According to their list of ingredients, and their semi-successful attempts of raiding others’ potions kits and bags, Erik’s merry band of pranksters decided to get ingredients from a rather risky source—the Care of Magical Creatures instructor, Declan Ó Móráin—well his office anyways.

He was sure the new no-nonsense Deputy Headmaster would be extremely suspicious about a handful of Gryffindors and a Huffelpuff, the rumored two least favorite of his houses, wanting random ingredients for anything—oh and a live puffer fish.

Erik, packed tightly in a thick coat and gloves with his ridiculously large backpack hanging off his shoulder, scurried-creeped his way into Declan’s office while hugging a lidded bucket of water, and his ridiculously large and empty backpack. He felt a bit more accomplished that he would be lugging around a puffer fish in his bags rather than thirty pounds of books… well it felt like thirty pounds anyway.

Erik silently slowly plopped the bucket on the floor and started sliding it, navigating around the room, leaving the flobberworm mucus to the professionals. Once he slid up to a very wide and tall fish tank. He twisted off the lid to his bucket and set it aside, and then balanced on the rim of the bucket and started poking fish with his wand. He wasn’t actually educated in identifying puffer fish but he assumed if he bothered all of them the write one would puff up.

“Do you think Declan’s got any moonstones?” Erik whispered across the room as he continued to “scientifically” poke at fish as they swam away.

Dahlia silently slipped into O Morain's office behind her brother. She was starting to really enjoy these little adventures. Back in the day it had always been just her and Erik but now with Mairead and Tynan at their heels she felt like she was becoming a part of something more. She was so excited to be working on this project with them that the fact that they were constantly breaking a dozen school rules to make it wasn't even crossing her mind any more.

Once everyone was secured inside Dahlia used a simple charm to seal the door to make sure no one walked in on them. With security in place Dahlia moved to the supply cupboards to try and find the other ingredients they needed, the ones they knew they wouldn't be able to just ask for. If there had been another way Dahlia would have done it but there wasn't time and they certainly didn't have the resources to go elsewhere. Besides Dahlia had heard that even the great Harry Potter had swiped ingredients from his potions master's stores.

She glanced over her shoulder at her brother, "I doubt it but I think Professor Cuthbert might." She turned back to the jars and vials laid out in front of her grabbing a few of them that were on their list, "You might wanna talk to Ayla, I'm sure she could talk him into lending her one, word has it he's kinda daft." She took a long moment before glancing over at her twin knowing how weird it must look to the other two that she was leaving talking to their older sister to Erik, "She's uh, still not talking to me."

She looked to the other two Gryffindors, "Find anything yet?"

“Well, best take one O Morain too. Heard he likes mixing stuff up every now and again—I guess it kind of goes hand in hand with creature ingredients.” Then he paused with his poking and slowly turned away from the tank and towards his sister. Him? Talk to Ayla?

“She’ll know I’m up to something Dahl, what on earth am I suppose to say to her? ‘Oh I just became a child genius the other day and want to use a moonstone for something incredibly smart, get me one, will you?” Erik’s wand jerked a bit and he yanked it out of the tank, just in time for a ball of fish scales and spikes to balloon in his face, and he leaned back more, falling back with his quick jerk and complete absence of balance, and he smacked against the floor.

He moaned as he stared at the ceiling, the bucket he was previously standing on swished and gulped with water and he kicked himself up, “Yeah, found the fish—find the flobberworm yet?”