Tay looked at her, "You really need to get it checked out." She pouted. Taylor sighed and glanced at her. Tay glanced around, trying to find Louisa or some other person to help them.

Elise was starting to feel a little creeped out by the kid who was staring a hole through her head. Raising her hand a little, she felt around her hair, just to make sure it was still intact. No hole through the middle. That was good.

Finishing off her notes for Divination and starting on her Potions recipe rewriting, Elise's head jerked upwards when the boy squealed. "Your arm won't fall off," she said, shaking her head. "Why would it?"

In Elise's experience, quidditch hadn't made anyone lose an arm. Maybe knocked them unconscious or gave the fractures or concussions. But the arm certainly wouldn't FALL OFF. Strange kid.

"I'm sorry you missed Care of Magical Creatures, Cora. Things got a little crazy though so maybe you missed it for a reason. There was, well, fire - with the fire crabs and all. And that Elijah kid seems to keep losing his shirt in class." She still thought that was really odd of him. "Have you been back to the stables lately?" she asked Cora.

She went to address Elliot's comment about her being puny and stopped herself. She'd wanted to say something in retort, something about how short Elliot was herself, but she didn't feel like it would be the best way to keep the new mood going. So instead she said, "Yeah, well...I'm still growing. So I guess we'll see who's shorter in the end." She smiled a slightly sassy smile, but was by no means confrontational. She couldn't help it if she had a little zest to her reply. It was in her nature. Mostly always in good fun though. Then she added, "I could hardly believe a professor would DO that to her students! I mean, a hurricane?!" If that could happen in Charms, she shuddered to think what they'd be faced with later in the term with the other classes.

Eliza glazed over Elliot's comment to Cora about making her uncomfortable. She estimated she'd said quite enough already about the subject. Her father always told her she was prone to rambling sometimes, so she was working on keeping her lips zipped. She was, however, still curious to know more about Elliot. It was interesting to her that she and Cora were friends, seeing as Cora was so quiet and cheerful and Elliot seemed to have a bit of vinegar to her. Maybe that's why it works, she thought. Opposites attract they say... They must balance each other. She wondered where that left her. She was sort of the middle ground between them. She thought they were both interesting people, so did that mean Eliza was a bland boring medium? She hoped not.

"So, Elliot" she started, trying to think of more ways to get to know her without being too personal as she had been with Cora, "Do you have any pets at Hogwarts?" That seemed like an easy enough question to ask.

Why would it fall off? WHY WOULD IT FALL OFF?! "Why WOULDN'T it fall off?!" he screeched, imitating an owl (it didn't help that he was flailing his arms in a desperate attempt to use them as much as possible before they allegedly fell off).

Clearly, he was beyond rational thinking at this point.

"There are SO MANY THINGS that could go wrong. Like...what if? And then...UH. Also like....the thing...and...AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH."

CALM?! I AM CALM!

It was like his very existence was on FIRE with arms. FLAMING ARMS EVERYWHERE.

Elise bit her lower lip to hold back a very loud giggle and continued doing her Potions notes when the boy started screeching. "Hey," she said slowly. "Relax. There's those things called joints and tendons. Your arm won't fall off any time soon. Really. I've never seen anyone's arm fall of playing Quidditch." And Elise's watched a whoooole lot of Quidditch.

"That's essentially nothing, right?" she smirked. "Relax. It's not the end of the world." Elise was one to talk, though. She did sprain her wrist, and it was her hand in a bandage now, anyway. Which meant that she couldn't handle a bat.

And to top it off, the kid had knocked over some of her Arithmancy notes in his flailing. Elise giggled a little, shaking her head as she bent over to pick those up. This was one strange kid, no doubt.

Lily sat in her seat with her head hanging a bit, trying not to make eye contact with Taylor. She knew that she needed to get her wrist checked by someone even if she wasn't willing to go see the healer. So she kinda just sat there, hanging her head.

The third year was still holding her wrist with her left hand and wincing every now and again while she sat looking around the common room. Quietly, she looked up at Tay and spoke. "I don't think she's in here... she's probably out on her prefect duties... we'd probably be better off looking for her in the library or the halls... or the great hall." Really anywhere in the castle other than the common rooms or the dorms because it wasn't that late in the day yet.

Herbology.. Ethan became lost in his reverie as talk turned to one of his favorite subjects and he began daydreaming of transplants and plant graphing until.. horrible plant subject?! "Horrible? Aw, Elliot, you're killing me..." Ethan clutched at his chest as he mocked a heart attack. But she did offer assistance in his least favorite subject. "Okay.. it's a deal," he said, quickly recovering.He'd have to take her up on that offer if he had any hopes of passing his OWLs.

The fifth year raised an eyebrow and merely stared at Elliot as she directed her question to Cora. Blunt much? He turned to look at Cora. He could tell she was still feeling uncomfortable. Ethan was trying hard to lighten the mood and he could tell the other two were trying as well. But he knew how hard it could be to turn off feelings..

Ethan gave Cora a reassuring smile as she joined the conversation. Care of Magical Creatures... yeah, he didn't remember seeing her in class. A strange feeling threatened to emerge at the surface, but he forced it to the back of his mind... Instead he chuckled as Elliot and Eliza went on about the class. "Professor Newlin booked some pretty interesting entertainment for that class," he added, remembering the fire-spinning acrobat.

His gaze drifted over to those two as the younger girl not only took Elliot's sass, but also gave her a little cheek in return without skipping a beat. Ethan chuckled lightly. He liked this one.. not willing to just lie down and be walked over. The fifth year gave Eliza a shrug as she mentioned another class - Ancient Runes. "I took it at Beauxbatons, yeah," he said. That class was just... meh. Too much book-reading and memorization. "I'll probably take it here, too." As he was expected to take pretty much every class... or else feel the wrath of Meloria McCarthy.

He then glanced over at Cora as she still seemed to be awkwardly quiet, wondering if he had done a good enough job of trying to put her at ease. Or maybe he should just go so she could sort out her emotions on her own.. Maybe she didn't want to be surrounded by people right now.

Milton listened to Presley as she explained the leisure broom. He nodded slowly. But... wait. He was under the impression that she didn't know much about quidditch. Milton raised an eyebrow when she clapped her hand over her mouth. "I think I'll stick with the broom I've got." He added a wink because he was ONTO something. Mhmm.

It WAS cool, wasn't it? "It's no big deal," he said coolly, leaning back in his chair. "Dublin's pretty cool," he said, assuming she had never been. That's what she made it sound like anyway. "Maybe you should visit. But after I graduate, so you can see me at work." Duhh.

Presley's stomach filled with a weird feeling when he winked at her. It was kind of fluttery, kind of victorious, and kind of full of dread. The fluttery..who knew where that came from. Victorious because winking meant she was winning the game, at least a little bit. And dread because she hadn't shut her big mouth, and now he knew. He probably thought she was a big liar now, even though she hadn't lied once for the entire time they'd been talking. Avoided the truth, yes. Lied, absolutely not.

Presley grinned. He'd just invited her to come visit him in Dublin after he graduated. Plus, he was so casual about just living in Dublin. "That would be so much fun." She replied. Now was the time to end the conversation, right? Keep him slightly wondering who she was, but not dragging on the small talk. She would give it a while, and then talk to him again. This was going to work, she could feel it. She gathered up her things and stood up. "It was nice meeting you, Milton." she flashed him a smile. "I'll see you around."

Cora's lip quivered a bit as she answered Elliot. "Oh no, it wasn't your fault." I just mess everything up. Cora looked at the ground, thinking she should really storm off and be dramatic and emotional. But she wouldn't do that, especially when nothing had actually happened. Just be normal, she thought to herself.

So Cora put everything behind her. She was not one to hold grudges or to continue beating her head against a wall. She was done with these histrionics. Sigh. Cora's face brightened as Elliot and Ethan continued to chat. Especially when Ethan turned to her looking all concerned. "I really like Professor Newlin. I am helping her in the barn. With the knarls." Oh yes. Cora loved animals. She understood them way better than people. And she loved to be helpful. "It's too bad I missed class. Sounds interesting." Cora made a face. Thinking about a class that she could finally be good at helped to brighten her mood.

"Fire?!" Cora's eyes widened. She has never liked fire. Noticing she couldn't quite hide her expression now, she smiled, thinking of how funny it would be to the rest.

Cora let her eyes wander around the room and just happened to spot her fluffy white kitten, hiding under the chair in the corner like usual. Her cat was JUST like her, and Cora loved how perfectly white her coat was. As Cora walked over quietly, Teacup tentatively peered out, nervously. She scooped her up and walked back over to the group. "I could imagine that being a bit, well, dangerous," she continued, thinking of the fire. "Oh, this is Teacup, by the way." Teacup quickly hid beneath Cora's arms. Yep, exactly like Cora. "She's a little shy. I love animals, so I can't wait to actually like another one of my classes. Not like Defense Against the Dark arts," she said with a shudder. Not like anything bad had actually happened, it just scared her. Thinking back to her cat, she added, "Don't be offended if she doesn't like you. It takes a while for her to warm up to anyone." Cora smiled now.

She eyed the little girl.."No. I have a crup at home named Moze, who is a bigger diva than I am," she smirked, flipping her hair a bit..to show..that hey, she was a huuuuge diva sometimes. So Moze must really be a diva. Poor little guy was super spoiled, though.

She smirked over at Ethan. "I just don't get plants, okay?!" Was that a crime?! NO! She just didn't understand it. It was...hard for her. Which she didn't like because she was USED to being PERFECT all the bloody time! GUR. "Yeah, deal. Transfiguration...you'll be an expert when I'm through with you, kid," even though he was older..ehh. It was a nickname she usually reserved for..boys. Or younger annoying girls...like Alexa. Whatever.

And theeeen her eyes went BAAACK to Cora...eh. She felt a little bad. "Sorry. Just looking out for you." Poor little Cora needed that..or, at least that's what Elliot felt. She saw the little..white..puffball..and her inner child was all OIEWHHFKRHFKFB KITTY! But on the outside, she merely smirked and gave the little guy a scratch with her finger.."He's cute." Kind of like Cora, right? Little, innocent, and adorable. Heh. Elliot was NOT a kitty...at all...

Eliza was watching closely as the group of them interacted with each other, trying to figure out the little details of their relationships. Cora was definitely sweet, and seemed to have all sorts of friends. She had taken Eliza under her wing a bit, so it was interesting to now see others in a sort of protective, care-giving role towards Cora instead of the other way around. She was thinking on this when Ethan answered her question. "Oh, you went to Beauxbatons?" She'd heard about it and had always admired the girls' light blue dresses. "What's it like there? Is it very much different from Hogwarts?" She couldn't help that she was a question monster. She was always just so curious about everything. Maybe that was one of her major flaws. She could see how it might get on peoples' nerves, but if she wasn't asking questions - it just meant she really didn't care much. She thought people would rather she cared than be indifferent all the time, right?




She was glad Cora had been spending time in the barns. Cora had told her before that she really enjoyed animals and Eliza thought helping was probably one of Cora's favorite things to do. "Professor Newlin does seem nice. How are the knarls doing? Do you get to keep their quills when they shed? I've heard they can be useful." She really didn't know much about knarls other than what she'd read, but she thought it would be nice to talk about something Cora enjoyed.




Eliza looked at Elliot as she answered her while flipping her hair. Ha! Hair flip? That amused Eliza for reasons she didn't really understand. I wasn't expecting that. Okay, Elliot equals sarcasm AND diva. Interesting combo. Got it. She laughed softly, "Oh a crup? That's cool. We just have a regular cat, and an owl." Not that anyone had asked. Speaking of cats, Cora's little white fluffy cloud kitten peeked out from under a chair as she picked her up. "Ohhh my gosh, she's so cute!!" she exclaimed as she admired the kitten's cute little face. Realizing she might scare Teacup if she talked too loudly, she lowered her voice to a coo and talked to her. "Well hello there... you're a pretty little kitty aren't you?" She waved at Teacup, from a distance, and beamed at Cora. Okay now I really really want a kitten!

She opened herself back to the group and asked in a chipper voice, "Do any of you do anything special for the holidays?" As far as Eliza was concerned, the presents, food, and lit fireplaces were the only reasons winter should even exist. And even then, she wished the cold would hurry up and leave sooner than later. As much as she loved sweaters and scarves, which was a lot, she liked being able to run around outside without freezing much much better.

Ethan's eyes landed on each of the girls as they talked, mildly satisfied that it now seemed like a normal conversation. He lightly covered a yawn with his hand, eyes drifting towards the fireplace and mesmerizing flames. His eyes focused on the flickering fire, lids growing heavy.. when he vaguely heard someone mention Beauxbatons - Eliza, maybe? He wasn't completely sure as he had somewhat tuned out the girl talk.. not trying to be rude, really, just as a result of his sleepiness. "Beauxbatons is a wonderful school.." he began, smiling wistfully, still missing it. "I guess Hogwarts would be a close second," he added, smiling a bit wider. The boy was getting used to it here, and did genuinely like the school.. but he was still homesick in a sense.

Ethan didn't add much more as his attention was diverted by Cora's little cat. He smiled over in its general direction. She was cute.. but somewhat reminded him of his kneazle at home - who was a big pain, by the way.. but the boy was still fond of him. He felt a twinge of homesickness again. And then Eliza mentioned the holidays.. yeah, he really couldn't wait for break and to go home. Suddenly he was very aware of how tired he was. "Well, ladies, it's been a pleasure," he said with a smile at the group as he rose from his seat. He covered another yawn with his hand. "But I really must be going to bed." He picked up his things and headed towards the dorms.

It happened so suddenly, and quietly, but it happened all the same: everyone in the Common Room, whether they had been lounging there for hours or had just walked in the door, was suddenly evicted.

An unseen force repelled all Ravenclaw students from their Common Room and attached areas. The same force locked all entrances and exits to the rooms with one resounding, echoing, ominous CLICK.

The Common Room was officially locked and sealed to all.

Jayden has never been happier to see her own common room! "HOLY COMMON ROOM BATMAN!" She squealed before jumping flying onto the couch. This was heaven after having to spend months sharing sleeping quarters. Thank Merlin. Whatever happened.... it WORKED.

Mick almost froze up at the entrance, trying to decide if this was actually happening or just a another crazy fantasy in his mind...Nope, it's not! He's back in the Ravenclaw common room. Whatever it was - a curse, cruel prank, magical hijinks - it has finally ended and Mick can finally sleeping on his own bed and not on the hard floor.

"NO MORE BACK PAINS! WOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!" he happily shouted, while hoping he didn't scare the fellow Ravvie in the room. He joyfully danced his way to an armchair near a window and did a twirl-like hop before sinking into the chair's comfy-ness. Maybe he was acting a bit overjoyed but who cares? Mick certainly didn't; everyone has slept at the Great Hall for months and now can go back to their normal sanctuaries that are the common rooms. He felt that this deserves to be celebrated.

Tay stormed into the common room and fell face first into the couch. She curled her feet up a little and just laid there, trying to forget what just happened to her. Her blonde curls were fanned out and one single one was sitting gently on her cheek.

Elliot swept into the common room..SO IT WAS TRUE. THEY COULD GO BACK. YEsssss! She was so HAPPY. She had about a DOZEN books in her hand and sort of stumbled into the room, but was pretty graceful about catching her footing. Ish.

Hehehe.

She spotted Jayden and immediately went to sit by her..."Jayden..." she said with a nod in her direction. After their..conversation the other day..she wondered how Jayden felt about her. And stufffffs..."I have so so so much catching up to do..I missed a week because my Aunt came into town..." she said breathlessly, though Aurora HAD done an excellent job of getting all of her work for her.

Thank Merlin.

She was about to open one book when she spotted MICK. She waved in his direction and sent him a smirk. "Sorry we didn't finish our conversation at in the Great Hall! I got distracted..." she said with a nod. Mick had been..interesting. And...his parents..Elliot was still amazed. She had never met anyone with divorced Parents..besides Max...but his didn't count because his mother was dead...so yeah. She waved him over, raising her eyebrows...heh.

Mick was so caught up in his euphoric state of mind, he almost didn't hear Elliot speaking to him. "Oh hey, Missy Morganzo," he greeted with a smile, waving back as well. His mind was all over the place - the common room, Laura, being back at the common room, his nice bed, Laura, AND being able to slumber without tossing and turning because the common rooms are open!

Oh, I wish Laura was here...

Before he became too lost in his own weird thoughts, Mick went back to reality. "It's okay - about the Great Hall, I mean," he told her. "You were talking to like a billion people at once and our conversation was a bit of a downer. If I bored you, I'm sorry." Divorce, my parents...Not the world's best conversation topics but she was curious. "So how are you doing?"

Elliot smirked at the nickname..Missy...Morganzo..Hehehe. SHe raised an eyebrow at him..."I don't remember YOUR last name.." she didn't mean that..in a condescending way...she just honestly had been too distracted to catch it...and was his real name even Mick?! She didn't even know! Heh. It was a weird name...but then again, so was Elliot...

Oh...

A million people..

This also made her smirk..and inflated her head..even more..."Oh, I know..I'm pretty popular.." she said, rolling her eyes..she was obviously being...sarcastic and witty and just-awesome...HEH!

"It didn't bore me. I was honestly curious, love," she nodded. "Like I said..I don't know anyone with divorced parents..." she shrugged. "Not that it means my family is cool. Because it's not..even though my parents are together.." he got another shrug. She was beginning to wish her parents were divorced..but then..she would be miserable with either one, just for different reasons.

Maybe her wish should be different..like..maybe she should just move in with Maxwell..

Meehh.

Mick caught a glimpse of Elliot's little reaction to (one of many) nicknames for her. Well, it's not just her, he has nicknames for everyone. He hasn't come up with a nickname for his girlfriend but he'll think of something. He started to chuckle at Elliot for not remembering his last name. "Funny, some people say it's easy to recall," he said. "DeLarge...Michael Alexander DeLarge."

Whoa! Did I just say my real name (OUT LOUD)? Oh well, people who know me were bound to find out sometime...Like if/when they come over to my home during the summer and hear everyone calling me 'Michael'. He hates that name so much, but he has learned to live with it. As long as people at school referred to him by the name he likes, it's all good.

"So now you know, Miss Popularity Queen," Mick started, in a cool tone, "what my birth name is. Up until now, only one person knows of it. Now two." Wait! Did she call me 'love'?

Delarge...DeLarge..she wondered..was he pureblood? Yeah, it WAS the first thing she thought about when introduced to someone. Meh. Kill her. It was how she was raised. She didn't care anymore if people thought that was stuck up of her...noooope.

"I knew it!" she said quickly, about his real name NOT being Mick..AHA! But then she realized she might look crazy..so she coughed. "I mean..I knew Mick couldn't be your REAL name...because it sounds like a dog's name!" she said bluntly, chuckling at herself. No offense meant..she was just being honest about her thoughts! Mick..it really did sound like a dog's naaame!

Yes..his birth name..but she tilted her head to the side in curiosity..."Why do only TWO people know it?!" she asked..wondering..why?! Elliot LOVED her birth name..."My whole name is Elliot Mitchell Morganzo." Yes, her middle name was male too. So...what. She loved it. All of it. "It sounds so grand, I know. but then again..so does yours...Michael..why don't you go by that?! It sounds nice.." she nodded, leaning back in her chair and tucking her blonde hair behind her ears. Yep. She was a curious 'claw. As always.

When she wasn't being an evil closet Slytherin.

"Hey Elliot! Guess we can get back in then, eh?" She grinned, sitting down in a nearby chair next to Elliot. She hoped that her friend could truly see how much she cared about her. Especially after everything that had been said the day before. "So, do you know if it's just our common room that has been opened, or all of it? I noticed a change when I was walking back from Divination."

D'oh! Mick told Laura his actual first name in private, knowing she wouldn't blab about it around school. He doesn't know Elliot well enough but he knows that she won't let that go, she's already calling him Michael. That's your own fault. "Hey, I like Mick. I think it sounds cool..." A dog's name? He figured one thing about her, she's not afraid to be blunt. Mick actually didn't mind that, he found that impressive. But still, a dog's name?

There was something about Elliot that he couldn't put his finger on...She's calling him by his true name. And she said his name sounds nice. No one has ever said that about his name before. Mick didn't think anyone would have a reason to think or say so. In all honesty, he felt that her name sounded cooler.

And now she's asking why I don't want to be called Michael...Mick briefly looked out the window next to him and sighed quietly. He didn't want to talk about why he is so adament about his nickname. He couldn't figure out why Elliot is so interested, he couldn't be that interesting. Could he? No. Mick looked back at her and decided to stall away from that topic. "Y-yeah, you and another person know my name...Her name is Laura," he replied, so innocently.

Elliot nodded, turning from Mick and winking at Jayden. "It's nice to bloody well be back!" she cried, stroking the letters on her potions' book absentmindedly...

Ahhh.

Divination. She scowled. "I quit that class..it's rubbish.." she rolled her eyes. "But yeah...I heard that others were open...Max said Gryffindor's were open..so...I tried this one just now..and it WORKED!" she smirked. "SO glad...now I can read in front of the fireplace...sleep in my OWN bed and not in some stupid sleeping bag.." she scoffed again. Because Empress Elliot was NOT used to such...sleeping conditions. Not at alll!

She crossed her ankles and dug around in her bag for her quill and some spare parchment..right...to start a letter to home.."Hey, Jay! Did you hear about that plant eating a professor?!" she asked, her eyes suddenly lifting up to meet hers, wide and shocked looking...hehe.

She nodded and turned back to Mick.."I never said I DIDN'T like it, Mick. I just said it reminds me of a canine.." she smirked. And shrugged. He shouldn't be offended. Dogs/crups were nice..except HERS. Moze. Who was mean as allllll heck!

She saw his...look away. Hmm. Must be a personal reason of some sort...weird. WEIRD. She actually didn't press the subject, for ONCE, and just let him..look out the window or wherever.

Oh?

Another person..Elliot flashed him a rare grin. "Really? I feel honored that you told meeee!" she said, a bit happily..LAura? "Oh..Laura..." she wondered...was there only ONE Laura in school?! She HAD to know.."L-Laura who?" she asked curiously, casually, tilting her head to the side...as if this were a perfectly..normal..question..

Right....