Closed Boredom’s Fault PV Piérre Marchonné

@Fang Hui-Ying

House Colours: Ravenclaw

Calming Presence in Effect

“Oh yeah absolutely. That’s not a problem at all whatsoever!” Piérre affirmed the red-haired third year with a polite pat on the kid’s shoulder. “I’ll pass off a few of the notes I made in Divination. It’s way easier than you think, provided you know what you’re looking for.” He assured the trembling younger student that was just fresh to the ways of opening the third eye. In all truthfulness, Piérre himself didn’t really know all that much about the way of divination or foretellings–he was no seer and he doubted that he had a seer anywhere in his lineage–but he did seem to carry an uncanny knack for simply… well… detecting things sometimes. Not much in the way of realizing he was being followed, per say, but more like he simply knew something was off or that there was something more than what initially met the eye. It was enough for him to be surprisingly good at the art of divination, the conman’s favored trade. It was enough for him to somehow easily obtain Os in his assignments in those courses, for him to spot things in his readings that arguably came true the longer he attempted to read further into his tellings.

And yet that fifteenth arcana… that strange major card kept seeming to follow him around with the leer of the creature that it depicted. Even now Piérre couldn’t quite place a finger on why it was that it seemed so intent to speak to him in particular, especially when the God-fearing Italian wanted nothing to do with its presence.

With a pleasant smile, Piérre nodded to the kid again, already rifling through his satchel as Figaro (perched about his boy’s shoulders as he usually was) flicked the tip of his tail with a feline ‘smile’ and half-closed eyes. “Here, a couple notes I have on hand here. These are readings I did on my own time. They’ll do for starters until I get my other notes… if you’ll need them, that is.” Those green eyes glimmered with warning. “Of course… if you choose to back out…” Despite himself, the fourth year delighted in the small flicker of fear that briefly crossed the other’s boy’s eyes and caused his cheeks to slightly pale. The Jester’s lip curled to reveal a more-pointed-than-average incisor in a show of what he himself knew to be nothing but an empty show. The other boy wouldn’t know, of course, and that was a bit of the point. “You get nothing, and I share your secrets to the ones you would want to know about them the least. Oh and don’t wonder about what secrets I know and don’t know already,” Piérre’s hand increased its pressure ever so slightly as he ‘reassuringly’ patted the boy’s arm again, drawing himself up to a slightly heightened stature as he smiled graciously. “If I don’t know about them, I’ll find out about them; if nobody knows about them… I can just as easily fabricate one as I can exacerbate something that makes a fine story subject indeed…”

Whether these were promises that the boy intended to keep was up for the listeners to discern for themselves, but either way Piérre himself smiled jovially again and then nodded off down the corridor. “But hey now, you have classes to attend! Take those notes and put them to good use, and don’t forget to call if you need me again.” Emerald eyes gleamed. “Because I’m always listening.”

With a playful shove and a delighted wave, Piérre ushered away his newest client and turned instead to a mental rattling off of his own tasks. There was a list of students that he had on a scrap of paper that was hidden somewhere deep in the depths of his satchel that he had been requested to ‘keep an eye on’ by a few other students. There were kids that had requested homework from him in the courses that he had excelled in, and there had been individuals who had been asking for ways to evade prefect and professor patrols. Anything that the mind could conjure (within personal reason, of course) the boy had been asked to perform. Piérre made it a policy of his not to judge; a busybody he was, only for the business that other people essentially ‘paid’ for him to have. Sometimes it was indeed a monetary value that he earned for his services, other times it was a liquid or insubstantial asset that the boy could stand to gain from such as notes on subjects that he didn’t quite have as good a grasp on or having someone keep an eye on individuals of his personal intrigue (that will remain unnamed).

Musing in this state, Piérre was shaken from his thoughtful reverie by the approach and piping up of a younger student that caused both the Britalian and Figaro to fix her with a look of curiosity. While it was true that it was likely that the reputation of the boy without a house had likely gained some traction among the students of the school, Piérre was still in some disbelief that people were actually starting to call on him more frequently thanks to the success of the things that he had done. Still, Piérre had a few spare minutes before he had to run off again, he did indeed recognize the young Gryffindor girl that was now just entering her second semester of schooling. “Hey yeah! I remember you, the uh… the shield surfing, right?” The kid did indeed recall her in particular the longer that he thought of their first encounter. “Aw, nothing really much to be honest.” Piérre shrugged and unconsciously ran a hand through his bangs at the same time as Ying brushed her own hair behind an ear.

The longer he listened, the more the boy smiled a little bit more and more. At the mention of his most recent agreement, Piérre snorted a bit with amusement. “Oh that? Not a big deal. Simple exchange of goods. Favor for a favor, really.”

A need for help? Well… “Why didn’t you say so sooner?” Piérre grinned a bit and leaned back against the wall, kicking up a foot against it and crossing his arms. “You’ve coooooome to the riiiiiight Italian!” Flourishing his arms, Piérre looked around the castle with delight. “So, tell me what it is that a humble little Luigi can do for you and I’ll see if I can gladly oblige!” Despite his showiness, Piérre was genuinely intrigued by a request of help. After all, if he could help someone and be helped himself… wasn’t that the way that the world went round? Helping others was his hobby by this point, and particularly when there was something that he could gain from helping out; kindness for kindnesses, after all.

Outside, the snow fell at a slow, gentle pace, as if it were a compass to help her calm down and act as naturally as possible. Not that this was her first time doing something reckless or, as per say, outside of the rules, but the whole scenario seemed to give him a singular taste of adrenaline and nervousness. She was glad Piérre remembered her, that made the situation a lot less awkward. The young girl took a discrete deep breath before answering him, "Yes! The shield surfing!" She confirmed reaching her small delicate hand towards him, "Hui-Ying, I don't think you ever told me your name?..." she asked a little shyly but keeping a confident smile.

In her statement in pointing out that she had noticed his exchange with the red-haired boy, Ying could see by his reaction that whatever happened between them two had been a cause for some amusement, that or he was just disguising with his smile and discarding words. Ying raised her eyebrow in a questioning but playful expression, "Favor for a favor huh?" She asked with a smirk, "So you have a price, you mean?" Shit...that was expected, obviously! But what she, a first year, a muggle-born with nothing special to offer, could use to pay for what she needed? The thought made her bite her lip and feeling a little more nervous... Well, I suppose I have to find something! she thought in encouragement.

Asking for his help suddenly seemed even more foolhardy and imprudent then the first idea that led her to him, "In my defense, I just had this idea a few minutes ago!" She started, "And you just appeared in my view in the right time!" well...not quite...she could have been specifically looking for him...but that was not to be told! "You're Italian?" Not relevant, although she thought that aspect about him was actually a very interesting one. She had never been in Italy, although it was a country she would love to visit someday, it was full of history, art and beautiful places and she was a very curious person.

Then the real question came to play. She looked at him with a very compromising expression that she could no longer hide, like a child that was about to confess she did something she shouldn't, the difference was, she was about to make it. Fidgeting with the fringes of her navy blue scarf she watched him leaning against the wall in a careless manner, like this was a very normal and common thing to happen to him, people coming for help and he asking for something in return. Ying wondered a bit about what kind o "business" would the boy make inside those stony halls, she imagined that probably she would never ask! But curiosity was burning in her chest and she had to bite down her questions.

"Humble Luigi?" She smiled widely and her eyes twinkled in amusement. So was he also a muggle-born? Maybe a half-blood? Not that it was that relevant, the blood status, but it would mean he also knew her world and that always felt like she had found a piece of comfort and the realization that she wasn't that far from home after all. "Where is your Mario then?" She looked around, with her hands hold at her back, faking like she was searching for someone. In fact, she came to notice, maybe she was just delaying asking and finally revealing what she was actually looking for.

With her cheeks turning into a little shade of red, that she prayed would pass as a normal reaction to the cold weather, Ying looked from her feet to the boy's green eyes expecting to see some encouragement in them, some spark that would told her to be at ease and make her questions without feeling embarrassed or a strong will to just turn on her heels and flee away. Why in hell would be that hard asking for just a few, harmless ingredients? Because of what you want to do with it! The little voice in her conscious answered her and she shushed it by finally starting to speak, "I was hoping you could find me some ingredients," She said with a small voice, then clearing her throat she continued with a little more confidence, " I need two flitterby moths, four bouncing bulbs and four foxglove flowers..." she wondered if she should have exchanged the quantities or add another ingredient to mislead him about what she was up to make, that would have been smart. But he never struck her as stupid or dumb, he'd probably read right through her, and her situation would not improve by it.

Looking around, to make sure other students were still at a wanted distance, specially the prefect at the right distant corner, Ying looked hopefully at Piérre, "Can you...your know...help?" She asked with a thin lips smile and guilty all over her face. Of course he already figured out why would she want those ingredients and for what, at least she thought that. "What do you want in return?" She asked feeling a sting in her heart, she knew she hadn't much to give back, and despite she didn't take him as a dangerous or an evil person, the fact was, she didn't knew him at all and she had no idea about what kind of deals the boy was used to make. She just hoped, whatever it was, that she was able to retributive!

@Fang Hui-Ying

House Colours: Ravenclaw

Calming Presence in Effect

The Italian gratefully took the hand offered to him, shaking with a firm grip that denoted confidence and self-assurance. His smile remained bright, his gaze just barely glittering with curiosity. "Call me what you like." He replied somewhat brightly yet irritatingly mysteriously. "It's nice to formally meet you, Ying!"

He raised his brow at the seeming worry that flashed across the girl's face as he mentioned the possibility for a need to be paid back. Well, that was typically how barters worked, didn't they? It was highly a this-for-that basis for trust and mutual benefit. Why else would she request a favor of the boy if she didn't expect him to ask for something in return. After all, Piérre had his needs as well; he needed others to give him something of value so that he could continue running tasks and errands for other people. Having the inability to do that would result in the collapse of trust and then the collapse of an easily obtainable source of help and resources that Piérre happened to have access to. Everyone would suffer. "That's usually how a trade works." He shrugged, whistling to himself and then averted his eyes to the rest of the halls and the kids that were flooded throughout. There were a few ‘high-profile’ targets even here, he realized. This was a fact that could be capitalized upon if Piérre got a head start on memorizing their schedules and started to overhear their conversations.

“Yes, well; most things are thought of in the spur of the moment… usually when a need needs to be met…” Piérre trailed off, his keen eye watching the red haired boy threading his way through the crowd so that the other students in the hallway appeared to consume him within their undulating wave and flow. He nodded absently when Ying queried him on his nationality; it was the truth, after all. Italian born and raised he was, at least until he and his brother were around five and a half or so and had made their way to London.

The fidgeting nature of the girl was something that Piérre was very familiar with; motion that had to be expressed so as to release some level of tension in the mind of the one who was shifting and altering their position. The boy himself was guilty of such a thing on far more than one occasion, but that didn’t prevent the movement from being quickly noticed by the keen eyes of the boy. His green eyes twinkled as the girl repeated his nickname back to him, seemingly amused by the double-meaning that the boy was implying with it. Noticeable more as the classic character of the same name… it also had a very intriguing meaning in Italian culture. “Yes, yessss… Luigi! It’s a bit funny; it’s a bit of a derogatory term in certain situations, for almost awkwardly skinny and tall guys. You could say ‘Mario’ as an opposing descriptor of course. I like it though; regardless of terminology, being a ‘famous fighter’ is always a plus. He’s at Durmstrang, by the way.” A prattling on and on, the last sentence would likely be a bit of a shocker with how nonchalantly it was presented. He wouldn’t elaborate; he had answered the question, after all.

Ingredients, eh? Piérre hummed as Ying rattled off the name of the ingredients that she needed. Flitterby moths, bouncing bulbs, foxglove flowers… These were… huh. Interesting. “Planning on brewing Pompion Potion, are we?” He asked cheekily, giving her a light side-eye as a smile formed. “Personal vendetta, errand, assignment, or personal amusement?” He inquired back at her, tipping his head as he considered the proposition.

These ingredients weren’t hard to find. Not hard to find at all. The challenge would be to contact his connections or to salvage the ingredients for himself from the shallower parts of the woods or on the castle grounds. “These aren’t too hard to locate. Foxglove we can find on the grounds, bouncing bulbs can be snatched from the Herbology greenhouse…” He mused to himself, humming and hawing a bit over how he could get his hands on the flitterby moths… It was cold at this time of the year; they wouldn’t be easily found outside. No… he would likely have to find someone who had some on hand or he would have to find a way to steal them from… well… the potion’s storeroom or something. The kid wasn’t above stealing something from their current potions professor Reganomics. He was quite certain that he could get away with it too; quite easily, as a matter of fact. “And I can easily snatch those moths from right under Reganomics’ nose.” He murmured aloud, letting the nickname that he had made for the teacher openly slip from his tongue.

This was… hm… this was likely for a prank, wasn’t it? Someone else who was willing to take measures to trick others or to bring low the high and haughty. Now now… this was certainly something that the kid could easily get behind. Yes… yes… this would do nicely. It was a perfect opportunity to send a message as well. “I’ll tell you what, taijitu.” Piérre continued to muse aloud. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll help you collect these ingredients, heck, I’ll even collect them myself with no required effort on your behalf.” His voice lilted ever so slightly; a businessman sweetening up a deal and drawing the bargainer in closer and closer

“My price is that you let me in on the action.”

Spoken like a true Italian mafioso, the price that the cheeky boy demanded was that he be privy to the execution of whatever action the potion would be utilized in. “I want a piece of the action; I want to see what you’re gonna do with the ingredients of my hard-earned labor.” A curl of a smile, though this one was less malicious or disconcerting and more amused and bright; a gleam in both green eyes indicated a thirst, a hungering for whatever it was that Ying was planning to do with the pompion potion that was going to be made. “You will tell me exactly when you are going to use it and where, and you will let me have a front seat in the show. Should schedule permit, I’ll be there.” He tapped an invisible wristwatch. “I’m a busy man, but I always try to cut time out of my busy day just to watch the execution of a well-planned prank.” His voice was slightly whined, as if pathetically requesting it of Ying herself.

It was a very simple ask, though the boy supposed that depending on the nature of the girl’s vendetta even this request could be easily denied. “Heck, if you’re worried about someone being suspicious of you, I’d love to drip the potion into someone’s drink. Free of charge, of course” All in all, he was being very beatific with this offer. Some of his prices could be considered outrageous even to the most desperate individual; multi-galleon taxes, promises to follow through with a favor or a request of his own (these he had names affiliated with such promises), and potion ingredients of his own. Calling on favors was his favorite pastime, especially if they thought it was a good idea to turn yellow and the poor boy would be forced to enforce his blackmail threat. Nothing malicious, of course… but suffice to say those individuals (despite constantly looking over their shoulders for him) usually ended up drenched in flobberworm mucus or a horrific potion concoction gone wrong or else ended up mysteriously absent from classes for a day or so thanks to stomach cramps after a dungbomb had had the terrible misfortune of going off right when they were in the middle of its radius of effect.

He had his methods.

“But of course, I’m willing to compromise if you have a counteroffer. I’m really just looking for amusement at this point. School is way too boring more than 90% of the time in my humble opinion, hey?”

Green eyes continued to glitter, something swirling and unknowable spinning deep inside the boy’s pupil as thoughts unheard continued to twist in the helixes of his mind. Thoughts that were tugged apart and put back together as he waited for the girl to give her response to his offer.

"Call me what you want" was not the answer she was expecting to hear, it clearly didn't made her feel more comfortable during her sudden approach, specially with a topic of this nature. She concluded that probably that was his intention, to not make things look easy to her, he was probably having fun and taking the time he wanted to see how his young fellow student was fiddling with her words trying and failing to look innocent with her nicely put smiles. She lingered a little in her thoughts searching for a name that could fit him, but the moment was a little unnerving for her to be creative enough, she had more important things to deal at the moment, like trying to convince him that helping her find what she needed was in fact a good idea.

Of course she was expecting that he would ask something in return, she wasn't that silly or oblivious of how things worked, but maybe she hadn't thought about it much, and now she was sorry she hadn't thought things through, with more time and figured out what she really could offer. It would have been smart, to have something in her sleeve, something to counter offer, something that would be under her control, even if slightly. She had acted recklessly, impulsively...she knew better she should have prepared herself for that moment. Everything depended on that...now, if she had nothing useful to give back, he will know about her plan...god knows what he could do with that information if she decided to turn her back in that moment.

So she stayed, trying to remain calm, telling herself he was just a boy like her, a little older, but still...he wouldn't want to cause her harm, would he? “Yes, well; most things are thought of in the spur of the moment… usually when a need needs to be met…” he told her seeming momentarily distracted with their surroundings. Ying followed his gaze and her eyes fell in the crowd of students walking in and out those corridors. What is he looking at? she thought intrigued, nothing special seemed to be happening to call someone's attention...perhaps he was making time? To think about what he would ask of her? Then she probably should take her time and do the same. So she decided to ask more questions about him, perhaps in his words he would reveal something that could help her figuring a way out of her dilemma. "A fighter? Isn't he a plumber?" She asked when he was telling her about his interpretations of Luigi and Mario. To be fair, the only time she had ever played Mario's game was once her caretaker's son went to her house with his mother, for just a few hours, but she had had loads of fun. She hadn't become an expert about the famous brothers tho, her parents wanted her to focus in some more productive things then cartoons and video games.

"In Durmstrang?" she now felt lost and confused...why would Mario be at...Oh wait...his Mario! "You have a brother in Durmstrang? that's really nice!" She admitted with honesty. She also thought that that could have happened to her, if her first instance of magic had occurred in China and not at her family's home in London. Second thought...maybe it wasn't that nice to be separated miles away from your brother, she knew she wouldn't want that, "Maybe...not that nice." She concluded nodding thoughtfully, her voice fading a little in the end.

But maybe now was time to have a break in her "buying time" questions and go straight for what she really wanted to ask him. She gave him the list of ingredients she needed and then waited anxiously for his reaction and response. “Planning on brewing Pompion Potion, are we?” He asked looking at her like he knew already her intentions. Ying's dark brown eyes widened, she got surprise with how quickly he had put two plus two together. Changing her expression as fast as she noticed what she had revealed to him, Ying cleared her throat and feigned indifference, like have been caught was not that relevant. She looked away, not wanting him to read more through her, as he questioned her intentions. "Winter is beautiful isn't it?" She asked running away from having to reveal more, looking at the white falling snow outside.

“These aren’t too hard to locate. Foxglove we can find on the grounds, bouncing bulbs can be snatched from the Herbology greenhouse…” He started to say. That gave her some hope that he would help her, at least it felt possible to happen. She glanced at him from the corner of her eyes, trying to see what he meant by telling her where to find those ingredients. “And I can easily snatch those moths from right under Reganomics’ nose.” he continued. Snatch? she thought gulping, "snatch" could be difficult...could put him in detention or worse! The price to pay for it didn't seemed pretty to her in that moment, it surely would be something difficult for her, wouldn't she even be able to pay for it? The idea of having to ask her brother for help crossed her mind...but it frightened her even more, wouldn't be in that reality and universe that Ming would help her with something like that...that probably would bring her more problems to deal with! She tightly closed her eyes with a grimace, conscious that she had probably walked into more trouble then what she expected or intended.

“I’ll tell you what, taijitu.” his words made her open her eyes quickly again and look at him, “I’ll tell you what. I’ll help you collect these ingredients, heck, I’ll even collect them myself with no required effort on your behalf.” He continued. Ying felt her heart starting to race in anticipation, "Oh dear..." she thought while waiting for his next sentence, “My price is that you let me in on the action.” he finished. Ying felt her mouth open in astonishment, "Oh..." her only capable sound just escaped her lips, she wasn't really expecting that, from all the scenarios, that hadn't crossed her mind. She listened, her eyebrows raising in disbelief that he actually seemed excited with the idea of helping her and participating in her unreasonable plan of pranking some innocent souls. She nodded in agreement taking mental note of everything he was saying to her, When, Where and to Who..."Sure I'll tell you everything!" She finally was able to speak, letting her fears and concerns about him starting to wash away from her, a small smile of contained happiness started to form on her rosy lips. "No..I...I don't have anyone that could be suspicious about me!" she stated with some proud gaining some confidence, "I know how to make things!" She boasted with a sly smile nudging him in the side with her elbow, now she was pretending to be more cool then what she really was. But he didn't know anything about it, nor he needed to!

“Heck, if you’re worried about someone being suspicious of you, I’d love to drip the potion into someone’s drink. Free of charge, of course” John Doe was really showing his support now! "From the front seat to the real action huh?" She asked playfully, her eyes betraying her words, for she was really happy that he was showing such enthusiasm towards her idea. "I agree, school can be really boring!" she confessed now with a friendly and way more relaxed expression, her smirk was more funny then mischievous, "I'll tell you three words, you can put them together as you wish." She could definitely be mysterious too! Then she uttered the words while lifting one finger at a time, "Dinner. Slytherin. Pumpkin Juice." Then putting her hands behind her back again she finished in a challenging tone, "What do you say? Do we have a deal?"

@Fang Hui-Ying

House Colours: Ravenclaw

Calming Presence in Effect

The boy couldn't help but snort just a little bit at the second remark on the name he had given. Well, this was true as well, but it mostly alluded to the actual meaning of the name; that being the 'famed fighter' or the 'famous warrior'. Piérre only shrugged a bit. "Hey, what's wrong with being a blue collar, am I right? They're cool people too; hard workers, of course. Not afraid to get down and dirty if need be."

Again, Piérre shrugged when Ying seemed torn on the good-ness or bad-ness of having his twin being an attendant of Durmstrang. "Eh, that just means the poor owls have to fly a bit farther than usual. I see him every summer anyways." He wasn't going to really mention the fact that they had had quite violent ups and downs in the past few years. Brother they were, and joined at the hip that they liked to be... well... they fought just like many other kinds of siblings. Granted the fights they had sometimes came down to blows, but usually they enjoyed one another's company and tried to get along as best they could. "It's a different lifestyle." Piérre had only finally come to terms with that just as recently as that year's Christmas Break. As much as he wished that his brother would have stayed in Hogwarts with him... well... Romeo seemed to be better off at Durmstrang anyways. He had more friends there than Piérre had friends here, after all. "He's happy there." Although, the last sentence had a slight air of darkness to it that betrayed the otherwise gleeful appraisal of his brother's good fortune in the realms of education.

Ahhhhh, deflection does not befit you, Ying! Piérre felt a thrill of achievement as he properly guessed the name of the potion that the ingredients listed were used for. "Mm, pretty indeed." He replied mischievously as she tried to distract herself by looking out the window and away from the keen green eyes that always sought and rarely ever gave up in finding.

At least she was clever enough to acquiesce to his requests. It was a very, very, pitifully small ask, after all. He just wanted front row tickets to the nonsense. "Good, good..." Piérre lightly praised Ying, backing her claims that she was indeed at least a little clever enough to not get caught. "Confidence is key. That, and then practice; but everyone has to start somewhere, right?" To be fair, Piérre would not have been surprised if all of this culminated into a detention for the younger student, but detentions at Hogwarts were pretty overrated. Piérre could speak from experience to that. Nobody had any creativity anymore.

The Britalian watched as she raised three fingers; one at a time. Dinner, Slytherin, Pumpkin Juice. Hm. Yeah, Piérre was pretty sure that he could piece together what the plan was simply from those few words. "Hah. I guess I should start pulling out and refurbishing my Slytherin robes then." He said with an air of thought as he rested his chin in his hand. "I really do have to get front row for this; they're really not as cunning as they like to think they are. A shame really; they can really amount to something as soon as they get over hubris." Piérre had learned a lot from this generation of Slytherins; mostly that they were terrible depictions of what the house was supposed to be. Indeed, perhaps it would be fair to say that Piérre felt a sort of kinship with the verdant house for more than a few reasons. Perhaps that fact would remain a mystery forever to the Sorting Hat alone... perhaps it had been tricked for the first time since its first enchanting.

As Ying tried to close the deal, Piérre tutted her with a waggling finger. "Ah-ah-ah. I know you're eager, but in this situation I call the deals." A wink. "Good business values, blah blah blah." He waved his hand, pausing for a second before he also leaned in and matched Ying's challenging tone. "Now. To make the deal firm; I will get you your three ingredients and send them via my cat, Figaro. He's out trailing someone right now, but you'll recognize him as a silver bengal cat and by the little capsule on his collar or the package he'll be toting with him. He tracks by scent, so if you don't mind I'll also need a small trinket of yours that has your scent on it. Ah, don't worry, it'll come back with the ingredients. I'm not a thief unless I choose to be, and this is a deal we're striking instead of a highway robbery. Consider it an initial 'down payment' if you would." Something worth mentioning, the boy believed. "You will brew the potion, use it to do whatever it is that you please, and I will watch the fallouts and have the satisfaction of knowing that I was a part of the nonsense that happens." Easy terms, lax conditions; something that didn't come from the boy frequently when it came to a high risk job like this.

Still leaning in like the devil offering his Faustian bargain, Piérre extended his hand (the palm of which was pale with crisscrossing scars from an event that was a mystery in and of itself) in the gesture of expecting a shake.

"Do we have... a bargain?"

The Britalian's left eyebrow raised in the 'brat-tamer' as the corner of his mouth twisted in the puck's grin. Seemed like a done deal. Once the deal was sealed, then he would be up and ready to go.

Man, it had been a while since he had stolen something from a full-on adult (and a professor no less, haha!). This would be an excellent time to actually flex those stealthy muscles of his and a perfect excuse to pull out all the stops for this mini-heist.

Ying shook her hands in front of her in a negative and dismissive way, "Oh! Nothing wrong in being a blue collar! I didn't mean that!" She assured him. She certainly would never judge anyone by their profession, that's not how she saw value in people, even if her entire family would give her a long speech about it. Accordingly to them, you being successful in life was heavily connected with your job and the amount of money you were able to make with it. Being a white collar was the way, a blue collar...not so much! And suddenly that thought made her smile, how cool it would be, to defy Mr Fang, see his reaction if she refused to follow his patterns and expectation.

"It is nice that even being apart you two keep in contact with each other!" She stated with a honest and kind smile. "I'm too familiar with that lifestyle," Ying said in support. She meant living away from her family and only being able to talk by owls. Well...in her case messages, phone and video calls too. It was actually very annoying not being able to use her laptop at Hogwarts...but worse then that, was not being able to listen her favorite music whenever she wanted. "Luigi" said that his brother was happy at Durmstrang tho, but Ying had her doubts taking by his closed expression when stating that, but she decided it was best to not make any more questions, it was obvious he didn't wanted to continue to talk about it.

Instead, their conversation started to aligned to what was her first really intention to reach out to him. She felt scared at first, when he found out so easily what she wanted to brew with those ingredients. To all fairness...it was pretty obvious, the recipe was not that complicated and after what she asked for it was understandable that he would sum it all up and come to the right conclusion. But she still had some hope that he wouldn't reach that conclusion so fast, he could have not be a potions' fan, or simply couldn't like the subject to have it all in mind. It wasn't the case...and after a moment of panic and a failed attempt to not go into details about her plans, she was happy to realize he was actually offering more help than what she was hoping or expecting for.

"Your... You have Slytherin robes?" Ying asked surprised. But then she remembered the first day she met him, she could swear he was her teammate, a fellow Gryffindor, however here he was, wearing blue and bronze, Ravenclaw's colors, "Which house are you from really? I could swear I saw you in Gryffindor!" She asked with curiosity, crossing her arms and looking at him with a questioning expression. "I have a Slytherin scarf..." she informed with a shrug, "Maybe I'll wear it while I mix the potion into the juice...would be less suspicious I suppose." Ying acknowledge. Although there was that one person she hoped would get late to supper...if her brother sees just a glimpse of her close to the green table she would be in trouble, it wouldn't be that hard to put two and two together. "Well, I agree...and what kind of Gryffindor would I be if I didn't gave the snakes a hard time from time to time? Right?" She asked mischievously.

"Ah-ah-ah. I know you're eager, but in this situation I call the deals." He replied to her with a wink. Ying raised her brows and blinked, resting her outstretched hand back to her side. What would he want more? Didn't he said he just wanted a front row to the pumpkin show? Than he kept explaining the details about their transaction and she kept her ears while open taking in everything he was telling her. His cat? He was trailing someone? What kind of cat does he have? Silver bengal do that? That's a first... a trinket? Ying stopped in her questioning thoughts and searched for something that would be easy for a cat to carry. Her blue scarf would be to big and call much attention...maybe her silver bracelet would be the best option. Ying hesitated a little, it was a bracelet her mother gave her for her birthday, it kind of had sentimental meaning, even though their relationship had never been that close. "Okay..." She nodded as she took off the thin silver bracelet from her wrist, "Can this be?" She asked as she gave it to the green-eyed boy.

"Do we have... a bargain?" he finally asked reaching his hand to her. Ying looked at him first, trying to see if he was hiding any trick behind all he had already said. His expression only revealed malice, giving Ying the impression she was making an actual deal with the devil. The young girl had a deep breath, making her final decision and then she shook the boy's hand with her small and delicate one. "Bargain made!" She replied grinning at him. "Well then...I'll be waiting for Figaro, and then I'll let you know when everything is ready!" She happily informed him with reinsurance. "It's always nice to make a good business!" She joked, "Bye!" waving her hand at him, she turned on her heals and headed in confident footsteps towards the opposite end of the corridor, mingling with the crowd of students heading towards the great hall.