Alone, Cold, Ice-solated PV Erik Closed

Once more young Erik had found his way to the grounds. He couldn't help it. The cold reminded him of Norway and he preferred to be outside then to be stuck inside for a long time. So here he found himself outdoors again with a hefty bag filled with books and notes from today's lessons. He had a whole bunch of homework waiting for him. He wasn't looking forward to it all. Potions and Astronomy were such boring classes to stumble through, but he had to do them to succeed and succeed he would. He had to there was no other way. His parents had sent him to Hogwarts so he would grow up safe and learn to defend himself when he made his return to Norway. The never ending feud his family had with the Jordahl family had reached new hights. The once proud Durmstrang Institute had been in the last weeks before the new school year would start turned into a warzone. Not even the children were same from harm anymore. Erik, however, was determined to put a stop to it all. It had to end if he ever wanted to be safe in Norway as he was the future of the Pure-blood line of Tharaldson. If they took him out his family would cease to exist.

Once he had arrived at the great lake he took in the view. It was perfect. No one was near. Just him and the lake. Then suddenly a rock moved next to tree. What in the name of...? When he narrowed his eyes to look at the rock he saw it was no rock, but another student. Just my luck, Erik thought. When you think you've found a secluded spot then someone else comes over or worse it was already someone else his or her spot. Well seems I'll have to introduce myself.

Erik sneaked over to the other student. The closer he got though the more the person in question came into view. It seemed like he had found a pile of clothing that had come to life. He had to admit that it wasn't the warmest day either, but it sure wasn't the coldest one here. When he was so close behind her he orientated himself next to her and spoke. So cold, huh? By the way what are we looking at? Erik looked from the pile of clothing to the lake as he tried to see what was out there.

Serena jumped a little as a voice suddenly broke the silence in the grounds, "A- Oh- geesh,"... She had been so lost in thought that she could not hear anything over the sound of the wind. She did not even notice him approaching her, until he was already near her. That was definitely a worry - what if he had tried to harm her, like so many others before him? Serena mentally scolded herself, warning herself to be more observant as she caught her breathe and tried to calm her beating heart down. She observed the boy for a few moments, the shock of the encounter preventing her from talking. Her hand was on her chest, as a reflex action as her heart suddenly pounded from the interruption. After a short while, she recovered - for the most part - and looked at him, "Huh? Oh, nothing. Sorry, I didn't see you there..." She explained the obvious, to show him why she suddenly jumped.

"Mhm, it's freezing..." The Hufflepuff nodded, admitting it was cold - though she clearly exaggerated a little. She was rather cold, however. The boy had been quiet in his actions, worryingly so but she smiled at him nonetheless, "O-oh, uh, I was just looking at the lake..." Serena's eyes had definitely been glancing over at the lake. Of course, there was absolutely nothing there that she was paying attention to. She was mindlessly staring into it. Her answers were rather obvious, to be quite honest. However, what else could she say to the random boy? She was not about to tell him about every single thought that she had had.

Finally remembering her manners, she smiled at the boy and brought up her hand, which she held out for him to shake, "I'm Serena, by the way." She introduced herself, sticking to first name only. Her surname was not a bad one, not by any means. The Towers family was a pureblood line that were capable and skilled. They were smart scholars amongst her family line, hardworking and wealthy witches and wizards. It was a good family name to be associated to. Much better than her maternal name. Her maternal side, the Oberoi family was also a pureblood line but they thrived on ambitious and success. They did not necessarily all work hard for that ambition or success. Sometimes their claims to fame or money was corrupt, other times it was pure laziness. She had relatives that simply lived off their parents' wealth and then claimed to be incredibly successful. Her maternal relatives were the ones she struggled more with. They expected her to dress, look and act a certain way. They expected her to be money minded and only 'friend' (by which they really meant network with) other purebloods. Serena hated that, to be honest. She much preferred her father's side, that cared more about education and intelligence than money or who you knew.

Of course, both families did have their pros and cons but in general, that was her feelings on the matter. Serena's name had also been tainted with various rumours and stories over the past year. Not having any connection with the former prefect that had 'earned' that reputation, it was easier to simply stick to being Serena, just Serena of House Hufflepuff.

Erik had to try his hardest to hold back a small chuckle. The girl next to him had almost seemed to jump out of her pile of clothing after he had spoken up. She went on to explain he had scared her by his sudden arrival. I'm sorry. I did not mean to startle you like that. Hopefully the sarcasm would be left unnoticed. Of course, you tried to do just that. However, it's best not to say these things out loud. Some things are best left unsaid., Erik thought to himself.

Well, yes and no. It's not the warmest day, but I've seen far colder ones to be honest with you. Then again, I'm not from around these parts... The Slytherin looked at the lake again. As much as he hated to admit it, he was homesick. As lovely as Scotland and Hogwarts were it just wasn't Norway. Not even close. He just missed the mountains, the sound of the sea clashing against rocks, the lake nearby the Tharaldson estate and so much more. That was the place he called home. As the girl spoke Erik got pulled back to reality. It seemed he had drifted away in thought. He looked over at the girl in question. When she stated she wasn't watching anything specific he merely nodded at her.

As she looked back at the Norwegian again, she held out her hand and introduced herself. A smile playing on her lips. Erik looked from her hand to her face and back again. It had been a while since someone had introduced themselves in such a manner again. Maybe there was still hope for these people. I'm Erik., he spoke whilst grabbing her hand in his and giving it a firm handshake. Erik Tharaldson, last living heir of the pureblood line of Tharaldson. It's a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Serena. As he looked her in the eyes, he mustered up everything to gift her with his most heartwarming and disarming smile. Tell me. What fun is there to do around these parts? I'm kind of new here and am still not the most familiar with the layout of the castle.

"Ahh, no, it's fine. I'm fine," Serena replied, not wanting the boy to feel bad for scaring her. The second year Hufflepuff scared easily, to be fair. It was largely to do with her experiences in her first year that made her a little hesitant. She tugged on the ends of her sleeves a little awkwardly as she tried to keep warm, "Ohh? London's definitely a lot warmer than here so I guess I'm not really used to it, in all honesty. Where are you from, if you don't mind me asking that is?" She rambled on a little. The boy looked young - perhaps a first year. Though she had been here for a year, she had not really gotten used to how much colder it was up North.

But Scotland was growing on her. She nodded firmly as she shook his hand in return before blinking at his rather formal description. Oh, another pureblood. One that seemed rather proud of the fact that he was a pureblood. It made her a little hesitant, admittedly. It was almost as though she were speaking to her elitist brother - who prided himself on his heritage and lineage. But unlike her older brother, she was not willing to judge someone based on a few seconds interaction. "Nice to meet you, Erik," She replied politely back, wondering if she ought to have given her surname too. But he did not ask, so she felt no need to continue the introductions.

"Well, let's see... is there anything in particular that you're interested in?" Serena asked him, wondering what she could actually recommend him, "Personally, I am quite the fan of Quidditch. I think playing for the house team ought to be really fun," She added, unsure of whether or not she would actually make the team. She sure as hell hoped so.

The pile of clothes in front of him started to speak and told him he shouldn't worry about it. Erik silently nodded in response. It was a good thing she didn't make a fuss about it. He had snuck up on others like that, but you had always those who had to dramatically overreact. The fair-haired boy was just glad to see the person in front of him wasn't like those people. Oh, how he dreaded interacting with them, but so was Hogwarts life from time to time. You can't always choose who you bump into. Really? Well, if you think it's cold here imagine living in Norway then. That's where I am originally from.

She accepted his hand after he had appropriately introduced himself. Likewise, Serena. As the girl went on to tell him what she thought was fun Erik pointed at the spot next to hear against the tree. May I? If she would allow it, he would sit next to her whilst looking for some flat stones he could try to skip across the water of the lake. However, if she refused he would simply lean against the tree as he spoke to her. I enjoy physical activities mostly, so yeah, I whole heartedly agree with you that playing Quidditch would be awesome. I quite like to play some wizard's chess from time to time. Not that I'm really good at it. Erik laughed nervously. But to get back to the topic at hand. Have you applied for your house's team? And a fan, huh? What's your favorite team?