9.2o pm, and Ava had found her feet pulling the rest of her body through the dungeon corridors from the common room and along to the kitchens. She had been venturing to the kitchens a lot more since the detention she served not long ago. The house-elves had grown to know her, and some of them had even grown to like her - though for the most part they simply enjoyed waiting on someone, regardless of who that person was.

Ava arrived at the portrait of the bowl of fruit. She tickled the pear, and it giggled mercilessly - something she had grown accustomed to over the last few weeks, but that she hadn't been able to completely comprehend at first. She still didn't quite understand the relevance of a giggling pear - a pear, yes, as it is food, but a giggling pear? There was really no need. She and Fauna Blake had a whole debate one night whilst cooking dinner on the importance of the pear giggling when one tickled it. By the end of the night, they had both ended up agreeing that there was no sane reason for it, apart from comedy values.

So, once again she was tickling the excitable pear, it was giggling and the portrait was swinging open. She climbed through the hole, making sure to check that no unsolicited person was keeping tabs on her. Happy that she wasn't being followed, she allowed her whole body to climb through, and closed the portrait over the hole behind her. She turned round and nearly jumped out of her skin as three house-elves were gathered in front of her, large bulbous eyes staring expectantly, and deformed mouths making a shape that could only be described as a grin. The elves only came up to Ava's hip, and it hurt her neck having to look downwards all of the time.

"What would miss G. like?"

Ava grinned at the 'pet name' they gave her. She had been training them to stop calling her 'miss Grosvenor' all of the time - it was far too formal, and half way through their second week of detention, the elves had relented and agreed to call her 'miss G'. "Pastry." she said simply. "And lots of it, please." The three elves nodded and scurried off to various parts of the kitchen to fetch her goodies. Ava made her way over to the large open fire, and set a small stool next to it. She sat on the stool and stretched out her legs, kicking her black shoes off and letting her bare feet bask in the warmth. She still hadn't changed out of her school uniform from earlier in the day, and she was enjoying letting her toes be free.

It was getting later in the night, around half after nine in the evening, and Zoey was getting hungry. Some of the guys in his dorm were already asleep, content on getting their shut-eye, while some of the others were up and awake, either writing or playing games. Some were missing, of course, as with all Slytherin gentlemen. Slowly getting out of his bed, Zoey slipped into something comfortable - a tie-dyed tank top, bright purple shorts, and slippers - and then proceeded to exit the dormitory.

Sneaking through the common room, he gave a few unruly first years an evil glance, and then he walked out the portrait hole with ease. Making sure no prefects were around, Zoey walked his way to the kitchens, turning corners and jumping walls on his way there. He was in a good mood, even at this hour, and when he got to the portrait, he took a big jab at the pear and started tickling like crazy.

He found it hilarious that the pear laughed, but he had to stop at some point. As the portrait swung open, he stepped through the hole and was jumped by two elves. "ZOEY!" They called him by his first name because he kept pressuring them to, and finally, he offered them stuff to do it. He was sort of on best friend terms with the elves. "Hey you lot." He said while laughing. "Can you get me some cookies? I'm starving!" The elves jumped off and ran to their stoves. "Fresh batch in about two minutes!"

He winked at them and then turned, spotting one Miss Ava Grosvenor. "So, I see I'm not alone in my late night hunger. How goes it, Angel?"

The portrait door swung open and Ava sat stock still. It was against the rules to be in the kitchens without a teacher 'chaperone', or in a situation where it is not required - such as detention. Ava's eyes opened wide and she pressed her lips together making a thin line of red across her face. She had almost stopped breathing, for fear of making herself known by the fire.

Then she heard the voice asking for cookies. It was a familiar voice, and Ava felt her heart start to pump blood around her veins and arteries once more. She breathed a sigh of relief. It was Zoey. No problem there then. She was facing away from the portrait hole, but she heard it slam shut and the house-elves scurry off in search of his treats. Hm...cookies...maybe I'll take some of those too... she thought.

"So, I see I'm not alone in my late night hunger."

"Evidently not." Ava said as cool as a cucumber as she wiggled her toes with their red painted nails next to the fire. She was sat up straight on the stool, both hands cupped under either side of the stool head itself and her legs extended out straight towards the fire.

"How goes it, Angel?"

Ava smiled as she turned her head towards him slightly - since he was still behind her she had no choice if she wanted to actually see him. "Fine, thank you. How about -" she paused as she took in his attire for the evening - a tie-dye vest and purple shorts. Her nose scrunched up slightly. "Nice choice of clothing, Mac." She teased - Mac was her little nickname for him, being short for McAdams. "Did you pick it out in the dark?" His fashion sense was a little erratic to say the least. Besides, she knew he couldn't come back with anything about her attire, since they wore predominantly the same things during the week - save the skirt...although there had been one incident when he had turned up to classes one day actually wearing a skirt. Something that hadn't suited him at all. But Ava could appreciate the funny side of it, and simply seeing the professors' reactions to his state of dress - or undress - was enough for her.

Looking her over, still in her uniform, Zoey smiled, crossed his arms, and then proceeded to sit atop a table nearby. Ava looked good in uniform or in her normal clothes, but either way, Zoey just liked seeing Ava in the same room. It was comforting to have his crush so close, yet so nerve-racking that he might throw up a cookie the elves will give him in the minutes to come.

"Did you pick it out in the dark?"

Leaning back and looking down at his attire, he laughed softly before giving her an answer. "Um, actually, yes. But then again, you know how I dress. This is kind of normal for me, and well, that's just something most Hogwartians have gotten used to." Adjusting his vest, he let the gleam in his eye sparkle as he watched Ava watching him.

"Fine, thank you. How about -"

The elves were done with his cookies, and they presented them to him with valor, then proceeded to jump on him again, eventually having one sit on his head while he petted the other that sat on his lap. "And to answer your other question, beautiful, I'm doing quite well myself. I have the clothes on my back, my grades are looking good, and well, I'm in the company of a beautiful lady." He looked to the elf on his lap, which nodded and smiled. "By the way, this is Benny on my lap, and Starry on my head." Starry looked at Ava, showing her large, star-like eyes, hence her name.

Ava chuckled as Zoey introduced the house-elves. "Pleasure, I'm sure." She nodded to the two who she hadn't really noticed before - they weren't the house-elves who normally greeted her at the door. "I didn't know you took the time to get to know the house-elves personally?" She smiled as a house elf carried a large platter crammed with various types of pastries and pasties on the top, sweet and savoury, chocolatey and sugary, all different types. "Thank you." She said as she took the platter from his hands, just as he wobbled a little on the spot, turned his lareg bulbous eyes up to her with a worried expression, then toppled over onto his side on the stone floor.

"Oh dear!" Ava put the platter down and was ready to jump to her feet and help the little elf up, but half a dozen other elves appeared out of the dark corners of the room and dragged him to his feet. He shot a sheepish grin in Ava's direction as another house-elf squeeked at her "Too much brandy!" Ava giggled as the house-elves dragged him off in the direction of the kitchen sink, and prepared to stick his head under the cold tap. Ava sat back down on her stool and picked up a pain-au-chocolat. "I see you have many sides to you I didn't know about before." She stated as she nibbled on the edge of the pastry, darting her eyes up to the house-elves he was currently petting. "Do any of you want something?" She asked all three of them. The house-elves stared at her dumbly - as they had every time she had asked them whether they wanted something when she had been serving her detention. She smiled. "Professor Greyfriar isn't here. And I've told you all. I won't tell anyone." She paused, and they stared at her still, wide-eyed. "Ok. Well, I'll leave them there, and if you decide you want some, you can just get some." She placed the platter at the edge of the table, within reach of both Zoey and the elves. Much as though she came from a rich family who had employed the services of house-elves all of her life, she had never been quite at ease with ordering another creature to do things for her. She had been berated on various occasions, for giving items of clothing to different elves her mother enslaved employed, and setting them free.

Like watching a muggle car crash happen in slow motion, thinking you can stop it, Zoey witnessed the poor pastry elf topple over. Though the aftermath with his fellow elves dragging him off and their excuse was, well, quite funny to him. Even his companions were laughing on his lap and head. He smiled at Ava, who was obviously a friend to the elves as well, though he ventured to say she was raised with them serving her. But then again, he didn't know much about her except she was beautiful and smart.

As Ava pushed the pastry plate towards them, Zoey grinned at her. "Come on, guys, take one. You can bake your cake and eat it, too. Figuratively and literally speaking." He pulled a pastry off the plate, split it, and handed it to both of his elf friends. They eagerly took their portions and gobbled them down. The elf atop his head spoke up, mouth full, "We's know's we won' get 'n trouble wif Zoe..." Laughing again, Zoey took a pastry for himself and took a bite. "My friends, you all have out done yourselves with these." He applauded the elves for the fine cooking.

After munching down another pastry, he locked his eyes back on Ava. "Yes, my dear Ava, I've many sides to me. Not to be confused with multiple personalities. No, no, no." He laughed and continued, "No, just many facets to who I am. I hope you like them, for I wouldn't want to offend a pretty lady like yourself." He winked, and then pat the elf on his lap again.

Ava eyed the elves as they munched on their pastries, and listened to Zoey congratulate them. "Absolutely!" She said eagerly, holding half a pastry up to them. "They're fantastic! Never tasted better!" She grinned and took another bite of the pastry, feeling the warmth seep into her mouth as the chocolate inside melted. She gave a small laugh at Zoey's mention of not having multiple personalities.

"Really?" She asked, wiping the crumbs away from the corner of her mouth. "I find multiple personalities fascinating. I have at least three." She stated matter of factly, holding her hand out with three fingers outstretched. She pressed on one finger with the forefinger of her left hand. "My first personality is me with my family and friends. The 'real' me, so to speak." She paused and moved onto the next finger. "My second personality is my evil personality. She only comes out on special occasions." She grinned and moved along to the third and final finger. "And my third personality? Well, that's the mystery personality. Its hard to put a finger on exactly what it is, as it changes from situation to situation." She paused and furrowed her brow in thought. "I suppose one could say that my third personalirt has multiple personalities of its own."

Listening intently, Zoey smiled at Ava's explanation of her multiple personalities. He wasn't quite sure what to make of the whole personality type deal, because he was always Zoey. He was Zoey around his family and friends, he was Zoey on special occasions, and he was just, well, Zoey. He couldn't really explain it though it was rather self-explanatory. Though he was unusual, he did admit to multiple side of who he was, but that was more all a part of him than multiple personalities. He smiled at Ava, wanting to laugh at her explanations of her many personalities.

Setting the elves down on the ground, Zoey scooted closer to Ava. "Well, my sides just make up who I am. Like, did you know I can play the violin? Quite well actually. And that I can speak fluent French? Vous êtes une fille dashingly belle et je voudrais que vous m'embrassiez." He smiled at her, and leaned his face in closer. "Do you know what I just said?"

Ava watched the fire intently as Zoey moved closer towards her. He was still sitting on the bench and she on a stool, so they were still a safe enough distance away from each other for her to be sure she wouldn't do anything stupid and irrational.

"Well, my sides just make up who I am."

Ava smiled. "Well, that's fair game. Mine do too, but mine decide to come out to play at different times." Ava berated herself mentally. This topic of conversation was a little too deep for this time of night, when the pressing matter of food was still evident and the company was...well, a boy. Not just any boy, but a boy that Ava maybe...liked. Well, she wasn't sure if she liked him. The feeling she got when she thought about Zoey wasn't the same as the feeling she got when she thought about Alex. Maybe it was because Alex was a boy she just looked at, and knew that she would never do anything about it. She wasn't just going to be another nobble on his wand.

"Like, did you know I can play the violin? Quite well actually."

Ava was brought back down to earth. He could play the violin? Ava raised her eyebrows. "Wow. I'm impressed." She stated with a smile.

"And that I can speak fluent French? Vous êtes une fille dashingly belle et je voudrais que vous m'embrassiez. Do you know what I just said?"

Ava had just been about to say that she also spoke French and that it was something they had in common, when he began speaking the language. With every word, a blush crept into Ava's cheeks. She looked back towards the fire and let some hair fall so that he couldn't see her face properly.

"Uh..." She started, unsure whether to reply in English or French. "Oui. Mon frère est à l'aise en français. Il m'a appris à parler la langue. Je pense que je suis parle couramment le français aussi." She cast a sly glance at him, but quickly averted her eyes once more. "Merci beaucoup..."