Wave your tentacles in the air like you just don't care

Second on Selwyn's hit list was the Black Lake, and as he walked down to the lakeshore, he became aware of a teeny, tiny problem. While the Care of Magical Creatures paddock had had a lovely new fence all ready to have things stuck to it, the lake had nothing of the sort.

There was not even a low wall or bench for people to sit on and admire the water. How inconvenient. It meant not only did Selwyn have nothing to stick anything to, he also had nothing to sit on while he pondered his predicament.

The seventh year placed one hand on his hip and brought the other up to stroke his chin as he thought. Of course, he could just levitate his poster and leave it flapping in the wind, but there was something so tame about that. It didn't strike the right note of rebellion and insolence that Selwyn liked to think he was famous, or at least infamous for.

On the other hand, there were plenty of trees about. Even here, away from the Forbidden Forest where they were sparse along the edge of the lake, there were enough to draw the eye. It wasn't as good as defacing school property but they would just have to do.

Selwyn got to work with his posters, running from one tree to the next as he charmed them into place.

The Black lake was always Alice's quiet place to think, and today she definitely needed to let her thoughts wander. She has had a few rough days behind her and she was trying to do everything she could to forget about her troubles. Hopefully, the lake would be that perfect distraction she was looking for. It was late, probably a bit too late for a walk but she didn't mind. The dark suited her and calmed her in a strange way. After she made sure she brought her wore scarf with her, she left her room and headed for a long walk.

At this time the lake would usually be empty, so she wasn't expecting to bump into anyone. But when she came there, it was a different story. She realized something was strange the moment she got there but it took her a while to realize what it was. Large signs were hung on the trees nearby that said: "Gaint Squid in these waters". It didn't look like your stereotypical warning sign made by professors. As she came closer to the lake, she noticed that the signs were everywhere. This looked more like a prank than a polite warning.

After seeing a bot hang up the last sign on the tree, it all made sense to her. Judging by his tall frame and green and silver coat, he was obviously much older than her and probably a Slytherin. For a while, she wondered if she should just turn around and leave without saying anything. But before she could even decide, the boy had already noticed her. "I'm not really sure you should do that..." said Alice quickly.

"Really?"

Damn, he'd been caught.

Selwyn turned to look at the girl. He dimly remembered her face from that one time he'd showed up to a PA meeting to see what it was all about, but apart from that she could have been anyone.

"Why is that?"

Alice wasn't surprised by his rude answer at all. It was something she would expect from a guy like that. Not that she knew the guy, she didn't even remembered his name. But he just seemed like the trouble maker, who didn't pay a lot of attention to rules and regulations. And what he was doing right now was only a proof of it.

"Because...I'm pretty sure it's not allowed." said Alice with a frown. That at least should be very obvious to everyone. "Not that I'm a Prefect or anything...but still, you shouldn't do that" she repeated once more. Turning her head around, she made sure no one was around. The last thing she needed right now was to be caught this late in the grounds, pulling pranks with a guy she doesn't even know.

Aww no way. She didn't. But she did. Selwyn smiled broadly and stowed his wand in the pocket of his robes while the rest of his signs went fluttering away in the wind. Enough of them had been put up to make an impact anyway.

A few long strides brought him over to her side and Selwyn had his arm around the little girl's shoulders in a second. He let lightly let his allure off the leash, just enough to impair her judgement, nothing too extreme.

It was tempting to tell her that he was a prefect. It was a strategy that Selwyn had used often enough in the past and it always worked in derailing the conversation, which was perhaps why he decided not to use it this time.

"Why wouldn't it be allowed?" he challenged her. "It's not hurting anyone."

Alice watched him carefully and a bit confused as this guy steadily approached her. Well, at least the rest of the signs were gone now. She honestly didn't know why she was meddling into this, not like it was any of her business. But now is was too late to back down. Perhaps this could be the day she proved both her father wrong about Slytherins and his general dislike of them. After all, it was Alice who said that some of them are very kind and nice. But somehow she doubted this guy would exactly fit her 'nice Slytherin' type of profile.

She almost flinched when he put her arm around her shoulders. What was he trying to do exactly? This confused her even more. It seemed that he was being... a bit flirty. On purpose of course, not that Alice was any expert on that. Well she wasn't going to let a silly Slytherin could her judgment in any way.

"It's not a very helpful sign either..." she finally said. "Just take them off before someone sees them. The last think I need right now is to land myself in detention for this."

Selwyn thought about this logic.

"It's not unhelpful," he said at last.

"There really is a giant squid in there. If anything, I am providing a useful community service!"

This was more like it, all the best debates were conducted when the blood was hot. All the best refutations were thought of off the cuff.

The final words Alice had spoken finally echoed through Selwyn's head. Get herself in a detention...

He twisted, now holding her out at arm's length. An awkward position for Selwyn, since the girl was so much shorter than him.

"Oh?" he asked

"And what have you been doing to make people think this might be your work?"

He snapped back to an upright position, arms folded in an intimidating manner. Leastways, Selwyn hoped it was intimidating to a little Hufflepuff girl roaming the grounds all by herself.

"You know, I have a certain reputation in this school. People know me. They know what I do. Other people pull pranks, but Selwyn Thorfinn commits satire. So tell me, have you been treading on my turf, kid?"

Alice rolled her eyes at his comment. As if he was really providing any 'community service' to anyone with that sign. It was only confusing and against the rules, which she was sure of. Alice couldn't help but just glance around her every few minutes, hoping no one of authority would walk by and see them.

She almost flinched when the boy got closer to her. She had a feeling that he was trouble and messing with him definitely wasn't a good idea. "Nothing!...I have been doing...nothing" she said a bit clumsily. It wasn't like she was known as a prankster, quite the opposite really. But lately her reputation has been brought down by the recent duel and her adventure in the forbidden forest. Even if there was only the slightest chance someone would believe this was her doing, she didn't want to risk it.

She couldn't help but frown as he called her kid. This wasn't the first time someone has called her that and it was getting quite annoying. "I haven't been doing anything! And I'm not a kid. What I meant is it wouldn't be a very nice scene if a professor would walk by. I would get into trouble too" said Alice trying to prove her point.