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The Hunt is On
Author: Niccolo Zabini
Date: 05-19-14 18:12
Niccolo was usually the last out of his dorm on a Sunday morning, today hadn't been much different. After slipping out of bed he felt something in his shoe, he blinked and carefully looked inside. What he found brought a soft smile to his face, a tiny egg. Today was the annual easter egg hunt at Hogwarts, and Nico was going to meet up with his friends to enjoy the day. When he opened that little emerald green egg, he grinned. There was a beautiful ring, and the teenager had to wonder if the house elves had made sure he found that particular prize.
"Pet's going to love this." He grabbed his bag and made his way into the common room. After offering the ring to his betrothed, he knew Petula was happy with today's gift, the first of many to come. The foursome then made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast. Nico picked up and stashed several eggs along the way, including a few found among the Slytherin table.
"Are we all going about this hunt as a group or should we divide and conquer?" Nico asked with a smirk. "How about Pet and I against the pair of you?" He said to Anton and Valeria. "Pair with the most eggs gets some sort of reward?" After everyone was in agreement Nico left with Petula. Of course this wall all for fun, but he and Pet rarely spent time alone outside the confines of Slytherin house.
"Look here, Pet." Nico swooped up an elaborate metallic egg and offered it to her. "This looks promising." She smiled and gracefully tucked it into her basket before they continued, Nico even managed to swipe a few eggs just before some muggle-born Gryffindor firsties could claim them. Nearly three hours had passed when they nearly ran into Anton and Valeria. Niccolo grinned and looked over his slightly younger friends. "Anyone want to grab lunch?" He couldn't help being a typical teenage boy, his appetite rather ravenous.
Lunch with Great-Aunt Cloris and the Others
Author: Petula Parkinson
Date: 05-19-14 18:26
The four quickly regrouped and then found Cloris on the grounds, where the Mockridge Matriarch turned Transfiguration Professor had a blanket waiting for them. "Hello, Grandmother," Valeria greeted, echoed by Petula's "Good afternoon, Great-Aunt Cloris."
"Hello, darlings. Are you enjoying the day?" Cloris asked. "Come and sit, show me your prizes after you have some lunch." The older woman's smile didn't fully reach her eyes, worry about her missing daughter-in-law keeping her from truly enjoying the day. But today was about the children, and for now, the best thing she could do is keep Valeria from noticing that Nephele and Kirley weren't there, and that things were not all well for the Mockridges right now.
The four enjoyed the pumpkin juice, cold chicken and other treats that Cloris had set out. After they were all stuffed, the two pairs counted their eggs and found they'd managed to tie. Which was probably for the best.
"Great-Aunt Cloris, did you see what Nico found in an egg this morning?" Petula asked, showing her aunt the ring she wore.
"That's lovely, my dear. Is it going to be your betrothal ring?" Cloris asked.
"Yes, Ma'am. Daddy and Blaise will be pleased, I think," Petula answered with a smile.
"I think they will too," the older woman agreed. "Now, let's see how many sweets you've wrangled or if you've found anything else special."
Each one soon had a pile of candy and sweets. Valeria and Petula had both found enchanted teddy bears. Each bear had a unique scent, similar to that of Amorentia, which smells different to everyone who breathes it, but there was no love potion involved. The egg that Anton had relinquished to Valeria had a rather large gift certificate in it. The elves may have intended that the egg be found by older students, since it would basically treat the winner to a fabulous day-long date in Hogsmeade.
Valeria looked at it, then looked at Anton. "Next term?" she asked quietly. He nodded and the gift certificate was quickly tucked away.
Petula, always wary of the awkward tension between those two, looked over to Val. "What was in the egg like the one you gave Howell?" the brunette asked.
Val found it and opened it, blinking quickly. Inside was a mysterious envelope. On the envelope, in striking green ink, it said, "When you most need it, you will understand." She tried, but could not open it.
"I suspect it will eventually reveal itself," Cloris said with a smile.
Pet smiled when Valeria did, and the four quickly went back to eating some of their snacks and exploring their various prizes.
(Miranda) Find Love!
Author: Mildred
Date: 05-20-14 08:05
Miranda walked alone around the grounds, her egg basket half empty. She deliberated turned her face away to the left, when she spotted Perdita a few meters away holding hands with Alan Birdwell. The two of them could easily make the cover of a magazine about seasonal love. She didn't want to talk to them and so she pretended she had spotted an egg near the lake and rushed in that direction.
At Beaxbatons, Miranda was used to have the male attention to herself, while Perdita wouldn't mind to stay at her corner with the company of a book and only a small number of suitors around her. Things in Britain were quite different, and when Miranda thought she and Alan were getting somewhere in terms of friendship, he decided to confess the reason why he spent so much time with her was because he was in the hopes of penetrate in Perdita's closed world, which only Miranda had access. As a good sister and friend, Miranda had intervened in Alan's name in front of Perdita, and now the two of them became a pair. She had got used to Alan's company, but he now preferred to spend all his time with her sister.
It was hard for Miranda to make new friends; most of the students had known each other since their first year and they had seven long years to cement their friendships. She walked near the lake, contemplating the water's surface that sparkled in the sun. It was a beautiful day and she had to admit she had fallen in love for the beautiful Hogwarts' grounds. Her first impression of England, after so many years abroad, had been of a shabby grey country, but there was something in the vast green fields of the school that could not be compared to France.
Miranda found a quiet spot by the lake and she removed her shoes, making herself more comfortable as she installed herself in the grass, ready to open her eggs. She got a small stuffed bunny, a hairpin and a package with cauldron cakes. As she took a bite in one of the cakes she opened the last egg, which was decorated with little pink hearts. Inside there was a pamphlet with an image of a young couple that reminded her so much of Perdita and Alan.
Find Love at Magical Match!
Miranda grinned. She didn't believe in such thing. However she noticed that the pamphlet offered a discount for the services and all you had to do was to fill out the form that came inside, if of course you were of age. Feeling in a silly mood Miranda summoned a quill with her wand and started to answer the form's questions, giggling from time to time. People who passed by might think she was crazy for giggling on her own, but truth was that the Magical Match form was making her have a good time.
Whether or not she would owl it later to the agency, she couldn't tell.
Taking A Break
Author: Briar Rose
Date: 05-20-14 19:17
Grace rolls her eyes at Briar. "Muuu-uum, don't sit down."
"I'm tired, Grace. You go on. I can see you."
Grace makes a tsking sound, rolls her eyes again but turns to inspect a bush. From the motions of her hand and arm, Briar takes it that Grace has added a few more eggs to her frilly concoction of an Easter basket. Further on Briar spies Julian keeping pace with Jasmine and Xavier. It's so difficult to believe the twins will be three in June. It's even harder to believe that her own baby turns eleven in October. Grace has taken to asking could they trick Hogwarts into thinking she's already eleven on September 1st so she can be one year in school with Caerwyn.
Caerwyn's coming up on his seventeenth birthday. How have nearly six years passed since he came into their lives? He rarely speaks of what the time with his mother was like but Briar has gotten the impression from both Caerwyn and Julian that despite whatever faults Afton Carew had, she was a good parent to the boy.
Briar leans back on the grass, eyes closing. In addition to Grace being up extra early to ensure they were not late for the start of the egg hunt, Briar had to oversee the delivery of cakes for two weddings, an anniversary celebration, a retirement luncheon, and a ninetieth birthday. She was up late on the one for the retirement luncheon because it was a last minute order yesterday. Someone involved with giving the luncheon had been going to do a cake but had dropped everything because of a family emergency, forgetting until nearly too late to let someone know alternate plans for a cake had to be made.
She has no idea how much time has passed, a few minutes or several when items dropped on the ground next to her followed by a person have her opening her eyes again. "Needing a rest too, Betheny?"
Her sister-in-law, married to Briar's half-brother Byron, nods. "Deborah and Douglas were up before the sun. I knew we shouldn't have told them about the egg hunt until after breakfast." Betheny gives Briar a conspiratorial smiles, a hand on her stomach. "I'm also tired these days for another reason."
"No? When?"
"Mid-September. This was so unexpected. We had thought we were stopping at three so we're still in a little bit of shock."
"Congratulations! Do the kids know yet?"
"Not yet. We're going to tell them when Duncan's home on holiday."
"I'll wait to tell Grace until I've heard from either you or Byron. She's going to be so excited at having another baby in the family."
Anything else on the topic is put aside when Duncan comes over to sit for a few minutes. The eldest of the Dippet children looks taller to Briar. "Have you grown?" she asks.
"Little bit," Duncan replies with an enthusiastic nod, pleased someone not his mother has noticed.
"Have you opened any eggs yet?" Betheny inquires, looking in the direction of her son's basket.
"Only a few so far. A lot of us are saving most of our eggs to open after the hunt's over instead of taking time when we could be finding more."
Betheny says with amusement, "Yet here you are taking time to sit with your old mum instead of finding even more eggs."
Duncan sheepishly admits, "Dad saw me and told me if I saw you to say they're at the far side of the area for the little kids. He thought you might start wondering why you couldn't see them."
Both women laugh at this. Duncan spots an egg right behind his aunt but as this isn't the area he's supposed to be taking eggs from, he says nothing, opting to leave it for one of the littles to find. He nearly laughs aloud at how annoyed Douglas, aged nine, would be if he heard someone call him a little. Thinking he might have to do that just to see his brother's reaction, after kissing his mum and hugging his aunt, Duncan smiles all the way back to a location where he's free to resume egg hunting.
Once Duncan is out of ear shot conversation does not restart on Betheny's impending fourth child but takes another direction when she asks Briar, "How's your sister?"
"Hendrika's improved but I'm not sure that's saying much. She's out of St. Mungo's, and is even here, or was here, but in a wheelchair. She doesn't have much strength or energy."
"I'll have to look for her and say hello."
Betheny asks a few more questions about Hendrika, Charlie, and their kids, before Briar and she are once more interrupted, this time by Grace returning to get something to drink for her and one to take to Charlotte in case Charlotte wants something as well.
Strangers
Author: Harriet
Date: 05-21-14 04:20
She came with the first signs of spring.
The car parked in front of St. Clare's old building and all the girls ran towards the gates, momentarily forgetting about their free time at the playground. Harriet was no exception, and her hands squeezed the iron bars of the fence, as she tried to have a better look of the visitors. Everyone kept pushing each other, and someone let go a cry of pain probably because they had bed stepped on.
A short man with the constitution of a bull left the driver's seat and opened the back door of the black car, helping out its occupant to leave the vehicle by offering his hand to her. No woman like this as ever came to Greysteel before. She seemed to come out a storybook with her long purple dress, and matching hat. Her face was hidden by the hat's net, but it was easy to guess the delicate forms of her face under it. She rang the bell and soon one of the sisters allowed her to pass.
The woman made her way towards the building, followed by the man, who looked at the surroundings with suspicious. He deliberated ignored the curious girls that had gathered at a safe distance to watch the strangers. The woman, on the other hand, did no such thing - she distributed smiles here and there. The strange pair crossed the old wooden door and disappeared inside the building.
"Do you think she is here to adopt one of us?"
"Who is she?"
"She's got a bodyguard! She must be rich!"
"Oh I hope she picks me!"
There was much speculation around the mysterious woman's identity and what was her business here. Unfortunately the arrival of the lady didn't open an exception in the orphans' schedule and the bell ran like always, calling them back to class. No one was able to concentrate, and not even the brightest student, Fiona, seemed to know the solution of the math problems Sister Beatrice had written on the blackboard. Harriet looked at the window, where the car was still parked. She too wanted to know who this strange character was. If only she could use her magic to eavesdrop…
But her uncle had told her she should hide her abilities from everyone else. There would be plenty of time at Hogwarts, the school she was going to attend next year, to use her abilities. No one could know about her magic, it was dangerous if anyone outside (and even inside) St. Clare's learned about it. Harriet had begged her uncle to take her with him out of St. Clare's, but he refused. She knew little about his life, but Sister Hildegarde told her once that he was a diplomat who traveled around the world to solve conflicts before they even started. She promised to behave and keep a low profile, but Phillip was inflexible.
"You must stay here for your own safety," he had told her. And that was the end of it.
"Harriet Allen, are you not listening? You have been called to Sister Hildegarde's office."
She rapidly abandoned her desk, as if someone had pinched her bottom, and climbed the cranky stairs to the nun's office. The bull like driver was at the door, and he sent Harriet a penetrate look. She ignored it, knocked the door and was given permission to enter. The woman smiled at Harriet and she stood from the chair she was seated to greet the girl. Her long arms stretched around Harriet in a hug, but she seemed to think twice because she moved her position, only to touch the girl's shoulder with her hand, lightly.
"She's perfect," she stated to Sister Hildegarde. She had a musical voice and she looked out of her element in this room of simple furniture and naked walls. Harriet looked at the old nun in search of a reply.
"Mrs. van der Woodsen, had kindly offered to take you with her for a season in London, England."
"Me? I mean, I would love to go, but my uncle…"
"You don't have to worry about Phillip, Harriet. He is an old friend of mine and he was the one who agreed to this. When I found out he had a young niece that he planned to send to a boarding school, I told him: 'Phillip, darling, she must see the world before you confine her again at another sad place." Sister Hildegarde didn't seem very satisfied when Mrs. van der Woodsen called her establishment a sad place. "Your uncle is stubborn but he finally gave me his permission. And of course I promised him and Sister Hildgarde that you would keep studying your lessons – I even hired a private tutor."
Harriet was sent without delays to her dormitory to pack her things. She didn't have much belongings and it took her less than ten minutes to have everything ready. A mass of heads was peeking at the window of the classroom, when she left the building. Harriet raised her hand and waved to her friends and companions, who waved back in return.
The momentary sadness she felt gave place to excitement: she was going to London!
Changing Vacation Plans
Author: Errol
Date: 05-21-14 14:49
Sitting with his back against a tree, the school's main gates in view, Errol eats chocolate covered fruit flavored jellied candies from a bag he'd gotten from a recently opened Easter egg. "I wondered where you'd gotten off to?" Megara says, coming to stand near Errol's feet.
Holding the bag out to her he replies, "I didn't know I'd been missed."
Taking a couple of the candies from the bag Megara shifts so she's able to sit down beside him. "Why wouldn't you be missed?"
"Don't know."
"You're in a mood. Again."
"I'm sitting here eating candy. How is that being in a mood?"
"You've gone all quiet again and mope and go off by yourself a lot like you used to do."
"I don't think I'll be joining you and your parents for part of Easter vacation."
Megara scoffs. "Of course you are. Being in a mood doesn't mean you can just up and change plans."
"I need to go home."
"You're still convinced there's something going on with your uncle even though you've gotten letters from him?"
"They were written by him. I think maybe Judith but could be his assistant."
"Just because he didn't come to Parents Weekend doesn't mean anything's the matter. Ms. Russell told you why he wasn't able to come. These jellies are good. Give me another."
Errol holds out the bag again. "Would a please kill you just once?"
"No, but it's only you so I don't have to."
"Now that you are getting addicted to these things I shall hold out on you unless you say please."
"Hey now, I'm the mean one is this faux sibling relationship."
"You said it, not me."
"Good thing too or I'd have to hurt you."
"I think in a past life you were a Spanish inquisitor."
"So very amusing of you. You keep working on developing that sense of humor."
Megara pokes Errol in the side prompting him to hold the bag towards her again. "What's the name of these? I'm going to have to get some. Maybe there are some lurking in a few of my eggs," she says with a hopeful glance at her basket. Her eyes go from her basket to his. "Or more in your eggs."
"Errol's eggs. Not Megara's."
Megara snorts again. "Don't you know by now, my specially challenged faux baby brother, that what's yours is mine."
"Now who's the comedian?"
Megara pokes her tongue out at him before frowning. "Are you truly changing the holiday plans?"
"I have to. Something bad's happened. If it were just a matter of this big case he's on taking a turn that requires more time and attention, Judith would have said. She lied and his assistant is in on that lie and one of them, or I think it's one of them, is trying to make me think Ross has been writing me letters."
The bag of chocolate covered fruit flavored jellies now in her lap Megara asks, "What's wrong with the letters?"
Snatching the bag of candy back from her, Errol begins listing the little details in the letters that have him convinced Ross is not the one writing them.
A Very Good Day
Author: Charlie Weasley
Date: 05-21-14 18:29
Hendrika had insisted on going with the kids and Charlie to the Hogwarts Easter egg hunt. She claimed that since she'd be sitting the entire time she'd be fine. Because Hen had been cooped up in a hospital for weeks and only recently home, where she's been confined to either the bed or on the sofa, Charlie relented. There's also the fact that they still don't know of Hen will fully recover and there is still a possibility of major setbacks. He didn't want to stand in her way of having some enjoyment, even if it was to be as a mostly passive observer.
With Hendrika in the wheelchair, a large bag hanging from the handles in the back, they had set out from Hogsmeade. Ava sat on Hen's lap much of the way, tightly clutching her basket. Schuyler and Artie would run ahead, wildly swinging their baskets, gigglingly loudly, then run back, and then do it all over again.
Once at Hogwarts the family had gone to the part of the grounds reserved for the younger children. Charlie slowly pushed Hendrika in the wheelchair as the three kids hunted for eggs, both of them helping by pointing out eggs they'd spotted. After awhile, Hendrika needed a rest from the jostling of the wheelchair over the ground. Charlie transfigured the wheelchair to a more comfortable lounge style chair. Ava, who won't be three until April was ready for a nap by then as well. She passed out next to Hen on the lounger. After using a charm to ensure Ava couldn't roll off, the boys and he set out to find more eggs.
With Hen and Ava refreshed, the five of them had taken lunch inside the castle, all three children excitedly finding eggs there as well. They'd stayed a few more hours after they'd eaten, Charlie checking Hendrika more and more often, not wanting her to overdue. When they did leave, all three baskets were filled, the children had had a little more sweets than they usually get in one sitting, and even Artie and Schuyler were starting to run out of steam. The lounge transfigured back into a wheelchair, Ava again on Hen's lap, the baskets joining the large bag hanging from the chair's handles, and Charlie carrying both the boys, they'd made their way back home in the village, Charlie managing to manuever the wheelchair with his wand since he couldn't push very well.
Back home, Hendrika settled on the sofa, quickly falling asleep. Charlie put a simple supper together while the kids, sitting far enough apart from each other so as not to mix up their eggs and prizes, each selected five to open. Charlie told them if they waited to open the others, Mummy would be awake to see. Hearing that, none of them argued or pouted over the limit. Before long, 7 year old Artie, 7 year old but turning 8 in just over a week Schuyler, and 2 year old Ava are sitting enthralled as a miniature Hogwarts Express from an egg of Artie's chuffs and huffs around the kitchen floor. After he's put the supper on the table, Charlie adds the toy train as well, spelling it to stay on top of the table so he won't have to keep retrieving it from the floor as they eat.
Even with his deep concern and worry for Hendrika, Charlie has to admit that today has been a very good day.