-Outfit-

Trotting out of the Great Hall with a yawn, Reggie shoved her hands into the pockets of her jeans as she cast a glance toward the windows. She could see the rain pouring down outside through them, and of course hear the tell-tale sound of thunder rumbling in the distance. Another rainy day. It was already getting late, dinner currently going on in the hall behind her. She hadn't been all that hungry, only eating a few pieces here and there before deciding to retreat. Of course, her little sister had immediately jumped up from the Hufflepuff table and met her by the doors leading to the entrance hall, babbling something about Quidditch. Somehow Reggie managed to get away from the hyper girl, feigning sleepiness. Though Heather Elise was not all that easy to fool, fixing her with a dubious look before bidding her good night and stalking back to her designated house's table. Sorry, she just wasn't in the mood to entertain her little sister's antics tonight.

The entrance hall was fairly empty, save for a few students tucked away in dark corners. Upon second glance she realized that a good deal of them were couples, no doubt trying to be lovey dovey while the teachers weren't around to put a damper on things. How nice for them. Digging around in her left pocket for awhile she pulled out a small bag full of candy she had left over from the last Hogsmeade weekend. Who needed a significant other when you had sweets? She'd always found them to be a good substitute for other people. And wow did that sound sad or what? Opening the bag she reached in and grabbed a chocolate frog, popping it into her mouth despite its best attempts to get away. Looking down she was glad to see she had a few more inside, along with some other really good stuff. God, if Heather Elise knew about this she would likely be trying to steal it from her. Reggie's love for candy was nowhere near the level of her little sister. She was absolutely positive the girl could be some sort of freaky candy bloodhound if she desired. Hell, it was a miracle she didn't sniff out this very bag earlier.

Finding a spot of her own where no pesky couples were getting fresh, Reggie settled down with her candy and relaxed, splaying her legs out. This was likely where she would stay until the teachers came around and starting rounding everyone up for bedtime. But until then, there was candy to be eaten.

Trudging back up to the castle, the stupid rolling broom put back into storage (via a rather annoyed javelin-like toss, but Hooch didn't have to know that) and his clothing probably the dirtiest he'd ever let himself get, Dion wasn't in exactly the best mood. Or in the best shape for a photo-op, either.

But he'd been worse. Aside from the mud and the throbbing of his everything - but particularly his right side, which he was wondering if he'd broken a rib on - practice had actually helped, even if he needed more. He'd have to do that after the career faire...and every night had free til the game.

The castle was almost empty - almost everyone gone to bed or at least was in their house commons. He exchanged a nod with the Auror on duty by the enterence to the castle, trudging in and kicking the mud off his boots.

A bath would be lovely, right around now. Stairs or no stairs. It also was a handy way to not have the rest of the 'puffs see him muddy and bruised up. He rubbed the right side of his face; he could feel the beginnings of a nasty set across his cheekbone and brow already.

He headed across the Entrance Hall, nodding curtly and businesslike to Regina as he passed her, stepping onto the stairwell. "Grayson." Acting like nothing was the matter or difference worked on everything else, so why not mud?

The place had cleared out quite quickly, save for a few more stragglers doing whatever. Reggie herself wasn't quite ready to go up to the Gryffindor commons yet, popping a few more chocolate frogs into her mouth. Getting hyped up on sweets like this right before bed would probably be a bad idea for others, but she on the other hand found they helped her sleep better. Odd, but she didn't really question it. Rubbing her slightly sticky hands against her pant leg she leaned her head back and stared up at the ceiling, watching the shadows from the torches dance across the stonework. To her left she heard the front doors open, followed by the sound of someone trudging in from outdoors. She didn't bother to avert her eyes to whomever it was, instead shutting her eyes for a few brief moments.

"Grayson."

That caught her attention, however. Eyes opening she brought her head back downward and was met with the sight of a very dirty looking Dion Fayette. Her first reaction was to snort, fighting off a laugh. "You look like death. What the hell happened?" She blurted out bluntly, looking him up and down. "You were out in that?" She jerked her thumb over to the window where one could see it was clearly still pouring. Funny, she'd never took him for the foolhardy type. Another once over of him found her recognizing the mud-splattered Quidditch gear he had on. Ah, so that was it.

"Practice didn't go too well I take it?" She got up as she said this, pushing off the wall and closing the distance between the two of them. "Chocolate?" Feeling generous, Reggie held out the bag to him, which was shaking slightly from the jumping frogs seeking escape from their cruel -- yet delicious for Reggie -- fate. "You look like you could use a little. What made you go out and decide to practice in such crappy weather anyhow?"

He sighed, perhaps a tad dramatically, and looked at the shaking bag suspiciously. But she'd said it was chocolate, so he look one gratefully (after verifying they were chocolate frogs and not some bizarre creature). He was tired - the sugar rush would ensure he didn't fall asleep in the bath, hopefully.

The chocolate frog wiggled in his hand; he bit its head off, which solved that issue. And made the still immature 12 year old bit of him happy.

"Pratt can't make the match," he said, then remembered that Regina wasn't in Hufflepuff or in Quidditch. "Hufflepuff's Keeper. So I vol - I was volunteered." He shrugged.

"It went fine, actually," he said, though that was at least partially a lie. "The school brooms are just defective, is all." He nodded his head to indicate if she wanted to talk, she'd have to walk with him, and he continued up the stairs, popping the frog's left left into his mouth. "As for practicing in this weather? It's one of the only nights I had free." He grunted. "What about you? Making sure your candy wouldn't get stolen?"

She was glad to walk off with him. It wasn't like she was going to be doing anything else down here anyway. Taking the stairs one at a time she made a face. "I hate when I'm volunteered for crap. Happens all the time when I'm at home." The person responsible, of course, being her mother. Last summer it was being offered up as a babysitter for the neighbor's kids. Those little hellions had nearly driven her to the point of whipping out her wand and threatening to curse them with warts. Boy, the Ministry would have just loved having to come over and undo that mess. Thank goodness she regularly exercised self-control, otherwise she would have been kicked out of Hogwarts and the wizarding world as a whole a long time ago.

"So uh... does Hufflepuff stand a good chance of winning this year?" She had no idea where they stood currently. She barely kept up with Gryffindor Quidditch, so really she couldn't be expected to be informed on any of the other houses. Heather Elise tried to fill her in sometimes but honestly most of that talk went in one ear and right out the other. Oh well.

She smirked at him slightly at the mention of her candy. "They'd have to pry it from my cold dead hands before I'd just let them make off with it. This is valuable stuff." She dangled the back in front of him playfully, then proceeded to place it back into her pocket for later. She still had long nights of studying to get through, after all.

He hadn't been volunteered, exactly. More like guilted into it, kind of, sort of. But he couldn't have said no to Fauna's hopeful, sad pout. He was horrible with that sort of thing, and she had been speaking the truth: Hufflepuff did need the help. His inexperienced, broom-falling-off help.

He shrugged, instead of saying this. "I'm used to it. I have a lazy mother and my family owns a shop. Two and two together, an' all." As for Hufflepuff having a chance? He snorted, derisively, and smiled sadly.

"It'll be an interesting game, in a train wreck kind of way," he said simply. Personally, he had some ideas on how to fix that, but he had no time. If he'd known earlier this would come up, the seeds would have been easier to sow...

The Grand Staircase was still switching itself, as usual, all the way to the top floor. They had to stop and wait for the stairs to reconnect to their level before continuing upwards. As they stood, he pulled his cap off and turned it inside out, using it to wipe his face off with a sniff. He was still wet, which he'd take care of in the bathroom. He was mostly noticing this as the dafts of air from the stairs chilled him and he started to shiver subtly.

"We're going against Slytherin," he said after the pause. "Knight has them practicing as much as possible. Grillin' their asses on stuff, apparently. Hufflepuff? I'm not sure what's up with Mysti, but she's not around, you know, Captain wise. Only have 2 chasers, I think, pretty sure there's a Seeker but I'm not sure who it is." He laughed. "It's gonna be like watching a train wreck, yeah. That runs over some badgers on the way. Should be fun to watch." He was being cynical, yes. But it was best to be publicly cynical, for now.

"Well, I'm glad you're finding the humor in getting your arses kicked." Regina snarked, still smirking. He was really making it sound like Hufflepuff would be absolutely crushed. Her sister would not be happy with such a thing happening. Already she could see the girl coming to her and unloading everything she felt went wrong during the match. How a little girl could become so obsessed with Quidditch despite only being part of the magical world for 2+ years was unknown to her. She herself had been taken with it in her first year, but after attending over a dozen matches the "magic" was pretty much lost on her.

"Shame. I guess you can say I'm rooting for Hufflepuff in this matchup. The few teams I side with never really do much though. Sorry." She shrugged, as if apologizing for sinking the entire Hufflepuff team just by being in their corner for this match up. "I'll have candy after the match if you want to drown your sorrows with it if that helps." Another shrug. Hey, she helped out here and there when she could. Candy may not be able to fix everything but dammit it came real close at times.

"...But what if you guys do end up winning...?" She looked up at him, tilting her head slightly. "Stop me if I'm talking madness, please. I think your chances are just as good as anyone else. Uhh... I can help?" The words left her mouth awkwardly, and she shifted a bit. "I'm not total rubbish on a broom. If you need some practice I can let you toss a few quaffles at me or something. Wouldn't that be uh... beneficial?" Reggie? Offering to help someone? How out of character! Maybe that candy has finally rotted her brain completely...

"Hah. Well, thanks for bein' on our side. Even if we lose." He smirked. "Makes that 10% chance of winning all the funnier, if it comes true. I don't think Knight'd live it down, with his current reputation." Not that he'd help that along. Of course not.

As for drowning their sorrows, well, a pool was already going around for butter beer to help with that. But other houses around to sulk with them'd help. He nodded to her on that point. It wasn't like half the castle knew the way into the Hufflepuff's hobbit-like common room and dorms by now anyway.

He looked at her in thinly veiled surprise as she offered to help, and then he smiled, his smile a thin and tired line. "That'd be nice," he said. "Though it'd be the other way around. With the Quaffle throwing." He gestured to himself. "Keeper. Got to keep them out of the hoops, not put them in." He rubbed the side of his face again. "Sorry, I hit my head at one point. I'm not exactly articulate."

The stairway shifted before they reached the next landing and he grabbed the railing to keep his balance, then sighed and leaned on it as he waited for the stairway to finish its full set of turns so it'd reach the right landing.

"Bloody things. You'd think they'd have added a way to stop it, but apparently not." He looked back to Regina, even as he felt the top of his head and brought his fingers down with some blood on them, frowning in concern at that. "You don't usually follow me," he said. "Something on your mind?"

"I can throw quaffles too." Reggie shrugged. Not that she did it often, mind you, but she figured it couldn't be all that difficult. Her dad always told her she had a mighty strong throwing arm. In fact, she reckoned she could be a pretty damn good athlete if she tried. Team sports were not her cup of tea, though. Too much responsibility. If you mess up, your whole team could lose, and then you'd have to deal with their silly temper tantrums directed at you. Just say no to team activities, kids. It'll save you a lot of grief in the long run.

When Dion proceeded to ask her why she was following him, she stopped briefly, giving him a funny look. "Can't a girl just walk alongside someone they're having a conversation with?" But of course, she did have an ulterior motive for tailing him all this way. "But since you asked... I hear you and Dax are going for Aurorship after graduation." That was no secret. Especially since Dax didn't exactly have the quietest mouth in the school. Yep.

"I uh... think I may do the same. Once I graduate, that is." She fidgeted a bit, looking away at a painting on the nearby wall of a couple of stately looking witches chattering away about something that was no doubt inane. "I mean, I don't think I could do anything else really. I know being an Auror isn't exactly a cakewalk but I thought I should give it a shot, you know?" She looked back at him, crossing her arms. "Mind if I ask how you're preparing?"

"Yeah," he confirmed her hunch on the Auror thing. Not that they'd been quiet about it. They'd both decided that in 2nd year, and by god had they stuck to it. It was such an ingrained fact by now that changing their minds was almost impossible.

"It's not easy," he said, figuring being blunt was the best way to go with this. "I'm preparing by taking everything I can and working my ass off. Dax is just taking the required subjects." He ruffled his hair as he thought, frowning as they came away with a bit more blood. He'd cut his scalp somehow. Bah. "If you mean emotionally..." He trailed off, and finally shrugged, wobbling a bit as the stair started moving again. "It's a lot, the exams and then the job and stuff. They don't let just anyone in straight out of school - they don't look at just your NEWTs. You get tested when you get there and if you fail those, it doesn't matter if you aced everything." That simple fact was difficult for him to stomach. What if Dax didn't make it? What if he didn't make it?

No, for now he had to focus on school and refining his skills.

"What makes you think you can't be anything else?" He asked, to hide the pause.

Of course she knew about all the required testing, mostly from doing a bit of research herself. Things were quite rigorous when it came to seeing if you had what it took to chase and apprehend dark wizards and witches. She felt like she could do well on her NEWTs -- with appropriate preparation. But the other tests Dion mentioned were what she wasn't all that sure of. It would suck pretty hard if she busted her ass from now on and then ended up being denied like that. She did not take rejection well whenever she was actually striving to achieve something, much like everyone else.

"Because nothing else really interests me." Reggie replied to his query, gripping the railing of the shifting stairs tightly. "I'm good with my wand when it comes to defense. Charms too. Why not give being an Auror a go? I should shoot for the stars for once in my life." As much as it seemed to most like she didn't really want to do anything with herself professionally, that could not be any further from the truth now. Besides, who actually strives to be a bum?

"You and Dax are going to make pretty good Aurors." She added, smiling softly at the older boy. She could tell they had what it took to become one of the few and proud. She just hoped she would someday be joining them. "And I'm sure Dax will be happy to use that to reel in the ladies."

As he listened, the stairs reconnected to the landing he needed, so he headed on up as he considered his reply.

"I'd say go for it, then. If you're willing to put in the time and can pass the tests, it's one of the best starting jobs you can get, pay and respect wise. And technically, it has enough variation that if you turn out to prefer a more administrative job, you'll have some experience with those from the Aurors." He'd mapped out his options long beforehand. Of course, his far distant goal was a much more political station - the Head of the office, if he got lucky. (His mother went on and on about Minister, but that he wasn't looking at)

"Hah. That's part of Dax's plan, yes," Dion said, and pointedly ignored the fact that part of him wanted to make it his, too. He smiled at Regina again. "But, thanks. I hope that turns out out be the case," he said. A lot of people seemed to have the idea the two would make amazing Aurors, and all Dion could do was hope they were right.

"You need more than Charms and DADA. How are you at Transfiguration, Potions, and Herbology?" He asked, as they reached the 4th floor landing and had to stop to wait for the stairs again. "And if you're not already a member of the dueling club, you should consider joining."

She followed.

"Potions and Herbology are good. I can improve in them a bit, still. Transfiguration is going to be the biggest obstacle. I struggle with it a lot." Reggie frowned, sighing heavily. She had been making a sort of conscious effort to do better at it. A lot of time had been spent so far just on that subject alone for her OWLs. Though try as she might there were still key concepts that she just wasn't able to grasp on her own. At first she was just frustrated. But now that the moment of truth was growing ever closer, she was also beginning to grow worried. "Damn them for making Transfig a requirement..."

Dueling Club? She never put much thought into joining it. But when Dion suggested it, it didn't sound like a bad idea. Made sense, even. "Ah. I'll try to get in on that, too. Probably should have earlier... I'm not a big joiner of things. It's my curse." She waved her hand dismissively, smirking slightly. If she really wanted to be an Auror, though, she would definitely have to step out of the "comfort zone" she became so used to. And that? Would be interesting.

"Transfiguration is fairly easy," Dion said, as someone with a natural knack, as his Animagus ability attested. For Regina's sake, he smoothly added, "Once you get a good hold on the basics. After that it's just a matter of applying them to everything. What kind of issue are you having? Incorrect or impartial transformations?" Those two issues, usually, had different spawning issues.

The corridor of the 5th  floor was finally ahead and he left the Grand Stair case very happily, heading off down the tall hallway towards the statue of Boris the Bewildered.

"The Dueling club is pretty fun, if you don't mind getting thrown around a lot - and you want to be an Auror, well." You need to not care much about getting thrown into the occasional wall was the implied end of his sentence, but he'd picked up speed to to reach not the statue of a sad-looking wizard with his gloves on the wrong hands, but a plain-looking door just down the hall from him.

He whispered the password, and the door unlocked. He stepped through it into the Prefects' bathroom, leaving the door open in a silent indicator that Regina should or could follow.

"Yeah for you." Regina scoffed lightly, wishing she could ever say something like that about the subject. "Incorrect transformations is my issue. Though sometimes I don't change things all the way, either. It's a mixed bag. Seems to depend on how crappy a day I'm having." One of the last times she tried to transfigure something it ended up turning into a carnivorous little beast with legs that allowed it to scurry around at breakneck speeds. Yeah, catching that before it caused too much damage was awesome. She still had the holes in a pair of her shoes to prove it.

"Hey, as long as I gain experience they can throw me around all they want." She joked, following him over to the entrance to the bathroom. She'd always been curious as to how grand the prefect's had it, so getting a backstage past into their own private bathing area was pretty sweet. She hesitated only a moment after Dion stepped in, looking around to make sure no one was looking. The gossip mongers of Hogwarts would have a field day with someone like her following someone like Dion into here. Satisfied that the coast was clear, she stepped after him.

Immediately she took in the luxurious surroundings, feeling a bit jealous that the general populace of the school didn't get such frills. "Wow. I'd never want to leave this place if I were a prefect." She murmured, turning in a slow circle to better view everything. The moving stained-glass depiction of a mermaid caught her attention the most, the beautiful woman winking at her then gesturing to Dion as if implying something. Reggie blinked, then turned away abruptly. Ooookay.

"Kind of makes up for having to police the unruly bunch I imagine."