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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 5:30:11 GMT
So many things had changed since the blue-haired girl had trudged around the lake's edge. Life, death and renewal. It was one thing the girl would never understand; why life and fate had to be so demanding and horrid at any time it liked. Though it wasn't something she fully believed in, Carmen became aware that there must have been someone up there that didn't keep her in their good book.
Both her hands were shoved into her black and yellow cloak pockets, fiddling with the bracelet Kezaa had mended for her on her birthday in one. Her birthday. What a day. But that was over now. One heavy step after another led her around the rim of the water as the stunning hues of red, yellow, orange and blue coated the cloudy sky from dusk. The water looked so inviting.
Deciding against the time of day and the curfew the school had, the girl began to pull of her shoes and socks, followed by her baggy jeans and cloak. That left her with a white singlet and a pair of green shorts that came midway down her thigh. She had prepared herself just in case the urge to have an evening swim had come. Tentatively, she stepped one toe into the water and shivered.
Not all of it was frozen, but it looked too inviting to pass up. Before the girl would change her mind, she brought her arms up and formed a point with both her hands, one atop the other, and aimed them toward the surface of the water. There was barely a splash, but Carmen would never have noticed, especially with the coldness of the water biting at her skin.
Seconds later, the girl surfaced, her long blue hair sticking to her shoulders and wading at her back in the water. Such a time to swim, people would have thought her mad. And she had every reason to be mad, considering the past events of time.
(OOc: Invited only, sorry folks)
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 8, 2005 6:00:30 GMT
Such a time to swim, indeed. This lake seemed to have established itself as a sanctuary; an outlet for students that needed to clear their minds and sort their thoughts. In some cases like this however, it also proved to be a sufficient hiding place.
The rapid crunching of leaves breaking underneath a pair of feet resounded through the countryside. Multiple bursts of air shot out of the mouth of a young man, sprinting wildly through a non-descript and unmade path through a field of dying grass. The boy's sandy-blonde hair took on an almost shapeless nest blowing wildly in the wind, and the boy's fogged up glasses had thankfully slipped down the bridge of his nose. He had been chased, perhaps for 20 minutes or so out of Hogsmeade. If there was any real need for him to leave this place before, that need seemed to arise earlier that evening.
Coming across what looked like an old forgotten pagoda, his eyes darted around the place with its obvious neglect, as no human had touched that place in ages. There was a small roofed stable with several cushions. And to paint the neglect of the scene were all the colors of Autumn as there were piles of leaves bunched up all over the place, indiscriminate in the creative whims of Nature. It seemed to be an old picnic area, or something. Climbing on one of the pieces of furniture,, Sam latched himself to the corner of the cieling, and waited for the angry Hogsmeadian mob to let up on their cavity search of the area. The night was far too bitter and cold for their rageful search to resume for long.
Five minutes later, after slipping and falling upon one of the old bumbling wizards, he was chased further out to the lake, with a whole line of torch-carrying wizards in toe. This thief was elusive, but even he could only do so much with so many careless mistakes. He dove into the lake, leaving very few ripples in his entrance. And incidentally, it was not 30 feet from where the lovely blue-haired Hufflepuffian had started swimming. Sam quietly prayed that they would go off elsewhere to search, lest he end up drowning.....
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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 6:23:43 GMT
Wading in deeper, with her head above the water and her long blue hair floating some distance behind her, Carmen turned her vision toward the land. Was there someone else there? She could have sworn that someone had yelled from some kind of impact. Maybe getting winded? The girl raised an eyebrow at the thought of someone else being out at such a time.
That blue eyebow rose even higher up the girl's forehead when she noticed at the very least ten people with their wands out, running in the direction of the noise. Little did she know, that noise hadn't come from Sam, but from the wizard he had landed on. Some of the people scratched their heads as to where the person had gone, and it wasn't until there was a splash beside her that her attention was diverted.
But it wasn't only hers. The bustling wizards and witches headed straight for the lake's edge, and the girl didn't move. Frozen to the spot, and beginning to shiver, Carmen watched the bunch closely as they looked over the water, and attempted to search it with their "Lumos" spells. She watched their wands as they lit up the water, and finally their light landed on her. Partially blinded from the dying sunset, Carmen squinted.
"Oi! Girl! You seen a man 'round 'ere?" One particularly ugly man yelled to her.
Quickly, thinking on whether to turn the splash in or not, Carmen yelled back "Nope!" and shook her head, still squinting. Their lights shone directly on her suspiciously, but eventually they turned back the way they came, cursing and muttering amonxed themselves.
Though it wasn't the best way of communicating, she was sure he could see her under the water. Mouthing the words "They're gone," she flutted under the water, then resurfaced to wait for someone to come out.
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 8, 2005 6:51:43 GMT
Sam's vision had become increasingly hazy, particularly due to his lack of visibility from the unuse of his glasses. It was difficult seeing through them, since the lightweight peice of plastic would not stop floating elsewhere; thus, he decided to just hold them in hand til he could resurface.
What little he could tell though, was the fact that the flickering searchlight wands eventually vanished. Soon after that, the girl dunked herself underneath and uttered something through the bubbles that perpetuated from her mouth. Seconds later he burst through the surface of the water, his shoulders slumped with the weight of the water that tugged at his clothes. Despite the now hard biting cold at his ears and nose, and every other exposed extremity, and the fact he'd been submerged for close to a minute, Sam scarcely gasped for anymore than a moment. His quiet calmness returned, and he froze where he stood.
This girl before him was quite beautiful. Her long sea blue locks floated like a mass of seaweed about her shoulders, and her eyes glowed with curiosity. His brown irises twinged with hesitation, as if his second instinct was kicking in, ordering him to flee. But somehow....he just couldn't move yet. He realized finally that he had been holding his breath, and he released it in a huge mist that floated about in the young night wind.
"Thank you."
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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 7:02:31 GMT
Taking in a couple of deep breaths, the girl's own lungs eventually calmed down from the excitement. What on earth had happened? Why were all those people after him, and what had he done? Oh gods... he could have been a killer! It had just occurred to Carmen that she could have just let off a mass murderer and worse, he was with her in the same patch of water! No matter how calm her breathing was just a moment before, it was the opposite again.
As if she had lost her voice, she nodded to his appreciation, and floated there, wide-eyed. A moment later, her voice came back, and she asked tentatively "What happened?" Using both her arms and legs as propellors so that she wouldn't sink under the water and lose her breath was beginning to tire her, but still she didn't move a bit from her spot. She couldn't move, and wouldn't dare until he answered her question.
What had she done? Surely he wasn't a killer, and hopefully not a thief. But what else could he have done? Surely insults thrown wouldn't have caused that large mob to chase him from Hogsmeade. Maybe it was a pub brawl, and he had come out on the lesser end. How could that be? There were no marks on him, despite the dying light. The only difference was that his light brown hair was dishevelled from the water, and he was wet.
What had he done?
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 8, 2005 7:20:11 GMT
His hair was matted down from the cold and heavy wetness of the water, and Sam could scarcely see anything except the girl through his bangs. He ran his hand up through his hair, trying vainly to sleek it back only to turn it into an even more ruffled mess.
The beauty's question was obvious, albeit unspoken. The girl seemed to be shivering more with fear than the cold. The very least he owed her was an explanation. With little restraint, a grin forced itself upon his features, its boyish charm almost making up for his messy appearance. His hands then raised up, with his sleeves loosely hanging at his wrists. And with a singular motion, they crossed each other and lashed out with a pair of.....apples.
"Want one?" he asked, somewhat embarassed that he got caught lifting such small-time items.
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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 7:26:36 GMT
Apples? He had... apples? Carmen could have keeled over in relief, and it was probably residant on her features too. But it didn't matter. She smiled and sighed, then sent her arms forward to wade closer to the boy. It was better than having him throw it and her missing it, to have to swim after it. It was a good thing that they floated anyhow.
Closer and closer the girl swam, and more defined his own features appeared. The thing that had caught her the most, was (other than his charm, which she was oblivious to) his deep brown eyes. They invited her over as much as his two words had. Once she was a metre from him, she gently took one of the apples that he held to her. Both were fat and juicy by the looks of it, and she had not had anything to eat all day.
But she wasn't going to mention that.
Carmen took a bite, and realised after she had begun eating that he could have poisoned it. She was too trusting, but there was something about those eyes. Get over it, silly! You're too paranoid! He's not like that Lycan... Carmen b****ed to herself in her head after taking another delicious bite. "Thank you," she replied, with a mouthful. "I'm Carmen Thompson."
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 8, 2005 7:45:27 GMT
Yes, perhaps a more astute student would have thought apples to symbolize sources of deciet. But even if he did hold such malicious intent (and there was scarcely a malicious bone in his body), he still would not have had the time or focus to poison either one of those apples, with the intent in which those villagers persued him.
Regardless, Sam also bit casually into his apple, listening closely to the girl's hesitant introduction.
"Carmen, eh? My name's Sam. Sam Nanten." moments later, his jaw stopped moving in mid-bite, as he realized with great dismay what he had done. He had told this girl his real name. Jeez Sam, tonight's just your night for screw-ups! And my horoscope said my bad day wouldn't be until next Sunday.... he swallowed with a somewhat disehartened expression on his face.
Why did he tell her his name, anyway. He was usually a lot more careful about his identity when around other people. But then, most people were just quick meetings, not unlike this one. So why did it slip his mind this time? Were the adrenals in his blood still not thinned out yet? Even in his worst moments of panic he was never too high-strung to remember what to do in calm, routine situations like this.
Perhaps....she just seemed to be the type that needed it. Sam couldn't describe it, but her wavering fear somehow lied deeper than in the current situation. It was as if insecurities tugged at her heart; in short, Carmen seemed somehow vulernable. His shoulders slumped, as if to sigh. If he was right, then the last thing this cute girl needed at the moment was a deviant like him complicating her life with his mere presence. He felt so guilty, but he hoped he his smile wouldn't let anything on.
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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 8:00:20 GMT
Sam Nanten seemed like an ordinary guy, not the type to poison an apple. Who would have thought? But as soon as he told her his name, his eyes widened just that little bit, as if he was shocked at his words. What was going on inside that mousey-brown head of his? Carmen could never guess. Taking another juicy bite out of the apple, her tummy began to let its groans for food subside.
At least she would be alright for the rest of the night, until she would get to the common room anyway.
The smile was almost as true as his eyes, which was rather alluring toward Carmen, but she attempted not to take too much notice. There had been too much of a rush into the guy theme so recently in her life, and it was something the girl wasn't exactly used to. First Accutio, then Forgoil, then the boy at the bar (who didn't even help when Rogue attacked).
But hopefully that would be the last of it.
Not if her subconscious had anything to do with it.
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 8, 2005 8:15:39 GMT
Though he felt just a tad bit awkward at this point, the girl still had no inclinct as to whom he was. Despite the fact that his name happened to match that of the world-wide multi-billion dollar jewlery interprise Nanten Gems. This boy had no reason to steal, according to his background. But at the same time, it was something very....complicated. An issue so complicated infact, he had nearly lost sight as to why he became a thief to begin with. But with such horrible flub-ups like the ones he demonstrated that night, he may as well retire.
Shrugging the thought off, he took a slightly bigger bite of the plump fruit in hand, and stared off into the night. He couldn't help but wonder why she was there. Not that he didn't appreciate her alleviating presence, both during and after that close-call.
"Well, do more mermaids such as yourself come out at this time of night?" he inquired after swallowing and turning back to look at Carmen.
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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 8:24:19 GMT
(Ooc: Happy 100th post ^^)
Mermaids like Carmen? The girl giggled, and couldn't help but let the smile take over her lips, which were beginning to turn as blue as her hair from the cold of the water. Though she knew that some mermaids were said to have blue and green hair, she was sure that he had seen her kicking legs that were minorly clothed in green shorts.
Beating her legs through the water to propel herself from directly in front of her to swim to his right side, once she arrived there, she looked up toward the brightening stars that were coming out for the night. As if ushering his own views, Carmen smiled again.
"You know, I'm not exactly sure why. But these are a good enough reason." Her Australian accent stuck out just that little bit more now, from her dishevelled words, almost as higgldey-piggldey as Sam's hair.
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 8, 2005 8:39:30 GMT
Her accent did indeed stand out, though it was not without an offer of her smile. Perhaps she seemed to be relaxing somewhat from the few words that transpired between the two. She was almost certainly a native Australian, though he had not conversed with more than a couple in his lifetime. Rather than feeling awkward with them though, their accents held a sense of being laid back that was impossible not to catch, so he almost instantly felt at ease when he heard Carmen's accent.
"Heh, I suppose you're right. Don't you think its a little cold to be swimming with so little on, though?" he asked, glancing at the shirt that clung so to her chest but quickly averting his gaze back to hers. He took another bite of his apple, feeling thankful that the apple was so big that he could defer to biting into it in awkward moments like that. Tonight was his night for screw-ups, afterall.
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Post by Carmen on Dec 8, 2005 8:47:30 GMT
Carmen was almost totally glad that the stars were out tonight, and that the clouds had dispersed as quickly as the sun had gone asleep for the night, because it gave her an excuse to stay out and watch them. The girl smiled, remembering her home when her Physics class had gone to their teacher's place to study the stars. Destinctively she remembered the visible rings around saturn through the telescope.
And could remember the giant blotch on Jupiter, her favourite planet over all.
"Oh!" Carmen exclaimed, suddenly sending her arm to her chest. "I wasn't expecting anyone..." she admitted, blushing profusely although she already had red cheeks from the cold. More coordinatedly, she crossed her arms, instead of a mad rush. At least he didn't stare, which proved he had manners. Not many people did, which was a rather large shame.
"And to be honest, I didn't think it would be so cold, despite the ice..." she admitted again.
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Post by Sam Nanten on Dec 15, 2005 6:28:21 GMT
"Huh? Well if you're cold, then maybe you should warm up." he said, listening to her words and finding that both Carmen and himself were shivering. Sam only took that moment to notice how weird a sensation it was swimming in the water with his clothes on. Even though it was commonplace for his clothes to be on while swimming, it was hard to believe that his water-soaked clothes would elevate and sink him at the same time.
Wading closer to the shore, his feet touched to the sandy floor. He exerted himself more to push himself past the current. "I saw a picnic area up where I came from. Maybe we could get a fire going to dry our clothes off." Sam said, turning back to the shivering girl.
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Post by Carmen on Dec 15, 2005 6:43:01 GMT
The girl shrugged. She wasn't that cold, really. Just the shock that he was a guy, and she was a girl wearing a white singlet... in the water. Not the best combination, she thought to herself. Keeping her arms crossed over her chest, the girl nodded, despite the slight warmth she had already, and began kicking through the water in the direction of the shore. How could she have forgotten?
Either way, she had to get dry, because now that she had begun moving, the apparant cold of the water had shown itself when she had started to move. Involuntarily she began to shiver. Glancing over at the boy who was swimming in front, she realised he wouldn't be able to see if she let go, and so she did, using her arms to propel herself faster.
By the time she had gotten close enough to the shore, she crossed her arms back over her chest and climbed out the water, shivering more violently from the cold wind. "Wh-where did you s-say it was?" she stammered.
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