Anything for the Alcohol

Kaiden listened, crossing his arms and straining his ears to try and better hear the conversation among his fellow Gryffindors who he was not at all fond of. In his opinion, the only thing any of them was good for was the fact that some of them also liked to drink a good deal and could be counted upon to make sure there was always some form of decent alcohol at all of the parties. However, as the words among them finally became clear, Kaiden grimaced. They were arguing over exactly who would be sent to get the drinks this time. What did it matter who go them so long as they came back with them?

The disagreement seemed to be centered between some brunette and one of the Prefects who seemed to always be the one to delegate who did what when it came to the parties. The other girl, the one who wasn’t a Prefect, Kaiden recognized a little bit. She had been sent out for drinks for the last party with that one mate of hers, though, it appeared, this time she wasn’t as willing to go. Or rather, she was saying something stupid or other about not wanting to drag her friend along or go alone. Taking a solo drink run was practically asking to be caught, even Kaiden, who had never gone on one, knew that. Without someone to watch your back and help you carry the goods, there was an even higher likelihood of getting in trouble. Not only did you have to keep one set of eyes everywhere, it was harder to run carting a whole party’s worth of booze even if you levitated it.

Finally, the group dispersed, or rather, the girl given the task of obtaining the most important portion of the party, left it. She seemed impossibly disgruntled as she headed for the boys’ dormitories stairs, obviously going in search of someone to help her instead of having to go all on her own. That one boy, Tommy or whatever his name was. Kaiden knew him by sight, considering they were in the same dorm. He had that one friend, a girl, flighty and quite obnoxious in his opinion. The booze-getting girl could have refused, Kaiden thought, and yet, she didn’t. She must have really wanted to get drunk as well. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, Kaiden watched her, not even bothering to shift himself a bit more out of the way to make space for her. This proved to be a grave mistake, however, as she managed to trip over one of his feet and land hard on the stairs. And then she looked at him, blood dripping from her nose and Kaiden almost swore out loud.

”You like getting smashed, mate?”

Kaiden averted his eyes, only looking at the girl through his peripheral vision at this point, not wanting her to think talking to him was welcome. He didn’t answer her question, turning it over in his head quickly. It was obvious, of course, that she was inquiring if he wanted to make the drink run with her or with that Tommy dude so that she wouldn’t be required to go. As Kaiden thought about it, he realized what an absolutely terrible idea it would be for Tommy to go. Not because of the boy, but because his obnoxious friend might deem it fight to go along as well and screw the whole thing up. Well… Shit.

To booze or not the booze? Well, the answer to that was obvious, as much as he absolutely hated the prospect of what was about to happen here.

Kaiden nodded, pushed to his feet, and then flicked his head in the direction of the portrait hole.

Well, at least the girl wasn’t too much of a chatty one, Kaiden thought to himself as they left the common room and made their way downwards. He had seen her snatch up that one Prefect’s bag, but didn’t really think much of it. The Prefect probably deserved it for having been a bitch about who was going to be getting the drinks in the first place anyway. If it wasn’t for her, Kaiden wouldn’t be having to do this right now. Interacting with this… Well, he didn’t exactly know what to call the girl ahead of him. She moved with confidence, obviously knowing exactly where they were going. He shook his head, once, when she asked him if he knew how to apparate. He had barely turned sixteen in March and therefore, was not quite yet old enough to be allowed to join in on the apparation classes held for the sixth years who would all be turning seventeen by the time September came. As soon as he could though… Life would be easier.

Kaiden kept up with Harper quite easily, though this was probably due to his much longer legs and being nearly a foot taller than her. Damn, he hoped they didn’t get caught. Right now they were fine, just two students, roaming through the hallway. They could have easily been on their way to the library to check out a book before it closed for the night, or simply going for a stroll to stretch their legs. Thankfully though, no teacher or prefect inquired as to their purpose of being out and about this time of the evening. It wasn’t like they appeared to be doing anything wrong anyway… at least, not until Harper pressed open the stained glass window that would take them out onto the grounds. They would have to head down, beyond the school gates, in order to apparate, though, at this point, Kaiden wasn’t entirely sure how on earth he was going to be able to do that unless she planned to side-along him.

Just the thought of it made the boy grimace. Ugh. He’d have to tough her. Now, it wasn’t like Kaiden was opposed to females so much as he was opposed to every single living human on the planet. The very idea of touching another person irked him. He hadn’t really had any physical contact with anyone aside from the random, unwelcome, jostling in the school hallways when they were at their most crowded, not since… No. He wasn’t going to think about that. Booze. Booze was the goal and they were going to retrieve some so he could properly drown himself away.

Carefully, Kaiden slid out the window, landing with ease on the grass below. It wasn’t a far drop, his feet hitting the ground quicker than anticipated. He stood up straight, peering at the window, waiting for the girl who knew where they were going to get her ass out here before his froze. Damn, why were spring nights so much colder than the days? Good thing he’d worn his sweater under his robes today.

Kaiden shoved his hands into his pockets, glowering slightly as he was beckoned along like some kind of child. The girl was not much older than him, and quite short, who was she to tell him what to do? This whole booze run was getting more and more annoying by the minute, especially because he was forced to do it with this bloody brunette. Exactly why the others had chosen her to go get the drinks was beyond Kaiden, aside from the fact that he knew she had done it before more than once. And that was only because he was always lingering when a party was on the rise, waiting on the stairs for the alcohol to show up so he could indulge in a few hours of blissfulness outside of the darker interior of his mind. He could drink til he passed out, and then, he wouldn’t succumb to nightmares for at least that one night. Well, thankfully enough this chick wasn’t blonde, that was something. Kaiden fucking hated blondes, especially girls, and especially small ones.

When Harper asked yet again if he knew how to apparate, Kaiden shook his head. Was this bitch blind or something? Had she simply not seen his response earlier inside the castle? Of course he hadn’t apparated yet… He was only a fifth year. Surely even she knew that, then again, Kaiden wasn’t exactly a social butterfly so there was a high probability of her not knowing his year. He knew she was sixth though, that was certain. Normally he didn’t pay much mind to people, but when you spent years with them living in close quarters, you tended to figure out who belonged where without even really trying. And then the chick was saying something about puking and he raised an eyebrow. Did that happen when some people apparated? He supposed basically teleporting yourself between two places could possibly upset the stomach, but he doubted it would him, even if he could have apparated. And if it did, well, he’d be sure to set his aim straight for her.

Keeping his eyes set dead ahead, Kaiden kept his stride long, not caring if her shorter legs weren’t able to keep up. He just wanted to get this stupid thing over so he could get back and drink himself away. Was that so much to ask? He didn’t think so. Well, at least they were almost to the gates. They were shut at the moment, but that wasn’t much of a worry. They could climb them or get them to open somehow… though, the school tended to have wards against such things. Kaiden was sure though, since this girl apparently knew what she was doing, would have a solution for something as simple as a closed gate.

Kaiden rolled his eyes, not the least bit put off by her words. He didn't give a single fuck if she thought he was stupid for moving ahead of her even if she did know the way out of the gate. The less time he spent near her the better. Hopefully this trip wouldn't take too long. He was already begining to wonder if the booze would even be worth going through all this trouble for, but he pressed that thought quickly out of his head. Of course it was worth it, anything was worth just one more night without seeing his sister's face, the absolute fear and anguish upon it before he'd left her for school, the very last time he'd seen her. She had only been seven , almost eight...

Oh great, the girl was starting to get mouthy now, or rather speaking more than she had back in the castle. Perhaps she had only been quiet so as not to bring attention to themselves. Mr. Noname? Oh geez, how clever of her, how very impossibly charmingly clever. Not. It was probably the lamest thing she could have thought of to call bphim and yet, he still didn't seem it necessary to actually give her a proper response with his mouth. So, he ignored her, not the least bit thrown off by her sarcasm. He had learned long ago that most people were assholes and this stupid bitch was absolutely no exception to that. Kaiden knew he wasn't either, but at least he didn't run around pretending otherwise.

The male Gryffindor watched as the girl used her foot to slam down upon the basic lock and chain that held the gate closed. It was quite astounding actually, that with all the magic and enchantments wizards had at their finger tips, their defenses could be broken by something as simple as a teenage girl's boot. Growing up in the Muggle world definitely had it's advantages sometimes. Either the girl was Muggleborn, like him, or a half-blood. She had to be to have figured out the lock, unless she'd been told about it by an older student. Lots of pure-bloods would have faltered and taken ages to realize that a lock could be broken physically instead of just charmed free.

Watching as the gates opened, Kaiden felt a slight sense of freedom that he normally did not get, well, anywhere. The home he lived in had a curfew, and while he had broken it many a time, he had never broken the one at Hogwarts. There had never really been any point to. He was perfectly content anywhere he could find a silent spot to play his guitar, usually his dorm. The other fifth years weren't that personable either, well, except for that one kid, but everyone pretty much ignored him anyway.

As Harper extended her hand and told him to brace himself, Kaiden hesitated. He had never apparatus before in his life, and the very idea of it, while intriguing, made him a little nervous. It just wasn't natural, popping from one place to another, at least, not according the the way he had grown up. But this was the Wizarding world and apparating was about as common as a blade of grass. Almost everyone could do it if they tried hard enough and had reached the proper age to be capable of it on their own. Well, he wasn't about the wuss out on it, no way in hell. Even if it did mean he had to touch the girl. Ugh.

Kaiden stepped through the gates and looked away as he grasped hold of Harper's hand, grimacing as he felt the soft warm skin against his. It threw him off, having not held anyone's hand in years, not since... Kaiden'a stomach twisted as images flashed through his mind, the same ones he usually dreamed about. Blood everywhere, blonde hair coated with it, and those eyes, those beautiful blue eyes.... Lifeless. He hadn't actually been there for it, and that was why it had happened, but he still saw the flashes of it, ones created by his imagination. He gave Harper's hand a sharp tug, suddenly lost, brain turning it into Lucy's hand and maybe... Maybe he could still save her. But then his vision cleared and it wasn't his sister's hand, it was just this dumb Gryffindor chick's and they were supposed to be apparating. Getting alcohol. Damn he needed a drink and fast.