Well she supposed she had killed enough time in her new office. Things were very errr....tight..with the institution at the moment but Sophia spared no expenses in getting her new office ready for her this term. The room had actually managed to calm her down..a little bit.

She was still upset though and definitely on edge.

The new transfiguration teacher scanned the great hall for any mischief makers while she walked up the dais and towards the CHARM seat. She just didn't feel like sitting at the end of the table right now..and heck..it wasn't like anyone was there yet so she'd enjoy the solitude for a bit. Maybe by the time she was joined by someone else she would have calmed down more.

TWARTED!

Airey had been hoping that he would have been the first to arrive at the feast to ensure that he would be inconspicuous. He just KNEW he shouldn't have taken the extra time to lint roll his suit for the tenth time. He couldn't help himself though. Not with the state that the castle was in these days.

Sighing in his mind, Airey crept up to the table clear out of any other professor's line of vision and set to the task at hand. First up....Mr. LeoBALD. A smirk crept his way across his features as he used a handkerchief to seemingly wipe away some dust that had happened to be on the man's...er....cup-thing. Only that SO was not what he was doing. SO not.

Bwahahaha!

Having finished up there, he moved down the table and place a disillusioned muggle object on Medea's chair. To anyone who happened to be looking, however, it looked as though he were simply patting the chair. Oh. Ew. Look at all that dust that was coming off that.

EW.

Airey finally made his way to his own seat now and took out his lint roller from his breast pocket and began to roll it AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALL over his chair. When one strip was full, he banished it and used the next layer of it. Could he have used his wand? Of course. But doing things the muggle was was SO much cooler.

Pausing for just a moment, he looked up Sophia who had arrived previously. Wait...hadn't she... Hmmm. Maybe he had just imagined her changing posts. His mind did tend to get the best of him all the time. "Evening," he said with a slightly obnoxious grin before he returned to lint rolling his seat upwards, downwards, and sideways.

Well, she certainly had an interesting time before the start of the feast.

Although Medea didn't particular mind the, erm, lack of shine the castle seemed to have. In fact, if hadn't been told about their current situation, she wouldn't have noticed at first glance. But yes, she was definitely now aware of the more, breakable, utensils, plates, and cups while walking up to the staff table. Oh, but they made the great hall burst with color, didn't they?

It was like a picnic!

Making her way up to the staff table, Medea smiled to the few on the side her seat was, eyeing the lint roller Airey had. Oh! "Good evening, Sophia." she greeted with all smiles and sunshine, pulling out her chair to sit, though a slight confused frown did appear upon her face. "Didn't you change-"

_______PBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRT!



______________What...
_____________________was...
___________________________that?

Hecate who had been sitting at her usual seat eyeing the Slytherin table slowly. Slooooooowly turning her head towards the noise.

"Medea!" How utterly embarrassing!

What was he doing? Sophia kept her eyes on the professor and watched if she felt around on the other teacher's seats. He was such a weird man, she had no idea how he got through an interview with Annie.

She looked away from him and focused on the students once again. No need to look at the weird professor.

He got a little nod in reply to his 'evening' as she looked away.

Then Medea turned up. She actually offered the woman a slight..very slight smile. She didn't much feel like smiling anyways.

"Good evening Medea and yes I did but I prefer this seat to the one at the extreme end. I'm sure the new professor won't be able to tell the difference anyways."

Or well if she did, she'd just have to wait until Sophia was ready to move.

---------- O_________________________________________O

Sophia threw a disgusted look at Medea and pulled her seat over a little bit. "I'd go check myself in the loo if I were you...that sounded a bit.....wet." She gagged a little bit.

Alistaire Firth strolled into the Great Hall fresh from his voyage across the Black Lake with the first years. GRRRUUUUUUUMBLLEEEEEE. Yes, he was definitely looking forward to this... erm... unique repast he was about to... erm... tolerate.

Striding up the center aisle, he walked with a sense of purpose that would hopefully dissuade too many students from waylaying him to talk. As he reached the dais, a bright spot of color caught his eye. "Ah, Sophia. A bright and cheerful choice to kick off what is shaping up to be a shabby year. I approve." Then he continued on towards his seat, catching Lafay's eye and saying, "Evenin', Hecate," on the way.

The Groundskeeper finally reached his destination and settled in for what he was sure was going to be a loooooong night. At least the charming Healer isn't here yet. He never could seem to get a handle on how not to upset her, much less please her.

After spending the afternoon cleaning the infirmary Healer Tillstorm walked into the Great Hall. She still wasn't sure why she was required to be at the feast since her hours got cut, but here she was.

Walking to her seat she greeted Professor Lafay as she passed her. "Hello Hecate, how was your summer?" Cece was kicking herself for not spending more time with her friend over the summer break but she did enjoy her time at home with her family.

Arriving at her seat she looked at the table settings and immediately felt the anger growing inside her. Really? They couldn't afford to keep her on staff full time but they could waste money on disposable dishes? And would it have killed the heaadmistress to at least make sure the house banners were in decent shape?

As she sat in her seat she looked over at the groundskeeper. "Alistaire, I see you still have a job decided to come back for a second term." With all the different groundskeepers that had been employed in her time there as healer, Cece was expecting to find someone else sitting to her right, or possibly no one at all.

Then came Ivy Knox in her black dress and red high heels, clicking on the hard floor as she made her way to the staff table. It appeared that a few of the professors were just as childish as the students... Lovely. Ivy chose to ignore them.

Stepping up to the staff table, Ivy counted down the seats to find hers. One, two, three, four - ... She stopped when she saw a woman in her chair. The old charms professor, who was supposed to be at the END of the table (she had done her research). Well, this was Ivy's chair and simply would not do.

Ivy placed a hand on her hip, stared at the woman in her seat, and patiently cleared her throat. She would not be patient long, though.

Leobald headed into the Great Hall for yet another opening feast. The black mop-haired man was troubled as he passed by the student table's on his way to the dais, not stopping to return any greetings or waves.

With an inaudible sigh Leo headed up by the left side of table passing by Sophia in her bright, eye-catching red dress and an unfamiliar brunette (Ivy) staring at his friend. "Good evening Sophia. You look beautiful as always." he greeted softly. Turning to the brunette he said as he extended a hand. "Good evening, I don't believe we've met. Leobald Kitridge, librarian." Ransacking his memory he knew it was something he should remember about Sophia's job title. At the moment it eluded him. Leo almost missed Medea sitting in her usual seat because of the staring brunette. "Evening again Medea." he greeted a brow raising at her. "Is everything all right?" She looked confused but for what reason Leo had no idea.

Passing by Airey's seat he greeted the Astronomy Professor with a short but polite. "Good evening Airey." He then proceeded up to the seat where Alistaire was seating. With more warmth and a smile Leo said "Good evening Ali. Did all the first years get over the lake okay?" Turning to the blond sitting on Ali's right Leo said "Good evening Cece. Did you have a good summer?"

Proceeding up to his usual seat he claimed it, noting the plastic silwerware and cups on the table. Glancing to the right over at Hecate greeted her softly. "Good evening Hecate. Did you have a good summer?"

Sophia was almost reconsidering sitting at her old seat with all the gassing Medea was doing up this side of the table but since she wasn't overwhelmed with nasty odor she remained in her seat.

Not that she needed his approval or anything but.."I assure you Allistaire you'd approve of anything that I wear but this colour doesn't represent cheerfulness.." Oh no, she was mad..mad as hell."But thank you." Because she supposed the man was trying to compliment her.

Oh Leobald had arrived!

With all the pureblood parties she had been organizing and Rhea getting engaged and her having to cut her off, the summer had been hectic and Sophia regretfully had no time to catch up with her best friend so she flashed him a smile..a real one.

"Thank you Leobald, you look good too." And not bald.

Oh hello?
She must be the new charms professor but WHY was the woman just staring at her. Obviously her seat was occupied, did it not occur to her that she was to go sit somewhere else until Sophia got done?

"The healer is sitting just over there Miss Knox. If you need something for your throat she'll be happy to assist you, otherwise move please..you're blocking my view."

Having lint rolled his seat to satisfaction, Airey pocketed it and finally sat down just in time to see the stink eye that Sophia was giving him. What? Wasn't she all about cleanliness too? It was what students had told him when they had come to his office to chat at least.

Settling in to his seat, the astronomer saw Medea finally approaching the table and he watched intently as she sat down and....

______________________________________BINGO!

Keeping his smirk to himself and all man!giggling in his mind only, he put on a baffled and shocked expression and turned to face his worthy challenger. He had been nice at the end of term feast last term - giving her flowers and an apology note for making her cry when he had pretended that she had severed his finger off - but this was a new term. And it was ON!

"Maybe you should have Cece take a look at you," he teased calmly while jabbing his thumb in the Healer's direction. It was nice to see that Cece had made it though. He wasn't sure when she would be around with her....new hours.

Which meant that Mr. Gunter really REALLY needed to pay attention in lessons since the boy was accident prone beyond belief. Speaking of the boy....Airey wondered if he remembered his homework assignment. He was really looking forward to reading it.

"Evening, Leo," he replied as the librarian walked past. Yes, there may have been a smirk grace his lips for a brief moment, but it certainly was not long enough for anyone to notice.

Airey looked down the table a bit more and frowned when the Potions Mistress was without the little girl. The woman was more pleasant when she was around. "Hecate, where is the little one this evening?"

Oh, hello their groundskeeper who just walked right on by without saying hello but stopped to say hello to Sophia. WE see how it is. Airey sort of just inclined his head in the man's direction, but quickly got distracted by the plastic device on the table. Was it a spoon? A fork? What WAS this thing?

And then stuff was happening right in front of him between Sophia and....whatsherface. He really should remember her name. He was pretty sure he had voted for her in the election...maybe. He sort of had forgotten already.

Heh. Sophia made a funny. Hehe. Airey chuckled under his breath as his blue gaze moved to the sorting as it went on. He hadn't really been able to watch it the previous term since he had been late thanks to some Astronomer Royal business, so he really wanted to take everything in this time. He watched as a few students were sorted into Hufflepuff and Slytherin, muttered something about poor souls who had been sorted into Ravenclaw, and then clapped and grinned when two students were sorted into Gryffindor. Miss Kaul and Mr. Toussaint....he would have to remember those names.

Once a proud lion, always a proud lion after all.

Now...back to this spoon...er....fork....er.... "What IS this THING?"

She was paralyzed. The awkward yet loud noise made her freeze in place and she could do nothing but stare forward with wide eyes, heat creeping up on her ears and cheeks. What. Was. That? That was not her. Honestly, that didn't come from her! It was the chair!

What?!

"That vosn't me." she said suddenly, horrified, turning towards the Charms professor.

WHAT?!

Turning in the opposite direction, Medea glanced down to the potions professor, mouth opening and closing like a fish as she shook her head, before squeaking out the words, "That vosn't me!" Oh, of course, Airey had to go and throw a comment into the mix as well, though the defense professor ignored it. She was red enough as it was, her face was on fire. Although, Medea did begin to notice the lack of ability to really turn in her seat like she usually was able to. It had nothing to do with Sophia's suggestion either! Goodness, no!

Leo! Oh yes, her face could become even more red, and it did. For the love of Merlin pixie cups, did he hear that?! Medea slumped in her seat a little, or tried to at least, as she muttered a quiet "I'm fine", not being able to face him. Her eyebrows knitted together, still finding it difficult to...'scoot'. Sitting up a little, she...erm...inspected her seat quickly, finding something there that shouldn't be. Invisible, at that, how nice. Holding whatever it was up, she pulled out her wand and muttered a counter spell, an eyebrow raised at the pink object that appeared.

WHAT. IS. THIS??

Seren would have been there much earlier, had she been more organised upon her return. It wasn't so much that she was ill prepared for the beginning of term, but more to the point, she hadn't had the opportunity to update her wardrobe yet. Unlike previous feasts, Seren was not wearing a dress on this occasion, owing to the fact that her small baby bump restricted the garment from functioning appropriately... and she wasn't the type to just make alterations to them. No. They would stay as they were, and she would fit in them... once her little miracle was here. So wearing some stretchy suitpants, a loose fitting top and a light cardigan, Seren made her appearance at the staff table.

"Evening everyone," she greeted warmly, "Ali, Cece, Leo," she added with a nod to her closest colleagues.
Easing into her seat, Seren stared down at the 'fine china'. Merlin help them... if this was what they were eating with now, she didn't even want to think about what they would be eating. Patting the bag she had slung onto the arm of her chair, she felt the apples she had smuggled into the school. At least she would be eating tonight.

And so it began. Ignoring the chaos at one end of the table, the end to her right, Anastasia slipped into her seat and gave a nod to those left of her. Specifically, to Firth.

"Hello, Alistaire," she addressed him without much cheer. "And how are your pets doing this evening?" Shame the budget had had to be cut some, specifically in regards to FEEDING of the ANIMALS. She was confident the groundskeeper would find a way to keep his cows cattle well-fed anyway.

Cece sat there looking out at the students when she heard the name Tillstorm being called. She turned her attention to the sorting ceremony just in time to see little Romulus look up at her and wave. He looked a little nervous there. She gave him an encouraging smile as if to say 'Don't worry, the hat won't do to you what it did to your brother.' But it did. That stupid hat placed another one of her family members in Hufflepuff. This day just kept getting worse.

Her attention was pulled back to the staff table when Leo arrived. "Hello Leo. My summer was good." It wasn't great like she would have liked it to be, but it wasn't terrible either.

And there was Seren. "Hello Seren."

What's this, the headmistress could only greet the groundskeeper? She had been insistent that Cece be at the feast yet the woman couldn't even greet her when she arrived? It wasn't like she was half a table away from her. There was only one person between them. One. Not two, not three. Just one.

Soon after he had taken his seat, his neighbor arrived. Okay, try to be charming. Don't let her intimidate you. He allowed his features to assume a pleasant cast as he replied. "Evening! Indeed I did, Cecelia. Were you.. eh... hopin' I wouldn' return?" Awkward...

Ah, and there was Leo! "Evenin', Leo! Yeh're lookin' right handsome this evenin'!" Despite the thinning hair that he would NEVER mention in front of the man, that is. "Oh yes, they were fine. No one drowned or anythin' like tha', so I'd say it was a success!"

He smiled. "Well not ANYthing, but mos' things, yes," he said with a wink. "Not cheerfulness? Well tha's alright, it still looks very smart on yeh." He nodded and then continued on, acutely aware of the possibility to shoot himself in the foot if he continued commenting on the woman's clothing choices. If there was one thing Ali knew about women, it was that they were easily offended about their wardrobe.

"Ah, Seren! Yeh're lookin' lovely this evenin' as well," he complimented as she passed.

But then Annie took her seat, so he put his full attention on her just in case she deigned to greet him, which she did. He'd learned quickly last year that one does not simply ignore the Headmistress. Not if they wish to live, that is. "Hullo, Annie. Yeh're lookin' sharp this evenin' as usual!" It was true, the woman was an impeccable dresser.

"Broc an' Bonny? They're doin' jus' fine, thank yeh kindly. I dunno if yeh heard, bu' Bonny is gettin' ready ter have her first ever calf!" A great smile broke across his face. "An' I want yeh to know that the cuts aren' affecting them at all. They mos'ly forage anyways, and there's plenty o' greenery in their pen." Hopefully that would ease her conscience. Ali was sure she felt just terrible about the animals' suffering.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nordic Witch

Leobald headed into the Great Hall for yet another opening feast. The black mop-haired man was troubled as he passed by the student table's on his way to the dais, not stopping to return any greetings or waves.

With an inaudible sigh Leo headed up by the left side of table passing by Sophia in her bright, eye-catching red dress and an unfamiliar brunette (Ivy) staring at his friend. "Good evening Sophia. You look beautiful as always." he greeted softly. Turning to the brunette he said as he extended a hand. "Good evening, I don't believe we've met. Leobald Kitridge, librarian." Ransacking his memory he knew it was something he should remember about Sophia's job title. At the moment it eluded him.

Ah, the librarian - with a bad memory, apparently. "Actually, we have met. The library auction of last year where I so kindly donated twenty Spagyrics textbooks." Had that generous act really slipped his mind? Regardless, Ivy gave the man a thin smile that didn't seem very genuine and accepted his hand with a firm shake.

"Ivy Knox, Board of Governors member... and Charms professor, for the time being." Merlin knew she was only here to... help Hogwarts.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davvy_Wavvy

Oh hello?
She must be the new charms professor but WHY was the woman just staring at her. Obviously her seat was occupied, did it not occur to her that she was to go sit somewhere else until Sophia got done?

"The healer is sitting just over there Miss Knox. If you need something for your throat she'll be happy to assist you, otherwise move please..you're blocking my view."

So, the librarian had a faulty memory and the Transfiguration professor had an attitude problem. Lovely. And upon realizing just how low quality everything in this castle was at the moment, Ivy was not in a very good mood at all.

Patience? What patience?

Ivy ignored the woman's snarky remarks and leaned down just a little bit to speak quieter. But really, if others were paying attention, they would be able to catch most of it. "If you've forgotten, my friend, I am on the Board of Governors now, and I can have you removed from this staff table faster than you can say 'Transfiguration'. So, I suggest you and your attitude get up and move to the end of the table." And with that, Ivy subtly slid her wand into her hand and flicked it backwards, quickly scooting the Charms chair backward a few feet. "There. I made it easy for you." Now, run along.


Oh, look, the redhead had arrived. "Good evening, Headmistress," Ivy said pleasantly.

Sophia smiled a charming sort of smile at the woman and proceeded to get even more comfortable in her seat. This woman must have knocked her head on something really hard to even think about threatening her.

Ha!

She was amused...except not really.

"First off..I am not your friend, not get that twisted and secondly, you and your BoG position can scoot along down the table because my attitude and I are staying right here. You were elected to serve the school, the entire school." Including the staff. And Sophia Bellaire was busy, talking and she would not be getting up until she was ready.

She pulled the chair in again.

"And about that comical threat of yours....I'd love to see you try." And with that Sophia ignored her like a fly on the wall. Who did she think she was anyways..coming in and getting up in her face...pfft!

Quote:

Originally Posted by hpluvr037

But then Annie took her seat, so he put his full attention on her just in case she deigned to greet him, which she did. He'd learned quickly last year that one does not simply ignore the Headmistress. Not if they wish to live, that is. "Hullo, Annie. Yeh're lookin' sharp this evenin' as usual!" It was true, the woman was an impeccable dresser.

"Broc an' Bonny? They're doin' jus' fine, thank yeh kindly. I dunno if yeh heard, bu' Bonny is gettin' ready ter have her first ever calf!" A great smile broke across his face. "An' I want yeh to know that the cuts aren' affecting them at all. They mos'ly forage anyways, and there's plenty o' greenery in their pen." Hopefully that would ease her conscience. Ali was sure she felt just terrible about the animals' suffering.

"Why thank you," Anastasia glanced down at her top and adjusted the ruffled sleeves slightly. Good, the groundskeeper was learning to compliment her every time he saw her. That kept him on her good side, see.

Her brows raised slightly at the news of ANOTHER cow joining the crew. Oh for the love of Merlin....the redhead's mouth turned down into a definite frown. "I hadn't heard," she murmured darkly. Well well. At least it seemed the cows weren't eating away the school's money as well as all their grass. She didn't say anything on the subject, though, because she wasn't sure she had anything else nice to say at all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sarahlooo

So, the librarian had a faulty memory and the Transfiguration professor had an attitude problem. Lovely. And upon realizing just how low quality everything in this castle was at the moment, Ivy was not in a very good mood at all.

Patience? What patience?

Ivy ignored the woman's snarky remarks and leaned down just a little bit to speak quieter. But really, if others were paying attention, they would be able to catch most of it. "If you've forgotten, my friend, I am on the Board of Governors now, and I can have you removed from this staff table faster than you can say 'Transfiguration'. So, I suggest you and your attitude get up and move to the end of the table." And with that, Ivy subtly slid her wand into her hand and flicked it backwards, quickly scooting the Charms chair backward a few feet. "There. I made it easy for you." Now, run along.


Oh, look, the redhead had arrived. "Good evening, Headmistress," Ivy said pleasantly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Davvy_Wavvy

Sophia smiled a charming sort of smile at the woman and proceeded to get even more comfortable in her seat. This woman must have knocked her head on something really hard to even think about threatening her.

Ha!

She was amused...except not really.

"First off..I am not your friend, not get that twisted and secondly, you and your BoG position can scoot along down the table because my attitude and I are staying right here. You were elected to serve the school, the entire school." Including the staff. And Sophia Bellaire was busy, talking and she would not be getting up until she was ready.

She pulled the chair in again.

"And about that comical threat of yours....I'd love to see you try." And with that Sophia ignored her like a fly on the wall. Who did she think she was anyways..coming in and getting up in her face...pfft!

A 'good evening, Headmistress,' floated their way then, so Anastasia was saved from trying to make more conversation with the cow lover beside her. She leaned back in her chair and tried to discern who had greeted her.... oh, it was her newish Charms professor! Well how nice of her, Annie hadn't thought she was the kind to greet other people... in general... the redhead flashed a smile Knox's way, but then noticed something off.

"Sophia, dear," she called out loudly enough for the Transfiguration professor to here, "your seat is down here now, or did you forget you switched subjects?" Well the woman was older, it was possible she had forgotten. Either way, Bellaire had better not be causing trouble for their volunteer teacher and Board of Governors member.

Gemma clicked into the Great Hall with a little sigh....how many terms had she done this exact same thing...they were all starting to run together...was she burnt out? no surely not...she pushed that thought to the back of her head and put her usual smile on her face and kept walking.

She beamed extra bright as she walked past her lovely Ravvies. She could tell there was a little bit of questioning on their faces and instantly realized it must be from the cutlery sitting in front of them. When she realized that she scanned the Great Hall and noticed that it was dreadful with all the dirt and cobwebs and like....she knew there were cuts but this was awful.

Getting closer to the table, she turned to the left to start at the opposite end of the table from her seat. She always liked to say hello to those professors that were seated and to introduce herself to the newbies.

Starting on one end, she slowly made her way towards her seat that seemed to be so far away from this vantage point. The first two seats were still vacant, but the third held the Astronomy professor whom seemed to have an extra wide smile and twinkle in his eye...hmmm...had she missed something..."Airey, it's great to see you are back again...and from the way it looks up to your old antics..." she finished as she heard someone picking on Medea.

She went further down the table saying her hellos as she went, "Sophia, great to see you..." she said and instantly noticed the woman with her hands on her hips...was she mad that Sophia was in the Charms seat....did it really matter...no it didn't...they were just chairs... she smiled at the woman and held out her hand, "Gemma Cerulean, Muggle Studies...you're more than welcome to come sit on the opposite end of the table near my seat...they are after all just seats..." she said sweetly trying to keep the peace and motioning towards the last seat near her regular chair.

She kept moving down the table, "Medea, you look lovely as usual..", "Headmistress, lovely to see you.", "Alistaire, nice to see you back for another term.", "Cece, glad to see you hear..." she said and then wondered how often the healer would be around, "Bentley, great to see another veteran here again..." she said with a little wink....

She glanced at the empty chair at the History of Magic seat and her face turned a little shade of pink. She had to admit that she was a little disappointed that the man wasn't there, but then her attention was drawn to her usual neighbor and she beamed, "Leo, it always starts my year off brilliantly getting to sit by you at the Opening Feast..." she said with a little wink as she continued to the end of the table to make the turn.

As she turned the table, she smiled at the Potions professor, "Lafay, you look lovely as usual." she said sweetly and sincerely...the woman was beautiful....even if she was a little scary intimidating.

She took her seat and coughed a little bit from the dust that rose from her plopping down...she wiped off her skirt from the dust and turned her body towards Leo slightly, "So, tell me what shenanigans you got into this summer." she said as she unwrapped her silverware and slowly unfolded her napkin into her lap. She reached out and picked up her solo cup and squeezed it so it made that plasticy sound....and it took every bone in her body not to laugh at the item...first class it was not.

As soon as he stepped into the Great Hall, Erik wondered why he had even bothered to dress up for this feast. Or this so-called feast. He already knew the food was going to taste terrible....not that he had had anything to do with that...heh.

He slipped into his seat between the librarian and herbology professor and gave cool nods to both of them. Oh, was that Gemma a set or two away? Interesting.

Peyton stepped up to the area where the staff table was located and then did a discreet search for a seat. Oh. Perfect. The only empty seat seemed to be between everybody and his brother and sister. Well, not really. She only had to edge past three people, but in heels and a long robe, that seemed like quite the hike.

Fourth seat down--that must be her. Yep, ...beside the guy all decked out in a suit. He must be going out to dinner afterwards, she decided.

"Excuse me, Excuse me, Excu--..." MOVE, she wanted to say. Okay, so she'd gotten impatient by the time she reached the man going out to dinner after the feast. She took her seat then looked back at the others with a small smile. "Thank you," she said. "I'm Peyton Barlow. Magical Creatures."

She gave a sweeping glance down the table as she situated her robes. Oh, ...look at that. Alistaire Firth. Peyton remembered him alright. Of course the Headmistress had power-played her way to the seat next to HIM.

Good. She was pleased with the compliment. He had made a mental note back a year ago in his first Welcoming Feast. Yes, he had vowed to compliment Anastasia Truebridge as often as humanly possible.

But then the smile quickly got replaced with a disapproving frown. The tone of voice she used in her next statement could have frozen a pound of doxy eggs instantly. Think fast, Firth! "Oh well, yeh know.. I was thinkin'... If we're still havin' troubles, I may be able ter sell the offspring. Tha' would certainly cover any cost ter the school tha' the cattle bring." He finished hesitantly, not sure how the woman would react. Would that wound her pride? Give her relief? Make her angry?

Ah, there was Gemma to save the day from that potentially dangerous moment. "Gemma! Nice ter see yeh back yerself!" Why did so many people sound so surprised to see him again? Did Truebridge consider sacking him? He DID NOT put those cattle in her office!!!

As he felt a slight flutter of panic, he nonetheless noticed the entrance of the new Care of Magical Creatures professor. His demeanor brightened and he caught her eye. "Hullo down there!" he called, waving to her.

Cece sat there and just stared at Firth. Really? He complimented everyone on how well they looked, right down to telling Leo he looks handsome. Everyone except Cece that is. Wow, who would have thought a man would compliment another man over a woman, who was sitting right next to him?

Firth just got stranger and stranger every time she seen him.

"I wouldn't say I was hoping you wouldn't return, more like I was expecting you not to return." It was like that position was cursed or something. In four years there had been three different groundskeepers.

"Gemma. I'm glad to be here." Not that she would have trouble finding a job if she had been totally let go instead of being made only part time.

Oh and there was the new History of Magic professor.

Wait!

He was no professor. Cece remembered him from the Board of Governor's debates and election. She had studied each candidate before she placed her vote. No where did he ever mention being a previous, or current professor... of anything. How in the name of Merlin did that man get that position? Ivy she could understand. The woman had been a professor before running for the Board, not to mention she had also been a headmistress. But Vinteren?

Made her almost wish Dash was back. At least he was qualified to teach.

Her thoughts were pulled away from the man seated a few seats from her when the one to her right started yelling.

"Really Alistaire, yelling down the table like a love sick teenager." Yeah, she noticed how he seemed to perk up when the new CoMC professor walked in.