[Lake] Breaking the trend

[Harrison Greg]

There was so much about the lake that Harrison hated, but then there was so much about it that he loved. The amount of people always gathered there was annoying, it was never peaceful unless you sat there in the pouring rain so on days like today when the sun was out and castle grounds were warm and inviting it seemed to the Gryffindor that the whole school was out by the still waters.
The banking was full of Slytherin’s throwing stuff at each other, the sandy shores seemed to have Hufflepuff’s everywhere building sandcastles, Ravenclaw’s had gathered in the small areas of shade to sit and read while in the small clearing by the forest was where the Gryffindors camped out.

Peeing over the top of his sunglasses Harrison blew his fringe out of his eyes and looked to see who was in what group and if any other houses actually mixed. There was a Slytherin kicking in a first year Hufflepuff’s sandcastle…that could have been seen as mixing but for some reason Harrison thought it was not the best example.
So always wanting to be a trend setter Harrison did not head over towards the Gryffindors instead he sat down in the middle of everyone. He could hear snippets of everyone’s conversation and laughed away to himself as he lay down upon the grass and looked up at the blue sky.

[Felicity Locke]

Felicity was leaning against her favorite tree, with a quill in her hand. There was a piece of parchment smoothed out on her lap, but it was blank. No, the Ravenclaw was not working on another essay, she was actually trying to write another letter to her mother.

The over eccentric mother, Christi Locke, always looked forward to her daughter's weekly letters. She was completely engrossed in her daughter's life, and seemed to take joy in whatever happened to Felicity. Strange.

So, here she sat, her mind blank as she absently tapped her quill on the page. Someone moved near her, and Fay glanced up. She turned her head slightly to the side to see who had come to sit near her. Practically no one ever moved from there groups, much less went over to sit by Fay.

Upon seeing the stranger's face, his name instantly popped into her mind. Harrison Greg. Felicity grinned. Finally, someone to talk to. She stuffed her parchment and quill into her bag, and walked over to where the Gryffindor was lounging.

Fay stood next to him, one hand placed on her hip.

"Trying to get a nice tan there?"

[Harrison Greg]

“I am trying to…but there seems to be a Ravenclaw blocking out the sun.”

Harrison gave a soft laugh and he peered up at Felicity through his sunglasses, he knew how Fay often talked about her weight (even though she was not fat) and although it may have been her weak point he could not help but joke about it. Pushing himself up into the sitting position Harrison continued to study the Ravenclaw. He had herd stories about her since they last met, that she was actually a Veela, which would explain why he could not tear his eyes off her. (But then Harrison was like that with any attractive female)

Looking around Harrison could not see any other Ravenclaw’s around so he guessed that Felicity had been standing by herself, which he found hard to believe, he thought she would have her own little fan club of followers…much like his gang had. Today he had let Toby deal with them all and gave them the slip on the third floor by handing behind a tapestry.

“Are you going to stand there all day or will I have to forcefully drag you to the ground?”

Harrison did not fancy standing up to talk to her, nor did he want a sore neck from having to look up at her all day long, she was beautiful but not beautiful to the extremes of injuring himself.

[Felicity Locke]

Felicity rolled her eyes and let her bag slide off of her shoulder and fall onto the ground. She brushed some hair from her eyes and smirked, holding out her arm.

"Well, maybe this Ravenclaw needs the sun more than you. I'm so pale I glow."

She wriggled her fingers in the sun and laughed. Fay was rather pale, but that was only part of her overall 'look'. Her dark hair contrasted nicely with her pale skin, but she'd never admit to even looking 'pretty'. She stood next to the firm belief that she looked ordinary, and that was it. No one had managed to show her otherwise.

"I'd like to see you try."

But, none the less, Felicity plopped down next to the Gryffindor. Her own friends were probably off finishing homework or something. Well, Bradyn was probably looking for Ellie and Ashton was probably writing more outragious songs for them.

"So, where's your little group of friends? You must have one, because you don't look like the loner type."

[Harrison Greg]

As Felicity dropt her bag down on the grass next to him Harrison gave a soft chuckle and turned his attention to watching the Hufflepuff’s team up and chase the Slytherin away from their sandcastles before he could destroy anymore. She finally joined him on the grass bank after she said a small wise crack about him dragging her to the ground, he made a small mental note to actually try doing it one day as he thought the results might be quite amusing.
It was then when she asked him where his own little drop of friends where hiding. In all honesty he had no clue. Shrugging his shoulders Harrison lay back down on the grass and closed his eyes enjoying the heat of the sun upon him.

“The last time I saw Toby and Blake we were being chased by a group of fourth years down the third floor corridor. They wanted to show us their pictures from there holiday or something…I can not remember.”

Harrison laughed as he remembered the priceless look on the faces of his mates when the gaggle of girls first called out their names. Being popular did have its annoying moments and sometimes Harrison enjoyed being able to relax by himself, have some thinking time…Toby slept when he wanted then and Blake…well Blake was Blake and he just seemed to be a beckon that attracted girls towards him.

“So why are you being solitary today?” he asked opening up on of his eyes so he could look at Fay “Did you not feel like joining in the book group with you Raven-buddies?”

[Felicity Locke]

Felicity leaned back on her hands and stretched out her legs in front of her. She chuckled softly at the Puff versus Slytherin little brawl, but then shifted her attention back to the Lake. On days like these the Lake looked like it was shining, it was absolutely breath-taking.

Fay had been lost in her daydreamings when Blake finally decided to answer her question. She tore her gaze away from the lake and looked back over to him. Her eyebrow raised ever so delicately.

"People chase you down halls..to show you holiday pictures?"

She let out a very unlady-like snort and shook her head. The social status in this school was obviously taken very seriously. Students in this school frightened her.

"Should I feel honored that I'm talking to you then? I wouldn't want to have to beat down some raving fangirls just because I actually spoke to you."

Felicity leaned forward and brought her knees to her chest. She rested her arms on her knees, then plopped her chin on her arms. Fay rolled her eyes at his question.

"You obviously don't know my friends very well. Bray doesn't set foot in a library unless forced, and Ash would rather write some music or something. I'm the only one who actually reads. I fit the stereotype perfectly right?"

[Harrison Greg]

“Oh yes I am wanted material, every Gryffindor wants to be part of our group. But I think you should be safe from the fan girls today…they seem to be on a Blake craze at the moment, it will pass soon enough.”

He gave a small grin, it was not true that every Gryffindor wanted to be like them, there was only a small selection of fan girls in every year but it was enough to make his, Blake and Toby’s heads swell. No matter how much they moaned about the pressures of being popular and not having a moment to themselves they loved it really, Harrison feared being ‘normal’ and just fitting in the background.

He listened closely as Felicity talked about her friends and he could not help laugh when she mentioned the people she was friends with. He sat up once again and pulled off his sunglasses she he could get a better look at her, her pale skin becoming clear and her dark hair shined in the light.

“Wait…you are friends with those guys, I never took you to be with those…er…sort of people.”

The term losers was about to slip of his tongue before he caught it. Being a Gryffindor he had heard all about Ashton due to the famous split with the Gryffindor prefect Maxi, and Bradyn, he had never met personally but seemed to be a slight loser.
A strange emotion over came Harrison Greg t that moment in time, he felt awkward, like he had said something he should not have done and he could not longer keep eye contact. Instead his gaze passed to his sunglasses that where in his hands and he started to fiddle with them not sure of what to say next.

[Felicity Locke]

"Wanted material eh? I can't say I know what that's like."

Felicity, in contrast to Harrison, just found herself ordinary. Ordinary group of friends, a semi-ordinary life. She wouldn't go so far as to say she was normal, because she obviously wasn't. But 'popular' wasn't something that many people probably used to describe her.

"Those sort?"

Fay raised an eyebrow and turned to look at him. What exactly did he mean by 'those sort'? Guys? Half of her friends were guys, probably more. She got along with almost everyone she met, for whatever reason.

Felicity noticed that Harrison had stopped looking at her then. He was fiddling with his glasses, refusing to meet her gaze. She blinked, utterly confused now.

"Did I say something wrong?"

[Harrison Greg]

‘Time to swallow your pride Harri-boy’ he told himself as he heard Felicity’s voice sound out towards him asking if she had said anything wrong. He had decided to look over her pervious questions of what he meant about ‘those sorts’ but he could avoid this. Scratching his stubble covered chin Harrison finally found the courage to look up and look at the Ravenclaw straight in the eye.

“You said nothing, I was just about to call your friends losers. I then thought it was a bad idea, had to back peddle and in the process made myself feel like an idiot.”

Harrison had been brutally honest. He had ended up telling Felicity what he thought of her friends and also that he actually had a slight weak spot, which was something he never liked to admit. It only ever seemed to be Ravenclaw’s that made him feel dumb. Effie Howard had achieved it on many occasions but to find someone else was bad news.

Trying to prove that he had not just committed social suicide and not only ruined the very small acquaintanceship he had with Felicity but also ruined his reputation Harrison grinned happily at her and slipped his sun glasses back on.

“See this is when you tell me my friends are jerks and I laugh along as it is the truth.”

[Felicity Locke]

Felicity blinked again. Well, that was completely unexpected. She had thought of something more along the lines of 'why are you friends with all guys?' or 'do you just like tormenting people like that?'. Well, at least he was honest to her.

"That's it? You freaked out because you were about to call my friends losers?"

Fay snorted and flicked his forehead. Men were idiots, it was as simple as that. Freaking out over little things like that. He looked as if she was going to eat him.

"I know my friends are losers. Hell, I'm a loser! But, social status doesn't matter to me. I'm friends with who I'm friends with, whether they're popular or not."

She shrugged and shifted her position so she was leaning back on her hands. Felicity looked back up at the sky for a moment, letting the sun warm her face. People worried too much in this school, present party included.

"I've met Blake before, he didn't seem jerkish. If anything I probably scared him. I was really grummpy that morning."

[Harrison Greg]

That had not been the response Harrison had been expecting, it took him a lot to reframe his mouth from dropping open and just staring at Felicity is a pure gob smacked state. This was only added when she flicked his forehead, she was turning out to be one of the most interesting girls he had come across, she was uncommonly beautiful, intelligent and had a sense of humour. Running his hand through his hair and gave a soft chuckle not knowing what to say next, she had managed to break through his whole persona especially when she started to blurt out that she was a loser.

“You admit to being a loser?” He questioned not actually believing anyone would admit to such a thing and then she went onto say that social status is not everything; it was the Harrison let out a bark of a laugh. “Please social status is everything in this stereotypical school. We get divide up by personality and academic skill it is only natural for there to be a social hierarchy.”

Harrison was taking a slight offence at the fact she did not care about people being popular, it was everything he had worked for in his years at Hogwarts and here was someone throwing it in his face, for a small moment in time it made Harrison doubt his own purpose…although his normal self soon took hold when Felicity brought up Blake.

“And I do not blame him for being scared, I mean you scare me and you are laughing, would hate to have been in his shoes that morning.”

Harrison gave a small chuckle, finding it hard to get over the fact that Blake had actually been awake during a time that could be classed as the morning.

[Felicity Locke]

"Of course! Why should I deny who I am? Loser, bookworm, Ravenclaw, veela."

Felicity glanced back at him when he laughed. True, the school was split up between houses, and then was placed on a social system, but she found ways around it.

"Now see, if we go around with that type of attitude, how are we supposed to meet other amazing people? If I was at the top of the pyramid, so to speak, what's stopping me from still being friends with those lower than myself?"

She brushed her hair out of her eyes again and turned back to looking up at the sky. Fay pursed her lips thoughtfully for a moment, before responding again.

"I don't think I was ever popular in this school, or worried of being as such. The first person I talked to when I came here was Bray, and we've been friends ever since."

Felicity grinned innocently at Harrison. She was actually surprised that the boy didn't dish on the 'freaky hormonal chick' that he met in the morning. Even for Fay that morning was exceptionally bad.

"Ah well, what can I say, I'm a beastly person."

[Harrison Greg]

That was a long list of things that Felicity had just reeled off and his mind could not help but linger a little while on the Veela part. He just sat on the grass and looked at her stare up and the sky, the September sunlight highlight her beauty even more and as a small filled her face Harrison could not help but smile back.
Snapping out of his small trance Harrison looked over at the other Gryffindors by the forest, seeing them pushing each other around, laughing being the immature pratt’s most of them were.

“He was the first person you talked to in this school?” Harrison looked over at Felicity with raised eyebrows. “Well who am I to moan about who you have as friends, it is not like I will be tainted by association…my reputation is already too great for that.”

Harrison gave a small laugh he was sure that actually being friends with a Veela would do his reputation worlds of good, but then he had to be careful. For some reason he did not want the others, Blake and Toby, to met Fay, a part of him wanted her all to himself. Even when she joked about being a beastly person Harrison just wanted to crawl over towards her and brag about one thing or another in hope that it would make him seem better then he was.

However there was the small part of his tiny mind that saved him from this embarrassing sight. The part that told him that not only could he get any girl he wanted with out having to beg, but also that the rumour in the common room at the end of last term was that this particular Ravenclaw was actually taken.

“So…”Harrison started off casually a small smile playing on his lips. “I have heard you have a thing for older Gryffindors. Mr Brooks was it?”

[Felicity Locke]

Felicity slid her cloak off, she didn't very much like wearing it. She bunched it up and layed back on it, using the little bunch of clothe as a makeshift pillow. At Harrison's next comment, she snorted again.

"Taint your reputation? I can't be that bad can I?"

She turned her head to him and raised an eyebrow. Finally, she just rolled her eyes at him and looked back up at the sky. But, that had her thinking. If he was worried about his reputation, what about hers? Did she even have one? It was doubtable, but very well possible. Huh, she'd have to ask sometime.

"What are your friends like? I've maybe only had glimpses, but they sound interesting."

Going off of what Harrison already said, the two seemed to be 'popular' like him. Blake, who she already had met, seemed nice enough to her. He had that gentleman thing going for him too. Hmm, maybe all of them were like that. Was it a new trend or something that she didn't hear about? Fay doubted it, it was probably just that threesome.

Felicity's cheeks flashed red, and she moved her hand to press her fingers lightly to her locket. Of course, everyone in the school probably knew by now. And if Harrison was as popular as he gloated, he would probably be one of the first to know. Whatever happened to secrets huh?

"Older Gryffindors? Are you insinuating something Mr. Harrison?"

She glanced at him with one eyebrow raised, hoping to cover up for her little freak out.

[Harrison Greg]

Harrison was caught a little of when Felicity asked what his friends were like, he never really had to answer it before as they normally stood out of a crowd but then maybe that was only in the small cluster of people in Gryffindor, maybe he was not as popular as it seemed. But at the moment this was not important he had to try and paint the picture of his friends to create the right impression.

“Toby and Blake…can I swear?” He turned to look at the Ravenclaw, a wide grin playing across his features. “They are characters. Some say we are the height of cool, others say we are just immature…I like to think we just do what we like, when we like and have a good time along the way.”

He hoped that was a satisfactory answer for her, he had explained the basics of their friendship. He was not sure if telling someone that they lead girls on, flirt with almost anything that walks on two legs and lap up the attention like their lives depended on it. That would paint a picture to show that they were just arrogant tossers, which deep down they really were not they could be gentleman and caring when needed.
It was only then when he noticed a slight tinge appear to Felicities face when he knew he had struck gold with the topic of Scott. He should not have doubted his sources but he always liked to see the end result with the look on people’s faces.

“I was not insinuating anything Miss Felicity. I was merely bringing up a topic and adding my own opinion to it all.” He gave a small chuckle. “I am sorry if it sounded to you that I was suggesting that you went for older men and a soft spot for Gryffindors.”