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(Adriana) The Package
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 03-05-17 12:30
Adriana swept down the staircase to the crypt and found Voldemort admiring the Sword of Slytherin. He turned upon hearing Adriana's soft steps on the stone floor and clasped his hands behind his back. Adriana stopped short at the sight of him. He looked stronger than ever, but the façade was shattered somewhat when one of his eyes started twitching.
Adriana tried not to notice and smiled sweetly at him. "Nice to see you up and about," she said. "Is there something you want or need?"
Voldemort raised his chin a little and cast his red eyes on the sloped ceiling. "How much longer must I stay in the infirmary?" he asked. He'd taken to calling the crypt the infirmary, though it felt a bit like a prison.
"Just a little longer, Father, I promise. Alexander, Bellatrix and Barty all say you are nearly 100% healed, and I think it's best that we wait to tell the others until you're at your very best, don't you agree?"
Voldemort itched to leave the crypt, but he approved of Adriana's caution to debut him to the rest of the Death Eaters. He didn't want to look weak in front of them, especially those with whom he didn't have a long history.
He lowered his gaze and walked over to a chair, where he sat and rested his elbows on the padded armrests. "I read your notes," he began, tenting his long fingers together. "You've accomplished much in a short time."
"I did it all for you," Adriana replied, going to him and kneeling in front of him. She put her hands on his knees and looked at him as a child does her most beloved father.
"How did you learn Grindelwald still lived?" Voldemort asked.
"Why from you, of course," Adriana replied, her eyes wide with excitement. "Our spiritual connection gave me knowledge I might not otherwise have had."
A semblance of a smile touched the corners of Voldemort's lips. "Years ago, the Knights of Walpurgis purchased in an auction what was believed to be Grindelwald's remains. It was a costly ruse, if ever there was one."
Adriana lit up into a smile of her own. "They must have been disappointed to learn the truth. Do you think they only found out after I killed him?"
"Perhaps," Voldemort responded.
Both turned their heads at the sound of keys jangling at the top of the stairs. Adriana rose to her feet and walked to the bottom of the stone staircase. She saw Bellatrix standing at the top landing, wearing a wicked smile. Nero Noir stood next to her and pulled on the hair of a very frightened wizard, who was kneeling awkwardly on the floor.
"I brought the package," Nero announced.
"Great. Send him down," Adriana answered.
Nero gave the wizard a hard shove, causing him to tumble down the staircase. He landed with a thud at Adriana's feet. Fortunately, he didn't break his neck, though his left arm hung at an odd angle from the socket of his shoulder. He was also bleeding from a cut on his forehead and appeared to have lost a couple of teeth during the hard fall.
"Hi, Jimmy," Adriana greeted. "Long time, no see."
Jimmy Kiddell raised his head slightly from the stone floor and looked up at Adriana with a fearful expression on his battered face. He flinched when loud thumping followed him down the staircase. A large, rectangular wooden case trundled down the steps and hit him in the back. Jimmy groaned from the jarring pain.
Adriana looked up and said, "That'll be all." Nero backed away and Bellatrix locked the door.
Adriana looked down at Jimmy and commanded, "Get up."
Jimmy moaned and struggled to his feet. "Are you going to kill me?" he managed through gasping breaths.
"No," Adriana replied. "Your service is requested. Get your trunk and follow me."
Jimmy instinctively reached for his wand to levitate the trunk, but Bellatrix had confiscated it. With a sigh and a groan, he bent to pick up the trunk, but with his bum arm, he had to drag it one-handedly.
He followed Adriana to the center of the crypt and gasped when he saw Voldemort sitting in the armchair. The front of his pants were suddenly wet.
Adriana turned up her nose in disgust. "Jimmy, the trunk!" she snapped.
Jimmy could barely force his legs to move.
Adriana muttered, "Useless," under her breath, and took the trunk from him. She dragged it in front of Voldemort's chair and unlatched it. Inside the trunk were innumerable wand boxes.
"I wish we could get your own wand back, but who knows where it went. It might have been destroyed, or maybe it'll turn up in some wizarding dark objects auction like Grindelwald's supposed remains did. Anyway, here's your chance to get a new wand. Go ahead, try one!"
Voldemort leaned forward and hovered his hand over the open trunk. He eventually settled on a slim, green box and lifted it out. Inside was a wand made of fir with dragon heartstring core. Voldemort carefully lifted the wand from its velvet bed and tested it with his fingers. He hadn't held a wand in so very long…
He rose to his feet quite suddenly and pointed the wand at Jimmy. "Crucio!" he exclaimed.
Jimmy let out a squeak and then tittered with nervous laughter.
Adriana encouraged, "It's all right. Just try another!"
Voldemort threw the fir wand on the ground and reached for another box, this one blue. The new wand was made of apple and had kelpie hair inside of it. He pointed the wand at Jimmy and ground out, "Crucio!"
Jimmy was shaking so hard he could barely stand, but he didn't cry out.
Voldemort threw that wand down too and reached for a red box. The wand inside was made of yew, like his very first wand. Instead of phoenix feather for a core, however, the interior consisted of the tongue of a horned serpent.
Voldemort jabbed the wand in the air and shouted, "Crucio!"
Jimmy's knees gave out and he fell to the floor, landing in his own urine. He writhed and screamed in pain.
Voldemort twisted the wand in the air and grinned evilly.
Adriana clapped her hands. "You found a wand! Now you can practice your spells and be ready for action when you reveal yourself to the other Death Eaters. I'll get you a training dummy…"
"No!" Voldemort cut her off. "I want live targets."
"Very well," Adriana replied, smiling. "I'm sure that can be arranged."
Kiss and Tell
Author: Sophie McCourt
Date: 03-05-17 14:11
It was lunch time. Sophie and Caleb were seated together at the Hufflepuff table.
"Any plans for the afternoon?" she asked him, picking up a jar and filling her cup with more pumpkin juice. Caleb had a free afternoon, unlike her who would still have Arythmancy & Divination, and Fitness &Athletics.
"Homework and study," he replied.
"I thought you were going to meet with your secret girlfriend, "Sophie teased.
Caleb's cheeks turned red in fury, and he started to stab the carrots in his plate with violence, with his fork. He put the carrots in his mouth and chewed, sending her mortal glances.
Sophie looked down, feeling a little bad for teasing him, but she couldn't help herself.
On Valentine's Day they gathered at the common commons and somehow the conversation turned to crushes they might have. Sophie ended up confessing that she thought Mickey Moon would have tried to kiss her by now, and she was disappointed he had not done so. She then declared they were probably some of the last students from their year to have never kissed anyone. Caleb was offended by this, and he surprised Sophie when he declared he had already kissed a girl. But she did not believe him because he did not reveal her identity to her. She thought Caleb was making it all up.
"She's not my girlfriend. "
"Is she seated in this table?" Sophie asked, looked around.
"Is she in this division?"
"I am not playing this game anymore," Caleb declared. "I'm getting tired of this."
"Well if you tell me who she is, I will stop bothering you."
"I can't. I don't kiss and tell. Now can we move on?"
Sophie shrugged her shoulders and she declared she wouldn't believe Caleb had kissed anyone, until that girl came forward and admitted it. Truth to be told it bothered her that he had kissed someone before she did so. Caleb was always so reserved, so focused in hi studies, and he was not at ease with girls, but somehow, he had done more than she ever did. And she got along with boys just fine. It made Sophie wonder if there was something wrong with her.
She consulted her watch.
"I must get going." she declared, standing up.
"See you at dinner," Caleb said, clearly glad the subject had been dropped.
Sophie waked away, her head moving left and right, as she watched all the girls having lunch. Could Caleb be speaking the truth? And if so, who did he kiss?
With Christopher (Catriona)
Author: Fionna
Date: 03-05-17 20:16
Christopher lightly nudges Catriona. "You all right? You've hardly said a word."
"Just tired. Leslie is driving us all barmy."
"Birthday, baby, or wedding?"
"All three. At 3 am she decided to change the theme of the birthday party and just had to share the new theme with me right then. She's still peeved that the shade on the walls in the nursery are not to her exact specifications but no matter how the color is tweaked she complains. As for the wedding, she has changed the dresses for the twelfth time, each one uglier than the last. Fionna told her there was no way in hell she'd wear the latest selection."
"That must have gone over well."
"I'm surprised everyone in a five mile radius didn't hear the screaming match that resulted."
"At least it will all be over soon."
"My sister will just find something else to create drama over."
"I always wanted a sibling but there are days Leslie makes me think twice about that." Christopher means what he says but makes the comment with a wink and a grin.
"There are days I wished she and I were closer in age but other days I think the age gap isn't enough." Cat returns the grin. She reaches for her tea and takes a tentative sip. It had been scalding when they first sat down but seems to have cooled off enough to be enjoyable.
After another, bigger, sip she says, "Sooooo, I'm thinking of changing programs."
Christopher's eyebrows go up in surprise. "You've never indicated you've been unhappy."
"I haven't been. Not really. It's that the closer I get to finishing the more difficult it has become for me to see myself in this long term."
"So what do you want instead?"
"That's part of the problem. I have no idea."
"You could always get your degree then start a new program as a graduate student."
"That's crossed my mind. I wish I was as sure of myself as you are with veterinary healing."
"I'm lucky that I've know for so long what I wanted to do. If that didn't interest me I have no idea what I'd be doing instead."
They eat their lunch discussing options for Cat that come to mind then Christopher has to rush off to set up for a project presentation. Cat leaves the canteen shortly after. With some time before her next class she decides to swing by the career counselor office to pick up some brochures on a few of the other programs Christopher and she talked about. The way she's felt lately about classes and the job they would ultimately lead too she thinks it's too bad one can't get paid for being a lazy do nothing.
Dinner Dates
Author: Griet
Date: 03-06-17 18:14
Griet walked into Bombay Palace and mentioned to the hostess that she was meeting a group, everyone of which had probably already arrived. She glanced around the crowded restaurant and spotted Valentijn looking patiently at a magazine Cornelia had open on the table. Cassander sat next to Cornelia with his arm over the back of her chair and in contrast, looked a little disinterested.
Griet rushed over and pulled off her coat as she said, "I'm so sorry I'm late. I got held up at work. Had a bit of a kerfuffle with a client." She draped her coat over the back of her chair and sat, leaning towards her fiancé to give him a quick peck on the lips.
Cornelia pulled the magazine towards her and closed it. She rested her hands on top and said, "I was just telling Valentijn about my ideas for the wedding."
Cassander, looking lively now that they could order dinner, remarked, "She wants to wear a black dress."
"Correction, I already have my black wedding dress." Cornelia beamed. "It's perfect!"
Griet smiled and asked, "What color will the bridal party wear?"
"Well, since you asked," Cornelia began, while Cassander rolled his eyes and muttered, "Here we go again."
Cornelia flipped the magazine back open. Griet could see now that it was a bridal magazine and was dog-eared and flagged in various places. Cornelia found the page in question and turned the magazine around so that Griet could see it better. "I was thinking either a deep purple or maybe green, since we're all Slytherins here."
"I'm not," Valentijn said. He'd gone to the Nederlandse School voor Jonge Heksen en Tovernaars.
Cornelia shrugged. "Anyway, those are my thoughts. Have you decided on anything?"
Griet found herself too distracted to respond. Her gaze had started to wander the same time the hostess led a familiar couple to a table across the room.
Cornelia turned her head around to look and scowled. "Clover Blakely, or did she take the name Smith?"
And then another familiar couple entered the room and made way for the same table. It was Kelly Blakely with Griet's other ex-boyfriend Tucker Chepstow.
Cornelia swiveled her head back to Griet and asked, "How about we start by ordering drinks?"
Griet looked over at Valentijn, who knew all about her history with the Blakelys, though he had never met either Clover or Kelly himself. He called a waiter over to take the drink orders. All Griet could think was how grateful she was to know there wasn't another Blakely sister out there to ruin her current relationship.
Abstract But Not Art
Author: Griffin Price
Date: 03-07-17 19:48
Crouched, head tilted first left then right Quinten Arnold comments, "Haven't seen this before."
"Me either." Griff grimaces at the gruesome sight.
The bodies before them are twisted at awkward angles, body parts now in their expected locations. What's more, the two bodies seem to be merged with each other.
"I don't even know of a spell that could do something like this," Latetia Lewiston says with a visible shudder.
Noticing something odd in the midst of the oddity before him leans in for a closer look. "Things are weirder than we realized. There are three left feet."
Everyone there stops what they're doing to come stare at the three left feet.
"Merlin, that's bloody freaky."
Griff looks at Quinten then back to the bodies. "Makes you wonder where the third body is."
"We're done taking photographs until you're ready to turn it - I mean them - over."
Griff nods at the speaker, one of two wielding cameras to document the scene. Griff, Quinten, and Latetia, wands in hand, coordinate levitating the merged bodies, turning them over, then lowering them back to the floor.
They and everyone else stand staring again.
"One headed but three ars, er, buttocks. Wasn't expecting that."
Griff, Latetia, and the others mutely agree with Quinten. After another long moment of silence the two photographers resume taking pictures. The small house has had one walk-through but Quinten, Latetia, and Griff begin again, conducting a thorough search. In addition to looking for clues to who the bodies are and who might have done this to them, they're looking for any easy to overlook or hidden nooks where the remains of a third person might be stashed.
Two hours later no one going through the house has found even a hint at the victims' identities, signs of a third body, nor a clue as to who the perpetrator is. What they do have is the name of the home owner. Myra Reddick is 94 and has been at St. Mungo's the past four days after breaking her hip. Skele-gro has repaired the hip but at Mrs. Reddick's age her healer wanted to keep an eye on her a few extra days to ensure she's steady enough on her feet to return home where she lives alone.
Latetia and Griff leave the scene to go question Myra Reddick on who might have been using her house while she's been away. With any luck this is a one off situation and not some dark arts aficionado who enjoys creating abstract sculptures using actual people.
Routine
Author: Hermione Granger
Date: 03-08-17 18:18
Not quite two months into her new position as liaison between the Muggle and wizarding governments, Hermione finally felt as if she had a set routine. She spent the majority of her time in her Muggle office and attended the occasional meeting with the Prime Minister and his cabinet or just the PM himself. The rest of her time was spent meeting with the Minister of Magic and sometimes other high-ranking Ministry officials, as well.
The good news was that even with the constant threat of Adriana Fairchild and the Death Eaters running amok in both the Muggle and wizarding worlds––if Fairchild's recent activities were anything by which to judge––the Ministry wasn't on very high alert at the moment. This relaxed the PM somewhat.
Muggle London/Britain wasn't facing anything directly at the moment either, though there were things happening elsewhere in the world that required a close eye. Since December, there was unrest in Tunisia, Oman, Yemen, Egypt, Syria, Morocco and most recently, Libya. Hermione couldn't help but wonder if dark wizards in those regions were taking advantage of the so-called Arab Spring to overthrow their own leaders and do other nefarious deeds.
If the Ministry of Magic was also keeping an eye on the events taking place and if there was some sort of wizarding connection, Hermione didn't know. It certainly hadn't made the news, yet.
Currently, it was Friday and the end of her shift. Since all seemed calm for the moment, at least in Britain, Hermione left work with little care in the world. The nice thing about her new job was that she rarely worked the weekends. The only time she probably would have to would be during a time of crisis. With any luck, crises would occur few and far between, though.
She headed home, wondering if she needed to cook something for dinner tonight or if the family would go out for dinner. She and Ron tended to take turns preparing meals, but it depended on schedules. Ron was sometimes out late, since crime didn't keep to business hours. Hermione, on the other hand, usually came home at the same time every evening.
When she arrived, she found Ron already home and Rose and Hugo eagerly awaiting hugs and kisses from their mummy.