Scratch

The scratch of his quill against a fresh roll of parchment, breaking the surface of the page, seemed to join the symphony of similar etchings at the most inopportune of moments. A cough resounded around the otherwise silent room, and then followed by another and another. It was this that made the concentration in Sevastian’s wrinkled brow lapse somewhat and his forehead smoothed as his face lost the frown that had taken hostage his pointed, almost Elvin features, and once again his expression became neutral. With a huff of breath, a strand of white-blonde hair flew up from its rooted spot in his scalp and hovered in the air for a few moments, excess magic and perhaps static keeping it there, before dropping back down to tickle his cheeks. Sevastian stifled a sneeze with a wrinkle of his nose and brushed away the stray strand of hair before it proved to be more of a hindrance than it already was by escaping from the braid he’d plaited his hair into earlier that morning. That was before he’d retreated to the library for some much needed revision time and a chance to complete his outstanding assignments.

With a sigh, Sevastian put his quill down and tossed his arms up into the air in a stretch, an involuntary yawn breaking from his throat. He was glad now for the seclusion of his spot. He was encased by two parallel bookcases swollen with books of countless subjects and ages. He could have spent hours in there but his desire to read had not been as strong lately. Then again, the flu like symptoms he’d had hadn’t left for much room in terms of pastimes. He was too busy being feverish to really care about anything other than getting better. He’d been feeling better lately though, after a bout of potions from the Hospital Wing. Not cured, mind you - far from it in fact - but strong enough to get some work done. Secretly though, he hoped to be disturbed, boredom having set in long ago. However, Sevastian didn’t think he’d have such a luxury imminently. So, much to his dismay, he buckled down once more and began to work on his potions assignment which was too many inches for him to even remember. It was O.W.L year for him, he knew, but there was still no need for such a horrific work load.

It was warm and beautiful outside and he couldn't be out there now. No, he had to stay inside and do some work. He would much rather be outside at the lake, the Forest, anywhere except inside the castle right now. Everyone had been getting sick lately, all around the same time and he knew that it was only a matter of time before he for sick too. He wanted to delay that, but he couldn't because all his professors had left him a truck load of work. Okay, so it was his O.W.L year, but that doesn't mean that they should shove tons of homework at the students. That wasn't fair, no one liked having tons and tons of homework, without the hope of ever finishing. Still he knew he had to do it, or he would get in trouble and that was something he didn't want. Besides he would be able to finish it quick, he was a smart kid, hence his being in Ravenclaw.

The brunette boy known as Jayden Volkov, dropped his quill onto the piece of parchment in front of him and raised his hands over his head. He stretched his arms and back before he ran a hand through his already messy hair - he hardly ever liked to comb it - and he lowered his hand once once more to the quill in front of him. He had to finish his Charms essay but all he really wanted was a distraction. Something to help him get away from the work and, hopefully, outside to the warmth of the day. Jayden sighed, resigning from the hope that someone would just come and take him away from all the books stacked in front of him and from the many pieces of parchment laid out in front of him. He had written only about two words when he lifted his head from the parchment. Jayden didn't want to sit around the entire day and do nothing but work. The Fifteen year old dropped his quill again and got up from his seat, making his way across the library to a window facing the Forest. He had to get out there, somehow.

Boredom had engulfed the young Krum to the point where his hair had turned an ugly shade of muddy grey. He sighed heavily and picked up a fistful of his hair from his shoulder, frowning at the grey strands that seemed to do little more than age him. His frown smoothed away once his hair had been returned to his usual shade of bright blonde. Sevastian cracked a smile at his reflection in the glass of the window and wriggled his nose, watching as his features became even more pointed and feminine. He chuckled a little under his breath and rose from where he’d been sat, taking with him the quill that he’d discarded mere moments ago. He needed something more to go on. His desk was covered in books but there was little more he could do without something else, something better. He wanted something that would impress the new Headmistress but he had yet to put his finger on what that could be. He wanted to draw on old Potions theories and explain where the theorists had gone wrong and why, perhaps, those mistakes had lead to their often very gory, potion-explosion-related deaths.

Sevastian’s desires took him to a different part of the library. Impractically he’d taken up residence at a desk that was nowhere near the Potions section, buried deep instead in the fiction section next to the erotic literature. Hardly anything to do with potions. Sevastian turned the corner of one of the shelves and stopped when he saw a boy standing looking wistfully out of a window. Sevastian licked his lips in thought and tipped his head to the side as he took in the creature from behind. Sevastian folded himself back around so he could not be seen as a wide smirk tugged his lips upwards. He looked down at himself, taking a looking glass from his pocket as he did so. He flicked his wand at his clothes, transfiguring his trousers into a short, black pleated skirt that the girls wore. He then turned his socks into tights and his shoes into heeled, closed toe, low cut pair of shoes with a strap across the instep. His smile only widened as he wriggled his nose at the mirror, making his features even more feminine than they usually were. His eyes darkened to a brown colour more like his natural eye colour and his hair dropped the blonde for an equally dark brown. His lips reddened and his cheeks flushed scarlet. Then, with an extra little bit of magic, made his chest puff out and form the lumps needed to be as convincing as possible. Sevastian then let his hair out of the braid and allowed it to fall in soft waves around his shoulders. He winked at his reflection in the mirror and pocketed it again before curving around the bookshelf and into the presence of the boy once more.

“Excuse me,” Sevastian’s voice was far higher pitched than usual and it had a soft quality about it that made him seem even more womanly but also, fragile. He smiled lopsidedly and brought his hand up to fiddle with a piece of hair, his eyes set on the boy. “You wouldn’t happen to know where Sykes’ book on Potion Theory is do you? I’ve been looking all over but I just can’t seem to find it.”

A sigh of boredom escaped his lips as he stared out of the window, down at the students who were able to go outside and enjoy the day. They were probably first, second and third years, as those students were the ones that had nothing much to worry about at this time - boy how wrong he was - maybe there were even site sixth years out there too. But the fifth years and the seventh years were probably all stuck inside. The fifth years had their O.W.L's to worry about and the seventh years had their graduation to worry about. Which, for most, meant getting any work they had passed in so they would actually be able to graduate with everyone else. The boy began to tap his fingers on the windowsill out of boredom as he stared out. His sister was probably bored out of her mind as well, since she was in the same year as him and all. They just couldn't catch a break.

As he surveyed those outside, his eyes quickly diverted to the Forest more than anywhere else. Though students weren't supposed to go into it, he had done it before. He knew most students went in there despite the warnings they received. The warnings only served to encourage them to go in there more, as they had for Jayden. There was nothing dangerous about the Forest, or at least not where he'd gone. He'd never gone too far in, there was always something that told him not to go too far in so he never did. But he had never gotten hurt in there, which was enough for him to believe that the Forest was safe and that no one would harm whoever went inside of it. Oh, how he longed to be in there right now.

Jayden turned around at the sound of a voice, a feminine voice, speaking to him. His eyes focused on the person in front of him and for a long moment, before he said anything, he stared at the 'girl' in front of him. Soon after he quickly shook his head and smiled at her. "Er.. I'm sure it's around here somewhere. I'll help you look." he said softly.