It WAS a staring contest?! HOW FUN! Vaguely, Abey wondered if that was how they were starting off the competition thingy that the Ilvermorny people were here; it was one way to kick things off! But not the dangerous sort of tasks he had been expecting.

BUT THAT WAS OKAY because the mention of dangerous tasks had had Abey all sorts of worried.

Looking to Daisy, Abey grinned and nodded his head. Meanest stare? "Got it!"

And then he turned to face the students and staff from that other school, screwed up his face into a MEAN EXPRESSION which was almost comical to see on his own rather soft features - it involved a lot of brow-furrowing, nose-scrunching, breath-holding, and mouth-puckering - and STAAAAAAAAAARED.

No sooner had he started though, than had he heard Levi go into more of an explanation. Abey turned back to look at him again, forgetting to stop making his laughable 'mean face' until after he was facing the older Hogwarts students again.

"Fix it?" The contest? But it looked pretty fun! Especially to THIS little Gryffindor who believed that he tension he was witnessing was actually just a result of DEEP CONCENTRATION. Even so, Abey trusted Levi and the older students, so... he nodded and waited for them to fix... whatever it was that needed fixing, and allowed himself to be shepherded by the older Gryffindor, before standing there with them and looking as smart as he could. "Okay!"

Oh! But!

"But what's that?" he asked, pointing at the BIG RED MACHINE. It looked a lot like a car - Abey had seen cars before, but only the newest models because they were the only ones he was exposed to in passing, and definitely no antiques - but... no, that couldn't be a car... could it?

Ooh, Derf was here too! HI DERF, HI! Abey wanted to GO OVER THERE AND DO THE HUGGING THING but actually right now he was busy being very smart and stuff and standing with the older kids and being a part of their SUPER COOL GROUP.

OH AND LOOK! Younger students had come too! With the Ilvermorny group! For some reason, Abey had assumed that all of the visiting students would be older - only the eligible ages - but some of the people climbing out of the back of the big metal thing were his age too! EXCITING! ABEY WAS BUZZING WITH EXCITEMENT. The volume among both crowds of people was steadily getting louder and louder, but it simply fed Abey's excitement all the more.

"Are they choosing the champions now?" Abey looked behind him and up to address Levi and Daisy and Aslan and the Slytherin prefect whose name he could never remember, as if they were sure to know. Which, actually, they obviously were, because older kids knew more than younger kids. It was a law of nature, or something.

Melanie earned a GIRL PLS look from Meredith. Didn’t she know that Moxley was an ESTEEMED and extremely BELOVED member of the Hogwarts community? She was well aware of the technological restrictions! Great thing WAS, wizards and witches had a knack for taking muggle items and making them work for interests that crossed the line between magical and mundane! Photography was an excellent example of this and, she’d know several Hogwarts students to practice that admirable pastime during her time at this castle! All of this went unsaid, though. Sometimes her staff were sorely lacking in the appreciation of muggle artifacts. Perhaps she’d run a professional development training on the subject! IDEAS! Wheels were turning, yes they were!

She couldn’t help but laugh at the exchange between Maddox and Azul-a girl with HUGE potential-over the buddy system. ”Not DIE, dear!” Well, there was always the CHANCE, but she’d do her best to prevent such things and she’d have NEVER said anything about death on the record. Merlin’s beard, no. That’s why the Williams siblings were so important! They were the guard dogs of Ilvermorny! Sureeee, they were a little on the stiff side, but their hearts were in the right place! The kids knew they meant business, and that kind of FEAR instilled in the kiddos was healthy-mostly. Helped them remember to think before they acted or face the wrath of someone who wasn’t her! It was glorious! ”And yes dear, you can have a copy later.” Of the selfie. She’d be happy to share! She was also thinking about sending home a newsletter about their trip to the parents! You know, if nothing DIRE happened.

Seeing former students was filling Moxley’s heart with joy, did they KNOW? Oliver and Tenacius stood out in the crowd and she waved excitedly at them. And even if many of them looked a bit perplexed, or dare she say UNENTHUSED, she wasn’t letting it take away from the pep in her step. The headmistress WAVED and SMILED and generally acted like a pageant queen because that’s how she felt. Being in the spotlight was fun!

…Was that?

”Hello, Mr. Bronwyn!” The muggle studies maven positively SQUISHED the seventh year, a flood of emotion washing over her. He was so grown UP! A little man-child was right before her very eyes! ”I missed you too, Rooney! I-“ The brunette stifled a laugh at his comment about not dying when she was at Hogwarts, and she most definitely avoided eye-contact with Regina in that moment. MER-LIN, Bronwyn, let’s keep those comments to ourselves. STILL, it was incredibly endearing. HE was. ”I heard a bit about what happened and I’m so glad you’re okay.” That they all were. Honest. ”I want to hear ALL about your plans for the future once we’re settled, okay?” Because they had a lot of catching up to do!

Late? Well, yes. ”Greatness takes time, Regina!” The brunette was teasing. Mostly teasing. For her, greatness came naturally! ”And it looks like the kids are starting a bit early, huh? That competitive spirit is practically bursting forth! Can you SENSE the tension? It’s exciting stuff.” GAH! She loved this. At the suggestion they head in for food, the Ilvermorny headmistress nodded and then put her fingers to her lips, eliciting a LOUD WHISTLE that could be heard over the chatter. The students of Ilvermorny would be familiar with it by now. It meant QUIET, please.

”Ladies and Gentlemen, we’re going to follow Headmistress Hawthorne up to the castle now! Please stay together and don’t wander off! I know you’re all eager to settle in!” She glanced at the Williams siblings and nodded, knowing they’d be keeping an eye out for stragglers.

OH! And wasn’t that little blonde one precious?! ”Why yes, dear! If you could escort Benji here to the bathroom and then ensure he gets back to the great hall in one piece, I’d be forever grateful!” She looked at the dancing boy and motioned with her hand. ”Stick with blondie, you hear? Go on!” Merlin knew she didn’t need one of her kiddos having an accident out here.

…”So food?” Regina could lead the way, she was following.

Derfael Mitchell Ashburry-Hawthorne. That was all.

Jessa spun in the direction she heard her best friend approaching from but it was in that second that she noticed her Prefect barreling forward, shoving her clear out of the way as he did. To be fair, with the lack of growth spurt she'd been expecting over the summer, the task wasn't all that hard. Didn't take much to send the small girl staggering into Daisy who had come to a stop by her and Aslan with Levi. It was like a little group was forming, like Hogwarts kids understood the concept of safety in numbers. Of course it made sense they did after all they'd seen and were now seeing.

The thing was, the more of them exited the car was the more Jessa came to realize that not ALL of them were as...seemingly abrasive in nature as the first few who'd stepped from the trunk.

The Headmistress' mention of food waiting in the Great Hall reminded her that it was actually time for dinner! Would they be sitting with the houses or would they have their own table...? Because on the best of days it was sometimes hard to find elbow room when dinner rolled around as it were.

Jessa turned to Levi. "They look like they feel pretty welcomed already to me." If they were uncomfortable, only very few of them showed.

But yes, the Great Hall. The Ravenclaw was starving and even Ilvermorny's Headmistress was instructing them to head off. Food, food would help her make better sense of all this.

Too many people, there were too many. Aslan had grown accustomed to the flush and fire of Hogwarts students and even so feasts were a test of her nerves, and attention span. She bit her lip, focusing more on this action than the multitude that stepped inelegantly out of the boot of the beetle.

There were a few (Ambrosia Crabtree, Kyle Healy and Valerie gray) who held back, and seemed more watch, more cautious than their contemporaries. These three stood out and she found her interest piqued, for now however there was no time to seek out and ask questions and she hardly felt she had the energy.

Standing here in solidarity was draining, emotionally and mentality, of course, physically she was quite fine with standing, but her previous point stood, introverted as she was, this was exhausting. "I agree." Aslan said, although the greeting felt unnecessary Levi's choices in who would address the Ilvermony students were fine enough.

For not even Tenecius could have made a bigger spectacle than Rooney Brownyn was at the moment. Ravenclaw Men™ so emotional, so unthinking. Aslan watched impassively, as Rooney threw himself at former Headmistress Moxley. Aslan sneered, silently judging the Headboy for his uncontrolled emotions and outbreak.

then again, who was she to say how to behave or not, it was all subjective, all up to choice and chance and the heart and she did know something of the heart and the choice didn't she-

The tug on her shirt brought Aslan slowly back from her slipping and sinking thoughts. She looked down. Jessa Cambridge seemed smaller as small as Abey Botros always felt. She blinked, and then blinked again. Reaching out, Aslan did what felt natural in the moment and took Jessa's smaller hand in hers. Aslan briefly gave the younger girl a faint but there smile before turning her attention back to the assembled group of Ilvermony students and Headmistress Hawthorne as she invited the lot of them in for food.

This was beginning to feel like every Romany party her grandfather had ever forced her to attend. "I suppose after the food." Aslan said. Abey's question had given rise to her dormant curiosity and she found herself eyeing the group of Hogwarts students in an attempt to see something she'd missed before. Something that said champion, not literally of course, but figuratively. A twinkle in the eye, a resolute expression....

It most certainly would not be Derfael, of that Aslan Evans was certain.

Oddly enough the trip in the trunk of a flying car didn't at all bother Samara. It might have been loud but it was roomy enough to not drive her crazy. Plus she had spent the better part of the entire trip bugging her brother. Speaking of which was getting out without her!

RUDE JEREMY. JUST RUDE!

The fourth year climbed out of the trunk behind her twin brother, actually reaching over to grab his arm so he wouldn't get to far away. Being older than him it was her job to keep an eye on him. "Dunno. Maybe it's the fact that we're all climbing out of a flying beetle," she replied stepping into place beside him. "Cause realistically speaking, couldn't we have arrived in a much better fashion?" Not that there was anything wrong with how they had shown up or anything. Just saying.

Before she could even think of anything else to say Moxley was yelling about them all take a selfie. Okay, she laughed. Honestly laughed because that was definitely typical Moxley attitude right there. Laughter still clear in her eyes she leaned against her brother in a rather relaxed pose for this selfie after which her gaze instantly turned onto the faces of those around them. "There's a lot of people..." she muttered softly. A lot of people meant a lot of pets. Which meant fur and she hated fur. They weren't staying were these Hogwarts people, were they? Please say they weren't...nothing against them per-say. Just their...creatures.

Her attention was pulled from her thoughts when the mentions of food were brought up. "Think they have skittles?" If they didn't there might be a problem.

Also where did ickle Benji and Charlie go?

There was LOTS of emotion, Paul was excited, and when he saw Meredith, HE WAS BOUNCE BOUNCE BOUNCINGGGGGG POSITIVELYYYYYYY.

"Oh my WORD MEREDITH!" he ATTACKED HER with a bear hug. "You look wonderful!" he smiled all big. "Like my PONCHO?" he had worn for this occasion especially! Welcome Ilvermorny! Paul could cut the tension with a SPOON and slurp it up like jello and STILL! He was excited, even if Regina was behaving weirdly. "Your counterparts are grumpy. They just need some food eh?" And he started walking towards ...wherever they were going. He ASSUMED Great Hall, but he could have been wrong. "We have to catch up!"

Welcome, Americans! United States-ians! Howdy Y'ALL. Paul could say the word yALL ALL HE WANTED NOW. YALL YALL YALL. Even if his accent permitted the word to sound ridiculous. "TO THE CASTLE EVERYONE!"

...And for the kid who had to urinate. "YES Derf is the perfect one to escort him!" he grinned. "FIVE points, Derf, for being a helpful little bugger!" and he ruffled the kid's hair. Much distraction. What was EVEN HAPPENING WHO KNEW MOXLEY WAS HERE.

This was not cool y'all. See they were technically tourists and if anyone knew him well they would know he was obnoxious. It was just who he was. And from first impressions so far it wasn't impressive especially since no of them were even talking. There was the old Headmistress. Best he give her a wave which basically meant hey look, Maddox, made it to the seventh year.

"Ambrosia, please. I would so be an obnoxious tourist. All I need know is that selfie-stick Moxley has and the glasses Khalil has."

Still no answer on his buddy question and if he asked again he would be talking to Williams 1 or Williams 2. Maddox liked Williams 1 better himself. Just because of he like Potions more.

WHO WHAT WHERE.

Well if Louise was his buddy then it would be SOOOO bad. He was happier she got to do this competition thing. Maddox did not want to worry about it and just have fun. He could count on one hand how many seventh years were here. Snow, Storm Bro, Other Maddox, Louise. Wait to add him makes six.

He sucked at math.

"Okay, buddy. But just do you know we are singing Party in the USA when we are eating and hoping their food is edible"

See now someone had a good idea. Why did he think of having some dye his hair red white and blue. Why did Weslyn tell him this before they got in that ugly car he wanted to get as far away from as he could.

"Weslyn why couldn't you tell me that before we got here"

He would have so done it.

WHOA WHOA WHOA

Attack on Weslyn. Attack on Weslyn.

Maddox was not going to do anything but laugh.

Ciara was excited she knew that today the Ilvermorny students and staff would be arriving. Former students, and colleagues of hers were coming. It would be great to see everyone. She was spending her afternoon out in the grounds. It was also just a nice chance to take a walk outside. Fall was her favorite season after all. Seeing the group that had already started to gether.

She joined them,”Good evening everyone.”as she scooted herself right thought the group and to the front. Her blue eyes looked up at the sky. A small flicker, slowly the ruby red Volkswagen Beetle come into sight. They were here, they were here. The first one to come out was….

Headmistress Moxley. She could still call her that right? Taking the time to greet her. ”Hello Headmistress Moxley. I didn’t think I’d be seeing you so soon.” Well other than she knew the Ilvermorny people were coming. Also there was Melanie, ”Melanie! Hello old friend.” She said with a smile. She had heard that Melanie's twin brother had taken her place as potions professor. It was good to see her, as well as her former students as they came out of the beetle.






Is that Hogwarts?

…………

Homes in Malibu looked bigger. Okay maybe not really. Blakeney had her face pressed against the window as they were making their landing. Waving from out the window. Hello Peasants of Hogwarts.

The fifteen year old got out of the Volkswagen Beetle, how cool was than. It would have been way cooler had it been a convertible Beetle. But whatever…… Hogwarts students…… Hi. Hopefully they were prepared for the Crabtree Allen invasion

SELFIE TIME!

Hearing Maddox she turned and jumped on his back. Sorry girls her Maddox. Only she got piggyback rides. ”Maddie I’ll be your buddy.” Yeah why didn’t they get to wear red, white and blue. She hopped right back off Maddie’s back and headed over to her friend Azul.

Nudging Azul in the side, ”That dress was way better than these rags.” Seriously She was going to have to talk to someone about designing a new uniform. These ones were so out of date. It was tragic. Where was Madelyn? This was something they needed to work on while they were here along with some of the spirit things that had been planning.

”I’m not impressed so far.” She had to agree with Khalil there. Dull. It did take a lot to impress this Cali girl thought. Now where was her favorite sister, Ambrosia. She wanted to check on her and see how she was doing after that Loooooooong ride.

”AMBROSIA CRABTREE WHERE ARE YOU?” Pushing her way through the crowd. She needed her favoritest sister.

What an impression they were making. Kyle tried to resist the urge to roll his eyes to the (still not raining) heavens when Aurora made her typically loud and 'look at me' entrance, which wasn't even on par with some of the other Ilvermorny dramatics.

Look at that. All those Hogwarts kids were staring.

As much as Kyle appreciated Professor Williams (the History of Magic version), he couldn't help but be a little disgruntled by the vague answer, perhaps because the journey had put him in quite the mood. Just follow Moxley? Well, yes, that had been the plan, but-- oh, never mind. He acknowledged the information with a simple nod.

Valerie's arrival was a small source of relief; generally Kyle was fine going about things on his own, but at the moment he was acutely aware of how many eyes were on them all, watching their every move. For now, he would take discussing the weather with Valerie, and with Jesús who had arrived shortly after, over engaging in the tension between Ilvermorny and Hogwarts.

"Generally speaking, the benefit of rain is that it clears the atmosphere," Kyle spoke up, glancing over at the Hogwarts students in spite of himself, only to find one of the older looking girls looking right at him, causing him to look away again at once. "Though I think that only applies in literal circumstances, rather than figurative." He fiddled again with the Gordian Knot on his robes. "Rain was practically a guarantee. I feel lied to. Betrayed, really."

That last part had been stab at humour, but it was delivered with such dryness that it barely passed as a joke at all.

At the sound of a whistle, Kyle automatically sought out their Headmistress, knowing the signal well by now. At last, they were going to the castle. The Great Hall in particular.

"I wonder what makes the Hall so Great," he mused aloud. "It can't just be the size; most halls are large simply by definition." 'Great Hall' sounded incredibly pretentious, if Kyle was completely honest, and it just so happened that he usually was.

Giving the lake in the distance a bit of a glaring look, Valerie turned her attention back towards that embarrassment of a vehicle just in time to pointedly ignore Louise as she got out. Of course the mother hen had to come on this excursion. Of course.

And Irene was just as boisterous as ever...if not even more unbearable. The combination of her and Aurora....unpleasant.

....as was William Healy who was already going on about broom closest and British girls. She threw him a scathing glance.

She was going to go through her supply of Calming Draughts far more quickly than anticipated at this rate and was already padding the pockets of her uniform to see if she had a spare one to drink from now. Particularly now that she was expecting Khalil to do something absurd, embarrassing, and above all else loud. Grey eyes tried to draw Professor Williams' attention (the brilliant brewing one) to signal a request for an audience later to discuss certain arrangements and self study. Hopefully whoever it was instructing Potions at this...institute would be accommodating. If not, well, that never stopped her previously and certainly would not now.

Her attention, however, was soon drawn back to Jesus and his disapproval of her fondness for rain. He ought to know why she favored cloudy weather by now. "Glum is not in the vocabulary of the situation, Rodriguez," she scoffed lightly while flicking one of his frizzy curls. Of course Kyle would talk like that. Of course. His remarks were rewarded with a rare smile from her and a soft laugh that one really had to be listening for to hear.

Was that boy [Shanners] ... actually, yes. Why didn't Headmistress Moxley return to Hogwarts? An excellent question, whoever you are. He would certainly seem the sort to take as many selfies with the woman as she wished.

Her skin crawled when Headmistress Moxley whistled (like nails down a chalkboard) and the sixth year found herself once again wishing the woman would simply resort to using Sonorus to draw their attention rather than such shrill methods. Or perhaps this was a Hogwarts thing seeing as the elderly man [kayquilz] she was speaking to was wearing a poncho as loud and as flamboyant as his personality.

It was a bit of a relief to see her former professor once again (surely that woman would have opted for more...refined modes of transportation) and even offer the woman a curt smile as it was suggested they all move inside. Nodding to Kyle in silent agreement that he was to be her buddy, her slender form stopped in her tracks when a small Hogwarts boy (two, actually) were staring at her; one seemingly in complete awe [sweetpinkpixie] and the other making some absurd face at her [Felixir] While she supposed those looks were better than the general fish bowl feeling oozing from the rest of the Hogwarts population, it was still a bit unsettling. Still, Valerie could not resist making a bit of a show of things as the agitation bubbled within her veins and curled her lips into a bit of a menacing sneer back at the pair. Even going so far as to bite at the air viciously in the direction of the one wearing the dull black robed adorned with red detailing.

Throwing one last smirk at the two younger boys, Valerine linked her arm with Kyle's (along with nodding her head for Jesus to come along) while they began the journey inside the castle while shaking her head. Always so literal, he was. "Not the food, surely," she said. "I have heard the food's reputation for this region is disagreeable."

Before she could really get a good look around at where they were, enough to comment on it to her two friends she was being attacked. An hogwarts student was attacking her! She had only been here five minutes and she was already being attacked! Nope. Time to get back into that beetle.

Oh.

Oh.

It was just her cousin. "Sky" The sixth year murmured with a smile. They hadn't seen each other that often, but she could recognise her cousin at least. It had been a nice thing really, being able to see her. The British and American Diggory's hardly mixed really. Which was sad. "He is.... he's probably still getting out...." The brunette murmured with a shrug. She didn't keep tabs on her cousins thank you very much.

"Oh....And you can stop laughing" She murmured, lightly hitting Maddox on his arm. "This is my cousin Sky..... Sky this is Maddox, and Louise" She murmured, motioning to them both in turn.

"And can we move. I hope this settling in involves some food" Because yep. She was hungry.

He should have known better than to believe the lie that this situation could not get any louder. It was not only on the part of them either but now one of the Brits was yelling at his Headmistress while he shoved his way through the sea of them. That could not have been comfortable.

Aiden made himself scarce, keeping to the far edge of the group. He had his partner and he would not get lost.

He stayed close behind Valerie, Kyle and Jesus, comfortable enough with their volume and lack of...everything else his school mates were trying to perpetuate to the Hogwarts crowd. Moxley and Hawthorne said they were heading for the so called Great Hall. Just like Kyle did, he wondered what made it so great, but rather than voice his opinions, he just kept one foot moving after the other.

It did not escape his notice the way the Hogwartians had formed a staring bundle but it had been a long trip with a disagreeable ending and he was having the hardest time caring. Right now, Aiden wanted some food and for a lot less people to be in the same vicinity as him.

To distract himself from the embarrassment he was feeling (still oblivious to the fact that he had wet himself), the Pukwudgie started looking around at the foreign kids ... or rather the native kids, as he assumed they were the foreign ones here. None really stuck out to him at first. They looked just like them really, though they seemed more ... serious? LAME-O. He was about to lose hope in them had it not been for that boy who started singing. Was that their school song? It was ... kind of degrading, saying that their heads 'could do with filling.' Did that mean the Hogwarts kids were stupid? And there weren't any animal noises being made like theirs.

BUT OH! HE WAS GOING TO TAKE HIM TO THE LOO!

Wait a minute. "Umm, dude? What's the loo? I need a BATHROOM. The POTTY. The JOHN." They had those here, right? Benji looked to his Thunderbird friend Charlie. See! He wasn't the only one confused by their silly language!

His question was answered though when his lovely headmistress told that same boy that he could take him to the bathroom. Oooooooh. The 'loo' must have been the bathroom. Why didn't they just say that in the first place? Benji smiled at the boy and started walking toward him, but then...

Oh.

Umm.

Nevermind.

He didn't have to go to the bathroom anymore. A certain scary professor made him pee himself. How long had he been walking around like that? The boy's cheeks turned red -- even redder than the Beetle -- all over again.

Needless to say, Regina could feel a mix of emotions from both the Hogwartians and the Ilvermornians. Some seemed beyond excited about the situation, whereas others were ready to head back to their respective schools. The latter was just going to have to get over it, and quickly, because Hogwarts was going to be their home until June came around. Besides the competition, they were all there to make newfound friendships.

"I can certainly sense the tension," she responded to the Ilvermorny head. "It'll make things interesting this term, that's for sure."

And leave it to Mr. Ashburry-Hawthorne to be making an impression, loudly singing the school song and offering to take one of the small Ilvermorny boys to the restroom. The woman gave him an approving smile and gave him a nod to excuse himself and the boy. Though it appeared that the boy needed a new set of pants at this point, rather than use the restroom. "Mr. Ashburry-Hawthorne," she stated, beckoning him to come forward with her finger. Regina then continued at a low whisper, "It might actually be better worth your time if you took this young man to the laundry room. And quickly." That was all that was said on the matter.

Her eyes then widened at the sight of her Head Boy squeezing Meredith in a tight hug. It was shocking to see a student leader and a person of leadership act in such a way. It was very unprofessional on both of their parts, as were the words that pour out of the boy's mouth. The headmistress's eyes narrowed. She could easily take that badge from him and give it to another boy in his year that actually appreciated the efforts she made last term to keep everyone, not just one or two people, safe during a dangerous situation she had little to no control over. The look was a warning, the only one he would be getting for the entire school year.

Paul was another one to get another look for practically attacking the other headmistress with a hug. Strike two, Deputy Head. Though Moxley did not care much for maintaining professionalism when it was necessary, Regina did.

But, yes, it was definitely time to head to the Great Hall. With Meredith and Paul unnecessarily yelling, Regina took the opportunity to walk through the crowd -- returning Valerie Gray's with a smile of her own -- and lead the way up the pathways and hills of the grounds to the Great Hall.

OOC: We are moving to the Great Hall, everyone. Go ahead and sit at any of the House tables. We will be announcing important information regarding IMPS soon.

Oh Benji, oh no. Meredith was a lot of things-boisterous, unconventional, childish all the time at times- but when it came to things like this, she could have discretion. She'd never want to embarrass the kids in a way that was hurtful (only in ways that were fun!), and she was grateful that Regina was the same way. Putting a hand on the Ilvermorny boy's shoulder, she gave him a small smile and a quiet, "It's okay. Run along." She trusted the blonde boy to take care of her kiddo and luckily, the other students seemed more interested in their little school-on-school stand-off, than on what was going on in front of her.

"Hello there!" Another cheerful greeting from Canterbury that made the brunette smile. She was feeling at home, could the woman tell? "Funny how that worked out. It's good to see you."

Taking Paul's arm, the Moxinator gave it a squeeze and smiled. "I think we could all use some food at this point, grumpy or not." She was positively famished and thoughts of a house-elf cooked meal made her stomach grumble.

As she started towards the castle, the brunette struck up a conversation about Paul's poncho. The where he got it, WHY, and when. Occasionally she glanced back to make sure the kids were following, and that was that.

They'd arrived safe and sound and now things were about to get interesting.

As begrudgingly as it was to admit, Melanie was right. He rolled his eyes at his twin sister's response but there was a slightly amused smile on his face nonetheless. A rare sight if there ever was one. "Fine. You win. What do I owe you?" Let him know if she was planning on gloating until the end of their days so that he could get himself some earplugs. His eyes settled on Miles Jones, mostly to see if the boy was behaving or not before deciding to answer Melanie's question. "Of course I wouldn't but they don't need to know that." C'mon, Mel, he wasn't that cruel.

Well, Meredith was certainly popular, wasn't she? Eyebrow raised, he watched silently as one student (Tenacius) seemed to cheer for her - why? - and another (Rooney) fully launched himself at her followed, very soon, by a man (Paul) who was wearing some kind of ghastly poncho. If first glances said anything, it was that these lot were just as exuberant and annoyingly bouncy as Meredith herself. Maybe it was something in the water.

Looking away from this awful scene, Duncan's eyes found someone whom he actually tolerated. Valerie Gray was a Potions genius, even if she didn't show it off in the same way that some of the others would have. American spirit was loud and proud, y'all. His sense wasn't as strong with her as it was with Melanie but he somewhat understood that look. If he had to cozy up with whoever was teaching Potions at this place to get her some access to the Potions room, he would. There would be no shame in it either. Actually, he wanted to have a look around their Potions rooms himself.

Valerie got a smile and a nod in return. Message acknowledged.

Another nod was given to Meredith at her announcement. Looking after the students was no problem but getting them to behave was another story. Hormones were running wild as it were and he, for one, just wanted some Taco Bell. Did they have a Taco Bell around here? Deep dish Chicago-town pizza? No? What did they have here? Tea?!

Sigh. "C'mon, y'all, stick to your buddy and let's get those legs moving." The Potions Master was going last so if anyone decided to go and wander off on their own would have him to deal with afterwards.

The Americans were loud. Daisy would've assumed it due to the sheer number of them but she was sure that not even the whole of the Hogwarts population was that nosy during the Opening Feasts. And that was with the whole of Gryffindor House present, too. Selfies were taken, speeches were made, glares had been exchanged. There were people squealing.

There was a Head Boy hugging a former Headmistress.

The all thing was a mess and Daisy's hold on Abey's shoulder and Levi's hand tightened unconsciously. The staring contest, as Abey put it, was kind of intense but at the same time, amusing. She looked questioningly at the Gryffindor -- the older one -- unaware that they had somehow decided to better hosts. Why, though? She was going to ask him that, while at the same time congratulate him for suggesting the badges to over (which Tenacius had done already, she noticed with a quick glance towards the foreign crowd), but then she caught a glimpse of Abey's face. Abey Botros' completely adorable face. "Terrifying, AB." She scrunched up her face, too, and squinted her eyes down at the boy. "If we keep doing this, we will definitely beat them.

When the Headmistress had said that this could be dangerous -- she had meant like a broken nail or something. Right? Surely. Uhm.

Anyway, surely they were going to beat a school that had arrived via Red Beetle. Please.

The hand on Abey's shoulder lifted momentarily and she too pointed towards the car. "That's a Beetle. They're ancient. Like last century ancient." And considering they were almost at the end of the century, it was saying alot. She squeezed the Gryffindor's shoulder and leaned down to whisper in his ear. "You should've seen them climb out of the trunk, it was hilarious, AB.

It really, really was. Maybe that would be her patronus memory instead of a beach in Jamaica. A thought for later, definitely. Because the Deputy Headmaster had spent them all to the Great Hall and Daisy didn't want to miss out on that.

The Americans were so many. What if not everybody could fit into the Great Hall? Daisy Carden was not missing out on the feast.

"I think that'll happen later. Hopefully they'll feed us first. She told Abey but looked up at Levi for confirmation. Maybe he had heard something conflicting information while she had been trying not to embarrass herself, her family and her House by cackling at the Americans. Selfies. Sunglasses. A Beetle. They were truly outstanding. Behind Levi, she could see the crowd of students and staff, Hogwartians and Ilvermornies alike, which was soon joined by Aslan and Jessa. "Know what? We should go before all the food gets eaten." She turned to the two Gryffindors and hooked her arm with Levi's before grabbing Abey's hand, pulling them along to join the crowd. She would have hooked arms with him too but it would be mighty awkward with the height difference, eh. "I think I'll have dinner at the Gryffindor table tonight." Yup. And she'd get escorted by her favourite Gryffindors too.

Wow. She couldn't believe she had favourite Gryffindors.

Plural.

Melanie quirked an eyebrow upward at his question. "A truce requires a contract, Mr. Rodriguez. Draft one up, and we'll see," she replied coolly. She would be giving out detentions if necessary, Jesus. "And you best represent our school with the dignity it deserves." As in, refrain from unnecessary arguments with British students.

..."Jesús Gualtiero Rodríguez Dávila." Accent on cue and all. Normally, she'd threaten the kid with calling his mama, but she was vaguely aware of the kid's strange/rough background. So no talking about family unless he brought it up. Which, for the record, Melanie was always up for. She had an affection for Jesus. His riotous ways weren't always unwarranted; sometimes, she agreed.

She ruffled his hair and winked at him, but quickly strode past.



Cut out the ham, boy. Melanie was amused, but the constant hamming it up Khalil did was ridiculous. "I'll wound you, all right, if you keep that cheekiness up." She sucked the insides of her cheeks, widened her eyes, and gave him her serious 'don't you dare mess up' look.

The need to impress the Hogwartians was important for more than one reason. Melanie had her own, secret reasons. She and Duncan shared a few of the same reasons, too. She would have to take a keen observation of the staff once they all arrived inside.

Who would be impressionable?



.........Melanie saw it. She saw the wetness spot begin - something Moxley, clearly, hadn't noticed. It seemed to be taken care of, but she was still worried. It was something a wave of her wand could have fixed, but the crowds soon swept her in one direction, and the two small boys in another. Chaos was not something Melanie dwelled well in; she was honestly looking forward to getting inside. Her stomach's rumbling, too, was urging her legs to walk quickly.



"You owe me..." she thought for a split second. "You owe me a future favor. I'm saving it for when I really need it." She smirked, sneaky smirking. "So be on your guard, Duncan." She hooked arms with her brother. Her mood had grown considerably brighter, probably from being free of that ratchet hellhole Beetle.

"Let's go eat all this disgusting British food to our heart's content tonight, eh?" Taco Bell sounded magnificent, though. And pizza...Hogwarts probably didn't have Taco Bell, though. Honestly.

Finally, actual movements.

Jessa agreed with Daisy on them getting a move on. It wasn't like Ilvermorny had brought their entire school with them but the Ravenclaw wasn't convinced they would all fit comfortably and wanted to be sure that, being so small, she wasn't nudged right off the table. People tended not to notice you until you were so high. Before then, it was like wearing a permanent invisibility cloak where some people--and important matters--were concerned.

The gesture of taking her hand and the small smile offered by Aslan served to calm the Ravenclaw a bit. There were just so many of them! Of course it also meant so many possibilities but in truth, Jessa was too hungry to consider them all.

Much like Daisy had done, Jessa linked her arm around Aslan's and proceeded to tugged her in the direction of the castle. Food time, let's go.

"Will you take the seat opposite mine at the Gryffindor table so we can sorta sit together like at the feast again?" It'd been all too easy twisting in her seat and giving the girl a light tap. That would be infinitely harder if the older girl took a seat on say...the other side of the table or further down mingling with the other lions.

Small comforts, she didn't think she was asking for too much.

A BEETLE? How strange. As far as Abey knew, beetles were supposed to be bugs, small and inexplicably scary (or sometimes big and more... explicably?... scary) if you asked Abey, and definitely not big and metal and red. "Ancient." He repeated. Ancient beetle, like a SCARAB BEETLE. And Abey had MISSED seeing everyone climb out of it. Nooooooo. Maybe someone could let him watch later via pensieve! ... Except Abey didn't have a pensieve, and didn't know how to extract memories...



DID ANYONE ELSE SEE THAT?! The Ilvermorny girl with all the white hair just tried to BITE ABEY.

Okay, yes, they were stood a million miles away from each other so she was never actually GOING to get her teeth on him, but even so, it was MILDLY ALARMING to receive such a response. Perhaps his mean stare was EXTRA scary or something. Whoops.

Ohhhhh, oh wait, they were leaving? ... Everyone was leaving, to go to the Great Hall, apparently. At once, Abey looked up at both Levi and Daisy - because they were both the closest to him - about to ask them if he could stay with them, for reasons, but was thrilled to find that Daisy had already decided that for herself.

"Yesssss!" Abey agreed AT ONCE. "I was gonna ask if I can stay with you guys. I don't know where Junia or Rula are and there's a lot of strange people here." Which was fine! A lot of people was fine and actually Abey actually definitely preferred that over being alone here at Hogwarts! But a lot of strangers was a little bit very terrifying, and Abey didn't want to get lost in the crowd just in case that girl found him and bit him for real.

Off he went, with Daisy and Levi, a skip in his step. To the Gryffindor table!

Irene turned her gaze to some of her fellow Illvermorny schoolmates and just felt disappointed. Why were they so.... UGH.... carry bad energy with them? Her eyes landed on Valerie and her possy of deadpan mates. This was supposed to be a fun competition, right? Good sportsmanship was a thing, right? Or perhaps her parents had taught her wrong. Her eyes locked onto Benji and she felt her heart pang. Irene had the unique ability of perhaps social skill of being able to relate to others very well, perhaps too well at times that it hindered her. Did he just? She gulped. Gross. Poor kid wasn't probably humiliated. She flicked her eyes away and refocused on Valerie, wondering what grudge the girl had against her and Aurora. Was something wrong with enjoying life? They made her feel awkward. Ignoring the sinking feeling in her stomach, she turned back to Aurora and giggled.

She enjoyed the first impressions game greatly. Her eyes flicked over to the boys (Olly and Levi) that she pointed out. Yes, they were CUTE. And she bet that their accents were awesome too, right? Hopefully they had cool accents and not lame Yankee accents like the one she had. "Mhmm... Very cute. They also seem nice?" she whispered rather optimistically before she turned her attention back to the interesting interaction between the Professors and some of the Hogwartians. Her eyes widened even MORE when a Professor (kaquilz) came over and nearly shouted and grinned at the sight of Headmistress Moxley. The interaction certainly brought a wicked grin to her lips. She enjoyed witnessing reunions between friends. It was always made her heart swell with joy. Call her sentimental and whatnot but Irene was proud of herself for her sentimental ways. And before she knew it, they were being swept away to the famous great hall. Irene pulled out her cellphone (she, like her father, were amused by muggle devices) and jotted down some notes, recording this adventure. After doing so, she slipped her phone back into her BRIGHT pink bag (the same shade of pink as this font) and then turned to Aurora. "He looks friendly," she commented pointing at the curly haired guy hanging out with Deo. Not particularly her type but he was friendly and that was something she valued. "Maybe we should go sit with Deo and him?"

Aurora was still scanning the crowd, trying her best to memorize all the faces of all these new students. She couldn't wait to start SOCIALIZING! Would they get to sit in on their lessons? Hmmm. That might be interesting. How else were they supposed to learn anything this term if they didn't pop in on a class or two? She had exams coming up this year, after all! It would be fun to see them in their natural habitats and all.

She started to the front of the crowd, leading Irene along with her, and looked over at the boy that she was pointing out (Tenacius). "He's a prefect, it looks like," she whispered, eyeing the badge on his robes. "He'd be a good one to stick by. Although I can't help but be tempted to have a little fun," she added with a smirk, looking back over at Valerie and the group of Debbie Downers hanging around her. It was no secret the two didn't harbor any loving feelings towards one another - and it was hard NOT to want to get her riled up when she was so obviously trying to do everything in her power to bring down the mood.

Hmpf. Killjoy.

Whistling happily, she began to march up the crowd, smiling and winking at some of the Hogwarts students as she passed. She'd end up...wherever she ended up once they got to the Great Hall.

She couldn't WAIT to start making some waves here!

If he was in the business of being honest, Levi lost track of his own plan the minute Tenacius went and introduced himself to a boy he seemed to be familiar with. Then some Ilvermorny girl (Aurora Chae) was grinning at him. Levi's eyesight wasn't exactly perfect--after all, he did need reading glasses; but it was good enough for the boy to, just for a brief second, forget about drawn lines and sides and whatever and find himself grinning back to the girl, dimples and all.

He was sixteen.

Daisy was tugging him away, however, and taking Abey Botros with her. Or him. Or both. And the skin contact was sobering enough for the boy to quickly turn to look at his fellow Hogwarts students, inviting them to follow.


***

Manuela nodded along to whatever it was that Evan was saying because she was mostly concerned with how she wanted bubble tea now, too. Which, probably Hogwarts didn't have so talk about unfortunate cravings.

She hooked her other arm with Evan's in time for Deo to be tackled by a guy with a badge pinned to his robes. A prefect, he said. Some British tradition she'd puzzled over during the brief time she'd spent reading up on Hogwarts. Surely their badges were questioned by other students just about all the time.

"Uh-huh." She looked at Deo's hand and broken egg and snorted. "Walk with us, Tenacius." This was not a question so she pretty much started to walk, tugging both of her classmates and expected the Gryffindor prefect to follow.

Okay...but but but Rooney was HUGGING the American Headmistress. HUGGING. Derf liked hugs and clearly the woman liked giving them so...could he get one to sometime. Maybe? But how did the Head Boy know her?! SO MANY QUESTIONS WERE SWIRLING IN HIS HEAD AND MOST IMPORTANTLY HE WANTED TO ASK HER WHY THEY WERE CALLING THE CAR A BEETLE...but he heard someone (Charlie) asking what the loo was.

"You mean...you DON'T have loos in America?!" Was apparently the only way he knew how to respond to that question. So...where did Americans do their number ones and number twos?

"I'm Derfael Mitchell Ashburry-Hawthorne," he nodded to the the Headmistress. "Jus-s-st my hair is-s blonde, not my name! But you can call me Derf!" And he was totally nodding his head about the one piece bit. TOTALLY. Not that his mind wasn't already going off on what all he was going to tell his new American friends about the loos at Hogwarts. Obviously there was one particular loo they needed to go visit and since he was lacking an phoenix haired Alice now that she had gone off to be all famous and important...this was PERFECT timing!


..........Professor Dark Lord Myers was friends with this foreign headmistress? Nope. NOPE NOPE NOPE NOOOOOOOOPE. He took the wanting to hug her back. Way way baaaaaaaaack. All the way back to May 1998 back when surely his shady Herbology professor had come into existence [s]somehow[/i].

But then Derf's eyes found Abey - someone he would HAVE to tell him about this shady business because he had made a promise to protect his Gryffindor at all costs. Unbreakable Vow pending. It was really hard magic, okay? And apparently they were BOTH staring at the same enchanting and mythical looking American. It was almost like a unicorn had become a human, but of course HE knew better than that because she was clearly a Veela and he was already falling under her Veela wiles. So when she made eye contact BACK, he could feel his cheeks FLUSH - which also reminded him of the loo he needed to take the one kid to because toilets flushed, you know? - and his eyes widened beyond mooncalf levels again.

SHE HAD NOTICED HIM!!! HOLY FLAMING SALAMANDERS!

Although he was not entirely sure what to make of that biting thing...but he did not really have much time to think about that since Headmistress Hawthorne was now telling him to take his new American friend to...the laundry room? "S-Sure," he chirped regardless as he bounded over to the younger boy. "A loo IS-S-S a potty," he assured him, admittedly a tiiiiiiny bit crestfallen that his previous notions about number ones and number twos was wrong. STILL NOT AS UPSET ABOUT THIS BEETLE BUSINESS THOUGH. "But Headmis-s-stress,
MINE, jus-st told me to take you to the laundry room...s-s-so we're going there. But it will be NEAT and you can meet all the hous-s-se elves-s! C'mon." He paused before glancing back over his shoulder to him. "And don't worry about it. Everyone s-s-secretes."

And then, without a second thought, he was grabbing the younger boy 's hand - FRIENDLY LIKE - and leading him back to the castle...all the while babbling on and on about the house elves, their names, and a fair few textbook facts or two.

The only real problem for Zinnia with the trip over here was that all her art supplies were in her suitcases, which meant not a lot of ways to keep herself busy during the trip. Other than daydreaming and listening to others' stories and conversations, but that was only interesting for so long. The last part of the trip had been dreadfully boring.

But now that they were here...oh, it was all so worth it.

As soon as she'd gotten out, she was starstruck by the beauty of the castle and the grounds and the lake, and so she'd pretty much missed the majority of the chaos and the noise from her fellow students and the staring from the Hogwartians. She was off in her own little world, looking this way and that way and back again, trying to take it all in and imagining all the new things she could paint... Oh, if only she could get her paints out right now...

It was only when Headmistress Moxley's shrill whistling sounded that she was finally brought back to Earth...and they were all heading inside? Wonderful! She could look at the inside too, so she happily followed the others toward the castle.

Hopefully it was as amazing on the inside as on the outside...

There was a boy ... laughing, which she heard before she saw him, because cousin!priorities. But upon pulling back from Weslyn, the girl introduced her to the boy and Skylar had to wonder if they were dating. Except maybe not, because surely she'd know if Wes was dating someone? Or well, actually she wouldn't, because she didn't know much about the American Diggory's other than names and they attended Ilvermorny and well, she wasn't even sure half their ages.

"Nice to meet you, Maddox. Louise," Sky grinned, as she heard the Ilvermorny headmistress who used to work at Hogwarts? The year before she started, she think she read? and then Headmistress Hawthorne leading them all into the Great Hall for the feast and information about this competition that Skylar really didn't give two knuts about. Unless Wes or Harvey were entering, which then it would probably be more interesting, but probably not.

"You'll all sit with me at the Slytherin table, yes?" Because Slytherins were the coolest group, obviously. And she wanted catch up with her cousin. Also, she wondered too where the Ilvermorny kids were sleeping; were some of them going to be joining each of the four houses in their respective common rooms?