Micah Jeffers's Story

Four extremely large tables were situated in the Great Hall, each representing their own House. The Ferre table stood to the far left, next was the Vulpes table, followed by Cervus to the right of center, and Arietem on the far right. The Hall was full of bodies, the mixed sounds of hundreds of conversations filled the large stone room. It was the beginning of the year feast, and the students of Magus Grex School of Witchcraft and Wizardry were back for another year. At the back of the room, there stood a raised platform, where all of the faculty were seated.

To the far left sat Nolan Pillsworth, the Flying Professor, who leaned in to whisper something in Logan Applebome's ear, the Astronomy Professor, both laughing at whatever was whispered. Ivy sat to Logan's right, speaking politely to the Head of Cervus House, Simone. And to her right was Markum, head of Arietem House, who was watching Arietem's table with interest, no doubt scoping out the new students that had been sorted into his house. To the far right sat the Divination Professor, Quinn Tobar, who was dressed in robes of bright purple, her hair sticking out at all angles. Next to her was a new face at Magus Grex, Grace Ashby, who had replaced the most recent History of Magic Professor. She sat with a smile on her face, gazing out at the mass of students. Next to her was Oscar, Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, whose face was neutral, almost cold, and sat with his arms crossed, not partaking in any conversation. Graham was in deep conversation with Margaret, who as the Deputy Headmistress sat to the immediate right of the Headmaster himself.

The Headmaster rose, and stepped forward to his eloquently crafted podium, which stood at the front of the platform. Quickly, the chatter died down, and the attention of every body in the room turned his way. No one was stupid enough to interrupt Headmaster Rockwell when he spoke. He gazed out among the many faces, looking sullen as he always did. "Welcome, new students and returning students alike. The faculty and myself are very excited for this school year." The statement might have gotten a few silent chuckles out of the students, seeing as the Headmaster never seemed excited about anything.

He continued on, ignoring the few snickers that echoed around the room. "I trust you are all as ready for the school year as we are." He paused, his eyes scanning the room. "You all know what is acceptable behavior in this school, and any students found participating in unacceptable behavior will be punished accordingly. Keep in mind that our wonderful caretaker is always watching." He gestured to the front corner of the room, where a figure was hiding in the shadows. If you looked close enough, you could see that he was an extremely weathered looking man who had a frown on his face. He bowed ever so slightly towards the Headmaster.

"The faculty are planning some rather large events just for you students, so I trust you will all treat them with the respect they deserve, especially since they are going the extra mile for you." One final look around the room. "Let's all have a great year, shall we?" He stepped back from the podium, and returned to his seat in the middle of the faculty table.

The chatter rose up once again.

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It was just like Headmaster Rockwell to make his speech short and to the point. Rose sat picking at her food more than eating it, and listening to the multiple conversations that were going on around her. She had ended up sitting next to Micah, who she didn't know very well, but was nice to look at. Of course, she could hardly be bothered to watch him when Emerson was so close. She stole glances at him whenever she dared, but never for too long. He was always smiling or laughing, and it only made him look more attractive. She felt heat rising to her cheeks, and directed her stare down at her plate.

Her mind wandered, and thought on all the rumors she'd heard about Emerson. They just couldn't be true. He was so handsome and nice and funny. People were just jealous of him, so they tried to spread mean rumors about him. She just wouldn't believe what they told her. Although she would never be dull enough to actually tell someone she had a crush on him. They would probably just laugh right in her face, and call her stupid.

Rose picked at her potatoes, barely tasting them as she ate. She let a soft sigh escape her lips. She had no idea why she was feeling so down. Truly, she was excited to be back at Magus Grex once more. Her best friends were at the school, and she had Care of Magical Creatures to really look forward to. The thought brought a small smile to her face. She would see Bliss again, who made her feel like more of a person than anyone else. The girl had some crazy ability to make Rose climb out of her skin.

A loud ruckus came from the table next to hers, and she gazed past the person sitting opposite to see the Vulpes table. Of course it was Justin. She didn't know how one person had the ability to be so loud. She didn't think she could even if she tried. She glanced quickly to her left, seeing Micah. She didn't have any reason why she'd never spoken to him much. She tried to think of something to say to him, but couldn't come up with anything, so she gave up.

In all honesty, she couldn't wait until the feast was over, so she could retreat to the common room and read a good book. Out of habit, she wrapped her robes close around her, as if she could shrink within them and not be seen.

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After the Headmaster was done with his speech, which was always gloomy, Finn began to eat hungrily, as he always did. He had to keep up his strength, after all. He was seated next to his best friend, Felix. He was extremely excited to be back, not having seen any of his friends for the entire summer. There was so much to catch up on. He hadn't had too much to do over the summer, and had mostly spent time on the beach, and surfed whenever the waves were good.

Braelyn was sitting across from him a few seats down, and he gave her a smile as he made contact with her. Georgie was also close, and he smiled at her as well. He couldn't believe it was his last year at Magus Grex, and made a promise to himself that he would do his best to make it his best year yet. These people were in his house, and while he was friendly with them, they weren't exactly great friends. He needed to work on getting to know everyone better before he left for good. That didn't mean that things needed to get out of hand, however. He didn't really approve of breaking the rules, and normally refrained from doing so, no matter who asked. He got a lot of crap for it, literally from everybody, but it didn't change his ways. It was rooted too deep down into him to change.

He nudged Felix and asked, "So how was your summer, man?" He still continued eating, grabbing the variety of foods that were sitting in front of him. "I'm just really excited for the Quodpot matches. It's my last year, and I'm determined to beat Arietem this year." It wasn't that he had any real problem with the house, but they had been rivals long before Finn had attended the school. It had even seeped into his blood a little.

"And ugh, we can't forget about our all important NEWTs this year. I swear that's all we're going to hear the entire school year. I'm going to be lucky to scrape a passing grade..."

Braelyn listened respectfully while Headmaster Rockwell gave his welcome speech, although her mind was elsewhere. It was always the same, short, to-the point "behave yourselves and listen to the teachers" speech anyway. She was much more interested in catching up with the people she had been away from all summer. She had only what seemed like a very short ship ride to the island to see Bliss so far, and that wasn't nearly enough time to catch up on what all they missed in each others' lived during the summer. Braelyn sighed. This was one of those times she really wished she and her best friend were in the same house, so that they could be at the same table now to talk.

When the Headmaster was done speaking, she looked around at those in her house, and it suddenly struck her: This was the last beginning of the year feast she would be attending at Magus Grex, and the last year she would be spending with a majority of the people here. As she looked around at them, she noticed Finn smile at her from a few seats down. Her heart picked up a beat as she smiled back and gave a little wave, then looked quickly away as her cheeks grew a little warm.

Luckily, Georgie was sitting just across from her and she could talk to her for a moment and play it off as if she was excited to be talking to a friend she hadn't seen in a while. "So, how was your summer?" she asked her almost a little too cheerfully. "Did you do anything fun?"

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Micah barely listened to the speech at all, his attention momentarily fixed on a very attractive young woman who apparently was a new professor at Magus Grex. He wondered what she would be teaching and scanned the row of faculty, looking for what previous teacher was missing, coming to the conclusion that she must me the new History of Magic Professor. Hmm. Not one of Micah's best subjects, but he had a feeling that he would be able to pay a little more attention in class this year.

His attention was drawn away from the new professor when the speech ended and chatter rose up around him as people were greeting each other and talking about the summers and plans for this year. He began discussing Quodpot with some of his teammates, but his ever-shortening attention span didn't stay there for too long.

He had become aware that Rose, sitting just next to him, was staring at Emerson, again. He wondered if she even realized she did that so often. Why was that? Was she one of those people that gets weirded out by homosexuality? No, it wasn't exactly that kind of wary, uncomfortable glance. It seemed more like she was admiring him. Now, that thought made Micah uncomfortable. Surely she was aware of Emerson's orientation; it's not exactly like he's kept it a secret or anything.

He decided to draw her focus away from his friend, whatever the reason for it. "So, Rose," he said, giving her a warm smile. "It's good to see you. I hope you had a good summer. Read any good books lately? I brought a few back from my parents' shop back home, if you're interested in some extra reading material. You seem to go through it pretty quickly."

As the crowd hushed, the Headmaster started his annual opening speech in an elevated podium that looks over the whole faculty and students. Some acted bored while the first years listened with eagerness and doe-eyed looks. Personally, Bellona wouldn't care about anyone talking but she knows her manners and decided to give the Headmaster a respective attention and she was right, it doesn't usually last very long and soon hungry students attacked the food as if they haven't eaten for days. Bellona give each one of the hungry looking students a raised eyebrow, a shaking head and a judgmental look. She waited until everyone was satisfied with the pile of food on their plates. Luckily, Vance and some of her so called "friends" in Arietem were as composed as she was.

She was forking some fresh fruits on her plate when Vance gave a weary sigh and spoke, "She’ll be finishing out her education at Beauxbatons, for the umpteenth time,” Then he paused and continued, "She’s lucky, frankly. The education in Europe is much better, there’s more… tradition. I’d hoped to transfer to Durmstrang myself, but… there’s something of a legacy regarding Abernathy men and this school, and I can’t blame Father too much for keeping it alive.”

And inside her mind she couldn't help but agree. She had always dreamed of attending Hogwarts instead of Magus Rex, she would have if her parents haven't attempted to disown her when she challenged them with her decision. She couldn't quite understand why, many years have passed and they still didn't want to talk about their reasons for not wanting to move back to London.

Bellona decided to speak up for Neveah's drones have been annoying the hell out of her as well. They've been talking and asking about Neveah since she saw them again from Summer break, "Ladies, relax. Can you not properly function without Niv? Has she accidentally brought her controllers with her back in France?" She gave them a mocking smile and took a bite of her strawberry. Then all of a sudden Justin started singing and performing for the crowd, Bellona couldn't help but feel sorry for the guy when he suddenly gave her a blow of a kiss. She looked at him with disgust and turned back to the girls.

"Really girls, I'd sooner than not advice you to work on your grades rather than wallow in sorrow for Niv's decision and realization that she is better off at France than in her with you." The blonde girl who regarded herself as Neveah's "right hand" suddenly sat stiff as the others looked at her with shocked look in their faces. Only Bellona dares defy their small group of "society girls", they would let Vance or Neveah talk mockingly to them but never other people. But somehow Bellona always does. She particularly disliked Neveah's little army of whiny girls and in fact she never got along with the girl herself. Yes the Venator's and Abernathy's are particularly close but since she was in diapers, Bellona never understood the fascination of other people with Neveah. Vance is another story, she really doesn't have a problem with the guy. As long as he doesn't harm her she plans to play civil towards him. His aura is a whole lot different than that of his twin sister but she'd rather talk about with other people than her best friend, Summer

Speaking of her best friend, the short time she get to spend with her before the great feast was too short for catching up. Not that she didn't spend some time with her over the summer but because she has a lot to say to share with her regarding her family's short vacation in Rome.

"How was your summer Vance?" She felt like she needed to ask him that. It was part of what her parents taught her. "Father and Mother wanted me to send their regards for your parents. They said that it has been too long since they've invited them over for dinner. They were wondering if the three of you would be willing to have dinner at the house on my parent's anniversary. Just a small dinner." She took a sip on her goblet and suddenly the flavors of rich Italian summer filed her taste buds with tang.

And as she savored the fine taste a small thought had entered her mind, it is indeed peculiar that she hasn't seen a single shadow of Neveah's. She would often see more of the girl than Vance during breaks but this recent has been very different. She shrugged and assumed that she was indeed busy with moving to France. When suddenly almost everyone's attention was interrupted by a wild cajooling from Justin's antics. Bellona rolled her eyes and instead continued to create a conversation with the only bearable person around her, Vance.

"I believe Father and Mother would like to send their regards to your sister and grandfather as well," Bellona smiled towards Vance and spoke again. "Now if you'll excuse me. This feast has immensely made me feel bloated. I guess a little walk would do me good," The girl excused herself and stood as she smoothened her robe and smiled at everyone. A lot of other students started looking at her plate, where a few melons and a few pieces of grapes and pears and looked at her with disbelief. How could anyone get too full from eating a few bites of fruits? But of course, Bellona would rather faint than to care about their thoughts. The left overs on her plate would be an obvious sign that she'd rather walk towards Summer's table than to sit with most of them and besides Vance was getting occupied with a little rift with another student about Quadpot. They can save their drama on their own. "I'll see you later at the Common Room. I have something to give you." She softly told Vance and tapped his shoulder. She turned and proceeded.

Bellona spun around and almost crashed into Justin. Luckily, Bellona's reflexes are as quick as that of Fidus', her pet fox. "Oh goodness, what would Magus Rex allow next time? Circus performers?" With a cold and crude voice, she made herself clear enough for Justin to hear and walked away.

Her newly bought shoes clacked on the marble floor as she sashayed with grace across the Great Hall. She eyed Summer's seat as she directly approach her from behind. When she was at near her best friend she spoke up, "Save me!" She sarcastically whined as she grabbed a piece of chicken strips from the girl's plate. "Seriously, how come your food is some much better than our's?" She chewed and grabbed another. Summer would know she was just being silly, foods that were served are all and the same in every house.





Savant let his gaze wander as the students, old and new alike, started filling their plates. He was always looking forward to his days inside Magus Rex even if he misses his family. One of the reasons why is the food, the comfortable beds and the reality that he is a wizard.

His attention was first caught by Summer Turner, the girl was indeed fascinating to look at. He should remember to ask her out for a pizza one time, one could never know what the friendship might lead to. Next was Georgie, the girl had fire inside her or so Savant usually portrays her in his sketches. And as he turned his head around his eyes landed on Teiver and most especially on her eyes, a nice hot cup of cocoa with her would probably be nice as well. He should remember that.

He was still scanning the Great Hall for a few familiar faces when Justin started singing and making tricks with his wand. Savant snickered and quickly glanced at the Faculty table and wondered what they would make Justin do this time.

He was still laughing from watching Justin's little show when saw the girl from Arietem stand up and walk across the Great Hall and towards their table as she sneeked behind Summer and stole some of her food. Sav never understood how a girl like Summer had managed to have a strong bond with a girl like Bellona. If his friend's name felt all crisp and warm, Bellona would soon freeze everything in her path in an instant. Maybe they were able to balance each other's personality. Sav shrugged and dug on his own plate. He was chewing on his pasta when he turned to two of his good friends in the same house, Emerson and Micah, and asked, "do you guys think of Bellona?" He asked curiously. "I mean how does a girl like Summer manages to put up with her? I'm not saying she's evil but Summer and Ice Queen?" He rarely asks about other people's business but the idea kind of bugged him.

And as soon as he was about to ask his friends a few more questions he heard a few other students arguing and betting about the year's Quadpot Tournament. "Oh shoot, I just remembered do any of you guys want to try out for the Quadpot team this year?". He looked at his friends with high hopes that at least one of them would join him.

Bliss Turner

Magus Grex School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The castle's beauty was breathtaking. As she took her first step on campus, the surroundings just wrapped her up in a blanket of beauty that made her feel more at home every time she made the journey each year. Something was different this year because this would be the last time she'd ever get the feeling of complete happiness from the school she had called home for so many years. She was just about to let the realization of it ending when she felt an arm around her waist. Summer.

"Bliss, it isn't the end. It's just getting close to the next chapter." Bliss took in Summer and all of her love as she could see her sister knew exactly what she was feeling. Before she knew it, she had her arms wrapped around her little sister. She knew her sister was right, but it didn't mean she wasn't still sad about it all. She was glad that she had her moment out here where nobody would notice instead of inside where plenty of students would be able to see her breakdown. She hadn't spoken a word because she felt like as soon as sound would escape her lips, so would the tears that she was holding back. "Come on, B." Her sister whispered as the arm that was placed on her waist gave a slight push forward.

It seemed as though nothing had changed once inside. She smiled at a few students who spoke her name, always flashing that smile of her's. She gave a quick kiss of the cheek to her sister before heading towards their own table's. Of course as soon as Bliss spotted Justin, she sat down beside him. She had no time to even say 'hi' as Headmaster Rockwell began his first speech of many that would give this school year the first sign of beginning. As soon as she saw the Headmaster step from the podeum she watched as Justin managed to steal the spotlight from all other houses as he very successfully performed a piece from Beauty and the Beast. "You are never a disappointment." She said with the quick hug she received from him.

With students getting up from their tables to mingle with other houses, Bliss took this time to look around to find Felix returning her gaze already. As he quickly changed his facial expression, she let a her smile come across her face before putting one finger up towards him as a symbol that she'd be over there in just a second. She stood quickly making her way over to Braelyn, giving the girl a hug from behind. "We have a lot to talk about." She whispered into her ear before continuing, "We will have to talk later though, okay?" She said as she tugged at the girl's arm. "Come on. Let's go talk with Felix and Finn."

Bliss knew that Braelyn would (hopefully) follow her over to the boys that seemed caught up in the conversation of Quodpot. "Really boys.. Always about sports." She spoke up before wrapping her arms around Felix from behind, squeezing as she felt her hands connect on the other side of him. "You do realize there are more important things to discuss.. Like how you have both underestimated the ability of Cervus to beat both Ferre and Atrietem." She couldn't keep a straight face at the unlikelihood of Cervus even winning one match. She let her arms unravel from Felix before they returned around the body of Finn. "I've missed you two so much." She said this directed towards Finn and Braelyn. "I haven't had time to miss you yet." She laughed with a soft kick to Felix's shin."



Headmaster Rockwell never seemed to phase Summer because she somehow forced herself to see the good in everybody, so now as a few chuckles escaped throughout the Great Hall, she let herself smile as Rockwell didn't even hesitate with the words that continued to spill from his lips. She felt herself glancing throughout the hall to find a few faces of people she knew. She caught sight of her sister with Justin right next to her and rolled her eyes before hearing the Headmaster's speech end. It only took a few seconds for the whole student body to explode into conversation again.

She began grabbing various items from the plates of food from the table. She absolutely loved the food at Magus Grex, and she did not hide this as she at least grabbed a taste of every single tray of food. She nibbled here and there until she looked across to see Justin showing off again. This was like her enemy she didn't have. She just couldn't force herself to like him like Bliss did, but she couldn't say that out loud. Letting her hair fall in front of her face, she quickly caught it before it could touch the food on her plate. "How was everybody's summer?" She asked aloud getting quiet a few response before she saw the sight of a hand grab something from her plate.

She was about to grab the hand until she heard the voice that went with it. Hearing Bellona made Summer take a deep breath full of relief as she quickly spun around, "I've missed you!" She ignored the question Bellona asked her as she found her arms practically chocking Bellona's neck. "Me save you? Seriously.. Look what I'm having to deal with." She said as she pointed over to Bliss whose arms were around Felix. Bellona was the only person that knew that Summer had been crushing on Felix for years. "The only thing keeping me from killing her is the fact that I no longer care.. I think." She said as she felt her glance pull towards Savant. "He is going to keep me sane." She said as she looked at the people he seemed to be talking to.

Emerson and Micah, who Summer absolutely adored. "Let's go interrupt the manly talk for two seconds, please. I haven't said hi to Micah yet. You aren't my only friend, I think." She said with a laugh before dragging the girl further down the table to see the three boys. "Hello lovely gentlemen." She smiled towards Savant letting her eyes stay there a little too longer before facing the other two. "Micah! I've missed you." She gave him a quick kiss on the top of his head before giving them a quick wave of goodbye. "I'd love to stay and chat, but we have to catch up on a little girl talk.. Unless you three are dying to know the lately fashion in the Wizarding World?" She didn't bother hearing their answer as she turned all of her attention to Bellona, curious where she might lead them off to.

Braelyn smiled as Bliss came over to give her a hug. She nodded when asked to go with her to Felix and Finn. "If you'll excuse me," she said to Georgie. "We'll catch up later in the common room, okay?" She stood and followed Bliss to where the two boys were seated at her table and was a little taken aback when Bliss wrapped her arms around Felix from behind. She arched an eyebrow and placed a hand on her hip, giving Bliss a knowing look. "I missed you too," she said. "You haven't had time to miss Felix yet? What's that about?"

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Micah was about to answer Savant when the girls in question came over to where they were sitting. He stood to give Summer a quick hug, and nodded briefly in greeting to Bellona. "Ah, no girl talk for me, thanks," he said to Summer with a laugh. "We'll talk later." He smiled at her as the two walked off, then turned his attention back to Savant's question. "I can't say I know too much about Bellona," he said. "But you know Summer. She's so softhearted, and sees the good in everyone. It doesn't surprise me too much that she'd somehow find a way to see it in Bellona too." He grinned at Savant's question about Quodpot. "Well of course we'll be playing this year," he said. "At least I will be, I'm assuming you still plan on it, too?" He directed the question at Emerson.

Emerson's smile was broad and unwavering, he looked around the Great Hall, elated to be back for another year at Magus Grex. He sat himself at the Cervus table across from Micah and next to Savant, his closest housemates. The feast was glorious and he was starving but waited respectfully through the address , knowing it would be a short one. As always, the close was short and unceremonious, Emerson tore into the food grabbing as much as he could from every plate near by.

This was his favorite time of year and not just because of the feast but because he got to see all his friends together after months apart, well mostly. He spent almost the whole Summer with Micah at a Quodpot field outside of the city or lazing about with whomever he could, even some old Muggle friends. The break was a ton of fun but he was happy to be back and had decided that this was going to be the best year yet. O.W.L.s were done with and N.E.W.T.s were still far away, so this was the last year he could goof off and enjoy being an adult, which would happen in just a few months but without really having to worry about the real world. Also, Emerson just knew the Quodpot team would be amazing this year, they had some really strong seventh years that could definitely carry the team to victory, despite what the other houses thought.

With musings of the championship and the intensity of his eating he nearly missed the clamor of plates and silverware going on behind him. He didn't even have to turn around to know who it was, but he did anyway and laughed heartily at Justin's intricate display. His friend's terrible singing and charmed utensils kept his attention and when their eyes met he gave a big smile and a wave then turned around as Professor Hutson put an end to the show.

The room moved around him, people got up to say hello to friends, Micah struck up some conversation with Rosina but Emerson did not waste the occasion to eat almost everything in sight, but he would be interrupted over and over again. He tore at a piece of chicken, dipped it in something and was happily chewing eyeing when Savant spoke, something about bologna and deciding to acknowledge his friend followed Sav's gaze and found Bellona and Summer. He drank from his goblet, then swallowed but the girls in question had already arrived at the table. He was no longer confused by the question and figured out pretty quickly why Sav cared who Summer talked to the way they gazed at each other. Their visit was brief and Emerson had begun eating again when Micah spoke first. With his mouth a but full, he agreed, “ Yeah, and maybe it's some kind of opposites attract deal, ya know, yin and yang.” He made fluid motions with his hands to illustrate the deities of balance. He couldn't stand all this unspoken love stuff, the stolen glances, the uncomfortable conversations, all the soft advancements that were never acted upon. He was glad for his friend but plucking petals off of daisies was never much fun.

The next question, however; got his full attention, he even swallowed before speaking, “Oh, I'll be on the team! You don't have to worry about me being there.” He looked at Savant now, ecstatically “ Are you trying out? Sav, you've got to try out, you'd be great!” he shouted “ And just think of how the girls'll swoon when they see you on the pitch, half the stadium will be out cold!” He threw his hand to his forehead, gave a high pitch sigh then slumped backwards almost all the way to the marble. He chuckled, and from his upside-down vantage he saw Justin walking towards the table, he grinned then struggled to get up. He looked again at Justin, right-side-up he could see the look on his face, a look that Emerson knew all to well. Justin may have been much smarter and could easily fool anyone with his expressions, but this one was a give away. There was no subtle gazing or daisy plucking, this was the face of determination, determination to throw one wild pants party that Emerson didn't want an invitation to. When would Justin understand that he just wanted to be friends, no benefits. If he weren't so terrified of the complexity of romantic involvement he'd prefer one to be more intimate than what Justin always seemed to propose.

Justin loped on up to the Cervus table, still very much grinning that grin of his. He might have had a bit of a blind-spot, so far as Emerson was concerned, when it came to his powers of mental dissection, but he could read the slight change in the other boy’s eye easily enough. He’d seen it a hundred times before, probably more. It was the way he reacted to inevitably being hit on, this slight contraction of his very being that was easy to miss.

”Hot guy,”, he greeted Micah with an upnod. He repeated the upnod in Savant’s direction. ”Other hot guy.” His hand delved into his messenger bag, and he extracted a bouquet, which he offered to Emerson.”M&M.”* No, not flowers; that was a bit too conventional for his tastes. Bunched up in his hand were somewhere in the vicinity of two-dozen popsicle sticks, sans popsicle. Half of the cheap would was discolored, faint red or purple or orange, but there were little words printed on them. During the summer month, Justin’s younger siblings went through frozen treats like Kleenex, and he’d managed to scavenge together and clean up some of the better cast-offs. See, each stick had a joke on it, the punch-line to which was only revealed once the popsicle had been removed. He figured Em would get a kick out of them (they were just the sort of terrible pun-driven bits of humor he delighted in), and this sentimental, sweet gesture was only the first step in his as-of-yet-undetermined-number-of-phases plan to win the Quodpot jockey’s big ole’ heart.

He was watching his friend’s reaction carefully as he casually folded his scrawny arms across his chest and regarded the three of them in a more general sense. ”How was everyone’s summer? Mine was awful, but then, they always are. Did you hear that Nevaeh Abernathy went to Beauxbatons?” His grin got even wider and goofier, a touch scandalous. Knowing just about everyone and many of their secrets meant that Justin was usually pretty on top of the school’s gossip grapevine, and he had just paid a visit to the Arietem table, where it was all anyone could seem to talk about. ”Oh, I almost forgot.”

He reached into his bag of tricks again, withdrawing three small vials of brown liquid. With somewhat frightening dexterity, he tossed them in quick succession, one to Micah, one to Savant, and then one to Emerson. ”New merchandise. Put three drops of that in anything besides milk or orange soda, and it’ll look and taste just like butterbeer, but… decidedly more potent." He wasn’t quite sure why orange soda was exempt, but, that was magic. ”Try it out, share it around, you know the drill.” Then he remembered something. ”Only three drops. Not four, unless you want some gnarly mutton chops. They only last a couple days, but, not everyone can pull them off.” He peered at Micah, canting his head a bit. ”You probably could, actually.”

He’d lost his train of thought, imagining Micah with gnarly mutton chops. He tapped one of his long index fingers on his chin. ”Where was I? Oh, yeah. Tentative name is ‘Betterbeer’.” He shrugged. ”But yeah, I just wanted to say hi and drop off presents. I’ll let you guys get back to your testosterone-fest.” This was crucial to his plan. Do something nice, something sweet, then disappear so that Emerson could reflect on how nice and sweet it was before Justin had the chance to slip up and say something perverted.

*Note: it’s worthwhile to mention that Justin’s favorite nickname for Emerson (a play on the common truncation “Em”) is best not spelled out phonetically in order to avoid confusion. Justin associates Emerson with the brightly colored candy, tough on the outside but sweet on the inside produced by Mars, Inc., not the American recording artist Marshall Mathers.

Rosina Garenne

Rose's cheeks flushed slightly as she heard Micah address her. That was definitely out of the ordinary. In the past five years, they hadn't really spoken to each other. Of course, it was his last year at Magus Grex. Maybe he was just trying to leave on a positive note, getting to know all of his housemates as best as he could. Whatever his reason, she had to respond in some way. Otherwise he would think she was positively dull... or deaf even. She cleared her throat, instinctively reaching up to run a hand through her hair. Although she forgot she had worn it in a ponytail. So her hand raked through and probably messed up her hair, making it look worse. Embarrassed, her hand shot down to her lap.

"Umm... y-yeah, I went through a lot of books this summer." She brought her eyes up to meet his, smiling lightly. "I would love to see what boo-" But she was interrupted by the two girls who had appeared by Micah's side. He stood to give Summer a hug, while Bellona just kind of stood to the side. Rose's eyes found her plate once more, staying silent as they exchanged a few words. She really did like Summer. She was just so sweet, and when the two of them were alone, they always had excellent conversations. Of course, Rose spent much more time with Bliss. She wasn't sure if that bothered Summer or not, she'd never really thought to ask. Still, she had no idea how Summer had become best friends with Bellona. The girl was just plain mean. To everyone! They were polar opposites, but Summer must see something in the Arietem that Rose herself did not see.

The girls took off, and Micah turned his attention to Savant, as if he had already completely forgotten about her. She let out a soft sigh, pretending to eat her food, but not really taking a bite. She knew the three boys were pretty much obsessed with Quodpot, so she listened to their conversation. Particularly when Emerson seemed to shout, and swoon backwards from the table. A smile spread across her face, but she quickly made it disappear. She didn't want them to know she had been listening in on their conversation.

Micah didn't seem to be returning his attention to her any time soon. So she glanced around the large hall, seeing everyone talking with friends. Suddenly, she felt so very alone. She wanted to run up to her room and just curl up under her covers with a good book. Life was so much better there. She saw Teiver slip out of the hall, and realized that she wouldn't be coming over to save Rose from her loneliness. And she didn't even see Bliss anywhere, so that wasn't going to happen either. She had the urge to cry, but wouldn't let herself do so in the middle of the feast.

As she thought about it, she guessed she couldn't really blame Micah. She wasn't that interesting anyway, and he had so much in common with the two other guys. And just then, Justin approached their table, standing across the way from her. He said some cheesy stuff to Emerson, and gave the boys each a little vial. She had no idea what he was up to, and didn't really care to know. She knew that Justin came from a Muggle family, just as she did. Did they also both have crushes on Emerson? Apparently so. She'd known they were good friends, but this was news to her. Perhaps she didn't know as much about others as she thought.

She felt the urge to run, but made herself stay put. She wouldn't let everyone else see her running from the hall alone, on the brim of tears. It was a new year, and she could create a new image, right? ....Maybe?

---

Finn Pollack

Braelyn gave a little wave back, then immersed in conversation with Georgie. He listened to Felix's response, smiling at his best friend's word. He'd been practicing his new move (it still needed an awesome name) all summer, and almost had it perfected. Felix was right, if he could get it down, the other houses didn't have a chance. Of course, once he did it once, everyone else would be trying to copy it. He'd have to cross that bridge when it came, though. He found it extremely interesting that Felix had spent his entire summer with Bliss. And the way that he stared at her after he spoke about her made Finn smirk. It surely seemed that something had bloomed between two of his best friends.

And speak of the devil, Bliss appeared at their table shortly after. She wrapped her arms around Felix, before doing the same to him. He graciously received the hug, squeezing her back with a chuckle. "It does seem like it has been forever, hasn't it?" he said, turning to face her. As his friends were chatting to each other, movement at the far end of the hall caught his eye. It was none other than Teiver, and she was slipping out of the large oak doors. He remembered taking a real notice of her last year, since she always seemed to be sneaking off when she wasn't supposed to. He'd even tried to follow her a couple of times, but she'd eluded him before he could catch her. He wasn't really breaking any rules leaving the feast. The speech had been made, and students were allowed to leave at any time. Most just stayed around for courtesy, until the faculty were done, and the first years were rounded up.

He narrowed his eyes, and stood up from the table. "Guys, I'll see you later. I need to take care of something." He clapped Felix on the back, and placed a hand on both Bliss' and Braelyn's shoulder for a moment, before he took off down to the oaken door. He slipped through as well, hearing the soft sound of footsteps, and he caught a glimpse of her disappearing around a corner to the left. He moved forward, approaching the corner, and peeking around it. Teiver was with her cat, which always appeared next to the girl when she wasn't in class. They were standing in front of a normal stone wall, and for a moment Finn was confused. He continued to watch though, and was filled with surprise when the girl brought out her wand and revealed a secret passageway, and a door stood in the place of what had been a wall moments ago.

Teiver was about to walk through, and he was afraid the passageway would disappear after she went through it. He didn't want to lose her once more. "Hey!" he called out, stepping from behind the wall and in to her line of vision. That was probably stupid, but he hadn't had any better ideas on such short notice. He looked around awkwardly, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Uh, what exactly are you doing?" he asked, thinking that was probably a stupid question as well. Too late now. At least he might find out exactly what she was up to.

Before even Bellona could refuse her best friend, Summer had dragged her all the way towards the table where the three boys were eating and talking. She remained quiet and just stared as Summer said her hi's and hello's but what caught her attention is the way her best friend locked stares with the quiet boy they called Savant. A little curious yet mischievous smile crept across her face. And before she knew it, Summer was dragging her away yet again.

The gardens are most likely full with students trying to catch up with summer stories with their friends who wanted a more peaceful place to talk than the Great Hall. Neither of them can go to each others House Common Room. "Where do you suppose can we-" Bellona was about to ask her friend when she paused and came up with an idea. She shut her mouth and held Summer's hand this time and lead the way. She went straight for the grand stairs but if some of the students would usually take the stairs going up she lead Summer towards the steps that went to the lower grounds, turned left on the first hall and then another left on a lower area. She exited an archway and they were welcomed by the cold wind and darkness only lit by a few torches rounding the archery field. This was her usual haven, most people would rush towards the Quadpot arena, either playing, practicing or girls drooling over the players while she targets the bulls eye with a sharp arrow.

She approached the stone bench supported by two small looking gargoyles that was probably made to scare most people but not Bellona. They were like her personal stone soldiers who kept her company. Most students would joke that she is as cold and expressionless as the stone figures but she knows she scares a lot of them as well. And that was Bellona's intention, she was never the social one it was always Summer who would talk to anyone and instantly become friends with them.

Privacy was a big thing for her, especially now. She was about to tell something to Summer but she guessed it can wait, but somehow she could feel the letter deep in her uniform pocket as if it was burning a hole.

As soon as her bum got comfortable on the cold slab, she let Summer take a seat and blurted, "I thought you liked Felix?!" She gave her a curious look and continued, "So why were giving Savant googly eyes earlier?" Summer unintentionally revealed her crush on Felix before she left for Rome.



Just as Savant was asking his friends about the two girls, the subjects of their conversation approached their seats. He grew silent and looked at Bellona then at Summer. But he was soon in an exchange of gaze look with the latter. He smiled and gave her a small nod, acknowledging her presence. Summer was the first one to break the stare and gave his friend a kiss on the head and was gone as fast as she came.

He knew he had to move fast and build up on that courage to ask her out- soon. Just then Micah spoke and interrupted his thoughts, "I can't say I know too much about Bellona," he said. "But you know Summer. She's so softhearted, and sees the good in everyone. It doesn't surprise me too much that she'd somehow find a way to see it in Bellona too."

Soft hearted, Savant thought.

Just then Micah directed his words towards Emerson."Well of course we'll be playing this year. At least I will be, I'm assuming you still plan on it, too?"

To which Emerson replied to, “Oh, I'll be on the team! You don't have to worry about me being there.” Savant was glad his friends were on the same rock as he is. Emerson then looked at Savant now, ecstatically “Are you trying out? Sav, you've got to try out, you'd be great!” he shouted “ And just think of how the girls'll swoon when they see you on the pitch, half the stadium will be out cold!”

Sav chuckled and shook his head, but it was true. Somehow some girls (or probably just one dedicated girl) had the habit of leaving Chocolate Frogs on his locker or desk often times. Some even have a poem or letter attached to it. But he didn't dare eat of any it, not that he was a snob or asshole he just didn't want to risk getting affected by probable love potions. He knew the effects are undesirable and silly.

"Yeah, I gave the thing a little thought over the summer as I was packing some grocery items," He then spooned some mashed potatoes and stuffed it inside his mouth and spoke with full mouth. "Any idea when the try outs will be and at what time? You guys have to give me tips, i don't think I know too much," He sipped his juice when Justin approached their table.

He each gave a supposedly praise on Micah and him but regarded Emerson with his own personal nickname. He almost choked on his drink when Justin blurted his pet name towards Emerson. He liked the guy for his humor even if sometimes it can be too much.

”How was everyone’s summer? Mine was awful, but then, they always are. Did you hear that Nevaeh Abernathy went to Beauxbatons?” Justin asked as he handed them a bunch of popsicle looking things.

"Muggle stuff," He mumbled as he continued to eat still thinking if he should care about Neveah's transferring. Maybe he should just be glad that the school had gotten rid of one Abernathy and now he just have to deal with just one. Somehow he wished that both of them had moved to another school and Magus Rex would be so much better.

”Oh, I almost forgot.” Justin then revealed something else. He explained his Betterbeer as Savant continued to eat and soon bid them his own personal of goodbye.

He returned his attention back to his friends as his stomach feasted on food.

Emerson Caldwell


With a low sigh he redirected his attention to Savant and said, “ I think try outs are in a week or so, maybe two, but yeah, until whenever that is we can go down to the pitch and toss it around, maybe go over some of the techniques, and see if we can get you at all used to the whole explosion in your arms thing.” Just as he finished, Justin had reached the table. He turned around and smirked at the way he addressed them, even at the goofy term of endearment he was given.

The little wooden sticks seemed like an unusual gift and a decidedly sober one, that is until he inspected more closely. He remembered these from Muggle school and lit up immediately. His teeth and head once ached from devouring the frozen treat to uncover the punchline at the end of the stick. He shuffled through them, with his grin spanning from ear to ear. He tried not to read them, not wanting to cause a scene but he also wanted to save as many for later as possible. He didn't want to say that this was the greatest gift he'd ever received but it was very thoughtful. He gave Justin an enthusiastic thanks and tried not to let his face give away just how excited he was.

Emerson didn't care much for gossip, this portion of the table as a whole probably didn't care at all that someone changed schools and all the social implications, but he responded anyway.

“That's interesting, I never really knew her though, she was kind of shady anyway,” he said so passively so that the comment didn't go wasted.

What Justin did next was expected, always peddling his ingenious concoctions but just like Savant he was wary to try out a gift from an admirer, even though a dazed and cuddly infatuation probably wasn't
what Justin was interested in. He chuckled at the thought of half the school sporting some hardy chops and more still at Micah's already unchecked facial hair.

Just like that Justin was gone and Emerson bid his goodbye, he'd really enjoyed the gifts but he couldn't help wondering why he ran off so quickly. He hardly said anything and certainly avoided saying anything perverse or suggestive. He had no time to be suspicious as too much food rested uneaten on his plate.

Micah Jeffers

Micah laughed at Emerson's pretty accurate imitation of girls swooning over Savant. "You really should definitely try out," he told Savant. "I'll help you out however I can."

Just then, Justin came over, handing a popsicle stick bouquet to Emerson. Micah smiled and shook his head. You had to give him credit for his determination. He gave little thought to the comment about Nevaeh Abernathy, as he didn't really even personally know the who who had practically been the queen of the Arietem house. He gladly accepted the vial Justin tossed his way, interested in how this potion worked. Betterbeer, he had called it. And definitely three just three drops, not four, even if he could pull off the "gnarly mutton chops" look. He attempted committing it to memory. Three drops, not four... Three, not four... Three, not--

His attention broke off there, even before Justin had left them, and he began looking around at his other housemates catching up with each other. Then he notice Rose sitting ever so quietly beside him still and wanted to hit himself. She probably thought he was completely blowing her off after having started a conversation with her just to turn right around and get into talk of Quodpot and the Summer/Bellona friendship and Betterbeer with the guys.

"I'm sorry about that, Rose," Micah said to her, sheepishly. "I don't have the best attention span in the world." His AD/HD was a long-time source of embarrassment to him since his diagnosis in elementary school, and he had found it easier to play it off like he just didn't care to focus on things rather than he couldn't. In this case, however, he definitely didn't want Rose to think he simply didn't care to pay attention to her. "Where were we?" he asked her. "Books, right?"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Braelyn Tanner

Braelyn watched the playful exchange between Bliss and Felix, completely not buying the whole "friends" nonsense that Bliss had mentioned, but satisfied for now knowing that they would be talking about it in more detail later. She laughed at Felix's comment about Finn leaving him alone with two beautiful ladies, but was disappointed that he had up and left so quickly. Brae couldn't help but wonder what had caught his attention and made him leave like that.

"Alright, courtyard it is," she said to Bliss. "See you later, Felix. Have fun with.. whatever that is," she nodded towards Vance heading their way. She grabbed Bliss's hand and headed for the door, waving over at Georgie. "We'll see you out there, okay?" she called to her.

As soon as they reached the courtyard, where some people had already gathered in small groups here and there, Braelyn led Bliss to a bench in a relatively quiet spot. "Arlight," she said, smiling and placing a hand on her hip. "Talk."

Rosina Garenne

Justin took his leave, faster than she would have thought. He was normally stuck to Emerson's side like glue. Either way, she relaxed a little when he was gone. She didn't know what it was about him, but he definitely set her on edge. Although the bit about Neveah was interesting. She personally thought that Magus Grex was better off without the Arietem girl. It didn't really affect her though, so she didn't dwell on the thought for too long. The food on her plate looked absolutely revolting to her now, and she shoved the plate a few inches away from her.

Her stomach felt like someone had twisted it into a million knots. She spared a quick glance next to her, and saw that Micah just seemed to be looking around the hall, lost in his own mind. It was like she didn't even exist to him anymore. It made her think of all the times in the past where people hadn't seemed to notice her. I mean, it was like she had an invisibility cloak on or something. All the times she'd sat next to Emerson in class, and he spent the entire class talking to his friends, not even looking her way. Thinking about it made her slightly angry, and she had the sudden urge to throw her fork at someone. But she dropped it on the table instead.

Her eyes found the large oak doors, and she saw Bliss slip out of them with Braelyn. What she really should do was go out and be with Bliss. Being around her always made Rose feel like so much more than she actually was. And that's how she wanted to feel right now, like all these people were so wrong to ignore her. She was worth something. She was just about to get up from the table when Micah turned his attention back to her.

He apologized, and her heart melted a bit. What was she thinking, getting all mad? He didn't ignore her on purpose. She started to feel silly about getting so upset. She gave him a soft smile, shrugging her shoulders. "It's okay, Micah," she said quietly. She placed her hands in her lap, crossing her fingers together. She had to keep him interested now, and she clenched her fingers together, nervous about that thought.

She nodded at his question, looking down at her hands for a second. But she made herself bring her eyes up to meet his, and keep his attention on her. "I was just saying that I would love to see what books you brought with you," she said, glad she actually got to finish the sentence this time. The knots on her stomach seemed to loosen, and she felt her entire body relax slightly. She took a deep breath in, and let it out slowly. "Maybe you can show me, sometime?" she blurted out quickly. Immediately, she regretted saying it. She never did things like that... what had just come over her? Her cheeks grew really red, and she took her eyes off of him.

---

Finn Pollack

He was sprinting as fast as he could, yet suddenly something white appeared next to him and darted past, coming to a stop before him. The animal reared on its hind legs, and he skidded to a halt in front of it, more out of shock than anything. "Crap," he muttered, seeing her come up next to him. The cat came after her, staring up at him in a creepy way. He took his eyes off the cat, meeting Teiver's instead. So he was supposedly heading towards an unused girls bathroom. If she was telling the truth, that is.

And of course he didn't buy any of her bologna on heading to the Astronomy tower to get a head start. If she wanted to do that, she could have taken the normal staircases to get there, not taking a way that would get her in trouble. He folded his arms, leaning against the wall, determined not to go anywhere. He let her get all her quips in, not responding to any of them. She could say all she wanted, he wasn't going to just walk away now. He did have to chuckle at the one about the girls dying without him. "Somehow, I think they'll live without me for one night."

The part about Herve did give him pause, though. As honorable as his intentions were, if he was found in an area he wasn't supposed to be in, he would be in just as much trouble as Teiver was. Thankfully for him, no one was going to find them anytime soon. He just had to find a way to stick with her, and find out what she was doing in this hidden tower. Not only did he have the feeling that he wanted to do the right thing, but he was actually extremely curious what was going on. He wasn't going to let her deter him from this, no matter what she said.

Unless they were about to get caught. Then he'd run like a bat out of hell.

He decided to go along with her lie, just to give him an excuse to stick around her. Obviously him running around like a mouse in a maze wasn't going to get him anywhere. He certainly didn't want to actually run into a girl's bathroom, deserted or not. He didn't want to run off of a ledge either, although he didn't know if she was being truthful about that or not. "Very well," he said to her, pushing himself off the wall to stand up straight. "If you're headed for the Astronomy tower, I'll go with you. I could use a head start as well." He walked a few paces away from her, and away from the girl's bathroom. He gestured ahead of him. "Care to lead the way, since you're the expert?"

His left hand reached into his pocket, grasping the end of his wand. He needed to be careful, knowing she was a frequent rule breaker. He didn't put it past her to hex him or curse him, since she'd already cast a patronus. He had to be ready for anything she was ready to pull.

The opening speech was the same as always, but Myra listened intently, giving as much of her full attention as possible. She'd sat by the head of the table, as usual, so as to be near the teachers, should one of them need to talk to her. She tutored on occasion, so they needed her often. Once Headmaster Rockwell had finished his memorized speech, she turned and piled her plate high. Mentally thanking her mother for a fast metabolism, she pulled a book out of her bag and opened it, beginning to read where she'd left off as she maneuvered forkfulls of food to her mouth. She had become dimly aware of Beauty and the Beast being sung along her table when suddenly her fork flew out of her hand to dance along with the rest. Turning, she watched as Justin 'conducted' his impromptu musical. While she loved the movie, Belle had always reminded her of herself, she loved food more. Frowning, she was struck with an intense desire to talk Justin into harnessing his talents, and not for the first time. Not very many students could pull off such a sport (however un-elaborate the charms-work was in Myra's eyes). Taking out her wand, she waited for her fork to pass her again, and when it was in the perfect range muttered "Finite Incantatem," the fork falling promptly into her open and waiting hand. She began eating and reading again, letting the professors take care of Justin's rouse.

She listened in momentarily to some of Vulpes' house Quodpotists talking about the up-coming try-outs and winning the house cup. A short burst of excitement hit her in the stomach, practically causing her to choke on the water she'd just gulped down. She thought of her broom and the practice quod up in her room. She bit her bottom lip, considering whether she'd be brave enough to try out this year, then let the thought go as a blush ran up her cheeks at the thought of being scrutinized. What if she wasn't as good as she thought she was?

Losing herself in the book again, the chatter of all the separate tables became white noise. She lost focus of time and only ever glanced up to add more food to her plate. Vaguely she was aware of Professor Hutson briefly chatting with her. Something about someone needing a tutor for Potions, which Myra agreed to help with, of course. Politely disengaging herself from the conversation, she returned to her book. She glanced up every now and then, when movement caught her eye.

She'd noticed as Summer and Bellona had found each other and had a brief twinge of guilt hit her. She should put the book away and go talk to them too, but then they wandered to talk to Savant, Emerson, and Micah momentarily. There went Summer's very light blush, and Savant's posture changed ever so slightly just now. Myra couldn't help but smile softly at the interaction, and Bellona's minute boredom. She watched as they dismissed themselves and wandered from the great hall. They'd most likely seen her with a book and known she'd catch up with them later, besides, talking to cute, funny guys was not Myra's strong suit. She made a mental note to ask Kaplan to find the girls for her later.

She'd also noticed Bliss' laughter, trickling down the table like a warm Autumn shower. How was she just so perfect? It seemed that at least everyone had stopped by Vulpes' table just to say hi to her, or smile at her. Myra considered that for a moment and shot a short glare at her book. She knew that it was sort of her own fault that she didn't have too many people beating down the door to get to know her, and that it was probably that she always had her nose in a book, but what could she do? You cherished what you cherished, and some people were better at some things than others. I bet if I was on the Quodpot team people'd want to talk to me... The blush returned, so Myra picked up her book again.

After reading a couple more paragraphs, Myra was startled when her consciousness pricked as Vance passed by. He'd been talking to Arietem's house head, and was now making his way towards Professor Hughes. Their conversation seemed less than amicable to say the least, but they both were professional as far as Myra could tell. As Vance turned to leave she caught that look in his eye again. Her heart gave a small throb of sadness for the boy, her lips turning down in a small pout as she watched him. Where did that pain come from? It wasn't there last year, that's for sure... Damn! She ducked her head quickly as he passed by her, hoping against hope he hadn't seen her looking at him.

She decided it was a good idea to return to her book and only emerged for more chicken a page or two later. She conspicuously watched as girl after girl stopped by the Ferre table to talk to Finn. He smiled at them, that warm, tender, polite smile and talked to each of them. He was always so genuinely pleasant, so friendly. Myra smiled in spite of herself, enjoying her candid viewing of Finn's Flock (as she liked to call all the girls who fawned over him.) When his head started to turn in her direction though, she immediately dropped her eyes to her book and "read" as intently as she could. She'd never be able to go talk to him like the other girls, so what did it matter? She watched out of the corner of her eye as he excused himself from the table and left the hall. Was it just her, or did a little warmth leave the room with him?

*~*~*~*

Some time later Myra sighed, placed a bookmark in The Dream Oracle and pushed her plate away from her. She'd overeaten again, and chided herself as the inevitable "food baby" made itself known. Thank god for robes, she thought with chagrin. Tilting her head to the left she looked down her table. "Oh!" The exclamation left her mouth before she had a chance to register she was making noise. There were very few people left. She looked around, surprised to see how empty the main hall was. How long had she been reading? Better yet, how much had she eaten? Oh dear... She noticed Naire, then, wandering out of the hall with his owl and his camera. Her first genuinely large smile spread itself across her face. Near! Oh, how she'd missed him! They'd spent a week over vacation together, and sent owls back and forth, but that was not nearly enough contact. She wiped her hands on her linen, daintily wiped the corners of her lips, took one last sip of water, and stood. Tucking her book into her side bag, she scanned the great hall again, and waved to Professor Kass, reminding herself she'd have to stop by her office later or the next day to chat.

Hurrying out, Kaplan slinked up beside her, rubbing on her ankles and purring. Scratching behind his ear, she picked him up and followed Near to the Willow tree. Myra smiled to herself at the adorable little owl playing in the water. Setting Kaplan down, she grabbed a couple of owl treats from her bag, then pointed her wand at Near's camera. "Geminio!" she whispered, an exact (if useless) copy of his camera creating itself at the tip of her wand. Grabbing it, she tossed a couple treats to Chopstick, and plopped next to Naire, making clicking noises as she snapped fake pictures of him. "Hey shutterbug! How are you?" She smiled warmly at him as Kaplan immediately curled into Naire's lap, his tail lazily wrapping around his waist.

Things really had slowed down at the Cervus table, Emerson finally had a chance to eat his fill and a little extra still. His eyes roamed the room as he let out a yawn- eating always made him sleepy. With very few people left he decided it was best to head up to the dorm and chill there for a bit before going to sleep, but he what he saw right across the table kept hims around for at least a little while longer. Micah and Rosie, talking idly about books, or were they books? In his mind he smirked and waggled his eyebrows then realized he was doing it on his face's face too...his real face?..his face. Wherever it was going on, he stopped it but continued to eave's drop on their chat. The possibility that they could be more than literature connoisseurs excited Emerson, maybe this quiet girl would open up and start talking to people once she realized what good could come from it and maybe instead of just lookin' at him she could talk to Emerson about Micah and the well of intel he had on his friend.

She was so nervous; her hands were obviously being wrung beneath the table, she kept looking down then back up, her cheeks were so lightly flushed! She might as well have been twirling her bright red hair around her finger and batting her eyes. He made a mental note that he was much more open to blossoming love with a full stomach and another that he was clearly rather adept when it came to spotting young love. It may have been best to let their hearts and their bodies lead them along the path to amorous bliss but he couldn't help himself from nudging them along as he slid down from the metaphorical rooftop and into their talk.

"Are you guys talking about books?" his keeping it cool skills were terrible and every word he spoke sounded like eerily similar Disney Channel banter. He turned to Rosie and leaned back, nearly rubbing shoulders with Nate Grimm, "The Jeffers' bookstore is full of all the best sorts of books, tons of 'em! Also, it's a great place for hide and seek, but more importantly, books. Fairly priced books, too... it's probably the best bookstore I've ever been to and smells nice too. You really should go see it sometime and you should see all the books Micah brought with him, I've read a few, they're great. Really great." His choppy and poorly delivered book speech was probably a massive success . He didn't stick around to see, but yawned, stretched and stood up to go. He slapped Sav on the back, and waved goodbye to Rosie and Micah then paraded out of the hall.

....

Back in Cervus common room he gave quick greetings to his friends and housemates before running into his dorm. His roommates were out, per usual and he crossed the room to a shallow bowl of water in which a certain special toad rested. "Hello, Lester" he called to the toad that was twice the size of any other toad of his species on account of a poorly aimed engorgement charm whose effect Emerson preferred to the two inch toad he so easily lost track of. "I trust you're as excited for this year as I am as I see you've taken quite well to the new room. Would you like to hear a joke?" The toad did not accept or deny so Emerson pulled a popsicle stick from his pocket, he held the red-stained, tooth indented stick close to his face and asked, "Why don't seagulls fly by the bay?" He paused, allowing the toad time at least to react. Direct eye contact and a low gurgle would have to do as Emerson proceeded, "Because it would be a bagel!!" He chuckled and didn't let the toads blank stare dampen the pun. "Yeah whatever, Lester" he dropped some mealworms next to the bowl and watched as Lester finally roused to pursue the unmoving grubs.

Priscilla Barsotti

She was surrounded by girls younger than herself, mostly second, third, and fourth years. They were all staring dreamily at her as she was describing her family's visit to Paris this summer. "Oh ladies, it was magnifique!" she exclaimed, sighing happily. Paris actually had been magnificent... for the first few days. Then the charm had been lost on her. It definitely wasn't one of the best places she'd ever visited. But she certainly wasn't going to say that to all these girls who were hanging on her every word.

"The Eiffel Tower was breathtaking! I mean, you've never seen anything like it, I swear," she said, a smile on her face. In truth, that had been her favorite part of the entire trip, easily. "And when I was there, I met the most handsome guy. Jean Baptiste." The girls sighed, or a small smile spread across their faces. She had them absolutely hooked. They were so easy to control. "C'était de l'amour! We spent the rest of my trip together, and he was absolutely devastated when I had to leave." Now the girls all had sad expressions on their faces.

"Did he give you is number?!"

"Are you going to keep in contact with him?"

"Will he come visit you?"

All the girls asked at once. She smiled, making it look as if she were sad. "I've tried to contact him, but he won't respond to me." They all awwww'd, and she shrugged her shoulders. In reality, Jean Baptiste hadn't been attractive at all. He'd actually followed her around whenever he saw her, and tried to ask her on a date like five billion times. He'd really creeped her out. But that wasn't exactly romantic, so she had made up her own version. And she was getting exactly the response she had expected.

"Let's not talk about it anymore, okay girls? I don't like to think about him... So, tell me about all of your summers!" They all start talking, one by one, and she kind of zoned out, although she nodded and gave all the 'yeah' and 'mmhmm' responses that she should in the appropriate spots. All of their stories bored her, but she waited until they were all finished before taking her leave. As she walked away, she heard them all taking about how they had to visit Paris. She smirked as she continued to walk down the long table.

Priscilla found Îrem sitting a little ways down the Arietem table. All she had to do was look at the first year that was sitting next to her, and the little kid got up and moved immediately. She took the vacant seat and smiled at her friend, giving her a small and quick hug. "Hey girl," she said, releasing her hold on the sixth year. And amazingly, Zackariah was sitting across from them. Life truly was good. "Zack," was all she said, acknowledging his presence and no more. A girl had to play hard to get, after all.

---

Rosina Garenne

While waiting for Micah's response, she had decided to actually eat a little more, since her stomach had settled a great deal. She had realized that she was actually really hungry. She reached for her cup and took a sip of her absolute favorite beverage... Sierra Mist. The cool bubbliness went down her throat, and she almost wanted to sigh out of happiness. Things were going to turn out just fine. She turned her eyes to Micah's once more, when another voice entered their conversation.

Oh. My. God. It was Emerson.

Her stomach preceded to have twice the amount of knots it had had before, and she thought she was going to throw up the food she just ate. Her heart began beating so fast and loud she thought that Emerson might actually be able to see it pulsing outside of her shirt. She put a hand up over her chest, as if she was preventing him of seeing just how flustered she actually was. She somehow managed to give him one quick nod as he asked if they were talking about books.

He then went on some really long speech about how awesome Micah's books were. Her brain didn't seem to register just how weird it actually was. She could only see his perfect mouth forming words. Her face just had to be the same color as a tomato, even brighter than her hair. Before she knew it, he was standing and stretching, then waved a quick goodbye to her. No, don't go... she thought, wanting to reach out for him. Yet at the same time, she was jumping up and down enthusiastically inside her head, screaming like some sort of twelve year old fangirl of Justin Bieber. He talked to me... he actually TALKED to me!

She turned back to Micah, a smile on her face, and waited for him to speak to her.

---

Finn Pollack

He watched Teiver stare at her cat intently, longer than most people look at their animals. It was actually kind of creepy. He looked around the empty stone walls, looking for something interesting to stare at instead of her and the cat. Then she spoke, seemingly to the cat, and he didn't say a word. She was acting as if he could't hear what she was saying about him, even though he was standing directly in front of her. He narrowed her eyes at her as she poked him, but she took the lead, and he followed.

His hand still gripped his wand in his pocket, prepared for any kind of spell she might cast on him. She wouldn't take him unaware, though. He'd be ready for anything. He walked behind the cat, who was right on her heels. She led him right back to the wall they had entered earlier. At least he thought it was. He was already sort of turned around in this maze of a tunnel. The cat jumped in her bag, and he didn't even register shock. It had already been quite a weird night.

Finn chuckled at her statement of him needing how to climb. What a laugh. He was one of the most athletic people in all of Magus Grex. He could probably climb better than she could. He watched her ascend for a few moments before approaching the wall and beginning to follow her up. Unfortunately, he couldn't hold on to his wand while he climbed, so he had to hope she wasn't going to curse him when she reached the landing above them. It wouldn't have been a pleasant trip back to the bottom. When she almost fell, he tucked his head against his body, letting the small pebbles hit him and then keep falling father below. "Hey! Watch what you're doing!" he complained.

He followed her exact path up, and thankfully didn't falter once. She made a hidden door appear farther up the wall, and he crawled in to it after her. He was only slightly out of breath, but he kneeled over as if he couldn't catch his breath. Probably out of instinct. "What the heck are you leading me to?" he exclaimed, looking up to meet her eyes. Now the wild ideas were coming back. If a secret entrance wasn't enough to hide whatever she had going on in this tower, he was almost afraid to find out what it was.

Priscilla Barsotti

"Priscilla." It was the only response she got from Zack, but it was certainly more than enough for her. Especially when he leaned in towards her, and her breath caught in her throat. She had the urge to lean forward to meet him, and feel what it would be like to kiss his lips. But just as quickly he leaned back away from her, and she blinked a few times to clear her head. So much for playing hard to get. All he had to do was lean forward and look into her eyes, and her insides turned to mush. She would need to work on that.

“Prissy, how was your summer?” Priscilla thankfully turned her attention away from Zack and over to Îrem, her closest girl friend in the entire house. Sure, she enjoyed the younger girls who followed her around like little lost puppies, but every now and then she needed someone who was her equal. Îrem was not only her equal, but also everything she was not. She always liked to joke that they completed each other. They never really argued or felt the need to compete with each other, because they were so different. They were basically two halves of a whole, and that was why they made such great best friends. Her friend was the only one allowed to call her Prissy, and if anyone else ever tried, she would punch them in the nose.

Îrem's mixture of orange with the green of Arietem house didn't really mix well, but Priscilla kept her mouth shut for the sake of her friend. She was going to respond to her friend when Zack's voice chimed in first. "Seriously, do you both have to catch up on summer right now? Why not discuss more important things? Like Quodpot." Priscilla turned her head to give the gorgeous man an icy glare. She gave his leg a soft kick under the table, not really intending to hurt him. "Like I could even talk about that droll game for more than a few seconds. It's just atrocious."

"I'm joking, ladies. Put the claws away." She brought her hand up and curved her fingers to give the look of claws, and she gave a little hiss at Zack before chuckling along with him.

Before any other words were spoken, motion caught her eye and she turned her head to see Felix sliding down the table, and landed directly in front of her, next to Zack. She rolled her eyes plainly for him to see, smirking at him afterwards. She was disappointed when he tousled Zack's perfect blonde hair, but kept her mouth shut as he sat down. "Îrem, Priscilla. You two are both looking as lovely and noble as ever. I trust your summer's were divine. Don't tell me......Aspen? No.....Cabo? No, wait.......Paris? Somewhere expensive I would imagine. How have you all been?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, wondering if he knew exactly how close he had come. Îrem spoke first, however. Montana?! Priscilla thought, scoffing at the idea. She would never survive, of that she was sure. Farms and horses? Priscilla would take high end shopping and heels any day. She then turned her attention to Zack, who spoke about his summer. Solitude wasn't exactly her thing either, but to each their own. "I was close to putting together a pre-school party with everyone, but somehow I just couldn't force myself with the challenge to please that many people. Because you all know how I like to please." He stared directly at her with that statement, and she narrowed her eyes in response, definitely not amused by him. But she forced herself to smile, not letting him know he was getting under her skin. It was common knowledge how much he slept around, and yet he'd never even come to her with so much as a kiss. She was of the purest blood, and all these other girls were nothing.

While Zack was distracted, she spoke about her summer. "Good guess Felix, I was indeed in Paris. And it was absolutely divine. I met a boy, who spent his entire summer with me. Sadly, after I left, I figured the relationship couldn't continue. Either way, the vacation was beautiful and fabulous." She made herself sound happier than she was, hoping Zack would think she wasn't bothered at all.

She found it extremely interesting that Felix had spent the entire summer with Bliss. While she knew Bliss fairly well, the pairing seemed a little odd. She would have to investigate on that later. For now, she really felt the need to just get away. She stood up from the table, and stepped back. "If you will all excuse me..." was all she said before she took off down the hall. She made her way outside, taking in a few deep breaths. "Damn him for getting under my skin so easily..." she muttered to herself, feeling the urge to punch something. After a few more minutes of air, she quickly made her way over to the Commons Tower, spoke the password 'lordly lineage', and made her way into the Arietem Common Room. She plopped herself down on a couch, not really noticing the other bodies present.

---

Rosina Garenne

The smile had disappeared from Rose's face. It seemed as if Micah wasn't actually going to talk to her anymore. Still, the night had indeed been positive, thanks to Emerson. Whenever she thought about him, she could feel some heat come to her cheeks. He'd only talked to her a few other times in their many years, so that made it even more exciting. She did have to admit that Micah was a bit of a disappointment to her. When he'd actually made an effort to talk to her, she'd felt hopeful. Not too many guys showed an interest in her, friendly or otherwise. She knew that many girls liked to be around her because she was extremely quiet and listened to all of their problems. She didn't mind too much, friends were good to have, no matter what the other girl's intentions were.

It had to be getting late, so she mumbled something about being tired, and stood up quickly from the table, shooting away before Micah could say anything back. She took a detour from the Commons Tower to go get some fresh air in the courtyard. She was surprised to find Priscilla outside as well, without any followers or friends. Although as soon as the Arietem girl saw her, she took off. Rose found a small rock to sit on, and closed her eyes, breathing in the cool night air. "Why do feelings have to be so confusing...?" she whispered to herself, reaching her hand back to take the elastic out of her hair, letting it flow down over her shoulders. She'd practically been in love with Emerson from day one. So why did she feel so sad about Micah? It just seemed silly.

She sat outside for a little while longer, before deciding she should finally head back to the Common Room. She approached the painting that held Cervus' common room and dormitories behind it. "Plucking berries," she whispered, watching as it swung forward and she stepped through. The idea of passwords had always seemed kind of silly to her, since all the entrances were on the same floor, not far from each other. Nothing was stopping other students from overhearing. But oh well, rules were rules.

As she stepped inside, she noticed Savant and Emerson both hanging out, with a nice warm fire going in the fireplace. Feeling somehow braver than normal, she gave them both a smile and a small wave, more so towards Emerson than the other. Not feeling brave enough to speak, though, she quickly headed up the girl's dormitory steps, before coming to her landing and entering the door. She found the bed that had been hers for the previous five years, and flopped down on it gratefully. Her Siamese cat Belle hopped up onto the bed beside her, and curled up. It was empty, and she quickly changed into a comfortable pair of pajamas before climbing under the covers.

She didn't feel extremely tired yet, so she reached over to her nightstand and grabbed the book sitting on top. It was one of her favorite new series, a supernatural romance between a vampire and a werewolf. Sure, sometimes it was cheesy, but it was so lovely. She cuddled in next to her cat as she opened to about the middle, and continued where she had left off. A soft thunk sounded in the room, and she quickly walked to the window, seeing a figure standing below. She opened the window, calling down softly, 'What are you doing here?' He replied a little louder, 'I couldn't wait to see you again.' She sighed softly, a smile crossing her lips.

Her eyes looked over to the window, and she suddenly wished that someone was outside of her window, wanting to see her. Of course, no boy had ever felt that strongly for her, and she was beginning to doubt that anyone would. Everyone always told her that she was young, and love would find her when it was right. But they just didn't understand. She practically repelled boys, or was completely invisible to them. She longed to be loved. Since it wasn't happening right now, she brought her eyes back to the book, content with just reading about others' love for now.

---

Finn Pollack

"Why, I thought I said we were going to the astronomy tower, didn't I?" Teiver gave him a rather sweet yet sarcastic smile, before turning away from him. Finn snarled a little, aggravated that he had gone through all this just to get to the astronomy tower, when he could have just as easily taken the stairs. Either way, it was way too late now. He had no idea where the hell he was, and probably couldn't find it again if he tried. He knew she was hiding something up here, and would try to find it. He at least knew how to get in to her secret area, and could later explore it to his heart's content.

"Try your best not to break a leg." She spoke before jumping off the ledge. "Yeah, just watch yourself..." he muttered after she had leaped. He made his way forward, seeing her land a little roughly on the landing below. He wasn't scared of heights, but normally he had a broom underneath him from so high up. Thankfully, he was extremely athletic, and when he hopped off the ledge, he landed much more gracefully than she had. He stared back up behind him, trying to remember the location of the path. He knew he'd probably forget, but he did his best to burn it in to his memory. He just had to remember.

He followed the girl and her cat up the steps, before appearing in the very familiar astronomy tower. He just kind of stood in the doorway as she moved forward to the bookshelf, finding something and placing it in her bag. She then moved to a table with various charts on it, and began to sift through those. He watched her for a little bit, before clearing his throat and running his hand through his hair. "I have to admit, studying isn't really my thing, so I'm just going to take off. Nice hanging out with you..." he said, before turning around and making his way back down the steps.

He made his way through the castle over to the Commons Tower, where he spoke the password to the appropriate door, and headed inside to the Ferre Common Room. He muttered a few hey's and gave a few ways as the other housemates greeted him eagerly, some clapping him on the back, others exclaiming how excited they were about the upcoming Quodpot season. A few of the younger girls caught his eye, and they blushed and gave a few squeals as he passed by. It really was cute, and normally he just drank up all the admiration, but he wasn't in the mood for it right then.

Finn told them all he needed his rest for class tomorrow, which was actually probably true, though he normally didn't care. He made his way up to his dormitory, and pushed the door open. There on his bed sat a large cage with his favorite animal in the whole world inside. Tyto hooted happily when he saw his owner, and flapped his wings slightly. He walked over and unlocked the cage, letting the owl fly to the headboard of his bed and sit contently. He smoothed down the owl's feathers and smiled warmly. Felix hadn't gotten back yet, so he lounged on the bed, waiting for someone else to appear.

Her eyes opened, staring at the clock on her nightstand. It was early, but that was alright. She sat up in bed and stretched, then gave Belle a scratch between the ears. She purred softly in response. She smiled as she hopped out of bed, took a quick shower, then put on some simple clothes, donning her robe last. She decided to let her hair stay down, flowing softly over her shoulders. Before exiting the room, she remembered to grab her wand. The common room was pretty empty, so she didn't bother talking to anyone before she left. Instead of heading straight to the Great Hall, a visit to courtyard was in order first. The morning air was slightly cool, and it felt wonderful to her. Rose absolutely hated when it was too warm outside.

She lingered outside for longer than originally intended, and eventually entered the castle once more to eat some breakfast. As she was walking through the hallway, the sound of music caught her ears. Immediately, she knew who was making it. Quietly, she tiptoed to the doorway it was coming from, and edged it open slightly so she could peek inside. Sighing happily, she saw Lloyd playing the violin. Not many would know it was her, since she didn't choose to play for others most of the time. But she had for Rose, and it had made her feel extremely special. A smile couldn't be helped as she listened. The Ferre was more talented than anyone Rose had ever met. She contemplated entering the bathroom to say hello, but normally Lloyd didn't like to be disturbed while she was playing. So she respected her friend's wishes, and silently closed the door before continuing her trip to the Great Hall.

As she walked, her thoughts crossed to the night before. This morning, she was feeling particularly silly about everything she had felt the night before with Micah. She'd been so flustered, and almost angry. He wasn't trying to be mean to her, he had just been occupied. It had been the first night after all, and she couldn't expect him to give her all his attention for the entire night. He had many friends, and had wanted to talk to all of them. If she could muster up the courage, she wanted to apologize for leaving so abruptly.

Then her thoughts shifted, and she remembered that Felix had been absent last night. Or he had been too busy, but she couldn't imagine him not saying hi to her. He was practically her best friend, after all. He wouldn't have ignored her, she decided finally, so something else must have been going on. As she walked through the large doors, he was the first person she saw. He was looking handsome this morning, she noted, and a smile crept across her face.

Then her eyes registered the rest of the scene, and she noticed him holding his wand, aiming at some of the other students. "Oh dear..." she said to herself, taking a few tentative steps forward. She knew he was fiercely loyal to his friends, so she assumed it was Justin that was in trouble. That was hard to believe.

Rose bit her lip, eyes shifting back and forth between all the students involved. And just as quickly as things got tense, they just seemed to dissipate. Justin was making jokes again, and had lowered his wand. She took that as a good enough sign to approach. She just had to say hi to her best friend. She crossed the rest of the distance quickly, then threw her arms around Felix. "I missed you!" she exclaimed happily, a little chuckle escaping her lips afterward.

"Come on, let's sit..." she said, grabbing his hand. She practically dragged him back to the Cervus table, wanting to get him away from the situation in case something worse happened, and made him sit down next to her. She was so excited to see him, she didn't even realize they were seated across from Emerson. That was the effect her best friend had on her. He calmed her tenseness, and just generally made her more relaxed. She didn't worry so much about things, or what everyone else thought of her. Her eyes then focused on Emerson, and she ran a few fingers through her hair, a nervous habit of hers. But she managed to give him a small smile and wave before turning her attention back to her friend. She was still aware of Emerson's presence, however.

When his eyes saw the time on the clock, he groaned, but made himself get up. The first day of classes was an extremely important one, and he wanted to get to the Great Hall as early as possible. As Head Boy, he wanted to be there for all the students of Ferre House, but mostly the first years. They'd no doubt have questions and concerns, and it was his job to answer them and make them feel at ease. He showered quickly, leaving his hair to air dry in the messy, windblown look that he enjoyed so well. A white polo and dark jeans were his simple choice of outfit for the day, before he put on the red-lined robe. Before leaving the room, he grabbed his wand, sticking it in his pocket, and made sure to pin his Head Boy badge on his robes for everyone to see.

As he walked down the steps to the common room, his thoughts drifted to the previous night's events. While he was still extremely interested in what Teiver was up to, his major feeling was guilt. He hadn't returned to the Great Hall after the adventure, which meant that the responsibility of directing the first years had been left entirely on the Head Girl's shoulders. He knew he'd get some grief about it, because he always did the right thing. At least that's what everyone seemed to think. And of course he strived to, but sometimes he fell short of his extreme expectations for himself.

Down in the common room, a first year ran up to him immediately, a panicked look on his face. "Finn, did I miss something? I don't know what my first class is, or what time! Where is my schedule? Was there somewhere I needed to go to pick it up? I don't kn-"

"Woah, dude, chill out," he said, laughing and clapping the boy on the shoulder. The first year didn't seem to know what was so funny, and still had a frightened look on his face. "The Heads of Houses always pass them out after breakfast in the Great Hall. The boys shoulders sagged, and he gave out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks," he said and walked away. Finn answered a few more questions, before informing them all that he was heading for the Great Hall, and if they needed anything else to seek him out there. After leaving the common room, he walked slowly through the halls, not feeling any need to rush. It was still pretty early, and most students were likely still asleep in their beds. He started humming a general tune, last night entering his mind once more. He just had to figure out what Teiver was doing in her secret tower. It would take considerable time, he was sure, but he was determined. It was something against the rules, he was confident about that, and it was his duty to put an end to it.

He needed to find time to actually go searching, though. He couldn't do it late at night, because of curfew. He wasn't going to break the rules, being Head Boy and all. Perhaps whenever he had free periods, since studying wasn't that important to him anyway. He just couldn't force himself to sit and read a textbook on some historical wizard, even if their actions changed the face of the wizarding world. He couldn't even force himself to read for the slightly more exciting subjects, like DADA. He liked learning by doing, which was what made him excel in subjects like Charms and Transfiguration, but his grades in History of Magic were well below standards.

He walked through the doors to the Great Hall, and a cluster of people caught his eye. Nothing was happening yet, but it certainly seemed as if tensions were high. And Teiver was in the middle of it... big surprise there. The red-haired girl, Rose was her name, walked up and pulled one of the students away, but the others didn't move. He walked up to them, and crossed his arms, a frown on his face. He wasn't especially surprised to see Victor was part of it either. "Do we have a problem here?"

---

When her eyes opened, she expected to still be in Paris. It was only after a few moments of staring at the stone ceiling that she remembered she had returned to Magus Grex for her final year. Groaning, she made herself sit up, and rubbed her eyes to make herself wake up. Sluggishly, she got out of bed, and Princess mewed at her, obviously annoyed to have been woken up so early. "Oh hush," she said, rolling her eyes. Sometimes her cat was more of a diva than she was.

Upon entering the bathroom, she stared at herself in the mirror, and frowned. She had a serious case of bed head going on. She was gifted with natural beauty, of course, but it also took work to achieve her level of good looks. After showering, she took quite a long time applying her make up, and gave her hair some loose curls. Picking out her clothes was slightly more challenging. After about fifteen minutes, she decided on a black v-neck tanktop, as well as a black pencil skirt. And true to her nature, rather high black heels adorned her feet. After one last look in the mirror, she deemed herself ready for the public to see her.

She said her goodbye to Princess, and locked her door behind her. Her heels gave loud clicks as she descended the staircase. She absolutely loved heels, for more than one reason. Of course because they always made her look amazing, but also because everyone would know when she was coming. Which normally meant all the young kids got out of her way, or her friends and guys showered her with compliments and praises when she passed. A smirk crossed her lips, as she continued her descent.

Suddenly, she remembered Zack from last night. Immediately, anger filled her tiny little body, but it quickly dissipated. Crazily enough, he had actually apologized to her, and even more had admitted to missing her. The thought of it actually made her feel warm and fuzzy inside. She would have to play it cool today, though. Act as if she hadn't truly been bothered by his japes, and pretend that her heart didn't race faster every time he talked to her. It just wasn't her character.

About halfway down the dormitory stairs, a loud knocking interrupted her thoughts. She turned to see what it was, and almost laughed out loud. It was none other than Vance Abernathy himself. Of course, that wasn't what made her want to laugh. It was the fact that he was knocking on Lee Beauregard's door. She walked up behind him, and crossed her arms, a cold smirk on her face. "Why, Vance, is your true nature finally coming out?" she asked, his back still turned to her. In all truth, she didn't really hate him. It did annoy her that he seemed to act superior towards her. They were both from extremely respected families, and yet he couldn't even be bothered to be friendly with her? It was just atrocious. She was just as good as he was, and he had to know it. So until he decided to be a little more civil with her, she would just poke some fun at him. He dished it out enough, so it was only fair he received some himself.

"Need to get in a little quickie before breakfast?"