Hogwarts Horror Stories. (Malin & Darkangel76)

Morning had come all too early. Felicity had found herself rather eager to start the day, her thoughts brimming with anticipation at meeting up with Simon at some point—at least she knew for a fact that they'd share Ancient Runes together. She smiled inwardly and began to hum a little tune as she pushed the blankets away from her waifish body and stretched. She glanced over toward one of the windows and caught a glimpse of sky, the dark ominous clouds from the day prior seemingly gone. The chill still lingered as she swiveled her legs over the bed's edge and sat there for a moment, drinking in the surroundings of the Ravenclaw girl's dormitory. She saw Andie scowling as she worked on her hair, nearly ready to go down into the common room and there was the prefect—Winifred Weatherwax—who looked like she'd been up for hours. The petite prefect pushed at her glasses as she looked over everyone and smiled before finally turning on her heels and heading down the stairs.

Andie finally finished her hair and headed over toward Felicity, her smile dripping with venom. "Finally up?" she drawled as she reached out and touched one of Felicity's stray dark strands. She clicked her tongue and shook her head. "You're going to look a mess for your first class, you know," she said as she walked away. "That is if you even make it on time."

Felicity just let out a sigh as Andie walked away. She knew the red-head was just trying to break her confidence. She had more than enough time to make it to class. Besides, nothing was going to ruin her day. Not when she had so much to look forward to.

As Andie made her way into the common room, she immediately spied Kyle sitting on one of the many plush seats. She smiled sweetly as she approached him, a hand moving to smooth out her skirt. "Hello, Kyle," she spoke, her voice holding a soft lilt. "Heading to breakfast?" She came up behind him, leaning over his shoulder as she asked her question. Her hair gently brushed his face, her body just barely brushing against him. "I wouldn't linger around here too much longer, the filth will be lurking about before you know it." A soft giggle erupted from her and she stood upright and moved to stand in front of him, her one hand brushing along his shoulder as she did so. "Come on, let's go."

Andie began to head toward the door, her hips swaying as she moved. She glanced over her shoulder, her chocolatey eyes finding Kyle to see if he was following or not.

Meanwhile, upstairs, Felicity had showered and was getting herself dressed. She smiled as she looked at herself in one of the mirrors. She knew she wasn't a beauty like Andie or had the charisma of someone like Winnie, but that hardly mattered. In that moment, her thoughts drifted to how Simon had stood up to Kyle on the train. She giggled softly, cheeks burning and finished getting dressed. Once done, she headed downstairs, ready to head to the Great Hall for some breakfast and then class.

Over on the other side of the castle in Gryffindor Tower, Melinda was tromping down the stairs into the common room. She giggled the moment her blue eyes fell upon the sleeping form of one her housemates. Raking a hand through her blonde hair as she shook her head and walked over to him.

"Sleepy head," Melinda whispered, a hand reaching out to shake his shoulder. When he didn't respond, she scowled and leaned over him, her lips moving to be closer to his ear. "Hey, wake up, Markus," she said a bit more forcefully. "Do you know what time it is?" Her giggles were getting louder through her whispers and she wondered if her housemate would ever make it to class that first day.
 
Simon sat at his table taking hot food and piling it up on his plate, sausage, egg, scones. The first night was a feast unlike most people knew but there was always good food in the hall. Best off all were the platters that seemed to refill themselves when empty. Stretching he had only one care in the world and while he wasn't all that hungry after last night he knew he needed to keep up his strength. Today there was a long day ahead of them. He borrowed a scheduled from one of the other Slytherin students, checking over what classes he had and when. Defense Against the Dark Arts was up first, it's attending houses would be Slytherin and Gryffendor. Then Potions with ravenclaw. Simon had a disheartening sigh that it would take so long for him to see Felicity again.

It was surprisingly hard for the young man to get over his thoughts for the girl. She was cute and attractive, and ever since the day before he had been struggling to remove her image from his brain. Simon sat at the table for a moment trying to eat his breakfast while also scanning the room for people he knew. Everything seemed so calm at the school today. Like nothing would go wrong, but that also seemed like it was hopeful thinking. There was an omninous feeling in the air that he couldn't describe, a pending return to the horror that was classes.

Kyle got up when he saw Andie approach him, and nodded more then willing to walk with her. It was terrible that there were mudbloods who actually qualified to be in their house, but there was more to it then that. Felicity was weird even for her birth. She was quiet and small and no one liked her that was until yesterday. The awkward little girl suddenly had a body guard and one that had been able to trick him. Shaking his head on the other hand he looked to Andie. Here was a proper member of Ravenclaw, sharp to the wit, and fierce with the presence to match it.

"We have got to do something about that girl. Chances are good she will end up bringing down our house points like she did last year. Constantly making Ravenclaw look bad." Kyle said rather frustrated. He gave a glance around to make sure that the two of them were alone before allowing him to plot a little."And now she has her set on mycroft, could she be anymore disgraceful? We have got to do something about that, before the two can get all lovey."

Walking down to the great hall Kyle discarded the line of conversation as soon as they entered public. His arm slowly wrapping around hers as he pulled her closer. "So Andie I didn't see you all summer how have you been? Hows the family?" Kyle said with a happy smile. While at the same time he silently pointed out Simon who was busy eating breakfast.

Markus felt the breath on his skin before he actually heard another persons voice, his arm twitched and when she shook him his arm rose up to try and smack what ever was bothering him away only to weakly slap himself in the face. "I'm Up." He said coughing slightly feeling the odd pain of having hit himself and being greated by the most attractive member of the gryffendor family. Yawning Markus stretched slightly feeling his muscles pop.

"Melinda good morning... since when were girls allowed in the male dorm." He asked still half asleep not noticing that he wasn't in a bed but rather had wound up in the common room.
 
Andie moved closer to Kyle as they walked toward the Great Hall, a smile playing on her pouty lips. "Don't worry, Felicity won't be nearly as much trouble this year as she was last," she stated plainly. "Trust me on that one." Her words were confident and strong. "As for Mycroft?" she continued. "Leave that to me. Or..." her voice trailed as she moved just a bit closer to her housemate. "Are you afraid you might not be able to handle it?" She gave him a look, her brow arched as her smile broadened just a bit more. "It'll mean trusting me, Kyle. You think you can do that, hrm?" At that, she gave Kyle's arm a squeeze, her body pressing up against him as they finally entered the Great Hall, the crowd of students and the rumble of their chattering voices making its way to the entrance way in which they stood.

A tiny sigh rolled over Andie's lips just then as she scanned the Great Hall, her chocolate-brown eyes immediately finding Simon as he went to work on eating breakfast. She shook her head in dismay at the thought of such a wizard 'making nice' with the likes of Felicity Steele.

"My family is well," Andie answered in response to Kyle's question. "My mum spent most of the summer visiting my grandparents in the countryside," she went on. "But, you know me. I'm no country girl." She laughed a little. "So, I stayed with daddy. He's faring well with the Ministry as always. I hope yours are well." As she and Kyle continued their little jaunt, her eyes remained fixed on Simon, watching his every move.

Finally, when Andie and Kyle reached their table, she dropped his arm and gently pushed away. Giving her housemate a nod and wink, she flicked her fiery hair over her shoulder, turned on her heel and made to walk away. But before she did, she turned back around and walked back over toward him. Firmly, she placed her hands on his shoulders and stood on her tip-toes and gave him a kiss on the lips, her teeth softly biting down on his lower lip. As she pulled away, she gave him another wink.

"I'll be back," Andie said letting a finger absently draw a line down along Kyle's chest. "I need to go to Slytherin's table for a while." She paused and then backed away. "I need to have a little chat with someone." At that, she turned around and headed over toward Simon, her sights set on him like a predator does its prey.

Meanwhile up in Gryffindor Tower, Melinda couldn't help but laugh hysterically at Markus. "Get up, you git! You're going to be late. Again!" she scolded. "Honestly, on the first day? What did you do this time to end up sleeping down here?" she asked reaching out her hand to help him up, if he was so inclined. "If we hurry, we can get a quick something to eat before classes. Defense Against the Dark Arts is first," she said with a grin.

Back in the Astronomy Tower, Felicity had made her way downstairs and had headed out to the Great Hall. Her tummy was rumbling and she found herself hoping for the chance to see Simon, if even for a brief moment, before classes started. She knew it wouldn't be much, but she wasn't sure yet as to when they'd have classes together besides Ancient Runes. As she made her way into the Great Hall, her tummy fluttered and her cheeks burned. Almost immediately, her eyes began to search for the Slytherin who'd captured her interest from the very moment they'd started talking to each other. She blushed at the thought and the idea of how they'd plan to study together and help each other.

Finally, Felicity caught sight of Simon sitting at the Slytherin table taking generous portions of food for breakfast. She giggled as she watched him, her mood bright as she decided to head straight for his table. As she approached, she suddenly stopped in her tracks when Andie came up behind him and leaned over his shoulder, her hands moving to cover his eyes.

"Guess who?" Andie said playfully against Simon's ear.
 
Kyle felt the kiss and wanted to return it, but at the same time he really wanted to know more about her plan. While he was sure he could trust Andie to raise hell he didn't also wanted to make sure the girl was careful in her approach. One wrong move with a person like Mycroft and it was vomit flavored beans. He scowled slightly as he was told to just sit back and trust her. "Just be careful with that one. He is clever, and not someone you can outwardly trust." He said knowing full well that also summed up Andie as well.

Kyle wasn't like them. He wore his animosity on his face he was easy to read, and often failed to use restraint when addressing others. knowing that both Andie and Mycroft were different them however gave him an advantage. He thought at least for the moment he could tell when he was being played for a fool, and this time wasn't one of those times.

As Simon's eyes were covered he blinked for a moment not knowing who it was. He felt kind of dumb but he was never really observant to people outside of slytherin, and the voice definately wasn't Felicity's. Heck this wasn't even something she would remotely do, and so he knew that this was a girl he had no context for. He let out a small throatish growl for a moment. When it came to people touching him very few wizards and witches could presume to do so. Pulling away quickly so he could get his vision back his eyes took a quick glance at her face.

She was a Ravenclaw, but not Felicity and this time Simon recognized her from a few classes, but this time unlike Felicity her name didn't escape him. This time he knew her mostly for her stronger field of prescience and also because he knew her family. With a mother who worked at the ministry Mycroft knew several important family names, and hers was no different. Though this was the first time the two had spoken in person he knew her reputation well enough too keep a name and face. Looking around he felt like this time he was the one being lured into some kind of trap, and he didn't like that feeling at all. When his eyes caught sight of Felicity he was starting to understand what was happening, and exactly how he was being trapped.

Simon was however for lack of a better solution stuck in his seat. He couldn't get up because of the bench at his knee's and Andie at his back, meaning there was no real escaping, however that didn't mean he couldn't twist this situation around. Instead of fleeing the situation he twisted in his chair acting as though he had known all along who it actually was his green eyes lit up with false excitement. "Cousin Sheepy~! I haven't seen you all summer!" He screamed at the top of his lungs making sure that Felicity was able to hear his tone and words. He acted quickly taking his 'cousin' into a quick embrace pulling her towards her so he could speak into her ear, "Next time you try to put something over my eyes, you will become someone's adorable pet ferret." He pushed her back and got up from his seat.

"Listen Sheepy~! I know it's been forever! but I really can't talk right now! I'm actually meeting with my friend, and there she is!" Simon picked up his plate with a polight bow, and stepped free of her grasp hoping to leave her stunned in silence before practically running to Felicity and grabbing her wrist. "Walk with me act natural." He said quietly to her under his breath. With any luck he would be out of the Hall and avoid any further drama damage.

Off in the Gryffindor tower Markus yawned and stretched jumping to his feet. "Right then onto the quest for food!" He said taking a few steps and then looking around as though he had forgotten something. Then he shook his head and figured it was nothing. "If you must know, I happen to find the chairs here more comfortable than the beds. It's not my fault no one will help me carry one up the stairs so I can sleep in the dorm." He said truthfully. There was honestly something wrong with the beds here, they all felt too soft like they were made of clouds or something and it was unsettling the firm edges of the chair's helped him sleep.

"That said, I didn't exactly come back with the group. I was out late last night searching for secret passages. Castle is supposed to be full of them, it's a hobby of mine so far I have only found a few though." He said lamenting the fact that he could never get his hands on any kind of map that would have helped him find a way around Hogwarts. Still he knew some of the secret ways and doors that existed though he was on an eternal search for more.
 
Andie's eyes widened as Simon turned around and hugged her. "Sheepy?" she whispered softly and mostly to herself as he clearly twisted her family name of Sheppley into something vulgar and degrading. And why on Earth was he referring to her as his cousin? They weren't even close to being related! Just how and why and... Her cheeks burned as the Slytherin pulled her close and whispered a distinct threat against her ear.

Immediately, Andie felt her breath hitch, her heart pound. Oh, this Simon Mycroft was going to play hardball. And his mind was utterly swayed and lost to the filth that were mudbloods. She turned to see Felicity standing a few feet away, looking on with a horror-stricken face. A small sense of satisfaction washed over her at the sight of her housemate showing any sign of grief, if even only for a moment. As Simon pushed her away and moved toward Felicity, she had no idea what he saw in the girl. She had nothing on someone like her—no name, no looks, no prestige. She was a nothing. A no good mudblood!

Dumbfounded, Andie seethed and fumed, her cheeks burning as brightly as her hair. Slowly, she walked back over to Kyle who was waiting for her back at the Ravenclaw table. She shook her head in disgust and placed her hands on her shapely hips in a distinct pout.

"Can you believe it, Kyle? Can you believe the nerve of him?" Andie prattled on. "He insulted me. Me!" She stuck out her lower lip in a pout. "You'd never insult me now... would you?" she stated more than asked, her pout slowly transforming into a coy smile. "He called me Sheepy and... a cousin," she said with a frown as she took a step closer, her hand reaching up to touch Kyle's chest. Lazily, she began to draw circles along the material. "I can't imagine you ever doing that to me. Not you." She looked up at him, her dark eyes glistening slightly while her cheeks continued to burn as red as her hair.

Back in Gryffindor Tower, Melinda's blue eyes narrowed slightly when Markus mentioned he'd been searching for secret passages. "Passages?" she asked, her mouth twisting into a grin. "Hrmm, next time you go on one of these adventures, you are taking me along!" Her face looked determined. "I don't care when you go, I'm going to," she said with an enthusiastic nod. It was more than evident that no matter what, she'd find a way to trek along, even if it meant skipping a class or missing out on some sleep. "Also," she continued on with a giggle, heading toward the door. "If you want the chairs brought up to the dorm, let me handle that." She arched a brow and smirked.

One thing Melinda was known for was her charisma, her natural ability to get others to somehow do what she wanted, when she wanted it—especially the younger students and those lacking in confidence.

"By tonight, you'll have those chairs up in your room. I guarantee it," Melinda said with a wink."

Back in the Great Hall, Felicity gave Simon a nod as he led her away from the scene with Andie. She could feel her emotions roiling inside, the confusion. It felt like so many eyes were somehow staring at her, through her, seeing into the depths of her mind and heart. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, but somehow with Simon so close, it made everything seem better. She gave him a nod and moved close to him, taking in the heat of his body as he led her away.

"What was that about?" Felicity asked when they'd moved far enough away to be out of earshot of anyone who could eavesdrop. "Just... why?" Though, deep down she knew why and it hurt. Every year it was the same with people like Andromeda. It was why she ended up costing her house points at various instances throughout the year. Fortunately, Simon wasn't seeming to fall prey to whatever it was that the likes of Andromeda Sheppley had had in mind—or Kyle Stein, for that matter. It made her feel grateful knowing that, though she still felt the heavy weight in knowing that now Simon would be involved in whatever plans such sorts had schemed.

It wasn't fair. Then, life never was.

"But, thank you for getting us out of there," Felicity then added with a shy smile, her cheeks turning pink as she looked over at Simon.
 
"That." Simon said, "Was defusing a situation before it got bad." he said lightly. He had hoped that Felicity would have understood that by calling her a cousin it was him trying to get away from her. However it seems that plan may have backfired ever so slightly and for a moment her face seemed disheartened and confused. When they were far enough away he let out a long sigh. "The way andromeda talked to you last night told me that you two aren't exactly friends, and then she had the gall to walk up behind me and try to put some kind of move on me while I had my guard down. She was attempting to make me seem disloyal so that I could hurt you, and I told her that if she ever did it again she would end up in a pet shop." He said explaining his actions, but also revealing that he had watched her a lot during the feast last night.

"We can split the food by the way, I know you haven't eaten anything and I just forced an exit so the least I can do for you is give you some of my breakfast." He said knowing full well he had grabbed more then enough for two people on his plate, Walking out into the yard he sat down on a bench in one of the many gardens. The day was still young and the storm had lasted long into the night so everything was still damp, but it was still much warmer than it had been on the last night. "As for why I called her cousin, partly it was so I could insult her family name, and also it was so I could hit her off guard. If you want to strike at the core nerve of any pure blood wizard you find their vanity, and you hit that as hard it as hard as you can. Nine out of Ten times the family name is the nerve to strike."

Simon leaned back into his chair as he handed her the plate of food. He felt far better with Felicity next to him. Andromeda had tried to make him look disloyal, and that was one thing he would not stand for. Simon was many things but above everything else he had a streak of loyalty to him that was almost possessive in nature. Also what Andromeda couldn't see, was that while Felicity may have been an odd choice by comparison, she was also Kinder, and much cuter than Andie was. Felicity may have not had a name or a tittle, but she was adorable and loyal, not to mention the first witch who was openly friendly. Even with people like Andie he always had the feeling that there were other motives in play, Felicity was honest. In a world of politics, bloodlines, and everyone seeking their own power she was an honest woman which made her valuable beyond measure. Just sitting next to her made Simon feel warm and his head feel a little fuzzy, but always in a good way. "Once again I am forced to apologize for my fellow pure bloods and their behavior towards you."

The worst fear he had right now was that Felicity would stop believing his word. Twice now she had seen him work two rather miraculous lies. Word smithing was an art form he was good at, but it lost it's effect when people stopped believing him. In the case of Felicity it wasn't so much that she wouldn't believe him, but that she wouldn't trust him. Such a thought hurt Mycroft to the core of his being. She was an honest girl, and he on the other hand was a silver tongued snake, he wanted their relationship to have more of a bond than that, and he wanted to act as more than just a watcher\protector, but such things were difficult for Simon to voice because they were honest thoughts. He couldn't put them out right now especially if she believed that everything he said was snake poison. "I'm sorry if my actions hurt you."

Kyle watched in rather stunned silence as Andie let Mycroft slip away. Seeing how the man had played her he stood back and watched taking notes. His direct path hadn't done anything, and now Andie's own attempt at sabotage had done nothing as well. Mycroft was proving to be a rather slippery thorn in their sides, and yet perhaps that could be used to their advantage in some way. When Andie returned to him, pouting and angry about the loss of her pray and some of her dignity he moved closer.

"Of course not." Kyle's hand moved to her cheek comforting her and stroking her long hair for a moment before brushing her face almost lovingly for a moment. He smiled at her reassuringly, Kyle was for better or worse an honest man, his moral compass on the other hand was twisted, and that made Andie all the more aluring to him. "I would never pretend to be so Vulgar with you Andromeda." Feeling her hand upon his chest however he did desire her, and his cheeks flushed harder because of it. While he would never pretend to be so close to her as he would have liked to be, his arm still wrapped around her waist ever so loosly offering her the chance to come closer into his embrace if she desired it. he wanted to comfort her and so he moved in closer.

"You know you are the most desirable woman I have ever encountered, beauty and wit beyond everything, and if Simon would rather have dirt, let him, I would be more then happy to take the rose among flowers." Kyle said while it came out a little more corny then it had been in his head he still leaned in giving her lips a swift kiss and pulling her closer.

Markus smiled, a few passageways for a chair he could sleep on. It seemed like a strong deal in his favor, and he wouldn't have to surrender any of the really good ones, she probably just wanted the short cuts. "it means going out at night past cerfew, but if your up for it, than by all means I would love to have a tag along." He said eager to get hunting later. "I've actually spent most of last night trying to find the room of requirement, the thing constantly changes each year, but so far i'm four for five on finding the damn thing."

Markus paused for a second and turned towards Melinda. "why do you need want too know the old passages anyway? I know why I search, morbid curiosity, and well legends. But what about you? why are you so eager to break the rules?"
 
Almost instantly Felicity's cheeks went pink as Simon began to explain himself and the situation as it had happened in the Great Hall. Already, she'd understood his actions and that they had been done with the best of intentions in mind. After what had happened on the train the previous day with Kyle, she had begun to see the pattern—she was Ravenclaw after all. And seeing the way he handled himself just now with Andromeda only confirmed what she'd suspected—that Simon Mycroft was one to trust no matter what outward appearances seemed to be. As he led her into the garden, the air damp and the aroma of flowers heavy and pleasant, she knew he'd always have her loyalty. Always. She'd never doubt him.

How could she?

Felicity rested a hand on Simon's leg and gave him a warm smile. "You didn't hurt me," she said softly, bringing up a hand to push at her dark hair as it fell into her face. A small giggle left her as her eyes flitted up to meet his. "In fact, quite the opposite." Her smile broadened and the shade of pink on her cheeks deepened. "You've done nothing but show me that you are the one person I know I can trust most." She bit down on her lip and averted her eyes. Giggling a little more, she looked back at her hand resting on his leg. "And see," she added gesturing toward her hand that was touching him. "I'm not afraid to handle a 'snake' even if he does bite from time to time." Her steely eyes were soft and warm as she raised her eyes to look at him.

Back in the Great Hall, Andie looked up into Kyle's eyes, her lips in full pout. As he spoke, a tiny smile tugged at the corners of her lips and she couldn't help but move a bit closer. She felt his hands encircle her waist and gently direct her closer. Slowly, she took a step and then another until her body was finally almost brushing against his. Before she knew it, his lips had found her own, but the kiss was fleeting, a moment that came and went and was over faster than it should've been. With a flushed face, she smirked.

"That's all I get?" Andie asked before she reached up and allowed her one hand to entwine itself in his hair, the other still resting against his chest. She stood up her tip-toes and pressed her lips against his a bit more forcefully, her body flush against his now, the heat passing between them more than noticeable. The kiss was long and deep and when she finally pulled away, she opened her eyes and suckled on his lower lip for a lingering moment. "Mm..." she sighed. "You might have to meet me later and show me how you truly treat a proper witch."

Up in Gryffindor Tower, Melinda readied herself to leave with Markus for the Great Hall. Her tummy was rumbling and she knew her little entourage of younger students were probably wondering where she was. Every year since year two seemed to be that way for her. For reasons unknown, others looked to her and sometimes to a point where it got annoying. Still, she had to admit it had its perks and benefits.

"My reasons for wanting to learn about passages are my own, Markus," Melinda stated with a scowl. "But don't worry," she continued. "I won't interfere with whatever it is you have planned. You know me. I always have my own agenda." She gave him a wink. "And trust me, it doesn't concern you. You're too good a friend anyway." She laughed a bit and made for the door. "After you," she said gesturing toward the exit.

The idea of knowing a few key secret passages was more than appealing and made Melinda's head spin. Of course, none of it had to do with her friend. Markus was a good guy and she'd never do anything to ruin any plans he might have. But she did have her own little scheme in the works. As it was, she had her sights set on someone in particular that she wanted to be able to see whenever the mood struck and having an easier means in which to do so... well, this would definitely aid in that regard. And she was willing to do anything to increase her chances there. Now, if only said person would reciprocate. She felt a bit hopeful after a subtle comment made at the end of the year last year. But, she wasn't sure if she'd just imagined it or not. However, she wasn't taking any chances and wanted to be prepared. She laughed inwardly at how silly she might seem to others if they only knew. Thankfully, however, they didn't!

"I'm starved," Melinda said. "And, looks like first class of the day is Defense Against the Dark Arts."
 
Simon felt a large wave of gratitude wash over him. Just hearing that he was completely accepted for the way he was, and that Felicity trusted him, made Simon feel at ease. He turned towards her watching as she grabbed his leg, and didn't move at first, when she said that she could trust him completely Simon felt a wave of warmth overflow him. Felicity's giggles and normal shyness were of course what really set her apart, she seemed so nervous, and yet at the same time her eyes were locked with his. Simon felt happy just sitting with her, but the more she blushed, the more he blushed as well, and when she looked into his green eyes with her adorable face.

"T-thank you." Simon said happily for a moment. It was odd having his confidence drained the way it was, but at the same time his eyes couldn't leave Felicity. He kept looking at her, and slowly passed her the plate of food. His mind was full of static. Rather he was just happy. There was very little for him to think and after a moment he paused. Her eyes still looking at him. After a moment he swallowed down his cowardice and did what his body was telling him to do. His mouth opened and faintly he managed to push out the word 'sorry' in advanced.

A moment passed, and Simon lost track of thought. Rather he just leaned in, his eyes not breaking contact with Felicity's face. His hand moved up from his plate of food, and placed lightly onto her cheek brushing along and holding her neck. Simons eyes closed, and his mind stopped working for a moment as his lips made soft contact against Felicity's own soft lips. He didn't open his eyes, his face was several different shades of red at this point, and he was half bracing for the worst. When the kiss ended Simon pulled away from her sheepishly. He blinked not knowing if he had just gone too far too quickly. There was a soft moment of anticipation as he breathed out. "Y-you... should eat!"

Kyle smiled as Andie leaned into him and returned the kiss. "Of course it's all you get, were in the great hall, there are eyes everywhere here." He said lightly before they pulled apart. Her offer to teach her what being a real witch meant would be taken up of course. He would never allow such a thing to go to waist. Rather he felt empowered and lucky. When she made that offer his hand grabbed her ass pinching her through her skirt. "I look forward to showing you, just name a time and place and I will be there."

Kyle looked around the table a confident smile upon his face. Some of the few Ravenclaws that were around were speaking in hushed voices. Public displays of affection between two members of the strongest and oldest houses in the wizarding world were rather unsettling. The part of Kyle who was a braggart and a forward lover of praise was going to enjoy the rumors that he and Andie were going to have started around each other. Part of him even wanted to choose a rather risky location in which the two could get caught just because it would stir the pot a little and cause the two of them to gain public attention. However such a move would also be rather unwise, and work against their combined objective.

Markus nodded hearing that Melinda wanted to keep her reasons to herself, and at the same time was willing to leave his goals to himself if he was willing to stop inquiring into her plans. He walked with her, and smiled. "Fine, fine." He said lightly. If she was gonna protect her own ideas then there was no need for him to share everything with her. Or for him to share what his own goal with these passages was. Those were something he was going to keep with him for as long as he could.

"Next time I sneak out I will take you with me, scouts honor." He said holding up his hand, and then rolled his eyes realizing he was talking too a pure blood who probably had no idea what the scouts were. Honestly some times not having people around to talk about half of his life with was rather annoying. Wizards and Witches all seemed so sheltered in their own ways, but that was not a debate he wanted to have, in fact as the two walked into the great hall the only debate he wanted to have was what they would be eating for breakfast. The smell of food was a tantalizing aroma and he sat down quickly making his plate and sitting down to enjoy his food.

"I wonder what we are supposed to be learning about in class anyway. New school term, and Deffense was never my strongest subject. I'm much more into charms myself." Particularly Markus's talent was in lock breaking charms but she didn't need to know that either.
 
Felicity's tummy fluttered as Simon's lips suddenly met her own. They were warm and soft and just wonderful—exactly as she knew they would be. And more! Her cheeks burned as those final thoughts flitted through her mind, though she couldn't help herself. She might have been a Ravenclaw, her mind prone to logic and books, but she was also human and as Simon pulled away, his own cheeks matching her own, she couldn't help but smile and feel a sense of further endearment toward him. He'd captured her entirely and every subsequent action was only reeling her in further.

"Y-yes," Felicity said with a nod, a shy giggle escaping her as she reached for some food. As she picked up a peach that looked most tantalizing, her one hand remained on Simon's leg. In no way did she want to break contact with this Slytherin. It would be hard enough when they'd have to part ways for class.

Felicity brought the peach to her mouth and took a bite of the succulent fruit. It was sweet and a bit juicier than she'd expected. Smiling, she edged closer to Simon, her body brushing against his.

"Bite?" Felicity offered after she took a second bite of her peach. "And," she added, her voice soft and shy. "That was nice." She bit down on her lip, her eyes moving to her lap for a moment before she looked back into his emerald eyes. "I hope to get more of those." Her cheeks turned very bright scarlet at the admission.

A smirk played on Andie's lips as Kyle spoke, but all too soon she let out a tiny gasp. His hands had moved along her body and were soon taking free rein of what she had on display—assets to die for, as far as she was concerned. Her cheeks reddened slightly at the bold move, but it only served to excite her a little, her body reacting to the forward touches.

"Mm, I suppose I have to trust in your ability. Even if it means waiting," Andie said coyly, the pout ever present on her lips. "Then again, the blood in your veins is pure," she added sweetly, her body flush against Kyle's. "So, you know best." She paused a moment, her expression thoughtful. "How about you surprise me," she then said arching into him. Leaning forward, she kissed his lips again and then let her lips trace kisses up to his ear until she let out a soft groan. "Surprise me and make it unforgettable." Her voice was breathy, thick with lust. "I'll be ready for you just like I am right now."

Andie smiled against Kyle's ear and gave it a tiny nibble before finally pulling away and giving him an innocent looking smile, though her body was still pressed against his.

As Melinda walked with Markus to the Great Hall she let her eyes drift down to the stone floor beneath her feet. For a moment she'd worried that her friend might press for further details, but thankfully he hadn't. It made her wonder if his agenda was as risky as her own. If it was, then she had to seriously wonder about many things indeed. She just hoped that in the grand scheme of things it wouldn't ever interfere with what she had planned. She didn't think it would. Or, she hoped it wouldn't. But, one could never tell.

Melinda's thoughts wandered a bit to the previous year. The entire year had come and gone just like every other until near its close and that was when things had suddenly changed. That was when she realized she'd been oblivious for so very long. Something deep inside her had awakened and then little things here and there made her question in that final month of school. Now, here she was scheming and plotting—and perhaps over nothing but a fanciful daydream—over a... crush!

Yes, Melinda Evercreech had a crush! And she'd punch anyone who mocked her for it!

Once in the Great Hall, Melinda looked over at Markus and shrugged. "I have no idea what we're supposed to be learning either," she said with a laugh. "Worse come to worse, I'll get someone else to do my homework for me. Did that last year," she said triumphantly. "And for tests, there are tutors. I'm a quick study for that, so I'm not too worried. Thank goodness for a great memory!" she exclaimed with a grin.

Melinda looked at all the food that appeared on the Gryffindor table and had no problems helping herself to all the various delights that were presented in front of her. Several of the younger Gryffindors gathered about her and Markus, looking on in awe, mumbling and waving, hoping to get her attention. She just sighed and smiled sheepishly at Markus.

"Every year it's like this."
 
Simon took a small bite of the peach as offered to him by Felicity. Just hearing her say that she was okay with the kiss, and the fact that she wanted there to be more down the line made his heart physically stop for a second. Aside from it being the sharpest pain he had felt in recent memory it was also the most wonderful thing he had felt in the same amount of time. He could hardily remember the last time he had felt like this, having a crush was one thing, there had been a few in the past, but this was completely different to those. This wasn't a childish crush rather he was interested, and captivated by Felicity and at the same time felt a pang of longing towards her.

Simon let out a long sigh smiling brightly his face felt really warm, and he just let out a long breath. He didn't know why but he felt more relaxed then he had in a very long time. He could feel Felicity's hand on his leg and he wouldn't have it any other way. Taking some of the egg from the plate he chewed on it happily and just placed a calm hand on her shoulder. He leaned against her wanting nothing more then to feel her body and her warmth against him. His confidence and usual charisma was slowly returning to him though he had to admit he was still slightly embarrassed, and nervous about everything. "I couldn't agree more."

"I'm very certain that there will be more of that down the line." He said happily he was excited to have someone like Felicity with him, it would be difficult finding time or any real place to spend with her, but he knew that the two of them would find a way to get into trouble. It was hard to define what he was stepping into in all reality. Were they going to have an official tittle like girl friend and boy friend? Or were they just going to take things slowly from here on out. His mind was starting to analyze a lot of his actions, and expectations. He took a moment to rub his face trying to get the more dirty thoughts out of his head.

Mycroft let out a small sigh deciding that for his own sanity, that this would probably have to be approached slowly. Smiling he didn't say anything rather he just moved closer to her, and resumed eating some of the food he had taken. "I like being around you so truth is as long as you want me around chances are I will be."

Kyle nodded hearing the unique challenge of having the ability to pick Andie out of the line at any time and place. It was of course a little tempting to pounce her right here and now, but that would be very much unwise, and when she nibbled on his ear and he felt her lips against his Kyle. If anything this was getting really spicy but more importantly he was starting to understand that this would be more along the lines of a test of endurance for the two of them.

Andie was practically playing Kyle but he knew that the best way to play with someone like her was too deny her what she wanted. As long as he had the ability too say no, her attempts at getting him would probably become more crude and thus more fun for him. "Sounds great, I will make sure to play this game for as long as possible." He said with a passing wink, and taking a drink from his goblet he was more then happy knowing he had such power over a woman with Andie's body.

Kyle let out a small yawn stretching slightly as he got back to eating. "I won't tell you when, or where, one day soon though I am going to pounce you, and you will not be able to fight back." He said happily in a low tone. This was an interesting challenge for sure. Andie's blood may have been pure, but her mind and body were both rather vulgar in appearance and he couldn't wait to play with that fact.

Markus waved off the fact that Melinda had so many admirers. In truth he had never seen what the allure was. She had a few good attributes, but at the same time her personality was harsh, and manipulative. He couldn't think of any time in which he had actually held a crush on the girl only that she had always been flocked around by her many admirers. "It can't be helped, most men don't think with their brains, and if we did then we wouldn't be men." He said shaking his head.

Still it was always clear that Melinda loved the attention she got. Markus on the other hand was more then happy too fall into the background hanging around her always made him seem like one of her many followers, and that made him blend into the crowed. That made it much easier for Markus to come and go at his leasure, and with Melinda as the only one who knew that he didn't have feelings for her it was a pretty convincing lie. It also gave her at least one legit friend who was completely uninterested in what ever she was doing with her hair.

"You make it too easy for them, it's almost like your part Siren or something." He said lightly joking, but also probably guessing the truth about her character. "Besides you know you love the attention, so let them gawk, the worst thing they can do is watch you right?" He said lightly knowing that she had her ways of getting just about anything she wanted from the witless men who tried to follow her around like lost puppies.
 
Felicity's face brightened as she ate, her body close to Simon's. She gave his leg a gentle squeeze and leaned her head against his shoulder, nibbling away at her peach until all that was left was the pit. A giggle erupted from her as she set the pit upon the plate, watching the thing vanish mysteriously away. Letting out a soft sigh, she shook her head and wondered if it went straight to the garbage bins locate in the kitchens. No doubt it did. Happy and content, she then reached for some sausage.

"Well, you'd better be around because that is where I want you," Felicity stated plainly, though the shyness was evident in her voice all the same. At that, she began to hum and nibble on the sausage. For a brief moment she lifted her head and looked over at Simon, her steely eyes finding his. Her cheeks were flushed and she giggled. After she swallowed down her bite, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek and resumed resting her head against his shoulder, nuzzled up almost to the crook of his neck. She wanted the moment to last for as long as possible though she knew they had to leave soon for class.

Andie's dark eyes looked directly into Kyle's. She narrowed them ever so slightly, letting them know she understood his game and was ready for it. "Oh, I see how it is," she said, trying to be just as nonchalant. "Just you wait, Kyle Stein. First time might be easy. But we'll see about that second time." She gave him a defiant smile as she watched him, one that was purely meant to taunt and tease, to egg him on in his pursuit. Most men would jump at the chance to touch her let alone have anything more. Surely, Kyle wouldn't want to wait too long.

Would he?

Of course he wouldn't! He'd be grabbing at her in between class for sure!

Andie turned to look away as she situated herself and bit down on her lower lip. As she smoothed out her skirt and adjusted her blouse, she had to admit that she truly wasn't sure. For the first time, she honestly wasn't certain if someone would go the usual lengths just for one moment of bliss, let alone several. Kyle was almost too casual. But, she'd never let on that she feared his rejection. Not a Sheppley. Not ever!

Turning back to look at Kyle, Andie gave him a smirk and began fixing her hair. As she raised her arms, her blouse shifted, causing it to tighten just a bit about her breasts. "Well," she then said. "Ready for class?"

Melinda heaved a sigh, but all too quickly she let out a laugh. Her blue eyes glittered as she turned to look at Markus. "And you think with your brain?" she stated more than asked, her eyes very blatantly drifting lower and lower—a crude gesture—as she took out her wand and attempted to lift his robes. "Hrm, how very Ravenclaw of you!" she teased. She then lowered her wand and nudged his shoulder playfully. Another sigh escaped her and her eyes immediately sought out the floor. "Siren?" she squeaked, shaking her head. "Um, no. No no."

Melinda took a few bites of food and sips of drink wishing that conversation would somehow just stop. But, she knew it wouldn't. Not now and especially not with so many younger students milling about, hanging on her every action and word. She adored the attention, but at the same time wasn't quite sure how to stop it. Not that she wanted to. However, she appreciated the fact that some—like Markus—just didn't seem to care or be... affected.

Back during her second year of school when the first few had started to follow her around, Melinda had inquired of her parents why such things seemed to happen. It was then that she'd learned of the Veela blood that ran in her family's veins via her mother's side. Sometimes the effects were strong and sometimes muted, it all depended on the individual, but any female born on her mother's side of the family was known to exhibit varying degrees of the traits of the Veela.

Melinda had been no exception.

"Anyway," Melinda continued. "We should get going." She grabbed a hardboiled egg and an apple. "Or else we'll be late for class. Let's go." At that, she began to also gather her things and look to Markus, hoping he'd follow suit and head to class with her.
 
Simon smiled hearing her giggle, and knowing that she would want him by her side made him happy. He felt her nuzzle up against his neck and enjoyed the peaceful feeling he had. He felt happy, and just wanted to keep her next to him. That however was not going to happen as he glanced around the garden knowing that the two of them had to go to separate classes. Leaning against her Simon would have happily left his first class to rot, to sit in this chair with Felicity, but at the same time knew that Felicity would not have approved of skipping class.

Looking down at how she nuzzled up to him he turned and slowly took another kiss from her lips. his eyes closing for a moment as he pressed against her, and then lightly put his forehead to hers. He smiled blushing for a moment as he felt oddly comfortable with his actions. "I know that class is soon to start, but." He looked around. "Meet me here at lunch." He said lightly before slowly breaking away from her. Though it hurt him to do so he knew that now was the time when he had to get too class, and he quickly got up standing up tall, and stretching. "Till then I will see you in class."

Simon had every intention of counting the seconds till he was with Felicity again, but at the same time had to think about her grades. He would be fine if he ignored his classes, but at the same time Defense against the dark arts wasn't a class one wanted to take lightly. In their world ignoring a class like that could get you killed by some terrible creature. "See you at class." He said lightly finally managing to pull himself away and walk down towards the castle.

Kyle smiled thinking of what he could do as he got his chance to now drive Andie a little more crazy, and have his fun with her. He had no intention of rejecting her, in fact he had every intention of teasing her, touching her and playing with her when ever he got the chance too, but at the same time he wanted to have his fun. He wanted to drag things out especially if it meant having someone from the Shepply family practically wrapped around his finger. "More then ready I say we get too it."

Kyle simply hummed a light tune as he went about eating some food for the moment enjoying his breakfast and then got up from the table looking towards her.

"Don't worry about a second time, once i'm done with the first you will be begging for more." He said rather arrogantly in a low hushed tone of voice. "Until then however it is time we got too class. He wasn't coy like the others, but he did enjoy games such as these, and Andie was certainly someone he wanted to have entranced. Having her not just as an ally but rather getting to admire her body in such a rare way was tantalizing. The both of them liked to have the spotlight, and any merger of the two families would be good for the spotlight not to mention the many rumors that the two of them could create would satisfy his ego

Markus laughed when Melinda protested that she wasn't part of some Siren family. He had always kind of thought that there was some kind of false image or allure to her, and it would have made sense if that was the case. Either way though it didn't really work on him. As she lifted up his robes he smirked lightly. "I believe I said that all mean refuse to use their brains, and sadly yes I am no exception to such a rule."

His eyes scanned out for a moment but not seeing the fairest member of the Ravenclaw house, a stickler for the rules, he could guess that Winfred had already run off to class rather then be late. He sighed lightly. "Sadly for you I just happen to prefer girls with glasses." He said with a slight confession. While it was true that he often snuck around class and stayed out past curfew to do his explorations he knew that made him pretty down in terms of actually getting with the raven claw prefect.

"That said I don't have any plans or personal life entanglements at the moment, and personally I would like to keep it that way. As for your little group of admirers, I personally always thought it was kind of cute. Like a mother goose and her ducklings, you could walk right off a cliff and they would just keep on following you." He said showing the darker side to his sense of humor. Getting up from his table he walked with Melinda.

They weren't going to be late to class, but at this rate they would probably end up cutting it much closer then either of them would have liked.
 
Felicity enjoyed the final few moments she knew she had before both she and Simon would have to part ways for the day for their classes. It was a must since classes were important. After all, they were the foundation of their future, their very lives and she'd never place that in jeopardy. Besides, she'd be seeing him later in the day as well as tutoring him later and... her thoughts drifted for a moment as her expression went dreamy. A soft sigh rolled over her lips as she thought on the other things they could possibly do for entertainment between study sessions and then suddenly blushed. Giggling, she covered her mouth and shook herself from the daydream. There would be plenty of time for that. Later.

"I'll definitely be here at lunch," Felicity said with an eager nod. She reached up and pushed her dark hair away from her face and smiled brightly at the Slytherin who'd captured her attention. "Nothing could keep me from it." At that, she gave Simon a quick kiss and then head off for her first class—Potions with Hufflepuff. As she walked away from Simon she couldn't help but hum happily, her thoughts dwelling on lunch and 'later'.

Felicity made her way back into the castle and headed down one of the many corridors until she finally reached the room where Potions was to be taught. Slowly, she entered, bracing herself for the fact that she'd have to face the likes of both Andie and Kyle—something she wasn't looking forward to in the slightest. At least most of her fellow housemates were tolerable and decent people even if she didn't hang out with any of them overly much.

Andie smirked. "Good," she said softly and made to get her things. As she reached for her robe to slip it on over her body, she felt a wave of heat suddenly wash over her. Oh, Kyle was good. She had to admit that. But she'd never say as much out loud. There was no way she was going to give in that easily. No. She was going to play this her way and make him work. Well, at least, make it seem that way. He was getting harder and harder to read and she wasn't used to that. Most men were predictable and she was always able to maintain the upper hand. But why? Why not with this one?

It made her head spin as Andie tried to figure out why things seemed so muddled and murky in her head.

"Let's go," Andie stated after she stood up and flung her bag over her shoulder. "We have a housemate to torment and destroy." She giggled a bit and took a hold of Kyle's arm, trying to drag him along as she went to leave for Potions class.

Melinda guffawed as Markus mentioned that he had no personal entanglements and had no interest in having any. She couldn't help herself since most of the men in her year were either pining, scheming or getting it on with someone or other. Hormones tended to run rampant each subsequent year of school. It was just the way of things. As she laughed, her expression almost mocking his words, she inwardly thought of her own secret crush and how she yearned for any indication that her hopes weren't in vain.

"So, there's no one?" Melinda said matter of factly, a sly grin playing on her lips. "Okay, if you say so." She gave Markus a nod, but refused to pry further lest she give her own secret away and there was no chance in hell she was going to tell anyone about the man who plagued her dreams and fantasies night after night, making her breathless and wet between the legs.

Melinda looked at the stone floor as she and Markus headed toward Defense Against the Dark Arts. They'd be having the class with Slytherin, which she figured might prove to be fairly interesting. Most classes with the snakes turned out to be. She chuckled a bit and as they approached the door, she saw Professor Pandora Buttermere standing at the head of the classroom, her face lit up with a smile as she held her handled spectacles and looked over each and every student as they entered the room—Melinda and Markus being no exceptions.

"Welcome, welcome," Professor Buttermere said, her voice like a tinkling bell. She giggled and flounced about the room causing her Victoriana skirts to billow behind her, golden tendrils cascading over slim shoulders. "There are several seats, so don't be shy," she added. Her violet eyes sparkled as she gestured toward the empty seats.

Meanwhile back at the Potions classroom, Winnie raced to the door and pushed it open. Inside, she saw Felicity sitting by herself. Not wanting to interrupt her fellow housemate's thoughts and wanting her own alone time, she chose to sit a few seats away. However, she gave the girl a smile and a wave as she sat down. "Hello, Felicity," she said as she moved past her.

Felicity nodded and smiled, her cheeks flushed a little as her thoughts about Simon had suddenly been interrupted. She waved back and Winnie and bit down on her lip suddenly feeling vulnerable as if all her thoughts had suddenly been exposed.
 
Simon practically danced all the way to the defense against dark arts classroom. His foot work was quick as he moved through the halls. His balance was almost cat like in the way he moved, his feet hardily touched the ground as he jumped and weaved between other students. Part of having the ability transform into another animal was that it worped ones sense of space and reality. Even as he jumped down the stairs he practically flipped before landing on the ground. He felt great, there was something about having his feelings actually be returned for once in his life. When he was around Felicity there was this odd sense that everything was going to be okay in a way.

passing through the open door to class he sat down quietly looking between the other members of his house, and then twisted and turned towards the Gryffindor members. The supposed bravest, and most devote of the houses, he didn't often think highly of their members. They always seemed arrogant, and there was always this unique tension between Slytherin and Gryffindor. It didn't matter how much they tried to change the school or how much people changed the houses ideals the rivalry was born into the houses long before anything evil ever transpired.

A little house pride was a good thing same with competition, but at the same time Simon found himself kind of drifting. He sighed leaning into his chair setting up ink and quill, but the only thing he could really focus on was the feeling of Felicity's lips against his own.

Markus could tell that he was getting off easy, walking into the class he sat down. He knew that Melinda wanted to pry into his life and find out all that he was planning between his secret passages and his secret crushes he had taken to hiding a lot from her this year. That said she was also hiding something that he really couldn't tell. He knew it was important but at the same time these conversations seemed to be ending too quickly for him to really inquire about the why. He could tell that there was something going on behind the scenes, but didn't inquire.

Markus turned his head for a moment when he saw Simon pretty much dance into the room. "Someone got lucky." He said knowing full well the sight of afterglow. He let out a low sigh knowing he was completely luckless when it came to stuff like that. "And as far as you are concerned Melinda yes, there is no one that I am entangled with." He said casually dismissing her comment, and proving that it wasn't a nerve she should be poking at especially if she wanted too learn everything she wanted to learn about the schools passage ways.

Kyle nodded when Andie mentioned the mudblood that the two of them had to destroy. That was the bigger better game the two of them got to play. Oh sure the promise of Andie's body was tempting, but there was a sadistic delight he took in the idea of destroying the young girls hopes and dreams. As the two of them walked into the potions room he could never undestand why this place was so dark. The class room was located deep inside the lowest floors of the school, close to the slytherin common room in what would have been the casltes old dungeons. These places were what would have once been black cells with no outside light filtering in.

The only illumination came from candles, each of which carried a different and heavy aroma. Every time he walked into the class he felt uneasy. The smells were over powering, odd things like herbs and potent woods filled the air, creating a light haze of smoke. Setting up a potion station he watched as more and more students filed into the small slightly drafty and colder rooms. It was odd that for a room so small, and so shut in that there was always a cold draft. He understood what it was for, as the cold and darkness was supposed to allow the ingredients they worked with to last longer, but Kyle was never able to shift the feeling that there was also something sinister to it. Some plan he never really saw too it.

The male Hufflepuff prefect walked into the classroom and sat down adjusting his glasses and opening his books. Looking around the room he gave a polight calm smile to the rest of his class. Ryan Duwit gave a kind look around the room, his dark eyes mostly in shadow thanks to the unique layout of the potions classroom. He gave a small glance towards Winnie he smiled, "How are things inside the ravenclaw house?" He said lightly. As Prefects they did check in on one another, but hardily spoke outside of business.

There was a light tapping when the teacher finally appeared. The potions master Colm Archer Was a tall man his black hair was cut rather short, and his skin was ungodly pale. Most people assumed that was because he spent all of his time in these dungeons. He was after all the head of the Slytherin house, and the potions master. He bit down on his lower lip for a moment overlooking the many students, taking in the aroma's of the class. The many scented candles, and he paused for a moment his green eyes seemed to almost glow in the dark as he looked out over the students.

"Welcome back students." He said happily. His voice was however low he talked slowly savoring each breath he took in. He picked up a glass on the table and took a small drink of the water, taking a long steeping breath as he talked his white teeth showing as he over pronounced his words. "If you turn your books to page twenty four, I would like us to review a few facts. I trust that your brains haven't turned to mush since I last saw you all."
 
The dank Potions classroom had begun filling with students from both the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff houses, students taking their seats and finding friends with which to sit by. As Reagan Duwit entered the room, her cool blue eyes immediately found those of her twin. It wasn't hard. Then again it never was. For some reason, she always had a sense about him, though part of that could possibly be explained by the fact that they were twins and thus just knew each other well. A smile lit up her face as she casually walked over to him, but she couldn't help but notice that he was talking to Winnie.

Reagan gave Winnie a lazy wave as she slowly approached and set her things down next to her brother, taking the spot in between the two. "Hello, Winnie," she said brightly. After her things were situated, she gave Ryan a small hug and quick peck on the cheek, which was quite normal for them both. She then turned back toward Winnie. "Did you have a good summer holiday as well?"

Felicity sat not too far away watching how easily people like Winnie and the Hufflepuff twins could just interact with each other. She envied their social grace to a degree since her own awkward social ineptitude caused her issue with... and then she saw both Andie and Kyle enter the room. Immediately, she slunk into her chair, catching the satisfied smirk that was plastered all over Andie's face the moment their eyes locked with one anothers.

Andie turned toward Kyle and gave him a tiny nudge. "Did you see that?" she whispered. "Already she's nervous around us and we haven't even done anything." Clearly she was quite satisfied with Felicity's reactions. Smug and proud, she held tightly onto Kyle's arm, her breast rubbing against him as she tugged on him and urged they find a place where they could sit together.

Felicity let out a long sigh, her thoughts drifting to Simon. She wished he was there so that she could be distracted just a little. It was going to be a long year if this was the sort of game Andie and her cohorts were going to play. Trying to push everything out of her head, she looked up at Professor Archer—someone she respected greatly given her absolute love for Potions—and tried to focus on the lecture.

Back at Defense Against the Dark Arts, Professor Pandora Buttermere was sizing up her students. She looked them over as they filtered into the room—Slytherin and Gryffindor. Ah, quite the combination! She smiled broadly as they took their seats, most of their faces seemingly weary given the early hour. However, she was full of pep and vigor as she danced about the room.

Melinda looked over at Simon and laughed. "Ha! Looks like he definitely got lucky and then some!" she agreed to Markus' comment. She shook her head and laughed a bit more. "Wonder where they did it," she added, her expression making it seem like she was lost in thought. "Oh Merlin! And with whom!" She laughed even harder as that thought flitted through her mind. However her thoughts were quickly replaced with torrid thoughts of her own hopeful experiences. Immediately, her face went red and she cleared her throat. "Anyway, fine... fine," she said. "I won't pry." Her look went hard just then. Cold. "I won't pry then you won't either."

Just then Professor Pandora Buttermere looked over and gestured that everyone take their seats. "We'll begin with..." her voice was light, almost musical. "Hexes." Her tone had suddenly changed, as did her expression. All the lightness had drained and was replaced with something sinister. She held up her spectacles to her violet eyes, which almost seemed to glow in the dim lighting of the room. The bright smile that had been on the woman's face was suddenly replaced by a strange and wicked grin. "We'll start with the basics first," she began. At that, she whipped out her wand, pointed it at a random student and shouted, "Titllando!"

The student dropped onto the stone floor and writhed in a fit of laughter. Professor Pandora Buttermere stood there for several moments smiling as she watched her handiwork do its magic on the student. But finally, she waved her wand again and the hex was broken, the student was no longer laughing, but sitting there on the floor in a dazed state.

"How to counter them," Pandora stated.
 
Markus practically jumped out of his skin when the other student hit the ground. He had not expected a teacher to just throw a hex at a student. The last thing he wanted was to be with any kind of hex as they were more often then not painful. Hex's had the ability to contort ones body and actions. Not a pleasant experiance by any occasion, and to see a teacher just whip one out, for a moment he wanted to ask what was wrong with this DADA teacher. Then however he remembered the years prior. This wasn't the first time or probably the last time that she practiced on a human being. He swallowed just hoping that he wasn't about to be the next victim.

He gave Melinda a worried look and then thought it over. "I know of a few places I could show you if one of your fans ever got the privilege." He said truthfully there were not a lot, but there were a few good places a student could go off and have sex without being seen. Other then just his secret passage ways there were many spots from which you could see others but others for one reason could not see you. Markus had often searched around for such locations as they were all interesting too him. He always liked to remain hidden and out of the spotlight for one reason or another.

Swallowing a little though his mind was quick to return on the semi psychotic teacher, who was throwing out hexes at students. He let out a long breath, countering Hexes was all about mental concentration, and the ability to keep fear out of mind. If you knew what was about too happen you could block it. However there was something odd with the sinister look she had just given off. He started to take notes with a quick hand and all the while he wasn't looking at his paper rather his eyes were focused more on the teacher.

Simon on the other hand didn't seem to care or take interest. Hexes, and how to counter them was an interesting detail, but at the same time he was more preoccupied with the student who had just been hit with the laughing hex. The poor slytherin bastard wasn't even moving yet, rather just kind of laying their prone on the ground stunned as if he was partly broken. He was half tempted to ask how long the effects lasted. "Uhm... is he gonna be okay? he looks kind of sick." He said raising his hand.

On the lower floors deep down in potions Kyle let out a small chuckle as he saw Felicity react to them. Now that she didn't have her precious slytherin boyfriend to help her, she was the small meek little girl they had been tormenting for the last five years. The mudblood who was pretty much defenseless against their ways and pranks. Of course the fact that Winnie and the Hufflepuff Prefects were both sitting across from them made it harder to torment the girl, and they couldn't really hit her with anything except harsh words at the moment, but he devised a plan none the less.

Ryan let out a low welcoming sigh as his sister came into the room and gave him a kiss. She needed to hide her jealousy better than she could, otherwise there would eventually be rumors about them if there weren't already. Public appearance was important to the two of them, and so they needed to be careful when they were out in public. Still he didn't blame his sister. the two of them had been around each other for so long that it was hard to imagine having anyone else around.

Ryan was quick to fixate on the lecture, even though it was only a brief moment of review. Potions were often useful, and as the prefect of his house there was a need to make it seem like everything was going normally. He caught a glance of Andie, and Kyle obviously plotting something towards their other housemate. Shaking his head lightly he knew that could only end up bad for their house, however his job was to keep hufflepuff under control instead of calling the two of them out, he instead gestured to Winnie to notice the two who were scheming. "They are your house control them." He said rather bluntly to Winnie telling her that she needed to both watch out for the trouble makers and control her students... as he had.

When Professor Archer looked over the room after having given his review he clapped his hands together rather loudly making sure to have everyone's attention. He picked up a cloth from the front table and revealed the ingredients for several different potions. "From this pile, I want each of you to make a forgetful drought. A potion that dulls memories, and causes the drinker to forget the past eight minutes it takes to brew the potion. You will notice that there is far more here then you actually need, it will be up to your memory to brew the potion." He drew his wand, pointing at the back shelf. "Accio Student's potion text books."

At his command all of the books that the students owned were pulled from them and placed neatly on the shelves behind him. Turning back to the class. "You have nine minutes." He said lightly.
 
Melinda swallowed hard and pushed up her glasses as she watched the stunned Slytherin try and gather his wits while still sitting on the floor. She looked at him, then over at Markus who was next to her and then finally over at Professor Pandora Buttermere who stood smiling at the head of the classroom. With a grand flourish, the older witch brought her wand to her side and turned around to face the front of the classroom, her back to her students. Melinda could see her extravagant skirts billowing out as she twirled about and giggled. She looked back over at Markus for a moment and shook her head.

"We're in for a quite a year," Melinda said softly, her voice the barest of whispers. Trying to shrug off the chill that had suddenly run down her spine, she turned her body a bit more so that she could focus on what it was Markus was telling her. It was about the passageways and the information was definitely the sort of thing she wanted to know. "Oh really?" she whispered, though her body leaned toward her friend, her blue eyes were very much fixed upon Pandora Buttermere, the woman dancing delightedly about the room as she spoke about hexes and counter-hexes. "You'll have to show me these places so I know where they are," she stated, her voice barely rising in volume.

The mere idea of being able to sneak off into some secret passage was more than enticing. Now, the only trick was finding out of the other party was indeed as interested as she thought they were. Melinda had to admit she wasn't exactly sure. She hoped they were and had a feeling in the pit of her tummy. The comments, the looks so many subtle clues at the end of the previous year and all of them left her wanting and yearning over the summer. Never had she had such dreams plaguing her each night. Dreams that left her breathless and shaking and in absolute utter need. They'd seemed beyond real and now that she was back at Hogwarts... and she was so close to potentially realizing those dreams... Now, she feared that everything was in her head, her own warped sense of reality and wishful thinking.

Professor Pandora Buttermere giggled softly as she twirled about the room, her handheld spectacles held fast in her one tiny hand. "As you can see, class, it's important to know how to counter hexes much more so than it is to cast them." She smiled brightly and then flicked her long golden tendrils over a shoulder. "If you are unable to counter and defend, you have no business casting in the first place. There are some hexes..." her voice trailed, her face going stoic. "Far worse than the laughing curse." Her bubbly voice had gone flat, almost monotone. "But," she continued, her voice resuming is bright sound once again. "Those are for another day." Again she giggled and made another twirl about the room though she made sure to take note as to who was paying attention and who was not.

Down in the Potions classroom, Andie twirled a finger through her fiery hair and looked up at Kyle. "You're scheming, I can tell," she whispered. "You'll need to let me in on your plan." She gave him a wink and then blew in his ear before leaning against her hands and listening to Professor Archer lecture about the day's lesson. It was difficult to concentrate, however, as her eyes kept flitting over to Felicity who seemed so lost sitting all by herself. A soft giggle escaped her and she stifled the sound by covering her mouth.

Felicity turned around and looked over at Andie, her stormy eyes locking with hers for a brief moment before she dropped the girl's gaze. How she wished Simon was there. But, fact of the matter was that he wasn't and he couldn't always be there either. That meant she needed to start thinking different... as if such a thing was possible. Though, was it? Oh, she didn't know! She heaved a heavy sigh and tried not to dwell on it, her mind trying to fully immerse itself in the glory that was potion-making.

Reagan ever so subtly edged closer to her twin as Winnie leaned forward and began to scribble notes. The Ravenclaw Prefect was definitely getting into her work, then again, she always did. It was her way. Shaking her head she let out a soft sigh and leaned closer to Ryan. "Be sure to watch me and stay close while we make the potion," she said softly. "You know how skilled I am at making them." She gave him a grin as her fingers played with the ends of her raven-black hair. "You'll be sure to get top marks for it if you do. You'll even beat out Felicity Steele," she assured, blue eyes glittering. "Just leave it to me and do as I do." Her hand reached underneath the table and she gave his leg a gentle squeeze before she removed it.

Just then, all the books—at Professor Archer's command—situated themselves before each student. Reagan looked over at Winnie and smirked and then up at Professor Archer who told them all to start working on their potions.

"Perhaps you might want to find another area to work," Reagan stated plainly, her comment directed at Winnie. "Ryan and I need our space. She gave the Ravenclaw Prefect a bright smile. "I think Felicity has a lot of room where she is working," she then said pointing toward the girl's housemate who stood all alone next to no one.
 
Markus was still a little shaken from the turn of events, but was starting to understand that Melinda wasn't up to something so much as she had a crush on someone. It had to be something big if she wasn't actually willing to tell him, as he had acted as her friend for a long time, which left a few things to the imagination. Either it was someone she didn't want anyone to know about or it was someone that that she was ashamed of. He had never known Melinda to hold preffrences of blood or house alegance after all being a half blood himself he was practically a bastard too anyone who used that old magic is might mentality.

That meant there was either something evil or something illegal going on, and while Markus was her friend he also didn't want to know what was going on anymore. He was starting to feel like he was aiding and abetting some kind of crime, then again considering his own loose ethics and the reason why he had originally started seeking out all these passage ways to start with he didn't really feel like he had any right to complain. He let out a sigh, as his mind returned to the Hex happy witch who was teaching them, and tried to stay focused.

This was their first day back in class and already Markus was starting too feel a little overwhelmed. Still he would hide his ambitions and tried to clear his mind reading himself for blocking the next Hex their teacher decided to throw at them. While he was a little unfocused, and worried for the safety and health of his friend he was also far and away more worried about his own health when professor Buttermere decides that he is her next target or anyone else for that matter. He had so far never been hexed, and honestly the last thing he wanted to do was spend the day upchucking multi colored slugs.

Markus really couldn't help but notice how upbeat their teacher was. Buttermere had to be some kind of sadist as she walked around the room almost giggling. The mood swings were just unsettling at this point, and nothing about her seemed 'normal' anymore. If anything bad happened at this school his money was going to be on her being the cause of it. It was creepy and unsettling, and sent a shiver up his spine. "Lunch." Was all he could manage to say, he was more then willing to take the rest of the day off and go on a little adventure if it meant getting out of this classroom, and away from the crazy professor.

Down in the potions room there was a coy look between Kyle and Andie. He gave her a wicked grin and walked up to the table with many of the ingredients. He was looking over them, and while he didn't know everything about the potion making art he knew enough that he had passed his exams last year, and he remembered what the ingredients looked like and how to measure the correct amount. However all he wanted to find was, ~And this is it~ He thought darkly, as he picked out an oddly scented oil. A small toxin, not enough to be deadly by any means, but anyone who got the aroma of this in their potion was bound to have a hard time eating anything for the rest of the day. He was quick to pocket it in a soft motion placing it under his robes, as he gathered the rest of the ingredients for the potion.

"Wonderful." Kyle said as he returned to their table, Andie should have known by now that he was always planning something. He looked at the teacher who hadn't noticed the small vile being slipped away, and now all he had to do was get it into Felicity's culdrion as the water was boiling. Spiking her potion wouldn't be that difficult, though the problem would come in the form of Winnie, if she took the other persons side because it was her job then there was bound to be a problem. He passed the vile to Andie. "Think you can add this while I prepare some other ingredients." He said giving a small gesture over to Felicity's cauldron.

Ryan let out another sigh as his sister had Winnie go off to join Felicity, and then then turn to him to tell him not to worry about their potion. Of course he didn't worry about it. He knew his sister had a thing for memory erasure, be it in potion or charm form she had a talent for plucking out memories from a person and altering them ever since their father had taught them how to work that kind of spell. "Suite yourself, just make sure too keep an eye out." He said lightly. There was something mischievous going on at the other tables, and he was half worried that it might cause them to look bad if it got out of hand.

They were the hufflepuff prefects, and that meant there needed to be order, and perfection. If someone in the room was breaking the rules not 10 feet from them than that was a bad sign, and one that needed to be taken care of in one shape or form. Even if his sister was more preoccupied with impressing him, his mind was more focused on the external world. There was work here that needed to be done both as a student and as a prefect. Kyle thought himself destined for the ministry, and that meant he could not allow himself to have any stains on his record. Everything had to be in order.

"And thank you Reagan, it's very kind of you too offer that level of assistance." He said nodding towards his sister with a kind smile, as much as he was focused on the external aspect of his life, he knew that he had to keep his sister happy. She was oddly important to him, and not to mention brilliant in her own way.

All the while Professor Archer sat back in his chair breathing over his hands. He always felt so damn cold, like there was no warmth even in this stuffy old prison cell turned classroom. There had to be a heavy draft in the air, cause even while he felt cold he could see the many floating candles flicker as though a breeze were affecting them. He took another swig of his goblet and just sighed waiting for this little exam of his to be over. He wasn't paying much attention to the students. He didn't need too, ravenclaw was his smartest class, and he couldn't think of the last time that Felicity had ever screwed up a potion, as long as she was working with Winnie this was an easy class to sit through.
 
A small smile tugged at the corners of Melinda's lips the moment Markus mentioned 'lunch'. That would be all too perfect a time as far as she was concerned. Better to dive right in and get started on things than wait around. Of course, it meant she might end up missing a class or two that day, but when she thought about it, she figured it probably didn't make much difference in the long run. Her mind would easily be preoccupied, dwelling and drifting on what secrets those passages held in store for her. She could only hope that after she got a good look at them and committed them to memory that they'd serve her well in the end. She had no doubt that they could be useful, but the issue lied in that she was nervous about whether or not she'd be able to get any use out of them for herself in the way she'd hoped.

Just then a heated blush swept across Melinda's cheeks and she had to look down at her lap a little to hide it. There was no way she was going to let all her onlookers see her vulnerability. It was bad enough that Markus was probably beginning to suspect something. Though, it was a good thing the guy wasn't one to prod and pry too terribly. She owed him one there. Pushing up her glasses, she dared to glance over at Markus and give him a triumphant nod. "Sounds like a plan," she whispered. "No better time than the immediate future." She gave him a wink and then raked a hand through her blonde hair.

Professor Pandora Buttermere flitted about the room, her skirts billowing about her as she moved elegantly between her students' seats. "There are several means to deflect curses," she stated plainly, though her voice was light, sweet. "But the only way anyone can truly have the advantage... truly tell what sort of spell is coming their way, is to..." Immediately, the older witch's face went cold, her violet eyes focusing on the Slytherin—specifically, Simon Mycroft—in the back of the class who seemed to be lost in thought. Or was he just not bothering to listen? "Make eye contact with their enemy and pay attention to what is happening around them." She blinked a few times before looking away, her light pace having slowed down such that each click-clack of her footsteps could be heard as she moved. Finally, she stood still, her eyes scanning the room. "It is the only way to even come close to being able to determine what might come your way. If you want to stand a chance at countering a move..." She smiled and then giggled. "This is important to do." Once again, she began moving about the room as if dancing.

Down in the Potions classroom, Andie giggled as Kyle slipped something small into her hand. "Look at you," she said coyly, her smile broad and sinister. "Thinking ahead as always, just like a pure-blood should." She brushed up against him in approval of his actions and brought her lips close to his ear. "You have no idea how much this excites me, Kyle," she whispered breathily. "You don't pull punches and... and that makes me hot." Her cheeks reddened at the admission. Slowly, she backed away and flicked her red hair over her shoulder. Giving him a wink, she concealed the vial underneath her robes, readying it for the right time in which to spike Felicity's potion.

Reagan went to work on her own potion after gathering her ingredients. She looked over at Ryan and smiled at him. "I promise this will come out perfectly. Only the highest of marks will be achieved." She gave him a nod as she began to put things into the cauldron a little bit at a time, slowly brewing everything exactly as she knew it was meant to be.

As Reagan worked, her blue eyes darted about, however, shifting from her brother to her potion to the others nearby in the room. She could sense that her twin was a bit preoccupied. He knew that order meant the world to him and as such it meant everything to her as well. She put a root into her cauldron and turned her head to see what it was that had captured Ryan's interest. It seemed to be Andie and Kyle.

Arching a brow, Reagan leaned closer to Ryan. "Something is bothering you. I can tell. You know I can," she stated, her body moving even closer to the point where she was touching him. She glanced back over at the Ravenclaw pair, her eyes focusing on the red-head. "What have they done?" she whispered against Ryan's ear.

Felicity smiled brightly as she brewed her potion. Truly she felt as though she were in her element as her hands moved over all the ingredients and she began to add things one by one to her cauldron. She giggled softly and Winnie smiled as she stirred the contents and everything bubbled and boiled and the color turned the way she'd expected it to.

"Perfect!" Felicity said.

Winnie's smile broadened. "Never had a doubt. "You have a gift, Felicity," she said with an approving nod. She pushed at her glasses and giggled softly.

Felicity felt her cheeks grow a bit warm at Winnie's praise. The girl was one of the few that had always been consistently nice to her. "Thanks," she said. "I'll clean up while this bubbles a bit longer." Winnie just nodded.

As Felicity and Winnie turned away from the potion to clean up a few items, Andie removed the vial that Kyle had given her from within her robes and carefully poured the contents within the cauldron. Interestingly, it didn't cause the brew to change color—an excellent bonus! Andie smirked at that and then looked over at Kyle. "Mission accomplished," she said with a grin as she walked back over to him, the vial empty of its contents.
 
Markus blinked for a moment seeing the blush from Melinda. Now he knew that something was up, but at the same time was going to respect his friends privacy. They were still at the mercy of one rather difficult to read teacher, who wanted nothing more than to demonstrate her ability with hexes on the students. Every single time she mentioned the fact that there were worse hexes he was silently praying that neither him nor Melinda would get to see them be used on anyone, though he did have enough sense to not say anything lest he become the next target.

Markus nodded at Melinda she was right of course there was no other time like the present, and after what they were gonna sit through with this class he was more than eager to get away from the other students. It wasn't really a brave thing to think, but this was a very unique problem. At this rate he was actually struggling to keep his focus only on the teacher. His eyes following hers to see that she was actually planning to hex a member of Slytherin, the same one who actually danced into the room. "Oh... this is gonna be good."

Simon Mycroft, was sitting in the back of the room. He knew that he should be paying attention to the crazy professor who had started the class by hexing a member of the class, but at the same time found his mind far to preoccupied to actually focus on her. Rather all of his mental thought power was with Felicity. It wasn't that he didn't care about this class, it was just that he often found it hard to focus on any class that wasn't transmogrification. He looked up from his note book briefly feeling someones eyes on his own, but missed the glance that would have told him he was a target.

Simon let out a calm sigh, just wanting the class to be over. His mind kept counting minutes until he would get to be near Felicity again instead of trying to focus on something important like the danger in front of him his mind was somewhere else entirely. Defenseless he just didn't seem to care that he was actually in danger.

In the potions room Kyle let out a small laugh as he saw that Andie had successfully added the toxin to the mix, watching the cauldron boil, he knew it wouldn't change the color of the potion, but it did make it smoke a little more then it probably should have. However he doubted the Mudblood would have thought there was anything less then perfection in her potion, and all that was left now was for the girl to take a smell of the smoke. He turned and finished the brewing of their own potion, and smiled as it came out to the right color, and smell. Letting it simmer. "Perfect now we just sit back and wait for the comedy."

Kyle looked at Andie with a devious smile. Right now he wanted nothing more then to just pounce her, and show her how much he appreciated the fact that they were on the same side. Still he didn't dare rather he just took a wry glance around the room before stealing a quick kiss from her, and then went back to work cleaning up their supplies and returning them to the front.

Ryan let out a long sigh, looking at the two ravenclaws who had just poisoned another members of their houses work. He shook his head, it was Winnie's house she was the one who was supposed to be keeping any eye on them, but clearly the ravenclaw Prefect was not one to be trusted with her position. If there was one thing that was more disappointing than two people willing to sabotage another member of their houses work it was a Prefect who did nothing to notice it or stop it. Hearing his sister speak he shook his head.

"They just spiked Felicity's potion." He said knowing that his sister was more preoccupied with their own potion. If it had been a member of Hufflepuff than this would have been called out in an instant and justice would have been dealt swiftly to a member of his house, but these were Ravenclaws spiking another member of Ravenclaw's potion. The amount of power he had the right to wield over them was negligent at best, but it was more than that while he wanted to get the pair in trouble he also wanted to give the ravenclaw prefect a chance to redeem herself.

Placing a hand on his sisters shoulder so that she didn't just give it away he shook his head. "I want too see how Winnie deals with this." He said in a hushed voice. Would she simply blame Felicity or would she investigate a little more deeply into the matter? He would have hated to see another Prefect not take their job seriously. This was a rare chance to see how the other new prefect dealt with her house, even if that meant risking both of them getting exposed to a poison.
 
Professor Pandora Buttermere's dance about the room was short lived as she stopped and turned suddenly where she stood, her flowing skirts swirling about her petite form with a soft swish. Her violet eyes were trained and focused—a predator's eyes—and they'd found a new target. She looked directly at Simon Mycroft who sat silently and unexpectantly and most definitely not paying attention to a single word she was saying. Her wand went up as if in slow motion and the words were uttered in what seemed a low and languid tone.

"Legilimens," Pandora muttered, not a usual spell, but a dark one to say the least. Her lips pressed into a tight smile, her golden hair shimmering in the dim light of the room making her look more demonic than angelic.

There were a few hushed whispers filling the room along with a few startled gasps as students looked on in horror. Melinda's blue eyes just went wide and she turned to glance over at Markus. "Is... is she allowed to do that?" she asked him, her voice so low she wasn't even sure he could hear her. But the fear that suddenly went through her was more real than anything she'd ever felt. The spell their professor had used was most invasive and had come without warning. It just seemed... wrong.

Pandora looked on at Simon, her violet eyes fixed upon her prey as she slowly walked forward, the usual click-clack of her steps suddenly gone. She caught a glimpse of dark haired girl flitting through his young mind and giggled delightedly.

Down in the Potions classroom, Reagan looked up at her twin, blue eyes finding dark, as they waited for their potion to simmer a bit. The weight of his hand on her shoulder felt nice as it always did, so she leaned back against him ever so slightly, taking in his wonderful heat. She gave him a nod as he spoke, understanding that he wanted to see the outcome before planning any counter moves. It was his way and therefore her way. It was a good and calculated plan she had to admit. After all, it was hard to react to a situation without giving everyone a fair chance or having all the facts.

Still, as Reagan waited things out, a part of her wondered what would happen and a part of her secretly hoped that the pretty prefect would show her true colors and fail.

Andie blushed when Kyle kissed her, her skin burning from the public display and the excitement over what she'd just help him accomplish. She then turned back around and couldn't help but giggle softly as she watched Felicity and Winnie, their potion smoking ever so slightly more than it should. She looked back over Kyle, her fingers twisting themselves about a tendril of red that had fallen about her shoulders. She bit down on her lip and gave him a knowing wink. "Brilliant," she said, cheeks still flushed and her eyes slightly hooded.

Winnie had finished putting some things away and walked over to the cauldron she and Felicity were using. She tilted her head slightly at the sight of the smoke, her green eyes blinking rapidly. Immediately, she shook her head knowing that something was off. "Felicity, I think you botched the potion," she remarked.

"What?" Felicity said with a gasp. "There's no way I got it wrong. You saw me put everything in the cauldron yourself." The look on her face was clearly pained at the accusation. As she went over to the cauldron, she inspected it carefully. The color was fine and it was simmering as it should be over the tiny flame. She frowned as she went over each and every ingredient she'd added to the potion all in her mind. But each time she went over the list, there was no mistakes. She was at a loss as to why Winnie would say such a thing. "Are you sure? I mean, why would you say that?" she then asked, hurt that the prefect of her own house had said such a thing so boldly.

"I, well..." Winnie began. The blonde fumbled over her words as she stared hard at the cauldron. She was having a hard time deciding what to do. She knew something was wrong with the potion. It shouldn't have smoked the way it had. But at the same time, she didn't want to hurt Felicity's feelings. The problem was, it had been Felicity who'd brewed the potion and understood the finer art of potion-making. Therefore, the most logical error had to have been that Felicity had made an accidental blunder. She didn't fault her friend, though she felt more inclined to bring it up rather than have either of them drink the potion and fall victim to something needlessly unfortunate. "It just was smoking a bit. It shouldn't have done that, Felicity." She pushed up her glasses and let out a heavy sigh.

Felicity's eyebrows furrowed, her face contorting slightly. "That's impossible," she said. "You saw what I did, Winnie."

"And I know I saw it smoking," Winnie retorted. Again, she sighed. "If you're so certain it's correct, just drink it then. But I say you're doing so at your own risk."

Felicity pursed her lips and flicked her dark hair over her shoulder. She grabbed a ladle and poured a small bit into a cup. She reached for the cup and swallowed it down with great determination. The moment the liquid touched her tongue she knew something was wrong. The taste was... off. But it was too late. She'd swallowed it down and immediately she felt the potion working its way through her system. As she looked up, her hands went to clutch at her tummy, which suddenly didn't feel so very good and she noticed Winnie looking on with a horrified expression and nearby she swore she could hear Andie giggling loudly.
 
"No... she can't." Markus said just as quietly, though in all honesty any amount of noise was hearable, for as soon as Buttermere had spoken her incantation the room had gone as silent as the grave. They were no longer talking about Hexes and discomfort, Legilimency was the art of delving into a persons mind, a skilled user could rip apart memories, and change the very fabric of what makes a person a person. Suddenly their professor had gone too far. Markus's hand went to his wand his knuckles turning white from the strength of his grip. This was too much by anyone's standards and he couldn't help but feel like he had to do something.

Simon's mind was grasped with what would best be described as cold ice. It ran up and down his spine and he could feel his teachers eyes on his mind. He wasn't skilled in Occulumency, not enough to break her grasp, but he was a skilled liar, and one who could easily pull away, and hide what the surface would have shown. As soon as she got the image of Felicity from his mind however, he pulled it away from her, started to resist, trying to bring his mind to a calm, blank slate. He had done it before hiding his surface thoughts should have been have easy. ~Get out.~

Simon's arm drew his wand, his mind still enthralled his every action readable, his breathing came in short cold breaths, and he was clearly under some pain. He kept trying to chant inside his mind. ~Get out.~ But benieth the surface were his memories, the kiss with Felicity, standing up to Kyle on the train, the stunt he had pulled with Andie, and back further, sixteen years of his life were slowly exposing themselves underneath his mind. First crush, Sally Drake a slytherin Pure blood, she had been in her seventh year while he had only been in his first, he had followed her like a puppy carrying books, doing chores for her, and as the way of things got nothing in return. His first Animangus transformation the pain surged through his body as his bones and muscles restructured themselves the flow of new instincts and urges as the human mind merged with his animalistic counterpart. ~Get..~

"Stupefy!" The flash of white light burst from simon's wand towards the teacher their minds still connected though he managed to use most of his strength to attempt the Stunning Spell. From there however his vision blurred, and he felt weak. He was hoping that he could hit her, after all she had been so preoccupied with his mind, and he had made sure to feed her some of his more unpleasant memories in the hopes that maybe she didn't see the counter attack coming. That said he was still drained, and broken. Simon felt like he hadn't slept in days. His breathing had become ragged and painful.

Down in potions Professor Archer stood up, seeing what he would have considered impossible, but there was no doubt that it was happening. Felicity had poisoned herself, he blinked Standing up from his chair and walking forward, setting down his goblet, and walking with a great amount of Urgency towards her. Looking towards her potion he needed only a wiff of it's scent to know exactly what was wrong with her potion, but even so he hadn't expected this. Coming from any other student he would have believed it was possible but this was Felicity's element. Still everyone makes mistakes.

Looking down at Felicity he gave a disapproving shake of his head, "Felicity... twenty five points from Ravenclaw for your blunder, now go and run to the hospital wing." Professor Archer spoke with a firm voice, shaking his head. "This is a reminder to the rest of you, that even the smartest of you can make mistakes after a year of neglect and non practice."

Kyle was quick to stifle a laugh. It was well worth the house points too see just how much pain the mudblood was in. He could see Winnie giggling beside him, and that only really made him love her a little more. Without her precious Simon Mycroft to defend her she had once again been rather weak prey to the two of them, and while it was sad too see ravenclaw suffer for the victory it was far more rewarding to see Felicity holding her stomach as the poison started to run it's course. "Better run quickly!" He said in a 'concerned' voice. Thanks to Winnie it had ended up working far better then he could have ever hoped.

Ryan looked at Felicity who was suffering, and then looked at the two people that had caused her pain. However in the end it hadn't been them that had given her the idea to take the poison. Handing in a ruined potion was one thing, but it had been Winnie who had told her to drink it. He looked at the Ravenclaw prefect, at the best she was oblivious to the world around her, at worst she was a conspirator for the other two. Either way was worse then the two who had broken the rules, because she had basically let them get away with murder.

Feeling his sister lean on him, he sighed, shaking his head. He would have to have a talk with the ravenclaw prefect. She needed to learn to take her her job with more responsibility and weight. She had just allowed one of her so called friends to be poisoned due to her own negligence. Nothing could be worse then that.
 
Melinda's blue eyes were as wide as saucers as she watched Professor Pandora Buttermere do her work upon one of Slytherin's finest. She felt her skin crawl, her normally hot Veela blood turning to ice as she felt the churning sensation of terror coursing through her veins. More than anything, she wished it was lunch time so that she and Markus could escape to those secret passages and hide. Her thoughts turned to the one person she longed would embrace her, his strong arms about her lithe body as he gripped her tightly, his hands lost in her blonde tangles. She blinked then, suddenly horrified at the prospect that her thoughts could so easily be discovered by the likes of someone such as Pandora Buttermere.

Pandora Buttermere's mouth spread into a most sinister smile as her mind melded with that of Simon's. It served him right for not paying attention and this was the price he'd pay. Perhaps next time he wouldn't be so lackadaisical and daydream. After all, no witch or wizard was truly safe from any dark spell and this act would show him and every other student just how much so! No one could be trusted! Not a single soul!

Slowly, Pandora allowed her mind to push further and further into Simon's entering into the darker corners she knew he wished to keep hidden. A smirk played upon her lips and she tsk'd, her mind pushing at his all the harder, an easy task for someone so skilled in the darker arts. Oh, she'd make her alma mater house of Ravenclaw so very proud at how skilled she'd become! More and more, harder and harder, she pushed and saw more images floating about Simon's mind—first it had been the dark-haired girl, then she saw the shadows of other memories starting to form. They were swirls of color. Fuzzy at best. She frowned trying to make them snap into a clear picture, something she could easily make out. But this Slytherin was finally getting with the program and attempting to resist. She pushed harder, trying to knock down the barriers she felt him putting up, the images swirling in a murky puddle of nonsense, unreadable. She could see the confusion, but at least she'd seen the dark-haired girl. Harder and harder she pushed and finally a few minor memories snapped into focus when...

Pandora let out a loud shriek as her body went spiral across the room. Melinda looked over at Markus, her jaw dropped open, her hands gripping the edge of the table in which she sat. "Merlin, don't let that woman be angry," she muttered to her friend as she watched the older witch hit the wall and sit up with a dazed expression, her hand rubbing her golden head.

Down in the Potions classroom, Andie felt more than triumphant as she watched Felicity take a sip of the concoction she'd helped create. Oh no, it was no 'Forgetful Potion' that she'd downed. No. This was something Kyle had devised and, from the look of how the mudblood was clutching her stomach, his plan had worked all too perfectly. Another tiny giggle escaped her as she looked up at Kyle. She gave him a wink and heaved a sigh. A perfect execution. Flawless.

Felicity felt her eyes welling with tears as her mouth began to taste funny, that metallic tang dancing on her tongue as her tummy began to churn. She clamped her eyes shut as Winnie looked on in horror, her face blanching as she began to rub her housemate's back in a feeble attempt to comfort her. But it was too late. The damage was done and all that was left was for Felicity to follow Professor Archer's demand that she seek medical attention at the Hospital Wing.

More than anything, Felicity felt foolish. She should've listened to Winnie and suspected there was a problem. Yes, Potions was her best subject. But she was also human and thus capable of error. But, for the life of her she had no idea what blunder she could've made. As she raced out of the classroom, her mind continued to reel over the list of ingredients she'd used... not one of them was wrong.

Faster and faster, Felicity raced along the corridors toward the Hospital Wing, the trek seeming to take forever. Suddenly, she felt the pang of nausea rise and she knew she'd never make it. Tears spilling down her pale cheeks, she made a beeline for the Girl's Bathroom, which was fortunately very close by. She raced inside, held back her long, dark hair and allowed herself to get sick. Thank goodness no one was about.

"Not feeling so well?" came a voice. Peeves.

Felicity let out a sigh, her tears falling faster. She stood up and wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her robe. Trying to ignore Peeves as he flew about the rafters, she then went over to the sink to rinse out her mouth. Once done, she quickly left the bathroom and begun to head toward the Hospital Wing at a dead run.

"Faster, faster... getting sick spells disaster!" chanted Peeves.

Back in the Potions classroom, Winnie immediate went to get rid of the contents within the cauldron. She frowned at how her house had needlessly lost points and she tried to analyze how she might've been able to avoid the situation. She let out a soft sigh as she thought over every possible scenario, but each one seemed to end in a similar fashion.

Reagan looked at Ryan and could tell he was assessing things, bothered by what it was he'd just witnessed. Honestly, she couldn't fault him. Not everyone had such an impeccable moral code and she found herself admiring him for the man he was and aspired to be. Truly the witches and wizards of Hogwarts could stand to see him as one of the most ideal role models of the school, someone to look up to and confide in. There was no doubt in her mind that he could teach several a thing or two, if only they'd let him. Perhaps one day... she figured. And what a day that would be.
 
Markus's hand gripped Melinda's for a moment as he watched the events unfold. When Buttermere hit the wall he was left with a mouth agap, he didn't know what the hell was going on anymore. A teacher had just used one of the worst spells she could on a student, and the student had... well he had defended against the dark arts that was for sure. Still there was a long silence for a moment. Everyone was just shocked, and while he could agree with Melinda that everyone needed to calm down, he didn't voice his concerns.

Simon put away his wand, happy to be back outside of his own mind, and glad to be back in control. As much as he had 'enjoyed' a trip down memory lane he really hadn't. Standing up he felt himself become slightly dizzy and his legs wobble slightly. He was exhausted, but not broken. He had denied her access to any information that would truly have harmed him, and seen just how demented Buttermere could be. Walking was a slow thing his hand clutched his heart which felt like it was beating a million times a minute. Walking to the door he opened it. Turning to the Slytherin Prefect, Simon had visable bags under his eyes. "Going to the hospital wing to sleep this off. Anyone have a problem with that idea?"

There was still only silence in the room and then Mycroft left. There couldn't have been a longer walk. The stairs he had practically danced down were now one of the longest and hardest trek he had ever faced. He felt like he was just going to collapse with every step he was taking, and all the while he was trying his best to focus on his memories and make sure that he didn't loose anything important to a psychotic teacher. He leaned against a wall for a moment as he breathed heavily, he looked pale and sickly, and didn't feel much better than that. When he finally made it to the hospital wing he was grateful to just find a bed that he could collapse onto not paying any attention to any of the other numerous beds or who else occupied the room. Rather he just wanted to collapse he would explain what happened after he took a long much needed rest, and his mind stopped feeling like it had a layer of perma frost upon it.

At the potions class the bell tolled and the students packed up. Professor Archer handed back all of the text books he had confiscated except for Felicity's which he would find her later and give it back too her. Ryan was one of the first people to grab his textbook and walked alongside his sister so that the two of them could leave for the small break in between classes. He sighed angered by the lack of order that was placed inside the ravenclaw house, and the blame was going to rest with exactly one person. Winnie and him needed to talk, but that could wait for later tonight for now he had other classes he needed to get too. "come on lets get to the next class." He said looking back at the potions class his eyes glaring towards Winnie, such a look of disappointment.

As soon as Kyle got out of the room, and out of earshot of everyone except Andie who he had walked with he had started to laugh, and laugh hard. All of that had worked far too well, and felt far too good. Simon may have stumped the two of them, but Felicity was as weak a target as ever, and her precious slytherin body guard couldn't help her in this situation. "Toss that vile somewhere no one will find it. Last thing we want is our fingerprints over this one." He said happily, the teacher hadn't even noticed them, not even the prefect who had been sitting right next to Felicity. He let out a good strong laugh. "Did you see the look on that dumb mudbloods face. Everyone thinks she screwed up her potion. Oh that was too perfect."

Archer had sent everyone off on their way so he could set up for the next set of students he had to deal with, as he was going through the ingredient's that he needed for the next lesson, and putting away the ingredients he had taken out for this lesson he paused for a moment. There was a vile of greyroot juice missing. Archer blinked for a moment looking over all that he had taken out for the day's experiment and he had originally placed three on the table as a joke to his students after all it would have reacted with the other ingredients to make a rather nasty... He paused checking Felicity's desk but not seeing the vile anywhere. He bit down on his bottom lip sharp eyeteeth showing through the small frown. If Felicity had used it as an ingredient it would have been put back she had cleaned up before she had taken the potion after all, meaning... Someone had poisoned one of his students under his nose. His eye twitched he had possibly punished the wrong house, and all because he had assumed that the students would play nice.

Reaching under his jacket he grabbed a special flask and took a swig feeling a hunger satiated for a moment pushed aside so he could focus his anger. If he found that stolen vile he could find out who had taken it, and then he would know exactly who he would have to punish for this.
 
Melinda watched Simon make a quick exit and, for once, she wasn't laughing. In fact, she could barely break a smile. There was no way she could fault the Slytherin she and Markus had been silently teasing amongst themselves for leaving. If it had been her and she'd been on the receiving end of such a dark spell, she'd probably have run away screaming. The very thought made her cheeks burn a bright shade of crimson. Her blue eyes swept from Markus over to Professor Pandora Buttermere, the witch's face donning a slight frown as she rubbed her head and gathered her skirts so that she could stand back up once more.

Down in Potions, Andie silently reveled in the victory she and Kyle had achieved. It was more than she could've hoped for. Her chocolatey eyes glanced over at Winnie who looked distraught over the fact that not only did her housemate and supposed friend have to go to the Hospital Wing, but she only had a ruined potion to show for it all not to mention had partially been to blame for the loss of points for house Ravenclaw. All in all, though it didn't bode well for her own house, Andie felt it had been well worth it just to see that priceless reaction on Felicity Steele's pathetic little face. Little did she realize that two pairs of eyes were studying the situation in its entirety. Reagan frowned and let out a long, slow sigh and reached out a hand to gently touch her brother's arm. She could tell he was upset, greatly bothered by what he'd just witnessed. It truly was a pity more people didn't follow the same standards and ideals as he did, a true pity indeed.

Felicity made her way ever closer to the Hospital Wing, Peeves' voice ringing in her ears with every step. As she rounded the corner that would be the final stretch, the poltergeist finally decided that something else was more interesting. Perhaps it was the fact that the bell was tolling indicating that it was the end of first class.

"Hang it all," Felicity mumbled, a hand clutching her tummy. She had broken out into a cold sweat as she finished her run to the Hospital Wing. Immediately, she lunged for the nearest bathroom and allowed herself to get sick once again. After she finished and managed to rinse out her mouth—fortunately Peeves' wasn't around to taunt and torment this time around—her tummy felt significantly better. However, she felt weak and wobbly and in need of a moment to regain her bearings.

Felicity, on shaky legs, made her way to where the beds were lined up side by side. She pushed open the door and didn't hesitate to make her way toward the nearest unoccupied bed. As she walked, her steely eyes focused on another unfortunate soul who seemed to have the misfortune of being in the same place she was. She had to wonder what happened to him. As her thoughts turned dark, her jaw suddenly dropped, her vision snapping into focus.

"S-simon?" Felicity stammered as she made her way further into the ward. She swallowed hard and placed a hand against her forehead. She then let her hand drop back to her side trying to shrug off her own ailment. "Are you all right?" she asked as she walked over to him, concerned about why he was there in the first place, her own worry about herself lost and gone. Her knees shook as she walked, her skin and lips pale, but she ignored it. It hardly seemed important in comparison, as she looked upon her Simon who seemed dreadfully pale and so very worn.
"What happened to you?" she wondered out loud, her hand reaching to touch his face, fingers idly playing with his hair.
 
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