Dust in the Wind (Open)

[Garrett Howiler]

Naturally, it was still pretty cold outside. Garrett however thought that any kind of weather was perfect for practicing something. Even though Quidditch for the year because of the tournament, it left the pitch open.

He had gotten up early and gone out, making sure that he was dressed in layers. The birds could be heard as he walked toward the Quidditch pitch.

For several hours, Garrett practiced around the pitch. He finally slowed down and put the broom he borrowed back in the shed. Feeling like he needed to cool off before he went back into the castle where there was warmth, Garrett walked toward the Black Lake. A bench that was nearby was covered in snow. He quickly said a drying spell on the bench so that he could sit down and not worry about his robes being cold and wet.

He looked out toward the lake and sighed. It really was pretty outside, and not to mention quiet...

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence loved the snow. There was something about it, a purity and cleanness, that she was drawn to. Although only a small amount of snow had fallen, it was enough to cover the grass and the tree branches, making everything look pristine and perfect. So she bundled up in a thick fur cloak, along with a matching hat and gloves, and went out for a short walk around the grounds.

As she reached the lake, she let out a contented sigh. The water was frozen over with a thin layer of ice, which was broken in some spots, probably by the giant squid. She was walking slowly, but failed to notice the patch of ice in her path. She slipped and began to fall backward, letting out a sharp cry as she did.

[Garrett Howiler]

Garrett's world was still quiet and he didn't notice anyone at all coming down toward the lake. He was lost in his own thoughts. Several different ideas came to mind as to what he could write about. He would have to wait until he was alone, but that wouldn't be a hard thing to do.

His thoughts, however were brought to an abrut hault as a sharp cry entered his ears. Garrett looked up and his eyes settled on a girl who fell into the snow. He quickly got up and walked over to the girl. "Are you alright," Garrett asked instantly as he reached his hand out to her to help her up.

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence didn't love the snow quite so much when she ended up falling in it. Although it wasn't very deep, it was enough to get her fur cloak covered in snow. "Ew!" she said. "I'm soaked! Stupid ice... who put it there, anyway?"

The fact that she sounded like a spoiled child had quite escaped her for the moment. She was going to need a drying charm, and a warming charm, so that she wouldn't get frostbitten. Blinking up at the outstretched hand, she saw that it belonged to a boy that she didn't know. He looked harmless and agreeable, although he was clearly not a Slytherin. No matter. It wasn't like she was looking to date the boy. She just needed a little help.

Fluttering her eyes at him, she smiled shyly. "Thank you ever so." She placed her hand in his and allowed him to help her up. "I don't think I'm hurt, but I am cold and wet now. Can you help?"

[Garrett Howiler]

"Yeah, I can help," Garrett replied. "But first, let's get you off this ice, hm?" He gave her a smile and led her a few steps away from the ice so she wouldn't slip again. "Now, all I'll do is just do the drying charm, followed by the warming charm. Alright?" He didn't want her to think that he was going to be doing anything else.

Reaching into his cloak, Garrett pulled out his wand as he studied her for a moment. She defintely wasn't a Hufflepuff, but it didn't matter. The girl needed help, so there wasn't any harm in it.

With a few movements of his wand, the blond girl was now dried and warm. "Better?"

[Cadence Dearborn]

That was really all she wanted from him. For now. He helped her up, he dried her off and warmed her up with a charm. That was all she needed.

She smiled sweetly as he finished the charms. "Yes, that's much better," she replied. "Thank you. What is your name? I don't think I've noticed you before."

[Garrett Howiler]

At first, he thought that him helping her was going to be the end of it but he did stay put as she asked his name.

"I'm Garrett," he replied. Sure, he had seen her a few times around but he wasn't going to say anything about that considering he wasn't sure what she would have thought if anything. "You probably haven't noticed me at all. I'm usually in my common room or out on the quidditch pitch most of the time outside of classes."

He gave her a smile. "If you don't mind me asking, what is your name? Its only right I ask now that you know mine."

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence had taken off her gloves and was running her hands through her long hair, trying to smooth it out. As she did so, she slyly watched him out of the corner of her eye, even as her expression was one of complete disinterest.

"Well, thanks again, Garrett. It was very kind of you. I'm Cadence."

[Garrett Howiler]

Her expression didn't go unnoticed, and Garrett wasn't exactly sure how to take it. "Well, it is nice to meet you Cadence," he said with a small bow of his head. Naturally, he didn't think he would have met a girl like her anywhere. After all, he did go unnoticed and that was how he liked it most of the time.

"Erm, well, I suppose I should let you get back to doing whatever it was you were going to do."

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence shrugged. "I really wasn't doing much of anything, actually," she said. "I was just walking around, looking at the snow and ice. But after falling, I'm not all that sure I want to go back to walking just yet. You can stay, if you want. Unless you have something better to be doing?"

[Garrett Howiler]

Usually, someone would have laughed after someone else had fallen. That thought had never crossed Garrett's mind. He knew that it would have been embarrassing if someone had laughed at him if he fell. Of course, it would have been different if he laughed at himself. He was glad to see that she wasn't hurt or embarrassed from her fall.

"I was just taking a break from practicing is all," Garrett said with a shrug. "If you want to walk, I could go with you and watch out for the ice for you."

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence didn't answer right away. She pretended to think it over, twisting a lock of her blonde hair around her index finger. Again, she eyed him coyly, giving him her best doe-eyed impression. He was kind of dorky, she thought. But cute in a way. In that nose-in-a-book, good-in-school, bring-home-to-mama kind of way. She wondered what subjects he was good at. Maybe he could come in handy.

"I suppose that would be OK," she said primly. She held out her hand to him. "Let's walk."

[Garrett Howiler]

In a way, Garrett felt a little awkward as Cadence thought it over. He didn't think that anyone had ever really stared at him like that, and it took everything he had to fight from blushing.

Seeing her hand held out, Garrett took her hand and started to walk slowly through the snow. A few thoughts started to run through his head, but he pushed them away. Now was not the time to get lost in thought. "So, Cadence, what house are you in?"

[Cadence Dearborn]

"I'm in Slytherin," Cadence replied matter-of-factly. As she did, she gave him a sidelong glance, trying to gauge his reaction. Sometimes guys were scared away when they heard she was in Slytherin. Others were actually intrigued. Then some of them barely seemed to react at all. Cadence wondered which group Garrett would end up in.

She was, of course, proud of being in Slytherin. How could she not be? The Dearborns came from a long line of Slytherins. And only Constantine, the family rebel, had ever been in a different house.

[Garrett Howiler]

Slytherin? Garrett should have guessed something like that. She definetly wasn't the type of girl that he knew in Hufflepuff. He could tell that she was proud to be in her house, but to him it didn't matter what house people were in. The houses didn't define people, people defined theirselves.

"That's cool," he said like it wasn't a big deal. "I haven't really met that many Slytherins, other than the ones in Quidditch. But then again I haven't really met a lot of the other houses either." He glanced to her and gave her a smile.

Garrett wasn't sure what her reaction would been, but he also added, "I'm in Hufflepuff."

[Cadence Dearborn]

Hufflepuff? She should have guessed. He was just too sweet, too agreeable, too polite. But none of those things were bad things, not really. He knew his place, at any rate. And he was a gentleman. She certainly couldn't complain about that. In fact, it could come in handy.

"Hufflepuff, huh?" she said casually. "That's cool. I don't really know many Hufflepuffs. Most of my friends are in Slytherin, although, they're not very good friends. I get the feeling sometimes that they're not very loyal. You know?"

[Garrett Howiler]

"I understand," he nodded. "Sometimes there are people who aren't very loyal and they end up treating other people bad. Sometimes the victim of that can be blinded by what is going on, but those people always get what is coming to them." Garrett gave a shrug. He wasn't going to make any kind of harsh comments about her 'friends' or the fact that the likely reason was they were in Slytherin because it didn't matter what house they were in, it could be anyone that was like that.

"And just to let you know, we're not all happy go lucky all the time or anything like that. But we don't just sit there and brood over things all the time either."

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence smiled sweetly at him. "Well, I find you quite refreshing. So different from the people I know. I'm sure people say all kinds of things about Slytherins, but we're really not all like that. Just because I come from a rich, old pureblood family doesn't mean I'm not looking for a true friend."

She tossed her hair over her shoulder as she walked a little ahead of him. "You said you liked Quidditch, right? What other sorts of things are you interested in?"

[Garrett Howiler]

If Garrett was honest, hearing that she came from a rich pureblood family was just slightly intimidating. However, he wasn't going to show that.

"Yeah, I do like Quidditch," he said with a smile. What other things did he like? "Erm, well, I do like all kinds of sports really. Other than that, I'm not really sure what I like." Garrett couldn't just openly admit to a girl that he just met that he did like the write. What would she think of him? "What about you?"

[Cadence Dearborn]

Cadence smiled. Only those who knew her well would be able to tell that it was insincere. "Well, I'm not much for sports," she said in an airy tone. "I don't even know any sports other than Quidditch. I do like to dance, though. And I like chess. My big brother Anton taught me how to play. He's the only person I can't beat."

She was just slightly smug when she said this. Her abilities at playing chess were one of the things she was particularly proud of, and she was determined that one day she would beat Anton.

"What about school? What classes do you like?"