The Hogwarts professors were...friendly. Melanie, while not the friendliest sort, felt even more at ill-ease because she was in a new place, with new people, and her mission remained in the back of her head. She assumed the woman speaking to her, now, was her Hogwarts counterpart [Rosalyn]. She managed a small smile. "I'm sure we'll be as happy as we can be. It will be an interested term to say the least. I think teaching lessons, well," and she chuckled lightly. "It will be hard to capture their attention for long periods of time. Time to try out new techniques." She would actually have wanted to talk subject matter things with her, but too many things were distracting her.

Number one being: Duncan. He was being silly. Put that damn sauce away, boy. Be polite. Eat and drink the food of the people. Merlin, if glares could convey murder. She hoped whatever sort of twin telepathy they had going, he would at least hear this.

Second: That damn music! Melanie really couldn't take it. The loudness of it, the rowdy dancing of the students and that foolish professor. She smiled at Kaysha, but the smile did not meet her eyes. "I can see he is having fun. Unfortunately, tonight is not the night for fun. Not right now, anyway. We can dance later." Perhaps they could make a bonfire out of the deputy head's wardrobe: his ponchos needed to go. "If you will excuse me," she nodded at the woman before standing. She patted down her peplum shirt before striding off, nodding at the groundskeeper as she passed.

Gryffindor table, we're coming.

Kalen was slowly sipping his tea and trying to breathe, crowds really did make him nervous, and this was worse than the opening feast seeing as more people were here and the Dias was crowded as well.

He closed his eyes and took a slow sip of tea.. Ahhh yes, that was much better. Tea was surely the panacea to all of lifes ails he was sure of it! There! The noise had faded a bit, and he was feeling much better. Crowds and noise certainly weren't that bad, yeah?

However he was pulled from his tea filled happy place as he heard a few voices speaking to him..

Oooppsss.. guess other people had noticed that he had some issues with uhh.. multitudes of people.

He threw the groundskeeper a warm smile. "Thanks Haraldur, I'm all right. I just get mildy nervous around many people " He said as he nodded. "This helps though. " He said as he motioned to the tea.

The librarian's attention was pulled from the groundskeeper to the Ilvermornyman who was addressing him. Ahh right. Introductions of course.

"Kalen Kennedy, Hogwarts Librarian. Nice to meet you Duncan, welcome to Hogwarts. " He said in a friendly manner. He was about to say hello to the other new professor when she moved to step over to the Gryffindor Table..

Ahhh the music had stopped.. that was better.

Gaston hadn't been sitting there long when more of his colleagues arrived. "Good evening, ladies," he said, addressing Laurel, Cami, and Rose. He gave each of them a small smile and polite nod, though he quickly dropped his eyes after acknowledging Rose. He half-expected that just polite eye contact would be grounds for a reprimanding look from Hawthorne, and he had no desire to experience that again.

He returned the male Ilvermorny professor's (Duncan) hello with one of his own, and a hello for the other professor (Melanie) too. "Welcome to Hogwarts!" he said, hoping they would hear him at the other end of the table. "I'm Gaston Marchand."

Blink, blink. Yelling... who was yelling?! He jumped slightly at the loud voice shouting for Headmistress Moxley - or at least that's who he assumed it was directed at. His blue eyes searched the hall for the source of the sound. He knew it was only a matter of time before the culprit got scolded by Hawthorne - or worse, given her apparent aversion to displays of emotion. Did he even want to know how she'd react to this? He saw the other headmistress's reaction out of the corner of his eye, and it made him smile a little. He already liked this woman; she seemed fun!

Gaston wasn't really sure what to make of the guests or of what was happening at the Gryfindor table either, for that matter. He was glad the students were having fun, but the loudness was starting to get out of hand. Then he saw poor Abey Botros covering his ears and looking overwhelmed, and he instantly went into overprotective dad professor mode. That was it! He had to do something...

But before he could react, the female professor (Melanie) was up and making her way to the Gryffindor table. He gave her a very appreciative nod as she passed, his eyes following her to the table to watch the scene unfold. But the thing that really won him over, even more so than taking charge, was the way she comforted Mr. Botros. He'd be sure to thank her for that when she came back!

And then the rest of the stragglers -- Kalen, Tristan, Gaston, Laurel, Camilla -- showed up the staff dais. Regina gave each a nod of her head and a mention of their name as a greeting. Needless to say, she was glad with the overall punctuality this term and hoped that they all kept that up.

But Paul Myers was NOT on her good side right now. Her eyes widened, making her look quite dumbfounded, when he hopped out of his seat, flew kisses at her and Meredith, and then ran off to the Gryffindor table to go dance at (because it certainly was not with them) the music-players. Talk about unprofessionalism. Had this been an actual dance or a party, she would have allowed it. But this was not a dance or a party. They were simply eating and welcoming their guests, and soon they would be getting on to competition matters. But the woman remained her composure, though she was internally fuming and planning on writing to the Board about this.

The glance from Moxley was not encouraging. Did she encourage this? Merlin...

Then the cherry on top was hearing shouting being directed at them from the Ravenclaw table. She easily identified the voice, knowing it belonged to Hadley Denaker. The headmistress's head turned slowly over to the Defense professor. "Roderik, I believe Miss Denaker needs to be reminded that she shouldn't be shouting indoors and that there are proper ways to greet someone." Since he was the girl's Head of House, she would give him a chance to take care of the matter as she fully trusted he would take care of the situation fine on his own accord.

She gave Roderik a smile and a nod of her head before seeing that Rosalyn had made her way into the Great Hall and took her seat down the table. The woman gave the History of Magic professor a wave of her hand, a sign of acknowledgment.

After the music-players of Gryffindor table and Paul caught her attention again. Needless to say, it was all cringe worthy. It made her want to rise from her chair and crash their party by confiscating the device and dragging the old man back to the table where he should have been. Then, almost as if her mind had been read, Melanie got up to take care of business. Even though the two had a rift and their own differences, Regina always appreciated the woman's consistent professionalism.

It was at that point the Hogwarts headmistress did get up from her spot at the table and made her way to the podium. She waited much longer than usual to give some (though one could stay with the Gryffindors if he was going to act like a child) time to return to where they needed to be and then wait for everyone to quiet down. While this happened, she waved her wand and a book flew into her hands moments later. She admired its cover until there was a lull in the hall.

"Now that we all have properly settled in," Regina started, glancing out at them all, "I would like to formally welcome our guests from Ilvermorny. I personally am excited that you all are here, and it is such a pleasant sight seeing many familiar faces once more. Welcome to Hogwarts, Ilvermornians. Our home is your home.

"The reason why we all are gathered here is for the International Magical Pupil Standoff, otherwise known as IMPS. As a reminder to us all, this is an inter-school competition that was designed by a team of staff members from both Ilvermorny and Hogwarts. It is our goal to strengthen the bond between the schools while simultaneously showcasing the abilities of our students. Already we have begun forming newfound friendships, and we hope those friendships will continue to blossom and grow as the term progresses.

"For the latter goal, four challenges have been designed. One male and one female, aged fifteen and older, from each House will be selected to compete against each other for these challenges. At the end of each challenge, four students will be eliminated until there is one clear winner. The winner of IMPS will receive a full-ride scholarship, provided by the Hogwarts and Ilvermorny Boards of Governors and other donators, to a university of their choice."

Regina paused to let all of that information sink in, especially the bit about what the winner of the competition would receive in the end. The stakes were high, and the prize certainly worth what was to come. She gave everyone a moment to murmur amongst themselves before continuing. She glanced down at the book until she was ready to speak once more.

"To make the selection of sixteen students, eight from each school, it has been decided that we would let this book" -- she held it up in the air for all to see -- "do the selecting for us. This is the Book of Merlin. As the name suggests, this book once belonged to the great scholar and wizard Merlin and still contains many mysteries today. Several charms have been placed on the book to magically input the names of each Ilvermorny and Hogwarts student that is fifteen and older. The book will make its selection based on whom it deems worthy."

With nothing more to say, the woman gave the book a tap of her wand, causing the book to hover on its own accord. She took a few steps back to let the book make its selection before speaking again.

Once the book was released, it glided up toward the ceiling until it hovered over everyone’s heads. It started its trek by making a lap around the hall, starting first the Slytherin table, then making its way to tables belonging to the Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and lastly the Gryffindors before returning to the area between the House and staff tables. It was searching, deciding.

Suddenly the book began to shake and light started to seep through its closed pages. The energy the book was beginning to give off grew more and more intense until the front cover flew open and its pages began to flap from one to the next. Then, without warning, it stopped and a bright white light briefly filled the room as ancient runic letters leapt off the page and rearranged themselves mid-air. After contorting themselves, the letters then spelled out the first of the worthy.

“IRENE AVERY, ILVERMORNY, PUKWUDGIE.”

The name remained visible for a brief moment and then disappeared. Pages of the book once more began to turn. Another flash of light occurred and the letters shaped themselves into the next name.

“MASON WINSLOW, HOGWARTS, RAVENCLAW.”

Again, the name disappeared and the pages flapped away, followed by a white flash and rearranging of letters. The process continued until the rest of the names were revealed.

“JESUS RODRIGUEZ, ILVERMORNY, THUNDERBIRD.”

“DORA UMBRIDGE, HOGWARTS, GRYFFINDOR.”

“VALERIE GRAY, ILVERMORNY, WAMPUS.”

“CARL LEONARD, HOGWARTS, HUFFLEPUFF.”

“KYLE BAKER, ILVERMORNY, HORNED SERPENT.”

“TEJASHREE PEALE, HOGWARTS, SLYTHERIN.”

“LACHLAN WHEELER, ILVERMORNY, WAMPUS.”

“CASSANDRA MCNALLY, HOGWARTS, RAVENCLAW.”

“AURORA CHAE, ILVERMORNY, HORNED SERPENT.”

“LEVI KENNING, HOGWARTS, GRYFFINDOR.”

“AIDEN JONES, ILVERMORNY, PUKWUDGIE.”

“HENRIETTA KRAMER, HOGWARTS, HUFFLEPUFF.”

“LOUISE HAMILTON, ILVERMORNY, THUNDERBIRD.”

“BRENT WESTWOOD, HOGWARTS, SLYTHERIN.”

When the final selection was made and the letters disappeared, the book loudly slammed itself shut and made a slow decent into the hands of the Hogwarts headmistress.

Blue eyes followed the book as it made its way around the Great Hall. It was rather curious, it floating over all of the students like that. What was the book 'looking' for in them that made them worthy of selection? That was the mystery, among the other mysteries that came with that book.

She hadn't been expecting the flash of bright light. She winced the first time the book did so, but she was quick to open her eyes to see what had come of it. Runic letters from the book were coming off the pages and shaping themselves into names. Without wasting a moment, Regina read off the names before they disappeared.

First Irene ... next Mason ... then Jesus ... Dora ... Valerie ... Carl ... Kyle ... Tejashree ... Lachlan ... Cassandra ... Aurora ... Levi ... Aiden ... Henrietta ... Louise ... and, last but not least, Brent. Interesting.

After making its descent, Regina grabbed hold of the book and looked out at the throng of students. "And now The Worthy have been selected." With a swift movement of her wand, she sent the book away and, after holstering her wand, clapped her hands together in recognition of the sixteen students that were selected to compete.

"Congratulations to our IMPS competitors," the woman stated with a smile before she continued. "The first of the four IMPS challenges will be taking place in another month's time. Notices will be made when November date approaches, and details about what the challenge will entail shall remain undisclosed. Until then, all we can do is wonder what is to come and let the anticipation build."

Regina paused to give everyone time to process everything -- the competition, the book's selection of students, and the upcoming challenge. She folded her hands in front of her and then said the last of what she wanted to say, "Feel free to continue eating and talking amongst yourselves. We will all be leaving the Great Hall in about thirty minutes so that our guests can get settled in and we can continue with the rest of our Friday night and enjoy the weekend ahead."

With all that said, the woman made her way back to her seat and sat back down in her seat. Her hand went straight for her goblet and pressed it against her lips.

The food was just as good as she'd remembered and the Moxinator was contentedly eating her meal as she watched the chaos that was the Gryffindors-her house family-interacting with her kiddos form Ilvermorny. Talk about a match made in Hogwarts. Her amused smile seemed to be her accessory of choice for the evening, that was for sure.

The Hogwarts History of Magic Professor earned a raise of her glass and Moxley grinned. "Thank you. It's great to be back." It was like she'd never left, really. The place was still all hustle, bustle, and headaches in the best way. Surely the others would agree. Like Professor Stewart, for example. "I always make time for muggle studies! I look forward to our chat, then." Which was apparent by the excitement reflected in her eyes. Nothing like nerding out over the latest muggle technology with a fellow enthusiast. It was the stuff dreams were made of!

The Groundskeeper was a character, huh? Meredith watched him with fascination, all his huffing and puffing threatening to elicit a giggle or two from the headmistress. She already liked this one, she did. "Crammed in like sardines is just an excuse for us to make friends, don't you think?" She gave a laugh, amused by herself as always, and pushed some hair back from her face. "The journey was a long one, but entertaining. The kids are great for that, you know?" What with all the draaaaaama and the annnnngst and the ridiculousnesssss. It was hilarious! "The grounds looked beautiful by the way. I heard you've introduced a hot spring, is that true?" Because she was SO up for trying that out.

She was glad to see that the Williams Siblings were socializing-using the term lightly here-with the other members of the staff, it was something she'd been worried about. Were they professional? YES, always. It was just that they tended to-how to put this-suck the fun out of a room? Melanie, in particular, could use some girls just want to have fun type inspiration. She thought so, anyway. She watched as the woman went down to have a word with the students and sat back, sipping from her goblet. She wondered how Paul would feel about her intervening in his fun. HE, at least, was making the late, great Cydni Lauper proud.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!

BUT IT WAS TIME!

Meredith looked around and bounced in her seat like an excited school girl. THIS WAS SO EXCITING!

The Ilvermorny headmistress grinned as she listened intently to Regina explain what would be happening, the appearance of the book eliciting an oooooh and ahhhhhh from Meredith. And then it was off, and her eyes followed as the book seemed to judge the students, looking for those who were worthy of the upcoming competition. As the contestants were picked, she clapped and cheered enthusiastically, particularly for those who were from the institution she was now heading. Her heart was TORN, but she was a competitive woman and knowing one of her kiddos had won this thing would mean a LOT.

As the crowd settled down, she too quieted and glanced at her fellow headmistress. "Let the games begin, eh?" This was going to be fun.

Zoryn Spinnet was HUNGRY. That's H-U-N-G-R-Y. Hungry.

And of course, ever since she talked to the librarian and came to the realization that having house tables was a complete waste (since everyone always sat wherever they wanted anyways), Zoryn had a very difficult time choosing wear to sit for her meals. And today... Was no exception.

Finally, she opted to sit at the STAFF DAIS. 'Cause if all the adulty people always invaded THEIR tables (aka Mr. Creatures and the librarian and ETC), then it was only fair that Zoryn got to do the same. So she marched all the way to the end of the Great Hall and chose her seat at the very middle of the table: the seat that was usually occupied by the Headmistress.

And without giving it a second thought, she began to serve herself some food.

After a series of extra practices and meetings, the man was running late on feeding his own stomach. Time had started to do that funny thing again where it seemed to slip him by, almost unnoticed, and now he found himself running down a series of staircases to try and get to the Great Hall in time.

Of course, going directly to the house elves was another option but that felt like extra work right now.

Hirsch ran down the steps two at a time before jumping down the last few and skidding to a halt just outside of the doors leading to the Great Hall. A small bop of his collar later, and the man strolled into the Great Hall, as casually as can be. Because, after glancing around at the hall itself, it dawned on him that he was here just in time for the main course of the mea-

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

Hold your wand.

SQUINT.

Either Regina had shrunk, gotten rid of those defining cheekbones and curled her hair or there was an impostor now claiming herself as the Headmistress. A half-confused and half-bemused expression crossed the Defence Professor's face as he hurried the last few steps up to the dias and towards the Groundskeeper's seat. He had too many questions to just let this slip by.

"Comfortable, Miss Spinnet? Or do you want us to call you Headmistress?"

Zoryn Spinnet was minding her business, as one does when they're sitting at the staff dais. After scanning along the table, she decided that it'd be best to start off with some pumpkin pie. Life was WAY too short to eat dessert last. It was also the biggest benefit of going to a school that was far away from home and Zoryn would always take advantage of it.

She was fully immersed when her Defense Against the Dark Arts began making his way towards the table. She probably wouldn't have even noticed his presence had he not spoken to her.

Huh?

She looked up from her pie and gave him a wave. Hi Professor HI! "Very," she shifted around in the roomy seat just to SHOW him just how comfortable she was. There was absolutely no hint of worry in her voice either. She very much felt that her choice in seating was completely, 500% normal. "Headmistress has a nice ring to it," she nodded. "Buuuuut it might get kind of confusing for people, don't you think so Professor?"

But she wouldn't oppose at all. Being called Headmistress would make her feel SUPER important. She kind of liked it.

Hirsch had thought that maybe, just maybe, his mere presence alone would probably make her feel a little scared. That maybe it would be enough to make her want to get up and go back to the Gryffindor table.

Oh boy, was he wrong.

His blinked and tried his hardest to hide the smile that was threatening to fill up his face at her actions. "If anything, I'm glad you're comfortable," he said, helping himself to the Groundskeeper's seat. Haraldur wouldn't mind, would he? "So what made you decide to sit up here and not at your own table?" Meaning, explain your story. And it didn't matter if it was a long one because he had all the time in the world.

Unlike Miss Spinnet, the Defence Professor was more of a main course kind of guy. Some steak, some peas and some mashed potatoes. It was as he was ladling some gravy over the top of his meal that he stopped, an amused smile now filling up his face. "Maybe. Headmistress Spinnet doesn't sound bad. Almost as good as Dragon Lady Spinnet does." She was only a second year but......... future life goals? "But you are sitting in her seat. This might have started confusing people already." Frankly, he wouldn't be surprised if she was getting some looks right now.

Sitting at the staff dais was even MORE awesome than the second year had imagined it would be. She got to look down at ALL the other tables. It was the best view in the entire castle!!! Well--aside from the towers... But STILL best view in the Great Hall for sure.

She was never going back to the Gryffindor table EVER again. It was decided.

"Thanks! Me too, Professor," she nodded in agreement. Professor Hirsch was very considerate for asking about it. She wiggled in the Headmistress' her seat a little bit. "Bet they added a cushioning charm or something 'cause I've got a boney bum, but I don't feel ANYTHING!" It was very important for him to know this.

Why she sat here? Oh, that was easy. Without missing a beat she began to explain, "Well for one, all the other Professors have been sitting at OUR tables, so they've been getting pretty crowded. I need space," she nodded. "I'm sure you'd understand, sir," mhm. With being in a classroom full of dummies all the time, didn't the man ever feel like he needed some AIR? Of course it wasn't so much because of the crowd... It had more to do with the fact that if THEY could do it, why couldn't SHE? #equality. But also the first thing too. Zoryn actually had MANY reasons.

She kicked her feet back and forth, as this chair was made for someone MUCH taller than she was. Instead of eating the rest of her pie, she just stared at Professor DADA as he chose his food. This was so fun. Like they were just a couple of bros hanging out and eating a meal together, being bros!!! Zoryn LOVED it. "Dragon Lady?!?!" she crinkled her nose and let out an obnoxious laugh. Maaaaaaybe. She needed a class on them first though, WINKWINK NUDGENUDGE. But back to the point here: "Hmmm... I mean, maybe, but if they're dumb enough to think I'm the Headmistress then I think they've got bigger problems, Professor." Was she getting looks? She hadn't been paying attention.

Whether the cushioning charm on the Headmistress's seat was an important piece of information was left to opinion. It probably wasn't the most interesting part of sitting there and it wasn't exactly surprising, was it? "Well, being the Headmistress has to come with some perks. She even has a much better office than anyone else on staff." Though, he'd been in there during Sahnoun's time but he could still say that he had been in there.

One thing was for sure though: he definitely didn't need to know about Miss Spinnet and her bony bum. Nope. He was blissfully unaware of that piece of information.

The gravy wasn't going to pour itself so he continued with his meal preparation but even so, there was no missing that level of confidence that was coming off of the Gryffindor. Staff sitting at their tables? At this, he placed the gravy bowl down and looked up at the house tables, instead. Sure, no one was sitting there now but it was weird to imagine a grown adult sitting there, eating. Didn't their legs get cramped? His would. "Good reason. Why have the professors been sitting at the house tables?" Was there a memo he missed....? "Being stuck in a castle gets too crowded. Sometimes, you need some fresh air." So yes, he understood. Sort of.

Green eyes landed on Miss Spinnet just in time to see the nose crinkling and, well, he laughed. A proper, dimple-displaying laugh. "What, bad nickname?" He wasn't the best at jokes but he did like to think that he was still, er, down with the kids, as they say. "Touche, Miss Spinnet, touche," he said, picking up his knife and fork, "Who knows, maybe that could be your permanent seat one day."

While Zoryn continued to wiggle her bum on the comfy chair, she was still giving her DADA Professor most of her attention. It would’ve been rude otherwise and Zoryn Spinnet was never rude… Not intentionally anyways. “Really!?” Her eyes lit up upon hearing that news. “Does she keep the hidden swimming pool there???” HA. Her cousins had told her ALL about the hidden swimming pool at Hogwarts and she had spent the majority of her first year searching for it. But OF COURSE she couldn’t find it! It was in the Headmistresses office!!! That explained SO much. Dude. That meant one thing and one thing only: Pool party!!! She was sure Hawthorne wouldn’t mind.

“Thanks,” she smiled. Zoryn always had good reasons. “I dunno,” she shrugged. “Maybe they're trying to relive the glory days, sir.” It was one of her best guesses. Though, it was kind of embarrassing for them, huh? She gave Professor H a look to translate that sentiment. “I still think Professor Wayland is having a midlife crisis, but he got really grumpy when I said that. Made him drop his sandwich. So you should probably keep that on the DL,” she made sure to stage whisper the last part incase the man somehow had super sonic hearing too. The thought of which still made her laugh, HA HA HA HA HA. The man also didn’t understand the concept of a midlife crisis. Professor Creatures was really a tragedy. Mhm.

Zoryn was very happy with herself. She was definitely a great conversation partner and Professor H was putting up everything she was putting down. It was brilliant and Zoryn was gonna become his best friend. None of the other Professors spoke to her this way, like she was an actual breathing, living human. All the other ones sort of made her out to be a baby. Which, by the way, she WAS NOT!!! She was 13 years old and SUPER grown up. And he was even laughing with her, SEE? Best friends. It was officially official. “Weeeeeell,” she made a face in thought before nodding her head. “I can’t lie to you, it goes against my moral fiber.” That was something she picked up from her mother. What was a moral fiber anyways? “It could use some work.” He could do better than that, she was sure.

“Hmmmmmm,” the more she thought about it… Being the queen of the school and making ALL the rules did sound like a lot of fun. “D’you think I can be scary enough to be Headmistress?” No offense, Hawthorne. Furthermore, what would her first decree as a woman in charge be!?!?!?!

............... What?

Just.

What?!

The cutlery was poised, ready to cut up the food on his plate, when he paused and turned to look at the Gryffindor. "I..... but...... A hidden swimming pool?!" How long has that been a fact about the castle? Was it a fact? Why had he never been told? Or asked to go and see the pool? Or.... Hirsch shook his head. "Maybe she likes to take dips in the pool in private when she's not busy being a Headmistress." The man didn't have an idea whether this was true or not but seeing as him and Regina did get along, this was always something he could ask.

Maybe.

The glory days of being a teenager in a castle while dealing with hormones and lessons and everything else that came with being a teenager? It didn't sound like the glory days to him but, considering the fact that the girl was still in the beginning stages of puberty, he wasn't about to say any of that. "Maybe. Maybe they want to feel cool again. Or just get to know the students." It was still boggling the man why the staff would choose to sit at the house tables. Luckily for him, Miss Spinnet was going on to talk about..... Tristan's midlife crisis?

Oh.

Oh Merlin.

Oh Zoryn Spinnet you didn't.

Hirsch threw back his head and, once again, found himself laughing at her comment. "You said that?!" This was funny! Oh, how he wished he could ask Tristan about this himself. "I won't tell a soul but tell me this: why do you think he's having a midlife crisis?" Was he making unnecessary purchases? Talking weirdly? Getting grey hairs? He needed to know.

What he liked about this conversation was that it was light. That there was a certain level of ease talking to a student normally without having to talk about history, Defence or future aspirations. While he still liked talking about those subjects - Defence especially - this was like a breath of fresh air and he was silently glad that the girl hadn't decided he was too boring to sit with. "Thank you for being honest," he said, an amused smile crossing his face, "What would you say is a better nickname?"

Scary enough to be Headmistress? Hm... "Who says you have to be scary to be a Headmistress?" Surely, that wasn't part of the job description, was it? "Maybe you could be a cool kind that.... knows how to tell people off."

Zoryn looked at her Professor with nothing less than an absolutely serious, straight face. How come he looked so caught off guard? Was it something she said? “Yeah,” she nodded VERY matter-of-factly. “I wasn’t sure where it was before, but you confirmed all my suspicions, sir.” Don’t worry Professor H, she’d give you credit in the discovery too! “I thought being the Headmistress was a full time job, but I guess she’s allowed to have fun too…”

Maybe.

“I dunno, sir,” she shrugged. “Professor Wayland seemed pretty unhappy to get to know me….” And it may or may not have had anything to do with her very curious-prying nature. Aheeeeeem. But that was a detail the Gryffindor decided to leave out of this conversation.

She also had no idea as to why Professor Hirsch was laughing so hard. Again, was it something she said? Still not completely sure (‘cause she didn’t actually say anything funny that she knew of), she decided to join him in his laughter. Mostly ‘cause she didn’t want him to think that she didn’t get the joke… Whatever the joke was. Zoryn was cool and intelligent, SEE?!?! She understood ALL KINDS of jokes. Mhm. Uh. But seriously, what were they laughing about? “Yup!” And the creatures Professor was NOT happy about it.

“Well ‘cause he was being super grumpy and I think he forgot where his own table was and forgetting things is a side effect of old age,” Incase the DADA Professor wasn’t aware of that fact. “PLUS, he was acting WAY weird.” The man also didn’t seem to understand the concept of a midlife crisis. ‘Cause technically anything could be a midlife crisis if you died early enough, says Zoryn Spinnet. "Actually, maybe you should ask him about it," she nodded. "I bet this is really hard for him. You could probably help him figure himself out." If anyone was right for the job, it was DEFINITELY Professor Hirsch. She gave him permission.

After giving her two knuts on the matter, she continued to dig into her dessert. This was SO much fun. She loved this guy. “You’re welcome, sir!” For being honest. Hmmmm, his question though….. That made her think. “Maybe Queen Spinnet or Justine Janvier Spinnet,” she nodded. Those would be very appropriate. Zoryn liked them a lot.

“Well…” This was a question she wasn’t prepared to answer. Who said you had to be scary? Well, Zoryn said. But… She didn’t know WHY she said. “Well, Hawthorne is pretty, darn scary,” even to a Gryffindor. Mhm. “Is that what you do?” ‘Cause Professor H wasn’t scary. If anything, he was like the most bestest FRIEND, next to Faith and Theo of course.

Hirsch had no idea whether he actually confirmed her suspicions or not, especially seeing as he didn't know about the existence of this hidden swimming pool himself, but if she was so determined about it, who was he to say no? "It is but if you're constantly badgered by people, you'd want to take a dip in the pool to relax as well." He cut up another sausage as he said this but found himself stopping and glancing at the Gryffindor when another thought came to him. "You're not...... going to go and find the pool, are you?" Should he warn Regina? He probably should.

'Professor Wayland seemed pretty unhappy to get to know me....'

There was something about those words that struck something in the Defence Professor. Maybe it was because of how seriously he took his job or the fact that he genuinely enjoyed teaching but this sentence alone tugged at his heartstrings. "Maybe he was just having an off day. Maybe someone made him upset before he met you." As in, he was sure that wasn't true.

It was nice to laugh along with a student, really. It built up a level of trust, didn't it? Though, once the laughter had died out, he made a mental note to never show the signs of old age that Zoryn was listing off. No forgetting things randomly, especially not where the staff table was, and no acting weird or grumpy either. "That's a very smart observation. Next step is unnecessary, flashy purchases and maybe, if you look closely enough, some grey hairs." But then the Gryffindor said something that cut through his own mental list of notes.

Talk to Tristan? About the possibility of him going through a midlife crisis?

Uh.

If there was ever a conversation that sounded like it was going to end in disaster, it was this one. "You think so?" Why did this sound like it'll lead to him getting pumpkin juice thrown at him? "Ask him how he's coping with it all and lead him to the staff table if he's sitting at the house tables?"

Queen Spinnet?! The girl held a high regard for herself, didn't she? The Ravenclaw Head of House looked at her, a slightly amused smile playing on his face. "Queen Spinnet has a nicer ring to it so we'll go with that one." Justine Janvier sounded very familiar...... did he know who she was? Was Zoryn a big fan? "It sounds better than Dragon Lady and Headmistress as well." Did she ask her friends to call her that? He had to know.

Heh. "She is, isn't she? But she is nice, so long as you don't get on her bad side." Which was her, er, warning? Just in case she did want to sneak into Regina's office to try and find the hidden swimming pool "Well....... yeah. No one wants to be taught by someone they're scared of. That's not fair, is it? You should be able to trust your professors, not be scared of them."