Max Avarus's Story

Max Avarus:

"Alright little bro, you got your wand?"

"Yep"

"Got Snowtimber?"

"Yep".

"School supplies?"

"The best version of every subject I am taking this year".

Max and his brother continued to walk down the streets. He looked over at his brother, who ruffled his hair somewhat. That is when their parents came over. His father gave Max a hug, before looking him in the eye. "Do us proud, son. You look just like your brother. We can't wait to hear when you get into Aquila".

Max's family, for generations, were in one house. Aquila. It only added to the pressure Max felt. And he felt a lot. His father stood up and smiled. "Now, sorry to leave so soon, but my old friend Gretchen Haleshire wants to talk to me about some maters. Write to us every week Max, as we will write to you".

If my dad intimidates me that much, I'd hate to feel what others feel.. Both of his parents left, and his brother knelt down and looked Max in the eyes. "Don't let them stress you out. You will be fine, Shrimp".

Max took a deep breath. "You didn't have anyone to follow after though. I do. And I told you not to call me that!"

His brother laughed. "Sorry Shrimp, but you are stuck with that nickname. Now, we need to visit one more store, and then I will fly us there. Now c'mon".

Max's brother took him to a broom shop. "Wait, I thought I wasn't allowed to fly in my first year?"

"You get flying lessons though, and not many people actually listen to that rule. Besides, you are as trouble prone as they get. You will need a broom, I guarantee it. I just hope you are big enough to ride it, Shrimp".

"Hey!"

Max's brother found him a good Aether V, one of the newer broom models, and one of the few that contest with British Broom models. Max's name magically became infused in it. "Guess this one is for you".

After that, they left for a spot that they could fly Max to the school. "Now, don't study too hard now. Make some friends, your age. You are incredibly smart for your age Max. Hell, you accidentally summoned your Patronus with no Wand when that man attacked you last year. You are a smart and powerful Wizard, so don't get stuck in the library".

"Somehow, I doubt I will be able to study enough to meet their expectations..."

He pulled his brother around and looked at him. "Don't say that! You are an Avarus. Magic has been flowing through our family for generations. Our great great grandfather was a Hero in the war against the Dark Lord during the civil war, being there when he was slain in the duel. You will be great Max. Now, let's get going".

Celia Oglethorpe said, fanning out the puffy fabric of the ginormous dress she pulled off the rack. Alison rolled her eyes, continuing to pilfer through the clothes with only mild interest. Grimm sat on a platform nearby, slumped and head buried in his hands with disdain. He hated shopping unless it was for himself. “I’d rather not show up with a useless dress that will make me the laughing stock of the school.” Alison answered when her mother stared at her expectantly awaiting an answer.

Grimm chuckled, and for a moment the sibling locked eyes in a sort of camaraderie in the knowing that their mother was a complete lunatic. The moment passed quickly though, and Alison returned to the clothes in front of her, pulling out a long skirt made out of a chemise fabric with little stars and crescent moons dotting the black fabric. “Ooo look at this one!” Alison said with a smile, showing the skirt to her mother.

Celia’s face pinched up, as if she had eaten a sour lemon. She reached out to pull out the skirt to get a good look at it with her disapproving dark eyes. After a few minutes, Alison realized her mother was challenging Alison to give in. Huffing dramatically, Alison tugged the skirt out of her mother’s bony fingers with annoyance. “I’ll just use my own money.” She said defiantly, approaching the counter.

The Oglethorpe were the only ones in Salem A Witches Wardrobe, a boutique that originated in Salem and had a store in New York as well. Alison had discovered the store last year when buying supplies for her last minute school trip to Orenda, and her mother hated the progressive style Salem offered. In the UK, most of the magical community were so traditional almost everyone stuck to the infamous robes. America had a more alternative Magical scene, or as her mother put it, ‘pitifully mundane’. Beauxbaton would have been her mother’s first choice, but Alison refused to be surrounded by so much estrogen.

She paid for her skirt, glancing back to see her mother still involved with the dress section although Grimm was out of site. Alison knew she already had enough clothes, but couldn’t help but to want to browse the store. There wasn’t anything else here she wanted, and honestly she was already buying school supplies last minute she shouldn’t be dilly dallying around. “Mother, I’m going to the book store.” Alison called out as she slipped out the door and onto the street.

The bustle of Magic America was intoxicating, they all seemed so much less prim and proper. Children would gather in a circle to watch their latest toy from the shop, sparks erupting in all directions. It had it’s own charm.

Her mother wanted Alison to dress up that morning, but Alison had settled for simple jeans and a crop top that hung off her slim frame. It was a surprise her mother hadn’t fainted at the horror of casual wear. But most kids were dressed this way, comfortable. As if it hadn’t been embarrassing enough to arrive to Orenda her first day in all white robes like her mother insisted. This time she was going to fit in.

Rhiamom was the next stop for books, and as if to reassure herself Alison reached for her wand in her back pocket, which remained secure. Unfortunately as she reached into her pocket, a man and a boy came through the doors of Rhiamom knocking into her bent elbow that had gripped her wand - sending the willow wand scattering across the sidwalk.

“Bullocks!” She cursed to no one in particular, scurrying to retrieve her wand. Luckily it was only a couple feet away, unharmed, but Alison’s cheeks flushed with color at the realization at her slur. Turning back to the pair so chuckled with embarrassment. “Pardon my language, it slips out sometimes.” She apologized, her accent clipping at her words.

The two looked a spit image of one another, except height of course. They looked close enough in age to be siblings, but the older one seemed like he already grew out of Orenda. “Are you preparing for your first year at Orenda?” She asked the child.

Chase stood leaning against the counter in the book shop on Rhiamon Way, where he had been working along side his parents for the summer. A few people were in the store now, but he didn't pay them much mind as they browsed the selection. Instead, he watched out the window as the streets filled with more people than normal. The end of summer rush, as everyone prepared to go back to school for the year.

"Chaaase!"

Chase pretended as if he didn't hear his sister calling for him from the stairway at the back of the shop. It didn't work. Now he heard footsteps hastily coming down the steps, and a moment later a little blond waif of a girl appeared through the door. "Chase! Mom says you get to take me to get my wand."

"I'm watching the store, Eden," Chase replied.

Eden barely contained a laugh. "Yeah, right. You're looking at all the girls walk do the street. Mom said she'll come down and watch the store."

As if on cue, their mother appeared at the bottom of the steps behind Eden. She crossed her arms and smiled at Chase. "Go on," she said. "I thought you didn't want to be at work."

Chase rolled his eyes. "Like watching her is any less work." But he walked over and picked up his little sister, throwing her over his shoulder. "Come on, let's go get you that wand. And maybe an owl while we're at it. My little sister can't start at Orenda without her very own pet."

Eden giggled as Chase carried her out the door. They had barely made it down the block when he stopped abruptly and set her on her feet. "Well what do we have here," he said, watching as Alison, a fairly new classmate of his, scrambled to pick up her wand. "Dan, are you pushing people around again? I thought you were done with that." He laughed as he greeted Alison, Daniel, and the little guy that he could only assume was Daniel's brother.

"So, Gingy, you ready for another glorious year of school?" Lodi jumped as the sudden voice came from her right.

Lodi rolled her eyes as her older brother, Ryan, fell into step with her. "Ready as I'll ever be," she replied with a hint of sarcasm, causing the brother-sister pair to chuckle simultaneously. Ryan had graciously volunteered to carry Lodi's suitcase which he had cast an extension charm on, increasing the bag's capacity in order to carry everything of Lodi's in one compact suitcase. However, the bag stayed relatively heavy and Lodi was grateful that he was carrying it for her.

Lodi looked up at her brother as they strolled through the bustling wizarding avenue. "Eh, d' you know where mom went?" Just as the words left Lodi's mouth, she caught sight of her frizzy-haired mother coming from a small jewelry store off to the right, carrying two shopping bags and looking frantic, as usual. Mrs. Johnson was the type of woman that always seemed to look busy and her frizzy, red hair only heightened the look.

Lodi and Ryan chortled softly as they watched their short mother push through the gathering masses of parents and students alike to reach her children. As she neared the two siblings, they moved to the side of the street so as not to get in the way of hurrying witches and wizards. Lodi's mother smiled at the two as she pulled a small jewelry box from on of the bags and held it out for Lodi to take. Lodi took the box, raising an eyebrow at her mother as she did so. Her mother gestured for her daughter to open it and did not begin to explain until the box was half-way open. "I sent it in to this jeweler when you broke it and I just picked it up today. This is a big year for you and I thought you might want a reminder that he's always with you."

As her mother finished speaking, Lodi finally opened the box fully, revealing a thick golden chain with a pointed dragon's tooth dangling from it. She gave a small, surprised gasp at the sight of her father's necklace. She had worn it since she was a child, but had unfortunately broken the chain months ago. She had absolutely no idea that her mother had taken the necklace and sent it to be fixed. Lodi looked at her mother with a wide grin on her face, tears welling in her eyes and threatening to spill. She embraced her tightly, holding on for a moment before turning around to let her mother clasp the chain onto Lodi's neck. Lodi grabbed at the dragon's tooth, playing with it as she had always done. It was one of her only reminders of her deceased father and the piece of jewelry was one of her most prized possessions. An unexpected tear of joy dripped onto Lodi's cheek, but she quickly sniffled and wiped it away. There was a moment of silence between the family members and thoughts of what her father might think of her if he were there passed through Lodi's mind.

Ryan was the one to finally break the silence, changing the subject with a more light-hearted tone. "Hey, let's go get some of those spicy chips we got last year. Eh?" It was customary in the Johnson house for the three to withdraw from sad conversation topics. It wasn't that they were uncomfortable around each other, but rather that the three always seemed to already know what the others were thinking. Nothing truly needed to be said within the family. Everything was simply just understood between family members.

Lodi dried her eyes on the sleeve of her large, cream-colored sweater and followed Ryan and her mother, jogging a bit before falling in step with her brother. As they started toward the small shop that had sold the delicious chips, Lodi's mother and Ryan got into a pointless argument about the difference between 'caramel' and 'carmel'. Lodi was not really part of the argument, but she chuckled at the meaninglessness of the argument. She loved going back to school, but one of the things Lodi always truly missed was the company of her family.

They were quick in buying the renowned spicy chips and as they walked out of the store, Ryan and Lodi's mother began arguing about yet another completely pointless topic. Lodi rolled her eyes at the two and offhandedly mentioned that she was going to go wander around a bit. Lodi's mother gave a quick nod before going back to her lengthy monologue on something or other. Lodi wandered around until she reached the door of a small bookstore where she found Sonny, one of her newest housemates, Chase McGreine, a good friend of hers, his younger sister, Daniel Arvus, another friend of hers who had graduated the pervious year, and a young boy who looked to be Daniel's younger brother. Lodi grinned as she popped up next to Chase with her hands still casually in the pockets of her sweater. Lodi nodded at the group before grinning mischievously over at Daniel. "Eh, you do so bad that you're back for another year?" Lodi chuckled, knowing that Daniel had been one of the most promising students that she had ever seen, but also enjoying her chance to poke fun at the older guy.

It took a few beats but suddenly Alison recognized Daniel Arvus, a graduate of last year. They were two years apart and in different houses so they had never interacted while Alison was there, but the tug of familiarity pulled until the memory of his name yanked through. She gasped with recognition, a victorious smile lighting her face. Before she could announce her discovery however, another familiar face came to their side. “Chase, hullo!” Alison said with enthusiasm, surprising herself. She was genuinely excited to see Chase, and a pit of anxiety gathered in knots in her gut at the thought of seeing other people she had thought about over the summer.

At Hogwarts she normally dreaded returning to all the fake smiles and crude jokes with her brother bossing her around and people who wouldn’t leave her the hell alone. It was the first time she ever looked forward to school starting, and she just began to realize it. Laughing along with the others her eyes shifted to the girl across Chase’s shoulder, a cute little fair haired child. A grin tugged at her lips as she gave a meek wave to her before looking at Chase with questioning eyes. “New luggage piece?” She joked.

As if they were a beacon for Ordena students, another face joined their crowd. Alison gave her a smile and a curt nod, accompanied by another meek wave to her housemate. Suddenly Alison once again felt like the odd one out. The other three knew each other for years before she rolled along, and for some reason she felt like she should crouch to be on the same level as the first years so at least she didn’t feel like the only one out of the loop.

As if the situation couldn’t get worse, a hand clamped onto her shoulder. If it had been any other hand Alison easily would’ve jumped out of her skin, but she recognized the familiar grip that applied pressure just a little too hard for her narrow shoulders. “Sonny, thought you were going to pick up the rest of your supplies.” Grimm said with sneer, leaning over her shoulder to get a good look at the circle. “Are these...your friends?” He asked with disdain, cold blue eyes piercing the stares of others, lingering on the frame of Lodi with a mischievous look.

Alison could feel herself cringe, wanting to pull from his hold but knowing he’d only squeeze harder. Out of the two Alison obviously was the brains, and Grimm was all brawn. He hovered over six feet, sculpted from years of athletics and a strong jaw he’d inherited from their father. He had blonde hair, natural unlike Sonny’s. While a brunette constantly Alison would be told how much she resembled her mother, but some hair dye took care of that. But Grimm’s was all natural platinum, sticking out in all directions and falling into his fair skinned face with all his chiseled features. He could be described as handsome, but there was something in his eyes...

“Gerroff me, Grim.” Alison said as the awkward pause settled between the circle, rotating her shoulder to shake off her brother’s grip. Grimm stood just behind her, barely allowing any space. Glancing at the others apologetically, she motioned to the door behind them and went into the store, Grimm at her heels and giving one last look to the rest of the lot with the same sneer he greeted them with.

---

---

"You have got to be kidding me...?" Wesley said as she stood with her father as they awaited the bus. "She's nice, Wes." said the monster of a man. Wesley was a slight girl, not very taller but not short either, she's a 'late bloomer' but blooming by the sutble curves she had aquired over the summer. A Mane of Curly brown hair that added atleast a few inches to her height "You only say that because she plucked a bullet from your thigh." Wes countered, her father let off a booming laugh. [b]"Yes, but she was nice about it."

"Whatever, Dad, date who you want, none of them ever like me..."

'"You never let them."

Wesley sighed, She wanted her father to be happy but at the same time, she didn't want to call anyone 'Mom' anytime soon either.
"Well, Have fun with Darla..."She said as the bus arrived. "It's Maria."

"This week..." She said and narrowly dodged a paper cup that came flying at her head. She just laughed and boarded the bus.

"Give em hell, Kiddo!"

"When don't I?" She called back as she waved to her dad as the door closed.

It made it's way toward Rhianon Way.

She missed her dad every year but she loved the school, she had good friends, the teachers were their to teach not earn a paycheck and she actually wanted to learn. It was too much fun.



A few hours later, she arrived. She disembarked with her backpack on her shoulders, her Knee High Converses tied tight, her black jeans tucked in them and her black asymmetric top 'Bite Me' with stitched in red sequins hanging loosely over a red spaghetti tank and holding ontop a carrier. She looked around before setting the carrier down and opening the latch.

Out slide a mountain lion cub. "Sorry, Kovu." She said with a pet to his head. "The Normies would lose their shit if they saw you." She said and Kovu looked up at her as if he understood but still didn't like it. "Oh don't look at me like that." She said and playfully shoved him with her foot. He snapped at her but she only grinned.

With that, they made their way through the crowded streets, scattered conversation going on here and there, people shouting about their wares and the sales on them. The hustle and bustle of Rhianion Way made her smile. It was like Chinatown in LA only, slightly more magical.

She spotted a bookstore and then a handful of familiar faces. She took one look at Lodi and grinned mischievously. She slid up behind her, closed her hands over her eyes and grinned. "Guess who?!" She said with a loud 'Wesley Laugh' something she was quite known for which inturn gave her away immediately.

She removed her hands. "Miss Me, Chica" She said. Wesley always had a strange habit of breaking into Spanish, especially when she was pissed, half the time she didn't even know she was doing it.

Max Avarus:

"Well well, if it isn't Chase. And this must be your sister, Eden. Going to be a first year as well? Looks like you got company, Shrimp".

Max had this...glare...at his brother. "I told you NOT to call me that!"

He laughed, before turning back to the others. "Admit it, you are all going to miss me. Well, hopefully you can keep Max out of trouble. You seem to be prone to getting it..."

"Am not!"

"Oh really? Last Summer, the summer before that, Christmas break three years ago, the summer before that one, the whole troll incident..."

"That wasn't my fault!"

"Still, you seem to have a knack for finding trouble...Chase, maybe for your safety you should take a step back".

He laughed again, and turned to Alison. "Anyways, yeah, this is my brothers first year. We just got all his stuff together, and I was planning to fly him to school. Maybe you want to join us?"

Max, meanwhile, looked at Eden. "So...your a first year too?"

Max wasn't the best at opening conversations sometimes. However, his brother checked his watch. "Oh, we need to get going soon".

Max finally got to take a breath, inbetween his brother teasing him and introducing him to people. He gave a quick look over at the alley. This was the first time he would be going to this school, and the pressure was already building from his parents and his brother. At least he had a really good wand. Dragonwood and a Whale Bone core, a powerful combination, and a fairly rare Wand make. Though, not many people could have summoned a patronus with no wand when they were nine, but he also prefered not to share this because of the fact his patronus was a unicorn.

"Well Shrimp, looks like you made a new friend already. Wanna bet they both get into Aquia Chase?" he noted, making sure Max's stuff was all secure and that the broom was ready for flight before he got them on. "But come on, lets get flying. I don't want my brother to be late like you usually are..." he noted with a smile.

”Sweet’eart, you need to try t’is on.” Said Whitney Duquesne, mother of Odessa, who was holding a yellow skirt that would reach almost to her feet, it had a dark red flower design on it. Odessa thought it was simply awesome. She did as she was told, and ended up wearing it out of the store. Right now, the mother daughter pair were in New York City, preparing for her departure. Odessa had actually been staying with Chase MacGriene, a friend of hers from school for a couple of weeks now. They had planned it during the last school year, that she would spend a few weeks in New York. She found out to love New York, it was so different from New Orleans, but somehow similar.

They were walking and talking about nothing in particular, but they were walking towards the shop the MacGriene’s owned, for Odessa to drop off her things and get some supplies she needed. ”So, enjoy your time with C’ase?” Her mom said, stretching out his name and with a little lovey dovey with it. “Ma! It’s been fun, but I don’t like ‘im like t’at!” She practically yelled, she was half telling the truth, she loved him as a friend, but she had seen how he had grown and none of the guys in her house were that great. ”Fine, Fine, Fine.” She put her hands up. ”Just promise me t’at ya’ll get married down in New Orleans.” She laughed at her daughter’s expense.

They made it into the store, and Odessa watched the mom’s say hello. They made small talk, and Odessa said she needed to go out to buy some things, and her mom offered to take the clothing they had got back to her hotel for the time. She agreed and then walked outside, sporting her new skirt and a T-shirt that said, “I only like New York as a friend”.

She didn’t make it far before seeing her lost companion with a group of people she knew from school. Lodi, whom she knew she could exhaust, Westly, one of her really good friends she missed, Daniel Avarus, whom she wanted to beat but never could and his little bro, and the English Bitch, Sonny, who had big foot behind her for some reason. Overall, she was debating if she should go over to the group, but when seeing Daniel and pint size discuss leaving, she took the chance. “Westly! Lodi!” She yelled in her joy and ran over and hugged the girl, before letting go and smiling at Westly. “Did you grow? You seem taller for some reason?” She then turned to Chase and Eden, “My mom want to know if ya’ll want to ‘ave any Cajun Potato Pie, she broug’t it w’en s’e flew in.” She was all excited, her mother almost never made potato pie, and Cajun was just their way of saying it would be hot. She glazed over Sonny almost bored. “’Ello Princess. "Ey Daniel.” She said curtly, but perked slightly when talking to Daniel.

“Are these...your friends?”

Lodi's attention turned to Alison's tall, older brother. Normally Lodi would have thought he was a cute guy despite the fact that he was nearly a foot taller than her; however, she furrowed her brow at him in anger as he looked her up and down with a mischievous grin. Lodi was frustrated with this and open her mouth to make an angrily sarcastic remark; however, Alison looked at her apologetically and she gave the blonde girl a small grin, telling her it was alright. Lucky for Lodi, this guy, Grimm, seemed more concerned with his sister than anyone else there.

Lodi instinctively jumped as two hands covered her eyes, but a grin slowly spread over her face as she heard the voice of her 'sister' and roommate, Wesley. "Guess who!" Lodi heard from behind her before a loud laugh was emitted. Lodi shrugged with a mischievous grin on her face saying in a mockingly oblivious manner, "I've got no clue."

As the hands were dropped from her face, Lodi immediately spun around to face Wesley with a smile that reached her eyes. "Miss me, Chica?" Lodi pulled Wesley into a tight hug -a very rare occurrence that was saved for only the people Lodi was closest with. She pulled back and held the girl at arm's length. "Well, d' you expect me to say no, Gorgeous?" Lodi let out a rather loud guffaw and continued. "You tryin' to steal me thunder or somethin'?Because I swear you get better looking every year." Lodi raised an eyebrow mockingly and dropped her hands from Wesley's shoulders.

Lodi was about to say more when she heard a hollered voice yell to both her and Wes. She immediately recognized the voice as that of Odessa, a pretty good friend of Lodi's, all things considered. She was a great girl and she was fun to be around, but she honestly exhausted Lodi sometimes. Odessa seemed to understand that though and the two of them had an unspoken understanding of their relationship. Today Lodi was in a good mood and she was glad to see the peppy girl and she smiled as the girl approached, giving her a small embrace. Lodi kept the smile on her face as the girl spoke to the group of students -although she wasn't listening too much to the conversations around her.

Lodi's smile dropped a bit -nearly unnoticeably- as her attention turn to Jade as she joined the group. The two did not necessarily hate each other. They weren't even that much of rivals. However, there seemed to be a tension between them whenever they talked. Jade just seemed a bit too happy and fake to Lodi, but perhaps she was wrong in her assumptions of the girl.

After greeting Jade with only a courteous nod of her head, Lodi seemed to drift into random thoughts of what the coming year would bring and was unaware of Alison's ordeal with her brother until the blonde had informed them with much disdain that she was headed for the ship. Lodi gave a confused look after the girl but shrugged it off, deciding that it was none of her business. Something was probably going on that Lodi didn't know about and she wasn't good enough friends with Alison yet to ask her.

Once Alison and her brother had left, Lodi began to think that perhaps they should all start heading over to the ship. She finally turned back to Odessa and Wesley. She slung an arm lazily around the shoulder of the latter and grinned, looking from her to Odessa and back again before saying sarcastically, "So, who's ready to start year numero six off?"

"New luggage piece?" Chase laughed at Sonny's question as he set Eden down on her feet. "My sister, Eden," he said. "It's her first year at Orenda this year." He turned to Daniel as the recent graduate asked whether he thought both Eden and Max would make it into Aquila. "Wouldn't surprise me a bit," he replied. "Of course, this little bookworm could get into Vulpes too, but who knows?" Eden rolled her eyes at the comment. Chase was always teasing her about constantly having her nose in a book.

Chase smiled and nodded in greeting as Lodi made her way over to the group and laughed at her joke about Daniel having to do an extra year at Orenda, but his laugh was cut short by a question coming from a guy walking up behind Alison. “Are these...your friends?” Chase's eyes narrowed distrustfully at him. Granted, he didn't fully trust people too easily anyway, but there was something extra-menacing about this person that made the hairs on the back of Chase's neck stand up. His eyes followed the guy until both he and Sonny were in the store.

Meanwhile, Wesley had appeared and thus commenced the squeals and hugs of girlfriends who hadn't seen each other all summer. Chase grinned when Odessa joined them a minute later, sporting a different skirt than he had seen her leave in earlier, and offering them some of her mom's Cajun potato pie. His mouth watered at the mention of it, but before he could answer, Eden was tugging at his shirt. "Chase, we're running out of time," she said. "I have to get my wand before we leave.

Chase sighed. "Sorry guys. Duty calls. I'll see you all on the ship?" He turned to Odessa before leaving. "And I'll be back in enough time to have some of that potato pie before we set off."

---

---

As the ship emerged from the water of Greenwood Lake, Chase was still drinking glass after glass of gillywater. He had not been prepared for the level of heat involved in true Cajun cooking. It had taken Eden a very long time to stop giggling over Chase's reaction to it, and she was still having trouble keeping a straight face each time he asked for a refill.

As the students began filing off the deck of the boat and towards the main entrance of the school, a gray-haired woman with a kind face stood at the edge of the lake. "First years, this way please," she called out. "All first years, please follow me!" Eden took a deep breath and gripped harder onto her brand new wand. Walking towards the woman, she noticed Max making his way there as well. Being the only other first year that she recognized, since they had met earlier in Rhiamon Way, she quickened her pace to fall into step beside him. "Hey," she said, smiling at him. "You nervous at all? I kinda am."

At the school...

Max Avarus:

Fear. He felt it as he saw this giant, intimidating place. So when Eden found him and asked about being nervous, he had to admit he was. "Yeah, kinda afraid. But my dad always said that in order to be brave you have to be afraid. So, I guess in a way, going through this despite our nervousness and fear means we are brave". He was trying to be as comforting as possible, plus at the moment Eden was his only friend here. He thought about his brothers friends, maybe connecting with them, but for now, one step at a time.

"So, what is your wand made of? Mine is Dragonwood and Whale Bone core". He honestly hoped they got into the same house, because then he would have someone to talk to. As he looked around, he noticed the school seemed to be built around a lot of old ruins and structures, until he realized much of it was connected to the school. "I heard about this. During the civil war, a large portion of this place went into disrepair. I heard the halls are magic, and occasionally shift and change. Not to mention all the secret passages built. Apparently, it's believed whole rooms, and even entire wings are undiscovered. Maybe we could find one, and find something really cool".

Max had a bit of an adventurous side, he had to admit. He might study hard, work hard, and be trouble prone, but he had to have some fun.

The trip continued onward as they headed towards the dining hall. "Hey, no matter what, even if we end up different houses, we are friends. Agreed?" He just hoped they would, to make it easier. However, he also hoped to get into Aquila, to not disappoint his parents. However, as they entered the dining hall, he found his name being called up first. "Wish me luck".

He still felt the fear as he walked up to the cup, but he kept repeating his own father's words. You need to be afraid to be brave. So it really shouldn't have surprised him that he was sorted into Aquila, which is known for bravery. Now he was just hoping Eden would join him, as he took a seat in Aquila with an open spot next to him.

Charles Danforth:

He watched as the sorting began, having safely stored his things away. It came as no surprise Daniel's younger brother followed in his footsteps. He wondered how this year would go. Probably peaceful and uneventful.

(Lol, fell asleep typing)

"Nice wand, great quality" he had noted when she sat down.

"Also, I think it only said 'Don't go in alone' or something like that" Max noted, happy to see her. "Guess we are all in this together, then".

As the others got sorted, Max took out a book and reviewed over it a little. It was "Ridgecrest's Guide to Advanced Alchemy". An abnormally advanced book for him, but he read through pages like wildfire for a good two minutes. "So, what classes are you taking? I have quite a few of them. Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Dueling and Enchanting, Magical History, Runes, and a few more. Just wondering if we have the same classes".

As a few more students got sorted, Max started to eat some of the food. "This is delicious. You should try this".

As the ceremonies continued, Max was starting to really enjoy himself, like all the pressure was just...gone, for the moment. He ate some cake, and got whipped cream on his nose, making it twitch in a funny way.

"Oh, and your welcome about the advice!" He noted. He then added "So, what do you think will happen next..."

That is when fireworks flew between the tables of the houses, before directing upwards and exploding into the Animal of the house they are next to. "So Eden, seems like this is a great way to start a year. What could possibly go wrong?"

Those are possibly the single set of words Max should never utter.

Alison and Sterling had lingered at the back of the group that pilfered into the Great Hall, teasing one another and comparing the horror stories of the summer. They were one of the last ones to be seated, taking a spot nearby Wesley and Lodi who Alison meekly smiled at before turning her attention to the front at the headmistress opened the sorting ceremony with a short but sweet introduction.

She only recognized two of the first years, Chase’s sister and Dan’s brother. They had both been sorted into Aquila, which was no surprise to Alison. For the most part, for Alison at least, it was easy to predict which house someone would be in. Scanning her eyes over the great hall she stereo typed each house. Aquila were those who were the valiant, do-the-right-thing type people, Vulpes was more the people who preferred to sit back and let things unfold until they saw the right time to intervene, Cerva the geniune and straight forward type, and finally Ursus. As she ran her eyes along the table of Ursus, her eyes were caught by a familiar face.

Murdo sat still faced among the other Ursus members, whom Alison considered all to be headstrong and tactical. She knew he went to Orenda, but she couldn’t help to feel as if she was back in Hogwarts again, being shoved around by her own brother and forced to be a bitch to everyone outside of her house just so she could feel like she belonged with those within her house. He had also been Slytherin, which is why it surprised her he had been sorted into a different house. Glancing down her table she saw his sister only a few heads down, talking to her own friends.

Murdo hadn’t been close to Grimm, the two had butted heads on several occasions if memory served right. Still even knowing that Murdo and Grimm no longer spoke to one another it felt as if her brother had sent someone to spy on her because he couldn’t stand the idea of her being free of him. Shaking her head she turned to her plate before her, empty, much like herself.

“Oh my God, you have to try these pastries, they’re fucking delicious!” Sterling said beside her, piling his plates with goodies.

She smiled, laughing under her breath. “Sure, why not?” She said, then piling her plate up, much like Sterling.

Although some people remained in the main hall, still eating at their house tables or socialising or generally loitering, quite a few had begun to leave in dribs and drabs to return to their dorms and common rooms. Sat at the Aquila table, Lyria wolfed down the last of the food on her plate - it wasn't as though she was worried about putting on weight, she could eat like a horse and still have the curveless figure of a prepubescent beanpole. The sorting was over, and she was pleased to see Max being sorted into Aquila; that would give her all the more opportunities for her to tease him at school... and of course she might help show him around a bit. If she was feeling generous.

She drained the last of her pumpkin juice and stood from the table, extricating her spidery legs, and noted that somewhere along the table between her and the door out of the hall was Max, talking to another first year - she hadn't really been listening during the sorting, was the girl's name Eve? Ede or something like that. Whoever she was, she should probably at least go and say hi to her second cousin, so as she strolled in their direction she interrupted their conversation with a ruffle of Max's hair. He may not be at school with his brother, but Lyria was there to make sure he couldn't escape embarassing family members entirely.

"Welcome to Aquila, little man," she said with an impish grin, cocking her head slightly to the side. Her tone was joking and lighthearted; so maybe she was teasing him a little, but ultimately it was intended to be a friendly gesture.

Eden took in the spread of food laid out on the table before her. Everything looked and smelled so good. She reached for a hot honey-topped dinner roll and pulled it apart, taking in the scent of the fresh-baked bread before savoring the taste. "So, what classes are you taking? Max asked her, as he named off the classes he was in.

Eden scrunched up her nose as she thought about it. She was pretty sure first years took all the same classes. "Um, I have Charms, Potions, History of Magic, Transfiguration, DADA, Herbology, Astronomy, and of course Basic Flying," she replied. Then she lowered her voice to a whisper and leaned in closer to Max. "But I already know how to fly. Chase taught me back at home."

She reached over to grab a slice of cake Max had told her was especially delicious, and laughed when he got some of the whipped cream on his nose. Suddenly, fireworks were going off, exploding into the House Animals over their respective tables. Eden clapped and cheered as the Aquila eagle formed over their table.

She looked over at Max, who was enjoying the fireworks as well. ""So Eden, seems like this is a great way to start a year. What could possibly go wrong?"

Eden laughed at his comment, but then she had a strange feeling in her gut. She cleared the throat, starting to feel uneasy about the school year again. "Probably more than you think," she said. She got quiet for a minute as she focused on eating for a little while longer, until she heard somebody walk up behind them. She looked over as as one of the older girls in their House tousled Max's hair while welcoming him to Aquila. Eden smiled up at her, perking up a little. "Hey, if you're done eating, do you want to go check out the Aquila common room?" she asked.

Max Reed:

Max had all those classes too, probably the same as Eden, except he also was in Danforth's class as well, and his work seemed more...intricate. Max might be pressured, but he was also incredibly intelligent. And he studied really well. To be honest, he was fairly advanced, but they had these certain rules so he needed to do this. that, and he didn't want to seem weird on his first year.

He was somewhat jealous that she knew how to fly already. Granted, he KIND OF did, but he wasn't sure if it counted. "Do you have your own broom? I got mine. An Aether V, one of the best brooms out there". The Aether V was one of the most valuable, and one of the best, brooms currently in existence. it could literally make you feel like you were not even on a broom, without the risk of falling off.

He twitched his nose some more, before wiping the whipped cream off of his nose and laughing himself. He enjoyed the fireworks, and then he heard that name. He replied to his cousin in a friendly, playful, but semi annoyed voice "I told you NOT to call me that Lyr!"

As the festivities seemed to start dying out, Eden asked if he wanted to see the Common Room. "Sure! I think it was...this way!" he noted, grabbing Eden's hand as he made his way...in the exact opposite direction. Max rarely ever got lost...unless he is going there for the first or second time, in which case he almost ALWAYS got lost...something Eden was bound to find out.

"I told you not to call me that Lyr!" came Max's faintly irritated reply, but it was still lighthearted so Lyria knew she hadn't really offended him too much. She responded predictably - with a short laugh - and turned to leave the hall, calling back jokingly over her shoulder "Don't get too lost on your first day, 'kay?"

The irony of her comment was lost on her as she headed down the main corridor, not seeing Max lead Eden off in completely the wrong direction to the Aquila common room. Lyria herself didn't have much of a plan for the rest of the evening, she would probably wind up back in the common room eventually, but first she decided to pay a quick visit to the owlery - she always liked to check on Samwise after travelling, and so she made her way up to the owlery tower.

Looking out of the great owlery windows you could pretty much see out across the whole school; the flying pitches, the rolling fields that spread down to the lake. She was sure she could see a figure sat on the hill above the lake, but it was too dark and far away to make out who it was. Puzzled as to who could be out in the grounds by themselves at this time and what they could be doing, Lyria turned away from the window and descended the owlery tower steps again, letting Samwise perch on her forearm - he kept his nocturnal sleep patterns during the holidays and at so right now he was at his most awake, and cheerfully accompanied his owner as she began to trek across the school fields towards the lonely figure on the hillside.

She really hoped she could find her way there in the dark without getting lost.

Eden frowed slightly when Max asked if she had her own broom. "No," she said. "My parents wouldn't let me get one yet. They said they'll send me one after I pass Basic Flying. They don't exactly know that I know how to fly already. I was only supposed to be watching Chase while he was practicing for Quodpot, but he said he wanted to show me how so I wouldn't be scared when we started learning it here." She smiled, thinking about the day she learned to fly during this past summer. "It was so much fun. I love flying. But Quodpot, not so much. I don't really like things that explode."
 
When Max agreed that they should go see the common room, Eden took one last sip of pumpkin juice before standing. Max seemed pretty sure of where he was going, so Eden did not object when he took her hand and began leading her down one of the corridors. After a couple of minutes of walking throught he winding hallway, though, she started to get worried.
 
Come to think of it, she didn't recall having seen any other students come down this way from the Great Hall. She began to slow down a bit, tugging on Max's hand that still held on to her own. "Um... Max? Are you sure you know where you're going?" she asked. "I don't think anybody else went this way."

Max Avarus:

"I know exactly where we are going....We are going to the Aquila Common Room. Which is just around....here!" he said, as they walked into a new room. It was a room filled with bookshelves and books, and there were lighting fixtures floating up held by chains next to some tables and chairs. Or at least, that is what he thought, before looking down. In fact, they were on the ceiling of the library, somehow, but further more it was possible to walk there.

The librarian walked below them, asking if they were lost. "No! Okay, maybe we just took the wrong turn someplace. Uhhh, how do we get down by the way?"

"Walk on the walls of course!"

Max put one foot on the wall, then the other, and it was as if gravity shifted for him. "Well Eden, we are in the library, which I believe is close to the Aquila Common Room" he noted as he walked down the wall. However, as he stepped onto the floor, a book fell off the bookcase and hit him in the head, and then fell to the ground. "Ow!"

Max picked up the book, and a dark shiver went down his spine. He felt weird for a brief second. It was a black book, with nothing written on it and gold trimming. When he looked inside, there was no writing. The librarian looked at the book, and cast "Specialist Revelio", but nothing happened, not even magical resistance. She looked back to Max. "Well, looks like some out a blank book in the library. And the library is no place for blank books, so here, you can have it. Oh, also, the Aquila Common Room is down that hall, up the stairs, down the hall on the right, past the Defense Against the Dark Arts room, up another flight of stairs, and then take a left, and it should be obvious from there".

Max nodded before grabbing Eden's hand and beginning to walk one way. "The other hall!"

Max makes a complete 180, and begins going the other way, following the librarian's instructions. "See! We were going the right way...sort of...."