Counting Stars Finished

It was getting to be close to curfew, and the brisk night air stung against Ellory's face. She pulled her cloak tighter around herself and shivered. She knew that she really should go back inside soon, but she was dreading being back in the noisy common room when the grounds were so quiet and calm. There was always some sort of distraction going on inside the castle, and she found it much easier to complete her work in the silent solitude of the night.

Since coming to Hogwarts, Ellory had been surprised to find that everything had been slightly different from what she was expecting. She was sure she would have been able to find many students who were as reserved and studious as her to become friends with, but she hadn’t had much luck at all in the way of friends so far. Of course she had Emlyn’s friends who had accepted her into their clique, but even though they were nice enough, Ellory hadn’t felt a personal connection with any of them yet.

However disappointed she felt in that moment, it didn't linger. Ellory was not a stranger to being alone, so she tried not to let it bother her too much. She finished writing in the last sentence of her History of Magic homework, then sighed and glanced up at the night sky. One great thing about being at Hogwarts was that there really wasn’t much, if any, light surrounding the castle, which allowed for a truly spectacular view of the night sky.

Ellory sat for a moment, entranced by the countless number of stars she could see. She wasn’t much for astrology, but she was having fun trying to pick out the few constellations she did know. She figured there was still maybe a few minutes before curfew, so she had a bit of time to relax a bit before making her way back indoors. She slowly lowered herself to the ground, resting her head on her bag and folding her arms peacefully over her stomach while she continued to stare up at the sky and allowed her mind to wander.