"Asking implies there was a question, Professor. You merely said 'wands'." Raiden dropped his arm, but made no motion to stand, nor to remove his wand from the holster. "I guess we assumed you meant you wanted to know we had them."

Miles looked at the professor curiously. Now was SHE just stupid? "Sure thing. Can't promise I'll be back though," he said with a smirk. "Besides as long as I don't have it it shouldn't matter should it? But sure thing." He said with a smirk and stood up with a slight bow and a wink to Cela and Raiden. And he'll come back with some extra goodies too he got from Diagon Alley.

"I thought she was calling us wands." Celandine confided, turning to look at Raiden. "I mean, I know I'm good at magic and stuff..."

"Do you three REALLY want me to take 50 points off each of you?" She said starting to lose her good mood. "I don't really care, but your heads of houses might..."

She looked at Cela, "It's detention, I will take your wand. Now."

She turned to Raiden and said "Correct me one more time and Slytherin will lose twice the points that Ravenclaw will."

"And you," she smiled, "Prefect, if I do not get your wand in the next 5 minutes I will deduct 500 points." She then opened her hand and waited.

But how would they protect themselves if she set them on fire? Cela looked a little alarmed but without any further questions, since this time the request had actually been made clearly, she flicked her wand free of her concealed holster and held it out to the professor.

After spinning it idly on her fingertips and turning it so that the handle faced Lafay of course. The points thing didn't bother her. If anyone could earn... she counted, 600 points back for Ravenclaw? It was Celandine.

Shame that she had to threaten everyone else to get to them, but there it was. And she was being clear now, so there was no way to say he'd misunderstood.

Flicking his wrist almost imperceptibly, his wand slipped into his hand. A quick twist between his fingers and the offensive end was pointed back at himself, handle held out to the professor. However, besides having sat up properly, he made no move to get up.

Miles crossed his arms and looked at the professor with a frown. No sense of humour at all. Watching Cela hand her wand over he nodded. If Cela did it then he should. Taking his wand out of it's holster he handed it to her handle out with a smirk, "You really need to lighten up a bit."

She made the wands disappear. They appeared on each of their pillows on their rooms... but they wouldn't know until they went back. "We'll head to the Hooligan Hole... the Torture Chamber is being used at the moment..." She said opening the door. "Age before beauty..."

She gave the two boys a cheerful look, though it did briefly flicker to one of caution, before she stood up, gave the chair she'd conjured a thankful little pat and stood waiting for the professor to go.

"You're the oldest aren't you, professor? Shouldn't you go first?" Cela asked politely.

The feeling of his wand disappearing from his fingertips, not having been pulled from his grip, made the Slytherin Prefect grit his teeth.

Did not like magic being used on his wand.

Standing slowly, he waited.

Age before beauty indeed. Have at it, old lady.

Miles watched as his wand disappeared. Sighing he looked at the professor and watched as Cela stood up, not quite hiding a snicker at her question. I was about to say that.

... hmmm kid wasn't as stupid as she looked. The knew the professor was testing them. She smiled and say, "Very well... youth before beauty then..." and she waited for the children to exit.

"Inner beauty, professor?" Cela cocked her head to one side innocently, expression completely and utterly devoid of anything resembling guile or even, intelligence.

Miles smirk was still on his face and he stifled another snicker at Cela's question. He knew she was being honest but it was amusing him. Now came the question who went first him or Raiden.... hmmmm? That reminded him of that joke about the chicken and the egg. Which came first? Chuckling he looked at Raiden. "Who's older?" Well she had said a specific order.

Ah, there it was.

The professor did know how to speak plainly and correctly. Maybe she'd learn how to do that in class next. Maybe she'd even learn to ask before setting children on fire.

Fat chance, that.

Raiden was about to go toward the Hooligan Hole when he realised something. Glancing at Miles, he chewed on his bottom lip contemplatively.

He knew Cela had him in age, but... what about Miles?

"Are you telling me I have no inner beauty Miss Toussant?" Hecate asked as she closed the door. "We can stay here and delay your detention longer. I could care less."

Miles laughed and sat back down in his chair, "Yes, let's." Wonder how long someone could have detention anyway? "People who set kids on fire with no warning can't be beautiful on the inside..." he muttered to himself as he stared at his hands which were slightly shaking. Oops...maybe he should take a pill. Nah just a little longer.

"No professor." Celandine disagreed politely, quite sure there had to be SOMETHING in there.

"But there are three of us and how do we know what order to walk through the door? And to judge each other..." Cela went wide eyed and looked at Raiden and Miles, moved between them and caught both of their chins, giving their faces little shakes.

"Well we know I'm prettier AND older than Miles and Raiden, but they're both snoggable sixth years miss, so who goes first?"

She patted Raiden's cheek and then Miles, both fondly, almost affectionately.

"I don't mind going first professor, even though I'm not the youngest." And obviously, she was the prettiest so the order would be messed up anyway.

She stepped forward when Miles sat down and then gave him a LOOK.

"Be good Miles?" She asked him softly, dark eyes big and imploring.

Apparently, while the professor was learning to speak plainly, she wasn't learning to comprehend. Cela had never said anything about her not having inner beauty. She had simply asked, because the entire beauty thing was a different playing field.

They might have been younger, but beauty was subjective in any form. And Cela was yards prettier than the potions professor. Raiden had never been one for self-aggrandising but if Cela was gonna call him a snoggable sixth year, then so be it. He'd be a snoggable sixth year.

Miles could be one too, even.

"Seventeen on 17 November, mate," he added belatedly, looking at Miles.

"Master Vorkosigan, if you are too much of a coward to say things to my face, then don't say anything at all... muttering is not polite." She said.

"Miss Toussaint, I'm tired of the blonde attitude." She sighed. "If they are so snoggable, snog one of them and he'll be the first to go through, the next one will be the other boy and you can be the third," she said to the girl "I'm going last."

"I don't snog just anyone." Celandine answered, surprised at the suggestion. "Besides, then I'd have to take points off myself and I don't know if I can do that." She chewed her lip. And wouldn't the professor take points for excessive PDA too?

She offered her hands to both of the prefects.

"Lets go through together." She suggested, glancing at the professor again and then looking at the boys. "I'd snog one of you but its breaking the rules you know? And Copernicus would break your faces, and that would be sad." She pouted. Lets get this over with, yes?

She wiggled her fingers at them, encouraging them to take a hand each.

"Miles..." She eyed his pocket for a second and then realised. Pill bottle. "Have you taken your pill?"

Miles looked up and glared at the professor. Him? A coward? As if! He didn't hear a word Cela said instead forming the words in his head carefully before he stood up. But before he could say what was really on his mind Cela spoke his name. Pills? Oh...right.... Taking his pill bottle out of his pocket he took two this time and swallowed them.

Standing still for a minute he closed his eyes and took Cela's hand. "Let's do this." He said with a glare at the professor again. Better to hold ones tongue sometimes then to lose it.

"Works for me," Raiden murmured, taking Cela's outstretched hand without comment. The weird tingles and shocks that he used to feel no longer appeared, and he let his fingers knit in-between hers.

Three prefects together.

He almost added that he was surprised Cope hadn't already tried to break his face. But... well. It didn't matter right now.

"Shall we?"

That was better. Cela could see pretty quick that the pill thing was why Miles was all... Milesy. She smiled at both of them and then they went through the door together, leaving Lafay to bring up the rear.

She could have beauty, they had friendship.

Why me? Hecate thought to herself as she left and they headed for the Hooligan Hole.