Ready for a treat? [Elenore]

It was Friday and Nerisei had just finished her classes for the day, meaning she had a free evening to do anything she wanted... Meaning, find an isolated place to spend the day undisturbed. She just couldn't wait for the Christmas Holidays to arrive. Not because she would travel home, but mostly because the rest of the school will. The Purebloods would be immediately called back home, to attend their gatherings and Balls, and the rest would just go back to their families, smiling and ready to open presents. Like normal people. Under normal circumstances. But Neri was neither normal, nor where the circumstances ideal. She just didn't want to celebrate. Or 'make happy memories' with anyone.

Ira, her cat, was really obsessed with following her around today, and that confused the Ravenclaw witch. Don't get her wrong, she loved her precious cat, and her cat loved her back she was sure, but she was not the one to wander around the castle, following her. Maybe it was the fact that she was just as lonely as her owner, and was looking for a way out. Or she had a bad feeling. Animals were known to feel things humans could not, and sometimes, just sometimes, that was proven true.

"Let's hope you're not having a premonition of my death, Ira." The brunette mumbled as she made her way towards the Owlery. It had been a while since she had checked on the cute birds. Bag full of treats, ascended the stairs with ease, Ira by her side at all times. Was she protecting her?
Just before she reached her destination, Neri came to a stop, causing her can to meow at her in question. "I am warning you, Ira. You do not attack them, ok? You remember the last time? I don't wanna see you flying over the Quidditch Pitch because you angered Theodore."

Theodore was one of the biggest owls Neri had ever had the luck to see. He had to be old too, but his strength remained steady. Ira had made the wrong decision to mess with him, and by the time Nerisei was done with her mail, she was forced to run around the Pitch, begging Theo not to let her fall.
The cat meowed in response, and Nerisei made her way inside the Owlery, taking that as a yes.

"Hello, pretty birds!"
She greeted with a smile. Taking a treat out of her bag, Neri carefully showed it to them. "Now, who will come to say hello?"
Theodore was the first to fly to her, sitting on her arm carefully and waiting for the treat. Nerisei laughed softly as she fed him, petting his head slightly.
"See, Ira? Some of us don't hold grudges," the witch said, referring to the bird.

"I don't think, even the wisest of animals, know how to do that."

The sudden voice made Neri jump, which was funny considering she was standing in the Owlery, playing with birds. It was a public place, so of course someone would eventually walk in to find her fooling around. The bird on her hand nipped her softly when she jumped, causing her to yelp and glare as he flew back up. Turning around, the Ravenclaw witch looked at the source of the voice and gave a small smile. She had never talked to the girl before, but of course, she knew the Clement Princess.

Elenore Clement was in Hufflepuff, and she was one year older than Neri. The Ravenclaw had heard a lot about her, mostly from the girls in the dorms but she didn't pay a lot o attention. After all, gossip would always be gossip, true or false. And she preferred to come to her own conclusions and not be prejudiced.

"Don't mind me, I just need to send this."

"Oh no, it is quite alright! You must be Elenore, then?"
The girl seemed way to friendly, even for a Pureblood. Could she be like Dimitri? After all, she did have one more example of a Pureblood that was.. well, not your typical Pureblood. Could she too be part of that category?
"You don't bother me at all. I am Nerisei. It is nice to meet you." The witch didn't know how to approach the older girl. After all, she had no idea whether she wanted to be approached in the first place.

"Yes, I'm Elenore."

Nerisei offered another smile as the girl said she indeed was Elenore. The youngest of the Clements, one of the biggest Pureblood families. Nerisei for once wondered how it felt to be known by everyone. To have people know every step you took, every move you made. The Ravenclaw, being quite anti-social to be honest, hated even the idea of that. Were the Purebloods so bad after all? Or were they simply force to uphold certain traditions despite what they wanted? How many needs were the suppressing just to be... 'perfect'? Looking at the girl, and for the sake of her crush on Dimitri, Neri promised herself that from now on, she would try harder to figure these people out before coming to a conclusion.

"Nerisei... I don't think I've heard that name before... Where does it originate from?"

Nerisei smiled fondly at the other witch. She is not that bad..., Neri thought to herself as she stared at the Hufflepuff. She was very beautiful though. The rumors were right about that part.
"I am actually Swedish, but I really don't know how my name came to existence."
A small laugh escaped her lips as she shrugged, signaling that she truly had no clue. Though, it was a beautiful name, and she would never change it for any reason.

The Ravenclaw witch noticed the letter in Elenore's hands though. After all, Holidays were close, and she would be one of the first to leave. Most of the Purebloods did, at least.
"Can't wait to go home?" Nerisei asked softly, not wanting to come off as nosy.

"That makes some sense. I never quite grasped the Swedish language -- not that I've given up."

"You'll get there, eventually. I don't take you as a quitter, but I wouldn't know." Nerisei offered a small smile, wanting to show to the witch that she didn't mean any harm by that. She did not know Elenore all that well... at all, to be honest, so she couldn't actually have an opinion about the Pureblood witch in front of her. It was nice to know that there were people who were interested in different languages and cultures though. Or maybe it was simply another obligation for the Purebloods.

"A pity, that you don't know, though. It's such a beautiful name..."

Truth be told, Elenore was right. It was a pity she had never found out why her parents named her Nerisei, and how they had come up with it. But as a child, it didn't seem any different to her. It was just a name, like any other. And this is why she had never looked it up. But now that the older witch had mentioned it, maybe it would be wise to do some research and ask her parents about it. Who knew what her name could be hiding?

I'm missing someone back at the Palace. My Grandmere, actually. Though we'll be gone in less than twenty days, I feel like this term has taken an eternity..."

Just from the way Elenore was looking at her letter, it was quite obvious that she loved her Grandmother so much. And Nerisei understood that perfectly. Her Grandfather had been a major part of her life, the only one who had actually believed her when she was showing her first signs of magic. And she had vowed to tell him if there was such a thing as magic. He was her favorite person in the whole world.
"I know exactly what you mean. To be honest, I miss my Farfar way too much as well.."

The girl then explained that it was mostly for the presents her Grandmother had sent her, and Neri didn't get the feeling she was lying. However, something seemed off. She couldn't place it but... there was something there. Despite the weird feeling, she did not speak. Instead, she kept on with feeding the owls treats and petting their heads slightly.

"And you, will you be heading home for the holidays?"

"No."
Nerisei gave the negative answer before Elenore could even finish her sentence. It had come out rough and cold, and immediately she felt guilty. The older witch had nothing to do with all the bad things happening in her life, and she did not deserve the harsh words. "Forgive me. I didn't mean to...," she trailed off, giving an apologetic smile. "I will remain at Hogwarts for the Holidays."

The Ravenclaw witch liked to point out when she didn't know things -- an amusing trait in someone from that house -- Elenore had noticed, and the smile on her lips might have wavered slightly. Momentarily. Unnoticeable to those who did not know Elenore well. She wasn't a quitter, and yet... Elenore's eyes moved to the letter in her hands for a moment, wondering...

"I wouldn't say I was a quitter, no." Elenore replied softly, not looking to the witch before her in that moment under the pretense of looking for a Palace owl in the rafters.

The agreement to missing someone back home -- Elenore just about picked out Farfar would mean someone equal to a grandparent, but she wasn't sure which one -- would probably have been one that opened the door to further conversation in normal circumstances, but Elenore was not open with her home life to anyone in the castle. Well... except Tess Marie, but Nerisei was not Tess, and therefore Elenore was not going to expand further.

As Nerisei cut across her with a brash 'no' to the question, Elenore couldn't help but look at the witch somewhat taken back by the manners (or lack thereof). But almost as quickly as the rudeness had sprung in to being, Nerisei was apologising for being rude to Elenore. The Hufflepuff witch's features rearranged in to a small smile to show there was no harm done, though the volatility of the witch before her was tucked away for later analysis.

"That sounds fun, I've never spent the winter holidays at Hogwarts." Elenore explained, showing that she had no idea what happened at the castle in the break. "My family holds a Ball for... well, we hold two I suppose, on the same evening. One for the whole of Paris... or, anyone who wishes to travel to see the festivities, and then we have one with our friends and family within the Palace. It's... a beautiful evening."

The smile on the Hufflepuff's features showed that she was in love with the event. Balls, dresses, dancing and being the center of attention for an evening was something she looked forward to the whole year around. And, being seventeen this year, she was an adult in the eyes of wizarding law.

"Do you have plans?" Elenore asked, finally locating the Palace owl. Holding out her hand, the bird came to rest gracefully on her hand, and leaned down towards the letter in Elenore's other hand expectantly.

"Prenez ceci à Grandmere." Elenore told the bird softly, and without a sound the owl swooped out through the window with her letter.


Translations
Prenez ceci à Grand'Mere -- Take this to Grandmere

The more time passed the more Neri felt at ease with the witch. Of course, they weren't anything close to friends. A few words had been exchanged and nothing too persona, to be honest. The girl might have shared her nostalgia for the Grandmother, but that didn't, by any means, mean she was trusting Nerisei with anything more. The Ravenclaw witch wouldn't be able to know whether she had been lying or not either, since Elenore seemed to hols herself together just fine. After all, wasn't that what every Pureblood grew up with? Guarding their mind, holding their tongue and just follow orders. They might have been lucky enough to be rich and live in exceptional homes, but what did they truly have more?

This chasm between Purebloods and Muggleborns had been going on for years. But Neri hoped that things would have changed already. There had been so many years since those old days, yet, Purebloods seemed to be stuck to that ideology. That certain things were 'bad', and that there was always a 'proper' way to do some things. They spent so much time suppressing their children's needs by teaching them all sort of things that were simply... overrated. Languages? Nerisei could understand that. Music and dance? That was understandable as well. But forcing your child not to play like any other normal kid, or teaching them not to have an opinion was simply outrageous. And let's not get started on the whole marriage thing.

Sure, they want to keep their bloodlines 'pure'. As if that would make a difference? The power of a wizard or a witch had nothing to do with their blood. But they still found it hard to understand, weren't they? Instead, the parents chose who the child is supposed to marry, not considering what their child's feelings were. But of course, how stupid of her. Purebloods weren't allowed to have 'feelings'. 'Love' would come after a few years of marriage. As of love is a thing you can force or buy. No, the cases of love were rare among them. Especially for girls. They were nothing but a thing being sold off in order to make their empire even bigger. Simply. Despicable.

"That sounds fun, I've never spent the winter holidays at Hogwarts."

Of course, you haven't..., Nerisei thought. How could she? They, after all, had ten different Houses to visit and 'exceptional' Balls to attend. Always something to do, right?

"My family holds a Ball for... well, we hold two I suppose, on the same evening. One for the whole of Paris... or, anyone who wishes to travel to see the festivities, and then we have one with our friends and family within the Palace. It's... a beautiful evening."


Nerisei almost laughed at that statement. Her family was holding not just one, but two Balls in the same evening. And yes, that was something Neri had no problem with. What bothered her the most was the next statement. How could she truly say the Ball was for 'the whole of Paris', or 'anyone' who would like to visit? Because she was sure as hell that if she decided to drop by that Ball, she would never, under no circumstances, be allowed in. Why? Why wouldn't she be able to attend a Ball and 'have fun' they way I do just because her parents were Muggle? Was she any less capable of magic? Because she could easily prove that she was far better than half of the people in that bloody Ball.

"I am sure it's as beautiful as you say it is. But I sincerely doubt anyone would be welcome." It was rude, yes. But Nerisei couldn't not make a comment about it. Elenore could, at least, have the decency to use different words for her statement. Words that were true. Wasn't that what they were being taught? But again, she had forgotten that it didn't make a difference with her. Because her blood was... filthy.

"Do you have plans?"

"Well, I have no Balls to attend so, no."
Sighing, more to herself that Elenore, Nerisei turned back to the owls, ignoring Elenore who was now sending her letter with one of the most beautiful owls in there. Of course, even their owls had to look like Queen Elizabeth herself. Life wasn't fair.