paintitrainbows | what comes up when rain comes down?

[Oswald meets his gaze, looking confused also, and he shrugs] I'll, uh...see you in the library later?

Um... Yeah. Yeah, I'll see you later.

[He just finishes gathering up his stuff and follows Flitwick. When they get to his office, Edward walks in and... freezes slightly, when he sees Fish and Lupin there, too.]

Uh.

Am... Am I in trouble or something?

Not at all, Edward. We simply wanted to ask you some questions. [she seems relaxed, at ease, perhaps in comparison to at least Lupin.]

["Yes, yes. You're not in trouble at all, Edward. Please, take a seat."

And Edward does so. A little reluctantly, a little uncertain, because what else would a group of teachers want with him, if not because he's in trouble. But okay...

This is happening, he guesses.]

Oh. Um... okay?

[Fish's eyes flick over Edward once, before leaning forward a bit, looking him in the eye.] First of all, you don't have to answer anything you're uncomfortable with. Am I clear?

...Okay? I mean... yes. I think.

[He glances around a little, again, at every teacher individually. There's a few more reassurances from Flitwick, as well. To tell him he's not in trouble, really, he's not. And then, of course, they have to get to the heart of the matter.

Lupin fields that part, because he's the one who actually witnessed the incident.]

"Edward, we wanted to ask you a few things about what happened in class a few days ago. With the boggart."

[And immediately, there's a shift. Because now Edward knows what it's about, so at least the uncertainty about that is removed. Now, instead, he tenses up. He tries to keep his expression neutral and he'd do a pretty admirable job if he wasn't fourteen and people were already on the lookout, so the anxiety underneath is pretty clear.]

...What about it?

["Well. It's not entirely unheard of for a boggart experience to be troubling for someone. Perfectly normal, really." Flitwick is doing his best to approach the subject gently, but they do have to... of course... get into it. "Professor Lupin has told us a little, but... Could you tell us what it was you saw, Edward?"

Edward is still... looking straight ahead. Not answering right away.]

I--

Does... Does that really matter? I mean, it's not... important or anything. Who cares?

Standard procedure, Edward. We're just trying to ensure that all stories match. [she's casual about the whole thing, perhaps the least tense out of everyone in the room. Certainly between her and Edward.]

[Edward goes quiet. It almost seems like he's doing a quick mental calculation, which is about accurate.

He's trying to recall who knows what. And... while it's true that his parents aren't exactly well known to the Hogwarts staff - as they've never visited, try to stay as uninvolved with Edward's school life as possible, really - he knows at least one person has met them in person. Professor McGonagall, when she came by his house to explain everything about his letter and when she took them to Diagon Alley to get his school supplies.

So it's as simple a matter of asking her for everything to fall apart, if he lies here. Or... It could just be a coincidence. Similar looking men, it doesn't have to be related to anything.

No. Maybe?

"Edward?" And he looks up, suddenly realizing he's stayed quiet too long. "It's alright. In your own time."]

It's... [...No. It'll fall apart. He has to fess up to at least this one thing.] It was my dad. [Which he hates admitting, hates the words as they come out of his mouth, so he keeps talking immediately.] I-I mean, whatever. So what? It was probably just... still trying to decide what to be, or--

[No. Come on, Edward, you have a better tactic than that. His voice takes on a more challenging tone, now.]

I mean, it wasn't about him or anything, it's just, you know... who isn't scared of getting into trouble or something?

"...Yes, of course, Edward. It's alright." [Lupin smiles sympathetically, quiet and patient.] "Still, we wanted to be sure."

[And Lupin glances at Flitwick, who clears his throat a little.

"We just want to know... Is everything okay at home, Edw--"]

Yes.

[The answer's too quick. Out there before Flitwick can even finish the sentence, like he anticipated the question this whole time. He's still staring ahead.]

[So...no. It isn't. Too quick of an answer; not yet completely practiced at the dismissal. This...never gets any easier. It never becomes less heartbreaking.

But if she shows anything akin to pity, Edward will immediately reject it. She's no fool.

Fish's eyes narrow just slightly, but that's all. She does make an attempt to catch his gaze, however]

[Flitwick, too, has been here. Less often in his house, certainly. But it still happens. He's taught here for a long time and he's seen many students go. These things just... keep happening.

Lupin is not new to it. He can't keep out the worry from his expression, can't stop himself from wanting to do more. Try again.]

"I believe you, Edward. Still, if there is anything going on-- Anything you want to tell us--"

There isn't. Everything's fine.

[Edward grips the chair just a little too tightly. And Lupin looks... saddened.]

"You're absolutely sure?"

Yeah. I'm sure.

Well. That settles it, I believe. Let us know if you think of anything else.[Fish pushes to her feet. Edward's not going to say anything, and the more Lupin pushes, the worse it will get] Thank you for your time, Edward. [she opens the door to the office, holding it open for him, a clear escape should he choose to take it.] I'll see you in Potions tomorrow.

[Oh, and Edward takes it. He practically jumps at the offered out, grabbing his bag. He barely offers up a--] Okay. [--before he's out the door, fast as he can go without running.

And once Edward's gone, Lupin sighs. Slumping slightly.]

"...He wasn't ever going to say anything, was he?"

[After a long moment, Fish sighs, closing the door, folding her arms over her chest] .....no. They rarely do. You have to wait for them to come to you. [she lowers herself back into that chair] But he knows the option is there now, at least.

[Edward, meanwhile, just keeps going as he leaves the office, at the same pace. He's just walking and walking, not even sure where he's going. He has class, soon. He was going to... going to go to the library and--

Suddenly he can't even think of any of that. Forget class.

At some point, he finds himself higher and higher in the castle. The Astronomy Tower seemed like a good pick. No one will be there during the day and he's reasonably sure there's no class scheduled for tonight anyway, so no one will be by to prepare anything either.

He throws his bag down onto the floor and just... sinks down onto it himself. Hugging his knees, resting his head on top of them.]

[....Edward doesn't show. Oswald's finished his homework at least half an hour ago, and is just...sitting there. In the library. By himself. He worries his bottom lip with his teeth--though his head jerks up and to the side when his name is said softly--]

Mr. Cobblepot.

[Fish waits until she has his attention, before--] I don't believe that Mr. Nashton will show. You should probably go looking for him.

[Oswald is...startled, to the say the least. But Slytherins are unwittingly trained in double speak from the moment they arrive, so his expression immediately dissolves into a frown. He wants to ask what happened, but...this is a very clear command. He's immediately shoving all of his books into his bag, and slinging them over his shoulder.] Okay. Thank you, Professor.

[and with that, he's heading out of the library at a fast pace. He doesn't know where Edward is per say but at least he can think of a good idea of how to narrow it down. If something happened he definitely wouldn't go back to the common room; he'd go somewhere else. Somewhere to be alone. And despite being a large castle, it is full of people. He's only got a couple options on places that would be really, truly isolated, but...well. It's worth a shot.

Oswald makes his way to the Astronomy Tower]

Edited 2019-03-30 00:09 (UTC)

[And he'll find Edward there. Still sitting in the same position as when he first got there. Face hidden. Bag lying sort of forgotten a small distance away.

He won't look up at the sound of someone entering the tower.]

[at first, it's a relief to find him. But it's immediately swamped by dread and worry as Oswald drops his bag on the floor next to Edward's, immediately moving to cross the room to him]

Edward?

[Edward's immediate first instinct is to curl into himself more. As if he can just hide from everything that way and the world around him will just disappear. And if he looks up, he can't keep trying to block everything out, so...

He doesn't.

Not... Not quite yet.]

[Oswald rolls his lips over his teeth, frown deepening. Edward's not saying anything so he'll just have to...sit down next to him, pulling his legs up to his chest also and wrapping his arms around them. He rests his head sideways on his knees so he can watch Edward, and will just...stay there until he's ready to say or do anything]

[It takes a bit. But eventually it'll sink in that he can't just hide from the world forever. Edward still doesn't look up, but he does speak, finally.]

...Sorry.

I know I was supposed to meet up with you in the library, but...

It's fine. [he means that] The Astronomy Tower's way cooler anyway.

...Yeah. It kinda is.

[...]

Still, just. Didn't mean to ditch you or anything.

Hey, I said it's fine. [Oswald huffs a bit, turning his head to rest his chin on his knees instead] Professor Mooney told me you weren't coming, probably.

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