He regrets asking. He listens to maybe half of Dave's stupid metaphor bullshit before he covers the guy's mouth with his hand. "Okay, I get it! Jeez, Dave I don't even know what you're saying half the time!" John laughs, looking over to the headmaster as he tries to get everyone's attention. Technically, students are supposed to be quiet, but John doesn't always follow the rules. He leans back on Dave like the back rest thing on chairs. "Who do you think is gonna try beating us for the house cup? I mean, we're obviously going to win but still!" It's funny actually because John probably loses points every year for his pranks. He's not the most liked guy in Gryffindor, that's for sure.  He's even been bullied before, but not so much by his housemates as those in Slytherin. They only bully him though because he's 'a nerd that's only good at making a fool of himself and his house' that should 'make sure Gryffindor doesn't win or else.'  His first black eye was actually third year when some seventh year got in his grill. He's not a huge fan of Slytherin.

    The other houses? John doesn't really have bad opinions on them, but not really any good ones. He's neutral as far as Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff go. Ravenclaws are smart as hell and people you don't wanna piss off, and Hufflepuffs are those good kids that are great people to befriend. He thinks his dad was in Hufflepuff? He can't remember. His mom was a witch, but she didn't attend Hogwarts. He never did find out what school she went to, to be honest. His dad sort of couldn't tell him since he wasn't sure if his son would be a wizard, and when he did... well, it was the last surprise he ever got. John stiffens up at the thought, his jaw clenching. Heh... thinking of his dad also reminds him of their boggart lesson. He remember it turned into his dad and... let's just say he was glad none of his friends were there to see John black out. Yeah, his parents are a sort of touchy subject for John. He avoids it at all costs.

    Sighing, John stops leaning on Dave, pretty much blocking everything out. This really can't happen right now. He puts both elbows on the table and holds his head as casually as he can, trying to make it look like he's tired. Deep breaths, Egbert. Deep breaths. Sadly, this isn't exactly a rare occurrence, but it doesn't happen often either. It's just that trips down memory lane don't set too well with him. Like one time he had a nightmare about his dad and when he woke up and saw the candle fire he freaked out and well. It wasn't exactly something he'd wanna be remember for! 'The one kid scared of candles.' Imagine how sad that would be! The thought actually makes him smile a little. He sits up straight again and smiles apologetically at Dave. "Sorry about that! I got sort of light headed. I haven't had much water lately, so that might be it? Pf." Note to self: when the food and stuff appears, drink a ton of water to make that statement easier to believe. Right!

    Casey crawls out of John's pocket, blubing a little as she climbs onto John's shoulder. She's so cute! She always knows when to come out, seriously. She noses John's cheek, and he returns the gesture, being careful to not knock her off. John has an owl too, but it doesn't like him much. Honestly? He only ever sees it when it has mail for him. He doesn't even have a name for it, nor does he know what gender it is. He's not great with owls, sadly, but hey! At least it gives him his mail at least? Then again, mail is something he hardly gets. Huh. He should check the owlery later for his owl. Maybe he should try bonding with it again!

    Dave! No! Gross! Licking hands is the real first grade move! John can't help but laugh at the action, wiping his hand on Dave's robes. "Take that, asshole! Heheh." This is why Dave is such a great person to be friends with. He acts all cool and popular (well, he is sorta popular) but he's probably as big of a dork as John is when push comes to shove! Not gonna lie, though. The way Dave sounded when he was stretching brought a little flush to John's face. Only because it sounded weird though, of course. There really could be no other reason. That was the only thing he heard though before he zoned out, everything else Dave said falling onto deaf ears.    

    John snaps out of the trance when Dave talks again, telling him he just needs water. He's glad he didn't ask what was wrong though. Why? Cause John hates lying (and he's pretty bad at it when it isn't prank related. Acting to fool a person for comedic reasons is one thing, acting to fool a person about serious things? Yeah he sucks at it). Well, to his friends and Jake at least. Normally he'd say friends and family, but considering how Jake is all he has, you know. Yeah, he doesn't really count Jake's parents. He never really knew them until he moved in with them, and he didn't like them much. He wasn't about to replace his own parents, since he was the reason they were gone. Woah woah nuh-uh. Stop right there mister! John let's out a deep breath, smiling with more energy now. "Yeah. I'm good now! I'm just hungry I guess?" Wait he already said it was thirst. Shit. Fix it. "And thirsty of course! Hunger and thirst don't do good things when they go hand in hand, you know?" He laughs, scratching the back of his head. It's times like these when he wishes he had shades for himself. It would make hiding shit like this a lot easier since he could look around easier. As he is though, with the much needed glasses, he kinda just stares at the person's forehead when he lies. Hey, no one has ever caught on before, so he's sure Dave will be the same.

    John goes back to leaning on Dave, sighing over dramatically. "Dave, I dunno how much longer I'll be able to go. I think I can feel myself dying! Pff, you gotta tell Jake I loved him, man. I might not get a chance." He makes obviously fake strangled noises before laughing. Now it's his turn to stretch and to yawn cause wow he just realized how tired he is. "Aah~.. Dave, I lied. I just wanna go to bed." Sleep is probably needed considering how busy he'll be this year!  Hey, he has to juggle good grades, great pranks, and Quidditch all throughout the year! Shit. He hopes he'll even have time for sleep. He might sneak out tonight for late night flying because God damn has he missed the feeling he gets on a broom.  He's not sure why, but John just loves the feeling of flight. It feels so right for him and it's always a sure fire way for him to calm down. Heh. If he ever applies for a summer job, he wonders if adding 'I like long flights on the beach during the night time' to his resume would affect his ability to get the job.

    He thinks it over and nods, smiling happily to himself. Hey, what can he say? He just loves to fly. He's been caught outside after curfew a few times before, but punishment really depends on the teacher that finds him. Thankfully, he knows when someone is coming and to hide in the night. How? Well, he has a Mauruder's map. He's not really sure how he got it. Well, okay, he got it from his dad (though it wasn't given to him by his dad for obvious reasons), but he isn't sure how Dad got it! Not that he's complaining. It shows everyone in the castle for crying out loud! Heheh, sometimes he uses it to sneak off to Honeydukes too, though he usually does that with Jake. He always makes sure to keep the map stowed safely in his journal, since that's really the safest place he can think of putting it where he always has it. Seriously though. Late night flying sounds like the shit right now.

    Kankri hates to be late. However, plans go wrong and mistakes happen as everyone knows. Due to minor setbacks, Kankri did not make the train, and had to use other means to get to school. He's not a fan of depending on his parents (he would much rather they depend on him actually) but it seems push came to shove. Thankfully, the seventh year made it to the opening ceremony before his grandfather's speech. As he enters the hall, he practically waltzes in, striding with his head held high. He was one for many things, appearance being one of them. Not just anyone can be a Hufflepuff prefect after all. As he walks to his table, he steals a few glances around the hall, looking for the faces of the usual trouble maker. Ah, there he is. John Egbert. Kankri got word that the boy had set off a few of his pranking bombs on the train ride to Hogwarts. He will have to talk to him about that, as that is not proper behavior, especially to someone entering their sixth year.

    As he nears his table, a few housemates greet him, others ignore or avoid him, and some even send glares his way. Kankri has a reputation, and not exactly a good one at that. He understands why, but at the same time it baffles him. What he does is good, isn't it? At least, he had never thought what he did or said was bad. However, sometimes he could be... harsh with his choice of words, so it's only obvious some people would be a bit triggered. Still. To be called the Slytherin of Hufflepuff? Well, it isn't exactly a name he would want to carry on as he strives to be the next Hogwarts headmaster. Yes, headmaster. He admires his grandfather and wishes to be like him, enough to ignore a certain dream he had wanted to chase since he learned to run.

    Heaving a small sigh, the seventeen year old takes a seat among a few acquaintances of his. He would love to call them friends, but to Kankri friends are hard to make. He hates to admit it, but he isn't the most trusting. It makes him wonder how he managed to get into Hufflepuff in the first place, but the Sorting Hat had said something about looking deeper than Kankri ever bothered to look... Well, it's not exactly his fault that he didn't understand what the hat meant, though perhaps he should try a bit harder. It seems only natural. He looks around the hall again, wondering what first years will join Hufflepuff. Hopefully he won't have to talk to any of them on bad terms anytime soon.

    He looks up as his grandfather starts to speak, and he sits up a bit straighter. If his grandfathers were to look over and see Kankri, he wants him to see a grand child to be proud of, of course. As he waits for the speech, he hears an annoyed mewling and a sudden wait in his lap. His eyes widen and he looks down at his cat, Artemis, her pale eyes staring back at his bright red ones. Kankri was never embarrassed or shy of his unusual eye color. In fact, it was more his natural hair that bothered him a bit since it's naturally white. He keeps it brown though (with a bit of magic of course) since he believes it's easier to approach someone that doesn't look somewhat like a ghost. Hm. Where was he again? Mrow? Oh yes. Artemis.

    Kankri pets his beloved friend, smiling softly. No one seems to be paying attention, so allowing his guard to be down could not hurt, right? He tried to keep an image of authority around other students, but with Artemis. Well, what can he say? She has been with him for a decade now and is practically family. Something Kankri fails to understand is that this is most likely what the sorting hat had meant when it said it looked deeper down than Kankri bothered to. He focuses on how he appears to others not so much because he cares about himself per say, but because he wants others to be able to look up to him. He likes the thought of people seeing him and thinking 'I want to try and be like him! He knows his place and what do to!' However, when it comes down to friendships, as hard as they are for Kankri to make, he is loyal until the end and caring. He will admit though that the 'talking your ears off' won't change. That's just a part of him he can't exactly leave behind, not that he minds.

    Once again, the boy is brought back to reality by the impatient meows of Artemis. "Oh stop that. I understand that you are in need of attention, despite the fact that I gave you nothing but that over the vacation, but do allow me to enjoy my own fantasies and imaginations, if you will. Don't you look at me that way, Artemis. I find it almost triggering to think that you're thinking the same thing as a majority of the student body here thinks. 'Oh dear, there he goes. We best prepare our ears and gather all of the duct tape we can find just for the sake of keeping our ears attached!' Honestly, the fact that someone has said that before. It was their own fault for trying to cheat on that test with their friend. Sometimes I wonder if the others understand that I would not feel the need to talk to them in such a manner if they would do as they are told. How do they expect to strive for the best when they cannot do something as simple as follow the rules?" Mrrew? "Hm. Perhaps I am a bit harsh at times, but that's only natural. They won't learn if I'm not at least a bit hard on them." Purrr~. "Ah, of course. I am sorry for not doing so earlier." Kankri scratches Artemis behind the ear and the feline purrs happily and curls into the boy's lap.  He looks around, but no one was paying mind to his mindless mumblings to himself and his cat it seems. Of course he isn't bothered by that fact. In fact, he's a bit relieved. He may not care for the rumors going around him, but last he needs would be more rumors. A headmaster with such a history? It wouldn't be tolerable. Artemis meows irritably and rolls her eyes (it seems like she would have at least), as if she knew what Kankri were thinking. She quickly reverts back to purring as the petting continues, and Kankri goes back to listening to his grandfather, a little red in the face that he managed to forget about the speech about to be given. The things friends manage to make you do without trying.

Just want to go to bed? Yeah right.

Dave watched with a raised eyebrow and tired eyes as the short dark-haired boy leaned back against him once more.

John gets in these weird moods sometimes, but lately it feels as if they’ve gotten more frequent. Then he just kind of snaps and bam, he’s back to being the most deceiving boy-lolita that’s probably ever happened. Do not judge a small wide-eyed bambino motherfucker by its cover, or else you’ll end up with your dignity on the floor and a pie in the face. Literally. Guess it’d be a good time to ask what’s up.

Get ready, John. Here it comes. Aiming right between your eyes. But like behind your glasses because wizard optometrists are real fuckin’ expensive, despite them just needing to wave around their compensative bewitching twigs and muttering a few words. Seems kinda counterintuitive when you think about it. But either way, some sick dialogue is prophesized to come and it has been foreseen on this day that you will carry on the words with you whether you opt for the chance or not. Like the Virgin Mary. Bear the words that symbolize baby Jesus in your womb, John. But they’ll like, stay with you for longer than nine months. Son this interlocution is a gift rush shipped to you- urgently delivered like a rundown mailman working through Christmas time after every townhouse wife in New York forgot to get her sister-in-law something and doesn’t wanna run out to IKEA, so she sends her something easy and local, it’s probably festive dish towels - an extremely detailed and clever speech, full of commendable advice and prose crafted thoughtfully enough to reduce Shakespeare down to Shakestears- Oh, looks like the feast is starting. Too bad, that speech probably would have made for a great read someday. Oh well.

Dave sat up more when various plates and platters with copious amounts of food had appeared, poking John.

“Well, here you go man, time to appease your stomach. Also if you find those round cinnamon things, give ‘em here, those are bomb as fuck. Still find myself thinking about them at night sometimes.”

The blond had grabbed from various bowls and trays here and there, on occasion placing the sustenance directly into his mouth before his plate.
He chewed for a second, speaking in between the softer mastications of his meal. “Though,” he swallows, “Soon I’ll have to guide the first years to the dorms because apparently Disneylanding this shit and getting signs and maps around the school is too much to ask. But whatever, a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do. Anyway, we need to pick beds soon. Mind if I sleep in yours this year? I like where yours was last time.” He plucked an apple out of a silver bowl, twirling it around in his hand before taking a bite from it.