"Holy mother of-!" Ayla burst out of the kitchen in a puff of flour and a string of curses. For the past few months she had made an arrangement with the house elves to let her into the kitchens every Saturday to work on her enchanted pastries and baked goods. In exchange she usually offered to help prepare that evenings deserts, making sure that non of her enchanted goods got sent up to the great hall. So far she hadn't gotten caught by any of the Professors but she supposed now even if she did she could easily tell them that Professor Longbottom approved it for her. She didn't think the gorgey new Herbology Professor would mind much. He seemed like the kind to let you get away with anything with little to no convincing.

She coughed slightly and looked down at herself. The simple tank and jeans she normally baked in were covered in the soft white powder and she could only imagine her raven hair - which she had tied back into a bun - looked just the same. She had been working on a new take on strawberry shortcake when the bag of flour she had been carrying over to her station had burst. The house elves had rushed her out of the kitchens to get fresh air and so they could clean up the mess. She only hoped that they would let her come back inside so she could finish up her work.

She pursed her lips and patted her jeans searching for the sturdy solid shape of her maple wand. Only problem was, it wasn't there, "Oh you've gotta be kiddin' me!" She turned back to the portrait of fruit hanging on the wall behind her that marked the magical opening to the kitchens. She tickled the pear but nothing happened. The painting remained as still as ever, the fruit didn't even giggle.

Ayla let out a frustrated growl and banged her fists on wall shaking the painting ever so slightly, "You ruddy little whelps! My wands still in there! LET ME IN!"

Angie had just finished up with her Charms homework and was heading down to the kitchens to grab a snack, she knew the elves didn’t mind and there was always something sweet to satisfy the Hufflepuff’s cravings. What she didn’t expect to find was a little Miss Ayla covered in white powder. It was reminiscent of the time she played in the pantry and fell into a bucket of flour. Needless to say, Angie’s mother had locked the pantry until she turned five after that.

“Ayla!” She yelled, jogging to catch up to her classmate. “You alright? You look a little… ghostly.” Angie said, trying hard not the giggle at her sort-of pun. It wasn’t that funny, but combined with Ayla’s ferocity and the not happy look on her face, she figured it would be better to keep her mouth shut.

“Did the elves lock you out or something?” She said, knowing how Ayla liked to go down to the kitchens in bake. There’d been a few times in years past where she would come up to the dorms with some pastry in hand and a big smile on her face, telling everyone in the room they had to try her new creation. Most of the time, they were fabulous, but it seemed like nothing was too fabulous about what just happened with Ayla.

Ayla was still pounding on the wall and yelling at the kitchen's occupants when Angie came across her. She was almost surprised she hadn't knocked the painting of fruit off the wall with her attack but supposed there was probably some kind of sticking charm on all the portraits around the castle. When she turned to Angie her cheeks were pink from exertion and she was huffing slightly, "You make one little explosion and they toss you out."

She turned back to the wall and pounded again, "Just give it back!" She gave the wall a few kicks as well, "I don't even care about the shortcakes just give it back and I'll go away!"

Huffing a little harder this time she turned to Angie, remembering her audience, and gave a slight sheepish look, "I don't always use my wand when I'm baking so I put it down on the counter. Then everything blew up and the little jerks kicked me out before I could grab it." She let out a frustrated growl, "What the hell am I supposed to do without my wand?" Like any young witch her age who had been practically attached to her wand at the wrist for the last three years it was hard to think of doing anything without it.

"Alrighty Ayla," Angie said softly. "They'll probably just clean it up, the mess and all. And then they'll let you back in, I'm sure of it." She said reassuringly, hoping her friend wasn't going to start freaking out any more than what she was. But Ayla had a tendency to be a bit of a drama queen, just a little bit.

"Did you try saying please?" Angie offered, "Maybe they'll let you in if you say please. You might be freaking them out..." She suggested, shrugging her shoulders and feeling for her own wand in her pocket. Just to make sure it was there. "You know, if they locked you out, we can use my wand to unlock it."

Ayla rolled her eyes at Angie, more out of anger and frustration than anything the girl had done. Thankfully they had known each other long enough to know that it was all just part of Ayla being upset and she never really meant anything by it. She let out a little frustrated huff. There was no way it'd be as easy as just saying please, that was just stupid right? Or was it just her pride getting the best of her? Ayla turned back to the wall with the fruit portrait and took a deep breath, "Please, open the door. I left my wand inside and I'm gonna need it." She waited a few moments but there was still no response and the pear was as still as ever to the touch.

She turned back to Angie with a bit of an 'I told you so' look, "Well that didn't work." She watched the girl pat her pocket where she evidently kept her wand, "Umm maybe you should do it. As good as I am in Charms using someone else's wand just kind of freaks me out." She had only ever used her cousin's wand once the previous holiday season when she was staying with her. It had felt very very wrong and made her wonder if part of Lexus' werewolf nature had rubbed off on her wand.

She rubbed her chin in thought, all signs of her previous frustration moving to curiosity, "Do you think a simple 'Alohomora' will work? I mean aren't all these portrait openings supposed to be super enchanted or something?"

Gloria Gibbon did not frequent the kitchens but she knew exactly where they were an how to get inside, things picked up in her years exploring the castle. Skipping down to the first basement level, where the kitchens were, as she edged along the hallway smelling of something floury and flaky she could make out tinges of conversation.

By the time she reached the portrait of fruit Gloria had gathered from fragments of discussion that Ayla was up to her usual habits baking with the elves but was locked out without her wand, and she and Angie were trying to find a way in. Gloria considered herself well enough with transataumancy, the divination of common sense and inference from overheard discussions, even if her Affinity Aid hadn't been reacting to it.

"Still stuck huh?" Gloria whispered in a faint, scratchy voice, face beaming with a sudden idea towards resolution to Ayla's plight. Tiptoeing to the painting as she made shushing noises before reaching out to tickle the pear.

"Hello!" she said loudly and in a voice unlike Ayla's. Saying that she was someone completely different would be spoiling the ploy but that was what she was doing. "I am in desperate need of a figgy pudding!"