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Harry Potter Desk Clock
Reading the time becomes a magical event with this Harry Potter Desk Clock. When the alarm goes off light appears and music plays. This clock measures approximately 4.25 x 6.25 x 2.5 inches. 2 AA batteries required (not included).
$19.99
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Harry Potter Weasley Family Clock
What time is it? Just like in the films! It's high time you owned one of these! Now you can keep track of the time in true Harry Potter style with this splendid Weasley Family Wall Clock. The 2 working hands on this unique timepiece feature Ron and Ginny, with the rest of the family's pictures printed on the background. This creates the image of the actual clock seen in the films. The body is made of glossy high-quality cardboard, measures 12-inches square, and requires 1x "AA" battery (not included). Isn't it about time you owned one of these?
$19.99
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Harry Potter Ron, Harry, and Hermione Wooden Pendulum Clock
The world's favorite magic students! Wooden pendulum clock features Ron Weasley, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger. What an enchanting timepiece! The world's favorite magic students-- Ron Weasley, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger-- are featured on the face of this wooden pendulum clock, all poised with wand in hand and purpose in mind. They'll be there for you whenever you check the time. In addition, the Gryffindor Crest appears on the pendulum. This enchanting, 15-inch tall timepiece will provide a constant reminder of your favorite Harry Potter and the… adventures for many years to come.
$21.99
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Harry Potter Hogwarts Wooden Pendulum Clock
It's time to enter the wizarding world of Harry Potter! Magical wooden pendulum clock. Hogwarts School image and crest on the face and pendulum. Wouldn't this look terrific on your wall? Enter the wizarding world of Harry Potter any time you'd like… literally! This wooden pendulum clock measures 15-inches tall and features the premier institution for magic education-- Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry-- right on the face, while the pendulum displays the Hogwarts crest. Isn't it time you ordered yours?
$21.99
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Visit our friendly Harry Potter Forum at any hour of the clock to discuss Harry's time at Hogwarts, like these posts:
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DucksRMagical
Joined: 28 December 2006
Posts: 2486
Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal
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Posted: Sunday 31 January 2010 09 47 44 am Post subject: Beyond the Shadow in topic:Beyond the Shadow |
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Here is the sequel to In Moonlight's Shadow! I recommend you read that first if you haven't already, although it's not necessary. I'll be posting updates on this every other Sunday for the time being.
Chapter 1: Turning Thirty
The greyish potion simmered in its steel cauldron, a few bubbles rising to the surface and then popping. It was nearly boiling, but not quite. I watched it, hardly blinking. As soon as it began boiling, and not a second later, I would have to add the Wolfsbane. One eighth of a a teaspoon of it. A pinch more would ruin the entire potion. Of course, the whole potion could be useless already.
I was brewing in the basement of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. There was a whole slew of brewing rooms in the basement. It was the best place for them since the fumes would be far away from the patients and so the brewers would be far away from the hustle and bustle of the hospital.
It was currently seven at night and since it was a Friday, most places of work were closed and their employees enjoying time off. However, I work at a hospital and hospitals never close. If I were to venture upstairs to the main part of the hospital, I would find it busy as usual.
Brewers kept more normal hours than Healers, but I am both. I had spent most of the day working in the Creature Induced Injury ward, but managed to sneak away at five in order to brew. As much as I enjoyed Healing, brewing was my passion.
I was currently brewing a variation of the Wolfsbane Potion. Wolfsbane potion had been invented decades ago and was used by werewolves to render themselves harmless during full moons. They still transformed, but lacked the aggressive qualities normally found in werewolves. However, this potion was completely useless to a small portion of werewolves.
For years, Healers and brewers have been trying to create a new version of Wolfsbane that would work for those werewolves. I had been working for the past six or seven years on the project, but had had no success so far.
The potion began to bubble more until it was at a full boil. I grabbed the small amount of Wolfsbane and tossed it into the cauldron while stirring counter-clockwise. Now I had to stir it for a half an hour.
Stirring had never struck me as boring. Plenty of brewers had complained about the amount of sitting around time and monotonous stirring, but it really never bothered me. I saw it as a time to think. After spending a day in the chaotic Creature Induced Injury ward, I needed a few hours to just sit and do mindless work like stirring.
“Amy!” someone whispered.
I jumped, nearly spilling Wolfsbane Potion all over myself. I cursed under my breath and turned around to see who had been stupid enough to interrupt my brewing. It was my best friend, Victoire, and I sighed. She knew not to interrupt me.
“Victoire,” I groaned. “I told you I'd be brewing until eight today.”
“That's what you think,” Victoire rolled her eyes and sat down on the stool next to mine.
Victoire Lupin had been my best friend since our fourth year at Hogwarts. Well, she had been a Weasley then. When she was 23, she married Teddy Lupin, another one of our friends from school. Victoire was a Healer as well, but she worked on the Spell Damage floor.
“It is what I think,” I replied as I continued stirring. “I need to have this ready for overnight simmering before I leave, so it can be tested tomorrow.”
“You do realize what day it is,” Victoire said flatly, shaking her head so that her mane of blonde hair shook.
“It's Friday, and I always stay late to brew on Fridays,” I replied.
Victoire groaned. “That's not what I meant. I meant it's October 27th! It's your birthday for Merlin's sake! Can't you put aside brewing for one measly day? I mean, you only turn 30 once.”
“Thank God,” I muttered. “And no, I can't put aside brewing. You know that.”
“I don't think you're going to miss having any brilliant breakthroughs if you don't work all night tonight,” Victoire said.
“Thanks for having faith in me,” I muttered.
“As soon as you're done with that batch, we're leaving. Everyone's at the Leaky Cauldron, waiting for you. Teddy and I have organized a birthday and halloween party. You will be there. We got a cake and everything.”
“Thanks,” I said. “Another reminder that I'm old now.”
“30 is not old.”
“Says the one who is still 29,” I said. “I'm 30 and I haven't even done anything important.”
“Hardly any witches or wizards invent world changing new potions before they're 30,” Victoire sighed. “Now finish that potion so we can get in our costumes and go.”
“Costumes?” I raised my eyebrows.
“Well, it is a halloween party, too,” Victoire replied.
“I'll go as a Healer,” I said.
“You are a Healer, you can't go as one,” Victoire said. “Now, you're going as this.”
Victoire reached into her bag and pulled out a French maid costume. I groaned inwardly. The thing looked like it would show more skin than a bathing suit.
“That is quite possibly the most cliched sexy costume on earth,” I told her.
“But it's really from France, so that cancels out the clicheness,” Victoire grinned. “I wore it years ago, but can't fit in it since having Sophie, so you get to wear it.”
“And what are you wearing?” I asked.
“This,” Victoire pulled a black robe and hat out of her bag.
“Is that a Muggle witch costume?” I asked.
“Yep,” Victoire nodded.
“So I have to wear a tiny piece of cloth while you get to be completely covered up?”
“I'm married, you're not,” Victoire replied. “Plus, Teddy's dressed as Merlin, so it matches.”
Victoire waited while I finished brewing the Wolfsbane. I purposely took a long time to clean up, but then Victoire pitched in and before I knew it I was changing into the French maid costume.
For the first time ever I was grateful that I was short. Victoire was nearly a head taller than me, so I was sure the skirt had been of the correct skimpy length on her. On me, however, it nearly came down to my knees.
Victoire had gone all out for her witch's costume. She painted her face green and affixed a fake wart to her nose. She looked disgustingly realistic for a Muggle witch. I stifled my laughter and the two of us disapparated.
We reappeared in front of the Diagon Alley side of the Leaky Cauldron. I could already hear the noise coming from inside. Victoire really must have invited everyone. I followed her into the pub and our arrival was met with loud choruses of 'happy birthday' sung in a variety of tunes.
The pub was packed. I only recognized about half of the people there. I saw a few people from work including a bunch of nurses, my boss Healer Morris Sterling, Healer Jeff Norlam, and Healer Rose Weasley. Standing around Rose were all her friends from school including my brother, Matt, and much to my surprise, his roommate Albus Potter. Al was out of the country a lot for work.
Even my parents were there. The two of them were sitting at a table, looking to be the two calmest people there. Neither of them were dressed up. Mum had a cup of tea and Dad had a bottle of something. But sitting next to Dad was the biggest surprise of all.
“Uncle Jack?” I shouted as I ran towards them.
“Amy!” he stood up and gave me a hug. “That's quite the costume.”
“Victoire's idea,” I blushed.
My Uncle Jack lives in Horseheads, New York, and I only see him once a year at the most. I had no idea he was coming for my birthday. He was wearing a black and white striped prisoner outfit.
“Happy Birthday, Amy,” he said.
“Thanks,” I grinned.
I went around the pub, accepting all the birthday wishes from everyone until I wound up at the bar. Victoire and Teddy were sitting there, each with a drink. I ordered my own drink and sat down next to them.
There was a box at the end of the bar marked 'Lycanthropy Awareness Fund'. I looked at it and then turned to Victoire.
“We told everyone to bring donations in lieu of gifts,” Victoire answered my questioning look.
“Thanks,” I smiled. “So who's Sophie with tonight?”
Sophie, Victoire and Teddy's five-year-old daughter, was the most adorable kid I had ever met in my life. She's like a niece to me and even calls me Aunt.
“My parents,” Victoire answered. “They're thrilled to see her.”
“And how is little Sophie doing?” Hannah Longbottom asked as she set my drink down in front of me.
“Oh, she's great,” Victoire smiled. “I'll bring her by soon.”
“Good. I haven't seen her in ages,” Hannah said.
Ages probably meant a few weeks, I thought. Hannah Longbottom loved Sophie. Everyone loved Sophie.
“Amy, happy birthday.”
I turned and saw Matt, wearing a mummy costume, sitting down on my other side. His blonde hair looked in need of a cut, but other than that he looked great. Just a few months ago I had heard a few of the younger nurses whispering about how good looking he was and I had had to run into a closet to laugh. But now that I looked at him, I could almost see what they meant. In a sisterly, non-disgusting way of course. It was just odd because he will always be a scrawny little kid in my mind. Granted, he was still skinny and on the short side, but that wasn't going to change.
“Thanks, Matt,” I gave him a hug. “I haven't seen you in a few days.”
“I've been with Albus,” Matt pointed to Albus, who was laughing at something their friend John had said. “He's been home the past three days.”
“When's he leaving again?” I asked.
“Who knows?” Matt shrugged.
Albus Potter was the son of the one and only Harry Potter and did some sort of Auror-like secretive work. It involved traveling to different countries and tracking down rogue wizards. That was all I knew. I had asked Matt a few times, but he changed the subject every time. I guessed it must be secret for a reason.
Matt and Albus had been sharing a flat ever since a few months after they left Hogwarts. Even though Albus was away for his job for a good portion of every month, he always paid half the rent. Neither of them, especially Matt, would have been able to afford their own flat.
“So,” Matt grinned, “Late for your own party?”
“I wasn't that late, was I?” I asked. “How long had you lot been here?”
“Few hours,” Matt replied.
“Well, I was at work...brewing,” I shrugged.
“Big surprise there,” Matt grinned.
“Matt!” Albus shouted over the crowd. “Better get over here! Kaden's mixing firewhiskey with some Muggle drink called a screwdriver!”
“I've gotta go,” Matt said as he got up and left.
“Amy,” Rose Weasley ran up to me, “Happy birthday.”
“Thanks,” I smiled.
“But I've been meaning to get ahold of you. I recruited three more werewolves for the study,” Rose told me.
Rose Weasley was, if it was possible, even more devoted to work than I was. She was a recently certified magical psychiatrist who worked at St. Mungo's. A few weeks ago, she had gotten involved with a long-term study on lycanthropy that I was involved in.
“Really?” I asked. “We've never gotten that many at once before.”
“They've been coming to Mungo's for therapy for years,” Rose explained. “I told them about the study and they're quite interested. Two wizards and one witch.”
“Rose Elizabeth Weasley,” Victoire tapped her on the shoulder. “Are you talking about work?”
“Yes,” Rose said.
“We're trying to give Amy a break from work,” Victoire told her. “That means you can't talk about it here.”
“Victoire, it's kind of important,” I said.
“Fine,” Victoire groaned, “Talk about work.”
“Anyway,” Rose continued, “I've scheduled them each to come in for interviews on Monday, if you can make it.”
“I'll be there,” I assured her.
“Good. Now I'd better go stop Kaden before we really do have to work tonight,” Rose said.
I sat with Victoire and Teddy and watched the party. I've never been big on parties, but this one wasn't bad. It was my kind of party. Well, besides the costume part. Only about half of the people were actually dressed up, though.
“Amy, long time, no see,” Landon Comer, one of my friends from school, sat down on the stool next to mine. He was dressed as Harry Potter, which was pretty funny. I'm sure Albus was quite thrilled with it.
“Hey, Landon,” I replied. Landon worked in the Department of International Magical Cooperation. He was married and had two children as well.
“Happy birthday,” he said. “Seems like just yesterday you were that quiet new girl at Hogwarts.”
“You're making me feel old,” I groaned.
“I'm allowed to. I'm older than you,” Landon laughed.
The party continued well into the night. I had a few more drinks and felt more relaxed than I had in a long time. Someone turned on some music and cleared the tables and dancing begun. One of the male nurses dragged me onto the floor to dance but I lost track of him when my parents and Uncle Jack found me to say goodbye.
Soon, it was only me, Victoire, Teddy, Matt, and Albus left. Matt and Albus looked exhausted, which made me wonder how late they had stayed out the night before. Whenever Albus was in town, he and Matt rarely slept.
“Thanks for the party, Victoire,” I gave her a hug.
“No problem,” Victoire replied. “And tomorrow you can get back to work.”
“I've got the weekend off,” I told her.
“Even better,” Victoire grinned. “Well, we'd better get going.”
“Bye,” I said. “Bye, Teddy!”
“See you soon, Amy,” Teddy replied. “Happy birthday.”
I left with Matt and Albus once Victoire and Teddy disapparated. We lived in the same flat building, which was quite close to the Leaky Cauldron.
“Don't stay up too late,” I told Matt once we reached his flat.
“We won't,” Matt rolled his eyes.
“You look exhausted,” I told him.
“'Night, Amy,” Matt said. “Happy birthday.”
“'Night Matt, Albus,” I replied and walked up the two flights of stairs to my own flat.
My flat was quiet like it always is. I had been living in it ever since Victoire got married. The two of us had had a flat together when we were training at St. Mungo's, but it wasn't the nicest of places. By the time Victoire got married, I had been able to afford a better place.
It was on the third floor of a Muggle flat building. The building itself was only ten years old. My flat consisted of two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a relatively large living room. Plus a bathroom and a few closets. It was enough room for me and I liked it.
I tossed my purse onto the kitchen table and went into my bedroom. I changed out of the awful French maid outfit, tossing the thing haphazardly into the closet knowing I would never wear it again. I got into bed and realizing how tired I was, fell into a deep sleep.
******
Someone was knocking on the door and I didn't feel like answering it. I opened my eyes and quickly shut them again when the sunlight hit them. I forced them open again and looked at the clock. It was noon.
I shot out of bed and ran out of the room. I hadn't slept that late in a very long time. Saturdays usually meant doing research, spending time with Matt, and then dinner with my parents. They rarely included sleeping until noon.
I wrenched the door open and was immediately hit by Sophie, who wrapped my legs in a tight hug. I bent down and picked her up and opened the door wider so Victoire and Teddy could get inside.
Sophie Nymphadora Lupin had turned five a month ago and was the most adorable child I'd seen. Everyone knew she would be since she had Victoire and Teddy for parents. Her hair was stick straight and dirty blonde. It was the perfect combination of Victoire's blonde hair and Teddy's naturally brown hair. Today Teddy's hair was green, though. It actually matched Sophie's green eyes quite well.
“Happy Birthday, Aunt Amy!” Sophie shouted.
“Thanks, Sophie,” I smiled as I set her down.
“Where's Uncle Matt?” Sophie asked as she ran around the flat.
“He's at his flat,” I told her. “He's probably still asleep. Remember he likes to sleep late on Saturdays because he has to work during the week.”
“Oh, yeah,” Sophie said. “I made you a birthday card.”
“Did you?” I smiled at her.
“Uh-huh,” Sophie nodded and pulled a construction paper card out of her pocket.
I sat down on couch and Sophie curled up next to me. The card was blue with a yellow sun on the front and 'happy birthday' scribbled above it. I opened it and there was a cake on the inside.
“Thank you, Sophie,” I smiled and gave her a hug. “This is the best card I've gotten.”
Sophie grinned. “I made it at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Grandma helped me with the letters.”
“You did a great job,” I told her.
“Soph, we've got to get to Diagon Alley,” Victoire said and then turned to me. “We just stopped by so she could give you her card.”
“I'll see you soon, ok?” I gave Sophie another hug.
I said goodbye to Victoire and Teddy and shut the door after them. I had four hours until dinner with my parents. Plenty of time to get some work done. I ate a quick lunch and then took a shower and got dressed. Then it was research time.
I tried to do some research every Saturday. The second bedroom in my flat was filled with shelves and shelves of books on potions and lycanthropy. I'd already read a good portion of them, but I liked to look them over again to find clues.
Most recently I had been experimenting with how different types of cauldrons affected the Wolfsbane Potion. It was normally brewed in a silver cauldron, but I had been brewing it in a steel cauldron to see how that would affect it.
There was not a whole lot written about the Wolfsbane Potion. The wizard who had originally invented it had a chapter about it in his book, but that was about it. Then there were a few articles about it in obscure potions magazines, but they weren't that informative. I had to read other books and piece together little bits of information and try to make sense of it.
It wasn't very rewarding work. In fact, it was downright depressing most of the time. I would spend weeks on a new potion and then it wouldn't work and I'd have to research again and start over. That was the nature of potion brewing, though. Not a lot of wizards and witches chose to get into that profession for that reason and even fewer wanted to create another Wolfsbane Potion. There were four of us working on it and I was one of two brewers. My boss, Healer Sterling, was the other one. He had been working on it long before I even became a Healer. The other two are magical psychiatrists, Healer Norlam and Rose Weasley.
Nevertheless, I devoted most of my time towards the task. There was no doubt in my mind that I was the most devoted of us four. I had no intentions of stopping until I succeeded. It was something I had been wanting to do ever since I was fifteen.
The reason was my brother. When he was only five years old, he was attacked by a werewolf and had been suffering from lycanthropy ever since. Wolfsbane Potion had no affect on him. My parents had spent so much time trying to give him a normal life, including moving all of us from Australia to England so he could go to school.
Matt had also participated in a ten year study of the Wolfsbane Potion run by Healer Sterling, in which he tried three new kinds of Wolfsbane. None of them helped. He'd tried most of the potions I created as well, and none of them helped. Some even made it worse.
“Amy, are you working again?” someone said from behind me.
I jumped and saw Matt standing in the doorway of the second bedroom. “Matt. I didn't even hear you come in. And yes, I am working.”
“We've got to get to Mum and Dad's,” he said as he sat down on the bed.
“You still look exhausted,” I told him, “How late did you stay up?”
“Late,” he answered. “John and Kaden came over.”
“You really shouldn't do that to yourself so close to the full moon,” I sighed. “You're going to regret it on Thursday.”
“You sound like Mum,” Matt muttered. “Besides, Albus has to leave again on Monday.”
“Where's he off to this time?” I asked.
“Can't tell you,” Matt gave his standard answer to that question. “But I'll be over on Wednesday, probably.”
“That's fine,” I told him. “I've got the day off.”
Matt always got really sick the day before full moons, and that hadn't changed as he got older. Mum and Dad weren't comfortable with him being on his own the day before and day after the full moon and I agreed with them. Matt hadn't objected, either. So, when he and Albus got their flat together, Matt agreed never to be on his own around full moons. Whenever Albus is away for work, Matt comes over to my flat. I usually get the day before, the day of, and the day after full moons off.
For the actual transformation, Matt goes to our parents' house. There was really no point in making a new safe room or safe house when the one in my parents' house works fine. Plus, we live in a Muggle flat building and it would not be a good idea for him to transform in his flat, safe room or not.
“Day after, too?” Matt asked.
“Yup,” I told him. “Like always.”
“Any new potions this month?” he asked.
“No,” I sighed. “I'm working on one, but it's got to be put through the preliminary tests before anyone can take it.”
“It's ok, you'll get there eventually,” Matt said quietly, “Now we'd better get to Mum and Dad's before they start worrying.”
I smiled and followed my brother out of the room. Even if we were a minute late to family dinners, Mum started worrying. If there was an olympic event in worrying, Mum would get the gold medal. |
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Ms. Elsewhere
Joined: 13 January 2008
Posts: 864
Location: In role play game of course!
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Posted: Friday 29 January 2010 07 41 29 am Post subject: Re: RPG: Parst City Super Hero Role Playing Game in topic:RPG: Parst City Super Hero Role Playing Game |
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*********************************** (This means new chapter or the next day)
Samantha woke up and could barely move. She leaned on one arm and sat up slightly. She looked around, recognising her bedroom. The dark green paint, the photos of her travels scattered in frames across the walls. Her bed was a mess, but her blankets were on her. she had not even gotten changed out of her clothes. She winced as she noticed the cuts and bruises forming on her arms and legs. Moving slowly, she sat up, swung her legs around and stepped out of bed. She grabbed a towel drapped at the end of her bed and stumbled off to the shower.
The room started to smell like strawberries as Sam lathered up the shower gel. Desperate to recharge, she finished with the hot water and allowed only cold water to run. It helped, a little. Wrapped in her towel, she approached the mirror, and ran one hand across the steamed glass. Staring back at her was a very tired, battered version of herself.
"I can't go to work like this." she voiced. Fishing around her room for her phone, she dialed and attached it to her ear. She looked at the bedside clock and saw it was almost 10am. The other end of the phone received.
"Hi? Ya, it's Sam. Listen, I am really sick. I'm sorry I haven't called, I only just woke up. Ya, I know I'm sorry I haven't been in or called. I think it's food poisoning. Went out for dinner last night at..." she fished for a name and decided not to. "A local chinese. I shouldn't touch that stuff. Sorry, but you're going to have to reshedule the meeting with our client for tomorrow morning. Organise the surveilence, and I will go double check it tomorrow. Okay?" she paused, and the person on the other end spoke in agreeance. Then they disconnected. Sam removed the phone from her ear and sat on the bed, her hair wet around her face.
"What am I going to do?" she said out loud. Two people were missing. She had no idea where Raijin had gone. He was no doubt wise enough to disappear when things go so crazy. But then, who had got her home. Sam looked up suddenly, and her heart rate increased. Great. He's probably sleeping on the couch. Sam stood up and walked slowly over to the door where her robe was hanging on the back. She grabbed it and wrapped herself in it, and then cautiously made her way into the living room.
All was quiet. The couch seemed the same. Still, she had no memory of making her own way home, and that disturbed her. After surveying the entire apartment, she decided to make herself some coffee. As she filled the kettle and switched it on, she had a funny feeling she was being watched. Turning around, she scanned the room, the windows, and the corners with her eyes. The curtains moved, and she stared at them. Paranoia? Probably. But she had every right to be with the kind of stuff she was involved in now. |
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FortisUmbra
Joined: 18 August 2009
Posts: 216
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Posted: Tuesday 29 December 2009 09 43 32 am Post subject: Re: The Shadow in topic:The Shadow |
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Mathew woke up the next morning and looked at the clock by his bed. it was only 6:30. Why did he always wake up at 6:30? he sighed. Mathew got out of the bed changed out of his pajamas and into some nice close. today was his day off. he could do anything he wanted to do, but then he remembered the pile of paper work that he had to do. He sighed again. Mathew sat at his desk and looked around the room. he really wished that the base wasn't underground then they might have windows. he turned to his computer and started typing up the events of last night. when he finished he looked at the clock. it was 7:13. Mathew stood up and went to go shower. he had a long day ahead of him if John was going to be as dependent on him as he had been last night. |
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salemboy
Joined: 20 May 2008
Posts: 1751
Location: NanoWrimo, baby! I'm gonna write until my hands bleed!!!
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Posted: Tuesday 29 December 2009 08 14 11 am Post subject: Re: The Shadow in topic:The Shadow |
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Hakan awoke to the sound of Yuki breathing in his arms, the sunlight shining on his face. His arms wrapped around her, he pulled her in closer, giving her a tight squeeze. He wished that they didn't have to move. That they could just stay where they were, not have to worry about anything.
Sadly, reality was not very kind. Opening his eyes, Hakan squinted through the sunlight at the clock. 7 in the morning, only four hours of sleep. Wonderful, he'd probably be killed by driving sleepy before the Light or his father ever reach him. He closed his eyes again, waiting a few moments before reopening them.
Quietly, Hakan whispered in Yuki's ear, "It's time to wake up sleepy-head." A sigh escaped the female's lips as she fluttered her eyes open.
"Time?"
"7."
"Ugh, ten more minutes," Yuki groaned as she relaxed back against Hakan, making him almost wish they didn't have to leave. But, they couldn't risk being caught.
Squeezing Yuki's hand, Hakan whispered, "C'mon, you know we have to go. We can't risk being seen."
Letting out another groan, Yuki sat up, and shifted herself back into her seat. "I was having such a good dream, too."
"Really?" Hakan asked as he sat up himself and pulled on his seatbelt. "What about?"
"Dragons," Yuki fastened her own seatbelt. "I dreamt that you and I rode dragons all over the world, and we had all these mystical powers. We were about to go on a 'great adventure,' if you catch my drift, when you woke me up." She smirked mischieviously at Hakan.
All Hakan could manage was, "You and your dreams." He started the jeep, listening to it's engine pur. "I love this car," he muttered under his breath. Then he began accelerating down the road.
The neighborhood that the pair was in was a tree-heavy environment, populated with a mixture of middle-class rednecks and low-life thugs. The neighborhood hoodlums had knocked over all of the street signs, so that Hakan and Yuki had no idea which road they were on. So they drove on, trying to find their way back to the main streets, passing by multiple houses that looked beaten to bits by the storm the night before. One house even had had a tree fall down on it, literally splitting the down the middle.
Finally turning onto the main road, Hakan suddenly swore, slamming on the brakes. They were in stand-still traffic, the lines of cars seeming to go for miles. Slamming on the steering wheel, he sighed. "We were supposed to be moving by now."
"It's ok," Yuki consoled, rubbing his back. "It'll clear up eventually. In the meantime, we can spend some quality time together. It's rare for us to have free time."
Shrugging, Hakan asked, "What do you suppose we do then?"
Hakan could have sworn he'd seen a gleam in Yuki's eye when she said, "Let's play Truth or Dare." |
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salemboy
Joined: 20 May 2008
Posts: 1751
Location: NanoWrimo, baby! I'm gonna write until my hands bleed!!!
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Posted: Wednesday 23 December 2009 08 16 06 am Post subject: Re: The Shadow in topic:The Shadow |
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[I would like to make an amendment to my last post, my character isn't wearing a jacket, and is wearing a t-shirt. The girl is not wearing a poncho but is wearing his jacket.]
"We'd better get moving," Hakan turned to Yuki. The rain was still pouring down over them, soaking Hakan to the bone. He was stuck in close to her, trying to keep himself warm. She was lying next to him, her soaked head resting on his shoulder. The fact that her hair was dripping down his back didn't help.
Sighing, Yuki responded, "You sure we have to leave?"
"Yeah."
Groaning, Yuki stood up as another bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, turning her into a silhouette against the bright background. Reaching out her hand, she helped Hakan to his feet. "Thanks," he mumbled.
"No problem," was her reply. She locked her arm with his as they made their way down the hill from the tree. The field around them was soaked to the ground, the normally high-rising grass laid flat on the mud. The rushing water made it difficult for the two to keep their step, depending on eachother to stay balanced.
Reaching the base of the hill, the two began running as another bolt of lightning flashed, followed by a great roll of thunder. The paths of the former battlefield had been so well-worn that even in the dark of night, it was easy to find their way. Their feet sank into the mud as they plodded along towards the paved roads of the battlefield.
Parked on the side of the road was their jeep. A four-seater with various maps and instruments strewn about the dashboard, along with several empty cans of Coca-Cola lying around on the ground. Lying across the seat in the back was a shotgun with shell cases kept underneath the leather cushions. Opening the driver's door, Hakan slid into his seat, listening to his wet clothing making a squishing sound on the leather seats. Slamming the door shut, he waited for Yuki to get in before starting the jeep.
The rain pounded on the roof overhead as Hakan pulled the car away from the roadside. Yuki began rustling through the maps, looking over them while marking certain points with a pen. "We need to go to the Appalachians," she said to him as they drove along the road towards fork in the road. Lightning flashed across the sky once again.
"The Appalachians it-"
"Go left!" Yuki shot out. Instantly complying, Hakan jerked the steering wheel to the left, taking the left fork. Trees blocked the other road from view as they drove along. "Turn out the lights," Yuki instructed. Hakan did as he was told. Not even a split-second after he did so, the lights from a truck came into view behind them as it passed the fork to where they had just been.
"Was it them?" Hakan queried, momentarily looking at Yuki before returning his eyes to the road. It was nearly impossible to see.
"Yes," was Yuki's answer as she looked back. The lights had passed, but it had been a close call. She returned to a normal position in her seat and rested her head on Hakan's shoulder. "You can turn the lights back on."
Nodding, Hakan turned the car lights back on. Not the brights, just the normal lights. He drove along the road, navigating the way through the battlefield to the exit gate. Looking at the clock, he realized just how late it, and how tired he, was. 0300. He'd have to find some sleep soon. Yuki was already breathing heavily on his neck, asleep.
They reached the gate to the battlefield. It was closed. "Wonderful," Hakan muttered. "Of course it's closed." Swearing under his breath, he gently pushed Yuki to the other side of the jeep and got out into the freezing rain. Shivering, he ran over to the gate, which was held in place by a padlock. Swearing again, Hakan ran back over to the jeep, and opened the back door. Next to the shells underneath the seat was a toolbox. Opening it, he pulled out a hammer.
Slamming the door shut again, Hakan ran back to the gate. Patting the hammer in his hand, he tried to see the best place to slam down the head. Then he saw it. Not the actualy padlock, but the thin metal ring screwed into the pavement that the padlock held the gate to.
Raising the hammer high above his head, Hakan took aim, at the ring, before slamming the hammer down. The thin ring snapped instantly, releasing the padlock and, consequently, the gate. Pushing against the metal bar, Hakan opened the gate all the way before returning to the jeep, opening his door, getting in, and throwing the hammer in the back.
"Nice job," Yuki said, startling him. Hakan hadn't noticed that she'd awoken, and now she was staring at him.
Nodding, Hakan motioned towards the road. "I think I remember there being a suburb out just past the gate. We'll stay there for a few hours before we set off again."
"Whatever you say," Yuki smiled as she rested her head on his shoulder again.
[Sorry, not enough time to make an full-quality post.] |
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Ms. Elsewhere
Joined: 13 January 2008
Posts: 864
Location: In role play game of course!
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Posted: Monday 21 December 2009 08 18 14 am Post subject: Re: The Shadow in topic:The Shadow |
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Jon woke up with a start. He was laying face down in a very, very bright room. He groaned and rolled over; the floor was made of cold tile, and something was wet on his shoulder. He layed there, one arm shielding his eyes, the other reaching over to his shoulder. He had cut himself, and there was a bit of blood there. On the arm he was using to shielf his face, he noticed his watch, so he looked at the time and saw that only ten minutes had passed since he had set the time. He sat up, panicing as the words from his mother's note rang in his ears.
"Keep the right time..." he muttered out loud. He had to have been out longer than that. He looked around, desperate for a clock. Then his whole body weakened with a sickening, sinking feeling. Where was he? He had absolutely no idea. |
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Ms. Elsewhere
Joined: 13 January 2008
Posts: 864
Location: In role play game of course!
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Posted: Tuesday 15 December 2009 11 06 55 pm Post subject: Re: The Shadow in topic:The Shadow |
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Jonathan Deis woke up with a start and looked at the clock on his bedside table. 630am. He groaned. He didn't have to get up for hours. He was so tired of waking up at the same time every morning. But this time, it wasn't just his mind that was knocking him out of his dreams. He noticed someone standing at the door.
"Happy Birthday son." a tall, grey haired but very fit looking man in a business suit and tie said to him from his bedroom door. Jon sat up. His father was holding two packages.
"Hey dad. Thanks." he said with a croak. He had not used his voice yet and the room was so dry. He dad entered the room.
"I come bearing gifts!" he said jokingly. His father didn't joke usually, but it was nice that he was trying. He layed one on Jon's lap. "This one first." he said quietly. Jon opened it obidently. It was a long box, and inside it was a long, black jacket that buttoned to the neck, and probably hung right to the floor. Jon smiled.
"it's perfect. I like this sort of thing. Oh ya, it's Guess too. Cool." Jon was a big fan of designer clothing.
"And now.. this one." he said, and handed the other package to him. Jon opened it too, a smaller box, and heavier. "It's from your mom. She.. wanted you to have it on your 16th birthday."
Jon paused when he heard this, looking at his father. His dad did not take his eyes off the box. Jon continued to open the box, and within it were assortments of keepsakes. A ring, diamond and ruby and safire; some shells, a little tube of perfume, a few oregami swans and other treasures. A little card was inside, addressed to 'my son, Jonathan'. Jon lifted it up, and opened it up. He read it.
"What did she say?" his father asked Jon.
Jon paused for a moment. He felt his eyes welling up, and then he said. "It says; these are for you, my dearest. Always remember me." Jon closed the box with the card inside. He looked up at his father. "I think I'll get dressed. Are you going to work?"
His father searched Jon's face for a long moment. "your mother did love you very much. I'm sorry you couldnt' know her. I'll leave now, and see you tonight for your birthday party." he leaned in and kissed his son on the head. "have a good day at school." And he left the room.
Jon waited until he was sure his father was gone, then he fumbled and opened the box again. He pulled out the card and stared at it. It didn't say what he had told his father, it said; "Keep what you have a secret, or he will destroy you." Jon's breathing was fast, and the bedside table started to shake.
"No." he said to it, and it stopped. He kept breathing heavily, frightened, and reached out to the bathroom. The taps within turned and steam from the hot water in the shower billowed out the door. He brought his hand down and sighed.
"Right." his mother was speaking of his father, a general for the organisation called THE LIGHT. And sure as he was 16 today, he would be killed if his father knew that his bloodline now had super human dirt in it. Jon realised that his mother was probably super human too, but he hoped that her death was a tragic accident. He hoped with all his heart. He jumped out of bed, hid the box, and got ready for school. |
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DucksRMagical
Joined: 28 December 2006
Posts: 2486
Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal
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Posted: Wednesday 25 November 2009 09 24 26 am Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden |
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Chapter 11: Halloween Costumes
"All right, we need to come up with a good costume idea," John announced the following Saturday as he flew poorly made parchment airplanes around the Marauder's Den.
"Definitely," Kaden agreed as his much better parchment airplane flew gracefully over John's head and landed softly on the couch.
"Anyone got any ideas?" Matt asked.
"Haven't even thought about it," Albus muttered as he tried not to move anymore muscles than he had to. He just completed a four hour Hogwarts Quidditch practice, which mainly focused on dodging Bludgers. Unfortunately, Albus hadn't dodged them all.
"You should go see Madam Pomfrey," Matt told him.
"I've already been there twice this week," Albus groaned, "If this keeps up, I'll break your record. I'm fine, I just need sleep. Georgia canceled practice for tomorrow because of the Dueling Tournament, so I think I'll be fine."
"Back to the costumes," John said, "I was thinking that we could be the Marauders. You know, their animal forms."
Albus craned his head to see John. John looked quite excited by this idea. Albus had to admit that it was a pretty good idea. He could affix fake antlers to his head. Or see if one of his older cousins could transfigure some onto his head.
"That's brilliant!" Kaden shouted excitedly.
"I like it," Albus grinned.
"No bloody way," Matt said flatly, "I am not dressing up as a werewolf in front of the entire school."
Albus hadn't even thought about that. No, there was definitely no way Matt could do that.
"Oh, right," John sighed, "Sorry, hadn't thought about that."
"How about we just dress up as the Marauders in their human forms?" Albus suggested. All he'd have to do is get a pair of round black glasses and he'd be set.
"I don't know..." Matt said, "Everyone knows Teddy's dad was a werewolf. What if they realize that I'm one, too, since I dressed up as him?"
"I bet people will just think we dressed up as them because of Albus," John pointed out, "And someone would have to be Moony. Might as well be you. You probably look the most like him anyway."
"He does," Albus said.
"See?" John replied.
"Yeah, but still..." Matt sighed.
"It doesn't matter," Kaden said, "Because there is no way that I am dressing up as Pettigrew unless it's his rat form."
That Albus could definitely understand. "Ok, so I guess we're not doing the Marauders thing."
"Too bad," John sighed, "Would've been cool."
"Says the bloke who wouldn't have to dress up as a traitor," Kaden pointed out.
"And we're back to square one," Albus said, "Any other ideas?"
"The players from Puddlemere United?" John suggested after a few minutes. "You know, if Rose, Amanda, and Linda joined us, we'd have enough people to be the entire team."
"Why not the Cannons?" Matt asked.
"Because they're awful," John groaned.
"Are not," Matt refuted.
"Are to," John said, "Let's be Puddlemere."
"Cannons," Matt said adamantly.
"Manchester United," Kaden interrupted.
"Who?" John and Matt said at the same time.
"Manchester United," Kaden repeated, "Football team."
Both John and Matt groaned. "Puddlemere," John said once again.
"Cannons."
"Manchester."
"Puddlemere."
"None of them!" Albus shouted. He was already irritable due to his aching muscles and fatigue from Quidditch practice. The last thing he wanted to do was listen to his friends squabble about Quidditch and football teams.
"Well, have you got any other ideas?" John asked.
"Actually, yeah," Albus replied. Matt's mention of not wanting to dress up as a werewolf had sparked an idea. Albus had been mulling it over while his friends argued about Quidditch teams.
"What is it?" Matt asked.
"Well, I kind of thought it would be neat to use Muggle costumes," Albus said, "You know, we can dress up as things Muggles usually dress up as on Halloween."
Matt, John, and Kaden stared at Albus for a few moments. Albus shrugged. He had thought it was a good idea, but maybe his fatigue was clouding his thinking. Then, all three of his friends broke out in huge grins.
"That's brilliant!" Kaden shouted, "No one else will think of it!"
"Yeah," John agreed, "We'll be the only ones at the party with Muggle costumes."
"As long as I don't have to dress up as a werewolf, I'm fine with it," Matt said.
Albus grinned. "Good. Kaden, what are some classic Muggle costumes?"
"Ghosts, witches, vampires, skeletons, mummies," Kaden rattled off, "Oh, and zombies. Frankenstein, too."
Albus had no idea who Frankenstein was and he wasn't in the mood to listen to Kaden explain it, but the other ideas were good. "Who wants to be what?" Albus asked.
"Matt should be a vampire," Kaden grinned.
"Why's that?" Albus asked.
"Vampires and werewolves are mortal enemies," Kaden explained, "At least in the Muggle world."
"In this world, too," Matt muttered, "And I'm not dressing up as a vampire."
"Aw, come on," John said.
"No," Matt said adamantly, "I'm being a ghost. The only question is, how do I make myself transparent."
"Aw, no!" Kaden sighed, "When Muggles dress as ghosts, they just put a white sheet with eye holes over themselves. That's what Muggles think ghosts are. White."
"Oh, that makes things easier," Matt laughed, "But seriously?"
"Yep," Kaden laughed, "White sheets. Now, what about the rest of us?"
A half an hour later, everyone had settled on what they were going to dress up as. With Kaden's help, that is. Albus, Matt, and John really had no idea as to what Muggles wore when they dressed up for Halloween. John insisted on being a vampire, much to Matt's disgust. However, John was going to be a classic Muggle vampire. The ugly, waxy, blood-stained lips, turn into a bat type of vampire that Muggles thought of when they heard the word 'vampire'. Albus didn't know much about vampires, but he knew they weren't completely like the ones Muggles thought of.
Kaden was going to dress up as a mummy, which was a very simple costume. All he'd have to do was obtain a bunch of strips of white cloth. Albus said he'd pick some up in Hogsmeade.
Albus was going to be a skeleton, which was the most difficult of all the costumes. He was going to buy a black long-sleeve t-shirt and a pair of black pants and then paint on bones in white paint. He was hoping Amanda would be able to help with it. She was the only one in their group who had any artistic talent.
"Maybe the girls can be witches," Kaden suggested.
"They are witches," John smirked.
"You know what I mean," Kaden sighed.
"I know," John grinned, "Hey, Albus, catch!"
Albus snapped his eyes open just in time to see a Quaffle come sailing across the room. It hit him right in the stomach before he had a chance to catch it.
"Oh, ow!" Albus groaned and curled up, "That's where I got hit with a Bludger!"
"Brilliant, John," Matt sighed, "Are you ok, Albus?"
Albus squeezed his eyes shut and nodded. It did hurt. It hurt a lot. A lot more than it should, he thought. He was sick of getting pelted by Bludgers during practice.
"Albus?" John asked worriedly, "Merlin, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you with it."
"It's ok," Albus whispered. He inhaled sharply. Now it was getting hard to breath. This was not good.
"Albus, you've got to go to the Hospital Wing," Matt announced. He walked over to Albus and helped him off the couch. "C'mon."
Albus nodded. There was no point in objecting. He knew he had to go. But honestly, three times in one week seemed excessive.
The Hospital Wing was empty when Albus stumbled inside, being supported by Matt and John, a little while later. Madam Pomfrey came out of her office when she heard the door open. She saw who it was and threw her hands up in the air.
"You again!" she groaned, "Let me guess. Quidditch?"
Albus nodded and collapsed onto the nearest bed.
"Well, what did you injure this time?" the nurse asked.
"Bludger in the stomach," Albus replied, not bothering to mention that John hit him with a Quaffle as well.
Madam Pomfrey clucked her tongue and waved her wand over Albus. "Broken rib. That's the second one this week," she waved her wand again and pressed it to Albus's ribs. Then she bustled away to a Potions cupboard.
Albus's stomach immediately felt better and he sank back into the bed. The rest of his muscles still ached, though, and he wanted nothing more than to fall asleep right there.
Madam Pomfrey returned a few minutes later and thrust a potion into Albus's hands. He drank it quickly and grimaced at the disgusting taste.
"You're staying the night," she announced in a tone that Albus knew not to argue with. Not that he really felt like arguing anyway. He was just too exhausted.
Madam Pomfrey turned to Matt, John, and Kaden. "You lot can return to Gryffindor. Albus needs to rest."
Albus's friends said good night and then left the room.
"I'll be speaking with Professor Kendrick," Madam Pomfrey muttered to herself, "Honestly, what was he thinking? Twice the amount of Quidditch? Twice the amount of injuries is what I say!"
Albus didn't have the faintest idea as to what Madam Pomfrey wanted Kendrick to do, but he didn't think about it for long. Exhaustion overcame him and he was asleep within minutes.
******
Albus awoke feeling better than he had in days. One look at the clock told him why. He had slept over twelve hours. It was just after eleven o'clock. Two hours until the Dueling Tournament. Albus pulled the blankets off and started to get up.
"Where do you think you're going?" Madam Pomfrey appeared at his bed.
"Er, the common room?" Albus slowly sat back down, "The Dueling Tournament is in two hours."
"Dueling? You think I'm going to let you duel?" Madam Pomfrey demanded.
"Well, yeah," Albus muttered. Come to think of it, he actually wasn't surprised that the nurse wasn't going to let him duel.
"Definitely not!" she exclaimed, "You're spending the day in bed!"
"Come on!" Albus groaned, "Please?" He had to duel. He was practically the best on his team. What would Malfoy say when he didn't show up?
"I won't have it!" Madam Pomfrey said, "You were dead on your feet last night! You're going to rest today!"
Albus groaned in defeat. He was going to miss the first Dueling Tournament of the year, because of a Quidditch injury. His two favorite things to do were now conflicting with each other.
Madam Pomfrey brought a tray of breakfast, or maybe it should have been lunch, for Albus a little while later. He wasn't in the mood to eat, though. Why couldn't he just go to the tournament? He felt fine now.
Matt, John, Kaden, Amanda, Rose, and for some reason, Linda, burst into the Hospital Wing just as Albus was finishing up his food. Madam Pomfrey looked a bit taken aback at the amount of visitors, but she didn't say anything.
"Albus!" John shouted, "Dueling's in an hour. You going to be getting out of here soon?"
"She won't let me go," Albus muttered.
"What?" John exclaimed, "Why not?"
"She says I need to rest," Albus explained.
"Honestly, it would have surprised me if she did let you go," Matt commented.
"I'll convince her, Albus," John announced and walked over to where Madam Pomfrey was organizing potions. "You've got to let Albus duel."
"I do not have to do any such thing," she replied, not looking up.
"But it's Kaden's first tournament," John pointed out.
"I wouldn't care if it was Merlin's first tournament, I'm not letting Albus go."
"Please?" John begged.
"No," she said, "And if you don't stop arguing, I'll make you leave."
John sighed and walked glumly back to Albus's bed. "Sorry," he muttered, "And this was sort of my fault since I threw that Quaffle at you."
"No it wasn't," Albus assured him, "A Quaffle wouldn't have broke my ribs. It was that Bludger from Quidditch practice."
"But still..." John said.
Albus's friends remained in the Hospital Wing until it was time for them to go to the Dueling Tournament. It was sort of tense, and Albus could only attribute this to the fact that Linda was there. It was strange how someone who never said a word could cause the rest of Albus's friends to remain quiet as well.
After his friends left, Albus was filled with boredom. The Hospital Wing really was a boring place, especially when you weren't actually sick or injured. Albus began to count the cracks on the ceiling, but lost track after 467.
It wasn't until after the tournament was over that Madam Pomfrey actually let Albus leave. He figured she hadn't let him leave earlier since then she would've had no way to know he wouldn't go to the tournament.
Albus jumped out of bed as soon as he promised Madam Pomfrey that he wouldn't play Quidditch that day. He ran as fast as he could down to the dueling chamber, hoping that the tournament was still going on.
Unfortunately, students were already streaming out of the room chattering excitedly about the tournament. Albus sighed dejectedly and slumped against the wall, where he waited for his friends.
"Hey, Albus," Matt said.
"Oh, hey, Matt," Albus replied, "Who won?"
"My team. No thanks to me, of course."
"Who'd Malfoy duel?" Albus asked, thinking of his threat to Rose and Amanda.
"Some Slytherin second year and a Ravenclaw fourth year," Matt answered.
Albus nodded, relieved that he hadn't dueled either Rose or Amanda.
"Albus!" someone shouted excitedly.
Albus turned around and saw Kaden with a huge grin on his face. John was standing next to him, looking equally happy.
"Hey, John, Kaden," Albus smiled.
"I won one of my duels!" Kaden announced, "I dueled a Ravenclaw and I actually beat him!"
"That's great," Albus told him, still wishing that he had gotten to beat a Ravenclaw. Or a Slytherin, Hufflepuff, or Gryffindor.
"But he was horribly beaten in his second duel," John laughed.
"At least I won one of them," Kaden smirked.
"Yeah, yeah," John muttered.
"Did you lose both?" Albus asked.
"Yeah," John sighed.
The boys set off for Gryffindor tower, figuring they'd catch up with the girls once they were up there. Albus was eager to see Amanda because he wanted to know how his team had done.
Amanda, Rose, and Linda were talking about the tournament when Albus entered the common room. He was shocked to see that Linda was actually talking. Although, she immediately stopped when Albus and the other boys showed up.
Apparently Albus's team had came in second place. Amanda said they were only two points behind Matt's team, which caused Albus to wish even more that he had been there. He could have easily gotten the two points they needed. Amanda said that Malfoy thought the same thing, because he shouted angrily about Albus not being there once they announced the winner. Albus was kind of amused by this. He never thought Malfoy would ever be lamenting Albus's absence from anything.
The group, including Linda, spent the remainder of the afternoon in the common room. It was sort of odd, though. Linda didn't say a word, yet Rose and Amanda tried to engage her in every conversation. Matt remained almost completely mute, whispering quietly so only Albus and John could hear what he was saying. Kaden of course didn't notice any of this and talked as loudly as he usually did. It didn't really help that various boys kept coming up to Linda and asking her useless questions about Australia and Quidditch and various other topics. Linda gave them very short, quiet answers. John paid rapt attention to every little thing she said.
"So," Rose began, "First Quidditch match in a week. Australia versus New York. Are you nervous, Linda?"
Albus stared at Rose. He couldn't remember the last time Rose actually brought up Quidditch in a conversation.
"A bit," Linda muttered, not looking up.
"Well, I hope you win," Rose smiled, "Since Hogwarts isn't playing."
"Thanks," Linda whispered.
Albus was looking forward to the first match. He was glad he wasn't playing in it. His team would be able to assess both Australia and New York's skill before they played either team. That was definitely good for strategy. Then when they actually played, they'd be able to use the team's weaknesses to their advantage. Wood had given them specific directions to look for weaknesses in both teams. Of course, chances are Albus wouldn't be playing in the first Hogwarts match, or really any of the matches.
Albus walked down to dinner with his friends and Linda sat in between Rose and Amanda. He glanced absentmindedly at the staff table as he scooped mashed potatoes onto his plate and noticed a new wizard talking with the headmaster from Australia. He was a rather short man, compared to Killigan, and his face seemed to have absolutely no emotion on it. His dirty blonde hair sat flat on his head and fell over his eyes. He was wearing plain black robes.
"I wonder who that bloke is," Albus said to John as he pointed at the staff table.
"Dunno," John shrugged, not really seeming interested.
Rose turned to look at him. "Probably some bloke from Australia, I'd be guessing. I imagine a few people from Australia and New York will visit to see what's going on with the tournaments."
"Recognize him, Matt?" Albus asked.
Matt looked up and then quickly turned away. "No."
"How about you, Linda?" Rose asked.
"No," Linda whispered.
Albus shrugged and returned to his dinner. It seemed like he was really the only one interested in the unfamiliar wizard at the staff table. Was he really only there to see the tournament? The Quidditch match wasn't for another week, so why was he there already? Would he really be spending the whole week at Hogwarts?
Kendrick stood up after dinner started to wind down. Albus immediately stopped eating and paid attention. Maybe he was going to tell everyone who the strange wizard was.
"If I could have your attention for just one moment," Kendrick announced, "Thank you. When I first began to organize this competition, I always thought we would continue with the usual Hogwarts Quidditch Cup tournament like usual, but I didn't think about what affect it would have on the players who would play on both their house team and the Hogwarts team."
Albus had a feeling he knew where this was going and it had everything to do with that talk Madam Pomfrey said she was going to have with Kendrick. Albus sank lower in his seat and tried not to look at anyone.
"It's come to my attention that playing on two Quidditch teams at once is much more work than could have been anticipated. Therefore, I have decided to cancel the Quidditch Cup tournament for this year only, while the tournament is going on."
"What?!" Over half the room erupted in various shouts and jeers. Albus sank even lower in his seat. This was all his fault. He was the one who had been to the Hospital Wing so many times that week. He had gotten Quidditch canceled for the whole school.
"Quiet down," Kendrick shouted, "It's what's best for the players. Plus, it's been rather tight to squeeze in so many practices for so many teams. We only have one Quidditch pitch. With four less teams to accommodate, it'll be easier to schedule practices. This is my final word on the subject. Remember that we still have excellent Quidditch going on this year."
"I shouldn't have gone to see Madam Pomfrey last night," Albus muttered.
"Albus, this isn't your fault," Rose assured him, "You're not the only one who's been injured numerous times."
That was true. Pretty much everyone on the Hogwarts team had been to see Madam Pomfrey at least once a week since the start of term. So maybe it wasn't all his fault. Plus, there was the scheduling conflicts on the pitch. Albus had witnessed a few fights between the house captains that certainly couldn't be good for teamwork on the Hogwarts team.
Albus had to admit that life would be a lot easier without Gryffindor team practices. Now he would only be practicing Quidditch twice a week. Well, Wood would probably increase it to three times now that Kendrick canceled the house Quidditch. But even that would be less than he had been doing. He might even have an evening or two off a week now.
The Gryffindor team was sitting together in the common room when Albus returned. Georgia immediately flagged him over.
"I still don't like it," Fred sighed, "Now I don't get to play at all this year."
"Yeah, well I don't get to play for Gryffindor in my seventh year, but it really is for the best," Georgia said.
"I'll say," James agreed, "I'm already behind on homework and it's only October."
"Me, too," Albus said.
"Just think, Fred," Heather began, "Next year, one of us will be captain."
"It'll be me," Fred announced.
"Really?" Heather raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, Gryffindor's had two girl captains recently. It's time for another bloke."
Heather rolled her eyes. "Not if I'm a better leader."
"What makes you think it'll be either of you?" Bradley asked, "It might be Ryan or I. We'll be sixth years. They don't always choose seventh years."
"Maybe," Fred replied, "I'm still going to miss it, though."
"We could play pick-up matches on the weekends," Ryan suggested.
"I guess," Fred sighed.
Albus remained quiet for the rest of the time with the team. Although he didn't blame himself for the cancellation of house Quidditch, he felt guilty that he was relieved it was canceled. But most of the team was far from happy about it. In fact, it seemed like only James and Albus were relieved. |
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DucksRMagical
Joined: 28 December 2006
Posts: 2486
Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal
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Posted: Wednesday 28 October 2009 03 20 39 pm Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden |
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Thanks, Riley!
Chapter 7: Nightmare
After lunch, Albus, Rose, and Matt headed to Ancient Runes while John and Amanda went to Divination. Albus didn't really know what to expect from Ancient Runes, nor did he know anything about the teacher. Matt had told them that Amy said the teacher was nice enough.
Albus, Rose, and Matt sat down at one of the tables in the middle of the room and waited for the teacher. Linda Morales was already seated at one of the front tables. Albus wondered how she always seemed to be the first to arrive to any class. There was also an assortment of Hufflepuffs in the room. Albus, Rose, Matt, and Linda appeared to be the only Gryffindors taking the class, though.
The professor walked in a few minutes later. She was a short woman with curly grey hair and a patient look on her face.
"Hello," she smiled, "I'm Professor Sturly."
She took attendance and then gave a lengthy lecture about what the study of Ancient Runes was. Albus kind of thought she could have condensed it and he found himself zoning out about halfway through. Rose was paying rapt attention and Albus had a feeling this would become one of her favorite classes.
Towards the end of the class, Sturly gave an overview of the first chapter in their book and then assigned the remainder of the chapter for homework. The chapter covered a variety of basic runes that Albus and the rest of the students would have to memorize.
Charms consisted of Rose and Linda alternatively answering every question Cedonia threw at them. Albus had a feeling it would become a regular occurrence in all the classes he had with both Rose and Linda.
"How was Divination?" Albus asked his friends after dinner as they were sitting around the Marauder's Den.
"Entertaining," John laughed, "I think it'll be my easiest class."
"So, who did Trelawney say would die this year?" Rose asked.
"What?!" Kaden exclaimed, "Someone's going to die?"
"No," Rose sighed, "Trelawney just predicts someone's death every year. The student in question has never actually died during that year."
"Oh," Kaden shrugged, "So she's not a real psychic?"
"You mean a Seer?" Rose asked, "Well, she has made a few real predictions. She's the one who spoke the prophecy about Albus's dad. But can she really predict the future with crystal balls and such? I doubt it. I really doubt anyone can do that. I'm sure there are real Seers out there, but they're extremely rare. Divination is a very obscure branch of magic that is difficult to interpret. My mum says we shouldn't put much faith in it."
"I still think it would be brilliant to know the future, though," Kaden grinned.
"I don't know," Matt shrugged, "I've always thought the future was best left unknown."
"I've always thought so, too," Albus agreed.
"So, who's going to snuff it?" Kaden asked.
"Carter Eubert," John replied, "That Ravenclaw we shared a boat with when we crossed the lake in first year. I have to say that I'm relieved it wasn't me."
"Me, too," Amanda agreed.
Rose groaned. "I've told you that it's not real! Trelawney has never accurately predicted a student's death. She predicted my Uncle Harry's death and he's still alive!"
"Yeah, but didn't he nearly die at the end of his third year?" John asked.
"Key word, nearly," Rose replied, "Plus, he faced death pretty much every year."
"Ok, ok," John said, "But I'm still glad she didn't predict my death, even if it's not a real prediction."
"So how was Ancient Runes?" Amanda asked.
"Really interesting!" Rose said excitedly and proceeded to give a commentary on how the class had went. However, Kaden seemed to be the only one really intrigued by it.
Albus and his friends spent the remainder of the evening in the Marauder's Den. Once they had exhausted the topic of their first two days of classes, they moved on to the Quidditch competition and Albus's chances of making the Hogwarts team. Everyone thought Albus had a good chance of making it, except Albus. Then they talked a bit about their upcoming Hogsmeade trips, although that topic kind of made Kaden jealous. John brought up the topic of Linda Morales, but both Rose and Matt didn't want to talk about her at all.
Eventually, they had to return to Gryffindor tower in order not to break curfew. On his way up to his dormitory, Albus noticed that Linda once again was surrounded by a group of admirers, but appeared not to be enjoying it at all.
******
"No! I don't want to go! Dad, don't make me go!"
Albus's eyes snapped open. He peered at the clock and saw that it was just after two in the morning. He could hear someone tossing and turning and mumbling in their sleep in the bed next to him.
"Please, I don't want to. Just let me go home."
Albus was wide awake now. The talking was coming from Matt's bed and Albus knew he was having a nightmare. Albus had been woken up by Matt's nightmares on numerous occasions, especially during first year. They always seemed to come around the full moon. Although, Albus was pretty sure that the full moon wasn't for a few weeks. This nightmare sounded worse anyway.
The mumbling continued for another few minutes and then stopped all of a sudden. Albus heard the bed creak and footsteps crossing the room until they disappeared altogether. Albus sat up and waited a few minutes before quietly getting out of bed. He stepped into his slippers and padded across the room and carefully shut the door behind him. None of the other boys had woken up.
The common room was dark and empty when Albus got there. The fire had long since died out and Albus shivered slightly as he stumbled around the room. There was faint wand light coming from one of the corners. Albus walked slowly towards it and saw Matt sitting curled up in one of the chairs, staring at the floor.
Matt startled when he saw Albus. "Oh, Albus," he sighed, "What are you doing up?"
Albus shrugged and sat down in the chair next to Matt's. "Followed you down here."
"Oh, did I wake you up?"
"Sort of," Albus replied, "But it's ok. I just came to see if you were all right. I mean, first the boggart and then that nightmare-"
"How do you know I had a nightmare?" Matt asked.
"I sort of heard you mumbling," Albus answered, "You were talking in your sleep."
"Oh."
"Listen," Albus paused, "You don't have to tell me, but I was sort of wondering who that bloke was that your boggart was. I mean, I kind of thought it would be a full moon."
"So did I," Matt said quietly, "Which is part of why I freaked out so much."
Albus nodded, wondering if Matt was going to continue or not.
"I know I haven't told you much about what happened when I lived in Australia," Matt began.
Albus nodded again. All he really knew about Matt's life in Australia was that he had lived in a mansion and his dad had been the Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.
"That bloke the boggart turned into is the current Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures," Matt continued, "He replaced my dad. But before that, he was the Head of the Werewolf Control Unit."
Albus was still a bit confused about why he was Matt's boggart, but he figured it would be best to just not say anything.
"While my parents were in the process of finding out where to move, a law was passed that all werewolves had to transform in a Ministry approved center if their place of transformation failed an inspection. Mine failed."
"What?!" Albus gaped at him, "But your dad was-"
"The head of the department, I know. They passed the law while we were visiting New York. My parents refused to let me transform at one of the Ministry centers, so they broke the law and were fined. The first time that happened, my dad was fired over it.
"But that bloke, Ralph Lubar is his name, wouldn't give up until I transformed in one of the centers. My parents said it was because he hated my dad so much. The two of them had some sort of long term row going on or something. I don't know the details. But anyway," Matt paused, "Eventually, Lubar was able to pass a law that made it legal for the Ministry to take werewolves by force to one of the transformation centers. He flooed to our house, grabbed me, and flooed to the Ministry approved center before my parents had a chance to stop him."
Albus stared at Matt. He could hardly believe what he was hearing. What was even more unbelievable, was that it had been legal. How could it be legal to basically kidnap a kid for a night?
"I don't remember any of it," Matt said quietly, "Except for what happens in the nightmares I have. It was horrible, though. The other werewolves were all adults and they all sort of ganged up on me. I spent a day or so at the hospital in Australia and then my parents had me transferred to St. Mungo's because they wanted Healer Sterling to take care of me. I spent three weeks there."
"Well, it makes sense that you were so scared of that boggart," Albus said, "Lubar is one of the most horrible wizards I've ever heard of."
Matt nodded and shifted slightly. "I thought I was over it. I mean, it was over five years ago. I really thought that boggart would turn into a full moon. But I guess having Killigan here brought everything back. I thought all that stuff that happened in Australia was behind me, but I guess not."
"Nothing like that is going to happen here," Albus said quietly, "Lubar has no control over our Ministry. He's in Australia."
"I guess you're right," Matt sighed, "I think I'll go see if Madam Pomfrey will give me any dreamless sleep potion. Could I use the Invisibility Cloak?"
"Yeah, of course," Albus said as he stood up. He had a feeling that Madam Pomfrey would definitely give him the dreamless sleep and probably try and convince him to spend the night in the Hospital Wing as well.
Albus and Matt quietly walked back to the dormitory and Albus dug out the Cloak, as well as the second edition Marauder's Map, and handed them to Matt. Once Matt had left the room, Albus climbed back into bed.
Albus lay awake thinking about what Matt had told him for a while. His own boggart of not making the Hogwarts Quidditch team seemed very insignificant now that he knew the details about Matt's boggart. That didn't make Albus any less nervous about the try-outs, though.
******
Albus and the other Gryffindor third years, as well as the Ravenclaws, started out the next day with History of Magic. All Albus learned during the hour was that third year History of Magic was equally as boring as second year. Transfiguration consisted of another lecture on Animagi and Albus noticed that John paid a considerably more amount of attention than he usually did. Albus thought this was pointless, though, since they had already established the previous year that they would not become Animagi.
Care of Magical Creatures was after lunch and the class moved on to the slightly more interesting bowtruckles. Albus was very thankful for the break they had afterwards, when Rose went to Muggle Studies.
"It's only the third day and I'm already sick of homework," Albus muttered as they entered the Marauder's Den.
"So don't do it," John said as he pulled a Chocolate Frog out of his bag.
"You should do that Divination homework," Amanda said, "You know, the one where we predict what happens to us next Wednesday."
"Already did it," John announced.
Albus, Matt, and Amanda all stared in shock at John. John never ever did homework early. He was always the one finishing the last lines of an essay as the teacher took attendance.
"What?" John shrugged, "I occasionally do stuff before it's due."
"No, actually, you don't," Matt smirked.
"Divination's different. It's fun to make up fake predictions."
"So what's happening to you next Wednesday?" Amanda asked.
"I'm going to break my neck when I fall off my broom."
"John, you don't even play Quidditch," Albus pointed out.
"Trelawney won't care."
Albus personally thought it was a waste of time to come up with fake predictions for Divination, but that was probably why he hadn't signed up for the class.
"Oh, did we ever tell you what Balladanis's boggart was?" John asked Albus and Matt.
"Nope," Matt said.
Amanda burst out laughing. "You're going to love this."
"Yeah," John grinned, "When the two of you left, the boggart got a bit confused because no one was standing that close to it. Everyone was whispering and not paying an ounce of attention to it, so Balladanis stepped in front of it and you'll never guess what it turned into!"
"A werewolf?" Matt asked.
"No, but that would have been funny, too," John laughed, "Anyway, it turned into a woman."
"A woman?" Albus raised his eyebrows.
"Yeah," John said, "A tall, skinny, pale faced woman. Her skin was as pale as Linda's. Her hair was a bit lighter, but still a dark brown. The woman just sort of walked over to Balladanis with a smile on her face. She was kind of pretty in an odd sort of way."
"Now that is weird," Albus replied, "Why in the name of Merlin would he be afraid of women?"
"Maybe it was a specific woman," Matt pointed out.
That would make more sense. After all, Matt wasn't afraid of all men. His boggart had turned into a specific man. But Albus did think it was kind of odd that Balladanis, the stern man who hated Dark Arts, would be afraid of a witch. Albus would have thought he'd be afraid of some sort of scary dark creature.
"Who do you think she was?" Matt asked.
John shrugged. "His wife?"
Albus smirked. "Well, that would be funny."
"My dad jokes that he's afraid of my mum at times," John replied, "But I doubt his boggart would turn into her."
"Maybe she's some sort of dark witch that he's faced in the past," Amanda suggested.
"Good thinking!" Matt agreed, "Maybe she was a Death Eater."
"I don't know if he fought in the War or not, though," Albus said, "My dad's never mentioned his name before and he doesn't really seem like the kind of bloke to just stay in the background, does he?"
"I guess not," Matt replied, "She could still be an evil witch, though."
"That does make the most sense," John said, "She must be really evil. I mean, Balladanis doesn't seem like he'd be afraid of anything."
"Everyone's afraid of something," Albus pointed out, "But yeah, she must be evil."
"What did Balladanis do to make her funny?" Matt asked.
"Turned her into some sort of statue," John answered, "It was strange, like she was petrified. She just froze in place. And then Balladanis banished it to the trunk."
"How is that funny?" Albus asked.
"No idea," John shrugged, "Just adds to the mystery that is Balladanis."
"I'm still not sure I like him," Matt commented.
"Me, neither," Albus agreed.
"But hey, at least he didn't give us any homework on the first day," John pointed out.
******
The next day Albus found himself yet again sitting in the back of the Defense classroom in between Matt and John. Malfoy kept turning around in his seat and smirking at Matt. Albus was glaring at him, silently daring him to say anything about Matt's experience with the boggart.
Balladanis stormed into the room a few minutes later in a way that reminded Albus of Washburn. The class immediately quieted down and Malfoy faced forward in his seat. Balladanis quickly ran through attendance and then stared at his students.
"Well, some of you were successful with last class's boggart," Balladanis began, "However, there were quite a few of you who weren't."
Malfoy yet again turned around and looked at Matt, this time unable to stifle his laughter.
"Quiet, Mr. Malfoy," Balladanis growled, "Five points from Slytherin."
Albus couldn't help but grin at that. At least Balladanis wasn't favoring Slytherin.
"Therefore, we will continue battling the boggart until you all have success with the spell," Balldanis continued, "I do not want any of you to slip through the cracks and skate through this class on the tails of more successful students. That may work while at Hogwarts, but the moment you get out into the real world, it will abruptly end. Without a basic knowledge of defensive spells, you will meet an untimely end at the hands of dark wizards."
This teacher was making it seem like they were in the midst of a war. Albus knew it was important to be able to defend yourself, but he thought Balladanis was acting like everyone was out to get you. It kind of reminded him of what his parents, aunts, and uncles had said about Mad-Eye Moody.
"Dark wizards love finding victims with little knowledge of defensive spells. The students who skirt by with acceptable marks and just barely pass each exam, without really understanding anything. They also love people who read book after book and pretend to understand everything. And while these people may have a full knowledge of defensive spells, they may not possess the skills necessary to perform them," Balldanis's eyes rested on Rose and Linda.
"I want everyone in this room to have more than the basic skills needed to perform defensive skills. I want everyone to be able to come off better in a duel. I want everyone to be able to defend themselves against dark creatures and wizards alike.
"Starting with the boggart, I will not rest until every student is capable of performing every spell we learn in this class. I will assign extra lessons to those I deem it necessary. You will come in for extra help. I do not care if it interferes with clubs or Quidditch practice. Quidditch will be of little help when you are facing a dark wizard or creature.
"Stand up!" Balladanis ordered. The class scrambled to their feet and Balladanis moved the desks aside.
"Sir!" Malfoy called out, "What if we've already had success with the boggart?"
"Then you'll do it again," Balladanis replied, "Practice makes perfect."
The class lined up in front of the trunk. Albus and his friends wound up being in the back, and Albus didn't think Matt minded this in the least. He looked very nervous at the prospect of seeing the Lubar boggart again and Albus couldn't blame him.
The line moved much faster this time than the last class. Everyone who had had problems with the boggart during the previous class seemed to do a better job this time.
Albus stepped forward once it was his turn and the boggart once again turned into Oteski, who told him he did not make the team. Albus vaguely wondered what the boggart would turn into after the try-out, if they battled it after that. He shouted the spell and moved to the side to stand next to Rose and Amanda.
John was next and battled his clown boggart in the same way he had the other day. He stepped to the side and Matt walked slowly towards the boggart.
"Two Galleons says he runs again," Malfoy whispered in Albus's ear.
"Shut it, Malfoy," Albus and John said at the same time.
The boggart once again turned into Lubar and Matt slowly raised his wand, which was shaking.
"R-R-Ridikkulus," Matt whispered. Nothing happened and the boggart advanced towards Matt.
"Louder," Balladanis told him.
"R-Ridikkulus!" Matt shouted. Still nothing. His wand arm was shaking even harder.
"R-Ridikkulus!" he shouted once again.
This time, the boggart spun around and when it stopped, Lubar was decked out in a black and white striped prison outfit with a ball and chain attached to his right leg.
"Looks like you owe us two Galleons," John smirked at Malfoy.
"Not a chance, Brickston," Malfoy growled.
"Good job," Albus grinned as Matt joined the group.
Balladanis already had the boggart shut in the trunk when Albus looked back at his teacher.
"That's enough for today," Balladanis announced. "You," he pointed at Matt, "Come see me."
Matt glanced at Albus and then walked slowly towards Balldanis as the rest of the class left the room. Albus and his friends lingered near the doorway, but Balladanis gestured for them to leave. They reluctantly left, but waited just outside the doorway.
"What did he want?" Albus asked once Matt exited the room.
"I have to go in for extra help," Matt groaned, "Until I can face the boggart successfully."
"But you were successful," John pointed out.
"Not successful enough for Balladanis."
"Somehow, I don't think anyone would be successful enough for him," Rose muttered.
"Yeah," Albus agreed, "That was some speech he gave at the beginning of class."
Albus still didn't know what to think of their new Defense professor. He seemed very strict and Albus didn't really feel comfortable with him, but on the other hand, he seemed very knowledgeable in defensive spells. Albus had a feeling they'd learn a lot from him, and even though they weren't involved in a war at the moment, Albus knew defense skills were always important to have. That's what his father had told him ever since he could remember. Albus had grown up knowing the need for defense against the dark arts. He just had never had it taught to him in such a forceful strict way. |
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Ms. Elsewhere
Joined: 13 January 2008
Posts: 864
Location: In role play game of course!
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Posted: Monday 5 October 2009 08 56 02 am Post subject: Re: RPG: The Six Wizards in topic:RPG: The Six Wizards |
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Inu knew deep down that Yuta and Neko would be onside with him. They were very much in tune, having spent so much time together. But what about Damien and Ouki? Inu looked over at Buta, who's face was undecided. He seemed tired, and Inu couldn't blame him. Inu looked at the clock on the wall, paying attention to the numbers. It was late. He noticed Ouki move closer to Damien. She rubbed his arm, and he wrapped it around her and pulled her closer. His mouth pressed against her hair, he closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he had connected with Inu's eyes. Inu casually looked away. "I have weapons stored here. We have everything we need to be unstoppable. Unless..." Inu turned on the old man, who was starting to look better. The colour that had returned to his face drained from the look Inu gave him. "Unless you're lying? We need to check. No bad decisions. Not anymore." Still staring at the man he asked, "Any volunteers to interigate? Potion? Or.. something else?" |
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DucksRMagical
Joined: 28 December 2006
Posts: 2486
Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal
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Posted: Sunday 27 September 2009 09 22 15 am Post subject: Re: In Moonlight's Shadow in topic:In Moonlight's Shadow |
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Here's the last chapter! I'm working on a sequel, but it'll be a while before I'm able to post it. I hope you guys enjoyed this. Please let me know your opinions of the whole thing!
Chapter 63: Understanding
Three nights before the July full moon I decided that I was not going to put up with being kicked out of the house for it. Having to leave my house once a month for the full moon was something that had been driving me mad for years, but I had been going along with whatever Mum and Dad said because they had so much else to worry about.
Now we had moved and we no longer had to worry about Ralph Lubar and his ridiculous laws. Mum and Dad were happy and as stress-free as two parents with a werewolf child could be. It seemed like the perfect time to suggest that I no longer leave the house for full moons.
I spent an entire afternoon coming up with a list of reasons as to why I should stay home. I knew the answer would be no unless I had good reasons.
Reason number one. I was nearly sixteen. A year after that I would be seventeen and no longer underage. So, I would be of age in one year and three months. That was practically an adult. In some cultures, I would be considered an adult.
Reason number two. I was going to become a Healer. Healers had to deal with this sort of thing all the time. I needed to get used to it.
Reason number three. What else were they going to do? Flying me to Australia to stay with Richard and Cinda every month was going to get expensive, not to mention really inconvenient since they didn't like me flying alone. Getting portkeys through the Ministry was completely out of the question since my parents wanted nothing to do with the Australian Ministry anymore. Getting a room at the Hog's Head wasn't going to happen either, judging by how Mum reacted the last time.
Reason number four was the most convincing, in my opinion. In two years, Matt would be at Hogwarts, without Mum or Dad there with him. I would be there. It would be me going with him the Shrieking Shack before every full moon (well, with Madam Pomfrey as well). Me who would be there when he woke up the next day. Me, the only person at Hogwarts he would know. I had to be completely used to seeing him right before and right after transformations by then if I was going to be able to comfort him. It wouldn't do him any good if I was bawling my eyes out every full moon. I had looked at a calendar and saw that there were about seven or eight full moons that I would be home for before Matt's first year. If I started now, I would be used to them before that.
The night before the full moon, Mum and Dad still hadn't said anything about what I was doing. I waited until Matt had gone to bed (which wasn't a long wait; he went to bed at seven) and grabbed my list and went down to the living room to talk to them.
“Mum, Dad,” I stood in front of the couch they were sitting on. They had been whispering about something, but I didn't care that I interrupted them.
“Amy,” Dad said, “We have something we need to talk to you about.”
“Let me go first,” I said, “I need to talk to you about something.”
Mum and Dad exchanged glances. “All right,” Dad replied.
“I would like to propose that I get to stay home tomorrow night,” I began, “And before you say no, I have a list of reasons why.”
Mum and Dad looked kind of amused, but Dad gestured for me to go on.
“Reason number one,” I continued, “I am nearly of age. I will be of age in one year and three months. I'm practically an adult.”
“Practically being the key word,” Dad sighed.
“Reason number two,” I ignored him, “It will save you a lot of money and time. I can't be flying to Australia every full moon I not at school.”
“We can't put a price on your safety,” Mum pointed out.
“Reason number three,” I said, even though Mum had had a good point, “I am going to become a Healer. I will have to deal with this sort of thing. I need to get used to it.”
“Plenty of witches and wizards become perfectly talented Healers without having lycanthropic brothers,” Dad said.
Another good point, I thought. Now to drop the big one. “Reason number four. In just two years' time, Matt will be at Hogwarts. You will not be, but I will. It'll be me who watches over him around full moons, gets him to the hospital wing in time, and possibly takes him to the Shrieking Shack-”
“Madam Pomfrey-” Dad interrupted.
“He doesn't know Madam Pomfrey well,” I cut him off, “He's going to want me there. You know he will. He'll want me there when he wakes up the next morning. And what good will I do if I'm completely shocked by how injured he is? How will it help him if I'm sitting in the hospital wing bawling my eyes out next to his bed?”
I folded the parchment and put it in my pocket. There was nothing else I could do. I had made my point.
Mum and Dad looked at each other. Mum looked shocked and Dad had that tired look about him that was only brought about by full moons.
“She has a point,” Dad said quietly, “I'm not really sure how we missed this.”
“I don't know either,” Mum sighed, “You know she's going to be there when he wakes up at Hogwarts. She'll be at the Shrieking Shack before Madam Pomfrey, you know she will be.”
“I know,” Dad sighed.
I stood there not knowing what to do. They were talking about me like I wasn't there. Usually this sort of thing drove me mad, but I was happy they hadn't gone to talk about it in private. It was a good sign.
“I guess,” Dad began, “That it's just a matter of whether we want her to be here for the full moon for the first time while we're here with her, or whether we want her to do it alone at Hogwarts.”
“It isn't the same, though,” Mum said, “Matt'll be in the Shrieking Shack while he's transformed and Amy'll be in the castle. Here, they'd be in the same house.”
“I know,” Dad said quietly, “We knew this day was going to come.”
“We did,” Mum agreed.
“I guess, I think we should,” Dad said.
I silently begged Mum to agree. I was over the first hurdle, the shorter one. I knew Dad would give in first.
“All right,” Mum sighed, “If you think it's ok, I agree. But just this one. We're not making promises about future full moons.”
“Thank you,” I said quietly, happy that they agreed, but I was suddenly nervous at the same time.
“But,” Dad said, “I have some conditions that you have to agree to. Number one, you must do anything I tell you. If I say to run out of the house, you run out of the house. No questions. I don't care if it's two in the morning and you're half asleep, if I wake you up and tell you to leave, you leave. You find Ellie and tell her to Apparate you someplace. No waiting for Mum and I. Anything I say, you do. If I tell you to jump up and down while reciting the ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion, you do it. Number two, you stay out of the basement while the moon is full. No potion brewing. Number three, you have your wand on you at all times,” Dad took a deep breath, “And if, something were to happen,” he paused again and lowered his voice, “You use whatever spell comes to mind. Forget the underage magic laws.”
That last one jarred me a little, but I nodded. “Ok, I agree.”
“Good,” Dad softened his voice, “Now I am not really sure you realize how hard this will be. I'm warning you that we don't soundproof the actual safe room. We soundproof the house. I have to listen so we know when he's transformed back and it's safe to go in the room. You'll be hearing it all night. I can put a muffling charm on your room if you'd like.”
“No,” I shook my head, “I don't need one.”
“And,” Dad paused again, “The next morning, it's up to you if you want to see him right after. You don't have to.”
“I have to,” I disagreed, “I just do.”
“All right,” Dad sighed, “I just hope you understand what you're getting into. There are reasons besides physical safety that we don't normally let you stay for full moons.”
******
The closest I had ever come to seeing Matt right after a full moon was seeing him in the hospital after he transformed in that Ministry center, and that wasn't a normal full moon. Never had I seen him directly after a full moon, though.
However, I was nervous. I tried to hide it from Mum and Dad, but I think they could tell. It was strange. All the times I had begged Mum and Dad to let me stay and they had declined, I didn't think I would be nervous about staying. It was only now that it was actually happening that I was nervous.
I wasn't regretting my decision, though. I was determined to do this.
It wasn't that I didn't know what would happen. I knew full well what was going to happen. I had read numerous books on werewolves and their transformations. For the past three and a half years, I had been trying to pretend that maybe Matt's full moons were different. That was stupid, really, since his full moons were obviously bad. But since I hadn't seen one with my own two eyes, I could still try and pretend. I was nervous because I knew there would be no denying it after the following morning.
Mum and Dad told Matt late the morning of the full moon that I would be staying home. He either didn't really comprehend what they were saying (he was pretty tired at the time) or didn't care.
My parents seemed more stressed about this full moon than they had for one in months, and I knew the reason was me. I even felt sort of guilty about it, but quickly shrugged that off. This was something I had to do.
I didn't go out to the bush that day. In fact, I stayed inside the entire day. Somehow it didn't seem right for me to go explore while Matt was laid up on the couch. It was weird how things changed. A year and a half ago, I would have been out in the bush the entire day. Instead, I stayed in the living room, where Matt was, and read while he slept.
Dad went into work for a few hours, but returned hours before the moon was going to rise. Mum stayed in the living room with us, getting up every so often to bring Matt potions or water.
“Do either of you want anything to eat?” Dad asked shortly after he came home. It was dinner time, but I wasn't hungry in the slightest.
“No, thanks,” Mum said and I shook my head.
The remaining hours until the moon rose ticked by. The house was so quiet that I could actually hear every tick of the clock. I set my book down, no longer able to read.
“It's time,” Dad said quietly a few minutes later.
I looked outside and saw that the sky was dark. Night had fallen. The moon would soon rise.
Dad rose from his chair and walked over to where Matt was curled up next to Mum. Mum gently shook Matt awake and he immediately started crying.
“Shush,” Mum soothed, “It's time to go down to the basement.”
“I don't want to,” Matt mumbled in between sobs.
“I know,” Dad said as he picked Matt up.
Mum and Dad started walking towards the basement door. Matt was in Dad's arms, his head on Dad's shoulder. He was awake and I could see the tears rolling down his face. It nearly made me want to cry.
Neither of them said whether I was allowed to go down to the basement with them, so I got up and followed. I half expected them to tell me I had to stay upstairs, but they didn't say a word.
Dad opened the door to the safe room with a wave of his wand. I hadn't seen the place since Dad first put it in. It was slightly smaller than the one in Australia, but other than that it looked the same. Padded walls on every side and no windows.
Dad set Matt down on the floor, but he kept his arms wrapped around Dad's neck.
“We'll see you in the morning,” Dad said as he unwrapped Matt's arms from his neck, “I promise. I love you.”
“We'll be here as soon as the moon sets,” Mum said as she bent down to give Matt a hug, “I love you so much.”
I had been lingering in the doorway, but as soon as Mum let go of Matt, I walked over to him. I bent down and gave him a hug. He was trembling harder than I had ever seen him tremble before. He was really warm, too, like he had a fever.
“I love you,” I whispered and then stood up. I followed Mum out of the room and then waited for Dad.
Dad walked slowly out of the room and shut the door behind him. He pulled out his wand and performed a variety of intricate spells on the door. After he was done, we followed him up the stairs.
“Do you have your wand, Amy?” he asked quietly.
“Yes,” I nodded.
I followed my parents to the kitchen. They sat down at the table and didn't say a word. I did the same.
“Ten minutes,” Dad said.
I counted every second in that ten minutes. 600 seconds went by. Then I glanced out the window and saw the moon peeking out over the horizon.
Then I heard it. A horrible, awful, high-pitched shriek coming from the basement. My heart skipped a beat. It felt like somebody had punched me in the gut. Then came another, and another, until there were no pauses in between the shrieks.
I looked up at my parents. Mum looked like she was ready to cry and Dad's face was hard.
Then the shrieking stopped and there was silence. I breathed slowly to try and stop my racing heart, but then there was a loud howl. And another. And another. Mum and Dad hadn't moved an inch. I sat completely still as well, at a complete loss for words. I understood why Mum and Dad were being so quiet. There was nothing to day.
******
I stared out the window at the moon. The round orb of light that had been one of the only constant things in my life, all our lives, this past year and a half.
I had been fascinated with the moon and stars for as long as I could remember. The night sky was one of my favorite things and I could stargaze for hours. The moon was so beautiful, in every phase, and the twinkling stars just accented that beauty.
Now, as I stood in my kitchen, listening to the howls of my little brother, I did not see that beauty. For the first time in my life, I stared at the moon and hated it. I hated it for everything it did to Matt, everything it had done to my family.
******
There are so many different ways that time passes. The way it seems to fly by when you're doing something fun, the way it seems to go backwards when you're sitting in History of Magic, the way it seems to go by fast when you're dreading something and when that thing comes, it slows down.
As I sat in the kitchen during the full moon, I realized that none of those ways fit this situation. I was certainly not doing anything fun and I wasn't bored either. I wasn't dreading anything; the thing I had been dreading already arrived, Matt's transformation.
The actual transformation had been relatively quick. Five, ten minutes tops. It felt like longer, but the clock told me otherwise. I'm sure to Matt it felt like hours.
Now, time was creeping by. This was possibly due to the fact that I could still hear every second ticking by on the clock. Every second brought us closer to morning, but time seemed to have stopped anyway.
It soon became clear to me that Mum and Dad did not even try to go to bed during full moons. Neither of them made any move to go upstairs. They only left the kitchen to use the toilet or get a drink.
I decided that I wasn't going to bed either. Originally, I had thought I would go up to my room when my parents went up to theirs, but they weren't going to.
“Amy, do you think that you'd like to get some sleep?” Dad asked, breaking the silence for the first time, around two in the morning.
“No,” I said. I wasn't even tired anymore. I had been tired around midnight, but it had gone away. There was no way I would be able to sleep.
Dad didn't bring it up again. The room descended into silence once again, only broken by the occasional howl coming from the basement.
Mum fell asleep slumped over the table around four in the morning. Dad followed suit shortly thereafter. I was still wide awake.
******
I watched the moon set through the den window. I had had to switch rooms to watch it. As the moon set, the howling slowed and then stopped. The house was completely silent.
I walked back into the kitchen. Mum and Dad were still sound asleep. I had no idea what time they normally went to go get Matt, but I thought they went as soon as the moon set.
“Mum,” I whispered, “Dad.”
Mum woke up first. She looked up sleepily and then jumped out of her chair when she saw that the sun was up. Dad quickly followed. Neither of them said a word as they ran out of the kitchen and down to the basement.
My heart started beating faster as I followed them. I really had no idea what Matt was going to look like. I made myself keep walking, though. There was no way I was going to stay upstairs.
Mum and Dad paused in front of the transformation room and listened for a few minutes. It was absolutely silent. Eerily silent.
Dad waved his wand in front of the door and then slowly pushed it open. I took a deep breath and then squeezed under Dad's arm to get into the room first. Mum and Dad didn't stop me.
I stopped two feet into the room. I just couldn't go any further. What I had felt when I first heard Matt screaming the previous night was nothing to what I was feeling now. I didn't think I'd ever breath normally again.
There was one thing that I could compare to what Matt looked like now, and that was what he looked like when he was attacked. If I didn't know any better, I would say he had gotten attacked by another werewolf the previous night.
My brother was sprawled out on the floor looking as limp as a rag doll. His hair was all matted together with blood. But that was nothing compared to everything else. There was so much blood throughout the room that I was amazed he had any blood left in him. His whole body was covered in deep cuts and I was pretty sure his arm was broken.
I was vaguely aware of my parents rushing past me. Both of them bent down next to Matt and started waving their wands around him. Then Dad picked him up and they walked out of the room. I followed.
Matt was completely unconscious. He looked like he did when he was in the coma. What if he was in another one?
Dad laid Matt down on his bed and Mum left the room. She returned a little while later with a bunch of potions. I stood in the doorway while my parents continued performing all the healing spells and gave him potions.
Matt looked a little better once they finished. All the severe cuts were bandaged, as was his arm. But he was still asleep. Or unconscious.
Mum was sitting next to his bed ruffling his hair while looking at him sadly. Dad pocketed his wand and then turned to me.
“Amy,” he said quietly.
I walked over him and he wrapped me in a tight hug. I burst into tears and let Dad comfort me like I was five years old again.
It was just so unfair that Matt had to go through this once a month. I had truly not understood everything until then. I had had to see it for myself.
We had moved in order to give Matt a better life. That was something I had come to terms with months ago, and even came to enjoy. But what I hadn't completely understood was that everything hadn't been solved by moving.
Sure, Matt was going to be able to go to school and hopefully make friends. But he would never live an entirely normal life. His life was still going to revolve around the moon. No matter where we moved, he would still have to transform once a month. Once a month he was still going to get really ill. Unless someone fixed that Wolfsbane potion.
“D-Dad,” I pulled away, “Mum.”
Mum turned away from Matt and looked at me. Neither of them said anything, like they were waiting for me to continue.
“I-I'm going to come up with a new version of Wolfsbane,” I said, “You know, if Sterling doesn't. It's the real reason why I want to be a Healer.”
“Oh, Amy,” Mum got up from her chair and gave me a hug. She let go of me and I could see tears in her eyes. “If there is anyone who could do that, it's you.”
“I'll do it,” I assured her, “He doesn't deserve this.”
“I'm sure you can,” Dad said.
“I can. As soon as I'm done with Healer training, I'm going to start,” I told them.
I sat down in between my parents on the floor in Matt's room. None of us said anything else, but we didn't need to. They hadn't said anything about whether I was going to be allowed to stay home for future full moons, but I had a feeling they would. Something had changed between us. It wasn't anything sudden, either.
It was more like something that had happened over the past year or since we had moved. I just got the feeling that my parents saw me more of an adult now than a child, and staying home during the full moon had seemed to reinforce that idea.
I didn't even have to ask them about it. I just knew. I knew that I would no longer be going to Richard and Cinda's on full moons. I knew that my parents were going to tell me everything about the full moons that happened while I was at school. I knew there were going to be less hushed conversations taking place between them behind closed doors.
The bed gave a slight creak and I looked up. Matt was slowly opening his eyes. He couldn't sit up very easily, but he slightly lifted his head up and looked at us.
“Amy?” he croaked.
I smiled at him despite my teary eyes and got up and sat down on the side of his bed. He wrapped his bandaged arms around me and I gently hugged him back. He didn't say anything else, but leaned his head up against my chest. It felt like foreshadowing of his first year of Hogwarts that was only two years away.
I looked up and saw Mum and Dad. Dad had his arm around Mum and was smiling. Mum was smiling as well and there were silent tears running down her face. They were tears of joy, though. That I could tell.
It was one of those happy family moments that often seemed so distant in my family. I only hoped that within a few decades' time, we could have this type of moment without Matt being sick and injured from a full moon. |
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