Brand New Badgers PV Liv Hartley Closed

What was it that he had done to deserve this? What was it about him that made this little blonde girl so intent on talking to him? It was really starting to make him uncomfortable. Was that desperation he saw in her eyes? He tried not to visibly squirm. He felt his heel starting to tap the ground beneath the bench, he wanted to run. Run far away.

Reynolds was so used to being invisible, people just didn’t notice him or look at him the way Liv was. Like he was really there. And as much as his legs were straining to get up and leave, he stayed. Yes, partly because running through the Great Hall with the entire population of Hogwarts would bring entirely too much attention to himself. But also partly because as uncomfortable as her attention made him, he kind of liked being talked to like he was wanted.

The only people who had ever really acted like they wanted him around was his little sister and his dad. He hadn’t seen his sister in years and his dad was clearly not at Hogwarts, so maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing to have someone around him that seemed to want him around. Like a friend? What a strange concept.

Reynolds let loose a small smile, less awkwardly now. “Well I guess we don’t have to worry about it until Christmas anyway. We usually spend Christmas with my dad's friend, he lives in London too. Maybe we could combine forces?”

He was drawing a blank trying to come up with something else to say, when he was saved by the end of the sorting ceremony. The last first year had finally been seated and things became quiet as there was a short introduction speech. Then, finally, mercifully, the feast began. As soon as permission was given, students at every table went into a flurry of motion.

Reynolds didn’t want to get his hand ripped off in case someone thought it was a drumstick, so he kept his hands in his lap and waited for everyone else to get what they wanted before piling up his own plate. He started to worry that there wouldn’t be enough food, in particular he was staring at a plate of bread rolls that was nearly picked clean after half a minute. His lips parted in a silent plea that there would be at least one roll left for him. But even before the last one disappeared the plate filled back up with steaming, fresh bread rolls.

Reynolds's blue eyes widened to about the size of his dinner plate at the sight. He really was never going to have to worry about food again.

There were times when she felt as though he was scrutinising every little thing she said and questioning it as though she wasn't sure about what she was saying. If she was totally honest with herself, the large majority of the time she didn't know what she was saying. She was never going to win any awards for being verbose or concise, that she had already accepted. Some might call it charming, whereas others likely just felt awkward on her behalf. To her credit, Liv did her best not to express the abject terror that if he turned his back and walked away from her she didn't have a back up plan or someone else to engage in conversation with. Yes, there were other students, but he was so amenable and a great listener and she had already organised for him to come over to her house to celebrate Christmas! It she hadn't even been in the school for 24 hours yet. If he found someone else better matched perhaps all these future plans would be usurped too! Perhaps he'd realise she was a fraud and leave her behind to fend for herself.

It wouldn't exactly be the first time she had had to make do. To resign herself to the fact she wasn't going to have steady companions and make weekend plans together. The blonde knew that lifestyle; she'd lived it upto date. It wasn't fun though and she wouldn't recommend it to anyone else! She had hoped that Neil might be different. He was supposed to be her fresh start and to signify a new beginning. Yet with every hesitation and each reason proferred as to why it wasn't a viable option she felt a sliver of hope plummet. If she couldn't even convince someone she had only just met that she was a viable candidate for friendship, what hope was there for the rest of the year? Or the six that followed that. Seven years in unfamiliar territory with people who had sized her up and determined against her would make for a lonely existence, particularly without home comforts and her parents to console her. It was only the first night, yes, but that was when everyone made first impressions and those stuck with people. You never got a second chance to make a first impression and despite her every intent, it seemed as though she was failing in her endeavours.

"Bring him too! If we're cooking for five, what's one more?" she declared jovially, presuming her mum would be of the same accord. It would double her usual workload but if it made her daughter smile she would likely aquiesce. Such was her hope, anyway! Maybe she'd write to her tomorrow when she had a better feel for numbers. For all she knew Neil was one of nine and there were ten before factoring the friend in, too! "You do eat meat right? Turkey...chipolatas? Turkey gravy? My mum makes the most amazing gravy you have to try it! I'm sure she adds something, like a secret ingredient, but I've never managed to figure it out!" It was probably wisest to keep Liv out of the kitchen at all costs. She had once tried to make jam tarts but the pastry was salty and the jam burned in the oven. Supposedly it was a simple recipe but it had failed for the blonde and following that she had never again tried. One day she might learn, but cookery was not a strong point for the young Hufflepuff or indeed her family.

She was about to ask Reynolds if he could cook, and whether he had a signature dish when food appeared before them. Piles and piles of it the length of the table. "Where did this come from? I didn't see anyone bring it! Did you see anyone bring it in?" she posed to her new acquaintance. The aromas were mingling together to make her salivate at the culminated aroma. At the same time, she wondered whether maybe it was a test. If nobody brought it into the hall, who was to say they weren't imagining it even being there? She watched Hook. The Lost Boys were so hungry they envisioned what they wanted to see and conjured it from their mind - maybe that occured here? They were so hungry that they dreamt up a veritable feast? Indeed, Neil hadn't touched it yet either so she wasn't alone in thinking it might be tainted! "What if it's not real? What if it's a trick? I mean, you didn't see anyone carry trays of food in...and I didn't see anyone carry trays of food in. It didn't get here by itself. Who cooked it?" When something seemed too good to me true, chances were it was, and there was something really strange about food just turning up from nowhere.

Quickly grabbing one of the appearing rolls, Reynolds pointedly was not responding to the Christmas invitation prompts from Liv anymore. Who knew where they would be by the time Christmas came around? He never thought that far ahead. Too many things could happen between now and then, so what was the point of making a plan when it would probably just fall apart?

He did however give the Hufflepuff girl a side look as she went on about the food not being real. Why was she so worried about if the food was real or who brought it in? Oh Merlin, was that how he sounded to other people? Or rather, would that be how he sounded to other people if they could read his thoughts? Could magic folk read thoughts? Was someone reading his thoughts right now? He looked around suspiciously for half a second before realizing that was ridiculous and also very much not what he had originally been thinking.

What had he been thinking? Oh right, how worried Liv sounded over something so trivial. And how he did the same thing, just not out loud. It actually made him smile slightly, a tick at the edge of his lips really.

“I guess there’s only one way to find out,” he said, and took a bite out of the roll. He chewed it slowly and swallowed.

“Well that one tasted real, but maybe everything but the rolls are fake,” he shrugged. “Grab something and try it for yourself. That plate of ham in particular looks like it could just be a figment of my imagination.”

Reynolds forced his grin to stretch a bit more to show that he was only joking, he didn’t want Liv to think he was insinuating she was stupid or anything for being worried. Being talked down to was his own biggest pet peeve after all.

It didn't escape her notice that he hadn't accepted her offer to celebrate Christmas together. At the same time, the fact he hadn't outright rejected it and instead chose to ignore it gave her the hope that he was quietly accepting of it. He was, after all, the first and only person to ever truly show any interest in her. She wasn't about to lose her first friend because she hadn't been convincing enough or adamant enough! The train ride had been quiet but her excitement about a new place to explore meant she wasn't too bothered by that fact. The questions went through her mind about what subjects were learned here though she had briefly glanced at the titled of her schoolbooks, where they would all sleep - there seemed to be a lot of students - and whether she would feel more magical once she had attended some classes or arrived in the Castle. Maybe you had to stand in a specific spot to feel the rush of magic course through your veins and to feel intrinsically magical? The only thing her dad had told her was that she had to be sorted before anything and that it was a painless ceremony. Beyond that, she was on her own to figure this all out!

He seemed confused by her assertions about the food. It was perfectly logical to the blonde. Someone made the food, and then brought it to the table. You watched the entire process from ingredients, to cooking to it arriving at the right place for them to eat. The very idea that food might just turn up from nowhere and adorn the table in a veritable feast didn't sit right with her. How did that happen? The fact that nobody else appeared to be questioning it baffled the Hufflepuff. Was this normal in the wizarding world? Did people just not cook? Surely they had to eat somehow! The overeager faces of her housemates seemed to indicate that food was a short commodity. Or at the very least that they were incredibly hungry. Perhaps this was just a first night thing. Either way, Neil turned back to the food and she winced trying to determined whether or not he was being brave or foolish - possibly a combination of the two if such a thing existed. Then he reached for a roll and she had to fight her instinct to smack his hand away. "Please don't die on me! I just got here! I don't know any magic spells yet that could save you. Plus I'd really like to not lose a friend this early on!" she pleaded, her eyes trained on his face for any signs of his being unwell, or for the food to just disappear once he took a bite out of it.

"Oh, thank goodness you survived!" she breathed, releasing a breath she hadn't known she had taken. "I don't know how I'd write to my parents saying you were coming for Christmas but that you didn't make it past the first night!" Then he mentioned other foods might not be real and she felt the uncertainty and doubt rising once more...until she saw Neil's smile and decided that just maybe the food wasn't fake after all. "So I guess we're in Pufflehuff now!" Liv exclaimed, reaching for a chicken leg. It sure smelt good, so she hoped it tasted as good as it looked. "I wonder what House my dad was in. Maybe he was a fellow Huff too? Did your parents come here? What Houses were they in? I bet you know a ton of magic already, don't you?" That might've been a bold assumption to make considering that her dad hadn't remotely helped her out, but she assumed most parents would help their children to transition into the Castle and with their magical teachings. And Neil seemed pretty confident in himself and with his approach to everything.

Reynolds could do nothing but shake his head at Liv Hartley, he really did think it was silly. She saw all the other people eating didn’t she? Why would she think that the food was sinister or would even kill him? Did she think it was poisoned? Actually, he hadn’t thought of that. What if - no - no, bad thoughts, Reynolds chastised himself. Of course it wasn’t actually poisoned, that was just his own imagination running wild. Liv certainly wasn’t going to be someone to keep him down to earth apparently.

He piled his plate high with more food while she talked about how relieved she was that he was alive. He grabbed some of the ham he had pointed out earlier, noting that she did not reach for it. He started chewing a piece as she unleashed a slew of questions on him about his family. What made her think that he was just going to answer and give her such personal information? Just because she was so free to go on and on about her mum and dad didn’t mean he would do the same.

Reynolds shrugged his shoulders and swallowed his bite. “I’m not sure about houses, er well except that my brother Will is somewhere - somewhere over there in Ravenclaw. But uhm I don’t really know - really know much about magic. Not that I’m stupid or anything, my dad just didn’t teach - didn’t teach me much.”

He stuffed the uneaten half of his roll into his mouth to give him an excuse not to talk anymore. His stutter was being really bad. She probably thought he was stupid. He shouldn’t have added that bit about not being stupid. Only stupid people needed to bring up that they weren’t stupid.

If Will was there he would have said something about Reynolds needing to speak up, or stop stuttering, or just stop talking altogether. He didn’t mean too, but he glanced back up at the Ravenclaw table. He didn’t see Will, but the hairs on the back of his neck stood up like his brother was over there watching him. Which was silly, Will didn’t want anything to do with him, he had made that much clear already, and it wasn’t like he could hear what he was saying anyway, right?

“Anyway,” Reynolds swallowed his bread and wanted to change the subject as quickly as possible. “Are you going to - going to eat that chicken or just - uh just smell it?”

The entire ride here she had wondered how they would be sorted into different Houses, and whether it would require them to cast any spells and perform. She knew she wasn't going to do well on any practical test. Nor would she pass a written test based on the almost nothing she knew upto this point. A hat sorting them seemed like a laughable concept and yet it had placed both herself and Neil into Flufflepuff which may or may not prove to be a good fit. That still had to be determined. Maybe this would be the place she would form lifelong friendships. Or any friendships. School was supposed to be the best place to form strong relationships, though it hadn't helped her dad. Infact, he rarely broached the topic of his schooldays leaving her more than a little puzzled about his time in education. She knew he wasn't a great student, that was abundantly clear, but surely he had thusly used his time to engage others and have adventures with those he was closest to. Yet if that was the case, why wasn't he more vocal about his time at the school? Why didn't he share wisdom and happy moments from his childhood? Why hadn't he better prepared his daughter for this crazy adventure she was set to embrace?

Was it really any wonder that she was so suspicious? They had been sorted via a hat which talked to them, gave them a thorough mental assessment and then decided where they would be spending the next seven years of their Hogwarts life. Their food had materialised from nowhere and she was expected to be fine with it. She didn't even know anyone yet besides Neil who was unfortunate in that he happened to be sat besides her and knocked into her unwittingly. She had no idea who the professors were that lined the back wall. Who the man was who had talked before the hat began it's mammoth task. She had been fidgeting and anxiety about what was to come had been more prevalent in those moments as she worked to restore calm and to not overthink the situation. Listening to him mention his brother and dad she felt a kinship with the boy who appeared almost as clueless as she was. "Neither did mine! I wonder if they're trying to hide their schooling. I already know my dad was a rubbish student so I can't imagine what else he's trying to hide from me!" What was interesting was the mention of his brother. It seemed almost apologetic. "I'm surprised your brother didn't regale you with tales of his time at school! Isn't that what annoying older siblings do?"

Now she was speculating. Being an only child, she had no concept of how an older, or indeed younger, child might react at any given moment. Liv only knew how she would behave were she an older sibling. The Castle seemed both foreboding and yet full of promises and fun opportunities. Somewhere to really explore and enjoy. Who wouldn't come home and excitedly tell their family about the amazing opportunities afforded to them now and the adventures they might now engage in? "Are you two close? I thought brothers would share everything they could to thoroughly prepare you for everything?" she posed, keeping an eye on him as he swallowed more food. Still alive. Maybe..? "I don't think you're stupid, by the way!" she added, lest he think she thought he was because she hadn't stated otherwise. "I mean, I don't know you yet but you don't seem stupid to me. Reckless maybe, eating the food without questioning it, but not stupid." Then he made reference to the chicken she was now staring at and she startled not having realised that she had been engaged in a staring contest with a leg of chicken - she hadn't even won. "You're still breathing so that's a good sign..." she relented, bringing it to her mouth. It looked real. It certainly smelt real. Allowing her teeth to dig into the meat, she chewed, swallowed and then smiled brightly at the boy clearly awaiting her verdict. "It's delicious. If this is all a dream and the food is a figment of my imagination, I dreamt up some tasty chicken!" she laughed.