Hogwarts Summer Camp Stargazing

Interacting| @Howard White

A small smile started to play at the corners of her lips as she watched him and listened to his rebuttal. It was well placed for their discussion, but it lacked moral ambiguity. Granted, some people didn’t require a challenge to their morals, only a challenge to themselves, in the end, it was all about what you were or were unwilling to sacrifice. Santario, however, smiled more, at his answer to her question. “Admirable, like water not to be stopped.” While water was not without its weaknesses, it was, in her opinion, one of the most destructive and hardest to defeat elements.

“I see the point, but in the end, I don’t care what happens to me so long as what I wish is fulfilled so a little knee scrape wouldn’t stop me.” She laughed softly, something most people would find pleasant and almost bell-like. “No, but sometimes I wonder what or who would I sacrifice to get what I want. Those are the answers I’d rather leave ambiguous. Live in the moment with fewer worries or regrets because we are all probably going to die young anyway.” Considering where they went to school, that was probably held more truth to it than she intended. Just coming to the summer camp in general held more of that truth for her than even she realized, not yet anyway.

A small chuckle now escaped her lips with a shake of her head at his last question. “I would be happy to accompany you over to the professor if you would like since it looks like the line has dwindled down, but I think I’ll leave my answers for another day.” Truth be told, she would never ask any of the questions that she would want answers to, only because it would reveal too much about her to anyone within earshot. That was just something she wouldn’t have. Even the current person who had managed to wiggle their way closer to her than others currently knew nothing about it, let alone all of the strangers around them. Even if it was odd to think of the classmates that she should have been getting to know all year long as strangers.

If Howard accepted her offer to join him and if he decided to go now, she would get up when he did and follow along. If he rejected her company to see the Divination Professor, she would remain seated and finish her fruit.

Outfit

Interacting with @Aisling Collins, @Santario Martin, @Howard White

Aaron's smile never left his face in Aisling's company. She exuded the kind of energy that wanted him to be helpful and positive. Of course, he always felt like that, but her energy mixed with his own seemed to double the bright outlook on life.

"Actually, I'm playing in the game," Aaron explained when she asked to sit with him in the stands. "Each of the houses has a Quidditch team, and Hufflepuff won the Quidditch cup this year - meaning we beat all the other houses - so it's the Hufflepuff team that gets to face off against Durmstrang," he expounded, smiling proudly. Even though he hadn't been part of the team when they won all the matches this year, he was going to be sure to contribute as much as he could to winning the match this month. "I could introduce you to some other people that will be in the stands, if you want, but I'm sure you'll find lots of friends by then! I wish I'd had a camp to meet people before school!"

Aaron went on to explain about the four houses, and laughed along with Aisling at the idea of the talking hat. It was pretty ridiculous to muggle-borns like she and him. In fact, it would probably be a ridiculous notion to wizards and witches too, considering he had never heard of any other talking hats. As she fanned herself with her star chart, Aaron wondered if maybe he had overwhelmed her with too much information. But the redhead promptly recovered, wondering aloud what house she might be in. If he had to guess, he would've definitely pegged her as a Hufflepuff - but that was just coming from her friendly attitude and first impression on him. He didn't say it out loud - since she hadn't actually asked his opinion - but the thought of her being in Hufflepuff was nice. It'd be like having someone to mentor! And just as that thought crossed his mind, Aisling was asking for his advice.

Advice? Aaron's head began to swim again with all the memories of the past year, wondering what advice he would've given himself if he could go back. Aisling tried to brush off the question, saying it was a lot to ask, but Aaron grinned at her, "If I had any advice, it'd be to make memories, but more importantly, make friends. I mean- I guess that might sound like a very Hufflepuff thing to say, given your limited knowledge of the houses - but I think it's pretty universal. I think I've made friendships this year that will be lifelong, and that's the most exciting thing to me about the magic world. It's weird, but- I just feel naturally connected to so many people here, and I think it's just the magic in us." Aaron felt like his words were extremely cheesy, and he averted his eyes to the ground after he said his piece.

With that said, Aaron allowed the change of subject to the stars. He and Aisling spent a little while appreciating the beauty of the night sky, but then Aaron noticed a familiar form standing up out the corner of his eye. Santario. It seemed like she was about to head in the opposite direction - maybe to the fortune teller's area? - but he was hopeful to say hello before then. "Hey, I wanna say hi to a friend - join me?" he invited, happy when Aisling accepted. Together, they left the telescopes and headed over to the table that Santario and a boy were at. He didn't immediately recognize the boy, but he was very distinctive looking. He was extremely pale - almost unnaturally so. In fact, after getting a bit closer, Aaron thought maybe he did recognize him after all... from the common room maybe? Did that mean he was a Hufflepuff?

"Hi, Santario!" Aaron greeted, waving as he approached. "This is Aisling - she's an incoming first year. Santario is a Slytherin in my year," he introduced the two with the basic information needed. "I just wanted to come and say hi - I don't mean to interrupt if you're going to one of the other areas," Aaron said, then turning his eyes on the unfamiliar boy. "I'm Aaron Jones, nice to meet you!" he said, his head tilting slightly at the unusual-looking boy. His looks seemed almost familiar - reminding him of a girl he'd met during the relay errand - Nico. Were some witches and wizards just born pale, or...?

After Aaron left, May finally shook Carolyn’s hand while profusely apologising for the boy’s sudden departure. So I was right. They are on bad terms then. Considering May didn’t realise she wouldn’t be welcomed at the table, Carolyn decided, it couldn’t have been THAT bad though. Or was the girl just completely oblivious towards Aaron’s grievance? “That’s okay, I’m sure you two will figure it out eventually and I can always talk to him later,” she reassured the girl with a gentle smile. “Feel free to grab something to eat…both of you,” she smiled at Alan too, pushing the picnic basket closer to the two.

Just as she did that, Carolyn overheard her name, immediately recognizing the voice. She didn’t get to talk to Mars until very recently but she was already captivated by them and she was definitely happy to see them here. “Mars, It’s nice to see you,” she welcomed them with a gentle smile. “You are not interrupting anything, would you like to join us?” She offered hopefully. It appeared that Mars already knew the other two and they approached their table on their own accord so Carolyn hoped she wouldn’t be rejected but she also didn’t want to assume anything. She never thought herself to be overly interesting company. Unlike Mars, who seemed to be just as hesitant to initiate any social interaction even though they were incredibly intriguing. At least to Carolyn. Is it just my perception? She wondered briefly. “The sky is beautiful tonight for sure. I wish I had more knowledge when it comes to stars,” she admitted begrudgingly. Carolyn had perfect grades so far, Astronomy included, yet she definitely wasn’t natural when it came to that class. It always required a little extra effort. Maybe next year, it would get better...

So far, this event was pretty nice. Carolyn didn’t expect to meet so many people here but that was precisely why she came to the Summer camp in the first place. "What kind of dog?" The young Ravenclaw perked upon hearing Alan’s question. She was always more than happy to talk about her four-legged friend. “Belgian Sheepdog, Groenendael,” she replied immediately, rummaging through her bag for a photo. She carried it basically everywhere. “Her name is Morgana. I… really miss her,” she admitted begrudgingly. It still felt weird not having her around. “Do you have any pets, May? Mars?” She questioned the other two curiously.
MORGANA's picture:

OOC: I’m so sorry for the late reply. I saw Alan’s post but decided to wait for May and I didn’t receive notification for her post. I think maybe the mention wasn’t done quite right? I apologize for the delay.
Update!: I also wasn't notified about Mars' post so I had to edit this. So sorry guys.

The girl Jess had approached smiled at her, but continued walking as she said that the Divination was open for all the students. The other girl, the Ravenclaw, didn't seem to notice Jess, though. Cursing her luck, Jess wondered how it was that the only two people she had actually mustered up the courage to go talk to were busy and not willing to talk to her much.

It's your own fault, Jess told herself begrudgingly. It's pretty obvious they didn't want to talk; they're clearly best friends and more interested in doing their own stuff than talking to some random not-even-first year. She looked around, contemplating if she should go and ask somebody else about how the whole fortune-telling thing worked. Whatever, Jess decided. She was going to have to try a bunch of new stuff at Hogwarts anyways, seeing as it was, well, magical and all... she might as well learn to manage things on her own now. Besides, the older Slytherin she had asked had said that anyone could go up to the professor before turning back to her friend, and Jess assumed that 'anyone' included herself. So... she had better do it now. Now, before a line piled up. Now. Like right now. Just go do it, are you kidding me-

Jess's own thoughts of frustration towards herself were cut short as some other students lined up in front of the table, and her anger resurfaced anew, now bubbling and about three times larger in size. Now you've gone and done it, Jess told herself. You waited too long to go, and now you'll have to wait while all these kids finish with their turns. Mentally chiding herself for her own indecisiveness, Jess walked firmly to the back of the line I'm assuming there are some other people waiting, freshly determined to stop acting so uncertain of herself for the rest of camp and all the school years to come.

Interacting (hopefully, I'm still not too sure how interacting in this thread works) with @Rosalind Kibitzer

interacting with @Amadea Campbell
closed to other interaction

Cecily awkwardly cleared her throat as Amadea settled down next to her on the blanket, basket in tow. Because of course she brought the food with her. The Hufflepuff pulled out her star chart, too-- another smart move. Cecily allowed a small smile. Amadea was coming through with the food and the star chart, all while Cecily could tell she was trying to diffuse the tension that the Ravenclaw had inadvertantly created. What would Cecily do without her? Starve, clearly, and stare up at the brilliant dots of light for an hour with no clue what she was looking at. She felt a pang of regret at ever feeling any animosity towards either of her friends, even if they were messing with her (albeit quite loose) plan for the night.

Cecily accepted the star chart as Amadea handed it to her, studying it for a moment before looking over at the redhead as she spoke. "I really don't know much about the stars."

"Me neither," Cecily admitted, looking back up at the stars, the wrinkled chart laying on the blanket between the two girls so that Amadea could grab it if she felt so inclined. "But I used to stargaze all the time. My brothers and I, we would camp out just over the hill from my home, and I would go outside and look at the stars while they were asleep." Cecily smiled, suddenly quite homesick. She had never been to summer camp before-- she would always go right home after school let out-- but this year she managed to secure her place on the train to camp. And while she was loving every second of it, she missed her family. But she would see them soon enough. Cecily just kept a smile on her face, letting the feeling drift away. She was here and now, and so was Amadea, and the stars were millions of miles away, and she put her arms under her head and watched them shine.

"Good influences?" the professor repeated. How pleasantly vague. But vaguely pleasant, too. Any students who wanted to hear about something that wasn't tragic was a relief. Students looking for good news and the hopes that they could make the world a better place? Even better. Dealla didn't seem to think the question was as well-phrased as Ileen did. In fairness, Rosalind seemed to much prefer Dealla's version of things - blunt and direct. Some of the phrasing was a bit worrying, admittedly, especially in combination with the glint of mischief in Dee's eyes as she imagined her nefarious plans for justice. Well, one can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, Rosalind supposed. Maybe their mischief was for the greater good.

That was precisely what they were there to find out, wasn't it? Rosalind gathered up the loose knuckle bones from her table and shook them around in her hand like dice, gazing up at the night sky and searching the stars for some kind of extra insight into the fate of the two girls. These ones had held her interest since their mishap at the Relay Race. An interesting pair, certainly, even if they had made the most spectacular failure out of everyone who attended the race. To put yourself out there and try to succeed was to risk humiliation. That they had marched up to her without hiding their faces in shame and fleeing was a sign of bravery, or something close to it.

"Unconventional methods?" Rosalind questioned, as she rolled the bones out onto the little table. She was still quite occupied with stargazing. The whole purpose of the event, and she had hardly been paying attention to the skies until now. Stars were always a bit to distant for her taste. She liked using instruments she could get her hands on, like the bones and the cards, rather than observing things she could have no effect on. Besides, that was the realm of the centaurs. A human putting all of their energy into astrology would face a glass ceiling that only hooves could walk on.

The professor seemed to remember that she was in the middle of a reading, looking down at the bones scattered across the table surface. "Oh," she said, as if pleasantly surprised by an old friend at her door. "Well, this is a nice little portent. I think you could do something to shut those idiots up after all..."

Little did Rosalind know that was about the only thing that @Ileen Knight and @Dealla Prince had a plan for. The rest of the "good influence" would presumably come after the Sneezing Hex plan was in effect. Satisfied by her conclusions, Rosalind swept the bones back into their jar. "I think you could do a good job of it, if you tried. That's my expert opinion."

@Santario Martin @Aaron Jones

Howard’s lips would curl into a smirk of his own as Santario used the element of water to describe his ambitions. Although some that had experienced his wrath and fury would probably have used fire, the fluidity of water was perhaps a better adjective. The course of his life was much like a river or stream, rolling and cutting its way towards its goal. Obstacles would be pushed out of the way or worn down over time if too stubborn to step aside. Sometimes it could be calm, even beautiful, but around the next bend the rapids would come quickly and with crushing force. Most of all it was a force of nature, his passion to achieve his means like the source that fed the flow of any moving body of water, seemingly endless.

Santario’s soft laughter would be quite infectious as a chuckle of his own escaped his lips. “To each their own, right?” It was clear the pair wouldn’t be in agreement anytime soon, but the conversation had at least proved to be pleasant. Howard wouldn’t tell her, but although brief, it had been nice to speak openly with a peer, even if she was a little bit younger. Most would shy away from deeper topics, preferring the lighthearted and what he considered mundane subjects. “Who knows, perhaps taking it as it comes and living in the moment is for the best. We’ll have to compare notes some other day.”

Howard would rise from his seat, Santario offered to join him, but another presence would appear before he could answer. The boy looked vaguely familiar, most likely a face he had seen in the common room, but he wouldn’t recognize the girl. The younger Hufflepuff seemed to already know Santario as he made introductions. “Howard White.” The teenaged Dhampir said with a nod. “I was just making my way over to Professor Kibitzer. I’ll let you two catch up. Have a good night Santario.” With that Howard would make his way towards the reading table.

Note to Mod: Lines up for a reading with @Rosalind Kibitzer

Percival honestly could not believe his luck that the school was offering a chance to stargaze. The boy thoroughly enjoyed the concept of sitting back on a blanket and just taking everything in. It had been just his look when both Dealla and Ileen vacated the blanket to go do some other activity. The thought of having to deal with her while he was trying to enjoy himself. Brought a small frown to his face. The boy grabbed a handful of snacks to take with him. Percival had decided to ignore the rest of the picnic basket, and go straight for dessert. Having grabbed himself a couple of Licorice wands, and a few Chocoballs.

Now armed with snacks the boy made the journey from the picnic table to the blanket. Having to walk through the grass to do so. Percival didn't mind his shoes getting dirty. Easily ignoring the pieces of dirt and grass that stuck to his shoes. He doubted that any real damage would happen to the footwear. Nothing a little bit of magic couldn't fix.

Percival finally arrived at the blanket. The rich red of the fabric contrasted with the deep green of the grass. It reminded Percival specifically of Christmas colors, and the boy smiled. The boy lay down with his head resting on one of the many pillows lay. As the boy looked up at the crowded sky he bit into a Licorice wand.

Mentions: @Dealla Prince @Ileen Knight, and other dorm members.

Thankfully Percival didn't reveal himself to be a flesh eating monster when she asked to sit alongside him nor did he tell her to get lost, so Callie's confidence received a welcome boost. When he motioned to the space on the carpet Callie wasted no time in plonking herself down and tossed a gumball from her horde of pocket sweets into her mouth. While Percival introduced himself Callie found her gaze turned skyward and she once again found herself in awe of the sheer amount of stars. Seeing so many out at once reminded her of home and she couldn't help but be reminded that she'd soon be back on her family farm free to roam to her hearts content.

Before Callie could respond to Percival's introduction a familiar looking Ravenclaw appeared and she lost herself for a moment trying to place a name to the face. She recognised Dymphna from around the common room but disregarding a select few people Callie wasn't particularly great with names, so the girl introducing herself was extremely welcome. "Hello!" Callie greeted Dymphna with a wave and similarly introduced herself in case Dymphna was also horrible at remembering names. "Ooh, your pyjamas are so cute!" Callie complimented with a pleasant smile, falling into silence as Percival spoke up. "Do you two know each other? Wow, I really need to speak to more people more often...I'm so behind..." Callie shifted herself over a little to make room for Dymphna to sit down.

Interacting with @Janet Jackson
Open to More Interactions

Nell sat upright to look at who was there. She saw a girl who introduced herself as Janet and nodded. "Sure," she replied softly. Nell slid over a bit so janet would have room to sit. "I'm Nell," Nell said quietly, glancing over at the girl. "What house are you in?" Nell asked curiously. The young girl had never seen Janet in the Ravenclaw, and she didn't seem like much of a Slytherin, either. So, either she was a Hufflepuff or a Gryffindor. From there, all Nell could do was guess. Whilst waiting for an answer, Nell glanced up at the cloudless sky. It really was the perfect night for stargazing. Nell could see the constellations so clearly. Probably clearer than she's ever seen before- She stopped and remembered her home back in Ireland on the countryside. Her mind drifted to the time where'd she stare at the sky for ages with her brother. The good old days. Nell sighed and brought herself back to reality. She couldn't ponder on the past. Those times were oveer. she wasn't five anymore. Nell glanced over at the nearby picnic table and grabbed a couple things to eat. Light things. She wasn't very hungry at all.