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It's Official (Deak)
Author: Kody
Date: 12-16-11 20:35
History of Magic behind him until Tuesday, Deak enters the Great Hall, famished as usual. Also as usual, his eyes do a quick scan for Etta. Not seeing her, he surmises she's not made it back to the castle from Herbology at one of the greenhouses. He does an over the shoulder look back at the Great Hall doors only to remind himself that Etta and he aren't dating.
Deak slides into a seat next to Jack, dropping his satchel and reaching for a sandwich all in one motion. "How was Charms?" he asks before taking a bite of the sandwich, which he then discovers is a toasted club.
"It was charming, of course. I like Professor Knight but I do miss Professor Flitwick."
"Me too. What kind of soup is that?"
"This one is a curry I think. There's some chicken noodle there if you want."
"The curry if fine, thanks."
"Is it true you and Etta are officially broken up?"
"It's true."
"Can't say it's a shocker."
"No, but I'm still not used to thinking of us truly back to friend status."
"You think it's really possible to just be friends again?"
"Don't know. Never had a girlfriend before Etta. Drake's friends with at least one of his exes. I think Kody is too."
"He is. I was with him once when he ran into one. They acted like they'd always only been just friends and I didn't get the impression either was faking to be polite."
"I think she and I can be but at the same time I really hope if she takes up with someone else that it's after I've graduated."
"So, I should wait until summer to ask her out then?"
Deak sputters, nearly choking on his soup. Jack starts laughing. "Oh, to have had a camera to capture the look on your face."
"Not funny," Deak gasps after a coughing fit.
"Actually something you have to give thought to. You're friends with most anyone here who might eventually ask her out."
"I know and I'll be fine with it, just not right away. If you did ever want to go out with Etta, I'd accept it though I would hope you'd not ask her out anytime soon. I need a little time."
Jack holds one hand over his heart, solemnly intoning, "I vow that if I ask Etta out and you are still not ready to face her dating anyone else yet, we will sneak around behind your back."
Deak's response involves flipping a spoonful of peas at Jack.
Lunch with Gideon
Author: Rylee
Date: 12-16-11 21:41
It was cloudy and somewhat chilly, and unfortunately it was chilly on a day that I had to leave the warmth of the castle and head out on the grounds to the Greenhouse. At least it wasn't overly windy at the moment, which was good. Hopefully it would remain relatively calm until at least three forty-five by the time I got back into the castle from Herbology.
Either way, I'd grabbed my favorite cashmere sweater to go with my favorite pair of suede pants to keep me toasty warm today. Lunch involved a bowl of beef vegetable soup, a thick hunk of crusty bread with a smear of butter upon it, a mug of green tea with lemon and two sugar. I flipped through a couple of pages of my herbology text making certain that I had all the information down just incase there was a pop quiz or something along those lines today in class.
Everyone was still trying to cope with Professor Batuti's death, though I'd only met her during the flying workshops that I was required to take I had no true opinion about the woman, but felt a slight pang at her death, not as much as others did who had been working with her longer or took the Fitness & Athletics course or did anything else that was remotely athletic. I had like others had been asked to, sent a condolence card to her family as she was after all the assistant head of Slytherin House.
I'd shifted as someone settled down across from me and I offered Gideon a brilliant smile. "Hello Gideon."
"Hey Rylee. Ready for herbology?" He asked, taking a moment to fill his bowl with some of the soup as well as pile his plate with a few other items from the well stocked table before us.
"As ready as I can be. Not really looking forward to leaving the castle when it is so warm in here and the trek to the greenhouses will probably be windy. I'm going to hate leaving the castle when it snows. I really am."
"I know what you mean, but maybe I can help warm you up after class if you get too cold on the walk back to the castle."
I blushed, my cheeks flushing crimson at the possibility of spending that much time with Gideon, sure he was a first year and not as hot as say Errol or Deak or Kody or any other number of older boys from any of the houses. Even Head Boy Nathaniel Ross was kind of cute in a quirky kind of way. "I'd like that Gideon..."
We talked about nonsensical things for the duration of lunch and then he walked with me to Herbology and walked back with me to the Slytherin Common room where we settled on one of the sofas in the common room and had a mug of cocoa before the fire place.
Complicated
Author: Nathaniel Ross
Date: 12-17-11 15:06
The Hufflepuff seventh year boys' dormitory was submersed in darkness, with the exception of the light coming from Tim's wand. He liked to read in bed at night, and Nate remembered how candles had been banished from their dorms after he accidental set his pillow on fire in the last school year. As usual, William Reade snored during his sleep, once or twice muttering undecipherable words. Nate was laid on his back, his head resting on his hands as he stared at the yellow canopy, studying the dozens of badgers embroidered in the fabric. He wondered if a spell would make them move and play with each other.
In his mind he started to plan his day for tomorrow. He was going to have Potions, DADA, Transfigurations and Charms. He was sure all the teachers would send homework for the weekend. Nate was not looking forward to that, but at least now he had Phyllida and Ferne to help him. And Maggie. Professor Masterson's half-sister revealed herself to be a good student and even today she had helped Nate on the Care for Magical Creatures homework.
His mind went to Phyllida again and that kiss inside the broom cupboard. He felt butterflies in his stomach, almost as if he had ingested half a flask of Euphoria. Perhaps more than half…
Nate recalled how last year they tried to brew that potion in class. Snape was against testing the effects of potion on students, not wanting to have people presenting the potions' sides effects of excessive singing and nose-tweaking. Nate never had a good voice but he felt like he could have sung that day.
However, nothing had changed between them since the kiss. It was as if someone had obliviated Phyllida and she had forgotten about their episode at the broom cupboard. They went to classes together, they worked on their homework side to side and they went for walks in the grounds. They even argued about quidditch from time to time. But not once she had given him any acknowledgement of the kiss. Maybe Nate was a bad kisser and Phyllida was traumatized? This improbable theory was becoming more and more the possible reason for her reaction. Whenever Nate mentioned the kiss Phyllida would look at him as if he had been hit by a bludger on his head and he was talking nonsense. If he was a quidditch player maybe he would have believed her. Maybe he had been dreaming and they hadn't kissed at all.
"Tim?" Nate called, sitting on his bed.
"Yes?" Tim replied in a whisper, so as not to wake up the other sleeping boys.
"Can I ask you a question?"
They both opened their bed curtains so they could hear each other better. Tim's face was illuminated by his wand and he was staring at Nate with curiosity.
"Sure."
"If you kissed a girl…If a girl kissed you, that is, and then she would act as if nothing happened, what does that mean?"
"Who did you kiss?"
"I didn't kiss her, she started it! I just hugged her…"
"Well in theory you were the one who showed your intentions by hugging her. So your started it. Which of the Slytherin girls did you kiss? Or was it Maggie?"
Nate couldn't avoid making a horrified face.
"For Merlin's sake, Tim, I'm not a stud…"
"Well you have been seen with two girls at Puddifoot's…"
"That was not what it seemed to be. Anyway the girl I am talking about it Phyllida."
"Yeah. I thought you liked her. She's pretty. So you hugged her and she kissed you. When did this happen?"
"Tuesday, in one of the broom cupboards. She keeps acting as if nothing happened."
"Hmm…maybe she didn't like the kiss. Or maybe she is crazy about you but she is too proud to say so. I don't know. Girls are complicated, especially the ones from Slytherin."
"So what do I do now? Pretend nothing happened? There were no testimonies so it's my word against her. I could try and get over this but I can't. I keep thinking about it, it's driving me insane…"
"Oh, Ross is in loooove…." Tim sang in a cheerful tone, laughing. Feeling teased, Nate threw his pillow at Tim, and then he closed his curtains, ready to sulk. This conversation hadn't helped at all. He heard Tim whispering 'Nox' at his wand and the dormitory went dark. It took Nate a while to get used to the dark. He picked up his wand and used the accio charm to fetch a chocolate frog. He ate it in silence, his mind trying to figure out a solution for Phyllida. On one thing at least Tim was right: girls were complicated.
On a Job
Author: Ronan Eastwick
Date: 12-18-11 14:36
The narrow buildings along Diagon Alley funneled the cool, breezy air from one end to the other, sometimes creating a howling effect that seemed to startle all of the animals, whether they ran loose in the alley or were cooped up in cages in one of the pet stores. For Ronan, the stiff breeze posed a challenge. He pulled a cart of parchment samples along the cobblestones. Occasionally, a sheaf came loose and drifted away with the wind.
He'd already visited the stationary shops and had talked to a few other store owners who'd purchased parchment from Farnsworth & Wallingford in the past. Everybody needed parchment, whether they sold stationary or not, so Ronan didn't have too much difficulty making sales.
He was on his way to Olde Art & Supplies to show off the different types of parchment artists might like to use for sketching, watercoloring, etc., when he spotted Solange walking towards him. She carried a tray with two coffees and a bag labeled The Flour Shoppe in her other hand.
Ronan smiled at the sight of her and asked, "What are you doing here?" when she stopped in front of him.
She pecked him on the lips and held out the tray. "Thought you might need nourishment."
"Rocco let you leave your desk for once?" Ronan asked in surprise. He accepted one of the coffees and took a tentative sip. It was very hot, but just what he needed to combat the cool wind.
"He decided to have an impromptu training and sent me out to get sustenance. I thought I would see if I could find you first before I went back to the office."
"Won't he wonder where you are if you don't go back soon?"
Solange shrugged. "I'll just tell him there was a long line at the bakery. After all, it's nearly lunch hour for everyone. Here, take a scone."
She handed him the bag. Ronan gave her his coffee to hang on to for a moment, while he fished through the sack. He pulled out a blueberry scone and downed it in a few bites.
"See, I knew I should make sure you ate something!" Solange exclaimed, grinning. "How has it been going?"
Just then, another breeze charged down the alley, dislodging some of the parchment papers from Ronan's cart. He and Solange juggled their coffees and scones while simultaneously attempting to catch the escapees. Working together, they managed to retrieve every last one.
Ronan finally answered her question. "Well, I've managed to make several sales."
"That's great!"
"I've got one left to do and then I'll return to the office," Ronan said. He quickly finished his coffee. Solange accepted the empty cup to throw away for him. He gave her another kiss, told her goodbye for now, and watched as she headed back to the bakery for more snacks.
With a smile on his face, Ronan turned to continue on his way to the art shoppe, when he spotted Artemis staring at him with an inscrutable expression her face. He hadn't seen her in ages.
She carried a to-go box from Delia's Deli and walked towards him.
"Hi, Ronan. Long time, no see," she said.
"Hi, Artemis." Although he'd moved on with his life, it still stung that she'd dumped him via owl post. "How's everything?"
"Everything's good. How are things with you?"
"Same."
An awkward silence passed between them. Then Artemis asked, "Was that your girlfriend?"
"Yeah, Solange."
Artemis waited a beat and then asked, "How old is she?"
"Older, but not too old," Ronan replied. "Why does it matter?"
"It doesn't. I was just wondering. She didn't look around our ages."
"She looks old?"
"No," Artemis said, "you can just tell that she's not in her late teens or early twenties, is all."
Ronan decided not to reply. Artemis was obviously curious about his love life, but Ronan didn't feel close enough to her anymore to tell her anything personal. He also found that he didn't really care to find out more about her life.
"Well, it was nice bumping into you after all this time," Ronan politely said, though nice was perhaps an exaggeration. "I'm actually on a job right now, so I'll catch you later."
Artemis noticed the cart then, which was emblazoned with the words Farnsworth & Wallingford on the side. She looked up at Ronan again and said, "Nice seeing you too. Maybe we can catch up sometime."
"Sure. See you around," Ronan replied, giving her a slight wave as he set off again for the art supply store. He quickly crossed the distance needed to reach the front entrance and stepped inside, where it was noticeably more comfortable.
Slugs & Butterflies
Author: Minerva McGonagall
Date: 12-18-11 15:49
Professor McGonagall walked up and down the aisles in the Transfiguration classroom and guided her fifth year Gryffindor and Ravenclaw students in the proper technique for vanishing invertebrates, in this case a pair of slugs. Each student had a pair on their desks, chosen from one of the terrariums around the classroom. Some of the students had carefully selected slugs of the same species, while others had chosen whichever they could get their hands on for the in-class assignment.
Last week, they had practiced vanishing single worms. This week's assignment was all the more challenging because it involved not just one creature but two. Also, whereas the worms all looked plain and quite the same, some of the slugs were colorful or had patterns. The more complex the creature, the more difficult was the transfiguration to accomplish.
Cat Amherst worked with a pair of leopard slugs. They were quite large. One had gray skin with black, elongated spots, whereas the other had tan skin with more rounded, black spots. She made a good effort at attempting to vanish both at the same time, but usually she only managed to get one or part of one to vanish.
Most of the students worked on Spanish slugs, which came in all sorts of colors (dark brown, burnt orange, and greenish yellow, for example). Spanish slugs were not native to the area but had been introduced to Great Britain in the 1950s. They were an invasive species and could be found in every single garden, including all over the Hogwarts grounds.
Sometimes when Hagrid wasn't using Flesh-Eating Slug Repellant to protect the crops at Hogwarts, he would capture some of the slugs for Transfiguration and Potions classes, the latter of which used them as an ingredient in certain concoctions.
The fifth year class ended quickly. Professor McGonagall had everyone return their whole slugs to the terrariums and helped conjure the slugs that had been successfully or partially vanished. Those were also returned to the terrariums.
Soon, the classroom was empty, though not for long, as the seventh year NEWT class was next.
In the few minutes between classes, Professor McGonagall cleaned up the slug slime from the desks with quick flicks of her wand. No sooner was that finished did the first of the seventh years arrive. They had been learning conjuring spells and were working on butterflies now. Soon, the class was full of fluttering butterflies of all colors and types.
Come To Dinner (Olive)
Author: Emerald Green
Date: 12-19-11 20:05
Coming from her dorm room, duffle bag for Quidditch in hand, Olive pauses a few steps into the mostly empty common room. As far as Olive knows most are already at supper or will be soon. Those who are still here in the Slytherin common room appear to be wrapping up whatever they are doing, most likely so they too can go to dinner. All that is but Zuberi Batuti. He sits staring at a faux window that's currently charmed to give the exact view a real window in the same spot would, a view of the lake at whatever depth Slytherin House is located. At the moment, all that's visible is a lone fish drifting lazily back and forth as if the span of the window is its limit of movement.
Zuberi doesn't appear to notice that solitary little fish or anything or anyone else for that matter. Concerned that he might not be eating as he should since his older sister's death, Olive approaches. "Zuberi?"
He's so lost in thought that he doesn't hear her so Olive moves a little closer to touch him on the leg. "Zuberi?"
"Olive," Zuberi says, shifting his whole body to look directly at her.
"Going to dinner?"
"It's that time already? I hadn't noticed." His eyes drop to her duffle bag. "You have practice?"
"Later. Gryffindor has the pitch first tonight but after I eat some of us are going to the commons for a little while. I won't have to come back here before going to the pitch later."
"Do you know if Marjani was going to practice today?"
"We ate lunch together and she acted like she was. I don't know if she actually did though."
"I hope so. You know we came back to Hogwarts because that's what she wanted; so, I would hope that she'd be getting back into her regular routine."
"You aren't here because you want to be here?"
"I didn't care one way or the other. All I wanted was to be wherever Marjani wanted to go so that I could look out for her, support her. You know?"
"Yeah, I understand. I'm glad you both came back here but I have to say I'm a little surprised it's what Marjani wanted. You both loved Okapi and attended there longer. Plus, this is where...," Olive can't bring herself to say aloud this is where Theodosia was murdered. Hogsmeade that is, but close enough.
"It wasn't an easy decision," Zuberi replies without further explanation.
"I imagine it wasn't."
"If given the chance, would you go back to school in America?"
"I don't know. Maybe, but then again, my school there wasn't a school of magic. Now that I know magic exists and that I'm part of it, I don't think I'd want to cut it out of my life."
"Your father did, or did I misunderstand what you'd told Marjani?"
"He never said anything to us about the Wizarding world. We don't know if he ever told Mom or not. We don't know if he visited Wizarding locations or still used magic. We, that is Emerald, Jade, Hunter, and I, didn't find out about any of this world until our parents died and Aunt Blythe showed up. We didn't know about her either."
"I can't imagine having the added shock of an aunt and finding out you're a witch on top of the shock I know you were in over losing your parents. When mine died it was hard just accepting they were gone without having so much other piled on."
"It was an adjustment, that's for sure. Poor Emmie had to cram trying to learn enough to be allowed in her right year here. At least I was coming in as a first year so I did have it easier than she did."
Zuberi nods once then his eyes fall on Olive's duffle. "I'm keeping you," he says, looking at her face once more. "The later you get to supper, the less time you have with friends in the commons before practice."
"You should come to the Great Hall with me."
"Maybe in a little while."
"Did you eat lunch?"
"Today?"
"No," Olive grins, "next Wednesday."
Zuberi gives her a half smile in return. "I think so. I don't remember."
"I didn't see you there but then again, I wasn't looking for you. Plus, I wasn't at the Slytherin table. No matter. Come on. You're coming with me now. You need to eat." Olive plucks at Zuberi's shirt.
"I'll go. I promise."
"So go now," Olive stubbornly insists. "Humor me. I don't give up easily. You should know that about me by now."
"Usually, I'd take that as a challenge but at the moment I'm too tired to argue." With that, Zuberi pushes up from the chair.
As they exit the Slytherin portal Zuberi offers Olive a full on grin. "Just because I came without argument, don't expect me to offer to carry your duffle bag."
Olive grins in reply, "Wouldn't dream of it."