Thestrals (Open)

[Hope Windfell]

Hope had glanced behind her many times. It was mid day, no classes and she was in her comfortable attire of shoes, jeans and a tshirt, with her hair pulled in a loose bun, only letting a few bangs loose. For a usually 'shy and timid' girl, Hope walked bravely through the forest... well, it was more like with confidence since Soran pranced lightly next to her. She smiled down at her wolf, before continuing on. "Baragin?" She called out, watching her step.

She smiled as she heard a high pitched noise, before seeing the leathery skinny winged horse. Unlike most who could see Thestral's, Hope didn't fear them at all, especially Baragin, she had been taking care of the thestral since she could remember.

While Soran took himself to the nearest tree to sleep, Hope stood in the middle of the clearing, petting the thestral. "You're a good boy, Baragin." She said, smiling, at peace.

[Lisanne Moreau]

Lisanne had a habit of wandering into the Forbidden Forest, usually in search of fairies or unicorns. Hagrid had assured her that there were unicorns in the forest, but so far she had not seen any. She saw other creatures, including the fearsome, leathery-winged horses called thestrals.

They said a person could only see them after witnessing someone's death. For Lisanne, it had been her father. He had drowned in the lake right before her eyes, all because he chased after a kite that they'd been flying together. He'd gone under... then never came back up again. It was a lucky thing that the police officer had come along when he did and stopped Lisanne from going in after him, or she might not be alive to wander the forest today.

She was just following the trail of what she thought was a unicorn when she heard a voice nearby. She came to a stop, hoping it wasn't the centaurs. As beautiful as the creatures were, she knew that they were not particularly friendly, and she didn't want to be yelled at.

She listened, trying to make out the words, but she couldn't. What she did notice was that the voice was female. And although there must surely be female centaurs, Lisanne had never encountered one. She thought maybe it was because the centaurs were sexist and made the females stay at home and mind the children, but she didn't know for sure.

Shrugging to herself, Lisanne walked toward the voice. What was the worst that could happen?

"Hello," she said approaching the girl, who was petting a thestral.

[Hope Windfell]

Hope jumped, hearing another voice. She turned suddenly, tense. However, once Hope saw it was another girl, she semi relaxed. Hope had to think for a minute. She had seen this girl around, she even believed the girl was in her same year, but Hope was bad with knowing names unless it was a professor, or a trouble maker, neither which this girl was.

Hope, unaware of her own actions, took a step back, Baragin putting his head over her shoulder, staring at the girl. She placed a hand on Baragin's nose, letting him know that there was no threat. "Hello" Hope said, her voice soft and timid, but she had to break out of this. "Um.. I've seen you around, I'm... just sorry that i don't know your name." She said meekly, "My name's Hope, Hope Windfell."

[Lisanne Moreau]

"It's OK. We've never really met, so why would you know my name?" Lisanne replied, shrugging as she stepped a little closer to them, her eyes fixed on the thestral. "At least you feel badly about it, which is more than I can say for most Slytherins."

Lisanne didn't know the other girl's name, either, but the badge on her robe marked her as a Slytherin. Lisanne didn't really care much about the different houses, and tried her best never to discriminate against people just because of the houses they were in. Still, her past experiences were enough to tell her that this girl was a little different from the usual Slytherin.

"It's nice to meet you, Hope. I'm Lisanne Moreau." Her eyes darted over to the thestral yet again, and back to Hope. "If you don't mind my asking, who did you see die?"

[Hope Windfell]

Hope blinked a bit, wow, she seemed a bit blunt, just like Hope could be at times. A small smile played on her lips hearing the girl's name. "Lisanne? That's a beautiful name." She said, smiling. Lisanne seemed like a very unique girl, not strange, unique. Hope seemed to find more interest in people like that. Lisanne seemed to be the type to think outside the box. Hope personally thought that more people should be like that.

It took a few moments for her other question to sink in. She slightly averted her eyes, "My parents." She whispered, before looking at Lisanne with confused eyes, "Wait... you can see Baragin?" She asked, putting her hand to Baragin's shoulder.

[Lisanne Moreau]

"Thank you," Lisanne replied. "My mother made it up, I think."

She was always proud of the fact that she had a different, slightly unusual name. It suited her. She wouldn't have wanted to be named something common. This way she stood out in more ways than one, and it made her memorable.

She felt a pang of sadness for the other girl as she mentioned seeing her parents die. That was something else they had in common. Her eyes fixed on the thestral and nodded slowly. "Baragan?" she repeated. "That's an interesting name, too. I can see him. I saw my father drown when I was nine."

[Hope Windfell]

Hope could only mouth the word 'oh'. There wasn't much she could think of on how to respond to that statement. It seemed her and Lisanne would have a lot in common. She looked back at the girl, who's eyes were fixated on Baragin. Time to change the subject.

"Thanks." She said, refering to Baragin's name, "It's just a random name... I've kinda raised him since third year." She said, before she looked over to where Soran lay. "That wolf over there is mine as well, his name is Soran."

At the sound of his name, Soran's eyes opened and his head raised. He seemed to stare at Lisanne, with a deep, concentrated stare. After a few moments, with declaring the girl safe, Soran laid his head back down and closed his eyes. Hope only shook her head at the wolf's actions, "He's a very lazy pup when he wants to be." She said, looking back to Lisanne, a small, friendly smile on her lips

[Lisanne Moreau]

Lisanne had been so fixated on the thestral that she hadn't seen the wolf. Her eyes shifted to look at the beast with such a calm, placid expression on her face that she might as well have been looking at a common squirrel. The wolf would probably make most other girls nervous, but Lisanne was not worried. The thestral was a bit more intimidating at the moment, and even then, she wasn't afraid of it. She found the creature rather fascinating.

"You have quite a way with animals," she observed. "Have you ever seen any unicorns? I've heard there were some living here in the forest, but I've never seen them. I've always wanted to see them."

Her father would have been delighted to know that there really were unicorns and pixies and goblins and trolls, and she thought of him every time she saw something new. Her greatest hope was to find fairies, but they were supposedly very hard to find even for wizards and witches.

[Hope Windfell]

"Ah, not really, just with animals I've raised." Hope reviled with some embarrassment. She looked up and tapped her finger to her chin. "Unicorns you say?" She repeated, trying to remember. Ah, there had been first year. She had stumbled in her out of fear of her house mates, and she was homesick. She had ran so far into the forest, she thought she had been dreaming.

She had seen a Unicorn, in the darkest part of the forest, staring at the crying child. It didn't attack Hope, it only watched a bit before it had walked over to her and comforted her. It led Hope back to the edge of the forest, near Hagrid's hut. Before Hope could take a second look at the mythical beast, it was gone.

"Well.." Hope said, "My first year i ran across one, however, that was in the darkest parts of the forest." She finally explained, "I don't even remember where i exactly went, i was a bit... upset and sick." She said, hoping she had found the right words to explain herself.

[Lisanne Moreau]

Lisanne sighed dreamily. "I'd love to see one sometime," she said. "I used to be so obsessed with unicorns and fairies... only to find out that they were all real! But they're both very hard to track down, even for witches."

Maybe she would have to accept that she was never going to find them. Her father used to say that you only ever got what you were looking for when you stopped looking for it. Maybe she should give up on her attempts to find fairies, and then she would just stumble into their hidden realm. On the other, hand, if she gave up looking for them for the sole purpose of hoping she'd "accidentally" find them, it sort of seemed to cancel out the whole thing.

"Where did you get the wolf, anyway? You said you raised him, but how did that happen? Did you find him as a puppy?"

[Hope Windfell]

"I'm sure you'll find them, the Forest is very... lively, it's just finding the right time. When you least expect it, it'll happen, trust me." Hope said with a small smile.

With Lisanne's questions, Hope could only blink. In reality, Hope wasn't use to talk to people, she believed she had bad social skills, however, Lisanne wanted to talk to her. She glanced over to the wolf, with a small smile. Hope had been with Soran since she was 10, about a year before she got to Hogwarts.

"Well, my grandfather gave me him, Soran was only a puppy. Apparently my grandfather wanted me to take a wolf as a pet, just as my mother and himself had when they had gone to Hogwarts. Soran and I instantly connected, we were both... out of place. He enjoy's the winter weather, and where we live currently is very humid and hot, it's not good for him really." She said, recalling how he hated to go out of cool air.

Hope turned her gaze to Lisanne, smiling, "He's become very loyal to me, something i'm very grateful of."

[Lisanne Moreau]

Lisanne was the type of girl who liked to talk to everyone. In her opinion, everyone had something to offer in the world. Not everyone was willing to talk to strangers, and she had certainly met with a lot of resistance from others, particularly from some of Hope's housemates. But any time she was able to have a conversation with someone else, to find out a little bit about that person's life, it enriched her own. And she hoped that she would be able to enrich their lives as well.

"I wish I had a wolf as a pet," Lisanne said. "I have a cat, but he's not very loyal. He's always running away. I'm nice to him, but I think he likes to wander."

[Hope Windfell]

Hope chuckled, "The only time Soran wanders, is when he goes hunting." She said.

It was very... interesting talking to Lisanne. She was always use to people avoiding her, or saying rude things, or thinking that Hope was 'too good for them' when it was the exact opposite. Hope was just shy and timid. She believed she had bad social skills, and that something must be wrong with her, or else people wouldn't want to come near her. She simply thought that she was unapproachable and that she began to live with it. Having Lisanne come and talk to her, well, it felt nice, to have someone that was willing to talk and listen and not judge quickly.

[Lisanne Moreau]

Lisanne walked over to one of the trees and sat down in front of it, leaning her back against the trunk. Maybe it was an odd location to sit and have a chat, but she didn't care. It was always better to be outside in the fresh air, instead of locked inside the dark, damp old castle, anyway.

"That's cool," she said, nodding at Soran. "He's pretty. Where does he stay when you're in the castle? They don't let him inside, do they? I think if I had a wolf for a pet, I'd want him to be with me all the time. No one would ever mess with me then, you know? Not that they do now... but you know what I mean. I'm pretty sure Frodo, my cat, wouldn't defend me at all if anyone tried to hurt me."

[Hope Windfell]

Hope slightly blinked at the bombardment of questions, but smiled. She glanced over as Baragin looked at the two, before deciding that he wanted to fly. With a few quiet steps, Baragin moved from the clearing, and disappeared. Hope turned her attention back to Lisanne, readying herself to answer the girl's question.

"Actually, he tends to stay near me, the only time he leaves is to hunt or when i'm in class, even then he sits patiently outside the classroom." She glanced at Soran, yes, he was definately a sight. "Yeah.. a lot of people tend to get... afraid of him, especially those outside my house. However, most Slytherin's think he's just a well trained mutt that doesn't know how to attack." Hope chuckled a bit, "But I still think they think twice before insulting me."

She looked at Lisanne, "Frodo's your cat's name? It's interesting. What kind of cat is he?" She asked, curious

[Lisanne Moreau]

"I'm surprised I never noticed a wolf walking around the castle," Lisanne commented, looking over at the wolf again. "But then again, there's so much to see in the castle that I guess I got distracted. "The talking portraits, enchanted suits of armor, ghosts and poltergeists... The castle is so full of life... and death."

She said it so very casually, as though death was as commonplace as homework. And really, it was. Her father had always told her that death was a part of life. She had never really managed to completely detach from it when it actually happened to someone, but speaking of it as an abstract concept was easy enough.

"Yeah, I know... it's kind of a dorky name. He's named after a character in Lord of the Rings. But he's just an ordinary orange tabby cat."

[Hope Windfell]

Hope listen. Yes, this castle was full of life, but at the same time, with the constant look of ghost and the almost dreary look of the school, yes, death was almost a constant reminder. However, she turned her attention to the end of Lisanne's statement.

"Well, i don't think it's a dorky name, it sounds nice, unique. I'm glad that you were able to find such a name in a book, i believe i might have read it." Which wasn't a lie. During her years, Hope was more of a bookworm. Engulfing herself into a world that wasn't this one. "I'm sure he's more than an ordinary tabby, besides, there's more than meets the eye, especially here at Hogwarts." She said with ending with a small chuckle.

[Lisanne Moreau]

Lisanne chuckled. "Well, he must be up to something, with all the times he disappears on me. Sometimes I imagine where he goes when he's not with me... that maybe he has another owner somewhere and he likes to spend time with him for a while, then come back to me. Or maybe he's got a girlfriend and they're raising a litter of kittens together. Or maybe he's secretly a prince who's been cursed by gypsies to live life as a cat, but every so often, when the moon is just right, he can become a prince again.... but he can't tell anyone, or he'll turn back into a cat and stay that way forever."

Lisanne liked to make up fanciful stories like that. It was the kind of thing her father liked to do. He always made up stories about fairies and princesses and brave knights. She didn't think she was quite as good at it as he was, but she still enjoyed it. She hoped one day she would tell stories to her own daughter.

"I also have a rabbit at home named Arwen. I wasn't allowed to bring her to school, though. Do you have any other pets?"

[Hope Windfell]

Hope smiled, it was good to find people that still used their imagination, even at their age. Hope believed it kept people optimistic, and helped to escape this boring life. "Who knows, i'm sure one day you'll find out, but for now, it's just an adventure to find out." She said with a small smile.

Hope thought about her next question. She looked up, barely seeing Baragin flying in the air through the trees. "Well, i wouldn't say Baragin is really a pet, but he does tend to watch me when i'm in the forest, i guess you would call him a.. protector or a knight." She said with a small laugh, before looking at Lisanne, "It's a shame you couldn't bring Arwen, i would have loved to seen her, I have a rather soft spot for rabbits." She said with a small smile.

[Lisanne Moreau]

"Who knows?" Lisanne said, looking up at the sky towards the thestral. "Maybe in a past life he was a knight. Maybe a black knight, who did something wrong, and he got sent back as a thestral to protect the innocent, as he should have done when he was human."

She liked to think that people had more than one life, that they had another chance to make things right. Maybe her father was still living on, in some way. Maybe she would find him one day as a unicorn, or a hippogriff.

"I wish I could bring her, too," Lisanne said, smiling at the thought of her little rabbit. "I miss her when I'm away. She's really pretty... she's all white, but with a black mark that runs from her nose to just above her left eye. It always makes me think of her as a pirate."