cast your mind back (open)

[tyson owen crowshaw]

It had been hard for Tyson to find time off in the first month back at Hogwarts. It had truly been a whirlwind of an adjustment getting his head around his new timetable whilst keeping up to date with quidditch practise, he found little time to just stop to take a breather. He had just clocked off from practise and was heading back to the great hall for some dinner with the intention of heading to bed soon after! But on his way back towards the castle, the Astronomy tower stood proud above the rest of the Hogwarts skyline, catching the ever fading evening light. It seemed too tempting a lure for Tyson to ignore. The Astronomy Tower was like his second home beyond the common room, a perfect place for some quiet contemplation or a break from the pile of homework waiting for him on his bed. Tyson usually snuck out of the common room at night, up to the Astronomy Tower to look through the telescopes or just look out across the grounds. He often met up with Zara up here two, the pair made quite a rebellious pair!

It didn't take Tyson long to climb the tower, he had snacked on a chocolate bar on his way up to stave off hunger for another hour or so. He found it hard to eat much after practise anyway, he'd rather burn calories than pack more on with the wealth of food always on offer. Fitness wasn't exactly something he held dear, but he found it generally more productive to stay on form both for quidditch and with his studies, by keeping in shape Tyson dozed off less in class and was able to put in a few extra hours work in the library. He knew his limits though and he never pushed beyond them unless necessary.

As he reached the top, Tyson gingerly wandered onto the main floor, hoping not to bump into a class or his professor. The former would have been more a problem than the latter, his professor was rather lenient to students who had chosen to study Astronomy as a NEWT and would most likely let Tyson stay if he promised to work. Luckily the coast was clear, the professors office door looked locked but Tyson wasn't about to check, thus he simply dropped his bag against the wall and approached the railing in awe. For four years now he had been using this tower to make the nights seem more interesting but the view never ceased to amaze. With the evening light fading it made for a twilight view of the forbidden forest and the black lake. To Tyson's disappointment, he couldn't see any of the sea monsters tentacles poking out of the water, it was something he had only seen twice before but he always made sure to keep his eyes peeled.

He rested against the wall adjoining the railing, his arms folded in as relaxed a position as he could manage given his training session not an hour ago. He pondered heading back to the common room to try to catch up with Zee or another friendly face. For now, he just enjoyed the peace and quiet accompanying the view.

[emilia violet udinovik]

Emilia strolled through the slightly busy corridor, wanting to be out of her robes and into something much more comfortable, but she didn't feel up to going back to the common room yet. There were simply too many people who would ask her what was wrong. And to be honest, there wasn't anything so horribly wrong, she guessed.

Seventh year for her parents had held some assumptions, and her older by seven minutes twit of a brother only pushed their views further. Anthon luckily wasn't in her house though, so he couldn't breath her family pureblood mantras down her neck constantly.

To but it simply, she had a crush on a Muggleborn boy, who, if her friend Henri was right, said felt the same and she should completely go for it. She wasn't stupid even to voice this to her family, especially after what had happened to Aunty May.

Poor Aunty May...

Emilia shook her head to clear it, and felt a faint breeze coming from the hallway. It clear and cool and inviting. She turned and began the climb up to the astronomy tower. Soon she found herself, slightly embassassingly so, a little out of breath. Unlike her other girlfriends, she was 'curvy', but to her she felt like she needed to lose a few. And she certainly needed to be fitter.

She quickly realised there was a boy over by the railing and felt herself back up a little. She hadn't expected the to be anyone else. When she realised he wasn't working, and was probably doing the same as her, she walked over, still a little apart from the man.

When she saw his face she recognized him instantly as a fellow seventh year, Tyson, a boy in her brothers house. She smiled, standing a little awkwardly.

"You don't mind, do you?"

[tyson owen crowshaw]

Tyson always used the astronomy tower as a place of solace, a quiet place to think things over. It was usually quiet with most other students too afraid to break the rules and be found out of the common room at night. Tyson hadn’t been caught in his first six years at Hogwarts, It would be a shame to ruin that streak in his seventh but the prefects and staff themselves didn’t check up atop the tower as it was too much effort climbing up all those stairs to only check one room. Their time was better spent covering the corridors which could still be a minefield for Tyson to get back home through. He has had some close shaves but he knows the less populated routes, what statues to hide behind and which paintings are the doziest in the night.

He hadn’t heard any footsteps, he must have been a bit too lost in his own world thinking about quidditch, homework, Sky, Z. There was a lot going on in his life right now but that wasn’t a bad thing. He never wanted things to be boring and he knew he was going to miss Hogwarts when he graduated at the end of the year. He turned to his side to see a familiar face, Emilia, a fellow seventh year but in Hufflepuff. He relaxed his demina, she was a prefect but he was sure she wasn’t going to rat him out, right? ”That depends.” Tyson started with a coy smile. ”Am I going to be turned over to my head of house by a prefect of Hogwarts?” He asked with a slight laugh at the end. The premise of it all was a joke to Tyson as he gauged Emilia as an easy going enough person as not to be so bound by rules and regulations. He looked out across the grounds again in case he missed any of the hidden world of the lake or forest at night

[emilia violet udinovik]

Emilia gave a short, sweet laugh, shaking her head. She had never tried to abuse her power that had been given to her, and although she did often have to enforce the rules, she didn't feel like it needed to be done so here. "You're lucky tonight, I'm a) not on duty, and b) I would be a huge hypocrite if I did dob you in. I for one love this place. Good choice for hiding, if I may say so myself, not many people can be bothered to climb the stairs." she grinned childishly before setting herself down next to Tyson, nudging his shoulder playfully. 

She stared out at the nights sky, regretting the choice at not bringing her scarf along. Sure, it was September, but Emilia had spent the summer in her families log cabin with her eldest brother in Italy. And she was wishing she could be back there now, but instead of her brother, her friends, so they could enjoy the heat and food and holiday together. It wasn't unheard of to bring the girls home with her in the holidays. But with the family scandal, mother hadn't wanted to bring any more ears into the house. "So what brings you up to this lonely place, Crowshaw?" She turned to her unexpected companion, pulling her gazer from the view and to his face, so he wouldn't think her rude.