Verity listened to this Captain Rayne person.  Between the needing to go all the way to England to get her school supplies (which the letter had said was not normal) to arriving at the bottom of the mountain in stead of at the school itself, made her wonder if this school was all it was cracked up to be.  Still the concept of magic being real did explain all the weird stuff that happened in her life and surely with magic she could make a better life for herself than what she could expect when she aged out of the system.  She did feel sorry for anyone who had heavy luggage to tote up on this trek.  She patted her leather satchel with a smile.

She ran her finger over the brass ornament of a medieval knight standing heroically with his sword pointed upward.  It was prominently displayed in the center of the front flap and matched the brass buckles and rivets on the rest of the satchel.

         Kate had been sitting on the patio at one of her father's hotels when it happened.  Fenny her pet Fennic fox had gave a series of squawking like sounds as he charged at the owl that descending darting back and forth as he did.  Taken back by the sudden display the owl swooped back up almost missing Kate entirely on its first pass before landing on the hotel patio table and giving a huffing like sound at the fox before presenting its lettering to Kate.
       For almost a minute Kate had stared at the offered letter unsure what to make of it.  Sure dad had said mom had strange things happen to her like this but it'd never occurred to her before.  Reaching out she gently took the letter and looked it over with interest, adjusting the oversized light hoodie she wore so she could get a better look at the letter without revealing to much of her face to others.  Her eyes widened in shock and confusion at the statements contained within the letter and taking out her leash she brought Fenny back inside and went looking for her father.


      The days that followed had been tiring and overwhelming to the young girl.  She almost never had been out in public, not since a kidnapping attempt in preschool.  The well organized, regimented lifestyle she was so used to was shaken and almost broken as a result.
         The surprise trip to the UK via portkey, had been a little overwhelming, thankfully since her dad owned and dealt with hotels around the world she knew enough about them to blend in, or so she taught.  It was quite difficult to blend in with the strange people that populated Diagon alley, they were to put it lightly odd.  Not that she minded odd, but she had considerable difficulty blending into the background like she often tried to.   The trip back had almost made her throw up, and for a brief moment her eyes had shifted from their Hazel color into an almost coppery tone at her discomfort, but it soon faded back into hazel.


        Mt. Greylock had been a surprise in Mid-January.  Fenny had to stay at home due to the extreme cold, something the Fennic fox was far from happy about.  So dressed in a thick sweater like hoodie, and the winter cloak whorn over it with her clasp holding it up. The air was refreshing but she instantly hated the cold air, she had never been a fan of winter in America, it wasn't so bad in Africa or south America, but in North America it was evil.
       The sight of Rayne's clockworks prosthetics interested the young girl considerably but with Verity so close she didn't bare approach yet.  She took her time memorizing each of the professors, while she reached back to rub her sore shoulders.  People weren't meant to carry this much up a mountain, she was certain of that, e ven if these professors would disagree.  A part of her wondered if she'd finally be free of her fears here, finally be accepted for who she was, rather than the oddity that she presented to the world.  She fidgeted slightly as she tried to build up the courage to approach someone and make conversation.

It was strange from the beginning, but perhaps it was strange longer for Seamus. All things being equal, he would have started his first year of wizarding school months ago. Attending Hogwarts just like his Ma and his departed Da. He understood why he wasn't. Everyone there would know and it'd be just like it was at home when he went anywhere with Ma. Ilvermorny in the states gave him a fresh start. The waiting while everyone he knew got a head start at school wasn't fun, though. Even less fun, his Ma did grant him one thing. He got to get his wand from Olivander's just like she and his Da had. Only, he wasn't allowed to keep hold of it more than a day because of how the American school did things. He wouldn't see it again for months till their opening ceremonies.

Those months waiting felt like ages. When the owl finally came with his letter, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted. He didn't get to feel light for long, though. He had figured, American school so they'd take them to an American market to do their shopping. His breath caught in his throat when the portkey deposited him in Diagon Alley among a group of other kids he'd never seen before. The entire time, he felt his heart in his throat. Thankfully he'd worn a hoodie and he kept it up the entire time. As little a chance as he could manage of anyone recognizing him. It wasn't Ireland, so that helped, but a lot of wizards from Ireland still did their shopping there.

When he finished and used the portkey again, he actually felt completely relieved. So much so that the normal effects of a repeat trip so soon after the first seemed to escape his notice entirely. Looking around he just took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air and gave a sigh of relief as he lowered his hood to get a better look around before Captain Rayne caught his attention with her speech and the introductions.

After that, he didn't miss her discreet motion to him. Right away his heart moved the other direction this time, sinking straight into his stomach. Seamus figured he knew exactly what that was for. He knew that talk was coming but didn't think it'd be right there and then. He thought he'd have at least time to get himself settled into his room to psyche himself up for it. He swallowed and slowly started making his way over, though. Slowly since he didn't want to draw attention and she seemed have others keeping her somewhat busy while his pace stalled the inevitable.

On his way, the strangest thing caught his nose. There were plenty of great smells here at the mountain out in the fresh air but this was something new. Something unlike anything he'd ever picked up before. He couldn't help giving a couple of sniffs which pulled him straight to one of the other new students. A girl that was fidgeting by herself while a lot of others had started talking, with old or new friends maybe.

"Yer a different sorda lass, ain' ye?" he blurted out without thinking as he came up in front of Kate, his Irish accent thick.

He couldn't place his finger on what but there was something very different about her. He'd never smelled someone like her before. Something made extremely clear by the confused, inquisitive way he looked at her. He didn't hold onto his curiosity in the moment, though. He didn't know what kind of person Captain Rayne was and didn't want to keep her waiting.

"Sorry. Igno'r me. Bit of a dosser, me, ye listen ta most. Right... Sorry," Seamus shuffled one of his feet, blushing a little awkwardly.

Not knowing what else to say, he turned to resume his plodding but determined course towards Captain Rayne. Best to get it over with, right? He imagined she had certain things she had to lay out for him because of his condition. He knew he had questions about that too. Not to mention if the school's potion's master was one of the teachers in the know of it all. He hoped so. He had something he needed to learn.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:24, Sat 13 Nov 2021.

---

Captain Rayne turned at Seamus' approach, dismissing those she had been talking to and focusing on him. Her one good eye conveyed an attitude of matter-of-fact-ness and relative neutrality, but the great wound upon her face made her seem far more sinister; it was a mystery why she didn't cover it up in some fashion.

She made sure no one else was nearby, before speaking privately to him.

Her expression softened for a moment, and she put a hand on Seamus' shoulder.

She squeezed his shoulder comfortingly, before retracting her hand. Almost immediately, she switched back to her normal self.

Verity frowned as her fingers continued to run around on the brass knight.  She was staring at the boy trying to hold on to the stack of books and other things.  It wasn't like she didn't have oodles of room in her satchel at the moment.  It was going to be at least two maybe three years before all her possessions would fill it up.  Making up her mind, she started unclasping the buckle holding the front flap down as she walked over to the boy.

"Hi.  I'm Verity Sheridan.  Need a hand with all that?" she said while pointing to all the stuff he was holding.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:42, Sat 13 Nov 2021.

Kate wasn't sure how to react to Seamus's approach and question, he seemed nice enough but what did he mean by a different sort?  She guessed she was a different sort, since she didn't feel she fit in in Diagon Alley, but what other sorts were there?  In a meek voice she managed to speak out quietly.  "I, I guess you could say that, I'm not really sure what you mean by different sort though, sir?" she asked awkwardly as she shifted her attention to Verity, wondering why the boy she was talking to had so many extra books.  Maybe he was helping a friend?  How he could support so much she wasn't sure though, since she struggled alittle with just her own school supplies.

Isaac had his stuff all packed up in his hiking backpack before giving his parents a hug and holding up the token. The feeling was exhilarating as the cosmic forces teleported him into Diagonal Ally. The wizarding town reminded him of a more magical version of his own home town. He held up the hand written list his mom made him of what to buy for school. It was an interesting trip to see magic used so openly in front of everyone instead of having to hide it. An hour later and he was teleported to the open clearing.

Most of the students were already there. His appearance was just at the beginning of Ms. Rayne’s speech. The teachers had all interesting personalities. He was actually excited to go hiking in the woods even though some of the other kids didn’t seem as thrilled. He hopped up and down to check the fit of his backpack before waving to everyone. “Hey everyone! Name’s Isaac. Ready to go hiking through some mysterious woods up in the mountains with possible dangerous creatures about?”The sad thing is he looked genuinely excited about every part of his statement.

Those whose attention that was pulled to him saw a boy about 5’2” at 120lbs. The sleeve of his plain black cloak slid down his arm when he waved revealing lean, wiry muscle stretched across lightly tan skin. Clearly this kid was used to doing more than a few push-ups each day. The gloves he wore were of brown dragonhide up to the elbow with metal studs on the knuckles and metal plating on the back of the forearm. The hazel eyes sparkled underneath shaggy brown hair. A plain white t-shirt could be seen underneath the cloak along with some blue denim jeans and brown combat boots.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:41, Mon 15 Nov 2021.

Seamus caught the girl's words but he wasn't really quite sure how to answer them. Awkwardly, he kept his head ducked down and kept his plodding march to Captain Rayne to hear the inevitable speech he was due for. Whatever measures were in place and all that. At least that's what he thought he was in for. As it turns out, she wasn't as rough about it as he was expecting. Of course, she also didn't go into any of the details he was expecting. He apparently had to wait till after classes started for that. The only thing he was a little put off by was the potion's master wasn't already in the loop. That put a difficult spin to his early plans here at school.

With that out of the way for now, and some of his tension eased, his mind immediately circled back to that girl and what he'd said. And then what she'd said. And what an awful mess of a greeting he'd made of things. It didn't take him long at all to find her in the crowd again. He could've found her among everyone if he'd been blind-folded. He walked straight back to Kate, unerringly weaving around people with an animal-like grace.

"Sorry. ... 'Bout earlier? 'm not good wit' talkin' ta udder people much. Least not folk that ain' me Ma or li'l siste'r," he said a bit sheepishly in his heavy Irish brogue, extending his hand to her. "Ummm... Name's Seamus. Didn't mean nothin' by ye bein' different. I mean, ye are... but, like... How do I.... Look... people all smell a certain way, an'... ye smell a different way... but, like... a good different way. Oh... sorry. I got a fierce keen nose. I can smell Ma's pie from half a mile 'fore she has it in the oven."

---

"Woah!"

The boy that Verity had gone up to had been sighing and stretching back for a moment, and when he turned to see who was speaking to him he lost his balance a little and fell backwards a bit. Luckily, he regained his balance, and adjusted a pair of wide circular glasses on his face.

Despite being the shortest person here - due to his age - he had the most things to carry; not only did he pull a suitcase of personal belongings behind him when he walked, but a duffel bag that was the size of his own body was strapped across his torso for carrying upon his back, and he even held a small stack of books in his other arm.

"Um..." His voice was subtle and calm; it conveyed a sense of wisdom and relaxed maturity that juxtaposed his youth. He also had a slight Irish accent. "A hand? Well, I suppose… thank you."

Looking at him closer, Verity could see that he had tan skin and light freckles. His wavy hair was a dark red or auburn that imitated burnished bronze, and his irises were chocolate brown - a fact made obvious by the lenses he wore which made them look bigger than they really were.

"My name is Mághnus by the way - it's like how you say Magnus, but spelled differently. What's yours?" He finally took a moment to look at her closer in the eyes. "Oh! Your eyes are different colors; that's cool!"

He looked thoughtful for a moment, and then a little remorseful. "You probably get that a lot, don't you? Sorry."

By this point, Mághnus' sister had noticed their exchange, and turned away her own little clique to address them dismissively.

"Finally found someone else to hang out with, little brother?" She too, had a slight Irish accent, but her voice was sharp and forceful, like a large blade unintentionally cutting at anything that got in its way. "Good: find somewhere else to talk with your new friend, I've got better things to do than babysit you all day."

This girl had much darker skin than Mághnus, and her freckles were far more pronounced. Her similarly wavy hair wasn't red, but instead a shiny raven black, and her emerald green eyes scanned over Verity with total indifference.

Mághnus opened his mouth to correct her on how they had just met, but seemed to stop and think better of it. He glanced back at Verity, before shrugging.

"I guess I can do that, Quetzalli." He replied. He looked at Verity with an expression of "is this okay?".

Meanwhile, Isaac's greeting to the rest of the students went largely ignored, only earning him a few curious glances and possibly some hushed conversation outside of his earshot. For some reason, no one seemed quite as excited as he did about hiking halfway up the mountain as soon as they had arrived.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:45, Mon 15 Nov 2021.

Verity rolled her eyes at the dismissive attitude of Mághnus' sister but said nothing to the girl.  She opened the flap of her satchel and held out her hands to Mághnus.  "I'll put your books in first then we can put the dufflebag in on top.  That'll keep the books from moving around too much."

While waiting on Mághnus' response to her, Verity called out over her shoulder to boy thinking this was all just a grand adventure, "Not particularly.  I'm a New York City girl.  Hiking through the wilderness is not what I call fun."

---

The boy looked incredulously at the satchel for a moment, before letting go of his suitcase handle in order to take one book and slip it in. As he did, a voice emanated from the open flap.

"Boran Ironhand's Accounts of Lesser Known Sea Beings! A great choice if I do say so myself, lad!"

Mághnus startled for a moment at the sound.

"Is it... supposed to do that?" He asked curiously. He put in another book.

"Tales from Beyond Beyond! I might have known that author, actually!"

The voice was strong and clear; it seemed as if it might belong to a valiant warrior proud of his accomplishments; no doubt pretty much everyone in this clearing could hear it, but it was more annoying than truly unusual. Mághnus shrugged, before putting the rest of the pile of books he had been holding into the satchel all at once.

"And an assortment of other literature to accompany them! Quite devoted to your learning, aren't you lad?"

Mághnus blinked a few times, stunned that a satchel of all things was complimenting him.

"Your bag can carry a lot. It's also a little bit strange, if you don't mind me saying. Anyway, I don't want to burden you with too many of my things; I can take the rest myself, especially now that I've got a hand free."

He smiled.

"Thank you, again. You didn't have to do this for me."
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:33, Tue 16 Nov 2021.

Verity couldn't help but be startled as her satchel started calling out exactly what was going in to it.  It hadn't done that when she put all her things in there.  But then the vendor did say that it had a quirk to it.  The Englishman had promised that it wouldn't lose anything put in there but couldn't say exactly what was so odd about it to deserve the sale price.

Then the absurdity of it all caught up to her and she started giggling.  "It's not done that before.  I wonder if it does it for things coming out too?  Better make sure I don't use it when anyone sleeping.  As for how much it can hold... well, the man who sold it too me said it could hold up to 500 pounds or 64 cubic feet, whichever is reached first.  So as long as the item isn't over 4 foot in length it should fit in.  So I've got plenty of room for the dufflebag if you like.  And don't worry about the weight.  It weighs the same full or empty."

Isaac didn’t seem bothered by the lack of response from everyone. He kept his goofy grin and hopped over to where there was a magical satchel commenting on its contents. He stood in his Superman pose and gave a big thumbs up to the pair. “That satchel is really cool! Do you think it’s knows comic books too?”He bounced from one foot to another full of energy in anticipation.

A massive Goliath spider then crawled down his sleeve holding onto the back of his hand. He led up his hand to his face with a grin. The spider then tapped in various rhythms and patterns on the back of the boy’s hand. His face then seemed confused. “How would I know if it would say anything if I put you in, Mr. Cuddles?”He tapped in a specific pattern on his hand in front of the spider. He looks back up at the pair. “Sorry. Mr. Cuddles asks the strangest questions at times.”

Kate gave a slight smile to Seamus and reluctantly took his hand, "Kate, and what do I smell like? I don't think i have any strange scents about me..." She wasn't sure what to think of Seamus yet but he seemed nice enough if a bit forward, which wasn't a bad thing just very different from what she was used to.


Kate listened in to Maghnus and Verity's conversation with interest. While replying to Isaac with a slight frown. "I personally am not looking forward to this hike, I've never carried this much in my life, and the idea of treking up a freezing cold mountain, while weighed down by this isn't exactly appealing.  Also, arn't you worried about the cold hurting..... Mr Cuddles?" It was clear from her hesistation that she didn't exactly think that the spider made a good pet, but wasn't going to judge him to harshly, Fenny was a difficult pet at times as well, especially when Fenny wanted to dig.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:47, Tue 16 Nov 2021.

Verity raised an eyebrow at Issac and his pet spider.  Having a gigantic arachnid   for a pet was one thing, that it seemed to communicate by dance was just plain weird."I don't know, but I definitely would not recommend putting your tap-dancing tarantula in there."

She flipped the satchel flap closed, looked at the brass knight carefully and addressed it, "Are you going to announce everything that goes in or comes out of this bag?"

Mághnus almost opened his mouth again to protest, but stopped himself just as he had with his sister; he seemed to have a habit of choosing his battles wisely, rather than arguing a point. With a graceful swing over his shoulder, the duffel bag came around to his front, and a little bit of an awkward moment was had as he stuffed the carrier wholesale into the empty void within Verity's satchel.

"A large bag, I say!" The satchel replied. "What could it contain, hm? One might assume that it is simply an assortment of wizarding school supplies and even more books - but perhaps, it is something darker?"

The satchel laughed at it's own non-joke.

Mághnus nodded to Verity in appreciation, it ignoring the other voice. "Thank you, again. Maybe we'll get sorted into the same House; that would be nice. Maybe we could study... together... or something..."

He flushed red a little as he finished that last sentence, before coughing nervously and turning away for a moment.

When Isaac mentioned putting Me. Cuddles into the satchel, it spoke up again.

"Be advised, good friends! The liminal space within which you store your things here, is completely devoid of air! Storage of any living creature is I'll advised!"

Finally, Verity herself asked the satchel a question.

"Absolutely!" It replied emphatically. "To tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth is my way, or I am not Sir...! Sir...!?"

The knightly satchel was silent for a moment, as if confounded.

"It matters not what my name is or was; all that matters is my Vow of Honor!"

He paused for effect.

"Which I take very seriously."
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:32, Tue 16 Nov 2021.

"Well that's all well and good, sir knight, and I applaud your honesty; but not everyone wants their laundry aired for everyone to hear.  Besides you can't go announcing things like that in my foster home.  The whole magic secrecy thing or whatever it was called."

It annoyed her that she couldn't remember what the international law on hiding magic from the rest of the world was called.  But at least she knew was it meant and what she could and couldn't do while among normal non-magicky types.

Turning to Mághnus she said, "I don't see why not.  I like studying."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:13, Tue 16 Nov 2021.

"I... well, ye...." Seamus started but quickly came to a lack of words.

How did you describe something you'd never experienced before? He didn't have a frame of reference for it even. Kate was just... different. In a good way. Not like him. Seamus was different too, but no one would ever accuse what made him different of being a good thing. Whatever it was that made her different though, it smelled...

"I... ye smell... kinda sweet... an'... a little like pretty flowers... but... not flowers... " he struggled to put words to whatever it was in Kate's scent that made her different from other people. From everyone else he'd ever met.

His cheeks reddened a little as he said it, thinking how it might be taken the wrong way. And he got thankful when Kate seemed to get distracted by other goings on. Another boy about his size was being a little loud about the hike ahead of them. They were also talking to a girl who seemed to have a magic satchel. He'd heard of them of course, but never actually seen one before.

"I don't mind a good hike," Seamus threw in. "Loads 'a hills back home so the mountain ain' much trouble fer me. I can help if ye 'ave trouble with anythin'. Got strong shoulders, an 'm used ta trekkin' up in the cold."

He made the offer in general motioning between the little group that had seemingly assembled. The clearly younger and overburdened boy, the louder and excited one, the girl with the magic satchel, and Kate. His Irish brogue as thick as ever. The Captain had said to make friends, right? Not that he knew how to do that. The only thing he had going for him was they didn't know anything about him.

Issac waved back at Kate. “It’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it. If you want, I could give you a piggyback ride up if you want. I appreciate your concern for Mr. Cuddles. He stays in my sleeve to keep warm.”He seemed very sincere in his offer.

The boy chuckled when Verity said Mr. Cuddles was tap dancing. “He’s actually a horrible dancer but great at Morse Code. Spiders can feel very subtle differences in vibrations which makes communicating by code easier since they don’t really talk.”

When Seamus mentioned he liked hiking, Isaac was all smiles, which many would notice is the norm for him. “Awesome! I got mountains back home too. The Smokies can get really chilly during the winter and late fall. I often go hiking in the woods to gather potion ingredients if you ever want to join me sometime.”

"It's the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy." Mághnus stated, trying to be helpful.

"Well, I suppose I'll just have to whisper, then;" Verity's satchel replied, "but right now, I have free reign to speak my mind!"

"I don't see why not.  I like studying."

Mághnus gave a small smile. "Cool."
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:59, Mon 22 Nov 2021.

Kate smiles at the others and then speaks up in response to Verity's comment. "Is that study group open to all houses or just the two of you?" she asked curiously as the blushed faintly at Issac's offer to carry her up the mountain.  It was sweet but also she doubted that her dad would approve of a boy giving her a piggyback ride.

Seamus's comment about her smelling sweet like flowers was flattering and she had to suppress the urge to giggle alittle at the silliness of it.  She didn't think she smelled of flowers, she thought her shampoo smelled more of mint and whatever spring breeze smelled like.  "Thank you Seamus, I'll consider it if I get tired on the trek.  What do you think the school will be like?"

"Seeing as I have no clue about these houses, maybe?  I mean, surely there've got to be study halls on campus.  As long as we can lay claim to a corner of one, I don't see why we can't study together." Verity told Kate.

She buckled the flap back down on her satchel while whispered to it, "Oh button your lip.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:13, Tue 23 Nov 2021.

"Uhhmm... Y-yer welcome..?" he replied awkwardly to Kate's thanks, unsure how to take it.

He hadn't intended his words as a compliment really. She'd asked how she smelled different from other people and he'd answered, as best he could. Then he colored a pinch red when he realized she was saying thanks because he'd offered to help anyone who needed it with getting up the trail to the school.

"Can't say I know anythin' 'bout this school. I heard a lot 'bout Hogwarts back home, though. Not sure what'd translate ta 'ere from there," Seamus offered with s shrug in his Irish brogue.

Listening to Isaac, his eyes perked up just a little at the other boy's words. From the sound of it they might have a little bit in common, maybe. Perhaps just a little. He didn't think other kids had any interest in potions. Mind you, his interest was born from a practical need. There was also hiking. Seamus just enjoyed the outdoors really, but hiking wasn't a bad way to enjoy them.

"Ye do potions?" he asked the other boy.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:14, Tue 23 Nov 2021.

Issac nodded and gave a thumbs up. “Sure thing. My mother is an herbologist skilled in making potions of all kinds. It’s easy to conceal magic when people think it’s just herbal remedies. It’s also a form of magic that can be observed and practiced without a wand since I don’t have one yet. Some of her most requested creations of course are love potions and some involving transmutation. Makes decent muggle money from her “homemade supplements”. You interested in potions too?”

Noticing one of the teachers was looking like she was ready to go, he looked back at the group of kids he was talking to and raised a fist in the air. “I know. We can talk on the way there. I’m sure everyone is excited as me for getting there wands. Everyone pumped for the hike?”His enthusiasm clearly wasn’t reflected by most of the other kids.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:45, Fri 03 Dec 2021.

Verity gave a sarcastic look of joy and held one thumbs up and one thumbs down.  "Yes to the wand and no to the hike.  While we toil away on this "Nature Trail to Hell" could someone tell me about these houses and what they mean?"