Candles
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| xxx | Lottie carefully managed to procure a second slice for herself, and plated it while Kaitlyn took her first bite. She wasn't sure why she was so anxious. It was perhaps due to the fact that she hadn't made much effort to bake in her youth, and also partially due to the fact that she was not quite accustomed to sharing. Her siblings had cemented that long ago. She, too, was unused to the art of eating with her hands, unless it was respectable finger foods that she was sure wouldn't stick. She waited, carefully keeping her gaze even and soft. Ever since she was young, she had this strange tendency to stare. Her sister had found it creepy, her mother had found it un-ladylike, and Lottie had found it endlessly embarrassing. She had to concentrate very hard not to stare. Very, very hard. The effort almost created the opposite effect. "You're welcome," she said with a half-full smile, "It's my sister's recipe, really. You should be thanking her." A flood of relief rushed through her as Kaitlyn exclaimed her pleasure, and it was enough for Lottie to gain enough confidence for her own bite. She carefully lowered her fingers into the cool frosting, plucking out a small piece and bringing it to her lips. As soon as it collided with her tongue, a rush of memories came pouring into her mind. Late nights, warm candles, laughter that brought red to her cheeks. The overwhelmingness of it all pulled a sigh from her chest. "It's just as I remember it," she whispered softly after swallowing, looking down at the smooth frosting stuck between her fingers. | xxx |
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| ✦"You better start walking. Love takes miles."✦ STA 8 │ EVA 8 │ STR 6 │ WIS 6 │ ARC 6 │ ACC 7 |
Candles
As awkward and shy as Kaitlyn could be, she didn’t mind the other girl looking at her. Normally, she’d be blushing and a complete mess. But, as this was Lottie’s birthday … and she was trying her cake, she didn’t feel as self-conscious as she normally would. To be fair, Kaitlyn felt silly with the cool icing and cake crumbs on her fingertips. It was not how she was taught to eat at all. And yet, she frankly didn’t care. This was to celebrate Lottie’s birthday, and her fellow third-year deserved to have someone to celebrate it with. Even if it was just with Kaitlyn.
A giggle escaped Kaitlyn’s lips at Lottie’s whisper. She gently licked at some of the icing on her fingertips … very unladylike, but she still did so. A smile danced on her lips. She gently dabbed at her mouth to clean off any crumbs. “Your sister’s recipe is amazing,” she replied quietly. She looked back at Lottie and smiled kindly. “Then again, you’re the one who made it. As awesome as the recipe is, you could still mess it up when following it. Don’t sell yourself short. You did an amazing job baking this and executing the recipe. I’m glad it came out well for you.”
Looking back at the cake, Kaitlyn tore off another piece. This time, her movement was more confident and less shy than it had been before. Just because she was not used to behaving in such a manner did not mean that she immediately thought it was beneath her. If there is one thing she learned so far at Hogwarts, it was not to make assumptions about others easily. Opinions took time to manifest. Besides, she’d hate to assume something about others, and it could be easily wrong. She’d rather take her time, in her opinion.
She slid the cake and frosting to her lips again, taking another bite. Kaitlyn let out a contented and happy sigh. So much chocolately and hazelnuty goodness! She gently dabbed at her lips again. “Do you enjoy baking?” She asked quietly, hoping to learn more about her fellow Slytherin.
Word Count: 365 words
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| xxx | Kaitlyn's words filled Lottie with a sort of inexplicable warmth that was difficult for the girl to fully wrap her mind around. It was strange, these little interactions Lottie found herself caught in the middle of, seemingly by accident. Kaitlyn was no stranger, but she wasn't someone Lottie had never imagined herself sitting outside on the grounds floor with, licking sweet frosting off her fingers. A smile tugged at her lips, uninvited and yet not untrue. She ran a slow thumb over her mouth, pretending to clean it off. Lottie wasn't used to the thoroughness of these compliments. She had to wait a beat to regain her senses before she replied, "Well... thank you. It certainly wasn't easy." A sharp wind blew past quite suddenly, and she had to grab at her sweater to keep from freezing. Perhaps not the wisest decision, dining in the Fall chill. Although, it wasn't entirely undesirable. Lottie had thrown pretty much all of her eating manners to the wind, her spindly fingers pulling out neat chunks of cake and popping them into her mouth like candy. It really was quite tasty. She flushed with gentle pride at the small success. Francis was the chef of the family, however withdrawn he was with his talents. She attempted to imagine what he would say about her cake, but failed to conjure up any image of him being outspoken in any way. At Kaitlyn's question, Lottie laughed slightly. "It's fun, I suppose. I'm not too good at it." Hobbies weren't really her greatest strength, at least outside of the consumption of knowledge. She wasn't sure if that counted as a formal hobby, though. "And you?" | xxx |
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| ✦"You better start walking. Love takes miles."✦ STA 8 │ EVA 8 │ STR 6 │ WIS 6 │ ARC 6 │ ACC 7 |
Candles
As polite as she could be … and as much etiquette as she wanted to show … Kaitlyn realized pretty early on that trying to fit the magical world and Hogwarts into her worldview would be difficult. If she took offense to every little slight against what she was taught as etiquette, she’d have very few friends … if any. That didn’t give her a reason to completely abandon it, but it provided her with an excuse to relax her thoughts on the matter. After all, how else was she to sit outside eating cake with her hands and licking frosting from her fingers?
With the sharp gust of wind, Kaitlyn instinctively drew her cardigan closer to her body. Was she dressed appropriately for the fall chill? Not even in the slightest. Yet, she wouldn’t simply change that fact. Why let a silly thing like the weather impact her decision-making? She was a witch, after all. She looked to Lottie and nodded. That was so very true. Baking was not necessarily easy … especially if it wasn’t something you did often.
“I’m glad you tried,” she whispered. It was silly, of course … who would be outside to actually hear the two girls talking, anyway? Regardless, Kaitlyn was awfully shy and quiet. The company she maintained wouldn’t suddenly change that fact. Although this was entirely her choice to join. Treating the cake to her graceful movements, she carefully removed another piece of the cake from her serving and popped it into her mouth. The explosion of chocolate and hazelnut flooded her taste buds.
Kaitlyn uttered another contented sigh. This was lovely, in her opinion. With the hand not currently covered in frosting, she gently played with one of her pigtail braids. A kind smile danced on her lips. “You don’t have to be modest … I’m not going to judge you,” she spoke softly. She looked up to the clouds in the sky, staying silent for a few moments before speaking about herself.
“Not as much as I’d like. I have yet to venture to the fabled Hogwarts kitchens.”
Word Count: 349 words
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| xxx | Despite the trickling drops of kindness slipping between the two, Lottie couldn't help but feel a small swirl of anxiety in the depths of her gut. It was impossible, but she felt as though her head had opened up, and every single one of her thoughts was on full display for the other girl to see. She felt terribly known. It was frightening, and strangely familiar. The cake sat motionlessly in her stomach, spreading a gentle ache through her. Lottie licked away the remaining frosting from her fingers with a soft smack. The warmth was fleeting but satisfying, a reminder that she had chosen the cold over company. And yet she still got it. Funny, how things worked out like that. Tucking her knees to her chest, she attempted to find some distant humor in that sentiment. "I know," Lottie whispered, the breeze catching on her bangs and making them shiver, "I know you wouldn't. You seem nice." Seem, because really, Lottie didn't know. Many people seemed a certain way and thought another. Internal versus external. The damning fact of the mind. Lottie hated how she thought like that, how she couldn't seem to focus on the surface. She wanted Kaitlyn to be a good person. She hoped, really, in her heart of hearts, that it was all genuine. But her trust was much more finicky than her hope. "It's not all its cracked up to be," Lottie replied quietly, recalling the sensory nightmare that was the kitchens. "It's quite loud. There are lots of different smells and sounds and things." | xxx |
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Candles | |
| ✦"You better start walking. Love takes miles."✦ STA 8 │ EVA 8 │ STR 6 │ WIS 6 │ ARC 6 │ ACC 7 |
Candles
Despite her initial awkwardness with eating the cake, Kaitlyn finished her piece. The tasty chocolate and hazelnut flavor lingered on her taste buds. She quietly licked the last remnants of the frosting from her fingers. The booming reminders of etiquette were pushed aside in her mind … at least for now, while sitting out here with Lottie. Right now didn’t seem like the time to roll back to old habits. However, there was a practical concern. It wasn’t particularly warm outside. Just the fact of licking icing from her fingers … she was trying her best to ignore the chill accompanying the lack of etiquette. As such, she briefly dried her fingers on her cardigan … in hopes of calming the added coldness.
The young girl returned to playing with her braids; each movement was slow and careful. It was almost as if she was testing whether it was real that she was sitting here like this. While Kaitlyn had friends, she was hardly the talkative sort … vastly preferring to stay quiet when possible. Then again, it wasn’t like she tried to be rude, either. It was a careful balance, in her opinion.
Kailtyn glanced at Lottie, curious about the word choice. Despite the curiosity, she kept the thought at bay. It wasn’t information that she particularly deserved to know. Besides, she was far too polite to ask. In response, she kept quiet for a few beats, weaving her hair between her fingers in contemplative thought. "This is nice," she finally replied, quietly, with a kind smile. This made her wonder if Lottie celebrated with any of the other students … and if she’d be willing to let Kaitlyn celebrate with her in other years.
She snorted at the response about the Hogwarts Kitchens. Indeed, a room of house elves busy at work wouldn’t be silent at all. It didn’t sound like the type of room one would roam to for peace and quiet. "That sounds like a perfect time … to get lost in a recipe … as chaos ensues around you … Box yourself in a cocoon of focus and frustration."
Word Count: 354 words
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| xxx | Despite being unused to this peace, Lottie was slowly easing into it. Letting her guard down for one single day out of the year couldn't hurt her, and Kaitlyn didn't seem to have a harmful bone in her body. It was much unlike Lottie's past birthdays, spent in the quiet of her bedroom at the very tip of midnight, her sister singing in a whisper so as not to disturb the rest of the house. It was perhaps the one selfless thing her eldest sister could muster. Thinking about that too much made her heart ache. Despite her notorious inability to withstand the cold, it seemed that having company helped. Being out here was far mor preferable than wilting away under the weight of her covers. Every shiver that rolled down her spine seemed minor in comparison to the warmth swelling in her heart, the satisfaction of having at least one thing go right amidst all the turbulence. "It is nice," Lottie agreed with the softest of smiles, looking up at Kaitlyn through her bangs. "Thank you. I'm glad you joined me." Though genuity was certainly not Lottie's strong-suit, the words seemed to give themselves meaning. Lottie wondered if it was possible to not know the truth of something until it was said. She managed to finish her cake not long after Kaitlyn, licking the remaining frosting off her fingers and wiping her mouth. The remaining treats she had brought no longer sounded as appetizing to her full stomach. With a slow exhale, she sat back on her hands. "That's quite the metaphor." As typical with the Slytherin girl, all the food went straight to her head, making her eyelids droop. She imagined she could sleep the rest of the day off and then some. She masked a soft yawn behind her hand. "Merlin, I think I'm fed for the month." | xxx |
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Candles | |
| ✦"You better start walking. Love takes miles."✦ STA 8 │ EVA 8 │ STR 6 │ WIS 6 │ ARC 6 │ ACC 7 |
Candles
Looking at Lottie, Kaitlyn smiled. She was glad to be a part of this … even if it was only because she stumbled upon it. Regardless of the reason behind it … she was still happy. With her awkwardness, she always surprised her when other students wanted to spend time with her … especially now as an awkward prefect. Yet, she wasn’t about to point out such a fact. That was the last thing she wanted to do. Sure, she knew how to be polite, but politeness wouldn’t excuse how painfully awkward it would be to point out just how awkward she was. At least it didn’t accompany stuttering!
“Thank you for letting me join you,” Kaitlyn replied quietly. She knew other students held birthday parties all the time, so she also had no idea if she was accidentally joining when she wasn’t invited. Thankfully, that didn’t appear to be the case! Regardless, she withheld the surprise in her voice. Her mind rolled with many questions. She was a rather curious girl, after all … and she tried her best to quell the weirdest of her questions.
Kaitlyn quietly giggled at the metaphor comment. Indeed, it was. One of the (admittedly very long list) of behaviors she learned at her posh muggle boarding school, St. Ann’s. Polite young women needed to learn the mystery of poetic prose. At least … that was what she was told at school. Looking at her journal and her sketchbooks, she rather enjoyed writing poetry … some of which was full of metaphors! The far better aspect to look at … was just how many of her pieces rhymed? That was harder, by far! At least … it was in her opinion. The young snake was often full of opinions, despite having no desire to utter most of them.
“All the more reason for why it was an excellent cake,” she giggled. She understood that feeling, especially when she ate a lot. When she became that same way, it was usually in the comfort of her dorm room, cuddled with Demeter, her cute bunny … not sprawled outside on a blanket in cool temperatures. Then again, this could easily be crossed off her bucket list of something she didn’t think she could accomplish.
“Other than enjoying such an amazing masterpiece of a cake … what do you like to do on your birthday?” Kaitlyn asked softly. She wanted to try her best to be friendly.
Word Count: 410 words
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| xxx | Lottie sucked the last of the frosting from her thumb, a gesture that would have otherwise sent her spiraling if she hadn't been so lost in the haze of the serene evening. She couldn't help but recognize the impact Kaitlyn had on the day. It was thankless, true kindness. The prospect sent strange chills down her spine. At Kaitlyn's gratitude, Lottie quickly shook her head. "No, no, there's no need to thank me." Carefully, she began to fold up the napkins and plates, using her wand to do most of the heavy-lifting. Once the blanket was just about clear of dishes, Lottie was forced to return her gaze to the other girl. It was odd, but it seemed that her kindness set a standard for Lottie, one that she felt increasingly pressured to meet. "You really didn't have to do this." Though she could have spent the whole day sitting there with Kaitlyn, feasting on lopsided cake and strawberries, the drowsy effects of a full stomach were beginning to set in. She thought that perhaps the best of the day was over, and that the only thing left to do was sleep the evening away. It was a melancholy thing, to cut the evening short. With the bit of time that she could still manage, she rested back on the blanket and allowed herself to drift into some rare small talk. She wasn't usually this easygoing. Kaitlyn seemed to have a strange effect on her. "I never used to do much," she replied, picking at the fraying edge of the blanket, "My parents didn't really believe in birthdays. And, in any case, there were too many of us to keep track of so many important dates." Lottie paused. It wasn't the whole truth. "Well... there was one day. It was the year before I came here. My parents were away for the week and my sister dragged me down to the nearest muggle town for the day." She allowed a soft smile at the memory, though it came with mixed feelings. "There was a theater playing reruns of some old movie. I can't recall the name now. Something about a girl and a dog and witches and emeralds. I was enamored, naturally." Lottie drifted off. It was bittersweet, memories of her youth mingling with what she knew now of her sister. | xxx |
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Candles | |
| ✦"You better start walking. Love takes miles."✦ STA 8 │ EVA 8 │ STR 6 │ WIS 6 │ ARC 6 │ ACC 7 |
Candles
As Lottie cleaned up, Kaitlyn watched silently. Despite being a witch in her third year, she was so used to doing things by hand … er, a better description would be the muggle way. Without magic. Much, much slower, to be sure. Sure, magic made things easier, but she was often pretty slow when it came to changing her routine. This was especially true when she didn’t see a reason to change her routine at all, at least in her opinion.
At Lottie’s words, Kait nodded. It was quite true. She didn’t have to join. Rather, she could’ve just continued with her patrol. Skip around the grounds, on the watch for rule-breaking (er, let’s be honest here … was Kaitlyn looking for rule-breaking? No, not at all. As long as any rule-breaking didn’t cross the line to be dangerous, she was very unlikely to speak up in most cases). All without looking back. And yet, that was simply not the type of girl that she was.
“It’s not every day you see someone sitting alone with a cake. Besides, I’ve wanted to actually talk to you for a while,” she shrugged. To be fair, she was routinely reserved with her peers, and she often struggled to hold conversations, especially around big groups of other students, like in class. She personally preferred talking like this, as she felt far safer and didn’t have to try to raise her voice to be heard. As anyone could likely see, she wasn’t naturally loud.
When Lottie started to talk about what her family did on her birthday, Kait fell silent. Her hands fell to her lap, and her fingers interlaced. Her attention was solidly on her fellow third-year, following the active listening she had learned about at St Ann’s. She tried her best to be fully attentive and present. Of course, the listening portion was very important. When she was in muggle school, there were by far a lot of distracting elements!
It took every ounce of her willpower not to interrupt Lottie. After all, Kaitlyn had asked. Respect was a two-way street! Besides, she liked learning more about her fellow students. She stayed quiet until she could tell that Lottie was finished. That was the hardest part, and one that she often struggled to identify. It wasn’t like she advertised that fact … er, at least, she tried not to advertise it.
“That sounds like a fun time.” Her brows furrowed as she tried to think about muggle movies, not immediately recognizing the movie Lottie mentioned. Kait smiled kindly. “I hope you can celebrate more for your birthday and build more memories.”
Word Count: 439 words