Pax hovered in the entrance of the Great Hall for a moment, looking to see if there were any other second-years at the Hufflepuff table yet. He couldn't see any, but then of course, it was a big table, not to mention it wasn't that far into lunchtime yet. A couple of older students jostled past him, and he quickly hurried on into the Hall before he got in anyone else's way. He was about to slip onto the end of one of the Hufflepuff benches when he noticed Charles Harcroft at the Gryffindor table. He'd actually been meaning to talk to Charles, but hadn't had a chance yet. Deciding that this was as good a time as any, he continued on to the table where his classmate was sitting.

'Hey Charles!' he waved cheerily. 'How're you? Okay if I join you?' Pax wasn't as close with Charles as he was with Eirene or Noriko, or some of the other Hufflepuff second-years, but he found him easy to get along with, and unlike some of the other Gryffindors their age, Charles didn't seem to find Pax annoying. So approaching him wasn't too daunting for the somewhat timid Hufflepuff.

Charles was just starting lunch, thinking about how his day had been going. He had been flying, finally being bale to use his own broom rather than borrowing Josh's, and had been getting used to the broom again. That,a nd later, he had been studying, trying to get ahead on classes for the year ahead.

Then, he was jolted out of his thoughts by Pax, who had asked to join him. "No problem Pax, feel free. how was your summer?" Charles asked, smiling. some found Pax annoying, but Charles ddin't.

Pax grinned and slid into the seat next to Charles. 'Pretty good,' he replied. 'Got to visit some friends, went to that welcoming festival type thing they had in Hogsmeade, you know, when the visiting schools arrived? That was pretty cool. Lots of booths all over the village. 'Side from that, just, you know. Studying. Practicing flying. The usual.' The last two were things Pax felt comfortable mentioning to Charles, as the other boy was well-known for taking his studies seriously, plus to the best of Pax's recollection he was an avid flyer.

'And, um.' Pax dithered a moment. He didn't want to ramble too much, but one of the things he really wanted to speak to Charles about was sounding him out on whether he might be interested in SAWS. Charles was an intelligent sort, after all, much like his older brother, the kind of person Pax figured would appreciate learning more about a subject, particularly something as pivotal as werewolf rights. Not to mention that with Fauna, Dion, and a bunch of other older students graduating, the club was in desperate need of new members.  Eventually, he settled on saying, 'And, um, there was a SAWS meeting as well.' Pax needed to work more on building up his nerve.

'How, how was your summer?' he asked back as he reached for a plate of salad. 'Oh, and how's Josh doing?' Pax hadn't seen much of the older Harcroft brother as of yet. Doubtless he'd see him at the next SAWS meeting, though. He wondered briefly whether Josh might have already asked Charles if he wanted to join.

"I went to the welcoming festival too. Josh apparently met an old friend of his from a holiday we took in France a few years back." Charles said, then his ears metaphoorically pricked up. Pax had mentioned SAWS. Charles wasn't a member, but had heard rumors, and his brother was a member. "You're a SAWS member? so what was the meeting about, I remember overhearinng Josh muttering complaints under his breath at not being able to go because we were in Egypt at the time." Charles said, keeping quiet. He didn't know how secretive SAWS was at the moment.

"Summer was fine, Josh's same as usual. Not much to say really."

Straightening her clothes out and shouldering her bag, Lexi hurried down to the Great Hall. She walked into the huge room, taking yet another look at the ceiling, which had been enchanted during the welcoming feast. Her amazement hadn't ceased since she had set foot on grounds, finding another new or different thing around every corner. She walked down the side of the Gryffindor table, aiming for the end where she was supposed to meet some friends, when she couldn't help but overhear a couple of students talking about SAWS.

She stopped and turned to them, one a Gryffindor and the other a Hufflepuff.  She sat down next to them, "Sorry to be rude, but are you two members of SAWS? Because I'm interested in joining."

Pax had been taking in what Charles mentioned about his own holiday, and looked up hopefully when he picked up on the subject of the summer SAWS meeting. 'Oh, of course, you two were in Egypt, I'd forgotten that's why Josh couldn't go.' Pax nodded understandingly. Egypt must have been a great adventure, but he'd be frustrated too if he'd had to miss a chance to discuss werewolf rights with someone who could potentially do something about them.

'It was a meeting with one of the Hogwarts school governors, Persepolis Zephyr?' Pax wasn't sure if Charles would be familiar with the name. Pax himself hadn't been before the news that she'd requested a meeting. 'She's going to run for Minister for Magic, and she was interested in hearing what SAWS was about. And, and,' Pax wasn't trying too hard to keep his voice down now, he was too excited, 'she actually said she'd look into Ollie's situation. You know, Olivia Foley, in Josh's year? Ms. Zephyr said she'd take another look at her being expelled just 'cause she was a werewolf, and you know what, she totally did, because now we've got Ollie back!' he finished triumphantly. He didn't care who heard that; Olivia Foley being a werewolf was common knowledge these days. And he didn't care who knew how thrilled he was that she was back at school again.

Pax was quite clearly pleased with the interest Charles was taking in SAWS, and this was only added to by the arrival of a younger Gryffindor who appeared to have overheard them. 'Oh! Oh, yes-- well, I mean, I am. A member of SAWS, I mean. Charles-- well, you could be a member, Charles, if you wanted.' He gave the other boy a lopsided grin before glancing back at the first-year girl. 'So you're interested in werewolf rights too?' She must have seen one of their posters! 'Oh, I'm Pax, by the way. What's your name?' He'd almost forgotten his manners again. It was ridiculous how easy it was to forget sometimes!

"That would explain why Josh was so irritated at not being able to go. Being able to meet someone like that..." Charles mused, then saw a first-year coming over. She mentioned wanting to join SAWS, and Charles listened carefully. "I'm not a member of SAWS, I've never managed to find out the time of a meeting so I could join. My name's Charles, by the way." Charles said to the first-year. "Pax, I would be interested in joining. When's the next meeting?" Charles asked, excitement showing on his face.

"My name's Lexi, and I'm really interested in werewolf rights." She said, smiling as she introduced herself. "So, you guys have regular meetings and such? Because I'd love to come to one, or all of them." The two second-years were really friendly, Pax and Charles. She metally associated the names with the faces, making sure that she would remember them.

Pax's first attempt at encouraging people to join SAWS was going swimmingly! Granted, it helped a lot that Charles was already interested and the first-year, Lexi, actually approached him about it rather than vice versa, but still, it was very heartening, and when it came to SAWS (well, when it came to anything, really), Pax eagerly took his victories where he could.

'We have a meeting coming up pretty soon, actually,' he told the pair of them, still smiling. 'This Sunday.[1] Would you both be able to make that? If you come along to the first one, that'd, that'd help you get a feel for what the club's like, and then if it's your kind of thing, you can come to as many meetings as you want after that.' All being well, they would both stay in SAWS past their first meeting, but Pax was aware that not everyone did. Charles and Lexi did seem really enthusiastic, though.

'It'd actually be pretty great if you both joined,' he added, a little more self-conscious. 'Most of the group are like, fourth- and sixth-years, so it'd be fantastic to have some more first- and second- years.' Aware that this might make SAWS sound a little daunting, he quickly added, 'They're all really nice though, of course.'

1.	Based on the current plotting thread. I'll edit the day if it ends up changing.

"I can make Sunday. Where's the meeting, or don't you know yet?" Charles asked, fairly sure SAWS didn't meet in the same place each time. "Yeah, I can see how having more of us first- and second-years would help, who'se leader of SAWS, anyway?" Charles asked, he knew Fauna Blake had been fairly high-profile in support of SAWS last year, and assumed she had been the leader, but she had graduated.

Pax frowned in thought at Charles's question of the meeting's venue. 'I think it'll probably be the Hospital Hut. Tulojow's normally really cool when it comes to hosting them-- oh, Tulojow is the Healer here,' he added for Lexi's benefit, unsure if the first-year was familiar with all of the Hogwarts staff yet. 'But, y'know, if it's not, I'll let both of you know.'

He munched on some of his salad before answering the second question. It had actually been the subject of a lot of uncertainty over the past few months; Sophie had always been a contender for the position, but after her mother had been killed during the werewolf attacks in March, no one had known for sure whether she'd be able to take it on. Happily, though, she had taken up the mantle, which was for the best. Pax had no doubt that SAWS would have survived without an official leader, but having someone to drive the group forward would help it thrive a lot more.

'Well, now that Fauna and Astrid have graduated--' he glanced over to Lexi again-- 'Astrid founded the club, and Fauna kept it going for most of last year-- Sophie Flickwick's going to be president now. Y'know, from Josh's year? It's a lot to handle, but she was a pretty, um, vital member of SAWS last year. I think she'll do well.' Pax smiled a little; it had never been clear sailing for SAWS but with the changes they had managed to make, such as getting Ollie back, it was easier to be optimistic.