I wanna hear the THUNDER I want to SCREAM [OPEN]

[plongbottom]

Nestled in a tree near the lake was the older daughter of Neville Longbottom. She was comfortably lying on a branch of the tree, leaning against the trunk as she snoozed. Penelope was the type of girl who sought to be outdoors, enjoying everything nature had to offer. She wasn't particularly fond of indoors, there wasn't much for her to do not to mention she didn't really like being cooped up. Opening an eye, the girl looked around and yawned, raising her arms over her head in a stretch. It was one thing to take a nap yet it was a whole new thing to take a nap in a tree.

Giggling lightly, Penny looked down, measuring the distance from her tree branch to the ground. "Hm...Seems fine to just drop down I think," she mused as she swung her legs over the branch. Reaching down to grab hold of the branch, Penny allowed herself to drop down from the branch, swinging from the tree. Smiling to herself, she released the branch, falling on the ground with a slight laugh. "That was fun," grinned Penny as she rolled herself up into a sitting position. Looking up at the tree, she happily got to her feet, dusting herself off.

Deciding to head back to the castle, Penny caught sight of the forbidden forest. Blinking, she tilted her head to the side before walking towards it. The forbidden forest was always a nice place to hang out, as long as she didn't wander to far into it. Penny was determined, however, to explore the depths of the forest. How she would do that without getting lost? She was still particularly working on that solution. Pondering how to exactly do that, she was released from her thoughts as she almost walked into a tree. Looking up in alarm, Penny saw that she had already reached the edge of the forbidden forest.

Penelope was walking along the edge of the forest, curiously looking into the forests depths. Feeling a drop of water hit her face, Penny directed her gaze towards the skies above as a dark shadow loomed over her, causing a chill to run down her spine. She frowned at the sight of the dark gray cloud above. Letting out a sigh, Penny tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear as she was reminded how much she didn't enjoy the wintry season. The drizzle began to pick up which made the Gryffindor roll her eyes, waving dismissively at the rain. "Yeah yeah. I get the point," she complained aloud as she gave an annoyed looked at the clouds above. "Curse you winter..." mumbled the girl with a soft sigh.

As though Mother Nature had heard her the light drizzle turned to pouring rain. "Ack!" Penny felt the rain hit her as though a bucket of ice cold water was dumped all over her. The sudden downpour wasn't alone as thunder and lightning followed soon after. Seeing how far away from the castle she was, Penny looked over her shoulder at the forest with it's sheltered trees. Biting her lip, Penny looked up at the sky, pointing an accusing finger at it. "Not cool Mother Nature. Not cool at all," she told it before running into the forest. The moment she entered the sheltered trees, the pouring rain ceased though she felt the various drops of rain fall on her already sodden self.

Reaching up to her hair, Penny pulled the strands to the side so she could squeeze the excess water from her hair. Watching the water dribble out, Penny let out a soft sigh. "Ugh...How long am I gonna be stuck here...?" she wondered aloud. The booming thunder and flash of lightning answered her. Flinching at the sound, Penny shivered from the cold as well as the fact that she was wet. "Oh...Well..." she shrugged walking over to a log and sitting down. "This isn't particularly what I had in mind..." mumbled Penny.

[mgirl03]

It had been hectic, these past few days, and what with so much going on through his head, Al had decided to go outside for a spot of fresh air. More than that, though, he wanted to get away from all of the other Gryffindors who would glare at him and mutter something along the lines of 'way to mess up Gryffindor's chances at the cup, Al', or the Slytherins who would clap and smirk at him, thanking him for making their way easier. This was how Albus found himself nearing Hagrid's cabin, eyes constantly darting up towards the gray mass that was slowly heading towards the school.

"Alrigh' there, Al?" a voice sounded from the opposite side of the house, and as Al rounded towards the pumpkin patch he saw Hagrid standing there with his pink umbrella. The half giant was smiling kindly down at him, and Al couldn't help but to smile back, even though he wasn't in the best of moods. What with punching Soren, Rory ill at him and whole house mad...well, it was nice to see a friendly face.

"Hi, Hagrid," he said, gesturing with his left hand towards the pumpkins. "They're coming along nicely. Getting them ready for the Halloween feast, I suppose? Coming up rather quick." "Aye, that I am. What're you doin' round here, Al? Goin ter rain soon, I reckon. Shouldn't you be headin back up ter the castle?" Al smiled again but shook his head, continuing past his giant friend and towards the swaying trees of the forbidden forest.

"I just left the castle, and I've got no desire to go back up right now," Al called over his shoulder. He pulled out his wand from his back pocket and waved it to show Hagrid that he was armed. "Gonna clear my head. Don't worry about me. See you later, Hagrid." Without waiting for a response, Al quickened his pace until he was at the trees, and then turned to walk along them quickly, all the while very aware of the distant rumble of thunder. After a few minutes of strolling aimlessly, he began to wonder if it would have been more wise to just hang out with Hagrid for a while. He was left to nothing but his thoughts, now, and the fresh air wasn't dispelling them like he thought it might.

Without though, Al let his hand run through his hair quickly, black locks flying everywhere, as messy as ever. His mind was elsewhere, mulling over recent events. His best friend being mad at him was making his mood no better than before; the fact that he couldn't be in the Ravenclaw quidditch game didn't help, or all the jabs he'd been given recently. Selfishly, Al half wished that people would realize what he had been through recently. He was the boy who had been captured and tortured at Malfoy Manor, yet they were all being as mean to him as if he were some stupid first year. Well...that's the way Gryffindors were, he supposed. Mess with their chances in the Quidditch or House cup, and it didn't matter who you were--you were on there bad side.

Suddenly, a loud rumble of thunder sounded, making Al jump, just as rain began to pour down. He had barely noticed the drizzle of rain before this point, but now the water was coming down in waves, and with a curse Al raised his arms above his and ran into the cover of the trees. The dense foliage above his head succeeded in protecting him from most of the water, and so he decided to just stay in here, for the moment. Shaking his head, Al blinked hard a few times, bright green eyes adjusting to the new gloom that was cast upon him. As he began to walk again, he realized that he heard sounds to his right. Gripping his wand tightly, he crept sideways, alert, until the vision of Penelope Longbottom swam into view.

"Penelope," he said in surprise, straightening up from his half crouched position and lowering his wand. After a pause, he lit the wand tip, to better see her face. "What are you doing out here in the rain?"

He half smiled at her, wondering if her feelings toward him were the same as everybody else. The Longbottoms had always been close family friend's to the Potters and Weasleys, but Al's own best friend and own family were ill at him, so it was possible that she was just as mad.

[plongbottom]

Penny's pale blue eyes scanned the forest she was currently residing within, the dark gloom causing a wary feeling to surge through her. Reaching into the pocket of her jeans, she pulled out her wand which she silently flicked while thinking 'lumos'. The tip of her wand lit up, revealing to her the damp forest ground and surrounding trees. She let out a sigh, the boom of thunder causing her to jump slightly. It honestly needed to stop doing that. Looking up at the sky, the dark gray clouds almost black in hue, she frowned as a flash of lightning lit the dark sky, illuminating the forest. She hoped the lightning was close by, if so she was doomed if it struck a tree or something. Shaking her head at the thought, Penny voided her mind of such a thing as she swung her legs upon the log she sat on. It was cold and she was still drenched. Biting her lip to keep her teeth from chattering, Penny glanced at her wand before remembering a certain spell. Waving her wand, she pointed them to her clothes, feeling the sudden warmth wash over her as her clothes became instantly dry, as though they had been wavering over the fire for hours.

"That's better..." smiled Penny to herself, wrapping her arms around her legs and resting her chin upon her knees. Hearing twigs snapping nearby, she froze, body rigid. Penny then turned her head towards where the noise came from, her fingers gripping her wand tightly in case she had to defend herself. Hexes and curses swarmed in her head until she heard a familiar voice from the gloom which pulled her away from defense. "Al...?" she blinked, feeling slightly startled. She was proven correct, however, when Albus lit his own wand to apparently see her better. A surge of relief came over her, she'd take Albus any day over some unknown creature that may or may not lurk within the forbidden forest.

At his inquiry, Penny merely smiled, her body relaxing once more. "I should be asking you the same question," she replied. Deciding to answer either way, she shrugged her shoulders with a small sigh. "Well...That bloody curiosity of mine got the better of me. Again," she told him in a joking manner. "Unfortunately it came at the wrong time..." Penny pondered before adding, "Again." she laughed lightly at that as she rested her chin on her knees once again. Curiosity tended to do that to people anyway. Randomly spark an individual's interest at the moment it shouldn't be sparked in the first place. "There just happens to be a thunderstorm and it's raining cats and dogs out there. I just might drown," joked Penny as her gaze glanced back through the trees at the dark sky. "Then again...We might just drown here too," she said lightly with a shrug. Smiling slightly, she looked over at Albus. "Mm...What are you doing here may I ask? Got caught in the rain I assume...?"

Penelope was aware of the situation that happened between Albus and the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Soren. How could she not? Everyone was talking about it throughout the halls of Hogwarts, especially the Gryffindors. Stories like that always spread around the school like wildfire. That was gossip for you. Not even five minutes after the event took place and people were already talking. Penny could sense the tension in the air and how the rest of their house mates were downright angry with Albus. He was after all, suspended from the upcoming Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. Penny was rather disappointed as well, she knew how well Albus played and hoped that this particular action that he took didn't cost them the match. Though, in all honesty, it was okay with Penny in a way. Besides, if it brought doom and gloom upon the Gryffindor house, it most certainly would be ten times as worse on Albus. If everyone thought about it in that respect, Penny was sure that they wouldn't be so angry with him. Though what can you do about a houseful of lions? Either way you're dead meat.

"Mm...You know Al...Since you're most likely upset about it. All the talk about what you did. It'll end eventually. So don't worry about it," she assured him in regards to what had happened. "...Though I'm sure like with this rain. For I'm with you on that one. It really needs to stop," sighed Penny as thunder boomed and lightning flashed across the sky. "You wish everything would get better now," she said, her gaze lowering themselves to the forest floor. "Everything will be fine sooner or later." Penny told him with a small smile.

[mgirl03]

Running into Penelope was proving more refreshing than the outside air or even the rain that was beating down on Hogwarts. To be honest, Al had always enjoyed the company of a Longbottom. Neville was a down to earth sort of guy, nice and helpful, and was practically another uncle in Al's mind. Penelope had always been fun to be around too, because of her up beat attitude and sense of humor. Now proved to be no different as Albus stood before her and she began answering his question in a round-about way. It brought a smile to his face anyways, because he understood what she was meant.

At her comment of drowning, he glanced up at the leaves above him and was promptly hit in the forehead with a large drop of water. Making a face, Albus looked at Penny again and wiped the water away, smiling back at her. Instead of answering her question straight away, he moved over to the log she was sitting on and perched himself on it beside her, glancing at the sky again. His left hand searched along the log space between them until he found a decent sized hole, and then he carefully stuck his wand into it, illuminating the two of them and a little bit of the area around them.

"I came out here to get my mind off things. But yes, I'm in the forest because of the storm," he said, his voice low without him really meaning to, almost as if he didn't want to ruin the silence of the forest. "If it really is raining cats and dogs, I hope I can grab a puppy." Glancing at Penelope out of the corner of his eyes, Al gave her a small grin at his rather lame joke, before falling silent again.

Taking in a few deep breaths, Al found himself closing his eyes, ears straining to hear all sounds to make up for his lack of sight. The patter of rain on leaves was soothing, and he found himself relaxing in the silence, his mind blissfully blank for once in the past few days. Swinging his legs gently, he became very aware of all of the sounds of the forest. His hand twitched at every snap and crack, and when he heard a paticularlly loud rustle of leaves, his eyes snapped open and his body immiedately tensed. He relaxed after a moment, chiding himself for being so jumpy. New protection was on the school, they had a new headmaster and the ministry had put up all new security...surely they were safe now. Right?

All in all, it was a relief when Penelope broke the silence to talk once more. At first, Al found himself frowning at the subject, but once the meaning of her words connected with his mind, he found his mood lightening a little bit. He turned his body to look at her, even if she wasn't looking at him, and another smile broke out on his face. She was right, of course--it would all stop eventually, especially if Gryffindor won the match against Ravenclaw (which they probably would, no matter if he was in the game or not). Reaching out for his wand, Al grabbed it to fiddle with, looking up to keep his eyes averted from the bright light.

"Yeah, you're right," he said slowly. The fact that Penny didn't seem mad at him for what had happened lightened his spirits even more--it seemed the walk out into the grounds had been a good idea after all. "Although you're right, I think it needs to stop. But of course...well, they've all got a right to be a bit ill at me, I suppose. Nobody likes a bloke who flies off the handle all the time, eh? And getting kicked off the team means we're one chaser short for the match..." A sigh escaped him, and his shoulders slumped a bit dejectedly. If they didn't find a suitable replacement, and Gryffindor lost, the feelings toward him would only get worse. For his sake, he hoped they found a great chaser to fill in, or at least one that wouldn't screw everything up. One that was a bit more even tempered than himself, for example.

[plongbottom]

Penny watched as a drop of water fell upon Al's forehead at her comment. She bit her lip to keep herself from laughing, though that didn't stop the smile that had spread across her face. "Point proven." she said in a mock matter-of-fact tone. Waiting patiently for the other to answer her question, she glanced over at Al as he sat down beside her. Listening to what he was telling her, she tilted her head slightly to the side as she watched a bird huddle in it's nest for warmth. "I see," said Penny with a small smile. She already had an idea as to what was on Al's mind. What with the whole thing between him and the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. It wasn't much of a surprise for Albus wanting to clear his head. With thoughts like that swarming through it, if she were in Al's shoes, she'd want to do it too. "Well...In a way. The forest really is a good place to clear one's head hm?" smiled Penny as she allowed for a few moments silence that the forest offered to enjoy. Catching Albus's eye after his joke, Penny grinned. "A puppy you say?" she tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Now I wish...It would literally rain cats and dogs."

As silence engulfed them once more, Penny couldn't help but enjoying it. After all, being alone in a forest such as this one wasn't particularly fun in her eyes, however, it seemed much more pleasant with Al beside her. She felt his jumpy behavior from beside her at the sounds that the forest often gave, feeling a frown begin to form upon her lips. Albus had all the right to be jumpy. After all, he was the one who had been kidnapped and taken to the Malfoy Manor. She didn't know what had happened within the Manor, but Penny was sure it was something terribly awful. Thinking of such terrible things happening to people she knew, not to mention was close to, caused a chill to go down her spine. Penny had heard about the new security measures that were taken due to the frightening event that took place at the beginning of the term. She felt a warm blanket of security shroud her at the very thought, though she was certain that others were still rather tense if not frightened still. Smiling slightly, Penny reached over to playfully ruffle Al's hair, trying to ease the tension she had a feeling he was currently experiencing. "So Al. Despite recent events that have occured with you, how have you been lately?" she inquired with a smile. "It's the everyday singular boring question. I know," said Penny with a soft laugh. "At least that's how dad refers to it."

Thunder rumbled and Penny felt a raindrop fall on her nose causing a chill to run down her spine at the sudden cold. Brushing it off with her finger, she made a face at the leaves above. Catching Albus's smile, Penny couldn't help but smile back in return. She was glad she was able to make him feel at least a little better with her words.

"It will," she assured him, dodging a falling raindrop or two. Listening to what Albus was saying, Penny grinned as she looked over at him. "Mm...I suppose you're right about that one. Though I'm pretty sure others will forgive the bloke. He is after all, quite the great person if I do say so myself," said Penelope, her smile widening. At his next comment, she leaned back slightly, making sure she didn't lose her balance. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll find someone to replace you. Chasers, after all, aren't that hard to come by in Gryffindor," she told him, pausing as a boom of thunder sounded off in the background. "They'll get someone good. Probably not as good as you Al," said Penny with a grin before she shrugged slightly. "But good nonetheless, with an even temper," she added in jokingly. "I mean after all, our house isn't exactly the losing type. The team would want to make sure they can beat Ravenclaw. I'm positive they'll find the next best Chaser out there. So... I'm sure there's nothing to worry about," she told him, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. "And when we win which we will since the Gryffindor team is just that awesome, the euphoria will get into our heads as usual and everyone will forget the whole scenario." At least that's usually what happened now and then. Penny smiled, well, she was sure that it would be the same as always.

[mgirl03]

For what felt like the first time in forever, Al felt his bad mood lifting, his rather constant frown or angry glower being replaced with smiles and laughs. Albus remembered a story he was told about his father's fourth year, when the whole school except for Gryffindor was disgusted with him, and Uncle Ron had been a bit ill at him too. In a way, Albus almost wished it was that way with him now. It was one thing to have the school except for your own House mad at you, but to have your own House mad at you was a draining concept. Half of his family was in Gryffindor, for Godric's sake--as was his best friend. So to have somebody who wasn't mad at him was doing wonders for his recent bad mood.

While usually being laughed at wasn't pleasant for people, Al didn't much mind--he knew he must have looked funny as the water hit him in the face, and Penelope didn't really laugh, although he could tell she wanted to. He smiled at her, but stayed silent, listening to the sounds of the forest. At his joke, he felt a grin break out on his face as she played along. "Yeah," he agreed. "Hagrid would be very happy. Although I doubt my parents want me bringing home anymore creatures. They already have to deal with us." He gave a small snort of laughter, falling silent again, eyes skimming the forest's trees.

When his fellow Gryffindor made a sudden movement, Al's first instinct was to reach for his wand, but after a pause she had her hand on his head, messing up his hair, and he relaxed slightly, ducking his head and letting out a small chuckle. Looking up, Al smiled back at Penelope, but his smile faultered at her question. Despite recent events...Well, he didn't really know how he was. His eyebrows furrowed for a moment in thought: he was healthy now, he was growing still...Without the Soren thing, he and Rory were closer than ever, he had broken up with Cissa, his family was safe...

"I'm...I'm alright," he finally said, giving a small nod to emphasis this. Despite recent events, there really wasn't anything he could complain about. His family his good, he was good--sure he was having a few girl problems, but who didn't--he was passing his classes, and he was still alive. That was more than lenty of people could say lately. Plenty of people were worse off than him, and so for a moment Al felt a hot wave of guilt wash over him, for acting like such a prat. What about Scorpius, eh? He didn't have a family anymore, he was wanted, and he was a Death Eater now. How could Al's problem of having a few people mad at him compare to a boy who lost almost everything he had? His own problems would go away over due time but Scorpius...well, he had a rough road ahead of him. And plenty of people probably had it just as bad. "Despite recent events I have no room to complain."

As the silence fell again, Al heard the largest bit of thunder yet, and his mind left the forest to wonder about a little girl who was surely (hopefully) in the castle right not--his little sister Lily. She hated storms something dreadful, and for a moment he wondered if she was doing alright, seeing as this was a rather large storm. Perhaps Lily was bundled up in the common room, or in her bed, blocking out the storm sounds? Albus practically fell off of the log as a fork of lightening flashed somewhere, illuminating the scene briefly. Hastily, he reached out at this point to grab his wand and fiddle with, still aware of the sounds of the forest, although there weren't as many, because most of the animals were surely taking cover by now. He wasn't usually one to dislike storms, but when they got rather bad...

He was shaken from his thoughts when Penny spoke up again, and he looked over to see her dodging a few raindrops, which made him chuckle again. At her subtle compliment, he grinned back at her, puffing out his chest rather obviously. As she continued on about the chasers, he couldn't help but nod, knowing that it was true that somebody must have wanted to be a chaser on the Quidditch team, or at least had the skill to be. Whether they were better than him or not was the thing that worried him most--if they were better, who's to say he would still have a spot on the team? But after running his fingers through his dark hair, he refused to think like that. His friend was right--they would win, the whole House would be estatic, and it would be as if he never punched Soren.

"We do tend to get rather excited when we win something," he agreed with another grin, dodging a raindrop himself. "And we will win, of course, you're very right. Ravenclaw may be able to beat our test scores, but they'll never top our Quidditch team, eh?"