006 -- Adventuring Over the Weekend

I'm back! Sorry, I haven't felt like writing in a few days, I've been too busy to, actually! But it's quiet right now and I'm sitting next to the enchanted window in our dorm, watching the rain come down.

I wanted to go pick apples today, so I hope the real weather isn't like this.

I mentioned that I met some people. Well, Alex is in classes, so she had to go to bed that first night, and Loki and I decided to check out the pumpkin carving in Slythoween. What an idea!

We had fun picking out the 'perfect' pumpkins, and we hauled them over to the carving station and laughed and talked while we doodled out designs.

The problem with these pumpkins is, they come alive and attack you! So, after mine was finished, it came alive. Only it had a really goofy face on it, so it ended up just hopping around on the table. It also kept flopping over and I would grab it to steady it. Once or twice it actually bit me!

Loki's, however, had the headless horseman carved into it, and his was mean. It launched itself at his head until it managed to knock him down. I was sitting on it and talking to Alex when he ran off. I guess he thought we were following him, but I didn't know I was supposed to, and I got lost in the darn castle with this pumpkin chasing me through the air...

I eventually found a door that I could barricade myself behind, and I spent the night on the floor, listening to the pumpkin bounce off the door, trying to get at me. - -'

When I found my way back into the dorms the next morning, I was stiff and cold and found my two friends standing and talking to two other first years I didn't know. I pretended to be mad with Loki over his pumpkin, and we both dissolved into fits of giggles. As I warmed myself by the fire, I introduced myself to the other students, whose names are Ally and Marius.

We decided we were hungry, and Ally knew the way to the Great Hall, so we went down for a bite to eat. Loki opted out, saying he was sleepy, and fell asleep in the chair by the fire.

Down in the Great Hall, I got to really eat for the first time since I'd been here. And the food was too delicious! I snacked on sandwiches, drank tea, and even tried pumpkin juice for the first time! It's wonderful. While we sat there, we learned more about each other, talking about classes and home life and when we got our letters.

After scarfing my food down so fast, I didn't feel very well and went to the dorms to sleep it off.

When I woke up, my friends were in the common room again, and it was much later. My new Scotch-Irish friend, Marius, had a black eye! Ally and Alex looked uncomfortable and tense, and Ally kept shooting dark looks at Alex. I had NO idea what had happened, and was ticked that I'd slept through it. Apparently, (all they would tell us) Marius got into a fight with a 7th year and got punched. I don't know why or what over, though. They kept mentioning a prank.

As confused as I was, however, that was nothing to how Loki felt for not being there to stand up for his new friend. And he was still hungry, so we said goodbye to Ally and Alex (Marius was heading up to his dorm room), and Loki and I went back to the Great Hall to find him some food.

He tried pumpkin juice on my authority and loved it. :)

We were later joined by Marius and Ally, who were both bored and looking for something to do, and we also met another first year named Joellen Karr, a Ravenclaw, and two second years; another 'Claw named Darla and a Huffie like me, named Ian.

Ian was a little antaganistic and immediately jumped into making fun of Darla. It sounded like he'd pulled some kind of prank on her and Ally in the haunted maze. Ally went deathly pale and refused to really talk about it. I wonder what happened to her in that maze?

And then it happened. Our new acquaintance, Jo, made a strange comment, and told me my 'boyfriend' was really cute. It was then that I noticed Alex. She was sitting at the end of the table and looking really glum, but at these words, she was looking at Loki to see how he'd react.
When I heard her words and saw this reaction, I spit out my pumpkin juice.

"Boyfriends?! Who's talking about kissing boys? And holding their hands? Blech!" I sputtered, going pink in the face. Loki was blushing to his hairline, and Marius jumped in and covered Jo's tracks, changing the subject.

Alex had quietly gotten up and left the Great Hall without our noticing. I tried to feel bad, but I had grown a little weary that day. She would interrupt when Loki asked me anything. I'd been shrugging it off, but in light of the few minutes spent in the Great Hall, now it unnerves me. Does she like him or something? She can have him. As long as he's still my friend.

It was then that Darla made the comment about hand holding. She said it would be different, once I'd actually held the hand of a boy I liked. I can't imagine 'liking' boys like that. Loki makes me feel warm inside, and I can feel my face glow when I see him, but that's just because he was my first friend here, when I really, really needed one. But then, why doesn't seeing Alex make me feel that way?

Marius and Ian had been exchanging words. He whispered something at Ally and then got up and ran from the hall. I watched him go, and then elbowed Loki, who was lost in thought. When I asked him what was wrong, he was nervous and scared. He wanted to stand up and fight and be part of the boys, but he didn't like the idea of fighting an older wizard who knew more spells than he did. I wasn't really sure what to say to this. I don't know why boys want to fight. But I tried to change the subject and asked him where he thought our pumpkins were, now. That cheered him up a bit.

And then Marius ran back into the room. o_O With one hand behind his back. It turns out he was hiding a small, snarling, enchanted pumpkin of his own. He dropped it into Ian's hood and then started laughing. I, meanwhile, and Ally with me, we both stood up and quickly backed away. I ended up falling over a chair, and hitting the ground. Loki grabbed my hand and tugged me out of the hall in the confusion, and we sprinted all the way back down to the Dungeons.

It was back in this common room that I finally realized we were holding hands. His hand was soft and warm, and I...well, I don't know how I felt about it. Different, like Darla said. But does that mean I'm getting all mushy over a boy? I refuse to let it be so! So today when I see him, I'm going to pretend nothing happened. We'll go pick apples in the rain, and try to stay out of trouble, and just be lonely first year friends again.

I did get a few moments to talk to another 2nd year, this one is one of my roommates, named Nessie. She's a nice girl, and she plays violin! We didn't talk much, but we're sleeping in the same dorm; I'm sure we'll get plenty of time for talking. :)

With that, I'm going to wrap this up. Loki's not downstairs, I don't know where Ally and Alex are, and I haven't seen Marius at all today, either, and I'm hungry. So I'm going down to the Great Hall to grab a bite. Later!