Sigh.

He had to be here, right? Being Head Boy and all to meet newbies into Ravenclaw? Jun wasn't really good at greeting, except with the other prefects because he was 'their leader' but not really. Pfft. Pretty sure no one wanted him as their leader. No one in their right mind at least. After leaving Connor at the carriages, Jun went on ahead and into the Great Hall. He kind of didn't want to go. It meant the term was starting, then go by and then he'd have to graduate. Part of him didn't want to leave but the other part wanted to jet out and never look back at this place.

Sliding onto his house table, the older boy looked around waited. Awkward. Could a familiar face please pop up already?

Just like last year, Toby entered the Great Hall acting as chauffeur to one Sophie Brown. From the carriages to the Ravenclaw Table, Toby was now apparently the official piggy back ride provider. Soph's feet hadn't even touched the ground since Hogsmeade Station; that was what you called good service.

As he entered the Hall and headed for the 'Claw table, Toby automatically looked straight at the staff table. He spotted Fuller and Thompson straight away, as well as alllllllllllll the professors he was more or less friendly with. Toby gave a mini-salute like there was totally nothing amiss about carting his fellow students around on his back, and found himself and Soph what he considered to be the BEST SEATS at the pretty much empty Ravenclaw Table: smack dab in the middle.

"You have reached your destination," the Hufflepuff said in his snootiest sat nav voice, stopping so Soph could slide off. He'd stay here too, of course, and go catch up with his Hufflepuff friends later before they went back to the common room. Good plan.

Tessa scurried up to the Ravenclaw table taking a seat. She glanced around the table and noticed many others. She didn't know what to say, she was too easily shy sometimes and with this many people she didn't know what to say. She looked over at the other tables before looking down at her own table, not knowing what to say.

The Darcy got sorted before his Moretti second half and once he'd sat himself down at the table he now 'belonged' to, Lincoln gave a look into the people still to be sorted. He gave Pietra a supportive smile and a superhero thumbs up, deciding that blowing her a kiss or winking probably wasn't his best bet if he was to settle here on his own. The sixth year tugged nervously on the sleeves of his robes and sighed.

Ravenclaw.

Ravenclaw.

Their thing was a bird, and Linc wasn't a bird. Man right here. Man. But he'd noticed that the guy wearing the Head Boy badge was in his house and supposed that that was fine too. But Ravenclaw. At least it matched his football kit. And speaking of that...he was already ready for some free time to go kick the ball around the grounds and properly see them as opposed to being ushered in here, thrust on a stool before the entire school and placed in a house that he fitted into.

Or so the hat said.

Lincoln just knew that he was going to be far away from the kitchens, and have a longer walk if he wanted to go play football.


OoOoOOoOOOOH Petri Dish was next. She looked cute in that old hat. What a love.

Her bag on her back and in full uniform, Soph piggybacked on Tobes into the Great Hall, the greatest of smiles on her face. THEY WERE HOME. The moment she took in the sight of the massive room, though, memories of rushing to steal the spot next to Mo came to her - but instead of dwelling on it, she squeezed Toby in an attempt to hug him from behind and kissed his cheek. "You're the best, boyfriend."

When Tobes saluted, Soph peeked out into his line of sight - ah, yes. Professors galore. Fuller, Thompson, Kitridge, Flamsteed - all the good ones... except Culloden. Where was that punk? Soph squinted, making sure the potions master wasn't just down the way talking to someone, but he was nowhere to be found. Huh. Curious. Ah, well - maybe he was just late. At least that had BETTER be the case because she and Ethan had a mission to carry out. Despite being distracted by the man's absence, Sophie, too, saluted all the professors. YES. BUSINESS AS USUAL HERE.

"Thaaanks." Soph hopped down from Toby's back, adjusted the bag on her back, and instead took his hand, eyeing the empty part of the table he had taken them to. "We should sit with HEAD BOY JUN," she said the name loud enough for the seventh year to hear, dragging Tobes the little way down the table so they could sit with him. Taking a seat next to him on the bench and delightedly tugging her boyfriend down with her, she informed them brightly, "I have cookies to share with both of you." It wasn't Cat's cannolis, but it could be the next best thing.

Oh dear. Oh dear. OH. DEAR. Pi was already being separated from Lincoln, the only person she knew in this whole crazy place besides CB (who was also NOT THERE). She'd tried not to think about the possibility of them being put in different houses because it was a really scary thought. So as Pi hurried away from the silly hat and in the direction of her new house table, she was trying her very best not to burst into tears because she was so relieved.

Pietra made it to the table in one piece though, and promptly placed herself beside Lincoln, smiling at him and finally taking a deep breath. Whew. That was scary. She never wanted to be in that kind of center of attention situation ever again for as long as she lived. Never.

"There were a lot of kids our age up there." She whispered to Linc, leaning on his arm lightly. "I guess it's not so uncommon for transferring in..." Which made her feel better about not being here from the start like most of the other students had.

Once Paloma left Eden, Isla and Ceorlic, she waddled out to change to her robes and then followed the crowd towards the carriages, which brought them back to the school she had pleaded to be in the year before. Her parents, were happy that she was finally stable, and behaving as she should always do...nice, and humble to learn.

But wait, who was she going to hang out with? Louis had left, Jun was going to be busy with his Head Boy duties. Vinnie, though was always going to be around, which she adored. So, hopefully...she had and was going to make friends.

Thinking about 'The King of Rome' as she would say it in Spanish; as soon as she got a glance of her house table, Paloma saw Jun, sitting there, alone...She kept walking, mostly in silence and when she arrived, facing his back, he poked his ribs and laughed, "Jun Mason Kim, I hope you are ready for this year..." She said, in her very fake English accent.

Thornton walked over to the Ravenclaw table immediately after being directed there by the Sorting Hat. It occurred to him as he was walking about how supremely ancient that relic was and how he should have savored the moment more.

Looking back over his shoulder back at the stool, he felt a pang of regret for not having realized in the moment.

Turning back to the table, Thornton slipped onto the bench. Looking up and down the row, he wondered if any of the few people he'd met had been sorted into Ravenclaw too.

Tessa noticed Thornton coming to the table and sitting down. She got up and walked over to him before plopping onto to the bench beside him. "Hey Thorton," she said softly, smiling at him.

Thornton smiled. "Tessa! It's so good to see a friendly face at my table." He edged over to make room for her on the bench and patted the open space.

"How do you feel about being sorted into Ravenclaw?" He looked at her expectantly. He was having mixed feelings and hoped another's thoughts would help clarify his own.

"It is so good to see you too!" she exclaimed smiling widely at him. She took the empty seat he had cleared for her and sat down.
"I think it's pretty good. I guess I do kinda fit in here, but I don't know the others and the are some what intimidating," she said in a hushed whisper, she didn't want to offend any one. In truth, she was ecstatic that the sorting hat had such an easy time placing her, she had been still worried that the hot wouldn't be able to choose when she went up there.
"We need a nickname for you," Tessa told him, "not that I don't love using your full name, I feel like I'm talking to one of our professors." She started to think of nicknames, "Let's see. There's Thorn, Tom, un Thorn." She then let out a gasp, "Let's call you Thor!"

Was it time once more for the festivities to commence? Hovering gracefully, the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw glided up through the ceiling and appeared suddenly at the table belonging to her mother's House. The Hall had only begun to fill with youth, and she settled herself near the Eagles who had already come in.

*!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*

RAVENCLAW. This was real, right? They weren't going to call her back and make her sit it again? Because he was certain that would make her more uncomfortable than she'd been in a long time and he was just about in a situation where he could hold her hand under the table to remind her that he was here with her and nothing bad was going to happen to her. Despite stories. Once she'd sat beside him though, he was certain they couldn't take her back and reached one of his hands to take hers secretly.

Linc wasn't sure how they did things here, but he didn't want to get into trouble on his first night for holding Pi's hand so she didn't cry any more than she already had about this.

With a smile, he nodded. "I think we're going to be just fine here," that was if she wanted his opinion on that matter. "I see a few faces from the field trip too." Not that he was going to make eye contact with them or wave. It was easier to just seek them out later.

Samantha was thrilled to be back at Hogwarts. She sat down and had a look around at her fellow Ravenclaws, some returning students and some new ones. She could sense how nervous the first years were and her mind flashed back to when she began her Hogwarts schooling. Boy was she nervous then. She lightly drummed her fingers on the table waiting for anyone to talk to her.

Whup, and they were off again.

As Soph dragged him along, Toby let his attention wander over to the Hufflepuff table, where the rest of his house were getting comfortable. He seemed apparently lost in thought for a moment or two, and was simply content to let Sophie lead the way. It wasn't until he was tugged again, at which point he blinked and looked back at his best friend, that he fully registered who was here.

"Hey Jun," the Hufflepuff grinned, taking his seat next to Soph and waiting for her to fork over these cookies. "Y'know," he added, just to Sophie this time. "Next year I vote we sit at my table for the Opening Feast.............. Cookies?"

Man, he was not quite with it. Probably worn out from all the travelling, he supposed. It had never really seemed like such a tiring trip before; quite the opposite in fact. But tonight Toby found himself rubbing wearily at his face and blinkblinkblinking until he was more or less back in the here and the now. Then he smiled. Cookies please; Sophie-person.

Thornton nodded as Tessa spoke. "I'm sure we'll meet others, though." He bit his lip and drummed his fingers on the table. "I guess I don't know enough about the houses to know whether I fit here. Is 'smarts' really what defines me? The most prominent part? It feels like a lot of pressure?"

Thornton sighed, and slumped a little. He looked up and turned to Tessa. "I just don't want to let my family down."

He scrunched up his face, though, at her nickname suggestions. A nickname? "I.. I don't know about that. It doesn't really feel like me." He hesitated, realizing it was rude to shut her down like that. "What if you called me Baines? That's my last name, but it could be a nickname, too, right?"

Jasmine entered the Great Hall and paused for a moment. It was her second and final opening feast and that felt a little strange. It seemed that she had just gotten to Hogwarts and now her final year was beginning.

Walking over to the Ravenclaw table, Jasmine looked around at faces old and new. It was time for the new Prefect to go to work. She didn't know where to begin, but it was time to meet and greet her fellow Claws.



Spotting Jun, Jasmine walked over to the Head Boy and whispered, "Are you ready for this?" She was pretty sure that she wasn't, but she would do the best job that she could.



Seeing her train buddy Sophie sitting near Jun, Jasmine stopped to say hello. "Hi Sophie. How's it going? Did you enjoy your summer?" Jasmine was curious to find out how her summer had been because Miss Sophie had had big plans. The weeks had gone by so quickly. It seemed that they had just left school and now the summer break was over.

Jasmine decided that next she would try to visit some of the new students at the table. She had noticed several already and the sorting was just getting started. Remembering how she had felt as a newbie, Jasmine wanted to make the new students feel welcome. Ah well, no time like the present.

"Of course!" she replied with a large smile. She understood what he met about if smarts what was defined him. "You define yourself, Thorton," she told him. She watched her friend slump down and she frowned. "I am sure you'll be great! Come on! They must be proud of you, you gotten this far in life, even made it past the squid," Tessa replied, "As long as your proud in yourself that's what counts?" She was pretty sure he was proud of himself, remembering the way he had introduced himself.
She laughed at his scrunched up face. She pouted at her suggestions that were turned down, but liked what he suggested. "Baines? I like that," she said with a larger grin than before. "So, Baines. Tell me more about you!" she exclaimed. "You think Leo and Brooklyn found their tables alright?" she added, remembering the two others.

Austin walked into the great hall, ready for some food. He hadn't eaten much on the train, since he didn't want to spend any of his money yet. Memories started to flow as he glanced up at the stool in the font of the room.

RAVENCLAW

The hat's voice rang through his ears. That was the moment his life began. Not really, but he likes to think that. He was happy as a Ravenclaw. Everyone was good at something when it came to school, and if you needed help in something, students were around to help. Seriously, there were a few times last semester when Austin walked up to Claws he didn't know and asked for homework help. The plus side about Ravenclaws is that they were always willing to help when it came to school work.

Finally, Austin followed his fellow students to the table under the blue banners, and sat down next to a few familiar faces. He watched as the first years went towards the stool and were sorted one by one. There were a lot of first years, which made Austin's stomach growl. It was going to be forever until they could eat. Ugh.

Tessa saw the boy sitting down and smiled at him, turning away from her conversation with Baines. "Hello," she called out, smiling widely at the boy. She was determine to get out of her shell, even if it hurt.

She was a Ravenclaw! It was like someone had answered all of her prayers nicely. A huge weight was lifted off Ophelia's shoulders as she sat down and smiled. Now it was time to focus on her first year of Hogwarts and play some quidditch. Because that seemed to be the only thing she knew how to do with her life. So hopefully that worked out well, because she wasn't going to be the brightest student, and 'Ophie needed another way to stand out among her family.

Yawwwwwwn. She was still tired, and the thought of impending food somehow made the child more hungry? Was that healthy? Touching her flat tummy softly to try and satiate her hunger, the brown eyed girl looked around at the others from her table. Ravenclaws, all of them. And she belonged to this group The one place she actually belonged without her brothers and sisters beating her and being better. They weren't here at the moment, so they were going to have to step away from the podium, please. Old family joke. She was such a dork.

Anyway, it was time to start her firstie year and legacy, even if that meant begrudgingly buckling down on her studies. Except that last thing probably wasn't going to happen. Let's be honest here, the small girl was the one playing outside all of the time. That's where she got the sweet --tiny-- muscles she was sporting on her arms and legs. 'Cause she was the lion of the family and the lion needed some sick muscles to back her up. Except in Hogwarts she was an eagle.... okay this animal thing was getting difficult. Resolving to figure this out later, Ophelia allowed herself to mindlessly look around at her new classmates and play with the lions head chain on her necklace.

Tessa recognized the other first year from the boat platform and smiled at her widely. "Hello!"

Thornton smiled. She was right of course. "Not much to tell, really." He looked around the hall. "You know, I don't know that I heard where they got sorted," he said. "I'm sure they did, though. No really anywhere to get lost here."

Fussing with the sleeves of his robe, he thought about her question. "I have a younger sister. I don't know too much about Hogwarts, but my parents thought it was important that I start meeting other people my own age." He paused. "I really don't know what else to say. What about you?"

He was distracted, though, by the ghost hovering. "Um. Miss? Who... are you?"

He glanced next to him at the girl speaking. He couldn't remember her name, even if she did just get put into the best house ever. "Hey there. Welcome to the Claws." He wasn't sure what to do, since he had never met her before. But he was going to start with introduction himself. "Austin Moore, second year Claw." He winked at the firstie.