A Nice Place to Read (open)

Now that the classes for the term was over Humphrey had broken out one of the books he'd gotten for his birthday but still hadn't read. It was the start of a muggle mystery series called The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and had seemed rather interesting. His sister had noticed and surprised him with it on his birthday, even though he always told her she didn't have to get him anything she never seemed to listen. Laughing a little to himself, he found his way outside to the Transfiguration Courtyard and sat on the stone ledge of one of the alcoves. As it was rather chilly he had on a few layers and his leather jacket to help keep him warm. Cracking open the spine with a smile, he began reading what he was sure would be an excellent story.

Winter Holiday! Just the idea of having a little more freedom and less people around made Lacey smile. Although she was lonely at times, she was ok with it. She had been on her own, in a sense, for so long, it was old hat. Seeing as she had been cooped up inside for so long, and there was a break in the winter weather, the Ravenclaw figured it might be nice to go out to the courtyard for a bit of fresh air. Making sure to bundle up and put Shinra's own winter type scarf on, the duo made their way outside.

Sucking in a small shock of breath at the chill in the air that kissed her cheeks, Lacey giggled very softly. "Go have fun," she said brightly to her shepherd and let him take off down the steps without her. Gripping the rail as she counted the steps leading to the open yard, Lacey smiled to herself. She liked being outside, especially when Shinra could be out and play without having to 'guard' her constantly. Reaching the bottom of the steps, the blonde counted the 25 steps to the nearby benches, brushed off the snow, and prepared to sit. Just as she was about to, a gust of wind kicked up and caught her scarf, wiggling it free and whisking it away. "Oh no!" she said, getting up and calling her dog to her.

Hearing his girl's whistle, Shinra immediately ran to her side and nuzzled her hand to assure her he was there. "My scarf! Shinra, do you see it?" she asked. The shepherd tipped his head to the side, trying to understand, but not really knowing how to help. However, when he looked around, his keen eyes caught sight of the blue and grey scarf drifting through the breeze. As it came to a landing on the open book of a boy sitting on the wall, Shrina whined as if to say he'd be right back and took off across the yard, giving a hearty bark to let the boy know he was coming.

Humphrey had been thoroughly enjoying the start to the story when a beautiful blue and grey scarf drifted across the breeze and landed on it, covering one page. Laughing a little, he looked up to find the owner and after seeing a dog rushing his way eventually spotted the girl who he assumed the dog belonged to. It was slightly strange, as he was under the impression dogs weren't one of the Hogwarts pets allowed; but, he much preferred them to most of the pets here. Grabbing the scarf and setting the book down after marking his place, he put it over one shoulder and bent down to greet the enthusiastic animal. "Hey there, I'm going to hold on to this for a minute so it doesn't get this lovely scarf all covered in slober. Hope you don't mind." he said, scratching behind the ears like he knew he was supposed to.

Looking up after a moment he gave the girl a wave. "You have a beautiful dog!" he called out, laughing a little as he played with it. She wasn't anybody he recognized, but she did seem younger so they probably didn't have classes or anything together. Perhaps this was an opportunity to make a new friend, it certain seemed like it.

Lacey waited patiently, hoping that Shinra might find her scarf and bring it back. It wasn't like she would have an easy time trying to find it on her own. Rubbing her hands a little nervously, Lacey froze when she heard a voice call from across the yard. You have a beautiful dog! Glancing in the general direction of where the unfamiliar voice was coming from, Lacey swallowed and timidly, shyly called back, "Th-thank you." Hearing his girl call, the white shepherd looked in her direction and back at the boy, tail wagging. This was a nice boy. It also helped that he gave him a friendly greeting before talking to his girl. Very gently, Shinra reached his head out and took the end of the scarf in his teeth. Giving it a little tug, he released it and turned to go back to his girl. Looking over his shoulder at the boy, as if to say 'Come on.'

Lacey, meanwhile, was conflicted. The boy had a voice she didn't know, which made her nervous, but maybe he could help. Would he mind? Stammering slightly, the blonde took a timid step towards where she heard him call from, "Um... I'm sorry to bother you... But, um.... Th-the wind seems to ha-have taken my scarf. Do you happen to see it?" Beginning her nervous wringing of her hands again, Lacey hoped that he might be able to help her.

The dog was clearly the more socially inclined of the two, but when he started tugging on the scarf and making to move towards her Humphrey followed along. Hopefully he wouldn't be too frightening of an experience for her. When he was younger he was rather intimidated by the older years himself so really he could understand her reaction. "Do you have a name?" he asked the shepherd, looking to see if it was on a collar or something. He was sure the girl would probably tell him in a minute or two, though, if he didn't find it on his own. As he got closer all he could think was that she looked absolutely adorable.

Walking right up until he was about five feet away from her he stopped and gave her a friendly smile. "It's not a bother at all, I assure you. As for the scarf, I believe it's the one that landed on top of my book. Is this what you're looking for?" he asked, taking it off his shoulder and holding it out for her to get a good look at. The hand-wringing was noticed by Humphrey but he tried to seem as unimposing as he possibly could.

Hearing the footfalls of the boy and Shinra near her, Lacey bit her lip nervously. She could tell he was older than she was, but he sounded friendly. That and Shinra wasn't on guard, placing himself between the boy and her as he did when he didn't care for a new person. Hearing him ask if her dog had a name, she offered timidly, "Hi-his name is Shinra." While at Hogwarts, she often didn't put the typical harness on him, preferring to hold onto his fur or let him guide her with just her hand on his back or head, which also meant that his name ID was missing as well.

Hearing the boy say that he believed her scarf was what interrupted his reading, Lacey tried to track where he might be. If anything she look just over his right shoulder, at but not really at him. Hearing him ask if 'this' was what she was looking for, Lacey felt a warm heat rise in her pale cheeks as she was forced to consider how to tell him that she couldn't see the scarf and brace herself for the backlash that had so often accompanied her bringing her condition to light, forcing her to withdraw from people more and more and more... Drawing a deep breath, Lacey dropped her gaze to the ground and muttered, a tremble making her voice shake ever so slightly, "I, uh.... I don't know.... I... I can't see it..." Giving her hands a hard wring she added, "I'm in Ravenclaw house..... So... I-if it matches my house.... It prob-probably is?"

Shinra, listening to everything being said, nuzzled his girl's hand until she placed it on his head in a form of comforting her and letting her know that it was alright.

"You seem like a very smart dog Shinra, and seem to be taking good care of your owner." he said, getting down and hugging the dog a little as he petted him thoroughly. It made him miss his own family's dog, but for now he'd have to do without any Alice time. Humphrey had gotten used to not having a pet with him all the time over his years at Hogwarts, but it was something that he would have to remedy for his last two years he was thinking. Maybe find an owl of his own or something to keep him company when he felt lonely.

The explanation that she in fact couldn't see it at all was like a light bulb going off, and suddenly everything made sense. Especially how she was allowed her dog, because it was probably one trained as a seeing-eye dog and used to help with her handicap. "Looks like a Ravenclaw scarf to me, do you mind if I help get it nice and secure this time?" he asked, not wanting to just put it on her without her consent.

The boy spoke to Shinra very kindly, and that impressed Lacey. As he knelt down and gave him a hug and good pat, the shepherd tucked his head against the boy in his version of a hug in return, his tail wagging the whole time. "He does," Lacey spoke without even a second thought, "He's a good boy." Realizing that she just spoke without hesitation, the blonde snapped her gaze up, surprise lighting her eyes for a moment.

At the boy's confirmation of the scarf being from her house made her smile slightly. Her scarf was found! However, his next question made the glimmer of a smile fade slightly. Her first thought was to say no, but he was being nice and was nice to Shinra. Plus, Shinra didn't seem to be concerned. "Um.... Sure, ok," Lacey replied and took a timid step towards the location of the boy's voice. Not wanting to be rude, the Ravenclaw plucked up a little courage and offered, "I... I'm Lacey."

Humphrey was glad that there were some things like her dog that the girl seemed much more sure about. It was so brave of her to come to Hogwarts, it was a wonder to him that she wasn't in the house of the lions. After giving Shinra a little more attention he stood back up, his back cracking just a bit in the process. "How long have you had him?" he asked curiously.

When the girl said her name Humphrey winced a little bit, realizing how rude of it was for him not to have introduced himself earlier. "Nice to meet you Lacey, I'm Humphrey Williams. In fifth year and Hufflepuff, in case you ever decided to track me down." he told her with a chuckle. Making a loop at one end he deftly pulled the scarf around her and pulled it through. He'd made sure her hair was out of the way and the scarf shouldn't fly away now unless she undid it herself. "There you are, looking quite spiffy if I do say so myself." he said with a wink out of habit.

... I'm Humphrey Williams... The name was nice. If Lacey remembered, her dad might have told her about an actor by that name... But she wasn't for sure. When he told her his year and house, she internally smiled. He was older than she was! Lucky guess. As Humphrey snugged her scarf gently around her neck, being careful to not catch her hair, Lacey smiled. "I've had him since I was near six," she said in answer to his question about how long she and Shinra were a pair, "But...It feels like for-forever." It was honestly one of the last happy memories she had of her life before Hogwarts...

Bringing her hands up to touch the scarf and feel how he tied it, the blonde added, "I'm a first year.... You already know m-my house." Giving a tiny giggle, something she hadn't done in a long time with anyone other than her dog, she replied, "Thank you... For helping me with my scarf." If the blonde was honest, she was enjoying the company of this boy, and that was saying something since she always stayed away from others if she could help it. "Do, um.... Do you have a dog?" she asked. Afraid she was being too forward, she quickly added, "You just seem to be...uh...very good and kind with....with mine."

Humphrey smiled back, nodding when she explained how long she'd had him. "Well that makes sense, if you've had him so long that's nearly half your life. And some of that was probably stuff you don't remember from when you were a baby." he pointed out, chuckling a little. This girl would have definitely been a cute baby, of that he was absolutely certain. He noticed her fingers running over the scarf to feel what he did, and felt himself relax. This girl certainly seemed to know how to take care of herself, and with the dog he felt a bit of his worry for her ease up.

"That I do. I just have to look for the smart people and find the cutest one." he said, teasing her slightly because he couldn't help it. Honestly, she reminded him of his little sister Casey in looks. Personalities were completely different, but...the looks definitely. "I was happy to help, and feel free to ask if you find yourself needing help with other things too. Other people don't always like helping the younger students, but really I find it quite enjoyable getting to know and make new friends." he told her quietly, as if it was a secret. The question about him having a dog made him smile widely. "Yeah, my family has a red husky named Alice. My little sis and her are inseparable, but I spend a fair bit of time with her too. She's an energetic one, that's for sure."

"Yeah..." she replied. Really, Shrina was the only bright spot in her life until she came to Hogwarts and had a small chance to rebuild her shattered life. Feeling her cheeks turn quite warm at being called cute and using that cute to find her, Lacey looked away shyly. "No one's.... No one's ever called me that before," she said. Bringing her unseeing eyes back up to the boy she was touched by his offer to help, and it showed on her face. He wasn't just offering because she couldn't see, but because she was an equal and everyone needs a little help once and a while. "Th-thank you, Humphrey. I-I will remember to find you when I need help," she added with a tender smile.

Hearing that he had a dog, and a little sister, Lacey felt a lite excited. "I've heard about Huskies, but I've never met one. Are they really fluffy, as people say?" she asked. "Does your sister go here, too?" Lacey added. Her nervous stammering was nearly gone as she grew more and more comfortable being with Humphrey, and, she was enjoying having someone to talk to who didn't seem to mind that she was a little different from everyone else.

Humphrey was rather confused when she told him that nobody had called her that before. Why on earth wouldn't somebody have? It wasn't just that she looked cute it was in nearly all of her mannerisms and her shy behavior, at least it was cute to him. "Well, clearly they must just be distracted by the dog. That's the only explanation I can think of for others not noticing." he said, pondering the conundrum. Hearing her say that she would made him smile, too. "Awesomesauce. Maybe sometime I can show you a few of the places I've found, like not everybody knows where the kitchens are. It's rather fun to drop in on the house-elves from time to time, especially if feeling peckish between meals." he said wit a chuckle.

The first question about the husky being fluffy was rather amusing to him, she was quite right though. "Oh, yes. Definitely fluffy, my sister's always trying to sneak her in to her bed but my parents are pretty good about stopping that. She's supposed to be an outside dog." he told her. "And yeah, she does. She's in second year."

Humphrey's joke made Lacey giggle, even if it was softly. "Well, I mean... I have been called that before.... Just... Not for a LONG time," she mused happily. At his offer to show her some secret places, including the kitchens, Lacey's Bright eyes seemed to light up a touch. She liked to explore new places, but often never got the chance to since she couldn't see and would be unable to find her way should she get lost. So, the idea of being able to actually do that was exciting! "Really? You'd take me to your secret places?" she asked. "I'd like to visit the kitchens. The elves have been very kind to me. Helping me adjust to meals here and making it so it's not so confusing," the blonde added. The elves had really taken good care of Lacey. Her plates are always set up the same way, as well as her glasses and utensils being in the same location. They also have taken to making her favorite sweet treats for her to find on her bedside table after a particularly hard day.

The idea of a fluffy dog in bed when it shouldn't be made Lacey smile. Shinra wasn't allowed in her bed either, unless she called him up when she was scared or lonely. "Why is she an outside dog?" she inquired. "Oh! Is she in your house, too?" the Ravenclaw asked, backing up until the back of her legs touched the bench, allowing her to know where to sit. Which she did and offered for him to sit if he liked.

Humphrey leaned down a bit and whispered to her. "Before you know it all the boys your age will be saying that to you, just you wait and see." he assured her. Seeing her excited at the prospect of discovering new areas had him smiling brightly. "Well, of course. Don't see any reason not to. The fun of Hogwarts is sharing cool experiences with friends, after all." he said, and despite them having met only a few minutes ago he found he did think of her as one already. The kitchens was something that almost all Hufflepuffs had been too before since it was so close, but not everybody tended to go quite as often as Humphrey did. Sure, he did go for snacks, but also enjoyed spending time around the unique elves that helped keep the school functioning. That they had made sure to take extra good care of Lacey didn't surprise him at all.

"Well, as a rule Huskies need a lot of space to run around and play in. They don't do too well if they're kept cooped up inside. Plus, it makes it easier not having to worry about any mess she may decide to make." he said with a chuckle. Humphrey couldn't help laughing a bit when she asked if Casey was in his house. "Oh no, she's a Gryffindor. Very much the explorer and far more brave than I am. Not sure if the chivalry is quite there, but we can work on that."

Lacey's cheeks only deepened when Humphrey mentioned that soon all the boys will be calling her cute. She wasn't sure about that, but, maybe he was right. As he confirmed that he was very serious about sharing his discoveries with her, Lacey hoped that they could be friends. It had been so long since she had one and, to her, it didn't matter that he was four years older than she was. "I'd like that, Humphrey. I really would," she said softly. Plucking up her courage, she added, "Sharing in your secret places and....and being friends." Looking away, she was surprised she even had that in her to say at all. Hopefully he didn't mind... If he didn't mind helping younger students or sharing his discoveries with her, maybe he wouldn't mind being friends, either.

Listening as Humphrey told her about Huskies, she liked the idea of such a fluffy friend running about at his home. "I would imagine being stuck inside all the time wouldn't be enjoyable. That's kind of why Shinra and I are out here.... He likes to play but it's hard for me to unless he plays directly with me... You know.... Bringing me things to throw for him and he brings back, but it's....it's hard because I don't want to hit anyone..... So I try to bring him here sometimes when no one is around so he can just be a dog," Lacey explained. Taking a green ball from her pocket, she held it up to show the boy and gave it a toss, prompting Shinra to take off after it. However, he didn't bring it back right off, opting instead to runabout with it playing on his own like a fool since his girl was in good keeping with the boy. Lacey was, after all, finding it easier and easier to simply talk to Humphrey, which was a nice change. When he explained that his sister was in Gryffindor House, Lacey was a little surprised. When she arrived at Hogwarts she knew nothing about the houses or how things worked, heck, she didn't even now magic was real. But she had heard whispers that families often we're in the same house. "She must be really different from you. I heard some kids say that their whole family was in one house or another and then they got in the same house," she said, curious how Humphrey and his sister could be in two houses but be related. "I always thought it would be nice to have a brother. What's it like?" she asked. She knew her parents had a hard time having any children at all, but she had hoped that maybe one day she could have gained the title of sister. Too bad that was never to happen...

Hearing her now actually able to voice out loud the idea of being friends after seeing her so shy earlier made Humphrey feel all warm inside. He was tempted to just reach out and hug her, but somehow managed to keep himself from shocking and probably scaring her by doing it. "It seems we have a plan, then. When do you want to make our first excursion into Hogwarts?" he asked. He was a fan of making at least some sort of plan rather than winging everything on the fly like some people could do.

Listening as she explained about her own dog Humphrey nodded, understanding completely. Dogs were awesome companions, way better than cats in his opinion; but, they did take a lot of work to keep properly in shape and happy. "Yeah, Hogwarts definitely has a lot of space for animals if you look for it, thankfully. I've been thinking of getting another pet, not sure if I want to get a boring old owl or something else, though." he said, thinking. Watching her toss the ball and then Shinra just run off with it made him chuckle slightly before turning his attention back to Lacey. "Eh, some families are like that but I wouldn't say all by any means. It wasn't that much of a surprise, we get along great but we've always been quite a bit different from each other." he explained. When she asked what having a sister was like he tried to think of the best way to answer it. "At first I was super excited, but she was just a baby and then a toddler who couldn't do much that I was getting a little bit impatient on her not being able to join me. By the time she was five though we were doing everything we could together, from building treehouses, to swimming, learning to raise a pet together. She's become my best friend, I don't know what I'd do without her. Not all siblings get along that great, but I'm grateful we do." Humphrey said quietly, smiling.

Shrugging and giving a small chuff of a laugh, Lacey replied, "Whenever, I guess." Being on her own all the time, it wasn't like she had to work around a social calendar. She was also caught up in all her studies, so really, any time was a good time for an adventure.

The blonde had only ever really ventured to locations that were walled, since she was allowing Shinra to run free. She needed to know that he was nearby and being in an enclosed space was the best way to give him some freedom without making her worry about whether or not he'd run off. Not that he would. "We've been to the lake. It's a nice place. I usually sit on the shore and Shinra splashes in the shallows, never going too far," she told of the adventures they had been on in regards to the space for pets. When Humphrey spoke of possibly getting another pet, maybe an owl, Lacey smiled and looked in his direction. "An owl would be neat! I've heard they deliver mail! You could have your own personal mail carrier!" she said brightly. When she had learned about that, Lacey had wished she had someone to deliver mail to. But seeing as she didn't, she didn't see a reason to get one.

Hearing that some families have all the members in the same house, but not all, made her wonder what her family would have been like. She had been told she was a lot like her mom, so maybe her mom would have been in her house. Her dad was the bravest man she ever knew. He would certainly have been in Gryffindor Still, she didn't dwell on it too much. When Humphrey told her about how excited he was at the idea of being a brother and then impatient for his sister to be able to play with him and then thrilled that the time finally came, Lacey liked the idea of a brother. "I think it would be nice to have someone like that with you. It was just me and my mom and dad..." she said, letting her voice trail off at the memory of her life before. "Were your parents wizards, too?" she asked, truly curious.

Humphrey thought about it for a few moments, before shrugging. "How about tomorrow, Lacey?" he asked. As of yet he didn't really have anything planned and since he had no girlfriend to make those plans for him, he felt he was at liberty to decide his own schedule. The fact he didn't have one honestly didn't bother him, because it would either happen or it wouldn't but he certainly wasn't going to try forcing things and make a fool of himself.

The lake was definitely his favorite place to be when it was warm enough to swim in or cold enough to skate on, the between was kind of annoying, though. Sure, it was nice to look at but he always wanted to play not just look. "Definitely one of my favorite things about this place. It's really cool down there if you learn something to breathe with and go diving." Humphrey told her. Seeing her excitement about the owl had him smiling, but he wasn't so sure that was the right pet for him. "It does carry mail, yes. The thing is I've never really had anyone to write to aside from my parents and my little sister, and I can usually give it to them in person."[/color] he explained with a laugh.

Now the awkwardness was starting to make sense, especially with her being a first year and still getting used to being around other people her age. An idea came to him, and he wondered if she would think it was silly before deciding there was only one way to find out. "Well, not sure if you think this is ridiculous. But, if you wanted, maybe I could be like your adopted big brother at school. Casey gets me all the time, I'm sure she wouldn't mind loaning me out now and then. If our parents are okay with it we might even be able to visit over the summer or something." he suggested. "My dad's a wizard, mum's muggle, though. He works at St. Mungo's and she's a nurse in Edinburgh, guess it was their shared passion for healing really that made it click." Humphrey shared, smiling.

"Hmmmm... Tomorrow?" Lacey said as she thought about if that would work. Part of her was nervous about this new adventure, but she was also very excited about having a friend who didn't care that she couldn't see. Smiling, she gave a happy nod, "Yes! Tomorrow sounds great."

Thinking about diving into the lake gave Lacey the shivers. The water was cold, and it was dark. Not that she wasn't used to the dark, but under water you can't hear properly among other things. "I'll have to take your word for that, Humphrey. Don't think I'll ever go...diving in the lake. Wait.... You can make a spell to let you breathe under water?" she asked, puzzled. Lacey's knowledge about magic was limited to only the stuff she got to study in the first half of her first year, and whatever she might overhear others talk about. So hearing that there was a way for air breathers to breathe underwater was amazing to her. At his explanation as to why he didn't see a reason for an owl, also with his confirmation that owls to deliver mail, Lacey could relate. "It's really cool that owls deliver your mail. I don't have an owl either. Don't have anyone to write to or get letters from. Guess you don't really need one, either, if you can just deliver the letters yourself," Lacey agreed. Feeling Shinra bump her leg when he returned with the ball, Lacey patted his head and took the ball, throwing it again, beginning Shinra's game of run all over.

Turning to look in Humphrey's direction as he offered to be a type of brother for her at school, Lacey was floored. No one had ever offered anything like this for her. Not ever... "You.... You would do that for me? Really?" she asked softly in disbelief, "That would be.... That would be great, Humphrey." Reaching out a hand to find him, she put her arms around the boy in a tight hug without even thinking. However, she quickly let him go when she realized what she'd done as well as when he mentioned about their parents and them allowing visits during the summer. As her cheeks pinked up from her sudden hug, she linked her fingers in her lap and dropped her gaze to them. "You would actually have to ask....ask Headmistress Moore about break visits... I don't know that you'd want to visit here on your breaks when you are here for school..." Lacey said softly with a sigh. When Humphrey told her about his parents being one and one, she wondered what it was like to have a parent that was also magical. "My mom and dad were both not magical....um... Muggles. I didn't even know magic or Hogwarts existed for real until this year," Lacey explained looking up to the sky and letting the cool breeze brush over her face.

Why this girl didn't seem to have more friends didn't make any sense to Humphrey at all, but hopefully that would change for her soon. She was clearly smart and willing to make the effort. Perhaps others would start warming up to her once they were all settled in, it does take a while to adjust to Hogwarts after all. "Perfect. Shall I meet you after breakfast, then or do you want to do later in the day?" he asked.

It made sense that she would be a bit more interested in the how of it as opposed to doing it herself. Humphrey was kind of scared his first time to and he could actually see the lake and what things to try and avoid, like the grindylows for example. "Oh, yes. I chose to learn the bubblehead charm, but I'm told there are other ways to accomplish it as well. There's even a plant called gillyweed, and if you eat enough of it you can stay underwater for one hour roughly with gills, and even webbing between your fingers and toes to help propel you through the water." he said, laughing. Some of the things magic could do were really cool, but also a bit ridiculous. "Part of me wants to get a magical creature of some sort, but I have no idea what would be fun yet kind of simple in how to take care of it. Since I probably won't be able to bring it to classes it can't be something that will cause too much trouble." he said, laughing a little. He probably needed to head to the library and do some more research on the subject.

Before Humphrey had time to respond, she had reached out to find him and given him a hug. The girl had pulled back before Humphrey could respond in kind, though, making him frown. "Oy! Get back here, I have to hug you back." he said, and reached out, tapping her shoulder to let her know he was there before wrapping his arms around her in a much gentler but firm hug than the quick burst of one she'd given. "As for summer break, I don't know if I'd want to spend the whole summer here by any means. But I can definitely stop by from time to time, maybe even convince her to let me borrow you as long as I bring you back in one piece. You know my mum is always telling me I should bring home a girlfriend, while you aren't quite that you are a girl and a friend so perhaps that will mollify her. You think?" Humphrey asked her, unable to help the teasing comment from slipping out when the thought struck him. Of course he would keep her safe as best he could, there was simply nothing else to be done. "Wow, both my sister and I exhibited the accidental magic pretty early so we always expected it. Dad told us enough about Hogwarts for us to be excited about it." he added.

Smiling happily, Lacey replied, "After breakfast sounds great." Just the idea of going on an adventure with her new friend had the blonde nearly giddy with excitement, however one would never know it to look at the complete calm she was showing externally. She was sure it was going to be thrilling!

"Bubblehead..." Lacey said to herself. She thought she remembered hearing talk about something like that. The spell put a charmed bubble around one's head, allowing them to breathe the air within it. When Humphrey mentioned the Gillyweed, she was shocked. "So, you would be like a real fish?" she asked, amused at the thought. Just thinking about people with gills and webbed hands and feet made her giggle slightly. "I bet it tastes horrid," she mused. Lacey didn't know much about many of the magical creatures that were in existence, but if there were as many magic ones as non, there must be tons! "Are there certain ones you can have here at school?" she asked, remembering her letter saying you could have a cat, rat, or frog. Maybe with being in a higher year, Humphrey could have something else.

Going slightly ridged when he said to come back for a return hug and then wrapping his arms around her, Lacey didn't move or breathe right away. But, then, like magic, her body relaxed as she remembered just how nice it was to have an exchange like this between friends. Resting her head on his shoulder as he held her in the gentle hug before releasing her. Smiling, Lacey promised herself that hugs will be much easier the more often she allows them. The Ravenclaw didn't blame him one bit for only wanting to visit Hogwarts over the summer holiday. After all, he would have just left after the school year concluded. Not having any other place to go, Lacey didn't mind in the least. Hogwarts was a million times better than where she had been. "Visits would be nice, and I bet Headmistress Moore would allow me visits to your home, if your parents didn't mind. It would be kind of interesting to meet a magical family," she said happily, smiling at the thought of what it could possibly be like. Humphrey's teasing joke made Lacey laugh. Technically, he was right. She was a friend who happened to be a girl. So, his mom could be happy with that! "You will just have to tell her that you did as she asked and brought home what she told you to," she said between giggles. Just from what she was learning of her friend, his family sounded wonderful. "Accidental magic? What's that?" she asked.

Now that they'd decided on that he focused on the rest of their conversation, and he tried to remember how gillyweed affected you. "In some ways, yeah. The cold of the lake isn't supposed to bother you as much if you use it either from what I understand. Don't think it helps with eyesight though so if it's dark down there you need to light it up somehow still." Humphrey explained. Hearing her giggle about this made him mile, it was kind of ridiculous. "Pretty sure you're right about that. But from what I read the texture is the most difficult part. I mean a small ball of it looks like a bunch of writhing, rubbery worms so I don't imagine it would go down easy." he said, wrinkling his nose at the thought of what that might be like. It took him a moment to remember the school rules on the magical creatures. "As far as I know only kneazles, which are a lot like cats with a few small differences. They are supposed to be really good at finding people even if they're hidden with magic, other than that I don't really know much about what they can do." he admitted.

Humphrey thought it would be a lot of fun having her over, even though he didn't think they were so different than most families. "Since my mum's muggle we got a regular house, so it has electricity and everything like that. Unless we're working on something tricky or practicing a spell we really don't use magic all that much. The interesting thing will be to see how you and Casey get along. She's not mean or anything, just...a very strong personality." he said, chuckling. Describing his sister any more than that without it being someone who'd met her was kind of a lost cause in his opinion. "I suppose I will." he agreed. His mother would probably flip if he told her he brought home a girlfriend and introduced an eleven or twelve year old girl, though. "Accidental magic is what happens before you learn to control it like here at Hogwarts. If you get upset or angry about something, usually any time after the age of two or three I think, there's a possibility it could trigger a burst of magic to do something. Usually it's small things, but Harry Potter is rumored to have done some pretty interesting stuff before he was trained like vanishing an entire pane of glass in a zoo, then bringing it back and trapping his cousin inside an exhibit with a snake. Most aren't so dramatic, like I don't know...changing the color of something or making something float or shake a little." Humphrey told her.

As Humphrey explained what Gillyweed did and didn't do, Lacey was a little bit floored. To think, there was something out there that could turn you into a fish! Or fish-like, anyways. Remembering the story she used to read Shinra, she smiled at the thought of being one step away from a mermaid! "Guess I'll just have to stay on land. Can't see with or without light," she mused, chuckling at her own little joke. As the image of what she saw as a ball of slimy worms formed in her mind, Lacey wrinkled her nose, "I don't know that I could eat that... No matter how badly I wanted to be a fish." Just the thought of putting something like that in her mouth made the blonde's skin crawl. Giving a small shiver, she pushed the idea away. Hearing her friend move on to magical creatures, she listened carefully. "I don't think we've gotten to those in class yet. But isn't it like a....like a lion?" she asked. She thought she might have come across something like that when she was scanning through a book in the library, but she couldn't be sure. Really, keeping things straight was hard with some things, especially since everything was completely new.

When Humphrey told her that they had a regular house, Lacey wasn't too sure what the difference between a regular house and a wizard house was, but it gave her a little bit of comfort. She knew about lights and things, even if they really served no purpose for her. "Your sister sounds nice. If she's like you, strong personality or not, I bet she is," she said, giving him and his sister a compliment. The blonde hoped his sister, Casey, was nice like he was. It would be nice to maybe make another friend... At the explanation of what accidental magic was, Lacey was a littler perplexed. Without being able to see, she honestly didn't know if she ever had anything like that happen. Ever... She certainly didn't recall her parents saying anything about anything strange happening without explanation. Maybe she didn't have that happen at all... The Matron at the children's home wouldn't have noticed as she didn't give Lacey much attention and she opted to stay away from the other kids who were malicious towards her. Looking in his direction when he mentioned the boy who vanished a glass pane and made it reappear, Lacey blinked a few times in disbelief. "The whole thing?" she asked, "Where did it go?" If that boy could do that, she wondered if this was something that happened to ALL young wizards and witches. Drawing a soft breath, Lacey asked softly, "Does that happen to everyone? The accidental magic stuff, not the vanishing glass and trapping people with snakes." Biting her bottom lip, she tried to hide the touch of worry that she felt at the idea of being magical and not having this little 'right of passage' like all the other kids brought her.

Humphrey frowned slightly upon hearing that, but he couldn't very well contradict her when it came to this. Swimming either above or below the water when you couldn't see any objects or creatures that might be heading your way wasn't really safe. "I suppose, but maybe if I found some things I could bring them back and you could be in charge of a collection or something? There's a lot of interesting stuff, especially near the mermaid home but they are kind of...touchy about wizards and witches being there so it's best to stay clear most of the time." he admitted. Before he had always simply explored, but there were tons of cool things there, he was definitely not kidding about that. The face she made had him laughing, not at her though by any means. "You are probably smart about that one, I tried it once just to see...makes me nauseated merely thinking about it. Gave me the motivation to learn a new way, for sure." Humphrey explained. When she asked if the kneazles were like lions he tried to think how best to describe it. "In some features of their appearance yes, but not even close in size. They are a about the size of a regular cat, maybe slightly bigger but not much. Their tails and ears look kind of like a lion, though. There are also half-kneazles, which are part cat and those look closer to normal ones. I could be wrong, but I don't think they have manes like lions do." he said, trying to recall any more specifics but not coming up with much.

Smiling and blushing slightly when she made the comment about if she's like you, he tried to think of what on earth he could say to that. This girl was so sweet, and he knew she would be more than welcome with any of his family. "She is, really. I suppose she sees it as her duty to make her brother behave properly, but even then it's never like...in a mean way or anything. However, she does like to tease people a bit in a jokey way, fair warning." Humphrey decided to add, not wanting her to think it was making fun because Casey wasn't like that. The question about where the vanished glass would have gone before reappearing was a puzzler, and he tried to remember his Transfiguration lessons. "From what I remember, the object ceases to exist. So, I suppose it would mean the other accidental magic was conjuring one to replace it, which makes it even more unusual." he told her, pondering it. All of these tough questions were going to give him a headache, but he was a curious person as well so couldn't really fault her in the slightest. Her question about accidental magic was one that there was a lot more known about. "Most of the time, yes. Some children are said to even exhibit a bit of control over their magic, though that's pretty rare. I don't know if literally everybody does it or not, the ministry would probably have more information or a teacher. This is all mainly guessing and what I've heard, which is sometimes not always factual." he admitted, wishing he could give her a better idea.