Time for a Bit of Improvisation PV Alexx Séverin

If the incident in which Alexx raised a plant with Reid Kovacs did not speak volumes in terms of her disliking for Herbology, she was unsure what would. There was nothing in this world that she could use to compare her disliking for the subject. And it had nothing to do with it being boring, which it wasn't in the slightest, but it had everything to do with her lacking a green thumb.

Her stroll around the area was, quite luckily, non-class related. As a matter of fact, she was instead enjoying her day. She liked the aesthetic of plants, despite not being any good at achieving that aesthetic. On top of that, it was nice to let Rosalie wander as she pleased. The grounds were quiet and open, so she had no trouble keeping an eye on the pink puff.

Alexx had a good sense for trouble. It came with the whole "Prefect" gig. If she felt like being irresponsible, she would have ignored the sound of something falling to the ground in the Greenhouse. She would have simply acted as though it were none of her business, and she would move on with her life. That would be the easiest thing to do. And she would not feel sorry about it, either, as she learned to not care about certain things. There were days when the girl couldn't be bothered. This was one of those days.

Walking past the Greenhouse, she let Rosalie lead the way, and she told herself that this was a situation that Professor Davis could deal with. If something had broken, if plants were stolen, if a kid was caught out after curfew or skipping class- no one would know that she knew. And Alexx could live her life in peace being the only one that knew that. She would not be handing out detentions today, and that was totally fine with her.

Except for the fact that it wasn't. Alexx groaned, throwing her head back. She swept up Rosalie and carried her off, trudging back in the direction of the Greenhouse. Placing Rosalie on her shoulder, she hastily stood around the bend of the building, listening carefully. She wanted to prepare herself for whatever it was that she was going to face. Hearing nothing but a bit of shuffling, she decided it was likely harmless. Her mind flashed the idea that it could very well have been just some plant nerd who knocked something over and it was nothing to worry about. The other half of her, the glass-half-empty half of her, told her it could be something worse.

Sighing and taking the initiative, she opened the door. Her eyes scanned all over the room and- nothing. Great. Her mind was playing tricks on her. It was just like when she met Bloom Silverton and managed to convince herself that she was speaking to God. It was something on that level of ridiculous. It was extremely frustrating, actually.

And this was what Alexx told herself as she was about to walk out the door. But then, by chance, her eyes glanced down and caught glimpse of something. A cat playing with a plant. Not just any plant, but Valerian root. Alexx only knew what this was because it was a general warning that Magical Mangerie gave out when she was searching for a companion. Though her heart and mind went straight to Pygmy Puff, she didn't forget it.

Just like that, every ounce of annoyance went away. It was just a cute cat. She bent down, looking pitifully at the mess it had made, smiling. "And who do you belong to?" She rhetorically asked under her breath. There certainly was a mess, and this cat wasn't going to be easy to get a hand of now that it was experiencing the effects of the root. Rosalie squeaked curiously on her shoulder, but Alexx only patted her, not letting her get close to the cat.

Standing back up, Alexx looked around the vicinity, wondering if the owner was nearby. "Hello?" She called out, eyes scanning the room. "If you've lost a cat, you'd better come collect it." She suggested, raising her voice just a bit. She wondered how this could have even happened. In all fairness, a cat was quicker and far more nimble than a Pygmy Puff, so she supposed escaping was an art that the feline companion had perfected. Being quick and light on your feet likely helps. It was likely just an honest accident, so Alexx wasn't too upset to see the damage done. Not only that, but she dreaded this subject anyway, so it wasn't breaking her heart or anything.

CLEOPATRA

xxxxWhat was that? Cleopatra froze hearing Alexx enter and begin speaking; she hadn't grown out of being a bit skittish in the presence of strangers. The mau tried to lift her head to get a look at the Slytherin girl or make a run for it if she could, but she found out that the weight of the rounded vase had not freed itself from around her neck. She was stuck, head in darkness, and let out an echoing mewl of distress. Sitting up, she pressed up at the ceramic with her front paws only for a back limb to step off of the table and send her backwards, right over the edge of the table.

xxxxThump. Cleo landed on her side, her reflexes failing to save her this time, but being under the effects of the valerian root still left her relatively unfazed. Unfazed, but still as annoyed as one would be with a heavy, pungent vase preventing them from seeing anything.

xxxxThe cat shook off the fall and walked several steps backwards, bumping into other pots along the way, right into what she thought was a corner. Her effort to take off the vase again was futile, so she sat there, guarded and listening for any next move the human in the room with her might decide to take.

PHAEDRA

xxxxAll the while, Phaedra rushed down stone steps, holding tightly onto the strap of her bag in one hand and a blue collar in the other. Hanging from it were two circular tags, engraved with her pet's name and hers if there was ever a need for someone to have that information. She knew that not much good could come with a collar if it wasn't even worn in the first place, but it wasn't her fault it had snapped off during the animal's escape.

xxxxThere was a soft tuft as the Ravenclaw jumped from the last stair onto the grass. Phaedra very well could have lost trace of Cleopatra had the grounds been any more forested. That sprint of silver fur did not conceal well against the open green. As she made her way across the area, following the direction she last saw Cleopatra, she briefly thought of how loony she must look chasing after a disobedient animal.

xxxx"CLEO!" she shouted again, after a short moment of huffing with her hands on her knees. Squinting from the sun in her face, Phaedra grimaced and raised a hand to rub at her throat. She was parched. It was too hot for this.

xxxxShe wiped her brow with a huff and sped-walked into the garden, giving it a quick scan as she went by. There was a lack of anything resembling what she was looking for so she continued on towards the greenhouses. "Cleo, come on out now, girl. Tut-tut." She stomped passed the group of first-year boys that Cleopatra had seen, deciding to turn around and question them at the last second. "Excuse me, have you seen a cat? She's white, with black spots. Green eyes."

xxxxAfter having their confirmation that they'd seen her, Phaedra thanked them and moved on, convinced she'd find the animal in one of the greenhouses any moment now. Eventually finding herself outside the building meant for the second-years, the sounds of objects knocking over caught her attention and she put her hand on the doorframe to support herself as she stepped inside. "Jesus Christ."

xxxxIt wasn't as bad as she was expecting. There was dirt, seeds, and other plant essentials scattered all over the ground and table that would have to be cleaned up. Thankfully there was nothing broken as far as she could see, at least not past her cat's esteem, who was sulking in the corner, looking pitiful with a vase on her head.

xxxxPhaedra glanced at the prefect with the cute pygmy puff on her shoulder, hoping her cat hadn't given either of them any trouble. She held up her hands apologetically. "Hey... I'm so sorry. She's mine. She ran off." Phaedra held up the collar in her right hand as adequate proof.

When Alexx was allowed to finally get a pet, she was thrilled! Walking into the Menagerie, eyes wide at everything there was to see... Alexx had almost picked a rat. Her brother had one at one point, and she thought he was just the cutest little thing! However, she saw the oversized, spherical piece of lint, heard it squeaking at her, and she was smitten. So much money for a pet that is virtually useless.

However, her reasoning for a Pygmy Puff (or what could have been a rat) was that they were practically harmless. What could she do, throw Rosalie at someone? As if that would hurt. They were small creatures, and practically weightless at that. There was no room for damage. Sure, when Rosalie went scurrying down the halls under the impression that she had seen Scott, Alexx might fall at someone's feat in an attempt to catch her. Last time, it was quite luckily Reid, to which she was grateful. The most damage that would be done was she would fall into a fifth year who wasn't as kind as her Hufflepuff friend. That would be a nightmare. Her skin crawled just thinking about it.

As she watched this mysterious cat make a mess, which by the way was partially at the fault of Alexx, seeing as though she scared the beast, she was frozen. Alexx didn't know what to do in these situations. How did you make it stop? Her spell-casting was shotty for her age, so Alexx didn't exactly want to try her luck there and kill the poor thing on accident. She would be beside herself if that ever happened. Instead, she stepped back, eyes wide, figuring the best thing that she could do was let the root run its course through the cat's body.

It was clear that the cat was reacting to her, which made her feel slightly ashamed. She certainly wasn't the best at handling animals, which is exactly why she was not picking Care of Magical Creatures. If this was how she was going to be- caught in a state of panic- then she did not belong in the field in which she had to care for things much bigger.

Her eyes scanned the room again, hoping that the owner would show up soon and not Professor Davis. She didn't wish to come off as the one who was responsible for letting a cat loose in here. How could she even explain this to someone? "Sorry, I was meaning to ignore it, but I am nosy"? That didn't sound good on her part at all. Worse yet, Alexx had a habit of just speaking her mind without thinking. There was a filter that should have been there but wasn't. This was newly discovered, of course, as she wasn't at all like this last year. There were pros and cons of her social improvement.

"Jesus Christ." Such a small phrase, two words (or... a name, actually) to be exact. However, it startled Alexx beyond belief. Who could this be? Was it a Professor? That would take a lot of explaining on her part. Alexx wasn't interested in that at all. She could have gone gray at the amount of stress this startling phrase put her through. Practically jumping out of her skin, a chill running up her spine, she looked towards the speaker in surprise.

Alexx allowed herself to calm down upon the discovery of it merely being a fellow student. Rosalie made a squeaking noise when she was greeted with the new face, but Alexx gave her a stern "shh!". The student spoke up, looking apologetic. "Hey... I'm so sorry. She's mine. She ran off." Alexx sighed in relief after hearing this. The owner had arrived.

"It's fine! I mean, there's a mess, but that's fine. She seems to have gotten into some Valerian root, though." Alexx looked at the poor cat with pity in her eyes. "She seems like a trouble maker. What's her name?"

Her body turned away from the girl as she started making her way towards the mess. They may as well clean while they're here. "Should probably clean this up before a Professor sees." Alexx was mostly concerned about being falsely accused, which certainly should not have been her top concern, but alas, it was. "I'm Alexx, by the way. This is Rosalie" She introduced herself and then nodded towards the pink puff who was still happily placed on her shoulder. Rosalie quite liked seeing everything from up there. A brief thought crossed her mind about how fortunate she was to not be faced with this issue.

xxxx"Phaedra Stavrou. Pleasure."

xxxxThank Merlin her dearest companion was okay. Phaedra was glad it was the greenhouses her cat had run off to and not a place like the Care of Magical Creatures den or the Forbidden Forest. Getting into valerian root was nothing compared a Hippogriff attack. Additionally, the fact that a prefect had found her first was also relieving to see. The cat was safe and everything was fine. Phaedra stuffed the collar into a pocket, clearing her still breathless throat before speaking.

xxxx"Her name's Cleopatra. A royal name for a royal pain," she replied, in full agreement with the girl's statement. She had seen Alexx around the castle a few times, although they had never spoken before or taken a single class together. She could not have been bad, being a prefect and a Slytherin. "Rosalie is cute." It was a genuine opinion of hers, but an attempt at flattery nonetheless.

xxxxHer shoulders slumped a bit listening to the student go on about a professor finding them. As much as she despised the dangers that came with prefect-hood (so much so she'd even resign), she would nevertheless miss the days of getting paid to boss others around. When Alexx told her to clean, assumedly by herself, Phaedra took a short span across the room again, until her gaze landed on the mau in the corner. "Do you know if she damaged anything else? - Ach. One second." She left Alexx's side to walk towards Cleopatra. She saw her tail sway like it always did upon recognition of her voice.

xxxxPhaedra sighed like a disappointed mother. "Look at you! Did you have fun? Get it all out of your system? Or all in your system..." And yet, she still squat down to lovingly stroke the cat from her shoulders to the base of her tail, and back up again. Pulling Cleo onto her lap so she wouldn't fidget, Phaedra slipped a digit underneath the rim of the container and swiftly pushed it off of the animal's head. It wasn't too tight of a squeeze; she just needed some human assistance. The positives of having opposable thumbs.

xxxx"Stay." After placing the animal back on the ground, Phaedra brushed herself off, peered into the pot and stood as Cleopatra went back to licking the remnants of valerian root off the pads of her her paws. "She always ignored plain catnip. Interesting," she muttered more as a mental note towards herself than to Alexx. She would eye the dirty cat at her feet before walking to the table to place the pot down.

xxxxShe almost would have preferred it if the cat actually broke something, because then at least Reparo would have come in handy. She didn't know any sweeping spell for the mess on the table. She'd have to resort to non-magical means. Gross. "Right, cleaning. No problem. Is there a brush, or something around?" Now that Cleo was effectively chilled-out, maybe she could tidy after her without interference.

The Slytherin girl smiled, nodding. "Nice to meet you, Phaedra." She seemed nice enough, and with good intentions. Alexx was typically weary of others. Even before this year, before she broke out of her shell completely, she had always been cautious. She wasn't one for friends as a child and found herself alone more often than not. She looked at the world in a pessimistic manner, though she was slowly getting out of that phase of her life. There were things to make her think otherwise, naturally, but she decided that she should at least give other people a shot.

Replying to the compliment, Alexx followed it with a, "Cleopatra is a nice name." Alexx wasn't the best with emotions. Though she tried to show any sort of enthusiasm, it always seemed to slip right past her. She meant well, sincerely she did, though it never came off like that. It was sad, but the effort was what was important.

Alexx turned her head as she watched Phaedra tend to her cat. She couldn't help but smile, noting the loving relationship. "Ce qu'est un chat tout mignon." She noted, nodding her head.

Perhaps she was like that with Rosalie, though she couldn't tell. Pygmy Puffs didn't exactly need too much attention or affection. She gave her as much as she could, but it wasn't like they really showed when they wanted attention. Sometimes Rosalie would roll around a lot, trying to grab the blonde girl's attention, but that was the height of it. They certainly were low maintenance pets, which was fitting for Alexx's busy life. She simply didn't have time to care for a beast such as a cat.

The thought crossed her mind about if she should give Phaedra a detention. No, she shouldn't, and she wouldn't. It wasn't her fault. Other Prefects might have definitely been less forgiving, but the more that she (very briefly) thought it over, she decided against it. This was technically the destruction of school property, but she couldn't bring herself to be upset about something a pet did.

It was unusual of her to stick around and help like this. Typically, she would have wandered off by now, not bothering to show any sympathy towards the situation. But Cleopatra was cute, and Phaedra was nice. So, naturally, she had to. It might not have been her problem, but she felt like she needed to do it.

Alexx's eyes scanned the room as Phaedra asked if there was a brush. "Hm... Perhaps there might be a closet or a corner somewhere, or one under the..." She trailed off as she went on a search for a brush. Her attention turned to a corner in which there was a minor amount of cleaning supplies, her eyes spotting a small brush and dustpan. "Ah! There!" Alexx made her way over, grabbing them both. "Will these do?"

Walking back over to Phaedra, she handed them to her.