Susan's Departure

[Caitlin Collins]

Caity couldn't help but jump slightly when he stretched and caused his spine to crack several times, having not been expecting the noise in the slightest. As she saw him yawn, she realised that they must have been here for quite some time... time was something that she had also neglected to follow, and the watch she had always used to wear was currently lying on her bedside table, quietly ticking away. She turned her lips upwards in thanks as he offered her his hand, taking it and standing, stretching slightly herself but not to the extent that Ethan had.

She paused when he asked how she was feeling, unsure how exactly to reply or what he was looking for in an answer. What was he referring to? Whether she was tired? How she had appeared earlier? Just in general? Trying not to look too much like a rabbit caught in the headlights, Cait answered cautiously, watching him as she did so. [yellow]"I'm okay..."[/yellow] She certainly was better than she had been to start with, but she wasn't really one to talk about her feelings to anyone, let alone those she had only met properly a few hours ago. Ethan seemed pleasant enough, but she was by no means ready to share things like that with him just yet. India was a safe subject, as far as she was concerned... it took her mind off more unpleasant things, so talking about it was fine.

Taking a step towards the door, she glances back at the table wondering if they should go hand their mugs and the plate over to one of the house elves. However, one was already there, gathering it up and sending a broad grin in the students' direction before scuttling off again, leaving the tale clean as if neither of them had been there. Stepping through the door, she held it open for Ethan to come through before letting it swing shut, hiding the elf kitchens behind the fruit picture as usual.

[Ethan Lacroix]

A broad smile formed as she accepted his aid, but it turned slightly crooked in mock exasperation when she hesitantly replied. Again he shook his head. Following her to the exit, he nodded in thanks to her courtesy as he exited back into the corridor. Taking the lead back to the common room, he glanced over his shoulder, his expression passively pleasant. "You know Caitlin, I'd thought I'd said somewhere back there that you didn't have to answer anything you didn't want to. Maybe I just thought it. At any rate, I know trust and the like take time and more than a shared cup of cocoa. I'm not under any illusion that you owe me anything. But I do care, so if it's alright I'm gonna keep asking, and you just go ahead and answer any way you like, even with silence. No pressure."

Reaching the portal to the common room, it was now Ethan's turn to hold the door open. Following her back into the warm chamber, he looked around for a moment to see if he knew anyone present. Not really seeing anyone he felt like talking to, he looked back to Cait with a small smile. "Thanks again for drying me off and having that cocoa with me. I think I'm off for a bath now. I'm sure I'll see you again later. Maybe tonight, maybe not. And I know you probably won't believe me, but that's okay since I believe me anyway, but things will be alright."

Waiting a moment to listen to any response she might make, he wasn't quite sure how else to end the conversation. They seemed too close together for a wave, not nearly well acquainted enough for a hug, and a pat on the shoulder may seem a bit condescending. In the end he opted for small, almost comical, two fingered wave as he turned for his dorm to get a towel and some clean clothes.

[Caitlin Collins]

Caity couldn't help but blush slightly at Ethan's words when he glanced back over his shoulder to look at her, turning her own eyes determinedly down to face the floor. [yellow]"Sorry,"[/yellow] she muttered, not entirely sure what she was apologising for but with the vague idea that he wasn't happy with her response and wanting to make up for that, despite what he was saying about 'no pressure'. It was the implication she heard about her not listening that probably did it.

She raised her head to give him a small smile when he held the common room door open, entering and feeling the warmth of the fire surround her. She blinked in slight surprise when he began speaking again on several subjects, dubious just as he had predicted at his last words but managing to nod anyway – even if it was in a very obviously unconvinced manner. [yellow]"Okay... I'll see you around."[/yellow] She offered him another small smile in response to his small wave, heading back to her seat facing the window as he left and sitting back down as if she had been there the whole time. The curtains had now been drawn by someone or other so she couldn't see if it was still raining; the sound did make its way through though. She curled her legs up onto the chair, slipping off her shoes as she did so and closing her eyes, the steady pounding helping her to drift off into a somewhat uneasy, if at least not nightmare-ridden, sleep.