| Details for Fortifications in the Square |
| Summary: | A couple of Hufflepuffs build snow fortifications for the coming wars. |
| Date: | December 23rd 1941 |
| Location: | Merlin's Square |
| Plot: | Snowpocalypse Now |
| Related: | — |
| Characters |
  |
As the holidays approach there is a flurry of activity around these parts - last-minute shopping has people not quite swarming the square, but there is no lack of passers-by. Most seem accustomed to the assemblage of snowmen in the center of the square, and a small group of children is off to the side building more. On the opposite side is another child; though older in age, Nia Pritchard seems just as serious about her snow as the others. She is pink-cheeked and building a wall, it would seem - about mid-chest in height, perfect for crouching and dodging, even though there doesn't seem to be a battle taking place. In fact, she seems to be perfectly alone.
It really crushes his heart that his brother won't be coming home for Christmas. All that Eoin can do is hope. Only two days away and the youth is still hoping that Dafydd will come home. Even with the letters, he still believes that there's a chance. So the solid built boy walks along, one gloved hand clutching an envelope, booted feet crunching through the snow as he walks with careful steps. Dressed in warm clothes of grey tones, Eoin feels a bit overdressed despite how relatively open his clothes are. His coat is only partially done up, leaving the collars tipped down, and his hat has been stuffed into a pocket, revealing his snow flaked curly hair, a bit mussed. His face is red from the cold, but the cold is the last thing on his mind.
He walks through the square, oblivious of all the snowmen and of other kids who might be around. Eoin's steps lead him directly towards one snowman, and only when it is suddenly right before him, before he runs into it, he stops, lifting his head and letting out a confused, "Huh?" The youth blinks, only then looking around, taken aback as if just registering where he is. Then a gust of breeze takes the envelope out of his hand and he gasps, trying to snatch it back out of the air as he follows along after it before he stumbles into a snow pile and has to watch the letter fly out on the wind from where he fell on his knees. A sigh escapes him, head turning this way and that until he spies Nia close by. His thick lips twitch, showing a small, but friendly smile. "Are you building a snow fort?" he asks slowly, but with a hint of thrill in his tone, the letter seeming to be forgotten.
If Nia seemed lost in her own little world she shatters that now, eyes up and squinting from behind her burgeoning wall. The wall seems to have caught the eye of a pair of toddlers, who laugh and run around the thing like they own it. "Hey!" She barks out from the other end, forcing a grin in hopes that the edge come off. "Be careful!" They blink over at her and continue laughing, cajoling, and merrymaking. A section of the wall comes down when one tackles the other straight into it. She winces, sighs expansively. Then, some other kid runs right into a snowman! This one fares better, thankfully staying upright. Hes turning and vaguely familiar - so his question is met with the most vibrant of smiles. "Trying to!" She grates, fussy nature showing itself by the quick rake of a hand through her hair. "Got to prepare. Also be careful with that one-" She motions, yes, toward the snowman, mismatched coal eyes staring emptily at the two of them. She leans conspiratorially in. "Didn’t even have to be alive to make you lose that letter of yours."
Eoin's teeth flash a little as he smiles, the warmth filling his eyes. "Grand," he replies, his fingers already working in the snow, forming a small snowball, and then another. He hums thoughtfully, studying Nia's snow wall silently keenly even while his hands unconsciously roll snow into balls. Then suddenly the burly boy jerks back, shaking his head once and shifting his green eyes briefly to the two excited toddlers as if just registering them. Brows furrow briefly before Eoin suddenly lets out a chipper chuckle. "Oh. You need to extra fortify that to stand up against littlest ones." The edge of his tone sounds jokingly, but his sedated speech is careful. The snowballs that he had been rolling are now being formed together, but he pauses to blink, giving her a bewildered look. "Lett— Oh," he lets out, and looks skyward as he's reminded about the letter. His lips turn into a frown as he looks shamefully at the snowman. "Ohhh." The boy shifts, scooting sluggishly an inch or so away and lowering his head apologetically. "Sorry, was that yours? I can fix it up." He's turning to the snowman before waiting on an answer, already working in the snow around him. Then, with a blink, a single brow lowers as he queries, "Alive?"
Nia’s face splits in a smile as well, and she shakes her head mournfully at the comment about the fortifications. He goes from topic to topic and and she watches, clearly entertained. "Wasn’t mine, but have at it. Hopefully when he comes back he’s on our side." Comes back? Alive? At that, she seems somewhat exasperated. "Did no one hear about this?" She seems overwhelmed, eyes searching around as if the answer were in the snow around them. "I swear this happened! I have multiple witnesses." She rounds on him, as if accusing. "I’m not crazy. Big fat snowflakes fell from the sky," her hand comes up, splayed, and she points at it. A size comparison. "Then all of these came to life. There was a dragon!" She ends on this, then looks a tad sheepish. "I’m telling you. It happened." She busies herself with continuing the wall, shoving at the snow. "All this? It’s for when it happens again."
Eoin has set to work fixing up the snowman, focused on that task, regarding his work with a critical eye. He's a builder by nature, never mind with which material, and the joy in his smile is pure, his green eyes holding an excited glow as he works. It might seem as though he doesn't notice that Nia is speaking, showing no acknowledgement as he rolls snow onto snow, patching up the parts that had fallen away. Gloved hands pause against the body of the snowman as Eoin turns his head to Nia, his mind reeling as it tries to catch up, brows knitted and his lips pursed. "Um." Confused, he shakes his head slowly. "Crazy? I never said-" Big snowflakes? Ice dragon? As Nia tells of all this, his head turns this way and that, as if looking, trying to find evidence. "That- That seems a bit scary," he reflects. He begins his work at fixing up the snowman again, but not without a level of worry, looking just a little more wary as he glances around. "Who made it all happen?" he asks curiously, his attention on re-building the snowman. The last thing he does is adjust the eyes and mouth, his thick lips flickering as he looks proudly over to the familiar girl.
"That's the thing -" Nia quips, latching on to his question easily. Perhaps too easily. Definitely not just happy about a change of subject. Nope. "People are talking about it bein' the holiday committee what was out here the other night-" She babbles happily while starting in on the next segment of the fortress, lengthening the wall. She must have been at this for a while- she's gotten rather fast at it. "But I'm not certain that's all what happened since, yeah, it was a bit scary! The dragon was huge- it blew blizzard breath on a bunch of rowdy boys! Rrah!" Swept up in her story, Nia forms a claw with one hand and motions, vaguely. Chagrined, she calms down quickly and pushes some hair behind an ear. "Personally, I dunno where it came from or how it happened. I just know that next time these things come to life, I'm going to be ready." Her jaw stiffens, resolute. She turns to face him and appraises the snowman, giving him a broad grin. "Guess we'll both be ready - nice work! You seem pretty good with your hands. Maybe since you fixed him up so nice, he'll be on your side when the snow starts flying." She gives the figure a gentle pat, as if testing its fortitude. She is pleased.
A look of genuine worry and fear is expressed on Eoin's face. His green eyes lock on Nia, regarding her as he listens, cringing at the idea of being attacked by ice breath. His gaze slowly drifts to walls of snow she's building, studying them even as his own hands begin to knead at the snow in front of him. "A tunnel could be fixed into the forts, too," he suggests slowly, almost too himself as his eyes distance, drawing in on himself as he thinks. "Huh?" Eoin blinks suddenly and gives his head a shake, bringing his gaze back to Nia with another blink, and then to the snowman. A still moment passes before his lips twitch into a smile and he bobs his head thankfully. "Maybe we can have our own army of snowmen to stand guard."
"Tunnels!" It seems that this is an attractive idea- Nia absolutely lights up, favoring the boy with a smile. "You do dream big, don’t you?" She's half-speaking to herself, of course, tone fond. "Well, Dream Big. Are you planning on being here all afternoon? Shall I let you take over, here?" She steps away from the forming wall, still grinning, then returns to work with a light laugh. "I'd be careful with an army, were I you-" Her warning is still playful, though as she continues there's a bit of caution tinging her words. "There's no way to tell if they’re on our side or not. Should we build warriors, it ought to be on the outside of the fortress." She nods resolutely, all business. "Consequently I'm shite at snowmen. That's why it's the wall, for me!" The chirp is punctuated with a shove at the wall section - then she startles, as if having realized something grave and terribly embarrassing. "Oh, look at me go. 'Our side, should we,' there I am lumping you in with my lot. Sorry!" Her smile is winsome. "I'm sorry. Sorry."
-fade-