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Community Service
Author: Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen
Date: 09-06-10 15:35
Ultimately, Fritz decided to do community service instead of join the German army. He still plans on going to St. Emrys come the start of Michaelmas Term in October and figures he can better schedule courses around his required community service rather than any military obligations he might otherwise have.
His cousin Otto, meanwhile, has already gone off to military training in Münster. Fritz knows there's a good chance Otto could wind up seeing active combat before his service ends. It would be tragic if Otto were to die. Otto, for his part, seems excited about his training and is actually looking forward to fighting for real.
Then again, Fritz saw combat of sorts when he joined the Resistance and helped liberate some of the communities for nons well over a year ago. He couldn't say he'd felt excited to participate in the Resistance Movement, but it had been something he'd wanted to do not only for himself but for everyone else who had been in his position. Fritz could have died during the raids. It was something he'd known at the time, and yet he'd still gone out and fought for what he'd believed in.
His community service ought to be far less risky, or at least that is what Fritz hopes.
His assignment sends him to Trier, or Treves, the oldest city in Germany. Once there, Fritz navigates to a neighborhood of old homes in which lives the elderly woman he is supposed to help for the foreseeable future. Her house is one story, with a small strip of green lawn on which sits an incredible amount of kitsch, from garden gnomes (the Muggle variety, of course) to pink flamingoes. There's even a small pond with the statue of a small naked boy urinating into the water. The fountain doesn't appear to be working at the moment.
Fritz raises his brows and wonders what the interior of the house looks like. He makes his way to the front door and presses the buzzer.
A moment later, a scratchy voice calls out through the intercom, "Ja?"
Fritz answers in German. "Good morning. My name is Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen. I'm the new Zivi* assigned to help you."
"Come in," replies the voice. There's a loud buzzing noise. Fritz pushes on the door and it opens, admitting him into the house.
The first thing he sees is a chartreuse shag carpet. It leads him across the foyer to another door, which he cautiously opens. He sticks his head into the next room and spots a woman sitting in a rocking chair in front of a television. It appears to be on mute.
"Fritz," she says without looking at him.
He enters the room fully and positions himself so that he is in her line of sight. She finally looks away from the televsion screen and surveys the newcomer.
Fritz feels really uncomfortable under her gaze and tries to keep his eyes on her, despite the fact that he wants to look at his surroundings. The house definitely wasn't built in the 1970s, but he doesn't suppose it has been updated since then.
Finally, the woman says, "You'll do. My name is Frau Hockenheim. We will need to agree on your schedule first and then I will give you your first task."
She points with one spindly finger at an elaborate writing desk in the corner. "Bring me my calendar."
Fritz goes to the desk and finds the calendar immediately. The desk isn't very unorganized, but it isn't entirely clean either. He brings her the calendar.
"Let's agree on three times a week, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, for two hours," Frau Hockenheim says. "I have another Zivi who comes on Tuesdays and Thursdays."
"That is fine," Fritz says. He should be able to coordinate his class schedule around his community service obligations.
Frau Hockenheim pencils Fritz in with a pencil she had tucked over her ear and then hands him the calendar to return to her desk. "Now, I have a fountain in the front yard that appears to be stopped up. See if you can fix it yourself. Otherwise, you'll need to bring it to a hardware store for me for repair."
Fritz feels he knows exactly which fountain Frau Hockenheim means, but just to be certain he asks, "The little urinating boy?"
"Yes, that is the one," Frau Hockenheim says. "There are tools in the garage if you need them." She dismisses him with a wave of her hand and then turns the volume up on her television.
Fritz decides to study the fountain first and then decide how he will fix it. If no one's looking, maybe he can just fix it with a little bit of magic.
* Zivi - usually a young man doing his "Zivildienst", or civilian service
Improving
Author: Carys
Date: 09-06-10 16:01
Although her first visit to Amoret Needlehouse's office had been nervewracking, to say the least, Carys had found going back somewhat easier, though she wouldn't say it was altogether easy either. Amoret made her talk about all kinds of things Carys really didn't want to discuss, going back as far as the deaths of her brother and mother, to more recent events like the near rape in the dark room at St. Emrys.
Talking about traumatic events often brought Carys to tears all over again, but she also found that Amoret had a way of making her feel better when she got things off of her chest. Maybe it was better to talk about her feelings with someone who cared to listen instead of bottling them up so that she dealt with them all alone.
Carys found that she could even talk to her grandfather about some things, and she even opened up to Griffin a little bit.
She had just celebrated her 20th birthday, and Tristan had turned four over the weekend. Alun and Griff had debated throwing a big joint party for the both of them, but had hesitated about Carys since she could still be very emotional at times and they didn't want to upset her by inviting over a bunch of people she may not want to see.
It was only when she asked quite casually what they had planned for her that they'd decided to follow through, and with great success. All of Carys' old friends from Hogwarts came, as well as some of Tristan's friends from Blossom's. Tristan absolutely loved his miniature broom and even took it for a spin after shedding all of his clothing in the middle of the party!
Carys didn't remember the last time she'd laughed so much. She was by no means her old self again, but she was definitely getting there, thanks to Amoret, and thanks to her family and friends.
(Madoc) Not Homesick
Author: Minerva McGonagall
Date: 09-06-10 17:26
Despite the fact that Madoc had never been away from home before, he found that he didn't miss his parents or little brother as much as he feared he might. His roommates were all super nice and made it easy for him to feel comfortable away from home. Some of the older students even looked after the younger ones, which certainly helped too.
Madoc liked all of his professors, except for Professor Binns who was quite the bore. He was sorry that he didn't have Professor McGonagall for Transfiguration, though. He really wanted to talk to her about their shared surname, and while he had seen her around since the Sorting Ceremony and Start of Term Feast, he hadn't found the courage to just go up to her and chat.
She didn't exactly seem like the chatty type. Professor McGonagall looked like a very stern witch and reminded him a lot of his grandfather, who often looked very cross, even when he wasn't. Maybe she would think him strange for wondering if they were related, though. Maybe there were lots and lots of McGonagalls in the world that Madoc simply didn't know about. One day he figured he would get his chance to talk to her, but until then he would keep wondering.
After Potions let out, in which they talked about cleaning techniques, Madoc and his fellow Gryffindors headed outside for Herbology. From his dormitory window, Madoc had seen that the sky had been very overcast in the morning, but since he'd first gotten up, it had cleared. Now, instead of being white and gray, the sky was blue.
He was one of the first to enter the greenhouse. He went straight to his spot at the work table and produced a notebook and quill. His class hadn't had any homework last meeting, so there wasn't anything to turn in today.
As soon as all of the other students showed up and took their places, Professor Ravenscroft started talking about the plant belladonna.
Whiny Diva
Author: Harry Potter
Date: 09-06-10 20:31
Harry has an urge to bang his head repeatedly on the wall he's standing against. Griff gives an exasperated sigh and shoves up forcefully from the chair he'd been inhabiting, causing the chair to slide across the well polished floor. Even knowing that this very large manor house in St. John's Woods is kept clean by magical means, Harry can't help but wonder how each and every room is taken care of so well when it would be so easy just to spotlessly clean the ones most likely to see visitors. The floor in here is so polished that Griff's chair went halfway across the room. It's a wonder anyone is even able to walk on it. With a little padding around the walls, it would make a great room in which to go sock skating.
"Harry?"
Harry blinks, pulled away from thoughts of careening around the room wearing socks, playing some sort of sport like hockey. "I'm sorry, what?"
"I said I'm going to get lunch. You coming or staying?"
"Do I get lunch?"
Griff and Harry both ignore the question. Harry shrugs, "I guess I'll come with even though I'm not that hungry right now. I just could use a break from here."
"What about me?"
Griff's irritated frown changes to a slight grin. "What? Not having fun yet?"
"I'm going crazy cooped up."
Harry gives Griff a rueful grin in return. "Can't you tell I'm having such a great time that if I don't take a break from this I'll explode from too much excitement?"
"Guuuuuuys."
Harry gives the room's other occupant a stern look. Perry Heath sits slouchily in a chair, leaning partially on a table but because the floor is so smooth, the chair and table keep moving apart, forcing him to readjust every couple of minutes. Harry curtly asks, "What?"
"I'm huuungry and boooored," Perry whines.
"Before I asked Harry if he wants anything, I told you I'd bring you something," Griff reminds.
"I don't want you to bring me anything. I want to come with you." Perry sounds so petulant, Harry wouldn't be at all surprise if he'd begun childishly stamping his feet.
Harry and Griff exchange glances, both of them fed up with Perry Heath's increasingly infantile, diva behavior. Him being a pain is the reason Harry was wanting to beat his head on the wall and Griff sent his chair sailing across the room. The only reason they've put up with it this long is because in the om the couple of weeks since first meeting up with Perry Heath, the man has provided them some valuable information on Rufus Henshaw. If they are sick of it when only see him at most a couple of hours at a time, Harry can well imagine how much the around the clock security detail must feel. The people on the detail each work five days a week, overlapping ten hour shifts.
Harry, way past the point of pretending patience, reminds Perry, "If Henshaw knows you are giving evidence against him, and if you go in public, it won't matter how good Griff and I are at our jobs, we cannot guarantee your safety."
Griff, used to near daily interaction with his four year old son, has far more patience of mind than Harry. He says as if speaking to his four year old, "We do not want you to die, Perry."
"A disguise? I could don a disguise. Got any polyjuice on you?"
Harry makes a show of patting his pockets before holding up his empty hands. "Sorry, not a drop on me. I'm shocked because I try to make sure I never leave home without a couple of vials on me."
"Aw, now, Harry. Don't need to go all sarcastic. Just going starkers cooper up."
"It's a very large house and the grounds are very secure."
"Yeah, but not the same as actually getting out and about, innit?"
Griff massages one of his temples. "We will see what our higher ups say and maybe tomorrow or the next day you can go out in disguise."
Perry leans back in his chair, arms folded. "That'll work, I suppose. Bring me back a thick steak, medium rare. Chips. Really crispy ones. Don't want none of those oversized, greasy, mushy chips some places do. And, let's see," Perry thoughtfully scratches his chin, "peas. Yeah, peas and carrots. And somethin' for pudding. Don't much care what, just some sort of sweet afters. Pie. Cake. Even some biscuits if they're those big gourmet kind."
"Anything else? Do you want the wine list?"
Griff's sarcasm here is lost on Perry who shakes his head, "Nah, but some ale would do nicely. A really thick, beafy ale to go with the steak."
Harry asks, "Anything else?"
"Nah, can't think of anythin'. That'll hold me until tea. I want fairy cakes with tea. From that bakery in Hogsmeade. Don't bring nothing else. I can tell the diff. And can we have our conversation in a room without the equivalent of slick ice for a floor after you two get back?"
"Yeah, yeah. Go pick a nice cushy room while we're gone. It will give you something to do," Harry tells him.
"I'll explose more, sure, but that big library down the hall is quite nice. Bring my lunch there."
Perry walks out of the room ahead of them, turning in the direction of the library he just mentioned. Griff and Harry go to the other way to where there's a floo, Harry telling Griff as they walk, "You know why he wants the library don't you?"
"No, why?"
"There's a whiskey decanter charmed to several bottles in the whine cellar so that it's always full and there's a candy dish that's charmed too, probably to somewhere in the kitchen. It's always full of assorted chocolates."
Griff laughs, "Why am I not surprise?"
Chizpurfles
Author: Jolyon
Date: 09-07-10 18:27
The Abbott family buried Charles on the very last day of August in a small wizarding cemetery in Bury St. Edmunds. Many of the graves there were so old that the inscriptions on the tombstones could no longer be read. The headstone chosen for Charles was made of slate and gave his name and dates in stylized, albeit legible script.
Jolyon hadn't seen the rest of the Abbotts since the funeral, but he had no plans of losing contact with any of them now that the link that had brought them together no longer lived. It was just that Jolyon had been busy with the start of a new term at Hogwarts, and the few occasions he left the castle for reasons other than a class field trip had been to take Sarina Saltwood out on dates.
Several of his sister Julia's friends had openly shown their interest in Jolyon, but not Sarina, with whom he'd been intrigued. He hadn't expected her to agree to go out with him, but she'd had. At some point Jolyon would have to tell Julia that her attempts at matchmaking had been successful, though it was still early to tell where the relationship would go. Jolyon couldn't even say that he and Sarina had a relationship yet. They were just dating at the moment.
In fact, they had a date later tonight, but first Jolyon had a class to teach. His fourth years arrived outside the barn on the Hogwarts grounds in twos and threes, and when all were present, Professor Kent began his lecture.
"Good afternoon, class. Who can tell me the name of a magical parasite?"
Jill Prewitt raised her hand. "A chizpurfle is a parasite found in the fur and feathers of some magical creatures."
"Correct. 5 points to Gryffindor," Jolyon said.
"Chizpurfles are precisely what we will discuss today. Come over to the picnic benches."
His students, who'd been loitering near one of the pens outside the barn followed him to the picnic benches nearby, on which were magnifying glasses and several containers not unlike petri dishes.
The students sat down and looked into the dishes. Some picked up the magnifying glasses to see better.
"Chizpurfles grow no larger than a twentieth of an inch in size. They are crab-like in appearance and have fangs. Who can tell me what attracts chizpurfles to magical creatures like crups and augureys? Is it their blood?"
Olive Green raised her hand. "It's their magic. Chizpurfles are attracted to magic, and will not only attach themselves to magical creatures but also to magical objects."
"5 points to Slytherin. Well done," Professor Kent lauded. He nodded. "Olive's right. Chizpurfles are known to attack magical objects like wands for the magic that is inside of them. And if they are desperate, they'll go after Muggle electronic equipment. You'll have to ask Professor Miller for an explanation of what electricity is if you don't already know. For our purposes here, you can think of it as the Muggle version of magic, which is why chizpurfles will go after it if they can't find any real magic to ingest."
"Professor, are they dangerous?" asked Aleydis Vanderbilt.
"No. They are rated at only XX, but they can be quite a nuisance. They are pests and can cause infestations. There are some potions that can help with a problem if it exists, but if the situation is too out of control, the Pest Sub-Division of the Ministry of Magic's Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures will have to be contacted."
He smiled. "You might guess why I have them under glass. I don't think Professor Dumbledore would appreciate it if Hogwarts had an infestation of chizpurfles!"
"Would it be enough to cancel classes, do you think?" Wilbur Tremaine wondered aloud.
"No!" Jolyon replied with a grin. He didn't need his students getting any ideas. To get their minds off of wild fantasies, he gave them their homework assignment.
Morticia Munch, Matchmaker
Author: Travis
Date: 09-07-10 20:15
Morticia Munch fairly glides across the room to greet Lisi, Indi, and Travis. She kisses each lightly on the cheek, making actual contact with her lips only because they are her children. Everyone else gets an air kiss. "Indigo, I'm so glad you pulled yourself away from your animals. Lisianthus darling, that is an excellent color for you. I quite like your new hairstyle, Fifi."
"Mum."
There's a stern understone to that one word. Morticia blinks at her eldest child and asks, "Yes? What is it?"
Travis says, "I think you know what."
Morticia decides not continue acting as though she doesn't have any idea what Travis means. Instead, she smiles very sweetly and informs her daughter, "It's your given name and it's my party. You have never given a single valid explanation of why you insist going by another name, particularly such a masculine one when you are hardly mannish. Now come, you three, there are people I wish you to meet."
As the three move to follow, Indi asks Lisi sotto voice, "Did you?"
"No. I told you I wouldn't."
"And I said I'd pay you if you would."
"Pay for what?" Travis asks.
"I offered to pay Lisi to read Mum as soon as we got here to know if she invited Angeleeka Peele."
Travis looks at Lisi and grins. "Couldn't pay you enough to willingly do that, huh?" She then says to Indi, "I thought Mum had decided Nivia Germaine was better suited for you."
He makes a face at the name. "She did but then she decided Angeleeka might do afterall but she does want me to get to know Nivia better so I can make an informed decision." Indi makes air quites around that last bit.
"Angeleeka brays like a mule and has the IQ of mold. Nivia always smells like a combination of strong onion and manure. What sort of choice is that?"
Lisi sighs, "You'd think with the people she's been trying to hook each of us up with all summer that she didn't love us."
Morticia, realizing the three are walking at snails' paces and furtively whispering stops and waits for them to catch up. As they are now in the midst of a room full of people, she waits until they are close enough that she too can speak in a low voice and still have them hear her. "If you are lollygagging because you think I have invited certain people, then there is no cause for concern. Despite my best efforts for you to get past Waldo Humphrey's outward faults and get to know his true, inner self, Fifi, I thought it best not to inflict you upon that poor man again. As for his cousin Frodo Humphrey, it has been painfully obvious that his exceedingly short stature aside, he and Lisianthus simply have vastly conflicting personalities. Angeleeka Peele has apparently long been harboring feelings for someone and he's recently reciprocated those feelings. They are now engaged. I was of a mind to invite, Nivia Germaine this evening, Indigo, but it came to my attention that she is only interested in you for the money. I will not knowingly put my son into the clutches of a gold digger."
Morticia fixes each of her children with that stare mothers have that defies a child to do or say anything out of line. After making eye contact with each, she turns and begins threading her way through the throng. Indi, Lisi, and Travis follow with only one comment, by Indi, being made. "This is a much larger crowd than her usual Friday night dinner parties."
Morticia leads them all the way across the room to where a tall, willowly brunette is deep in conversation with two men whose backs are turned to their approaching hostess. The brunette says something with a nod in Morticia's direction then the two men move slightly, each turning a little to make room for Morticia to stand with Travis, Lisi, and Indi just behind her.
If Morticia's hoping to make a love match between these three with her children, on looks alone they are a vast improvement. Waldo Humphrey had been nearly as wide as he is tall, with scaly skin and greasy hair. He also was not that attractive in the face. All these things aren't what made Travis seriously question what her mother was thinking in trying to fix the two of them up for Waldo is a boorish know-it-all who thinks that after marriage a woman should only hold a job if her husband allows it. He thinks women are not capable of having smart business sense so it's the husband's place to handle the finances, doling out what he feels his wife needs for keeping the household running efficiently. That was just the tip of the iceburg on why Travis cannot tolerate Waldo Humphrey. Of his cousin Frodo, Lisi said it best, "It's not that Frodo is overly short or extremely hirsute. It's that he has no personility whatsoever, has no common sense, and he's a still in the closet homosexual."
The two men Morticia's brought them to meet aren't drop dead gorgeous or model perfect but they are both rather nice looking. The one Morticia introduces as Thomas Janson is at the tall end of average height for a male, has a square jaw, dark brown hair, and hazel green eyes. Richard Black has dark blonde hair, light brown eyes, and is over six feet. The willowy brunette is Thomas's sister Tess. Lisi, Indi, and Travis greet the three, all of them thinking that so far these people are an improvement over their mother's efforts to date. It would be just like Morticia though to go from the extreme of not very nice to look at people who also have bad personalities to nice looking people who are ugly on the inside.
Travis doesn't know about her two siblings but she's willing to get to talk some with Thomas, Tess, and Richard to at least determine if they are even people she would like to be friends with. She still has reservations about going on a date with anyone her mother picks out simply from the stand point that she's an adult and can pick her own dates, thank you very much.