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Peace
Author: Skyler
Date: 07-18-07 12:51
Skyler laid on Alex’s bed while he sat in a chair next to his desk and Deely continued to look through stuff.
“You know, I kind of do want to go back but then I don’t,” Skyler said softly. Alex glanced over at her as he picked up his baseball and began tossing it up and catching it.
“School?” he asked finally.
“Yeah, genius,” Skyler answered. She didn't move at all. She just stared at the ceiling. Deely began laughing out of nowhere.
“What are you laughing at?” Sky asked not bothering to hide her irritation.
“You want to go to school cause of that guy, Jet, but you don’t cause of everything else,” Deely said laughing again. Alex tried to suppress his laugh but wasn’t doing a very good job.
“Shut up, Deely. He’s just a friend and I kind of do because I won't be so alone, but we know I hate getting up in the morning, I hate homework and..”
“People in general,” Deely interrupted. This time Skyler laughed too and shook her head. She tossed herself back on the bed.
“Alex, you shouldn’t be laughing. Who was that girl Deely saw you with?” Sky asked him. He smiled and shrugged.
“She’s a friend. I just met her in The Flour Shoppe,” he told them. Deely seemed to get bored looking through his stuff and hopped onto the bed with Skyler.
“So tell us everything!” Deely said finally, since it was clear he wasn’t going to continue on his own.
“Fine, I ran into her on accident and we fell. I offered to buy her some food which I had to insist on. We sat down we talked. That’s it,” he said. The girls looked at each other and shook their heads.
“Such a guy. No details,” Deely jokingly complained. Sky laughed then added, “Oh and if you want a girl's attention you could just talk to her. You don’t have to take her down.” Alex turned red and rolled his eyes.
“What part of ACCIDENT didn’t you quite get?” he asked. Skyler laughed at him again.
“Relax, I'm kidding. Jeez, don’t get your boxers in a twist,” she said and continued to giggle.
“How do you know he wears boxers?” Deely asked looking at her. "Well besides the fact there’s a pair on the floor right there,” she replied pointing at the boxers on the floor across from her. “I guessed” she replied. The three of them laid around talking and poking fun at the other. For the first time in a long time, Skyler felt at peace.
Newest Model Of Firebolt
Author: Jared
Date: 07-18-07 18:48
Standing outside Quality Quidditch Supplies, eager to go inside, Jared still can't believe he's the male recipient of this school year's Kendra Beck Hogwarts Scholarship. This is the fifth year of the scholarship and no ones yet knows who's behind it or how the two recipients are selected.
Jared doesn't know yet who the female is but he's got a pretty good guess. So far Kendra Beck's best friend Bronwyn Dewhurst and two of Kendra's siblings, Toby and Ariella have been recipients. Jared will be really surprised if Alanna's not the other one getting the scholarship this year.
Jared's sister and mother catch up to him. Etta looks disdainfully at the brooms in the window display. "I don't see why I have to have Jared's old broom."
This has been a constant theme with Etta since Jared received the letter with the first stipend installment. Abigail Wynbourne sternly says, "We've been through this, Etta. Jared's old broom is perfectly good. Another word and by Merlin you'll be using a school broom again this year if you need a broom."
Etta waits until Abigail is walking into the shop to hotly mutter so that only Jared hears, "With the money saved having all Jared's school supplies paid by that stupid scholarship, we could afford a new broom for me."
Jared rolls his eyes and makes an impatient motion at the door he's holding open. "Sometime today, Etta."
Abigail tells Jared, "Take your time looking around. I'm not going to be popping back and forth if you decide the broom you picked isn't what you really wanted."
Jared looks at each of the models on display. By the time Jared's narrowed his selection to three, a sales clerk has come over to assist. "The new Firebolt is an excellent choice. Good acceleration, fast, turns on a knut, one of the best braking charms out there. Now the latest Nimbus here actually turns better than the Firebolt but isn't quite as fast. Don't get me wrong, it's fast all right, just not quite as fast as the Firebolt. This Moontrimmer is a much different broom from its predecessor. The old Moontrimmer was revolutionary in its time, reaching record heights. The old one was fast for its time as well but at less then 70 miles per hour, it would be slow up against the brooms out now. This new version of the Moontrimmer still can take you to dazzling heights but now has a top speed of just over 100 miles per hour, putting it right on par with many of the top sellers."
Jared has trouble deciding but finally decides he can't go wrong with the newest model Firebolt. If not for the stipend from the scholarship, Jared would never have been able to dream about paying for a Firebolt all in one go. Walking out of Quidditch Quality Supplies, Firebolt in hand, grinning ear to ear, Jared follows his mother and sister to the cauldron shop.
Getting help from the Ministry
Author: Marcus Diavolo
Date: 07-18-07 19:57
The next day, the officers approached the shed to collect Marcus. The door of the shed slowly opened with a long creaking sound. Marcus walked out of the shed, all sleepy eyed and dusty. “Who are you and why are you here?” Marcus said. “Marcus we are from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. We are here to help you,” they said. “Since when has the Ministry cared about vampires? And why are you helping now? You could have stopped the wizards from destroying my home and running me and my mom out of my homeland!” Marcus said. “We were told to come by the young girl’s father and to answer your other questions, the Ministry wasn”t aware until after the attack,” the officers replied.
“Well what do you plan on helping me with then? My blood drinking? My problem with sunlight?” Marcus said. “Actually, we are here to help you with those primal states that you keep experiencing. If you keep experiencing them you can’t go to Hogwarts and you might hurt someone. We can’t take that chance,” the officers said. “Fine I will go with you but before I go I want to talk to them,” Marcus said. “Fine you got five minutes,” they said.
Marcus went up to the house and started to speak. “Just understand I don’t hold anything against you people for calling them and I would never willingly attack you. Griet, I hope to see you at Hogwarts,” he said to them. He then walked over to the Ministry officers. They then apparated to the Ministry. Marcus was then registered and examined. The examiner then said “Well you have to drink this every day to curb the states. This, though, will greatly reduce your chances of going to Hogwarts.” “I understand that this will be the only way to curb the states and I have no other choice so I will take it,” Marcus said.
Marcus then went to write a letter to Griet to ask about what the letter for him from Hogwarts said.
Birthday & Anniversary
Author: Carys
Date: 07-18-07 20:24
Carys pushed Tristan's stroller through the archway that led into Diagon Alley and slowly navigated the crowds as she headed to no particular destination. Because she turned seventeen today, she was finally allowed to do magic on her own. Unfortunately, she hadn't known how to do the spell she wanted and had to resort to asking her grandmother for help before leaving the house. Tristan rode in comfort over the uneven cobblestones, as if the stroller's wheels moved over smooth ground.
Carys had debated coming to Diagon Alley at all today of all days. She knew that it would be full of people she'd left behind at Hogwarts. Perhaps she'd even run into her old friends, Elizabeth, Mindy and Juliet. It was also the second anniversary of her mother's passing, which had happened right behind her in the Leaky Cauldron.
Carys could still remember finding her mother sprawled out over the staircase in the common area. She could still remember navigating through Diagon Alley with Griffin Price, as if the place were a war zone instead of a commercial area––and it had been a war zone then. Carys could remember everything as if it were yesterday.
She pushed the stroller along, stopping when Tristan saw something he liked, such as the owls at Eeylops and the kneazles at the Magical Menagerie. Carys took Tristan to Florean Fortescue's for ice cream.
So far, she hadn't run into anyone she'd known at Hogwarts, but then she spotted Lee Henderson perusing a shopping list as he ate one of the free sundaes Mr. Fortescue gave out every half hour. As if realizing someone was staring at him, Lee looked up and made eye contact with Carys.
He recognized her instantly, but did a double take at the baby in the stroller she pushed.
"Wow," he said. "I mean, I knew you being pregnant would ultimately lead to a kid being born, but it's still a surprise to see you as a mother."
"This is Tristan," Carys answered. "He turns one in a few days."
Lee offered Carys a chair. She sat down, picking Tristan up and seating him in her lap.
"He doesn't really look like that Ravenclaw," Lee remarked, referring to Carys' ex Andreas Hoffmann. Everyone had speculated that he was the father of Carys' child, and it was only after Tristan's birth that Carys had told her own father that Griffin Price was the baby's biological father.
Carys ignored the comment and asked about her old friends. Lee filled her in as best he could. He and Elizabeth were the seventh year prefects for Gryffindor. It stung Carys a little bit to hear that, because before her demotion, Carys had been prefect for Gryffindor. If she were still at Hogwarts, she'd probably be the seventh year prefect with Lee, or maybe even head girl.
"Quidditch is starting back up too," Lee went on, making Carys feel even more homesick for Hogwarts. She'd played keeper for two years and had even been captain for one.
The more Carys thought about school, the more she thought about Griff's offer to pay for her to take classes at St. Emrys. Carys knew she'd fallen behind her peers. She couldn't even do a charm to give her baby a smooth ride through bumpy Diagon Alley. She'd definitely look into what sorts of classes she could take, if only to get where she needed to be in terms of magical skill.
She ate her ice cream and fed Tristan his and listened to Lee tell her about everything that had gone on last year at Hogwarts and everything he expected for the coming year, his last, and what would have also been her last year at Hogwarts.
A new school and things to worry about
Author: Cailyn Spicer
Date: 07-19-07 11:43
Quill pens. Check
Ink bottles. Check
School books. Check
Recreational books. Check
School robes. Check.
Parchment paper and notebook paper. Check
Laptop for Muggle studies…. Check
Cat. Check
Clothes. Check.
Racing broom. Check
Cailyn sighed as she went through her list for the up tenth time that day. Making sure she had everything she would need for her first day of school. She was so nervous she couldn’t think straight. Cailyn hated new things and new places. She hated being the new kid. But at least she wouldn’t be the only new kid that everyone would be staring at, besides the first years. At least, she would have Alex.
Cailyn was sure she had actually made a friend as far as Alex went. After all, they had exchanged probably a dozen letters since that day they meant in Diagon Alley. And her father was happy that she had made at least one friend so far. She supposed that she really shouldn’t worry about making a good impression or not. As long as she had one friend she was doing better then she did in America.
Cailyn wandered over to her closet and frowned while she took a glance at her new school uniforms. There was no color in them at all. White blouse and gray skirt, gray socks and black shoes. Black robes and a black hat. Cailyn put her new uniform on smoothing it down to see how it looked on her and turned this way and that way. Examining herself in the mirror. Nope, she decided, she didn’t look good in the Hogwarts uniform. But at least, she wouldn’t have to worry about standing out in classes to much. It was after class she had to worry about. Her clothing style wasn’t exactly popular. Okay, she usually wore a mixed matched of Wizarding clothes and muggle wear. But it never bothered her until now. She frowned.
Oh, she hated going to new places. Cailyn thought again wandering back over to her wardrobe and putting her other clothes back on. She needed to stop worrying so much otherwise she’d give herself a stomach ache.
Killing Time (Jack & Deak)
Author: Kody
Date: 07-19-07 19:05
"Want another cauldron cake?"
Jack thinks about it then shakes his head. "Much as I think Briar's are better than anywhere else, I think I'm ready to switch to something savory. Want to head to the restaurant and get some meat pies or something? Wiggy might even be there by now."
"Hope so since we told him we'd wait for him to go play Wizard laser tag," Deak says, jumping up.
Just outside The Imperial Crown & Cauldron, the boys say hello to Viktor Krum, who's exiting the restaurant. After returning their greetings Coach Krum asks, "Not back to school shopping?"
Shaking their heads Deak says, "Aaron and Saffron got my things soon as they knew what I would be needing," and Jack replies, "Mum got everything for me earlier in the summer. Good thing too because I really hate having to go with her shopping even when shops wouldn't be crowded like they are today."
Deak doesn't add that he has an intense dislike now of being in Diagon Alley on August 31st. Really bad memories of two years ago still make the date one he prefers spending somewhere other than Diagon Alley.
"Let me guess then," Coach Krum begins with a grin, "you are spending some time playin games at Blossom's, eating yourself sick at Briar's Bakery, and having fun trying out all the joke items at Veasleys' Vizard Vheezes."
"That's right," Jack answers with a laugh.
"Meeting up with Wiggy Hodfuffer as well," Deak informs.
"Vell, if you boys vant later, come by the stadium. I'm sure ve can find you something to do there."
"Thanks!" they both exclaim, eager now to get inside, find Wiggy, eat, and head over to the Humbatas Stadium for, hopefully, a little Quidditch with the team.
Buying Books
Author: Georgia Copperpot
Date: 07-19-07 23:15
"Not another word, Georgia," Mum warns.
"Oh, it's quite all right for Libby to run around in her nuddy pants while the entire assemblage in Scribbulus Everchanging Inks looks on but I am not allowed to point out that I offered four different times to come before the last day rush?"
"No!" Mum emphatically states.
Beside her my sometimes darling little sister points a finger at me and wags it. "Bad boy, Ginger."
"You'd think by now, being four, you could tell boys from girls, Libs."
"But I lobe you, Gingy," Libs announces as if that has anything to do with telling girls from boys.
The Flourish & Blotts line we're in inches forward. Mum, sounding suddenly worried, orders, "Go through the book list again, Georgie."
Pulling out the supplies list for the seventy-third time in the last half hour I read off, "Astronomy, A Wizard's Guide to Planets and Moons by Harrius Cain; Care of Magical Creatures, The Monster Book of Monsters."
"Check and have you've got that already from last year, thank, Merlin. Wrangling that one was the dickens. Continue."
"Charms, The Standard Book of Spells Grade 4 by Miranda Goshawk; Defense Against the Dark Arts, Defending Yourself: A Practical Guide to Defense Against the Dark Arts, Vol. 4 by Ebony Blackstone."
"Got it and check."
"Divination, Unfogging the Future by Cassandra Vablatsky, have that one from last year; Herbology, Encyclopedia of Seeds by Chester Suggs; History of Magic, erlack, A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshott and Greatest Stories in History by Ralef Korsifn>
"Check on the Herbology one. You should have your History of Magic texts from last year. I imagine they are in excellent, unused condition."
"Consider yourself funny, do you, Mum?"
"Rather hilarious if I do say so. Go on."
"Potions I already have, as we're once again using Draughts and Elixirs: Intermediate Level Potions by Broc Ironside. Transfiguration is also using the same as last year, Intermediate Transfiguration."
"Then why does it seem I have books for more than four courses?"
"All those books Libs kept handing you."
"Right. Here, take them. I'll distract her. You run put them back."
Mum hands me the books Libs had randomly taken off shelves then, as Mum gets Libby interested in eating some sugar and cinnamon biscuits, I push and shove through the crowd to return the books. One of them has scandalous pictures. It really shouldn't be on shelf level for a four year old to pull it off. Then again, I suppose a four year old wouldn't know what any of the pictures mean. Having such a book on a very low shelf means that someone such as myself, interested in viewing sex gods in all forms, most likely wouldn't find it. Having to stoop or bend to such a low level is not something any of my set would aspirte to, even if it does mean finding a book in which sex gods are parading around in various states of undress.
I wonder if perhaps I can sneak this one back in to the stack Mum has while she's distracted with distracting Libby. Sidling up beside her I offer, "I'll take the books, Mum. You have your hands full with Libby."
Libs is asking for her book selections and is trying to show the world her nuddy pants again. Mum shoves the pile of books. She takes out the purse jingling with lots of coins to buy all my supplies, removes a few galleons then shoves the purse at me as well.
"I'm going to distract Libby more by getting her some ice cream."
Mum marches Libs out, though Libby is protesting. It's only the thought of ice cream that has Libby cooperating at all. I frown at possibly missing out on ice cream, what with this line moving so slowly, but smile at not having to somehow hide the sex god book at the registar while also still getting Mum to pay for it.
Translations:
nuddy pants = birthday suit, nude
lobe = Libby's way of saying love
sugar and cinnamon biscuits = think snickerdoodles
sex god = a male who makes you involuntarily utter, "Oh my giddy Merlin!"