Oh GOOD! He was here!

"Headmaster!" she exclaimed, taking a few steps forward, not really caring who else was here to talk to him. This was an IMPORTANT matter! Probably more important than any of theirs. "I need to talk to you. It's important."

Like...really...important.



And...

....

Seriously? Sierra was giving him those...flowers. The Slytherin girl stared at the younger girl for a moment before a sly smirk appeared on her lips as Sierra went on to explain the meanings. Hehe, that was definitely worth delaying what she was here to say so she could watch.

"Err, I was wondering if I could drop out of the school." Uh oh. There, the words came out. Zara had no idea how to explain it, but a lot of excuses were running through her mind. Maybe after a year or so, she'd be back, or maybe not anymore because those memories in every corner would always bring that piercing feeling in her heart.

"If you'll give me a moment, we can head up to my office if you require privacy. Will that work?" Tate was fairly certain that everything was an emergency around here, even the breakfast menu and untied shoelaces.

Still... best give her the benefit of the doubt.

Tate's head pivoted veeeeeery slowly from the Slytherin girls to the little Gryffindor. What a very strange and inappropriate question to be bringing to his door?

"Your parents can withdraw you from the school and enroll you elsewhere, or they can set you up on a Ministry approved homeschooling track, although neither would be as high quality an education as Hogwarts. But it is their call, obviously." And unless she had a legitimate concern, very few parents would pull their child from school on a whim.

Give him a moment? Didn't he hear that this was IMPORTANT!?

Standing there, as if she were going to argue about it, she juuuust opened her mouth to do so.... "Yea, okay." she mumbled, moving to the side and flopping down on one of the seats, eying the magazines.

Was there a quidditch one?

"I hope so, too," Sierra was quick to remark. She hoped she didn't just create a bouquet, write three whole paragraphs about it, and then present it to the headmaster all for nothing. She turned her attention to his hand, which was plucking a petal from the...what was the white one called again? Oh, nevermind that. She'd done the bare minimum for the assignment, so why did she need to remember the names?

When Tate drew his wand, Sierra quickly became fascinated with what he was doing. Did he just... He did! Sierra was in awe, but as she wasn't usually a child who expressed emotions like awe, excitement, or happiness often, she didn't readily show this on her face. She did reach out for it, though, and holding it in her hand, she said, "That's amazing." It was. Ever so often, she saw spells that really caught her eye, just like this one did. She wanted to learn it one day, but Tate was busy, and she should really go.

"Thanks, Headmaster," she said, and then she fixed the pin onto her tie before looking up again. "It's really pretty." See. She could be appreciative. She wasn't always the kitten-kicking child most people made her out to be. Tate wasn't so bad himself, she guessed. "I should go. Thanks again."

She lingered for a moment, nosy about what Evelyn's visit was all about. Her friend was asking to speak to the headmaster in private, though, so it looked like Sierra's daily dose of gossip wouldn't be found here. ...but, hey! Listen to that! One of the Gryffindors was asking about withdrawing from the school. Maybe she'd transfer and take Hollingberry with her... Maybe.

"See ya around, Evelyn," Sierra said. She passed the headmaster a look of acknowledgment then turned and left the area.

Tate watched Greingoth take off with some amusement before giving the older Slytherin girl a nod toward the gargoyles. If she needed privacy, she could have her privacy.

"Let's have at it, Miss Flores. Up the stairs, if you please."

Presley walked into the seating area for the third time that year. It had however, been months since she'd been there. She really hoped Tate wasn't getting really sick of her. But, Leo had written, and asked that she ask. She sat on the edge of one of the chairs and grabbed a magazine, flipping through it, but not really seeing the pages. She set it down, and leaned back, feeling a bit restless, unable to keep still. She'd been in lessons all day and really had had her fill of sitting down. Pres never had been one for sitting. That was why her mum had gotten her into dance when she was little, because Presley had a passion for movement. Not a love, a passion. She was intrigued by it. She loved the feeling of total control she could exert. Presley shook her head. That was not why she was here. She sometimes had trouble focusing her mind. It liked to wander off on random tangents, and sometimes she would come up with something, and others would have no idea how her brain landed on that particular subject. Presley sat up straight again, and waited for her turn to talk to the headmaster.

Being as she'd just returned back after so many years away, Marilyn had missed much. One of those things had been her OWLs...

Well, she supposed the best avenue was to inquire...which had brought her to the Headmaster's office on this fine day.

She took a seat, running nervous fingers through her hair. Hopefully there was something she could do to make up for the tests. Did one even need their OWLs to take their NEWTs?

Zara nodded slowly. Parents could withdraw her from the school. But she wanted to quit magic. She didn't want to have any more memories of it. Strange, yes, but she really does. Now all she needs is a letter from her parents, maybe they'd agree?

"I guess I'll have them send a letter, then. I'll give them to you if they approve. Thanks, Headmaster," she smiled, slowly standing up.

Melina twisted her hands nervously in her lap. Never having visited Tate's office before, the Ravenclaw firstie was, frankly, scared to death.

Where in Godric's name was Ari?!!

Ok, Melina was early, but she'd feel a whole lot better when her friend was holding her hand. Figuratively, of course. She was 11.

While munching on a Chocolate Frog in the Gryffindor Common Room, it dawned on Ariadne that she was supposed to accompany Melina to the Headmaster. Merlin, where did this forgetfulness come from? It was almost as if she needed a Rememberall. Not good.

Ari hurried to the second floor, and entered the waiting area. As expected, her friend was already there. 'Hi, I'm incredibly sorry I'm late. Are you ok? You shouldn't be worried, everything will work out fine. I'm sure you'll have permission to do the dancing lessons.' the Gryffie said encouragingly, noticing Melina's nervouseness. But really, there was nothing to be nervous about.

As Ari turned the corner, Melina jumped off her seat and threw her arms around her friend.

"Oh, thank Merlin! I thought you'd forgotten. I'm soooo bloody scared! Why am so scared?" she laughed nervously.

She grabbed Ari's and and practically dragged over to the bench where she'd been sitting. "I don't think you're even late- I was, like, 30 minutes early! You're right- I don't need to be this nervous. It's just that I've never met the man before."

"You have no idea how much it means to me that you're here. I couldn't ask for a better friend in all the world." She hugged Ari tightly.

"So I suppose now we wait," she said simply, looking at her friend.

Ari had been asking herself the same thing. Why was Melina so scared? The Ravvie was usually very cheerful, bubbly and sociable, at least as far as Ariadne knew, so this nervousness was quite inexplicable. Nevertheless, the Gryffie was happy she could be there for her friend.

'I have seen him once before, he's a bit...different, but really decent in fact, so you shouldn't worry.' Ari replied, taking Melina's hands in her own for reassurance.

'I'm very happy we are friends.' she said simply, as displays of affection weren't really her thing. 'It was a lucky day when we met, waiting in line at Ollivander's. Merlin, it's almost a year since then, can you believe it?' Ariadne said, trying to distract her friend from worrying.

"Different?" replied Melina, raising an eyebrow. "How exactly is he different?"

She sighed and sat back in her seat. "You know why I think I'm the most nervous? It's because dance has been the most important thing in my life, and I miss it so much!! I just feel like, if Tate says no, then I'll have really lost that part my life, for the most part anyway. I'm just terrified of losing it."
The normally sunny Ravvie frowned and twisted her hands in her lap, not wanting to reveal the tears welling in her eyes.

She'd never been this emotional at school, but the comfort that Ari brought to her allowed her to bring out her deeper feelings.

"Merlin's polka-dot socks, it has been nearly a year!! How did it go by so fast?" she mused, the thought pulling her out of her funk. "Remember, we said we'd visit each other over the summer. I can't wait for you to meet my dad and my friends!!" she gushed.

Way to go, Ariadne. Adding stress. 'I didn't mean different in a bad way. Different is good. He's a bit eccentric, that's all.' the Gryffindor started babbling.

'But even in the unlikely case you won't be granted permission to organize the lessons, dance will still be an important part of your life. You could always go to the Room of Requirement by yourself and practice. Well, not exactly by yourself, since I'm definitely going to join you.' Ari grinned.

It seemed she had finally said something right, because Melina was suddenly her usual self. 'Sure, I already wrote to my mum and she is preparing everything. When would you like to come? I'd be happy if you were there for my birthday, August 15th. And I can't wait to visit you either!' Ariadne said, genuinely enthusiastic.

"You're right of course. You're so smart, Ari- maybe you're actually a "Gryffenclaw"!" The little Ravvie giggled at her own joke.

"At this point, I just want to use the Room to dance in- imagine, a wood floor, mirrors, a practice barre, beautiful music..." she trailed off with a dreamy look.

Melina was so excited that she'd be staying with Ari. "Oh, I am sooooo there," she gushed. "I'm an excellent party planner!" she grinned. "Maybe you could come earlier, like July. What do you think?"

She didn't know how much longer they would have to wait for the Headmaster, but at least she put her nerves back together, thanks to her best friend.

'Maybe. I must've inherited some of my mum's intelligence after all.' Ari laughed. 'But I'm just smart like two days a week, so I don't think it really counts.' the Gryffie rolled her eyes.

'This IS your biggest dream.' Ari pointed out the obvious, which however wasn't obvious to her until Melina had mentioned how she pictured the Room of Requirement.

'At the beginning of July I'm going to Wales with my mum for a few days, but after that I'll be home, eagerly awaiting guests.' the tiny brunette chuckled, looking forward to Melina's visit. 'We'll have a blast on my birthday then, if I can count on your party-planning skills.' Ariadne smiled.'Do you have anything else planned for the summer?' the Gryffie asked her Ravenclaw friend, realizing she was doing a pretty good job at distracting her.

Melina was pleasantly distracted from her worries thanks to Ari's presence. Ahhh. Even so, she wished Tate would come and get them, just so she could get the whole thing over with.

"Oooh, Wales will be nice," she commented, "I hear it's just beautiful in the summer. Well then, how about the second or third week of July you come stay with me in the city? It'll be brilliant!"

"As for other plans. Hmmmm. Well, I'll be in dance camp in June, with performances every weekend in July. Oh My Godric! If you come over in July, you can see one of my shows!!" she bounced excitedly.