| Details for Firsties on Stage |
| Summary: | Grace and Fiona goof around in the auditorium. |
| Date: | 3 December 1938 |
| Location: | Auditorium, Hogwarts |
| Related: | — |
| Characters |
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There are so many rooms in the castle, even months into the year Fiona is still discovering new ones. They really should consider an orientation evening before school begins. "Look Gracie, it's an auditorium." Her eyes widen as she realises what that means, "With a stage!" Bouncing with delight she drags the clumsy Grace (this might not end well) down the steep flight of stairs to the stage. "Do you know what this means?"
"Is there going to be singing?" Grace guesses, managing not to miss her footing entirely and only stumbling once as she follows her small friend down the steps.
"Maybe." Fiona hadn't been thinking of that. "It means we can act out our stories here, on a stage." She looks up at the seating and then around the stage itself. "Do you think these make it so everyone can hear what you are saying?" Fiona reaches up to touch one of the silver megaphones. "How loud do you think it would make a fart?"
Grace giggles, pulling on her skirt with both hands. "How loud do you think it would make a really loud fart!" She tilts her head as she skips over to the megaphone, takes a deep breath, then blows as loud a raspberry as she can manage, eyes squeezed closed.
When the sound reverberates off the wood and fills the space designed to funnel and project sound Fiona bursts into a fit of giggles. "That was loud!" She leans up on her tip toes and after taking a deep breath blows out a long raspberry.
Grace claps her hands happily, shoving Fiona aside so she can have another turn. This time she puts on her best, deepest voice (which isn't all that deep). "I am a giant and I eat muggles and children! Raaarr!"
Fiona runs over to the next megaphone. "No, don't eat my baby!" She then cries like a baby, "Waah! Waaah!" Turning her head she says to Grace, "This is fun."
Grace giggles again, ducking her head. "I'm not a real giant, silly! I'm just pretending!"
Rocking back on her heels Fiona looks around. "I hope there is a Christmas panto. I love panto." Giggling she leans up to shout into the megaphone, "He's behind you!"
Grace immediately looks, peering around. "Who is, Fee?" she asks, curious. "Is there somebody else here? Is it Vincent? Vincent! Come ooooouuuut!"
Unable to stop herself from laughing, Fiona shakes her dark head. "No," she laughs. "No, Gracie. Nobody is here. It's a gag line from panto. Have you never seen a panto?"
"I've seen pants?" Grace suggests, brows furrowing as she thinks. "Are there pants behind me? That's silly. Unless they're standing up by themselves. On a string. Or on a person, but I don't want to see anyone's pants!"
"Panto-mime. They're plays put on at Christmas." Fiona waves a hand, "Nevermind." She decides to immitate Father Christmas' laugh using the megaphone instead. "Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas Grace Thurkell."
Grace claps her hands together, bouncing on her toes. "I've been a good girl! And I want a big cake and chocolates and an orange mousse and a new wand and a hedgehog and a book and a new dress and a banoffee pie and a spoon!"
"A hedgehog? They're prickly. How do you pet a hedgehog?" Fiona begins rummaging in her pockets for her ever present sweeties and finding a few still in their wrappers gives one to Grace before unwrapping the other apple sherbert and popping it into her mouth.
"Maybe if you put lots of conditioner on it," Grace suggests, attention well distracted as she breaks into her sweet, picking pieces of the wrapper from it. "Then it would be soft and cuddly."
This seems sensible enough to earn Grace a nod of agreement. "What shall I get you for Christmas? We don't have hedgehogs in Ireland, at least I don't think so. I've never gone looking." Fiona looks down and spots the grooves in the wooden floorboards, they give her an idea. "Shall we see who can cross the stage without stepping on any cracks?"
"And if you step on a crack you get eaten all up by a big, green scary monster!" Grace agrees eagerly, standing on one foot and wobbling a bit.
"A big, green scary monster with black teeth and sprout breath." Fiona looks at the floor again and tries to find a place to put her foot. She has to turn sideways a little to do it but manages to stay on her feet.
The game is afoot …..