One Day Ago. . .

---

"I said I don't want to see him!" the blue-eyed girl yelled, causing some heads to turn and mutter unheard words.

"Blake..." said the man who stood before her, a scowl on his face. He was perhaps the only one who wasn't fazed by the girl's sudden outburst. He'd expected it.

"Why would you even bring me here? I'm not staying." she said, anger and a touch of fear were clear in her voice. She reached into her hoodie and withdrew her wand, but the man accompanying her was quick and grabbed her wrist firmly.

"Just listen to what I have to say." he said, releasing her after a moment. Blake gave him a glare, telling him with her eyes he had about two point five seconds to explain himself, or she was going to break something. The man adjusted the collar of his shirt and sighed briefly before continuing.

"You need to see him Blake-"

"Like hell I do!"

"So that you may move on." he continued, right through her interruption.

Blake's eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms. "I already have." she said, her voice was low and angry.

"Your reaction makes me think otherwise."

"We've already established I don't give a shit what you think. So, can we leave?"

The man shook his head and continued on.

"As much as I don't want to see my brother, I'm here because I think it'll be good for you... to talk to him."

"Good for me? Are you bloody insane!? He's literally the bane of my existence!" she told him, her voice raising even more. A few security guards stirred in their posts and looked towards the two. The man, Blake's uncle whom she hadn't seen in years, quickly waved to them to let them know he had things under control. It was a lie, considering Blake didn't even have control over herself.

"Do you remember what you told me a few days ago?"

"That I hate your guts?" she asked, rolling her eyes, knowing full well what he meant.

"That too." he said with a light chuckle. "But no... I mean about starting over. You told me that you were looking to start over, right?"

"Yeah, so? What's your point? That doesn't explain why you've dragged me to this bloody hell hole." she complained, crossing her arms.

"You told me that you were ready to start a new life. Not many people get that chance you know. Though by... questionable means, you've gotten yourself a ticket to America. This time tomorrow, you'll be there, and then what are you going to do? Just because you leave this place... your home... it doesn't mean the demons you've made here won't follow you."

Blake's face fell, and for a moment she looked so lost that her uncle wanted to take back what he'd said. He wouldn't though... because it was true.

"Whatever you need to do to free yourself from this pain you're carrying 'round, this is the last chance you'll get to do it. You owe it to yourself... and to your mum."

Blake was silent for a long moment, but you could almost hear the wheels turning in her head, and her heart nearly beating out of her chest. Her uncle was worried at her silence, and so he placed a hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him. he saw the look of fear in her eyes, and he knew what she was thinking even without her having to say anything.

"I'll be right there with you. Not only that, the guard will be there as well. You'll be protected, so you've nothing to fear."

Blake looked into the eyes of her uncle, finding the comfort she needed. "But... Uncle Barren, what will I...? How can I even speak to him after all this time?"

"Don't think too hard on it. What you want to say will come on it's own when you see him." he said, smiling and hooking his arm around her shoulders. "Come on then."

The two of them had to go through security then, a process Blake paid little attention to aside from the fact they'd taken her wand for safety purposes. She resisted only a little, though since her uncle was an Auror, he got to keep his as they made their way through the prison. The large castle was just as big on the inside, and it seemed anyone who strayed from the lit halls would find themselves absorbed by the darkness. The shadows seemed almost... alive, as if they were watching everything and everyone. By the time the pair, accompanied by two more security wizards, had made it to the visiting area, Blake had forgotten the winding paths they'd taken from the entrance. It was clear she felt uneasy, as the way she firmly gripped her uncle's hand showed she was uncomfortable being there.

The room they had entered was, thankfully, well lit, unlike the rest of the place. On one side sat two chairs, and on the other was one. Though at first glances it appeared that there was no space between them, at certain angles, one could see a brief bit of light from the invisible barrier that separated the chairs.

"How much time do you need?" one of the wizards asked.

"Ten minutes." her uncle answered. When they received the OK to enter the room, Blake went in first.

Before she even sat down in her chair, the sound of the metal door closing behind her had filled the room. As the one behind the pair closed, the one in front of them opened, somehow connected so that only one door may be open at one time. With a deep breath, Blake plopped down into her chair, crossing one leg over the other and looking to her uncle who sat down next to her. With a sigh of his own, he looked over at Blake and gave her a look, about to say something but was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Well now... look what the Dementor dragged in."

A chill went down Blake's spine once she heard his voice. Her father emerged from the darkness on the other side of the door, accompanied by security on either side as they led him to his chair. His arms and feet were shackled, the former connected to a belt around his waist. As he approached, Blake couldn't help her unease, as she seemed to retreat more into her chair, wishing she could just melt into it and vanish. Once the man was settled into his chair, the wizards backed off, but didn't leave the room, but stood guard far away by the door they'd entered from. A long silence passed and Blake had kept her eyes down, not sure what to say or do. Seeing him so close made her unsure of herself.

"I know it's been a long time, but I imagine not long enough for you to forget your manners, Blake." her father said, ending the silence.

At the sound of her name, she looked at him and he gave her a look that read: "I'm waiting."

"Hello, father." she said after mustering all her will to keep her voice steady and unwavering. He nodded to her with a small smile before glancing over at his younger brother.

"Bardrick."

"Barren."

The short exchange between the two brothers held their own tension, and it was almost palpable in the air of the room.

"So... to what do I owe the pleasure. I must say, I never expected anyone to come for me, saying I had a visitor no less."

"Yes, I know. You must have been so busy rotting away in that cell of yours. We'll keep this brief so you can get back to that." her uncle Barren said.

"Please do." her father responded, his tone sharp as if he were irritated. If he was, however, he did a good job of not showing it.

"Blake's going to America. She leaves tonight. I brought her here so she could see you before she leaves. There's no telling when she'll be back. You may just die before she does."

"You mean to tell me you came all this way to bid farewell? Well, I have to say I'm flattered, but a letter would have sufficed."

"Perhaps, but I wanted to see how you looked unshaven, so there's that." her uncle said.

Her father looked unamused by his brother's sarcasm, and so he looked to Blake. "What about you, my darling? Don't tell me you've missed me." he cooed.

She frowned.

"I'm happy to see you." she said, sitting up in her chair. "Tatters and chains is such a great look for you." she said, her eyes glaring at him. He returned her glare, saying nothing in response for a long moment. When he did speak, it was preceded with an annoyed grunt.

"So, what did you do?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Come on Blake, I know you better than you know yourself. Barren said you're heading to America. Why?"

"She was given the opportunity to transfer to Salem."

"I see. Funny thing is brother, we both know the UK holds plenty of the top ranking wizarding schools in the world. Blake's smart enough to get into any one of 'em, which means she'd have no reason to transfer to America. You say it like it's some great feat, when I know it's only because she fucked up her chances to get into anything better." he paused and looked at Blake. "So let me ask you again. What did you do this time? All those little pranks you like to pull are not enough to get you into too much trouble, so I'm guessing you did something big. Big enough to get you expelled and ruin your chances into getting into a better school. See, you forget who you're dealing with here." he said, leaning back in his chair and cracking a devilish grin. "It's my blood that runs through your veins, and you know what that means. That means you're powerful and dangerous and you like to fuck shit up. So I'm thinking you went farther this time. More than you're little pranks. So... what did you destroy? Who did you kill?"

Blake's anger boiled over then and she lept out of her chair, her fist smashing into the invisible barrier between them as she attempted to get at her father. Her uncle was out of his seat a moment later, grabbing her wrist and pulling her back.

"I'm not like you! You're a murderer!" she screamed at him, allowing herself to be pulled back by her uncle.

"Blake! Calm down." he said firmly.

"You're wrong, my little princess. You are exactly like me... and it's beautiful."

Blake glared at him and balled her hands into fists as she stood before him. "I hate you! You've ruined me! You've taken everything from me and left me with nothing but this body that I can't even look at anymore, let alone love!"

"I've made you stronger. I've given you something no one else could have given you."

"All you've left me with is pain!" she yelled, pounding on the barrier with her fists, doing little damage in the process. Her uncle took a step away then, allowing her to do as she pleased.

"All this time I've been so angry at you and I've taken it out on other people... I've been letting you control me even from in here. Now, I'm leaving. I'm going so far away, you'll never be able to control me again! You'll rot in here, alone and knowing there's no one else in the world who loves you."

Her father tilted his head and smiled wider, as if he were so proud.

"My only regret is that I didn't get a chance to kill you myself." she said, turning and storming away from him, her heeled boots tapping loudly as she did. Her uncle went to stand before his brother and he sighed, shaking his head.

"Ditto."

Blake banged on the door and waited as the loud turning of gears signaled that the door was opening. As soon as she could squeeze through, she slipped out into the hall.

Her father stood from his chair, the small smile still on his face as he turned and went his own way.

"One of them may still get that chance..." he said to himself as he stood by the guards and waited to be returned to his cell.

---

Present Day

---

Even with everything that had happened during her first hours in America, Blake couldn't stop replaying that memory over and over in her head, thinking of things she should have said instead of blowing up like she did. The past few days had not been the best for her. Between packing for the move, visiting her father, jet lag, and the stalling of the ride to her new school, Blake was on edge and just about ready to blow her fuse again. Thankfully everyone around her seemed to ignore her as she stretched out on a couch, taking up the entire length of it so no one could sit there. At least there seemed to be no one in the mood to meet a transfer student, and that was a good thing. Anything was bound to piss her off at this point. Not that she cared, but apparently something had happened and students weren't allowed to go too far from their current location... which she assumed was the lounge of course, and so everyone around her started mumbling and inquiring about what happened. Some students immediately left the area and went to go get food, and that was a good idea, but Blake was only wanting to rest at this point.

Reaching up, she brought the sunglasses that were perched upon her head down and placed them over her eyes before she put a hand over her mouth to yawn. Had she not been so worn out, she would have completely disregarded the warning of the teacher not to venture out, and gone on her own to explore the school. Being in an American school for the first time was quite exciting in its own way. The only thing more exciting than that, was that no one in the school knew who she was. She could be whoever she wanted to be. A popular bitch, a nerd, an introvert... the possibilities were endless.

Though honestly, she was feeling way too lazy to think on them all. So for now, she'd just be Blake.

@Apokalipse

Elizabeth was surprised at how late the centaurs had made the Peregrine reach Salem. It was already 9pm and she was hungry, having completely missed lunch because she was absorbed in her reading of the zombies suspense filled thriller, Feed, almost finishing it by their arrival. Elizabeth had gathered in the tightly packed lounge for an emergency announcement, expecting it to have something to do with the Centaur rampage and their late arrival. Instead it was just a warning not to go outside until further notice, and to stay out of the dorms for the time being and the potential punishment for disobeying these instructions. They would, however be allowed to head into the Great Hall to eat, as well as remain in the Lounge. Amongst her list of tasks she needs to accomplish tonight however, is to go talk to Mrs. Woden about her prescription medicine, but that might have to wait. So instead she'd go do what she could, and go eat dinner. It would give her a chance to finish reading her book for the fifth time since she got it.

Walking to the Great Hall, Elizabeth was more than happy to grab a plate, and a few napkins and grab a healthy salad with chicken strips, croutons, and diced eggs for her meal, before heading to an empty section of the Warren table. Before she sat down she noticed Duri Song standing with a plate of his own, looking almost like he was lost. Perhaps if she weren't scared of talking with people she didn't come to trust not to bully her, she would have invited him over. Instead she set down her plate, and pressed the back of her skirt to her legs and sat on the ancient bench. Setting her book up beside her plate, she began to eat her salad, reading a few lines while she chewed, before flipping the page over. She's read the book before so she knew it was coming up, and she felt herself get sad, as she always does reading this part (she had even cried the first time she read it). She keeps reading though, as she continues to chip away at her salad, pacing both so that they would be finished within minutes of the other, with plans to talk to a teacher about finding Mrs. Woden afterward. Her morning trip to see Mrs. Woden to get her medicine was the only thing that made her a morning person.

With no one to bother her, yet, her curiosity crept into mind. If the trip into Salem was anything to go by, this year was going to be different. It was already so late, and the first years haven't been sorted yet. Would they still be sorted tonight, and if so why let students stay in the lounge? While Elizabeth didn't like the idea of being packed around with other students, she came to expect that everyone would be there for the Sorting Ceremony. However the other possibility was that the Sorting Ceremony would be delayed until Morning as well, but that left the problem of where would the first years sleep tonight? Did the Headmistress request the Peregrine stay longer for the students who needed to sleep to get their sleep for the night, and have things continue as normal the next day? She shook the thoughts from her head, they would all be sorted out, and things would fall into place. Routine and some semblance of order would rise and it would be another year at Salem Witches Institute.

Senua, like many others had realised that the Peregrine was late. Very late, in fact. The car was supposed to reach Salem in the day, but now night has fallen. In all the years she had been to Salem, the Peregrine had never been late. Not even once. She now remembered the thundering of hooves from the inside of the magical vehicle, but had simply thought of them being merely horses and not a entire herd of centaurs chasing and protesting after them. They were the cause of this whole debacle and no one yet had figured out why that was the case, or at least that was what it seemed like to her. It was now half-past nine at night and all of the students were now crammed into the lounge, having finally arrived in the grounds of Salem. The entire room had endured a whole thirty minutes of silence before the Professor walked into the room.

The bearded Professor Endy strode in, and after several brief moments of silence, spoke up, explaining the current situation at hand. The students were forbidden to go outdoors as well as to return to their dorms. The only options they had for now was to either remain here in the lounge or head to the Great Hall for a meal, one which most would need. Senua had managed to find herself a seat, and was comfortably seated unlike the majority of the students who had not managed to find seating room. The girl brooded over the current situation along with the facts she knew. Why had the centaurs done what they did? What was going on? Was it that dangerous that they had to stay indoors? Unfortunately, those questions would go unanswered for now, as nobody knew the answers to them, and were as clueless as the brunette was. The room had erupted into a flurry of conversations as her fellow students discussed with themselves about the centaur situation or anything under the sun. One thing she knew, was that it was definitely disturbing her concentration.

With her concentration lost and her efforts to think thwarted, Senua stood up and started to make a move towards the Great Hal. Might as well get a meal before returning to the lounge, hopefully there would be less people then, along with a lot less noise. The Great Hall was still relatively empty, as a vast majority of the students still remained in the lounge. Grabbing an empty plate, the girl piled several pieces of roast chicken strips, grabbed some bread and ladled herself a bowl of tomato soup. The girl then walked over to the mostly empty table that belonged to House Good. Looking around, she spotted her friend Duri Song at the Warren table, and gave him a greeting along with a wave before starting to tuck into her food, tearing bits of bread off and dunking them into her healthy bowl of soup before inserting them into her mouth, munching in bliss.

Ophélie Moore or Philly, hugged her cousins, Devin and Lynn in one feel swoop. Of course her older cousin Devin, a fellow Good, loudly protested such affection. Lynn, her thirteen year old cousin just hugged back as tightly as Philly. After she let go Lynn moved over to hug Babs, short for Barbara, Philly's younger sister. Babs was fourteen and the two girls were both in Tituba together.

"Steve."

"Devin."

The two seventeen year-olds greeted each other. Philly rolled her eyes at their macho display. All of her siblings were red heads. Whereas her two cousins were both brown headed. Despite the fact Devin was also a Moore. He was a shame to the family name. Or so they teased him. Lynn got a pass because her last name was White.

As the two sets chatted Philly turned back to her parents. Aunt Jane and Uncle James was talking to her father. Devin's folks hadn't showed. Instead Dennis had brought his kid brother to the bus stop. He sensed Philly's eyes on him and gave a small smile. Dennis, despite being twenty-one never felt too old to hang out with the younger cousins.

"Be good." Philly's mom told her as the blonde bent over and kissed her daughter on the forehead.

"Don't do anything Dad wouldn't do." Philly said back. Her mouth raised into a crocked smile. It was a long running joke, because there wasn't a lot her father wouldn't do. And speaking of the Devil...

"I heard that!" Her dad shouted over to them.

Both mother and daughter shared a laugh before hugging.

"I love you." Said her mother.

"Love you too." Said Philly. They detached and her mother did her best to look like she wasn't crying. Philly was polite enough to not point out that she was failing.

"The Horse is here." Devin pointed out as the beater rolled to a stop. A female head stuck itself out the window.

"Ah, the Moores. Always a pleasure." Pluto winked before pulling her head back inside. Both of her male relatives were already getting in the car, aided by Pluto who had exited the magical vehicle. Philly grabbed her bags and followed with one last wave to her family.

"Don't forget to write!" Aunt Jane called out to her daughter Lynn as the girl climbed in last, accepting her room assignment.

"I wont!" Was the last thing Philly heard before the door closed. The Peregrine lurched even as the five of them were making their way down the stairs.

"Watch it!" Steven shouted up as he finally made it to the landing of the second floor. Philly could only see the top of his bushy red hair. "People on stairs!" He helped the rest of them into their rooms.

The ride to Salem was uneventful. The five of them shared their adventures over the summer and also sought out old friends. As they neared the school the five regrouped and prepared to disembark. Which was why they were all together when the Peregrine slammed to a halt. They quickly ran to a window and peered out. They were surrounded by a bunch of angry Centaurs!

Both Babs and Lynn took this turn of event terribly. Lynn began to sniffle, out of fear and Babs quickly followed. Philly quickly gathered her younger cousins to her and together with Devin sough to soothe them.

"It's okay. There's just a little misunderstanding. But the Headmistress will clear it up." Devin said, running his hand through Lynn's hair. Though he was speaking to the young girls, his eyes meet Philly's. There was something wrong and they both knew it.

"Someone probably pulled a prank last year." Philly added. "That got them all riled up even now. Or," She paused with a mischievous look. "A student finally figured out how to avoid going to school. Get the Centaurs to block the road. Genius, but a real inconvenience."

That illicited a giggle from the girls and lightened the tone of the room.

"I want to shake their hand." Lynn confessed. "That's brilliant." Her cry was slowly abating.

"I'd want to punch them in their di--" Devin started only to be cut off by Philly covering his mouth.

"Language!" She snipped, sending both girls into peals of laughter.

While Philly and Devin were calming Babs and Lynn, Steve had left the room to try and see if anyone knew anything. Since, the really strange thing was neither Pluto nor Mercury would say what was going on. Only that they should remain calm and it'll all be sorted. Even googling the event didn't come up with much. Much to his extreme frustration.

By the time the incident was resolved the five had retreated to Philly's room, since they were there already when this all started, and ended up dog piled on the bed around the younger girls. None of three older Moores said anything, but they all knew something was wrong. Badly wrong.

When they moved to the Lounge, the older Moores made a human barrier around Lynn and Babs to protect them from the crush of human bodies. They had chosen a spot against the wall, but with a clear view of teachers as they stood as silent sentinels by the door. The silence was oppressive. Apart from the conversation of the occasional student. Dread covered everything. It mingled with the heat of too many bodies.

When the door opened, it was a relief, a breath of fresh air. The Professor augmented his voice with magic. But with the silence they could have heard a pin drop unaided.

Students of Salem, I ask you to be patient as we settle everything out. For now, however, the outside is off limits to students and to travel outside will lead to suspension and possible expulsion. We would like you all to either wait here, in the Lounge, or make your way to the Great Hall for dinner if you are hungry. But please stay away from the outdoors and the dorm rooms.

The lack of news was very telling. Along with the dire restrictions.

Lynn, too young to quite understand the real and present danger, understood enough and started crying again. Devin quickly swept her up in his arms.

"Great Hall." Her cousin mouthed. With the uproar by the students there was no way that Philly would have heard him otherwise. The press of bodies became more uncomfortable as everyone tried to move at the same time. Philly would have none of that. As Steven picked up Babs, who bless her heart was trying to remain calm, Philly pulled out her wand and muttered a small spell. It was a simple thing, a small increase in her presence, to aid her making a path through the students.

As soon as they escaped the Lounge they took a moment to regroup next to a wall.

"Great Hall." Philly said finally after they had caught their breath with fresh air. It was more an acknowledgment of Devin's earlier mouthed statement and a push to get them moving again. She also had pulled her shirt away from her body to help the sweat dry. If they couldn't go to the dorms, food was their best option.

---

Ash's day was much less interesting. He got on a bus headed to the capital. Got off and boarded the King Tutt. No one had seen him off. Both his mother and sister did their best to ignore this part of his life.

Once inside the dingy car he made it to his room where he napped. He didn't awake until the commotion. And he only moved as far as the common area on his floor once he realized they weren't actually at Salem. Close, but not quite. He listened to the other students as they chattered excitedly about the turn of events.

Ash listened for a while, but as soon as they ran out of new speculation and started rehashing what had already been said, he retreated back to his room and took another nap.

In the Lounge he found himself a spot on one of the couches. Of course he had to practically sit on someone else, but he didn't mind. The person under him did, but he didn't. After the Professor finished Ash felt far more awake than he had been all day. There was a tightness to his skin, like it was stretched too far. And he was too hot too. But still he didn't move. He just couldn't muster up the wherewithal.

Instead he watched as the other students trickled out of the Lounge.

Elise was nervous. First the Peregrine had arrived late at school, and then they had all been shoved into the tiny lounge together. However, she was putting on a brave face for her cousin. Mary was leaning against a wall, curled up in a corner almost, away from as many people as she could get herself away from, which was nearly impossible. She was reading a book, but kept looking up and scanning around her. Elise was next to Mary, and had her hand on Mary’s head, gently petting to reassure the smaller girl.

Once it was announced that they could go get some food, Elise let out a small sigh. It was getting later and later, and all she wanted was food and sleep. However, the sleep was being denied for right now, so food would have to do. ”You hungry Mary? We can go to the hall and get some food if you want.”

“Yeah,” Mary stood up, closing her book and sliding it into her bag. “Finally.” She gave a smile, her usual one, the one she wore when she knew someone was looking.

Elise, having gotten to know Mary very well, knew that smile. She helped her cousin up and kept an arm around her as they headed to the dining hall. She found a few spots at the end of the Tituba house table and sat down next to Mary. She started serving herself some food as she looked around. She noticed that several of the professors were missing, which was odd. What was going on? First the centaurs were revolting, causing them to be late, and they couldn’t go outside, or to the dorms. What was going on outside that they were hiding from the students?

“Why aren’t they letting us into the dorms?” Mary asked after a few moments of silence.

”I don’t know Mary. This is the first year they haven’t let us in after dinner. Also they cancelled the opening ceremony. Something is going on, and I don’t like it.”

“Where are we going to sleep?” Mary frowned slightly over her potatoes.

”I doubt they could keep us out of the dorms all night, but if it continues like this, maybe the Hall? I don’t know Mary, this is the first time it’s happened. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you are somewhere safe tonight.” Elise paused between bites of chicken as she looked around. They weren't even having the candle ceremony? What was going to happen to all the first years?

Mary nodded. There was still worry etched on her face a bit, but her general smile returned. “That would be like a giant sleepover.”
”You’ve never really been to a big sleepover before, huh? It would be fun, but I doubt they’d have us sleep out here without reason.” Elise reached over and gently rubbed Mary’s shoulder. ”So, are you excited to start Care of Magical Creatures this year?”

“No I haven’t.” Mary paused slightly. “I am excited. Also Arithmancy, and Study of Ancient Runes.”

”I didn’t take Ancient Runes, but Arithmancy is good. The professor is nice, and if you need any help, don’t feel afraid to ask them questions. Care of Magical Creatures is fun, you’ll start with some rather benign creatures, but that doesn’t mean they aren't interesting.

Mary gave a small nod. “I was reading the course book.” Mary tapped her bag. She gave a strange smile, very unlike her usual one. “Such strange creatures.”

Elise smiled. It was hard not to when Mary was giving an almost genuine smile. ”Yeah, I’d imagine for you they’d be extra strange. However, don’t worry. Most of them look worse than they really are. If you’re lucky, you might get to see the Siren’s in the lake.”

“I’d like to learn more about them. I’ve always been a bit fascinated by them.”

”If you’re lucky, maybe you might learn how to attract one of them.” Elise was happy to see Mary so interested in her class. She continued to eat, still wondering what was going on.

---

---

”This is rather peculiar, isn‘t it little sister?” Carlo noted to his sister.

Carlo and Athena Valentine were sitting within The Lounge. While Carlo sat elegantly with his posture perfect and legs crossed as only someone like Carlo could, he couldn’t help but notice his less-than proper female twin was sitting less-than satisfactory. However, he didn’t say anything about it. Carlo was a gentleman that dared not argue with his little sister. Given her stance in Quidditch, he dared not ruin her reputation by embarrassing her.

Carlo wasn’t so much worried about embarrassing his sister(not that he would even dare do that to his twin), but more so focused on the suddenly ban from going outside. Sure, it was night time, and that meant not a lot of places outside were off-limits - like Lake Blue, for example. Carlo definitely got that, so he dared not raise questions to going to the lake at this hour. However, forbidden to go to the dorms or even just outside the school raised a lot of questions for Carlo. It got to the point when even he was wondering if they were keeping something from them. Athena was slouching back in the lounge seat unlike her brother she was looking around the room while slowly playing around with her hair, she was clearly very bored and wanted to get up and go to her dormitory to unpack. But sadly it was off limits for now and wondered why they couldn't, outside was understandable but being only limited to the lounge area or the Grand Hall. Feeling her stomach rumbling slightly Athena looked towards her brother Carlo. "What do you think is going on? And do you want to go to the Grand Hall for dinner?" Athena asked pulling herself up and started stretching slightly.

"Who knows? If I had to place a guess, maybe something showed up, and they're trying to keep us safe - still, I don't know," Carlo pondered on that thought as he heard his stomach start to growl not-so-quietly. "Yeah, let's go there. It's a bit crowded in here, and I feel myself needing some fuel." Carlo said, standing up.
"They should have known that we were coming today and made sure that none of this would happen, but whatever I'm hungry." Athena said as she stood up, and gave Carlo a pat on the shoulder as she started making her way over towards The Grand Hall. She would look around seeing other students had done the same thing, she quickly went to the closest open table and sat down and started grabbing her own food setting it down onto the plate.

_{Collab with @lovely complex and @Viciousmarrow}

---

---

Vincent Hart, a dark haired, chocolate eyed boy yawned as the Peregrine finally made it to school (wearing his cowboy hat with his uniform). There was slight intrigue that resided in him because from what the upperclassmen had said, the 270 mph Peugeot was never late. Mercury and Pluto weren’t that terrible at transporting a bunch of obnoxious kids, Vince included. As protocol, the students were left in the dark. Whispers entered his ears from all around him as kids discussed what could have possibly went wrong. Entering the lounge, with a little goth Asian right on his tail, the young wizard stopped in front of a loveseat that a blonde female model and a chill kind of dude were sitting at. Well, in actuality, the guy was sitting right on top of the woman… Poor thing...

“...And the abyss swallowed me, wherein the foulest of nightmares awaited my tortured soul. My heart was eviscerated with the keenest of needles. Loathing this penance, I was shackled to barbed wire, forever sentenced to suffer in eternal silence.” the Gothic Asian girl recited, reading off a filled piece of parchment. She definitely stuck out with her pitch black lolita dress, accentuated by a single fishnet stocking on her left leg. Out of the customary uniform, Hana definitely expected to be handed a one way ticket to detention at some point tonight.

“Seriously, if I hear another one of those damn poems I’m gonna tear you a new one! Like what the heck? How is it even possible for someone to read that much depressing shit on a 16 plus hour ride. You’re killen’ me, Smalls.” Exasperated, Vince just wanted to eat and go to bed. This damn girl he couldn’t help but have in his life was one of the most draining beings he’s ever been "delightfully" acquainted with and he was only FOURTEEN.

Huffing, Hana lifted her eyes up to Vince’s form. ”Vince, you will come to understand the clandestine side of life through my poetry. There is nothing but misery around us, so we should embrace the fact and cherish it.” Clearing her throat loudly, she attempted to get back to reading. Unfortunately, Hana realized she had flipped back to the first page and now had to figure out what line she had left off on in her 15 page poem.

Shaking his head in complete bewilderment, Vince answered, "Well, I’ll let you sulk in your own misery. I’m ‘bout to get me some overland trout and a nice, cold Coke, if you’ll excuse me.”

---

Exiting the lounge, not really paying attention, Hana caught up with Vince and even went ahead of him. Both third years did not notice Queen Bee, Bora, walking in the hall. Hana was still searching for the last line in her poem, causing a slight tinge of annoyance to flare up in her expression as she searched vehemently for her last line. In her distracted state, she bumped into Bora the Beater.

”Oh, hey, Bora. Charming to see you again.” Hana spoke before sauntering off without apologizing.

Tipping his cowboy hat, knowing very well the sight of it would upset the Queen Bee, Vince chuckled teasingly, ”I do apologize for the little Miss. Unfortunately, we can’t stay and chat. I’m hungry!”

And with that the young wizard and witch marched away… after some time of getting lost and realizing they were reaching forbidden areas, the two raced back and found the Grand Hall.

---

People were slowly funneling in the Great Hall, looking forward to the feast at hand. It was a tad late for food, but neither of the two seemed to mind it too much. Nothing of particular interest was going on although Hana’s dark orbs did manage to spy her fellow Quidditch team mates Duri and Elizabeth sitting and eating.

“Duri!” the Japanese goth cried, a bright smile on her face. She practically ran up to him and gave him a big hug, quite happy to see him after some time.

With Hana running to Duri’s side, Vince saw his opportunity to escape. Swiftly, he acknowledged Liz, ”I’m sure we’ll see each other around some time. Don’t sit by yourself, you’re too pretty to be left alone.” He grinned handsomely, not realizing his kind and borderline flirtatious complement. His eyes went to the Tituba table as he slowly retreated from his friend and the Warren zone, ”Hana’s your problem now. I’m out!” Giving finger guns and a cheesy grin, the wannabe cowboy left Elizabeth to her food.

---

Escaping from Hana and desperately wanting some food to grub on, Vince couldn’t help but constantly look at the Tituba table. Unfortunately, Mary’s back was facing him but he did see Athena so he waved at her with a kiddish expression on his face. Like the “smooth” dog he was, Vince went a roundabout way to the Good table just so he could have a chance to get Mary to notice him. Now on the side that Athena was sitting on, Vince crept slowly… Tituba eyes all on him. Tipping his hat bashfully, he greeted his fellow comrades, ”Hey guys!” He acknowledged Elise, knowing very well her hawk eyes would never look away...

Clearing his throat, he continued, ”I wonder if we have classes together, Mary... We’ll find out soon enough, right?” He laughed nervously and thought to himself, ”You’re blowing it, Vince. Shut up and run away. RUN AWAY.”

Fiddling with his hat in his hands, the young wizard continued, ”Unfortunately, my stomach is against me right now, but maybe I’ll catch you around…" The eyes on him made him sweat. As he waited for the young girl’s response, Vince spotted the fastest route to his table. Within seconds of her reply, he dismissed himself, ”See you later!”. Picking up his pace, the fourteen year old felt a feeling of complete and utter defeat.

”Great Vince. Just GREAT.”

---

Reaching his table and sitting by Philly, Vince placed his hat on it and then proceeded to bang his head on the table, resting it there for a bit. He didn’t really take note of the people around him. He felt like a goddamn imbecile!

Picking his head up slowly, now with a small red mark on his forehead, he muttered, ”Why do I try?”

Elizabeth was finishing up her dinner and her book, as Vince walked into the Great Hall with Hana in tow. Watching the latter cautiously, she was happy to see the girl go and pester Duri instead of her. In fact she was paying so much attention to Hana, and making sure she didn't head her way, that she didn't notice as Vince walked over. She let out a brief yelp when he startled her. Her face grew bright red as she settled back down. Vince just complimented her, Vince had just complimented her! She had to keep herself from jumping up and chasing after him to kiss him on the cheek for what he had said. There'd be a lot of talk about the two of them if she did that. And then what he had said after that sunk in. "Wait, what?" The colour drained from her face as Vince walked away doing finger gun motions, and giving her a cheesy grin. She looked at Hana and then her plate, and then thought 'I'm full enough.' She picked up her plate and took it to a table that is being filled up with dirty dishes.

She took her book and returned to the lounge to get away from Hana, to keep from being stuck with her, before she turned around and caught her. She wasn't much better off in the lounge, as it appeared that nothing has changed much, it was still quite full. She managed to make her way over to one of the stools that just emptied around the centre bar and asked for a glass of Sprite. She walked away from the bar as soon as she got it, and walked to a corner where she could watch the massive crowd from safely. It would be problematic if she had to escape but it's not like anyone would do anything here, not with so many people around to witness it. Instead of thinking about those unpleasant thoughts, Elizabeth thought about what Vince had just said to her minutes earlier. "Don't sit by yourself, you're too pretty to be left alone." Had he really meant that? He was always so kind and genuine, she could think of no other meaning, and she blushed. Did he like her too or was he just being kind? She was clearly going to dwell on this for a while, and kinda leaned into the corner and smiled, lost in her... thoughts.

Brian Anthony Jones

Interacting with: Elise, Mary @Kirah, Athena @Nallore and anyone else at the Tituba Table

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"So what do you think Steve? Do you think they'll let us into the dorms sometime tonight, or are we gonna have a big campout in the hall?" The quokka looked at his master with his usual smile and nuzzled Brian.

"Yeah, I thought so. Anyways, how about some food then, eh mate?" Brian made sure that Steve was firmly on his shoulder as he walked out of the lounge and into the great hall. He was trying his hardest not to show it, but he was worried. They had arrived at the school late, which sent all the upperclassmen into fits of gossip, since the were never late. Never. Apparently it was due to the centaurs? Brian had wanted to get out of the car and see them, but had been forbidden. No matter how much he had tried to bug the drivers, they wouldn't let him out. So he had spent most of the time that he was in the Peregrine trying to see if he could catch glimpses of the creatures, but to no avail.

He sat down at the Tituba Table, and Steve hopped off his shoulder and sat down next to him. He looked around and offered smiles to all that was there and then a nod to Mary. She was his fellow classmate/ yearmate, and there was something about her that drew him to her. He wasn't quite sure what it was yet. "Hey Mary, Elise, Athena. Hope you guys are enjoying your food." He served himself some of the rather delicious smelling food and went about eating it. Man, was he hungry.

Mary smiled when Vincent, from Good, came over to her table. She had been about to tell him her classes, but he then said he was too hungry to chat. She gave a nod. "I'll see you around then." Maybe it would be more fun to discover their shared classes when the were in class. Though from the few interactions Mary had had with Vincent through Tanya she doubted he was taking Arithmancy. It was likely that he was in Care of Magical Creatures though. "Enjoy dinner." She said as he ran off to the Good table. Mary wondered briefly if she should ask Vincent if would care to make a study group with her if he was in Care of Magical Creatures. If Brian was taking it, then the three of them could study together.

It wasn't long after that that Brian and Steve joined their table. Mary gave a wave to Steve, and then asked Brain, after nodding to his question, "Are you taking Care of Magical Beasts? I am." If Brian wasn't taking Care of Magical Beasts, Mary would be very surprised. The conversations they had had previously almost exclusively were about animals. Mary had learned a lot about quokkas especially.

After Carlo and Athena broke off to their own house-respective tables, Carlo joined his fellow House Good students at the Good Table. Most of them were chatting amongst themselves. Carlo occasionally chimed in to show good manners, but nothing too involved. He was quite hungry as heard from the sounds of his stomach reverberating with the noises of talking, so he spent the majority of his time sitting down, and politely eating his fill of the variety of food that was on the table.

Carlo mainly had chicken and a couple of sides, mostly potatoes and corn. He only had one plateful of it. He might have been hungrier than he usually had been, but that didn't mean he would eat so much that he would feel bloated. When he had enough, he wiped his mouth with a napkin, and stood up. Walking around the Grand Hall, Carlo noticed a few familar faces at the Tibula Table. Aside from his twin sister, Athena, he also took notice to that Brian fellow, the little Mary, and of course, the always elegant, Elise.

Carlo approached the end of the Tibula Table where all those he recognized were at, "Elise, you're looking as exquisite as ever." Carlo commented, giving Elise his usual smile.

Elise turned on the bench and looked at Carlo and gave him a smile. "Hello Carlo. You're looking well yourself. Did you have a good summer?" She asked, seemingly looking him over for a moment.

"Reasonably, yes. Father was away for most of it. We spent a great deal of July in Italy visiting Grandfather." Carlo said, "how about yours? I hope you enjoyed it as well."

"It was good. Mary and I mostly stayed at the Winthrop estate. Father was working. You will have to tell me all about Italy later. I hear it is awfully romantic." Elise giggled a bit as she looked at Carlo. "So do you any theories as to why we can't go in the dorms yet?" She excused herself from the table and stood up and stretched for a moment.

"You heard correctly. The beaches are simply divine." Carlo lightly chuckling. He made a thoughtful sound on Elise's question. "I honestly can't say. There's a lot that they haven't told us, but I do find it quite odd that we aren't allowed into the dorms. Outside I could understand, but why not our dorms?" Carlo said, "what about you?" He asked Elise.

"Well the only theory I can come up with it that something happened with the lake maybe? As I'm sure Athena has told you, the Tituba common room has a lovely view of it, so maybe that's why they're keeping us out? I don't know. It is just very odd. They even skipped out on the sorting ceremony. Those poor first years." Elise put her head in her hand and let out a soft sigh.

"Yes, she may have mentioned that to me - you'll have to show me it sometime, maybe when all of this dies down," Carlo gave Elise a smirk. "Indeed it is quite the shame. I fondly remember my first year and being sorted into House Good. It's one of the many memories I will cherish about this place." He said, reminiscing about the past.
Elise smirked back. "Perhaps, if you are lucky, I will show you around. I just hope that this whole fiasco doesn't end up lasting the night. I doubt anyone will want to sleep here in the hall in their clothing."

"I look forward to that." Carlo said with a smile. "I'm sure they'll inform us soon." Carlo said half-certain, meaning that he wasn't completely confident.

Elise frowned a bit, and put her hand over one of the pockets of her jacket. "I don't know. Today has been full of ill-omens Carlo... first the centaurs and now this? I haven't really said anything in front of Mary, you know why, but... I saw something not so good when I was doing my morning card reading." She gave a sidewise glance to her cousin and waved and then looked back at Carlo and crossed her arms in front of herself.

"What did you see?" Carlo worryingly asked, raising his left brow.
Elise frowned. "Not sure yet, but something is foggy, and the Tower came up this morning. Usually that means a time of turmoil is ahead." She bit her lip a bit and looked at him.

"Well this is one way to make certain of that." Carlo mischievously grinned.

"What is on your mind Carlo?"

Carlo took Elise's hand, guiding her away from the table so that what he was about to say didn't fall on curious ears. "I'm thinking we find out exactly what the professors and Headmistress is keeping from us." Carlo whispered.

Elise raised her eyebrow as she listened to Carlo. "Hmm how would you propose about going and doing that?" She whispered and looked at him.

Carlo grinned. "Well first, we're going to need a distraction. It has to be big enough to draw the professors guarding both the outside of the school and The Lounge. Then, we're going to have to find the perfect oppurtunity to sneak out. From there, I figure we can just wing it." Carlo shrugged at that last part. "What do you think?"
Elise paused for a moment, seemingly in thought. "Hmm sounds like a plan. However, if we get caught, this was all your idea, alright?" She looked up at him and smirked a bit.

"The operative word being if." Carlo said, smiling. "Now, as for that distraction," he said, chuckling.

Carlo looked at the three tables, full of food, full of students eating that food. He smiled. He was just hit with a rather brilliant idea. "If you'll excuse me for a moment," Carlo said to Elise. As he carefully swiped a handful of egg custard, Carlo used his other hand to pull out his wand. "Wingardium Leviosa," he quietly spoke, levitating the egg custard above — high above all the heads of the students. He had it in perfect control in the air, and when it came to drop it on some poor sap's head, he put his wand back into his pocket.

The egg custard fell on what looked like a forth or fifth year student. By the way he stood up, he didn't seem pleased. The guy was of caucasian ethnicity. Slender and tall, he had short brown hair. This one was of House Warren. He was looking around, wondering who doused his head in egg custard. He saw someone laughing from the House Good Table. He grabbed what looked like a piece of Peach Cobler and threw it off in that direction. It hit this person in the chest. This was a female, forth year, and she was not pleased.

The person next to her looked and couldn't hold it in. "FOOD FIGHT!" He shouted, which prompted everyone to partake in the tradition of throwing one's food at anyone in sight.

"That should suffice, no?" Carlo whispered to Elise.

Elise looked like she was stifling a bit of laughter as she took in the sight of food being flung around them. "One sec..." Elise pulled out her own wand. "Protego." She whispered and an invisible shield wrapped around the both of them. "Wouldn't want to ruin our outfits with food now, would we?"

"A smart idea. I just had this drycleaned, and I would hate to have it done again." Carlo laughed as he would gesture Elise to follow him around the chaos of screaming, smiling students throwing all kinds of food at each other. Some were deserts and some creamy entrees. There was a lot of Wingardium Leviosa spells being used, which made sense. In a magical food fight, spells would be the preferred choice of throwing food.

As Carlo and Elise reached The Lounge, there were students moving towards the Grand Hall. So that they would get noticed, specifically by the passing professors who were guarding the front doors that led outside and the additional professors who were guarding the outside of the front doors, Carlo pulled Elise to a corner that had a decent amount of covering from plain view. Though, because he did that, their bodies were closely pressed to one another.

Elise kept close to Carlo as they headed to the Lounge, dodging professors and other students. Once they were inside she let out a relieved sighed. "That went well... so where shall we start looking?"

"Lake Blue seems like the best place as any to start." Carlo said, "I mean, there must be a reason why they keep it banned at night, right?" Carlo asked, thinking aloud.

"Hmm that would be a good place to start. Lead the way." She held out her hand again and looked at him.

"If you insist," Carlo smiled, grabbing her hand as he led them towards the door, and into the dark abyss of night towards Destination Lake Blue.

@Kirah@kittyluna45@Angel Eyes@Undine@McHaggis

Athena looked over at the other members at the Tituba table and smiled at them as she continued to eat her dinner, she would occasionally look over at her brother Carlo sitting over at the Good table sitting with his friends and talking to them. Athena ran a hand through her hair and then reached for a glass of water taking a sip of it. She just wanted to stretch out in her room already and relax, but hanging out with some of her friends and other members of Tituba wasn't all that bad. Athena finished up eating the rest of her dinner and headed over to set her plates down at the table where the other students had been putting their dirty dishes on before joining the rest of Tituba again.

Athena ran a hand through her hair as she looked at her friends. "So how was everyones vacation?" Athena asked leaning forward her elbows resting on the table. She was curious and what had everyone been doing over vacation and before coming over here, Athena didn't really want to talk about her vacation she spent it mostly avoiding her father and older brother a lot of the time, or going to events that her father forced the family to go to.

Philly and her family had claimed a place at a one of the two tables for themselves. Both Babs and Lynn were calm and happily eating dinner. Even this late at night their stomachs were in full swing. And speaking of stomachs, both Steve and Devin were shoving food into their faces like it might vanish at any moment.

"Slow down or you'll choke." Admonished Philly to her male relatives. The two rolled their eyes practically simultaneously. There might have been a mumbled sarcastic Yes Mom but it was hidden by Vince's rather... interesting arrival.

The younger boy pulled out a chair, sat down and removed his hat, placing it very nicely on the table. What he did next completely belied his seemingly benign actions. Without any warning or indication Vince let his head slam onto the table.

Philly jumped a little, startled. Even her siblings and cousins stopped shoving food in their faces to stare at Vince. The boy was seemingly frozen in place. The four Moores (and the one White/Moore spawn) just stared, unable to do much. Then he lifted his head and looked right at Philly.

Why do I try?

Philly blinked at Vince. She obviously was catching the end of a conversation. Not that start. She had had practice with her siblings with this. The trick was saying the right thing without any freaking context.

"Because you're a masochist?" Devin pipped in before Philly could grab at any response.

The sixteen year old turned to glare at her cousin. She grabbed his plate and pulled it away from him. He let out a small cry and lunged after the plate. Steve, always up for anything, plucked the plate from Philly and lifted it over his head, out of Devin's reach.

The two satisfactory distracted, Philly turned her attention back to Vince.

"Ignore him. He's a moron." Philly mocked whispered with a mischievous look. She obviously meant for Devin to hear. In addition to trying to cheer up Vince. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Devin make a face out of her before going back to trying to get his food. Steve looked awfully smug about the whole thing.

Anyways, Philly must have done something right because he offered her a small smile.

"Thanks." Vince said before turning his head. Obviously he had spotted one of his other friends.

"Not a problem." Philly said right before Steve tipped Devin's plate. She leapt back as a small egg roll escaped and tried to launch itself at her head. Vince excused himself before he too became a target for wayward food.

Brian Anthony Jones

Interacting with: Mary @Kirah [Everything I am doing with her i.e. getting her under the table has been pre-approved by Kirah], Athena @Nallore and anyone else at the Tituba Table

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Brian smiled over at Mary. [color=cc9900]I am taking Care of Magical Beasts as well. I mean, it would surprise everyone if I didn't huh?" He said with a half chuckle as he fed Steve some vegetables off his plate. "I'm also signed up for Study of Ancient Runes and Ar...Arithmancy. Muggle studies didn't really interest me that much, already do that every summer." He added with a laugh as he looked at Mary. He noticed that she was quiet, as usual, and close to her... cousin? Yeah, she had said Elise was her cousin.

And then Athena's twin brother walked over and he gave a small wave to the older Good boy. Soon Carlo and Elise walked away and Brian waved them off, not sure what to say. He looked over at Mary and shifted so he could sit next to her, and set Steve between them both. He knew from past interactions that Mary loved to pet Steve. "So did you have a good summer Mary?" He asked before everything went sideways.

There was food being tossed every which way, and it didn't matter who the target was. Brian gently tugged Mary and Steve under the table and looked at her. "I've been in enough food fights at school to know the safest place to be is here under the table. We should just wait here till it blows over." He pulled Steve close to him, noticing the little quokka was shaking, just like how Brian felt on the inside. He looked at Mary and offered her a small smile. "Don't worry. We'll be fine."