Hearing Lucas come bounding up to the Slytherin table made her smile!! "welcome!!!! were so happy to have you here" she got up and gave the little kid a hug. Echo could just tell that she liked this little guy. Messing with his hair she heard Colt asking her a question..

"ohhh... its not shock thats for sure" squinting her eyes back at him... what was this kid thinking of, geez... for some reason he got on her nerves and they had both just met. turning back to Lucas she smiled down at him. "are you excited!!! I bet you are!!! and just wait for the food thats to come" she told him, it was like she was reliving her first year experience all over again.

"thats so good that we get to hang out with friends on the train before school starts, right.." she laughed towards Hady. She had told her that she was just hanging out with her friends on the train, nothing wrong with having a little fun thats for sure. "yeah i pretty much just sat by myself, trying to get some sleep before the craziness of this place started!" she threw her hands out laughing.

wait... what!!! Echo stopped.. he actually responded to her! for sure she thought that Dante would have just nodded her way, as a sign for greeting. and he was asking her what her name was. was she in the twilight zone?? coughing some more she said "hey" back... and fumbled through the rest of her words. "Echo" great way to go, no other words to back anything up other than her name.. ughhh... time to give it another shot

"My names Echo Duchannes" that was better, an actual full sentence. way to go Echo.

Tom's attention was drawn back to Oliver, who seemed to be a bit more animated than he'd been before. Tom was glad that he didn't seem to mind talking after all.

"He's eighteen," Tom replied. Then, because once he'd started talking about it he couldn't hold it in, he added, "We lived abroad when he was school age, and his school wasn't a boarding school so I got to see him nearly every day. I'm really glad I get to come to Hogwarts, but it's all really weird to me and I really miss him. And it hasn't even been a whole day yet!"

Tom was a bit wary of the excitable girl his new friend had drug down to sit next to him--things had always been quiet and orderly at home, and he was overwhelmed by the noise of the Great Hall generally and the energy of the blonde girl specifically--but nonetheless he tried his best to plaster a friendly smile on his face. It would be rude to ignore her as if she weren't sitting right there, after all.

He mustered his composure and managed to ask, "Ellery, is it?"

Maggie didn't even mind the random people (from the less fortunate houses) sitting with them.

She was in a pretty good mood.

For now she was done staring at Zander and her eyes had returned to Dante next to her. Who was giving cryptic answers. "Okay." Okay, just the sorting. She'd missed parts of the sorting. Or most of it. Oh well. Food sounded good too, although Professor Botros didn't look like he was getting up any time soon. By the way, look at all those new professor people.

Huh.

There was some rather annoying tapping sounds coming from someone sitting close to her (Phillip) which made Maggie narrow her eyes slightly, while looking around for the culprit. Seriously?! She was in a good mood. She did NOT need a headache. ESPECIALLY when some other first year person (Lucas)joined him.

Why did they have to be so loud??

Maggie was about to say something when she noticed that.................ah. So Dot was here. And Dot had a new badge. And Dot didn't really like her too much right now. At least not according to Paige. According to Paige Dot was spreading rumors about her. Which was NOT a good sign. ESPECIALLY not considering she was now sporting a Prefect badge. This was not good. But fixable. Totally fixable. She'd just talk to the other girl. Yes. After the feast maybe. Yes good plan. For now she just offered the older girl a casual smile in greeting.

Hi. Sup. She totally had the casual thing down lately.

A casual nod to you too, Brooklyn.

Speaking of casual, the girl who had just addressed Dante (Echo) was definitely NOT it. There was a distinct blush on the other girl's cheeks. Maggie pressed her lips together for a brief second to hide a smirk. "Hiiii." No, she was aware that she was in fact talking to her friend but you know. "Your cheeks look a little flushed. Are you okay?" Just, you know, watching out for her. That's all. Ahem. Yes.

As Colt asked what was wrong with Oliver, he saw him have tears in his eyes. Uh oh...he didn't really deal with cryers that well. He wondered why on earth this kid would be homesick. I mean this place was amazing so far! Then he heard him mumble his sister. I guess he missed his sister? "Hey dude, I am sure you can find her around the castle somewhere. Which house is she in?" Maybe he can help the little dude find her. As he began to console a little bit because he knew it was hard, he noticed another dude (Tom) around his age comin over to him. He seemed to be in the same boat and he let him take over. He nodded towards him and muttered a "Thanks..." and talked to the other Slytherin. "Oh my name is Colt." he addressed the new kid.

Colt turned his attention back to the new kid (Calrissian) and he heard his answer that deserved a chuckle. "You can say it again. I mean it is not loud enough already in here. I am Colt. Colt Winchester." he nodded toward the dude. "What year are you in?" he asked him. He seemed like a first year but he wasn't gonna assume anything yet. As he asked the little dude some info and being somewhat friendly and chill he heard a girl (Ellery) come over to their table. He noticed she must be a first year because she looked young. Oh man did she have a lot of energy. He looked at her and wondering if she was hyped on sugar or something. He wasn't gonna ask anything though because she was involved with the two other fellas.

As he looked at the new girl at their table, he heard mutter his name. He turned around and saw Brooklyn was there. He smirked and nodded towards her and greeted her back with, "Brooklyn. Looks like I am a fellow Slytherin now." She must be soo thrilled. "I'll be seeing you around more. You wanna sit down?" he asked. It seemed like Brooklyn was busy talking to others so his attention was turned to a kid he met on the train. He did seem familiar but he met so many new people the name of the kid was sliding fast. He polietly waved at him (Henric) and greeted him with, "Hey man I do remember you but your name I can't remember. Sorry man met so many new people today. Oh thanks man. Yeah it is cool to be with the snakes." he grinned and was starting to like his table even more.

Oh, stahp it, Dante. LOL. Adi's head might have swelled a tad. He liked being called by that title. Mr Prefect was even better. "I've been excellent!'' replied the ego boosted guy. ''In which river are you definitely going to find snakes?'' Totally random question there and it had just popped out of his mouth so... yeah.

Adi opened his mouth to say hi to Echo, whom he had briefly talked to last term at the Hufflepuff table but was not surprised when she regarded him coolly. She reminded him of Agatha and Brooklyn. Seriously, though. What was with Slytherin girls and their attitudes towards him? Instead of being mad or upset about it, he simply grinned. "Heeeey, Echo!'' he managed before she turned her back to him. No worries. He could talk to her back. "Looking forward for third year?"

There was someone else now who would be sure to answer his question. Ilia. A big grin on his face, Adi waved to his friend. He hadn't noticed when she had joined the table but that didn't matter. And of course she went to sit next to Henric. Adi smirked to himself. Lovebirds in the making.

Oh, goody! Hades seemed just fine. "Just wondering if you're still here with us on planet earth.'' He was always concerned for his friends. "I'm excellent. How about you? Looking forward to the new school year? How did you become a fourth year so fast?'' Ehem. Don't mind him, Hades. He was hyper as usual.

GREAT FLYING HIPPOGRIFFS! Ethan was LOUD, yo! "Seems like someone is more than pleased to be back,'' Adi said by way of greeting and covering his ear that Ethan was closest to. "I think I've gone deaf. Thanks a lot, Ethan.'' Hehe. Oh, heeeeey, Queen Dot! His friend got a grin and a wave. And yesh, like he had decided he would be keeping his Head Minion title even if Dot didn't need minions anymore.

At that moment, the Hufflepuff noticed Cilla. He waved enthusiastically to get her attention. "Cilla! How are you?'' It had been a while since he had spoken to her. Annnnd there was Brooklyn! Of course Adi got his fair share of being ignored from her so what did he do? He called out to her. Duuuuh. Hehe. "Brooklyn!'' HIHIHIHI! "How's Tywin?''

Fourth year, ladies and gentlemen Mhm, FOURTH year. This was kind of a tradition to Hugo, feel proud of growing up. Not that he wanted to be an adult BUT he felt more important around the little firsties. Ehem.

So....the glorious and magnificent Slytherin table was surrounded with bunch of people who some of them he did know and others were new to him. Nevermind, he went straight to sit next to Dante. "What's up?" and there was Maggie too. He gave a nod to her "Heey...". Hugo looked around, "Why there are so many people?" crowds were annoying and he was hungry.

SPOILER!!: Abby

Abby nodded and said "Yeah for once i am actually nervous about my OWLs i am really just worried that this year is going to be full of studying and pressure and loads of extra work" Abby wasn't sure how she would do on her OWLs

So she had been right with her guess. It seemed everyone always panicked when it came to OWLs and NEWTs. Odds were she'd be the same way next year but for now it was all good. "I'm sure you'll do just fine. Take it a day at a time and pace yourself with studying." Hady gave a small shrug of her shoulders as she didn't know what more to really say about those tests since she wasn't taking them until next year.

SPOILER!!: Echo

Hearing Lucas come bounding up to the Slytherin table made her smile!! "welcome!!!! were so happy to have you here" she got up and gave the little kid a hug. Echo could just tell that she liked this little guy. Messing with his hair she heard Colt asking her a question..

"ohhh... its not shock thats for sure" squinting her eyes back at him... what was this kid thinking of, geez... for some reason he got on her nerves and they had both just met. turning back to Lucas she smiled down at him. "are you excited!!! I bet you are!!! and just wait for the food thats to come" she told him, it was like she was reliving her first year experience all over again.

"thats so good that we get to hang out with friends on the train before school starts, right.." she laughed towards Hady. She had told her that she was just hanging out with her friends on the train, nothing wrong with having a little fun thats for sure. "yeah i pretty much just sat by myself, trying to get some sleep before the craziness of this place started!" she threw her hands out laughing.

wait... what!!! Echo stopped.. he actually responded to her! for sure she thought that Dante would have just nodded her way, as a sign for greeting. and he was asking her what her name was. was she in the twilight zone?? coughing some more she said "hey" back... and fumbled through the rest of her words. "Echo" great way to go, no other words to back anything up other than her name.. ughhh... time to give it another shot

"My names Echo Duchannes" that was better, an actual full sentence. way to go Echo.

"Yeah it is, it's like a little bit of down time and a chance to catch up on things before returning." Hady nodded her head in agreement. That was one of the things she enjoyed about the train ride. Sleep though would've been nice but that never seemed to happen for her no matter how hard she tried. "And how did that work out, you get any sleep?" It didn't seem as if Echo was tired at all. The girl appeared to have the energy of someone that ate a few pounds of sugar right from the bag. When Echo began to fumble her words while talking to Dante, Hady couldn't help but smirk just a little.

SPOILER!!: Adi

Oh, goody! Hades seemed just fine. "Just wondering if you're still here with us on planet earth.'' He was always concerned for his friends. "I'm excellent. How about you? Looking forward to the new school year? How did you become a fourth year so fast?'' Ehem. Don't mind him, Hades. He was hyper as usual.

Ah, Adi! How she missed your hyperness so. Hady laughed quietly shaking her head a little which of course only served in her hair falling into her face. Normally she'd tuck her hair behind her ears but not today, she'd grown used to it. "No worries I think I'm here with you." At least physically. Her mind was a little bit everywhere though. "At this very second I'm just fine, tired buy fine. Oh yeah I'm more then ready to see what this year brings just so it's not spiders..." she replied whispering the last bit as she glanced up and down the table as if checking to make sure there weren't any. How was she a fourth year? Hady laughed once more. "Um I got older?" Made sense to her. As much as she wanted this year to get going she was certain something was going to happen that might change things more then they already were.

Abby nodded at what Hady had said and said "Yeah i know i think i will try to ask other students who have sat there OWLs and see if they have any tips for me with studying and stuff like that"

Text Cut: Cassidy

Quote:

Originally Posted by omnomnomRAWR

Cassidy glanced over to where one of the newly-sorted Firsties sat down, not too far away, but not right next to her. Deciding she may as well be friendly, she slid down a few places to talk to him.

If he could even hear her over the tapping of his cutlery.

"Having fun there? I can't say I was this excited last year."

TAP TAP TAPPA TA--

Huh?

The tapping stopped and he turned his head sharply to see........ person. Someone. Someone with hair brighter than the sun. You could probably see her coming from MILES away, which meant that she sucked at hide and seek and being stealthy.

#logic

Uh. Right. She'd said something. Something about being excited and last year? What happened last year? "We're at Hogwarts! I've been waiting for this ALL MY LIFE." Was that a lie? No one was going to know. "And there's a feast, yeah? Is the feast good? Will there be custard?"

"I'm Phillip, by the way." HELLO.

Text Cut: Lucas

Quote:

Originally Posted by Somnium

He spotted someone that was his age... FINALLY! He beamed and plopped down. "Hey! I'm Lucas! I just got sorted into this house too!" Lucas beamed and watched as the boy tapped his things on the edge of the table. That looks so much fun! He decided to join in with a beam. Tap tap TapTAPPAtaptaptap tAP TAP TAP TAPTAPTAPTAP tap tap tap. He wasn't going by the boy's beat but a random one. He beamed and looked around at the table before looking at him.

Was this kid trying to be him or did he know how to combat boredom?

Yep, first one, definitely.

Wait, did he say that he had just been sorted as well? Did he realise what this meant? DID HE?? Phillip was going to tell him ANYWAYS. "Hey, Lucas. Looks like we're going to be dormmates, then!" Which was GOOD if he was good company but if he wasn't.......... they'll get to that later. "I'm Phillip, by the way."

.............

??? What kind of beat was THAT?

"Hey, Lu," Could he call him lu? "Follow my beat." Otherwise it was just going to sound like noise. Weird noise.

Text Cut: Calrissian

Quote:

Originally Posted by Awarlesta Black

The second year had been sitting at the table this whole time, yet was so completely quiet, lost in his own thoughts, that it was like he wasn't even there. Save for a couple small claps here and there for the incoming firsties, Calrissian was scanning the table to see who was back and who wasn't. Like that really annoying pink headed girl. She wasn't in sight. Maybe they got lucky this year.

He flinched in surprise as a seventh year boy,( Mordaunt, he thinks), walked up to the table booming out his voice. At was then that at last, he tuned into the actual feast. Everybody was yelling 'hellos' all around. His eyebrows furrowed at the tap, tap, tapping coming from some new first year. Annoying, annoying, so annoying.

Head!tilt.

Who was THIS kid?

See, amongst the looking around at all the others there -- there were a LOT of people here -- his eyes landed on the quiet ones, namely THIS one right here. He would get distracted by the random bursts of HELLO and HEY and anything else people were saying but he tried HIS VERY HARDEST to concentrate on sad guy person.

"Hey! HI!" PERSON. "What's with the long face?"

Text Cut: Olly

Quote:

Originally Posted by littledhampir

This was not right.

Oliver could not get those words out of his mind as he walked away from the hat and toward the Slytherin table. It was practically a miracle that he had managed to walk all the way over there when every instinct in his body was screaming at him to turn around and join his sister where he should be. He hadn't looked toward the Gryffindor table since he had managed to turn away the first time. He didn't think he could, not without the tears that threatened his eyes spilling forth. So he kept his eyes in front of him and sat with his back toward the Gryffindors so he wouldn't be tempted. Even if it meant keeping his back toward his sister.

The first year's eyes swept up and down the table, briefly taking in the faces of the people around him. Almost all of them were older than he was - some practically adults, especially in the eyes of the eleven year old. He spotted Colt and gave the older boy the best smile he could muster. A handful of those around him were first years, those who had been sorted before him or in the moments after. The sorting was still going on, so he figured more would be joining them, but he was only half listening to the rest of the names being called. Could not yet bring himself to turn around to face the hat, because it would also been facing the Gryffindor table.

Olly wanted to make friends. With older students as well as with first years. With everyone. But...not then. Not when he still felt like he was about to cry. Not when he felt like he had lost something on the inside, a loss that was making it hard for him to breathe. So, for the time being, Oliver kept his eyes on the table in front of him and waited. The sooner the food arrived the sooner he could be done eating and get away from that room crowded with people.

And here was ANOTHER person with a long face. Er. Did this house attract the moody lot or what? Phillip wrinkled his nose at the thought. HE certainly wasn't moody but he was DETERMINED to believe that he belonged in this house. It was practically in his BLOOD.

............. Blood. Shiver.

Right. Boy. Someone who'd gotten sorted looooooooooong before him. Phillip scooted sideways a little so that he could be sort of in the view of the boy. HEY HELLO HE WAS GOING TO TALK TO YOU, OKAY? OKAY. "Hey, what's the matter?" Tell, spill the beans, he was feeling talkative today.

Text Cut: Tom and mentions of Maggie!

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChapterEight

The incessant tapping that had been bothering him since he got to the Slytherin table finally became too much, and Tom scowled and turned in his seat to see that the culprits were two boys (Phillip, Lucas) who looked like they might be around his age. Their tapping wasn't even in any sort of rhythm!

"What are you doing?" he asked the two, trying to mimic the supercilious tone that his father often used to speak to him when he hadn't done something as well as his older brother.

Oh, was this guy talking to HIM?

Getting this eleven year old's attention -- who had a short attention span, let me tell you -- wasn't hard, it was just hard maintaining it. So, it was no wonder that the sound of a voice nearby talking made him turn his head towards the.......... boy. Boy who had gotten sorted a little after him, right? Had he? He forgot.

"Hey, guy, don't throw a hissy fit," AHAHAHA. HISSY fit. HISSY. Because they were Slytherins. GEDDIT?? He was so funny. "We're just BORED and waiting for the food to arrive." He said all of this while grinning his bestest grin ever. If the words were harsh, the grin should balance it out. He hoped. Then MAYBE he wouldn't get into trouble. It was only his first day, after all.

Oh and someone (Maggie) was looking over here. Kind of. Phillip liked to think so, anyways. So he gave her his most INNOCENT cutesy grins and waved. Nothing to see here, lady, carry on.

"I am been an angel this trip. No problems what so ever. and i think you are right since the term has not officially started yet. I will remember that for future reference" Dante said grinning. And he did not want to do anything tonight or anytime really. Unless someone made fun of him. Then all bets were off. "Nah, i just want to eat and sleep tonight and ah i finally get to use magic. That does sound awesome. Though NEWTs not so much"



So it was more or less the same with him too. It was a fun summer. But it is nice to get back to a magical castle where your friends are. Even if it is dangerous here. "The same. The summer was pretty good. Though it is nice being back at a place where you can actually use magic and not get in serious trouble"

Magic was awesome after all.


So her name was Echo. Well he only nodded at people he knew or gave a sup nod if he wanted to say what's up but not say you. you get it. It is not that complicated.

"Ah, Nice to meet you Echo Duchannes."

He guessed.

"How was your summer?"

Well since he was already in a talking mood why not. It was distracting him from his extreme hunger. HURRY UP PROFESSOR/HEADMASTER B. And then Maggie does what Maggie does. Dante grinned. It was true what she said. Though all he could do was keep grinning and shrug.

This was Maggie after all.


Hufflepuff Prefect say what. Did he just go all claw on him and ask him a riddle. Well he was confused and he guessed he will try and answer it Dante mutter the riddle to himself. "In which river are you definitely going to find snakes?"

Dante could think of no really rivers that would fit it. It is probably a really bad pun his brother would enjoy. Though he might if it was good enough.

"I don't know. In which river are you definitely going to find snakes?"

Please be punny.

And Finally the man of the hour has arrived. Not really but Dante was wondering where he had gone off to before hand. "What's Up Hugo. Look at the staff table. Looks like Quigley is gone. Shame. Though you have not missed much other than sorting"

And Dante had to think about.

"Maybe we are the cool table"

That was all he got.

Olly knew that Colt was TRYING to help but he was, in fact, only accomplishing the opposite. Ellery was in Gryffindor, that was the whole PROBLEM. They were seperated. The Thomas-Borzekowskis were not supposed to be separated. Since Colt seemed inclined to leave Olly talking with Tom, Olly figured he didn't need respond. But, just moments later, another boy asked what was wrong. This one was younger, he could tell. But he hadn't been paying enough attention to sorting to know if this boy was a first year as well.

Oliver did not know how to explain to someone else exactly what was the matter. It was especially hard to explain with Ellery sitting at that table with him. But her presence in that moment did not fix the problem. It was only a very temporary, very delicately placed, bandaid for a deep problem. But Olly would try and respond to this boy anyway, because ignoring him would be rude and he wanted to make new friends.

"My sister is Gryffindor." It was easier to say when she was not actually at the Gryffindor table. He no longer felt like he was about to cry. "We're always together," he added, the desperation in his voice not quite able to truly capture what he was feeling. He fixed the boy with an earnest look - he'd asked and Olly was not going to hold back his feelings. But they didn't have to dwell on the topic. "I'm Oliver by the way."



One of the older boys that Ellery apparently knew for some reason finally spoke. Miss Hugger. Olly smirked slightly. Yes, he supposed that was a very suitable nickname for his sister. "She's my sister," he replied to the boy's question. How that boy knew Ellery was a complete mystery to him, but it wasn't entirely surprising. Ellery liked to talk to people. To everybody.



"Are you the youngest in your family?" Olly loved hearing other people talk about their family. Everybody had different household structures and it was quite interesting how nobody had exactly the same experiences. Diversity. He loved that about people.

Tom had lived ABROAD? Olly's eyes grew wide at that. "Where did you live? What was the name of his school? Was it a wizarding school?" He'd only heard of a few. The big four, of course. Practically everybody knew about those. He hadn't heard of many others but he knew there were a lot out there. A lot that were smaller, less well-known, but no less exciting or credible.

Since they were talking about siblings and all, Olly pointed at Ellery. Since she was right next to him, though, it ended up with him just poking her shoulder. "This is my sister, Ellery. She's a first year too, but she got Gryffindor. We're twins, well triplets, and we're always together." He supposed he was lucky that they were in the same school. Different houses wasn't that bad, was it?

...yes it was. It was terrible.

He beamed as the girl gave him a slight smile. "Thanks!" He bounced around and tilted his head, looking at her when he noticed that she had... GREEN HAIR! He pointed to it. "You have green hair? That is so cool! How did you get your parents to let you do that? Can you do mine green?" He bounced, hope shining in his eyes at the thought of being a cool kid with green in his hair. He beamed and looked at the girl. "Pleeeease?"



"Yeah! Am I a cool kid now?" He beamed and bounced in his seat, looking around in amazement of the whole place. Lucas nodded rapidly and looked at him. "I am STARVING to death! When is the food coming?" He looked around and searched for any sight of food. His mouth was watering at the idea of all the yummy food that would appear... or at least what he was hoping would appear. He rubbed his stomach, copying Colt a little and looked up at his buddy. "I should have snacked on the train but I was too excited and nervous to eat but now I'm not!" He beamed.



He frowned as the girl didn't seem excited. Whaaaaaaaat? He was just trying to make friends... is that so bad? He pouted and looked around, trying to find a way out but then he sighed and looked at the girl. "What year are you in?"



He beamed right back at the older guy when he gave a beamy smile! YAAAAAAY! Someone who was excited like him. He bounced and plopped down in the spot that the guy made room for him. "THANKS! IamLucasWhatsyourname?" Yeah, he can do the rapid speaking too! Yes! Yay excitement buddies! Woooooo! Lucas already determined that he liked this so far nameless guy and hoped that they could be friends! Yep! He was going to be so much fun to hang with!



Lucas beamed and hugged Echo back despite her being a *shudders* a girl!. He couldn't help but smile more. "I am so excited that we are in the same house!!!! This is the best house ever! It is the coolest house!" He beamed and tried to do a hiss to show house pride but it came out horrible and a little spitty. He blushed. "Sorry..." He made a face as the girl messed with his hair.



"We are????" He tilted his head, still trying to determine if he liked this boy. "That should be fun!" He nodded and then his eyes widened. "That's so weird! That is so close to my evil cousin's name! Hes a hufflepuff named Philipe." He made a face at the thought of his cousin. "Cool name though." Nodnodnod He blinked at being called Lu but let it slide because hey! its a nickname! First day of Hogwarts and he already got a nickname! Awesome! He nodded and tried to copy the beat like he said too. He noticed that there was a girl who didn't seem to happy but he just offered an innocent smile to her like Phillp.

Colt heard Hady laughing at his question and I guess it was funny since he was a newbie to all of this. He was interested to know this information though. Ah so they were below the lake? That is soo wicked! He was looking forward to it. "So tell me will we see like mermaids, giant squids or fishes swim by the windows?" I mean mermaids were magical creatures and they were at Hogwarts. He even talked to Oliver about the giant squid but he wanted a second opinion on this giant squid business.

Colt furrowed his brow and wondered what on earth was her problem. Her reply sounded sassy. He rolled his eyes at Echo clearly this girl was sensitive and didn't have to be that snappy with him. He turned his attention onto Oliver who was having somewhat of a mental breakdown right now. Aaahh so his sister was in Gryffindor and they were never separated. Well I guess they had to learn now how to be independent. "I am sure you guys can meet up at the library and in classes. You will see each other.." he assured the kid and patted him on the shoulder.


Now onto the bouncing looking Lucas. He grinned at this kids energy still, he was always amused how excited they were. "Yeah you are a cool kid now buddy.." he laughed and patted his back. "Yeah I am starving too matter of fact. Can you hear my stomach growling?" he smirked and wondered if Lucas could hear it. "Oh man I was nervous too. I was so nervous for the sorting hat. I mean I thought I would have to answer some questions in front of everyone." he admitted to the little dude. Then he noticed another firstie (Phillip) I mean he seemed young he seemed like a first year. He nodded towards him and said to him, "I see your excited for the food too." It was just a hunch.

Tom pursed his lips together in displeasure (the joke going right over his head). He wasn't throwing a fit! He was just asking a perfectly good question! The other boy was giving him an enormous grin, but Tom really just wished he'd stop banging on the table. Everything had been peaceful and orderly at home; was this kind of chaos and noise what it was always going to be like at school?

"You're bored..." he repeated slowly, trying to work out the problem in his mind, "...so you bang on the table?"

Maybe table-drums were normal here? Although nobody else seemed to be doing it, and a slightly older-looking Slytherin girl (Maggie) was looking at the two boys with about as much annoyance as Tom felt, so it didn't seem like it was usual behavior.


Tom decided to try to pay attention to his talk with Oliver and ignore the other things that were making him uncomfortable. The older boy who had seemed friendly with Oliver muttered something to him, and Tom strained to listen just in time to hear him introduce himself.

"Tom," he replied, wondering whether he should hold out his hand all formally like he'd seen adults do. He'd never been around other kids before really, but he didn't want to make a fool of himself by doing something he wasn't supposed to do or accidentally insult anyone by not doing something he was supposed to do. Hopefully Colt wouldn't mind either way; he seemed like a pretty nice guy, if the way he'd been trying to comfort Oliver was anything to go by.


"Triplets?!" Tom couldn't help but exclaim, glancing back and forth between the two siblings as if he'd be able to see something special now that he knew that piece of information. He'd never met any real-life twins before, much less triplets! He supposed that he couldn't really understand what it must be like to be separated from a twin, even if you were in the same school. He thought about pointing out that at least they could see each other practically all the time and would probably even have some classes together, but Oliver had seemed so down when he'd been talking about that subject that Tom figured he'd better keep his mouth shut.

Instead, he tried to focus on the questions Oliver had asked about his own family. "We lived in Russia," he began, thinking carefully over how to answer the questions. "My mother's family was from there--and my father's, too, from like a hundred years ago or something. The wizarding school is called Koldovstoretz."

"And I'm the youngest, yeah. It's just the two of us, actually." He eyed Ellery and Oliver curiously, and even though he didn't want to drag the other boy's mood down again by accident, he found that the question just bubbled up inside of his stomach and up out of his mouth before he could stop himself. "Where's the other triplet?" he blurted, hoping it was an okay question to ask.

Cassidy smiled a little skeptically, cracking her knuckles as she stretched her arms above her head.

"I'm a second-year, but my whole family has been to Hogwarts - all of them Slytherin. I pretty much know what to expect."



Okay, no, he wasn't as annoying as her immediate first impression told her. His rapid-fire talking reminded her of her brother.

"Yes, we are at Hogwarts. I assume you haven't grown up with all the stories like I have? I find it rather...well, not dull or boring...but expected, I suppose." She threw her hair over her shoulder. "The feast is wonderful, don't you worry yourself. They have some of everything."

Ah, introductions. Right.

"Cassidy Hendricks."

Ilia straightened and smoothed her robes and tie as her long blonde locks fell about her face. When she felt less like hiding perhaps she would braid the tumult of gold and get it out of her way, but for right now she let it fall around her waist.

The boy (Colt) she sat by turned himself to look at her and return the greeting, to which she gave a small, polite smile. She presumed that her tie and such plainly gave away the fact that she belonged at this table as a member of the house, but rather than state that the slightly younger boy was pointing out the obvious she simply nodded. "I call the snake pit my Hogwarts home."

She had a strong affinity for her house, so when the new boy asked if this was the cool house, she felt her lips turn up into a proud sort of smile. "We are so cool that we are cold blooded." She meant it both playfully and factually. Their house was the only one in the school that bore a cold blooded creature on its crest.

It didn't take long for the table to take on more occupants. Both old and new students filed into the seats of the long green table. Voices and faces she had encountered last year and those newly sorted as the boy beside her. She presumed the one next to her was a transfer like she had been considering she did not remember him and he was definitely not a first year like the others that had just flocked to the table.

As the noise increased and the boy next to her started talking to a large portion of the table, Ilia herself grew even quieter as she watched and then turned her attention to her best friend Henric as he approached her. Where was she? Hiding from him...in a sense...telling him that would sound awful though so she kept the answer to herself. "I suppose I just missed you on the train." It was the truth, she didn't actively seek him out, and if he was looking for her he certainly didn't find her. "I saw you get into the carriage with Adi-puff, but it filled up before I made it there. You puff boys are such social butterflies." She teased him playfully with her small cheeky smile.

Wow.....he already knew the boy sitting next to her???? Sweet Circe her bestie seemed to get around! Patting the kid on the back and everything.....Colt....she supposed she would need to remember that name. She probably should start spending more time with more of her own house........

No matter where he was at the table, she always seemed to be able to hear Adi, now whether this was due to them being good friends or his noise level and exuberance could be left to speculation.

She waved back to Adi, smiling with a glint of playfulness as she listened. She couldn't help but hear his loudly spoken 'riddle'.Which river are you definitely going to find snakes? Considering this was Adi....she knew that he probably wasn't looking for a serious answer and the other guy didn't seem to have an answer for him. "A snake will swim in whatever river she chooses, but you could probably find her in the Snake River or the Hississippi." It probably deserved cheesy muggle sound effects to go with it but she figured that it might be the sort of answer that he was looking for. The summer had taught her even more about her adventure buddy after all.

Now if he wanted fact....she was more than happy to provide that also.

Reaching out carefully to get herself a goblet of water, Brooklyn had glanced over as she’d noticed movement. Seeing Dante’s return nod and grin, which she just rewarded with a sidelong glance as she’d raised the goblet to her lips. Only to stop as he’d actually asked a question. A question she would have expected Hady to have asked on the train, really, and she shrugged. “I’ve been good,” she replied. She was doomed to have to deal with Clyde forever now that her sister was marrying Austin, but aside from that and the fact she still hadn’t gotten her gyrfalcon … she was perfect. Aside from the slight curiosity as to why he was even bothering to ask. She’d answered, anyway, so he ought to feel honored.

Still slightly mystified by Dante’s concern over her wellbeing, she’d nearly missed Ethan’s comment. Nearly. The grumpy comment received a look that basically said ‘when have I ever been grumpy?’ and the slightest of grins as she realized he was actually afraid of her reaction. As if he shouldn’t have already known he was practically one of the only people she might actually have said she liked. Him and Hady. Most everyone else she tolerated, if anything could be said about them.

She was rather impressed he’d managed to actually prop his elbow on the table, too. There were an awful lot of people in this one spot at the table after all. Luckily no one had unnecessarily invaded her personal bubble. “Boring. I stayed home most of the time. Practiced.” She’d gotten awfully behind in her violin practice lately, but she’d brought it with her this term. That and her ballet slippers, not that she knew of anywhere she could practice. “My dad had training camp and stuff.”

Colt really was going to have to learn how Slytherins greeted each other. Hady was a perfect example, and he’d seen their way of communicating more than once now. Although it was to his benefit that he remembered her name. She’d nodded in response to that. “I see that.” What with the newly Slytherin-ed robes, and being at the snake table. Aside from the fact there were Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors invading at the moment. She ignored the offer, anyway. She’d already sat down, so she didn’t need permission. She didn’t need permission anywhere, now that Professor Bellaire wasn’t there anymore.

Just like she didn’t need permission to keep ignoring Adi’s obvious attempt at eliminating that earlier comment about her not being grumpy. Although the question of her cat’s wellbeing got a begrudging glance. “Of course he’s good.” A begrudging glance and a short response. Now could he stop trying to act like she actually liked him?

Guilty as charge."Umm...yeah...lots of students in the train sort of block the way,sorry I didn't manage to find you too," Henric replied, a little abashed at himself. Alright... he didn't like lying to his bestfriend."To tell you the truth, llia...I fell asleep the whole train ride to Hogwarts...because...play games until dawn..."he muttered. She probably thought he was sprouting excuses to her, but honestly he was trying to beat some insane player's high scores in a multiplayer zombie shooting game! His competitive spirit wouldn't allow him to rest. It took him hours to beat the guy...HOURS...merlin!

Oh, she saw him ride the carriage with Adi? "You did? You should have call for us, I would have come to yo-...umm I mean...come and sit with you."Henric quickly added. His ears went a little red. Henric laughed at llia's remark, Henric wasn't a social butterfly at all. "Not really...I was kind of quiet the whole time I was in the carriage ride earlier...anyway, after classes end tomorrow...do you have time to meet me for awhile, I'll drop you a note,kay?"he whispered so only she could hear. There were things he would need to discuss with her...

----------------------------

Ehhh...he didn't care if Colt couldn't remember his name,atleast the boy recognised his brilliant of a face. Come on who would forget this handsomeness of a Hufflepuff! It was all good. He was just glad Colt settled in well with the other kids his age."All cool man...the name Henric Nicolei,I seat over there at the Huff's table, you'll get a nice green tie soon,glad you like your house,mate!"Henric grinned."I see you already met my bestfriend, Colt meet llia,and llia...this is Colt,we met at the Kebab stall stand in Diagon Alley,"he introduced the two of them. Yes..he missed eating them. He wanted some of them right now.*sigh*

And there was Adi with his strange question. llia seemed to have the answer ready for him and he couldn't help laugh at the end of it. *Cue joke punch line drum* Holy mackerels....that was definitely CHEESY.

SPOILER!!: Abby

Abby nodded at what Hady had said and said "Yeah i know i think i will try to ask other students who have sat there OWLs and see if they have any tips for me with studying and stuff like that"

"That sounds like a good idea and certainly couldn't hurt at all. Maybe even get together with a few others and have some sort of a study group?," she commented looking up at her friend. It sounded like a good idea honestly and something she may just give a go next year when she had to take those tests.

SPOILER!!: Dante

So it was more or less the same with him too. It was a fun summer. But it is nice to get back to a magical castle where your friends are. Even if it is dangerous here. "The same. The summer was pretty good. Though it is nice being back at a place where you can actually use magic and not get in serious trouble"

Magic was awesome after all.

This.

This was a very true fact Dante just stated right there. Hady nodded a little in agreement. "Definitely. Being able to use magic at home would've made the entire summer run a lot more smoothly." She couldn't help but smirk at her own reply as she thought about several times being able to use her want wouldn't been great. Like maybe a silence charm, cleaning spells, or just something for when a certain person angered her a great deal.

SPOILER!!: Lucas

He beamed as the girl gave him a slight smile. "Thanks!" He bounced around and tilted his head, looking at her when he noticed that she had... GREEN HAIR! He pointed to it. "You have green hair? That is so cool! How did you get your parents to let you do that? Can you do mine green?" He bounced, hope shining in his eyes at the thought of being a cool kid with green in his hair. He beamed and looked at the girl. "Pleeeease?"

What did this kid eat on the train here? Probably a million chocolate frogs or something cause the way he was bouncing about was hilarious. Hady shifted a little bit sitting up straighter when the first year went on to ask about her and then continued to ask if she could do his hair that way. This kid was just....OMG! He was adorable!

"My father said I could I've had green in my hair since my third year only just more now then back then. As for your hair...uh yeah sure I guess I can." She shrugged her shoulders trying not to laugh at the sheer cuteness of this kid. "How about after the feast when we go up to the common room I'll teach you how to do it?" Of course she'd do it fore him this time and whenever he needed the help but him learning to do it himself was good too.

SPOILER!!: Colt

Colt heard Hady laughing at his question and I guess it was funny since he was a newbie to all of this. He was interested to know this information though. Ah so they were below the lake? That is soo wicked! He was looking forward to it. "So tell me will we see like mermaids, giant squids or fishes swim by the windows?" I mean mermaids were magical creatures and they were at Hogwarts. He even talked to Oliver about the giant squid but he wanted a second opinion on this giant squid business.

Hearing Colt question her about mermaids and the squid Hady twisted around in her seat a little bit pulling her attention from Lucas to answer him now. "If you get lucky yeah. I don't really see Bartolomew much from the common room but if you go outside to the lake and call for him sometimes he appears," she told him. She'd have to make a point of visiting the Giant Squid again this term and talk with him again.

Adi grinned as Hady laughed. This is what he liked, making others laugh with his antics even if they made him look goofy or silly. Ah, her hair was falling against her face but she didn't seem to mind. He figured she must like it not tied back. "Good. For a second I thought aliens might have gotten to you,'' he joked. Aliens DID exist. He was sure of that. Tired? It must have been the lengthy trip to Hogwarts that did that. "I suppose the Speech wouldn't be long off so you'll be up in your dorm in no time. And yes, none of THOSE creatures. We've had enough of them.'' His other question got another laugh, which was great as well. "Seems like the other day you were just a tiny girl who needed help in classes, Hades.'' Was that how he started to her? Adi thought he had helped her out with Arithmancy once.

Whut, whut? Who did Adi think he was? The next Riddler? LOL! "Er, yeah! That riddle,'' he told Dante and tapping his his fingers against the table. "No clues though, buddy. Sorry.'' Thought it DID have to do with snakes. Awh, but the fourth year didn't know. At that moment Ilia was speaking. OHHH! She had an answer to his riddle! Woot! "Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner! It IS the Hississippi River! HISSSSSS!'' Get it, guys? You peoples were Snakes and the riddle was a snake one... Hehe. "For a prize, Ilia, Henny gets to ki-'' YOW! Adi had about to say Ilia would get a kiss from Henric. QUICK! CHANGE TACTICS! "Okay, try this one. How does a snake shoot something?'' This was for BOTH Dante and Ilia.

At least Brooklyn actually looked in his direction. Hehe. "That's awesome! What about you? You looking forward to the school year?" The happy Hufflepuff did not mind the not so friendly response he was getting. This was Brooklyn. She was probably going to dislike him forever but he didn't care. Surely one day he could actually get through to her with his constant bounciness and cheeriness? #KeepPositive

SPOILER!!: Adi

Adi grinned as Hady laughed. This is what he liked, making others laugh with his antics even if they made him look goofy or silly. Ah, her hair was falling against her face but she didn't seem to mind. He figured she must like it not tied back. "Good. For a second I thought aliens might have gotten to you,'' he joked. Aliens DID exist. He was sure of that. Tired? It must have been the lengthy trip to Hogwarts that did that. "I suppose the Speech wouldn't be long off so you'll be up in your dorm in no time. And yes, none of THOSE creatures. We've had enough of them.'' His other question got another laugh, which was great as well. "Seems like the other day you were just a tiny girl who needed help in classes, Hades.'' Was that how he started to her? Adi thought he had helped her out with Arithmancy once.

That grin. Seriously everyone had a grin all their own and she LOVED it. She herself had that same grin and used it quite often...and then she had a 'special' grin reserved for certain people. Aliens though? Interesting. "If they did they didn't like me and sent me back," she went on to joke back. The speech though. It needed to start. Soon. Tiredness and hungry weren't a good mix for her right now. "I'll be alright. A good nights sleep and I'll be one hundred percent in the morning." Even if she wasn't she'd pretend. That she was getting good at. Pretending things didn't matter even if they did. "I'll be happy if I never see one again." Those 'creatures' could keep far far away thank you very much. When he went on to remind her of helping her in her first year she gave him a smile. "I remember that. I had no idea what I was doing," she laughed quietly. "Best way to make a good friend." Getting help and giving help was how she met a lot of her friends here.

Olly nodded excitedly. He was able to shove away that sadness, at least for the moment. It was exciting when people asked him about his family. He loved talking about them because, well, he loved them. "Our brother Colin is home-schooled."

WHAT? Olly reached out and grabbed each of Tom's shoulders in his hands and stared at him. Wait, he remembered that wasn't a good thing to do to somebody he just met. So he quickly dropped his hands but the excitement on his face did not fade. "RUSSIA?! One of our dads is Russian. Me 'n Ellery got accepted to a school there, but we decided to come here instead. It must have been a different school though I think, because it was was a private school." At least he thought so, but he wasn't totally positive. It COULD be the same school. Either way, it was SO COOL.

"YES!" He beamed and air pumped. "I like snakes." He tried to hiss but it came out terrible. Lucas paused, trying to hear then shook his head though he wasn't much for listening when the whole room was being loud with sorting and shouting and whatever. Lucas' eyes widened. "You? You were nervous too?" He gasped, amazed. "Right? I thought there was going to be questions and a pop quiz... my sister told me there was a pop quiz and that I needed to know spells and plants and everything..." He pouted.



He eyed her hands as she cracked her knuckles. He made a face at the noise and glanced around. "My grandparents were slytherin but no one else... so..." Lucas grumbled a little and looked away, not being as excited because of her.



"Youre so lucky! My mother is a bit strict about it..." He pouted and sidghed then beamed. "YAAAAAAY! That sounds fun!" Lucas went back to being hyper and bouncing in his seat. "What color should I do? Green? Silver? Red? Black? Blue? Orange?" He debated, tapping his finger on his cheek. "Yeah! Green! House Pride!" Lucas beamed then paused. "No... no! Green AND Silver!" He looked up at the girl, "That can be done, right?" Excitement and hope showed in his eyes as he bounced and beamed.

SPOILER!!: Lucas

"Youre so lucky! My mother is a bit strict about it..." He pouted and sidghed then beamed. "YAAAAAAY! That sounds fun!" Lucas went back to being hyper and bouncing in his seat. "What color should I do? Green? Silver? Red? Black? Blue? Orange?" He debated, tapping his finger on his cheek. "Yeah! Green! House Pride!" Lucas beamed then paused. "No... no! Green AND Silver!" He looked up at the girl, "That can be done, right?" Excitement and hope showed in his eyes as he bounced and beamed.

Strict parents. Her parents could be sometimes but well being an only child and a girl tended to have it's advantages. "Well then we'll just have to make sure to change it back to your natural color before you return home," Hady told him with a small laugh and a playful wink. This kid was way to darn cute to be a snake. How and why he was put into Slytherin was beyond her but then again she could think of a few friends that would say the same about her. Watching him bounce about in his seat she lowered her head a little trying not to keep laughing only lifting her gaze when he continued on asking about colors. Poor kid couldn't make up his mind. Before she could even open her mouth and comment he seemed to settle on the house colors. Nice choice there kid. Giving a nod of approval she finally spoke again tucking her hair behind her ear. "Yeah we can do that. It's not hard to do and if you don't like it we can just as easily change it." That was the great thing about being able to use magic. Things could easily be changed without much problems...well unless you messed up the charm. Which she wouldn't do. "I'm Hady by the way," she added a second later completely forgetting she had never even told him that. "Who might you be little snake?"

Was it just him, or the crowd was extra pumped that evening? Nevertheless, Ethan was happy with what he saw. Their table was getting so full, and extra loud, BUT it was the nice kind of noise really. It was a Feast after all.

But then, one of the Snakes wasn’t feeling so good. Should he be concerned for Hady? Well, she doesn’t look pale or anything, so he shouldn’t be alarmed. “That doesn’t sound good...” Ethan trailed off shaking his head. “I remember losing so much sleep during my OWL year, and it was the worst. My sleepless nights paid off though.” He said grinning. “Maybe after getting some food down your stomach, you won’t have problems falling asleep tonight?” he was hoping it’ll be the case for him too. Ethan’s tired from the trip, and didn’t help that he’s got NEWTs to think about. Literally, his last term will be another round of sleepless nights. With just a hint of exhaustion, Ethan chose to be a happy camper that night. It was, after all, his last Opening Feast.

See Exhibit A over here. How can you pass up the chance to be happy and feel like an eleven year old again during the Opening Feast? Merlin, Ethan could imagine how this little fella feels. He must be exploding with excitement within, and the older Snake had to applaud the boy’s self restraint. He can imagine them little firsties turning their dorms, literally, upside down during the first night. The blond teen’s eyes widened, and laughed at the newly minted Slytherin. THERE IS HOPE. He can see his younger self in this kid! “I am delighted to make your acquaintance, Lucas! I’mEthanTylerMordauntSeventhYearButYouCanCallMeEth anORAWESOME. HOW’SYOUREVENINGSOFAR?” Yep, still got it. He was the original rapid talker in this house anyway.

And let’s move on to Exhibit B. Oh Aditya. Ethan looked over Lucas’ head, and gave his rock buddy a toothy smile and his signature salute. “I won't miss my last term for the world, Mr. Hufflepuff Prefect.” Well, he can surely skip the NEWTs part, but...eh. “Are you ready to start our last shindig?” He was, yes, with or without acromantulas. Bahaha!

He then turned his attention to Dante, the chill one. Time to bring his energy a notch down, eh? Yes, yes. It was kind of hard to believe the younger snake, because, well... Slytherins are, most of the time up to no good. “Teehee. Just don’t get caught.” Who said only Gryffindors can make a scene? They can too, only, they’ve got better hair. If...that even made sense. “I think most of us want to get on with the show tonight, so we can all rest...well, except for the young ‘uns.” He said gesturing his head towards the first years. “I’m guessing this feast is a bit overwhelming for first time boarders, don’t you think?” Well, at least he didn’t have to deal with and babysit the first years. That was Caleb’s job.

Speaking of overwhelmed first years, Ethan turned his head towards Miss Hugger’s...brother...!? Oh, but it seems like he’s the complete opposite of his sibling. Without warning though, the younger Snake managed to smirk at him. “Now that smirk right there young sir...we’d like to see that more on your face. No sad first years tonight. Especially Slytherins.” Ethan gave him a huge grin and a nice tap-tap on the head. “You do have a name, yes? Or should I call you Mister Smirky?” the older Slytherin tilted his head grinning, obviously amused by the new additions.

And now back to Brooklyn the Queen. The expression was read clearly and Ethan had to lazily nod his head. “Yes you do young Queen. Sometimes.” Maybe Brooklyn is not aware of it? Not that he’d want to point it out further because she’s now grinning. “That’s better.” The blond teen gave her a thumbs up and small grin. “Oh? Practised what?” Well, obviously, she can’t practice magic outside school yet...which would make her summer boring, definitely. So she must have done some...muggle activity? “Well, camps are usually fun...” but it may not be the case for Queen Brookie.

Ethan straightened up from his seat, and carefully raised his arms to do a big, nice stretch. Yep. Their place was definitely getting crowded. The seventh year glanced back at the Staff table and did a long sigh. “Are you ready to meet the new teachers though? I’m quite surprised that a huge chunk of our old professors are gone now.” Must be the acromantulas?