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Hobby
Author: Lysander Stratford
Date: 12-18-08 17:00
Lysander stood at the counter at Twice Told Tales and made notations onto a list of books on Ancient Runes and related subjects he'd made while doing his needs assessment work at the library at Hogwarts. In the wizarding world, weeding a damaged book or one that had yellowed with time wasn't at all necessary because there were any number of charms to mend loose pages, broken bindings, water stains, and all the other situations a used or even unused book might find itself in. The only reason to get rid of a library book was if the edition had been superseded or if it was no longer pertinent to the collection.
The library's runes section looked fairly good, in Lysander's opinion. The previous librarian had obviously done an excellent job in collection development. In his assessment so far, Lysander had only found one or two newer editions of books not yet replaced, but he hadn't found any gaps in need of filling, though his knowledge of what students specifically needed these days while studying Ancient Runes at Hogwarts wasn't thorough, as it had been years since he'd last taken the course himself. It seemed, however, a well-rounded collection.
In addition to putting the newer editions of older books onto the order list he would give to Professor Snider and purchase, pending her approval, he added books from the dozen or so catalogs he and Julian received regularly. He'd also made a couple of visits to some of his favorite booksellers, too.
Even though Lysander had no interest in being anywhere near Professor Snider, he found that he was thoroughly enjoying the project she'd given him. He'd always been the type of person who needed a hobby in addition to his career and his homelife.
To his surprise, the bell over the door jingled, signaling the arrival of a customer. He looked up from his notes, only to find Briar Rose entering with a basket of something very aromatic in her arms. She smiled and crossed the room to meet him at the counter.
"Hi Briar, what brings you to the shop?"
"Ariella baked some gingerbread men––I know the Christmas season is long over but Grace was adamant someone make her some. Unfortunately, the batch was a little too soft and we had a dozen or so accidents." She pulled back the red and white checkered cloth covering the treats and picked up a decapitated man. "His head's in here somewhere," she added with a grin.
"I know you and Julian are fond of gingerbread men, headless or not, so I thought I would drop them by. I threw in a couple of whole ones too, for Charlotte."
"Thank you!" Lysander said, accepting the basket from Briar. The gingerbread smelled so good, Lysander found one of the unattached heads and popped it into his mouth. It tasted good, too!
"Is Julian in?"
"In the office, last I checked," Lysander replied.
Briar smiled and excused herself to chat with Julian for a while, leaving Lysander with the basket of mostly imperfect gingerbread men and his Ancient Runes book list.
(Katherine) Brisbane, Australia
Author: Beck
Date: 12-18-08 17:34
Despite everything that had happened to her, Katherine couldn't believe her good luck. She had spent nearly a year in various forms of what rivaled hell itself, and she'd lived to tell the tale.
She could vividly remember the day she led a group of St. Emrys students on a protest within the halls of the university itself. It had been so exhilarating, so meaningful, and so frightening all at once. And even though she'd gotten stunned and arrested, Katherine hadn't regretted her actions and would do it again––though she wasn't very keen on repeating the consequences.
Katherine had been sentenced to six months in Azkaban. Although dull and demeaning in its own way, Azkaban had been a piece of cake compared to the horrors she'd endured while at The Mews, a community for nons and blood traitors, like herself. She shuddered, remembering her time there. As brief as it had been (in relative terms), it had felt like a lifetime or more.
Now she was in her half-brother Toby's flat, wearing brand new clothes Bronwyn and her friend Desi had picked out for her. It was the first time since her incarceration that she had clothes that actually fit and felt good against her skin. She'd luxuriated in several baths since finding freedom and had eaten the food she'd missed, though in measured amounts.
All in all, she felt lucky to have survived what many had not and what many were purportedly still enduring. She considered herself fortunate to have new clothes, long baths, and food that both smelled and tasted absolutely delicious––all things she'd long been denied and never thought to regain or experience again.
Toby, Bronwyn, and even Desi for her part had filled Katherine in on what she'd missed. Her rescuers and Aberforth had told her some things already, but it was nice hearing an account of the goings-on from her family. Toby had not notified his family of Katherine's return, fearing that the families of the escapees were being closely monitored. Katherine understood the logic and agreed to keep her news quiet for now, though she longed for a reunion with everyone else, especially Anthony, who was probably her favorite family member, seeing as he was the one she'd first met and who had ultimately been responsible for her learning the truth about her ancestry.
All that mattered now was that she was safe and that her whole future was once again before her.
(Dublin) Getting In To See Alecto
Author: Sirius Padfoot Black
Date: 12-19-08 19:03
Ron and Sirius weren't getting far in their quest to find information on Harry. Each in his own way was getting more discouraged every day that passed without even a little ground gained. For Sirius, with Drucilla still on that blasted mission of hers, the result is a man who's so grumpy and short tempered that he's difficult to be around for more than a minute. The only time his temper is subdued these days is if one of the children is present, especially if the child is his son or daughter.
Ron's no lightweight in the temper department either. At times the two men are so out of sorts while trying to work together that they end up communicating in grunts and growls. Of the two, Sirius is far worse than Ron and wonders how much longer the younger man will tolerate Sirius's anger since they are not making any progress in finding out if Harry's even still at Azkaban.
Both want to be face to face with Alecto Carrow but other members of the Order and those in the Resistance who call themselves more level headed when it comes to Carrow have nixed either Ron or Sirius even sitting in with others when the woman is questioned. This of course has not sat well with Ron and Sirius.
Having to go through the offices of Happy Haven, including Carrow's office, searching for any useful information left behind, the two had discussed again the desire to question Carrow without anyone else present. This led to Ron suggesting that one of them distract one of the people guarding Carrow while the other slips in and talks to her.
Sirius thought it a good plan if they could both find a reason to be at the Dublin location where Carrow's currently being held. There would also be the problem of figuring out which guard shift and exactly what the distraction would be. Ron would do the distracting once they have that part figured out and Sirius would slip in and question Carrow.
Ron isn't happy about that part but there's no denying that of the two of them, Sirius is the more formible for something like questioning a recalcitrant prisoner.
It turned out that the reason for both to be in Dublin wasn't hard to come by. This morning Ron helped Molly take breakfast to everyone at the Dublin location and Sirius was in Dublin meeting with a contact who claimed to have information about Order of the Phoenix member Emmeline Vance. It was natural for Sirius to stop in at the Dublin location afterwards.
The poor man on shift guarding Alecto came down with a violent stomach bug shortly after eating the plate of food and drinking the cup of tea brought to him by Ron. It came on so suddenly that when he was standing with hand over mouth and Ron offered to stand at the entrance of the room where Carrow is, all he could do was nod and run at the same time, just making it to the nearest loo in the nick of time.
It was then a simple matter of Ron letting Sirius through the door. They made sure no one was around to witness and Sirius had made it seem as though he were leaving the house entirely. The potion Ron slipped the guard should have the man occupied for awhile. If anyone comes by while Ron's standing guard, he'll point to the nearby loo, implying that he's only standing there for a short time so the guard on duty could take a little break.
Standing just inside the door now, Sirius feels his fury bubbling quickly to the surface. Sirius had always thought Alecto Carrow unattractive but never more so than now. It doesn't help that she sits on her cot, grinning at him as if there's some private joke.
"Well, well. Sirius Black. I suppose your relatives consider you the white sheep of the family."
"Do you know where Harry Potter is?"
"Get right to the point, don't you."
"Do you?"
She makes a lazy gesture with one hand. "Your friends didn't tell you?"
Sirius glares.
"Potter's dead, Black."
"You're lying," Sirius growls threateningly.
"Am I?"
"If Harry were dead, all of you would be shouting it from the rooftops. You'd have it front page of every newspaper in the Wizarding World. You lot would be giving interviews on the WWN."
"Excellent point."
"Last time I ask nicely. Do you know where Harry is?"
"Actually, I do."
This isn't the response Sirius was expecting.
"What?"
Carrow cackles. "I do know. Not telling though."
"It will be painful if you don't."
"It will be painful if I attempt it," she smirks.
"So you say."
"You think I'm afraid? I don't think you're supposed to be here, asking me about that annoyance named Potter. I think you don't have enough time to inflict any real, lasting pain."
"Perhaps not, but I could kill you and do the world a favor."
Carrow smirks again. "And risk losing your link to where dear little Harry is?"
The door opens and Ron says in a hushed voice, "They know he's ill and are getting a replacement. Hurry up!"
"Oh dear, and I was so looking forward to whatever method of information extraction you'd be using," Carrow says in an overly saccharine tone.
Sirius takes a step towards the cot. He snarls, "Tell me what you know or I will hurt you. Some broken bones. A few dislocated. An injury to your vocal cords so you can't call out in pain, leaving you in pain for hours before anyone checks on you."
"I doubt your friends would let you scarper away with a slap on the wrist once they learned of it."
Sirius is the one smirking now. "Obliviated memory. As far as anyone would know, you repeatedly fell off your cot."
Carrow's eyes rake Sirius from head to toe. She matter of factly says, "You would, wouldn't you? Perhaps not as different from other family members as you'd like to think, eh? I cannot tell you. You could break every bone then use the Cruciatus on me and I still could not tell you. I will, however, give you a hint, but only because it's amusing to think of you trying to figure out what it means."
Carrow smiles at the same time Ron cracks the door open to again urge, "Hurry up!"
"Right now, you're cold in your search, Black. You need to get warm. Very, very warm."
Ron raps on the door. Sirius can hear the urgency in the tapping. He glowers at Carrow and growls then raises his wand, "Obliviate!"
He quickly leaves the room then hurries from the house without being seen. Disapparating, Sirius heads for the St. Johns Wood manor house where he'll meet up with Ron later. He doubts by then he'll have any idea at all of what Carrow's sodding hint means.
Strategizing
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 12-20-08 13:20
Bill stood in the open square at Goen Bren, cold despite the overly warm clothing he wore. The chilly wind swept flocks of snow into the air and bit into the exposed skin on his face. He couldn't imagine how the community members dealt with the weather when they didn't have as many layers on as he did. Some, he knew, couldn't deal with it and had died or gotten frostbite, à la Minerva McGonagall, but more than he could ever imagined seemed hardy enough to survive, despite the odds against them.
He studied the thinner man in front of him, wishing he could supply him with the coat he was wearing but knowing he could not. Dedalus Diggle was a prime example of a survivor. He looked to have aged considerably since moving to Goen Bren but nonetheless had a resiliency about him that would keep him going, no matter what.
Bill had revealed himself to Dedalus some time ago. It hadn't been easy convincing the Order of the Phoenix member to trust Bill was who he said he was, but ultimately, Bill had been convincing enough. Since the revelation, Bill had been supplying Dedalus with all sorts of contraband... woolen socks, flannel undershirts, and other items that would keep the community members marginally warmer during the harsh, Welsh winter. He'd also started handing out wands.
Getting the contraband in hadn't been as easy as Bill would have liked, on account of the increase in security at the community. Most of the other guards didn't really know the cause for the changes, but Bill knew the reason. The Minister of Magic didn't want more nons and blood traitors escaping, even if it seemed unlikely that they knew about some of their counterparts succeeding in doing so. Bill more or less limited himself to one or two items per trip and relied on concealing charms to prevent someone from finding them on his person, were he to be checked. Already, he'd gone in for an interview to test his loyalties. He'd feared detection but had managed to pass the test. He also knew that more checks like those he and the other guards had been sent on when he and Weston discovered Minerva McGonagall's presence at the community were likely to happen, and that the contraband he handed out would have to be hidden so well as to not get people like Dedalus into trouble.
It also meant that the mass breakout at Goen Bren would have to happen sooner than later. It was for that reason that he and Dedalus stood in the square under miserable conditions and made plans. Hardly another sole was outside, and if by chance Bill saw anyone, he changed course and berated Dedalus publicly. Otherwise they stuck to business until Weston, who'd been serving as lookout, gave them the signal to break up their meeting. The men parted ways with the same thought in mind: they were on the heels of battle and would do everything possible to leave Goen Bren undefeated.
Waiting
Author: Ethan Somerset
Date: 12-20-08 14:04
Ethan stood on a ladder propped up against his cabin and knocked down the icicles that hung there. It was fruitless work demanded by one of the guards to keep him busy or miserable or both. With weather conditions what they were, the icicles kept reforming, though at least they didn't reappear the moment he knocked them down.
The row of trees over which he'd seen his patronus soar grew behind him. They were covered in thick snow and had icicles hanging from the branches. In a way, they were beautiful, but at the same time, Ethan was so sick of ice and snow that if he ever left Brecqhou, he'd make plans to spend some time in the tropics.
The memory of sending his patronus to Dierna led him to look over his shoulder at the snow-covered trees. He had waited ever since that night for a reply and so far had received none. Ethan knew there were a number of reasons why that might be: 1) Dierna never received the patronus. 2) Dierna received it but didn't know who it had come from (Ethan hadn't included a message––though he'd been practicing how to do so now) 3) Dierna had gotten the patronus and recognized it as belonging to Ethan but couldn't reply because she was in Azkaban or somewhere similar.
Ethan thought of a few more possibilities while waiting for the response, if it would ever come. Just then, he thought he saw something in the inky blackness beyond the line of trees. A flicker of light? A shooting star, careening through the night sky?
He squinted in the darkness, all thoughts of removing the icicles from the house abandoned for the moment while he concentrated on what he thought he saw. He twisted on the ladder and leaned in such a manner that he nearly lost his balance.
And there it was! A wisp of silver in the distance, drawing ever nearer to where Ethan balanced on the ladder leaning against the side of the house.
(Paige) ~ The Wings of Change ~ (Paris, France)
Author: Cailyn Spicer
Date: 12-20-08 16:38
The one thing that Paige hated the most about life was change. Change seemed to happen so quickly and it could be either good or bad. The first time change entered Paige’s life was when she was six years old and placed into Woodbury’s elite prep school for girls. This was the first time she had ever been away from home and it took a long time for Paige to get used to the idea of living in a boarding school with tones of other girls and a headmistress who gave orders. After a few weeks of living in Woodbury, Paige soon embraced the change and came to love the over five hundred year old boarding school. She was content to spend her school days in the small countryside of Yorkshire.
The second time change came was when Paige turned 11 and she got her letter from Hogwarts. She had been happy at Woodbury and did not want to leave. Once again, after a few weeks of being in the wizarding community and Hogwarts, Paige adapted.
For five years after that life seemed to go as normal as it could for a muggle born witch. That is until Dumbledore disappeared and Professor Snider took over Hogwarts. Then came the third change. Soon, Hogwarts became a living hell and each day Paige wished she had never heard of Magic.
She didn’t really think things could get any worst. She didn’t believe that the ministry of magic would allow such things to go on for very long. She also didn’t think that Dumbledore would be gone for as long as he was either. Things did get worst.
Right before the start of Paige’s final term at Hogwarts, she was placed into Happy Haven. A school set up for all nons, half breeds and all the others who didn’t fit the pure category. This was when Paige really started to hate change. What she had once thought of as a living hell at Hogwarts seemed like a piece of cake compared to Happy Haven. Her life had gone down a roller coaster ride and into the pits of a nightmare worst then hell itself.
But then, came the fifth change. The day she called freedom, or the day they escaped from Happy Haven. Then she was given Freedom a new life. Free lives. Lives that were free from the ministry of magic and their obscured new rules. It was here that Paige found out that her families’ memories of her were obliviated. No one who was close to her would remember she existed.
Life changed again and Paige, found herself a fugitive in her own country. She was placed in the loving arms of her extremely eccentric, muggle, great aunt who lived deep in the city of Paris. Despite being in a strange new place with an Aunt Paige barely knew, for the first time in months, Paige felt safe...