Thomas Prior

IC Blog of First Year Hufflepuff and Hogwarts student, Thomas Prior

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

Lanthe’s comments were irksome, but Caspian had to admit he’d been thinking a few of them himself. Where had the professor been? And why had it taken him so long to get there? 

The boy shook his head, taking himself back to the situation at hand. “I’m fine,” he replied, shooting a diligent nod in the professor’s direction. “Lanthe’s IQ is severely lacking, but I’m pretty sure it was that way to begin with. Thomas… Well… He should probably be taken to the infirmary straight away.” Caspian shot a worried glance at the Hufflepuff, aware of the fact that blood was still pouring from the boy’s head despite the pressure he was applying to it. They needed to get out of there, and fast. "I reckon now would be a good time to escape?" He suggested, looking around the room. Without waiting for a response, he plucked Thomas off the ground, wounded wrist and all. It was a strenuous task, but he just managed to get the boy out of the tower and into the safe halls of Hogwarts. "Hang in there, Thomas! We’ll get you to the infirmary straight away."

[thomas-prior]

Thomas simply laid there, staring blankly up at Caspian who was still playing baseball with hedgehogs. After hog after hog was hit and Thomas grew more and more hopeless the door of the small room smashed opened and Thomas heard the mature voice of a professor cast some sort of spell. Thomas moved his head around until the man was within the view and struggled to recognized him. Thomas internally cringed as Lanthe started to quickly, harshly say the things he was thinking the whole time. Thomas really had to hand it to both his teammates, while he wanted little to do with them at first, they had both proven themselves to be capable in their own way. Lanthe was clearly an ambitious girl with an excited mind and Caspian was one of  the most quick-witted and apparently brave kids Thomas had ever met.

The boy suddenly felt hands slowly lift him off the group and looked up to see that it wasn't the professor who was carrying him, but Caspian. At this point, Thomas had lost a fair bit of blood and when the other boy spoke to him all he could muster was a nod.  

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

"Bloody hell! Shit! Thomas!" Caspian darted towards the boy, dropping the key as he did so. The Hufflepuff was on the ground, struggling to stand but he couldn’t. "You don’t have to move," he coaxed, propping Thomas’ back against the door.

A huge swarm of keys began buzzing around them, more annoying than harmful but still. He whipped his hand out, plucking as many as he could from the air. Quickly, he slid the keys under the door, but it did little to reduce the sheer numbers of the horde. Lanthe’s comment was barely audible over the buzzing, but he could still feel its sting. “You would’ve done the same thing,” he retorted, raising his voice to a yell. The wolves began gaining on them, and he rolled his eyes at Captain Obvious’ comment. The snarling dogs were growing closer and closer, but the group didn’t seem to be doing much about them. "For Merlin’s sake, we’ve got to combat them somehow," Caspian growled, grabbing a wooden plank from the floor. He tore off the top part of his robes, wrapping it around his bad hand. The arm was still functional, swollen from the wrist down but steady enough to pick up a hedgehog.

"Heads up!" He called, smacking the prickly creature towards the wolves. It hit one square in the nose, sharp spines digging into the wolf’s tender flesh. The grey attacker howled, then whimpered and retreated. Caspian: 1 Wolves: 0. "C’mon," the boy exclaimed, whacking hog after hog. It was a tiresome, unorthodox process but for now it appeared to be working.

[thomas-prior]

As both Lanthe and Caspian rushed to Thomas's aid, the Hufflepuff stared blankly across the room at the two large beasts. This couldn't actually be happening, the professors couldn't really want to kill them on their first day could they? Thomas had never heard of an incident like this happening at Hogwarts before, and he hoped that the way this was going was not an indication as to how his year would be. The boy still clutched his bleeding forehead as he watched the wolves grow closer and closer, if someone didn't do something they would all be dead in a matter of minutes.

Thomas had never in his life felt more helpless, he was in an unfamiliar place, with unfamiliar people, propped up against a door bleeding from the forehead, and moments away from being eaten by wolves. Thomas watched helplessly as Caspian reached for the plank of wood, "Is he going to use it as a club?" Thomas thought. But not a second later the other boy reached down and picked up a hedgehog. Caspian threw it into the air and smashed it towards the wolf, and while Thomas understood this was a dire situation, he couldn't help but cringe a little as the small animal was smashed with the wooden plank. Thomas continued to watch as the Ravenclaw smashed hog after hog into the wolves, Caspian did a decent job at preventing the wolves from advancing any farther, but sooner or later, he would grow tired and the trio would be devoured, not to mention the pressure Thomas was applying to his head wound was proving to be fairly ineffective. 

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

Approximately two hours had passed since the group had started the task, and virtually no progress had been made. Sure, there was an enormous “no” pile of keys, but it was miniscule in comparison to the whole room’s content. Caspian sighed, throwing seven more keys into the pile. “No, no, no, and no.” For once he agreed with Lanthe’s comment, nodding his head in approval. "Up where?" He asked, attempting to follow her gaze. Oh joy. There were tens of thousands of keys hidden in nooks that led all the way up to the ceiling. How were they supposed to get all the way up there? And with no magic, either? So far, the message seemed to be “guess what? You can fail by yourself, or you can fail with a bunch of annoying people you don’t want to be with, with no magic and inadequate supplies. Hooray!”

In the midst of his complaining, however, the boy found a key that appeared to be a match. “Guys! I think I’ve found it,” he exclaimed, running towards the door with uncharacteristic enthusiasm. He stuck the key into the lock, and guess what? It fit. The boy tried to turn it, but a crashing sound stole away his efforts. “What the- Look out!” An enormous plank was falling towards Thomas’ head, and Caspian definitely wouldn’t be able to reach him in time. The Hufflepuff needed to get out, or he’d be well and thoroughly screwed. “Come on you stupid key, work, work, work!” He growled, pulling it in and out of the keyhole. He was too focused on his efforts to notice the massive array of nails that began to shower from the ceiling, along with what appeared to be a small horde of hedgehogs that were falling from the walls.

[thomas-prior]

Thomas sided heavily, two hours had gone by and he had just been tracing key after key, none of them proving to be very useful. He ran his hands through his hair shaking his head, at this point he was more than a little discouraged and this wasn’t how he expected to be spending his first day at Hogwarts. He was trapped in a small room with two people who he hardly knew, and he was supposed to complete a seemingly impossible task with no magic.

A moment later, Caspian perked up. Thomas gasped excitedly as the boy scampered over to the small door with the key. Thomas got up and slowly made his way over to stand next to Caspian, as the Ravenclaw stuck they key into the hole Thomas crossed his fingers, hoping that by some miracle this task would be over and he could go meet some of the other Hufflepuff kids. Not a second after they key was inserted into the lock, Thomas heard Caspian’s call for him to move. He then looked up only to see a giant plank of wood five feet from his face and hurtling towards him.

The plank crashed down onto the top of Thomas’s forehead, sending his falling back onto the ground. As he hit the ground, Thomas’s head smashed against the hard floor and he felt a surge of pain run through his body. Thomas reached up to touch his aching forehead and his hand made contact with the warm stickiness of blood. He took a deep breath, clenching his eyes shut as hard as he could. “Do not cry. Do not cry. Do not cry. Do not cry.”  Thomas thought.

The Hufflepuff boy slowly tried to sit up and as he did so the world began to spin. Thomas clutched his bleeding forehead with one hand and the, already forming, bump on the back of his head with the other. Thomas began to hear a loud buzz and suddenly the pile of un-traced keys shot up into the air and sprouted extremely small wings. He tilted his head, utterly and totally confused, he turned around to face Lanthe and Caspian but he noticed that a few of the keys that were discarded into the corner of the room had transformed into something far more dangerous than falling wood or keys small wings. In the corner of the room stood two huge, gray wolves with the teeth bared. 

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

"I’m fine," he grumbled, attempting to swat the hovering students away. They kept coming back, however; like fruit flies to a over-ripe peach. "Really," he stated, raising a hand in protest. "My wrist doesn’t hurt at all."

Only after his statement did he begin to realize the truth of his words. Sure, the wound looked nasty, but… There was no pain; none at all. It wasn’t numb either, it just felt… Normal. Caspian blinked, trying to think of logical explanation for the occurrence. Maybe the rat had transmitted some sort of strange disease to him; one that would slowly burrow under his skin and spread until his entire body swelled up and turned purple. Maybe…. He took a deep breath, attempting to relax. He was fine, for now. Besides, the professors wouldn’t put them up to something that could potentially be dangerous, right?

 It was just one of the punishments for making a key mistake. That must’ve been what it was, right? Definitely. It was the only logical explanation.

The boy’s eyes widened upon hearing Lanthe’s comment, as it was the first intelligent thing he’d ever heard her say. Maybe she was only a moron 99% of the time. “I completely forgot about that,” he admitted, shaking his head. “I wish we had some sort rapidly hardening clay, but yeah, I guess the outside is better than nothing.”

[thomas-prior]

Thomas nodded his head at Lanthe, making his way over to Caspian. "Hey, that looks pretty bad, Caspian. Are you sure it doesn't hurt? It really looks as if it does." Thomas said, a deep frown forming on his face. Thomas though about it for a moment, and clearly this whole this wasn't intended to hurt the students on their first day. Maybe he was telling the truth and it didn't hurt.

Thomas stopped and watched Caspian's face for a moment, looking for any signs of pain or something like that. After a few seconds of Thomas watching Caspian's brain workout a logical explanation, he decided that he believed the Ravenclaw boy.

Once Lanthe piped up and contributed her suggestion, Thomas facepalmed. How could they have forgot something so pivotal, and more importantly, how come Caspian didn't realize this?! He sighed, silently agreeing that the tracing is better than nothing, and then joined  Lanthe, sorting through and tracing keys.

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

"For Merlin’s sake Lanthe, it’s just a bloody mouse!" He rolled his eyes, bending down to pick up the poor creature. It was small, and he could feel it’s heart beating through its tiny mouse ribs. The creature trembled in his hands, squeaking quietly. "Look," he began, displaying the mouse to Lanthe. "See it’s tiny little ears? They’re perked up because it’s scared. More scared than you are, probably. So don’t freak out, okay?" He smiled gently, then realized who he was smiling at. She was stupid! And intolerable! Not in the least bit smile-worthy!

Still, in that moment, when she wasn’t trying so hard… Lanthe was almost bearable. She was still a complete moron, of course, but a tolerable one. “I’ve always got a few quills on me,” he stated, reaching his free hand into his pocket. Suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed through his other wrist, and he dropped the rat with a few curses. “Little bugger bit me!” Caspian bent down, wincing as he observed the wound. It had stopped hurting, oddly enough, but there was a strange, swelling sensation around the bite. He cringed as it throbbed nauseatingly, beginning to turn a nasty shade of purple. This was no ordinary rat-bite; something strange was definitely afoot. Eventually, however, he managed to choke back his disgust and get back to the task at hand.

"I’ve got a quill and notebook," he stated, attempting to reach the supplies with his good hand. After a few awkward moments of struggling, he reached them, tossing them down to the tower’s stone floor. "How embarrassing,” he thought, shaking his head. Heck, he might’ve even looked as moronic as Lanthe there. ”No way!" Caspian shook it off, clearing his throat as he got back to business. "Well, because of this,” he exclaimed, gesturing towards the throbbing rat bite, “I won’t be able to trace. So I guess I’ll have to compare key sketches while you guys do the fun part. Unless you’ve got any other brilliant ideas, of course.”

[thomas-prior]

  Thomas covered his mouth, cringing as Lanthe threw the small, poor little critter. Thomas's dad owned an exotic pet store and his house was constantly full of animals. At home Thomas had three pet dogs; one chicken;  one rooster;  two peacocks;  six mice;  three owls;  and a whole bunch of cats, some stray and some not, so to say the least, Thomas was very comfortable around animals. Thomas slowly made his way towards the mouse, and as Caspian picked it up, Thomas went to his side thoroughly inspecting the little creature. He glanced up at Caspian and braced himself for the coming freak-out. But, as the boy responded calmly, Thomas smiled to himself, keeping his eyes on the tiny white mouse.

Suddenly, Thomas noticed the mouse begin to exhibit signs of aggression, "Caspian, I would put that mouse down." Thomas suggested, but it was too late. The tiny little rodent had already sunk its teeth deep within the Ravenclaw's skin. As Caspian dropped the mouse Thomas watched it scurry away and then turned his attention back to the other boy.

By that time, Caspian had already produced both quills and a notebook from his pockets and dropped them on the floor. As the boy gestured to his wound, Thomas winced. "Don't worry about the sketches, Lanthe and I have that covered, but we really should do something about that bite, it looks pretty awful." Thomas said, reaching out to touch his finger.  

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

Caspian clenched his jaw, attempting to mask his frustration. Of course there were lots of keys; the directions had explicitly stated so! Was the Gryffindor illiterate or something? She might as well be, as she was literally the dumbest person he had ever encountered. Ever. And her plan was, well… It was almost as terrible as her personality.

He was tempted to call her out, to firmly address her officious idiocy, but he knew that it wouldn’t work to his advantage. So he played to her ego, addressing her in way that her tiny dodo brain might just understand.

"That sounds like a great plan," he remarked, feigning agreement. "I could definitely give Thomas a boost, because I’m taller and all, but… The only problem is, umm…." He looked down, hoping his movements would come off as shy and not shady. "The directions, which I’m sure you’ve read thoroughly, state that trying the wrong key could um…” He took the letter out of his pocket. “Prolong our imprisonment.”

The boy gulped, albeit a little exaggeratedly, before he continued. “I really don’t mean to undermine you, because you’ve been a really great leader so far, but ummm…. I think I might have an idea that could help.” He shifted, pulling a notebook from out of his pocket. “We could trace the outline of the key hole, and trace all of the keys until we find the one the that fits. It might be a little less interesting, but we’d avoid the consequences that come with trial and error. I don’t know… Err… What do you think, Thomas?”

[thomas-prior]

Thomas smiled ever-so-slightly as the girl came over and introduced herself. Thomas turned his head towards the walls as Lanthe gestured with the key, and  he nodded his head, giving Caspian a quick glance every moment or two. As the girl began to speak to him, Thomas turned to her, trying to make it seem like she had his full attention. Thomas was just about to open his mouth to get a word in when Caspian spoke up.

Thomas turned towards the Ravenclaw boy, slightly amused by his feigned sense of compliance. Thomas was good a reading people, it was in his nature, so when someone was being dishonest or not genuine, often times Thomas could tell.

Once Caspian was through, Thomas nodded. "Okay." he began, "Both of your plans sound solid, but I'm forced to lean towards Caspian's plan; I don't want to risk prolonged imprisonment, ya'know?" he finished flashing a gentle smile at Lanthe.

"There...is one foreseeable issue, do we have parchment or quills with which we can trace the keys?" Thomas questioned with his hands outstretched. 

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The Key to Cooperation // Lanthe, Caspian, Thomas

[phoenixannestuff]

Really? He was stuck with these imbeciles? Caspian sighed, cynically appraising his workforce. The Gryffindor appeared to have absolutely no idea what she was doing, and the other guy well… He was a Hufflepuff, for Merlin’s sake. Except for Caspian, (in his own opinion), the team was completely and utterly useless.

He rolled his eyes at the Gryffindor’s expression, wondering if she’d even read the directions. It was highly unlikely, however, as she’d proved herself to little more than a complete and utter moron. Then she clapped her hands, and the ‘little more’ part disappeared from his description.

"Search for the single key that fits the smallest hole. Insert and press hard. It’s as simple as that," he read aloud. "Just remember, though, that the best answer may not be the most obvious, and that wrong answers may serve to prolong your imprisonment."

He looked towards the other boy, believing he’d have a better chance working with him than the annoying girl. And besides, the Gryffindor was already picking up keys like a fat kid in a candy store. Moron.

"I reckon it’d be a good idea to strategize," he noted, addressing the Hufflepuff. He shot the boy a winning smile, hoping it would help to convince him. "I’m Caspian, by the way, Caspian Grey. What do you reckon we should do?"

[thomas-prior]

Thomas clicked his tongue nervously as he walked down the hall and was lead into a room. Beside him, were two other kids, and  evidently, neither of them were Hufflepuff.  The boy, clearly did not seem happy about this whole arrangement, and the girl looked ready to begin.  He couldn't really blame the boy for being upset, I mean, Thomas didn't want to be in this situation either, but he hoped his seemingly bad mood wouldn't lead to any sort of argument between the group.

The trio arrived in the small room, Thomas began to glance around again. He wondered if he should say something to break the ice; as he was building up the courage to speak, the girl decided to begin. Thomas tilted his head as the girl clapped her hands and began to speak, he watched, with his eyebrows raised, as she strolled over the keys and began picking them up. Suddenly, the boy next to him spoke up and Thomas nodded along as the boy read the instructions again.

Thomas turned to face the other boy, a little nervous that he was going to say something hurtful or rude. "I'd reckon you're right." he began, "I'm Thomas Prior, and I'm...excited to be working with you." he said half-heartedly. Thomas waved his hand at the girl, "Excuse me." he called to her.

"I realized this situation isn't ideal, but I'm sure if we work together we could get this done a whole lot quicker." he suggested with a goofy grin.

[simeonberke]

STFU - Simeon & Thomas

[simeonberke]

"Oh yeah. Summer." Somehow that minor detail had eluded him, and he’d forgotten that yeah, he needed to take care of a pet during vacation.

Oops.

"So, let’s check it out then!" he said, grabbing Thomas’s arm and pulling him into the shop.

There was a distinct odor that him him as he walked in, but despite being a  pet shop, it spelled surprisingly pleasant. Spells, Simeon imagined, though those Muggle air freshener things might have done just as well.

"Your house isn’t this bad, I take it?" he asked Thomas, winking. "If it is, then maybe you should consider running a shop."

There were all sorts of weird and fascinating animals around, but he could help but keep gravitating toward the owl in the window. It had—pathetically—followed him with its gaze, and now it looked like it was about to fall over.

He turned to the shopkeeper. “How much is that owl. Ya know, the small pathetic one…”

The man looked and kinda screwed up his face. “The Athene noctura? Yeah, that one’s been depressing my customers for weeks now.” He shook his head. “Birds are 10 Galleons, but if you want the ruddy useless thing, I’ll do you for a single instead.”

Simeon raised his eyebrows. One Galleon? Well that was cheap, especially considering he still needed to save up for that broom (because it was highly unlikely he’d win that raffle). But that damn owl kept looking at him like it was trying to pierce his soul, and he couldn’t exactly leave it there to rot.

"Fine, give it to me," he said, grumbling. The man took the Galleon quickly—as if expecting Simeon to pull it back and change his mind—and he retrieved the owl just as fast.

"Boy by the name of Apollyon." He shoved the owl into a cage and the cage into Simeon’s hands. "Enjoy."

Simeon studied the owl who now looked confused but a bit less suicidal. “Apollyon?” He turned to Thomas. “Isn’t that like something about death or something…?”

[thomas-prior]

"I mean, summer is only a few months out of year, and I'm not exactly sure why but I feel like a pet could do you some good." Thomas confessed. As Simeon reached forward and grabbed Thomas's arm, he snickered and followed the other boy into the shop.

As the two boys stepped into the into small pet store a familiar scent wafted into Thomas's nose. He began to nod sagely, he turned to face the other boy as he spoke.

"Oh god, no. My house isn't nearly this bad, if I was living with a constant smell of animal shit in my home I would have packed my bags and left a while ago." Thomas looked around the store until his gaze fell upon the small, sad looking owl in the window. He followed Simeon to the shopkeeper and stood behind him as he talked about the owl.

Thomas watched as the ill-tempered man shoved the owl into the cage and then roughly shoved the cage into Simeon's hands. Thomas  scowled at the man, but ultimately decided not to open his mouth to speak.

Thomas turned his head to Simeon, "I think it means demon or devil, but I'm not quite sure."

[simeonberke]

STFU - Simeon & Thomas

[simeonberke]

Simeon couldn’t help but smirk. Rambling to someone you didn’t know… It did have an odd sort of appeal.

"At Hogwarts, they just live in the owlery, though right? I mean, not that I wanna reject the little guy, but don’t they kinda keep themselves company?"

Clearly he wasn’t cut out for a pet. Still, he’d have to remember the owl, in case he had a sudden outpouring of charity.

"Unless you want to take him home? Guy like you clearly knows his stuff." He smiled and nudged Thomas playfully.

What the fuck am I doing? Either it was this boy or just the whole day, but Simeon was acting weird, because normally he was the opposite of playful.

"So, uh, you done for the day or you got more to do?" he finished lamely, trying to steer the conversation back in a normal direction.

[thomas-prior]

Thomas nod his head along as Simeon speaks about the owlery, "Oh yeah, they must keep 'um somewhere, and I'm sure they have a top notch owlery at Hogwarts. For the most part, they'll care for it during the school year but the summer months when you're at home are a different story."

Thomas glanced over at the boy's face, checking to see any visual reaction; he wasn't exactly sure why, but he thought having a pet may be good for this kid. He let out  a small chuckle has he was nudged in the ribs and slowly began to shake his head.

"You kidding? Do you know how many animals I have at home? If we get one more my house could probably considered a zoo rather than a home."

Thomas looked over, tilting his head as he spoke, "Oh yeah, I'm pretty much done, I had a little tiny bit of money left over and I wasn't sure what to do with it, so I wandered over here to check the store out."

[simeonberke]

STFU - Simeon & Thomas

[simeonberke]

"So, Thomas," Simeon said, turning back to the owl. "You know about animals then?" He leaned in closer to the window. "You really think the shop’s doing a bad job? Because I don’t want an owl but he’s so sad and…" He trailed off. This was far too much sappiness for his tastes, but really, that bird looked miserable. He hoped it wasn’t sick or dying, but bleak as it was, maybe it would be best for the thing.

"And how much attention is attention, because I dunno if I can handle one of those…"

He turned back to the boy eventually and shook his head. “Sorry. Long day. I’m just rambling now.”

[thomas-prior]

Thomas grinned as he listened to the other boy ramble on. Once he was through, Thomas then piped up, "Yeah, I know a thing or two about owls. My dad owns a pet store, so I've been learning how to care for them for a few years. It doesn't look like the shop is abusing it or anything, but they clearly aren't doing too good of a god. Owls mostly active at night and eat whole dead rodents, so if you don't go to sleep too early and don't mind dead rats that owl could make a fine pet. Plus, when owls are cared for well they can be surprisingly affectionate."

As the boy turned towards him and shook his head, Thomas began to grin again, "Hey, no worries." he began, "Sometimes it's just nice to talk to someone- especially someone you don't know all that well." 

[simeonberke]

STFU - Simeon & Thomas

[simeonberke]

Simeon tried not to react, but he jumped a bit when he heard a voice really close to him. Just another new student, like him, who was at least nice enough to ignore the fact that he was talking to a freaking owl.

"Why you suppose that is?" he asked without turning to face the boy. He didn’t exactly want to force conversation, but that would probably be far less awkward than just standing there in silence. "Are the other birds being dicks to him?"

Why the hell was he so sensitive today!? Sure, he was perpetually moody, but today he was on a rampage. It could easily have been the overload from the people and the shopping and the realization that Hogwarts was looming, but whatever was causing it he was done. He wanted a nap and a dark room. And most of all, no people.

"So what’s your name?" he asked finally, turning to the other boy. "Everyone’s introducing themselves, so I figure by the time we get to Hogwarts we’ll all know each other." He forced a smile. "I’m Simeon."

[thomas-prior]

Thomas cringed slightly, he didn't intend on startling the other boy. He seemed to be grumpy enough and didn't want to make it worse. He glanced over at the other boy, trying to be as subtle as possible, not sure what would set him off.

Thomas snickered as the boy made a semi-crude comment, "Well, it could be that." Thomas began, "Or, the shop may not treat them right, owls can be very finicky animals and require quite a fair amount of attention."

As the two boys stood there for a short moment Thomas felt a small sense of pride. As a child he was always the kind of kid to stick to a small group of friends, but develop an unbreakable bond with them. His going to Hogwarts was a mostly exciting thing, but he was very nervous about leaving his loved ones behind. The fact that he had already met two other students who were also going to be attending Hogwarts made Thomas smile.

As the other boy spoke up, Thomas was snapped out of his day-dreaming. "Oh, the name's Thomas." he began. "It's nice to meet you, Simeon." he  said, returning the forced smile.

[simeonberke]

STFU - Simeon & Thomas

Seriously!?

Parents were probably not meant to leave their children alone for hours, but they had been gone in Knockturn Alley for a while. With Simeon’s luck they were probably dead, and he’d need to either find someone who wasn’t a pedophile to help out, or call Seb which was so not even kind of an option.

He’d been to all the stores and he was sick of carrying his stuff around, but sitting wasn’t doing him any good. To the pet shop then? He hadn’t been there yet.

He shouldered his bags and headed across the way, and when he got to the pet shop he noticed a sad looking owl in the window. The others were hooting wildly, but this one just looked dejected.

"Feel ya, man," he said to the owl before realizing he’d said it out loud. He hoped no one heard, but with how the day had been going, everyone probably now thought he was a bit crazy and in need of a cell at St. Mungo’s.

[thomas-prior]

Thomas walked out of Ollivanders with a small smile on his face, content that he just met a potential friend. He walked down Diagon Alley and realized he still had quite a bit of money left over, he tapped his chin trying to decide what he should spend it on. Thomas really wasn't really used to having left over money, his family wasn't terribly wealthy so he was always taught to be rather frugal. He glanced down a short way and spotted a pet shop, since his father always had many animals around Thomas had gotten quite good at caring for and understanding them. He shrugged his shoulders and decided to make his way to the small store to see what they had to offer.

As Thomas neared the entrance to the store, he spotted another young boy standing outside, peeking into the glass window. The boy mumbled something to himself, and Thomas happened to be just in earshot. From what the other boy said, Thomas guessed he wasn't having the best of days so he figured why not try to make his day slightly better? He slowly walked over to the window and stood next to the boy; Thomas looked up at the owl and frowned slightly, he really did look quite sad. "It's a pity," he began, "The poor bird looks quite glum."

[thomas-prior]

The Road to Hogwarts|| Thomas and Nick

[nick-colbert]

  Nick couldn't help but smirk at the other boy’s sarcastic comment. “Well I do suppose you are right, there isn't much of a reason to be here if you aren't getting a wand.”

Nick was pleased to hear that this was going to be the boy’s first year in Hogwarts as well, because he could see them getting along swimmingly. Nick looked the brown-haired boy up and down, fully taking in his appearance, then he momentarily glanced over his shoulder, checking to see if it was almost his turn to get his wand; he was in fact next up. As Nick turned back towards the other boy he suddenly realized they didn't know each other’s names, “Oh hey, I’m Nick by the way. It’s really great to meet another first year, cause for the most part, my friends from home are either a year older or younger than me.”

[thomas-prior]

((Continued from the other evening.))

Thomas watched as the other boy looked him up and down, he was unsure if it was just a glance or if the other boy was sizing him up. Thomas quickly pushed the thought out of his head as the other boy introduced himself, and the corners of Thomas's lips tugged upwards into a small, subtle smile.  "Well, it's right wonderful to meet you, Nick, I'm Thomas. It seems you and I are in the same boat, I don't really have many friends; certainly not any going to Hogwarts." Now, it was Thomas's  turn to eye up the other boy, he glanced him up and down, taking the blond boy's appearance.

"You nervous about going to Hogwarts?" Thomas asked, "Leaving your parents and all that?"

[thomas-prior]

The Road to Hogwarts|| Thomas and Nick

[nick-colbert]

Nick stood impatiently in the small queue that formed in Ollivanders, thankfully, he was two away from the front so he shouldn’t have had to wait all that much longer.  As the jingling of small bells signaled a new arrival within the store, Nick’s head rose to examine the newcomer. It was a shaggy brown-haired boy who seemed to be a first year as well. The boy glanced around the shop and then proceeded to get into line behind Nick. They stood in silence for a few moments until Nick grew bored and tired of waiting with no company; he was used to a house full of girls after all. He turned around to face the other young boy and decided to pipe up and ask a question, “You’re here to get your wand?” he asked, “First year at Hogwarts too?”

[thomas-prior]

Thomas intently stared at the floorboards in front of him as he waited in the line. After a little bit of intense floorboard watching, the boy in front of him faced him and spoke up,  at first, Thomas was a little shocked the boy was talking to him, but he quickly recovered, flashing him a goofy smile. "Huh? Oh, yeah.  What else would I be doing in Ollivanders?" Thomas joked, "And yes, this is going to be my first year at Hogwarts." he quickly added. Thomas made sure to make it very clear that he was joking, he did want to make a good first impression on his peers since he didn't really know any of the other witches or wizards in his class. 

[thomas-prior]

The Road to Hogwarts|| Thomas and Nick

Thomas swallowed hard as he looked back at his mother. He had been to Diagon Alley more times than you could count on one hand, so you'd think the place wouldn't make him so anxious. His mother thought it would be a good idea if he did most of his own shopping, so he headed off, away from her with a pocket full of Galleons and his shopping list in hand.

The young brown haired boy glanced down at his list and decided to get the boring things out of the way first, and save his wand for last. He entered shop after shop, purchasing various books, cauldrons and other magical items; finally, he reached the last item on his list, the thing he was most excited for. A wand!

Thomas briskly made his way through the alley in search of the wand shop, it didn't take him very long to find it, and when he did he gingerly opened the door and made his way inside. Inside the petite shop a small line had formed so, Thomas took his place at the very end behind a young boy/girl who seemed to be around his age. 

[thomas-prior]

Character Biography

Character Information

The road to Hogwarts is long and can be incredibly dull. In order to pass the time, please provide us with the following information:

Character Name: Thomas Prior

Blood Status - As Purebloods are basically nonexistent at this point, pick from the following:

Full-blood - Both parents are magical

Wand - Thomas has and eleven inch Cherry Wood wand with a unicorn hair core.

Pet- Back at home Thomas and his family have a dogs, cats, peacocks, ferrets, and a few toads.

Patronus- Thomas's Patronus would be a black bear; wonderfully kind to the people it loves and cares about, but brutally vicious to those who harm them.

Boggart - Thomas, like many other first years, is yet to encounter a Boggart. If he were to encounter one, however, it would probably take the appearance of himself. Honestly, the fear of turning into someone he is not and forsaking his loved ones and friends is greater than any other.

Amortentia - Thomas's Amortentia would likely smell like a mixture of chocolate and the familiar smell of his home.

Desired Quidditch Position- Thomas is utterly and totally unathletic and has no desire to play Quidditch.

Family Background and Personal History-

            Thomas was born to John and Judith (Judy) Prior in a small Bristolian suburb. Both John and Judy attended Hogwarts, but since Judy was a year ahead of her partner-to-be neither of them ever encountered one another. John was sorted into Gryffindor and Judy into Hufflepuff. John always had an interest in animals along with the Muggle world and dreamed of opening an exotic pet store. Once he graduated from Hogwarts he decided to open a magical pet store; the store sold many pets including owls, ferrets, cats, peacocks, toads, snakes (etc.) Judy, one day, decided to purchase a second cat to keep her first one company. The future partners met, and quickly became infatuated with each other.

            Three years after Judy and John met the two were married, and they had a small ceremony with just close family and friends. One year after their marriage, they decided it was time to have a child, both Judy and John were fairly old when they got married and were moderately concerned they wouldn't be able to conceive a child. Luckily, on their first try, Thomas was conceived. Nine months down the road a healthy baby boy was born.

            Thomas had a fairly normal, yet highly magical childhood. Since both his mother and father are magical, Thomas was exposed to magic at a very young age. His father eventually closed his pet store in the city and they moved to the suburbs. John's love of animals still greatly impacted Thomas's childhood and he has always had an affinity for caring animals.  

Personality-

            Thomas is a very loyal friend; when he likes someone, he makes sure  that when in his presence they feel safe, secure and are happy. On top of his loyalty, Thomas is an extremely accepting person and values open-mindedness above almost everything else. Regardless of someone's race, sexuality, gender identity, (etc.) he feels as if a person is a person and they all deserve equality.

            While Thomas is loyal and accepting, his fierce loyalty also has its drawbacks. It leads to him being quite hot-headed and even violent when people do something to negatively impact his friends.  Thomas is also prone to laziness; if he is not motivated to do something he will likely put it off or maybe not even do it at all.

Positives: passionate, accpeting

Negatives: hot-headed, prone to laziness when unmotivated