Searching For Answers (Naomi)

The way she'd at first reacted to his comment made her think maybe she wasn't as fine as she claimed to be. Humphrey wasn't the most astute when it came to emotions, but he knew that the first thing people said when surprised by something was often more honest than what they said after the fact. "I understand, and I know you say you are fine...but, I am sorry if it hurt yours. Really." he said, before letting the matter drop so they could talk about something less awkward.

Upon hearing that her name meant pleasant he found himself laughing a little, because in the moments she wasn't acting patronizing towards him she actually was pleasant. "You have your moments, nosy, they are just hidden by the sarcasm and pet names." Humphrey retorted, grinning at the way this conversation was starting to become more comfortable. They were by no means friends yet, but it wasn't the awkward and anxious beginnings of a conversation with a stranger any longer, either. "So we have the rude buttercup and nosy, interesting mix." he said, wondering what somebody would think if they passed by and heard them talking like this.

Looking into the girl's eyes, which he noticed were green, he found himself wanting to believe her, but also thought she didn't really understand. Most kids just had flimsy crushes at their age, he knew that; but, he had really cared about Brooklyn and he highly doubted he would ever forget her. Forgive, maybe in time, but he wouldn't forget the first girl he'd kissed. "Look, I understand you're only trying to help, but please stop. Brooklyn probably has a good reason for what she's doing, or at least thinks it's for the best. She's a good person, and I'm never going to forget about the first girl I ever kissed or how great it was while it lasted." he said, in a calm voice but rather firm in the tone of it. "I've never been the best at making friends, it'll either happen or it won't. Finding another girl to like will probably take a while." he said, before leaning back and sighing. "Have you ever...you know, liked anybody?" he asked, emphasizing liked to give it the added meaning.

Her comment about it sounding great was hardly convincing, and he wondered if she'd ever had somebody who was as comforting as Casey was to him in her life. Definitely too personal a subject to start asking about now, but he filed the information away ask about at another time. "It will be, you'd like Casey I think. She's rather blunt, funny, but always tries to do what will make people laugh or smile. As you can probably tell, I'm rather fond of her and a little protective." he admitted, smiling sheepishly.

Raising an eyebrow at the little comment, he looked back at her and stood to his full height, which was quite a bit above hers. "Odd ball I may be, but I'm hardly little for my age. Unlike some people I could name." he teased, trying to let her know he was only joking by adding a mischievous smile. She would definitely get him back for bringing up her lack of height, but oh it was so worth it.

"Mmhmm, and I'll keep pestering you until I get upgraded to the next status of friend. Might take some time, but I don't give up easily. So, fair warning and all that." Humphrey told her honestly. She could make of that what she would, he wanted to be her friend so he would keep at it until he was. If she didn't like that, well he was sure she probably knew a few hexes to put him in his place if needed.

The way she categorized it as inquisitive instead of nosy caused him to chuckle, glad that she at least recognized that part of herself. "Touche. Inquisitive doesn't sound quite as good as the other for a nickname, though. Have to get you back for calling me buttercup and honey, and I'd rather not get slapped by saying some of the other nicknames that had come to mind." Humphrey told her. One of those nicknames he kept thinking about was bright eyes, because those beautiful eyes kept drawing his back to them. However, as he'd said, he highly doubted that would be appreciated.

Humphrey was caught off guard by the curious expression that had appeared on Naomi's face at the mention of a first kiss, but she didn't ask any more about it. Probably not the most comfortable topic to talk about with somebody you'd just met. What surprised him more was that she'd be interested in that sort of thing, she didn't appear to be the romantic type, at least on the surface. There was a lot more to her than he knew, and he definitely wanted to learn about this strange, new, almost but not quite yet friend. "Well, you'll know when it happens. If it does, I'd suggest not hiding the feelings or playing games with him, or her if you like girls. Not trying to say you'd be the type to do that, but...just be honest." he advised. Whether or not she'd take that advice he couldn't say, but it was all he really had to say that might be helpful.

Nodding, Humphrey had a feeling his sister would go looking for the Slytherin when he told her about the encounter. That was where he was heading next, to talk to her. She'd probably want to see if this new friend of her brother's was actually nice. Yeah, he was older and usually more protective of her than she was of him, but she had a protective streak of her own. Plus, she was a lot braver than he was normally, and more inclined to speak up about things instead of going with the flow like he sometimes did. "She's a Gryffindor, and I have a feeling she'll probably track you down once I tell her about the Slytherin girl I bumped into. At times she can be rather...inquisitive, like you, but go easy on her." he told her with a wink, deciding not to use the word nosy after a moment's hesitation.

Amused at her antics he shrugged nonchalantly. "If that day ever happens feel free to rub it in all you like. Honestly, though, there's nothing wrong with being short. I think it suits you, and when you aren't being too sarcastic...even have rare moments where you look cute." he complimented, not trying to come on to her or flirt but just being honest. He wondered if he knew any of her brothers, and then he remembered a Hufflepuff talking about a little sister once who was a little older than he was. Although Humphrey couldn't remember if he had used the name Naomi or not he remembered the description of the little sister and it seemed to match up. "Do you have a brother in Hufflepuff?" he asked, looking at her curiously.

Rolling his eyes a little, he tried not to get frustrated by it. "No, but it will give me opportunities to talk to you from time to time, maybe convince you to explore places at Hogwarts I haven't gotten the chance to visit yet with me. Or, maybe pull a prank." Humphrey told her, a smirk appearing on his face as he thought of some fun ones that he could try to pull off. Some he would definitely need an accomplice for, but there were a few he could do on his own. "Alright, I'll probably see you in classes or in the halls I guess." he said, giving her a small smile and a wave.

"Yeah, you too Nosy." he replied, and went to go and find Casey. He knew that Gryffindor was in one of the towers like Ravenclaw was, but Humphrey didn't know exactly where to look. So, he just started going up and hoping eventually he'd either find a Gryffindor to follow or his sister would show up. Most were a friendly lot, so he was sure one could get a message or show him where to wait.

When she started to say something but then closed her mouth and pursed her lips at him Humphrey knew he'd scored a point. At what game he had no idea, but clearly she was actually considering where he would have gone with the nicknames and how it could be embarrassing for her. He didn't really want to do that, only wanted to tease her and get her to lay off a little on him. Pranks were his specialty if he wanted to go the embarrassing her route, but he would only make them bad if she did something first. Most of the time, they were more funny and lighthearted than anything else. "Maybe I'll tell you some another time, if you are curious as to what I thought up." he said, smiling softly. She was still one to watch out for, but nothing so far he'd seen had been overtly mean or anything like that so maybe she was alright.

Not surprisingly really, she didn't have anything to say in response to his comments about relationships. That was a subject he probably should have left alone, but she had just told him about Brooklyn and the thoughts were there ready to spill out at the opportunity. All she did was nod, clearly ready to move on to another topic of conversation, and Humphrey chose not to press it too much. To be honest, that he had survived this long in his conversation with her without complete embarrassment or tears because of something she'd done was a lot different than what he'd expected. Yes, he had cried; but, not because of Naomi, which in his book counted for something. Even if she wasn't too happy about it yet, he at least was looking forward to maybe talking to her more and becoming a friend.

Naomi's sarcasm made him cringe slightly, and he mentally told himself to warn Casey about minding her manners. He didn't hide things from her so would tell here everything, so would probably come to that conclusion on her own. If she didn't, he'd make a comment about her being kind of irritable if annoyed. Which, from what he'd experienced so far, seemed like a pretty fair assessment. "She's got a way of making people like her, don't ask me to explain how it works because I don't understand it. Just, judge her for her and not based on the house." he requested, before letting that matter drop.

Unexpectedly, him calling her cute really riled her up and he noticed the pink rise to her cheeks as she vehemently denied it. The way she attempted a stern look amidst her protestations before confirming his question about her brother made him think she was even more cute than before. For once, he chose to keep that to himself so he wouldn't make her more uncomfortable or angry. "If you want to play it that way, I'll only call you cute if you're being annoying or too nosy. Instead, I'll just call you pretty or beautiful. Although, that's more when you are smiling or laughing not all mad." he said, the last part half to himself. Humphrey figured he was walking a pretty fine line between getting slapped or hexed, or maybe getting off without any damage. He was having fun, which was not something he would have expected after hearing such sad and frustrating news about his now ex-girlfriend. Fighting the urge to ruffle her hair, he merely smiled instead. "Well, I know one button to press now if I need to." he told her with a chuckle.

The Hufflepuff simply watched the Slytherin girl, studying her before he went off in search of his sister. Humphrey couldn't help himself from looking back at her and gave her a slightly crooked smile, before facing forward so he could watch his feet and make sure he didn't trip. Usually he wasn't clumsy, but if he had his mind fixated on something else like a curious girl there was no telling what could happen. "Wonder what she'll make of this, maybe she'll understand this stuff better than I do. Probably, she's usually better with people than I am." he mumbled.