[Go back the way you came.]

With a smile that that Aurora agreed to going to the lake edge with him, Vulpes gently took her hand and skipped down the ground. He led them to the shade of a large oak tree and shrugged off his bag. Then, Vulpes fell back into the grass, arms spread wide. What would they talk about, he wondered. Vulpes himself had never really initiated conversation with people before.

He let out a small happy sigh and quietly said; "It's a nice day." Vulpes smiled and eyed the branches and leaves of the oak he lay under. How exactly did people start conversations? What he said was more of just an opinionated statement. Would that be enough?

Vulpes frowned slightly. Maybe he was over analyzing it. Conversation probably just came naturally to friends. There probably wasn't any tactical thought involved. You just said what came naturally. Unfortunately, the sentence he spoke that came naturally probably wasn't the best. "What do you think you'll do when you find out what happened?"

Realizing what he had said, Vulpes quickly sat up on his elbows, his cheeks flushing slightly. "I uh... I mean..." he stammered. In actuality Vulpes didn't know what he had meant. The question just sort of slipped out. "Sorry," he muttered, dropping his gaze to the grass.

'Well this probably wasn't a good start...' he thought.

Aurora was a little uncertain how to skip while hand and hand with someone, but she managed well and a bubble of laughter crept from her throat.  Once in the shade of a large oak tree, she dropped her back and joined Vulpes on the grass, but sat up.  She looked up at the light poking through the leaves and branches, mentally agreeing: It was a nice day.

"What do you think you'll do when you find out what happened?" Vulpes asked suddenly, making Aurora sigh and look down at her propped-up knees.  She leaned back on her elbows like Vulpes and thought about it for a moment, barely registering his awkward apology.

"I haven't the slightest idea," she said despondently.  "It's all I've ever wanted, really, to know what happened.  I guess when it's all over with, I'll find something else to devote my life to." she answered softly, looking out into the water in contemplation.

"Like being an Auror?" Vulpes asked calmly. He turned his head to face Aurora and gave a smile, merely happy that she didn't think his question was too personal. Although the tone in which she replied left a lot to be desired. Vulpes rolled onto his stomach, still looking at his friend. Now that he thought about it, he wasn't sure what he expected Aurora to say to such a question.

"Or you could always be a performer," He said, still smiling. "I that if you can dance that well, you're probably a good singer." Vulpes's mind drifted for a moment to an old saying his mother had once told him. 'If you can walk you can dance, if you can talk you can sing.' He hadn't a clue where she had heard it, but at the time it had made him feel better, though now he could no longer recall the context of the words.

Vulpes bobbed his head from side to side as he began to think of music, his headphones slowly beginning to play a symphony. Without hesitation, he pulled them off from around his neck and tossing them over to his bag.. "Oh, sorry..." he apologized sheepishly. "I forget that they can start playing on there own based on mood. I mean it's a neat trick, sometimes. But..." Vulpes blushed slightly and looked away. "It's a bit embarrassing when you're talking to a girl you like and it starts playing a love song, or something."

Aurora furrowed her eyebrows and bit her bottom lip.  She had never considered being a performer.  Though she had a natural affinity for the arts, she never thought about taking her talents further than that of a hobby.  "I suppose I could..." she said distractedly.  "But I'm pretty set on being an Auror.  There are bad people out there that get away with treacherous crimes, and I want to make it so they are dealt with.  No one should have to suffer for their heinous deeds."

Cracking a smile, she flushed slightly and looked away at Vulpes's mention of liking a girl and a love song playing.  It reminded her of the previous night's conversation with Cytherea.  Nervously, she ran her fingers through the lush grass and hummed to herself.  She wondered if Cytherea had talked to him about it like she said she would.

Vulpes had to admit, she had a good point about being an Auror. That was why he wanted to be one after all. To make the world a better place for everyone. He noticed she blushed slightly about his love song comment, and suddenly remembered (at least part of) something Cytherea had said this morning.

He cleared his throat slightly, suddenly feeling a lump in it. "Hey, Rory," Vulpes started quietly, not entirely sure how ti put it. "Uh, this morning Cytherea said something to me about... well us." Feeling his face growing red he dropped his gaze before continuing in a very nervous voice.

"I hope you don't think I have some ulterior motives for being friends with you..." He glanced up slightly, meeting Auroras gaze. "I mean, I really don't so..." Vulpes couldn't manage to finish that sentence. Letting his voice die in his throat he rest his chin on the ground, looking directly at Aurora's feet.

Aurora coughed uncomfortably and shook her head.  "No, I know.   I didn't think you did.  It's just weird that others perceive it that way, you know." she said reassuringly and smiled lightly.  "This is all just a little strange.  I've never been gossiped about or even noticed by anyone as far as I know.  No worries."  She added quickly and took several deep breaths before looking back out at the lake.  "I tried telling her that it wasn't like that, but, well, you know Cytherea..." she trailed off jokingly and looked sideways at Vulpes with a chuckle.

"Which brings me to my next question.  You mentioned yesterday that you were into a Gryffindor.  Care to elaborate on that?" she asked cheekily, pushing the thoughts of Vulpes and Aurora being together way, way down, never to be seen again... hopefully.

Vulpes lifted his head when she asked who he had meant. She didn't think he meant her did she? He hoped she didn't they had just met, after all. Of course to be fair..."Uh... Murphy," Vulpes said quietly, blushing heavily. If he really thought about it, he and Murphy talked for the first time yesterday. "Murphy Urquhart." He bit his lip and looked back down at the grass. That wasn't something he had told anyone, and it was slightly embarrassing saying it aloud.

His mind shifted for a second as he watched the blades of grass shift in the wind. A thought of him sitting like he was now with Aurora, only as more than friends. Well why not? After all, Aurora was very fun to be around. Why couldn't they - 'No, stop thinking like that,' his inner voice stated rather flatly.

Vulpes gave a sigh and looked back up at Aurora, face still warm. "Sorry if I gave you a wrong impression of some sort..." he said quietly, not at all sure what he was apologizing for or why.

"No, Vulpes, you didn't.  Really." she said sincerely with a soft smile.  "I know Murphy, well, know of, anyway.  No one knows me.  Well, maybe as of last night some people do, anyway." she said lightly with a shrug.  She chuckled and took her leather jacket off, setting it on her bag.  Plopping on her front like Vulpes, she buried her face in the grass and inhaled deeply as her curtain of wavy auburn hair fell around her head.  She loved the smell of the earth.

Looking up at Vulpes, she grinned and wiggled her fingers in between the blades of grass idly.  "Well, are you going to tell me more about her, or do you want to change the subject?" she asked lightly.  She blew some strands of hair out of her face and rested her head on her crossed arms.  She was very comfortable at that moment.

Vulpes gave a smile, placing his chin on the grass. "Well. Murphy is a photographer, has really pretty eyes, and doesn't seem to like me all that much." He laughed slightly, thinking back on it. "Actually I'm not sure on that last part really, she seemed to like me well enough at first but... well. I don't know. Yesterday was the first time I actually had a conversation with her though..." his voice trailed of as Vulpes thought about how absurd it sounded out loud.

He gave a slight shrug, which looked rather odd considering he was on his stomach. "I won't pretend I get girls. Except Cytherea. But that's probably because I've known her since she was born and she acts more like a boy." Vulpes frowned thinking about what his sister would be like when she starts liking guys, as opposed to punching all the ones who say shes cute in the face.

"What about you?" he began casually. "I mean. I know you were a lone wolf until about thirty-six hours ago, but any guys you've admired from afar?" Vulpes tilted his head and once again hoped he wasn't being too nosey.

"As for Murphy, well, she'd be insane not to like you." she said with a smile.  "It's kind of odd if you think about it.  Yesterday was the first time you ever talked to Murphy, and yesterday was also the first time anyone ever talked to me.  Or maybe it's not odd.  Just an observation." she added casually.

Aurora snorted softly and shook her head in amusement.  "No one has caught my eye.  Not in the slightest." she answered lightly and chuckled.  "I think there's something wrong with me," she joked.  "Although my lone wolf status hasn't stopped the guys in the martial arts class from whistling at me and giving me the eye.  Idiot boys." she commented with a sigh.

"It was definitely a day of firsts." Vulpes said with a smile. "For both of us." He let out a laugh as he considered all the things that had happened in a single day. He had talked to Murphy, he and Aurora both made their first friend, they had probably formed a new rumor (though unintentionally) that they were now together, and Cytherea had gone from hating someone to loving them in record time.

Vulpes made a face at the thought of boys making cat calls to Aurora. "Yea well, most guys are pathetic at this age," he stated as a fact. "Can't keep their head out of their pants, if you catch my meaning." Vulpes winked at her, and smiled. It was odd to him that so many boys fell prey to baser instincts. It really wasn't that hard to control them. And what was the big deal about any of it anyways? The entire concept past cuddling or holding hands seemed so... gross. Even kissing seemed a tad too disgusting.

"I don't get it," Vulpes said in a bored voice. "Maybe I'm missing out on something that keeps me from going crazy with lust or something. Oh well, I don't mind," he gave a light laugh. "It certainly makes life a bit easier without it."

Aurora smiled wickedly and peered at Vulpes.  "Oh, they shut up once I teach them a lesson." she said mischievously.  "You see, I'm an assistant instructor for Eric in the summer.  So I get to teach the boys how to kick and... other things.  They underestimate me, I knock them down, they shut up." she chuckled and looked down into the grass idly.

"I can teach you some things, if you'd like.  It's useful to know in situations where you're unable to use magic." she offered lightly, noticing a ladybug crawling up her finger.  Gazing at it in admiration, she allowed it to explore her finger, going toward her palm, which Aurora turned upward.  It had seven spots, she counted with a smile.  "Hello ladybug," she whispered happily.  Aurora really had a love for all animals: no matter the species.

Vulpes shook his head at the offer to teach him hand to hand combat. "Nah, I'd rather learn to work it out with words than fight." He shrugged and  glanced at Aurora's finger. A ladybug, how pretty! Vulpes always found himself watching various creatures as they went about their daily routine. What was it like, he wondered, to be a spider.

The thought of spiders brought him back to the vampires from earlier. "Spiders drink the blood of the insect they catch, or something right?" With a  grin Vulpes tilted his head. "So, does that make Vampires and spiders related in someway, or something?" he mused jokingly. "Because that would be wild."

Vulpes laughed and continued to watch the ladybug on Aurora's finger. "Dear Ladybug," he said softly. "I'm jealous you chose Rory over me. Sincerely, Vulpy."

Aurora smiled at Vulpes's use of Rory again.  The name was starting to grow on her.  She shook her head with a light chuckle.  "Vampires are related to bats more than anything." she said casually without tearing her gaze from the ladybug.  "Dear ladybug, don't mind Vulpy's whining.  It's not his fault I'm more lovable.  Sincerely... Rory." she added lightly and bit her bottom lip, eying Vulpes from the corners of her eyes.

Looking away quickly, she thought about what Vulpes said about vampires.  To her memory, Aurora didn't find any incriminating marks on her mother that day, nor were there any blood stains.  It didn't make sense to suspect vampires to have been involved.

"Pfft!" Vulpes noised. "Bats are so cliche. I'd be much more afraid a Vamp that turns into an Acromantula or something than a bat." He shrugged and laughed. "Maybe that's just me."

Vulpes once again watched the Ladybug, moving his hand in front of where it was crawling so it would come onto his hand instead. It took the insect a few seconds of feeling around, but it finally walked right onto his hand. "Hah!" Vulpes said, pulling his hand back to himself.

"Dear Ladybug, thank you for seeing who... what's wrong?" He noticed Aurora had looked away, biting her lip. "You okay? You can have the ladybug back if you want." Vulpes said quickly, bumping his hand against hers so the insect would once again crawl onto her hand.