An active, character-driven Hogwarts experience set in the early 2000s. Unique items, plots, and features. Non-canon; this isn't Harry Potter's story, it's ours.
Post by Reena Ashworth on Jan 13, 2021 19:41:48 GMT 10
Just like she had feared, being idle had lunged herself into thinking about everything she had learned today and instead of being restful, her short stay at her dorm had left her feeling vulnerable and wanting for her brother's company. Thus she had decided to have lunch with Jax, she would be content just sitting in silence although she would tell him she planned on writing a letter to their grandparents.
It had been a while since Reena had last sat at the Ravenclaw table, usually preferring to keep to her own House at school. She felt a tad awkward while she walked into the opposite direction than she would normally do but she was sure no one would question her motives too much. Following the article in Witch Weekly people would most likely assume she wanted to support her brother.
Reena was almost at Jaxen's side when she cast a glance towards the Gryffindor table that was more noisy than usual today. Her gaze was briefly drawn to Anjay Xcalyn amidst the pack but she swiftly averted her gaze before there was a chance to make eye contact. No. The only Xcalyn she would want to pay any attention to would be Jurni who was her friend, not just some Lion prefect.
With a sigh Reena sat down next to her brother and softly said a "Hey" into the round of fifth years in which she recognized Mathias before busying herself with the letters she was still receiving to indicate she did not plan on intruding on whatever conversation might be happening at the Ravenclaw table. She did not even plan to listen, mostly still in her own thoughts as she put the letters away, unopened.
"Had a good morning?", she asked Jax while absentmindedly putting some nuts and an apple into her pockets. She was annoyed and a little anxious that they still got letters at Lunch as it made her feel like on display and she hoped her siblings were faring better. "I want to write to our grandparents later, want me to say 'hi' from you?"
Reena took a tasty looking wrap from a platter infront of her brother and slowly ate it to give Jax time to process what she had said. Her words sounded innocent enough for anyone listening in but Jax would know that really she wanted to ask if he thought it was okay to write their grandparents and ask about their father. Not that she needed his permission but she would hate to go about it behind his back or present him with a fait accompli. They were a team after all. She looked at her neon purple finger tip and quickly changed hands to put it out of her brother's sight. He did not have to concern himself with her little potions related mishap.
"I'll be at the library before Dinner if you want to find me.", she added with a meaningful look. It indicated that she wanted him to find her but she would not say that infront of his friends. She would much prefer to have his insight when bringing her questions onto paper, not certain if she truly had the determination to send it by herself yet.
Post by Jacob Thatcher on Jan 13, 2021 19:43:16 GMT 10
Jacob couldn't remember how much he'd had for breakfast but it must have been nothing because he was starving. He hurried towards his house table, pushing his way around anyone who tried to delay his access to food. Spotting his buddy Zach, he made a beeline for that spot. He still cradled his arm a bit, having spent most of the morning trying that "mind over matter" garbage he'd heard a great-aunt swear by. Well, as usual, she was wrong.
'Congrats, mate,' Jacob said to Zach once he caught up on what was going on. He glanced at Tiana, wary of a continued conversation from that morning, so put most of his focus onto Zach instead. It didn't seem like Jade or Amy were even there yet, so that was a relief.
He leaned back, ignoring the pain in his arm and general body, so Tiana couldn't see him pulling exaggerated "yikes, save yourself" faces at Rylan behind her back. He could relate all too well to being called out for not inhaling the essence of Quidditch obsessions.
'You better duck for cover if Seabrook does show up,' Jacob advised Zach, which was the opposite of his usual advice in regards to that b... witch. He sighed, joyous mood fading again in memory of his own situation and the day before - which he quickly distracted by piling food onto his plate. More than he could eat, but he considered it was simply a challenge not a fact.
He fell quiet after that, though remained tuned into the conversations - nodding at Anjay's Seabrook Anger Assessment scale. He opened his mouth, which was stuffed with yoghurt, to make a comment about her rage form the day before - but frowned at the reminder he couldn't be his usual honest self right now. It was infuriating, but had to be done.
He snorted at Zach's exclaim, not the least bit put off his food, but almost choked from laughter. Jacob groaned as pain shot through him.
'Zach, you tosser,' Jacob whined. 'I almost inhaled my yoghurt! It doesn't taste nearly as good up the wrong pipe.'
Killed by Devin Kudosen by act of the Killing Curse. June #24, RPG year 1 -- he was a 5th year Gryffindor. Jacob died to save his best friend, Luckett Langford.
'I should hope so, Rylan!' There was a rush of relief on his face. 'I can't imagine anyone not liking a game of Quiddy. It's exciting! It's spectacular! It's the best sport in the world—and that's coming from a Muggle. The Keepers hanging from their brooms to block 10-pointers! The Bludgers zooming around, trying to smash into people!' He shot a look at Grace, hoping he hadn't scared her out of being a Chaser. Whoopsie-daisy!
'Then there's the Seeker who makes dives to catch the Golden Snitch! And not for 10 points—but for 150! Then it's game, set, match!' Zach sighed with happiness, his body visibly relaxing with euphoria. He was obsessed with the sport! That's why his reaction to getting on the team shouldn't have been a big surprise to anyone at the Gryffindor table.
Zachary slouched into his plate, his eyes dreamily fixed on the ceiling. He was daydreaming, fantasizing about Gryffindor's first match tomorrow. He was in his own world as parts of the conversation surrounding Amara Seabrook and Slytherin went unheard. Nothing could yank him from his current state of bliss—not even chatter about the Wicked Witch of Slytherin.
But the warning from Jake was enough to pull his interest. He snapped out of his daze and looked at his friend. He found it unusual that Jacob told him to duck for cover. Jacob would normally be the one rooting for everyone to take charge with their wands at the ready! Amara Seabrook wasn't normally cause for concern.. but now she was? What did Zachary miss?
'Who are you kidding? Yogurt tastes good up any pipe!' So good that he reached for some and decided on strawberry at the last second. 'What are you doing this afternoon anyway? You want to come check out our practice? I could use a pretty little cheerleader!' He grinned at Jacob, his lash-heavy eyes twinkling with a playfulness.
Last Edit: Jan 13, 2021 21:02:51 GMT 10 by Deleted
Kaspian wasn't very hungry. He had orientation after lunch, which was mandatory for all new prefects -- and he was a ball of nerves because of it. But the boy needed food to sustain his body and mind. It was a simple question of mind over matter. He was going to eat despite his lack of appetite, if not only to keep him nourished for the length of orientation. However long.
"Have a nice morning, fellas?" He fancied himself a bit of small talk. He hadn't spoken to Jaxen or Mathias at breakfast given the declaration that unfolded. "It was particularly chilly this morning, wouldn't you say? It's looking like it's time to break out the mittens." He reached for an apple and a handful of nuts, before dropping them into his robe pockets.
He was stood next to the table, too anxious to sit down. It took everything he had to not fidget with his badge or pace back and forth. Kaspian couldn't do that. As prefect, he wanted to show composure. He didn't want it to seem like something minor caused him this much restlessness. What would that say about Rivera's decision to put him in the role? He wanted to make her and Ravenclaw proud. If he could manage that, then it was a decision he could prove well made.
"Hi, Nyx." He smiled at her, his eyes meeting her blue ones. It was friendly and genial, but could be misconstrued as something more. "Did you and Freya get your kit done? I might go back to the greenhouse after orientation. I should be able to harvest by then."
"Anyway, I'm off to orientation. I want to be early in case the others are." Kaspian gave the group a wave, his heart pounding over what was coming. He walked to leave, burying his hands in his pockets. He tried to convince himself he was overthinking orientation -- but to no avail. He did his best to straighten out his posture, as he exited toward the Entrance Hall.
Post by Jaxen Ashworth on Jan 13, 2021 23:25:49 GMT 10
Jax glanced up when someone fell a little clumsily into their seat nearby, but relaxed once again when he realised it was just Mathias. From their conversation earlier, Jax could gather that Matt really liked Nyx and his clumsy arrival must be because he was nervous... Unless he was naturally clumsy, which wasn't reassuring since Matt liked climbing trees.
Reaching for some more sandwiches to add to his plate, Jax busied himself with eating his lunch- so that Mathias and Nyx could choose to ignore him and just chat to each other if they chose to. A soft 'hey' caught his attention and he turned to see Reena sitting beside him. He hadn't even noticed her arrival, so wrapped up in eating his own food and attempting to ignore any private conversations that might be happening around him.
It had been a while since Reena had chosen to sit with him at all, maybe he should've expected it on a day like today, when so much had happened. It just hadn't crossed his mind. "I don't... Think that's a good idea" he lowered his voice to a whisper, when she mentioned writing to their grandparents. Because he knew exactly what that letter was likely to contain and he thought it extremely unlikely that their grandparents would willingly tell them anything their mother had not and... What if it got back to her.
Reena was likely to do whatever Reena wanted to do, Jax knew that much but he could at least voice his concerns and perhaps convince her to rethink her decision or at least go about asking her questions tactfully.
He nodded subtly to let her know he would meet her in the library before dinner- maybe if he couldn't stop her from writing the letter, he could at least monitor what she was putting in the letter.
"Morning was okay, pretty chill... You?" he answered Kaspian when he arrived and asked how their morning had been, unfortunately it seemed like his dormmate wasn't interested in sticking around as after exchanging words with Nyx, he left the table and hurried off somewhere else. Jax didn't know how anyone could eat and run like that? Had he even grabbed anything for lunch?
Food disappeared from tables. Staff and students began to leave the hall, but Gryffindors did so faster than they had any other time of year. Most who remained where 2nd, 5th, and 6th years, who had an afternoon of free time to look forward to. Not that the NEWT students seemed particularly happy about it, as no doubt there would be a lot of studying involved.
~ Lunch Ended ~
Class threads are now available. Gryffindor Quidditch Practice begins when @tiana makes the thread at the pitch. Any players with classes need to post attendance there first. Then Practice will likely occupy most, if not all, of their afternoon free time.
New Prefects can now head to the Entrance Hall to await their Orientation. Whoever arrives first, thus creates the thread, please title it "#8 - Prefect Orientation".
Post by Jonathan King on Jan 14, 2021 1:01:29 GMT 10
The talk at the Gryffindor table was fun to listen to although Joe wondered who this Seebook person was. Someone who would be mad about Gryffindor having a Keeper, he gathered. That did not make much sense, didn't every team need a keeper to play? It would not seem fair or even admirable to score a goal on an unprotected post.
To his relief his own Quidditch captain did not seem to pay him any mind and Joe noticed from the corner of his eye that she was joined by her boyfriend. He quickly packed his things together to flee from the table before there was any more yelling about kissing like there had been at breakfast and left the Great Hall in a hurry.
He only noticed that neither of his friends was with him when he was outside and decided to just walk to class by himself. Joe'd make sure to save spots on the bench next to him for Ryan and Toby. Jay could come too if he liked but that was optional to Jonathan.
Nyx kept looking at the entry, each time hoping she'd look up to find Mathias walking her direction. She had missed him all morning and was eager to spend the afternoon with him. However, each time she glanced with the hope of seeing him, she was left disappointed. She noticed that she had eaten most of her raw vegetables, leaving her with a variety of sliced fruit. It was an unexpected salad of sorts, but it needed something. How about granola?
"Hello, Jaxen,", she greeted, a faint smile on her face. Hadn't he and Mathias spent time together that morning? She wanted to ask him where Mathias was, but didn't. He'd show up, eventually. "It was productive. I finished everything I started," she said with a toss of her head, pardonable pride in her voice. She sprinkled the granola over her plate and placed the serving bowl back where she got it. Her fruit salad now looked colorful and crisp.
"What'd you do this morning?" Nyx casually asked, hoping to goad him into talking about Mathias. But what if he didn't mention him? She had to say more. "Didn't you and Mathias have plans?" she added for good measure, hoping to steer their conversation toward the boy on her mind. Sallow had been on her mind since before breakfast and remained there, even during her visit to Hagrid's and the Student Greenhouse. Nyx enjoyed thinking about him.
Then, her expression suddenly changed to one of excitement. Mathias had arrived. Her face lit up like the sun, a contrast to her normally chilly appearance. She stifled a giggle with the tips of her fingers when he fell into his seat, her cornflower blue eyes watching every movement he made. He went for the fruit and cheese, just like she had. This brought a smile to her lips.
"Hi, Mathias," she said sweetly, her words honeyed. "Jaxen and I were just talking about our morning. Did you two have a nice time?" Nordstrom asked innocently, forking her fruit with light, little jabs. Mathias brought out a softer side to Nyx, one that any onlooker would immediately notice. "I got my Herbology Kit done. Freya, Kaspian and I managed to complete it this morning," she shared, the granola crunching in her mouth after each bite.
"So, I was wondering," she started to say to Mathias after Jaxen was pulled from their chat. "Is it alright if we goto the Owlery? I have to send a letter to my grandmother and mother. It's long overdue," Nyx asked, looking at her plate. She hated the idea of souring their plans with such an ill-tempered letter, but hoped it wouldn't have too much of an effect on what followed. "Afterwards, we could stay and look out at the views? Together."
The idea of spending alone time with Mathias in the Owlery was exciting. There was something appealing, charming, and daresay romantic about it. Her mind swirled with the thought of it, causing her to nearly miss the arrival of Kaspian. She smiled back at the boy and nodded in return to his greeting. Nyx had surprisingly enjoyed the morning with he and Freya, but she really wasn't looking to small talk with him now—especially with Mathias sitting in front her.
"We finished shortly after you and planted a few things," she mentioned, reluctantly shifting her attention from Mathias to Kaspian. "Yeah, I'm positive your plants will be ready by then. I'll visit the greenhouse again tomorrow. I have plans this afternoon," Nyx finished with a smile, looking back at Mathias. "Mathias and I are hanging out."
As the food disappeared, Celia sighed. She really liked eating. But Quidditch practice was starting now, and she felt a pang of jealousy as she watched the students leave the Great Hall. She felt bad for thinking it, but maybe a player would get injured and need a replacement. She tried not to think about it and waved to Anjay, who had his prefect orientation to go to.
“Nice talking to you, Anjay!” She said, grabbing her bag to go back to the common room and do whatever she felt like doing. She was glad that she had free time, and it would come in handy near the end of the year when she needed to study for her OWLs. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to do for a career, so she took a variety of classes. As she headed out of the Great Hall, she hummed to herself happily.
Post by Grace Babineaux on Jan 14, 2021 2:44:40 GMT 10
Grace stared nervously down at her sandwich, realizing that perhaps this was a bigger deal than she had thought it would be. School Quidditch was a brand-new experience to her, and she worried that she would let the team down. Hopefully she could be good enough during practice in the afternoon to make up for all the years the other kids had on her!
She scarfed down the last part of her sandwich and headed off to class, considering Quidditch but also nervous for whatever they might have to do. Her confidence was shaken by not being able to perform the Transfiguration properly in that morning's class, but she was also pondering Ravenclaw's artefact room. A lot was on her mind as she headed out to class.
Post by Arthur Hocking on Jan 14, 2021 2:49:10 GMT 10
A bit distracted, Arthur missed almost all of what Harris was talking about, but he did get the part about Nifflers, and all that was after that. "Wow! Sounds pretty cool." He decided that, if he had enough time on his hands, he would try that out. He did doubt that he would get it right, but it was nice to try.
"They've got Quidditch practice today, I think," Arthur said to Ruby. Gryffindors were always loud, though, so it could've been anything. Maybe they were celebrating some Gryffindor-y thing.
As the food disappeared, he gathered his bag and headed off to Herbology. Thank goodness! Finally a class that he was good at, one that he enjoyed.
Anjay smiled at Celia as she exited and made his way to the Entrance Hall, ready for his prefect orientation. Lunch had been a little rowdier than usual and Anjay felt a little less recharged than he usually did, but it was a fair trade off for a bit of excitement and house comradery. He gathered his things, subconsciously adjusted the prefect badge on his lapel, and stood up.
He watched as many of his fellow Lions made their way to the Quidditch field and hoped their practice was productive. He would probably go to the game- activities around the castle were basically shut down on match days, so there was little else to do- but his only real interest was Gryffindor bragging rights. He wouldn't tell them that, though. He just wished them well as he exited the Great Hall.
"Yeah, Hagrid's after class sounds good," Tom replied to Lindsey as the food began to magically disappear from the table. As it did Tom found himself gulping down a few more mouthfuls of water and shoving a lone remaining piece of sandwich into his mouth. He smiled, got up, and began to ask Lindsey and any of the other 4th years what they thought about their upcoming Herbology class.
Herbology wasn't his favorite subject and he'd just received his own herbology kit within the last 24 hours, so he wasn't as excited as others seemed to be. Still he hoped to do well. He knew that Herbology was a crucial part of potions making and for that reason alone he strove to do well in the class. He walked on, trusting Lindsey was behind him, and headed out of the Great Hall towards the greenhouses.
Lunch was over and Harris was satiated, having fully gorged himself with enough food to hold him over until the dinner hour arrived. What was he going to do now? 5th years had the afternoon free as well, just as they'd had the morning... maybe he would try to get more keys from the Niffler pit, or visit the beast reserve?
He had some gobstones, too, and briefly considered heading back to the courtyard to see if anyone fancied a game, but in the end he decided that the beast reserve would be the best place for him to go. Care of Magical Creatures was always his favorite subject and it was a beautiful day outside, so why not? He figured other students would want to take advantage of the sunshine and join him there.
Post by Lindsey Bryce on Jan 14, 2021 6:36:26 GMT 10
With lunch finished, she looked at the empty table in a little sadness. She had luckily finished her sandwiches, but it was because she had to go again. It felt like she was always doing something. She needed a day of rest, but than she would probably still find something to do.
As Tom mentioned going to Hagrid's after class, she nodded and smiled, standing and grabbing her things before following him out. It didn't take much to catch up with him and walk beside him. He made her feel happy and comfortable. Yes, the butterflies were still there, but she really enjoyed their time together.
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