This is a day in the life of Figaro Sellaphix, the first day of his week under Professor Sandusky's silencing spell.  Let's watch as he goes about his day at Hogwarts without saying a word.  Life is a different place when you're all ears...If you'd like to make an appearance in this Snapshot+, please PM.

7:20 am

Figaro walked out of Professor Sandusky's office like an inferus. [1]  He'd just been magically silenced, his voice removed like in some backwards children's story.  The day, the week stretched before him like a great chasm he'd never be able to cross.  His mind was buzzing.  He had no idea how to deal with this new development, how he could survive, what this all would come to mean.  For a lad who defined himself in his best and worst ways by the things he said, by the laughs he got, by verbally connecting with people, he felt hacked off at the knees.

But the day had to go on.  He walked like a man sentenced to Azkaban.  Around him, Hufflepuff house was ramping up for the morning.  Students rushing around him gathering their things, getting dressed, finishing homework last-minute.  Figaro was in a haze as he moved through it to gather his own things from his room.  It was only when he reached to pick up his bag that he noticed the small chalkboard in his hand. 

Professors Sandusky had handed it to him.  He stared at it.  Was he actually expected to use this.  He shuffled in his things and found half a stick of chalk.  Figaro shook his head and stuffed both into his book bag.

1.	After The Night Before

Obderedria entered the house awkwardly with the stack of toast she had -- buttered toast, peanut buttered toast, strawberry jam toast, apple cinnamon jam toast, grape jelly toast, orange marmalade toast, cream cheese and lox on toast (it was supposed to be a bagel but she missed seeing one), dry white toast -- plus a few other breakfast things like bacon, a slice of ham, a slice of cheese and a chocolate doughnut. She didn't find any fried eggs that would have carried well.

"Helio?" But the common room was empty except for stragglers because everyone was up for the most important meal of the day. Except Heliotrope. It wasn't like Obderedria to skip out on half of breakfast but she was getting increasingly worried over how Heliotrope was acting after that fight and the table last night at dinner -- Obderedria still didn't comprehend what the fight had been about but it was scary, there were flying apples and kung fu moves and then the professors had to take everyone off to be healed.

But she couldn't let Heliotrope miss breakfast. They had a scheduled study period where should could laze if she wanted. Her kelp whip and -- sluggy thingie -- were still at her bedside pitcher of water, so she wasn't fishing her own breakfast.

She left the breakfast items on the table, thought of checking their room again but she didn't even make it two steps away before the tower spilled over. "Ack!"

Obderedria gathered them up but was distracted by someone entering the room -- but it was only Figgy. "Fig, have you seen Heliotrope?" she asked as she re-stacked the food -- cream cheese and lox toast, chocolate donut, bacon, cheese slice, grape jelly toast faced down, like a bizarre sandwich--

There was a flushing sound from the hallway to the bathrooms.

Heliotrope walked out of the bathroom dripping water from her shirt and tie. Dressed with only that and her swimsuit she did not appear class ready at all today. It still had not worked as it should.

Obderedria was so surprised she didn't notice the slice of ham had gotten stuck between slices of peanut butter and marmalade toast. "Heliotrope, what have you been doing?"

"I need to flush the blood lust away."

"What??" A slice of buttered toast dropped to the floor.

"All the hunters must do it after a big fight. We merpeople to it do keep from violence."

"Have you been trying to do that all night? Wait," Obderedria offered her the impromptu ham and condiment sandwich. "Eat something if you're going to miss breakfast."

"I can not. Eating during blood lust makes the blood murderous." She knocked the hand with the sandwich away. "That water is not right for flushing blood lust."

"What do you mean it isn't right? Can't you do this in the lake?" Obderedria absentmindedly took a bite from the messed up chocolate doughnut sandwich.

"It has to be the body of water where the battle occurred. It was in the great hall so I have been trying the flush the blood lust in the smaller bodies of water in the castle but it is not enough. There should be a strong current, I should sink and close my eyes, the blood in the water should be washed away and it would help if there were lake greens to whip my back."

Obderedria nearly did a spit take, more from Helio's freaky ritual than the ingredients of her sandwich. "Blood in the water? Whipped? -- but there's no time for that! What if we try to find a larger bathroom or a fountain after classes? Can you wait until then?"

"Class?" Heliotrope's mind changed mid stream, the school schedule stretching out in the day before her. "There is Study Break and Charms." She walked towards the exit.

"You can't go out like that!" Obderedria grabbed Helio's arm but her grip slipped a few times. She led her half-mermish roommate back to their dorm. "Honestly, you aren't dressed and there's your book bag and we need to dry you off--"

The girls disappeared down one of the rounded hallways.

In the Commonroom, Figaro watched a strange scene unfold.  When he might have totally ignored a question from a second year and trotted out the portal to his day, he had to pause, still not used to the strange sensation of opening his mouth to answer but having to reconsider.

He paused and just shook his head.  And by that time, the strange Heliotrope had made her appearance, soaking wet.  Fig could only watch and listen as the two little girls had the strangest conversation he'd ever heard.  And at no point could he interrupt or barge in.  He just stared at them until all at once, they just up and left.  And Figaro was left staring at a soggy spot on the carpet.

He looked around for someone to share in the bizarre moment, but there wasn't anyone.   After a few moments, he left the common room himself, out of the round portal to face the day. 

7:45

Figaro didn't start classes for the day until 10.  He usually got up and hung out in the Great Hall with friends with equally open mornings.  They played Exploding Snap, listened to the Wireless, and sometimes even did last-minute homework assignments.  But the air was heavy in the Great Hall this morning - not as chipper as it often was.  There was a sullen sort of feel to it, and Figaro felt it.  Instead of taking a place in the middle of Hufflepuft table, he just sat down at the end nearest the back. 

He poked at some eggs and potatoes, feeling aware that he was being watched.  It was still to early for anyone to have found out about his punishment and he was glad for that.

Resting his head on his hand, he found a discarded Daily Prophet and flipped through it slowly, not reading it.  He wondered when they'd owl his mum, and when she'd get around to owling him in turn. 

He looked over his shoulder, wondering were Sophie or Zel might be.  Or Nick Bevans who got stabbed in the calf.  Or if Drea managed to dry off Helio.