Oh good, Brent was going to get checked out. Kane didn't want to get all MOM like on him, insisting he go to the hospital wing, so he was glad when the Headmistress suggested it. Since it seemed like nothing else exciting was going to be happening any time soon, he was also relieved when she ordered them to all head out. He didn't really want to stick around to see if a monster came out through that thing...

"Yes Headmistress," he told her before giving a small wave goodbye to his bro and heading out towards the Hufflepuff common room.

Was Holy Hotstuff Headmistress angry? Tenacius didnt want her angry, at least not like this. He held his head down as she spoke, then raised it momentarily towards the end. They were to stay clear of the portal, he got that, but then Prefects also need to patrol this area? Did that include him?

Pause to think. And paused some more.

Well, certainly he felt scared. But far be it for him to be running for the hills. If anything, what he's seen there has spurred him to be even more fervent with keeping fellow Hogwartians safe. He knows what it takes, in a way.

But yes good idea, seek the Healer. He fell on his face as he careened into the portal and the whole place was filthy. Goodness knows what he may have picked up at the other place? So off he goes following Nat towards the Hospital wing.

Nobody answered her question, but judging from the lines of stress on the Headmistress' face and the grave atmosphere that had fallen over the group, she thought she could guess the answer anyway. So it was the caretaker...? She knew she should probably be a little more upset about that or something, but instead she just felt a little numb and kind of confused. Was it always like that? Nobody she'd know had died before, even somebody she knew as little as Flynn.

She realised she was probably acting weirdly still when Natalia asked after her. Blinking, she flushed slightly and turned her face away, embarrassed to have the Head Girl (and Arithmancy queen) think of her like that. Come on- she was made of stronger stuff than this.
"I'm fine. Thank you."
She tried to offer a smile to go with the banality, but somehow it wouldn't come out right. So, at a loss for anything else to do- because really, she wanted to wave her wand and heroically close the portal or something, but she was still just in her first year- she turned silently and ghosted along the corridor behind Natalia and Noelle, thinking that much as she didn't need one- not a proud Slytherin witch like her- it still couldn't hurt to have a Calming Draught.

Noelle could feel the tension with the Headmistress.

Noelle stood with Nat, unsure of what to do. She listened to the Headmistress and nodded when she was told to help Nat take the students who went into the portal to the healer. She watched Liv take off before she looked at Hattie and Sky again. "Hey Sky, do you need help?" She asked before watching several students, including Ace, start following Nat.

Shed be the caboose in this situation while Nat was the leader. That way she could help anyone else and make sure everyone got to the healer.

As soon as the headmistress dismissed everyone, Carlton quickly left his spot behind professor Stewart's legs (sweet sweet safety) and hurried after the Head Girl. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Liv leave the other way. Buh-bye. He hurried after the group, quietly and without asking any questions about what they'd all just experienced. He was bubbling with questions but he was too scared to ask anything, plus he doubted anyone else had any answers.

So, Carlton quietly followed the Head Girl to the hospital wing and left the icky portal behind him.

The holidays are quickly approaching, but that ominous portal is still here. The glow that has been eerily illuminating this portion of the sixth floor appears to be fluctuating now more than ever, raising the question of what is going on in the other world. It's taunting you. Is it worth the risk of trying to sneak past those on patrol or will you be wise and stay away?

Under specific orders, Rooney was up on the sixth floor in the corridor. He didn't want to be here, because he had heard more than enough about what had happened from others. But he was a responsible student and a Prefect and so when they had been asked to patrol the area to avoid another incident, he had offered to do any of the patrols that anyone else seemed worried about doing and didn't want to. Helpful, helpful. Actually, since the incident in Astronomy, he had been going out of his way to be a better Prefect instead of setting a bad example.

So here he was, one hand in his pocket and the other holding the book he was currently reading. He'd wait around here until someone else cropped up, and then he supposed that he would go check out the other corridors for any students loitering that should have been around in class. But...back to reading...

These new orders to patrol this portal were not something she wanted to do, but Natalia wasn't going to say no. She couldn't, she was the head girl. So here she was headed towards it. Her eyes staying on it as she moved. She didn't trust the thing and wondered why it was still in that one spot.

"This thing gives me the creeps." She was going to fully admit it and she didn't care if Rooney thought any less of her for it. I don't understand why they can't just close it yet. They are smart witches and wizards there has to be something."[/b] Plus the caretaker still hadn't been found so most likely was the bones that the other kids brought up.

"Is it just us patrolling now?"

Rooney looked up from his book when he was joined by the Head Girl and nodded. "Same.. I'd rather stand here than let someone get in there again, though." Because he was thinking about it, he turned and looked at the cornered off portal and made a face. "I'm sure they've tried, you know? Well, I hope they've tried." And if not..then he was thoroughly disappointed in the grown ups that were responsible for the students of Hogwarts.

"Yeah, I think so.. I think some of the Prefects are a little put off by coming by it, though." Which he completely understood. It was daunting and if the rumours about Flynn were true, then it was only normal for students to not want to be around here.. Student leader or not.

"D'you want a book?" He had a few in his satchel as always.

She'd really hope that the professors would have done something, but by the looks of it maybe not? She just couldn't imagine someone like Hirsch not being able to close a portal. The man knew his stuff when it came to magic, but who was she to judge. "Yeah, that was just... weird." She didn't really know how else to explain it. She hated that shew as this close to it again. She let her eyes wonder around the area before taking a spot on the wall near him. She had brought a bag though she wasn't sure she'd take anything out of it.

Her eyes still on the portal she just couldn't stop thinking about what could be in there. "They say a monster is in there, do you believe them?" It was Hogwarts, but a monster? She'd laugh it ended up being a scared kitten or something. Though with Flynn missing still, she really thought that was a stretch.

Looking at Rooney she shook her head, "No thanks, I have my own in here. Need to really start studying for NEWTs." Not that she really wanted to or felt like it was even worth it since she was going to be singing for her future. Reaching into her bag though she pulled out some chocolate frogs, "Want one?"

With a raise of his eyebrow, Rooney turned his back on the portal and faced Natalia properly. "I don't believe that our Professors would put us in that danger unless they absolutely could not do something about it themselves. If you think that they're not doing what they could, then that's for you to ask them, as Head Girl. For you to hold them accountable." Honestly though, he thought it was disheartening for her to not believe in the staff of the school. Their positions were high enough that they could question authority on behalf of the student body, so he only hoped that Natalia would if she thought something was amiss. Wasn't that part of her responsibility?

"I wasn't there.." Something he felt awful about, because of Carlton. "But I wouldn't disregard their accounts of the other side." Again, Rooney wasn't there and so he had no leg to stand on if he went about not believing the stories of a monster. "It wouldn't be the craziest thing to happen at the castle."

Oh yes.. Natalia was a seventh year. NEWTs... Yikes for her. "No no." Rooney shook his head. "I ate already. You need them more than I do."

She liked that people really trusted adults as they did. It was nice to see and it was something she had been learning to do since coming to school, but she still had a suspicious side to her. "Unless it was one of them that opened it or even a student." She shrugged only making a conversation more than anything else, but Kitty was on about the Chamber of Secrets, why couldn't another house have a secret that big. Maybe it was a portal now. Maybe this one was only after purebloods?

With that thought, she eyed the portal for a moment and wondered if she needed to scoot herself back a bit. "I have talked with them. I think they are telling us what we need or want to hear. They don't want to send us in a panic or having us write to our parents that we are all going to die or anything." She opened her chocolate frog and took a bite, "I was, it was really weird. Ace and I were just walking and then he was gone and I watched Brent just disappear. I went for a professor while Noelle put up a shield. I just don't understand if there was something that horrible in there how did the students get out in one piece. You would think it would have pounced the second it had a chance."

Thankfully crazy things weren't really an issue since she had gotten to the school. The hag was ridiculous, but not horrible crazy and the poltergeist were just annoying. She couldn't help but look down at herself as he said she needed it. Was she looking too thin? Sickly? She decided not to ask and just kept eating her frog.

Rooney was alarmed that the Head Girl would say something like that, let alone practically accuse others. "That's a tall accusation, even for you. I'm sure they'd be thrilled to know that the individual they trust as their Head Girl is suggesting to other students that a faculty member is maybe to blame." In fact, he was rather disappointed, but chose to keep quiet on the situation as he couldn't be bothered to argue about this when they were supposed to be on high alert for students sneaking past or anything happening with the strange portal they were near.

Prefecting was tough work when talking instead of being eagle eyed.

He sighed, pushed back his hair and propped his book closed with a finger keeping it open at the right page. "Natalia, please. I don't want to hear any more about why we shouldn't be trusting the staff here. I don't want to hear you talking about it. To me, or anyone. That's disrespectful and embarrassing." And his disappointment was growing by the second, the more that she spoke about it. Hogwarts happenings were not something to be speculating about for the sake of some gossip or distrusting those that were responsible for you. "Perhaps it isn't as bad as we all think. Until we have absolute proof, it's just a portal to me." Hadn't anyone ever seen funny clips of shadows being big and scary but it actually just being a small little kitty cat?

And the bones that had been seen weren't confirmed to be Flynn yet.

There was always a possibility for things to be good.

Was this how the entire patrol with him was going to go? Merlin was he a bore. How did Liv even deal with him? "It was conversation and thoughts Rooney, not an accusation. Good gracious you are a dramatic bore." How did anyone stand to deal with him if all he did was look at you judgingly and everything out of his mouth was a negative shut down instead of just exploring the thoughts. "Maybe that's why I am the Head Girl, I'm not naive enough to just assume they wouldn't. I will think outside the box and figure it out whether it is saying that a staff member or student could be up to it." She didn't really see anything wrong with her thoughts. They were just thoughts, but if something came out of those thoughts at least it could save people from this stupid portal.

She popped the rest of the frog in her mouth before he opened his again. Her eyes might have rolled to the top of her head. Seriously? "You are so perfect and genuine to the staff aren't you? So respectful? " Yeah she had heard about how he acted in class and had seen it. "Me having suspicion and questioning things is not disrespectful, but maybe your views on what is acceptable to do to staff and mine are different."


She looked at the portal, "Like I said it would be funny if it was a cat in there that everyone was so afraid of." She had mentioned that at first.

A dramatic bore? Rooney scoffed, finally closed his book properly and set it back inside his satchel. "Maybe you're Head Girl because of who your father is. I've heard plenty about what you get up to, Natalia, and it isn't at all what I would want to reward with prestige such as the position. But, of course, I don't know nearly as much as you. How dare I question you in conversation when you quite clearly are making an accusation." She could say she wasn't accusing anyone all that she liked, but it seemed it to Rooney and he had every right to call her out on it. If word got out that the Head Girl was suspecting the staff for this here weirdness, then there could be more uproar than there typically was.

Taking a deep breath, the sixth year got to his feet. "I don't call them out on their morals. I question what they will give to my education. Which is what I am here for. To be educated. To learn from my Professors, my peers and my mistakes." Thank Merlin that the Slytherin girl would be gone come the end of term, because Rooney had very little time for her now and in the future.

And mutters around school of her trying to attend WADA with her little girl group of suck had completely put him off attending there himself.

"For your information, Natalia, you said nothing of the sort. I know so, because I categorise every conversation I ever have and write them down afterwards. But you've said nothing about it being funny if it was a cat. Perhaps you're getting your thoughts confused with what you actually say." And there was no rule that there needed to be two of them here, so Rooney took himself off down the corridor to go do something else.

Unnecessary conversations with unnecessary individuals.

O_o

Because of who her father was? Natalia could see red as she stared at him. "You don't know me at all. So how dare you say that. You don't know what I've been through and how hard I've worked to get to where I am right now. You don't know the therapy I've done and the after hour tutoring with Professor Hirsch I do." She was seething mad at this point and could hex his face if she wasn't trying to keep her calm. "You know what I get into, do you know or even begin to understand the reasons behind some of those actions, most likely not. A spoiled brat like you would never understand the life I've lived." She herself hadn't agreed at first that she deserved the badge, but her father had given her the thoughts that she had. She deserved it and was good at it.

She couldn't help but roll her eyes, "Yes questioning them by screaming in class. Bravo of great prefect material." When he wasn't screaming about it teenage love life that was. Wow was this guy something else, she wondered if he truly had a life if he actually categorized and wrote down every conversation. She found it rather pathetic really. She watched as he walked away from her and her eyes went back to the portal.


"You stay over there and I'll stay here. We'll work well that way, but honestly, if he comes back you could just eat him. I won't tell." There were some in the school that probably could be okay being sucked in. What was she doing talking to a portal? Her brown eyes moved back to her bag as she pulled out her Arithmancy book, she needed to calm down and the best way for her to do so was doing calculations.

Susurrus bits of wind could be heard by Kay in her ear as she rushed to the sixth floor with Rose. Not that she was running. It was more of a brisk pace because she- and Rose too, she knew- wanted to make sure those students were okay. “I hope no other portals appear,’’ she said in a low tone. She didn’t want to any student to overhear the conversation and which may cause a panic.

Kay surveyed the sixth floor as they arrived. “Any signs of them, Rose?’’ The missing students obviously since Daisy, Sky or Nat would not have finished their respective sweeps of the castle so soon.

Okay, she was not to play hero. Well truth be told, she wasn't sure she would want to because while she knew more magic than when she first started and was definitely increasingly comfortable with her wand, being thrown into an unknown territory didn't sound all too appealing to Skylar.

Checking each corridor carefully as she worked her way up the staircases, when she spotted the Muggle Studies professor already there with the History professor, Sky guessed they too had drawn the same conclusions.

"Nothing?" Sky said nervously. Perhaps Daisy hadn't really seen what she thought she'd seen? OR did they get spit back out in the period that Daisy was in the common room with Nat? SO much unknown ... and despite the obvious safety risks, well, Skylar just wanted to know.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Daisy had looked everywhere she could think of. Starting from the dungeons, the great hall, all the classrooms that she found open -- even the kitchens! That was probably why she was currently munching on a chocolate chip cookie, actually, rather dejectedly.

That's when you knew something was wrong. When Daisy Carden appeared blasé about food.

She had even gone up to the towers and there had been no sign of any kind of portal or lost students. If the matter wasn't so serious, she would complain about all the stairs she had climbed for nothing. She had made her way down to the sixth floor once more, and now, standing in front of that portal she wondered how she could have missed it. "Holy moly." She whispered, eyes wide. That was weird - where exactly did that lead again?! Shaking her head, she broke her gaze from the portal and looked at the staff members and at her classmate. They looked decidedly alone. "I take it they haven't been spotted yet, then?" GAAAH. Where were they?

Reaching the Sixth Floor with Kay, Rosalyn's heart dropped as she saw that neither girl was anywhere in sight. She would not let that discourage her, however. They might still have left the portal, and if not... Well, they would just have to go in and look for them. Gaston would freak, but that was something that she could deal with and really it was no big deal when students were in danger. She'd do it in a heartbeat and make sure that everyone came out alive and hopefully unhurt.

Sigh. "I don't think they are here," Rosalyn told her friend as Miss Carden and Miss Diggory appeared. "I am afraid not. There really is nothing to show that they've been here." The portal looked the same as ever. "Okay, I'm going to send a patronus to the headmistress." This was the perfect time to do so. A silvery ferret shot out of her wand and headed to the headmistress' office with this message:

Two students have been sucked into a portal on the wooden bridge before it vanished. They have been gone for some time and haven't seemed to reappear yet. At the original portal now and probably will need to go in there after them.

Only at that very moment, Junia felt herself being thrown instead of grabbed, this time towards a more familiar place, one she hadn't been sure she was going to return to. She felt herself falling and then she hit solid ground, right at the feet of a professor...

... ... ...

"...Hi." Etta though, where was Etta? The brunette sat up and looked around for the Hufflepuff who had been taken with her. Grabbed. Sucked in. She was okay, right? They were okay. They were going to be okay.

"I'm okay." Etta replied softly. What had just happened?! This school was supposed to be safe and the students well-protected but.. they had been dragged into a portal and were almost eaten by a monster. Crazy, really. She got up and immediately felt dizzy.. too soon, Etta. She leaned against the wall for support.

"Are you alright?" She asked, her voice filled with concern. She looked at the Slytherin girl, suddenly feeling a little glad that she had shared this truly horrible experience with someone else. It would have been even worse if she had to go through that alone.

Almost immediately after the patronus shot off with its message, a student came tumbling out of the portal and landed by her feet. Rose immediately shot into action, reaching out to help her back to her feet. "Miss Botros, are you all right?" Her voice was calm, but in actuality she was rather overwhelmed with emotions. The students were like her children and it was her job to protect them.

"Miss Kramer." More relief washed over her as the second student emerged. Both girls seemed to be okay besides being shaken up, but one could never know... "Do you two need the Healer? I think it's best to be safe." Underneath her calm demeanour, Rosalyn was very worried.

Almost as if on cue with Professor Newton saying that no one was here, it was then that two girls appeared through the portal and one was - as the third year feared, someone she knew. "Junia!" Skylar exclaimed, upon seeing her roommate for the second time this year looking far worse than she liked to see those she knew.

On instinct, she rushed between the two, despite her better judgement saying she should have given them space and air.

And then when Professor Newton suggested a Healer, Sky couldn't help but speak up. "I'd be glad to escort them to make sure they arrive safely." It was the least she could do, since entering the portals by choice was not allowed, evidently. Not that she wanted to go ... anymore other than to see for herself what really laid ahead there

It looked as though everything happened seemingly all at once. Daisy had still been watching Professor Newton's patronus!ferret float away to the Headmistress' office when all of a sudden the portal spit out two students. Well, or they fell out of it. Very clumsily, too, but that was probably to be expected.

They were back! They were safe! And they looked all in one piece which was a bonus.

But yes, Healer.

She nodded at Skylar's words. "Yes, Professor. We would gladly take them to Healer Reed." It was probably best for them to stick together, after all. She looked down at the girls which had been taken, incredibly relieved that they were back. She knew them, of course, even if not by name. You share enough classes with someone and you end up recognising their faces. Daisy turned back to the Professor. "If they don't need to stay in the infirmary, we can all get to our Common Rooms together." Slytherins and Hufflepuffs were basically neighbours, so. Safety in numbers, and all of that.

Although, what safety that guaranteed students was yet to be discovered.