Muddling Through Magical History PV Study Group Closed

Interacting with @Anastasia Beckett and obviously open to everyone else!

Today was the day. The dreaded: sTuDy GrOuP.

Never before had Margo pursued such an academic pastime and actually felt excited about it. The nervousness bubbling in her stomach was almost shameful. It made the glint in her eyes light up the whole damned corridor, which, at this time in the morning, was borderline unhealthy. What was wrong with her? She climbed mountains with boldness and lived life in seek of adventure. And now, well, she was soon to be stuck memorising History of Magic in the library with people who actually wanted to learn. The horror.

With a small frown gracing her lips, Margo lingered at the door to the dreaded house of books. She scowled menacingly at a passing student and fumbled in her bag to waste time. Because Merlin forbid she be early. Weren't mornings just gloomy? Raising her large thermos of tea, Margo took a satisfying gulp. Funnily enough, the world immediately seemed a lot less irritating. Caffeine truly did wonders for a sleepy soul. She took a few more gulps for luck and, with an excited-embarrassed sigh, stepped over the threshold.

Now, you'd think that after two full years at the school as a student, Margo would know the library like the back of her hand. This was far from the case. She enjoyed studying outside, in her dorm, on the moon, or basically anywhere she wasn't pressured by the judgemental eyes of thousands of books. And, well, there also could have also been the small problem that Margo hated following the trend. If somebody told her to go study in the library like a normal student, she'd proceed to take her books up to the roof and blast music for miles.

But that, unfortunately, was not an option today. There'd been no way to RSVP or any kind of tickbox saying 'hey, I'm coming on Saturday so be ready for milky tea and Margo-procrastination', so she hoped that Ana just wanted a low-key kind of vibe. As long as they didn't present each other with lists of names and dates to learn like "Jerold the Jobless, 1993" , Margo would be fine... okay, so maybe she didn't know that many significant historical figures who lived before the twenty-first century. But that was why they were here, right?

With a resounding thunk, Margo dropped her bag onto Ana's table. "Hiya! She waved. "I brought some tea for us all because it's a Saturday morning and, well, waking up to the hungry green eyes of my cat only does so much. Not that he'd eat me, he just likes to get out in the morning and feeding him means I have to get out of bed so-... wait, do you actually like tea? You can say no, of course. It'd only mean more for me."

Margo slumped ungracefully onto a chair and proceeded to dump the contents of her bag onto the table. She sifted through them with one hand while the other held up the wait of her head, cheek creasing and eyebrows furrowing. "Quill's're a bit bent but I did assume that everyone would have their own." She muttered. "And- Ooh! My brother gave me some of his notes from his Third Year History of Magic. Though I'm not entirely sure if the scrawl is even legible, to be honest."

Margo rubbed the feathers of a rather crooked quill against her chin and turned her full focus to Ana. She was allowed to observe, wasn't she? And besides, the girl sure dressed as if she expected it. Ana's formal posture stood in stark contrast to Margo's slumped form and her neat hair almost persuaded the Slytherin that, yes, hairbrushes do exist for a reason. She combed a hand through her tangled blond bob and tugged her chair a little closer to the table. Though she and Ana were opposites, they could never get on too badly... right?

As for the rest of the group, she had no idea what fate had in store.

@Anastasia Beckett | @Margo White
Hex: #BF8000

River lifted a hand to cover her mouth as she yawned, silently stepping down the corridors on her way to the library. The route was very much familiar, though it had been strangely long since her last visit. Usually her study hours were now spent in the common room, rather than the library, she didn’t really know the reason why. Perhaps it was just in her interest to keep an eye on the common room as it being one of her prefect duties. The first period of time after being given the position had mostly been spent hyper-focused on her patrols, but now it was time to step away for a bit and head back down to the familiar grand room of knowledge.

Stepping through the doors slowly, she scanned the room attempting to spot the study group she’d seen advertised on the poster previously. It would have been one thing if her plan was just to go to the library and study independently, but those who knew her well would probably not believe her if she told them she’d be studying with others. It was unlike her in many ways. She wasn’t entirely convinced it was the best idea she’d had in her years at Hogwarts, but anyhow, there she was. There would be a first time for everything, and she’d learn if study groups were for her sooner than later.

Another reason for why she was slightly frowning upon the idea of all this, is the fact she didn’t even know who’d be showing up to this thing. Perhaps the chemistry between some in the group would cause everything to crash and burn. All the books would be set aflame, and none of them would come out of it any smarter than when they walked in.

Pessimistic much? Sure, but she’d learned that was usually the way to avoid disappointment.

In a short moment her eyes had landed on two people, she knew of Ana already though the SWAG club, though she hadn’t encountered her too much. River was not familiar with the second student, though she was sure she’d seen her around here and there. Walking up to them she smiled courtly «This the study group?», she asked, her voice low as to not attract any annoyance from anyone in the library.
«So history of magic… I honestly don’t know anything about this chapter at all, so those notes you mentioned could come in handy», she said slowly as she carefully placed her bag down on the floor next to her seat and sat down. Bringing out her parchment and quills. Her only hopes for the morning was to learn something about the most tiresome subject. There was just too little action in her opinion, though she wasn’t necessarily bad at it either.

River shot a quick glance toward the door, wondering whether the three of them would be the only ones to show up, or if they were still waiting for more students.

@Anastasia Beckett | @Margo White | @River Dewlight | @Illowy Magnard

Permission granted to godmod Illowy Magnard

Bridget had never really been one for study groups. She was quiet, didn't tend to need much help, and simply worked better on her own. But with the addition of three elective classes on top of all her other rigorous courses, it was increasingly difficult to not only keep up with everything but do well too. The Slytherin strove for excellence and neither she nor her parents would be satisfied with subpar grades. Besides, a study group couldn't be that bad, could it? The chance to get to know more of her classmates would likely be useful at some point, even if solely for gathering information about whatever new attacks there were. And even if she didn't particularly like the other people, she would be there with Illowy.

So on Saturday morning, she followed the poster's directions and headed towards the familiar Hogwarts Library where she spent a decent portion of her time. Others may have seen it differently, but something about being surrounded by all that knowledge, all those answers, motivated her to work harder. Illowy and her were arriving together and Bridget exchanged a few comments with her friend on the way up, glad to not be going into this alone. She'd taken the time to braid her hair back so it was out of the way and had her book bag with her, crammed with History textbooks and her notes from class. She didn't necessarily struggle with History of Magic, and in fact found it rather interesting, if only because she hadn't grown up with any of the information. Still, it was hard to keep track of all the dates and names when she had far more exciting spells and potions running through her mind as well. In short, perhaps the study group would help her keep all the facts straight so she didn't find herself staring at a test later on, struggling to remember something important.

The poster had been quite vague, so once the two Slytherins arrived in the library, there was still the question of finding the right group. She scanned the room, but not knowing what she was looking for and the blockades created by the shelves made it impossible to figure out where to go. "Any suggestions?" she asked, hoping Illowy had an idea that didn't involve going up to everyone in the Library and asking if they were the study group.

By some stroke of luck, her attention was drawn to a conversation going on nearby. After a moment of listening in, it became clear this was what they were looking for. Gesturing for Illowy to follow, Bridget headed over. It was hard not to stop walking entirely when she really looked at who was there. Great. The other two people there so far weren't the problems; she barely knew Margo or River, but they both seemed alright. No, the problem was the presence of Anastasia Beckett. She doubted either of them had forgotten their illegal duel last year. Still, she wasn't going to turn around and leave now. They'd both ignored each other fine so far, so maybe they could just leave each other alone.

"Hey everyone." The greeting was addressed to all of them, though she tried to avoid eye contact with Anastasia. It appeared Margo had notes from her older brother, which could prove useful. It depended, of course, on how untidy his writing truly was. "It's worth trying to decipher. I have notes too." she pulled several sheets of parchment out of her book bag, all of which were filled with the notes she'd managed to jot down in class. She left it at that for now; someone else could take the lead.

Outfit | Hair

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Interacting With: @River Dewlight | @Illowy Magnard | @Margo White | @Bridget Collins
Mentioning: N/A
Hex Color: #FF4080
Ana's outfit and hair for Reference Minus that ugly fringe bag and choker
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Ana's thoughts drifted as she waited for the rest of the group to arrive. Even she could acknowledge that her behavior made very little sense. She had spent the beginning month of school avoiding and fighting with most of her closest friends, and here she was deciding to spend her morning with a bunch of completely random people. Granted, she had made progress mending some of the damage she had done, but even Ana was confused by herself. How could she so desperately yearn for company and yet have such a hard time letting others in?

A loud thump startled Ana from her thoughts and she glanced up to see who it was. She smiled slightly when she saw it was Margo. She wasn't the most serious, and Ana doubted that much studying would occur in her presence, but she was certainly someone Ana didn't mind spending time with. Her barrage of verbosity banished Ana's more contemplative thoughts from her mind, which, in Ana's opinion, was ideal. Part of the reason she was doing this group was to get out of her own head and it already seemed to be working. "Good morning to you too," Ana said, smiling slightly. "And thank you, but I'm more of a coffee girl myself."

She vaguely remembered a rule about not being allowed to have food or drink in the library, and while she was generally someone who ignored rules, there were certain things she held sacred. The library was definitely one of them. She would have absolutely no qualms about punching another person in the face or sneaking out after curfew, but breaking any rules in the library was unimaginable to her. Margo's chatter was somewhat comforting, and Ana was a little amused by the blonde's bent quill. Ana's peacock quill for the day was in perfect condition, and once again, Ana was reminded of how different they were. Oddly enough, they seemed to get along fairly well.

Another girl that Ana vaguely recognized from SWAG games approached the table and Ana nodded at her question. "Those notes would definitely be helpful," she replied in agreement."I think someone died and someone else took over a kingdom or village or something along those lines, but not much beyond that." She had an O in the subject, but compared to her other subjects, she was weak in it. Even Divination, which she didn't particularly like, came more naturally and made more sense than the tedious facts and memorization of this class.

Before Ana could say much more to River, another pair of girls joined them. One of them Ana didn't recognize beyond vaguely associating her with Ravenclaw or Slytherin. "Good morning," she said, smiling. The smile wasn't as friendly as it might have been in prior years, but it was a step up from that year's death glares. "I'm Anastasia, and I'm afraid I don't know your name?" Aforementioned death glares returned when Ana turned her focus to the second girl. She had attacked her for practically no reason the past year. Granted, they had managed to avoid one another since, but that didn't mean Ana wanted to spend a morning with her. Shaking off her irritation and attempting to relax her face, she turned back to the group. Her own pristine textbook and notes sat in front of her, ready for whatever might come next.

Interacting with @Anastasia Beckett, @River Dewlight, @Bridget Collins and @Illowy Magnard

They liked her notes! Margo internally hooted in victory as she celebrated her first successful interaction with the group. But her peril was far from over. To her utter dismay, all of the girls - though maybe excepting the low-speaking redhead - seemed (Merlin forbid) intelligent. Almost intimidatingly so. Which, to most people, probably wasn't a disaster. To Queen Margo of dramatic-ness, though? It was a complete catastrophe.

Now, considering the fact that most of the group had only spoken once, Margo couldn't actually prove her rather terrifying theory. But she'd always (in her slightly hurried mind) considered proof to be a giant waste of time and instinct. Where was the proof in all of these History Of Magic textbooks, anyway? They were just taking the word of some old witch who'd been so wrinkled that nobody realised when she was actually a snake! To be fair, though, Margo was convinced that Bathilda Bagshot told a rather enticing tale about Hogwarts' history. And she'd written it in her own home with the sole company of her vibrant mind. Ha! Proof was overrated.

But Margo was determined to have it anyway. She'd show that silly logical voice in her head who's boss!

"So... what're you guys's average grades?" She asked curiously. What could she say? It was a random question from a random girl. She just hoped they didn’t ask her the question in return. Weren’t As supposed to be good in the muggle world? For someone whose curiosity was never satisfied, Margo didn’t do exceptionally well at school.

But now that her first curiosity was out of the way, she could do some real truth-seeking. And no, she wasn't talking about the dull contents of her brother's messy notes. Margo wanted to analyse people. More specifically: the four other students motivated enough to be seated at a large, round table in the library at 10 o’clock on a Saturday morning.

So far, she hadn't had the opportunity to gather everybody's names. But she'd start with those she did know. And to begin with, was the girl at the core of their little meeting in the first place.

"Mhm. Totally. Dead villages, taken over kingdoms, I- wait a second, you're a coffee person!?" Margo gaped at Ana. Forget about History of Magic, this was a revelation indeed. "Oh dear, oh dear, very poor choice of beverage indeed. I met a Russian person over the summer, you know, and I had never been more proud to be a tea-drinking Scotswoman. Guess I'll just have to drink enough for the both of us." Margo stared morosely at the large thermos she'd previously placed on the table. Had she mentioned she was over-dramatic? She hoped Ana didn’t take her too seriously. But coffee at thirteen? Raising her head back up like a keen puppy, Margo surveyed the other girls hopefully. Hope was not lost. But I have paper cups here if anybody else wants some?"

Next around the table to observe was the red-headed mystery. Now, if Margo were to create an art piece of their situation, she would have drawn a giant question mark over the girl’s fiery head (which was precisely why she’d never excel in the field of abstract art). The girl hadn’t said much yet and, for some unknown reason, glanced questioningly towards the door. Her hair flamed up the whole room and, as much as Margo was jealous of the naturally attention-seeking colour, she felt bad for the girl. But she could hardly keep calling her ‘the girl’ forever. A nickname was required. She would call her (drum roll please): Red. Margo patted herself on the back for her creativity. Which, out of context, might have actually looked quite weird.

Bridget was the next person that Margo’s eager gaze slid to. She seemed very on the ball, and had also bought a set of notes to contribute to their ‘studying’. ”They look great! She enthused. ”Shall we start with them? I really didn’t want to tell Toby that he’d actually been useful.”

And, last but not least, Margo’s stare fell upon Illowy. Wasn’t she the girl that Ruby li- well, Margo didn’t like to jump to conclusions... sometimes. As Illowy sat, she was immediately distracted by the ornate notebook the girl possessed. ”That’s beautiful and- cute, what’s your cat’s name?” Margo smiled at the fur just visible over the edge of the table.

Wasn’t the atmosphere just cozy in there? Completely oblivious to the death stares being thrown just across the table, Margo nibbled absent-mindedly on the edge of her quill. Her gaze wandered once again to Red’s lovely hair. She felt positively warm.

@Anastasia Beckett | @Margo White | @River Dewlight | @Illowy Magnard

Bridget didn't miss the glare Anastasia sent her way. She was trying to mostly ignore her, but considering the fact she couldn't be completely sure the Gryffindor wouldn't live up to the rumors--not that Bridget believed all of them, though after their encounter last year, they didn't seem so far fetched--her gaze still shifted towards her. The look was returned with a slight narrowing of her own eyes. Perhaps they could be in the same room without bothering each other, but that didn't mean they liked each other.

Luckily, there were plenty of other people to pay attention to. Margo took charge of the conversation, asking what their academic averages were. She supposed it made sense with this being a study group to pose that sort of question, though it wasn't something she would have asked. Still, she wasn't going to ignore the inquiry. Not answering would be worse, and besides, she had nothing to be ashamed of. "Um... Os." Not straight Os, but for juggling 11 classes, duelling, and researching the curse, having a few Es was nothing to be ashamed of. It wasn't for lack of trying, anyway.

Margo, who seemed to be quite talkative, did an excellent job of diffusing some of the tension in the air whether she realized it or not. Bridget was quite content to let someone else carry the bulk of the conversation, being a rather quiet person herself. Margo was maybe a little dramatic, too, and Bridget couldn't help but smile slightly at her lamenting of Anastasia's choice of beverage. The Slytherin was more inclined to tea than coffee herself, but didn't particularly mind if others had differing preferences. At Margo's offering, she nodded. "Tea sounds wonderful, thank you."

It didn't look like they were waiting on anyone else at this point, so this was their study group. She was here with a friend, so there was that. Anastasia Beckett was far from her favorite person, but she at least seemed competent. She knew little of River Dewlight, but the girl had won a S.W.A.G. match. Granted, if Bridget recalled correctly she'd won somewhat be default with the remaining members getting disqualified for... jousting, or something, but making it that far meant she had some skill. As for Margo, Bridget had the feeling she was what would make this group work. That or have them completely off-topic, but at least they wouldn't be sitting in silence. Studying was something she could do on her own, so maybe laughing a little and getting to know her peers better would be enough to make this study session worthwhile.

With Margo's approval, she pushed the sheet of notes towards the center of the table. Her scrawl was legible, at least, though on the smaller side and a bit rushed to keep up with the professor. Not all of it was useful and she'd probably missed something, but it would at least fill in some of the details.

@Bridget Collins, @Anastasia Beckett, @Margo White, @River Dewlight

@Anastasia Beckett | @Bridget Collins
@Margo White | @Illowy Magnard

After all the students had arrived, River couldn’t shake the creeping sensation that something was… off. There was some tension between certain members of the group, and she noticed, but had no clue what it was about. Being a curious person by nature she couldn’t help but wonder what the background story of it was, but she also hated when people stuck their noses in her business, so she would refrain from doing exactly that with these students. She kept her cold eyes on attention for any sign of problems arising between them. She really had no interest falling face first into the middle of an argument she’d not have a part in.

A sickly pale hand reached down to pick up her quill as River answered the question that had just entered the conversation “My average is Os at the moment”. The others seemed to be around the same level, at least those who’d answered.
The ravenclaw kept herself to quite high self-expectations. Never being kept under pressure academically by her family, she’d managed to put that upon herself instead. She expected nothing better than the best from her own abilities, but of course, expectations like that are difficult to keep up with, and bound to waver at times. Either way, River still kept on pushing herself to the limit, keeping her up far into the nights to keep up with her classes. Perhaps that was what she was trying to avoid by attending this study-group to begin with?

The girl which River did not know the name of was kind enough to offer tea to the girls, politely River shook her head “Oh, no thank you”, she answered and smiled as a gesture of appreciation. River had quickly catched a bit of a caffeine addiction since the beginning of her days at Hogwarts. She liked tea, sure, it just wasn’t her preferred drink.
“I mean I don’t really know much about this for the time being, but I guess it’s just nice to get some different views and ideas from different people”, she said answering Illowy's question. “I mean I usually find that people tend to pay attention to different things, and might pick up on something others miss”. It was no lie that their subjects were heavy material, and there were many of them. Making young minds like their own keep absolutely all the information was a near impossible task, though perhaps some managed better than others.