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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 20:32:55 GMT -5
He had to get this essay turned in by three for full points and that left just under five minutes to get from the library to the Astronomy tower. He silently cursed the professor. Who assigned essays based on something that only had three books in the library? In theory there had been enough time for everyone to have a book for a day, but the girl who got the first book held onto it for a week, the second book was passed between a clique of Slytherins and the third had been lost two days in.
Castiel had finally given up and ordered a book of his own from the book store. He'd gotten it this morning. Sure he could turn his essay in tomorrow, but then he'd be losing points and dammit, he had the highest score in class and he wanted to keep it.
So he was running. He rarely ran. He was always on time, if not early and running was undignified. His bag bounced against his hip and he struggled to hold it down without losing speed. Up the stairs, down the corridor, around the corner...
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 28, 2016 20:39:04 GMT -5
And into a guy he'd never met. Samson had been rushing through a castle he still felt unfamiliar with, and of all things that could happen upon turning a corner, he'd run into someone. "Oh, god, I'm sorry, I'm a c~, I'm sorry," he stammered as a snake around his neck constricted briefly from the stress and he wondered if he'd actually hit a nose. "I was trying to get to Evans' office and-" and then he was just rambling as he tried to make sure he didn't drop anything.
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 20:58:40 GMT -5
"Dammit!" Castiel's reflex had been to grab on to keep from falling and it was only by chance that he didn't end up with a handful of snake. A faceful yes, but that was fixed with a gasp and a sharp move backward. Of course, he was still holding on. That killed his balance entirely and before he knew it he was falling, his butt hitting the floor first as his eyes widened. He was knocked a little breathless.
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 28, 2016 21:05:49 GMT -5
Samson tumbled along with the other guy, and his eyes widened mere inches from another face. He definitely wasn't used to being that close to another guy. A scramble and another stuttering apology later, he was a foot away and Porthios had managed to find his way down his shirt. It wasn't exactly a pleasant feeling. "It's not your-" he started, but the embarrassment took over and whatever he said afterward wasn't entirely understandable. "I should've been watching."
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 21:28:13 GMT -5
"You're supposed to stay to the right!" Castiel barked, pushing to his feet. Wait. Dammit! Europe. He should have been running down the left side of the corridor. "Never mind!" His bag had spilled when he's fallen and he moved as quickly as he could to gather whatever he could, paying no real attention to any of it. Everything went in his bag.
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 28, 2016 21:36:31 GMT -5
Samson muttered a few more sorries while helping the other guy gather things together. "I've only been here a few months, and I didn't know we were supposed to stay to a side, and is this quill yours or mine?" He was mostly sure most of his things hadn't been spilled, but it looked so familiar, but he wasn't about to take it without being absolutely sure.
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 21:58:24 GMT -5
Castiel snatched the quill and stuffed it into his bag with everything else, but the longer he went on, the less hope he had. With the last item tucked away, he finally looked at his watch.
3:01:15
Dammit. There was no use hurrying anymore. The Astronomy professor was a stickler for the rules. Defeated, Castiel leaned heavily against the nearest wall. He frowned deeply for a moment before catching himself and finally looked over at the guy who'd just cost him ten points. He glared, then reopened his bag. He had time to actually look at that quill now. "It's yours," he said. He held it out. He kept his quills sharp.
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 28, 2016 22:16:47 GMT -5
"I'm really sorry," Samson said, clutching his bag against his chest and taking the quill as Porthios relaxed again against his skin. The guy he'd run into looked particularly unhappy with the situation. Well, at least he hadn't drawn a wand like the angry Slytherin Samson had run into a few weeks ago. He turned a bit to glare at a painting. "You could have warned us!" he said, but the subject just giggled and darted off to another frame.
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 22:24:32 GMT -5
"They're no help," Castiel said bitterly. He glanced the way he'd been going, but Professor Viridian-Trace wouldn't be in her office anymore. He sighed and turned back the way he'd come. Maybe he'd go stand in the entrance hall and send hate rays at everyone who walked by.
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 28, 2016 22:31:06 GMT -5
"I'm sorry, again," Samson said, then went into his stammering habit, thought at least this time it made sense somehow. "Where did, I mean if you've got a minute, where did you get your quills?" His own simply didn't last very long, and half of his uncertainty of the ownership of his quill had been because of running into someone in the first place.
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 22:40:43 GMT -5
"My mother orders them for me," Castiel said. "They're expensive." He was bitter about a lot of things, none of which had anything to do with the guy who was now following him, but he didn't care who he took it out on. He had no friends, his parents were too busy with the baby to pay attention to him, and he was sick of being cold all the time. Everyone should be as miserable as he was.
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 28, 2016 22:54:29 GMT -5
"Oh," Samson said, lowering his eyes even though he continued to walk with the guy. "They're just nice and I wondered...I've got some galleons now and I was hoping..." Rambling. Meaningless words. He hadn't made any friends really since moving here, and trying to make friends was so much more difficult when everyone wasn't a first year. He'd rarely even seen Andy. Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, he cursed his mother for dragging him here. "I was curious."
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 28, 2016 23:07:17 GMT -5
Castiel looked back and, in a long glance, took in the guy's hand-me-down clothes. "You couldn't afford quills like mine," he said. "Try the quill shop on Diagon Alley." Castiel hadn't been to London in forever and he tried to push down memories of the place. Cold noses and fingers, ice cream and gossip. Life had been so simple then. He'd been so young, so naïve to think he could keep Marius forever. Marius, who'd strung him along for years and then ditched him without a fare-thee-well!
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Post by Samson Callahan Koster on Feb 29, 2016 20:43:12 GMT -5
Samson eyed the guy for a second, then let slip a question that, on most days, he'd have kept firmly locked away in his head. "You're a Slytherin, aren't you?" he asked, stopping his feet just in case. At least in the castle, he could run and turn a few corners and get away without much effort. It wasn't like being on the lawns.
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Post by Castiel Catalyst on Feb 29, 2016 21:10:23 GMT -5
"Wait, what did you say?" Castiel stopped and turned to look at the guy. " No, I am not a Slytherin!" He finally heard himself and the angry flash of his eyes shifted to self-consciousness. "No, I... I'm sorry, okay? I'm having a bad day. "Sorry." Not the most genuine sounding apology he'd ever given, but he really was sorry he'd been such a jerk.
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