Treasure Maps

The snow storms that had been bombarding Hogwarts castle had proved to be most inconvenient for any students who wished to venture outside of the ancient stone walls. The few brave souls who had tried to escape their education by entering the blizzards had all been returned looking like more icicle than wizard. One girl, Penelope Forrester, was still in the hospital wing with such a bad case of hypothermia that she reportedly looked absolutely blue in the face. Adriana suspected that this was less due to cold and more a consequence of the hideous makeup charms she had taken to putting on herself in an attempt ditch the nickname 'pimply Penelope' that had been around for as long as Adriana could remember. And although Adriana had been experiencing a strong case of cabin fever, heading to Hogsmede was not worth the risk of spending an afternoon in the infirmary.

So instead her interests had been focused in exploring the castle around her. There was a surprising amount of square footage that Adriana hadn't covered in her five previous years here. Last weekend she had found the elusive Room of Requirement and explored the room of lost things for three days strait. From it she had taken a few forbidden books and other various trinkets that she had deemed useful for the future. Directions for finding and re-entering the treasure trove of 'free' objects had been carefully written down after discovery and tucked away in her trunk.

Today her quest was to the kitchens. Not that it would be nearly as exotic as a disappearing room but she had found herself quite hungry this afternoon and realized that she had never been to visit the house elves. For the longest time Adriana hadn't really ever thought that there would be such a house elf population at the school. Coming from such a house as hers she had never known that such creatures existed, let alone had one to serve her. Upon learning that servants existed in her new home she had spent a significant amount of time leaving messes to try and get an idea of what the creatures limits were to what they would do. One exploded elf and two months of detention later she had gotten a fresh respect for the small, ugly animals. They truly were very impressive.

With instructions from a Gryffindor in her potions class, Adriana stroked the pear on a giant framed painting. She felt a bit stupid for a moment when all remained still but then the frame swung open and revealed the kitchens. The bustling room in front of her came to stop. The closest house elf to her threw his tray of rolls to his nearest companion and immediately rushed to Adriana's aid. "Hello Miss!" it shrieked in a high pitch voice, clearly torn between distress at having a human in it's workplace and it's desire to serve all students of Hogwarts. It took several slightly stressful minutes for Adriana to communicate to the elves that all she wanted was a place to sit and eat and no, she didn't want a personal feast but only a snack. Eventually she was led to a small table towards the back where the hustle and bustle of the main kitchen had become a distant rumble rather than a full force roar. But she had been talked in to a very fancy looking fruit plate and an accompanying cheese and meats spread.

When the elves finally left her alone, Adriana embraced the solitude warmly. It was surprisingly comfortable in this part of the dungeons and not too far away an oven emitted both heat and a pleasant aroma of baking bread into the room. Her table wasn't that fancy and clearly wasn't designed for impress visitors. Names of students and small pictures were etched into the old wood. Inspired by this history of vandalism, Adriana picked up the cheese knife from the tray and began to carve her own mark into the table. As small bits of wood splintered away under her hand she occasionally reached for a grape, throwing it the short distance to her open mouth. This entertained her for a long while until her initials were permanently etched into the table. Even with her task completed she kept the knife in hand and kept her mind occupied as she turned the blade over in her fingertips.

After awhile the kitchen seemed to get hotter and with her belly full, Adriana shed her robes and draped them over her chair back. With amusement she noticed her heat was not unjust - the elves had build a fire in the fireplace, probably in an effect to rid the room of the chill the castle had for her. Though her mind began to wander dangerously, Adriana was reluctant to leave her new sanctuary. The warm air was a refreshing change on the bare skin of her legs and the platters of food that had been provided for her were still shamefully overflowing. With an over-dramatic sigh of contentment she put her feet up on the table, letting herself relax into the chair she was seated in. Life could definitely be worse.

"So you see, you really must visit. A bit of our weather, our food, and a lot of our beauty would do you good", the boy persisted. With knees pressed closed to his chest, he leaned further into the kitchen cabinet. Why was it empty of any kitchen paraphernalia? One could only guess. It wasn't long ago that Julien spied the sneaky behind of a house-elf who had slipped away from the general duties in the kitchen to have a bit of a snack and a snooze. The next time he came, the boy made sure he was in view to watch yet another house-elf sneak away into that same cabinet, with the same intent.

There was one very grouchy-looking house-elf now, though; what with his sleep being robbed from him by a very persistent boy who wanted nothing more than to share his cookies and a conversation with a house-elf. Julien thought himself very kind, very kind indeed, for sharing his cookies. He barely check to see if he had a willing audience. It didn't take long before he was inviting the little one back to the Delacour Château back in France. It was, after all, as he says, beautiful.

"... far more beautiful than anything you see in England!" A slight groan escaped the lips of his audience, but Julien pressed on, his body sliding further into the small kitchen cabinet. The house-elf moved away and pressed his body further against the back of the cabinet, putting on its most hostile expression. Still, the boy didn't get it. It wasn't until the creature began to feign sleep, in the hopes of a real one, that Julien realised he had lost an audience. He was still getting into the exciting bit about the patterns of the leaves in France!

Disappointed, he slipped slowly back out, removing the arms that pressed his knees against his body, only to realise how numb his limbs had become. Despite that, Julien turned and pushed himself up onto his feet, grunting at the effort against the lack of feeling in his legs. He stopped in mid semblance of a twirl to see the back of a girl. He had company? He could have sworn he heard nothing. Then again, he had spent a rather extensive amount of time listening to himself talk. Only a moment's hesitation held him back. And then, the boy sauntered towards the feast.

"Misery loves company, but no one gets company like a feast does!" With that, he plopped himself down onto a seat near Adriana d'Eath. This was an improvement - from merely sitting at far ends from each other in a classroom to actually feasting at the same table. Still, Julien paid little mind to the house rivalries. For one, there hadn't been much bad blood between the Ravenclaws and the Slytherins. And then there was the fact to consider that Ravenclaw was the house with the brightest of wizards. Why sully one's gift to rumble around with the masses in their rivalry games? Besides, he was kind. He had been taught to be nice.

"How do you do, Miss d'Eath?"

Moments later, Adriana's peace was disturbed by a voice coming from within the room. Her head turned in search for a face to match with the familiar voice. Upon finding it's match a lazy grin spread over the brunette's face. Julien Delacour. Like half of the female population of the school, Adriana couldn't help but notice the handsome Ravenclaw. He was the kind of good-looking that broke beyond the bonds that held houses in such tight competition. Besides, Adriana didn't really have a problem with most Ravenclaws. The quirky ones could be annoying and the constant correcting of grammar got on her nerves but they weren't nearly as intolerable as those Gryffindors. Gryffindors tended to think they were actually able to compete with Slytherin. Foolish children.

The corners of Adriana's mouth curled up into a playful smirk. "Not bad, Delacour." She waved at the spread in front of them. "Please help yourself. I'd hate to waste it." Not that Adriana doubted he needed an invitation. Delacour seemed like the kind of boy who didn't have a problem taking what he wanted - a refreshing mind set to be in the company of.

"How's life in blue been treating you?" she asked grinning. Living in the towers had always been a foreign concept to dungeon dwellers like her and although she would never admit it, she longed to learn more about daily life in the other houses. For fear of staring, Adriana glanced around the room towards where Julien had emerged from. She sill couldn't quite figure out if he had been hiding or had simply appeared quite quickly. Putting puzzles out of her mind she reached for a bottle of red wine, resting within the wine racks built into the walls of the kitchen. With a quick twist and pull, Adriana removed the cork with a slight pop and poured a splash into the empty glass beside her plate.

Sure, it was only early afternoon. But today was just one of those days that she needed to relax for awhile and forget the Ancient Runes homework that was due at her 3:30 class today. For awhile Adriana had attempted to catch up on her coursework but that motivation had disappeared before long and she seemed to be back to her old procrastinating ways. The threat of failing out of Hogwarts was enough to keep her grades at a P to a A range but not much better. She liked the castle too much to leave. And when she liked something Adriana was exceptionally good at keeping it close to her.

OOC: Wow. Rambles. But I posted.

The hum of activity went on in the kitchens, but could not be compared to its intensity earlier. The house-elves, working to serve up dinner later, couldn't help but wonder at the presence of the two students, sitting at the kitchen table as if it were a table to feast at. Sure, it was, given how it never went without food; still, it wasn't appropriate. Some slowed their pace at work to muse about how greedy teenagers are these days, some prided themselves on their irresistible culinary skills, while others thought it rude that the two must not have enjoyed the meal served earlier to still have room in their tummies for the kept treats in the kitchen. Whatever it was, Julien and Adriana had eyes on them, though it would seem that neither bothered.

His eyes lingered on the girl's face. Some would say that this was always the one that started off the problems, this looking. He was always merely curious, always asking questions that didn't need answers, but still, always looking to discover. Oftentimes, though, the look was misunderstood as an interest that could arouse a response of attraction. The boy was only beginning to understand the repercussions of the unwitting pull of even the diluted Veela trait in his possession. He wasn't nearly as of wit as his twin sister, who seemed to already know how to manage that trait to her advantage. He was but at the mere stage of discovering it. Yet, as with all things, Julien was one step behind Gisele. It was a good thing that the two got along so well, and so it never bothered the boy much.

He didn't know what he thought, from looking at Adriana. Yet, he grinned, winked, and nodded. "Why, thank you, mademoiselle." Julien proceeded to roll up his sleeves. "I'd save this feast from waste!" With a lick of his lips, he rubbed his hands before reaching for a cracker, and the cheese knife. "We have the best of this at home," he proclaimed, or boasted, as he pointed to the Camembert on the cheese platter. "Nothing as perfect as Camembert on crackers," he continued, and smacked his lips in response. "What do you like, Miss d'Eath?"

Julien tilted his head, turned, and couldn't keep a smirk from his face, at the girl's question. "There's nothing better than our Tower," he stated, before taking a bite of the cracker in his hand. Nodding, he closed his eyes in a second of pleasure and enjoyed the caress of cheese on his tongue. When he opened his eyes again, he looked at Adriana, lingering once again in a state of curiosity. "Wine?" There was amusement in his eyes. It wasn't everyday you saw a student having wine at Hogwarts. With a grin, Julien edged his empty glass closer to the girl. "May I?"

From across the table Adriana couldn't help but feel the boys eyes on her. A small smile of amusement flashed across her lips, outwardly pleased to have his attention. Nothing bothered the Slytherin girl faster than feeling unnoticed. She had a tendency to surround herself with people who were slightly more simple-minded in order to ensure their undivided attention of devotion. The only exception to this rule seemed to be Daeleous. He was intelligent and it put Adriana on her guard. Though her school grades didn't exactly show it, Adriana was extremely smart herself. It was more of a practical intelligence but she still liked to know she could outwit any companion of hers if the situation required. Julien didn't worry her. He was obviously deathly handsome but besides that..

With only a nod in response, Adriana passed the open bottle across the table. The brunette rarely drank, mostly on special occasions, parties, and when she was feeling particularly lonely but today was none of those. It just was one of those days. Besides she had company now and that made everything much less pathetic looking. Adriana's hand cupped her glass, slender fingers caressing the smooth surface. With inquiring eyes she she considered Julien's question. "What do I like?" She repeated his words with a slight click of her tongue. "Well that's a very broad question, Delacour. In regards to cheese I suppose I favor brie, especially paired with a nice jam. But I'm really not picky. I take what's offered."

In Adriana's lifestyle there were very few opportunities to sample fine cheeses and wines. For the most part she was happy if she had any cheeses at all. They all tasted more or less the same to her in terms of quality.. Her tastebuds were apparently just less refined than much of the pure blood world. Not that she was pureblood. Her vampire heritage made sure of that fact. But Julien, one of the richest of the rich, wasn't any better than she was, was he? His blood was just as tainted as hers was and yet she was the one who got discriminated against for it. But that was the justice of the world.

Bringing her glass to her lips, Adriana took a sip of her wine. The deep red of the liquid was perfect - a perfect combination of darkness and luminescence. The drink tinted her lips darker for a moment but disappeared with a quick lick of her lips. She set the glass down again and reached for another grape. She couldn't quite shake an odd feeling overcoming her the more the Ravenclaw boy stared. He was unquestionably lovely.

There was a clicking of tongues, following utterances beneath what the two humans in the room could make out. Yet, there was a sense of disapproval that hung in the kitchens upon the first notice of wine at their table. Yet, none stepped forth to question the choice made by the youths. It could only have been a case of once bitten, potentially forever shy, for the house-elves who must have berated students before for their undeclared tastes of alcohol on school grounds. There was still conservatism that pervaded in parts of Hogwarts that had rather strict principles of educating the young, or children, as they would say, even as they found themselves confronted with teenagers who seemed to grow up too quickly, even as said teenagers were also rushing to grow up too quickly.

Unbothered, Julien reached for the bottle and allowed the rich shade of maroon to swarm from the bottom of his glass up. Pleased, the boy licked his lips and watched it flow, before setting the bottle back on the table, and bringing the tip of the glass near to his nose. He took a deep breath, allowing the aroma of the wine to tingle his nose, before breaking into a smirk of delight. It wasn’t everyday that he could enjoy the luxury of wine at Hogwarts. He was going to savour it properly. Satisfied, Julien twirled the glass of wine gently, emulating the way that he often saw his mother, and grandmother, do it. If only Jan was alive, he would have remarked on the splitting resemblance between his wife and their son. It was a pity, really, that he couldn’t not live to see the day. Julien bore no such thoughts. He didn’t know, and he wanted to forget anyway.

With a nod of acknowledgement, Julien thought nothing more of cheese. Instead, he settled into the lull caused by the scent of the wine, half enjoying it, half hiding in it to avoid having nothing to say. The boy wasn’t nearly as popular as his twin sister. She would know what to say, he thought. Often, he would hide behind his sister’s words and watched as people thought they were interacting with the twins as a whole. That was a problem with being twins, really. People assumed you were one, even for a boy-girl pair like Julien and Gisele. Yet, it brought comfort to the boy. He preferred to act in response to someone else. It gave him a direction of reason to act. He wasn’t nearly as bright when it came to a real-life context staring him in the face. Julien licked his lips slowly, then returned his gaze slowly to Adriana.

“So, are you excited about the Débutante Ball?” An owl had arrived earlier in the week, and Julien couldn’t help but notice how disturbed Gisele looked by it. Soon enough, he learnt about the event that they were to be due at. It was time for a suitor for the young Delacour girl. Julien could do nothing but offer her a listening ear. It didn’t seem so easy being her, then. Even he had to admit it. Sure, it was his time, too. Yet, the pressure placed on her was something that he was glad to be without. It was strange that even a family as seemingly happy as the Delacours was subjected to an age-old practice that didn’t look to make the girls very happy people. Yet, traditions must be upheld, especially when one’s family meant that much in society.