Always Staircases...

The first few weeks of term had been tumultuous, to say the least.

Elijah would not have missed it for the world.

The young man had found himself a nice spot, different from his usual haunts, at the top of one of the tall, steep staircases. Though he had taken up residence, his bag on a lower step, his sketchbook in his lap, the staircase paid him no mind and continued to move around merrily to the delight and dismay of other students moving around the castle.

In the end, Elijah found himself somewhere up near the Ravenclaw common room and if he peeped through the bars he could see the flames of the braziers that lit the dark corridors that led down into the depths of the dungeons.

He didn’t, though, he was focused on his drawing, taking inspiration from a small polaroid picture of the grounds – a photograph he had taken only a few days previously on a brisk, morning walk. Autumn was well on its way without a shadow of a doubt.

He was so absorbed that, for a few moments, he didn’t hear steps on the stairs. Then, when Elijah finally looked up, he was almost startled by the presence of another person.

A smile crept across his face and he shuffled over a bit, kicking his bag along the stair, sensing that he was in the way.

“Sorry, can you get by alright?”

Was it Wednesday? If not it sure felt like one. At least to Christy it had. Of course the week would only be halfway gone by. Between everything she had going on, it felt like the days just flew by lately. The feeling of finally getting back into a rhythm of classes had finally hit her. This would be her last year doing this.

She hadn’t even been paying attention today. During her free period, she had held a small practice for those on her team who could make it down to the pitch, and now she found herself heading back to her dorm to change out of her practice robes. After a year of attending the school, she felt like she was finally getting the hang of navigating all the moving staircases.

She had almost stepped right on Elijah, She frowned stopping attempting to figure out how best she could get by him without interrupting his absorption into his sketchbook.

“I was trying to get by without disturbing you.” She said looking at him. “What are you working on now Eli? You seemed pretty into whatever it was you were working on.”

Elijah looked up when the person spoke and, immediately, a bright smile spread across his face. Christy. Another one of those rare students that had been exceptionally kind to him during his first year at the school.

She was beautiful, undeniably, but it was the kindness that shone through her that made her special. He had often thought to draw her but the opportunity had never come up. Perhaps, until now.

“I’m sorry, Christy,” he said, shaking his head a little. “I didn’t realise it was you there for a second. How are you?”

He looked down at his work and turned it around to show to her.

“I am hoping to paint a landscape of the grounds before I graduated. I know I have a little while but I wanted to get a head-start in case N.E.W.Ts don’t leave a lot of time. I’m just sketching up what I am thinking from this photo I took and then hopefully I can start. I wanted to enchant it too, maybe, so students are walking through it… maybe then the Headmaster might display it in here.”

Casting his eyes around the staircase tower, Elijah took in some of the portraits and paintings that covered the walls. His picture would be in excellent company indeed.

Oh yes, Elijah. Probably one of the very first people Christy had met last year when she had begun attending school. She remembered trying to navigate the halls with him at one point the previous year, just as lost as he was at attempting to figure out how to get where. This year it was different. They both seemed to know where they were going, and had finally figured out the little trick to navigating the moving staircases.

“No Eli, you’re ok.” She replied smiling down at him. “You really seemed into your drawing.”

She found herself sitting on the stair below him as he showed her his drawing. She looked at it, tucking an unruly curl behind her ear, that just never seemed to stay where she wanted it to. “Just getting back in from practice actually. Ravenclaw team is really shaping up this year.”

Christy was proud of that. There really hadn’t been much of a team to speak of the year before when she came, and she had been extremely proud of the fact that in one short year she had managed to turn it around.

“No, N.E.W.Ts don’t really leave much time for anything do they?” she said more as a statement than a question itself. She was finding out that very much this year with an added roll she had volunteered to undertake. “But your drawing so far looks really good. Is this what you’re always doing with your head in that sketchbook?”

Elijah ducked his head, embarrassment colouring his cheeks a rosy scarlet. His art was the one thing in his life, aside from flying, that he was truly certain about. He knew his worth there. He knew he was good. It was something that even his father, always so ready with a forked opinion, could not shake from him.

Still, the notion of his absorption still gave him that little flare of modesty. He nodded a little as he lifted his gaze again, conceding that, indeed, he had not been in the hall, on the staircase - he had been elsewhere, wherever the art was.

At the mention of Quidditch, a brilliant smile lit up Elijah's whole face. He sat up a little straighter and put down his pencil.

"I'm hoping to try out for the Beater position that's opened up on the Slytherin team," he told her, his voice betraying his keenness to achieve this goal. "So maybe I'll see you on the pitch, huh?"

He chuckled and nodded again, a grimace turning down the corners of his mouth as he remembered how much homework and research he had quietly piling up.

"I am sure it'll get easier at some point," he offered optimistically. "It has to, right? Otherwise, I think I'll sooner go mad than get all the work done."

He looked down at the sketch book, a smile slinking over his features again.

"Oh, yeah, undoubtedly," he said with a chuckle. "It's ... well, my favourite thing in the world, really. Do you have one? A favourite thing above all else, I mean."

Christy found herself laughing, “If I do see you on the pitch I’m not sure it would be a welcome relief, or worry that I might end up hit with a bludger.” He sounded so sure of what he wanted to play, she was positive with everyone that was trying out for other houses that she would have her work a head of her, but it would make for one amazing season either way.

Laughing she continued, “Just if you do hit one my way, just try to avoid the face.” She had been lucky enough that she had escaped ever being hit by a bludger, but it definitely was on the list of top things to avoid in her life.

“That’s what I’m hoping for.” She added in response to homework. “At least that, or we fall into such a routine that it doesn’t seem like it’s as hard as it is, or really time consuming.” She was trying her best to be optimistic about that, but she honestly knew better. Her mother was an instructor at Beauxbatons, she knew exactly how it worked. They always tended to give the easiest assignments at the start of the year to slowly adjust you back into your studies before hitting you with the more difficult tasks. It made her glad this was her final year.

She honestly had to think about his question. Christy had never honestly been asked what her favourite thing was to do. She couldn’t possibly run through everything she actually liked to do. Most of those choices made her seem like she was rather boring at that. Reading books, playing quidditch, divination…well divination was a talent if you had a knack for it.

Smiling she finally settled on an answer, “Honestly, it’s either going to come down to reading tarot cards or singing if I have to pick. Although the second one is probably the one I shouldn’t really advertise.” She tucked an unruly curl back behind her ear. “I mean at least to my family girls should pretty much remain seen and not necessarily heard.” She remembered being pulled from vocal lessons when she was younger, her father saying they were a waste of time because she couldn’t possibly think she would get any farther than a passingly decent voice.

Elijah’s grin was effervescent at the sound of her laughter. Buoyed, he found himself laughing along with her, his eyes shining with genuine happiness.

“You don’t have to worry,” he chuckled. “I’m a pretty good shot but I wouldn’t aim for you. Nothing’s that important. Ravenclaw are a good side, though. Might have to fire some warning shots,” he added with a wink.

When she mentioned her face, Elijah barked out a laugh.

“I promise,” he stated, his lips twitching as he tried to fight back more laughter. He laid his hand on his chest theatrically. “I promise, on my honour, that if a Bludger comes your way because of me then I’ll try my hardest not to get you in the face.”

Elijah nodded along, privately wondering whether the same would be the case for him. He hoped so. He wasn’t sure how he was going to get through it all otherwise. Routine would be perfect.

As she went on, Elijah felt his stomach drop. Plummet within him, in fact.

“Christy …”

In truth he didn’t know what to say. The idea that women were so easily pushed to the side was alien to him. In his family, his mother commanded their domestic and social arena. In many ways, Viktor couldn’t come close to her.

“I play the piano,” he told her after a moment of pensive, almost awkward silence. “I’d love to hear you sing sometime. If my opinion's worth anything ... I think you're too wonderful not to be seen, heard, and appreciated for the brilliant person you are."