Quadrangle

Quadrangle
ground floor of hogwarts

The Quad is a courtyard connected to the Viaduct and the Boathouse. Four towers are located at either corner of this courtyard: The Grand Staircase Tower, Gryffindor Tower, North Tower and Stone Bridge Tower. The Hospital tower and Suspension Bridge Towers were located in the middle of two different sides. Gobstones players usually come into this courtyard to play "Snake Pit". It is also home to a Talking Gargoyle that spectates most of the Duelling Club's matches.

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Whatever the Hell *that* was got boring way, way faster than he expected, but he can probably attribute that to not knowing most of the others. His favorite roommate (and the closest thing he has to a friend) stayed behind and he's starting to question if he was onto something. When he starts to leave, he gets a little lost and finds himself at a quadrangular garden of sorts. It's beautiful at night with some lights floating above the trees and bushes, so he decides to wait it out until someone comes around and can help him find somewhere he's more familiar with. It doesn't do him any favors that he has refrained from coming out here so late, so he is not very familiar with the castle in such low light. Sitting down on one of the benches, he removes his phone from the pocket of his suit and starts messaging Fionn. Maybe if he can locate him, then he can have someone grab him sooner rather than later. It turns out though that he has a little date of his own, which Valya laughs at happily to himself before switching to play a stupid game on his phone.

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Honey had been excited to hear there would be a dance considering dances are *always* such fun, but yet again the British have disappointed her! She understands that probably, the ball being boring has more to do with her being new and not knowing anyone than it does the UK being dull but the latter is a far more amusing conclusion to draw so she sticks with it. Besides, she thinks to herself that being new should be no excuse especially since Summer got a date and is probably having a blast right now. Currently, she is trying to navigate her way back to the Hufflepuff common room, but Hogwarts is huge and easy to get lost in. It's dark (and cold, but she will not admit that) so it's easy to see the light coming from someone's phone in the Quad, so she expertly walks on the uneven ground in her heels to approach him. "Hello!" she greets him as she gets closer, "Do you know how to get to the Hufflepuff common room from here? I have been trying for *forever* – " More like fifteen minutes, really, but Honey tends to exaggerate. "But I'm new here and also finally willing to admit I'm lost."

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

"Hello!" he responds, accent strong and clear. Willing to sacrifice a rather poor performance in this game, he shuts his phone off to get a good view of her under the dim light of the flames above. Valya squints before raising a brow curiously. "I have no idea," he admits, sounding a bit defeated in himself. How is he meant to woo someone when he is so hopeless? Valentin pats the stone beside him. "I was waiting for a search and rescue team, personally. I have been waiting for— Hmm, *forever*." His voice exaggerates the word just as she did, but it's genuine and not purposefully meant to tease her. It's more of a reflection of her behavior, playing off of her energy. Valya smiles, content with this new connection. "We can wait for forever ever together. Newbies unite or whatever." He laughs and lets some of his slicked back hair fall closer to his ears without bothering to fix it. He pats the bench again before turning up towards the floating orbs of light and the stars beyond them. He wonders if he could turn them off or shoot them down so he can see the stars. "Where did you come in from?"

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Honey is hesitant to sit at first, stubbornly thinking that if she wanders for long enough then she will eventually find her way, but then he keeps talking and she decides she likes his energy. She takes the seat next to him, close enough for them to continue the conversation but still far enough to maintain her personal space. "Sure. Newbies unite." she repeats, laughing because it sounds so ridiculous. "I'm from Manila. That's in the Philippines." she answers him, adding the last bit because she had unfortunately encountered someone in her Wizarding Law class that did not know what Manila was. She doesn't want to just assume he's from Russia, but it's a pretty solid guess, she thinks, given the accent. "Did you just transfer in this year too?" she asks, "Or is it really just that hard to get around the castle even after years and years in Hogwarts?" She grimaces at the thought. She cannot imagine being able to navigate this place by the time she graduates. "I know it's probably the former, but I feel like the latter is equally possible. The staircases *move*. So ridiculous."

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Her laugh reassures him that he is doing something right and is not being so terrible. He isn't used to people laughing at him because they're embarrassed by his behavior or at least it's never occurred to him that that might be the case. He smiles, satisfied with the fact that she also found it amusing. "It's my first time here too. I transferred in from *Russia*." His voice becomes fluttery, mimicking the obsession he is quite aware of. Honey is from the Philippines though. Hopefully she will understand without actually participating in said obsession. "My older sibling moved here a while ago. I was finally able to join them, so—" Valya gestures to show that he's there at Hogwarts when he remembers what he said just a short moment prior. "My first year," he corrects, laughing and turning down toward some of the uninteresting (though suddenly rather intriguing) bushes. "Have you noticed the rooms move too? Isn't that so ridiculous? A *school* has classrooms that *move* and not even on a pattern." He huffs gently, amused by the whole thing as he smiles down at the paved ground. "How are you liking it?"

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Hogwarts has been very enjoyable so far, but that is largely in thanks to her being lucky enough to have Summer as a roommate. She had not caught the mistake in his speech, mostly because she slips from time to time too even if she grew up speaking English in their household. Still, it is hard from time to time to talk in straight English and she finds difficulty in doing so especially when she is called on during classes. "I don't understand what they gain from making the castle so difficult to get around in." she says, "I have been late to class *so* many times, and my professors get annoyed about it as if it is somehow *my* fault that History is suddenly on a different floor." Honey rolls her eyes just thinking about *Chervil*. "Aside from that, I like it a lot. One of my roommates transferred in too, and she's awesome, so that's cool. The classes are boring, but that's can't be avoided in any school." It is cold and due to get colder, which is miserable for her, but she is unwilling to admit that. Honey is stubborn so she cannot bring herself to accept defeat in that regard even though her mother is far away and has no chance of hearing her. "Are *you* liking Hogwarts so far?" she asks, then realizes they have not yet been properly introduced. She quickly adds, "I'm Honey, by the way."

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Valentin smiles slightly when she complains more about the rooms. It's bothered him so much and her shared annoyance validates him in an unnecessary way. "At first, I thought it was just not knowing where everything is *and then* my roommate tells me the rooms *move*? Can anyone explain why I'm *this* close to getting detention with Hawke? No. It's as if they want more students to have conduct write-ups?" He rambles, but his voice is soft and he even lowers the volume. After all, Hawke was chaperoning and you never know when she might swoop in and carry him off to the detention chambers. However, the main reason is simply not wanting to appear too passionate about the matter though he gives her a bright and amused smile, one brow raised toward the heavens. "Otherwise, Hogwarts is fine." It's a lie, but telling a stranger *all* of his qualms with their school is a bit much. Valentin doesn't want to scare her or come across painfully pessimistic, but to his credit, Hogwarts brings it out in him. He is not a stranger to feeling alone, but feeling that in a sea of people so seemingly happy and content is exhausting. He has not had to feel anything close to this since just shortly after his sister died. On further thought, he probably shouldn't project that onto Hogwarts. Valentin glances down at the stone again, biting the corner of his lips before his brows shoot up and he grins at her. "Oh! I'm Valentin, by the way," he says, accidentally mirroring her. He wonders if Honey is her given name, but doesn't pester her over it.

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

"The rooms *move*?" Her mouth forms a tiny 'o' as she processes this new information. That is *ridiculous*. Nobody had informed her of this and suddenly it makes sense that she keeps on getting lost. "I just thought I had a terrible sense of direction." she says, letting out a small huff. "I feel validated now, so thank you for this information. The next time *Chervil* writes me up for being late, I swear I will just – " She gestures with her hands and lets out frustrated noises, not knowing how to express herself. "The rooms *move*. That is so absurd." she repeats to herself, incredulously before snapping out of that train of thought and jumping to another. "Hogwarts *is* fine, I guess. I agree." she says, "It's underwhelming, but I think that might just be because I built it up in my head. My stay here so far has definitely been less melodramatic than what TV has led me to believe being the new foreign girl at a British boarding school would be like. Nobody has died, no prince has fallen in love with me, and I have not yet discovered some evil ancient curse to defeat with a group of friends." She laughs as she says this, obviously just joking around. She has learned though that some of her classmates are apparently filthy rich. Still, she cannot imagine any of them engaging in *Elite* or *Gossip Girl*-esque scandals. "My old school was really boring, so I was hoping for more of an adventure." she says, "What was your old school like?"

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Valentin can't resist the urge to laugh at her reaction, but it's rooted more in the feeling of shared amusement than judgement. He grins, glancing down at her mouth as it curls to form the familiar letter. Her huffing has its charm too. At the name *Chervil*, his brows raise as his chin juts forward in surprise. "*Chervil?* Who the—" He silently mouths the appropriate swear word before rewinding. "We have a professor named *Chervil*?" *And you call your professors by their first names?* he continues to himself, but he doesn't want to embarrass himself if that's supposed to be common behavior. It feels a little disrespectful except it's also a bit amusing and he's a little disappointed he hasn't had the audacity to do it sooner. It's probably for the best, but that thought is quickly swept under the rug when she mentions falling in love with a *prince*. His face starts to grow warm, terribly embarrassed on her behalf. Oh, how Valentin yearns to tease her, but he resists and merely laughs it off as ridiculousness. "Really? I thought it was living up to its expectations between the cheeky old birds and the daft young lads getting pissed off a bloody bevvy..." he starts, voice going airy as he turns up towards the stars. Valentin isn't too sure which television Honey has been watching to give her the impression that this place was anything except shit. "All the snogging... This is the beautiful, romantic Britain I know," he finishes and smiles, pleased with himself. It doesn't matter if something is wrong because Honey probably wouldn't know and honestly who would? It's a nonsense language really. "Oh, um. Koldovstoretz was also fine. It was boring too." He laughs, more nervously this time. "I wouldn't be too upset about it. You still have time for your adventure."

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Honey nearly immediately bursts out into laughter after his terrible impression - it is so ridiculous hearing it in his accent but more than that all these terms are ridiculous in general. It dawns on her then, not too seriously, that she will never be able to live here the rest of her life because she will never get over what a joke the British are. "Snogging!" she repeats, in between her laughter. "Why would *anyone* want to call it that? It's so stupid. That is like, the *least* hot word it could have been." She makes a face just thinking of anyone asking her to 'snog'. Her expression quickly turns into a smile once she sees how pleased Valentin is with himself. "Chervil teaches History! Pintinger." she clarifies, "And Ancient Studies. And Wizarding Law." She rolls her eyes. Of course she is in *three* of his classes. She doesn't even know how he is teaching so much; doesn't the man need to sleep? "Koldovstoretz." she repeats as best as she can. It is difficult and she is sure she has butchered it. It sounds kind of edgy, but that might just be the language so she does not comment on it. "Why did you end up transferring? To be with your sibling?"

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Her laughter incites some sort of fire within him, but he tries not to start showboating just for her and instead settles for laughter of his own. Hearing her laughter is amazing though. Hopefully he can continue to amuse her this much. "*Thank you!*" He gestures into the air. "And shagging! Who would want to *shag*? Oh, that is unhot— freezing." Valentin would never have sex with someone who would go around saying that they shagged. It's managed to be less romantic than *fucking*, but that's a thought he wants to leave in his head. "Everything about their language is so stupid." He huffs before laughing lightly and glancing down at the stone steps again. It's difficult staring at Honey, so he would prefer not to. Even if it appears he's amusing her, he isn't sure how weird he is being and is a little insecure of his words. "Koldovstoretz," he repeats, glancing over at her and smiling. "Close! It translates out to *Creator of Magic.* It gives itself too much credit." It's a little unnecessary to give such information, but he has found it obnoxious for so long and let's just say that complaining to other Russians didn't give him any reason to be satisfied. Valentin catches a glimpse of Honey again, trying to see her reaction to this before answering her. "That's it! Also Koldovstoretz is de-pres-sing." Obviously for reasons that he shouldn't discuss. "Why did you transfer?"

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

"You're right. It *is* freezing." Honey is thoroughly amused by his wording and makes a mental note of it so that she can use it in future conversations with other people. It is very witty to her and she is so tickled by it that it does not even cross her mind how it could be corny. "*Creator of Magic* is better than *Hogwarts*." she points out. She wonders what the story behind that name is because it is so ugly, but she guesses it does sound very witchy at least. It definitely does not sound like one of the best wizarding schools in the world, that's for sure. "My dad works with the ICW and he was assigned here." she explains, "My mom thought it would be a good opportunity for me to graduate from a school abroad. Thinks it's more *prestigious* that way." Honey does not see the difference other than Care of Magical Creatures being significantly less terrifying than it was back home. "But it's kind of the same, honestly. School is school."

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Valentin disagrees simply because the egomania of naming a place *Koldovstoretz* is unbeatable even when against nonsense and stupidity. "Hogwarts is sort of a— um," he pauses, snapping his fingers. "Kidding school." He grins once he believes he has gotten this correct, which he has not. "It's as if four British seven year olds sat down to design a school." Valentin is a firm believer that that's what happened and the lore is make-believe that the children created. How that translates into Hogwarts actually existing is something he doesn't quite understand, but it doesn't matter. "Ooh, sh— The ICW." His eyes widen and mouth curls into a little 'o'. If he was better at a lot of things, then it might be interesting to be in the confederation. He has thought about it numerous times before resolving to the fact that he wants nothing to do with the public. It's safer that way. "You're right. It doesn't matter where we go, or at least it doesn't now." Valentin thinks that university matters a little more, but he doesn't understand why it does. It's a little unfair considering cost and location. His rationale is similar in regards to attending Hogwarts too. "My guess is that your mom hasn't been to Hogwarts."

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

"No, she hasn't." she says, laughing softly as she leans back on her arms to look up at the sky. It is impossible to see the stars with the orbs up above, but the sight is still pretty nonetheless. She doesn't make any comment on his mistake mostly because she understood his point anyway and English is a terribly difficult language to get the hang of, and she suspects this is especially the case when you are from somewhere like Russia where nearly everyone speaks their native tongue. "She writes to me often and I try to explain to her that it is so..." Her brain lags as she tries to come up with the word, but all she comes up with is *crazy-inducing* and she is certain that is *not* how you say it. Instead, she settles on, "So *ugh*. I don't think she believes me. I texted her to say the Hufflepuff common room entrance soaks you in vinegar when you get the password wrong all she said was 'hahahaha'." Her face scrunches up remembering the time she had been in such a rush to get inside, that she had apparently tapped the beat to *Helga Hufflepuff* incorrectly. "What house are you in by the way?" It would be unfortunate if this was their first and last encounter. She hasn't seen him in any of her classes, so she's guessing he's not in the same year either.

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

His brows lift out of curiosity. Wouldn't that be dangerous? What is *wrong* with Hogwarts? He can't wait to complain to Dima and tell them every single reason for them to actually kidnap him after all. "I would describe that as— So *agh*, personally." Valentin isn't sure which word she was searching for either. Nonsense grunts and noises are far better than any string of noises the preexisting languages use. He's pro-devolution. He smiles slightly before turning down towards the ground again. "I'm in Gryffindor. Our entrance is less *aaagh*," he tells her, hands raising by his head and vibrating to express the built up headache. "Yours sounds so dangerous. Someone has gone to the Hospital Wing for that— has to have. I don't understand this place at all." Her mother's response doesn't quite faze him at the moment. His mother wouldn't have responded, so his expectations are quite low. Her response does seem inappropriate, but at least they write each other, he thinks. It's not really his responsibility to read into it. "Um, anyways, you're not in my classes." He thinks he would've remembered. Even if the light is dim, he can tell that Honey is beautiful and she cannot be replicated. "Are we interested in completely opposite things, or are you not a seventh year? Hey, maybe both!" He laughs at himself though it's not necessarily funny and he's painfully aware of it.

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

"Maybeeee both." she says. It is likely. Valentin seems cool and Honey's classmates in her favorite subjects (AKA all of Pintinger's classes save for Ghoul Studies) are a bit uptight. She doesn't know, though, maybe she's just unlucky in who she's been getting as a partner. "Unless you're also into History! That's my favorite subject." It is unfortunate that it is her least favorite professor so far teaching the subject, but not even that has managed to kill her love for the class. "But yeah, I'm not a seventh year! I'm in sixth." It is interesting to her that he transferred in for his last year, but perhaps Koldovstoretz is truly that de-pres-sing. She doesn't press on it because it doesn't seem like her place. She's disappointed that he is in a different year and house because the castle is so big it makes her wonder if they will ever run into each other again. "The talking hat almost put me in Gryffindor," she comments. She had quite stubbornly insisted on Hufflepuff, though, and it obliged. "Maybe I should've let it! Then I wouldn't have to deal with such a... hassle entrance every time I want to go back to my dorms." Hassle is not an adjective, but she is sure it communicates her point. Anyway, she is glad she chose Hufflepuff because being in any other house would have meant not being roommates with Summer, who she adores. "But also it seems a bit miserable having to go up and down a tower every single day. Sounds *exhausting*. Slytherin's common room is underwater, though, so I guess it could be worse!" If Honey were sorted into Slytherin, she would simply not accept it. She doesn't know how any of the Slytherin students survive in that set-up.

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Valentin immediately laughs, raising a hand to his mouth as his head falls forward. "Definitely both," he confirms with a small nod. He aced the History exam and still dropped it. It was one of his best classes and he dropped it because he hated it so much, but he doesn't feel the need to create such a point out of it. It would require bragging, which he isn't too interested in at the moment. He prefers to brag about more superficial things. "What interests you about History? Genuinely." His voice is happy and nonjudgemental, hopefully reassuring her that she is not being made fun of. Valentin cares that Honey is interested in History of Magic especially if they become friends, which he feels good about the interaction thus far. Her using *hassle* as an adjective floats straight over his head. "Maybe you should've! The Fat Lady— Um, is that умаляющий?" Valentin huffs and rolls his eyes, grabbing his phone from his pocket and repeating the word into it. "Belittling? I don't know what else to call her. I think that's her name." He turns over to Honey, visibly bothered by the name. It does feel quite mean or *belittling* (apparently). "Right. The Fat Lady is easy to get by, and the walking is nothing. It gives you strong legs." His arm pats his thigh as if to prove it's tough and muscular, which...barely. He grins and lifts an eyebrow to add to the charade. "Strong legs like Russian bear," he mimics.

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Not a lot of people are very fond of history, so the response is expected even though she is a little disappointed that she has not found any fellow history nerds actually worth spending time with. She is distracted by his last comment, and she bursts into a fit of giggles. She as well needed to take a moment to figure out what *belittle* was in Filipino, but it clicks pretty quickly. "Yeah, I do think that's her name! It's better than some of the other things in the castle. The other day I was walking in one of the courtyards and I met 'the Miserable Female Gargoyle'." What a depressing moniker, she thinks. "For starters, History is probably the only subject I can name off the top of my head where you're in no risk of danger." Even after a couple more seconds of thought, she cannot think of another one. "But even aside from that, I appreciate that it's just like listening to stories." It has always been very easy for Honey to appreciate her History classes; there is always something interesting about history, and if it seems boring then that is probably the fault of the professor for not digging deep enough. "I bet you like *cool* subjects," she teases, "Defense, maybe?"

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

His expression is usually wide-eyed and confused by default, but his face turns up flabbergasted at the mention of this poor gargoyle. "Very belittling." He simply nods in agreement before retraining his expression to show he's listening to her. History is not so terribly boring and therefore listening to her explain her interest in it is not insufferable. His distaste merely comes from a desire to do things that are more stimulating, so he can remain engaged. Reciting in class is not very engaging to him. "I don't know! History is just stories from one— one *untrustworthy* perspective. I don't want to imagine British History of Magic." As if Russia would be much better, but he's aware of that too. Valentin smiles a little bit, but it's quite miserable and he turns to stare down at the ground again. "I *do* love Defense," he admits shyly. Is that too typical of him? "It's an engaging class. It feels nice, exciting, those things. I love Creatures too. It's freaky knowing those things roam around..." A few different creatures come to mind and his eyes widen again at just the thought. Magical creatures are truly a force to be reckoned with. When he lifts his head again (and, God, he wishes he understood why he was so nervous), he smiles at her. "Are you not a fan of dueling and purposefully traumatizing yourself with boggarts?"

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

She is about to reason that the whole issue of there only being one side is why one should engage in further reading outside of class, but before she can open her mouth to say it, it processes to her how pretentious and nerdy that sounds and she holds her tongue. The conflicting sides of history are what make it all the more interesting to her, but that is something she can gush about when they are closer friends and he already likes her too much to withhold judgment. "Did you know they study boggarts in third year here? And they make you face it in front of everyone? I heard some kids panicking about it in the common room the other day because I think their professor mentioned it during orientation. *So* bad." she tells him, "But yeah, not a fan. I find dueling a bit stressful because it's difficult keeping up, but if you enjoy it then I guess you must be pretty good! Or at least better than I am. Definitely better than I am." Creatures was her worst subject back at the Institute, but she has passed by the Caretaker's Hut during one of her strolls around the grounds and saw some cute animals that were most probably not out to kill her. She imagines the class should be much more enjoyable here then, but nonetheless she does not have the scores she would need to take it at NEWT level. "The creatures here in Europe seem a lot more interesting!" she tells him, "Back home, nearly everything was a demon in disguise. You'd just pick it up during class and suddenly it would – " She gestures with her hands before finding the words. " – Change face? Transfigure? – and jump scare you." She remembers the tiyanak lessons with a shudder. "I don't miss it."

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

At thirteen, his boggart was nothing serious. It was to *him*, but no one had to know anything about it. Now, if you know anything about him, his boggart is too much. He hasn't seen one since it's changed, but he knows it has. Regardless, the thought is haunting. "At thirteen? That is so humiliating. Children are *mean*." His face scrunches out of irritation. He would hate to face the wrath of thirteen year olds ever again. If he ever has children, he will ship them off to Russia at thirteen and see them again at seventeen when they become normal again. Teenagers are just so terrible, but it occurs to him then that Honey is likely still sixteen. So far she is not extremely abnormal. "Bloody mean," he repeats to himself, pulling an accent. It helps to distract himself from the matter of his dueling skills, which he would consider fine. Listening to Honey describe the creatures in the Philippines, his body fills with some sort of horror and his shoulder scrunches, anxious at the very thought. "Russia is mostly fairies and sprites and nymphs and nixies. All same thing." His hand waves a little dismissively. "A little bit of demons. Some— eh, hide themselves as men who roam the forests, but they are nude and very obvious. I would not want to touch." His head shakes, very insistent upon never coming in close contact with one. "Very terrifying."

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Honey giggles at the accent, and that turns into full blown out laughter at the mental image of a naked demon running around some forest. "I don't think *anyone* would want to touch." She imagines what it must be like being a demonologist or magizoologist in Russia then, having to deal with those creatures on a daily basis. "Now, *that's* horrifying. *Mental*." She mimics the British accent, which makes her laugh even more. "Children are truly the worst." she agrees. She is not good with kids at all, not that she *wants* to be. They are loud and annoying, and she cannot imagine wanting one of them (much less, *eight* of them) when she grows up. "Especially at that age! Thirteen-year-olds are so... Such handfuls! They think they are so cool. But they aren't, they're just – " Out of the corner of her eye, she notices someone coming towards them with a lit wand and she glances at them before looking back to Valya. "Hm, it seems that our rescue team has finally arrived!" She turns to face the new arrival, an amused grin still on her face. "We're lost. Have you come to save us?"

Virgil Gibbs III

slytherin, seventh year § head boy

Virgil is *not* having a good night. In previous years, he had opted not to attend Morp Hop, considering himself as having better things to do than attend such frivolous festivities. This year Estelle had insisted he attend for their final year, and he had presumed that meant she would want to spend the evening with him. Much to his displeasure, Hector Hartley of all people had so-rudely asked her to dance while the two of them were in the middle of a conversation. Estelle acquiesced, of course, because she is *polite* that way. However, it seemed that she could not escape Hector's clutches as she continued to dance with him for the next three (three!) songs before texting Virgil, apologizing, and telling him to enjoy the rest of the night without her. Not seeing any point in sticking around the Great Hall (his father was chaperoning and would pass by from time to time to tell him to go and dance), Virgil made the decision to relieve the fifth year Hufflepuff prefect of his patrol duties for the rest of the night and do rounds himself. It is a good thing he did, too, because the boy had been *using his phone* on shift. How careless. He will be sure to mention it to Marisha tomorrow. Seeing two silhouettes in the Quadrangle, he mutters a *Lumos* and approaches with his wand out before seeing a couple seated together on one of the benches a bit too closely for his liking. "Lost?" he repeats, incredulously. How could they be *lost*? It does not occur to him that they could be new, instead assuming that they are yet another pair who have gone out to snog and now they are lying about it. "I will not hear *excuses*. You are the *third* couple I've come across tonight; I've heard it all. It is improper for you two to be here – students must go *directly* back to their house dormitories from the Great Hall."

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Honey leaves him laughing in a fashion no one else has managed since he's arrived here. He wonders what the chances are that they see each other again and hopes silently that she is just as amused by this interaction as he is. Any attempt at a humorous response is cut short by the appearance of their rescue party. Valentin turns and waves his arm dramatically. "Oh, save our souls!" He calls before being unpleasantly surprised by this newcomer's introduction. Who is he? Valentin's arm falls, but his face turns up in amusement as he stares in disbelief. "We ain't a couple, *mate*. What? Do you think we're out for a cheeky snog?" he teases, proud of himself. It doesn't occur to him in this light that this is Gibbs or what that would even mean for them. "We would go to the dormitories for that, mate. And we can't do that— because we're lost." His body shifts to face him properly, sensing that this will be an *Interaction* with the capital *I*.

Virgil Gibbs III

slytherin, seventh year § head boy

Unamused, Virgil grimaces as he takes out his prefects' pad and a pen. Obviously, he does not find Valentin's attempt at humor very funny. "What are your names and houses?" he says. He can dock three points from each of their houses for misconduct, and then an additional two from the boy for disrespect. "If you are *really* lost," It is obvious in his tone that he still does not completely believe them, "then you would not mind if I escort you back to your common rooms. I would be happy to, after all, as *Head Boy*." He emphasizes the title so that the pair know who they are dealing with, stepping closer to the middle of the bench as if to widen the gap between them.

Honey Camacho

duckweed, sixth year
paintedred

Realizing that her interaction with Valentin is about to end, she resists the urge to make a snarky comment that will only piss Virgil off even more than what she is about to say. "Cyril Kane from Gryffindor and Ashlynn Covington from Hufflepuff." she answers, seeing no point in lying about at least their houses because that would mean Virgil leading them to the wrong place. The names are just her mixing and matching the names of some of her yearmates; she does not know if Virgil has any means of knowing that she is lying right in this instant, but it's worth a shot anyway. "Give us a moment, though, will you?" she tells him, "Just – just *shoo* for a second." She gestures with her hands for him to give them space, and Virgil relents with an affronted scoff and a stern warning that they have *thirty seconds*. She takes her phone out of her purse and opens Witchagram. "Do you have a Witchagram?" she asks, scooting over to be closer to Valentin as she holds her phone out for him to take and enter his user. "We should follow each other!" She does not want this friendship to end with this interaction, especially since it's come to a premature end. "I'd still like to talk, even if Mr. Head Boy over here – " She raises the volume of her voice specifically so Virgil can hear her. " – oh-so *rudely* interrupted us!" She is bitter about it, and only continues as Valentin types, a spark having ignited in her. "I can text you later, then we can devise a plan to sneak out of our dorms and *shag* – "

Valentin Romanov

gryffindor, seventh year § prince of russia
ateleia

Her lies scare him for a moment. Valentin is not familiar with the concept of lying about his identity because there has never been a point in attempting to. His glance at her is cautious, but hopefully not too suspicious as he smiles at her and glances down to grab his phone. "We would love your assistance," he tells the *Head Boy*. He's set on getting Ashlynn Covington's Witchagram, but she seemingly reads his mind and leaves him surprised and amused. His brows raise as he grins at her, grabbing her phone and searching for his own Witchagram before requesting to follow it for her. "That's proper mint, innit? Just faffing around and having a proper shag, yeah?" His tone is serious despite the ridiculous accent. "It's a good thing we've been cracking on." He nods with his brows still raised and a small smug smile, exaggerating the motion. He glances over at Virgil before standing, grabbing his phone and accepting her follow request. He follows her too and pockets the device. His arm stretches towards the air, yawning. "I'm absolutely knackered. Let's get going" He's been waiting long enough to be rescued.