Finn had been studying because that was what she did. Ducky led the group, Nora made the occasional sassy remark, Alisha told the truth, Tris talked to ghosts, Caspian played Quidditch, and Finn studied. She knew that her friends liked to study together but she often found herself distracted. Besides, despite having been apart of the close knit group for awhile now, she was still not the sort of invite people along with her. If she was with them, or ran into them, sure. But she was not like Ducky, sending notes flying through the hallways in search of his friends, or running about to corral them all before dragging them off and on to the next adventure. She had her own routines and she allowed them to be disrupted by her friends. She was just not the sort to be the disrupter.
Besides, she was fairly sure she was the only one of her friends taking Ancient Runes, and if anyone else was, they weren't in her class so it would not be particularly helpful to study with them. She studied better in quiet, anyway, and her friends were not particularly quiet. Not together, anyway. So she poured over her notes, her books, her past work. Her exam had seemed so far away the last time she had worried about it. And now, with mere weeks separating herself from it, she felt as though it were right on top her. The fourth year felt her tired brain warning her that she had been reading and writing too long, that she was overexerting herself, but she had to keep on. Her father was expecting near perfect scores and she wanted to deliver on her promise. He would not be terribly disappointed if she did not live up the expectation, of course. There was not much she could do to make her father unhappy with her. But she had her own expectations to live up too.
She had just turned the page to a new chapter when, all of a sudden, she heard a loud yell. “I know you’re keeping her here! Let her out, you monsters.”
Oh no. She knew that voice. That wonderful, obnoxious voice. She pulled her books in front of her face and lowered her head down, letting her hair fall as a curtain between her and the world around her.
“Young man, this is a library-“
“It’s a prison, I tell you! A prison for children who believe that appeasing this institution’s need for high marks will better their lives. It’s all fallacy, I tell you! Now let me take back my countrywoman, and I’ll leave you be.”
Ducky somehow got past the librarians and Finn lowered her head even more, hunching until her nose was practically touching the book. She heard her name being called and, without really planning on it, she flopped her head into her book.
“Finn-face! There you are!”
Finn had been discovered, so she saw little reason in hiding. She sat up straight and looked at her friend, the infamous Ducky Baker. Now that she thought of it, she didn’t think she had ever seen him in the library, in their friendship. The only evidence that she might not want him there was the slight pink to her cheeks. She loved seeing her goofy friend – but not when it meant having an entire roomful of people staring at her. The attention was not exactly pleasant for her.
“Hello, Ducky,” she said cheerfully, forcing any embarrassment out of her voice.
Ducky threw himself into her lap and looped his arms around her neck. “Babe, I’ve come to save you.”
Finn winced. “Well, currently, you’re crushing me.”
“With love,” Ducky whispered. Despite this, he jumped from her lap, sitting instead on the table – right on her book. “Come on, I came into the belly of the enemy to save you. Let’s go steal some ice cream or something.”
Finn smiled. “As much as I appreciate your valiant effort, soldier, the enemy of Ancient Runes will only be vanquished through rigorous study.”
Ducky blinked. “Study? What’s… study?”
Finn leaned in. “Something you should learn. Now get out of here before I die of embarrassment.”
She smiled and he let out a groan, allowing her to drag him off her book. The librarian had finally caught up to him and was giving him a mighty glare. He thrust his two wrists out towards her and said, “Take me away, Commander. I realize a lost battle when I see it. YOU WIN THIS TIME, ACADEMICS-“
“SHH!”
And the librarian dragged him out of the library, shooting Finn a glare on the way out. Finn smiled weakly and looked down at her book. The pages were nice and rumpled now. She reached forward and attempted to straighten them. War casualties, she supposed.