Ravenclaw Common Room

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Of course I'm going to worry," Alex replied, the disapproval returning. "Especially when you go around inviting danger like this." He glanced away a moment before shaking his head, "and, anyway, I'm not going to just sit by anymore. If the opportunity ever comes...I'll fight back. Unlikely, of course, but...just wishful thinking."

[Caden McGinnis]

Caden arched a curious brow at his friend. "That so? What sorta opportunity you talkin' about?"

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex shrugged, "I'll know when it comes." He sighed, "if it comes."

[Caden McGinnis]

The Ravenclaw continued to watch his friend for another moment, before leaning back with a slight shrug of his shoudlers. "Alright," he said easily. "Playing your cards safe, bidin' your time, all that jazz. Smart move."

[Alexander Chevalier]

"I think so," Alex nodded. "It's the best any of us can really do at the moment."

[Caden McGinnis]

"S'pose so," Caden agreed, closing his eyes again. "Little acts o' defiance here and there don't really do much, and they sorta kick your a$$," he pointed out with a side smirk. Yep, definitely didn't help. He was still a bit sore from the events that had unfolded in the Great Hall.

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Exactly," Alex responded before shaking his head. "You just have to look at the bigger picture sometimes, Cade. Your defiance can result in effecting more people than just yourself."

[Caden McGinnis]

"Oh, c'mon, that last time, it totally had the opposite effect, admit it," Caden opened his eyes to shoot his friend a wink.

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex sighed before offering him a nod and a grateful smile once again, "yes, it definitely did. You seem to have a certain way with her."

[Caden McGinnis]

"I do, don't I?" Caden smirked at the prospect.

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Just try and be careful, please," Alex looked to his friend a little worriedly.

[Caden McGinnis]

"Careful...hmm...," Caden lifted his eyes to the ceiling, pretending to ponder this. "Dunno 'bout that, kid. Never really been my strong suit right there."

[Alexander Chevalier]

"I know..." Alex sighed, shaking his head and smirking despite himself. "Keep yourself alive though."

[Caden McGinnis]

"Ohh...I will," Caden assured him. "'Member? Just said I would. And I must not tell lies."

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Right, but it's not entirely in your control," Alex responded. "Since, you know, you can't promise me that you'll be careful."

[Caden McGinnis]

"True...true," Caden nodded his head. "But hey, I promise to try. Like I said, it'd be pretty damn sucky of me if I up and left you here on your own. How'd I ever be able to look you in the face when you got around to joining me? Bad friend award, right there."

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Mhm," Alex responded with a small smile. "I'd get there and the first thing I'd do is hand that award to you. Then we could move on and simply enjoy the perks of paradise."

[Caden McGinnis]

"And that award...would haunt me for all eternity," Caden nodded slowly, dramatically.

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex sighed, "it's just an unfortunate outcome we'd better avoid." He grew silent then as the conversation came to slight lull. He thought over his interaction Alecto in the hospital wing and looked to his friend a bit hesitantly. He really needed to talk to someone about this. He couldn't really disclose much to Ginny, but he could entirely trust Caden not to rush into any conclusions. He was always very open-minded.

"Hey, there's something I need to talk to you about."

[Caden McGinnis]

"Oh yeah?" Caden arched a brow at the more contemplative look overtaking his friend's facade. "Well, I'm all ears. Shoot."

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Okay," Alex bit his lip a little, wondering how to word this. He didn't need to tell Caden not to disclose what he was about to say to anyone else. He would infer that on his own. That was a very commendable aspect of him.

"The other day...I went to the hospital wing and came across Alecto. She sort of interrogated me at first and, once I'd revealed my views to her she insinuated that, since we're on opposite sides, we would need to fight. It went on for a little while but not very much damage was done. We started talking after that and she...opened up to me a little about her cause and everything. She listened to my opinions too and," he fell silent briefly before sighing.

"I don't know, Caden. How to really feel about it all, I mean. She's not exactly what I expected. She's...different from the rest of them. She sort of...intrigues me a little bit." He glanced to him, "I'm just wondering if it's wrong for me to be even thinking that way. After what she did to you and everyone else."

[Caden McGinnis]

"Hey," Caden gave an easy shrug at that, "everyone has a backstory. There's a different reason everyone does what they do, and what's so wrong with being able to see past the surface, that front everyone can see? If you're able to see deeper, see her point of view on it all, and maybe even sympathize with it, there ain't nothing wrong with that. Hell, more power to you. Bein' open-minded and sh!t, I always got some respect for that right there." He pushed himself up and ruffled his housemate's hair, "Silly kid."

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex smiled despite himself then. Yeah, Caden was always the right person to discuss these sorts of things with. He was the most open-minded person he knew. It made him feel better for sure, receiving this sort of affirmation. His friend could care less what the woman had done to him and wouldn't hold it against her. He so easily forgave. It felt nice to do the same. "Well," he replied, "thanks for that. It helps. You're always so carefree about things, even something like this."

[Caden McGinnis]

"Well," Caden shrugged, "the trick is to not take it personally. After all, I'm sure she wasn't doin' anything personal with that stunt, anyway. Just itching to torture someone, and I happened to be the guy who was gettin' on her nerves. Lil' sadist right there, though, man. 'Course, if I hadn't deflected her attention, and she'd taken that out on you...I'd find it way harder to be carefree 'bout it. There was a lil' something else she did I wasn't too fond of, when I was in Hogsmeade the other day, but," he waved it away, "what's the point of letting it get to me?"

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Yeah, she's..." Alex shook his head before smirking a little. "Pretty crazy." He then tilted his head curiously, the smirk falling a little. "What happened in Hogsmeade?"

[Caden McGinnis]

"Just a lil' something with that Leanna girl," Caden answered, his carefree expression unchanged.

[Alexander Chevalier]

"Come on, Caden," Alex replied then, looking to him a little more sincerely. "It doesn't just sound like a 'lil' something.'"

[Caden McGinnis]

"Hm...maybe it wasn't so much," Caden allowed. "Might as well tell you though, huh? Your insatiable curiosity just won't let you drop it until you know," he cast his friend a good-natured wink as he said this, before reclining back into his previous position on the couch.

"M'kay," he folded his hands and then set them in his lap, "well, I was just kinda hanging around the Shrieking Shack with Leanna for a bit, and then Alecto showed up, and turns out that Leanna went and skipped her muggle class or whatever. So, she told me to put the Cruciatus Curse on her. Seein' as I didn't want Alecto to end up doing it herself, considerin' how we all know how proficient she is at those torturing spells, I went ahead and did it. Figured it'd be easier on Leanna if I was the one doing it. But, man, those are some...creepy spells, kid. The way they affect you, when you're castin' it...it's pretty damn sick."

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex lowered his gaze a little at this. Alecto had forced Caden to use the Cruciatus against one of their classmates. Damn it...that crazy woman. That intriguing, crazy woman. He wasn't exactly surprised though. It was who she was. He needed to accept that and acknowledge that he still found her intriguing anyway.

He shook his head, "I can't even imagine. I don't even know if I would be able to do that. That really sucks, man." Caden was always so very strong, making those difficult decisions and such.

[Caden McGinnis]

Caden gave an easy shrug of his shoulders, releasing a quiet sigh as he shifted his gaze to stare up at the high ceiling. "Not gonna lie, man...whatever you might've found out about Alecto, however she might be piquing your curiosity, however different she may be from the others...," he shook his head, "it's screwed up that just bein' in the wrong place at the wrong time makes something like that possible. No matter who the enforcer is, whatever their views might be."