ostentation \os-ten-TAY-shuhn\, noun:

Excessive or pretentious display; boastful showiness.

Morag sighed as she approached the display of colorful and fragrant flowers on her way to the greenhouse. It provided far too much ostentation for her dulled tastes. She believed her ability to cope with the color came only from her association with Susan, who spent much of her time within the confines of the greenhouse and the fertile land surrounding them.

The sun was shining through the far off trees and directly down upon the giant greenhouses. The light glinted off the greenhouse directly into Morag's forest-colored eyes.

The dark-haired Ravenclaw had a question for her earthy Hufflepuff friend.

bellwether \BEL-weth-uhr\, noun:

A leader of a movement or activity; also, a leading indicator of future trends.

Susan greeted her with an open smile. She didn't appear to notice the smudge of dirt she had streaking both her cheek and her neck. She merely beckoned her friend inside.

"What's up?" the Hufflepuff regarded kindly.

Morag inspected the area quickly. The plants were greening up well—positive bellwether as to future plant health. She glanced at her mate with a questioning look.

"I think McGonagall and Hooch are up to something."

Susan glanced up from her work but her hands continued moving. "McGonagall and Hooch? I thought mainly Trelawny and Sinistra."

Morag felt her eyebrows shoot up. "What?!"

deus ex machina \DAY-uhs-eks-MAH-kuh-nuh; -nah; -MAK-uh-nuh\, noun:

1. In ancient Greek and Roman drama, a god introduced by means of a crane to unravel and resolve the plot.
2. Any active agent who appears unexpectedly to solve an apparently insoluble difficulty.

At that moment another being entered the greenhouse. The shadow was large and soft, with a reflected posture of easy-going joy. The two students looked up to find a widely smiling face.

"Hello, you two!" Pomona greeted with her hands wide, as if welcoming both the plants and the humans. One of her eyebrows rose suddenly.

"You two wouldn't be gossiping, would you?"

The two students blushed on cue, Susan's deeper than Morag's light dusting.

"I'll take that as a yes." The older woman glanced around, prepared to be the dues ex machine for the situation. "It's all of them."

jollification \jol-ih-fuh-KAY-shuhn\, noun:

Merrymaking; festivity; revelry.

The Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff pair looked to Professor Sprout with shock registering in their features.

"Both?!" they repeated. They looked at each other and grinned when they realized their voices were equally high. Morag cleared her throat to prevent it from occurring again.

"I hope I haven't put a damper on your jollification…" Sprout remarked with a perverse little grin. "Professor McGonagall and Madame Hooch are deeply distraught by the turn of events with Professor Trelawny and Professor Sinistra."

Susan hadn't quite picked up her end of the conversation. Her face still broadcasted her confusion. "I don't understand."

Morag took her hand.