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Glad I Don't Work There
Author: Harry Potter
Date: 08-14-07 19:55
Harry apparates into the front yard of Wildwood, noting that he needs to do a bit of degnoming along the walkway when he sees not one but two Gnomes sticking their potato shaped heads out from behind two potted plants. Maybe he'll do that this weekend. The whole yard could probably stand a good degnoming.
Opening the front door, Harry calls out, "Janine? Pinky? I'm home."
Walking through the quiet house, Harry sniffs the air appreciatively. Harry's mouth starts to water and although he'd not been hungry when he first walked in, now he is. As if on cue, Pinky pokes his head out of the kitchen.
"Pot roast with carrots, peas, and potatoes for dinner. Be ready to sit down in ten minutes. Here is a butterbeer though Pinky is wondering if Harry wants something stronger?"
From the direction of the bedrooms and bathroom, Janine says, "I had an urge for something stronger so I can well understand if you do want something stronger."
Janine reaches Harry and he gives her a kiss. "How was your day?"
She shrugs, "Pretty much the same as yesterday. Good but largely uneventful. I have to say that I'm sort of glad you left before the paper came."
Pinky, by this time has handed Harry the butterbeer, and gone back into the kitchen to check on supper but the House Elf still adds his two knuts, "Pinky is very glad not to have seen Harry's reaction to the latest news."
Rocko thumps his tail as Janine and Harry sit down on the couch for the few minutes left before Pinky tells them supper's ready. Harry leans over to scratch the large dog's belly. "I read the paper at work. I was more subdued then I have been when reading everything that's been printed about Hogwarts. I'm glad now I'm not at the Ministry or I'd have let Minister Smythe-Jones know in no uncertain tersm what I think of segregation inside the Ministry and at Hogwarts."
Janine laughs mirthlessly, "You have already done that when the first news came out about Hogwarts."
Harry nods, "You're right. I'd be without a job now." He doesn't say aloud that he's glad Stanford & Howard don't fall under the regular Ministry umbrella or else he'd probably have quit today.
Pinky loudly calls, "Dinner!"
Harry stands, offering a hand to Janine to help her off the couch. Glumly he says, "I thought we were done with all this crap when Voldemort died."
Janine gives Harry a quick hug, "We all did."
Chapstick and Chapped Lips and Things Like...
Author: Charisma Stone
Date: 08-14-07 20:18
Charms.
There were hundreds of charms, thousands of them and they were only going to learn a few of them here at Hogwarts in the expanse of the seven years that the students were required to attend. She had looked through the Charms text and was amazed by what was in there. She liked class with Professor Flitwick, he was a grand teacher really. She had no idea what class was like with the head of Gryffindor, Carmella Flume, and truthfully she didn't want to know, because she had a feeling that the Pures got away without having to do a single scroll of homework. Simply because it was -their- right to be eased through their education with the highest marks possible.
Class soon ended and it was time for History of Magic, she liked Professor Whitman, and so far was pulling high marks in the woman's class. It helps that she can make history interesting, which is good, because had it not been, then Isma quickly would have fallen asleep in the middle of class. She was glad however, for the hour break between History of Magic and Potions.
Right after History of Magic let out, she'd gone to the Great Hall and grabbed a sandwich and a cup of pumpkin juice and settled herself on the expanse of the staircase that lead up to the Great Hall. Potions book splayed out on her lap as she read over the lesson that Professor Snape was going to be giving today, making sure that she knew all the steps that would be involved in the potion as well as some knowledge behind some of the ingredients that they would be working with.
"And just what do you think you are doing mud-blood?" Victoria Visconti said as she and a sixth year named Doris Dibble over shadowed her.
"R..reading for potions, which I've need to get to in twenty minutes." She said meekly, looking up at the two pureblooded students who were both above her in year and apparently now in blood status.
"If you weren't a lowly first year, I'd curse you into doing my homework too." Victoria said with a smirk, and she and Doris laughed. At that moment, an owl flew in and deposited an envelope in Charisma's lap. Doris got to it before Isma's fingers could close on the letter, she saw it long enough to know that it was from Charlie.
Without a care the sixth year Slytherin ripped open the envelope and tugged out the letter. In a cutesy sing-song voice she read the letter aloud...making a mockery of the letter from Isma's best friend.
"My dearest Isma... Oh, how sickeningly cute. She's got herself a little muggle boyfriend." Doris cackled and continued on. "You are a what? Like flying brooms and wands and all that? Is that why the letter was delivered by an owl? Never thought people would use owls to deliver the post. Poor dillusional muggle. Sad really. Lets see what else wittle Chawee has to say hmm? Why would they separate you because you are not...pure blooded wizard? Are they mental? They really treat the other students like they are bloody royalty? Maybe your mum will let you transfer to another school... Yes, that's it little mud-blood transfer to another school. Just wait until all the ministries follow the example of this one. All the wizarding schools will be separated and soon the muggles and mud-bloods will be right where they belong. Beneath us purebloods."
Victoria tugged the letter from Doris and continued reading, mimicing Doris' sing-song voice. "Dieter asks about you, he worries about you...Write him soon? Aww, the little mud-blood has two boyfriends. Both of them stinking muggles...she deserves them. Pathetic little mud-blood."
Having spent fifteen minutes tormenting the poor girl, the pair of Slytherin would stalk off, tipping Charisma's nearly full cup of pumpkin juice. She didn't have time to change, she'd have to go to Potions soaking wet. That, she could live with, but it was the fact that Victoria had shredded the letter from Charlie with a mere flick of her wand. Gathering up the pieces, she'd see if someone could put it back together so she could reread it and respond to him.
Right now, she was going to be late for Potions. With tears burning her eyes she raced off, tucking the scraps of letter into one of the inner pockets of her satchel and dashing past the doors to the Pures only Common Commons and down into the Dungeon, sneaking in just as Professor Snape called her name in roll call.
Singled Out
Author: Griet
Date: 08-14-07 20:35
"Be careful where you place your arm," Cornelia whispered. She and Griet sat next to each other at the Slytherin table, and a purple line separated them. "You missed it this morning, but one of those Hufflepuff nons got in trouble with Professor Yaxley after someone accused her of putting her arm over the line. He took points away from her and gave her detention. I'm really curious what he's going to make her do tonight. I bet it'll be ghastly. He seems the type."
Griet, whose arm was no where near the line, shrugged her shoulders. "Did she really have her arm over the line or was he just picking on her because she's a non?"
"Don't say that so loud, Griet," Cornelia scolded quickly. "I'm sure if he or any of the others were to hear you accusing or even just thinking that they're purposefully treating nons unfairly, you would get in big trouble."
Cornelia didn't terribly care that other nons were getting mistreated. She was of the mindset that pures were superior, but she didn't consider Griet a non even though she was a halfbreed. Griet had been born into a pureblood family and had only recently suffered the werewolf bite that had changed her life forever.
"I wrote to Mum and Dad, by the way," Cornelia said.
"Oh?"
"I asked them to come petition to Professor Snider to get Aleydis moved from Hufflepuff to Slytherin and to get you in with the pures. You are one."
"Not anymore," Griet muttered.
"Bullocks."
"Miss Vanderbilt."
Both Cornelia and Griet looked up at the speaker and saw Professor Snider standing directly behind them. Cornelia thought she might be in trouble for swearing, but Professor Snider apparently had no comment for her. Instead she spoke to Griet.
"Please, follow me into my office. I would like to have a word with you."
Griet exchanged a bewildered look with Cornelia and then followed Professor Snider out of the Great Hall and to the office that had only recently belonged to Professor Dumbledore. Many of Dumbledore's old trinkets remained, but the office had a decidedly more luxurious look to it, with leather seating everywhere and polished surfaces gleaming in the lamplight.
Griet was not asked to sit down. So, she stood in front of Snider's desk, while the Headmistress eased herself into a wing-backed armchair that had probably cost a fortune.
"Is it true that on the night of September 2nd, Professor Snape escorted you to the," she paused, pointing an index finger at a notepad on her desk, "Shrieking Shack?" she finished, looking at Griet again.
"Yes, ma'am."
"And why would a Hogwarts professor escort a school girl off the grounds anytime other than an officially supervised field trip?"
Griet thought Snider knew about her situation. "It's because I'm a... a werewolf. I spend every cycle during term at the Shrieking Shack."
Professor Snider leaned back in her chair. "I'm afraid Professor Dumbledore's old policies and procedures no longer apply here. The next full moon is," she dropped her gaze to a calendar on her desk before looking Griet in the eye again, "October 2nd. You will report to a room I will have specially created for your confinement. Is that clear?"
"Yes, professor," Griet said, wondering if Snape knew about this yet.
"Very well, you may go."
Griet left the office without hesitation, wanting nothing more than to be out of Hairy the Snider's sight.
Need To Think
Author: Skyler
Date: 08-15-07 04:21
Skyler had woken early. She couldn't sleep but that was normal these days. She went down to breakfast early hoping to miss Jake but she didn't. It was like he was waiting for her. He smiled and waved her over. She turned and walked out. She was going to take a walk along the garden instead and trie to clear her head. The pureblood common room bugged her. It was nice but unnecessary. She raked her hands through her hair and wished things were back to normal and it was all a dream but everytime she opened her eyes reality hit her, it more like slapped her across the face.
"SKYLER STOP!" she heard. She looked up and turned around. Jake was jogging after her.
"Man, I called you like four times. You okay?" he asked. She rolled her eyes.
"Like you care," she muttered.
"I do care," he said defensively. She looked up at him and shook her head.
"What's your deal?" she asked irritated with him.
"What do you mean?" he asked back obviously confused. She huffed and shook her head.
"Forget it," she replied. He caught her hand and she yanked it out of his grasp.
"Skyler, what's wrong with you?" he asked looking a little upset by her reaction.
"What's wrong with me? I should ask you the same question! Did you hit your head or something? I mean we were okay two summers ago, but you're the one who acted like we had never met and weren't friends. Now all of a sudden you want to date me?!" she retorted. Her anger was rising quickly and she didn't want to go to class mad.
"I was wrong, I'm sorry" he said. She shook her head.
"Yeah, you were wrong alright," she snapped. He looked away and took a deep breath.
"Look, we have to get to class. At least let me walk with you?" he asked. She shook her head.
"No, I need to think. I'll see you in class" she said and hurried away from him.
Trip to Egypt
Author: Hermione Granger
Date: 08-15-07 15:00
Hermione had a rucksack packed with essentials needed for world travel. Although it didn't look like it could hold very much, it held more than Hermione probably needed for her trip to Egypt. She had it on the floor by her feet, where she stood at a table with Ron and Harry on either side of her. She'd spread a map out over the table and pointed to it with her index finger as she spoke.
"I did some research for our trip," she started.
"Some?" Ron asked Harry over Hermione's shoulder. He'd seen how many books Hermione had piled into her rucksack.
"Egypt has at least six main oases, Al-Fayyum, Bahariya, Farafra, Dakhla, Kharga and Siwah. Al-Fayyum is the closest to Cairo, but judging by the rainfall tables I've consulted, I think our best bet is to start with Siwah. It hadn't rained there in a while, but there was a pretty hefty downpour recently that caused some flooding. I hope the oasis wasn't oversaturated so that the Adenius Aegyptus still had a chance to grow. If that fails, I would suggest Al-Fayyum next, simply because the Cairo area seems to receive more rainfall than the rest of Egypt. I don't know if the average rainfall is enough to warrant a "considerate" rating, which, according to the Book of Kem Heka is what the Adenius Aegyptus needs to flourish, but maybe we'll get lucky. It actually did rain a little bit more than average this summer, but I just don't know if it'll be enough."
She looked up from the map, first at Ron and then at Harry. "So, are we clear?"
"Crystal," Harry replied.
"Yeah," Ron echoed. "So, when do we leave?"
Hermione pointed her wand at the map. It rolled up immediately. She opened up her rucksack and stuffed it inside, even though it looked far too long to fit. She slung the rucksack over her shoulder and said, "Immediately."
They apparated to Egypt with several layovers along the way, like Marseille, France and Tunis, Tunisia. They arrived together on the edge of the oasis, which was 80 km or 50 mi in length and 20 km or 12 mi in width. The sun was shining brightly, but the air was very dry, so the trio didn't immediately start to sweat in places they weren't accustomed to sweating.
"We have a lot of ground to cover," Harry murmured, slipping on some sunglasses to shield his eyes from the bright sun.
Hermione put her hair up into a ponytail and then wrapped it around into a bun. "I think we'll manage. Just remember, we're doing this for Bill. If we can find that plant, we can wake him up. You remember what it looks like, right?"
Hermione had found a picture of the plant in one Herbology book she'd borrowed from the library at St. Emrys. The plant's description had said nothing of its curative properties, only giving its appearance and geography.
"Yes, and you were so kind as to give us each a diagram and photograph so that we know exactly what we're looking for," Ron reminded, patting the folded piece of parchment in his pocket.
"Good, well, there's no time to waste. Let's start looking."
(Kate) Suffering
Author: Bronwyn Dewhurst
Date: 08-15-07 15:26
After Herbology, Kate went straight to Hufflepuff House and climbed into her four-poster bed in the dormitory room she shared with Sheri Gates, Sophia Hall, Sadie Mickle and Abigail Tibbs and closed the curtains so that she could cry without anyone seeing her. Last night's detention had been worse than Kate had ever imagined. Honestly, she never thought she would ever get detention in her life. She'd never been one to break the rules.
Now she knew she didn't have to break the rules to get into trouble. Her blood status made her a troublesome person, which really wasn't fair, because it wasn't her fault that she had a Muggle mother. Not that she minded, because she didn't. She loved her mum.
She'd envisoned detention as writing lines or doing some sort of grunt work for a professor, like cleaning up a classroom or filing papers. Professor Yaxley had made her write lines, but he'd forced her to use a quill he'd borrowed from someone he knew from the Ministry of Magic. Each word she wrote etched itself on the back of her hand, so that by the end of the evening she'd been bleeding so much that she'd almost passed out. Professor Yaxley had told her to go straight to the common room, not to the Hospital Wing, where she'd rather have gone.
Kate looked at her hand now. The words were still red on the back of her hand: I am inferior to purebloods. She curled up into a ball and started to cry again, wishing she could write home to her parents but knowing that it would hurt too much to hold a regular quill in her hand. She'd ask someone else to do it, but she didn't have any friends. She really thought Hogwarts would be different––a truly magical place––but all it was was one big nightmare.
Family Drama
Author: Marzipan
Date: 08-15-07 15:51
The first year class ended. The students had spent the past hour discussing flirtwort and making and planting cuttings of the herb. Marzi left the greenhouse as it was and moved into the next one, which had been set up to accommodate the second years. Today, they would learn about knotgrass and then collect the herb's juice.
She checked off attendance in her book as each student entered the greenhouse, all the while thinking about her drama outside of Hogwarts. Constantius Ravenscroft was still very much on the run, though he'd allegedly been sighted in Lithuania. Aurors were following up on the matter and hoped to have him in custody soon.
Marzi knew that she would feel better knowing her boyfriend's father was in jail where he belonged. Weston wanted the very same thing, which Marzipan thought must feel odd, as children generally didn't want terrible things for their parents, but then Constantius had done very terrible things and he and Weston had never been very close. Marzi wasn't close to her mother, so perhaps she could understand a little bit.
Georgia had not contacted Marzi since the howler from last week. Marzi had, however, heard from her half-sister Carolina, who, despite everything, genuinely liked Marzi. Carolina had mentioned that she hadn't heard anything from her father, though she wished he would just turn himself in because it would be easier on himself and the family. Carolina had also said that she hadn't wanted to believe anything she'd heard about her father but had somehow deep down known it all to be true. His flight from law enforcement just seemed to solidify his guilt.
Marzi's half-brother Marius, however, was in great denial. Carolina had written that Marius not only despised Marzi for getting his father in trouble but also despised Weston for betraying the family. Marzi supposed she could understand Marius' feelings, but she hoped he would realize that his father was bad news and deserved to be behind bars.
Realizing all her students were assembled, Marzi began her lecture on knotgrass.
In Want Of A Moment Alone
Author: Ron Weasley
Date: 08-15-07 16:02
Ron holds up one hand. "How about an organized plan for searching?"
Harry does a double take, quipping, "Wow, didn't know you could throw your voice, Hermione."
Ron makes a you're so funny, not face at Harry and pulls out from his pack a cylinder of they type used for storing posters or maps. Ron pulls out the maps rolled inside, leafing through them until he finds the one for the Siwah oasis. "When you suggested this jaunt, Hermione, I spoke to Kingsley. He got me copies of Ministry maps that show the sections of each oasis that are more Wizarding in nature."
Hermione, looking impressed, says, "Meaning we narrow down where in each oasis we would need to look for a Wizaring plant. Well done, Ron!"
Ron beams at the praise, his expression earning a chuckle from Harry. They study the map, divying up who searches which sections. They leave the tent Harry brought as well as their supplies in a spot they charm so that anyone else who might go by won't be as likely to notice their things. They aren't anticipating any problems but why invite the chance of theft?
They'd been searching for over an hour, each of them making sure to stay hydrated in the desert heat when Ron finds a small, pretty flower that looks very much like the picture of Adenius Aegyptus. The only problem is that the petals are a pale shade of blue.
Ron locates Hermione, coming up behind her to snake his arms around her waste and kissing the back of her neck. Hermione turns in his arms and tilts her head up, offering Ron her lips. Just as their lips touch Harry's voice says practically in Ron's ear, "When you two are done snogging, how about a snack?"
With Harry there to ruin the moment, the kiss is short. Hermione turns businesslike, "No luck, either of you. After the snack we get to it again then."
Harry asks, "What makes you think we've not had any luck?"
Hermione reasonably answers, "Because if you had, you would have been overjoyed at finding Bill's cure. The other two of us wouldn't need to ask what all the jumping and screams of glee were about."
"I found something, actually. I'm just not sure if it's anything of significance," Ron states. He explains about the pale blue petals on the flower.
Hermione shakes her head, "The Kem Heka description states golden and white. If what you found is a form of Adenius Aegyptus, it's not the one we need."
Ron sighs, shoots Harry a look and tries to send via telepathy that Harry needs to make himself scarce before their little break is over so that Hermione and he can have a few minutes totally alone. Harry just sits there though, asking Hermione her thoughts on the latest news about the Ministry and whether either of them know if there's been more about Hogwarts.