The Great Hall

RPG style
For members of all houses to come and chat over a marvalous feast.

((people need to eat sometime...))

Professor Eglantine DeLanquar carefully made her way into the Great Hall and up to the Head Table where she took a seat next to the headmistress's chair. Hoping that sometime during the meal, she might get the chance to speak with her, Eglantine awaited the rest of the staff and students to arrive for the supper meal.

Diana was in a high. She'd just come back from her encounter with the unicorn and she felt like she'd just drank buckets filled of butterbeer.

"Diana!" Her friend and fellow housemate, Helena, waved her down. "There you are! Did you find your locket?"

"Yep," Diana said happily, pulling it out of her pocket.

"Thank Merlin." Helena said.

"You can say that again," Diana said, putting her locket back on. "My grandparents would've probably disowned me if I didn't find it again."

"Yeah it's an heirloom right?" When Helena got the affirmative nod from her she asked another question. "You didn't run into any... trouble did you?"

"No," Diana said, "quite the opposite actually." And with that Diana told her about her encounter with a unicorn.

"Wow," was all that Helena could say. "I can't believe... wow, unicorns are suppose to be really rare. I can't believe you saw one twice today."

"Yeah neither can I," Diana said grabbing a breadstick.

"Do you think if I stuff my pockets with sweets and I head to the Forest your unicorn will come?" Helena asked.

Diana laughed, "Yeah and a bunch of other creatures I don't think you'd really like meeting."

"I suppose your right," Helena said. "Dang, I wished I didn't have detention or else I would have came with you and saw the unicorn too!"

"I doubt it, you talk too much, you would have probably scared it away." Diana said jokingly.

"Shut up," Helena said.

Diana snickered.

Kiara walked in through the big doors of the great hall to see Professor DeLanquar setting at the table.

A smile came to her face.
"Good evening Professor" she said as she took her seat at the staff table.

"Good evening." Eglantine replied, her gaze drifting to a Gryffindor who had just entered the Great Hall with another girl.
She had set up a charmed alarm at the border of the Forbidden Forest to let her know if a student wandered into it.
"If you will excuse me, Headmistress, I return shortly." She rose from her chair and made her way to the Gryffindor table stopping directly behind the student who had just entered.
"Miss Casillas." she said softly.

"Say have you done Transfigurations?" Diana said to Helena.

Helena who'd been in the middle of drinking, suddenly made a odd sound and stared shifting her eyes from Diana to someone behind her.

Diana blinked back in confusion. "Are you alright?"

"Miss Casillas" some behind her said.

Diana figured that was what Helena had tried to tell her. "Oh,"

She turned around and saw she was face to face with Professor Delanquar. "Hello Professor!" Diana said cheerfully. She was still on her unicorn induced high.

"Good evening, Miss Casillas. Were you perhaps in the Forbidden Forest recently?" She noted that the girl seemed quite cheerful and happy.

"Say no, say no," Helena whispered covering it by pretending to drink.

Diana gave her a look and looked back at the Professor.

"Yes Professor I had." Helena choked on her Pumpkin Juice.

"I'd lost my locket earlier today in Care of Magical Creatures. It's a family heirloom you see, my parents would have disowned me. I had to go find it." Diana said truthfully.

"Disowned you?" Professor DeLanquar raised an eyebrow at that, but looked troubled. "Good gracious, well we couldn't have that, now could we? However I do believe that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden for a reason. What sort of punishment do you think would be best?"

"Oh... well maybe not disowned me, it's a family joke. But they would be terribly upset. " Diana's lighthearted mood turned. "Whatever you think is best Professor, I'm willing to accept the consequences of my actions."

"I was with her too, Professor!" Helena said suddenly.

Diana turned to her friend. "She wasn't ma'am, I went there alone."

"Yes I was!" Helena said stubbornly.

"What are you doing?" Diana whispered in an undertone. However outloud she said, "She wasn't Professor, she was in Detention when I went."

"Getting Detention with you!" Helena whispered back but out loud she said, "I was but then afterwards I went to the Forest too."

"Calm yourself, Miss Capulet. How very kind of your to stand up for your friend. But Miss Casillas is not going to be badly punished. She may pick her punishment. But she must do so now."

It was comforting to loyalty amongst friends.

"Well I suppose it's Detention then." Diana shrugged. "I don't really know what I could do."

"Is there any tedious task you'd like to get done, Professor?" Diana said. "I could do that."

"When you have finished your meal, meet me the Muggle Studies classroom. You're punishment will be very simple." She glanced over at Miss Capulet and softened her tight face slightly.
"Enjoy your meal." Eglantine then returned to her seat at the Head table.

"Sorry Headmistress."

"All of that could have been avoided." Helena said, "If you'd just said no, like I told you too."

"Helena," Diana said, "She knew I was there. Out of all the people in this Hall, in this school, she came to me. She must have some sort of spell to tell her when students go there."

Helena looked thoughtfully, "I guess your right."

"Yes, well I'm done eating, I suppose I'll go to Muggle Studies now." Diana said. "Meet you back in the Common Room."

"All right then." Helena said.

As Diana left, Mae entered and sank onto the benches, grateful for the short break. Sighing, she propped her box up on a jug of pumpkin juice and began to skim the passages.

Kiara snickered.

"No problem, so it was you who placed those spells around the forest borders, I was going to do it my self to find it had already been done. Very well done"

Taking a sip of water she suddenly remembered something.

"Oh! I wanted to talk to you about something. Would you be interested in being the Head of Gryfindor house?"

"Oh, thank you, Headmistress." Eglantine replied, relieved that her rather over protectiveness had not offended the Headmistress.
"Head of Gryffindor? I would be honoured."

Smiling the headmistress nodded.

"I am glad the position is yours then"

Kiara pause wondering if she should ask or not.

"Umm have you and professor Viper managed to smooth things over?" she asked in quieter to tone so not to be over heard by students..

"I believe we have. A touch of common ground was helpful." She didn't need to whisper since she had a naturally soft voice. "I retract my statement about her being difficult."

Kiara sighed in relief.

"That is incredibly good to hear"

Looking thoughtfull for a moment she added.

"You know it seems all three of us have at least one thing in common. Working here at Hogwarts wasn't exactly what we dreamed we would be doing in the future, but things just might work out here. what do you think?"

"Indeed." she said simply, sipping her water. Pumpkin juice didn't sit well.
"Ma'am, there was something I wanted to speak with you about. The Dueling Club notice you posted in the staff room."

Kiara smiled sadly she had a feeling she knew what it was about.

Unconsciously her hand went to her robe pocket and fiddled with the vial of potion that she carried for when her lungs acted up.

"What about it"

"Correct me if I am mistaken, but is not dueling a dangerous activity. The students could easily become injured. Not to mention those teaching them." The last part was stressed.

Kiara bit her lip, not missing the stress on the last part.

She wasn't being a fool about the dueling position as she was sure Eglantine thought she was. Because the her lungs had been damaged by the werewolves claws there were times during new moon when her lungs didn't bother her at all, but then during the day and night of the full moon her lungs bothered her terribly.

"I know where you are going with this and there is no need to worry, I have it worked out"

"Of course. But do be careful." She replied, rising from her chair. "I have a detention to supervise. Have a pleasant evening." And nodding respectfully she made her way out of the Great Hall, leaving her food untouched and her cane forgotten beside her chair.