0545 hours. Hogwarts Lake.

It was bloody freezing on the grounds this morning. The mist that veiled the grassy earth was thick and ashen and typically eerie but Raine was already at the lake, where the whiteness gave way to the sight of a dark current that pushed or pulled against rocky shores. The cloudy morning sky was barely light.

Maurice sat curled up on one of the craggy rocks and watching vigilantly as the Gryffindor shrugged out of her coat and pulled off her wellies with two quick tugs. She shivered, casting a gaze outwards at the water. It was probably colder in there.

"Little sense in inching in, is there?" a sighed escaped her lips and she saw her breath float away to join into the mist. The black cat made a soft mewling sound and Raine half-smiled to herself as she took a few steps away from the rocks to gauge their distance. A running start, perhaps. Yes. A running start. She had seen so little of Zel lately and there was no point in waiting for the Hufflepuff to arrive before she began.

If she could only gather the nerve. Raine breathed in deeply, bending her knees slightly... and then with a fluid, forceful gesture, she broke into a quick jog. Her bare feet struggled to keep purchase on the slippery ground and even moreso when she leapt onto the stony surface without bothering to slow down. The brink of the rock was in sight; she kicked off just at the last minute, gathering her gangly limbs around her center before dropping like a cannonball into the lake.

SPLASH!

The iciness was a shock to the senses, spreading almost instantaneously as soon as Raine hit water. Her eyes fluttered open underneath the dark blue and she mindfully stopped from exhaling immediately. Cold, cold, so bloody cold. The shock wore off quickly but she took her time to surface, kicking gently and breathing in slowly once she'd risen. Maurice was gone... likely scared away by the splatter.

Raine floated about for a bit, arching her neck to look around the rocks at the shore. She pushed away strands of red hair, now plastered to her head, trying to make out a silhouette approaching in the fog. Too tall to be anyone else, really.

"Trumble!" she called out, waving. "Over here!"

Zel had been swimming around on and off, though yesterday he had made a point to avoid Raine. Hell, yesterday he had tried to avoid everybody (except Sasha, since Sasha hadn’t been at the dinner.) He had gone swimming, but he had also waited until his swimming buddy had left. Now, Zel felt guilty about the whole thing, but was also feeling more ready to socialize with her and spend some time chatting about life and whatever topics happened to come up during their discussions.

The werewolf hadn’t expected the morning to be so cold, and part of him dreaded the icy temperature of the lake water. The other part of him knew that he would regret it later if he didn’t take a swim. He let out a sigh and took off his shirt.

Everybody knew. There was no point in hiding the scars anymore.

His torso looked emaciated, with each rib clearly visible. There was very little body fat, and any muscle that the albino had was lean and compact. His pale skin was covered in deep, slightly raised purple scars. His right shoulder was indented, missing a small chunk of flesh that had been healing over slowly. There were two large bite scars: one on his shoulder, and the other on his side. The rest of his torso were covered in claw marks, some that extended all the way down his arms-- a sign that he was trying to physically resist the attack before he could reach his wand.

Zel could hear Raine calling his name, and he waved at her awkwardly. “Hey.” He greeted, looking at the cold water warily. He knew that he should just jump in, but he was also a bit of a wimp. He stuck his toe in the water and let out a small squeak. Merlin’s beard, it was freezing!

He closed his eyes as tightly as he could, as if that would help with the freezing temperature. Then he sprinted into the water. Immediately, his body was covered in goosebumps. Zel ducked his head underwater, and the water temperature soon became bearable, but still quite uncomfortable.  His light hair was plastered to the top of his head as he swam towards the Gryffindor.  “H-h-how are you doing?” For once, he wasn’t stuttering because he was nervous, he was stuttering because he was cold.

Merlin. Raine floated closer to the shore as Zel finally emerged from the mist,  and her fiery eyebrows rose in surprise. The scars she'd been expecting but their severity... it was no wonder he'd worn his clothes before. There was no pretending those marks could be from anything other then a Werewolf attack.

The Gryffindor schooled her expression while she back-paddled slightly to give room for Zel to jump in. Another loud splash later (she winced) and he was finally in the water, looking a little more washed out than usual as his head popped up onto the lake surface some feet away. “H-h-how are you doing?”

He looked even colder than she felt.

"Me?" Raine swam closer. "I'm well, thanks. Only been here a minute before you came. Might have to be a short one today, I need to prep for a lesson first thing after breakfast..." she blinked the lake water out of her eyes, watching Zel carefully and with the faintest hint of concern.

"But I should be asking you that. Haven't seen you out here since Tuesday," it was obvious she meant the Great Hall tussle. "Not having any trouble, are you?" Hogwarts, after all, had its fair share of Lycan haters.

He was glad to hear that Raine was doing well, but was also mildly disappointed that their swimming session today would have to be cut short, especially since he hadn’t had one with her yesterday. No, yesterday morning he had been too busy talking to Sasha about the whole situation, though Zel wasn’t sure he wanted to talk about it quite yet. Zel floated onto his back and closed his eyes before deciding that treading water was a better option if he and Raine were going to have a conversation.

“I’m okay. As okay as I can be.” He hoped that the answer would suffice.  He didn’t want to lie to Raine about how he was feeling like complete shite, but he also didn’t want to worry her. He was sure that she had enough on her mind. As he thought, he also felt like she deserved to know more, after he had kept the fact that he was a werewolf hidden from her. Zel gave Raine a sheepish look, “D-do you have any questions about... My situation?” He asked, wanting to let her know that any questions were welcome, and that he wouldn’t get offended or upset if she asked them.

She was concerned about him, he could tell-- but that’s what friends did. They helped each other out, and they worried about each other, and they tried to be there for each other. Zel hated that she as concerned, but also saw it as a sign that she did care about him, and that was something that he so sorely needed right now.

“I’m okay. As okay as I can be.”

That was a lie if she had ever heard one. Raine floated back slightly, feeling her body adjust to the lake temperature and observing the Hufflepuff discerningly. "If you say so." She was over the shock of seeing his scars... scars, after all, were interesting. What bothered her more was that he was trying to hide his upset. Considerate but unnecessary.

When he asked if she had any questions however, the redhead drew a blank. And then she broke into an amused smile.

"Questions? I think it's rather straightforward, your situation." While she drifted around Zel in circles, her gaze stayed on his expression- attentive. "You turn into a marvelously frightful creature every month...." she laughed lightly, her breath escaping in a white mist. "And otherwise, everything is quite the same."

Which wasn't precisely true. Raine knew about Ministry protocol and she knew they were apt to be more emotional, drawing close to the full moon. Everything was not the same although, as far as she was concerned, they might as well have been. Her opinion on lycans was neither here nor there.

"Unless, of course, we start taking midnight swims," she mused before adding, flippantly: "Oh, there's a question. Can werewolves swim in that form? I've always wondered."

Zel smiled weakly. “I-I have to disagree. It’s not the same.” It was a big life change for him—for  most of his life, he was not a werewolf. He had grown up around one, and his life had always involved lycans in some way. Even though that was the case, it was something huge to get used to. Being a werewolf and being around them were not the same thing in any way. Just because you were okay with someone else’s lycanthropy did not mean that you would be quick to accept your own.   

Could werewolves swim in their wolfy-furry-deadly form? Zel had never thought about it.

“Err, dogs can swim. So I assume werewolves can too? I can’t say I’ve tried.” Nor could he say he ever planned on trying. Zelig was going to take every and any precaution he could to prevent hurting others during his special time of the month. “I’d rather not try.” He supposed everything would be the same for Raine, since she didn’t seem to have any sort of prejudice against werewolves. Sometimes he felt like she almost didn’t care, which weirded him out—it was not a reaction he expected from most people.

“A-are you mad that I didn’t tell you?” He asked nervously. The Hufflepuff wanted to make sure that there weren’t any hard feeligns because he kept a secret from her.

It was hard to imagine, how different life must be now compared to before for Zel. Raine didn't say anything when he told her it was not the same... at least for him, nothing would ever be the same. She floated a little further away, towards the rocks as they talked. Unlike previous times, the mist did not seem to be dispersing this morning but she could still see within a few feet of each other.

Her back came into contact against one of the lower rocks. "I'd rather not try," the Hufflepuff replied and she smiled faintly at the notion.

"True, I'd rather not be the one to drag out a drowning Werewolf anyway..." Raine disappeared under the water for a second and then resurfaced with a jerk, reaching back to pull herself up on to the crag with some effort. Bbrrr. She shook her head in a quick, animal-like gesture and a spray of water spattered across her friend.

Zel was looking slightly apprehensive. “A-are you mad that I didn’t tell you?” he asked. Raine paused and looked down at him, a pensieve look in her eyes.

"No," she finally murmured, feet gently kicking at the lake surface. "We all have our secrets- at least one that we don't like to share. Your illness isn't my business if you don't want it to be." Because, in her mind, that was what Lycanism happened to be. A terribly dangerous but manageable illness.

"And I mean that," Raine added in a heavier tone, though she raised a good-humoured eyebrow. "You're not an idiot Zel, you can deal with this however you want. Even if it means kicking Sellaphix in the chest every so often."

Zel smiled. Illness. That was how she viewed it? Illnesses could be cured. This wasn’t curable. To him, it was a part of who he was. He was a dangerous creature. If anything, this was more of a disease to him, because it plagued so many people and it was a lifelong type thing. A chronic illness wasn’t strong enough, a disease felt more powerful in that way. Zel didn’t want to voice that—Raine was being nice, she was being honest. She was being, well, Raine.  He appreciated who she was, and her thoughts on the subject. He appreciated that she didn’t see it as any of her own business unless he wanted to share it with her.

Right now, he didn’t want to share everything with her. In the future, definitely. If she wanted to know details, he would give them to her freely. Zel trusted her, but just because you trusted somebody did not mean you wanted to talk about a rather tender, touchy subject. Zel swam in a quick circle around her before ducking his head under. When he resurfaced, he didn’t shake his head like Raine did, but simply pulled his hair out of his eyes and slicked it back. 

“You look like a cat or a dog or something when you shake like that.” Zel laughed, splashing her back in retaliation. He wanted to change the subject, especially since he knew now that Raine wasn’t mad. That was the number one thing he had been worried about this morning—if Raine would be angry at him. Now he felt like he could play around and goof off before he had to focus on his own life again.

It felt that, for the time being, they didn't have to concern themselves too much about the Lycan issue. Raine didn't see why anyone would have to if it wasn't directly impeding their social or academic progress. She knew what grief could do to a person and she also knew that sometimes healing had to be internalized- and nobody could help Zel cope with this better than himself.

So the prefect let go off the serious tone in her voice, shrieking mockingly as her friend splashed back. "Cold!" she exclaimed with a laugh, each droplet an icy needle now that she was out of the water. Again, she shook her head, lips pulled back into a toothy smirk at Zel's rather apparent topic diversion.

"A cat, perhaps..." Raine leaned forward playfully, hands resting cautiously on the craggy rock. "You're not the only one who turns into an animal every so often, Trumble."

It was tempting- she could simply transform right now if she wanted to, give him a tiny heart attack. But no he'd probably had his fill of shocks and thrills this week. Subtlety was better exercised. After all, she trusted Zel. The idea of letting him on a secret, after his was so invasively divulged to the entire school, seemed... appropriately pleasing.

"Although, admittedly, I'm not sure if caracals can swim," Raine tilted her to the side, thoughtful. "I've not yet tried it."

Zel decided that he might as well climb onto the rocks as well, though as he got out of the water, eh shook his head much like a dog would, sending droplets of water in every direction. His light hair was sticking up in every direction. It didn’t seem to bother Zel much, because when it dried, it would dry straight down. No matter what he did, his hair would be straight and manageable.

He stared at Raine in confusion when she mentioned turning into an animal every so often. “Err, I know there are other werewolves out there, if that’s what you mean.” Then she mentioned carcals, and whether or not she knew if they could swim. Zel didn’t even know what a carcal was, was it a kind of cat or a wolf? He had no idea. Was she hinting that she could turn into animals too? Was she an animagus?

The werewolf tilted his head to the side curiously, “What are you talking about, Raine?” He inquired curiously.   

So much for subtlety.

Raine wrinkled her nose slightly, running a hand over her face to clear it from Zel's little downpour of water when he'd come out of the Lake. They were both sat on the craggy rocks that led back to the shore where she could only suppose Maurice was hiding. He knew better than to sit around waiting to get wet.

"What am I talking about..." she sighed and smiled tiredly. Anyone else and it would have been irritating- but not with Zel. He wasn't intentionally obtuse or malicious. "Not other werewolves. I mean myself, I'm an animagus. That's my secret."

There. Perhaps she should have gone with the direct route after all; even if this was so much more amusing. Almost as amusing as actually turning. Raine leaned back on her hands and raised an eyebrow at the Huffepuff.

"Nothing particularly grand, just a rather large cat. You have to promise not to pick me up if I ever change. I'm not like Maurice," she smirked. "I will scratch."

Zel’s pale eyes widened and his jaw dropped. What? Did he hear her correctly? Raine was an animagus? That was a shock. He was surprised that someone so young could be so proficient at transfiguration, but he was also pleased that Raine trusted him enough to tell him. He had a few questions about it, but he also didn’t want to offend his friend in any way.

Oh wait, this was Raine he was talking to. He didn’t think he could offend her too much if he tried. Zel wouldn’t approach subjects that would cause too much grief for the redhead. “How long have you been an animagus? How did you learn? Are you registered?” He blurted out those entire questions one after the other, not giving Raine enough time to answer his questions in between. “Who else knows?” Zel didn’t want to expose Raine’s secret to the entire school if she wasn’t comfortable with it. Being an animagus was quite an accomplishment. He could see how people might want to take advantage of Raine’s ability to further their own agenda. He didn’t worry too much about that, because he could imagine Raine shutting them down immediately. Still, it would be annoying for her to deal with.

Also, if the process she went through to learn it was sentimental in some way, in no way did Zel want to destroy that.

Zel's blatant curiousity was refreshing, compared to the subterfuge with which Raine had been trying to keep her ability secret. He certainly wasn't holding back on the questions. Smiling a little dryly, she wondered if this was going to be a problem with anyone else she ended up telling.

"My sister and I started learning, ah, two years ago," the Gryffindor did the mental arithmetic. "I'm not registered. I just don't... I.. don't see why I ought to..." she shrugged off the notion. It belonged to her, to Sanya. Some day she would have to register but there was no reason to now- Raine could still hold on to it a little longer. Letting it go didn't feel right.

"Morgan knows," a small sigh that clearly indicated she didn't really want to explain why. "And you, I suppose. My Governess. I'm still trying to master it." Practice was hard to come by between schoolwork and extracurricular activities but she had managed, in the evenings, to scrape together enough time to change. At least a couple of times each week.

Raine brought her arms forward and sat straight, examining her hands thoughtfully. Her fingernails were trimmed down to the bit. "I trust you," she said in a deadpan voice before finally looking up at Zel. "Not to tell anyone, I mean." Of course she did. More than anybody else right now, she felt like he knew what it meant to want to keep a secret.

Zel nodded solemnly-- her having learned with her sister was a very personal thing, and he could understand why she didn’t want to be registered, at least not yet. Animagi were not dangerous like werewolves were, so he didn’t really see any need for Raine to register yet; she was a responsible person, so he had no worries about whether or not she would abuse her abilities. He was siletn for a few moments, simply looking at Raine and trying to figure out what she was thinking. She obviously trusted him, and the feeling that someone trusted him was a good one. It made him feel like she saw something in him that made him worthy enough to be her friend.

“I won’t tell. I promise.” He wouldn’t mention it to anyone; he knew what it was like to have a secret. Her’s was especially important, it had sentimental value and it needed to be respected. Zel was surprised that the librarian had not told anyone yet, but maybe Landis simply did not care enough about student affairs to go blabbing to anyone and everyone about Raine’s secret. He was silent for a little bit longer before looking Raine straight in the eyes.

“D-do you think that maybe, you could show me sometime?” Maybe in a place more secluded-- the lake was probably not the best place, since there were other students that liked to go swimming, Occasionally, Zel also saw Tapendra Trishna in the lake as well. If Raine wanted to keep it a secret, the lake was probably not the best place to transform.

“I won’t tell. I promise.”

He didn't have to say it but Raine was pleased that he did anyway. Her shoulders relaxed slightly and she glanced up with a small, almost indiscernible smile. They were not many people she thought she could trust, after her sister passed, but one less good soul in the world could only make the others more valuable. Zel was a good person- scars and all.

When he asked if she could show him her animagus form some day , the prefect nodded once. "Yes," there was a mischievous glimmer in her eye. "Of course. In the evening, it's a marvelous way to get around without being noticed." Or at least without being recognized for who she was.

A thought struck her and Raine glanced down at her watch, giving it a shake to ensure it wasn't waterlogged. Yes. Perhaps coming down for a swim had been unwise- but worth it to see if Zel was doing alright after the fight. The redhead stood carefully, using her friend's shoulder for balance.

"I better go now if I want to prep for lessons," she suppressed a sigh. "Try not to drown after I leave, won't you?"