Voluntary Isolation {Tesla and Alicia}

Dammit, Alicia thought, digging through her robes for a tissue as she felt a small pop in the back of her nose. Third one this week,

Holding the crumpled tissue to her nose to staunch the flow of blood, she sighed and rubbed her head with her free hand. It really had not been her week. She'd been late for almost every class, been the recipient of numerous nose bleeds, and she hadn't seen any of her friends anywhere. Not that she had many.

"You'd still have Tobi if you hadn't been so bloody daft", she muttered, using her non-bloody hand to turn the page of the book in her lap. It had been an entire summer, and she hadn't heard anything from anyone, so she'd been keeping to herself, which landed her where she was now; curled up in the corner of the library with a book and nobody to talk to but herself.

"What a mess,"

It was Tesla's her first day back at Hogwarts, after 2 years spent in France in various private schools and with private tutors.
If you haven't got kicked out from that last one because of your behavior, you'll still be in Paris you idiot, she thought to herself, feeling angry. He's been gone for 2 years now, and you are still dramatizing about it like a little child.
She breathed in slowly and then breathed out. It was something she did often to calm herself down.

A girl was sitting in the library, looking all weird. After looking around, checking if anyone is around, she decided it would be safe to check if she's okay.

"Hey", she started feeling slightly unsure of what she's doing. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Alicia said, jumping a little as she realized that she wasn't alone anymore.

Offering a wan smile, she nodded. "Thanks for asking," she murmured, turning to face the other girl.

Her initial thought was 'uh oh, not a happy camper,'. The girls eyes were narrowed, and her cheeks were flushed with what Alicia could only assume was frustration or annoyance.

"Are you okay?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Glad you are", she said and then turned to walk away.
The girl's question caught her off guard. Why does she care?, she asked herself.
Probably just because I showed compassion. Stupid, stupid me, trying to blend in and make friends on my first day back.

She didn't look familiar to her but nevertheless, her face softened a little, showing her true nature a bit.

"I'll be", Tesla responded honestly, "as soon as I remember which way do I go to the great hall and get something to eat."