Lunchtime

There was a time to eat and then there was, quite naturally, a time to go looking for trouble. Raine did not like to go looking for trouble but as of late she had difficulty telling apart curiousity from foolhardiness, which was a symptom shared by many an unfortunate Gryffindor.

But at least she had company this time. After their Transfiguration lesson earlier in the day, she had asked Harcroft to tag along with her to find Naomi Foley. Rumours had been drifting up and down the gossip vines in the short time that had elapsed since the wand confiscating incident with the fourth years-- was this the sort of thing Gabby enjoyed jotting down in the Howler? Probably. Raine wasn't bothered with the rumour section of their school newsletter; her interests were more... academic in nature. This slight distraction in lessons was the sort of thing she was looking for to garner interest in an extracurricular group.

The two sixth year prefects were just leaving the Castle, crossing the threshold out of the entrance hall. Autumn was at its peak. Red, gold and brown shades littered across the green grounds. The sky was grey and cloudy, and a chilly Scottish wind was coming in from the east. Some of the fourth years they'd spoken to mentioned Naomi being down by Hagrid's Hut.

"We had better find Foley before lunch hour is over," Raine muttered idly to Josh, frowning as she turned her gaze around towards the direction of the professor's abode. "I can't recall if she has lessons after."

Raine had approached Josh about an idea for an extracurricular group. Josh had been interested, so he was helping her drum up some interest. which was why he was walking with Raine to Hagrid's hut on a cold October morning when he'd rather be inside. "true, even if Foley doesn't have a lesson after lunch, I have. Price of wanting to become an Auror. you need a lot of NEWTs." Josh said in return. "Think Foley'll go for it?" Josh asked wondering if the Slytherin would want to attend the planned club.

The two Gryffindors were just crossing the grounds from the front, getting ready to circle about to the back of the Castle towards Hagrid's Hut. Students sometimes had their lunches outdoors but they were scarce in today's weather, most either rushing back into the castle or hurrying elsewhere.

Raine nodded at her housemate's remarks on their NEWTs. They were both pursuing Auror careers; academics couldn't be neglected. Which was why this group sounded like such a good idea! She was in wanting of free time these days but there was so much they could learn from each other. Sanya would have approved.

"I don't know," the redhead replied. "She had better. If Foley is interested, some others might be as well. A social lynchpin, if you will." Raine grimaced slightly, slipping her hands into her pockets as a colder, stronger breeze swept past them and battered against the castle walls.

When the two prefects came into view—and hearing—Gracie looked up from her bass, deft fingers pausing in mid-strum… and then ripped out a lone F to catch their attention. She’d caught the tail end of the fantastic Raine Almasy’s words and they’d brought a toothy grin to her face; sometime after class the two girls had a little chat where some things may or may not have been mentioned. By the time they’d parted ways, both had left with an understanding that didn’t need to be spelled out for either: one way or another, an invitation had been made and it was more or less up to the sixth year Slytherin to see that the intended would at least get it.

Gracie, for her part, hadn’t made any promises; Ny did what she want, after all. But, Raine was right—the study group was a good idea. If anyone had the most to benefit from it, it was Naomi. As the younger girl’s magnanimous friend, it was up to Gracie that she’d at least hear the prefect out.

The other one, well… maybe not so much. If Gracie had to bet on anything regarding Joshua Harcroft, it’d be that he knew jack squat about convincing a Slytherin to do anything.

“I thought you’d come this way, Almasy,” she crooned, eying the pair of them as she rose to her feet. Her skirt—already skirting dangerously close to dress code violation—was smoothed down with a casual smack; her other hand balanced the bass in a sure grip. “Didn’t know you were gonna recruit so soon, though.

“Hey, Harcroft,” the boy was greeted with a lazy, almost taunting smirk. “Don’t tell me you’re in on this, too?”

The raised brow she glanced Raine’s way meant only one thing: I thought you wanted Foley joining us?

Josh nodded at Raine's words. as much as he hated to admit it, several of the Slytherins were much better than him at that side of things. Of course, that was when Slant turned up. "Yeah, I'm in on it. I want to be an Auror after Hogwarts, and for that i need top grades. D'you really think I would miss out on something like this?" Josh said, noticing Slant 's eyebrow at Raine. Rolling his eyes, he briefly wondered how come he'd agreed to come along.

But of course it was Gracie Slant sending out a lone note across the grounds with her bass (had she fetched it for this purpose alone, Raine wondered distractedly?). The grinning witch was a reassuring sight- very few things indicated at social magnetism better than a wayward Slytherin.

"Strike while the metal is hot, isn't that the phrase?" Raine responded as her lips relaxed into a sardonic smile. They were around the Castle now, on the rising grounds that dropped back down towards Hagrid's Hut (and less attractively, the Forbidden Forest). The winds weren't slowing but they carried the vaguely pleasant scent of briny lake water.

Gracie's expression was obvious in its meaning- it was no secret that she or many of the other Slythies didn't quite like Harcroft. He was one of the more exacting prefects. Raine glanced at him, nodding once at his retort and then looking back to the other girl with a humorous glimmer in her eye.

"It takes all kinds, Slant. Foley ought to know what she's getting into." The redhead was infamous for her bluntness after all. "Let's get going. I'm sensing rain."

“That’s exactly the kind of thinking that won’t get you Foley,” Gracie remarked, grinning wryly as she slung the instrument over her shoulder. And as far as the sixth year was concerned, it was true; it was because when the younger girl knew what she’d be getting into, she so often didn’t in the first place. Had she been talking to any other Gryffindor just now, Gracie would have called it caution; as it was… “It’s called self-preservation,” a trait Slytherins were known for. “Dunno if you Gryffindorks have heard of it…?” She smirked, the curl to her lips teasing. It was a rhetorical question.

Still, at the redhead’s pointed comment, the brunette inhaled a lungful of air—and sharply released it. Raine was right. If they dallied any longer, they’d be looking down at a bunch of drenched clothes by the time they found Ny.

Lazily, Gracie swung an arm around the prefect’s shoulders and leaned in.

“You better follow me, then,” she cooed, batting dusky lashes as she gave the other girl a squeeze. As her arm’s grip tightened slightly, the rest of her pressed up against Raine’s side. “We don’t want…”

Bright green eyes flicked up and down at that other prefect’s attire wickedly. Her tone—already husky with mischief—dipped downwards into a purr. “His clothes all wet, do we?”

And without waiting for a reply, she pulled herself away.

“She should be at Professor Hagrid’s now,” she drawled over her shoulder, tone conversational as she sauntered up ahead of them. “And while I’m sure you guys know the way on your own…” A self-satisfied grin played across her face. “Consider my company yours. If you want her for whatever diabolical reasons you’ve got planned, then you’re gonna need my friendly face to… ah… persuade her.”

   

Josh rolled his eyes again. "A brave man dies but once, a coward dies many times" Josh said "Old Gryffindor proverb.''[1] Josh added. He doubted the Slytherin would be impressed, but honestly, he couldn't particularly care right now. Especially since he was pretty sure Slant was trying to mess with their heads, with her comments about (he assumed) his clothes getting wet. Josh couldn't care less, so... "Nothing particularly diabolical. Just an extracurricular Transfiguration group. " Josh said when Slant spoke up again.

1.	it's actually an old viking proverb I believe, but I thought it appropriate .It does rather sum up gryffindors.

"We don't want...his clothes all wet, do we?”

The Gryffindor smirked as the other witch slithered away, amused by her own rascally teasing. Not that Harcroft would get it, he wasn't one for banter and she supposed bashfulness wasn't rather becoming of her housemate either. There was little time to play peacemaker between him and Gracie- the pair of them could make snarky comments at each other until the sky cracked open, for and neither were likely to notice.

"Transfiguration is a start," she corrected Josh as they descended the slope that led down to the Hut. "It's for anyone who has anything to offer and something to learn. Outside of classes..." her expression turned sombre. "Like a club, I suppose." Raine was trying to avoid using the term study group for now, mostly because it sounded rather off-putting (even to her).

The ground levelled out gradually and the trio caught sight of Hagrid's giant pumpkin patch- it looked especially colourful underneath the grey cover of threatening clouds. And... and... what was that? One of the larger pumpkins at the edge of the plot had been hollowed out, a roughly hewn circle cut out of the side like an entrance.

A familiar looking figure could be spotted inside.

"Convenient," she laughed abruptly, exchanging an amused glance with Gracie. "A clubhouse."

The week had felt slow and dreary, filled with the monotony of Transfiguration and the constant assignments and projects handed out during more interesting classes. It felt like it would never end, and so she took comfort in spending her time at Hagrid's Hideaway, whether it was with friends, with Bai Li Yang, or alone. The latter was the case that day.

Inside the recesses of one of the largest pumpkins in Professor Hagrid's pumpkin patch, Naomi was sitting on a bench carved from the sides of the pumpkin, accompanied by dapples of green and yellow fireflies that glowed against the thin strands of golden silk that were woven all over the ceiling of the gourd by a large orb spider resting in its own corner (one of Naomi's class projects). The witch herself was sitting with her spine perfectly perpendicular to her seat while her things were resting at her side--some jars of ink, some paintbrushes, and her backpack. However, a rather old and Restricted-Section-esque looking book sat open in her lap called Fifty Shades of Reason--a helpful text that accompanied her Divination project for the day.

Naomi's eyes were closed, her legs were crossed, and her forearms were woven together and stretched towards the sky and decorated from the tips of her nails to her elbows in the ink from her jars. All she was really trying to do was to "plug into" the atmosphere to understand the weather--but it wasn't working at all.

When the sun broke through the sky, Naomi felt like she was heavy, and when it was hidden away by churning rain clouds she felt lighter--and that was about all she could get from her study hall spent practicing Divination, other than an offer to have some of Professor Hagrid's fish and chips for lunch--since she didn't seem like she was going anywhere anytime soon.

So the little witch sat and waited with her sleeves rolled up, feeling herself get heavier and lighter as rain clouds began to stalk the sky. Then her ears filled with the fuzzy and distance voice of something familiar.

• "Convenient," she laughed abruptly, exchanging an amused glance with Gracie. "A clubhouse."

Naomi lowed her arms and opened her eyes as she looked out to see the familiar Gryffindor prefects accompanied by Gracie Slant--either something weird was going on or they clearly weren't prefects anymore.

Naomi smiled, letting her lilt gently roll off her tongue, "Even more convenient,"  she folded he knees together and let her book fall between he legs and then slid her but on top off it, "A brush fire, a lion cub, and a dragoon waltz into a pumpkin--it's bound to keep burning at 'dis rate."

Looking over the great damn pumpkin—and its main occupant—Gracie snorted in reply, a wry grin tugging at the corners of her lips. Brush fire, lion cub, and dragoon indeed; perceptive as usual, the fourth year already suspected something was afoot. At this rate, they were going to need all the damn convenience they could get…

Beaming brightly at said fourth year, Gracie sauntered up to the girl with arms held akimbo, very nearly the picture of entreaty. “Ny!” she called out, voice throaty with laughter as she pitched it across the distance. There was dramatic and there was dramatic, so as long as the occasion was right the green-eyed girl had no problem with the former. “How very pessimistic of you—and rude! Can’t you even pretend to be happy to see us-”

Her mouth curled into a smirk. “If only for our Gryffindors’ delicate sensibilities?” The glance she threw the pair behind her was barefaced teasing. “They wanted to see you, after all…”

   

Josh was also amused at the sight of the pumpkin, although he didn't show it much. Hagrid had outdone himself this time. Halloween would be brilliant. Although looking up, he spotted what looked to be golden silk woven by a spider. He briefly wondered who had managed to get that to happen and how it was done. When Foley made a comment about a brush fire, a lion club and a dragoon, Josh had to admit, he didn't quite get what Foley was going on about. He didn't voice it, though, waiting for Raine to start. Considering most of the female Slytherins didn't like him, and he barely talked to the male ones? It would be better to keep his mouth shut most of the time.

Brush fire, that was a new one.

Raine tried not to think about what she was getting herself into- and judging from Josh's silence as they entered into the hollowed out pumpkin, perhaps he was harbouring a similar feeling. At least her housemate could take solace in the fact that they were evenly numbered against the Slythies... at least for now.

Gracie's expression made it obvious that she was teasing and Raine felt a dry, sardonic smile pull at her lips. Delicate was two syllables too long for the adjectives usually used to describe Gryffindors.

"Don't worry, we're not here on prefect business,"  she ducked slightly and sat herself next to Foley one of the carved benches. The pitter-patter outside indicated that it had finally started pouring rain across the grounds. "Not business at all, rather. I have an invitation..." Raine raised a critical, fiery eyebrow at the fourth year. "That is, if you'll hear me out."

Gracie's dramatics didn't do anything to reassure Naomi's rising eyebrow, or anything to quell any suspicion pursing at her lips, "You look like you've got a shovel ready in your back pocket, Gracie," the raven-haired Slytherin responded, her casual tone weighty with concern.

Then Raine then reassured Naomi; so clearly they were still prefects, so that only left the fact that they were up to something. A grumble of thunder thrashed through the dark clouds as rain continued to shatter against the ground and melt into small puddles. Within the calm glow of the large pumpkin Naomi just shrugged her shoulders, "Well we're stuck here now, aren't we?" Naomi gestured her decorated hand out to the rest of Hagrid's pumpkin patch and added, "Til someone comes along and saves us wit' a pink umbrella."

She returned her hands to her side and in a soft and thick voice asked, "What makes you t'ink I'm interested?"

Gracie met the younger witch’s accusation with a shameless, dazzling smile. “That stings,” she chided plaintively, still grinning as Raine made her way into the carved-out pumpkin. “I would never…”

Ha, balls, who was she kidding? If she didn’t have a goddamn ‘shovel’ in her back pocket, then she had at least someone to carry it for her. It’d be insulting to herself to protest otherwise.

By the time the redhead had finished her sales pitch, the brunette was comfortably seated inside the gourd herself, looking completely at home despite the bit of pumpkin that dribbled from the shell, her guitar safely ensconced between her legs. Giving her housemate a slight nudge with her elbow, Gracie grinned at her crookedly. “To appeal to your sense of education, or general curiosity,” came out as a sigh, as she leaned against the fourth year casually, like an afterthought. “Decisions, decisions… And who’s to say either would work?”

But, Naomi was listening. And despite the fact no one would be going anywhere for quite a while, the sixth year decided to plow on ahead. (The whole ‘wait until she’ll concede, just to get rid of you’ shtick really had more of a 60-40% chance of succeeding, anyway.) “Raine wants to start a study group,” she informed the girl, gesturing at said prefect lazily. There was, however, a subtle emphasis on the redhead’s name. “To learn something worthwhile without doubting its value, or th’ method by which it’s taught—you’re not the only who thinks Sandusky’s a right git.”

She patted Naomi’s hand. Outside, rain pattered noisily on the ground, forming puddles a girl could sink her heels into. “A study group would be different.” Which is to say, she’d have them, at least. Gracie was willing to bet even Harcroft had a thing or two to share; coming from an old family like that usually had its perks.

Her lips curled into a smirk. “You’re still having some trouble with Transfiguration, aren’t you?”