Sidi's Identity Crisis
Author: Adam Sparrow
Date: 02-14-04 11:10
Adam slammed his palms down on the table. "What! What did I do wrong?!"
Sidi looked up. "What are you talking about?"
"He pulled back a chair and sat beside her. He ran his fingers through the pitch black ringlets then caressed her cheek. She was his life.
"You're sitting her moping why? What did I do wrong? I don't want you to be sad."
She touched his hand and kissed his palm.
"It's not you. It's me."
She produced a massive sigh.
"I know I was right coming here. We've learned so much." She looked around but her eyes revealed it was words she was looking for. "You've learned a lot about yourself, not everything but you seem comfortable in what you do know."
Adam shook his head and laughed. "That I'm an unauthorized magical creature and you have to get ownership papers for me?"
She giggled and it made him smile.
"The fact that you can laugh about that Adam is so great. It just shows how far we've come.."
Sidi stood and walked behind the counter to pour herself a cup of coffee. She glanced at her fiancée, he nodded. She poured him a cup as well then returned to the table and sat down. She fought back tears. He put his hand on hers.
"We've come so far but...... what?"
"Dr. Petras sent an owl asking me to come back to Romania and my old position."
"Ahhh," he murmured. He knew what was coming.
She looked at him as if seeking an answer in his face. "I don't know what to do." She grabbed both of his hands. "Adam tell me what to do." Tears started to roll down her cheeks.
He drew in a long breath. "I was wondering how long it would take before something like this happened."
He caressed her hair.
"If you want to go back home, we will go back." His hand waved toward the counter and shoppe. "I don't care at all about this. I care about you and how you feel. I care about your being my wife and making you happy. I don't mind being Mr. Sidi Ross."
She kneaded his hands. "You seem so happy here. I don't think I've ever seen you so carefree. Adam, its not that being your wife and settling in the shoppe isn't enough. It is. But, I feel like I've lost such a big part of me. I'm a Gypsy and I want to be a Gypsy. I'm proud of being a Gypsy. I don't know the last time I made a potion. I don't know the last time I took out my crystals. Damn it Adam, I was a college professor! There's no one on this planet better than I am in divination. Its been ages since I've read a palm... I'm a potions wizard but now all I mix and conjure is latte and sandwiches!" She started to sob.
He couldn't help a half hearted chuckle and held her tight.
"If you want to go back to Sighisoara, it's fine with me. I'll sell the shoppe and we're on our way back to Romania."
Discovery
Author: Mary
Date: 02-14-04 15:12
"Aren't you going to eat anything, Nora?" Crispin said around a skull-pop. The pirate-girl simply shrugged and stabbed her fork into her pie again. Crispin turned back to Mortimer to continue whatever argument they had been engaged in, and Mary eyed Nora warily.
Yep. The girl didn't eat.
Mary had already come up with a plan of attack if she didn't see Nora put anything in her mouth all of Halloween. She figured a normal twelve-year-old couldn't resist at least a few sweets.
But Nora hadn't eaten any.
Suddenly, Nora stood up, scraping her chair backwards and bracing her arms against the Slytherin table.
"I don't feel so well, I'm going back to the common room" she said so quickly it took her friends a few moments to digest what she'd said. By then Nora had fled into the entrance hall.
"Blimey," Mortimer said, "what a weird girl."
Mary stared after her for a moment before getting up and following her out at a much more relaxed pace.
"What the...?" Mortimer began, but Crispin shrugged,"They always do that."
She could have gone to a prefect, but she decided instead to just tell Madam Pomfrey at the infirmary and let her deal with the strange, one-eyed second-year.
There and Back Again
Author: Nevvyn
Date: 02-14-04 16:11
It is Samhain and the gates to the Otherworld swing wide. Whether our meddling here has triggered this, cannot say. The spirits of the ancestors approach and cry out for recognition. Sadly, I do not have time to do them the honors they deserve. Something comes… something more evil than anything I have known in this life. A sepulchral voice rings out ---
Degenero Corpus
Both my thoughts and my body nearly freeze at the sound. Though I am not familiar with the curse, I can guess its meaning. I do not need to guess the identity of the wielder of this curse. It can be none other than Magnus the Norsk, himself. We are trapped by the closing of the entrance hole… a stone circle with no exit.
Suddenly, a glow interposes itself between us and the approaching blackness that is Magnus. The spirit of Lily Potter leads us from the place by an unknown way. It is a timeless place where we walk, a part of the Otherlands, themselves. We hurry along miles of corridors, up endless flights of stairs and around innumerable turns. Our race goes on for what seems like hours, yet we do not tire. Minutes later, we are deposited in the tunnel we had earlier traversed, near the portal of the moving stones. Lily leaves us with a few private words for Dierna, and we are on our own.
Hoisting my backpack into a more comfortable position, I touch Dierna on the arm to bring her out of her reverie. She starts to say something but I hush her with a finger to my lips. I whisper one word… "DRAGON!" and point in the direction we must go. Quietly, we traverse the few hundred yards between us and the great cavern we had navigated earlier. At the entrance, we pause and listen. There are none of the rhythmic snores we heard before, only a soft, sibilant hiss, as of steam escaping from a leaking pipe. We peer around the corner and survey the scene.
At first, there is nothing to be seen. Then, a curtain is drawn aside to reveal a great green glowing orb. Before I can draw a breath, it is joined by another of its kind. The dragon, a Norwegian Ridgeback, has a body to rival the prehistoric brontosaurs, and its head is as large as a motor-car. With a screech of scales and talons on bare rock, it comes to investigate these intruders. We beat a hasty retreat, back into the tunnel. The great snout pushes into the opening, but can go no further, being blocked by the horns on its head. The mouth opens to reveal a double row of dagger-sharp teeth, most as long as my forearm. It gives out with a mighty puff. Lucky for us, this isn't one of the fire breathers. The miasma of Dragon Breath is bad enough. I hear the thump of the great body hitting the floor, as the beast settles down to wait.
"Well, now!" I say. "This is a fine predicament! It can't get in… but we can't get out, either." I try a few spells but, dragons being notoriously resistant to magic, they have absolutely no effect. Its only response is another snort of bad breath. "I don't suppose its in any mood to be lulled by the old stories. If only I had a harp or a fiddle, maybe we could sing it to sleep."
Dierna's face, which had been veiled with sadness since her parting from her old friend, suddenly lights up with a smile. She reaches inside her cape and pulls out an old Feadóg, the traditional Irish tin whistle. She blows a few experimental notes, then launches into a slow and mournful air. There is a sniff and a snort, and the dragon pulls it's head back a few feet, that it might hear better. After a few minutes of this, the creature lets out a moan containing all the sadness of several centuries of its existence. It settles down and starts to weep, but is still blocking our exit.
"Well and good! We've found the key, but cannot unlock the door!" I exclaim. Might you have a dance or two left in that old thing?" Dierna swings into a lively jig -- The Cat that Ate the Candle. Before long, the great snout is bouncing in time to the music. I add a bit of rhythm by slapping my hands upon my legs. The head gradually withdraws, getting tired of bouncing against the hard rock. We creep forward to see the creature is practically dancing. Head held high, the body is swaying back and forth to the tune.
I give Dierna a wink. "Do you know any old Norwegian lullabyes? Or Irish ones, for that matter?" Soon, the jig is replaced by a string of soft, soothing notes. The melody weaves in and out of the great cavern. The great dragon stretches nearly to the ceiling and yawns a great yawn. It turns about several times, trying to find the most comfortable arrangement of rocks. It curls up into a tight circle and tucks it's mighty head under the joint of its tail. Within minutes, it is snoring. We tiptoe past, keeping up the music as we go. The way out of here is only a hundred feet away, but it seems a thousand miles. Eventually we make it to the tunnel entrance and slip inside. "By the Dagda's beard! You do play that thing well!" I exclaim, giving her a hug of congratulations.
We reach the room with the weak floor and retrace our steps along the wall. When we reach the maze of the pillars, I get out my map and trace out the proper turnings. With that and the "X's" and "O's" I have marked on the floor, we are through and back to the entrance in practically no time at all. We take a few minutes to brush off the rock dust and other dirt we have collected before we begin our trip back to Hogsmeade.
"Do you notice anything different?" I ask.
"Yes!" she replies, with a look of surprise. "That feeling of inherent evil seems to be gone. Was that our doing, I wonder?"
"I'm sure it was," I grin. "Whatever we did to trigger the collapse of Magnus' Lair, it seems to have closed off that part of the cavern… possibly even taken it out of this world, all together! At least, that is my hope! There are things in there that should never see the light of day." I reach out and rub off the last remains of the protective rune from her forehead and she does the same to mine. "Now, if you're ready, I think we should be getting home. I want to get these things into Professor Dumbledore's hands before the evening is out. And, who knows? Maybe the students have left a few crumbs from their Hallowe'en Feast."
A Wizard's Tale
Author: Dierna ní Cíaran
Date: 02-14-04 18:22
After cleaning the grime and dust of the cave off, Nevvyn and I meet and head over to the Castle to relate our tale and give our items to The Olamh.
Once inside the office, Dumbledore had Londy bring us some platters with remains of the Feast. Despite the grueling day, I don't feel hungry, and eat little while Nevvyn relates the tale. He stops at the point where the curse is about to hit us and looks to me "I think you should tell this part."
I take a breath, looking at some point in the distance. "The curse was nearly upon us. I could feel it throughout me, I couldn't think because of the fear. Then there was someone between Nevvyn, myself and that curse." I Pause, feeling the sadness come upon me again "Lily. She opened some secret way through the cave and led us to safety. She left with a warning about a dangerous enemy, saying there was something more she could do for me."
I take a deep breath to try to steady my voice. I'd waited for Lily every Samhain since she dies. Why does it make me so sad now that I've seen her again? Nevvyn resumes the story, letting me regain my calm.
"At the bottom of the stairs was one more danger: The Ridgeback. Dierna played us out of that one on her Feadog. A fine bit of playing it was too." He smiles at me.
"Three tunes," I agree, "fulfilling the triad, but it would have to be a harp to make me a cruitire. I was gathering my things together when I remember my father saying that I should always keep a whistle on me. I never know when it will come in useful. So I put in my backpack. It seems Lily wasn't the only spirit with us today." I manage a sad smile, and try to wipe tears off my face without being noticed.
"The cave is destroyed now, it is no longer a danger. The Norwegian Ministry should be happy. That is what they wanted, after all, or so they said when I received permission to search the cave. They wanted to have the place destroyed so they can forget there was ever such as a wizard as Magus the Norse. But even Muggles know there is danger in forgetting the past. . Wouldn't that be much the same as Forgetting Voldemort, when this war is done? But the evil would mean also forgetting the victims. And I could never do that. I couldn't forget the McKinnon's, or Dorcas Meadows or any of the others who aren't in this world any longer - especially James and Lily. I could never forget my soul friend."
Durmstrang Institute: An Interesting Missive
Author: Merdroit Turin
Date: 02-14-04 18:36
Merdroit was watching his latest creation boil when the owl few in and perched on his window sill. Merdroit recognized it as Nathaniel's owls.
"Now what can that man want?" He wonders "He knows I'll send him a message when my end is ready"
He gets unrolls the parchment, writing appears a line at a time. "At least he's not careless. This is very intriguing."
Merdroit checks his calendar and writes a brief reply
Saturday, November 15th I am free. You and your lady friend can come then. I'll meet you at the Tavern at noon.
No need to explain further, Nathaniel would know to go to the room reserved for the Knights. Soundproofed and covered with enchantment it was comfortable and secure.
"This should be a most interesting meeting" Merdroit thinks, as he attached his not to the owl and sends it off.
Location Unknown: Testing the Potio Socors
Author: Voldemort
Date: 02-14-04 19:37
I turn to one of the death eaters. "Avery, bring one of the prisoners we don't need anymore."
"Yes, Lord!" Avery runs off to do my bidding, returning a short time later with a gaunt, blood- encrusted man. "Kerris, do you want to go free?"
"Y-yes!" he stammers, looking in terror at the assembled Death Eaters, then back to me.
"Drink this potion, you will get your wish."
I indicate that Snape is to give the potion to the man, Kerris. Either he is stupid or desperate, but Kerris downs the potion in 30 seconds. At first nothing happens and he looks at me "Can I go now?"
"Yes."
Kerris starts staggering toward the door, but suddenly lets out a cry of pain and grabs his head. He collapses to the ground in pain. This continues for some time, then he just drools, babbling incoherently.
I say, looking at the pathetic form on the floor, "Nott, dispose of this burden. He's of no use anymore." Nott picks up the body, to either kill and dispose or place the burden at St. Mungo's.
"This potion seems to be real enough. But it is just one, and I am not yet entirely convinced. I will let you live for now. But if I ever find reason to doubt the authenticity of this document, you will be the next one to drink the potion."
Bothersome Waste of Time
Author: H Potter
Date: 02-15-04 10:29
Throughout the feast, Harry only looked up and joined in the conversation when prompted and even then his replies were usually a short, "yes," "no," or some other equally monosyllabic grunt. At some point Majandra kept poking him in the ribs and when he finally acknowledged her, she'd asked, "Is that a book on your lap?"
Harry hadn't even bothered to nod because it was obviously an open book on his lap. Did Maj really need to interrupt his reading to ask a question with such a blatantly obvious answer? A waste of precious time. At least the feast isn't a total waste of time as well since he is able to read and eat at the same time. Now if everyone would just leave him alone and quit expecting him to join in with their innane conversations!
Quidditch and Herring
Author: Sebastian Sjoblom
Date: 02-15-04 13:16
Sebastian bends awkwardly to retrieve his wand, his fingers scrabbling for it on the hardwood floor. He hears Bronwyn's voice shattering the awkward silence.
"So who here is excited about Quidditch?" she asks. He returns his wand to the pocket of his robes, pauses for a moment to regain his composure, and then his head pops up above the table, all bright eyes and hopeful smile.
"I am!" he answers Bronwyn eagerly, bending forward across the table. The cuff of his robes drags in his food, and he tempers his excitement in order to swab it clean with a napkin.
"Your Hufflepuff team.... Is the Chaser position open?" he asks with an edge of ambition in his voice. Bronwyn nods, and Sebastian cleaves his baked potato in half with the edge of his fork. He mashes it with the utensil and thinks.
"I like to play Chaser, sometimes," he says, smiling modestly. "I have never been on a house team. I played in the summer amateur league every year when I was young, though." His baked potato is a pulp now, and he shovels a forkful in his mouth.
He swallows, and comments, "English food is very..." he pauses, struggling for a word, "flat. Not enough fish." He shakes his head, but changes the subject back to Quidditch.
"I hope I might join your team?" he asks, tilting his head to one side like a dog might. He pushes the half-eaten plate of food away from him distractedly, and with a pop like a cork from a bottle, it is replaced by a robin's egg blue plate with a thin white line around the rim. Salted herring is piled in a neat little pyramid, with a sprig of parsley at the base.
"The house elves are so considerate here!" Sebastian exclaims with a grin, and proceeds to unceremoniously cram his face. He lifts the fish by their tails and lowers them into his mouth, one after another.
"Y'eat that stuff like it's ice cream," Lee Sickleby comments from down the table. His bushy eyebrows leap up on his forehead.
"Hey, I'll try one," Arley offers, and reaches for a fish. He follows Sebastian's example, gingerly pinching the tail between his fingertips, and downs the whole thing in one bite. As he discards the tail fin on the edge of his plate, he makes an odd face, swallows, and quickly takes a gulp of water. Sebastian stops eating to await a reaction, paying rapt attention to the expression on Arley's face.
"Good stuff," Arley declares as he claps the water glass back down on the table. Sebastian's held breath is released all at once in a great sigh of relief.
"Isn't it?" Sebastian positively beams.
"If 'at's your bag..." Lee says, rolling his eyes, and goes back to his potato.
The Eternally Wonderful Drucilla
Author: Sirius Padfoot Black
Date: 02-15-04 13:23
Sirius apparates on the outskirts of Hogsmeade, wanting to walk a little in the cool, crisp air before going home. A smile plays on his lips as he mentally replays every second of the Ministry's Halloween ball and the looks of surprise certain individuals gave at seeing Sirius there with the most beautiful woman in both the Wizarding and Muggle worlds. To think, if not for Drucilla, Sirius wouldn't have bothered attending such a grand gala. As it turned out though, Sirius not only gladly attended, he had an excellent time and was immensely overjoyed that the wonderfully glorious Drucilla Eternal wanted Sirius to escort her to the ball.
Sirius reaches his house just as he starts to contemplate that perhaps it's time to discuss bringing in a new member with the other members of the Order. Arthur Weasley will surely back such a suggestion from Sirius given how closely he works with Drucilla. Arthur must know by now just what an asset Dru would be to Order.
Heading up to bed, Sirius wonders how it is the Order has managed to get along without the help of Drucilla Eternal. What a blind bunch they've turned into not to have noticed they have new member material right under their noses!
