Valentine's Tea Errand Finished

Interacting with @Ethen Emrys

Mildred noticed that Ethen seemed to be pretty fixated on the last part of his cookie, it reminded her of the way someone would stare at a cookie if it was the last one on earth. she couldn't help herself but find it quite humorous.

Mildred was quite pleased when Ethen agreed on remembering her when he was rich, although she doubted that he would actually remember her. Still, the sound of getting a cookie sounded quite humorous to her just because she imagined years later she would receive a random cookie in the mail. She mumbled a quiet "thank you"

Mildred decided that the young boy definitely had enough sugar or something, maybe something was wrong with the cookies she thought? because he started talking about raw potatoes? and zombies? and how they would chase him all the way into the forest and eat him. It seemed that the young boy took everything seriously, he also seemed like the type to still believe Santa was real, she decided to ask to deny or prove her theory, she calmly asked, "Hey, do you believe in Santa?" It was quite worrying when Ethen had started looking at a nearby teacup and looked as if it would suddenly grow legs and attack him, she felt quite bad for mentioning death what if she scared the poor kid for life?

Once again, she was quite confused about why the young boy would want to make it up to her for the cookie as there was a table containing many cookies nearby, still, she went with it and smiled saying "You don't really need to make it up but thanks! are you sure you want to make it up to me though?" she paused and thought, she continued "one day I ask you to repay me by heading into a deep and scary forest where.. you know raw potatoes might be hanging about" although she would never really do this, she wanted to see how he would react.


Hearing where Ethen came from was quite interesting, she wondered what life was like there and she figured that he probably ate all sorts of delicious and exotic food over there, she was quite curious and said, "That's really cool, I grew up around here and never been anywhere else" she paused and said "so... what was life there like? you know other than being chased from ostriches" she laughed at his attempt to sound older, she assumed he was trying to mimic his father.


If anything, she was the mess she wasn't exactly sure what she was doing here and why she didn't book it for the door earlier, although despite all of this deep down she had been enjoying herself with everyone she had met so far. It was nice to meet all these unfamiliar faces she did agree, she went from knowing one single person to possibly knowing 3 new people. It was nice of him to say that although she wished the same for him, she nodded and said "I hope you enjoy your time here and don't worry about it you're doing fine" she gently nudged him and said "who knows? maybe you'll meet someone here you'll date in the future"

It was true she supposed, she did give a lot she guessed that would be really weird and if it had not been ethen and someone like him, they would have probably thought she was really strange. Finding out that he was driven by his stomach was pretty funny although it was also dangerous, she was going to mention how she got here although she suddenly had a idea. She looked at him and said, "So.. Ethen, do you like anyone at this school?" While she wouldn't have normally asked such a question like this however she suddenly had this great idea beginning to form. She felt quite bad that he was stuck with her, there were a dozen of other people that would have been more suited to be his partner and far more entertaining then she was, if she could pull this off then perhaps it would be equal.

Mentions: Lots of people Olphie Bercegeay, Persephone Barret, Ruthie Greer, Jake Morris, Quinn Healy, Nico Shymane, Lark Flaer, Dale Kurt, Lamik Fillestar, Dan Palmer
Interactions: @Thora Larkston

It would have been an understatement to say that Saskia was relieved when Thora shared the same thoughts she had. This would have definitely made things easier, and now they didn’t have to worry about the whole awkward romance scenario that the love-freak professor had practically forced on them. “Yeah, of course we can talk as friends,” she replied with a grin. That wasn’t even a question that needed to be asked. “I’m doing fine, too. It’s just a matter of time before I regret coming here in the first place,” she added, quietly laughing to herself. She had noticed that the Slytherin didn’t attempt to elaborate on her response, instead, opting to agree with going to one of the corners of the room. It wasn’t a bad thing, all things considered. Maybe it would have been better if they did go somewhere else before they could continue with their conversation.

The Hufflepuff took a quick look around the room. The room would have been crowded by now, which meant that there might be less space for an actual quiet conversation with all the talking people were doing. The background chatter didn’t necessarily bother her, but she wasn’t sure whether Thora would have thought the same. Although in hindsight, perhaps the idea of going somewhere with less people would have had the benefit of staying out of that nosy professor’s sight. Or would it have drawn her attention to see the two alone? She hoped that wouldn’t be the case. There had been some interesting matches that she had set up that would probably pay more attention to than some second year girls who weren’t even interested in playing along with her plan.

On the plus side, the tea disaster had long been settled. The professor had been finally doing her job and the girl who seemingly started this whole mess was dealt with. But now there were the actual matches themselves. It really did say a lot about the professor. First of all, Ruthie and Freddie the dog? For someone who seemed to take the dating lives of other kids very seriously, this was insane. But in a way, Ruthie was lucky. Unless the Flying professor really did think she was compatible with a dog, she was safe from being forcibly paired up and expected to carry out a date all for the entertainment of some madwoman. In fact, she could notice that she was talking to Jake instead. That poor kid. He must have been frightened with what happened in the last few minutes. And if she had heard correctly, the professor had said something else that would have probably humiliated him further. She was grateful that Ruthie was there to support him, at least. They seemed close with each other, and she knew that the younger Hufflepuff would have needed some people to help him out.

To the professor’s credit, she did get some matches that actually appeared to work out. Glancing towards Quinn and Nico, a smirk crept on Saskia’s lips. She didn’t think that her deputy captain would have been so flustered being with the Slytherin Prefect. It was adorable. If anything, she had something she could use to tease him the next time they talked. And there was also Dale and Lark. There was definitely something happening between them. She could feel it. She might not have been a big fan of romance herself, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy seeing other people be happy. If those two would become something more in the future, she would have supported them.

But then she noticed someone else. Someone she had been planning to avoid for a while now. It wasn’t like her to avoid people. If anything, she would have ignored them instead if they annoyed her so much that she couldn’t stand to be around them. Avoiding problems would have only made them worse, anyway. But this was different. It seemed that every time she was around Lamik, she felt some very unwelcome feelings that she hadn’t felt with anyone else. Her heart would somehow skip a beat and a lump would form in her throat when she had to talk to him, or even look at him. That wasn’t even mentioning what she would usually do when she did try to have a normal conversation with him.

But now he was here. He was probably a latecomer, considering she had never seen him until now. Despite that, the professor was quick to pair him up with Dan, the Slytherin Quidditch Captain. She could see the logic behind it. They were both Seekers, which meant they had something in common that they could bond over. Maybe there was something there, too. It was too early to tell, anyway.

But she didn't want to look at him any longer than she should have or else she'd probably look creepy staring at him long enough. Lamik was just going to be a distraction, and all she wanted was to have the opportunity to talk to Thora without something else getting in the way. He probably wouldn’t have noticed her anyway if he was going to focus on Dan. If they both ignored each other, it might have been able to make this torture a little more bearable. But for now, she needed to find her and Thora a better place to talk. “Is that table all the way over there okay with you? she asked, gesturing at one of the tables at the far end of the room.

The Hufflepuff tilted her head to the side as she listened to the other girl’s response. Was she answering her own question that the professor had given her. She had initially thought that they were supposed to ask the questions to each other, but if that was what Thora wanted to do, then that was fine with her. “Hm? What was the question you were answering?” She could only guess that the idea of home wasn’t something that Thora wasn’t happy about, judging from the way she said that answer, but she wasn’t sure if she would have wanted to go into that any further. It might have been something too personal, and she didn’t want to make her uncomfortable.

Interacting with @Alan Noble @Alan Vanes @Opeila Seilun
Mentioning @Ruka Tân @Jack Burnett @Quinn Healy @Nico Shymane
@Persephone Barret @Olphie Bercegeay

Thankfully, Quinn was able to stop Jack in time before he could land his punch on the attacker. Saving the Slytherin boy from detention he certainly didn't deserve. The Gryffindor Prefect finally let out a sigh of relief. With the tall Hufflepuff Prefect and Slytherin Prefect being present, she had no doubt they would be able to deal with the aggressive Slytherin girl. Once again, she returned her attention to her fellow Housemate who was still bleeding. Her Ravenclaw friend, Alan Noble asked if Ruka was ok and then he revealed to her that the Rose he just gave her as Valentine's gift got crushed. That slightly sadden Griseldis, "Oh no...don't apologize, Alan. It's not your fault at all and to me, it's the thought that truly counts." She said to him with a smile, trying to cheer him up a little. She watched as Alan also wanted to help and took more napkins to wipe the blood from Ruka's forehead. But then Alan Vanes, asked her nervously to move aside so that he could take Ruka to the Hospital Wing. Griseldis nodded, "Alright." and immediately moved to the side without hesitation so Alan could offer Ruka his help. She was grateful for his kindness towards his fellow Gryffindor. Then she turned around to face Opeila, she now remembered that the poor brunette seemed to hurt her toes. After she told her how the other Gryffindor girl was, she could only hope she would be fine and got help. "Thanks for telling me, Opeila."

Before Griseldis could ask Opeila if she would like to be taken to the Hospital Wing with her. Professor Bercegeay finally stepped in to get everyone's attention with a loud "ENOUGH". To most students, it was super rare to see the normally bubblely Professor being uncharacteristically demanding all of a sudden but given the situation, it was normal in her opinion. She first scolded both the Slytherins then told Alan Vanes to continue to keep Ruka and Opeila in company while she could perpare the true event - The Matching. After the Professor passed everyone a piece of paper with a quiestion written on it. then she annoucned who got paired together. It wasn't a surprise that she got paired with her close friend, Alan. It was perhaps easy cause they were beside each other the whole time.

She then heard Opeila complained to the Professor, saying that Ruka should go to the Hospital Wing right now and she agreed with her. Professor Bercegeay didn't seem quite happy about it but still complied in the end and agreed she would take Ruka, Opeila and even the troublemaker with her to the Hospital Wing.

The "Storm" was finally gone, she turned to look at Alan with a happier smile again, "Ok, thanks to the Professor, we can finally enjoy ourselves now. Let's see what kind of questions we got." With that being said, she opened the fold of her paper and read the question out loud:" Hmm... Nr. 39. What did you want to be growing up?" Of course, she only asked Alan the question and what was written beneath wasn't necessary to tell him.

Interacting with: @ Griseldis Edelhardt | @ Alan Vanes
Mentioning:@Ruka Tân | @ Olphie Bercegeay | @ Opeila Seilun

It was a relief for Alan that all seemed to be calming down now, having witnessed Professor Bercegeay read the riot act towards the aggressors of this conflict left the boy to sighed heavily as if the small portion of frustration evaporated. Ruka Tan, of course, was still bleeding from the knock to his head. Before the young lad could say more, his best friend Griseldis reassured him that it was fine. The Rose petals scattered nearby from firmly gripping the plant out of frustration was left replying to Gris "I know, just I worked so hard to find something is all, but I'm glad you're not mad." Not a single stutter came from the boy as he was calming down. It seems his friend Gris knew what to say or at least Alan thought that way when the other Alan showed up. Offering to take his friend Ruka to the hospital wing Alan said to Alan Vanes "You'll be ok with him on your own?" Seeing Gris going to check up on Opeila. Alan saw that the Professors Riot act was delivered. After a few moments for the Chaos to finally settle and get back in order.

All Alan wanted to do was leave as although eventful he thought this was just too much today. As he was pondering on by going with Gris, Alan couldn't help but feel guilty, he didn't want to ditch his friend and that the entire reason he came was for her. The lad didn't understand why, but as of right now. Alan thought he instead preferably with his friend than alone. Alan's decision already had been made when the Professor handed everyone a piece of paper, reading the question in the back of his mind he didn't understand why these were necessary but thought to play along anyway. Alan pulled off his woollen hat to let his curly hair free as he was feeling quite stuffy from the earlier frustration. Being matched with Gris, Alan felt a sense of relief once more reinforcing his reason to stay at this tea party. Alan moved to sit down at the table nearby and faced his best friend, returning the same smile she was offering as he replied: "Thankfully, we can finally just have some fun, I guess heh." Alan went over the question he was given in his mind mouthing the words under his breath when Gris asked the first question.

Caught off guard by such a question Alan pondered. The young lad was picturing when he was younger, becoming fascinated by the muggle jobs. Alan was taken into the Ministry a few times with his mother. Reasons for being looked after at work was due to his Nan being unavailable to look after him. With the thought in mind, the boy finally answered with a grin and soft chuckle as his cheeks turned slightly red embarrassed by the answer he was about to give "I see this a bit of a tough question heh. But when I was younger, I used to dress up in my mum's cloaks, particularly the ones she wore to work. She works in Accidental Magic Reversal squad" He took a deep breath "Every time I wore that I had the sudden urge to fix problems whether it was trying to glue things back to together." I guessed when I was growing up, and I wanted to work in my mom's job, just the amount of funny stories and weird situations that happen like this one time, we had to deflate a wizard for using the engorgio spell on himself."

Alan ended off chuckling nervously at his response, reminiscing the man's face when he and his mother caught him stuck between two walls "I-In short... U-uh sorry I ramble that I wanted to be in the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad heh s-sorry." After quickly skimming over his card after waiting for Griseldis reply Alan said his question appearing similar to his "Let's see here No. 38 What would you be doing if you weren't in your current job?" Alan, a little confused "What do you think that means? I mean...we're at school, right?"

Sorry this is not my best but I tried to make it right!

Lamik was hoping for a sensicle answer to the question "do you know what happened". Maybe a fight broke out? Maybe someone fainted? Maybe someone lit a fire. Whatever had taken place, the boy figured that he would have to be satisfued with never knowing, because instead of an answer, he got a date. The boy who he had tapped on the shoulder was none other then Dan Palmer, House Slytherins first string seeker. He seemed just as suprised as Lamik was when the flying professor decided that the two were about to go on a date, thought the younh gryffindor did mostly assume that she was joking.

Lamik didn't know much about Dan, other then the fact that they spent their time in similar ways. There was also the incident at the ball- though he couldn't be sure, Lamik was nearly certain that he had seen Dan kill one of the attackers. Wether or not thats what had really happened was a question that Lamik didn't know the answer to, as he was very open to the idea that what he saw was just his mind playing tricks on him. Still, he intended to approach Dan cautiously. "I... guess..." Lamik said with as nice of a smile as he could muster. Then, he asked the question olphie had given him: "What talent do you wish you had?"

@Atlas Reid

She nodded, a smile on her face. Honestly, the food she had recommended was rather simple- a sandwich made with a crepe instead- but she had always enjoyed the taste of them. Plus, they didn’t seem to be as common outside of France. The sweet ones, however, seemed to have found themselves throughout Europe and the Americas. The next question made her furrow her eyebrows slightly. She actually had no clue what these meals would be. Her meals had been a mainly American- quick and easy to do in order to feed two toddlers.

“I made a lot of crêpes. A lot.” She laughed, but continued, “Although, cassoulet a few times. That one allows you to use whatever meat is readily available, but I didn’t experiment with it all too much. Quiche, on the other hand, I tried a lot of different things. Like, adding meat, making it with different vegetables, making a sweet version...” She shrugged, attempting to think of a last dish that she enjoyed making. Quickly, her eyes widened, and she called out, “Galette de roi!” A small laugh and she paused, a slight blush. “That one’s really good.” And she was only able to have it once a year- which was rather upsetting.

“Oh wow, that sounds like absolute bliss.” She laughed softly, imagining some of these desserts. A lot options came to her head, and they all sounded amazing in her opinion. The Hufflepuff wondered if there were actual cooking spells like what Atlas had said. And now that she noted it, Atlas was a rather good name for the young girl. After all, she had already explored a lot of the world in her eleven years. What had Teiki done? Well, nothing significant. But it didn’t matter.

“Oh, that’s cool. A few questions; you don’t have to answer, but: Are your parents Scottish? Did you travel all the time, or just in the summer? And, finally, how do you feel about being at one place for almost seven years?” Almost. There was still summer to explore around, but it was only a few months. And then a few weeks scattered around here and there. Perhaps it wasn’t much of a change for Atlas, but Teiki didn’t know. From what it sounded like, the girl had traveled year-round.

“We’ll see. I’ll probably explore around for a year or so, but then go into whatever job I choose. I think it’ll either have to do with animals, or I’ll become a mediwizard. So, honestly, how much exploring I do after that will have to depend on what job I get.” She shrugged. While she enjoyed the idea of being able to go anywhere, she already knew that it wasn’t reasonable. But- one could dream. And so she would.

Interacted with: Wren Caster, Jo Morgan, Rafael D'Spac
Mention: Piérre Marchonné, Olphie Bercegeay, Katrina Walker

“Yeah? He coming?”

Rafael was referring to Vladimir. Of course I had no idea that I was being hunted. That all of my paranoia was in fact true.

“I mean, seems kind of silly to leave you here by your lonesome.”

He let out a half laugh. "Naw, he aint coming." I wished he would come. I would have felt safer had he been here. He was the smart one, something I was reminded of petty often. "Plans," I muttered. I sounded like a disappointed lover, which was partially true. I really cared about Vlad, as a friend. There was a trace of spite in my words. I really did not enjoy being alone and I rarely was despite my isolationalistic tendencies because I always had one of them by my side. I would have been happy with Marion too, but she was already gone off to who knows where. She probably had a date, it would make sense because she was pretty. I always thought that she and Vlad would get together, it just seemed to make sense even if he was from one of those fancy-pants pure-blood families. She was not interested in him, she had a thing for 'tough guys' and really anyone besides us. But that was OK with me, I would rather have a friend that was a girl than a girlfriend. Still, I would have probably dragged her along if she was in the Common Room when I left. Not as a date, that would be just weird. But as a companion of some sort if we were going to try to integrate ourselves with the student body again. It seemed strange that we would abandon our isolationism so suddenly but Vlad was always the smart one so I often deferred to him and this was no exception. "He wanted me to make friends," I confessed. As soon as the words left my mouth I realized how dang pathetic that sounded to say out loud. I deflated a bit in my seat.

I was awkwardly trying (and failing) to converse. Thankfully Wren, Rafael's lady friend that was 'just a friend' could have a conversation with a teakettle. I just needed to stand, well sit there, and look pretty. That was a natural state for me. However the I had made a misstep, by trying comment on Rafael's relationship status it would appear that I might have offended or inadvertently insulted the Gryffindor. 

“Ah, we’re just… friends…"

Rafael started to say before Wren explained it a bit more fully. She seemed to take the pairing a bit better than Rafa had.

"No, sorry, me and Rafa?”

Well, that seemed like the logical choice. The hat. His tolerance. The proximity. Sure, it was the sort of playful banter and expression between him and Marion, but that was different, she was Marion. 

The fact that they are a -them- while conversing with him. 

They had been paired, if they understood it or not. Two parts of a single unit. At least that was the way he saw it.

“We’re just good friends. Besides, he has a boyfriend, Gem Stuart, I’m sure you’ve heard of him, and besides, I already like someone. Her name is Stella Dawson. Red hair, Dear Evan Hanson fanatic. Anyways, what do you think about all this drama Victor? I sure as hell don't enjoy it but i guess it's okay. Sorry pardon my rambling, i tend to do this a lot."

A boy named 'Gem.' That did not sound like a name for a boy, but to each their own. His parents were likely hippies of some sort. I was not entirely sure of what she was talking about beyond that. I had no idea who Dear Evan Hanson was, likely some celebrity. He also had no idea what a fanfic was. She shot out these words as if they had meaning. They had none to the wizard-born. His eyes glazed over a bit.

“Uhm… Thanks, Wren.”

Rafa stated. He seemed uncomfortable with her rambling. Did I step on some toes just then by letting her go on? Socialization was hard and stressful. I did not like it. I was trying to act normal, but trying to act normal was like trying to pretend to human. Even blinking becomes a conscious action. In fact it had been a long time since I had last blinked. I blinked once slowly. 

Mmmm.... wet eyes...

She, that talkative girl Wren, asked about the drama. In a past life it would seem, I would have been indifferent. I would not have seen an opportunity in their scuffle. I was not clever enough as to glean information from the chaos nor was I powerful enough to choose a victor. There was nothing to be gained. "Seems loud and unnecessary," I replied. My stance with my social anxiety I found had left me largely unchanged in this regard. As long as I was unnoticed, not targeted. I felt safe and secure. "They seem like a bunch of crazy people that think with their fists," I observed.

“Hello. I don’t think we’ve met before. I’m Jo. Jo Morgan.”

A girl announced. There were so many of them, girls that is, I failed to jump when she approached. I still did not make the greatest first-impressions, I had a stiff expression on my face that suggested that I was certainly not at ease. It was the sort of expression someone has on a rollercoaster when the rider is trying to look brave but instead the eyes were too wide and the smile is too wide and thin. I looked insane rather than courageous or as I tried and failed to appear -- 'normal'.

"I'm Victor... Moore," I replied. I had paused for a second between my first and last name as if I had temporarily forgotten my name. The girls here sure were pretty. Scary, but pretty. Like a dangerous jungle cat predator, they could rip him to shreds without a single thought but they were fun to look at. Jo was no exception.

Piérre Marchonné would find a seat nearby. He seemed troubled. For him it was perhaps an uncommon circumstance to be seen with eyes of terror. He did not seem to understand why I was so scared. What I saw in Piérre that made him seem so terrible. What I truly feared still had not come to pass, yet he had the power to make Victor's life uncomfortable. I shifted in my seat a bit, hopeful that Piérre would busy himself with whoever he was paired up with.

I was surprised when the Professor started to break up the drama on the other side of the room. I was not surprised that the Professor finally intervened, that was her job. I expected her to actually do her job and to be proficient. I just also expected the students to be less than complaint as the Professor wrested control from them. Over the chatter of the other students, I could hardly hear a thing but I was not trying to listen in. I really did not get my jollies relishing in other people's misery. I preferred to keep my head down and my blinders up. I did not want to see anything that I was not supposed to. Not again. not anymore.

I readily accepted the slip of paper provided by the Professor. It was a welcome diversion. It gave me something to say and something to do. I was paired with the girl in front of me in fact. Was it fate or was it a teacher that had decided to pair the guys with the girl nearest to them at the time. It did not matter, in fact I felt a bit relieved. I was at my threshold for socialization today.

The Professor had also paired Wren and Rafael together. She must have seen what I had seen. A piece of paper relegated to each of them, the two of them compliantly paired off.

Pet peeves for them. An interesting subject, an odd social experiment.

Rafael's attention was on my 'partner'. Some theatrics. Girls are gross, or at least she was. That sorta thing. "I think you're plenty pretty," I piped up. I was a bit of a kiss ass, but I was not lying either. I thought almost every girl was pretty, just some might be a bit prettier than the rest. 

Katrina was drawn to some 'Wolfe' guy, he wondered if the name was meant to be ironic. If he was a werewolf or something. Like a witch with the last name Spellman or something. They were pairing up.

"I guess we should..." I announced to Jo as I thumbed my folded sheet of paper. I wondered what my ice breaker was. I hoped it was nothing weird or embarrassing.

9. WHAT'S ONE THING YOU DID AS A KID THAT YOU MISS MOST TODAY?

She'll get a little reminiscent with this conversation starter. It's playful. And who knows, maybe you went to the same camp or vacation spot each summer. "It's fun to see what you might have had in common as kids," Jones says.

It looked like something that was copied out of a book. Something I missed that I used to do as a kid, my mind repeated the question. I was not entirely sure if it was something that I was supposed to also answer. I was still a kid, even if I was reluctant to admit this fact and even if I was officially a teen I felt like a child in clothes too large.

"I--" I started to say something. I was really not sure what to say. "I miss my prep school," I admitted after brief consideration. "I come from a long line of wizards on both sides," I did not know if the girl was a muggle born or a half-blood. "The local wizards like me were home-schooled by some of the local moms," it was a decent memory. I smiled comfortably for a moment as I reminisced. "Taught us the basics, reading, writing, arithmatic, geography... a bit of history. The stuff that we need to prepare us for Hogwarts," but my smile turned sad. "A lot of the kids I grew up with went to other schools, some... well most actually continued to be home schooled." I missed them I realized. "We had this one mom that hated teaching so she would bribe us with cookies to claim we practiced long division all day. Heh -- what about you?"

@Lamik Fillestar

Dan beamed when Lamik agreed to go along with it, and they sat down. Dan made sure to keep his feet away from Lamik though, in case he decided to be mean and step on them. He didn't know what kind of person Lamik was. But he had the slightest idea, since Kyle was in Gryffindor. And as far as Dan could tell, Kyle was an absolute langer. And according to what he'd heard, people with similar characteristics get in similar houses.
But... Lamik didn't seem like the kind of unrepentant ass-monkey that Kyle did. He seemed really cute-
Dan shook his head. NICE. He seemed NICE.

Then Lamik asked the question he had received. This was hardly fair, his question was SO much better. 'What is the talent you wish you had'?

Dan had to think a moment. He was actually quite happy with his skillset. He could cook really well for someone his age, he was a great Quidditch player, decent enough with magic, could dodge effectively-
Then he remembered. He DID wish he could do something.

"Well... I do wish I could bake. I can cook wonderfully, I love experimentin' with different spices and flavors, and turnin' stale traditions upside down. I made a breakfast spaghetti once."
He beamed.
......But, despite all that, I cant bake for shite. I once tried to make custard as a surprise fer my parents when they left me home alone once. I ended up with a pan of cooked eggs, vanilla, and sugar. Ozz-"

Dan's face fell.

"Someone. Was supposed to teach me how to bake properly. And then...well, he vanished."

Dan's face would show that there was considerably more than that to say, but he didn't want to talk about Oswald.

"Anyway, my question is.... stupid. What was your yearbook quote, and if you didn't have one, what would it be when you do?"

Word count: 869. Word count met.

Jake stared in shock at Ruthie. Her pairing had almost made him forget all about his own. Freddie...? She had to date Freddie...? He was a dog, and stuffed, and not even old enough anyway. Probably the stuffed animal part was the most important though. You couldn't have romance with a stuffed animal! Jake was still staring in shock when her hand fell comfortingly upon his shoulder. Stay with her, she said. Jake didn't have to be told twice. He had to, he supposed, since Freddie was supposed to...go on a date with her or something? That was really weird to imagine. But either way, Freddie couldn't talk without Jake's help so if you really thought about it he was going to HAVE to be by Ruthie if he was going to answer the questions. And that meant she would be there when Aurelia came and maybe that meant she could do some of the talking for him. (As it turned out, Jake might have had as much trouble talking to Aurelia, as Freddie would have talking to Ruthie).

Another boy approached them, and Jake recognized him as one of Ruthie's friends. He listened as the two taller first years spoke. Ruthie said she had to look after Jake, and he maybe should have been embarrassed, but after the afternoon he had had he was just happy to hear that he wasn't going to be alone. It did make him feel very small, but he already did, and maybe that meant that Aurelia wouldn't want to date him. Jake felt a little tap on his shoulder, which meant walk, and obediently he began to move - not too fast though, because he didn't want her hands to fall off of his shoulders. He was letting her walk him away when the other boy's eyes fell upon him and Jake found himself addressed.

The boy greeted him by name and stuck out a fist towards him. Jake had learned from George and Jack what you were supposed to do when somebody did that, and the little Hufflepuff shyly bumped it with his own, feeling a small flush of pride. He couldn't help but feel that way whenever the other boys let him in on these secret gestures - the same way he felt when Jack gave him high-fives. It went a long way towards bridging the gap but it still didn't stop Jake's shyness. The other boy asked if he could come along with the two of them. Jake didn't know him very well but his face was disarming and kind and shyly Jake nodded his head, leaning back against Ruthie because it just made him feel a little safer;

'Come on, Jake' she coaxed, sounding very much like a big kid. "Okay," he replied softly, letting her walk him away, very grateful for those hands upon his shoulders. He was suddenly sure that he really didn't want her to leave him.

@Astrea Soleil Neptune

It was incredible what a small smile could do to a person or what impact it could have on a person. It was a a sign of reassurance, usually, a signal that one was comfortable in their current situation or that they found something of reassurance in the person that had approached or spoken to them.

Despite the fact that she had initially caused a good deal of fear to come over Piérre, Astrea seemed to be rather quaint once the two of them had sat down with each other. That small smile, though it did not rid Piérre entirely of the fear that seemed to exude form her mere presence, almost seemed to lighten a touch, enough for a smile to leave the T-shirt tuxedoed Gryffindor as well.

Astrea’s answer to Piérre’s question resonated with the boy greatly. She had seemed hesitant at first, as if mulling over the answer to the fullest capacity, but when she had spoken, it was in a smooth, controlled voice, proper and groomed, which screamed of a life of being expected to do as you were told; to sit straight and talk properly. Piérre himself was one for sunsets and moonrises, looking at stars and constellations and planets, and to hear such an agreement from Astrea caused his eyes to glitter with excitement even more. He had been a little worried, of course, that he wouldn’t have ended up with someone with interests anything like his own, but he would have gotten to know them either way, but Astrea and he seemed to share the same thoughts thus far.

”I’ve never really been to a full on gala myself,” Piérre confessed, ”But if I’ve learned anything from the Masquerade that happened this last October, I don’t think I want to really be at a completely formal one either. I like dressing up, but peer pressure can be a little too much.” Piérre shrugged, thinking of his own habits. He tended to dress formally, even when not in a Masquerade. It was almost a source of pride that he could somehow always look so proper, and yet, act a fool at the worst of times. It was so jarring against his character, but it always seemed to make him feel that he belonged. This was probably the first time he had actually dressed in a casual fashion, and it was on this day, of all others.

When Astrea asked him her question, Piérre thought it over. What did he like about this school? People, culture, food? All three of them didn’t seem to fit what Piérre felt about the school of magic. The people, yes, while interesting and the source of Piérre’ boundless energy, sometimes seemed that they didn’t really care for the kid. Yes, there were choice few, Katrina, Rafa, whom while Piérre had never really had a formal conversation with, yet seemed interested in Piérre’s boundless energy, Koko Riddle, whom Piérre had sadly not seen for a while... but for the most part, people were pretty neutral towards him and his personality. Definitely not people.

Culture? Was it culture that seemed to fill Piérre with awe of the magical work that he had been indoctrinated into? A world that he had only known about for four measly years? A world that in some cases looked down on him, a boy with an Unknown blood status. For all he knew, he was a Pureblood, a Pureblood unaware of his heritage, or he could be a Muggleborn. Either way, the world seemed to look down on him. With blood arguments making up most of the world in the current time, sometimes Piérre wished that he was a Muggle when everything was said and done. Not culture.

Food was good... but he really missed his own dishes of pasta when he had lived in Italy as a young boy with his adoptive Muggle parents...

”I guess that’s kind of difficult for me to answer.” Piérre shook his head, trying to gather his thoughts. ”With so much emphasis in this world today on the blood purity of countless people... It’s so hostile. I don’t know why people can’t just be happy with themselves and satisfied with others. It’s paranoia. Nothing good can come from staying awake all night worrying or picking out everything wrong with another person, and so nothing good can come from fretting about how pure another wizard’s lineage can be.” Reflecting further, Piérre added. ”That’s not to say that every Pureblood or wizardborn is evil or wrong for not being a Muggleborn or Halfblood themselves... I know that there have to be goods and evils in both sides of the spectrum... But being in the grey is really hard sometimes.”

There was a reason why Piérre never went around flaunting his status or hiding it. He didn’t have qualms either way. He didn’t have a status, or at least not one that he was being informed of. He was really a nobody in this world, perhaps an anomaly. Perhaps he was merely person or a Muggle that really gave off a magic but didn’t really belong... There was always an exception to the rule, one just needed to be willing to find it.

Realizing that he was brooding a touch, Piérre shook himself out of it, smiling a bit. He shouldn’t be brooding. He was never brooding, it was never his place. ”Probably the atmosphere here. It’s nice to know that we are all magical, we call come from different backgrounds, different cultures, and different ethnicities...” Piérre added a small touch of Italian lift to his last few words, a red flag that he was not a native Brit. ”It’s just so exciting to see so many kids here. I mean, in my old Muggle school, there were kids, but none of them were as diverse or interesting as everyone here!”

Piérre kicked beneath the table as he thought about his time there. ”And you all seem so much kinder as well...” He added quietly.