For those who belong in Gryffindor House, on the left side of the Great Hall is where your table awaits. Red banners containing an embroidered golden lion float above the polished table in honour of the brave Godric Gryffindor. Already placed on the tables are silver plates with accompanying cutlery and goblets. All that is missing right now are the mountains of food and pitchers containing your favourite beverages.

Though your stomach might be growling as you take a seat on one of the long benches next to the table, it is important to not get hangry -- gnawing your arm away or jabbing your fork repeatedly on the surface of the table will do no good whatsoever. Give everyone some time to get settled in and wait for Headmaster Winterbottom to deliver his speech. Keep yourself preoccupied by catching up with your fellow housemates or those who are visiting from the other tables until it is time to sink your teeth into the hearty and delicious meal prepared by the house-elves.

It was always a surprise to Vera how quickly the travel seemed to go from King's Cross Station to Hogsmeade, and then from there up to the castle. It seemed like with the distance it should have taken ages and maybe it did to an extent, but good company and yummy snacks always made it seem to fly by as quickly as the countryside. After taking a potion for the pain she'd been feeling in her leg, even the walk up to the castle had not been daunting though she'd been dreading it previously.

She probably should have shared that potion with Vasco too. But considering he was not sharing things with her this hypocrite sister decided to be stingy.

Spotting some open seats at the Gryffindor table, Vera selected on and slid into it, leaving plenty of room for Logan as well and ensuring there was space close by for Sia as well whenever she made it in with the throng. Ve would have looked for her, but as it was her attention was looking over towards the other tables, before she leaned over towards Logan. "Where's the girl from earlier?"

The train ride had gone by faster than he had thought it would. Perhaps, after having been a passenger on it after all these years, the journey was something he was used to. The friends and saint that was the trolley lady also likely had a part to play in that as well. However, this time the ride had been rather ... eventful. It wasn't every day one stumbled upon his best friend cooped up in a compartment with someone who seemed to be more than just a friend.

Such a revelation kept him from thinking about how hungry he was again despite how many snacks he had eaten on the trek to Hogsmeade station. After sliding beside Vera, his eyes were also keeping an eye out for particular individuals.

"You mean Alouette?" he asked with a bit of a smirk playing on his lips, amused that the girlfriend had opted not to use the name of their Ravenclaw's belle. His eyes then glossed over to the Slytherin table, his head slightly nodding in that direction. "She should be over there, across the hall. Look for someone with wavy blonde hair, probably blowing kisses at Vas."

It was good to be back. As cliché and dramatic as it sounded, Freddy felt like he could finally breathe. He was also most definitely committed to the idea of just never leaving if he had his way.

Despite the loud thoughts though, he sat in a corner - quiet as ever, hoping he'd eventually spot Fynley or Win. If not, he didn't mind just ... letting this feast pass by - uneventful as ever.

It wasn't that Vera had anything particularly against the girl herself. The only reason she had not opted to use her name, was because she'd only just learned it. From her boyfriend no less and not her twin. She'd noticed the change in her brother over summer and the fact he'd seemed awfully clingy to his mirror when they were in Italy (even more so than she had been) but every attempt at figuring out who he was talking to had been thwarted. And outside of the present company, she didn't remember him ever really offering names of who he hung out with.

It had always just been Logan mentioned.

"Right, yes, her. Alouette." she'd have to find a way to remember that one, though it was kind of a mouthful if one asked her. At Logan's next words her attention turned to him and she blinked in surprise, "they were really that close already?" Maybe that actually shouldn't be so surprising. She was pretty sure she and the boyfriend were really the exception considering it took them about 3 years for anything to transpire. Not that she actually had a problem with that - all the time spent had been fun.

Attention shifted down the table and she spotted another one of their classmates (Freddy) a ways down. She didn't really know him, but either way a friendly nod was sent his direction if he glanced their way.

Did she really make it on time?! BOOOOO!

Violeta’s intention had been to make a grand entrance by arriving late, but noooo. She had to play responsible oldest cousin and make sure all the younger ones made it inside. She had also intended to stay behind to spend more time with a certain someone BUT she miscalculated. Math..numbers, time, were not her best suit.

UGH. Whatever.

“Good evening, wonderful people of Gryffindor!” she beamed, ruffling some heads and giving out hugs to people she knew. It was nice to be back and maybe even cause a bit of chaos around here.

Plopping herself on a random spot, she tossed her long hair behind her shoulders, the glossy wavy locks bouncing on her back, and sat up straight. Her posture always impeccable, of course. Turning to the boy (Freddy) beside her, she wiggled her eyebrows at him. Why so quiet and lonely? “Could I interest you in some gummy bears?”

Ah, the comfort of unhealthy food.

The Hat had taken such a long time with his sorting that Lazlo did not see if and where some of the other first years had gathered around the Gryffindor Table. Honestly such a nuisance. The young First Year found himself a seat amongst a gaggle of Lions who had cheered for his sorting then went back to their own conversations. Perhaps he could go sit towards one end of the table or the other. As it seemed his time in the spotlight was up. He would prefer if more of the attention was directed toward him. This night was especially special towards those his age wasn't it? Besides the food and a speech this night was all about the new students getting into their respective houses. Maybe he could make a scene? That would certainly bring attention back towards him. Lazlo sat with his head down and his chin and his hand stroking it and pondering on ideas he could potentially do that would have him in the center of attention again.

Freddy ... was a little lost in his thoughts, vague ones that mattered and didn't at the same time. So, while he didn't miss the friendly nod from his classmate - the smile he shot back at her was somewhat blank. It was also why he missed the luscious bounce of the girl's hair - who had just sat down next to him.

Or ... well he missed it - until she spoke to him directly.

Gummy bears?

"Uh - yeah sure - " he smiled at her, but before he could say anything else - Winterbottom had started to speak. Maybe he had anticipated being back too much, and had built up Hogwarts too much in his head -- because nothing the old man said excited him at all. It all felt very formal and... boring.

As he finished and the feast appeared before them, the gryffindor turned back to the not-so-boring aspect of this moment, "looking forward to the year ahead?" he asked the gummy bear girl, "I am Freddy, by the way" Sure he had seen her around, but no - he had never had the chance to speak to her.

Andrea was staaaarving.

All the push-ups she’d done on the train had obviously helped her develop an appetite. She plonked her way at the table, scanning the nearby faces for someone familiar but.. meh. She offered them a small but pleasant smile before her gaze shifted towards staff table - feeling so terribly impatient. She just wanted food ok.

Hands in the pockets of his robes, Hooper strolled into the Great Hall, only slightly later that the rest of the students but still in time to catch the sorting. After sitting through six of them, the grandeur of the sorting had started to wane on Hooper, but he still didn’t want to get into too much trouble on the first day back. After all, he was in his last year at Hogwarts and he had to set a goodish example. Looking around as he walked over to the table, his eyes couldn’t help but notice how small the first years were. It made him feel almost like a giant. A very old giant.

Heading straight over to the table on the left, Hooper found some space near a first year and slid into a small space next to them (Lazlo), curious as to why their head was down on the table. “Are you okay? Did you want to be in a different house or something?” curious as to what could make them react this way. Weren’t most first years excited at being sorted? He pondered this for a moment and tried to remember his own sorting. This however led him onto a dangerous path, too close to a certain Hufflepuff who wanted to be in Gryffindor. Trying to cheer himself up as well as the first year, he continued with a small smile, “Gryffindor’s the best. Wait until you see the common room,” because everyone loved the common room.

Violeta half ignored, half paid attention to the Headmaster as she rummaged through her robe pockets and replied, “I got you. I’m Violeta Escalante.” There weren’t as many changes on staff, and honestly, ever since her dad left that table, she wasn’t really interested in what teachers came in and out. They all made her do homework.

Taking out an unopened gummy bear bag she handed it to Gryffindor boy, Freddy. “Hmm, sort of. I’m glad to be back with my friends, but I’m not too thrilled about this being my OWLs year.” That meant spending loads of time studying when she could be practicing quidditch, and with her mother’s threat still ringing in her ears, she knew she had to try her very best. You know, as England's U17 Keeper she should be allowed to skip at least three or five OWLs so she could focus on training. “What about you?”

Betony felt like one of the few people who didn't have strong feelings either way about being back at Hogwarts: on one hand, her friends were here and she enjoyed learning, but on the other Stemp House had finally begun to feel like home, and her room there was a lot quieter than pretty much ninety percent of the castle. Not that it mattered, in the grand scheme of things, really. Her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of the upcoming exams (she'd started preparing last term, and had continued her additional study through the summer - given she didn't have a 'plan B' as it were, it seemed imperative that she get ahead), she was a little late to the Feast, and slipped into the seat next to Violeta. Hi, best friend.

She offered a small smile to the rest of the table, tucking her unruly red hair behind her ears. She'd forgone the braids today, and it seemed that the mop atop her head had a mind of its own. But hey, she was branching out. Fifth year, or something. And, maybe, spending some time with Jas and, by extension Simran, that summer had something to do with it. Something about relaxing, not being so serious, letting loose for once. And of course she needed to impress.

So she'd started with her hair.

Lazlo was deep in thought. Potentially running down the list he was formulating in his head as to what he could do stir attention back in his direction. Food Fight? No, too cliché. He could start dancing on the table, and see how many more would start to join in an impromptu flash mob scenario. No...that was too 100 years ago. No one did that sort of thing anymore. Leave it to the Muggle history books about the Early 2010s. No Harlem Shakes from this new Lion. He could do some spitballs and shoot that at unsuspecting classmates. No, that wouldn't be very attention grabby. It would be fun for him but that required tact and stealth. If he was good at avoiding eyes...if he wanted to avoid eyes then this was not the route to go.

His thought process was interrupted. Which honestly was fine. He was putting more thought on what to do rather than just doing something. He needed a break. "Huh? oh...no I'm fine with Gryffindor. You take what your given and roll with it. My Mum will probably be surprised though." He nodded to himself while looking at the older boy. So it looked like he was nodding at him instead of for himself.

"I'll take your word for it. How my Mum described her Common Room it felt...well cold. I'd rather have not been there." Why was he bringing up his Mum so much? Did he miss her? She probably missed him. A lot. He should write to her. He could ask this guy where the Owls roosted.

"Hey what do you think would be the best way to stand out?" Merlin, why not ask? He's probably lots of experience since he's one of the older students.

Poppy quickly walked over to the Gryffindor table and slipped in at the end. There was no way she was going to walk any further than that. She wasn't usually this nervous but after standing in front of everyone to be sorted she just wanted to fade slightly into the background. It would give her some time to look around, listen, and adjust to this new stage of her life. Despite her being a half-blood, she grew up completely muggle, and if it wasn't for the stories her Nana had told her she wouldn't have known anything about Hogwarts or the Wizarding World.

She couldn't help listening in on snippets of different conversations happening around her, especially one between two boys (Lazlo and Hooper). Something about Gryffindor being the best and a question about standing out.

Wait! What? Was he really asking about how best to stand out? On his first night at Hogwarts. There was only one word she could think of that would possibly describe this boy (Lazlo) and that was...

"Trouble!" Poppy said shaking her head. It was meant to be barely a whisper but came out loud enough for both of them to hear.

Hooper listened intently to the first year (Lazlo) whilst simultaneously keeping an eye on the table full of Professors. He figured he’d heard the same old speech several times told in different ways by different people so at this point, he felt under no obligation to actually listen to it. For now however, his attention was being held by the first year. “Is that right? Why do you say that?” he asked, curious as to why the boys mother would be surprised. Was he always full of surprises? It was possible his family came from generations of students that were from the same house, which would explain his reasoning. His hypothesis was at the very beginning of its development however and would need to be finely adjusted before he was happy with it.

“So I guess she was in a different house to Gryffindor? Slytherin if I had to guess. I’ve heard that it can seem a little…cold,” he’d never been in there himself but from what he’d heard from some of the Slytherin’s in his year group, it sometimes lacked warmth, something that he’d never found for the Gryffindor common room.

Not wanting the boy to focus too much on his home however, Hooper simply offered a friendly smile and did his best to try and convey how great being in Gryffindor was. He was quickly sidetracked however by the boys question. As he was about to answer however, their conversation was interrupted by a first year (Poppy). Not one to exclude somehowever, even if they were being slightly rude, Hooper angled himself so that he was facing them both somewhat and answered.

“I mean, it depends what kind of attention you’re looking for kid. Like, are we talking class clown attention or attention and detention?” After considering for a second, he answered anyway, although this time his answer was a little more of a whisper. Trouble indeed, would be the easiest way to get attention but there was more than one kind of attention and you didn’t always have to break the rules or annoy other students. He didn’t say this out loud of course because a) he wasn’t a loser, and 2) who was he to tell them what to do? It was far more amusing to watch them learn from their mistakes.

“I guess you could interrupt the big guys speech? Although I wouldn’t recommend it.” Hooper wasn’t exactly a prankster and didn’t often like to be the centre of attention. In fact, he spent most of his time trying to be the exact opposite, so who was he to really offer advice.

After the speech ended with again, nothing to note of being said, Hooper turned his attention to the food in front of them all now which had now materialised. “The food is amazing by the way. Don’t be afraid to try everything! You won’t regret it…unless you eat too much. I don’t recommend that. The prefects who’ll have to clean up your sick won’t either,” winking at them both now jokingly as he took a large bite out of a potato. Luckily, or unluckily depending on your view, he hadn’t been made prefect so he didn’t have to show them the ropes or clean up their sick.