"Maybe. You could definitely have parts that only twist and pinch and then parts that do string-crossing things, and that'd be more information than we've got currently..."

"You'd have to make sure the strings were exactly right or they might have to cross just because the net was made wrong and not because they have to."

"It's gonna be really hard," he agrees delightedly.

"I think we saw that statue four flights of stairs ago."

"...yeah, maybe. It's also dinnertime, we should probably ask some portraits or something..."

"Ooh, dinner -"

And the portraits direct them to the Great Hall and there is dinner there.

"Swan, wanna sit at our table and be an honorary Ravenclaw while I copy over Dwimmer's notes, see if we notice anything?"

"Sure, I'd just as soon avoid Gaunt until her hair is back to normal."

"What'd you do?"

"Braided it for her."

"...what'd she do?"

"She was being appallingly rude."

"Oh. Dwimmer, can I have your notes again so I can copy them? I wonder if the other groups got anywhere, if everyone has as much as we do then we might be able to start making barebones models with just a few beads today..."

Karen hands over her notes. "So is her hair just all tiny braids like yours, or -?"

"Well, that's what I do with it when I'm using it on me, but no, it was all braided together in front of her face."

This is less interesting than the layout of Hogwarts and he ignores it.

That's okay. There is dinner to be eaten.

Yep! And notes to be copied and he asks Karen for clarification in a few places and then hands them back to her and puzzles over what he has so far and does at least remember to introduce Miranda to the people who come over to puzzle over it with him.

Miranda is of course pleased to meet them all.

This is Minor's brother (well, yet another one of them) and he barely glances at her but thinks the mapping problem's great. "Think how much time it would save if everyone knew how to get around Hogwarts."

"But," someone says, "wouldn't it ruin the inherent mystery?"

"If you'd rather not know I won't tell you."

This is the Ravenclaw table. Everyone would rather know.

Miranda did tell the hat she'd fit in here fine on a cultural level. "Can we be sure it doesn't respond to people knowing more than it would like about how it's put together?"

"That'd just be mean."

"Well, yes, but the castle might be mean, who knows?"

"This place is supposed to be a school, it's supposed to encourage learning!"

"It could encourage learning by making there be more to learn if you run out!"