as if it were going to move on his command. Nope. Nothing.

That was fine. A little hesitation. It would move. Any second now. Any second. Any.........

Simon sighed. Maybe not, but it wasn't like they would be stuck there forever.

"Okay, let me rephrase that. We're alright, we've got this. We just need to hang out here a little bit and that staircase will move soon," and he came and sat down on the steps and patted the spot next to him for her to sit - in the middle - and away from the edge. "I had this happen once last year. Is it your first year?"

Anxious thoughts danced in Cathy’s head. A swimming circle of painful scenarios for her were currently playing out in her mind. Fear took hold of her, entrapping her entire mind. But, just as she found herself getting more worked up, a voice broke through the darkness.
“Hey, hey….it’s ok. We’re alright. We’ve got this. We just need to wait a couple moments and this staircase will be moving again in no time,” a comforting voice spoke. Cathy looked up, surprised by the intrusion of other person. She hadn’t noticed another person before but then again whenever she entered this sort of mindset she wasn’t the most physically aware of her surroundings.

Her eyes locked in with a boy, a few years older than her no doubt. He wore a kind smile. Cathy took a few deep breaths, the rationale of the boy reaching her mind. Yeah, it did seem like she was worrying over nothing. As she realized the lack of danger, she felt embarrassment fill her body. Oh of course, she freaks out over something as trivial as stairs. She met the eyes of the boy again, this time ready with a response.

”Yeah, yeah, that….sounds right. Um….Sorry, I get worked up easily,” She spoke, tone soft and apologetic, her strong Irish accent definitely noticeable . She gave him a thankful look, one that voiced the words she could not seem to get out, ‘thanks for calming me down’. Hm, she probably worried this boy over nothing. Guilt filled her a moment before she let the silence ring.

The words were enough of a comfort so that she was able to let go of the railing, yet she still kept a single hand latched on, not tightly but more of a ‘just in case’.

She waited a few moments, nothing happened. Odd, the boy said this would take a few moments, but patience is a virtue. So she remained as composed as she should while waiting. It took a few more moments for the boy sighed and spoke up again.

”Okay, let me rephrase that. We’re alright, we’ve got this. We just need to hang out here a little bit and that staircase will move soon,” The boy declared and Cathy felt herself give a small nod. Just a little bit longer, she reminded herself. But the thought of that drop was once again present and that sickly feeling returned, for a mere fraction of a second. She bit her lip, not hard, just something to distract herself from the troubling thoughts in her head. However, the boy grabbed her focus again when he moved, sitting on the step. He patted the spot next to him, an inviting gesture. Before Cathy could even process this, the boy asked something.

”I had this happen to me once last year. Is this your first year?” The boy casually inquired. Surprise found its way onto her face. Oh, he actually wanted to talk? Well, alright then, she was, honestly, horrible at small talk but she’d be willing to give it a shot. Cathy found herself moving over to him. Drop of death or not, she was at least going to engage with someone while talking to them. That’s just manners. She sat next to the boy, thankful that the spot of the step was far from the edges and let out a breath of relief. She then turned to the boy.

”Er-yeah, this is my first year,” She admitted a little awkwardly, adding, ”Everything’s just so new, you know?”. She looked at the boy, waiting for a response. He seemed confident enough with the whole magic school thing, then again he was far more experienced. She was a mere beginner in the grand scheme of things. But, his comment regarding the stairs did raise a concern in her brain and she looked over, tone a bit more worried as she voiced her question in a meek tone.

”D-Does this happen often?”She questioned, usually soft voice rising a tad due to the panic laced under the words. She gave a disturbed look at the implications of the magic staircase acting up regularly.

"No, not too often, but often enough that by the time you reach your third year it won't be a surprise," he said and glanced over to his open satchel. Simon reached inside, trying to figure out where he had placed them in the expansive place - that was always the trouble with enchanted satchels and backpacks: if you didn't know exactly where you placed something and you had a lot inside, it was sometimes nearly impossible to find one particular thing. Finally though his hands rested upon it and he pulled out a cellophane baggie which contained small yellow candies. "Lemon drop?" he asked, offering her one if she should want it. He would then take one for himself and pop it into his mouth.

"I'm Simon. Simon Kincaid." He was about to introduce himself as a Hufflepuff, since it was a Sunday and he wasn't wearing his normal Hufflepuff robes, but something told him he had seen her perhaps in passing in the Common Room before. Perhaps she was a fellow badger.

"You said everything's so new here. Hogwarts, or the magical world itself? I was a downright mess my first year. Everything and anything was so amazing to me because I hadn't grown up with any prior knowledge to this world. It's all so very fascinating though."