Harry Potter Brooms at Broomsticks and Owls

Diccionario Del Mago / The Sorcerer's Companion, A Guide to the Magical World of Harry Potter Curious readers can look up the magical tools and spells of Harry Potter's world in this volume, uncovering a wealth of entertaining information about the historical precedents for J. K. Rowling's stories. Wands and wizards, boggarts and broomsticks, hippogriffs and herbology, all have astonishing histories rooted in legend, literature, or real life events dating back hundreds or even thousands of years. Included are the origins of magic wands, love potions, books of spells, and invisibility cloaks, as well as descriptions of how to read tea leaves, who the real Merlin was, and how to get rid of pesky goblins. $12.41

El diccionario del mago Curious readers can look up the magical tools and spells of Harry Potter's world in this volume, uncovering a wealth of entertaining information about the historical precedents for J. K. Rowling's stories. Wands and wizards, boggarts and broomsticks, hippogriffs and herbology, all have astonishing histories rooted in legend, literature, or real life events dating back hundreds or even thousands of years. Included are the origins of magic wands, love potions, books of spells, and invisibility cloaks, as well as descriptions of how to read tea leaves, who the real Merlin was, and how to get rid of pesky goblins. Los millones de lectores han quedado cautivados por toda la magia, los hechizos, y los animales mitológicos que constituyen el sorprendente mundo de Harry Potter pueden averiguar sus orígenes en este tomo entretenido. Este tomo provee respuestas históricas a preguntas como ¿Cómo obtuvo la piedra filosofal su poder? ¿Es posible encontrar un basilisco en la actualidad? ¿Quién llevó la primera capa de invisibilidad? Incluidos son las claves para entender de dónde provienen todos los elementos que J. K. Rowling ha articulado en torno a su famoso personaje: amuletos y escobas voladoras, astrología y cartomancia, duendes excéntricos y búhos sabios. $16.48

My Year With Harry Potter Ben Buchanan of 814 Grinnell Drive was proud to say that he had a mystical life, thank you very much. "I'm normal," Ben says, "but I'm not normal." Well, let's let him tell the story: I'm normal because I am a normal kid--going to school, being happy, getting homework, having a family. I'm not normal because I'm dyslexic. I have a scar on my head. I'm not normal because mystical things happen to me. Thus begins the autobiography of an eleven-year-old boy who describes how he created a board game based on the popular Harry Potter series and entered it into his school's yearly Invention Convention, where it became an instant hit. How did he bring the characters and settings beloved by millions off the page and into his life? Letters, owls, broomsticks, forests, staircases, as well as bullies, garage sales, dyslexia, and competition all figure in this fascinating book about how one child brought the magic of Harry Potter to life. An inspiring story suitable for parents who want to encourage their children's imagination, and for all kids who want to have fun in imaginary worlds. $3.98

Harry Potter Quidditch Kit - Authentic Harry Potter Costume Accessorie Includes Quidditch goggles a pair of arm guards shin guards and gloves. One size fits most children. This is an officially licensed Harry Potter#153; product. Remember to pick up the Firebolt broom too!Dimensions (LxWxH):12 x 19 x 3.5 $22.89

Harry Potter Broom The official Harry Potter broom is exactly watch you need to fly around Hogwarts this Halloween. $14.97

Broom: Harry Potter Licensed Harry Potter broom costume accessory. Additional Information:, Harry Potter blow-molded plastic broom with real bristle bottom, Harry Potter broom is approximately 36 inches long , Please be aware this item must ship alone in its own box, $19.99 Price includes the additional shipping charges for Ground Shipments only, If you choose an Express Shipping Option we will contact you regarding the additional shipping costs prior to shipping your order $19.99

Harry Potter Broom Includes one broom that is approximately 3 feet long, the broom stick is made of hollow plastic, with plastic bristles, and soft flexible plastic side accents. This is an officially licensed Harry Potter product. $14.99

Harry Potter Broom Includes one broom that is approximately 3 feet long, the broom stick is made of hollow plastic, with plastic bristles, and soft flexible plastic side accents. This is an officially licensed Harry Potter product. $20.95

Harry Potter Broomstick Bookmark Collection This Harry Potter broomstick bookmark collection is a great gift for any Harry Potter fan. This set consists of three miniature die cast broomsticks: the NIMBUS 2000, NIMBUS 2001 and Firebolt, that can be used as bookmarks. Each broom measures approximately 6 1/2 inches in length. $29.50

Harry Potter Broom - Authentic Harry Potter Costume Accessories Authentic Harry Potter Broom û This officially licensed, Harry Potter broom will get you where you need to goùin the wizarding world, that is! This latest model Harry Potter broom is approximately 36 inches long. Gold bands around bristles are green, not gold. If youÆre only a first year student at Hogwarts, youÆll have to wait another year for your broom--unless, of course, youÆre a great flyer like Harry Potter! $18.66

Braveheart and Broomsticks Braveheart and Broomsticks is a collection of scholarly essays on movies, myths, and magic. It covers a wide variety of topics including: movie ad campaigns, the evolution of the Braveheart legend, Scottish poetry, Jim Henson's movie Labyrinth, internet fan sites, Wicca and the witchcraft movement, the great Harry Potter debate, fairy tales, and the novels of Willa Cather. $10.98

Quiddich Kit Harry Potter All the protective gear you need before you hop onyour broom is right here in this kit. Make sure you buy the broom too. $16.97

Rubie s Costume Co 17719 Harry Potter Quidditch Kit includes quidditch goggles a pair of arm guards shin guards and gloves. one size fits most children. this is an officially licensed harry potter product. remember to pick up the firebolt broom too!dimensions (lxwxh):12 x 19 x 3.5 $29.91

The Sorcerer's Companion Who was the real Nicholas Flamel? How did the Sorcerer’s Stone get its power? Did J. K. Rowling dream up the terrifying basilisk, the seductive veela, or the vicious grindylow? And if she didn’t, who did?Millions of readers around the world have been enchanted by the magical world of wizardry, spells, and mythical beasts inhabited by Harry Potter and his friends. But what most readers don’t know is that there is a centuries-old trove of true history, folklore, and mythology behind Harry’s fantastic universe. Now, with The Sorcerer’s Companion, those without access to the Hogwarts library can school themselves in the fascinating reality behind J.K. Rowling’s world of magic. The Sorcerer’s Companion allows curious readers to look up anything magical from the Harry Potter books and discover a wealth of entertaining, unexpected information. Wands and wizards, boggarts and broomsticks, hippogriffs and herbology, all have astonishing histories rooted in legend, literature, or real-life events dating back hundreds or even thousands of years. Magic wands, like those sold in Rowling’s Diagon Alley, were once fashioned by Druid sorcerers out of their sacred yew trees. Love potions were first concocted in ancient Greece and Egypt. And books of spells and curses were highly popular during the Middle Ages. From Amulets to Zombies, you’ll also learn:• how to read tea leaves • where to find a basilisk today • how King Frederick II of Denmark financed a war with a unicorn horn • who the real Merlin was • how to safely harvest mandrake root • who wore the first invisibility cloak• how to get rid of a goblin • why owls were feared in the ancient world• the origins of our modern-day “bogeyman,” and more. A spellbinding tour of Harry’s captivating world, The Sorcerer’s Companion is a must for every Potter aficionado’s bookshelf.The Sorcerer's Companion has not been prepared, approved, or licensed by any person or entity that created, published, or produced the Harry Potter books or related properties. $3.48

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DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2494 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 3 March 2010 10 03 26 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 25: The Memory Ten minutes into the match, Albus decided there were four types of Quidditch in the world. Casual Quidditch, like what he played with his cousins; school Quidditch; professional Quidditch; and then there was the type of Quidditch he was playing now. It was a combination of school Quidditch and professional Quidditch. The crowd was louder, the players more determined, and the stakes were higher than a normal school Quidditch match. Albus dodged one of the New York Chasers and flew up to catch the Quaffle, which had been dropped by Waverly as he had been hit by a bludger. As soon as Albus had the Quaffle, he was flanked by the other two New York Chasers. Albus pushed his broom to fly faster and held the Quaffle tighter to his chest. Then he plunged down to the ground, where nobody else was flying. He was back up high two minutes later when he had reached the New York goal posts. After dodging a Bludger, he threw the Quaffle into the left goal post. The Keeper was too slow and the Quaffle soared through. “Potter of Hogwarts has scored!” Todd Smith shouted, “40-30 Hogwarts!” James grinned at Albus as he flew past. Albus smiled to himself and joined Waverly and Reilly, who were waiting for New York's Keeper to throw the Quaffle out. That had been his first goal of the match. The Quaffle continued to exchange hands quickly as the match went on. An hour later there was still no sign of the Snitch and both teams were neck in neck as far as points went. New York was up by ten. Albus scored a few more goals and he began to relax a little. The match began to feel more like a school match and less like a professional match, even though the stakes were still high. Wood had repeated over and over again that they had to be up by at least fifty points when James caught the Snitch, or they wouldn't be able to overtake New York as far as overall points went. “New York's Seeker has seen the Snitch!” Smith announced. Albus, who had been following one of New York's Chasers (the one who had the Quaffle), turned around and saw that their Seeker was making a beeline for the top of Hogwarts' middle goal. James noticed as well and flew straight at the hoop. He had been significantly closer than New York's Seeker and flew away from the hoop with the struggling Snitch in his hand. The crowd roared and James held the Snitch high above his head. Both teams flew to the ground and Albus saw the pained look on Wood's face. They hadn't won by enough to be in second place overall. “I had no choice!” James shouted to him, “She was going to get it!” Wood nodded in agreement, but he still looked disappointed. Albus chose to ignore this and helped the rest of the team to hoist James onto all of their shoulders. “To update everyone on the points, the Australian School of Sorcery is in first place. New York and Hogwarts are currently tied for second. The next match will take place at the end of February!” Smith told the crowd. Albus didn't meet up with his friends until they were back in the common room. Teddy had gone to Hogsmeade and a party was currently underway in the Gryffindor common room. Teddy informed everyone that the three other houses were hosting parties as well. The students from New York who had been sorted into Gryffindor, including their Seeker, were sulking in a corner. “I think that was your best match yet,” John said to Albus as they settled down at their usual table. “I think so, too,” Albus agreed, “I kind of wish I could play in the next match.” “Maybe Fielding will still be sick,” John said. “Doubt it,” Albus replied, “Plus, I'm sure O'delle will get first dibs on the next match if any of the other Chasers get sick.” “At least you got to play in one match,” Rose pointed out. “Anyway, the next match you'll probably be playing Australia,” Matt said. “Yeah,” Albus nodded, “If we win that one, it'll be a miracle. But we're not even playing in the next one. Next match is New York versus Australia.” The party continued until dinner time, when people began to leave as nobody had snuck down to the kitchens to get food. Harry came in to congratulate Albus and James shortly before Albus and his friends left for dinner. He was also scheduled to patrol the school for the remainder of the weekend and wanted to let his kids know. ****** Life at Hogwarts returned to normal shortly after the Quidditch match. The [i]Prophet[/i] printed fewer and fewer articles about Wisander until there were none at all. Everyone seemed to forget about his death. Everyone except Matt, that is, who was still worried about his dad. However, the students at Hogwarts were reminded again of the unsolved murder when the next Hogsmeade trip arrived two days after Valentine's Day. A portion of the students were too lovesick to notice the boarded up shop of Dervish and Banges as they made their way to Madam Puddifoot's. Neither Albus, John, or Matt were too preoccupied to notice the abandoned building, though. The three of them stopped to look at it for a while despite the biting wind. Rose and Amanda were spending the day with Linda. “Who owns it now?” John asked as they looked at the empty building. “Dunno,” Albus shrugged, “The Prophet never mentioned any family.” “It's probably still part of the investigation,” Matt pointed out, “Plus, who would want a building that someone was killed in? I don't even want to go in it.” Albus didn't think it was a good time to remind Matt that Severus Snape had been murdered inside of the Shrieking Shack. “Good point,” Albus said, “But so far they haven't found anything.” “They won't find who it was,” John said quietly, “They never found out who killed Torro.” “I really hope they find who it was,” Matt replied. “They will,” Albus said, “They're still focused on it.” Albus, Matt, and John went to the Leaky Cauldron a little while later because all three of them were frozen. They warmed up with Butterbeer and were just thinking about heading back to the castle when Albus heard someone whisper his name behind him. “Albus,” they said again. Albus turned around, but no one was there. The voice sounded familiar, though. Albus slowly reached his hand out and it touched something solid, but it looked like no one was there. “Kaden,” Albus groaned, “Is that you?” “Yeah,” Kaden whispered back, “I stole your cloak.” Albus immediately stood up and motioned for Matt and John, who were both looking confused, to follow him. He assumed Kaden would follow as well. Albus lead them up High Street until they reached the Shrieking Shack. Nobody was hanging around it that day. “Kaden!” Albus seethed, “You do realize how stupid this was.” “Yes,” Kaden replied as he took off the cloak. “Bloody Hell!” John shouted. “You stole the cloak?” Matt asked. “Kaden, you idiot!” Albus shouted, “I know I first told you this would be a good time, but there was a reason I changed my mind and told you not to sneak in today. Most of the teachers come to Hogsmeade for the February trip. My cousins told me. They want to make sure no one does anything stupid because they're in love or whatever.” “Er,” Kaden muttered. “How did you get in?” Matt asked. “One-eyed witch statue,” Kaden replied, “Leads right into Honeyduke's.” “Kaden, do you know how difficult it's going to be to get you back unnoticed?” Kaden's face turned white and his mouth dropped open. Albus turned around to see what he was looking at and was met face to face with Professor Balladanis. “Quite difficult, I'd expect,” Balladanis replied, “Come with me, all of you.” Albus groaned inwardly as he followed Balladanis down the street. They had gone all year without Kaden getting them into trouble, but Albus should have known better than to think they could go the whole year. Nobody spoke until they were shut in Balladanis's study. Balladanis sat down in his chair and looked at Kaden. “Explain,” Balladanis said. “They had nothing to do with it,” Kaden said quickly, “Albus was just telling me how stupid I was.” “Then it would seem that Mr. Potter and I agree on something,” Balladanis replied, “Where'd you get that cloak?” “It's Albus's,” Kaden said quietly, “I took it. He didn't give it to me to sneak in or anything.” “Very well,” Balladanis said, “Mr. Potter, Mr. Eckerton, and Mr. Brickston, you may return to your common room. Mr. Dursley will join you after I arrange his detention.” Albus, Matt, and John could not get out of there quick enough. They walked straight back to the common room, talking about how lucky they had been. It must have looked like all three of them had helped Kaden sneak into Hogsmeade. Good thing Balladanis believed Kaden. Kaden returned fifteen minutes later, looking quite unhappy. He collapsed onto a chair and stared mutinously at the table. “Detention every Saturday for the next month,” Kaden muttered, “Plus he gave me a lecture about how dangerous it was for me to sneak out and if I did it again I'd get a worse punishment than detention. Didn't elaborate on that, though.” “He'd probably get you kicked out,” John commented. “Did he say what you have to do for detention?” Albus asked. “No,” Kaden said, “Guess it'll be a surprise.” ****** Kaden discovered what his detention was that night. Balladanis decided to have him alphabetize his private library, which was quite extensive. Kaden returned to the Marauder's Den ranting about the amount of books Balladanis had. “He's got more books on dark creatures than your dad's got,” Kaden said to Matt. “That's impressive,” Matt replied. “Wish he had less,” Kaden muttered. Kaden spent all four of his detentions alphabetizing those books. He almost didn't manage to finish and if that had been the case, Balladanis would have given him a fifth detention. The next full moon came and went, as did the next Quidditch match. Albus was beginning to suspect that the full moons were becoming worse for Matt, although he didn't know why. New York lost miserably to Australia in the Quidditch match. They had been doing pretty well until Linda caught the Snitch a half hour in. Wood insisted that this was a good thing, though. It meant that if Hogwarts managed to score a good amount of goals before Linda caught the Snitch in their next match, they would have more overall points than New York. Wood seemed to have lost any hope that James could beat Linda in Seeking, something James fumed about on a near daily basis. March arrived and with it a three day rain storm that left the grounds completely flooded. Both Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures had to take place inside, which resulted in incredibly boring lessons. Wood continued to hold Quiditch practice and Albus returned to the castle completely soaked and covered in mud after each one. All of the teachers were piling on the homework and Professor Patil had even gone so far as to mention the O.W.L.s even though they were a whole two years away. The only teacher who wasn't talking about the end of term exams was Professor Balladanis. Balladanis conducted his lessons as if end of term exams did not exist. He changed nothing about his lessons except the dark creature they were learning about. “We're starting vampires next week,” Balladanis announced at the end of class on Thursday, “Please read the chapter on them by Monday.” Albus couldn't help but look at Linda before he began packing up his things. He wondered if Balladanis would be teaching them enough about identifying vampires for anyone to figure out that Linda was one. “So,” John said as he flipped through his Defense book the following evening. Albus, Matt, John, and Kaden were in the Marauder's Den and John was just finishing the chapter on vampires. “Look what's after vampires. Albus looked through his own book. “Werewolves,” he said quietly and then looked at Matt. “Yeah,” Matt muttered, “It was bound to happen eventually.” “I wonder if Balladanis is going to make you go in for extra help during that unit,” John grinned, “I'm sure you'll need loads of extra help in identifying werewolves.” Matt rolled his eyes. “He better. It'll look suspicious if I don't go in for extra help. Speaking of extra help, we're due to go in for it in fifteen minutes.” “We'd better go then,” John said, “See you two later.” Albus managed to finish his Herbology homework while John and Matt were gone. Then it was time for him to go in for his dueling lessons. The desks weren't pushed to the sides of the classroom when Albus entered. Balladanis was seated behind his desk and there was a stone basin sitting on it. Balladanis was pulling silvery strings of something out of his head and placing them in the basin. It was a pensieve and the strings were memories, Albus realized. For a moment, he thought that maybe Balladanis had cancelled dueling and neglected to tell him. “Sir?” Albus asked hesitantly. “Mr. Potter,” Balladanis said quietly, “Come in.” Albus stood awkwardly next to one of the front tables while he waited for Malfoy. Balladanis stared into the pensieve and acted like Albus wasn't there. When Malfoy arrived, he looked up and stared at the two boys for a few minutes before speaking. “We're not dueling today,” he said, “Instead, I am going to show you something.” He motioned for them to join him at his desk. Albus glanced nervously at Malfoy. Balladanis wasn't one for explanations, but Albus would have appreciated one right then. “This is a pensieve,” Balladanis said, “It is used to explore memories. That is exactly what we're going to do. Albus, lean forward and put your head into the pensieve. Your body will follow. Scorpius, you will follow. I will come after you.” Albus's pulse sped up a little bit as he leaned over the pensieve. Was this a stupid idea? He didn't even know what he was getting into. But it was just a memory. Nothing could hurt him in a memory, right? Albus took a deep breath and plunged his face into the pensieve. He had never been in one before. He landed on the hard grass and looked around. It was dusk and very quiet. There was a small house in the distance, atop of a rocky hill. In fact, the whole area was mostly rocky. Albus had landed on the one lone piece of grass in the whole place. It didn't look like any place in Britain. He stood up as Malfoy landed next to him, followed quickly by Balladanis. Balladanis landed on his feet and they waited for Malfoy to get up. “Follow me,” Balladanis said quietly. Albus did so, but he still felt like he deserved an explanation. Where were they? Why were they there? Whose memory was this? What did it have to do with dueling? “Excuse me, Sir,” Malfoy said, “Where are we?” “Greece,” Balladanis replied. This did nothing but increase Albus's curiosity. Why were they in Greece of all places? But he didn't ask. It didn't seem like Balladanis was in an explaining mood, judging by his short, one word answer to Malfoy. They walked quietly towards the small house. The only noise was their footsteps. There weren't even any owls hooting or dogs barking. It struck Albus as very odd. The house must have been their destination. Balladanis stopped when they arrived at the broken down wooden fence surrounding it. The house reminded Albus of the Shrieking Shack, only smaller. It was kind of broken down and didn't look like a place that would be good to live in. Someone lived there, though. A light was on upstairs. It remained on for a few more minutes and then someone turned it off. Balladanis made no move towards the house. Instead, he seemed focused on the forest that lay just beyond it. Albus decided the forest was as good a place as any to watch. They watched the forest for a half an hour before anything happened. Then five hooded figures practically flew out of the forest. They were at the house before Albus even realized it. He looked at Balladanis. His face was hardened. All was quiet for two minutes. The figures entered the house, but did not turn on any lights. Then the screams started. Albus jumped at the sound of the first one. They were agonizing, long screams. Albus wanted nothing more than to go in and help whoever was screaming, but he knew he couldn't. It was nothing more than a memory. Instead, he looked again at Balladanis. His professor's face showed nothing. Nothing but the same hardened look he had seen on it so many times. Malfoy on the other hand, looked horrified. He looked exactly how Albus felt. The screaming was coming from two different people. There was a high-pitched one that must have been coming from a woman, and a lower one that must have been coming from a man. Then, they stopped. First the woman, then the man. The hooded figures left the house as quickly as they had entered and returned to the forest. Balladanis, however, made no move to leave. Instead he stared at the house. Two minutes later, someone fled from it. They ran from the house, towards Albus, Malfoy, and Balladanis. As they drew closer, Albus could see that the person was a boy who looked no older than Albus himself. His face was etched with a sadness Albus had never seen before. It was too dark to tell, but Albus was sure there were tears running down his face. The boy obviously didn't notice the three people watching him. He ran right past them, up the rocky hill in the distance. It occurred to Albus after he passed that the boy looked somewhat familiar. There was something about his face that Albus recognized, but he couldn't quite place it.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2494 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 3 February 2010 08 12 53 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 21: A Christmas Blizzard Albus spent most of the days preceding Christmas at Rose's house. James was determined to use all of his spare time for Quidditch practice, and he had to go to Rose's house for that. Albus usually went with him and he and Hugo would help James practice while Rose read. Harry had to practically separate James from his broom by magic on Christmas Eve so they could go to Godric's Hollow. James wanted to stay at Rose's house and keep practicing, but Harry refused to let him. The trip was quiet since James was rather sullen the entire time. “Professor Patil says I'm a natural at Transfiguration,” Lily bragged to Albus as they walked towards the Burrow afterwards. “That's good,” Albus replied. “Yeah, so I'm going to become an Animagus eventually. I want to be a cat.” “You don't get to choose what kind of animal you transform into,” Albus told her. “Oh,” Lily said, “But I think I'll become a cat.” Albus nodded as Lily began to describe in great detail what kind of cat she would transform into. Everyone else was already at the Burrow and Albus felt an immediate warmth come over him as he stepped inside. It had nothing to do with the fact that it was so cold and snowy outside, either. There was something so comforting about being at the Burrow surrounded by all his family. He was able to forget all the issues with the Quidditch tournament and Professor Killigan. All he could think about was how ravenous he was and how good some of his grandmother's cooking would be right about then. Rose sat down next to Albus as he tucked into a large bowl of onion soup with a side of homemade bread. “Uncle Charlie and Aunt Katherine are going back to Romania this summer,” Rose announced. “To tame more dragons?” Albus asked. His uncle and aunt hadn't done that since Stanley started Hogwarts, but they often talked about how they wanted to go back. “Yeah,” Rose nodded, “They might stay even after the summer's over, but Heather and Mark will come back to go to Hogwarts.” “They get to go, too?” “Yup. Stanley and Eddie are going, too. Stanley's quitting his job for it. He's definitely staying in Romania after the summer's over. He wants to get into dragon training.” “Wow,” Albus replied, “They're lucky. I guess it's good that Stanley decided what he wants to do.” Stanley had been working at the Magical Menagerie since he finished Hogwarts, but knew he didn't want to do that his whole life. He just didn't know what he did want to do. “I wish our parents would take us to some other country,” Albus sighed. “Me, too,” Rose agreed, “Imagine the history we could learn.” Albus personally had enough of History from Professor Binns, but he supposed learning history by traveling would be fun. “Christmas Quidditch tomorrow?” Teddy asked as he sat down next to Rose. “Definitely,” Albus grinned. “I wouldn't count on it, Teddy,” Molly said as she handed Albus another hunk of bread, “We're supposed to get the snowstorm of the decade tomorrow. The Muggle electricity is already out in town.” “Is it really?” Arthur popped his head into the room, “Fascinating! I may have to go see it tomorrow!” “You'll do no such thing!” Molly shouted, “It's near impossible to Appparate during such a storm. Not to mention the fact that it's Christmas and you should be here.” “We don't need electricity to play Quidditch!” Teddy exclaimed, “It'll be perfect training conditions! If you can catch a Snitch in the middle of a blizzard, you can catch one in any weather. It's not like Kendrick ever calls off Quidditch because of snow.” “We'll see tomorrow, Teddy,” Molly sighed. Albus finished his soup and he and Rose went into the den, where they were greeted by a loud chorus of 'Odo the Hero', sung by George, Alicia, Charlie, and Ron. Bill and Fleur were laughing while Hermione shook her head. Albus had a feeling the only reason why Fleur approved was because the singing was drowning out Celestina Warbeck. “So then I said, I'm not paying seven Sickles for that!” Percy said to Katherine, who was only sort of paying attention, “And the bloke looked at me like I was mad. I say he's mad, charging that much for a tour of a questionably historic old building. There really should be regulations on such things. It's one thing I'll change if I'm ever Minister.” Albus stifled a laugh. His Uncle Percy had been talking about running for Minister for the past ten years, but still hadn't done it. Most of his uncles and aunts got sick of hearing him talk about what he would and would not change. “Hey, Albus, Rose,” Victoire waved at him from across the room. “Hi Victoire,” Albus made his way over to her, “How is Healer training?” “Exhausting,” Victoire sighed, “And I have to figure out which part of the hospital I want to do the rest of my training in by September. We've been rotating throughout all the floors, but now we have to pick one. I'm nowhere near decided.” “You have until September,” Albus shrugged. It seemed like a long time to him. “I know,” Victoire replied, “But Amy's known where she wants to finish training since we were in fourth year.” “You're not in Amy's situation,” Teddy appeared and put his arm around her, “And I think you'll do great anyplace you decide.” “Thanks, Teddy,” Victoire smiled, “I'm thinking either the Maternity ward or Spell Damage.” “There's a busy ward,” Teddy grinned, “Spell Damage. You'll get all the funny injuries there.” “That's not a good reason to pick a specialization,” Victoire groaned. “Good a reason as any,” Teddy shrugged. The time grew later and after Albus played numerous rounds of Exploding Snap with his cousins, his grandmother announced that it was time for bed. Everyone argued, but there was really no point. Everyone, including the other adults, knew that arguing with Molly Weasley was useless. Albus trudged up the stairs to the highest bedroom that he shared with James, Ben, and Cedric. He climbed into bed and then realized just how big this impending blizzard was. The wind was howling louder than he'd ever heard before. The wind was so powerful that Albus could feel it through the gaps in the window. Every once in a while, the house would creak and shake. Albus sighed and put his pillow over his ears to try and drown out the howling. Albus didn't manage to drift off to sleep until after Cedric got out of bed, swore loudly, and disregarded the no magic outside of school rule to put a silencing charm on the room. ****** Albus was awoken by his annual Christmas wake-up call, Lily. She breezed through the door shouting about how they all needed to wake up and open their presents. “And there's three feet of snow outside,” Lily said as she left the room, “I checked.” “Merlin!” James jumped off the top bunk and looked out the window, “There is! And it's still coming!” “Whoa, you can't see anything!” Cedric added. “We could build the world's biggest snow wizard later,” Ben suggested. “We could build an entire snow wizard army,” Albus said. “Presents first,” James said as he located his pile of presents. Albus descended upon his own pile of presents and began opening them. There were the usual sweets and Weasleys' products from his aunts and uncles. Another Weasley sweater, this one scarlet and gold striped. He pulled it on over his pajamas and opened the rest of the presents from his aunts and uncles. His Aunt Hermione had gotten him a few books he'd probably never read, including one about the history of house elves at Hogwarts. Albus saved his parents' present for last, although he doubted they could top last year's. There really wasn't anything in the world that was better than the Invisibility Cloak. “Al, did you open Mum and Dad's yet?” James shouted. “I'm opening it now,” Albus said as he ripped the paper off the small box. “You'll never guess what they got us!” Albus opened the box and saw two tickets. Two tickets for the Quidditch World Cup that was taking place this summer! “Whoa!” Albus shouted, “World Cup tickets!” “I didn't even know they were on sale this early!” James said. “You two get the best presents,” Cedric said. “Hey, I got two tickets,” James replied. “Yeah, two,” Ben sighed, “You can only pick one of us to go.” Albus suddenly realized he had the same problem. Two tickets. Five friends he would want to take. Who was he going to choose? Not Rose. They may have been friends since they were babies, but she just didn't have a passion for Quidditch. Neither did Kaden. He was another to cross off the list. John and Matt were the Quidditch fans. He'd have to choose between them. Amanda liked Quidditch well enough, but she didn't follow a team or anything. “Those are limited edition tickets,” Ben said, “They don't know who's playing yet, so they don't sell very many tickets ahead of time.” “They're for the top box, too,” James said in awe. Lily burst into the room with a big grin on her face. She was holding two tickets as well. “Did you get Quidditch tickets?” “Yeah,” Albus and James said at the same time. “This is going to be brilliant,” Lily said and then ran out of the room. Albus's parents were already in the kitchen by the time Albus went downstairs. They were sitting at the table eating breakfast. Albus gave them each a huge hug and then sat down. “How did you get the tickets?” he asked. “They were a gift from the Minister,” Harry replied, “The Cup is in Canada this year and he's good friends with their president. Got him a lot of free tickets.” Albus grinned as he began to eat breakfast. Somehow his parents had come close to topping last year's present. Now not only was he going to get to see the World Cup, he would get to travel to a different country. Rose came downstairs a little while later and was impressed with the tickets. She had no desire to go to the Cup and had no suggestions on how Albus was going to choose between John and Matt. “Anyone up for Quidditch later?” Teddy announced as he sauntered into the kitchen. “Not under my watch!” Molly shouted, “You can't see a foot in front of you out there! And it must be close to 15 below!” “Maybe after lunch, then,” Teddy shrugged. Molly shook her head and sighed as she set a few more platters of eggs and toast onto the table. There was a knock on the door that could only just be heard over the howling wind. Molly glanced at Arthur, who shrugged and got up to see who it was. Albus followed, very curious to see who would visit on Christmas morning in the middle of a huge blizzard. “Xeno, is that you?” Arthur shouted outside. “Yes!” Xenophilius Lovegood shouted back. Arthur stood aside as the man walked in and then shut the door behind him. “Quite the storm we're having! Just thought I'd stop by and see if this place was still standing.” “Quite the storm, yes,” Arthur agreed, “I heard the Muggles lost electricity. Fascinating. I wonder what they do without it. But yes, the house is still standing.” “Good, but if you feel it's too rickety, just let me know and I'll go get some of my Jutispy Plants. The leaves do wonders on old buildings. Makes them like new. I just put a bunch into my place and it's a good thing, too. Of course, they tend to attract Nargles...” Xenophilius's voice trailed off. “I'll keep that in mind,” Arthur smiled, “Are you spending the holiday alone?” “Yes, yes,” he replied, “Luna and Rolf are with his family this Christmas.” “Then you must stay here a while. Molly's cooked far too much food, like usual,” Arthur lead Xeno into the kitchen. Albus followed them. He always found Xenophilius Lovegood to be an interesting wizard, if not a little mad. Always going on about Nargles or Nom-Noms or something. Molly was more than happy to provide Xenophilius with a large platter of breakfast and he settled down to discuss the storm with the adults. Albus spent most of the morning playing Exploding Snap, Wizard's Chess, and Gobstones with his cousins. They tried to play hide and go seek, but the house was too crowded to play it properly. Teddy and James kept looking out the window, willing it to stop snowing. Both of them were just itching to go play Quidditch. Albus would have gladly gone and played if it would stop snowing so much. He was dedicated to the game, but not enough to play in this storm. Lunchtime came and the snow was still falling. George went outside to measure it and came back with the news that it was three and a half feet. Teddy went upstairs after lunch and came back decked out in three jumpers, a thick cloak, and a pair of boots. Under one arm was his broom and under the other was a box of Quidditch balls. James was right behind him, dressed the same. “Theodore Remus Lupin!” Molly shouted, “I suppose I can't stop you from going out there and catching death of a cold, but I will not let you drag James with you!” “He's not dragging me, Grandma,” James rolled his eyes, “I want to go!” “Just let them, Molly,” Harry said, “They'll get cold soon enough and come back inside.” “Fine,” Molly replied and went back into the kitchen. “Excellent,” Teddy grinned, “Anyone care to join us?” Georgia, Fred, and Heather suited up in warm clothes and joined Teddy and James. Albus decided against it. Quidditch was fun, but he didn't want to freeze when he could stay inside and be warm. The Christmas Quidditch lasted a half an hour. Teddy, James, Georgia, Heather, and Fred all stumbled back into the house shivering with their faces red and covered in snow and ice. Molly immediately descended upon them with mugs of hot chocolate and dry clothes. “Told you, Molly,” Harry grinned. “C-can't find the Sn-Snitch,” Teddy muttered. Harry laughed. “That doesn't surprise me. You'll find it when the storm calms down. You put the charm on it to stay in the yard, right?” “Y-yeah,” Teddy replied. Christmas dinner came and went in its usual chaos. Xenophilius stayed for it and James snuck sneezing powder into his soup, which he found incredibly funny. Molly was not as impressed and gave James quite the scolding. How she found out it was James was beyond Albus. The storm continued throughout the night and Cedric had to put the silencing charm back on their room in order for any of them to get any sleep. ****** Nobody left the Burrow until two days after Christmas. That was when the snow finally let up. It topped out at around four and a half feet, which was a new record for Albus's lifetime. The Burrow's yard had been decorated by dozens of snow witches and wizards, along with hippogriffs, owls, and a variety of other magical creatures. When Albus found out what his family was doing after they left the Burrow, he wished the snow would have kept coming. They were going shopping for dress robes for the New Year's party. “Why can't I just wear my old dress robes?” James whined as they walked down Diagon Alley towards Madam Malkin's. “Because they're five inches too short,” Ginny replied, “They're even too small for Al.” “Yeah, Hugo's the lucky one,” James muttered. Hugo was wearing James's old dress robes to the party and therefore did not have to go shopping. “Mummy, I want purple robes,” Lily announced. “If they have any,” Ginny replied. Albus wanted to buy the first pair of dress robes he found, so long as they weren't pink or purple. The sooner they were done robes shopping the better. Rose and Lily made a beeline for the girls dress robes as soon as they walked in the door. Albus stood awkwardly next to James while their mother found various robes for them. “Here, try these on, Al,” Ginny handed him a pair of emerald green robes. “Very Slytherin,” James snickered. “Shut it, James,” Albus muttered. “They'll bring out your eyes, Al,” Ginny told him, “Now go try them on.” Albus reluctantly tried on the Slytherin colored robes and then left the dressing room for his mother to see. “Too short,” she announced, “But the color is perfect. I'll find a bigger size.” James wound up with a navy blue pair of robes, which Albus would have preferred. Lily found her purple robes and Rose got a sky blue pair. “Next time you're getting green robes,” Albus muttered to James, who was still making fun of the color of Albus's robes. “No I won't. I don't have green eyes,” James grinned. “Then we'll get you a nice red set,” Ginny said, “They'll clash horribly with your hair.” “I don't care. They'd be Gryffindor colored,” James laughed.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2494 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 27 January 2010 08 00 51 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Aw, thanks Watcher! I'm glad you like them! Chapter 20: The Investigation On their way back to the castle, Harry gave Teddy and James that lecture Albus had been expecting him to give. Albus walked a little ways behind them. Far enough to make them think they had privacy, but close enough that Albus could hear what they were saying. Harry made it clear that he was not impressed that Teddy was taking advantage of the charms he was learning in training. In fact, Harry said if he caught Teddy doing it again, he'd have to report it. Then he told James that the Shrieking Shack was well out of bounds and that if he went in there again, he'd report James to Professor Longbottom. Albus doubted either of them would set foot in the place again. “Why didn't you just go to the Room of Requirement if you wanted privacy?” Harry asked before leaving James and Albus in the Entrance Hall. Teddy and James looked at each other and then laughed. “It was otherwise occupied,” Teddy grinned, “Fred's got himself a girlfriend. They were enjoying the privacy of the Room of Requirement.” Harry smiled and shook his head. “Next time, just ask Neville if he'll let you talk in his study. I'm sure he will. I'll see you boys after term is over, then.” Albus and James said goodbye to their dad and Teddy and then walked back up to Gryffindor Tower in silence. James was obviously still upset over the match and Albus didn't want to say anything to make it worse. “They're doing a full investigation of Linda's broom!” Rose announced when Albus found them in the common room. James had gone directly up to his dormitory. “Yeah, Wood's just told us,” John continued, “Stripping it down, plus they're interviewing the Australian captains, headmaster, and everyone on the team, including Linda.” “Wow,” Albus was impressed. They wouldn't find anything, of course, but it was still nice that they were taking this seriously, “Wish it would actually help.” “Me, too,” John agreed, “So where was James?” “The Shrieking Shack,” Albus whispered. Matt dumped his ink bottle all over his homework and swore. “How'd he get in?” “He was with Teddy and Teddy knows the counter-charm from Auror training,” Albus said quietly, “But he wasn't supposed to use it outside of training, so my dad told him if he does it again he'll get in trouble. Don't worry, neither of them will go in there again.” “Still, of all the places they could've gone...” Matt's voice trailed off. “Why were they there?” Rose asked as she siphoned the ink off of Matt's homework. “James was thinking of quitting the team,” Albus whispered, “Don't worry, he didn't,” he said quickly when he saw the disgusted look on John's face. “Well, thank Merlin for that,” John said. ****** It must have been a slow news day the next day. One of those days where the front page article of the Prophet was about a young wizard who had graciously volunteered his time in the closed ward at St. Mungo's or an elderly witch who passed away, leaving her fortune to her cats. That is, if it weren't for the fact that the Department of Magical Games and Sports and the Department for International Magical Cooperation doing an all out investigation on the Australian School of Sorcery's Quidditch team, Linda Morales and her broom in particular. Albus was quite shocked to see the lengthy article by Rita Skeeter on the front page. He hardly ate any breakfast as he read it out loud to his friends before classes. [i][b]The Australian School of Sorcery: Did They Cheat?[/b] In a competition of Quidditch and dueling, which reminds many a witch and wizard of the thrilling and slightly more dangerous Triwizard Tournament, accusations came yesterday of whether the team from Australia cheated. A match was held between the Hogwarts and Australian teams yesterday afternoon and was over in twenty minutes. The score was 270-110, in favor of Australia. Linda Morales, 13, of Australia, caught the Snitch in what some people believe to be an impossibly fast speed. “It was like one minute she was flying above the pitch and I blinked and then she was on the ground with the Snitch in her hand,” one Hogwarts student said. Many other students and a few staff members recalled the same thing. The many witnesses of this near impossible flying have fueled the investigation. If it is discovered that Australia used any charms, potions, curses, hexes, or anything else deemed unacceptable by International Quidditch standards, a rematch will be played between Hogwarts and Australia. “We don't know what we're going to find,” Ian Herkimer, of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, said late yesterday, “On the one hand, it is nearly impossible for a thirteen year old girl to fly that fast on the broom she was using. On the other hand, all the brooms used in this competition were extensively searched for charms before the match. It could very well be that young Linda Morales is just an exceptionally good Quidditch player. If that is the case, then scouts from professional teams may wish to pay attention to this competition.” Perhaps the most intriguing part of this story is that the Hogwarts Seeker is none other than James Potter, son of the legendary Gryffindor Seeker Harry Potter. James Potter, 15, has lived up to his father's reputation in the past and has never lost a match this quickly before. Neither James or his father were available for comment. Is Linda Morales a cheater? Or is she merely the next greatest Quidditch star?[/i] “Great,” Albus set down the paper, “First she's going to win this competition and then be drafted to play for Puddlemere United.” “We don't have to worry about her playing for the Cannons,” John smirked, “That would get rid of their awful reputation.” “That would be a bad thing because...?” Matt said. “I wouldn't get to make fun of them anymore,” John grinned. “Not a bad thing,” Matt replied. The entire school was talking about the article all day long. Everywhere Albus went, someone was discussing it. Most likely due to this, James spent the day in his dormitory. “Why'd Skeeter have to stick James in that article,” Albus lamented as he, Matt, John, and Kaden wandered the corridors. Rose and Amanda had gone to find Linda, to see if she knew anymore details about the investigation. “Because she's Rita Skeeter,” John said, “She never writes an article without sticking your dad in it somehow.” “I know. Rita Skeeter's horrible,” Albus said. “There are a few reporters in Australia who could give her a run for her money,” Matt muttered. “So irresponsible!” a hushed voice said from a classroom they were passing. Albus stopped. He didn't recognize the voice and it didn't sound happy. He gestured for his friends to stop as well and paused to listen. “We're already skating on thin ice!” the man was saying, “First she catches the Snitch ten minutes into the first match and now she flies too fast for people to see and beats James Potter? Now there's an investigation for Merlin's sake!” “I didn't know she was going to do that!” another man said, “I made it clear to her that she could only fly slightly better than the other players!” “Told you they were cheating,” John whispered. “We weren't the ones arguing with you,” Albus replied, “That was Rose.” “The bloke doing the yelling is the Australian headmaster,” Matt said. “The other one's probably the captain, then,” Albus said. “Well, you must not have told her enough because now she's on the front page of the Prophet and the Ministry is investigating! Do you have any idea what's going to happen if anyone finds out?” the headmaster raised his voice. “Of course I do!” “Let me refresh your memory anyway. We'll both be fired and Australia will be out of the competition. Hell, we'll be lucky to get away with fines and no jail time!” “That wouldn't be a bad thing,” John muttered. “You hear that?” the headmaster barked, “Someone's out there.” Albus turned in panic to his friends and before he could run, the door opened all the way and Albus was staring at who he assumed to be the Australian Quidditch captain. The man was tall and lanky, the perfect build for a Chaser. His hair was messy in a way that reminded Albus of his father, but this man's hair was light brown. The headmaster appeared behind the man, along with a surly looking boy who must've been around Teddy's age. Albus assumed he was the assistant captain. “Well, who have we here,” the headmaster smirked. Albus was frozen in place. The back of his mind said to run, but he couldn't get his legs to work. He was staring the bloke who was so prejudiced against werewolves that he refused to let Matt attend his school in the face. “You're the Potter boy,” the headmaster continued, “The younger one.” Albus forced himself to nod only because he didn't really want to be mistaken for James at the moment. “That means...” Killigan's eyes moved from Albus to John, Kaden, and then Matt, “That one of you is probably,” his eyes rested on Matt and then he smiled, “The Eckerton boy. I was told you were here.” Albus turned to look at Matt, who was now almost as white as Professor Binns. Albus shook his head, grabbed Matt's arm, and took off running. The footsteps behind him told him that John and Kaden were following. Albus didn't stop running until he made it to the Marauder's Den. He completely ignored the Prefect who told him not to run in the corridors and Filch's new cat. “Bloody hell, how did he manage to figure out which one of us you were?” John asked Matt once they shut the door, “He hasn't seen you in years!” “Lucky guess,” Kaden shrugged. Matt shook his head. “No. None of you lot have blonde hair.” “But still, how does he know I'm friends with you?” Albus asked, “Of all the blonde haired students here, he picked you. He somehow knows we're friends. Remember, he said 'you must be the Potter boy', which isn't abnormal. Everyone knows who I am. But then he said 'which means you must be the Eckerton boy.' Someone's telling him about you.” “So much for trying to ignore him,” Matt groaned, “Now he knows who I am. Merlin knows what he's going to try to do now.” “Why does he even care?” Kaden asked, “I thought he didn't want you at his school. If he hates werewolves so much, wouldn't it make more sense that he ignore you?” Kaden had a point. Albus hadn't really thought about it before, but it was kind of strange that Killigan would be so interested in Matt. But then, why would he let a vampire attend his school? “That actually makes a lot of sense, Kaden,” Matt said, “Why does he care?” Albus didn't know, but something told him it meant nothing good. Whatever Killigan was doing here, it went deeper than just trying to win a Quidditch tournament by having a vampire for a Seeker. ****** It took the Ministry three days to complete the investigation. During this time numerous Ministry officials appeared at the school and held interviews with Killigan, the Australian captains, and the Australian players. They even interviewed James, Oliver Wood, Todd Smith, and Professor Kendrick. Albus heard that every broom on the Australian team had been stripped and checked for illegal magic. The results were announced before Rita Skeeter wrote another article. A Ministry official read them at dinner Wednesday evening. “Upon close inspection of all the Australian broomsticks as well as extensive interviews with everyone involved, the Ministry is able to say that Linda Morales's capture of the Snitch was a result of pure talent and nothing illegal. I thank you all for your cooperation during this time,” he said and then resumed his seat next to Kendrick. The Great Hall erupted in angry shouts. Everyone was staring at Linda and it looked like she wanted to disappear. Rose and Amanda were sitting on either side of her and Rose was whispering to her. Albus and his friends weren't expecting anything different, but they had to act angry for appearance's sake and it was not difficult to do so. Kendrick eventually had to stand up and tell everyone to quiet down. It worked, but nobody stopped talking about the results. It was still possible for Hogwarts to win the competition. If they won every match from now on and continued doing well in dueling. The competition wasn't even half over, so there was plenty of time to pull ahead. However, the chances of doing so were low so long as Linda was playing Seeker for Australia. The rest of the week passed with continual Quidditch discussion. James was still abnormally subdued and sat quietly with Ben, Cedric, and Nate every evening in the common room. Albus was hoping it would blow over during the holiday. It was strange seeing his brother so quiet. There was a Hogsmeade visit that Saturday and true to her word, Rose went with Albus and his friends instead of Linda. It was a particularly cold and blustery winter day with a steady snowfall that had already dumped six inches on the grounds. This wasn't nearly enough snow to keep people out of Hogsmeade and all the shops were full to capacity. Kaden had begged Albus to give him the map so he could sneak in, but Albus refused. The Hogsmeade visit before Christmas seemed too risky. Too many students went on that one. The Valentine's Day one would be better, when the other students were too absorbed in their love lives to notice a second year in Hogsmeade. “Let's go get Butterbeer first,” Amanda suggested as they made their way into the village, “I'm already frozen solid.” “Me, too,” Albus agreed. The Three Broomsitcks was already packed, but they managed to find a table and Albus went to get five Butterbeers. When he returned, everyone was talking about what they were doing for the holidays. “My mum has decided she wants one of my aunts to do Christmas this year,” John said, “She's done Christmas at our house since she and my dad got married and it's finally worn her out. The funny thing is that none of my aunts really know what to do, so my mum is doing as much work as she always does.” “I can't imagine Christmas not being at the Burrow,” Rose said. “Me either,” Albus replied as he set down the Butterbeer, “The Burrow is just so Christmasy.” “Believe it or not, but I'm not going to Australia for Christmas this year,” Matt announced. John spit out his Butterbeer. “What?” he coughed, “You always go to Australia.” “I know,” Matt said, “Never had a Christmas anyplace else.” “Why?” Albus asked. “Well, you know how my dad's going to be the new Head of the Department of the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. He officially starts on January second. But the Ministry is throwing a fancy party for him on New Year's Eve. He didn't really want it, but they insisted. So, we've got to go to that. Hopefully it'll be better than the parties my grandparents have.” “Rose and I will probably go to that, too. My dad's always invited to those things since he's head of the Auror Department. My whole family goes to them. There's always something to do, especially if James is feeling particularly mischievous. Rose's parents get invited, too. So does my Uncle Percy,” Albus explained. Matt grinned. “Well if you lot are there it won't be bad.” “This party's going to be anything but boring,” Albus grinned. “Never thought I'd wish I was going to a fancy party,” John sighed, “How about you, Amanda? Any parties?” “Nope,” Amanda laughed, “Just spending time with my family.” They finished their Butterbeer and went back out into the snow. Honeydukes was their first stop, where Matt proceeded to buy enough chocolate to feed all of Gryffindor. His excuse was that it was for Christmas presents, but Albus doubted as to whether the chocolate would ever make it home. Honeydukes was really too crowded to stay in very long, as were most of the other shops. They wound up just wandering up and down High Street until they got to the Shrieking Shack. After a very brief snowball fight Rose suggested they just go back to the school and spend time in the Marauder's Den. Nobody argued since they were all cold and wet from the snow. ****** The next two weeks went by in a blur for Albus. It seemed like he just went from one Quidditch practice to another, with dueling practice and lessons with Balladanis thrown in. Albus had started making progress with his shield charms, but so had Malfoy and neither of them were better than the other. At their last lesson of the term, Balladanis reiterated how important it was for them not to practice while at home. He then told them to have a good holiday and be ready to work even harder when they returned. Linda's amazing catch of the Snitch had already started to blow over before term ended. Everyone seemed much more focused on getting a few weeks off from school than a lost Quidditch match. This helped return James to his normal self and he finished off the term with his usual pre-holiday prank. This one was a little less harmless as he just charmed the suits of armor to sing Christmas carols at random times of the day. Of course, the carols were alternated with 'Hogwarts will win the Cup' and 'Hogwarts is better at Quidditch than Australia' and 'Hogwarts will beat New York in the next match'. James was never caught, though. Eventually the carols wore off as did the pro-Hogwarts messages and everyone packed and got ready to go home. Albus wondered for a moment what it would be like to stay at school over the holiday. He knew his dad had done nearly every year, but Albus couldn't imagine not being with his family for Christmas. Albus and his friends found a compartment towards the back of the train and settled in for the long journey. “What are the Australian and American kids doing for Christmas?” Kaden asked. “Dunno,” Albus shrugged. “Some of them are going home, but most are just staying at Hogwarts. Linda's staying,” Rose told them. “I bet it was Linda,” John muttered absentmindedly. “What?” Albus asked. “Linda. I'll bet every Knut in my pocket that she's the one who told Killigan who Matt was,” John explained. “You're just mad at Linda for winning the match,” Rose rolled her eyes, “She did not tell Killigan.” “Why not?” Albus asked, “He's her headmaster. Why wouldn't she tell him?” “I don't know. I just don't think she did,” Rose muttered. “Even that doesn't explain why Killigan wanted to know,” Amanda pointed out. “Which means we have to find out,” Albus said. “Find out what?” Matt asked sleepily. The full moon was that night and he had fallen asleep as soon as they got on the train. “Why Killigan was so interested in you that time we spied on him,” Albus explained. “Oh,” Matt said as he leaned his head against the window, “How are we going to do that?” Albus didn't know. All he knew was that it could be problematic and there was a big chance of them getting in trouble. An unsettling silence fell upon the compartment. No one knew how they were going to get answers. “Do you think Linda's teammates know she's a vampire?” Kaden asked towards the end of the journey. Albus, who had been drifting off to sleep, lifted his head up. “Good question.” “They don't,” Rose answered, “They just think she's really good.” “Interesting,” Albus said, “I bet she wouldn't be allowed to play professionally.” “She wouldn't,” John confirmed, “Vampires can't play professional Quidditch. It's unfair to the rest of the teams.” “I'd pay a lot of money to see two teams of vampires playing Quidditch against each other,” Albus grinned. “You wouldn't be able to see them,” John laughed, “They'd be flying too fast.” “I'd like to see vampires play football,” Kaden announced. “Of course you would,” John rolled his eyes. The boys spent the rest of the trip discussing vampire Quidditch while Rose and Amanda played Muggle card games. Before long they were in London. All of their parents were standing together on the platform. Albus said a quick goodbye to Matt before his parents hurried him out of the station.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2494 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: 2494 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: 2494 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: 2494 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: 878 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: 878 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: 1754 Location: NanoWrimo, baby! I'm gonna write until my hands bleed!!!	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.