It was sort of an understood and natural agreement Cutty had with himself that as soon as he became of age, he'd be using his magic for everything! Glass of water? Aquamenti! Where are my shoes? Accio! Just got out of the bath? Siccus Aerous! He was practically an Accionite in this manner.

"Not on the house team." And at first, Cutty thought this answer might suffice before he remembered how people were. "I tried out, but I don't get much practice in with most of my summer being spent in Egypt. The attitude about brooms is different there, so it's a bit difficult to practice even though there are a lot of Quidditch fans there." He grabbed another broom that looked particularly bad and began to snip away at it. Clip-snick! Snip!

Sander grinned back at Lux, "That's great. I love hanging out with my two favorite girls." Sander told her before sitting down next to Lux. "Okay then I'll sit here and keep you company until you're done."

After a few minutes passed, Beverly picked up another towel and began tracing circles on the broom handle to buff off the dried polish. Apparently that was supposed to leave it shiny or something. Still she did it carefully, just the way she'd seen her dad do.

Finishing that up, she stood the broom, the handle gleaming in the light. That was a job well done. The satisfaction was almost enough to make her feel better, but not quite.

She set the broom over where the finished ones were, then grabbed another. How many was she going to clean? She didn't know, but as many that earned her the most house points.

Tessa grinned down at Lux. "Is there any question? I'm always up for food," she said, patting her stomach. Food was delicious... granted, she had started to put on some extra pounds lately, and she didn't like that. It slowed her down when she flew- and she was already moving at a slower rate than normal. She didn't like it at all.

"Your two favorite girls, huh?" Tessa teased with a grin. "I am, I'll have you know, a lady," she said, crossing her arms with a sniff. However, she quickly succumbed to giggles and gathered up the rest of her things. "You're one of my favorite boys," she said, quickly pecking Sander on the cheek before taking the remaining brooms back to their place.

"I'm ready whenever you guys are," she said, settling onto a bench once more.

Snip. Snip snip.

Snip.

....................... snip.

Tobias was very carefully using his free hand to follow along the line of the twigs in the broom's tail end. It was once easier to do this once the worst of the stray twigs were off, and by this point Tobias was only really fine-tuning. This was always his favourite part of broom servicing, and he liked to believe he was rather good at it.

He looked up again whenever Bart spoke, replying and trimming tail twigs at the same time. "I'm not sure I have a favourite," he said cheerily, getting real close to the broom and squinting to try and judge the angle of the next snip very carefully. Once it was decided, Toby put the clippers in place and leaned his face away so it wouldn't get hit by any stray pieces of twig, and clipped the end off. "I just like to play. And the ones I've played are really fun in different ways, so it doesn't feel right to compare them."

If he was completely honest, Tobias completely agreed with Bart when it came to the lesson thing. He was constantly daydreaming about playing Quidditch when he was in class; the sport was almost always on his mind. But Toby stuck with lessons and always resolved to do the best he could, but as he was growing up, his ability to concentrate was getting worse. Some subjects he excelled at and willingly did extra work for, others he only just managed to do well in. Really, Tobias just stuck with his academics out of loyalty. Pure loyalty to his grandfather, who'd recognised Toby's ability with magical subjects, and didn't want him to throw it away.

... But he was getting distracted. (See? SEE?)

"Potions is awesome. And I really like Professor Culloden," Toby said simply, giving a nod. He glanced up again and looked at Bart. "We should brew a potion some time. In the Potions lab." Good way of properly making friends and stuff, 'cause Bart said he liked it. Toby looked over at Cutty and smiled at him. "You too, Cutty. It could be fun."

Anyway, yes... the broom. At first glance it probably looked like it was done, but Toby knew better. He was now worked on making sure that the line of the cut where the twigs had been clipped off were all properly in line with the sleek shape of the tail end. Really, this could be important, but it wasn't necessary for the broom to fly. Just one of those little things that improved handling and turning and stability and things like that.

He heard Bart and Cutty talking about the tryouts, and Tobias looked up at Cutty again when he mentioned not making the team. It seemed like hard luck that Cutty couldn't practice over the summer; he'd have offered to let the boy practice with him, but living in a muggle area meant that was impossible. Toby couldn't quite gauge the Slytherin's feelings about not getting on the team, but decided to not saying anything, mainly because he was focused on getting this broom juuuuuust right.

"We could all fly together too. Maybe," Tobias spoke, leaning away from the broom and up straight, subconsciously trying to stretch out an ache in his back. The broom was done.

He looked at the pair. "If you like?"

He paused only momentarily to look over Bart and Tobias, because if either of them was at all likely to drink their own potions, Professor Culloden would probably hold him responsible. Tobias probably wouldn't drink his, but Bart....Bart would probably drink his own and then move on to Toby's and Cutty's potions each in turn or perhaps, fantasy of fantasies, all at the same time? He was derriere-in-the-wind like that! Which Cutty liked. Maybe if they could figure out a way to get in there and out without Culloden really knowing or take their potions elsewhere to say, Hogsmeade, they could have a bit of experimental fun. Yes. Yes. This could work.

Clip-Clap! SNIP!

Cutty was never allowed to touch his mother's prized collection of classic and vintage brooms...with good reason, but he'd seen her do it a myriad of times. The boy was literally nothing if not for mimicry. Just like a myna bird. An evil little myna bird. So when Tobias smiled at him it was practically no work at all to return it, though he still wore a vague one from the initiation of their conversation. "Or several. The potions lab has always been empty every time I'm there." Except for when he'd met the Headboy. The broom laid across Cutty's lap and he held on to it's handle twirling it slowly and looking for other stray twigs, and uneven spots. Spotting still more disruptions to the system, he quickly moved to cut them down.



And then the conversation turned to flying and Cutty had to decide. Decide right there and then if he really wanted either Tobias or Bart to really know what kind of flyer he was. He froze, hand on the clippers which were likewise frozen on the ends of some gnarled twigs that had some how gotten twisted with one another on the tail of the broom he was holding. "I would, but I'm selling my broom."

Lies on top of lies on top of lies on top of lies. O_____O

Ian put the broom down he was working on. It seemed they were about finished. He liked the way that the brooms had turned out and the way they looked. Hopefully, having a broom they were proud of would help them to take pride in them.

Ian grinned back at Adi. Yeah, it was kind of funny, but I was afraid of the groundskeeper Ian looked at Adi ands shrugged. Maybe we will.

So Caelen had polished some of the broom handles. Now she wanted to do something else. Because there was nothing else to do. And surprsingly, she actually enjoyed doing work. Not like the sweeping kind, but of the basic upkeep kind. Just ask anyone she's ever boarded with. Her room was always obnoxiously clean. And she was always cleaning other people's rooms. Which really ticked off her brother. And that was part of the reason why she always did it. The redhead had to do most of the chores around the house anyway. The kid was used to basic upkeep. No matter how much she hated it.

And that got her thinking to her brother. She was going to have to send him a letter, asking whether or not he was doing his chores and such. Yes, he was like twenty-two now. But he was practically a man child. And she wanted to make sure that things were actually done. Because even though she was a mess herself, the kid was actually the responsible child. A semi- responsible child.

And besides, the blue-eyed girl found the common room boring and she had been exploring SO much lately. It was actually getting boring for her. Plus, the little redhead was being helpful. And that was the best thing a person could be. Besides Batman with a laser firing unicorn horn and axes for hooves. That was pretty cool too. And if she ever made a video game, that would soo be the main character.

Anyway, weird dreams that she totally didn't have last night aside 0_o she decided to trim the broom handles a bit. Because that always seemed like a good idea. Putting scissors in her hands.

And grabbing the needed tools, Caelen got to work, humming a tune to herself. She was planning on doing things besides sitting around today and that was what she was doing. And she was actually getting to work, something that she figured could benifit everyone greatly. Including her. Because -sing song voice- housepoints.

Sophie was pretty much getting the hang of washing the tail twigs of the broom. This was...what? Her fifth broom to work on? Something like that. The activity was still going strong, though, so she accepted the next broom passed to her and got back to work.

She began by submerging the twigs in water. She held the broom still while a whole minute passed by. Afterwards, she gently stirred the broom in a clockwise direction.

Then it was time to let another minute pass by. She then lifted the broom and let the excess water drip down into the bucket. She wrapped the broom in a towel then passed it on down the line.

Okay, so Adi was done now. And there were no more broomsticks to polish from the pile he had brought. "I think we're done,'' he said, stating the obvious to Ian. Plus Professor Tyner did say they were almost done. He was proud of his and Ian's work. Just look at those shiny broom handles!

"I don't blame you,'' the twelve year old said. "I could imagine the shock the first years got when he collected them at the beginning of the term from the train.'' But the big man wasn't that bad, right? "Anyway, I guess we should get doing.'' They didn't have anything else to do here, after all.

Thankfully, this broom that Caleb had grabbed wasn't in as bad of shape as the last one. All he had to do now was just polish the broom handle and he was done. Taking the bottle of polish he had used before, he grabbed an old cloth and started to pour some of it on the cloth. Then, suddenly, his hand twitched and a shooting pain went through his fingers. OHMIGOSH SWEET MERLIN!

He dropped the bottle on the ground and let out a yell. Once his hand stopped cramping up - stupid joints, why were they so STIFF lately?! - he looked down at the broken bottle and sighed. "Reparo," he muttered, and then he muttered "Scourgify" to get rid of the extra polish he'd spilled. At least he had enough to finish polishing the broom...

Awww. "Well, you are one of my favourite guys, Sander!" She smiled as she finished up polishing the broom she was working on. He really was a very sweet boy, and very helpful.

Tessa's comment made her laugh. "I know how much you love food. It's the same amount as I do!" They both really liked their food a lot! Food on the braaaain. Though... she had noticed that Tessa was a little heavier than she had been a few months before. Not that she would comment, because it would be rude and Tessa wasn't even fat; but what if it started having an effect on her Quidditch playing?

She finished the buffering on the broom, as she thought about all this, placing it with the other polished brooms. "Okay, guys! I'm ready to go!"

Tiara was busy nodding goodbye to several students when she heard crash!thud accompanied by a yell. Sweet Merlin, who broke one of my brooms?!?! Eyes wide in SHEER TERROR, she whirled on the spot and immediately located the source of the disturbance. Once she realized it was only a tub of polish, she let out the huge breath she had apparently been holding. "Not to worry, my dear boy, no harm done." Except to her heart. It couldn't take scares like that anymore!

Finally, she scanned the shed and saw there were no more brooms to do. "Thanks everyone, it looks like we're finished! Go enjoy the warm common rooms." After they'd shivered through the cold to get back to the castle, that is.

Sander got up when Lux was finished and both of them joined Tessa who was waiting for them. As they headed out the broomshed. Sander nodded to the Professor.

"Professor it looks like everything is all cleaned up and the brooms are now back in good condition. Do you need help putting them back on their racks? I'm sure we can help you before we head back to the castle," Sander offered.

He had noticed that the Professor had problems moving around. Maybe she had a bad back or something. That was definitely going around the school.

Lux smiled at the Professor. "It was really nice meeting you, Professor Tyner. Yeah, we would love to help you finish." She nodded along to what Sander had told her. She liked helping people, and it was an excuse to stay away from the cold for a little longer.

It looked like most of the students were clearing out, but two were lagging behind a bit. "No, I think I can manage, but thank you both. Have a good afternoon!" She shooed them out to more entertaining activities. It was Saturday, after all.

Tobias looked curiously at Cutty. "Selling it? Why?" Really, it seemed a shame to do such a thing. Cutty obviously enjoyed flying; that much was clear from the fact that he'd tried out. Toby had seen him at the Slytherin tryouts after all.

But it seemed that as soon as he'd asked it, Tyner was telling them they were all free to go. Usually, Toby might have stuck around to finish the conversation or just admire the brooms, but today the cold was really getting to him. He grinned and saluted the Quidditch official, putting the broom he'd been working on back where he'd found it.

After he'd gone to collect his scarf from where he'd left it, down by the stool he'd sat at during the polishing of the brooms, Tobias wound it back around his neck and looked up at Cutty and Bart.

"Best be off, but I daresay I'll see you guys around somewhere. We can arrange to go to the Potions Lab together," he said to them both. Then he turned to Tyner. "Thanks for letting us service brooms with you, Professor!" the boy chirped, as though this kind of job was a fun activity rather than a chore (which, to him, it was). "I'll see you around."

And then with a final wave, he made his way back to the castle.

Cutty snipped the gnarled twigs and did a once over with the broom, making sure that he'd gotten the most of what was wrong with it. When he was done, he put the broom aside and waited for Bart to finish his. Then he heard Toby's voice ask him a question. He turned to Tempus trying to read his tone and his face. He was about to answer when Tyner had dismissed them and Toby had given his cheerful good-byes. "See you around, Toby. You too, Bart." And with that, he departed from the broomshed.

Adelaide looked down at her pile of brooms. She had no idea how many she'd cleaned, just going through the motions. Not that it was much but everything seemed to help a bit.

...and then they were done. The whole thing went a lot quicker than Addi had anticipated. She looked down at the container of brownies and saw there were a couple left. "Would you like the rest of them professor?" It was either that or West would get them.