While the other children were busy being rambunctious...loud...obnoxious...social....Eria just wanted somewhere to escape them all. The lanky teen did best solitary and in silence, all the stench of happiness made her a tad ill to be honest. It didn't work well with her constitution, so she had always turned her affections to ideas borne from paper. The she snake had been a bibliophile likely from birth and with a mother that was a published author, well it only fed the habit.

Slipping into the study hall as quietly as an owl alights a tree, the green-eyed snake slithered into the darkest, quietest corner one could possibly find. It was there that she decided to crack open her DADA book to have a good read. The smell of the ink on this particular book was fresh and clean, the parchement mint and warm...yes beautiful, tell her about yourself....

The study hall was one of Quinn's little havens from her peers. On most days, it was fairly empty. Perfect for going undisturbed for hours. It wasn't necessarily about the silence, although she rather preferred that. No, the library was silent too. For Quinn, the study hall was about space and time to herself.

Today, it wasn't empty. There were a few others in here, but plenty of available spaces away from people. But as Quinn entered, wearing a dress (it was a rare sight to see her in jeans or pants) and Puck's leather jacket, she spotted one of the few people she enjoyed, hiding in a corner. Eria.

Quinn made her way over to the older snake, and set down the large bowl of chips she'd requested from the kitchen. Comfort food. All varieties of potato dishes were comfort food for Quinn, but the worked best chips, and worked least as crisps.

Moving the chair slighty farther from Eria so a good person and a half worth of space was between them, Quinn sat down and opened her bag. There were only two people Quinn was currently comfortable leaving no space between them. The first was Reese. And the second fit in her arms and might become could be was possibly going to be will be her baby sister soon enough.

First, she pulled out her leather bound infinity book, tapped the spine lightly with her wand and whispered, "Creative jinxes, hexes and curses, 5th edition," and opened the book. She flipped through it until finding the right page.

Quinn repeated this with two more books, both standard library books, focusing on magical theory and spell crafting. Advanced stuff for a first year, and Quinn knew she was a long ways away from being ready to craft her own spells with success. This....this was mostly practice. And catharsis.

Lastly, she pulled out her quill, and a bottle of scarlet ink, and a roll of parchment, that when unrolled and laid flat was already half filled with very detailed notes. The title, which had received much focus and lavish flair that made it easy to see, read: Unforgivable things to do to my parents! Catharsis.

And finally, as way of greeting while Quinn settled down into her going no-where-but-still-therapeutic side project, Quinn slide the bowl of English chips between them so Eria might enjoy them as well.

The lanky snake was wearing an all black, form fitting compression suit of sorts. It covered past her ankles and wrists, only her hands and face were visible from her garb and footwear...like she'd decided on stealth gear as a fashion norm. At least it helped her blend into her darkened corner.

Apparently...her wardrobe didn't make her dark enough...because she had been found. Though of anyone to find her...she minded this person about the least. Tweetless knew not to crowd onto someone and not to be loud or obnoxious. Eria always had appreciated that about the eagle child.

After a few moments of silence and reading between the pair...a bowl of crisps casually made its way to the space between them. After a few more moments, the older snake gave the bowl a casual glance.

She noted it as an acknowledgement of their friendship???

After another moment...green eyes floated over to little Ravenclaw on her right. Peering over at what she was writing, because she couldn't help her interest, the 5th year paused to consider. "You know,...that could be seen as incriminating evidence." Casual advice as she flipped her page.

The initial response came in the form of a slight devious smirk as Quinn continued to jot something out. When she finished she set her quill back in the ink well and looked over at Eria with a shrug. There was a quality in her eyes just now, an undercurrent of menace and anger that almost hinted she might actually try these on her parents if she could work them out and cast them. Almost.

"I've been practicing incendio. There won't be anything left after I've worked them out and mastered them." Then she sighed and grabbed a chip out of the large bowl. She really should have brought ketchup as well.

The faux resolve evaporated just then, but that menacing glint in her eye remained. "It's just for me. Mostly. Cathartic, I guess." She turned back to her books but didn't pick up the quill again just yet. "Maybe I'll teach myself the permanent stick charm and stick it somewhere in the house they'll see it everyday. And know just how I feel."

She stared at her books for a long moment, but not actually reading them. "Sorry. What are you working on?"

It was important that the studentsies had a nice clean place to do all their important studies and learnings. Feather duster at the ready, Tippin got to work dusting off all the desks and chairs in the study hall.

Dust, dust, dust.

Couldn't have studentsies doing learnings while it was dusty!

Regina made her way from her office, carrying a large jar of Floo Powder, and made her way up to the fourth floor. It was Saturday, so she expected the room to be empty ... but she assumed it would fill up moderately fast as 1 o'clock neared and it would be time to depart for the Gobbledegook field trip at Gringotts.

But the room wasn't empty. There, dusting away, was one of the house-elves. Tippin, right?

"Oh, hello, Tippin," the headmistress said to the elf, making her way down an isle of desks toward the fireplace in the front of the room. With it being April, there was no need for a fire, but the woman took out her wand with her free hand and started one anyway. They'd need it to get to the bank without trouble, and, yes, she had permission to do this.

"Don't mind us," she continued, speaking about herself and the students that were to come, as she stood next to the lit fireplace. "Will just be using the fireplace to get to Gringotts. We shouldn't be here long." Regina glanced down at her watch. They'd be congregating in the room for fifteen minutes to be precise, then be on their way.

OOC: Hey, everyone! If you have a student who is learning Gobbledegook or just wants to tag along on this field trip, we will be gathering here before departing! Tomorrow I will be making another post linking you to the thread we will be using for the field trip and moving us along. ^___^

Just FYI, only primary student characters should be posted here, but secondary student characters will be welcome in the actual field trip thread.

Excited to not only be learning about gobbledegook, but to also be visiting Gringotts, Emmalyn entered the study hall room with a cheery look on her face. "Good day, Headmistress, I trust you are well on this fine Saturday."

She slowly ambled towards the fireplace area, not wanting to miss one bit of instruction. She had never traveled by floo powder and was rather nervous about it. Last years port key experiences had left her a bit befuddled upon arrival and she hoped floo powder didn't have the same results.

Maddie wasn't exactly learning Gobbledegook, but she'd missed out on that underwater voyage that had lead to the treasure. No way was she missing out on a second field trip! When she'd owled her mom about signing the permission slip, Layla Kemp had been somewhat confused. Her daughter? Gobbledegook? Nevertheless, she'd signed the form, and Maddie kept it securely in her pocket as she headed to the study hall.

When she got there, she expected a crowd, but it was only a house elf, Emmalyn, and the Headmistress. "Hey, Emmalyn!" she greeted. The second year girl had become a good friend of Maddie's, and she was glad they'd ended up in the same house. "Hello, Headmistress! Tippin!" Did she overhear that they'd be using the fireplace? Awesome! Maddie always loved that way of traveling!

Before she had even reached the other side of the room, Maddie entered. "Hi Maddie!" She sort of bounced and waved at her Hufflepuff housemate. "I overheard the Headmistress say we were using the fireplace to get to Gringotts, have you ever traveled that way? I'm a bit nervous about it." She rubbed her slightly sweaty palms on her legs to dry them off.

Realizing she hadn't greeted Tippin yet, she quickly turned to the house elf with a smile "Hi there, Tippin. I hope we aren't interrupting your cleaning." She loved the house elves. They always kept Hogwarts looking great and they made the best treats.

So she wasn't exactly taking Gobbledegook but she wasn't at all opposed to learning the language or any other language for that matter. Which was part of the reason Rylee had chosen to come on this trip. To see if she was truly interested in making some room in her already busy schedule to learn gobbledegook AND to get to really see Gringotts. She'd been there plenty but maybe they would be getting to see things that most others didn't when going there?

Either way she was pretty excited as she entered the study hall looking around for where they were supposed to be gathering. Spotting the small group near the fireplace she made her way over smiling brightly. "Good afternoon, Headmistress."

"Hi, Emmalyn! Hi, Daisy!" Rylee smiled standing beside the two other girls. Had she just heard Emmalyn say they were using the fireplace?! Awesome! Traveling by floo was fun and a lot calmer than apparating or using a portkey at least that's how she felt about it.

Her smile widened and she waved when she spotted the house elf as well. "Hello, Tippin!"

Oooooooooh.

"Good day, Headmistress!" The little house elf squeaked and dipped into a bow. "Tippin be making sure everything is spick and span!"

He dusted vigorously at the closest desk to prove it. Lots of cleaning, lots of dusting.

Tippin smiled timidly at all the kind studentsies who greeted him. He was bad at remembering all the names but he remembered the girl with the red hair! "Hello Miss Rosie."

RIGHT. Anna couldn't care less about Gobbledegook, BUT!!!!!!!! she heard there would be a filed trip, so she was IN! YAS!!

The girl made her way to the middle floors where she knew they'd be meeting up to then go to said field trip. When she arrived at the study hall, she gave everyone who was already there a happy smile. "Hi, all!" Happy Anna was happy and decided to wave too.

"So this is a Gryffindor and Hufflepuff field trip, is it!?" She asked to no one in particular, chuckling at the sight of students from only those two houses so far.

Not that she was complaining. It would probably make the whole thing better.

Heehee!

‘a Gryffindor and Hufflepuff field trip’ … The words from Anna’s mouth had greeted Stasya as she’d slipped into the study hall for the Gobbledegook field trip. She knew there were others in the class that weren’t in those two Houses, but then deep down she didn’t necessarily mind if it turned out that only Lions and Badgers went. She’d miss her friends from the other two houses, but the notice had been posted in plenty of time to get permission slips signed and everything. Her was safely stowed away inside her bag, having gotten it back signed that morning.

Either way, she’d had a smile on her face as she arrived. Maybe the others were just running late. It was a possibility, even though the headmistress had said they were leaving at 1pm sharp. People could’ve gotten distracted or something.

“Good afternoon Headmistress Hawthorne,” she greeted the woman as she joined the group, still with a smile on her face. Plus, “Hi Anna, Rylee, Emmalyn, Maddie!” and also, because of course she hadn’t missed the presence of Tippin in the room either, she bestowed the elf with an extra-special smile. “Hi Tippin!”

Now she guessed they were just waiting to see who else wanted to come.

So he wasn't taking Gobbledegook. He just wanted a chance to get out of the castle that wasn't a Hogsmeade weekend, so he'd decided to tag along on this field trip. A decision he almost went back on after seeing the jar the Headmistress was holding, since jars by a fireplace usually meant Floo travel and he wasn't at all keen on that. But, he supposed that with the ages of most of the students here it was between that and portkeys (or bus) and this way had less potential of people throwing up.

"Good afternoon, guys." Jeez, this was a small group. And like Anna had pointed out, solely Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs.

"Thank you, Tippin. You are doing a wonderful job," the woman responded to what the elf had said. She always did appreciate their hard work. Even Toddles to a degree, when he wasn't being mischievous.

Her attention didn't linger on the house-elf for very long. Soon enough a few students made their appearances in the study hall.

First there was Emmalyn. The headmistress smiled as she approached. "Hello, Miss Walsh. I'm going quite well today, thank you. Excited for the trip?" She hoped she, among others, was excited. She was sure many of them hadn't seen much of Gringotts, besides the entrance hall and the outside of many vaults.

"Hello, Miss Kemp and Miss Prichard," she said as the two walked in. Then, greetings were said to the others. "Welcome, Miss Meriwether, Miss Dalgaard-Volkova, and Mr. Carter."

Now ... where was everyone else? Luckily for them, they still had time to get there and not miss out. They needed to hurry though. Five minutes. They had five minutes before she left without them.

But for those who were already in the room, Regina wasn't going to keep them idly waiting. At least not in the school. There were people waiting for them at the bank, and it was going to be much faster process to start sending students through the fireplace.

"Alright, everyone," the headmistress called out. "We are going to be visiting Gringotts today for a special tour. I'll explain in more detail once we all are there. One at a time, come forward and grab a handful of Floo Powder." She set the jar on the nearest desk to the fireplace. "Throw the powder into the fire, step in, and say 'Gringotts' very clearly. You will be taken to the bank's lobby. There will be Gringotts employees to greet you. Please be on your best behaviour and do not wander off. I will see you all on the other side."

OOC: And off we go! Linked above is the thread we will be using for this field trip. If you want, feel free to make a post here stepping into the fire and being whisked away. Otherwise, we will all be congregating in the other thread until our special tour begins.

If you haven't posted yet, feel free to jump in! The more the merrier! ^___^

Not long after arriving, the Headmistress gave the announcement of how they were to get to Gringotts and what to do upon their arrival. Not only would she be on her best behavior, there was little chance of her wandering off.

Just before she headed towards the fireplace, her heart pounded with a brief moment of panic, then she realized that had to be easier than port key. It just had to. After taking a deep, calming breath she stepped up, grabbed a handful of floo powder, tossed it in and said "Gringotts!" Then she was gone.

Between Skylar's combined interest in cursebreaking along with her love of linguistics, it was really little surprise that the Slytherin Captain was taking Gobbledegook OR that she would be interested in the field trip. And she actually looked somewhat presentable too, because even though she hadn't heard back from any cursebreaking University programs yet, perhaps she'd make a good enough impression today to be able to grant an internship.

Arriving into the Study Hall JUST in time to hear Hawthorne's words, she followed suit of the younger Hufflepuff, grabbing a handful of floo powder. And for a moment, lingered, debating shouting the address of her home instead. But upon closing her eyes, figured she needed to not run home. She was seventeen. She was strong. Wasn't she?

'Gringotts', she spoke clearly after tossing the powder into the fire and stepping in. And she was off.

Maddie smiled as Emmalyn greeted her. So they were using the fireplace? "Awesome!" she replied. "Oh, yeah, I'be used the floo several time with my mom and dad! There's nothing to it, and you're there in no time. You just have to be sure not to mispronounce the place you're going." A younger Gryffindor girl came up just then, one that Maddie didn't really know. She assumed the girl didn't know her either, since she didn't say anything directed to her. "Hi! I'm Maddie," she said.

It didn't occur to her that the students were made up only of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff students, until somebody else pointed that out. She looked around. Sure enough, the girl had been right. Well, until Skylar showed up, at least. "Hey, Stasya!" she replied. She looked around and gave smiles to everyone she hadn't greeted, and then she turned her attention to the headmistress when the woman addressed them.

Ohh, a special tour of Gringott's! COOL! Maddie had been there many times, but she'd never been on a tour! She wondered if they'd see any secret places or something! She joined a line of students, and when it was her turn, she grabbed a handful of floo powder. She threw the powder into the fire, stepped in, and said as clearly as she could---"Gringott's."

...and she was off!