An active, character-driven Hogwarts experience set in the early 2000s. Unique items, plots, and features. Non-canon; this isn't Harry Potter's story, it's ours.
Post by Reena Ashworth on Oct 10, 2022 22:19:37 GMT 10
Reena’s movements were a little slower and more careful considering she was carrying the small owl. She was glad the owl had decided to come with her and she was secretly fascinated by her reaction to seeing Jaxen.
Could it be their mum had gotten an owl in their absence?
If that was the case, she severely hoped Lula Sallow and the other mystery friend stuck around to help take care of the owl and … the stuff it dropped.
“Ezzie!“, she laid her free arm around him before gently stroking through his blond hair.
“Mum‘s sent the cute owl again, with strawberries for you. From our backyard, isn’t that great?“, she tried to distract him with the owl and berries.
But having seen the expression on his face before, she figured that might not cut it today.
“I‘m fine,“ she said softly. “Listen, Ezra. What happened to me won‘t happen to you. There’s some stupid, ancient rivalry going on between Slytherin and Gryffindor and sometimes it gets out of hand.“
She gave his hair another gentle stroke and smiled.
“And don‘t worry about me. My house friends are taking good care of me now so I can avoid such situations from now on.“
She knew she wasn’t technically lying to her brothers but it still felt odd. Amara might really be onto something when she said Lindsey wouldn’t be able to condone her actions as a friend.
But then her mum had written about the importance of friendship.
Question was, who was more of a Lula Sallow? Lindsey? Or the Alliance of Partisan?
"Ah morning Lindsey." Sinead said to the girl when the latter greeted her and gave her a small smile. The brunette glanced briefly to Reena and Amara and gave a polite nod of her head before looking back down to her plate.
She chose not to take any notice of what was going on nearby, after all it was none of her business and Sinead was not one to judge her housemates at least, on what they did. Sinead wasn't scared of Amara, but having spent time on the Quidditch team with her, she had a healthy respect for the older girl and her group of friends.
Ignoring the glares she was now getting from the Gryiffindor table, Sinead continued her breakfast. When she had finished, she glanced down at her timetable and saw that the morning class was cancelled. After some thought she decided to see what her housemates were doing first before she made any decisions.
Post by Elizabeth Doren on Oct 11, 2022 5:12:28 GMT 10
Elizabeth skimmed over the Daily Prophet. The article about Professor Rivera was intriguing, naturally, because Elizabeth was rather interested in Charms. The opinions of other students didn't matter as much to her, but it was certainly fascinating to know that there were other students who appreciated Professor Rivera.
She finished her breakfast and brushed herself off, doing a last minute check-over before she left to go to class. She couldn't arrive looking like a mess. That might be considered fine for some of her classmates, but Elizabeth wouldn't stand for it. With a last quick glance, she turned away from the table and started the walk.
Post by Grace Babineaux on Oct 11, 2022 5:21:18 GMT 10
Grace glanced over the Daily Prophet when it arrived, but was disappointed to see that no sweet treats had come from home. It was getting to the end of the school year, and usually either of her parents had the idea to make something special to bring up their spirits. Or maybe that was just when they were at home?
Grace peeked around to see that neither of her siblings had received a parcel full of sweets either. So it wasn't her. Well, maybe she would write a letter home about how difficult studying was...
Speaking of studying, Grace gulped down the last of her breakfast and pulled on a hat that she grabbed from her bag. Even though it was April, it was still a little cloudy out, and Grace didn't want to risk being cold on the walk to the greenhouse. Plus, the hat was totally cool, featuring a pom-pom on the top. She headed out of the Great Hall, not really thinking about plants.
Kassia watched as Reena squirmed away from her as fast as possible, rushing to the safety of Amara Seabrook's loving embrace. It made sense now. She didn't know how it happened, but she at least knew why. Seabrook needed another cultist to join her fold. As Reena let, Kassia offered just a few parting words to her.
"You would be the pride of Salazar Slytherin, my dear. Just be careful that the dead serpent doesn't still strike."
She sat with Lindsey Bryce and Sinead Blackwood, neither of whom she knew very well. But, Kassia didn't feel like moving anywhere else. She stabbed into her breakfast with sadistic intent, and was so focused on her food that she didn't even look up when the owls came. But when a letter plopped down in front of her and an owl screeched directly into her face, she glanced up in surprise.
Kassia opened and read the letter. She... had won? She snatched the nearest copy of the Daily Prophet. Sure enough, it was her own article. She looked up, at no one in particular. She had entered the contest just for practice, but to win and even get invited to network? She paused to school her features. Of course she'd won. There was no other option.
Tucking away the copy of the Daily Prophet, Kassia took out a quill and page and began to write. She wrote as quickly and neatly as she could. She'd never considered journalism as a career, but she would never turn down an opportunity to network. Papa was going to be so excited.
To the Daily Prophet,
Thank you for your choice and your kind invitation. I would be thrilled to attend, and I'm sure my parents would approve.
Yours,
Kassia Saenz
Letter finished, Kassia finished her breakfast and rose from her seat. She didn't want to risk being late for class. Besides, she couldn't let this go to her head when she had exams to study for.
Athena stumbled into the Great Hall, a little late. Everyone else was already seated, eating breakfast and opening parcels from home. She had just finished a piece of homework, and had almost forgotten about breakfast.
She hadn’t made much of an effort to talk to anyone this year, and as such didn’t really have any friends. So, she sat down on a spare seat at the Hufflepuff table and grabbed a piece of toast. Pushing her long curly hair out of her face, she said down to eat.
However, she quickly grew bored as she wasn’t particularly hungry, so she stared defiantly at an apple in the fruit bowl, as though it was the most interesting thing in the world.
Post by Arthur Hocking on Oct 11, 2022 11:27:32 GMT 10
Arthur grinned as the owls came in. This was always the best part of the day. Well, except for the one time that the owls had delivered the Daily Prophet with bad news, but it was nice to see everyone opening up packages from their families and reading letters. Arthur wasn't surprised not to get any mail, and ate a mouthful of fruit while he read the Daily Prophet.
He was impressed with the student piece, but he was a bit more interested in the Quidditch based news. Maybe if he was lucky, he could convince his uncles to let him go to the Quidditch world cup final. Arthur was in no hurry to finish his breakfast, and so as the students with classes left he spent a few extra minutes enjoying his toast and fruit before leaving the Great Hall.
Post by Ezra Ashworth on Oct 11, 2022 20:55:53 GMT 10
Ezra was only momentarily distracted by the cute owl, his fingers twitching to stroke its feathers. He wondered if the same owl being used meant that it was the Ashworth owl now. That would be pretty cool.
Instead of taking that thought any further, he found himself leaning into Reena instead, seeking the reassurance that she was there. His eyes flicked between looking up at her and over to Jaxen as she explained.
So Reena got hit just because of a house rivalry? That sounded like a bad reason to him. Why did a house mean that you had to hit someone? That did not sound right or nice.
He had the brief awful thought about what if he had ended up in Gryffindor like the hat had offered. Would he have been expected to not see Reena just because of a house rivalry? That thought made him very glad that his tie was blue.
"That's a stupid excuse though," he said, as if he wouldn't have found any excuse stupid. "Still shouldn'tve hit you."
He was relieved that people were looking out for her now, but he thought they should have been doing that already. Wasn't that what friends did?
The owl gave Ezra an affectionate sort of hoot, then ruffled her feathers. She spied some bacon and swooped from Reena's shoulder to snatch a piece from the Ravenclaw table. She gobbled it up, with a bit of difficulty due to her size, then gave the Ashworths a careful glance.
Her job here was done. It was time to head out. The owl spread her wings, then glided out of the hall.
Post by Jaxen Ashworth on Oct 12, 2022 9:54:46 GMT 10
Jaxen had moved to sit at the Ravenclaw table after saying goodbye to Reena. Flicking through a copy of the Daily Prophet and tucking into a bowl of porridge as his mind raced with thoughts of the day's classes. Exams would soon be upon them, and he still felt like he had so much left to do, how could he possibly devote equal time to revising each subject.
Surprised when his sister joined him, he glanced at the basket she'd placed on the table. He'd only just left him; she was never so eager to spend time in his company. Not at school anyway. Then she mentioned the strawberries and he quickly took a couple of the sweet fruits.
"Thanks" he smiled, already fiddling with the green tops of one of the berries. The sound of their youngest brother's voice made him look around. He hadn't seen much of the first year recently, largely due to his hectic schedule but once his exams were over, he intended to make up for that.
Reading the letter Reena had passed to him while she spoke with Ezra, he scrutinized every word. It seemed she was reconnecting with old friends in their absence, which... He figured he should be happy that there were people looking out for her while he was at school, but he couldn't help feeling uneasy. Their mother had not been in the best frame of mind at Christmas, how was she coping so well now?
Folding the letter, he got to his feet and slung his backpack over his shoulder. Stepping over to his siblings, he ruffled Ezra's hair and handed Reena her letter.
"No, she shouldn't have" he affirmed Ezzie's words, his hand moving to drape over his brother's shoulders. "You don't use your fists to win arguments" he gave Ezra's shoulders a squeeze "people who do that often don't have a valid argument anyway, Reena didn't do anything wrong" and yes, he did think it was pretty stupid, but he wasn't about to reinforce Ezra's use of the word.
"I've got to get to class, stay out of trouble both of you" he ruffled Ezra's hair once more and looked at Reena on his way past her. She had a free period now, he hoped she used it to study... He really didn't want to hear rumours of anymore of his siblings getting into fights, even if they weren't the ones at fault.
Post by Reena Ashworth on Oct 12, 2022 18:27:32 GMT 10
“Mhmm,“ Reena made in agreement. It was nice to know her family on her side after all. Sure, she had expected it but there had been a part of her that had been doubtful.
The mirror had made it a point to show her that she feared they would turn against her if the truth ever came out. So she better made sure it didn’t.
Reena pocketed the letter from her mum when Jaxen returned it and brushed Ezra’s hair back into place with her fingers before she handed him the basket of strawberries.
She hadn’t taken any for herself, secretly not feeling as though she deserved such a fine treat.
“Here, don’t be late. You know how to find me if you need me,“ she gave him a parting smile before she too headed out.
Post by Ezra Ashworth on Oct 14, 2022 13:14:20 GMT 10
The little owls hoot managed to pull a smile from Ezra, all while increasing his wish to see her again.
That smile grew as Jaxen ruffled his hair, happy for even a bit of attention off of him. They may share a common room, but Ezra still missed him lately. Maybe that was just another reason to be excited for summer though, even when it meant leaving Hogwarts, he should get to see his siblings so much more.
Ezra nodded seriously when Jax told them how not to win arguements. That made sense, he thought, it was a good thing that their brother was so clever. He didn't even notice the subtle steering away from calling things stupid, too busy being happy to hear Jax reinforce that Reena had been in the right. He found it comforting to be reassured by his older siblings, so he hoped that Reena did too.
"M'kay," he hummed, cradling the basket against his chest with one arm. He presumed, since he had seen Jaxen with some already, that they had both thought to help themselves to the fruit, so did not think to double check with Reena. "Bye Jax, bye Ree!"
Ezra figured that he should listen to the pair of them and head to class too. Being late would probably mean getting into trouble after all. He didn't want to let them both down so soon, not when they already had things to deal with.
Munching on a strawberry he held in his free hand, Ezra did exactly that. He felt a lot better than he had at the start of breakfast, even if he was still tired.
Athena drew herself out of her thoughts with some difficulty. She looked around at all the other students talking, chatting, having fun. They were such normal kids. She would give anything to have that kind of relationship with someone else.
She sighed and quickly wrote another note to her parents. Maybe someday they would reply within the space of a few months.
Dear Mum and Dad,
Things are pretty good here at Hogwarts. I have a few friends who are really lovely. Classes are fun, I’ve been doing all my homework on time. I get to talk to lots of great people, and overall school is great! Love, Athena
Everything on that letter was a lie. Oh well, she’d post it later anyway. Checking the time, she saw that it was almost time for classes to start. Not wanting to be late, she hurried off without saying a word, like usual. [exit]
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