Harry Potter Robes and Costumes

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DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2495 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 23 December 2009 09 35 46 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 15: Answers When Albus walked into the Great Hall, he stopped in his tracks. The room had been completely transformed. There were huge jack o' lanterns everywhere, lit up by candles. Realistic looking spider webs were draped across every surface. The four House tables had disappeared and were replaced by spindly round wooden tables. Fake spiders were crawling around the floor. Fake bats were flying around. Tables of food were set up everywhere. Cauldrons were smoking on top of them, emitting all sorts of different colored smoke. The professors were all milling about and talking with each other. Kendrick was dressed up as Merlin or Dumbledore, Albus couldn't tell which. Neville was dressed as Godric Gryffindor, Patil as Rowena Ravenclaw, and even Slughorn was dressed as Salazar Slytherin. Polo was not dressed as Helga Hufflepuff, a fact John was quick to point out. He was probably dressed as some other famous Hufflepuff, but Albus had no idea who it was. In fact, nearly all the professors were dressed up. The only one who wasn't was Balladanis. He was wearing his usual pristine black robes with the intricate silver fastenings. He was wearing a grim look as he brushed past Albus and his friends. His eyes narrowed a little at John but he quickly looked away. Albus thought this was odd, but didn't dwell on it. As the room gradually filled with more and more students, Albus noticed that there were an alarming amount of them dressed up as his father. Most were first years. Albus just kept staring as eleven-year-olds with plastic glasses and fake scars on their faces walked past. He thought it was really really odd. "We're surrounded by your dad," John laughed as another miniature Harry Potter walked by. "This is just weird," Albus muttered, shaking his head. "It's kind of funny," John laughed even harder. "Bet you wouldn't think that if everyone was dressing up as your dad," Albus replied. "And that kid's dressed up as your uncle!" Kaden announced, pointing to a red-haired boy who could've easily passed for a Weasley. In fact, he didn't really look like he was dressed up at all, but Albus figured he was his Uncle Ron. "Uncle Ron would like that," Albus smirked. "He would," someone said from behind Albus. Albus turned around and saw the real Harry Potter with a plate of biscuits in hand. "Hi, Dad!" "This has got to be the strangest party ever," Harry said, "I've never seen people dressed up as me before. It's rather odd." "Yeah," Albus agreed. He didn't really like that so many people were dressed as his dad. "Too bad Ron is on duty tonight," Harry sighed, "He would've liked to see a kid dressed as him. Where's Rose?" "Er...." Harry gave Albus a curious look. "Is everything all right?" "Um, yeah," Albus mumbled, "I guess." "Well, you know I'm always here if you need to talk," Harry replied, "I like your costumes, by the way." "Thanks," Albus grinned, "Kaden's idea." "So far I haven't seen any other Muggle costumes," Harry pointed out, "I've got to go talk to Kendrick, so I'll see you soon." Albus nodded. "See you later." Once Harry left, Albus and his friends wandered over to one of the food tables. They loaded up plates with chicken and potatoes and various other stuff and went to find seats. "Look, Albus," Matt pointed to the door, "The girls are dressed as Muggle witches." Albus looked up and saw Rose, Amanda, and Linda strolling into the room dressed as the Muggle version of a witch. All three of them were wearing plain black robes, black witch hats, and had painted their faces green. Albus caught Amanda's eye and they gave each other weak smiles as the girls walked into the room. "Guess they couldn't come up with any other ideas," John muttered. "We did agree on costumes before they stopped speaking to us," Albus pointed out. "I guess," John said. "Looks like they're coming over here," Matt groaned. Albus set down his plate and watched as the girls progressed towards them. Rose's face was still stony, even in green. Amanda was leading them, so Albus figured she wanted to say hi, not Rose. "Hi, Albus," Amanda greeted them, "Matt, John, Kaden. Great costumes." "Thanks," Albus smiled, "You, too." Nobody else said anything. Albus stood awkwardly with Amanda and looked around at the group. Rose was glaring at Matt and vice versa. John and Kaden were shifting nervously around. Linda was staring at John, but not in a loathing way. It was more of a combination between curiosity and revulsion, which Albus thought was kind of odd. "This is just so stupid!" Amanda finally exclaimed, "Do you lot want to keep fighting for the rest of the year?" "Not really," Albus muttered. Rose sent a withering look at Amanda and then turned around and left in a huff. Amanda sighed and followed her. Linda shook her head and then ran after Amanda. "Well, that was awkward," Kaden announced a few seconds later. "Is this really what the rest of the year is going to be like?" Albus asked, looking pointedly at Matt, "Because I think I'll go mad if it is." "Well, Rose started it," Matt muttered. "You both started it," Albus snapped, "And you both had better finish it." "It's not that simple, Albus," Matt sighed. "It isn't?" Albus asked, "What am I missing, then? I was there. You two fought over whether Linda should be in the Room or not! And we all said no, but Rose is still upset over it! I just don't understand it." "Told you it wasn't simple," Matt said in barely more than a whisper. "They're girls. Nothing is simple with girls," John groaned, "And do you know why it's not simple, Matt?" Matt shifted uncomfortably and looked away for a few seconds. "Yeah, I do," he whispered. "Care to explain?" Albus asked, now thoroughly confused. "Not here," Matt said, "Come on, let's go to the room." Albus followed Matt out of the Great Hall with John and Kaden on either side of him. None of them said a word until they reached the Marauder's Den. They went inside and sat down on the furniture. Matt stood up as soon as he sat down and then began pacing around. It reminded Albus of the time he explained about the Hallows back in their first year. "All right, what's up with the girls?" John asked after Matt paced for a few moments. Matt stopped pacing and stood in front of them. "Ok, here it goes. What do you know about vampires?" "Wait, what?" Albus shook his head. What in the name of Merlin did vampires have to do with the girls? "What do you know about vampires?" Matt repeated. John laughed. "They vant to suck your blood!" he exclaimed in a bad Transylvannian accent. He opened his mouth and leaned towards Kaden's neck. "Ew," Kaden moved away, "Vampires are afraid of garlic and they can't see themselves in mirrors. They can't go out during the day and they turn into bats. Oh, and you have to kill them with a wooden stake to the heart." "Er," Albus began, "I don't really know much besides the whole blood sucking thing." "You know," Matt began, "You know nothing about vampires, yet you knew enough about werewolves to figure out that I was one." "That was Rose," Albus reminded him. "Right, anyway, Kaden, those are the vampires as Muggles see them. They're not like that." "Oh," Kaden said. "What do vampires have to do with this anyway?" John asked, "I just want to know why Rose is so stubborn." "It's just the way she is," Albus muttered. "Vampires," Matt continued, "In the wizarding world, are the undead. They're dead, but they're still around, obviously. Vampires feed on human blood, but if they don't suck a human completely dry, the victim becomes a vampire themselves." "Sort of like werewolves," Kaden pointed out. "Yeah, I guess," Matt replied, "But not really. Anyway, they basically die but they don't. They become immortal and stop aging. Someone could be bitten when they're twenty and still look twenty two hundred years later. Their hearts stop beating and they run out of blood. That's why they turn pasty white. Then, they need to feed on blood in order to survive. They can either use human or animal blood. The vampires that like to integrate into human society prefer to use animal blood. All they need to survive is blood. They don't need food. But they eat it to pretend they're human. They don't need to sleep either." "Really?" Kaden asked, "That is weird." Albus never knew any of that. Now the vampire unit in Defense class was going to be incredibly easy. "How often do they drink blood?" Albus asked. "Depends on the vampire. Most need to drink it every couple of weeks or so." "What happens if they don't?" "They get weak," Matt explained, "Vampires are exceptionally strong and fast, but if they haven't had any blood recently, they feel weak and sick." "Like you do before the full moon," Kaden pointed out. "Yeah," Matt nodded, "Sort of like that." "Can they go out during the day?" John asked. "There's a potion that they take so they can go out in the sun. The sun hurts them. Kind of like the moon for werewolves." "But what's this got to do with Rose?" John asked impatiently. "I'm getting there," Matt said as he began pacing again, "Anyway, vampires are fast and strong so they can catch their prey. But they are also more beautiful than regular humans. That way people are attracted to them. They're also really really charismatic. When you meet one, you're naturally attracted to them. It's hard to explain, you're just drawn to them. It doesn't even matter if they're a boy or a girl or if you're a boy or a girl." Albus suddenly remembered the day the foreign students arrived and he first laid eyes on Linda. She was beautiful. Albus hadn't been able to take his eyes off her. But she didn't seem particularly charismatic. After hearing Matt's description of a vampire, Linda did sound like one, except for the charismatic part. She hardly said a word. "So if a vampire walked through the door, I'd immediately want to to go over to them?" John asked. "Pretty much, yeah," Matt said. "How do you know all this?" John asked. "Remember the library at my house? There are loads of vampire books there because of my dad's job. I've read a few of them." "Well, you'll do great on whatever test Balladanis gives us on vampires when we get to that unit," John laughed. "Wait," Kaden looked at Matt curiously, "Muggles believe that vampires and werewolves hate each other, and didn't you say that's real?" "Er, yeah," Matt said quietly, "That's pretty much it. But mostly the big rivalry is between werewolves and vampires who live away from wizards. There are packs of werewolves and covens of vampires who fight over territory and stuff. That doesn't happen as much as it did years ago, but it still does occasionally, mostly in other countries." "So, you don't really hate all vampires?" Kaden asked. "I've never really met one," Matt shrugged. "And what in the name of Merlin does this have to do with Rose rowing with us?" John asked exasperatingly. Albus was getting a bit impatient as well. Sure, he liked hearing about vampires. They were kind of interesting, but he mainly wanted to know what Matt knew about Rose. "Linda is a vampire," Matt said simply. The room was silent for a few minutes. Albus stared at Matt. Linda was a vampire? It was possible. She did fit some of the characteristics, but it was still hard to grasp. Albus had never met a vampire before, let alone one that was his age. "When did you figure that out?" Albus asked. "As soon as she walked past the Gryffindor table," Matt answered. John looked at him in awe. "Wow, that's impressive. You ought to go into the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures." "Now that would be even more ironic than my dad working there," Matt laughed, "But I would have known she was a vampire even if I didn't know so much about them. Werewolves and vampires can instantly recognize each other." "How?" Albus asked. "Smell," Matt said, "Vampires have a distinctive smell, but regular wizards can't tell. Werewolves can, though. And vampires can smell werewolves." "And you didn't tell us?" John asked incredulously. "I didn't see the point, until now." "Didn't see the point? There's a vampire at Hogwarts and you didn't think to tell us?" John shook his head, "There's always a reason to tell us that kind of stuff." Matt shrugged. "Well, you know now." Albus was still processing the information. Linda was a vampire. Matt knew Linda was a vampire from the start. Werewolves can smell vampires. Vampires can sense werewolves. That meant- "Wait," Albus began, "Linda knows you're a werewolf, doesn't she?" Matt sighed. "Yes, she probably does." "Then why does it matter if she gets to go in the Marauder's Den?" John asked, "Not that I want to let her in." "It's the principle of the thing!" Matt replied, "I just don't see why Killigan let her go to his school but he wouldn't let me! I know it's stupid to avoid her because of that because it's not her fault, but I just don't get it." Albus hadn't even thought of that. Matt was right; it didn't make sense. How was letting a vampire into a school any different from letting a werewolf? "But if you had been let in, you wouldn't have moved here," John pointed out. "I know, and I'm glad we moved, but it's just not fair," Matt sighed. "So," Kaden said loudly, "There's a vampire at Hogwarts. Who's blood is she sucking?" “That, is actually a good question," Albus said. "I have no idea," Matt replied, "I'm guessing she's sucking animal blood. Probably hunts in the forest." "What about the whole 'vampires are charismatic' thing?" Albus asked. Even if Linda did want to suck human blood, he had no idea how she'd manage to lure a human towards her. She seemed to avoid as many people as possible. Matt smiled wryly, "That's where it gets interesting. The three of you don't see her as charismatic, right?" "Yeah," Albus said. John and Kaden nodded. "That's what I thought. It's because you're friends with me." Albus turned to look at John and Kaden. Both of them looked as confused as Albus felt. "Wait, what?" John asked. "Even way back when there were more packs of werewolves and covens of vampires running about, it was possible for humans to affiliate with one or the other. Occasionally, a pack of werewolves would sort of 'adopt' a human and the human would live with the pack. I mean, the human would leave for the full moon, but live with the pack the rest of the month. But if the human came upon a vampire, the human would be completely undesirable to a vampire because they were affiliated with werewolves." "And we're affiliated with you, so Linda wouldn't want to suck our blood, even if she did suck human blood?" Albus asked. "Exactly," Matt replied, "Remember how everyone seemed to flock around Linda when she first came here? Everyone except us. Even Rose disliked her back then." "But she doesn't now," Kaden reminded him. "I know. That's because as Rose started spending more time with Linda, she spent less time with us, with me. She became less affiliated with me, so to speak. And then when we had that row, well, now she's just affiliated with Linda. She's completely under Linda's charisma." Rose was affiliated with a vampire? Did this mean there was no hope of her reconciling with Matt? Albus groaned inwardly. He really didn't like Linda now. She was putting a huge rift into their group. "Is it possible for a person to be friends with both a werewolf and a vampire?" Albus asked quietly. "I think so," Matt sighed, "But Rose won't even talk to us." "I think the only way she will is if we agree to let Linda into the Marauder's Den," Albus muttered, "She's just so stubborn." "But we don't want to let her in here," John groaned. "No, we don't," Matt agreed. "Do you think Rose knows she's a vampire?" Albus asked. Rose was smart, but if she had found out Linda was a vampire, she probably would have told him. She told him Matt was a werewolf, after all. Unless of course she discovered Linda was a vampire after the row. "No idea," Matt shrugged, "Do you know if she knows anything about vampires?" "Probably not much," Albus answered. "Then she might not. Linda's obviously trying to conceal that she's a vampire. I bet she'll find out when we do the vampire unit in Defense, though." "Unless we tell her first," Albus said quietly. "Are we going to?" John asked. "Would she even listen?" Matt asked. "I sort of think we should at least try to tell her," Albus said, "And Amanda, too." "I suppose," Matt sighed, "But they're always around Linda." "We'll just have to wait until she's at Quidditch practice. I think the Australian team practices on Mondays, so I guess we'll wait until then," Albus said. The room descended into silence for a few minutes. Linda had definitely spiked Albus's curiosity. He was mostly curious about why Linda had been allowed to go to the Australian School of Sorcery but Matt hadn't. What was the difference in letting a vampire attend than a werewolf? Even if Linda did suck animal blood, there was still the potential for her to suck human blood. "Bloody hell," Kaden let out a low whistle, "A vampire at Hogwarts." Albus nodded. Kaden pretty much summed up what Albus was thinking. Linda being a vampire had shocked him more than Matt being a werewolf. He wasn't sure why, but maybe it was because Teddy's dad had been a werewolf and he attended Hogwarts, but as far as Albus knew, no vampires had ever been there.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2495 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 16 December 2009 07 02 52 am    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 14: Hogsmeade Albus and John practically ran to the hospital wing. They slowed down as they neared it and tried to look as casual as they could as they walked in. Madam Pomfrey was busy with a patient, so she didn't even notice them as they made a beeline for Matt's bed. Albus yanked the curtains back and shut them again once John and himself were inside. To his relief, Matt was awake this time. He looked exhausted, but he was awake. "Hey, Matt," Albus said. "Hey, Albus," Matt replied, "How are you?" "All right," Albus said, "How about you?" "Tired," Matt sighed, "Er, how is Rose? Is she still ignoring us?" "Pretty much," Albus said quietly. John nodded and then glanced at Albus. Albus took a deep breath. He hadn't really thought about how he was going to ask Matt about this. "Are you two ok?" Matt asked tentatively. John poked Albus. Albus glared at him and then turned back to Matt. "Well, we sort of wanted to ask you something," Albus lowered his voice, "I'm sure you'll think its mental...." Matt stared at him curiously. "Er, all right, what is it?" "I was talking to Rose in Ancient Runes-" "I thought she was still ignoring us." "She was. But we were partners, since you weren't there." "What about Linda?" Matt asked. "She wasn't there either, which is what I wanted to ask you about," Albus paused, "Rose said Linda's been ill the past few days. I couldn't really help but notice that she was ill around the same time you were and well, John and I were sort of wondering if maybe, well, she was-" "Like me?" Matt whispered. His eyes had widened in shock and he was staring incredulously at Albus and John. "Er, yeah," Albus muttered, "Told you it was mental." "It is," Matt said adamantly. "So you know she's not?" John asked, "You saw her in here or something? Or did Madam Pomfrey tell you?" Matt smiled wryly. "Of course not. Even if she was, I doubt Madam Pomfrey would tell me. You two missed the obvious clue that she's not like me." Albus turned to John, who shrugged. "Linda normally goes to the Australian School of Sorcery," Matt stated, "The school that I wasn't allowed to go to. Obviously, if Linda was like me, she couldn't go there either." Albus felt like he should have smacked himself in the head. He turned to John, who looked like he was about to burst out laughing. How could they have forgotten about that? It was staring them straight in the face and they completely overlooked it. Professor Killigan was prejudiced against werewolves. There was no way he would admit Linda if she was one. "Oh, right," Albus mumbled, "Should have remembered that." "It's actually kind of funny that you thought she was like me," Matt smirked. "I guess she's just got a cold or something," John shrugged. "Yeah, probably," Albus said. So much for the idea of Rose and Matt making up. Albus would just have to think of some other way to get them to be friends again. "When do you get to leave?" John asked. "Not sure," Matt sighed, "Probably late tomorrow, if I'm lucky." "Hogsmeade is on Saturday," John said. "I know. I'll be out for that, even if I have to sneak out when Madam Pomfrey is sleeping," Matt replied. Albus didn't really think Madam Pomfrey would sleep through someone trying to sneak out of the ward, but he hoped Matt would be out in time to go to Hogsmeade. It would be incredibly unfair if he wasn't allowed to go. ****** The silence continued into the next day. Linda returned from her mysterious illness and went back to spending all her free time with Rose and Amanda. Albus spent his time with John and Kaden in the Marauder's Den. Albus hated the silence more and more every day. It kept him up at night, but he couldn't think of anything he could do about it. The row was mainly between Rose and Matt. Albus couldn't solve it, but it was eating away at him like it was his own row. He was very glad he wasn't playing Quidditch in the upcoming match. He wouldn't have been able to concentrate. Matt didn't leave the hospital wing until Friday evening. Madam Pomfrey had reluctantly let him leave in order to go to Hogsmeade the following day. Albus woke up not feeling nearly as excited as he probably should have about going to Hogsmeade. He and Rose had imagined going to Hogsmeade together since they were little kids. They plotted where they would go and what they would do. Both of them had been to Hogsmeade before, but never without one of their parents. The idea of going by themselves had always been exciting. Now that the day had actually arrived, Albus couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. He wouldn't be going with Rose. Not while they were still in the midst of a row. It was either go with Matt and John, or ditch them and go with the girls. The latter wasn't even a real option. He was still mad at Rose and if he decided to make up with her, he'd have Matt and John angry with him. He just had to face it; going to Hogsmeade with Rose was not an option. Albus, Matt, and John joined the queue of people in the Entrance Hall later on in the morning. Matt and John were more excited than Albus was, but still more subdued than the rest of the third years. "We've got to remember the stuff for the Halloween party," John reminded them. The Halloween party was that night. Albus had nearly forgotten about it over the past few days. It was another thing that would have been more fun if they weren't fighting with the girls. "Yeah," Albus nodded, "We've got to get Kaden's stuff, too." "Merlin, he was jealous that we get to go and he doesn't," John smirked. "Can't blame him," Matt lowered his voice, "I mean, this is the first time we'll get to try out the Hogsmeade part of the map." Albus grinned. That was one part about the Hogsmeade trip that Albus was still thoroughly excited about. He had the new map in his cloak pocket, all ready to go. "We can see who likes to go to the Hog's Head," John grinned mischievously. "Hey, Amy used to go there," Matt said. "Really?" John asked. "Yeah, she liked how empty it was." "Seems like an awfully depressing place," John said. "Where do you lot want to go first?" Albus asked as they gave their names to Filch. "Weasley's," John said immediately, "I've got loads to buy there. And Kaden gave me a list of stuff he wants me to get him, too." "Why does that not surprise me?" Albus smirked. The boys walked the short distance into Hogsmeade once Filch checked their names off. It was a chilly autumn day. There was a slight breeze in the air and it was cloudy, but not the kind of clouds that threatened rain. They couldn't have asked for better weather in late October. Once they arrived, they hid behind a tree in order to look at the map. Albus glanced around to make sure nobody was watching and then pulled it out of his cloak. He muttered the incantation and soon, an inky replication of Hogsmeade was on the yellowed paper. "Whoa," Matt whispered, "Look, Weasleys' is so crowded, you can't read any of the labels." There were dots spilling out of the joke shop and even more inside, piled on top of each other. Albus wasn't surprised in the slightest. His uncle's shop was the most popular in Hogsmeade. There were more modest collections of dots in the rest of the shops and pubs. A slight few were in the Hog's Head. "Anyone we know in the Hog's Head?" John asked. "Nope," Albus said after he read the labels. Albus wiped the map clean and then they set off for Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. It took them a while to squeeze into the crowd, and once there, Albus and Matt quickly lost John to the throngs of students grabbing merchandise. Both George and Teddy were behind the counter, ringing up purchases as fast as they possibly could. "Hi Uncle George! Teddy!" Albus shouted. "Hey, Al!" George shouted back. "Albus!" Teddy exclaimed, "How's your first Hogsmeade trip?" "Great," Albus smiled, "Are you coming to the Halloween party?" "Wouldn't miss it," Teddy grinned, "Victoire and Amy are going, too." "That's good," Albus said, "Are you dressing up?" "'Course," Teddy laughed. "What as?" "Where would the fun in that be?" Teddy winked. John returned a little while later, arms laden with merchandise. He dumped it all on the counter and a few Skiving Snackboxes fell on the ground. Albus picked them up and smirked as he put them on the counter. "Stocking up for a year?" Albus asked. "Nah, this is just until next Hogsmeade trip," John said. "You're one of my best customers, John," George laughed. "Do you really need five Snackboxes?" Matt asked. "Definitely. Divination's awful. And two are for Kaden," John replied. John paid for his purchases and then the group wandered down the road until they reached Gladrags Wizardwear. They slowly walked inside, only to find that it was filled with giggly girls. "I'd be happy if I never had to set foot in here again," John groaned as he gestured to a display of pink sparkly robes. "We just need to get our costume stuff and get out," Albus muttered, equally unhappy about having to visit a clothing shop. The three boys tried to move as quietly as possible through the crowd of girls in order to find their costume stuff. Albus immediately found a black shirt and pants for his skeleton costume. He had bought glow in the dark paint at Weasleys' and one of his cousins was going to paint bones on the shirt and pants with it. John had purchased Muggle vampire teeth and Muggle face paint at Weasleys', so all he needed was a black cape, which he found quickly. Matt located a white sheet, which was all he needed for his ghost costume. Albus got another white sheet, which they would cut up into strips for Kaden's mummy costume. "Finally!" John exclaimed once they left the shop, "That's my least favorite place in Hogsmeade." "You should go to Madam Puddifoot's, then," Albus laughed. John shuddered. "No way. I will never set foot in that hideous place." "Anyone want to go to the Three Broomsticks?" Matt shivered. "Yeah, I could use with a Butterbeer," Albus agreed and pulled his cloak tighter. The wind had picked up and Butterbeer would be good to warm up with. Albus led his friends up the street and into the crowded pub. It seemed that everyone had the idea of warming up with a Butterbeer. Albus and Matt snagged the last empty table while John went to the bar to get a few Butterbeers. "What do you think the party is going to be like?" Matt asked. "Dunno," Albus shrugged, "It's not really common for there to be an actual party. Usually it's just the feast. I guess they just want us to interact with the foreign students. Kind of like the Yule Ball for the Triwizard Tournament." "I just can't wait to see what people dress up as," John announced as he returned with the Butterbeers. "Think the teachers will dress up?" Matt asked. "I hope so," John grinned, "Probably depends on the teacher, though. I could see Kendrick dressing up. And Longbottom. Not sure about Slughorn." Albus snorted into his Butterbeer. "Slughorn, dress up? Now that would be funny." "I think any of the teachers dressing up would be funny," Matt laughed. "So, how long do you think it'll be until Kaden tries sneaking into Hogsmeade?" John asked. "Next trip," Albus said immediately, "I know he's plotting it. He asked me if I was taking the map today. I think he wanted it to sneak in." "Are you going to let him have it next time?" Matt asked as he sipped his Butterbeer. "Probably," Albus nodded. "What if he gets caught?" Matt asked. Albus shrugged. "He'll get a couple detentions. It's not like he'll notice another two detentions." "Good point," Matt grinned and turned to John, "You two spend half your waking time in detention." "It's not that bad, once you get used to it. I think Filch is getting a bit fed up with us, though. He's starting to pawn us off on the professors." "Well, when you spend every other night with him, who can blame him?" Albus smirked. "Shut it, Albus," John laughed, "Or next time we get caught, we'll tell Filch whatever we were doing was all your idea." "He'll never believe you," Albus grinned. "Albus," a female voice said from behind him. Albus turned around and saw Rose, Butterbeer in hand, with Amanda and Linda on either side of her. "Rose," Albus muttered. The mood at the table quickly turned from joking around to tense silence. Albus nervously glanced from Amanda to Rose and back again. He looked at Matt and John, who were both glaring at the girls. "All the tables are taken," Amanda sighed, "Do you mind if we sit here?" "Er-" Albus began. "We were just leaving," Matt announced as he stood up, "Right?" "Yeah," John agreed. Albus nodded and stood up as well. He followed Matt and John through the crowded pub, looking back at the girls. Amanda was the only one who was watching them leave. "Why couldn't they have found some other table to sit at?" John groaned after they were back outside. "I dunno," Albus muttered. He had been having fun joking around with Matt and John, but as soon as the girls showed up, he was reminded once again of the rift that had formed in their group. "Anywhere we haven't been yet?" "Madam Puddifoot's," Matt laughed. "Don't even joke about that," John shuddered, "But you know, we haven't been to the Shrieking Shack." Matt groaned. "You're kidding, right?" "Nope," John grinned and took off up the street, "Come on, don't even say you're not going. Because you are." Matt sent Albus a withered look and set off at a slower pace after John. Albus laughed to himself and followed them. There were a couple people leaning on the fence in front of the Shack. They were all third years. Albus figured the thrill of the Shrieking Shack wore off after the first couple Hogsmeade trips. Albus and Matt joined John, who was standing near a couple girls who were looking at the Shack. "It's the most haunted building in Britain!" a Ravenclaw named Ann Jacobs told her friend. "Really?" the girl's eyes widened. Albus vaguely remembered that she was Muggle born. "Yeah, it's haunted by ghosts!" Ann Jacobs said excitedly, "Right, Albus?" "Er, yup," Albus nodded, "Ghosts." "I wonder if we could get inside!" the other girl said. "You can't," Matt said quickly. "How do you know?" the girl asked. "My sister tried once," Matt answered, "She graduated our first year. The place is completely sealed." "Oh," the girl sighed, "Would have been cool." "We should get back," Matt said, "We've got to get our costumes ready." "Good idea," Albus agreed. The boys bade goodbye to the two Ravenclaws and headed back to the castle. They were all very quiet on the walk back. Albus sunk back into his thoughts of how he should have gone to Hogsmeade with Rose. He hoped he'd be able to go with her the next trip. Albus couldn't imagine that he'd still be mad at her when that came around. At least he hoped he wouldn't. Kaden was waiting in the Marauder's Den for them. He immediately bombarded them with questions, and the rest of the boys launched into a detailed description of their entire trip. After Kaden's curiosity was finally satisfied, the boys got to work on their costumes. Matt, John, and Kaden stayed behind in the Marauder's Den to make Matt's ghost costume and Kaden's mummy costume while Albus set off to find one of his cousins to paint his skeleton costume. Gabriella agreed to make the costume. Not wanting to find the girls and ask Amanda to do it, Albus had been hoping Gabriella would. Gabriella was the most creative of all his cousins and even though all he needed was someone to perform a painting charm, he figured Gabriella would do the best job. "What are you dressing up as?" Albus asked as Gabriella performed the charm. "A Veela," Gabriella replied. "Creative," Albus laughed. "My friend actually came up with it. A couple of us are going as Veelas." "Well, you've already got the hair, so it won't take much for you to dress up," Albus said. Gabriella grinned and handed Albus his costume. "Here you go. I'll see you at the party. I've got to go get ready." "Thanks," Albus said. When Albus returned to the Marauder's Den, he was met not by his friends, but by a ghost, mummy, and vampire. All three costumes were brilliant. Matt looked just like a Muggle ghost, complete with eye holes and a round mouth hole. Kaden was wrapped in strips of white sheet that were hanging off of him in various places. John's costume was the best, in Albus's opinion. He wore a black cape with a white shirt and black pants underneath. He also had a red bow-tie on, which Kaden insisted would make him look more vampirish. His face was completely covered in white make-up and he was wearing bright red lipstick that dripped onto his chin. When he grinned, he revealed pearly white vampire fangs. "You lot look great," Albus grinned, "The Muggle costumes was definitely the way to go." "Put yours on," Matt said. Albus nodded and went to his section of the room. When he came out, he was wearing his costume. Albus looked at his arms and they were glowing. Gabriella had done an excellent job with the painting charm. His chest was covered in a glow in the dark rib cage. "Brilliant, Albus," John grinned. "We're going to have the best costumes in the school," Kaden announced, "Are the girls still dressing up as witches?" "No idea," Albus sighed. He hadn't talked to Rose about the costumes in weeks. "Guess we'll find out." Albus had no idea what to expect from the party. The professors had never sponsored a party before while he was at Hogwarts. He walked down to the Great Hall with Matt, John, and Kaden. They passed quite a few people on the way down and saw all sorts of different costumes.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 878 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Sunday 6 December 2009 04 44 45 am    Post subject: Re: RPG: The Six Wizards in topic:RPG: The Six Wizards The reality of what had happened pulsed through Inu like a quickening. He stood up and straightened up to his full height. His senses were already heightening so much it was hard to take in; and this was only half of what it would eventually be, about a day from now. He struggled with the intensity of it, feeling so connected to Neko, and so completely aware of every living creature around them. Even the trees seemed to have a pulse. When he strained to listen, he could hear the sap within them, oozing slowly. And best yet, He felt the delicious urge to hurt, and to kill, and to silence every life that crossed his path. He may have even fallen asleep for a moment. Then he noticed her. Inu turned his attention to the house and narrowed his eyes. He carefully layed Neko down onto the forest floor and covered her in his robes, and then moved, bare chested, to where he could see the house. He could smell something.. he thought in his head for a moment, trying to categorise the creature. "Human." he muttered. and crouched down, hoping to catch a glimse of who it was. Yuta was in the kitchen. He breathed deeply, trying to focus on her. His eyes opened and he felt something charge up inside him. He felt absolutely savage. He stared into the house, his breathing quickening, his hair standing on end, and he was starting to crouch lower. He could smell... sweat, sweet and cold. He could sense ... fear. Inu put one hand on a tree next to him, feeling his body heaving with his fast breathing. He was actually growling, and he was murderous. Yuta moved within the house, and he stepped forward, then he another step, then another. Shaking his head, he tried to clear his thoughts. He felt so completely arroused to the idea of killing, he could barely concentrate. But.. "I have to." he said to himself, and sometihng of what he knew of his own sense came back to him. He smiled to himself. Neko must have mastered this amazing, savage and preditorial nature. He would have to ask her for guidance. But in the meantime, Inu was starting to realise that he needed to gather his alies. He needed to speak to Yuta. Inu entered the house and moved into the kitchen. "Yuta?" he asked, in the same voice he had always used for their relationship. They were friends if anything, bound by a promise. He would speak with her. He owed her that much.
Q.Araignee Joined: 4 January 2006 Posts: 4983 Location: Daydreaming about my now fiancé *squee*	Posted: Thursday 3 December 2009 08 22 32 am    Post subject: Re: RPG: The Six Wizards in topic:RPG: The Six Wizards With a few muttered words, Inu cleared the debris from the forest floor until it was completely clear. He left Neko knelt on the floor as he stood and paced around them. He walked around clockwise in a perfect circle, muttering something about “three times deosil”. From what she could judge it was about five metres across. After walking twice round, he completed one final circuit- this time using the knife to scribe a circle into the ground behind him. Once that was completed and he stepped inside, it suddenly seemed like all the noise in the forest had been silenced. No wind blew, no bird chirped, no creatures rustled in the undergrowth. Even their smells were absent, which was a completely new sensation for Neko. She didn’t like it. With the circle completed, Neko watched Inu as he paced between each of the four cardinal points within the circle, again moving clockwise from what she determined as East. At each point, he knelt and muttered a short piece of verse before carving an odd symbol into the ground. With each carving, there was an increase of pressure in the circle which dissipated in mere moments. When the four were done, he returned to the centre and knelt in front of her once more as he drew one last symbol on the ground between them. He spoke in a tongue she did not recognise, and which sounded awkward to him, though it apparently had the desired effect. The pressure for this last one threatened to choke the breath from her lungs but again dissipated, though it left the hairs on the back of her neck raised and tingling. From within his own robes he drew a chalice; there was no other word for it. It was made from gold, and inscribed with runes and arcane symbols from base to rim, shaped like the Grail they talked about in the West. If she weren’t sure by now that she was partaking in long forgotten magics, Neko would be trying to deny that the metal hummed as it was placed between them. The wicked knife Inu held in his hands reflected in the polished surface of the chalice, and the surface of both objects seemed to shimmer. Now muttering harsher words in the foreign tongue, he reached for her bare arm. With such careful precision, he placed the tip against her skin and applied pressure until the skin broke. The metal was hot as it touched her, and the pain was subtle as the knife scored down her arm leaving a bleeding cut from elbow to wrist. He held her arm over the chalice so that her blood would fall into it, always muttering. Though the cut would normally heal quickly, it remained open and continued bleeding, and soon Neko was feeling light-headed but she did not waver. When the chalice was half filled, Inu broke in his words to lick the cut clean. His rough tongue stung, and when she reflexively jerked he held her still. His head rose and gestured for her to look down. When she did, Neko almost gasped- the cut was gone, leaving but a nigh invisible scar. While she examined herself further, Inu pulled back from her and repeated the process with himself- again speaking in tongues. When the chalice was filled, Neko instinctively reached for Inu’s arm to clean his own cut- while surprised, he stopped speaking and nodded his acquiescence, watching as his own cut disappeared from sight. The full chalice looked ominous in the dappled light as it tried to pierce the foliage, more so as Inu stirred it with the knife and chanted over it. Odd gleams of colour seemed to swirl in what should have been a pure red substance, and Neko could not figure out what they were at all. But she guessed what came next, so when Inu raised the chalice and offered it to her she did not hesitate. She took hold of the cup, feeling the warmth of the metal seep into her hands as she raised it to her mouth and drank. The blood burned like fire as it coursed down her throat, making her hands tremble terribly. Her body screamed at her to stop as it was seared from the inside, but as Inu placed his hands around hers to steady them her mind cried out against it. When half of their blood was gone, Inu pulled the chalice away from her and began drinking from it himself. When he began drinking, however, the pain Neko felt increased five-fold and with a curdling shriek she passed out. When she came to, Inu was dragging himself around the circle counterclockwise and removing the circle- again mumbling, this time about “widdershins”. With a final sweep of his hand, it was gone, and all the sensations in the forest crashed into Neko’s senses. It was painful to have the sounds and smells return in a split second, and she whimpered as her head throbbed. More than that, though, she felt pain of a different kind. It was the same, but not affecting her physical senses. It was as if she had acquired a second set of senses. And certainly the second sense of smell was keener than her own. Then, a wave of love and comfort swept through her. Neko looked up to see Inu looking at her oddly. But of course, the ritual magic...it had worked then. Working through the pain, Neko tried to offer her own sympathies to Inu without a word, and his wan smile seemed to tell her that he knew. The mingling of thoughts and senses was still taking place, they both knew, but when the magic settled it would indeed be formidable. Neko tried to stand, desiring to walk over to Inu and hold him. But even as she did, Inu’s thoughts urged her not to. They came too late though- Neko stood, and the world turned upside down. A pain flashed in the back of her skull, and darkness once more enveloped her as the ground came up to meet her.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 878 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Wednesday 2 December 2009 08 48 01 am    Post subject: Re: RPG: The Six Wizards in topic:RPG: The Six Wizards Inu looked down into Neko's face and then he pulled her to a bench to sit down. He reached into his robes and pulled out a knife encased in a leather holder. He slid it out. The look of it was deadly; sharp, shining, and jagged edges. It was very much a ceremonial blade. Neko winced once. Inu held the exposed knife in his left hand and reached for her arm with his other hand. As he did, the cloth from Neko's shirt fell to the side, revealing her skin. She was looking down at her arm, then the knife, and then to Inu's face. Her look was stoney, but patient. She waited, and her heart rate did not change. Inu found her courage more desirable than any faint hearted, terrified kill he had bled just for fun. He took a deep breath and then spoke softly. "I want you to want this, Neko." he said, twisting the blade so that the sun reflected off of it, gleaming onto the windows too. He leaned closer, pulling her hand to his chest. "Be part of me. I know the idea intrigues you. It's not just me who controls it. You would have that power too. You can feed off of my strength. You can use my senses. Please..." he said in a voice he knew Neko loved. "Bind to me, and permit me to feel what someone with a true sense of insanity, of cruelty and sadism can expell. Neko; I made Ouki what she was because I was able to dominate her personality. With you... we are the same. If not with MORE impressionable skills to share. I made the mistake of setting a trap on the spell. If she severs it, we both die... but if there are others bound to me, only she dies. If anything... do to protect me." at this last request he dropped his head, but his grasp on Neko's arm was firm. He would bind her without her permission. But he wanted to give her a choice. He needed her to say yes, not only because he loved her, but because he desired more than anything that she would be his ally in all of this until all of this came to an end. He looked up at her and his mind wandered to Yuta and Buta. If he had Neko on his side, he would bind the others too. Just their binding would not be enough to shelter him and Neko from the trap. He would need them all. And if he had Damien.. Ouki would never dare to try to walk away again.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 878 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Tuesday 1 December 2009 08 24 32 am    Post subject: Snape and Umbridge??? in topic:Snape and Umbridge??? Dare if you will to imagine what would happen if..... I just want to say as well, I do not own Harry Potter, but appreciate the opportunity to write fan ficiton about it at every chance! This happens to be my first finished one! yay! hope u like. x Professor Snape had just released his students from his class after holding them back for yet another display of incompitence. It was disturbing how he could sleep at night allowing students to graduate with such a dim understanding of the delicate art of Potions. Muttering to himself, he started to organise his desk before closing up the classroom for the day. As he did so, something caught his eye and nearly made his stomach turn. It was very large, and very pink. Professor Umbridge was sauntering into the classroom with one of her clipboards, a dreamy look on her face, and that annoying giggle escaping from otherwise pursed and sealed lips. She approached his desk. "Professor, I have just come down, as I have done with so many other of your collegues.." she paused, lookign for a moment exhausted ,and then returned to her dreamy cheery nature. "...to test your skills in your chosen area of expertise. I wonder if you could make this potion for me?" she put her clip board down and turned it so that the writing was upright for Professor Snape to read. He scanned the paper with a bored expression. Only his eyes lifted to acknowledge her request. "This is a complicated potion. And you plan to test it yourself?" he asked, his eyebrows raised. Professor Umbridge stood up straighter. "I do." she said matter-of-factly. Snape nodded and set about gathering the ingredients and tools necessary to make the potion. Within twenty minutes, the potion was brewed. "Impressive timing. But are you sure that it will be effective?" Professor Umbridge chimed. Snape held back an irritated groan. "Only one way to be sure." he said ,and poured a servign of the potion into a vial. He passed it to the Professor, who first took a sniff, and then, watching Snape, drank the whole potion in one gulp. She closed her eyes and waited. Then she opened them and looked at Snape. "I feel... different..." she swooned for a moment. Then with a look of recognition on her face she stared at Snape and tried to collect herself before nearly falling to the floor. Snape moved quickly around the desk, his cloak whipping behind him. He grabbed her shoulders but she would not look at him. She closed her eyes and turned her head away. "You know what it is?" he asked her quietly. She nodded furiously. Snape's mouth formed into a satisfied snarl. "Then I guess I failed your little test. But if you would just look at me.." he turned her face to him now and her eyes fluttered open. " YOu will find that I am exactly what you are looking for." he paused, watchign her the emotion behind her eyes change to admiration. "In a Potions master that is." he released her, and she swooned again, staring at him love struck. He looked at her with disgust. "Leave here now." he scoffed. Professor umbridge skippd out of the room like a child on the playground. If he were not Professor Snape, the man would have laughed. The potion would wear off in 24 hours. *************************** Harry was annoyed to be called to Umbridges office at such a late hour. She had taken over the school as was seriously taking every liberty. He reached the door of her office and knocked. Entering the room, he was so shocked with what he saw, he thought perhaps it was a terrible nightmare. All over the walls were pictures of Professor Snape. They had replaced the little cats she had there before. She was on the floor, her hair was a mess, her eyes were black and puffy from crying and her hands were black too from ink. The floor was littered with parchments that had been written on and scrunched up. She looked up at Harry and a look of hope replaced her look of dispair. "Oh harry! yes, yes.. you can help!" she dragged him to the floor and put a quill in his hand and some paper. "You know the perfect thing to say to someone you love. Please... waht shall I write? You see..." she said, leaning close to Harry, her breath smelled sweet like some kind of cherry drink. "I have never ever felt this way about anyone before. I am actcually a very picky person.. " she smiled to herself and rolled her eyes. "But I can't stop thinking about Professor Snape! what shall I do???" she grabbed Harry by the robes and pulled at him. Harry tried to unpry her hands, but it was useless. He spoke instead. "Professor, you're ... you can't mean... Professor Snape.. that you ... did you say you like him?" "I love him! I can't live without him. But I can't go and see him.. he has expelled me from his presense!!!" she wailed. Harry couldn't help but smile at the display of emotion. She was obviously under the influence of some kind of spell. harry decided it would be fun to exploit it. "Wait here." he said, and gently pushed Umbridge away from him. He stood up and left the room, hurrying back to Griffindor tower where he woke up Hermione and Ron. "You're not going to believe this, but Snape has put a love spell on Umbridge." Harry confided. "Are you sure?" Hermione yawned. "Bloody Hell..." said Ron. "That's brillant! But why would he do that?" "I don't know! But dont' you think it would be fun to send Umbridge back to him? i don't know how long it will last, and it would be great to see Snape's little prank backfire." Harry looked from Hermione to Ron. "I'm going back to bed, u are evil, Harry Potter." Hermione groaned. "I'm in. What's the plan?" Ron said, leaning in closer. ********************************** Professor Snape was sound asleep in a self induced dreamless slumber when something woke him. The room was very very dark, as he liked it, but someone was there. He reached for his wand. "Lumus!" he called out. His wand lit up, and revealed the intruder. He groaned. "Didn't I tell you to leave me alone?" He was embarrassed to see she was wearing some sort of see through nightgown. He rolled his eyes. This was not good. "I couldn't stop thinking about you! Please, don't reject me! YOu are my first love! I have never felt like this before!" Umbridge started to walk forward, her arms out to him. Snape pulled his blanket up a bit more. "Nore will you feel this way again. Come. Let us have a drink." he pushed his blankets off and stalked over to his cupboard where some vials were kept. He took out two cups and then started to look for the right mixture. Before he could get organised, he felt Umbridge tap him on the back. He turned around and looked down. She was impossibly short. She looked up at him adoringly. "couldn't you just, hold me for a little while? " she chimed. Snape stared at her. She smiled sickenly. He reached out and patted her on the shoulder. He turned to continue making the drink but she wrapped her arms around him, pinning his arms to his sides. "Oh I love you! I love you!!!" she stared to scream. Snape could barely remove her from the grip. He bumped into the cabinet and sent several vials crashing to the floor. He cursed. "Woman, look what you made me do!" he yelled, shrugging out of her hold. She stepped back, her hands still out, her face stricken. "I'm so sorry!" she ran for him again, and held him. He stood there as limply as he could. She sobbed into his night shirt. In the corner, Ron and harry snickered under the invisibility cloak. "Look, it's okay. Here, sit on the bed." he brought her over to the bed and set her down. She gathered up the blankets and brought them to her face, breathing them in. harry almost fell over. Ron whispered. "They must stink!!! He never bathes!" Umbridge sighed and fell back dreamily onto the pillows. Snape raced over to the cabinet again and pulled out the appropriate vial; the same potion he had made her before, only when taken a second time, would reverse the effect. A moment later he was back on the bed, wrenching Umbridge up and putting the steaming cup in her hand. He held another cup in his hand; a placebo. "Er.. to us. " he said, and tapped the cups together. Umbridge smiled and with excitement crossed arms with Snape, pushing her cup to his lips and drinking from his cup instead. Snape was so surprised he almost inhaled the potion. He choked and sputtered, but it was too late. The rest of the potion fell to the floor and the cup smashed. Umbridge shrieked. "Oh no! Please don't be mad!" she took his hands and the look on her face was pure horror. Snape seemed unsteady, and swooned a bit before falling to his side onto the bed. "Oh no! Dearest! What's wrong?!" Umbridge leaned in to get a closer look at Snape. He sat bolt upright, seemingly possessed. He turned to look at Umbridge and his expression changed from his usual hardened one to one that was, well, entirely creepy. Umbridge seemed to appreciate it though, and she jumped on him and stared to kiss him. Much to Harry and Ron's disgust, Snape reciprocated. "Ewww!!! I didn't sign up for this!" Ron whispered. "Let's get out of here." Harry whispered back. When they were sure the two professors were not looking, they snuck out the door. Back at Griffindor tower, Ron scowled at Harry. "I hope you're happy. I'm scarred for life now." Ron fell back on his pillow and punched at it, trying to push away the horrible images of Snape and Umbridge. ****************************** the next morning at Breakfast, Snape and Umbridge sat at their usual places at the front staff table. "Seems to have worn off?" Ron asked harry. "Maybe." Harry said, trying not to observe too obviously. "Well there is such a thing that only lasts 24 hours. When did Snape take the potion? " Herimone sat down with the boys and offered her expertise. "I don't know. Midnight?" Ron ventured. "Right. They are still at it then." Hermione pointed, and the others looked. Umbridge had just suttly blown Snape a kiss. And Snape had caught it. Ron nearly flipped his bowl of porridge. "What have we done? " he said, his face pale and bleak. "Don't worry, they'll be over each other as soon as the potion wears off. Besides.."Hermione looked up at them and shrugged " it's kind of cute." "Cute? You're really sick Hermione." Ron groaned and tried to shield his eyes when Umbridge started to flutter her eyelashes at Snape. "Well, at least it will keep them busy so we can sort out what to do about.............." and so Harry, Hermonie and Ron stared to plan their next adventure in order to bring the story back to the original plot line.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 878 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Tuesday 1 December 2009 08 09 43 am    Post subject: Re: Who would you date in Harry Potter? in topic:Who would you date in Harry Potter? hahahah!!!!! I think i would like to write one where she gets all obsessed with Snape! Professor Snape had just released his students from his class after holding them back for yet another display of incompitence. It was disturbing how he could sleep at night allowing students to graduate with such a dim understanding of the delicate art of Potions. Muttering to himself, he stared to organise his desk before closing up the classroom for the day. As he did so, something caught his eye and nearly made his stomach turn. It was very large, and very pink. Professor Umbridge was sauntering into the classroom with one of her clipboards, a dreamy look on her face, and that annoying giggle escaping from otherwise pursed and sealed lips. She approached his desk. "Professor, I have just come down, as I have done with so many other of your collegues.." she paused, lookign for a moment exhausted ,and then returned to her dreamy cheery nature. "...to test your skills in your chosen area of expertise. I wonder if you could make this potion for me?" she put her clip board down and turned it so that the writing was upright for Professor Snape to read. He scanned the paper with a bored expression. Only his eyes lifted to acknowledge her request. "This is a complicated potion. And you plan to test it yourself?" he asked, his eyebrows raised. Professor Umbridge stood up straighter. "I do." she said matter-of-factly. Snape knodded and set about gathering the ingredients and tools necessary to make the potion. Within twenty minutes, the potion was brewed. "Impressive timing. But are you sure that it will be effective?" Professor Umbridge chimed. Snape held back an irritated groan. "Only one way to be sure." he said ,and poured a servign of the potion into a vial. He passed it to the Professor, who first took a sniff, and then, watching Snape, drank the whole potion in one gulp. She closed her eyes and waited. Then she opened them and looked at Snape. "I feel... different..." she swooned for a moment. Then with a look of recognition on her face she stared at Snape and tried to collect herself before nearly falling to the floor. Snape moved quickly around the desk, his cloak whipping behind him. He grabbed her shoulders but she would not look at him. She closed her eyes and turned her head away. "You know what it is?" he asked her quietly. She knodded. Snape's mouth formed into a satisfied snarl. "Then I guess I failed your little test. But if you would just look at me.." he turned her face to him now and her eyes fluttered open. " YOu will find that I am exactly what you are looking for." he paused, watchign her the emotion behind her eyes change to admiration. "In a Potions master that is." he released her, and she swooned again, staring at him love struck. He looked at her with disgust. "Leave here now." he scoffed. Professor umbridge skippd out of the room like a child on the playground. If he were not Professor Snape, the man would have laughed. The potion would wear off in 24 hours. *************************** Harry was annoyed to be called to Umbridges office at such a late hour. She had taken over the school as was seriously taking every liberty. He reached the door of her office and knocked. Entering the room, he was so shocked with what he saw, he thought perhaps it was a terrible nightmare. All over the walls were pictures of Professor Snape. They had replaced the little cats she had there before. She was on the floor, her hair was a mess, her eyes were black and puffy from crying and her hands were black too from ink. The floor was littered with parchments that had been written on and scrunched up. She looked up at Harry and a look of hope replaced her look of dispair. "Oh harry! yes, yes.. you can help!" she dragged him to the floor and put a quill in his hand and some paper. "You know the perfect thing to say to someone you love. Please... waht shall I write? You see..." she said, leaning close to Harry, her breath smelled sweet like some kind of cherry drink. "I have never ever felt this way about anyone before. I am actcually a very picky person.. " she smiled to herself and rolled her eyes. "But I can't stop thinking about Professor Snape! what shall I do???" she grabbed Harry by the robes and pulled at him. Harry tried to unpry her hands, but it was useless. He spoke instead. "Professor, you're ... you can't mean... Professor Snape.. that you ... did you say you like him?" "I love him! I can't live without him. But I can't go and see him.. he has expelled me from his presense!!!" she wailed. Harry couldn't help but smile at the display of emotion. She was obviously under the influence of some kind of spell. harry decided it would be fun to exploit it. "Wait here." he said, and gently pushed Umbridge away from him. He stood up and left the room, hurrying back to Griffindor tower where he woke up Hermione and Ron. "You're not going to believe this, but Snape has put a love spell on Umbridge." Harry confided. "Are you sure?" Hermione yawned. "Bloody Hell..." said Ron. "That's brillant! But why would he do that?" "I don't know! But dont' you think it would be fun to send Umbridge back to him? i don't know how long it will last, and it would be great to see Snape's little prank backfire." Harry looked from Hermione to Ron. "I'm going back to bed, u are evil, Harry Potter." Hermione groaned. "I'm in. What's the plan?" Ron said, leaning in closer. ********************************** Professor Snape was sound asleep in a self induced dreamless slumber when something woke him. The room was very very dark, as he liked it, but someone was there. He reached for his wand. "Lumus!" he called out. His wand lit up, and revealed the intruder. He groaned. "Didn't I tell you to leave me alone?" He was embarrassed to see she was wearing some sort of see through nightgown. He rolled his eyes. This was not good. "I couldn't stop thinking about you! Please, don't reject me! YOu are my first love! I have never felt like this before!" Umbridge started to walk forward, her arms out to him. Snape pulled his blanket up a bit more. "Nore will you feel this way again. Come. Let us have a drink." he pushed his blankets off and stalked over to his cupboard where some vials were kept. He took out two cups and then started to look for the right mixture. Before he could get organised, he felt Umbridge tap him on the back. He turned around and looked down. She was impossibly short. She looked up at him adoringly. "couldn't you just, hold me for a little while? " she chimed. Snape stared at her. She smiled sickenly. He reached out and patted her on the shoulder. He turned to continue making the drink but she wrapped her arms around him, pinning his arms to his sides. "Oh I love you! I love you!!!" she stared to scream. Snape could barely remove her from the grip. He bumped into the cabinet and sent several vials crashing to the floor. He cursed. "Woman, look what you made me do!" he yelled, shrugging out of her hold. She stepped back, her hands still out, her face stricken. "I'm so sorry!" she ran for him again, and held him. He stood there as limply as he could. She sobbed into his night shirt. In the corner, Ron and harry snickered under the invisibility cloak. "Look, it's okay. Here, sit on the bed." he brought her over to the bed and set her down. She gathered up the blankets and brought them to her face, breathing them in. harry almost fell over. Ron whispered. "They must stink!!! He never bathes!" Umbridge sighed and fell back dreamily onto the pillows. Snape raced over to the cabinet again and pulled out the appropriate vial; the same potion he had made her before, only when taken a second time, would reverse the effect. A moment later he was back on the bed, wrenching Umbridge up and putting the steaming cup in her hand. He held another cup in his hand; a placebo. "Er.. to us. " he said, and tapped the cups together. Umbridge smiled and with excitement crossed arms with Snape, pushing her cup to his lips and drinking from his cup instead. Snape was so surprised he almost inhaled the potion. He choked and sputtered, but it was too late. The rest of the potion fell to the floor and the cup smashed. Umbridge shrieked. "Oh no! Please don't be mad!" she took his hands and the look on her face was pure horror. Snape seemed unsteady, and swooned a bit before falling to his side onto the bed. "Oh no! Dearest! What's wrong?!" Umbridge leaned in to get a closer look at Snape. He sat bolt upright, seemingly possessed. He turned to look at Umbridge and his expression changed from his usual hardened one to one that was, well, entirely creepy. Umbridge seemed to appreciate it though, and she jumped on him and stared to kiss him. Much to Harry and Ron's disgust, Snape reciprocated. "Ewww!!! I didn't sign up for this!" Ron whispered. "Let's get out of here." Harry whispered back. When they were sure the two professors were not looking, they snuck out the door. Back at Griffindor tower, Ron scowled at Harry. "I hope you're happy. I'm scarred for life now." Ron fell back on his pillow and punched at it, trying to push away the horrible images of Snape and Umbridge. ****************************** the next morning at Breakfast, Snape and Umbridge sat at their usual places at the front staff table. "Seems to have worn off?" Ron asked harry. "Maybe." Harry said, trying not to observe too obviously. "Well there is such a thing that only lasts 24 hours. When did Snape take the potion? " Herimone sat down with the boys and offered her expertise. "I don't know. Midnight?" Ron ventured. "Right. They are still at it then." Hermione pointed, and the others looked. Umbridge had just suttly blown Snape a kiss. And Snape had caught it. Ron nearly flipped his bowl of porridge. "What have we done? " he said, his face pale and bleak. "Don't worry, they'll be over each other as soon as the potion wears off. Besides.."Hermione looked up at them and shrugged " it's kind of cute." "Cute? You're really sick Hermione." Ron groaned and tried to shield his eyes when Umbridge started to flutter her eyelashes at Snape. "Well, at least it will keep them busy so we can sort out what to do about.............." and so Harry, Hermonie and Ron stared to plan their next adventure in order to bring the story back to the original plot line. (oh my gosh... I went overboard there!!!! Must bring it to fan fic ...)
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2495 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	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 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.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2495 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Wednesday 18 November 2009 02 31 27 pm    Post subject: Re: Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden in topic:Albus potter and the Path Left Untrodden Chapter 10: Threats Rose handed in her unedited essay to Balladanis the next morning. Albus did notice her scribbling some last minute sentences onto it as Balladanis collected the essays. Defense Against the Dark Arts continued to be the strangest class in Albus's schedule. Balladanis expressed such a strong dislike for the dark arts that he started nearly every class with a stern lecture about why they were learning defensive spells and why the dark arts were bad. His eyes tended to rest on Matt and for some odd reason, Linda, whenever he gave these talks and Albus got the feeling it made Matt extremely uncomfortable. Albus couldn't blame him. He certainly wouldn't want to be under the teacher's eye like that. Albus couldn't really say whether he enjoyed Balladanis's class or not. It had been nearly a month since the term started, but Albus still didn't know whether he liked the class or not. It was definitely different than when his dad taught. Balladanis was strict, but a good teacher. The rest of the day went by quickly. Albus listened to John tease Rose during Herbology since she was fretting about her Defense essay. Ancient Runes was rather boring and Albus doodled idly on his notes while Matt fell asleep on his. Charms was rather fun since they worked on Cheering Charms and Albus left the room grinning profusely, along with most of the other class. Matt in particular looked strange with a huge grin across his pale fatigued face. Matt left for the Shrieking Shack shortly after dinner and Albus went to the Marauder's Den with his friends where they distracted Rose from her studying by playing Wizard's Chess. The next day Albus truly began to realize how busy his third year schedule was. For the past two years, he and his friends almost always had time to visit Matt in the Hospital Wing in between classes. This year, however, they didn't have time until after dinner. Albus was positively exhausted by that point, as he had stayed up late working on homework the night before, and still had Dueling Club practice afterwards. Lynley Anderson, the fourth year Hufflepuff who had replaced Kate as captain, had insisted that the whole team attend that meeting, as it was the first one and there were new second years on the team. Kaden wasn't put on Albus's team, but he was put on John's team, much to the delight of both boys. Hectic was really the only way to describe Albus's life at Hogwarts. As September turned into October, it only got busier. Gryffindor Quidditch team practices picked up again and along with Hogwarts Quidditch practices and Dueling Club practices, Albus hardly had anytime to rest. The Hogwarts Quidditch team was shaping up nicely after Wood's stern warning during the second practice. That and the fact that they now practiced on both Tuesdays and Saturdays. Even the Slytherin team members were beginning to work together. They didn't really acknowledge their teammates outside of practice, but Albus didn't care as long as they got along with everyone during practice. Albus was really starting to enjoy the Hogwarts Quidditch team. He was actually beginning to wish he could play in the first match, which would be taking place towards the end of October. "First Hogsmeade weekend!" John said excitedly to Albus one Friday evening as Albus was trying to catch up on his homework. Kaden was standing next to him. Albus guessed they had just returned from Dueling Club practice. "When?" Albus asked without looking up. "October 27th," John grinned, "Can't wait!" "Yeah, it'll be brilliant," Albus agreed, hoping he wouldn't have too much homework to go. "That's not all, either," John went on, "There's a Halloween party that night." "You mean the Halloween feast?" Albus asked. "No, there's an actual party!" John said, "But it's not on Halloween, it's on the 27th. It's because of the Tournament. So we can mingle with the foreign students. Or at least that's what the poster on the notice board says." Albus nodded. He really hadn't had that much contact with the foreign students. Sure, he'd seen them in the corridors and the common room and stuff, but that was about it. The only one who was around his age was Linda and she still didn't seem to talk to anyone. "And," John continued, "Costumes are encouraged." "Costumes?" Albus asked, finally looking up. "Yeah, costumes," John grinned, "We get to dress up! This is going to be brilliant!" "What should we dress up as?" Kaden asked. "Dunno," Albus shrugged. "We'll figure it out later," John said, "Where's everyone else?" "Rose and Amanda are at the library," Albus told him, "And Matt's with Balladanis." "Merlin, is he ever going to give up about that boggart?" John asked. "Knowing Balladanis, probably not," Albus said. "Well, let's go to the library," John announced, "We've got to tell Rose and Amanda about Hogsmeade." Albus was all too eager to agree to this. He was thoroughly sick of trying to catch up on all his homework. It was good to take a break every now and then anyway. Albus pushed open the door to the library a little while later, fully expecting to see Rose up to her elbows in books furiously scribbling away on a roll of parchment that was nearly used up. He gazed around the library and he spotted Rose's bushy red hair and walked towards her table. Rose was up to her elbows in homework. In fact, there were so many books on Rose and Amanda's table that you could no longer see the actual table. What Albus wasn't expecting to see was a third person at their table. Linda Morales Albus stopped short a few feet from the table. He turned to look at John, who looked equally shocked. "Is that-" John began. "Linda Morales?" Albus gaped. He blinked twice to make sure he wasn't seeing things. After all, he was quite tired. But even after he blinked, Linda was still sitting across from Rose and Amanda. All three of the girls were working quietly. In fact, none of them even seemed to notice the others. Albus slowly walked towards the table and John followed. Albus wasn't entirely sure what to say. He hadn't had much interaction with Linda. Albus had hardly said hello to her since she arrived at Hogwarts. He wasn't trying to ignore her or anything; it had just ended up that way. Linda hadn't shown any real interest in making friends with Albus or any of his friends. Yet here she was, doing homework at the same table as Rose of all people. Albus hadn't the slightest idea why either. "Rose," Albus whispered once they arrived at the table. Rose startled and then looked up at Albus. "What? I'm trying to study!" "Can I talk to you?" Albus glanced at Linda, "Alone?" Rose sighed loudly. "Fine, but make it quick." Albus led his cousin over to a deserted area of the library. John took Rose's vacated seat and began to whisper to Amanda about the Hogsmeade visit. "All right, what is it?" Rose asked once they were alone. "Couldn't help but notice that you were studying with Linda..." Albus's voice trailed off. He really didn't know what he wanted to say to Rose about it. "Oh, well..." Rose began, "I guess I just realized I was being stupid in trying to compete with her." Albus smirked, "Yeah, you were. But I told you that loads of times and you didn't listen." Rose sighed. "I know. Amanda's the one who convinced me to stop trying to compete with her. She said Linda would know a lot about Australian wizarding history and I could learn a lot from her if I stopped with the competition thing." Of course, Albus thought. Appealing to Rose's love of learning would definitely work. Although he hadn't really been trying to have Rose and Linda become friends. He just wanted Rose to ease up on the studying. "I guess, if you can't beat 'em, you might as well join 'em," Rose shrugged. "So now you're friends with her?" Albus asked. "That's where it gets complicated," Rose sighed, "You see, she still doesn't really talk to us." "How did you wind up studying with her then?" Albus was still thoroughly confused. "Amanda and I came in and she was sitting alone at the table, so I asked if we could join her. She just nodded and moved her books over. She hasn't said anything yet." Albus nodded. "I don't think I've heard her say anything outside of class." "Neither have I," Rose said, "Amanda and I figure we'll just be nice to her and maybe she'll start talking to us." Albus thought that was probably a good idea. She was the competition, but even if they played against each other on the Quidditch team, that didn't mean they couldn't be friends off of it. Linda seemed nice enough. Of course it was hard to tell since she hadn't said much. And she certainly was pretty. Albus couldn't deny that. Linda wasn't surrounded by half the male population of Gryffindor every evening for nothing. "Oh, the first Hogsmeade visit's on October 27th," Albus said, suddenly remembering the reason he had gone to see Rose in the first place, "Followed by a Halloween party in the Great Hall." "That sounds like fun," Rose grinned, "And maybe Linda will want to go with us." "And it's a costume party," Albus told her. "This could get interesting," Rose said. ****** Albus didn't have a clue as to when he'd actually have time to figure out his costume for the Halloween party. John thought it would be cool if their group's costumes coordinated, but that was the last thing on Albus's mind. The weekend seemed to literally fly by for Albus, meaning he was on the Quidditch pitch more than he was off it. He had heard stories about Wood's ruthlessness when it comes to practice from his dad and similar stories about Teddy from his older cousins. Having the two of them captain one team seemed to create practices that lasted nearly five hours, with short breaks every so often. Albus would never again complain about Georgia's length of practices. Albus had a fleeting thought that since he was a reserve player, he wouldn't have to practice as much as everyone else, but Wood shot that down during that Saturday's practice. He said he saw no reason for the reserve players to be any less prepared for the upcoming match than the regular players. It wasn't that Albus didn't enjoy Quidditch practice. He did, and very much so. He loved Quidditch, but too much of anything could run a person down. Albus spent a lot of his Sunday on the Quidditch pitch as well, in the middle of a drenching rain. Georgia had scheduled Gryffindor Quidditch practice that day and she flat out refused to cancel due to rain. James had asked. He was even more run down than Albus, since either Teddy or Tyler were constantly training the two Seekers during Hogwarts Quidditch practice. Albus returned to Gryffindor tower after eating a late dinner with the Gryffindor team Sunday evening, realizing he had no idea what his friends had spent the weekend doing. He had seen them on occasion, but most of his free time had been spent doing homework or sleeping. Two things he still had to do. Albus grabbed his bag from his dormitory and walked down to the crowded common room. He saw Rose, Amanda, and Linda at one table, but his other friends were no where in sight. The girls looked very absorbed in their homework, so Albus decided to go check the Marauder's Den for his other friends. By the time Albus made it to the Marauder's Den, he felt ready for a good twelve hour sleep. Unfortunately, he still had plenty of homework to do. Albus sighed to himself and opened the door to the room. He paused in the entryway, surprised to see that Matt was the only one there. "Hey, Matt," Albus said as he sat down at the table. "Oh, hi Albus," Matt looked up and smiled, "I was wondering when you'd show up." "Me, too," Albus said wryly, "I never thought Georgia would end practice." "Makes me glad I'm not on the Quidditch team," Matt commented. "Where are John and Kaden?" "Detention, again," Matt smirked. "What did they do this time?" Albus groaned. John and Kaden had been earning quite a few detentions every week. Albus was quite glad they weren't involving him in their pranks, since he had no available time in his schedule for detention. "They were levitating rolls of toilet paper around the corridors and charming them to hit people in the head yesterday," Matt explained, "I think you were at Quidditch practice." "Probably," Albus laughed, "Wonder what they're in for this time." "No idea," Matt said. "What are you doing here? Rose and Amanda are in the common room." "Yeah, I know. But they're with Linda," Matt muttered. "Oh, ok," Albus replied, a little confused. He still didn't quite understand why Matt didn't seem to like Linda. Sure, she was from Australia, but Matt wasn't avoiding anyone else from Australia. Of course, the rest of the Australian students were older and Matt wouldn't really have to avoid them. "John said Rose is actually trying to become friends with Linda." "She is," Albus confirmed, "She's finally realized that it's pointless to try and compete with Linda." "I guess that's good," Matt shrugged. John and Kaden burst into the room a short while later, successfully ending the conversation about Rose and Linda. Both of them were freely cursing Filch, who had made them clean the Entrance Hall without magic. Once they finally seemed to run out of curses, all four boys settled into doing their homework and no one brought up the topic of Linda again. Albus still thought it was odd how Matt seemed to have taken a dislike to her, although Linda herself was rather odd, in Albus's opinion. Rose and Amanda joined Linda at her table during Transfiguration the next day. Linda had arrived before them, as always, and didn't seem to notice or care that Rose and Amanda sat on either side of her. The same thing happened in double Potions after lunch. Rose, Amanda, and Linda even worked together on that day's potion. Slughorn had decided to give up on the inter-house pairs idea of the previous year, which Albus was very grateful for. Linda had previously worked alone on her potions because there was an odd number of people in the class, but Slughorn didn't object to all three girls working together. In fact, he seemed thrilled that the two smartest people in the class were now working with each other. "Ah, yes!" Slughorn exclaimed excitedly as he peered into their cauldron, "Your potion is turning just the right shade of green." Albus looked up from his and Matt's slightly brown potion and saw Slughorn gently stirring the girls' cauldron. "Ours is better," Malfoy muttered from behind Albus. He was working with Jackson Limbert, Albus's partner from the previous year. Malfoy and Limbert were easily the two best Slytherin potion-brewers in the class. Albus turned around and looked at Malfoy's cauldron. It was indeed the correct shade of green. "And what are you looking at, Potter?" Malfoy asked, "Jealous that I'm Limbert's partner now? I doubt your potions grade will be be that good with Eckerton as your partner." "At least I'm partnering with him for a reason other than trying to get a decent grade," Albus glowered at him. "Yeah, well..." Malfoy's voice trailed off. Albus smirked to himself and turned back around, happy that Malfoy couldn't come up with a good comeback. At the end of the class, Slughorn announced that Rose, Amanda, and Linda's potion had been the best, much to Malfoy's dismay. "You'd better watch out at the Dueling Tournament," Malfoy seethed as they left the room. "We're on the same team, Malfoy," Albus pointed out. "I wasn't talking to you," Malfoy turned and glared at Rose, Amanda, and Linda. "Is that a threat, Malfoy?" John asked loudly. "I think you can figure that out for yourself, Brickston," Malfoy said as he turned in the direction of the Slytherin common room, flanked by Limbert and Goyle. "He's just jealous," Rose muttered as they made their way out of the dungeons. "Probably," Albus agreed, "But he's a good dueler, much as I hate to admit it." "Chances are, I won't even duel him, Albus," Rose sighed, "And even if I do, there's only so many spells he's allowed to use." Albus didn't bother reminding Rose about the Slytherin who used a forbidden curse on Matt last year. Albus was kind of worried about one of his friends having to duel Malfoy. Malfoy was the only one Albus had ever dueled and didn't manage to beat. And Albus had beaten students who were two years older than he was.