Walking Poochie (Sept 9)

[Snick]

After waking up on the couch in the Common room of the dorms, Patrick still there to keep her safe, Iris felt so much better. Her brother looked so tired though. As she didn't feel as scared anymore she told him she'll be alright and gave him a hug then hurried off to her room. Poochie must be fit to burst since she didn't get a chance to walk him after the dance. Fortunately the little dog had not messed in his little bed, but was very eager to greet her. Iris only paused long enough to quickly wash up and brush her teeth, then change into more appropriate weekend clothing than her PJs. She then scooped up Poochie and his leash and headed out.



Iris hoped she will run into Lex and Kit and any other first years she met so far. Having company would make her feel all the more better. Thus she took her time making her way outside, so she could look for Lex and Kit. But she couldn't dally too long, Poochie was giving those little whinny noises he always made when he wanted to go.





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Lex had tried to convince herself that what had happened the other night at the dance was simply a bad prank. She still hadn't slept well though, and had tossed and turned much of the night. She didn't want to believe that there was anything wrong with Salem. She wanted to continue believing that everything would be much better here and that nothing bad could happen. Last night had shattered some of the ideas she'd had that Salem was a safe haven where everything would be better. This had trigged nightmares about James, her brother. She didn't even know anymore what she hoped was going to happen. She had both nightmares about him not being a wizard and nightmares about him being a wizard. This distressed her greatly. If part of her was terrified of seeing him again, did this make her a bad sister? A bad person?



When Lex woke up that morning she felt a great urge to leave her room. She needed to get out and burn some energy. She quickly got dressed and since it was the weekend she was able to wear her normal clothes. This morning, like most mornings, those consisted of jeans, a t-shirt, a gray hoodie and sneakers. She also put on a blue beanie. Not being able to wear hats during the day because of the school uniform had been a bit distressing to Lex. Hats helped her to feel calm and comfortable. Some days she had been on the verge of wearing the stupid witch's had they'd all been made to wear during the first assembly but then realized they looked ridiculous.



After getting dressed Lex dug around in her bag and grabbed a tennis ball. She wanted to do something active and throwing a tennis ball at a wall was good enough for now. As she was walking down the hallway she caught sight of Iris ahead of her. She could hear a dog, presumably Poochie, whining in her arms. "Iris," Lex called, jogging to catch up with the other first year. "Are you taking your dog for a walk?" Lex still found Poochie to be an absurd name for a dog and though she remembered its name, she was purposefully not using it. Still disbelieving that Iris would actually want Lex to come with her, Lex didn't ask. She didn't want to be turned down as that happened far too often. If Iris didn't offer than Lex could just head somewhere else once they got outside and wouldn't have to deal with outright rejection.



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"Good morning Lex." Iris says, smiling brightly. She was dressed in a pretty outfit, more casual than the school uniform but very much girly. Iris wore pants as it was easier when outside walking Poochie, a light blue with a flower design around the pockets. Her blouse was pink with a lacy pattern around the collar. Over this she had a light jacket. "I am taking Poochie for a walk...I didn't get a chance last night..but definitely have to now. You are welcome to come along. In fact I was hoping to run into you on the way out. You and Kit both."





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Though Kit always had trouble falling asleep, she never had trouble staying asleep. In fact, she slept like the dead most nights. She hadn't even stirred as Lex got up and got ready for the day. Only soft snores drifted from the direction of Katrien's bed. It took the sounds of life out in the hall and the smell of coffee wafting in from somewhere to wake her up. Her eyes weren't fully open, but she caught sight of Lex just as the door was shutting. Rubbing the eye boogers from her lashes, she poured herself out of bed and into some clothes. Nothing distinct, just a plain shirt and blue jeans. In a daze, she pulled her hair back into a ponytail, slipped on some sandals, and meandered out into the hall.



After a quick stop at the vending machines for some hot mocha wake-up juice, she headed out to start her day. It wasn't until that first sip that she realized all the chaos and calamity hadn't been a dream. "Oh my god," her eyes widened. "Did they find her?"



She hadn't been asking anyone in particular. Getting no answer from the apparent morning zombies in the common room with her, she returned to the hall where she noticed Lex and Iris chatting near the exit. "Hey! Hey, guys!" she called to them. "Any news about.. everything?"



Kit caught up with them, then blew across the surface of her coffee, making gentle ripples in the brown liquid.



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Lex kept herself from breathing a sigh of relief when Iris said she wanted her to come along. She didn't want Iris to know that interacting in a situation as normal as this made Lex uncomfortable or worried. She still didn't know why Iris liked her anyway. Girls like Iris didn't usually like girls like Lex. "Kit's still sleeping... " Lex started to say, but then was cut off by Katrien herself who was soon at their side. At Kit's question, Lex looked over at Iris expectantly, figuring that she was the most likely to have any information on Lorccan's sister as she had slept out in the common room with her brother. "I just got up. I've haven't heard anything." If Iris didn't know, hopefully they would run into someone who did on their walk around the grounds.



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"Hi Kit." Iris greets the other girl when she joins them. "I was just telling Lex she's welcome to come with me to walk Poochie." The small ball of white fluff in her arms gives another plaintive whine.



"He really has to go, so now that we are both here, lets get outside so I can put him down." This said, Iris turned and headed for the nearest exit. Once outside she lopped Poochie's lead in her hand and put him down. The lead was already attached. Immediate upon being set down outside on the grass next to the door, Poochie quickly found a spot and did a job. It was just a wee wee so Iris didn't think she needed to clean that.



"As for that poor girl that was grabbed...she's back safe and sound. The Lighthouse got her...I never knew it could do that." Iris was amazed the Lighthouse was actually sentient. "Patrick told me when I woke up that a teacher let him and everybody else in the common room known."



"Is that coffee you are drinking Kit?" Iris caught the smell of it when the other girl was upwind of her. "They let kids like us drink that here? My mother would never let me drink that..closest I am allowed to coffee is coffee cake."



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"Good," she sighed in relief. "I bet it was some kind of prank. A really bad one. I mean, who would think that's funny?"



She sipped her java, then shrugged a shoulder. "I guess so, I mean, no one's stopped me and said 'hey, that's for the older students' or anything. So they must allow it," she looked a little aggravated when Iris said her mom didn't let her drink coffee. "My mom lets me. Always has. She doesn't believe it stunts growth or any of the other bad stuff they say it does. This isn't as yummy as Starbucks, though. Nowhere near as yummy. Where I live, coffee is a really big thing... there are cafes and drive thru coffee shops all over the place."



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"Yeah, that's a relief." Lex agreed. She was also glad to hear that the lighthouse had the kind of power to transport people when they were in trouble, even if it was just a bad prank. It was slightly calming to know that the building was looking out for its students. She didn't understand the lighthouse at all. She'd thought at first that it was just to transport students to school but the more she heard about it the more mysterious and strange it sounded. Then again, the more she learned about magic and the school in general, the more strange everything began to be. There was certainly plenty of misinformation about magic floating around the muggle world.



Lex didn't add to the conversation about parents letting their kids drink coffee. She had nothing to say on the subject and doubted her mother would have cared one way or another. That is, if coffee didn't cost money. They would never have had enough money to buy Starbucks. Most foster parents didn't let kids buy that kind of stuff anyway. When Kit started talking about where she lived Lex's attention was caught. "Do you live in Seattle? That's where I live," she said.



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"I don't know if it stunts growth or anything...I think Mom just thinks it makes me too hyper. She won't let me eat chocolate or coke either but I do get that once in awhile. I have lots of energy whether I do or not anyway. I never really tried coffee though." Iris looked at the cup Kit was holding curiously but didn't dare ask for a taste. "But you're right though, nobody here seems to care what we eat out of the vending machines."



Iris wasn't sure if she should say where she's from, since it looked like Lex was asking Kit more. Not that it mattered, she lived nowhere near Seattle.



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"Close. I live in Lacey," she grinned gleefully. "Maybe we can hang out during the summer and stuff!"



There wasn't a whole lot to do in Lacey, but maybe they could do something in Seattle or Olympia. Or maybe go to the Puyallup Fair - no, they would be in school. She suddenly felt a little sad. That's something she would really miss. Actually, if she recalled correctly, the fair started last night.



"You can taste mine, if you want to, if you're not a germaphobe or something," she held the paper cup out to Iris. "It's kinda like hot cocoa, with the chocolate flavor in it. I don't think a tiny sip will make you bounce off the walls or anything."



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"Yeah, maybe." Lex said evasively. She wasn't going to commit to anything. She didn't even know where she was going to be during the summer, let alone if she would be able to meet up with Katrien at some point. Though she was originally from the city of Seattle, she'd moved all over the area and surrounding counties since she'd been in foster care, though she'd never ended up in Lacey. As they walked, Lex started bouncing the tennis ball she'd brought with her. It kept her calm to do something active, even if it was just bouncing a ball off the cement. Poochie seemed to be excited about it, too.



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"I would love to try what you bought and I don't mind your germs, if you don't mind mine." Iris used her free hand to take a sip and found the taste much sweeter than she expected. The strong chocolate taste nearly drowned the coffee flavor but the combination was pleasing. "It is very much like hot cocoa."



"You two are lucky to live close to each other, I am from Baltimore way on the other side of the country from you two. I will be happy to have you both over sometime however. I am sure we can have lots of fun. Mom and Dad can even go get you, they can apparate. Or there's the floo network too and you can get government approved portkeys. They are objects that let you go from one place to another, but its all done magically."



Seeing a ball bouncing nearby sent Poochie into a racket of barking and lunging as it tried to get the ball. Its high rapid barks made talking nearly impossible.



"Poochie, hush, stop that barking.. oh he just wants to play with that ball." Iris giggled, Poochie totally ignoring her attempt to stop its barking or pulling on the lead. If it wasn't for the fact the little white dog hardly weighed a thing, it would not have been easy for Iris to keep it from going for Lex's ball.



"Lets go out on the grass by the trees and you can let Poochie play with your ball if you want, or I can just have him go after one of his chew toys I brought." Iris suggests, then looks over at Kit.



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"My mom's pretty cool, my dad is strict," she smiled. "They'd probably eventually let me come visit you. My mom can usually talk my dad into things, even if he's dead set against it. Like coming here. He didn't like the thought of me being this far from home. Oh, I hope he doesn't hear about Siobhan. He's probably on his way to get me right now, if he has."



Kit wondered why Iris was looking at her. She shrugged indifferently. Playing with Poochie on the grass was neither appealing nor unappealing.



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"Sounds good," Lex said in response to Iris' suggestion that they go to the grass. It would be nice to throw the ball around. Lex was hoping to be able to play on the baseball team this year. She had always loved sports but playing on an actual team was difficult. Playing sports was one of the few times she felt like she could connect with other kids her age.



When Kit started talking about her dad coming to get her from school, Lex couldn't help but think that that was one of the few advantages she had. No parent was going to come try to take her out of school. "Yeah, I used a portkey to get to the mall. It was totally weird. I haven't done apparition or flooing though, have you guys?" Lex asked, glancing over at the other two. She thought she remembered the school official who took her shopping saying that only wizards who were of age could apparate but maybe that was use floo, she couldn't remember. "It'll be pretty cool when we can do that. I hate being in cars."



Lex started throwing the ball for Poochie as she talked. The dog seems very excited to finally get it's teeth on the ball that had been so tantalizing earlier.



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Once on the grass Iris let Poochie off her lead so she could chase the ball when Lex threw it. The tennis ball was so big compared to Poochie Iris doubted he could even bite it enough to carry it. but at least he was having fun chasing it around. After not taking him out last night after the dance, she was happy to let him play for awhile despite being quite hungry.



"My parents are great. Dad adores me and we get along great. Only one time he grew cross and that was because he had a big fight with my older brother. That was a few years ago now. Mom is alright, we get along great. Since I couldn't bring Dancer, my pony, to school she let me buy Poochie so I would have a pet. But now that I am here I see there is a stable, but maybe I can ride a big horse instead. Or those flying ones I heard about that only people who have seen somebody die can see."



"I hope your dad doesn't come here to take you home, Kit." If Iris didn't have her two older brothers at school to help protect her Iris didn't know if her father would want her to come straight back home. Probably not as he and mom both came here and they would know if it was safe. "I am sure the teachers will do everything possible to make sure what happened to that older witch won't happen again."



Looking back at Lex Iris considered all the ways she had traveled magically. "I never apparated by myself, you have to be quite a bit older than we are to even try to get a license to apparate, 16 or 17 I think. I have used the floo before and flew a broomstick. That is fun."

[Snick]

"I've never done any of that stuff. I caught a flight from Seatac to Boston, and a bus to the museum," Kit admitted, watching Poochie play. "My dad wouldn't consent to a portkey or disappearating or whatever. He's still trying to wrap his head around magic being a reality. He'll come around."

Katrien was scared of planes, but not nearly as scared of them as she was the magical types of travel. Planes were loud and bumpy and very, very high in the sky, but at least there was more than a stick and twigs holding her up in the air. And the few things she had learned about portkeys and apparition thus far were the dangers of those types of travel.

"And I doubt he'll really pull me out of this school. My parents spent their savings to send me here and get my supplies. They wouldn't waste their money like that, since they aren't like made of it or anything. I was afraid I wouldn't get to come, since there was so much to buy. We aren't rich, but it's not like we're poor, either. I mean, we weren't eligible for government help, so we had to cut back on things for a while, instead," she sighed then mumbled. "And my dad sold his baseball card collection."


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Poochie was a bit disappointing in his ability to play with the tennis ball. He would pick it up by a frayed edge and get it only a few feet before he dropped it and had to pick it up again. He seemed to be enjoying it but this caused Lex to have to wait for him to finally get it back to her so she could throw it again. She decided that she'd have to not throw it very far.

Once again Lex found Iris talking about things she couldn't relate to. Lex was pretty sure that she had never in her life interacted with someone who had a pony. "I can't wait until we start learning to fly in PE. I want to watch the Quodpot games too, it sounds so cool." Since her conversation with Kit earlier in the week Lex had learned more about Quodpot and it sounded really entertaining. Maybe in a few years she would be able to play, but for now she would stick to the muggle sports she knew.

When Kit started talking about her family Lex wasn't sure how to respond. She herself was getting everything payed for, of course. She didn't really know all the specifics, though, like how much the school actually costs. "I wonder if the rules are going to get a lot stricter now to try to protect us or whatever," Lex said, not very enthusiastically. Unless they figured out a way to keep people from magically getting into the school, she didn't see the point. Clearly it hadn't worked.

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"I think quadpot would be too rough for me to try for but I definitely want to fly a broom all over the school grounds. Maybe we can form a racing league or something." Iris suggested. "We can definitely go to the quadpot games and cheer on our school team."

Iris heard her stomach growl about then and decided she was hungry and it looked like Poochie was done all his morning bathrooms. She stood up from the grass and snatched him up while he was once again doing his best to bring Lex's ball back. "We should head back in if we are going to have time to eat some breakfast. If you want I can get you both when I take Poochie out for a walk and this time I will remember to bring one of his balls. Its smaller and softer, he can pick it up easier and bring it right to you. Maybe next year I can get the Great Pyrenees...he will not have any trouble with a tennis ball."

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"Breakfast sounds great," she nodded, her own stomach chiming in with soft rumbles. "And I'd like that. Walking again sometime, I mean. If we're allowed to. Who knows what they'll do. In public school, they add metal detectors and put cops at every exit. Not sure how effective that would be here."

She tried to keep the same pace as her friends, sticking her hands in her pockets. Kit wasn't sure what else to do with them and felt dumb with her arms just dangling at her sides.

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Lex took her ball back. Luckily it wasn't too much worse for wear since Poochie couldn't bite it. She was going to keep using it just to through around. It was slightly wet with spit from Poochie so she wiped it on her jeans before pocketing it. "We have a school flying team or something, don't we?" Lex said as they started to walk back to the school. "What's it called? Track and field and flying? I think that's broom racing. I mean, I don't think I'll be able to try until maybe next year. I don't even know how to fly, I don't think they'd want me. At least you know how to fly already." She said to Iris.

"Me too." Lex added after Kit. It would be nice to have things to do with other kids. "Yeah, I wonder how crazed they're going to get. It would suck pretty hard if they totally crack down. I mean, we're already in a boarding school, it's not like we have much freedom anyway." Lex wasn't letting herself get scared yet, telling herself that it wasn't really serious. She supposed they would know more soon enough. And even if it did turn out to be a real kidnapping, she told herself, it wasn't as if she was in any personal danger. No one had ever wanted her and she didn't think a kidnapper would either.

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"Broom flying lessons are part of first year PE I believe. I already know to fly so I can just take a test to show I know everything about flying the school wants us to know. After that I can fly whenever I want, within the current rules." Iris started walking towards the dorms. "I am going to try out for Quadpot...never played it but know a little about the game from what my brothers told me about it. It sounds like fun, just hope my brothers don't protest. Father probably not want me to try out as its too rough for a girl. I don't think it'll be too rough for me but not even sure I could quality to play in the school team anyway, but won't know without trying."

"I am sure the faculty will do whatever they can to ensure we are all safe. I don't think we will be locked in our rooms all the time, unable to leave except for class. That would make school like a prison." Iris stated, hoping they don't do that. How was she suppose to walk Poochie if she can't leave her room? Walk him to class instead? She now could use the spells she was taught to clean up after Poochie, before she couldn't as she didn't have a wand so had to pick it up herself which was really icky. "They may not let us go into town anymore, even with a teacher."

"Either way I figured if everybody doesn't go out into the grounds without having a few friends with them, then we should be fine. As you both are willing to walk Poochie with me, we certainly can do it regularly. I can even ask my brother to come along if the staff doesn't think three girls together aren't safe."

"Do either of you want to go to the dorms first? This way I can drop Poochie off. IF not we can eat first, I can just put Poochie into his carry bag. He's so small he fits right in and nobody even know he's there." Iris mentions once they reach the main building.

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"I don't mind dropping Poochie off first," Kit shrugged. "I'm not going to starve to death if we make a stop along the way."

Katrien had never been to town, except to get her supplies and to come to the school, anyway, so she didn't really know what she was missing. From what she'd been told, first years weren't allowed to go to town without a chaperone, anyway. There was no reason she needed to go to town, and it didn't sound like any fun with a grown up watching every move.

"Maybe they'll do like the army and shut down all outgoing communication for a while," Katrien pondered. "I think that might be a good idea. Or maybe not, I know my mom panicked even more when there was a communications black out. Nevermind, horrible idea."