Uttered Threats and Promises }}, Tag:: Remmy

[Maggie Gallihad]

Year six. The transition year. On one side there is the OWLs, on another, NEWTs. Year six, was, in theory, the one year in between in which one could relax. In theory, that was. No extra stress about important placement tests at the end of the year, just the normal exams - which, in comparison, meant very little in the grand scheme of things.

Unfortunately, it is not, by any stretch of imagination, a year in which one can slack off. All NEWT courses required more participation, both in and out of the classroom. Preparation for the NEWTS, so the professors said... even if the tests were... well. Technically two years off. Not that it mattered to their professors. It did, however, cause most of the students to whine and bemoan their fate.

For the past five years, Maggie Gallihad had worked at the talent of basically kissing Professor Snape’s behind. Being a non-Slytherin but still vastly interested in Potions had not been easy. It had taken long hours of very late nights and many many attempts of making potions illegally outside of the classroom for her to have passed with more than half-way decent marks and an ‘E’ for her OWL. She had, however, by her fourth year, more or less succeeded in winning the Professor over enough that he stopped believing that she was cheating and was actually semi talented when it came to potion making. Not that he ever admitted it past not making any negative comments, but still, she had considered it a success.

Not that it mattered anymore. Her perfect ‘E’ more or less went to waste with the introduction of Professor Slughorn. More, because it meant that she really needn’t have tried so hard in her first five years. Less, because Slughorn took a fancy to her and her talents. Which meant that she had to at least keep up with some of her regular regimes that she had established during his predecessor.

One of those regimes was to go to dinner early so that she could finish eating early then retreat to the library before the after-dinner crowd decided to file in and hog up all of the prime spots. It didn’t mean, however, that she was planning on missing dessert; oh, no, her in-between reward would be to nip on down to the Great Hall and grab a sugary substance for dessert.

But that was later. Currently, she was muttering threat under her breath about wanting to take a certain Professor and drown him in her next cauldron. Potions at NEWT level, even under a less strict taskmaster such as Slughorn, was no easy course. Her essay of the night involved something to do with how all of the components, in conjecture the different twists and turns of her wand created the synergy that was needed to concoct Veritaserum, and, how, if done incorrectly, could turn out dreadfully for the recipient. Vertiaserum was not an easy potion to make to start with, but to get down to the very basics and explain exactly why the potion worked the way it did made her want to commit murder. Despite the fact that she knew it would be a handy potion to know in the future, as well as the fact that such a breakdown would help her recall the details later on, murder wasn’t too far from her mind.

Still though, she was at the books and determined to finish at least most of the research and a third of the essay before she allowed herself to walk around and stretch. Maggie had set herself down two aisles down from the main section of the Potions books. She had grabbed a long stretch of table and was making full use of it: a stack of books she planned on using at the far end, three open books propped open, and three stacks of parchment - one for notes, one for trash, and the last was the stack of unwritten and waiting to be used parchment.

Maggie scribbled down a note with a heavy sigh, then leaned back, eying the far right book. “I wonder just how many other people you’ve managed to aggravate,” she grumbled. She was talking to a book.

She must be going mad.

[James Knightly]

James Regulus Knightly stepped out of the tower and scaled down the steps, slinging his bag over his shoulder just as he touched the bottom. Awaiting him was none other than his partner-in-crime, Silas Edington. Remmy, as he was so affectionately known, held his hand out in front of him, which his brother in all but blood took and pulled him into a half-hug. "What's going on, Sai?" He asked smoothly, the two pulling away from their greeting with a snap of their fingers.

"Just coming to see if you're hungry. Great Hall's open, you know?" Silas remarked, pointing a thumb over his shoulder towards the steps.

Rem shook his head, "Sorry, can't." He said, re-shouldering his bag, "Heading to the library. Potions, you know?" the Ravenclaw smirked a little, offering a slight shrug.

"You remember what I told you, right?"

"A steady hand makes less ripple, less ripple makes good consistency, good consistency makes for a good potion..." The two of them recited simultaneously, "I know, Sai. Thanks." He smiled and shook his head. "Can't believe a Ravenclaw is getting advise on classes from a 'Puffer. Still, I don't know how I'd have ever survived Snape without you."

"Hey, he's not a bad guy. He just hates the soft ones." Silas grinned, patting Rem's shoulder. "You just have to buck at him, a little. Sure, he'll take your House Points, but he'll give you respect, in exchange."

James chuckled, "Yeah, tell that to the House that's trying to catch up to Slytherin, mate." The joke caused Silas to laugh, throwing up his hands in defeat. "Hufflepuff hasn't had a chance at that cup for a while, man. Your points are pretty much acceptable to lose." Remmy goaded.

"Yeah, but don't go counting us out for the Quidditch Cup. That trophy is going to have my name on it this year." Silas and Remmy exchanged a final handshake. "Alright, mate, I'm getting out of here. Catch you tomorrow?"

"Sure thing." His friend assured.

Silas moved to one of the bookcases on the wall, placing a hand on one of the books on the third shelf and pulling down on it, causing it to swing halfway open to reveal a passageway. "Hey!" He called out to Remmy, who turned off of the stairs, raisng his chin in acknowledgement with raised eyebrows. "Remember the other thing I told you, right?"

"What's that?" James asked, smirking slightly.

"Start living for yourself, mate. Life's not all about books and helping others. You gotta' look out for yourself, every now and again." Silas said, tapping his temple and giving a small salute.

"I'll try to keep that in mind!" Remmy called out to him as Silas disappeared into the passageway.

Remmy descended the stairs, spiraling down, and having to pause only twice as the stairs shifted before he could cross. During the interim, he even managed an interesting conversation with one of the paintings of Gregory the Grimstone, who, oddly enough, only got his name from the horrible smell that stuck with him after being dunked inside of a cauldron. Apparently, it took two years for the boils to go away, even with the most sophisticated magical remedies of the time.

Finally, the library was before him and James was soon surrounded by the comfort of books and silence. Not that the Ravenclaw Tower was ever that noisy, save for the whistle of wind and talk in front of the fire. Silas preferred it over the Hufflepuff Common Room, at least. While it was superbly more homely, even comfortable, there was just something about literally living in a burrow that just seemed too....badger-like.

Rem poked his head around, sifting through the bookshelves, looking for anything that might help him search for better portions of ingredients that would make for a more stable Vertiaserum. The stirring wasn't such a problem, anymore, thanks to Silas. It seemed having confidence in what you did paid off in more areas than just social graces. A fact that Remmy still had to work on wrapping his head around. As he pulled a book off the shelf, he heard someone quietly muttering, and he half-thought the words to be directed at him, for some odd reason.

“I wonder just how many other people you’ve managed to aggravate,”

"Oh, my apologies, I didn't think I was--" He turned on his heel, his eyes falling upon a familiar face. Lilian Gallihad. Maggie, as she was affectionately known for her collection of magazines. He always thought it an interesting quirk. Better than the tremendous stack of Famous Witches and Wizard cards he and Silas had managed to collect over the year. Probably healthier, too, since they would end up eating fifty Chocolate Frogs at a time, just to have a chance at some of the rarer pieces.

"Hey, how was summer?" Remmy asked, perking up as he took a seat in front of her. He slung his bag off of his shoulder and hung it on the back of the chair, digging through it for his parchment, ink, and quill, as well as another book that contained Silas's notes. Silas really was a pure genius when it came to Potions...

He wrinkled up his nose and smiled when he saw her material. "Ugh, I know, right?" He said nodding to her Potions work, "That's me, as well. Dreadful stuff, that."

Remmy often enjoyed Lilian's company, despite how few and far between their encounters may have been. Partnering a few time in classes, sharing the fire while Rem entertained first years with little gizmos he and Silas would collect from Hogsmead, or teaching them the strategies of Wizard's Chess. She was honestly a character. A little nuttier than most, but colorful, which Remmy never criticized. The world needed a little color, lately, with recent events being as dark as they were. A little ray of light, in his mind.

[Maggie Gallihad]

In the moments following her statement, a voice from somewhere behind and above her replied, ”Oh, my apologies, I didn’t think I was-”

Maggie froze, slightly mortified that someone thought that her crazy comment was actually directed at them. Not only any random someone, but a voice that she would know in her sleep. It was a very familiar voice, one that always had the effect of creating butterflies.. and a voice that she tried to run away from at every opportunity she managed. And yet, somehow, no matter how far she tried to run, the two of them ran into each other far more often that she would like. Or get stuck with each other, such as when their professors decided that since they were in the same house, the two of them should group together. It didn’t help that Remmy was in half of the same classes that she was either.

Her heart decided to take a trip into overdrive, and she had to take a deep, calming breath before responding, “Goodness! Oh, no, it wasn’t directed at you at all!” Maggie turned around and looked up, a friendly smile upon her face - one that belayed none of the flutters she was feeling. And nothing short of hitting her head on something, whether it be a hand or the table in front of her, would help lessen the embarrassment she was feeling. “I meant the book!” She waved vaguely back in the direction of the offending object.

There was a moment when she wondered if he believed her, but then he pressed on. ”Hey, how was summer?” The man strode across the table and began laying his stuff out on the other side. It looked as though he was seeking to settle in for a time, she noted with an inward cringe. Oh, goody. Just what she needed, more time with him. Maybe she should just finish up the notes and take her break early... Or she could stay and play nice and tell herself to shut up.

“Summer... was summer.” Maggie shrugged. “Can’t say anything terribly exciting happened. Got the OWLs back, Dad and I went off to America for two-week holiday in celebration of me doing well...” Life just wasn’t that exciting in the world of Miss Gallihad. At least, not in her own eyes. Many other people would have gone into detail about the adventures and the excitement they got into over the holidays, but not her. Not even the trip to America was exciting enough to elaborate upon, not unless she was specifically asked about it. ”How was yours?

She watched as he settled in, then took a peek at her work, before making a face somewhere between a cringe and a smile. A face that made her laugh a little as it looked rather ridiculous. ”Ugh, I know, right? That’s me as well. Dreadful stuff, that.” A nod of agreement from Maggie. “I’m pretty sure dreadful is an understatement.” She tilted her head slightly, thinking. “Don’t know if there’s another word that would hint at it’s worse, but I was contemplating the idea of drowning Slughorn sometime during our next class so that we don’t actually have to suffer through this year.”

A pause, then she added, ”Although, I suspect we have it easy compared to last year’s students.” Maggie would bet her favourite cauldron that Snape went from taskmaster to slave-driver for his NEWT students, especially if Defense Against the Dark Arts was any indication. He had basically told the whole lot of them that they were all morons and had learned nothing in the first six years of their schooling, especially in the year the werewolf taught. From then on he proceeded to launch them into the material upon which they had little foundation from their previous courses and expected them to complete. Oh, yes, Defense Against the Dark Arts was quite the class now-a-days...

”I’m assuming you’ll need some of these then?” She questioned, motioning at the range of textbooks sprawled out over her side of the table. “Everything we need to know about Veritaserum... and everything we don’t want to know to boot.” It will help them in the long run. She just had to keep telling herself that.

That, and to keep acting natural around Remmy. Those were the keys to surviving her evening.

[James Knightly]

Maggie was always a courteous one. Always the first to offer an apology, even if some Slytherin had intentionally knocked over her books. Rem often remembered having to keep an eye out for her. That, and Silas was usually kept well-informed of anything of the sort happening. If James's careful words wouldn't serve to keep harmless girls like Maggie from getting targeted and picked on, then Silas's more...direct approaches would serve just nicely. The young man didn't have any qualms over detentions and losing House Points, after all.

A big part of Rem always thought that Silas was given his Prefect badge in hopes that it would even his act out and give him a reason to keep his nose clean. To be perfectly honest, it only seemed to serve that Silas became some sort of symbol. A Hufflepuff was hardly a rule-breaker, and Silas's methods and stubborn confidence gave him the role as something of an enforcer-- something Rem could never amount to. Remmy was an orator, of sorts. He could smooth talk his way out of any situation, or mediate on behalf of any individual. Taking the hard road wasn't something of a shortcoming of his.

“Summer... was summer.” Maggie shrugged. “Can’t say anything terribly exciting happened. Got the OWLs back, Dad and I went off to America for two-week holiday in celebration of me doing well...” Remmy smiled, leaning forward on an elbow and giving her his full attention.

"What part of America? Never been there, m'self." He asked, sighing slightly, "Would like to go, though...One time, at least."

”How was yours?"

Rem smiled, recalling the summer's events as though they all happened just yesterday. "I spent the summer in Newcastle with Silas Edington. We spent a lot of time together, going fishing on the lake, playing Wizard's Chess until the sun came up, eating Chocolate Frogs until we started croaking. Merlin, I think just about everything we did was taken to excess..." He shook his head, clearing the troubling thought. "We really just started looking forward to the year. Most just try and hold summer to a screeching halt as best they can. Half-expected Silas to, really, but he seemed to come to terms with it all."

"Aside from that, it was just a lot of time spent taking a look at the next few years and where we want to be. That and collecting more trinkets to remember our childhood by..." His eyes lit up as a sudden thought hit him, "Oh! I completely forgot!" He quickly turned in his seat, digging through his messenger bag. "Famous Witches and Wizards cards weren't the only thing I was collecting over the summer..." He grinned as he pulled a small stack of magazines and set them on the table. "I grabbed ever issue of Mad Magazine I could find, some of the older issues I had ordered, though..." He pushed them towards her. "I haven't seen you around the Common Room, so I just held onto them."

In his eyes, it was a small deed. As Silas would put it, it was a very Knightly thing for him to do. Always so thoughtful, always remembering the little people. He often joked that he should be in politics. James Knightly: Minister of Magic! That would have been absolutely frightening...James always had a feeling he would end up at some small desk job, crunching numbers and making a decent living. His family had enough fortune to where whatever he decided to do would be merely for his happiness and to keep him busy. Still, he supposed hardly anyone knew that little fact. Remmy still played the part of the hard and studious, trying to score as highly on his NEWT's as he could so he could at least get a favorable job.

Talk turned to their classes, more directly to the task at hand of finding some sort of miracle to aid them in their Potions classes. He had duly noted the impressive number of books, some tattered and ancient, and was already getting the feeling that Maggie had been at this for quite some time. As he watched her, his cheek supported on the palm of his hand, he could almost begin to see why Silas was so intent on dragging him everywhere and forcing him to get out of the castle, every once and a while. The more he thought about it, the less he had actually seen Maggie Gallihad anywhere but classes and the library...

”I’m assuming you’ll need some of these then?” She questioned, motioning at the range of textbooks sprawled out over her side of the table. “Everything we need to know about Veritaserum... and everything we don’t want to know to boot.”

Rem shook his head and he pulled a book towards him, opening it to the middle and idly flipping through pages. He scanned the contents, though found that he'd currently rather enjoy conversation than truly devote all of his mind to figuring out ingredient portions and more stable methods for his cauldron. "How did your collection start, exactly?" He asked with a soft smile. If anything, he'd at least be able to learn more of the elusive Gallihad before the didn't have a chance to talk for the next few weeks.

[Maggie Gallihad]

In spite of her own lack of interest in her holiday, Remmy gave a little sigh and ventured a comment. ”"What part of America? Never been there, m'self. Would like to go, though...One time, at least."

Remmy was, in her opinion, the nice guy. Yeah, one of those types. The perfectly calm and mild nice fella some hoped their significant other will be. A smooth talker, charming, devastating handsome and not having a clue. And, by those rules, of course he had to say something. “The South. No where specific in general, just travelled about when it tickled our fancy.” Maggie gave a little shrug. “Did make a point to stop in Atlanta as well as Myrtle Beach in...” She paused, her head tilting ever so slightly as she tried to recall where it was. “South Carolina! That’s what it was!” This recollection was uttered with a look of excitement.

"I spent the summer in Newcastle with Silas Edington. We spent a lot of time together, going fishing on the lake, playing Wizard's Chess until the sun came up, eating Chocolate Frogs until we started croaking. Merlin, I think just about everything we did was taken to excess... We really just started looking forward to the year. Most just try and hold summer to a screeching halt as best they can. Half-expected Silas to, really, but he seemed to come to terms with it all."

Ah, good ol’ Silas Edington. No matter how ever much she may like Mr. Knightly from afar, Maggie had some issues with Remmy’s best friend. He was... Well. If nothing else, he was someone she tried to stay away from. His personality was the type that would probably make her go even more nutters should they have to interact more than a ‘hello’ or ‘good day’ from time to time. Made it probably a good thing that the only time she only ever really had to converse with him every so often was in class. Therefore, it was no surprise to her that the boys seemed to have an excessive - and full - summer. She did, however, smile right back at her fellow Ravenclaw and nodded to show she was following.

"Aside from that, it was just a lot of time spent taking a look at the next few years and where we want to be. That and collecting more trinkets to remember our childhood by..."

She smiled. Now that was something she was familiar with. Items to remember the past with. Such as her magazines. Harmless... and basically useless. Her favorite were food magazines, and every so often she would try out a new recipe or two from them. Still, though, a magazine was a magazine and she collected them all.

"Oh! I completely forgot!"

She raised a questioning eyebrow at his exclamation, then watched as he turned around and dug into his bag.

"Famous Witches and Wizards cards weren't the only thing I was collecting over the summer..." There was a wide smile upon his face as he turned back around with a small stack of magazines. "I grabbed ever issue of Mad Magazine I could find, some of the older issues I had ordered, though... I haven't seen you around the Common Room, so I just held onto them."

Her eyes widened, and her quizzical look quickly turned into a broad smile. Her eyes glittered as she leaned forward to take the stack, shuffling through them quickly to get a count. “Nice!” She noted appreciatively. “I’m actually pretty sure I don’t have most of these.” Mad Magazine wasn’t one of those magazines she specifically collected, so it was a pretty good shot that she didn’t have most of them. She looked up, still smiling. “Well, except for these two,” she pulled out two from near the bottom of the stack and laid them back on the table. ”I think I got those from a waiting room.” A little giggle. “The receptionist gave them up rather easily, actually.” Maggie paused, then a mischievous laugh. “Granted, he wasn’t completely short changed...”

It had been well worth the exchange, she thought. But that was a completely different matter. What did matter now was the fact that James Knightly, one of her mini-banes, had gone out of his way to provide her with one of her passions. Not only that, but he had actually carried it around until the next opportunity to speak to her? She was sunk. If he had wanted to, he could very easily become very important. Thankfully, he had no idea.

Maggie was one of those people everyone knew in one way or another, and, at the very least, she knew of people, if not people themselves, in one way or another. Most of the time it was merely the matter of being in the right place at the right time - and she somehow happened to be there. Other times, what she may know of people came from rumors, uttered secrets in the darkness and the comfort of a warm set of arms. She had friends, she had suitors, but she never was the type to have someone to call her very own. She never wanted to either.

At least, not until Remmy here started to appear in her life. He very nearly made her want other things - things she had denied herself up until this point. And she hated him for it. She hated the fact that there was a rare quality in her classmate, a talent to reach out to others in a way not many others cared to do, and the attribute was dangerous to her.

He pulled one of her books towards him and started flipping through the pages with a bit less reading and quite a bit more skimming. Maggie breathed a sigh of relief - books and studies. Those were safe. Those she could chatter on about for a while.

Unfortunately, he had other ideas. "How did your collection start, exactly?"

Another sigh, this time more of resignation. Of all the questions he had to ask. She paused, thinking, then: ”When I was a wee lass, Mama was actually home quite a bit. She had this wonderful collection of magazines, and I would spend hours watching her lovingly make scrapbooks.” A faraway smile appeared on her face. ”It’s one of the few memories of my childhood I do recollect, and one I treasure. As I grew older and Mama started working more, I started picking all the magazines that came to our house. Hoping, I suppose, that if she saw them, her interest would renew.” It didn’t quite happen that way. Her mother became busier and busier until she barely ever saw her. After a while, she stopped collecting them for Mama and started collecting for her own interest. Every so often she would take out one of her many bins and flip through them, for there was always something new and interesting to learn, and knowledge - knowledge kept the world interesting.

She looked up at him, her gaze thoughtful. “Well, they’re mine now.” It was rather a lame finish, but she hadn’t actually meant to give him even the beginnings of the story. The words had just slipped out, unbidden.

[James Knightly]

In reflection, Remmy had begun to notice something in stark contrast when standing beside someone like Silas Edington. His best friend, cohort in all things both good and bad, and the most influential figure in his life, Silas displayed many fascinating colors. His life and everything he did just seemed to have a purpose, and the boy had been through more up's and down's than Rem could even count. Yet, through it all, Silas Edington enjoyed himself. He was satisfied with everything, and while his scene, surroundings, and entire world seemed to get painted with every action he made, every person he met, and every woman he involved himself with...Rem's world stayed the same.

"Start living for yourself, mate. Life's not all about books and helping others." The words rang in his head like a clear, crystal bell. If not this, then what was it for? This was what they were supposed to do. It was what was expected of them.

But that was just it, he supposed. Rem was the foundation. The steady one people got to lean on when things didn't go quite as according to plan. James Knightly, the forever studious, calm, collected, and predictable one. Yes, that was him wrapped up in four short words. Silas...he was surrounded by a much different array. Quirky, spontaneous, fun, flirty, talented, complicated, mysterious, prideful. So many different things that made up who he was. And, while Rem would say he was happy with who he was, when he had to compare himself to something like that...he felt hollow. Like something was missing, or that he should have been doing more than sitting in this library with a Potions book opened in front of him.

“The South. No where specific in general, just travelled about when it tickled our fancy.” Maggie gave a little shrug. “Did make a point to stop in Atlanta as well as Myrtle Beach in...”

James's eyes, which had fallen to the book in front of him, looked up to her out of their distraction. "Sounds great." He smiled faintly.

What was he really doing here? Rem could get along just fine in Potions without all of this extra studying. So, why did he do it? ...Marks weren't truly important to him. It was something he did because it was expected of him. And Rem wasn't one to disappoint. But what was he really doing here? Just...going through the motions, living day-to-day in the same world, painted the same flat color that it had always been. And as he looked across the table, he could see another world, painted in the same shades of gray.

“Nice!” She noted appreciatively. “I’m actually pretty sure I don’t have most of these.” She looked up, still smiling. “Well, except for these two,” she pulled out two from near the bottom of the stack and laid them back on the table. ”I think I got those from a waiting room.” A little giggle. “The receptionist gave them up rather easily, actually.” Maggie paused, then a mischievous laugh. “Granted, he wasn’t completely short changed...”

He smiled a little, looking down at a small piece of parchment he had laid over the book and began to scrawl a bit of useless words across the page:

When is the glass half-empty...? And when is it half-full? And when do we choose to start filling it back up?

”When I was a wee lass, Mama was actually home quite a bit. She had this wonderful collection of magazines, and I would spend hours watching her lovingly make scrapbooks.” A faraway smile appeared on her face. ”It’s one of the few memories of my childhood I do recollect, and one I treasure. As I grew older and Mama started working more, I started picking all the magazines that came to our house. Hoping, I suppose, that if she saw them, her interest would renew.”

Rem's mind had long checked out as his eyes scanned the words he had thoughtlessly written. They were almost a compulsion, a subconscious message to himself. He studied the neatly drawn letters, his smile flickering only slightly. She looked up at him, her gaze thoughtful. “Well, they’re mine now.”

Rem shook himself a little, glancing back up at her. His hand moved, again, the quill touching back to the parchment as it seemed to finish his thoughts for him.

...Right now...

"Do you want to get out of here?" Rem asked, seemingly out of nowhere. He paused, smiling faintly and nodding, repeating himself. "Do you want to get out of here? Like...go outside, or to grab something to eat? Maybe just walk around, go to the lake?" It was time to start mixing paints; time to start spreading the world with color.

[Maggie Gallihad]

Maggie could feel him slipping away as she talked. Perhaps not feel, that would be a bit strange. Still though, judging by his sudden interest in whatever he started writing and even his lack of non-committal responses, he was either really wrapped up in something else all of the sudden or he simply wasn’t interested. Probably a bit of both, by her reckoning.

Not that it mattered since she was doing fine in relative silence before he came along anyway. She glanced down at her notes, wondering just exactly what she was musing before the interruption. Maggie had just caught on again and had started to write when Remmy spoke, ”Do you want to get out of here?”

She looked up at him, surprise in her face. “What?” Did she hear right? He wanted to leave? That part was fine. The edited version - and the shocker - was that he was asking her to go with him. There was still a touch of far-away in his gaze, but he smiled ever so faintly and nodded, then, "Do you want to get out of here? Like...go outside, or to grab something to eat? Maybe just walk around, go to the lake?"

Well. She wasn’t crazy. She did hear right. However... “I really need to get this do-” She started, squirming just a little bit. James Knightly just asked if she wanted to go spend time with him. Yeah right. She might as well start running for the hills now for all the good it would do her. Would have been even more helpful if she had decided to study in the girl’s dormitory tonight rather than in the library, but there was little she could do about it now.

“Don’t do it, don’t do it!” A voice in her head screamed. The one that was afraid of many things, but most of all, a prominent man in her life. Spending alone time with Remmy outside of a school relationship counted as scary.

“Oh shut up you pansy.” The part of her that was forever challenging her to do new things, to try new things, to overcome her fears overrode the first part with its quiet, yet commanding tone.

She casted a look at her books, then with a sigh, “Yeah, sure.” There was a bit of resignation in her voice, but Maggie smiled at him. “Sounds a fair load better than doing this crap.” Which was a total lie. “Doing this crap” would be easier than to go off with Remmy for the evening.

Was it a fate worse than death? No.

Was it still going to be awkward? You bet.

Still though, she picked up her wand, and with several large sweeps, not only put her work into her own textbook, but also stack up all of the reference books she was using. “Where to then?” Maggie asked as she placed her stuff in her schoolbag and standing. Her fingers tapped a small beat on the neat stack that she had to replace - or, at the very least - return, before they left.

Thankfully, she had most of the notes more or less jotted down and will be able to at least start on her essay without needing to come back for a while. It depended on how the essay was going to write itself once she actually sat down and tried.

[OoC: I'm so sorry it's so short and terrible. >.< ]

[James Knightly]

James wasn't quite sure of what he was doing, just yet. He had never been one for spontaneous thinking, hardly able to come up with a solid idea or plan on just a single thought. So, his invitation...well, more of his compulsion to do anything but sit in this library left him with only one goal in mind: he was leaving, and he was going to take Maggie with him. “I really need to get this do-” She started, squirming just a little bit. It would have been a typical answer for a Ravenclaw. One that Remmy had expected, but he'd not expected her to stop before letting herself finish. “Yeah, sure.” There was a bit of resignation in her voice, but Maggie smiled at him. “Sounds a fair load better than doing this crap.”

Remmy smiled, nodding slightly as he watched her stack the books with a wave of her wand. He couldn't quite tell if she intended to place them all back on their shelves, or not, but he suppose it didn't really matter. “Where to then?” Maggie asked as she placed her stuff in her schoolbag and standing. Rem gave a partial shrug, smiling a bit mischeviously. "Let's go find out."

For, indeed, he truly had no set location in mind. He figured he'd take Silas's old routes, however. They always seemed to lead to a place everyone wanted to be when they probably shouldn't have been there. Rem quickly shouldered his bag and reached across the table, taking the hand that had so patiently been tapping a little rhythm against the books in his own. Without much more than a gentle tug for warning, Rem took off across the library, with Maggie Gallihad in tow. He was certain he was getting some rather strange glances, but neither cared nor paid them any mind. All he heard was a residual, "No running in the library!" barked from Madam Pince. By that time, however, Rem was already at the door. He swung it open, ushering Maggie through before shutting it behind them.

He stopped, looking around to assess the walls and various statues or suites of armor. He released her hand, as his gaze travelled. "I like that, though. The reason you keep collecting." He started, but then something caught his eye. "Ah!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her along, again, darting across the room in a diagonal fashion before he came to a very narrow bookshelf, which was stacked with an assortment of books, empty jars, and a rather horrendous picture of an old witch. Rem moved to its side and gave it a sharp kick at its base. With a small groan, it moved aside, and James was able to usher his unfortunate friend inside. "Watch your step, the stairs are old." He advised. And narrow, as he forgot to add. He didn't even suspect he and Maggie could both fit side by side on them.

As he stepped inside with her, he placed his hands on her shoulders so he could move in front of her, taking her hand and leading her carefully down the steps, which spun and spanned down at least three flights. "As I was saying," He began quietly, watching his feet to ensure he didn't slip. Their progress was slow, as he was testing the strength of the boards before he would fully put his weight on them. "I think that's pretty cool of you. Not many people would take the time out, you know..." He moved down a flight of stairs. "Why did your mum stop scrapbooking, anyways? Just...work? Doesn't really sound like a reason to stop doing something you love, to me." He looked back to her, his soft blue eyes showing his truthful earnest.

Rem stopped at the third platform down, glancing over the edge of the small tower they had seemed to enter. He couldn't even see the bottom, but the stairs had ended, only a small railing between them and a rather good fall to the first floor. Rem turned the handle to the door that was before him, poking his head out and looking around. "Wish my parents weren't as dull as they were. Sixteen years, and I don't even know what they do. My mum is always running around, having formal dinners, of some sort. I suppose she's a social worker, or something. My old man just goes to the Ministry, comes back at the end of the day, like most. Doesn't really talk much about it. Then again, I don't think he's ever talked much." He rattled off before tugging on Maggie's hand as he pushed through the door.

Rem pulled her up with him as they came to a cut in the wall where a suit of armor sat, holding a sword in one hand, and a shield in the other. The arm, which had been bent at a ninety-degree angle, was deftly pushed down by James, causing a small click to resound. The wall at his feet opened up to the length of his legs, giving a small hole that one might crawl through. "This one...can be a little scary, if you don't know it." He said taking off his robes. "Well, scary, or fun. With...a bit of an abrupt end." He explained vaguely as he set his robes down in front of the entrance. "Umm..Here, just...sit in front of me."

Rem instructed as he pulled her down to him, fanning out his robes before leaning back a little. He gripped the edge of the hole that had opened and eased them into it. "I hope you like slides..." He said with a smirk before giving them a final push and slapping a handle on the wall, causing the hole to shut behind them. It was completely dark, save for a few cracks in the walls which bled light through from other parts of the castle. There was a sort of musty smell to this particular passage, but Rem supposed you didn't really think about it when you were whipping down through a spiraling, slickly polished slab of marble.

Rem's arms were wrapped securely around the girl as he leaned back, pulling her with him. "There are some low rafters here and there! You'll bang your head pretty good if you're not careful!" He called to her. "I think this is Silas's favorite one, for some reason! Not really sure why!" He gave a half shrug, but then felt the slide quickly end. Instead, it had shot them out of a small chute, with Rem landing hard on the stone floor of the dungeon. "Oh--" He groaned, looking to Maggie, whom he was pretty certain he had frightened by now. "That's why." He chuckled, pointing to a large portrait. "That's why. The kitchens. Which means his Common Room isn't far off. Probably useful when dodging Filch..."

Remmy slowly collected himself, dusting himself and his robes off. "You alright?" He asked, chuckling gently. "Sorry, if I scared you. I sometimes forget these little passages aren't everyone's cup of tea. But--" He said, elongating the word for emphasis. "We are right here at the kitchens...Cup of tea, perhaps?" He asked before striding over to it, tickling the pear and turning the handle, opening a door for her. Rem extended his hand to her, one final time. "Care to join me?"

[Maggie Gallihad]

It seemed to her that apparently returning the library books to their proper spot wasn’t exactly priority on her companion’s mind, for rather than giving her time to do so, or perhaps before she had a chance to change her mind, he took her by the hand. With a mischievous grin, he shrugged and said, ”Let’s go find out.” With that, he took off, and she had little choice but to follow him or have her arm socket cry as it was being ripped out.

Not that she really minded - that is, the following him part. Not so much the becoming-an-one-armed-person bit. She had just enough time as they ran past the cross Madame Pince to squeeze out a “sorry!” at her barked command and what might have been the beginnings of “The books by the-” before they were out of the library and into the corridor beyond.

Remmy stopped, and as he was looking around the corridor - debating upon where to go, she assumed - he said, "I like that, though. The reason you keep collecting." She nodded. ”I suppose. She didn’t think it was anything, but if he liked it... James paused, then - “Ah!” With that exclamation he darted forward, her hand still in his, toward a bookshelf. He gave the side of it a kick, revealing a dark, narrow, and, apparently, old, for James glanced over at her and cautioned, [i]"Watch your step, the stairs are old."

She trusted him, and allowed him to guide her on to the staircase, where he shifted them so that he was in front again and started carefully down the stairs, her hand still in his. She lit her wand and moved forward with him. Maggie placed her trust in him and spent her time - rather than paying attention to where exactly they were heading, she spent her time looking around - not that there was much to see even in the light provided by her wand, but still, she observed. She also took notice of the man in front of her, gingerly testing each step before letting them proceed. "I think that's pretty cool of you. Not many people would take the time out, you know...” Although she knew he wasn’t actually looking behind him, she shrugged. “Why did your mum stop scrapbooking, anyways? Just...work? Doesn't really sound like a reason to stop doing something you love, to me."

A sad smile. “I suppose it due to her new job. It had a lot less of her personal work - which was what started her scrapbooking tendencies - and focused more on highlighting other individuals, with her as one of the key instruments to putting it all together.” At least, that was her best guess. She noted the turn of his head and turned up the wattage of her smile by a few. “Guess there was a lot less pleasure in recalling the works of a collective group. That, and she was working so much overtime to get it all together it didn’t really matter.”

She nearly ran into Rem as he stopped suddenly. A hand reached for the wall to steady herself, and Maggie went on her tiptoes to look over his shoulder to see why. Ah. Lack of continuing stairs. Made perfect sense. Luckily there was a door on their platform - a door that her guide had stuck his head out of and back in. Wish my parents weren't as dull as they were. Sixteen years, and I don't even know what they do. My mum is always running around, having formal dinners, of some sort. I suppose she's a social worker, or something. My old man just goes to the Ministry, comes back at the end of the day, like most. Doesn't really talk much about it. Then again, I don't think he's ever talked much."

“How could you not know what they do? I was even able to find out what dad did, and he more-or-less kept that a secret by locking himself up in his office for several hours to take care of business in the middle of the day.” Maggie questioned as he lead her through the door and over to a suit of armour. She watched, her eyes a little bit wide, as he pushed down one of the arms, causing a click and a section of the wall to open just enough to let an average sized person though - if they were on their hands and knees, that was.

An eyebrow raised at his taking off of his robe and laying it on the ground before the hole. Before she could ask though, he explained, "This one...can be a little scary, if you don't know it. Well, scary, or fun. With...a bit of an abrupt end.” She smiled, anticipating the ride. Maggie put down her bag and to begin shrugging off her own robe, then he said, ”Umm..Here, just...sit in front of me." She almost started to shake her head, then picked up her bag again.

What did she have to lose? They’d come this far and she was still more or less okay. Sure, her heart was pounding just a bit faster than it may normally, but she was fine. Happy and excited, perhaps, and in awe at the events, but fine.

She snagged her bag, then settled down in front of him. It was a slide - possibly a great big dark slide. She loved slides. The feel of the air along her face, the rush... Sort of like flying. Unfortunately, there was little way she could manage to not go down the ramp in the position she was now without leaning back into him. It also didn’t help that his arms were around her either. It was with a bit of resignation that she allowed herself to relax in his arms and just revel in the delight of zooming at a rather fast speed down some chute and try not to linger too long on the matter of just who was behind her.

"There are some low rafters here and there! You'll bang your head pretty good if you're not careful!I think this is Silas's favorite one, for some reason! Not really sure why!" She laughed. Oh, if she knew Silas like she thought she did, she had a fairly good idea of why.

They were shot out of the chute, and she slipped from his arms, landing solidly with face-first, only an arm stopping her from completely licking the floor. She winced, then rolled over on her rear, peering over at Rem, who made a bit of a groan. "That's why. The kitchens. Which means his Common Room isn't far off. Probably useful when dodging Filch..." That too would make sense.

They both took a moment to pick themselves up, dusting their robes. She took a few steps to pick up her bookbag, which had flown from her arms when they tumbled. "You alright? A question. Sorry, if I scared you. I sometimes forget these little passages aren't everyone's cup of tea.” Maggie smiled, then, the smile grew into giggles. ”That was fun!” A little shake of her head. ”Not at all frightening. A bit... exciting, perhaps, but quite a bit of an adventure.” There was a happy sort of gleam in her eyes as she met his gaze.

"We are right here at the kitchens...Cup of tea, perhaps?" He offered, heading over to the pear. Once the portrait opened, he turned, extending a hand out to her. “Care to join me?”

She nodded, still smiling. ”I would be most ungrateful if I didn’t accept!” Maggie placed her hand in his.

It looked as though she, Maggie Gallihad, was to have tea with James Knightly this evening. Certainly wasn’t something she expected when she crawled out of bed that morning.