Who knew that mattresses were so HEAVY?!

While performing a Levitation Charm would have been the more practical approach to this little mission of theirs, Derf had only just managed the capability of lifting feathers and, at the heaviest, textbooks off desks. A mattress was still a little out of his league. Even if both of them performed the charm together...chances were that they would end up making each other laugh, lose their concentration, and drop the mattress on themselves or worse -
a house elf or something.

So...manual labor it was.

Derf wasn't sure how Abey had got his mattress out from his bedroom and out the door to the Gryffindor common room - he hadn't asked but he knew how he had removed his so he figured it was something like that - but now it was Gryffindor and Hufflepuff against the world as they draaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagged the mattress through the corridor and towards the moving staircases so they could bring it to the empty classroom where they had already dragged his earlier.

All part of the plan!

"S-S-STOOOOOOOOOP," he huffed as he came to a stop and wiped some sweat from his brow. "I need another breather before we try to tackle the s-s-staircases."

In all honesty, Abey wasn't even totally sure how he'd managed to get his mattress all the way out of the portrait hole and common room either. The only answer he might have had for Derf, had the Hufflepuff asked, was that he was actually well-practiced in lugging his mattress down the stairs from his dormitory. Sometimes a kid just liked to have a sleepover in the common room. Or, said kid had done, last term. Now it was far too far away from the majority of his people and he didn't much like sleeping up in the Gryffindor tower at all.

Even so, the fact that he had got his mattress out here didn't mean that all this was an easy task. Abey had the tendency of growing upwards so quickly that the rest of his body couldn't keep up and was all thin and his muscles LOOKED non-existent, because of how stretched upwards he was. But he did have muscles, really BIG ones, they were just too stretched to see, that was all. Honestly. Actually.

It was MUCH easier to lug the mattress along with Derf's help, THAT was for sure, though Abey had been wondering just how exactly they were actually going to get the thing down to the very bottom. It had been tricky enough when they were on level ground.

"Okay," he replied, gladly dropping his end of the mattress so that it hit the floor with a heavy, muffled THUD. Actually, he was glad that Derf had suggested the break, because Abey had been willing to pretend he was totally actually completely fine to keep going, even though his arms ached and his brow was just as sweaty as his friend's. Without further ado, Abey flopped face first onto the mattress, seeing as it was all there and convenient for taking breaks on. "I don't even want to think about carrying it all the way back up the stairs," he commented, patting the mattress in order to invite Derf to flop down too.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Felixir

In all honesty, Abey wasn't even totally sure how he'd managed to get his mattress all the way out of the portrait hole and common room either. The only answer he might have had for Derf, had the Hufflepuff asked, was that he was actually well-practiced in lugging his mattress down the stairs from his dormitory. Sometimes a kid just liked to have a sleepover in the common room. Or, said kid had done, last term. Now it was far too far away from the majority of his people and he didn't much like sleeping up in the Gryffindor tower at all.

Even so, the fact that he had got his mattress out here didn't mean that all this was an easy task. Abey had the tendency of growing upwards so quickly that the rest of his body couldn't keep up and was all thin and his muscles LOOKED non-existent, because of how stretched upwards he was. But he did have muscles, really BIG ones, they were just too stretched to see, that was all. Honestly. Actually.

It was MUCH easier to lug the mattress along with Derf's help, THAT was for sure, though Abey had been wondering just how exactly they were actually going to get the thing down to the very bottom. It had been tricky enough when they were on level ground.

"Okay," he replied, gladly dropping his end of the mattress so that it hit the floor with a heavy, muffled THUD. Actually, he was glad that Derf had suggested the break, because Abey had been willing to pretend he was totally actually completely fine to keep going, even though his arms ached and his brow was just as sweaty as his friend's. Without further ado, Abey flopped face first onto the mattress, seeing as it was all there and convenient for taking breaks on. "I don't even want to think about carrying it all the way back up the stairs," he commented, patting the mattress in order to invite Derf to flop down too.

His arms felt like overcooked spaghetti when he too let go of his end of the mattress and willingly flopped down on it beside Abey - full starfish pose - without a second thought. "You know when people s-say not to think about pink polka dotted Hungarian Horntails-s-s but then all you can do is-s think about them?" he asked, still very much out of breath and heart pounding in his ears. He turned his head a little to look at his Gryffindor with a tired sideways grin. "Now that's-s all I can think about." Carrying the mattress back up the stairs that is.

Although now there WERE pink polka dotted Hungarian Horntails involved too. On the sheets - the pattern of them. Wait...no...they were lugging a mattress carrying a Hungarian Horntail on it. With a few eggs. The eggs were a slightly darker shade of pink polka dot, for the record, and the mama Hungarian Horntail was surprisingly not acting overly protective around her eggs despite him and Abey being nearby.

Before he could really get to wondering too much about this image his imagination had painted, something about the way one of the flying buttress connected to the wall reminded him of another thought he had wanted to ask Abey about. You know, since Abey had an older girlfriend and he an older wife...of sorts.

Neither of them really knew what they were doing.

"What do you think about s-s-snogging?"

"Uh-huh..." What exactly was Derf getting at with the whole Hungarian Horntail thing? Perhaps Abey was a little too tired after all that work, because it took him much longer than he would have been actually willing to admit actually before he realised exactly what his Hufflepuff counterpart was getting at. But he got there, eventually. "Oh! ... Oh... Right." A smile, sheepish at first glance but more impish the more one paid attention to it, was sent in Derf's direction. "Whoops."

WELL, with any luck, they wouldn't need to carry it back up the stairs actually. At least not any time soon. If they executed their plan well enough, that wouldn't be necessary for the rest of the year at least actually.

Oblivious to the process of Derf's incredibly active imagination, Abey slipped into his own thoughts for the moment. Mostly, thoughts on how it still felt really actually quite incredibly strange to be back here at Hogwarts, and to just freely walk around in the corridors like nothing had happened at all. The Headmistress was actually sure that the portal couldn't come back, wasn't she? And... if so... what made her so certain?

...

For a moment, Abey's thoughts strayed down to the sixth and fifth floors, for reasons. Luckily, he and Derf would only have to take the stairs all the way down to the bottom; no diverting into any of the corridors. That was good, because even though Derf was an inexplicably calming presence, Abey still felt a little nervous that there was nobody else that was properly better at actual magic nearby (though he was working on that part for himself). BUT, as well as being one of Abey's best friends and his favourite villain, Derf was also very good at keeping Abey's attention on other things.

"Snogging?" he repeated, having been drawn out of his thoughts by the question. Abey had to think about it for a moment, and he leaned on his elbow, propping his hand up in his hand as he did so, drumming his other fingers on the mattress. "I think it needs a better word. But also, I... well, actually, I wonder... sort of what it's like. Do you?" ..... Hold on... "Wait, have you kissed someone?" Was that why he was asking? Was Abey actually a hundred million percent right to worry about falling behind everyone else?

Finding himself in a comfortable starfish position, Derf just stared up at the ceiling for a moment. He supposed Abey did have a point -
snogging WAS a weird term. It sounded so aggressive, you know? Derf didn't know much about this sort of thing save for what he saw in movies and all the older students in corridors and common rooms and such but his take on it was that it really wasn't AGGRESSIVE. You weren't aggressive and stuff when you were in like with someone, were you? It was gentle and warm and stuff...like a warm blanket and a big mug of hot cocoa in winter. Or laying down in a BIG pile of pygmy puffs!

"I DID," he grinned wickedly, looking over at Abey. "But Jessa s-s-says it does-sn't count because she was a dolphin. But I think that is rather rude to tell Aqua that her kiss-s-s does-sn't matter." Not that Aqua was here right now. She was, uh, a billion trillion miles away in the Galapagos. "And you know as-s well as-s me that Jessa is-s kind of an expert on this-s s-sort of thing. S-S-Sooooooooooo....I guess-s the REAL ans-swer is no then." Although it WAS his first lip to lip action, so to speak. "All of it is really confus-s-sing...not s-s-sure I get what the big deal is?" he continued, his head turning back up to look ceilingward with a bit of a dreamy expression there. His cheeks may even be turning a little pinkish. "S-She REALLY wants-s me to have my firs-st proper kis-s-ss though. I think...she gave me a picture of Valerie Gray to practice on..."

He got a bit of a dream far off look about him as he thought about the American Veela. She really WAS something else, you know?! She had TOTALLY looked at him when they had passed one another in the hallway once. It was...a w e s o m e!

Turning his head to look back at Abey, another thought effortlessly rolled off his tongue. "Does-s-s it help?" he asked rather abruptly. "The toy I gave you. With all the..." He paused, swallowing BIG and slow while looking at Abey. "...you know...all that?"

It was that time of Year where Simon's last batch of Allergy potions ran out and that he would need to retrieve a new batch from Healer Reed. Hurrying along the Staircase trying to reach the Hospital Wing as quick as weak little lungs could take him, before the Staircase would move on him.

There really was no need to rush to the Hospital Wing. It was mid-day. Simon had no classes until late afternoon. He was sure that Reed would be in his Office at this time. If the Stairs moved on him he'd just have to wait and be patient. Maybe it had something to do with Healer Reed himself?.
The bespectacled badger for once just wanted to move along with the day.

SPOILER!!: Ickle Puff! <3

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ Moose

It was that time of Year where Simon's last batch of Allergy potions ran out and that he would need to retrieve a new batch from Healer Reed. Hurrying along the Staircase trying to reach the Hospital Wing as quick as weak little lungs could take him, before the Staircase would move on him.

There really was no need to rush to the Hospital Wing. It was mid-day. Simon had no classes until late afternoon. He was sure that Reed would be in his Office at this time. If the Stairs moved on him he'd just have to wait and be patient. Maybe it had something to do with Healer Reed himself?.
The bespectacled badger for once just wanted to move along with the day.

It was impossible not to come across the Moving Staircases everyday since her office and classroom happened to be on the first floor- the floor she shared with Rose and Roderick. Kay had just come out of her office with an armload of books. Yes, she knew she could use magic to simply levitate them ahead of that but as a bookworm, she simply refused to have that. She'd rather hold onto her precious; or rather, Kalen's precious books since she was about to return them to him.

The woman approached the Staircases but her gaze fixed on the young Hufflepuff standing there. "Hello, Mr Rockefeller,'' she greeted as she approached. In all honesty, she meant to personally check in on him earlier in the term after the unfortunate event last term with the monster. "Is everything well? How are you coping this term?'' Concern was written all over her face.

Kitty was on an especially peculiar prefect patrol that morning. It had started out normally enough, but as she was travelling down the moving chairs, a vase had fallen by her head and smashed on the landing below. Soon it was followed by two more, though these next two were not nearly as close as the first.

No one had chosen to reveal themselves, but suspected that Peeves might be behind it. Of course it could have just been an accident - a charm going off the wrong way. Still, that could have been a horrible accident, and the Goth was being extra careful as she bent down to repair the first vase.

"Reparo," she said, pointing her wand at the broken shards of vase. The vase soon was pieced back together.

Going down to the next landing she did the same with the vase there.

The castle was less than inviting in normal circumstances. Melanie saw the vase, too, from a few floors above where the Ravenclaw prefect was. Melanie raced down the stairs, being too slow with her wand in that moment. She had been caught off guard, and she mentally swore at herself for her incompetence. She skidded to a halt next to the prefect, who she saw repair the vases, and took a small breath of relief.

"No one was hurt. Thank Circe." She said the words softly. "Where did they come from?" she asked as she peeked above her once more. "Was it the school's poltergeist?" She had yet to meet the being and was beginning to wonder if he was real, or if everyone a this whack school was...whack. "I certainly didn't hear any incantations or...much of anything," she mused to herself more than the prefect. "Accio vases!" Melanie summoned them to her. "Where do they belong, then?"

Free period meant that the Gryffindor had found a relatively quiet place to sit and read. She had two essays due tomorrow and was only part through the one. Ugh. She would totally get it all completed for sure, but she didn't like working on such a tight deadline. And the reading was clearly not for pleasure, instead she was currently nose deep in her bistro textbook.

Double ugh.

So deep was her concentration on the matter at hand that the moving of the staircase didn't even bother her. She had grown used to the shifting and learnt to center her gravity or something so she only got jostled just a little. Heh.

Brent had been a Hogwarts student for about a year and a half now, and in that time, he still hadn't gotten used to the moving staircase. For one, he couldn't figure it out. Just when he thought it was going up, it'd go down. Just when he thought it was going left, it'd go right. Good thing the last IMPS challenge hadn't been on the moving staircase. He might still be riding around trying to find his way out...

Brent turned and faced to the left, pretty sure he was about to head in that direction. Then, true to what he'd thought before, the stairs turned right. He should have just turned right to begin with. When the stairs decided to come to a stop, he was left facing one Dora Umbridge--his co-Hogwartian, his co-IMPS challenger, and yet his opponent all at the same time. She looked busy, too, which made him feel sort of bad to be interrupting her.

"What's up, Dora?" he greeted. "Sorry to interrupt you. I was trying to head down, but apparently I can figure out IMPS challenges but not the moving staircases."

As she was repairing the second vase, one of the Ilvermorny students ran over to help. They'd never talked to each other before, but Kitty knew her name was Melanie. She admired her style.

"Thank you Melanie. It must have been Peeves, he's our only poltergeist," she said, though it could have been many other things too. Hogwarts was FULL of ancient magical charms and tricks. Sometimes it could be dangerous, though most pranks were just annoying. "If this were last year it could have been the other poltergeists: Miffy or Storm, but they left." Thankfully.

Carefully she examined the vases. "Um I think they belong on the seventh floor, in the hallway. I'm not entirely sure, there are lots of vases like them."

"Do you think we should levitate them up?" she asked her.

Dora looked up only when she heard the voice call her name. And she recognized it from classes. So that was a good start. A small, albeit tight, smile tugged at her lips. "No, it's fine. How are you?" she asked as she closed her book and gave him her undivided attention.

Not sure for how long, but for now he had the attentions.

The Gryffindor tilted her head to one side as she considered the boy. He kept using runes in the challenges and the blonde wondered why. Like why did he take the time to do that? Not that it wasn't impressive, but it was certainly time consuming. It interested her a bit.

Brent didn't intend to step on a stair so close in proximity to Dora, but he was afraid if he didn't, he'd end up moving off in a completely different direction right in the midst of their conversation. "Sorry," he said aloud, "trying not to get cast off in another direction." He laughed lightly as she looked behind him and watched a set of stairs do that very thing. "How do you get used to these things anyway?" He was pretty sure she'd been going to Hogwarts since her first year. Had she figured out some trick of the trade?

He noticed that she'd closed her book, and he figured he'd really interrupted her quiet time. She didn't seem to be mad or anything, though, so it was probably cool. "I'm alright. Trying to rest up in between challenges," he answered. He glanced at her book. "Studying or getting prepared for round three?" Or maybe she just read for fun or something.

Having taken a seat on the steps just as Professor Stewart joined him they began to move. The Young Rockefeller counted himself lucky motion sickness was not in his bag of illnesses he seemed to contract every waking hour.

"Afternoon Professor Stewart" He said with a smile that quickly became a straight face when she asked how he was coping "I-I think I'm fine." He said really unsure himself. He would admit that there were nights he might wake up in a cold sweat terrified from the nightmare of being back in that place...seeing that...he couldn't..no in fact he really couldn't The second Simon's mind started to wander he mentally shut down. His breathing was steady still but his eyes looked almost blank. Like he was in some kind of quick trance.

This moment brought to you buy coping mechanisms.

Then he snapped back out of it. "I'm okay."

SPOILER!!: Si! <3

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ Moose

Having taken a seat on the steps just as Professor Stewart joined him they began to move. The Young Rockefeller counted himself lucky motion sickness was not in his bag of illnesses he seemed to contract every waking hour.

"Afternoon Professor Stewart" He said with a smile that quickly became a straight face when she asked how he was coping "I-I think I'm fine." He said really unsure himself. He would admit that there were nights he might wake up in a cold sweat terrified from the nightmare of being back in that place...seeing that...he couldn't..no in fact he really couldn't The second Simon's mind started to wander he mentally shut down. His breathing was steady still but his eyes looked almost blank. Like he was in some kind of quick trance.

This moment brought to you buy coping mechanisms.

Then he snapped back out of it. "I'm okay."

This was her fourth year here at Hogwarts as a Professor and she had spent seven years as a student, but these staircases still frustrated the life out of her. They were so unpredictable. All she wanted was for one of them to safely take her to the fourth floor. Eyeing them with suspicion for a moment, the woman diverted her attention to something- someone- more important.

He thought. This meant Simon wasn't sure.

Kay did not miss the blank look on the young Puff's face and her heart hurt for him. What an extremely traumatising event for him and Abey to have gone through. "You will be fine. It's quite alright to speak to me about whatever is bothering you, Mr Rockefeller. I will not disclose anything you do not want me to.'' Simon had her word on that as she would try to help him as best as she could. ''I suspect nightmares may be a challenge.''

Melanie Williams was an Ilvermorny professor, dear, and would not appreciate being mistaken for a student. Perhaps it was flattering that she looked young, but Melanie thought her maturity and wisdom far exceeded any of her students, sans one or two that she considered, basically, on her level.

Nonetheless, Melanie smiled. “You all had three poltergeists last year?” she asked curiously. How in the world had any learning or teaching been done? She still had yet to meet the prankster. Peeves was someone she did not want to meet, though, unlike the rest of the school ghosts. They were interesting and full of history, not spit-riddled raspberries like Peeves. “Please...call me Professor Williams,” she said a little coldly. Melanie….Merlin. She would never let a student call her Melanie. And she'd die if she even heard a whisper of "Baelanie," Khalil Jordan.

“Levitating them might be a tad dangerous...if we were to drop them...then….” She thought the girl would get the picture. “We can carry them.” She had both in her arms right now, but she handed one to the Hogwartian girl. “You are a…..Ravenclaw, then?” she saw the colors. “And a prefect?” And the badge. Hmmm.

WHUT?

Kitty's eyes widened in shock. This was seriously embarrassing. She'd confused a professor with a student. Of course Melanie wasn't a student (even though she looked really young), but last night she hadn't slept at all and clearly that was affecting her thinking.

"I'm VERY sorry Professor. I just thought you were, um - never mind." She must know she thought she was a student, and that Kitty would never intentionally address a professor inappropriately. "Sorry Professor Williams."

Part of her wished she had an invisibility cloak that she could just hide under, but obviously that would just be even ruder.

Professor Williams was saying why they shouldn't levitate the vases. Ears still ringing in embarrassment, Kitty nodded numbly as she received one of the vases. "Good idea." The question about if she was a Ravenclaw made her feel even more embarrassed, since Ravenclaws were supposed to be very clever. "I'm a Ravenclaw prefect," she confirmed, as they began to walk up to where the vases should go. "Ravenclaw was the house I wanted to join even before I was sorted. I know I probably don't sound a lot like a Ravenclaw, but the sorting hat is never wrong. What house were you in when you were a student at Ilvermorny?" It was polite to ask and she was sincerely curious.

Olivia was going to be late to a meeting if she didn't hurry up the stairs. As she walked her way up the many stairs, she was about to move to another staircase when the staircase in front of her decided to move. "Seriously?" she repeated. She had, of course, heard the reputation of the moving staircases but had yet fallen to be a victim of one. "Merlin. It seems as if the universe is trying to make me miss that meeting." Sure, it wasn't the most important of meetings... After all, it was a meeting with herself to look at her study plan and make sure she was on track but it still was one that she had to make.

Come on staircase.... Move back.

Please?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Watson

Olivia was going to be late to a meeting if she didn't hurry up the stairs. As she walked her way up the many stairs, she was about to move to another staircase when the staircase in front of her decided to move. "Seriously?" she repeated. She had, of course, heard the reputation of the moving staircases but had yet fallen to be a victim of one. "Merlin. It seems as if the universe is trying to make me miss that meeting." Sure, it wasn't the most important of meetings... After all, it was a meeting with herself to look at her study plan and make sure she was on track but it still was one that she had to make.

Come on staircase.... Move back.

Please?

Levi was not late to any kind of meeting, thankfully, but he had been looking forward to curling somewhere in the library with a book. And hopefully not fall asleep but sometimes naps were just too over-powering to avoid. The librarian enjoyed changing the color of his hair every other week, after all (this being an exaggeration, of course) and Levi was not going to be the one to deny someone their ways of having fun.

The good news was that he wasn't the only one waiting.

"I am told that if you stare really hard at them they come back." An absolute lie.

If he wasn't wrong, and he doubted he was, this was Olivia Holden, and she looked particularly disgruntled about the roguish ways of the staircases.

Disgruntled was the perfect word to describe Olivia. At this moment (which she thought lasted simply too long), she was wondering how she ought to restructure her day to make sure she fit everything in. She lost her concentration when she heard a peculiar comment. It made her chuckle.

A small smile tugged at her lips when she heard the comment about staring at the staircases for a very long time for them to come back. "Huh, now that would be a new one. Should make a guidebook to Hogwarts and add it in there to give to all the first years," she said with a nod before she turned around to see... LEVI KENNING? He was one of the coolest Hogwarts champions and one of her fellow housemates. And he was doing fantastically in the IMPS Competition. "Levi, isn't it?" Despite being in the same house, she had never really talked to him before. She supposed that they had always been busy in different areas. "Fantastic job in the competition. I don't know how you're doing it all.." Mentally, physically, and emotionally challenging. She couldn't even fathom participating in a competition of that nature. Heck, she couldn't even produce a patronus.... Which to say frustrated the girl to no end. No patronus but non-verbal magic made sense.

The world worked in mysterious ways at times.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Watson

Disgruntled was the perfect word to describe Olivia. At this moment (which she thought lasted simply too long), she was wondering how she ought to restructure her day to make sure she fit everything in. She lost her concentration when she heard a peculiar comment. It made her chuckle.

A small smile tugged at her lips when she heard the comment about staring at the staircases for a very long time for them to come back. "Huh, now that would be a new one. Should make a guidebook to Hogwarts and add it in there to give to all the first years," she said with a nod before she turned around to see... LEVI KENNING? He was one of the coolest Hogwarts champions and one of her fellow housemates. And he was doing fantastically in the IMPS Competition. "Levi, isn't it?" Despite being in the same house, she had never really talked to him before. She supposed that they had always been busy in different areas. "Fantastic job in the competition. I don't know how you're doing it all.." Mentally, physically, and emotionally challenging. She couldn't even fathom participating in a competition of that nature. Heck, she couldn't even produce a patronus.... Which to say frustrated the girl to no end. No patronus but non-verbal magic made sense.

The world worked in mysterious ways at times.

"If we gave everyone a guidebook to Hogwarts," He noted, working hard at keeping a grin off his face, "I'd think the experience would be considerably less remarkable than it's meant to be." Though considerably more safe, too, all things taken into account. A hag, a portal, a monster, the entirety of the competition he'd been chosen for. That there could be a guidebook that included the moving staircases or the room of requirement, or how to stop the Whomping Willow would at least be of some help, surely.

Possibly, thinking about those should not have made the boy laugh. So he disguised the laughter bubbling in his throat by coughing into his fist and momentarily looking away from his fellow Gryffindor. "Yes, that's me." He lowered his hand, offered her a smile. "You're one of the Olivias. Olivia Holden." It wasn't really a question--he was certain and saw no point on pretending otherwise.

He managed to look only slightly embarrassed at the mention of the IMPS, cheeks coloring a little. Not because he thought he'd done poorly, but because he was, after everything, still unclear on how to react to compliments. Thank you seemed insufficient, ignoring it would surely make him look conceited. And, so: "Adrenaline is a wonderful thing, really. Scientifically speaking, too, it's not even just my opinion. It's a fact."

Nailed it.

Olivia struggled with trying to fight a smirk from appearing on her face. She lost. "True... You'd take half of the magic away..." she said with a chuckle. Though what if they gave the students a slightly more inaccurate one like a spoof version? "Though I think a slightly inaccurate guidebook would be quite comical..." Olivia was always up for a good laugh... within reason of course. "My brother gave me a quick rundown of the school when I transferred here last year... but none of that could have prepared me for last year. Portals and all were kind of a surprise." The monster... The portals... The disappearing students. She was glad THAT was over. "Suppose we should just tell the students to expect the unexpected?"

He was coughing now, was he? She hoped he wasn't unwell or something. She didn't particularly want to get sick before OWLS. That would be a rough time taking those exams. She nodded at his words. The brunette was taken aback that he actually KNEW who she was. Of course, he did, she chided herself. He's Levi Kenning. Brilliant and all. Of course he KNEW. "That's me," she said with a smile and outstretched a hand towards him, ready to take his to shake it. Yes, she was ONE of the Olivia's. There was one other in her year. Though she had never really spoken to her.. It seemed as they ran in different circles... It was weird though considering they were in the same house and year after all... but Hogwarts was a big school.

Now Levi's cheeks were turning a slight shade of red. Heh. Compliments were hard. She found that too. She smiled, understanding that struggle all too well. And now he was talking about adrenaline. His comment intrigued her and struck her in a way. "Adrenaline comes in handy when we most need it. Sure, magic can only do so much. It's how we apply the magic that truly matters. It's how we react."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Watson

Olivia struggled with trying to fight a smirk from appearing on her face. She lost. "True... You'd take half of the magic away..." she said with a chuckle. Though what if they gave the students a slightly more inaccurate one like a spoof version? "Though I think a slightly inaccurate guidebook would be quite comical..." Olivia was always up for a good laugh... within reason of course. "My brother gave me a quick rundown of the school when I transferred here last year... but none of that could have prepared me for last year. Portals and all were kind of a surprise." The monster... The portals... The disappearing students. She was glad THAT was over. "Suppose we should just tell the students to expect the unexpected?"

He was coughing now, was he? She hoped he wasn't unwell or something. She didn't particularly want to get sick before OWLS. That would be a rough time taking those exams. She nodded at his words. The brunette was taken aback that he actually KNEW who she was. Of course, he did, she chided herself. He's Levi Kenning. Brilliant and all. Of course he KNEW. "That's me," she said with a smile and outstretched a hand towards him, ready to take his to shake it. Yes, she was ONE of the Olivia's. There was one other in her year. Though she had never really spoken to her.. It seemed as they ran in different circles... It was weird though considering they were in the same house and year after all... but Hogwarts was a big school.

Now Levi's cheeks were turning a slight shade of red. Heh. Compliments were hard. She found that too. She smiled, understanding that struggle all too well. And now he was talking about adrenaline. His comment intrigued her and struck her in a way. "Adrenaline comes in handy when we most need it. Sure, magic can only do so much. It's how we apply the magic that truly matters. It's how we react."

During his first year, he'd spent the majority of the time skulking about the castle with his brother. They'd gotten lost, repeatedly, and there had been some thrill to it--at least, there had been for Levi. Possibly the Gryffindor streak coming out just then. Declan hadn't exactly been pleased, but the sixth year rather thought his brother had grown used to it, with time. And had maybe even made them get lost more than once, just to keep Levi entertained. "That doesn't sound bad, actually." His grin widened, a little. "We could even strike a deal with Peeves and ask him to be their tour guide, at least for the first week."

He was harmless, really, the poltergeist. Certainly miles better than Storm and Miffy.

Levi reached out and shook the younger girl's hand, the one he hadn't pretended to cough into. He adjusted his messenger's bag strap. "Yeah," he allowed, the blush tinting his cheeks finally lessening. "I also think it enhances your reflexes. It wasn't enough to help me cast a corporeal patronus," and he'd probably never get there, anyway--when would he even need one, anyway? "but--it's helped thus far pretty well!"