Quinn wasn't exactly eager to get back in the Great Hall; the events from last night would be burned into his brain for the rest of his life. But, his stomach was sending him a very clear message this morning: You. Need. To. EAT. He wasn't up for eating dinner the night before for obvious reasons, and then he could barely sleep (that could be because he was sitting with his knees up to his chin in the common room the whole night, but who really knew?). Quinn knew he had to get something in his system if he was going to make it through the day without passing out.

He was sitting at the end of the Ravenclaw table closest to the doors; the Headmaster wasn't in his seat at the moment, but that didn't make Quinn feel any more comfortable being up near the staff table. He picked at a waffle and some bacon on his plate, and occasionally drank some apple juice. Quinn felt like a mess, and looked like one, too. The dark circles under his eyes looked like they belonged to an overworked Ministry intern, and his complexion was downright sickly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NiallNIP

Quinn wasn't exactly eager to get back in the Great Hall; the events from last night would be burned into his brain for the rest of his life. But, his stomach was sending him a very clear message this morning: You. Need. To. EAT. He wasn't up for eating dinner the night before for obvious reasons, and then he could barely sleep (that could be because he was sitting with his knees up to his chin in the common room the whole night, but who really knew?). Quinn knew he had to get something in his system if he was going to make it through the day without passing out.

He was sitting at the end of the Ravenclaw table closest to the doors; the Headmaster wasn't in his seat at the moment, but that didn't make Quinn feel any more comfortable being up near the staff table. He picked at a waffle and some bacon on his plate, and occasionally drank some apple juice. Quinn felt like a mess, and looked like one, too. The dark circles under his eyes looked like they belonged to an overworked Ministry intern, and his complexion was downright sickly.

He hadn't slept. At least nothing that he would constitute as sleep. Maybe a couple of minutes here and there at best.

The shower had helped too.

Making his way down to the Great Hall, Atlas veered away from the Gryffindor table for a side quest over at the Ravenclaw table. He felt guilty for not thinking about his friend until later on in the evening, it was hard to focus on much when he had witness the Cruciatus Curse right before his eyes and then been pulled aside the way he had been by Neo-Alliance members...not to mention the idea of rebellion that older Gryffindors had been roaring about. It had been a long night and his mattress less than optimal.

His eyes darting around anxiously, the little lion found Quinn and his stomach knotted some more. Slapping his cheeks while still several yards away, to wake himself up and give his cheeks a bit more color (did nothing for those dark circles under his eyes), he finally approached his fellow first year. "Hey...Quinn...you...mind if I join you...for a little?"

Quinn looked up at Atlas, and he felt comfort at the familiar face. A face with dark circles under the eyes, just like his. Quinn nodded. "Of course. I've actually been wanting to talk to you... last night... the feast... you were near all the commotion, right? I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He scooted over a bit for Atlas to sit. "You... didn't sleep much either, did you?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by NiallNIP

Quinn looked up at Atlas, and he felt comfort at the familiar face. A face with dark circles under the eyes, just like his. Quinn nodded. "Of course. I've actually been wanting to talk to you... last night... the feast... you were near all the commotion, right? I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He scooted over a bit for Atlas to sit. "You... didn't sleep much either, did you?"

Smiling a little, Atlas slipped on to the bench beside Quinn and felt his stomach betray him with a loud grumble. He really didn't want to eat. He didn't trust the food here. What if...there was something IN the food? Atas had entertained a whole slew of conspiracy theories overnight, the majority of them kept to himself so Aries wouldn't freak out more.

"Thanks." Taking a moment to smooth down his trousers legs, they were so much more comfortable when they were still clean and freshly pressed, Atlas opened his mouth to speak - to assert how he wanted to check in and make sure that Quinn was okay and to try and protect him somehow - when the Ravenclaw beat him to it. "Yeah...me too...talking to you..." Atlas paused, wetting his lip and swallowing thickly before offering a feeble kind of laugh. "I...was actually coming to make sure that you were okay...considering...well...considering..." Atlas was afraid to say the word aloud, in case there were ears listening in. "...it's been like a BIG bucket fizzing popcorn."

See? Look. Humor. He could muster some.

Atlas looked down at his legs and picked at some lint stuck to his robes with mild disgust.

"Barely a wink. Thoughts are loud."

Quinn was taken aback a bit at hearing that Atlas wanted to make sure he was okay. He didn't think that Atlas thought much of him. Not that he thought Atlas disliked him, he was pretty sure Atlas liked him, but... not enough to want to check in on him. A boy his own age hadn't given him that kind of friendship in... a while. It gave Quinn the warm fuzzies, and he was able to manage an actual smile this time. Then, even a laugh. "Yeah... it has been like a bucket of fizzing popcorn, hasn't it? The biggest bucket. Pickle flavored. Blegh." Quinn stuck his tongue out at the thought and laughed again.

He patted Atlas's shoulder comfortingly. "Yeah... sleeping wasn't in the cards for me, either. A bunch of the Ravenclaws sat together in the common room. We called it a slumber party, but... there wasn't really much slumbering." He gave a humorless chuckle. "You should probably eat something. Your stomach sounds like it needs some food, and with the lack of sleep... you'll need your energy." Quinn thought he should take his own advice. Despite his hunger, he still hadn't touched much of his food. He pushed his plate closer to Atlas, letting him pick off of his food if he wanted to. Quinn tore off a piece of bacon and stuck it in his mouth.

It felt nice to have a laugh, though part of him felt like he shouldn't be laughing under these conditions. But he was smiling despite the reservations and he was silently grateful for that, knowing how to turn on a little bit of light in all the darkness. Atlas returned the gesture, placing his hand on Quinn's shoulder as well with not so much a pat pat but more of a rub rub.

"I wouldn't have minded that in Gryffindor...though most of us stayed up just talking and vetting our feelings." So it was kind of like a sleepover but no one really planned on sleeping and there were no blanket forts involved which made for a pretty poor sleepover in his opinion. "Did go to my own bed after a bit but...never quite got comfortable enough for sleep to be a real option...Aries and I kept each other company." They had to. There was...at lot at stake for them. For everyone. But it was...hard not to look at your own immediate picture. "I...yeah...you're right."

Signing a bit, he looked over the plate and picked up a slice of toast, tearing it in half, and then scooped some beans on to it and nibbled on the crust a bit. The smell though...was tantalizing and his stomach growled again in protest for his tiny nibbles.

"Do you like your common room at least? Your housemates? Dormmates?"

Quinn nodded. "Yeah, we talked for a while, too, but not so much about our feelings. It was more about other stuff, trying to take our mind off things." Quinn thought about the phoevens and smiled a bit.

Quinn had noticed how close Atlas and Aries were, which was a surprising change from most of the siblings he'd met back in Muggle school. "I'm glad that you and Aries have each other, especially in the same House. I've always kind of wondered what it would be like to have a sibling."

He was happy when Atlas started to eat, knowing he'd probably regret it later if he didn't.

Quinn nodded. "Oh, yeah, the common room is really pretty. Lots of books, nice couches, and we have a great view of the grounds. And I've made a good couple of friends in my house, thankfully. Specifically, there's one girl, Eden. We sat with each other on the train and she's really cool. I was a little surprised she wasn't sorted into Gryffindor, honestly. Or even Slytherin, at that." Quinn thought about it, and Atlas would probably either like or hate her—they were two pretty strong personalities, and if they got off on the wrong foot... yikes. "What about you? Common room alright? New Gryffindor friends?"

Nods a little, gnawing a bit on his lower lip while still trying to stomach a bit more of the food he had taken from Quinn's plate. "Trying to focus on what you can control rather than dwell on what you can't." At least, that was how it sounded to him. Gryffindors had mostly been despairing...save for Phoebe James who was trying to rally them into taking back some control. However little. Even if it was just putting your shoes on the wrong feet...which would be his little attempt at rebellion tomorrow. Maybe.

Today he didn't feel very much like rebelling.

"You never feel lonely." Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing entirely depended on the day. "...when I came here...I thought I didn't want to be in the same house as him...Aries always wanted us to be though. But...I'm glad we are." He really didn't think he could make it through all this without him, which was a thought that he sincerely never believed he would have. "I've always wondered what it would be like to be an only child." Finds himself laughing just a little. "Andromeda, our older sister, shouts at us sometimes about how things were better before we came along. But...that's probably because we go through her things so much." Finding her diary that one time had lead to an exceptionally loud ordeal. "She's a Ravenclaw too." Just for reference.

Atlas found himself nodding again. "That's all good...and it's nice that our common rooms are close together." He paused a bit, feeling himself a little squirmy and cheeks heating someone. "I mean compared to Gryffindor and Slytherin. Having to navigate the staircases and thensome before being able to wait outside the door for the other." Ironic how he had almost wanted to be in Slytherin...which brought about even more irony in that Aries had wanted to be a Hufflepuff. Their common rooms would have been close in that case, always close to each other.

"I haven't really had the chance...clung to Aries exclusively," he admitted with a slight shrug of the shoulder. "At least know the faces of the other first years...some names...you're my first and only new friend though."

Quinn nodded. Looking back on it, that did seem like what they were doing—focusing on the things they had control over. It was really comforting.

Quinn frowned a little when Atlas said he originally didn't want to be in the same house as Aries. Quinn knew he would've regretted it with or without the invasion of the castle—he could tell the two were really close just from the brief interaction on the train. He chuckled a bit when talking about Andromeda, though. "Well, maybe you guys should stop rummaging through her things and she wouldn't get so mad. But... I never really liked being an only child. Even though most of the siblings from my Muggle school didn't get along well, they always had someone on their side. And they had someone to hang out with when they went home. I would just be alone with my parents, which wasn't horrible, but..." Quinn shrugged. "It would be better with someone my own age. I found ways to occupy myself, though. Gardening, knitting, baking.... that stuff kept me busy so I didn't think about it too much. I guess it would be nice for someone who would rather be alone. Or didn't like sharing, or just wanted to be the only one for their parents to pay attention to. I never had trouble sharing, though. And..." My parents don't pay me much mind either way would be a rather depressing way to end that, wouldn't it? "...I never needed to be the center of attention. I'll definitely keep an eye out for Andromeda, though. It would be good to make friends with an older Ravenclaw."

Quinn smiled at Atlas, not noticing his blush. "Yeah, I'm glad we're close together, too! You're my only friend outside of my own House right now, so it's nice to be so close. And I know we aren't actually supposed to go in each other's common rooms, so... we would have to wait for the other outside, wouldn't we? Should we start doing that?"

Quinn frowned a bit again. "Well, the term is just starting, so... I bet you'll make plenty of friends before it's over. End even if you don't..." Quinn took Atlas's hand and squeezed it, giving a small smile, "you'll still have me. And Aries. I should probably get to know Aries better, shouldn't I?"

Quinn hadn't realized it, but the conversation was taking his mind off of a lot of what was happening, and he was trying to do the same for Atlas. He liked talking to Atlas.

"Oh! Uh, also, I've been meaning to ask..." Quinn pulled something out of his pocket; it was the little folded paper that Atlas had given him in Diagon Alley with his name written on it. Quinn had done his best not to squish it. He kept it with him because it made him happy to look at. "did you fold this yourself? What's it supposed to be?"

He, they, could stop looking through Andromeda's things...but she always had the most interesting theories and other stuff that he felt disinclined entirely to entertain the idea for too long. But instead of fretting about his own sibling dynamics, Atlas focused on what Quinn was saying next...from muggle school to the yearning for a sibling to the subtle hesitation about his own parents. Not one to read too much into the words of others, ish, the blonde simply nodded his head and took all this new information on board. "Gardening, knitting, baking..." All things that Atlas was...not good at. Not good at or had never tried his own hand at. "You'll like Herbology then. Our aunt is the professor." Some of those things Quinn listed off regarding siblings hit a bit close to home, the dislike of sharing...preference on having alone time...wanting attention from parents...it was all a call out without the Ravenclaw knowing that he was performing a call out. Atlas never wanted to be the center of attention but...Aries tender to steal the spotlight with his more flamboyant personality, so Atlas had found his own ways of pulling the spotlight in his direction. He found himself mostly nodding along rather than offering anything verbally.

A lot to think about. And speaking of...

It wasn't that he was possessive ...but Atlas absolutely was a little possessive and there was something soothing about Quinn saying that he was the only friend made outside of his own house. It wasn't a good thing to feel, he could acknowledge that much, but it was very prevalent. "I'd feel bad if you were waiting outside the Fat Lady's portrait just waiting for me...so we should make sure to let the other person know a time when we will be there." Less waiting and, well, he got the feeling that looking like you were loitering would be a very bad thing with The Hoods™. "But...I'd like that." Remember that possessive train of thought? It was seizing his thoughts at the suggestion he get to know Aries better and a series of very immature responses strut their way across the 11-year-old's mind and it took a bit of effort to sound neutral as he spoke. "Yeah. If you want to. Aries is very personable."

Truth be told, Atlas was surprised that Quinn still had that bit of folded parchment and that he carried it around on his person. "Uh...yeah. Yes. I did," he nodded while sheepishly scratching his opposite arm with his left hand right around the shoulder. "It's a bit of basic origami. A ladybug." Only because he had a bit of red stained parchment with him on the day and had folded it. "I fold sometimes. My knitting, I suppose."

Quinn nodded. "Oh, yeah, I was wondering about that! I was told to take Violet to a Professor Flamsteed in the greenhouses." Quinn thought for a moment. He normally didn't think twice before telling people he named his flowers, but he had never actually told a boy his age. He thought they would think it was weird. They mostly already thought that his gardening skills were weird, not to mention his other hobbies. But Atlas was nice, so..? "Violet is the name of the dahlia I brought with me, so I'm supposed to bring it to Professor Flamsteed today to figure out where I'll put it. But I was wondering if the two of you were related. Anyway, I'm most excited for Herbology, so I think I'm going to like her, too."

"That sounds good to me!" It would be good to have a routine and be able to see each other in the mornings, so Quinn was quite happy with this idea. Plus, it would give Quinn the chance to introduce Atlas and Eden to each other. Quinn was finding it rather strange to have two close friends that didn't know a thing about the other, and he planned on changing that. Preferably in a low-stress situation where the two could just chat and get to like each other without butting heads. Quinn also noted a bit of something in Atlas's voice when talking about Aries, but he couldn't quite make out what it was. Either way, he figured that it would be good to get to know Aries since he was Atlas's twin and all, but he wouldn't talk any more about it for now.

He could sense that Atlas wasn't expecting him to still have this. Did Atlas think he was weird for it? Was it weird? Quinn put the ladybug back into his pocket, thinking he shouldn't keep it out anymore. "Oh, origami's pretty cool. Much cooler than knitting. And I could totally see the ladybug, now that you mentioned it." Quinn was a bit embarrassed and wanted the subject to drop. He twiddled his thumbs in his lap.

Quinn looked over his shoulder, and other students seemed to be filing out. "Do you think it's about time to get to class?"

Before Atlas could remind Quinn that he needed to clear pets with Professor Williamson and not his aunt, his friend went on to explain that he was in fact discussing a plant. "A dahlia named Violet?" he repeated, his tone and face giving away nothing until about a half second later when he chuckled a bit. "I like it. Kind of reminds me of when I tried to name one of dad's pet rocks Squishy. He was not a fan." Very precise in his language, dad was. Absolutely hated the word "stuff" which was absolutely why Aries and Atlas used it all the time. What did you do today? Hung out with friends and stuff. What's in your bag? Just some stuff. "Does that mean you are going to plant her in the greenhouse during the year?"

There was a great comfort in that, at least between himself and Quiin, that a routine could be established. Some semblance of normalcy to be had and suddenly the blonde found himself feeling a little bit lighter and looking just a little bit more forward to the day (ooooooooh little did he know...). And speaking of routine and meeting up... "I'll teach you some time. I know how to do a few folds. Mum taught me. She said when I was older enough that she would also teach me how to transfigure them into metal so I could have my own menagerie of mechanical creatures like her and Unchiule Andrei." Of course, mum and Andrei were proficient metal charmers and did not need to transfigure paper. So their pieces were more durable and long lasting. Maybe he would get there some day...even if he didn't feel like Charms would be one of his strengths.

"Oh. Yeah. We should," he nodded, his appetite returning a bit more and thus he stuffed some more food into his mouth. "At lunch...we can compare our class schedules and figure out times to hang out."

This, if nothing else, was something he could look forward to to get him through the day.

Quinn breathed a small sigh of relief when Atlas chuckled. Then Quinn laughed himself. "Squishy? You wanted to name a rock Squishy?" He shook his head. "That's a horrible name for a rock. I love it." Then he nodded. "Yeah, I'm guessing so. I hope that I'll still be able to go water her, though."

Quinn perked up. Yet another thing for Atlas to teach him. Maybe he should try teaching Atlas something—making brownies together could be fun! "That would be cool! Now, would that be before or after you teach me about the stars?" Quinn asked, thinking back to their first meeting in Diagon Alley. It felt like forever ago, when really it was only about two months. "A metal menagerie sounds interesting! My wand is supposed to be good for transfiguring charms, so maybe I'd be able to help?"

Quinn nodded, standing up. "Definitely!" He was looking forward to hanging out with Atlas more. Quinn started making his way towards the door. "What class do you have first? I think I have Defense Against the Dark Arts..."

Laughs, a bit more high pitched this time, while nodding. He had not quite pieced together that maybe part of the reason Quinn was laughing was at the concept of naming a rock in the first place. Most people did not keep pet rocks, after all. Really, the whole situation had a pleasant sort of ironic humor to it and it felt nice to feel so light. Even if it was fleeting considering that they had the rest of the day to get through still.

"That sounds fun though. Maybe Violet will make friends with the other plants too." He wouldn't typically think these things of plants but he had seen Auntie June interact with her vines and other plants at Auntie Jade's and had seen first hand how they had emotional responses to things and clearly favored one aunt over the other. Empirical evidence and such.

His cheeks pinkened a bit more, the eat also moving to his ears a little. "We...can just see what we are in the mood for. And the time of day." Because it did not make much sense to teach about the stars if you couldn't see them. Why Astronomy classes were at night. "Really?! I'm jealous. Mine is just well suited for healing magic." Which he had no interest in at the moment, so that had been sort of a bummer hearing from the wandmaker. Didn't really matter too much though. His was still longer than Aries' was. "Maybe mum and Unchiule Andrei can teach us both sometime." He was probably getting ahead of himself but...Gryffindor. "We always have a big Christmas party at out house. Well...big in that it's a family Christmas party. We're allowed guests...maybe you could be mine."

Grabbing one more sip from his orange juice, and using his tongue to lap up the dribble from the corner of his mouth while he got up from the bench and slung his bag over his shoulder. "Mmmmhmmm...me too! Walk together?"

Quinn nodded. "Yeah, maybe." He wasn't taking Atlas's words literally—he didn't know that Professor Flamsteed even kept sentient plants—he just assumed Atlas was messing around.

Was Atlas embarrassed? Well, thinking about it, Quinn was teasing him a bit, so he guessed that made sense. But Atlas blushing was... giving Quinn a weird feeling in his stomach.

Quinn pushed that thought out of his head. "Hey, I bet your wand is good for a bunch of other cool things. And healing magic is still cool!" Quinn decided to leave out the fact that his wand was also good for healing magic. Apparently very good, in fact. But he didn't want to one-up Atlas.

"Oh, I would love to come!" Quinn grinned. He thought about it for a moment. "Uh, well, as long as my parents allow it." If he told them he was going for a Christmas party at a girl's house and wasn't sleeping over, it should be fine, right?

Quinn nodded, glad he had at least one class with Atlas. "Of course!" He walked out of the Great Hall in step with Atlas.

]The irony. Atlas was capable of humor but he rarely joked around in that fashion and therefore Quinn's rather subdue response was taken as a bout of nervousness. Which only made sense seeing as everything was new and incredibly unpredictable. "She'll probably introduce Violet to her vines. They are some of her favorites and they listen to her even though they can be a little unruly at times." Not unlike himself and Aries but that was neither here nor there and, well, the brothers did not always listen to her.

"Guess we'll just have to find out. Both of us. Both our wands." The promise of actual learning was something that would actually get the Gryffindor through the day. "What are the specs of yours?" He was rather curious about these details, not to compare but the number of possible combinations was just super interesting. Neither he nor Aries had the same wand nor core that their parents or sister had and that was just wild. Also really special, each of them with their own thing.

It was the side effect of being a twin. Wanting your own thing identified as just yours. At least as Atlas' case unfolded.

"I'll have to ask mine too. We can go to the Owlery later." Glancing around and deciding for ooooooooooone more sip of orange juice before pushing the goblet away entirely, the blonde nodded his head towards the great double doors. "Let's go then. We don't want to be late."

He did not exactly have a skip to his step, Atlas did not skip, but there was a bit more spring to it as he hardly applied any pressure to his heels while making his way out of the Great Hall with his Ravenclaw counterpart along side.

Quinn laughed a little. He still didn't realize that Atlas was being legitimately serious. "Oh, yeah, vines can get like that sometimes. They kind of just grow over everything if you're not careful. Up walls and stuff. Violet will get along with them great, though, I'm betting."

Quinn blinked. Specs? Was that wizard lingo or what he just out of the loop? He assumed that Atlas meant the wood and core and such. Quinn pulled his wand out of his hip holster. "Uh, mine is..." he thought for a moment, "...apple wood with unicorn hair, um... 12 and a third inches, aaannndd... slightly yielding, I think. At least, that's what the wandmaker said. What about you?"

Bella hadn’t gotten much sleep after the punishment she had had to endure after only talking to a portrait. She had clearly been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but that didn’t help now. With dark circles under her eyes she made her way into the Great Hall. Bella quickly scanned the hall for the dreaded neo-alliance men before she with a breath of relief when she didn’t see them anywhere made her way over to sit down at the Slytherin Table to eat breakfast. She had escaped seeing a peer get killed, but it was probably only a matter of time before the neo-alliance men did kill somebody either a staffer or a student.

Taking a piece of toast Bella put strawberry jam on it before she slowly began to eat. She was not looking forward to another day at this school. Hogwarts was a horror movie not the most wondrous magical place of learning on earth. If only she could write home.

Mealtime seemed like the only time that Apollo felt reprieve from the watchful eyes of the hoods. Well, probably not, and technically the dormitory was the safest place. But the Great Hall was a safe place too and one that he could chat up his bestest friend whom he was missing like crazy. A quick scan of the hall to see if she was there yet, the first year didn't hesitate to make his way over to the Slytherin table as if it was perfectly normal. (which to be frank, it probably WAS normal since other than the opening feast, Apollo made every effort to sit here instead of his own house table because best friend).

Plopping down next to her, he frowned. "How could you eat at a time like this?" and yet, as he uttered the words, his stomach grumbled.

Gabi was...tired. Normally at this point in the year she’d be looking forward to some holiday fun, but nothing about this situation was fun. Her eyes were puffy and even her normal cosmetic potions couldn’t hide the bags under them or the dullness of her blonde hair.

Silently she took her spot at the staff table and began to eat her lunch. Thankfully the food around here was still just as delicious as ever.

The place was about to be a little too crowded for comfort and he was still having to deal with petty situations that could easily be avoided. In the coming weeks, Lucien intended to become an outrageously busy man. All the plans of the alliance would be coming to fruition and yet...

And yet here he was still needing to reprimand adults as if they were the Ravenclaw children with death wishes he'd seen all term so far.

Silently, Lucien settled into the seat by Recard. He remained silent, rearranging his cutlery. He was calming down. It was beginning to feel like everyone in the castle was two years old and constantly needed their hands held.

"I'm growing tired of having to run behind you lot like children who must have their mother hold their hand. What did I ask you to do earlier?" Still looking at his cutlery, his voice low and steely, he did not bother to look at her.

Dinner time was the best time and the Neo-Alliance Followers were starving. Filling in from all over the castle they made themselves at home in the Great Hall taking up almost all the seats at each house table and even a few just hanging out standing along the walls. The hall became loud with chatter and chewing as each member grabbed a plate and scooped up as much food as they could each handle. Some not liking that students were in spots they wanted even tried to crowd them out of their chairs.

Gabi had been preparing for an altercation - it was inevitable, and a choice she had made willingly. She liked to THINK she had mentally prepared for it but...how did one really prepare for something like this? She continued to eat as if unbothered, hoping that the fact that he was avoiding her gaze and speaking quietly meant he wasn’t going to make much of a scene. Although, the arrival of the horde of hungry cultists didn’t exactly bode well. It was a great way to keep eyes off their interaction...

”I did as you instructed. I disciplined them in a way I felt would cause the most sting to their pride,” she said simply as she took another bite of her peas.

Ilya's face barely made any changes recently--in fact, he had his blonde hair today, his eyes kept changing colours though so he gave up on trying to pay attention to that. He merely turned and left a conversation if it freaked people out (positively or negatively).

Anyway. There were much more interesting events going on around here than his faltering face features. Ilya was climbing down the moving staircases when he spotted the "Followers" flocking into the Great Hall. He leaned over the railing making sure he didn't lose sight of them and changed his destination from the Greenhouses to the Great Hall immediately. He smiled a little and ran down the stairs, his Ravenclaw scarf flailing behind him. It was a vision he would not approve had he known how comical he looked.

At the Great Hall, it was... quite interesting. There were so many of them. Ilya moved to Ravenclaw table as per his habit, he went to the end of one bench and squeezed himself there next to a messy eater. In fact, all of them were messy eaters, ew, Ilya's curious look had a little judgement and disgust to it now as he unfolded a napkin over his lap.

He was interested in dinner, for sure, but he was more interested in... learning more about the so-called Neo-Alliance movement. A conversation must break out at one point during dinner, he was positive. And he was here for it.

... though, seriously, wipe food off your faces when you devour your meals, ew.