Burning the Late Night Hours

It was the middle of the night and Quelyn Werther still sat in the Ravenclaw common room the fire barely flickering in the fire place across the room Creating what little light she used to see by, and warmth. Reaching up she pushed the hair from her face and flipped the page of the book that lay open on the table in front of her. Her quill scratched across a piece of parchment as she wrote a letter she thought would be her last to her father.
After she had not gone home for Christmas Break he had sent her one of his usual nasty letters threatening her with the most horrible words she had ever read in her life. It repeated his favorite threats from past letters telling her how worthless she was and that if she did not come home on the next brake he would hunt her down and if he didn't drag her home pulling her by her hair then he would surely do worse. Obviously he had been drinking again, always drinking, drinking away his pain.

Kaleigh frowned as she finally put down the book she had been reading for hours now up in her bed. Stretching, she stood up from the four poster bed and yawned. She was tired and by a look of the window she could tell it was the middle of the night. Rolling her eyes in boredom, Kaleigh sighed. She was tired but wide awake and there would be no way she would be sleeping any time soon as of right now.

She slowly pulled on some slippers she received from her mum for Christmas. Kaleigh had stayed at Hogwarts though to avoid contact from anyone, mainly staying in the dorms. Since Jimmy had disappeared Kaleigh had been doing that a lot lately.

Slowly she moved her way to the door of her dorm on her way to the common room to sit near the fire and think some more. Trying to take Jimmy from her memory was not what she wanted to do but she knew she would have to to feel anything for anyone any more. The most Kaleigh was hoping for was to find someone who understands her pain.

Moving down the stairs she noticed the fire was slowly going out. Groaning, she pulled out her wand and did a quick flick of her wrist. She had been slowly learning how to cast spells without saying anything out loud. Though so far all she can do is make fires. It does become handy sometimes though.

She walked towards the chairs and couch and noticed there was what looked to be a second year, probably more of a first year, sitting there as well. Kaleigh bit her lip worried, hoping she hadn't scared the poor girl with her little fire trick. "H-h-hii" She said quietly as she sat down across from the girl. She let her head fall so she was staring at the ground in embarrassment. "So... so sorr-ry if I sca.. scared you.." She whispered loud enough for the girl to hear.

Quelyn had barely noticed the older girl who had come into the room. "H-Hello," She stuttered and pushed the parchment under her book hoping to be discreet about it. "H-How would you h-have scared me?" She asked shyly letting her hair fall back down to cover her face. Sure the brightness of the new flames hurt her eyes but she was use to people coming in in the middle of the night. In the summer she would wait up for her father. The young girl would sit by the dying fire some times so long that the sun had set and began to rise again before the old bitter man drug his feet through the door.

Kaleigh shrugged slightly still biting her lip a little bit. "Just.. Didn't see you there... and the fire.. kind of just made it poof up... and stuff..." She slowly sputtered out. "Thought.. may-aybe it might have sh-shocked you a bit..." She quietly said as she played with a piece of her hair continuing to stare at the floor.

After a minute, she slowly looked up at the girl trying not to make too much eye contact but also trying to take in her appearance at the same time. The girl looked slightly tired, but also a bit worried perhaps? Kaleigh couldn't really make out the girls expression. "You... you're a first year.. right?" She said taking a quick guess, trying not to make their accidental meeting awkward though Kaleigh was sure it would end that way just like all the other conversations she had been having as of lately.

"Bright, yes, Scary, no," Quealyn said shaking her head from side to side, "Worse has happened in this world." The young girls face most have looked expressionless with a distant look from the way the girl in front of her looked at her with a scared confused look. "Yes, a first year," she nodded watching the girl her eyes not blinking and no sign of an intake of breath from the rising and falling of the shoulders. Like a stone statue she sat there her back perfectly straight and her head tilted to the side at a forty-five degree angle. "My name is Quelyn. Nothing more nothing less," She introduced herself quietly.

After her response, Kaleigh took in the girl as broken. This upset Kaleigh as the young girl was beautiful and defiantly smart, who would want to hurt her? This question continued to run through her mind as she smiled softly when the girl gave her name. "I'm... a seventh year.." She replied softly, pausing. She noticed the girl didn't give her last name like it didn't matter to her in a way. "Kaleigh... my name is Kaleigh" She responded again, almost trying to reassure herself of her own name. She looked over to the fire, her eyes lighting up seeing the warmth of it.