Jack began running down to the lake. No... there might be people there. He didn't want the lake he wanted to be by the greenhouse. No... there could be people there also. He ran into one of the tallest trees. "This will do." He thought. Jack began to climb up. Still in rage and embarrassment Jack began climbing as fast as he could. He just wanted to be alone. He began furiously climbing until he reached air, he made to the top.

Jack began reoccurring the events in his mind, he had her. He was so close to getting her to change her ways. Then his friend turned the tides. He knew it was bad bringing him, he never even knew her. Jack began to think about what he had done wrong. So enraged, Jack remembered changing the girls hair blonde. He didn't want to talk about magic right now and he hated looking at his wand. He did something he thought he'd never do.

He screamed,"I hate this place!!!" and threw his wand. It skimmed a few trees and then landed erect in the mud. Jack was never coming down. At least not for a while. He was interrupted by a voice, probably heard him. "Great" he thought.

"Go away!!!" he shouted, "Lucy i don't ever wanna see you again, next time I do you'll have a black eye."

A boy from Annette's town went streaking past her, climbing the tallest tree ahead. Annette pulled her blonde hair into a low ponytail and slung her bag over her shoulder. She wrapped her sweater around the other side of the tree and monky-ed her way up the trunk on the tree. Why was everyone so upset lately? Everyone was so angsty and sad. This hadn't been what Hogwarts was supposed to be like. Everyone was feuding. Annette's job this year, other than doing homework, was trying to get everyone a little happier.

Sitting on the first low branch, Annette tossed her sweater into her bag. "Hey Jack, you okay?" Anni was especially protective of all of the Oulton Broad wizards. Lexi, Dessa, Alice, Emile, and John. She wanted her neighbors to be happy critters, not sad, tree dwelling critters.

Oh boy it wasn't Lucy...Jack was not ready to talk to anyone. Seeing it was Annette, Jack couldn't do anything about it. Seeing as Jack was still mad and enraged he had no conscious for the moment." Great I'd rather jump from this tree than talk to anyone..." Seeing Annette climb Jack began scowling.

Annette frowned as Jack told her his alternative plan. "Gee,who spit in you pumpkin juice?" Annette kept climbing the tree, pulling herself nimbly through the limbs and twigs until her back was pressed up against the trunk, halfway up the tree. She was about even with John. "Okay, spit it out, what happened and why are you upset? Does it involve Emile, if so I can tie knots in his pajama bottom legs?"

Annette turned around on her thick tree limb, so she straddled to rough bark of the tree. Writing her on pep talks and  replacing her names with others was certainly becoming a skill.

Jack knew he couldn't be mad forever. So much for being alone. If it was anyone but a fellow HufflePuff Jack would have begun climbing away,or falling. Either way he would still be a mess. He finally decided to lower his guard.

"It's Lucy...I tried to help her but...Now Dessa is alone with her and Emile." Jack finally burned through his anger, beginning to come back to normal, at least some of him was."We planned to get Lucy back but Emile then stood with her... I didn't wanna fight Emile so..." Jack starting choking. Trying to help everyone at once was to much.

"Annette what should I do?"

Yet again, another first year feud. "Whoa, wait. Dessa, Lucy, and Emile are alone, together? why didn't you just hand them each a gallon of gasoline and a book of matches!" She was supposed to be pep talking, trying to find a diplomatic answer, as usual, Nette to the rescue. "I'm thinking that Emile didn't know your whole plan, his was probably much more convoluted than yours. Maybe that's why he sided with Lucy. See, Emile and Dessa and Lucy are fighters, they buts heads. Often and pretty hard, but we have to be the people to warn the to put on a helmet first, does that make sense?"

Annette tightened her ponytail. "What the big point is that the peacemakers need to do just that, make peace, be the level-headed ones, not the ones that go looking for trouble. If we take the fun out of conflict, fighters get bored, then they listen. Lucy is also sort of weird. She likes to get into fights to test everyone's mental and physical strength faced with conflict, because, let's face it, Lucy Matthews is a big ball of conflict."

Jack began laughing at her joke. He was back to himself...almost. He still had a fire in him and wanted to use it on Lucy. "I can't leave Dessa alone." Jack said. He began slowly descending from each limb, about 1/4 of the tree left and he stopped. Did Jack really want to go back? Annette did have a good point, talking it out was a good plan. But then again it's Lucy...she doesn't lose. Maybe tonight will be the night she does.

He continued climbing down to the trunk. " Thanks Annette I'm going back." He knew Annette probably wouldn't fight, but this is a time where he had to. When he reached the bottom he landed with a "thud" and waited for her to come down.

That was done faster than she had originally thought, but hey, less time pep-talking was more time doing, right? Annette  swung through the branches and landed gracefully onto the ground besides Jack. "Do you want me to go with you? I think I can probably tame Dessa and Emiliano for the time being."

Annette dug around in her satchel, pulling out a chocolate frog. She held it out for John to take. "Chocolate frog?"

"I'm going back not to negotiate... I'm going back to finish what i started." He waved off the chocolate frog and told her to keep it. Jack has his own stash of candy by his bed. "If you wanna see Lucy get clobbered go right ahead and watch but right now, I need to help Dessa. She's probably in trouble." Annette was the not the kind to fight so he knew she would either watch it or not come at all. Maybe she would help but that would be a long shot. He began to walk back to the courtyard, slowly gaining speed until he was at a fast jog. Jack's fire burned bright in him and he knew that that girl needed to be taught a lesson."Lucy your MINE!"