Open When the workin' day is done

[Lena Williams]

Lena wasn't sure what she had gotten herself into or why she had decided to plan an entire night for all the ladies working at the castle. Maybe it was because she needed to feel like she was more than just a mum, or maybe it was because all she ever did was work in some form or another. Either way, Lena had spent some time trying to find something fun and ended up finding a cute muggle italian restaurant that hosted cooking nights. She thought that instead of just going out for dinner, this might be a fun way for everyone to enjoy their time, let loose, and get to know each other more.

Lena found a cute summery dress to wear since they would be spending time with muggles, and made her way into the restaurant. It was a Saturday evening, so she was sure she wasn't the only one feeling exhausted by the first week back. The girls were with her mum, and Lena spoke with the restaurant owner before her colleagues showed up, making sure they were set up. There were stations that allowed for small groups to congregate as they made their pasta, all the ingredients and needed materials included. The instructions were laid out in front of them, and there were two staff, Isla and Alessia, hovering in case anyone needed help.

Lena greeted folks as they made their way in and was glad once it was time to start. "Thanks so much for coming! Tonight, we're going to make fresh pasta. After your pasta is cut or shaped, you can work on a sauce or use a premade one to make your dish. I hope we can all have fun!" she finished, feeling a little nervous now that everyone was staring at her. She made her way to the last empty station and started form her flour dome.

Out of Character:

Hi everyone! Feel free to make any kind of pasta your character desires. Here's a basic pasta how-to in case you're unfamiliar. This is just to have fun.

 

[Sarah Harrington]

Sarah had always found the timing of her classrooms and then her studies into the night had prevented her from creating lasting bonds with most of the staff at Hogwarts. She really only knew Lena by name and from mealtimes but was genuinely grateful for the invitation for the night out. Being a Saturday evening she had no classes and would usually continue with her own studies of the nighttime sky to not interrupt her normal working routine. Sure her students would often be tired and sleepy in her class but that was even more reason for Sarah to keep a backward schedule to be more upbeat in class.

Tonight she was a student in a class however as the staff members of the restaurant came around and helped the ladies make dough. "Oh this is tiring but exciting," she said lightheartedly as she put little dough balls through the machine that flattened the dough. It was much nicer than kneading the dough like one would do for bread. But putting it through multiple times was tricky as the dough became more thin.

 

[Professor Gabrielle Moncrieffe]

Gabrielle was totally not freaking out about the fact that the daughter she'd barely had anything to do with over the past decade was about to turn eleven and attend the very school she taught at. This was definitely fine and certainly wouldn't be cause for any personal drama to bite her in the backside when she had been doing such a great job of avoiding it on the basis of clearly not being in any sort of position to be a mother.

Which is to say she absolutely was, to the point where she even gladly decided to attend a social event to get her mind off of it. Gabrielle knew she needed to do a bit better at socialising, even though she was a bit caustic and had never been the best at people. Food was a good icebreaker though, she found it worked a bit with her fourth years especially. Maybe she'd have to do something like that with Miranda, she thought, but pushed that aside for now. She didn't know any of the other ladies well enough to ask 'what's an appropriate meal to have with your eleven year old daughter when you've been basically estranged for her entire life', and instead just focused on mixing the egg into the flour well. "And yet," she started, looking down at the messy dough with a sigh. "This still looks neat next to some of the first year essays."

 

[Professor Cyndi Kingsley]

Professor Kingsley was excited for the evening out with the other professors. She chose her outfit carefully, and then headed out. She didn't want to be late, and she wasn't. Entering the space, the professor found it very cute and she smiled as she headed towards the other ladies. "Hello!" she greeted them, a cheery voice as she continued to take in the scene. Ready to get her hands dirty, the professor put on an apron and got to work. " It is" she replied to Sarah as she got ready to take her turn at the machine. She was working on lasagna noodles. "I can't wait to try these out" she stated, chuckling to herself as her stomach rumbled in agreement.

 

[Professor Mallory Grayveson]

Mallory was absolutely thrilled at the invitation, and she couldn't be more excited. She loved spending time with the other Professors, and she really hoped Isabella might show up. She spent a little extra time to get ready, humming happily before taking off to meet the others. She fell in love with the little restaraunt that had been chosen for their night. She smiled brightly, falling in with the other women. She started making raviolis- she loved dumplings and raviolis were basically dumplings, weren't they? She looked around at the other women, listening to the conversation. "Oh, absolutely," She agreed with Professor Kingsley.

 

[Professor Emmaline Hopkins]

Emmaline was certainly nervous about the get-together. She had not really socialized with any of the professors other than small talk at the staff table in the Great Hall. She knew she had been working at Hogwarts for a semester already, but she still worried she didn't fit in with the staff or the students. She was somewhere in between. That really was the story of her life though. But Emmaline was really trying to expand her social life, something she rarely had time for when she had been a student. She would not fall back into the same habits.

Which was why she was now entering a cute little restaurant. She wore a white dress that she had sown recently. She had spent hours getting ready, trying to make the right impression. She hoped she looked 'grown up' enough. She really wanted things to work out with this group outing. Emmaline pushed her nerves down as much as she could as she approached the group that had already arrived.

"Hello everyone" she greeted the group, finding a spot among them. They were making pasta, something that Emmaline had never done in her life. She certainly should not have worn white today. What was she thinking? The blue-eyed girl tried to hide the doubt on her face as she smiled brightly at the group. "Thank you so much for inviting me. I've never made pasta before, but hopefully I won't make too much of a mess" she said with a slight laugh, hoping to ease her nerves with some conversation. Maybe make light of the fashion mix up.

 

[Sarah Harrington]

It was so nice to be getting out of the castle with the other ladies. She looked around the table for Adorah, who was once a student who loved Astronomy and now taking care of the younger years. She hoped she would come out and not feel overwhelmed grading homework. Sarah remembered her first few years, balancing a home life as well, she hardly did anything fun. "I think I'll go for a twisty design......probably much harder than a simple spaghetti, maybe I'll do that instead," Sarah said as she tried to twist some pasta dough into one of those fancy shapes and it not working the way she thought it would. "How are classes going for everyone? Most of you teach the younger years, I think. Some days I just miss teaching the younger years, the wonder on the kids' faces as they look up to the stars for the first time," she said remembering the many many years she taught the lower years. "Are there any fourth years that like to get into trouble?"