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Vacation Ends with a Late Night Chat (Driver)
Author: Arlington J Montgomery
Date: 11-16-12 05:23
The trip to France seemed to have flown by. A whole week was gone now, and Driver felt pretty relaxed, although he almost didn't want to go back to work now. The final day had been spent on the beach, the boys had engaged in some friendly competition that ended with a wrestling match in the sand.
Driver couldn't help but cheer when Toby defeated Dexter, maybe that would shrink his little brother's ego.
After dinner everyone was relaxed and reminiscing on the trip, they all decided that they should make this a yearly tradition. Everyone slowly filtered to bed, Driver and Desi rarely went to sleep early at night, and they would rather stay up late and sleep in.
"Are you ready to go to bed?" Driver asked her.
Desi stood up and the duo headed off to their shared room. Driver went to take a quick shower, and dressed in only a pair of sweatpants. By the time he got back to the room Desi was already sitting in her bed.
"G'night Des. Want me to flip off the light?" He crawled under the covers of his pull out couch bed.
"Night. I can do it." She flipped off the light, and the two just lay in bed for a while.
Driver couldn't get to sleep, he kept thinking about the events of not only the trip, but the last few months of his life, including the incident during Emrys Fest. He really enjoyed taking some time off from work; it was a rare treat for the man to be away from the bar more than a few hours. This vacation had been nice to spend time with his siblings and friends too, he really enjoyed this group.
A few hours later, it was nearly 1AM and Driver's thoughts were wandering from work to the woman he was sharing a room with.
He really liked her, and knew she had to keep up the relationship with her partner for her current assignment.
He needed to know what she thought though; they had been avoiding this conversation for a while.
"Hey Des, do you like that Orion guy?" He thought he heard her shift a little in bed, and she responded after a moment.
"Yes, I like him. Why?"
Driver couldn't help the soft sigh that slipped past his lips. "Oh. Okay. It's not important then…I hope you're happy with him."
"What are you talking about, Driver?"
Driver sat up in bad and looked over at her. "I meat to say if you like him as more than a partner, or whatever?" He thought for a moment. "Do you like me?"
"Yeah, I like you." She sat now and looked over at him. "Where are you going with this?"
"I…" he paused to think and look over at her again in the dark; the room was illuminated by soft moonlight from the window behind him. "I was thinking that I really like hanging out with you. Maybe we could do it more often? I mean, I don't want to rush things, I know you're busy with your current assignment."
"Yeah, I'm very busy with my assignment. I don't know what will happen after it's over."
Driver nodded, he knew she had a lot on her plate at the moment. "Okay. Can we hang out if you have some free time? You could come by the bar again too?"
"Sure, if I get some free time, I can swing past the bar."
"Alright, I hope we can be more than friends one day." He said the last part quietly, but just loud enough she could hear him. He felt like a teenager now as he blushed in the dark.
"At the very least, I'd like to be friends first."
"I agree. We can continue to get to know one another better, and go from there." He couldn't help the grin that spread across his lips. This had potential. "Thanks, Des."
"No problem. Now, any other questions or is it okay to sleep?"
"Not at the moment." He rolled over in bed, and thought out loud. "Like my Dad says, 'every relationship should be based on a solid friendship'." He smiled again. "Goodnight, Desi.
Sleep well."
"Good night, Driver." They both lay back down, and after a few moments they both fell asleep.
The next morning, well afternoon, they woke up with a knocking on the door. "Guys! Get up! We have to leave in ten minutes!"
The pair got up quickly, scrambled to get dressed and grabbed their stuff.
"Took you long enough. Rough night?" Dex grinned as he teased his brother and friend.
Desi rolled her eyes and Driver lightly shoved his brother. "Knock it off Dexie."
"Fine…all moody this morning bro?" Driver didn't respond and ignored his brother, although he still had a big grin this morning.
The group of 14 headed away from the beautiful beach mansion, and once into the wizarding South of France they apparated off back home.
(France to Greece) Second Vacation
Author: Karma Davyd
Date: 11-16-12 05:45
We'd left France nearly fourteen days ago and in between leaving France and arriving in Rhode's Greece we'd spent time time with the Morgan's at home (Easton and Fia were finally home for a change) and we did something special for Dex's birthday on the eleventh. It was now the last few weeks of the month and we were currently sunning in Greece.
We'd been spending time scouring ancient sites and taking pictures on a muggle camera that we'd picked up from a tourist spot. We vacationed like a muggle couple on their honeymoon, but we weren't married and we weren't on our honeymoon.
The second day we'd been in Greece we'd met up with Dex's uncle Weston, and made plans for something Dexter and I'd had in the works for a couple of months now. Both of us were glad that Weston had agreed to help us and had been so beneficial in the planning for this trip.
The twenty fifth of August was going to be a day that neither Dex nor I would soon forget. Plans had been made and ultimately we were both getting ready for what we had planned. Things were going to, hopefully go smoothly, and the rest of our vacation in Greece would go off without a hitch.
Currently we were lounging on the bed in our hotel room contemplating the plans for tomorrow, contemplating just what we were going to do. After a few minutes Dex pushed himself up from the bed and dropped a kiss on the top of my head.
"Going for a run. Be back in a couple of hours. Also thinking of grabbing take-away from that little place a couple of sheets down. Sound good for dinner?"
I nodded and smiled lightly. "Sure. Gonna head to the beach for a moment and meditate for a little while. Will meet you back here in a couple of hours. That sounds good for dinner too. Love ya."
Kissed him lightly and broke away before anything else could happen and we'd get distracted and not actually get our dinner from the little place down the street. Within a few minutes Dex was off for a run and I was heading down to the beach for some quiet meditation as the sun sunk lower into the horizon.
Lunch with Henry
Author: Josie
Date: 11-16-12 06:04
"Want another butter beer?" Henry asked.
"No, thanks, I'm fine," I replied to my brother.
We were having lunch together at the Leaky Cauldron. From time to time we had these lunches to check on each other. Henry's main concerns were the profits of his apothecary shop and that he believed his wife Mary was expecting another child, but she didn't tell him anything yet. Henry and Mary had already three children: Derek, Jane and Annie. And despite affirming he did not want more children, it seemed that the number four was on its way, according to his preoccupied face.
As for me I was worried about Connor and my missing notebook. I was also a bit apprehensive about my teaching position at Hogwarts. I had been hired by Albus Dumbledore but now he was dead, and despite no one had told me otherwise I was still afraid I could lose my job.
"You worry too much, Josie." Henry said, as if he was reading my mind. "If they were removing you from the school they would have said something by now. "
My brother was right, of course. I had went to Dumbledore's funeral and met with some of the teachers at Hogwarts and when I presented myself they all seemed to know about me and the alchemy class I was going to teach.
"You're right. And as for your wife being expecting, you know dad and I will be thrilled. I don't mind another little niece or nephew to spoil."
"That's because you're not the one paying the bills. And when is your turn to marry and settle down? I can't be the only one giving grandchildren to dad."
"Maybe one day, who knows? But not right now," I replied with a grin.
"You always say that but you keep staying single."
Henry then started to talk about a new shipment of armadillo bile he was expecting for next week. I loved my brother but sometimes he would get insupportable when he spoke about his business. I had no idea how his wife could work with him at his shop. I used to help Henry a couple of years ago, but he was never pleased with the way I displayed the flasks with the products or how my handwriting looked like when I labeled things. Everything had to be perfect and it seemed that only his wife Mary and himself knew how to do it.
My head turned around the room and for a moment it seemed that I had seen Connor at the one of the tables. But soon I realized it was another wizard that looked somewhat like him. I was still mad about the way he fooled me on our last encounter. I knew it was better not to think of him and continue with my life but part of me wanted to see him again and not only get my notebook back but to get my revenge for what he did.
I wondered if Connor had already done some advances with his philosopher stone's research. I really doubted it and now that Dumbledore was dead he had no one to ask for instructions or orientations.
For a moment I pictured Connor at Hogwarts talking to Dumbledore and demanding him to reveal his secrets about the stone's production. Connor was the type of person who would do everything for more knowledge. Would he be capable of killing someone just because he didn't get what he wanted? For a moment I saw him using his wand to kill Dumbledore. But I shoved that image away from my mind. I knew Conner since our time Hogwarts. He wasn't a killer. And Dumbledore would not be fooled by someone like him.
My attention turned back to Henry and for the rest of our meal I tried not to think about Connor or Dumbledore's death. We split the bill and while Henry went back to his shop I went home in order to start planning my alchemy lessons for the next school year that was quickly approaching.
Hiding Out (Orion's Flat, London)
Author: Desdemona Diamond
Date: 11-16-12 10:15
The 24th of August, the best and worst day out of the entire year. On that day, my baby brother turns three years old. It felt like only yesterday he was born. It was also the same day that I turned a quarter of a century old. Just the sound of that makes me feel old. Of course, it's not like I really am old, just feels like it sometimes.
This year, I couldn't help but think that Bronwyn is going to do something for my birthday. As often as I try to let it pass quietly, I have only managed it once. Last year, I had spent it by myself in Germany. It was nice and quiet. However, in the last year, I have gained a lot more people that I would call friends. The temptation for Bronwyn to do something would be too great for her to pass up.
I couldn't get away this year, to go to another country. My France trip was hard enough to get approved; let alone a second one so soon. So, I came up with the next best thing. I decided I would hide at Orion's flat. After all, staying there a few days wouldn't be that strange, for the cover story. It also meant that Bronwyn couldn't find me.
Orion doesn't know when my birthday is, so it will pass calmly and quietly. However, since my birthday falls on a weekday, it's not really till the weekend that I will need to be worried. Orion and I can spend it quietly hiding from Bronwyn, so there is no real need for me to be worried about it at all.
Birthday Surprises (Orion's Flat, London)
Author: Orion Howell
Date: 11-16-12 11:50
Orion tossed a small package at Desi, landing it in her lap. "I take it this is why you're hiding here, because you don't want your friends to make a fuss?" he asked, earning a shocked look in return.
"What?"
"It's your birthday, right? At least that's what your file says. So that'd be a birthday present, and I take it you don't want to make a fuss about it? Since we haven't really talked about any of the things you had to think about while in France..."
"Sometimes, I hate you," Desi muttered at his back as he headed into the kitchen to get some tea. He brought her a cup of coffee on his way through.
"Well, open it. I promise it doesn't bite," he said.
Her fingers untied the ribbon, then opened the small box. A simple silver cuff bracelet rested there and she had to laugh as she pulled it out. A badger was the only decoration on the metal. "Cute," she said, shooting him an unreadable look.
"I thought it might make you laugh. Plus, it's got every protective charm possible on it."
"Protective charms?"
"Face it Des, we have dangerous jobs. And with us still not having a suspect in the Emrys Case, plus your habit of attracting trouble, I thought it couldn't hurt. I know you can handle yourself, but if someone gets you with magic, you might not get a chance," he said, looking down into his cup.
"I take it back, I can't hate you," she said. "Not when you do something that thoughtful, without being an ostentatious ass about it. Thank you."
"You're welcome," he said with a shrug. "So do you want to talk about those things you need to think about?"
"About the transfer... Would I have to leave my friends and family behind?"
"I talked to the bosses about that actually. They said, if you're willing to transfer, we'd still have to do some undercover work. But we would be able to do much less of the identity-assuming sort that I was doing, and more of the kind where we would be like we are at St. Emrys. I knew you wouldn't want to leave your friends so much of the time."
(Aralyn & Kristos) Questions
Author: Lysander Stratford
Date: 11-16-12 16:41
Aralyn felt rather pleased with herself for having come up with the idea that had ultimately found the long lost and most coveted object Lord Voldemort had supposedly awarded to Michael and Dawn Fox. She knew her brother considered her the dumb twin, but she strongly believed he sold her short the majority of the time. Aralyn could be brilliant if she wanted to be.
She remembered how she had felt at seeing the sword for the very first time.
"Do you think it could be…?" she had begun to ask Kristos, letting the rest of her question go unsaid. The silver blade and the ornate hilt engraved with swirling acanthus leaves and set with deep green emeralds put a certain owner to mind, but there weren't any identifying markers, like a name or even initials.
"If it is, you have to wonder why he entrusted it with our parents," Kristos had answered, reading his sister's mind. "Just what reason had they given him to show that they were worthy of caring for something as important as this sword?"
"What exactly did they do to earn the honor of looking after it?" Aralyn had wondered. "You have to admit," she had gone on, looking at the old credenza, "that they did a perfect job keeping the sword hidden. I guess he was right to entrust them with it. Don't you think we should keep it hidden ourselves? I know the Dark Lord isn't alive anymore, but I don't think we should advertise we have this."
"Of course we should hide it. The question is how. While we know our parents used blood magic, we don't know what spell they used or what ritual they followed."
"I could take a look at Twice Told Tales," Aralyn had eagerly suggested.
"Absolutely not," Kristos had countered, looking angry. "We don't need Stratford or Valentine getting curious about why you need a book about blood magic. We'll figure this out ourselves, and if we can't put it back to the way we found it, then we'll take it to Gringotts."
"In Hogsmeade?"
Kristos had shaken his head. "Better be Diagon Alley. The vaults are better protected there. Speaking of Lysander Stratford, did you ever find out why he's been lying about his dead wife?"
"No," Aralyn had replied, with a slight shake of her head. "I haven't given it much thought lately."
"Makes you wonder what his motive was, doesn't it?" He had laughed then. "Maybe that girl's mother is a Muggle."
Aralyn had snickered. "That's an explanation."
---
It was days later now and Aralyn was walking to Petals for her shift. As she passed the bookshop, she thought about the conversation she had had with her brother. Was the reason Lysander had had Astrid Thomason posing as Chyler Stratford because he was ashamed of Charlotte's real mother? She had a burning curiosity to find out, even though it wasn't any of her business. Aralyn wondered how much Liam knew but sadly suspected it wasn't much, since the brothers had been more or less estranged until recently.
How easy would it be to find out the truth? And what would Lysander do if he found out Aralyn was snooping into his life?
She shuddered at the thought and continued on her way to the strip club.
Argument
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 11-16-12 17:39
Bill sat outside and watched Marguerite stalk through the grass. The white Turkish Angora crept cautiously along the fence line, occasionally sniffing at a scent no doubt left by another feline from the neighborhood. When the back door opened, the cat raised her head, but she soon returned to investigating the yard.
Fleur sat down in the wicker chair next to Bill's. Dominique was in her arms, red-faced from fever, but asleep for the moment.
They sat in silence for a while, the only sounds being the heavy breathing of the sleeping, sick child.
Then Fleur spoke in a soft voice. "Bill, must you be so worried?"
With the sleeping toddler next to him, he didn't dare raise his voice. "I'm not worried," he softly intoned, "I'm just…" He trailed off, not exactly sure how he felt about everything that had happened in recent weeks.
First had come the knowledge that Dumbledore had died––not just died, but been murdered.
Then came the blow that had taken Bill completely off guard. Although still not proven, it appeared that Adriana Fairchild had killed Dumbledore.
Bill knew everything about her past, but with Voldemort being long-dead, he'd had no reason to believe that Adriana felt any residual effects from her spiritual connection to the dark wizard. Evidently, he'd been wrong.
It pained him to think of Adriana as a murderess. It destroyed him to know that she had likely murdered Albus Dumbledore.
But how could Voldemort control Adriana from beyond the grave? Or had he simply influenced her so much in life, that even in death, his viewpoints had never left her?
Bill had thought Adriana had fought off Voldemort's attempts to get her to join him, but obviously, she had lied about everything. He felt like a complete fool.
"You're just… what?" Fleur prompted. "I could 'ave told you she was trouble from ze start."
Bill shot his wife a cold look. "You knew nothing. You disliked her because she was my ex-girlfriend. No other reason."
"Maybe, but my instincts weren't wrong, were zey?" Fleur countered.
Bill got up, and once again Marguerite looked up from her prowling.
"I'm checking on Victoire," Bill said.
Like Dominique, Victoire was also sick. Bill went inside and stalked to his eldest daughter's room, feeling angry at both himself and at Fleur, but when he stopped at Victoire's bedside and saw her sleeping peacefully, he relaxed. He knew he shouldn't worry about whether or not Adriana had used him, nor should he be concerned with where she was now and what would happen to her. She had chosen evil over good and would now have to live with the consequences.
Challenging Request (Ravenscrofte's Rare and Antiquarian Books, Knockturn Alley)
Author: Cassandra Catesby
Date: 11-17-12 03:54
The flat above Ravenscrofte Rare and Antiquarian Books was cosy and comfortable. Cassandra sat in an over-stuffed armchair beside the hearth, her feet curled beneath her, as she considered the best way forward for her current projects.
Netherby's request shouldn't be too much of a problem, she decided. She had a wizard contact in the rare books world based in Beijing. When he'd helped her track down the Asiatic Anti-Venoms, he'd mentioned that he had also got a lead on the one about the magical properties of Asiatic snake venom. She'd send him an owl and see if they were any closer to identifying the current owner. If so, she'd put in an offer to purchase the volume.
The Mockridge and Serano requests would be a little more challenging. There hadn't been many copies published of the volume Nephele was after, and as for Xiomara Serano, well, that was a one of a kind.
A black cat prowled into the room and leapt up on to the arm of the chair in which Cassandra sat. It purred as she reached out to stroke it.
"What do you think, Malantha?" Cassandra murmured. "Do you know what Xiomara Serano might be up to?" Being a few years younger than Xiomara, she had had little contact with the former Slytherin whilst at Hogwarts, but she knew the name. A pure-blood witch and an aide of the former Minister of Magic Euphemia Smythe-Jones, she had fled the country after her downfall. Cassandra had not realised she was back in Britain until she received the owl.
"It's not a very nice book she's after," she murmured. But, as Great-Aunt Morwenna had always said, that was not their judgement to make. "And ancient Egyptian papyri can be difficult to obtain." Especially ones from the time when divination was a much darker art than the usual tea leaves and palmistry nonsense taught nowadays. "On the plus side, the Seranos can afford to pay well for it."
Malantha arched her spine beneath Cassandra's fingers and let out a low rumbling purr.
"Sounds as if I might have to make a trip to Cairo," Cassandra said, and despite everything a tingle of anticipation ran through her veins. There was nothing quite like the thrill of the hunt.
Preparations
Author: Marzipan
Date: 11-17-12 07:41
The sun was still low in the sky when Marzipan set out for the greenhouses, opting to take the long route there. There was a crispness to the morning air that alluded to the autumn season just around the corner. The start of another Hogwarts term was in a few days' time. Marzi felt both eager and reluctant for the new school year to begin. She always loved meeting the wide-eyed first years, many of whom had no idea what to expect at their new school. But this start of term would begin on a grave note. Dumbledore was dead and no longer headmaster.
Her walk to the greenhouses gave her a view of the white tomb in which he'd been buried. It seemed strange to think of him walled up in the stone monument. Marzi felt a sudden, overwhelming sadness and forced herself to look away from the shoreline of the lake.
As soon as the greenhouses came into view, Marzi raised her hand to shield her eyes from the bright sunlight reflecting off the glass. She saw another figure ahead of her and realized it was Lawrence, her co-professor in Herbology.
They had agreed to meet and make up a schedule for using the different greenhouses, so that their classes didn't run into any conflicts.
Marzi caught up to Lawrence at the entrance to Greenhouse One.
"Morning," she said, slightly more chipper than she felt at the moment.
"Good morning," Lawrence replied. "Nice day, isn't it?"
"Yes. I thought I would cut across the grounds instead of taking the short cut through the castle."
"I had the same idea," Lawrence said with a smile. "So, shall we talk business?"
A few minutes later they sat at the work table and compared schedules. They each had a cup of coffee and nibbled on lemon cream pastries. After a while, they both sat back and studied what they had arranged.
"Do you think our classes will be smaller than usual this year?" Marzi asked, after her mind began wandering to how different Hogwarts would be without Dumbledore there as leader.
Lawrence didn't answer right away. "I don't know what to expect," he finally said. "I think there will be some who won't come back, or new students who should be starting but won't now." He sighed. "I know she's not Dumbledore, but Professor McGonagall will do all she can to keep the school safe. I believe that with all sincerity."
"So do I," Marzi said. "And the students will have us, too."
"That's right."
They fell silent again, nursing their coffee and sorting through the thoughts that whirled through their heads, only to be interrupted by Weston and the boys, who were strapped to a double carrier on their father's back. Carter and Vallon looked over each shoulder, almost giving Weston the look of having three heads.
Marzi put a smile on her face for her family. "Hi, guys. What are you doing here?"
"Sorry to interrupt your work," Weston said, both to his wife and to Lawrence. He knelt and gently removed the carrier from his shoulders, and then lifted Carter and Vallon out so that they could stretch their legs. Carter immediately went to the nearest plant to pluck off and eat its leaves. Lawrence quickly got out of his chair and scooped the toddler up. Carter let out a shriek, disappointed at not getting what he wanted.
Weston lifted Vallon into his arms to prevent another plant (and toddler) from potentially being harmed.
"We were just finishing up here," Marzi said, "so it's all right." She held out her arms so that she could take the squirming Carter from Lawrence's arms. Lawrence stuck a finger in his ear to clear the sudden deafness he felt from Carter's shrieks.
"I just wanted to tell you what I found out about my grandmother." Weston sat down at the work table, opposite his wife. "Willis found a house deed in County Ayr registered in the name Redberga Fawley."
Willis was the name of the private investigator Weston had hired to find his grandmother. Marzi had no idea if Willis was his first name or last name.
"The investigation had already taken him to Ayrshire, but he thought the house might be unplottable. Finding the deed solved that problem," Weston replied. "She's really there, Marzi."
Marzi smiled at her husband. "Will you go see her?"
"I want to," he replied, "but I haven't decided what I'll do. I think Mum should come with me."
"Will she?"
"I know she wants to, but she's reluctant."
Lawrence had gotten up to water some of the plants in the greenhouse. Carter and Vallon both watched him with interest.
"I guess I can understand that," Marzi said. "It took me a long time to want to meet my mother, but I'm glad I did. True, we had a rough start, but our relationship is really good now."
"I know, which is why I think I should try this. Well, I think I will let the boys run around the grounds for a while."
"I'll join you," Marzi said. She looked to Lawrence. "I think we are ready for September 1st."
Lawrence stopped watering for a moment and nodded. "I think so."
Marzi smiled at got up, letting Carter walk but keeping a firm grasp on his hand. Weston did the same with Vallon. The family stepped out of the greenhouse and into the blinding, morning sun.