Pebbles and Marbles ((Gabriel))

[Flint Cotnoir]

It had been another long day. But then, for Flint, most days felt pretty darn long. He'd wake up, eat something, get through classes, then head straight to the library to read for a few hours. Weekends were worse - He felt he was doing himself a disservice if he didn't spend at least two thirds of his day studying or doing homework. As he had thought often before, it was a good thing that he enjoyed it, or else he'd probably have driven himself insane. Sometimes, he wasn't sure that he hadn't already and just not noticed. But then he had his anchor - walking. He loved just wandering with very little aim, absorbed in his own little world, thinking about anything and everything, winding himself down from 'study mode'.

Today, for instance, he was strolling around the grounds in the sun's dying rays, each gentle footfall a million miles from his concious mind. He wasn't thinking of anything in particular. He was zen, with only fleeting ideas, or more correctly the ideas of ideas, flitting across the blank canvas of his mind every so often. Every thought was no more than a notion, every little murmur of brain activity just a vague concept. If he'd been trying to achieve this level of calm, he'd probably had put himself in a coma. This, was sheer, unadulterated, bliss.

Which made it all the more unpleasant when he slipped on a loose pebble and fell flat on his backside.

He let out an uncharacteristically high yelp as he was thrust back to the planet earth in an untidy bundle of limbs. Gingerly, he dug the offending stone from under his left knee where it had settled, and held it aloft in front of his face. It was fantastically well rounded, he couldn't help but notice - no wonder it hadn't sat properly amongst the others. Flint sat himself up, turning so he was facing out towards the lake, the castle towering on the opposite side. It really was a marvellous view, and Flint took a second to bask in it's splendour. Then he returned his attention to the pebble in his hand.

"Be a shame to waste it really", he thought to himself, and slipped it into his jeans pocket. He leaned back, stretching his legs out and supporting himself on his arms. He may as well make the most of his rather embarrassing fall to have a rest - That was, anyone who might have seen him may, possibly, think he just had a rather unconventional way of sitting down. Of course, if they knew anything about him, they'd know this wasn't the case, but hey. A man could hope, right?

[Gabriel Liam Maurer]

Gabe had been walking the other way around the lake for what seemed like a couple of hours. It was beginning to get a little late but he liked the evening and the mornings the best so he was at peace. He also had a paper bag full of jelly serpents so he wasn't hurrying to get to the great hall for dinner. He disliked snakes so he compensated his inability to do anything about it by eating they're heads first, grinning stupidly everytime he did so.

As he slowly walked around the lake he kicked loose stones out of the way in a calm fasion. Nature was the place he felt most at ease. What stressed him out was studying. He wasn't a really good student at all and a horrible procastinator. He would always try and get out of dooing what he had to and he was getting quite good at it. But his grades wern't all that good and he would probably not get a very good job. He just thought he would get a potition with one of the pro Quidditch teams and play sports till his hair was gray and then settle down and teach the gran kids how to play the game.

He had never been one to think about the future all that much. He didn't like dwelling on things that made him worry.

He looked around the lake and crooked his head peering into the distance seeing someone familiar. He chuckled lightly as he saw the person fall flat on his back. He upped his pace a bit as to get to him faster. As he got close enough for the guy to hear him if he would speak loudly he called out "Oi" he grinned "having a bit of a tumble are we?" he teased slowing his pace down as the space closed between the two.