Locking The Doors Main Story Closed

"More me?" The Hufflepuff chuckled. "What is that supposed to mean?" He smiled at her as he brushed his own hand across his jaw. "I have missed it. Makes me feel clean again." It did. He hated the prickling across his cheeks and neck. But in the last few months, he simply had not found the energy to get to it. No, his mental state had not survived without a few dents along the road. Neither had his body as a matter of fact. It was clear Caradoc had suffered some injuries across the year. Some more visible than others. The black mark was still there. All while he was none the wiser to its purpose. It was just there, black and dull. He could not shake the feeling that something was left untouched in trying to fix this. Something still festering inside.

There had been so little time to rest. Doc was losing a race he never intended to run. Sadly it was not just him. No, it was all of them that were participants. Yet almost none of them knew. On some days, he wondered what he was still doing here. It sometimes felt as if he had become head of House under false pretence that he'd keep everything okay and in order. He had been a fool. A lonesome fool, who failed to keep up with the ever-changing machinations of evil. But there was evil everywhere. Like for poor Howard White. Another kid forced to go home. While home was no better a place than a castle that tried to murder them. In time, Caradoc hoped the kid would understand what they did today. How the boy was not alone.

Just like Caradoc was not alone. She was here and had been. Nora was actually one of the few people in the castle he trusted with his life. He could have sworn she had a Hufflepuff spirit at times. Though sometimes Slytherin suited her just fine. A soft smile appeared across his lips as he was reminded of her cleaning charm in the dungeons. How silly it seemed right now... Yet, he loved her for it.

His own hand had found its way resting on the arm of his chair. Dangling by itself, his eyes fell upon it and slowly turned to the side. Caradoc was not a brave man. He was someone that healed and wished to be healed. In for what had been longer than a decade, he had not ever had a thought like this. Yet it came so effortlessly to mind. There was no point in arguing with himself. He knew he wanted to do it. There was no point in lying. There was no need to fight. So in the true Browne fashion, his fingertips slowly reached out towards her chair. His hand caressing hers under the table as his fingers finally dug in deep and locked with hers.

There was no way of knowing what was to come. But his clear blue eyes would be waiting. A faint smile barely made it to his face. It took almost all his will to keep his lip from quivering. Swallowing hard, he realised perhaps this was to be his mistake. His nose wiggled slightly as the worrying thoughts slowly started streaming in.

Opeila was not amazed by being told not to be able to stay in Hogwarts, but it was no worldchanging information to her. She would have probably gone home anyway, her father would have demanded it.
For some others though, it seemed like some sort of deathsentence. Opeila watched an older Hufflepuff boy- probably a third or fourth year- throw his dishes on the floor and start to cry red tears. A dhampir. Her gaze followed him when he stormed out of the hall. She could only see his face for a short time but she saw him talking to something in his hand... weird.
Maybe she would ask him sometime, if she happened to meet him again the next days.

Now that she thought about it... She had heard about hags before. Yes. Professor Browne had mentioned them in their conversation back in march. Back then Opeila didn't know what hags were- she was a halfblood but new in this world and she had to get to know loads of thing still- but by now she had read about them. She remembered the Professor cutting himself off and denying things that she would not have wasted a thought one, if he hadn't denied them unnecessarily. Jack obviously knew things and suddenly it annoyed her deeply that he had not shared that when she had shared everything she knew. It would have been kind of good to know where she should not go, right?

Anyway, he now told her about one near the groundkeeper's hut. Opeila's eyes widened. She had been in the freaking forest with Persephone. Hell could have happened, but if they were on the grounds as well... Opeila's trips to the lake would end now it seemed. "Two covens? What makes you think that? Did the hag talk to you?", she asked him, her voice as well lowered.

Adonis' jokingly meant comment unsettled her further. "Hags look like old witches though, don't they? Not like students...", she said, her gaze wandered throught the hall, over the benches. She had to think logically.
Adonis agreed with her comment on the scolding over the events. Opeila nodded. "I assume the ball was the bigger harm..."

Adonis turned to Jack as well now, throwing a bunch of questions at him. The reaper... That one was indeed interesting. Who on earth was the reaper?
The question was answered quickly. A nickname that the other girl Jack had talked to, Martin, had given Lestrange. Understandable, his outfit at the ball had been fit for a funeral.
Hags could change shapes? This was bad...
Opeila started to make a list in her head. There were some questions she had to ask a certain professor later. She didn't involve herself in the conversation again, when Jack approached the dhampir princess prefect. Opeila did not see a reason to force herself to talk to her.

Mentioning @Santario Martin @Nico Shymane @Howard White @Persephone Barret @Caradoc Browne @Thomas Lestrange
Interacting with @Jack Burnett @Adonis Thorn

Interacting with @Alexis Asterion
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Open to Ravenclaw Interaction

Mars' head snapped up at the sudden poke to the ribs. They stared at the raven-haired witch who had tapped them, head set into arms that were anchored on the table. Mars blinked at her. She seemed elegant but then, always with that elegant, a certain air of pretentiousness. The wix tried to shake that away. Best not to make conclusions too early on. That lead to enemies. And enemies usually meant you ended up lying face down in a ditch somewhere.

The Ravenclaw copied the witch's motions, turning to look at her with their chin resting in a palm. Alexis, hmm? They racked their brain, trying to figure out if they'd seen her before. Ugh, memory was a stupid, faulty invention. Something about her was familiar, but they couldn't put a finger on it. Oh well. She was probably just a passerby they had noticed around campus.

Mars kept their lips pressed tight as they listened to her ramble commentary about the announcements. There was a bitter edge to her tone, like maybe she resented the professors for this. Deep down, Mars had to agree. Curfew felt like a cage, the impression of it already forcing feelings of sweltering heat into their lungs. But Mars had always been a logician at heart. They understood why the rules were in place and they could put their feelings aside if they had to. They could bear through it. They always had.

When the food arrive, the witch finally stopped, putting down her tirade in favor of picking up her fork. Mars let out the slightest hint of a pressed smirk, all hollow disbelief and no usual snark. They picked up their fork too, dragging it through the food on their plate like it was mush and not someone of the best stuff they'd ever tasted. Bad news always came with a bitter taste.

"You done with that rant?" they muttered under their breath. Snapping their head up again, they winced. That wasn't meant to be rude but—well, whatever. They pulled their fork across the plate again.

"Mars," they uttered, as if that could be some form of apology. The clink of silverware and hushed voices was broken by a boy screaming about—something. Mars wasn't paying much attention. The thoughts swirled in their head, all leading back to the holes they had in their memory. Ugh. It was getting annoying. How hard was it to get answers in this massive—Mars sneaked
a glance back up at Alexis. Oh. They finally halted the movements of the fork, took a deep breath, and looked properly at the witch.

"Mars T'ien. Sorry, was a bit lost in thought. I don't know anything about Lear beyond rumors, Hags sound cool but kind of disgusting, they probably won't let us wander around considering they're putting all these rules up in the first place, expulsion is probably better than death, and the idea of curfew makes me want to strangle something," they fired off in rapid succession. Let it never be said that they weren't listening. They just didn't really feel like interrupting her while she was going. But now, maybe she could give them some answers.

"Can I ask you something?" they prodded, spearing a piece of chicken with their idle fork, "I didn't go to the Halloween ball. What happened with the race-baiting? And who is that guy?" they pointed the chicken to the man seated at the professor's table. Hopefully, Alexis would have some answers.

Interacting With: @Caradoc Browne

In all honesty, she was not entirely sure that she knew how to explain it. His clean shaven face was more what she was accustomed to. It was associated with the happier memories - the ones before the school started to get attacked time and time again - and the calmer times. He had stopped shaving after the incidents with the hags or some time after he realised it was potentially connected to Lear's, if she had to hazard a guess. It was associated with worrying times or a negative connotation. Perhaps it just made him look more in control, or happier or calmer or in a better mental state. There was no real answer to his question, it was just something she thought was more him.

Luckily, she did not have to actually answer it. She internalised for a few moments and that was enough for the badger to continue to talk. Of course it was. That was their relationship, in fairness. She had spent the past year thinking whilst he actually spoke. There were times where she thought she had told him something, she could have sworn that she had... Only to find out that she had internalised the entire response whilst he was rambling on.

Hjørdis sipped her juice. Smirking slightly at his comment, "Mhm," She responded, "And we know I'm a fan of clean things..." She replied, not actually looking at him as she teased herself a little. During one of their night patrols not too long ago, she had decided to clean the dungeons and since then, he spared no hesitation in mocking her for it. In her defense, it was utterly disgusting and she would do it again - because it was gross and icky.

The silence fell on them. It was not something she minded, not at all. She actually rather enjoyed the silence. But it was a little odd for him to be quiet. Nonetheless, she took the opportunity to continue to eat food. Her appetite was slowly getting better as she ate more food. Picking up the mug she had, which actually had juice in it, she lifted it and took a sip.

Her right hand flinched a little as she felt something against her fingers. Her body froze, almost spitting out the juice that she was drinking. Managing to swallow, she coughed a little. Her slightly widened eyes were staring into the mug. It was perhaps lucky that it was a mug, as she might have dropped it if her fingers weren't wrapped around the handle. It might have only been a moment or two but it felt a lot longer. She swallowed, as her gaze flickered a little. It started to go down but in reality, she knew what was happening. She did not need to see her hand to know. Her head turned only a little, slightly off centre as she glanced at the man next to her from the corner of her eyes.

As she was having a small internal panic, she felt his fingers locking with hers. She turned her head fully towards him as he locked his fingers with hers. Her eyes found the side of his face, staring intently at him. She searched his face for answers.

Two months ago, as they patrolled the dungeons and saw how the darkness came alive, she had given him a warning. He accidentally bumped into her and she almost blew his face up with a bombarda. She specifically told him that the next time he touched her, she could not be responsible for what might happen to him.

But attacking him - in the middle of the Great Hall with hundreds of students present, moments after they encouraged people to work together and stay safe - seemed like a bad idea. Besides, she had already humiliated him once in front of the students by punching him, over a year ago. She still felt bad for that since it was not exactly deserved. This time, it might be deserved though. Perhaps this time it would be bette- no. She knew she could not hit him. Not right now anyway. After everyone had left, however? It was free game to crucio the hell out of him.

Hjørdis was not really one for physical touch. Even her closest friends or family would rarely get a hug from her. If they initiated one, she would not kill them but she rarely would think of initiating one, even if she was trying to comfort someone. She had been hugged a few times over the years by random students and had not thrown them out of the window. There were plenty more times when she probably should have hugged a student and did not. Over the past two years, she could count how many times she had patted someone on the head or on the shoulder on one hand and pretty much all of those were in the past few months.

But for some reason, some people chose to hug her when they needed comforting. Not that she understood why. Her hands were as cold as her reputation. If you wanted warmth and comfort, she was not the person to go to. But nonetheless, people reached out to her for comfort. Perhaps this was the same thing. He needed comforting and this was his solution. Or perhaps he was trying to comfort her. She sighed softly, her intense questioning gaze relaxing. Right. That made sense. Of course. They had known each other for over a year and grown to be quite good friends. She had almost cried in front of him once. Though, he would likely never know that. But the Slytherin attack had worried her so much that she almost cried thinking about it in front of him. Hell, they had been attacked together, discovering the dangers lurking within the castle walls.

That night when she patrolled the dungeons, trying to find the source of the Slytherin attack, he offered to go with her. There was a reason that patrols were now done in pairs. If she had walked into that dungeon by herself that night, the attacks might have been successful. Having someone by your side was certainly far safer. She was glad that he came with her.

They were not alone. That was what they wanted to tell the students. The entire speech might have been about their safety, the new rules, the new instructions but... the underlining message that they all needed to take away was that they were not alone. That people cared about them and their safety. It hurt to see students like the Hufflepuff [Howard White] who was angry and hurt. These precautions they were taking might save his life but it was at the expense of his happiness. Hjørdis could only hope that the cost of their happiness was temporarily. For now though, they had to stay together. Travel in groups, watch out for each other and know that they were not alone.

And that was precisely what he was telling her.

The same applied to professors. They were also not alone. And sometimes... they just needed comfort. A few of them had been badly injured over the year to scarily close to death levels, cursed - multiple times in the case of one - and attacked. Hjørdis was lucky enough to be unscathed physically but the same was not true for all of them. And mentally, these incidents were taxing and draining on them all. The man next to her had not only been almost killed by a hag, he had also witnessed his colleagues getting attacked before hearing the screams of the students that he considered to be children and witnessing the chaos all around them. He had been cursed more than once and was still not much closer to the truth. All within a matter of a few months. It was not easy.

Her internalising felt like it lasted forever. Her mind raced faster than her heart beat. In reality, it had only been a few moments but it felt like forever. Swallowing, she carefully put the cup she was still holding down as she regained a little bit of composure and glanced back at her food. Sighing softly, she stared at her plate.

She picked up her fork again, poking it into some food from her plate, "You should eat something..." She said softly, knowing that he had not actually touched his food, before taking her own bite. Hjørdis continued to eat, as though absolutely nothing had happened.

Flash sat quietly at the dining table while the other students filtered in. He wasn’t too used to spending a long time in the Great Hall, he mostly grabbed food and ate elsewhere, either at the Hufflepuff table, the courtyard, or some other undisclosed location. Too much loud chatter really spoiled his appetite, and his active mind would seek out bits and pieces of conversation rather than pay attention to what he was eating. On this occasion however, it was mandatory, and there was no food.

The teachers each took turns describing the current situation, at least to a degree. It was good, he had come across so many other students who had no idea what the Slytherins had gone through on the night they were attacked-- even some of the Slytherins who had been fast asleep during the event were still clueless. Now at least everyone wouldn’t be so shocked when he mentioned it. It was best that everyone was informed, even if they were young students. He was a bit surprised at what he didn’t know, really. Namely, about the hags.

The Slytherins at his table were quick to take up the mantle of further discussion. Opeila and Adonis chatted a bit, with Burnett saying his own piece about the issue of the hags, mentioning he would tell the teachers what he knew before starting to chat with a few other Slytherins down the table. Adonis and Opeila seemed to have the same immediate concerns anyone would have with the new information-- that a hag was spotted on the grounds, and that hags could change shape.

How were they supposed to stop something like that? What, they were conscious magical creatures, or were they some race of sentient being? Flash didn’t realize he would need to learn so much about esoteric topics. Darius had mentioned hags a time or two, namely their penchant for eating children, but Flash had never connected that they were an actual living thing like the other creatures he mentioned, since ‘hag’ was just a common word thrown around at abrasive spinsters in the muggle world. Though, if Professor Pendrast and the others hadn’t removed them from the forest, then what could they expect next year?

Well, the Ministry had apparently been contacted about it anyway. Certainly something would be done. Well… that was what Flash wanted to believe, with all his heart, but he knew the kind of red tape rampant in the inner workings of Ministry initiatives. It would seem rather straight-forward for the Ministry to send someone out to banish some hags who seemed to be actively terrorizing students, but it wasn’t. There was due process, and not to mention office politics. Who would stretch their neck out to make a risky call, or what exactly did the heads in power think about sentient magical creatures, and their rights or motivations? Even in the hallowed halls of law and order, within still lay the court of opinions.

It wasn’t as if he could ask his brothers when he got home, this wasn’t a matter either of them would likely be a participating member in, unless the issue got shot up the ranks into the Wizengamot, where Valerius lurked. Darius, as an auror-in-training, was more concerned with dark wizards and retrieving wanted criminals for transport to Azkaban. This was more likely a matter for… the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, Flash assumed. Without their headmaster present and advocating for them, how much pressure was really being applied to the issue within those halls of bureaucracy? That, at least, was made abundantly clear to Flash through the idle talk at the dinner table. Things didn’t get done without pressure being applied. Most days everyone was happy to stick to easy, harmless work, and took the more controversial pleas and pushed them around to other people until someone was left with the hot potato.

While Opeila had glanced at him momentarily, Flash had little to nothing to add to the conversation. Despite generally only speaking when spoken to, Flash also hadn’t discovered anything that seemed useful in all his attempts. He discovered an ancient chamber for parselmouths, tried to use a magical changing room to get his hands on some fresh research material outside of the school library, but those were all meaningless. Even if he gave his theories about a cure for the spider’s bite to the teachers or nurses, they couldn’t just start experimenting on the afflicted students. He remembered the look on Bridget’s face when he told her the same-- it all seemed hopeless, honestly, which was not a realm where Flash liked to dwell. He liked to think there was a solution to everything so long as one was willing to look for it. The thought made him look back at Burnett, who had said nearly identical words to him before. He, of course, was antagonizing the older Slytherin students for some reason.

Well, also, wasn’t the Slytherins’ propensity for trying to solve problems themselves part of the problem to begin with? Opeila and Flash in particular seemed to have no patience for the cogs of the machine to turn themselves, and felt an incessant need to stick their hands in the moving machine to see what was wrong with it. Burnett must not have been too dissimilar if he was off meeting hags on the grounds. It wasn’t hard for Flash to imagine him getting himself into increasingly dire circumstances through ‘caring too much’, whether he would describe that way himself or not. While he fought to proclaim his independence from attachment to others, he often came off more as karma’s personal footman, testing people’s conviction and trying to balance the scales where they were tipping. This time he had mentioned Erin Ryan. Was there a reason she was the one with him when he saw the hag?

Besides making eye contact and clearly following along with the conversation, Flash didn’t move to open his mouth, neither before nor after the food arrived. Nothing anyone was saying needed his input, and there wasn’t much he felt could be clarified either, since Burnett seemed to want to talk things over with Madam Jensen before spreading rumors. He wouldn’t want to question him about Erin in front of everyone either, doubtful that he would get a straight answer in such a situation. He had clearly meant to say something to him about the curfew change-- but that was also a sensitive topic. Flash had been breaking the rules for over a month at that point, but now rather than the idle threat of having to clean the ballroom floor all over again, it was a threat of expulsion. A bit more dire.

If he was expelled from Hogwarts, he would surely be put into a muggle school to finish his education. A disappointment, but at least he was just one of five, so it hardly mattered. Mari had made it through the muggle system as an upstanding citizen and intelligent businesswoman, so it wasn’t like a death sentence. Still… for Flash it would be… horrifying. He could still technically use some magic, but he would never get the chance to hone the skill, or learn anything truly worthwhile. That and… he would lose the chance to grow up with the people he had come to know over the year. Opeila, Burnett, and Adonis were a few. People he would miss. Would he have to… go back to the dorms, then? At least at the start of the year, until he could chart out the prefects’ movements and find the gaps in their rounds again. Even then… wasn’t the price too great?

It wasn’t as though he could blame the professors for their decision. He likely would have made much the same under the circumstances. He trusted Madame Jensen to have their best interest in mind, from what he could tell through her behavior. Perhaps the seemingly endless comfort of his newfound bedroom was nothing but a fool’s dream to begin with. Too good to be true, as most things in his life were.

Interacting with: Literally only his own thoughts, this is the character I made and I have to live with that reality every day
Mentioning: @Opeila Seilun, @Adonis Thorn, @Jack Burnett, @Erin Ryan, Hjørdis Jensen, Elaine Pendrast
TL;DR: Flash is clearly following along with the conversation at the Slytherin table, but says nothing

interacting with N/A
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Lizzie looked down at her hands slightly as the Professors were stood at the front of the Great Hall. She felt like most of it was directed to her but it wasn't. Many people had gone to the Secret Blossom Ball and at least another ten Ravenclaws had gone into the forest with her. That really was one of the house's downfalls.

She turned her palms towards her face and pouted a bit. They were completely fine but she could still feel the pain that she had gone threw with multiple thorns digging deep into her hands along with then being ripped off of her hands. It had been such a traumatic experience. Including having her ankle nearly being burnt off of her whole body due to that Slytherin casting Incendio.

Her ankle had healed well but she sometimes woke up in the middle off the night breathing heavily with a pain of the vine and fire lingering there. She would always flinch whenever she even thought about going to move It hopping it would become more comfortable.

She quickly looked up to the mention of the Summer Cam being cancelled. She didn't even know about a Summer Camp. She was just planning to go home all together which would have been pretty boring at the least. She probably would only be sitting in her room playing her guitar practising some songs Cassie could have asked her to learn or listen to.

She looked back down at her hands and zoned out. The information did concern her. It was information everyone needed to know but she didn't want to know it. If she was hearing it then that meant that the rules were final were probably not ever going to change for the next year or so.

She closed her eyes and lifted her hands onto the Ravenclaw table. She didn't want to look at anyone. She hadn't even told Cassie that she had gone into the Forest. They probably would have been very angry at her for not telling her about something so dangerous but exciting.

She gulped as the word 'expulsion'. That was not a good word at all. If she ever got expelled from Hogwarts her parents would have been so disappointed. They probably would been her from any and all music for the next of her whole life meaning she would have to give up her dream and reach for something more in her grasp like a desk job at the Ministry. Lizzie shook her whole body at the thought of ever being stuck behind a desk all day every day. It sounded so dull.

Lizzie shook her head finally opening her eyes and daring to look towards the Professors and Head of Houses. This would defiantly be something she would not forget. The dread of knowing their freedom would be striped away from the,. It was all they deserved. It literally was their own fault for planning a Ball and going into a forbidden forest.

Suddenly, food appeared on the table. Lizzie was not hungry at all. She had lost her appetite at any mention of attacks or anything like that. She shook her head once again and placed a hand over her mouth hopping it would not lead to her throwing up.

The food look disgusting. Normally, she would start to scoff her face [nicely of course] and could go back for seconds without even having to do any exercise to stay thin. Now, she felt guilty eating and felt if she put anything in her mouth it would just come up straight away.

She stood up quickly and gulped trying to keep down her lunch. She looked around hopping no one would notice her and would just keep to themselves. She stepped out from the bench and dashed down the tables and ran out of the Great Hall moving to the closest bathroom.

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Thread Left

Interacting with @Thomas Baines
Open to Further Interactions

"I'm..I'm not sure." Callie replied a few moments after Thomas decided to spark a conversation with the young girl. Thomas was one of the people Callie spent the majority of her free time with and even to this day she wasn't entirely sure why he put up with her endless yammering. Callie knew she could be a bit of a handful, especially when her and Sylvie were together so even now the girl was convinced Thomas only put up with her out of obligation. Regardless Callie trusted and valued his opinion a great deal and was rather curious to get his perspective on things. Even if she wasn't entirely sure on her own views on the matter just yet. "It has to be serious if they're doing all of this, right? Nora seemed pretty serious and I've never known her to be a liar..." Callie stopped for a moment in thought as she pushed her food around her plate. She respected her cousin a great deal and if Nora was proposing putting such methods in place things had to be serious. As she pondered such things Callie looked over to the table where Nora sat overlooking the student populous before turning back to Thomas.

However Callie couldn't help but harbour some doubts as something felt..off and she still couldn't put her finger on what. "But I don't know..something feels weird. Like something is a bit..off you know? I didn't realise that I'd missed out on so much this year..even if it was some nasty stuff. Maybe I do spend too much time in the library after all." Callie mused whilst forcing herself to eat a stem of broccoli that lay on her plate. She didn't have much of an appetite but Callie knew she'd regret it later if she didn't at least try and eat. "Doesn't it seem a little..weird bringing in two new staff? I wonder what's going on. Maybe I'm just being a bit too suspicious."

Interacting with @Jack Burnett

As soon as she got the piece of chickenwing in her mouth she heard her name being said. The fork still between her lips, the dhampir slightly alarmed, looked over to Jack. Did she say it that loud or... Was he actually focusing on what she was saying. Her eyes carefully darted to her plate, the table and him. Putting the fork beside her and quietly pretending to wipe her mouth with a napkin, Nico cleared her throat after she swallowed.

Not sure if anyone else was following their conversation, the dhampir flashed him a soft warm smile. 'Well. Yes. Why wouldn't I be?' Many reasons. Almost too many. One of her hands slid down to her leg, gently scratching the scars. The visits to the Hospital Wing for that golden liquid, helped to soothe the pain but it never really fully dissapeared. What would her parents say if they saw her with those? They'd be writing the Professors and House Heads like maniacs, most likely. In the owl she sent both her mother and father, she only brushed over the Common room event. Nico didn't want them to worry for the entire time she'd be here.

The Prefect wasn't sure if he was putting her on the spot on purpose for others to hear and see. The dhampir recently chose to keep a low profile since her presence usually was unwanted or a sign of so-called abuse of power. For now she'd lay back to get her own mindset straight. She'd still do her best to do her job and... avoided most interactions with her peers unless absolutely necesarry or... when she knew she could trust them. Jack was one of those she felt she could trust to some extend. The few times they ran into one another, he was one of the few people who didn't saw her as one to abuse power and was fair to others. If the rest didn't like the way she handled things well... Wait until year three, everyone.

Interacting with: @Callie Jensen

Open to further interactions

Thomas heard her out, intermittently taking bites of his food as he did so, which may have conveyed a lack of interest in what she was saying. In sharp contrast, he was listening quite intently! It was just Thomas' typically disaffected demeanor shining through, which often made him seem abnormally apathetic. Attempting to seem more engaged, he occasionally nodded along with her words as they came, but it may have appeared as a dismissive or condescending gesture. His people skills left an awful lot to be desired, after all...

As Callie admitted to experiencing a similar feeling--an offness that was hard to describe--Thomas visibly perked up. He nodded, with more enthusiasm than he'd openly expressed in weeks in all likelihood. Lowering his voice, as if the ambient chatter of the Great Hall wasn't already drowning him out, he responded to Callie's question. "Gosh, yeah. Feels like they're hiding something from us. Seems stupid," he said, without a shred of irony in his tone. Bold words for a literal twelve-year-old boy, but ones that would be spoken nonetheless. "There's obviously something going on. How are we meant to help, or even defend ourselves, if we don't fully understand it? Keeping information from us could get us hurt, and all of these measures to keep us safe seem like they're just going to make people relax. We have to keep alert..."

Sighing, the Ravenclaw boy cast a disparaging glance to the staff table, before looking back at Callie to continue his spiel. "Those hags in the forest caught us by surprise. That's why people got hurt," Thomas said, firmly. It may have sounded like he was in denial... Perhaps even a twinge of guilt was in his tone. "If we would have known what we were getting into, things would have been different. With the professors keeping us in the dark and hiring more people to keep watch over us, things aren't going to be better. They're all going to get much, much worse. Heck, they're restricting our curfews and such to make sure we can't read up on too much..." Thomas was convinced it was all some sort of conspiracy, and he wouldn't be swayed from such beliefs easily.

[font=book antiqua]

@Phaedra Stavrou @Bloom Silverton

Hearing the nickname, Dymphna turned to see Bloom sitting nearby. It had been a long while since they spoke and even longer since their meeting at the Great Lake with Reid. She wondered if the two were still close, as she and Bloom had drifted over the years, starting sometime when it was revealed that Ben was the one in the mask. Were they still together? She hadn’t seen him around much either.

“I don’t mind it, actually,” Dymphna replied with a shrug. If Bloom didn’t know what happened at the Masquerade Ball already, she didn’t know if she would be able to tell her. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to or that she didn’t trust her, but talking about it was difficult. She didn’t exactly remember everything, and relied on others accounts to piece everything together. “If students don’t follow the new rules, there should be consequences. Maybe even expulsion.” She realized the irony of her statement, but the few times she broke the rules weren’t intentionally harming anyone. Knowing the school, something could have happened and she’d been lucky.

Secret meetings were another thing entirely. The blonde sighed at Phaedra’s words. “I hope so. It’s nice to be back, even if things are changing. It’s probably for the best.” Or so she hoped. Only time would tell. A change of topic was in order. All around them were murmurs about the rule changes, most complaints and it was bringing down the usually happy mood in the Great Hall. “So, how’ve you been, Bloom? You’ve met Phaedra, right?” It was almost impossible not to at least have heard of the Prefect but it felt impolite to not introduce her.