Dark Days of Summer: The Griever

[Lianna Maylorn]

She was supposed to be shopping for school, supposed to be enjoying herself, supposed to be smiling. She was supposed to be doing alot of things, but she found she could do none. Yes, like most everyone else she was looking forward to the new school year, and while glad her father had allowed her to remain at Hogwarts for another year, it seemed that fate had other plans for her life. Abby wouldn't be returning with her, and that crushed her mentally. Abby had been (and still was, as far as she was concerned) her best friend at Hogwarts, to not have the person she was closest to there, all she had done was relapsed back into her shell. The same shell that had taken her entire first year to get out of. She found herself unable to talk to people she didn't know, found herself shying from conversation completely. Perhaps some would find this odd, crazy, even stupid, but to her she'd pretty much lost the best friend she had for an indefinite amount of time. And that, well, it stung really really bad.

Her father, having gone off to Eyelops to get her an ctual owl, and not some 'ruddy school bird' left the future third year perched at a table int he Leaky Cauldron essentially by herself. Even in the increasingly darker growing times, this time of year Diagon seemed more of a welcome retreat than a fearful nightmare. Families were everywhere, plus, Lianna knew that number one rule she'd taught herself since choildhood when alone: talk to no one outside of your age group. It was really a pretty simple thing to follow.

And so the afternoon would continue to drag onward while her mood continued downward...endlessly.

(Closed.)

[mark]

He could go outside. He could go outside. Oh God, dear Merlin, HE COULD GO OUTSIDE!!!

Mark thought as if he might explode from excitement.

It had been nearly three weeks since Mark was checked into the hospital on July 3rd, starting his unfair captivity. The warm sun felt amazing against Mark’s skin, the grass and flowers around his house smelled great, and swimming in the pool, well, that was heaven, especially on the hot days. Mark would never, ever take spending time outside for granted again.

Mark had spent most of his summer so far sick in the hospital. He wish he could run outside after breakfast and refuse to come back into the antiseptic hell until sunset, sometimes even refusing to return then. This was bliss to Mark and he dreaded that vampire crypt. All they did was poke him with needles, pound on his back until he cried, and feed him nasty medicine that could have even made rats sick. Indeed. Out was good.

But today was a special day. Mark had been just released. Knowing that he was pretty much free to do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, he had planned an adventure. Mark was going to Diagon Alley... accompanied by parents of course. He didn’t know what he was going to do once he got there exactly. He couldn’t shop, seeing that he didn’t have any money, but he could look.

Mark didn’t really know what to expect, having never been left alone in Diagon Alley before, but he knew he’d get to see some of the students that stayed in the alley over the summer and maybe even a few of the graduates he had crushed on grown close to during the last semester. It was all very exciting.

Mark decided that he liked the alley as soon as he walked into it after his parents gave him three galleons. It was busy and thrilling—and in a better way than trying to maneuver his way through the Great Hall during a meal at Hogwarts. Mark stopped, trying to take in all the sights around him. Wow!

He'd had always liked the Leaky Cauldron, he remembered that much from his last excursion. The Muggle-clothing clad Hufflepuff clambered into the dusty old pub, the little bells above him jiggling. He let a grin capture his boyish features as he looked around. Hogwarts students all around, and one that he actually knew.

The teen walked... no... bounced in the direction of the other third-year Hufflepuff before grabbing a chair and pulling it over to her. It had been too long since he had a normal conversation and he therefore began bombarding her with open-ended questions energetically, "HEY LIANNA! How was your summer? Did you get a hair-cut? Are you staying in the Leaky Cauldron too? Lovely day isn't it? Hey! Waiter, can I have a butterbeer over here? Want one too? Oh geez, its hot today, isn't it hot today?" There was obviously a change in self-esteem... or perhaps there was morphine in his system.

[Lianna Maylorn]

As the bells jingled her eyes only half glanced, but failed to register the fellow Hufflepuff third year actually enter while her thoughts continued to wander as to what the year could possibly hold for her. These thoughts were quickly shaken from her mind however as the boy seemed to appear out of the air and unleash a loud and long ramble of words, thoughts and fragments of which she only could follow barely half.

"Hey Mark..." Lianna greeted, nowhere near as joyous as she normally would be. Sure, she was happy to see the boy, but givent he circumstances happiness was near impossible, plus he seemed...too happy. It was actually somewhat frightening, ok,it was highly frightening but that's beside the point. Point was, she had company, which might allow the day to pass quicker, and he was a friend, and she was a compassionate person even when depressed. So, shunning him away clearly wasn't happening.

"Sure" She replied ot the offer. "I guess it's kinda warm, I haven't really left here in a couple hours so I don't really know how it is outside. It's comfortable in here..." The girl's cheeks blushed ever the slightest, her tone of sorrow turnning up just a bit toward the positive side as she seemed to realize just who she was talking to. Sometimes coherentness took a bit of a jumpstart to get going.

[mark]

Mark failed to registart that she wasn't in as a good of a mood as he was and continued grinning all the bit more. How could she possibly not be as happy as him? The sun was shining, school was over, they'd managed to make it to their third year without the use of alcohol to stimulate brain power ( Arizona Tea ), and they were both in Diagon Alley without parent supervision. It was amazing.

Mark gave the lady two sickles and put his elbow on the table, and put his face on his hand. It was a confortable position. He pushed one of the butterbeers in Lianna's direction and uncorked his own.

"Its too great of a day to be stuck inside!" Mark exclaimed, pointing his finger at the window drastically, "The sun is shining, not a cloud in view, and its not as dark and gloomy as the Ministry says it is."

[Lianna Maylorn]

(SO fighting laughter..thanks alot...)

Oh yes, the boy was definiately far too hyper/happy for both her and his own good. But she supposed she could live with it if it managed to cheer her up some, which, of course it had. Happy moods, much like depressing ones were equally contagious and Mark's was no exception. "Warm and sunny and not what the Ministry says... Mark when did the Ministry ever bother us with their version of the weather?" Lianna replied, an extremely small smile gracing both her and the world with it's presence. Of course she knew what he meant, everyone did, it was just something that unlike everyone else, Lianna chose for the moment to ignore. The more she thought about that, the more it linked back to well, everything else that was the current reasons for her lack of true enthusiasm.

The next Hogwarts term was almost upon them, year three of seven but with omens as they were it would most likely be less than that for her as it was for so many others. But only time would tell such a story, just as it would tell many others, she was merely the pawn in it all. The soon-to-be third year rested her chin on her hand and tilted her head slightly at the boy perched across from her. "So...um...summer...how's it been?" Lianna questioned quietly, the most unwanted awkwardness she knew would come finally setting in. She dealt it to herself, never being able to say entirely what she thought, perhaps this year...sometime....

Perhaps many things...

[mark]

(( No problemo.))

Mark's expressive face turned to one of perplexion as she made her comment. If there was one thing about Lianna, he wasn't sure if she was kidding or not half the time, and man that annoyed him. It wasn't until that small grin crossed his face before he realized it had in fact been a joke. He wrinkled his nose and let a grin control his features before continuing, "Oh, they're always like. 'Oh its a horrible world right now. We suggest you stay indoors.' Its not like its pouring rain outside or anything. Bad people are out there, big deal. They're are plently of bad people everywhere, Muggles and Magical people alike. And like staying inside is going to do anything." If there was one thing Lianna and Mark had alike, it was their ability to keep a straight face while making a joke until the end, confusing the heck out of each other.

When Lianna asked Mark about his summer, he couldn't help but sigh. It was a horrible summer until today. Incredibly horrible indeed. He replied rather quickly (even for a hyper-active boy), "Well. It's been quite dull. I've been kept indoors all summer until today for absolutely no reason - my parents don't get all this, 'the magical world is crumbling' thingymajigger so they don't know about the attacks on Hogwarts - hence the reason I'm so incredibly hyper today. I can see the sun again! And I'm able to go outdoors without parental supervision. Yahoo! Yippee!" He finished quite enthusiasically (sp?) with a wide grin before taking another swing of his Butterbeer.

[Lianna Maylorn]

How did she always manage to confuse him? It was a most annoying thing because when he got confused he made those looks which made her wonder if she'd said something wrong, even if she knew quite obviously that she hadn't. Of course, those looks were both amusing and in some foreign and indescribable form to her captivating as well. It was nerve racking, in a good way, a thing many would probably say is impossible.

"Yeah there's not alot we can do about it is there? My dad's around...somewhere--supposedly getting me an owl, an actual owl, not one of those unreliable and temperamental school...things...at least I hope it's not tempermental..." Lianna replied, that small smile choosing to remain present. Actually, it would probably remain throughout the duration of the conversation but that also was...beside the point. Point made, she now had a reason to Mark's jumpy-hyper-happy-go-luckyness. It was a certainly valid one so she could hold nothing against him. If she were in his shoes, she'd probably be happy too, and of course, have a new pair of shoes...

So caught up had she been that she hadn't even noticed the waiter actually bring the drinks over. Then again, that's what she got for letting both her eyes and ears wander respectively. Blinking twice at the suddenly 'there' bottle she shook her head for a split moment and then took a sip of hers as well. "Now I see why you're so happy...congratulations." The girl chirped, the smile turning into a very brief grin to match the celebratory event. It was summer...good times all around--even in the darkest days.

[mark]

Mark nodded in agreement. Those dang owls at Hogwarts decided to fly whichever way suited them. Why, it took 5 months for one rather confused owl to deliver a letter to his parents when they were just about ready to wring his scrawny neck. He responded cooly, "Mmm. I wish my toad could deliver my letters for me. All it does is eat my snacks on the Hogwarts Express and croak. And eat flies... I think. Well, I've never ACTUALLY seen him move." The truth be told, his toad was stone-dead, but the poor boy thought it was cold-blooded, and it was simply always cold. And as for the croak and food disappearing... lets just say you don't want to know.

Speaking of shoes... the boy still hadn't managed to convince his mother to buy him new ones, and therefore was still wearing right shoes. The poor boy indeed.. He had many callouses, sores, and two very different shoes to prove it. Uncomfortably the thirteen year old shifted his feet beneath the stool.

Mark took another swing of the Butterbeer and nearly choked on it when Lianna said, Congratulations! He had been in and out of the Hospital all his life, and had certainly gotten words of encouragement each time. But this time it was different, it was a girl his age who mentioned it. When his parents took him out, he simply shrugged it off, but Lianna saying it made him want to puff out his chest with dignity, and clasp his hands together, shaking them for a large crowd as if he had just won something. Eww. She's a girl. This feels... funny. For Mark, he was a thirteen year old living in an 8 year old body - both frame and mind. The iron wall between male and female was still intact and girls still had cooties. Why was this all of a sudden different?

He choked out weakly, "So how was you're summer so far?" If he was leaning any closer to her, his chair would slip beneath him.

[Lianna Maylorn]

Toads weren't the most reliable of animals, such was definitely certain. In fact, they weren't really much of anything except perhaps more than the typical amount of disgusting, but to each their own, and if Mark liked having a toad so be it. Even though the boy's words made her doubt he liked the animal all that much, she figured he was probably slightly attached to it in the least. "Oh come on!" Lianna exclaimed pausing a brief moment while a small grin formed on her lips. "It can't be that worthless can it?" She countered, trying to give the boy some faith in his...erm..pet. No, Lianna Maylorn was not a fan of toads. Cats, dogs, owls, fish, all of those were fine. Toads? No.

As the boy shifted in his seat and took another sip, only to choke it out at her one word of appreciation toward the him she couldn't help but allow a slight giggle to follow up that earlier mentioned grin. Maybe he just wasn't used to people being happy for him? Oh well, that certainly wasn't her place to pry, and once the giggle had subsided, (seeing as it had only lasted a few seconds) a brief look of concern flickered into her eyes as the realization hit her that choking wasn't good--even if it [i[was[/i] on liquid. But she pressed her concern not as he seemed alright enough to changed the topic again. Topic bouncing was always fun.

"Summer's been pretty good...lotta swimming, running and my dad even took me to see some show that I can't remember or pronounce at the Palace Theatre in Manchester...it was a nice show...I think it was in Italian...or Latin..or something like that," The Hufflepuff lass replied, taking a half-second to glance toward the window.

Still no sign of dad...I don't mind talking to Mark but...how long does it really take to get an owl? Liannna pondered, her thoughts changing to slight worry for a moment before refocusing onto the boy before her, the slight pink tinge still having not left her face. She doubted rightly that it ever would until they parted ways.

[mark]

Mark drained the rest of his Butterbeer feeling rather pleased with himself as he listened to Lianna's next comment. Was his ears deceiving him? Was she ACTUALLY being sarcastic? Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! She wasn't being so compassionate (ahem) and was letting go; something he had achieved earlier within the year. Mark shook his head with a grin, letting his growing curls shake energetically, "Na. I put Joan - my toad- on my bedside during the school year. And I swear it didn't move once... But it was croaking. It won't even breathe." It was amazing how much of a dunce the boy was growing to be. And once again, the mysterious croaking. This is where the handy twilight music comes in.

Mark listened to Lianna as she talked of her summer and felt a lot worse about his own. While he had to stay in the antiseptic hell, she was listening to Italian or Latin or whatever the heck she had said. But all the same he nodded in agreement, for he wasn't the type to argue without purpose and without a joke. "Well, that place wasn't so horrible I guess. I wasn't hooked up to a bed all the time. I got to go out every now and again and buy real food from the vending machine. And I got to watch all of the Disney movies again. The people there are always great unlike the plastic... I mean food." He gave a slight shrug, he was just trying to make light of his own summer.

The boy looked out the window before looking back at Lianna and that was when he noticed her pink-tinged face. Without thinking much he asked, "Spent too much time out in the sun, eh? While swimming?" He had heard that water absorbs light and you tan or burn easier in water (seeing how pale the girl got during the winter, he imagined she'd burn), but he wouldn't ever know because swimming and holding his breathe was completely against the rules of CF. He offered a 'cool' lazy grin before pushing his mug away and leaning on his left elbow, his head balanced on his flexed hand.

[Lianna Maylorn]

Back to the pet for a moment, and after his words Lianna, much unlike Mark, realized the creature wasmost likely dead and assumed that Mark had most likely imagined the coraking. The only thing that perplexed her was how he didn't recognize the stench of death, although this did explain that odd smell from the boy's dorms now... "Umm...Mark...I don't think the toad's...you know...living anymore..." Lianna replied awkwardly, a pained and clearly forced half smile on her face before she moved on to his later bit of conversation.

Food...plastic? That didn't even make sense no matter which way you put the words. Plastic food simply wasn't food, and food plastic was just plain grammatically wrong and Kellen would kill us if he saw this. Hoever she chose not to comment on the confusing point, even if her confusion showed upon her face. "No place is entirely comfortable, and, well, look at you, I think this is the happiest I've seen you--" Though I've really rarely seen you... "--I think since we met, which I think says something. at least, it does to me." Lianna replied with an encouraging nod. Alright, she liked the boy, but she couldn't tell him that, there was no fun in bluntness, or at least, not with this form of it anyway.

"Spent too much time out in the sun, eh? While swimming?"

His third set of words almost bounce right off her. In fact at first they did but only rebounded rather hard and for a moment she didn't know what to say at all. "Umm..yeah...alittle bit...I guess...it doesn't really bother me..." Lianna replied, eyes and face turning away as she tried to will the blush away. Sunburn...sunburn wasn't pink but she was counting her blessings and goign with her luck. Now if only it would go away.