The Front Gate
 

Completely lost in her memories, Mina hadn't noticed the sound of anyone coming her way. She did tend to block out a lot of things when was there. The place just had that effect on her.

Nearly jumping, she raised her hand to her chest and shook her head. Leave it to her own cousin to surprise her like so. She had seen him at the feast and did want to head over and say hi, but she ended up at the Slytherin table for most the feast with Evan.

"You know how I hate to disappoint, dear cousin," she replied after calming her heart a bit. "When in doubt, head to the front gate for me."

Simon fought laughter at the Ravenclaw's reaction, seeing the surprise in her movements and in the end giving in to his amusement and chuckling just a bit. "Sorry..." he said even if she didn't seem made at him for doing what he did, making the last couple of feet and taking his own seat on the rock though there was still room between them.

"Yep...have to keep that in mind again," he said with a nod in agreement, the boy making a mental note of the information seeing as he was out of practice with her having been gone. "So...is it everything you remember?"

Mina was a bit embarrassed at her reaction, but being embarrassed in front family was so different. She did always scare kind of easily but she would just have to own it now. "It's okay, didn't really expect anyone to find me here so soon." She really didn't think anyone would even remember how much she loved the front gates.

"It's so peaceful here," she nodded as she motioned around. It was the perfect place to think and remember. It was the one place that she wanted to come see first after the feast. "Things are different, but the same." There were different faces and whatnot, but the same magical feeling was still there.

William checks out the front gate.

Simon smile truly glad they got these little moments again, nothing like having family around because sometimes you got to be so much more normal around them. "To be honest it was mostly by chance I did find you seeing as I was just out wandering around the grounds. Only so much to do before classes begin," he remarked with a one armed shrug.

"I can imagine," he mused figuring it had to be a challenge to deal with the changes and unfamiliar faces even amongst the familiar ones. Shoot even being here year after year it was always interesting to say the least with new professors and underclassmen.

Peyton skipped her way to the front gate. She wondered if she'd be able to sneak out and explore the castle's surroundings. She was in mid skip when she saw a familiar blonde head. WILLIAM.

Slowly and sneakily, she tip-toed behind him and poked him on his shoulder. "BOO!" she said and giggled.

Oh yeah, that was scary.

Mina nodded as she took in his words. It was nice to have a small family moment after just leaving home again. There was a certain comfort in having someone that close to you around. She had been lacking that the past two terms, thus making her feel as if she wasn't herself. Family always served to keep her grounded. "Wandering really is a family trait, isn't it?" she teased. Chance was probably what did find them there, but it was a good thing. "Wandering around and exploring are the only things you really can do until the craziness all starts again," she added with a tiny shrug. She could be up in the tower or library getting a head start on her lessons, but where was the fun in that?

"I mean, basically everything is just how I remember it. Big details haven't changed, but the tiny little things have," she voiced. There were tiny little things she had noticed on her exploring earlier this morning. The stairs seemed take her a longer route and there was a different feel to the castle. She couldn't pinpoint it, but she knew it was just different. The familiar faces hidden amongst the new faces would take some getting used to, but that was something she had expected. "I do feel different being here again though. Like I missed a lot whilst I was gone."

" Oh, you are bad and you scared me" William told Peyton as he jumped in the air. " I have not seen you in awhile" William said to Peyton. " I missed my cute Slytherin red-head" William smiled. " So where else should we go on the grounds?" William asked Pryton.

Peyton covered her mouth trying to hide a giggle. She had scared him! Everytime she tried doing that to her dad he caught her instead. "Sorry, it was really tempting." she said, patting his shoulder. She always liked to surprise people. "I know, I've been trying to get used to Hogwarts." Well, it was her first day at the school and so far she was liking it a lot.

She smiled when William said he missed her. She missed him and Fee, and John too. She hasn't seen him much after their big fight. The girl looked around and had no clue as to where to go next. "I don't know, surprise me." she chirped. Really, she didn't want to get lost.

" I do not mind you scaring me" William told Peyton." You will get used to HogWarts" William said to Peyton." I think we should go to the treehouse" William said to Peyton. "We will be able to get around here because of our third member of the " Muskeeteers," Fee" William explained to Peyton.

He didn't mind? Woohoo! This made Peyton happy and it meant that she had to start planning, hehe. "I guess I will." she said, looking down at her hands. She really hoped she did because she already missed her daddy, a lot. She then remembered their groups name and smiled. "Oh yes! Fee will help us get around." she beamed.

The girl's eyes widened when he mentioned a treehouse. "There's a tree house? Awesome!" she's always wanted one.

" Trust me, you will do great here" William told Peyton." Fee , you nd I will have such a great time" William said to Peyton. " how is your common room?" William asked Peyton.

"You really think?" she wasn't so sure about doing so well. Usually, she would forget all the things her Nan would teach her, but that was probably because she read comic books instead of studying. "Oh yes, we will!" the girl beamed. She knew that Fee and William would make school much more fun than she expected. "Is great, I love it! Did you know it's under the lake?" she smiled. Her common room was awesome. "How's your common room?" the Lion's room was probably different than her's.

" I know you will do great" William told Peyton."" Lotd of great times aheadfor the Muskeeters" William said to Peyton. " Our common room is in the tower on the seventh floor. high rent didtrict" William laughed.

"Thanks, William. I bet you'll do awesome." she smiled. William was a smart guy so she knew he would. "Oh yes! I'm glad I met you and Fee." really she was because if she hadn't then she'd probably be friendless. "That's cool!" Peyton laughed. He probably had a great view from up there. "Did you know, John is in Gryffindor?" she said, picking a flower from the ground.

Cass walked down the stairs and looked around, there aren't a lot of people here by the gates. Probably because everyone is inside. Away from the cold wind or something.

She sat down at the bottom step and tugged idly at her leggings. It as nice to be somewhere so quiet. After all, silence isn't something that you often find in Hogwarts. Especially with all the first years running around the grounds, ooh-ing and ahh-ing about every little thing they see.

Christopher walked down to the gates, eager to get alone and just be with his thoughts. Hopefully then he could avoid the large amounts of first year girls mobbing up the castle. It wasn't natural for that many tiny girls to be in one place. He knew nobody would be at the gates, and he was glad of this. Ever since Selina had told him about all girls knowing that Cass had a crush on him made him feel stupid, flattered, weird, and scared all at once. He didn't like being in the spotlight. He'd much rather be in the background. He walked slowly as he approached the gates, and clamped his hand over his mouth to keep from giving a small yell. Speak of the devil, Cass was a mere thirty yards away from him.

Christopher deeply debated running away sneakily, but he was sure Cass had just spotted him. He wasn't going to be a jerk and run off, but he still wasn't sure how he felt about her crush. He gave a small wave as she glanced at him through the corner of her eye and waved her over to join him. Let the butterflies begin.

" I am glad I met yo uand Fee. too" William told Peyton. " Awesomeness is the "Musketeers" William said to Peyton." Glad you do mind where our common room is in the school" William explained to Peyton." Oh, John, I do not thnk I klnoe him even if he is in Gryffindor" Wiliam gave Peyton a fake smile. A pain shout through William's heart. Wiliam needs to talk to Fee. " How do you like the classes?" William asked Peyton.

Cass frowned as she watched Christopher wave at her cautiously. Huh? What was going on? Is she missing on something. She stood up from the stairs and walked up to him, tying her hair in a high, messy ponytail while she walked. She didn't want it in the way.

"What's up?" She asked curiously, frown still firmly settled on her face.

Phyre.
 

Grass. Grass. Grass. NUUUUUUU. It was then that the puppy had been pulled into the arms by an unknown person. The puppy whined and swung his front paws back and forth, reaching for the grass that was quickly moving away from him. Frooown. Puppy wanted more GRASS.

Sprinting as fast as he could throughout Hogwarts was Jayce Cannon without any shoes and large holes in his socks. "WOOOODY!" He shouted repeatedly as he drew out the name. Why did the dog always manage to escape him? No matter what the seventh year did to prevent it, the pup always managed to find a way to escape his clutches.

Reaching the grounds, Jayce continued running, almost tripping in the process and still shouting his dog's name. It's not like the puppy would reply. They weren't playing Marco-Polo or anything. Plus, Jay wasn't completely sure that the dog knew his own name yet.

SIIIIGH.

Eventually reaching the front gates, the Gryffindor quickly spotted a familiar figure only a few steps away sitting in the grass with it's back turned to him. With a sigh, he walked closer to her and sat down, with a loud huff, beside the now black-haired female.

"Have you seen-" but it was then that he spotted the reddish pile of fur in her lap. "Woody." he breathed, "Thank Merlin."

Presley's father would be dissapointed if Pres didn't get to Hogsmeade within her first week, but he had refused to tell her about any secret passages out of the school. All he had said was 'Try the most obvious routes first.' So here Presley was, at the gates of the school that were most firmly shut. She explored the nooks and crannies around the structures that trapped all students inside their school. It seemed that this was not the obvious route her dad had been talking about. Then a thought struck her, maybe there was a way around the wall that enclosed Hogwarts. They certainly couldn't fence in, say...the forest, could they? She grinned, and headed toward the forbidden forest. She knew it had been well, forbidden, but she never had been one for rules and authority.

When Cass walked towards him, the young Gryffindor took a deep breath. This wasn't going to change anything. Because he honestly didn't know what his feelings were, other than friendship, that is. He smiled at her, hiding his mixed feelings the best he could.

"Hey Cass!" Christopher answered casually. "Oh, not much, just glad to be back at school.... How about you?" I will not let this rumor get in the way of my friendships, I will not let this rumor get in the way of my friendships.

Presley returned to the gate, a bit discouraged by her venture to the forest. She couldn't even get into it, let alone out! Maybe she had missed something obvious at the gate. She did tend to overcomplicate the simplest things. Obvious route, obvious route...well, the most obvious route would be to ask someone older than her, who had been here for a while. But that couldn't have been what her dad meant. After all, she had asked him, and it hadn't done a bit of good. Well, it might be worth a try at least. Presley spotted some older students near her.
"Excuse me?" she asked them. She instantly thought better of her plan. They might inform a teacher that she was trying to sneak out. Now that she had interrupted them, she had to come up with a legitimate reason for it, on the spot. Using her improv skills she asked, "Could you tell me where we got off of the train? It wasn't on the grounds, was it?"

"Same." She said nonchalantly with a shrug "I miss summer though, I didn't need to worry about anything."

She wasn't a mind reader, but she was rather good at reading people's actions and expressions. She was a Slytherin, masters of deception and all that, and right now, she could tell something was up.

She frowned at him and asked "What's going on? You seem a bit out of it."

Of course the girl didn’t want to get out of Hogwarts. She didn’t even think of it…She only wanted to study the Front Gate’s architecture, so she could draw it later that day.

The gate seemed really symbolic for the school, she thought, while trying to memorize some of its details.

"My home life isn't ideal..... I'd much rather be here." Christopher said in the same casual tone. He hated making a big deal out of his home life. He just wanted to be back at school where he belonged.

Cass's frown wasn't breaking. She was in no way at all buying his calm act. Which was good, because he wasn't going to lie to her. He hated lying too. It seemed really stupid and pointless to him. And it was just mean. He'd rather have people be upfront with him, so he was like that with everyone else.

"Oh, I just kind of heard this weird rumor. I'm not really sure if it's true or not, or how I feel about it. So I guess that's why I'm a bit out of it." He felt a bit better to get this off of his chest, but he didn't want to confront this thing just yet. Not when he wasn't about what his feelings for Cass were - friendship or more.

Pastry Lady and whomever else
 

Ivan was walking along the outer wall trying to gather up the courage to just ask Dora out already and failing to do so. It shouldn't have been as difficult as it was but Dora wasn't like the ones this summer that he just wanted to have some fun with. He actually liked her. Finding a stone he started kicking it when he heard a familiar voice and looked up. Was that...LEXI!!!

He gave up on the stone and the deep contemplation and ran toward her. "Lexi! You're back!" Thank god cause he'd missed her. Wrapping his arms around her tightly he lifted her up with a grin.

Lexi has been mopping her eyes on the sleeve of one arm and trying to disentangle Rufus' paw from her hair with the other when the monkey began to chatter and she heard someone shouting her name. OH! Was she in trouble?

Rufus' eyes narrowed and he jumped down from Lexi's shoulder as Ivan grabbed his mistress and hugged her... he wouldn't ruin the moment just yet...

Lexi was totally caught off guard by Ivan's display and for a moment just kind of hung in his arms. Then a smile stretched her face and she hugged him back. "Yeah, got time off for good behaviour I reckon," she said with a giggle.

Good behaviour her foot... she had raised ever loving hell with the lot of them. Heh. In the end the princess got her way.

Ivan grinned and set Lexi back down on the ground. "Good behaviour? Somehow I don't think so," he said cheekily. He knew her she would have put up a fight everyday until they got tired of her. "Finn and I tried to come save you but the steering wheel was tied down on the boat and we couldn't figure out how to undo it," he said with a smirk.

"You've missed a bit but nothing you can't be caught up on. The professors are crazy and there's a boat in the lake that we got to explore." Yup that was it in a nut shell. Seeing the monkey he made a face at it. "Was your trip back alright?"

Lexi adjusted her hat and smoothed down the front of her sweater as he set her down. Chuckling a bit she leaned in closer and said, "They mentioned St. Mungo's a few times and I went bananas on them all. I won't be going back there for holiday... and come the summer I will be of age, so problem solved." She patted his shoulder and chuckled.

Finn and Ivan teaming up to come save her? Odd. "Let me guess, Salander was too busy looking for rum to think of that one, eh?" she said with a snort of laughter. "Well yeah I went to Runes briefly before I was pulled out... that Viking guy or whatever. And the schooner I knew about from the article."

Rufus had taken to circling around Ivan... just to make him uncomfortable. Mhm.

While Merlin sat on his mistress' feet like a good little familiar. The monkey was the troublemaker. Always.

"The trip back was DREADFUL. They made me take Muggle transport. And they escorted me to Hogsmeade and everything... and then I had to walk up the ruddy path because my broom is already at the house in France... I had some of my things sent there in preparation for Christmas break. Which, if you would like, you are welcome to come to the house for the holidays. We will be getting settled in, but we want a big Christmas tree and all that ood stuff," she said with a little bounce. Despite the stupid trip THERE, the events that took place, and the DREADFUL trip back, she was glad to be there.

"That's my girl," he said with a smile and wrapped his arm around her in a hug. "Well if you ever need anything you know where to find me and I'm already of age so I have complete control of the estate with a few exceptions for my mum." Yup he'd take care of her if he needed to even if she was dating that idiot.

Letting her shoulder go he gave a shrug and stuck his hands in his pockets, "I've no idea. I saw him on the boat and then he went down below with that Gryffie Quidditch Captain." He eyed the monkey that was circling him and gave a slight smirk. "Well there's a weird Transfiguration professor now and the man is a few bricks short if you know what I mean."

He leaned down and held his arm out to Rufus, "Oh come on you ruddy thing I know you want to." Considering he'd fallen in mud and then some with Dora already he didn't really care any more. He looked up at Lexi and gave her a smile. "I'd like to but it'd have to be before Christmas. We're going back to Russia to spend the Holidays with my cousin Gregor and his new wife. I'm sorry your trip was so bad though." Looking at the monkey he raised an eyebrow, "Either hop on or stop with the circling Rufus."

"Well as it stands, the house in France is in the Muggle world, technically, and I am the executor of that estate... they cannot stop me living in my own home," she said with a smile.

"Weird Transfiguration professor sounds like fun. Can't wait to meet him. Might be my type of teacher. And Sal and Simon running around together. Hmm. Whatever," she said with a haughty tone. She knew that Sal was distracting himself, but sheesh... it was nice to be missed ya know.

Rufus stopped cold in his tracks... he was really going to let Rufus climb on him and such? Brilliant! Chattering wildly Rufus skipped the arm up and went straight for his pant leg and climbed all the way to his shoulder where he perched and chattered on. Grabbing a hand full of hair he leaned his little face down so he could look Ivan properly in the face and licked him. HA!

"We will be there from start to finish of holiday so you are welcome to come anytime you would like so long as you are nice," she said with a knowing smile.

"Well not just that though Lex. If you need anything at all. But I'm glad that that's sorted out. Maybe you can be happy for a change," he said with a smile.

"Yeah I'm sure the professor is one you'd like. His name is Shawn and that's what he wants to be called. First class he turned a desk into a chainsaw and carved his name into the board." Man definitely was a nutter. He gave another shrug as she mentioned Sal and Simon. It's not like he actively sought Sal out to make sure he was properly sad about her not being there. "I'm sure he spent every night missing you," he said with a small smile. Yeah...and if he didn't he was a right fool who didn't deserve her.

Ivan watched as the monkey climbed up his entire body and he rolled his eyes. Of course he would. Couldn't just take the short way could he. Then he was being grabbed by his hair AND licked. "Ewwww. Come on now. Can't just take what's given huh." Raising his hand he wiped off his face and turned to look at Lexi.

"I'm always nice when I have to be," he said with a grin. Though he wouldn't go out of his way to be nice to certain people. "Oh so I kind of ruined a pair of shoes you gave Dora. Think you can replace them? I'll pay you if you want but she was right upset with me." He reached his hand up and gave Rufus a little scratch on his head.

She shrugged slightly and gave a lopsided smile. "I won't jinx anything... but I can only hope so, ya know. And I appreciate it, Ivan. I really do," she said with a genuine smile.

Lex couldn't help but bounce a little bit as Ivan talked about the crazy Transfiguration professor. "Awesome. Can't wait until the next class, then," she said with a big grin! Maybe he would let them set stuff on fire... that would RAWK! At the next comment Lexi simply rolled her eyes. She had a feeling that everyone she was close to had been breathing a little sigh of relief at her not being around for a few weeks. No crazy Lexi to deal with. Heh. "The Healers gave me these potions to take everyday... said it would help me stabilize my moods or some mess. Guess they have been working alright. I didn't set fire to the Denver's when they locked me up in the house," she joked. Heh. They had her wand... so technically she could not have, but she had wanted to.

WHY was the MONKEY getting all of the attention? Merlin moved forward slowly and came to rest of the guy's feet and swatted playfully at his pant leg. HELLO! CUTE CAT DOWN HERE!!

Rufus chattered in a way that sounded somewhat like a chuckle. Heh. He liked Ivan alright, but he knew that Ivan was NOT his biggest fan. So licking him was funsies. For now, though, he draped his tail over the boy's neck and just kind of stood there watching and stuff.

"Well I have noticed you have been making an effort with Salander and I appreciate it more than you know. I just want all of the animosity gone. It will be a lot less stressful for me if we could all get along," she said firmly.

...

O____________________O

He. Ruined. A. Pair. Of. Her. Shoes? Okay so she had given them to Dora, but.. still. "Ivan... those shoes are all pieces of art and you go and RUIN a pair? I suppose I will have to replace them won't I? I need to downsize a lot of things anyway it's no problem, really. Just... be careful with designer shoes." Cue the LEXI eye.

Ivan gave Lexi a smile as he saw her roll her eyes. "Well I missed you." He listened to her and watched as the cat walked over and started batting his pant leg. "Well if they're working I guess that's good but I love your craziness," he said with a smile.

Sighing as he watched the cat he bent down and picked it up, "Alright, alright. Just don't claw up the slacks, thanks." He gave the cat a pet behind her ears and smiled at Lexi.

"Just give it time Lex." No animosity. Right. Maybe if he could gather up some courage to ask Dora out he could forget about the bloke. "Well it was an accident...kind of. I didn't realize she still had them on when I fell into the lake with her." He gave her a smile and looked down at the cat in his arms.

helloooooooooooooo you two XD
 

Kurumi had been wandering the castle looking frantically for a certain stubby legged cat who had managed to wander off somewhere. She suspected that he had gone down to the Care of Magical Creatures classroom in hopes of finding Professor Saylen, but she figured she ought to check everywhere just to be sure that the feline hadn’t gotten himself stuck somewhere like he had the other night in the common room under the sofa

Black pony tail flowing behind her as she peeked around every corner and hole she saw, Kurumi spotted Lexi. Lexi? LEXI! Kurumi took off at a sprint towards her Lion Mama, who had her back turned to her, and threw herself into a bear hug around the girl’s waist.

“LEXI! I’VE MISSED YOU!” she squeaked. Hopefully she hadn’t taken the girl too much by surprise. Hehe.

Peering around the blonde, Kurumi saw that she had been talking to another boy. Kurumi recognized him from the rather awkward events of last term in the kitchen and hadn’t spoken to the boy since – not that they had really spoken at that time either. It HAD been a rather chaotic experience for all.

“Oh…h-h-h-h-hello,” she mumbled hiding her face behind Lexi again. “W-Was I interrupting something?”

"Well it's nice to be missed. Wish it had been for different reasons. And the Denver's and the Healers seem to think I need to act like a proper lady if I plan to make any difference in... my life and apparently calming me down will make that happen. That is their thinking anyway," she said with a sigh. Shrugshrugshrug. Wait... he loved her craziness? Heh. He WOULD.

Merlin began to purr as soon as he was picked up by the man in the nice clothes. He bumped his little kitty head against his chin a few times to show appreciation for picking him up... as if Lexi didn't give him enough attention as it was.

She sighed heavily and looked up at the castle. "Time. Doesn't seem to make much of a difference around here, does it?" she said bleakly. Back to the shoes... "It's fine, really. I already promised she and Katrina that they could have the things I was getting rid of, so they will have a chance to rifle through my things in the dorms."

:whaa:

She was being attacked by a little person!! Lexi flailed a little bit and stumbled forward, thanking Merlin she was wearing Chuck's and not heels. Ah. She heard the voice and smiled.

"I missed you too, kiddo. And it's okay, come on out from back there. This is Ivan. I don't believe the two of you have been properly introduced. Ivan is one of my very best friends, and Ivan, Kurumi is my little lion cub." Yes. Meet, greet, all that good stuff.

Ivan gave her a smile and would have given her a hug if the cat didn't seem so content in his arms. "Being proper is over rated. Trust me." He knew that for a fact since he ALWAYS had to be proper. Which was why he tormented his cousin. Yup.

"Well I wouldn't say it doesn't make a difference. Look at us." He'd once wanted nothing to do with her and now she was one of his best friends. He smiled at the cat and rubbed his head against the cat's, "Isn't that right little guy." Turning his head back to Lexi he smiled. "I'm sure she'll appreciate that. Like I said she was right mad at me though it kind of evened out because I fell in the mud trying to pull her out of the water," he said grinning. And he hadn't even been mad about that. Hmm.

Then someone was coming and tackling Lexi and he laughed. He adjusted the cat in his arm so he could hold out his hand to the little Gryffie, "Hi there. I won't bite. Promise. Though Rufus might," he said with a laugh.

Peeking out from behind Lexi again, and deciding that now would be the appropriate time to release her from her death grip, Kurumi shyly waved to the boy. “H-Hello Ivan,” she said. Had she attacked him with cookie dough too? She sure hoped not.

Turning her attention back to Lexi, Kurumi reached into her pocket for the gift she had been meaning to give Lexi for some time now. The lioness had disappeared before Kurumi had had the chance to do so. “Lexi, I have something for you,” she smiled pulling a small envelope from her pocket. “I was hoping to give it to you and Salander at the same time, but I don’t want to wait too long to give it to you.” She passed the envelope to Mama Lion. “They are pair charms. Said to help deepen love and connections between two people.”

The charms were also a sort of unofficial way for her to apologize for the whole kitchen incident, which she still felt sorry about.

Kurumi giggled a bit. It would certianly be odd for an older student to bend down and bit another, but she figured that THAT wasn't exactly what he meant.

"Rufus?" Kurumi asked tilting her head to the side and now finally noticing the small collection of animals in the area.

Which reminded her that she still needed to find Walnut.

"I nearly killed myself being a lady for the Hudson's over the summer. You know how I get around adults... I try my hardest to impress them and I turn into the proper little lady. I think that's why your mom liked me so much," she said with a laugh as she watched Rufus grow bored of not getting attention and jump over to her shoulder. She absently petted his head and thought about things for a few moments.

"You wouldn't be talking to me now had I not forced myself into your way, Ivan. You know it as well as I do. It just seems like... everyone around here holds onto the past so hard that the present is slipping away. You know... I properly met a housemate before I left and I honestly think he was frightened of me... when I began to talk to him and such he looked relieved to see that I was not going to attack him and rip his throat out like I was an angry Veela or something," she said shaking her head with disgust.

Merlin mewed at Ivan and let his eyes droop closed as he rested his little kitty head on his arm and puuuuurrrrrrrrreeeeeddddd loudly. Merlin LOVED attention as much as he loved attacking Lexi's toes when she was asleep. Heh.

The thought of Ivan in mud brought a lot of giggles from Lexi and then she stopped short... "Rufus does NOT bite. You lie!"

Lexi pulled Kurumi around to her side and kept an arm around her. Rufus now rested on her shoulder and chattered down at the little cublet. "Rufus is a pygmy marmoset. He was a birthday gift from a friend," she said with pride in her voice. She had always KNOWN that Rufus loved her more. Heheh.

Now she took the envelope and opened it slowly and let the two charms slide smoothly into her hand... How sweet and thoughtful of her! Lexi smiled down at her and then asked, "What exactly do we do with them? Do we wear them on our person? Or what? And thank you, honey. This was very thoughtful of you." She wouldn't cry. Not now that her emotions were under control. SIGH.

Ivan laughed and shook his head, "Knowing her that is probably why she likes you. Though you also go shopping with her without any argument. You were like an angle fallen into her laugh. Even my Aunt doesn't like all the fuss she makes sometimes." He smiled and watched as the monkey left. HA. Though the cat still seemed content with just lying there.

"Well...maybe. I'd have probably started talking to you after I met Dora. But we'll never know." He gave her a smile. Hearing her talk about the housemate though his smile fell. Really? Ridiculous. "I'm sorry about that. People are ridiculous some times."

He looked between the two girls and smiled his eyes following the envelope that was being given to Lexi. He had to stop himself from rolling his eyes at the description of what it was. "I'm sure he does bite if he's made angry."

He rubbed the cat's head some more and nodded to the monkey, "Yeah that's Rufus. He loves to annoy me." Shifting his weight he looked at Lexi and Kurumi though he didn't really know the young girl. She was a Gryffie though maybe she could help too. "Can I ask you something? I want to ask Dora out but she told me herself she sees me as a brother and that there was no spark. Should I try anyway?" Or should he protect himself and not bother.... That was his dilemma lately.

I WANT ON TOO! *flails*
 

Kurumi looked up when she heard the SUPER!ADORABLE! creature chriped down at her and Kurumi couldn't help but let out a loud squeel. "LEXI! HE IS ADORABLE!" she said flailing around but a bit with excitment. "I've read about them before and seen them in zoos, but never up close before!" She stopped flailing and peered up at the SUPER!ADORABLE! little guy. "Hello there Rufas!" No wonder Walnut had been in such a terrible mood with the new smell. "Did you know that some countries call them leoncito which means 'little lion'? Seems rather fitting."

Then Kurumi's attention went back to the charms but Rufas was soooo SUPER!ADORABLE! "Some people wear them on their bags. It depends on what sort of symbolism you want. If you want to continue for your feelings to go, then you would keep the red one. However, if you want Salander's feelings to grow more for you, then you would keep his. Although, I suppose the outcome would be the same."
Kurumi looked back at Evan and was about to ask how anything so SUPER!ADORABLE could annoy anyone, when she remembered that some people just really did not like cute things. Her middle brother being among them.

Then, Kurumi got that GIANT invisible question mark over her head that she did whenever she didn't have a clue. First, she had no idea who Dora was and second, she knew even less about dating and relationships. Clearly.

"I-I-I am not the right person to ask about girls," Kurumi squeaked. That probably sound ridiculous considering that she WAS a girl.

"It seemed proper manners... especially with you aristocrats and all," she said teasingly and gave a tinkling little laugh. "Please send your mother and Miles my love. I do miss shopping with your mother and terrorizing Miles," she replied with a snort.

Lex just gave a shrug. One that said everything... and nothing. Kind of like,... eh, what can you do?

"I wouldn't know... I have never made my precious little Rufus angry." Really. Was Ivan trying to test the theory? Lexi could try to make him angry and sic him on Ivan for poots and giggles.

...

"Be bold, ask her out. What's the worst that could happen? She says no? Not the end of the world. You just move on to the next one, bud," she said as she dug through her bag for the little ziploc of grapes she kept for Rufus.

Rufus jumped up and down on Lexi's shoulder and pulled her hat off in his haste. The small person chirped like HIM. How cool?! Without hesitation he dropped Lexi's hat and hopped down onto Kurumi's shoulder and planted a little monkey kiss on her cheek and then chattered a little before hugging her head.

"HA! That's why Rufus liked me more! He was always a Gryffindor at heart! That explains it ALL!" she said with a smile.

...

Wait that was CONFUSING. "You tell me which one to keep. How about that?" she said with a chuckle.

Speaking of Salander... She looked up toward the castle and sighed. OH! Turning around and bending over she unlatched Wasabi's cage and let her take off to do whatever it was her crazy owl wanted to do and then with another few flicks of her wand she sent her things soaring through the air toward the window of her dorm in the Gryffie Tower. Sure hope it's open... Heh.

omg you guys can talk lol! Pix is it marshmallow or walnut?
 

Salander was about to make his way back to the castle when he nearly stepped on what he thought was a small tumbleweed. It turned out to be a cat with such stubby legs it looked like it had difficulty moving at all. Thinking it was a stray (hey what does he know about animals), he wandered towards the front gate thinking of just tossing the creature over the wall and be done with it.

Instead the sight of the familiar blonde greets him "LEXI!" he called out as he sprinted over, seized her in his arms-- cat and all-- and twirled her around in the air. "MMMMwah! Welcome back Luv!" he said kissing her and muffling his welcome against her cheek. He finally settled her back down, eyes a little moist but blinked it away quickly. No tears rule, not in public, not even in front of his Gryffincess. "You got here ok?" he started until he could feel that there were others around them.

He finally turned as his sight fell on his Cookie!Princess and... the Kitchen Eagle. "H-Hey there!" he greeted them both a little too cheerfully, waving the tumbleweed cat in his hand, not even realizing he was still holding it. Hmm, why does company feel mighty familiar?

Walnut, but he isn't around right now XD
 

Kurumi felt like flailing around with glee as the SUPER!ADORABLE creature jumped onto her shoulders. She litereally felt like she was going to melt into a little puddle of Kurumi goo when it hugged her head and gave her SUPER!ADORABLE[/s]and slightly drooly[/s] kisses.

Being completely distracted by Rufas and all his cuteness - Walnut would be most displeased when he smelled the strange creature's scent on her later - Kurumi almost missed Lexi speaking to her again?

"Huh? What?" she asked scratching the SUPER!ADORABLE Rufus under his SUPER!ADORABLE chin. "I think you should have the red one. That is the one meant for the girl." Besides, Salander would probably resemble a Christmas tree if he walked around with a red charm on his bag.

"Salander!" Kurumi chirped as she ran over to Papa Snake and gave him a hug. She made sure she didn't run too fast because she didn't want the SUPER!ADORABLE! Rufas to fall off her shoulder and stop giving her monkey kisses "I actually just gave Lexi a gift intended for both of you."

Her cheeks flushed.

Ivan looked at the young Gryffindor and laughed. Moving his hand from the cat for a moment he ruffled her hair teasingly, "It's alright. I don't know much about guys." He gave her a wink and looked at Lexi.

"You missed me torturing him this summer. It was epic," he said with a smile. Yup definitely epic. He had taped him to the deck of the lake then pushed him in and got grounded because of it but damn had it been fun.

He eyed the monkey and made a face at him. "There's a first time for everything," he said with a smirk. "Wonder how much it would take for him to bite someone?" James had made him too much of a wimp that was for sure.

Hearing Lexi's suggestion he made a face. But what if she said no? Could he? He actually liked her a lot. She was fun to hang out with and...yeah. "I guess you're right." Man up.

Before he knew it their small grew grew again as Sal came over and he looked away from them and down at the cat sleeping happily in his arms. Yeah he may be over Lexi but it still made him uncomfortable. "Hello Sal," he said with a nod . They seemed like a very familiar group here now. He winced as he saw the small cat in his arms, "Umm...be careful you're going to hurt that thing." He may not be the biggest pet fan but he didn't go around torturing them....geez. Intentional or not.

"Your dad doesn't hit you, does he?" She asked cautiously, thinking of the scar that Levi had been wearing on his face when she saw him on the train

Then her frown deepened at the mention of a rumor. "Rumors aren't often true." Cass said with a small smile "It may hold some portion of truth, but more often than not, they're all highly exaggerated." It was true! All rumors were made to sound exciting so that people would keep talking about it. "So don't stress over it, I'm sure it's nothing."

ok so stubby legged cat in Sal's hand is just... random? XD
 

He tilted back slightly having not expected Kurumi's tackle!hug "Good to see you too Kurumi!" he chuckled, giving her his trademarkl big brother hug. He hasnt actually gotten to speak with her since that day at Floreans and was immensely relieved to see that the young Gryff was doing A-Ok. He returned Ivan's greeting with a pleasant smile. Well at least killer stare is gone, and has gotten down to using his nickname. Making progress here yup. His attention returned to the young Gryffindor when she mentioned a gift "Oh really? What gift?" he wondered aloud and turned his head at Lexi. "She gave us a gift Luv?"

He turned his head again at the fluffy thing on his hand, only realizing he was still grasping it when Ivan mentioned it. "Oh!" he said, staring at the furball for a second and shrugged. "Anybody lost a cat? Cuz you know if its just a stray we can just <whistle>" he whistled as he made a motion of his head that meant that stray cat goes over the fence.

Cuz you know, nobody knows where this thing has been!

Lexi was just watching her things float off through the distance when she heard yet another voice calling out to her... this voice she knew better than any other. She could hear it in her dreams even. Her heart swelled.

Before she could even make to move there he was with her in his arms and off the ground. Kissing him back greedily she smiled and laughed as he spun her around and welcomed her back.

"Oh baby I missed you so much! And... I am actually glad to be here, I didn't think I wanted to come back until I stepped inside of these gates, baby." She peppered his face with kisses, not caring who was around.

"The trip was dreadful, to be honest. They made me take Muggle trains and buses just to be mean I think... but that doesn't matter. I am back and I am not going back to Oxfordshire ever again," she said triumphantly.

:whaa:

"SALANDER!" she exclaimed before bursting into fits of laughter as she took the poor frightened cat from him and set it down. Poor thing scuttled off like it's tail was on fire and it's head was catching.

Still laughing she wrapped her arms around him and made a little mental vow not to let him go. EVER.

Rufus clung to her, wrapping his little hands in her hair so he wouldn't fall as she flailed. Chitter chatter from the monkey meant he was VERY happy indeed.

Lexi was so happy too. She nodded at Kurumi from Sal's arms. "The red one. Got it. Here, Sal, you take the blue one." She actually tucked it in the back pocket of his pants and maybe squeezed his bum a bit. Hehe.

Lexi laughed at Ivan as she turned in time to catch his wink and his comment to Kurumi. Hehe.

"You really should lay off of Miles sometimes... he is a pretty alright guy, you know. And I am sure maybe YOU could make him angry enough to bite. Hahah. Otherwise everyone is safe," she said with giddy little giggles now.

Wow... maybe those potions and elixirs that the Healers had given her were actually working...

Christopher's right hand instictively flew over a few gashes on the back of his head and neck. He was glad that his robes covered his arms, legs, and chest and vack, for they were covered in bruises, scars etched deep into the surface of his skin. He was a litte taken aback when Cass suggested it was his father that had done this. "Cass...." Christopher murmured softly, "My dad.... He's probably not going to stay alive by Christmas.... He's got cancer...." The lion squeezed his eyes shut trying not to think of the pain of the only person who'd ever loved him would be gone soon. "Before I got my Hogwarts letter I was bullied and beat up a lot at school, but it was.. it still is my mum who does this. To both my sister and I. She thinks we're freaks. She hates us. She's ashamed of us." Christopher's hand drifted back to his side, his lung, red gashes still clear on his pale skin.

"Really? Oh thank goodness..." Maybe Cass had heard the rumor too! Maybe she knew it wasn't true either! Things didn't have to be weird between them, and the third year was really grateful for that.... But he still couldn't ignore that the possibility of liking Cass was close by. Which confused him to no ends.

"But he's so much fun to mess with," Ivan said whining slightly with a smirk. "I'm sure I could too. Maybe I should test this theory..." He gave Rufus a look and then looked down at the cat in his arms.

Hearing Sal's solution for the cat Ivan frowned and was about to tell him no when Lexi took the cat from him. Good. He may not be the biggest fan but he wasn't about to let it get hurt. Hmph. Poor cat.

"So I was thinking Lex that you could ask Dora what she thought about it before I did so I don't make a fool out of myself and all..." Yup he was a wuss. A big wuss..

back from lunch! woot!
 

Good to know she wasn't alone in not understanding the opposite gender. Why couldn't everyone be like a cat...or like SUPER!ADORABLE! Rufas? They were easy enough to understand!

Kurumi blushed a bit from Salander's hug. She had missed seeing him around and could really use some big brother advice as well. Lexi had taken care of some sisterly talk when they had had tea in Diagon Alley, but perhaps Salander could tred places where she literally could not.

Kurumi then noticed the cat in Salander's arms. There certainly were a lot of animals roaming about right now. "I've lost Walnut," she frowned. "He ran out of the common room after..." she paused to contain her giggles. "...peeing in Josh's shoes. Not sure he has noticed...I hope he isn't wearing them now either." Because, Josh would not only smell terrible, but his socks would be soggy as well. She looked at the cat. Sadly, it was not Walnut.
Oh? Was the monkey playing in her hair!? Perhaps giving her a much needed head massage? She was liking this monkey more and more. Perhaps Lexi would let her kidnap play with it in the common room...

"They are special charms for couples," Kurumi explained going for the sort version of the explaination.

He wrapped Lexi in a loving embrace and whispered through her hair "I'm glad you're back Luv, and didnt I say Hogwarts has its own brand of magic? Its just in the air; no spells necessary."

He caressed her arms with his hands as she recounted her muggle travel ordeals, sympathetic but also slightly bemused. He totally understood what she went through. "Well at least your still in one piece." he chuckled good-naturedly, although really he wouldnt be surprised if Lexi never wanted to travel that way again. Heck he wouldnt want to travel that way at all if he could help it.

He released the cat from his grip when his Luv took the cat and set it loose. He was about to whine about how strays bring diseases like nasty cooties when he was distracted with Kurumi saying about Walnut breaking loose and peeing in Josh's shoes. That had him bursting out laughing. "I'm sure Josh isnt the only one not exactly happy with that." Cue the image of a frowning, neat freak She-Snake

Ah yes the gift! "Blue one, alrght...." he nodded, eying the packet as Lexi slipped it into his back pocket. Oh! He felt that added bonus too heh. Cue eyebrow waggle and added his own tush grabbing. All discreetly of course, kids are around. We're rated PG right?

Then Lexi and Ivan started talking about "Miles?" head turns between the Gryff and the Claw "Prefect Miles? You know him?"he glanced at Ivan.

Then Kurumi started explaining about her gifts "Special charms huh?..." he uttered, taking that blue packet out to have a better look at it "What kind of charms does it do? Like, does it improve my chances in winning the wizarding lottery or increase my odds winning something in the kneazle race?"

You all.
 

"Miles is lovely. I am glad he knows now that I never really believed he was a spy. It was really fun leading him TO believe that though. He is pretty gullible sometimes. Hehe. And you will leave my monkey alone, Vorpatril!" she said with some giggles.

Heaving a great big sigh she rolled her eyes and said, "Stop being such a wuss, Ivan. MAN UP and ask her. But... since I am official wing woman to all Ravenclaw boys, it would seem, I will put in a good word for you." Ridiculous boy.

Wait...

HOLD ON.

Turning to face Kurumi she could hardly contain her laughter as she asked, "Did you just say Walnut urinated in Josh's shoes? Oh that is RICH! I wish I could have seen that!" Oh man. Josh Carter = Mr. Pee Pee Shoes. FTW.

Rufus continued to snuggle Kurumi's head and work his little hands through her hair. He chattered a little bit at Salander. Although... his feelings were still a bit hurt that he did not return the monkey hugs that Rufus had given him.

Then all concentration was lost as Salander whispered to her sending chills up her spine. Hehe. "You're the only one that matters, baby, but I have gotten such a warm welcome... I didn't expect it at all," she said in a soft tone as she spoke right into his ear.

Pulling back to look in his face she frowned slightly. "Barely! Have you ever been on a Muggle train... or on the tube thingy. Oh it's dreadful. I swear if there is ever another outbreak of the plague it will come from Muggles public transport. It was disgusting," she said in an EXTRA haughty tone. "Never again. I want magical transportation from now on. I am getting my Apparation license this year and never worrying about this again. Ever." EVER!

Then came some more giggles and hugs and nuzzles. "You know... I have something I need your help with. Something really important. It can wait a few moments though. Wouldn't want to be rude," she whispered at him and giggled once more.

"The packets are charms that will increase the love and... longevity of our relationship, babe... was that it, Rumi?" she asked, still not taking her eyes off of her Slytherin Prince.

Huh. Perhaps absence does make the heart grow fonder.

Ivan looked at Sal and nodded, "I sure hope I know him or I'm torturing the wrong person during my summer breaks." He gave Lexi a smirk and then looked back at Sal, "He's my cousin actually."

Turning to Lexi he laughed, "I'm sure it boosted his ego a bit. Dora thinks I'm one. I promised to tell her what the deal was at some point. But yes Miles is as gullible as they come. I think he likes the attention personally." He was always a bit of an attention junky. "Aww but the monkey is begging me to," he said with a pout and looked at Rufus. Okay...well maybe he wasn't.

Man up.... Yeah. "I'm not a wuss..." Mostly. Sometimes. "Fine fine." The mushy stuff was getting to him anyway. "Here unwind from Sal enough to take your cat and I'll go do it right now." Call him a wuss. HA. He scratched the cats head before holding him out to Lexi.

After having lunch, Bissy was really full and wanted to have a walk she made her way towards the entrance hall. She didn't feel like going to the common room. There may be some people she didn't want to see at all. The only person she was getting along was Evan. He had always been nice towards her and was the only person to make the common room bearable for her.

The bright light of the midday sunshine was penartating into the entrance hall. The light breeze swept her face as she stepped out the front gate and saw the person who she really would have liked to see- Evan. She tapped on his shoulder from his back and smiled broadly. She said: "Hey, Prefect! What are you up to?"

Sorry about the wait. The art show kept me busy as you know ^____^
 

OOC: She stood? He was sitting.. Oh well.

Rocking back and forth on his feet, the gryffindor boy glared at the little dog. He was a very bad boy and didn't deserve to be outside right now. If Eiri wasn't here right now, Jay would probably carry the pup back to his dorm and figure out a new way to lock him up. But he wasn't about to leave his partner in crime alone.

He paused in his rocking as his eyes wandered around the area, uncertain of what to say or do next. He was about to ask a question when she interjected before he could even utter a sound. "Err.. no. It usually makes them throw up.." he trailed off, realizing he'd have to clean that up later. Stupid dog. Like he hasn't eaten in years...? "He eats everything like that. Including clothing, bedsheets, and shoes. Shoes are his favorite if you couldn't tell."

The Gryffindor sighed, and wiggles his toes.

luffles you all
 

Kurumi laughed. "Walnut has made a bad habit out of peeing in people's shoes. I'm afraid some first years were the first ones to fall victim. They sat on his favorite spot on the couch."

Kurumi's smile widened as Rufus continued to snuggle her head. He certainly was a friendly little monkey, and Kurumi began scratching his hind legs. It was a spot that Walnut often enjoyed being scratch - even if he was a bit self conscious about his legs.

Kurumi nodded when Lexi explained the charms to Salander. "I bought them at one of the strongest power spots in Japan. Means they are the best sort of charm available." If one believe in that sort of thing.

Then Kurumi looked at Lexi and a puzzled expression came over her face. Rumi? She hadn't been called Rumi since Cam had left Hogwarts at the end of Kurumi's first year. She didn't mind, it had just surprised her.

"When you two get married, can I bake the cake?" she asked looking up at the couple. "And I want to be there when the stork comes to deliver your baby."

Kurumi really liked animals.

Cass stared in horror as he explained. What was going on with her friends' lives? One was being abused by his dad, the other with his mom. And well, Chris' story haunted her more than Levi's. She never really knew her dad, so knowing that someone else's dad was terrible, sort of brought relief to her, but Chris was being hurt by his mom, and that scared her because she grew up loving her mom.

"Why would anyone be ashamed of their own children?" She asked softly, the realization of not everyone can have someone like her mother drawing over her.

The shook her head "Yeah, like last term, there was this story roaming around Slytherin that Kurumi's cookies were poisoned." That was just soooo far from the truth.

Christopher became suddenly very interested in his shoelaces. He could feel Cass's scared eyes burning on him, and he wished he would disappear. Maybe that'd be better for everyone. The way Cass had talked about her mother in Diagon Alley probably made her so confused as to why somebody's mother could hate them. Her mum had seemed pretty cool when Cass spoke of her. She'd mentioned that her dad wasn't around, which made Christopher really upset too. She'd never got to have one, and if he'd been at all like his own father, that'd be a real shame. But since he left a great girl like Cass, he obvioiusly wasn't. But Christopher's dad would being leaving him too, in a different sense. He'd always be with him in his heart, but he'd never be there to comfort him anymore.

"I don't really know. I wish I did though. Then maybe I could fix everything." He couldn't just not be a wizard, so he'd have to find another way to make his mother care for her children again. She thought it was all his fault too. He'd gotten his letter first, so he was the freak who'd brought on such an 'epidemic' to their household. Or so Sofia James thought.

"What!?!" How could someone as sweet as Kurumi poison cookies!? I mean, the kid had only talked to her once or twice, but she was really nice and very talented from what he'd gathered in classes and around school and the common room and everything. "People were probably just jealous." Maybe Selina or Violet or someone had been jealous and started the rumor. But that still didn't explain Levi's abnormal hatred for him.... Maybe that was just the way things were meant to be. But he really hoped the rumor wasn't true. He valued their friendship to much for anything more just yet.

"I think this isn't something you could fix yet Christopher..." She replied slowly. Then she remembered when she saw him on the train, with his sister sleeping on his shoulder. So young, to be dealing with so many strains. No kid should grow up like that. It was just wrong...

She placed a consoling hand on his shoulder and said "Hey, if you and your sister ever need a place to...like escape to during the holidays, our place is always open for the two of you." Then she smiled "After all, there's more than enough room for all of us in there."

Then she laughed at his reaction "Yes probably. Not that anyone would admit it." Then she shook her head, smile still firmly placed on her face "Besides, It was a Slytherin who started it. I just forgot who." Then her smile melted as she moved on to a more serious subject. There was just something he wasn't telling her. And she couldn't rest until she found out what it was. "So, which rumor were you so upset about?"

Evan was still pacing the front of the gate when someone tapped him from his back. "WHA'YADOIN'?!" he yelled and jumped on the spot to face his attacker. Seeing it was Bissy, he calmed down, took a deep breath and smiled awkwardly. "Sorry, I was too in deep thought to be approached from back." He hoped she wouldn't see him as a freak. He wanted to be on good terms with her, because she was friendly to him and such... and she had an air of sly power... not something to be messed with.

"Yeah, I was just thinking..." he went on, running a hand through his hair. "How are you?"

Waiting for a friendly response with the friendliest smile Bissy froze at Evan's high pitched voice. That was extremely shocking! Evan shouting at her? No, no, no! That thing can't have happened. Yeah, Bissy could understand that he was in a kind of trans but that reaction. Ooooh! If she hadn't known how good-natured Evan was, she would have thought he would have been mad. Anyway, that could be tolerated. Seeing the awkward smile on his face, Bissy smiled back and said: "Yeah! It's extremely obvious that you were thinking, Cartwright. Good Merlin! You could have jinxed me instead of yelling. I'm glad to have been told off actually". She could sense that he was not happy with what he had done so the blonde girl was trying to cheer him up.

Oh thank Merlin, Bissy was smiling back. That meant she didn't think he was a freak, right?! It didn't mean she was merely being polite, right?! Evan laughed a little. He pondered if he should correct her to call him with his first name, but then decided against it--it was her style, he guessed.

"Yeah... I was wondering at how fast the years had gone," he said, frowning at that. It had been 6 years that he had first walked through these very doors... but it felt like just yesterday.

Very well, then. If he was smiling, there was no problem. Bissy took a few steps to face the snake boy. She patted his shoulder and said sympathetically: "I understand your point Evan but don't think about that at the moment. You have always been a great student as far as I can see and loved this place a lot. However, you should leave when the time comes. A new life waits for you out there as an adult."

She didn't know how Evan would react to her remarks but she said them to comfort him. Bissy was sorry for his having to leave the school, too. He had been a great friend to her by the time she first stepped to the school and it was a pity that they would be on owl post terms next year.

Fee made her way to the front gate with her head phones on.Music was way to important to her the blonde just knew it.But it made her calm.Right now she was super excited and felt liike puking.Seriously how could she be without music in a state like this?!

As the Slytherin reached the front gate,she walked up and down,up and down.Why couldnt she just stand still?!Meeeeh this was not good. Grabbing hold of something the third year finally calmed down and breathed in and out.Deeply. Goood,now jujst concentrate on the music.

Well this was the greatest day in the whole wide boring sometimes exciting world. He was going to try and find Fee. He knew that she would be happy when she saw him. He just knew it and maybe she would be more than happy. So where could she be. Well he didn't know. He hadn't been to Hogwarts for a few weeks so he still didn't know his way around but he knew where the Hogwarts grounds were and that was all that matters.

Out of nowhere Finbar felt a hand on his muscular arm. Well he felt it trough his black leather jacket and the grip was pretty darn hard. Fin turned slightly and gripped the girls hand softly. "Are you okay?" the Irish accent came out of his mouth.

Fee just stood there trying to breathe.Why did she feel not too well?Why was she even at the front gate?The girl NEVER got to the front gate.Today was really weird,really,really weird.Just as she wanted to look up to see what she had grabbed someone spoke to her.

Holding her head up to look in the face of the stranger the Slytherin gasped."OH.MY.GlITTER.",the girl squealed and not even a second later she threw her arms around the guy's neck."Finny",the third year whispered and snuggled into him a little,"are you real?"If not the blonde didnt want to ruin her day dream,the two friends had grown together so much,it would be the happiest moment to see him here again.

Fin looked down to her. She didn't seem like herself so in the end he would regret saying this as soon as his mouth spoke the words. Well say it. "Feeness!!!!" Fin said happily. "No, Fee I'm not real. I'm just a pigment of your imagination. I'm just a apparition, a ghost, whatever you want to call me." He just blurted those words out.

Fin looked up at the sky. Then he looked back at Fee. "So why are you so out of yourself today?" Finbar asked her. He really did want too.

Fee giggled a little at his nickname for her and hugged him only tighter.Finny,Finny,Finny.But then the blonde looked up into his eyes and raised and eyebrow.Tsssssssskk,dont mess with Feeness.Hehe.Smiling evily the Slytherin poked the guy in the stomach hard."Heeyyy dont joke with me",she laughed,"i didnt expect to see you here,man."Just then realisation hit her.Oh my glitter."You are baaaaaaaccckkkkkk,baaaaack,baaaaaaaaack",she smiled happily and danced around a little.Yees,Finbar was back,the term wasnt going so bad now.Phewww.

Mhh..why was she so out of herself today?That was a really good question actually."To be honest i have no idea",the girl shook her head chuckling a little,"i felt sick. But somehow i am feeling all dandy now."It was really weird but oh well it had something good that she had walked to the front gate today.Hehe.Happy Face.

Was the hardness of the poke really needed. "Was that poke really needed?" Finbar asked in a funny tone. "Yes I'm back. I had to come back. I couldn't miss all of the fun that will be going on here. Well I mean now that I am here at Hogwarts. I mean back at Hogwarts." How couldn't she know the reason why she wasn't acting like herself. "How is it possible that you don't know?" Finbar questioned.

Fee giggled a little and patted the space where she had poked him."Yeeees that was needed",the girl grinned,"its your own fault for making fun of me."What if she had believed him that he was the imagination of her brain or something?!That would have been terrible."Ohhh come one admit it you missed me too",the Slytherin wiggled her eyebrows,"just a little bit?"But there surely was going to be a lot fun going on with him being back.They would totally freak out.Hehe."I dont knooww Finny",the Slytherin shook her head,"i just had a weird feeling in my stomach."Maybe she was getting sick?Nooooes.

Lexi smirked back at Ivan and giggled slightly. "I never told anyone your dirty little secret... you know... that you are related to Miles and Fia." She smiled at him and then...

"Well you go right ahead then, Mister... Lord Vorpatril," she said with an itty bitty curtsy. Giggling she continued, "Just set him down he doesn't wander too far. I will see you later though, yeah?"

"And you are totally a wuss. And you know I will call you on your crap when no one else will."

Oh that was VERY rich. Walnut was a little pee pee bandit. She officially loved that cat. Eyeing Merlin she thought if he started to pee on things she would send him back to Sabel in a box. Definitely.

Rufus wiggled a little bit and just stayed clinging to her head. He liked to be paid LOTS of attention. It was something he had liked about belonging to James... the ladies loved him. Heh.

Then... Wow...

Lexi's body went a bit rigid in Sal's arms and she struggled to part from him because she knew he was going to go all... WEIRD... because Kurumi had mentioned the M word. And even the B word. Great.

Sighing slightly she just stepped back and hung her head for a moment. "Thanks for the warm welcome back, everyone. I reckon I should get to the castle though. I need to meet with Madame Donovan and take care of some things... " she said quietly. Looking over a Kurumi from the corner of her eye she sighed again and then looked at Sal through her eyelashes and smiled softly.

"Sal you are still welcome to escort me to the castle if you would like," she said as she snapped her fingers for Merlin and Rufus. Rufus chattered a few times and hopped off of Kurumi's shoulder and ran for Lexi, bounding up her leg, all the way up to her shoulder, Merlin sashaying along hot on her heels as she turned and started to make her way toward the castle.

His brows went up "Prefect Miles. As in the Ravenclaw Triwizard Champion. Your cousin." Well, that was another interesting thing to know about Ivan, other than the fact that he looked to be a neat freak.

He turned to Lexi, smiling sympathetically. He knows all too well that H A S S L E Muggle transport can be. He nodded firmly at her last statement "Yes definitely, You, me, Apparition testing center. I'm getting tired of begging for a portkey just to get somewhere quickly"

Ohh she needing help? He looked at her curiously. "Sure Luv I've love to help." Whatever it was.

His listened to Lexi and Kurumi explain what the packet is about, sliding it between his fingers. He smiled happily and glanced down at the packet, uttering quietly in a moment of reflection "Very valuable this must really be."

And then there was the word. The M word.

*blink*

Happy smile stays frozen on his face as he stared down on the packet, vaguely hearing Lexi speak as suddenly she sounded like she was on the other side of the castle. The M word. He knew he had to face that eventually. He rubbed the little blue packet in his fingers. Will this simple piece of paper keep him from ending up just like his parents?

Can he have a whole box of this just to make sure?

He snapped out of his meanderings when Lexi called his name. What was that? "Right, Castle." He turned his head at Kurumi "Thanks for this kiddo. Sure means a lot to me. More than you can understand right now." he said as he hugged her shoulder, then gave Ivan a quick wave and trudged up the castle with Lexi and her little critters.

Merlin looked up at Salander hopefully and butted his head against Sal's leg. He mewed in that CUTE PICK ME UP sort of way. You know the one... Mhm that one.

Yeah she was nodding her head as she walked off... apparition, help, valuable, him freaking out on the M word. Sheesh. It was a WORD.

Sighing slightly she took hold of his hand when he came up beside her and simply squeezed it gently. There was nothing she could say. Or wanted to say. Nothing was going to make him see... not yet. And she supposed everyone was right. She had all the time in the world. She hoped.

Evan grinned at her words. "I'm not sorry that I'm finally graduating." He thought what he said over and went on: "I mean, sure, I'll miss the place and stuff, but I'm ready to move on." He shrugged. In fact, he was more excited for the outside world now. It was just that... it wouldn't be easy like here. Nothing he got used to. That was the part that got him thinking.

"Anyways, how are you? How do you like here so far?"

WOW O_o Sorry! I'm riddled with pc problems >_<
 

Eirian blinked as her conversation with Jayce was interrupted. Oh, nuh uh. No one interrupted Eirian. "What?" The Slytherin snapped as she turned, and then she realized that this nuisance was both a small thing - probably a first year - and a girl. She didn't like either of those components. Grr. It was apparently stupid, too. Stupid female first year.

"If you are a firstie, you came here by boat over the lake." She pointed in the direction of the giant, dark mass of water. It wasn't visible from where they were, but she still knew the general direction. She remembered walking through the gates mid-year and spotting the lake on the way to the castle. A tentacle had broken the smooth surface just for a moment, and ever since then Eiri was curious about that particular body of water. "But anyone older enters through these gates... Which are closed." Duh. "Both the lake and this path beyond the gate head to the train station where we entered... And that is not part of the grounds we can go on. If you forgot something there, you should talk to your Head of House." Hopefully it understood her through her thick accent... Eirian wasn't going to repeat any of that again. No way.

OOC: Whoops :P Sorry...

Eirian blushed as she turned back to Jay and realized that she had interrupted his attempt to speak. Since when were they this awkward together? She could only assume it was all her fault... After all, she had caused too much trouble between them. He insisted everything could be fixed, but she sincerely doubted it. Not much could be fixed once she was done with it. "Eww," she murmured, wrinkling her nose in disgust. Vomit was rather gross. "He can have my shoes..." It was nearly a sincere offer; Eiri rather hated all of the ones she had, and with her money she could buy just as hideous ones anywhere she wanted to. "Has he not gotten sick from all of that?" Probably, right? Woody was a dog, not a goat. "What were you going to say...?"

She listened to Evan's words looking towards the grounds. When asked how she was she turned to the snake boy and said: "Me? Errrm, I'm OK. If it weren't for you, it would be harder for me to feel fine in this place. You're my first and last friend here." The school and the grounds surrounding it were nice but they wouldn't have a meaning if one didn't have friends to enjoy the lake scene and going for a walk in the pathways together. The blonde girl looked into his eyes and said smiling: "So, I'll miss you Cartwright!"

Fin looked at her and gave her a don't get me sick look and stepped away from her. "Well if you're sick don't you think that you should go to the Hospital Wing?" Finbar asked her. Then he thought about Twitter and the people that said his name was weird. "Do you think my name is weird?" Fin asked her. Oh no not this kind of mood. He kind of hated this mood that he would get into every once in a while. "Do you agree that bunk beds are cool?" Fin asked. "I mean it's a bed with a ladder." Fin said happily.

Evan frowned at her words. She didn't have any other friends? But why--she was pretty, she was polite and friendly enough. Maybe sometimes too cold and distanced from living with Russians in cold weather, but she was very nice.

"Why do you say so?" he asked, clearly surprised. Why wouldn't snakes accept her in--she was Slytherin enough. He gave a sad smile at her revelation. "I'll miss you too, I guess..." he muttered, at a loss for words. He still couldn't see why he was her only friend. "But I'd leave happy if I knew you were happy here too." She would sure to make more effort now, no? Maybe he needed to talk to Iris about it... yeah, he had to.

It was all Presley could do not to burst into tears. After the week she'd been having, she didn't need this crap. "The queation, was where was the train station," Presley snapped back. "It's not on the grounds. I wanted to know if it was in Hogsmeade! Do NOT treat me like I'm unintelligent!" Presley, shy as she was, didn't take crap from anybody. Not even older students. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find someone who can actually answer a straightforward question, in a polite and mature manner!" Presley turned on her heel, and started to stalk away.

OOC: Er, how do I get rid of an accidental post?

OOC: Contact a mod and ask them to delete it. Unfortunately, we can't delete our own...

Eirian raised a well-groomed eyebrow and watched the firstie. She had answered the question she was asked. It wasn't her fault that the girl wasn't too bright or well-spoken. "You did not ask that," she voiced. "The train station is its own place. Hogsmeade is close, but not... actually there." It walked away... Oh well. Less for her to deal with. Wrinkling her nose, Eiri figured that she'd make a terrible mum.

Bissy was thinking how life in Hogwarts would be without her being Evelyn's enemy. It would be great actually; they were in the same level of slyness and nursing a grudge against their enemies. She looked at Evan to answer his question and said: "Well, I don't know. Maybe I am not trying enough." Giving a shy smile to the prefect she said: "Thanks for your consideration, Evan. I need some more time to know more people I think. I must spend more time sitting in the common room rather than studying in the library. Having entioned the library, did you do your HoM homework by the way?"

The girl was still talking as Presley walked away. Presley paused, and looked over her shoulder, then decided this argument was not worth her time. Obviously the question 'Where did we get off the train?' was not asking where the train-station was. Whatever, she couldn't deal with this right now. She continued walking until the girl was out of sight. Pres shook it off. It didn't matter. What did she care what this girl thought of her? Because she could make your life hell if she wanted to? A thought suggested.

Fee pouted a little as Fin stepped away from her."I am not sick",she chuckled,"i just had the weird feeling that something was going to happend.And tah-dah here you are back at Hogwarts."Somtimes Finbar could be weird,but the blonde didnt mind.He was awesome."Dont worry about me i am perfectly fine",she smiled,"how come you are back?"It probably was the happiest day ever,the girl so hadnt expected this.Did the Slytherin think his name was weird?What?!"Noo why should i think your name was weird,Finny?",she asked raising an eyebrow.The third year didnt know what was going on with Finny but it made her laugh a little."Yees i totally agree",she smiled,"i used to share one with one of my sisters.Its sooo cool.Of course i always slept on the top bed."

Evan cocked his head to one side as he gave her a "c'mon now" look. Why wasn't she trying hard enough? Didn't she like here? "You don't miss Durmstrang or anything, do you?" he asked, just to be sure. At the mention of library, he was even more determined to talk to Iris about her. Maybe Iris could befriend her and bring her into her circle of friends... yeah. Girls understood girls better, and Bissy must have some problems that she couldn't tell to a boy... otherwise, Evan truly couldn't see why she didn't have many friends here.

"Yeah, I did it," he said, pausing to remember what he had written. Yeah, he did expect a nice note from that one. "And you?" he asked, with a little bit authority there. Their new people should be working too on the way to the house cup.

Evan didn't know of course how she felt being stuck in the common room and the dormitory with Evelyn and her ecurie -Marie. She couldn't say this to Evan of course; she didn't want to be seen as a cold fish and she wasn't one after all. She frowned at Evan's question and answered: "Durmstrang? Oh, actually not much but I had met and befriended great people there."

Talking about homework, she felt a bit embarassed. Sensing the peremptory tone in his voice the blonde girl lowered her head and muttered something. There were a few audible words like: "nice", "haven't", "time", "will do" She didn't dare to look into Evan's eyes. He could be a nice friend but he was a prefect, too in the meanwhile. *sigh*

Evan thought about how he'd introduce her to Iris for a moment, then shrugged to himself. Iris would know what to do... If Bissy had no trouble in Durmstrang, she wouldn't have any here as well. Maybe it was just the change of place... or maybe... but no, Marie, Evelyn and Destiny weren't the people to be hostile. Sure, especially Marie and Evelyn could be hostile, but they had no reason to... all the ways led to Iris. And he had to hurry.

Aww, she was embarrassed, wasn't she? N'aaaww. It wasn't like he would eat her. It would be better, that's all. "Don't feel guilty," he said, trying to make her feel comfortable. "Well, it's just... better, y'know, if you too could do some homework. But no pressure there."

Oh, yeah! Bissy was feeling guilty no matter what Evan had told her. She passed the last two days in the library but didn't feel like doing her homework. She was absorbed in reading books about potions and charms; she wanted to catch up with the Hogwarts students. Maybe there were some incantations that she had to know but she didn't learn in Durmstrang. But she shouldn't let this situation make her fall behind with her homework.

Placing a smile on her lips she said: "If you say so, I won't feel like that, Cartwright. I'll try my best to gain housepoints and be one of the best students in the school."

"I know.... I just wish there was something I could do about it. Give Elyon a better life." He most certainly didn't think she deserved to live like this. Barely any money to pay for food or the bills, a sick father and an abusive mother, all of these things forced the two on their own. He wished he could give his little sister better.

Christopher relaxed at Cass's touch. She was like some sort of therapist, she was really easy to talk to. "Thanks. That really means a lot." Cass was such a good friend. Which was why he didn't want to have to tell her the answer to her next question. "Oh you know, just some dumb drama. Nothing important. Like you said, it probably isn't true." He hoped it wasn't. Then they could stay friends. He didn't want that to be ruined either.

"You could. Once you get out of Hogwarts..." She said a bit glumly, she knew that wasn't of much help, but that was the truth, he couldn't do much..he was kid, who would listen to him? he was underage, what magic could he do?

Then she smiled as she felt him relax under her hand "Its no skin off my back..I would try to help more if I could, but for now all I could offer you is our house." She wondered...how come she had never offered the same towards Levi? They were facing the same thing as well...but it never occurred to her to let him stay at her place.

Maybe because Christopher didn't shout at her at the top of his lungs and made her run out of the compartment crying...yeah. That was probably it.

Then she raised an eyebrow as he simply refused to tell her what it was. Her curiosity was killing her. She simply must know! But she didn't want to push him...

"Drama..Why doesn't that surprise me?" She answered wryly but with a touch of humor as she smiled "Alright, could you give me a clue then? Because not knowing is killing me!"