I’ll follow you into the park, through the jungle, through the dark, PHP Lesson 3 – Closed Options

[Sadie Banagher]

Sadie Banagher & Paige Jarvis

Socializing. It was not usually an activity that Sadie struggled with too much. She liked people; she found them interesting and she would never pass up an opportunity to meet someone new and learn something from them. But no matter how brave she thought she was, the young blonde couldn't deny she was nervous when it came to starting conversation with her classmates. These kids were the same ones she'd been attending lessons with for the past few days, making them not quite strangers yet not quite acquaintances either. Unlike with a stranger, if Sadie made a bad impression on them she could not turn around and run and forget the whole incident had never happened. These were the kids she would be spending the next seven years with at school. If she made a fool of herself now, she would have to carry that reputation with her throughout all her school years to come.

But surely making some impression was better than sitting idly in the shadows? If she was to have any friends when she arrived at Hogwarts, she knew she would have to start somewhere, and that somewhere happened to be at the little park that sat outside the Primary school. Sadie wouldn't normally describe herself as a creeper, but she had been watching a few of the other students a little more closely than others. These were the ones she'd mentally noted that didn't seem too terrifying and were therefore probably safe to approach. One girl in particular had caught her eye. The girl had a nice enough looking face, and people with nice faces tended to be nice people - or so Sadie assumed. She did hope her instincts were right.

She'd waited until they were free from class to go outside and...well, do whatever it was kids did outside at the park. Mostly she observed; but now was the time for action, not observations. Sadie spotted the nice-enough-looking-girl over by the fountain, and after letting out a small breath of determination, she wandered over to the fountain herself, recalling one of the pieces of information she'd read about the structure.

"Did you know," Sadie spoke out after coming to stand beside the other girl, "that if you throw a knut in there and make a wish your wish will be granted within a year? At least, that's what it says in The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

[Paige Jarvis]

It was official - Paige Krystal Elizabeth Jarvis had no friends.

Well, it was more of a "nobody-knew-kind-of-official", but the ickle found it to be true nonetheless. She was lonely, and it was all because of Mrs Valentein's instructions to socialize. If given the choice, Paige would have leapt at the chance to stay inside and continue writing her story, but everyone was going outside with Ms Valentein, and she had promised her mother that she would try not to start any bother. So, begrudgingly, PJ ended up standing by the fountain in Crystal Fountain Park staring into the water without anybody to talk to. She was bored, and due to the fact that she was, a) wearing yet another horrific dress, and b) under strict rules, she couldn't go in search of a group of people to play football with or climb any trees for no reason.

If only Tyler or some of the boys were here, she thought grumpily, at least then I could be bored with someone else. When she actually realized what she'd thought, Paige frowned. If Tyler was there, that would mean that they would have to be twins. And that would mean that he'd be in her year at Hogwarts! If he had magic, that was - they still didn't know. Sighing, PJ's thoughts drifted back to what would have happened if Tyler and the boys had gotten letters to Pre-Hogwarts Primary as well. They would probably all be running around the park playing football or tag. She would probably have been laughing and having fun, not stuck standing by a boring fountain thinking nothing but boring thoughts about how her life could be so not boring--

Letting out an almost silent squeal, PJ took a startled jump away from the voice that had interrupted her oh-so-interesting thoughts. The girl, however, didn't seem to notice her surprise and kept talking. A frown began to form on Paige's face as she took in the words directed at her. Well, she thought they were directed at her. A quick look around confirmed her suspicions, and she took a tentative step back over towards the girl, making sure to keep a few feet of personal space in case she started freaking. Her...not the girl. "I er...no, I didn't know," she muttered, almost slapping a hand to her forehead at how stupid she sounded, "I might try it sometime." Latching her teeth to her bottom lip, she turned to fully face her and held out a slightly shaky hand, "I'm Paige...Paige Jarvis. It's a pleasure to meet you."

[Sadie Banagher]

Could she have been any nerdier?

Sadie hadn't said more than three words to the other girl and already she was quoting a book. She'd just thought that an interesting fact might be a good way to break the ice, or at least offer a new bit of wisdom. What she hadn't been intending on was startling the girl with her...straightforwardness. Oops? Perhaps sneaking up on a person without first announcing oneself wasn't exactly the best way to go about making a good first impression.

She ignored how the nice-faced girl had practically jumped out of her skin, hoping that if she pretended the other girl didn't look frightened then perhaps her new potential friend wouldn't think she of her as some tosser who liked to creep up on people. She wasn't, really. She was a well behaved girl, most of the time. She dotted her i's and crossed her t's and said 'please' and 'thank you' and she never belched aloud. She was friendly and polite, even if she was a little desperate for friendship.

The young blonde gave an inward sigh of relief when the other girl inched back toward her instead of running away screaming for her mum. The last thing she wanted was for her classmates to think she was some kind of bully. Not that Sadie thought of herself as a particularly frightening person. She was barely eleven years old. She wore dresses covered in flowers, for Merlin's sake. She was about as scary as a baby rabbit. Only her teeth weren't as big.

When Paige offered her hand, Sadie beamed and grabbed it, shaking perhaps a little too enthusiastically. "I'm Sadie! And you really should try it sometime." She considered her words, then upon realizing she might have come off as bossy, she hastily added in, "I mean, if you want to. You don't have to! I'm not even sure if it's true, I mean it's just a myth, but..."

Oh boy, there she went again. It was normal for her to be overly talkative on a regular basis, but when she was nervous and thrust into unfamiliar situations it was as though her mouth suddenly went into overdrive and the verbal diarrhea went flying everywhere. And diarrhea was never pretty, literally or figuratively.

"Um, anyway!" Sadie let out a nervous laugh before continuing on, "Have you ever read that book? The Tales of Beedle the Bard, I mean. It's one of my favorites."

[Paige Jarvis]

After thinking it over, Paige considered that perhaps her biggest regret of the day was allowing her mother to dress her. Normally she wouldn't have much of a choice, but on the rare occasion that she did, she just had to be so typically like herself and muck out Swish in the clothes that she had planned on wearing to school. So, she was left to make her first impression on this girl wearing her 'nicest' dress - something she was beginning to find difficult on it's own. Her wrist now feeling as though someone had tried to dislocate it from her arm, she smiled slightly at Sadie's enthusiasm when introducing herself. It seemed as if she was as used to doing this as Paige was, and for that she was thankful. The last thing she needed was to meet someone who could have more friends that PJay had apples in her back yard.

Blinking herself back to reality, Paige realized that Sadie had been talking to her, and she managed to catch onto the end of what she'd assumed to be a long ramble. "Er..." she muttered, blushing scarlet before stuttering, "I've um...what is er...that book? Beedle the Bard-y? I've never heard of it?" Of course she was going to end everything she said with it sounding like a question. Shuffling her feet, the brunette played with a lock of her hair as she awaited an answer, perhaps Sadie could actually help her understand the idea of going to Hogwarts more. That was, as long as Sadie knew about Hogwarts. Beedle the Bard-y could be any normal thing that she had just not heard of. And now I'm rambling in my head, she thought with an almost silent sigh.

It was official - Paige Krystal Elizabeth Jarvis had no friends.

[Sadie Banagher]

In the somewhat awkward silence that followed her verbal assault, Sadie waited expectantly for the other girl's answer, hoping that they might at least have this one thing in common, or just something they could talk about to pass the time until they were called back into class. Paige seemed to be off in her own little world and for a few brief moments Sadie wondered if she hadn't accidentally talked the girl into some kind of coma. It wouldn't have been a very good first impression.

The other girl did, however, finally break through the silence with a response and when she did, Sadie let out a mental sigh of relief. So far so good. At least she hadn't scared Paige away; not that she really expected the other girl to run. She'd always been rather good with people and as long as Paige was willing to go along with it, Sadie was more than willing to lead the conversation.

"The Tales of Beedle the Bard," she repeated cheerfully. It made no difference to her that the other girl wasn't familiar with the book, as Sadie was always eager to bestow a new piece of knowledge upon others. "It's a book of children's stories. It's supposed to teach you good morals and all that. It's really quite interesting." But then, really any book she laid her hands upon fascinated her.

Looking back at the fountain, the young blonde swiped some dirt off the stone and sat down at the edge, making sure to neatly tuck her dress beneath her. Merlin knew her aunt would have a fit if she came home in shambles.

"I can borrow you my copy sometime, if you'd like," she offered with a smile. "But if you don't mind my asking...if you've never heard of Beedle the Bard...does that mean you're, well, are you Muggleborn?" She was either a Muggleborn she'd been living under a rock. After all, everyone knew about The Tales of Beedle the Bard. To be in ignorance of its existence seemed like a crime.