ERRAND Embroidery 101 Finished

Interacting with @Hjørdis Jensen.

Clay sighed but with a smile. Her grandmother had told her that one day she'd find herself embroidering, and her she was about to do just that. The elderly woman had learned the craft when she was younger than Clay and evidence was strewn all around their house. She had tried to get Clay to try it but after stabbing herself with a needle more than once she deemed it not fit for her. But once she heard about it she immediately thought of her grandmother, and how delighted the woman would be to receive something embroidered from her granddaughter.

The young Gryffindor made her way to the courtyard. She had been there practically a million times by now but something was different. Maybe it was the fact that this was where she has seen another side of Professor Jensen, something more...cordial. But she probably wouldn't say to the Head of Slytherin's face, less she wanted to see how 'cordial' the woman would be on her poor handwriting.

She knew next to nothing about embroidery. Clay knew that it involved making designs with fabric, but that was far as she knew. For some reason now, though, she was kind of excited to learn, besides the fact that she wanted to send something to her bedridden grandmother. She figured that there was more to it than slicing and dicing one's fingers for the sake of art.

Clay strolled into the courtyard, dressed in a plain grey t-shirt and a pair of worn jeans. She had a pair of black sneakers on with multicolored laces. Before she had left she had thrown on her Gryffindor scarf, one of the thinner yet wider ones, in case it got too windy. Her thick hair was tied into a low ponytail so she could see properly.

On seeing the professor, Clay sauntered over, grinning. "Afternoon, Professor," she said, before wandering over to the instructions. It was all pretty straightforward, as far as she could tell, though she knew that she'd need help eventually.

There was fabric that looked like linen, hoops of different sizes, soluble markers, needles, blunted scissors, and a wide range of colored embroidery floss. It reminded Clay so much if home that she just stared for a minute before catching herself.

She needed to figure out what she would make. Clay knew her grandmother wouldn't mind anything in particular, she'd just appreciate the thought, but the girl wanted it to be meaningful. What does Yaya like..., she pondered, gazing over the range of supplies. Maybe she should just make something simple, like a heart or 'I love you, Abuella'. But it felt too mediocre in her opinion.

Clay thought of making something with a lion and a snake, since she was a Gryffindor and her cousin was a Slytherin. She wasn't bad at art, she was actually rather good at it, but the way Clay wanted to do it was probably going to be too complicated for her first, almost, time embroidering.

"Wait," she muttered, coming to a sudden notion. Her design didn't have to be too complicated, actually. Clay was keeping the Gryffindor and Slytherin concept but was going to make it simpler. Her idea was just to have three colors, gold, red, and green, the last two representing the infamously rivaling houses. Red and green were going to be divided in the middle with gold, which had 'Gryfferin' written in the middle, if she could manage the calligraphy. Maybe she could get Professor Jensen's help with that.

Clay went over to the woman and explained her idea. "So the concept is Gryfferin. I think I can figure it out mostly on my own from your instructions, Professor, but I think I might need help with the writing. I want it to be cursive and...adults usually have better handwriting than me." She didn't add the fact that she thought that everyone had better handwriting than her.

She had chosen a hoop the size of her face, a needle, scissors, a marker, and the appropriate colors, setting them up on a table nearby. She realized that she was going to have to just make the outline of each houses mascot in their color instead of coloring one entire half of the fabric, which would take forever. Clay began drawing the design with the markers.

When she finished, she asked the professor, "What do you think?"

Word Count: 740

Once again, Flash was drawn to an event held by his head of house, dead-eyed and completely silent. The task at hand wasn’t brain dead work, nor was it a very solitary activity like last time. No, this was tables full of cloth and string, with the intention of doing embroidery. Flash had no connection at all to the art form, in fact it completely eluded him. He had seen his grandmother doing cross-stitch, but that didn’t appear to be the same thing. He didn’t know how to do cross-stitch anyway, he hated his grandparents. All he knew was that you put the thread in one way, and then bring it back through. It made a bump of the thread visible, and from there one could make patterns.

It wouldn’t be hard to notice the trend, Flash attended most errands, even if it made little sense for him to do so. Even though he hadn’t been asked, he knew Opeila was invested in earning house points for Slytherin. Obediently, Flash continued to earn them when the opportunity arose. Even if she didn’t know he had done it, the resulting number at the end of the month would still reflect her influence over the house to work hard and have Slytherin pride. Honestly, it was a bit of a hollow endeavor for Flash. He felt ambivalent about being a Slytherin. After a year of being one, he didn’t see the point in rallying around houses. There were certainly types you could expect, but a house designation seemed mostly arbitrary. That wasn’t what he did it for anyway, he was doing it in hopes that it would make Opeila happier.

With that, he had arrived to scan the scenario and make a plan. It was outside, which was nice. He also liked Professor Jensen. Though he hadn’t talked to her much, he knew she cared about the children in her care. He knew she had been working hard. The fresh air and warm sun would help lighten his mood, even if he just sat in it and did nothing at all. But that wasn’t the case, he had something that could occupy his hands. Not wanting to bother the already busy professor, Flash took a spot standing by one of the tables and lifelessly read the instructions that were given on a piece of paper by the materials.

Cloth in the hoop. Accomplished easily enough. When he tapped his fingers on it, it made the dull, barely audible beginnings of a drumming sound. Flash stared off into space, drumming his fingers on the cloth with no purpose. He listened to the chatter around him and could even pick out a few of the birds whose songs he recognized. The air smelled like the water in the fountain, as well as a hint of dry wood, possibly stored somewhere nearby. After a short while, he snapped back into the present.

Next, he threaded the needle. He could almost feel offended at the presence of kiddie scissors. It seemed to bother him more than it should have, what reason should he have for disliking safety precautions? He also wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt in an accident. Perhaps it was the reminder that he was a child. That he was small, ineffectual. Practically useless. Regardless, he managed it just fine. All it took was depth perception and a steady hand.

That was when the process was supposed to start. The thread he chose was blue. Why not, it was a pretty color. The instructions suggested making a pattern on the cloth with a water soluble marker. Flash had no intention of making a design, however. His artistic vision was more akin to stream of consciousness. He was just going to make something with no plan at all. Perhaps he would become inspired part way through, or perhaps it would be a hideous waste of materials. It didn’t matter either way, because it was his project to do with as he pleased. No one could tell him he was doing it wrong. Well, at least he hoped no one would. He would probably snap at them if they tried.

He threaded a bit until he got tired of the color, then switched to something different. He sprouted from different directions, sometimes overlapped. He didn’t feel particularly inspired as the time ticked on, but he was also able to find the peace in it. He started to go back to his daydreams, pulling floss through cloth, off in his own world. At times he would let the hoop rest in his lap as he looked off to investigate a noise he heard, or even just to rest his wrist. Time seemed to move on perfectly well without him. At times Flash caught himself looking around at the other students, wondering what was going through their minds. Perhaps confusion, or delight, or sorrow. He wished he could talk to someone, hear them tell him some kind of entertaining story to help pass the time, but he didn't have the energy to engage with others. What had started out at something like frustration slowly became boredom.

As it turned out, doing embroidery wasn't very fulfilling. He thought he might as well have gone on a walk for all the good it did him. He wasn't even sure if putting in the work to earn meaningless house points was worth his precious time. Surely for the professor it was something she meant to share with love, something she enjoyed and hoped others would similarly be encouraged to learn. He could almost feel ashamed for not being more enthusiastic. He simply couldn't muster the enthusiasm for endless threading. It almost seemed like a sick reflection of his own tapestry he thought he had been weaving. Making connections, becoming close with people, being a good person who deserved to be loved. It all just turned into a mess. A jumble of colorful, mismatched threads with seemingly nothing to do with one another. When he saw the finished piece, it made no sense. It just was.

Closed to interaction
If you have an idea, feel free to owl me

Reducio

Word Count: 1014

Interacting with @Hjørdis Jensen

Alexis entered the courtyard and frowned a little. She could felt that today was warm, warmer than yesterday. Alexis has never really appreciated any kind of rising temperature, she missed the cold breeze already. Alexis has never been a fan of summer, she has no idea why. The winter and the snow always sound more appealing to her more than anything else. She was wearing a navy jumper, a grey plaid skirt, and a nice pair of ankle boots. She looked down at her long sleeves and sighed. Probably not ideal to wear this today. but what can she says? She own so many of these. Her gaze shot up to the light blue sky, the sun was bright shining through the white clouds. She shook her head a little and put a small smile on her face, she will not let a little sunlight stop her from getting on with her day.

She heard that Professor Jensen has host another activity outside, Embroidery, to be exact. To say, Alexis was excited, was an understatement. It has been a long time since she has done any, her grandmother used to teach her all sort of things, sewing, embroidery, et cetera, et cetera. While her grandfather would teach her archery, horse riding and all that. She remembered one time her grandfather actually wanted her to try fishing, she outright refused and pouting for three days straight, like a little child she was. Truthfully, she missed them so much. The last time she saw them was at her family’s gala at New Year’s Eve last year, where her family hosted it. They’re always so kind and loving, constantly bringing their grandchildren countless gifts.

Alexis has designed what she was going to stitch today, it was a quite simple design. An eagle, her house’s representative animal, and her house initial, a letter ‘R’. She was hoping to show her grandmother that her years of teaching has finally paid off and show off her house pride a little bit.

“Greetings, Professor Jensen” She said once she walked close enough to the table in the corner, the one that Professor Jensen was sitting at, smiling politely.

“My grandmother has taught me a few things when I was younger, but I think I’m going to need a head start before I begin. It has been a while since I’ve done one of these...” She explained her experience to the Professor, so she would know her limitations and could give her the right advice. Alexis showed the Professor the design she has brought with her, a piece of paper where she drew the picture down. She listened to the Professor’s instructions closely, she didn’t want to make any mistake. Professor pointed her into the direction of a table where all the tools and materials needed was prepared and explained what each of them are for. She memorized everything and prepared herself mentally to get to work.

“Thank you so much, Professor.” After Professor finished instructing her, Alexis walked to the table. She picked a linen fabric big enough to at least cover both of her hands, a marker, a scissors, a needle and an embroidery hoop in medium size, not too big not too small. Lastly she chose the floss’s colour, she chose a dark blue one, it’s remind her of the night sky she loves so much and another two shades of brown that looked a little bit reddish. As she walked to the empty table she noticed the scissors were a little bit dull, she wondered if it’s going a problem later.

She started by putting the fabric into the hoop and secured it. Then she used the marker to lightly trace the line of her design onto the fabric. She picked it up to the sunlight and see the sketch, she smiled. She followed by thread the dark blue floss through the eye of the needle. She started by stitching a letter ‘R’. It took her a while to finally finished the big letter, she was proud of herself. I’m definitely going to keep this.

She changed the floss to prepare for the eagle stitch. It took her a lot longer to finish the eagle than it took her to finish the initial. At first, she was going to stitches all the details of the eagle but now? She decided against it. It probably going to take too long to do it. Now that she has the eagle’s shadow and the letter finished, she decided to stitch her name onto the eagle’s wing too, ‘Alexis Asterion’.

It looked good enough for her, her grandmother would be proud. But it missing something, it looked too empty. She walked back to the table where the Professor set all the tools and materials again. She needed another colour to stitch something else. She stood there, thinking about what would make her handiwork looked better without looking like a mess. Finally, she’d chosen.

Alexis picked out a dark red floss, she decided to stitch a couple more roses to decorate. Alexis always like to keep things simple and minimal instead of too much detail. For her, it would look messy and unorganized. She went back to the table she previously sat and continued to work. She stitched roses scattered around and put her needle down. She decided that this was finished, it looked exactly like what she intended it to. She took the finished embroidery fabric out of the hoop, placed it neatly on the table and admired her work. She can’t wait to show it to her grandmother. Sewing had been more fun than she remembered, probably because this time she didn’t felt forced to do it. She could not stop the smile filled with pride to spread across her face, she felt like she have outdone herself. She’s definitely going to owl her grandparents after this.

With her chin held high, she took the fabric and got up from where she was sitting at. She walked towards the table where Professor Jensen was sitting at and handed it to her. “I’m done, Professor. Here. What do you think?”

WC : 1026

Katrina was a far cry from an artistic person when it came to anything but sketching. However, she somehow found herself outside in the Courtyard. She listened in quietly from a pillar on the edge of the yard. The lioness' mom had tried to teach her to embroider, but her 9-year-old self didn't have the patience. In an attempt to satisfy her deceased mother, she found her 12-year-old self coming to embroider.

She grabbed an average sized hoop and needles. She went ahead and grabbed a red square of linen and gold, black, and crimson thread. Might as well show her house colors for once. Materials in hand, the girl found a quiet spot on the edge of the grass and sat herself down.

It wasn't a sad or solemn activity per say, but more pensive and quiet. Katrina felt pretty detached today and hoped that this would help her. Her mind had floated and her couldn't find the focus to do much of anything.

It came as a surprise as her hands began working. Threading the needle and beginning to work came as a familiar movement. She didn't even need to think as the muscle memory so long trapped in the back of her mind came forward.

Katrina did everything she could in order not to cry. The feeling she had was as if her mom's hands were guiding her needle. The presence around her was calm and tranquil the aura that had always followed her mom. Even the faint smell of pine needles drifted on the air, the scent of her mother. It had been far too long since she had felt this level of freedom and tranquility.

Before she knew it, Katrina had made a Gryffindor crest. Not the complicated one of the lion with designs around it, but a simple shield shape with the letter G in the middle. There were alternating sectors of red and gold.

A faint smile touched her face. Her mother had never been confidant with her going to a school of magic. In fact, Katrina's last memory of them was their huddled, frightened, face as she stepped into the Leaky Cauldron. From there Katrina had done the rest on her own. No help from her parents. But this, this was closure. Her mom's ghost had finally accepted Katrina for who she was.

Katrina finished by adding her name in gold on the underside of the crest. Instead of Katrina Walker, she simply wrote 'Kat'. The pet name she had accepted from her friend here.

Katrina tucked the fabric in her satchel and drew out her sketchbook. On it, she drew herself, leaning against the tree, just as she was in real life. Her mother however, who was not actually there, stood just to the side of her shoulder looking down with a face of love and patience. In the background was the Hogwarts castle and a dragon played in the Great Lakes. In Katrina's hand was the crest she had just embroidered.

Katrina finished the drawing adding shading and finishing details, before tucking it away in her satchel again. She had successfully filled several hours of a lonely day. She stood up, stretching and groaning from spending too much time in the same spot. One leg was asleep and she did an odd hobble over to the Professor who had put this together.

"Thank you Professor Jensen," Katrina smiled for the first time that day. She reached in her satchel for the crest. The 12-year-old showed it to the Professor with a proud expression. "I didn't realize how much I needed a day of crafting,"

She tucked her art away and waved, heading off towards the grounds. She was really going to enjoy working on this some more.

WC 628; Errand Continued Later

@Hjørdis Jensen

Cassie need to get fresh air. Being cooped up in their dorm room would not be good to them and their brain. They crammed as much as they can regarding to Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions class subject. Cassie decided to up and leave their dorm room. Passing the Slytherin Common Room, out the door and climbed up the stairs.

Once Cassie emerged from their room and passed the Corridor Hall, a bunch of student donning various House colors around the Courtyard, their interest piqued in. They decided to walk closer to the group of people. When they already in the proximity, they see the Head of Slytherin House and some other kids doing something.

There are two Gryffindor students, whom one of them Cassie knew back then when they were ride the train to the school, their House mate and another girl wearing blue and silver color identified as Ravenclaw student that Cassie one time passed by. Cassie walked to the table and look at the blunted scissors, colored embroidery floss, fabric, hoops come in various sizes, needles, and soluble markers.

Cassie grabs some of the embroider flosses, fabric, large size hoop, needle, scissor, soluble marker. It is not often Cassie make something that crafty but back then when they were nine or ten years old, their grandma teaches them how do it. Cassie nodded to their professor, "Good day, Professor"Greeted Cassie to the Head of the House.

Cassie then look somewhere that not to crowded since they took a lot of the equipments from the table. Once Cassie seated, near one of the pillar. Cassie put the fabric into the hoop and secure it then grab the soluble marker. Their hand hover the hoop, trying to decided what kind of design they want to make. Cassie stare at the blank fabric for a moment before finally draw their design.

Usually they can make some complex design but since the scissor not as sharp as it has to be, Cassie decided to make something simple. Something that remind them of their father (do not ask what is the reason) and started to make a thin line on the fabric to help them guide when the process of embroider will commence.

Cassie cut the embroider laces in short and long size to follow up the designed that they already made. Then Cassie start to wet the other end of the laces into the needle hoop. They remembered their grandma said it should be wet so it will be much easier to inserted into the needle hoop. Their grandma also said it need to have a steady hand.

Good thing Cassie has a steady hands. They follow their grandma instruction and did not take a moment for the thread to be inserted the needle hoop. Cassie started to worked with the first colored laces on top of the design that they already made. Once or twice, Cassie stretched their hands to see if the laces in line or not. Some out of the line and they need to re do it again.

Their back starting to ached from the half bend position. Cassie leaned back into the pillar and pull their knees up to hold the hoop in place. Then continue on their work. From the distance Cassie can see all the participant for this errand have their concentration face on. "Blimey!"Cried Cassie when the needle prick their finger. Cassie look at their bloody finger that have a single red dot.

Cassie lift up the bloody finger to inspect some more. Usually they would suck the blood and spit on it but since it was not ideal for them to do that at school, Cassie decided to use the end of their robe as a emergency bandage. Cassie wrapped their finger and put pressure it in until the blood stop from leaking out.

After several minutes later, Cassie continues their work and this time put more attention to the work in progress. In and out the laces from the fabric. Often time Cassie need to move their neck from right to left to relief the pain and soreness from bending down their head. Back when they were child, focus and patience are not their forte.

But since their grandma teach them how to embroider, the two things Cassie lacks of back then now being their best value (the focus part not the patience part). Cassie stretched out their hand again to see is there any laces that out of the lines. They groaned when they found one. Cassie put down the hoops and massage the stiffness of their neck.

Cassie almost give up but when they look down, the design that they make already halfway through and it would be ashamed if they did not complete it. When they completed the task in hand, they can tell their grandparents and parents that they tried something new and it can be a topic over Christmas dinner at the Ironwoods Manor. With new determination, Cassie pushed through all the pain and soreness they feel right now.

Cassie must be has bad luck regarding needles, they prick their finger for the second time in a row. What steady hand?, Cassie grumbled. They repeated the same process to make the bleeding stopped. There is pain in their finger for being pricked by the needle but this time Cassie determine to completed the task.

They look up and one of the participant already finished their design. The Gryffindor girl that they know (Clay McGlinchy) showed her design to Professor Jensen and from Cassie situated their self, it look like the young lioness need help from their Head of the House. Cassie again take a breather and massage their sore neck. Just a few laces to be sew in the fabric and they are done for the day.

Cassie sew the lace colored laces and finally the project that almost make them give up finally done. Cassie for the last time stretched out their hand to see the final design. They smile to their self because there is none of the laces are outside the line. Cassie gather their belongings and walk up again to the table. They put down all the borrowed equipments and unlatched the fabric from the hoop.

"Thank you, Professor"Cassie said to Professor Jensen and walked out from the Courtyard and goes to their next destination which is the Great Hall with their design in their hands.

Word Count: 1078

Reducio

Luckily the professor agreed because Clay was getting worried. She really wanted it to turn out well for her grandmother, even though the woman wouldn't mind either way, it was always the thought that counted. Still, Clay's handwriting was really bad and she wanted the words to actually be decipherable so she was very grateful that the woman decided to help her.

Clay carefully followed the directions. She got her hoop and put it in a nearby table. She glanced over an noticed other students coming inside. She was sort of nervous about her own work since it was so dear and personal to her so she decided to hurry up.

She pulled a beige piece of fabric for her base and put it underneath the hoop. Then she gathered green, red, gold, and silver floss for the house colors and black for the cursive. Clay left that on the side for the professor to use when it was time. She made sure to wet the ends of the floss before she started and decided to do a backstitch.

Following her outline, Clay first made the lion that was on top, peeking over the middle crest with it's fiery mane. She made its mane red and the rest of it gold.m, including the background. Then Clay made the middle parting, which the lion would seem to be gripping. She left a wide space for the calligraphy, making a faint outline for the words, which spelled, 'Gryfferin'. As she drew she thought about her friends, most of who were in Slytherin and Hufflepuff. She wished that she could've made something that represented all of the the houses.

Actually, in second thought, maybe she would. Clay's grandmother would approve, appreciating how her granddaughter thought of everyone collectively instead of as separate people. It made her feel good to include everyone and treat them how they deserved, which was usually well. But after glancing at her watch she realized that she really didn't have time for another embroidery so she just shrugged and went on with her work happily.

She then made the snake part, with it's thick green body, tiny diamond shaped head, and grey background. She didn't know what type of snake it was, nor did she care. Clay wasn't really an animal person, or at least didn't like to know all about them. But now that she thought of it, Clay wouldn't mind having an owl or cat, as long as they didn't stress her out or making her life more annoying than it had to be. Maybe I'll just settle with a little rat or toad, she thought amusedly.

Her work wasn't at all perfect but Clay really liked it for her first real try. It wasn't that hard, even though the needles were a little worrisome. Good thing the professor had provided them with safety scissors or she feared she would've done worse than just nip her palm and fingers.

After the professor made the cursive calligraphy with the floss Clay took the embroidery off the hoop. The Gryffindor stood back to admire her work, a sad smile on her face. She imagined her grandmother clutching the piece in her frail hands, all alone back home. Clay felt tears prickle the sides of her eyes and hurriedly calmed herself down.

Then Clay asked for the professor to turn it into a pin, knowing that her grandmother would surely wear it whenever she was around the wizarding society, however rarely that was given she was a muggle. But grandmothers would do anything for the sake of their grandchildren.

"Thanks, Professor Jensen," she said, giving the woman a genuine smile of graduate. She realized that she had really needed this. Then she left.

Word Count: 623
Total: 1363

From her perch on a window in the castle Maria could see that there was something happening in the courtyard. A table had been set up with several things arranged on it, which from what she could tell, were all sewing things. She also noticed that Professor Jensen, the Head of House of Slytherin, was there, her signature shiny, white hair visible from the young Badger’s perch. A few students had gathered around and had begun to pick up some materials and work with them. The young witch saw some of them put pieces of cloth in a ring and before the drew patterns and started sewing. “Oh, so they’re embroidering then.” She concluded. She could see some people’s eyebrows knotted in concentration and confusion, others occasionally pricking their fingers on the sewing needles. It looked…fun to say the least.

Hopping off the ledge she sat on Maria made her way from the second floor, down to the first to the courtyard. It was a sunny, summer day, and she thought it might as well be spent learning to do to take a break from just creeping around the castle, eavesdropping on conversations, or people-watching. Maybe embroidery would be fun?

Upon arriving at the courtyard she could clearly see the table, with several items – all for sewing, placed on top of it. Flosses and cloths of various colors, needles and hoops of various sizes, scissors and markers, basically everything that she thought people would probably need to do this activity was in place. She approached the sign-up sheet and put her name down, and quickly made her way to Professor Jensen, who she assumed was in-charge, as no other faculty was in sight.

The Slytherin Head of House was in fact the one in-charge, and gave the young badger instructions and short demonstrations before leaving Maria to her own devices.

Excited to start, the young witch made her way over to the table and picked out a hoop that she thought would fit her design but not too big that she might not finish it either. Next she picked out her flosses and needles. “Black for the eyes, brown for the branches, green for the leaves, maybe red for the body?” She enumerated as she picked them up. Before she left the table she picked up her white cotton cloth and snapped into place in the hoop, taking a few tries to get the right tension.

With her cloth in place, Maria chose a spot in a shady area by the courtyard, sat down, and started on her design. It was easy enough, a simple picture of an owl perched on a branch. Her sketch definitely could have been better, her lines crooked in some places and the body of the owl a little off, but it was the best she could do. She started with the owl. Taking some red floss, she attempted to put it through the eye of the needle. It took her clumsy fingers a few tries, but she eventually got it.

Carefully, she followed the lines she had drawn using the running stitch Professor Jensen had taught her. She even managed to get the outline done but when she tried to lift up her work to inspect it, she was shocked to find that her long jumper started to lift up as well. Her eyes widened as she scrutinized what she had done. The red fabric ran through the wool of her jumper, likely unnoticed because it was loose on her lean frame. With a sigh, she stood up and went to the table, awkwardly holding her hoop so no one would notice. Well, at least she hoped no one would notice.

{ Interacting with: @Maria Dee | Open to Interactions

"PIZZA!" She screeched at her rat, that jumped out of her pocket and made a run for it through the corridor. Serena had no idea where it was going or why. Perhaps he was hungry, in search for pizza or something. Sighing, she sprinted after him, dashing past the other students to make sure she did not go whack into someone.

She caught up with the rat, diving into the grounds in an effort to catch him. "You dumbass, don't do that." She scolded, as she scooped him up and moved to sit crossed legged on the grass. She gently stroked his back, trying to calm him down a little. Pizza Rat nestled into her palms happily. Serena sighed softly. The boy was clearly making a fuss for no reason, that much was clear. She rubbed the dirt that was on her forearms from diving into the grass off and looked around. The courtyard was not too far away. It appeared something was happening over there.

Blinking, she coo-ed at the little rat and carefully stood up. Venturing over, to see what was going on, she spotted a bunch of students and a professor knitting? No. Croche- no. Sewing. Yes, definitely sewing. Serena made her way closer to them, wondering why they were sewing outside. That was when she spotted all the supplies and instruction sheets that read 'embroidery' over it. Oh. So, not sewing then? Wow, she felt a bit dumb.

Her eyes fell onto the nearest instructions. They explained how to use a hoop but she still did not really know why. Spotting the sign up sheet, she decided to add her name to the list and give it a go. There were a lot of things that Serena enjoyed and was good at. There were also many things she had no clue how to do. Embroidery was one of the latter things. She had no idea how to do it, nor had she really bothered to try. But there was absolutely no reason for her not to try.

The Professor explained the process for her, mostly because she likely looked clueless. Serena nodded along before grabbing a small piece of linen. She took a marker and made her way over to a quiet table. Sitting down, she stared at her blank linen, a little confused as to what she ought to actually make.

Jensen did say that they could turn the work into a necklace or pin or something but she had no idea what she would be able to make. Maybe it was best to do something simple, to start with. This was her very first attempt, after all. Nodding to herself, she sketched out a quick heart. Huh. It was not exactly even. Attempting to fix it ended up a little messier than Serena would have hoped. There were about 5 different outlines by the end but this was washable, right? Making a note of which one she actually wanted to stitch onto, Serena stood up and went to grab some embroidery thread. She picked up a needle and some yellow thread. She put the marker down and grabbed the smallest hoop.

Blinking as she saw a familiar face not too far away from her. Another badger, if she was not wrong. The girl seemed to be... attached to her jumper? Honestly, she had no idea what was meant to happen but that did not look right, at the very least. Making her way over to the other girl, she smiled politely at her, "Hey, you okay?" She asked, making an attempt to actually help her.

Total Words so far: 601

The Great Hall was a little quieter than usual when Cass walked in for lunch. The tables that were so often filled with students eating and chatting away were now comfortably occupied by scattered bunches of kids along the wooden benches. It wasn't a huge difference but it was enough for Cass to wonder if something else was happening around the school. There wasn't a Quidditch match today, was there?

Cass took another bite from her pork roast sandwich, chewing thoughtfully as she looked up at the castle's large paneled windows. A beautiful blue sky stretched out before her, dotted with white clouds that looked soft to the touch. She'd never touched a cloud before so she really couldn't say, but these looked pillowy to her at least. The perfect backdrop for a warm spring day. Perhaps people had gone outside to welcome the first signs that summer was fast approaching.

Deciding that she could use some fresh air herself, Cass finished her meal and made her way out the hall. She found herself in the courtyard, where her suspicions were confirmed to be true, somewhat. Students were gathered not soaking up the sun as expected, but hunched over and obviously hard at work at something. Professor Jensen was here too. Among them were boxes of fabrics and other supplies that Cass recognized. Hand embroidery was one of her aunt's favorite pastimes but she never suspected to see a group of kids her age taking part in the hobby as well.

The Head of Slytherin was explaining to some beginners the process of embroidering. Cass walked up, taking mental notes but for the most part not really tuning in. She recalled a moment not too long ago when she was visiting her cousins. Tita Melanie was sitting on the couch, legs tucked beneath her as she stitched a new pattern. "I don't have a green thumb like your mom does, but this is close enough! Don't you think?" She'd turned her hoop over and Cass saw the most beautiful arrangement of pink and purple peonies on the canvas before her. The rest of that afternoon was spent by her side, with Cass asking questions every now and then about the types of stitches she used and why she picked this design and what colors she liked most. Tita Melanie even let her try a few stitches herself.

Cass doubted she'd be able to create something that stunning with her limited skills, but as she picked up a hoop and piece of fabric for herself, she thought she could at least try. There were markers that she assumed were intended for sketching out a design, so Cass found an unoccupied spot on the side of the courtyard and began to draw. She decided to make a small lion, the symbol of her house, though hers looked more cute than courageous. After getting up to grab the colors she wanted, she practiced some running stitches on a corner of the fabric before finally beginning her task. 

She worked slow, methodically poking the needle through the traces of marker. She kept her stitches short to add more texture to the outline of the lion's fur, a trick that Tita Melanie showed her before. It was hard to remember the other stitches that she'd learned, but Cass figured her aunt wouldn't mind her crude stitchwork. If anything, she'd probably get teary eyed just at the thought of her niece making something with her in mind. She was the most sentimental member of their family. She'd cried the hardest when Cass had been dropped off at King's Station last year, her face tear-stained as she waved goodbye while the rest of Cass's aunts teased her. Her overflowing compassion was what Cass loved about her, though, and she hoped this small lion would be enough to show her affection.

The rhythm of pulling the needle up and down, up and down, was quite relaxing. Pretty soon, the body of the lion was coming together. The face was easiest, only requiring two dots for eyes and two diagonal lines for a content smile. Cass hummed as she worked, occasionally letting out a yelp or two whenever she poked herself. Which was often. Who knew embroidery could be so hazardous? Working on the mane of the lion was frustrating as well. Cass had begun to feel overconfident in her abilities and experimented on a "new" stitch which involved a complex combination of twisting the thread ten times, looping it through the fabric, twisting again, poking down, pushing up, tying a loose knot, more looping, then tightening it all together. The end result was... ridiculous. Somehow, she managed to make her once peaceful feline into a Medusa-like monstrosity.

There was no going back though. She supposed she could toss the whole fabric away and never let it see the light of day again. That option seemed the most appealing, in her opinion. She held it up for closer inspection, the lion's soft smile a huge contrast to the extremely bad hair day it was having. Cass began to giggle to herself. It really was a silly looking work of art, and there was nothing her family appreciated more than humor. They'd laugh at it together when she came home for the summer. Cass suddenly felt excited at the prospect. She loved Hogwarts and was having a great time at the magical school, but getting to share her stories with everyone was something she was greatly looking forward to. And if her cousins started making a little too much fun of her, she could threaten them with the new hex she learned.

Smiling at herself, Cass picked up any scraps left behind and cleaned up her work area. There was a small moment of panic when she couldn't find the needle, worried that it was lost in her sleeves and would remain poking her for the rest of the school year. Thankfully, all sharp objects were finally accounted for, and she returned all the supplies she borrowed to their respective boxes. There was an option to have the finished product woven onto a piece of clothing or accessory but Cass decided it was better left as is. She waved goodbye to Professor Jensen before making her way up to the Owlery. She had a package to deliver.

Total WC: 1057

Cassandra has left the thread.