Finished Looking for Trouble PV Juliet Ashbrook

interacting with @Winona Kristiansen

THE EXCITEMENT OF starting a, pretty much, brand-new life was exhilarating, but also draining. Adapting to this world was a work in progress, and Juliet still found herself amazed at everything she saw; oddly-specific spells, house elves, stairs that moved on their own, and so much more. It didn't take long for her to reach her limit.

As soon as her lessons came to an end, the girl rushed to the Gryffindor common room, only to grab her football from under her bed. See, Juliet kept most of her muggle things hidden, unsure if they were allowed at Hogwarts. She didn't want to get in trouble. But she couldn't leave them behind. With everything changing so quickly, she needed the normalcy of playing by herself, reading her favorite books, or cuddling her teddy bear every night.

Juliet made her way to the school grounds. The weather was pleasant enough for her not to shiver outside. She dropped her black cloak on the floor and tied her hair up in a high ponytail. Back at her muggle school, she played football with her classmates during breaks - even if she wasn't as good as everyone else.

She placed the ball on top of her feet, in an attempt to copy famous footballers she saw on TV. Juliet and her father religiously watched games together, especially when it was World Cup season. There's nothing more exciting than booing France every year.

Her moves were awkward, the ball always rolling away from her, but eventually, Juliet managed to keep it there - kicking it upwards one more time. She leaned in, hitting it with the top of her head. The ball flew away with the impact.

Before Juliet could do anything, it hit another girl in the shoulder - oh, I didn't even notice there was someone nearby. Juliet winced, eyes doubling in size at her explosive reaction. What a great first impression...

One step at a time, Juliet quietly approached her, biting down a bashful smile. She wasn't laughing at her, mind you. But whenever she found herself in an uncomfortable situation, she couldn't stop grinning or chuckling.

"Hello, sorry," Juliet said, waving at her. She reached to take the football back. "I didn't mean to hit you, I was just playing around. I really like football, but - are you okay? I'm Juliet, by the way. It's my first year here,"

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WINONA KRISTIANSEN Second year ❀ Slytherin Date: September 2023 Interacting With: @Juliet Ashbrook Word count: 220

Outfit: Reducio

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Just as Winona anticipated, a student came to take the responsibility. The girl was not someone she had seen before, probably a first-year. On top of that, the girl even had the decency to apologize for the inconvenience she had caused. How cute.

"Nice to meet you, Juliet. I'm Winona." The Slytherin continued to stand still with the ball in one hand, not handing it to the younger girl even when she reached for it. A fake, yet convincingly friendly smile, formed on her pale face. "Oh dear, it's okay. Let's make sure that you don't go on your way hitting people while playing, okay?" Her voice was calm and monotone, in contrast to her initial reaction to being hit.

Carefully, Winona took out her wand and pointed it towards the ball, "Diffindo." she said the incantation clearly and followed it with a swift motion of her wand. The severing charm instantly left a big cut in the ball, making a funny noise as the air inside left it. Finally dropping her fake smile, Winona threw the ball at Juliet's feet. "Next time, that will be you." After placing her wand back where it was on her waist, the grumpy Slytherin clapped her hands together a few times to get any dust and dirt from the ball off of them.

interacting with @Winona Kristiansen

AT FIRST, JULIET really thought the girl was nice; her words, although condescending to her ears, made a wave of relief hit her. This was all a big accident, and they'd get to know each other better and laugh about it in the months to come. Right? Wrong. Very wrong.

"Hah- yeah, I'll try. Um, pleased to meet-" The words had left her mouth, but she stopped at the sight of Winona's wand. "... You..."

Juliet's lips remained parted, as she watched the now deflated football, looking like the world's saddest balloon. It happened so fast, but so slow at the same time. That spell was new - she hadn't seen anyone use it, and her Charms professor had yet to mention it in class, but she wasn't impressed by it. It was the first time magic had made her feel something other than excitement.

Juliet flinched when Winona dropped the ball to her feet. The girl didn't know how to feel right now. She always took care of her belongings; she never broke her dolls or ripped her plushies, treating everything she owned with utmost care. So... to have someone do that-

Her eyes went up to the witch's face. While Winona was shorter than her, she felt bigger, more powerful than anyone she had ever met before, like the kids at her muggle school that picked on others. That threat sent shivers up her spine - the thought of Winona using that spell on her was terrifying. And the girl seemed satisfied with what she had done.

Juliet's eyes flickered to her scarf - grey and silver. Slytherin.

"... Why would you do that?" Her tone was quiet. However, the second she opened her mouth, a surge of anger took over. "You know, my father gave that to me. I can't get another one around here,"

wordcount: 308

WINONA KRISTIANSEN Second year ❀ Slytherin Date: September 2023 Interacting With: @Juliet Ashbrook Word count: 230

Outfit: Reducio

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The response given by the younger girl made Winona grin for a second. After all, her initial goal was to return the annoyance Juliet caused. "That's for the better. This is a school, not a playground." the Slytherin crossed her arms, looking unbothered. In reality, she was finding it hard not to laugh. The first years learn at least one spell to repair objects, very early in the year too. Hopefully, Juliet did not know that, and would just throw the deflated ball away.

"If you want to play around, go join Quidditch. You can't bother people when you're up in the sky." that was another thing Winona found odd about the situation. It was a rare thing to see wizarding children just casually playing football. Why was this girl not playing Quidditch instead? Did she grow up with Muggles or something? Eww, Muggles...

Despite not thinking aloud, the discontent that grew on Winona's face was clear. The younger student had eventually found the courage to display her opposition towards Winona, who was more than willing to start a fight. The Slytherin took a few seconds to look around to see if there were any other students close by. The grumpy girl had no doubts that she could handle a first year in a fight, but being caught and getting sent to detention was still a nightmare to think about.

interacting with @Winona Kristiansen

JULIET SCOFFED, CLOSING her fists, an unknown fire rising inside her.

"It's not like I was playing in class. It's allowed to play outside... if you wanted to read, you could've gone to the library," She said. As if to prove a point, Juliet kicked the girl's book to the side, eyes never leaving her face.

That grin was beyond irritating, for it proved Winona didn't care about what she had done, or how important that football was for her, content with Juliet's anger. If a second ago she felt bad for disturbing the Slytherin, that sentiment was long gone.

See, the first year was never the type to get into fights, because her mother had taught her patience was a virtue, and she should always try to get along with strangers, even mean ones. 'Who knows, dear? Maybe this Winona is having a hard day,' Juliet could hear Mrs. Ashbrook's in her head if she were to complain in her next letter.

... Juliet didn't want to listen to her mother. She really wanted to wipe that grin off Winona's face. Or get an apology, at the very least. However, she didn't know how. Winona knew more advanced spells, given how Juliet hadn't recognized what the Defindo spell was. The list of existing spells was so extensive, the girl doubted she'd ever be able to memorize more than 10... But - oh, that's it! A spell! There had to be a spell to fix this situation. Then, Juliet and Winona would never have to speak ever again.

"Fix it," The order came out colder than intended. Juliet pointed to the football, glaring at Winona. "Fix it right now, or we're going to a professor. Either way, I'm getting my football back,"

wordcount: 293

WINONA KRISTIANSEN Second year ❀ Slytherin Date: September 2023 Interacting With: @Juliet Ashbrook Word count: 279

Outfit: Reducio

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This younger girl really had the guts to kick her book and demand Winona to fix the ball. She even went as far as to threaten her by saying she would call a professor. So far, Winona did not have the chance to meet many Gryffindors, but she was still able to understand that the audacity to get themselves in trouble was apparently a shared trait among those students.

The way Juliet was so serious while expecting Winona to fix the ball was... amusing, to say the least. This time, she really managed to get the Slytherin to burst into laughter. However, her laughter was not cute and innocent as one would expect from a girl her age. It was nothing but an outcome of looking down at the girl she was interacting with. "You really want me to fix it, huh?" she said while taking her wand out.

"Let me give you a valid reason to see a professor." Her sentence was followed by a wand movement and incantation. "Incendio." An orange beam of light immediately left the tip of her wand and landed on the deflated ball. That poor thing must have seen better days; as soon as the light touched it, the ball was set on fire. Winona watched the flames grow with enjoyment, not caring in the slightest if any sparks could possibly fly towards Juliet, who was standing nearby. "Look, you're going to be here for many years. You don't really want to get on my bad side. I suggest you leave like a good little girl and forget about that football." A cocky smirk adorned her face as she ordered the younger girl.

interacting with @Winona Kristiansen

JULIET FALTERED AT THE sound of other's laughter. Just like that, the fire inside her extinguished like a pathetic flame, shoulders dropping, and she felt like a stupid little kid again, too weak to do anything. Her entire face burned with embarrassment, ridiculed by how Winona wasn't affected by her threat at all. In fact, she looked amused by it.

It pained Juliet how she didn't know any spells that could help her right now, unable to stand up for herself properly. Despite carrying her wand with her, she felt like a muggle.

This time around, the lion didn't let herself be fooled when Winona pulled out her wand, squinting at her. She didn't even have a second to do something before an orange beam spat out of the tip of her wand.

Juliet stumbled back when her football was set on fire, her arm going up to protect her face just in case. A gasp left her, wide eyes watching the flames swallowing what remained of her football. The girl went through the 5 stages of grief quickly, heart sinking to her cold stomach as tears came to her eyes... unsure of what she could possibly do to the ball back to what it once was.

"You...!" She shouted.

Juliet puffed out her cheeks, a string of curses she could direct to that snake coming to mind in less than a second. Winona's condescending words silenced her, an ick growing the longer she stared at her cocky face. As much as she wanted to say some very mean stuff to that girl, her prickling tears were a sign she had to leave, not wanting to give her more ammunition.

Bumping their shoulders together harshly, not caring about the pain, Juliet stormed out of there, covering her face from all the curious eyes in the hallways.

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