Errand Dance of the Bushpeople

Interacting with @Rose Moon

Starlee was actually pleasantly surprised to find out that Rose's mother was a healer, and working at the prestigious St. Mungo's no less. "Wow, really? What a coincidence!" she said, with a hint of surprise. Alongside herbology, it seemed that healing also tended to get the short end of the stick, with most people wanting to become Auror's or Curse Breakers or Quidditch Star's. Healing, on the other hand, was a much more subtle and subdued art, and was also certainly not for those of the faint of heart.

However, her father didn't typically work at St. Mungo's, he was a Mediwizard, who volunteered the time that he wasn't making potions for people and shops, to helping out at events, such as some of the injuries' occurring during brutal quidditch matches, as well as making the occasional house call if necessary. Starlee looked back fondly at the trips she was able to take with her father, as she learned so much from him, and she loved him dearly. "No, he's actually a Mediwizard! He does sometimes get called to St. Mungos for emergencies though. So she may have met him!"

Starlee listened brightly as Rose went on about Transfiguration, and Starlee had to agree. Out of the three major spellcasting courses, Transfiguration was certainly the best. And of course it wasn't because half of the lessons were learning the science behind it, something that wasn't related to practical usage. "Ooooohhh, yes, I totally agree!" she beamed. "Transfiguration is definitely the best, at least out of the main spellcasting courses."

It was at this point that Starlee was beginning to get a little more and more carried away with her dancing; the sound of the bongo's drumming loudly, reverberating around them and the fire. If Rose was feeling into it as well, Starlee would grab her hands and twirl around in the grass, laughing, giggling, letting the beat carry them away. If not, she would get lost in her own dancing, excited and feeling as if she had a new friend in Rose.

The rest of the evening was sure to include more various chatter between the pair. At some point, the event would finally conclude and the students quickly ushered back inside the castle, tired from the evenings shenanigans. Starlee would think fondly on this night, it had been a fun one indeed.

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Starlee leaves the Thread.

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Interacting with: @Kazuo Shimada
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Given all that she’d seen since she started her education at Hogwarts, Maria wouldn’t have been so surprised if she learned that there was a place like Middle earth somewhere. On the other hand, she would have also liked to continue thinking that maybe Tolkein was just an amazing writer. “Well, if he did find a world like that someday I’d love to meet whatever inspired the Hobbits.” She missed her father just a little bit more now, hearing the boy express his admiration for the author. It made her reminisce a little more about her family. Kazuo only continued to impress her as he dropped down from the tree in a graceful landing. If he hadn’t asked his question she would have complimented him on it.

“Both, I think. You know they’re there and that they’re dangerous but not much else.”

The mood felt a little heavy then, as if the smoke and fear from the night of the fire decided to drift back into her mind for a while. She knew that Kaz was no neophyte when it came to the horrors of Hogwarts, but no doubt he’d yet to hear about the other incidences that occurred. Badgers and their flammable tendencies would not do well in the forest. Besides, the Ravenclaws had probably contributed enough pyrotechnics there.

Clearly he did not share her somber mood because he joked about the Groundskeeper again. “I don’t think it would be the worst thing for a groundskeeper to wear to an interview. Definitely says that the man is very involved in his work. Don’t think professor Jensen would be a fan of the shenanigans though.” Maria also appreciated his shared affinity for the trees. A love for nature was not wasted on the girl, as she spent most of her time with them as well. Nevertheless, the thought of the boy whispering with the trees made her laugh. “Perhaps I should call you “Lorax” instead, clearly you speak for the trees better than they can.” She joked.

As if he only wanted to continue to surprise her, he told her that he knew her. He knew her because of dueling. Maria had thought of herself mostly inconspicuous compared to som her peers, so to have someone notice her duel and praise her for it made her cheeks warm a little. “Thank you. It was a whole mess, that round, exhausting too.” She returned his smile when he said his name. Then he went off on a tangent about house unity.

She had to admit, he had a fair point. Although sentiments like his felt like they gave his year away again. It is true you find a family at Hogwarts, and Huffles were indeed as loyal as they come, but those two might not diverge for some. “It is rather odd, yes. Professor Browne seems like a good enough father figure.” She couldn’t help but return a sheepish smile when the asked if her circle was composed of more girls than those of his own kind. It was something Maria hadn’t thought about until now. “Ehm, maybe? I don’t really keep count.”

Her eyes would linger on at the fire, as a wave of calm came over her. “Do you know more boys? Or is your company mainly composed of the greenery? ”

Ah, Mediwizards were much different than healers in a variety of ways. First, healers most always worked at hospitals, the muggle equivalent of doctors and nurses. Mediwizards, however, were more like magical medics, standing on the sidelines of events like Quidditch games to make sure that any injuries were taken care of properly. Mediwizards were more mobile. "That's so cool," Rose said. Just imagine- Rose's mother could have met Starlee's dad, and they wouldn't know that their daughters were or would be friendly acquaintances, or know each other at all at school. Just like Rose's mother and Henry's dad.

Rose smiled at Starlee's enthusiasm. Just like Starlee had been excited that Rose liked Herbology, Rose was glad that she wasn't alone in preferring Transfiguration. Many people just wanted to know how to do spells, and because of that, liked Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts more. But Rose liked to know the why of things. The how of things. And that's why she really liked Transfiguration, because then she knew how the magic worked, using science and logic. It was just... fascinating. The Transfiguration spells were just so unique, in comparison to other spells. Instead of just doing things, it turned something into something else. Like a bird. Or changed the colors of something. It was specific and it was unique. They weren't like the other spells. Rose just loved Transfiguration.

Their conversation trickled away, but not in an awkward way. Their attention just shifted to the bongos and the dancing, rather than keeping up a conversation. Rose nodded to the beat. Starlee reached over to grab her hands and pull her into some dancing. Rose giggled a little, and let herself be carried away into dancing with Starlee. Usually, she would just shake them off and let them have fun by themselves. But the whole reason Rose had really come here was to loosen up a little. Have some fun. Let go of her worries, just for a night. Just for tonight. She could let go of all the problems and have some fun with Starlee. This had been a fun night of letting go and being a little flower princess with the Slytherin.

When the time came to part from Starlee, Rose turned to the girl, made a point to look her in the eye, and said, "Thank you." It was genuine thanks and accompanied by a fond smile.

Before tonight, Rose had been sure Starlee was a friendly acquaintance of hers. Now, she felt like she could call the happy blonde her friend.

Rose Moon has left the thread.

Kazuo chuckled and nodded at her wonder about what might have inspired the Hobbits. “Well, if it was inspired by a real magical race, maybe one day you’ll get the chance.” He considered her answer about the forest and its denizens, eyes gazing at the darkness beyond the trees. It wasn’t that he didn’t respect the way the other students feared the forest. Fear was human instinct and it kept humans alive. It was a healthy, normal reaction. He simply couldn’t bring himself to view it the same way. Sure, there was danger but there was also so much to be learned, so much to be discovered. He had always been that kind of child, drawn to discovery, especially if it held a hint of danger. “Would it be easier if you knew more? Would you be less afraid if you knew what the danger was and how to protect yourself from it? If they told you about the acromantulas, for example, and taught you how to defend yourself from one should you find it, would that reduce your fear?” He asked, tilting his head slightly in curiosity, shifting his gaze to Maria. As she continued speaking, answering his joke, his gaze returned to the fire and the boisterous students gathered around.

“Jensen-sensei does seem like a serious type, doesn’t she? Would you like to join the party?” He offered. “And who or what is “Lorax”...?” Unlike Tolkein, this reference he didn’t recognize. He frowned a bit, thinking that he could have looked it up if he had his phone and was annoyed that he couldn’t. Though he enjoyed what he was learning at Hogwarts, there were many things the outside world offered that he missed very much. His phone and the internet were very high on that list. He shoved those thoughts aside, refocusing on Maria.

“I know my dorm mates but I admit, not very well. I think Jake I know the best. We seem to be the quietest of the boys dorms, most of us keeping to ourselves. Maybe we take after our namesake too much. I’ve heard Scamander preferred animals to people…” He grinned at that, thinking of the famous wizard. “But to be honest, most of the people I hang out with are in other Houses… As nice as the trees are, they can’t really relate to things like History of Magic homework and the theories of broom riding.”

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Interacting with @Maria Dee

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Maria thought that the boy’s curiosity should have warranted him a place amongst the lions. It was brave for him to want to know what was beyond the dark tree line they were eyeing, but it felt naïve to her. Given, she hadn’t seen half the things other people did, but she’d seen enough. It would have been nice to know what they were up against, but to actively go looking for it in the Dark Forest seemed much too risky to the young girl.

“Look,” She looked him straight in the eye, as if trying to impart as much wisdom as a thirteen year-old possessed. “I’m not sure what you’ve been hearing, but let me tell you, sometimes it’s better not to go looking for things.” Her eyes trailed off to where he was looking. “Knowing would definitely help, but at what cost?” She hadn’t seen as much as her peers had but she’d definitely seen enough. “Best not to go looking for trouble, it will probably find you around here.”

She was glad he shared her humor, but was surprised that he was not aware of the Lorax. Clearly, he did not know his Seuss then or perhaps nor was he familiar with the work of Danny DeVito. “Well, you’re the curious one, maybe you can look that up when we return to the land of WiFi and electricity.” She teased. Though she wasn’t sure if he did live in the muggle world as she did, but judging by his knowledge of token, she went out on a limb. “But if you must know, it’s a small creature who speaks for the trees.” It was an extremely abridged description, but a description nonetheless.

“Jake? You mean the boy who dresses up as a badger for the Quid games?” She’d yet to meet the small boy, but she’d definitely noticed his bright presence at the Quidditch matches. “Sounds rather Hufflepuff, actually.” An amused smile graced her expression. “Look, here we are, two Huffles talking about trees and Tolkein while there’s a party going on.” Her gaze shifted to the event happening in front of them before going back to him. “I agree though, sometimes people are better company than trees.” This time, her kind smile was directed towards him. Perhaps it wasn’t such a loss that she’d approached the fire. After all, time spent in a good conversation is rarely time wasted.

Kazuo only smiled wider at Maria's warning. He was not the cautious type, another reason he felt he didn't fit among the Badgers. Warning him against the dangers only piqued his interest more and Maria's warning, as well intentioned as it was, would fall on deaf ears.

"Someone has to, eventually." He countered with a shake of his head. "Someone has to investigate the dangers so that others don't have to. Someone has to know what to do when the danger comes looking for us."

He frowned a bit then, memory briefly revisiting that night in the Common Room. She had been there. In the smoke and the confusion, had she seen what he had? "The professors can't protect us…" He murmured quietly then shook his head. "I'm not so foolish as to go running into the forest alone, Maria-senpai. No need for you to worry." He added with a smile to lighten the somber mood of their conversation.

"A small creature who speaks for the trees, am I?" He laughed at the comparison. "If that's a height joke…" He stuck his tongue out at her playfully.

“Jake dresses up as a badger?” He hadn’t known that his dorm mate was the Quidditch team’s mascot. Then again, he didn’t really follow the Quidditch teams at all but if he were to pick someone to be their mascot, Jake certainly seemed likely. “That does sound like something he would do.” He chuckled, looking back toward the fire. “There are two types of Hufflepuffs at a party. Those who talk to trees… and those who throw mud…” He joked with a laugh. “I admit, I wasn’t expecting conversation of any kind tonight but this was interesting.”

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Interacting with @Maria Dee

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“People have tried, and people have gotten hurt trying. We can go looking all we want, but that doesn’t mean we’ll always find answers.” After a little more thought she decided there was indeed merit to the idea. There was always troubling brewing, so why not be ready for it? But then again, how do you prepare for something you’re not sure is coming? Time and time again all the happenings at Hogwarts seem like random occurrences, just happening spontaneously like wildfires. They could not see the bigger picture of everything, so most of it was somehow related, or at least part of a bigger scheme. All they saw was chaos theory at its best.

“I guess we can prepare, but we’d have to be smart about it.” She said with finality.

He reassured her that he wouldn’t go looking for trouble, but between them, she guessed he also knew that it was more likely trouble would find him. Her eyebrows furrowed at the mention of the professors. They’d done all they could, and from her hazy memories of the last time they had a fiasco in the Common Room, they’d fought tooth and nail to make sure every Badger made it out. “Have a little faith.” Her voice was a little gentler now, remembering their kind teachers. “They’re trying. There’s only so much you can do when you don’t know what you’re up against.” With a sigh and a smile she continued. “Besides, Professor Browne is sturdier than a brick wall. He'll protect us.”

His assumption that her calling him the Lorax was probably the last of her intentions. The boy was actually about her height, the girl only growing a smidge since last year. Perhaps it was the result of some similarities in their genes, or perhaps Hufflepuffs that weren’t half-giants were only allowed to be that height. “Well, it wouldn’t be much of a height joke if I’m as short as you, now would it?” She couldn’t help but mimick his expression and stick her tongue out as well. Childish, yes it was. But despite it all, she was still a child.

“At least I think that was him, there’s only so many small kids that would fit the suit.” She’d never really met Jake, and she’d mostly heard about him. The badger mascot was also fixture almost every game, but that was as far as her knowledge went.

So far, Maria found their conversation to be one of the more contemplative ones she’d had this year. Or at least as contemplative as her young mind could be. Sometimes children like to think that they know more than they really do. Sometimes children are wise. In these moments, Maria thought about things probably most children her age didn’t have to, but then again, they were not her, nor were they students here. After all they’d seen, it was no wonder some of them acted like grown-ups most of the time. Maria was not one of them, but during occasions like this one, the disillusionment could seep in and make her think differently.

She smiled at Kazuo’s observation before she yawned. “There are also those who would like for the party to end early to get some sleep.” With that, she started to turn back, with the wet earth making faint noises beneath her feet. “Curfew will be soon, are you coming?” Perhaps he wanted to stay longer where she wanted to go, or perhaps he wanted to go with her. Either way, she would tell him before she continued to walk back. “This was fun, thanks.”

Maria Dee has left the thread.