It was finally here.

SUMMERRRRRRRRRRR!

And how did he know? With the way he was now able to run properly. The rain was slowly subsiding, going from the heavy showers that were pouring down before to the drizzles that were tickling his neck. Grayson cringed everytime he felt a drop land on his neck. The neck was a no go area but would the rain cooperate? No. Sassy, this rain was.

The boy grumbled again as he wiped the back of his neck and charged on. The temperature in the bubble was getting warmer; instead of the fresh, cool feel of spring, the air was getting much warmer and a little sticky too. Jeez, why couldn't he just have the sunshine and the relatively warm weather? Why did it have to start becoming freaking boiling?

Sweating like a pig, he was.

Reminding himself that summer meant cool shades and staying out longer, the fourteen year old ran as fast as he could, which was slower than before. Why? Because he was getting tired. And this weather made his stomach ache for a slushie or some chilled pumpkin juice. His feet pounded against the grass and ground, and he eventually found himself dragging them along. Effort. This required a lot of effort.

And was he done? He wanted to be done.

Or to knock into someone and roll them over with his bubble.

Whatever worked.

Having learned from her previous mistakes, Sophie had gotten into a rhythm that had quickly gotten her far enough around the rotation that the petals had stopped blowing in her face and she was basking in the warmth of summer. Even though there was no sunlight shining down upon her, aside from the light source in the middle of the room, it felt like her skin was on the verge of melting. Or maybe that was just sweat. Whatever. Same thing.

All she knew was that it was disgustingly hot and humid, and the aroma of freshly-mowed grass and chlorine passed under her nose - mmmm. Summer for sure. Reminded her of adventures with Tobes. Which reminded her further... where was Tob -

OOOF!

Having turned to look for him - he certainly hadn't passed her and finished the rotation, so she was searching spring, winter, or autumn for him - she didn't see that someone in front of her had stopped in their tracks completely while she was still walking, and Sophie's bubble bounced hard against theirs, sending her backward - and, conveniently, the pendulum struck just then sent her flying toward the barrier once more. Somehow she managed to stay upright this time, running sideways with the flow of the bubble and steadying herself with outstretched hands for balance. A cool breeze overcame her bubble, though, and the scent of flowers filled the air once more. It seemed she hadn't ventured far enough into summer and was back in the spring weather.

Well. At least she wasn't melting in the heat anymore.

After being attacked by an snowman, Aubrey was ready for what the next season would bring her. The first year was really enjoying herself. This was something that never would have happened at her normal school. Every inch of her body was freezing and she knew that she had to be close to the next season, well she desperately hoped so anyways.

Slowly, but surely the snow started to fall less and less. Her nose started to thaw out and before she knew it the snow had stopped falling all together and nothing from a snowman had pelted her in quite some time. She knew from experience though that this was just the calm before another storm.

As if on cue the rain started coming down fast. This time it didn't start slow, it came on fast and hard. It almost felt like needles on her arms. Her eyes were burning, and once again she was having issues with knowing with way was up. Then the rain stopped as suddenly as it started. Flowers started popping up everywhere and they were growing as tall as beanstalks. "Oh, and obstacle course." The brunette had to make her way through huge, thick flower stems and the pollen was starting to get to her.


ACHOOO!" At that very moment the pendulum decided to once again smack her. She was pretty sure that it waited to swing at her when she was distracted.

Though certain she was just a few feet from the season change to summer, Sophie felt like it was a cruel task to get there again. In real life, the planets didn't randomly skip around and re-experience spring again after summer, so why wasn't there some sort of preventative measure to keep her from crossing backward into a previous season, hm? UNJUST.

It was okay, though, because the third year darted forward when no one was in the way and the pendulum was swinging away from her, and she made it back into summer territory without too much more effort. The flip-flop of the season changes was weird stuff, though, as the temperature rose back up the moment the light source reacted to her being this far in the rotation. And this time there was a heavy downpour accompanied by thunder. Excellent.

The end was in sight as she could see through the rainstorm those who were still hanging out in autumn with crimson leaves falling in their bubbles - were they not planning on playing along? - and she took a quick, calculated step sideways and forward, then back to avoid the swinging pendulum. She followed behind it, squeezing her costume between others and using her hands to steady herself as people bounced into her on all sides, making slow but steady strides toward the autumn section to complete the rotation. SO CLOSE.

Had Justine not been quite so busy trying not to be knocked over, or sneezing her head off, she would have been quite happy t return the professor's salute, however, with so much chaos going on she could only manage a sort of half wave, half flailing motion in Flamsteed's direction.

Thank Merlin! Justine thought as the pollen disappeared from her costume, along with the flowers and the slightly chilly air. That had been awful! Much more awful than the winter season had! Were these getting worst she progressed? Or was Justine being dramatic (which she definitely was, but that had nothing to do really with this).

That sunlight was intense! Almost immediately Justine began to sweat under her school robes and her breathing became shallower with the humidity... It felt like, like how it was just before a thunderstorm. Thunderstorm. Thunderstorms? Oh. Hell. No. Justine cringed as blackened clouds appeared above her head, along with a low, threatening rumble that Justine had really hoped she wouldn't be hearing.

"Merde," Justine cursed to herself as it began to rain, heavily upon her in warm, wet drops that coated her skin, and made her shiver. She had been so distracted by this unpleasant change that she completely missed the pendulum making its way toward her at an alarming quick speed.

BUMPPPPPPPPPPPP.

For the third time that day Justine could do nothing, but brace herself as she was hit and sent flying back, once again, landing uncomfortably on her already sore rump.

Ouch, ouch, ouch.

Justine was going have some really weird bruises tomorrow, also her uniform would never be dry, ever again.

Three seasons down, she was three seasons down!!! Was she winning? Was there a prize? Because Aubrey liked prizes. Spring was cool. She liked the whole obstacle course thing and was doing pretty well considering that her eyes were watering and she couldn't stop sneezing. Her throat constantly felt tickly. Buckets of pollen were pretty much falling down on her and she once again wondered how long it would be before the next season, and how cool summer would be for her. Summer was her favorite time of the year so she hoped that it would be good to her in this little activity.

Right, left, side step... Aubrey kept on trucking. The maze was starting to thin out and the flowers were starting the get smaller. She was actually beginning to see the tops of them in the distance. Cool. The pollen stopped falling and before she new it she was once again forced into nothingness. This only excited her more though because she knew that this meant that summer was up next... of course considering that she managed to stay on track through the mess.

Hot! She felt very hot all of a sudden. It wasn't the nice heat that you felt when you were soaking up vitamin D. This was just 'end it all' kind of hot. Sweat was pouring down her face and she felt sticky all over. The sun was so bright and it was clouding her vision. Sand started coming from somewhere on her right and it was like she was in a huge sand tornado. This was probably the worse that she had to deal with out of all of the seasons and she felt betrayed by summer. "I don't like you anymore summer." See if summer was her favorite anymore. HMPH! Flailing around like crazy and walking who knows where Aubrey kept moving. All of a sudden she felt another smack that could have only came from the pendulum. Fantastic!

Ugh. Mo laid on the floor in Molandia, rubbing his head and bum and wondering how long he'd been staring at the top of his planet. It had been a while, but he'd taken that pendulum his hard. Was it a thing if a planet stopped orbiting so it could take a very long nap? Was that real?

He finally launched himself to his feet and made his way carefully back toward the orbit, keeping a careful eye on the pendulum this time. Too careful, so that when it grew a bit foggy and leaves began to fall from the top of the planet, it startled Mo and caused him to veer into another orbiting planet nearby. "SORRY!" Mo veered back into orbit and headed toward his winter spot. WINTER WAS COMING.

Sophie was so busy paying attention to that pretty little flower, that she didn't even notice the rain cloud forming above her. It was large and gray, and it looked like a nasty storm was coming through. It was only when she felt a few sprinkles on top her head that she glanced up.

GREEEEEEEEAT, she thought to herself.

A few seconds later, the April showers really set in. Okay, she needed to get out of this season, and she needed to get out fast. Sophie started pushing on the inner edge of her planet ball in an attempt to get it to roll forward. She slipped in the rain a few times but otherwise managed to move her ball a pretty good distance. She also avoided the swing of the pendulum, which was good, too, of course.

Jasmine was glad that Penelope had calmed down a little bit. She could only imagine how horrible it must be in the bubble for a claustrophobic person. "It's going to be O.K. I won't leave you. You've got to keep breathing and keep your eyes on me, only on me O.K? If I yell for you to stop, you stop. If I say move, you move. Remember to look at me and don't pay attention to the bubble. Pretend that you're outside enjoying the seasons."

Jasmine started walking, trying to keep one eye on Penelope and the other on the pendulum and her classmates. All they had to do was keep walking and avoid getting hit.

Adi was feeling a sneeze coming on. Uh uh! Spring time never really made him sneeze O_o It must be due to all the overwhelming smells in the confined bubble. Eeep! Bring on the next season!

Not even bothering to check on the pendulum or for any of his peers for that matter, the Puffer tore off to complete another rotation. Summer came next, yes? Waaait! The sneeze was going! Yes! Adi liked sneezes but he was in no mood to start sneezing his bubble down. So instead, he was left with the ridiculous look on his face you get whenever you don't decide to sneeze anymore.

Adi fixed his face to look normal, keeping an eye out for the pendulum. That was more important than his classmates he figured. But it was still all clear and soon enough the Puffer started to sweat. At first he thought it was because of all the running around but he realised it was mighty hot in his bubble. Summer had arrrived!

AH. Enough with the pollen and the allergies and the flower petals. ENOUGH. Please. ACHOOOOOO! Okay this activity was getting real obnoxious, real fast. And speaking of fast, Zander was on his feet again, literally running as fast as he could manage. Must. Finish. This. Lap. And as if on cue, his prayers were answered!

The cool spring air became much hotter and much less humid. The pollen was starting to disappear and he could finally breathe, and see! Professor, Professor! Zander changes his mind. Summer is his favorite season. But of course, there was always a flaw in the system. Too. Hot. Need. Water. The poor third year was sweating like crazy. He takes it back. Spring again please!

"Ok Jasmine," Penelope said. Keeping her eyes on Jasmine, Penelope followed Jasmine. It had stopped raining in her bubble, so maybe she was entering spring. She was still feeling uncomfortable being in the bubble, but pretending that she was outside helped. The activity would be over soon and she could get out out of the bubble. She could opt out of the activity and get out of the bubble if she wanted to. Everything would be fine. There was no reason to panic... other than being claustrophobic and trapped in a bubble. All she had to do was focus on following Jasmine.

It wasn't obvious at first that Mo had slipped from fall into winter, but then it never really was in real life, either. The fog thickened and disappeared, and the leaves dried up around his feet. He was relieved, because he'd stepped on one and nearly slipped, but the relief was short-lived as it began to snow.

SNOW. It obscured his vision, causing Mo to wobble toward the sun and then toward another planet (again) before he got back on track again. The floor became slick and Mo bumped down to one knee. WHY WAS THIS SO MUCH HARDER FOR HIM THAN ANYONE ELSE?

"COMING THROUGH," Mo barreled on past some other planets and hoped that he wouldn't fall again. Weird bruises were apparently the order of the day in Astronomy today, hmm? Now where was that blasted pendulum.

Jasmine was very glad that it was turning back to Autumn in her bubble so it was getting cooler. Looking back at Penelope, Jasmine was happy to see that she seemed better. She was hanging in there and hopefully she would be experiencing summer soon and could then be free of her costume. Seeing the pedulum coming their way, Jasmine said, "Penelope move to the left and stay right behind me.". If they timed it right, they just might make it.

Penelope was still struggling to regain her balance as the temperature in her bubble dropped and she felt cold little flakes land on her hands. Ugh, really?? Nooo, this wasn't okay. She wasn't dressed for this kinda weather right now.

And now it was even harder to get back and stay on her feet because the snow made the inside feel even more slick. She continued to flail around and try though, doing her best to also look out for that crazy pendulum and the other students running about.

Thanks to this, she saw the pendulum was swinging her way once again, but the sliding and flailing didn't get her out of the way completely - and the end of it thwacked into the back of her bubble. The impact against the barrier wasn't as bad this time, though, and it sent her forward enough to put her closer to the spring area - and warmth.

Which meant the snow was finally beginning to melt and evaporate.

Thank. Merlin.

Penelope followed Jasmine to the left, making sure to stay right behind her. She did not want to get hit by the pendulum or lose sight of Jasmine. Hopefully they would make it to summer and then she could get out of the bubble thing.

Ben moved and bounced a little...moved and bounced a little more. Certainly not as smoothly as he figured an actual planet moved along its orbit but it was moving. The Gryffindor was starting to get some feel for dealing with the limitations and issues of his planetary costume. And then there was the occasional jostling of those around her when the bubbles brushed against each other. Getting fearful at one point, he rushed forward as best he could in the suit, very nearly getting hit and thrown off course.

Whew...that was a close call.

Thank goodness for the reflexes that he had been improving in quidditch. The third year paused for a breath only to find himself shivering. Seemed like winter was a coming and with it more cold. Just great...just not for him, a cascade of snow flurries developing in his bubble and falling over him. His black robes temporarily dotted with white before they melted a second later.

Cue another shiver.

With his hesitance, he wasn't moving a quickly or fully aware of what was going on outside his own personal space any longer. And thus...suddenly felt pushed by the pendulum.

Where was she and what was going on? It took her several moments to get back to her feet after she'd been bumped into that second time by that one Ravenclaw girl and Lex was finding it hard to regain her balance. Eventually she was able to make it to her feet where she realized she'd been bumped...back to...the beginning...Oh you had to be bloody joking? HOW did she roll THIS far backward?? Was that even possible??--Well it had to be otherwise she wouldn't be standing here but that was besides the point.

Alexa kicked a few of the leaves out of the way, giving her feet less obstacles to go through in this bubble (plus it might have been fun watching them float about the planet bubble as she kicked them, ahem).

Eyes on the pendulum. She was determined to be on the next side of it by the time it swung this way again. The Gryffindor rolled along, wobbling a bit but keeping on her feet. She was READY. Lex looked over at the object hurtling toward her. Wait for it...just a little more....and dive. The Prefect lunged forward in her bubble forcing it forward and into another roll that left her tumbling.

SoooOOoOOoOo EPIC.

The planet came to a stop after hitting into the invisible barrier. It was at this point that she grinned, clearly pleased she'd temporarily gotten out of the range of the pendulum.

Oh? And her leaves were leaving? What? Lex watched them vanish slowly, blinking at the sight before the first snowflake trickled down onto her nose. Snow? Winter? ....Neat!

There were icicles dripping from his nose. DO YOU KNOW HOW UNATTRACTIVE THAT IS?! REALLY UNATTRACTIVE, FLAMSTEED.

Dec was so frustrated with the the icicles, he hadn't noticed the snow in his bubble had melted, until he had found himself in a pool of cold, ice water and being with flowers. Ah, this must be Spring.

Throwing back his hood and breathing deeply in the smell of fresh cut grass and flowers, he looked ahead and focused the last season, Summer. One more to go and then he can get out of this dumb ball.

Halfway through Spring, having no previous trouble at all, the bubble had stopped showering flowers and actually started showering rain! WHYY!!!!!!!!!! Declan pulled his hood back over his head, noticing the bubble was filling up fast.

O_O!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*waddle, waddle, waddle*

This rain was falling fast and into his eyes, making it hard to see. Where was that pendu-??

BAM!!!!

He felt himself ricochet off people or the wall or both, slushing around with all the water and flowers and what not. SIIIIIGH, just waiting for this ball to stop bouncing now. STOP. BOUNCING. STOP IT.

The falling snowflakes had almost completely captured the Gryffindor's attention. Did she remember she was still in a game of dodgeball? Hardly. Freshly fallen snow, the kind that wasn't stepped on or mushy and muddy. How often did she see this? Usually it fell while she was still in the castle, warm and snug in her bed, now she could see them delicately hitting the floor of the bubble and you know what...she didn't wanna step on 'em. Merlin this was going to be difficult.

As another hit the floor, she hopped away, causing the bubble to shift about. As much as she liked the winter she didn't like the thought of her feet being cold and slushy.

No time to waste in this lovely season. There were a couple more tentative steps inside the planet and a couple side glances at others hoping they wouldn't be rude enough to bump her in this weather. Cold was cold and Lex didn't like the cold. Not nearly as much as she liked being warm. What were her chances of cutting across the classoom? Like a direct horizontal cut that would likely land her in Summer?

She'd only have to get by the pendulum, yeah? How hard could that be? She'd already bested it once and if she could keep people away from her long enough, it could work.

A sudden, harsh bump sent her back to reality as she jolted forward falling on her knees. Who was she kidding? Avoiding people in THIS class? She'd sooner find the Easter Bunny. He was the guy with chocolate eggs, right?

He was cold. Very cold. No feeling in the toes, but the rest of him was cold, and Mo had this sudden fear that maybe he was going to die in Molandia and be this giant human snowball and they'd rediscover him in 100 years like some sort of caveman with really impressive hair.

He actually was sort of looking forward to death now.

And then the pendulum appeared again, and Mo felt a renewed desire to live. TO LIVE ANOTHER SEASON. He threw himself to the side, pushing Molandia against the invisible barrier so that it bounced hard out of the way of the pendulum.

Mo went down, but at least he was moving in the right direction this time. And when he stood again, it was raining. Not snow. RAIN. Spring!

The bottom of her bubble was kinda slushy and gross now, but at least it was WARM. She'd dry off soon, she was sure, now that she'd finally reached the spring area. And since she'd chosen it as her favorite season, Penelope was determined to make sure no pendulum hit her this time.

Once the slushy snow had mostly disappeared, she finally got back to her feet and moved forward carefully, not wanting to fall again or run into anyone. She glanced over at the pendulum every few seconds too to keep an eye on it - and soon it was coming back in her direction. However, she managed to easily maneuver out of the way - success! - but also right into someone else.

The small collision once again knocked her off her feet - and she struggled to get back up because her bubble decided at that moment that it would be appropriate to rain. Merlin's beard, REALLY? Did she get the temperamental bubble? Did it not like her or something?

"Sorry," she said to whoever she'd run into, trying to stand up in the once-again-slippery bubble. Where was the pendulum? It better not be coming back at her yet.

Cold cold cold. It wasn't until she felt the cold burning into her palms and knees that she remembered she'd been thrust down into snow. Lex hopped up with a start and tried getting pass the shivers that happened. Correct her if she was wrong but this wasn't always like this, yeah? Where did all this extra snow come from??...And...and this wind thing that wasn't here a moment ago but insisted on getting stronger...she didn't remember her inviting it into her bubble either....game crashers. Rude.

Alexa pulled her robe tighter trying to keep the cold out ad she trudged through the snow. You know that feeling you get when you're walking for ages but really you aren't getting anywhere? That's what she was feeling right about now and honestly it wasn't that great.

The Gryffindor stomped her foot in frustration, demanding the weather work with her because clearly she was trying to get somewhere--SWEET MERCIFUL CIRCE THE PENDULUM WAS COMING BACK!!! HJKSFVGGRDFXKBGVJKDGKDFB!!

Get awaaaaaaaaay!!!

Lex pushed forward, scrambling to get away from careening ball of doom that threatened to send her back into Autumn. NO. She would NOT go back. Noooooo. The wind inside her planet picked up (big help, thanks, pfft) making it harder to not only SEE where she was pushing but that balance thing...yeah, that was hard too. "Oh Merlin! Oh Merlin! Oh Merlin!" Her eyes squeezed shut at the approach of the pendulum that hit so hard she didn't even know what direction it was in. Between the snow, the wind and the spinning, Lex was lost again, lost and flat on her back....er...as flat as the bubble would allow.

While her head cleared she became vaguely aware of the fact the wind was dying and the snow was leaving. Was it possible to feel the snow giving off faint warmth? She must have been going mad...madder. It took her another second to feel damp grass beneath her. Please be Spring.

They were gonna BE a PLANET?

That was SO COOL.

It was really more like a hamster ball in looks and functions, Dima soon discovered as climbed into the thing. He was eager and ready to get moving, so he didn't notice that he'd started off going the wrong way. And he was just about to turn around and go the RIGHT way too... or he was when the pendulum whacked his ball off course. The kid and his 'costume' went slamming into the invisible barrier.

What? He was losing at dodgeball already? But they hadn't even been going for a whole minute!

At least he was learning how to work the ball, though. It seemed like it was easier to roll than to walk, so the first year began tumbling inside of the hamster toy thing instead of walking. That helped him make progress, and he was soon going through the fall season as fast as anyone. Dima was so occupied with the task of trying to avoid the pendulum that he barely noticed the leaves slowly beginning to fill the inside of his costume.

Or the pumpkin growing inside that came SMASHING down on him on his next roll.

Wait.

It was steadily getting warmer inside her ball as she kept hamster-ing along. Could it finally be her favorite season, summer?

Why yes, it was. The only thing was, it wasn't the summer she was used to. This one was hot, humid, sticky and gross. She was sweating already from that combined with the effort of hamster-ing around in her ball. Merlin, how did Southerners deal with this crap? Stay inside?

And then it happened again. She was sweating so much and there was so much humidity that she slipped. Again. Rolling right towards the edge only to hit it and bounce back into the pendulum, starting the whole pinballing practice again. This time, she just let the stupid thing stop under it's own power, moving herself aside and out of the way as much as possible once it had.

Merlin, if she ever saw another plastic ball like this, it would be too soon.