When He Thought It
Couldn't Get Any Worse
Author: Fynn Greenleaf
Date: 01-21-03 00:51
"The greatest Ravenclaw team. You're in, I'm in," Golbez said, a smile on his face. "And your darling Cho's the captain."
"That's great." Fynn replied drolly, as he flopped back onto the couch, just staring at the wall and fiddling with the lint on his sweater. The light from the fireplace played with the shadows on his brow. He was frowning.
"Ah, you're letting the weather get to you," Golbez said, smile disappearing. It was true that since his mother's condition worsened, Fynn had been more glum- less fun, really- he knew he wasn't being the most exciting, cheerful person to hang around- and he felt bad that Golbez stuck by him nonetheless, always being a great friend. "Hey, sorry I'm being such a jerk nowadays," Fynn said to the ground. "Matters of the heart, you know? You know what I'm saying."
"Ah, don't mention it," Golbez replied, grinning- jocular as ever. "You're a jerk all the time anyway." They laughed. "So...how's things really? One minute you're into each other and now you completely don't talk about her...you two split up?"
"No..." Fynn replied. "Actually, I think things got messed up...and wish me good luck." Before Golbez could reply, Fynn had gotten up, and with a wave, left the common room.
He suddenly felt motivated to correct things. He would correct things. Maybe it was his Quidditch posting that had cheered him up...whatever it was, Fynn felt happy. Ah...Cho was standing over there with some of her friends. She had her hair in a knot, and looked no less lovely as ever, though maybe a little despondent. She looked up to see him, and then looked away...she was about 30 strides away, he reckoned- 30 strides and he'd be right beside her. Feeling unusually, animated, Fynn contrived to do a side slide across the floor- an old maneuver he'd practiced as a lad to perfection- to wow the girls, really. He got ready, and off he was...
Just then, Alexis walked quickly- or seemed to float really, into Fynn's direction. She was jubilant- probably had a posting as well, and looked really pretty. "Hey, smooth operator" she called out- laughing, and Fynn returned the greeting with a grin, and also the realisation that he'd stopped right and perfectly in front of her, 10 feet short of Cho. Whom he now saw, had turned and left.
Cho had slept very little the night before, mind reeling at what she had seen Fynn with. Her eyebrows were knit together, hair a mess from tossing and turning in her bed, she mumbled to herself, "Slytherin?! How could he? Why would he?" She grumbled as she slid off of her bed and grabbed her shampoo, toothbrush/toothpaste, and party clothes for Hermoine's party. Cho grimaced at herself in the mirror, making a small attempt to make herself look better, but overall, not really caring.
Once in the prefect bathrooms that morning, she piled her hair up on top of her head and sank into the bubble bath, eyes and nose the only pieces of her above water. After a much needed soak, she took her hair down and sank into the water, taking her ginger and cinnamon soap and scrubbing. She then reached for her shampoo, pouring some into her hand then working it into her scalp. Cho rinsed the shampoo out of her hair and then repeated the process with her conditioner. She then got out of the bath and toweled herself off before slipping into a slinky, Ravenclaw blue, spaghetti strap dress with a ruffle at its hem and different shades of blue to add texture. She towel dried her silky black tresses and picked up her things, heading back to the commons to fix her hair.
She looked around the commons and sighed, not interested in talking to the people who were up. She jogged barefoot up the stairs to her dorm. She knocked on the door, hearing a few gurgled 'Come ins' and grinning. Sykra growled softly at her, "You're such an early...thing."
Cho giggled after entering at Sykra's comment, moving to her vanity mirror to style her hair into twists and spikes with hair jewels that matched her dress. After slipping her Hogwarts robe on over her dress for warmth, she heads downstairs to go to breakfast as she slips on her heels.
Class and Good News
Author: Lawrence Masterson
Date: 01-21-03 10:39
Lawrence had been up early this morning, showered and dressed in a pair of jeans and the remainder of his uniform. He was waiting for an owl from Daniel back home in Australia. He was planning something, but wanted to make sure that the funds would be available to do so before he even thought about suggesting it to anyone. Besides, it all mattered on how this school year went.
He headed down to breakfast. He knew Vera didn't have class until three o'clock and he doubted he would see her before his break between classes. He double checked to see that he had all of his homework for Transfiguration and Herbology as he sat down at the Hufflepuff table for breakfast. He ate looking over his Transfiguration book.
Just as he was about to leave the Great Hall a tawny owl flew in and landed atop his Transfiguration book. "Hello Tyrean." he said running his hand over the owl's back, before taking the letter from his beak. He opened the parchment and smiled. Things were arranged. Now all he had to do was hope that things went perfectly for the rest of the school year.
He quickly penned out a thank you note to Daniel and handed it back to the owl after allowing the owl to eat some of the toast that he had left. "Take that quickly and be safe." he said before gathering up his books and heading to Transfiguration, and then to Herbology.
Quidditch and Questions
Author: Isolde
Date: 01-21-03 11:03
The Slytherin common room seemed virtually deserted when Isolde arrived with her Transfiguration books and notes. She sank into one of the green, plush armchairs against one of the cold, stone walls and opened up her textbook to reread some of the finer points of today's assignment. The dim glow of the green lights over her head hardly illuminated the words on the pages, so after muttering, "Lumos," Isolde propped the wand between her knees, using the light on the tip as a reading lamp.
Not long after she arrived, Alexis appeared with her Transfiguration supplies in tow. Isolde looked up and smiled, shutting her book with a satisfying thud, and exclaimed almost too happily, "Good morning!"
The grin that had appeared nearly a week ago after learning the results of the Quidditch trials hadn't left Alexis' face. She plopped down in a neighboring chair and carelessly dropped her books to the floor. "Good morning, Isolde! Good reading?"
"Eh," Isolde replied, shrugging. She paused for a moment, her mind wandering to something she had been wanting to ask Alexis for several days now. Alexis must have noticed that Isolde was looking at her strangely because she asked, "What?"
Isode leaned back in her chair and said, "Hmm."
"Hmm, what?" Alexis prompted, folding her legs underneath her body to sit a little more comfortably.
Isolde blinked.
"What's the deal with you and that Ravenclaw?" she suddenly asked.
Alexis opened her mouth to answer, but a few jubilant shouts through the common room cut her off.
"Isolde, my love!" cried out Pyrrhus, jumping over an empty seat. He sprung into Isolde's lap, knocking the book out of her arms and the wand from her knees in the process. "How I've missed you! It's been too long!" He pressed his lips to hers and winked impishly.
"It's only been..." Isolde checked her watch, laughing. "Seven or eight hours! Get off of me, Py, you're crushing my legs!"
"And what sexy legs they are!" he growled, nipping her ear with his teeth. She continued to protest, although laughing and giggling at the same time. Pyrrhus grinned wickedly and after a few moments climbed off of her lap and into the empty chair close by.
Azaelia had also arrived in the meantime, her silver prefects badge shining brightly against her plain, black robes. She rolled her eyes and exclaimed, "You have too much energy this morning, Py. Save it for the Quidditch field, will ya?"
The conversation immediately became all about Quidditch, Isolde's question to Alexis momentarily forgotten. As the talk continued, the four managed to walk down to the Great Hall to get some breakfast before their first class.
Preparing for Class
Author: Minerva McGonagall
Date: 01-21-03 12:01
Professor Minerva McGonagall was finishing up writing some important items on the chalkboard. Her next class was due soon, and she had about ten minutes to get things ready. Her mind wandered...
In fact, my Dear Lady, I am prepared to place a friendly wager on the outcome of this season. And here are the stakes. The loser buys dinner at The Spinning Horn! Does that sound agreeable?
She chuckled to herself, shaking her head as she remembered the old Leprechaun's proposed wager. Minerva didn't care to bet on games, but it was all in good fun, and she couldn't think of a better person to share a meal with, except for maybe Albus. She had agreed to the wager and they toasted with their Butterbeer bottles that afternoon.
Students started filing into the classroom as she set down the piece of chalk and chose an animal from one of the large cages to use for their transfiguration lesson of the day.
"Okay, George. It's al...most...done." Fred stepped back from the package he had been wrapping and admired his work. Brightly colored paper and streams and curls of colored string littered his work-area next to the register at the front of the shop.
With some envelopes in one hand, George approached the counter to inspect Fred's handy-work. He nodded approvingly and waved his wand to clear the area of leftover wrapping paper and related things.
"There," Fred said. He scribbled his name on the card and gave it to George to sign as well, his eyes taking a moment to notice that the envelopes in George's hand were all addressed to Majandra.
"Looks great, Fred. She'll love it." George signed the card and tucked it into the small envelope attached to the box. Then he picked up the package and gave it a little shake. "Shall I take it to the Owl Post?"
Fred nodded. "Yes, and be sure and get a priority owl to send it. Hermione's birthday is today, after all."
"All right, I'll be back in a few." George collected his pile of letters for Majandra, tucked them and the package under his arm and left the shop, leaving Fred alone to busy himself with some odd-jobs around the shop.
While stocking water-squirting plastic flowers, a Muggle joke-inspired product, Fred's thoughts drifted to the beautiful Blossom. The pair had been dating for a couple of weeks now, and although they weren't officially an item, Fred really, really liked her. He thought off and on about asking her to go steady with him, but wondered if that would be moving too fast.
They never shared much more than end-of-date kisses, but Fred could tell that they had something special. He plucked a Forget-Me-Not flower from its vase, closed his eyes as he thought about Blossom and touched the flower to his nose. It sprayed water in his face, and he laughed.
He tossed the flower back into the vase and went back behind the front counter to set the register for the day, suddenly wondering whether or not he had sent George to the Owl Post office too early. It was about eight a.m., and most shoppers were not out and about yet.
Fred shrugged, knowing his brother to be very resourceful. He'd figure out a way to get that package and those love letters sent off as soon as possible, and if not, the post office would surely open no later than in an hour.
Hermione would get her birthday gift today; something special from both Fred and George for her sweet sixteen!
Start Spreadin' the
News
Author: Helena Tufton
Date: 01-21-03 13:41
Perhaps Molly Weasley was beginning to get used to the idea that her second-born son, Charlie, was now a married man. She no longer sent him cold glares across the dinner table, and she had begun to plan out an elaborate, yet affordable, family wedding. "This time, you're going to do it right," she had said, patting Helena's knee gently.
If she had ever been angry with her daughter-in-law, she hid it well. The night Helena and Charlie had revealed their big news to Molly and Arthur, Helena had quickly realized what it might have been like to receive a howler from Charlie's mother.
Molly had become red with rage and Charlie red with embarrassment, and the screaming and scolding had lasted for a good part of the evening. It hadn't been until later when Arthur took Helena aside to give her a hug and welcome her to the family, that Molly rushed over and embraced her as well.
The following day, Helena had owled her parents with the news. It had taken a day or two for an owl to return from Sweden with a reply, which for the most part had been pleasant. Naturally, there was some concern that Helena had rushed into things. After all, she had been down this road before and look how that had turned out. No specific mention of her wedding-disaster with Julian Valentine had been mentioned in the letter, but with every word she read, she knew what her parents must have been thinking.
Helena had promptly penned back a response, declaring that she and Charlie would visit them in Sweden soon. They had much to talk about, and Helena needed to introduce Charlie to her mother. Charlie already knew her father, Marcus, from their dragon-keeping work in Romania.
While Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Mr. and Mrs. Tufton knew of the Las Vegas marriage between their son and daughter, Charlie's siblings and friends still had no knowledge of it. It wasn't that Charlie and Helena didn't want to tell them, in fact, they planned on notifying everyone today; after all, the secret had already been out for weeks now. Both were surprised that their parents hadn't told everyone about the big news already.
So, Helena and Charlie sat down at the breakfast table and began to write to their family and friends. The first note went to Bill:
Dear Bill,
We have some big news...
Sykra shook her head, finally pulling herself out of bed as she watched Cho. A dress? Heels? For cryin' out loud.
Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Sykra glanced in the mirror. Hmmh... She thought. I think it's about time to touch up the highlights...
After showering and dressing (rather less fashionably than Cho), Sykra pointed her wand at her hair, muttered a few words, and watched as the dull purple became considerably lighter. This charm was one of the few she could always perform without messing it up. The girl found it quite the nifty little charm as the colours always showed up on her brunette hair and she never even had to mess with the messy muggle products.
Adding a last touch of blue to show pride for her house and smiling with satisfactory, Sykra went to joined the rest of her friends in the Great Hall for breakfast.
When Hermione awoke that morning, she found a neatly wrapped, brown parcel at the foot of her bed. Her name was written in a familiar scrawl on the small tag attached to the top of the package. With mounting curiosity, she opened her gift.
Once she removed the paper and opened the enclosed box, a chocolate colored book and a note emerged. Hermione set the book aside and read the note:
Dear Hermione,
Happy Birthday! I was able to get some assistance to get your present secretly to you. I hope you like it. Enjoy yourself today; I hope it is a great birthday.
Gabe
P.S. - I'm sorry about the other day down at the Quidditch try-outs. I was acting conceited and stupid. So I hope you didn't take anything to mean much of anything.
Her eyes passed from the note to the book. She opened the inviting leather cover and revealed a flowery paper where the meadow background seemed to move due to an imaginary wind. She turned the paper and found herself looking at first a picture of baby Gabriel and on the adjacent page, a baby Hermione.
The entire book was filled with such pictures of their childhood, many of them together. Under many of the pictures was Gabriel's handwriting in a golden ink, where he recalled the memories he had of each picture.
Gazing and reading through the pages, a smile passed across Hermione's face. She lost complete track of time; settled comfortably against her pillows as she flipped through the books, looking at each and every page once, twice, three times...reliving each memory as if it was happening now.
It wasn't until she happened to glance at her clock, that she noticed it was five minutes to eight, and she was due in Ancient Runes class! The book fell from her hands and landed softly on her bed, and she sprang like Crookshanks from her four-poster and scrambled to get dressed.
Hermione fixed her unkempt hair into a sloppy bun and tore out of the dormitory with her Ancient Runes textbook under her arm. She looked terrible, that much she knew, but she didn't care. She hadn't felt happier in a long time.
However she made it to class on time, she didn't know. Professor Sorcha began her lecture moments after Hermione found her seat.
During the professor's opening announcements, Hermione took a few moments to steal glances around the class. She was sitting next to Ron with Harry on his other side. Both looked at her questioningly, obviously wondering where she had been. At the same time, their eyes glowed mischievously, as if they've been planning something big.
Hermione grinned at them and then shifted her gaze to the Ravenclaw half of the room, where Gabriel was watching her. She thanked him with her eyes, silently telling him that he deserved a great, big hug. Then she laughed, covering her mouth quickly, and thought that he'd probably appreciate it if she showered first.
She spent the rest of the class silently wondering what Harry and Ron had planned for her and hoping that she'd get a chance to really thank Gabriel for his very thoughtful gift.
Climax in Cairo: Part
One
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 01-22-03 11:46
Six days ago, Percy Weasley vanished from Bill's Cairo flat.
Bill had returned home after safely stowing away the highly secretive plans to the Pushkin vault into a concealed safe belonging to his landlady, Sheri. Upon arrival at his front door, he found it slightly ajar and through the open sliver he saw that something was amiss.
From the looks of things, papers and other items were strewn across the floor. Alarmed, Bill reached for his wand and held it in a ready position. He cautiously pushed open the door, cringing as it creaked, something it only did when he was trying to be extra quiet. When he stepped inside, he scanned the room quickly for any intruders.
Silently, he crept across the room to check the two bedrooms and bathrooms. The whole flat had been ransacked, every pillow unturned and all the contents from his drawers dumped out onto the floor. It looked as if a tornado had swept through the room, destroying everything in its path.
Suddenly, an uneasy feeling passed over Bill and he cried out, "Percy!? Percy! Are you here?"
He ran throughout the apartment, turning over furniture and digging through his pillaged belongings for his younger brother, who had still been there when Bill had left to go talk to Sheri. After moments of searching and finding no trace of Percy, Bill wondered if Percy had maybe left the flat before the intruders came to plunder his things.
He hoped so, and it was very possible. Yet, that horrible feeling that Percy had been in the apartment during the attack weighed heavy on his heart.
"Don't give up hope, Bill," he whispered. Bill expelled a long breath and rubbed his face with his hands.
After another quick search around the apartment, Bill went downstairs to report the situation to Sheri. He mentioned that his brother was missing, but that he would wait before sending out letters to friends and family about his disappearance. He hoped, after all, that Percy had merely stepped out to do some more shopping at the local bazaar.
That night, Percy didn't come home. He didn't show up the next day either.
Bill spent the following day cleaning up his apartment, shifting through the rubble for any clues as to Percy's disappearance. It was towards the evening when he realized that his briefcase was missing.
And then it dawned on him. The Pushkin files had previously been kept in his briefcase, and the only people who knew of this were the people he worked closely with at Gringotts. Adallah had previously said that the Pushkins were very important clients, and why else would extra security measures be implemented onto their vault, if the chance that someone would try to break in wasn't extra high?
Bill's mind whirled with thoughts. Who knew he had the plans? Mosi, the goblin, but Bill didn't believe he was a suspect; the Pushkins themselves, but again, unlikely; Adallah, president of the bank, and Nawif, the faithful sidekick. Instinct drew Bill to Nawif, but he had no proof.
Although he should have notified his parents and Penelope about Percy's disappearance, Bill didn't want to worry them too soon. Besides, if his gut feeling about Nawif was correct, Bill already knew where Percy was.
Climax in Cairo: Part Two
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 01-22-03 12:46
Bill had gone to work on Monday morning, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened over the weekend. He exchanged greetings with the usual folk, but instead of heading down to the underground corridors where he normally found his work, he took the stairs to the second floor.
Security outside Adallah's office had doubled, with four goblins standing at attention in front of the great doors instead of the usual two. Their beady eyes raked Bill over, and one cleared its throat and told him that Adallah was too busy for visitors that morning.
Bill cocked his head curiously, but decided not to press his luck by trying to burst into the office. Instead, he went back downstairs and continued the climb down to the basement, hoping to find Mosi.
But Mosi was no where to be found.
Bill expected to see him working on their new assignment, but he was neither there nor anywhere else in the bank. This brought Bill even more concern, because he knew that a thief could get into the vault without the plans. Only two beings knew the charms and combinations from memory: Bill and Mosi.
Several times during the day, Bill had returned upstairs to meet with Adallah, but again and again was turned away by the goblins guarding the doors. Frustrated and all the more eager to pin Nawif for the crime, Bill walked away and went to his employee mailbox.
Within it he found a paycheck, an employee newsletter and a blank envelope. Curious, he put the check and newsletter aside and opened the small, unmarked envelope, revealing a card upon which a short sentence was written:
We have your brother.
It said nothing more, nor was there anything on it to suggest who might have sent the letter. This confirmed that the culprit was a Gringotts employee or someone who had access to the bank, but this was something Bill already suspected.
Completely baffled, Bill went home early that day to do some thinking. He wasn't sure how to correspond with Percy's captor, so he set his mind to think up a plan.
The following day, Bill arrived at work with an unmarked envelope of his own within which was a letter with this question:
Where is he?
He dropped it into the general incoming mail slot for the bank, hoping that the letter would end up in the correct hands. That afternoon, he found a reply in his mailbox:
He is unharmed.
Before leaving work that day, Bill penned a quick response:
What do you want with him?
And on the following day he received his answer:
You have something we want. When we are ready to make an exchange, we will contact you.
Bill didn't want to play this game any longer. Without drawing any suspicion to himself, he climbed the stairs to the second floor and met the four goblins standing outside Adallah's office.
Like before, Bill was turned away, only this time the goblins seemed a little more hostile than usual. One explained that Adallah was extremely busy with meetings and other things, and that if Bill had nothing better to do than to bother his boss all day, then maybe he wasn't working hard enough.
As much as Bill wanted to push past the goblins and burst into Adallah's office, he restrained himself and marched down the stairs, continuing on towards the basement, where he completely let loose.
He balled his hands into fists and punched one of the employee lockers by the staircase. It fell open and a small, battered body fell to the floor. Bill stepped back, the pain in his hands quickly forgotten, and stared at the body by his feet.
It was Mosi.
Climax in Cairo: Part Three
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 01-22-03 13:43
On Thursday morning, Bill awoke early even though he had spent most of the night up at Gringotts answering questions for the proper authorities. The discovery of Mosi's mangled body had sent shockwaves throughout the bank, and many of his fellow employees had rushed down to the basement to catch a glimpse of Mosi's corpse.
Egyptian aurors were hauled in, and many of them questioned Bill about the day's events. Bill told them all he could, how he hadn't seen Mosi since the previous Friday and how he had been eager to talk with his co-worker since Monday. The aurors asked him if he had any suspicions as to who may have wanted Mosi dead, but Bill answered in the negative. While he strongly believed Nawif, and now also Adallah, were the prime suspects, he had no proof. None yet, anyway.
Word of the murder soon reached Adallah, who left his offices to inspect the crime scene. Bill met his boss' gaze in the darkness of the hallways, but an auror soon swept Adallah away for some questioning.
Bill's own questions for his boss would have to wait until later.
With murder now in the cards, Bill thought it was time to alert friends and family of Percy's predicament. He sat down at the breakfast table, his toast and pumpkin juice hardly touched, and scribbled a note to his parents and then another to Penelope. Charlie, the twins, Ron and Ginny would surely learn of the news from their parents later on.
Then, he left for work with one goal in mind. Today he would talk to Adallah.
Upon arrival at Gringotts, he made a beeline for his mailbox and found a familiar, unmarked envelope waiting for him. He tore into the envelope and pulled out the parchment upon which the word, Tomorrow, was written.
Bill looked up at the balcony above his head, the double doors to Adallah's office visible and his four goblin friends still posted outside ready to prevent anyone from entering. So, the alleged exchange is due tomorrow, Bill thought to himself. He had other plans, though. He would find Percy today, and see to it that whoever was behind the kidnapping would be thrown in prison.
He tucked the letter into his robe pocket and climbed the stairs to the second floor. Four pairs of goblin eyes swiveled in his direction, and pointy teeth were barred in a menacing manner.
"I've come to see Khalid. Let me see him," Bill demanded.
The goblins were prepared to give him the same speech they had given him all week, when the doors swung open and Adallah excalimed, "Bill! Come in. There's something we need to discuss."
Bill brushed past the guardian goblins and shut the door behind him. Adallah returned to the high-backed chair behind his desk and offered Bill one of the comfortable armchairs. Bill noted that Nawif was not present.
"You look distressed about something. Can I get you some herbal tea?"
"No, thank you," Bill said, but something caught his eye. "On second thought, let me pour my own cup and refill yours as well."
Adallah started to object, but obliged when Bill reached across the desk to take his cup. He watched his employee through curious eyes and began with some smalltalk. "My condolences about your partner, Bill. He will be sorely missed."
"Yes, he will," Bill said quietly, as he crossed the room to the little cart in the corner. As he refilled Adallah's teacup and filled one up for himself, his gaze focused on the aquarium. The scorpion was inside, perched on a very familiar piece of wood.
Adallah had resumed talking about Mosi, but Bill wasn't listening. With his teacup in hand, he stepped closer to the aquarium to get a better look at the scorpion. It looked identical to the one he had seen in the corridors two weeks ago, but that didn't really mean much. That piece of wood on the other hand...
His eyes followed the length of the shaft until they fell upon a handle, partly buried beneath some dirt and pebbles. It was a wand, and not just any wand!
The teacup fell from Bill's hand and landed onto the floor with a crash.
"Bill!? Is everything all right?" Adallah asked.
Bill's gaze hardened and he turned around slowly, fixing his boss with a cold stare. "Why is my brother's wand in your scorpion's aquarium?"
