Errand Lunar Year Lanterns Group 1

The deadline has been extended to 12:00am PST January 26th, 2020. Those who still need to post their entrances include @Lycan Grey and @May Moonstar.

Mat just finished breakfast in the Great Hall with the other Hufflepuff students, and it was time to go to Transfiguration. Today, it was Chinese New year, and May new something new was in the air. The Transfiguration class was about to do something fun today. May entered the classroom, and, I was beautifully decorated with red courtains and puffed up red and gold couchions.
Adniribg what was everywhere, she entered and sat on a table. By the looks of it, the Transfiguration classroom was about to do Chinese lanterns! Well, that would be fun.
She sat on the table and looked everywhere. It seemed that they were all going to do Chinese lanterns. She smiled to all of the class, mostly to herself and asked, "We are going to do Chinese lanterns right? If so, it will be very very fun!" And she picked up the scissors, the paper and markers and begin todo her Chinese lantern. It was, very fun. Mostly because May liked to do fun things obviously.
She kept doing her Chinese lanterns, wondering how the Chinese people were really celebrating right now.
Maybe they were flying kite's, dragon kite's and doing lanterns. She would never know, or, May should at least ask a Chinese or Asian person about it.

Interacting with @Ruka Tân, @Selim Faust, and @Alexx Séverin
Mentioning @Piérre Marchonné

"That was probably your worst yet," Ruka had told Jack with a laugh, playfully shoving him.

"Oh, come on. You're just bitter because it makes so much sense," Jack answered with a sneer, gently nudging him back with an elbow to the ribs. That sneer was quickly wiped off his face by Ruka's jeer about him being his hero and the Slytherin rolled his eyes, but the smile he again tried desperately to keep off his face didn't stay off for long.

"Yeah, yeah..."

The question about if Selim 'loved people the same way he did' caused Jack to pause a moment in confusion before laughing aloud. "Well...yes and no," he answered, glancing at the snake boy as he tried to figure out how to word things. "He's nicer and more polite to them outwardly, but I get the feeling he sees the majority - if not everyone - as lesser beings."

Noticing Ruka's attention drift to the newcomer boy, Jack followed his gaze and had to look away again at once in order to hide his silent laughter. Not only did the Slytherin find the other Gryffindor first year's behavior to be curious, with him rocking back and forth on the floor with his knees to his chest, but Ruka's reaction was quite unexpected in itself.

Jack hadn't ever thought he'd see the other Gryffindor roll his eyes at another student unless he meant it playfully, particularly not of his own house. In this instance, however, he didn't seem to mean it as a joke, which made it all the more amusing to the redheaded Slytherin.

The deliberate use of his first name snapped Jack's attention back to Ruka's conversation with Selim and he threw the other copper-haired boy a withering look. Still, he said nothing, not wanting to make a big deal of the use of his first name lest Ruka or even Selim be encouraged to continue it. Upon being nudged, he leaned over to lightly flick Ruka in the arm with his index finger and thumb as retaliation. He didn't imagine the other boy might have assumed his and Selim's relationship to be anything more than what he had stated them to be: dorm mates.

The sound of a new voice caused Jack to search for the source and it didn't take him long to discover her. She was a Slytherin third-year he had seen around and heard enough about, having learned she was a school newspaper editor as well as on his house's quidditch team, but he hadn't bothered to try to meet her in person yet. Her comment about having thought there would be more people caused him to first frown in bewilderment and then grin in delight.

"What? Are we not enough for you, Quidditch player?" he taunted cheerfully. He was tired enough of people his age. Perhaps an older student would have provided more of an intellectual challenge. Perhaps Selim might have agreed with him if he caught his drift.

The snake didn't seem to have much life in him today, though. Not that he usually did with his fatigue from his insomnia, but at the moment he seemed to have less than normal and he was scratching at that place he often scratched sometimes when he was in a negative mood.

What exact mood that was, Jack couldn't guess, but it didn't seem to deter him much. "Well, obviously," he snorted when Selim denied having a boyfriend. "The only people foolish enough to try properly dating as first years is Rafael D'Spacito and Gem Stuart. But seriously? You think you already know what romantic and sexual orientation you are?"

He shook his head, sneering under his breath. It seemed silly to him that the snake was already confident enough to announce what he thought his orientations were, but it wasn't as though that couldn't change with time. Jack supposed most of their peers were aroace at the moment.

Nodding minutely at Selim's comment on formal wear, he acknowledged it, but said nothing more on the matter. He was more curious to hear his dorm mate's exhange with the fire-dancer and his mouth twisted as he tried not to laugh again upon being called out on bothering people.

"You'll have to forgive him," Jack told Ruka, patting Selim's shoulder before finally releasing him. "Fangs used to have more of a sense of humor, but he's been a lot more cranky as of late. I blame his lack of sleep."

Turning to answer the raven-haired student, he replied dramatically, "Pester? Moi? Perish the thought! I just thought I'd introduce you to another potential 'ally' since you enjoy them so much. This Gryffindor actually has a brain, if you can believe it," he added, reaching out to tap Ruka's temples without looking away from Selim. "And I thought I'd keep you company, since you seemed so lonely."

The last sentence dripped with sarcasm, but Jack grinned boyishly at Selim nevertheless. He knew full well the snake would have preferred solitude to his company, but he had his reasons for joining him for this errand. He had no doubt they would come to light soon enough, however, so he wasn't in any hurry to spell it out for his dorm mate.

"I find it more curious you're asking why I'm joining you. Were you really expecting a direct answer?" He inclined his head, regarding the snake. Perhaps Selim was simply growing too weary of him to keep up with his shenanigans. "...Tiring of me already, are we, Fangs?"

Interacting with @Ruka Tân @Jack Burnett @Selim Faust @Piérre Marchonné @Alexx Séverin @May Moonstar @Cypresse Lian

It was a great honor when Professor Lian asked her one day if she would like to help out with the errand to share their Chinese culture and tradition with the students. There was absolutely no reason for her to reject that offer. When she first enrolled in Hogwarts, it was a pleasant surprise for her to learn that their Transfiguration Professor is Chinese but she only attended her classes and never got the opportunity to really speak Chinese with her. She already had huge respect for Professor Lian, despite her being blind, she was still very sharp-minded and her lessons were strict but detailed. Her task was to help Professor Lian to show the participates how to make Chinese Lanterns since she couldn't really do much while being blind. Griseldis's role was pretty much being an assistant.

The first group would arrive soon in the Transfiguration classroom, she was told to dress in a Chinese traditional outfit. Griseldis still the red and golden dress her mom originally made for her to join the ball and well...the ball was a disaster but it was a miracle that the dress wasn't ruined completely, and the House-elves were very nice and helped to fix her dress. This time, she would be wearing it with pride and honor. And she was certain there would not be any misfortune happen today.

Reducio

A sketch of Griseldis in her Chinese traditional dress
(Will color her again without the mask)

When the Gryffindor Prefect stepped inside the classroom, the sudden explosion noises of firecrackers from both sides almost startled her but then she laughed it heartfully, she was awe seeing of the whole familiar decoration,  it reminded her of the Chinese New Year she celebrated with her family and Chinese relatives, those memories really made her feel the warmth and pure joy. She then saw the Professor wearing in a traditional black Qipao, she went to greet her in Chinese and gave her new year wishes, "你好，簾博士！这里是梅，祝你新年快乐! (Hello, Professor Lian! This is *Mei [Griseldis's Chinese middle name, means plum blossom], Happy Chinese New Year!)", then she turned around and saw there were already a few students in the classroom, she recognized the rest except one young Hufflepuff girl who she had yet to be acquaintance with. She quickly waved at them with a cheerful smile on her face, "Hello Group 1! I'm really happy to see you all here to participate in this special errand our Transfiguration Professor hosted. First, let me wish you all a Happy Chinese New Year!" Griseldis made the fist-and palm salute to them, it was a common etiquette used when meeting people in China. "I'm Griseldis Edelhardt, 2nd year Gryffindor Prefect and I'm only here as Professor Lian's assistant. This Group will be focusing on the Chinese Zodiac theme so the rest I will leave the Professor to explain to you."

Ruka eyed Jack‘s dorm mate curiously as Jack described him of thinking other people to be beneath him. He wondered, for a split second, whether that was a genuine part of the other boy‘ personality, or if it was just one of those fronts Jack liked to put up with other people as well.
The black haired Slytherin seemed perfectly polite, albeit a little bored by his surroundings and there was just something that felt a little wrong to Ruka, in the way  him and Jack were talking to each other like they were business partners rather than closely acquainted dorm mates.

Ruka fumbled a little uncomfortably with the sleeves of his cloak as the conversation continued on about things he didn‘t seem to have a clue of, and people he‘d never met before.

Aroace, the other Slytherin boy had said, and Jack was responding like it was the most obvious word in the world when Ruka didn‘t think he‘d even be able to pronounce it without biting his tongue.

Not wanting to seem like an idiot, he decided not to say anything about it, brows slightly furrowed as he tried to follow the conversation. 
Part of him wanted to slowly shuffle away, maybe talk to the girl who‘d commented on how few people they were, or maybe just to stand in a corner by himself until the Errand was over, but he was pretty sure Jack would have called him out on that and he really wanted to avoid everyone realising just how strangely unfitting he was feeling.

A small smile tugged Ruka‘s lips as Selim officially introduced himself, and he nodded in acknowledgment, shooting Jack a curious glance but deciding not to ask the question on the tip of his tongue; Fangs?
Clearly Jack and Selim had known each other for longer than he himself had known Jack, and close bonds could warrant nicknames and inside jokes that nobody else was really meant to pry in.
Taking the two boys‘ nicknames for each other as a sign of closeness, Ruka decided to, just for a moment, focus his attention on wrapping his fingers around the picture of his dad he had brought with him in his pocket for moral support.

Being tapped on the temple by Jack was what brought him back to the situation at hand, and he raised his eyebrows at the Slytherin for his use of the word „ally“.

What was that supposed to mean?

It sounded like they were gearing up for battle and Ruka just happened to have qualities that might benefit them in the war to come.
Over the past few days Ruka had heard Jack use a multitude of words to make sure he wouldn‘t accidentally call them friends, but ally was surely a new one. He wasn‘t quite sure if he should feel a little offended by Jack talking about him like he was some sort of vaguely useful prop, but he‘d learned enough about the Slytherin to know not to be too sensitive around him and about the things he said.

„I guess I‘ll take that as a compliment?“ he only said, furrowing his brows in mild confusion as he continued to observe the conversation between the two Slytherins. There was a strange mix of hostile playfulness in the way they talked, as if Jack had motive for pestering Selim when he clearly would have preferred staying by himself but neither of them had the intention of addressing it just yet.

Letting out a little sigh of relief, Ruka tore his attention from the two boys to instead look at the Gryffindor Prefect, Gris, in her red and golden dress, who had announced her presence to the group.

Ruka assumed that meant they were about to start, and hopefully it was going to give him an excuse to slightly distance himself from Jack and Selim lest the two of them made him feel any more stupid than he already did.

Cy grinned, smile laced with her trademark mischief, as the firecrackers went off, the snapping and crackling sounding off the high walls along with several shocked voices. In hindsight, maybe some of her students might not appreciate the surprise, but then she'd spent three years in America, where these things were illegal, so of course she'd need her fun here! Besides, anyone who'd been in her class before ought to be prepared for the falling off chairs that tended to accompany her lectures. She was nothing if not spontaneous.

"Hey, everyone," she greeted, reaching behind her to clear a section of her desk so that she could sit on it again. "Take a seat wherever! Or stand, like a weirdo. Dunno why you'd want to take the extra energy."

The first two entering, @Ruka Tân and @Jack Burnett judging from their voices, bickered a bit on their way in. One of them almost swore in front of her, to which she bit back a remark, remembering that she, too, had rules to follow in her position. A third, @Selim Faust, was the only to greet her, in a tone far more formal than her own. Oh, well. Most of her students hadn't shaken their formality with her, even if she'd quite clearly dropped all sense of it with them. Their choice, anyway.

In this case, though, she snorted. "Not like I'd be able to tell if you did dress up, unless you went around yelling about it. Once everyone gets a seat, I'll start the story.

"Hey," she chided Jack upon hearing his protest. "To be fair, Japanese and Chinese culture overlap on a lot of points. Bringing your own culture into someone else's isn't a bad thing." She paused to mutter, "...God, I sound like such a professor... might have something to do with being a professor. At any rate, you can bring whatever culture you want in here, even if this is technically a Chinese New Year celebration. After all, if you push other peoples' cultures out, that would be called ethnic cleansing, one of the many cons of nationalism, which is typically frowned upon, similarly to other feats like falling asleep during class or genocide."

It wasn't long before Cy heard the excited voice of another familiar student, @Piérre Marchonné. "Hey, Piérre," she grinned, trying not to laugh at his antics. She obliged him anyway, flicking her wand to set off a few more firecrackers at the door. Yeah, the Gryffindors were probably going to kill her with noise complaints tomorrow. "Y'know, I'd totally do that, but sometimes when you're trying to transfigure cauldrons into cats with a high chance of explosion, a room full of explosives tends to violate safety measures.

Cy nodded to the two other newcomers, @Alexx Séverin and @May Moonstar, before turning to her assistant for the day. "你好，梅！新年快樂，感謝你願意幫忙。" She turned back to face the front of the class again. "Hey, everyone! Gris might be taking too little credit for herself, seeing as she helped me plan half of this thing, but welcome! Happy lunar new year to all of you; I hope I didn't scare anyone off with the firecrackers already. If, by chance, you didn't all wander into a random classroom for no reason, I'll presume you're here for the Errand. On the tables you'll find craft supplies that you can use to make paper lanterns, a critical part of the traditions of Chinese New Year. There's also extra ink and brushes if you want to try your hand at calligraphy, which Gris can also help you on - because, as you can see and I clearly cannot, that would be difficult for me to do. Any questions so far, before we begin?"

Reducio

Translation: Hello, Mei! Happy new year, and thank you for being willing to help.

Interacting with @Jack Burnett & @Ruka Tân

Selim chuckled in good nature at his teacher's response to his statements and her rebuttal to the fox's words. Truely, she was one of the professors he held in a better light then others, despite transfiguration being his worst subject (and not because of his own faults... his wand was just... infuriating).

After the loud entrance of a rather loud Gryffindor boy, Selim noted that an older Slytherin Student enter the room. He vaguely remembered her being a Quidditch player. She looked as unimpressed as he felt.

Burnett, typically, through a verbal barb at her, making him huff lightly in amusement. Then the fox responded to Selim's answer to his teasing question.

"Well, obviously," The redhead snorted. "The only people foolish enough to try properly dating as first years is Rafael D'Spacito and Gem Stuart. But seriously? You think you already know what romantic and sexual orientation you are?"

Selim nodded in agreement with his dormmate's first statement, before answering his question, "Currently, my choice 'orientation' seems to be accurate," he tapped his finger on the table rhythmically, ignoring the redhead's disapproving scoff and headshaking. "It may or may not change in the future, orientation tends to do that. Though I must say, I prefer it to fawning over others in pursuit of such vague concepts as 'romance', or 'attraction'." He scoffed at the words. Honestly, such fickle things like love mostly just made him want to roll his eyes. In his opinion, love only got in the way of practicality and ambitions... unless your ambition was love, for some God-awful reason. Selim himself simply saw it as an obstacle to overcome and the spawn of fangirls who stalk you as you walk home.

His way of thinking about the idea of love is admittedly tampered with, seeing as his parents only married because of practicality and good genes, despite being distant cousins. In fact, he was quite sure that very few of his clansmen married out of 'love'. He knew, one or two couples who did, but his clan were naturally cold on the outside, so it was hard to tell that they were in love. This was partially due to the type of business his clan did in the shadows, and partially because they were raised to be cold, as Selim had been.

Physical attraction and anything related to it on the other hand...

He resisted a shudder, nails digging into the table briefly as a memory arose. Forcing it down, he slowly unclenched his hands, relaxing a bit.

Physical attraction was not something he wanted to give nor receive.

"You'll have to forgive him," Burnett told Tân, patting his shoulder and making him flinch a bit. "Fangs used to have more of a sense of humor, but he's been a lot more cranky as of late. I blame his lack of sleep."

Selim merely rolled his eyes in response, before listening to the fox's dramatic response to his statement.

"Pester? Moi? Perish the thought! I just thought I'd introduce you to another potential 'ally' since you enjoy them so much. This Gryffindor actually has a brain, if you can believe it," the redhead added, reaching out to tap Ruka's temples without looking away from him. "And I thought I'd keep you company, since you seemed so lonely."

His last sentence was obviously full of sarcasm, accompanied by a boyish grin.

"I guess I'll take that as a complement?" The Gryffindor boy seemed mildly lost and uncomfortable with the whole situation. Selim pitied him.

"I find it more curious you're asking why I'm joining you. Were you really expecting a direct answer?" He inclined his head, regarding the Selim with a faint hint of contemplation. "...Tiring of me already, are we, Fangs?"



Selim stared at him for a minute, reading his micro-expressions and tone of voice. The fox was always a hard one to read, a refreshing challenge, and he had to look and listen hard to find any underlying emotion beneath his possibly false words.

From what he could tell, the question was not exactly teasing, though he wasn't entirely sure. He may have been genuine in his question, which was understandable, Selim hadn't given him much of a reason for his avoidance of him. Really, he had just assumed the fox would know why... though perhaps not.

Better safe then sorry. Miscommunication could make for a bad partnership.

Of course, he wasn't actually tired of the redhead overall, just more guarded. Of course, the fox wouldn't exactly know why if he saw past his mask of boredom.

He looked away, fingers tapping the wood of the desk once more. "Not at all, Fox, just.... recovering." He spoke, tone vague and seemingly uncaring, if one didn't know the truth behind that certain word. "I doubt you'll ever grow boring. In fact, I think that's practically impossible for you to do." He glanced back at him from the corner of his eye, small smirk pulling at his lips, despite there actually being no emotion behind it. It faded soon after.

He turned to both the fox and the Gryffindor, "So, how did you two meet?" His tone was full of idle curiosity, though his eyes held a calculating glint, "You seem rather well-acquainted."

Selim hadn't seen much of Burnett or his antics in the days he had been avoiding him, seems the fox grabbed a new person to bother when he wasn't there. Though, he wondered what type of relationship the fox had with the Gryffindor... was it similar to his relationship with him? Doubtful. Or perhaps like his relationship with Averill? Maybe something entirely different, new, and most likely unexpected.

If the fox perhaps cared for the boy beside him... well, that was leverage... a large weakness he could exploit, if need be. Though with their contract, Selim would most likely never need to use such an underhanded tactic.

...Though, it would be interesting to see what lengths the redhead would go to to keep something he cared for safe.

A spike of cold intrigue shot up at the thought. He was immensely curious about an experiment such as that, it almost made him want to try it...

He smothered it down, locking it away for later observation and use. If he did something like that... well, going by how the fox reacted to him talking to Averill when they first met, it was more likely that it would just stir up bad blood. He would be pushing away a (tentative) ally too soon, the idea especially grew worst when the fact that they had a contract came into play.

That didn't stop the morbid curiosity bubbling below, but he'd address that later.

Instead he studied the Gryffindor, the redhead said he 'had a brain', meaning the boy was probably interesting enough to catch his dormmates attention, and therefore possibly his own.

He supposed he'd find out.

Interacting with @Ruka Tân, @Selim Faust, and @Cypresse Lian
Mentioning @Griseldis Edelhardt

It struck Jack that Ruka had been unusually quiet since he'd introduced the second-year to his dorm mate and he glanced over to notice the other boy messing with his sleeves. His brows furrowed slightly as he tried to understand what might have been the matter. Perhaps it was just the unsettling feeling Selim sometimes gave perceptive people? The snake did behave strangely formally for an 11-year-old and Jack guessed it had been due to his upbringing - not to mention his lesser-known, twisted personality.

However, as he and Selim continued to talk, he found that Ruka's subtle indications of unease continued to persist. When Selim introduced himself, the copper-haired boy adopted a polite smile before shooting Jack an inquiring look, but didn't outright ask what Jack had been certain he would. Was he afraid of offending Selim by questioning the nicknames? It seemed so unlike the Ruka he knew to not make some comment or other about them at least. Regardless, Jack intended to explain later, but it was still odd.

Even as he watched out the corner of his eye, the second-year reached for something in his pocket. Though he didn't take it out, Jack's mouth pressed into a concerned line as he worried he knew what it might have been. He had seen Ruka with it on other occasions, after all, and he decided then that they would need to discuss more in private than nicknames after they finished this errand.

Again, he saw the unspoken question in the older boy's raised brows when he was called an ally and also again, he was surprised that Ruka had chosen to remain quiet instead of bringing it up. He had thought that if the Gryffindor had had a problem with anything he'd said, he would have felt at ease enough to tell Jack, so why not now? Because Selim was around?

"I guess I‘ll take that as a compliment?" was all he said, puzzlement exhibited in his voice and features.

Jack might have answered, but Ruka had already redirected his attention to Gris and Professor Lian by then. His sigh of relief had also not escaped the Slytherin's awareness, perplexing Jack even more. As they were about to begin, however, now didn't seem like the best time to bring it up. There would be time to talk properly later. He would make sure of it.

"Hello Group 1! I'm really happy to see you all here to participate in this special errand our Transfiguration Professor hosted.!"

When Gris appeared and welcomed them all, Jack couldn't help sneering and muttering under his breath. "'Hello Group 1?'" he repeated quietly, only meaning for the others at his table to hear. "Calling us collectively by the order number of our group. What a personal touch."

He had forgotten, however, what a firecracker Professor Lian was herself. He was usually so transfixed by her lessons that he didn't get to banter with her much, but her casual demeanor made him look forward to the opportunity now. The comment about not being able to tell if people dressed up made him laugh, but it was her retort regarding his comment on cultures that prompted him to respond, a big grin as obvious on his face as it was audible in his voice.

"With all due respect, I'm sure they overlap, Professor," he answered with uncharacteristic politeness that, if the teacher knew him well enough, she would recognize as his being playful. "But I was concerned about my dear dorm mate's comfort. I wouldn't have wanted him to feel out of place." He glanced briefly at Selim with a smirk. "Now that I know neither he or you would have minded, though, I guess my concerns were naught.

"But also," he continued cheekily, "I didn't say bringing your own culture into someone else's was a bad thing, did I? Nor about pushing others' cultures out, nor genocide. How morbid. No, I just thought it might have been a little confusing to people trying to learn about Chinese culture if they saw Fangs in a hakama and had no explanation that it wasn't Chinese." With a little shrug, he added, "Good thing that's not the case."

When Selim went on about orientation, Jack sneered and shook his head again. "My point is you're way too serious, Fangs. Most people our age don't even bother finding out about that stuff, let along thinking about it so deeply. In short: It's not natural. Cut it out. You're giving me the creeps."

Perhaps he might have been giving himself the creeps, too, because the snake appeared to attack the table with tensed, clawed hands for a moment. Jack knew better than to draw attention to the behavior, as well as the flinch he felt when he touched Selim's shoulder, but he kept it in mind for later.

Apparently, everyone seemed to prefer to keep their uneasiness to themselves today. But Jack supposed he wasn't one to talk. He was grateful when Selim chose to be forthcoming about why he had been avoiding him, especially because Jack also severely disliked miscommunication, but it still bewildered him a little.

"I get needing to recover, but why does that require avoiding me?" he wanted to know. At least Jack, as Selim's dorm mate, thought he knew what the snake felt he needed to recover from, so it wasn't as if the raven-haired student had anything to hide from him about that. Did he?

Selim's compliment about doubting Jack would ever grow boring was flattering, certainly, but he knew the snake well enough to be familiar with his flattery as a manipulation technique. He also knew it worked well enough as a diversion from a main subject one might not have wanted to discuss, so perhaps Selim didn't want to go into that right now. Another conversation to be had later, Jack supposed - right after the one with Ruka.

The question regarding how he and Ruka met turned the tables on Jack as it was now his turn to be made uncomfortable. It wasn't as though he hadn't expected the question, but he still got a little embarrassed thinking about it. Sneaking a look at Ruka, he wondered if the fire-dancer would have preferred to tell or not.

The other boy seemed to want to keep himself more aloof for the time being, so Jack simply said, "I was wandering around one day and I ran into this kid throwing around fire-tipped sticks. He had quick reflexes and an even quicker wit. Called me out on a few things, so I got interested." With the minimum told, if Ruka wanted to add anything more, he could have done so easily.

Flashing the snake a look in response to the calculated glint he'd seen in those yellow eyes, Jack dropped another very subtle, wordless warning. He doubted his dorm mate would try anything foolish, but, as he himself knew, sometimes the urge to test certain things was too much to pass up, no matter what was at stake.

"..On the tables you'll find craft supplies that you can use to make paper lanterns, a critical part of the traditions of Chinese New Year. There's also extra ink and brushes if you want to try your hand at calligraphy, which Gris can also help you on - because, as you can see and I clearly cannot, that would be difficult for me to do. Any questions so far, before we begin?"

"Professor Lian, what is the relation of paper lanterns and calligraphy to the Chinese New Year?" Jack wanted to know. "And how does the theme of the Chinese Zodiac tie in to what we're doing? Didn't you say you would tell us a story?"

@Ruka Tân, @Selim Faust, @Griseldis Edelhardt, @Jack Burnett, & @Cypresse Lian

There was something about Miss Lian Piérre absolutely ADORED. She wasn’t afraid to take a joke, and in fact seemed to subtly encourage it at times. The additional crackle of the firecracker made Piérre laugh again and he clapped again in excitement as the puppets overhead twirled and danced in the air.

As soon as Gris introduced herself, Piérre couldn’t help but wave eccentrically. ”Hi Gris! This is AWESOME!” Griseldis spoke to Miss Lian and the teacher replied in a language he didn’t quite understand, but still trying thought it was pretty cool. Piérre assumed that since it was the Chinese New Year, it had to be Chinese, and with the mention of one of the other group members talking about Japan, Piérre could see why it would be a little confusing. He knew a little bit about being confused for another nationality. Italian wasn’t a common nationality for the school of Scottish, British, and Irish nations, and his combined quirks of accent, unknown blood heritage, and piqued ears tended to make him more of a point of curiosity than of normalcy.

At this point he was lucky he hadn’t run into many people who didn’t like his kind... yet.

At the mention of crafts, Piérre bit his lip in worry. His artistic skill wasn’t the best. He was meant to be socially or visually entertaining, not really creative... But surely it wouldn’t all go completely wrong! Maybe he would learn something from this occasion, and maybe he could show off the skill to his twin when he went back home for the summer.

Another train of guilt rammed into him and Piérre mentally kicked himself as he reminded himself that he had yet to write a letter back to Maddie and Romeo. It had been nearly four months since his last owl. He was a terrible twin and son, wasn’t he?

Nervousness and slight discomfort aside, Piérre decided that in order to mess up in making a project, he would have to at least try his hand at it. ”Cool!” He chirped excitedly. ”Is there gonna be a step by step process or something? Are there instructions for us to follow? I’m not really artsy...” Piérre looked at the ground, tapping the tips of his index fingers together in a nervous fashion.

One of the other boys mentioned a story, and that caused Piérre to light up like a light again. He played with one of the flaps of his Rat hat and nodded along, his smile growing wider and brighter at every passing word. The group of three boys he had watched but not yet interacted with up to this point seemed to be good friends. Maybe he could get to know them better as well? That was the point of this event, after all! ”Yeah! What’s the story? I’m a Rat, and there were lots of mentions of the rats with the other events...” He chimed in happily, looking between Miss Lian and Griseldis.

When it was quiet in the room, Piérre broke it by clapping again and throwing his hands into the air after he had finished crowing aloud. ”Let’s start! Let’s start! Happy Chinese New Year!”