Falling With Style [ZEN]

[Deleted]

It was finally October, which meant only six months until Louis’ eighteenth birthday! Oh, and also almost Halloween, which happened to be Louis’ favorite holiday. The Delacour-Weasley clan may have grown up in a wizarding village, but the seaside town was adjacent to a lot of little Muggle villages that Louis would ‘accidentally’ wander off to when he was younger, his sister Victoire already at Hogwarts, Dominique usually with him or not far behind. It was in one of these villages they had discovered how Muggles celebrated Halloween, and Louis had been all in for it. At Hogwarts, they definitely got into the spooky spirit, with floating pumpkin heads and of course the spiders, but those were a given seeing as the castle was over a thousand years old.

Mostly, Louis liked being outside in the fall weather. It was not too hot not too cold, and the gamekeeper always raked the falling leaves from the trees on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest into gigantic piles. So on this overcast day, Louis set out wearing the navy blue sweater his grandmother had knitted for him, purposefully making his way towards the outskirts of the forest. As he arrived, he saw to his delight a perfectly raked gigantic leaf pile. Whooping loudly, he took off to a sprint and jumped headfirst into the pile. The crunch the leaves made as he landed signalled to him that this was an excellent leaf pile. He clambered back out and pulled out his wand. With a lazy flick of his wrist, the pile was back in its’ perfect arrangement. Louis rubbed his hands together, not noticing that someone was watching him from a short distance away.

zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

October was one month that while Zenevieva didn’t hate, she most certainly didn’t enjoy. Reason being: Halloween. With her mother and father, Zenevieva enjoyed the holiday as if it was Christmas. Fake blood would be scattered across their door and the decorations were large and grand for the young Novell. In terms of dinner, her father would prepare the best kinds of meals while her mother would treat her to a bloody desert. Even as a half-vampire, Zen knew she didn’t need to consume a lot of blood but for her mother, she consumed as much as she could. While at school in Ilvermorny, the Novell girl would have to result to blood-bags that her mother sent to her as a gift, resulting with Zen heading into the woods alone to consume it.

Now, in the present day, Zenevieva still felt unsure of the people around her – including the transfers/people she attended Ilvermorny with. Sat amongst the leaves in the Forbidden Forest, a blood-bag gifted by her aunt in hand, Zenevieva’s small-like fangs bit into the corner of the bag, the sweet smell of the blood piercing her nose while the odd-tasting liquid entered her mouth. While blood wasn’t her favourite thing to eat around others, alone, Zen learned the art of blood and from books came the knowledge of how it really fulfilled a vampire’s stomach.

While the outside was chilly, Zen couldn’t feel much of the cold, nor anything else that would usually bother a simple human. Though as her dark sweater clung to her small arms, crunch like noises perked the Novell girl’s ears and her dark eyes latched away from the depleted blood bag into the direction where she sensed someone else. Throwing the bag to the side, Zen jumped onto her feet before running over to the nearby tree, dried blood around her lips. Dark eyes watching someone she had no clue of jump into a pile of leaves like a normal child.

A soft smile touched Zenevieva’s lips as she watched the other person, hoping that one day she could live a life just like him. For minutes on end, she stood in the corner of the area rather creepily as she watched him before realising the actions she was doing before. Out of nervousness she used the sleeve of her sweater to wipe her lips before her feet crunched on the leaves beneath her; revealing her location.

@louis & hope this works!

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Louis was getting ready to make yet another job into the pile of leaves - it was the perfect day for him to be doing this after all - when he heard a crunch in the leaves definitely not made by him. Tensing ever so slightly, Louis peered in the general direction of where he believed he had heard the noise. “Hello? Is anyone there?” he called out, cupping his hand over his eyes so he could see better. Though it was overcast, there was still daylight encompassing the grounds. Not seeing anyone immediately, he took a few steps closer to the Forbidden Forest, keeping his wand in his pocket, but relieved that he could feel it pressed against his leg, just in case.

The movement revealed a girl, pale as snow with dark hair, attempting to hide in the trees. Relieved, Louis smiled, and showed her his empty hands, making sure he didn’t look threatening. He didn’t immediately recognize her, which didn’t say much seeing as the influx of Ilvermorny students had thrown off his bearing since returning back to Hogwarts. She was obviously one of the new kids, and as a representative of Gryffindor house, Louis was going to be welcoming. “Hello there, what’s your name? Mine is Louis,” he introduced, extending one hand out to shake hers. “What brings you all the way out to the Forbidden Forest?” he added, curiosity steeped in his tone.   "Just...it can be a bit dangerous if you don't know what you're dealing with," he commented, then shook his head.  "Not that you need to worry about the forests' edge I suppose."

zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

The jig was up for the Novell girl once the other person caught her, creepily watching him like a strange lurker. She bit down on her lip, chewing the skin out of nervousness as he approached her; with his hands held high. Was he surrendering? Zen though to herself, her head tilting slightly until she noticed what and why he was doing the action. He had his wand on him. Prepped and ready for some kind of attack or action. ”Zenevieva…” she responded, her eyes looking down at the hand that was extended before her. She hesitated at first while lifting her own hand before slotting her palm against his. ”Call me Zen..” She mumbled.

Once the boy questioned her on what she was doing in the Forbidden Forest and how she should be careful, Zen couldn’t help but let a laugh leave her lips, her hand pushing some of her hair behind her ear. ”Be careful? Of the woods?” The Novell responded out of curiosity and confusion. Was she meant to be afraid of the creatures within? She thought to herself, the thought bringing a grin to her lips. Zen wasn’t a half-dark creature for nothing. It felt natural to explore restricted areas, especially to discover the creatures that people feared. ”I know what I’m dealing with.” She stated, her hands knotting themselves behind her back as she rocked on her feet. For other half-vampires, it was never too hard to disclose when one of their kind was around, but clearly for normal humans it was evidently difficult.

Though she had no intention to reveal of what or who she was, Zen’s lips dropped to speak once more. ”Ilvermorny is just different from Hogwarts…So I wanted to explore.” Zen paused, trying to find her words. ”If it’s a problem, I’ll head back without any issues…”

@louis & so sorry for not noticing your response...T.T

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Louis smiled as he shook the girls hand. He noticed that her fingers were ice cold to the touch, but he didn’t comment on it. Perhaps she just had poor circulation, it wasn’t the least common thing at Hogwarts anyway. Or maybe she was a vampire...he was pretty sure the twins, Nora and Steve were part vampires anyway, so she wouldn’t be alone. That wasn’t exactly a first meeting conversation however, so he kept his thoughts to himself. “It’s very nice to meet you Zen,” he told her warmly, letting go of her hand. “I’m guessing you’re one of our new guests at Hogwarts? What house did they put you in?” he asked her curiously.

Louis raised his eyebrows at Zen’s laughter of being careful of the woods. Clearly, she had some experience with dealing with wildlife. He could remember in his first year when he got a good look at the forest. It was scary enough to be an eleven year old at a large castle with vast grounds, but the Forbidden Forest had its own way of keeping children out. The menacing looking trees at the edge were enough to keep Louis at bay for at least half the year. In fairness however, Zen was definitely older than eleven. “You don’t need to leave!” Louis exclaimed quickly with a shake of his head. “I’m sure it is different - do you still have a forest though?” he asked, curious as to what the grounds of the American wizarding school were like.

zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

Zenevieva found herself nodding in response to the other’s question. While she did transfer from Ilvermorny, she just happened to start in the same term as the rest of the other transfers. Her issues within fifth year leading from her parent’s death was kept on the downlow, so Zen knew it didn’t need to come up in a conversation. ”Ravenclaw.” She stated, tugging at the hems of her navy sweater as she sent a smile to Louis. Her hands soon hid away in the large arms of the Novell’s sweater, hoping that they weren’t cold enough to give away anything that related to her background. The brunette knew that Hogwarts students were more open and caring to people with a part of them that belonged to the dark creatures but it still gave Zen anxiety to even think about it. ”What house are you in…?” She asked, her tone soft and quiet.

”Of course we did.” Zenevieva laughed, a smile resting on her lips. ”It just wasn’t as large as the Forbidden Forest. And had less creatures inside of it.” In Ilvermorny, most people seemed to fear the crazy folks that stepped foot into their forest considering the stories and myths surrounding it – with students not even returning. As a half Dark creature, Zen jumped at the chance and ended up finding herself there most times during the week, especially after a cruel bullying session with Bianca or Katherine. ”But what are you doing here?” She asked, remembering watching Louis jump into a pile of leaves like a normal child. Totally…Normal.

@louis

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Louis nodded; it made sense that he hadn’t seen her before then if she wasn’t in Gryffindor house, or a seventh year. They wouldn’t be in the same classes, and if he was perfectly honest with all the new transfers, it was hard to pick out all the new faces in the Great Hall, or in the corridors between classes. Louis was full on devoted to his studies, or so he liked to tell himself. He did need to get good grades in Care of Magical Creatures and at least Defense Against the Dark Arts to be accepted into the Dragon Keeper training program. Sure, it helped that his uncle worked in the dragon reserve in Romania, but Louis didn’t want nepotism to be the only reason he got into a program. Of course, he still would always have time for thrill seeking, practical jokes and...apparently, running and jumping into large leaf piles.

Louis grinned as Zen mirrored his thought, asking him what he was doing out here. “Why, I’m jumping into this great big pile of leaves of course! What does it look like I’m doing?” he asked jovially. He magicked the pile back to be nice and neat and signalled for her to watch. With a whooping yell, Louis ran towards the pile and took a leaping jump, landing smack in the middle of the pile. The leaves flew out from underneath him, shooting upwards towards the sky and fluttering down away from the neatly kept pile. He crawled back out and surveyed the damage. “Here, you give it a go,” he said, magicking the leaves back to their pile once more.

zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

Blue eyes widened once the Gryffindor boy offered for Zenevieva to have a go with the leaves, leading to the brunette shaking her head lightly, declining his offer as she watched the scattered leaves soon float into a pile once more. ”No thank you…” She trailed off, fiddling with her fingers. While Zen watched the elder boy with excitement deep in her eyes, especially as he whooped as he fell into the pile, she felt embarrassed at the thought of someone watching her have the same excitement in her life. Especially having someone she didn’t know watch her like that.

She bit down on her lip, as her eyes moved from the pile of awaiting leaves to Louis and back again. ”Screw it” She said as Zen pushed aside him, making a run for the pile before jumping in, the feeling of leaves and grass breaking her fall – but the slightest of mud staining her pants for sure. As the leaves around her fell into other areas, Zenevieva looked up and giggled. Something rather rare. Her hands gathered the leaves once more and threw them into the air so they floated above her, falling into place beneath her once more.

@louis

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Louis glanced up at Zen from the pile of leaves as she whispered her decline in trying to get her to jump in the leaves. He raised an eyebrow, then waved his wand, making the leaves pile back up in a tantalizing stack. “I mean, this leaf pile here is just screaming for someone to jump in it. This kind of thrill and exhilaration isn’t for everyone though,” he commented casually. A huge grin widened on his face as she gave in and took a running leap into the pile of leaves. Her pure happiness from the outcome radiated from within her as she looked up at the leaves falling around her. A laugh escaped his lips as she threw more leaves up in the air, and with a flick of his wand he made the leaves swirl around in a gentle cyclone. “See? All you needed was a little push,” he said kindly.

Not wanting to miss out on the fun, Louis summoned more fallen leaves to create a second leaf pile, and leapt right up into them. He lay back in the leaves, breathless from the exhilaration. Now this was something special. Finally, he sat up and looked over at Zen. “So..where you’re from, do they outlaw jumping into leaf piles or something?” he asked her teasingly, a smirk playing at his lips. He obviously didn’t know anything about this girl, except her name and that she had seen more dangerous things than what lurked in the forest. She seemed to be coming out of the shell she had built around her though, and in Louis’ opinion that was always a good thing.

zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

Zenevieva giggled as a response to the Gryffindor, her eyes widening as she watched the leaves fly aggressively around her, her hair caught up in the lap of wind that had developed before softening, watching each leave float with grace as it made its way to the ground once more. Not wanting to move out of sheer excitement and interest, the Novell’s hands bundled the leaves once more, throwing them into the air before she fell back, her back pressed against some leaves and the grass – a wide smile touching the corners of her lips, followed by a laugh when she noticed Louis jumping into the pile that had magically appeared beside her. She felt herself rest her arms behind her head, propping her up slightly so she looked at her elder beside her.

”Not exactly.” She replied, short of breath as she breathed in heavily, her head falling into the leaves once more. ”At Ilvermorny, it was hard to…be this free.” In her early years at the Wizarding school, it was fairly easy for Zen to branch out and attempt to have fun with her friends but as the years passed and she soon fell into fourth year – it became harder. With bullies looking for her and others daily; fun wasn’t exactly a means of escape, but the places she once had fun in soon became a place to hide, conjure up some kind of escape or words of magic for defence or even offense. Let’s just say, it was difficult. ”It wasn’t strict or anything…I suppose but, Hogwarts is just so…different.”

@louis

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Louis smiled as he watched Zen fall into the leaves; she was clearly enjoying herself, which of course was the purpose of the leaf pile in the first place. “I thought America was the land of the free, or something like that?” he queried, trying to remember the National Anthem Georgie had played for him that one time. Truth be told, he hadn’t paid all that much attention to it - it had sounded super patriotic and stuff, but the person who had been singing it hadn’t been all that good in his opinion. “Hogwarts is better, you mean,” he faux corrected her teasingly, sitting up on his elbows to look over at her. “We’re much better at allowing personal freedoms. As long as you’re not caught of course.” Louis laughed at his own comment. Yes, he had gotten away with plenty during his time at Hogwarts, but for the most part a professor hadn’t been caught him in the act yet. Somehow, even after all that, he’d still managed to make Prefect. His parents had been proud, and Vic had been elated, but honestly, Louis was wondering if there had been something in the professors’ tea when they made that decision. “What’s the craziest thing you ever did at Ilvermorny?” he asked, turning to look at the younger girl with honest curiosity.

zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

Aside from reading books, Zenevieva didn’t really have many other hobbies that interested her. Or any means of fun to change her attitude at the best of times. Now in the pile of leaves, she couldn’t help but laugh at Louis’ comment, nodding in response. ”That’s true…But I don’t really enjoy many free things." America and Ilvermorny was different from Hogwarts as a whole, especially since Zen was free to roam the halls instead of hide away from her bullies. "Besides, land of the free means nothing as a witch..." or a half dark creature Zen always saw no importance in the saying, considering she believed it applied more so to Muggles rather than witches and wizards.

Another laugh passed through the Novell's lips as green eyes looked over at the Gryffindor. "I meant exactly that." It was ironic, considering the two were conversing in the forbidden forest after all. "And if we were caught? Right here...Right now...Then what?" Zen usually wasn't so curious about things, but with the risk she was technically taking, she at least wanted to have an understanding of what to expect. Back in Ilvermorny, the brunette hadn't broken as many rules as she was currently breaking - considering all the bullies hanged out at the best of places. But the craziest thing she had done back home? Nothing particular.

Zen was a typical student, known for good grades and quietness. Not usually the socially best person. "N-Nothing crazy...I suppose." She responded, pushing herself up from the leaves so she sat up completely. "I'm what most people call...Boring." With a shrug, she pushed some leaves out of her hair. "I don't usually like...chaos or risking anything. Which is funny."

@louis

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[Deleted]

Louis frowned slightly at Zen’s words; she was taking care not to mention something, that much was clear to him. But since he had just met her, he had no intention of pushing the subject; that would be rude. So he focused on her next question. “Well, as Prefect I could easily tell whoever caught us I was showing you the grounds and where to stay away from, as a dutiful person of authority would do,” he told her, grinning widely. His prefect badge was pinned to his t-shirt he wore under his sweater; he wasn’t like his uncle Percy parading it around like he was the king of the world. He still didn’t quite understand why he had been entrusted with this responsibility; his antics weren’t exactly a well kept secret. But he supposed never having been caught meant they had no concrete proof of his shenanigans.

“Well you just jumped in a giant pile of leaves with a stranger, I’d hardly call you boring,” Louis pointed out, standing up to dust the stray leaves out of his hair. “I love chaos and risk, they’re what make life worth living. That’s why I want to be a dragonologist when I graduate from Hogwarts,” he told her, the eagerness lighting up his face. “My aunt and uncle currently work at the same reserve, so I know I’ll be able to apply there once I’m out. What about you? Since you’re at Hogwarts for the foreseeable future, do you have plans to stay in the UK after you graduate?” he asked her curiously. He had no idea what the Ilvermorny students planned to do; sure some of them probably would go back to the states either when the school reopened or post-graduation, but he knew of at least one that was planning on staying here so far.


zenevieva mira novell

[zenevieva mira novell]

a seasonal treat .

Relieved he didn’t exactly press on, Zenevieva felt a little more comfortable to discuss his role as a Prefect as how he would prevent from the two of them from exactly getting into trouble. The Novell knew her reasons already, blaming it on the fact that she was a transfer, who was simply trying to understand why she had to avoid such places. But his excuse was a little cooler. ”Nice.” She smiled. ”But who said I’d stay quiet about what we were really doing out here?” She challenged, raising a brow. Zen wasn’t exactly a snitch, especially since she didn’t speak out about her bullying to any adults, just her friends who eventually done the deed for her.

Zen stifled a laugh, holding her hand over her mouth as she did so — a form of a habit she couldn’t rid herself of. ”We’re no longer strangers.” She remarked. ”You’re Louis. I’m Zen.” She told him, pointing at him as she said his name, then at herself when she said her own name. The smile on her lips resembled a ditsy one, something Zenevieva most definitely wasn’t. A dummy. The Ravenclaw reached to pull out a brown leaf from her hair, leaving it in her palm to analyse until a soft breeze of the wind pushed it out. Green eyes lifted, watching as the leaf flew away before she rested her gaze onto Louis, listening. ”A dragonologist?” She repeated in question. ”Not many people go into that area…That’s interesting.” She smiled, interested in his choice.

Considering Zen still had a year or so to consider her choices before she graduated, her shoulders drew into a small shrug. The interest of joining the Ministry had always been rather interesting, to intern under the department of regulation and control of magical creatures and hopefully lead a team in the future. But…Dreams were dreams. ”I suppose so.” She murmured vaguely. She was…somewhat stuck in the UK. Even if Ilvermorny ever opened again, she would have no place to go back to in the US. ”I live here with my Aunt now. So even if everyone goes back, I’ll be here.” She added. It was sad, given the original context, but now she didn’t exactly mind it. The UK was somewhere new.

@louis

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!