The Trees Dance {Payton}

[shailene]

It was mid November and the weather had become quite chilly to the point of almost being cold but that didn't stop Shailene for enjoying the out doors. Sometimes she hated being kept inside and she wanted to enjoy the fresh air before it became freezing. Shailene had dressed for the occasion, putting of her Hufflepuff pride winter clothes before she grabbed a book and scribbled a quick note to her friend Payton on her bed before leaving the castle.

Wrapping her scarf tightly around her neck, Shailene felt warm with her coat, gloves, and wool hat as she step into the chilly air. She made her way to the Whomping Willow, a tree many avoided due to its seemingly violent nature. But Shailene always found the tree interesting and almost majestic. The whomping willow protected itself from harm and the branches danced a dangerous tango when warding off the danger.

Shailene sat down on a patch of grass and cracked open her book. She had made sure to be a good distance away from the tree so she wouldn't get hit if anything threatened the willow tree. She wondered when her dear friend Payton would arrive. The two were usually together but sometimes they had to split to do their own thing. Payton was probably off dancing and Shailene would wait for her just as a good friend would.

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[payton]

A loud snore echoed throughout the girls dormitory, getting glances of disgust thrown in the direction it came from. A girl with waist length hair rolled around on her bed, still clad in her leotard and dance slippers. Someone threw a sock ball at her, and she started awake, her eyes blurry and her mouth agape. She wrapped her fingers around it and sent it flying back in the direction it came from, and smiled lazily as someone squeled. Peeling herself up off the bed, she grabbed a pair of jeans and a tee shirt from her trunk before heading off to the lavitory. Changing out of her dance outfit and sliding into her clean clothes, Payton was already starting to feel refreshed.

Throwing the dance clothes on her bed as she passed by, she scooped up her wand and shoved her feet into some cute brown knee high boots, grabbing a pea coat on her way out the door. Shoving the wand in her boot, she slipped her arms into the coat on her way down the spiral staircase. She ran her hands through her hair a few times, trying to tame it a little. Emerging from the dungeons, she tried to remember where Shailene said she would meet her. Oh yes! The Whomping Willow.

Walking outside, she buttoned the coat, trying to keep warm. From a large pocket on the coat, she pulled out a bright yellow scarf, showing her Hufflepuff pride. Then she put her hands in her jeans pockets and kept walking, her back hunched a little to keep the wind out of her coat. She finally caught sight of Shailene and jogged over, Sitting down next her best friend, she put an arm around her shoulers. "Hey! Whatcha reading? I just finished Water for Elephants, and it was amazing!"

[shailene]

"Quit it wind. I want to enjoy a nice day outside before it gets too cold." She shouted at the sky, growing a bit irritable. With each gust of wind Shailene had to protect the current page she was reading before she lost her place in the book. She had already lost it a few times and didn't want to waste anymore time trying to find the page she was last on. At this rate she would never finish the book. It wasn't as if she had a deadline for it wasn't a book for school. This book was one she just wanted to enjoy but the stupid wind wouldn't allow her.

Just about the time she was ready to pack up and head inside to trade a spot in from the cold to a place right near the fireplace an arm came down on her sholders as she saw her best friend looking at her. "Hey Pay." She said with a bright smile. She was glad that Payton was here to distract her from the annoying wind. "Yes, I loved that book. I finished it in September. I actually would love to see the movie for it, if I can find it. It is rather old." Shailene said.

She glanced down at the gray book that was now closed within her hands. It had a girl in a green dress trapped in a bubble. "Its called Matched." Shailene said. "I think you might like it. Its about a futuristic society that when you turn of age you are matched with someone they see fit. Everything you do is controlled. This girl finds out her match is her best friend but for a moment it flashed with someone else's face. So now she had to figure out what she truly wants even if that means going against the society rules." Shailene said, wondering if her friend would find it all as fascinating as she did.

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[payton]

She thought that the breeze felt pretty good. Looking at Shailene, Pay could tell that she wasn't enjoying it much. Looking at some crinkly pages in the book, she giggled a little. Her friend was clearly frustrated. Sitting on her hands to keep them warm, Pay looking around. The Whomping Willow was going nuts, shaking its branches angrily at them, knowing that they were out of reach. She watched birds narrowly dodging them, and smiled. Oh the struggles of life.

"Yes! I think that sounds fantastic Shay!" she said. Those kinds of book, the ones filled with choices of the heart, really made her happy. Usually they involved a damsel of some sort, who was plagued with having two loves. She eventually had to figure out which one she loved best. Pay kind of felt that way right now. Which did she love more, dancing, or being with Dominic? He was such a nice boy, but she wasn't sure if she liked him as much as dancing.

"What I liked the most about Water for Elephants, was that in the beginning it led you on to believe that the love interest was the murder, but at they end of the story, you find out it was the elephant. I never really understood the cover, where it says that the killer is a silent mute, because I thought it was the woman, not the elephant!" she laughed, leaning on Shailene. "So hey, how have you been bestie?" she asked, interested in how her friend was doing. She hadn't talked to her since breakfast, and that had been hurried so they could get to class.

[shailene]

There were sure signs that winter was approaching them. With the quick drops in the temperatures and the strong winds, Shailene had the feeling they would be getting quite a harsh winter. She didn't mind at all, although she would miss the warm weather slightly, she adored the snow and couldn't wait for the first snowflake to fall. It was always so beautiful here in the winter, The surrounding mountains covered in a blanket of white and the lake frozen solid making it fun to skate on. Snow ball fights, hot chocolate, warm fires, reading, skating, all of it made winter wonderful.

Shailene looked at Pay as she sat down, sitting atop her hands. "Did someone forget their gloves?" She asked slightly laughing. Knowing her friend Payton most likely hadn't paid attention to the weather and just walked outside without being prepared. Shailene closed her book marking her spot and set it beside her. "It really is. I heard its a series so I can't wait to finish the whole thing." Shailene said. "I'll be sure to let you borrow it as soon as I'm done." She said smiling at Pay. It was nice to have a friend that had a lot of the same interests as she did, she enjoyed talking to Pay about anything and everything even if those conversations were growing further apart.

Shailene nodded in agreement having thought the same exact thing when she first started the book. "Its a nice little twist, although I wouldn't of cared who killed that man, as long as he got what he deserved." Shailene said, passion filling her voice. Sometimes Shailene grew very attached to the characters she read about, almost as if she really knew them in person, as if they existed in her world. To Shailene they were real for the simple fact that when reading a book the most vulnerable parts of a character are revealed, sometimes they seem more alive then the people around her. "I've been alright. Finally had sometime away from homework to actually do something I like to do. Sometimes I regret taking all these classes at once but I know it'll better me in the long run." Shailene said. "How about you? What have you been up to lately?" Shailene asked with curiosity.

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[payton]

Payton laughed at Shailene. She was always so perceptive. She knew that Payton's hands were cold without her even having to say so. Shailene talked about how she didn't care how the man died as long as he did, and Pay had to agree. The man was horrible, and the more of the book that you read the more obvious that it became. It was always interesting to see how characters developed. But then she asked how Payton was and she turned her head to the side, frowning and biting her bottom lip a little. To be honest, she wasn't so well.

She'd been duped by her worst enemy Romulus the other night. She'd been tricked into thinking that he really only beat up on her because he liked her. Then he'd spurned her and called her a bunch of foolish things, breaking her down even further. That was a bad thing that had happened recently. A good thing though, was that she'd met another Hufflepuff and his name was Dominic. He was interesting, smart, handsome, and talented. He always had an opinion just like her, and he wasn't afraid to let her know.

"Well. Things have been really interesting lately. Not too interesting, but still. I met a guy in Hogsmeade. And was tricked into being a fool by another guy from our house. I've been such a fool lately that I don't know what to do with myself." Payton sniffed a little and wiped away a couple of tears from her blue eyes. "But enough about my horrible decisions, what's been going on with you? Have you met any guys?" She lightly elbowed her friend in the side, teasing her a little.

[shailene]

Shailene waited on this vivid story from Pay, her best friend, who usually was so animated about the events in her life. But when Shailene glanced over at her dear friend, Payton looked hurt and conflicted. She wouldn't looked directly at Shailene but she could see the frown lines on her face. "What happened Pay?" She asked with worry lacing every syllable. She hoped that nothing seriously was wrong with Pay but part of her wondered why she hadn't come straight to Shailene to confide in her what was going on.

Shailene tried to push that hurt aside, trying to justify Pay's reasoning. Lately the two seemed to be drifting apart but Shailene prayed they wouldn't lose their friendship completely. She listened to Payton tell her about two guys that she had met. One who treated her with cruelty and the other she didn't give much detail about. Payton was believing herself to be a fool and Shailene wouldn't stand for it.

Slinging an arm around her best friend, Shailene smiled at Payton. "Don't let fools like them get you down. You aren't a fool because you believed someone was into you, for why wouldn't they be, you are an amazing girl. Don't let him take that from you Pay." Shailene said, meaning every word. "Now tell me who I have to shove a wand up their nose?" She asked hoping to make her friend laugh by the absurd image. Shailene was far from a fighter but would do anything for her close friends. "And what about the other guy. What happened with him" Shailene asked with curiosity. Hopefully this encounter would be better than the one she was previously told about.

Payton had decided to turn the attention to Shailene, which she really didn't mind. "Well, haven't really met any guys really. Although the dance went rather well and my partner was unexpected." Shailene said, thinking of Lucian. She wondered how Pay would feel if Shailene started to date Lucian.

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[payton]

Payton looked up sullenly from the ground, looking to her best friend. She was always so kind and knew exactly what to say. She practically pounced on the other girl, gripping her into a bear hug, her face lit up with a giant smile. Shai knew just how to make her happy. She was right. Who did Romulus think he was, making her feel like that? And honestly, she felt stupid for even letting him make her feel that way. He was the bane of her existence. Besides, what did he get out of it?

She let go of her friend and took her hand. "Thanks bestie. I do believe this is why we are best friends. You know exactly how to make someone feel good about themselves." She smiled brightly. Romulus did need a good wand shoved up his nose, but that would sadly only infuriate him and make him come after her. "Well, I'd tell you but then you'd be subjected to it as well. As for the other guy, well his name is Dominic, and he's just the sweetest guy ever. He picked out a book of poems for me, after finding out that I love literature. It's something we have in common." Payton blushed and sucked in a big breath, ready to tell her everything.

"Dominic took me to tea! We talked about everything, from politics, to magical views, to poets and literature! We have a lot in common, and he isn't afraid to challenge my opinions. He's really kind and sweet. I know I keep saying that, but he is! I think I could see myself going out with him again. OH! And he has these really cute thick glasses that he wears, and when they slide down his nose, he pushes them up really cutely!" Payton squealed and threw herself on her back on the grass, happy to just lie there.

"Who was your date to the ball? I didn't go...." Payton had been dancing that night, but not at the ball. She was practicing for an audition she was doing later in the year.

[shailene]

Friendship was about supporting one another through the good and the bad and Shailene was right there for Payton as she described the bad part of her week. Not being able to stand to see her friend down in a bad mood she spoke kind words to her best friend, hoping to cheer her up. Suddenly Shailene was being tackled into a bear hug by Payton. As Shailene wrapped her arms around Payton tightly she laughed quite hard at the unexpected motion. "There is that smile that I love seeing on my best friend." Shailene said through her laughter. "You are quite welcome." She added as the two finally up-righted themselves.

Although Payton thought it safer to keep the identity of the bully hidden, Shailene still wanted to know. She didn't like the idea of someone harassing a friend of hers and wanted to do whatever she could to protect her. Shailene turned toward Payton quite seriously and held out her pinky before saying. "I won't pressure you to tell me but if it continues I want to know who it is, promise?" After that serious note the air between them became less dense as Payton began to describe a boy named Dominic, perhaps the Whittington boy in their house. As she spoke about their day out and the commonalities between them Payton's features were glowing. "I definitely think that someone has a bit of a crush." She teased. "Maybe you should try things out for once and actually date someone." Shailene told Payton.

When Payton asked who Shailene's date was for the ball she felt a bit shy about revealing the person who she actually had a good time with. It was quite unexpected but Shailene trusted Payton enough to tell her pretty much everything. "Lucian Jaxon." Shailene mumbled as she looked over at the whomping willow unable to meet her friend's gaze.

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