it's a beautiful day for rain, i hate it

He chuckled to himself...

"Not everyone's cup of tea"

It's funny because tea leaves - well he thought it was funny anyway.

"Yeah, I've never been but I've got some money put away for the trip now. And I should be back before term begins." the excitement in his voice rising. It was nice now, having a heading. Instead of spending his hours deciding between here or there and all the places in between. Even still he wasn't quite sure that sparked "Ireland" to escape his lips but it felt right as soon as he'd said it.

He did not know much about this student, Christabelle - Christy. Just that he pegged her as smart and well-liked which means they had absolutely nothing in common. Yet, here she was able to make conversation with him. She even managed to see right through his ruse. His ruse wasn't exactly air-tight but he'd practiced it a few times in front of the mirror.

"I'll come back in September and tell you all about it!"

And he would - that's a weird feeling. Wanting to talk to someone - well want was a strong word. He felt like he could but he also felt like he could talk to anyone. But that feeling of could felt quite a bit stronger now that they broke the surface of conversation.

She would never admit it, but she was proud of that pun. She hadn’t even been quite sure she had planned it when she said it, but the words had escaped her lips before she even realized it.

“Do you have any specific plans while you’re there?” she asked curiously, “Any places you absolutely have to see I mean?” Ireland had always been one of her dream journeys. She had planned on taking a trip there once she finished school before making her entrance into the adult work force anyway. She imagined it similar to those back-packing trips muggles took before they went off to college.

She knew who Matt was, but they had never interacted much. Having transferred into the school last year, she seemed to make friends fairly easily, but for the most part stuck to her studies. She had one goal, finish. It was her ticket to freedom. The little rich girl who was tired of being rich, running away from a life that her family seemed to want for her more than she wanted for herself.

“I expect every detail now.” She said smiling. “I’ll want to know the best parts of that trip so I might be able to go on my own.”

If he was being honest he had no idea what Ireland had to offer to him. He just knew there was a large magical population there and he'd be able to find work just about anywhere. It was hard to go several months without magic but he'd gotten used to it. And it wouldn't be much longer now until he could use it outside of school. He just had to get through another year of school. One more daunting year of study and then he was a free wizard with absolutely no idea what to do with his life.

"I typically go in blind to my trips. It's more fun that way; you never really know what's going to happen or what you're gonna see."

This was true, when you were going somewhere new. Matt had been all over but Ireland had always escaped his brain for some reason. Maybe it was fate that Christy had influenced his decision making process. Who knows what was going to happen next. He didn't and he loved that.

"So, I hope you don't mind me asking. But where did you transfer from? I've never know a transfer students at Hogwarts before. I imagine your case must be very interesting!"

She looked at him almost a little stunned at his question. No one had really bothered to ask her that once she transferred. All people knew for the most part was that she was foreign like Elijah, the only other transfer student there. She bit her lip, contemplating what exactly she was going to say.

“Well, I transferred from Beauxbatons.” She replied downing the rest of her drink, before almost nervously playing with a strand of hair.

“Really isn’t all that interesting.” She added quickly.

No, just that there were some rather nasty rumors started about you and several other classmates were involved together when you weren’t. she thought to herself.

“Let’s just say the rumor mill there is far worse than the one we have here.”

Christy knew there was a massive rumor mill at Hogwarts, but it was no where as horrible as the ringer she had been put through her fifth year because she was a half veela.