Diane felt a big wave push her all the way to the second floor. The water stopped its ascent at that moment. Well, would you look at that, the water had notions of cubical spaces. She found she was still holding onto the robes of the older student, Daphne, both still with no protection and drenched from head to toe. Releasing her at last, twisting her own robes to eliminate excess of water, Diane turned to her partner-in-wet, and said, "If you could perform the sonorus charm now...?"

Abby makes her way to the second floor landing. She climbs the last stairs amazed the water has stopped just as mysteriously as it had started. She looks down at what is left of the party dress Miss Avalon had transfigured for her. Abby bends over and takes some deep breathes.

Marcus followed both Abby and Kiri out of his office, through the waiting room, swam the first floor corridor and finally found dry ground on the second floor. He looked at his guitar and almost wanted to cry, it was all wet and there was slime on it.

He wasn't even bothered that his nose was still bleeding from where Abby's hard head had struck him. He looked at the two girls and they both seemed to be fine. Good. Because he was not in the mood to look after them at the moment. Iris needed him right now and he hugged his guitar to himself. "I suggest you girls go to your common rooms and change out of your wet clothes. If you feel the need to go to the hospital wing then be my guest." Marcus had no intentions of going anywhere near the place, he would fix his nose himself after he had attended to Iris first.

He started to walk down the corridor and then stopped. Where exactly was he supposed to go?

Kiri slid down the wall, breathing heavily. The water was dripping out of her clothes steadily, forming a little pool around her. The professor's stuff lay on the ground, a little way away, her wand next to it. She sat there for a few seconds, just to get her breath back, then crawled over and picked up her wand. She struggled upright. Her wand arm felt as if it was made of lead - it was going to be sore in the morning, she knew it. With gentle movements, she began drying herself off.

As she was Vanishing the water on the floor, there were noises and movements at the low end of the staircase. Professor Lawson and the girl, both gasping, emerged from the water and stumbled up the stairs towards her. The professor was cradling his guitar like a baby, and he didn't seem to be paying any attention to his bleeding nose. The girl just stood there, hands on her knees, breathing hard.

They didn't spend much time talking. Kiri nodded. She would definitely go back to the common room. Her clothes were still sort of clammy, and she was cold. She indicated the mass of papers and books and boxes on the floor. "That's, er, most of your things, I think, Professor," Kiri said. "They should be dry. More or less, anyway," she amended. "I'll, er, be off to the common room now." She smiled at him weakly - even though he only seemed to have eyes for his guitar - and gave both of them a little wave, then walked away slowly. Her wet shoes squelched with every step.

Abby is freezing all over. The dress Miss Avalon had created for her was not made to go swiming in. She also panting for breath. Abby doesn't know what hurts worse her lungs, her arms, or her legs. She looks over at Professor Lawson. He looks as bad as Abby feels which is pretty bad. Abby cringes at the mention of the Hospital Wing. She'll die before she goes and sees Miss Avalon again. Abby can imagine the comments she would make about her appearance alone. She looks down at her left hand. Abby sees know the scarf is caught on those silly crochet gloves Miss Avalon insisted she wear. She pulls the gloves off and untwist the scarf from it. "I put an Impenetrable charm on your guitar before the water got to it. I hope it did some good." Abby looks at the scarf. It's a Hufflepuff Scarf. Must mean our stuff and the Slyterin's personal stuff is floating all over the castle now. Terrific. Abby throws the scarf over her shoulder and tries to figure out how she's going to get the Ravenclaw Common Room. Then she needs to find her bag and the stuff she managed to save from Professor Truebridge's office. The banishing spell had send the stuff further away than she thought it would.

Okay. He was 90% sure that this was the right corridor... Now where the heck is that gargoyle hiding?

And earpiercing screech filled the corridor. It was coming from the submerged great hall.

Abby covers her ears the sound is so loud. It reminds her of someone running their fingers down a chalk board, but a 100 times louder. Abby sees Professor Bontcou walking a short distance away. Abby runs towards him. She doesn't know why, but it seems like the right thing to do.

Aislynn rushed down from the seventh floor corridor, with the second year following closely behind her. She took out her wand along the way in case someone needed help. She saw the girl who was covering her ears and turned to her, "So, I take it you heard the noise too. We heard it all the way on the 7th floor. I wonder what it is? It almost sounded...inhuman. Or maybe someone in pain?"

Abby looks at the girl with her wand out. "Yes I definitely heard it. Do you think the Giant Squid could have stubbed his tenticle?" Abby removes her hands from her ears. The earsplitting noise seems to be dying down some. "It sounds like its coming from down below. That area's suppose to be deserted."

Natasha had rushed after the girl, and was now at the second floor corridor, where there was another girl there who had also heard the screech. "I think it's coming from where the water is. I don't think it's the squid either." She said. "Maybe something is down there, maybe something... Not human?"

"It sounds like yelling, like someone is angry," Aislynn said. "Wait a second. It's mermish!!! There's merpeople in Hogwarts!!!" She gripped her wand tighter. "What on earth will we do?"

Paris ran down the stairs for the source of the noise and it seemed the closer she got to the flooded the floors the louder it got. "Whats going on?" she asked everyone.

Natasha's eyes widened at this realization. "Merpeople? Really? Oh. You're right, it does sound like them." She said, stunned for a moment, before recovering herself. "I don't know, alert the staff? Why do you think they'd be in the Great Hall, though?"

She looked up as she recognized Paris. "Hello Paris," she said. "I was up in the seventh floor, and we," she motioned to the girl who had been there, too, but she was yet to find out her name. "Came down here. It sounds like merpeople from down in the Great Hall, or something." She explained.

This just kept getting more, and more weird.

She turned to Paris. "There was a loud screeching and some of us came to investigate. We think it may be merpeople."

"It's not like we can go down there!" Aislynn began to pace, something she did often when she was frustrated. "What about going to the Headmaster?"

Rather than pacing, like the older girl was, Natasha stood there, slightly nervous, but concentrated on thinking, too. "The headmaster sounds like a good idea." She agreed. "But there must be some reason why they're there, mustn't there?"

Paris looked Natasha and her eyes widened at the revelation. "Merpeople in the castle!" She shouted. That no good prince was trying to take over the castle. "First he floods my wardrobe and I lose my favorite compact in all this murky water and now he is trying to take over the castle," she fumed.

She stamped her foot. "This is not going to happen." she declared. "We need some teachers." she said looking at everyone else. She wasn't going to get a teacher. She wanted to hit something. She had lost her favorite compact and hell had no fury like a diva scorned.

"Well, the Giant Squid said that their leader Aornos went rogue and he's seeking more power," Aislynn said. She felt her palms sweat. "Maybe he's plans on extending his monarchy into Hogwarts?" She continued to pace. "That totally explains all the flooding! No wonder no one can stop it using wizarding powers, it's merpeople magic!"

"They could be trying to communicate with us. Do you think they're trying to take over the castle?"

Natasha looked around, frowning. "I have no idea," she murmured, listening to what everyone else said. "Should I go to Professor Shackleton's office, or the Headmasters, maybe?" She asked, seeing as those were the two closest offices.

Though coming out from just the Girl's Bathroom and as if untroubled by her oversized backpack, Diane was not the first to come. She was of now standing by the shore of the flood water edge, looking down at the murky water as if she expected something of her reflection. Others were talking among themselves, Diane did not really kept up with the conversation. Was it her or there was more sounds coming from down there?

Finally, she took down her notebook - usually for Potions experiments - and began writing down the discernible sounds she thought she may be able to record, straining her ears. Luckily, it did not take much straining; the speakers were loud enough to muffle the sound of excited students around her.

"Who in the world speaks Mermish?" she asked. "This is going to be complicated." Aislynn was worried. She knew she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. The thought of someone attacking the castle was terrifying.

"I doubt it would matter if any of could understand merish. It's impossible to understand above water. You'd have to stick your head underwater to even begin to understand what is being said. Above the water it just sounds like shrieking." Abby covers her ears up. Another one of the merpeople is yelling again. "I think they're just trying to let us know they've probably taken over the great hall."

Hesitantly, he walked down the corridor and noticed a few students gathered together chatting hastily amongst each other. "Um," he spoke nervously, not sure what else he needed to say. Cordova planned on visiting Professor Macadrian about some concerns involving his grades and the class material, but took an immediate detour once he heard a loud screech fill the corridor.

"Is everything okay? I mean," he held his books closer to his side looking around the hall worriedly as if expecting something to poop out any moment.

Water began seeping through the floor and starting to flood the second floor corridor.