Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

While she waited for Sophia to be done with her look-over, Ember locked herself in the hospital wing bathroom. She turned the sink on high and shoved her head beneath the cold water, letting the slight pain of it and the coldness help clear her head. It helped a little bit, turning her head numb and completely soaking her hair. She stayed under the water for as long as she could physically stand it and then Ember turned it off, sitting up and sweeping her hair back out of her face as it stuck to her skin. She stared into the mirror, the dried blood on her face from hitting another tree was streaking, washing off with the water. She reached out and grabbed a towel, rubbing it over her face until it was clean, leaving behind just superficial scratches on her forehead and cheek.

The Gryffindor needed to get a hold of herself, to calm down and not let the sudden, intense need she had gotten to be with Sophia affect the way she acted around the Hufflepuff. It was an incredibly odd feeling, this overshadowing of carnal desires while still having them. It scared her, if she was honest with herself. It scared her a lot and she was not nearly as prepared for it as she had hoped to be should it ever come to surface. She had been hoping it wouldn’t be with Sophia though, as bad as that sounded, simply because she didn’t want to expect things of the Hufflepuff that she couldn’t be given. It would probably make Sophia feel bad, to know Ember desired her, because the girl was so sweet and kind, not to mention something like this could take a serious toll on their relationship. No. It was better to try and hide it the absolute best she could. At least then, Ember could feel a bit less guilty about liking the Hufflepuff and still keep her new friend, even if she couldn’t have her the way she wanted her.

And oh god, how she wanted her. Ember wanted to feel those sweet hands on her head like that time they’d been in the game keeper’s hut. To cuddle up on that couch again, and just sit, being together and feeling Sophia’s warmth against her… Surprisingly though, Ember wasn’t as stricken with the need to make Sophia hers physically. She still very much would have liked to, but it wasn’t as strong anymore. The emotional connection she had just felt towards the Hufflepuff… it overtook everything else. She liked Sophia, genuinely and in a way that was so intense she was borderline sure it must be love, but she couldn’t call it that. No. Not yet anyway. She had barely figured it out… The way Sophia had yelled at her, told her off, the absolutely gorgeous raging fire in the other girl’s eyes… It had struck Ember to her core in a way she had not expected.

Once a bit more resolved, Ember left the bathroom, coming out just as Sophia slid between the curtains. The Gryffindor stared at the girl for a moment, smiling when she saw she was dressed and still had Ember’s robes. Ember smiled, striding over, wet hair sticking to one cheek as she beamed at Sophia, so glad she seemed to be okay after that incident. ”All set?” She asked, reaching behind her to tug Sophia’s wand out of her back pocket.

Both wands sparked again as they knocked slightly against one another. Ember jumped, quickly extracting the wands from her pocket and holding them up as they continued to spark. She had never seen anything like that happen before… Not a reaction like this anyway. It was one thing for her own wand to be sparking from her hand, but completely another for Sophia’s to be doing the same. ”I think they like each other.” The Gryffindor laughed, because the sparks were not the angry kind a wand made when you used it wrong, but rather, light ones that resembled laughter.

Ember stared, eyes shining as the sparks flew into the air, not understanding their purpose, but really liking them for some reason. She gazed at them, quiet for a few seconds, before her eyes found Sophia’s and she laughed. She re-pocketed her own wand, reached out a hand, and gently ran her fingers down the side of Sophia’s face before she could help it. ”Yes. Forever and ever.” She nodded and then shoved her thumbs into the front pockets of her jeans and started skipping forward. She turned, looking back at Sophia, head tilted, eyes peeking past her dripping hair at the other girl. She nodded her head towards the door. ”I really am glad that you’re alright, Mouse. It’s near dinner time… I was thinking… er… Maybe we could grab some stuff and eat out on the front steps while the sun sets? ‘leen and I do that occasionally once the weather is good, it’s really nice.”

Eveleen. The girl had been right again. She had told Ember that liking someone more than physically involved falling for their personality and presence, as well as wanting to do things that would make them happy. Well, it made a lot more sense than it had back in Eveleen’s bed, but now Ember had to figure out how to deal with her emotions without letting them conflict with her desire to have Sophia as more than a friend. There was no way she could tell her she fancied her, like Eveleen had suggested. It was completely, and utterly, impossible. Especially because there was no way Sophia would like her back. It wasn’t worth it, risking their friendship for something as silly as a crush… Even if that crush was more intense than any Ember had ever felt before in her entire life.

”Then come my fair Lady Healer Sophia of the Badgers. Let us acquire the sustenance we require and take our feast to the out land of gorgeous sunsettery!” Ember laughed, skipping along and purposely keeping her thumbs in her pockets so she wouldn’t be tempted to grab hold of Sophia’s hand at any point. Or touch her again. In fact, maybe she should try to avoid physical contact with the Hufflepuff as much as possible from now on, simply to keep herself under control. Then again, that might look weird and make Sophia think she didn’t like her anymore as Ember was always very affectionate anyway with her friends. Okay, so maybe a little touching, but nothing too… Romantic. Yeah. That would be alright.

Ember led the way, out of the Hospital wing and down to the Great Hall where dinner was already being served. She skirted around people, grabbed up a pair of plates from the Gryffindor table and offered one to Sophia before gathering food on her own. They were technically allowed to eat outside the Great Hall, but most chose not to as it was an easy place to gather with friends from other houses that you didn’t get to see otherwise. Once content with her plate’s contents, mostly fruit based, Ember made sure Sophia had hers, shoved a couple of forks into her other back pocket, and carefully made her way back out through the large doors, heading through the Entrance Hall, and then out the great oak doors to the stone front steps. The sun was already starting to set and she sat down, off to the side so anyone going in and out wouldn’t have to go around them. ”Here we are, milady! Isn’t it pretty out?” Ember smiled, speaking of the nice spring weather they had been having. It was a bit chilly, but not nearly as much as the winter had been.

”Right? It’s funny, because it’s one of the best places in the entire school to watch it, and almost no one ever comes to see.” Ember smiled, setting her plate down next to her and grabbing up a grape. She twirled it between her fingers for a moment before popping it into her mouth, loving the way it crunched. There were always grapes at dinner, green and purple, but Ember never went for the green. They were too big and squishy, not nearly as good at the purple ones who were smaller, sweeter. She stared forward, leaning back on her hands and gazing at the gorgeously painted sky before turning to look at Sophia. She plucked up another grape and slipped it into her mouth, chewing contemplatively as she eyed the Hufflepuff, trying not to stare at her for too long should it look weird. ”At home, it’s not as easy to see the sun rising and setting, too many trees, but the stars are absolutely stunning.”

The Gryffindor sighed thinking about it. The way the wind blew through her mother’s garden, setting off a thousand different scents from the flowers, most of them wonderful. Everything always smelt so… green. Kind of like right now, with the grass having mostly recovered from the snow, and the dandelions starting to really pop out. It would take a bit longer for the trees to completely regain their leaves and the more summery flowers to appear, but it was a good season, spring. A time for new things. And then Ember laughed, whole and happy, her eyes glimmering. ”Me Mam…” She started, the Irish lilt in her voice coming out much stronger than it normally did. It always got buried during the school year, but would pick back up every time she went home, as strong as any other. ”Right now, she’s probably trimming away at her lilac bushes, getting em’ ready for when they’re blooming. She always does it in the evening, says it’s better for the branches. Dirt on her face and everything, and she yells at me when I get any on mine, it‘s absolute hypocrisy. She dun‘ like nothing on my face… I asked her once, if I could pierce my nose, and she said ‘Good lord, lass, anywhere but ya face‘.”

Ember smiled, thinking about it, even though she had been denied something she desired. She still really would have liked to pierce her nose, but her Da had always told her to stop upsetting her mother, so she probably wouldn’t. Just to keep her happy. Reaching out, the Gryffindor gently let her hand slip against Sophia’s, sliding into it like it was the most natural thing in the world before she could even think to stop herself. She twined their fingers together, straightening her legs out so they hung down the steps instead of resting bent up. She knew she shouldn't let herself indulge in such a simple pleasure as hold the other girl's hand when there was no way she could ever had her, but Ember couldn't resist. She needed that physical contact, that... closeness Eveleen had spoken of. ”What’s your family like?”