Empty-handed Result

[Raven Way]

Raven disliked taking the normal route. That was probably a good explanation for why he had entered Hogwarts not through the usual path taken by students, but instead through the Quidditch Pitch on the side of the grounds. He had charmed his suitcase to levitate behind him as he strode across the grounds, robes billowing out behind him. His dark green eyes and jet black hair stood out in stark contrast from his blood red robes, and he knew that the sight would be quite disturbing to students.

Raven had finally decided to return to school after searching for nearly a year for a sign of his parents. Of course, he hadn't found them, or else he wouldn't have returned to school. He had searched in various parts of Europe, such as Italy, Germany, Spain, and other places before moving more towards Asia. He had searched nearly half the world, sans Africa and the Western World, and still found hide nor hair of them. He supposed that they were as good as dissapearing as he was, although in this case it was not by their choice.

He wondered what they were like, if they were as mysterious and different as he was. He laughed to himself, knowing that the answer to such a question would have to be a yes. Raising a kid like him, as they did for 5 years, would have to mean that they were like him. His thoughts abruptly turned to his other family, to the Hawls. Or should he say, to his other old family. Even the thought of Professor Hawls, lying slumped over at his desk in London made him shiver. And it wasn't from the cold outside. And now? Jayden blamed him for everything.

Raven knew that it was partially his fault, but Jayden was acting like a 5 year old for blaming all of it on him. The Death Eaters had been searched for both him and Father: Not just him. That's why he returned to Hogwarts: So he could hopefully mend the relationship with Jayden, as well as get a decent education. He wondered if he would be hexed and cursed by Jayden before he could even open his mouth. The idea of a duel in the Entrance Hall didn't exactly appeal to Raven, but it was likely to happen.

[Alyssa Weller]

((OOC: Oh, I posted with j00 first!))

Alyssa was bored. She found that very thought to be interesting, she imagined life at Hogwarts to be filled with excitement everyday. But besides the magic, it was pretty much the same as a normal school. So she decided to take a walk and explore. She had a pile of homework lying on her bed, but she really wasn't in the mood to finish anything. Alyssa wrapped her black and yellow scarf around her neck and dug her fingers into the pockets of her robes. The days were getting cold, there was no doubt about that.

Alyssa wandered around outside of the huge castle and found herself looking at the Quidditch Pitch. She didn't even want to figure out how she was going to make her way back. She wasn't even looking at where she was heading. Alyssa had to admit, she was a bit muddleheaded nowadays. She wondered if she was going to get lost again. That would be brilliant, she thought to herself sarcastically. Alyssa let out a sigh, her warm breath causing a white fog to form.

I should really return, it's freezing and I don't want to catch a cold.. Alyssa thought and was about to turn back when she thought she saw the figure of a boy up ahead. Was that Jayden? Or Jonnie? She wondered, squinting, trying to figure who the person was. Apparently it was none of the above. Alyssa hadn't seen the boy before. "Hi. Are you new?" She asked him politely. "I just don't think I've seen you before. If you aren't new then, I'm sorry...I'm really unobservant." She said, smiling at her own joke.

[Raven Way]

Ooc: Raven isn't wearing the gryffie robes, he's literally wearing all red robes.

Raven couldn't quite believe it. This girl standing before him had to either be a new student, or an incredibly naive girl. Walking up to a tall, imposing, complete stranger wearing blood red robes wasn't the best idea. And yet here she was, standing before him dumb as dawn, without a single thought. He shook his head inwardly before stowing his wand, knowing that there was no threat from her.

He wondered how this girl would survive the wizarding world after her final year. Being over-friendly made you liable to talk to the wrong person, and get cursed in the process. Raven was living proof of that, escaping death twice before he was even a teenager. The fact that she had no awareness of this blew his mind. And he had seen his fair share of people in his day. No wonder why students were so troubled when they left school: They were probably all sheltered and spoiled for the first seventeen years of their life.

Raven had second thoughts about all of these ideas, and felt a little bit ashamed to have prejudged her so badly. Still, he hoped that this girl would learn a little bit of...well, say, security soon. As he drew closer to her, he could see that she was a very friendly person. Raven had an innate ability to guage a persons personality quite accurately almost immediately. It was like a quality in their eyes, or some sort of aura around them. Or, maybe he was just a delusional, weird freak who thought too much of himself.

Either way, Raven finally decided to speak and chose his words carefully: "Yes, I am new. Can you tell me the way to the entrance hall? It's freezing outside, and I would rather converse in relative warmth then out here." Raven knew that this may sound a bit rude, but he was just speaking plainly. If she felt so inclined, they could swap introductions later. And she probably would, from the way she was acting at present.

Of course, she probably wouldn't know if he was a student or a teacher. She would probably assume the former, as Raven was often thought of as extremely mature for his age, and his body structure simply proved this more. His body was quite muscular for only being seventeen years old: A result of attempting to stay alive in the slums of England.

[Alyssa Weller]

((OOC: Ouuuch xD. Meet me at my locker. I have a machete with your name on it. J/K))

Alyssa looked at the man getting strangely bad vibes from him. She picked on a corner of her robes, nervously. "Yes, the common room. Um, follow me.." She mumbled, politely, not wanting the man to go ballistic. She wondered if he was a former student or a seventh year. She didn't want to pick a fight with him, but she felt his tone was slightly rude. Alyssa followed a path, hoping it led to the Entrance hall. If it didn't then what was the point of having a stupid path? Luckily, she was starting to see the castle doors. "We're almost there." She said and looked behind to see if he was following her.

Alyssa didn't really feel like checking if he was even following her. Argh, get lost for all I care. Jeez. If I wasn't there you would've probably froze up by now! She thought angrily, but quickly shook her head, getting rid of all her mean, unpleasant thoughts. Alyssa actually wanted to apologize for having such harsh thoughts, but she decided to not annoy him any further. For all she knew, he could just be edgy because of the weather. Alyssa realized that she was still picking on her robes and saw the seams coming undone. "great.." She mumbled. Now I need to fix my robe. Maybe I'll try using magic. Hopefully, it doesn't turn into a toad or something. She mind wandered off but she still managed to stay on track.

The image of the castle started to get clearer. Maybe once we reach there, he won't be so annoyed. She thought to herself hopefully. She didn't like having enemies. Maybe she was thinking too much into it. Everyone has their bad days and sometimes not everyone can like someone.

[Jane Till]

Jane folded her robe neatly and laid it on a nearby bench. She then folded her oxford shit, tie, skirt, and socks before placing her black flats underneath the bench. She pulled her blond hair up into a low ponytail. She then cast a quick nonverbal charm to keep her hair in place. Quickly glancing at herself in the locker reflection, she checked that her red sweats and black tank were in place. She grabbed her Nimbus 1000 off the bench and walked out of the changing room onto the Quidditch Pitch.

Jane had had a rough week, emotionally, which was no surprise to her. So when she finished classes and saw the beautiful fall day, she had to go flying. She walked out onto the pitch, broomstick over her shoulder. She was surprised when she saw Alyssa's back retreating with a boy in startling scarlet robes. She jumped onto her broom and flew over to them, as they were already leaving the opposite end of the pitch. She veered left as she whizzed past them and landed a ways in front of them. She stepped off her broomstick and sheepishly smiled at them. "I didn't exactly plan for the dramatic entrance. I'm sorry if it seemed showy, it was unintended." She then realized how weird she sounded and she abruptly looked at her feet. She them looked to Alyssa. "I just wanted to say hello."

She then turned to the boy and was struck by his green eyes. She was immediately wanting to know more about him. His face showed a type of maturity she never saw at any male student at Hogwarts. Just by looking at him, she knew that he had seen things she could never have dreamt of seeing. She smiled at him and extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Jane Till. Are you new?"

[Raven Way]

Ooc: SAMMIE! DONT LET HER SHANK ME! T_T

Raven followed alongside the girl, looking at everything around him as they strode towards the castle. The frost on the ground told him that it must be either December or January: He hadn't really kept track of time while on the search for his parents. He had given up everything, including a large sum of gold, and still turned up with nothing. Perhaps this was why he was in such a horrible mood lately, and he had probably just taken his anger out on this poor girl beside him.

As they walked together, he decided that he should probably mend the bridge that he had already broken. "I should probably apologize for what I said before. It just hasn't been the best month for me. Please forgive me." Raven had no qualms about apologizing, and he gave her a small smile to let her know he was serious. For Raven, even a small smile qualified as something extraordinary. Although this girl didn't know that.

His eyes scanning the rest of the field, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. He kept on walking forwards, but watched a girl pick up a broom and get on it. Keenly interested now, he continued to watch as she zoomed closer and closer towards them. She was heading for them for sure. His sense of alarm prickled, so he made sure that his wand was poking out of his robes. As she came closer, he realized that it was just another student. Perhaps a friend of the girl.

"Can you tell me what month it is? I'm afraid I haven't been paying too much attention to the news these days. Is it still November, or is it December already?" Raven knew that this would sound like a very strange question to her, but he hoped that she wouldn't think too much of it. People who became interested in strange wordings often got more than they bargained for. After all, Raven's parents had been captured because the 'Word on the street' was that they were powerful and influential people.

The girl on the broom finally came within conversation radius, and he turned to her as he heard her spoke. He gave a thin smile as she tried to word her sentence correct. "Don't worry about it. Using a broom is a fine entrance. Better than mine at least." He watched the two girls carefully, looking for a sign of recognition between the two. "Do you two ladies know each other? And I'm afraid we haven't swapped introductions yet. My name is Raven."

After that, he heard the newcomer ask if he was new. Turning his piercing green eyes towards her, he noticed that she seemed to be the same age as him. A good start, he supposed. "Yes, I am new. I'm afraid that other business held me up until now: Otherwise I would have started the school year the same as you two. What year are you in?" He wondered briefly if the girls were in the same grade: No doubt, they were between the ages of fifteen and seventeen, although he had never been the best judge of age.

He glanced briefly at the blonde girl's broom, noticing that it was an older model. Raven's own broom, a Firebolt, had been a present from his second family: Mr. Hawls had gotten both him and his true son a Firebolt on their thirteenth birthdays. Raven had gotten his first, as he was half a year older than Jayden. Turning back to the task at hand, he asked the girls, "Do either of you know a boy named Jayden Hawls? I think he's in sixth year." He knew that this would sound like a very peculiar question, again, but he couldn't help wondering how Jayden was doing.

[Alyssa Weller]

Alyssa smiled slightly when he apologized. "No it's okay. I'm a bit edgy too." She mumbled referring mostly to her thoughts. She knew she was easily irritable but she thought ever since arriving at Hogwarts, that side of her had died down. Most of her friends she knew, always referred to her as 'sweet'. If only they had known her before Hogwarts, they would never imagine themselves saying that. She snapped back to reality when the boy had asked her a question. "I'm pretty sure it's December." Alyssa replied, wondering slightly why the boy was so out of touch with the world.

She looked ahead and thought she saw a girl coming towards them. Who was it exactly? She couldn't really tell. Then she immediately recognized the girl. "Jane!" Alyssa said, smiling, glad to see her friend. "That wasn't showy, it was so cool. If only I could control my broom like that. I would've made a rather comedic entrance if I were on a broom." She said, laughing. "And hey to you too. I haven't seen you in awhile, what have you been up to?" She said, trying to imitate her own mother and waved her index finger like a typical parent.

Alyssa looked back at the boy as he introduced himself. "I'm Alyssa Weller. Year Six" She said and nodded politely. Alyssa was startled for a second when Raven had mentioned Jayden. "Yes, we know Jayden. I met him when I first arrived." She wanted to know why Raven knew about Jayden. Were they childhood friends? Old buddies? Alyssa looked at him. She didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable, so she decided to keep her mouth shut.

[Jane Till]

Jane smiled at the two as they greeted her warmly instead of chastising her for her entrance like she had expected. As the boy said his name, Raven, Jane inwardly smiled. This boy was turning out to be just as mysterious as she had expected. He hadn't started school at the regular date and she was intrigue enough to want to know why. But Jane wasn't dumb, she wasn't going to ask him to tell her his life story now. She had to become his friend, something she didn't see as a problem. She could never have enough friends after he start of this year.

She stopped her musings as she remembered that the boy had asked her a question. "Oh, I'm a sixth year." As Alyssa asked her where she had been, Jane wondered how to answer. She hadn't been avoiding her, although she had avoided Jayden. She suddenly started laughing and knew how to answer when Alyssa wagged her finger like her mother. "Sorry Mum, I've been busy cleaning my room and studying." She let a smirk cross her face. "How have you been? What have you been up to?"

Jane then felt a cool December breeze cause goosebumps to appear up her bare arms. She rubbed her hands along them quickly, trying to warm up. They minimized but the second Raven mentioned Jayden, they returned. If Jane had been intrigued before it was nothing compared to how she was now. How did this new boy know Jayden and why did he want to know where he was before he had even gotten inside the castle. Jane let Alyssa answer first and the memory of her first meeting with him caused a small frown to appear on her pale face. So when she spoke, she figured her voice betrayed her dislike of the boy. "Yea I know him." She then blurted the next part out without thinking. "Why?" She felt her cheeks redden slightly, but kept eye contact, blue to green.

[Raven Way]

Raven watched the two ladies carefully, and noticed that the two had definite recognition of each other. He wondered faintly if the two of them were good friends before he heard Alyssa say that she was a bit on edge as well. Perhaps it was just the atmosphere that was making everyone jumpy. In any case, Raven didn't exactly want them to perceive him as she dark and mysterious person, so he knew that he should lighten the mood up a bit.

Alyssa confirmed his suspicions when she told him that it was December. He steeled himself before speaking and told her, "Thank you very much. I thought it was, but I wasn't quite sure." Had he really taken that long in his search? He had allowed himself extra time by taking the shortest connecting flights possible, but he still overshot the timing by a fair bit. This was quite unlike him, and he smacked himself mentally for the error. Not that it matters now, I just have to worry about the present... he thought warily to himself. Smiling slightly, he imagined what Professor Hawls would have said if he had been able to read Raven's thoughts.

He stepped in a little bit closer as the two girls chatted amicably, wearing a small smile on his face as he listened. The two were either friends or acquaintances, although Alyssa had mentioned that they had not seen each other in a little while. This struck a chord in Raven's mind, and he was intrigued as to why they had not seen each other recently. After all, they were in the same year. Having classes with one another tended to keep you in contact.

He laughed as Alyssa did an impersonation that reminded him of his first boss, when he was cleaning the tables at the old bar he had worked at to stay alive while living at the Hawls. Of course, to anybody else, this impersonation would have reminded them of a mother. But to Raven, who never had the comforts of a mother, he didn't realize exactly what he was missing out on. After all, he thought that he understood the joke. He was partially right.

The next thing that came out of Alyssa' mouth slightly startled Raven out of these thoughts, however. She knew Jayden, and he could tell by the tone in her voice that he was a friend, but she was masking something that she knew. Whatever it was, Raven knew that she probably wouldn't tell him anyways, so he didn't press the advantage. His mind spun with the possibilities, trying to formulate some ideas on what he could possibly say to his brother-in-law. He didn't even know if that was what he should call Jayden anymore. Hell, he doubted Joseph would know.

He quietly slipped his hand into his robes' pockets, feeling around inside of it for the smooth, warm feeling of his wand. He brought it out, and quietly said a Bluebell charm. The end of the wand immediately erupted into a small blue fireball. He warmed his hands around the fire, listening as Jane gave an entertaining answer to Alyssa's "question". He did it quietly so that he would not startle them, as he wasn't sure what they would think. Then again, there wasn't really anything to think.

He mused over these odd thoughts as his attention was drawn to the blonde, Jane. He studied her blue eyes, her face, every little detail there was to see. Not in the creepish way, of course. Raven was simply surprised to find someone who at least seemed quite level headed. Not to mention attractive. Then again, Alyssa seemed both kind and pretty as well. He grinned to himself, remembering the things that Jayden would say in this situation. Would have said, you idiot, he hates you now, Raven reprimanded himself: This sobered his thoughts up considerably.

Drawing his attention back to the task at hand, he leaned over towards the two and asked them, "How...well do you know him? Is he well-liked at the school? Has he mentioned me or anything about himself before?" He knew that these would be odd-sounding and hard questions to answer, but he felt that the risk of perhaps having to tell them some of the story were petty compared to the risk that Jayden may attempt to kill him as soon as he walked in the front door.

Noticing that Jane was quite cold (the rubbing of the arms was an obvious signal to this) he dipped his head in apology and said, "Forgive me. You can answer those questions as we get inside. You two seem to be freezing out here, we should have gotten inside a long time ago. Until we get there, here is something to help." He proffered his wand forward, the blue light still emitting from the tip. He motioned to the two girls to follow, as he took long strides towards the looming giant that was Hogwarts. Where everything would either begin anew or end abruptly.

[Alyssa Weller]

Alyssa looked at Raven. "It's no problem. Sometimes, I am so focused on something, I completely forget everything." She said and smiled. She turned to Jane and laughed at how she had answered the question. "I see, very well." She replied, again sounding like a typical mother. "I've been doing fine. It's really hectic, though." She sighed and shook her head.

Alyssa looked over to the tip of Raven's wand. "The Bluebell charm. Ironic.." She mumbled, and remembered how Jayden had offered to use the charm to warm them up in the entrance hall, when they had first met. Then she realized, it was rather cold out. She had totally forgotten about the atmosphere.

She found Raven's questions of Jayden to be rather interesting. She just wanted to know who Jayden was to him. These thoughts were irritating her. She was rather happy when Jane asked him why he wanted to know about their relationship with Jayden.

"I guess, we're close friends..?" She said. She didn't really know how to rank their friendship. But seeing how he was her first friend, she felt quite close to him. "And well-liked. I suppose so. He managed to get himself a girlfriend." Alyssa envied how he was able to get someone to fall in love with him so quickly. "And, he hasn't really mentioned anything about his past or anything...And I don't remember him talking about you.." She mumbled. "B-but, I might not have paid attention to everything he said!" She quickly added.

Alyssa agreed that they should've spoke inside. It was rather cold and she felt her fingers may freeze if they stayed out any longer. The Bluebell charm had certainly kept them warmer, but in any case, she was looking forward to the warmth of Hogwarts.

[Raven Way]

Ooc: Sorry sam/jane, i needed to finish this thread. we'll continue this thread (and the plot) in the entrance hall, in a thread called "Sins of a Father"

Raven listened to what Alyssa said, and realized how much sense it made. Hell, it sounded like it was meant perfectly for him. Not that she knew that, of course. He had been so focused on finding his parents that he had lost track of time altogether. It all fit! Smiling at Alyssa, he wiped away these thoughts and said, "You're definitely right. I know what you mean. Time seems to go a lot faster when your focused on something."

He also watched as Alyssa commented on how hectic life was for her right now. Meaning, of course, that it would likely be hectic for Raven as well. He had forgotten would it would be like to go to school, and although he still had a sense of nostalgia, he was also a bit worried. He had probably lost all the wizarding facts that he had once memorized, and wondered how much of an idiot he would look like for his first few weeks.

He glanced back at Jane, noticing that she wasn't saying much, and figured that maybe she was just zoning out. He knew a few people that tended to do that, and they always had some sort of telltale way of doing it. Raven usually figured this out within a few weeks, and enjoyed watching to see if they would notice.

He stiffened up slightly when Alyssa commented on his use of the Bluebell charm. His skin was prickling slightly, but he didn't know what she meant by it. He pushed back his hair and didn't comment, but his mind was ablaze with wonderment. Could it be she was talking about Jayden? Or was it just a coincidence? Raven realized that he was overreacting, and took a deep breathe to try and calm himself down.

He nodded solemnly as Alyssa added that he was well-liked, and had even managed to get himself a girlfriend already. "That would be typical Jayden...always the charmer" Raven said darkly, smiling slightly. He knew in the back of his mind that Jayden would be popular: He was funny, handsome, friendly, and sporty. Everything that most girls looked for in a guy.

He grabbed Alyssa's hand with one of his, and reached over towards Jane, beckoning her to follow him. "C'mon, lets get inside before we freeze out buttocks off! I'll see you inside!" He began walking off, laughing as he looked back at the two of them. They struggled to catch up as he ran inside, the blue flame emitting from his wand bobbing up and down as he pushed open the doors to Hogwarts.

Thread Completed