(Honeydukes) Welcome to my nightmare

[Erys Grace]

Why she was in this horrible place, Erys had no idea. She didn't even like sweets, for the most part. Blood pops and a few other little things were alright, but overall the rich smell of candy in Honeydukes was overwhelming, not to mention sickening. That fact alone drove her away like an elephant encountered with a mouse- unless all those silly little cartoons were inaccurate, and elephants really weren't intimidated by a silly rodent. Her presence here was going against everything the Slytherin stood for; not being obese and hyped up on sugar, for one. Erys was like a druggie after consuming anything of the sort, which is the main reason why she didn't like to indulge on candy. She had always stopped outside the shop window to make retarded faces at the customers, instead of entering it to actually buy something. This would have to be her second time inside, after the little incident that nearly got her banned from it. Shying away from the rack of fudge, the animagus must have appeared immensely uncomfortable, not daring to touch anything. Pft, like candy could bite anyway. But fear wasn't her main reason. For the safety of everybody around her, Erys couldn't have sweets. She just couldn't.

Meandering around while trying not to inhale the delicious aroma, the Slytherin sucked her stomach in, trying to get as small as possible. Hopefully nobody would see her, and this wouldn't take long. Where the hell were the blood pops, anyway? "Ugh." Erys grunted, figuring this might take more time than originally expected. Having come here for one thing, and one thing only, the sixth year tried looking up at the higher shelves, earnestly hoping to find the crimson lollipops there. Wrinkling her nose with distaste, Erys rolled her eyes, pausing her search to take a swig from her water bottle. So far, there hadn't been anybody interesting to distract her from this nightmare. She hadn't even met any Slytherin guy around her age to befriend, which was a terrible, terrible thing. Sighing, Erys rubbed her fingers against her temples, trying not to lose control. Even the smell was enough to turn her hyper.

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[Joshua Rivas]

Joshua casually searched his surroundings and found what he was looking for. He reached up and took several cockroach clusters and added them to the bag he already carried. He wasn't much one for candies himself, but distributing them at exactly the right time such as before an exam, and stressed-out students would fork out for a quick sugar high.

It wasn't so much about the money. His family was wealthy, if not extremely so, and he was given enough to live at Hogwarts comfortably. Still, it was the sense of independance, of earning his own...no matter if the method was a little less than honest. Hmmm...some sugar quills would do nicely.

It was then he noticed the girl. He had seen her around, but like many students outside his clique, he had never spoken to her. She seemed nervous, even anxious. Hell, she didn't even look like she wanted to be here. To him, she looked like a cat surrounded by randomly shooting water spurts. Scared and unsure, trying to get out but still seeking.

Joshua made a decision and, grabbing some blood pops from a nearby shelf, sauntered over to the girl.
"Hey," he said, flashing her a charming smile. "You alright? You look like a diabetic trapped in here."

[Erys Grace]

He had no idea how true that comparison was. Or ironic. But then again, he had no idea she was an animagus, and could transform into exactly that; a bengal cat. Placing a hand on her stomach with the hopes of quelling its queasiness, Erys felt her eyes open wider after someone had spoken to her. Looking up to meet the gaze of a rather nice - ahem, gorgeous - looking guy, the Slytherin relaxed her face some, laughing briefly at his question. Do I really look like a diabetic in here? She wondered, unable to hide the grin that had taken the place of the unsettled expression on her face. Running her fingers through her hair, Erys stared momentarily at the blood pops in his, "Heh.. Im fine, but the smell just gets to me sometimes. It isn't good for me to have too much candy." Enough of it could put her on a permanent sugar-high for the day. "I was looking for those." She explained, gesturing to the red suckers in his hands. Locating the shelf finally, she cut off the conversation to gather a single lollipop in her fingers before returning to the boy's side. "Stocking up, I see." The witch remarked breezily, guessing by the way he carried a bag- the amount must be big, or he would have just used his hands instead. Maybe not, though. Most people would rather not get their hands sticky from candy.

"Erys Grace." Introducing herself with a small smile, she stretched her hand out to shake his. If in the mood, she tended to be a bit formal. At least with those within her own house, anyway. They deserved to be treated politely and with respect. Hopefully he had taken her up on her offer and shook her hand. Erys' shake was as strong and firm as any businessman's, which people often found strange, but that was how her parents had raised her.
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[Joshua Rivas]

The moment she looked at him she seemed to calm down a little, losing the frantic look in her eyes. Now far closer, he appreciated just how attractive she really was. Ah, there's the smile. Joshua thought, a little smugly. He tended to have that effect on girls, even when he wasn't trying to do so.

"Huh?" Joshua wondered, then remembered the candies in his bag. "Oh, right. These. Not a big candy man myself, doing a Hogsmeade run and thought I'd pick some up for friends." He said, not realising he had almost described himself as a 'candy-man'.

Rivas took her hand and, expecting a softer reply, shook her hand tenderly. "Wow, nice firm handshake. I like that." His soft touch transformed to a firmer shake as he started seeing her as a friend and equal, not just some girl in a candy shop.

"Joshua Rivas." He introduced himself, even bowing a little with a casual smile. It broke the formality and he hoped Erys would take it as a friendly joke.

[Erys Grace]

God, he was vain. Erys couldn't be nice to an attractive guy without them thinking she was enchanted by them. Though she had to admit, his appearance was rather impressive in the looks category. Besides that oh so obvious fact, he was a Slytherin; pretty much the only guys she would ever consider dating. But dont let that get to anybodys head, there was always that chance she might not like you. Clearly not the case with Joshua, she licked her lips, laughing at the candy man bit. Did she mention that she loved guys with a sense of humor? Agh, thank god he didn't hear any of this. She would come off as a hormonal, boy-obsessed teenager, when that really wasn't the case. Erys just hadn't met anybody that cute until now.

"Ah." She murmured, nodding. "Blood pops are pretty much the only sweet things I can eat without turning into a hyper mess." Chuckling, Erys glanced to the lone sweet in her hand, before deciding to pick up one more. Two was a much more even number, anyway. It shouldn't be that bad, right? She could handle a little more, since those lollis weren't that packed with sugary goodness.

Arching an eyebrow at his tender touch, finding it cute that he would soften his shake just because she was a girl. "Thanks. I was never one to have a noodle grip." Grinning, she added, "Yours isn't one to scoff at, either." after he firmed his hand up. Erys had only one friend at Hogwarts, hoping now there was a chance she might gain another in him. The little bow pretty much delighted her, seen by the twinge of glee in her eyes. Unlike a Slytherin boy in the common room, Joshua had treated her with some respect, and politeness too! What a charmer. Chuckling, seeing as that was the only way to describe her laughter without saying 'giggling', which was utterly girly, Erys smiled. "If you're finished picking up the candy for your friends, then we can pay now. Im pretty much done." Fearing already the idea of the pair of blood pops giving her a candy rush, she fought back the dangerous thought, wondering how drunk she must seem while in that state. Best not find out.

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[Joshua Rivas]

Joshua smiled. He liked this girl, despite her strange giggling. She was totally gorgeous and he found himself wondering why he had never noticed her before. Must be a tight-clique kinda girl. He thought to himself. And of course, the kicker, she liked him. It's easy to like someone who likes you first.

She was a Slytherin. While that wasn't a prerequisite for his friendship group, it certainly helped. Already he noticed certain qualities below the surface, intelligence and cunning. Perhaps even a hidden softer underbelly? Joshua found complex people intriguing.

Rivas nodded towards the counter indicating he wanted her to follow and walked towards the attendant. Showing the bag, he produced a few silver coins and slid them across the counter with two fingers. It simply had the effect of looking cool, something that the boy totally exhuded.

"So how come I've never seen you around?" Joshua asked, then hesitated. "Actually, buy your blood pops and we'll talk about it on the way back. That way we've got an excuse to hang out a little longer." He said with a friendly grin.

[Erys Grace]

Erys wasn't giggling strangely, in fact, she never giggled. It was a sound too girly for her tough exterior, which believe it or not, actually existed. It was hard for her to trust people, extremely. Letting them in and revealing her weaknesses seemed too unbearable, so she didn't do it. A life lesson of sorts, one her father made her all too familiar with. But he was a topic she'd rather not divulge into. Really. Even thinking about him caused a shadow to flicker in her hazel eyes, turning them a troubled shade of green. Erys didn't know where this changing color came from, but it depicted her moods. Golden-hazel meant happiness, emerald symbolized anger, and gray, the gloomiest of them all, was sadness. Her eyes were the most expressive things about her, because she preferred to keep her expression somewhere around a calm and collected look.

If only he knew how complex she could be. From jinxing someone who had found out her deepest secret, to standing up for a fellow Slytherin, to pulling a prank on an unsuspecting student, and finally to the anguish of her darkened past.. There were many sides to Erys Scorpia Grace, some more happier than others.

About the school thing, Erys wasn't the clique-y type. Those giggling, boy-hunter girls just annoyed the crap out of her. She had transferred from some obscure little school. Having enrolled just a week ago, she was quickly gaining popularity yet still retaining her lone wolf demeanor. You had to be strong if you wanted to survive. Veata was pretty much her only friend, if you didn't count the mutual aquaintances with the Parkhurst twins and a few other students she had met along the way. Thank god Joshua had finished- a few more minutes in here and she would have gave the words 'sugar high' a whole new meaning.

"Alright." Erys replied, returning his friendly grin with one of her own. Flashing the red lollies to the cashier, she dropped a small coin in the person's hand, turning around and heading towards the exit with Joshua. Once outside, the Slytherin took a deep breath, the first one since entering Honeydukes. Inside she had taken small inhales, a difficult way of retaining your insanity inside a sweetshop. One that required you breath lots more once free of it. "I transferred from a smaller school last week." Erys explained, her voice casual. He actually sounded interested in what she had to say. hm.

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[Joshua Rivas]

Erys seemed deep in thought and for a moment Joshua thought he had seen her eyes change colour. No way, she must have had green eyes. But I was sure they were different... He shook his head slightly, pushing the confusion from his mind. There was more to her than first appeared, he decided. Much more. The way she held herself, the look in her eyes and the set of her shoulders all told of a tough exterior and perhaps a dark past. He was immediately intrigued and set a mental note to learn more about this mysterious girl.

Once Erys had paid for her blood pops, he followed her outside. She seemed to take a deep breath before continuing.
"A smaller school, eh? I guess I'm a little ignorant on that front. I don't think I know the names of any other magical schools. Besides the obvious European big names, of course." Joshua replied, noting he should research a little on smaller English magical schools.

"So you've only been here a week?" Rivas asked, "How do you like the place?" This girl, unlike many of the giggling blondes he had met actually sounded like she had something to say.

[Erys Grace]

It was strange, why her mother had insisted on enrolling her at a smaller school. Once Erys has turned sixteen, she switched to Hogwarts, the way her father had always wanted her to. Her family was a long line of Slytherins, but for some reason mum dearest was adamant on having her daughter not go to that school. Things were better now, to a level. The prejudices at this school were uncanny. How everybody treated Slytherins, even when they had just met? Amazing. That house was really the toughest one to be in. Forcing herself to cheer up, since she was set on the fact that he would find her strange if he looked and saw her eyes were gray now, Erys instead thought of how nice and funny Joshua was. Glancing at a store window to see each iris melting into a pretty golden color, she looked away again, satisfied.

"I cant really remember that school well, either." She remarked, slightly irritated but not enough to change her mood entirely, "Theres a magical school in Japan, too. Instead of wands, they use fans." The idea seemed strange and foreign to her. Other cultures were odd, but intriguing. Apparently an oriental witch had transferred from Japan to Hogwarts, her name being Akiya.. Akira, something. All the power to her. Just for kicks, Erys might approach her later and ask to see her perform a spell with her fan. They must have a cool martial-arts style, or something. heh.

Thinking this over for a moment, tearing off the wrapper from a blood pop in the meanwhile, Erys glanced up, "Yeah. Its been bittersweet for me, and different." A Slytherin girl was dating a Gryffindor boy! My god! Where did the tradition and taboo go at this school? "I've been hit with hatred even before opening my mouth, but I guess I'll have to live with that." The Herbology teacher even called her and Veata bitches because they stood up for themselves and shot some merdung at Zerrubabel because he was being a jerk. That really ticked her off. Sliding the red lollipop in her mouth, Erys sucked on it for awhile, realising that he was the first person she had told about this. How she was doing at Hogwarts, well, nobody had asked.
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[Joshua Rivas]

Joshua himself had been at Hogwarts since first year and so had very little imaginative scope outside his small world. There was only the castle and of course home. With a slight smile he fondly remembered his small estate amongst the rolling green hills. His parents loving him totally, enjoying his attempts at rebellion as they truly were signs of affection. His squib brother, when he returned from the city, always with muggle presents for his magical sibling. His favourite had of course been a Nissan 300ZX which he and his brother worked on all holildays. At first it had been an old junker, now it was a gleaming machine.

Rivas understood exactly what she meant about Slytherin. The moment the sorting hat had yelled the house name, three quarters of the great hall had instantly snarled at him. He was intelligent, cunning, quick-witted and ambitious. All the traits which marked him a bad person.
"You learn to deal with it. I try to make a good name for us, I consort with all houses and I'm not prejudiced. I'm proud but not ignorant, something that many of our house have yet to learn." Joshua explained sympathetically, then added. "Of course, we also have the idiots who think themselves the new Dark Lord and proclaim it freely."

Joshua loved Slytherin, but he acknowledged it's many faults as well as it's achievements. As all houses they were not perfect, but Joshua considered them the best. He remebered the hats words...
You have the traits of many houses. Smart, like a Ravenclaw. Also, the humour and prankster heart of a Hufflepuff. The bravery and non-discriminate mind of a Gryffindor. But you are all Slytherin, and in the house of green you will exceed far beyond even your expectations.

[Erys Grace]

Being born and raised far away from anything muggle, Erys continually failed to see the fascinating quality the humans possessed. She hadn't seen any of the magnificent cars, or video games, that captivated everybody's interests. Unless proved otherwise, she never thought to check it out. It didn't really linger on her mind much. Come to think of it, magic was all she knew. Why, she hadn't even ridden in a cool car- preferring to walk instead of riding in the antique machines her father collected. Not like he'd even let her come near his babies, anyway. Must be the reason why she kept away from vehicles whenever possible.

Erys nodded her agreement, savoring the taste of the blood pop for a moment before adding in her take on the matter. If she had landed in anything but Slytherin, her parents would have tortured her to death. Well, maybe not her mother, but daddy dearest would have been all over the jinx books to look up new and exciting ways to creating mayhem and madness. Why did he always seem to enter her mind when she was trying to have a good time with somebody? Knowing by now that her eyes were already gray but unable to solve the issue, Erys shrugged it off, focusing harder on what Joshua was saying. "True." She murmured, sighing. "I tried to win us house points in class, but.. One thing led to another, and the Herbology professor called me a bitch." Her and Veata, really, and she hinted at it while still using the vulgar word. Who knew the professor's vocabulary could be so crass? V had only stood up for Erys after Zerrubabel teased her for trying to answer a question. Replaying the events over and over, remembering how close she was to snapping entirely.. Just recalling this caused her eyes to turn a bright, toxic green. ugh. Trying to tune her thoughts back onto the conversation instead, she glanced at the ground, troubled.

"I try, I really do." The Slytherin girl muttered, realising how lame that must've sounded before clenching her fists. "Sometimes I think they're worse than we are." The other houses, for their prejudice and their rude remarks. They were just like the very house they strived to put down. Not to deem herself completely innocent of course, Erys was prone to being bad-tempered after continual assault, whether it be jabbing words or physical hits. She had to concentrate hard not to explode. To be as strong as she needed.

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[Joshua Rivas]

Joshua nodded empathetically as she spoke, absent-mindedly taking a blood pop from his own bag and placing it into his mouth. He realised a few moments later that he was eating profits, but by then he was well set into enjoying a bit of sugar and gave in.

His own parents hadn't truly cared in which house he was placed. His father had been in Ravenclaw, his mother from a long line of Slytherin nobility. They appreciated his traits and loved him for them, and in spite of others. Eleanor Rivas had even taught him some of the darker spells over the last holidays, spells she often used in her line of work as an Auror. Due to his being underage he still hadn't tried them out, unwilling to practise such magic while at school. He was ambitious, yes, but by no means rash. Joshua calculated all risks and options before pushing ahead with any one course of action.

Rivas was slightly shocked at Erys' description of her professor's language. Silently he noted to leave something nasty in the herbology offices, both for Erys and Slytherin itself. Then noticing her mood had changed and Joshua sensed she was upset and angry. Despite himself he rested a comforting hand on her shoulder, somewhere between a friendly clasp and a softer touch.

"In most cases the other houses tend to start trouble with me. They've since learned I'm more dangerous than most of them are so now they usually come in groups if at all. And of course, simply being dangerous reinforces their stereotypes." Joshua explained, throwing his blood pop aside as he became bored with it.

[Erys Grace]

Figuring she had at least an hour before the sugar rush kicked in, Erys continued to walk with the blood pop in her mouth, content to listen to Joshua for as long as possible without snapping from the sweets intake. She had a low threshold for the stuff, he might find. The red lolli was smaller than it had been when she bought it, signs that slowly but steadily its candy was being eaten up. Hopefully she might notice the signs and throw it out, but for now she was captivated within the conversation.

Even though it was plants and the like she had troubles with, not spells, Erys had contemplated quitting Herbology entirely. She was determined not to take it next year, unless this current professor died or something and was replaced by somebody cool. Hopefully someone from Slytherin, because at least they were understanding about what she and the rest of her house had to go through. Every day. Caught in a moment of weakness and not too proud about it, she fought the urge to hang her head, hoping she wouldn't come off as a sobstory to him. Then again, it looked like he was in a comforting mood, by the gentle hand on her shoulder. Watching it for a moment, a little surprised but welcoming the shock, Erys managed a small smile.

Hopefully when he did that, she and Veata wouldn't be blamed instead. It was probable they were on the professor's hit list, of some sort; they'd be prime suspects for leaving the nastiness. That might leave her down-in-the-dumps mood behind, a little fun and games. Pranks. Debating whether or not to ask the Parkhurst twins for assisance - as she was perfectly capable of pulling off some chaos without them, though they were useful - Erys watched as Joshua tossed his candy away, wondering if she should do the same only a little more further on the road. "True. Even the Hufflepuffs are acting vicious."

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[Joshua Rivas]

Joshua nodded as she spoke, understanding completely.
"Huffelpuffs? Yeah, I've noticed their humour can have a sharp edge." Joshua said, though he had few run-ins with the house himself. Overall, he was mostly liked by everyone because of his own non-judgemental nature and quick-wit. The only students who hated him were most often the ones who hated their own house aswell. Still, he had his enemies.

He himself disliked Herbology deeply. The only reason he continued in it was to eventually become an Auror, as his mother had advised him to do so. How Herbology helped, he didn't know, but all of his subjects were geared towards that one career choice.

"Unfortunately it takes some time to build enough rapporte to be liked outside of Slytherin. You really have two options. You can suck it up and take the crap, smile and laugh until people start to like you. Or you can stick to the house and screw everyone else." Joshua said, smiling sadly. Due to previous generations of Slytherin prejudice and arrogance the stereotype was deeply ingrained in the history of Hogwarts.

[Erys Grace]

Bobbing her head to a muted beat, Erys seemed to nod, seeing as what he was saying really made sense. "I dont find them very funny." She remarked, thoughtful, "But the Parkhurst twins on the other hand.." They were a complete riot! She was fully prepared to help them with any of their little schemes, finding them genius and quite well prepared. It was admirable, when they always found hilarity after being hexed. They deserved an award for it, truly. Getting hit with a beaver-teeth enlarging spell? Awesome! Tentacles? Wicked! Those two terrors were true Slytherins, and despite their age, Erys had come to respect their knack at chaos.

Already deciding that Herbology was so off her class list next year, the sixth year yawned, from forgetting to breathe instead of fatigue. "We're heading back to the castle, right?" Erys had forgotten their destination, with everything else on her mind. Bullying, prejudice, insults, Hufflepuffs who really weren't as funny as they thought they were.. Tsk tsk.

Rapporte? Sticking to her house and screwing everybody else seemed like a good idea right now, only Erys had some aquaintances in other houses. Ian in Gryffindor, Jhudora in Ravenclaw.. Etc etc. Too engrossed with the conversation to bother listing them, she instead thought about what Joshua did. He had been there the whole time, hadn't he? Yes, she was sure of it. "What did you do?" He was very popular, at least he appeared to be in her eyes. Erys was curious as to know how he dealt with the other houses and their crap.[/color]