Hiding in the dark

"Nonsense", he said rolling his eyes at her. How could she truly believe that? Obviously she didn't know the true nature of most of her fellow members there. Cowards, cheaters, snitches, manipulators - and that's only the beginning. But Andrei wasn't going to say anything, it wasn't his job to. Besides, it wouldn't actually look nice if he went on spitting on the Potter's Army, no matter how much he despised them. He had to remember now that Audrey was part of that group, so saying anything bad just wouldn't be fair to her. And he could keep his mouth shut this time, it would be a lot better that way.

"Of course you do. No matter how messed up we are, we all grew up together. In the same way and often at the same place as well. So I guess it's only natural", he said shrugging his shoulders. Audrey probably shouldn't feel that way though, being a Potter's Army member now. But it was her past and no matter how hard she tried she could never run away from it. Andrei knew that all too well from this own experiences. "We tried to change some things around for the better, create a new structure. But it didn't really help. Organization is definitely not our strong point, but then again someone could say that I expect a lot too. I think we are all doomed to play a child's game until the time comes. Until then, it doesn't really matter. It's all just a play"

"You better not get all high and mighty on me now that you left us. Thinking that you're too cool to talk to the rest of us is just not going to cut it with me", he told her with a playful laugh and a nudge with his elbow. But he knew Audrey wouldn't change. The Dark followers couldn't change her and the Potter's Army would probably fail the same way.

He pulled out a box of tobacco rolled up as cigarettes from his pocket and took one out for himself. Lighting it up with a small flame from his wand, he sucked in the smoke and slowly released it back it. Smoking was a hobby of Andrei's as it was very successful at calming him down. "Want one?", he offered putting the box out to Audrey. "Or do the Potter heads not do that?", he asked with a teasing grin.

Audrey pulled herself together and laughed. She was always more confident than this. She never doubted her choices, and she needed to remember all the things that made her leave. Talking to Andrei was nice because he didn't press for any information. He was accepting, whether he agreed or not.

She shrugged when he brought up their new "organization." And his eagerness to get to the 'big leagues.' But it was his decisions, not hers. But a sly smile crossed her face when he brought out hand rolled cigarettes, and took one carefully. "What the Potter's don't know, won't hurt them." She winked, and then laughed sarcastically. She lit the cigarette with her favorite lighter, and took a drag, tasting the tobacco and feeling it calm her.

"So, we keep coming back to me. Tell me about you." She said, laughing quietly.

Andrei laughed at her comment, glad of her words. "I am happy to see that you are still a rebel, Dark Follower or not", he said with a grin, His eyes scanned the room for an ashtray but there was none in sight. He had to remind him self that this was supposed to be a student's common room and not a Hogsmeade bar. So instead, he improvised. He took an empty cup that was placed on the table near him and used that instead. "I hope someone won't miss their morning tea because of me", he said as his lips stretched out in a smile. Taking another deep inhalation of the smoke into his lungs, he wondered why he ever tried to quite in the first place. Self torture was definitely not in vogue this year.

"Me?", he asked with a chuckle. That was a subject he would rather avoid as he didn't have anything to say about himself. At least nothing constructive, interesting and legal. "I'd much rather stay on your topic. Can't you tell I'm much too boring lately for even a decent story. It is quite sad actually", he said laughing.

"But one thing I can tell you about me is that I am damn right determined to get out of this place for Easter break. I mean staying would just be necessary torture, don't you think? I have a feeling that it would be best if Hogwarts and I parted for a while, at least for a week. For both of our sanity's sake", he said with a chuckle. "Traveling somewhere aboard would be perfection. Going anywhere that doesn't require you to wear a uniform in fact would be brilliant. And what about you? Will you be here, bored to tears, or are you up to something?", he asked curiously.

Audrey smiled at Andrei's adaptation of an ash tray, which she thought it was silly to have none of, especially in the Slytherin Common Room, and knocked her cigarette lightly on the rim of the cup, and lifted it once again. As she inhaled deeply, she raised her eyebrows. No interesting stories? Somehow she found it hard to believe. She smirked slightly. "You need to get out more, love." She said, laughing.

She thought excitedly of the topic of their new discussion. "Oh, no. Not a force on earth could keep me in this forsaken castle during my Spring Break. Though, I haven't the slightest idea where I'll be heading quite yet. I was thinking of a road trip of sorts, if I found someone to come along. Or maybe Paris." She shrugged lightly. She hadn't put much thought into where she'd be headed yet, but she was defiantly up to something. "I plan to be far away from uniforms." she added with a laugh.

Audrey hadn't really asked around much about what her friends were doing over break. She'd need someone to come along with her, of course, she just didn't know who. She wouldn't be spending this break alone though, that's for sure. "As long as I'm not at home, where my mother can harass me with what she considers 'suitable husband material' all break." She rolled her eyes and took another inhale of her cigarette. "What about you? Any ideas where you're going during break? Or just anywhere but here."she asked, and she let a friendly smile cross her face.

"Tell me about it", he said with a laugh. He smiled listening to her Spring break plans. It just made him realize how soon it would be and he still didn't have any concrete plans, just scattered ideas. He had to go over them with Shadow again and just decide where to go. One thing was for sure, he was definitely not staying in this hell hole. "Paris ,ey? Very girly", he said with a chuckle. "But that's not a bad idea actually. If you can ignore the French frogs flocking the city, it's actually a really nice place. I went there a few years ago, but briefly"

He shrugged his shoulders to her question and smiled. "I'm as clueless as you right now. But definitely anywhere but here. I was thinking of going somewhere I haven't been before, just to do something different. The monotony of this place is depressing at times", he stated with a chuckle. Although he did have restrictions on his traveling plans, seeing as the break was only a weak long which wouldn't allow him to do everything he wanted. But still a week was better than nothing.

"I have to talk to Shadow honestly. She is the mastermind behind travel planning. I'm not really patient enough for all of that", he admitted to her. If it was up to Andrei, they would just sit on the first train they see without even asking where it's going. But then again that might not really be the best idea. "But if you decide to go to France, let me know. We might stop by there as well. I know Shadow's a big fan of Paris, as any girl is I suppose". He didn't really understand the allure of that city for girls but for some reason it was definitely a hot stop to visit. "Actually I'm thinking now of maybe Barcelona. Somewhere a bit more warmer. I'm sick of the cold weather here"

"Sounds fantastic." Audrey said dreamily. She didn't care about the bad sides of the French cities. It had always been a dream of her's to go to Paris. "I've been to twenty eight countries, but never France. What's the point in speaking the language if you never go there?" she asked sarcastically.

She smiled broadly when he mentioned Barcelona. "Oh, Barcelona. It's my favorite place in Spain. Last summer I made a snap decision and bought the soonest plane ticket I could find, and I was at the airport the next morning." she laughed to herself. Spontaneous travel was the best travel, to Audrey at least. That trip had been one of her favorites. It had only been for eleven days, but it was gorgeous and relaxing.

Audrey wasn't surprised at Andrei knowing Shadow, but she didn't think they'd be close. But then again, she could see it. Shadow had grown to be rebellious, from what Penny had said. Audrey agreed with Shadow more than Penny on most subjects, but she knew that Penny was just trying to be responsible. It's a wonder they're such good friends, really. "Well, Paris is the city of love, after all." she laughed sarcastically. "Speaking of the Macnairs, I don't suppose you talk to Penny much. Most people only get along with one of the two sisters." she said, with a small laugh. "While you run off with Shadow, I'll probably be with Penny. I need to get her out and about for Spring Break."

"Ah see and I always thought we were learning French just to say that we can speak it. Show off you mean. Or perhaps make fun of the French in their own language. Because that sounds like a very useful skill that I would need in my future", he said laughing. To be honest, Andrei wouldn't even know how to speak French if his parents weren't so insistent on the matter. He thought the language sounded funny and was incredibly difficult to learn and understand. But his opinion didn't matter much, he had to learn French just as everyone else. He wouldn't call himself proficient at it today, but he was rather good at it in the end. Rather surprisingly good considering how much he slacked off with his tutor.

"So you've been there? Yeah I've heard many great things about it that's why it's on my mind. But mostly for the weather I have to say", he said with a grin. Sometimes living in England made you forget that there are actually countries in the world that are sunny for most part of the year. That idea just seemed so different from his current reality that it sounded impossible, yet it was true.

"Well I wouldn't say that I don't talk to her... But you do have a point", he admitted with a laugh. Shadow and Penny, even though they were sisters, had a completely different personality which led to a very different group of friends. "I mean Penny is cool I guess. I don't know that much about her to judge honestly. But she just seems a bit stiff, that's all. Maybe it's because I'm comparing her to Shadow, and everyone might seem stiff compared to her. She's quite a handful", he said laughing.

"That brings me to another subject...I suppose you are coerced to attend the Debutante ball as we all are. Please tell me that you are going so I don't die of boredom. I still can't believe I agreed to attend, although it's not exactly like I had a choice."

Audrey nodded, smiling at Andrei's comments about learning the language, but she was forced to disagree. She loved learning french. It was the second she learned of seven, and it was easier for her than German, that she was currently studying. Andrei was right that all the purebloods had to learn French, as they had to learn Spanish and German, but Audrey went a bit overboard. She had mastered French and Spanish through childhood, since her parents wanted to give her a head start, so while the other children had tutors in French, German, and Spanish, she was learning Italian, German, and Russian. She knew very well the uses it had, but she didn't think they would effect her much. Besides aid her during what she hoped would be a lot of travel in the coming years.

She couldn't say much about Shadow, though she was best friends with Penny. Shadow hadn't associated with Audrey much in the last few years, as she started growing away from Penny. "I suppose she can be a bit stiff, but I suppose that's why we get along so well. She shows me how to be responsible, and I show her how to let go every once in a while." she laughed at remembering all the trouble Penny kept her out of and she couldn't help but smile from thinking about how Shadow must be now. Audrey was almost sure that 'quite a handful' barely could begin to cover it.

And then the ball came up. Of course, she knew it would at one point or another, but she could barely take it seriously. "Oh yes, I'll be attending. All of the pureblood female students will be, especially if they're not engaged, like myself. Apparently, I'm to be looking for a husband." she rolled her eyes. Audrey highly doubted her ability to even tempt a man into marrying her, even if she wanted too. She was a bit of a handful herself, and she didn't quite fit the pureblood way of living. For instance, she didn't think she'd find herself taking orders or getting the bloody hell beat out of her anytime soon. "What about you? Parents anxious for an addition to the family yet?" she asked, laughing.

"Oh well - I would be lying if I said Shadow couldn't use a bit of those responsibility lessons. But then again, I'm not at liberty to say anything about the subject, being much worse than her in that field", he said with a laugh. Sure him and Shadow might have gotten in quite a lot of trouble lately, but it was all fun and games. They weren't hurting anyone, or at least not seriously. And Andrei didn't really see the point in life if you can't have fun with it. His definition of fun might be a bit different than to others, but regardless. "I wish the two of them could get along better, thought. I've tried to say something about it to her, but it just fell on death ears", Andrei said shrugging his shoulders.

"Then you better take your 'looking' very seriously", he teased her with a laugh. He actually felt bad for all the pureblood females that have to deal with such pressure. Sure his parents had the same plans for him as well, but as a guy he had things much easier. "Not really. I think they already see me as a lost cause. Although that has not let them stop trying", he said with a smirk. "My sister has it a lot worse than me, thought. They are all over her and she's very against it. Not that you could ever argue with my mother on a subject like this. She has her standards pretty high up when it came to who we are going to marry. And arguing with her was just useless, you would not get anything from it. Expect maybe a headache", he admitted with a laugh.

"But are you really taking this seriously? I'm certainly not. Just live your life without listening to all that bullshit. And when your family's pressure gets insane and unbearable, just get engaged. To any guy who is a pureblood, but a friend would be preferable. That way your agreement will be more likely to survive. You're engaged and yet you have nothing to do with each other. Each has their own life and can do whatever. It's the most practical arrangement I can think of. And when the time comes for me, that's exactly what I'll do. Have you never thought of that before?", he asked her curiously.

Audrey stiffled a laugh. "Of course I'm not taking it seriously. I'm not wasting my time playing in this competition for a husband. But, you have it easier than I do. You can just ask a friend to marry you one day. Whenever you please. For me, I have to marry a pureblood, no questions asked, I'll be disowned if I don't marry, and I have to wait for someone to ask me." She said honestly.

She knew it was hard for a man to understand, but it was in a woman's up bringing. She knew what was expected. "It's unheard of for a woman not to take this seriously. For a man, it's more common. It's different for me just like it's different for your sister. Why do you think they've continued to harass her about it, when they've already started leaving you alone about it. Men can choose anyone to marry. The chances of one of my friends having the same view about it and decideding on just getting engaged to me, while other girls are throwing themselves at him, is low, to say the least." She tried to make it as simple as possible, but it was hard since she barely understood it herself. She didn't take the coming out ball and such seriously, but she had to put more into it that Andrei did, so she didn't get disowned the minute it was over.

Audrey wished more than anything that she could just run off with someone that she actually loved whenever she thought it was right for her. Or even she could agree to marry a friend in a few years, but she didn't have a choice. Among purebloods, women didn't choose who they married unless they had multiple proposals. Andrei could ask a friend one day. She had to wait for a friend to ask her one day, and if it never happened, She'd be a disgrace. She wished more than ever that she could just be open about her different alliances, so her family would just leave her alone and no one would care what she did, let alone who she married. But if she did that, she'd not only loose everyone but also be killed.