((OOC: I'll leave the introduction phase open for a while, then we can progress once there's a feel for who's interested))

11:25 pm

"D'Arvit!" croaked Arlaug from Philo's bag. The Ravenclaw's feelings exactly. How had he gotten talked into this? It seemed so insignificant at the time. An off hand comment about getting some junk, mechanical components for his camera idea. If he could start before school let out, all the better. Then the Collins twins had exchanged significant looks. It was a blur how it happened. Riddle like phrases and dates were exchanged with an exponentially growing number of people. On the seventh floor there's the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy and his ballet trolls. Meet around the corner in an unused classroom, past the suit of armor and the ringed, orb like bird cage on the ceiling.

He'd tried to play it cool, mentioned it to Peter Marcolf as their houses lined up before a Transfiguration lesson...but word had reached him from three conflicting sources until Philo set it straight. He wondered how many knew and how in Merlin's name none of the staff had caught on to the midnight venture. That's what worried him the most. Philo hadn't done anything risky, anything out of bounds. The one time he seemed to have broken the rules was having omnioculars present during the astronomy cram session, against Professor Trishna's wishes; they weren't supposed to have ocular devices on a night of naked eye star viewing.

Philo glanced at his watch. He had been super early to the meeting time. Ten minutes of nervous scurrying about from niche to niche, making sure the halls from Ravenclaw tower to here had been empty, void of any and all sound. So he had been the first. Now it was to be seen how this little expedition party had grown into an army.

Mary Beth waltzed into the classroom with bags under her eyes. She wasn't used to going so long without sleep and had always been the first to conk out at slumber parties. This was truly an accomplishment. Nearly midnight! she thought excitedly. I'm a machine!

Her omnipresent plaid flannel shoulder bag was slung over one shoulder and empty. Her expectations were obvious. "Hullo Philo," she waved and spoke at a totally normal volume. She was only barely using an indoor voice. "Excited, are you?"

And she was! It was her hope to find a broomstick, as she knew there was no way in Hell her parents were going to be able to afford such a frivolity. They could barely afford pillowcases.

Breaking the rules simply wasn't done. They were something that always had to be followed, especially when a professor or somebody like that was watching. It was a matter of pride, for one. Following rules was important.

...Except if you really wanted something, and no one was looking. He would never do something like steal or cheat, of course, but being out after hours was on his list of Bendable-So-Long-As-A-Professor-Doesn't-Catch-You rules.

When word had reached him through the Hogwarts grapevine, he hadn't really believed Philo of all people would be sneaking around at night. Someone like Erik Collins, sure, but not Philo. And then he'd heard it from Philo himself, and realized that even though there were about a thousand students coming, he wanted to go to. Having this many people involved worried him, but at the same time made him feel a little bit better. More students meant they were more likely to get caught, but it wouldn't look so bad if they did get caught. He'd look less responsible for it all than if only he and Philo were out.

He was overthinking it, though. After waiting in the Hufflepuff common room, pretending to read Basic Hexes for the Busy and Vexed, he'd slipped off to where they were supposed to meet. He left very early, even though that would mean even more time out in the halls where he might be caught, but he couldn't stand waiting anymore. So he should have been the first, or one of the first to arrive.

Trouble was, he got Barnabas the Barmy mixed up with Boris the Bewildered, so he ended up on the fifth floor instead of the seventh. He waited there for about fifteen minutes, jumping at every sound. He checked his watch; it was 11:25 and no one was there. Great... sitting out here by myself, waiting for a professor to catch me, and I could be in bed, or in the common room studying. I'm probably going to get a T on my Transfiguration exam at this rate...

T... Troll... Trolls. It had been Barnabas with the trolls, not Boris. Peter slapped himself in the forehead at his own stupidity. He didn't dare run, but he jogged along as fast as he could to the seventh floor, and the empty classroom near the correct painting this time. Philo and Mary Beth were already waiting there.

"Hey, sorry, got uh... held up." He was a little breathless but relieved to see both of them there, and no sign of a professor yet.

After the breathless and, often, rule-abiding Hufflepuff had arrived a flash of green sparks erupted from behind him with an "Ahah!" The figure who quickly formed from the virid glow, of course, was none other than Erik Collins, and he quickly followed up his hello with:

"Hallo jumpy! Haven't seen my better half, by any chance?" With his siblings being in Hufflepuff, he didn't need to work up much of an excuse to bother them, especially when their middle names were brown-noser.

"Can we get going now, everyone will probably get here eventually, and Dahlia, at least, knows everything else."

To say that Alvis was a night person was a little like saying the same thing about the moon. He usually tried to sleep on school nights, if only for his roommates' sake; but weekends were fair game. He'd been in the common room, preparing to sneak up to the Astronomy Tower for a little late-night stargazing, when he'd spotted Philo Falkin sneaking out of the dorm. He'd seemed nervous, and Alvis's curiosity had been piqued; leaving his telescope behind, he followed the first-year through the halls.

It was only when they reached the Barnebas tapestry that Alvis recalled hearing something about a late-night expedition of sorts to a castle room. Alvis lingered in the alcove behind a suit of armor and contemplated his choices - he'd not been invited along on this little trip, but it did sound quite fun - before deciding that, at the very least, it'd be a chance to make some new friends. Quietly, he slipped to the empty classroom and stuck his head through the door. He was pleased that he recognized not only Philo, but Peter Marcolf from the study session he'd been accidentally dragged into with Winifred Oliver at the start of the month. He was less pleased when he realized that they were all first-years.

Well. That settled it, then. It would be irresponsible of him, as an upperclassman, to let them go on their own.

Shyly, he slipped the rest of the way into the classroom and stood with his back pressed against the wall beside the door. Without meeting anyone's eye, he gave an awkward wave. "'Ello all. Hope you don't mind me...well. You know."

((OOC: We can shift it into the action now. I figured we better get this active again. Anyone is still able to show up 'late' if they want. Post whenever you wish, there's no order, but be mindful of those that don't post frequently))


Philo just about freaked out whenever somebody opened the door. First it was Mary Beth. "Hullo Philo. Excited, are you?" He twitched. Excited was not the word he would have used, rather the phrase near panic.

Then Pete, who apologized for being late. "No problem," Philo said.

Then Erik. Gee, he sure has me pegged as jumpy. "Can we get going now, everyone will probably get here eventually, and Dahlia, at least, knows everything else."

"Er..." Philo said. "We had a time, but maybe it's better to go with fewer people." Maybe have the school won't show up and we might actually make it out of this alive and not expelled.

Then Alvis, which pleased Philo a bit that there was an older student, and Alvis had that "rocket-tree" project, so he could help with the scavenging.

"Right, well, since we're all so anxious better get this over with." Philo peeked out the door several times then went into the hall when he was sure it was clear. How was this supposed to go again? You passed in front of the blank wall several times, requesting something, and a room would pop. Philo paced. I need to find some junk. I need to find some junk. I need to find some junk.

Just when he thought it hadn't worked, there was a sound like shifting granite and a heavy door appeared. Antsy, Philo open the door into...

Well, he had asked for junk.

The chamber was like a cavern, great piles of things stretching towards the ceiling. Piles of ash and charred objects. Occasionally in the grey gloom something bright and new was placed. Most everything was destroyed. The air was thick with the smell of smoke and floating cinders. And then a small portion of recent history erupted into Philo's brain, about the Battle of Hogwarts and something about fire...

A thought made itself heard. "How the Heck! (that was Arlaug) are we going to find anything useful in this mess?"