The afternoon on a September weekend found Ivan Braginsky, Hufflepuff Seventh Year, not at his books, studying for his NEWTs, but in the Hufflepuff basement, surrounded by various muggle and one not so muggle device, along with other parts strewn about. The tall blond boy was currently sitting cross-legged on the ground, pointing his wand at the magical radio every few seconds, causing it to glow periodically. Once in a while he’d pick up a screw driver and attempt to do something with it, muttering to himself in Russian.

It wasn’t the most inviting of sights – which partly accounted for why the common room was so empty on a weekend afternoon. The other reason was that it was simply a very nice to be stuck inside when they weren’t even drowning in homework just yet. Such days were there to make memories with friends, not spent cooped up and watching the weird Russian kid try and get the muggle stuff working again. Ivan would have joined them if anyone actually asked him to join then. Unfortunately, he had yet to be invited out anywhere this year…or the past year. Rather disconcerting, yes? Par for the course, but Ivan tried, he really did!

He grit his teeth as he applied more force to the screwdriver, waiting for that satisfying ‘snap’ that accompanied the prying open of the muggle radio he was trying to get the transistor out of. The lid of the metal flew back from this show of strength, clattering to ground loudly as Ivan managed and he plucked the piece out, observing it like a jeweler inspecting a jewel for imperfections. It seemed to pass whatever test he was subjecting it to because his smile widened as he resumed pointing his wand, levitating the transistor into the magical radio.

Tak, a wire here and a screw there and opa~!

Ivan beamed down at his little makeshift radio, full of magic and non-magic parts. It looked decent but would it withstand the Unplottable magic that the walls of Hogwarts hummed with? The same magic that made it so hard for muggle technology to work within its walls in the first place?

Ivan looked up from his work for a moment, noting the empty room, filled only with sunlight streaming in from windows that bounced off the gleaming copper fixtures in his common room. He repressed a sigh and returned to testing his radio, turning the signal dial. Static emanated from the radio, much like it always had, with nothing discernible coming through the white noise. Ivan frowned, disappointed. Surely it would work this time? He fiddled more with knob, turning it slowly, and the static either grew in volume or…wait, could that be faint talking?

_{(open to any future Hufflepuffs, let's try and have a small dance party, da? or just be nerds >>)}