AN: So NaNoWriMo ends soon! That should mean I get more time to write this and my other one over on AO3 (which has been getting updates at a similar frequency to this), and I'm hoping that that means I can focus on erradicating my writer's block for this (cause right now all that focus is on my NaNo...) Enjoy the chapter guys :) x

When Arianna woke up, Ellen wasn't in her bed. She'd left a short note, so Arianna wouldn't worry:

Gone to get a head start on research,

Don't worry, I'm not experimenting.

Ellen.

Arianna shrugged. It wasn't up to her where Ellen went; if she wanted to get up early, she could. Glancing at the clock, she sighed. Breakfast was only served from 7-8, and it was 7:30… if she wanted warm toast, and not cold leftovers, she had better get up.

There was always food to be had, if a student missed dinner, they could still grab a plate… But the chefs (if they could be called that without insulting all others who had earned the title) were gone as soon as the hour was up, and that meant it was cold. Most seniors were experienced enough to use a subtle warming spell on their food, so for them it didn't matter. Juniors, Sophomores and Freshmen, however, had not learnt enough control, and would usually only manage to burn their food. Because of this, the lower-classmen always came at the advertised times, while seniors came and went as they pleased.

Arianna stood before her expanded wardrobe. At the front, it was ordinary; lines of clothing hung neatly. But thanks to Professor Potsdam, it could easily be described as the wardrobe to Narnia, for it did not end after the clothes, but instead stretched into a relatively large "storage area", where everything Arianna owned had been stowed. Ellen's wardrobe was similarly enchanted, although to a lesser degree; her possessions were fewer than her roommate's.

One problem Arianna saw with the "room" was its lack of light. A simple 'light' spell could of course fix that, but she imagined she would often find herself tripping over a box whenever she entered.

She had yet to properly explore, or organise, the room… That was a task she was hardly looking forward to, and, for now at least, she did not have time. Instead, she quickly scanned the rails for something to wear, and settled on a pair of thick, black leggings (one of her favourite pieces of clothing) and a long-ish black vest-top, which could be considered a tunic. On said top were written the words "Don't forget to be awesome", a phrase Arianna could be sure would ruffle her husband, with his firm belief in proper use of "the Queen's English"… Even by British standards, he was unbelievably English.

Another glance at the clock… It was 7:40, so she didn't rush to the dining hall, just walked leisurely, humming to herself as she went.

As she expected, the hall was practically empty. There was a small group of girls at one of the corner tables, giggling between themselves. Without school uniforms, Arianna had no idea what halls they were from, but by the looks, most of them were Butterflies.

Casting her eyes around the room, she saw one 'chef' looking extremely bored as he occasionally waved his hand over the food before him, keeping it warm. He yawned, letting his head rest on his hand.

Arianna quickly grabbed a couple of slices of toast without looking at him. She was tempted to try and talk to him, but she thought better of it.

She paused to survey the room again, when she spotted the same familiar figure she'd seen the evening before, hunched over another book, his cereal forgotten.

She placed her plate of toast on the table quietly, wondering whether she should talk to him and disturb his reading; he never liked to be disturbed. She decided this didn't particularly matter, because if she didn't disturb him he was likely to continue ignoring his food.

"Do you ever remember to eat?" she asked as she took a seat opposite her husband, who promptly looked up at her, an incredulous expression on his face.

"My, aren't you brave?" he drawled, as she took a bite of her toast. "Not many would dare talk to me when I'm reading."

"Well… The last time I followed that advice, I nearly fainted, so…" she said with a mischievous grin. He smirked.

"I recall." He said. Then he glanced at the bowl of, now soggy, cereal. "I fear I've lost my appetite, looking at that mess…" he muttered.

"What? I love it when the cereal soaks up all the milk…" she took another bite of toast.

"Childish." He muttered. She frowned.

"It enhances the flavour." She said, drawing herself up to sit straight, and imitating his voice. He raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, in my opinion…" she deflated, but he smirked again.

"I was joking." He said. "It is hardly my business how you prefer your cereal."

"Well, it kind of is…" she said. "We are married." She waved the half eaten piece of toast nonchalantly, as if it would emphasise her point.

"And how does our arrangement bear upon my opinions of your eating habits?"

She chuckled at his convoluted wording. "I dunno… It just seems like the sort of silly little detail Husbands and Wives usually know about each other." She explained with a shrug.

"I suppose I know as little about the subject as you." He conceded. "How am I to know what is normal? Our marriage is hardly that." He returned to his book, but found he had quite lost his place, and he grumbled. "You've made me lose my place now." He murmured grumpily. She just took another bite of toast and smiled.

"Sorry." She didn't really seem to mean it. "What are you reading? Another book with a stupidly long, foreign title?"

"'An exploration of the uses of red, blue and black magic in regards to the restoration of ancient structures and architecture'."

"Well, I was right about it being long… Why are you reading that?" she asked, confused.

"The headmistress has requested my aid in a restoration project she has undertaken. Since I am the expert in Blue magic, while she favours Black, and we are both quite skilled at red, she believes it would be easier between us."

"You sound so enthusiastic…" she said sarcastically. He scowled.

"It is hardly an interesting endeavour. I don't even see why she wanted the old dump…" he was more talking to himself, but Arianna pressed on with her questioning.

"What's the project, then?"

"An old church at the bottom of the valley. I don't quite see the point, since there are practically no Christian Witches or Wizards. Most choose to be Wiccan, or spiritualist. Some, like myself, choose to be atheist; I see little point in worshipping the spirits of the Otherworld, they hold no such respect for us." He explained vaguely, while attempting to find his place in the thick tome before him.

"Spiritualists don't worship spirits…" Arianna corrected him quietly. He looked at her again, with a frown. "They work with them, communicate with them, and the spirits of the Earth… They're basically White and Green Mages." She said.

"An eloquent argument… I suppose it is not something I have ever had consideration for. Are you spiritualist?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow in question. She looked away.

"Oh, no… I'm not really sure what I am yet, to be honest…"

"Hm… You seemed very defensive."

"I defend most things…" she muttered.

"I've noticed." At that she looked up again, meeting his eye. She realised his meaning, and grimaced, casting her eyes down again, guiltily. She opened her mouth to apologise, but he raised his hand to stop her. "No. I will not listen to you apologise again. You've said 'sorry' to me enough times for a lifetime." He commented dryly.

Arianna nodded mutely, and then realised she had finished her toast…

"Well, I'll leave you to read." She said quietly, picking up her plate as she stood. "See you later." And she was gone, before he could reply.

Hieronymous Grabiner looked down at his book, determined to continue reading. But he found his concentration was now nearly impossible to retrieve, and he rubbed a hand over his face exasperatedly as he closed the book in defeat.

What was happening to him?

Arianna, meanwhile, had swiftly returned to her room, where she proceeded, with a heavy sigh, to open her wardrobe. It was time to sort through her things.

I really enjoyed writing this chapter, just because of the sort of banter between them which is usually difficult to write, but somehow flowed much better this time around... :D

Don't forget to let me know what you think xxx