This could've gone better.

For someone who tried to make it a point that that he wouldn't play Quidditch, he spent a lot of time near or at the quidditch stadium.

He couldn't help it, he liked being able to be near it because he felt like it was the one thing that still connected him and Nathan, y'know, before he became a werewolf. He really wished he could have watched Nathan play or practice.

But before he was turned. He had to make that clear.

As if it wasn't already.

Jonathan felt bad for thinking like that. But it wasn't something he could change. Well, maybe. But he definitely didn't seem like he was in a rush to change it, no matter how much he missed Nathan's old self. He'd gone out of his way to avoid his brother since that night over six years ago, so he didn't really know much about Nathan anymore. He often wondered what the older Finch-Fletchley was like now. He wondered if Nathan was still the same person he was before being turned, or if the change had made his personality into another one.

He was scared to find out.

He didn't want to find out that Nathan was completely different. That he wasn't the loving person he used to be. That was why he didn't get near him, even now. You'd think six years was enough to let wounds heal, both mental and physical, but it wasn't for the young Hufflepuff. At the very least, he figured, he had the quidditch stadium that his brother had once played on to keep him company right now.

Nicole didn't often find her way down to the pitch, but she rather liked watching teams practice, she decided. Particularly when the Hufflepuff house team was running patterns. They were impressive, and she even had become friends with a couple of them. Somehow, that background noise helped her focus.

She had not expected to see Jonathan there, though. Perhaps they never came at the same time -- that is, until now. So although she was a bit nervous to do it, Nicole made her way across the bleachers to sit a couple feet away from him. Casual, she told herself, but not unfriendly. Good.

"Hi," she greeted gently, hoping not to surprise him. Then again, he'd probably seen her coming. "I didn't know you liked sitting out here." Was that odd to say? What if he hadn't even noticed her? After all, she looked a little young for her age, yet, and was a bit strange. But, then again, many people thought he was a bit strange as well, didn't they?

It seemed everyone ended up surprising him in some way.

Maybe he should work on not being so oblivious to his surroundings.

Jonathan clearly hadn't been expecting anyone to else to be there, aside from probably the players who he hoped wouldn't notice him. It was evident in his reaction to Nicole's greeting. He'd been startled, as always, and looked at the second year with widened eyes.

He looked like a deer in headlights.

Merlin, he was hopeless.

A few seconds later, he remembered Nicole was there and snapped out of it, shaking his head. "Um, yeah. I come to watch the team practice, sometimes." He told her. "I just.. like to try to make sure they don't see me." He added as an afterthought.

Nicole's cheeks lit up when he jumped, as she couldn't help but feel guilty for it. As far as she was concerned, being odd was actually something of a good thing. But it maybe didn't work so well if both people were odd. Awkward, really. Or maybe he was just shy and she was the weird one.

Then again, his response was a little strange.

"Oh," she said, uncertain. It kind of sounded like he wanted to be left alone. But then again, she wasn't brilliant at social cues. So she stayed anyway, hoping she was just misunderstanding him.

"Um.. Why would it be bad if they saw you? Surely it would be alright since they're our housemates. At least they're not Slytherins or something. I heard their team has been fighting lately."

Jonathan bit his lip.

Sure, it would be fine if he was literally just there to watch. And he was, but there was also an ulterior motive to his being there. That was to see if there could really be any way that he could be on the team. He felt his quidditch skills were lacking, how couldn't he when he never actually played? And he definitely didn't think he was worthy enough of playing on the team.

"Not when they want you on the team." Jonathan responded, looking out at the pitch. The members of the team ran trial after trail and after watching them for a bit, Jonathan felt like he could almost see Nathan there.

He wasn't sure he wanted that, though.

"They seems to think that.. I might be good at quidditch. Like my.. brother." His eyes flickered from his hands to Nicole and back as he spoke. He felt strange, telling her this, not that he knew any other feeling but feeling strange.

Nicole, of course, couldn't fathom why Jonathan would be upset about their housemates wanting him to take one of seven precious positions on their team. Maybe because they didn't win very often? Her eyebrow lifted a little, the motion smooth and more concerned than appraising. She was prepared to ask, but then he went on.

Her lips rolled together, tucking inwards. She'd heard about Nathan, though only the rumors. Nicole relaxed her expression again, though her shoulders pulled forward and inwards as she set her hands on her knees. "I'm guessing that's a bad thing," she mused quietly as she looked over at him.

"Maybe," she continued, her voice timid, "you should find something to do just for you. If you like Quidditch, as you seem to since you're here, maybe you can learn for fun. Or ask a friend or something. And if not, we've got other clubs around Hogwarts. Maybe you'll find something better."

"I just don't like being compared to him. It's annoying, makes me feel like I'm not my own person, y'know?" He looked down at his hands after she spoke, not sure of what to say in response.

Find something to do for himself? That was hard for him because he always felt like he wouldn't be good at anything. He would have loved to play Quidditch, even though he felt like he'd be bad at it, but if he did he'd always end up in his brother's shadow and that was the last thing he wanted. Or needed.

"You don't understand. I'd love to play, but I can't deal with that." He looked at Nicole. "Being in his shadow all the time.. especially when he's-" Jonathan shook his head. "Nevermind. But I just can't."

"And I don't think I'd really be good at anything else. I don't know." The hufflepuff really needed to fix that bad habit of his, of counting himself out before he even tried.

It made Nicole feel a bit sad, she realized, that he wouldn't look at her. She felt like she was somehow intimidating him by leaning forward to try and make eye contact. So she sat back a little, trying to make it easier for him. After all, she thought that Jonathan was really nice, though very shy. It made her wonder if he wasn't being bullied by somehow she had never caught in the act. Not that it was her responsibility or anything. He probably wouldn't want her to interfere. But the worry was there, to be sure.

"I get that," she confirmed in time to deflate even more when she was corrected so firmly. Nicole hadn't meant to upset him; she'd just wanted to get to know Jonathan. Maybe she'd done it wrong.

She looked over at him again when he cut himself off, wondering what had happened. She'd heard some rumors about Nathan, usually right after Jonathan did something considered unusual by their classmates. But she doubted most of them and hadn't followed up with anybody.

"I'm sure that's not true, Jonathan." Her voice was as gentle as the look she gave him before looking across the pitch again. "I've always felt like... Well, I'm not sure how to explain it. I guess I've always been more impressed with people who are talented at something because they love it and work hard for it. People who are naturally good and stick to that just because they're good at it, but don't really like it..? I don't know. Natural skill can't make up for passion, I don't think."

She shrugged, afraid, now, to look at him. This was far too deep for the simple conversation she'd tried to start. "If you like Quidditch, it might be worth giving it a try. Maybe you'll end up playing a different position than your brother or something. You never know."