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DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2535 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 20 January 2010 07 50 17 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 19: The Unbeatable Seeker "What did Balladanis teach you?" was the first thing Matt asked Albus when he went to see him the following afternoon. Albus had given every little detail about the evening to his other friends once he returned to the dormitory afterwards and they were impressed. John's first reaction had been that perhaps Albus would be able to find out what Balladanis did before he began teaching. "He didn't really teach us anything," Albus explained to Matt, who looked exhausted but was paying rapt attention. "I dueled Malfoy." "Wow," Matt looked impressed, "How was that?" "Neither of us won," Albus sighed, "Balladanis made us stop because we pretty much destroyed his classroom." "I wish I had seen it," John chimed in, "Bet the look on Balladanis's face was priceless." "He just looked impressed. He wasn't angry or anything," Albus told them, "Then he asked us what we wanted to do with our lives." "Like what kind of job you want to get?" Matt raised his eyebrows, "You're only thirteen." "Yeah, I thought it was strange," Albus shrugged, "But he said I should think about doing something that would put my dueling skills to use." "Like an Auror?" Matt asked. "I don't think so. I mentioned that and he kind of made it seem like that wouldn't put my dueling skills to use." "I can't think of any other job that you'd duel more than that," Matt replied. "I have no idea what I want to do with my life," Kaden announced. "Me either," John said, "I say we've got plenty of time to figure it out." "I'll say," Madam Pomfrey stuck her head in between the curtains, "And you certainly do not have to figure it out now. It's time for you lot to leave." Albus, John, and Kaden reluctantly left the hospital wing, lamenting the fact that Madam Pomfrey hadn't let them stay very long. They had no idea why the nurse had shortened visiting time so much, considering that Matt hadn't seemed worse than usual, but they never understood why Madam Pomfrey did most of the things she did. ****** Albus's week could be easily summed up in two words. Quidditch and homework. Normally he would only complain about the latter, but Oliver Wood was like a Muggle drill sergeant when it came to Quidditch. Since the match was on Saturday, Oliver was insisting on daily practices. Albus and the other alternates had to be at every practice because according to Oliver, 'you never know when someone will get sick or hexed right before a match.' In fact, Oliver even wanted them to practice on Friday night, the night before the match. Albus wasn't too happy about this since he had his lesson with Balladanis at eight. That was the same time Quidditch practice let out, so he had to run to the Defense classroom still completely covered in mud from practice. He ran into the classroom ten minutes late, heart pounding with worry about what Balladanis was going to say. "Mr. Potter, you're late," Balladanis said as Albus entered the room. He and Malfoy were sitting at the front desk. "Sorry, sir," Albus said as he joined them, "Quidditch practice." "So I gathered," Balladanis eyed Albus's muddy robes, "I was just telling Mr. Malfoy about the responsibilities that come with learning advanced dueling spells." Balladanis pulled out his wand and pointed it at Albus. Albus's robes were clean and dry and he muttered a thank you to the professor. Malfoy was smirking to himself. "The most important responsibility is that you cannot and I repeat, cannot, use the spells I teach you here in the junior dueling tournament. It would give your team an unfair advantage and you could inadvertently injure your opponent. The spells I teach you are not to be used outside this classroom, unless I instruct you otherwise. "You are not to duel your fellow students in the corridors with these spells. Nor are you to use them against your siblings and cousins," his eyes rested on Albus. "I also feel the need to warn you that these spells are more exhausting than the ones you have been learning. They use a lot of magical energy and do not be surprised if you feel as though you have just run a marathon," he turned to Albus again, "Or played in a very long Quidditch match." Balladanis stood up and gestured for the boys to do the same. Once they did, Balladanis moved the desks aside and stood in between where Albus and Malfoy stood. "I am going to have you work on your shield charms first-" "I already know how to do a shield charm," Malfoy announced. "I am well aware of that, Mr. Malfoy, and I do ask that you not question my teaching style," Balladanis said darkly, "The shield charms you have been using are relatively weak and fade away after only a few spells are cast against them. "With a fair bit of practice and mental concentration, one is able to keep the shield up for long periods of time in order to block multiple spells. Really skilled duelers can even keep the shield up while casting other spells. That is quite useful, as you can imagine. It is also possible to shield a great many people with just one person's shield charm, which is also very useful. Some shield charms can even protect one against magical creature attacks," Balladanis lowered his voice and averted his eyes at this, which Albus thought was odd. "It takes a lot of concentration to maintain hold of a shield charm for so long, which is why the charm can be difficult. I doubt either of you will produce a long term shield charm tonight, so don't be disappointed. Wands out, both of you, and we'll see how long you can hold the charm, without any spells hitting it." Albus held up his wand and muttered the incantation for the shield charm. He had practiced this charm numerous times before, usually with someone else trying to hex him at the same time. It was quite easy to just hold it there and even kind of boring. He and Malfoy just stared at each other and Albus doubted that either of them were going to drop their shields. It would be like admitting defeat to the other. After what must have been at least ten minutes of holding the shield charm, Albus found he was getting tired. His arm ached from holding his wand up and from throwing so many Quaffles at practice earlier. Malfoy had the advantage since he didn't have Quidditch practice. Much to Albus's dismay, he noticed his shield starting to fizzle. He wasn't going to be able to hold it much longer and Malfoy's still looked strong. Balladanis looked at his watch. "Let the shields go," he instructed, "Wands down." Relieved, Albus lowered his weary hand and then sat down in a chair. Balladanis was right when he said advanced shields were exhausting. "Very good," Balladanis said, "Stand up again. Now I'll see how many spells each of your shields can withstand." Albus and Malfoy both put their shields up again and Balladanis sent disarming charms at both of them. Albus could feel his shield faltering after the first charm and didn't think it would last as long as Malfoy's. Albus's shield fizzled out after three charms. Malfoy's dismantled after four. He had the biggest smirk on his face afterwards, but didn't say anything. He probably didn't want to gloat in front of Balladanis. Albus knew he'd hear about it the next time they had a class together, though. If only he hadn't had Quidditch practice! Then Albus would have beaten Malfoy. Or at least tied with him. "That's enough for tonight," Balladanis said as he eyed Albus. Albus had a feeling that he looked absolutely exhausted. "Looks like I'm the better dueler," Malfoy said once they were out of the room. "That's not what it meant," Albus muttered, "We didn't even duel each other. I could beat you in a real duel." "And I could beat both of you," a Slytherin Prefect, who was making his rounds, said as he walked by, "So get to your dormitories." Albus had no idea if he could beat the Prefect or not but he didn't want to stick around to lose house points. Plus, it was a good excuse to stop talking to Malfoy. ****** The excitement that filled the Great Hall the next morning reminded Albus yet again of the previous year's Quidditch finals. Only this wasn't a final. It was the Hogwarts versus Australia match, the first match Hogwarts was going to play in. The Hogwarts team did not sit together at breakfast or lunch. There was considerable argument at practice the previous night about this. Oliver Wood, Tyler Pike, and Teddy all wanted the team to sit together in order to squeeze in last minute strategizing, but nobody could agree on which table to sit at. In the end, Teddy sat with the Gryffindor players at the Gryffindor table, Tyler sat with the Ravenclaw players at the Ravenclaw table, and Oliver walked from table to table giving out last minute advice. Albus thought this worked out fine since Oliver didn't seem to be able to sit still for more than a minute. Albus was kind of relieved that nobody on the Hogwarts team came down with Spattergroit or lost a finger in potions class because he didn't really want to play. He loved Quidditch, but so much was at stake. He wanted to merely watch the first match that Hogwarts participated in. Then, if right before the next match, one of the Chasers came down with a cold and Madam Pomfrey forbid them from playing, Albus would gladly take their place. The excitement only increased as Albus and his friends walked to the pitch. Rose and Amanda were there, although Linda wasn't. Albus thought this was only fitting since Hogwarts was playing against Australia in this match. “Welcome, everyone!” Todd Smith's voice boomed over the crowd, “Hogwarts is playing its first match in the Cup and they are up against Australia! The Hogwarts team is captained by Oliver Wood with help from Ted Lupin and Tyler Pike! “The team is comprised of Georgia Weasley as Keeper; Damien Waverly, Anna Reilly, and Ferris Fielding as Chasers; Andy Kaper and Allie Davis as Beaters; and James Potter as Seeker. “The biggest excitement in this match is whether James Potter will be able to beat Australian Seeker Linda Morales, who shocked everyone with her speed and agility in the last match. Potter, of course, is the son and nephew of legendary Gryffindor Seekers Harry Potter and Charlie Weasley. He is also being coached by Gryffindor's other legendary Seeker, Ted Lupin, and is on his way towards becoming another legend in the house of Gryffindor.” “Not being very modest about James, is he?” Rose muttered to Albus. “No, not really,” Albus replied, happy that he wasn't in James's position. “The captains shake hands,” Smith continues, “And they're off!” All fourteen players, half in emerald green Australian robes and half in black Hogwarts ones, rose into the air. Whoever decided on the colors must not have been thinking about visibility. If it was a rainy, snowy, or foggy day, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the two colors. The match was fast-paced like the first one had been. All of the Hogwarts players were superb and as far as Albus could tell, equally matched against Australia. The teams were tied fifteen minutes into the match, each with 120 points. The Quaffle exchanged hands so often that Albus had a hard time keeping up. Rose had already given up and was talking to Amanda about something. Matt, John, and Kaden were all trying to keep up with the match. It happened so fast that if Albus had blinked, he would have missed the whole thing. Linda had been hovering above the Hogwarts goal posts and then she shot down towards the ground, pulling out of her dive with the golden Snitch in her grasp. James had been next to her and was a few metres above her when she caught it. Just like that, in a matter of seconds, the match was over. “Linda Morales has captured the Snitch, which means Australia wins 270-120,” Smith announced less than enthusiastically. “She caught it?” John gaped, “But she was above the goal posts two seconds ago!” “No one can fly that fast!” Albus agreed. “It can't be over!” Matt exclaimed, “It just started twenty minutes ago!” Everyone around Albus was talking about how fast Linda flew to the Snitch. Albus and his friends descended onto the pitch and Albus quickly lost them in the sea of people. He pushed his way through the crowd until he found his team. “They've got to be cheating!” Andy Kaper shouted to Teddy, “They've rigged her broom or something!” “All the brooms were fully checked before the match,” Teddy reminded him. “Well, check it again!” Andy exclaimed, “There's a speed charm on that thing, I guarantee it.” “We'll have it checked again,” Wood assured him. “I want a rematch,” Georgia muttered, “They've got to be cheating. Even a Firebolt 2000 can't fly that fast.” “We're only going to get a rematch if there is something wrong with that broom,” Wood sighed. “I want an unofficial flying competition between her and James,” Damien Waverly said, “There's no way she's a better flyer than he is.” James was the only one not talking. He appeared to be in shock. The entire team was shouting around him, but he didn't seem to hear any of it. “James?” Albus asked tentatively. James jumped and looked at Albus without saying a word. Then he trudged off to the changing room. No one else noticed that he left. No one had noticed Albus show up either, so he joined the crowd of people going back up to the castle. He figured it would be easier to talk to the James once he returned to the common room. The common room was ominously silent when Albus walked through the portrait hole. Most people were sitting, staring into space, and not talking to anyone. It was a scene more fitting to someone just dying than a lost Quidditch match. None of the Australians who had been sorted into Gryffindor, including Linda, were there. Albus briefly wondered where they were going to go, now that they'd probably be chased out of every common room. Albus's friends were sitting at their usual table and Albus joined them. Rose and Amanda were whispering to each other, but John and Matt were silent. Kaden was rifling through a stack of chocolate frog cards. The match had been the definition of anti-climactic. Hogwarts had spent weeks preparing for it, working every day well past when the sun set. Homework had been ignored and studying put off. All so Hogwarts could beat Australia. Then, Linda Morales had caught the Snitch twenty minutes into the match. Linda Morales, the only one who had managed to best James Potter at Quidditch. “You know,” Kaden set down his cards, “If James and Linda had a kid, he or she would be the best Seeker in the world.” Nobody responded. Albus thought it would be more likely to become best friends with a chimaera than James and Linda to get married and have a kid. Not to mention the fact that vampires couldn't bear children. Kaden probably didn't know that, though. “I just don't get it,” John mumbled, “She must've cheated.” “You just don't want to admit that Hogwarts might not have the best Quidditch players in the world,” Rose muttered. “Let's go to the Marauder's Den,” Matt whispered as he stood up. Albus didn't know why Matt wanted to go there, but considering how depressingly quiet the common room was, he wasn't about to object. They passed no one except an Auror on their way to the room. Everyone must have been lamenting the Quidditch loss in their common rooms. “Finally,” Kaden said as he collapsed onto one of the couches in the room, “Now we can actually talk. The common room is depressing.” “What do you expect?” John groaned, “We lost our first mach. We're in last place.” “No, we're not,” Rose said, “New York lost to Australia with only 40 points. They're in last place.” “Doesn't matter,” John shook his head, “We still lost.” “No one's ever going to beat Australia,” Albus sighed. “You're probably right,” Matt said darkly, “Remember the last match? How quickly she caught the Snitch? I knew she'd be fast, but I thought maybe she'd slow down to even things up a bit. This match proves that wrong. She's using the fact that she's a vampire to her advantage.” “That's completely unfair!” John shouted, “Why would Kendrick let her do that?” “He obviously doesn't know,” Rose sighed. “So, she is cheating,” Albus said. “Technically, she's not,” Matt replied, “She's just really skilled at Quidditch. Vampires, and werewolves, have really keen eyesight in order to,” he paused, “Catch prey. She's better at seeing a Snitch than any human.” “Then why don't you play Seeker against her!” Kaden exclaimed, grinning at the idea, “That would be more fair.” Matt burst out laughing. “You didn't see me at flying lessons in first year. I'm an awful flyer. Sure, I could see the Snitch, but I'd fall off my broom trying to catch it.” “Oh,” Kaden deflated. “Plus she's super fast,” John pointed out, “And Matt's not. No offense or anything.” “None taken,” Matt said. “So, what are we going to do about this?” Albus asked, “If she doesn't stop, Australia's going to win this competition.” “I think Rose should talk to her,” John suggested. “Why?” Rose asked. “Because she likes you and you like her,” John said, “Just tell her to fly a little slower.” “Yeah, right,” Rose rolled her eyes, “Believe it or not, she's about as fanatical about Quidditch as you lot are. No way is she going to agree to that.” “It's true,” Amanda agreed. The room descended into silence. The only other thing Albus could think of to do would be to tell Kendrick that Linda was a vampire. That would get her off the Australian Quidditch team for sure. However, Albus didn't really want to do that. Rose would hex him to next century and she'd probably never speak to him again. It would be a lot like if Rose told someone Matt was a werewolf and if that happened, Albus would have the same reaction. Not that Rose would ever do that. They stayed in the Marauder's Den until dinner. Dinner was much more subdued than normal and James never made an appearance. Linda was sitting at the far end of the Gryffindor table with only fellow Australians near her. That kind of surprised Albus since he had never once seen her interact with anyone besides Rose and Amanda. “Albus,” someone put their hand on Albus's shoulder. Albus turned around and saw his dad, wearing the same forlorn look all the students were wearing. “Dad,” he said, “Were you at the match?” “Yeah, I was sitting with Lily,” Harry nodded, “Have you seen James?” “Haven't seen him since right after the match. He went into the changing rooms. Actually, I haven't seen Teddy either. Maybe he's with James.” “Merlin, I hope so,” Harry ran a hand through his hair, “I've checked everywhere I can think of. Makes me wish I hadn't given him the map.” “You can use mine,” Albus suggested, “But I want to go with you.” “All right,” Harry said, “Let's go.” Albus said goodbye to his friends and walked up to Gryffindor Tower with his dad. He ran up to his dormitory once he was there and retrieved the map. The dormitory was empty, so Albus and his dad looked at it there. They scoured the Hogwarts section of the map for nearly five minutes before coming to the conclusion that James was no longer in the school. “Bloody hell,” Harry muttered, “Where did he go?” Albus pressed the number two in the corner of the map with his wand and the map of Hogsmeade appeared. This one was a bit more difficult to search than the Hogwarts one had been. Most of the Hogwarts students had been in the Great Hall. Everyone was spread out in Hogsmeade. Two dots made Albus freeze. Two dots were in the Shrieking Shack. A closer look told him they were Teddy and James. Albus gasped. Why were they there? How did they get in for that matter? “Dad,” Albus pointed to the Shrieking Shack. “The Shrieking Shack?” Harry shouted and stood up. Albus followed him out of the dormitory and then out of the common room. “How'd they get in?” Albus asked once they were walking through the corridors. “Teddy knows the counter-charm for those wards,” Harry muttered. “Why?” “Everyone who goes through Auror training learns a very large variety of counter-charms. One of them was bound to work on that tree. Now, he wasn't supposed to use them outside of training, so I really have no clue what he was thinking,” Harry explained It had gotten cold and windy outside since the match, which really made Albus wonder why Teddy and James would go to the Shrieking Shack of all places. The decrepit old building had no heat, for Merlin's sake. Albus dodged a branch from the Whomping Willow as they neared it. Harry aimed his wand at the bottom and muttered the counter-charm. Then he froze the tree. Albus hurried after him into the passageway. The walk to the Shrieking Shack was brisk and silent. Albus, who had been on the receiving end of many a lecture from his dad, knew that both Teddy and James were going to get one once they made it to the Shack. Harry carefully opened the door and walked into the quiet old building. Hushed voices could be heard from the back room. Albus followed his dad back there. Teddy and James were both sitting on the floor. James looked a complete mess, still wearing his muddy Quidditch robes and his face was all blotchy. Teddy didn't look much better, although his robes were a bit cleaner. “Teddy. James,” Harry said sternly when he entered, “What in the name of Merlin's pants are you doing in this place?” Both boys snapped their heads up at the sound of Harry's voice. “Trying to convince James not to make the biggest mistake of his life,” Teddy muttered. “That sounds a bit overdramatic,” Harry said. “He wants to quit the Quidditch team,” Teddy said dryly. “That is the most idiotic thing I've heard,” Albus shouted, “You can't do that!” “Albus,” Harry warned. Albus shut his mouth, but he still thought the very idea of James quitting the team was mental. They'd have no hope of ever beating New York, let alone Australia, without James. “Twenty minutes, Dad,” James said in barely more than a whisper, “Twenty minutes.” “We've all had our bad matches,” Harry said quietly as he sat down next to James, “I fell off my broom in my third year and lost a match.” “Because of the dementors,” James muttered, “There weren't any dementors at this match.” “James, I'm afraid everyone has made you out to be the unbeatable Seeker. Todd's commentary today proved that. The stakes are set so high with you that when you do lose a match, it completely shocks everyone. It's kind of unfair, actually, because nobody can win every match,” Harry replied, “You're not the unbeatable Seeker, I'm afraid. And running away will get you nowhere.” “I suppose,” James sighed. “You're playing New York next,” Harry reminded him, “They lost to Australia sooner than we did. I think you have a chance at catching the Snitch then.” “I guess,” James replied. “So you won't quit?” Albus asked, unable to keep quiet any longer. “No,” James said. “Good. Because Lisa Galivant is nowhere near as good as you. You're the best Seeker Hogwarts has got,” Albus told him. “Thanks, Al,” James gave him a half-smile, “Too bad Australia's got a better one.” Albus nodded, wishing that he could just tell James why Linda was so good. But he had sort of promised Rose he wouldn't.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2535 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 30 December 2009 09 18 36 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Thanks, Dawn! Chapter 16: The First Match The atmosphere at Hogwats the next day reminded Albus a lot of what it was like the day of the Quidditch Final. It was the day of the first Quidditch match of the Inter-School Competition. Australia would be playing New York. Albus was excited, but not as excited as he would have been if Hogwarts was playing. He didn't particularly care who won this match. He was curious about Linda's seeking skills, though. "Hi, Al," someone said from behind Albus as he walked down to the pitch with Matt, John, and Kaden. Albus turned around and saw his dad. "Hi, Dad! Here to see the match? Or are you on duty?" "Just to see the match," Harry grinned, "I'm hoping to be able to see them all, especially the ones you and James get to play in." "I don't really get to play in any of them," Albus pointed out. "You never know," Harry said, "Well, I'm sitting with Neville, so I'll see you after the match." "Bye, Dad," Albus waved as he ran ahead of them. The boys found decent seats and waited for the match to begin. The weather was particularly nice, especially for a late October day. The sun was out and there was only a slight breeze in the unseasonably warm air. "It's kind of odd to not be rooting for Gryffindor," Matt said. Albus agreed. Nobody was segregated into House sections like they usually were during Quidditch matches. "I don't know who to root for." "Me either," John lowered his voice, "I mostly just want to see how Linda plays. Never seen a vampire play Quidditch before." "She must be good. She's only a second year and she's on the team," Albus pointed out. "But she's immortal," Matt reminded them, "So she's probably decades older than us at least." Albus still found that aspect of vampires very strange. He sighed to himself and focused on the pitch, where a few people were milling about. Albus could make out Professors Kendrick, Roberts, and Killigan, along with a few other people Albus didn't recognize. "Welcome, students, staff, and guests to the first Quidditch match of the competition!" Kendrick shouted over the crowd a few minutes later, "This will work exactly like regular Quidditch matches. Ludo Bagman of the Department of Magical Sports will referee this match. And now, I give you the Quidditch teams of the Adirondack Academy of Magic and the Australian School of Sorcery!" The New Yorkers were dressed in blue Quidditch robes and the Australians were dressed in green. Both teams entered the pitch with brooms in their hands. Albus watched as each of their captains shook hands. Bagman blew a whistle and all fifteen of them rose into the air. "And they're off!" Todd Smith, who was apparently the commentator for the inter-school matches, shouted, "Haberino of New York catches the Quaffle and is flying to the Australian goal posts...." It was a very fast paced match. The Quaffle passed back and forth between players faster than Smith could announce. Albus was very impressed. He also doubted he could fly as well as them and was sort of glad he wasn't playing. Albus knew he should pay the closest attention to the Chasers, but he couldn't help but gawk at Linda as she flew around the pitch. She was noticeably faster than the rest of the players. Her form was practically a blur every time she darted in between the rest of the players. "Merlin, she's fast!" Albus exclaimed as Linda went from one end of the pitch to the other in mere seconds. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone fly that fast!" John gaped, "And I've been to loads of Puddlemere matches!" "Well, that would explain it," Matt smirked. "Puddlemere has plenty of fast fliers!" John shouted, "It's you who's probably never seen anyone fly fast, what with you being a Cannons fan...." Matt rolled his eyes. "She's fast because of what she is." Albus nodded. He kind of figured that. It didn't seem fair, though. None of the other teams had a vampire for a Seeker. James obviously wasn't a vampire and Albus doubted the New York Seeker was one either. He was a lot slower than Linda. It seemed like there should be some sort of rule that would prevent Linda from being on the Australian team. Although, Albus wasn't sure Kendrick and Roberts knew Linda was a vampire. "New York scores!" Smith shouted, "40-20 New York!" Linda may have been fast, but New York seemed to have better Chasers. Their style of playing reminded Albus of how he played with his cousins. When Albus played with Heather and Fred, it was almost like they shared a brain. All of a sudden, Linda shot across the pitch, from the Australian goals to the bottom of the New York goals. Albus stood up and watched the New York Seeker flew after her, but was meters behind. Linda dove for the ground and flew back into the air clutching something in her hand. "Is that?" John began. "The Snitch?" Kaden gaped. "It is," Albus stared as the two teams descended to the ground. It had only been fifteen minutes since the match started! "Linda Morales of Australia has caught the Snitch!" Smith announced, "Australia wins 170-40!" "That was the quickest game of Quidditch I've ever seen," John said. Everyone agreed. Albus had never seen anyone catch the Snitch that fast before. If the other matches were like this one, Australia was going to have the competition in the bag. "I'm guessing this match won't be followed by a party in the common room?" Kaden asked as the boys got up from their seats. "Probably not," Albus laughed, "Hogwarts didn't play, so we've really got nothing to celebrate." "Linda's in Gryffindor, though," John pointed out. "Yeah, but I'm betting most of the Gryffindors are going to be a bit upset at Linda's seeking skills. I mean, James is good, but even he's going to have problems going up against Linda. I think she'd even give Teddy a run for his money," Albus pointed out. "James can beat her," John said confidently as they began the journey back to school, "He's a brilliant Seeker." "But she's faster," Albus sighed. "She's bound to slip up eventually," Kaden said hopefully. Albus certainly hoped so. Maybe the Beaters could just constantly pelt her with Bludgers throughout the whole match so she wouldn't have a chance to find the Snitch. They continued to walk alongside the forest on their way to the castle. The hair on the back of Albus's neck bristled and he looked quickly over his shoulder. It felt like someone was watching him. He stopped in his tracks and looked into the forest. He saw a dark figure jump behind a tree. Someone was in there. "Why'd you stop, Albus?" Kaden asked. "There's someone in the forest," Albus whispered. "Hagrid?" Matt asked. "No," Albus shook his head, "Too small to be Hagrid." "We should go find out who it is," John announced. "Are you mental?" Matt said, "Whoever's in there could be a murderer or something!" Albus wasn't sure about that, but he was sure that he was curious. He wanted to know who was lurking about the forest after a Quidditch match. "Maybe we should," Albus said. Matt sighed. "Albus, you're supposed to be the sane one." "I want to go see who it is," Kaden said. "It's the Forbidden Forest!" Matt groaned, "Forbidden! If we get caught, we'll be in huge trouble! Look at everyone walking around. Someone is going to catch us." That was a good point. But at the same time, Albus really wanted to know who it was. He couldn't just stand there and not go find out who the mysterious figure was.... "Al," a voice said from behind him. Albus jumped and turned around. His dad was standing there, looking at him curiously. "Oh, hi Dad." "What are you doing?" Harry asked. "Er, there's someone in the forest," Albus replied. Harry peered into the forest and then turned back to Albus with a grim look on his face. "Thanks for letting me know, Al. I'll check it out. I want all four of you to go back to the castle and go straight to Gryffindor Tower." "Who do you think it is?" Albus asked. His dad seemed rather worried. "I have a few guesses," Harry replied, "If it's anyone important, I'll let you know." Albus nodded and started to walk back to the castle with his friends. He glanced back at his dad and saw his Patronus running in the opposite direction. A few people were pointing at it and whispering. "Who do you think it is?" Kaden asked. Albus shrugged. "Dunno. I mean, the only people I can think of are Washburn and Willinson, but they haven't been sighted in months." "It's got to be one of them," John said, "Why else would your dad get so worried about it?" "But he couldn't even see who it was," Matt pointed out, "It might turn out to be nothing." "Scary, though," Kaden shivered, "One of them coming back. I mean, I've never met either of them, but if they're anything like Quinton...." "Don't worry," Albus assured him, "We'll just go back to the common room and we'll be fine." The boys hurried back into the castle and up to Gryffindor Tower. Most of the people around them were talking about the match, but Albus overheard a few people talking about his dad's Patronus. The Gryffindor common room was packed when they entered it. There was a very large group of people in the middle shouting about Quidditch and Albus had no doubt that Linda was in the middle of it, even if she didn't want to be. Albus didn't see Rose or Amanda anywhere and figured they were with Linda. Albus had a fleeting thought that he needed to tell them about what he saw, but decided not to since Rose wasn't speaking with him. He just didn't feel like telling her anything important while she was still giving him the silent treatment. He was starting to feel a bit dejected that it had been going on so long. Albus and his friends found a table and sat down. They were quickly joined by Lily, Hugo, and Ashtyn. "Can you believe she caught the Snitch that fast?" Lily asked. "That was incredible," Albus agreed, "But she's going to make it hard to beat Australia." "I'll say," Hugo sighed, "Everyone is trying to figure out how she's so fast. Fred thought she had some sort of special broom, but she denied it." "Well, she obviously wouldn't admit to that," Ashtyn rolled her eyes. "Maybe Rose could ask her," Lily suggested. "I doubt Rose would do that," Albus muttered. "Are you still rowing with her?" Lily asked. "Er, yeah," Albus said. "Why? Nobody's told me what your row was even about," Lily huffed. "It's not your business, Lily," Albus sighed. "Come on," Lily whined, "I'm your sister." "And I don't tell you everything," Albus said, "So give it a rest." "Can I have everyone's attention?" someone shouted from the portrait hole. Albus looked up and saw Neville standing there. Everyone immediately quieted down. Teachers rarely went into the common room. In fact, the only time they did was when something bad happened or when Gryffindor had a spectacular Quidditch win. "I don't want anyone leaving the common room for now," Neville said in an unusually strict tone. "What's going on?" Georgia asked. "Someone was spotted near Hogsmeade and in the forest," Neville replied. "Who?" Fred asked. "The Aurors don't want us to disclose that information yet," Neville said, "I'll be back when we know more." Neville left and the common room erupted into whispers. Albus turned to his friends, who had all turned a few shades lighter after hearing Neville's announcement. "It's got to be," Matt whispered, "They wouldn't shut us in if it wasn't someone dangerous." Albus nodded and swallowed hard. He knew he was perfectly safe in the common room, but couldn't help feeling a bit scared. "I bet it's Washburn!" someone shouted from across the common room. "Who's Washburn?" one of the first years piped up. "Evil Charms teacher," someone replied. "Yeah!" Ashtyn said, "He tried to kill my brother!" "Mine, too!" Lily put in. "And he tried to kill my sister," Hugo added. Lily, Ashtyn, and Hugo started telling the other first year what had happened to Albus and his friends. Albus groaned and shook his head as all four eleven year olds watched him. "Wish we could go to the room," Albus muttered. "Let's go to the dormitory," John suggested, "I'll bet it's empty." The boys left the common room (much to the dismay of Lily, Hugo, Ashtyn, and their growing group of on-lookers) and went up to Albus's dormitory, which was thankfully empty. Albus, Matt, and John all sat on their beds and Kaden sat on the foot of Albus's. None of them said a word. Albus supposed that deep down in his mind he knew Washburn would come back, but he tried not to think about it. He figured Washburn was after the Resurrection Stone. That meant he wouldn't try and break into the castle, didn't it? No, it didn't. Albus's gaze fell upon his trunk, where the Invisibility Cloak resided. If Washburn still wanted to unite the Hallows, he'd need that cloak. Albus gulped. Washburn was going to try and break into the castle. Albus didn't know when, but he knew it would happen at some point. ****** Harry never returned to the castle to tell Albus what had happened. Neville came back to the common room an hour or so later and told everyone they were free to leave if they wanted to, but he didn't disclose any details. Albus and his friends stayed in the common room, hoping Harry would eventually find Albus, but he never did. The Great Hall was filled with much more chatter than was normal on Monday morning. Albus and his friends sat down at the Gryffindor table and James immediately passed Albus a copy of the Daily Prophet. "They didn't catch him," James said as he tossed Albus the paper. Albus took it and all four boys read the front page article at the same time. [b]Washburn Sighted in Hogsmeade; Mysterious Man Sighted in Forest[/b] [i]Jameson Washburn, wanted for torturing underage students and the illegal use of Legilimency on an underage student, was sighted by an anonymous witch in Hogsmeade yesterday afternoon. The sighting took place a few hours after the first Quidditch match in the tournament between Hogwarts, the Australian School of Sorcery, and the Adirondack Academy of Magic. The anonymous witch stated that 'a man ran from behind the Hog's Head up towards the hills. He looked like Washburn.' Harry Potter, Head of the Auror Department, was on the Hogwarts grounds at the time and reported quickly to the scene. No signs of Washburn were found and Potter is sure he had Disapparated quickly. Potter had previously been investigating the Forbidden Forest, after receiving a tip from a student that someone had been lurking around. Nobody was found. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry went into lock down after the supposed sighting of Washburn. Students were not informed about the situation. The Auror Department has not said whether additional protection will be given to the school. Currently, an Auror is assigned to the school at all times, after the kidnapping of a student by Quinton Willinson (currently residing in Azkaban) last Spring. 'We don't want people to worry. We're not even sure whether either sighting was actually Washburn or not,' Potter told reporters.[/i] Albus set down the paper and turned to look at his friends. There was no doubt in his mind that that man in the forest had been Washburn. He had gotten away again. For someone who seemed incompetent at just about everything, Washburn certainly was good at escaping. "I wonder where he's hiding," John said, "I mean, he's probably somewhere around here, you'd think?" "I bet he Apparated someplace far away," Albus replied, "He's not going to want to stick around and get caught." "Yeah, that's true," John said, "But I bet he'll be back." "Probably," Albus agreed, "Willinson might even go with him. I wonder where he is." "I hope he's far away from here," Matt said, "We'd better get to class." Albus was happy that they had Care of Magical Creatures first because he would be able to continue talking about Washburn as they observed firecrabs. "You don't think they'll cancel the Hogsmeade trips, do you?" John asked once they had walked a safe distance away from the Slytherins. "I dunno," Albus shrugged, "They didn't cancel them when Sirius escaped from Azkaban." "I hope they won't," John said, "They could just have Aurors patrolling the village. That'll keep Washburn away." "There are already Aurors patrolling the school," Matt pointed out, "So I'm sure they'll be patrolling Hogsmeade now, too." "Just as long as they don't bring any dementors here, I'll be happy," Albus shivered. He had never actually seen a dementor, but he knew enough about them to fear them. "Well, that didn't exactly work out well when Sirius had escaped, did it?" John replied. "I know, but still...." Albus's voice trailed off. "Dementors don't even guard Azkaban anymore, so I don't see why they would get sent here," John said as he stopped his firecrab from escaping. "I wonder where they went," Albus pondered, "I've never seen one." "Me neither," John shook his head, "But that's a good point. What did happen to them all?" "That's one thing my dad never told me," Albus shrugged. "I've never seen one either," Matt shivered, "But my dad has. He's had to deal with them at work-" "So he knows where they were sent?" John interrupted. "No," Matt shook his head, "He dealt with them in Australia. There are a lot of them on the outback. There's hardly anyone living around there, so every once in a while, they'll descend on some tiny town they come upon. Then some witch or wizard reports it and my dad or someone else from his office would have to go clear them out." "That would be a horrible job," John said quietly. "He hated it," Matt replied, "He'd come home all shaky and depressed and Mum would feed him loads of chocolate. Then they'd go talk by themselves. He refused to tell me and Amy what he hears when he comes across dementors, though. Amy asked loads of times, but he never told." "My dad won't tell me what he hears either," Albus said, "It's got to be awful." "Neither of my parents have ever seen dementors," John said, "I think my parents lead relatively normal lives compared to yours." "No one in my family leads a normal life," Albus laughed. "Mine either," Matt agreed. "Well, hopefully your dad will catch Washburn and Willinson and then you can have a somewhat normal life, Albus," John said. "Maybe," Albus shrugged. "As for me, I like a little excitement in life," John grinned. "You can have all of mine," Albus laughed. "Mine, too," Matt smirked. "Nah," John shook his head, "I'll make my own."
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2535 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 16 December 2009 07 02 52 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 14: Hogsmeade Albus and John practically ran to the hospital wing. They slowed down as they neared it and tried to look as casual as they could as they walked in. Madam Pomfrey was busy with a patient, so she didn't even notice them as they made a beeline for Matt's bed. Albus yanked the curtains back and shut them again once John and himself were inside. To his relief, Matt was awake this time. He looked exhausted, but he was awake. "Hey, Matt," Albus said. "Hey, Albus," Matt replied, "How are you?" "All right," Albus said, "How about you?" "Tired," Matt sighed, "Er, how is Rose? Is she still ignoring us?" "Pretty much," Albus said quietly. John nodded and then glanced at Albus. Albus took a deep breath. He hadn't really thought about how he was going to ask Matt about this. "Are you two ok?" Matt asked tentatively. John poked Albus. Albus glared at him and then turned back to Matt. "Well, we sort of wanted to ask you something," Albus lowered his voice, "I'm sure you'll think its mental...." Matt stared at him curiously. "Er, all right, what is it?" "I was talking to Rose in Ancient Runes-" "I thought she was still ignoring us." "She was. But we were partners, since you weren't there." "What about Linda?" Matt asked. "She wasn't there either, which is what I wanted to ask you about," Albus paused, "Rose said Linda's been ill the past few days. I couldn't really help but notice that she was ill around the same time you were and well, John and I were sort of wondering if maybe, well, she was-" "Like me?" Matt whispered. His eyes had widened in shock and he was staring incredulously at Albus and John. "Er, yeah," Albus muttered, "Told you it was mental." "It is," Matt said adamantly. "So you know she's not?" John asked, "You saw her in here or something? Or did Madam Pomfrey tell you?" Matt smiled wryly. "Of course not. Even if she was, I doubt Madam Pomfrey would tell me. You two missed the obvious clue that she's not like me." Albus turned to John, who shrugged. "Linda normally goes to the Australian School of Sorcery," Matt stated, "The school that I wasn't allowed to go to. Obviously, if Linda was like me, she couldn't go there either." Albus felt like he should have smacked himself in the head. He turned to John, who looked like he was about to burst out laughing. How could they have forgotten about that? It was staring them straight in the face and they completely overlooked it. Professor Killigan was prejudiced against werewolves. There was no way he would admit Linda if she was one. "Oh, right," Albus mumbled, "Should have remembered that." "It's actually kind of funny that you thought she was like me," Matt smirked. "I guess she's just got a cold or something," John shrugged. "Yeah, probably," Albus said. So much for the idea of Rose and Matt making up. Albus would just have to think of some other way to get them to be friends again. "When do you get to leave?" John asked. "Not sure," Matt sighed, "Probably late tomorrow, if I'm lucky." "Hogsmeade is on Saturday," John said. "I know. I'll be out for that, even if I have to sneak out when Madam Pomfrey is sleeping," Matt replied. Albus didn't really think Madam Pomfrey would sleep through someone trying to sneak out of the ward, but he hoped Matt would be out in time to go to Hogsmeade. It would be incredibly unfair if he wasn't allowed to go. ****** The silence continued into the next day. Linda returned from her mysterious illness and went back to spending all her free time with Rose and Amanda. Albus spent his time with John and Kaden in the Marauder's Den. Albus hated the silence more and more every day. It kept him up at night, but he couldn't think of anything he could do about it. The row was mainly between Rose and Matt. Albus couldn't solve it, but it was eating away at him like it was his own row. He was very glad he wasn't playing Quidditch in the upcoming match. He wouldn't have been able to concentrate. Matt didn't leave the hospital wing until Friday evening. Madam Pomfrey had reluctantly let him leave in order to go to Hogsmeade the following day. Albus woke up not feeling nearly as excited as he probably should have about going to Hogsmeade. He and Rose had imagined going to Hogsmeade together since they were little kids. They plotted where they would go and what they would do. Both of them had been to Hogsmeade before, but never without one of their parents. The idea of going by themselves had always been exciting. Now that the day had actually arrived, Albus couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. He wouldn't be going with Rose. Not while they were still in the midst of a row. It was either go with Matt and John, or ditch them and go with the girls. The latter wasn't even a real option. He was still mad at Rose and if he decided to make up with her, he'd have Matt and John angry with him. He just had to face it; going to Hogsmeade with Rose was not an option. Albus, Matt, and John joined the queue of people in the Entrance Hall later on in the morning. Matt and John were more excited than Albus was, but still more subdued than the rest of the third years. "We've got to remember the stuff for the Halloween party," John reminded them. The Halloween party was that night. Albus had nearly forgotten about it over the past few days. It was another thing that would have been more fun if they weren't fighting with the girls. "Yeah," Albus nodded, "We've got to get Kaden's stuff, too." "Merlin, he was jealous that we get to go and he doesn't," John smirked. "Can't blame him," Matt lowered his voice, "I mean, this is the first time we'll get to try out the Hogsmeade part of the map." Albus grinned. That was one part about the Hogsmeade trip that Albus was still thoroughly excited about. He had the new map in his cloak pocket, all ready to go. "We can see who likes to go to the Hog's Head," John grinned mischievously. "Hey, Amy used to go there," Matt said. "Really?" John asked. "Yeah, she liked how empty it was." "Seems like an awfully depressing place," John said. "Where do you lot want to go first?" Albus asked as they gave their names to Filch. "Weasley's," John said immediately, "I've got loads to buy there. And Kaden gave me a list of stuff he wants me to get him, too." "Why does that not surprise me?" Albus smirked. The boys walked the short distance into Hogsmeade once Filch checked their names off. It was a chilly autumn day. There was a slight breeze in the air and it was cloudy, but not the kind of clouds that threatened rain. They couldn't have asked for better weather in late October. Once they arrived, they hid behind a tree in order to look at the map. Albus glanced around to make sure nobody was watching and then pulled it out of his cloak. He muttered the incantation and soon, an inky replication of Hogsmeade was on the yellowed paper. "Whoa," Matt whispered, "Look, Weasleys' is so crowded, you can't read any of the labels." There were dots spilling out of the joke shop and even more inside, piled on top of each other. Albus wasn't surprised in the slightest. His uncle's shop was the most popular in Hogsmeade. There were more modest collections of dots in the rest of the shops and pubs. A slight few were in the Hog's Head. "Anyone we know in the Hog's Head?" John asked. "Nope," Albus said after he read the labels. Albus wiped the map clean and then they set off for Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. It took them a while to squeeze into the crowd, and once there, Albus and Matt quickly lost John to the throngs of students grabbing merchandise. Both George and Teddy were behind the counter, ringing up purchases as fast as they possibly could. "Hi Uncle George! Teddy!" Albus shouted. "Hey, Al!" George shouted back. "Albus!" Teddy exclaimed, "How's your first Hogsmeade trip?" "Great," Albus smiled, "Are you coming to the Halloween party?" "Wouldn't miss it," Teddy grinned, "Victoire and Amy are going, too." "That's good," Albus said, "Are you dressing up?" "'Course," Teddy laughed. "What as?" "Where would the fun in that be?" Teddy winked. John returned a little while later, arms laden with merchandise. He dumped it all on the counter and a few Skiving Snackboxes fell on the ground. Albus picked them up and smirked as he put them on the counter. "Stocking up for a year?" Albus asked. "Nah, this is just until next Hogsmeade trip," John said. "You're one of my best customers, John," George laughed. "Do you really need five Snackboxes?" Matt asked. "Definitely. Divination's awful. And two are for Kaden," John replied. John paid for his purchases and then the group wandered down the road until they reached Gladrags Wizardwear. They slowly walked inside, only to find that it was filled with giggly girls. "I'd be happy if I never had to set foot in here again," John groaned as he gestured to a display of pink sparkly robes. "We just need to get our costume stuff and get out," Albus muttered, equally unhappy about having to visit a clothing shop. The three boys tried to move as quietly as possible through the crowd of girls in order to find their costume stuff. Albus immediately found a black shirt and pants for his skeleton costume. He had bought glow in the dark paint at Weasleys' and one of his cousins was going to paint bones on the shirt and pants with it. John had purchased Muggle vampire teeth and Muggle face paint at Weasleys', so all he needed was a black cape, which he found quickly. Matt located a white sheet, which was all he needed for his ghost costume. Albus got another white sheet, which they would cut up into strips for Kaden's mummy costume. "Finally!" John exclaimed once they left the shop, "That's my least favorite place in Hogsmeade." "You should go to Madam Puddifoot's, then," Albus laughed. John shuddered. "No way. I will never set foot in that hideous place." "Anyone want to go to the Three Broomsticks?" Matt shivered. "Yeah, I could use with a Butterbeer," Albus agreed and pulled his cloak tighter. The wind had picked up and Butterbeer would be good to warm up with. Albus led his friends up the street and into the crowded pub. It seemed that everyone had the idea of warming up with a Butterbeer. Albus and Matt snagged the last empty table while John went to the bar to get a few Butterbeers. "What do you think the party is going to be like?" Matt asked. "Dunno," Albus shrugged, "It's not really common for there to be an actual party. Usually it's just the feast. I guess they just want us to interact with the foreign students. Kind of like the Yule Ball for the Triwizard Tournament." "I just can't wait to see what people dress up as," John announced as he returned with the Butterbeers. "Think the teachers will dress up?" Matt asked. "I hope so," John grinned, "Probably depends on the teacher, though. I could see Kendrick dressing up. And Longbottom. Not sure about Slughorn." Albus snorted into his Butterbeer. "Slughorn, dress up? Now that would be funny." "I think any of the teachers dressing up would be funny," Matt laughed. "So, how long do you think it'll be until Kaden tries sneaking into Hogsmeade?" John asked. "Next trip," Albus said immediately, "I know he's plotting it. He asked me if I was taking the map today. I think he wanted it to sneak in." "Are you going to let him have it next time?" Matt asked as he sipped his Butterbeer. "Probably," Albus nodded. "What if he gets caught?" Matt asked. Albus shrugged. "He'll get a couple detentions. It's not like he'll notice another two detentions." "Good point," Matt grinned and turned to John, "You two spend half your waking time in detention." "It's not that bad, once you get used to it. I think Filch is getting a bit fed up with us, though. He's starting to pawn us off on the professors." "Well, when you spend every other night with him, who can blame him?" Albus smirked. "Shut it, Albus," John laughed, "Or next time we get caught, we'll tell Filch whatever we were doing was all your idea." "He'll never believe you," Albus grinned. "Albus," a female voice said from behind him. Albus turned around and saw Rose, Butterbeer in hand, with Amanda and Linda on either side of her. "Rose," Albus muttered. The mood at the table quickly turned from joking around to tense silence. Albus nervously glanced from Amanda to Rose and back again. He looked at Matt and John, who were both glaring at the girls. "All the tables are taken," Amanda sighed, "Do you mind if we sit here?" "Er-" Albus began. "We were just leaving," Matt announced as he stood up, "Right?" "Yeah," John agreed. Albus nodded and stood up as well. He followed Matt and John through the crowded pub, looking back at the girls. Amanda was the only one who was watching them leave. "Why couldn't they have found some other table to sit at?" John groaned after they were back outside. "I dunno," Albus muttered. He had been having fun joking around with Matt and John, but as soon as the girls showed up, he was reminded once again of the rift that had formed in their group. "Anywhere we haven't been yet?" "Madam Puddifoot's," Matt laughed. "Don't even joke about that," John shuddered, "But you know, we haven't been to the Shrieking Shack." Matt groaned. "You're kidding, right?" "Nope," John grinned and took off up the street, "Come on, don't even say you're not going. Because you are." Matt sent Albus a withered look and set off at a slower pace after John. Albus laughed to himself and followed them. There were a couple people leaning on the fence in front of the Shack. They were all third years. Albus figured the thrill of the Shrieking Shack wore off after the first couple Hogsmeade trips. Albus and Matt joined John, who was standing near a couple girls who were looking at the Shack. "It's the most haunted building in Britain!" a Ravenclaw named Ann Jacobs told her friend. "Really?" the girl's eyes widened. Albus vaguely remembered that she was Muggle born. "Yeah, it's haunted by ghosts!" Ann Jacobs said excitedly, "Right, Albus?" "Er, yup," Albus nodded, "Ghosts." "I wonder if we could get inside!" the other girl said. "You can't," Matt said quickly. "How do you know?" the girl asked. "My sister tried once," Matt answered, "She graduated our first year. The place is completely sealed." "Oh," the girl sighed, "Would have been cool." "We should get back," Matt said, "We've got to get our costumes ready." "Good idea," Albus agreed. The boys bade goodbye to the two Ravenclaws and headed back to the castle. They were all very quiet on the walk back. Albus sunk back into his thoughts of how he should have gone to Hogsmeade with Rose. He hoped he'd be able to go with her the next trip. Albus couldn't imagine that he'd still be mad at her when that came around. At least he hoped he wouldn't. Kaden was waiting in the Marauder's Den for them. He immediately bombarded them with questions, and the rest of the boys launched into a detailed description of their entire trip. After Kaden's curiosity was finally satisfied, the boys got to work on their costumes. Matt, John, and Kaden stayed behind in the Marauder's Den to make Matt's ghost costume and Kaden's mummy costume while Albus set off to find one of his cousins to paint his skeleton costume. Gabriella agreed to make the costume. Not wanting to find the girls and ask Amanda to do it, Albus had been hoping Gabriella would. Gabriella was the most creative of all his cousins and even though all he needed was someone to perform a painting charm, he figured Gabriella would do the best job. "What are you dressing up as?" Albus asked as Gabriella performed the charm. "A Veela," Gabriella replied. "Creative," Albus laughed. "My friend actually came up with it. A couple of us are going as Veelas." "Well, you've already got the hair, so it won't take much for you to dress up," Albus said. Gabriella grinned and handed Albus his costume. "Here you go. I'll see you at the party. I've got to go get ready." "Thanks," Albus said. When Albus returned to the Marauder's Den, he was met not by his friends, but by a ghost, mummy, and vampire. All three costumes were brilliant. Matt looked just like a Muggle ghost, complete with eye holes and a round mouth hole. Kaden was wrapped in strips of white sheet that were hanging off of him in various places. John's costume was the best, in Albus's opinion. He wore a black cape with a white shirt and black pants underneath. He also had a red bow-tie on, which Kaden insisted would make him look more vampirish. His face was completely covered in white make-up and he was wearing bright red lipstick that dripped onto his chin. When he grinned, he revealed pearly white vampire fangs. "You lot look great," Albus grinned, "The Muggle costumes was definitely the way to go." "Put yours on," Matt said. Albus nodded and went to his section of the room. When he came out, he was wearing his costume. Albus looked at his arms and they were glowing. Gabriella had done an excellent job with the painting charm. His chest was covered in a glow in the dark rib cage. "Brilliant, Albus," John grinned. "We're going to have the best costumes in the school," Kaden announced, "Are the girls still dressing up as witches?" "No idea," Albus sighed. He hadn't talked to Rose about the costumes in weeks. "Guess we'll find out." Albus had no idea what to expect from the party. The professors had never sponsored a party before while he was at Hogwarts. He walked down to the Great Hall with Matt, John, and Kaden. They passed quite a few people on the way down and saw all sorts of different costumes.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2535 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 2 December 2009 09 17 01 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 12: Dueling and Fighting Albus was amazed at how much extra time he had now that he did not have to go to Gryffindor Quidditch practice. During the next week, he got all his homework done on time and got a decent amount of sleep. Plus, he made fewer trips to the hospital wing, which he attributed to having more sleep. Classes were going well. Albus was very glad they had moved onto more exciting creatures in Care of Magical Creatures. They weren't up to hippogriffs or thestrals, but nifflers were certainly entertaining. Despite the rather boring start, Care of Magical Creatures was quickly becoming one of Albus's favorite classes. He seemed to have an affinity for the variety of animals they learned about; something Hagrid was quick to notice. Arithmancy was turning out to be kind of dry, but Albus was just happy he wasn't taking Divination. Even John was beginning to get tired of making up fake predictions for Trelawney. 'What's the point?' he had shouted out angrily one night as they were working on homework. Albus wasn't able to suppress his grin at that, which earned him a Divination book to the head when John saw Albus's smirk. Defense Against the Dark Arts continued to be the strangest class Albus had ever attended. He was beginning to think he was enjoying it, but still wasn't sure. He liked the class, but wasn't sure if he liked Balladanis himself. The professor continued to be a mystery to students of all years. Hours were spent debating his background in the common room. He seemed to take points away equally from each house, which either meant he was extremely fair or had never attended Hogwarts himself. Quite a few students had asked their parents if they'd ever heard of Balladanis (namely, had they gone to school with him), but so far none of the parents had. Balladanis's teaching methods were certainly unique. Albus could count on one hand the number of actual lectures he had had in that class. Most all the lessons were practical, but not in the same way Harry had done them. Harry's method had been very caring and all about trying. Balladanis's methods were more harsh and focused on success. He insisted that everyone succeed and refused to let anyone stop until they did, even if it meant coming in for extra help. The amount of students going in for extra help was increasing quickly. Matt was no longer seen as weak or odd for having to go in for extra help. Nearly half of Albus's class was spending extra time with Balladanis at least once a week. The professor still hadn't let Matt stop going. "Stand up!" Balladanis barked at Albus's class. These two words were frequently spoken by the professor. Albus wondered why he didn't just do away with the desks all together instead of having to move them at the beginning of each class. "Get a move on!" he shouted, "Unless you think your books will attack you. Books can only get you so far. You need to practice!" The class spent nearly an hour practicing the spell to repel grindylows and once the bell rang, Balladanis announced that they'd be practicing on real grindylows in the next class. "Brickston!" Balladanis announced, "You'll be coming in for extra help tomorrow night. You may come the same time Eckerton does." Albus didn't think John had done that bad with the spell. It had taken him a while, but by the end of the class he had managed it. Albus was beginning to think that by the end of the year, everyone would be going in for extra help. "He's certifiably insane," John muttered as they walked to potions after they left the Defense classroom. "Well, I'm kind of glad you're going in for help," Matt said, "You can keep Amanda and I company." "That's nearly all of us going in for help," Rose commented, "Just Al and Linda and I." Kaden had been going for help nearly as long as Matt had. Amanda had started a few days ago. "Albus won't ever have to go," Matt said, "He's too good at Defense." "I'm not that great at it," Albus muttered quietly. Sure, he managed all the spells, but it's not like they were very advanced. ****** "What do you think Balladanis did before he taught here?" Kaden mused late the next day. "Dunno," Albus shrugged. "I think he was an Auror," John said, "I mean, he obviously hates the dark arts." "No," Albus shook his head, "My dad would have mentioned that." "Maybe he was a foreign Auror," John suggested. "But he sounds British," Matt pointed out. "So do you, for the most part, but you're from Australia," John countered. "Really? I always thought I sounded Australian." "You do a bit. But your parents sound more Australian than you do. Same with Amy," Albus told him. "Oh," Matt shrugged, "So I guess he could be foreign." "Why did he come teach here, then?" Albus asked. No one had an answer to that. Albus was really curious to what the answer was, but it's not like he could actually ask the professor. In fact, the idea of being alone with Balladanis kind of scared him. He was really glad he didn't have to see the professor outside of class. The first Inter-School Dueling Tournament was scheduled to take place the next day. The entire school was buzzing about it. It was the first big competition between the three schools. Albus didn't know a whole lot of people who were on the Hogwarts Dueling Team. Just his cousin, Fred. Despite this, he was still excited. Albus absolutely loved dueling and wished he was old enough to be on the school team. The tournament was taking place in the Great Hall, since the dueling chamber was much too small to accommodate the entire school. Albus walked with his friends into the room and saw that all the tables had disappeared. They were replaced with raised stands, sort of like the Quidditch pitch. Albus found seats towards the front and waited impatiently for the tournament to begin. The dueling area was a raised platform in front of the stands. On the other side of it was a smaller set of stands, in which all the teachers were filing into. The mysterious wizard who had been seen talking to Killigan, but never introduced, was sitting next to the Australian headmaster, but neither of them were talking. Both wore identical looks of determination mingled with fascination. A witch Albus didn't recognize was seated next to Roberts and the two of them were talking. Albus assumed she was from New York. The Auror who had been assigned to patrol Hogwarts that week was talking with Albus's Uncle Percy, who had came to represent the Ministry. Neither Albus's dad nor his Uncle Ron were there, so Albus assumed they were busy with work. Once all the students, teachers, and various other spectators were seated, Professor Kendrick stood up and everyone quieted down. "Welcome, students, staff, and visitors to the first Dueling Tournament between Hogwarts, the Australian School of Sorcery, and the Adirondack Academy of Magic. All three schools will duel this afternoon. Each school's team has five students and each student will participate in two duels. Whichever student wins the duel gets a point for their school. The school with the most points will win. But keep in mind that this is just the first of many tournaments that will take place during this year. Now, here are the teams." Kendrick gestured to a door on the side of the room. The door opened and Professor Longbottom led the Hogwarts team into the room. The other two schools' teams followed and Albus didn't recognize either of their professors. He hadn't really thought about the other teams' captains before. He kind of figured they had them, but hadn't seen them before. He guessed they just came to Hogwarts for practices. They must have set up some kind of special floo connection with the school. The tournament commenced in much the same way the Junior Dueling Club had, except only one duel took place at a time. The spells used were much more advanced, too. The spell that Slytherin had used on Matt during the previous years paled in comparison to the ones being used by the older students. Albus was absolutely fascinated. He paid rapt attention and wished that he could learn such advanced spells. The tournament took nearly two hours, but Albus wasn't bored at all. In fact, he was kind of disappointed when the last duel was over. Professor Kendrick tallied the points and then rose once again. "Thank you everyone. Each and every student performed well today. However, this is a tournament and I must declare a winner. And that winner is the Adirondack Academy of Magic. Congratulations to them!" There was a small amount of loud applause from the New Yorkers who were in the audience, as well as some polite applause from everyone else. Albus sighed and clapped politely along with most of his fellow students. "Well, it's only the first tournament," Matt said. "Yeah," Albus agreed, "Plus there's Quidditch." "And we've got a brilliant Quidditch team!" John grinned as he stood up, "Now we've just got to hope that one of those other Chasers breaks something so Albus can play next week." "John!" Rose scolded. "I'm only kidding," John shrugged, "Sort of." "We could just give one of them the orange end of a puking pastille," Kaden suggested, "And not give them the purple half." "Wouldn't work," John sighed, "Madam Pomfrey recognizes those things now." "I know I probably won't get to play," Albus said as they left the room, "You don't need to land yourselves in detention to get me a place on the team." "We know," Kaden said, "We're just joking." Albus figured they were, but when it came to those two, one just never knew. ****** Albus stowed his broom in his dormitory late Tuesday evening following a particularly tiring Quidditch practice. Wood's focus during this particular practice had been goal scoring, so Albus had worked hard the entire two hours. At least the focus hadn't been on dodging Bludgers. He yawned, grabbed his bag and headed out of the common room. He walked slowly to the Marauder's Den, thinking he could squeeze a bit of homework in before bed. "Albus!" someone shouted as Albus reached the suits of armor in front of the room. Albus turned around and saw Rose, red hair flying behind her, running down the corridor towards him. "Rose?" "Albus!" Rose panted, "I saw you leave the common room." "Er, yeah," Albus shrugged. He usually did his homework in the Marauder's Den since it was quieter and easier to concentrate. "I wanted to talk to you," Rose said. "Ok," Albus said as he located the paw prints on the opposite wall, "We can talk in here." "Actually," Rose said, "I kind of wanted to talk to you alone. Are Matt, John, and Kaden in there?" "Probably," Albus replied. What did Rose want to talk about that she didn't want their other friends to hear? "I didn't see them in the common room." "Well, I'd rather talk to you alone, first," Rose shifted nervously from foot to foot. Albus looked at her strangely. Rose rarely ever looked nervous, especially when she was talking to Albus. What could she possibly have to tell him? "Er, all right," Albus said slowly, "I guess we could find an empty classroom or something...." "Good," Rose nodded and took off down the corridor. Albus ran after her and she found an empty classroom. Albus followed her into it and shut the door behind him. "What is it?" Rose paced around the room for a bit, wringing her hands together, before letting out a loud sigh and leaning up against one of the desks. "It's about Linda." Albus blinked. Linda? He barely knew her. What could Rose possibly have to say about Linda? "Linda?" "Yes, Linda," Rose sighed, "You know Amanda and I are sort of becoming friends with her. Well, we are friends with her now. She talks to us. I think she misses Australia. Anyway, I was sort of thinking it would be good if she started to make friends here. You know, like you. And maybe Matt, John, and Kaden." Albus still had no idea why Rose felt the need to talk to him alone about this. She wanted Albus to befriend Linda. How was he going to do that if Linda didn't say a word around him? Not to mention the fact that Matt didn't seem to like her. "Er, why exactly didn't you want Matt, John, and Kaden to hear this?" Albus asked, "You can't really expect them to become friends with Linda unless you tell them you want them to." "I know that," Rose groaned, "But the four of you are always holing up in the Marauder's Den, so I hardly see any of you anymore. What I wanted to know was whether Linda could come into the Marauder's Den with us." Albus stared at his cousin. So that was what she wanted to talk about. "You want Linda to come into the Marauder's Den?" "Yes," Rose nodded, "She's in the common room with Amanda. Can she? I'll go get them right now if you say yes." "Wait, wait," Albus shook his head, "It's not up to me." "Yes it is!" Rose replied, "You found that map. It's yours, so the room is yours." "No it's not," Albus said, "It's Matt, John, and Kaden's, too. All four of us had to work to get that map to show up and to find the room. If it weren't for them, it would still be a blank piece of parchment." "But-" "No, Rose," Albus said irritably, "I can't just let you bring random people into the room without asking everyone." Albus and his friends hadn't really thought much about whether they'd let other people into the room, but Albus knew he couldn't do it without talking to them. Letting Rose and Amanda in had been a given, since they helped with it, but Linda certainly hadn't helped. "I have to talk to Matt, John, and Kaden," Albus told her, "I can talk to them now, if you want." "All right," Rose sighed and stood up. Neither of the cousins said a word to each other as they walked back to the Marauder's Den. Albus was still rather bewildered by this whole thing. First, he had never really talked to his friends about letting other people into the Marauder's Den. He always assumed it would be their secret. He wasn't entirely sure he wanted anyone else in it, no matter what his friends thought. Second, it was rather out of character for Rose to be this spontaneous and demanding. Whether this was due to the increased work load, the sudden competition in class brought on by Linda, or something else entirely, Albus didn't know. Albus took a deep breath as he opened the door to the room and glanced at Rose. She was looking more nervous than before. Albus walked into the room and paused. John and Kaden were lounging on the floor, playing a rather rowdy game of chess (the two of them could turn any board game into something physical), while their neglected homework sat haphazardly on the table. Matt was paying vague attention to the game while stretched out on the couch. It didn't surprise Albus that he wasn't doing much, since the full moon was the next night. John and Kaden looked up when they heard the door open. "Albus!" Kaden shouted, "How was practice?" "Rose!" John grinned, "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about this place. I don't think I've seen you here in over a month." "Hey, John, Kaden," Albus smiled, "Practice was good. What have you lot been up to?" "Beating Kaden at chess," John explained. "Hey, I beat you once!" Kaden countered. "Only once," John repeated, "I've won four games." "I'm surprised neither of you have detention tonight," Albus smirked. "They almost did," Matt announced, "Professor Longbottom caught them sneaking into the girl's toilet-" "What were you doing in there?" Albus raised his eyebrows. "We were going to put dung bombs in there," Kaden explained. "Anyway," Matt continued, "Longbottom took pity on them since they're already doing so many detentions and only took away points." "Professor Longbottom is great," John grinned. "I wouldn't expect him to let you off again," Matt pointed out. "Want to play chess, Rose?" John asked, "I could use with some real competition." "Hey!" Kaden crossed his arms across his chest, "I'm real competition." Albus glanced at Rose. "Er, Rose has something she wanted to ask us," Albus said quietly. Rose glared at Albus. Clearly she wanted him to bring up the topic. Albus gave her a quick shake of his head. There was no way he was going to ask. She was the one who wanted Linda there. "Well, what is it?" John asked, "If it's about homework, I'll have you know that I've already finished most of it." "It's not about homework," Rose sighed and sat down on the end of the couch that Matt wasn't occupying. Albus settled himself into an armchair opposite the couch and waited for his cousin to continue. Rose took a deep breath. "You lot know Amanda and I have sort of become friends with Linda, right?" "Yeah," John said and Kaden nodded. "Well, since then Amanda and I have been spending more time in the common room with her. But you lot still hang out here all the time...." her voice trailed off. "Well, yeah, because this room is so much better than the common room," Kaden pointed out. "I know," Rose sighed, "And I do miss being with all of you, but at the same time, Linda's my friend now, too." "So spend time with all of us," John said, "I'm sure Linda would be fine by herself for a few hours a day so you can be here with us." Rose groaned. "That wasn't what I had in mind. What I want is for all of us to spend time together. As in you lot can become friends with Linda, too. She needs more friends." "She doesn't talk," Kaden said. "She does when she gets to know you," Rose explained. "So what you're saying," John began, "Is that you want us to stop hanging out in this brilliant room and go back to the boring common room?" "No, of course not," Rose replied, "I want all of us to hang out here. Linda, too." The room was completely silent. Albus watched his friends' reactions with great interest. Both John and Kaden gaped at Rose and then turned to look at Albus. They then turned their heads back to Rose, but didn't say anything. Matt suddenly sat up, eyes wide open, and stared at Rose with an incredulous look on his face. Nobody said a word for what must have been nearly five minutes. Albus kept looking from Rose to his friends and back. Rose was looking nervously at everybody in turn and then sending pleading glances at Albus. Albus was about to open his mouth, when Matt finally broke the stony silence. "No," he said. It was hardly more than a whisper, but was very forceful. "We haven't let anyone else in," John pointed out, "Why should Linda be the first?" Kaden turned to Albus. "What do you think, Albus?" "Er-" Albus began. "Why not?" Rose demanded, "She's mine and Amanda's friend." "But she's not our friend," John said. "But she could be!" Rose insisted. "Then we'll become friends with her before we let her in the room!" John replied, "It's still our secret. We haven't even told Teddy about it yet." Albus turned and looked at John. He hadn't even thought about that. John had a point. They hadn't told Teddy about the room yet. Or his dad. Shouldn't they see it before other people did? "If anyone has the right to know about this room, it's Teddy and my dad," Albus said quietly. "Yes, but they aren't here," Rose pointed out, "Come on, why won't you let her in?" "We don't know her," John said. "She's got no connections to it," Albus said. "I like keeping it a secret," Kaden said. "You could know her!" Rose shouted, "Then she would have connections to it. And it would still be a secret." "Look, Rose," Matt said loudly, "We're not going to let her in! You can't convince us otherwise!" Albus, John, and Kaden turned to look at each other. Albus had never heard Matt raise his voice like that, and certainly not with Rose. "And what's your reason why she can't?" Rose asked icily. Matt glared at her. "They're the same as Albus, John, and Kaden's!" "You just don't like her!" Rose shouted. "So what if I don't?" Matt asked hotly. "You don't even know her! You haven't said one word to her the whole time she's been here!" "Neither has she!" Matt yelled. "You lot are so stubborn!" Rose huffed, "I just don't get why you won't let her-" "Do you really want to know why?" Matt raised his voice even louder, "I honestly wouldn't think I'd have to tell you! You're smart! This is the one place in the castle that nobody else knows about! It's the only place I can go and get some peace and quiet and not have to worry about anyone else barging in! The only people who know about it already know what I am, so I can actually relax! If you let Linda in here, it won't be like that anymore! I like the quiet of this place. And it was quiet before you came in here demanding that we let a witch we hardly know into it!" Matt leaned back against the arm of the couch and squeezed his eyes shut as he rubbed his temple. Albus stared in shock at John and Kaden. Albus had never seen Matt shout at someone like that. Sure, he got a bit short with people around the full moon, but had never had a full-blown row like this. "Well, maybe if you become friends with Linda, you'll tell her what you are," Rose said. She looked quite taken aback that Matt had shouted at her like that. "Are you bloody insane?!" Matt yelled, causing him to wince even more. Albus had a feeling he was giving himself a headache. "You told us," Rose said. "That's different," Matt shook his head, "You figured it out on your own." "What if we hadn't?" "I wouldn't have told you," Matt muttered, "And Linda's going back to Australia after this year, so there really wouldn't be a point." "You know, since she's from Australia, she might already know," Rose pointed out, "You did say that the entire country found out shortly before you moved." That was the wrong thing to say. Albus knew she was going to say it just moments before she finished and he tried to shake his head to tell her to stop, but she either didn't notice or didn't want to stop. All the color drained from Matt's face and with it most of the anger. He merely looked a little scared now. "You think I haven't thought about that?" he asked quietly, "Why do you think I wasn't thrilled about this whole tournament thing? Why do you think I try to avoid anyone from Australia? I mean, it was five years ago, so I really hope most people have forgotten about it, but all it would take was one of them to remember and soon the whole school would know." "I doubt Linda would tell anyone, if she did know," Rose said. "Yeah, because she doesn't talk," Kaden laughed. Leave it to Kaden to find humor in this situation, Albus thought. He couldn't help but grin at his cousin's statement himself. "Could you at least think about it?" Rose asked. "No," Matt raised his voice again, "Don't you get it? I don't want to risk anyone else finding out. I don't want this to be a repeat of what happened in Australia. I like it here. I don't want to move again. So I'm not going to change my mind. I'm going to bed." Matt got up off the couch and walked slowly over to his bed and rammed the curtains shut behind him. Albus exchanged glances with John and Kaden, completely at a loss as to what to say. Rose got up off the couch a moment later and left the room without another word. Albus, John, and Kaden quietly began to work on their homework, but the remainder of the evening was very subdued. Albus stared at his Herbology book, but couldn't possibly concentrate on it after the row his cousin and best friend had just had.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 881 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Sunday 22 November 2009 08 40 09 am    Post subject: Re: Next Generation 2 in topic:Next Generation 2 Geneve felt anger building up inside her. How dare he speak to her like that? She shot him the dirtiest look she could muster before turning around. She flew fast and recklessly back, and took a glimse back to see if they were checking. But looking back meant loosing control of her broom, and Geneve flipped and fell. The speed of the fall was so intense Geneve could not even scream. She instead felt herself reaching for her wand in slow motion and drawing on a spell she did not know she knew. The ground recieved her like a soft feather down mattress. Geneve rolled over and stood up, and looked around. Beyond the clearing, the forest was dark and menacing from all angles. And when she had turned to check on Hagrid and Professor Nomare, they had both turned to continue their own pursuit. Geneve swallowed loudly.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 881 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Saturday 21 November 2009 07 48 25 am    Post subject: Re: Next Generation 2 in topic:Next Generation 2 "What's wrong?" Geneve couldn't help but wonder what Professor Nomare had seen. His tone was pressing, and so she raced back to the edge of the forest and touched down outside Hagrids Hut. Geneve had never had reason to talk to Hargrid that often, and wondered if he would even be there. And for that matter, what would she tell him? And why did Professor Nomare need Hagrid anyway? She imagined the huge man on a broomstick and a smile crossed her face. She composed herself, and knocked. "Hello?" Geneve called out. She heard movement inside. The door latch unlocked and the door opened fast. "Who's that? Oh!" The giant looked down at her with his beetle like eyes and his bushy eyebrows furrowed. "What er you doing here?" Geneve gulped in spite of herself. "Ha... Hagrid... Professor Nomare needs you. We were flying over the forest and something caught his eye. He said to send for you straight away." Geneve watched Hagrid's expression change. "You don' say... Alright.. um... Let me get my things..." he closed the door, and for a moment Geneve stood and listened to the cluttering around inside. A whole minute passed and Hagrid was back at the door. He moved past Geneve and around the back of the hut, and Geneve felt compelled to follow. Hargid whistled and Geneve was in awe by the creature that walked around the corner so regally in response. Before Geneve could get a good look at it, Hagrid had mounted the thing like a horse. He turned back and looked at her. "Well? Show me where he is!" Hagrid boomed. Geneve remembered that she was not supposed to return with Hagrid, but she decided she was still not used to doing what she was told. She climbed on her broom and kicked off, and behind her she could hear the call of the creature as it followed after her.
salemboy Joined: 20 May 2008 Posts: 1762 Location: Enjoying being a Senior whilst my friends merely become Juniors.	Posted: Saturday 21 November 2009 06 46 15 am    Post subject: Re: Next Generation 2 in topic:Next Generation 2 Damien's heart skipped a beat at what he thought he'd seen. For a moment, merely a moment, he could have sworn he had seen Ouki hanging from a tree, looking directly at Damien. As soon as he had blinked, though, she had dissappeared. Scanning the forest, Damien tried to see her again, but could not. A loud whinnying cry resounded from over where the Unicorn had gone too. "No!" Damien thought to himself. "They wouldn't!" Speeding up on his broom, Damien went over to the sound where the cry had come from. At the sight, his heart immediately plummeted. Lying in a clearing, it's blood spattered all over the grass, was the Unicorn. It had many, many, slash wounds, and its blood sparkled in the sunlight. Looking back, Damien saw that Geneve hadn't caught up with him yet. Going backwards, he intercepted her. "Geneve, go get Hagrid, and then go straight to your Dorm," he commanded.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 881 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Thursday 19 November 2009 09 34 24 pm    Post subject: Re: Next Generation 2 in topic:Next Generation 2 Geneve straddled the broomstick and held on tight. "Yes." she breathed, and together they kicked off the ground, rising higher and higher, and then Geneve pushed forward, and the broom took off at incredible speed. Professsor Nomare was already in front of her, so she followed, loose wisps of hair were whiping around her face. She loved the breeze, and the adrenaline. They each made their way over the lake, which from this height was easy to see the cretures that lived in it's depths. Geneve's heart leapt with delight as she noticed the shadow of a mermaid. Soon, they would be going over the forbidden forest. It was a beautiful clear day, but the forest still had patches of fog here or there, making it all the more misterious. There were clearings and sections where small dwellings were established. Geneve couldn't imagine who might live in them. Geneve felt a tap on her arm, and noticed that Professor Nomare was pointing to something below. Through the trees, something bright white was running, and then it appeared in the clearing. Geneve could actually feel the powerful magic that enchanted all those who gazed upon such a creature, even from such a height. It was a unicorn. Geneve looked back at Professor Nomare with a thankful, excited look, and he knodded with acknowledgment. But then something caught his eye that changed his mood. His brows furrowed as he changed course, moving lower and further in front. Geneve turned he head and tried to see what he had noticed, but saw nothing. She continued to stay on his path regardless.
salemboy Joined: 20 May 2008 Posts: 1762 Location: Enjoying being a Senior whilst my friends merely become Juniors.	Posted: Thursday 19 November 2009 12 44 44 am    Post subject: Re: Next Generation 2 in topic:Next Generation 2 Smiling, Damien raised his wand and summoned two broomsticks: His and another one that Geneve could use. The two brooms came zooming towards them, seeming to race eachother to reach Damien and Geneve first. Damien's broom, a Nimbus 2000 flew into his free hand while the other broom, a Nimbus 2001 flew into Geneve's. "Wow," Damien thought. They actually upgraded the brooms at the school. It was still way behind where the current models were, but it was good enough. Pulling his leg over the broomstick, Damien waited and watched as Geneve did the same. "Are you ready?" he asked her.
salemboy Joined: 20 May 2008 Posts: 1762 Location: Enjoying being a Senior whilst my friends merely become Juniors.	Posted: Saturday 14 November 2009 04 22 17 am    Post subject: Re: Next Generation 2 in topic:Next Generation 2 [Guys, I'm so sorry for not having posted in so long. After this, I'll post in 6W] Damien had watched the entire debacle from a bench. Malfoys... they would always be a thorn in the side of society. Potter should not have saved Draco's life all those years ago. Of course, then his concious would have been stained forever... Not nearly as much as Damien's was, though. Geneve, though, was already an excellent flyer. She truly had inherited her grandfather's amazing talent. Luckily, though, she had not inherited his malevolance. No, she lacked the malevolance that had made Voldemort so terrifying all those years ago, and it was apparent, even when she was under his control days ago. Otherwise, she would be dead. Damien remembered back to when he had first seen Geneve. At that time, she had been under the Dark Lord's control, his mind poisoning hers. He had been called there to investigate the issues going on there, due to reports of a "newly risen Dark Lord." The rumours had turned out to be true, as he had risen again in the body of Geneve. On first sight, Damien had immediately taken the offensive, allowing for his instincts to guide him. Had he not stayed his hand at the last second, had he not seen that she was merely a child trapped by Voldemort... He did not want to think where they would be right now. The girl was flying again, her natural skill with the broomstick easily apparent. Too bad she was only a first year, she'd be a great quidditch player. "Duh!" he said as he smacked himself in the face. "I'm the head of Slytherin house." He hadn't even checked as to who was on the team. Students would be at his throat if he didn't know the quidditch team's names. He decided that he would check tonight... And bring Geneve along with him, so that he could see how she stacked up against the others. Because, even as he watched her, he could tell that she was probably better than a good majority of students in Slytherin.