Nathaniel was finally getting some time to relax. He was sitting before the fireplace which was crackling merrily away. His favorite chair was pulled up next to a side table where he had placed candles and of course a glass of his best scotch. This was what the dark Samhain evenings were for – meditation on the past and looking to the future. Who knew what might be read in the flickering flames?
He'd just taken a sip of the scotch when he thought he heard a scuffling sound by the back door. His heart leapt horribly in his chest. Thank god for strong warding spells – the like of which guarded all his doors and windows. Only certain people had access to his house, being able to enter past the guarding spells. Obviously this person didn't.
He leant forward in his chair, and raised a hand, brushing it gently across the flames. In the center of the fire a face was visible, the face of the person outside his back door. He couldn't have been more startled than if Merdroit had set fire to his favorite manuscript. The face of a woman was reflected in the flames; she was incredibly beautiful, with gaunt, stark features highlighted in her high cheekbones and heavy lidded eyes. She wore black. Of course she would wear no other color, he thought. Her dress was high necked and cut low at the front, her white skin standing out against the black of her gown. She wore a cloak pulled up over her hair, which was black.
He saw her mouth words, as if she could see what he was doing. "Let me in."
Amazed, he found himself standing up and walking to the back door, releasing the warding spell and standing to one side as the woman swept regally into the hallway. She kept walking, only stopping once she reached the living room.
"Well Master Hawkins, this is quite a cosy spot you have here," she said, turning around to admire the room.
"I'm sorry, you have the better of me, Madam," he replied, all fear falling away. Of course he knew who she was, but now he had met his Nemesis he seemed a lot less afraid for some reason.
The woman held out a fragile looking hand and waited for him to kiss it. "Bellatrix Lestrange, but you already knew that, I'm sure. Rodolphus thought you might be the person I should see," she continued.
"And I'm sure Rodolphus has his reasons for that," he answered, gesturing to a nearby seat. "Can I get you a drink?"
Bellatrix put aside her cloak and sat down, obviously enjoying the heat from the fireplace. "I'll have whatever it is you're having," she replied.
Nathaniel brushed his old fashioned views aside and got the lady what she asked for. She sipped the drink with relish. "I'll have to get Rodolphus to get some of this in." She turned to face Nathaniel. "I've come with the express intention of getting some kind of spell from you. A special one, mind."
Nathaniel wondered what could bring Bellatrix to his door. What did he have that she couldn't get on her own? Or was she trying to find out what her husband was up to in his spare time? Either way if things went badly he was a dead man, and he didn't really want to think about the manner of his death at her hands. No doubt it would be very long and painful and quite bloody. He cleared his throat, forcing all those kinds of thoughts far away.
"I'm afraid you'll have to be a bit more specific," he began. "I can't direct you to the proper spell until I know what it is you need it for."
Bellatrix laughed, a spine chilling cackle that made his hackles rise and his skin go cold. Rodolphus must be a glutton for punishment living with this woman, he thought.
"I need a binding spell, and a good one. None of this run of the mill stuff; I want something to bind a strong witch, one with a background in the Celt and Irish. She's a tricky bitch and I want her where I can keep an eye on her."
Nathaniel nodded. "It shouldn't be too hard." He stood up, thinking about which spell would be better for the job. Perhaps something alchemical in nature might be better.
"Is there a problem?" she asked in a sticky sweet voice.
"Not at all. But what's in it for me?" Nathaniel had blurted out the words before he'd had time to think about them.
Bellatrix laughed again. "You get to stay alive and keep your soul, Nathaniel. That should be more than enough."
Location Unknown: Snape's Return
Author: Voldemort
Date: 02-10-04 18:58
"My lord, we have a most interesting visitor."
"Who is it Ivanova?" I know, of course, but ask anyway . . . to play this game out in full.
"Severus Snape!"
Several death Eaters, scattered through the room, stop their conversations and look up expectantly. There's a brief hush, then several yell out suggestions.
"Kill him now!"
"Let me, lord!"
"No ! Torture him!"
"Make him suffer...."
I raise my hand and the room hushes again. "Bring him here."
Ivavnova runs to bring the traitor. The others move forward expectantly, forming their circle. Each wanting to be the one who kills Snape for his treason.
"Well, Severus. I'd not expected to see you here again. Have you come to meet your death -- or do you really think I'd take you back?"
"I do not expect you to be merciful, but I do have something of interest to you." Snape replies. I try to reach his thoughts, but they are shielded. For what purpose?
"The Fenririan Manuscript."
Dressing
Author: Professor Belladonna Sinistra
Date: 02-10-04 19:17
Bella looked in the series of mirrors. So vain, but it was always best to see every angle of anything she was wearing to a school function. In this case, the black slinky gown with black lace spiderweb overlay passed the test, but was still stylish enough to wear to a Muggle Halloween party. After the feast in the Great Hall, she was to meet John and head to one of his friends. It was a good thing her class had been canceled, so she had a little time for fun before the party got dull and she would head back to break up any late gatherings in the common room and astronomy tower…especially the astronomy tower.
She put the web earrings in her ears and smiled at the carved ebony spiders. God, Halloween was becoming so Muggle. Most likely the result of all the Muggles and half-Muggles coming into Hogwarts. Well, what was there to expect ? After all, You-Know-Who had slaughtered whole families. A generation of witches and wizards had almost been decimated. Hell, her generation had spent their lives in fear, living between one fear and another. Still, it was best to forget about the fear and live life without thinking. Accept the creeping of Muggle life into the wizarding world and embrace new technologies while trying to hold on to the traditions that had survived for centuries. It was a strange time, one that always held no ideas of the future.
She sighed at the thought, before telling herself not to be silly. There was a feast to go to and she was going to be late. Then, provided she had no more than pumpkin juice and was able to apperate without safety worries, there was a London party to hit. If she did feel worried, there was the unicorn pendant with angel tears she always wore. It was all that was good and pure, and filled her with comfort. She shook her head and laughed as she left her office for the Great Hall. Too much thinking.
Happy Halloween. Yeah, right.
Author: Julian Valentine
Date: 02-10-04 19:59
Happy Halloween.
"Happy my ass," Julian mutters, taking another healthy swig of whiskey straight from the bottle.
Julian moves to stand by the fireplace, propping one arm on the mantle and leaning on it while staring broodily at the flames and taking another drink. He continues talking aloud to himself.
"Helena gone. Chyler gone. What's so happy about a Halloween without the two most wonderful, special women who ever graced the planet. Hell, the universe."
Turning suddenly, Julian walks purposefully towards the couch opposite the fireplace and plops onto the cushions, half sitting, half sprawling. Jules finishes off the whiskey, letting the empty bottle drop to the floor then comtemplates opening another bottle of something. He gets up with the intent of seeing what's still in the liquor cabinet but on a whim throws some Floo powder into the fire. Lysander always has plenty on hand to drink.
3 Wizards, 2 Witches and a Muggle
Author: Tranquillina Aemilius
Date: 02-10-04 20:03
Three wizards, two witches and a 'muggle' made their entrance into the Great Hall. The heavy aroma of food floated up to them, making one of the witches (Tranquillina) very happy.
The unlikely group made their way to their usual spots at the table, and sat down. Tranquillina smiled broadly at began to eye the meal with great interest. When everyone was seated, she offered a toast.
"To lasting friendship, a good year, our guest the 'muggle'," Tranquillina glanced at Roane, "and the survival of potions class!"
Tunnel Vision
Author: Dierna ní Cíaran
Date: 02-10-04 20:21
A white birch and a black horse . . . all that needed was another line or two and it could be an Irish riddle. Cailte had made me learn to solve them, teaching me not only to think things through logically, but visually and metaphorically.
We walk forward. "I don't know this part of the cave," I explain. "I took another path when I was here - and ah!"
There it is, one way several birch are painted in what looks like a kind of grove. They are reflected in a subterranean river. The river itself could be a birch: it is thick at first, then branches into tiny rivulets. Near to this spot is a rock that looks like it was eroded into the shape of a dark horse.
"But it looks like it's pointing," I observe. "The head is looking toward that passage. It would be normal to have its neck extended like that if it is running, but this is the position of a resting horse."
We head down the narrowing passage. The floor is rough, rocks and boulders obstructing much of the passage. "It seems there was a cave-in here." I comment, climbing over more boulders. "Either that or this was done deliberately to prevent people from getting further." We make it to the end, where there is a quite small opening. Beyond, our lit wands show there is another inscription.
"I can't read it for here." Nevvyn says. "And our wands won't light far enough."
"We can't move the rocks anywhere. This passage is too small. Perhaps we can vanish them?"
We both try, but to no avail.
I look at the opening, out of options I make the only remaining offer. "I could climb through. I think the hole is just large enough for me. If I go through I can describe the inscription for you. It might say how to get rid of these rocks"
The last thing I want to do is separate myself from Nevvyn. But what choice do we have?
One More Song
Author: Captain Electron
Date: 02-11-04 10:52
Ah, the screaming, the dancing, the waving... it was fantastic. There was no way he could ever give up this lifestyle! But he'd have to check some of his spells after the show, or maybe tomorrow - what the hell had been going on out there, that HUGE firework display certainly hadn't been in the plan! Maybe Boomer was playing a prank... anyway, he hadn't time to wonder about it now. Electron, for his last encore, flew out onto the stage on a broomstick with his new gold robes flying out behind him and coloured sparks raining down from the twigs at the back. He hovered there for a moment, enjoying the shrieks from the audience - they hadn't expected this trick. Then he pushed out into the audience, zooming overhead a few times, and showering them all with sparkles. They went mad, reaching up and trying to grab hold of him or his broomstick, but he was just out of reach.
He waved at everyone as he did a slower circuit - was there someone down there reading?! nah... couldn't be... And then, igniting another spell, he made the broom leap back to the stage, the end of it exploding like an old fashioned rocket ship, not that he expected anyone here to have seen one of those. It was just a cool special effect. He leaped down and waved, and someone threw him his guitar from the side of the stage. He caught it easily, slung on the strap, and started playing.
One last song for his audience, and then he had to go...
The Wizard's Lair
Author: Nevvyn
Date: 02-11-04 11:13
Luckily, with all of our clambering around the rocks and the attendant noises we have made, we still did not disturb the dragon. Down the indicated tunnel we went, until we were stopped by a wall of rubble… the apparent result of a purposefully-caused collapse. It's truly a good thing that Dierna is so slender and lithe. I couldn't get through that opening with a barrel of bear grease and a shoe-horn. Somehow, with a few wriggles, a twist and a squirm, she is through and on the other side. I push her pack through to her.
Now we have the problem that she is where the runes are, but cannot read them. I am stuck out here, where I cannot see them clearly. "Dierna!" I call through the hole. "Do not try to read the runes! Don't even look at them in the correct order. It may be another trapping spell… or something even worse." I think for a moment, then add, "You could copy them onto a piece of parchment." I start rummaging in my pack for the proper equipment.
"I can do even better than that!" she replies. "I have my Auror's Camera."
I watch as she lights the runes with a Lumos spell then aims her camera and snaps a picture. I hear the muffled clicking and whirring as the camera does whatever magical things it needs to produce the picture. After a few minutes, she passes the finished product through the opening. I study the picture for long minutes. I seems to make no sense. I can translate the words and the symbols, but there is no feeling as of a message… unless…
I search the pile of rubble, looking for the perth, the sign of the dice cup. There, about waist-high, I see the faint outline of the figure I am seeking. Now… Teiwaz, Teiwaz, Othila… on the second stone above is a round indentation. The third line of the inscription shows Teiwaz, Teiwaz, Teiwaz, Othila, but in this case, the runes are reversed or upside down. I count down three stones and find nothing. Then, looking two stones further in the same direction, I find another 'cup-mark'. The fourth line reads Kenaz, Kenaz, Othila. I go back to the starting point and count two to the left, finding a third depression. The fifth and final line is much like the fourth, but the Kenaz symbols are reversed. I look two to the right and there is another small circular imprint. Well, I have found the marks… now to try my idea.
Teiwaz, Teiwaz, Othila… With my wand, I tap the depression in the center stone, then proceed to the other four, in the given order. There is a squeak and a creak, and a showering of rock dust. I watch as the stones rearrange themselves into a more compact pattern, moving of their own accord. When the grumbling and grinding stops, and the dust clears, the opening is nearly nine times it's original size. By bending a bit, I can easily walk through, which I quickly do to join Dierna.
"Almost like the entrance to Diagon Alley!" she exclaims with a grin. "It makes me wonder just how old that place might be!"
"Well," I say, brushing the rock dust from my robes. "Let's see where this takes us."
The tunnel maintains its height, but gets progressively narrower as we go. We stop several times to read old inscriptions. Most seem to be further proclamations of ownership, put there by Magus. Others have been defaced or obliterated, like the one near the entrance. "I'm thinking this fellow had too much time on his hands!" I grumble. Finally, we come to a place where two stone pillars leave only a narrow slot between them. It would be possible, by turning sideways, to slip through. However, I have a bad feeling about this. Perhaps this feeling is fostered by the presence of numerous broken bones littering the floor near the base of the columns. "I smell a trap!" I tell my partner. I reach out with my staff and probe the floor and the walls. Nothing happens, and I am about to start through. Dierna grabs my arm and pulls me back up the tunnel to where there is a large block of stone. She levitates this with a Wingardium Leviosa, and floats the stone back to the pillars. She lets it down with a thump, in the space between the two columns. Suddenly, they start to rotate and try to move together. The stone blocks their progress and also jams whatever magical mechanism is driving them. We step over the boulder and squeeze between the now-quiescent columns. "Thanks," I say, with a wink and a grin. "I'm too old and tough to make good hamburger!"
Past the pillars, the tunnel widens to where we can again walk side by side. It twists and turns until I have lost all sense of direction. I know only that we approaching the heart of the mountain. I can feel it in my bones. At one point, there is a deep pit, spanned by a narrow bridge of natural stone. Rather than chance it, however, we choose to apparate the twenty feet or so, to the far side. Looking back at it, this was a wise decision. From here, I see that the bridge is counterweighted to support itself and little else.
Just around the next turn past the bridge, we enter a medium sized chamber. The place has the look and feel of a Wizard's Lair, but one which is long unused. Great stone benches line most the walls and fill a part of the center of the room. Practically every horizontal surface is filled with some sort of apparatus. Glints of glass and metal reflect through the thin layer of dust which covers everything. At the four quadrants of the room, a faintly-glowing rune of protection has been inscribed on the wall. Strong magic has been done here. At least, I now have my bearings. Dierna and I wander about, examining things as we go. In the southeast corner, there is a shallow basin flanked by two golden orbs. As I approach, these begin to glow, faintly at first, then brighter and brighter. Soon, they have power enough to light the entire room as if it were full daylight. The basin contains several inches of what appears to be water. With a glass ladle hanging nearby, I stir the contents of the basin. A trail of iridescent golden sparks follows the trail of the ladle.
Dierna has come up behind me to see what I have done to cause this light. She stares with awe at the basin. "Is this what the runes were speaking of?" she asks. "Might this be The Water of the Gods?"
"One way to find out," I suggest, fishing in my pack for my Ogham Croabh, my Ogham Sticks which I sometimes use in divinations. I pull one at random, which just happens to be Quert, for and of the apple. I dip this into the liquid and watch as it begins to sprout green leaves and small white blossoms. "I'm thinking that perhaps Professor Dumbledore might be interested in a sample of this." I pull several glass-stoppered flasks from my pack and fill them with the fluid. These I wrap carefully in soft woolen cloth and place in the bottom of my pack.
I am wondering about the source of this amazing elixir. Though I have taken out a fair quantity of liquid, the level does not seem to have dropped. I notice that the wall behind the basin is wet, and follow the trail upward with my eyes. There, some eight feet above the shelf, is carved the face of a woman. She appears to be crying, with the tears squeezing from her closed eyes and dripping down the wall. We both climb up for a better look. "I think we have found one of the ancient shrines of the Mother Goddess," I whisper with reverence, "the one we sometimes call Brighid. She has been worshipped in many lands, under many names, since the earliest times. This obviously predates the coming of Magus, and quite probably explains some of the obliterated inscriptions.
Filled with awe, we climb back down to the floor. "Did you find anything else of interest?" I ask.
"There are a few items which might be worth carrying out of here," she answers. She leads me over to a pile of scrolls and manuscripts. I glance at a few of them; alchemical treatises, herbology, spells and incantations. I use a DeMinimus spell to shrink these down to a manageable size and we add these to our packs. "There's one other thing you might want to look at before we go," she mentions, pointing to a shadowy corner. She opens a small chest to reveal a hoard of golden coins, faceted jewels, and other riches.
I pick up a handful of the coins and am greeted by the faces of long-dead emperors and kings. "Wouldn't it be nice to have a few sacks of these in your vault at Gringotts?" I chuckle. I close up the chest and levitate it to knee height. "I think it's about time for us to go!" I announce. I take a wistful look at all of the strange devices scattered about. "Wouldn't Professor Dumbledore have a good time playing with some of these trinkets! However, I think we have about all we can carry for this trip. Perhaps we can come back in the spring and retrieve the rest…"
