Momentarily startled, Verity paused and stared. She knew the brunette girl by face, though not necessarily by name. A friend of Wayne's, right?
Regardless, Verity couldn't turn back now, so she took a seat by the fire and spread out the components of the costume around herself. The main component was a long piece of cloth that she was slowly and painstakingly trying to transfigure into something shimmery like mermaid scales.
Peripherally, though, she was distracted by the pacing; it was nearly the only sound in the common room at all. "You okay?" asked Verity after a few minutes, hoping she sounded more concerned and less irritated.