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lifeofkaze · 3 years

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When Stars Ignite - Chapter 14

HPHM Rockstar AU

A/N: Katriona Cassopeia (in mention) belongs to the gorgeous @kc-and-oc

General Warning: This whole fic has a general warning of being NSFW / 18+. We will give specific warnings for every chapter in itself, but several adult themes will be more or less present in every chapter, may it be explicitly or in mention. These include sexual topics, drug abuse, (ab)use of alcohol, smoking and a whole lot of cursing.

Specific Warning:

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Find the masterpost here, the previous chapter here and the next one here. The songs featured before every chapter can be found on this pretty badass playlist here.

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This work is a collaboration with @the-al-chemist

Taglist: @slytherindisaster @carewyncromwell @night-rhea @thatravenpuffwitch

Man, we were killin' time We were young and restless We needed to unwind I guess nothin' can last forever Forever, no… ~ Bryan Adams - Summer of ‘69 ~

Much to his relief, Orion’s fear of having been discovered seemed to prove unwarranted. Skye was a direct person, never shy to speak her mind; if she had truly seen something not meant for her eyes during the interview, Orion was sure she’d have already come and spoken to either of them.

But nothing of the sort had happened. She had acted just like she always did and his first surge of worry had died down again. Sometimes even the most focused mind was prone to being tricked and, as he had to admit to himself, focus was something he found himself lacking in these days.

It wasn’t only because of Lizzie’s teasing getting riskier that he found his mind wandering more often than not. Ever since the show they were meant to be playing for the children from the foster system had shown its face on the horizon, an ever present restlessness had been growing in Orion.

Dreams that he had pushed to the edges of his mind a long time ago had started haunting him again; they kept coming back whenever they held an event stirring the buried memories of his childhood. He loved seeing the light in the children’s faces when they were spending time with them; he knew it was a rare sight, after all. The emotional mess Orion carried back with him afterwards was the dark side of the coin, however.

The charity event was scheduled for the next day; they were to play a small acoustic set for the children in the afternoon and their regular show only a few hours later on top. To keep their spirits high before the double load, Ethan had scheduled a day off for them.

The weather was still uncharacteristically hot and so most of the band and crew had found themselves at the small pool on the rooftop of their hotel. Much to everyone’s surprise, even Artemis had joined them.

Charlie had followed Skye’s advice to take Artemis for drinks a few days prior. He had been unusually tight-lipped about it when they had asked him how it had gone down.

“It was good,” he had shrugged, “told you she’s not as bad as you all think.”

While the young pyro tech still kept her distance from the rest of them, Orion had seen her chatting with Charlie outside of their work on stage since then. He was glad she seemed to be taking a step into the right direction, lowering her armour even for the tiniest bit.

But Artemis’ tentative attempts at integrating herself with their group lounging by the pool were counteracted as soon as she took her shirt off. Everett audibly wolf-whistled at her black bikini with surprisingly colourful patterns crisscrossing it. Her withering glare was met with a lewd grin as Artemis picked up her stuff and dumped it on the deckchair farthest away from them.

Lizzie gave Everett a smack on the back of his head. “Well done, Ev, you’ve scared her away. I wanted to have a chat with her.”

Everett looked at her over the rim of his sunglasses. “I’m not stopping you. Two beauties in bikinis getting close? Who would I be to object? You could rub her back with sunscreen.”

He laughed to himself. “If Artemis isn’t up for it, I’m always here for you, gorgeous.”

A hint of the same irritation Orion felt flickered over Lizzie’s face. “You’re a real mood today.”

She got up from her own deckchair and started over in Artemis’ direction anyway, but was stopped by Charlie catching onto her wrist.

“Woah, where are you going, little rockstar?”

“Go and talk to Artemis, see if I can convince her to come over if Ev shuts up.” She gave the singer lounging in his chair a dark look.

“Nah, I don’t think so,” Charlie said and pulled her down next to him. “Trust me, if you push her you’ll be the one scaring her away. She’ll come over if she wants to.”

Lizzie opened her mouth to object but Charlie shook his head. “You can’t force her, sunshine.”

“Fine,” Lizzie snorted, not pleased by the situation, “so what’re we gonna do now?” She nodded in the direction of the pool. “Anyone up for a round of water polo?”

Everett declined, preferring to seek a better place to tan, while Merula did the opposite and withdrew to the shade with a book. So it was Charlie, Lizzie, Andre and Skye who made their way to the water. Orion would have joined them, but he was preoccupied with some ideas that had been floating around in his head since that morning; he wanted to write them down before he’d forget them.

He was lying on his stomach on his deckchair, notebook open in front of him, but found it hard to concentrate. The match of water polo going on in the pool had turned into some kind of wrestling match, like it always did eventually. Lizzie and Skye were sitting on Charlie’s and Andre’s shoulders respectively, trying to knock the other into the water; a lot of giggling and shouting was involved as they fought for the upper hand.

What really distracted him though, was the way the sunlight was refracting in the water droplets on Lizzie’s skin when she moved. It let her slender body shimmer, her tan she always got so quickly in the summer months a beautiful contrast to the vibrant red of her bikini. Her wet hair looked a lot darker than it actually was and it was clinging to her back.

Skye almost managed to knock her off Charlie’s shoulder and Lizzie laughed as she righted herself again. It was the kind of laugh that made her stand out amongst all the others, bright and captivating. It gave her an aura that was impossible to escape, drawing eyes whenever she entered a scene. She had the ability to light up a whole room with her smile, as fresh and beautiful as a sunrise.

“I’d say I’m 95.9 % sure what you’re staring at, my friend,” Orion suddenly heard the voice of Murphy next to him, “or should I rather say who?”

Orion tried not to let his surprise show; he had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t heard his best friend approach. “Your meaning is obscure to me,” he answered evasively. “I’m simply trying to work here.”

Murphy couldn’t hide his smirk. “When you’re working, your attention is usually 87.5 % focused on your work, more if no one is distracting you. Four out of five times you don’t even react when spoken to.” He glanced down at the mostly blank page of Orion’s notebook. “Today I’d say your focus is reduced to abysmal 30.9 %.” Never missing a detail, his eyes flicked to the still on-going wrestling match in the pool.

With a sigh, Orion closed his notebook and rested his head on his arms. Murphy was far too observant to be lied to, but he didn’t have to know all the details either.

He indicated their laughing friends with a slight nod of his head. “It is good that our friends are having a great time, it strengthens their bond of friendship. But they are making a lot of noise, it’s bound to draw attention.”

The dismissive sound Murphy was making clearly showed that he wasn’t buying it. “It’s obvious they’re distracting you. But from what I’ve seen, 95.5 % of the time you’ve spent looking at them were devoted to one of the pairs, and while I do have to admit that Andre’s new gold bangles are surprisingly flashy and apparently water resistant, I highly doubt it was him that drew your attention, same goes for Skye, although her hair usually is an eye catcher, I’ll give you that. That leaves Charlie and dear Lizzie, and last time I checked, you weren’t one for redheads, that’s more my thing. Not that I want to say I find Charlie particularly attractive, although some might say so, but I digress. So only one option remains, and as the one and only master of logical deductions, the great Sherlock Holmes, once said, ‘Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable…”

“...must be the truth’,” Orion finished with a sigh. “I know the quote. You're quoting numbers all day every day, do you really feel the need to go into literature as well now?"

Ignoring him, Murphy was grinning from ear to ear, clearly satisfied with his conclusions. “Is there something you want to tell me?”

Orion wasn’t answering immediately; he didn’t like Murphy’s prying at all. “Are you done, Detective McNully?”

“Fine, don’t answer me then, I don’t need confirmation,” Murphy snorted. “The stats never lie, my friend.”

Orion rolled his eyes, hoping Murphy wouldn’t delve into another one of his statistical sprees. Although he was right in that his numbers were seldom wrong, Orion himself preferred a more open-minded view of his surroundings to Murphy’s cold, analytical observations; especially, if these observations were directed at his own behaviour.

But of course, Murphy wasn’t deterred. “To the attentive observer, which of course you know that I am, all the facts are there. Eight out of ten times your mood changes for the better when Lizzie enters the room. Seven out of ten times she starts smiling when she looks at you. You two look at each other during shows and soundtracks 46.4 % more often than at the others and yes, I factored out the times when you need to because of the cues she’s giving you, thanks a lot for asking. You hug each other at the end of the shows significantly longer as well. When you leave the backstage area, you’re never leaving together but almost always in close succession.”

The blond sound technician crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Are you really sure there isn’t anything you want to tell me?”

Orion was more than a little shocked at all the facts Murphy had just thrown at him. “I had no idea it was that obvious.”

Murphy shrugged, a sly smile appearing on his face. “Only to me. You’ve been my best friend for as long as I can remember, and my above average observational skills, which of course not everyone possesses, solved 82.3 % of the mystery.”

“What’s with the rest?”

“What I can offer in facts, I sometimes lack in interpreting. Katriona connected the dots.”

“Obviously,” Orion sighed.

“So, what’s the deal with you two? Are you dating?” A frown appeared on Murphy’s face. “I thought you had a clause about this in your contracts. Ethan’s not going to like this.”

Orion vehemently shook his head. “No, you got that wrong. We’re not dating, everything is just like it has always been. We’re just enjoying additional pastimes, which - I’ll give you that - may exceed a regular friendship.”

He looked at Murphy intently. “No one besides you knows about this, and I would appreciate it if it stayed that way.”

Murphy made a non-committal sound. “Of course this doesn’t include Katriona.”

“As if any of us could keep a secret from her.”

“I normally don’t go for absolutes but that’s 100 % true,” Murphy laughed. He looked at Orion curiously. “So how long has this thing between you and Lizzie been going on now?”

“A while,” Orion answered evasively.

“The definition of ‘a while’ ranges from two weeks to up to a year. Judging by my numbers, it’s definitely not the former. Doesn’t sound like a short lived fling to me.”

“I wouldn’t call it a fling,” Orion said; it was surprisingly hard to put what was going on between them into words. “But we’re definitely not emotionally involved with each other. It’s not a matter of the heart, more of a physical extension built on the base of our friendship.”

Murphy leaned back into his wheelchair and grinned. “The old classic, friends with benefits.”

“If that’s the label you want to stick on it.”

Murphy hummed in response, following Orion’s gaze to the pool again. His voice was quieter when he spoke this time. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? We are both on the same page about it.”

“Just saying, things like these seldomly work out as well as they start. Approximately 89.6 % of physical relationships end in chaos, tears or both.”

The memory of his own initial worry emerged in the back of Orion’s mind. He watched as Skye gave Lizzie a final push that sent her toppling from Charlie’s shoulders. She shrieked before she crashed into the water, but was already laughing again when she resurfaced; Orion firmly pushed his concerns away.

“It won’t escalate with us,” he said. “Both of us value our friendship, and the fate of Equinox even more so. We’ve established very clear rules. I appreciate your worries, but they are misplaced.”

“As much as I love rules for the structure they’re bringing, rules can easily be broken,” Murphy said. “Just be careful, okay? Mixing friendship with sex can be a lot of fun but the devil’s in the detail.”

They both watched Lizzie climbing out of the pool and heading over into their direction. When she passed Everett, he pulled down his sunglasses and watched after her, his eyes very slowly travelling up and down her body. He said something to her Orion couldn’t hear, but Lizzie only rolled her eyes, shot something back and continued on her way. Murphy's eyes flicked from her to Orion.

“Aren’t you bothered with Ev hitting on her?”

Orion shrugged. “Why would I? She’s not my girlfriend, and she can perfectly handle herself, as you’ve just seen.”

“That she undoubtedly can,” Murphy laughed, “I’ll better be off now and leave you two alone. I wonder where my beautiful wife is. I haven’t seen her in quite a while now.”

#hphm #hogwarts mystery #harry potter hogwarts mystery #orion amari #murphy mcnully #lizzie jameson #lizion #rockstar au #when stars ignite #wsi #besties collaborate

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judediangelo75 · 3 years

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Crushed

Okay, so I mentioned an a random post that I wanted to show the two halves that make, well her.

A painfully timid and skittish side (which mainly developed when she started living with her mother when she came to London. While she can hold her ground against her a bit more, she still fears her mother) and the coldhearted side (which developed at Hogwarts, where all the issues, tragedies and so on harden her).

I was on my Wattpad where I can a collection of Judith and Talbott stories (though there’s not much backstory or structure on there) and this story definitely would show that timid side of her. I tweaked it so it can be better than what I have posted over there.

Just to be clear: This side DOES exist. It’s her most vulnerable side of her. The reason it’s not shown is because Judith doesn’t like showing that side of her. Where she feels like a piece of glass that can break at any second.

She struggles with anxiety. She doesn’t like having too many eyes on her, she feels like people are constantly watching for any mistakes like her mother and exploit it. It gets pretty bad to where she gets anxiety attacks (she usually runs and hides out for awhile until it’s over. Like I said, she doesn’t like showing this side of her, and WILL NOT share this side unless you pry it out of her).

While she doesn’t show it often, she does talk peoples’ words to heart at times. Which doesn’t help her low self esteem.

She does her best to find coping mechanisms to help over the years and does build genuine confidence. But it takes time.

Alright there, you have a back of backstory of that side of her.

Just FYI, this is just to show that side of her (like if her more dominant side; because usually when you push her, that cold side would seep through a bit. You would hardly ever see her skittish)

Okay, I rambled on enough. ON WITH THE STORY!

(Judith Harris)

"There goes Demented Harris," I heard someone whispered to their friend before they broke out into snickers as I walked out of my Transfigurations class. I just kept my head down and walked past them.

Sometimes I think that coming to Hogwarts was a mistake.

Ever since the incident with my brother years ago, everyone suspects that I'll be just like him.

Become hellbent on finding the Cursed Vaults, getting expelled, and disappear. Never to be heard from again.

I have broke a few curses since my second year but I stayed pretty sane. I’m a good student and sought to become a Healer when I graduate. I don’t plan on dropping off of the face of the Earth...

Even though I’m sure nobody would miss me if I did...

I sighed. I would’ve thought some people would at least be a bit grateful for what I’ve done for them, for the school, thus far. But like my mother always said, I’m asking for too much in life.

It’s fine though. If I can't find love and appreciation in people, then I can in magical creatures at least.

"Miss Harris?" I blinked, coming out of my thoughts to look down. Professor Flitwick smiled up at me once he saw he had my attention.

"Good day, Miss Harris," he greeted. I gave a shy smile and nodded, whispering a soft hello.

"If it’s not too much trouble, if you're free, I was wondering if you can assist me in a class for first years. One of my top students already agreed to help, but I would love one of my favorites to join in on the lesson," he said. My smile widen a bit before I nodded once more, following the small man to the Charms classroom.

There were times I wished I joined Ravenclaw. I enjoyed spending time with the ex-Dueling Champion. He was one of the few people who treated me with kindness. He didn’t see me as my brother, but for me.

I loved to help him, when it’s for tutoring, helping for the younger students or even for helping the Frog Choir whenever he needs extra help (he’s disappointed that I didn’t actually join, but settled for this arrangement).

I even spend my birthday, which was also his, with him. Something I haven’t done since Papa died.

I let out a mental sigh. But I wasn’t a Ravenclaw. Which might as well be a blessing, seeing how I have an easier time avoiding him.

"Ah, here we are!" I almost missed Mr. Flitwick's delightful cheer when we entered the classroom. All I could focus on what the feeling of my blood going cold when I saw who was the other teaching assistant.

Talbott Winger...

I quickly ducked my head when he turned to look over in Mr. Flitwick and I's direction. How did that saying go?

Speak of the devil and he shall appear? Whoever said that was on something...

"I hope we didn't keep you waiting, Mr. Winger," Mr. Flitwick said as he hopped up on his tower of books. From the corner of my eye, I saw Talbott give him a small smile.

"Not at all Professor. What will we be helping you teach today," he asked. As Professor Flitwick explained today's lesson, I stood quietly a few feet away from Talbott, trying to make myself as invisible as possible. Flitwick pointed to the basket of feathers and had us place one at each seat. I remained silent as I handled my task from one side of the room.

I developed a crush on Talbott when he helped me become an Animagus. To this day, I don't know why he agreed to help me. Maybe because I have access and knew things that he didn't?

Either way, I couldn't help but to fall for him.

He just seem so handsome to me. From his neat, slicked back hair to his beautiful red eyes.

I appreciate the fine art of sarcasm, which he seems to be a master in (next to me of course). I find him hilarious whenever he’s feeling sassy or playful.

Helping him find his mother's necklace made me realize that there is a beautiful heart and creative mind that he hides under that aloof and unapproachable exterior.

Which made me fall faster.

The smile that spread on his face when he said that we were friends just melted my heart in a helpless puddle of love...

But I wouldn't really go as far we were "buddy-buddy". More like acquaintances, hell I'll be lucky enough to call us that even. I would see him around, maybe give a wave. Half of the time he rarely sees it though, making me look awkward in the process...

I don't know why I try to get his attention. It doesn't matter because I know he doesn't feel the same way about me. I remember his reaction when I confessed to him, clear as day.

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Flashback

"Rather than erase pre-existing memory, it might be easier for you if you tell Mr. Winger a new piece of information. Something that he didn't know before and won't forget, then use the Memory Charm to erase that memory," Flitwick suggested. I heard Talbott made a noise of agreement. I turned to find him sizing me.

"I'm okay with that. If you're just gonna erase my memory of it, you might as well tell me an interesting secret, Judith," Talbott suggested, a hint of mischief dancing in those red eyes. I bit my lip and shyly glanced at the Ravenclaw boy. Maybe I can confess my feelings and see how he feels about me...

"Th-Then this might be a g-good opportunity to tell y-y-you that... I-I-I fancy you, Talbott..." Flitwick and Talbott looked at me in shock.

"Oh my!" Flitwick gasped. I felt my face burn with embarrassment and shame as Talbott looked anxiously at me.

"Wh-what? Are... are you serious," he exclaimed. I rubbed my arm sheepishly, waiting for him to say more.

"Why? I mean... er..." I felt a bit of dread build in the pit of my stomach. Was he surprised? Or was he uncertain on how to let me down gently?

"Thank you," he finally said, though it came out more like a question. I buried my burning face in my hands.

"This probably wasn't the right time..." Or any time for that matter.

The boy rarely looked in my direction, why would I even think he would express some kind of interest in a witch like me?

"Ahem, perhaps now would be a good time to try casting Obliviate..." I never agreed with Professor Flitwick more. I quickly pulled out my wand, pointing it at Talbott.

For a moment, I could’ve sworn a look of protest in his red eyes, but didn’t want to dwell on it too much.

Talbott was not leaving this room with that memory, not if I can help it.

After casting the spell, Talbott looked lost then a little frustrated, like he was struggling to remember something.

"What do you remember, Talbott," I asked as I withdrew my wand. I needed to know if the spell worked or not so I determine if I should go into hiding for the rest of my time at Hogwarts...

"I remember you choosing to cast Obliviate on me, then... nothing," He replied. I let out a sigh of relief.

"That means Obliviate worked," I cheered. Talbott looked at me suspiciously.

"Now you've gotten me curious. What did you tell me," he asked.

Ha! You're hilarious if you think I'm repeating that situation twice. I'd sooner jump into the Black Lake.

"I'll tell you later," I smirked. By later, I mean never.

Like ever.

He returned the smirk.

"I'm going to hold you to that..." Over my dead body, Winger...

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Ever since then, only two people know of my crush on Talbott.

Professor Flitwick and Penny.

I'm pretty sure he forgot about that whole situation and I'm more than grateful for it. I wasn't gonna confess again back then and I'm not looking to confess now.

Once the classroom was set up, the first years filed in and took their seats. Professor Flitwick introduced both of us to the class. As Flitwick went over the basics of the lesson, Talbott turned to look at me. I almost jumped out of my skin.

"How are you, Judith," he asked, a small smile tugging on his lips.

"I-I'm o-okay... and yourself," I stuttered. Judith, words! Use them!

"I'm doing good... I must admit, being here together brings back memories," he said. I fidgeted, already knowing what he was implying.

"O-oh," I asked, trying to play dumb. He looked me in my eyes.

"Yeah, where we came to Flitwick to learn the Memory Charm... I'm glad you talked me out of using it on Merula by the way," he admitted, his smile growing. I felt a blush blossom on my cheeks.

Gods, why is he so handsome?

"It's not a problem, Talbott," I said softly, looking down so he wouldn’t see my red face. He hummed before saying,

"You know, you never told me what you said to me when you erased my memory.”.

"Miss Harris, do you think can come and demonstrate the proper stance and help the class correct their stance?" I darted away to help Professor Flitwick. The Gods are looking out for me today.

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(Talbott Winger)

I frowned when the young Hufflepuff basically ran away from me to help Flitwick.

Judith seems naturally shy, but never have I ever seen her outright run from something. She took on Cursed Vaults, but she runs from a simple question.

Ever since she erased my memory of whatever she told me, the situation would pass through my mind from time to time. I just wasn't sure how to approach the topic with her. Today seem like the perfect opportunity to broach the topic with the cute Hufflepuff.

Yes, I said cute. Because she is.

I admit I didn't like how she was so pressed to help me in the beginning but I slowly grew fond of the girl.

Plus, she was very beautiful.

Ever since I hit my growth spurt, I towered over the Hufflepuff by at least a good 5 to 6 inches. She was a bit on the short side, but where I was standing, she seems small and it was adorable.

Her sweet face was one of my favorite things to look at. Despite her shyness, her facial expressions usually spoke for her sometimes. The way her nose would scrunch up in distaste when she heard something unpleasant or she didn't like. The way her brow would crease in concentration when she's in class or studying. The way she would hide her flushed cheek behind her hand when she's embarrassed. The way her eyes would speak for her when she can't formulate words...

I normally wouldn't pay much attention to the opposite sex as far as physical appearance but I must admit, there was a time or so where I wondered what she looked like in more form fitting clothes, instead of her House robes or her trusted yellow hoodie.

Her shyness made her all more endearing.

The way her gold eyes would widen slightly when someone focuses their attention on her. The way her sweet voice would sometimes stutter when she tries to talk. Sometimes hitting a higher octave when she feels insulted. How she would bring the bottom half of her hoodie to cover her face when she's blushing. How she fiddles with her dark brown hair when she's nervous.

She was cavity-inducing...

"Mr. Winger, can you come up with Miss Harris to cast today's spell?" I heard Professor Flitwick call.

I smiled as I walked up to stand beside the suddenly flustered Hufflepuff. Together we were able to levitate our own feathers, flying them across the room. I peeked over at Judith, seeing a beautiful smile spread on her face. My heart fluttered at the sight.

Such a shy and quiet beauty.

"Excellent, just excellent," Flitwick praised. Judith looked down, shuffling her feet. We soon went on the opposite sides of the room to help any students with the spell. I stole some glances at her, finding her smiling and laughing with the first years, applauding them when they successfully cast the spell.

She looked so happy...

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Once class was over and we finished cleaning the classroom, Judith was already gone before I could question her again. I softly cursed beneath my breath.

"Is something the matter, Mr. Winger," Professor Flitwick asked. I perked up a bit. Maybe he knows, he was there after all...

"I was wondering if you could help me with something... about Judith," I said softly. He nodded.

"Do you remember what Judith told me the day you taught us the Memory Charm?" He looked surprised and mused over what I said.

"So I'm assuming Miss Harris never told you what she said that day," he said. He shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Winger, but it is simply not my place to tell you," he sighed. I rubbed a hand over my face, suddenly tired. Will I ever know what that girl said?

"May I ask you something, Mr. Winger?" I looked up the the short man.

"Is it possible you fancy the girl? I've noticed how you looked at her during class," he asked. I felt a blush working its way up to my neck.

Am I obvious?

"Of course not, Mr. Winger. But you are in my house, I take the time to learn my students throughout the years," Flitwick chuckled. I glared at the man's teasing.

"Yes... I started to grow fond of her and she is rather endearing," I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck. The professor smiled at me.

"Although I can't tell you what she said, I'm sure you can get your answer if you spend some more time with the girl," he offered. I frowned.

"But I rarely see her around, except for class and in passing," I said. The girl was extremely scarce, despite having her own friends. Flitwick looked thoughtful for a few moments before saying,

"Why not ask Hagrid for her whereabouts? I know she spends a decent amount of time with the man." Not a bad idea...

"I'll go do that now, thank you Professor and enjoy the rest of your day," I smiled, walking out.

Time to catch me a little Hufflepuff.

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"Hello, Hagrid," I said, approaching the giant man. Hagrid turned to me with a big smile.

"Hello there, Talbott! What can I do fer ya?" Fang barked and ran up to me. I chuckled and bent down to pet the dog.

"I was hoping if you could help me find someone," I said as I rubbed Fang's belly. The man laughed cheerfully.

"Why of course, m' boy! Who are you lookin' fer?," he asked.

"Judith, have you seen her," I asked, silently praying he'll agree to help. Hagrid looked taken aback at my request.

"I- er..." I rose a brow at him.

"I don't know Talbott... Judith made me promise not to tell anyone where she goes when she has free time," he said, looking a bit sad.

Here I thought I preferred being alone, but clearly she has me beat...

"Why is it that she wants to be alone so much," I asked. I was a bit upset that I couldn't find the girl as easily as I would like.

"There are some cruel kids in this ‘ere school, Talbott. The girl has a lot more weight on her shoulders than anybody realizes," Hagrid sighed. I frowned.

"What does that mean," I asked.

"Pay close attention to what people say when she's around," Hagrid simply said.

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Taking the man's advice, I watched the girl as closely as possible the next few weeks. I must admit, it hurt me seeing the girl being pushed around.

Demented Harris.

Jinxed Judith.

Jamal #2.

The shoves.

The laughs.

The public humiliation.

Those hurt gold eyes, shimmering with unshed tears.

No wonder she's so quiet and hardly around. Any form of attention brought to her is negative.

I miss seeing her smile...

Today I planned on confronting her, hopefully to provide some comfort.

In my Animagus form, I silently followed the girl as she walked out of the castle in the direction of the Magical Creature Reserve. Perching myself in a tree nearby, I watched as she walked in a grassy field, carrying a bag of creature feed.

As she approached a Niffler, Knarl, Porlock, Diricrawl, and Abraxan all perked up at the sight of her.

"Feeding time, my loves," she called, her voice sweet and full of affection. The creatures all bounded towards her. Her Niffler, bounded up her legs, torso to rest on her shoulders. The Knarl rolled around her feet before bumping into her left foot. The Porlock trotted up to nuzzle her right calf, it's tail waging. Her Diricrawl nuzzled her left leg, flapping its small wings. The Abraxan trotted around her, nuzzling her hair.

The girl was giggling at her creatures’ enthusiasm.

"One at a time, everyone. You will all get your turn," she said. She looked so cute, surrounded by all these creatures.

Once she fed them all, she and them all walked around the field and to my hiding place. The Abraxan looked directly at me and huffed. It turned and used its hide legs to kick the tree. I let out a surprised squawk and flew out before I could fall.

"Angel! What's gotten into you, it's just an eagle," Judith cried, running up to the winged horse to soothe it. I landed a few feet away and her Porlock stared at me warily.

Can her creatures tell I'm not really just an eagle? The Porlock went up to me, sniffing me before letting out a soft huff of distrust.

Yeah, they can...

Giving up the act, I transformed back into my human form. The Porlock let out a small startled cry and ran to Judith, hugging her leg.

"What's wrong, Baron-" Judith froze when she saw me standing there. I let out a bashful smile.

"Talbott! Wh-what are y-you..." she trailed off, looking down. I slowly walked towards her, doing my best not frighten her.

"I just wanted to see you, Judith," I said softly.

"Why," she asked firmly, turning to face me. I took in her full appearance and blushed a bit.

She was wearing a floor length sundress, white on the top that gradients to a soft shade of yellow. It was form fitting, hugging her curves perfectly. Her full chest, small waist, her abs, her slowly rounding hips.

Her hair was in twists. Most of it was pulled back in a low ponytail while the rest formed her bang that occasionally sweep over her right eye.

Her face was free of makeup, save a gloss over her plump lips. Her skin was basically glowing...

I swallowed thickly.

She was...uh... rather developed for someone was just 16.

Oh boy...

"I want to spend some time with you," I said, reminding myself to breathe. Her pretty gold eyes widen and she shifted uncomfortably on each foot.

"S-spend time with m-me," she repeated, sounding lost. I nodded, getting closer. We were only less than a foot apart now and I could smell her perfume. I tried my best to keep my breathing even, even though I was to take in more of that pleasant smell.

I held out my hand. She looked down, extremely confused.

"We could start with a walk around the Creature Reserve... if you'd like," I suggested, silently hoping that she'll say yes.

A few moments past and I could feel my nerves starting to take over. Before I could pull back, Judith laid her small hand in mine, stepping close.

"Okay... but we're visiting the rest of my creatures in the meanwhile," she said, staring at my chest. Slowly, I grasped her chin to tilt upwards so she can meet my eyes.

She had one of prettiest eye colors I've seen, I could get lost in them all day...

"Of course, anything for you," I said with a smile. Her eyes went wide and she abruptly buried her face in my chest. I felt my heart stutter at her unexpected closeness but didn't push her away.

Gods, she was so cute...

"C'mon, what other creatures do you have," I chuckled, gently nudging her from her hiding place. She flustered at our proximity to one another and simply held my hand, leading me to other parts of the reserve.

The entire time, I couldn’t help but to notice the feeling of her hand in mine.

Her hand had a few callouses on her fingertips and a bit on her palm, assuming from all the writing and physical work that she does. But her hand felt soft overall.

To me, it shows how strong she is, all while still having a gentle touch.

Perfectly her...

--------------------------------------------------

I made some decent progress with Judith the next few weeks.

She was able to open up to me and allow me to help her take care of the creatures she adopted. It was nice to see her laugh and smile around me.

There was moments of slight awkwardness, like some of her creatures pushing us closer together. The bigger creatures were especially known for this. One time, Griffin, her Hippogriff, purposefully picked up the girl and set her on his back, as if going on flight. He never gave her adequate time to properly hold on, so when he took off, she would fall over and I have to race to catch her. I always found myself holding her protectively against my chest, our faces just an inch or two apart.

More than once, I've been tempted to kiss her.

But I simply set her down while she shyly thanked me and scurried off.

We were sitting side by side each other, under the shade of a large tree. Another sundress hugged her frame, this time white and royal blue. Her Porlock, Baron, was cuddling up against her as she scratched behind his ears.

"Hey Judith," I called out softly. Her pretty gold eyes shyly glanced at me.

"Yes," she answered. Taking a deep breath, I brought up the question,

"Why wouldn't you tell me what happened in Charms class that day?" she stiffen a bit and Baron let out a soft huff of worry. I reached out for her hand, intertwining our fingers.

"Please don't shut me out, Judith. I just simply want to know," I said softly. I watched as she gave the young Porlock a final scratch behind his ears before sending him off.

“I-I... I’m scared to see your reaction again,” she quietly admitted. I gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

“Hey, we’re a bit older and mature now. I’m sure I can handle it better this time,” I told her. She peeked at me from her short curly lashes before looking away.

She mumbled something under her breath.

"What was that," I asked, scooting over closer. The sweet smell of coconuts and cocoa butter greeted my senses, and I wanted to close my eyes in bliss.

"I...Talbott," she said a bit louder. Growing bold, I gently grasp her chin to look so she can face me.

"One more time for me, Judith..." Tears welled up in her eyes, and she let out a soft whimper.

"I fancy you, Talbott," she quietly sobbed, trying to pull away from me. I froze. Judith likes me...?

She feels the same way.

My lack of response made things worse as her eyes grew wide and frantic.

"I-I-I'm sorry! I di-didn't- you-you don't ha-have to-" her ramblings with a soft gasp. I pulled the girl into my lap, hugging her.

Judith went still, her nerves undoubtedly getting the best of her.

"There is nothing to be sorry for, little bird... I fancy you too," I whispered into her hair. She shyly met my eyes, hope shining brightly in those gold orbs.

"Y-Y-You do," she asked, trying to blink away any tears in her eyes. I gently wiped her tears away from my thumbs, she let out a soft breath at my touch.

"I do, Judith. And I want to prove it to you. Everyday... While at Hogwarts and beyond," I said softly. Feeling bold, I peppered kisses all over her face. Her eyes fluttered closed as I did this, her breathing slowly evening out. When I pulled back a little, she clenched at my robes with a whimper, pressing herself against me.

"T-Talbott, I-I-I..." Her expression was uncertain and fearful. I noticed how her gaze would land on my lips before darting back up to meet my gaze.

Rubbing her back, I leaned in and pressed my lips against hers.

She readjusted herself so she would be straddling my lap, her lips still moving shyly against mine. I groaned a little and squeezed her a bit closer. My hands followed the outline of her waist and hips, memorizing it. One of her hands was clenching at my robes and the other fisted in my hair. I groaned throatily. Gods, she's so perfect...

I pulled away, kissing the tip of her nose.

"You're so beautiful and perfect, darling," I cooed, nuzzling her cheek. I could partially feel the temperature rise and chuckled.

"And adorable," I added, pecking her lips. She pouted at me when I pulled away. I chuckled again.

"Don't give me that cute sad face," I told her. She grumbled but snugged against my chest. I sighed and ran my fingers through her hair.

"Talbott..." I hummed, letting her know I was listening.

"I like you," she said, kissing my cheek. I smiled and squeezed her tight.

"I like you too..."

#hphm #hphm mc #hphm talbott #hphm talbott winger #hogwarts mystery #harry potter hogwarts mystery #judith harris #hogwarts mystery talbott #talbott x mc #talbott x jacob's sibling #talbott winger #talbott winger x jacob's sibling #talbott winger x mc #jacob's sibling #jacob's sister #hufflepuff!mc #hufflepuff x ravenclaw #fluff

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missnight0wl · 4 years

Text

How and why Rakepick staged the meeting in Y6Ch35

So… I wouldn’t say that Y6Ch35 was as bad as Y5Ch30, but it was shitty. Still, I think I can fix it. I’ll try to explain how and why Rakepick staged the meeting in Knockturn Alley, how the Wizard in White is not a member of R, and what might be really going on with the “friendship” between Ben and Merula. Also, just to make things easier for myself, I’ll be calling the Wizard in White: “WIW”.

First things first: let’s talk about the White Quills. I personally don’t believe that R is using them. We’ve never seen any before Y6Ch7, so Jacob can shove his assumption… you know where. However, they are definitely connected to Rakepick as we know that she has a white owl. It doesn’t have to be an actual feather from the said bird, but it’s definitely not a coincidence. Moreover, I believe that it also means that they don’t represent anything malicious. The obvious symbolism aside (black = evil, white = good), we also have that very peculiar remark in “Flying Solo” TLSQ:

Yet, the message in the first White Quill was… well, bad.

But wait! While it does sound like it’s addressed to MC… is it really? Let me remind you that this White Quill was brought by Sickleworth, but he didn’t give it to MC. He was either spotted by accident and was running away OR he wanted to lead MC somewhere. Either way, delivering the Quill wasn’t his goal. He also definitely didn’t want to give it to Jacob.

So, who was supposed to get it? Well, probably WIW, seeing how the second White Quill was almost certainly addressed to him:

(Notice that this note IS NOT signed as “R”!)

But then, why would he get the message seemingly wrote to MC? My guess is that it was sent by Rakepick who was supposed to send it to MC, but she sent it to WIW instead as a way of saying: “Hey, look. They still want to kill a kid” (I don’t know about you, but I sometimes just copy massages between my friends instead of writing “Adam said that he (…)” – I especially did it when I was younger and when I had a fight with someone…). It’s also a physical proof in that case. Why would she want to let him know about it, though? Well, I believe that WIW was supposed to somehow help or even protect MC. I mean, look at our first meeting at the Lakeshore. We know for sure that he didn’t want to kill MC then, but it also doesn’t quite make sense that he wanted to capture them and take them to R. Like… at first, he was just standing there. It almost felt like he wanted to talk to MC, they even had time to ask some questions, and only then, he suddenly attacked. But if his intention was always to capture MC, shouldn’t he attack right away? But then, why did he attack instead of talking? Perhaps he saw someone nearby? Someone who he had to mislead? Someone like… Jacob?

Here's how I see it. Rakepick, who pretends to work for R, works also with WIW (who’s possibly an independent party in all of that). She sends him to tell MC something or whatever. WIW approaches us at the Lakeshore, but then he sees vault!Jacob who’s an evil piece of shit. WIW doesn’t want vault!Jacob to know that he wanted to talk to MC, so he attacks us instead. It’s a bit weird way of distraction, but if vault!Jacob is a member of R, and R needs MC sound and safe to open the final vault, he’d pay attention to attacked MC, giving WIW time to run away. I hope it makes some sense to you… Anyway, the point is that Rakepick and WIW work together, but R doesn’t know about it.

Now, let’s move to the note informing us about the meeting in Knockturn Alley. First of all, the way it was written was… odd.

The style doesn’t resemble any of previous notes from R. And that “come ye all”… Second of all, there was a peculiar name used two times in different context, but in situations connected to that message.

Merula assumingly mentioning the author of the book about Whomping Willow:

During the searching around the Whomping Willow:

Could that weird note be faked by Lomelia, and that’s why it sounds so weird? Could Lomelia be the Dark witch from Y6Ch35? Something is fishy here…

The third stage: the Polyjuice Potion. Even though I absolutely hate that part, I have to say that it probably gave us the strongest evidence that the whole thing was planned by Rakepick. And that evidence is Snape. Remember when we talked with Snape about the Polyjuice Potion?

Snape is an intelligent man; he knew what we’re planning. Especially that we also asked him about Rakepick a little earlier, and he was already suspicious back then. Yet, he did nothing. Why? Like, even MC wondered about it! And here’s the thing: MC might be dumb as fuck, but if they point out that something is weird and suspicious, it WILL be relevant. Just like their reaction after WIW’s attack:

So, why Snape let us do our thing? Because he also knew it’s Rakepick’s plan. I also honestly hope that she gave him her hair to place it in the DADA classroom because otherwise, it’s beyond stupid that it was there.

All right, we pretty much covered a “how” part of that plan. But now the question is why would Rakepick want to stage it? Well, to put it simply: because she knows that MC is dumb. If not for that meeting, they wouldn’t know two things: 1) that R wants them to join them and become their leader, 2) that there’s the mole. The first information is important for a general understanding of R and the Cursed Vaults, and while MC didn’t get straight answers, it’ll hopefully make them think in the future. As for the mole… Well, it’s more complicated. If you read my theory about Merula being the mole, you should know that I also assume that Rakepick knows about it and perhaps even convinced Merula to keep being the mole. So, why would she want MC to know about that? She’d be risking MC discovering cooperation between her and Merula, wouldn’t she? And MC should believe that Rakepick is evil… Well, I have two explanation for that risky move.

1) Rakepick doesn’t want Merula to be discovered, but she realised that MC is just not careful in general, so she needed to make them aware that there’s some danger in their surrounding. And here, it might be about two people:

Alanza. I’ll say it straight away – I don’t really think it’s the case. Also, then it wouldn’t be about “danger” per se, but about Rakepick not wanting MC to learn something from Alanza. I doubt it, though, simply because Alanza apparently didn’t know Rakepick very well. Although... a part of me find it amusing to think that Rakepick wanted to cast a false suspicion on Alanza, because that’d mean that a big part of the fandom did exactly what Rakepick wanted – and that’s just a little funny, you have to admit.

Vault!Jacob. If he really is a member of R and not real Jacob, Rakepick would know that. Perhaps she hopes that information about the mole could make MC more suspicious about him. Especially that we still didn’t talk about the note from R to him which led to Rowan’s death.

2) Rakepick actually wants to expose Merula because she stopped following her instructions or something. Merula might think she can outsmart R, putting herself and the others in danger by that. And here is where it can be connected to Ben.

All right, so let’s talk about the relationship between Ben and Merula. Because you can’t tell me that it’s not strange. I’ll never be over the fact that we’re just ignoring all the years when Merula bullied Ben, but even that aside, I just don’t understand why they’re suddenly… hang out together. Yes, they both want revenge on Rakepick or whatever, but still. And yes, they do hang out together.

When we met with Ben in Y6Ch1, he told us:

The fact that he knows that Merula changed for worse suggests to me that they had to spend some time together. And let me remind you: it was the first day of a new school year. Moreover, when we later meet with Merula, she said:

Like, how she even paid enough attention to Ben to know that there is any “New Ben”? I know that they both weren’t at the Welcoming Feast, but it doesn’t mean they had to do it together. Nothing implied that there’s some meeting for those skipping on it. Beatrice wasn’t with them, for example. So what, they suddenly discovered that they have much in common?

Then, we had another weird situation in Y6Ch13. When MC wanted to leave Hogwarts, Ben and Merula were hanging out together again AND they both knew about MC’s plan.

Now, Merula knew about it because Ismelda was eavesdropping on us after the Divination class, but Ben? Either he was with Merula when Ismelda came to her or Merula went with that information to Ben. Either way, it’s weird. Sooo… let’s dive deeper into this.

Unless it’s the first post of mine you read, you probably know that I believe that Rakepick was working with Merula. A while ago, I also explained why I believe that Rakepick was working with Ben in a way (you can find it here). The thing is that I don’t think that Ben and Merula knew about each other. However, they discovered it at some point between the end of Y5 and the beginning of Y6. They started to put the pieces together and realised that there might be things that Rakepick hid from both of them. And so, they’re hanging out together to figure it out. I mean, they both already know more than anyone else, they have to stick together, right? The problem is that I also assume that neither of them knows the truth about Rowan’s death. They’re both angry, they’re both becoming more reckless, and perhaps they came up with some stupid idea how to use Merula’s role as R’s mole in their advantage. And Rakepick doesn’t need any of that because she already has to think of everything, and she’s simply tired. So, by giving MC the information about the mole, she both made MC more aware that they should be careful about people around them, plus she hopes that it’ll stop Ben and Merula from doing something stupid (because they’d be scared that they might be discovered).

Also, notice that during the meeting in Knockturn Alley, Rakepick didn’t really do anything. She just knocked MC down, but then, she didn’t attack anyone. Sure, R needs MC, so she couldn’t hurt them, but why didn’t she try to capture them before Moody and Jacob appeared? It looks to me like she just needed an excuse to interrupt their conversation when MC knew things they were supposed to know. I mean, except that they didn’t learn then about the leader thing yet, but it could explain why WIW was captured so easily. Like, we were told that he defeated Moody’s best people, he disappeared from the Lakeshore before anyone could even notice. Yet, now he just got caught like a wuss? Nah, I don’t buy it. It’s also interesting that neither Rakepick nor the Dark Witch tried to save WIW… Almost as if they didn’t care. I know that there are no friends among R, but still.

To sum up

The Dark Witch - who was also present at the meeting with WIW - was responsible for letting MC know about the meeting. She used a pseudonym “Lomelia Prounce” as a clue that it’s all connected.

Snape knew about the whole plan with the Polyjuice Potion, possibly to deliver a hair or maybe even help MC in case they had problems with that. The disguise was needed because it was the easiest way to deliver information to MC without R knowing that Rakepick was behind it (“Oh, that little shit can be so cunning! How dare they impersonate me!”).

As for WIW, he either joined R in the meantime, so his presence at the meeting wasn’t suspicious, or R somehow didn’t find out that he was at the meeting (and that he was captured and revealed some information to MC).

The reason why Rakepick needed to stage it is because she knows that MC is a dumbass. They were getting nowhere with their investigation. I mean, there was no investigation, to begin with, when you think about it. Plus, revealing that there’s the mole at Hogwarts would hopefully make Merula and Ben calm their tits before doing something stupid like infiltrating R on their own.

Is it too complicated for Jam City? Probably. Still, there HAS TO be something more to all of that. The two things which just won’t let me leave it is that damn Lomelia Prounce (why would they bother to even put that random name in the game?) AND Snape. I’m telling you, we all know that MC for most of the time is oblivious as fuck and rarely ask important questions. But if their single brain cell worked for that one particular moment, it has to be meaningful.

Also, I just need Rakepick to REALLY be that manipulative mastermind who pulls all the strings. The game claims that she is, but if we’re supposed to believe only in what we see - Rakepick is pretty stupid, just like MC...

#long post #hogwarts mystery #hphm #hphm spoilers #hphm mc #jacob's sibling #hphm jacob #hphm r #patricia rakepick #pro rakepick #wizard in white #merula snyde #ben copper #alanza alvez #severus snape #lomelia prounce #analysis post #theory #hphm theory

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dumbass-gryffindor · 3 years

Text

HPHM Character Profile: Autumn Clover

This awesome template was made by @hogwartsmystory

This is more focused on Autumn in her 5th Year

IDENTITY

Name: Autumn Clover

Gender: Female

Age: 15

Birth Date: 5/30/1973

Species: Human

Blood Status: %62.5/Half-Blood (Classified as a half blood by the ministry)

Sexuality: Bisexual

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Ethnicity: African American

Nationality: American

Residence : Lives a bit secluded but the closest people to her home are muggles

Myer Briggs Personality Type: ENFP

THE MAGE

1st Wand:

Rowan wood

Unicorn hair core

11’ and unbending flexibility

2nd Wand:

Ebony wood

Dragon heartstring core

11 ¼ ‘

Animagus: Border Collie (orange and white)

Misc Magical Abilities: Legilimen

Boggart Form: Jacob being dead,insane or evil

Riddikulus Form: N/A (I have no idea how to make that funny)

Amortentia: Nighttime , baked goods, vanilla , cinnamon

Amortentia: Potion Supplies/Classroom,A bed of flowers, (Penny Haywood )

Patronus: Border Collie

Patronus Memory: It changes every time but it's mostly memories of Autumn and Jacob when they were younger

Mirror of Erised: Autumns family being happy

Specialized/Favourite Spells: Protego, Depulso, Patrounus Charm

APPEARANCE

Faceclaim: Nathalie Emmanuel

Voiceclaim: Im really bad at these but I have a few ideas

Veronica Sawyer (Heathers)

Korra (Legend Of Korra )

Mary Saotome (Kakegurui)

Marceline (Adventure Time )

Game Appearance:

Height: 5’2

Physique: Average and if you squint she has a little muscle

Eye Colour: Dark Orange/Light Brown

Hair Colour : Burnt Orange

Skin Tone: Brown

Body Modifications: N/A

Scarring:

Right Shoulder (Ice Vault)

Left arm and on the front of her right hand (Vault of fear)

A bunch of other scratches (from Autumn being a reckless idiot)

Inventory:

A few pictures (The one from ‘A Christmas at Hogwarts’’, Another picture of all her friends during her 4th year, and a picture of her and Jacob when they were kids).

Cursed Vault notebook (contains everything Autumn knows/found out about the Vault’s).

Hair ties

Some kind of food

Locket necklace (If she's not wearing it )

Friendship bracelet (From Rowan and Ben )(Also if she's not wearing it )

ALLEGIANCES

Hogwarts House: Gryffindor

Ilvermorny House: Thunderbird

Affiliations/Organizations:

Kowalski Family

Clover Family

Hogwarts: School of WitchCraft and Wizardry

Gryffindor

Gryffindor Quidditch Team

Holyhead Harpies

American National Quidditch Team

Professions: N/A (for now)

HOGWARTS INFORMATION

Class Proficiencies:

Astronomy: ★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Charms: ★★★★★★★★★★

DADA: ★★★★★★★★★★

Flying: ★★★★★★★★★★

Herbology: ★★★★★★★★★☆

History of Magic: ★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Potions: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Transfiguration: ★★★★★★★★★★

Electives:

Care of Magical Creatures ★★★★★★★★★★

Muggle Studies ★★★★★★★★★☆

Arithmancy ★★★★★★★★☆☆

Studies of Ancient Runes ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Quidditch: Captain as of 5th year,Chaser

Extra Curricular: N/A

Favourite Professors:

Kettleburn

Rakepick (Before betrayal)

Mcgonagall

Sikander (Muggle Studies) (I know we haven't even seen him in game yet but he seems like the best teacher ever)

Least Favourite Professors:

Dumbledore ( I know he’s not a professor but still )

RELATIONSHIPS

Brother: Jacob Clover

Father: Leo Clover

Mother: Stella Kowalski Clover

Love Interest: Penny Haywood

Best Friends:

Rowan Khanna

Ben Copper

Bill Weasley

Charlie Weasley

Merula Snyde

Rival: Merula Snyde, Ismelda Murk

Enemy: R, Death Eater, Voldemort

Dormmates: Rowan Khanna

Pets:

Niffler - Pepper

Owl - Apple

Cat (Siberian) - Rowboat

Spider - Bunny

Puffskein - Dime

Closest Canon Friends:

Rowan Khanna

Ben Copper

Bill Weasley

Charlie Weasley

Merula Snyde

Andre Egwu

Tonks

Barnaby Lee

Jae Kim

Skye Parkin

Murphy Mcnully

Orion Amari

Talbott Winger

BACKGROUND/HISTORY

Autumn's father Leo, was from a pureblood family in Europe. Her mother Stella had a sister named Ophelia. Stella and Ophelia were the daughters of Jacob Kowalski and Queenie Goldstein. They grew up with both wizard and muggle culture. The two were quite popular at school due to her parents reputation but they never let that get to their heads.

Stella would describe her younger self as a free spirit, she liked to travel a lot. That's how she met Leo Clover. They fell in love instantly and got married three years after they met. Leo moved to New York with Stella, but Leo’s family wasn't exactly pleased with this. The Clover’s wanted Leo to marry a pureblood, but Leo couldn’t care less about blood status.

In 1969 they had their first child Jacob Clover, named after Stella’s father. Jacob was the handful at first but once he got a little older he became calmer. Jacob was an adventurous soul and was always wandering off and he loved to learn. From a young age he had an interest in Quidditch, he loved going to the Quidditch world cup every year.

Autumn was born to Stella Kowalski and Leo Clover on 5/30/1973. Autumn clung to her brother's side like she was glued to him. Autumn wanted to be just like Jacob in every way possible. Like everyone else in her family, she had a fascination with magical creatures. She lived a really happy life in America.

But when she was 5 years old her family moved to Europe including her aunt and cousins. They lived a bit far from others, but the closest people were muggles. They lived in a better house compared to the one In America. There was plenty of backyard space for magical creatures to live outside.

Leo Clover was a part of the ‘Order of The Phoenix’ and fought against Voldemort. Leo had the suspicion that members of his family might be Deatheathers due to their Pureblood supremacy.

When Jacob started school in Autumn was distraught at first. She then realized that she would be able to write him letters and such. Jacob sent Autumn a letter once a week telling her stories about his first year at Hogwarts and all of the friends he had made. What he had failed to mention to her was all the trouble he was starting to get into due to the cursed vaults. He got into a bit of trouble when he came back from school for the summer. But that didn't stop him. Every year he became more and more distant and sent fewer and fewer letters. He stopped coming home for Christmas.

But the summer before Jacob's 4th year was when true tragedy struck. The family was out in Diagon Alley when two death eaters started a fight with Leo Clover. The fight ended with Leo’s death.

Things were never the same after that. Autumn's mother was strict before but now it has been taken to another level. Jacob was diving deeper and deeper into the search for the vaults. Autumn didn't hear from him until he came back for summer break, and when he came back he didn't have time for her.

During Jacob's 5th year things took a dark turn. During the middle of the year Jacob's friend, Duncan Ashe had died. Soon after that Jacob was expelled, a week after that Jacob went missing. It was all over the Daily Prophet, all the wizards and witches of Europe had heard about Jacob Clover. Everyone had different theories. Maybe he joined the dark lord , maybe he wanted to be the Dark Lord himself, maybe he was just plain crazy. Autumn was set on finding out when she went to Hogwarts, and that's exactly what she was going to do.

PERSONALITY

Snarky: Autumn picked up this trait from her brother. It takes a bit of getting to know her to see this side of her. Autumn may seem like a sweet person and she is but she's also very witty and snarky. She has the best comebacks, most times she doesn't even notice.

Curious: Ever since Autumn could remember she’s loved to ask questions. Hogwarts was the perfect opportunity for her to learn more. She not only likes to learn about different subjects she loves to learn about people. She likes to know things about her friends.

Loyal: Autumn's loyalty is unwavering. Once she considers you a friend she’ll always be there for you. She would make a good Hufflepuff.

Friendly: Some people might be scared of Autumn and not want to be near her. But she’s very sincere and supportive of all of her friendships. She does truly care for each one of her friends and would do anything for them.

Hard-working: Once Autumn has a goal in mind she’ll do anything to achieve it.Sometimes to the point where she ignores her own needs.

Protective: Once you're one of Autumn’s friends she feels a need to protect you. If anyone even dares to look at you the wrong way, Autumn is going to ‘deal with it’.

MISC

Autumn loves to show her friends things from America, whether it be Muggle or Wizard stuff.

You may not be able to tell at first glance but Autumn does like to read. It just has to be a topic she's interested in.

She knows how to bake due to her grandfather’s (Jacob Kowalski) bakery.

Autumn has a bunch of different notebooks.

Cursed Vault Notebook - She writes down everything she learns about the vaults

Diary - Formatted as letters to Jacob. Autumn planned to give them to Jacob when she found him.

Misc. - A bunch of random stuff from quotes from her friends to tally marks on how many times she had broken her nose

Gets competitive even with small things like Gobstones

Loves to just turn into her animagus form and run around

#Autumn Clover #hphm #hogwarts mystery #hphm mc #harry potter hogwarts mystery

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carewyncromwell · 3 years

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Hey guys! POTC AU update time at last! Very sorry for the delay, but s*** is really going down now in this story...

One of my biggest criticisms for the climax of At World’s End is how, ultimately, both the Navy’s armada and all of the diverse pirates gathered together as part of the Brethren Court are ultimately pointless. We get our huge confrontation between the Flying Dutchman and the Black Pearl, which ends with both ships blowing up Beckett’s flagship...and then the Navy just hightails it away with their tails between their legs, even if they still outmatch the pirates and there would surely be a chain of command under Beckett that could take over. There isn’t even anything to show that the Navy lost their nerve after losing their “great leader” or anything or were reluctant to fight to begin with. And again, that ends up making the non-main-character pirates that we only just met in At World’s End, like the Pirate Lords, completely unnecessary to the narrative aside from giving up their Pieces of Eight, which easily could’ve been rewritten to not include the Pirate Lords. This is why I’m restructuring this climax so that all of the Lords (and the Keeper of the Code) have a role in the coming battle, rather than just having them stand on the sidelines.

Black powder is a much messier, more combustible precursor to modern gunpowder, which has a very strong odor and produces a lot of smoke when it explodes. It’s better used for things like fireworks and rockets than firearms, particularly since it’s even more vulnerable to moisture than regular gunpowder is. Black powder was first developed in China circa the 9th century, before its use in firearms was phased out in favor of the cleaner, safer gunpowder we know today.

Although the traditional “Redcoat” was developed as a uniform for British soldiers in the mid-1600s, the British Navy actually didn’t have official uniforms for its sailors until 1748. Before that point, only naval officers generally wore uniforms. My guess about why the Pirates films don’t follow this model and have even the lower-rank British Naval soldiers wear uniforms in AWE is for the sake of visual short-hand for the audience and to further accent the divide between the uniformity of the law-keepers (the army and Navy) VS the diversity of the law-breakers (the pirates).

Previous part is here, and whole tag is here! Jules Farrier-Weasley belongs to @cursebreakerfarrier, Samantha O’Connell belongs to @samshogwarts, Ellie Hopper belongs to @that-ravenpuff-witch, Arjun Singh and Aishwarya Mehra belong to @hogwarts9, and Finn McGarry/Davy Jones belongs to @theguythatdraws! Also briefly referenced is Gwendolyn “Wendy” Gordon, who belongs to @drinkyoursoupbitch. xoxo

x~x~x~x

When Jules, Jacob, and Orion returned, they immediately convened a war council with the other Pirate Lords and their crews in the Hall of the Codex. There was a lot of strategizing that needed to be done before the battle the following day -- and as to be expected, Murphy McNully was instrumental in pinpointing what they needed.

“According to the Admiral’s intelligence, there are 34 Man O’ Wars out there waiting for us. We ourselves have a fleet of 73 galleons, brigs, schooners, sloops, and ketches. Now, naturally, that sounds like a lot, but keep in mind that each of the Navy’s Man O’ Wars has anywhere between 50 to 100 guns on each ship...meaning they have between 1700 and 3400 guns altogether. Even if we technically could have more guns numerically, there’s a 97.9% chance that our ships wouldn’t be able to withstand a full-frontal assault by those things. If we tried, we’d basically have to sacrifice our lives in the hundreds just to deal any damage, and even then, there’s less than a one percent chance that we could actually defeat the Navy, doing that.”

“It’d be a pyrrhic victory, at best,” said Ellie sadly.

Jae nodded. “I doubt any of us are much in the mood for a suicide mission, so we’ll need to come up with something better.”

“Especially since Carey’s on board one of those ships,” said Bill solemnly. “We can’t let him get hurt.”

Charlie, Jules, Jacob, and Orion’s eyes all narrowed at this. While Charlie and Jules nodded in agreement, Jacob’s jaw clenched and Orion clasped his hands in his lap and closed his eyes.

Ashe brought a hand up to squeeze Jacob’s shoulder, resting his head absently on top of his.

“Speaking from my own experience,” he said very dryly, “brute strength is hardly a be-all-end-all. Obviously one should think twice before attacking a larger enemy...but sometimes the element of surprise can turn the tide. Larger enemies often assume they have less to fear.”

“Aye...” said Jacob softly.

He considered the makeshift map and model ships they’d set up on the stained round table. Then he reached out to pick one of the miniature ketches and consider it carefully.

"We don’t have the firepower to defeat the Navy,” he said to the others, “but we do have stealth on our side.”

He immediately set about maneuvering the pieces around on the map, grouping all of the smaller ones together.

“The first thing we need is for a fleet made of the smaller ships -- the schooners, sloops, and ketches -- to carefully infiltrate the Man O’ Wars. Send a few of our men onto each ship in disguise, so they can load their lower decks with unlit explosives.”

“They could also easily sabotage their cannons and rudder chains, while they’re there,” said Orion softly.

Jacob shot a halfhearted glare at Orion out the side of his eye. Clearly even if they were allies and Orion brought up a great point, the Pirate Lord of the Atlantic Ocean was still a bit resentful about the Lord of the Caribbean Sea’s relationship with his sister.

“...Right. Then I say we -- meaning you, Captain Farrier-Weasley, as the Pirate King -- warn Beckett and the Navy that we’ll release Calypso, if they don’t turn back and let us leave Shipwreck Cove in peace. With Jones being with them, Beckett and the Navy either should already know or will immediately find out just how dangerous that is. Make sure to bluff Beckett that Calypso has so much power that she could destroy a Man O’ War with her little pinky, if she wanted.”

Samantha’s face lit up as she caught on to Jacob’s idea. “Oh! Then once Calypso is free and the weather starts getting bad...we can have the galleons and brigs attack the Man O’ Wars -- ”

“ -- and we can blow up the explosives on board with our cannons!” finished Charlie, exchanging an excited grin with Samantha.

Merula’s face burst into an huge smile too. “And it’ll make it look to the Navy like Calypso has given us this supernatural power boost!”

“Brilliant!” said Bill.

“There’d still be a 34% chance we’ll lose a few ships doing that,” said McNully thoughtfully, “but even if we’ll be outgunned and out-manned, the Man O’ Wars should be sabotaged enough that they won’t be able to attack right away. And the explosions we’d get would no doubt give those Navy officers a good scare, which might discourage them from fighting.”

Jacob nodded. “That fleet of larger ships can then keep the Man O’ Wars busy while Captain Farrier-Weasley and I sail the Revolution out to confront the Flying Dutchman. The Revolution’s probably the only ship we have that’s fast enough to compete with the Dutchman in a sea battle.”

“And we’ll need to overpower Jones, if we want to get close enough to Beckett,” said Jules, her dark eyes hard with determination.

“Jones is the Queen in this chess match,” agreed McNully. “He’s the most powerful piece on the board, so if we can topple him, we’ll have a much better chance. If we can then corner the King -- namely, Beckett -- we could use that leverage to win the whole thing.”

Bill and Charlie exchanged a look. Then the elder Weasley spoke up.

“...The plan’s great, Jacob -- but there’s a problem. Captain Hopper said that most of you lot were never soldiers. There’s a lot of training that you have to go through before going out to sea with the British Navy, and there’s just as much protocol you have to follow while you’re there. If one of our men makes a wrong move and gets caught, it could blow the whole ruse.”

“Then maybe we should go, Bill,” said Charlie. “We know the way things work -- we’d be able to blend in -- ”

“Not with that hair, you won’t,” said Merula dully.

“Face Paint is here at the Cove,” pointed out Skye. “They could fix that -- ”

Orion shook his head. “I’m afraid it’s still too risky. The Admiral indicated that Percy Weasley is also on board one of those ships. As much as I don’t think he’d ever wish to harm you, I don’t believe one could fool one’s family that long. And judging by how your last meeting ended,” he glanced at Charlie and Bill solemnly, “one cannot be certain he would choose family loyalty over what he believes is morally right.”

“Yeah, I wager there’s only a 35% chance he wouldn’t try to stop you two, if he saw you,” said McNully with an apologetic look at the Weasley brothers. “Though there is a 25% chance you might collide with Carey Weasley instead, and he could give you a hand...but I don’t think that’s a gamble we should take.”

Ellie’s lips twisted into a frown. “Still...First Mate Weasley’s got a point. It’d be probably best to send someone with the Artemis and the other small ships who already knows how to fit in with the British Navy.”

“If only Captain Moody were still here,” mumbled Barnaby sadly. “He was in the Navy for a long time, before becoming our captain...”

Charlie offered Barnaby a sympathetic look. Jae, however, looked rather thoughtful.

“...I do have...one contact that could be helpful.”

Everyone turned to look at him.

“He’s a bit of a loose cannon,” said Jae, “too impulsive for his own good and bull-headed as all Hell...kind of stupid, really. But he was in the Navy once, and he’s pretty good at working in secrecy. I work with him most often whenever there’s news of the East India Trading Company, since he’s got a contact who’s related to one of their most prominent merchants...”

Merula’s eyebrows furrowed. “...Wait a minute. You’re not suggesting Copper?”

Charlie and Jules both blinked.

“Behemoth Ben Copper?” said Jules in surprise. “The pirate who took out all three masts on an Italian frigate with one cannonball?”

“That’d be him,” said Arjun, and like Merula, he looked a bit skeptical. “Jae, I’m not sure. I don’t mean anything against Ben and all, but...well...it’s like you said, he’s a bit of a loose cannon. Ever since he mutinied against his captain, he’s just gotten more and more reckless -- leaving his crew abruptly with no explanation, rearranging his ship’s route on the fly...”

“He’s been acting weird,” agreed Aishwarya.

“Sounds like he’s the perfect choice, then!”

Everyone turned to look at Skye in bewilderment. Contrary to everyone else’s reactions, however, she looked perfectly undaunted, her lips curled up in a perfectly fearless, white smirk.

“From the sound of things, I’d wager Copper’s caught the same type of ‘weird’ that Orion’s had these last few months,” said Skye, shooting a significant look in her captain’s direction.

“And I reckon that kind of ‘weird’ would boost Copper’s motivation to help us by a good 63%,” said McNully very coolly from Orion’s other side.

Orion tried to feign a mild, patient expression as he bowed his head and avoided his crewmates’ amused looks, but he could not obscure the rosy color that was rising up into his cheeks.

“That settles it, then,” said Bill. “Let’s talk to him.”

Benjamin “Behemoth Ben” Copper did indeed boast an impressive height, being as tall as Bill with a scruffy blond beard almost as long as Jacob’s, a piece cut out of his left ear, and plenty of scars up and down his arms and along the base of his neck. He also came across as rather unpleasant, on first meeting. Although Jules had decided Orion and the Artemis would lead this smaller fleet in their mission, Ben seemed very skeptical of Orion from the off-set and was a bit forceful in trying to assert himself.

“For this mission, may us look to our friends, the cuttlefish, for guidance,” Orion said calmly as he addressed the small team of Navy veteran pirates they’d managed to assemble. “They change their appearance and attitude to blend into their environment, so as to evade the dangerous predators that might hunt them...and so too shall we.”

“The Navy isn’t that dangerous,” said Ben rather coldly.

Everyone turned to look at the much taller man, who was leaning against the back wall with his arms crossed.

Orion regarded him with patience, his hands clasping in front of him. “Not as dangerous as they’d like us to believe, true...but they do still out-gun us quite a bit.”

“That’d be more of a threat if half their new recruits weren’t so scared of the sound of gunfire that they all shut their eyes and can’t aim properly,” said Ben. “It’s not like most of those men have even seen combat like this, since England’s no longer at War.”

Orion didn’t respond, so Ben got up off the wall and strode over to look at him properly.

“Explain to me why we don’t just take down all of the ships ourselves, once we’re on board? We can more than take those lily-livered cowards...”

“We’re not doing that because it’s not the plan we agreed on, Copper,” Skye snapped.

“Skye,” Orion said in a quelling voice without removing his gaze from Ben.

“They’d never expect anyone to actually try attacking them head-on, so the element of surprise will still be there,” Ben plowed on, his brown eyes flashing with righteousness. “I say we just take all of their sailors out, one by one, while that pig Cutler Beckett is too busy gloating to take notice.”

Orion raised his eyebrows. “‘Take them out?’ Oh, no. No, I’m afraid that won’t do.”

“You’re afraid of the ships and their firepower -- but the men on those ships are vulnerable,” Ben said sharply.

“All the more reason to not hurt them more than we have to,” said Orion. “If the Navy’s ships are damaged, most of the sailors on board will still have the time to abandon ship and leave the battle with their lives.”

“Those sailors mean to kill us -- to arrest and hang the ones we love and anyone who’s ever helped us -- ”

“Not all of them,” said Orion, and his patient voice for the first time dipped low into his throat and echoed with some edge. “And because not all of them seek to destroy us and the ones we love, we have more than enough reason to not destroy them ourselves. The ships are what we fear, as you said -- they are our enemy, not the men on board -- and without that weapon of theirs, those sailors will be unable to inflict the damage we fear.”

Ben’s brown eyes bore into Orion’s very critically. Then, exhaling through his nose in a short huff, he reluctantly nodded and stepped back.

Orion turned to Face Paint. “We’ll need to make sure all of our men look like they belong among the Navy’s ranks.”

Face Paint grinned. “Don’t worry! I’ve got this.”

With some guidance from the ex-veterans on the Navy’s usual dress code, Face Paint got to work covering up scars with make-up and dressing the team accordingly. Fortunately, unlike the British army, Navy soldiers generally had more freedom in how they dressed, so long as their clothes were neat and conservative. Once Face Paint was finished, Orion had a team of about eleven men who looked as out of place on Shipwreck Cove as he himself had looked on the streets of Port Royal.

Before Orion left with the Artemis and the rest of the fleet of small ships, however, Jacob rather sharply stepped in front of him and insisted on speaking to him in private. Skye and McNully looked notably concerned, but Orion agreed, and the two stepped aside so no one else could hear them.

“Don’t think I don’t know why you’re doing this,” Jacob murmured.

Orion raised his eyebrows, even though his expression remained grimly unreadable. “It was your plan, to send the smaller ships to infiltrate the Navy’s Man O’ Wars.”

“I was not including you when I said that!” snapped Jacob.

He took an aggressive step forward, right into Orion’s personal bubble.

“I know why you’re doing it, Amari, and it’s not just because Captain Farrier-Weasley asked you to be in charge of that mission,” he said in a very low snarl, rather like that of a territorial dog.

Orion’s eyes grew a little smaller, but remained too murky to read properly. “I daresay my reasoning is the same as why you arranged it so that you would be on the ship facing off against the Flying Dutchman.”

“Do not compare my motives with yours!” said Jacob fiercely, as his skull-like eyes flared like flames. “I don’t care what you feel for my Wyn -- you could never understand what she means to me! I would and will do anything I have to in order to protect her -- ”

“I know,” Orion cut Jacob off as calmly as he could. “I could never understand the bond you two share.”

His dark eyes flickered with a strange emotion.

“...But...I do understand what a beacon she is -- how, like a candle, she can light up a room enough to comfort you, when you’re most frightened. How the soft, warm light she gives off is for you alone...how the embers she leaves behind burn long after her light has left you. How she’ll...drain herself of whatever strength she has...just to make sure you don’t despair.”

Something cracked in Jacob’s eyes, betraying genuine vulnerability. A vein pulsed in his jaw and his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Orion clasped his hands in front of him, regarding Jacob with a grim, sad expression.

“Care --...your sister...is a truly remarkable woman. She always has been, from the day I ended up on your doorstep back in Port Royal all those years ago. I can’t say for sure that I’ve loved her since then, but...when we found each other again, I realized that the freedom I have on the high seas is superficial at best...for I wasn’t free to stay with her...no more than she’s free to follow me. If she stays with Cutler Beckett...if she ends up impressed into service on the Flying Dutchman...”

Jacob’s fists clenched tighter and started to shake. Orion’s eyes rippled with pain and anxiety as he closed them.

“I can’t do nothing while Carewyn loses what little freedom she has left,” the taller captain burst out before he could stop himself. “However cruel Jones is in the legends I’ve heard, I know first-hand Cutler Beckett is a crueler master than he could ever be.”

He ran his pointer and middle finger alongside the inside of his wrist, where the “P” brand shone a tense white on his tanned skin. He breathed in and out through his nose slowly to try to calm his heart rate, before he opened his eyes to look back at Jacob.

“...I know our methods are different, but our goal is the same. Although I hope you succeed in overcoming Jones and force him to release her...I’m sure you understand why I have to take measures in case you don’t.”

Jacob’s eyes narrowed upon Orion’s face, but for the first time, there was confusion muddled with the distrust.

“I already told you that Jones won’t care if my Wyn gets married and takes on another name,” he said quietly. “He said she’d still be considered a Cromwell.”

Orion’s dark eyes softened sadly. “I know.”

Jacob’s eyes scrunched up further. Then they widened as he thought of something he hadn’t before. The thought made his face go very white.

“You...”

Orion did not respond, but Jacob knew he’d figured out what Orion was thinking. It made his fists shake at his sides and his pupils narrow to slits.

‘He’s...truly that selfless?’

Jacob didn’t want to believe it. He couldn’t believe that this man loved his sister that much.

Despite himself, he couldn’t help but lash out.

“...I do not give my blessing to this! I don’t care what sincere affect you dance around with, I will never trust you with my Wyn’s heart, Amari! You could never deserve my sister!”

But Orion’s features merely prickled with the hints of a smile. "I know.”

Jacob gave an aggravated sigh, throwing his hand up in a violent smack at the air, as he threw his head back and rolled his eyes up in the direction of the ceiling.

He wanted to hate this man so much, but it was proving difficult when he wouldn’t rise to anything he said. He wanted him to fight back, to get mad -- then he could feel justified in protecting Carewyn from him...

But in truth, Jacob knew -- this man wasn’t someone to protect Carewyn from. Truthfully...he knew this man would likely do just as much to protect Carewyn as he would...

Jacob’s hollowed-out eyes ran over Orion’s face, narrowing critically. Then, at last, he said,

“...You were the boy, weren’t you? The one Wyn hid under her floorboards.”

Orion’s eyes flickered with fondness and he inclined his head in a small nod. Jacob inhaled slowly through his nose and then exhaled very heavily.

“I will stop Jones,” he said very lowly. “So your 'measures’ won’t be necessary.”

With this, Carewyn’s brother turned on his heel and strode away, his black boots clapping against the cobblestones as he went.

As the pirates set their plan into motion, Carewyn herself was finishing up business on the Flying Dutchman. She was meant to remain on the HMS Lion with Beckett for the battle, but she insisted on speaking to all of her men on the ship and leaving proper instruction before departing. After all, the Admiral argued, even if Rakepick was staying on board, she was not a Naval officer, nor was she their commanding officer. It also was the excuse Carewyn needed to speak to Davy Jones privately.

Jones looked to be in a fairer mood than she’d seen him last. Carewyn wasn’t sure for the reason for it, but she hoped it wasn’t in response to the impending battle. Regardless of how Jones felt about the pirates and Shipwreck Cove, she dreaded the thought of anyone actually anticipating the battle. Instead, however, she reassured Jones that she would pass along whatever intelligence she gathered about where Rakepick had hidden his heart.

“I know Rakepick said she was out for herself, but there are only so many places she could’ve hidden it,” she said. “Port Royal is out of the question: it couldn’t be used as any sort of leverage there. So she either one, was lying and has it close by somewhere on the Dutchman...or two, Beckett does know where it is, but Rakepick plans to backstab him.”

“I suspect the former,” said Jones lowly, his dark eyes narrowing as he shot a glance out the stained-glass window of the cabin. “I can feel my heart’s presence, so it must be close.”

Carewyn inclined her head slightly. “I see. In that case, you might be able to retrieve it yourself. I’m sorry I can’t be of further help.”

She paused. Then, taking a deep breath, she spoke again.

“Captain Jones, time is not on our side...but something’s been bothering me. When I first agreed to help you, you knew my real name, without me having told you. You said that was because you know everyone’s true name, but...”

She considered him warily.

“...It’s also because...you know my older brother...don’t you?”

Jones’s eyes narrowed. He considered her for a long moment, before he gave a clipped nod.

“...Aye. I know him.”

Carewyn’s heart sank. ‘Then Rakepick was right -- Jacob did make a deal with Jones. That must be why Orion said Jacob ‘would be disappointed’ -- ’

“...What does he owe you?”

Jones, for the first time, looked almost evasive. He turned away, casting his eyes to the opposite wall as he took a few plodding steps away.

Carewyn watched him move, her arms which had been folded behind her back slackening at her sides.

“Captain Jones, please,” she said, and some desperation echoed in her voice despite her best efforts, “I already might not have enough power to protect him from Beckett, I have to know what debt he might have with you.”

Jones was quiet for a moment longer. When he finally spoke again, his voice was very low, reluctant...even regretful.

“...The price...was a lifetime of service, from a member of his family.”

Carewyn’s eyes widened.

‘A lifetime of service...?’

Jacob’s intense, anxious reaction to the death of Charles and Blaise suddenly made sense.

‘He must’ve meant to give one of them to Jones,’ Carewyn’s mind raced. ‘Could he really have agreed to something like that -- enslave Grandfather or Blaise to Jones?’

Unfortunately it didn’t sound completely out-of-character for Jacob -- for as much as she’d hated Charles Cromwell and resented Blaise, Carewyn knew her feelings paled in the face of Jacob’s. Not only had he been older and thus forced to do more of their dirty work, but he’d also always loathed how much they hurt Carewyn when they were young, both to keep him in line and in a cruel attempt to “toughen her up.”

But now...now Blaise and Charles were dead. All of the Cromwells -- Jacob’s family -- were dead...except for...

Carewyn’s face was very white. Her lips came together and she bowed her head, casting her eyes into shadow.

“...I see,” she whispered, her voice shakier than she’d intended.

‘This is why Orion and Jacob want me off the Dutchman. Because I’m the only one who can fill Jacob’s debt.’

Jones glanced over his shoulder, his dark eye oddly ashamed.

“He did it out of love for you,” he said very quietly. “I confess, before we met, I’d seen irony in the situation. Now...I wish I could excuse the debt, but...”

Jones swallowed, and the tentacles of his beard gave a series of low pops.

“...Magical contracts...are not so easily broken. Once someone is marked with the Black Spot, the terms will be met, whether I want them to be or not. Fate will maneuver itself in such a way that you end up as part of my crew, even if I actively decide not to take you. As long as your brother and I both live...the terms are etched in stone.”

Jones then strode back over, fixing Carewyn with a solemn eye.

“Unless...you wanted to make a deal yourself? One soul could be comparable to another.”

Carewyn closed her eyes and considered this. After a long moment, she swallowed, and shook her head.

“That’s not something I can give you,” she whispered.

Jones’s eyes grew a little smaller as he faced the door. “I thought you might say that.”

He paused. His claw clicked together at his side.

“I...lament that a noble soul like yours is doomed to remain with me,” he murmured. “I will do my best to take care of you, as part of my crew.”

With another set of plodding steps, Jones walked over to the door of the cabin, opened it, and left.

Carewyn’s knees buckled out from under her. She collapsed onto the bench in front of the massive organ, staring down at her own booted feet without even seeing them.

She couldn’t thrust this burden on anyone else. How could she? No matter who they were...no one deserved to live their life in servitude. Carewyn knew she would never be able to live with herself, doing something so cruel...but...

It...it wasn’t fair! It wasn’t fair! She’d already had to resign herself to the knowledge that she couldn’t shield the others from Beckett -- she’d already had to resign herself to staying under Beckett’s foot. Not only was she helpless in helping the ones she loved escape Beckett...but now...once she was a member of Jones’s crew...she would likely never see any of them again. She’d never be able to make that world that they deserved -- a world where they could live free of the fear of being captured and hanged...a world where they could live and chase their dreams in peace.

She’d never see Orion again. She’d never see Jacob again. She’d never see Bill again. She’d never see Charlie again. She’d never see Jules or Percy again.

Carewyn took a sharp intake of breath, trying to contain her emotions, but it was no use. Her hands flew to her face, clutching desperately, as she tried in vain to suffocate the tears spilling out of her eyes and the sobs erupting out of her throat.

Little did Carewyn know that a red-haired woman much taller than her had been beside the window of the captain’s cabin and had heard the entire conversation.

Under the cover of the fog that swept in that night, Orion’s team of Navy veteran pirates split up and stowed away aboard the Navy’s ships, each carrying one of the hundred black barrels of highly explosive black powder Jae had prepared for them. They would then be able to fetch more from one of the many sloops, ketches, and schooners floating among the armada the rest of the night.

As luck would have it, Ben boarded a ship that turned out to be the HMS Lion itself. He was glad of it, as he was determined to make sure that Beckett could never target anyone else again. Unfortunately, as soon as Ben arrived on board the ship, he was immediately uneasy. No one had spotted him arrive, but this ship wasn’t like any of the ships he’d seen during his time with the Navy. Everything was so unusually clean and precise and brand new, as if none of it had been touched -- and stranger still, all of the sailors, from their perfectly polished gold-buckled shoes to their blue and white uniforms to their gold-trimmed black tricorn hats, looked as identical as a set of dolls.

Little did Ben know that Cutler Beckett had higher standards of uniformity for the ship he was on than he did any of the other ships in his armada -- and so, even perfectly disguised as an ordinary sailor, Ben stood out like a sore thumb.

“You there!” said one of the lieutenants, upon spotting Ben on the staircase down to the lower decks. “Where’s your uniform, sailor?”

Ben faltered. ‘Uniform? Regular sailors don’t wear -- ’

He immediately put down the barrel he’d been carrying and turned around, putting on his strongest face as he stood up perfectly straight and saluted.

“...I’m only a new recruit, sir. I have no rank.”

“All sailors on the HMS Lion were given a custom uniform, when first they were selected by Lord Beckett,” snapped the lieutenant, his black eyes narrowing suspiciously upon the much taller man. “I ask you again -- where is yours?”

Ben immediately guessed that he’d made a huge mistake. Knowing that if he didn’t do something drastic, he’d blow the whole operation, his hand slid down to the pistol in his belt. Did he dare silence the man by force? Would that not alert the rest of the ship?

“What’s going on here?”

Another officer -- this one with a ginger red ponytail and almond-shaped blue eyes -- came down from the helm and over to the two men.

“A-Admiral Weasley!” said the lieutenant, straightening up immediately.

‘Admiral?’ thought Ben. ‘Then this is Carey Weasley?’

His brown eyes narrowed upon the frame of the Navy’s greatest hero.

'...He’s so...tiny.’

Carewyn looked from the lieutenant to Ben, her blue eyes narrowing.

“Ah, I suppose Captain Weasley’s sent over another new recruit,” she said smoothly. “Where is this man’s uniform, Lieutenant?”

“That -- I just asked that, sir,” the lieutenant stumbled over his words.

“Respectfully, I hope,” said Carewyn rather pointedly.

“That -- well -- I merely thought it was suspicious. We normally are all given uniforms, prior to boarding -- I hadn’t known that Captain Weasley was sending over any...”

The lieutenant looked a bit sheepish. It was remarkable how he looked and sounded so much more boyish around the Admiral, compared to how harsh and suspicious he’d sounded when he addressed Ben.

“No matter, Lieutenant,” said Carewyn, giving the young man a soft smile. “You thought of the safety of our ship and crew. That’s the right instinct to have, despite the circumstances.”

She turned to Ben, her eyes becoming a bit more solemn.

“What’s your name, sailor?”

“Cooper, sir,” Ben said at once, giving a salute. “Gordon Cooper.”

“Well, Mr. Cooper, you’d best come with me, before Lord Beckett sees you out of uniform. He likes his flag ship run just so.”

And so Ben reluctantly followed the Admiral down to the ship’s lower level and into the cargo hold. She fetched him a blue and white Navy uniform, but rather than just leaving Ben to put it on himself, she insisted on helping him put it on properly.

“I told you, Lord Beckett likes things just so,” she said. “I will not have any sailor under my command end up on the wrong side of him.”

“I can put on a bloody shirt,” Ben said before he could stop himself.

“See that you do, then,” said Carewyn very coolly.

Ben watched, perfectly bewildered, as the Admiral hung the blue coat she’d set aside for him off of a nail sticking out of one of the beams of the ship and smoothed the wrinkles out of it.

With a dull snort, he pulled the faded red shirt and brown trousers Face Paint had dressed him in up over his head and switched it out for the white Navy breeches, stockings, and shirt he’d been given. He tried to keep his back to Carewyn, so as to obscure the scars on his upper chest and arms.

As he changed, Ben suddenly realized he heard a soft, husky voice humming a tune in the back of their throat.

“Now some have died, and some are alive...and others...sail on the sea...”

Ben straightened up sharply.

“...With the keys to the cage and the Devil to pay,” he echoed, “we lay to Fiddler’s Green.”

He turned around to look at Carewyn, who still had her back to him.

“So you are allied with us,” he said under his breath.

Carewyn glanced over her shoulder, raising an eyebrow. “‘So?’ You sound like someone already told you that, previously.”

“Two people, actually,” Ben corrected her, crossing his arms. “Orion Amari, for one. The other...”

He glanced off to the side absently, his brown eyes growing a bit mistier at the thought.

“...She...has family who works for the East India Trading Company. While one of their ships was docked in Port Royal, she’d spoken to some of the prisoners awaiting execution...and though most of them were no state to talk, the ones who were expressed their admiration for Carey Weasley -- how he was the only person on the Dutchman who showed them any kindness.”

The thought of Wendy’s face as she described what the prisoners had told her made Ben’s heart clench.

“...That kind of decency...was something I thought the Navy lost long ago.”

Carewyn’s eyes grew a little smaller and grimmer as they fell down onto Ben’s shoulder.

“I’m afraid it has, for the most part,” she said softly, “but only because of those currently in command. Our men are still good men...just misguided.”

Ben couldn’t keep the disbelieving, resentful glare from his face. He strode past Carewyn to fetch the blue coat, but the Admiral bustled in front of him, fetched a gold-buttoned white vest, and set about slipping it over Ben’s shirt.

“Here -- you’ll need this, first.”

Ben’s mouth dropped open in bewilderment and irritation.

“Wha -- oh, come on, I’m not some little lost lamb!”

“Definitely not,” said Carewyn dryly. “You’re anything but ‘little.’“

She started buttoning up Ben’s vest. The pirate gave an aggravated groan.

“Seriously? Ugh...will you knock it off? You’re acting like my mother -- ”

“Well, you’re acting like a child, so I reckon that’s appropriate,” Carewyn shot back. She then added a bit more solemnly, “Look, I can’t help Orion, Bill, and the others while I’m stuck here...but I can help you help them. So that’s what I intend to do, whether you like it or not.”

Ben’s face darkened with an embarrassed flush as he looked away, shooting daggers into the far corner with his eyes, while Carewyn finished buttoning up his vest.

“I should probably help you trim your beard too,” said Carewyn absently. “Navy men don’t wear beards much these days, even when they’re not officers...”

“I don’t need you to trim my beard,” Ben said grumpily. “I can shave myself.”

“Oh, you don’t believe in the old superstition, then. Good...I’ve had to shave some of my men’s faces for them, so that Beckett wouldn’t give them a hard time for looking scruffy...”

Ah, then it was about reassuring the men who were too superstitious to shave on board so they could still follow Beckett’s dress code, more than simple smothering. That made Ben feel a bit better.

“...Hm, well...I suppose I have been meaning to cut it a bit anyway...”

Once Carewyn had finished buttoning up Ben’s vest, she adjusted his collar.

“When did you leave the Navy?” she asked without looking at his face.

Ben considered her for a moment before answering.

“...Four years ago. I’d gone to sea to try to rise above my station...to earn enough money that I could...well...improve my prospects. But I ended up on board a ship with a captain who sacrificed the lives of his own men, not to protect the innocent, but to protect a ship he held financial stock in. A ship owned by Cutler Beckett, transporting gold, spices, ivory, and slaves to the colonies.”

Carewyn was immediately reminded of Orion. “So you rebelled.”

“Not right away,” Ben corrected. “I tried to have the captain court-marshalled first. But the Navy only gave him a light talking-to and left it at that. They didn’t remove him from service or strip him of his rank, or even publicly reprimand him -- he was allowed to just go about his business like before. And worse, he knew I was the one who’d reported him -- so he ended up retaliating against me, since he was still my commanding officer. I, well...eventually I just got fed up -- so I stopped cowering and fought back.”

Carewyn’s light blue eyes narrowed. “I see. ...You did the right thing.”

Ben’s face seemed to soften slightly. “...Thanks. It hasn’t always felt like the right thing.”

“Sometimes it doesn’t.”

Carewyn fetched the blue coat and helped Ben put it on. This time, he didn’t put up as much of a fuss, even though he considered Carewyn with a more critical, solemn expression.

“Why haven’t you fought back against Beckett?” he asked lowly. “You know what he’s doing is wrong.”

“If I were to fight now, I’d lose,” said Carewyn, “and if I lose, then the ones I love will be in more danger than ever.”

‘My future is already out of my reach. My freedom is already out of reach. If anything happened to them...I’d lose the best part of myself.’

“... I need to wait for the right moments where I can actually make a difference...like this one, for instance,” she added with a slight smile.

Ben’s eyes grew a little smaller as he studied her face.

“...It’s hard for you to stay silent, isn’t it?”

Carewyn didn’t respond, but her eyes squinted a bit too, rippling with a dark emotion as she yanked a loose thread free of Ben’s coat and adjusted the buttons.

“There,” she said at last. “Don’t forget your hat, when you’re out on deck.”

She handed a gold-trimmed black tricorn hat to him, but Ben didn’t put it on, instead holding it loose at his side.

“I won’t be on deck long,” he said. “I’ll be here below deck most of the time...I’ll be gone by dawn.”

Carewyn blinked. Then her whole face seemed to light up in realization.

“...Sabotage,” she whispered. Her almond-shaped blue eyes were almost over-bright. “Black Jack Roberts planned this, didn’t he?”

Ben was startled. “Uh...yeah, he did.”

‘Oh, that’s just like Jacob! He’s always been brilliant...’

Carewyn’s eyes gleamed with warm, intense pride and fondness as she cast her gaze aside.

Ben looked at Carewyn curiously. “...You know Black Jack?”

Carewyn beamed. “Oh, aye -- we go way back.”

“How far back?”

“We grew up together.”

‘I don’t need to explain how we’re related,’ thought Carewyn. ‘If Orion didn’t feel the need to tell him my real name, I don’t have to...it’s not exactly necessary information.’

Carewyn’s response, however, sparked an interesting reaction from Ben. Almost instantly, his hard, overly serious expression had become much softer and warmer, betraying a genuine smile.

“Really...”

The faintest ghost of a laugh seemed to fall from his lips as he bowed his head, his eyes drifting down to the ground. Carewyn smiled slightly in return.

“Now then, Mr. Cooper...I’ll leave you to your work. The barracks are on the lower deck on the starboard side of the ship,” she nodded to the the hallway behind them, “and the officers’ quarters are just up the stairs from there. The walls are thin and most of the officers will be up and about doing nightly rounds, so be careful not to make too much noise. If they catch you ‘out of bed,’ do as they say and pretend to go to your bunk -- you can always use the shortcut that goes through the spirit room on the far right wall to get back out into the hallway without going out the way you came. When you’re up on deck, avoid the windows by the captain’s cabin at all cost -- Beckett can be up when you least expect it, and if he sees any movement outside his windows, he might see fit to investigate. I’ll try to keep the other officers occupied at the helm as much as I can, so they don’t notice you.”

Ben picked up his barrel again with a nod. “Thank you.”

Carewyn saluted him, and he returned the gesture with his arm not holding the barrel.

“By the way,” he added, “the name’s Copper, not Cooper. Ben Copper.”

Carewyn’s lips spread into a full smile. “Nice to meet you.”

She reached out and took hold of the taller man’s shoulder, giving it an abridged squeeze.

“Godspeed...and best of luck.”

By dawn, Ben had finished his preparations and left the HMS Lion, slipping onto the Artemis so that it could sail away before the fog dissipated. Ben had been the last one to finish and return to the fleet, so Skye had expressed the (rather irritable) concern the crew felt that Ben might have gotten himself caught. Ben confessed that he would’ve if it hadn’t been for the Admiral, and told them what had happened. Orion hadn’t said a word or drawn any attention to himself during the entire recounting, so Ben couldn’t have taken into account how the captain turned his focus up to the large, gold-trimmed Navy ship as they sailed away from it. Neither he nor McNully also never heard Orion pull one of his crew members aside and give him one of his gold earrings, explicitly instructing him to deliver it to Jules.

“She’ll need it, for the unbinding ceremony,” he said.

At dawn, the two Navies -- Royal and Pirate -- assembled for war. All of the Britiwhs Navy’s ships got into position, completely unaware of the trap that lay under their decks. The fleet of the pirates’ galleons and brigs -- including the Phoenix, Blackbird, Naga, and Treasure -- came up around the mouth of Shipwreck Cove like a wall, while the Revolution -- captained by Jules and assisted by her First Mate Bill, Jacob, and Ashe -- sailed out in front as the pirates’ flagship.

In the midst of all of this, the fleet of smaller ships were meant to retreat into the ranks of the larger ships, so as to offer support if any of the large ships were to fall and their crews needed to be rescued. But all of a sudden, the crew of the Artemis realized that Orion was nowhere to be found. Panic set in on deck as they searched for him, with crew members all frantically trying to figure out when they saw him last. It didn’t take long for McNully to put together where Orion had gone.

McNully wheeled his chair across the deck, looking with anxiety up at the HMS Lion, sailing just to the right of the Flying Dutchman.

Bounding up through the ocean waves still trimmed with fog, he caught sight of Orion steering the Artemis’s jollyboat into the Navy ship’s shadow.

Skye came up to the railing too. When she caught sight of the jollyboat too, she violently grabbed hold of the railing, her eyes very wide with horror.

“What’s he DOING?!”

“He’s going after the Admiral,” said McNully.

“The Admiral?” said Ben, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion.

Skye looked beside herself with anger and concern. “No, no, no, no, NO! Orion, you bloody dunce! Just because I said that your and Copper’s kind of ‘weird’ was helpful at the meeting doesn’t mean I wanted you to act on it in the middle of the goddamned battle!”

She whirled on McNully.

“We have to stop him! He’s going to get himself caught again -- ”

“There’s only a 21.3% chance of that,” McNully cut her off. “It’s a bit hard to be caught and stay caught when a sea battle is about to kick off. There’s a higher probability of him getting himself killed...”

The First Mate felt the urge to swear both out of frustration and out of anxiety, but he kept his head. He rolled his chair around to face the rest of the crew.

“Signal to the Kumiho and the rest of the fleet to continue with the retreat,” he told them. “We’re going after him.”

27 notes · View notes

averagesmw · 3 years

Text

Merula Snyde x MC- Back off, Parkin!

Game: Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery

____________________

Y/N L/N was a busy person, that was no secret. Whether it was being a student, investigating the cursed vaults, or even helping their friends in some wacky adventure, they always had something to do

Ironically, it wasn't often that Y/N got to chose what they wanted to do, so when they entered their house's Quidditch team, it was a welcome change to the formula

Somehow, they had managed to squeeze this new activity into the schedule. Nobody seemed to mind

Nobody but one person: Y/N's first enemy and the self-proclaimed greatest witch in Hogwarts

Merula Snyde started as an antagonist to Y/N, but as years went by, their dynamic went beyond that. They made a great team and actually had fun together and actively searched for each other's company

Some would even say that they had grown a bit too close

But then again, they were just rumors

Merula wandered out of the potions class, looking at a paper with the topics that were most likely to be in the next exam

It sounded tedious, but she was already planning on a way to make it fun. That plan required the assistance of a certain someone

Walking up the stairs, determined to find that person in the Great Hall considering it was the time most students used to eat something

When she got there, she was greeted by a crowd. An annoyed sigh left her lips as she entered

Like a hawk looking for its prey, Snyde looked at every face to see if it was the one she was looking for, but she was already halfway through the hall and no luck so far

When her main plan was failing, she resorted to the plan she liked the least, talking to other students for help

"Oi, Khanna!"

Her distinct yelling caught the attention of a certain bookworm. Rowan turned around to see Merula motioning them to come to her and reluctantly, they did

"What do you need, Merula?"

"Where is L/N? It's lunchtime"

Rowan adjusted their glasses before answering

"Oh, they're tutoring Skye Parkin"

This caught the witch by surprise, Y/N was not known for tutoring others outside of class

"Tutoring?"

"It's an agreement that they have"

Merula didn't quite know what to say to that. This sudden revelation threw her own plan out the window

Her previous hint of a smile haded at the same time, now replaced by a disconcerted look

Rowan then spotted the sheet of paper in her hand, their questions forcing Merula out of her trance

"Are those potion class notes? Do you want me to help you with that?"

Her purple eyes looked at the aspiring professor, not knowing what they were talking about until she remembered the object in her hand

She looked at it before giving a delayed answer

"...no, but... I appreciate it"

Without saying anything else, she abandoned the conversation. She didn't even feel like calling them names

Merula could use a hand with those topics, but Rowan Khanna was not who she wanted to help her

Not Rowan, not Penny, and surely not Barnaby. It might be selfish, but it was what she wanted

So Merula chose to hang out at the library by herself, it wouldn't be so bad, right?

The silence, the same material, again and again, the friends studying together...it was exhausting, even more, if done on your own

Going over her notes and trying her best not to fall asleep ironically, made the young witch fall asleep on one of the desks after the third hour

Needless to say, Madam Pince didn't take this kindly

After hours of studying and being kicked out of the library, Merula decided to call it a day and head back to her common room

Along the way, she walked down a hall that gave her a view of the training grounds. Nothing she hadn't seen a million times before

Except that this time, it featured Y/N L/N themselves flying on a broom

Seeing this familiar face hovering around immediately restored the energy she had lost in the library

She was about to run to them and call their name when suddenly, another broom emerged, this one under the control of the Quidditch rising star, Skye Parkin

Both of them were practicing under the supervision of Madam Hooch, laughing and making jokes while getting to try some maneuvers for Y/N to try in the next friendly

This sudden interruption stopped Merula in her tracks, yet her eyes didn't look away

Watching them fly around reminded Merula of the times she challenged her "rival" to a race and those times that she almost won

It was fun, but it felt like a million years had passed since then

Y/N was clearly busy and for better or for worse, having fun. Merula wanted to see Y/N and get their help, but now that she saw them having a good time..she wasn't so sure of her plan

Maybe... tomorrow?

Yes, perhaps the next day would prove better for her

...

It didn't prove better

Professor Snape divided the class into groups for the day so he could better focus on their potion-making to prepare them for their O.W.L.s

Merula's group was scheduled right after Y/N's

Of course it did

Fortunately, it didn't take as long. Merula was proficient in potions, so it wasn't much of a challenge

"Your potion is adequate, you can leave now, Snyde"

Snape told the girl, noticing her being somewhat absent. Under normal circumstances, he might ask what is wrong, but he had no time for it

Merula nodded and left the classroom without saying much. Once she did, she was met with a small crowd of students in the hall

Among them were Barnaby and Rowan. Merula thought she could ask again for Y/N's whereabouts but when the student saw her, they shook their head with a worried expression

A heavy sigh came from her accompanied by burrowed brows. This was getting exasperating

However, her stomach grumbled, there was another issue that required her attention

And this one, she could deal with much faster

The Great Hall was where the young lady decided to go next to satisfy her hunger. Fortunately, there weren't as many students

This proved to be both a good thing and a bad thing since the absence of many students only highlighted a certain girl with blue and black hair

At first, Merula didn't notice her until she got her food and when she did she nearly dropped it

In front of her was the sole responsible for her lack of quality time with Y/N. Sky Parkin was eating a sandwich without a care in the world

The greatest witch in Hogwarts felt the anger building up inside her the longer she looked at this girl

Considering that Skye isn't often in the Great Hall, it felt almost like a message to see her there, even if she wasn't even aware of Merula's presence

Without thinking it twice, she approached Miss Parkin, almost stomping her way to her

"Hey, Parkin!" A yell caught her attention

Skye, while still munching on her giant sandwich now looked at Merula with a questioning look

"Hmm?" Was all she could say, she was eating after all

But as soon as she got her attention, the anger in Merula was replaced by the sudden realization that she didn't even know what she was going to say

"I... What are you doing here?"

"Umm... eating?" She answered motioning at her food

It wasn't the best way to approach it, but Merula chose to continue. She had her attention now anyway

"I mean what are you doing outside of practice. I thought you and L/N practiced every day"

"We don't. Y/N is a busy person, but I also take breaks from time to time, you know?"

She dared say that Y/N was busy? She was taking them all to herself!

One of her eyes twitched in repressed anger, earning Skye's curiosity

She knew that Merula was a bit strange, but there eas something else happening there

"You alright? Or maybe you're looking for Y/N?"

This gained her attention immediately, she even put her hands on the table when looking at Skye

"Do you know where they are?"

"I thought they'd be hanging out with you"

Merula stepped away in defeat when she heard that, at least yesterday she knew where Y/N was, now not even Skye knew

"We can't since they spend all day with you"

Skye might not be the greatest when it comes to charms, but she was not stupid and was able to deduce what was going on with her as soon as she let out that careless line

With a mischievous smirk, the rising star of Quidditch decided to defeat Merula at her own game

"Well, they are handsome"

This odd dialogue made the witch look back at her

"What did you say?"

"And smart, they are a good tutor"

Hearing this coming from the person that took Y/N away from her only helped to piss Merula even further

"Shut up"

"And kind, so open to help, they're quite a catch"

Of course, Merula's name had been dropped by Y/N a couple of times when they practiced with Skye, so she had an idea of what their relationship was

But Merula being, well, her, wouldn't even entertain the idea just like that, so she had to be tricked

And tricked she was

When she heard all these compliments coming from Skye, she practically grabbed her by her shirt and looked her in the eye

"Back off, Parkin! Y/N is mine, alright!?"

She stopped when she realized what she had said, a hint of pink taking over her cheeks while Skye just looked at her, incredibly amused by this

The Great Hall wasn't as populated, so not many people noticed the scene, but that's when the young witch realized that she had just fallen into a trap to confess her own affection

So she let go of Skye but gave her the coldest of glares

"I hate you so much, Parkin"

She stormed out of the place without another word said, leaving behind a very satisfied Skye Parkin

She wouldn't understand what Y/N saw in her, but she felt glad that the feeling was mutual...in Merula's strange way

A couple of steps out of the Great Hall and the young slytherin's ears picked up on a familiar voice, Y/N's

She turned sharply to the left and sure enough, she found a tired curse breaker talking to a student just a couple of steps away

When they spotted the girl, Y/N smiled and waved at her. Normally, this would be enough to melt her heart even if she didn't want to admit it

But this time, it only made her stomp her way towards Y/N and grab them without even looking at them, she just dragged them away from their conversation like a grounded child

"H-Hey, what's wrong?"

Y/N asked as they were being dragged away. Looking, back they say Merula just walk mindlessly and silently

"Merula? Are you alright?"

Again, no answer

That's when Y/N decided to use their own strength and free themselves from her grip with little to no effort

"Merula! What's gotten into you?"

This snap made her look back at the student with a much softer gaze this time. It looked as if she was just dragging them away with no clear intension

"Huh? Oh, hey Y/N"

"Care to explain why did you drag me for like twenty seconds without saying anything?"

Y/N crossed their arms. They weren't angry, but they needed an answer

Upon realizing what she had just done, Merula found her cheeks turning pink again

"I ummm...I heard that you'll have another friendly tomorrow, just wanted to wish you luck"

This lie, while well-formulated, was hardly any real motive for an action like that

"Thanks...but that's now why you're here, is it?"

The slytherin sighed, knowing well that her lie wouldn't get past them

"I hate that you're so perceptive..." She mumbled to herself

Then, she found the courage to look at them, at least for a couple of seconds

"Look, I'm glad you found something to make you happy and relatively safe but...no, forget it"

She was struggling to keep herself together, no wonder her words made such contrast

"It's... ridiculous" she finally admitted

That's when she was startled by a hand on her shoulder, making Y/N get her attention

"There's no such thing as ridiculous in Hogwarts, Merula"

She gave him an unamused look, making the curse breaker chuckle at their own joke

"But seriously, I won't laugh"

Their soft gaze combined with the intrigue and care got the best of the girl, who let out one final sigh

"Fine..."

Purple eyes met e/c when she continued to talk, a more calm look to her as well. There was no turning back now

"Don't you think you're spending a bit too much time with Skye? I know she's your teammate, but still..."

The way she lost her strength at the end of that sentence helped Y/N get a much clearer picture. Of course, Merula's words were important, but it was her body language the one that truly spoke

"Look, Skye is awesome and talented when it comes to Quidditch"

That wasn't the best way to answer, she found her eyebrows furrowing at this

"...But she isn't who I'd take to a cursed vault, or a death-defying adventure"

Merula was surprised by a sneaky hand getting a hold of hers and quickly intertwining their fingers with hers

"And of course, she isn't who I chose to take on a date, isn't she?"

The slytherin was shocked by the calm way Y/N said it to her. There was no hint of doubt, lying, or even jealousy to them

They were clearly confident in every word they said

"You have nothing to worry about, Merula, nobody's going to take me away from you"

A quick kiss on the forehead followed that statement. This was enough to send her over the edge

Merula was receiving too much affection and didn't know how to respond. There wasn't any manual to it!

"What do you say tomorrow we do whatever you want? I think I owe it to you"

Y/N asked with that gentle smile of theirs and that tender gaze

Merula could hardly believe it. She had spent the last two days searching for Y/N and when they found her instead, they came off as incredibly kind and loving

It...it made it worth it

And honestly, it was something that she couldn't wait to see more of

"Yes, I think you owe it to me"

#hogwarts mystery jacob's sibling #mc x merula #jacob's sibling x merula #skye parkin

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the-al-chemist · 3 years

Text

Artemis Hexley and the Secret Staircase

Chapter 7: Plotting

A/N: background Bill Weasley simps are my favourite minor characters. Warnings: excessive numbers of Bill Weasley simps.

Saturday morning was cold and clear, with the sky the colour of a moonstone, and the sun reflecting on the white snow. The snow layer had grown thicker over the Christmas holidays, and the surface had frozen over, making a satisfying cracking noise every time Artemis’ feet hit the ground on her way to the training grounds to meet Bill.

Artemis’ friends had talked of nothing but Bill Weasley since he had agreed to help her earlier in the week, and she was starting to get a bit bored of hearing about him. Nevertheless, she couldn’t help but feel uncharacteristically anxious about meeting her new acquaintance. What if she said something stupid, or made a fool of herself trying to learn the spells he’d promised to teach her? What if he’d changed his mind altogether, and didn’t show up at all?

Thankfully, Bill was already at the training grounds when she arrived, along with two practice dummies and a group of third year Ravenclaw girls, who were all pretending not to watch him over the top of the game of Exploding Snap that they were not really playing.

“So,” he said, “I’ve been having a think about what sort of spells might be useful for you to learn. You’re obviously great in combat, but some defensive and healing spells wouldn’t go amiss, and some for general use, too.”

“Like what?”

“Have you done any summoning or banishing yet?”

“Is banishing like vanishing? I’ve done vanishing before,” Artemis told him.

“Vanishing?” Bill asked, his eyebrows shooting up. Artemis nodded. “Blimey, you are good at Transfiguration.”

“I’ve only managed chesspieces so far.”

“Even so, that’s good going,” said Bill. “Have you done much conjuring?”

“I don’t think so.”

“You should ask McGonagall to teach you some in your extra lessons. That’ll be more useful than changing owls into opera glasses, or whatever it is she’s planning on getting you to do next.”

“I can already change owls into opera glasses.”

“Of course you can,” Bill grinned. “Right, let’s get to work.”

Bill pulled some books out of his school bag, and taught Artemis to summon them, before teaching her the banishing spell, using the practice dummies as targets. As he did, a few more groups of girls started to linger around the edges of the training grounds, all of them watching the lesson unfold with various levels of interest.

Artemis ignored all of them, until she noticed that amongst them stood Merula Snyde, who was whispering fervently to a raven-haired girl who looked like she was probably as short as Artemis. Artemis squinted to see who Merula’s friend was, but the girl had her back turned, and she couldn’t see her face.

“Am I boring you, Artemis?” Bill asked her.

“No, I was just thinking... Could you use the banishing spell on a person?” Artemis asked him.

“You mean as a duelling spell?”

“Yeah, maybe, or just if someone won’t stop bothering you.”

“I don’t know,” said Bill, and he smirked at her. “Has anyone tried it on you before?”

“Hey!” Artemis said, and she scowled at Bill. Her eyes wandered back over to where Merula was standing with the girl whose face she still couldn’t see.

“Is that the Slytherin girl who gave you a hard time last year?” Bill asked, standing next to Artemis with his arms crossed.

“Last year, this year,” Artemis sighed. “She’s like it with everyone, though. It’s not like I’m getting special treatment.”

“Did she lock anyone else in a room with a Devil’s Snare, or was that just you?”

“You heard about that?”

“Everyone heard about that,” said Bill, with a wry smile. He unfolded his arms and held them out slightly from his sides. “Come on, then, give it a go.”

“Banishing you? You sure?”

Bill nodded, and Artemis pointed her wand at him, sweeping it through the air in a curved motion.

“Depulso!”

A pulse of yellow light emitted from Artemis’ wand, hitting Bill square in the chest. He was thrown backwards through the air, landing on the snow-covered grass almost twelve feet from where he had previously been standing. He landed on his feet, but the force of the spell had clearly knocked him off balance, and he immediately fell backwards.

“Bill!” Artemis shouted. Her wand arm fell to her side and ran over to him, crouching down by his side. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“I think you might have bruised my ego,” said Bill. He rose from the floor and massaged his right buttock. Behind him, one of the third year Ravenclaw girls watched him do so with her mouth wide open.

“But otherwise you’re okay?”

“I’m fine, Artemis, but maybe we’ll finish here for today,” Bill grinned. “I think it’s safe to say that the banishing charm works on people.”

“I’ll try it on Merula sometime,” said Artemis, and she looked around to get another look at Merula and the short girl, but they had already gone.

“What’s this girl’s problem with you, anyway?”

“She’s hated me from the start,” Artemis told Bill, “because of my brother, and the Cursed Vaults. She says she wants to find them, and that I’m getting in her way. Even though last year I saved her from the Cursed Ice.”

“That was kind of you. Bet you’re regretting it now, though,” said Bill. He winked at Artemis, and started to levitate the practice dummies back in the direction of the castle. “How did you manage it? Getting her out of the ice, I mean.”

“I flipendoed the ice off her.”

Bill laughed.

“I didn’t realise you could use ‘flipendo’ as a verb,” he said. “Interesting that the knockback jinx works on the ice, though.”

“It didn’t when Professor McGonagall tried to free Ben,” Artemis frowned. “But I suppose the ice had been there for longer by then, so it must have been harder to break apart.”

“What spell did McGonagall use to break the ice apart?”

“She didn’t, she burnt it away with flames from her wand. I don’t know the exact spell.”

“I think I do,” said Bill. “I’ll teach it to you tomorrow. Same time, same place.”

“Again?” Rowan asked. Her eyes were like dinnerplates as she stared at Artemis over the top of her library book. “Tomorrow?”

She must have spoken louder than she had intended to, as Madam Pince the librarian shushed her irritably.

“Bill’s going to teach me the fire spell McGonagall used to free Ben,” Artemis told her. “We didn’t have time today because we were doing summoning and banishing.”

“Summoning and banishing? In one morning?”

“What? I learnt how to vanish and and do the ‘Revelio’ spell in one evening.”

“I guess, but that was with Professor McGonagall.”

“Well, Bill is a really good teacher.”

“I bet he is,” said Rowan, in a very un-Rowan-like way. Artemis rolled her eyes.

“What have you been doing without me all morning, anyway?” she asked her.

“Well, I finished my star chart for Astronomy and my essay on the Medieval Assembly of European Wizards,” Rowan replied, sounding much more like her usual self again.

“Oh no, I forgot all about that essay.”

“I thought you might have done, so I’ve saved you my notes.”

“You’re my favourite person.”

“Wait, that’s not all,” said Rowan. “Remember Nearly Headless Nick told you about those Professors that were searching for the Cursed Vaults?”

“Bartholomew and Forty-something, right?”

“Fortinbras, yes,” Rowan nodded. “I found a book written by her.”

“You did? What was it about?”

“It was about using Charms to create maps,” said Rowan. “It’s pretty old. It was written around the same time as you said Nick said she was teaching here and setting up a group to search for the Vaults.”

“And?”

“Well, loads of students took it out then, but not since. Only about ten students have borrowed the book out in the past twenty years,” Rowan hesitated, and then pulled out a very old, leather-bound book with yellowing pages. She opened it up, and passed it to Artemis. “Look who was the last person to read it.”

“That’s your name, Rowan.”

“Before me,” said Rowan, shaking her head. “Honestly...”

Artemis looked at the name above Rowan’s on the list of students who had previously borrowed the book. She didn’t even need to read the name, because the handwriting was almost as familiar to her as her own. She traced the letters with the tip of her forefinger.

“I assumed that there weren’t many other J. O. Hexleys at Hogwarts in 1977,” said Rowan. “So I took the book out and read it.”

“Does it say anything about the Cursed Vaults?”

“No.”

Artemis sighed.

“So, what is it about?”

“Maps.”

“Maps?”

“Specifically, enchantments that make buildings unplottable, and how enchantments can create maps that change over time with the area or the building they are creating,” Rowan said. “She used Hogwarts Castle as an example. Because the castle is always changing.”

“Like the staircases.”

“Yes, and other things, too. The castle today is completely different now to how it was when the book was written. There’s a few maps of the castle in it -”

“How is that possible if the castle is unplottable?”

“They show the castle, but not where it is. It’s a loophole Fortinbras explains in the book,” Rowan’s eyes were bright with excitement behind her glasses. “The maps show how the floorplan of the castle has changed over time. It’s all fascinating, really. It’s a shame that more people haven’t read it.”

“I just don’t understand why my brother would have been interested in a book about maps, unless the maps pointed the way to the Cursed Vault.”

“Well, they might,” said Rowan, frowning. “According to the book, in any building that shifts, there are certain immovable structures that stay in the same location regardless of what happens around them. For Hogwarts, you’ve got the Great Hall, the Headmaster’s office, the library, and the common rooms. They all stay put, regardless of what happens around them. Which makes sense, doesn’t it? Those are all the places you don’t want to change, because they’re so important to the school.”

“Yes. Though I still don’t see what that has to do with the Cursed Vaults.”

“Fortinbras argues that there are other locations within the castle that may be immovable, and that these may be of some significance to the school as a whole.”

“They might contain the Cursed Vaults,” said Artemis, gasping as she realised what Rowan meant.

“Exactly. Places that are immovable are usually made so because they need to protect something important. The common rooms are obvious, because that’s where the students live, and the library, because what good is a school without books?”

“Rowan, you don’t think anything is any good without books.”

“Of course not, that goes without saying,” Rowan said, matter-of-factly. Artemis grinned at her. “It all makes sense, though, doesn’t it? That if the Vaults were built to protect something, whoever made them would make them immovable? I expect that’s why your brother was reading this book, in order to learn more about how to find the Cursed Vaults.”

“That must mean if you look at enough maps, you’ll find the areas of the castle that are the same on all of them,” said Artemis, and Rowan nodded. “Does the library have any maps as well as books?”

“Yes, but I took a look and there are hardly any of the castle, which is a bit surprising. I’m going to go looking in that room full of artefacts again tomorrow, maybe there’ll be some in there.”

“That’s a good idea, you could get Ben to help you look.”

Rowan’s face grew dark.

“I don’t know about that, Artemis,” she said.

“Oh, Rowan. Not this again,” Artemis replied. “Ben wouldn’t lie to us. He’s one of our best friends.”

But Rowan just pursed her lips, and returned to her book.

The next morning, Artemis returned to the training grounds, where again, Bill was already waiting.

“Do you ever turn up anywhere on time?” He asked her with a smirk.

“Only when I’m meeting someone I’m really looking forward to seeing.”

“Ouch,” said Bill. “You know, that hurt more than your banishing spell.”

“How is your bruised ego?”

“Still a little tender, so try not to embarrass me too much,” Bill winked and took his coat off. Artemis couldn’t help but imagine the reaction that would have gotten from her friends if they had been there to see it.

“I don’t think I can promise you that,” she replied, and Bill laughed loudly.

“Shall we crack on, then?” He said. Artemis nodded enthusiastically. “If I’m right, this is probably the spell you saw McGonagall use on the ice,” he raised his wand and pointed it away from Artemis. “Incendio!”

A jet of flames issued from his wand, curling and licking the air. From where she stood next to him, Artemis could feel the heat from the fire warming her face. Her eyes lit up.

“That’s exactly it,” she told Bill. “Can I have a go?”

“Absolutely. It might be a bit tricky, though, if you’ve never done any conjuring before.”

“I don’t mind.”

“I know, I’m just saying, don’t beat yourself up if you don’t get it right the first time.”

Artemis rolled her eyes at Bill, but as soon as he started to teach her the fire-making spell, she realised that it was not as easy as he and Professor McGonagall made it look. Her first attempt at casting the spell produced only a single flickering flame and a burst of smoke.

“Okay, that’s not bad,” said Bill.

“It’s not good, either,” Artemis muttered, scowling at her wand.

“I did tell you it was difficult,” Bill laughed. “Come on, stop sulking and have another go.”

Still frustrated that she had been unable to cast a spell on her first attempt, and even more peeved by Bill’s comment about her sulking, she took a deep breath and raised her wand again.

“Incendio!”

This time, the spell worked even better than she had anticipated. Her wand produced a burst of flames, which shot out in a blazing stream of heat and light, hitting one of the practice dummies and setting it on fire.

“Bloody hell, Artemis,” said Bill, recoiling from her slightly. “You’re meant to be conjuring flames, not committing arson!”

“I thought I did quite well.”

“If anything, you did too well. Maybe tone it down a little next time, yeah?” He pointed his wand at the inferno that used to be a practice dummy, and shouted: “Aguamenti!”

His wand produced a fountain of water, which extinguished the flames, leaving the dummy blackened and smoking. Artemis turned to Bill and looked at him sheepishly.

“Perhaps you ought to teach me that one, too.”

Conjuring water was about as difficult as conjuring flames, but Artemis managed to get the hang of both, often making Bill jump backwards to avoid the fire and water that issued from her wand.

“I think you need to practise controlling the strength of your spells,” said Bill, after Artemis unintentionally set fire to a second practice dummy, then knocked it over with the force of the water jet she used to douse the flames. “Definitely get McGonagall to go through more conjuring spells with you. Also, make sure you read up on curses and counter curses, and pay attention in Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts. I know Professor Topsy isn’t a great teacher, but he does actually know what he’s talking about when he’s sober enough to string a full sentence together.”

“Then can we go and break the curse?”

Bill sighed.

“Yes, Artemis, then we can go and break the curse.”

Artemis asked Professor McGonagall to teach her conjuring spells that Wednesday night.

“I was intending to cover some more intermediate switching spells this evening,” McGonagall said, “but I dare say you could possibly manage some very simple conjurations. Let me have a think, and we can do some conjuring next week.”

Artemis tried to argue, but McGonagall remained unmoved, and so the next hour was spent learning how to switch a rabbit and a top hat, something that she didn’t think would impress Bill in the slightest.

For the next week, Artemis, as Bill had suggested, worked particularly hard in her Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts lessons, and spent every spare minute of the day either practising every defensive spell she knew, or reading about curses in the library with Rowan. By the time her next evening class with Professor McGonagall came around, she was able to conjure a fleet of small blue birds with such ease that McGonagall ended the lesson after only half an hour.

Her hard work didn’t just go unnoticed by the transfiguration teacher. After her next herbology class, Professor Sprout, the head of Hufflepuff house, called her to the side and praised her dedication to her studies, awarding her five house points. Unfortunately, she wasn’t the only one to want to talk to Artemis after the class.

“So, I’ve heard that Merula is after you again.” Penny said to her as they walked back from the greenhouse to the Great Hall for lunch.

“Isn’t she always?” Artemis rolled her eyes. “What’s her problem now?”

“Well, I spoke to Andre Egwu who was told by Badeea Ali that Liz Tuttle overheard Merula talking to Barnaby Lee and Ismelda Murk in the Slytherin Common Room,” Penny said breathlessly.

“You’ve lost me, but do go on,” replied Artemis. “What was she saying to Badeea or Barnaby or whoever it was?”

“Apparently she was saying how she is determined to show you how powerful she is.”

“Merula always wants to show everyone how powerful she is.”

“Yes, but she’s particularly annoyed that you beat her in front of the whole year when you two duelled last year,” Penny continued. “Basically, she wants a rematch.”

Artemis made a noise of contempt.

“I’m not duelling Merula again. I spent a month cleaning the castle for Filch last time, and if I’m caught breaking rules Professor McGonagall might stop our extra lessons, and Bill said that it’s really important that I carry on practising conjurations,” she told Penny. “Besides, I only duelled her in the first place because she was so foul to Ben.”

“I’m just telling you what I heard,” Penny shrugged. “The thing is, when it comes to duelling Merula, you may not get a choice. And, um, she’s apparently been learning to duel from the Slytherin prefect. You remember Rosier, from Hagrid’s party?”

Artemis nodded. Penny sighed.

“Maybe you should talk to Jane about it,” she suggested. “She’s been helping you to duel, hasn’t she?”

“She has,” said Artemis.

“Just see what she thinks,” Penny smiled, and linked her arm with Artemis. “You know, I’m only trying to look out for you. I don’t want Merula to hurt you.”

“Thanks, Penny. Talking of Merula, do you know who her new friend is? I saw her with a dark-haired girl the other weekend.”

“I didn’t think she had any friends. Maybe it was Ismelda?”

“Isn’t Ismelda the one who looks a bit like Snape? Because this girl was a lot shorter than her, maybe even as short as me.”

“I don’t think anyone in our year is as short as you. No offence.”

“None taken.”

“She might be a first year,” said Penny. “I’ll have a think, though. As long as you make sure to talk to Jane.”

Artemis talked to Jane Court that evening in the Hufflepuff common room.

“You know, after all the coaching I’ve given you, you should be more than capable of taking on this Merula girl again,” Jane said to her.

“That’s what I thought. Besides, I have no intention of taking on anyone,” replied Artemis. “It’s just that Penny made me promise to talk to you about it, that’s all.”

“Why?”

“Apparently Merula’s been getting coaching from her prefect, too. Rosier.”

“I know Rosier. He’s alright, for a Slytherin, but he’s got some Death Eater family like she does, and he’s a very powerful dueller. I’ve duelled him myself,” said Jane.

“Did you win?”

“Only just,” Jane looked thoughtful for a few moments. “I reckon you should practise duelling against someone more experienced.”

“I’ve duelled Bill Weasley.”

“Did you win?”

“Yes,” Artemis nodded. “He said it was a tie, but -”

“So it was a tie, then,” Jane muttered. “Right, that’s it. You’re duelling me, properly.”

“Now?”

“Obviously not right now. Wait until everyone’s cleared off, then we can see what you’re made of.”

Jane made sure that not only all the other students had left the common room, but also that Professor Sprout’s plants were moved safely out of the way before Artemis was allowed to have a go at duelling her.

“This isn’t a coaching session, remember,” she said. “I’m not going to go easy on you like I usually do.”

“That’s fine,” said Artemis. “I’m not going to go easy on you, either.”

Jane laughed, and immediately vollied a spell at Artemis that knocked her to the floor.

“Hang on, that’s cheating!” Artemis said as she climbed back onto her feet. “We hadn’t started, and you didn’t call out an incantation, even.”

“You think this Merula is going to give you a warning?” Jane asked, and Artemis sullenly shook her head. “But you’re right, I doubt she’s done any non-verbal magic yet. Let’s try again.”

Artemis had practised sparring with Jane several times during their coaching sessions, but she had never duelled the prefect properly, not like she was now. Jane was an even more formidable opponent than Bill had been, and Artemis struggled to hold her own against her.

“You need to be faster than that, Artemis,” Jane said, as Artemis tried and failed to dodge her curse, and was knocked backwards, landing on a pile of scatter cushions. “You lost, I’m afraid.”

A thought struck Artemis, and she stood back up and faced Jane again, wand raised, looking the older girl in the eye unwaveringly.

“I want one more go,” she told Jane.

“Eyes on my wand, then.”

“No,” said Artemis. “I’m going to try it my way.”

Jane raised her eyebrows, but she shrugged and also took up a duelling stance. She went to use her wand against Artemis, but Artemis anticipated the spell, and immediately cast the shield charm, defending herself against the attack.

The second duel against Jane was faster and fiercer than the first, but, this time, Artemis found herself more than able to keep up, and she even managed to overpower her prefect in less time than it had taken for Jane to beat her.

“Well, I never,” Jane muttered, after Artemis disarmed her, ending the duel. Her prefect was staring at her with a mixture of confusion and shock. “Artemis, you won. How did you manage that?”

“Oh, well, when I duelled Bill the other week, I found that I was much quicker when I looked at his face rather than his wand. So I thought I might be with you, as well. I know it’s not what you taught me, but -”

“It’s certainly unconventional,” said Jane, nodding sagely. “But it works for you, clearly.”

Jane picked up her wand and with a wave of it she wordlessly rearranged the furniture in the common room.

“We’re done, are we?” Artemis asked, ducking under a plant pot as it soared back to its usual spot on a shelf behind where she was standing.

“You won, Artemis,” replied Jane. “And it wasn’t even close. I don’t think you need me to coach you at all anymore. Now, why don’t you go back to your dormitory and tell your friends all about how you beat me?”

Jane was being very brusque, even by her standards. Artemis frowned.

“I won’t tell anyone if you don’t want me to,” she said.

“You don’t want the whole school to know that you’re capable of beating a final year prefect?”

Artemis shrugged.

“I don’t really care,” she said. “The whole school kept talking about me all the time last year. I didn’t really enjoy it all that much.”

“Right. Well, I’d certainly appreciate it if you didn’t. I have reputation to uphold, you know,” Jane smirked. “It might be harder for me to keep the firsties in line if they know that I can be out-duelled by a second year.”

“Your secret’s safe with me, Jane. And Rowan, too, of course.”

“Of course.”

#hogwarts mystery #hphm #hphm fic #bill weasley #artemis hexley #rowan khanna

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alice-beaumont-ravenclaw · 4 years

Text

A Night to Remember (Part 2)

A/N #1: Here is part 2 of the Celestial Ball fic! This is where all the dance and the romance is! Aaaah, Charlie and Alice... Will they? Won’t they? If you want to know, you’ll need to read on! Also, if you want to see Alice’s full outfit, CLICK HERE. If you want to know which music to listen to during various moments of the fic, CLICK HERE. (Oh, and there is a certain reference to a pants problem I had when drawing the art below...) Other parts in the series: You’ve Got a Friend in Me | Distraction | Something There | One Step Closer | Fashion Emergency | Get Your Head in the Game | Der Walzer von Alice | Of Quidditch and Ballgowns | From Paris, with Love | A Night to Remember (Part 1)

Alice was looking down at her half-eaten sandwich, playing with some crumbs that had fallen to the plate’s side. She rolled them between her fingers, lost in her thoughts.

“Alice!” said Rowan, waving her hand in front of her friend’s face to get her attention.

“Huh? Oh! How long have you been here?” asked Alice, looking at her friend sitting next to her.

“I just arrived. You seem perturbed. What’s bothering you?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe the fact I’ll be dancing in front of thousands of people in just a few hours.”

Alice’s tendency to exaggerate always made Rowan smile. “Well, actually, taking into account that there is a max amount of 5 people per dorm, ten people per house per year, meaning 40 people per year… This means 200 students, minus the prefects and head boy/head girl on the dance floor, meaning 174 but adding the professors, which means about 13, plus Filch, Hagrid, Madam Pomfrey and Madam Pince, that makes about 191. And you also have to think the other prefects might not necessarily go with a fellow prefect like you and Charlie. Not to mention students who are not coming… So you’ll be dancing in front of about 180 people, which represents 18% of a thousand.”

“That makes it so much better,” grumbled Alice, laying her head on the table.

“It’s not that much, Alice,” pointed out Rowan.

“Easy for you to say… If I recall, you told Bill you were willing to practice with him at the beginning, but you would not be his date because there is no way you will dance in front of a crowd…”

“I wouldn’t dance in front of a crowd of 10, to be honest, but that’s me. You are Alice Beaumont, Curse-Breaker extraordinaire. Nothing scares you!”

“Dancing is not like dealing with a Vault, Roro…”

“Roro?”

“Trying something new.”

“Don’t.”

“Ok,” replied Alice, a small smile spreading her lips.

“Ah! I see a smile!”

“Yeah, yeah, alright. I guess I’ll survive. At least I’m dancing with a friend, so no pressure on that side. And Tulip is there to deal with Merula, so that’s being taken care of as well. I guess all that’s left to do is hope for the best…” said Alice, slowly raising her head from the table. “Speaking of Tulip, do you know what happened to Filch?”

“I heard he’s in the infirmary with boils on his face… It also seems like he doesn’t know where the liquid that fell on him came from.”

“Lucky break…” whispered Alice.

“There you are!” said Andre, standing in front of her.

“What do you mean, ‘there you are?’ You’re the one who told me to go eat.”

“That was an hour ago! It’s time to get ready. Chop, chop!” he said, clapping his hands.

“The ball is still in a few hours…” started saying Alice as she got up from the bench.

“Exactly! We need to put you in your dress, do your hair and your makeup… We need to start now, or you’ll be late for the ball!” said Andre before walking away while looking at a pocket watch.

“At least he didn’t say that I was going to be late for a very important date…” mumbled Alice as she walked out the Great Hall.

Alice was back in Andre’s dorm, sitting on his bed as he had told her to wait for him there while he brought Charlie his suit. Talbott had gone to the common room, so Alice was all alone. She noticed that Quidditch magazines were mixed in with fashion publications on Andre’s nightstand, while some old books were on Talbott’s. While Talbott’s side of the dorm was barely decorated, Andre’s walls were covered in posters, and most were of the Pride of Portree. There was also a small picture with an autograph on it. The only thing she could read was “Westwood,” the woman’s surname, she assumed. Two very different personalities were sharing a dorm…

“Finally, I’m ready for your makeover,” said Andre as he entered the dorm.

“Took you long enough. Was there something wrong with Charlie’s outfit?”

“Hum… Let’s just say there was a situation with the pants. A slight sewing problem, really, but really needed to be fixed. Anyway, here, go put this on,” said Andre, handing Alice a garment bag.

Alice took the bag and headed towards the bathroom. “What was wrong with Charlie’s pants?” she asked after a few moments from inside the bathroom.

“Hum… Let’s just say that he looked very excited about the ball?”

Alice’s head appeared from a small gap in the door. “Huh? How could pants show excitement?”

“You know…” he replied, raising his eyebrows.

“Hum, no, I don’t. I’m not an expert like you in fashion,” she said, zipping up the side of her dress as she left the bathroom.

“You sweet, innocent child,” Andre said, pinching his friend’s cheek.

“Ow!” Alice rubbed her cheek, glaring at Andre.

“Sorry,” he said, taking a step back to look at Alice in his creation. “Merlin, I’m good.”

“Ok, great, the dress looks good, but do I look good in the dress?”

“You look great! But I’m still not done with you. By the time your entire look is completed, you will look like a vision. Now, sit,” he said, pulling out the chair in front of his desk. “First, the hair.”

Andre stretched his fingers and rolled his shoulders as if he was preparing for the most daunting task of his life. After stretching his neck, he promptly took a hairbrush and started brushing Alice’s hair after he had removed the headband she was wearing. He went through her hair with swift movements. Once her hair was brushed to his satisfaction, he took out a comb and started parting her hair. Taking the hairs framing her face, he started braiding them, adding strands of hair as he went further towards the back of her head. Little beads of sweat began to form on his forehead, but he hastily wiped them off. As the two braids joined each other, he used a flick of his wand to make them stay together. He then removed the silver threads from the tiara Alice’s grandmother had gifted her. He carefully placed the tiara right below the braid, and once again flicked his wand to make the tiara stay in place without the help of the threads.

After admiring his handiwork for a few seconds, he turned the chair around so Alice would face him. He took out the blush and mascara Penny had lent him. He also pulled out a blush brush from his desk. Alice didn’t bother asking him why he had such a brush in his possession. He dipped the brush lightly in the blush and started applying it to Alice’s cheeks delicately. He then got out the mascara and started applying it slowly to Alice’s eyelashes.

“This is going to take forever,” grumbled Alice as her eyes started to water while he did the lower lashline.

“You can’t rush art,” replied Andre.

After applying the mascara, he took out a lipstick, which was a very pale shade of pink, and started dabbing it on Alice’s lips using his finger. He took a step back and quickly grabbed a handkerchief to remove some of the mascara that had stained Alice’s lower eyelids. He then put her jewelry on, before standing away to take a good look at his fashion protégé.

“I feel like Professor Higgins…” said Andre, looking at Alice.

“I don’t know him… What subject does he teach?” asked Alice, looking up at Andre.

“Well... he’s a fictional character,” replied Andre. “Anyway, all you need now is to put on the shoes, and you’ll be ready.”

“I’ll put them on in the common room. There is no way I’m going down five flights of stairs in those, especially not in a narrow spiral staircase,” she said, leaving the dorm bare feet, holding her shoes in her hand.

“Don’t leave without me!” shouted Andre as the door was closing behind her.

Alice rapidly descended the narrow staircase until she finally arrived in the almost empty common room. Only Talbott was there, reading his book.

“Has everyone left already?” asked Alice.

“Yes, it was very noisy when everyone was getting ready to leave, and the first and second years were gawking at everyone,” said Talbott, looking up from his book. “Are bare feet the new trend in formalwear?”

“Haha, very funny. I told Andre I would put my shoes in here,” said Alice, showing the shoes she was holding as she sat down. “So even the younger students left?”

“Yeah, they all wanted to see everyone’s evening looks,” said Talbott as he took a closer look at Alice. “Hmm, Andre outdid himself.”

“Was I such an ugly duckling before?” asked Alice, glancing at him as she tightened the strap of her shoes around her ankles.

“That’s not what I meant…” started saying Talbott, flustered.

“I know. I’m messing with you, Winger,” replied Alice before sticking her tongue out.

“I’m ready,” said Andre as he entered the common room.

“Wow, you changed quickly,” said Alice as she got up.

“Well, when you look this good…” started saying Andre, tugging at his jacket’s lapel.

Alice lightly punched his shoulder. “Stop bragging, or we might be late to the ball.”

“Milady,” said Andre, extending his arm for her to take.

“Fine… But it’s only because I’m wearing heels,” said Alice as she took his arm.

They stepped out and saw the younger students gawking at what was going on downstairs from the gallery. As they started passing them, some turned to see, and many of the girls were impressed by Alice’s outfit.

“She looks like a princess,” Alice heard one girl whisper to her friend.

“Oh lord… Andre, maybe this is too much,” whispered Alice.

“Just enjoy it, Alice. Tonight, you shall be the belle of the ball,” said Andre, gently squeezing her hand.

As they started to descend the moving staircase, Alice could hear the chatter coming from downstairs. She and Andre were the only ones in the stairs as the ball was about to begin. She heard Tonks’s distinct laugh as they were one staircase away from joining their friends.

Andre quickly released her arm. “Stay here,” he said, before going down a few steps to stand at the top of the stairs that led to the entrance hall. He cleared his throat to get their friends’ attention.

“Andre! Took you long enough! The ball is about to start. Where is Alice?” asked Penny.

“She is right here,” said Andre, looking in Alice’s direction, giving her a small nod as her signal to come into view before quickly going down the stairs himself.

Alice took a deep breath and slowly started to go down the stairs leading to the top landing of the final staircase. She felt uneasy in high heels, and the last thing she wanted to do was to fall. She finally arrived at the top of the stairs and turned to see her friends.

“Oh! Alice!” exclaimed Penny while Tonks wolf-whistled.

Charlie was talking with Barnaby, his back to Alice. Barnaby, who had a little bowtruckle embroidered on his lapel, looked up and stopped paying attention to Charlie, staring at his friend who was slowly coming down the staircase. Charlie turned around, and his eyes widened when he saw Alice. His mouth remained slightly open as he looked at her every move as she carefully came down the stairs. As she stepped down the last stair, Andre lent her his arm once more and brought her to Charlie, who just kept staring in awe.

“Oh, Charlie! You look great in your suit!” said Alice as she looked at Charlie, who was wearing a dark navy Regency-style tailcoat with a high collar and two silver dragons adorning the front, paired with red pants, and black leather derby shoes.

“Huh? What?” said Charlie as if coming out of a trance. “Oh! Thanks! You look great too!”

“The ball is about to begin,” announced McGonagall, standing at the Great Hall’s entrance. “All the students should be inside, except for the Headboy and girl, the prefects, and the students accompanying them.”

“Good luck,” said their friends as they went inside the Great Hall, while Alice, Charlie, and Bill took their position in the line of students that were going to open the ball.

Bill took his position at the front with his date, while Alice and Charlie were at the back of the line as they were only 5th-year prefects. Charlie raised his hand, and Alice delicately placed hers on his. They glanced at each other before looking back in front of them, taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm their nerves. They heard the music starting, and Bill immediately started to walk into the Great Hall, followed by the other students. Charlie and Alice looked at each other before taking their first steps into the Hall.

The Great Hall was full of students in formal attire who were all standing around the dancefloor, observing the prefects’ arrival. Alice noticed Merula staring at her and looking surprised, while Diego, who was standing next to her, gave the pair two thumbs up as a sign of encouragement. Alice and Charlie took their position on the dancefloor along with the others, Alice placing her hand on Charlie’s shoulder while he put his on her waist.

“Ready?” he whispered.

“No?”

“Me neither… Well, let’s hope for the best. At least we’re together,” whispered Charlie, to which Alice nodded.

There was a slight pause in the music before it started again, indicating to the dancer that it was time to waltz. The couples started to sway to the music before starting to move around the dancefloor. It looked like a scene straight out of a period movie to the Muggle-borns. For students less familiar with the Muggle world, it looked more like something straight out of the stories their grandparents used to tell. Then, as the music became louder, the leads lifted their partners while turning, allowing the audience to see the magnificent gowns the ladies were wearing. Alice and Charlie kept looking into each other’s eyes, trying to forget all the people who were looking at them. Looking into Charlie’s warm brown eyes made Alice feel better, while his reassuring smile made her heart beat faster.

As they were dancing, their friends were observing them.

“Oh, look! Alice is blushing!” whispered Penny to Andre as she nudged him with her elbow.

“Are you sure it’s not Andre who put too much blush on her cheeks,” whispered Tonks, smirking.

“Unlike you, I have some talent when it comes to applying makeup,” whispered back André.

“Touché,” said Tonks before laughing.

“Look! He just made her twirl in front of us, and they completely ignored us. It’s like they’re in their own world,” pointed out Tulip.

“Can’t believe Alice was worried about the dance all this time,” whispered Rowan. “They look so graceful together.”

“Isn’t it romantic,” whispered Badeea as she sketched on a small pad.

“Are you actually sketching during a ball?” asked Ben.

“Of course! How many other balls will I get to see in my lifetime?” replied Badeea as the ladies were lifted once more by their partners.

The music eventually slowed down a bit, allowing others to join. The first to enter the dancefloor were Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall, who were soon joined by other students, including Merula and Diego, as well as Penny and Andre. Soon the dancefloor was filled with students, as well as some professors, waltzing. While Diego was supposed to be the lead, he felt like Merula was making him dance more quickly than the others. He soon realized she was trying to catch up to Beaumont and Weasley. Annoyed, he made a sharp turn so that they would dance further away from the couple. Andre and Penny kept looking over at their two friends, who were now both blushing, though neither seemed to be aware of it.

“One Galleons that he asks her out tonight,” said Penny to her partner.

“Two that they have their first kiss tonight,” replied Andre.

Most of their other friends had remained on the side, Rowan and Ben refusing to dance in front of so many people, while Badeea kept sketching. Tulip and Tonks danced together on the side, laughing as they tried to lift each other and failed. Rowan observed her best friend, smiling, as she swayed to the music. She was happy to see Alice thinking about something other than the vaults.

The leads spun their partners before catching them at the waist. All the skirts twirling on the dancefloor made for a dizzying spectacle as the couples whirled around the dancefloor, at varying speed, depending on the music. At last, the music became louder and slightly faster as it approached the end, making the couples dance a bit more quickly, making them all seem like a blur to the audience. As the music ended, the dancers curtsied to their partners.

Alice and Charlie looked at each other with a smile of relief. They held each other’s hands before hugging each other in a tight embrace.

“Well, you two were quite the pair,” said Andre as he made his way towards them with Penny.

“Is there a piece of gossip I should start spreading around?” added Penny grinning.

“What are you talking about?” asked Alice, looking at the blond Hufflepuff.

Charlie looked at his friends, annoyed. They were not even trying to be subtle anymore. “Just ignore them,” he said, placing an arm around her waist. “We should go to our table.”

Charlie guided Alice to one of the prefects’ tables, where Bill was also sitting with his date, under the watchful eyes of Penny and Andre.

“Hmmm, I’m afraid we might lose our wagers,” said Andre as they made their way to their table.

“Don’t be so sure, the night is still young,” said Penny, smirking.

After dinner, the Weird Sisters took their place on the stage and started playing their hit song (and the only song Alice had ever heard them play), “Do the Hippogriff.”

Many of the students went to the dance floor and started to dance to the rhythm of the music. Alice could see Penny, Andre, Tonks, and Tulip shaking their heads to the rhythm while jumping. Bill led his date to the dance floor, while Charlie and Alice remained seated, the Ravenclaw beating the tempo of the music with her fingers on the table.

From the corner of his eye, Charlie noticed Barnaby approaching their table. While Charlie didn’t like the idea of dancing again in front of everyone, he took Alice’s hand and led her to the dance floor. There was no way Barnaby Lee was going to cut in on his time with Alice. Especially not if it was to dance with her. As they joined the group of dancing students, he made her do an inside turn, before they started to shimmy to the beat, smiling at each other.

When the song ended, and they started to go back towards their table, Penny grabbed Alice’s arm and whispered something in her ear, while Andre and Charlie were having a conversation about Quidditch.

“Wait, how did you manage to…” started saying Alice as she heard the Weird Sister play the first notes of a song she knew all too well, along with nearly all Muggle-borns and many half-bloods.

“It took some convincing, but I managed to make them include some Muggle song in tonight’s repertoire, even if Myron didn’t find them dark enough to his taste,” replied Penny as she dragged her friend near the front of the stage.

“I really would love to know what you used to convince him to play Ghostbusters,” said Alice as they started to dance.

“Oh, that one was easy. I had to get creative for Footloose and Y.M.C.A.”

“Wait… THE Weird Sisters are going to play Y.M.C.A.?!”

“Yup! But Myron’s not going to sing that one. No amount of blackmail… uh, I mean, convincing, would make him sing a fun song.”

“Who will?”

“Who else?” said Penny, nodding in Diego’s direction, who seemed busy warming up his voice while Merula was giving him the cold shoulder and pouting.

“What’s up with Snyde?”

“Eh, ignore her. She’s just pissed because you were the center of attention.”

“I was not! Everyone is wearing such gorgeous outfits. I nearly asked Andre if he designed everyone’s outfit.”

“You are too precious. Honestly, though, you and Charlie probably have the best outfits. Barnaby was so jealous of the two silver dragons on his chest. And I heard a lot of murmurs about a certain sparkling blue dress, not to mention your tiara. You two looked like a couple straight out of a fairytale or a period drama.”

Alice shrugged at that last comment as she kept dancing to Ghostbusters. Andre had also hinted at the whole fairytale scenario. She didn’t know what her friends were on about with the whole fairytale thing. Charlie wasn’t a prince, and she was no princess either, at least not literally. Maybe it was the tiara? Perhaps it was her tendency to read fairytales? But it wasn’t because she read fairy tales that she necessarily believed in the unrealistic love stories found in them. Anyway, no one said anything about love, right?

With these thoughts in mind, she glanced towards Charlie, who was sitting at a table, deep in conversation with Andre and Barnaby. As if on cue, he looked in her direction at that moment, and their eyes met. He smiled at her; she smiled back. As she did so, she felt her heart thumping faster and a warm sensation enveloping her body. She started to feel as if there were too many people around her as they all did the Y.M.C.A moves. Her chest was tightening, making it hard to breathe. She quickly made her way out of the crowd, Penny trying to catch up to her, to no avail.

Alice opened the door leading to the Entrance Hall, and quickly closed it behind her. She leaned against it, holding her hand over her chest as she tried to catch her breath. She didn’t understand what had happened. Maybe she was getting sick? She placed a hand on her forehead. No, her temperature seemed normal. Maybe there were just too many people…

She made her way toward the courtyard, hugging herself to keep warm in the Scottish winter. She stood at the edge of the courtyard, looking up at the starry night sky.

“Nothing beats the real thing, huh?” said someone behind her as a jacket was placed on her shoulders.

She turned her head and saw Charlie standing beside her.

“I wanted to make sure you were alright. You ran out of there looking frantic,” he said, looking at her worriedly.

“Oh, I didn’t mean to worry you. I just felt like… Like I was suffocating? I don’t know… I just kept hearing my own heartbeat and feeling hot. My head was just telling me to get out,” tried to explain Alice.

“Well, as long as you are ok now,” said Charlie, glancing in her direction as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Mmm, I am, thanks… You can go back to the ball. Wouldn’t want you to miss all the fun on my account.”

“Nah, it’s fine. Diego commandeered a guitar and started singing in Spanish… Something about a bamboleo? Or is it a bambolea? Either way, many girls are swooning over him. Anyway, I’d much rather spend time with you,” he said with a shy smile, a blush appearing on his cheeks.

“Oh! Hum… Thanks,” replied Alice, looking back at the star as she felt her heartbeat quicken again, and her face, unbeknownst to her, had become redder.

Charlie stared at her. Was Alice Beaumont blushing? Could she possibly have feelings for him? “I liked dancing with you this evening,” said Charlie, trying to break the silence.

“Me too,” replied Alice, still looking up at the sky.

“I’m happy I got to dance with you…”

“Me too.”

“Too bad we’ll probably never do it again…”

“What do you mean?” asked Alice, suddenly looking at him.

“Well, I don’t think we’ll ever attend a ball again,” pointed out Charlie.

“Oh, right,” replied Alice, looking down.

“Well, we could have one last dance…”

“Not sure I want to go back in there,” said Alice, nodding in the Great Hall’s direction.

“Who said anything about going back in there? We have the courtyard all to ourselves; the night sky matches the theme way better than all the decorations in the Hall…”

“Hey! We put a lot of effort into those decorations!”

“I meant that they couldn’t beat the real thing.”

“True… But there is one problem: no music.”

“So? We practiced plenty of time without music,” said Charlie, extending his hand to her.

Alice looked at his hand, then into his eyes. She smiled as she shook her head, taking his hand. “Fine. Just let me put on your jacket properly, unless…”

“Nah, I’m fine. A turtleneck plus the gloves should keep me warm enough,” he said, taking her hand and leading her outside after she had put on his jacket.

Alice placed her hand on his shoulder, while he gently placed his free hand on her waist as they had done earlier, but this time, there was no pressure. They were just together. They started to sway together in the courtyard, slowly going around the fountain. The only sound they could hear was the wind and a little bit of the music coming from the Great Hall. The only witnesses to their dance were the stars twinkling in the sky. Charlie made Alice turn, making her skirt twirl, and the sparkles on it looked as if they were trying to compete with the stars as they glittered. He then caught her and lifted her, turning around as he did so, her hands resting on his shoulders as she looked down at him, smiling. Gently putting her back on the ground, they went on waltzing around the courtyard, a shy smile on their faces as they kept looking into each other’s eyes. They were in their own world, the heavens watching over them with benevolence. Charlie was lost in her green eyes, remembering the first time he had noticed her in this very courtyard when she had duelled Merula by stuffing her wand up the Slytherin’s nose. Alice looked at his smile and thought of the time he had caught her in his arms in Hogsmeade. She recalled being a bit mad when he had made fun of her book, but who could stay angry at someone with such an endearing smile. Not to mention he had helped her so many times since that day. Writing essays on creatures, finding the forest vault… He was always by her side…

They slowly stopped dancing, staring into each other’s eyes. Charlie leaned in closer to her, wrapping his arms around her waist, their faces nearing each other. As she looked at his lips coming closer, she started to close her eyes when…

“Alice!” shouted Rowan from the doorway.

Charlie and Alice stepped away from each other as if suddenly remembering where they were.

“Alice! I’ve been looking everywhere for you! We still have some packing to do for tomorrow!” shouted Rowan as she hugged herself to keep herself warm. “What are you doing out in the cold? You could catch a cold!”

“I’m coming,” said Alice as she started to walk towards her friend, before turning towards Charlie. “Oh, your jacket…”

“Keep it,” said Charlie, looking at her with tenderness in his eyes.

She looked at him for a moment. “Thanks,” she said with a small smile before walking back inside with Rowan.

A/N #2: Well, looks like Charlie didn’t kiss the girl this time around, but maybe Alice is realizing something... Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it! Feel free to leave a comment, and know that I am always open to constructive criticism. I’m not sure yet what my next fic will be. Maybe a musical sequel to this (mostly because I know a song that would fit so well after the events of this fic). Oh, and if you are wondering why Ghostbusters seems like a special song for Alice and Penny, read this fic. For the fic where Alice stuffs her wand up Merula’s nose, CLICK HERE. For the fic where Charlie catches Alice in his arms, CLICK HERE.

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6ftslytherin · 3 years

Text

Side A

Merula Snyde woke up to the sound of stairs squeaking. She lifted her hand to her face and wiped her eyes. She had half a mind to pull the cover of her sleeping bag higher. Sleeping some more didn't seem so bad.

Then she heard the little girl she was sharing the room with run out the door. Of course Ginny would be excited. Christmas with the family is always a good time. Not that Merula had a Snyde family Christmas in a long time.

"Merula." Merula sat up slowly. She looked to her right. Sabine was squatting next to her. She was already fully dressed. She wore nothing special, a short sleeve grey v-neck and cuffed blue jeans. Knowing her, that outfit probably cost more than anything at your run of the mill Asda. "Good morning." She said with a smile.

"Could you at least pretend it's cold?" Merula asked as she got out of the sleeping bag. The Burrow had gotten obviously colder as the night had worn on. Sabine smiled a bit more. "What are you so happy about?" Merula asked as the two of them stood up.

"I'm just thinking how adorable you look in my pullover." Merula looked down. She most certainly was wearing Sabine's hoodie. She had forgotten she stole it from Sabine's bag last night. "It's not like you ever wear it." Merula said as she pulled the hood over her head. "You can have it. I don't mind." Sabine said.

For some reason Sabine's hoodies were significantly warmer than any of Merula's. "It wouldn't have anything to do with it having my scent on it, would it?" Sabine asked with a mocking grin. "Because your sweaty B.O. is pleasant." Merula sarcastically said as she pulled the drawstrings tight.

She heard Sabine laugh. Merula did like her scent. It was a delightful flowery scent that made her feel oddly safe. Merula felt something on the tip of her nose. She loosened the drawstrings. Sabine had put her finger on it. Sabine removed her finger and replaced it with a kiss.

"Merry Christmas Merula." Sabine said. Merula smiled a little. "Merry Christmas Sabine." She said back. "You should get dressed. Mrs. Weasley wants us to eat before we open presents. Ron's getting antsy." Sabine said before walking out of the room.

Sabine poked her head back in. "Don't forget to take your pill." She said. "Did you remember to take your's?" Merula asked back. Sabine thought for a moment. "No." Sabine dug through her bag and took out a small orange bottle and took a pill out of it. "Thanks." Sabine said as she headed downstairs.

Merula smiled again. Sabine always forgot to take her antidepressant. It was weird, but reminding Sabine made her feel a little useful. Sabine always made her feel special.

She helped her feel better about herself than anyone else did. Sabine had shown her that vulnerability wouldn't kill her. That's why she was going to do something special later.

Side B

Sabine Lowell had gotten out of the shower after an early morning jog. Ottery St. Catchpole had a rustic charm that was sorely missing at Hogwarts or at home. It would be more accurate to say that she had taken a fast viewing of the town.

Sabine enjoyed Christmas with the Weasleys. It was much more enjoyable than that time she went home in 1st year. Her mother telling her family about how she had gotten her period and commenting on her flat chest had definitely sullied the idea of being home at this time of year.

Sometimes Sabine thought that her mother overstepped boundaries. Then again, maybe she had been the one to misunderstand. Anyway, the Weasleys were great to be around. Especially since Merula came too. Any time spent with Merula was enjoyable.

Sabine walked down to the living room to wait for more people to wake up. She looked at her watch. It was 7:22 AM. She heard the stairs creak. It was Mrs. Weasley.

"Good morning Sabine. Merry Christmas." She said. "Good morning Mrs. Weasley. Will you be needing any help with breakfast?" Sabine said in turn. "I wouldn't mind another set of hands." Mrs. Weasley said as she got out some pans.

After some time breakfast was ready and more Weasleys had come down. "Sabine, would you mind checking on Ginny and Merula?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "No problem." Sabine said as she ascended the stairs.

Sabine heard the stairs squeaking ahead of her. She pushed herself against the wall as Ginny squeezed past her. Sabine opened the door to Ginny's room.

There Merula was rubbing her eyes in a similar sleeping bag to hers. She squatted next to her. "Merula." Sabine said. Merula looked at her. Sabine could barely stand to see her.

Merula's bed head was adorable. Some people would say Merula's hair was like that all the time. Sabine however could tell the special cuteness Merula had first thing in the morning. Sabine smiled at her. "Good morning." Sabine said.

"Could you at least pretend It's cold?" Merula asked as she got out of the sleeping bag. Holy hell. She was wearing Sabine's hoodie. Was it possible for her to ever be any cuter? She smiled more. "What are you so happy about?" Merula asked while they stood up.

"I'm just thinking how adorable you look in my pullover." Sabine said. Merula looked down at herself. Her face got redder. Turns out it was possible for her to get cuter.

"It's not like you ever wear it." Merula said as she did her best to not make eye contact while pulling the hood up. "You can have it. I don't mind." Sabine had plenty of pullovers to give away.

Sabine knew Merula liked her scent. Sabine liked Merula's scent too, but it was more entertaining to tease Merula about it. "It wouldn't have anything to do with it having my scent on it, would it?" Sabine said with a smirk.

"Because your sweaty B.O. is pleasant." Merula pulled the drawstrings tight. The only part of her face left visable was her noise. Sabine laughed. She was an active person so there was a possibilty of her clothes smelling like sweat. Luckily her mother always made sure to cast a scent charm on her clothes before the school year.

Sabine put her finger on Merula's nose. The drawstrings loosened. More of Merula's face was revealed. Sabine removed her finger and kissed her on the nose.

"Merry Christmas Merula." Merula smiled. "Merry Christmas Sabine." "You should get dressed. Mrs. Weasley wants us to eat before we open presents. Ron's getting antsy." Sabine said before walking out of the room.

Wait a minute. Sabine went back into the room. "Don't forget to take your pill." She said. "Did you remember to take your's?" Merula asked back. Sabine thought for a moment.

"No." Sabine dug through her bag and took out a small orange bottle and took a pill out of it. "Thanks." Sabine said as she went back to the kitchen for a glass of water.

Despite what people thought, Merula was so thoughtful. She was one of the most special people in the world. If she hadn't been there with her she wasn't she could have come out last spring. That's why she was going to do something special later.

Side A

Merula was walking to the forest next to the Burrow. She was carrying two mugs and a thermos. Sabine had told her go sneak out after 9. "Merula!" She looked over and saw a clearing. Sabine was next to a small fire. Merula walked over.

"How are you?" Sabine asked. "I'm freezing my ass off." Merula said as she tightened her scarf. "That's too bad. I quite like it." Sabine didn't have a coat on. The warmest thing she had on was her new rainbow sweater Mrs. Weasley had knitted.

Merula wore a matching one. The only difference being the S on Sabine's and the M on Merula's. "Why are you asking when we've only been apart two hours?" "Sorry, it's just that we haven't been alone since this morning."

Merula looked around. The clearing was decorated. There were floating jars that contained multicolored glowing lights. Close to the fire was a small bench that was just big enough for two with a blanket hanging over the back. On the sides of the bench were tables that looked like stumps.

Merula was impressed she had done all of this in two hours just for her. Sabine picked up the blanket. "Would you mind sitting down?" Sabine asked. Merula sat the cups and thermos on the table to her left. Sabine sat down and threw the blanket around the two of them.

"I thought it would be nice to have some time together." Sabine said, snuggling up against Merula. "After all, you're the most special girl in the world. I love these little moments with you."

"Don't be a dork." Merula said with a smile. She rubbed her head on Sabine's shoulder. "You like me when I'm a dork." Sabine said before putting a kiss on Merula's head. Sabine was such a stupid, cute, dork. "But... I love being with you too."

Side B

Sabine was glad Merula was happy. She had made several plans for Christmas but in the end was only able to pick one. If the slightest thing had gone wrong she might have freaked out.

Sabine came back from her thoughts when she felt Merula take her head off her shoulder. Merula had turned to the left and was doing something.

She turned back and was holding two steaming mugs. "I made us hot chocolate from scratch. Dark chocolate, no lactose. I wouldn't want you running to the bathroom." Merula said with red cheeks. "I couldn't think of anything that would measure up to whatever you did. So I thought it would be better to make something we could both enjoy."

"Is that why you wouldn't let me in the kitchen?" Sabine asked as she took one of the mugs. "Maybe." Merula let out a little laugh. "Your doing that stupid smile again." She said. Sabine forced herself to stop smiling. "Knock it off. I like it."

Side A

Merula watched as Sabine used her free hand to push some of her hair behind her ear. Merula loved when she did that hair push and that goofy smile of her's. It was a rare treat when she showed her real one. It was significantly different than her normal rehearsed smile.

Merula didn't like how Sabine's parents had messed her up enough to make her practice perfect smiles. She knew that the two of them accepted nothing less than perfection. Which was worse, parents that could never be there or parents that demanded no mistakes?

"Thank you." Sabine said as the smile came back. The parents situation didn't matter right now. What mattered right now was that the two of them were isolated from the rest of the world.

Side B

Sabine took a sip from her mug. Merula did the same. It was most certainly dark chocolate with a hint of cinnamon. Sabine loved Merula's cooking. When she spent a couple of summer days at Merula's house she got to eat her delicious food.

"You did a wonderful job." Sabine said. "You are truly the best chef in all of Hogwarts." Merula smiled. "I know." Sabine stared at Merula's face. She thought back to February.

"It will be our anniversary in two months." Sabine said. Merula was quite for a moment. "Yeah. I guess it will be. It seems longer." She said, "I can't believe we'll be having our first anniversary." There was a sense of eagerness in her voice.

Side A

Merula's heart was beating hard. Her first anniversary with her girlfriend. It didn't seem real. She had been so deep in the closet a year ago. She was expecting to spend anniversaries with a guy she didn't love in order to seem normal.

"Sabine?" "Hm?" "Could I hold your hand?" "No problem." Merula took Sabine's hand in her's. It was warm from the mug and her skin was soft. Her fingers were much longer than her own.

"Sabine?" "Yeah?" Merula swallowed hard. "Since our anniversary is so close to Valentine's day and your birthday could we... go somewhere? Like... Madam Puddifoot's?"

"I thought you said that place was for pansies." Sabine said. "I know what I said. But that was before I had anyone to go with." Merula said. She waited on pins and needles for Sabine's answer.

"I'll take you anywhere you want." Sabine said. It was a massive relief. "But are you sure your ready for that? You don't have to force yourself to do anything." Sabine followed up with. "Yeah. I think I'm ready to go on a public date with you. I mean, I like our private dates but I want to show you off. So that everbody knows that the two best witches are together."

Merula sometimes felt that she made Sabine keep one foot in the closet. It wasn't until the start of the school year that Merula had come out publicly. As apposed to Sabine having been out since April.

Merula had felt a deep shame when she finally realized she would only ever have feelings for girls. She had bullied others that she had perceived as gay. To find out that she herself was one of them, people she had called perverts, was soul crushing.

Yet, Sabine had been there for her. She made her feel like maybe it wasn't so bad. That her life was still worth living, even if she would do it with another girl by her side.

"Merula?" "Yeah?" Sabine had started to blush. "Thank you for being my girlfriend. I love you."

Side B

Sabine had been told months ago by her mother that her feelings would turn out to just be a phase. Her father continued to advertise the sons of his Ministry colleagues as possible future husbands. It was okay for other people to be gay but not their own child. Sabine was not allowed to have flaws.

But Merula... It had been a rocky start but Sabine coming out to her had brought them closer together. Eventually resulting in Sabine breaking down and telling Merula about her feelings for her. Feelings she was not allowed to have. Feelings that could and should never be returned.

But Merula did feel the same. She liked her back. Merula, her long time enemy had become her friend and then girlfriend. She had never been happier.

Merula had kept her going. She was an important piece of her retaining her sanity. And she genuinely loved her. She was sure of that. She needed Merula to know how thankful she was.

Merula's cheeks turned redder. She squeezed Sabine's hand. "Don't be stupid. You don't need to thank me. I love you too. You helped me find out who I am. If anyone should do some thanking it's me."

Merula leaned against Sabine. "Besides, I love you more." She said. "Too bad, because I love you more." Said Sabine. "Impossible. I love you more." Said Merula. "I guess we'll just have to be here for the rest of eternity arguing about who loves who more." "If it's eternity with you, I don't mind."

"Merry Christmas Merula."

"Merry Christmas Sabine."

#hogwarts mystery #hphm #hphm mc #merula snyde #the burrow #mc x merula #jacob's sibling x merula #Christmas #fanfic #hphm fanfiction #sabine lowell #Sabine x Merula

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lifeofkaze · 3 years

Text

When Stars Ignite - Chapter 10

HPHM Rockstar AU

A/N:

Specific Warning: None, wow 😂

~~~

Find the masterpost here, the previous chapter here and the next one here. The songs featured before every chapter can be found on this pretty badass playlist here.

~~~

This work is a collaboration with @the-al-chemist

Taglist: @slytherindisaster @night-rhea @carewyncromwell

I make my livin' off the evenin' news

Just give me somethin', somethin' I can use

People love it when you lose

They love dirty laundry

~ Don Henley - Dirty Laundry ~

Ethan’s plan to raise Equinox’s standing within the record company was very clear. While their nights were spent performing on stage, Ethan had made sure their days were filled with a tight schedule of PR appointments.

Where they’d had plenty of time to relax, socialise and explore on their previous tours, every day was now jam-packed with meet & greets, photoshoots and interviews. Even when they were off duty, Ethan was constantly reminding them to take pictures and film stories to publish on social media.

“People aren’t following you because they like your music,” he never got tired of saying. “They want to see who’s behind their favourite rockstars. Give them a look at your private life and you’ll be everybody’s darlings in no time once again.”

Some of them were more reluctant to put themselves out there than the others. While Lizzie and Skye didn’t mind the odd goofy backstage clip, Lizzie noticed Merula and especially Orion were increasingly drawing back into themselves.

Lizzie and Orion made a point to avoid talking about band business when they were spending their nights together; not that they were talking much at all. But the concerned crease that she could see more often than not on Orion’s forehead these days wasn’t lost on her either.

The worst part of Ethan’s strategy, however, were without a doubt the countless press appointments. All in the spirit of keeping the enemy close, Lizzie had lost track of how many interviews they had given since their U.K. tour had started. The publications they were working with ranged from reputable magazines and newspapers to the trashiest of tabloids. At least, most of the stories those were coming up with were just too hilarious to be actually believable; Lizzie shuddered to think what dirt they could uncover if they’d ever decide to dig for real.

Like on so many days before, Equinox were scheduled for another interview before one of their rare days off. It was for a feature story with a magazine well respected in the industry, all with an accompanying photo shoot and the whole conundrum. It wouldn’t have sounded so bad, had it not been for the journalist who had been chosen to conduct the interview.

Lizzie had met a number of reporters over the course of her career, but none who ground her nerves as Rita Skeeter did.

Beloved by her readers and dreaded by the subjects of her stories, Rita Skeeter was one of the most sharp-tongued critics British journalism had to offer. She had a singular gift - although some called it a curse - to wiggle even the slightest of juicy information out of her unheeding interview partner. Many a career had taken a dive after an unfortunate encounter with her.

If you wanted utmost attention, Rita Skeeter was the right woman for the job; but you had better get your guard up.

The blonde woman was currently watching Andre preparing them for the interview and the shoot afterwards; usually the magazines brought their own stylists, but Ethan liked to keep as many things under control as he could. Having Andre in charge of their looks guaranteed they would give off just the impression Ethan wanted.

Andre was in the process of applying Lizzie’s make up, the tip of his tongue showing between his teeth while he concentrated. She winced as her eyes started tearing up from the wand of the mascara.

“I don’t get why this much makeup is necessary,” she complained, drawing away from Andre to blink her tears away. “I get it with Merula, she’s singing and in focus, but I’m behind the drums, no one’s paying attention to me. Give her the spotlight and leave me in peace,” she added glumly as she saw Andre approach with a curling wand.

Andre tutted as he opened her ponytail and loosened her hair with practised hands. “Stop arguing, you know it’s useless. And besides,” he added with a wink that showed off his glittery eyeliner, “loads of people are paying attention to you; you’re just not looking.”

“I have to agree with Mr. Egwu,” Rita suddenly said. She had been leaning against one of the dressing tables on the set and watched them being dolled up. Andre usually held their wardrobe in dark colours, black and white, so Rita’s bilious green dress stood out like a flare in comparison. She pursed her bright red lips as she looked Lizzie up and down over the rim of her half-glasses.

“You’re a favourite with my readers, Miss Jameson… Lizzie, I may call you Lizzie, right?”

Without waiting for Lizzie’s answer, she continued. “You have a bright personality and some decent looks; you are the little sunshine of this group and everyone likes themselves a good ‘girl next door in the big wide world’ trope.”

She raised her hands at Lizzie’s sceptical look and laughed; it sounded incredibly put on. “I’m not a fan of putting people into drawers either, but it’s what the people want to see.” She tapped her finger against her temple. “It’s how my readers think.”

Skye snorted in the background; she was already done with her styling and sat on one of the tables, legs dangling in the air. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”

Rita giggled. “Of course the rebel of the group would say that, I expected nothing else; after all, there’s true rockstar blood running through your veins, Skye Parkin.”

Not wanting to draw any unnecessary attention to herself, Skye fell silent.

When everyone was ready, they moved over to where two comfortable looking sofas and an armchair were set up for them. Lizzie sighed inwardly as she took her place between Skye and Everett. Rita Skeeter was known to make her interview questions up on the spot; Lizzie just hoped they wouldn’t be too off the rails.

Rita leaned back into her armchair facing them and placed a dictating machine onto the small wooden table next to her. It was no secret that the infamous reporter liked to keep her own notes, kept apart from the material belonging to her magazine; she usually kept the dictating device running long after the cameras had turned off.

“So,” she began speaking to an invisible audience with a sickly sweet voice, “I’m honoured to be talking to England’s hottest export when it comes to rock ‘n’ roll - and I mean that in more ways than one.”

She turned her attention towards them. “It’s so good to have you here today, how are you all?”

They all muttered some noncommittal phrases before Rita started with her first question. Like always in the beginning, it was more of a general palaver as both parties were taking the other’s measure.

If the questions weren’t directed at anyone in particular, it was usually Everett answering them. He loved the attention he got from Rita and contrary to the rest of them, he almost seemed to feel comfortable around her. The pictures Lizzie had seen of him and Rita in Skye’s tabloid came to her mind again, and she wondered if that might be the reason for Everett’s talkativeness.

As the interview continued, Rita’s questions were gradually becoming more detailed, focused on several aspects that she deemed sell-worthy. She watched every one of them closely as they answered, and they picked their words carefully.

“One thing I noticed about this last part of your tour is your very increased availability,” Rita said. “I don’t remember seeing you do so much fan service and public appearances before. What’s the reason behind this?”

It was Orion who answered her question. “The most important thing to us is to make sure our fans are having a good time. Without them, we wouldn’t be where we are now; it’s not a lot, but this is our way of thanking them.”

“Is this the reason for your upcoming special show tomorrow? Reserved for the indigent foster care children?”

Her eyes flicked between Merula and Orion. “It’s no secret you two have a history with the system. One orphaned at such a young age, the other the daughter of convicted criminals, bound to be raised in the shadows of her parents’ deeds. Two unlikely siblings, not bound by blood but by trauma - how does it feel to risk a look into your own past?”

“It’s a show like any other,” Merula replied bluntly, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She scowled at the blonde reporter. “No need to make a big deal out of this.”

Orion inclined his head in Merula’s direction. “What Merula wants to say is, we make no difference in what good cause we are supporting, as long as we can put a smile on the faces of those who need it, even if only for a little while. We do have our past in the care system, that is common knowledge, but as Merula pointed out already, this is in the past. If you want to continue on your path, it is no good walking with your gaze turned backwards. We live in the here and now, so it’s what’s in front of us that matters.”

The slight twitch around the corners of Rita’s mouth was almost too quick to catch, but Lizzie had seen it nonetheless. Apparently, Orion had given her the exact bridge to her next question she had hoped for.

“If you want to speak about the here and now, I’ll be too happy to fulfill your wish,” she cooed. “Now that we’re speaking on a more personal level anyway, I just have to ask. You guys are living everyone’s wildest dreams, a life all of us mere mortals can only imagine.” Her eyes sparkled behind her glasses. “It’s only us here, you can trust me; what about the juicy stories? Any tales of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll you want to share with the world?”

Lizzie subconsciously bit the inside of her cheek, hoping Rita hadn’t noticed before she got herself under control again; this woman was a bloodhound when it came to scandals. If she ever found out what was going on between Orion and her, Lizzie might just as well bury herself alive.

Luckily, Orion wasn’t fazed by her question. “The only passion we share is the love for our music,” he smiled noncommittally. “As professional musicians we try to keep our public and private lives separated.”

Rita’s eyes gleamed as she leaned forward. “You try to keep them separated?”

Before Lizzie couldn’t help it, her eyes flickered to Orion again.

“We have been friends for years, of course our lives intervene in places. The friendship between us we show to the world is genuine and not for show.”

“Friendship, huh?” Rita’s nostrils flared as her eyes swept the round. “Come on, we’re all adults here. So many gorgeous young people spending their time together all day, everyday? Don’t tell me you’re all staying up drinking apple juice and playing board games.”

Her attention shifted so suddenly that Lizzie was taken by surprise. “What about you, Lizzie? Any stories to tell?” She looked her up and down critically. “If you ask me, you and Jason would make quite the pair. The golden girl and the bad boy? People live for stories like that.”

Everett sighed wistfully. “Just call me Ev, Rita, everyone does. But yeah, that’s what I’ve been telling her for years now, but so far to no avail. Perhaps she’ll listen to you.”

Lizzie was relieved when he immediately started laughing his words off. “I’m joking of course; Orion is right. The band is our job and our management wants us to keep things professional. There’s other ways to live the rockstar lifestyle,” he finished with a wink.

Rita pursed her lips in a knowing smile. “That I believe in a heartbeat. Fill me in guys, between us, how is it with the ladies? The bad guy with an angel’s voice and the soulful songwriter and his magic hands… you must be spoiled for choice.”

Everett grinned and leaned back against the sofa. “I can’t complain, is all I’m saying.”

“How about you Orion? Dark eyes, messy hair, all those tattoos - your fans must love this,” she winked with a sly smile, “At least I know where I would try to go after a show if I was a little younger.”

Lizzie tried very much not to roll her eyes.

“Even if they do, I wouldn’t know of it,” Orion answered serenely. “While I love all our fans dearly, my relationship with them ends when our show does.”

“So no stories behind your many tattoos? No tales of long lost love?”

“I didn’t say there are no stories,” Orion replied, “only that they have nothing to do with any fans of ours.”

Trying to steer the conversation to a less dangerous topic, he started explaining the stories behind some of the less meaningful tattoos on his wrists and arms. Lizzie knew each and every one of them by heart, the pictures as familiar to her as Orion’s smile when she ran her fingers over his painted skin.

What he didn’t mention was the biggest of his tattoos and her favourite one; the giant dreamcatcher running along the whole length of his back. Thinking about the intricate lines made a little smile appear on her face.

She didn’t even notice Rita asking her way through the rest of her friends until the reporter’s attention turned to her.

“All of your friends seem to be quite the fans of body art; what about you, Lizzie? Do you have any tattoos as well?”

Lizzie flashed Rita the brilliant but noncommittal smile reserved for the people she just couldn’t stand. “I do have one, yes.”

Rita raised an eyebrow when she didn’t continue. “And where might that be?”

Lizzie chuckled in response. “That will stay my little secret.”

Her gaze was fixed on Rita, but out of the corner of her eye she could see Orion fighting hard to suppress a grin. Of course, he knew exactly where it was.

Rita blinked, clearly irritated by her answer, the same empty smile that was on Lizzie’s face never leaving her red lips.

“Very well, keep your secret - for now. I’ll find out eventually.”

Her smile broadened, a dangerous glint shining in her eyes. “All secrets have their way of ending up with me, one way or another.”

Rita stood up from her armchair to get herself something to drink. When she turned her back on them, Lizzie slowly breathed out, relieved to have the blonde’s prying eyes taken off her.

As the others got up to leave the set as well, Orion and Lizzie’s eyes met for a moment. A smile was playing around his lips as they dropped to where her tattoo was hidden from everybody else’s sight.

She felt her lips curve into a smile of her own and she crossed her arms in front of her chest, her hand resting over the small spot on her ribcage where the words that resonated with her so much were inked into her skin. Seeing what she was doing, Orion couldn’t contain his grin any longer. Judging by the twinkle in his eyes, the memory of when he had first seen them was playing just as vividly in his mind as it did in hers.

#hphm #hogwarts mystery #rockstar au #orion amari #lizzie jameson #merula snye #skye parkin #when stars ignite #wsi #besties collaborate

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smarti-at-smogwarts · 4 years

Text

First Year Profile

Taking a page from the lovely @carewyncromwell who’s the blog that introduced me to HPHM and encouraged me to play.

While I’m still in year one [ im trying to catch up as fast as possible T-T] I wanted to jot some stuff down about my MC and maybe have ppl meet her.

There’s stuff missing but that will be added as I progress through the game.

[ Image ID close up of a girl with shoulder lenght brown hair, a round nose, and blue eyes. She’s smiling at the camera. End ID]

NAME | Marta Beatrice Venturi

NICKNAMES | Marti -Goes by that everywhere, actually doesn’t like her full name, and only gets called it when she’s in trouble-. Smarti [ Jacob called her this. Off limits] Munchkin [ her dad] Venturi. [ Snape and Merulla]

Pronouns | She/Her

ORIENTATION | Bi

[PERSONALITY] Marti is a bit capricious due to being the baby of her family and tends to want things to go her way. She’s a bit mischievous because of this and can be rather childish though also very playful and sweet for the same reason. She is also incredibly empathetic and always there for her friends, becoming very protective of them. She’s highly social and outgoing often known for befriending people at the drop of a hat. Despite this first impressions tend to stick to her and once she makes up her mind about you it can take a lot for her to change it. [ ie both Snape and Merula are already in a bad light for her after one meeting with each while both Flitwick and Hagrid are in a good light.]

She’s very protective of and tries to do right by those she considers friends and can be highly protective of them.

[Image ID; Marti standing between a girl with dark skin, ling black hair and glasses [ her friend Rowan] and a girl with short brown hair. The text reads under her ‘’get away from her’ End ID]

Jacob is her berserk button as she loves him dearly and still hasn’t let him go. Anyone talking badly about him instantly goes on her sh-t list and will cause her to lose her temper.

[Image ID- Marti looking angry as a text box below him reads ‘’expelling him was completely unfair; and it was just as wrong of him to run away without telling. End ID]

[BIOGRAPHY]

Marti is the third child of Abigail Rowle and George Venturi. Both purebloods. They had two boys before her, Jacob [ ten years older than Marti] and Edwin [ four years older than Marti]. Most of Marti’s early memories include her family either together or separately and are good ones. She was specially close to her oldest brother as he often babied her and had a soft spot for her.

There was a rough patch when Abigail and George after months of arguments and the relationship being rocky, separated. However, Marti was both too young and sheltered by both her brothers for it to affect her too much. Their father, a wizard world attorney, kept full custody of the three of them which Abigail was okay with.

Raising three kids was a handful for George and while he tried his best and the family was very loving [ with all three Venturi kids being unequivocally Daddy’s Girl/Boys] there were a lot of times when Jacob and even Edwin eventually picked up the slack. Being the baby, Marti was coddled and never wanted for much attention not in the very least because while Jacob tried to not have favorites between his siblings he undoubtedly had a soft spot for his baby sister.[ not that Edwin ever begrudged her this. ]

While Jacob went to Hogwarts when Marti was still really young [ which led to more than a few tantrums specially in his first year] he remained an important figure in her life and the three Venturi remained close, reuniting every break the school allowed even after Edwin joined his brother [ starting his Hogwarts career when Marti was six ]

Unfortunately this wasn’t to last. Jacob vanished during his sixth year which sent the small family into turmoil. Edwin, who was about to start his first year, became withdrawn and sulked on his own, closing himself off to everyone including his own family. George was distraught at losing his oldest son. His relationship with Abigail became strained since they separated amicably enough but the loss of a child led them to be unable to be in the same room without assigning blame. [ though Abby still keeps her visits with her children she just..doesn’t speak to their father.]

And Marti lost her big brother.

The family grieved and eventually seemed to move on though none of them have completely let Jacob go. George still blames himself and harbors a lot of feelings of failing his son. Edwin is hugely withdrawn and refuses to speak on the matter. Marti in particular refuses to let Jacob go or give up on him returning and refuses to believe the things said about him. Jacob was and still is her hero, she had him on a pedestal before he left and still wants him to come back. Something that puts her at odds with Edwin who wants to forget and move on.

A few years down the line, George married a muggle named Nora who herself had a magical child and a muggle one. Both Edwin and Marti took this as a sign things would get better and that the family could heal, and both were happy to have additions to the family.

However this also added to Marti’s feelings that she was the only one who still remembered and hadn’t given up on Jacob as Edwin befriended Nora’s magical daughter [ her being the same age as him and a Hufflefpuff and the two becoming best friends as well as siblings] and her father seemed to move on with the help of his new wife.

Because of this she even more stubbornly clung to Jacob, to the happy memories she had of him- which she seemed to be alone in as his name was tarnished- and the more the family tried to get her to give up on him coming back, the more she dug her heels in.

Now going to Hogwarts, Marti is excited to start at the school and learn new things. She’s also determined to use the things she learns to bring her brother home someday.

WAND | blackthorn wand with a unicorn hair core. It is eleven-and-a-quarter inches and described as "slightly springy and flexible.

Blackthorn, which is a very unusual wand wood, has the reputation, in my view well-merited, of being best suited to a warrior. This does not necessarily mean that its owner practices the Dark Arts (although it is undeniable that those who do so will enjoy the blackthorn wand’s prodigious power); one finds blackthorn wands among the Aurors as well as among the denizens of Azkaban. It is a curious feature of the blackthorn bush, which sports wicked thorns, that it produces its sweetest berries after the hardest frosts, and the wands made from this wood appear to need to pass through danger or hardship with their owners to become truly bonded. Given this condition, the blackthorn wand will become as loyal and faithful a servant as one could wish.

Unicorn hair generally produces the most consistent magic, and is least subject to fluctuations and blockages. Wands with unicorn cores are generally the most difficult to turn to the Dark Arts. They are the most faithful of all wands, and usually remain strongly attached to their first owner, irrespective of whether he or she was an accomplished witch or wizard.Minor disadvantages of unicorn hair are that they do not make the most powerful wands (although the wand wood may compensate) and that they are prone to melancholy if seriously mishandled, meaning that the hair may 'die' and need replacing.

HOUSE | Slytherin

[MISC]

♦ Marti loves animals especially those often not considered cute [ bats, reptiles, bugs] and has a pet snake she left at home as she didn’t see anything about snakes being acceptable pets in the letter. She plans to ask about it at some point in her first year. Her pet snake’s name is Mickey.

♦ Marti has 2 siblings in Hogwarts. Lizzie Mcdonald in Hufflepuff and Edwin Venturi in Ravenclaw. They don’t interact that much however due to the age gap [ they’ll graduate by the end of year 2] and the fact that they have different social groups [ well Marti and Lizzie do. Edwin’s more a withdrawn Loner] as well as being in different houses.

♦ This is also in part because of Marti’s own feelings of perceived exclusion. While they love her very much and don’t mean to do it, the unmistakable synergy between her elder siblings and the friendship that immediately sparked from it often leaves Marti feeling left out or looking from the outside. It makes her miss Jacob and cling to the idea of him coming back all the more since she remembers having a close relationship with him/being closer to him than to Edwin.

♦ The Venturi’s are very protective of each other[ and of their step siblings] specifically because of what happened to Jacob. It affected them both very badly though differently.

♦ The Venturi’s are considered blood traitors by most purebloods due to their lax views on Muggleborn wizards especially now that George married a muggle. [ their view of George was already low due to having separated from his pureblood wife].

♦ More to the point, all three Venturis [ George, Edwin and Marti ] are hugely defensive against anti-muggle and anti-muggle born sentiments due to Nora and her daughters being part of their family and are likely to react violently to it, especially if directed at them.

♦ Marti has a love for old rock bands due to Jacob often listening to them when she was little/when he was still around.

♦ She wore cat ear headbands as a kid and sometimes still wears them [ specially in first year second and third as she’s still a child but I can definitely see her wearing them for fun as a teenager]

♦ Marti has a list of spells she wants to learn specifically to prank Merula. And she might be trying to remember what pranks Edwin and Jacob used on each other before Jacob went missing.

♦ Marti has -undiagnosed ADHD- and RSD [ Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria] which itself is a sympton of ADHD. This often leads to her not focusing in long classes sometimes and spacing out a lot or thinking of other things in class.

♦ RSD in particular makes it hard for her to regulate emotions and makes her incredibly sensible to perceived [ or real] rejection. She sometimes ends up crying even when she doesn’t want to [ ie when Snape blamed her for Merula’s prank.] It’s specially going to be harder in her younger years.

♦ While this won’t happen for a long time, Marti’s first exposure to a boggart will reveal her biggest fear to be her family forgetting about all Jacob.

♦ Her mirror of erised by contrast is her whole family including Jacob with Edwin smiling like he used to and her dad not looking so worn and sad as he does ever since Jacob went missing.

FC Emily Rudd

Older

Friends In Game:

Rowan Khana

Ben Cooper

Penny Haywood

Chiara Lobosca

MC Friends:

Vixen Mcmahen ( @rosievixen ) Ryan O’Donnell, Cara O’Donnell, Sara O’Donnell, Conor O’Donnell ( @unfortunate-arrow) Finnick -Finn- Moran ( @ljbard121 ) Cato Reese ( @catohphm ) Henry Mclarnon ( @that-ravenpuff-witch ) Lyra Wilson ( @cursebreakerfarrier )

If you wanna talk about your MC being friends with Marti let me know

#HPHM #Jacobs Sibling #HPHM MC #MC Marti Venturi #HPHM Year 1

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lins-fandom-hub · 4 years

Text

09/01/1998 (1)

Part 1 || Part 2

Here’s part 1 of a 2-part fic that I wrote that commemorates Clara’s Hogwarts friends/peers lost to battle against the forces of evil.

The concept of time was humankind’s greatest enigma. It cared not about what happens in the life of any one person. Like the river in the wood, it flowed, knowing not of the stones overturned or the sediments caught in its current. Once a mark had been made, there was no erasing it; once a phenomenon had come to pass, there was no reverting it to what once was.

Time was supposed to help the dust settle over the ruins. Thoroughly damaged beyond repair, yet shrouded in the remnants of what once transpired, the image of what history left behind would only be made clearer after time had passed. Time was supposed to help the physical cuts heal. The open lacerations seeping blood through the flesh would have scabbed and closed with patches of new skin depending on how deep the wound was. Even as they happened, though, time would never let anyone forget the phenomenon that had ensued. Time didn’t care how anyone healed, grieved, smiled, or cried.

Time certainly didn’t care how anyone lived or died.

Clara closed her fingers over her wand and stood from her chair, empty eyes that once bore tears lingering on the sunny scenery outside her window. All those years ago, she had prayed for a sunny day to greet her on the day she departed home for Hogwarts, and every year, it had always been either cloudy or rainy--she even remembered the stormy day that commenced her third year all too well. A small sigh escaped her lips as she looked at the clock by her writing desk--it was 9:00 am. If she was still a student, she’d be travelling right now in one of the Ministry cars her father borrowed from the Ministry with him to King’s Cross Station, her mind abuzz solely with plans to find Jacob and bring him home. If she was still in China, she’d be drilled through military exercises set by the captain of the Chinese Wizarding Task Force without a single thought of her past. Those days were long gone, though--the past was now behind her. Today was a special day, but not for a good reason. Today, she and what remained of her circle of friends would throw a special celebration in memory of all the friends who had fallen, and all of those who sacrificed their lives to help Harry Potter defeat Voldemort at Hogwarts.

Merlin...the Battle of Hogwarts seemed so long ago. It had taken so long for the dust to settle over the relics, but she couldn’t move past the horror that she had witnessed. Her chest ached as visions began to swim in her mind--the corpses of her friends lying in the rubble, the crack of every spell relentlessly attacking those who still remained standing. She recalled the number of spells she had to deflect with her steel fans from the Task Force when her protective barriers shattered, the triangle of Death Eaters surrounding her at once threatening her to collapse. If she closed her eyes, she could see every misfired curse shattering the stone walls, tossing bodies back as if they were only rag dolls…

The soothing touch of her fiance’s fingers tracing over her arm eased her breathing, but it did nothing to stop the tears pricking at her eyes again.

“What are you thinking about, Clara?” Barnaby asked her quietly, gently wrapping his strong arms around her from behind and holding her close to him. She could only hum as she leaned back into his chest, exhaling quietly as the tears spilled over her cheeks.

“It’s the Battle, is it?”

Clara nodded. “Well...sort of.” She opened her eyes, turning to face her fiance. “There was something Dumbledore told me so long ago, back when we were still sixth years. He said that if there was one thing anyone could count on, it’s death. It comes for everyone in the end. But you know how quickly it took a lot of our friends--Rowan in our sixth year, Cedric the summer before I left for China…”

“I know,” Barnaby murmured, lifting a hand to wipe her tears away. “I know.”

“It’s hard,” Clara whispered. “It’s so hard…”

She buried her face into his shoulder, wrapping her arms tightly around Barnaby as she tried her hardest not to sob. The terror that first gripped at her when she fought apart from him snaked its way back into her chest, not unlike the cursed ice that spread through the school in her second year. Death took so many people she held dear to her over the years, it was a miracle that she still remained standing. Rowan...Ben...Tonks...Fred...Talbott...heck, she couldn’t even begin to believe that Merula was dead, too. Even Dobby and Cedric, whom she didn’t know very well, felt like kin--and yet they too were brutally murdered long before the ultimate siege.

“What do you think they’ll be doing?” Barnaby wondered, tilting his head slightly. “You know, in the world of the dead.”

Clara winced slightly at the question. “I don’t know,” she mumbled eventually. “Maybe look down upon us like angels would.”

“I know Rowan is. She’s your best friend, after all--what best friend wouldn’t want to shield you from harm?” Barnaby said, slowly rubbing a hand over Clara’s back to calm her down.

“To think that everyone went into this battle not trying to protect me for the vaults this time, but fight against the one all wizardkind feared,” Clara mused. “I shouldn’t feel guilty, but I do. I just hope that what we invited everyone to do today would be enough to finally find closure and…”

Barnaby nodded as she trailed off, tilting her head up with a hand to look her in the eyes. Her glasses were smudged from the tears now streaming over her face.

“I’m sure they will love it,” Barnaby reassured her softly. “Not just all the ones still alive, but those who passed on. I know I would.”

It’s taken Clara weeks to pull herself together after the battle, and even more after that to seek solace from those who still remain. Only a few days ago did she finally settle the date of their wedding, yet it didn’t feel right to celebrate a day of union without sharing it with all their friends, alive or dead.

Two days to go. After that, our lives might change for the better.

She had to hold it together. Not just for them, but for herself too. Closure would not be given to those still vulnerable to breaking.

“Yeah,” she finally murmured, leaning up to kiss his cheek. “I would, too.”

---

There was no bachelor and bachelorette party for this couple--heck, they couldn’t imagine the consequences for the other should a disaster occur while they were apart. Instead, a few weeks ago, Clara had sent her owl, Wagner, out into the world with letters for all their friends and loved ones. Today, everyone who was willing to come would Apparate to their house, and then gather in their vast open backyard in the evening where the ceremony would commence.

“And done,” Barnaby declared as he delicately placed the final cherry on the top of a massive white-iced three-layer cake. A slow grin spread across his face as he looked at his best baking masterpiece--no, it was not their wedding cake, but it looked good enough to be one.

That was when the doorbell rang, and he jumped, almost knocking the cake over.

“I got it!” Clara called, running down the stairs and securing her crimson crystal hair tie around the single braid over her left shoulder. “Just set the parlour up, Barnaby.”

“Will do.” Barnaby nodded and carried the massive cake to the parlour, humming a little tune to himself.

Clara opened the door to reveal Penny and Beatrice now standing at the threshold. Both of them were wearing black dresses that went down to their knees. The plaits that were normally in Penny’s hair were now combed out, her hair now split into two braids down her shoulders. Beatrice’s hair, for the first time since Clara could recall, was held back with a headband, revealing both of her blue eyes cast down with a sad glimmer.

“Clara!” Penny greeted her friend with a hug, which Clara wholeheartedly returned.

“Hey, Penn.”

Time had changed the little girls who became friends in their first year to young adults who had survived more than one war. As they broke the embrace and looked at each other, they both caught the matured gleam now stripped of whatever carefree sparkle once graced their eyes, the tragedies they both withstood in their time at school, the weariness that came with demands that required their individual expertises.

“You hanging in there?” Penny asked Clara quietly. “I know it’s been hard on all of us.”

Clara nodded solemnly. “Trying to. It wasn’t hard when the names in the list of casualties were still unrecognizable, but it’s different now when everyone you knew gave their all to protect the school and the Boy Who Lived. Not to say I regret it--”

“I know what you mean. I’m sure none of them regretted it either,” Penny assured her.

“At least we’re still together,” Clara said with a shrug. “Jacob, little Em and I at least escaped the war unscathed. And you’ve got Beatrice, too.”

Beatrice nodded as she produced another stuffed Puffskein from her pocket--almost similar to the one she gave Clara when they first met--and gave it to her. “Is your sister coming?”

“She should be,” Clara confirmed with a nod. “Do come in, both of you. We have cake and Butterbeer in the parlour, and I think Barnaby should almost be finished with grooming the Puffskeins.”

The second one to arrive, much to Clara’s surprise, was Skye Parkin, her Wigtown Wanderers jersey billowing in the wind as she hopped off her Comet 290 in front of their house.

“Skye!” Clara exclaimed upon her arrival. “I wasn’t sure you’d make it, what with training for your upcoming tournaments.”

“This means a lot to you, doesn’t it? I might as well be there for it,” Skye responded shortly, giving Clara a small smile. “Besides, one of our Chasers recently came down with a serious bout of Scrofungulus. We don’t have any backup players to properly play against the Applewood Arrows today.”

“Oh. That’s a bummer. You wish I was there to step up to the plate?” Clara asked, remembering fondly her short tenure as Chaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

“It would be nice. But I figured you need time to...you know,” Skye said uneasily, and Clara nodded in understanding.

Shortly after Skye went in to help herself to some of Barnaby’s cake and chat with Penny, Andre, Murphy, and Orion made their appearance on Clara’s doorstep. Andre’s Pride of Portree jersey flapped in the wind behind him, in the same manner as Skye’s jersey. Murphy’s colourful tie worn for all his Quidditch commentating duties was swapped today with a black bowtie. Orion was also wearing all black from head to toe.

“I told the staff that I wasn’t feeling well,” Murphy explained. “And I’m not! There’s a 95.7% chance that after such a travesty it’s hard to think of the light ahead.”

“But what is light without darkness?” Orion asked. “It’s with light that we have darkness.”

“Or should it be the other way around?” Andre queried, raising an eyebrow. “Anyway, I’m glad you’re doing this, Curse-breaker. In a time like this, I think we all really need it.”

“Thanks, Andre. And I’m happy to see you’re alive and well too, Murphy and Orion,” Clara said, bowing them into her home where they went to the parlour to meet Penny, Beatrice, Skye and Barnaby.

Soon, Chiara, Jae, Diego, and little Em all arrived together, the girls holding onto extravagant bouquets of colourful flowers. Jae was holding tightly onto Chiara’s free hand, balancing a large box of delicacies in his other hand. Diego’s fingers were interlaced with little Em’s, his scarf from his old school days wrapped around little Em’s shoulders to keep her warm.

“Darn it. I miss my hoodie already,” Jae muttered, his teeth chattering slightly.

“Relax, Jae. It’ll only be for today,” Chiara consoled him with a small smile before turning towards Clara. “How are you doing, Clara?”

“Faring as well as I can,” Clara simply said, smiling wanly at the group. “Thanks for coming, guys--really, it means a lot.”

“Anything to get to spend time with you, Clara,” little Em reassured her older sister with a hug. “I would not miss my sister’s wedding for anything in the world.”

Diego nodded in agreement as little Em returned to his side shortly after. “Indeed. How swiftly childhood leaves us as we emerge as veterans from a war well fought and won.”

“I just hope that this celebration would mark the first chapter of genuine happiness for all of us,” Chiara finally piped up. “With all that’s happened, I figured we all need it.”

A little while into the afternoon, Tulip, Liz, and Badeea arrived together, Badeea’s hands still smeared with paint as she brought in a giant portrait of their fallen friends. Bill, Fleur, Charlie, Percy, George, and Angelina followed swiftly, George still trying to hold back tears as he held fast to Angelina’s hand; Clara couldn’t blame him. George didn’t just lose a brother in the battle, after all; he lost his twin, his second half who understood him better than anyone.

How quickly everyone’s grown, Clara realized, as she closed the door behind the Weasleys and followed them into the parlour. Glancing around at her friends grabbing drinks and some of Jae’s homemade delicacies or the cake Barnaby made, talking in low voices among themselves like old friends, she could see the hint of sadness in their eyes along with the gleam of maturity that long replaced the carefree, happy spirit they once felt. They fought more than just one battle, leaving them all with more scars than they’d hoped for--yet through their grief, they remained standing strong. They had weathered through so many storms together that they became the storm themselves.

“Is that everyone?” Chiara asked quietly as she sipped from her bottle of Butterbeer, watching the large crowd mill around the parlour and the kitchen. “Or are we still waiting for a few people?”

Clara frowned as she glanced at the clock--it was now five in the afternoon, and there were still a few last stragglers she had yet to see. “I think we have Ismelda and Jacob to wait for,” she eventually answered. “Jacob I know is with my parents, but Ismelda...I haven’t heard from her since the end of the war.”

“Ismelda’s still alive?” Penny asked, raising a brow and glancing at Beatrice.

“What are you looking at me for?” Beatrice inquired, grabbing another piece of cake from the dainty multi-tiered platter on the table. “I haven’t kept tabs on Ismelda either since I graduated from school.”

CRACK!

A sudden Apparition within the house made everyone jump, Beatrice almost dropping her cake in the shock--when the smoke cleared, Clara saw Ismelda and Erika standing in the middle of the parlour, travelling cloaks fastened tight around them. Ismelda quickly drew her arm away from Erika, massaging her upper arm to rid it of the soreness in the potential death grip.

“Did you have to grip onto me that hard?” Ismelda grumbled, shooting Erika a death glare. “And I thought I already told you I didn’t want to go!”

“I had to do what I could to make sure you got here in one piece,” Erika shrugged. “And if you say another word about this gathering being nothing but a waste of time--”

“Fine, fine.” Ismelda shook her head, a groan escaping her mouth. “Anything to save you from using me as your practice dummy.”

“That’s more like it.” Erika gave her a little smirk, her eyes darting about the rest of the group. “So this is what a party for the dead looks like.”

“Not much of a party so much as it is just a time to come together,” Murphy corrected her. “And it’s a good thing Clara’s hosting this for us. I figured we all needed it.”

“Yeah, yeah, let’s just get this show on the road,” Ismelda finally said. “Is there anything we can do besides just…” She gestured around the room. “Eat cake and drink Butterbeer and mope?”

“Well…” Clara glanced around at the group--it felt a lot like the Circle of Khanna all over again, except this time there was no one else to stand by her for support. The days when Ben and Merula flanked by her were long gone now, both of them now buried in their graves a few feet below. “We prepared a bonfire pit in the backyard, and enough sky lanterns for all of us.”

“Sky lanterns?” Tulip asked, intrigued. “I haven’t seen one of those in so long. They’re part of the ceremony, right?”

“Of course,” Clara nodded. “They’re an integral part, so to say.”

“Nothing’s ever been the same since, well…” Skye glanced awkwardly at the group around her. “I mean, I’m not one to go all mushy but...I can’t imagine all of us losing people we care about so much. And all of you are great people in some way--”

She was suddenly cut off by Penny embracing her in a hug, which Skye returned hesitantly, burying her face into Penny’s shoulder.

“The people who love us never really leave us,” Barnaby piped up then. “I remembered how bad I felt when Rowan died...and then I thought I would lose Clara too when she left for China. But time taught me that they’ll always be here with us no matter where they are. Bright souls will shine like bright stars in the sky, now and forever. I found a lot of comfort in looking at the stars every night.”

These words brought a scarlet dust to Clara’s cheeks, and she smiled at him ruefully as she took his hand, lacing her fingers with his. Whether that was a vow intended for their wedding or not, she would never know, but it was enough for her to make her melt on the spot.

“You’re right,” Bill nodded thoughtfully at Barnaby’s words, taking Fleur’s hand and squeezing it tight. “The stars provide comfort for those who need it most. It’s really in the darkness where we can find the light.”

At this, Andre gave Orion a pointed look, and Orion just shrugged it off, nodding at Bill.

“I suppose there’s really no use in waiting any longer,” Clara eventually said--the sun was just beginning to set, and the group was getting much too large to accommodate indoors. “Let’s all head outside to the backyard. Barnaby, can you lead them? I have...something to collect from upstairs.”

Barnaby nodded at his fiancee, kissing her lightly on the cheek. “Of course, my unicorn.” He then motioned to the rest of the group to follow him. “Come on outside, everyone.”

As everyone filed out, Clara headed towards the stairs and began to ascend two steps a time--the moment she reached the landing she wasted no time in heading to her bedroom and opening the door to her closet. Peering into the mass of fabrics, her eyes landed at the bottom of the cabinet, where a single dagger laid in its black sheath lined with golden dragons, laced through the leather belt she had to wear in her days at the Chinese Wizarding Task Force.

To most, it seemed like a simple ornate dagger, most likely an article of decorum worn by royals in important ceremonies. With a polished ruby pommel at the end of a leather grip hilt, and a few engravings on the blade, it looked insignificant, almost ordinary. But to those who served in the task force it meant so much more--it was a weapon she had used in the fight against the Japanese dark wizards on more than one occasion. Where magic failed, the dagger had helped her lay many a blow on those too fast to hit with a spell, those who resisted the effects of magic in ways she would never know. She fought along those who had also given their life for the cause, fought with the same blade she held now--never a day went by when she didn’t think of them. Some survived, some died, and all for a united cause.

She honoured so many of the unknown dead with this knife strapped to her side. It only seemed fitting that she did it now, too.

“Clara? You coming?”

Clara turned around just as she looped the belt around her waist--standing at the doorway to her room was her little sister, head tilted in intrigue and eyes shining in concern.

“Yeah. Sorry.” Clara adjusted the belt over her clothes and walked over to little Em. “I was just...getting this dagger. Custom to wear it for funerals when I was working with the Chinese Wizarding Task Force.”

“Ah.” Little Em nodded thoughtfully. “Sorry, I should have knocked.”

“No need to apologize.”

It had been much too long since Clara last saw her little sister, her little Em--four months since the end of the Battle where they fought together but not at each other’s side, never getting to see each other after the dust had settled over the ruins and the wounds had all but healed in their natural time. What once were two young children who bonded in a sole promise to protect each other within the walls of Hogwarts were now two women who had no idea how to shield each other from the other side of the world. It was only a miracle that they hadn’t lost the other to the perils of the world turned upside down by none other than Voldemort himself. Moments like these between two sisters bound by blood were far and few in between since then.

“I’ve missed you so much, Clara,” little Em finally admitted. “I was worried about Jacob in the fight but when I heard you were there at Hogwarts too…”

“I thought I’d never see you again, either. I wasn’t sure if I was able to make it out of the war alive,” Clara mumbled. “How, though?”

“Stuck close with Diego. It helps to have a strong dueller at your side,” little Em said. “And you?”

“I was with Tonks at first, but when she was defeated I had to hold my own,” Clara replied. “It wasn’t easy to feel that drive to fight after seeing a casualty right in front of your eyes, but I’ve had enough practice.”

“You shouldn’t have to keep suffering, Clara. I know why you joined the task force in China, but...promise me that at the end of all of this you’ll find some peace and happiness,” little Em pleaded. “All your life you’ve been fighting, and I understand it was for a cause. Just...I don’t want you to break under all the pressure. You have so many people who worry about you, and it would break my heart to find that you’ll never find happiness again at the end of the day.”

“Em.” Clara turned to face her sister now, a small smile on her face. “All I want is to make you happy, to fight for your happiness and safety every day. Knowing that you’re here and you’re happy and safe is enough for me to feel happy and safe.”

“Is that a promise?”

“Yes, I promise.”

Little Em smiled, a brief second of relief, before taking her sister’s hand and leading her out of her room. “Come on. Everyone’s waiting for you.”

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danceworshipper · 3 years

Text

Gracie Chiva - HPHM Profile [Redone]

(information is as of sixth year - same universe as Tessa and River)

Identity

Name: Gracie Tessa Chiva

Gender: Female

Age: 16

Birthday: August 17th, 1973 at 3:28 am (leo)

Species: Human/Witch with altered DNA

Blood Status: Pureblood

Sexuality: Bisexual

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Ethnicity: White - German, English

Nationality: British

Residence: Chiva Manor, a heavily warded house in the wizarding part of the English countryside

Personality Type: ISFJ-T (the defender)

The Mage

Wand: 13 3/4 inches of rowan wood encasing a unicorn tail hair core, reasonably supple. The wand is a light color with intricate carvings on the handle and a small peridot sticking out of the front end. This is her only wand, as if her wand breaks she will die immediately. A few different people have put protective spells on it - the peridot is one of them, from Ollivander himself

Animagus: Osprey

Misc. Magical Abilities: Legilimens, very strong. Her Occlumency isn't as strong as it could be, but it's much stronger than Tessa's

Boggart Form: Tessa covered in bloody gashes, gagging and clearly dying

Riddikulus Form: the blood turning into fruit punch while Tessa whines about her shirt being stained

Amortentia (how she smells): Gracie would smell like citrus, poison, and strong wind

Amortentia (what she smells): She smells a mixture of pine trees, spearmint gum, and puffskein fur (Merula)

Patronus: Unicorn

Patronus Memory: the first time she and Tessa were ever allowed to go wandering in the woods on their own. They found a creek and spent the afternoon barefoot, eating berries and splashing each other

Mirror of Erised: Herself, truly happy and looking like she was never cursed

Specialized/Favorite Spells:

- Accio

- Crucio

- Sanguinem Non (stops bleeding, however intense)

- Depulso

- Gelida

Appearance

(picture made using the zepeto app)

Height: 5'6"

Weight: 118lbs

Physique: Skinny, slightly thinner waist than Tessa. Her strength comes more from magical ability than actual muscles

Eye Color: Unnaturally green

Hair Color: Bright white

Skin Tone: Deathly pale, has barely noticeable freckles around her nose

Body Modifications: Two piercings in each earlobe and a cartilage piercing in her left ear

Scarring: Small scars on knees from various childhood injuries, a thin line around her ankle from getting caught in a rope, and a small line on her right middle finger from a cooking incident

Inventory:

- Her wand, either gripped tightly in her hand or tucked in her waistband

- Her pocket knife, hidden in her robes/shorts

- About twenty Galleons

- An icy blue cracked marble to fidget with

Fashion: Gracie likes to look good, but also likes to be comfy. When not in her uniform, she's most likely wearing a thin sweater/shirt depending on the weather, and black skinny jeans or shorts. She frequently wears black fishnet tights, and black heeled ankle boots. Her hair is usually worn down. As for jewelry, she has a necklace with a gold key that unlocks a box full of Vance's childhood memories that he hid for her before he disappeared, mostly of the two of them. She also wears large gold hoops in each of the two piercings, and a gold stud in her cartilage. Makeup-wise she wears dark red lipstick, blush, and heavy dark eyeshadow and mascara. If she hadn't been cursed she might not wear any makeup at all, but as it is, she's insecure about how pale she is and wants to bring some color back to her face

Allegiances

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

Affiliations/Organizations:

- Chiva Family

- Black Family

- R (seventh year)

Professions:

- Current student

- Future Dark Arts Professor at Durmstrang

- Future author

Hogwarts Information

Class Grades:

- Arithmancy: E

- Astronomy: O

- Care of Magical Creatures: O

- Charms: E

- Defense Against the Dark Arts: O

- Flying: O

- Herbology: E

- History of Magic: E

- Potions: O

- Transfiguration: O

Quidditch: Knows how to play, but is not on the team

Extracurriculars:

- Potions Club

- Dueling Club

- Tutor for a few select first year Slytherins, including Aiden

Favorite Professors:

- Professor McGonagall: Despite not being her Head of House, Gracie would much rather turn to McGonagall for advice than Snape. She appreciates McGonagall's teaching style, and her relative lack of prejudice about house/upbringing

- Madam Hooch: When Gracie was first cursed, Madam Hooch was the one to help her calm down and start to accept her changed appearance. Hooch's yellow eyes and whiteish hair are not common either, so the similarities and Hooch's successful life helped Gracie see that she would be okay

Least Favorite Professors:

- Professor Snape: Gracie has never liked her Head of House. Snape is cruel to many of her classmates, grades based on his own opinion of the student, and makes learning in the classroom nearly impossible

- Professor Dumbledore: In the beginning, she didn't mind him, but as the years went on and he proved to be more and more useless during dangerous times, Gracie lost all respect for him. The final straw was when he told her that none of this would have happened if she had left it alone, because she knew that this wasn't her fault and if not for her people would be dead (Redacted's death doesn't happen in my canon)

Relationships

Twin Sister: Tessa Gracie Chiva

- Tessa is younger by eight and a half minutes

- Despite them being the same age, Gracie feels much older and more mature than her sister

- Tessa quit everything to do with the vaults after defeating the second one in third year, so she hasn't seen the horrors that Gracie has

- As such, Gracie feels extremely protective to her sister and tries to always keep her safe, far away from any danger. This is part of why she runs away in seventh year

- Gracie hasn't told Tessa about her crazes and unnatural sadistic urges yet. Tessa finds out a little information shortly before Gracie disappears

- Gracie loves her sister more than anyone else. When they fight, she's always the first one to start crying. She would do anything to protect Tessa, whether it be suffer immense torture, die, anything

- She's also jealous of Tessa's relative innocence

Older Brother: Vance Riley Chiva

- He's five years older than the twins

- As a little girl, Gracie worshipped Vance. He was older and cool, and he spoiled her

- The news of Vance's disappearance shattered her heart, and when she found the key, she spent hours going through all of the memories using her mother's pensieve

- Gracie's main motivation to start looking for the vaults was to find Vance. After finding him and seeing how different he was, she stopped caring about him and only continued to protect Tessa and her friends

- The first spell Gracie learned outside of class was the sticking charm, which she used to stick the clasp of her necklace to the back of her neck. She doesn't undo the spell until the very end of sixth year, when she loses all hope of getting her brother back

- The love she once felt turns to hate fast, but she can't bring herself to throw the key away, so she gives it to Tessa

Younger Cousin: Aiden Carter Darkling

- Aiden is the son of Rachel Chiva, Jason's sister. Rachel and Aiden's father divorced while he was still young, but it was relatively amicable and he comes around for holidays

- Gracie tutors Aiden and a couple of his friends in Potions

- She's always had a liking for the kid. She sees a bit of herself in him, from before she was lost to the vaults

- They aren't the closest, but other than (some of) her immediate family, Aiden is the only family member Gracie doesn't hate

Mother: Clarissa Vanessa Black

- Clarissa passed on her Legilimency to her children

- Gracie's relationship with her mother is strained these days

- They're actually closer than they used to be, with Gracie's favorite parent having been her father as a kid

- Clarissa legally separates from Jason after his arrest, and once she's wiped her hands of him, she and Gracie get closer

- Gracie knows about her mother's girlfriend. Clarissa's upbringing made her too afraid to ever come out, but she's bisexual and began dating her childhood friend Margaret (again) after Jason was arrested

- Gracie also knows that Margaret's husband didn't die of illness, but she never tells anyone that Margaret poisoned him because she had good reason to

- The silent acknowledgement of "I know about you and you know I know but we won't mention it" is the main sense of closeness she and her mother have

- They'll never be as close as they should be, but Gracie does love her mother and her mother does love her

Father: Jason Harvey Chiva

- Similarly to Vance, Gracie loved her father a lot as a kid and looked up to him

- He was an Auror, and a good one. She would beg to visit his office with him and learn about cases

- Despite being pureblood and approving of the Death Eaters, Jason was loving toward his children and never brought up his past

- Jason began acting strangely after she was cursed, but Gracie ignored it

- All the love Gracie felt for her father vanished the day she watched him murder their family friend, a week before she turned thirteen

- After turning him in to his Auror partner, Thomas, they discovered that Jason had killed eleven people in his search to find out who cursed his daughter

- Thus began Gracie's horrible trust issues. Even Vance hadn't ruined her ability to trust completely, but after her father the only two options were trust completely, or not trust at all. Gracie has never trusted another authority figure since (and also has major daddy issues)

- Gracie kills Jason when he escapes from his transfer (she's twenty two). She hates herself for it, but not because it was her father - he deserved it. She's upset that she broke her promise to never kill anyone again after Rakepick (even though both were totally justified - Jason tried to kill Margaret and Rakepick tried to kill most of her friends)

Love Interest: Merula Snyde

- In first year Gracie hated Merula. Merula was mean to Gracie's new friends and was boastful about being the best even though she clearly wasn't, and it was obnoxious having to share a dorm with her

- In second year it gets a bit worse, but then it gets a bit better too. It gets to the point where they don't hate each other and can coexist peacefully, but they still dislike each other

- Then third year starts

- Gracie gets off the train, grabs her stuff, starts heading for the castle, and bumps into Merula

- Merula snaps at her

- Instead of being annoyed, however, Gracie is frozen staring into Merula's eyes with a jolt in her heart

- Well, shit

- Gracie spends that whole year conflicted about if it was actually a crush, or if it was just strange feelings from a strange situation, and eventually lands on being bisexual and indeed having a crush on this girl she used to hate.

- She knows she's bisexual and not a lesbian because she had a small crush on one of the boys in her neighborhood, but that fades pretty quickly after getting back to school

- In fourth year, it starts becoming more apparent that Merula shares her feelings

- Gracie takes a risk and asks her to the Celestial Ball, and Merula says yes

- She and Merula had a lot of fun at the ball, and Gracie's heart nearly exploded during the slow dance

- A week later, Rowan is pissed with the pining and rants about it to Ismelda of all people, who then tells Merula to ask Gracie out before she gets murdered

- Merula does, very hesitantly, and they have their first proper date a few days later. It's awkward and they're scared, but once they open up it's easy to tell everything is mutual

- They have their first kiss that summer while Merula is visiting Gracie

- Fifth year, the night before going into the Portrait Vault, Gracie and Merula are awake, terrified that they'll die the next day

- An impulsive decision leads them to the Room of Requirement (Tessa had found it by accident the year before) and they lose their virginity together

- They don't die, and surviving together brings them closer

- Sixth year problems arise

- Merula is losing her mind, trying to be independent and refusing to be at all affectionate in public, but still clinging to Gracie at night with nightmares

- Gracie also wants Rakepick's head to rot on a stake, but Merula is letting her anger control her and Gracie doesn't know how to help her

- When Gracie runs away in seventh year, Merula will go insane

- When Gracie comes back, Merula will punch her in the face and then hold her close and not let go for over an hour

Best Friend: Rowan Khanna

- Gracie met Rowan in Ollivander's. Rowan walked in just as Ollivander told Gracie her wand wood and Rowan excitedly declared that they had to be best friends

- Being young and relatively sheltered, Gracie said alright because she didn't know how friends really worked

- They did become very close pretty quickly

- They wrote each other letters every day until school started

- Rowan is the only one to know the full extent of Gracie's curse, because she forced it out of her

- Rowan can be pretty scary when she wants to be

- They both know things about the other that no one else does, and they can (and have) talked about everything, even extremely uncomfortable subjects

- Gracie is almost scared by Rowan's level of loyalty, but tries to show her the same

- Gracie mentioned being terrified to be cornered by Rakepick or someone else, so Rowan didn't leave her side at all for a week

- The next time Rowan said something about being afraid, Gracie did the same thing

- Rowan made Gracie teach her the blood healing spell in case Gracie ever can't come back from a craze in time

- The two of them are so close Merula was at one point pretty jealous, but she can recognize that they're just very close friends

Rival: Olivia Green

- The first time Gracie heard of Olivia was when Vance complained about her dating Duncan

- After learning about the vaults and Olivia's involvement with Vance and Duncan, Gracie was determined to find out what happened to her. It takes until seventh year to find out

- (this could all change depending on where Jam City takes the story, but this is where I'm going for now)

- Olivia joined R a year before Duncan died, two years before Vance got trapped in the Portrait. She knew how bad they were, but R was the only place she felt she could grow her power and protect what little she had left, so she faked her own death in order to not be caught by any professors or other authority

- Neither Vance nor Duncan know she's alive

- Over the years Olivia grew cold and ruthless, but she still has a small soft spot for her old friends

- Gracie tries to hate Olivia for everything she's done, but can't help but agree with her reasoning

- Olivia is the one who convinces Gracie to join up with R in seventh year, which is when they end up becoming good friends instead of rivals

School Rival: Diego Caplan

- Gracie hates this boy with everything she has

- He's a flirt with no shame and an ego stretching for miles

- Every time he duels her she makes sure to kick his ass extra hard

- She really doesn't like that he and Tessa are good friends because she thinks he has ulterior motives (he used to, but not anymore)

Enemy: Patricia Rakepick

- Gracie's lack of trust/respect for authority means that Rakepick being brought in for the vaults felt like a direct threat to her. As Rakepick recruited her, Bill, and Merula, Gracie tried to play nice but it's clear she hates the woman

- It's likely that if Bill hadn't knocked her wand out of her hand, Gracie would have killed Rakepick in the Portrait Vault

- It wasn't a craze. She was just furious

- Gracie is as determined as Merula to kill Rakepick (stupid canon mc too weak to murder)

- Joining R will be uncomfortable at first, because Rakepick will taunt her, but they'll learn to work together

- No matter how the game goes, Gracie's adventure with the vaults will end in killing Rakepick

Dormmates:

- Tessa Chiva

- Rowan Khanna

- Merula Snyde

- Ismelda Murk: they could be considered friends, but they aren't as close as they could be

- Liz Tuttle: Liz was close to both of the twins at first, but now is way closer to Tessa

Pets:

- Ruby, the family Crup

- Clara, Vance's toad

- Elaura, an owl

- Lemmy, a moke (he's more Tessa's pet really)

- a bunch of creatures in the Reserve that Tessa and Liz coparent, and Gracie tags along sometimes

Closest Canon Friends:

- Jae Kim: a year of spending hours together everyday will do wonders for a friendship

- Penny Haywood: they've been drifting apart, but they spend a lot of time together in the Potions Club

- Charlie Weasley: they were partnered for a Charms project in year two and kept hanging out all the time after it was done

- Olivia Green (while in R)

Closest Non-Canon Friends:

- Tessa Chiva (technically not canon because mc has no siblings besides the Jacob character)

- Rosalie Sonnenschein: a German model who is one year older and attends Durmstrang. First generation part Veela with a very strong natural allure, which she trains Gracie to resist once it becomes apparent that she's affected

- Justin Freed (while in R): a young man one year older than Olivia. He's mean but he's funny, and he helps Gracie get adjusted to the whole group. He's a bit too egotistical and slightly overprotective over Olivia and Gracie as younger women, even though they're both fully capable (and stronger than him)

(Storyline has to be in a different post because of tumblr's dumb text limit)

Future

Marriage and Children: Before the wedding, Gracie timidly approaches Margaret, who married Clarissa two years prior, and asks if they can take her name since neither Gracie nor Merula want to be associated with their fathers anymore. Margaret tears up and tells her of course they can. Gracie gets married to Merula at age twenty five, becoming Gracie and Merula Miller. They get married on a beach, with ice cream cake instead of traditional wedding cake. Penny calls them up one day with the news that she's been working on a potion to allow a woman to become pregnant from another woman and asks them if they'd like to test it. At age twenty six, Gracie nearly passes out watching Merula give birth to their oldest daughter, Destiny. Three years later their second daughter, Dahlia, is born

Career: Gracie becomes the Dark Arts professor at Durmstrang at age twenty three. She's mocked by the other professors for being young and inexperienced, but after she kicks one of their asses in a duel they back off. She's a talented professor, and her curse actually allows her to be a test dummy of sorts for her students so that they're able to learn both from the book and from experience. After marrying Merula they move to Germany to be near Gracie's family, so she ends up being very talented at Apparation

The Second Wizarding War:

- Gracie is out of the country when the war happens, and only returns when she gets word of Bill's attack, leaving Merula and the kids in Germany to be safe (and avoid risking Merula run into her parents, because Gracie knows that Merula would try and duel them)

- She does not participate in the Battle of Hogwarts because if she did, she knew Tessa would too and couldn't risk her sister getting hurt

- She's horrified to discover that Olivia and Justin were some of the people who escaped Azkaban, but relieved that neither of them were spotted in the battle. Olivia shows up on Gracie's doorstep the day after the battle and begs Gracie to forgive her for everything, including killing Justin when he tried to join the Death Eaters. Gracie forgives her, and uses her Legilimency to figure out the best way to get Olivia out of her jail sentence

- Merula hates Olivia quite a bit when she realizes that this Olivia is the one in R (not because she was in R, but because she and Gracie hooked up a few times while they were there together), but is able to get along with her - especially when Olivia takes a great interest in Rosalie

Old Age and Death:

- Gracie dies at the age of one hundred and seventeen from natural causes. After her death, her wand snaps in half by itself

Personality

- Major introvert

- Craves touch, but won't ask for it unless she's super close with the person she wants it from

- Tries to think logically whenever possible

- Might be a bit of an adrenaline junkie

- When she gets upset, making her laugh is the best option

- Sentimental as all hell, borderlining on being a hoarder

- Prefers animals to humans most of the time

Misc Information

- Gracie is bilingual, fluent in both English and German

- She can play cello. She can also sing, but doesn't like doing it in front of other people

- Gracie's misophonia developed around age nine, but didn't start becoming a real issue until the anxiety and depression joined in at age eleven

- By the time Gracie meets Fleur, she's so good at blocking out Rosalie's allure that she doesn't even notice Fleur's. Speaking of Rosalie, she and Olivia do end up marrying

- Gracie nearly kills Tessa the first time a craze is strong enough to target a family member. Tessa falls off of a small cliff and ends up in a coma the day Gracie joins R

- Gracie doesn't find out about it until the next time she actually sees Tessa months later because the craze was strong enough to disorient her, and oh boy does she hate herself when she finds out

- Gracie never officially broke up with Merula when she joined R, but wrongly assumed she would find someone else. Gracie casually hooked up with a couple people in the meantime, including Olivia

- Olivia gives Gracie an amethyst necklace a few months after she joins R, and Gracie charms that one in place instead of Vance's

- Part of why Olivia was able to convince Gracie to join R was because Gracie had recently failed suicide and was desperate to find a way to get R away from Tessa and her friends. If she couldn't die (and get them to stop targeting her friends to get to her, was the faulty reasoning), she might as well join them and be able to warn her loved ones of upcoming attacks

- Vance jumps in front of Tessa during the last fight with R and dies without saying goodbye, which messes both of the twins up for a while

- Gracie's interest in being a professor stemmed from Rowan's. Rowan became Head Girl :) and lived a long happy life as a professor :))))))))

- Rowan also smacked Gracie when she came back from R, which is fair

- Gracie's favorite muggle thing is orange soda

- Gracie likes pineapple pizza

- She has a sweet tooth, but she really likes sour candy as well

- Her favorite color is blue and she feels like it's a betrayal to her house

- Gracie is forever a dog person because of Ruby. She had previously been a cat person

- She writes a lot of poems as she gets older, and eventually tries out creative writing. She loves it and publishes a few books

- Everyone in her immediate family is left handed besides her father

- Her natural body temperature is a few degrees lower than a normal human's. As such, she sweats more and is always warm to the touch (I don't think it makes sense, but that's how it works for me so...)

- She's obsessed with night. She loves being outside at night, looking at the stars when the air is slightly cooler and feeling alone and insignificant in the universe (it comforts her to know she doesn't matter - it's the depression talking)

- Loves thunderstorms

- Believes in aliens 100%

#hogwarts mystery #gracie chiva #character profile #hphm mc #zepeto

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carewyncromwell · 3 years

Photo

The POTC AU is continuing, and with it, the reveal of the Brethren Court at Shipwreck Cove! Above we have six out of our seven Pirate Lords -- you’ll be meeting all of them in this section one by one, but to list them off, we have Merula Snyde; Arjun Singh (pictured with Aishwarya Mehra) @hogwarts9; Ellie Hopper @that-ravenpuff-witch; Jacob “Black Jack” Cromwell Roberts; Orion Amari; and Jae Kim.

Merula’s outfit is modeled slightly off of Angelica Teech’s from the fourth Pirates film, though with an oversized 18th century-style men’s undershirt rather than the “Renaissance Fair”-style shirt we get in the movie, while Jae’s most closely resembles Elizabeth Swann’s Pirate King ensemble from the third movie. Ellie’s is most closely modeled on Carina Smyth’s from the fifth Pirates film, though I did make some more period-worthy adjustments like the sleeve length and the light-weight scarf underneath the neckline, which were often worn by women of the time to obscure any deep cleavage and/or for warmth. Arjun and Jae, like the rest of the male pirates, I also gave facial hair because it was considered bad luck to shave while on board a ship, and so most pirates would invariably have beards of some variety, since they would be at sea much more than on land. In the 18th century in particular, beards were kind of “out of fashion” for men on dry land -- were you to have one, you were generally presumed to be eccentric, wild, uncouth, or just flat-out insane. (Which honestly kind of fits the traditional image of a pirate. XD)

The song “Hoist the Colours,” in the original Pirates films, actually refers to Davy Jones and the Brethren Court “binding Calypso in her bones” -- but since in this version of events, Finn McGarry/Davy Jones @theguythatdraws had no part in the Court binding Calypso (because seriously, OG!Jones?? Dick move), the “King” in the song is the original Pirate King, not Jones. It’s actually a rare case where one can take a lyric more literally than metaphorically. XD

A kumiho is a nine-tailed fox spirit from Korean mythology, rather like the Japanese kitsune. One of my personal headcanons for Jae Kim is that his Patronus is a fox. *grins at @kyril-hphm* 83

Previous part is here; whole tag is here; and also featured in this section are Jules Farrier-Weasley @cursebreakerfarrier (happy belated birthday, mon couer!) and Samantha O’Connell @samshogwarts!

x~x~x~x

Shipwreck Cove was a settlement made out of hundreds of wrecked ships, all stacked on top of each other inside of a dead volcano. It was an imposing fortress, lit by thousands of lanterns in the night. Even its location at the end of the treacherous Devil’s Throat gave it a sense of impregnability -- it needed no tall walls to keep its enemies out.

As soon as Charlie arrived on the island, his new First Mate Barnaby Lee cheerfully showed him and the rest of the Phoenix’s crew around before he guided them to the Hall of the Codex, the room where members of the Brethren Court gathered, whenever they convened. Barnaby advised Charlie to make sure he stuck his sword in the globe before approaching the table -- it not only signaled his status as Pirate Lord to the other gathered Lords, but it also was a sign of respect to the others, indicating that he would not incite violence at the meeting.

“You can bring other weapons to the table, though, so you could still start a fight if you really wanted to,” Barnaby added rather brightly.

“Hopefully it won’t come to that,” laughed Charlie.

“CHARLIE!”

The new captain of the Phoenix looked up, and his face lit up at the sight of a familiar freckled face racing towards him.

“Bill!”

The two Weasley brothers latched onto each other, squeezing each other in a giant hug.

“Thank God, Charlie!” Bill mumbled as he clutched at the back of his brother’s coat.

Jules ran over too so she could also bring an arm around Charlie, resting a hand on the back of his head as she and Bill both hugged him tight.

“We were so worried about you,” said Jules, her voice a bit more level than Bill’s but no less relieved.

She glanced curiously at the new hat and coat his new crew had lent him.

“...Is there a story behind the new clothes?”

Charlie grinned a bit sheepishly. “Uh...aye! Actually...”

“Can we send Weasley and her crew out so we can call this meeting to order already?” came a rather impatient female voice from the table.

“Captain Farrier-Weasley and the crew of the Revolution are my guests,” said the level, patient voice of Orion.

“This meeting is for Pirate Lords, Amari,” said the impatient voice irritably. “You can’t just invite non-Lords to it -- ”

"Jules’s father is the Governor of Port Royal,” said the logical voice of McNully. “Since Port Royal’s the current base of operations for Cutler Beckett and the Navy, there’s a 65% chance she’ll have some good insight about how to approach this whole thing.”

“And considering we’ll likely be missing a member of our Court, I thought it might be helpful to have another captain present who could fill in for our seventh Lord,” Orion added calmly.

"You can’t decide that all on your own, Amari!”

“He’s not trying to!” snapped Skye’s voice. “At least Orion’s trying to bring something to the table besides tantrums -- !”

“Skye, please,” Orion soothed quietly. “Samantha, is it against the Code for Pirate Lords to invite other captains to meetings?”

Charlie’s ears perked up. Samantha O’Connell was there too?

Jules beckoned Bill and Charlie with a jerk of her head to follow her into the Hall of the Codex properly.

There was a large, stained, circular table set up in the middle of the room, around which two women and two men -- presumably four out of the seven Pirate Lords -- were already seated with Orion. One of the Lords -- a young man with tanned skin, bright blue eyes, and a black ponytail -- had a dark-haired woman who closely resembled him standing behind his chair with her arms resting on top of the back. Charlie guessed they must be related.

“...The Code does state meetings of the Brethren Court are to be attended by the Pirate Lords and their crews,” said Samantha. She was sitting with her legs slouched over the right arm of a high-backed chair in the corner of the room, a gigantic, dusty, leather-bound book open in her lap. “But it doesn’t say that it can only be attended by those people...so any dispute to the rule could be settled by popular vote. If any other Lord wished to co-sponsor your guests, Orion, they could stay.”

Samantha then flashed a beady look at the brown-haired female pirate -- likely the one who’d been arguing with Orion -- across the table.

“What is stated, though, is that all active Pirate Lords must be present before a meeting starts.”

The blond female captain sitting closest to the door nodded in agreement. “And we’re still missing one Pirate Lord.”

“Technically we’re missing two Lords,” the tanned young man pointed out in a rather charming, amused voice.

“I doubt the Lord of the Pacific Ocean will show up, Arjun,” said the woman leaning against the back of his chair. “I mean, there hasn’t been one since the first Brethren Court...”

“You’ll have one for this meeting.”

Everyone turned around in surprise as Charlie strode forward toward the globe, stabbing his dragon-hilted blade into it just as Barnaby instructed.

“Charlie?” said Bill, perfectly stunned.

Charlie walked up to the table, the crew of the Phoenix following along behind, and stopped in front of the empty chair beside Orion’s. He shot Samantha a smile and a little wave, before he glanced around at the other Lords more more seriously.

“I’ll second Captain Amari’s sponsorship of Captain Farrier-Weasley and her crew,” he said firmly. He tapped his hat to indicate the S-and-anchor-trimmed “Piece of Eight” button he’d sewn onto it, before removing it and setting it down on the table as he took a seat. “The crew of the Revolution is welcome to attend this meeting.”

He shot a cheeky grin over his shoulder at his brother and sister-in-law. Bill’s mouth had dropped open in shock and disbelief. Jules looked rather stunned too, but she recovered more quickly and soon smiled broadly herself, coming up to stand between Charlie and Orion the way the woman with Arjun stood behind him.

Orion gave Charlie a muted, but still very pleased smile.

“Captain Charlie Weasley...allow me to introduce Captain Merula Snyde of the Blackbird, Pirate Lord of the Adriatic Sea -- ”

He indicated the impatient pink-eyed brunette, who was now slouching in her seat and crossing her arms irritably.

“ -- Captain Ellie Hopper of the Treasure, Pirate Lord of the Mediterranean Sea -- ”

The blonde pirate wearing the thigh-length teal dress and brown tricorn hat nodded politely to Charlie and smiled. “A pleasure to meet you.”

“ -- Captain Arjun Singh of the Naga, Pirate Lord of the Indian Ocean, and his cousin and co-captain, Aishwarya Mehra -- ”

The man called Arjun and the woman behind him both smiled and inclined their heads respectfully to Charlie.

“ -- Captain Jae Kim of the Kumiho, Pirate Lord of the South China Sea -- ”

A pirate with a long black braid dressed in a beautifully patterned gold silk tunic, who was slouching casually in his seat, raised his hand in an off-hand wave. “Hey.”

“ -- and last but certainly not least, Samantha O’Connell, Keeper of the Code.”

“We’ve met,” said Charlie with a cheeky grin.

Samantha’s lips were tugged up into a broad smile too as she closed the large book in her lap and got to her feet.

“Yeah,” she agreed. “And of course you already know Orion -- Pirate Lord of the Caribbean Sea.”

“So the last Lord is for the Atlantic Ocean?” said Jules after a moment, once she’d mentally listed off all the seas she’d heard.

“Aye -- that I am.”

Everyone looked up as a man with a long mane of dark curls and hollowed-out, almond-shaped blue eyes strode up to the round table.

“Black Jack!” said Barnaby in relief.

The rest of the Phoenix chattered happily at the sight of the Tower Raven’s captain. Charlie was relieved too, seeing that Carewyn’s brother was all right after all. Unlike the rest of the captains present, Jacob only had Ashe accompanying him instead of a full crew, and both men were also missing their hats and dressed in sopping wet clothes.

“Apologies for my tardiness,” muttered Jacob as he sidled into the seat next to Merula’s. “Ashe and I had to swim most of the way here, as that twat Rakepick decided to blow up my ship -- ”

“Swim?” repeated Merula, sounding both perfectly scandalized and disbelieving. “How could you have swam all the way here from...wherever the Hell you were?”

“Very strong lungs and muscles,” Ashe said in such a cool voice that it put an end to the train of conversation. He stood over Jacob much the way Aishwarya stood over Arjun, draping his arms around the back of the chair so as to hug Jacob from behind, and shot beady looks at the remaining Pirate Lords. “Seems they’re all in attendance, Jack.”

“Aye,” said Jacob. “Shall we begin, then?”

“Aye,” agreed Samantha. “Now, as per the Code, we can call this meeting of the Fourth Brethren Court to order.”

“Finally,” growled Merula.

She immediately shot to her feet and addressed the others.

“All right -- for those of you who aren’t aware...the Flying Dutchman, cursed ship of the damned, has been impressed into service by the British Navy. Then, under that arse Cutler Beckett’s orders, it attacked Tortuga.”

Jacob looked stricken. “Tortuga?”

Merula nodded. “Two hundred people have now been hanged in Port Royal, all for supposedly aiding and abetting pirates -- men, women, and children.”

Ellie looked back at her crewmates, visibly disturbed by the news. Arjun and Aishwarya exchanged a grim look.

“Both of the Captains Weasley and I were on Tortuga at the time of the attack,” said Orion, indicating Charlie, Jules, and himself. “I’m afraid the Flying Dutchman has burned the settlement to the ground. It’s no longer safe to return to.”

“It’s worse than that,” Charlie said lowly. He glanced from Jacob to Orion. “...Commodore Carey Weasley...warned me that Beckett is on his way here, to Shipwreck Cove.”

Orion’s dark eyes widened. Jacob stiffened sharply.

“You saw Carey?” said Bill, his voice strained with desperation.

Charlie glanced at his brother uneasily. “Yeah. ...He’s aboard the Flying Dutchman.”

The pronouncement made Jacob lunge to his feet so violently he knocked his chair over with a clatter.

“What?!”

His face was as white as a sheet as the rest of the Pirate Lords and their crews muttered amongst themselves. Ashe squeezed his lover’s shoulders that bit more tightly, his own brown eyes narrowing in concern. Bill had also blanched, his freckles sticking out sharply on his face. Orion’s gaze dropped onto his hands as he clasped them together on the table in front of him.

“Sh -- he can’t be on that ship!” Jacob shouted. “I explicitly told him to stay in Port Royal, away from the sea -- !”

“Carey had to have been ordered to go,” Jules cut Jacob off as gently as she could, even if she looked just as anxious as Bill and Charlie were. “If he got the order, he wouldn’t have been able to disobey it...not if he wanted to keep his position as Commodore -- to protect all of us.”

She glanced at Bill and reached out and took his hand, squeezing it empathetically.

Arjun exchanged a confused look with Aishwarya.

“I’m sorry -- but I think we’re missing something here,” said the Pirate Lord of the Indian Ocean with a bit of a sheepish smile. “Is the Commodore of the British Navy our ally now?”

“Of course not!” scoffed Merula. “Beckett’s been puffing his chest out for weeks, crowing about how he’s roped ‘the great Carey Weasley’ into his anti-piracy campaign. Rumor has it that the Commodore himself was the one who suggested sacking Tortuga in the first place!”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” said Jae.

Everyone turned to look at him, startled.

“Amari here captured Carey Weasley to send a message to the British Navy and the East India Trading Company, didn’t he?” said the Lord of the South China Sea. “Yet Weasley escaped him. Then, only a short while later, Amari got arrested in Weasley’s hometown of Port Royal, only to be ‘liberated’ by Weasley’s own brothers and the Governor’s daughter, who has now become his sister-in-law.” He nodded curtly at Jules, Bill, and Charlie. “...It seems clear to me that all of it must’ve been planned. There’s no reason I can see for Charlie, Bill, and Jules Weasley to break Amari out of prison unless he and the Commodore were allies.”

The Pirate Lords’ crews excluding Orion’s starting muttering again. Charlie glanced at Orion, but the Captain of the Artemis’s gaze was still solidly on his clasped hands on the tale.

“...That’s true,” the second eldest Weasley said at last. “Captain Amari and my twin staged the escape. That was the reason Jules, Bill, and I helped Captain Amari escape prison, so he could help us rescue Carey from Charles Cromwell. Carey may be with Beckett...but he’s only agreed to it so that he’ll be in a position to protect us, now that we’ve been branded pirates.”

“Your twin’s smart,” said Jae with a nod. His black eyes then flitted over to Jacob. “What I want to know, though, is how you know the Commodore, Black Jack?”

Jacob’s skull-like blue eyes narrowed very coldly upon Jae’s face. “My history with the Commodore is none of your business. Nor is it relevant.”

He turned his focus back to the rest of the Brethren Court, his eyes blazing. “If that bilge rat Beckett does know where Shipwreck Cove is, then we’ll need to make preparations.”

“What preparations?” said Jae. He looked oddly unconcerned as he slouched back in his chair. “Shipwreck Cove is a fortress. It would take ages for anyone to penetrate our defenses.”

“The British Navy has broken out their Man O’ Wars from the War against the Spanish,” said Jacob grimly. “No pirate I know of has a ship that large and heavily armed.”

“Even so,” said Arjun bracingly, “it would take at least a month for them to reach us here, even if they found Shipwreck Cove. Would Beckett really want to waste that much time?”

“And money too,” Ellie pointed out. “That’s always what men like him worry about most.”

“Not to mention all the lives of the men he’d lose,” said Aishwarya.

“I’m afraid those things mean little.”

Everyone looked at Orion. He slowly raised his gaze from his clasped hands at last to look at them all.

“Cutler Beckett may be a man of business,” the Pirate Lord of the Caribbean murmured, “but he’s also a vengeful, close-minded, and ambitious person. He seeks status and wealth, and he has no compassion for those who might stand in his way of achieving them. And right now, in his eyes, what stands in his way -- in the way of the East India Trading Company’s profits and his own personal ambitions -- is every person who sails under a pirate flag or who shows any sympathy for our plight. Beckett may be crafty enough to manipulate others rather than just using his own physical strength...but he only acts like a gentleman when he doesn’t have absolute power over another person’s life. When he does have that level of control over someone...he can be as ruthless as the Kraken itself.”

Despite the calm, serious expression on his face, there was an odd flash of cold emotion that crackled through his dark eyes. No one doubted Orion’s testimony.

“If the fleet Beckett’s assembled does contain Man O’ Wars,” said McNully, as he rolled his wheeled chair up beside Orion, “then there’s a 73.2% chance this could turn into a siege.”

Jules’s dark eyes became a little smaller and she set her jaw tightly.

“...Then we’ll just have to assemble our own Navy and fight back,” she said firmly after a moment.

The other Pirate Lords’ crews started to laugh.

“‘Navy?’” repeated Arjun. He wasn’t laughing, but he did look a little incredulous. “Captain Weasley...we pirates may have a Court and Lords, but we’re not a country. Even those of us who have fleets -- or had fleets,” he gave a nod toward Jacob, “don’t answer to anyone else.”

“Even Shipwreck Cove isn’t a military fort or town,” said Aishwarya. “People stay here, and it’s very well-protected...but it’s no one’s home.”

“No pirate has a home,” said Samantha solemnly from the sidelines. Her emerald green eyes had drifted off toward the wall absently. “Just a ship, if we’re lucky.”

Charlie’s eyes lingered on Samantha’s face, clearly struck by how grim and oddly sad she seemed, saying this.

Jules, however, didn’t falter in her conviction even slightly. If anything, her dark eyes grew sharper as she put a hand down on the table and leaned over it.

“Cutler Beckett is an ally of my father’s, so Beckett hates pirates just as much as he does -- likely more, if we take Orion’s word -- and we’re all pirates. There’s no way any of us could defeat Beckett on our own, and if he reaches Shipwreck Cove, it’s likely he’ll treat it the same way he did Tortuga. If that happens, where else will anyone branded as pirates be able to go? Where else will we be able to go, if we decide to run instead of standing our ground? Even if you don’t have a home, we all need a safe place to rest and resupply...”

Bill nodded in agreement. “We all need a sanctuary to escape to, now and again.”

Jacob rested his head in his hands on the table, interlacing the fingers over his lips thoughtfully. Ellie Hopper placed both of her hands on the table so as to hoist herself up and out of her chair to her feet.

“You bring up a good point, Captain Weasley,” she said to Jules, “but it’s as Captain Roberts said -- none of our ships are comparable to a Man O’ War. And although there are pirates who were once soldiers...” she inclined her head respectfully to Bill and Charlie, “...there are quite a few of us who never were. Most pirates who were once in the Navy were privateers -- sailors who only ever attacked merchant vessels, not war ships -- and others, including both you and me, have no military experience at all. We don’t have the strength needed to defeat an entire fleet of Man O’ Wars.”

“We don’t,” said Orion very softly. “But there is someone who does.”

He glanced at Charlie. “Charlie Weasley...is Chia Dalma still with you?”

Charlie blinked. “Aye...she didn’t seem to like the thought of meeting the rest of the Court, so she stayed behind on the Phoenix.”

Orion nodded, but seemed unconcerned -- likely he’d presumed as much.

“You all recall, I hope,” he said, “that the Brethren Court was first formed when the original Pirate Lords decided to steal control from the goddess Calypso?”

Most of the people in the room nodded and murmured in assent. Charlie, Bill, and Jules did not.

“I’m afraid I’m not familiar with that story,” said Jules.

“I’ve heard of Calypso,” said Bill slowly. “She’s supposed to be a goddess of the sea, isn’t she?”

“She was, once,” said Orion.

“There’s a song that tells the tale,” Skye added.

They both glanced at Merula, who straightened up in her seat and sang in a rather lovely voice,

“The King and his men stole the Queen from her bed

And bound her in her bones --

The seas be ours, and by the powers, where we will, we’ll roam.”

The tune immediately sounded familiar to Charlie, Bill, and Jules -- it was the same one Carewyn had sung for Pearl, just before she died.

“You see, the original Pirate King, Henry Morgan, and his allies were buccaneers who were scared of how dangerous the sea was,” said McNully. “Because their livelihoods depended on their ability to sail, they all decided to tame the sea enough that it’d be safe to travel on, without them needing to appeal to the whims of a ‘heathen goddess.’”

Jules’s eyebrows came together tightly.

“And how did they ‘tame’ her, exactly?” she asked, her low voice betraying some cold disapproval.

“They ‘bound her in her bones,’” said Jae, “or, more simply, trapped her in human form. The transformation restricted the use of her powers significantly, making the seas less turbulent to sail on and therefore making it safer for the Lords and other pirates to evade the Navy and ‘ply their trade.’”

Jules looked furious. “So they cursed a goddess, just to help themselves?”

“To protect themselves,” Merula shot back a bit defensively.

Skye nodded in passionate agreement. “Calypso was terrifying at full power. She could create maelstroms out of fat air, send wild sea creatures to attack ships. She was the one who created the Kraken and the Flying Dutchman in the first place. Davy Jones was her lover, so they say...”

“The decision is more complicated than you think, Captain Weasley,” said Jacob, and his skull-like blue eyes drifted absently off toward the ceiling as his voice grew more thoughtful. “The Pirate Lords, much like us, could only support themselves and their families through their buccaneering. They did not come from wealth as you have. There was no other good way for them to make a living or a better life for themselves and their loved ones, as they weren’t land-owners and didn’t have any financial collateral. Not to mention many of them were God-fearing Christians who were intimidated by what they thought must be a servant of Satan, since there can be no other God before Him. What they did was cruel, of course -- no question...but it was made out of self-preservation and fear, not just greed.”

Jules crossed her arms, clearly unmoved. “It seems to me that people who so clearly value freedom shouldn’t try to justify why someone else should be denied theirs.”

“I agree,” said Orion, and although his voice was much softer and more level than Jules’ was, his eyes twinkled with something like approval in response to her words. “And that is why I propose that we reverse the First Brethren Court’s decision, from all those years ago...and release Calypso from her bonds.”

There was a silence. Then, very abruptly, all of the other pirates started shouting and arguing.

“Are you insane?!”

“That’d just make everything worse!”

“Cut out his tongue!”

“Calypso has no reason to help us -- she’d no doubt hate pirates, for what we did to her -- ”

“Give him a good shot to the head!”

“We’d be fighting both a sea goddess and the entire British Navy, if we did that -- !”

Even Skye and McNully looked at Orion with notable trepidation.

“Orion, I’d say you might want to pull back on that idea a bit,” McNully muttered to him.

Even if the volume and anger in the room did take him aback slightly, Orion kept his cool. He rose to his feet, holding up a hand for calm, but many ignored him and instead shouted louder. Seeing this, Charlie got to his feet too and, pulling his pistol of his belt, pointed it at the air and shot at the ceiling. The loud BANG scared everyone enough that they fell silent and the Lords who were standing all returned to their seats.

Orion nodded to Charlie in mute gratitude and addressed the rest of the pirates again, his hands clasped in front of him.

“We currently don’t have the force needed to overcome Cutler Beckett and his Company. We do not have the force needed to defend Shipwreck Cove, or even to ensure that we all escape this storm alive. We could hole up here for a month or so and hope that the Navy tires themselves out -- but as McNully stated, that could easily become a siege, at which point this place would become our tomb. We could all evacuate the island before the Navy arrives -- but as Captain Farrier-Weasley said, we’d lose the last sanctuary we have remaining in the world, as well as the last place from which we could plan a counterattack. We would all be out for ourselves at that point...leaving us to be picked off one by one by Beckett’s greater forces.”

His dark eyes grew a little smaller and more solemn.

“Therefore...the only path remaining to us is to stand our ground. And if we don’t wish to die on that path, we’ll need to gather whatever strength is available to us. Uranus and Saturn are set to collide in the Heavens...hinting to a climatic battle between order and chaos. We cannot know what the outcome will be unless we decide not to fight at all...but if we did that, then we’d only know the outcome because it would indisputably be failure.”

The other Pirate Lords exchanged wary looks among themselves. Jacob then gave a loud sigh and gave a reluctant nod.

“Amari’s right,” he said lowly. “Regardless of what your positions on releasing Calypso are...we don’t have a choice in whether to fight or fly. We will have to fight...and it’d be stupid and pointless to try doing it on our own.”

He glanced at Ellie, who nodded in agreement, and Merula, whose pink eyes narrowed disapprovingly.

“We can’t declare war,” the Pirate Lord of the Adriatic Sea pointed out in a rather arrogant sort of voice. “Only the Pirate King can do that.”

Orion actually blinked in surprise. “Really?”

He turned to Samantha. “Is that true, Samantha?”

The Pirate Dragon’s emerald eyes narrowed slightly as she reopened the large leather-bound Codex in her lap, flipping through the pages and scanning each line to find the proper section.

“...As per the Code,” she said lowly, “‘the Pirate Lords shall select a captain by popular vote to serve as Pirate King, who shall represent the entire Court when all cannot be present. The Pirate King alone can declare a state of emergency; declare war; take custody of the eight Pieces of Eight; take governorship of Shipwreck Cove; and give commands to ships that he himself does not sail.’ Looks like Merula’s right.”

Charlie frowned and turned to glance back at Barnaby, who’d been standing on the opposite side of him as Jules.

“The Pirate King is the leader of the Brethren Court, right?” he muttered to him.

“Aye,” Barnaby whispered in his ear. “Only, there hasn’t been one since the first Brethren Court.”

“Why?”

“Everyone from the other Courts just voted for themselves...so there was always a six-way tie and no one could decide on a winner.”

“I call for a vote,” said Orion serenely.

A lot of the other pirates in the room sighed in frustration or covered their faces and shook their heads. Jae himself plopped his chin down on his hand and rolled his eyes.

“Amari, are you serious?” he said tiredly.

Orion looked perfectly nonplussed. “Captain Roberts, would you start us off, please?”

Jacob raised an eyebrow at Orion and exchanged a suspicious look with Ashe, before he shrugged and nodded.

“I vote for Black Jack Roberts,” he said coolly.

He glanced at Merula sitting next to him.

“Captain Merula Snyde of the Blackbird -- most powerful ship on the seven seas,” she said, her lips curled up in a dry smirk.

“Ellie Hopper,” said Ellie uncomfortably, exchanging looks with some of her crew members.

“Captain Jae Kim,” sighed Jae.

“...Arjun Singh, of the Naga,” Arjun said after he’d exchanged a bemused shrug with Aishwarya.

When it was Orion’s turn, the Pirate Lord gave a quick sweep around the table with his eyes, before they shifted to his left, twinkling with something almost like mischief.

“Captain Juliette Farrier-Weasley.”

“What?” said Jules.

“What?” said Charlie and Bill, just as taken aback.

Orion’s lips actually spread into a full, broad grin seeing how much his choice had blindsided everyone.

“The Pirate Code said that the Pirate Lords must select ‘a captain’ to be the Pirate King,” he said airily. “It never said that captain had to be a Pirate Lord. So I vote for Captain Juliette Farrier-Weasley of the Revolution to be our Pirate King.”

He then nodded to Charlie. “Captain Weasley -- your vote?”

Charlie grinned broadly from ear to ear and he shot a glance over his shoulder at his sister-in-law, who had flushed a dark shade of red and looked very stunned.

“Captain Juliette Farrier-Weasley,” said the Lord of the Pacific Ocean.

The other Pirate Lords and their crews all started chattering at once.

“What?”

“If I’d known you could pick any captain, I would’ve voted for Aishwarya -- ”

“Choosing your own sister-in-law -- ”

“I call for a recount -- ”

“How long has she even been a pirate?”

“Pure nepotism, that’s what it is -- ”

Orion raised his eyebrows very coolly. “Am I to take this to mean you all will not be keeping to the Code?”

Everyone almost as a unit turned to look at Samantha, who was glaring very pointedly at them as she rotated a pair of grenades in one hand.

Ellie, the Pirate Lord who had reacted with the least hostility to the decision, turned to Jules with a solemn look.

“The votes have it,” she said. “So Pirate King Weasley -- what say you? What shall we do?”

Jules, her face still very red, glanced hesitantly at her husband. Bill looked at her with pride, his eyes sparkling fondly as he squeezed her hand. Her lips spreading into a comforted smile, Jules raised her head and faced the Court with new confidence.

“Gather together and arm every vessel that floats,” she said firmly. “At dawn, we’ll prepare for war.”

With the meeting having come to a close, the Pirate Lords departed one by one to begin their preparations for the battle to come. Jules (knowing that, even though she was now Pirate King, she lacked military experience) immediately asked Bill, McNully, and Charlie to help her with figuring out what strategy would work best to defend the Cove. Orion himself seemed very pleased with the final outcome -- Charlie had asked him why he didn’t vote for himself, but Orion merely smiled and didn’t reply. Bill, however, thought he could guess.

“I don’t reckon Orion’s the sort to want to rule over anyone,” he said with a knowing smile. “Guide them, yes -- lead them, maybe -- but not rule.”

Orion looked at Bill, his eyes as calm and unreadable as ever.

“Interesting conclusion. What made you draw it, Bill Weasley?”

Bill’s smile faded, but his brown eyes lost none of their warmth. “Because Carey’s the exact same way.”

There was a strange spark in the back of Orion’s eyes -- something almost like surprise, which then morphed into something warmer and softer...fonder.

“...True,” he murmured. “Although she may have the heart of a queen, and all of the grace...Carewyn Cromwell would never choose a crown for herself.”

Bill’s gaze softened. Before he could say anything, however, there was a very loud WHAM.

Jacob, who was still in his seat and had been talking to Ashe, had abruptly slammed the large table across the floor with all of his strength, nearly knocking it over as he barreled over.

“YOU!”

Out of nowhere, the Pirate Lord of the Atlantic seized Orion by the collar with both hands.

“Jacob?” said Bill, completely taken aback.

“Jack!” said Ashe, his eyes narrowing in concern.

But Jacob didn’t seem to hear either of them. His blue pupils were dark, irrational slits of rage.

“IT WAS YOUR VOICE! YOU’RE THE ONE WHO CALLED MY WYN BY HER NAME! YOU’RE THE ONE WHO SPOKE OF HER IN THAT SOFT VOICE, YOU MAGGOT-INFESTED BASTARD -- !”

“Jacob, let him go!” said Jules.

Orion amazingly didn’t look the least bit scared -- instead his expression was rather tense as well as a bit confused.

“Captain Roberts,” he spoke quietly in an attempt to soothe the other man’s anger, “I understand what Carewyn means to you -- what you mean to her. I would never harm your sister. I could never hurt Carewyn, nor could I ever wish to -- ”

Bill was reminded of when Orion was trying hard not to fight him, back in Port Royal. Jacob, however, was just as unmoved as Bill had been.

“STOP CALLING HER BY HER NAME!” he roared.

Jacob yanked Orion around by the collar, slamming him roughly into the wall.

“IT’S BECAUSE OF YOU THAT JONES IS AFTER WYN! SHE WOULD BE SAFE NOW IF IT WEREN’T FOR YOU -- I’LL KILL YOU, YOU SCABBY, BILGE-SUCKING SON OF A -- !”

“Jacob, stop!” Charlie bellowed.

“Get off Orion NOW!” yelled Skye.

Samantha, Barnaby, Skye, Jules, and Charlie had all grabbed onto the back of Jacob’s coat and onto his arms, trying in vain to pull him off of Orion. Jacob, however, was ridiculously strong, and his grip tightened around Orion’s collar and throat, making the taller man wince.

Bill, his expression darkening more than anyone had ever seen before, very sharply skipped grabbing onto Jacob and instead stepped right between Orion and Jacob, taking his pistol out of his belt and pointing it right at Jacob’s temple. The move prompted Ashe to make an angry move toward Bill, but the eldest Weasley put out his other hand to hold him at arm’s length.

“Jacob, Carey’s not here, so I’ll say this for her,” Bill said very icily. “‘I’ll never forgive you if you hurt him.’”

Jacob gave a sharp flinch. His mad, hollow, slitted pupils never left Orion’s face, but they seemed to lose some of their focus -- almost as if he was looking right through Orion.

Ashe, furious at Bill having held him back, grabbed the red-haired man’s wrist and twisted it painfully out of the way so he could run over to Jacob himself. He brought both of his arms tightly around his lover’s neck, his face resting in the dark curls over Jacob’s brow as he hummed something under his breath. The sound seemed to calm Jacob little by little, making his shoulders loosen and his grip slacken. Light gradually returned to his eyes as he slowly removed his trembling hands from Orion’s throat, breathing shakily.

Jules immediately moved to Bill, bringing up a hand to his wrist to make sure it wasn’t too badly hurt. Once she’d confirmed he was okay, she turned to Jacob with a fierce look.

“Jacob, what do you mean Jones is after Carey?” she demanded. “Why is she in danger?”

Jacob’s gaze had fallen to the ground, throwing his eyes into shadow as he continued to take heavy, labored breaths. Ashe, still holding Jacob tightly, turned around, a very hard, grim look on his face as his eyes flickered from Orion to Jules.

“Jones aims to force someone into servitude on his ship,” he said lowly, “and he’s decided that person is Jack’s sister.”

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averagesmw · 3 years

Text

Penny Haywood x MC- A risk far too great

Game: Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery

_____________________________

My stay at Hogwarts so far has been... interesting, to say the least

Unwillingly, I became responsible for breaking the horrible curses that came as a result of the Cursed Vaults. All in pursue of my missing brother, Jacob.

Not that I didn't want to save everyone or find my brother, but I didn't know it would be this difficult

However, when we entered the third vault and broke the sleepwalking curse, I thought I was getting the hang of it

...And then came the fourth curse

Not only was it difficult to understand, but this one got quite personal

See, this curse kidnapped students and trapped them inside the various portraits that decorate the school's walls. One of the victims happened to be the first-year Hufflepuff, Beatrice Haywood.

As in, Penny's adorable little sister

That is no way to be introduced to Hogwarts, I should know

But what weighed on me the most was Penny's reaction to this, she was devastated and obviously not the little ray of sunshine I knew and loved

Our adventures together were by far my favorite thing about all these years. We've grown to know each other so well, she even picked me to go with her to a dance

She provided all the happiness that I needed, but now, she was the one that needed happiness

Regardless, it served as a strong motivator to break the curse as soon as possible, which led me to this very moment...

Joined by Merula, Bill, and the new faculty member, Professor Rakepick, I was discussing the next step in our plan to enter the fourth vault. We were in the Courtyard as to not raise any suspicions

However, our plans would soon collide with my personal goals, and not for the better

...

"Now, who shall we take into the Cursed Vault with us?"

Rakepick asked us, making my mind start racing with possibilities

"Well, there are pros and cons to anyone we pick..."

We looked around at the people present in the courtyard. From Badeea to Tonks and even Barnaby, we discussed who could bring more to this table

Eventually, the sight of beautiful, blonde hair caught my attention. There she was, Penny Haywood herself trying her best to go on with her day

Always so resourceful and determined to help others, even now that she was the one that needed the help. Oh, Penny...

It was true that she could help but I...I just couldn't sentence to go into such a place, what if we lose? Or worse...

No, there was no chance I would risk bringing her along this time. I had to find someone else that could assist us

In my mind, I was already narrowing down the best candidates, although I didn't want to put any of them in danger, especially--

"What about Haywood? We could use her potion knowledge"

Merula's voice broke my concentration, I immediately turned to her upon hearing that

"Merula is right, Penny could help us brew a potion if we need it at the vault if we need it"

Bill added. The sole mention of her name in this conversation was enough to send shivers down my spine

I could even feel my breathing getting a bit erratic at this. But before anything else could happen, I threw a quick counter-offer

"B-But what about Charlie? He knows about dragons far more than any of us. W-We could use his knowledge more!"

Merula looked at me strangely. I subtly shook my head to her, telling her to back off on that idea with my eyes filled with worry

She seemed to pick up on this and gave me a subtle nod, putting her hand on her chin

For the last months, Merula and I had grown closer together as well. She might not admit it until earlier today, but we were good friends

In fact, she was likely the only person (besides Rowan) that knew about my umm... My opinion on Penny, hence why she understood my signals so quickly

"Now that you mention, he could help us defeat the dragon first. After he squeals at the sight of it"

For a split second, I felt relieved to have her on my side...then Rakepick talked

"While that is true, I agree that Miss Haywood could help us the most in this case"

She was quick to shoot down the idea, but why? Why send Penny into something so dangerous without even giving her time to prepare!

There was NO way I'd send Penny off like that, not her, especially after everything we've been through

"I don't think that's a good idea, professor. Penny has been quite unstable since the beginning of the year, she won't concentrate"

I responded with the first thing that came to my mind, just desperately trying to change their mind

"Or she could be perfectly motivated to give her best to save her sister"

"Hasn't Penny helped you with the other vaults before, Y/N? She has more experience in dealing with them"

Bill was not helping. Of course Penny tagged along a few times, but mostly when we knew that it wasn't incredibly dangerous like now

It's a dragon we're talking about! Not a Boggart or an Ice Knight

"Bill, we're not bringing her with us"

My friend noticed the sudden change in my tone and looked at me with a confused look

"Why not? Is something wrong with that?"

What!? Of course there was, Bill! You'd have to be blind not to notice!

My worry found a shield in the form of anger, but it was quickly released as I yelled out of pure emotion

"WE'RE NOT SENDING PENNY OUT THERE, THAT'S IT!!"

All three of my allies were taken back by this, even Rakepick. Taking a quick look at the rest of the students that were also there I noticed that they had all shut up and were now staring at me...even her

I couldn't deal with all of those eyes, not at the same time. What was I even supposed to say after such a display?

"I...I have to go. I'll be back for tonight, I promise"

Following what both my heart and mind were screaming me to do, I ran away back to the castle without looking at anyone

The place was awfully silent for a couple of seconds, but the chatter resumed shortly after, only a bit less intense this time

"Was it something I said? I've never seen Y/N have an outburst like that..."

Bill felt guilty, but he didn't even know why. Of course, it was always awful when you made someone react like that without knowing the reason

"Miss Snyde, you said before this conversation that Y/N is your friend, right?"

The teacher caught the attention of Merula, who was still looking at the door

"Yes?..."

"Do you mind explaining what was that all about, then?"

Merula was silent for a moment. She wouldn't tell the exact reason, but she was clever enough to coat it while technically not lying

"Well...I reckon to have one cursed Haywood was too much for L/N, maybe they don't want to get the other one killed. It would stain their pride"

"Y/N has been lacking sleep since this all began, too. They don't want anyone else involved in this" The Weasley added

"You may be right...Do you think you can talk some sense into them?"

Merula then spotted a certain blonde running into the castle, going in the same direction. Under a mask of carelessness, a genuine smile grew

"That won't be necessary, professor"

...

My instinct brought me to the Artifact Room, where I immediately closed the door upon entering and just got to my knees when my body was unable to continue

My hands rested on them as tears started to form on their own, despite my best attempts to stop them

Why was it so hard to understand that Penny was off the table?

Why was it so hard to understand that she was the last one I wanted to get involved?

Just...why?...

I felt my breathing adopt a slightly faster pace, but only for a couple of seconds. I was too busy fighting with my thoughts and just trying to make any sense of it to realize that someone had opened the door

By the time I knew it, someone was handing me down a potion

"Here, drink this"

That voice...

Not wanting her to see me like this, I looked over my shoulder to confirm it. Those beautiful blue eyes, the braided hair, the worry in her face...

I took the potion but didn't open it

"Penny? What's this?"

"It's a calming draught, I always have a spare one just in case"

"That's very considerate of you, b-but really, I'm fine"

Then she placed a hand on my shoulder, giving me a sympathetic look

"I heard you scream my name in the courtyard, Y/N. You can trust me"

Of course lying wasn't going to work, I made a mess back there

Reluctantly, I removed the cork and drank the calming draught. Just by feeling it go down my throat, I could feel my thoughts become clearer and my breathing was slowing down on its own

"Thank you..."

I said handing her the potion, but then Penny sat down in front of me, trying to get a better look at me

"Do you want to talk? You know you can trust me, Y/N"

I sighed before nodding slightly. Taking a quick glance at her before immediately trying to look away

Might as well tell her now. This was about her after all

"W-Well...Professor Rakepick says she found a way into the Cursed Vault, it's a portkey that will activate tonight"

Her gasp made me look at her, she was visibly surprised by this

"Tonight? But those are wonderful news!"

"They are. Rakepick says we should take someone else with us, but then everyone started leaning towards you and--"

"I'm in"

Upon hearing this, I felt my heart take the hit, quickly reminding me of what I was fearing just a second ago

Despite being under the influence of that potion, distress was beyond visible

"What? No"

Penny gave me a puzzled look. Never before had I prohibited her to come with me on an adventure

What was particularly concerning was how quick I was to brush her off

"Why not?"

"Penny, it's far too dangerous! Even a bloody dragon will be there"

She picked up on my increasing anguish, but her own emotions were just as strong at the moment

"And yet you're still going, Y/N! That's no justification"

"Yes, because we've been chosen and trained specifically to deal with this! There's no telling what could happen if you go!"

"I want to go, I need to see it for myself when the curse is broken. Plus you could use my help!"

I shook my head in denial. I knew she of all people had a reason to go, but the risk was far too big for a reward that was still uncertain

"There are plenty of ways you can help us from here"

The Hufflepuff was growing frustrated by my attempts at persuading her out of this mission, maybe to the point of getting personal

"Why don't you want me to go? I need to save my sister!"

It hurt to see her so angry at me, but as I felt the effect of the draught vanishing, I too adopted a similar gaze

I felt the hairs on my arms raising once again and the heartbeat increasing, even my face was heating up

"You're too valuable to lose!"

"Oh? And why am I the one who's too valuable? Why isn't it Bill? Or Merula? Or--"

Blood rushing

Tears escaping

Voice raising and suddenly

"BUT I DON'T LOVE THEM LIKE I LOVE YOU, OKAY!?"

Silence

Pure and suffocating silence

It quickly took over the room as soon as my voice stopped echoing through

I myself couldn't help but cover my mouth in shock by what just happened. Not just because I raised my voice against Penny, but because of what I said

Did I really just?...

Oh no

Beyond shocked, I looked at her. She was speechless with her eyes staring at me in disbelief

"You do?..."

"I have to get out of--"

Once again, I tried to run from it, but it didn't work. My arm was stopped by her hand and her startled voice

"N-No, it's okay! Really"

I turned around to see her yet again, not able to even think of a word for her. For sure she would turn me down, or worse

But her smile, that gentle, warm smile was there. The same one she showed me whenever we were goofing around or brewing something together

It was there

And so was that soft gaze she had whenever I had done something stupid and she was trying to help me like...well... right now

But this time, it hit different

"I want to hear it from you, Y/N. Please" Her sweet voice practically begging for me to stay. I didn't find myself to be strong enough to deny her request

And so, against everything my mind told me, I stayed behind, with Penny

She asked me to carry on with what I said before trying to escape. Sighing, I complied

I figured that it could help her understand why I didn't want her to go, but also...I think I owed her an explanation for well, everything

I gathered my strength until finally, words started to come out

"The truth is that I...I fancy you, Penny. I've done it for quite a while now and not only am I doing this to dave Bea and the others who fell victim to this curse"

My eyes, while looking down at first, were now focused on her. I didn't care if she saw how bad I looked at the moment, I was talking straight out of my heart, throwing myself in the void and hoping for the best

"...I do it because I can't stand to see you so depressed, it breaks my heart"

"Y/N..." The sole mention of my name by her was almost enough for me to back off, almost

But she needed to know

"If I can't see you like this, imagine how I felt when everyone started leaning towards you to follow us into the vault. I can't bear the thought of something bad happening to you"

Before I knew it, Penny wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into a tight hug as she hid her forehead in my shoulders. At first, I couldn't believe it, I just stood there with her warmth and allowed that familiar feeling of security and care wash over me

A heavy, broken breath left my body, felt like a weight had been pulled off

At least until I heard her voice again, still buried in my shoulder

"...If I go to the Cursed Vault, would you be by my side?"

That question caught me off-guard, making me end the embrace to look at her. Although I think I heard her protest this

"Of course I would. I wouldn't leave you to yourself" I answered almost automatically

"Then I have nothing to fear"

The way she smiled after saying that, was disconcerting

"Penny..."

"I'm going to trust you with a secret of mine, one that I've never told anyone before"

She motioned me to come closer, which I did. It took her a bit to talk, seems as if this was a heavy subject for her as well

"It's bad enough to have my sister trapped in a portrait like that, it's horrible"

Penny was the one to sigh after that, her fists clenching as well before those blue orbs of her stared me down

"...But it's even worse to see the one I love risk their life for all of us every single year. I can only pray that you come back in one piece and so far you have"

The one she...what?...

Now I was speechless. Her cheeks turned a shade of pink when she noticed my reaction, but it didn't take long for a small smile to return to her

"This time, I want to help you the way you've helped us. It doesn't matter if it's an Ice knight, an Acromantula, or a bunch of Bogarts..."

Then, I felt something reaching out for my hand, it was hers

This gesture provoked our eyes to meet one last time

"As long as we are together. There is no such thing as an impossible challenge"

The determination in her, so familiar. Now I understood what Dumbledoremust've felt when I ignored his pleas for me to stop chasing the vaults

"And when we return from this, we'll talk. I promise"

What came after was still something that I'm struggling to process

Penny pulled me towards her a little and then closed the distance herself, leaning in towards me. I felt a pair of soft, tender lips kissing my cheek

"Thank you for opening up to me. I mean it"

There was no butterbeer or oversized sandwiches that could persuade the blonde to leave this mission, I understood that now. She would get to experience the end of this curse herself

And as we stood along with Bill, Merula, Rakepick, and even Ben, I made my new mission to protect her from whatever lurked inside that vault

But as we approached the portkey and her hand wouldn't leave mine, I understood that even in the face of incredible danger...

...She too, would have my back

#mc hogwarts mystery #hogwarts mystery jacob's sibling #penny haywood x mc #penny haywood x jacob's sibling #Year five

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