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Taking a Tumble
Author: Alex Whitmen
Date: 07-15-07 03:33
Alex walked into another crowded store. Somewhere along the way he lost his cousin and her friend but that was no surprise to him. They always had a habit of wondering off, but he knew they would find him when they were ready. Just as we walked into the store he crashed into a girl, causing her to drop everything. He sat there a moment, surprised to be sitting on the floor, then began helping her pick up her packages.
"Excuse me. I'm sorry. Are you alright?" she asked. Alex smiled at her. What a way to make an impression. Alex scolded himself.
"I'm fine. Are you okay?" he asked back. She nodded. "That was my fault. I wasn't paying attention," he admitted. She smiled at him and held her packages in a somewhat awkward way. Without thinking he took some out of her hands.
"Let me help you with those," he said, smiling back at her.
"It wasn't your fault. It's crowded and neither of us were really paying attention," she replied. Alex wasn't a ladies man and really didn't know what to say around them.
"Are you here alone?" he asked glancing around. She shook her head.
"No, my father is around shopping. Are you?" she asked.
"Naw, I'm here with my cousin and her friend. They left me again," Alex replied. He checked his watch. He had plenty of time before they had to go.
"Want to get something to eat. I'm paying. I mean, it's the least I can do for running you down," Alex said. He quickly decided to shut up because he was making a complete fool of himself.
An odd meeting
Author: Cailyn Spicer
Date: 07-15-07 09:03
Cailyn stared at the boy she had collided into and shook her head no. What would her father say if he knew that a boy was paying for her, when she could pay for herself? It really wasn’t his fault that they had bumped into each other. She frowned as she looked down at the small amount of coins her father had given her. Then, she looked back up at the boy.
“ I can buy my own food, but I am rather hungry.” Cailyn said looking around the pastry shop. The whole reason she had decided to come to the shop was for a snack. She was sure her dad wouldn’t mind if she got a snack. The boy just stood there staring at her.
“It really was my fault. The least I could do is pay for you.” He said awkwardly. Cailyn grinned a little. He was going to be persisted. She could see that. So, she finally gave in with a little sigh, while hoping her father wouldn’t find out that some one paid for her meal.
She took a peek outside the window to make sure Nicko was no were to be seen. To her great relief, he wasn’t. Her smiled grew a bit wider. “ I’m Cailyn Spicer.” She said softly as she heard her stomach growl. She could smell fresh baked goods and her mouth watered. Why hadn’t she eaten before she came? She wondered. “ Do you want to get something here to eat?” She asked softly. After all they were already in the pastry shop.
Shopping Excursion
Author: Ronan Eastwick
Date: 07-15-07 10:47
Enid insisted on taking Ronan to Diagon Alley to do his back-to-school shopping. She understood perfectly well that Ronan was more than old enough to take care of his needs on his own, but pointed out that she'd never once taken him to do his back-to-school shopping since he started at Hogwarts. And whose fault was that? Ronan had wondered, but hadn't said aloud. If she hadn't left and disappeared for five years, she could have taken him shopping every August.
Finding out where she'd been and just what she knew about both the murders of Bertram and Caden Eastwick was difficult. Ronan occasionally fished for answers from his mother but she expertly sidestepped every question. He didn't want her to grow suspicious of him, so he never asked too much at one time. Sometimes he thought he should just demand answers from her, but he knew it would only get him further away from the truth if he tried.
The rare times that Enid left Ronan home alone while she ran errands, he snooped around her things to see what he could find. Surely, there had to be some sort of incriminating evidence against her. There had to be something that would reveal where she'd been all these years and what she knew about the death of her husband and her stepson. So far, he hadn't found anything, but then he hadn't looked through all of her things yet.
Ronan and Enid arrived at the Leaky Cauldron and went straight to the back, where Enid used her wand to tap on the bricks that would form an archway into Diagon Alley. They passed by the cauldron shop, Slug & Jiggers, and the library before turning right into Scribbulus Everchanging Inks to purchase parchment, quills, and bottles of ink.
Then they went diagonally across the street to Eeylops Owl Emporium, so that Ronan could by some owl treats for his owl Merlin. Merlin also needed a new cage, as Ronan had somehow bent it by magical means while still at Hogwarts last term and couldn't undo what he'd done to it.
Enid steered Ronan into Quality Quidditch Supplies next.
"Are you going to try out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team?" she asked her son.
Ronan had considered it, but he didn't have a broom of his own. He'd never missed a game since first starting at Hogwarts, but then he'd always gone to the matches as a spectator, never as a player. He wasn't even sure what position he might like to play, if he even bothered to try out.
He followed Enid to the broomstick display. There were many older models like the Silverstreak, Lightening Bolt II and the Silver Arrow 2000 hanging on racks on the wall. Enid went to the newer display and pointed to one in the window.
"Sir, I'd like that one," she said to a young man who wore a robe with Quality Quidditch Supplies emblazoned on the front.
"Yes, ma'am." He pulled it from the window display and brought it to the check out counter. "Would you like it wrapped?"
"Yes, please." Enid pulled a money bag from her pocket and handed over the requisite amount of coins. Then she handed the wrapped Asteroid broomstick to Ronan and guided him out the door.
"Consider this a gift to make up for the last five years," she said.
Ronan was surprised and grateful for the gift, though at the same time he felt a broomstick could never make up for not having his mother during a time when he needed her the most.
"Thank you," he said quietly.
Moving
Author: Severus Snape
Date: 07-15-07 11:08
Since first hearing from Minerva that Dumbledore's position as Headmaster of Hogwarts had been usurped by someone hired by the Ministry of Magic, Severus left Spinner's End and permanently moved back into the castle so that he could lend his support to Minerva and the other teachers who felt more and more like outsiders in their own domain.
Headmistress Harriet Snider was a smug woman, who seemed to know everything better than everyone else. Snape had a different opinion, finding her to be narrow-minded and stubbornly set in her own ways. It was very clear that she intended to transform Hogwarts quickly into what she envisioned it should be rather than to allow for a gradual, progressive change.
Already, she'd come to visit Snape twice to study his classroom and his ingredients stores, making comments on how he should arrange the students' desks or organize the bottles on the shelves. She'd also questioned Snape at length on his year-long incarceration, wondering aloud whether parents would even want an ex-con to teach their students. Severus already knew that he couldn't stand the woman and therefore doubled his efforts to help the Order of the Phoenix track down Albus.
Snape sat at his desk in his classroom and made sure that all his lessons were in order. While Horace Slughorn had used the room last year, he'd moved some of Snape's things elsewhere to make room for his own. While he busied himself, Harriet Snider entered the room.
She clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "I see you haven't taken my recommendations to heart." Snider frowned disapprovingly, causing her she-mustache to turn down with the corners of her lips.
"No matter. You're to move classrooms anyway."
"Pardon?" Snape queried sharply.
Speaking firmly and clearly and in a soft, threatening tone Snider repeated, "You are to move classrooms."
Snape rose, placing both palms on his desk as he leaned over it. "Whatever for?"
"This classroom has been assigned for another purpose." She walked to his desk and peered up to him, feeling none of the fear that anyone else might when faced with Snape glaring down at them. She handed him a slip of parchment. "Your new classroom is at the end of the corridor. Please have your things removed from this room no later than August 31st."
With that, she left Snape glowering alone in the classroom that was no longer his.
Shopping List
Author: Alanna Beck
Date: 07-15-07 11:25
Alanna looked at the letter that had arrived for her from Hogwarts, listing the books and supplies she would need for her sixth year. She almost couldn't believe that she only had two years left at Hogwarts, and that both would be very intensive academically, as their primary focus was preparation for the N.E.W.T. exams.
Everyone who had gone to visit Toby in Brisbane had returned last week––well, everyone but Bronwyn, who was no longer Bronwyn Dewhurst but Bronwyn Beck. Alanna still couldn't believe that Toby had gotten married, though she was glad that she, at least, had gotten to attend. Tobias and Josefine were a little disappointed that they'd missed the ceremony, but they weren't upset with Toby for being a little impulsive. It turned out that they had gotten married on a whim, too, so it seemed to run in the family.
Ariella wasn't very upset about having missed Toby's wedding either. Alanna suspected she might be distracted over the fact that she had a boyfriend now, or whatever Lawrence Masterson was to Ariella. Alanna was glad to see Ariella so happy again. Christian had been such a jerk to her. If Alanna could see him now, she'd slap him hard across the face for what he'd done to her sister.
Tobias, Josefine, Ariella and Alanna intended on going to Diagon Alley together on the last day of summer holiday. They'd already made room reservations at the Leaky Cauldron, because they knew that August 31st was always a very busy day at Diagon Alley, mainly because most students did their back-to-school shopping then and many would spend the night in London before going to Kings Cross Station the next morning for the long journey to Hogwarts.
Besides her regular school supplies and things like new robes, Alanna really wanted to upgrade her broomstick model. She still flew an old Nimbus 2001. She didn't need the latest and greatest, but something a bit newer than her old broom was desirable.
She jotted down a few things she knew she needed or wanted to buy in Diagon Alley, like the new broom, and then decided she might as well start packing. The Start of Term was just days away.
Scholarships Sent Anonymously
Author: Viktor Krum
Date: 07-15-07 11:41
Viktor's solicitor taps the two letters before them. "Definately your final selections, Viktor?"
"Yes, the Beck girl is the youngest and it is her turn."
"That's not been your delay in getting these letters out this year."
"You are correct. There are many worthy young men."
"Jared Wynbourne is lucky to be the one selected. I know when I was his age if I'd gotten money for a scholarship fund from an anonymous donor and at least part of the money was to have been spent on a new broom, I would have been flying without the broom I'd have been so happy."
Viktor hands over two drawstring purses with the money for the first stipend installment to each of the 2001-2002 Kendra Beck Hogwarts Scholarship recipients. He rereads the letters to Alanna Beck and Jared Wynbourned then they put the letters into thick envelopes. A drawstring purse goes into each envelope and after making sure the envelopes are well sealed, two large owls Viktor brought from the owlery are given the envelopes.
The two men watch the owls wing away then part company, the solicitor to return to his office and Viktor to finish making sure all the Quidditch balls are fit to use.
Where's Dumbledore When You Really Need Him?
Author: Jet
Date: 07-15-07 12:10
Jet chews on the inside of one cheek. He's already chewed the other side it's raw and very sore. There's probably a potion to fix it up quick but Jet's thoughts are too much on something else to expend time right now on getting a potion to fix the inside of his chewed up cheek.
Jet rubs his temple. He's had a dull, persistent headache for days. Practically all summer. No nightmares. Just the headache. Just the headache and the occassional thinking he's hearing the voice again.
Jet's gotten together with Professor Sacheverelle some over the summer, doing crystal ball work since that's when he can often see the shadow man - the shadow that he is pretty sure is himself - lurking about. What he really wants, what he really needs is Professor Dumbledore. Only the headmaster's reassurence and time with Jet has ever made Jet feel at ease about all this.
Why he's so worried and feels such a need to see Dumbledore, Jet isn't sure. It's not as though he's had urges to do evil or harm someone. It's not as though he's felt like he's possessed or have gaps of time missing that he can't explain.
Sighing, Jet gets out of the chair in his room that looks out over the backyard. Going to the door he calls down, "Mum, I'm going out for a bit."
"Have a nice time," she cheerily replies.
"See you," Jet says then disapparates.
You have to start from the beginning, not from the future
Author: Alice Cullen
Date: 07-15-07 16:36
At the end of the road, there was a small abanded building were, I found myself standing in front of. I looked down at a piece of paper in my hand to make sure that this was the right address. Sure enough it was and I frowned. This was the building that was going to be my shop? I shook my head. It was so small. It defiantly wasn’t big enough for what I had pictured. I felt tiny tears come to my eyes.
I thought I had seen myself standing in a huge shop in Hogesmead years from now. The shop had been opened and there was even a tiny café attached to it. I was with Jasper too. How could the shop that I saw in my vision be the same as this one? I wondered while I now stood in front of the door, fumbling for the key.
Oooh, forget it! I was getting frustrated. I flicked my wand out. “Alohomora.” I said and smiled to myself when the door unlocked and opened on its own. I couldn’t imaged how Muggles got on with life without magic.
The inside of the shop was even more dismal then the outside. The walls were whitewashed and bland. The shelves were broken down and the whole place was dusty and grimy. I sighed. This was probably why I got the place for so cheap. I dropped my suitcase down on the dirty floor, and sat down in a dirty chair and let the tears fall. I had not expected to find an abandon place that was so dirty. I supposed I had expected to find my little shop the way I saw it in the future. What a foolish thing to think.
“It’ll be fine, Alice. We’ll fix it up.” Jasper said as he suddenly stood in front of me. I peeked up at him through my tears. He always knew exactly what it was that bothered me.
“But it’s so dirty Jasper.” I moaned standing up and whipping my tears. “And it's all so closed. How am I supposed to get costumers to shop at a place like this?”
“With a little bit of money, some cleaning and repairing, we’ll have that shop you saw in your vision. Don’t get let a little dirt let you down.” Jasper said with a grin. I couldn’t help but smile when he smiled. “ And if this little shop doesn’t work out, we can always move to that mansion I inherited.” He added. He was a little upset with me for wanting to come here and open a store when we didn’t need the money at all. He wanted to study, and I fully supported that, but I wanted a store and money of my own. Not just my parents money or his money. I frowned as I looked at him.
“Jasper, you can study all you want at St. Emery’s and I will come and see you, but this is something I need to do.” I said, as he traced my lips.
“Of course.” Jasper smiled. “I still think you should finish college though.”
I laughed. “Oh, Jasper, I don’t want to go to college. That is your thing. Not mine. I was never really one for school. Besides, I’m smart enough anyway. Who needs college when we already graduated from Hogwarts.” He laughed softly, and grew quite as he turned around. I could tell he was trying to figure out were to start first. Sometimes you had to start from the beginning and not from the future.
Grabbing A Bite
Author: Alex Whitmen
Date: 07-15-07 16:49
Alex smiled. He was glad she let him pay and even happier she didn't just leave him standing in the store like an idiot.
"I'm Alex Whitmen. It's nice to meet you," he replied. She smiled and nodded.
"You too," she responded, then realized she had asked him where they should eat, he thought a moment then answered.
"Here is cool. Get whatever you want. It's no big deal," Alex told her.
"Okay, thank you," she said. They walked a little bit looking at the different pastries.
"So, you're going to Hogwarts this fall?" he asked, making converstaion, then shook his head. Stupid question, Alex. Of course she is, he thought. She nodded.
"Yeah, I transferred from the American Wizarding School this year," she told him.
"That's cool. I'm transferring in this year too. What year?" Alex asked. He figured she couldn't be too far from his age.
"Sixth year," she answered. Alex smiled. She was the same year.
"Me too. I'm 16," he told her.
"So am I. When's your birthday?" she asked back.
"September 16th, yours?" Alex asked. He was glad the conversation was coming a lot easier. He didn't have to think of things today. They just came out easy. She seemed like an easy person to get along with and he enjoyed her company.