The day's classes done, Sam had decided to make the most of the time available before dinner to go explore the castle. She could work her way round the castle systematically, but where was the fun in that? Instead, she decided to let the moving staircases decide her fate.

She perched herself on the banisters, and waited, feet swinging lightly below her.

Maggie was on her way back down to her Common Room from the library. Yes, she knew where the library was. Kudos to her. It would've felt weird not to at least borrow a few books in her fifth year. For appearances at least. Which was also why she hadn't put them in her bag but was instead carrying them in her arms. She HAD however used the Feather-light charm on them.

Clever girl she was, right?

Peeking around her books to make sure she was on the right staircase, Maggie's eyes fell on a young girl. A first year, presumably. Who was sitting ON the banisters. Like, why? After a quick look around to make sure they were alone, Maggie addressed her. "Don't fall off. People might blame me for not helping you." And like, that was definitely bad publicity.

The stairs still hadn't moved. What was the betting that when she was late for class one day, they'd decide to swing in the wrong direction straight away?

It did mean she could just sit and people watch though. Like this girl here. She had a bag, yet she'd chosen to carry all the books in a pile in her arms. A pile, it had to be said, that looked like it weighed next to nothing. The feather-light charm perhaps? Her Pa sometimes used it when he had heavy goods to shift.

And then the girl decided to talk talk to her. A faint blush came to Sam's already ruddy cheeks. She hadn't being staring, honest! Just...thinking, yes, that was it. "Why'd dey fink dat?" she responded, a small frown. Surely if she fell off, it was her fault, not this girl's...and chances are she'd end up on the another floor by the time she landed. "I don't plan tah, 'nyways."

Okay, ignore her falling off comment.

That didn't seem important anymore. Not after she'd heard the little girl speak. Like...what even? Maggie had gotten used to the accents spoken around here - had HAD to - but this was still...what? It took some effort to understand what the girl had said in reply. Which was why Maggie chose to completely change the subject for now.

"What is that accent?"

Sam watched the girl curiously from the bannisters, making no effort to move. The girl hadn't actually asked her to, and she was quite comfy, so stay here she would.

Her accent? At home, it was a normal one, but here, she'd quickly come to realise, it wasn't. "Fro' Lan-dan, ain't I?" Which probably wouldn't explain much, given there were a whole host of accents in the expanse that was London, and she didn't feel like explaining her Cockney-derived one was from her Pa and living on the streets around Diagon Alley. "Why...wut's yours?"

If the Slytherin could ask, so could Sam.

Sheesh.

What even...?

Maggie blinked a few times, seriously trying VERY hard to understand this girl. So far she'd gotten most of it from like context and the few words she did understand. "Can't you speak properly?" Like, in a way people actually UNDERSTOOD her too? What was it with all these weird accents around here.

"My accent's nice." Maggie pointed out. Not that the girl had questioned that. HOPEFULLY. "I'm from California." Which, as per her own definition, made her accent nice.

Sam blinked right back at the girl. What sort of question was that? "I'm speakin prop'ah, ain't I?" she replied with a frown. "S'wut I grew up wiff." Not like she could help where she'd grown up, or who with.

Plenty of other people she'd met here hadn't had a problem with it.

"S'not bad, I s'pose," she commented on the girl's own accent. It was different to hers, but Sam didn't feel the need to be RUDE about it. "Cal-ee-fore-na?" she tried to imitate. Seemed she was doing a lot of that lately with trying to learn names of both people and spells. "Where's dat den?"

Geography outside of London really wasn't her strong point. In it, however, she was an EXPERT at shortcuts. For the record.

What was UP with that 'ain't I?'? Like was she supposed to answer that? Or was it a rhetorical thing?

This child was very confusing.

"You should change it." The accent that is. "Yours sounds really......bad." Which was definitely still a very NICE way of putting it. There were other adjectives she could've used but she'd decided against it.

How noble of her, right?

Now the next words that came out of the girl's mouth left Maggie blinking at her again. What? "What?" What? Did she seriously just ask her where California was? THE California. She felt like she'd just been personally insulted by the little girl. "West Coast." And then because she was pretty sure she would just ask her 'of what', Maggie added, "Of the United States of America." Did she need a continent too?

"Wat's bad 'bout it? 'n change it 'ow, 'xactly?" Sam asked curiously. She wasn't totally against learning how to speak better - she already planned to seek help with her writing - but she'd only do it for the right reasons.

Just saying it was bad wasn't very helpful now, was it?

And yes, she HAD asked where California was. Some people were luckier than others in their travel habits, and going to Hogwarts was literally the furthest Sam had ever been. Just crossing the Thames was a long way in Sam's mind. "Could ya show me on a map or sumfing?"

Just because she didn't know about it already, didn't mean she wasn't eager to learn.

What was that sound?

It was like a marble rolling down from a distance. Followed by a distant laugh.

Where did it come from? Who knows..

If the students were to look at the right time, maybe that small red bonnet floating down from above could tell.

What was bad about it?

Ah, see Maggie didn't really know where to START there. "Everything." She deadpanned, raising her eyebrows slightly at the girl and finally setting down the books on the step above the one she was standing on. Not because they were heavy obviously but like they were in the way.

"Well, try and speak properly." Great advice, huh? Yes.

Wow. She really couldn't get more detailed than that. Like. North America. Earth?? "Do you have a ma-"

"-p then?" Maggie trailed off towards the end, only finishing the sentence as an afterthought. She wasn't really paying attention to the little girl anymore.

What WAS that??

Her eyes went back and forth between the marble and the direction where she thought the laughter had come from. Was someone throwing marbles at them?? HAD SOMEONE LOST THEIR MARBLES? Eventually she looked back to the little girl on the banister. "Did you see where that marble came from?" Because if someone HAD tossed it at them on purpose she had some hexing to do.

Everything? How helpful. NOT.

Sam refrained from scowling at the girl. "Dis is propah for me, innit?" It wasn't like she was only doing it for funsies to wind the girl up. "Maybe yeh should be moah op'nminded wat propah is," she said pointedly. "Or yeh could teach me." If she was that offended, maybe she'd help fix it.

Sam didn't catch what she was being questioned about having, as she too had heard the noise, and glanced around for its source. It was like something rolling down the stairs, but she couldn't see what...or who had sent it down towards them and laughed, for that matter. "Nah. Just sumone messin' wiff us, I s'pose."

Did Maggie have enemies? Was this why the older girl had warned her against falling earlier?

HMM.

Why why why why why why had she even bothered to talk to this girl?

Maggie heaved a sigh and gave the girl a look that clearly suggested just how done she was with this conversation. And the girl in general. "There's only one proper." She spoke slowly as if she was talking to a toddler. And what?! "Teach you? Why would I wanna teach you?" That was ridiculous. Like. She had better things to do with her time.

Someone messing with them?

Looking around them again she didn't really see anyone else but then again if someone WAS messing with them they would be hiding. "Someone messing with you." Maggie corrected, slowly picking up her books again.

Like. Nobody would DARE mess with her. Pfft.

Katherine couldn't climb aaaaaaaall those stairs from Library to her common room, no way. It would take half a day to do that, so she logically decided to take a short cut, because obviously she had been living in this castle for all her life and knew all the stairs and their exact turning times...

Not.

Still, she was here, on a staircase and she hoped to end up in seventh floor... some day.

"Prop-per?" she mimicked the intonation, unaware that Maggie was totally speaking down to her. "Wiff a pee? Huh. Proper." Could she now say proper properly, according to this girl?

But she wouldn't teach her without a reason. Sam thought for a moment, before kicking off from where she sat on the bannisters. "'cos I'll carreh yeh books for yeh jus' now. Where'er yeh like." She nodded at the pile on the floor. Featherlight charm or not, they had to be annoying to carry, yes?

"Why'd dey mess wiff me? 'Snot like anyone knows me 'ere." So it had to be about HER, no?

Jessie was in trouble. No. She ALWAYS in trouble. Seemed like all trouble comes to her voluntary.

Today she want to go back to the gryffindor tower. She felt tired after her 'hogwarts exploring journey'.


It would be nice to laying on her warm bed. Talks with her lovely roomates, or just reading some books.

But when she stepped into the staircase, it moves into wrong direction. It means..... the distance to her dorm became longer


Merlin beard....

Sighed heavily, the little girl begin to walking again.

Another staircase. She hopes it wouldn't move to another direction again. So she decided to run like a madman.

but suddenly Jessie stops in her track when she caught another presence in front of her. Another girl. Around her age. She's looking up at another girl.

"H-Hi....Do you know ... W-when this place will move again?"

Jessie triying to inhale an oxygen after running so fast.

Katherine looked at the other girl as she approached. Hey, at least she wasn't lost alone! She watched the girl curiously as she took in her surroundings, and smiled at her when she addressed her.

"I have no idea!" she said cheerfully. So cheerfully, in fact, that she sounded sarcastic - and she was. She hated not knowing something, and she hated wasting time. Now, on this set of staircases, she was doing both: she didn't know where she was and she was wasting time by being here.

"But I know we should get out of here." Like, finding where they were and go.

It. Was. Time.

Their time.

The Project, fondly referred to as 'Project Arrange a Face' or PAF for short, was finally ready to get underway. It was dark. It was late. Not a creature was stirring in Hogwarts, not even a rock pet or a flashy suit Professor. No, it was quiet. Quiet except for the creak and the groan of the stairs as they continued their constant movement. Quiet except for the soft patter of feet down to the fourth floor balcony.

It would be the easiest place to start.

Amur tilted her head back and looked waaaaayyyy up at all the portraits lined on the walls. All the sleeping portraits. In each hand she held a small stone. An essential piece to their master plan.

Now, all she needed was the second master.

Jessie wiped her forhead with the back of her hand.
Her breath become steady and now Jessie could observed the girl in front of her.

"Ah, my bad. I should introduce myself. Please forgive me. " Jessie raised her hand for handshake "I'm Jeslyn. Jessie for short. First year from gryffindor. Nice to meet you.."

the petite girl likes to make a friend with anyone. She hopes they could be a good friend. " [/B]

No, no, Katherine didn't care about introducing herself in the middle of a moving staircase, but it would be extremely rude to ignore her now, so she nodded and shook the girl's hand.

"Nice to meet you too, Jesslyn." She was careful to use the girl's full name, she hated nicknames, "I'm Katherine. First year Ravenclaw." She looked around, then -

HSJŞLA THE STAIRS STARTED MOVING SHJDŞL

"AAAAAAAAH!" she SHRIEKED in shock, and held onto the railings for her dear life, "we should get OUTTA HERE FAST!" Maybe she was exaggerating it, but she HATED moving things!

Seriously?

At least the girl knew how to spell. But where had she learned how to speak? Did she like live on the streets or something? What even...? "Yes. With a P." Maggie still spoke slowly for fear the girl wouldn't understand her otherwise.

Also because she was kind of hoping the girl would imitate her and speak more slowly too.

Carry her books? Well that wasn't a very fair deal. Maggie thought about it for a long moment before looking back at the girl again, a small smirk on her lips. "Tell you what. You get us one of those two-way mirrors. And you keep yours on you always. So whenever I need something I can reach you." That was a great deal right? Like. If she needed someone to post her letters or get something from the library or something.

"Well it's not like anyone would ever mess with me." Like no. Maggie looked around again but didn't really see anything out of the ordinary. Maybe it had just been Peeves or something.

Sam could do phonetic spelling, for sure. But the girl would probably be horrified had she tried to write it down. Sam hadn't received the most consistent education when it'd come to her reading and writing, mainly because, yes, she'd been brought up on the street. "Proper," she said again with a smile.

A smile that turned into a smirk, as the girl deliberated, but soon faltered at her suggestion. "Nah, I ain't dat stupid," she replied with a snort. "I mean, yeh must be kiddin' meh. Where'm I tah get a coupleh them mirrors from?" And hadn't the girl noticed Sam had said she'd carry the books just now, and NOT forever more?

Just NOPE and NOPE.

She'd talk to Dora about it instead. Her Gryffindor bestie hadn't judged her at all, not even when seeing Sam in her natural habitat. No need to bother this Slytherin with it when she'd made a totally generous offer.

"Dere's always a way tah mess wiff people," she commented after a while with a shrug. She saw plenty of it, living where she did. "N yeh the one worryin' bout it, not me." Sam couldn't have cared less about the laughing thing, not when nothing else had happened since.

So...maybe she should start to think about leaving this girl to it, before something weird DID happen?

He wasn't late, per se, but he wasn't on time either... he was sufficiently present. It was hardly his fault that he'd had to alleviate his bladder anyway, if anything, it was the responsible thing to do before engaging in such tasks as portrait rearranging. Nevertheless, he was here... in all his glory, and dressed in fine blacks for their special super-secret project.

"Hey, 'Mur," he whispered as he stopped beside her, grinning foolishly.

It was a beautiful sight, was it not? A picture perfect mess of portraits about to have their worlds turned upside down, and their socks rocked off their feet. It was a lovely night for appreciating art and history.

Amur prided herself on not being too much of the skittish sort, but there was something about being out after curfew, dark hallways, whispers and the anticipation of the task before them that had her jumping a little when Zeke spoke. It was the good kind of fright though. The one that gave her an extra spurt of adrenaline, just the thing needed to get the job done.

Grinning as widely as Zeke was, Amur gave her partner a once over.

"You've done something like this before, haven't you?" Her whisper sounded loud in the silence. But clearly, he was experienced.

Which was one of the reasons why he was her partner. Couldn't go into this with a rookie.

Turning the stones about in her hand, Amur gave the portraits a once over thoughtful look before deciding that yes, it was definitely time. Stooping, Amur put both stones on the ground, a few feet apart. Hooking her finger onto Zeke's sleeve as she drew her wand with her free hand, Amur pulled them both back a step.

Then it was furrowed brows and extreme concentration and the draconifors spell. The first stone hesitated, then shifted, slowly morphing into a sleek, black dragon that blended well into the darkness of the stairway. It was, in Amur's mind, a masterpiece, and she grinned at her partner.

"He's yours." Unless Zeke wanted to do the next one?