Kayla sat on the bank of the lake, just close enough to touch her toes to the water. The lake really was gorgeous, stretching dark and deep and flat as glass out to the mountains that rose on either side of Hogwarts. She'd heard there was a monster in there from one student, and a squid from another; though she watched the surface carefully, the only thing that broke her sight were Durmstrang sails.

Though it was high summer the ground beneath her was damp, mottled pebbles and sand lightly pressing into her palms. Mud squished satisfyingly under the press of her bare feet. Kayla was relatively certain that when she stood up her butt would be wet, but there were sacrifices one made for such tiny snatches of pure pleasure. Down here the alien qualities of another country were strictly beautiful and completely calming; the heat was lulling, and she opened to the sun. With a sigh she gave up the ghost entirely and flopped back, crossing her arms over her eyes and squinting out the light. Cool earth pressed at her shoulder blades through the fabric of her shirt, a reassuring bulk against the blinding summer sky, and eventually she leveled her gaze towards the flowering bruise on her arm. She'd get that tree to like her eventually.

Odie, unlike her (begrudgingly) beloved schoolmate was less attuned to the nature that surrounded them. Scotland was not like she had imagined it, far less romantic and more wet that she would have liked. Of course growing up in Florida and even in the years since she'd been attending Salem had not prepared her for the constant gray sort of air that hung around the castle. Everything was lush and green of course but it was always soggy. Of course someone like Kayla picked up on the earthy-ness of it all and tried to talk to an insane tree that wanted to kill people - even after all these years it often amazed Odessa that the two of them were friends at all, they were so different. Kayla saw all that was good in the world and Odie saw all that could potentially blow up in their faces.

It was only through the younger girl's persistence (the same persistence she was showing that nasty Willow tree) that they had become friends. She had, in essence, worn down all of Odessa's defenses; the way one might attempt to scale Everest. Now? Well now life just wouldn't be life without Kayla's quirky Earth-Mother-we-are-one-with-the-Universe attitude sprinkled through Odie's cynical day. She was always a pick me up - though Odessa would deny it with her dying breath, probably, if anyone ever tried to force her to admit that the other girl's idiosyncrasies were a source of unironic amusement for the Senior. She'd flat out deny it and possibly push whoever suggested into the lake. It was, however, what had Eisley traisping down to the lakeside to find her feather-brained friend.

Well, that and the fear the other girl had sustained a concussion trying to commune with the more violent parts of Scotland's nature. Odie also happened to be curious about the lake and and supposed beast within it's depths. It was the kind of lore she thought would make studying abroad fun, not leave her homesick and missing sunshine. It didn't help that class sizes were massive. Of course dwelling on that wouldn't help her mood any so she gave herself a mental shake and a little peptalk - Right, task at hand, find the hippy. Cupping her hands around her mouth she bellowed, "AUSTIN, HAVE YOU GONE LADY OF SHALOTT ON ME". Of course she was too busy yelling to notice the girl practically under her feet and thus tripped, landing face first in the damp grass, legs and torso draped (a little painfully) over the Junior, voice lowered from a bellow to a whimper "why are your knees so boney, Jesus".

A sudden shout made her jump, Odie's familiar bellow coming from just behind the ridge. Kayla laid very still, biting down on a grin. Of course that backfired when the other girl came striding over and fell on her, but that's what Odie got for calling her Austin. She didn't want her picking up bad habits from the Brits. What was this, English prep school?

"You shouldn't walk so fast," she said reasonably, folding her arms over Odie's back as one might over a table, in the manner of a girl who intended to keep them there. "You might trip."

As always the annoyed look on Odie's face made her practically want to purr. Odie was very different from Kayla, brash and prickly like a cat with its fur all bushed up. Soft underneath, though. It'd taken several years for Kayla to squirm her way under that tough exterior, so she delighted in being able to tease Odie now. In fact it was one of her absolute favorite hobbies. She patted her friend on the back, knees nudging into Odie's stomach. "Hey Odie," she said, painfully earnest... except for her impish smile. "You're getting all sandy."

Odessa tried to muster a withering look, she really did, but the effect was totally lost as she effectively tried to look over her shoulder with her ass half in the air and Kayla using her for an arm rest. Shaking her hair from her eyes, she rested her chin against her hand and heaved a sigh though she made no move to, well, move. She wiggled a little, trying to keep the other girl's kneecaps from pressing into her spleen or some other organ that was probably vitally important to her survival. "You're awful, you know that right? You trip me and then you mock me, and if you're going to poke me with your elbows at least use them to work the knot out of my lower back," her tone was exasperated but somehow affectionate.

A lot of Odie's bluster was just that, hot air. In Salem she had sort of this image to maintain, the idea that her sarcasm was stronger than any acid or potion peel; that she could, in fact, melt your face off with her scorn. There were very few souls who had gone wit to wit with the Senior and not ended up worse for the wear. She wasn't completely sure what made Kayla different, something set the dark haired girl apart from their peers though. She amused Odie, and not in that totally laughing at you not with you way so many people did. It was more you are so bizarre I can't wait to hear the next alien thing that comes out of your mouth kind of way. She half growled at Kayla's joke and chomped her teeth like she meant to take a bite out of the other girl before whining, "Im also getting damp".

Digging the toe of her boot into the soft earth, though it was as if she could see it as she was still draped over Kayla's lap, her large blue eyes scanned out over the lake, "You suppose it's true, about the Squid? I mean it's no Boris, but it's not half bad". If Odessa Eisley had ever been accused of having a soft spot for anything it was that sneaky enchanted crocogator. She felt they had a lot in common, in fact... she might even call him her spirit animal (when no one was listening) they were both ornery as hell and didn't seem to serve a lot of purpose. Of course Boris wasn't actually, probably, alive either - and Odie liked to pretend to be dead inside too. She finally rolled on her side to look at the other girl, though she didn't move off her, "Why exactly are we laying on the ground again? Waiting for the grass to knock you a good one too"?

"Really? Where?" Kayla unfolded her arms and began to knead fingers into Odie's back, brow creased by a mild knot of concern. "Don't worry, I've got this. Although I should point out that really you were the one that tripped over me, and so if anyone should be getting back massages and apologies, it should be me." She wrinkled her nose as Odie gnashed her teeth, as if to say, dear, behave.

"Im also getting damp".

"Well then don't trip over me!" She smacked a hand lightly on her human table for emphasis. "Really! I can't believe you're complaining so much over something that was entirely your fault. Speaking of damp, will you go swimming with me later? It's so beautiful out and maybe - well, we should make sure this isn't like Jaws or anything before we do that, but then if the monster's friendly we definitely should. I suppose if you heard it was a squid too, it must be true." She raised her arms to let Odie adjust her position, green eyes meeting blue. "Did I tell you?" she asked idly. "Boris almost squashed me yesterday. Ferry kicked him off but it was still very rude." Clearly the crocogator was no longer in her good books. It was a pity - Kayla'd thought they'd had a nice little arrangement worked out. She didn't do anything against the rules and he didn't loom out of dark corners at her with a mouthful of sharp teeth. Occasionally at the dinner table she'd slip him some bacon. Well, no longer! Not until she forgot, anyways.

Odessa gave a muffled groan as Kayla went to work on her back. This might have been the very reason the other girl was spared so much of Odie's abundant hissing sass. She was very good at removing stress knots from the Senior's body. Odie wasn't big on being touched, at all, by anyone - but within her group of friends she made exceptions. As Kayla worked the tight expanse of her lower lumbar region Odessa sort of turned into a puddle. She couldn't really be grumpy, at all, maybe she really was like a cat and you just had to pet her in the right way to keep her from clawing your eyes out. Stranger things had been said about the seventeen year old. "It's the desks, I swear. I don't know how people sit at those things for seven years of their lives. Remind me to never again complain about the seating in our library".

Of course why would she ever complain about their library again anyway? After graduation it wouldn't be a part of her world anymore. And this Odessa's tension resumed and she gave another sigh and rested her head against her arms again, "I get to be like this, I'm the whiny one remember? Or the bitchy one, I can't actually remember right now, a little to the left please," her voice was nonplussed as she closed her eyes. It was a catch-22 really, if she were back in Salem she would be surround by people she couldn't stand and the professors she liked least. Here... well here she was far away from home and sunshine and surrounded by people who spoke in accented English if they bothered to speak English at all.

"Have we not established that I am a semi-tropical creature who needs sunlight and and sweltering humidity to survive? It is too damn cold to go for a swim,"  Of course Odie said that knowing full well that before the afternoon was over she'd be wading into that very cold and possibly slimy looking water. "There is a second year, apparently, who is part Merperson and swims all the time. Maybe you should make friends with her? I bet she wouldn't try to knock your pretty head off or smother you. Though, to be totally fair, you can be kind of annoying, and I'm not totally sure that's not a sign of affection from Boris. I mean lookit how he and LeBeau act, he tries to routinely eat the man's pegleg. He maims because he adores... or because he's a possessed demon voodoo doll. Whichever, just means I can have your bacon in the morning," and there was that rare, genuine smile that so seldom formed itself on Odessa's lips.

"It'll be fine! I'll put a warming charm on you. Then all you'll have to worry about is the lake weed." She twined fingers through Odie's hair and tugged lightly, giggling; Kayla really was a very touchy girl, but by now she'd gotten Odie nice and broken in to the point where she hardly ever complained about that. The poor Europeans! Probably they would not understand her easy affection at all. The British were supposed to be very up-tight, weren't they? Kayla, who had been looking forward to ambushing one into an inelegant hug, had been disappointed to find the students at Hogwarts didn't seem terribly different from the ones at Salem. Booo. She'd get one anyway.

"Oh, that's awesome! I've never really studied aquatic plants to the extent I wanted - maybe she could see them better than I could, or bring up samples. I bet I could make some grow in a tank in my room." She considered this. "You like lotuses, don't you? I'll grow you a lotus."

"I guess you could be right. I just thought we had a connection, y'know?" She sighed and rested her chin on the back of her arms, encircling her knees, but there was a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth to match Odie's own. "Sassy young student, possessed demon voodoo doll, trapped in an intricate dance of ankle-biting and table scraps.... hmmm, maybe I should stop there." She leveled a look at Odie that started off imploring and ended narrow-eyed. "A girl's bacon is sacred, Odie. Don't even joke about that."

"Kayla, my Dearling, do you remember what happened the last time I let you point a wand at me," this was not a question. This was a statement to remind the Junior that she was sometimes a certifiable crazy person and that while that was all well and good, when it came to wands and crazy Odessa did not want to be in the crosshairs. Kayla, really, wasn't that crazy or weird. She just seemed so to the oft sour-faced seventeen year old. Odessa didn't understand how one person could be full of such sunshine and vim, or constantly be trying to see the best in everyone - or most everyone. To the average person this would seem like a highly valuable asset, to Odessa it just seemed like a good way for life to kick her friend's proverbial emotional teeth in.

Still, as Kayla perked up over the mention of a half-mergirl the Senior found herself smiling, "I've seen her, she's a bit weird with people," well that was the pot calling the kettle black. It did make her consider the half breeds that seemed to wander the halls of Hogwarts. There was at least one Werewolf, several part Veela, and their own half giant. It seemed to her that other than Salem, Hogwarts might be one of the most accepting schools in the world. It went against the cold-fish stereotype that populated much of America. Raising an eyebrow at the other girl she simply grinned, "You wouldn't give me your bacon, but you routinely feed it to a possessed Voodoo Crocagator? I'm wounded Kayla".