A runaway sparkle had been oozing Lunawards, but she smiled at it and signed something with her hands, and it stopped moving long enough for her to catch up to the others as they all hurry past the drain and into the girls' loo.

Sophie fills her water bottle and clicks her fingernails a little. Then she says, to El, "I speak Welsh. Also. Assuming you speak Welsh, being from Wales. And if that information is useful to you in any way."

Elizabeth, too, has vessels to fill once she has done her business.

They don't see anything else on the way to the bathroom and the doorknob is a doorknob and the bathroom itself appears to have been mortally flamed recently enough as it should be.

There are bathroom stalls, and shower stalls with curtains; the curtains have not been prioritized for repairs and some have been taken down altogether. There's a cupboard labeled NECESSARIES, hanging open, one door removed at the hinges, with soap and toilet paper in it.

"I speak Welsh," El confirms. "We can swap spells in it sometime."

"That sounds lovely." Interaction achieved. Back to watching for mals. 

El has some flimsy plastic water bottles until she can make herself a jug in shop. She fills them up.

"I don't have Welsh but I've got Latin, Greek, French, and German if anybody wants to swap spells in those. The shield on the drain was Latin; it's not powerful but it's efficient and it makes a really distinctive noise when it pops, so you get some warning."

Huh. Rando tagalong does sign-spells? Maybe she hasn't introduced herself because she's Deaf. Unfortunately, whatever sign language that was, it wasn't ASL, or Alyona would try talking to her that way.

She fishes her hydration pack out of her bag and works on getting herself two full liters of water she won't have to risk making dangerous solo bathroom treks for next time she needs some.

"I've got all those, and I'd be happy to swap spells. Well, except the Welsh. My Greek is classical, do you have that or modern?"

"Latin's on my shortlist for things to pick up here."

"I've got Latin too. I can -" aaaaah who is she kidding "-tutor you, maybe?"

"Started with classical but made sure I can get by in modern because I didn't know if they'd be dissimilar enough for the school to let me off easy. I could get in on the Latin tutoring too, if you want, we could make it a whole spell-swapping language-polishing circle."

"I'll swap Latin spells, too," the tagalong girl offers, while examining the ceiling as if it is very interesting.

"That sounds awesome." Why weren't people ever like this before. Did the mana-sucking thing eat her aura of doom - no, Lucy commented on it -

Ah! So she's not Deaf! And she's got a British accent, so probably that was BSL.

If they make a whole spell-swapping language-polishing circle, Alyona is absolutely going to get stuck with Welsh. Oh well. Language study partners are probably still worth it.

"I haven't started on modern yet, if the school gives me anything in it I'll bring it to you. I don't wanna make any Latin tutoring promises before I see my schedule. But I'd be happy to swap spells even if I'm too swamped for tutoring."

"I have one of the lost Chicago muggleborns planning to sit with me for schedule wrangling tomorrow morning."

"- oh. That's very kind of you."

Sophie says this without surprise but with a sort of confused wistfulness - why would you do that and I wish I could too.

"There's room for more people at the tables."

"More people to look at schedules with sounds like a good plan."

"If my homeroom's nearby, I'm in. Honestly, I wish it would have us all meet in the auditorium or something for schedule assignment."

"The pamphlet thinks we are most likely to be on this floor but who knows what relationship that has to reality."

"Yeah, we'll have to see. Still, I'll look you all up if I get the chance between getting my schedule and having to turn it in."

"Same here."

"Are you all going languages track too?"

"Oh! Not at all, artificing, just - it's nice to have languages in your pocket if you're any good at them, right?"

"I'm artificing, too. I made these," she adds, nodding down at her rainbow-colored clothes. "But I'm best with painting."