lion's den (rían)

[Deleted]

Early December 2026

Atticus rearranged his overlong limbs to a more comfortable position in the otherwise uncomfortable wooden chair in the library. He straightened his back, having been bent over a book about human transfiguration for the better part of an hour. Atticus glanced out the window at the dreary mist that blanketed the Ilvermorny grounds, and was reminded irresistably of Hogwarts. Oh, how he missed it there. It had been his home only for a few years, but something tugged in his chest when he thought of the place. It was almost like he didn't belong in America anymore. Or maybe that was because Eli wasn't here with him.

Frowning, Atticus turned back to his reading. They had just started human transfiguration in class this week, and he was keen to get ahead. His fellow classmates were more raucous than usual in the student lounge, though Atticus thought it might have had something to do with the upcoming holiday. Christmas was coming as surely as the dread that surged through Atticus at the thought of it. He hated Christmas. Not because of the holiday per se, but because he hated being bombarded with questions. He would have much rather had a quiet holiday with his parents and siblings, rather than inviting the whole extended family.

With a sigh, Atticus turned the page, his nose barely an inch away from the book as he squinted to make out a chart. He scratched the back of his neck which prickled suddenly. The scraping of chair legs on the floor jerked Atticus from his reverie, and he looked up, glaring at the person who had sat across from him. He wasn't known for being overly friendly or hospitable - why join him whilst reading?

@rian

[Deleted]

Overly large mug in hand, Rían's overly large frama sauntered along the library stacks. The Ilvermorny library wasn't bad; it was large and bright and airy, more well lit than the Hogwarts library even if their selection of books wasn't as good. He had just come from sending a message to his Mam confirming that he would not in fact be coming home for Christmas Holidays. Of course Ilvermorny were being super accommodating in trying to get the Hogwarts students home and the logistics were proving slightly trickier, but Rí had found out they would be spending time with Siobhan and her new Fianceé in London and ultimately Rían hadn't been invited.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Admittedly he had been quite hurt over the whole thing, but was trying to pack that away to deal with later.

Instead he took a sip from his mug and continued making his way through the library, not even sure what he was looking for at this point; probably just a distraction of some sort. Once he laid eyes on AJ, his eyebrow raised. Ask and you shall receive. There was is distraction. Furrowing his brows and his bent over form his slid in to the seat opposite his friend and scoffed at him.

"AJ what are ye doing man"

@atticus

[Deleted]

One of the bright lights above Atticus flickered, but he didn't notice it as he was much too involved in his book. He sniffed, turning a page and rubbing his temple as his strange mind expanded to take in the information. Human transformation could go horrifically wrong, and Atticus was not keen on finding that out first hand. Thus, he had to study and make sure no mistakes were made when push came to shove.

The scratching of chair legs on the floor aroused Atticus from his trance like state, and he glared at the boy who sat across from him. His face smoothed almost at once when he realised it was just Rían, probably one of the only people Atticus would consider a friend. Atticus carefully marked his spot in his book and closed it, folding his hands on top of the old, battered text book. "Reading," he replied simply, shifting a narrowed glance at Rían. He had to know he really did not like being called AJ, right? But Atticus couldn't be bothered to correct him. "Did you get any new tea from your mom?" asked Atticus, eyeing the mug in his hand.

@rian

[Deleted]

Frowning deeper, he watched Atticus take his head out of the book finally. Giving a rather over-simplified answer he rolled his eyes. "No, why so close to the book Amadan" Slurping a sip of his tea before he placed the mug down on the desk in front of him. Even that was in contrast to Hogwarts, much more modern and white it reflected the light bouncing around the massive library space.

Even if they weren't all that close, Atticus was probably the closest thing he had to a friend in his year. Even more so now that they were transplanted from Hogwarts to Ilvermorny.

Shaking his head as if shaking it off he rolled his eyes again.

"Whatever." Looking back to his mug he gave a small nod and a tight lipped smile "Yes, suddenly the shipping fee was worth it enough to outweigh her guilt of keeping me here for Christmas I guess." As the smile turned to more of a grimace, he purposely avoided Atticus' gaze and cast a look around the library. Unfortunately there wasn't much else going on and it didn't last long before his eyes settled back on his friend with an uncomfortable smile. 

Amadan; Fool

@atticus

[Deleted]

Atticus frowned as Rían slurpled unpleasantly at his tea. A muscle in his brow twitched at the noise, but he remained silent. "I was very focused," said Atticus pointedly. But Rían didn't seem keen to leave, and to be perfectly honest, Atticus knew he wasn't getting anywhere fast with this transfiguration. "What does Amadan mean?" he asked after a moment, his watery blue gaze settling on his friends face.

Atticus asked if his mum had sent more tea, and Rían replied that she had. "Don't you have a family owl?" asked Atticus, thinking of Frey nestled up in the library who had recently brought Atticus tea selected by his brother. He supposed he had taken the whole receiving mail thing for granted. "Stay here? For Christmas?" Atticus echoed, the words falling into place in his too busy mind. "I can't imagine anything worse. You should come to our house. At least that will make it less horrible for me," said Atticus with a huff. "Oh, I nearly forgot," he added, rummaging through his school bag. He placed a box of tea in front of Rían. "I asked my brother to send me tea - his girlfriend suggested this one," said Atticus with a smirk. Atticus didn't know the full depth of Eli and Cordie's relationship, only that Eli was completely whipped.

@rian

[Deleted]

"Hm right" muttering, he brushed Atticus off with an eye roll. "Weirdo" He had always been a little odd in Rían's eyes but he still held a soft spot for him. Annoyingly so. He teased Atticus mercilessly and was sour as grapes with most of the time, but still, Atticus annoyed him a lot less than everyone else around. A small part of him even actually liked Atticus, much more than he would care to admit. It was likely the fact he was a little odd and different to most people around was what actually drew Rían towards him, but that was a fact he often tried to quash while he overthought everything lying in bed staring at the ceiling at night.

"Nope" Popping the P he rolled his eyes again, this time in amusement though. "Muggle Family that hates all things magical, including creepy birds remember?" Chuckling quietly he paused to lift the mug to his lips again, hoping Atticus wouldn't dwell much on that point.

Except he didn't. He picked up on the not going home for Christmas thing and Rían would now have to explain just how much of an outsider he was in his own family. He was quiet for a moment, musing on what to actually say. Eventually he just gave a quiet sigh and shrugged his shoulders up before letting them return to their hunched posture in an attempt to seem smaller. It was easier to seem smaller and melt into his surroundings than stick out like the lanky giant he is. "Yeah they're going to Siobhan and he Fianceé's in Dublin and he doesn't...he doesn't know about me I guess. So I'm not really invited...It's....it's grand I guess it is what it is. Don't worry about it, I'll be fine here AJ, catch up on my reading and that in some peace." It was quite clear it was obvious it wasn't all grand, but he didn't want people feeling sorry for him and that was that. Pushing his lips together he tried to make it clear he was done talking about it, and hoped Atticus got the message.

Instead he lifted his gaze to the box of tea. It was a pleasant surprise. He didn't know Atticus' brother, or his girlfriend, but the fact they had thought about him made him feel some kind of way. It was a nice feeling he supposed, and for a moment he didn't know quite what to do with it. Nobody had cared about him too much in the past few years, other than his Mam, but then she couldn't even show it too much or else it caused issues between her and his Dad. The small sheepish smile forming on his lips was impossible to dampen and he let his long fingers reach out and grasp the colours cardboard.

"Oh, wow thank you" His voice was flat, but he was genuinely thankful to be thought of. "That's...that's really nice, go raibh maith agat AJ" The sentiment had truly caught him off guard and as he blinked slowly, his eyes scanned the warm tones of the box. "That's cool, thank them for me" Even if it was fruity tea that he wouldn't likely drink, he liked the fact someone had been looking out for him and done something nice. The unprecedented sentiment had pushed him inward again to a degree, feeling like an idiot for being so happy over a stupid box of tea. But then, Atticus was annoyingly caring like that.

"Thank you" He repeated again, now finally looking to his roommate and giving an uncomfortable little head nod of acknowledgment.

@atticus

go raibh maith agat ; thank you

[Deleted]

Rían was rather as sour as Atticus, which he imagined was the reason why the pair suffered one anothers company more frequently. Atticus presented Rían with the tea his brother had sent over, explaining that his girlfriend had suggested the flavours. "I just didn't want you to be missing out," said Atticus shiftily. And before he knew it, he was inviting Rían to the Fleming home for Christmas. He supposed Rían's company would make it much more tolerable than usual.

Rían had been delighted by the gift of tea as Atticus mulled over his options. On one hand, he could absolutely let Rían stay at Ilvermorny on his own. There would be other students here. They would suffer yes, but separately. Atticus frowned. It was no use, really. "Please come," said Atticus, his voice low as he surveyed his only friend. "Please." He had never been much of a wordsmith, preferring to be on his own, and that hadn't changed even with his life in Scotland.

With a sharp exhale of breath, Atticus mussed his hair up. "Only two more years til we're out of here. Three terms left," said Atticus, realising that he was perhaps not as prepared for reality as he could have hoped. He had no idea what he wanted to do with his life, or anything like that. He just wanted to hole himself away and read books and take bits apart. He glanced over at Rían, their eyes meeting. "But you'll go back to Hogwarts. And I'll be stuck here," said Atticus, a frown pulling down the corners of his lips.

@rian

[Deleted]

"Thank you" He repeated again quietly, looking down. His tone was quiet, but heavy. He was talking about the tea, or so he thought anyway. Atticus' plea for him to come for Christmas had hit him quite hard. In reality he didn't know what it would be like to stay here for Christmas; it shouldn't be all too different from Christmas at Hogwarts surely, and yet some home comforts may be nice. Especially with AJ involved. Even if he would never admit it. There was some worries about having to face his family of course, Rían had never been the social type, and had never dealt well with even people he knew, never mind the unknowns. "I'll think about it, alright AJ?" he eventually settled on in reply.

While Atticus mused over the length of time they had left at this school, Rían was quiet, unsure of how to react. He felt the same, even if he'd never admit it to Atty. Nibbling on his lip he nodded quietly and admitted "I know."

Even as Atty tried to meet his eyes, Rían avoided his gaze, pretending to study the box of tea.

"I'll come for Christmas then"

@atticus