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Staying Occupied
Author: Ella
Date: 01-26-11 09:23
Even though Ella had been reluctant to leave behind her grieving mother for Hogwarts again, she preferred being away from the depressing atmosphere of home. Rosemary was devastated that her ex-husband had not only gotten married again but was going to have another child. Ella wasn't exactly pleased by the news either, since she had never warmed up to Delilah and probably never would.
After New Year's, Ella was almost certain that Delilah was trying to drive a wedge between her new husband and his ex-wife and daughter. What better way to divide them further than by having a child of her own? Ella didn't doubt that Delilah loved her father, but the woman was definitely turning into the wicked stepmother.
On the Hogwarts Express, Francis had noticed straight away that there was something wrong with Ella, and it took her no time at all to tell him everything that had been on her mind. He'd listened attentively, which Ella appreciated very much since she had no one else to whom she could vent.
Only when Ella had finished with her rant, had Francis revealed his own news to her. He and Ashleigh had reconnected on New Year's Day. They hadn't really ever broken up, but ever since Francis had gotten into a fistfight with Zane in Hogsmeade, their relationship had been a bit strained.
The news should have made Ella feel better, but it really hadn't. She knew he would talk nonstop about Ashleigh like he'd had when they'd first started dating. Perhaps it also made a difference to Ella because all she had in terms of a relationship right now was a psychotic ex-boyfriend.
Still, she tried to be thrilled for him. Ella would much rather have her friend be happy than be unhappy. Maybe his good mood would rub off on her.
So far, it hadn't really, but Ella threw herself into her school work in an attempt to keep her mind occupied. It didn't help that she'd received three letters from her mum this week. The last one, received just this morning at breakfast, had fresh tear stains on it.
"Another letter?" Francis asked, when he sat down beside Ella at the Gryffindor table.
Ella passed it to him wordlessly.
He read it quickly and frowned. "I don't think there's anything to be done but to wait it out. Time heals all, they say."
"As long as my dad, or that is to say, his new wife doesn't rub it in her face each time they meet," Ella replied sullenly. She picked at the bacon on her plate.
Francis didn't know what to say. From what Ella had said of her stepmother, he could imagine that the new Mrs. Harville would try to push Ella's mother's buttons.
Ella sighed and pushed her plate away. She no longer had an appetite. "I'll write my mum after class," she decided. "I don't have time before DADA starts."
"Speaking of DADA, we better head off," Francis said, grabbing a piece of toast to eat on the go.
Ella got up and grabbed her books. "I'm not normally so stoked about attending class but I'm glad I have a full day today."
Francis patted her on the back as they walked out of the Great Hall together.
Adriana's Story, Part Two
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 01-26-11 11:47
"Guess who I just saw moving into the Hogsmeade Inn?"
Bill looked up from the paperwork building up on his desk and quirked an eyebrow at the newcomer, who was none other than Lysander Stratford.
"Let me guess. Adriana Fairchild?"
Lysander, who remained in the doorway to Bill's office with his arms crossed over his chest, gave a curt nod. "You don't sound surprised."
"I think I've been surprised so much since the new year began that I've run out of the feeling. Don't tell me you came over here just to bring me the news."
"I came to access my vault," Lysander said. "The news is incidental."
Bill turned to the cabinet where he kept the vault keys and selected the one that matched Lysander's. He got up and led his former classmate underground.
A short while later, though probably not soon enough, the men parted ways. Lysander went back to Twice Told Tales and Bill fought the urge to go across the street to the inn. He lost the battle and grabbed his coat.
A moment later he stepped into the lobby of the Hogsmeade Inn. Years ago, he'd lived there himself when he'd been doing Order business for Albus Dumbledore.
Bill approached the reception desk and asked, "Which room is Adriana Fairchild staying in?"
Before the desk clerk could answer, Adriana herself said, "I'll show you. Good morning, Bill."
He turned around and mumbled, "Morning. What are you doing here at the inn?"
She led him to the stairs as she answered. "Staying here until I can find a place of my own. Does it bother you?"
Bill didn't know how to answer. Yes and no both seemed about right. "I'm just curious, is all. Adriana, I have a few more questions to ask you."
Adriana chuckled. "You're still the same old Bill, all right. Here we are." She led Bill to the very same room he'd stayed in all those years before. The Hogsmeade Inn wasn't huge, so it wasn't all that unexpected that Adriana have his old room, but Bill still felt a bit weird about it.
In some ways it was like stepping back in time. The room looked exactly the same.
She put down her purse and then sat down on the bed. Bill decided to stand.
"You said that the reason you stayed away, the reason you faked your death, is because of Voldemort."
"I'm surprised to hear you call him by name. You used to call him You-Know-Who."
Bill said, "He's dead now, which brings me to my question. Why did you stay away when he was no longer a threat? If you were checking in like you claim you were, then surely you knew Harry Potter killed him."
Adriana looked away, toward the window. "I haven't heard his voice in my head for nearly five years," she said, "but I meant what I said when I thought it best that I stay out of your life." She turned to look at him again. "I didn't want to come back and expect you to drop everything––your new relationship––just because of me. I didn't want you to have conflicting feelings or to relive the painful past. So, I just stayed away."
"Until now."
"Until now."
"Why the letters, Adriana?"
She had the good grace to look sheepish. "I shouldn't have sent them like that. I should have been straightforward, but I guess I wanted to prepare you for the eventuality of my return. I wanted to get you thinking." She sighed. "It was stupid, I know, and I realize they probably did more harm than good."
Adriana got up. "I'm sorry. Sorry to you, to Charlie, to anyone else those letters might have upset."
Bill sensed that she was being sincere. He sighed and shook his head. "But why now? Why have you come back after all this time? What's changed?"
"Everything," she said.
Can't Concentrate
Author: Charlie Weasley
Date: 01-26-11 20:09
Unlocking his office door Charlie goes straight to the desk, plops down the folder he's carrying, then sinks down into the chair there, eyes going shut. With Hilary Term at St. Emrys starting in another week he's got some things to take care of and with a departmental meeting this morning, it was a perfect time to do them. Or would have been perfect if his mind hadn't kept wandering. Charlie should have had everything done before the meeting but the meeting just ended and he's yet to finish a single item on his to do list.
Since Wednesday after the visit from Belladonna Sinistra's twin Isabella, Charlie hasn't been able to stop thinking about how the woman he'd once dated had mentally snapped, committed a crime, and been sentenced to Azkaban. Despite initially losing their petition to have Bella in a top notch private psychiatric facility, the Sinistras had finally prevailed and six months into her sentence Bella was moved from Azkaban. Charlie had been against it from the start, back when Bella was awaiting trial but after learning of the move he found some solace in the fact that she was at least still locked away.
That changed yesterday. Belladonna was released after being declared once again of sound mind. After Isabella's visit Wednesday he'd been in a hurry to get home but when standing at the Floo, Charlie had changed his mind and gone instead to the Ministry. There he'd gone straight to Kingsley Shacklebolt as a friend, asking why Belladonna wasn't being moved back to Azkaban to finish out her sentence. What he learned added fuel to Charlie's anger. When Euphemia Smythe-Jones was in office, the Sinistras won an appeal that if declared fit, Belladonna would go free instead of completing the sentence at Azkaban. Charlie has no doubt they paid the ex-Minister well for the change in the original ruling. It also came at a time when Charlie wasn't in any position to be notified of the change; though given the fact that the only reason he found out Belladonna is being released is because her sister thought it the right thing to do Charlie seriously doubts he would have been officially notified of the change anyway.
Charlie spent he rest of Wednesday and part of yesterday reinforcing the standard protections most in the Wizarding World have on their homes as well as adding layer after layer of additional protection. He'd thought of going through the difficult process of making the house unplottable but with so many, including Belladonna, already aware of where his house is, he realized there wasn't much point. To truly go unplottable, he'd have to uproot the family and move. Charlie is not about to let Belladonna drive him from a house Hendrika and he love.
Even with the added precautions, the increased security, Charlie can't stop worry about Bella showing up and doing something to Hendrika or one of the boys. It's little comfort that even when Hendrika is working a shift at Blossom's, the boys are there with her, and there are lots of other people around. Hendrika is quite capable but Bella got the drop on Charlie once and he's quite capable as well.
His head throbbing with a vicious headache, he slumps down in his chair, legs going up on the desk. He's got those things he really needs to do here at St. Emrys but the headache is draining him as it the strong urge to rush home every two seconds and check on his family.
Charlie sits like that for a few minutes before dropping his feet back to the floor and standing up. Grabbing some paperwork to file with one of administrative offices, Charlie plods out of his office, making sure to shut and lock the door behind him, thinking as he walks down the hallway that at least Ron isn't having to worry about Gisela Quackenboss also being freed yesterday. One of the things Charlie had learned from Kingsley Wednesday was that for the time being, Gisela is still locked away.
Looking At A House
Author: Griffin Price
Date: 01-27-11 20:05
Griff apparates into the small front garden of a house he's got an appointment with a letting agency to see. Griff had once again been living at Ruth Gainsborough's but has long felt he should get his own place. He'd made the appointment yesterday and after his meeting with Agnes Halford was delayed four hours and then going on a raid on another Auror's case, he's glad he set the time to meet the estate agent for early evening.
The front door is ajar so Griff knocks on it as he pushes it open enough to walk through, calling out as he does, "Mr. Southam?"
Lester Southam appears in an archway through which Griff can see the kitchen. "Mr. Price, right on time." The older man crosses over to Griff, extending his hand.
Griff meets him halfway, finding the man has a firm, dry grip. "Thanks for seeing me so late in the day."
"Think nothing of it. I'm always happy to try and accomodate the a client's work schedule."
After those brief amenities, Southam gets right to business. He gestures towards a window looking out on the front yard. "As you've seen, the front garden is smallish but the back yard more than makes up for that as you'll see. As you've also seen, there's no formal entry. You walk right into the sitting room, or as some like to say, living room. The fireplace is the perfect size for a room of this dimension... "
Griff follows Southam through the house, listening closely as the man highlights the features of each room. The house is two full floors with a third floor that is half living space, half attic area, and there's also a half cellar as well. The back garden is indeed large just as Mr. Southam had said. With an active child the age Tristan is, the large fenced in backyard is a big selling point for Griff. Another selling point is that the other 9 houses on this block - four others on the side of the lane this house is on and five on the opposite side - are all Wizarding.
The house does need a little work done but nothing major. When Mr. Southam first told him of it, Griff felt sure that for such a house to fit in his budget there had to be a great deal of work needing to be done that would offset the lower price of the house. Southam assured him that's not the case and once the tour ends, he gives Griff a copy of an inspection done just this week by a reputable firm.
"If serious about making an offer, you are of course welcome to have your own inspection done."
"If there aren't galleon guzzling repairs to be done, why is the asking price so low for a property like this?"
"The current owner recently inherited the property from a great uncle. She lives in Hong Kong and doesn't want to deal with any of this. She just wants to have done with everything; which leads me to the next thing. The contents of the house are to be sold but should you want the house, anything you might like to have we can work out a price on."
"Anything?"
"Anything. That of course means if you want the house and want any of the contents, we'd need to go through room by room."
"What if I wanted everything?"
Southam smiles. "In that case, we haggle on an amount to be tacked on to the price of the house."
"May I do a walk through on my own while I think?"
"Yes, of course, and should you decide against this one or just aren't sure, there are other house I might show you, though none are as large as this one and none have yards as large the the back yard here."
Griff nods. "I'll keep that in mind."
He does another walk-through, not hurrying but also mindful of the time and keeping Mr. Southam from being able to go home. Griff pauses at a window looking out on the backyard. The room he's in would make a perfect bedroom for Tristan when he stays overnight with Griff. There's a tree in the backyard that would be great for building a treehouse. Still, he's not sure. It's such a big step. Earlier in the week he looked at a few places listed with another letting agency plus there are others Mr. Southam can show him. None that he's seen so far have done much for him nor were they as large and as nice as this one. He has no doubt Mr. Southam is telling the truth about other properties not being a large as this house.
Movement in a neighboring yard catches Griff's eye. Two children, bundled up against the cold, have come running out with something smaller running around their feet as if frolicking. It's dark enough out he can't make out details but the four legged figure moves like a puppy or small dog. Griff can't tell details about the children but as best he can judge from here, they are about the same size as Tristan.
It's hard to see them in the gloom but Griff watches on for a couple of minutes while they seem to be waiting on the dog to do its business. When he moves away from the window he's reached a decision. Returning to the ground floor he seeks out Mr. Southam in the kitchen where he'd left him.
Lester Southam looks inquiringly. Griff offers a smile. "Let's talk about the price."
When the two men leave later, they've reached an agreement on the house and its contents and Griff has signed the first set of papers. Mr. Southam gives Griff a set of house keys telling Griff, "There's another set at the office. I'll have them for you when you come in next week."
The two shake hands again then part ways, Mr. Southam leaving immediately while Griff takes a moment to sit on one of the couches, able to really think about what Agnes had told him.