Sunset

[Ian Flanagan]

Ian sat by a scrubby growth that covered a few yards surrounding the rocks he crouched on. He'd heard that the evening sky was magnificent, and he'd been there watching the crabs scuttle about, waiting for the first wash of pink and orange to darken into something worth his chalk. Finally, the intensity had sparked inspiration within him, and he'd begun to draw. His dark red hair fell over his eyes, forcing him to either look through it or risk smudging chalk across his face to brush it back. So far he'd resisted the second; Ian tossed his head back in a futile attempt to correct the problem.

[Lexi Summers]

Lexi walked along the beach, her home away from the castle. It was always so peaceful in the dark, when no one else was around, and somehow, the screams and shouts of the students seemed to lessen its beauty. So, as quietly as she could, she made her way onto the sand, stopping only when a flash of red caught her eye. Hair, no doubt. She turned around and went to examine, finding a boy, obviously an artist. "Hey, I didn't think anyone would be out this late." she commented.

[Ian Flanagan]

Ian lifted his head and looked at the girl; she was unfamiliar to him and he didn't think she was in his house. "Can't catch a sunset at three in the afternoon," he pointed out with a warm smile. "Well . .. not in any part of the world you'd really want to be in . . ." He always lessened the power of his quips with thoughtful analysis, a habit he'd been trying to break unsuccessfully. "Out for a walk?"

[Lexi Summers]

Lexi smiled and nodded. "Yeah, the crowds on the beach are nice to be in most of the time, but lonely walks by the water can't be replaced by anything. It's really peaceful out at night, so I tend to come here a lot." She paused; the boy in front of her didn't look even slightly familiar, though that was understood. He definately wasn't in her House, and boys rarely chose Divination as a major. "You're not in Everard, are you?" she asked, as clarification.

[Ian Flanagan]

"No . . . Wolfsbane," he said, and it was almost as though he were offended in some way by it. "I'm not . . ." He tried not to be unkind; he'd only just met her after all. "I'm not in Everard. I would say I'm proud to be a Wolfsbane, but some would argue we all are, after all." He glanced back out over the water, forgetting now about the chalk on his hands due to the conversation and rubbing his hair back, leaving a dark lavender smudge across one cheek like a sudden bruise.

[Lexi Summers]

Lexi noticed the forced tone in his voice and did her best to refrain from rolling her eyes. "Well, I'm in Everard." she pointed out, a slightly challenging look in her eyes. She was proud of her House as well. "And you have a smudge, just there." She pointed to her cheek where the streak of chalk had appeared.

[Ian Flanagan]

Ian caught the challenge in her voice and allowed that it was probably due to the stubborn Everard nature in her. He tried not to blush as he licked his finger and scrubbed at the chalk, creating a wider faded area but not getting rid of it completely. "I tried to be nice," he complained in a low mutter, more to himself than anyone. "Thanks . . ." he added more loudly, a dry response to her comments on the smudge.

[Lexi Summers]

Lexi just nodded at his comment, then shrugged. She wasn't really giving this boy much of a chance; many people didn't like the nature of those in Everard, why should he be any different? Deciding to try being more friendly, she sat down a few feet away from him on one of the rocks, looking up at the darkening sky. It was beginning to streak with pinks and oranges, but the other colors had yet to appear. "So, what're you majoring in? Any idea yet?" she asked, her gaze kept pointedly away from him.

[Ian Flanagan]

"No," Ian responded with a small chuckle. "No clue . . . I'd figured I'd just bum around learning all I can before being forced to tie myself to a single interest. I'd thought about Demonology but then all the Wolfsbanes are majoring in it; I'd like to be different . . . not take the easy path, you know?" He switched out chalks and began a series of light reddish marks on his pad. "There's so much to do in life and I want to know it all . . . how else to be supremely myself?" His parents had seemed rather obsessed with him picking a major and he'd reacted with defiance.

[Lexi Summers]

Lexi took a few moments to think over what he said, then nodded. "That's really deep, actually. I'm sure you're going to have to be forced to stick to a major at one point, but learning all you can until that time is actually a smart move. I wouldn't have even considered that." she said, smiling weakly as she finally looked over at him, with something like admiration in her eyes. Although she knew that Divination was her passion, maybe she should have held off a bit...

[Ian Flanagan]

He smiled at the compliment, outwardly greatful though inside he shrunk from such words; his public surety his a tumultuous doubt and fear within him. "Well if you know what you want you should go for it," he assured her, with true Wolfsbane spirit. "I'm an odd one, really . . . most people have it all figured out."

[Lexi Summers]

"Yeah, well, I guess." she said awkwardly, shrugging and looking up towards the sky. "I've already figured it out. I know exactly what I want to do, but I feel like I'm holding myself back from all the other options now. Only, I won't feel like this for long, my crystal ball told me." She smiled at her words, knowing that most people found Divination to be a joke. Assuming that he would be able to uncover her major by her hint, she continued searching the sky for the faint outlines of stars.

[Ian Flanagan]

"Divination?" Ian noted, and turned to look at her, something like shame fading quickly after a brief burst; he streched on leg out and continued his sketching as he said, "Sometimes I dream, you know. Odd things. Don't think you'd catch me with tea leaves and tarot cards though . . ." he finished quickly, not wanting to fall too far into interest in that topic. "I'm sure you can manage to take a few classes of other interest with your schedule . . .how taxing can the basics of teatime really be?" And it was a sharper joke but he was ultimately that way.

[Lexi Summers]

Lexi turned her gaze back to him, her expression sharp and stubborn. "How taxing can the basics of teatime really be?" she repeated, the edge prominent in her voice. "Are you seriously asking me that? Just because you're obviously not good at the finer points of reading the future, doesn't mean that it's not a difficult study, one that most people just can't understand." She rolled her eyes, her temper flaring, as was what always happened when someone took a jab at her major.

[Ian Flanagan]

"Settle down, can't you take a joke?" Ian retorted, suddenly not so withdrawn anymore. He put the pad aside and let his posture become less introverted as he looked at her a touch resentfully. "You Everards . . . tempers like sore cats . . . obstinate . . ." He stood up, tossing the pad to one side and jogging off down by the water, dipping his hands into the waves that brushed up against the shore and washing his face and hands clean; if this was going to turn into a challenge he wasn't taking his stand covered in chalk. He stood up slowly, eyeing the far edges of the horizon where night had eaten away at the vibrant pastel sky and turned around, taking a deep breath.