A Merry Gift-mas Closed

@Katrina Walker

Between her first and second periods, Bridget had quickly returned to her common room, retrieving her copy of Magical Drafts and Potions. Being the first day back, even the prospect of Potions, one of her favorite subjects, couldn't snap her out of the gloomy, nearly zombie-like state she was in. Between exhaustion, worries from break and seeing her family that hadn't yet subsided, and dismay over being back in the swamp of homework, she didn't look quite as put together as usual. Most days, the brunette's uniform was perfectly in order, her hair was pulled back neatly, and she had her expression carefully masked, too wary of other people to allow anyone to see anything underneath. Today, however, her hair was down and knotted, clearly in need of brushing, and anyone who cared to glance her way would see the tired circles under her eyes and her overwhelmed expression.

The small Slytherin kept her head down, trying to avoid attention. Although it was true people generally ignored her because she was short and quiet, right now she really needed no one to look at her...

And then she ruined it. While she was clutching her book to her chest and keeping her eyes down at her feet, some of the older students were more rowdy and one backed up into her. "Watch where you're going!" the student said, giving her a glare.

"Sorry," she said with an uncharacteristically apologetic countenance. He rolled his eyes, turning his back on her and returning to his friends. A few people were staring at her now, likely noticing all the things she didn't want them to see. And then... was that someone calling her name? She turned toward the noise, standing up on her tip-toes to see over her housemates. There--on the side of the corridor--was that... Katrina? Plenty of people were definitely staring now, staring at her mess of a self and at the Gryffindor intruder among their ranks. Still, Katrina was someone Bridget trusted, and she couldn't say that about many. As quickly as she could, she wove through the crowd, slipping through cracks in the mass of snakes.

"Hey Katrina," she whispered, wishing there was some way she could hide how miserable she looked. But if Katrina still liked her after she'd been rude in library and had generally not given her a good reason for kindness, then she probably wouldn't care. Plus, this girl had trusted her enough to share that her parents had died in a fire, so Bridget showing weakness wasn't likely something she'd take advantage of.

Then, Katrina handed her a present and Bridget could feel whatever fragments of a mask she'd pulled together slipping away. The Gryffindor had made an effort to get her a present? In her head, Bridget added this act of kindness to the growing list of all the ways she owed the other girl. "Thank you," she managed to squeak out, accepting the present and slipping it into her satchel to open later. She desperately raced through a mental list of what she had on her, trying to think of anything, anything she had she could give in return. But she had nothing. The realization dawned on her like a couple of stones sinking into the pit of her stomach. How could she not have a Christmas gift for Katrina? She'd made one for Thora. True, she considered Thora a friend while she wasn't quite there with the lioness, but shouldn't she be at that point? Bridget had been relatively quick to trust and befriend Thora and she'd gone through a fairly equivalent amount with Katrina... but maybe that was it. She'd been too hasty in making Thora a friend, too desperate to have someone so she wouldn't be alone. And she really did like Thora and wanted them to be close, but as of that moment, Bridget wasn't even entirely sure if they were still friends. So maybe that was why she was taking it slower with Katrina, taking baby steps to make sure a friendship would last.

But she had no excuse for not having a present. "I-I'm sorry. I, um, I don't have anything for you..." she whispered. And perhaps it was just the stress and fatigue from being back at school, but she could tell she was going to start crying if she stayed, if she continued to dwell on how horrible she was being to Katrina. "I should go--got to get to class. Thank you," she choked out, before offering a quick wave and turning away, making haste towards class and away from all her failure.

Bridget Collins exits the thread.

Bridget thankfully turned toward Katrina and made her way over. The girl seemed quite run-down. She had a crazy bed-head and dark circles rimmed her eyes. She seemed guilty and Katrina attempted a comforting smile at her. She greeted the lioness with a bit more pep to her voice.

"Hi, I was looking for you!" Katrina held out the gift for Bridget to take. Instead of the cheerful look that the Gryffindor expected, a gloomy shadow washed over the brunette's features. Guilt replaced the gloom and Katrina began to wonder if she had done anything wrong. Bridget responded with a quick 'Thank you'.

"No worries, hope you enjoy the present," the happy façade that Katrina put on melted away as soon as Bridget turned. Again, the gift-giver wished she could portray how much she loved giving presents and how she didn't want-- or even need-- anything back.

Bridget was, by far, the closest friend Katrina had at Hogwarts. Their friendship had started out rough, Katrina had interrupted Bridget while she was a bit grumpy. The next time they met, Katrina had helped her recover from a bunch of bullies. That reaching out is what brought them together. The last time, Katrina had completely lost herself in the dungeons. They had an exciting, and sometimes terrifying, adventure with pixies, dark tunnels, and the Mirror of Erised. Katrina had poured out herself then and made herself very vulnerable. When both of them had seen each other at their most broken down selves, it was no wonder that they had begun to make very good friends.

With that cheerful note on her mind, the little giving elf set off to give the rest of her receivers. Before she could get too far, the bell rang. By a stroke of luck, the door just down the hall was her next class and she was able to get there before being late. The rest of her presents would have to wait for now…

Katrina Walker Leaves the Thread