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Grounded - But Out for Lunch
Author: Adina Blackwood
Date: 05-07-10 18:33
Adina plopped back down the couch and slid a hand through her hair. She had absolutely nothing to do, she'd gotten grounded for the weekend because she'd failed to actually show up for all of her tutoring appointments yesterday - or do much of anything else. She'd been invited by Marlow's family to the Spring Social today, however, she was stuck, miserable within the apartment.
Worst of all, she had the urge to run, the urge to get free of these four walls and head out and simply go until she couldn't any more. She'd then wanted to take a nap beneath the trees before running almost home. However, she had no desire to be grounded for the rest of her time before going to Hogwarts. Which is probably what is giong to happen if she goes anywhere this weekend without permission.
They wouldn't know if she went out of the house - really, they wouldn't, and she wanted some ice cream, and there was absolutely none in the apartment. Besides, they said she wasn't technically allowed to leave Diagon Alley. She could go out and get lunch because the house elf hadn't gone to the market yet. So, she jumped up and headed into her room and hopped into a pair of jeans - they were her favorite pair.
Ripped jeans and a t-shirt sporting a muggle band that her friend Claudette had introduced her to about a year ago. It was a band called "The Rolling Stones" and she'd fallen in love with the band. She slipped on a pair of sandals and headed out of the apartment.
Getting an ice cream cone from the parlor she headed down the street and debated on where she actually wanted to eat lunch. The ice cream had been top priority for its sweetness. She looked much like a muggle, even though she was a full blooded witch - and thankful that her parents hadn't entirely been all "blood status" crazed, and she'd heard rumors of what Wizarding Great Britain had been only a year ago, and was quite thankful that she had been in Greece.
She'd settled on going to Delia's and spent some time talking to Delia since the shop wasn't all that busy. Checking the time, she headed back to the apartment and into her room, she'd been tempted after lunch at Delia's to explore Knockturn Alley, however, she wasn't going to push her luck this weekend, because that meant that she would loose more freedoms and that was not something she was willing to sacrifice. Besides, she wanted to spend some time with Marlow next weekend if she could.
Astrid Investigates
Author: Lysander Stratford
Date: 05-07-10 19:08
Astrid glanced at the address she'd taken down during her sleuthing in her determined quest to find out who was threatening Lysander. It had been difficult finding a starting point, since she hadn't been in his life for all that long. The only person she knew of who had a grudge when it came to Lysander was her own ex Varus, and he was locked away in a mental institution right now. She really didn't believe he had anything to do with the letters, particularly since the earliest one had arrived before Lysander and Astrid had even met.
If not Varus, then who else might have a problem with Lysander? And why? It took Astrid a long time to come up with a possibility, and once the idea came to mind, she felt quite certain that it was a worthy lead to pursue.
Lysander had told her a little bit about Charlotte's mother and why they weren't together. Astrid supposed that she would be upset too, if she'd been slipped a love potion or been taken advantage of when she hadn't been in her right mind. She knew that Lysander didn't regret having Charlotte, though. She was the greatest joy in his world. It's just too bad the circumstances of her birth weren't the most ideal.
Astrid wondered if the threatening notes came from Aralyn Fox. She knew that Lysander had won full custody after Aralyn had seemed unfit to be Charlotte's legal guardian. Perhaps she was angry or upset that she wasn't in her daughter's life and wanted revenge on Lysander for keeping mother and daughter apart.
Astrid couldn't say that she felt Aralyn was the culprit behind the notes, but it was the only idea she had at the moment, and not a bad one at that. She tried tracking down Aralyn by any means possible that did not involve asking Lysander for an address. In the end, she couldn't locate Aralyn, but she did find out who her parents were and where they lived.
Astrid had gone there pretending to be an old friend of Aralyn's and wanting to know where she could be found these days. Michael and Dawn Fox lived in a wizarding community called Ashton-Hotwell in Bristol and graciously invited Astrid inside their lovely home for a cup of tea. She made up a story about how she knew Aralyn, not once mentioning Lysander or Charlotte's names. She wasn't sure how the Foxes felt about the Stratfords, even their own granddaughter. It could very well be a sore subject that might not yield the result Astrid wanted.
In the end, they revealed that their daughter had moved to Argentina, where she lived with her husband in the countryside, which is how Astrid found herself walking up the drive of a ranchhouse in Santa Cruz. She climbed onto the front porch and, after tucking away the scrap of parchment onto which she'd written Aralyn's address, knocked on the door.
She only had to wait a moment for someone to answer. It was a slim woman, with shoulder-length, straight, dark hair and brown eyes. She looked at Astrid questioningly.
"Yes?" she asked in English.
"Are you Aralyn?" Astrid asked.
"Yes, and you are?"
"My name is Astrid. I think we share a common acquaintance. His name is Lysander."
Aralyn looked at Astrid blankly. "Who?"
Twelfth Apparition Lesson
Author: Jolyon
Date: 05-09-10 10:49
At Professor Flitwick's request, Jolyon found himself in the Great Hall supervising the final apparition lesson of the school year. Because he hadn't chaperoned more than just a couple of the lessons, he wasn't quite as tired of the incessant "Destinaton, Determination and Deliberation" chant as some of his other colleagues and the students taking part in the class.
For the most part, he didn't have to intervene to reverse a splinch or make sure the students were paying attention. By now, they had all mastered apparating, though overconfidence or lack of full concentration caused a mistake here and there. Jolyon could tell that they were ready for their last lesson to end and that they couldn't wait to finally be licensed to apparate.
The exams would take place a week from today, same time, same place. Whether or not Jolyon had a role in the event remained to be seen. He supposed that Professor Flitwick, or perhaps Professors McGonagall or Dumbledore would let him know if he was needed.
Jolyon stopped pacing the room and moved to one of the walls, leaning against it with his arms folded over his chest. His mind wandered to just over a week ago when his father had unexpectedly stopped by and delivered an envelope to him.
"What is it?" Jolyon had asked.
Emanuel Kent threw the envelope in the grass when his son wouldn't accept it and said, "Something you should know about your dear old dad."
At the time, Jolyon had wondered if the dear old dad in question had been Emanuel himself. He was a schemer and had probably come up with a new way to elicit information from other individuals for his own personal gain.
After supper in the Great Hall, Jolyon had gone to his quarters and opened the envelope. The material inside hadn't been about Emanuel, but about Charles Abbott, Jolyon's biological father.
Included were photographs of Charles from when he'd been a teenager. Some appeared to be mugshots, others seemed to be taken from a court proceeding, and others still were clipped from the newspaper and accompanied by news stories. There was a court transcript and case reports as well.
According to the data, Charles Abbott had killed someone, been convicted and sent to the juvenile detention wing of Azkaban Fortress. This information shocked Jolyon, but he felt more angry with the man who'd raised him, than shaken by the news that his biological father had blood on his hands. Obviously, Emanuel wanted to upset his son. He didn't want Jolyon to like Charles, and he wanted him to see that the wizard wasn't a good person.
Jolyon didn't necessarily believe that, though. The crime had occurred when Charles had been a teenager. He'd matured since then and made a good life for himself. Besides, according to the records, Charles had felt great remorse for what he'd done and had said it had been an accident.
Jolyon hadn't yet spoken to Charles about it, though. He knew that his biological father was dealing with his poor health and although the revelation to his family that he'd fathered a son in another lifetime had gone perfectly well, Jolyon knew that Charles was still having to deal with the aftermath of such important news.
He wondered if the rest of the family even knew about Charles' criminal history. He wondered if his mother knew about it. At some point he would ask them both about it, but for now he would let it rest.
Curious, Very Curious
Author: Lysander Stratford
Date: 05-09-10 11:59
How many Lysanders did Aralyn know, or not know as the case seemed? Astrid thought for sure the name Lysander, even with no last name provided, would instantly put her Lysander to mind.
Astrid blinked in surprise at Aralyn. "Lysander. Lysander Stratford."
Aralyn took a long moment and then said, "Oh, from Hogwarts! We were in the same year and house together. I remember him well now that I think about it, even though we didn't run in the same circle back then. How's he doing? And how do you know him? And how is it you knew to find me here? I'm a long way from home!"
Aralyn laughed and opened the door wider to allow Astrid entry. She beckoned for her guest to follow her down a wide hall to a room towards the back of the house that overlooked more of the property and showed the horse stables in the background.
"Have a seat," she invited, and then she produced her wand and conjured a tray with two tall glasses and a pitcher of homemade lemonade. She poured herself a glass and then offered Astrid one.
"Thanks." Astrid wondered why Aralyn described Lysander as being someone she knew years ago from Hogwarts and not as the person who fathered her child. She sipped the lemonade, which had the perfect balance between tartness and sweetness.
"Can I get your name again?" Aralyn asked. "I'm sorry. I know you said it at the door but I forgot it already."
Astrid smiled. "My name is Astrid Thomason."
"Astrid Thomason," Aralyn said slowly, as if the name rung a bell. She suddenly cocked her head and looked at Astrid searchingly. "You look just like Chyler. I'm guessing you're her... sister? I didn't know she had one."
"Her cousin, actually. To answer your questions from earlier... Lysander's doing okay. He's still working at Twice Told Tales with Julian Valentine."
"I didn't know they were in business together. That's great!"
The statement caught Astrid by surprise. What was wrong with this woman? Of course she knew about the second hand bookshop in Hogsmeade.
"Erm, yes." She reached into her purse and pulled out a couple of photographs, which she passed to Aralyn. "And here's something I'm sure you'd like to see. Pictures of Charlotte."
Aralyn studied the photographs with a smile on her face. "Wow. You'll have to tell Lysander and Chyler congratulations from me. They did wind up getting married, didn't they? They were always attached at the hip at school. Merlin's beard, but she looks just like Lysander. Just like I remember him looking, anyway."
Aralyn passed the pictures back to the stunned Astrid. Why did Aralyn think Chyler was Charlotte's mother?
"They did," Astrid said, "shortly after they graduated, I think."
"That's really great. It's nice to hear about people from those days."
Aralyn furrowed her brow suddenly. "You didn't say what you're doing here, Astrid. What brought you to my doorstep?"
Astrid didn't even know how to answer that. She started suspecting that the reason Aralyn didn't remember certain things was because someone had tampered with her memories. Had it been Lysander, perhaps?
It might explain the threatening notes. Astrid didn't believe they came from Aralyn directly, but perhaps someone knew about the obliviation and wanted something from Lysander in exchange for his or her silence. It certainly was a possibility.
Astrid put on a bright smile. "I'm in the middle of a backpacking trip throughout all of South America and before I left home, I actually ran into your parents. They'd mentioned you were living here and since I'd heard you knew Lysander and Chyler, I thought I'd swing by and say hello."
Aralyn smiled. "That's nice of you. Do you need a place to stay?"
"Oh, no. Thank you," Astrid replied. "Actually, I should probably be heading on my way. I only wanted to stop by for a moment."
She drained her lemonade glass and got up. "Thanks. This was good, and it was nice meeting you, Aralyn."
"It was nice meeting you too, Astrid. Tell the old gang I said hello."
"I will."
Aralyn led Astrid back to the door. Astrid said another goodbye and then started walking. When she got far enough away from the ranchhouse, she started apparating back home.
Excursion Gone Wrong
Author: Illyria
Date: 05-09-10 13:34
Illyria took advantage of the day when there was nothing major planned at Hogwarts (other than the last apparition lesson of term, which she wasn't involved with since she was neither head of house nor deputy head of house) to go on a shopping excursion to Diagon Alley. With Professor Dumbledore's permission and after consulting Professor Quigley for ideas, Illyria made plans to go to the Astronomer's Nook for some supplies. Some of the telescopes could use replacing, and Illyria wanted to buy extra star charts, since it sometimes happened that a student forgot to bring one to class or buy enough to last the entire school year.
She stepped inside the store and went straight to the sales table to see what was up for grabs. She knew that Officer Eccleston was waiting outside somewhere, keeping an eye out for trouble. Neither hide nor hair had been heard from Roland, and if his absence continued for much longer without any clue as to where to find him, the search would likely get called off. Illyria was both worried for his safety and angry with him for leaving her in a lurch.
Just like he hadn't been found, the identity of the individual who'd sent her the anonymous letter hadn't been determined. She hadn't received another threat, but she worried that another would come along eventually, or worse. Officer Eccleston couldn't be her bodyguard forever.
Illyria just wanted things to go back to normal, but somehow she didn't think that would happen any time soon.
She busied herself with her shopping, picking up what she needed as well as some extras, like an old-fashioned astrolabe and a miniature armillary sphere. She paid for her purchases and used a shrinking and featherweight spell to make her shopping bags easier to bear. Then she stepped outside, but Officer Eccleston was no where to be found.
Illyria looked left and right, but she didn't see him anywhere. There were a lot of people wandering through Diagon Alley. It was Saturday, and those who worked during the week had time to run errands today. Still, it wasn't too crowded.
She wondered if he'd popped into one of the nearby shops. Illyria wasn't sure if she should move or if she should stay put and wait for him to come back. She had a bad feeling about waiting, though, and started moving in the direction of The Leaky Cauldron, pausing at each storefront window to see if she could spot Officer Eccleston inside.
She didn't see him anywhere, though. Just when she thought she should turn back and wait for him at the Astronomer's Nook, she heard an ear-piercing scream.
Everyone who heard it stopped and turned, moving in the direction of the source. Illyria found herself going too, and eventually she found an older woman shrieking hysterically and pointing a finger at something lying on the street. Illyria pushed herself forward and realized she was standing at the junction where Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley met. There was a body on the ground at the entrance to Knockturn Alley, located in the shadows so that it might only be noticeable to those traveling that way.
Illyria gasped, recognizing the dead wizard. It was Officer Eccleston, and from the looks of it, he'd been struck by the Killing Curse.