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Hattie's Big Blunder
Author: Ethan Somerset
Date: 04-28-12 11:39
Stuffed to the gills, Ethan pushed his cake plate away and leaned back in his chair. As often happened during celebrations at Hogwarts, he had eaten far too much, having wanted to taste a little bit of every dish and dessert placed within reach. Everything had been wonderfully delicious.
Despite the fact that he didn't have a date tonight, Ethan had enjoyed himself thus far. Truth be told, he wasn't ready to date again. The memory of Rosamond was still very near to his heart. Lilly's birthday was a little over a month away, and the anniversary of Rosamond's death was a little less than two months into the future. Ethan couldn't believe how quickly the year had passed.
The chair next to him was vacant, Adriana not having returned to her seat since doling out discipline to a seventh year Slytherin student. Ethan saw her making the rounds, chatting up various students as she passed their tables.
"Mind if I join you for a moment?"
Ethan looked up to see Dumbledore standing behind the empty chair.
"Not at all," Ethan said. He forced himself to sit up, though he would have much rather continued to slouch with his gut hanging out.
"I've been meaning to ask you if you saw the article in The Daily Prophet last week––" Dumbledore began, after seating himself in Adriana's chair.
"The one about the Hattie Harsnip sighting?" Ethan cut in. "Yes, I saw it."
He'd been shocked to read about it, but at the same time knowing she had been spotted somehow made him feel better. No one had seen hide nor hair of her since accomplices had helped her escape in en route to Azkaban Fortress.
"I'm glad the Department of Magical Law Enforcement saw fit to place someone at the Muggle prison," Ethan said, "and for this long, too."
"The Minister is well aware that Hattie is a threat, not only to you but to the world at large."
"Because of what she did to herself, you mean?"
"Precisely. I don't doubt that others would attempt to accomplish what she has if the price is high enough. The only positive note in all of this is that few know about soul extraction, and any who might discover that sort of dark magic will find it extremely difficult to achieve with any amount of success."
"I believe her to be a very intelligent woman," Ethan started, "but she must have realized that visiting her husband could give her away."
"Yes, but people are fools for love."
Ethan remembered how devoted Hattie had been to her husband, who was a Muggle of all people. Hattie had been a Voldemort supporter, and a very loyal one at that. How had she ever managed to keep Gerard in her life? How had she even come to love him, when he was the sort of person she should have hated?
"Yes, people are fools for love," Ethan echoed.
The article in the newspaper had also identified Meadow O'Guinn, who had been spotted with Hattie at Belmarsh Prison, and who was now assumed to be one of the accomplices who had freed Hattie from the law enforcement officers. Meadow had been a wanted witch for her involvement in putting Hattie's soul into Penn Ellison's body. It seemed her list of crimes was growing.
"Ah, Adriana. I'm afraid I've taken your seat," Dumbledore said, rising when Adriana returned to the table.
"That's okay," she said. "I just came for my drink."
"Not planning on dancing tonight?" He turned to Ethan before she could reply and said, "Be a gentleman, and ask the woman to dance."
Ethan felt like he couldn't say no. Adriana, however, looked like she wished she were anywhere but there.
"I have two left feet," she announced.
"Nonsense," Dumbledore said.
Ethan climbed to his feet and said, "I think I can survive one dance," though he didn't sound very convincing to his own ears. He still felt like he might pop, and spinning in circles would probably make him sick.
Adriana took his outstretched hand. "Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you."
"Duly noted," Ethan replied.
Crappy Valentine's Day
Author: Karma Davyd
Date: 04-28-12 12:52
I close my eyes and sigh, massaging my temples while I will the night to be over soon. Will the night to end so I could leave the company of this man, this person that my Mum had set me up with from the comfort of her gorgeous home in Mumbai. Bloody hell I could seriously strangle my mum, and it would seriously make me happy to do such. As it is, she is going to get an earful the next time I talk to her over this bloody horrid night.
We had finished a fairly decent dinner and I was bloody tempted to get wasted but I had teaching to do in the morning plus my own course work at St. Emrys to get done. Finally, I can tolerate the rude and disrespectful manner of my date who seems to think that I was foolish for being something other than a traditionalist like my mum. Oh, seriously, my mother was going to get it when I talked to her next. Digits swept through my hair and I quickly pushed myself up from the table, up until about five minutes ago I would have been unwilling to make a scene, but his comment about the fact that I wasn't getting any younger and I needed to start settling down had pushed me to my limit.
Grabbing my clutch I stared down at the self-absorbed, smug visage of the man I'd just shared dinner with – and only barely that. "Listen here you pompous, self absorbed prat. This is not the tenth century in India where women are married off at thirteen. I am a grown women in the current, twenty first century and I do not yet want a family nor do I want to get married yet. Now, if you would so kindly bugger off and choke on your wine, I am going home."
With that I spun on one delicate, six inch stiletto heel and stormed out of the restaurant and once safely tucked within the darkest shadows of an alley way apparated back to Hogsmeade, still pissed off about the date that my mother had orchestrated for me. I walked by the Great Hall and pondered slipping within, because the Valentine's Day banquet was still going on at least for a little while longer considering that it was a school night and most students still had Astronomy tonight. Perhaps I could get a dance with Professor Knight, he was a rather handsome individual. That and I could use something sweet and decadent to wash away the horrid experience that had been my night.
Shrugging, I step into the Great Hall and I eagerly lay claim to some chocolate covered strawberries and a few other sweets that now lined the tables.
Not Entirely Without A Valentine's (Deak)
Author: Kody
Date: 04-28-12 13:20
Debating between eating another bon bon or another truffle Deak thinks what the heck and grabs one of each. Before popping the bon bon in his mouth Deak asks Wiggy as question he's been meaning to ask all day.
"Did yesterday's match get rescheduled?"
Pulling his attention away from Matilda Flanders and talking about helping her with NEWT preparation Wiggy shakes his head. "Nothing yet, but Coach thinks it will be for next Monday."
This leads to a discussion on the opposing team's line-up versus that of Wiggy's team Puddlemere United, with Matilda and the other two occupants of the table for six, Jack and his date, adding to the conversation. It only ends when the first of the dancing begins. The two couples get up to enjoy the music, leaving Deak sitting alone.
Helping himself to a lamb chop stuffed with an herbed cheesy bread crumb mixture and heaping more veggies onto his plate, Deak digs in for his fourth or fifth full helping. He recently told Aaron he's been even hungrier of late so Aaron thinks Deak's about to have another growth spurt. Though already right at 6 feet, Deak wouldn't mind being a couple or three inches taller.
Finish off the lamb chop. Deak eyes some of the other food, deciding more dessert is in order. He's not particularly picky so he gets a little of this, a little of that, eating as he watches the dancing. Not for the first time tonight Deak thinks he should have told Wiggy and Jack to get a table for four. He would have been fine siting at a large table without them. "Nothing like feeling like a fifth wheel", he murmurs, taking a bite of something without looking, somewhat surprised when there is a flavor burst of mango in his mouth. Looking down at his plate the only thing on it that fits what he just ate is some cheesecake. Seriously good cheesecake.
Finishing off the slice and eating some pie he'd also gotten, Deak finds himself following Julietta's movements on the dance floor. At least she's also without a date tonight. That's not much of a comfort but at the same time, the thought of Etta seeing someone else doesn't stab him through the heart anymore either. He's accepted they are just friends again.
Seated far from his table, Deak spots Megara Flynn. He'd considered asking her to the banquet. He's heard around that Megara likes him. At the library on Career Day when he was trying to console her, and then later here in the Great Hall, he'd found Megara to be really nice, smart, and funny. He simply didn't feel anything other than a friendly connection with her. Of course, friendly connection is what led Aaron and Saffron to elope. If they'd not done that there'd be no Niccola and no Brandon.
Thinking of his little sister brings a smile. She's all dolled up, looking cute as ever. Nic come to sit with him for a short time earlier. He hasn't seen Aaron or Saffron taking her out for bed yet so Deak gets up, heading for the head table. He finds Nic trying to convince Saffron to let her have more cake. Deak helps the situation by asking, "Hey, Nic, be my Valentine and come dance with me?"
Squealing happily, Nic forgets the cake and grabs Deak's hand to tug him out onto the area cleared for dancing.
Triple Dating
Author: Kody
Date: 04-28-12 15:15
Between her job at the British Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Games and Sports, attending St. Emrys, and being in a new relationship, Kordelia has hardly seen her brother. Doubling, or tripling to be more precise, tonight has made for a great evening. That Kody and her boyfriend Emilian Dancescu have hit it off since she first introduced him to the family has made it even better. At the moment, the three of them, Daria Matthews, and Drake and Ophelia Bennett are lingering over coffee and a chocolate ganache cake.
Kody frowns as Daria asserts, "He's so new, still in school, he's not going to make the British National team."
He argues, "Wiggy Hodfuffer is an awesome player, a real natural talent. If he's not selected the committee is insane."
Drake also counters her. "Viktor Krum was still at Durmstrang when Bulgaria played the World Cup."
Daria laughs and holds her hand up in surrender. "Both points taken. Kordelia, didn't you say you knew Krum at school? What was he like then?"
"Everyone knew who Viktor was but I can't say I knew. He says he remembers me from school but I think he was just being nice. I did have a crush on him then and for awhile after."
"Even the boys had crushes on Viktor," Emilian jokes. "He was quiet and seemed moody. Kept to himself most of the time."
"Kody and I were second years I think, when Durmstrang came for the Twi-Wizarding Tournament. That's how I remember him being there. He's changed some since then." Nuding Ophelia Drake asks his wife, "Are you going to eat that?"
"No, you finish it. Australia's chosen it's national team already. Why hasn't Britian?"
Reaching for the beer he chose to finish off instead of having coffee, Kody says with a shrug, "No idea. Ireland's seated their team already as well."
"Are you hoping to be selected, Kody?" Emilian asks.
"Yes, of course, but the Bats haven't been showing that well so I think that's a ding against me."
Daria gives an unladylike snort, "It's not your fault so they shouldn't hold it against you."
Kody leans into her, flashing a smile, "Thanks for saying so, but that's often how these things go. I'm part of a team so in addition to my individual performance, the team's overall rating is going to be considered."
"I hope a woman or two get chosen, like Gwenog Jones or Ginny Weasley," Kordelia opines.
"It's too bad Isolde Fine isn't with Salisbury any longer. She would have made it." Daria purses her lips in thought before adding, "I never thought I'd have something nice to say about Isolde Farnon. She was not at all nice while at Hogwarts."
"A shame someone so talented got sidelined as she did," Drake says before asking, "Do you think Pyrrhus has a shot at the team? The Humbatas have been doing really well the past couple of years."
"Oh, he's got a shot all right, though like Isolde, he wasn't very nice at Hogwarts. The Slytherins team was still playing a little dirty back then. That makes me torn between having him on the British National team. He would be a good choice though." Kody motions to their waiter. "I think we're ready."
Drake and Emilian reach for their money as the waiter brings the bill but Kody waves them off. "My idea for us all to get together on Valentine's, so my treat tonight."
After paying and everyone's thank Kody, Drake issues an invitation. "Ophelia and I want you to come over."
"We can talk, play some games maybe, I'll put on more coffee or tea for those wanting it. There's beer, butterbeer, and wine. For anyone who still has room, there's caramel popcorn and an apple pie. You can also see some redecorating Drake and I have done." Ophelia beams a huge smile at them when she says that last bit.
All of them are getting up to go, Kordelia stooping to pick pu a scarf she hadn't realized before now she'd dropped. "What are you two redoing?"
Drake shrugs, looking nonchalant. "Oh, just making the second bedroom over into a nursery."
Four people freeze what they are doing to stare at Ophelia and Drake. Kody breaks the silence, thrusting out a hand to his best friend. "Seriously? Congratulations!"
Daria and Kordelia want to know when the baby is due as Emilian also offers congratulations.
"Mid-September," Ophelia tells them. "We told our parents yesterday."
The six exit the restaurant, the three woman talking excitedly as Drake tells Kody and Emilian, "Aaron said he's barely used to being a father of small children. He's not sure he's ready to be a grandfather."
Slapping Drake on the back, Kody chuckles, "Tell him he's got about seven months to get used to the idea."
The Perfect Boyfriend
Author: Adina Blackwood
Date: 04-28-12 18:44
With it being Tuesday she did not have Astronomy tonight, but she and Arthur had already decided that they would linger in the Great Hall for as long as possible before retreating to the Slytherin Commons and talking until they had to go to bed. She'd met him in front of the Great Hall earlier wearing a halter dress in emerald and black with silver vines and leaves embroidered at the hem and bust, that reached her knees and she'd paired it with a pair of ballet flats. She wore a silver necklace and bracelet set that Arthur had given her for her birthday last year.
He presented her with a corsage of emerald hued roses and baby's breath. She offered him a smile and leaned against him lightly before they had gone into the Great Hall where Professor McGonagall had ushered them to one of the intimate tables for two that they'd reserved two days ago. There were a few others that had intimate tables reserved, some sat at the tables with six and there were partial long tables that had decorations as well.
After a few minutes they'd shared a dance and even ended up sharing most of their meal eating a bit off of each other's plate and savoring the fantastic food that had been presented for tonight as well as some of the other little decadent sweets. They'd even danced for a while to the music, cuddling up close when they could. Kida and Whitney were here with dates and so were Daisy and Lucy. Arthur's roommates were in the Commons having opted to not come to the Great Hall tonight. "Want to go to the Commons for a little while or go try and snag a corner of the couch in front of the fire place in Slytherin?"
Arthur pondered a moment before he held out his hand, the incident with one of the Vanderbilt sisters had come and gone, Professor Quigley was already gone to set up her class, as she still had to teach Astronomy tonight. After a few minutes the pair of them slipped from the Great Hall and opted instead to go back to Slytherin Commons with a couple extra sweets between them to nibble on while they cuddled and simply enjoyed being a couple. They both took time to go change, Adina returning in a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt she'd sniped from Arthur after Emrys Fest last summer, and she'd paired it with her favorite bunny slippers.
Arthur had come back to the commons wearing his favorite pair of flannel pj pants and his Cleaver shirt (the one he wouldn't let her snipe) from Emrys Fest. The pair of them curled up on the sofa in front of the fire and shared the rest of their sweets just enjoying the last few hours of the romantic holiday. Just before she was getting ready to head to bed, he slipped a small box onto her lap. "Happy Valentine's Day Adina. Love you." A quick peck on her cheek and he was gone, heading to his room.
Curious she doesn't wait to open the box and smiles when there is a charm bracelet resting on the velveteen surface. There is a broom, an Omega, a heart, and a wand charm on it plus some additional spacer beads leaving plenty of room for additional charms to be added throughout the time they were together. She smiled and closed the velveteen box, gonna wear the bracelet tomorrow before she pushed herself up and headed up to bed, waiting for her roommates to come back so she could show off the new little trinket.
What Does Peeves Know?
Author: Abdul Hazrat AlGunud
Date: 04-28-12 19:11
The hallway was quiet. The silence was periodically disturbed by groups of students who passed by, taking the intersecting hallway to their final destination, be it the Great Hall or the common room of their respective houses. The only light came from a lone torch that burned steadily in its sconce. The pool of light cast by the torch illuminated only a small portion of the hallway, leaving the rest in deep shadow.
The atmosphere matched the lone occupant's frame of mind perfectly. Abdul sought neither merriment nor companionship this evening. Carlotta Calloway had made some mention about the two of them getting a table in the Great Hall. He had thought little of the offer, so he had declined. Carlotta had made it a point to seek him out and speak to him on a daily basis. Abdul wondered why she would go to such lengths to befriend him. He kept her at arms length but still she persisted. Perhaps this persistence represented a genuine effort at friendship. Equally likely, it was an attempt to monitor his movements. If that was indeed the case, then who was Carlotta reporting to? It was possible that the wizards who had escaped from the clearing last year had suborned a student at Hogwarts. More likely, Professor Dumbledore had tasked Carlotta with the job of keeping tabs on Abdul.
There had been periodic meetings with the professor during the school year, but these had been few and far between. These had occurred at odd places and times, usually with little advanced notice. After the one meeting with Professor Isuki, Professor Dumbledore had announced that he would resume instructing Abdul. But the meetings had been curtailed. Professor Dumbledore had seemed distracted during the last few meetings, as if some other matter was demanding his attention. When queried, he had declined to answer. Abdul had the uneasy feeling that events were swirling about him in some pattern that he did not understand.
A flicker of movement caught his attention. The figure of Peeves swirled about the torch. First moving up, then down the length of torch. The poltergeist muttered as he sought to remove the torch from its sconce, "Burn it, burn it, I'll burn the bloody little beast." Abdul stood quietly in the darkness, seemingly unnoticed by the agitated spirit. He noticed movement down the hallway, headed in his direction. Not seeking company from either person or non-corporeal spirit, he gently eased back into an alcove. Mrs. Norris padded into the light, gazing up at the poltergeist. Peeves gave a shriek and seemed to abandon his efforts to dislodged the torch. The cat gazed at the poltergeist with an unnatural intensity. For his part, Peeves started shouting, "Rotten beastie, I should burn you till you're nothing but a bit of black charcoalie."
Something twisted in Abdul's gut. It was not the shouting or even the extremely poorly composed verse. Mrs. Norris seemed to shimmer, her figure becoming indistinct. It seemed as if there were two images, one superimposed upon the other. The outline of the cat seemed to contain a swirling mishmash of colors. From these kaleidoscope of colors a wavering tendril emerged, reaching upward to the poltergeist. With another shriek, Peeves flew down the hallway and rapidly passed from sight.
Abdul stood in the alcove, still as an image carved from stone. Ever so carefully, he wiped a sweaty palm on his robe and then silently drew the jambiya from its sheath. Filch joined the cat in the pool of light. Abdul noted a horrifying resemblance between the two. The eyes of both swirled with the same colors. Then, in the blink of an eye, both the cat and the man returned to normal. The caretaker turned and went back down the hallway, followed by the cat.
He remained in the alcove for a long while, not daring to stir. When he finally emerged, it was clear that the hour was late. Peeves was no where in sight. It was just as well. Abdul wanted time to consider what he had witnessed.
Lazy Couples Time on Valentine's Day
Author: Charisma Stone
Date: 04-28-12 20:19
Rather than spend the evening in the Great Hall dressed up and deal with the confetti and various other things that had filled the Great Hall for Valentine's Day, Blake and I had decided to grab a couple of things to eat from the Common Commons before vanishing into the Gryffindor Commons to spend the evening playing wizard chess and just relaxing together.
"You sure you didn't want to go to the Great Hall Isma?" He asks me for about the fiftieth time.
"I'm sure Blake, now please stop asking before I get snarky." I said with a shake of my head before popping a bite size chocolate heart and leaned into him before gently brushing a kiss to his cheek. "Wish Valentine's was during the summer hols. We'd be curled up on the couch watching something on telly or maybe a pick up game of soccer with Charlie and a couple of other kids in the neighborhood."
He slid an arm around me, drawing me closer to him and cuddled into him, resting my head on his shoulder. "I bet, and I'm glad that I got to meet Charlie and that he likes me. Not entirely keen on the fact that your best mate is a guy, but I am dealing with it." He said with a smile, brushing a kiss to the top of her head.
"I'm glad that Charlie likes you too, because that would make hols awkward." I said with a laugh.
He laughed and I let my eyes slide closed and simply savored being cuddled up with him. "I seriously wish that Valentine's day had been on like Friday or something so that we didn't have to get up for classes in the morning," he said and I nodded.
"I couldn't agree more love. Either way, it's been a decent day," I said, looking up at him with a smile, thankful that Professor McGonagall was still down in the great hall because that started a fairly decent length snogging session that soon enough ended with both of us quite content and then I suggested another game of Wizarding Chess and he eagerly set up the board.
Temptress
Author: Jet
Date: 04-28-12 21:53
In an intimate garden setting magically kept toasty against the bitter chill, stars visible in a clear, winter sky, at a cozy table for two, Emerson Reed sits across from Jet, pretending to study the dessert menu. She's watching him through her lowered lashes, experiencing a range of emotions, many of them ones she's never had on assignment before. She is known by her associates for always staying calm and in total control, even when an assignment is falling apart.
Not only did she badly lose control once on this assignment already, Emerson has dealt with levels of frustration and anger that she had not thought herself capable of. Never before has she lied when giving progress reports. If she didn't know better, Emerson would think a curse or hex was put on her right around the time she was summoned to give an unscheduled update. She would not put it past that jerk at all. He's never cared for her and she cannot stand him. She can well imagine him pulling such a stunt, risking the end goal, just to make a power play.
"Have you decided?"
Looking up, a pleasant smile on her lips that reaches her eyes, belying the dark thoughts running through her head, Emerson nods. "The pavlova with Chantilly cream and passionfruit sounds heavenly. What might you have?"
"Either the hazelnut zucotto or the Dobos torte."
"Get both and take one home."
Jet pats his stomach. "I'm going to get fat if I eat too much of this rich food."
Amused, Emerson moves looks to that stomach then over the rest o fhim. At least this assignment comes with a nice looking, fit man. The last one where she had to bed anyone, he was fat and bloated yet somehow was wrinkled all over. She'd never known until then that such a thing was possible. Wouldn't being that fat stretch all those wrinkles out?
"I hardly think an extra dessert portion is going to make you run to fat when you don't overly indulge in sweets and you exercise fairly regularly. All that climbing you do is harder than it looks. That reminds me, I am able to meet you on Saturday. Do we welly get to meet Petra's new man?"
"That's what she said."
"I can't wait to find out what he's like. I am still sad that she and Chelsea broke up. It's feels a little weird sometimes being on good terms with Petra when I only met her in the first place because of Chelsea."
"It it makes you uncomfortable, we don't have to go."
"No, I want to. I just sometimes feel like I'm cheating on Chelsea." Emerson offers Jet a grin, letting him know she's joking With a more flirty smile, an unshod foot sliding up his leg, she suggests, "Get that second dessert and we can eat it together, in bed, after we've worked off dinner."
"It's definitely worth considering."
"We could go now if you'd like. Have the waiter box up the afters. Go to my place. Work off those appetizers and entrees before having dessert. I can show you my Valentine's lingerie."
As they've not slept together since convincing Jet to forgive her temper tantrum, he's got to find the thought of going back to her place and shagging their brains more than a little appealing.
The lure works. They are soon leaving the restaurant for her flat. It's not all that far so they walk, passing other lovers leaning against each other as they slowly stroll despite the cold night air. Jet's arm snug around her, Emerson casts a sideways glance, thinking she may actually let him sleep with her tonight before she takes the next step to bringing this assignment back to where it's supposed to be by now.