With that they take care of their business and head back.
The night passes and morning for all students comes at 7 am. This gave the students plenty time to do their morning tasks before heading to the breakfast all at 8.
Eilian was, not surprisingly, the first one up of the three that HB now called roommates. Quiet as he was before he went about his morning not saying much.
Ethan was a bit more talkative once he woke up and brushed his teeth. "I wonder what we'll get to do first! After breakfast of course." He said.
Brian was the hardest to wake up, even after they had been awoken once he fell back over wanting more sleep. Thus till they got to breakfast he was rather sluggish.
Macbeth seemed to up and done getting ready far too fast to be human... or well, wizard? Without using his wand to dress! That is the best way to put it. "Come on! Come on!" He said trying to get you all up too. "We can't be late on our first day!"
The room seemed to remain calmer than most others. Oliver keeping conversation to minimum said "We're now Slytherins, time to show everyone else how well we fit in."
Shawn rolled his eyes and said "We should be setting the example, not fitting in." He corrected his roommate.
David said nothing as he got ready, as if the topic was of no interest to him.
The first true day had sent a buzz through most of the room. Olivia was have her hair tended to by Samantha and Siobhan before they got themselves ready for the day. Though Olivia seemed to be more interested to speaking with Isabella than the two helping with her hair. "I do hope you slept well!" She said with a smile to Isabella. "I can honestly say I did."
Anora had been the last to wake up, she had tossed and turned a bit in the night. Last night had brought up just how little she knew of the world around her, and how much those she was now with knew. But she did sleep in the end.
While Samantha and Siobhan tended to Olivia and she spoke to Isabella, she just silently went about her morning but kept her ears wide open.
Ken's eyes opened as soon as Macbeth began waking everyone, and he grinned as he got up. Though he felt just as excited as Macbeth was, he said out loud, "Alright, alright, let me scrub my teeth and get dressed. C'mon, Ciaran, Greg, get a move on."
Once his teeth were cleaned, he pulled out his school uniform and put it on, then took a moment to make sure his hair wasn't too mussed up. The trick was to have just the right amount of tousle without looking like he hadn't put any effort into it. Then, he put on his cloak and said, "Right. Let's go. I'm starving."
Ah, Olivia. Everything was going to be a power play with her. The kind of fight that you won by not looking like it was a fight. Whoever lost control first lost the battle. She would have preferred not to have to do this, but if she did, she was playing to win. "Oh, I had the most amazing dreams last night! About grey cats dancing as they chased down clowns. Whenever they caught one, they'd pounce and the clowns would pop, as they were only balloon-people. It was quite amusing. It's a wonder that I didn't wake you all up with giggling."
As she dressed, she gives Anora a wink from an angle the other girls couldn't see. She turned toward Olivia with a look of pure sympathy, "You poor dear. My hair used to take as much work as yours. So much trouble morning and night." With that she shakes her head and throws it back. Her short rumpled brown hair shifted to reddish blonde, cascading down her back like a wave. When it hit the floor it sprung back upward, arranging itself in an artful halo of curls that seemed to float around her.
She didn't even bother looking in the mirror. Mostly because she'd already positioned herself so she can see the reflection from the lagoon window. "Oh, I'm so hungry. I can't wait to see what they serve for breakfast!" she says as she heads out with Anora. "We'll save you all seats."
H.B. emerged in the dining hall looking like the typical military brat--scrubbed and neat as a pin, breaking his poise only to bonk Brian on the shoulder. "Extra coffee for you, sir," he said with a grin. "Ethan, I hope we get a tour of the grounds before classes begin. Wow, the lake looks quite different during the day!"
Greg lazily awakes, not used to his new bed. "Alright." he mumbles. Dressing himself and brushing his teeth without much of a word, Greg manages to catch up to his excitement from yesterday when he finishes.
"I could use something to eat about now."
Vincent looked at the others and shook his head "Be yourselves, people will understand soon enough who you are and how "worthy" you may be. Annoying to try to placate anyone else. Enjoy yourself and that will prove more than enough you're Slytherins to me." he said before he set out for a bit of a jog before breakfast.
"Woah, uha sure we will!" Anora said as Isabella pulled her out of the room while she had been working on her tie. She had only tied one once before and even then her father had to correct her on it. "I think the first spell I'll learn is how to make a tie do itself so I'll never have to worry about it again." She joked.
Olivia seemed speechless at Isabella's trick, or maybe even more at the small jab she was just paid without even knowing it. The other girls would be along shortly after, after all Olivia's hair took much longer!
The Hall was already filling up and where once people sat in order and by grade, now there where just people all over and even some areas where other houses where sitting or at least standing at other table.
The tables where laden with toast, hard boiled eggs, scrabbled eggs, porridge, fruit, bacon, sausage links, pancakes, muffins, bagels, and English muffins. It seemed like there was something for everyone. Drink choices consisted of orange juice, milk, and apple juice.
Ethan was piling up his plate while Eilian next to him was picking and choosing much more carefully and seemed to have a more healthy plate between the two.
Brian however, still a little sleepy, just grabbed some bacon, pancakes, and a glass of milk. He even began eating without butter or syrup for the pancakes.
Macbeth snatched up a piece of bacon before the group got to their seats and put mainly meat upon his plate. "You know, if it wasn't for how much walking we're going to be doin' I'd say we'd gain a lot of weight."
There where several seats open, though it was obvious that the Slytherin table had mainly Slytherins at it. A few Ravenclaws, an odd Gryffindor here or there, and only one obvious Hufflepuff.
H.B. waved to the Slytherins, especially Vincent and a rather poufy Isabella . "Food's better over here!" he declaimed with a wink. "Although they seem to think wee children can't stand a bit of coffee--shame." He gave Brian a second glance. "You alright there, Brian?" His own plate was neat and precise, as he ate eggs and pancakes in careful order, not getting any syrup in the eggs--a cardinal sin. H.B. could almost feel the wards of the Dining Hall--couldn't wait to really get into them with his professors.
He spotted Kenneth and gave him a friendly nudge across the aisle. "Gryffindor suits you," he said.
Ken came into the Dining Hall and moved over to the Gryffindor table and helped himself to a little bit of everything, heaping up his plate, along with a goblet of orange juice. Stuffing some pancake in his face, he said, "Yeah, but we might do that anyway if they keep giving us this much food."
Turning to H.B., he grins and says, "Thanks. Hufflepuff seems to suit you pretty well." As he responds, he cuts some sausage and eats that, as well.
As they approach, she comments on the tying spell, "That would be great. Just promise me you won't test it out alone. I'd hate to see what happens if you get it a bit too tight. Unless you're trying it on Olivia." For a moment as they're alone in the halls, she adds, "By the way, I have some plans to try and manage her. Some of the things I say may sound odd out of context, but just remember I'm playing her and you can always ask me about it when we're alone."
As they enter and see HB, she seems torn. "Sadly, I've promised to save seats for my roommates, and I don't think they'd be a good fit at this table. She's definitely more of a 'hang out with Slytherin' type of person, if you know what I mean."
She does turn to Anora, "I'm okay if you want to hang with them. Either way is good."
She also makes a personal note to herself. Figure out how to transmute juice into coffee.
"I'll just keep my eyes open, try and see if I can understand it so you don't have to always explain." Anora said with a giggle before she looked around the hall and saw their friends that had gone to Hufflepuff and Gryffindor.
"Just save their seats then come meet us!" Anora said with a smile. "I'll save you a seat over by them, so that way when they get there you can come join us, promise fulfilled!" She stated before she offered a wave and made her way over to group of boy.
Plopping down next to HB and across from Kenneth and Greg. "Morning!" Anora said cheerfully as she snatched up a piece of toast and began to munch upon it.
"Oh, somebody's got to keep track of what they are saying." she says.
Kenneth glanced at Anora, and said, "Morning," before stuffing his mouth with potatoes to give himself a moment to think. He didn't want to push Anora, but he definitely wanted to ask about her parentage - Muggleborns didn't end up in Slytherin. It just didn't happen.
"Morning!" Greg responded happily, before nudging Kenneth's shoulder. "Quit staring." Greg jokingly whispered, unaware of Kenneth's thoughts.
"I was a bit worried since we all got split up after the ride here, but it seems like we'll be able to meet just fine."
Isabella is waiting for our roommates over at our table, she had promised to save seats." Anora said as she looked at each of them. It seemed to quiet down when she settled in. "Is something wrong?" She asked.
"MMm affe offen eafntieong," Ken said around a mouthful of potatoes, before remembering himself and swallowing. "Sorry, nothing's wrong, the food's just really good. I'm gonna have to run laps around the castle to keep from getting fat. What did you think of the feast last night?"
That seemed a safe enough topic. He didn't want to accidentally broach the subject of her parentage, especially with Macbeth nearby.
H.B. sighs as he scans some pre-syllabi information on classes. "Transfigurations--McGonnagal. Ugh, those make my brain hurt. I'll be much happier in Charms; Potions, even. Hmmm...Hooch, Flying. Well, that should be interesting." He glanced at Anora. "Hmm? All's not well?"
Halfway through the breakfast, Prof. MacGonnagal comes into the Great Hall through a sideway with a red-headed boy in your age following her half a step behind. She point at the Hufflepuff table and then heads to the other teachers herself.
The boy hurries over and finds a seat beside H.B. - but leaves a half-seat distance between.
He grabs at bacon, potatoes and grilled tomatoes.
No one of you can recall to have seen him yesterday - whether in the train, nor in the selection and neither in the common room.
Right behind Francis, a diminutive girl with auburn hair struggles to keep up with Professor McGonagall. She sits opposite to H.B. and flashes him a smile. "Hullo! Is this where first-years sit? I'm Serafina, Serafina Bones. You can call me Sefi, or how you prefer. And you are?"
She starts piling scrambled eggs, beans and bacon on a piece of toast, an ungodly sandwich embodying the spirit of an English breakfast.
Francis looks up as he is addressed and notices: there are baked beans after all! Hurray!
He is halfway through adding beans to his breakfast as he remembers being addressed.
"Oh, hi Sefi... yeah, I think so - as long as you're a Hufflepuff I think.
I ... am Francis Scamander."
In a foolish attempt to do both: continuing adding beans to his plate and answering the girl opposite of him, he manages to load several spoons of beans onto the table rather than his plate...
"It was just everyone got quiet when I sat down is all... thought I'd don't something wrong." Anora explained "The feast was nice... I guess... our table was kinda... awkward. For me at least." She answered before she grabbed another slice of toast. "Did you say McGonnagal H.B.? That was the teacher who came to speak to my parents and me."
When more new comes joined Anora happily gave them a wave. "I'm Anora, Anora Evans." She said. "It seems like everyone just kinda sits anywhere this morning. You've got people all over the room." The Slytherin pointed out.
It didn't take too long for Olivia and her group to make their way to the Main Hall and track Isabella down. Of course Olivia sat right beside Isabella while the other two girls sat across the table from them. Noticing Anora had gone and sat with a group of Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, Olivia turned up her nose. "I do hope she's scouting out people she can copy work from, though if she knew better she would have gone to the Ravenclaw table." She stated but that path was quickly swept aside as she turned her full attention to the little actress. "I asked around before coming here, it seems out first class will be with the head of our house. So that mean potions for us!"
The conversation was brought to a stop once again when Filch ran into the room with a boy in his tail.
"We got another one professor! These Huffli-puffies just keep barging in after the school as already started"
The kid in tow turned to the caretakeer "Don't blame me! It was the trains fault. If he had just waited a minute or two my brother wouldn't have had to take me here in his hippogriff." but the old man just told him to grab a seat with great hostility.
Has he made his way to the Hufflepuff table he introduced himself to the yellow wearing bunch "Hi, I'm William and im new at Hogwarts. My brothers were both in this house soo Im very happy that I also got in here." he smiles at Francis and Serafina "I see Im not the only one late this year. What are your excuses? Also, Im quite eager to find out about what you think your favourite disciplines are going to be" the proceeds to sit next to Francis and grabs a platefull of various food items.
"Not fair!
My father wanted to fly me here with a Hippogryph too!
Mum was against it. Said it was too dangerous!
She apparated me here this morning.
My sister had her first baby yesterday and my family dragged me over to be with her..."
Serafina's lip tighten for a moment and a shadow passes over her face when William asks the reason for her lateness, and then mentions brothers. "Well, let's say a bit of family problems."
She stares intently at her sandwich for a few seconds, before pouring and drinking a glass of orange juice.
"You have hippogriffs?" she asks, more interested in changing the subject than she is in magical beasts. And yet she's sure she heard that surname, Scamander, somewhere before...
William looka at him shocked "Wow, really? You also have a hipogriff? Then I guess your family takes care of magical beasts, am I right?" the whispered in his ear "Im a junkie for magical creatures. I mean, they have been a staple in my house since before I was born! But I also want to play quiditch like my father did when he was younger".
Following that he spoke to the rest of his fellow companions "If anyone ever needs help with Care for Magical Creatures or with Flying im more then welcome to help as im very fond of both subjects. But Ill need help with other classes in return." and went to take a bit from his buttered toast.
"What's a hippogryph?" Anora asked, obviously it was more to the group around them as a whole than anyone in particular.
The arrival of three Hufflepuffs who had apparently missed the train was a bit of a whirlwind. He wasn't sure what a hippogriff was, and couldn't answer Anora's question about that. But he thought the name Scamander sounded familiar. Had his mother mentioned the name once? He thought she had. Swallowing a mouthful of sausage, he said, "Nice to meet you. I'm Ken Williamson."
Looking at Francis, he said, "Sorry if this is rude, but I'm sure I've heard my mother mention the name 'Scamander' before. Is your family famous for anything?"
To William he says, "I don't know about needing help with magical creatures, but I'm looking forward to learning to fly. Could you tell me a bit about what Quidditch is like?"
At Williams words Francis practically starts to glow with enthusiasm.
"Really, you too?!
Oh wow... You know what... We should start a club or something.
It's such a shame that they don't start with lessons for two more years!"
As Anora chimes in, he gets going for real.
"Ohhh, they are mighty magical animals, looking like a cross between a horse and a bird.
They have feathery wings, a sharp beak and four hooves. Oh and not one of them look alike - everyone's different!
One must be careful because they have a very strong will of their own and if handled wrongly or bad-mouthing them, they will poke you with their beaks and claws.
But they are immensely loyal if you treat them with respect.
My father has the theory that their feathers would make powerful wand ingredients but Olivander is too much of an traditionalist to try out something new."
H.B. grins at his newfound House-mates, standing up at attention to shake all of their hands. He's a handsome fellow with not a hair out of place and a crisp set of uniform clothing and robes, and a bit of a Scottish burr to his voice. "Serafina! Hem Bahadur, or H.B., far less of a mouth--right, you've already gotten a mouthful. Francis--Scamander, is it? William! Welcome to the best House in Hogwarts! Hmm, was there some mixup on the time tables? Will we see a shuttle of Slytherin next, possibly on snake-back?"
The conversation started to get exciting for young William as he turned to Ken "Oh, Quidditch is the wizarding world prime sport, following the stereotipical witch-broom flying, they play in an oval field with three rings that serves as the goals,... Isnt it best if we let the teacher explain? Honestly, I just spent some 10 hours flying in the chillie wind because my brother didnt pay attention to his astronomy classes... Im starving!!!" followed by a mouthfull of beans and eggs.
He turned to Francis and exclaimed "OOOOHHHH, so youre Newts son, right? Him and my father go way back. He actually bought a Portuguese Short-Snout from my father one time. Soo you were the kid my father said I would probably be meeting. Us creature-caretaking families have to keep close you know?" he proceed to shake is hand vigorously.
He then shook H.B.'s hand before asking a very vital question "Yes, nice to meet you too. But what is a shuttle? And why on snakeback? Its that Ive tried to ride a snack as a kid and, let me tell you, they dont like it."
"Your dad knows mine? How cool!
The Short-Snout ... mhhh ... I think he released the two of them somewhere in the mountainside between Spain and France as they started breeding.
He told me that the female would be going nuts once the eggs are laid..."
Turning to the handsome boy beside him, he answers, now somewhat sheepishly.
"Well, ehm, dad wrote a book about magical creatures a while back.
Still working on the second.
It ... kinda was a success.
I think ... it is one of our schoolbooks ...."
He totally stopped eating at this point.
"That's where I heard it! Well, all the more pleased to meet you! I guess you'll already have a favorite subject, huh? Shame it'll be in third year. And you, Hem Bahadur, where are you from? Correct me if I'm wrong, but your name doesn't sound British."
"Well yeah, but my mum would be upset if I am not returning with good grades in Defense against the Dark Arts too.
Anyone knows who's our teacher for that?
Dad told me that they are rotating every year somehow.
Ups... Ah no!"
He finally noticed the mess he had made with the beans.
"Don't count on me for quidditch though.
I am ... kinda cack-handed.
Mum even taught me the Reparo spell because I break things so often..."
"Sounds exciting. Once we have our first flying class and I get an idea of what it's like, I might talk to you about some tips. I'm looking forward to it."
Anora seemed to be taking a few moments to try and wrap her head around the creature that had been explained to her though when he brought it it would be a good wand core, well that she took note of. "Wait, if Olivander wouldn't listen it would have to be that he already tried it. The book says that he is the reason we use dragonheart string, unicorn hair, and phoenix feather. He found that those are the one that provide the best magic." Anora said, while she knew next to nothing about everything else, she sounded very sure of her knowledge on that.
"H.B. are you saying that Slytherin will come in on snakeback because our animal is a snake?" Anora asked. "How does one even ride a snake? They're too small!"
"Mhhh, I don't know much about making wands.
And about riding snakes ...
Well there are bigger snakes.
One could probably ride a basilisk.
That is if you can convince it to not eat you or even look at you."
"I don't fancy I look like a good Saxon son either," says H.B. to Serafina, laughing. "Me folks are in the Gurkhas, and I've grown up in Scotland. I did get to watch the beginning and end of a Yeti 'suppression' as they call it--non lethal spells and flechettes, thank goodness--one time in the old motherland in the Himalayas. That was interesting."
"But in terms of service," he continues with a wink, "We're as British as they come. Simply would have samosas and dumplings of a different sort than you'd be used to, come tea time."
H.B. turns to Anora. "Oh, I look forward to you meeting some larger snakes," he says with a chuckle. "Even Nordic ones. Have you heard of a Jormungandr? Now that's something that I'm sure Francis is aware of. Francis! You're a famous scion! I know I'd heard that name before. Smashing! I've skimmed through some books written by your dad."
"A shuttle is just any sort of conveyance," says H.B. offhandedly to William. "Wagon, carriage, magical ship, locomotive...better now than the olden days, when I hear people got stuffed into chicken leg huts and tied to giant harpoons and the like."
"Hey, they had to get around somehow if they didn't want to walk or ride a horse - although brooms and apparition seem like perfectly acceptable means of transit. I imagine sitting on a broom for a long period of time might get uncomfortable, though."
"Not if you enchant it soo that it doesnt. Magic can make everything come to life, you just have to study it hard enough."
Seeing that the time they spent eating lasted forever, William showed a thoughtfull expression "That´s odd. Is breakfast always this long? My brother´s always told me that half the time you didnt even have time to clean your first plate before they took it away... Is this because we just got here?" he said to the others.
Ken, having finished his second plate, looks down and shrugs. "Maybe? I dunno. I just hope I'm not so full I fall asleep in class. Transfiguration first, and something tells me Professor McGonagall doesn't appreciate students falling asleep while she's teaching."
"Ugh, right, we maybe should start searching the classroom soon.
My father warned me that finding a specific room in Hogwarts isn't particularly easy...."
With a strained gulp, Serafina swallows the last of her toast, following it with a swig of juice. "Sounds fair. I don't want to be late on the first class."
"My plan was to wait until McGonagall left the Great Hall, then follow her to the classroom. Have to figure she knows exactly where she's going."
Greg is scarfing down too much food to pay attention to the newcomers, but the mention of classes brings him to the conversation. "Well, if we get too lost, hopefully we could ask someone what stairway to take and when."