Outside at last {continued/Ash+Alex}

[Busby Withers]

Busby burst outside through the entrance hall, not really paying attention as to whether the others where with him or not, he breathed in deep the fresh air and listened intently to the sond of birds chirping, leaves russling, and the wind blowing. His mind began to slow down and things started to make sense. He then looked around and didn't see the others, he turned towards the entrance hall, "Guys?"

[Ashelin Messner]

Ash had kind of heard Buzz as he practically ran from the library. It was a bit strange, how he was acting, but she wasn't going to think too much about it. Making a few quick turns through the maze-like shelves of the library, she was pretty sure she had all together lost Alex. So, outside it was.

She lost sight of Buzz and turned in the opposite direction of the entrance hall. Though it was warm outside, she was dressed for summer. She sprinted to the Gryffindor common room and up the stairs to the girls' dorms. Throwing open her trunk, she dug out a simple black zip up hoody and pulled it on. Exchanging her black flip flops for a pair of black low top converse, she ran back out into the corridor. It didn't take her that long to get back to the entrance hall, and yet she still didn't see Alex, or Buzz.

Sighing, she jogged out onto the lawn, scanning the open area for one of their familiar faces. Sweeping the lawn for the second time, her eyes finally fell on Buzz and she jogged over to him just in time to hear him call out. "Right here!" She breathed, slowing to a stop beside him. "But I think I lost Alex."

[ahemingway]

Alex, figuring that the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindor would end up outside whether or not they could find Busby in the library, had gone to the seventh year boys' dormitory to grab a fleece pullover from his trunk. Pulling it on, he strode out of the Hufflepuff common room and to the entrance hall. Trying to avoid colliding with the other people in the hallways he traversed, he dodged through the foot traffic headed the opposite direction. A few spills were made due to his sharp turns around corners, but Alex helped the students he ran into collect their things if they'd dropped them, and helped them up if they fell. He would then proceed to walk away briskly with a quickly said, though sincere, "Sorry."

A few minutes later, he was out of the entry hallway, looking around for his friends. He heard someone who sounded like Ash call out, 'Right here!' and looked in that direction. He saw Ash jogging towards Busby, hearing faintly her second sentence, and strode that way himself. A moment later, he said, "But if you lost me, then why'm I right next to you?" Alex had half a grin on his face: this was as close as he'd usually get, excluding being in a black mood, to a prank. He wondered if he startled Ash or Buzz, and wondered too what they'd say in response.

[Busby Withers]

Buzz smiled as everyone showed up, as his mind cleared up he had started to get worried that he had left them behind. He took in a deep breath and released it, his mind was almost completly clear now. "Sorry about freaking out, it happens to me from time to time." He placed his fingers on his temple and rubbed them back and fourth, "Just sometimes without a distraction things in my mind start to get all jumbled up and just stop making sense."

[Ashelin Messner]

Ash hadn't necessarily been breathing hard, so it didn't take her long to return to her normal patterns. Raising her eyebrows, she turned to find Alex - just as he had said - right next to her. She rolled her eyes, shifting her weight to one foot and slipping her hands into her pockets. So many different - and some rather hurtful - replies popped into her head as soon as he spoke. But, she bit her tongue and stood there rather annoyed with the Hufflepuff. She didn't know what it was, but she just didn't like him.

She looked back at Buzz, returning his smile with a rather distracted one of her own. She nodded at his apology, watching him almost curiously as he rubbed at his temples. "Don't worry about it." She shrugged. Her eyes moved around the surrounding lawns before returning to the boys standing around her. "Now that we're outside what are we gonna do?" She asked, dropping to the grass and sitting Indian-style.

[ahemingway]

[[Sorry I left you guys hanging for so long... Totally forgot this thread existed >_>]]

Alex stood more or less impassively, studying Buzz and Ash as the other two acknowledged his presence and whatnot. He noticed Ash's rather annoyed reaction to his presence, and figured that she was... well, annoyed. With him, at least. Buzz just seemed grateful to be out of the school in general, and Alex was still a bit downed about being reminded of his constant single status, though not overly. In Alex's opinion, this was quite a difference in emotion. In response to Buzz's apology about his freaking out, Alex said, "'S okay, happens to everybody once in a while." Alex really wasn't sure what else he could say without sounding sarcastic or whatever.

Alex took a moment to contemplate Ash's question, sitting down with his legs stretched out in front of him while he did so. "I don't really care. I mean, I have some ideas, but they're kinda stupid when I run them through my head. So whatever works for you guys is good with me," Alex said, figuring that just about paraphrased what had run through his head. He listened attentively, wondering if Ash or Buzz had any decent ideas on what to do. Besides talk. Not that Alex minded, of course, but he hoped inwardly that Buzz wouldn't start flirting with Ash again and remind Alex of his singleness. He really didn't enjoy being in downward-spiral mode.