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DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2095 Location: Boycotting All Future Warner Brothers Films	Posted: Monday 1 September 2008 08 31 06 am    Post subject: Re: In Moonlight's Shadow in topic:In Moonlight's Shadow Here's the next chapter. As always, comments, questions, and general reviews are always appreciated! Chapter 9: Olivia Olivia told me she would arrive by the Floo Network. I left my room at a little before two and found Mum and Matt standing in the living room waiting for her to arrive. Neither of them said a word when I entered the room. I stood a few feet away from them, hoping Olivia would arrive soon so we could go up to my room. The fireplace lit up with green light a few minutes after two. Olivia stepped out of the fireplace with a large grin on her face and ran over to me with her long black hair swinging behind her. Olivia was a little shorter than me with big brown eyes. "Amy!" she shrieked and threw her arms around me. "Olivia!" I replied and hugged her back. "I cannot believe I'm actually here!" "Me either!" I looked up and saw that someone else had stepped out of the fire who I recognized immediately as Olivia's mum. Olivia and I stopped embracing each other and walked back over to where the adults were standing. "Hi, Natalie," Mum put on a fake smile and greeted Olivia's mum. I could tell she was trying to conceal her worry that had plagued her for the past few days. "Julie, nice to see you again," Olivia's mum replied, "Thank you so much for having Olivia over." "No problem at all." "Send her back in a few days," Mrs. Quelch said and then turned to her daughter, "I'll see you then." Olivia gave her mum a quick hug. "Bye, Mum!" "Bye, honey. Have fun girls!" Mrs. Quelch waved and threw some Floo powder in the fireplace. A few seconds later, she was gone. "We'll be in my room," I said as soon as Olivia's mum left. Mum nodded. Olivia grabbed her bag and followed me out of the room. "This place is amazing!" Olivia grinned at me. "I suppose I'll give you the grand tour," I smiled and lead her down the hall. "You just saw the living room. This is the kitchen," I opened the door to the kitchen and found Ellie inside. "Hey, Ellie. This is Olivia." Ellie bounded over to us and bowed. "Ellie is pleased to meet you." "You, too," Olivia grinned, "I wish I had a house-elf." I continued the tour of the main floor, pointing out the formal dining room, Dad's study, a few bathrooms, the drawing room, and a few storage areas. Then we went upstairs and I showed her my room, Matt's room, my parents room, more bathrooms, and a couple guest bedrooms. "I'm ready to move in," Olivia laughed as we started up the stairs to the third floor. I swallowed hard and didn't say anything. It was just an innocent statement, but it felt like a punch to the stomach. The fact was, was that in a few months, Olivia might actually be able to move in. Someone else would be living in our house. Some other kid would have my bedroom and my balcony. I shook the thought from my head and lead Olivia down the hall. I pointed out more guest bedrooms and storage, saving my Potions Room for last. Olivia wasn't really into potions. Sure, she did decently in Potions at school but it certainly wasn't something she would want to turn into a hobby. Despite this, she was thoroughly impressed with the room. She had a million questions about the stuff I was brewing and I answered them patiently. She even went so far as to ask if she could brew something while she was here. I told her we would do it the next day or something. "So," Olivia began as we were walking back to my bedroom, "Was that your brother down there?" "Yeah." "He's quiet. Didn't say a word when I got here." "He's like that," I explained, "Kind of quiet around people he doesn't know." That was true, but I had a feeling Matt was still thinking about the previous day's events. We didn't say much more on our way to my room. It was odd because usually Olivia and I never run out of things to talk about. My mind was racing as to how to tell Olivia I wasn't going to go back to school. I couldn't put it off very long, but I had no idea how to bring it up. "All right," Olivia sat down on my bed and patted the spot next to her once I had shut my door, "You've been quiet ever since I got here. What's up?" One look at Olivia's concerned face made me want to start crying again. She had always been a great person to confide in. Unlike me, she always knew exactly what to do or say. I just wished I could tell her the whole story. I bit back tears and sat down on the bed next to her. I didn't say anything for a few minutes and just stared at the back of my door. Olivia didn't seem to mind and just sat patiently waiting for me to talk. I sighed and started fiddling with a loose thread on my comforter. "I- I, don't really know how to tell you this," I swallowed hard, "But, I-I'm n-not going b-back to school." I watched the loose thread become blurry as tears started to run down my face. "What do you mean?" Olivia asked. "I m-mean that I c-can't go back for f-fourth year." "You're not coming back? But why?" "M-my p-parents won't let m-me," I explained, finally picking up my head and looking at my friend. Olivia had a combined look of confusion and concern on her face. "Why not?" she asked softly. I thought fast. What could I tell her? I hated more than anything to lie to my friends and this was a big one. "Um, my p-parents had a disagreement with the headmaster," I said finally. Well, it wasn't a total lie. "And they won't let you go back because of it? Blimey, must've been a big disagreement. What was it about?" "I have no idea," I lied. "But what are you going to do now? Where are you going to go to school?" "I don't know!" I wailed as tears poured down my face, "We're m-moving!" Olivia pulled me closer to her and I saw that she was starting to cry. The two of us cried in each other's arms for what must have been ten minutes before we finally stopped. "We're going to figure this out," Olivia said, wiping tears from her eyes. "You're not going to move." "What c-can we do? Mum and Dad have already decided. They're l-looking at s-schools. Either in the S-States, or Canada or England!" "But those are so far away!" Olivia exclaimed. "I k-know!" "You can't go, you just can't," Olivia said as she stood up, "Maybe your parents will make up with the headmaster. I mean, how long can they stay angry with each other?" About this issue? Forever. I just wished I could explain it to her. "They won't ever make up. That's completely out of the question." "But what is it about?" Olivia sighed and shook her head. "I thought you didn't know." This is why I hated lying. I could never keep the lies straight. "I don't know exactly. It's something with Dad's work." Again, it wasn't a total lie. Matt going to school did kind of have to do with Dad's work. "What's Killigan involved with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures for?" "I don't know, but they got into a huge row and now I've got to find a new school." "What about your dad's job, though? He can't keep it if you move across the world," Olivia pointed out. That was a good point. I hadn't really thought about it. What would Dad do? Just quit and try to find a new job? I wondered if he could even find a new job doing the same thing he's doing now. I mean, there aren't really very many open positions for heads of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Of course, I wasn't even sure Dad still liked his job. He was working all the time now and never looked happy when he came home. "I don't know," I sighed, "There's something going on with his job, too. He comes home all tense and is working a lot more than he usually did. Plus, he and Mum keep having private conversations about it and won't tell me anything." Olivia paced the room for a few moments and then stopped in front of the dresser. "Wait. Maybe the two things are connected. Your Dad's job issues and the thing with Killigan." I laid down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. "Who knows? All I know is that whatever it is, it's causing me to have to move across the world and I can't stand it!" Olivia finally seemed at a loss as to what to say. She sat down and leaned against the bed. I continued staring up at the blurred ceiling. Something inside me told me that it didn't matter what Olivia and I did, there was no way I would ever go back to the Australian School of Sorcery. That part of my life was over. My life was just changing so fast and I didn't seem to care about anything at that moment. Just days before this, I had been incredibly curious about what was going on at Dad's work, but now it just didn't seem to matter. I mean, if we were just going to move to the States or something in a few months, what did it matter that Dad hated his job? He was just going to have to find a new one anyway. And the changes he was so vague about? They couldn't possibly affect us if we were thousands of kilometers away. "You'll come back and visit, won't you?" Olivia asked a few minutes later. I sat up and slid off the bed next to Olivia. The tears had dried up in her eyes, but she still looked sad. "Of course. I mean, I'll make my parents let me visit. We'll still come back to visit my grandparents, so they'd better let me visit you while we're at it." Olivia nodded. "Good. Because I couldn't stand it if we never saw each other again." "That won't happen," I said adamantly, "Maybe you can even visit me, wherever I wind up moving to." "I'd like that. I've never been outside Australia before." "I've only been to the States, but that's just when I visit my Uncle Jack. Haven't been there in over two years, though." The last time we visited Uncle Jack had been the holiday before the time Matt got bit. Ever since then we hadn't been able to work out a good time to go. There always seemed to be a full moon whenever I had a school holiday or when it was a good time for Uncle Jack. He came and visited us over last Christmas, though. Too bad there had been a full moon and I was at my grandparents' for half the visit. "Are you going to go visit him anytime soon?" Olivia asked. "Not sure. Probably when we go to visit the school in New York. We'll probably stay with him then." That would be the silver lining in this whole mess, getting to visit Uncle Jack. "Amy?" There was a knock on the door. I recognized the voice as Matt's. "What?" I shouted. "Dinner's ready," he replied. I wasn't really that hungry, but I got up and led Olivia downstairs. Apparently Olivia coming over was enough to eat in the formal dining room and my parents, Matt, and Olivia were already sitting down. Matt was sitting next to Ellie that night, which left the two seats opposite them for Olivia and I. "This looks delicious, Mrs. Eckerton, Ellie," Olivia said politely as she sat down. "Thank you," Mum and Ellie said at the same time. Once Dad had said the prayer, he served everyone up a heaping plate of steak, potatoes, and carrots. I mainly stirred my food around my plate and watched everyone else eat. The fact that I was going to be moving had caused my appetite to evaporate. Both Mum and Dad still wore looks of worry and Dad looked positively worn out. There were more lines on his face than there had been the last time I was home. He was eating, but didn't seem to be that enthusiastic about it. Mum was eating less than he was, but more than I was. She did not seem all that excited about the meal either. All I had to do was look at them for a few seconds to realize that the entire meal was just a show for Olivia. They were trying to hide that anything was wrong. I was sure that if Olivia wasn't there, we would be having sandwiches in the kitchen or something. They shouldn't have bothered with pretending for Olivia, however. Olivia looked a bit uncomfortable and kept stealing glances at each of my parents and then giving me significant looks. I knew she knew something was up. It's hard to hide that something is the matter from Olivia. Despite this, she was clearly enjoying the actual food and was cleaning her plate. Matt was as oblivious to his surroundings as ever. He was eating about the same as he usually did, but was mostly concentrating on making a tower with his carrots. This habit had amused me just a few short weeks ago when he did it with peas, but now it was bugging me. How could he just sit there clueless as ever when it was his fault we were moving? His fault that I was having to switch schools. Probably his fault that my parents were all tense and exhausted. Well, that was probably also due to Dad's job, but the whole school issue certainly couldn't be helping matters. Ellie was clearly worried about my parents. That's what I loved about Ellie. She was always so considerate of others and rarely ever thought about herself. After about fifteen minutes of awkward silence, Dad cleared his throat. "So," he began, turning to Olivia, "How has your holiday been?" "It's been good," Olivia answered. "Looking forward to fourth year?" Dad asked. I stared down at my plate. How could he ask something like that with me right there? I wasn't going back for fourth year. I tried not to look at Dad as I grabbed my glass of milk for something to do. "Not really," Olivia replied flatly, "Since Amy won't be there, it's going to be positively horrible." I choked on the milk I had been drinking as I tried not to laugh. Olivia usually had more tact than that. She was probably trying to be funny for my benefit. I coughed and she slapped me on the back. "Oh, right," Dad said quickly, grabbing his own glass of milk. No one attempted anymore polite conversation. The remainder of the meal was spent in awkward silence. Olivia and I both politely declined dessert and ran back up to my bedroom as soon as we were finished. "Merlin, that was awkward," I groaned as I shut my door. "Your parents really didn't need to fix such a fancy dinner," Olivia sighed and sat down on the floor. "They're so distracted about something." "They've been that way since the beginning of the holiday, pretty much. Ever since right after Christmas. It's something to do with Dad's work. He said there are some changes that might be coming that could have a negative impact on us. He wouldn't elaborate, though." "Geez, what more could happen? You're already moving across the world." "I know, but Dad told me about that a few days before the school thing. I think they're two different things," I explained. "Really? I kind of think they're connected somehow. What if the argument your parents had with Killigan had something to do with the changes at your dad's work?" I highly doubted that the issues at Dad's work had anything to do with Matt attending school, but I had to keep up the lies. "Maybe. Who knows?" I sighed, "But you know what? It doesn't really matter because I'm moving no matter what. I don't want to waste all our time talking about this." Olivia nodded. "Yeah. Let's do something." "I haven't showed you my new telescope yet, have I?" "Nope." I stood up and went over to the balcony. "It's out here." I opened the doors and walked out. Olivia followed. Olivia absolutely loved my telescope. The two of us sat outside talking about everything except my moving to who knows where until the stars came out. Once the sky was dark we spent hours watching the stars move across the sky. ****** Despite the fact that Olivia and I went to bed late, I was still up early in the morning. I could hear the birds chirping outside my window and Olivia's soft snoring next to me. I sat up and crawled out of the bed, being careful not to wake Olivia. I got dressed quietly and then laid down on the floor with a book, waiting for my friend to wake up. Olivia finally got up a couple hours later. I had already read a quarter of my book. I closed it as I heard her sitting up in bed. "Morning, sleepyhead," I greeted her. "Morning," Olivia yawned. We went downstairs for brekkie once Olivia changed her clothes. I felt better that morning than I had the previous day. Today I didn't want to dwell on the fact that I was moving. I just wanted to put it out of my head while Olivia was there. Dad had long since left for work, but Mum and Matt were in the kitchen when we entered. Mum was pouring over a piece of parchment while drinking a large cup of coffee. Matt was eating a bowl of Lucky Charms, which meant that Mum was still feeling bad about how he couldn't go to my school. Well, what used to be my school. Olivia and I poured ourselves bowls of Lucky Charms as well and sat down across from Mum and Matt. Mum muttered a good morning but didn't lift her head from the piece of parchment. She pulled it closer to her when I tried to read what it said. Chances are it had something to do with one of the schools Mum and Dad were looking at. We decided to go explore the forest after brekkie. I hadn't been in it since we got the tree and Olivia had never been in it. I led her over to the wall and insisted she try climbing it. It took her a couple tries, but she eventually made it over. Olivia and I spent the whole morning in the forest, but we didn't find anything particularly exciting. We mainly talked. I told her all about the party my grandparents threw for New Year's and about the Muggle kids I had spent time with during it. Olivia agreed that they seemed incredibly annoying, except perhaps Vivien. I told Olivia how Kenzie was doing, although Olivia and Kenzie had never met. They probably never would, I thought, now that I would be moving. The remainder of Olivia's visit was much like that second day. We spent a lot of time just talking in my room or wandering through the forest. Mum pretty much left us alone except to tell us when dinner was ready. She seemed just as agitated and tired the next few days as she had been since Christmas. I wondered how much sleep she and Dad were getting. Dad left for work early in the morning and didn't return until late at night. I had no idea what Matt did while Olivia and I were out in the forest, but I didn't really care. We were slowly becoming one of those families who just lived in the same house but didn't really interact much. I woke up early as usual the day Olivia left. Over the past couple days I hadn't thought about moving much. The thought was always in the back of my mind, but with Olivia there, it kind of seemed distant, like it wouldn't happen for a very long time. The fact that I was really moving came crashing back to me the day Olivia left. Olivia was going to go back to school in two weeks. She would be going back alone, without me. Life would go on for all my classmates, all the professors, and everyone else at the school. They would probably wonder where I had gone, but within a few weeks, they would begin to forget. Everyone except Olivia, that is. "I still can't believe you're not coming back," Olivia whispered as we stood in front of the fireplace. Olivia was going to be Flooing back to her house in mere minutes and I wasn't even sure when I would see her again. Mum was standing near us, but not saying anything. "Me neither," I replied, swallowing back tears. "I'll owl you as soon as I get back to school. I'll tell you everything that's going on." I nodded. "Thanks." "And you've got to keep me updated about this moving thing. Tell me when you're visiting schools and houses and stuff like that. And definitely tell me when your parents have decided." "I will," I assured her. "Well, I guess I've got to go now," Olivia gave me a long hug and then looked at me, "We will make this work. I'll owl you soon. Bye." I hugged her back, "Bye, Olivia." My voice cracked and tears started to trickle down my cheeks. Olivia gave a weak smile, grabbed her bag, and stepped into the fireplace. A few seconds later, she was gone. I turned around and saw Mum looking at me with concern. "Oh, Amy," she sighed. "Just leave me alone, Mum," I glared at her, "Who knows when I'll see Olivia again, now that you've decided we're moving." "You girls will make it work." "Oh, yeah? How can we really stay that close when we're thousands of kilometers away? I can't imagine you'll let me come back and visit every school holiday. Oh, wait, that wouldn't work anyway, would it? The schools you're looking at have different holidays!" I shouted. "Maybe, but I'm sure you'll make new friends, too." "I don't want to make new friends! I want to stay here, where Olivia and Kenzie are!" I turned and ran from the room. I didn't stop running until I had locked myself into my Potions room. How could Mum suggest that I make new friends? I didn't need new friends when I had Olivia and Kenzie. They were the best friends I could ever have. The only thing I really wanted was to be able to tell my friends the real reason why I was moving, but I couldn't.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2095 Location: Boycotting All Future Warner Brothers Films	Posted: Wednesday 27 August 2008 12 35 19 pm    Post subject: Re: Albus Potter and the Tracks They Left Behind in topic:Albus Potter and the Tracks They Left Behind Sorry about the cliffie. But the chapter was kind of long, so I had to split it up. Here's the rest of Albus's little adventure. As always, comments, questions, and general reviews are always appreciated! Chapter 18: Locked Out Albus had to admit, the thought did cross his mind every once in a while. But really, it wasn't very realistic. Yes, the Marauders had done it, but they were lucky it had worked out all right. There was a reason that hardly anyone could become an Animagus and why you had to be registered with the Ministry. Plus, they were only second years. The Marauders hadn't done it until their fifth year. They were exceptionally smart, too. Well, three of them were. Albus didn't think he was anywhere near being good enough at Transfiguration to pull it off. Rose was probably the only one of them who had a chance at succeeding. And even though Rose did not hesitate to break rules when she needed to, there was no way she would agree to this. "Oh come on, John, we can't be Animagi." "Why not?" John asked, "The Marauders did it." "They were really smart," Albus explained, "I'm definitely not that smart. And what did you get on your last Transfiguration test? A 50 or something?" "55, thank you," John corrected him, "And we'd figure it out. Rose could help us." "But this isn't as simple as figuring out a spell for class!" Albus shouted, "It's dangerous. What if we can't change back? What if we get stuck halfway? Rose doesn't know everything. Even she would have trouble with this." "It's worth the risk," John said adamantly, "I don't care if I mess up a few times. I'll just try again." "That's the thing. Sometimes when you mess up, you don't get the chance to try again. My dad explained this all to me over the summer. He talked to me about becoming an Animagus as soon as school was over last year because he knew the thought would cross my mind. He'll know if I try and he won't let me do it. I'd consider trying when we're older, but definitely not right now." John sighed, "It would be great if we could, though. I mean, we would be the ultimate new Marauders then. Imagine if we could even change into the same animals the Marauders were. I fancy myself as a dog." "I could see that," Albus agreed, relieved that John seemed to accept the fact that Albus wasn't going to budge on the issue. "I don't know if I'd be a stag, though. Maybe a fox or something, I dunno." "Can you see Kaden as a rat?" John asked, grinning. Albus smirked, "Not really. He'd probably be one of those yappy dogs, not a big cool dog like you'd be, but a tiny chihuahua or something that's always barking and jumping." "Definitely," John laughed, "It couldn't hurt to research Animagi, though. I mean, if anyone asks we could say it's for extra credit." "My dad would see right through that one," Albus told him. "Doesn't matter," Matt said quietly. He had been exceptionally quiet ever since John had first mentioned the idea. "You can't become Animagi with me on the full moon." "Why?" John asked. "We know it's dangerous. I don't care." "It's not that. You think I haven't thought about you lot becoming Animagi? That my parents haven't thought about doing it? Amy? They have. My parents have ever since we found out Wolfsbane didn't work for me. Amy has ever since she first saw me after a transformation. My parents actually started working on it. But then they decided to have me do the Wolfsbane study instead. You see, if anyone is with me as an Animagus on the full moon, I won't hurt myself and it'll seem like the potion actually worked. It'll mess up the study big time. My parents decided it would be better for me to find a potion that would work than to have to rely on other people's Animagus abilities. They even forbade Amy from trying it, she wasn't very happy." Albus hadn't thought about that. He was actually a little relieved. He didn't want to become an Animagus behind his dad's back. It was one thing to steal the Invisibility Cloak for a couple days, but to sneak around as an animal every full moon? That was just too secretive for Albus's liking. He hoped that John would give up on the idea now. "But if the study ever ends without finding me a potion that works, I won't stop you from trying." "Sounds fair," John replied, "How long does the study go?" "No idea. Probably at least another two years. It all depends on how many different forms of Wolfsbane people come up with," Matt closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall again. "Headache still there?" Albus asked. Matt nodded without opening his eyes. "Let's hurry up, then. Where should we put the parchment?" "Room behind the stairs," Matt shakily stood up. "That way Madam Pomfrey doesn't see it." "We'll do it, you stay here," John gently pushed his friend back onto the floor. "How much parchment should we put down?" "How much did you bring?" "About a half roll," Albus pulled a partially used roll of parchment out of his cloak. "All of it, then. Chances are most of it will get ripped." Albus nodded and stood up. He walked over to the stairs with John following and saw the small room Matt was talking about. It was also filled with various broken pieces of furniture. "We shouldn't have done this tonight. I didn't even think about the moon." "Me neither," John shook his head as he bent down to move some of the furniture aside. "But it's not as bad as the time with the detention. I think he'll be ok." "Yeah. He can sleep all tomorrow if he wants," Albus commented as he ripped pieces off the roll of parchment. "Him and me both," John yawned. "Wasn't expecting the tunnel to be that long." "Me neither, but it is a long way from the grounds to Hogsmeade, so it makes sense." Albus finished ripping the parchment and the two boys each took a stack to affix to the floor. It took them a few minutes and once they were done, the room was covered in pieces of parchment. "I can see why he didn't want Madam Pomfrey to see," John laughed as he re-lit his wand. "It would definitely raise some questions," Albus lit his own wand. "Let's just hope this works. I can't see any other way to safely get a werewolf's paw print." The two boys took one more look at the parchment coated room and then went back to the large main room. Matt was right where they left him, leaning against a partially broken chair. Albus nudged him awake. "Finished?" Matt yawned. "Yup, let's get back to the castle," Albus helped his friend up and the three of them left the shack. The trip back through the tunnel took a lot longer than when they were going to the shack. All three boys were incredibly tired and the thrill had worn off for Albus and John. Albus glanced at his watch as they neared the end of the tunnel and saw that it was nearly 1:30. He was very glad they had done this on a weekend. "It's harder getting out than getting in," Matt said tiredly as he removed the wards. "Whoever goes first has to dodge the branches and then push the knot on the trunk for the other two." Albus and John looked at each other, for both of them knew Matt was too exhausted to be able to dodge the branches properly. "I'll do it," Albus told him, "I'm making you get the rat." Albus climbed up the wall and crawled out of the hole. He was immediately hit in the shoulder with one of the flailing branches. "Ouch!" he shouted as he groped the trunk for the knot. His hand made contact with it and the branches immediately froze. "You can come out now," he whispered through the passageway. Albus stood aside and pulled the Invisibility Cloak out of his cloak. Matt appeared out of the hole first and shuddered as the moonlight hit him. John was right behind him and the two of them got under the cloak with Albus once Matt re-set the wards. "You ok?" John asked Albus once they were back on the path leading to the castle. "Yeah. Just got me in the shoulder," Albus replied. His shoulder stung and he could feel some blood dripping down his arm, but he couldn't go see Madam Pomfrey. She would know immediately what gave him the wound and would no doubt insist on knowing what they were up to. The boys trudged along through the cold night air. Albus looked up to the sky and saw that thick clouds were moving in. It would probably snow soon. Of course, Albus would be much too tired the next day to enjoy it, so it didn't much matter. It was worth it, though. Within a few days they would have one of the four paw prints needed to unlock the secrets of the new map. A little while later they reached the castle doors. Albus glanced quickly at the Map and saw that Filch was up on the sixth floor and Peeves was in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. No one else was wandering around. Albus grasped the handle of the door and pushed. It did not budge. He tried again, but no luck. "Filch must've remembered to lock it!" Albus muttered. "Try one of those spells Rose taught you," John suggested. Albus nodded and pointed his wand at the handle. He muttered a spell but the door remained locked. He tried a few more, but none of them worked. "I think we're locked out!" Albus said in a panicked tone. "We're locked out?" John questioned and pushed the door himself, "What do we do now?" "What do you mean we're locked out?" Matt groaned, "It was just unlocked a couple hours ago!" "I know it was," Albus replied anxiously, "Filch must've locked it!" "We can't stay out here all night!" Matt's voice cracked, "We'll freeze!" Albus swallowed hard as panic filled his body. What were they going to do now? Albus had been worrying mostly about getting out of the castle and into the tunnel without getting caught that the thought of being locked out hadn't even crossed his mind. I mean, what were the chances of the doors being unlocked when they left and locked when they came back? But what would they do? They couldn't stay out here, it was freezing and would snow soon. All three of them were shivering. "Any chance either of you knows how to conjure a Patronus?" Albus asked, thinking of the only way he knew to contact Rose and Amanda. "Are you mad?" John asked. "We're only second years." "Well, have you got any bright ideas on how to tell Rose and Amanda we're locked out?" John thought for a minute before answering, "You could break into the broom shed and steal a broom. Then fly it up to Gryffindor Tower." "Now you're mad. I'll get seen by someone. What if one of the professors is looking out their window? Or one of the students?" "Wear the Invisibility Cloak," John replied. "Then you two will get seen. And if I'm wearing the Cloak then Rose and Amanda won't see me." "Oh, right," John sighed. "How about Hagrid?" "Then we'll get in trouble," Albus reminded him, although unless they didn't think of something else soon, they would have to go to Hagrid's. "Well, we've got to think of something soon. He's got to get away from the moon," John gestured to Matt who was leaning against the door and breathing heavily. "The moon's almost covered by clouds," Albus pointed out, "And then we'll just have to worry about being snowed on." "Wonderful," John groaned. "Maybe we can curl up in piles of snow like wolves do and keep warm that way." "Very funny," Albus said flatly. He was really starting to get worried now. What would happen if they did go to Hagrid's? They'd surely get in trouble, but how much? Would they just get detention or would it be worse? Points would be taken away for sure, and that would not go over well with the other Gryffindors. "Hey, wait!" John's face brightened a bit, "What about the Shrieking Shack? We could just go back there and spend the night. Then we'll sneak back in tomorrow morning after Filch has unlocked the doors again." "That's...that's," Albus thought about this for a moment. "Not actually a bad idea. We'll be inside and we won't get caught." John grinned. "Let's go," he poked Matt in the side. "What?" Matt opened his eyes. "We're going back to the Shack," John explained. "Great," Matt said sarcastically, "I get to spend another night there. You two couldn't come up with a different idea?" "Nope," John answered, "I'd say it was pretty brilliant myself, so unless you've got a better one, we're going." Matt sighed, "Oh, fine. But we're not making a habit of this." "Me and Albus aren't," John laughed, "But you already do." "Oh, shut it," Matt groaned, "Let's just go." Albus couldn't help but feel a tiny bit excited about spending the night in the Shack. It would definitely be the worst thing he had ever done, as far as breaking rules was concerned. He also felt nervous about it. What if they did get caught? What if Rose and Amanda started to get worried and told someone about their plan? Albus pushed that thought out of his mind. Rose wouldn't do that, would she? She would if she thought they were in trouble. But they weren't in that big of trouble. The three of them would spend the night in the shack and that would be that. When morning came they would sneak back into the castle and no one would be the wiser. This might actually be kind of fun, it was thrilling and a tad bit dangerous. Something the Marauders would have done. Who knows, maybe they even had done it on occasion. The trip back to the shack, though exhausting, was uneventful. John, like Albus, had a look of excitement in his eyes when the three of them entered the shack once more. Matt looked like he didn't care where they were, as long as there was some place he could sleep. "This is pretty cool," John grinned, "Spending the night in Hogsmeade." "It's going to be cold, though," Matt shivered, "There aren't any heating charms in here." "Warmer than outside," Albus commented as he stowed the cloak back in his robes. "Are there any lights in here?" "Nope," Matt replied. "We'll just have to keep our wands lit." "What do you want to do now?" John asked with a look of mischief on his face, "So many possibilities in this place...." "How about we go to bed?" Matt suggested sarcastically. Albus, although excited about spending the night in the shack, was extremely tired and all he wanted to do was sleep. "Are there any beds here?" "One," Matt answered. He led Albus and John up the stairs and into the only bedroom. There was one large bed and a wardrobe, both surprisingly still intact. "They're charmed to be indestructible," Matt answered Albus's questioning look. John hopped onto the bed and started jumping on it. "Now we're talking! This bed is excellent for jumping." "Can't say I've ever tried it before," Matt joined him on the bed and started jumping as well. "You're right, it is quite nice for jumping." Albus jumped up with them and agreed. The bed was good for jumping. Even better than James's. James, Albus, and Lily had spent many hours jumping on James's bed, always to be interrupted and yelled at by their mother. The boys continued jumping on the bed and goofing off for a couple minutes. Albus smirked to himself as he remembered a story his Aunt Hermione had told him about monkeys jumping on a bed. "What's so funny?" John asked. "Just wondering who'll be the first to fall off and break his head," Albus laughed. "What?" John asked and Matt started to laugh as well. "It's a Muggle story," Albus explained and proceeded to tell John the story of the monkeys. "It's amazing what Muggles come up with for stories," John shook his head and jumped off the bed, landing on his feet like a cat. "I don't think any of us are going to break our heads." "Mine feels like it's broken," Matt announced as he jumped off the bed. He didn't land as gracefully as John and fell on his arm. "Ow!" Albus jumped down next to him. "You ok?" "Yeah," Matt pointed his lit wand at his arm. "No blood." "Good," John replied. "We should probably go to bed now," Albus suggested, "We've got to be up early so we can sneak back in before a lot of people wake up." "There's more blankets in the wardrobe," Matt yawned as he got back on the bed and curled up beneath the blanket that was already on the bed. Albus and John each grabbed a couple blankets and got into the bed alongside Matt. It was a good thing the bed was so big, Albus thought. It was much bigger than the four-poster beds in Gryffindor. "He's already asleep," John commented as he lay down. "Good," Albus replied, "Maybe his headache will go away. Good night." "'Night." ****** Albus woke up the next morning to slivers of light shining through the boarded up windows. Boarded up windows? There weren't boarded up windows in the dormitory. Albus's eyes shot open and he glanced around at his surroundings. Oh, right. The memories of the previous night flooded Albus as he realized that he was in the Shrieking Shack. Albus sat up and yawned. He felt more tired this morning than he had the previous night. One look at his watch told him why. It was only seven o'clock, he had only gotten about four hours of sleep. Just as well, Albus thought. They had to get back to the castle quickly anyway, if they wanted to sneak back in without anyone noticing. Albus nudged John awake and winced. He pulled up the sleeve of his robe and saw that the cut from the Whomping Willow looked thoroughly disgusting. It was probably infected and would require a trip to the hospital wing. Albus shook John with his uninjured arm. "John, wake up!" "No, lemme sleep," John groaned and turned away from Albus. "Get up or we'll get caught," Albus pushed him again. "Don't care," John murmured. "I'll push you out of bed," Albus warned. John muttered something incoherent and didn't move. "You asked for it," Albus muttered and rolled John over to the edge of the bed. He gave him one final nudge and John fell off the edge of the bed with a loud thump. "What the hell?" John shouted, sitting up with a dazed look on his face. "I told you to get up," Albus leaned over the bed and laughed. "We've got to get back to the castle or someone's going to see us come out of the tree." "Oh, fine," John grumbled, "But I'm going back to bed once we get back." "You and me both," Albus agreed and got out of bed. He picked up the spare blankets and stowed them back in the wardrobe so Madam Pomfrey wouldn't get suspicious. "You going to push him off the bed too?" John pointed to Matt's sleeping form as he stood up. "No," Albus replied simply. "Where's the justice?" John muttered. Albus grinned and shook Matt awake. "We've got to get back to the castle. We'll sleep more there." Matt groaned and got out of bed. "I think I'd rather just stay here." "I wouldn't suggest it," John responded, "Albus pushed me off the bed when I didn't get up. Can you believe that?" Matt laughed and looked from John to Albus and back again. "Yes." The boys left the shack quickly and started the long journey back to the Whomping Willow. All three of them were dragging and Albus was very glad that he didn't have any classes today. He had homework, but he wasn't even going to think about that until he got at least another six hours sleep. One quick check of the map told him that the coast was clear before they emerged from the tree. The three of them donned the Invisibility Cloak as soon as Matt was finished warding the tree and they set off for the castle. Since it was still early, the only one on the grounds was Hagrid. There was several more inches of snow and by the time they boys were back at the castle doors, their robes were wet and they were shivering. Halfway to the castle, it had started sowing again. "Rose and Amanda are in the Great Hall," Albus pointed to their two dots on the map. "But hardly anyone else is, and no one's in the Entrance Hall, so I think we're good." Albus pushed the doors open and the three invisible boys slipped inside. Albus immediately pulled the wet cloak off of them and hid it in his robes. "We should probably go talk to Rose and Amanda." "I've got to go see Madam Pomfrey sometime," Matt told them, "My arm still hurts, look." He pulled the sleeve of his robes up and showed them his black and blue arm. "I don't think it's broken, but it still hurts." "My shoulder still hurts," Albus replied, "I guess I'll have to go, too." At that moment, Rose and Amanda left the Great Hall and stopped a couple feet away from the boys. John pointed to where they were and Albus turned around. Both girls had a combination of relief and anger on their faces. Rose was fuming by the time she stomped over to Albus. "Where. Were. You," she demanded. "Er," Albus mumbled. He never liked being on the receiving end of his cousin's anger. "Room, now," Rose seethed and stalked off towards the stairs with Amanda at her side. Albus, John, and Matt followed wordlessly. All ideas of going to the Hospital Wing were driven from Albus's mind. Of course, after seeing Rose, he would much rather have been bombarded with questions about his shoulder than going to the Room with his cousin. Nobody said a word until they were in the Room. Albus, John, and Matt sat side by side on the couch, but Rose and Amanda remained standing in front of them. "Explain yourselves!" Rose shouted. "We-" Albus began. Rose cut him off, "You know what? I think I'll tell you about our night first! We were plenty worried about the three of you sneaking off to the Shack in the middle of the night, but it had to be done. What other choice did we have? It was safer than the alternative. How else were you going to get the paw print? I thought the plan would work. We had it all set. You three would sneak down there and put the parchment on the floor and then sneak back up. Simple." Rose stopped and began to pace around the room. "There were all kinds of things that could've gone wrong," Amanda picked up where Rose left off. "Filch, for one. Or one of the teachers. Peeves, even. Or how about when you got onto the grounds? There are all sorts of animals wandering around at night. Not to mention the Whomping Willow itself." "So what were we supposed to think when you three never showed up?!" Rose raised her voice even higher, if that was possible. "If you had been caught by Filch or a teacher, you would've came back to Gryffindor eventually! BUT YOU NEVER DID!" "But Rose-" John pleaded. Albus sent him a warning look. He knew it was never good to interrupt Rose when she was on a rampage. "Shut up, John! We thought some kind of animal had you! Or even worse, that Washburn had come back for the Hallows and found you and kidnapped you or something! Then you sneak back into the castle this morning, looking like you've just been at a party or something! "You kept us up all night worrying, when you probably just decided to have some fun last night. You know I was this close to telling Uncle Harry this morning. I wanted to last night, but Amanda convinced me to wait until morning. Of course now I wish I hadn't waited. Maybe a couple detentions would teach you not to stay out all night!" "Rose," Albus said tentatively, "Just let us explain." "Go ahead, Albus," Rose glared at him. "Convince me that what you did last night wasn't just stupidity." "We got locked out," Albus explained, "The doors to the castle weren't locked when we left, but Filch must've locked them after we were out of the castle. I tried all the charms you taught me, but none of them worked. So we decided to spend the night in the Shrieking Shack. And you're right, it was kind of fun." Rose and Amanda stared at him, dumbstruck. Neither of them said a word for the next minute. Albus and the other boys didn't dare say a word either. "Well," Rose said quietly, "Er, that does explain things. I'm, uh, sorry I yelled at you." "It's all right," Albus assured her. "But Albus?" Rose began, "You could've just gone to the Owlery and sent me a quick note telling me that you were locked out. Then we would've at least known what was going on." Albus, John, and Matt turned to look at each other. Albus felt his cheeks turning red. Of course! Why hadn't he thought of that? The only means of communication Albus had thought of was a Patronus. But the answer was there all along, a simple owl. He could have just made a quick trip to the owlery before they went back to the Shack. "We're idiots," John muttered softly. "Yes, but you're our idiots," Rose laughed. "Now, are you going to tell us about your little adventure?" Albus, John, and Matt spent the next half hour relaying every detail of their trips to the Shrieking Shack the previous night. Rose and Amanda both found it very entertaining, especially the part about Albus pushing John off the bed. After they were done telling the story, all five of them went to the hospital wing so Albus and Matt could get their wounds healed. Madam Pomfrey was sitting at her desk when they arrived and the ward was completely deserted of other patients. She took one look at the Gryffindors and came bustling out from behind the desk. "You lot again? What have you gotten yourselves into this time?" "Just these two," John pointed at Albus and Matt. Madam Pomfrey took one hard look at Matt and announced, "You were outside last night. Was someone giving you detention?" "Er, no." Madam Pomfrey looked at him for a few seconds longer and sighed, "Go sit down on a bed, both of you." Albus and Matt sat down on one of the beds and Madam Pomfrey returned a few moments later with a tray laden with potions. She told Matt to drink them all, which he did. "My arm's all bruised, too," Matt pulled up his sleeve, "I tripped over a book." Madam Pomfrey clucked her tongue and pulled out her wand. She had his arm healed in an instant. "I trust you'll get some sleep today? Or do I have to make you stay here?" "I'll sleep, I promise," Matt replied quickly. "What about you?" the nurse turned to Albus. "Hurt my shoulder," Albus answered, not elaborating on the subject. He pulled up his sleeve to reveal his injured shoulder. Madam Pomfrey studied it for a moment, then she cleaned it. Albus winced as the potion she used on it stung. The nurse looked at the injury for a little while longer and she looked from Albus to Matt and back again. "I know how you got that," she replied. "Er," Albus stuttered. Great, after all that, they were still going to get in trouble. "Whatever you boys did last night, don't do it again," Madam Pomfrey said sternly, looking Albus and then Matt in the eye, "I won't tell Professor Longbottom this time, or your father," she said to Albus, "But next time I will." Albus breathed a sigh of relief as Madam Pomfrey healed his shoulder with one swift wave of her wand. He'd have no trouble keeping his word to the nurse. There was no way that he was going to repeat last night. Well, unless they needed to for the map. But he'd try hard not to get hit by the Whomping Willow next time. "You're all set," Madam Pomfrey announced, "Now go get some sleep, both of you." Albus nodded as he stood up. He would have no problem doing that. He was practically falling asleep as he walked. The group went back to the common room and the boys immediately headed for their dormitory. Albus changed into his pajamas and climbed into his warm four-poster bed, feeling very satisfied that they hadn't been caught at all.
salemboy Joined: 20 May 2008 Posts: 1233 Location: Salemboy Land, Where Monkeys and Wizards Coexist in Wondrous Harmony	Posted: Wednesday 27 August 2008 03 30 44 am    Post subject: Re: Announcement - Potentially sick in topic:Announcement - Potentially sick PARTY TIME!!! Distortia's fine, and mini-Riley is well on way to recovery. But first, *Sends out a hundred thousand get well cards to Mini-Riley.*
Susan Montez Joined: 16 May 2008 Posts: 65 Location: J.A.S.U.~Captain Montez	Posted: Tuesday 26 August 2008 04 27 48 pm    Post subject: Re: Moderator Requests in topic:Moderator Requests *starts a PARTY in the SLYTHERIN COMMON ROOM* *a snowy white owl drops a huge letter attached to a cake* ~CONGRATULATIONS TO BOTH *RILEY* & WANDERFUL!!!!~ ~~~~[i]From,[/i]~~~~ ~[i]Susan Montez[/i]~
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2095 Location: Boycotting All Future Warner Brothers Films	Posted: Monday 25 August 2008 05 36 44 pm    Post subject: Re: In Moonlight's Shadow in topic:In Moonlight's Shadow First chapter posted from school. I figured I should post one before the classes really picked up. I haven't managed to actually write any chapters here yet, but I've got quite a few stored up. Hope everyone likes it! Disclaimer- I don't own Harry Potter or Lucky Charms. Chapter 8: That Night I played football with Matt for about an hour and a half before he had had enough. Neither Mum or Dad had come outside so I assumed they were both still talking about the letter. "I'm hungry," Matt whined as we sat down on the deck. "Is it lunch time yet?" I glanced into the kitchen and didn't see anyone. Mum didn't expect us to stay out here all day, did she? "Uh, sure, we could go have lunch." The house appeared deserted when we walked into the kitchen, although I could hear voices coming from Dad's study. Ellie wasn't anywhere to be seen but she didn't usually prepare lunch anyway. I wound up making Matt and I sandwiches and we ate them sitting at the counter. "What's Mum doing in Dad's study?" Matt asked. Of course he could hear her in there. It still amazes me what he's able to hear. Ever since he got bit, he's had excellent hearing. That's probably why Mum wanted him to stay outside. "I'm not sure," I replied. "Sounds like she's talking to Dad," Matt announced. "But isn't he at work?" "Uh, he had to come home to talk to Mum about something. I'm not sure what." "Oh, I want to go see him," Matt jumped off his stool and started running to the door. I got up and blocked him. "You can't. Mum said not to interrupt them." The door to the study opened at that moment anyway. Mum and Dad walked into the kitchen, both looking sad, angry, and nervous at the same time. Mum seemed to have been crying again and her face was streaked with tears. "Dad!" Matt shouted and ran over to him, throwing his arms around Dad's waist. "Hi, Matt," Dad looked at him sadly. I wasn't really sure what to say at this point. Matt still had no idea about the letter and I didn't want to be the one to tell him. I settled on looking from Mum to Dad questioningly until one of them said something. "Amy, Matt," Dad began, "We need to talk to both of you. Let's go into the living room." I followed the three of them into the living room. Matt was talking animatedly to Dad about playing football earlier and Dad was nodding his head every once in a while to show he was listening. I sat down on the couch next to Matt once we got into the room. Mum and Dad sat down on the chairs facing us. "Amy," Dad said slowly, "You read the letter, so you probably already know what this is about." I nodded. Dad turned to Matt. "Matt, a few days ago we sent a letter to Amy's school asking if you could go when you're eleven." Matt looked from me to Dad with a look of confusion on his face. "Why couldn't I?" Dad sighed and looked at him sadly. "Because of what happens once a month on the full moon." "I don't even like it," Matt replied, "I don't want to do that anymore." "I know, honey," Mum said, "Neither do we. More than anything, we want it to stop. But it just can't right now." "We got a letter back from the headmaster today," Dad continued, "He said you can't go to school there." Matt sat there in shock for a few seconds and then his eyes filled with tears. "No! That's not fair!" he shrieked. "I know, it's not fair," Mum started crying as well and gestured for my brother to climb onto her lap. "I want to go," Matt sobbed and buried his head into her shoulder. "Why can't I go?" "They won't let you, honey," Mum replied, "It's not very nice at all, but there's nothing we can do." "Nothing?" I asked, "Weren't you going to send them another letter?" "It wouldn't do any good," Dad said quietly, "Under the law, the school is in no way obligated to accept him as a student." "That's not right," I said, "Why don't you fight it?" "It's not a good time to be fighting something like this," Dad answered. "Well, you can home school him like you've been doing all along," I suggested. Mum and Dad exchanged looks and I got the sense that there was more that they had to tell us. "Amy," Dad began, "We were actually going to try and find a school to accept him." "But there aren't any other wizarding schools in Australia," I told him. "I know," Dad said, "We were going to write to schools abroad." I stared at him. "You mean we're going to move?!" "Perhaps. If another school will accept him." "That means I'll have to change schools." I swallowed hard. I didn't want to move. I liked my school even though the headmaster was a discriminating troll. I had friends there and the other teachers were nice. I'd been going there for three years! I couldn't transfer to another school now! "Amy, I know this is going to be hard, but even if another school doesn't accept him, you're not going back to the Australian School of Sorcery." "What?!" I shouted and stood up angrily. "Just because of him I can't go back no matter what?! Even if we don't move I'm not allowed to go to school there?! That's not fair!" Mum and Dad exchanged looks. "Amy, it is not his fault. We would never have let you go to that school to begin with if we knew what the headmaster thought," Mum explained. "Well then you should have found out before I started going there!" I glared at them. "Maybe we should have," Dad said quietly, "But we didn't." "It's just not fair!" I shouted again, "Killigan doesn't teach any of my classes! The other teachers might not have the same opinions as him!" "That might be true," Dad agreed, "But nevertheless, while you are at that school you are under his influence. I'm sorry, but you won't be returning." "You're not sorry! If you were sorry, you'd let me go back! You just don't get it. This will ruin my life! I'll never get to see Olivia again!" "Amy, of course you'll see her again. She's coming over tomorrow, after all," Mum sighed. Oh, yeah. I had almost forgotten about that amongst the news. "And what exactly am I supposed to tell her?" Mum and Dad looked at each other again. "You will certainly not tell her why you aren't going back," Mum said. "Right, like she'll just accept that the two of you won't let me go back for no reason at all? What do you suppose the reason should be?" I demanded. "Your father and I have more on our minds than what you'll tell your friends about this!" Mum shouted. "Can you just let me go back until you find another school?" I pleaded, my eyes starting to well up. "Please?" "No," Dad replied sternly, "Absolutely not." "This is so unfair!" I yelled, "And it's all his fault!" I pointed at my brother, who was still crying into Mum's shoulder. "You will not blame him for this!" Mum shouted, "I will not have it!" "I'll blame whoever I like!" I turned and left the room, not waiting for a response. Ellie was lurking outside the entrance to the living room and jumped out of the way as I went storming past. "Is Amy all right?" she asked. I stopped and turned around to look at the house elf. She looked a little scared and I couldn't blame her. We had been shouting awfully loud. "No, it's not." "What is going on?" "We might be moving, Ellie," I told her, "And Mum and Dad won't let me go back to school." My voice cracked. Ellie's face broke out in a look of confusion and then her ears dropped in recognition. "Ah, Mistress's letter." I nodded, "Did you read it?" "Ellie did. Ellie is not liking Headmaster Killigan." "Neither do I. But it's not like I see him on a regular basis at school," I explained, "Well, I'm going upstairs. See you later." Ellie said goodbye and I continued to the stairs. I wanted nothing more than to be alone right now. I threw myself onto my bed as soon as I slammed my door shut. I buried my face into my pillow and let the tears flow. The anger I felt downstairs was subsiding and grief was replacing it. The fact that I wouldn't be returning to the Australian School of Sorcery was sinking in. All the memories I had of the place would become just that, memories. I would not form any new ones. I would never again run through the quiet halls with Olivia when we were late for class. Never again would I shout my throat dry during a Quidditch match or dueling tournament. Even though I was rubbish at both, I absolutely loved going to the matches and tournaments. There would be no more late night study sessions in the dormitory or early morning jaunts through the grounds. I would never get to go to another start of term feast or end of term party. No more potions competitions, no more sneaking off to the Astronomy tower in the dead of night to stargaze. I spent hours laying in bed crying and thinking of everything I would miss about school. I had no idea what the rest of my family was doing and didn't really care. Dad most likely went back to work and who knows what Mum and Matt did. Matt. He was the reason for all of this. No matter what Mum and Dad told me, this whole thing was his fault. If he hadn't have been so stupid as to wander out of the tent alone that night, none of this would have happened. We would both be going to the Australian School of Sorcery and would never have found out about Killigan's beliefs about werewolves. Not that it really would have mattered if Matt wasn't one anyway. I still remember that night as if it was yesterday. It had been our first and only Muggle camping trip. The trip had been really fun at first. We hiked, boated and swam in the lake, and played at the nearby playground. Then came the night of the full moon. Dad warned us repeatedly not to leave the tent without one of them. He knew full well that it was the full moon, since he was the head of the Werewolf Control Unit of the Department for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures at the time. I don't think he really expected anything to happen but he was a bit worried due to what he saw at work. Turns out, he had reason to worry. It had been me who realized that Matt was gone. He must've left the tent to go to the bathroom and disregarded Dad's warning. I have always been a light sleeper and heard growling and screaming coming from outside. There were flashlights shining all over the place and I heard Muggles running around. I saw that Matt wasn't in the tent anymore and woke up my parents. They have always been heavy sleepers. The two of them immediately got up when I told them Matt was gone. They grabbed their wands and ran out of the tent. I followed them and immediately saw the chaos. Muggles were running around everywhere, grabbing their children and heading for their cars. Quite a few were talking on cell phones and I heard fragmented bits of conversation that included phrases like 'huge dog', 'a wolf or something', 'attacking a kid', 'biggest damn animal I ever saw', and 'better send someone down right away'. Mum, Dad, and I kept running towards the area that all the Muggles were running from. We were shouting Matt's name and a couple Muggles told us there was a kid being attacked in the woods. Mum shrieked and the three of us ran even faster. Both of them had their wands held up high but the Muggles didn't seem to notice or care amongst all the chaos. When we reached the woods we saw a small group of Muggles surrounding what was the biggest wolf I had ever seen in my life. I let out a gasp as I saw that the huge animal was standing on top of my brother and ripping at his back. Mum let out a loud cry and Dad an angry growl. Mum ordered me to stay back while Dad tried to disperse the Muggles. I stood a couple meters away and watched through tears as the two of them sent spell after spell at the werewolf. The Muggles watched in amazement and shock as Mum managed to get Matt away while Dad succeeded in stunning the werewolf. Mum carried Matt over to where I was standing and I let out a scream when I saw him. He was shaking uncontrollably, bleeding profusely from numerous cuts and scratches, looked to have a few broken bones, and was clearly unconscious. Mum started trying to heal the wounds and Dad bound the werewolf with ropes. He tried to ignore the shaken Muggles as he walked over toward us. He wordlessly took out a piece of parchment and then started mumbling as he wrote on it. 'Werewolf attack, need backup from Werewolf Control Unit, and Obliviators.' Then he pointed his wand at it and the parchment vanished. Dad told Mum to Apparate with Matt to the hospital and he would meet her there. Both of them seemed to have forgotten that I was there. I stood in the background for the next hour as various people from Dad's office and other people from the Ministry showed up. Someone interviewed a few Muggles and Dad, then Obliviated all the Muggles who had seen the attack. Someone else took the still stunned werewolf away. After the whole thing was over, Dad found me and the two of us Apparated to the hospital. The next few weeks went by in a blur. Matt spent three whole weeks in the hospital, before they let him leave. I think they would have wanted him to stay longer but he had to leave before the next full moon. Mum spent most of her time at the hospital and whenever I saw her, she was crying. Dad didn't cry much in the open, but I heard him at night. I had nightmares about that night for months after. Even at school I would wake up screaming. It freaked Olivia out, but I never told her what happened. No one ever found out what happened except the people who worked with Dad. He was able to hush the whole thing up and there was no mention of it in the paper. The nightmares subsided after a while, but that hadn't made the memory of it any less vivid. Even though it was my brother who got attacked, and not me, my life changed drastically as well. I didn't have any secrets from Olivia before that night, and ever since then I'd been keeping a big one from her. My only secret from Kenzie had been about magic before, but now I kept two big secrets from her. Not to mention the fact that I spent more time at my grandparents' house after that. We also went on less holidays, since Dad had to use all his time off work for full moons. I sighed and rolled over on my bed. Now my life was going to change again because of my brother. What were my parents planning anyway? Where would we go? There was only one school of magic in Australia, so I doubted we'd stay in the country. That meant a new house. I liked this house and I didn't want to leave. I could hardly remember the house we lived in before this one. This house was my home, where I grew up. It was also where Dad grew up and Uncle Jack. Was Dad really going to sell it and move? Of course he would. I didn't even have to think about it. I knew my parents would do anything for Matt. They would do anything for me, too. Well, anything except let me stay at my school. I wondered what schools they were going to look at. They would have to be in English speaking countries, of course. Mum knew French, Italian, and a bit of German, but none of the rest of us did. They would probably look at the school in New Zealand, since it was closest. But besides that one, what other schools were somewhat nearby? Did they even want to stay nearby? Maybe they would just try and see if the school in New York would accept Matt and we could live near Uncle Jack. I wouldn't mind living near Uncle Jack, but I didn't really want to move to New York. I didn't want to start over in a new school. Fresh tears formed in my eyes and I squeezed them shut. Wizard school wasn't like Muggle school. Kenzie says that there are new kids all the time at her school and others move away. Muggles seem to move a lot more than wizards do. Wizards generally stay put. In my three years at my school, I had not seen one kid who just moved to Australia. Everyone in my year had started together in first year and no one had moved away. I assumed it was like that in other countries. I would be the weird new girl who moved during her fourth year for reasons she won't even tell us. They would all already have friends and everyone would ignore me. It had been hard enough making friends when I was a first year. I could only imagine what it would be like when I was a fourth year. ****** I must have cried myself to sleep because before I knew it, sunlight was streaming into my window and my stomach was growling. My first thought as I got out of bed was that Olivia was coming over that day. I grinned and quickly changed clothes. Then the previous day's events hit me like a Bludger to the head. My grin faded immediately and I quietly left my room. The house was quiet and it appeared that I was the first one up. Dirty dishes in the kitchen sink told me otherwise. Dad must have already left for work, I thought as I poured myself a bowl of Lucky Charms. I ate slowly and tried to get excited about Olivia coming over. The thing was, now that I wasn't going back to school, the prospect of Olivia coming over wasn't nearly as fun. I should be even more excited since I wouldn't see her at the end of the month when school starts, but the fact remained that I wasn't. I was dreading telling her that I wouldn't be going back. And after I told her, what were we going to do? I mean, most of the stuff we talk about has something to do with school since both of us spend most of our time there. But I didn't really want to talk about school right now. Just as I was finishing my bowl of cereal, Mum came into the room looking like she hadn't gotten a minute of sleep that night. I ignored her as she poured herself a cup of the coffee Dad must have brewed earlier. She sat down across from me and took a long sip of coffee. I started to stand up, but she laid a hand on my arm and looked at me. "Amy, I'd like to talk to you." "I wouldn't," I said coldly. She gave me a stern look that made me sit back down. I crossed my arms across my chest and glared at her. "What time is Olivia coming over?" she asked. "Two," I said. Mum nodded. "Well, I would like to talk to you about yesterday. You ran out of the room so fast." "Yeah, that's because I didn't want to talk about it anymore." "You didn't let us finish, though. Your father and I have given this quite a bit of thought." "Oh, yeah? Ever think how this is going to affect me? Switching schools after I've already done three here? Actually, I'll probably wind up switching in the middle of the year once you two figure out where we're going. Can only imagine what that'll be like," I rolled my eyes. Mum sighed, "That's exactly why I want to tell you more about this. We do have a plan and I would like to tell you it. First, you are not going to switch in the middle of the school year." "What, you've found a new school already?" "No. Not all schools start their year in January. You will not be going back to school at the end of this month, not any school." I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really? I get an extra long holiday?" "I will home school you." "What?!" I stared at her. I did not want to spend an entire school day with my mother. "I will home school you for now. The schools we are looking at start their year in September and you will start as a fourth year in nine months at one of those." "That's an odd time to start the year." "Well, it's not odd for the countries they are in. The schools we are looking at are in New York, a couple of other states in the US, one in Canada, and one in Scotland." I blinked at her. "Those are all far away." "Yes, I know." "How are you going to decide?" I demanded. "We'll send letters and whichever Headmasters or Headmistresses are agreeable, we will set up times to visit their schools." "And if none of them will let Matt go?" Mum sighed and closed her eyes. She didn't say anything for at least a minute, during which I stared at her, but didn't dare speak. "We'll deal with that if it happens," Mum finally said. I rolled my eyes. Wonderful, they didn't have a plan if that happened. How could they not think about that? What made them so sure one of these other schools would let Matt attend? "Could I go back to school here?" I asked hopefully. I knew it was selfish to want the other schools to deny Matt from going, but if they did, one of us might as well be happy. "Absolutely not." "Fine. I'll be upstairs until Olivia is here." I glared at her and stood up, stomping out of the room. "Amy, take your bag with you," Mum pointed to my bag that was still sitting on the kitchen floor. I grabbed it wordlessly and ran up to my bedroom. I had completely forgotten about my overnight bag and was surprised that Mum waited so long to tell me to put it away. I tossed it unceremoniously onto a pile of dirty clothes once I entered my room. I had no desire whatsoever to empty it and put anything away. Olivia wouldn't care if my room was a mess. She's a messy person as well and our dormitory at school was incredibly messy. Our dormitory. I squeezed my eyes shut as I realized that it wouldn't be our dormitory anymore. It would just be Olivia's dormitory. There were six girls in our year and two of us shared each dormitory. Olivia would be by herself now since I doubted the school would put a first year in with a fourth year. The only way Olivia would get another roommate would be if someone transferred in. Someone like me. I was going to transfer into some other school. Into someone's dormitory who I had never met before. Someone who already had friends. I sighed and walked over to the window. It was a bright and sunny day, the complete opposite of my mood. It was probably hot, too, but I couldn't be sure since Mum had put Cooling Charms all over the house. I wondered when we would move. All the schools Mum and Dad were looking at were in the Northern Hemisphere, which meant the seasons would be flipped. It was winter right now in all the countries we might be visiting. Would we move as soon as Mum and Dad found a school? Or would we wait until right before the year started? I hoped we wouldn't move until right before the year started. If we were here, there was a chance I could see Olivia a few more times. Who knew how often I'd see her after we moved.
*Riley* Joined: 30 November 2007 Posts: 1764 Location: Celebrating with good friends	Posted: Wednesday 20 August 2008 12 30 54 am    Post subject: Re: Welcome to the HP Book Club! in topic:Welcome to the HP Book Club! Hiya Book Clubians I'm the new moderator, I'm going to help Distortia around here as she is a busy mum Mini-me can be a party goer I hear Have fun! Riley.
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2095 Location: Boycotting All Future Warner Brothers Films	Posted: Tuesday 19 August 2008 02 43 39 pm    Post subject: Re: In Moonlight's Shadow in topic:In Moonlight's Shadow Ok, I know the past 6 chapters have been mostly set-up and get to know the character chapters, with a bit of humor thrown in. Now the plot is really going to get introduced. Hope you enjoy it! I'm not entirely sure when I'll next update. I'm leaving on Thursday for school, so I will be quite busy! Comments, questions, and general reviews are always appreciated! Chapter 7: The Letter People were finally starting to leave the party when I wandered back into the ballroom a short while later. Richard and Cinda were standing near the door saying goodbye to them as they trickled out. Vivien, Jared, and Breanne were all sitting at the same table they had been at before I left and I walked slowly over to them. "Oh my God, is your brother all right?" Vivien asked immediately. "He's fine now," I assured them. "What was wrong with him?" Breanne asked. "His leg was bothering him," I said quickly, "He hurt it the other day and needed some medicine to put on it." "Oh, well, I'm glad he's better now," Vivien smiled. I didn't elaborate on the subject. All I wanted was for the three of them to go home so that I could go to bed. Fortunately, their parents came over only a couple minutes later and told them they were leaving. Breanne complained saying it was too early to leave, but in the end she got up and followed her parents out of the room. I got up as well and said good night to them near the front door. Vivien told me she was thrilled that we had gotten to spend time with each other and we should do it again sometime. After they left I ran up to my room and shut the door behind me. It was finally over. The dreaded party had lasted well over six hours and I was beyond exhaustion. I yanked off my shoes and changed into more comfortable clothes. Despite my fatigue, I found that I couldn't really sleep after crawling into bed. My mind was racing with thoughts of the evening. First, there were my 'friends' that I had not seen in over a year. I honestly didn't mind Vivien so much or her twin brother, but Breanne drove me crazy. I'm pretty much indifferent to Alicia and Cassie, although I think Damien is somewhat of an arse. I wasn't really sure how I felt about visiting Vivien again after this. I mean, she's nice and everything, but I feel like I have to be so guarded around her. It's strange because I don't feel that way around Kenzie and she's a Muggle as well. I do kind of have to watch what I say around Kenzie, but it doesn't feel strange like it does with Vivien. I'm completely used to it because it's been that way forever. Same with Olivia. Even though Olivia is a witch there are things I have to keep secret even around her. Namely, everything about Matt. There really isn't anyone I can be completely open with except my parents. My thoughts drifted to them next. My parents and what they were whispering about earlier. I honestly couldn't think of anything that would distract them so much as to forget about Matt's potion. I wish they would just tell me what was going on. It would make life so much easier. Maybe I could sneak into Dad's office again once we went home. No, I thought, I can't do that. It's just wrong. Well, if I go in there to find Jasper again and just happen to notice something on his desk and I accidentally read it, that wouldn't be so bad. I drifted off to sleep trying to think up ways to find out what was going on, but didn't come up with a single good idea. ****** Everyone was feeling the after-effects of the party the next morning. Nobody got up early, not even me. I slept until eleven o'clock and was the first one up. Richard and Cinda were the next ones up, although neither of them were awake enough to really do much. They sat at the kitchen counter drinking coffee for a full half hour before they perked up. Shortly after they finished their coffee, Mum and Dad came downstairs looking in much need of coffee themselves. My parents set to work helping Richard and Cinda clean up after the party and they forced me into helping as well. It wasn't really that bad since Mum and Dad did mostly everything with magic. The clean-up went quickly and was completed in about twenty minutes. Once we were done with that my parents finally said we could go home. "We'll see you next month, Amy darling," Cinda gave me a quick hug. "See you then," I gave her a forced smile. I didn't really want to think about next month right now. Well, actually it was next month, since it was January. At least it would be the last one before I went back to school and then I wouldn't have to go back to my grandparents' house for a while. "Ready?" Mum came down the stairs with Matt in her arms. He hadn't yet woken up and was sleeping with his head on her shoulder. Dad nodded. "See you in a couple weeks, Richard and Cinda." Mum said goodbye to her parents and Dad wrapped his arms around me. With a loud crack, the four of us Apparated to our house. We arrived in the middle of the kitchen and Ellie came running into the room as soon as she heard us appear. "Hey, Ellie!" I grinned at her. "Welcome back, Amy," Ellie smiled, "Ellie is happy you is home." "Me, too," I agreed and tossed my overnight bag onto the kitchen floor. Mum eyed the bag and shook her head. "I'm taking him upstairs." Dad nodded and then Mum left to take the still sleeping Matt up to his room. I was pleasantly surprised that she didn't tell me to pick up my bag. Whatever was going on was certainly distracting her. Dad wearily wiped his forehead and started to walk into the living room. "You know, you really ought to pick that up." I shrugged and followed him. "Eh, I'll do it eventually." I was kind of interested to see how long it took Mum to tell me to take it up to my room. Dad sat down on the couch and I sat down in a chair across from him. He looked even more exhausted than he had the previous night. I wondered what time he and Mum went to bed. They were still up when I finally called it a night. "So," I began, "Are you going to tell me what's going on? And don't say it's nothing." Dad sighed, "Amy, honestly, I'm not entirely sure what's going on. There have been some, er, rumblings at work, and if they turn out to be anything, they could change things." I stared at him. He was telling me a whole lot of nothing cleverly packaged to sound like something. What were the 'rumblings'? Without knowing that, everything else was useless. What might change things? What would they change? "What rumblings?" "I'm not going to tell you that. I don't want you to worry. There's a distinct possibility that this won't turn out to be anything." "Why would I worry about it? What's it got to do with me?" I demanded. Dad rubbed his hands on his face. "Again, I'm not going to tell you." "If they won't turn out to be anything," I continued, "Why in the name of Merlin are you and Mum so worried about it?" "Because of what might happen if it does turn out to be anything!" Dad leaned forward and looked me in the eye, "Now please drop it. I assure you that you'll find out eventually if it turns out to be anything at all." I crossed my arms and frowned. "Fine." Dad and I sat in silence, neither of us getting up or doing much of anything. There were things I probably should have been doing. Homework, putting my stuff away, working on potions, but I really didn't want to do anything right now. Maybe if I'm constantly around Mum and Dad, one of them will let something slip and I'll find out what is going on. Mum came in a few minutes later and sat down next to Dad. I waited for her to tell to pick up my bag, but she never did. She kind of acted like I wasn't there. Good, I thought, now start talking about whatever is going on at Dad's work. "He's still sleeping," Mum told Dad. "That's good," Dad replied sleepily. "You look like you could use a nap." "So do you," Dad smiled. "I have to go into work later." "Of course." Yes, work! Talk about work! I stayed still with my ears poised to listen to whatever they were going to talk about. "I'm just glad that party's over," Dad commented, "No offense to your parents, but the company of their friends is taxing." "None taken. I completely agree. I lost count of the number of times I had to explain about where we've been the past year and a half." "Me, too. Just hope we told the same stories," Dad laughed. "Yeah," Mum agreed. "Are they planning anymore parties?" Dad asked. "Oh, I hope not. But knowing my parents they will. And now that we've been to one, they'll expect us to go to the rest." "I don't think I can take another one of those," Dad groaned. Hopefully the next party would be held while I'm at school. Then I wouldn't have to go at all. Mum and Dad didn't seem to be interested in discussing what was going on at Dad's office, although that was probably because I was in the room. They just kept talking about the party, which wasn't really something I wanted to talk about. It was kind of funny to listen to them make fun of Cinda and Richard's friends, though. They were laughing a lot but it seemed a bit forced. The two of them must be incredibly distracted by whatever was going on. Perhaps now would be a good time to ask them if Olivia could come over. They were tired and distracted, which would probably cause them to give in faster. I waited for a pause in their conversation and cleared my throat. Mum and Dad looked up and waited for me to say something. "Um, Mum, Dad," I began, "I was wondering if maybe Olivia could come over for a couple days." Mum and Dad looked at each other and seemed to be having a wordless conversation. I hated it when they did that. The forced laughter had died away from their faces and was replaced by more worry. "Oh, I'm not too sure, Amy," Mum replied. "Why not? She's never been here before!" I pleaded. "We've been through this before," Mum reminded me. Of course we had. We went through it every holiday and they always said no. "I know that. But I don't get why she can't come. I mean, it's not around the full moon, so she'll never suspect a thing!" "She has a point," Dad said after a few minutes. "I know, it's just with everything going on..." Mum trailed off. "She won't find out about that by spending a few days here, Julie," Dad replied. "It's really not fair to Amy that we don't let her friends visit." Mum thought for a few moments. "All right, she can stay for a couple days." "Really?" I stared at them in shock. That had been easier than I thought. "I suppose," Mum sighed. "Tell her she can come sometime next week and stay for three nights or so." I stood up and ran over to my parents. "Thank you so much!" I grinned and hugged each of them. "Go write her a letter and come back down in about fifteen minutes," Dad told me, "We'll send it off with Jasper along with a letter your mother and I need to send." I nodded and ran out of the room. As I was turning into the hallway I noticed that the two of them were whispering to each other and looked tense again. Was it about Olivia visiting or something else? My curiosity about what was worrying them waned now that I was allowed to invite Olivia over. Nothing else seemed to matter right now. My room was just as I left it and I hurried over to my desk. I grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill and scribbled out a note to Olivia asking her what days she would be able to come. She was going to freak out when she read my letter. Olivia has been asking me for the past year when she would be able to see my house. I've told her all about it and she's absolutely enthralled with it. She thinks it would be so cool to live in a manor. I've told her that it's not all it's cracked up to be, but she wants to see for herself. A glance at the clock told me that it had only been five minutes since I left the living room. Why had Dad told me to wait fifteen minutes? Did he really think it would take me that long to write a letter? I decided not to bother with waiting fifteen minutes and ran back to the living room. Mum and Dad weren't there when I got there. Ellie was dusting some shelves. "Hey, Ellie," I greeted her. "Hi Amy," Ellie replied. "Guess what? Olivia is going to come over next week!" I grinned. Ellie smiled, "Oh, good, Ellie has been wanting to meet Olivia." "Do you know where my parents are?" I asked, "They were here before and said they'd send this to Olivia along with something they had to send." "Mistress said she and Master had to be writing a letter in Master's office. They is not wanting to be disturbed and is saying they is coming out soon." "Oh," I sighed and sank down into a chair. "I'll wait then." I wasn't really that curious about the two of them secretly writing a letter. They did so on a regular basis, usually trying to find cures for lycanthropy. I was just incredibly impatient to get this letter out. I wanted it to get to Olivia as soon as possible. If only I had my own owl. Mum and Dad emerged from the office a short while later and came into the living room with Jasper flying behind them. Mum was clutching a letter in her hand and neither of them looked any less tense than before. I handed Dad my letter and he affixed both envelopes to Jasper's leg. "Let me know as soon when she'll be here as she replies," Mum told me. "I will." Dad glanced at his watch. "I've got to go into the office now. I'll see you two later, although I'm not sure when I'll be back." He kissed Mum and gave me a hug. "Bye, Dad, and thanks for letting Olivia come over." "Bye, honey," Mum said. Dad nodded and opened a nearby window. Jasper flew out of it and Dad closed it once more. He walked over to the fireplace and within seconds he had Flooed to work. ****** Olivia sent me an owl the next day. She said that she could come on Monday, which was four days away. Nevertheless, the four days seemed to drag by. Dad spent everyday at work, working longer hours than he ever had before. Mum still seemed overly anxious about something and wouldn't tell me what it was. When Dad was actually home, the two of them spent hours locked up in Dad's office talking about something. Matt seemed oblivious to the whole thing and played outside or with his Christmas presents. He begged me to play with him a few times and I gave in, but really didn't feel like it. I was too excited about Olivia coming to do one thing for any length of time. I worked on potions and on homework, or when it was dark I star gazed. But mostly I just wandered around the house and tried not to think about how slowly the time was passing. I got up late on Sunday morning, most likely do to the fact that I stayed up star gazing the previous night. One more day, I thought, and then Olivia would be over. If I could just wait one more day. I got out of bed and threw some clothes on, while wondering what I could do that day. Homework would be the smart option, but not something I really felt like doing. Potions would be a funner choice. But first, brekkie. The house was kind of quiet as I walked through the hallway. Dad had surely left for work hours ago. Matt's room was empty which meant he was probably outside enjoying the sunny day. Who knew what Mum was up to. I hadn't actually talked to her much over the past few days. She had been short and snappy whenever I said anything, so I just started ignoring her. I wished whatever it was that was bothering her and Dad would just stop. It was making this holiday awkward and not nearly as fun as it should have been. At least Olivia would be there tomorrow. The silence stopped as soon as I descended the stairs to the main floor. I heard a faint muffled sobbing noise coming from the kitchen. I stopped in front of the stairs and listened for a moment. Who was that? It didn't sound like Matt and his crying was usually the only crying in the house. I cautiously crept towards the kitchen and paused before entering. I peeked into the room and saw Mum sitting at the table with her head in her hands. It was her. Mum was crying. There was an opened letter sitting next to a cup of coffee. I swallowed nervously and walked over to her. She didn't seem to notice me as I sat down across from her and watched her for a few moments. "Mum?" I asked quietly. "Is something wrong?" That was kind of a stupid question. Obviously something was wrong or she wouldn't have been crying. But it was what everyone always seemed to ask in a situation like this. Mum startled and looked up at me with her tear streaked face. Her eyes were red and blotchy and it looked like she had been crying for a while now. She shook her head, but not in a way that was answering my question. Then she returned to her previous position without saying a word. I sat awkwardly for a little while, glancing up at Mum and then towards the folded up letter next to her. I never knew what to do in these kinds of situations. Mum cried a lot right after Matt was bit and I never knew quite the way to comfort her. Only this time it seemed worse because of how strained our relationship had been the past few days. My eyes kept drifting to the letter. It was like it was calling to me or something. I wanted nothing more than to just pick it up and read it. My hand slowly crept along the table, inching closer and closer to the letter. I watched Mum as I did so. She hadn't looked up and did not seem to notice that I was going to take her letter. Normally if I tried something like this Mum would snatch it away from me and tell me it was rude to read others' mail. This time she didn't do anything. I picked up the letter and unfolded it. I immediately noticed the familiar letterhead of my school. I swallowed and my heart thudded. Was this about me? I couldn't recall doing something so bad that would bring my mother to tears. I continued down the page and read the short letter it contained. [i]Dear Mr. and Mrs. Walter Eckerton, I am writing in regards to your recent letter. You asked if your son could attend our school in four years. You informed us that he is a werewolf, who does not take Wolfsbane. How can you possibly expect us to accommodate a monster? I find it unbelievable that you actually thought we would accept him to our institution. We have never ever accepted a werewolf to our school and do not intend to start now. Doing so would put all our other students at risk which is not something we wish to do. To think that you had the nerve to ask us if a werewolf could attend boggles my mind. Let alone a werewolf that isn't even on Wolfsbane. Keep your werewolf child away from us and do not contact us any further. Doing so will cause us to contact the proper authorities. Sincerely, Addair Killigan Headmaster The Australian School of Sorcery[/i] I threw the letter down on the table and stared at Mum. She was looking at me now and obviously knew that I had read the letter. I glared at the piece of parchment that my headmaster had sent my parents. I never particularly liked Killigan, but wouldn't have expected him to send my parents such an awful letter. I honestly hadn't thought much about my brother attending school. I went to Muggle school before I went to the Australian School of Sorcery, but Matt had been home schooled from the start. He was bitten a few weeks before he would have started Muggle school. I kind of just assumed he would go to my school once he was eleven, but I guess it wasn't as simple as that. When I thought about it, it did make sense. I mean, he couldn't exactly stay in school on the full moon. But couldn't he just come home for that or something? Mum rubbed her hands on her eyes and blew her nose before speaking to me. "Amy, I guess you know what is going on now." "I guess so," I replied quietly. But what did this have to do with Dad working long hours? "It seems that your brother cannot attend your school," her voice cracked, "I would never have expected such discrimination of Addair Killigan!" I nodded, but couldn't think of anything to say. I didn't know the headmaster that well. "He was my Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!" Mum continued, "To think he would deny a child of an education just because of something they can't control!" Mum seemed to have passed the initial stage of shock and crying and had entered the stage of anger. She stood up with murder in her eyes and stalked out of the room. I quickly followed her to the living room. She grabbed the pot of floo powder. She threw it into the fireplace and stuck her head in. "Department for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures, Head Office," I heard her shout in. Whatever she told Dad, I heard nothing of it. She stayed in the fireplace with her head in Dad's office for nearly ten minutes, presumably talking about the letter. Her face was still filled with anger when she left the floo. "Your father is coming home to discuss things in about ten minutes," she said in a voice that I knew not to argue with, "We'll be in his office. Go outside and watch your brother." I nodded and r