But we got no choice but to turn this bitch sideways

I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT IT’S FREAKY FRIDAY
@cyrus

This castle really was crazy. Desiree had heard tales about it during her time at Ilvermorny, but at the time it sounded like a load of bull. Ghosts? Moving stair cases? She hadn't believed a single word of it. That is until she saw it for herself. At first it was pretty cool, after all it was a legit castle! She had never been in a castle. In Chicago the closest thing they had was the Willis Tower, also known as the old Sear's tower. That wasn't exactly a castle... more of a high rise. But those were America's castles. This...this was nuts! And the stairs really did move here! How cool is that?! Des will tell you, not cool at all. 

The first time that it had happened to her she nearly had a heart attack. She had been on the damn things when they dislodged from the wall and swung another direction. There is no amount of preparation one can do to brace for something such as that for the first time, no matter anticipated their movements were, the shock was still there. Now after months of dealing with them she sort of expected them to change on her. If they didn't she labeled herself lucky. Lord knows it was too much of a luxury around here to know where the actual hell you were going to end up. 

This time she wasn't lucky. Desiree was nearly to the top of the steps too as they changed, jolting her to the left instead of the right. Where the hell were they taking her now?! They creaked slowly over to the new entrance and she hurried to get off before they changed their minds, ending up somewhere she hadn't expected at all. She was shaking slightly from the fright of them changing when she had been so sure they wouldn't. Desiree clutched the books firmly against her Slytherin robes as if they would anchor her to the ground. At least the corridors didn't move!

"Oh my GODDDD!" She growled in a horror filled frustration. This was like a freaky haunted mansion that she did NOT pay to get into. It was lucky that she wasn't going to be late for class or her frustration would have amounted to much more than just a growl. She had free time, which was now un-freed up by the fact that she needed to find a new route to her destination. She clicked her nails against her book as she regained her composure. This damn castle. Where was she, anyways?

Obviously a corridor, she looked up and down the hall, one end seemed to lead toward the Owlery by the sounds of it. The other end? Well, she would find out. She began making her way down the hall, brushing a bit of hair behind her ear as she stepped. Around the corner of the doorway she saw a few students walking around, some in groups, others alone. She recognized one, Cyrus, Caerus? Shit. There were so many weird ass names around here! "Hey," Desiree called to the boy with a friendly tone. She hurried to catch up with him her wavy hair bouncing as she trotted. "Cyrus, right? Is this the...fourth floor?" Yes, the fourth floor had the owlery....right? She hated to sound dumb about it but she was still figuring out this damn place. She sighed with a little laugh, "These stairs, amiright?" She joked, trying to hint to his stupidity.

Cyrus loved the quirky charm and overall welcoming feeling of Hogwarts... if you took away the current staffing and political situation, you could almost pretend the homey castle had never changed. Sure it was cold in the morning at the moment and it was positively medieval in some other respects, but Cyrus loved it. He'd never entertained the idea of a different school even when his parents had been debating whether or not to send him back that year or move instead. Where else had the personality and character of this old place? It was full of surprises even now. And, if you stuck around in one place for long enough, you were guaranteed to learn something new. Sometimes that was from the ghosts taking you for a stroll to enlighten you on their past lives, or Peeves shooting past clamouring of where not to go if he wanted his nose to remain clean. Other times it was the portraits who took a shine to a person, or just another student. He was gonna miss this place when he graduated in the Summer... even though he wouldn't miss even a few of the Professors. Not that the world outside the school walls was much better, but at least he wasn't trapped for 9 months out of the year in one particular place.

He'd have to get used to stationary staircases, something that threw him whenever he was home for the holidays. To no more long train rides where the opportunity to meet people was constant or sailing in the boats back across the lake. His very life was going to change permanently and Cyrus didn't know if he was ready for that. Yet he had to be. Failing his year due to cowardice wasn't an option as he still had his pride and there was just no way he could let himself forcefully get things wrong just because he didn't know what was going to meet him head on in the future. Who knew... maybe he'd take a place with the Prophet and try and inflect a voice devoid of bias in their stories. Perhaps a magazine or tabloid... though he had never been interested in gossip. He was too young to pursue the life of a philosopher. Who knew, maybe the answer to his future would hit him soon, as hard as the Transfiguration homework he'd just barely managed to finish hours before.

He had a free period ahead of him and no idea of how to spend it, so he'd taken to roaming the halls in his little cloud of misery and confusion for the time being. Hoping to stumble across someone or something to pull him out of it before he ended up eating his body weight down in the kitchens or found somewhere to lie flat for an hour, doing absolutely nothing. Perhaps even a conglomeration of both, where he'd eat then lie down on one of the school table benches until the bell went to signify that he was about to be late to his next class. Cyrus had a plan for the near future, once he'd gotten most of this sulking out of the way. Find someone who knew what they were talking about and would help him without laughing at him or judging him. He was going to learn how to be less of a dork and more of a... well, more of a respectable guy who wasn't viewed in pity or with expressions that told him he might be adorable, but wasn't necessarily a handsome guy they'd like to date. He was going to change so he had more of a backbone, so his skin could be a little thicker and he wasn't such an embarrassment. Cyruslee... he was going to do his best.

The puns would have to stop first and foremost. He schooled his features into something more stoic and reserved instead of his blatantly moping one from before and straightened his back a little. Could Dennis help? He didn't know. He wasn't entirely sure whether or not to trust Dennis with this sort of thing. Rosa? Maybe she'd be too busy. Yet out of everyone he had met, she seemed the most adept at helping him out with something like this. She knew what she was talking about. Never doubted herself. Positively oozed confidence and saw things as they were. The wizard snorted, looking off to the empty space between the swinging staircases with a small sigh. She'd have seen right through Lily, that much he believed. Probably could have spared him the heartache and humiliation of letting himself chance to fall for her. Suddenly, a name cut through his contemplative haze and he half turned to look behind him, a small smile brightening his face at the sight of the younger Slytherin. "It is, yeah. Hey Desiree," he greeted her lightly, turning back to look in front of him momentarily so he didn't end up ruining things by falling flat on his face. Cats... they had it out for him. Even Simon, his own moggy. But that was usually accidental... mostly. His brows raised and his eyes narrowed a little, flicking over her head towards the stairs in question, then lowered so he could smile at her again. "They catch you out again? Don't worry about it. It usually takes people the first two years to get used to them."

Running a hand through his already messy hair, he turned to look behind them again and slowed down, looking a little concerned. "Do you need to get somewhere? Am I in the way?"