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potterobsessionist · 04-16-2017, 09:46 PM

Banner credit: Suziella

Located just south of the castle is a large body of water known as the Great Lake or the Black Lake. This is where the first years encounter the school for the first time when the Groundskeeper takes them there by boat. After seven years they will leave the castle, their individual house and their home behind as they sail back across the Great Lake to embark on new adventures.

If you decide to dip your toes in the water, be careful of the many magical creatures inhibiting the lake that might mistake a little student’s toe for a tasty treat. For in the Great Lake lives everything from merpeople to grindylows. Bartholomew Henry, the Giant Squid, however is not interested in nibbling on toes, but would much rather have someone tickle his tentacles while he soaks up some sun.

Why don’t you follow his lead and do the same? Do some homework in the sun heated grass, take that well deserved nap before Ancient Runes or catch up on that reading. Enjoy your time at the Great Lake!

Waterloo · 11-15-2018, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hermygirl

It was a pleasant day for a stroll, and Noble ambled his way across the grounds. There was a copy of the Manchester Evening News tucked under his arm, and in the pocket of his robes there was a list of ingredients he intended to collect in the Forbidden Forest for a side project of his. He wasn't in any particular rush, just happy to leave the stuffiness of the castle.

Maybe the lake would make a good location to pause and check in with the footie results before heading over to the Forbidden Forest?

Max didn't venture out onto the grounds all that often, but it was becoming more of a habit during recent months. The castle and it's corridors were starting to feel a little claustrophobic lately and he welcomed the fresh air in his lungs.

Not only that, but it seemed throwing rocks into the lake was a great way of releasing some of the weird and unfamiliar pent-up frustration he'd been feeling recently so....... that's where the Slytherin was headed.

At least, that had been the plan until he spotted the Potions Master in his favourite rock throwing spot.

Just his luck.

2111jen · 11-16-2018, 04:05 AM

Skyler was glad that she had a bit of time to herself. It was a nice spring day so she decided to go out and read for a bit. When she got to the lake however, she had saw two people there, one of them being professor Noble.
"Hello professor Noble," she said and nodded at the other student.

hermygirl · 11-18-2018, 08:03 PM

Noble had just conjured a camping chair and was settling himself in with a swig from a travel mug he had produced from a pocket when he saw the Slytherin Prefect approaching. He glanced down at his watch, perhaps a bit relieved to see it wasn't close to curfew. He had no desire to be escorting a student back up to the castle when this was the first chance he'd had for some peace and quiet in a while. The sound of the rippling water was nice and calming, and he started to unfold his newspaper and turned to the sports pages at the back. He was looking forward to reading the summary of the Oldham Athletic game.

"You okay there, Maxton?" he asked after a moment. Was the boy loitering? It seemed like he might be, and Noble - ever the man with a sense of purpose - wasn't a fan of loiterers. He had no problem with the Slytherin throwing stones into the lake, though.

And then there was another student approaching, and Noble held in a grumble as she greeted him. "Hello Skyler." He'd picked a popular part of the shoreline, it seemed. Hopefully they'd just get on with whatever they planned to be doing.

2111jen · 11-18-2018, 10:07 PM

Skyler nodded and walked a bit away to give professor Noble some space. She sat a bit away and opened the divination book and started to read it.

sweetpinkpixie · 11-19-2018, 01:28 AM

He was not sure if it was self defense, but the sixth year felt numb as he made his way down to the lake with the box holding the body of the bowtruckle of Aster clutched in his hands. It had been...excruciating show her body to the rest of her family trapped in that barn. Almost as difficult had been telling Picketta that no, she could not just so happen to be release from the barn and permitted to scamper across the grounds to the man's tent and scratch his eyes out. Though he had, for the sake of this funeral, allowed the bowtruckles to crawl into his enchanted pocket for a short trip down to the lake. If he got detention for this...so be it. He had every intention of throwing his badge into the lake after anyway. He didn't want to be in the service of a school who replaced professors with monsters like Petrov.

So it was in a bit of a daze as he walked by the two Slytherins and his head of house, tears silently trickling down his cheeks as he looked down into the box. "I'm so...so so so sorry...." he whispered to his fallen friend. He wished he could fix her up somehow, make her at least whole instead of practically in pieces for burial, but he did not have the means to that and the mourning bowtruckles in his pocket wanted to lay her to rest sooner than later.

Though, as if representing a beacon of light, Derf's faded blue eyes fell upon his professor at the last second thanks to his peripheral vision and he was pivoting around suddenly. "Professor," his pleaded, his voice strained and barely holding it together - his trembling hands even more of an indication of this. Whether that tremble was from trauma or rage was, well, up to debate. "Professor...do you have any essence of dittany on you? Please. Just one drop...I-I-I-I just...I just want her to look more like herself before we bury her..."

And just then, several leafy green heads popped their heads out of his robes pocket to watch the scene.

Cassirin · 11-19-2018, 02:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie

He was not sure if it was self defense, but the sixth year felt numb as he made his way down to the lake with the box holding the body of the bowtruckle of Aster clutched in his hands. It had been...excruciating show her body to the rest of her family trapped in that barn. Almost as difficult had been telling Picketta that no, she could not just so happen to be release from the barn and permitted to scamper across the grounds to the man's tent and scratch his eyes out. Though he had, for the sake of this funeral, allowed the bowtruckles to crawl into his enchanted pocket for a short trip down to the lake. If he got detention for this...so be it. He had every intention of throwing his badge into the lake after anyway. He didn't want to be in the service of a school who replaced professors with monsters like Petrov.

So it was in a bit of a daze as he walked by the two Slytherins and his head of house, tears silently trickling down his cheeks as he looked down into the box. "I'm so...so so so sorry...." he whispered to his fallen friend. He wished he could fix her up somehow, make her at least whole instead of practically in pieces for burial, but he did not have the means to that and the mourning bowtruckles in his pocket wanted to lay her to rest sooner than later.

Though, as if representing a beacon of light, Derf's faded blue eyes fell upon his professor at the last second thanks to his peripheral vision and he was pivoting around suddenly. "Professor," his pleaded, his voice strained and barely holding it together - his trembling hands even more of an indication of this. Whether that tremble was from trauma or rage was, well, up to debate. "Professor...do you have any essence of dittany on you? Please. Just one drop...I-I-I-I just...I just want her to look more like herself before we bury her..."

And just then, several leafy green heads popped their heads out of his robes pocket to watch the scene.

Chloe hadn't seen Derf in 100 years. Or at least a day or two. And she now had permission to bear hug him whenever she saw him, thanks to her talk with Natalie... so when Chloe spotted his form from across the grounds, she was fully prepared to hug!tackle him. She had to tell him all the THINGS.

She put on a burst of speed, one of the few good things from this year being that she was a pretty fair jogger and a more than decent sprinter. There were just two things Chloe hadn't accounted for when she decided to bodily throw herself at her best friend. The first was the presence of an audience including Professor Noble and another Prefect, neither of which may take kindly to her assaulting another student. Even friendly assaults were probably considered PDA.

The second was that Chloe caught sight of Derf's morose, tearful face. This was no time for bear hugging. She didn't know what kind of hugs were appropriate right now, although she suspected the answer, with prefects and professors present, was NONE. Rules were dumb.

So, because of her speed and the fact that her arms were already akimbo, all Chloe could do was pitch herself sideways at the last possible minute, missing poor Derf by centimeters and hitting the ground rather hard. Bruising and perhaps a crushed spleen type of hard. "Oomph. Careful of those... root... clusters," she gestured helplessly at the smooth dirt before demurely pulling her skirt over her exposed knees. Nothing to look at here.

SilverTiger · 11-19-2018, 09:16 AM

If it hadn’t been for the early morning SORE exercises, which Koen had almost religiously waited for her and styed by her side, Stasya would have felt like she was becoming a recluse. Simply because it felt like she couldn’t do anything that she was used to do when she wasn’t in class or studying. The visits to the barns had been forced to stop, mainly because she refused to pretend like it was okay for Professor Petrov to say they had to get his permission and have his presence in there with them for any visit. Not that she regularly did anything in the barns that wasn’t caring for the creatures or just keeping them company. Okay, she’d been known to smuggle Dobby out for a walk through the grounds, but even then she hadn’t broken the rule that he wasn’t supposed to be inside the castle (okay, she had once, but things had turned out okay there. And things were decidedly not okay now and she wasn’t allowed to snuggle with her squirrel, her puffskein or any of the other creatures)

Instead, now that spring was here, she’d decided to venture out on a walk through the grounds, finding herself veering close to the barns if even to try to see if the winged horses were out in the pasture and therefore he could visit with them without dealing with getting inside the barn. Instead, she’d seen Derf heading away from the barns carrying a box and definitely not looking like things were anywhere close to being okay, so she’d changed direction to head toward the lake, following him. She figured she could support him with whatever had happened, if anything, but she’d slowed down as she saw the two Slytherins and Professor Noble at the water’s edge too, nearly coming to a stop as she heard the tearful question her friend had asked the Potions professor and almost missing Chloe’s acrobatic arrival although she’d given her Claw friend a curious look at her statement before other things had fully registered in her head. Had she actually heard Derf say he was burying someone? Had Professor Petrov actually killed a creature?!?!?!

She definitely was going to stay there with Derf now. Solidarity. Friends didn’t let friends bury creatures alone.

Waterloo · 11-19-2018, 09:25 AM

Serious?? A chair?? And another kid???

Skyler wasn't too much of a problem, and Max was grateful when she went and found a spot a little ways away to read.

As for Noble? He'd gone and pitched his chair right in prime rock throwing location. He could hardly tell the Potions Master to move though, could he? Firstly, because the dude had beat him to this spot fair and square and secondly, ummm Noble was kinda scary and he didn't have a death wish.

Before he could tell the older man that everything was cool or even come up with some alternative plan though, Derf and Chloe happened.

This really wasn't the day for rock skimming.

If it wasn't for the fact that he'd overheard something about a dittany and a burial --- presumably for whatever was in the box Derf was holding????? --- Max would've laughed out loud at Chloe's catastrophically epic fail. But..... were those tears on the Hufflepuff boy's face!?? Nope, nope, nope. Max looked away awkwardly. "Uhhhh........."

When Stasya joined the group, his decision was made. This was definitely his cue to leave.

"You don't need me here, do you? Didn't think so. Good luck y'know.... with..... with........." Stop talking, Max. "Alright then.... Laters!"

hermygirl · 11-20-2018, 04:04 PM

It was whilst he was waiting for an answer from Maxton that quite the gathering had appeared; he didn't blame Skyler for moving to a quieter spot to read her book in the slightest. It was tempting to do the same, until he heard those shaky tones in his Prefect's voice. Concern spreading across his usually stern face, Noble stood from his chair just as Chloe stumbled and fell nearby. He winced at the thud as she landed.

"You okay, Chloe?" he checked in as he moved closer to her and Derfael. Hopefully one of the others - Maxton, Stasya - would be nice enough to help her up, as Noble's gaze had fallen on the creature in Derfael's arms. "Dittany? I do." He pulled his key chain from his pocket, a cluster of tiny, magically protected glass vials hanging from the ring next to his house and office keys. Each vial, labelled nearly in his own handwriting, contained a healing potion of some sort. He'd first started carrying them around when his daughter was little, to help soothe and heal bumps and bruises, headaches and coughs. Now Abigail was grown though, it was more because it felt strange not to see them there; he certainly hadn't needed to use one for her in a while.

Looking at the bowtruckle, Noble faltered. "What happened?" Why was Derfael the one doing the burial? He knew the Hufflepuff's love for creatures, but surely this was more the Care of Magical Creatures Professor's remit? Where was Petrov?

Questions, so many questions.

And also an answer, as he considered the vial of dittany in his hand. "I don't think this is going to do as you hope..." he said softly. Almost apologetically. "Not if she's already gone." Dittany was a powerful restorative, but every ingredient had its limitations.

sweetpinkpixie · 11-21-2018, 12:45 AM

The sixth year was fighting flashbacks to when he was three and what he had witnessed with a Bloody-Red rose flesh eating shrub and his family's pet dog...and he was being surprisingly effective at it. Maybe it was the adrenaline coursing through his veins that did it, or perhaps he was actually maturing, but Derf's hand had somehow stabilized enough not to shake the box containing Aster and was able to meet his Head of House's gaze with his own blurry one.

He saw Chloe's arrival out of the corner of his eye...along with Stasya. And while he was concerned for his friend after her tumble...he also knew Chloe was more resilient than that and surely was okay. Or, at least, he hoped so. But other thoughts had crossed his mind instead upon seeing his fellow creature adoring friends. "Chloe! Stasya! We have to get all the creatures to safety! He...He does things to them. Tortures them. Excuses it as classified information. He did this to Aster...and didn't even CARE." As the Hufflepuff spoke, there was a rage breaking through his usual gentile persona and his usual bright blue eyes appeared stormy. "ALL the creatures are in danger."

Over the top, perhaps. Derf was known for being a bit extreme and that reputation had finally caught up with him this term. But this was different. This wasn't some conspiracy theory. This had HAPPENED. And the proof of that monster's true nature and intent lay in the sixth year's very hands.

"I know she i-i-iss...professor...I-I-I did it myself...w-with a sleeping drought..." he explained through somewhat grit teeth. "I just...I just want her to look like...like she isn't breaking in half...like she isn't rotting...so she can m-m-maybe look more like...A-Aster..."

And wait. Why was Maxton LEAVING? "Wait, Maxton. We need your help too. Please."

Cassirin · 11-22-2018, 01:38 AM

Okay, well, that hurt, and Chloe decided just to stay on the ground for the time being. Not that anyone had offered a hand up, but that just spoke to how the professor and Derf and Stas knew she could take care of herself. She wrapped her arms around her knees and looked up at Derf with concern.

It was really terrible what happened to that bowtruckle, Aster, but it was scary how Derf was taking it. Get the creatures to safety? All of them were in danger? "I... I don't know, Derf," Chloe gave Noble a long, measuring look. "Where would we put all those creatures? How could we keep the predators from eating the non-predators? How will we feed them all? I would do anything to keep the creatures safe, but we would need to do it intelligently. And if... it was wrong..." Again, she looked to Noble, 'cause DERF! PROFESSOR! RIGHT THERE! "If it was, I'd hope there was someone who could help us do what was right."

She reached out a hand to Stas, since Derf had his hands full. "Let me make her some flowers, Derf. Before you lay her to rest."

Waterloo · 11-23-2018, 10:38 AM

He had planned on high tailing out of there, but all he'd really managed were a few feeble steps backward. Call it morbid curiosity maybe. He honestly didn't really know what on Earth was going on, but whatever it was sounded BAD and Derf's request for help sounded desperate so Max felt himself nodding.

He was pretty sure he was more of a hindrance than a help but sure. Okay. He was here. Yep.

"Maybe we should just....... set all the creatures free," he suggested on a whim, glancing around at the group. Sure, there was the whole predator/prey thing that Chloe mentioned but letting nature take it's course had to be better than the alternative... right????? "Set them all free in the forest. At least they'd be able to hide from Petrov in there..."

OR they could just let Professor Noble sort this mess out. Max looked expectantly at the older man.

sweetpinkpixie · 11-24-2018, 09:17 AM

In the heat of the moment Derf found himself frustrated by Chloe asking so many questions and, for a brief moment, his face showed it. Maxton was honestly thinking more clearly - in his frantic opinion - in working quickly but efficiently. None of those creatures were safe under THAT man's gaze, none of them.

But then another thought crossed his mind in the moments between processing and opening his mouth to somewhat tell Chloe off for not understanding the urgency of the situation. Only it WAS all her questions that forced him to step back and think a little more out of the box - out of the box in thinking like how one Valerie Gray had performed during the IMPS. "A Daydream Charm. A powerful one," he said suddenly, looking around at his gathered classmates and trying to recall how proficient any of them were in advance charmswork. "We cast it over the barns and stables maybe...make him think they've all gone...then...then we hit him with one while he is distracted from the surprise...then...then we give him a Veritaserum...get him to confess everything and hand him over to the Ministry so justice can be served."

Okay...now he was spiraling off into extremes just a tad. Chloe would have to reel him back in again, as she was quite good at doing.

And speaking of Chloe... "...Aster f-facored cornflowers...and Lady’s bedstraw..." he sniffled, taking a moment to rub his nose.

MadMadamMalfoy · 11-24-2018, 03:30 PM

Gaston had migrated away from the pathways, still brooding over the uncertain future that lay before him. Everything in his life had gone so wrong so fast!
He was still struggling to make sense of it... Some days,
he half-expected to wake up from this bizzarre nightmare back in his old life, but his old life was gone. Now he was standing at a crossroads.

As of on autopilot, he found himself approaching the lake,
as he so often did when troubled. Staring out at the water calmed his state of unrest... until he heard voices rising and realized he wasn't alone. He looked around and saw Noble and several students gathered a little ways away from him. and...

His bright blue eyes widened in shock as he caught bits of the conversation taking place. Daydream charm? Veritaserum? The Ministry? Who was Derf talking about, and more importantly, why? From the six years he'd taught the boy, Derfael Ashbury-Hawthorne seemed like one of the least confrontational people in the school, so if he was talking about using spells and potions on someone,
something must be very wrong - and Gaston intended to find out!

He cautiously approached the scene, giving the Hufflepuff prefect a concerned, sympathetic look. "What's going on?" he asked gently. "What's this I hear about daydream charms and Veritaserum? What-?" He peered over the side of the box, taking an automatic step back at the sight of the bowtruckle (or at least what he thought was a bowtruckle) inside. He gasped, exclaiming in French as he clapped a hand to his mouth. His mind was going a million miles an hour as he connected the dots. "Did Petrov-?" he began, barely able to get any words out for the anger already rising within him.

hermygirl · 11-24-2018, 10:30 PM

Noble's eyes narrowed, his brow furrowing, at what Derfael was saying to the two girls. At the rage seeping through into his words. The Potions Professor wasn't against animal testing, he'd done plenty in his researching days, but it had to be done ethically and by the book. Somehow, even with the Hufflepuff Prefect's tendencies for exaggeration, Noble didn't think Petrov was abiding by the rules. Not after seeing the bowtruckle.

"Chloe's right, Derfael," Noble responded. "Some thought is required as to what getting them out safely entails...especially around here." Scrimgeour and Petrov wouldn't take the disappearance of all the creatures from the barns lightly, he knew that much. He looked at Max then, at the suggestion of releasing them into the forest. "They're not wild animals. It's a solution...but perhaps not the most optimal one."

He could feel all their eyes on him. Expectant. Funnily enough, he couldn't conjure stables and pens from nowhere. He wasn't even that good with creatures. Had they seen the grumpy fat cat in his office? Several years ago now, his own familiar, his crup, had even decided it'd rather stay with his ex-wife. A magizoologist, Noble was not.

"You can try the dittany." He held out the small vial to the Hufflepuff, not having forgotten his request. He didn't think it would work, but perhaps he was wrong. It would at least provide a distraction from the crazy ideas the sixth year was now formulating. Before he got to chance to rebuke it as a plan though, a familiar voice interrupted. "There has been an incident at the barn, Professor Marchand," Noble answered. "It has left Derfael here rather shaken."

He looked to his colleague, who looked like he too was simmering under the surface. Noble's voice softened slightly. "We have reason to believe that the creatures are being mistreated. Perhaps we could owl Tristan...get some advice about moving them?" He looked at the gathered students now. "We could do with evidence, too."

Cassirin · 11-25-2018, 03:15 AM

Derf had never looked at her like that before, and it hurt. Like a LOT. Like maybe he wouldn't ever forgive her for not immediately jumping on board to save all the animals. She wanted to help. There was no way that she could live with herself if anything else was injured or killed, but it wouldn't do them any good to rescue the creatures and then immediately get themselves or the creatures in trouble.

She turned her back to him to summon the flowers he'd asked for, specifically fallen blooms that wouldn't offend the sensibilities of bowtruckles, and she let the professors and Max and Derf discuss this plan with Veritaserum and Daydream Charms and general craziness. There was no way she'd put herself up against his scorn again.

At Professor Noble's suggestion, Chloe turned back and offered the flowers to Derf. "We can do that. Derf, let them take the memories you have from the barns. Will that be enough proof?"

SilverTiger · 11-25-2018, 09:30 AM

On the one hand, Derf’s possibly over the top statements hadn’t surprised Stasya one bit. She knew him, plus her own thoughts at what she’d overheard before he had directed his words toward her and Chloe had somewhat put her into a stunned position. She’d known she didn’t trust the replacement CoMC professor, but the idea that he’d gleefully murder the poor bowtruckles just to prove a point was terrifying. Derf definitely hadn’t deserved that, and part of her wanted him to know that. While another part of her was back to desperately wanting to ask him if he’d seen Dobby or Albus lately because she would be seeing red if either of them had been hurt. Along with most of the winged horses and Picketta, even though she still suspected his bowtruckle didn’t entirely trust her. With how Aster’s fate was affecting them, she knew it could be worse.

For all she knew, it was worse, and Chloe’s reasoning only barely registered in the tall Gryffindor’s mind as she’d silently helped her off the ground. Except for the part about someone helping them do what was right, which obviously was helping the creatures all escape TORTURE and possibly an underserving death.

The reckless side she rarely tapped was tempted to say that Professor Petrov deserved to feel whatever he’d done to poor Aster. The details didn’t matter, and she still refused to get close enough to peer inside the box. She’d much rather remember the bowtruckle as she was…and releasing the barn creatures into the forest was definitely NOT a better alternative. “Letting defenseless creatures hide where they could get attacked by an acromantula or a band of red caps or any of the other Dark creatures in the forest isn’t happening,” she established, trailing off as Professor Marchand arrived and picked up on the exact same question that had gone through her mind before Derf had affirmed it. That wasn’t helping her state of mind either, although the fact it seemed like Noble agreed with her on something both surprised her and comforted her. Sort of. She’d still sort of unconsciously moved a little bit closer to her own Head of House before she’d said anything more. She trusted him to do what was right, at least.

“We have proof. We have Aster, and like Chloe said, we have Derf’s memories. Plus, we’ve seen that they aren’t afraid of hurting us, so why do we need any other proof that things aren’t right.”

sweetpinkpixie · 11-25-2018, 02:30 PM

He was calming down, but barely. It was hard to push his frustrations aside at all this TALKING being done between Professor Noble and Chloe. So much so that the struggle to keep his tears from stinging his eyes and escaping once more was a futile battle. However, once he had calmed and some distance between this moment established, he would appreciate their conscientious efforts later. Along with, well, entirely registering just what impact his rashness had had on Chloe - which, in the moment, was like water off a duck's back as his eyes turned back towards the lifeless bowtruckle in her casket.

He felt worthless and helpless all over again. How many terms in a row now had it been where he had had to watch those he cared about suffer so terribly and he...he unable to do a single thing to help? He was even starting to doubt that the mercy he had shown Aster was in fact that, mercy. What if that had been all wrong too?

The arrival of the Charms professor was another sort of beacon of light to the Hufflepuff. With TWO professors now, well, SURELY something would be done?!

"R-Reason to believe?!" he couldn't help but snap at the level headedness of the Potions Master - another something he would feel terrible about later. "It's not as though Aster turned into this state of her own accord!" This doubt his own Head of House was casting upon his words was clearly a result of the terms upon terms of over the top conspiracy theories...and now the creatures were going to suffer the consequences.

He felt a little nauseous, like he had just traveled by portkey on a full stomach of entirely too rich chocolate pudding, but he managed a weak breath upon hearing Chloe speak once more. The manner in which she had gently said his name feeling like a burn paste over the results of a particularly gassy Blast-Ended Skrewt. "S-Sorry...professor," he lamented to his Head of House, eyes meeting the man's somewhat wildly but still very much sincere. "...I just....he...he can't get away with this."

Shaken was...an understatement.

Looking back to Chloe, his own head clearing a bit, he sighed. He appreciated her support, and Stasya's, more than he would ever be able to properly express....but........ "Would anyone accept the word...the memories of a teenager over those of an ex-Auror?" he asked feebly. And wasn't that what all these people were? Ex-Aurors or some equivalent? "I know what I saw...what I...what I had to do...but they could always sa---" And just then he heard a SHRILL and unmistakable scream coming from Professor Petrov's tent.

"........Jessa!"

Waterloo · 11-25-2018, 06:38 PM

Oh, thank goodness. Another professor. Max was grateful to have Marchand show up... he hoped that now there were TWO professors, maybe that meant they could all go on their way and leave all this serious stuff to them. Because surely this wasn't their place to get involved.... he'd reaaaaally rather not.

"What do you think creatures do in the wild...?" He asked Stasya, giving her quite the incredulous look when she shot down his idea of setting the animals free. He rolled his eyes and tried wrapping his head around all the stuff about daydream charms and veritaserum. He opted not to take part in the discussion and instead stayed quiet.

....... that was until he heard the shriek too. There was no mistaking it.

What the-----?? "Wait.... H-How do you know that was Jessa.....?" He asked, starting to feel the panic too now. ".......it was probably nothing. Do banshees live in the forest? Maybe it was a banshee." It didn't sound like it came from the forest though. It sounded like it came from Petrov's tent which meant Max wanted to bolt in the opposite direction. Shrieks were never good. Nope. Nooooooope.

Goblinfrog · 11-25-2018, 09:49 PM

Alice had been here for a little while. Not that anyone could have seen her. As usual, she was hiding under the invisibility cloak which the headmaster had given her permission to use to spy on misbehaving students. Having heard a commotion by the lake (and commotion here meant agitated voices), she had slipped her invisibility cloak over her short form and had then walked over to the lake to stand several yards to the back of Professor Noble.

With a surge of barely expressed glee, she realized the conversation she was eavesdropping on was important. She hadn't heard it from the start, obviously, but it seemed (from what she did hear) that Professor Petrov had killed poor Derf's pet. What were they going to do about it? Then Gaston came over (who she saw coming before anyone else did) and was demanding to know what was going on. At this point, Alice felt like taking off her cloak - yet for some reason she didn't.

Then the scream. That was ruined her cover. She had been holding so still that the noise made her jump in alarm, causing her cloak to fall off and land awkwardly at her feet.

Oops.

Well...this was embarrassing. But Alice had no time to be embarrassed. "It's Jessa," she confirmed, acting as if she had been there all along. "Er...excuse me, children. Professors."

And, leaving her cloak on the ground, the eavesdropping professor hurried off towards Professor Petrov's tent.

Cassirin · 11-26-2018, 01:42 AM

Of course they'd believe Derf's word... and hers... and Stas'. Even over some adult who used to work for the Ministry, especially if said adult was behaving erratically. And Chloe was fully prepared to tell Derf so, in no uncertain terms, when they were interrupted by a scream.

Jessa? Really? How did Derf know what Jessa's scream sounded like? He had such a hard time, didn't he?

And what was even STRANGER, on a day of strange things, was Profesor O'Hara appearing out of nowhere and hurrying off in that direction. "This entire place is going mad. We are children and no one is doing anything about people treating us poorly and hurting us. Do. Your. Jobs," she scolded the professors remaining in her best Celandine Kettleburn tone before turning to hurry after O'Hara. Suspicious Professor was suspicious.

MadMadamMalfoy · 11-26-2018, 08:02 AM

Gaston had no idea what to make of the scene unfolding in front of him. He stood silent, his eyes darting from one face to the next as he struggled to process it. I might've guessed, he thought bitterly as Noble confirmed what he already suspected. It was bound to happen; he knew it was only a matter of time before these hired goons caused irreparable damage, but everybody just thought he was being dramatic. This was exactly like the private school his father sent him to when he was a child... His hands balled into fists as emotions swirled within him like a dark cloud... a storm of fear, sadness, and blind rage threatening to consume him from the inside. He sighed, pinching at the bridge of his nose. After several deep breaths, he was able to calm down enough to register the conversation taking place. He turned to Derf with a sorrowful look. "I'm so sorry about your friend," he whispered, nodding to the bowtruckles in the Hufflepuff's pocket to indicate his condolences were mean for them too... though he didn't know if the creatures would understand him. "I promise Petrov will answer for this, one way or another. I'll do whatever it takes to help bring him to justice." Whether that meant a daydream charm, veritaserum, or something else...

He looked to Noble questioningly. He agreed that the creatures must be moved and that they would need expert advice on how to do it, but... "How would we get around the owl post inspections to ask Tristan?" he asked. "Contacting a fired professor is bound to raise suspicion..." He had ideas on how to go about it, but he wanted to hear the others' suggestions first.

Before Gaston had more time to think about it, the conversation switched gears. Noble was right; they needed evidence. He was thinking along the lines of using Derf's memories when Chloe voiced that exact idea. The students were offering suggestions faster than he could voice his own, so he silently took it all in... until Derf spoke up. "Yes, we need - and have some - evidence," he said, nodding at Chloe and Stasya, "but I'm afraid Derfael may be right. It would come down to his word against Petrov's, and as we've seen, this regime doesn't play fair. I wouldn't put it past Petrov to twist the evidence we have against us..." His expression darkened as his voice trailed off. "We can use what we have, but we need more... something too substantial for Petrov to worm his way out of," he said. Then an idea dawned on him. "What if we all disillusion ourselves and sneak into the barn to gather more evidence? See with our own eyes what he's done and make more memories - we could even take photos! Surely the Ministry couldn't doubt all-"

Gaston's sentence was cut off by a scream that made his blood run cold. His dark head whipped around in the direction of the sound... toward Petrov's tent. Wait, what? Jessa? Oh, dear Merlin... He turned, already drawing his wand; then Alice appeared. Had she been there all this time? He inwardly groaned, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. This was terrible timing - not to mention how underhanded it was to eavesdrop on students with an invisibility cloak! But he had bigger problems right now...

His anger was once again mounting, but then Chloe Kettleburn happened and her words ratcheted his already heightened emotions up to 100. She had no idea what he'd sacrificed for his students this term!The silence and lies, stifling the parts of himself that went against Scrimgeour's rules to keep the headmaster satisfied enough not to fire him... It was all for them, so they wouldn't have to contend with yet another monster brought into the school to replace him, so they'd have at least one adult they could turn to. The strain had nearly killed him from the inside, and after that, to have her imply that he wasn't doing his job... it hurt. He tried to remind himself where she was coming from, but it didn't numb the sting.

For the first time in his career at Hogwarts, Gaston wanted to let a student have it, but he knew it was pointless. It would only justify her thinking badly of him, and even so, she was already following Alice. "Miss Kettleburn!" he called, rushing after her. There wasn't time to say all the things on his mind, but he wanted her to know in no uncertain terms that her rebuke had crossed a line. "Don't think the students are the only ones suffering. This term has been hard on all of us in ways you may not fully understand; keep that in mind before you judge." He shot her a look of quiet disappointment, his eyes reflecting all the pain he'd endured over the past months. That was all he was going to say on the subject.

He paused for a moment, looking back at the group. "Jessa needs our help! Let's go!" he called, motioning for them to follow as he ran toward Petrov's tent.

sweetpinkpixie · 11-26-2018, 01:28 PM

Derf honestly just wanted to lay Aster to rest and his bowtruckle full pockets another reminder that he wanted to keep the rest of them safe as well as the creatures still in the barns and stables. But it was impossible to ignore the sounds coming from that monster's tent. He couldn't even allow himself to feel relief that the man was there and not in other creature habitats - that was one of his best friends seeming to be in mortal peril.

Because it took A LOT to get Jessa to shriek like that.

But before Derf could go into the fine details of how he had known Jessa since he was three, how they had had summer ice cream dates together ever since then with Alexa babysitting them until they were old enough to go into Diagon Alley on their own, how essentially every summer they had gone on some sort of globetrotting trip together with their families, how they had unspoken understandings and agreements between one another, how they were best friends and THAT was how he knew that voice belonged to Jessa - It was like knowing a particular bird's call, you never forgot it - the History of Magic professor confirmed with ABSOLUTE certainty in her tone that she KNEW it was Jessa. And then, quite suddenly, the hairs were standing on the back of his neck and he was gaping at the woman with eyes so wide they may rival those of mooncalves.

The softness that had been in his eyes while looking at Maxton faded as his head did a slooooooooooow turn because a) WHERE had that woman come from and b) WHY did she know how Jessa's shrieks of absolute terror sounded ALREADY? Also, c) he was going to collect that cloak of invisibility she had so haphazardly left on the ground like that. Maybe he could use it to cover up some of the creatures and keep them safe from Petrov.

.......or maybe he could use it for his own purposes another time. The Charms professor has mentioned disillusionment and, well, the sixth year was not exactly all that good with executing that particular charm yet.

In any case, he was promptly shoving it into his robes during all the chaos that ensued and could honestly KISS Chloe for the words she was speaking. And it wasn't that he disagreed with Professor Marchand because he KNEW others had struggled this term - hello, professors had been FIRED, you know? - but something in the man's tone made it sound like it was a self reflection. Frowning a little at him, the Hufflepuff felt he would be able to better sympathize with the man were he not...always looking so miserable. Derf genuinely felt awful for the professor, you know? Until this term he had always made sure to carry around a spare chocolate frog to offer the professor as a hopeful pick-me-up.

Looking down at the box in his hands and then back to the tent, Derf wasn't sure WHAT to do. He didn't want to just stand idly by while Jessa and anyone else suffered at the hands of Petrov...but he also had a bowtruckle in his hands and some dittany to apply to hopefully restore her body somewhat. One look down at the bowtruckles cowering in his pockets further implied that he ought to stay here as exposing them to that monster's presence so soon would be traumatizing to them. And besides, there were already two adult wands heading that way and the capable one belonging to Chloe.

So he looked towards his Head of House once more, for guidance. "I-I can stay here...," he offered, his hands clutching the box more tightly as his eyes looked beyond the trees and towards the tent in the distance. "Be...a relay point if Jessa and anyone else slips away while Petrov is being engaged..."

Waterloo · 11-26-2018, 07:31 PM

Max was....... stunned.

All he'd wanted to do was throw some rocks and then all of THIS had happened. A dead bowtruckle, creatures in danger, a screaming Head Girl and then a creepy stalker Professor wearing an invisibility cloak. Was there such thing as a simple life in this castle?????

And if that wasn't enough, next thing he knew, O'Hara, Marchand and Chloe were all taking off in the direction of Petrov's tent. To try and save Jessa he supposed. Save her from what? Max dreaded to think. One thing he knew for sure was that he definitely wasn't about to follow. There was a reason he'd been sorted into Slytherin and not Gryffindor. Courage? Bravery? Hah.

"Don't worry, mate. I'll stay here with you." Max shuffled closer to Derf and gave the Hufflepuff's shoulder a comforting squeeze. Yep, he was gonna stay here. Where it seemed safe. Not because he was a wimp or anything......... but well, Derf seemed like he could do with a buddy y'know. Yeah, that was definitely the reason. Suuure.

SilverTiger · 11-27-2018, 08:04 AM

It had taken everything in Stasya not to roll her eyes at Max’s incredulous reaction to her absolute statement. “They take care of themselves. But the creatures in the barns aren’t equipped like wild animals are to protect themselves against danger.” Which reminded her of her concerns about the unicorn foal she’d almost met way back in first year with its mama, that she’d been so focused on verifying their survival and how that was essentially going against her current argument. But she wasn’t going to back down either, and the death of Aster proved her point anyway. If the creatures couldn’t protect themselves from an insane and probably sadistic professor, they certainly wouldn’t last in the Forbidden Forest.

Plus, Derf was hurting and she wanted to help him. Even if all she could do was support him, and there was that point about how Scrimgeour would of course side with Petrov over their word. “Maybe we could go to whoever is above the headmaster in power?...,” she began to wonder aloud, thoughts going back to her actions before the holidays that had nearly broken Professor Marchand more than he already was when she’d confessed it to him before everything was derailed by that scream. That scream and the sudden appearance of Professor O’Hara, which honestly would have been more startling if there hadn’t been the debate in History of Magic class ages ago about the invisibility cloak. Spying was definitely suspicious, but her reaction to Jessa’s scream had made her wonder if the woman was really that bad. Secretive, obviously, but maybe she wasn’t a minion?

She hadn’t wondered about why Derf had known the scream had come from Jessa, either. But she’d visibly flinched at Chloe’s reprimand toward the professors, expecting the worst. The worst that surprisingly didn’t happen beyond proving even more how shattered her own head of house was by the events of this term. Probably previous terms too, actually, but he’d ran off toward Petrov’s tent before she could say anything, along with the History of Magic professor and Chloe.

Honestly, she wasn’t certain of how useful she could be. Dueling abilities aside, the idea of what might happen if she’d hexed one of the headmaster’s minions was terrifying. “I’ll stay with you too, Derf. Whatever you want to do.”

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