(Monday morning, just before breakfast in the Great Hall.)

HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
OFFICIAL PRONOUNCEMENT
of
DRESS & VESTMENT
In Which Appropriate Attire is Detailed for Young Witches & Wizards.

• Between the hours of dawn and dusk, all students must be in uniform.
• Young wizards may wear a white shirt and a waistcoat, either black or of House colours, along with black or gray breeches, white stockings, and low-cut shoes.  Unnecessary shoe buckles are not permitted.
• Young witches may wear skirts or simple gowns of a respectable cut and color.  Stays and corsets may be worn, but must retain enough girth after cinching to accommodate the width, upon inhalation, of one wand.  Ankles must be fully covered.
• Cravats of the House colors are required to be worn at all times.
• Overcoats of a modest and appropriate cut may be worn outdoors.
• Wigs worn inside the castle are not to be powdered.  To prevent issues when entering or exiting the common rooms, women's wigs may not exceed one hand (five digits) in height.
• Hat brims are not to exceed one shaftment in diameter.  Hats must be removed inside the castle, while eating, or while in the presence of a lady.
• Hoop skirts, panniers, excessive ruffles, and other embellishments are forbidden except for formal occasions.
• No article of clothing or accessory may look excessively Continental in cut, color, or design.

Any young witches or wizards found to be out of uniform will be subject to the School Discipline Code as deemed appropriate.

It had been an early start to the morning.  Joao had not been particularly pleased at having to alter his schedule so that he would arise so early, but he had very quickly learned that any task was much more quickly accomplished if he went about it while no students were present.

By the time the breakfast hour was reached, the Caretaker had already been hard at work.  It had taken him hours to search the incredibly disorganized files strewn about his inherited office the day before, but upon some prodding from the new Deputy Headmaster, he had finally managed to locate an ancient, faded piece of parchment that listed the Official Dress Code for the school.  A few duplication and sticking charms later, and copies of the dress code were posted on every available announcement board around Hogwarts, ready to greet the students as they rose to begin their Monday morning.

He had saved the announcements for the Great Hall for last.  With a flourish, Joao had attached fliers to the walls around the room, and then cast 'Engorgio' on the final copy to hang outside the doors.  As he cast the last sticking charm, he stepped back to admire his handiwork, for once feeling pleased with himself - though any sort of satisfaction quickly faded with the sound of approaching footsteps.

The students must be coming down for breakfast.  Of all the different aspects of this deception that tried his patience, having to deal with children on a daily basis irritated him the most.  Not bothering to hid his grimace, Joao turned away from the door, stowing his wand as he prepared to make his escape before the masses arrived.

"Watch where you are going!" he snapped as the first student approached the door, more out of principle than anything else.   "And walk!  You will scuff up the floors before the week even begins, and I will tell your Head of House to make you clean them up!"

* Thread title provided by the incredibly witty Jessica.

It was rather early in the morning, but Jordyn was up and ready for another day.  Well, maybe not ready, really.  It was Monday and who wanted to be up on a Monday?  Particularly when there was class to be had.  No, this was not the sort of thing Jordyn looked forward to, at least not today, but she strutted down the hall with her satchel strap across her chest and the sack of books bumping on her hip.

It was a decently far walk from the dungeons to the Great Hall and she wanted to go directly to her first class, so she brought everything with her.  Though she would have expected to be one of the only people up at this time of the morning, she should have imagined the groundskeeper would be up and around - creepy git, even if he was kind of hot.  But, he was just a groundskeeper.  Jordyn might have thought he was a squib, if not for the spell he cast on something on the door.

Well, that made her pick up her pace a little, her heels rapidly clicking against the stone floor.  It was a huge piece of paper, and the title made Jordyn stop dead in her tracks.  It wasn’t so much the voice of the keeper, who was grouchy - she supposed that would never change amongst that ilk, but the title and the horror that it would cause her.  A - a changed dress code? 

“Excuse me?” she hissed back, certainly not in the mood to receive news like this on a Monday morning.  “What on Earth is this?” she motioned to the paper, glancing back up at it - catching bits and pieces of things she never would have thought she would see here - vestments?  Cravats?  These were not typical words.  Now, she knew Hogwarts was old and anything they put out was going to reflect that old as dirt sentimentality, but really now?  She continued to pick up the key words and gasped - this could not be right - wigs?! 

Itching to do something, Jordyn’s hands twitched toward getting her wand out, but thought better of it.  She glanced at it again and frowned, aghast.  “This must be a joke.  Bad timing though,“ she sneered, “It’s not even close to April Fool’s Day.”  She flexed her gloved hands repeatedly, trying to avoid an unnecessary outburst.  “Take it down!” she ordered, figuring that a prefect had to have higher standing than a groundskeeper. 

"Ungh," had been her reply to one or two dorm-mates trying to wake her up. The alarm clock rang and rang and rang and rang until she finally shot up and slapped the thing. Aggression! She could feel it! No, wait, it died. With a groan, she collapsed backward onto her bed, stared at the canopy of her four-poster trying to find a reason to wake up (there wasn't one), and sat back up at long last. She pulled on her undergarments, her skirt, her socks underneath her leg-warmers (it was cold weather, still!), her shirt, and left her tie dangling loosely around her neck. Then, she put her shoes on, added the few accessories, and checked the mirror. The blue highlights in her hair had been enchanted from the special witch's dye she'd used: the millions of shades of blue magically reflected her mood. Today, as they had been nearly all month, were a depressing bluish-gray that made people think of rain, sadness, and crying.

She slipped on her robes, jerked up her bag, and headed down for breakfast. There were new posters all over the place and by the time she got to the Great Hall, the largest of them all was easy to read. Her blue eyes scanned the new Dress Code carefully before, like Jordyn, she also stormed up to the caretaker. Now, Bellatrix had lost the entirety of her aggression as of late, but an incident with Callum on the Quidditch Field when he called her pants "trash" had made it flare up again. Her sense of rebellion and personality, as were all students', were reflected in the things they wore outside of classes. Her old temper had sky-rocketed at the injustice of having to conform to a dress code, but Jordyn had got to him before Bella could.

"Take it down!"

"You're out of line," Bellatrix said with controlled anger. Her blue eyes were cold and threatening as they used to be. The comment was clearly directed toward the man who was standing there, obviously proud that he was responsible for the turmoil he was causing for the students. "That dress code needs to be updated! It doesn't even say T-shirts or shorts! Are you honestly that thick? Half the girls here don't even wear skirts anymore and I haven't seen anyone wearing a wig!"

She didn't even bother tying her tie; she was fully aware that it was hanging limply around her neck and Bellatrix almost dared the man to comment on it. Did he honestly want to provoke the wrath of Bellatrix Dark? Or the twins, for that matter? Oh, he could count on her and her twin making double the trouble on top of everyone else in the school for him after this dress code was posted up. Were they really going to enforce it? They'd be barking mad if they did and Bellatrix would give them absolute hell if they did.

Eveline examined the announcement blandly. There was no way her outfit could possibly violate the Hogwarts dress code. After all her mother had gone with her to Diagon Alley and as always had supervised every item Evie picked out, right down to the knickers. However...she could not help noticing that her cousin Bella as well as Jordyn Dimbleby were getting a bit riled. And that as usual, Encantado was being anything but...enchanting. Reading further, she glanced down at her own attire...black wool blazer, white button-down shirt, plaid waistcoat and color co-ordinated pleated skirt (Hufflepuff colors, of course). Hmmmn...her skirt was doubtless more on the mini-side than the new rules would allow. Although...she was at least wearing her class tie. Also she was also wearing black tights, so technically her ankles were covered...

She walked over to the two young ladies and (speaking very softly so as not to be overheard) she said, "You know...there might be another way to get the Deputy Headmaster to rethink this, besides raising a fuss." Lest they think she was condemning them for making a fuss, she added, "A way that might even be fun. For us, not for him..."

She thought for a moment and went on, "Let's say we go along with it...but interpret it to suit ourselves? For instance...he says wigs can't be powdered...but he doesn't say what color they have to be.  He says hat brims can only be so wide...but he seems only to be thinking of men's hats, not women's; and there's not a word about how tall they can be. Remember some of those hats ladies wore in the middle ages? You could probably poke somebody's eye out with one of those! And as for that bit about no excessive ruffles...he doesn't say what he means by excessive..."

Her blue eyes twinkled. "Sometimes I get a kick out of old Muggle movies. Either of you ever heard of Carmen Miranda?"

To say that Figaro never tied his tie wouldn't be fair.  It would be more accurate to say that he never untied his tie and just slipped it on and off and hung it on his bed post.  Whenever he tied it, it looked horrible, so he just kept it as it was most of the time.  So it hung around his neck, crooked, his collar turned up and the knot a little natty and the whole thing too loose.

He'd come up from the cellars just a few paces after Eveline and some of the other 7th years, to gather around the Brasilian porter.  Whatever was going on, Jordyn and Bellatrix were throwing a little kidfit and what was more fun than that?

He budged his way in and began scanning the giant decree.  He needed only read down a little to realize why Dark and Dimbleby were pissed.  And why about a thousand of the girls and a handful of the boys(*cough*FergieTokoFirRazzy*cough*) were going to be up in arms.  He wasn't shy about openly laughing.  What did he care about a dress code? This was going to be too hilarious to miss!

"I can see your ankles, you slaggy, loose women!" he crowed, pointing at the offending joints.

Declan had, at first, been pleased to see a notice posted in the hall near his office in relation to the dress code. He preened slightly until he read it and realized that the caretaker had found the wrong dresscode. And not only was it wrong, but it was outdated by at least a hundred years. He cursed hotly under his breath before storming down to the great hall- hoping to remove any incorrect ordinances before the students saw them.

But it was with no such luck. When he arrived, there were already a few students surrounding their caretaker, voicing their complaints. Declan cleared his throat loudly, hoping to gain some attention. "Mr. Encantado!" he snapped loudly. "What is the meaning of this?" he asked. "This is not the appropriate dress code! Use your brain man!" Declan flicked his wand angrily- the spell shooting past João's head and hitting the dress code that had been hung.

A new one slowly began to replace the older one- and all over the castle, the same was happening to the rest of the incorrect rules that had been posted.

• Between the hours of breakfast and dinner, students should be in uniform.
• Bottoms should be black or grey dress pants and skirts.
• Skirts and other non-uniform bottoms may be no shorter than 3 inches above the knee.
• Collared white shirts with uniforms, all tops may not expose midriff or lower back.
• House ties are required to be worn.
• Shoes should be black/gray, close-toed, heels no higher than two inches.
• Vests, cloaks, gloves, winter coats, stockings/socks, and jackets should be white/black/gray. Embellishments of house colors or crests are allowed.
• No hats are allowed to be worn with uniforms with the exception of a pointed wizard's or witch's hat.
• All clothing should be clean and devoid of obvious stain, rips, tears.
• No part of clothing/accessories may containy any rude, profane, or offensive text, photos, or meaning.

Then he turned to the students. "All of you have gotten too lax with your manner of dress. Hogwarts is a respectable institution, and as such it is my goal to ensure it appears that way. Those who are found not following dress code will lose ten house points and serve detention. Your second infraction will be twenty house points and two detentions. So on and so forth until you learn to dress and behave like respectable young adults. And now that you have seen the way things used to be, you can be grateful for the updates to the dress code."

[Hexing of Figaro approved by Sarah! Thank yoouu~ <3]

Already outraged by the out-dated dress code (and, of course, by all of the events thus far that had caused Bellatrix to build up her anger), it was not long before her own disliked cousin Eveline had shown up and pointed a couple of things out.

"You know...there might be another way to get the Deputy Headmaster to rethink this, besides raising a fuss. A way that might even be fun. For us, not for him..."

And then Eveline being a Chancelier, she prattled on and on. Bellatrix's temper soothed momentarily for her snooty cousin had given her an idea. What if she made a joke out of it? What if she walked into Care of Magical Creatures dressed in a tall wig with neon-flashing highlights, mice scurrying in and out of the hair, flowers poking out here and there, and beads draped all along it? Add that to some good old-fashioned neon panniers and ghastly, ancient dress robes and Bellatrix could make a scene that got everyone's attention at how stupid the whole thing was. She was just about to let it go when callous laughter erupted behind her and sparked the ire back up. The darker Dark twin rounded on Figaro.

""I can see your ankles, you slaggy, loose women!"

Professor Declan had also come up yelling about the time that Bellatrix had pulled out her wand. He was going on about the dress code not being updated, but he was hardly heard. The Slytherin had already flicked her wand. She needed to hex someone! NOW! Too long had she been on vacation with her magic, her reign of terror, her old habits. They had to come back! She was sick of crying over Xavier Tawse and that stupid letter, exhausted from studying for her upcoming O.W.L. exams every night, and infuriated that someone had further limited her ways of expression to panniers, hoop skirts, and corsets! Yes, Bellatrix Dark needed to vent and Figaro, the stupid Hufflepuff, had opened his mouth at the wrong time.

"Langlock!"

The hex she cast wasn't one that Bellatrix used often, but it had been well-practiced on Peeves or any of the people that had seen fit to maul her with crude comments as Figaro just had. It was only after she had cast it and the darkness in her cold, blue eyes faded that she realized she had just attacked a student in front of the Deputy Headmaster and a Prefect. On the other hand, she was shaking with fury and couldn't seem to calm herself down. Again and again, Bellatrix wanted to fire curses in every direction at everyone around her. She'd finally lost it--and in front of her Care of Magical Creatures Professor, too! There was nothing that could be done now, no going back. She'd cast the hex, the milk was spilled, but this time Bellatrix Dark wouldn't even bother denying it or excusing herself.

"Hmph," was all she said as she tucked her wand back into her robes and crossed her arms over her chest, looking anywhere except at her favorite teacher. She knew she was in trouble and she wouldn't dare lift a finger against it. He'd lecture her, probably expel her, but that didn't matter to livid Bellatrix right now. She was using all of her mental energy to keep what boiling temper that was still there from making it out of the rest of her body; the effect could be seen in the way her body shivered with controlled rage.

The arrival of Figaro's bestest chum ever the Deputy Headmaster Ó Móráin did nothing to dampen Figaro's spirits.  Even with the less-hiliarious dress code that he posted, Figaro was still rather pleased to see that all the striped-stocking fashionistas would finally 'quiet down' their loud clothing.  He was just really excited for the tantrums. 

Well, he got a tantrum a whole lot sooner than he was bargaining for.  She didn't even say anything!  Just out of the freakin' blue, a hex hit Figaro in the side of the face. He didn't recognize the incantation - they usually were spoken too quickly and Figaro didn't, y'know, keep up with hexes - but he didn't need to.  His tongue told him everything he needed to know.

He wasn't exactly sure what was actually happening inside his mouth, just that he couldn't move his tongue anymore.  It didn't hurt his vocal chords or lips at all, and he immediately started shouting at Bellatrix.  Well, he tried anyway.  His protestations came out heavily slurred and unintelligible as he tried in vain to enunciate without the benefit of an agile tongue.  His words were soggy and blunt after a few seconds, he just stopped trying.

"Whudafug Bulluhdrischg?! Wudjadoo? Grazhy shygo!" 

He clamped a hand over his mouth and then turned to the adults who were standing right there with a look of, 'Well?'

http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=27560126

"I can see your ankles, you slaggy, loose women!"

Eveline turned to Sellaphix, rolling her eyes to show her opinion of his immaturity. But before he could respond…or probably even notice…Bella jinxed him. She didn’t say a word…but after all she was Evie’s cousin. Evie recognized her style in this…and for once, couldn’t fault her actions. Slaggy, indeed! “Good on you, Bella!”

Bella probably didn’t get to hear Evie’s commendation, because O’Murrain (Evie’s new and private nickname for the Deputy Headmaster)  picked that moment to arrive and start bellowing. "Mr. Encantado!…This is not the appropriate dress code! Use your brain man!"

The outdated dress code flickered out of sight, to be gradually replaced by the new one. Eveline breathed a sigh of relief as she saw it, though at the same time she felt vaguely disappointed. Showing up for class in full Carmen Miranda finery…ruffles on her sleeves and hem, accompanied by a fruit salad on her hat…would have been amusing. With a bit of creativity, it could even have been made to fit that old dress code.

However, Evie’s relief was short-lived. For as she read on, she was startled to see that indeed, she was in violation, on several counts. This in itself did not disturb her. The Hufflepuff plaid skirt and waistcoat were her mother’s idea, not hers. In fact she would be more than glad to switch to plain black pants or skirt, and could hardly wait to make the change. But she had also just noticed that despite being plain black cable knit, her beret was now against the rules. And the now-forbidden beret kept her head warm…which the acceptable, old-fashioned pointy witch hat wouldn’t. She frowned.

And then…as Professor Ó Móráin reached the end of his tirade against the dress of Hogwarts students… first Evie’s eyes widened in shock, and then they narrowed in anger. In her nearly seven years at Hogwarts, Evie had never been rude to a teacher. True, she had skirted it one or twice, for instance giving O’Morain a black look when as one of the SAWS delegation, she’d had to endure his snide remarks. But even when he lumped her in with everyone else, accusing her of disrespect though she hadn’t said a word, she had kept her temper under control.

"All of you have gotten too lax with your manner of dress. Hogwarts is a respectable institution, and as such it is my goal to ensure it appears that way.”

For Evie, that was the last straw…just as being called ‘slaggy’ had apparently been Bella’s. After all…didn’t what O'Murrain had just said amount to the same thing?

“Excuse me…Sir,” she said. She said it with the typical Chancelier hauteur, which she had never been angry enough to pull off before. “Are you saying that my clothing this morning is not…respectable?”

Looking around at everyone, she went on, “My mother picked out these clothes, Sir. Are you implying that my mother is not…respectable?” If he was there would be hell to pay, when the rest of the Chanceliers heard of it…

Turning to Figaro Sellaphix, she aimed a kick at his shins. “And watch who you’re calling slaggy!”

Sticking her nose in the air, she went to stand by her cousin.

Freya stood behind everyone but it didn't block her view of the travesty, since she was taller than most of the students gathered around the notice.  "He can't be serious!"  Of course, she might have laughed at the whole thing... except that the first words that leapt out at her were 'low shoes.'  She shuffled her Docs angrily, working herself into a mad.  She was so successful at it, she actually considered speaking out with the rest of them...

And then the Deputy Headmaster arrived and remedied the situation, raising himself several notches in her esteem.  She scanned the new dress code and noted with satisfaction that "low shoes" must have been part of the practical joke as Evie pointed out that wigs weren't worn so it was silly to ban them.  She eyed the new notice as Sellaphix got himself langlocked.  It didn't even faze her anymore when his mouth got him into trouble.  Once upon a time, she dreamed of riding to his rescue but let's face it--she'd be riding daily and sometimes hourly.  Since he was now officially off the market, Freya actually found herself relieved that she'd never worked up the proper incentives to talk to him.  Besides--it was all just because of a stupid dream and she didn't even remember what it had been about, now...

She shook her head and brought herself back to the present when Evie asked if her mother wasn't respectable if her clothing wasn't.  Freya nearly laughed but turned it into a strangled cough.  "'Course not, Evie.  He couldn't possibly mean any of us."  She coughed again.  "I mean, lookit.  I'm wearing my white shirt and my dark skirt and my Gryffindor tie, yeah?"  Of course, under her skirt she wore the sort of heavy knit tights often seen on 5-year-old ballerinas (in black, just as the dress code stated, but ripped artfully) and the sleeves had been cut from her shirt (but it was still white and just as long as ever because who wanted to see Freya's naval?) and her Gryffindor tie was currently repurposed as a belt to hold up her skirt...

Declan pinched the bridge of his nose. Maturity... Whatever happened to it? He watched as the Slytherin girl hexed the Hufflepuff boy, and attempted to tune out the immature, grating whine of the Hufflepuff girl. With a quick flick of his wand, Figaro was righted. He felt bad for the boy. Not only had he been hexed, but a girl had tried to kick him in the shins. He did not think an insult warranted so much. It would be better if they had just fired off with their own return insults instead.

"All of you- be quiet!" he snapped. It was pandemonium! All over posting the dress code- which they should have already been following. "Mr. Sellaphix! I will not stand for students disrespecting one another and insulting each other. You will apologize to Miss Dark, and you will serve a detention for instigating the fight with her... Miss Dark, you will also serve a detention, and you will lose ten house points for using your wand against a fellow student. There are better ways to deal with insults than to result to violent spells. Especially in the presence of a prefect and a faculty member!"

"Miss Chancelier! You will not go around kicking other students! Due to your obvious insolence and unwarranted violence, I will be taking twenty-five points from Hufflepuff!" Her outburst had been intolerable. She had no respect for him- it was obvious. He did not expect his students to like him, but he did expect for them to recognize that he was an authority figure. "I am implying no such thing," he said simply. "Although if your mother is still picking out your outfits at this age, I would most certainly imply that you do nothing but aid Hufflepuff's incompetent reputation. It is not your mother's responsibility to see to it that your clothing adheres to our dress code- that responsibility is yours. She may happen to choose an outfit for you which violates the guidelines, but you further chose to wear it."

"And your attitude is not appreciated, Miss Jansdotter. Let's see.. Tights ripped, torn shirt, improper use of a tie as a belt. Unacceptable. Ten points from Gryffindor for your smart aleck response, and a detention." Declan then glanced up at João, who was still on the ladder.

"Mr. Encantado!" he called out. "I trust that you can sort out this mess, yes? If you deem any further punishment necessary, you are free to give it. I shall leave it up to you to assign detentions, as I know it is your specialty. Any additional house points you deem appropriate to subtract are well warranted. If anyone has anything to say about my judgment, then I would appreciate you being so kind as to pass the word on to me later. However, at the moment, I am too busy to cater to anymore teenage angst driven temper tantrums... Please keep an eye out for any further dress code infractions. Ten points and a detention for the first time, twenty points and two detentions the second time- you know the drill."

With that, Declan turned on his heel and stalked away. What was wrong with the general populace of Hogwarts? They all needed a good, swift kick to the arse and someone to beat sense into them. It seemed that was probably going to be his job from now on.

Eveline was startled at her penalty, but not truly surprised. There was no denying that her respect for O’ Morain was melting like an ice cream cone in August.  First there was the meeting where he’d accused her and the other SAWS students of trying to bully him, when it was him who’d done all the bullying. In fact she suspected the reason she was being punished so severely now...over a kick that that didn't even connect (much...was that she'd given him a dirty look that day.

And all this over a stupid dress code. Bemused, Eveline remembered a time not so long ago, when she had not only respected but liked O’Morain. She wondered if in the meantime, someone had cast an Engorgio spell on his head…

"I am implying no such thing," he said, in reference to her mother’s respectability or the lack thereof. "Although if your mother is still picking out your outfits at this age, I would most certainly imply that you do nothing but aid Hufflepuff's incompetent reputation.”

The truth is, the moment the words were out of her mouth Evie had regretted them. Imagine, admitting in front of everyone that your mother still picked out your clothes, in Seventh Year! The rest of her performance afterwards had been largely an attempt to brazen it out, and she didn’t think she’d done so badly…

”It is not your mother's responsibility to see to it that your clothing adheres to our dress code- that responsibility is yours. She may happen to choose an outfit for you which violates the guidelines, but you further chose to wear it." Which she had, but Evie still didn’t see what was really so awful about the way she was dressed. True, the skirt was a bit short but she had tights underneath and some of the pants girls wore to class were a great deal more revealing.     

"Mr. Encantado! I trust that you can sort out this mess, yes? If you deem any further punishment necessary, you are free to give it. I shall leave it up to you to assign detentions, as I know it is your specialty. Any additional house points you deem appropriate to subtract are well warranted.

As the Deputy Headmaster walked away, Eveline turned to Figaro Sellaphix.

“Fig,” she said. “I’m sorry. For  kicking you…instead of the O’Murrain!”

Bellatrix waited patiently for the Deputy Headmaster to give her a punishment and she expected the worst from her favorite teacher. What she hadn't expected was for Eveline, the prissy Chancelier cousin, to mouth off to him and kick Figaro in the shins. Her eyebrows raised in surprise and suddenly, Eveline was seen in a slightly different light. New respect for her cousin surfaced like a dead fish in water. Perhaps admitting she was related to the girl wouldn't be too horrible after all?

"Miss Dark, you will also serve a detention, and you will lose ten house points for using your wand against a fellow student. There are better ways to deal with insults than to result to violent spells. Especially in the presence of a prefect and a faculty member!"

The blue eyes glanced sheepishly at Jordyn with an apologetic look. The two might have words later, but it wasn't entirely her fault. It had been the Hufflepuff who had berated the girls and called them "slaggy" and "loose". Bellatrix admitted to being "loose", but not in that sense: she was always told she had a "loose" screw. Slaggy, definitely not. Her attention turned to Professor O Morain as he berated her cousin. She watched Eveline carefully, waiting for another spew of insults. Did she really let her mother pick out her clothes? No wonder she always looked so prissy! The Chancelier family had no taste in fashion; it was all about expensive material and that neat, clean look, never about fun. When the Deputy Headmaster took his leave, she felt somewhat disappointed that her cousin hadn't fired off a round of slurs.

"Fig, I’m sorry. For trying to kick you…instead of the O’Murrain!"

The darker Dark twin's eyes gleamed with malice, a broad grin spreading over her face. She chuckled at her cousin's comment, but evil intentions could be seen in her blue eyes.

"Do you really let your mum pick out your clothes? And all this time, here I was thinking that you were the prissy snob. Well done, Evie, you're now a bar above 'snobby git'."

She smirked at her relative and held out her hand to the girl. One day, the Chancelier might actually go shopping with her (although it wasn't likely). This respect didn't mean that she liked her, of course. No, she was still a Chancelier, unfortunately. If only she wasn't such a prune. Still, one notch was better than none and 'snobby git' wasn't the lowest one could go. No, Audrey claimed that spot. It was the worst spot on Bella's list that a person could sink, lower even than Voldemort or his Death Eaters. Of course, it would be rude to say it out loud. Her aunt was very close to the notch of her own mother. As she stared at her cousin with a little more admiration than before, her smirk turned into a smile. There was hope for Eveline Chancelier yet!

An unintelligibly yelp of pain came out of Figaro's tongue-tied mouth! He jumped back and made a nasty face at Eveline.  What the hell!  Since when did proper Eveline kick people!? What did he say?  It was probably a good thing he was Langlocked or he'd probably say even more shinkick worthy things.

When the Deputy Headmaster called off the girls, and released his tongue, Figaro stretched his jaw and stuck out his tongue trying to get the strange feeling out of mouth.  But he nearly coughed when they all got a detention.  His mouth gaped and he bit back his protests until the Deputy Headmaster had left them alone.

"Oh that's just lovely - what the hell did I do? Thanks a lot, you two," he snapped at Bellatrix and Eveline.  Serving detention with the two of them was his idea of a good time, even if Freya'd be there as well. 

Most of Eveline's apology feel on disinterested ears, Figaro kind of assuming she was only apologizing because she thought she had to.  He then looked to the strange, foreign caretaker.

"Oi, you're going to let us off right?"

'Fig,' she said. 'I’m sorry. For  kicking you…instead of the O’Murrain!'  Uncharacteristically, Freya wanted nothing more than to give Evie a great big hug at that moment.  It must have taken guts to pick a fight with the Deputy Headmaster.  Instead she scowled and when it seemed Dark was going to continue to harangue her about letting her mother dress her, her scowl deepened.

"Hey, now!" she started but then Dark offered Evie her hand instead.  Freya was taken aback.  She wasn't certain what to do, so she shuffled her docs awkwardly and mumbled, "Well, that's okay, then," and started to turn away.  Detention wasn't so bad.  It wasn't like she had anything else to do in her spare time (besides study) and at least she'd be in halfway decent company...  She pointedly thought of the girls, and not Figaro Sellaphix.

And of course he confirmed her suspicions by demanding of the caretaker, 'Oi, you're going to let us off right?'  Which was just like Fig, when it was the caretaker who had started everything in the first place and who would probably be smirking in his oatmeal while he forced them all to clean the entry hall flagstones... with their own toothbrushes.  Before breakfast.

"Fig, get real.  And grow a pair.  If you're not with us, you're against us," she growled.  "In which case, you'd probably better find a better laundress.  And possibly ask your mother to start dressing you."