Thump. Thump. Thump.

[Matilda Wentworth]

Thump. Thump. Thump.

The sound of a tennis ball hitting the stone wall of a second floor corridor created both an echo, and a slightly soothly, rhythmic sound for Matty. The teenager was seated against the opposite wall she was throwing the ball against. She was dressed in denim cut-offs that came to her knees, a blue singlet, and a black zip-up hoodie, her black converses stretched out in front of the girl. It was Thursday, and her week had still been long and tiring. Today had been the best of all days, though, considering Matty only managed to run late her a couple of classes and be late for lunch. Compared to her other days, this had been a good run. She was feeling more relaxed, though, after yesterday spent on the grounds. The bright green object bounced from the cold stone with an obvious thunk, before being caught in her hand once more. The action repeated itself, over and over, until the procedure became a rhythm.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Her lush green eyes watched as the ball bounced off the opposite wall, and spun back to wards her. She had been here, Merlin knows how long, with the magic-tolerating ipod sitting cold against the marble floor, one of the ear-phones resting in her ear. Mad World, by Gary Jules was playing. It was a favorite of her brother, Jamie, not her Hufflebrother, Mike (who had actually given her the ipod) which consciously made the teen smile. She hadn't spoken to her dad, step-mum or brother in weeks now, and made a mental note of writing to them later that day. But the continuous thumping of the ball against the wall kept Matty there, like she was in a trance. She hummed along to the song slightly, her mouth moving barely to mime the words. She continued to throw the ball at the wall, and for the first time in a while, her hand didn't react fast enough to catch it. Instead, the bright object bounced on the stone beside her head, before dropping to the floor and rolling away. Groaning slightly, Matty turned, about to reach for the ball, when she saw two feet standing standing about a meter away.

[Open : D]

[vi]

Feeling a little cooped up, Vi decided to take a run through the castle, whether it was allowed or not. She had pulled her lovely blonde hair up into a ponytail, the very end of it brushing her shoulders. She wore an emerald green top, an athletic halter, and had on a pair of short black shorts. She wasn't a health nut by any means, but needed exercise. She had misplaced her skateboard this morning and couldn't remember for the life of her where it could be. In an angry frenzy she had thrown all of her belongings around in the Girls Dormitory and then yelled words that she rarely used at the useless room. She started running from the Dungeons, up to the First, and now onto the Second. She was making good time and was actually enjoying herself. She felt her feet hit the Second Floor and heard a rhythmic pound.

Vi stopped running and looked down the hall to see a girl throwing a ball against the stone wall repeatedly, as if in a trance. It was odd. She walked closer, her metallic silver Converses gleaming in the hallway's light. She was extremely close to the girl, closer than she had wanted to be, and watched the ball now roll down the hall. The girl, snapped from her trance, turned for the ball and saw Vi.

"I was running and it seemed rude to just run through your game." She said innocently.

[Matilda Wentworth]

Due the fact that Matty hadn't even realized there was another person in the corridor, the girl was a little surprised to have seen the feet. Now that her eyes focused, the teenager noted the silver converses, which slowly lead up to a young girl, probably in one of the two youngest years. Her words suck into the girl a moment after she had said them. "I was running and it seemed rude to just run through your game." The way in which the youngster said it, as well as the evident innocence on her face actually made Matty shoot the girl a friendly smile.

"Oh, thanks, I think." the teenager said with a light laugh. "Do you run often?" the Hufflepuff paused, still smiling. "Awesome shoes, by the way. I'm a bit of a fan of connies, as you can see." Matty said, nodding her head to the girls shoes as she mentioned them, then her own as she followed. Finally reaching out and grasping the tennis ball, the girl let it rest in the grip of her hand, now pulling her legs up so they were closer to her chest.

[vi]

"Yeah, I love these shoes. They're really fun and I can always do whatever I need to in them without any issues." Her mind jumped to the memory of her hopping chain link fences, the police in hot pursuit, climbing trees, shredding skate parks. Those shoes had been through a lot, but not one person would even be able to tell. They were in pristine condition and Vi made sure that not one speck of dust even fell on her favorite pair.

"I'm not really a runner, per-se." Vi smiled. She took a seat next to the girl. She didn't know why she was being so nice to her, why she wasn't being distant and cold as usual. She ignored her own confusion and continued. "I only run when necessary, or when I'm extremely bored, today's case being the latter."

[Matilda Wentworth]

As the younger girl commented on her lover of the silver converses as well, Matty couldn't keep the smile from her face. She also acknowledged being able to do whatever she liked in them. The teenager fondly remembered going through various situations, when wearing her trusty converses. More commonly out of school, such as running through mud or odd terrain with her friend back at home, right through to painting her shoes wacky colours, or skateboarding through the school with Tianne. "Yeah, they're great like that. Really adaptable." the Hufflepuff said with a small nod, agreeing with her entirely.

Matty was a little bit surprised when she noted on the girl taking a seat next to her, but in no means did she scold or back away from her. She preferred those who didn't mind being friendly and casual, compared to those boring old house, year, name conversations. Especially with the younger years, for they were generally fresh and new. As the girl explained about her running situation, again, the older girl could relate to her. "Thats fair enough, it's a good way to keep fit, in any case though. What other things do you usually get up to, then?"

[vi]

"I'd usually be skateboarding outside," she grumbled. "Except for the fact that I totally lost my board in my room somewhere. Running was the alternative." She checked to make sure that her hair wasn't falling out of the ponytail, and sat there, a little awkward. Why would this girl care what you do or what you've lost? Dumb thing to mention. She thought about all of the fun she would be having if destiny had changed it's course. She would be outside, enjoying the cool wind and the sunshine, instead of running around Hogwarts looking like an idiot. Whatever.

She was now sitting in a hallway with a girl she barely knew talking about Converses. It was possibly the most random thing she had ever thought of. "I never really introduced myself. I'm Vi Lumley." She said, turning her head to the girl. Her blue eyes shone as she awaited to hear the other girl's reply.