General The Hufflepuff Table 2019-2020

@Hester Barfield

"Well...that's good to hear..." He glanced at the book, tilting his head. "Yeah, I-I suppose so...I kind of study based on how much I like something...if it's something I'm not particularly interested in, I'll probably just skive it off." He shrugged, taking some sausages and starting to eat them. "You'd...let me see your notes? That's...really nice. Thanks!" He smiled happily, going silent for a moment.

He tilted his head, staring at the notes for a bit. She was definitely pretty good at taking them...heck, he might have to take notes on how to take notes like her. He glanced back up t the roof...it was pretty nice out today, a bright sunny day. He hesitated a bit at her next question, he really enjoyed certain subjects more than others...

"Well...I definitely love Charms, it's definitely my favorite. I-I really wanna do more with my wand...it also feels kind of natural to me, y'know?" He chuckled, taking out his wand again to admire it. "Let's see...History of Magic is super boring...Potions is alright, I can't quite get certain things right...Defense Against the Dark Arts isn't as scary as it sounded...yet, I think...that's all I can really remember off the top of my head. I really wish I had Care of Magical Creatures, I overheard some 3rd Years Talking about it...gosh, I read through all of Fantastic Beasts...all of those creatures sound so amazing! Well, except for those Acromantulas...yikes...a-anyways, what about you?"

@Ginevra Tsuchiya

Ginevra answered all her questions. Inwardly, she sighed in relief, glad Ginevra hadn't taken offense or anything. Ginevra's answer to her last question put a smile on her face.
"Right? He's great. I honestly hadn't known too much about him, but Lilac, my cousin, told me a lot about him. I hadn't thought of that, though. Nice." Teiki smiled, before listening to the question Ginevra asked her. She smiled a little when Ginevra asked, "Would you mind if I ask why?" Teiki felt as though she probably would've said the same thing.
"It's fine to ask. Um.. I think my favorite class that I can take currently is.. charms? I always watched Lilac perform charms when she came back from Hogwarts. It always blew me away how many there were and how well they worked for a simple word and motion. I realize now, though, that it's more than that. I'm happy that I know that now." Teiki smiled, recalling the summer days when she would sit in the grass with Lilac as they told each other about the past school years, both muggle and magical.
"Yeah, it was fun... Did you grow up in a family with magic? Everyone's experiences are so different... I grew up with some magic, but also some of the muggle world, as well? Is there a better name for them? Muggle always seems so... harsh."

(Sorry this is so late!)

"We are same; I also grow up with both touches of the wizarding world and the Muggle world," Ginny said. "My mum is a Muggle. My dad is the wizard, but he went to Ilvermony because he lived in the USA when he was at our age."

She stopped for a while to consider Teiki's words about the term Muggle and its effect. "I guess... yeah," she slowly spoke out. "I heard that some people - I mean, witches and wizards - use the term Muggle as an insult just like how the words half-blood and Muggle-born can be perceived. Though, I have also been told that they use the term affectionately."

Ginny wondered whether Teiki would be interested in how American wizards called the Muggles, and at the end, she decided to tell the black-haired girl. There was nothing wrong with sharing some general information, was there? The blonde cleared her throat and continued speaking, "I grew up in the States before moving to the UK, and heard the wizards used the term No-Maj instead of Muggle. My grandpa explained that it was short for 'non-magical'. Well, I dunno if it's better or worse than its British equivalent. Honestly, I don't like both because it's like we're labeling people as 'us' and 'them'."

@Teiki Laurent

@Lucas Strait

She blushed a little at his compliment, pretending to be really interested in picking her food. Hester shared her notebooks with people but sometimes she became frustratingly shy, and most of the time it was only frustrating to her.

She followed him, taking out her own wand. She studied his, which seemed to be out made out of walnut wood but she still wasn't great at figuring out the cores. Her own was made out of chestnut wood and phoenix feather, just over twenty centimeters, and she treasured it ever since she got it from Ollivander.
Hester noticed that he looked up but she didn't follow his movement this time. Instead she took the brief moment to study his face, trying to figure him out. She wondered why he was so uneasy. She didn't dwell on it too much, her eleven-year-old was quick-paced and would move on for now.

Lucas said that he loved Charms, a class that Hester also liked. Anytime that she got to use her wand made her excited, made her feel like a 'big wizard woman'. She would stand with her chin high, muscles tight, and feet solid, like she was ready for anything.

Coming back to Earth, Hester realized that she'd been staring off into space. Lucas had finished speaking and the air was filled with that kind of silence as if someone had asked a question. Ears red, she cleared her throat and looked at him. Luckily she had remembered most of what he'd said. Did he mention something about 'Acromantulas' of was she hearing things?

"Yeah, I like Charms, too!" She drummed her feet along the floor, tapping her wand against the palm of her hand as she thought. "I want to get really good at using my wand so I can do even the hardest of spells, because you'll never know when you'll need to use them."

She put her wand on the table and took a big gulp of water. "My favorite class are Defense Against the Dark Arts—I really want to cast a Patronus—and also History, but that's a long store. My brother..." Hester went on to explain how her brother Elijah hated History, no matter what anyone tried to say to him. He had to the worst grades and his only two defenses were: "I'm not going to repeat any of that (bad word) anyways!" and "It's incredibly boring, you wouldn't believe it." At that time Hester and her brother had been very competitive and, although she also disliked the subject, she decided to focus all her energy into the History of Magic and actually learned to love it.

Hester shrugged. "But if I had to choose something else it would be Herbology. Plants are amazing, especially the sentient ones, like the Mandrakes. They're always screaming." She couldn't wait to see one for the first time.

"If you ever cast the Patronus Charm, what do you think it'll be? My mom has done it before and she got an Orangutan."

@Hester Barfield

Lucas, on the other hand, wasn't spacing out. He was incredibly curious about the life of wizard-borns...or pure-bloods, as he's been hearing. He looked much more comfortable than when they had begun talking...he was definitely enjoying talking to the girl. Lucas usually judged people by the vibes they gave off...and she gave off friendly vibes to him.

Lucas perked up as she said that word..."Patronus". It was definitely a spell, but not one he had ever heard of...of course, he wasn't surprised. She seemed to forget he didn't come from a wizard family. But he didn't really mind...she was just making a simple mistake.

"Herbology is...well, alright. Those plants creep me out a little, but it's fine. So...what do you mean by a Patronus? And an Orangutan? I don't follow...you know, cus I'm Muggle-Born..." He seemed pretty interested. "Oh...and I think I heard someone talking about Mandrakes. They seemed a bit older...I think they might be for older students. So about that Patronus..." He took a gulp of water, finishing up his sausage. His eyes were filled with curiosity...he really wanted to learn more about this place and the weirdness of magic and spells. His head was still filled with thoughts about what might be next in his classes.

@Lucas Strait

She was a tad bit disappointed that he didn't seem that interested in her story but she shrugged; she would tell it better next time. Maybe reading more story books rather than study books would help, since she'd focused on her classes before the year actually started.

When Lucas said 'Patronus' in that oblivious way she realized that maybe she had assumed too much, especially when he mentioned that he came from a muggle family. She had to admit that she didn't know many, or any, Muggle-Born's before today, or any she'd met seemed to know a lot about the wizarding world.

Hester was slightly irritated, an emotion that wasn't common to her at all. It confused her, made her want to do something mean, she guessed, but not...really. Instead she brushed off the emotion and forced a laugh.

"Sorry," she said, smiling. "I thought you would know about Patronus Charms...you haven't studied any of your books yet? Most first-years I know have, once they bought their books....you do have your books, right?" She looked around, as if she expected him to be carrying them.

"You learn the Patronus Charm in a later year, and about Mandrakes in second year, but it's never too early to talk about them, right? My brothers told me about a lot of things they learned in their years at Hogwarts so I shouldn't have assumed." She wasn't that hungry anymore, strangely.

Hester pulled out another book, one that said Defense Against the Dark Arts. It was empty except for two pages. "So I wanted to write a lot about the class but I also wanted to learn much while I was actually taking the class, so I'm leaving my notes empty until I actually learn the things. I had to force myself this entire summer." She inhaled, trying to keep her excitement down, scooting closer to Lucas. "The Patronus Charm is a spell you use to keep dementors away. They're like...soul suckers, they take away every good thing about you, everything thing that makes you happy, and you'll probably just end up like them."

"I don't know the actual words for the spell yet but I know that it a difficult spell. When you say it a creature that represents you comes out your wand and scared the dementors away. Only my mom and my older brother William—he's a seventh year—have done it. My mom can cast an Orangutan and my brother..." Hester let out a little sigh. "He won't tell me, but I think it's a little rabbit." She was thrown into a fit of giggles, picturing her big, strong brother with such a little creature.

She was unknowingly really comfortable around Lucas, so much that she wrapped her arm around his shoulder without thinking. "The Patronus is supposed to represent you, and I think mine will be...a giraffe, maybe. Or a dolphin. They're both really awesome."

@Ginevra Tsuchiya

Teiki sat in silence for a bit, taking in Ginevra's words. It was all about perspective, huh?
"Yeah. I agree with you. It's really all about how you say it. If you say it with respect, then, there's nothing that's outright wrong with the word. But if you say it teasingly or angrily, then it gives this idea that they are less valuable than wizards. I don't entirely think that's true. After all, my mom is a lot smarter than my dad!" She smiled and giggled a bit, remembering the running competition that was held between her parent. It was a little holiday, there own little presidential election, and it was, quite often, hilarious.
"Okay, well, I take back what I said about my dad. He's witty and knows magic quite well, but doesn't understand the concept behind it. So, when it comes to math or science, well... there's no competition. Anyway, No-Maj is an interesting name. It's simply stating facts." She paused for a moment, wondering.
"Wait, is it? Maybe No-Maj-I like that word better- actually do know magic, but don't know how to control it. It's simply tiny magic that becomes wishes and dreams, that may or may not happen. Isn't that interesting?" Teiki smiled to herself.
"Oh my gosh! I've been rambling.. I'm sorry. Did you have anything you wanted to add?" Teiki looked back at Ginevra, blushing furiously out of embarrassment. Can't even remember manners, she though, scolding herself inwardly.

@Teiki Laurent 

Ginevra smiled widely, almost chuckled, as she saw Teiki's flushing face. It seemed to Ginevra that the raven-haired girl felt that she had talked too much and perhaps she was concerned that this would bore the listener. But the fact was, Ginevra did not feel bored at all. She loved friendly conversation about family, a conversation like this.

This one's a genuine conversation, unlike that one in the Muggle school, Ginevra thought. Back when she was enrolled in a Muggle elementary school, there was a girl who kept telling everyone about her family, but it was more for bragging rather than sharing. Ginevra remembered very well she overheard the girl saying something like, "My brother? Oh, he's currently in California for a million-Dollar business. And my sister's enrolled in a prestigious fashion college in Paris."

But that was the past. Now Ginevra was listening to Teiki, not overhearing that former classmate of hers. And she enjoyed the story. "Oh, don't worry, I've done with the Muggle/No-Maj story. By the way, for me, it seems that you really have a happy family. You're a lucky one, Teiki!" she said. "I mean, in this modern world it's not uncommon to hear that a child of our age comes from a broken family, and everyone treats the fact like it's normal."

Should she voice her opinion any further? No, perhaps not. At least not now. Maybe she'd better share a story about her family instead.

"Do you have any siblings, Teiki? I have a little sister, two years younger than me. And she can't wait to enroll in Hogwarts herself! I bet she'll be a Ravenclaw," Ginevra said.

@Ginevra Tsuchiya

"Yeah... I mean, you do hear about it often, huh? It does seem more common, although I'm glad I've never been affected by it. Are you? I wonder how it changes your point of view, knowing your parents separated even after they were married. It's sad.." Teiki admittedly hadn't thought much about this situation before. She had always been more keen on the curiosities of the world itself, rather than the people who inhabited it. Maybe she needed to change her view about it, or at least, accept that her point of view is quite limited to the vast world that surrounds her on a daily basis. She would have to think about it later, someplace less... loud.

"Siblings? I have two siblings, but they're only 4. They're twins, actually. A Ravenclaw, huh? What's her name? The twins are named Night and Daisy. I sure hope she comes to Hogwarts, it's such an amazing place! How do you feel about your sister? Not going to lie, sometimes the twins are so annoying, but most of the time they are little lights of energy, trying to go as fast as they can carry themselves. Honestly, it's kind of funny." Teiki laughed a bit, remembering how Night and Daisy would race each other, both somehow managing to fall into the mud. She smiled, before turning back to the conversation.

(I bolded the questions, so that it might be easier to see...)

Beatrice was in awe.

She had never seen such a magnificent interior in her life, or at least not in her Muggle life.

Hundreds of rows of candles, supposedly floating in mid-air, illuminated the Great Hall, casting shimmers and shadows over the glittering cutlery, plates and goblets. Food and numerous commodities lay upon these plates - heaps and heaps of food, more food than Beatrice had ever seen. And, when she looked past the glinting towers of wax, she was met with a more enchanting piece of wizardry: what she would usually perceive as the domed roof of the castle was capitulated in celestial bodies. Stars, constellations and glints of light were cloaked within a silky, dark curtain, far above the heads of many students.

This was a definite change to the kitchen table, of which she had previously dined at, at her childhood home.

Her thoughts were hastily disrupted by a congregation of Ravenclaw students who had bumbled past her, knocking her arm gently. And, with a swallowful of confidence, Beatrice had stepped across the polished floor - her shoes squeaking slightly in embarrassment - and had approached an unoccupied section of wooden bench. Her hair was falling from the quickly scrunched ponytail that she had made in the early morning. Wisps of curls framed her face. Her new robes swished rather airily by her sides, irritating her wrists with the new woven texture. The varied aroma of food enticed her, causing her stomach to grumble in yearning. Upon lightly sitting, she had hastily helped herself to toast, decorated with a messy smear of raspberry jam, and a couple spoonfuls of fruit salad, glancing around to the other recipients of breakfast.