It was Saturday, she had survived a week, this was a good thing, if it wasn't for the countdown dragging in her mind and soul. But it was another week passed, perfect time to relax and rest and sleep, although she couldn't sleep very well in best of times let alone the countdown, this was still Hogwarts so resting was hard with all the noise and commotion. And she didn't like relaxing as its boring, so very boring to just do nothing.

Lucinda let off a groan, returning to the common room after having her food, not that she was needing a rest after eating, she barely ate anything. She usually didn't eat much in the first place, most of the food was meat and even then the smell turned her off what she was eating half the time. Or seeing that one kid trying to eat too much meat at once, she swears she see's some older students start trying to fit as much sausage in before biting.

She just figured it was a nice day so it may be quiet in the common room for once and she may be able to try focusing, on work or just to try to sleep a little. She just wanted some time by herself.

Why a lift couldn't be built or something for all the stairs was still a mystery. So many stairs, she already goes running each morning to burn off energy, she doesn't need stairs also.

It was hard for her to not notice Greer however, who she probably hasn't been the nicest to, not that she knew her much before the January Full Moon, but she hasn't really spoken to her since, the only times they've really met has been then, when Knox took them to his chambers during the night, something that sounds a little creepy in her head if it wasn't for the fact he was telling them of murders. Which creates a whole new story. And her spraying Greer with water to break up a fight.

Lucinda hadn't wanted to avoid her entirely, but she wasn't sure how'd she cope around her, after all they weren't same year group, and had been in awkward situations together. There didn't need to be more reminding of what happens. She felt sorry for Greer though, as much as she complains about her own condition, Greer was younger and has been a Werewolf for longer. She doubted it would ever get easier either, so its not one of those burdens that over time you can get used to.

Usually she didn't see Greer with many others, either just due to when she see's her or because like herself, she didn't have many.
However seeing her smiling by herself in the common room was a bit unnerving. As the older girl in this she should probably make sure that Greer isn't going to have a breakdown. She just needed the right approach to it.

Gently, Lucinda walked over to Greer's side so she could see her coming up to her, so as not to be a surprise. Before seating herself next to her.

"What's got you so happy today?" She tried to say with some amount of older sister tease in it, however she has neither a sister, or the happiness to pull it off. Making it sound like she's just asking what is there to be happy about.

Greer was doodling on the margins of a roll of parchment, leaving the space empty in the middle. She rested her chin in her hands, yawning, then smiling, as she scritch-scratched the quill down the page, making a crisscross of crooked wings. She was supposed to write words in the middle of the parchment. She was supposed to describe the traits of doxies. But she'd rather draw terrible doodles. Isn't that something that doxies would do?

Besides, she was too happy to actually start on her revision. A thin piece of lined paper rested next to the parchment on the table, folded three times and sticking up.

A letter from home.

Her grandparents had sent her a letter today, with something much more important attached. Better late than never! She'd been so prepared to stay angry at them that she'd ripped open the envelope and torn the corner off the thin paper. Still, she hadn't messed up their signature slip. Yet. Maybe she'd give it to Knox Greyfriar the next time she saw him, whenever that was. It's not like she wanted him to know about it. It's not like he was the first person she'd thought of to tell. She'd ran up one flight of stairs from the Great Hall to his office this morning, and had paused for a moment before running directly to the Gryffindor common room. No, she wasn't that student. She didn't want to make a big deal out of it, or invite a kindly but long conversation, or grin too much about it, or make it seem like she needed anything, or make it seem like she was really happy.

But she was.

Then someone sat next to her and called her out on it. Being happy! At her table. The table where she'd taken a seat in the middle just to be an arsehole, because she expected no one to want to sit with her. The table where she was sitting in her pajama pants and a sweatshirt because no one could tell her what to do on the weekends.

Lucinda! How dare she.

Greer dropped her smile faster than she stilled the quill in her hand. Her gaze flicked to the letter sticking up on the table, and then back to Lucinda. What was grouchy Lucinda asking for? Better not be to bemoan her own life!

Greer folded her arms and leaned back in her chair.

"Wouldn't you like to know."

Lucinda might like to know. She'd just asked after her, which she normally only did around the full moon, and she normally only did so through concerned glances and a concentrated effort not to snap too much. The gritted-teeth girls, Greer thought of themselves.

The truth was, most people did not want to know.

She stared at Lucinda, unable to muster a glare, but holding her gaze and very carefully not looking at the letter she'd left there on the table. If she just didn't look at it, Lucinda wouldn't have any idea. She'd be distracted by the doxies that Greer had drawn on her assignment. If she could even tell they were doxies.

"Wouldn't you like to know."

That was...why she asked? Did Greer not get these things? Admittedly from what she read, she was kept in a basement for several years, it was a possibility that she didn't have much in the way of social skills. Lucinda doubted she would have much if she was locked away at the start of Hogwarts, luckily she did have the years to have a group of friends. Even if they all abandoned her the moment she returned due to rumours and speculation. Then outright reject her when it all came out.

She still hated that people thought she was dating an Azkaban inmate. Why would people jump to that?

She shifted to relax herself, she was tense, she was tired, she wanted sleep and hadn't eaten much today. She knew she was liable to snap but she needed to relax a bit so she doesn't scare Greer, or damage the already bad relationship between the two of them. They weren't on the best of terms, being in that they only saw eachother at their most vulnerable, never in good spots.

"Have you just got a loveletter?" She asked, an attempt to tease in her voice. "Hhhm, perhaps a large amount of money?"

In truth she didn't really know what Greer liked at all, she knew nothing about her other then rumours that she already discarded and from the papers. Neither were good sources for really knowing a thing about her. Would she even care for loveletters? Lucinda knew she herself most certainly didn't.

Well maybe a little bit, would be nice to have someone to lean upon. But that was about the extent of it before she got into a worse mood.

"Got yourself a bug jar?"

Oh crap, Lucinda noticed the letter.

Greer drew back further in her seat. Ew. A love letter? No thanks. Those were for students who wore red and pink on Valentine's Day and went to secret dances and thought they were being clever by sending out secret invitations. Nope. Not for her. She'd been nice enough not to crash the dance with a jar full of bugs.

No money, either. Greer picked up her quill and doodled a pound sign on the palm of her hand. She needed to remember to ask her grandparents for actual wizarding money so she'd have something fun to do during the Hogsmeade weekend.

The corner of Greer's mouth twitched. A bug jar!

Greer only cared a little about bugs, but her little brother cared a lot. A small smile flickered on her face. Good guess, Temple.

"Yeah and I hid the jar in your dormitory. Without a lid."

Greer leaned forward and doodled another doxy on the scroll of parchment, large enough for Lucinda to see. A monster doxy! One with a scorpion tail and dragon wings.

"You won't know what's inside it until you forget about it and walk around barefoot."

Without looking, she plucked the letter on the table and dragged it closer to her, inch by inch, about to shove it in her bookbag on the floor.

Greer didn't seem fond of the loveletter idea, nor the money one which made her doodle something. So wasn't love or money, which makes it much harder. Most Hogwarts students would only care for three things, Love, Money or Grades. She doubted highly it was about her grades, she didn't think that Greer was too interested in getting good marks in class, it was difficult to fail a year anyway so she wasn't worried about Greer failing either.

The bug answer seemed to get something out of her, she knew it likely wasn't true, for a start she didn't think Greer knew which room was hers so there was that to it. The other part being that she wasn't too worried by a couple of bugs in her room, even if magical. One of the other girls was likely to encounter it first, besides, she knew worse ways to get back at Greer if she wanted, or pettier ways certainly.

"Thats going to be awkward for it then, I tend to wear nothing except socks around my room." She said with a sigh, intended to sound like she was teasing. "So I don't feel at risk of a bug attack." She gave a small smirk, managing to get a more genuine, less aggressive looking one going on with her.

She slid back to make herself more comfy on the couch, she wasn't fond of the couches usually, unless she got it to herself. Then she can just spread out completely and lay all along them, otherwise they felt odd, too open and exposed, while the armchair you could easily rest back in due to the armrests being there on both sides. And don't even get her started on being in the middle, trapped between two others. She supposed if she was with one of them or friendly enough, it wouldn't be as bad as she can just lean onto them though as a pillow.

"What is it then?" She asks gently, slipping her shoes off to get them up on the couch and under herself, shoes on a couch was horrible, can't relax in them regardless let along up messying the surface.

"You can tell me anything." She attempted to say in another older sisterly way.

Greer stuffed the letter into her bag and straightened up at the table, privately glad that Lucinda had let her hide the letter instead of grabbing it like some of the other older students might have. The letter told good news, yes, but it was so perfunctory that it read like it came from someone who didn't know or like her much at all. Her grandparents.

Lucinda thought that socks would protect her from monster-bugs, but that was forgivable. Why'd she have to leap to an overly concerned tone? They both got that enough from Professors.

"It's not that dramatic," Greer scowled slightly at Lucinda who had taken over the couch.

"There's no drama to it. My grandparents just sent in my permission slip so that I can finally go to Hogsmeade on the weekends. That's it. Woohoo. I'm going to go wander around and buy a bunch of candy and use the jars later to hide your stinky stocks in. Those are worse than bugs."

Greer wrinkled her nose at Lucinda's feet on the couch, and playfully waved her hand in front of her face. Lucinda was being strangely nice today. She must be bored. Greer couldn't help but smile again. There was no drama to it! Greer had only sulked and moped and grumped for an entire week after the last Hogsmeade trip she'd missed.

Greer could be rather snarky when she wanted to be, or so Lucinda learned here, she was fairly proud of her, it was a good way to go. Although she did run a finger over her foot awkwardly, she was fairly certain they didn't smell, she had only showered not long ago and only went to the hall for food so it wasn't as if she'd done a huge amount. She tucked both underneath her body regardless.

"I don't know, there are some nasty bugs, I hear there's on that listens to everything you do for others to hear." She said softly and leaned onto the couch arm. A soft sigh escaping as she mumbled something about worse bugs being caused by bites and scratches. Before picking up a little. "Or there's the hair bug, it goes into messy hair and wiggles about singing all day." A complete lie but she gave a gentle smile off also.

Greer was happy over the letter, she was tempted to read it straight off but she wanted to let her keep it secret, she'd opened far too many letters to others only to find weird or dodgy things going on, either gossip or inappropriate drawings that she was sure were far out of proportion. Nothing like that for Greer but regardless it was  good way to learn of privacy and courtesy.

"Congratulations!" She said in a genuinely cheery voice. "Although I may or may not have to go around with you." She added on in a slightly slower tone as she remembered it. "I was sort of scared that I wouldn't be allowed last month...so tried to make a deal with the Headmaster..."

Greer raised her eyebrows when Lucinda tucked her feet in. No! She wasn't being serious! She stifled a laugh, feeling the kind of glee that only came with successfully teasing an older student.

The bugs sounded suspect, but Greer supposed they could be real creatures.

"Oh good then, my hair's not a bit messy, not at all," she shook her head, letting her chin-length, frizzy mop of curls swing around her face. She grinned a little. Her grandda had sometimes teased her by calling her Shirley when she was really young, which just showed how old he was. Since the trial though, he didn't call her funny nicknames anymore.

Greer nodded, glad to hear the cheer in Lucinda's voice, and assumed that would be that. A normal, happy interaction between two Gryffindors who rarely had reason to celebrate.

But then Lucinda went on to admit that she'd had a talk with the Headmaster, and it wasn't about bugs, or about the dangers of walking barefoot. It sounded like another b-word that ended with 'sitting'.

"This isn't about babysitting, right?" Greer's smile dropped. "What kind of deal?"

She looked down awkwardly, but then shrugged a bit. She didn't think it would actually come to anything to at all honestly, she doubted the Headmaster would force them to spend time together and all, so it was unlikely anything would come from it right? Besides he likely even forgot it was a thing by now. Greer didn't seem to like the idea of it and Lucinda wasn't fond of the idea of it either, time had passed and there wasn't an attack last month so it shouldn't apply.

"I asked if I would still be allowed to go on Hogsmeade if I looked after you for it." She said slightly guiltily, she was completely thinking of herself for it but same time she doubted the Headmaster would want them to go at all due to the safehouse attack. "It was a bit after the full moon, when the attack happened, I didn't think he would allow either of us to visit. Most likely he doesn't remember, he has other things on his mind."

Things like Draco being allowed into Hogwarts again after taking in the attack on the school, or the upcoming moon, or likely some student blowing up a toilet. Or personal life, she doubted he had one, although the idea of him being some sort of poker champion or something was quite funny to her.

"Although even if he does, there is the protest, I'm going to that.." She sort of had to really, she still felt awful about SAWS, at the time she was the only one other then the Headmaster who was a werewolf, now Greer was here so more reason, but it still felt odd that it was brought back with her being the only one, people would be justified saying its something for her own ego as it looks like it...

"..However there may be alot of people there, so who's to say you can't just run off into the crowd and have fun during it?" Maybe she should try seeing if Greer was interested, it may be useful, if nothing else to help her make friends?

Greer looked at Lucinda, cozy on the couch, and after a moment she moved to sit in the chair at the end of the table, nearer the girl.

"That's what I do," Greer nodded stoutly, resting an elbow on the table edge and stretching her feet out. "I run away from the crowd and have fun doing it."

Wasn't she clever, changing a word! She looked at Lucinda, waiting for her to 'get it', her lower lip tucked in tight to resist a smile.

She could be mad at her, but she didn't feel like it. Chances were, the Headmaster had moved on to bigger concerns, and nothing was going to stop Greer from doing what she wanted to do the second she stepped foot in Hogsmeade. Lucinda was right. Greer could run off at any time. A protest sounded boring, anyway.

"What's the protest?" She hoped she wouldn't regret asking, glancing curiously at Lucinda.

"SAWS is protesting Zonko's Joke shop." She said gently while searching her pockets, for some reason she thought she had a flier or something on her, but she was mistaken, it would of been more odd for her to take one about with her just to get food and then go back to bed wouldn't it?

"They made a sweet that makes hair grow all over you, its to prank your friends into being a werewolf. Zeta," she paused slightly at the name and shifted a bit. "Is rather fired up about it, we wrote letters complaining but they mocked up and so we will protest." She hoped she got it all covered right, she was fairly certain she had, she gave Greer a look up and down, trying to gauge her reaction to it all.

"You should come to a SAWS meeting. They...tend to be nice. We had the head of the Werewolf wing last meeting." She wondered if things would of been different had Greer been at the previous two meetings, she would of likely still punched Rigel, had Greer even been in Hogwarts then? And the last one was just questions, so she doubted anything much would of changed.

It still would be nicer to have the other school werewolf there, even if, she thought guiltily, it did just mean that there might be less looks at herself and some aimed at Greer.

Right, Greer had heard something about Zonko's and their new supplies for spring. An earnest Hufflepuff first-year had asked her what she thought about the werewolf candy that made people fuzzy all over.

She'd thought that she'd like to slip a candy to Gwenna Trevelyan, who liked to bite people anyway. She'd thought about that for a good long moment.

She'd told the boy that she'd turn his eyebrows into fuzzy caterpillars if he bothered her again, and he'd run off, smiling at her over his shoulder. He'd understood the joke. She hadn't had to explain it.

Greer laughed, looking at Lucinda as closely as she was looking at her. Oh no. Lucinda was serious? She looked serious. They were seriously upset about the candy, and they were going to protest at Zonko's during the Hogsmeade weekend.

Her first Hogsmeade weekend.

Her smile vanishing, she turned in her seat and glanced away. Lucinda went on about how Ministry bigwigs attended SAWS meetings, but Greer wasn't paying attention.

"What if I think the candy is funny?"

Greer frowned, picking at the edge of the table like the inanimate object had offended her.

"What if I wrote to Zonko's and said," she paused, "Good job, you. Keep up the funny fuzzies and how about making some moony-loony cakes. What if I did that?"

Lucinda gave a sigh and looked down, she wasn't sure what to really say, Greer wasn't up for it, she knew she wouldn't, she understood about it. After all why would Greer exactly care, she was a year younger, mentally she was likely much younger. And to tell the truth Lucinda didn't care much either, why should she expect Greer to care. Especially when she may get booed at or judged for going into Zonko's, and it would be on her first time to Hogsmeade.

She took a few looks around and tried to put her hand out to take Greers. "To be honest with you. I'm not much for it either, you can write that, I don't mind. Zeta got fired up over it, I would rather just ignore but..." She sighed and settled again slowly. "She is going to do it, I'm just more...there. If the shop wants to be idiots, then people will catch on and call them out."

She was more angry at the condescending tone of the reply letter, the rest she felt...burnt out. It was a dumb prank, there are far better, if anything it shows unoriginality on Zonko's part, the name was dumb and annoying, the advertising more so. But them not even being able to reply to her without making it some sort of joke, or condescending, or insulting. Did they not have a single person to actually write out replies?

"I can understand why you'd be annoyed." She said in another sigh.

Greer drew back in surprise, both at Lucinda's gesture of support and her immediate understanding. Lucinda sounded as tired as Professor Greyfriar! Had he been giving out lessons on sad sighing?

"What?" Greer scowled, crossing her arms. Lucinda could try to pat her hand, but she'd get her elbow instead.

"I'm not that annoyed," she said, though she didn't know what she was feeling. All Greer knew was that a minute ago, she'd barely given any thought to Werewolf Pops, and now she had to feel feelings about it. She had to think about how she'd avoid the unavoidable protest at Hogsmeade, and the people who might bother her worse than any first years would.

"Writing to them takes effort, so don't worry. I don't know. It's just dumb."

Dumb. Stupid! Her favorite insult. Third-years didn't like to hear whenever she thought an idea was dumb, but Lucinda, a year older, might not take it personally. Sometimes it felt like she was much older and understood so much more than Greer did. Lucinda had made friends with the kids in SAWS, and she paid better attention to rumors and gossip and silly romance things, and she hid in her hoodie most of the time but poked her head out to make sarcastic comments, and she was probably doing better in school, too.

Her arms still crossed, Greer leaned forward a bit and narrowed her eyes. She'd used this look on her younger brother many a time, trying to suss out answers.

"Why are you only doing it for Zeta?"

With a sigh of more...frustration then anything, Lucinda pulled away from Greer to give her space. This was getting on her nerves now, she knew Greer wouldn't take it easily, how could she? Werewolf girl younger then herself and had it for longer, had been cooped up with no access to Hogwarts and others, now she is getting her first trip to Hogsmeade however she is being told there will be protests against one of the most popular shops there. To be told that she would be judged for trying to enjoy her first Hogsmeade...

But she was acting like such a brat about it! Couldn't she just ease up a little and see that she wasn't really happy about it either? Lucinda didn't want to join a protest, Zeta was the one fired up about it. Lucinda was just there for the ride and wanted to make sure nothing too bad happened with it! She would rather spend the Hogsmeade relaxing in the village and getting to splash a little, get herself some nice clothes, a butter bear, maybe some bottled to bring back. Not just stand around with a sign in a noisy crowd! She had enough of noisy crowds with the other Hogwarts students in the corridors.

She was just trying to keep an eye out for Greer, to make sure she is doing okay, to help her with things going on, and yet she was being a little child over it all. Was she not willing to accept that she could be nice to people? That she wasn't just moody? Sure she was mostly, she knew she was, she just wanted to be left alone. Not completely but enough she can have her quiet and still get along with people, but was the younger girl incapable of comprehending she was able to be nice at all?

"Why are you only doing it for Zeta?"

That...struck a nerve in her, who said she was only doing it for her? She wasn't! That was a lie! She never said that at all!

"I'm not only doing it for her!" She snapped rather more defensively then she had intended to, immediately feeling bad as her face flushed ever so lightly. "She is the one...who wanted to organize it, and to do it. I'm there...to make sure things go right...like...an enforcer." She didn't like the sound of it at all, she did not want to be there, but if no werewolves showed up then it would look bad right? And SAWS only really came back due to her right? Zeta led its resurrection but it was only really for...her...

"Not....not just for her."