(1940-01-12) Ravenclaw Dating Advice
Details for Ravenclaw Dating Advice
Summary: Evelyn and Ludae discuss their studies and Ludae's upcoming date with Hephaesta.
Date: 1940-01-12
Location: Ravenclaw Common Room
Related: Ludae's Crush
Characters
EvelynLudae

It's after dinner, and Ludae is back in the common room of Ravenclaw tower. She's settled into one of the more comfortable, higher-backed chairs, her bookbag at her feet. She's sitting Indian-style on the chair, a book open on her lap. It's a rather large tome regarding underwater creatures, big enough that it in fact takes up her whole lap. She flips the page, seeming, for the moment, to be lost in her studies. Of course, there's also a huge grin on her face that's been there since Sunday night when she got back from the library. She must have found a really good book or something!

Descending from the sixth year's room, Evelyn carries in her arms two large books and an assortment of parchment, quills, and ink. "Good…good evening, Ludae." She greets her fellow sixth year. "Do you um…do you mind greatly if I join you?" She asks tentatively as she motions to a nearby chair.

Ludae doesn't look up at first, not until Evelyn is almost done speaking. She lifts her head to look at the other girl, before her eyes suddenly snap back to reality. Her freckled cheeks redden, but she's still smiling happily. "Oh! Uh, hi, Evelyn," Ludae says, "I'm sorry, I was really, um, kinda lost in thought. Yeah, you can join me!" She chews the corner of her lip a little bit, still looking at Evelyn.

"That…that must be a good book." Evelyn says with a little smile to the other girl. "I know the feeling." Places down her items, she gently lifts up one of the books and shows the title to Ludae, 'The Transfigurative Properties of Exotic Florae Found In Western Asia and the South Pacific'. "It's quite fascinating material."

Ludae blushes a little redder and shakes her head. "N-no, it wasn't, um, really the book I was thinking about," she says, "But I really shouldn't say much more about it." Her attention turns to the book Evelyn holds up. "Oh! Did you get that from the library or is it your own copy? You'll have to let me borrow it if its your's. Once you've finished with it, of course." She smiles again, and lifts her own book to show the title. 'Undersea Creatures Both Bewildering and Frightening'. "There are some interesting creatures described," she says, "There's this one frightening-looking fish that has a mouthful of fangs, and its own light that hangs from it's forehead, called a Devil-Mouthed Angler. I might have nightmares if I ever saw one in person!"

"Why um…why shouldn't you say much more?" Evelyn furrows her brow in confusion. Though it doesn't take long for her to actually blush and avert her gaze. "I'm sorry. It's probably personal." She clears her throat. "The book? Oh, I barrowed it from the library, but I'm considering purchasing a copy for my own personal library." She explains. "Devil-Mouthed Angler? How strange!"

Ludae chews her lip again and nods her head. "Its just something, um, that I don't want getting all over the school just yet," she says, "Though I can tell you the most important part of it, I suppose…" She bites her lip again, grinning at the same time. "I've got a date this weekend," she says, "Suffice to say I'm very excited about it… I just hope that it goes well. We're both very nervous about it, after all."

"A date?" Evelyn is certainly intruiged. "I hope it goes well for you." She smiles a little bit. "Who um…who is the date with? Or are you uh…are you keeping that quiet for now?" While she's curious, she definitely won't press the subject.

Ludae blushes deeply and chews her lip, glancing around the room to make sure that no one else is around. Seeing that no one is, she leans in closer to Evelyn. "Do you promise not to tell anyone?" she asks, "At least until after this weekend?" She raises her brows slightly as she looks at Evelyn curiously. "I really don't want, well… certain people finding out," she says, "At least not until after we've had a chance to go on a first date."

"I um…well, I wouldn't tell anyone. I'll be as quiet as a sleeping kneazle!" Evelyn murmurs to Ludae. "And you uh, you don't have to worry at all. If anyone um, if anyone asks what you're up to, I can…well, make up an excuse for you, if you'd like."

Ludae giggles softly and grins a little. "Well, I don't think I'll need a cover-story," she says, "But I know if I don't tell someone I'm gonna burst…" She giggles, and glances around again, then leans over to Evelyn. "It's with Phae," she tells Evelyn, "I asked her last night if she'd like to, and she said yes." Ludae's cheeks are flushed with excitement. From the way she says it, its clear that she must have had a crush on Hephaesta for some time. It would explain why she can't stop grinning so huge.

"Hephaesta?" Evelyn whispers, almost seeming to not be able to believe that it's their fellow sixth year Ravenclaw. "She's an amazing witch, Hephaesta. I hope the date goes well!" She smiles widely. "Where are you two going to go? Somewhere…somewhere nice in Hogsmeade?"

Ludae bites her lip through her smile and nods emphatically. "She is," Ludae agrees, "I've, um… I've wanted to ask her out since fourth year, but… Well, there was all that between her and Ophelia, and well, it just didn't seem right… But then all of that mess at the Pantomime happened, and after that, well…" She blushes a little redder, and shrugs her shoulders. "I finally managed to work up the courage to tell her, and asked her out… It was… kind of a shock to her, at first." She giggles. "I sort of panicked when she didn't respond right away, and spilled my ink all over my notes… I'm sorry, I'm just excited about it." Ludae nods her head again. "We're going to meet at the Rosie's," she says, "We both agreed that dinner would be a good first date idea… After that, I'm not sure. We're probably just going to take things slow, since um, neither of us are very… experienced with dating, after all."

"The Pantomime…I was uh…I was sorry about all that happened with that." Evelyn murmurs. "But um, well, I'm glad that something good came out of it!" She says softly, nodding. "Rosie's…that place is um…it is supposed to be kind of romantic…as I understand it." Not that she has ever actually been there before. "I uh…I imagine that taking things slow is usually a good idea?" She's definitely not experienced with dating either.

Ludae nods her head. "I'm just glad that everything was brought back under control so swifty," she says, "That fire could have done so much more damage." The redhead shakes her head, though, in regards to Rosie's. "I, uh, I don't think it's that romantic of a spot," Ludae says, cheeks once again tinged a rosey color, "Not quite so much as Madam Puddifoot's, anyhow… And there are often fewer students present, so we thought it might be a good place to just… lay low for a while and get to know each other better before people start sticking their noses in to find out details about our relationship." She bites her lip. "If one even comes of it," Ludae murmurs, more to herself than to Evelyn.

"Oh…yeah…Madam Puddifoot's…right." Romance is definitely not down Evelyn's alley. "I um…I usually end up at Honeydukes and then the Three Broomsticks. I'm um…well, not very adventurous when it comes to Hogsmeade." She explains softly. "I'm happy for you two, though. I uh…I think you two would work well."

Ludae nods her head, and she chews her lip some more. "Usually how my adventures go there, as well, if I don't stop in at the bookstore as well," she says, "I spent a lot of time there last year, looking for books on herbology and muggles." She smiles though. "Don't be too happy for us just yet, of course… Not until we know if there's going to even be a second date."

"Yes…right…I don't know where my head was. But I am still happy for you. I just um…I want it to go well!" Evelyn explains. "You'll…you'll have to tell me how it went." She raises an eyebrow. "Are you um…are you going to give her flowers or an apple or something?" Is that how dates work? She doesn't know!

Ludae bites her lip at that question. She doesn't know! "Oh! Um… I… I'm not sure," she says, "Is… Is that what people do? I've… Well, I've never really payed attention to other couples. I've always been so busy trying to pass my classes…" She lifts a hand to rub the back of her neck, glancing around nervously. "Do you… do you think that would be a good idea?"

"I…I'm not sure. I mean…I've, well, mostly focused on my studies as well. I just…I…well…I don't know. Is it flowers that people give? Or um…" Evelyn furrows her brow, thinking. What has she seen others do? Has she seen other relationships? Of course she has! She just hasn't paid much attention. What does her uncle do with her aunt? Certainly she must have seen something there…maybe? "Maybe some chocolates? Chocolate frogs? Licorice wand? OH! A book! Or is a book too much for a first date?"

Ludae considers the options, and nods her head. "A book seems a little much," she says, "Maybe um, chocolates…" She groans then and rubs her face. "I don't know if Phae likes chocolates or not!" She sighs and shakes her head. "I feel like there's going to be a dragon waiting for me," she says, "Nervous and excited, my stomach is doing turns inside me." She giggles softly. "I think I'll just bring her flowers maybe… Um… Oh! I know!" She leans forward then, rummaging through her bookbag for another herbology book, and starts flipping through it on her lap.

"Flowers could be good." Evelyn notes softly. "So um…" She's about to says something about said flowers when her classmate pulls out a herbology book. She remains silent, watching the other flip through the book.

Ludae nods her head, looking up at Evelyn while still flipping through pages. She blinks a moment, then asks, "What?" She bites her lip a little. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to get so overexcited about all of this… what were you going to say?" Ludae comes upon the page she was looking for, but she still waits for Evelyn to finish her thought first.

Shaking her head, Evelyn smiles. "No…it's um…it's fine. You seemed to have a thought, I don't like interrupting those." She explains. "It's not important. I'll…really, it's fine. What were you thinking?"

Ludae blushes a little, and she nods her head. "Well… I was thinking the same thing," she says, "Just so you know…" She looks down at her book, though, and points out the section of the page to Evelyn. "Here. Rainbow Roses. They start out white, and then bloom seven days in a row, each time a different color. What do you think?"

"That sounds lovely." Evelyn nods along. "I'm sure that would work well. And it would really brighten up the dormitory." She giggles softly. "If you can um…if you can find them, I'd say that you should. They really do sound amazing."

Ludae nods her head, and chews her lip a little, looking back down at the book. "Well, I'm not sure who's replacing Professor Beery yet, but I'll ask his substitute as soon as I can," the redhead says, "I may have to try to grow them before the weekend, though… If not I'll just hope I can get some from the herbology shop in Hogsmeade. If I'm lucky they'll have some I can pick up Saturday before I meet Phae for dinner. If not… well, maybe they'll have something else just as nice."

"Poor Professor Beery." Evelyn shakes her head sadly. "Hopefully you'll be able to get them. But I'm sure you'll get her something nice, one way or another." She offers in encouragement. "Maybe if there's nothing in in the greenhouses, you can actually write to the shop in Hogsmeade? Send them a quick note to ask?"

Ludae nods her head. "I'm certain I could," she says, and smiles brightly. "I hope Phae likes them," she says, "Though I guess I won't know until I see her on Saturday." Ludae bites her lip again, and blushes a little. "Oh, and I'm going to have to get through a whole week of seeing her, too… It's going to be so hard…"

"You can do this. I know you can." Evelyn tells the Ludae. "It may be hard, I know you're excited, but if you've um…if you've waited since fourth year, you can wait through the next week. Just remember that."

Ludae smiles and nods her head. "I know," she says, "I just feel like my heart is going to leap out of my chest when I see her, now that I know that she's willing to give things a try…" She blushes and squirms in her seat a little bit, and pulls her book a little more securely over her lap. "It's just exciting… Like the first time riding a broom, or when you find a fantastic new book."

Evelyn smiles widely. "On the upside, doesn't seem like you need any Felix Felicis! I mean, you're um…you're already full of luck, what with having the courage to ask her out and to get the date, right? But still…I guess I can uh…I can only imagine what the wait will be like!"

"The wait is going to drive me crazy," she says, "And really… I was so nervous when I asked her… I knocked my ink jar over and everything, and made a huge fool of myself… I'm surprised she said yes, actually." Ludae smiles at Evelyn. "The only reason I worked up the courage to say something in the first place is because of that fire in the auditorium… After it happened I came back here and cried for hours… It was just so overwhelming. While I was lying in bed, though, I realized that there were worse things that could happen to me than Phae saying she wasn't interested… So I took the chance… and now I've got a shot for something I never thought I'd have."

"Well…I'm sure she can uh…she can forgive the waste of ink. I mean, there's always more!" Evelyn giggles softly. "Just…maybe try focusing primarily on studies? I mean, I can help with that, with the Herbology and Magical Creatures. It might take your mind off of it a little?" Of course, there's only so much she can do, since they all live together.

"She helped clean it up right away, actually… She cleans up grease and such all the time, so already had a spell handy, thankfully. Saved the notes I had been taking while I waited for her to join me in the library." Ludae smiles a little. "Maybe tomorrow? I really should be getting to bed soon. Hopefully I'll be able to sleep tonight, last night all I could do was lay there trying not to squeal with excitement. If Phae knew how happy I was over this I think she'd think I'm crazy or something!"

"If uh…if you end up not being able to sleep tonight, give me a nudge and we can…you know, talk some more." Evelyn offers. "Chances could be I may be up. Depending on the time." She gives her fellow Ravenclaw a little smile of assurance that it would be all right.

Ludae gives a nod to Evelyn, smiling. "If you seem like you're awake," she says. Ludae hesitates for a moment as she rises from her chair, hugging her books to her torso. She chews her lip for a moment, and then puts her books away in her bag again. Once that's done, she leans over and wraps her arms around Evelyn, giving her a warm, if brief, embrace. "Thank you, Evelyn," she murmurs, "It's… well, it's really nice having someone I can talk to…"

"Oh…hug…okay…" It catches Evelyn off guard more than anything, as she returns the hug. "It's uh…it's what I'm here for. Studying and umm…and listening." She says with a soft giggle. "But really…my um…my door is always open. You know uh…you know where I live." Yes, she may be one of the quietest girls in Ravenclaw, but on occasion, she's been known to joke.

Ludae grins a little, blushing. "Sorry, I just… Well, it's nice to, um, have people I can consider friends here…" She rubs the back of her neck again, chewing her lip a little. "All of my friends moved on after fifth year, so this whole year it's been a little… well, difficult for me… But the same goes for you, Evelyn… If you ever need to, y'know, talk about anything? I'm happy to listen."

"Oh…no, it's um…it's fine, really." Evelyn is quick to assure Ludae, smiling still. "I um…I know it can be difficult. I um…I don't have too many friends. I mean, I've got a few close friends, like Elspeth, but otherwise…" She shrugs and her smile falters a little. "But it's um…it's always nice to have friends who you can talk to."

Ludae smiles brightly at Evelyn. "Well, I'm your friend, too," she says, smiling, "And you can talk to me any time you need to. Day or night." She smiles, but then for a serious moment. "Unless I have an exam in the morning. Then I really need a good night's sleep, or I'll be useless." Then Ludae is grinning again.

"Well…if there's an exam in the morning, I wouldn't dare bother you. And if I had the same exam…well, I'd probably be up all night worried about it instead of anything else!" Evelyn says with a little sly grin.

Ludae giggles softly, and nods her head. "Well, hopefully if we both have the same exam, we can study together, and make sure that we both get perfect scores." She shrugs her shoulders, though. "If it's anything important, though, I'm all your's."

"Perfect scores would be nice! You know what they say, the early dragon catches the sheep!" Evelyn offers with a slight giggle. Nodding in response, she says, "The same to you. If you um…ever need to talk about something important, feel free to uh…well, to come talk to me. Maybe I'll be able to help. Or at least listen."

Ludae giggles at that, herself. "Well, you certainly helped me tonight, Evelyn," she says, "I never would have thought to bring flowers with me or anything." She grins happily. "I'm going to turn in for the night, though. It was great talking with you, Evelyn. Try not to stay up too late, hmm?" She smiles and gives a wink as she collects her bookbag, ready to head to the dorms.

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