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Goodbye Mundane, Hello New
Author: Don Thomas
Date: 01-03-09 19:36
"Nice hair," said a familiar voice as it came around Don and sat beside her. Curtis put his backpack beside him and turned to look at Don's red locks. "Lose a bet?"
"No," Isabel piped up. "She was in our room last night, doing homework, when I decided to give both she and Rosalinda makeovers. They consented. I think they look beautiful. Don't you?"
"Freya even said Don's hair looked like it could be natural and commented on how Isabel shaped her eyebrows," Rosalinda piped in before taking a bite of whatever it was she was eating.
Curtis looked at Don and shrugged. "You do make a believable redhead, but do you like it?"
For the first time in their entire encounter, Don looked at Curtis. He noticed how gray her eyes looked with her change in hair color, not that they hadn't been gray before. They just seemed to look different. "I don't typically care about my appearance much," she said as she turned to look at the girls. "But I gotta say, I like the change. It's different, new, exciting. Not so mundane. Feels real. Feels natural. Like I was meant to have red hair. Plus, why not change a little. Time's a changin'. Why shouldn't I?"
"So you like it then?"
"Si," Don said as she piled a large ravioli into her mouth. "Oui."
Isabel beamed at Rosalinda, who beamed back. Curtis grabbed some chicken and began eating. Don began eating the grapes off her plate as she listened to Isabel talk about the most recent news. Something about terrorists. They reminded Don of the WWN station Curtis had secretly introduced her to and the lies that Isabel took as truth, according to said 'secret' radio station. Don only looked at Curtis once more as he accidentally took a drink of her pumpkin juice. She was too busy with her own thoughts. Primarily the one involving her father visiting Hogsmeade and arranging a lunch date for the two of them. He wanted to talk over their summer plans, since Don had finally agreed (with some convincing from Curtis and Stephen) to spend the summer holiday with him. Don was regretting that decision. What sort of things do you talk about with a man you haven't seen since you were 6 years old?
It's Not Fair
Author: Kody
Date: 01-03-09 20:36
Defense Against the Dark Arts, one of Deak's favorite classes, ends. While that does mean lunch it also means Charms with Professor Yaxley isn't far off. Having DADA sandwiched between Potions with Carrow and Charms with Yaxley is almost enough to make Deak forgo eating sandwiches for awhile.
Deak takes his time, wishing more than anything he could skive off the rest of the day to sneak into the village. From Hogsmeade he could Floo somewhere. Deak's not sure where exactly he'd go but being out there doing something constructive is better than sitting around school with the likes of Amycus Carrow, Pansy Parkinson, Ryland Yaxley, and Harriet Snider.
Deak's fingers literally itch with the desire to unfurl the invisibility cloak he owl ordered. It was bloody expensive but with the allowance he still gets from Aaron's fortune Deak was easily able to afford it. Drake, Kody, and Phin work with the Resistance - hell, they're major players - so why can't Deak? It hardly seems fair that they were in the thick of the fight to get people like Jack and Wiggy out of that Happy Haven place. Not that Deak's supposed to know loads about it. If not for Etta Wynbourne, he'd hardly know anything.
It's just not fair!
Much as Deak's dying to get out there and do something, to put his invisibility cloak to use, if he were to skip Yaxley's class, the man would definately come looking for Deak. He'd probably give Safforn holy hell over it even though she's not the one listed as his current guardian. Yaxley would probably harass Sage too just because he can.
Reaching the Great Hall, Deak's footsteps quicken. He could still try out the cloak. He'll grab something to eat on the way. Yes, that's what he'll do. He'll keep close watch on the time and make it to Charms well before 1 o'clock.
(Rivalen) Snow Fungus
Author: Isolde
Date: 01-04-09 10:55
The long worktable in Greenhouse 1 bore the weight of a crumbling tree trunk, on which grew a white, almost translucent gelatinous mushroom called snow fungus, white fungus, or silver tree-ear fungus. The nine third year students in Rivalen's Herbology class each bent over a portion of the tree and carefully removed the fungus from its bark. While they did that, their professor sat at the small desk in the corner with his feet propped up on it. To anyone watching him, it look as if he were reading something for his own pleasure and not at all paying attention to what his students were doing, but, for once, Rivalen was doing something relevant to their classwork.
Snow fungus had culinary and medicinal uses. He read from Fascinating Fungus Fixin's by Finbar Finley, which featured a whole chapter on meals and medicines using snow fungus. Next class, he intended on using the snow fungus collected to make something to eat or for Madam Pomfrey's stores (not knowing that anything he'd given Madam Pomfrey so far she'd politely accepted and then thrown away, by now having realized that he wasn't the most knowledgeable professor among the Hogwarts staff).
In terms of recipes, the book offered some interesting dishes such as "Fruity Snow Fungus Dessert" which included papaya, Chinese pears, apricot seeds and dates. There was also "White Fungus Soup", "Lotus Seed and White Fungus Stew", "Pumpkin with White Fungus", and many more.
Supposedly, snow fungus was rather tasteless on its own. People ate it for its jelly-like texture and health benefits. Snow fungus controlled cholesterol, strengthened the immune system, and killed some cancerous cells.
Near the end of class, Rivalen stopped reading and got up to survey his students' work. Each had a container in front of them filled with white fungus. Many of the students had done an excellent job removing the fungus from the bark without breaking it into too many pieces, not that it necessarily mattered in the end. Most of the recipes called for chopped or sliced white fungus, so whole pieces certainly weren't necessary.
"Nice work, everyone!" Rivalen called out, as he walked around the table. "Hmm," he hummed, as he looked at each container in turn. He hadn't given out any points all class period. He might as well reward the person who'd collected the most specimins. "Ah, Miss Batuti. It seems you've worked the most efficiently today. Five points to you for your hard work!"
At that moment, class ended. Rivalen had his students carry the containers to his desk and then dismissed them for the day. While they gathered their things together and donned their cloaks, Rivalen took the time between classes to remove the tree from the table. He flicked his wand at it, turned it upright, and set it in the far corner of the greenhouse.
Shortly thereafter, the fourth year students began trickling in. He had the first few search for the powder pod plants they would be studying, since had had misplaced them somewhere in one of the greenhouses.
Tedious (Jewel Reily)
Author: Phinfilius
Date: 01-04-09 12:28
Jewel switches the upholstery needle from one hand to the other, flexing her worn fingers for a few moments. When 485's warden decided to have his office repainted, he also decided to have new draperies made as well as refurbishing all the furniture. Then he decided to have the furniture in the other administrative offices and staff break room redone as well. Every single piece is only around a year old Jewel things so it's a waste of time and resources to redo everything.
The warden's wife was so pleased with the work Jewel did on one couch several weeks ago that she was chosen to oversee all the furniture refurbishing and getting the new drapes made. Jewel's not complaining, not really. Working in a room so near 485's administrative section means she's far warmer than she would be at most other tasks. Someone who's been keeping track of the days told Jewel it's the second week of March but with all the snow and Jewel finds that hard to believe.
No, Jewel's main complaint is that the furniture was all of one style and now the warden wants something completely different. If Jewel had a wand, such a change would be a simple flick of the wrist. Without magic, the job entails adding padding in some place, taking it away in others, adding tufted backs with these hard to work with buttons, buttons which first had to be covered with bits of padding and covered to coordinate with the fabric, a special trim for some pieces that's slick and hard to handle properly, and lots of other details that are equally time consuming or difficult.
Still, Jewel can handle all that. She just has to remind herself to be patient and of the consequences for doing a shoddy job. What tests Jewel's patience and is making this job so bloody blasted tedious is a woman called Betsy. At this exactly moment it's all Jewel can do not to shove fingers in her ears or to take the upholstery needle and ram it into her brain to end the torture that is Betsy.
"... doing it that way?"
"Are you listening?"
"Jewel?"
Jewel takes a deep breath, lets it out slowly, the entire time Betsy is saying, "Jewel? Pay attention! It's very rude not to acknowledge me."
Forcing her lips upward into a tight, polite smile, Jewel says, "Sorry. I was taking a little break."
"Clearly."
"What were you saying?"
"You, that is, we should sew these buttons on first and then put the new cover on."
Jewel's explained this already, several times in fact. The thing is, as much as Betsy hates it when others don't pay attention to what she's saying, Betsy rarely takes the time to hear what others say. Jewel's smile tighens enough that her cheeks begin to ache.
"If the buttons were merely for decoration, that would work and be far easier. Since it's the buttons that will give the tufted effect, they have to be sewn on we put the front part of the cover on over the new padding."
"You do like doing things the difficult way, don't you? I suppose it's a good idea though in the sense that the longer we take, the longer we're all warm and cozy in here. Oh, and let's not forget the warm water for washing."
One perk of doing new curtains and upholstery is that the warden doesn't want grubby hands pawing over everything - his phrasing - so they do get warm water with soap. Never in her life had Jewel thought she'd considered a tepid shower with slivers of soap to be such a luxury.
Rather than bothering to point out that if done Betsy's way, things would be much more difficult, more labor intensive, and time consuming, Jewel just says, "Yes, that's it exactly," then switching the upholstery needle back to her other hand, Jewel resumes work, with Betsy helpfully looking on.
Classroom Visitor
Author: Declan
Date: 01-04-09 16:46
Declan points to the timeline he's got up for his seventh years. "This brings us to the events of 4 March 2000."
Madeline Miller's hand shoots up.
"Yes, Madeline?"
"Are we really going to talk about," Madeline's voice trails off.
Crispin Cooke clears his throat and fills the unfinished part of Madeline's sentence. "About You-Know-Who's death?"
Mary Black reaches over and pops Crispin on the arm. "He's dead now. You can say his name." "Well, go on."
"Mary, I believe I've asked you not to beat up on Crispin."
"Sorry," Mary says, sounding not the least bit apologetic.
"Five points off. Next time it's points off and a detention."
Mary starts to say something but Crispin jumps in, "Voldemort. There! I said it."
Declan smiles, through tries not to look amused. The fear Voldemort instilled in the UK and beyond for so many years is still very fresh. Even though they've talked some of the history of Voldemort's rise, more often than not Declan's referred to the man by his given name of Tom Riddle.
"To answer your question, Madeline, yes, we are going to talk about the battle that took place beneath Hogsmeade and the immediate vicinity and how it led to Voldemort's death."
"This should be an interesting lecture," a voice drawls from the doorway.
Ryland Yaxley leans against the jamb, appearing for all the world to be utterly bored.
Declan's brow draws together in a frown. "I thought you have a class at this time."
"Yes, I do. I shan't be missing even a second of it. Do go on. I'm monitoring for evaluations."
Declan raises an eyebrow. If Ryland isn't missing any of whichever Charms class he's got right now, that means he's using a time turner. Declan shouldn't be surprised. Ryland does seem to have a way of being all over the castle and grounds yet still never employs a substitute for any of his classes. He'll have to ask Kissy and AJ if they know as Kissy works hard to avoid Ryland and AJ often seems a little secretive for some reason.
Declan fixes his smile and says brightly, "Right, I'll just get on with it then." Declan sends packets flying to each student's desk. "This packet contains exerpts of accounts given by those in the Battle Beneath Hogsmeade as well as maps and diagrams. Excluding Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, who can name give people who fought against Voldemort, the Death Eaters, and other minions that day? Yes, Alanna?"
"Albus Dumbledore, Rubeus Hagrid, Minerva McGonagall, Filius Flitwick, and Severus Snape."
"Excellent, five points."
Declan hides a smirk at the scowl Ryland has at hearing the names of former Hogwarts professors who are sorely missed, even Severus Snape from some of the student gossip he's overheard and from Declan's understand Severus Snape was not an easy teacher to have. "Who else can you name, anyone?"
The students are more hesitant with Ryland looking on but soon get into the discussion as it moves from the dull aspect of who was involved to how the battle actually went down.
(John) Dilemma
Author: Johanna Steele
Date: 01-05-09 10:27
Sat on a calm corner of the St.Emrys library John had an open book up in front of him but he wasn’t able to concentrate himself.
Now he had a reason to smile. Johanna was safe with aunt Angela and uncle Luke. He knew where she was and how to contact her. But why hasn’t he smiled yet?
Deep inside he knew the reason. The reason was because he wasn’t there. He didn’t fight with the others at Happy Heaven. He didn’t pick up Johanna after she’d been sent to one of the Orders’ shelters. He just spent the day in St. Emrys pretending he was an exemplar student paying attention to the classes and doing some homework. At the time it seemed the right decision. Pretend that everything was well, that he believed in the pure-blood superiority.
But now he regretted his decision. He should have entered in the resistance and fight. If something went wrong at least he had tried. If he had been there he would be now at Greece with his little sister. Now he couldn’t. He must show indifference to all this. Or he would be snatched.
John had afraid to be snatched. His father was still disappeared and more and more he had sure that he had been snatched. What else could have happened to Anthony?
He closed his book , picked up his quill and started to write a letter for his mother. In a very subtle way, without mentioning names and details (in case of someone intercepted the letter) he expressed is feelings about all the situation involving the Happy Haven escape. John was having a big dilemma with all this: a part of him wanted to leave to Greece right way, but another one was afraid to do so. He hoped Isabel understood him and that she could be able to give him some advices.
John finished the letter with the wish of visiting his mother just right after the end of the term. He sealed the letter and putted it in his pocket. He got up and left the library ready to go fetch an owl and send the letter.
A Warm Morning Practice
Author: Pyrrhus
Date: 01-05-09 19:09
Pyrrhus stands in a pool of sunlight, enjoying the heat. The Humbatas are in Africa for a Tuesday night match. He enjoys the traveling that goes with playing Quidditch professionally but with the weather in Britain so awful, traveling for today's match is especially nice. If not for having gone to some of the Resistance meetings and listening in on a few of the Resistance's wireless broadcast, Py wouldn't know that the unnaturally cold winter that's transitioning into an equally cold spring is due might be due to increased Dementor activity. No one's said that outright but it's been implied. Having seen for himself the chilling effect Dementors have when the creatures were sent to guard Hogwarts during his second year there, Py can well believe that Britain's glacial weather is due to Dementors.
Py still hasn't told Isolde he's attended those meetings nor has he ever listened to the illicit broadcasts when she's around. It's not like Py to keep secrets from Isolde that have nothing to do with gifts he's giving her. It's just that he's not really certain what her stance is on how the Pureblood superiority issue has been handled. At one time, what's going on now is exactly what Py would have wanted but now, having seen it in action, Py thinks there have got to be better ways. Tax breaks for Pures. Better pay. Exclusive benefits. That sort of thing. With the Ministry's methods Britain's economic climate is as bad as the physical climate. What's worse, Quidditch in the UK has totally been ruined. The teams have been forced to consolidate and pretty much anyone who can fly and twiddle their thumbs at the same time has been allowed on what teams there are just so Britain can field teams.
Py's also against how things have been handled because his niece and nephew are in jeopardy. Py could live without having Majandra for a sister, finding great consolation in the fact that they aren't related by blood. He is, however, quite attached now to Miranda and Georgie, though he's rarely seen either for months now. They are sometimes at his Muggle grandparents' but Py doesn't visit for his grandparents' safety and for Miranda's and Georgie's. Much as he cares for his nephew, Py really wishes they hadn't called the child George. Does the world really need two George Weasleys?
The Humbatas not already on the pitch for a morning practice session emerge from the locker room, turning their faces up to enjoy the heat just as those already on the pitch are doing. Py wishes he were playing Keeper today since that would mean he could get in more time sitting back and soaking up the sun but Viktor needs him on Chaser.
Mounting his broom, Py flies to get into position for the first exercises, a passing drill, not minding at all that the day is already somewhat of a scorcher.