Daniel was a little late for lunch that day after paying a visit to the owlerly to send a letter back home stating that he had forgotten one of his books and that they were to send it to him. He entered the Great Hall and sat at the Hufflepuff table, putting his shoulder bag on top of the bench.

He took a look around at the food options before reaching for the chocolate bread. Daniel turned in his seat to open his bag as he bit into the bread and chewed on it as he took out a large notebook. He placed it on the table and by doing so, he accidentally knocked over a goblet of pumpkin juice.

Ugh. Great.

Lisa had forgotten about lunch today. She had been completely engrossed in her studying that she had even ignored her first timer warning her to grab lunch. By the time the second timer went off, she remembered that she was hungry. So it was time to head to the Great Hall to find some sustenance.

Walking through the doors, she cast her eyes over to the Ravenclaw table wondering if she saw any of her housemates but it was fairly empty. The next place she looked was the Hufflepuff table for she knew she'd surely find a friend there.

And she had.

Daniel was there with a soggy notebook. She winced. That ... was rough... Hopefully he hadn't taken too many notes in it yet.

Lisa stopped by her own table to grab some napkins before heading over to where Daniel was. She was so used to not using magic from over the summer that her first thought had been to handle the situation in the good old-fashioned muggle way. "Here..." she said as she began to help clean up the excess juice from around the notebook and some of the juice that had spilled on the table.

Before Daniel could use a spell to siphon up the liquid, another person was already doing it with a napkin. For a brief second, he felt as if he was at home again while one of the maids cleaned up after him.

"Thanks, Lisa" he responded graciously, picking up his notebook to inspect the damage. Unfortunately for him, his notes on Cross-Species Switches for Transfiguration were barely legible, and he frustratedly ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Today has not been my day" he said as he lowered the book back down on the table. This time making sure that he did not knock something else over.

“Course,” she mentioned as she grabbed a few more napkins. She touched the surface of the table and it was still a little… sticky. “Scourgify,” she said pointing her wand at the place where the notebook had been. She then placed her hand back on the table and smiled. There… less sticky. She was quite pleased with herself. “What subject was that notebook? You can have my notes.”

Then glancing up at him, she watched him run his hand through his blonde hair. It was a good look. The hair… not the frustration. She had heard a few girls comment on his hair and how good it looked. They weren’t wrong. It did look good.

His comment drew her back away her thoughts. She tilted her head when he mentioned that it wasn’t his day and she took a seat. “Yeah… What’s going on? Wanna talk about it?” She was here for him. Talking about things… helped. Or so she had learned that EVEN when she hadn’t wanted too. Besides Nam’s and Yoon’s had to stick together right? She then reached into her bag and pulled out a stash of candy and pushed it towards him.

Lisa's willingness to share her notes with him didn't surprise him, and he appreciated the gesture. This would save him a significant amount of time. "It was for Transfiguration" he said opening the notebook to try to decipher the contents, but most of the ink was smudged. "About cross- switching species, to be precise," he sighed.

Daniel shrugged and placed his bag on the floor behind him as his friend took a seat. "I'm not sure, it's just one of those days when everything goes wrong." He had tripped over an untied shoelace while going to potions class, forgotten one of his books under a tree on the Grounds and had to walk all the way back to retrieve it. Which had made him realise that he really had to learn the summoning charm. And now this.

Daniel reached out his hand and bit on a piece of candy that Lisa had pushed over. "Hey, do you want to compare notes sometimes for other subjects? I think it will aid both of us for our OWL exams " he asked as he grabbed a second, third, and fourth piece of candy.

Adventurous with hair styles and lengths, Yukie was. She'd even cut her own hair on a whim just before the train ride back to school because she felt like it. She wouldn't even mind trying out a new hair colour....if she wanted. And that's exactly what DID NOT happen today. Waking up to seeing herself with TREE LEAVES for hair —an exaggeration, clearly—Yukie almost wanted to cry. Almost. Because she wasn't going to cry. She was a teenager and she will be fourteen years old soon, but that didn't mean she wasn't allowed to hate the situation she was in.

Green wasn't even on the top of her hair-colours-to-try list, and today just proved her right because she looked AWFUL in it. Even more so because she didn't do this to herself! She had been PRANKED. By who, she did not know and she didn't really even have a shortlist of people to point her fingers at either. Yukie had thought of simply locking herself up in her dorm, hide her face from the rest of the school and even her dorm mates, but that won't do. She also woke up hungry.

After calming herself down a little bit, though it clearly did not work, Yukie quickly made her way to the Great Hall with a beanie on her head to hide her hair, not even pausing once to smile or wave at a classmate. The Hufflepuff didn't even care to check which house table she sat on because she just didn't want to be perceived this morning. She tugged her beanie down to make sure nothing obvious showed up. She couldn't account for the little strands of hair at the side though, so long as most of her hair was hidden.

She only later realised this was the Slytherin table, of course. Not even her own house's. What a way to start the day for one Yukie Rasting.

She pulled up her bag to rest on her lap and began fishing through several different notebooks. She pulled out a light purple one which was her Transfiguration notebook. “Here you go. Page twenty two is the notes on cross-switching species that I took,” she smiled as she held out the notebook towards him. “The key terms are in green.”

Lisa nodded. She had those days too. She found that she had a lot of those days last year. “I get those too. It always feels like it happens in a series of three,” she said leaning her chin on her hand as she looked at Daniel. “Call me superstitious but that’s what my Eomma says…” Her other hand reached for a piece of candy to twirl on the table.

She glanced up from the twirling at his proposal. Comparing notes only meant they could ensure that they both did well. That was something Lisa was open too. “Sure. I think that’s a great idea… We may pick up on different golden nuggets that the Professor may have.”

Bella had twisted and turned all night, in her bed. Her head hadn't wanted to go to sleep after she had gotten news from home. Her mom had finally been admitted into St Mungos for her weirdness. Bella didn't know if she could even call it an actual disease, but hopefully the healers would figure it out and cure her finally, so things could go back to normal. After not much sleep she wasn't in the best of states as she entered the Great hall to eat breakfast. Her head ached, and she didn't know if she was hungry or not.

Letting her feet lead her over to the green snake table by their own accord Bella didn't really take in who was sitting at the table until she slipped into a seat next to a girl with a beanie pulled down over her head. Blinking and blinking that turned into staring, she asked incredously as it dawned on her who she actually sat beside. "Yukie? Hi, are you all right?" She saw the green hair, but didn't think much of it since many of her peers changed their hair colour so often that she had lost count. Why was Yukie of the lions sitting at her table and not her own?

Daniel took the notebook from Lisa's hands and flipped to page twenty-two to confirm that the notes he needed were indeed there. "Honestly, Lisa, you're a lifesaver right now" he replied. "I'll return it, first class, tomorrow. Unless you need it right now?" he asked with a slight tilt of his head.

He raised his eyebrows slightly as he looked at Lisa seated next to him, her chin resting on her palm. "I don't believe in superstitions" he shrugged before reaching out his hand to place it on top of hers, preventing her from twirling the candy. It was irritating him.

"Exactly" He nodded, glad that she accepted his idea. "I want to make certain that my OWL scores are perfect. I understand that earning all Outstandings is difficult, but I will not accept anything less than an E" even an A was still a passing grade.

Maybe if she acted all normal, Yukie wouldn't be noticed by the Slytherins or anyone who passed by that she wasn't in her house table. Not like they weren't allowed to sit in other house tables anyway, but she wasn't with anyone she knew this morning. Ren didn't seem to be here, or Enzo either, but she also wasn't about to dash to the Puff table at the moment. The Hufflepuff rubbed her eyes. What if this was just a bad dream?

Nope, not a bad dream. Suppose even her small stature, though she was a growing little lady in her early teens, had not been able to mask her from eyes of the curious snakes in this table. Upon hearing her name, Yukie whipped around to face whoever it was, eyes wider than usual from another wave of panic. "Hi!" She also casually pulled her beanie down a bit more. Maybe it was the beanie. Of course, it was! Who wears beanies inside? She was sticking out like a sore thumb. The name of this older pretty Slytherin escaped her as well, another effect of her panic. Yukie never missed a face, and had better memory for remembering names of schoolmates than for remembering dates of goblin rebellions.

The third year almost forgot there had been a second question. She was distressed and distracted. "Y-yes..." Yukie started to say, but it was obvious just from looking at her that she was lying. At the same time, she hated lying so it was already souring her mood even more. "...No." Final answer.

Daniel’s words brought a smile across Lisa’s lips. She liked being needed and liked being helpful. It was nice to feel needed. She shrugged nonchalantly, keeping this secret to herself. “Yeah, no worries. I know you’d help me out too.” She wasn’t entirely sure if he would- she hoped he would return the favour. Lisa shook her head. “Nope, I don’t need it until tomorrow afternoon.”

“How come?” she asked as she was about to twirl the candy again but was stopped by his hand on top of hers. Huh? Why was he…? She didn’t let her confusion nor surprise show instead she focused on his previous comment. Lisa was intrigued. “Do you believe in fate?”

His hands were soft. Odd.

Lisa understood where he was coming from and understood the need to excel. Besides, Evan had outdone the whole family with his scores. How could she ever compete with him? And honestly did she want to compete with him? She remembered he had become a hermit during that year… which was something she didn’t want to do. “Evan got all O’s…. I can never compete with that…” she pouted.

Bella would say that she was an expert in reading body language, but it was obvious that something was up with Yukie. That she kept pulling the beanie down more and more over her head was the big clue. Something was not okay. Could it be with her hair since she did everything possible to hide it from everyone's view? Bella kept calm even though she was getting very curious and really wanted to pull the beanie away to see what was underneath. She wasn't that kind of girl though.

Unsure of how to tackle the problem Bella tried to ask more questions even though Yukie was obviously distracted and distressed by a situation that Bella knew nothing about unless the lioness shared what was wrong. "Why are you wearing a beanie Yukie? You've got lovely hair, and a pretty face. Don't you want boys to see that?" After a long pause she added sincerely "I'd like to help you if I can Yukie. I can see that you are distressed, but I can't help if you don't tell what the problem is."

The older Slytherin was watching her, inspecting her. Yukie tried her best to maintain her little smile, but even with that she was always easy to read. She was always expressive, and not very good at hiding her emotions. Maybe if she followed her twin sister, Mitsuki, she'd be better at the deadpan face. Times like this, the no-expression face would have been beneficial.

"I...uhm...." Yukie let go of continuously tugging down her beanie and crossed her arms over her stomach, all while chewing the insides of her cheeks. The compliments from the other girl elicited a faint shade of pink onto her cheeks. Lovely hair, pretty face. She didn't really think about letting other people, boys or girls, see her like the way the older girl was implying yet, because she'd done all her physical changes for herself and not with someone in mind. "I think I got pranked. Can you help me fix it?" Yukie gave her best wide-eyed pouty face. Not too pouty that she looked like she was going to cry, but just enough to hopefully gather the Slytherin's sympathy. She also pointed at her beanie, not ready to show her awful green hair yet.

Second year was already becoming weird in that peer pressure kind of way. Phoenix never really thought he'd be the type to be susceptible to that sort of thing, though he supposed he never really thought that much about it to begin with. But even last term near the end he was starting to feel overlooked and like he wasn't fitting in all that well. It didn't bother him too much, especially as he had his cousin and a few close friends, but he supposed even he was vulnerable to the pressure to fit among his peers.

And somehow that included truth or dare. Phoenix knew he should have picked truth when he somehow got roped into the game after lunch with a group of second and third years. But there was also something that felt too personal when exposing truths in this game, so he opted for the dare, hoping that it wouldn't be too painful. And it wasn't... it was just... not something he was all that comfortable doing. It wasn't something that he would normally do, but he supposed that was the point. Hopefully the other person wouldn't mind either because he also wasn't comfortable doing something another person wasn't okay with.

But he supposed he'd cross that bridge when he came to it. Or when the next person walked into the Great Hall. Hopefully they also weren't someone bigger than him because he wasn't sure how that would work out. But clearly he was overthinking things here. For now, he leaned in the doorway and waited.

Lisa was right. He would help her whenever she needed it. Which amazed him because he remembered making a vow to himself when he was younger not to get caught up in 'friendships' and other things. He didn't say anything, simply nodded and slipped the notebook inside his bag.

"You mean if I believe that three mythological goddesses are responsible for everything in my life by simply spinning a thread?" he snorted "No, I don't" But there was a hint of hesitation in his voice when he said this. He didn't even notice it himself. Why was she even interested in this anyway? "If there really existed something like 'fate,' then that would suck" he said."Imagine discovering that everything you've done in life was not your own choices and you were never in control of your own life..." the thought scared him a bit.

Evan had received perfect scores on his OWL exams? Daniel jerked his head down to gaze at his friend rather than the clouded sky above them on the ceiling. "Are you serious?" he asked. "I'm not surprised, but I am surprised." Evan was smart. He was definitely one of the brightest students at Hogwarts. But getting every Outstanding grade was a real achievement.

Lisa was mistaken if she thought he was going to encourage her by saying, 'she could do it too!' and that he 'believed in her!' Daniel crossed his arms in front of his chest and nodded his head. "Yes, you can't compete with that"he said, a cheeky grin on his face. "Do you want chocolate bread?" he asked as he pushed the plate towards her. "They're really good"

Lisa raised both eyebrows at Daniel’s question and prompt snort as if to say Well… She didn’t even note the slight hesitation in his voice because she was so caught up with him snorting at her question! “I swear it’s a legitimate, serious question of the minds!” she clarified with a sigh. She took a moment to listen to his thought process. She pursed her lips as she paused, trying to align her thoughts. “I mean… yes… terrifying and it would suck. But can you prove that fate doesn’t exist? Like how do you explain your wand choosing your or Cat choosing you?”

She nodded. “Yeah… I shouldn’t be surprised either and I know I shouldn’t compete…” Or worry about it but the more she thought on it, the more the younger sibling, competitive side of her came roaring to life.

Lisa should have expected Daniel to say something like that but still she gasped and moved her hand away from under his to give him a gentle shove. “Rude,” she scoffed and crossed her arms but wore a smile on her face the whole time. She looked down and sighed. “Buuut you’re not wrong..”

“Are you trying to placate or cheer me up with chocolate bread?” she asked teasingly. “You know my kryptonite… Anything chocolate or sour… Thanks.” She took a slice and began munching on it. Mmm! Lisa have an appreciative nod at the flavour and texture. That was delicious!!

Tahani walked into the Great Hall. She was preoccupied with thought about the pending homeworks she had. That is when she saw a boy waiting by the door of the hall. 'Hi, did you want something?,'
she asked. Why was he waiting in the doorway?

Lisa looked positively upset by his thoughts, prompting a slight smile on the Hufflepuff's face. He thought it was endearing. In a friendly sort of way. "Of course, you're right, it was a significant mental question" he could have considered it more seriously if he hadn't had such a miserable day.

But then she said something that made him ponder. His wand selected him, according to her words. "Now that you bring it up... " He began slowly. "It's funny because I tried so hard not to get this wand."

He removed his wand from its holster to show it "I didn't like the way it looked." Yes, someone who had nearly begged the wand-maker for a wand when he was eight years old had been fussy the moment he received one. "But no matter how many wands I tried, this one stayed on my mind." He sighed and pocketed it again. "Perhaps fate exists. But it does disturb me a little." He enjoyed the idea of having power over his own life.

Daniel leaned forward to grab another chocolate bread when Lisa shoved him gently. The fifth-year turned his head to see her with her arms crossed. "You're welcome" he grinned before sighing too when she suddenly looked down."Are you concerned about your exams?" he questioned, frowning as he sat back down. It was a stupid question because he was as well.

"Can it be both?" he chuckled. In his opinion, chocolate was always a good solution to many problems.

Atlas was rattled...to say the least.

Whatever this...this thing that was happening to him was...he was not gloating about it like he may have fantasized about once or twice during a list making session with Aries about what superpowers they would want if they were ever to fall into a vat of radioactive waste or whatever. That thought alone made him...sad...for reasons...

Heading into the Great Hall for a meal, Atlas quickly and quietly made his way over to the Gryffindor table and sat uncharacteristically all the way at the end of it rather than somewhere in the middle. The house elves had actually prepared some of his favorites today, which was maybe a sign (if one were to believe in such things) that today would be a good day. A better day.

Maybe.

Reaching forward for the bowl of fresh berries coated in sugar, perfect additions to the yogurt he had scooped out for himself, Atlas' eyes widened and mouth dropped open with a silent gasp as both fruit and yogurt suddenly went ZOOMING away from him. The berries were like an spray that swept across the Great Hall and he winced internally at the amount of stains blackberry and raspberry alike would leave on clothing when they were inevitably smashed against someone. The yogurt was even worse and was hurtling itself across the space in a goopy white orb.

"...nonononono..." he mumbled while shoving his hands deep into his pockets. "...not again..."

The rack of toast sitting on the table just to his left began to rattle until, suddenly, each slice flung itself into the air and spun around like boomerangs all about the Gryffindor table while some whizzed off towards other tables to land, er, wherever they landed.

If anyone asked...HE DIDN'T DO IT!

Lisa was slightly upset by his words but his smile quickly calmed her bubbling feelings. He really ought to smile more. He had such a nice smile. But then if he smiled all the time would the smiles mean the same? She brushed the thought from her mind and instead chose to return his smile with a small one of her own. She shot him a playful wink. “I’m always right.” Big smirk. “Well… maybe 62.91% of the time I am.”

He tried not to get his wand? What? Why? Questions whipped in her mind in circles like the wind at the start of a storm. Then she remembered how he had ended up in Hufflepuff. She couldn’t remember if he had wanted that house or another but she had a hunch that was a house that he hadn’t really wanted at first but then again.. she could have been confusing that memory with someone else’s desire. Daniel was one of the friends that had stayed with her. There was little drama but, then again, female friends were different from male friends. Lisa watched as he pulled his wand out of his holster and showed it to her. “What kind of wand did you want?” she asked.

Not being in control of your own life was terrifying. She had to agree with that sentiment. She, herself, had tried so hard to control her feelings and thoughts to please those around her because that was both the past of least resistance and the way to make friends easily. However, last term and this past summer had been a great session in remembering what she wanted and who she was and that she just needed to mind her own happiness. “It disturbs me too. I’m still coming into terms with not being in control of … everything,” she mentioned with a quiet chuckle. Work in progress, she was. “I’m only responsible for me and Pascal, of course.” Her chameleon had also seemed to mature from his first year at Hogwarts. She had spent half the term looking for him.

She nodded to his question while still glancing at her hands on her lap as she looked down. Bringing them together to touch, she intertwined her fingers. “I am. It’s going to be a challenging year to balance studies with friends and emotional weird things… But I know I shouldn’t be overly concerned because if I’m focused on that, that’ll take more energy away from my studies. It’s like my mind knows what to do but then my heart and stomach flip flop. If that makes sense… ”

Can’t it be both? That very statement was something Lisa found simultaneously endearing and comforting. She turned her gaze to meet his and smiled. “I think it can. Thanks Daniel.”

And then this warm feeling was suddenly smacked away by a literal flying object that hit the back of her head, coating her hair in this sticky…. unfortunately for Lisa the yogurt that Atlas had accidentally hurled hit her. Her mouth dropped and she reached her hand to the back of her head. Ewww what was this? Pulling her hand back from her hair, she saw a residue coating her hand. She slowly sniffed it before grabbing a napkin. This bubbling emotional mix of anger, frustration, and sadness was growing. Her hair looked UTTERLY PERFECT TODAY. She had SPENT hours on it. Her cheeks flushed red. It was yogurt. Really? Gross. “Now I just want to hide in the bathroom…” she spoke softly before wiping off the excess yogurt from her hair. “How bad is the damage? Was that Peeves who did that, Daniel? Or is it a first year? ”

It was irrelevant if Daniel was aware that his words had offended Vera. But, judging by the way she winked and smirked, she didn't appear to be upset. "62.91%?" he repeated, his eyebrows slightly raised. "That's a really specific number." he chuckled.

Well, correction. He had attempted to obtain a different wand. He laughed again at her question, but not unkindly. "I wanted a powerful wand" he stated. "I didn't agree with the way the wandmaker characterized this one. He claimed that it demanded someone who was stubborn and dramatic, which felt insulting to me as an stubborn and dramatic eleven-year-old"

A difficult year balancing studies, relationships, and emotional oddities... Daniel nodded, even if he did not share the same sentiment. He didn't have many friends, and he wasn't currently 'emotional' about anyone. Even his feelings for Maya were fading. "Yes, I understand," he sighed. "However, I believe the exams are far more impor-"

His sentence was cut short when he witnessed Lisa get hit in the back of the head with yoghurt. Who dared to interrupt their conversation like that?! He jumped out of his seat and looked in the direction the food had come from. "I don't see Peeves." he murmured as he scanned the Gryffindor table, his dark brown eyes lingering on Atlas for a little moment but....he didn't seem like to type to hurl yoghurt at Lisa?

"I'm not sure... maybe?" He sat down again. "Are you all right?" he inquired, his tone indicating that he wasn't too concerned because it was 'only yoghurt' after all.

Did somebody say

PEEEEEEEEEEVES?

That would have been a MOST PERFECT moment to come flying dramatically into the Great Hall, cackles galore... but Peeves was already here! Sitting up high in the rafters, invisible despite already being mostly concealed by the enchanted ceiling. Positively gleeful that his work was already paying off, old Peevesie decided to give an extra helping hand in the chaos caused by the Gryffindor (or was that a Peeves special? he didn't know, he'd neglected to keep track).

The point being that that was why he was here in the first place! And Peeves the poltergeist was not to be outdone, not even by himself.

Flipping through pages of his book, the poltergeist used it to once again bestow more gifts - which he fully intended to do from up here for the rest of the day. GENIUS.

He sent his stealthy little magic towards a boy (Daniel), talking to the yoghurt-covered raisin-claw, cackling to himself all the while.

_____

And what was this? A baby 'claw lingering in doorways? A comrade in stealth! Being that they were now besties, Peeves sent a silent spell from his book straight to that boy (Phoenix) too.

_____

Not to pass up the opportunity to get a two-in-one deal, Peeves turned his attention to the Sssssslippery Sssssssnakes' table, where it was apparently so cold - could be a chilly lot, those scaly serpents - that they had resorted to wearing winterwear indoors. Perhaps Peeves could warm them up!

Really he had no idea. It was rare he had much control over which gift he was giving, not really having the hang of spells, but they'd find out!

He silently sent his SUPER STEALTHY MAGIC first at one student (Yukie), and then the other (Bella).

Bella was very curious of what was going on with Yukie. It hadn't subsided as the badger girl at least stopped tugging down the beanie. Crossing the arms over her stomach was something that Bella tended to do too. It felt good to give compliments, it was clear that maybe Yukie didn't hear them so often since she seemed a little embarrassed. Bella wanted to reach out to pet the other girl's arm to reassure that she meant what she said, but they didn't know each other well enough for her to know how Yukie would react to touch.

When Yukie finally revealed what was up Bella's eyes widened slightly in surprise and then sympathy as she responded slowly "Oh no, that's awful Yukie! Do you know who pranked you? Of course, I can try and help you fix it. Can you let me see under your beanie?"

Bella's focus was on Yukie so she didn't acknowledge Peeves brief appearance in the great hall, but she did feel something flutter around her before it dissapeared.

Leaning in the doorway, Phoenix was easily able to see who was next coming into the Great Hall from his vantage point and he was pleased to see that she indeed was someone not larger than him. Perhaps a first year even. But would he still have the nerve to ask her if he could give her a piggy back ride?

This was a dumb dare and it was dumb that he agreed to do this in the first place. But maybe he was overthinking it and maybe she wouldn't care that much, especially if he put on an air of confidence and just acted like this was a common occurrence here. Maybe he'd even make a new friend.

But she caught him slightly off guard as she approached. Was it really that weird that he was standing there that she'd question him about it? For all she knew he might be waiting for a friend. "Uhh.." he started, about to offer an explanation, but before he could say anything more, he felt as if he was hit with a jolt. What the...? He hadn't seen anything or anyone else nearby - and he didn't think this first year did anything to him. Phoenix glanced around, quickly noticing that his hands looked... well, they looked like the part of the castle that he was standing in. It reminded him of the disillusionment charm he'd seen some of the older kids cast in dueling club. He looked down at himself to see that the rest of his body was indeed camouflaged in that way. Did someone cast a disillusionment charm on him??

"...did you see who did that..?" He asked suddenly, mostly of the girl since she was the only one he'd seen around... even though she probably couldn't see him right now as he appeared to be just short of invisible.