Search for the Missing ... Newt?

[Brenton Douglas]

This was not good. No, this was not good at all.

Rushing around a corner, Brenton looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was actually watching him before he stared pulling books off shelves, hurriedly placing them back, looking on the shelf above, the shelve below. There was no way it could've gone far. With as small as the thing was, just how in the world could it really get away quickly? The only solution was it had to be somewhere in the library, amongst the shelves, or the tables, or the chairs. It was somewhere in there. The last place Brenton had it, which was only two, maybe three tops, minutes prior.

The day wasn't very nice out, it was raining, cold, and dreary, so Brenton opted to go to the library and just hang out. His plan was to test his new broom, he didn't want Claire to think of him too much as a fool when he had to show off for her, but in order to not look like a fool, he had to be able to actually fly. Thankfully, their flying lessons Brent always managed to play ill or something and only had to attend one class, which was a bummer class anyway and hadn't had to really fly.

But that was neither here nor now. What mattered at the moment was Archimedes was missing.

"Archimedes!" Brenton whispered loudly amongst the volumes of books. Somewhere in the depths of this library, his double-ended newt was hiding, running, and alone. But where was he?

((Hannah/Isabella/Jeremy))

[hannah]

Being the Ravenclaw that she was, Hannah was in the library, this time to actually study and to not play hooky like she had the last time. Transfiguration notes out in front off her, her wand on the desk, Hannah was practicing her lesson from last term, the failed attempt at turning a button to a beetle.

The task was turning out to be a hard one as well. The young Ravenclaw just could not turn the small button to a beetle, with the best being so far was one creepy crawly leg sticking out from a small button. Hannah sighed, Transfiguration was turning out to be harder than she thought and it was going to take her most of the day to perfect her current task.

Small ears pricked up however, when she heard a familiar voice who sounded like he had just sneezed. Brown eyes looking up from her button that was trying to crawl with one leg, Hannah looked around but couldn't find the face to the sneeze. Leaving her desk and her button, Hannah walked down the corridor and turned the corner, finally spotting the face to the familiar sneeze. "Brenton!" Hannah exclaimed, just a little too loudly but happy to see the slytherin boy.

"Oh!, bless you!" Hannah grinned at Brenton, forgetting her manners as she remembered to bless Brenton from his sneeze, or however that went.

[Jeremy Taylor]

Jeremy had been stalking... er, following... Hannah most of the afternoon, doing a pretty good job at staying inconspicuous. Perhaps his story to Brenton the other day in class had come true. The small Ravenboy really had become a spy and was now an expert at tailing people.

When she ducked into the library, Jeremy followed, setting himself up at a table with a clear view of the door and most of the shelves. If Hannah left, he'd know and follow. And maybe... just maybe, he'd get the nerve to accidentally "bump" into her.

He glared over the top of his book as she crossed paths with Brenton. It figured that his best mate would try and steal his girl... not that he liked Hannah like that or anything. Hannah was just a dumb girl after all. Jeremy stewed over this, not even noticing that his book was upside down.

[Isabella Huntington]

"Stupid staircase," Izzy grumbled as she stormed into the library. The first year had been on her way to the Great Hall when one of the many staircases had suddenly changed on her, leading her to the second floor instead of the first. Never in a million years had she expected something like that to happen, but now that she thought about it... she never expected a swamp to appear out of thin air in the entrance hall, either. That had given all of the first years quite a scare, and Izzy was one of the fortunate few who had managed to get away from the muck before it had a chance to stain her robes.

That had certainly been a memorable night, one that didn't make Izzy feel any better about being away from her friends and from her real life. It was bad enough that she was in a completely unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people living an unfamiliar lifestyle; she didn't need any pranks, whether they're by other students or by the castle itself, played on her.

Her green eyes took only seconds to land on a boy sitting at one of the tables, reading a book upside down. Izzy raised an eyebrow, slightly amused at the odd sight, then decided to approach him. She needed to figure out how to get down to the ground floor, and she probably wouldn't be able to do that without someone else's help. Of course, this "someone else" was reading a book upside down, but it was still worth a try.

Izzy approached the boy and leaned in toward him from across the table. "Uh... excuse me," she said, trying to get his attention. "D'ya think you can help me find a way down to the Great Hall? The staircase changed on me and now I can't figure out how to get down," she said as her cheeks flushed a very light pink from embarrassment.

[Brenton Douglas]

"Archimedes!" Brenton shouted in a whisper. He didn't know if double-ended newts came when called, or if they could even learn their own names, but he needed to find his pet. The one time he let the thing out of its plexi-glass container and it slips away in the first hour. At least he knew he had it while in the library. Brenton had been sitting at his own desk and slipped Archimedes out of his robe pocket and let him crawl around on the table while he tried studying. And when he realized he needed another book to finish his charms essay, he put Archimedes back in his pocket and started looking for the book. But now where was the little bugger?

Rapidly pulling books from shelves and replacing them just as quickly, the Slytherin jumped when he heard his name called so close by.

"Pr--uh Hannah!" he cried out loud, happy to see his friend. He'd seen her in classes, but Jeremy had seemed a bit bummed out about their friend not really being around lately. Brent was just glad he'd caught himself before calling her Princess, as he always thought of her. It was nice to see another of his best mates, not that Jeremy wasn't enough, but the Princess sure was something else. A sight for sore eyes.

Holding his arms out quickly, he embraced the girl even quicker and stepped back just as she blessed him. But he hadn't sneezed, had he? "Uh... Thanks?" But it didn't matter, Hannah was indeed back, and she seemed as excited to see him as he was to see her. "How are you? Holidays and all? I didn' know you were really even back. I mean, I though' I saw you in classes, but I wasn' really sure. And Jeremy, he's been sulkin' abou' somethin' or other."

{Hannah let me know if that's not ok}

[hannah]

Welcoming the hug from Brenton, Hannah wrapped her own arms around the boy, a slight shade of pink coloring her otherwise pale face. Feeling a bit awkward about the hug and all, Hannah too, quickly stepped out of the his arms, her blush probably now even more so evident on her face. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy getting hugs from Brenton, he was her friend after all, it just felt awkward, for some strange reason.

"Jeremy's been sulking?" Hannah asked Brenton, the young Ravenclaw saw the other boy in classes briefly, but she had yet to have a proper chat with him since she arrived back. Then again, Hannah wasn't too surprised that Jeremy had been sulking about something, most times he was grumpy about something.

"Maybe he's just tired?" Hannah suggested to Brenton, frowning slightly with this new information. Maybe later she'd catch up with Jeremy and find out what was wrong with him. "I'm a bit tired, but otherwise good" Hannah told Brenton, giving him another smile, trying to forget about Jeremy for the meantime.

"Holidays were okay... Oh! I didn't come back until last night, my family and I had delays at Kings Cross and missed the train" Hannah didn't elaborate on why she had been delayed at the train station, she didn't want Brenton to know that she was gullible. "How about you? How have you been?" Hannah asked Brenton, trying to get the conversation off of her for awhile. Really, no one had to know that she was gullible, it was going to be her little secret.

[Jeremy Taylor]

Jeremy's attention was taken by a red-headed girl and he looked away from the lovey-doves, Brenton and Hannah to look at whoever had spoken to him. She was about his age, but still, Jeremy was sure she was only going to cause him trouble.

"You can't. It's impossible," he answered seriously, looking at her with wide eyes, wondering if she'd believe him. It was doubtful. He wasn't that good of a liar. Nonetheless, he tried to keep it going. "I've been stuck up here for a year now, but if you figure it out, let me know." When she did figure it out, Jeremy planned to be far far away where this girl couldn't hit him.

[Isabella Huntington]

For a second, Izzy almost took him seriously. It had certainly seemed impossible to the Gryffindor, as she saw no other staircases that led to the first floor. However, part of her knew that there had to be another way down. As the students had classes to attend, surely the Hogwarts staff wouldn't tolerate them missing lessons because of uncooperative staircases. Maybe there was an elevator somewhere... or perhaps not. This was the wizarding world, after all. Not her world.

Izzy narrowed her eyes at the Ravenclaw boy, not taking any amusement in his joking around. She stood silently, almost as if she was waiting for him to say more, to actually make himself helpful, but she got nothing. So she let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine," she said. "Thanks for nothing." Then she proceeded to walk away, toward two other students that she could see in the library, but stopped herself and turned around.

Resuming the position she had been in earlier, she leaned back on the table toward the boy. "You might want to turn your book around," she suggested. "Unless, that is, you have some kind of magical power that allows you to read upside down." She wasn't completely sure if there was a power that did such a thing, but she doubted it, as she had never seen her mother do it at home. She flashed a smile to the Ravenclaw, tapped her fingers on the table twice, and left him behind.

She crossed the room and wandered down one of the aisles toward a couple of students who looked to be about her age, maybe a little older. "Excuse me," she said, just like she had earlier. "I'm having a little trouble making it down to the Ground Floor. The staircase changed on me and I can't find another way... Do you know of one?"

[Brenton Douglas]

The hug was returned and it made the smile on Brenton's face bigger, but he made sure to keep his lips tightly pressed, as always. He hadn't meant to hug her, it just kind of happened. She was his friend and a Princess, plus, she was a girl, girl's liked hugs. Brent was just glad Jeremy wasn't around, that he could see. Then again, without his glasses he couldn't see too much. But it was a nice feeling he got when Hannah hugged him back, at least she didn't push him back into the shelf behind him. She could've done it.

"Yea, I don' know wha's up with him, bu' he's been real sulky," Brenton confided. But he nodded his head when Hannah suggested maybe their mate was just tired. The days had been long the last couple of them. It could've been. But he was sulking more than last year, too. Maybe it came with turning twelve.

Looking curiously at his friend, he wondered why they'd missed the train. She knew it took off exactly at eleven, didn't she? And her parents, they had to know, too. Before he had a chance to ask her about it, she was asking about his holidays and all, which were pretty cool. He got to see Claire, and met a new first year, Sydney. She was getting close to being a Princess in his mind too, but of course, he'd never tell anyone that for a long time.

"It was good," he smiled happy at the girl. "I was in Digaon quite a bi', I hoped t' see ya or Jeremy, bu' didn' see either of ya." He'd been disappointed about that. Maybe he should've gotten an owl and not complained about them being so plain, but they were good for sending letters to people. And before he got the chance to even tell Hannah about his new pet or the broom he'd gotten, a cute red head showed up asking how to get down the Ground Floor.

What floor were they on again? The second, Brenton was sure. But he didn't know if there was another staircase. He once found a tapestry that had a doorway behind it and that had a slide that took you down to the first floor. It was pretty neat, but he'd gotten a bad hit on his noggin the year before.

"Yea, I can tell ya," Brent said with a small smile. "But firs', ya need t' help me with something firs'." Helping hand for another? He could get her down to the Ground Floor, but he didn't want to leave Hannah just yet, and he still needed to find Archimedes.

[hannah]

Those staircases were really tricky sometimes, but the young Ravenclaw still thought of them as a show ride. Hannah liked to stay on the staircases and let them swing back and forth until they sorted themselves right, until they got to the floor she needed to get off on. Hannah's dark blond head looked at Brenton curiously, she wondered what his way down to the ground floor was.

The young Ravenclaw was also wondering what Jeremy's problem was and was starting to think that it might've been her. During classes, Hannah got the distinct feeling that Jeremy wasn't happy to see her back, the classes that she had been in with him, she only got a scowl or a glare from him. By now, Hannah was used to that and figured that was probably Jeremy's standard greeting. That, or he really wasn't happy to see her back.

Trying to rid her mind of thoughts of Jeremy, Hannah returned back to Brenton and the new girl that showed up inquiring about the fun staircases. The young Ravenclaw had seen the girl in some of her classes, having been forced to have classes with the first years sometimes, but the girl seemed all right. "Hi, my names Hannah" Hannah introduced herself to the other girl, giving her a smile before turning back to Brenton.

"I'll help too, if you need me to" Hannah offered, all the while thinking of her button with the one beetle leg and wondering if it was still on the table or not. The girl didn't really want it to drop off the table and onto the floor, it was the only button she had to practice on.

[Jeremy Taylor]

Jeremy made a face at her, sticking his tongue out, only to pull it back in when she turned around to tease him about his book. Stupid girl. Maybe he was deciphering secret messages that dumb girls would never figure out and the only way to do it properly was to hold the book upside down. Yeah, in fact, Jeremy thought that was exactly what he had been doing. "Shows how much you know!" the second year called out after her. "I am a wizard after all... duh!"

But then she left and Jeremy sulked even more. He had actually been thinking it was kind of neat to mess with her. The red-head wandered over to those traitors Brenton and Hannah and Jeremy started trying to figure out a way to get them back when something crawled over his foot. he let out a loud yelp and fell backwards on his chair with a crash.

[Isabella Huntington]

It took a few minutes for her to realize it, but Izzy was standing in front of a Ravenclaw and a Slytherin. She suddenly felt somewhat wary of the boy whose accents on his robes were green and silver, as she hadn't heard very nice things about the house. Some said that Slytherin had a few bad apples every year, while others said right out that it was a foul house with foul students who should be avoided at all costs. Izzy thought that the latter seemed somewhat extreme, but she definitely decided to take it into consideration. She would, of course, make the decision herself, but it couldn't hurt to keep others' advice in mind until then.

But then the Slytherin smiled and agreed to help her out, and the lioness couldn't help but flash him a small smile in turn. So far, the two actions of the boy appeared to have no bad intentions behind them. Maybe the house of the serpent did have some good guys in it. However, Izzy wasn't ready to make that final conclusion just yet. He had asked for some help as well, and Tianne's advice was still fresh in her mind: "...watch out for some of the older kids, I know they've got quite a few tricks up their sleeves," the Ravenclaw prefect had said.

"Okay," Izzy responded, somewhat reluctantly with a hint of uncertainty in her voice. "What do you need help with?"

And then the Ravenclaw girl spoke up, introducing herself as Hannah. She seemed friendly enough, and once again, Izzy found herself smiling. "Izzy," she responded, then went silent, waiting for the boy to answer her question, but not before hearing a yelp and a loud crash.

The Gryffindor instantly spun around, toward where the sound had come from. No longer was the boy she had been talking to earlier at the table; instead he was on the floor. Izzy glanced back at the Slytherin and Ravenclaw before cautiously making her way over to the boy who had teased her just minutes ago. "Powers to read upside down but no powers to defy gravity?" she asked as she looked down at him. "I thought you were a wizard," she said, getting back at him.

[Brenton Douglas]

When Hannah introduced herself, Brenton felt he could've kicked himself. A Prince was supposed to introduce themselves to fair maidens, though, he didn't know if this one was one or if she was something else. Either way, a good Prince was supposed to introduce who they were and then ask for a favor in return. Oh well, he'd have to remember that for next time. But at least Hannah was smart enough to catch up on it and be the good person in this particular conversation.

"Brenton," he announced proudly with another smile for the girl. Hannah, Brenton, and Izzy? That was an odd name, usually something reserved for the evil witches, but the redhead didn't look too evil to him. And the fact both girls were willing to help him with Archimedes was even better. The more eyes with good sight looking for him, the better and the more likely they'd be to find the newt quicker.

"I los' my pe'," he quickly explained to the Princess with a close-liped smile as always. "I know we're no' supposed t' have anything bu' cats, owls, and toads, but I bough' myself a double-ended newt this summer and I kind of, well, I los' him in here. I had him two seconds ago, bu' I don' know where he go' t'."

Brenton thought it was a pretty fair trade off to the redhead, she helps him and in return he'd help her find the other way down, either that or the staircases would be back to normal by the time they'd found Archimedes. But before he could keep going there was a crashing kind of sound that followed a yelp he almost thought he knew. And when Izzy moved just slightly, Brenton squinted and was pretty sure that was Jeremy on the floor.

Glancing back at Hannah, Brent shrugged, not sure what Jeremy was on the floor, but following the redhead anyway and tring not to think about Rose Red from his fairy tale book. And when he got lcose enough to the two, he had to hold back a snort of laughter. He wasn't sure what got the cute redhead up in a fuss, but her telling Jeremy off like that was sure funny.

"Hiya mate," Brent greeted his friend with a slight smile. "Why're ya on the floor?" Yea, he really had to try hard not to laugh and his face was likely contorted oddly.

[hannah]

Brenton had a double-ended newt as a pet? a real newt and not just a stuffed animal of one? That was really cool, the Ravenclaw girl was sure those were the creatures that had two heads at each end. Hannah didn't think they actually existed, not having seen one for herself before, bar the pictures she had seen in books, but she was excited that they did and couldn't wait to have a look at it. The young Raven couldn't really see no harm in Brenton having one at the castle either, she herself had a puffskien and they weren't allowed in the castle and she somehow smuggled it in unnoticed by the Heads of the school.

It was only when Brenton said that he had lost his pet that Hannah got a bit concerned. A double-ended newt running around the school probably wouldn't be good, especially if the animal bit someone. Hannah was about to ask Brenton where he had last saw his pet in the library, when she too, heard a familiar voice of a yelp. The young Raven knew that the voice belonged to Jeremy and Hannah followed after Brenton to where he and the Gryffindor girl she had just met were standing.

Hannah heard the last words from the girl about Jeremy being a Wizard and confusion started to spread across her face. It was fact that he was, along with Brenton and most of the boys in their class, so Hannah didn't know where the other girl was coming from when she said that. The young Raven found it odd too, when Brenton asked Jeremy why he was on the floor for, and it was only when she stood her tiptoes did she Jeremy on the floor.

Hannah's brown eyes did spot something crawling away from Jeremy that looked like the newts she had seen in books while she stood on her tiptoes looking at Jeremy. That could've explained why he was on the floor and the dark blond girl sneaked through Brenton and Izzy with outstretched hands, only to find herself falling onto the floor near the chair that Jeremy had fallen backwards on, but coming up empty handed with nothing except for dust.

"Little bugger" Hannah said to herself, coughing a bit from the dust while she tried to turn herself right instead of having her face still on the dusty floor.

[Jeremy Taylor]

Well, that just about did it. Not only did that rude girl tease him when he was obviously injured, quite possibly with a concussion or internal bleeding, but then Brenton the Back-Stabber takes her side and makes fun of him as well.

And then the cruelest cut of all-- Hannah point blank called him a mean name. He already knew he was short, and while he wasn't exactly sure what a bugger was, he didn't think it was very nice to be called one.

"For your information," Jeremy spat back, glaring at the three of them as he tried to think of a good excuse for why he was on the floor. Unfortunately, he couldn't so he went with his next best option. "You guys are all just stupid!"