( Oh noo! Sorry about the fish! :c I've heard very mixed opinions about petsmart, mostly negative though. :c )

[img align=left]https://i.imgur.com/nBNbztm.png[/img]Though Elizabeth had been feeling sorry for Zoe, Callista's () words just clarified what she was thinking. She lowered her voice, though. "Lower standards, it seems.", she added. It was difficult to decide. Either way, it wasn't a nice way to approach someone with dirty clothes...but then, both girls had had different upbringings and backgrounds. She sighed and leaned closer to one of the picnic baskets. "One cuppa please. Earl Grey. With some milk.", she said to it. A few moments passed and the basket began to shake slightly. Elizabeth lifted the lid and took her cup of tea from the basket. Delighted, she wrapped her quite cold hands around the warm mug and sniffed the rich smell of black tea.

(OOC: Wow! so much happened while I was at work!)

Lily tilted her head to the side when Jona () spoke of being an animagus, but before she could ask any questions a cute dog came over and licked Zoe. () She pet the dog with a glad smile and waved to Paddy () "Hi I'm Lily, your dog is adorable." She hadn't even really noticed Paddy's appearance, strangely and it didn't bother her. Zoe got up to speak to another group of people.

Being new in the wizarding world, she didn't quite understand everything but she felt bad for Zoe. The other girl wouldn't even shake her hand..."How rude..." she whispered to herself. When Zoe was escorted back by sauvage, who she was excited to hear was french, she didn't quite know what to say. She rubbed Zoe's arm, but didn't want to impose. She had just met Zoe afterall.

Jona smiled over at Lily (), happy to see that not only was he not Zoe's only friend, but that all his friends seemed to be becoming friends with one another. Hopefully, that's how Zoe () saw it, too.

(I’ve asked Mary and Bennet about cleaning the clothing since I’m not 100% sure. I’ll get back to you on that one. Thanks. I’ve never had much problems before but then I haven’t had fish in a long time. At least they’ve offered to replace my water conditioner as well as the two lost fish. Needa wait till I can get the ammonia down first though.)

Zoe spared a glance over to the Slytherin girls. It appeared Elizabeth () was having a spot of tea now. She had no idea what she and Callista were talking about but she could guess. She turned her attention to Jona. () Her face contorted into a frown. She felt a dagger in her heart as Jona started talking. “I…do nee need ye to look out for me like that. I’m sorry ye feel that way,” Zoe said in a soft voice calm voice. “I was upset in the great hall because Fade () was mocking me. It’s the first time I ever asked anyone to help me or do anything with me at all. I told ye, I’ve never had a friend before. I barely talk to anyone. Most people who talk to me want me to leave so they can sit where I was. I am used to being ignored, but outright coldness? Never had that before. I do nee think that’s being sensitive. And I’d rather ye think of me as a friend than as yer my dog or that its yer job to make me happy. Ye do nee have to be a friend to me. I have my books and my pets.” She paused. Maybe her mum was right, maybe she should get a raven. They can could talk and sing and play with her—even deliver the mail, not that she got much. “I like ye. Ye are sweet and nice and cute enough to want to pinch yer wee cheeks—but if ye think of me as a job, then I do nee think I’m friend material.” She didn’t sound upset. She didn’t want to lose the friend but she wanted him to want to be there and to like her—not out of pity.

Zoe gave Lily a little smile, unsure of what to say. She seemed to be making a mess of everything. It was sweet of her to make the effort to comfort her, though the she wasn't sure why.

((ooc: Sorry for the wait everyone. I was on the phone and trying to read through all the posts. I will probably not be fast at responding tonight as I have a lot of paperwork to get done. Thanks so much for waiting for me though!! and everyone))

Drew grinned and waved back to Callista (). “Let me grab a bit to eat and I’ll come over,” he called. Glancing at the menu again, he saw a small white ball of fluff dart pass and Dodger gave a yip and whined at his master, clearly wanting to go play. Drew petted his head and said, “In a bit, Dodge. See, your potential friend has been captured anyway.”

He watched Zoe() get up and go over to the Slytherin group and shook his head slightly at the sight of the disheveled girl. Returning his attention to the menu, Drew had been in the process of ordering his meal when the words had died on his lips. He watched, eyes wide, as the altercation between Zoe and Lenore () broke out. Half-standing, he was ready to intervene…and do what he had no idea…but Sauvage ()beat him to it. In truth Drew was glad of that fact, even if he didn’t agree with all that she said or did. He felt so torn. A stab of hurt made him wonder if Lenore saw him as not good enough as well since he was a half-blood, but at the same time she’d always been friendly to him and house loyalty surged up in him. He watched with a sigh as she left on her broom, but Drew could well relate to the feeling of just getting away from a situation. He hoped he’d have a chance to talk to her in the common room soon, if not before.

Dodger gave a woof of welcome as Fade() made his way over and Drew smiled to see a familiar and friendly face. “Hey, Fade,” he greeted. “Yeah you missed something all right. I guess you could say its part of the age old problem …pureblood and those who aren’t. Zoe and Lenore were going for each other’s throats verbally, only from my perspective I think it was more the idea of pureblood that was being attacked rather than vice versa like in the past. Sauvage broke it up and Lenore took off. I hope she’ll be alright.”

Just as he finished his explanation something came flying his way. Dodger barked and then sniffed it to investigate if it happened to be edible. Drew frowned and picked up the Head Girl badge and looked over at Zoe. Great, now I’ve been tossed into the middle of things…literally Drew thought to himself. While he knew the plan behind the picnic was to mingle with others from different houses he’d be just as satisfied to sit and chat with Fade. He was from a different house after all! Looking down at his own badge and then Zoe’s, Drew sighed and stood up. “Let’s go, Dodge,” he said quietly to his dog.

Giving Fade a smile, he said, “You’d have been proud of the way Sauvage handled things. Maybe you oughta go tell her, or at least talk to her. I’m pretty sure she’s a bit shaken up right now too. She needs someone…like you.” He didn’t really want to leave Fade but nudging Fade toward Sauvage helped calm Drew down a bit. He gave his friend a quick smile and then excused himself.

Going over to Zoe’s group, Dodger at his heels, he said quietly, “Seems you lost something.” He held out the Head Girl badge. “Or maybe a Wrackspurt got into you somehow.”

Outfit Not Found

"I don't know where the problem is, though." Callista sighs. "It's magic that Muggles don't know about, not soap. I've been in lots of Muggle areas while travelling, to be perfectly honest, and that isn't usual. I don't think any of our prefects would have ever let us outside the doors of Slytherin looking like that, but...nobody's tried to, either. My family's pretty big, I probably would have just asked her to wash her hands first because we were eating, like I would with one of the baby cousins, but...if somebody called my parents Death Eaters, I don't know what I would do."

She finishes eating her fish. If she doesn't, Sabrina will, and the fish is fine, but Sabrina doesn't need all the batter and oil it was fried in. "This was so perfect, I really wanted fish and chips, I don't know why."

((OOC: I am so sorry about your fishie.))

"No, no, no, no!" Jona shook his head in his hands while mumbling the words. "See, I knew what I said came out wrong." He took a deep breath and grabbed Zoe by the shoulders; to be honest he was getting tired of having to cheer her up, but he couldn't very well just leave her like Sauvage had. "Look see here, my uncle when he took me in I was, well, I was pretty messed up. I had a lot of family stuff happen and I kinda hurt someone in the family and that's how I discovered that I had magic. It scared the beejizus out of my mom and bro and when my uncle heard about it, he immediately bought me a plane ticket to Scotland - his partner is a wizard and so he knew about my situation. For a whole year after coming to Scotland, I was anger at myself and scared of what I could do and I refused to make any friends because, well, I figured I'd hurt 'em, too. My Uncle Jon, he noticed this but he tried not to pry until just before I left for Hogwarts. I told you my uncle is a vet, right? Well, the best way he could put it when he sat me down was this: Jona, you are a crazy loveable kid when you let yourself be one." At this, Jona blushed because it started to feel like he was praising himself and that wasn't what he was going for. "He said, what you need to find is a friend that lets you spoil them with your unconditional love and that lets you support them no matter who is to blame. Jona, your best assets as a friend are also the best assets of a dog and when you find a friend that makes you want to be a dog, well, then you better hold on to them." At that, Jona realized he was still literally holding on to Zoe so he dropped his hands awkwardly and began twiddling his thumbs to give them something to do. "So, even though you keep trying to give me an out, Zoe, my uncle told me that I can't just give that kinda friendship up." Jona smiled, a glimmer of that unconditional love twinkling in his eyes. He glanced up at Lily and nodded to her as well to signal that he included her in this monologue, though he didn't say anything out loud.

Then Jona looked up suddenly because that cocky Slytherin boy () was standing over them.

((OOC: no worries. Hope the paperwork is mildly entertaining. Also, sorry to hear baout your fish - hopefully peeps at the pet store will offer a reasonable solution))

Maybe she was wrong with how she handled Lenore? She sighed with her head swimming with thoughts. Maybe she should just leave so everyone else could enjoy and they could forget about her. Maybe it was better that way? Then Jona grabbed her by the shoulders and spilled out the events that brought him to Scotland. She was rather rendered speechless. “I’m sorry about what happened,” she said with feeling. “Yer uncle seems nice and wise. Ye put it that way and I-I guess I will try my best to be a friend ye deserve.”

When Drew arrived she gave him a light smile. “It is nee lost anymore, since ye found it,” she said. “Thank ye.”

(( thanks <3))

"Phew," Jona said when Zoe seemed to have finally gotten rid of her negative cloud. He sat back on his heels and watched the Slytherin () give Zoe back her badge. "Hm. Maybe you shoulda been a Hufflepuff since you're so good at finding. Have you come to confess how amazing Hufflepuffs actually are, especially when compared to Slytherins." Jona's tone was mocking and playful, but a bird inside him flutter its wings and cast a shadow of doubt. After what just happened between Zoe and that other girl, was it too early to be teasing?

Zoe took out a piece of parchment from her bag and a quill and wrote in her neatest penmanship.

Lenore: I am sorry for reacting badly. I shouldn't have said what I did. It was very wrong of me. ~Zoe

She folded the note and sealed it with a touch of her wand. "One more moment..." She cleaned her clothing, she had gotten some looks but honestly--she was out side, why ruin good clothes? Then she headed up to Elizabeth. "Would ye please give this to Lenore when ye see her? I'm sorry to have caused a scene." She was bright red and quickly retreated.

Back at her group's blanket she said, "I think I'd like to go for the swim soon,"

[img align=left]https://sapi.subeta.net/shared/370274.png[/img] "HECK YEAH!!" Jona jumped up and unhitched his overalls, kicking them off and tripping in the process. He grabbed his backpack and ripped it open to spill an assortment of frisbees and balls all of over the ground, along with one paperback novel. "Let's do this! You -" He swiveled round and pointed at Drew. "I bet I can hold my breath under the water longer than you!" He laughed as if they'd already had the contest and he'd proven his superiority in lung capacity. "Lily, let's go find that squid!" He shouted then turned back to Zoe. "Ever wanted a giant squid added to that pet circus of yours?"

Drew gave Zoe a little smile in return and shook his head. “No, it’s not,” he agreed. “I’d say it’s back where it belongs.”

As the younger boy began to jeer about how great Hufflepuffs were, Drew was tempted to say something rude, but he held back. He’s only a little kid…annoying but younger than you, he reminded himself. “Nah, I don’t think I’d make a good Puff,” he said to Jona. “They have to be nice. And I’m not. I’ll just stay with the best house…the one I’m in.”

Zoe mentioned swimming and Drew started to head back to his own blanket, his job done now. He gave the little girl…Lily he’d heard Zoe and Jona call her…a wink as he passed. She was a cute kid and seemed nice and quiet.

At Jona’s challenge, he shook his head. “You’d win, no doubt. Better lung capacity with all that hot air you seem to have. Good luck proving it to the squid though when he pulls you under,” he said with a bit of a smirk. With a soft whistle for Dodger, the Slytherin turned for his spot. Maybe he could get some food and relaxation if Zoe was taking her little group to swim.

Was is wrong that he felt a bit relieved? This was supposed to be a fun thing for all the houses to be doing. So far it sounded like everyone was having a rough time putting their differences aside. Despite feeling better, Fade still wore a frown. From what little he knew about his mother’s past, her elitist pure-blood family had practically declared war on her for choosing to be with a non-magical man. The topic was touchy at best, and it sort of hurt Fades heart that the same issue was still a thing people got upset over.

Drew went to return Zoe’s pin, and Fade turned to follow after Sauvage. He approached quietly and leaned over so she could see him before he started talking. “Hey.” He tossed his sketchbook down on the blanket and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Would say it’s a nice day, but it feels kinda cold out here right now.” A small smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth for a moment, but faded fast. “Wana talk about it?” He wasn’t going to push her, it wasn’t exactly a topic he wanted to discuss. But if it would make her feel better he didn’t really care how it made him feel. Anything to see her smile, or hear her laugh. ()

"Hmph." Jona was a bit disgruntled that the other boy () so easily shook him off, but he didn't let it bother him too much. They were about to going swimming after all! "Last one in the water is a Slytherin!" He shouted as he ran and laughed heartily. He honestly liked most of the Slytherins he'd met so far. At the edge of the water, Jona quickly turned back to see if the girls were following him ( )

[img align=left]https://sapi.subeta.net/shared/368811.png[/img] At the moment Fade came up, Sauvage laughed unexpectedly. She smiled at him while shaking her head in disbelief. "You know, I was just thinking zat I should leave, trying to come up with a reason to stay and zen - poof! 'ere you are!" She resigned herself to stay and sat down on her blanket. She blew a stray hair out of her face and looked up at Fade, waiting for him to join her on the ground. "Zere is nothing really to talk about. I just want to enjoy zis day." She reached for her knitting needles.

Zoe's eyes widened at the balls and Frisbees in the bag. He definitely came prepared. She shook her head amused and flicked her wand. "Accio swimsuit." Her bikini floated towards her from the Ravenclaw tower. She did a switching spell to change her clothing and then shortened her hair a little. [img align=left]https://sapi.subeta.net/avatar/541114.png?x=1512478214[/img] She was slender with a little bit of visible muscles on her arms. The girl smiled at Jona. Ready. She looked back at Drew. "Thanks again."

She gave one more glance and ran off with Jona for the lake.

Magnus lumbered up the to the picnic area with a sleepy look. He was pale and gaunt as well. Supermoons were tougher cycles than normal moons after all and he had one more night to go. He waved to Fade with a small smile. He was pleased the other boy was finally interacting with Sauvage, whom he also waved to. Then Magnus plopped himself unceremoniously on the blanket where Drew was. "'Ey mate."

No sooner had Snowden 'introduced himself' to Zoe, there was a major disagreement between student. Paddy held back until everything had calmed down, and decided the best course of action was to pretend nothing had happened. Hurrying to catch up as Zoe headed towards the lake, she laughed as Snowden started running in circles around the girl's feet. "Snowden is a Samoyed, but he's been charmed to stay puppy-sized," she replied to Zoe, "and he loves attention, so feel free to pet him as much as you like."

Niamh checked Lick and Rish were still in the tree, and grabbed a handful of chocolate biscuits from the basket, before following the blue-haired girl and the others towards the lake. As they stopped to pay attention to the furry girl's white puppy again, she introduced herself to the blue-haired girl. "Hi, I'm Niamh" she said (she pronounced it "Nee-v"), "I thought you might like there," she added, dropping several chocolate cookies into the blue-haired girl's hands. Realising the girl must have thought that was a bit of a strange introduction she felt she ought to explain, "Mum always said that chocolate cures anything, but it's really good after a disagreement. Plus it's tasty," she added with a smile.

( and everyone else)

Zoe laughed with Snowden following her. She stopped to pet the pooch. "He's lovely. Does he swim? We are gonna go for a bit of swim if ye wanna come with us. I'm Zoe by the way. Sorry about the commotion."

When another girl arrived she smiled again. "Hello Niamh. Aww thank ye. I love chocolate chip. Aye tis a yummy food and I'm a chocoholic. Ye wanna come with us? We are gonna swim."

While Lenore was out flying she had had some time to think. At first she was furious. The nerve of that Zoe ()! It's one thing to be ill-mannered, but to make accusations like the ones that she did was just outright wrong. Did she have any idea what pointing fingers and saying 'Death Eater' could do to a family? Or even insinuating it like Zoe had? Of course, Lenore knew that her family wasn't exactly clean. Never death eaters, no, but there would still be enough in their home to get them into trouble with the Ministry. It was this thought that scared her and that didn't help her anger one bit.

On the other hand, something that the Hufflepuff () who had stepped in had said was sticking with her. If being a pure blood truly meant all zat you zink it means, zen I should zink zat you would not 'ave to waste ze energy belittling someone of zat nature to prove a point. Now if Lenore was remembering correctly, it had been her Pure-blood family who had been attacked first, not the other way around. But the fact remained that it was Lenore who was well bred and Zoe who was -clearly- not. She shouldn't have let herself get so worked up. She should have kept cool and let the girl make a fool of herself on her own.

Deciding that she would simply ignore Zoe from this point out, Lenore returned to the picnic area and dismounted her broom, propping it by a nearby tree. She then went back to the blanket where her fellow Slytherins ( ) were sitting. Her proud nature kept her head held high as she walked but once she had sat down, her eyes showed that she was not feeling proud or confident at the moment.

"I am sorry." she met her friends eyes this time as she apologized. "You know how it is with the old families. Rumors are always circling. I should be used to it by now and not perpetuating them by getting angry."

Off in the distance she could hear other students talking ( ) but didn't look past her own place just yet.

"I have no idea if he can swim or not," Paddy replied, "but I think he's pretty eager to give it a go. And the first few week of a new term wouldn't be the same without a bit of commotion somewhere."

Niamh was relieved that she hadn't said entirely the wrong thing. "That sounds like a fun idea, but how cold is the water? I transferred from 4A in Egypt, and still haven't got used to the weather here."

Well that certainly made things easier. Fade plopped down on the blanket beside Sauvage and eyed her knitting equipment. “Hey Mags.” () He waved as his sleepy friend sauntered past, and grinned. Reaching for his sketch book he adjusted his position to be more comfortable and watched carefully as Sauvage began working with the yarn. Deciding it was better to keep the old-lady comments to himself he bit his lip and opened his sketch book. Maybe if she was preoccupied he could study her face and sketch it out without feeling so nervous about it… Just maybe. But probably not. ()

He was so preoccupied he didn’t notice Lenore return from across the lake, but even if he had. He missed her flying off and probably wouldn’t have given it a second thought. ( - Fade missed it so I'll say it. Welcome back! lol)