Nothing seemed to stop the movement of time.  It had been serveral months since she had seen her room mate.  And probably been even longer since both of them occupied their shared living space at the same time.  It certainly hadn't been intentional to be seperated for this long.  Ciarra didn't have a clue how long she would be away from the apartment.  So she had made sure that her part of the rent would be sent automatically in her absence.  Of course it was easier to arrange that since her Father was the owner of the Forrester Terrace Apartment complex. 

Her Father had arranged for her to be trained by a man named Vane Hendric.  She might have questioned the motives of her Father back then, but now she understood why he wanted her to go.  There had been quite a lot she didn't understand.  She had to get past a lot of baggage that held her back.  All of it had to be stripped away for her to progress.  Vane's training had been rough, and close to inhumane.  She had been literally left to the wolves and without a wand. 

She didn't regret any of it.  All of it made her see a lot of herself.  Now she was more physically fit than she ever was before.  And a careful confidence.  But none of that mattered when she entered her apartment.  The only thought was coming home to see her best friend.  Someone she had been wanting to see for some time.  She could barely contain her energy.

"Scirey!  You home?" She said as she came in.

It had taken Scirey some time to get used to living by herself. Her entire life she had been surrounded by people. Company was part of the job description when you were the middle child of five sent and was sent off to a boarding school. At first she had been terrified by even the thought of living alone. Scirey was a worrywart to the extreme, especially after her little traumatic adventure with the mysterious  gift giver who had kidnapped her several years back. Despite her fears Scirey refused to move back home. She was an adult and she could live by herself for a few months. Ciarra would eventually return, when that would be had yet to be determined but Scirey was going to wait it out or die trying. Sometimes she was just as stubborn as the rest of her family.

Still despite her resolve to live in her apartment by herself Scirey had spent much of the summer traveling around working the art show circuit, visiting family and baby sitting her two younger siblings who were home from Hogwarts for the summer.

Now that summer was over Scirey was once again alone in her, now spacious apartment. She ignored the calendar hung in the small kitchen that automatically ticked off the days   that passed without the return of her best friend. Scirey had set up her painting stand on the balcony her different muggle paints standing, half open on a small, thin table. A large canvas stood in front of Scirey as she painted another landscape.

A soft, classic record was playing in the background as Scirey worked. She was humming the tune as she examined her work, her paint brush wedged between two fingers, her wand holding her long, surprisingly glossy  curls in a messy bun.

Scirey hadn't heard the rattling of the door knob or the click of the locks. She had been so absorbed in her painting, that she had forgotten to turn the alarm system on. She hadn't been that forgetful in years.  Scirey jumped at the sound of her name, she froze momentarily as her brain processed the information that she was no longer alone and someone who sounded so much like Ciarria was with her.

Scirey took several calming breaths as she felt the familiar pressure starting to build up in her chest. She was not going to have a panic attack! Scirey set down her paint brush, but not before getting some drops on her slightly over sized sweat shirt that went passed her knees. Scirey whipped her wand out of her hair, causing it to fall to her waist, as she entered the main part of the house.  She knew in her heart that it was Ciarra, but she couldn't be too careful, she had learned her lesson about that. Scirey was not going to be taken unawares again.

Scirey entered the living room with wand pointed straight out. The woman who was standing in her living surely looked like Ciarra, expect for the fact that she didn't. This "Ciarra", if it really was her and not an impostor, was buffer, there was a hardness about her that she hadn't had before.

"Hi Darling," Scirey said with a small smile that she tried to hide, "What day did we meet, and how?" She asked unwilling to greet her friend unless she answered. If this "Ciarria" got the answer wrong, Scirey was prepared to attack.

Ciarra wanted to laugh but knew better than that.  It was Scirey after all and Ciarra had to admit that she looked a lot different.  Her body was much more shapely.  Her curves much more defined and she carried herself a lot differently than she used too.  Anyone that was cautious would probably be suspicious of the new Ciarra.  Especially anyone that knew her as well as Scirey did.  They were best friends after all.

"Technically we met September 1st on the train ride to Hogwarts during our first year.  But you sat in the third car while I was in the second.  But the day we first spoke together was on the 21st of September in the Library.  If I remember correctly, you were reading Hogwarts, A History.  I came in dodging a group of Slytherin boys and you helped hide me until they left.  The rest as they say...is history.  Though really I think its up to a matter of opinion.  You could argue that we really didn't become good friends til dueling club," Ciarra offered a big smile.

If there had been one constant in her life it would be Scirey.  Ever since school the two had been best friends.  She was one of the few in the entire world that she felt she could trust with anything.  For Ciarra, there was a handful of people that she could say she knew well and were friends with.  Scirey, Cyrus, Aureliane, and Moira.  There wasn't really anyone else.  Kyle Gibson maybe, but he was long gone...and she doubted she would ever get him back.

"Is that sufficient?  Can I hug you now?" Ciarra laughed.

Scirey had done some growing up while Ciarra had gone. She was still shy and obviously paranoid but she was older and more confident, especially when it came to her art and she was slightly bolder. Scirey wasn't going to allow life to run rod shod over her with a Nimbus 2012. She had started with learning how to do her hair. Scirey's typically waifish appearance had matured a bit.  She no longer looked like a scarecrow, or an orphan. Scirey's skin actually held a bit of  a tan and her hair was recently styled, despite the slight mess to it after being twisted out of the way with a wand. Ciarra wasn't the only one who had changed. They were both healthier.

Scirey couldn't help but smile as the woman in front of her spewed out facts that only each other knew. Her best friend in the whole wide world had finally followed the rode back to her. The tension that had raced through scirey at the sound of her name began to disappear, she shoulders sagged as her body relaxed and she dropped her arm. Scirey did not have many friends, basically Ciarra was it. Sure she had her cousin and her family but really no one close but Ciarra.

"Passed with flying charms!" Scirey said with a warm, rare full fledged smile as she tucked her wand in her pocket as she quickly jogged to her friend enveloping the taller woman in a hug.

"How was training?" She asked pulling back slightly too look at Ciarra.

Ciarra instantly felt a lot more like herself when Scirey hugged her.  Over the past few months she had been pretty detatched with a large portion of herself, mainly anything that felt any emotions.  "The training?  I didn't have a clue what I had gotten myself into.  But don't get me wrong I don't regret it.  My Father took me to meet with a man that he had bumped into in his travels.  His name is Vane Hendric, you know the one recently named as the head of the Werewolf Capture Unit.  It was rough right from the begining...maybe we should get more comfortable before I launch into story time...this is gonna be a while."

She reached inside her large cloak and pulled out a bag that had been attached to her belt.  "I did some shopping, want some hot chocolate?  I think its gotten more than cold enough outside to enjoy it."  She smiled and moved towards the kitchen. 

There was a lot to tell, and she had been dying to tell someone all the nitty gritty details over her what some would call inhumane training.  But even her Father had said that she had some deep seated psychological issues that would take something rather extreme to force her to face them.  But she had, in more ways than she probably ever needed.

"And no worries, I got plenty of marshmallows." she grinned looking back towards Scirey.  She was so glad to be home and to be with her best friend again.  For the first time in what seemed forever they could sit on their couch and talk for as long as they wanted.