A Moment to Breath OPEN

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

Bek put her hands in her pockets as she left the Hospital wing and walked outside to the lake. She had just checked in on Maxi, who was doing a lot better, and Seth who probably hasn't left her side since he brought her into the wing on the day of the attack. Bek was glad that they were okay.

Bek went outside in the freezing snow to the now frozen over lake. She felt restricted, almost claustrophobic, inside the walls of the castle, what with the students talking about the attack and who lived and who died and who was inbetween the two up ion the hospital wing or at St. Mungos. Or, if people wanted to talk on a lighter note, it was the ball this and the ball that, who's your date? Who are YOU going with? Its all anyone talked about these days and Bek relaxed in the silence that came with the snowy weather.

She spun around a little in the falling snow, feeling like she was eight but didn't care because no one was watching. Then she fell back onto the fluffy white powder and smiled contently.

[Sin Savira]

Sin came up behind her. He understood the solemn mood throughout the castle and it had affected him too but he remembered smiling easily around Bek and he was happy he had come across her. He hadn't left Alyx's or Jackie's side since the attack but he was pretty sure both girls were tired of his presence.

How could Bek still react so innocently after everything that happened? He wasn't sure but he was holding his breath watching her, wishing for that serenity himself, " You look content." he said smiling coming out from the shadows where he had been hiding.

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

Bek sat up quickly, startled by Sin's surprise arrival. Had he seen her? Bek assumed yes, based on his comment. She smiled at him. Not a full smile, but a smile all the same. "If only that were so," she said. Bek had seen Sin up in the hospital wing with Alyx and Jackie when she went to visit Maxi. "I just felt..." she thought for a minute. "I needed to breathe for a little bit."

[Sin Savira]

"I understand the feeling." he said setting a hand over his chest as if he had found it difficult to breathe himself, he smiled politely at her then took a look around before making the kind gesture, "Am I intruding? I could leave if you'd like." he announced though he hoped she let him stay, he could use the company, he didn't care too much to be left alone with this thoughts.

[darkreaper666]

Raven was sitting nearby. She had a book open on her knee. "Stupid Gryffindors." she muttered. She read through the book. A book on the Dark Arts. The bench she sat on was cold but she didn't seem to care. Everywhere she went in this blasted castle Gryffindors were everywhere. She tightned her robes around her. She had her Slytherin scarf and gloves on but that wasn't keeping her warm either. She sighed and put her book away.

Walking down to the frozen Lake she came to her senses. Should Gryffindors and Slytherins become sworn friends or stay as sworn enemies. This had to be put into action though no one would listen to the daughter of two Dark Wizards. The snow began to fall. The place looked like a scene from a fairytale. It was beautiful.

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

She wasn't sure if she wanted him to stay or not, and for a while, Bek just sat there. Then she knew that, after all that had been going on, she would like Sin's company. "Please stay," Bek said. "You're not intruding," she slid over, leaving him rrom to join her.

[Sin Savira]

He nodded then joined her. Closing his eyes he took a deep breath then exhaled, still the air tasted slightly acrid, the smoke from buildings burning would be a scent forever ingrained into his mind. He wasn't sure why his thoughts were so meloncholy, he had plenty of reasons, and yet he was the type to cling to happier things, something more optimistic... so much for that. It was hard what with the attack and his friends being injured. He was glad Bek seemed to be alright.

"How's Maxi?"

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

"Slowly recovering," Bek said. "She was hit with the cruciartus (sp?) a couple of times, lukily Seth was there. He fought off that death eater single handedly!" Bek could hardly believe it really. "I just don't understand why anyone would want to hurt a bunch of kids." Bek said a little solemly. She still remembered helping a group of much younger students out of a pile of ruble and even having to tear one of the professor's kids from staring at a freshly murdered body. She shivered at the thought.

"How are Alyx and Jackie?" she asked in return.

[Sin Savira]

Well that was something he'd rather not go into, still, he simply smiled and gave her a far away look, " Doing as well as can be expected." he surmised. He had seen them both of course, and was doing his utmost to look after them. He simply wished things had been different, he couldn't look at Alyx now without feeling enormous guilt weighing down his shoulders and it hurt him to know he had hurt ...well his best friend.

"I don't really understand it either...Whoever it was they are remarkably cold hearted."

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

"It's aweful that people could be that way..." Bek shook her head absently. She had a horrible feeling that it wasn't the last anyone would have heard from them too.

Bek looked over at Sin, who had a far-away look on his face. "Hey," Bek nudged her choulder with his. "You okay?"

[Sin Savira]

Nudged out of his deep thoughts he put a smile on his face for Bek, "Of course." Sweet Bek who didn't complicate things. Fun-loving Bek who made him laugh and smile, and who he felt comfortable with because they were friends, nothing more, nothing...complicated. He detested complicated, couldn't stand it really.

"Well...I will be, once the ash settles and the rebuilding begins I imagine we'll all find a good routine." he smiled, " What about you? How is Bek Caldwell doing?"

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

How was Bek Caldwell doing? That was a very good question actually. "I was doing okay, sort of. Helping out Seth and Maxi and Gage and everyone else. Not really letting the attack affect me." She shrugged. "Then this morning I get a letter from my mom. She's muggle, doesn't know anything about the attack at all. In spite of herself, she chuckled. "She's a little lost when it comes to the magic stuff, she was trying to figure out the whole Owl thing and she wrote three pages about it." Again she laughed. "I love her, just for that. 'cause she...just makes me laugh. And I needed that today."

[Sin Savira]

Sin smiled, "That sounds rather great." he said happy for her. He couldn't imagine life completely in the muggle world, but then again he was raised by two Wizarding parents who made their living in the Ministry, it seemed he was always surrounded by magic.

"There's no lack of desire for things to laugh about right now." he said a touch solemn.

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

Bek was still smiling about her mom's letter. The whole six pages of it was in her pocket right now. In her entire school career, she never figured out how not miss her home and mother in Brooklyn. Maybe it was because it was so much farther away than everyone else's homes, she didn't know. She did know that this was her last year of school, and she was looking forward to moving back home for a little bit, at least until she figured out what she wanted to do about life after school.

"Everything will turn out for the best," Bek said, turning in her sitting position to face Sin. "My mom, she tells me that everything bad that happens makes us a stronger person. The worse the experience, the stronger you become." She said that a lot after her father left. Bek turned her head to where Hogsmeade was, and the ashes that still floated above it. How much stronger would they all be from this?

[Sin Savira]

Voltaire's candide had ripped apart that argument with sarcastic fervor but Sin didn't mention this, in fact he smiled at her and nodded. "I hope so Bek...though it's hard to imagine what good could come of any of this."

The truth was, he too had to let himself hope every now and again that things would be okay, that things happened for a reason, and that we were stronger people for enduring trials. He had been told that a man's soul is like armor only through being burned time and again would the metal prove truly strong, if he could survive this, if they all would survive this, then none of them would be the same, a little more broken yes, but stronger too.

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

"I know," Bek nodded for a moment a she hugged her knees and continued to look at Sin. For a while they were just there. Just two of the hundreds of people affected by that attack in Hogsmeade.

Suddenly, Bek jumped up. "COme on, let's do something," Bek said, smiling. She'd occasionally get like this. If a moment or a convorsation was too heavy for her, she'd find someway to distract herself. "I don't know what but lets do something to get our mind off this." At least for now. A break form all the sorrow would be nice.

[Sin Savira]

He didn't know what she might be expecting from him but he was game. He wanted to forget too. Alyx's eyes haunted him, the carnage haunted him, the fear still crept up on him whenever he let his guard down, a break would be nice.

Nodding he proceeded to get up at a somewhat slower pace than him then offered her his arm, "What shall we do?"

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

"I don't know," Bek said. The idea of spontenanity excited her. She looped her arm in his. "You think of something." She offered. He seemed like he needed the distraction more than her, so if Sin picked, it would be something he was interested in and enjoyed. Bek had fun with just about everything.

[Sin Savira]

The only problem was Sin couldn't really think of anything at all. His mind was too occupied with the tragedy and his heart wasn't in it. Of course he was attracted to the idea, but it was too much for him to think of something he really wanted to do, not that he couldn't think of something she might like to do.

"Well then come along." he said with a smile.

[Rebecca "Bek" Caldwell]

For some reason or another, Bek had just assumed that Sin would tell her what he had in mind. But she was cool with the idea of a mystery, it was sort of exciting. "You know," She said as she walked along side him. he was stepping in deep snow that sometimes went to her ankles. "Back home, in Brooklyn, Some areas around my apartment would be so deep in snow that if you tried to step in it, you'd just sink down until no one could see you." She laughed a little. There was no point to her story, she was just making convorsation.