RPG Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

[Disenchanted]

[FONT="Geneva"][SIZE="1"][B]?So Charis how was your summer? ?Well my family went to Russia, oh it was simply gorgeous?? [/B]Chris tried ever so hard not to curse her friend and almost felt like telling Krystia McGill to shove the looming account of her extravagant summer up her Acromantula burrow but thought better of it at the last second. Krystia always insisted on calling people by their first names and sometimes out right refused to use nicknames, a fact which annoyed Chris to no end. Sometimes she wandered why she hung around these girls which usually led to her concluding that life would be somehow much harder for her if she didn?t. Chris had known for a long time that up-right [i]apparently[/i] pureblood girls such as Krystia were no good for her state of mind, honestly why did she torture herself so? She tuned out completely as her ?friends? began to compare holiday stories and what they bought.

Occasionally Chris was included but she stayed silent for the most part, daydreaming of Quidditch and learning new spells but mostly of Quidditch. She had always dreamed of playing for a team once she left Hogwarts much to her mother?s dismay. Quidditch or Auror, Auror or Quidditch, she had tossed between the two for as long as she could remember. Somehow Auror always came out on top but only just. As if somehow Chris had been given a gift from the beyond the Hogwarts Express pulled into Hogsmeade Station. ?Thanks for that? she smiled inwardly as she existed the train and walked towards a carrage.

[CENTER]+++[/CENTER]

[B]?So Chris, trying out again this year?? [/B]one of her more tolerable friends questioned as they walked though the castle towards the great hall. A pleasant enough girl, rather mousy with pitch black hair named Martha. Chris flashed her friend an almost scary grin and smiled.

[B]?Course I am, hope things work out better this year though. I if were captain I would have done things rather differently last year.?[/B] He friend smiled and giggled rather softly.

[B]?Oh Chris I bet you?d be the best captain the Slytherin Quidditch team had ever seen.?[/B] Chris smiled and nodded, she had always wondered why Martha had been sorted into Slytherin and not Hufflepuff where she appeared to belong at first glance. Little Miss Martha Smith was not all as innocent and pleasant as she seemed and Chris new that more than anyone. She let her friends enter through the massive double doors ahead of her she hung back slightly. Entering the hall Chris spotted a fellow sixth year, Alastor a Gryffindor but one of the better ones. She may have been a pleasant Slytherin but she knew not to mess with the strange boundary that seemed to separate Gryffindor and Slytherin students. He nodded to her and she smiled back.

[B]"Been practicing over summer?" [/B]he whispered, Chris nodded and grinned.

[B]"Yeah. I really hope we've got a decent captain this year, I have to get past the try-outs." [/B]She whispered back. He smiled and then moved away, smart boy. Chris didn?t mind Al he was trying to become an Auror like her and who knew, one day they may even end up working together. Charis broke away from the stream of students and headed towards her already seated friends at the Slytherin table, she hoped to Salazar that they had not seen her talking to Alastor. She sat down in between Martha and Krystia noticing the exceptional job that Professor Conroy had done with the decorations this year.

[B]?Attention.? [/B]Spoke loudly, or rather shouted across the hall by the sorting hat made everyone fall silent.

[B]?Oh! my cousin Harris is in first year this year; he simply [i]must[/i] be sorted into Slytherin!?[/B] Krystia whispered to Charis, she nodded in return as one of the small first years gave a meek wave in their direction Krystia smiled and waved back. As per Krystia?s demands her little cousin was indeed sorted into Slytherin with a surprisingly small number of other students. [i]?Perhaps we Slytherin?s are becoming a rare breed??[/i] she pondered as Gryffindor received the most students followed by Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. With the excitement of sorting over Headmistress McGonagall dismissed the students to their houses Chris and her group of friends headed immediately off towards the Slytherin Dungeons and the girls dorms.

Charis found all of her things at the foot of her bed as per usual; she stacked her broom up, an ol?reliable firebolt, one of the first models in her closet with her green and sliver Slytherin Quidditch robes. Her friends filed in behind her heading for their beds and chatting. Chris began to unpack; the first thing she picked up off the top of her trunk was a photo of her mother. She smiled at the moving photograph; her mother was half hiding behind a sunhat laughing at Chris as she took the photo. It was her favorite of her mother how Chris liked to remember her before she became unwell. [I]?I wish you were still here?? [/I]her mind whispered before her thoughts were broken by a swift feather down pillow to the side of her head.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[Sandy]

[COLOR="Teal"]Medea followed Chris Crouch and her cohorts to the Slytherin Dungeon, walking about ten feet behind them. She listened to Krystia's endless chattering and Martha's musings, and took note that Chris was mostly quiet.

She watched the sixth-years disappear through the enchanted stone wall. It got shut before Medea could reach it, and she suddenly realized that she didn't know the password for that year. She would have to go find a prefect...

[B]"[I]Black Pegasus[/I]"[/B], said an amused voice behind her. The stone wall opened, and Medea spun around to see Tom Sinton gesturing her to step in first.

[B]"Thanks, Tom, much obliged!"[/B] Medea said with a mocking curtsey, and walked through the opening into the common room. It wasn't a very welcoming place. The fireplace with serpent motifs and the house crest above it only barely lit up the room, and the sturdy baroque chairs were a real pain in the buttocks to sit on. Medea parted ways with Tom and went to the dormitory which she shared with three girls.

But she only found two, both openly crying. One of the beds was missing, as well.

[B]"Eclaire, Gringela, what's happened?"[/B] Medea asked, rushing to her classmates sitting on one of the beds.

[B]"Oh Medea, somezing 'orrible 'as 'appened!"[/B] Eclaire Jolie, who had transferred from Beauxbatons last year, exclaimed.

[B]"It's Drucilla"[/B], Gringela Wanders sobbed, referring to the missing girl. [B]"We just learned that she's... dead!"[/B] The dark-skinned girl bursted into a loud bawl.

Medea learned that her classmate had gotten into a freaky accident in the summer, and had died to her wounds at St. Mungo's. Medea felt her heart getting heavy. She had not been as close with Drucilla Scamander as Gringela and Eclaire, but she still felt something missing.

Then the door to the dormitory opened, and the impressive figure of Zeta Conroy, the Head of the Slytherin House, glided in with an empathetic expression on her pale face, obviously bringing them the news they had already heard.[/COLOR]

[Ezekiel]

[CENTER][INDENT][FONT="Trebuchet MS"][COLOR="DarkOliveGreen"]She had barely been in Hogwarts for an hour and already the news every teacher dreaded hearing had reached her. During the summer Zeta had gone to visit her pupil, a girl who had been particularly talented at Potions and always keen to do more. It was a sad day when an adult lost a child they had been close to. It never seemed fair.

Still, they said that the good died young.

She was sitting in her office when the owl arrived; the seal of St Mungo's a damning sign. With a forlorn frown Zeta had slipped the envelope open, only reading the first few sorrowful lines and understanding, before she'd even seen the girl's name, that it was Drucilla who was the subject of the letter.

Zeta lived everyday with a small amount of fear, whether it was when the Prophet delivered or when post came for her. With her parents still Aurors actively seeking out dark wizards, of which there were still enough around the world to be a threat, the dark cloud of [I]what if[/I] hung low.

She placed the letter down and slipped off her glasses, placing them back in her robes and picking up her wand without even thinking, striding the short way down a few winding corridors to get to the Slytherin Dungeons.

She muttered the password in a voice that came out sounding much more aggrieved than she had thought it would, quickly moving up the stairs to the girl's rooms and pushing open a door slightly, the sight of two quivering, sobbing girls breaking her heart all over again.

[B]"Professor..."[/B] Medea spoke up, and Zeta knew they'd found out sooner than she had.

[B]"I'm so sorry, girls. I've only just found out, or I would have been here sooner." [/B]she sat down on the edge of the bed, far enough away so as not to seem invading on their own grief. [B]"I'm going to ask the Headmistress if I can go and visit the family this weekend. Would you like to come?"[/B] Her voice was slow, gentle, but strong enough to try and lend them some of her strength. She had seen enough death from her previous job to understand the grief at losing a close friend, and part of her was saddened that she didn't quite feel the same pain any more.

[B]"I'll leave you to yourselves. You know where I am, if you need to talk. My door is always open for you."[/B] She stood as though to leave, waiting a few moments to see if any of her students would ask her to stay, part of her wishing they would so they could talk through the horrible event together.[/COLOR][/FONT][/INDENT][/CENTER]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]Draining his goblet dry for the fourth time, Alexander had to admit the house-elves had really outdone themselves in the quality of the food served. Even Jacobim's usual attempts to worm into the rivalry established between himself and Zeta hadn?t dampened his mood. Why couldn?t the man just accept that compared to their Houses, Hufflepuff just didn?t cut the mustard ? Loyalty and an ethos of hard work were both admirable qualities, but even the hardest working student could not beat a genius in their field.

Silently he wished that Crowe would go and hang around with Professor Longbottom, given that since Hermoine Granger had passed out of the school, Gryffindor had yet to produce a prodigy worthy of comparing with Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Alexander believed in fate, it was perhaps odd for a man of his intelligence to do so, but his life had proved to him over and over that destiny was as inescapable as the dawning of the new day, and so to was the destiny of Hufflepuff to produce average wizards for the rest of time.

He leaned in next to Professor Conroy who was clapping for the latest addition to her house. Slytherin?s picking this year had been slim compared to past ones.

?[b]How do you want to conduct the demonstration tomorrow ?[/b]? She frowned thoughtfully.

?[b]I?ve been giving it some thought, I think we?re best off to use the Quidditch pitch given the space needed for it.[/b]? Alexander nodded slowly.

?[b]I agree, there?s nowhere in the school building that would be safe enough for it.[/b]? He chuckled slightly. ?[b]Plus we can have the students fill up the stands to give them a bit of a show.[/b]? Zeta merely smiled at the thought.

The celebrations went on for about the next hour before Professor McGonagall asked the Prefects to escort their Houses off to bed. The clean-up took less time than a minute as dishes and the remaining food was zapped down to the kitchen for storage. Alexander watched as Zeta moved off from the group towards her House?s common room, he had to admit, the woman had a knack for sensing when she was needed.

He would probably go and check on his own students in a few minutes, after some banal talk with other Professors on how their summers had gone. Emily had left earlier, evidently still exhausted from the previous evening. Neville was busily explaining his latest discovery in the Amazon to Professor Aldridge, his fellow Gryffindor alumni. Seeing his opportunity, Alexander slipped out of the hall quietly and ascended the stairs to the Ravenclaw common room in their tower. He watched silently as the Grey Lady swooped past him before arriving at the bust of Socrates.

?[b]Forwards I am heavy, backwards I am not. What am I ?[/b]? Even though it was just a statue, it still managed to sound imposing and wise at the same time.

?[b]Ton.[/b]?

?[b]Enter you of sharp mind.[/b]?

Alexander did so, and arrived in a hive of activity.

|||||

Any Ravenclaws feel free to react to this. He won?t be sticking around long, but he will ask how your summers went and how you?re all preparing for the coming year.[/SIZE]

[Blayze]

[FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]Alastor began following the rest of the Gryffindors out of the Great Hall, when a hand clasped on his shoulder. He jumped a little, and turned around to see Professor Longbottom's round face smiling at him.

[B]"Sorry, Alastor," [/B]he said, [B]"I couldn't quite catch you from the staff table. I need to talk to you quickly." [/B]Alastor nodded and turned to his friends.

[B]"Go on up to the common room. I'll meet you there." [/B]His friends nodded, waving to Professor Longbottom, with the exception of Elias, who didn't like associating himself with his father inside school grounds. He always worried it would lead to the issue of favouritism in Herbology classes.

[B]"Alastor," [/B]said Neville, holding a small, folded square of parchment in his hands, [B]"It's been decided that you are to be Gryffindor's Quidditch captain this year. Everyone was really impressed with your performance last year, and you really deserve this new position." [/B]He handed over the square of parchment, which Alastor opened, revealing a gold-and-red glittering badge, which he immediately pulled out and pinned onto the front of his robes.

[B]"Thank you, sir," [/B]said Alastor with a smile, [B]"I'll try to do us proud."

"I'm sure you'll manage," [/B]replied the Professor with a grin, [B]"Now go on up to the common room. I believe the password is "Sirius." Not sure if it's after the star or the man."

[/B]Al smiled and rushed out of the Great Hall, leaping up the stairs two at a time to get to the common room. He yelled:

[B]"Sirius!" [/B]at the Fat Lady, who rolled her eyes and swung forward to let him in. He was greeted by a rush of his friends, both sixth-years and otherwise.

[B]"Guess what?" [/B]he asked Elias, a former Beater on the Quidditch team, [B]"I'm Quidditch Captain!" [/B]He flashed his badge at his best friend, whose jaw dropped.

[B]"Bloody hell," [/B]he said, reaching out to stroke the badge reverently, [B]"Dad could have said something about this over summer. I kept asking him who was gonna be captain and he wouldn't let on."

"I guess he wanted it to be a surprise," [/B]said Al, [B]"And he knew you'd tell me if he told you."

"True." [/B]The boys moved through the throng of students in the common room, nodding to and greeting various people as they went, until they found the stairs up to the boy's dorm.

[B]"Bed already?" [/B]asked Dean, [B]"But it's early!"

"Think about last year," [/B]said Al, [B]"When we stayed up the entire first night and then started our OWL classes the next day? And you fell asleep in Charms? And Professor Crowe charmed your ears to twitch the whole day? This year we've got to start our NEWTs tomorrow. I need to get some sleep. If you want to get your ears charmed again then be my guest."

"Remember there's a Duelling Club demonstration on the Quidditch pitch tomorrow at some point. Apparently Corvidae and Conroy have something they want to show us all," [/B]said Dean.

[B]"I reckon we can trounce the Talons this year. Unless Corvidae has something up his sleeve for them. Which, knowing him, he probably has. Evil bastard," [/B]grumbled Elias.

[B]"Alright, I need to go to bed," [/B]said Alastor, [B]"If you're staying down here, I'll see you in the morning."

[/B]Just as he turned to go up the stairs, someone spun him round and thrust a piece of parchment into his hands, before running off before Al could see his face. Probably some first-year lackey someone had gotten to do the work for them. He looked down at the parchment in his hand.

[U][B]Quidditch try-out List

[/B][/U][B]"Oh, God," [/B]he groaned, [B]"I have to do the try-outs this year. I guess I'll have to do them one evening this week if we're going to get practice in before our first game."

"Good luck with that, mate," [/B]said Dean, clapping him on the shoulder and walking into the mass of Gryffindors. Al rolled his eyes and trudged up the stairs to his dorm, his home for the next year...
[/FONT]

[Darren]

[SIZE="1"]The rest of the night seemed to speed by in a blur. Patch had spoken to nearly everyone in his house including the new first years. (As part of his duty as head boy)

When MacGonagall released the students to their common rooms, Patch jumped up and gladly led the way to the Hufflepuff room which he admired so much. He was so happy to see his room, his four poster bed, his cozy chair next to the fireplace, that he didn't realized he was almost running. The poor, short-legged first years had quite a bit of trouble trying to keep up.

He went down the steps to the entrance hall, took a left down into the cellar, and turned right down a broad, brighly decorated corridor lined with torches. At the end of the hallway was one of the few still-life paintings at Hogwarts: An eight foot tall portrait of the amazing Helga Hufflepuff. Patch said the password aloud, [B]"Billywig,"[/B] and led them in.

It was even better than he had remembered. The common room, with it's yellow and black hangings, fat cozy chairs, and warm fireplace brought each student to a stand-still as they took in the environment. The circular tunnels, lined with stone, branched off in both directions on seperate sides of the fireplace. The Hufflepuff prefects took the first years to their common rooms and the rest of the students began making themselvles at home. Some even headed off to bed early.

Even Patch was ready for bed, but he wanted to get a little bit of celebration in. He had several cups of butterbeer with his close-kint group of 7th years and then began disucssing the quidditch try outs with anyone who was interested. But no sooner had the words left his mouth, than Professor Crowe entered through the passageway.

[B]"A word, Aiden?"[/B] he gestured for the other students to leave them to themselves. Professor Crowe put his arm around patch, to show familiarity, and continued.
[B]"The other houses don't think we're up to the challenge of winning the house cup this year."[/B]

[B]"They never do. And they're alwasy right."[/B] he replied. Who was he kidding? Hufflepuff had been denied glory for centuries. The closest the house had ever gotten to a victory was bitter-sweet: 24 years ago, Cedric Diggory tied for 1st in the Triwizard Tournament, but lost his life to the dark lord Voldemort. Patch shivered to think of what horrible times it must have been back then.

[B]"Oh come now boy, don't say that. Loyalty and Patience are two key aspects of Hufflepuff. Not Pessimism. We've been waiting a long time for this, and I feel like it's definately our year with you as quidditch captian."[/B]

[B]"Whoa. Hold on a second. Quidditch what?"[/B] He was dumbfounded. Why would professor crowe choose him as the captain. Surely there was someone else more qualified.

[B]"Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain. Who else would I choose?"[/B]

[B]"Sir, I don't mean to sound rude--"[/B] Patch started but Professor Crowe cut him off.

[B]"Then don't. Listen Aiden, I've already confirmed it with the headmistriss. You're the oldest member remaining from last year's team and you scored the most goals of the entire team. If we had a better seeker, which I'm sure Cyri will do just fine, then we've got it in the bag."[/B]

When he put it like that, it was a tempting offer. But still, Patch had too many things to do.

[B]"Sir,"[/B] he pleaded, [B]"I've got NEWTs this year, I'm head boy, and on the quidditch team. The last thing I need is another badge."[/B]

[B]"But it's a badge of honor,"[/B] Crowe cut him off again, [B]"I've already decided that you're the one. And only you are qualified to do it. I'll tell you what: Do the try-outs. After you've selected the team, you can decide who would be best suited for the job."[/B]

Professor Crowe thrust the paper and badge into Patch's hands and then hurried out of the room with a nod to a few of 4th year girls sitting in front of the fireplace. He was only gone a few seconds before his local group emerged from they boys' dormitory tunnel, looking at him wide-eyed. They seemed to be shocked that he would even want to refuse the position. But he couldn't deal with that right now.

He pinned the sign-up sheet on the bulliten board and headed off down the tunnel and through the perfect, circular barrel-top door to his room. His trunk was already set next to the yellow and black four-poster bed and the enchanted windows in the room were displaying a wonderful night sky. He changed into his night clothes, unpacked a few of his belongings from home, and laid down in bed. Patch shocked himself at how quickly he fell asleep. He was finally home.[/SIZE]

[Sandy]

[COLOR="Teal"]At the breakfast table next morning, the Slytherins were discussing about the fate of the poor Drucilla Scamander. The news soon spread out to other tables, and the whole Great Hall was suddenly buzzing nervously. Medea heard all sorts of theories thrown into the air.

[B]"Well, she [I]was[/I] the great granddaughter of Newt Scamander, you know, the author of [I]Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them[/I], so maybe she was petrified by a basilisk or something of that ilk."[/B]

[B]"Or maybe she was poisoned by Professor Conroy - they say she visited her during the summer. Well, it [I]is[/I] a possibility!"[/B]

[B]"Such a tragedy - and she was kinda hot, too! What, why are you looking me like that?"[/B]

[B]"You don't think that the Dark Lord V-V-V-... Well, [I]You-Know-Who[/I] is back?!"[/B]

[B]"That's what you get for being a Slytherin..."[/B]

Macleigh, a Scottish boy in Medea's class, slammed his fist on the table. [B]"I can't listen to that bullshit anymore!"[/B] The tall boy stood up and marched out of the hall.

[B]"Poor Mac"[/B], Gringela Wanders sighed, stirring her tea absent-mindedly. [B]"They really hit it on, he and Drucilla. Who knows, they could've become an item this year..."[/B]

[B]"Oui..."[/B] Eclaire concurred, tying her long blonde hair into two braids with grass green ribbons.

Medea just shrugged. She wasn't going to let this... incident interfere with her studies.[B]"[I]Anyway[/I], the big showdown duel between the professors Conroy and Corvidae will begin shortly. I don't know about you, but I think I'll try and join the Duelling Club. Gives me the perfect chance to work on my Charms, it does."[/B]

Gringela and Eclaire both just stared at her as she finished her plate. [I]"If they think I'm being heartless, so be it"[/I], Medea thought. [I]"Messing up my studies won't bring Drucilla back."[/I][/COLOR]

[SIZE="1"][B]OoC:[/B] Hopefully I got it right now, Gavs. ;D[/SIZE]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]The morning of September 2nd was a cool one, the first rays of the dawn illuminated the due fresh dew on the quidditch pitch which in turn shimmered in a magical fashion, it was an appropriate start to the day, the first of a new year that for some would determine the rest of their lives. Alexander sat quietly in the stands far above the pitch, the anticipation of the demonstration between himself and Zeta had prevented him from being able to sleep, it didn?t matter really, he didn?t need any more than two or so hours of rest to work at his peak. Blowing out a breath, he watched the opaque cloud disappear as it mingled with the cold air around him.

?[b]Couldn?t sleep either ?[/b]? He turned and found Professor Conroy sitting behind him. He was impressed she?d been able to sneak up without him noticing, but gave no inclination of it.

?[b]No. But I don?t need it like you do.[/b]? The comment was off-hand, her expression didn?t change, but he could sense he?d struck a nerve with it. ?[b]Looks like it?s going to be a nice day for it...[/b]? The thought hung in the air between them. Zeta seemed to agree, sitting down a foot or two away from her colleague. She looked out into the sky and nodded slowly.

?[b]Yeah. It?s been a while since I used that magic, though the situation then was a lot more dangerous. You ?[/b]?

?[b]Five years. I was in Romania at the time.[/b]? He didn?t care to explain the situation that had warranted it.

?[b]I imagine a lot of people won?t have seen it before. Thought, I?ve heard Neville is pretty good at it himself.[/b]?

?[b]I?ve only heard rumours myself. He has a thing for toads though, doesn?t he ?[/b]? Alexander gave a small smile, which Zeta returned. ?[b]I have to admit though, the first time I saw him, I was very far from impressed. Pegged him nearly instantly for a Hufflepuff. One of the few times I?ve been glad to see I was wrong.[/b]?

?[b]You really don?t like Hufflepuffs, do you ?[/b]?

?[b]Birds of a feather.[/b]? He shrugged his shoulders. ?[b]Sorry to hear about Drucilla. She was a bright kid with a good future ahead of her.[/b]?

?[b]Thanks.[/b]?

They?d both sat quietly together for the next few minutes, watching the sun rise slowly into the sky. He?d met Zeta her first day in Hogwarts, back when Alexander was going into his sixth year, he?d brushed passed the girl on the Hogwart?s Express during they journey and muttered an apology. Hadn?t seen her again until the previous year when she?d taken up teaching after a career as an Auror, must have seemed a nice change of pace. Even after Voldemort had finally died, plenty of dark wizards were perfectly happy to make trouble, and Aurors were often the first baptised under fire.

Withdrawing a piece of parchment from his parchment from one of the pockets from his robe, he handed it tentatively to Zeta. Her eyes breezed through it before she turned with a shocked expression to Alexander.

?[b]This is...[/b]?

?[b]Yes.[/b]? Her eyes narrowed.

?[b]That means ?[/b]? He nodded slowly.

?[b]Yes.[/b]? She seemed to read the list again, just to make sure her line of thought was correct.

?[b]And Professor McGonagall knows ?[/b]? It was almost an accusation.

?[b]I imagine she does. If you?re asking have I told her directly, then no.[/b]? His voice had suddenly lost all emotion...

|||||

Jamie, you know both of the plots that are going on here, continue them as you see fit. I hope I got your character right too.

For everyone else, if you think you knew Alexander Corvidae, you?re not even close.[/SIZE]

[Blayze]

[FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]Alastor had managed to book the Quidditch pitch for the Tuesday Afternoon, meaning that Gryffindor would be one of the first teams to have their full line-up this year. That was good - it meant he would have a head-start on training them to beat Slytherin this year. There were a lot of people who wanted to try out, and, looking at the list, Al reckoned only about half of them would even be anywhere near up to standard. He was fairly certain he would keep Galatea as the Seeker and Elias as a Beater, meaning he had four more positions to fill, but he was keeping his options open. As good as Elias was, there could be someone better out there, but he knew for certain there wouldn't be anyone as good as Galatea as a Seeker. She was fast, agile, and had eyes like a hawk, excellent for spotting the elusive Golden Snitch, even in the worst of conditions.

But nobody was really thinking about Quidditch yet. There was more excitement generating around Professors Conroy and Corvidae, and their combined Defense Against The Dark Arts and Duelling Club demonstration this morning. Rumours were running around the Great Hall like wildfire at breakfast.

[B]"I hear it's some kind of dark magic Corvidae picked up in Borneo..."

"My big brother told me that Professor Conroy has managed to come up with some kind of really powerful defensive spell..."

"If my father's contacts in the Ministry are anything to go by, Corvidae's got something very special up his sleeve..."

[/B]Alastor tried to blot out these murmurings as he tucked into his breakfast. He was nervous enough about the new responsibility of being Quidditch captain without worrying about a demonstration.

He looked up from his eggs as Elias and Dean came to sit down, and saw a group of second-years wandering past, trying to find a place along the crowded Gryffindor table to sit down. He smiled a little, remembering what it was like when he was fairly new to the school, and as a gesture of kindness, he flicked his wand at the bench opposite, which increased in length slightly, leaving a gap just opposite him. He nodded to the second-years, who promptly sat down and looked at their empty plates.

[B]"You have to serve the food yourself," [/B]said Elias, heaping rashers of bacon onto his already-full plate, [B]"It doesn't just appear like it does on the platters."

[/B]The second-years nodded furiously, looking incredibly embarassed, and began spooning porridge into their bowls.

[B]"What's your name?" [/B]Al asked the kid directly opposite him.

[B]"Albus Potter," [/B]he replied quietly.

[B]"I thought I recognised the hair. No-one except a Potter could have hair that black," [/B]Al said, [B]"Your brother's in the third year, right?"[/B] Albus nodded.

[B]"Yeah. James is always telling me these horror stories about Hogwarts. Like all this stuff about the Chamber of Secrets, and how there used to be a Basilisk that lived in the water pipes."

"Way I heard it, your dad took pretty good care of that for the school," [/B]said Dean, [B]"So I don't expect you'll have to worry about that while you're here. Moaning Myrtle might bother you while you're on the toilet, and Peeves will almost definitely try to lock you in a Vanishing Cabinet, but those sorts of things become second nature to you after your second or third year year."

"Who's Peeves?"

"Oh, you haven't met Peeves yet? He's the school poltergeist. He'll try to chuck stuff at you, shout names at you, all sorts. Trick is, you just need to lob a couple of decent hexes at him, and he'll leave you alone. You'll learn some decent ones in your first Charms class, I reckon. Professor Crowe's usually pretty good at that kind of thing. Just ask him."

"Are my ears burning, boys?" [/B]came a gravelly, but not unpleasant voice from behind Alastor, who turned around to see the impressive figure of Professor Crowe standing behind him, [B]"Scaring the young'uns, are we?"

"Nothing of the sort, Professor. We were just telling them to look out for Peeves, and that maybe you could teach them a couple of hexes to keep him off their backs for a while," [/B]said Alastor.

[B]"Well, Robards, I think I can see my way clear to teaching the young'uns how to deal with pesky poltergeists. Not strictly on the syllabus, but practical knowledge is always useful."

"Thank you, sir," [/B]said Elias politely, [B]"Do you have any idea what kind of thing Corvidae is going to show us this morning?"

"[I]Professor [/I]Corvidae, please, Longbottom. And as for what they're going to do, I have absolutely no idea, I'm afraid, but even if I did, you wouldn't want to spoil the element of surprise, now, would you?"

"I suppose not, sir," [/B]replied Elias, turning back to his breakfast.

[B]"Well, I'll see you all out there soon, boys," [/B]said Crowe, walking up between the rows of tables to get to the Staff Table.

[B]"He's totally mental, is that one," [/B]whispered Dean, [B]"Me dad reckons there's something wrong with him."

"He's just friendly, Dean, nothing to worry about." [/B]Alastor said these calming words, but even as he said them, the tiniest seed of suspicion was planted in the back of his mind. But he pushed it away and got back to his breakfast, and the interrogation of Harry Potter's youngest son.
[/FONT]

[Ezekiel]

[CENTER][FONT="Trebuchet MS"][COLOR="DarkOliveGreen"]Zeta sighed and looked across the stadium at the slowly shifting mist, a heavy black cloak wrapped around her shoulders to keep away the cold. Her gaze turned to Alexander again, but he looked away. She must have shown pity in her eyes, which she was sure he didn't need to see.

[B]"Consider it...done, then. I'll get started tonight. But, Alexander,"[/B] she paused, reaching out to touch his shoulder lightly and get his attention again. [B]"You say you need two[/B]?"

He simply nodded his dark head and looked out across the pitch again, starting to see a black mass of students flooding in. [B]"Ah, Zeta. It seems our audience has arrived."[/B]

Zeta smiled, her attention distracted as she saw her students filing in, easily picking her darling snakes out from the crowd from their green scarves and, she was surprised to see, a few banners supporting her. She laughed softly and waved as her and Alexander began to walk down to the centre of the pitch, jumping off the stand elegantly so she landed neatly on the wet grass, leather boots leaving marks as she walked to the centre of the oval playing field.

She pointed her wand at her throat and muttered the spell [I]'Sonorus'[/I], seeing that the stands were filling up nicely, voice booming out across the excited babble of the students. [B]"Welcome, everyone, I'm so glad so many of you have turned up for this special occasion. Hopefully those of you who aren't already in the Duelling Club will change their minds after today, hmm?"[/B]

She smiled and waited for a few more stragglers to be seated, hearing Alexander holding a conversation with some of the older members who'd snagged themselves front row seats.

[B]"I've heard many rumours going around about what we'll be doing today, so I suppose there's no better way to quash them than to just show you this powerful magic. I must warn you all, however, that there are risks, and if you feel in danger please feel free to leave. We won't be offended."[/B]

She looked to Alexander who nodded and pulled out his wand, standing opposite Zeta quite a distance away. She flicked her wand and drew red lines on the grass, marking out the area for their duel. Rolling back her lace-trimmed sleeves with an expert flick, she gave Alexander a haughty smirk. They walked toward each other and stood three feet apart, bringing their wands up to their faces as they bowed, as all students in the Duelling Club were instructed.

[B]"Good luck, Alexander. I look forward to seeing what you can come up with."[/B][/COLOR][/FONT][/CENTER]

[Lionheart]

[SIZE="1"] Pain. That one word was fully understood when Albert woke up that morning. He had pain before, but this was worse then anything he has experienced before. Albert tried to sit up, but fell to his bed, aching everywhere. Did someone do this to him? Why would they though?

[B]"Oh jeez. This is going to be a rough." [/B]

He raised, keeping his hand on the desk for support. It wasn't only his head that was bothering him, but his whole body. Maybe it was a stupid first or second year playing around when he was heading for bed. Stupid kids. He couldn't get mad for long as he scanned the room to see he was the only one there. He was late for breakfest.

[B]"...Damn."[/B]

Albert got dress and left the Gryffindor tower with much difficulty. The moving staircase didn't make it easier either. Whoever made this thing must have not been headmaster for long. Yeah, let's make a staircase that can move everywhere and will mess with the student's mind!

He got to the great hall, students finishing their well deserved breakfest. Scraps and empty boxes were all that was left. The sytherin table sat in silence, which was weird. Usually spoiling their own meal by throwing it at Hufflepuff or by shouting snickering names at Gryffindor. Albert sat down near a couple of 4th year gryffindors.

[B]"Hey, what's up with the Sytherins? Feeling sick?" [/B]Albert grabbed some toast and stuffed it into his mouth. A girl whispered ot her friend, 'he doesn't know yet.'

[B]"A girl died last night. She was a Sytherin." [/B]Albert almost choked his toast. Quickly reacting, he pounded his chest, but it wouldn't budge.

[B][I]Shit....[/I][/B]

"[I]Anapneo![/I]" A voice from nearby commanded. Albert felt his throat clear properly as he tried ot catch his breath. Albert turned to see one of Gryffindor's qudditch players, Alastor Robards. The 6th year sighed as he got up from his seat not far away.

[B]"You should chew before shallowing, Allen."[/B] He said, walking past Albert in a cool and cocky sort of way. Albert decided to follow his lead.

[B]"Um...Thanks for that....And the name is Albert." [/B]

[B]"Sure. You seeing Professor Corvidae and Conroy?"[/B] He asked, but before Albert could say anything, they were already outside.

[B]"Well I guess I am." [/B]

_____
OOC:
Hope its alright If I add your character in Blayze. How about a show, teachers![/SIZE]

[Flo]

[COLOR="DarkSlateBlue"][SIZE="1"]Cyri rolled onto her side her eyes fluttering open, looking out the window watching the sky light up with bright pinks, blues and oranges as the sun rose. It had been a busy night, her first night back at Hogwarts and the Sorting Ceremony. They had gotten a handful of new students for Hufflepuff this year, hopefully some of them would lead to do something that brought recognition to Hufflepuff.

Sitting up in her comfy four-poster bed Cyri's eyes fell onto her broom, that sat neatly atop her chest. Her fellow room mates had already gone down to the Great Hall for breakfast leaving her alone. Last night they told her how they wished that they could have such a great broom, the Firebolt 3.0 a wonder in itself. Her mother's parents had given it to her when they visited over the summer. It was a gift for becoming more and more like her mother, they had even gotten her name engraved on the handle. Cyri could read it from her postion, Cyrilla Leonte-Fieraru. They had insisted on using her full name even though she detested it and made it well known that she rather just be called Cyri.

Cyri stood, walking towards her chest placing the broom on her bed and opened it pulling out a pair of jeans and a blue v-neck sweater. As she pulled the jeans on over her deeply tanned legs,proof of her summer in Egypt, she noticed that they were starting to tear in the knees and she cursed. Figures that her favorite pair of jeans would tear sooner or later. [I]Well it won't make much of a difference since we wear robes all day but still[/I], thought Cyri as she pulled her sweater down over her ample breasts. The mirror inside her chest reflected back to her a brighted eyed magenta haired girl and she laughed, she still couldn't control her powers escpially when she was asleep. Yet she had begun to adjust to waking up as a total stranger. Scrunching up her face she watched as her hair turn into a golden blonde, [B]"Much better."[/B]

She didn't bother with her eyes today, the bright blue seemed to go well with her shirt despite now being hidden beneath her robes. As she walked down the tunnel that lead to the common room she glanced at the notice board pausing as she did, there would be a dueling club demonstration at the quidditch pitch and then the tryouts for the Hufflepuff quidditch team would be at the end of the week. As she started off again another sign caught her eye, Patch for Quidditch Captian! She laughed, Patch wasn't seriously considering not being the captian was he. She would have to talk to him about this.

The common room was busy with first years discussing there schedules and other students were busy talking about the dueling club demonstration. Pushing her way through, Cyri reached the exit of the common room and entered into the dank dungeons just as the bust of Helga Hufflepuff went off yelling at whatever boy had stepped to close to the enterence to the girls dorms.

As Cyri entered the Great Hall one of her fellow Hufflepuffs, a perfect, handed her schedule for the year to her. Giving a quick thanks she rushed over to the table and filled up her plate with what was leftover, since most of her house had seemed to eaten already. As she looked at her schedule it all seemed to be in order, though she would be missing her first two classes due to the demonstration. She knew why thwy made it mandatory, hopes to reruict new members for the rapidly growing deuling club. Cyri really was never a big fan of the deuling club, even though it would look great on her applications for an Auror. As she rolled these thoughts around in her mind she saw the mysterious girl from the night before take a seat across from her. Giving her a quick node she stood, as she noticed the student that had been in the Great Hall leaving.

It was time for the demonstration, cursing she began walking swiftly after the group, most of which where Gryffindors. Her bright yellow and black badge stood out among the crowd gold and red. To lazy to find the rest of her house, she sat in the back of the Gryffindor group. However, a cheery Professor Crowe waved her over and she stood walking across the stands to him.

[B]"Miss Leonte-Fieraru do join me in this spectacle."[/B] He grinned brightly as she sat next to him. A few Hufflepuffs turned there heads away from the pitch and looked back, wondering what there Head of House wanted with her.
[B]"Yes Professor?" [/B]
Before he could speak again, Professor Conroy's magically enhanced voice made annocements concerning the duel. She sighed, and after taking a quick glance at Crowe she saw that he was distracted by Conroy and toke her chance to dissapear amongest the other Hufflepuffs before he could get another word in. [/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Delta]

[COLOR=#35425e][FONT="Palatino Linotype"]Because he was up so late last night writing the last few inches of his Transfiguration assignment, Rigel slept through the morning's first tolling of the bells and his roommates' incessant attempts at waking him up. Thanks to their House Head, they wouldn't have to go to class until third period, or at least that's what Rigel heard. He didn't even bother to find out why; to him, it was a chance to sleep in until lunch, and it would be imprudent not to take advantage of such a rare opportunity. [/FONT][/COLOR]

[Blayze]

[FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]Alastor walked along with the fifth-year, Albert, walking beside him as they stepped out into the grounds. The sun was already high above the horizon, flooding the grounds with a pleasant golden glow. Al smiled, and remembered why he loved the school so much. This was why it was his real home. He stopped and took in a deep breath of cool morning air, and set off down the fields to the Quidditch pitch, where there was already a gathering.

[B]"So, Albert," [/B]he said, [B]"What are you thinking about this demonstration?"

"Oh, I don't really know," [/B]the boy replied, [B]"Professor Corvidae has been very secretive about it. I would have thought you would have known something about it."

"Why's that?"

"Well, your father is Head of the Auror Office."

"Was."

"What?"

"He was Head of the Auror Office, until my mum died. Then he had to step down, and Harry Potter took the job. To be honest, I think Potter's much better than dad ever was. Him, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, you know, the Head of Magical Law Enforcement, they totally revolutionised the Ministry. It's better than it ever was under Fudge or Scrimgeour, ever since Kingsley Shacklebolt came into office."

"Wow. You seem to know a lot about the Ministry," [/B]said Albert quietly.

[B]"I'm planning to become an Auror. You have to know about the inside workings of the Ministry if you're going to be successful. I was just lucky my dad was who he was for so long."

[/B]Albert refrained from asking any more questions as they reached the Quidditch pitch. Corvidae and Conroy were already there, standing in the centre of the pitch, Conroy in her green and silver robes, Corvidae in his black cloak, their wands at the ready, simply waiting for everyone to pack into the stands. Alastor managed to snag a front row seat, Elias following in next to him, then Dean, followed by Albert, who seemed a little uncomfortable sitting with the three friends.

Al watched intently as Professor Conroy held her wand to her throat and said the word "[I]Sonorous," [/I]under her breath. Immediately her voice filled the stadium.

[/FONT][FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode][COLOR=DarkOliveGreen][B]"Welcome, everyone, I'm so glad so many of you have turned up for this special occasion. Hopefully those of you who aren't already in the Duelling Club will change their minds after today, hmm?"

[/B][COLOR=Black]Al smiled at this remark. Professor Conroy was a great devotee of the Duelling Club, and she found herself surprised that not more people were a part of it, even though the number of members was getting close to triple digits. He didn't need to worry, though, as he had been part of the Lions ever since he started the school.[/COLOR]

[B]"I've heard many rumours going around about what we'll be doing today, so I suppose there's no better way to quash them than to just show you this powerful magic. I must warn you all, however, that there are risks, and if you feel in danger please feel free to leave. We won't be offended."

[/B][COLOR=Black]Alastor watched as the two teachers marked out the pitch with red lines of what seemed to be flowing ribbon, which settled into place to become a marker on the grass. They moved to the requisite three feet away from each other, and Alastor began to feel his senses tingling in expectation. There was powerful magic in the air, and it was making the tiny hairs on the back of his neck prickle. However, he also began to feel a pain in his stomach, like there was a wire inside trying to drag it inside out. He clutched his stomach and blinked the stars out of his eyes, tiny tears rolling from the corners. He wiped his eyes, and a moment later the pain passed. He shook his head, trying to get some kind of recollection of anything that could have caused this, but he came up a blank.

Suddenly, a whisper of excitement went round the crowd, as Conroy and Corvidae bowed low to each other, as Duelling Club guidelines clearly state. Then they pulled up and stood tall again, facing each other, Conroy with a steely glint in her eye.
[/COLOR][B]
"Good luck, Alexander. I look forward to seeing what you can come up with."[/B][/COLOR][/FONT]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]This was such a simple idea that ended up being such a pain in the ass to write....

|||||

As the two teachers readied themselves for the demonstration, the entire quidditch pitch went deathly silent and all eyes were transfixed on either Professor Conroy or himself. Alexander could feel his heart beat slightly faster, which was odd given that it was just a demonstration, but the fact that the magic they were about to perform was immensely powerful, a twinge of excitement was perhaps unavoidable. Wands held directly pointing forward they were both in a mirror stance of one another.

Nodding slowly they each entered the series of movements required, sweeping their wands around themselves generating lines of silver energy. There were a number of astonished gasps in the crowd as older students realised exactly what magic they were about to witness. After several seconds the two teachers were surrounding by the silver lines, which had formed into great stellated dodecahedron, a construct made of twelve joined pentagrams. A silver mist filled up the area between the lines, until all that was left was a pair of glowing silver crystal-like stars which began to spin gracefully... and expand.

Moments later, the two magical forms shattered, billowing clouds of smoke out and preventing those in the stands from being able to seen, that was until the head of a large Basilisk shot out from within the haze, with Professor Conroy standing confidently on it's crown. Several students let out screams at the sight of the mythological creature which had in Hogwart's history claimed several lives. None of the teachers seemed particularly surprised however, summoned guardians were often legendary animals, and depending on the witch of wizard, they could wield terrible power.

The giant serpent swayed, it's eyes transfixed on the smoke under which presumably Alexander's guardian was to be found. It didn't have to wait long, as a large Ifrit or fire djinn raised itself up on it?s hind legs. The Ravenclaw Head sat perched on the creature?s massive shoulder before pointing his wand to his throat and seemed equally at ease in the company of such a powerful entity. The silver smoke finally dissipated with a word from both professors.

?[b]Sonoras[/b]? His gravelly voice came out clearly over every part of the quidditch pitch, compared to the throaty growl of the Ifrit he?d just summoned, they were quite similar. ?[b]Please be calm. Both Professor Conroy?s and my guardian are perfectly under control and will cause no harm to anyone here...[/b]?

A few students who had looked very ill at ease relaxed at bit in the knowledge that the two creatures would no turn on those present, especially the Basilisk... Professor Conroy continued the explanation as Alexander fell silent.

?[b][COLOR="DarkOliveGreen"]I?m well aware that you all know the stories associated with the Basilisk in Hogwarts, rest assured myself and Professor Corvidae are equally familiar as we were both students here when Voldemort?s Basilisk attacked for the second time. That said...[/COLOR][/b]? She patted the snake?s head affectionately, it seemed to close it?s eyes in appreciation. ?[b][COLOR="DarkOliveGreen"]This one is nothing like the fellow member of his species and would not harm anyone without my direct command first.[/COLOR][/b]? A chain of whispers could be heard equally through the gathered crowd, most of them expressing a desire to never get Zeta in a bad mood again. Alexander spoke up once again.

?[b]As you can see, both myself and my esteemed colleague, as well as several others in the stands with you are Summoners, capable of calling a guardian from the Aetherius, or Other World, into our plane of existence to protect us in times of danger. None of you will have seen this type of magic before, although I expect several of you may have heard or read about it. It is a very ancient and very powerful branch of defensive magic which requires a lifetime to even begin to master. We both shall begin teaching summoning to those interested as part of the Duelling Club, but be warned, you will not be able to summon a guardian of this strength until you are much older...[/b]?

Most students didn?t even hear the last part of what he?d said, they were too busy talking about what creature would be their guardian when they took part in the class at it?s next meeting. Professor Corvidae merely shook his head before nodding to Zeta to continue again.[/SIZE]

[Blayze]

[FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode]Al watched the two teachers sitting astride the powerful beasts they had Summoned, and felt something stir deep inside. As others around him were chattering about what their own guardian might be, he felt no such curiosity. There was something within him that felt that these creatures, the entire practice of Summoning beasts from the Aetherius was wrong, on so many, many levels. He had read about this kind of thing in some of the really ancient textbooks that lay on the dusty shelves in the library, and he had always had a bad feeling about it.

He looked over at Albert, who, like him, said nothing, but merely stared at the teachers and their guardian creatures, a strange, sorrowful glint in his eye. There was something about that boy, something that bothered Alastor. He would have to find time to talk to him soon.

[/FONT][FONT=Lucida Sans Unicode][SIZE=2][B]"We both shall begin teaching summoning to those interested as part of the Duelling Club, but be warned, you will not be able to summon a guardian of this strength until you are much older...[/B]? boomed Corvidae, but Alastor and Albert were two of the only students listening. Corvidae swept his gaze across the crowd, and for a moment Alastor could have sworn he locked gazes with him. But he forgot this in a split second as Corvidae looked on the rest of the crowd.

Alastor fumbled in his pocket for his wand, simply to grab onto the wooden shaft and hold on tight, more for comfort than anything else. He was beginning to get a headache.

Sure enough, Professor Conroy then began her Basilisk moving again, and the demonstration began once more...
[/SIZE][/FONT]

[Delta]

[COLOR=#35425e][FONT="Palatino Linotype"]Not even the most exhausted owl could sleep through the racket down at the Quidditch pitch. Arthur the owl had just come from the Daily Prophet to check on his wizard's subscription and on his way to the Owlery, he stopped by the Ravenclaw Tower for his daily owl treat. He found his wizard still in his bedclothes and disheveled hair (which looked more like a nest, really), watching the demonstration from a balcony.

"Hello, Arthur," greeted Rigel absentmindedly. Even his owl's twittering and hooting could not distract him from the spectacle far below. A basilisk and a fire djinn, two creatures that not even the Monster Book of Monsters dare discuss in detail, stood by his two professors like tame, trained owls. Where he was was a good vantage point; from the balcony he could see the full size of both creatures, whose enormity easily dwarfed their House Head.

He decided that he would wait this one out until it's over, then probably head to the Library for a bit of research, although all related literature were probably locked up in the Restricted Section. He was so absorbed in the demonstration (and thinking of a new excuse to get a Library Permit) that didn't even realize that he had given his owl a week's worth of treats.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Disenchanted]

[SIZE="1"]Chris sat in the stands surrounded by fellow Slytherins. The mood in the dungeons had been horrible, as one would expect after hearing that someone had died. Chris had known Drucilla as many others did and was terribly saddened by her passing; she had comforted a lot of other students when they found out being rather close to loss herself. At the sight of the Professors’ display though no one could contain their excitement over what they had just seen. A lot of people around her chattered over the appearance of Professor Conroy’s Basilisk than anything else, one of her friends positively beamed and poked Charis in the ribs squeaking over the serpent. Chris herself did not know what to make of it or of the spell that had just been displayed.

Like a lot of people she began to wonder what her ‘guardian’ might be, Corvidae’s Ifrit was unlike anything she had seen before. On one hand she thought this display to be wonderful having only ever read about such a spell in book. Of course it didn’t instruct on how to perform it, everything it described had already been displayed. Charis mused that hers might be something bird like but she had never had one favorite animal as a child and liked many different ones however ones own favorite animal may not have anything to do with what ones guardian might be. Krystia leant over two girls just to catch Chris’ ear, Chris had sat a few seats down on purpose but that didn’t seem to stop her.

[b]“Oh my god Charis, I’m so jealous! I wish I were in dueling club to test it out properly, I’m positive that my Guardian would also be a Basilisk. Just like Professor Conroy…”[/b] Chris simply nodded and smiled, Krystia adored everything about Conroy and frankly it was downright pathetic. ‘This is fantastic.’ She thought, finally deciding that what she was seeing as a good thing. Lizzy, a small but rather vocal girl to her left seemed positively repulsed at the site before her.

[b]"What's wrong Liz?"[/b] Chris asked feeling slightly concerned.

[b]"Can't you feel it Charis? what the Proffessors just did, its... not [i]right[/i] its not..."[/b] Liz seemed to retreat into herself. The girl had always professed to know alot about the spirit world and other places like it and Chris didn't doubt her, Liz achieved the top marks in divination. Liz's ramblings echoed in her mind as she watched the massive creatures and their masters.[/SIZE]

[Ezekiel]

[CENTER][INDENT][FONT="Trebuchet MS"][COLOR="DarkOliveGreen"]Zeta was aware that some of the students would be unhappy about this demonstration. Hell, there were members of the staff who had never liked the idea either, but she stood firmly by the point that it was still magic. You might as well complain about chaining Thestrals up to pull coaches in the same way. These creatures weren't hurt; they were spirits. The only one in danger was the summoner, and the sooner the students understood that the better.

[B]"Professor Corvidae believes this spell should be used for defence, but I disagree. Any of you who have watched me duel will have noticed that I've never been one for hiding behind shields and disarming charms, foolish as that might be."[/B] She steadied herself as the Basilisk flicked out its dusty pink tongue, ivory fangs glittering in the morning air as it swerved tiredly, bored already. Zeta stroked its cool head again and whispered soothingly, watching as one large eye fluttered closed happily.

[B]"Now, we're not going to hurt each other, and any of you who believe this is cruel and unnatural should know the beasts won't be hurt. If this were a battle, they probably would be, and it would be down to a responsible summoner to send them back where they came from to heal. It's much like owning a pet, only one that doesn't fit in the house and may eat your neighbour?s cat."[/B]

She grinned darkly and watched Alexander as he rolled his eyes, flicking her sleeves back again and flourishing her wand, slipping one booted foot back on the flat head of the Basilisk in a typical attack position.

[B]"Observe."[/B]

She pressed down with her heel against one mighty, dark scale and the snake shot forward with terrible speed, Zeta's hair blowing back off her pale face and cloak rippling with the force of the wind. She let out a joyful laugh and Ifrit swerved to the side, throwing up a wall of fire to shield itself and its master. Alexander grunted and held onto a fistful of hair, swinging his wand out to the side and firing off a spell directly at his opponent.

An advantage Zeta always had with her summon was its shape. A creature like Ifrit had magic and immense strength, but it was all in one place, at one time. The Basilisk, however, could swerve and undulate and carry on attacking with a relentless speed not many other summons could match. Little and often was Zeta's approach, and she shouted the same mantra over the rush of the wind and blood pounding in her ears to Alexander.

He simply sneered in return and flicked off a stunning charm that hit the Basilisk square between the eyes, not doing much to actually knock the beast out but confusing the poor thing. Zeta pouted as the snake let out a growling whine of displeasure, hearing a few laughs from the students as it reared up and went cross-eyed.

[B]"Alexander, you know the poor darling gets easily confused. He?s old."

"I do, Zeta, which is why I take advantage of its stupidity. It's your own fault for having a beast that can be easily outsmarted."[/B]

Zeta's face twisted into a frown and she clenched her fingers around her wand, taking a good look at Alexander and getting a deep satisfaction in the way his eyebrows rose at the sight of her anger. She raised her wand arm back before remembering where she was, lowering it again and tracing it along the back of the snake's mighty head, watching as it lowered her to the ground before starting to disappear before her eyes, like shadows and smoke, until it was as though the creature had never been there at all.

She waited with her arms crossed for Alexander to do the same, hearing a slight murmur of annoyance from the gathered students as the demonstration ended without much of a proper duel. She raised her wand to her throat to magnify her voice once again, turning as she spoke to look at everyone, picking out some of her more treasured Slytherins.

[B]"And that was just some friendly rivalry, boys and girls. Now you've seen the magic, the speed, and the ability of our creatures you can guess why it's something we both feel you should be learning. With arcane magic such as this more prevalent in our world today, and trust me, I know, it's been used against me far too often, it's only right we prepare you for what's to come. I'm not saying you'll ever have to use it, but by the same token I'd hope you wouldn't have to stun another person, either."[/B] she drew in a breath and looked sideways at Alexander as he landed, a little ashamed of letting herself be gripped by the rush of battle. [B]"Precaution, students. Everything is a precaution."[/B][/COLOR][/FONT][/INDENT][/CENTER]

[Flo]

[COLOR="DarkSlateBlue"][SIZE="1"]Cyri dat staring forward, but not really paying much attention to what had happened. She had seen it, but hadn't beileved what her eyes were showing her and so she sat frozen in shock. This was unnatural, and they were going to be teaching it to the students at the Dueling Club.

[B]"Hey, Cyri wasn't that so cool. I can't wait for the next deuling club meeting."[/B]

Cyri broke out of her daze and looked to her left, Marie was leaning forward, memorized by the display. She looked back over at Cyri smiling, [B]"You really should join the club, its so much fun."[/B]

She shook her head, [B]"I don't think the Dueling Club is for me. I've got Quidditch and that's good enough for me."[/B]

Marie shurged,[B] "Speaking of Quidditch, do you know when the first practice is? I'm looking forward to beating some bludgers around the pitch."[/B]

[B]"Nope, 'fraid not. I did hear that Patch was gonna be Captian this year though."[/B]

[B]"Yeah, though he isn't rushing into that postion anytime soon."[/B] Laughing she turned her attention back to pitch, leaving Cyri in her own thoughts.

People like Marie weren't to be trusted with such a spell, not that she didn't like Marie. No it wasn't a matter of favor, it was just she was careless. Cyri feared what could happen if that spell got out of control. What if someone summoned something beyond their control, sure right now Professor Corvidae and Conroy could probly clean up whatever messes the students made but still. There was alot of danger in this magic, alot of unpredictable things could happen.

Sighing, she leaned forward elbows on her knees as she watched to see what the Professors had in store next. Despite her uneasyness about the magic, she couldn't hide her intrest in the matter. What was the nature, other than protection, of this strange new, yet at the same time, old almost forgetten magic.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]Patting some of the smoke out of his robes, Alexander glanced at Zeta, as his feet touched the ground. She met his gaze for a moment before lowering it, in an almost embarrassed manner. After she had warned the students of the utter necessity of care when it came to dealing with these creatures, they began to disperse from the stands still chatting among themselves on either how cool it would be to be able to summon a creature of that power, or how both professors had warped them to their wills. After a few minutes the two professors were left as they had been an hour or so before, completely alone. Alexander took the opportunity to give Zeta's shoulder an encouraging squeeze.

"[b]Don't worry about it. You were just doing what you would have as an Auror.[/b]" She smiled back at him, nodding her head.

?[b]Can I ask you something Alexander ?[/b]? His eyebrows raised slightly.

?[b]About the parchment ?[/b]?Her colleague nodded slowly. He sighed for a moment for nodding himself.

?[b]Why ?[/b]? Alexander frowned at the thought behind the question.

?[b]Because I choose to.[/b]?

Moving off, Alexander knew he?d be a few minutes late to deal with his first class, but it wouldn?t really matter. They?d all still be ready to bombard him about summoning magic, and he?d respond by telling them to wait for the next Duelling Club meeting. Internally he was still in turmoil over what he?d revealed to Professor Conroy, the fact that she was an ex-Auror had made it a difficult decision but she was the only person who?d be able to do what he requested, for a moment he wished that Severus was still alive.

The class settled much as he?d expected, Professor Corvidae?s students went silent the moment he entered the class, after he?d transfigured a particularly talkative student into a mouse for a day as punishment. Professor McGonagall hadn?t been impressed but hadn?t found out until the following day. He sat down in the large leather chair behind his desk, and watched as the first hand shot into the air.

?[b]Yes ?[/b]?

|||||

I?ll let whoever wants to continue this do so.[/SIZE]

[Lionheart]

[SIZE="1"]The morning went by quickly, the demostration, and now off to his first class. Fifth years had defence against the Dark Arts to kick things off. Albert had trailed ways from Alastor before reaching the door to the class. Albert believed he preformed well to his abilities in the class, but professor Corvidae seemed to always crush his spirits. He would enojy it just a little bit if the professor wasn't on him every minute of the class.

The students took their assigned seats as they got out their books and such needed supplies for the class ahead. At least he wasn't transfigured like that poor Rosie Webb for talking too much last year. Though Albert was sure that the professor had thoughts of doing much worse to him.

The door crashed open. Instantly, students around Albert became frozen solid in their chairs and kept their mouths closed. Albert didn't need to turn to sense his most hated teacher walking to the front of the classroom. It was even worse in Occlumency and Legilimency classes. Having him penetrating your mind was one of the worse feelings Albert has ever experienced. He was sure professor Corvidae enjoyed Albert's misery.

[B]"Yes?"[/B] Professor Cordivae said as he looked over the class. This time, Albert turned in his chair to see a classmate Albert had never seen before. His blonde hair stood out more then anything.

[B]"I was wondering how long it took you to learn how to summon?"[/B] The professor shuffled in his chair as it seemed he was not amused.

[B]"What house are you in?"[/B]

[B]"...Gryffindor..."[/B]

[B]"Alright, Ten points from Gryffindor." [/B]Albert let his jaw drop. That son of a pig. He takes points away from asking a simple question?

[B]"Yes Mr. Randal, I do. Another ten points."[/B] Albert closed his mouth, the class staring at him in a confused state. Did Professor read his thoughts or just read his unbelievable expression?

[B]"Alright class, let's begin our lesson!"[/B][/SIZE]