Morning Arrival

[Dante Starr]

Where was everyone? According to his estimations it would be breakfast time so shouldn't the place be more full? After all the call of food usually was the only thing that could move people out bed. Taking a seat at one of the house tables (Hufflepuff, maybe?) Dante took a good look at his clock and then felt very foolish.

He was an hour early and still working on Italian time. This was turning into a smashing start! He was so excited to arrive that instead of just meeting the Headmistress at him meeting at noon he'd come hours early. And an extra hour he hadn't planned on.

Well one thing was certain, he wouldn't be running into his sister any time soon, if she awoke before noon he'd be surprised, especially on a weekend. So lazy, sleeping the whole day away, Dante could only hope he'd run into another morning person soon.

To pass the time he tossed around a snitch shaped saltshaker around. 'How peculiar..' He mussed.

[Bear Nayet]

Bear, though a really heavy sleeper, was a morning person due to his inability to stay up late. With several books in his hands that he checked out from the library, he was making his way back to the Ravenclaw dorm when he passed the Great Hall to find someone sitting there. At this hour?

He stopped and squinted his eyes at the new arrival. He really regretted not having his glasses now but since he was naturally a friendly person, he decided to walk in and have a closer look. He walked up to the bloke at the Hufflepuff table and grinned at him.

'Its nice to see that someone else likes the morning as much as I do!' He laughed but didn't take a seat. Hogwarts was a decent size but new people were arriving all the time. He wasn't sure if this was a new student or not and Bear didn't want to offend the stranger.

'Apples! Usually there are none left by the time the masses get here.' He grabbed one and put it on top of his books.

[Dante Starr]

'Well you'll waste hours away if you sleep in until the sun finally rises! I've tried to explain it to my sis' but apparently there is this thing called beauty sleep, otherwise girls turn into ogres.' Dante joked, rolling his eyes.

While he didn't talk to his sister that often, by choice of course, but he knew a few of her closer friends. The boy he was talking too didn't strike any memory, plus with all the books he was carrying he wasn't really her time. Dante on the other hand was interested, in a hetero way. Not all Italian men were wimps and had purses.

'Plus I have a ton to do, people to meet along with the Headmistress. I was supposed to meet her at noon but I decided to arrive at the beginning of the day and meet my new classmates.' He explained to the boy, tossing the salt shaker back and forth. 'I hope she won't get mad I did it but I thought it was silly to wait around for hours.'

[Valentina Way]

No, Val hadn't gotten up yet. She was still up. And she was about to pass out. Between hunger and deprivation of sleep, she usually chose sleep. But it was so early, that she knew breakfast had probably started... but not many people would be there... which meant she could grab as much as she wanted and save it in her room for later!

She dragged herself to the Great Hall and noticed that there were people there! What in the world? Do these people wake up early by choice?

She had intended to ignore them, until she noticed one of them was Bear.

She walked over and greeted him.

"Heyyyy..." She said with a tired smile. She hoped she didn't look like crap.

"You're up early." She said and then looked at Dante for a second, realizing she had no idea who this other person was.

[Dante Starr]

'So are you, up early I mean.' He pointed out with a smile, he spoke with a hint of an accent. 'Though you don't look like you've got much sleep...not that I'm saying you look tired. Well, I am saying that but not in an insulting way.'

Females were such funny creatures, there was always a risk of insulting them. Dante only hoped that this girl wasn't as silly as some of them. Though chances were he wouldn't be lucky, he had horrible luck with girls.

'I'm new, please forgive my social deficiency." She really was quite pretty, and her green hair looked good one her. Sure it was unprofessional in nature, but she seemed to pull it off. "I'm Dante...morning."

[Valentina Way]

Val continued to stare at Dante, but not intentionally. She was so tired she was trying to figure out if she even know who he was. After a while, she came up with the decision that she didn't.

"Um... No, I didn't get much sleep...." She finally said after a few seconds. She didn't want to make it obvious that she didn't sleep, and it wasn't because of this new guy. It was because, well, she felt like Bear might look down on that. Why did she think that, and why would she care? She didn't know.

"I'm actually going back to sleep soon, just grabbing a few..." She looked around the table. "Apples." She picked something random. What in the world. She didn't even like fruit...

She grabbed one and then turned back to Dante.

"Um... Oh right, I'm Val." She introduced herself. The lack of sleep was definitely affecting her and causing her to be a bit awkward.

[William Malfoy]

William rounded the corner into the Great Hall. He got within a few yards of the others without really aknowledging them.

He sat down and then looked back up when he realized that both Bear and Val were there.

He cocked an eyebrow at them,

"Why on earth would you get up this early?"

[Valentina Way]

Valentina heard a familiar voice and turned to see Malfoy. She wondered if he could tell that she was definitely in the same clothes as she was in last night. Same jeans, same t-shirt... same smeared eye makeup.

"Well, I am up, because I am hungry." She explained. Wasn't a lie, really. If it wasn't for the food, she'd be asleep!

"How about you!" Val started to say accusingly.

"Why are you up so early?"

[William Malfoy]

William smiled at Val,

"Didn't get to sleep and I figured if I didn't get something to eat. If I don't and I stay up all day I'm going to have a wicked headache. I don't really want to sleep the whole day away."

He tilts his head a little to the side inspecting Val's appearance,

"Doesn't look like you got much sleep yourself. Not that you look bad, just tired."

[Valentina Way]

"Well, of course..." Val smiled back at William.

"I never look bad." She said semi-jokingly as she ran her fingers through her green hair.

She gave a little laugh as she actually felt like she looked liked crap. But it was probably more true that she felt like crap, not looked it.

"But yeah, it's true, I was up pretty late last night..." She trailed off, looking over at Bear and the new guy for a few seconds.

Then she looked back at William. She didn't forget that one night she hung out with him after the Valentines dance. He was a cool guy, and if it wasn't for Death, well, he'd probably be next in line...

[William Malfoy]

William was paying a little mind to Bear, but was not really aknowledging the new boy at all.

His attention was fixed on Val mostly though,

"So what are you going to be up to until classes start up?"

[Mallory Starr]

"Ah late night you two?" Mallory questioned with a smile. She figured if Val and Malfoy were awake this early they most likely hadn't been to bed just yet. Hardly a surprise when it came to Slytherins, though Mallory had had a good nights sleep though the dreams had been haunted by Thom.

"Nice of you to not invite me along." She teased.

That was when another familiar face caught her sight, her cousin Dante. The two were hardly close despite their similar ages but it was still a surprise to see him.

"Does your sister know you are here?" Mallory said laughing, "I really can't see her being happy over your arrival Danny-boy."

[William Malfoy]

William shrugged at Mallory,

"I would have gone looking for you, but I figured you were spoken for. You keep pretty busy after all."

His expression towards her was mostly blank, as it had been in recent times. He wasn't quite sure where they stood and wasn't quite sure that he wanted to push to find out either.

[Mallory Starr]

Things were odd with William, oh sure she was attracted to him but there were other things on her mind. Well people...person...boy-man. Oh sure she had few hopes of things working out between her and Thom, but when William and her had kissed she felt guilty.

Stupid for her to feel like she was cheating...

"Oh sure I had plans...involving reading some old text. Oh course I'd be happy to have someone pull me away from it." It was tragic how boring she'd become. "My life isn't that interesting."

[Valentina Way]

Amazingly, another Slytherin entered the room, her roommate, Mallory. Either that girl had been keeping quiet recently or Val was just too busy.

"Will ya look at that, it's like this is the Slytherin common room." She said with a smile.

She kept switching between looking at Mallory and William. She felt there might be some awkwardness between them, but even more strangely. She... felt... threatened? After all, she always wants to be the center of attention.

[Bear Nayet]

Bear was happily eating his apple and watched as more people filed in. Val, William and Mallory. He smiled at all of them but didn't make a comment to how tired they looked or how "bad" they look, despite Dante's effort to not hint that.

He then heard the a swooping sound and he looked up to see the owl post coming in for the morning. Not many people here would get their mail, but the good thing about the owl post was it came also at lunch.

A letter fell into Bear's hands and at once he recognized the writing. His heart thumped faster as he tore it open and read it hastily. He bit his lip as he pushed down the apple in his mouth. So it was done. He was a single man again. Things between Alexis and Bear were at an end for a while and though Bear didn't want to admit it, it seemed they weren't really dating anymore. He wondered what happened between the two but anyone who wasn't Bear could have told him that Alexis and Bear were mismatched to begin with.

'Well, my parents will be happy.' He said out loud without realizing it.

[Dante Starr]

'I decided it was for the best to surprise her, or at least more fun for me. Angel does love surprises.' He said with a devilish smile, the kind that suggested one was up to something. But he wasn't up to anything, he was just going to school to get an education among people his own age.

If that happened to be a problem for his older sister then that was just a plus.

Looking from Mallory back over to Bear he was a little curious about the letter that the boy had just received. By the look on his face it really couldn't have been that good of news, so why would his parents be happy.

"So...I never did get your name." Dante said to the boy, noticing his darker skin tone. Not normal in England where people didn't seem to get sunlight.

[William Malfoy]

William smirked at Mallory,

"Maybe next time I'm up late I'll see what you're up to. I keep late hours, so you can always feel free to stop by the boys dorms to see what I'm up to."

[Bear Nayet]

Bear looked up and saw Dante asking for his name.

'Oh Sorry! How bad mannered of me. My name is Bear. Nice to meet you. Danny, is it?' He asked him, wanting to make sure that he got the name correct. He still clutched the letter in his hand that was from Alexis firmly as he shook Danny's hand with his free one.

'Angel's... brother?' He asked in simple sentences, obviously pre-occupied with the letter he just read.

[Dante Starr]

"Dante Starr, but you can call me Danny if you want." Sure only a few family members called him that, but he wasn't going to tell his first potential friend that.

Honestly he had hoped to make some friends before they caught onto his connection to Angel. It was unknown to him what the effect of that connection would be, good or bad. Oh sure his sister really didn't seem like the type to make enemies, but he had no idea what she was like at school.

But Bear was smart enough to catch on, Mallory didn't help either. Typical.

"And yes, she's my big sister," Even though he was much taller than her already, and he could compete with her over who was more responsible. "That is assuming she'll claim me."

[Mallory Starr]

Oh yes, just stop by the boy's dorm like it was that simple. He seemed to forget that he shared a dorm with Thom, or at least didn't care. Mallory on the other hand would rather not just walk in there and find Thom, she didn't like him catching her by surprise. Plus how awkward would it be to find Thom when she was looking for William.

Her cousin Angel had given the advice 'avoid Seiverts' at least when it came to matters of the the heart and Mallory was certain she'd agree to amending it to 'avoid Seiverts AND Malfoys.' Starr women seemed to be weak towards both.

"I'll keep that in mind when my books get excessively boring."

Catching Danny's admittance of his family Mallory smiled once more. Oh this was very interesting. She could only hope the boy wouldn't fall head over heels in love with Eva Seivert. Though that wasn't likely, one he didn't wear heels.

"You'll be lucky if she even speaks to you after the stunt you pulled this last summer. You know she isn't the quickest for forgive and forget." In fact Mallory would call her a spiteful bitch at times.

[Valentina Way]

Val's expression completely changed when she made the connection that Dante was Angel's brother. For some reason, she completely lost interest in the guy. But then, Mallory was related to Angel... and she's not bad.... Sometimes Val forgets that she doesn't really hate Angel anymore...

Val didnt' even notice that Bear had received a letter until he made a comment about his parents being happy. Strangely, Bear himself didn't look too happy. She wondered if she should ask what was wrong. But she felt it was probably better to ask him in private, and not in front of everyone. So she settled with just a simple friendly question.

"Are you okay, Bear?" She asked with a small smile.

[Bear Nayet]

'Oh. Ok. Its nice to meet you, Danny.' Bear wasn't fazed by the fact that Danny was related to Angel by any means. He never had problems with Angel or Mallory. In fact, Mallory was a part of his band.

He looked over at Val who asked him what was wrong. Bear couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. He and Alexis had been going out for a long time and though it was mutual, it still Bear a lot. This was his first real break up and he wasn't handling it very well.

'Well.. um..' His bottom lip quivered as if he was about to cry but thankfully Bear held it all in. He was trying to look for the positives but Bear couldn't find any. He was also trying very hard to keep his emotions in control but he was have a hard time as well.

'...we broke up.' He said finally. A bit quietly, in fact. Everyone who went to the school for the last few years knew exactly who 'we' was. He put his free hand over his mouth to stop himself from crying and turned away from the group. 'Sorry... I have to go.. See everyone later.'

He didn't want to run out on the new kid. He seemed very nice but he had to get away from everyone.

[Mallory Starr]

Mallory really did feel bad for Bear, sure in the last few months he hadn't been with Alexis that much but he was always true to her. In fact she couldn't really picture him dating, he had been with her so long. "I understand if you want to be alone...just if you need anyone you know where to find us."

Taking a seat at the table she looked at Valentina after Bear left. "I wonder what happened..." That was all she said, because she didn't want to gossip. Gossiping was rude, and usually mean.

[Valentina Way]

Val's eyes widened as Bear ran out of the room. Never had she seen Bear like this. It was a side of him she'd never seen. She nodded as Mallory commented that she wonder what had happened.

Unlike Mallory, Val didn't mind gossiping.

"Well, ya know... I haven't seen them hang out in forever..." She said as she wondered if she should go after Bear. After a few seconds of thinking, she remembered how much she did NOT want people to talk to her about her past 'relationship' with Mason, so she let him be.

"I bet it's Alexis's fault." She said with bias. Between Bear and Alexis, she'd definitely choose to be on Bear's side even though Alexis was in her house.

[William Malfoy]

William's usual cocky demeanor seemed to dissolve when Bear suddenly took off. William actually looked worried for Bear. He glanced immediately to Mallory,

"That's really rough. Poor guy."

Normally now would be the time where William would really enjoy taking brutal shots at someone in Bear's shoes to see if he could push them to actually crying, but the thought didn't even cross his mind. He considerred Bear to be a friend even though their only real connection was their music.

He really didn't have anything more to say until Val's comment registered.

"Yeah, it had to be her. That guys such a big softie that I don't know that he could mess things up if he tried."

[Valentina Way]

"Yup, I always thought Alexis was kind of cold and bitchy..." She said rolling her eyes. Val had no idea that the break up was mutual, but she was completely sure that it was all Alexis's fault.

"You know, she was lucky Bear ever dated her in the first place!" She said out loud and then shoved a couple of grapes in her mouth.

"Bear's so sweet, and she totally broke his heart." She shook her head in disapproval. Then she looked back at the group and realized that she was probably acting like a real bitch herself right now.

"Um... but... of course... you know, we don't know the whole story..." She said with a fake smile at the new student, Dante.

Suddenly remembering that he was Angel's brother, she added,

"Oh... 'cause... there's really two sides to every story... you know... EVERY STORY." She was referring to her whole fiasco of Angel vs. Val on the Death issue. Unaware of how close or NOT close Dante and Angel actually were, she just wanted to make sure that if he had heard about the story.... it may not be what it seems from Angel's side of the story.

[William Malfoy]

William couldn't help but smile in amusement as Val's opinion of the situation shifted considerably.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're a very complicated person, Val?"

There was definitely an air of flirtatious teasing to the question.

[Valentina Way]

Valentina looked back at Malfoy when he spoke up and noticed he was smiling. She didn't know if he was being flirtatious or not, but she definitely couldn't help but smile back at his comment.

"Well, most people just tell me I'm AMAZING, but I guess I've heard the complicated part from a few people..." She joked and laughed.

[William Malfoy]

William sneered at Val,

"I've never heard anyone call you amazing,"

he said in a clearly mocking, but still jovial tone.

"I think you're pretty cool, but then again this is me we're talking about."

[Dante Starr]

Dante had had enough of this bunch. Bear seemed like a nice guy and there was no reason they needed to talk about him, especially when he wasn't even around.

"You could just ask him why they broke up, perhaps he wants someone to talk to. I mean it's a lot less rude than gossiping about it." He told them, a firm look on his face.

He'd made the decision these people most likely weren't the types he wanted to be friends with. They definitely came off as being self absorbed and he'd had enough of it. Bear was no longer there so he felt no need to stay. "I think I'll explore the castle, see if I find any people more interesting."

Walking out of the Great Hall Dante seriously hoped they were only that boring because a lack of sleep.

[Thom Seivert]

'I'm a sweet transvestite..' Thom hum to himself as strutted down the hallway in thigh-high black high heeled boots. Thom was wearing the usual male styled clothing for him otherwise, except for the female stripper shoes on his feet. Now those who knew Thom would be mildly surprised at this new choice of shoes, but not shocked or outraged. This was simply Thom and he had a weird obsession with dressing like a woman.

He supposed it was his chance to defy authority and do whatever he wants, but it was also a sure fire way to get attention. And attention he got from his outfits. At first it started with Val's uniform, then grew from there. A little lipstick there, a dress here. It was all in good fun and he loved to freak everyone out with it. What was the matter? It was only dress up. He tossed the pink boa around his neck as he turned the corner and ran right into someone!

'Excuse me.'

[Dante Starr]

He had been hoping to running into someone, but not in the literal meaning of the word. By the force of the hit Dante knew the next person he'd meet at Hogwarts would be male. "Hey it's cool."

He looked up to see who had hit him, Dante wasn't extremely tall but he rarely had to look up to people. To his surprise the guy wasn't just tall, clearly he was insane! The piercings...the hair...wasn't that against the dress code? He was wearing a bloody pink boa! He looked down to the floor and was surprised that the show wasn't done just yet. Stripper boots!

A punk gay guy? This was hurting his head. Dante had been around gay men before, after all it seemed like in Italy you either had macho men or they were carrying purses. Plus he had a gay cousin, but he was nothing like this!

"How did you find a pair of those in your size?" He caught himself saying out loud, eyes still on Thom's feet. Looking back up he really hoped this guy wasn't a hot head. "Not that I want some for myself, I'm more the loafer type of guy."

[Thom Seivert]

Thom was a bit taken back by his reaction to him. He just simply asked how he managed to get a pair of boots in his size. Thom shrugged. 'Easy really. Charmed them.' He stated simply and then tossed the pink boa over his shoulder again.

'I think the boa is a bit much, but my sister convinced me that this was the way to go. You know, go big or go home.' He joked and looked at the guy again. He never saw him before but his characteristics were unmistakable for a Starr. They had to be careful of the inbreeding.

'So, you new around here? I haven't seen you before.' He casually leaned up against the wall. He felt the cigarette behind his ear tingling.

[Valentina Way]

Val giggled as William commented that she was pretty cool, until Dante decided to tell them that they were being rude for gossiping.

"Wow... What a loser." She was totally about to comment that he would be lame since he was Angel's brother, when she remembered that Mallory was present.

"Sorry, Mallory, but I'm not really liking your cousin at this moment." She said as she turned back. "So weird you're related to these people... you're so much cooler."

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas was making some early morning rounds when he heard voices around the corner. There was no harm with any students to be milling about. It was still early and classes weren't happening for a little while. So he didn't think much of it. That was until he turned the corner and saw Thom wearing a pink feather boa and the female high heeled boots. His eyes went wide with shock.

Lucas was still pretty clueless to Thom's...leanings. Though this wasn't the first time he had seen Thom in female clothing. Either way, it probably wasn't wise for him to be parading around like that. He didn't know who the other student was, but he gathered they might be new. Lucas marched up to the two and stood there with his arms folded.

"Hello," he said in a slightly annoyed tone. "I gather there's a reason for the...outfit," Lucas said struggling to find the right words. "Hello," he addressed the new person. "I'm Lucas. Lucas Montgomery, the Ravenclaw Prefect. Don't mind me, just doing my duty."

[Dante Starr]

"My sister would surely agree with your sister on the boa, and probably charm your boots pink as well." Still Dante wasn't getting fashion advice from his sister, after all he might end up in a dress that way. Not that it would be the first time...though he had hardly been able to stopping Angel from putting him in a dress when he was only four. He was well prepared to sue her for medical fees if he needed psychiatric help later in life.

He seemed like a nice enough guy but Dante couldn't shake the feeling that he knew him. There was something familiar to him, and it most likely had to do with his bright red hair. It wasn't often that he met Angel's friends.

Ready to introduce himself another person joined them, and this guy wasn't as...extreme. Plus it was nice that not everyone at Hogwarts thought Thom's look was normal. "Dante Starr, transfer student."

[Thom Seivert]

'Can't a guy wear heels and a boa without everyone else commenting on it?' Thom replied with his hand over his heart as if he was hurt. In fact, he was just loving the attention and this was precisely the reason why he wore those types of clothes. Maybe he also liked the male gender as well, but the attention was the primary reason.

He listened as Dante said his name and Thom's suspicion was true. He was a Starr. 'Wait, doesn't Angel have a brother? I know Mallory doesn't...' He said to himself but some of it was to Lucas and the rest to Danny.

'Its nice to meet you. I'm Thom Seivert.'

[Dante Starr]

While Dante really didn't want to build a reputation built on the little fact that he was Angel's brother, he figured it was best to just admit to the relationship. They'd all find out eventually, when Angel realized he was here and made an attempt to kill him. He was well aware that she thought of Hogwarts as an escape from her family, and now they were moving in on her.

'Yeah, Angel is my sister but I sure wish Mallory was instead. At least that girl doesn't have an unnatural obsession with the color pink...' That obsession carried to turning his room pink as well, females really were evil.

Seivert! That was the reason that Thom looked so familiar to him, and now that Dante knew his name he could tell this was Loki's twin. Oh it had been a while since he'd seen Loki, actually he was still dating Angel at the time. Oh sure he'd seen him around but never really spoken to him.

'I should have known! I mean the hair really is a good tip off, plus I've heard Angel yammering on about the whole Seivert family. I'm starting to think she's been adopted, which I'm fine with.' Less pain and suffering for him. 'If I get in Gryffindor and have to be that close to her, death is sure to happen.'

[Thom Seivert]

Thom nodded in agreement as he took off the boa and managed to shove it into his pockets. He wore tight jeans but since they were magically charmed to have spacious pockets, he could fit in whatever he liked in them. The end of it stuck out the back pocket but Thom couldn't be bothered to finish the job.

'Right. I still can't figure out how Angel and Mallory are related. Sure the Starr sassy-ness is in the both of them, but thankfully Mallory doesn't have the obsession with pink.' Though Thom just casually talked about Mallory, it was slightly obvious that Thom thought fondly of her.. maybe even a bit too fondly.

'Nah. Maybe you'll get into Slytherin, the best house of them all!' He joked but really he didn't have too much house pride. It wasn't because he was ashamed of his house, he just could care less about houses, he wasn't like he couldn't get into the other houses no problem. You just seduced the right girl and the password was handed to you on a silver plate. 'You like Hogwarts so far then, Dante?'

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas looked to Thom with a relieved look that the boa was no longer on. Thom being flamboyant was a really odd thing to him. Lucas was still surprised with himself that he went to Thom for "fashion" advice in trying to look cool. But he did and looked pretty cool for a brief time. But he decided there were more important things than being popular.

He over heard the conversation about houses and Lucas made an observation out loud rather than in his head. "I'd be interested in making a wager on what house he ends up in," Lucas said with a grin. He didn't really want to instigate something with Thom, but he figured he could make this interesting.

"What do you say Seivert? If I guess correctly, you have to dress in a proper uniform for a day. And if you guess correctly...I...I..." Lucas dreaded saying the next couple of words, but he had this feeling that Dante was destined for Ravenclaw for some reason.

"...I'll dress somewhat flamboyantly...like you...just did," Lucas said saying the words with with some regret. But there it was. He looked to Dante and gave a a bit of an apologetic smile. "Sorry to wager on your house membership having just met and all."

[William Malfoy]

William smirked and nodded to Val.

"I definitely think we got the best of the Starrs in Slytherin. I still remember how mean she was to pretty much everyone when I first me her. It was amazing."

William glanced over to Thom. He noticed the voice before he noticed the interesting 'outfit' he had chosen. He didn't really care that Thom dressed the way he did, he just sometimes had to wonder what went through his head in the morning when he made his selections on what to put together to complete his look.

"Wow,"

was all he could say as his head turned to take in the visual.

[Dante Starr]

"Well Mallory is a distantly related cousin on our dad's side, whereas our mom was her father's first cousin. You probably didn't want a family history?" Dante said realizing Thom was just referring to how different the two girls were. "I think they were the best of friends until Angel charmed Mallory pink, or it was some stupid girly thing like that."

Dante had realized early on that females were a lot more emotional than men, at least they sure expressed it more often. Plus Starr women had a terrible habit of holding grudges while Dante was pretty easy going. Though he had just realized moments ago that talking behind someone's back was something he didn't like.

"Wager one what house I'll get in, I mean I have no real preferences. Sure both my parents were in Slytherin." But his stepmother had been in Hufflepuff, and he thought of her as his mother. He'd been a baby when Siearce Starr had died and had no real memories of her. "I just can't be in a house with Angel, I pity your brother Loki for all the attention she seems to give him."

Oh he loved his sister, and he would protect her if her life was ever in danger but he was hardly cruel enough to set her up with one of his friends.

[Thom Seivert]

Thom scratched his chin and looked at Lucas with a pondering look in his eye. 'This does seem interesting. You in a dress? I would love to see that.' He laughed and looked over at William with a wink as he came out of the Great Hall to greet the group of boys in the Entrance Hall.

'Ok. If we are both wrong, then we both have to dress up respectively. Me in my conformist glory, you in your.. transvestite glory.' He laughed and then clapped his hands once and rubbed them together.

'Ok. I say Dante will be in Slytherin because most Starrs, are in fact, in Slytherin. The only exception was Angel but I've been told she's not the average Starr. What house do you think she'll be in Lucas? Good ol' Ravenclaw with you and Bear?' He joked but then heard what Danny said about Angel bothering Loki and Thom couldn't help but laugh nervously. His opinion was always changing on who Loki should get back together with. Now at this point of time, he should just date the both of them.

'So, you want to get in on this too?' He pointed to Danny, then William. 'What will you both do if you lose?'

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas was now starting to regret this bet. He would certainly be giving his arch enemy the upper hand in something. But, his intuition was telling him to proceed. "Yes. I do believe he'll end up in Ravenclaw," Lucas said firmly. He gave Dante a quick once over and then spoke.

"I sense something about him that's fit for our house. My gift is saying so," Lucas bragged. He enjoyed it when his visions were accurate. Though this is something he'd be regretting if he were wrong. "Again, I do apologize, Dante. As for anyone else...do you care to get in on this? It might be the only time you see me degrade myself."

[Andi Forrestal]

Andi trotted into the hall slowly. She had slept in again and was pretty off the entire morning. Her mood wasn't the best either. As she made her way to the Ravenclaw table she caught sight of her best friend Lucas. Seeing as there was nothing good going on at the Ravenclaw tablw she strolled over to the table Lucas was at.

"...As for anyone else... do you care to get in on this? It might be the only time you see me degrade myself." She heard the last bit of his sentence and slapped his arm.

"Pardon me for my rudeness but why would you degrade yourself? Honestly Lucas you're pretty weird." She rolled her eyes. "Anyway!" She continued, not waiting for any sort of answer. "I slept in again and... Huh?" She had just noticed the new kid and blinked. "Who's he?"

[Dante Starr]

'I don't see anything wrong with the bet, I mean either way I'm going to get some entertainment. In fact I hope you both lose! Maybe I'll be in...Hufflepuff!'

Dante couldn't help himself from laughing at the idea, that would certainly be a surprise to his family. The Starrs saw the 'badger house' inferior, at least his Grandmother did. 'Still it would be better than Gryffindork.'

At the arrival of another girl he could have almost groaned. He really didn't like to explain his 'dislike' for females, after all it always seemed to make people think he was gay. Oh no, he was attracted to them physically, but rarely mentally.

'I guess I'm the best person that ask that question, I'm Dante Starr.' With hope this girl wouldn't reveal herself to be Angel's best friend, or worst enemy. 'Transfer student...I guess you could say.'

[Sadie Magnas]

"Gryffindork?" Sadie came walking in. She was wearing a jogging outfit with sneakers and her hair pulled back. "Since I don't know you I'll let that comment slide."

In Sadie's hand she held an apple and took a bite out of it. Sadie started running in the morning... except for when the night before she would stay up late but that was becoming rare for her. Sadie wasn't trying to lose weight, just trying to build more strength for dance, and her ankle even though it was healed.

After swallowing she smiled at everyone, "Morning guys..." Her face then changed to that of a questioning look, "What is everyone doing up?... I mean I know it's morning and people get up in the morning... but normally I don't see this many people in the morning."

[Thom Seivert]

'Maybe we thought you were asleep and came out to avoid you.' Thom toothily grinned at her but it was clear that he was joking. Thom and Sadie had a rather odd relationship and even now, the chemistry between them was intense. Whether it was good chemistry or bad chemistry was anyone's coin toss.

'Hufflepuff! You be partying with my brother then.' Thom joked and leaned against the wall. 'Ok, taking bets. One for Slytherin, one for Ravenclaw, one for Hufflepuff. You guys in, Malfory, Andi and Sadie? We are taking bets for which house Dante gets in. If either Lucas or I lose, we have to do something crazy. I have to wear a proper uniform for a day, down to the minute detail and Lucas here has to wear a dress.'

Thom grinned deviously.

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas looked at Andi with a raised eyebrow. Her attempt to be funny was not successful. At least to him, it wasn't. However, he was pleasantly distracted by the appearance of Sadie who had now joined the group. He wondered where she had been hiding herself lately. But gathered it was probably for the best that they kept their distance.

He gave Sadie a smile and a wave. But then frowned when his wager with Thom was gaining a bit more attention than he wanted. He turned to Thom with a furrowed brow. "Uh, Thom...what exactly do the others gain or lose in this bet? I mean, the proposal was to see one of us do the unexpected as it were," he said hoping his words rang some truth.

The prospect of parading around in a dress and heels was not his cup of tea, but if others were getting in on this bet, their loss would have to be something equally embarassing. "However, I don't think Dante should have to suffer anything as he's the center of the wager. That is, of course, if ends up in a house he does not care for."

[Sadie Magnas]

"Or maybe you thought I was still in bed and were disappointed when you found that I wasn't there and came looking for me." She gave Thom a wink, "Though the only reason I can think of you being in the Gryffindor commonroom would be to borrow more of my jewelery... Which by the way, you can keep the hair clips that you have been holding onto for the past year. Last time I give you a make over!" She chuckled as she remembered the day Thom came to her dance club in tights and a tutu.

Sadie turned to the obviously new face. "I'm Sadie Magnas, Gryffindoor house... or how you so lovingly put it "Gryffindork"..." Sadie's eyes furrowed as she looked at him a bit closer. "I don't know you do I?... You look familar but I don't think I have seen you around london or at the ballet academy... You don't look like the frolocking in tights and lifting up girls in the air type."

Sadie took another bite of her apple. With all this working out her matabolism was getting even higher and she was snacking more. Her attention kept being taken away from one person to the next. Thom was talking about the bet that he and Lucas had going on between them, and it seemed as those Thom was trying to get more people involved.

"You let me know if you want to borrow those red pumps Lucas." She gave him a friendly smile. Poor Lucas... she had a feeling that Thom was probably going to win... and Lucas was going to have a lot of detention for wearing a girl's outfit.

[Dante Starr]

"Magnas? Oh yes I've heard of you, always getting hurt right?' Dante asked the girl before he really thought the whole conversation out. Being that this girl was in fact female she might not take the comment so kindly. 'At least that's what Angel makes it sound like, so attack her, not me.'

Dante looked at Sadie, and he really couldn't recall meeting her somewhere else. Now he did know from Angel that the girl was a pureblood and her family was a bit on the weird side. His sister had teased about the Russian mafia, but she was surely just joking, she had a strange sense of humor.

'Well I certainly don't dance and I don't think I know you. Now you may have seen me at some parties Angel throws at home. I mean I don't think I really resemble my sister...' Dante's voice pitched up, 'Oh my look at this lovely pink dress, it'll go lovely with my pink shoes and pink purse. Just let me spend more of Daddy's money, la la la I'm rich." He finished with a dramatic sigh.

Suddenly a feeling a dread made a short trip to his stomach.

[Angel C. Starr]

"I'll have you know I sound nothing at all like that." Angel said from a little ways behind her obnoxious brother. She had thought it was him, a fact that made her quite upset. Still that had been tame compared to what she was feeling now.

With a silence of the room you could hear the clicking of her heels against the hard stone floor of the castle. Her brother didn't turn to face her, he was too spineless to do that. Oh it was certain he wouldn't be in Gryffindor, at least for Angel. While Dante was quite a bit taller than her she was still able to wrap an arm around his shoulder.

"Dane you better be just visiting, did dad pay you to come check up on me?" Her hand caught a hold on his ear and she gave it a mighty twist. "And to top it off you're now doing impressions of me!"

With a bit of a sigh mixed into a scream she moved away from him, the anger evident in her eyes that started to flicker between brown and green. "As if my life doesn't suck enough, you need to come and...and..." The next thing she said had slipped into Italian, and it was very clear that it was nothing nice.

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas gave Sadie a grin. He had want to wear any female clothing and if he had to, wearing his ex girlfriend's clothes might be a bit odd. "Uh, I'll keep you posted on whether or not I'll actually have to borrow something," he said with a smile. "I've got a good feeling about this bet. And I think Thom will look smashing in a proper uniform," he said with a cocky grin in Thom's direction.

Lucas then heard Dante speak up about Sadie always hurting herself. That bothered Lucas a bit. Dante's personality seemed to be a bit rough around the edges. He was thinking that maybe he didn't want this boy in his house. But his thoughts were pleasantly distracted by the arrival of Angel. He could see she was also displeased by her brother's attitude. He attempted a smile in her direction.

[Dante Starr]

'Ouch!' Dante yelled as Angel twisted his ear, his hand moving to cover the other one. After fifteen years of living with his sister he should have known to expect that attack. He made a point to back away from her before pleading for mercy.

'It was a joke! I swear!' His sister had no sense of humor, at least when it came to him. 'Oh come on Ang' don't get all huffy like that! You know I love you..."

He was seriously worried about what bodily harm she was going to cause to him, he only said that he loved her as a last resort. What he didn't get was why Angel was this angry, oh sure he'd expected a few shoves and names being called but not this. He had a long career of 'tormenting' Angel and it usually took quite a bit to get her this mad.

"You know that language really isn't ladylike.." He said backing away even further. He looked to the other, secretly hoping they'd save him.

[Angel C. Starr]

"Why are you here?" She questioned him, pretty much oblivious to the others around them. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Lucas giving her a smile and she felt sorry for doing this around them. Surely this was awkward for her friends...

"You're here to ruin everything, right? I mean it's not enough that my life pretty much sucks, you just want to make it worse." The words she were saying were irrational but she felt powerless to stop them. "And don't go doing that whole 'i love you' escape, it's not going to work."

In all honestly Dante really hadn't said anything too hurtful, it was the type of joke she was used to from him. Perhaps it was the surprise of seeing him when everything else around her didn't seem to be working out. Or maybe it felt like her family was closing in on her. Angel didn't want him at Hogwarts, it was her home not his.

"You should just go back home to dad and mom, they're not here to take your side and protect you."

[Thom Seivert]

Thom watched in utter amusement as Angel arrived and basically almost killed her brother. He bit his lip in awe as the two of them went back and forth and he skillfully clapped his hands like a small school girl. He then walked over and threw his arm around Angel's shoulders.

'Welcome to my life, darling.' Thom commented and then looked Dante over again. 'Siblings just ruin them, don't they?'

[Sadie Magnas]

Sadie blushed at Dante's comment about her being so clumsy. "Um... yeah... But don't get the wrong idea, it's not like I do it on purpose... just bad luck I guess... Guess it's kind of weird that a girl like me is a dancer." She gave off a small laugh.

The conversation was put on a hault when Angel came in and the two sibblings started yelling at each other... Well more like Angel yelling and Dante trying to beg for forgiveness. Though during all this, Sadie couldn't help but notice Dante... He had something about him...

What was she thinking?! She was seeing Mason now... Then again... they hadn't really seen each other in a while... Not that she would cheat on him, but its fine if she looks... Just looking... No touchy touchy...

She bit into her apple again and chewed down on it, trying to get the thoughts out of her head... Then she bit on her tongue.

"Ow!"

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas shook his head at the commotion and leaned back against a wall. "Well, I suppose we should let Angel in on this wager as well. It won't be long before the whole school knows, I suspect," he said with his eyes closed in a contemplative manner. He was hoping Angel wouldn't freak out at the content of the wager. But it could also show her he was not a such a stuffed shirt for even suggesting it.

"Just as a heads up, Angel...your brother is the center of a wager. And I suspect that he's probably not heading home," he said trying to smile while talking to her. "I believe he's here to stay and we're betting on which house he'll end up in." After saying those words, Lucas began to think that maybe this would upset Angel.

"Uh...so yeah. We're wagering on which house." And Lucas left it at that. He was hoping that Thom would just stay silent, but he knew full well Thom would announce the stakes and see if Angel would be interested. He stood there waiting for it....

Then he was distracted by Sadie being in pain for some random reason. "Sadie! What's wrong?"

[Sadie Magnas]

Sadie whimpered a bit as she covered her mouth with her hand. She swallowed the food that was in her mouth and winced a bit. She bit down hard. Sadie could taste the copper flavor in her mouth.

"It's nothing, I just bit my tongue really hard is all." Wigging her tongue around she could feel the slight stinning sensation. Even though it hurt, she couldn't help but continue to brush the open wound against the back of her teeth.

[Andi Forrestal]

"I'm Anndia Forrestal, but just call me Andi." The Ravenclaw smiled briefly. "Dante Starr?" The name rolled off her tongue in a drag. She heard his last name somewhere before and when realization settled in, she laughed. "Oh goodness," She began, remembering dinnertime at her house. Her dad coming home from work and then the words, 'how was work?', came from her mom and her dad was off in story land.

"I know your sister, barely. She's my big sister in that program for new students. My Dad wears out the Starr name, but with pretty colours." The girl grinned. "I hear 'so great' and 'highly talented' the most. But now I just don't listen to my dad at all because I plainly don't care and have no attention span to do so." She sighed. "But anyways, it's nice to meet you." The Ravenclaw smiled and sat down across from him, finally grabbing some breakfast.

When Sadie came Andi noticed Lucas' change in behavior and when the thought that the two used to go out hit her, she almost choked on her bread out a sudden fit of giggles. She didn't know Lucas still liked the Gryffindor. "I remember biting my tongue, it was when I was chewing the minty kind of gum. But after I bit my tongue, I barely chew gum now. Heh." She joked, but it was true and her tongue was hurting for about a good long week.

[Angel C. Starr]

"I'd happily trade your siblings for mine." Angel told Thom, directing a dirty look at her brother. They weren't close, in fact they only really lived together during the holidays. That was if she wasn't staying with the Seiverts instead..

Perhaps it had started out as sibling rivalry for the affections of their parents but her brother had won ages ago. Perhaps she was bitter, or maybe she didn't like him because he always tormented her when she was actually home. She had enough troubles, she didn't need him.

"So a bet you say? He's going to be in Slytherin, I can pretty much promise you that. So is this over money or something else?"

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas was still waiting for Thom to make it known what the stakes were. But he hadn't said anything yet. He gave a sigh and looked at Angel. "No, it's not money. It's over...clothing you could say. And from the way you're talking, I'm probably going to lose this bet," he said shaking his head.

"Sadie, you let me know if you have an outfit that works," he said trying to make a joke of the situation. Lucas Montgomery wearing a dress....what a ridiculous thought. And what a sure fire way to get detention.

[Angel C. Starr]

"Clothing?" She questioned, a very confused look on her face. How could this bet be so interesting if it only involved clothes. I wasn't until Lucas asked about borrowing something of Sadie's that she started to catch on. "Wait, your going to dress like a girl, seriously? Sheesh I knew that Thom was a terrible influence..."

Still she smiled up at Thom with a raised eyebrow. "Just what are you going to wear? I mean you hardly seem to have a problem with gender bending. I like the boots by the way, I think I have a similar pair."

Suddenly a devilish look came over her face, she'd forgotten about her brother's presence for a moment. "Actually I think I'd be able to supply you with a great outfit Lucas, my selection is pretty awesome. In fact I have a French Maid costume that I'd let you borrow. Or would you rather something more innocent and girly? I also have a bar-wench outfit, course I hardly have the boobs for it. I hope you don't take any offense but I hope you lose, this'll be too much fun for me!"

She blushed a little, realizing that she was now contemplating dressing Lucas up as a girl. After all she had snogged him and this was hardly normal. "Course I'm willing to be fair and get in on this too, I mean you can come up with something horrible for me too. As long as it doesn't involve my hair!"

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas felt himself turning red at all of this. The girl whom he was developing a large crush on was ready to doll him up and parade him around the school with no trouble. He tried to chuckle and laugh it off. "Oh Angel, I don't know what I could suggest for you," he said making brief eye contact.

"Anyone have a suggestion for Angel? That is if she's in. I mean, if you're rooting with Thom for House Slytherin, then maybe I should come up with something," he said still trying to think of something. He had no idea what he could have her do if she lost. Truth be told, he didn't want to come up with something for Angel.

[Angel C. Starr]

"Aww come on, I'm sure you can come up with something! Don't be easy on me just because I'm a girl, I'm a pretty good sport." Angel said with a laugh, just envisioning the horrible things they could do to her. The truth was that they didn't have her worried, there was no way a bet could mess things up anymore.

"I say without any doubt that Danny-boy here will be a Slytherin, it is in the blood after all. I mean I'm willing to deal with the consequences if I lose, unless he's sorted into Gryffindor that is. In that case I'm going to change houses!" She'd move into which ever one had colors that suited her complexion the best.

She needed a little fun, a little distraction. Though she still wasn't happy with Dante's appearance at Hogwarts.

[Dante Starr]

'Believe me Ang' it wouldn't come to that, because I'll change houses first. I didn't come here to spend quality time with my 'big sis', I just got tired of watching Dad and Mom's love feast.' He was happy that his parents were happy but he could only handle so much of it. 'Embarrassingly enough, I got sick of being forced to playing tea party with Georgie.'

He'd always felt that his sister was lucky, able to get away from all the family stuff. Heck she even got out of Christmas vacation with their loony parents! She just didn't get how lucky she really was.

'So see, I'm not here to destroy your life. I mean you're talented enough to do that on your own, I'm just avoiding the pipsqueak version of you at home.'

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas looked at Dante with a little anger in his eyes. He didn't like the tone he took with Angel, especially the insult about ruining her own life. "Hey! Show a little respect to your sister, newbie," Lucas said narrowing his eyes.

"I might regret wanting you in my house with an attitude like that. Of course that means I walking around in a dress, but that may be a sacrifice I'd make to keep Ravenclaw somewhat civilized," he said looking over to his house-mate, Andi.

Of course making a statement like this made him a bit of a hypocrite. He was enjoying the fact that Cian's younger sister was here and that the two of them didn't get along. Lucas' attraction to Angel was causing him to be a bit irrational. Not the trait Ravenclaws were known for.

[Dante Starr]

'Respect my sister? A little defensive of her aren't you, what are you her boyfriend or something?' Dante really wasn't trying to make enemies but the guy had just suggested he be respectful of his older sister. What a bogus idea that was, the guy had to be an only child. 'She's my sister, and that's why it's impossible to respect her.'

Dante briefly caught eye contact with Angel to make sure that what he was saying wasn't about to lead to her curing him. Really she shouldn't take offense, they at least had a tiny treaty: They were siblings, and they weren't supposed to get along.

'I guess you must not having any siblings otherwise you'd understand. I offer her enough respect so she won't kill me, any more than that and the world just might explode.' He attempted to explain. 'So don't tell me how to act with her, I know how our relationship works and you don't. Don't force me to admit to caring about her, she'll only make fun of me.'

[Thom Seivert]

Thom let Lucas explained what the stakes were for the bet. He grinned when she mentioned that she would have the same pair, and laughed when she offered her services to dress Lucas up.

'I am going to be uber conservative if I lose. I dress by the Hogwarts rule book for an entire day.' Thom explained what would happen if Dante didn't get into the house he wanted. He then scratched his chin and looked at Angel with his arm still draped over her.

'I saw you should dress up like a boy. If you don't want to do anything with your hair, style it like a guy would with long hair. The whole nine yards!' He grinned at her then cringed when Lucas tried to defend Angel to Dante, her brother. He pulled the, 'cut it' sign across his neck and shook his head.

'Lucas, I hate to tell you this but don't get involved with siblings. Blood is thicker than water.' Thom said as he listened to Danny talk. Though his relationship with his siblings was different than the Starr's, there were certain things that one didn't do when siblings bickered and that was get in the middle of it.

'I would dunk Eva's head in the toilet before I admit I actually care about her.'

[Lucas Montgomery]

Lucas narrowed his eyes at Dante when he mentioned the word "boyfriend". That was something Lucas was not, but wouldn't object. Though he had to be careful in his actions and words from here on out. Getting too defensive about Angel would make people wonder what was going on. Not to mention that Val could spill the beans at any moment.

Lucas heard Thom's words and tuned them out for a moment. But he did hear the notion of Angel dressing as a boy. That could be really funny, he thought. But somewhere in the back of his head, Lucas kept stewing on Dante's words of being an only child. Yes, he was an only child, but it was better this way considering what happened to his mother and threat that came to him last semester.

He pushed it out of his mind and turned to Angel. "Well, if you dress as a boy, I've got clothes you could borrow," he said with a laugh.

[Angel C. Starr]

"Me dress as a boy? Well I'm all in for that but I might not be the most convincing boy..." She teased, indicating to her ample chest with a laugh. "I've always wondered what I'd look like to be honest but not enough to cross-dress like our dear friend Thom."

It was easier for Angel to just ignore what Lucas and her brother had been discussing. She didn't agree with her brother, but she'd rather not admit to that. Plus she didn't want to think about how Danny had questioned if Lucas was her boyfriend.

"As for using your clothes, I might have to make them a bit smaller. I mean I'm not very tall, though I'm sure you've noticed." When her body was pressed up against his, surely. She pushed those thoughts far out of her head. "I mean I could think of a lot worse that could happen to me."