Thirty minutes later, Violet and Matt were sitting in a poorly lit booth. Alice and Harmony had attempted to convince them to go dancing with them but Violet had blamed a blister on her foot and Matt had politely bowed out.

"How's everything been? I feel like we haven't had a chance to catch up in a while." Matt sipped his drink and immediately made a disgusted face. "Why did I order this drink again?"

"You didn't. Alice ordered all of ours, remember?" Violet had immediately put her drink to the side and ordered something a bit less strong. "And I'm fine. Nothing new. What about you?"

Matt said nothing but gave her a look saying This is about you, not me.

"There really is nothing new going on. Everything's just… the same as it has been, I guess."

"So you're still not…" Matt didn't finish his sentence but he didn't have to. Violet shook her head tightly.

"No. And I think it's going to stay that way."

She ignored his sudden look of shock, instead eyeing the crowd of dancing bodies.

"Any updates on that front?" She jerked her head towards Harmony, who was chasing after Alice. Alice had at some point been lifted up by several people and was crowd surfing her way to where the DJ was. Harmony had an alarmed look while Alice herself appeared to be having the time of her life.

"Way to try and distract me," Matt sighed but allowed the topic change. "I think she's still seeing the guy she met online last week and she seemed really excited about him so I don't think I should say anything now."

She gave a hum of understanding. Matt had been making excuses like this since their 6th year, always claiming that it was never the right time. Violet could relate, not being the type of person to ever confess to liking someone; so although she thought Matt and Harmony would be cute together, she wasn't about to push him to tell her. That was more Alice's area anyway.

"You could try dancing with her," she suggested. They watched as a tall man came up to Harmony and spoke to her briefly. Harmony gave him a bright smile in return and they walked together to the bar.

"Maybe next time. She looks a little busy," Matt said dryly.

They settled into their seats and heaved simultaneous sighs as Alice made her way onto the top of a table to continue dancing.


The next day, Violet slept in more than usual, exhausted from staying up late with her friends. She was horrified upon actually seeing what time it was when she woke up. Dear Merlin, could she really not handle a night out anymore? It appeared that she had peaked at the ripe old age of 23.

With a groan, she rolled out of bed, taking her sheets with her. She had already replanted her yard from when it had been torn up last week. Perhaps she could do some sketching in the woods.

That sounded good, she decided. Like most activities in her life, she hadn't done much with her art for several months now. There were several spots in the woods that she frequently went to previously to draw, with a small stream that was about a 15 minute walk away being a favorite.

So she packed a bag with an old sketchbook, threw in some pencils that were scattered around her desk, and found her favorite cardigan with holes in the sleeves to wear. Since it was too late for breakfast, she packed herself a sandwich to take with her and make a nice afternoon out of it.

The moment she stepped outside, she remembered her encounter with the dog last night. Fudge. The smart thing to do would be to go back inside, stop feeding it, and probably call animal control to make sure the dog didn't come too near again.

But animal control had already received dozens of phone calls and hadn't done anything, she felt too bad for the dog to stop feeding it now, and the weather was so nice for once that it would be a shame to stay inside. What were the chances that she would run into it anyway?

(Looking back, she would realize that considering she had just seen the dog there last night and had been consistently feeding it for the past week or so, the chances were pretty high. But she was tired, so those points didn't exactly come to mind.)

The trees lining her backyard could be unsettling at night, but that afternoon the sun was peeking through the branches and the only animals Violet could see were chirping birds and some deer.

She made her way to her usual spot, stepping over fallen branches. The sound of running water grew louder. Violet smiled. A left at the large boulder in front of her, a few steps after the tree with the gnarled roots…

Violet stopped in the middle of stepping over an old tree stump. In front of the brook she was headed for was the dog, calmly lapping at the water.

She took a step back. The dog's ears perked up and he turned around to face her.

In the afternoon light, he looked even skinnier than she had realized. On all fours, Violet guessed that he stood around her elbows. Her measly 5'4" frame wasn't much to be afraid of but for a dog, that was large.

Violet pulled out her sandwich. Despite feeding him for the past week, his ribs were noticeably protruding. She just hoped he liked ham and swiss because that was all she had to give him.

She crept forward slowly, her eyes trained on the dog. He also looked at her with what she thought was suspicion (Violet couldn't help but wonder if normal dogs could emote this well) but sat back and allowed her to approach. She lay the sandwich a few feet in front of the dog, immediately leaping back. He crept up, sniffing it cautiously before taking a bite out of it. As he ate (much slower than she would have expected a dog to eat), Violet felt comfortable enough to sidle closer to the dog's side. Though he gave her a strong side eye, he did nothing to dissuade her.

Feeling uncharacteristically brave, she reached out towards the top of his head. The dog growled and she jumped back.

"Ok, no petting. Got it." The dog laid his head back down in approval and resumed lapping at the water. Violet walked to a tree along the bank and leaned against it to sketch the brook in front of them, all the while keeping a watchful eye to make sure the dog ate properly.

Once he finished, he looked at her warily but shuffled around for a bit before curling up at the base of a nearby tree. The wind picked up suddenly and both shuddered. She made a mental note to bring some blankets for him next time. In the meantime…

Her wand poked out of the top of her bag, reminding her of alternate solution for the time being but Violet hesitated. It had been so long since she had used magic that she wasn't even sure she could cast anything correctly if she wanted to. One look at the shivering dog huddled in on itself immediately made her feel guilty. If she had the means to help it, why shouldn't she?

Violet drew her wand, reacquainting herself with the feel of the slim willow wood in her hand. She took a deep breath to steady herself. If she was going to do this for the first time in, well, awhile, she was going to do it right. With an elegant flick of her wrist, she cast a warming spell on the dog.

The dog gave a contented rumble and with that expression of satisfaction, she left.