No Sleep for Me, Thank You

[arianna]

"I think cats are smart enough not to eat anything that would harm them," Arianna replied uncertainly. She hoped so. But then, she had noticed that Juniper sometimes caught the spiders only to play with them, leaving a small gift on Arianna's pillow at the end of the day. Perhaps those ones were bad for the cat?

"I never really wanted a cat, though," Arianna admitted. At that comment, Juniper's ears perked up and something of a scowl crossed his facel, easing only slightly when the girl continued. "I found Juni in the courtyard near death, though, and had to save him. I think he was only a few weeks old then and who can resist a kitten? He's such a character, too. There's no way I'd ever get rid of him."

[Kellen McCrea]

"He seems like a fun cat," Kellen said. "I think if I were ever to get a pet, I'd get a cat. They just seem more--well, docile isn't the right word, but I don't know, more independent than other pets? Besides, some of the ones in the Magical Menagerie in Diagon seem like a lot of fun."

[arianna]

"He is fun," Arianna agreed. Juniper seemed content with her words now and allowed Arianna to pick him back up. After he had finished chewing up his spider of course. Arianna had gotten used to this and wasn't bothered by the lone spider leg left on her shirt. She mearly brushed it away as though it were a cat hair.

"Um...where are we now?" Arianna looked around them as she remembered where they were going. She had been so busy talking to Kellen that she had forgotten more than the day's events. By the looks of the corridor, though, she thought they were on the sixth floor now. It was harder to tell in the dark.

[Kellen McCrea]

"I think we're by the Charms classroom," Kellen said, looking around. "Er, no, wait, that's down a floor. Man, these corridors really do look all the same in the dark," he said, annoyed.

"Hello, children?" an annoyed sounding woman's voice floated through the halls. "Would you mind keeping it down? We're TRYING to sleep!" she huffed. Kellen quickly found the painting which had voiced her annoyance and apologized.

[arianna]

"Sorry," Arianna also appologized, though she didn't think they were being very rowdy. Perhaps they were a bit too loud for ones being out so late and trying to sneak to the hospital wing, but they had a good reason for it. Didn't they? And Kellen was Head Boy now, so Arianna felt it, somehow, gave them both a bit of protection against any trouble they might normally have gotten.

"Some of these paintings are rather...high maintanance?" Arianna shook her head. She never thought paintings would need 'beauty sleep' or anything of the kind, but they always seemed to think different.

[Kellen McCrea]

Kellen nodded dramatically. "Yeah, some of them really are," he said in hushed tones. "And they don't care much about who has a right to be where, either. They just like being left alone after dark, I think. It's kind of strange. You'd think they'd WANT attention; I mean, really, they were created to be looked at, right?"

[arianna]

"Perhaps they don't want the attention when they're covered with mudmasks and have curlers in their hair," Arianna suggested, a slight chuckle making its way into her voice. She had already seen a few portrait occupants dash behind their frames, a greenish or brownish tint to their faces. Anyone, especially a girl, would know what it meant. "I can just imagine..'Don't look. I look absolutely aaawful.'"

[Kellen McCrea]

Kellen grinned. "I want to find one with cucumbers over her eyes. Think that'll ever happen?" he joked. He'd never really understood what putting cucumbers over one's eyes had ever done; he just thought it looked goofy.

[arianna]

"Do I think they ever put cucumbers over their eyes? Or do I think we'll be able to catch one with cucumbers over her eyes?" Arianna asked, slightly confused about which way the boy meant. "Yes to the first question. The other, though...we'd have to plan a stake out, sleep in the hallway changing watch every few hours. Think anyone else would be up to it?"

[Kellen McCrea]

Kellen shrugged. "I have no idea what people in our house would be up for, most of the time," he said honestly. "Ha, I think I need to work on my ability to read people before I become a healer. That's what I should put on application essays...'What's the biggest challenge you'll face?' Figuring people out. I can't do it, really."

[arianna]

"You're not the only one with that problem," Arianna admitted with a snort. You would think she would know them by now, but most of the kids in Ravenclaw still stumped her. Once she thought she'd figured them out something else happened and she found she really had no clue.

"How about 'knowing the right thing to say?'" she suggested another problem she seemed to have. "I have no problem with the girls, really, but guys...No offense, but guys can be stupid sometimes. I say one thing, and they think I mean something else. If I try to explain, it only makes things worse."

[Kellen McCrea]

Kellen let out a wry laugh. He'd had the same problem--only with girls. "You think it's only boys that don't understand things and you're kidding yourself. I think we just can't communicate with each other, is what it is. Guys understand other guys just fine, usually. But girls? Complete mystery."

[arianna]

"I guess it wouldn't be fair if one understood the other better," Arianna admitted with a shrug. She wondered for a moment if they would ever get to the Hospital Wing, but didn't really care for the moment. It was nice to talk and she felt she could talk all night. Maybe by sunrise she'd be able to sleep soundly."One question, though. Why do some guys think that friendly means flirting? Just because I talk to someone doesn't mean I find him attractive or anything. I'm just being nice."

[Kellen McCrea]

Kellen furrowed his brow a little. "I don't think we're all like that," he said haltingly. "I mean... I think you're nice, but you've never flirted with me or anything." He thought about it for a moment, and then it dawned on him. "The thing is, guys tend to believe what we want to believe, right? Like, if whoever you're talking about wanted you to be flirting with him, then that's what he'll think is happening. Get it?"

He walked down a few more stairs before talking again. One more floor now. Man, the hospital wing was far away. "Okay, I've got one for you, then. Why do girls always ask impossible-to-answer questions? Like, 'Does this make me look fat?'"

[arianna]

Two things happened then. First, Arianna let out a snort. Next moment, she forgot to what she was doing and miss stepped, barely catching herself from tumbling the rest of the way down the stairs by catching the railing on the wall. She was able to catch herself, though it took a moment to compose.

"I have no idea," she replied, shaking her head. She didn't know exactly what he meant by 'impossible to answer' but she certainly hadn't ever asked that particular one. "Not about that one, anyway. Have any other examples?"