After Hot Chocolate (Ophelia)

[Tyler Parsons]

"See, I could have done a lot of things in the kitchens," replied Tyler with an amused look on his face. "I could have sliently charmed you and we could have slipped out of the kitchen without your sister seeing once her back was toward us. And the list could possibly go on, depending on how creative your mind is." He gave a laugh. Tyler wouldn't have actually done anything like that, but it was funny to think about.

"Well, have you talked to her about it? I mean, maybe she would let up a little bit if you just talked to her about it."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia smirked at him. "Well, if you were a Slytherin boy, you probably would have done something like that," she said. "Jadon told me to stay away from most of the Slytherin boys, because they'll take advantage of a girl. Don't get me wrong, I'm proud of my house, but it does seem like the boys are trouble. But you're a Gryffindor... You wouldn't do anything like that."

On the subject of Kassia, Ophelia grew serious. "I don't think it would do much good. She's appointed herself the caretaker, and she doesn't really have any other way to be. Maybe if she had something else to keep her occupied, then she might ease up a little."

[Tyler Parsons]

"That's true, I wouldn't have done anything like that but it's not just because I'm a Gryffindor. I wouldn't ever think about taking advantage of a girl. It's just wrong and it goes completely against what I believe in."

Tyler noticed that she became serious about her sister. "Maybe there will be something that comes along and keeps her occupied. Who knows, maybe your other sister will do something and cause Kassia to be right there with her, or maybe Kassia might find a boy that she's interested in. You never know what could happen."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia liked him more and more by the minute. He was what she thought of as being a Prince Charming type... an honorable person who wouldn't want to hurt or take advantage of anyone. She used to have a crush on Rystain, but the way he treated people was a turn off for her. She just hoped that he didn't hurt Lani the way he had hurt Lyra.

"It could happen," she said. "I hope it does. She's a Burke, she deserves the best. She needs something of her own to make her happy. I don't even think she's looking for a date for the dance. I think she wants to go with our brother, which is just silly."

[Tyler Parsons]

"You may think that it could be silly that she wants to go with your brother, but maybe she feels better if she does. I mean from what I've seen of your sister, she does seem shy in her own way and maybe she doesn't want to go a Slytherin with the chance that they may take advantage over her. Or maybe she wants to see other guys' reactions when she's all dressed up and see if any come to her then," Tyler tried to reason. "Like I said before, you never know."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia was pretty sure that Kassia’s reasoning for wanting to bring Jadon was closer to the first excuse. Kass was shy, she knew that. She never really thought much about herself at all, preferring instead to be the caretaker of everyone. This concept, of course, was completely foreign to Ophelia, who was, more often than not, entirely wrapped up in herself.

“I suppose you’re right,” Fee said. “I swear, though… I’ll just never understand my sisters. Kassi especially, but also Allaire and all her books. She reads so much she should have been in Ravenclaw. She even reads muggle books!”

[Tyler Parsons]

"There's nothing wrong with muggle books," said Tyler. "I actually enjoy a few of them myself whenever I feel like I could pick up a book. Muggles do write great books. I'm sure that there are a few that you would enjoy reading." He didn't think there was anything wrong with a girl who liked to read from time to time. Tyler also didn't see anything wrong with muggles in any way. He was fascinated with some of the things like talk on one of those telephones, as they liked to call them.

"Plus, each of you have something you do that makes you different from each other. There's nothing wrong with that. Being different can actually be a good thing."

[Ophelia Burke]

"I guess I'm not much of a reader," Ophelia said. "I never really got into reading for fun. It just seemed like something you had to do for work. But maybe you could show me some books that you like. Maybe I would change my mind, then."

She agreed with the second thing he said. It was a very good thing that her sisters were different from her. She was quite sure that there would have been more of a competition between them if they had been more like her. This way, she felt, she could get all of the attention, as she should. "You're right," she said. "It's a good thing that we're all different. I don't always understand them, but at least we each have our different interests, so we're not always crowding each other."

[Tyler Parsons]

"I'll see what I have in my collection and pick out a few that you might like. Then you could decide which one you would like to read," said Tyler. He couldn't remember all the books he had in his collection off the top of his head, however he would make sure that he would look through before he went to sleep and pick out a few books.

"Exactly. It's not good for people to try and be alike. Plus, it is what helps keep you together. Imagine if you were all like each other. That would be a mess, wouldn't you think? Everyone would see you as the same, and none of you would be special in your own way."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia nodded. To herself, she thought that if her sisters were too much like her, then she wouldn't be able to stand out and be as special as she was. And really, both of her sisters did have their good points as well. Kassia was a good listener, and always knew what the right things to say were. And Allaire was smart, so she always knew how to deal with problems. Ophelia, of course, thought of herself as being the prettiest, but, really, both Kassia and Allaire were beautiful, too. They looked enough like her that anyone could tell they were related, but different enough that they stood out as individuals.

"Is your sister like you?" she asked curiously.

[Tyler Parsons]

"I guess you could say that my sister and I are alike in a few ways," said Tyler. "If you looked hard enough, you could tell we're related. We both enjoy reading every once in awhile. We're both stubborn, adventurous, and determined. She looks more like our mother I think." He gave a shrug. "Of course, we're different too. She likes to stick to a schedule of things, while I like to just take things as they come and differ from time to time with what I do. Leighanne also likes her close group of friends, which I like to expand my group of friends. We're alike, yet different in so many ways."

[Ophelia Burke]

"Well, that's good," Ophelia said. "It's hard coming from a family like mine. We're only supposed to be friends with the 'right' kind of people. I might even be in trouble for even talking to you, just because you're not in Slytherin. But I don't care. You're much nicer than the boys in Slytherin. Even when you call me silly nicknames."

[Tyler Parsons]

He raised his eyebrows when she said that she might be in trouble just talking to him because he wasn't in Slytherin. "Just because I'm not in Slytherin," he said curiously. His parents never set limits on who he was supposed to talk to and not. People were people.

Tyler gave a gentle smile. "Well, I appreciate your bravery for going outside what might be the 'right' people to talk to. I don't really see the reasoning behind why people are like that, but I'm not going to try and figure it out because it would just leave me puzzled and might not give me a good answer. And thank you, even if you think my nicknames are silly. I personally think Marshmellow is more silly than Ace." He gave her a wink to let her know that he was picking with her.

[Ophelia Burke]

"My family can be kind of snobby," Ophelia said, as if she herself was not guilty of such behavior. "It's just that our family is such an old one, with a pure bloodline and all that... We're expected to socialize with the 'right' kind of people. I'm worried my father may arrange a marriage for me... which is the last thing I would want."

She gave him a bright smile. He really was cute, and she liked the sly way he looked at her. "Anyway, you said you come from a good family, which should help. I don't really care either way, but my family might."

She giggled when he mentioned Marshmallow. "Well, so I'm not very good at coming up with nicknames!" she defended.

[Tyler Parsons]

"My family wouldn't mind. They haven't decided on prejudices. They have always viewed everyone the same really," said Tyler. "However, I'm not sure how well they would view someone that looked down upon them. I haven't really discovered that out yet." He gave a shrug. "But that is them. I don't care who you are honestly. Names don't mean anything to me."

Tyler chuckled. "No, you're not really good with coming up with nicknames," he agreed. "However, I guess we can always work on that, can't we?"

[Ophelia Burke]

"Well, my whole family has always been in Slytherin. Mummy and Daddy can't help it... that's what's expected of us. You're really the first person I've really talked to that wasn't in Slytherin, because I never really get around to talk to other people. My brother wouldn't even let me talk to boys at all when he was still going here. It's so frustrating sometimes, like I'm a princess locked up in a tower. You know, like in those muggle stories? I saw one once... it was a play. About a girl with a fairy godmother and a glass slipper? Sometimes I feel like that, only I don't have to scrub floors."

She giggled at that last part... the idea of a Burke scrubbing floors was laughable. "Would you be my Prince Charming?"

[Tyler Parsons]

"Well, you're the first person I've talked to that is in Slytherin," said Tyler. He thought it was ridiculous that her brother didn't let her talk to any boys while he attended school. There was nothing wrong with talking to the opposite sex. Not all guys are the same.

"Cinderella," he said naming the story. "My sister used to pretend that she was Cinderella." Tyler laughed lightly.

His cheeks were a little rosy, but he nodded. "Every princess does need her Prince Charming, and I guess that since you have asked, I cannot deny your request. Besides, I think you are the most entertaining girl I've met Ace, or should I say princess. And, I don't mean that in a bad way."

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia beamed. "My Daddy calls me Princess," she said.

In some ways, she genuinely believed she was a princess, and she had always been looking for her prince. Maybe Tyler was the prince she'd been hoping to find. She didn't know, but she was excited to find out. If only she knew whether her family would accept him! Although she did have a tiny rebellious streak in her, she really did love her family very much. She just wanted everything to be perfect.

[Tyler Parsons]

Tyler decided that he was going to try and make her smile as much as possible. He liked it when she smiled, or got that excited look in her eye. It made him feel like he had done something right. Sure, he did like to make other people smile too, but there was something else about Ophelia that made him want to do it more for her.

"He should," he said. "You do look like one, well from what I've got a mental image from reading fairy tales." Maybe Tyler could be a Prince Charming, who knew. He thought about her parents. If he and Ophelia became more than what they were, would her parents like him? Would he be good enough for her, in their eyes? Tyler decided that he didn't care what her parents thought of him. He was going to just be himself and if they didn't like him, then that was their problem. Plus, it all really depended on Ophelia. If she liked him well enough, then that would be all he would need. He pushed the thoughts from his mind and focused on her again.

"If I sat beside you in class one day, would you object to that?"

[Ophelia Burke]

Ophelia's smile was radiant, like the brilliant sunlight on a hot summer day on the beach. Anytime she was given a compliment, that smile shone even more brightly.

"Yes, I would be agreeable to that," she said, practically bouncing with excitement. Having him sit next to her in class would be very nice, especially if he would compliment her and tease her to make her laugh. She liked the attention he gave her. It made her feel warm and fuzzy inside.

She wondered briefly what it would be like to kiss him. She had never kissed a boy, and she'd never really wanted to... at least not of the boys she had known. But she quickly decided that she wanted to make him wait, and work for it. That was what a lady was supposed to do, right?

"What subjects are you good at?" she asked. "Maybe sometimes we could even study together."