There was one place in particular that you could usually count on being packed with people, which would be perfect when you were essentially forcing people to be your audience. And THAT place was the Great Hall. If Quidditch had still been on, Toby would have waited until everyone assembled for a game and read his ode there, and had actually totally dreamt that he'd done so. But then... all his dreams involved Quidditch, so it wasn't really that weird.

ANYWAY, he hurried into the Great Hall now, clutching a very annotated piece of parchment upon which his Ode to Pebbles was written. The ORIGINAL, in fact. Obviously, he'd be re-writing it in neat for Airey later. Toby was also sort of covered in smudges of ink. On his hands and his school shirt (mainly the sleeves) and even a little on his face. His ode wasn't even that LONG but it had taken a LOT of reworking; he may have done a lot of writing for school publications, but Toby was definitely NOT creative enough to have found this task easy at all. He sort of maybe hadn't actually slept. This poem was the product of a sleepless night and a lot of frustrated scribblings and crossings out. But it was done. Now just to force everyone in the immediate vicinity to hear it perform it.

"AHEM." The Hufflepuff cleared his throat loudly, still striding down the middle of the Hall. When he reached one end, he turned back and went the other way, pacing until he was done. "An ODE to PEBBLES."

Were they ready? Okay, good.

"Her eyes shine bright like distance stars, sunny smile lights the day... But all the light was flung afar, when Pebbles went away..." This was so sad????? Toby couldn't remember writing something so sad but apparently he HAD and he was already tearing up and poor Pebbles and SO SAD WOW. Okay, admittedly, the emotions might have come from the lack of sleep, BUT STILL. "She has a rocky history, and tends to disappear. Her whereabouts? A mystery, though many hold her dear..." That wasn't so bad, at least. Emotions were held at bay for a while longer.

Toby had reached the other end of the Hall now, and turned back to pace the other way, clearing his throat seeing as his voice had gotten all croaky. "She's not a simple moon rock, with her happy disposition. But now she's lost, OH DO NOT MOCK. Finding her is our MISSION." Like SPACE mission, did they see? Toby hadn't highlighted it much more, 'cause this was still a srs poem 4 pebblz. "Vanished from Airey's doting sight, like the moon in its 'new' phase. But soon we'll see her, shining bright, like a full moon's beaming rays." Did the moon HAVE rays? Toby thought they were more like moon BEAMS, but that didn't really rhyme, soooooo... yah.

Merlin. He was so tired though. Like... loopy tired. MerlinMerlinMerlin. Schmerlin.

... Wow. He was sad about Pebbles. SO SAD. LIKE REALLY SAD??? But Toby just had to get through this last part... and then go be sad about her on his own. Or look for her. Or both.

"Return home, Pebbles, safe and sound... home again, like the cycling moon. Lunacy will reign if she's not found. #BRINGPEBBLESHOME (please, and before June)."

...

"Please."

*wibble*

No, no. Toby wasn't crying. There was SOMETHING in his EYE, oKAY? He tried to get it out of there now, rubbing at the corner of his eye totes inconspicuously as he nodded his thanks to his audience of students and staff in the Great Hall (who'd really had no choice in the matter), and took his leave again.

... Grabbing a slice on the way out, of course, 'cause he was a hungry Tobes.