Going Home
Author: Shayna Ryan
Date: 10-18-02 05:18

I sat in the train, staring out the window but seeing nothing. I was so excited to be able to go home, but I didnŐt have anything to do on the train. I accidentally packed the books I planed to read in the wrong bag, so that took out reading.

The people around me had fallen asleep, but it was not quiet. A couple of them were snoring, one of them very loud. Since I had no one to talk to or play a game with, and reading was out, that left staring out the window. That got boring in a hurry.

So, I decided to take a look around the rest of the train, see new people. So, I snuck around the sleepers and got out of the compartment and into the isle. Then, I started to walk down the isle to the end of the car.

Time for Some Fun
Author: Lucius Malfoy
Date: 10-18-02 06:44

As per the Dark Lord's instructions, Lucius goes to get the troublesome auror. He of course takes the voice altering potion, makes sure he's wearing the shoes which alter his height, and dons the hood to hide his face.

He stands in the doorway to Ni Ciaran's ultra small cell and bids her to come with him. She opens her mouth to protest but Lucius cuts her off. "At this very moment, one of my associates is kindling a fire and another is assembling a nice, new spit for roasting. Are you volunteering Harry to provide the first piece of meat to be cooked on it?"

Ni C’aranis mouth slams shut before stomping the short way to the door. Her eyes are two narrow slits as they glare at him and Lucius can wholly imagine just what thoughts she's tumbling around in her mind. Most probably involve a slow, painful death for yours truly.

After properly binding the auror, Lucius escorts her to where Lord Voldemort awaits. This should be quite entertaining!

Re: Going Home
Author: Neo Anderson
Date: 10-18-02 07:39

Neo was terrible at chess! And he had the losing streak to prove it!! "NO!! I should have seen that cmming!" Neo complained, as Brett Kingston put him in checkmate, Neo was about to complain some more until the door to the car opened.

Neo closed his mouth. Wow... he thought. There was a very pretty girl in the door way. Prote hadn't noticed Neo's gaze. "Hello, is there anything you need?" he asked. The girl shook her head. "No, I was just walking around..." she said. Neo made some kind of squeak. Embarrassed, he looked to the ceiling...

The girl heard this, and she looked to Neo, who shot up to a standing posture. He cleared his throat. "Wanna play chess with us?" he managed to say.

Plans for the Summer and for the Future
Author: Draco Malfoy
Date: 10-18-02 16:20

Draco cleared his throat and opened up a carton of Bertie Bott's Every Flavoured Beans. "Like you, Isolde, I'll be looking forward to catching up on all the sleep I lost while studying for finals. On top of that..." He smiled and popped a green bean into his mouth, tucking it in between his teeth and cheek as he finished his sentence. "I'm looking forward to Clara's visit!" He reached over and gave Clara's hand a squeeze, and then proceeded to chew on the bean in his mouth.

Instantly, his face drew a sour look and he spit the chewed up bean into his free hand. "Disgusting! Spinach." He flicked the half-eaten piece of candy into the aisle of the car just as some little Gryffindor first year came waddling by.

The little girl flinched and then wrinkled her nose in disgust, but immediately rushed onwards to her destination when she saw the defiant stare Draco was sending her way.

"Honestly," Draco sneered, returning his attention to his friends. "Hogwarts should just do away with Gryffindor House already. Can you really picture that amounting to anything great?" He jerked his thumb backwards in the direction the young Gryffindor had ran.

All those awake in the compartment, and the two beefy boys across the aisle shook their heads and chuckled knowingly. Slytherin would prevail over Gryffindor in the end. "Let's make next year count. Let's beat the Gryffinbores and show them which house really will be on top of the world!" Draco grinned evilly.

Next year would certainly be interesting.

Questions for Adriana
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 10-18-02 18:20

It was shortly after noon when Bill arrived at Hogwarts castle, appearing as if he was there to inspect for new curses and whatnot, when in reality he simply wanted to have a long talk with Adriana about some very important things. For the past few days, his mind has been reeling with questions regarding her history with Briar and her history with the Stratfords and Valentine.

As Bill wandered the empty halls, he thought about his siblings who were currently on their way home. Two more Weasleys were now full-grown adults and would soon be getting their apparation licenses. Scary thought, that. With Fred and George on the loose, who knows what kind of mischief the world would see.

Then, there were Ron and Ginny who were surely experiencing difficult times since Harry Potter was still missing. Bill had done extensive investigations in Hogsmeade regarding the disappearance of him and the others who had gone missing, but had come up without the slightest trace of evidence. Perhaps it was the over-whelming bias he felt against the Stratfords and Valentine, but he truly believed that those three held all the answers.

Nevermind that now, Bill thought to himself as he stopped before Adriana's door. He gave it a hard, brisk knock and then ran his hand through his hair. It was starting to grow back out, and a slight trace of stubble speckled his chin.

The door swung open and Bill found a smiling Adriana beaming at him. "Oh, Bill! What a surprise!"

She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him sweetly on the mouth. Then, she glanced quickly around the hall and with a simple tug to his collar, pulled him into the room and locked the door behind him. Adriana winked and moved in for another kiss.

"Adriana!" Bill couldn't help but grin. He caught her roaming hands and held them tight, silencing her with a deep kiss before she could protest to the confinement. "Listen," he began, after ending the kiss. "There's something very important I want to talk to you about." He let go of her hands and rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly unsure of how to proceed with the conversation.

"What is it, Bill?" Adriana took his free hand and ran her thumb over his palm. "What's wrong?"

Bill shook his head and answered, "Nothing is wrong. I just have some questions for you...about your past."

"Oh." The Muggle Studies professor dropped his hand and turned, wandering away from him a few paces. "I've told you just about everything already, Bill. What else do you want to know?" She turned back around and awaited his reply.

"What can you tell me about Briar Rose?"

Although she knew what Bill was asking, Adriana couldn't help but remark, "Briar Rose? Beautiful skin, nice figure...great in the kitchen. She's currently dating that hottie, Julian Valentine."

"Adriana."

She smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "Bill, why don't you ask her yourself?"

"Because she won't talk to me." Bill sighed and slumped down into an armchair. "She thought I told you about–" He caught himself before he could complete the sentence, and although he knew Adriana already knew the truth about Briar anyway, he still couldn't bring himself to break the promise he made.

"She thought you told me about her real identity, right?" Adriana bit her lip, sensing Bill's inner turmoil. When he nodded, she climbed onto his lap and tenderly leaned her head against his. "She didn't believe you when you told her you hadn't told me?"

"Honestly, I don't know what she truly believes." Bill wrapped his arms around Adriana and held her close, all the while staring off into space as he thought back to that last conversation he had with Briar at the bakery. "She put so much faith in me, Adriana. Whatever you two talked about really came as a shock to her. I can't blame her for being frazzled, but..."

"But, you're disappointed that she can't seem to shake the idea that you betrayed her confidence?" supplied Adriana.

"Right."

Adriana sat up straight and turned her head to look Bill in the eye. "Listen, why don't you go to the inn and I'll meet you there in a few hours. I have some last minute things to take care of here at the school. Meanwhile, you go get in the tub and relax...or have a drink or two." She grinned mischievously and sprang up from his lap, pulling him to his feet in the process. "Just don't get drunk until I get there, okay? Great!" She kissed him while moving him towards the door, and then shoved him out of her room after opening the door. "See you later! Love you!"

After the door was shut in his face, Bill stood in the empty hallway in a state of bewilderment. What had just happened? One moment, the redhead was trying to get into the depths of the history between Adriana, Briar, et al., and the next he was standing alone in the hallway with all of his questions left unanswered. Bill didn't doubt that he'd learn the truth eventually–Adriana would certainly tell him everything, just not today...

Thinking Quickly
Author: Dierna ní Cíaran
Date: 10-18-02 19:02

Truth in our Hearts, Strength in our Hands. Consistency in our Tongues. The Old Fenian Motto, one I took when I joined their ranks many years ago. It encourages me that I can remember THIS at least. Something to cling onto.

Meanwhile, I have to think VERY quickly. Obviously, I cannot tell any of the plans I know to Voldemort or his goons. That's simply out of the question. However, I know better than to take any threats lightly in this place. Which means I also need to keep my godson safe.

I give Malfoy a venomous look as he binds me. I think it's rather pointless, all things considered. I am unarmed, weakened more than I care to admit by the dementors and general living conditions and the broken ankle is poorly healed, making running out of the question. Of course, there's a certain amount of pain inflected by overly tight ropes at the wrists. I expect that is part of the idea. Some people don't think well in pain. I am not one of those. And despite everything I still walk proudly and upright to wherever I am being taken.

I am led through this place which may be a kind of abandoned castle or fortress. But it is too poorly lit to learn much more. Still, now I have a slightly better idea of this place's layout. That can be an advantage in the future, if not immediately. The room has all the usual goons in, a few holding Harry tightly; and Voldemort, himself, standing near the far end. I turn from him to look at Harry. To him I simply say "muinin me" - Trust me.

Seeing Dumbledore Before Leaving
Author: Angelina
Date: 10-19-02 03:56

Professor McGonagall and I walked down the halls toward Dumbledore's office. I didn't say a thing for I thought all should be told when we get there. As we reached the statue that lead to Dumbledore's Office McGonagall looked at it and said, "Lemon Aid." The statue jumped aside and the two of us entered.

As we stood on the moving stairs I was wondering how would I explain all of this to them. With everything going on I wondered if Dumbledore would fire me and I would be left to my own devices (not that I haven't before but this is different.) Reaching the doors with the Gryffon Emblem on it I had to smile a little for it was the seal of my family and my heritage.

Professor McGonagall knocked on the door and a tired voice answered. "Enter."

The doors opened and the two of us entered as we did Dumbledore turned to greet us. "What can I do for you two Professors?" He asked.

Re: Going Home
Author: Shayna Ryan
Date: 10-19-02 05:26

A squeak? Where did that come from? I wondered. As I looked to see where the squeak came from, one of the boys shot upwards, and stood kinda nervously. It was a little startling.

There was no time to get a good look at him before he asked me, "Wanna play chess with us?" Well, since I don't do all that badly at chess, and he was kinda cute, I figured it was only polite to accept after all.

"Sure, I'll play," I say and start to move towards them, "By the way, I'm Shayna."

It's Nice to Meet You (hehe)
Author: Neo Anderson
Date: 10-19-02 19:04

"Hi, I'm...Neo!" he said rather quickly. Shayna smiled, as they sat across from each other. Neo wasn't really paying attention to the game. His attention was more drawn to Shayna. Gosh she is pretty! he thought. Once he was finished thinking, at once she looked up at him. Oh no, can she read minds? thought Neo.

Shayna smiled. "It's your turn Neo," she said. And she a voice of an Angel, Neo thought once more, and he used up his turn on the chess board.

Watching the Growing Love
Author: Australia Kingston
Date: 10-19-02 19:21

Neo and Shayna were talking and laughing as if they'd know each other their hole lives. Finally Neo voiced one of his thoughts to us. Softly he said, "Shayna, you have beautiful eyes."

"Why thank you Neo. I do believe no one has ever said that to me." she said almost as quietly and shyly as he had made his comment.

Neo just grinned at me when I smiled with approval. Neo had been so sad all year b/c he claimed he had been so lonely. I kept telling myself that he would find the right girl on his own, but I still felt bad that I hadn't found this girl for him earlier in the school year.

Prote just smiled and nodded and joined in with the light chit-chat, and played chess with Brett as I sat and watched my brother and boyfriend play chess. Neo and Shayna sat on the other side of the compartment and played chess as they flirted with each other and tried to ignore the rest of us.

I knew it was going to be a nice and peaceful trip to King's Cross Station.

Re: Watching the Growing Love
Author: Prote Spacy
Date: 10-19-02 19:32

The two, Neo and Shayna, were enjoying themselves. Prote was glad to see Neo happy again. This girl, Shayna I should say, seemed to have done the trick. Prote looked to Aussie. "Lovely?" he said. Aussie looked at Prote, who seemed to have lost his queen, and Prote smiled. "Do you think.. well if you want to.. do you think it's possible if you could stay with me in New York for a little? I mean... if it's all right..." he asked.

Prote looked at Brett. "Brett could come along if he wanted to also," he said.

He waited for Aussie's answer...

A Question
Author: Brett Kingston
Date: 10-19-02 20:20

Brett sat in astonishment. He could not believe what he was hearing. Prote had just invited he and his sister to spend part of their summer vacation in New York with him.

Aussie just sat there in shock. Her mouth was hanging open as if she was about to speak but couldn't. After a friendly nudge in the ribs Aussie finally spoke.

"Oh Prote. I'd, I mean we'd, love to come stay with you in New York. We've never been to New York. Oh Prote." She kissed him now, long and hard not carrying if her brother or Neo and Shayna were in the compartment. All she carred about was kissing him.

Finally Brett nudged his sister and she broke her kiss with Prote. She smiled at Brett and they started talking about what all they were going to do in New York.

Neo and Shayna just ignored them. They had quit in the middle of their game of chess and had just scooted closer together on their seat so that they could whisper who knows what to each other.

Yes, Brett thought. It's going to be a good summer.

Re: A Question
Author: Shayna Ryan
Date: 10-19-02 21:19

With Neo having given up in the game, decided to ask Shayna a question. We moved closer so he could talk lower, more like whisper, as to not be over heard. I wondered what he would say. His last comment had been very nice.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" Neo asked. It was a weird question to ask on a train, there wasn't anywhere for them to walk, really.

"Well, I would love to go, but there aren't many places to walk on a train," I said. He quickly replied with, "ThatŐs ok, we can still walk around."

"Well, ok, let's go then," I told him. So, we got up, and walked.