Etta couldn't help the smile that made it's way to her lips. And since he seemed so curious.. "I was dragged into a portal along with a friend of mine.. we.. narrowly escaped getting eaten." It somehow still hurt to say it. She gave him a sad smile before looking away.. ugh, awkward.

Peeves? Yeah. The Hufflepuff couldn't help rolling her eyes at the mention of that poltergeist. He just created way too much havoc. "Has he bothered you?" She asked, her brown eyes shifting towards the boy. He looked older.. maybe a fifth year? Probably. The girl frowned just a tad bit when he talked about people being missing.. yeah. Her gaze shifted towards her hands again as her frown deepened in worry. The school really needed to do something as far as the portal was concerned. "You know, there are a very places around here.. where you can be alone. Empty classrooms. Or.. even the room of requirement."

"Wow," he said taken aback. He was not expecting that kind of response from someone who wasn't one of his siblings. "That sucks. That it happened, I mean," he added quickly. "It's good that you escaped. So..." Declan frowned and shifted his weight. He had at least five questions he wanted to ask about the portal and the 'being eaten' part but he didn't know when it was appropriate to ask a stranger about their near death experience: now or after several more vague questions?

"Oh, well..." Declan once again allowed his voice to drift into silence. His hands seemed to have trouble finding a place to rest. He rubbed them on his thighs before sliding them into his pockets. "Sometimes those places are the least quiet for me."

Declan cleared his throat and glanced around the corridor again to make sure no one or nothing was lurking.

"When you said you avoided getting eaten, did you mean, whatever was after you had teeth?" Or a mouth at the very least.

Etta nodded, feeling annoyed AND amused at the same time. Annoyed because talking about that day only made her feel terrible and amused because well.. this boy was rather amusing. "Of course it's good that I escaped! It was quite a narrow escape, though." She nodded seriously, remembering how the monster had almost caught them. Almost. The girl looked down at her shoes quickly, not wanting him to see the sadness on her face.

She tilted her head to the side, not really understanding that answer. What did he mean? How can quiet places be loud? Why did he seem so paranoid? "Have you ever been to the room of requirement?" Etta asked, deciding to satisfy her curiosity later.

--- And there he was, looking around again. She sighed, trying really hard not to roll her eyes at him. "Yeah? I only caught a glimpse but yeah. Teeth, definitely."

"Sorry to make you relive it," Declan said with whatever tact he had buried inside him. "I'm just curious about what you saw." And heard and smelled but he was going to ask one question at a time. Maybe. For now.

"Room of Requirement. Not sure," he said hesitantly, shifting his weight to one side. Declan had been to a lot of parts of Hogwarts but he wasn't too sure about that one. At least he hadn't gone on purpose that he knew of. He had only heard of it through word of mouth.

She sounded a bit like his sister there. Was she going to stomp her feet and make faces at him? Declan wasn't good at reading girls. Or boys. Or people in general.

"Did it have eyes? A head? Proper head. What kind of body shape?" he asked using his hands to gesture. "Like a spider, like a giant ant? Humanoid?"

Etta gave a small shrug of the shoulders. She actually understood him being curious.. "I'm not sure how it happened, though. My friend and I were talking and all of a sudden, there was a portal right next to us.. and we were dragged into it. You know what scares me the most? Like, what if we had never come back.. yeah..." She abruptly turned quiet, wondering where that outpouring of words came from. She didn't even know his NAME. Woah. .... "What's your name?" Just so they got that out of the way.

Uh. "I'll take you sometime." Etta offered with a smile. See? She was quite friendly and helpful. Besides, it was quite a cool place to go to. "You imagine what you want.. and it's there." She added. Right? Preeeeetty cool.

Erm. Wow. That's a lot of questions. "Actually, I was way too busy running for my life to notice the details.. it could have been a giant spider." She eyed him from the corner of her eyes, deciding to tease him a little. ".... Or even a giant Octopus."

Declan was listening attentively. There was a twinge of guilt that made his chest feel tight. Here was a girl who had nearly died and he was squeezing her for any ounce of information to satisfy his selfish curiosity. He almost issued an apology for that but her question made him feel even more like a jerk. "Oh!" he exclaimed his mouth round. "I'm sorry. Merlin, I'm so rude. My name is Declan. Declan Kenning."

He stretched out his hand. He figured a handshake was the best thing to do in this situation. Isn't that how most people did it now a days?

"UH..." Imagine what he wanted? Declan glanced at the ceiling thoughtfully, hand still outstretched. "I'd appreciate that, thank you...Your name?"

Really. How much more rude could he get? What would Althea do?

"A giant Octopus seems unlikely," he answered honestly with a frown. "A giant spider?" Declan tilted his head and wiggled his fingers to remind her his hand was still out there for the taking. "Did it make a particular sound? Was there a SMELL?"

Etta bit her lip to stop herself from grinning because she didn't want him to think that she was being rude but honestly, she couldn't help it. He was rather... uh.. unique AND funny. Even if he didn't mean to be funny. Declan. An unique name for an unique boy. Made sense.

"Hi Declan. I'm Henrietta." She replied, the smile on her face widening a little. "People call me Etta." And she preferred being called Etta but.. eh. Whatever. "It's really nice to meet you. You're different."

The girl finally shook his outstretched hand. She tried to control her laughter.. she really did.. but Etta burst out laughing, quickly covering her mouth with her free hand. Seriously, a SMELL? Did monsters even have a smell? Even if they did, it would be disgusting.. right? Her laughter finally subsided before the girl shook her head. "I don't remember it having any particular sound but.. uh.. it did make a few sounds, though. Grumbling sounds, I think. Like it was hungry..."

Declan wasn't sure what to do with a comment like that. He was different. Everyone was different. Was there something specific she was referring to? Declan didn't have the courage to ask. He knew what made him different. He wasn't a fan; 10 out of 10 did not recommend.

"Nice to meet you, Etta," he said with a small half-smile. Her horrible attempt at controlling her laughter made him blush. Declan found himself laughing along--painful with embarrassment. "Ahh," Declan exclaimed feeling slightly disappointed. Everything had its own sound. Dogs woofed. Cats meowed. Birds chirped. That kind of thing. Grumbling? Well, even pipes grumbled. It might as well have been a ghoul trying to ear her.

"Would it be too mundane to think it's a ghoul?" he hoked. "Anyway, at least you're alive. Who knows what was there chasing you. Where did you go? DO you know?"

"It's nice to meet you too, Declan." Etta replied with a grin. She wondered what his name meant. Declan? De-clan? .. Nah, that made no sense. But why was he named Declan? Asking him may or may not be considered rude so she'd have to figure that out herself. "Do you have a nickname?" She asked instead, eyeing him curiously. Maybe.. Dec?

Ghoul? She hesitated, not exactly sure since she didn't really SEE the monster properly. It could have been one, though. Her expression turned to one of amusement at his questions.. like, he just wanted to know everything, didn't he?

"Erm.. well.. it was similar to Hogwarts but there was no one around, you know? And it was very dark.. and some rustling sounds.." Etta answered, the smile vanishing from her face as the memory suddenly came flooding back. Her face paled slightly, her gaze shifting to the ground. It was going to take a long time to completely get over that experience, yes.

"I don't," Declan said with some confusion. He hadn't really ever thought of that fact before. Was it odd that he didn't have a nickname? None of his siblings had one either. He didn't hear his parents call each other by nicknames either except that his mother's name actually ended up being a nickname. Rina was short for Dairine somehow. Declan didn't get it.

"That's weird..." Like Hogwarts but dark. Dark Hogwarts. The corner's of Declan's fleshy lips curled upwards. "Like an alternate Hogwarts. Have you read much Muggle fiction?" Declan asked. "Science fiction? They write about things such alternate universes and alternate dimensions. I wonder how much truth there is behind that."

In his selfishness Declan noticed only too late Etta's discomfort. He didn't add any further comments and allowed the silence to fill the spaces around them. He shuffled his feet, eyes on the ground as he spoke next: "I'm sorry. You had such a horrible experience and I keep making you relive it."

Um. "What if I gave you a nickname? Dec? It's short and simple or... um.... Eclair! Like the pastry? I think I like that." Etta rambled on, wondering if he liked that? She eyed him curiously, waiting to see how he'd react to that nickname. Eclair. It had a nice ring to it, didn't it?

Weird? Yeah, to say the least. "Mhm. I mean, this castle looked so terrifying." The girl paused when he mentioned something about science fiction? She frowned, not really understanding what that meant. Like...? Confusion. "No I haven't.. but can you suggest a read?" Because now that he mentioned something that she'd never heard of, it made her curious.

Aw. Etta's eyes softened when he apologised. Even though talking about it hurt, she didn't him to feel about about it? Not his fault at all. She nudged him playfully, looking up at him with a smile. "It's fine. Don't worry about it."

"I don't think that's gonna work," Declan said resolutely and shook his head. Eclair? Really? Now Dec was pretty harmless but it just didn't sound alright. "I'd rather you just use my name, please." Declan was a good name, he thought. His parents had put some thought into it, after all, before giving it to him.

"I bet," he said with a nod. "There's a series called Beyonders," Declan suggested. "By Brandon Mull. Muggle. If you're that interested." He wasn't sure if she'd enjoy it but she did ask for a suggestion. Hopefully, she would at least find it interesting if anything.

Declan looked up to observe her pleasant expression. It wasn't fine, though, but still he supposed it was okay to just stop the apologizing if she wanted to. "I'll walk you to your common room." Not that he thought he could fight a portal with his wand or anything at all, really, if it came down to it but at least if she got sucked up into a portal again she wouldn't be alone.

"Why not? If I'm going to be the only one that calls you that?" Etta teased. Yeah, no. She could never use that nickname in front of other people because that would be just.. embarrassing. But, okay. If Declan was what he wanted, she could stick with that. No problem.

Erm. Etta nodded, thinking she could definitely give it a try.. at the very least. "I'm not sure if the library here would have them but if not, I'll read over the summer and get back to you." Plus, with all these classes and homework going on, she wasn't sure if she'd get the time to read. "Thank you." She added politely. Nice of him.

She raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Okay. I'd like that. Quite a gentleman, I see." She grinned suddenly and lightly punched him in the arm... UM. Wait. WHY did she just do that? That was really weird and random. Did he think so, too? Ahem. Clearing her threat and pretending like THAT didn't just happen, she continued. "What year are you in anyway? Fifth?"

"Because it's not a really good one," Declan said honestly with a small grimace. He wanted to say it nicely but he couldn't find the right words. "Eclair? No thank you." He wouldn't be able to live with himself. It was bad enough he was the weirdo in school. There was no need to add insult to injury.

"No problem," he said with a small smile. Declan still kept his smile even while being 'punched'? At least he tried because the other alternative seemed even more awkward. He decided it was best to ignore it. "Sixth," he replied with a playful glare. "Do I seem young to you? I'm virtually a man."

Thank you very much.

Wow. Rude much, Declan? Pfft. Etta looked a little bit hurt but remained quiet for a few moments. She definitely was over-dramatic at times. "Fine. Declan, it is." She finally said, looking at him. "Happy now?"

Oh. "You should take that as a compliment!" She exclaimed, rather surprised. Although.. if someone told her that she looked younger than her age, it wouldn't make her very happy. Etta liked growing and looking older.. It was interesting, in a way. "A man?" She grinned teasingly, raising an eyebrow. "Guess you are. I still have a few more years to go.. to grow into a mature young woman." SIGH.

"Thank you," Declan said with a bigger smile. "Very happy, actually. I think Declan is the best name for me." He chuckled at Etta's exclamation. He wasn't really offended at being thought younger. It didn't matter. Declan felt way older than he was anyway. Something like an old soul but that was weird when you said it out loud about yourself.

"Young man," he corrected her gently with a smile. "I'm okay with young man. No rush, really. There's time to grow." He couldn't help another chuckle and he frowned playfully at Etta. "You sound disappointed. Do you want to be a..." What had she said? "A mature young woman that badly?"

Etta couldn't help but roll her eyes, looking quite amused because... well, this was his first SMILE since they started to talk. He was practically beaming. Wow. "You don't smile often, do you?" She asked curiously, tilting her head to the side.

There's time to grow. Etta nodded, giving a small shrug of the shoulders. Yes, she supposed so. But as for his question.. "Yes! I mean, don't get me wrong.. I love growing up. I really do. I like the routine. Studies, homework, classes, friends, crushes. It's fun. But.. Etta paused for a moment, a dreamy smile on her face. "I don't know.. I guess I'm excited to be a grown-up one day too. She looked at him distractedly, absently playing with the ends of her hair. Did that sound weird? Did he think she was weird?

Her question caught him off guard. His smile faltered and froze in place. Declan never really thought about it but somewhere down the line after discovering his gifts he must have forgotten how to be at ease. His siblings had pointed it out in their own way but he always thought they were being dramatic. Drama was part of their genetic makeup after all.

"I never really thought about it," he answered her honestly. Declan attempted to soften his smile. He listened to her go on about growing up. She seemed rather excited about the idea. It bewildered him but he tried not to act anything other than mildly entertained. "Well, that's good too. I hope you're happy where you end up in life when you grow up. Planned it out already?"

Declan glanced down the hallway and gestured towards it with one grand sweeping motion. He figured he'd borrow some of Althea's drama. Is that what teenagers their age did?

"Shall I walk you to the common room then?"

THERE WAS A MONSTER LOOSE AT HOGWARTS!!!!

Okay so Noelle's first decision after making sure Ace was okay, was to go find that monster. She didn't think she could defeat that fast thing by herself though. She needed some help. She knew that Olly was supposed to meet her so she was keeping an eye out for the monster as she made her way through the seventh floor corridor.

While she was heading through the seventh floor corridor, she noticed some parchment lying around. Bending quickly, she managed to scribble some letters and sent them off to Althea, Az, Noah, and a few others to let them know that there was a monster loose in Hogwarts. Noelle had told Levi that she would send him a birdie. You're welcome.

After those were sent, which didnt take more than a minute, she started running down the corridor again. "MONSTER ON THE LOOSE! STAY IN YOUR COMMON ROOMS PLEASE!" So some sort of prefect mojo was running through her veins. She really hoped she wouldnt be by herself if that thing showed up.

Olly was not the most observant person but it was kind of hard not to know when there was a monster loose within your school. It was terrifying and exciting at the same time. It made him mostly forget about all the other things that had happened lately. A monster definitely took priority. He had been heading up to the Gryffindor common room to meet Noelle when he had heard some yelling on the lower floors. He hurried the rest of the way up because he knew Noelle would know what was going on. And, sure enough, he heard her yelling about the monster problem. Olly was by her side in an instant.

"Do you know where this monster is? Or is it just roaming our school?" He looked up, as if expecting to see a monster hanging from the ceiling. Just to be safe, Olly reached for his wand and gripped it tightly.

Rula had sent off a couple letters, one to her parents and one to Max, so she was leaving the owlery when she heard someone shouting about...a monster? Huh? What mon-

...Wait.

It couldn't be...could it????

She turned and hurried in the direction of the voice and footsteps, stopping once she spotted Noelle and Olly. "Monster? Here? Like on this side?" It had finally gotten through the portal? Now?? Why now???

Merlin's beard, this was not good.

...Were Junia and Abey safe? Oh Merlin.

Thank merlin Olly was here and not taken by some horrific monster. She instantly took his wrist. Yep, he was staying right here by her. "It's..." She started while still half jogging/half running through the corridor. "It got out of the portal!"

Noelle was about to continue when someone else came up. Rula.

"Its on this side of the portal' Noelle told her, her eyes wide. She'd SEEN the thing. It was ugly, horrific, and FAST. "It came out, a few of us tried to stop it but its way too fast. It can climb walls. Please please keep a look out and all the younger years need to go to their common rooms!" They'd help spread the word right??

And no, Noelle was not slowing down. They wanted to talk, they were coming with. She had to make sure students were not being eaten.

Cassie had left the Ravenclaw tower in search of fresh scenery. She wasn't liking the whole sit and wait since they had been working on researching ways to deal with the portal. However as she made her way down the corridor, the fourth year was alerted first to running feet, then the exclamations coming from a Gryffindor prefect. Monster on the loose?! She couldn't help the shiver that ran through her as she made her way to the group gathering.

"What in Merlin's beard happened?" she asked, a mixture of curiosity and concern running through the Ravenclaw. "And any idea where?" Hogwarts was a big place and plenty of locations that the monster could be.

Where was Grayson? That question too was raised in her mind, the girl wondering where her younger brother was. And her friends for that matter. Huh...younger students into the common room? Did that mean her? She was younger than the Gryffindor she believed.

Still dragging his older brother, Kane managed to make it all the way to the seventh floor, wondering if there was really any merit to going back UP. Brent had a good point, the monster would probably be going DOWN and hopefully they'd meet more people to start an army to find it, but he felt uneasy walking away from the monster. Or at least, he ASSUMED they were walking away. Who could tell, really? It had run off so fast!

He had barely made it to the landing of the seventh floor, finally dropping the sleeve he'd been grabbing as he'd dragged his Slytherin bro all through the castle, and grinned. Brent had been right! Look! PEOPLE!

"You're all looking for the monster too, right?!" he exclaimed with a grin. A HUNTING PARTY! Great! Just what they needed! "Awesome! Let's end this thing guys, ONCE AND FOR ALL!" he exclaimed with a fist pump to the air.

That was what they were doing, right? Getting ready to FIGHT?

Olly let Noelle pull him along and picked up his pace to keep up. Soon they ran into more people. First Rula and then some others. It was probably a good thing, right? Safety in numbers? Or would large numbers just draw the monster in because of the potential for a feast? He was hoping the first one. Since Noelle knew more than he did he let her do all the talking. What would he say anyway? Olly hadn't seen the monster, and he didn't particularly want to. But he had to see it to fight I... but would he really be able to take on a monster? He tried to stop overthinking it and just keep up with Noelle.

He hears the announcement about going to their common rooms but he was not going to leave Noelle. There were a bunch of other students still out there. And if all the students were in one place wouldn't that draw in the monster?? "Anyone have any ideas which way it went?"