Caught? Or maybe not. Closed

The dim candlelight illuminated the room in a gloomy light, presenting a less-than-splendid sight for Olive. She stole brief glances at the rusted faucets and mirrors so dusty, people have begun to write messages on them. It seems like it was simply borderline abandoned, had it not been for a faint sniffling heard further in. Pushing her way past the entrance, Olive found a figure up against the wall, sobbing. She heard tell of a ghost residing in the stalls, crying more than she did haunting... Or anything, in that matter. What was her name, Moaning Mary? Olive soon found herself shaking her head back to the scene at hand. She dare not be rude to a ghost in its own place
Olive collected her thoughts and began to greet the figure, "Hi! Sorry to bother you, I just-." Her words jumped back into her throat as she realized that this was no ghost. It was a student.
She couldn’t quite tell who this girl was. She could just barely make out long blonde hair covering her face. And, by the looks of her uniform, she was a Slytherin. She seemed to have been crying for a good amount of time, too. That was never good for anyone. "Oh, erm," Olive found herself jumbling on her sentences oddly enough. "Are... are you okay? Sorry if it's a personal question."

Koko’s hazel eyes darted upwards to the girl standing in the middle of the lavatory. She felt a blush come over her face, her cheeks reddening with embarrassment. The other girl had dark hair and wide grey eyes, and she seemed very kind. However, according to the crest on her robes, she was a Ravenclaw. Koko lifted a hand to wipe the remaining tears off of her cheeks, and she regained her composure the best she could. “I—i’m Fine,” she stammered, still flustered to have been caught crying. Koko normally wasn’t too sensitive but she’d been putting on the lonely-girl air since getting to Hogwarts. It made people easier to manipulate. However, she was beginning to learn that manipulation wasn’t how to get people to like her. “It... was kind of personal, but I don’t care,” Koko replied. “My parents... they’ve been arguing a lot, and with me gone... I used to dissolve their fights, but now I’m not home and my little brothers are dealing with all this. It’s nothing,” she said, trying to draw attention away from herself. Koko stood up, dusted herself off, and leaned against the wall. “So,” she prompted, crossing her arms over her chest, “what’s your name, Ravenclaw?”

Mandy’s free period had just finished and lunch was about to start, but before joining her fellow students in the Great Hall, she decided to quickly make a pit stop at the Girls Lavatories. She stepped through the doors only to find a Slytherin and Ravenclaw girl talking. The eyes of the Slytherin girl seemed red, like she had just been crying. “I—i’m Fine,” the Slythering girl stammered, looking quite flustered. “It... was kind of personal, but I don’t care,” the Slythering girl replied. “My parents... they’ve been arguing a lot, and with me gone... I used to dissolve their fights, but now I’m not home and my little brothers are dealing with all this. It’s nothing,” she said, trying to draw attention away from herself. Mandy bit her lip and accidentally made a small sound.

They both looked up at her and Mandy felt a bit rude for interrupting something. She held her hands op in defence and quickly darted into one of the stalls, hoping to no longer bother the other girls. She felt quite bad for eavesdropping, and she was hoping the girls didn’t mind too much. When Mandy left the stall to wash her hands, the Slytherin girl had stood up already, seeming to have calmed down slightly. “So,” she prompted, crossing her arms over her chest, “what’s your name, Ravenclaw?” she said towards the other Ravenclaw girl who had helped her calm down.

"I'm Koko Riddle," said Koko, an air of confidence returning to her as her last tears dried up. Her eyes stung as she squeezed them shut, then she opened them again, looking at Olive. There was another girl behind her, Koko noticed. She cursed under her breath. "Also," she muttered, her cheeks reddening with embarrassment, "What's your name?"
"Sorry if I've been rude," Koko numbly apologized. She bent down to pick up her book and flip through the damp pages. She quickly checked the whole book, and seeing that there was no permanent damage, was satisfied. "I'm just a little worried." For her emotion this time, she chose a jubilant smile to spread across her face. "But I'm fine now." She admired the new-book smell that had risen from the pages of her copy of Hogwarts, A History. Koko noted that the other girl was a Ravenclaw, and she instantly felt immensely more comfortable. Koko herself had many Ravenclaw-like qualities, but her ambition and somewhat selfish nature, along with how she could easily manipulate people as if they were wax figures, was what had gotten her into the Slytherin house.
Her robes were dusty after sitting on the floor for so long. She brushed them off, her face flaming even redder by the moment. She just couldn't get enough of this embarrassment. At least no one knew about how her family was... except for these people. Yet they weren't even her real family! Her adoptive father had only been close friends with her father when her parents died of an influenza outbreak in Cornwall, England. Koko couldn't wait until she turned seventeen and inherited all of the empire that the Riddles had built in the Cornwall area, and a few other countries as well.
Well, Koko thought, but actually she breathed the words without realizing, I guess I'll have to wait...

“You do not have to be sorry at all, Koko.” Olive addressed her reassuringly. “I mean, I guess anything like that could really stress someone out. She paused for a moment, trying to come up with the correct words to say in this situation. Gosh, how hard could it be to cheer someone up?
She backed up a little as Koko began to dust off whatever her robe caught from the bathroom floor. For a moment, she seemed to be in thought… deep in thought. Then a small string of words “I guess I’ll just have to wait.” Olive nearly found herself pressing her for what she was waiting for, but ultimately decided against it. Now did not feel like the time for being pushy, especially for this girl who had just recently been crying. So, she instead turned to rely on her ever helpful friend she dubbed small talk. It might also take away from the current situation Koko was undergoing
“Well, I should ask. Other than.. Well this… How do you think this year is going? I mean,” she stopped to chuckle “We are in a magic school, of all things! It would be pretty hard for me to be upset in such an amazing school.”

Koko shot out of her thoughts, suddenly mortified. "Oh! The school year's fine. Thanks for asking, how was yours?" She carefully avoided saying anything that might lead to a conversation about her home life, but at the same time she tried streneously not to be rude. She'd been rude enough recently. Koko stepped forwards, looking towards the other girl, the other Ravenclaw. "So there are two of you," she noted. "And you're Olive, right?" Koko asked the girl in front of her. Koko's hazel eyes glittered with something, was it confidence? No, it was ambition. She had a great need to make a few friends, and a great need to get somewhere in this school. "You're right," she said. "I shouldn't have been crying. Koko felt a smile spread across her perfectly crafted expression. It hadn't been planned, but at the moment, Koko really didn't care. She could use some spontanity in her life.

She usually carried some sort of air, usually one reflecting what she wished she was or felt, never what she actually felt, but this was different. For once she was actually happy, instead of pretending all the time. Just as she reached the high point of euphoria, however, her mood sank deep into suspicion. Nothing could stay this good. Nothing could.

“Oh, the year so far has been amazing!” Olive responded with sudden enthusiasm, because it was. Not far into this year, and she was already met with endless dinners, great new friends, and a whole castle she was dying to explore.
She noticed her asking for a bit of clarification on her name. She bobbed her head in agreement to "and you're Olive, right?" and met Koko’s eyes. She had certainly seemed to be better, or at least what Olive could tell. She had never really been good at reading emotions save for the obvious. “You’re right,” she heard Koko sigh “I shouldn’t have been crying.”
She shrugged in response and thought for a moment for the right words. “I mean, I guess it’s fine to cry once in a while, you really don’t have to be sorry for that.” I’m just glad I could help get your mind off of whatever your going through. She grew were wide grin a bit towards the Slytherin girl. Yet another potential friend. And maybe she would appreciate the ‘adventures’ she and Jackie had planned. ‘Oh, but don’t mention any of that, not yet. You don’t want to scare her away before you become friends,’ She thought, not realizing she was spacing out for a second time.

A wave of slight confusion passed over Koko as she leaned against the wall, observing the Ravenclaw in front of her. The girl sure was enthusiastic. And, to Koko's almost sixth sense of sensing, and sometimes even manipulating, thoughts and emotions, Koko could almost feel Olive spacing out.

Koko could almost relate; she had a similar nature. However, with her past, she had needed to stay focused, and while she'd always had her secret little "power", she still needed to stay observant. Koko felt an awkward smirk play on her firm set lips, and for once she let a true expression take over her face, which she used as a canvas, to paint an emotion that would help her do something. Koko tried to shoot out a fake laugh, but it turned into a cough and she ended up red-faced and sputtering. Koko swore under her breath, and then she decided she didn't want anyone to hear her.

Instead of deciding just to leave and go to lunch like she normally would have, Koko stayed. Maybe she could get to know Olive better. She laughed to herself, smiling carelessly. For once, she wasn't really faking the smile. "So," Koko prompted, trying to start up a conversation with a possible friend. "What's your favorite class so far?" Koko lifted a hand to her robes and slid it in her pocket, finally relaxing and seeming less stiff.