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DaniDiNardo · #1 (**permalink**) 12-04-2018, 12:02 PM

The Clock Tower Entrance is one of the three main entrances of Hogwarts Castle (the other two being the Viaduct Entrance and the main Entrance Hall). It aligns with the third-floor corridor, connecting with the courtyard that stems off to the Wooden Bridge and the rest of the school grounds. This large open space can be magically sealed with a portcullis and the massive double doors can be locked with numerous bolts.

At the base of the Clock Tower is a large window that may cause you to question why it is even there as all you can see out of it is the side of a building. Fortunately for you, the massive steel and iron pendulum swinging back and forth will likely pull you out of trying to figure out that mystery. If you look closely at the suspended weight, an imprint of a many armed star in the middle and a number of runic symbols on the outer rim can be seen. Study the purposeful design on the pendulum as long as you like. Just don't fall into temptation of swinging from it and pretending to be a wrecking ball.

NiallNIP · 01-30-2021, 01:56 AM

Today was a sad day.

Nothing happened today to make it sad, but Quinn was feeling pretty down. It had been a while since he'd spoken to Eden—well, they'd spoken, but not much. Mostly because he'd been angry at her. The anger made him feel all gross and sad now. And then being in a bad mood got him thinking about all the upsetting things about this school year, and now it was a sad day.

Quinn initially planned to go out and read some books, but he didn't feel like reading anymore. Then he got to watching the pendulum, and he forgot about reading. He sat down in the entryway, sitting his books next to him and resting his head on his hand. And he watched the pendulum go back... and forth... and back... and forth...

kayquilz · 01-30-2021, 02:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NiallNIP

Today was a sad day.

Nothing happened today to make it sad, but Quinn was feeling pretty down. It had been a while since he'd spoken to Eden—well, they'd spoken, but not much. Mostly because he'd been angry at her. The anger made him feel all gross and sad now. And then being in a bad mood got him thinking about all the upsetting things about this school year, and now it was a sad day.

Quinn initially planned to go out and read some books, but he didn't feel like reading anymore. Then he got to watching the pendulum, and he forgot about reading. He sat down in the entryway, sitting his books next to him and resting his head on his hand. And he watched the pendulum go back... and forth... and back... and forth...

Every day was a sad day, Quinn. Or that would have been Aboli's response had she heard anyone complain of such lately. Although everything was terrible, there were fleeting moments of happiness Aboli could cherish during these days. Yesterday had been one of those times, but it wasn't enough to cast a glow on her for more than a few hours.

Still, she was in better spirits today.

She wandered inside, having been out on this brisk, breezy day. Her blonde hair was in a loose bun, strands having fallen out here and there. She had on her usual gloves, the plum velvet ones, and she waved one of her gloved hands at the first year as she noticed him. "Don't get hypnotized, Kingsley," she said in her most hELPFUL of tones.

NiallNIP · 01-30-2021, 02:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayquilz

Every day was a sad day, Quinn. Or that would have been Aboli's response had she heard anyone complain of such lately. Although everything was terrible, there were fleeting moments of happiness Aboli could cherish during these days. Yesterday had been one of those times, but it wasn't enough to cast a glow on her for more than a few hours.

Still, she was in better spirits today.

She wandered inside, having been out on this brisk, breezy day. Her blonde hair was in a loose bun, strands having fallen out here and there. She had on her usual gloves, the plum velvet ones, and she waved one of her gloved hands at the first year as she noticed him. "Don't get hypnotized, Kingsley," she said in her most hELPFUL of tones.

Quinn broke his eyes from the pendulum as Aboli came in. He attempted a smile and chuckle at her joke. "I think I'll be alright. As long as no one tells me to do something stupid," he said in jest. He didn't much sound convinced of it, though.

Quinn examined her hands. She seemed to wear gloves quite a lot. "Your gloves are really pretty. Is that why you wear them so much?"

kayquilz · 01-30-2021, 06:57 PM

Pffft. Aboli thought there was a LOT of stupidity around here these days, but she couldn't really say as much aloud. And much less to this first year. Her own stormy blue eyes began to watch the swinging as well. The steadiness of it was enough to keep her focus.

She looked down at her hands. "They are quite pretty, I agree. You don't need to know why I wear gloves. Just know that it's for my comfort," she said simply. "You've noticed I wear gloves a lot?" she asked, cocking her head to the side. Did many of her peers notice and just not ask about it, she wondered? Weird to think about.

NiallNIP · 01-30-2021, 07:18 PM

Quinn shrank a bit, worried that he had overstepped. "Oh. Sorry..." he said, starting to pick at the ground. He nodded at her next question. "Well, yeah. Not too many people walk around wearing gloves. I think they suit you, though," he said, hoping that would make up for prying.

Quinn sat in silence for a beat, thinking. Aboli was older than he was, so she probably had some experience with fighting with friends. "Er... Aboli... when you're mad at a friend, do you always wait for them to figure out what they did wrong? Because, you know... what if they... don't..?"

kayquilz · 01-31-2021, 07:16 PM

There was no need to shrink, so Aboli tried to be...as not cold as possible. Firsties were sensitive, weren't they. But then again...so was she, sometimes. She supposed a big scary seventeen year would seem traumatic to make angry. "Well...thank you. I basically have a..." Ahem, "Condition that makes me have to wear gloves a lot. That's all." Just to distill any mystery while still not releasing the whole story. Only her close friends could know. And the staff, obviously. It made her wonder if Rosier knew, but then again, he probably did. I wonder if they'd see that as an asset...or a weakness. Hmm.

OoooOOoh what a loaded question the boy had asked. Considering Aboli had a best friend that she hadn't spoken to in literal YEARS after a fight....yikes.

"Um. Well. Let's sit, Quinn," she said quickly before sitting right on the ground. "I can practice my therapist skills," she muttered. "Since that's what I want to be. Sit sit. Let's have a chat." She smirked a little. Let Aboli Song heeeeelp. "I can tell you my personal experience, and then what I think is the best for you. Because I....don't think I handled this correctly in my own life, and maybe you can learn from my mistakes."

NiallNIP · 02-01-2021, 02:31 AM

Quinn nodded in understanding. So there was a reason, she just wasn't comfortable sharing. That's alright, Quinn didn't want her to be uncomfortable. "Well, I hope it's nothing too bad. At least you get to make a fashion statement, though," he managed a smile.

He nodded, then went over and sat next to Aboli. She seemed to be just the right person to ask about this stuff, coincidentally. He hoped she would be a good therapist with good advice, and that she learned from her own mistakes. "Ah... alright. Well..." He tried to think of how to tell the story. Full detail? Brief overview? He didn't want to take up too much of her time... "So, a couple days ago, my friend Eden and I were on a run... and, um..." he looked around to make sure no one was here to listen, "...w-well, we saw Emmerson Cambridge and Kinsay James. Eden was really mad at Emmerson for getting into a fight with our friend Ashley and calling her a... um... a mudblood, and so Eden hexed her so she would sneeze sardines. It caused a ruckus, basically, and then some of those Alliance people came and threatened us, and the only reason we didn't get punished was because Professor Williamson came in and saved us. And then I got really mad at Eden because we could've died because she didn't just leave it alone, but she didn't seem to get that? Like, she apologized because I was there and not because she did it, and she said Emmerson deserved it—which, I mean, I agree, but she still shouldn't have done it!" All of this came out in a heated whisper, since the Alliance thought the kids were sparring instead of attacking each other.

Quinn sighed and brought his voice back to a normal level. "S-so, anyway... I'm still angry at Eden, and I want her to apologize for real and realize she was being stupid, but..." he slouched, "I miss her, too."

kayquilz · 02-02-2021, 12:29 AM

"It isn't TOO bad, no. It's all good. Some things you're meant to deal with. Fate and...destiny," she nodded seriously before moving on to HIS situation.

Which...ha. To have problems like a twelve year old again. The names...goodness. Okay. So. Emmerson, who was literally the worst, and Kinsay James, who was annoying in her own right, ran into.......Eden, who Aboli thought she remembered, and this kid. Quinn. She knew who Ashley was because Ashley was aaaalllways getting fussed at by Rosier. They were all young Ravenclaws, right?

Anyway.

At the word "mudblood," Aboli flinched slightly, but didn't interrupt. Only once he was done did she speak. "Well..." She sighed. "So...Eden sounds like she really doesn't think she did anything wrong, no. And until she understands your end...there's not really...much you can do. So you can either get over it and move on, or...not talk to her. Which is what I have done - and it resulted in me and my best friend like, never speaking again." She sighed. "I think friendship is about picking your battles. Do you want to lose a friendship over this? Is it worth it? Maybe you two can have a deep chat...or something...to help you both see through each other's eyes." Well, what if all of what she had just said was complete horse dung. "Just gotta' tell her your exaaaaact feelings, I guess. I dunnnoooooooo - " she sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"When is the last time you two spoke?"

NiallNIP · 02-03-2021, 04:52 AM

Quinn thought about it for a second. He really didn't want to lose Eden as a friend, but at the same time... what she did was so stupid. And dangerous! He just wanted her to see how stupid and dangerous she was being. And he didn't want to concede on that front. But he didn't want to be angry anymore, either. Maybe... he should just talk to her.

He looked back at Aboli for her next question. "Uh... the last real talk we had was... the day it happened. November 11th. After that it's just been, like... non-conversations? Small insignificant stuff. Only if we, like, had to speak for classes or other small stuff. But never a 'How's it going?' or anything." He went back to looking at the ground.

kayquilz · 02-04-2021, 12:35 AM

They hadn't spoken in that long? Really? Aboli wrinkled her nose a bit. "I think - and this is just my opinion, you don't have to do anything I say, okay?- that you should sit down and have a chat with her. Like...a long serious chat. And see where you both stand. Did your friend Ashley get involved at all? Is she still speaking to you both?" She leaned closer to him a little bit so she could soften her voice and him still be able to hear her.

"Sometimes....when you're really young, like we are," she began, trying to make it seem like she was in the same boat as he was, "Friendship fights so BIG AND EMOTIONAL...and then when I look back, I'm like...wow. That was NOT a big deal. So I dunno'. Just think about things like and see if, in five years, this would matter to you. Maybe it totally would! And you and she can chat about all this, you know?" Was she done blabbing? She sighed as she ran a gloved hand through her loose, blonde hair. "I feel like I've not helped you at all. Sorry. You'd have better luck asking me for school help...maybe. I haven't gone to Uni yet to be a good therapist!" she chuckled and shrugged. Her eyes turned upward to the see the pendulum steadily moving back and forth. It really got her thinking. "Time...time is always against us. Right? so...you have to use your time wisely.Don't let something stew if you can solve it now. And as we both know..." she glanced around, darkly, "Some of our times may be cut short sooner rather than later. So waste not a breathe, Quinn."

Waste NOT a BrEaTh?! Who was she? Bloody Shakespeare?! Aboli snorted at herself.

NiallNIP · 02-04-2021, 03:44 AM

"Ashley seems to be fine. She hasn't really picked a side, if she even knows about it. And I know I didn't tell her anything, so if she knows it came from Eden. Or someone else who heard about it," Quinn shrugged. He honestly wasn't sure what Ashley would think about it. Or did think about it.

Quinn shook his head. "No, I think... I think this has been pretty helpful. But... I still just need some time to think about it. I dunno," he said glumly. The whole situation felt weird to him—he'd never gotten int an argument with a friend like this, he was usually pretty complacent. But he had been so mad. And that didn't just mean nothing, right? "Thanks, though, Aboli. I'll... I'll definitely think about it some more."

kayquilz · 02-06-2021, 12:59 AM

It probably didn't really matter what Ashley thought about it, but Aboli really liked knowing all the small details about a situation. Ashley was a side character, so to speak, in this little piece of drama. It was pure curiosity, or officious nosy-ness.

"Everyone works at your own pace. You should take as much time as your mental health will allow." Because sometimes letting things stew for TOO long could be detrimental. She nodded and patted his elbow gently. What a sweet, summer child. Innocent. But intelligent, and not ignorant, so to speak. She lowered her voice as she glanced around them once more, as she was prone to do as of late.

"Are you...are a muggleborn?" she asked softly.

~~she had not noticed the liar on his forehead if it were still there...he had floppy hair~~

NiallNIP · 02-06-2021, 03:10 AM

As long as his mental health would allow... well, his mental health wasn't exactly good for a multitude of reasons at the moment, so he would see how long that would be. Probably not too long.

Quinn bit his lip nervously, then nodded. "Uh... yeah. But, um... I didn't know when I came to school. At first. My dad's a Muggle, but my mom's a Squib, so I thought that might make me a half blood, a-and I put that on the form, but, um... that was... not correct." He reached up to his forehead and traced the bottom of the R, just under his hair, absentmindedly—he had been purposefully putting his hair down in front of it, even though the scar was light and would probably be nearly invisible within a couple months. That was thanks to Phoebe and her murtlap, which he was still extremely grateful for.

kayquilz · 02-07-2021, 05:04 PM

Aboli listened. And nodded gently. She tried to form a comforting look on her features because she noticed his hand instinctively touching his forehead. Ahhh, now she could see the bottom of the word. Lucky for Quinn, his had faded quite a bit. "Have you ever read the Scarlet Letter? Or rather...heard of it?" she asked softly. He probably hadn't read it. It was a difficult book. A muggle one at that, too. And based in America.... Aboli hadn't actually read it herself either. But she knew the story.

She had also never met a squib before. Muggles, sure. Her first crush and KISS had been a muggle. But a squib???? She didn't say any of this aloud for fear of being overheard, but she was curious. "I thought squibs had...magical blood...but there is some disconnect there with their abilities...but I have to admit I am not expert. Or knowledgeable about that at all. Did you grow up knowing about magic?"

NiallNIP · 02-07-2021, 10:09 PM

Quinn furrowed his brow in thought. "Um... I... don't think so, no. Why? Is it a good story?" He was interested in how it related to the conversation. Was it about Howlers? Quinn had heard about those, and they didn't seem very pleasant.

He nodded. "W-well, they do have magical blood—like, they can see through Muggle-diversion charms and stuff, so they're definitely not Muggles. B-but.... I guess that the Alliance doesn't consider them to be, er, wizard enough. But, no... I only learned magic existed about a year ago. My mom was living as a Muggle and didn't expect me to have magic. And I was a late bloomer on top of that, so.... everything is still, um, very new." He wished he had grown up knowing about magic solely because this was not the situation to know virtually nothing in. Luckily he had been tearing through the books in the Ravenclaw common room and had made the tiniest dent in library books to try and learn as much as he could.

kayquilz · 02-08-2021, 11:33 PM

Aboli tried to figure out a way to explain this to Quinn, an eleven? Twelve? year old. "So...basically," she began, knowing exactly which parts to censor. "There's this woman who has a baby from someone not her husband, and she is made to wear a BIG red A on her dress so everyone she passes in the streets and eeeeeveryone in the world knows what a terrible cheater she is," she used her wand to push some of his hair away from his forehead as she looked at the fading LIAR. "But at the end of the story...you find out....all the people who cared about her mistake and the A, the judgmental people, were far worse than she was. She was a good person. They weren't." She withdrew her wand and gave it a twirl. "Sometimes...the persecutors..." she lowered her voice. "Sometimes those who persecute others, who are extra judgmental, and who force people to wear something they deem a mistake on their sleeves.... are the real people who should be persecuted." Why did she tell him this? She was sure Quinn OBVIOUSLY knew the Alliance was evil and horrible. "I suppose the LIAR thing made me really think about how....history, literature...always repeats. Always. And reflects real life. And in the end, the main character is the one who survives and is better off," She might have been lying. She couldn't ACTUALLY remember what happened to Hester at the end of the loooooong book. "Karma came for those who downed her."

Her eyes darted around once more as he continued with his life story. His family. What kind of mother would do that to her child? Just NOT tell him about magic? It was highly unlikely a squib would produce another squib, even WITH a muggle partner. But she held her tongue to keep from being overly judgmental, something she had just preached to Quinn was bad! Her own mother was no saint, either. "Hey. You'll be fine. There's a ton of muggle-borns who start here, and usually everyone's on the same playing field by the end of first year. Trust me. I was homeschooled until fifth year, and I felt a little behind when I first got here. It was....sad. I was sad. But look at me now - prefect - " Well, kind of, "Seventh year. Near perfect OWL scores."

NiallNIP · 02-10-2021, 02:54 AM

Quinn mulled over her words about the Scarlet Letter. The ones who were the persecutors... would be persecuted themselves. He couldn't wait for the Alliance to get persecuted. He nodded. "Hm... Karma. I can't wait for it to come around."

A small smile broke out on his face at the reassurances. "...Thanks. I've been doing pretty alright in classes, so... that seems to be holding true, so far. I'm just worried about knowing about.... this stuff. With the Neo-Alliance. It feels like I know virtually nothing about them—and I've been reading up on a lot of wizarding history—specifically the not-so-nice stuff. A lot of anti-Muggle groups. The Neo-Alliance shares a lot of sentiments with the Death Eaters, but... I think they're more so connected to Grindelwald's Alliance from 200 years ago. It seems to be their namesake, after all. I just... don't know what they intend on doing." He straightened back up, thinking that was enough dark talk. "B-but, you know... there's not much I can do about it one way or the other. With or without knowing." He glumly rested his head on his hand.

kayquilz · 02-11-2021, 01:08 AM

Aboli also couldn't wait for karma to do it's little thang. She had a feeling, though, a sinking feeling that justice would not be served any time soon. She would have to put her faith elsewhere for now.

And Quinn spoked more. He seemed to be very knowledgeable about past anti-muggle groups, something Aboli would admit she didn't know as much about. Probably because she was pureblood ~~as far as she knew~~. Her mother was adopted, after all, and had no intention of finding her real parents. Aboli wished she would....the Slytherin wanted to know about her mother's parents. What if she really wasn't a pureblood? Why had they given her mum up? She just wanted to know it ALL. Did they carry the gift like her mother had? Had anyone possessed the gift Aboli now carried? The inner eye clearly had an obsession with her family.

"Well...we just have to do what we can. Live day to day. Try to focus on school. We're kind of stuck, and I wouldn't recommend anyone rebel. The Gryffindors here got a death wish, they do," she sighed and rolled her eyes slightly.

NiallNIP · 02-11-2021, 04:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayquilz

Aboli also couldn't wait for karma to do it's little thang. She had a feeling, though, a sinking feeling that justice would not be served any time soon. She would have to put her faith elsewhere for now.

And Quinn spoked more. He seemed to be very knowledgeable about past anti-muggle groups, something Aboli would admit she didn't know as much about. Probably because she was pureblood ~~as far as she knew~~. Her mother was adopted, after all, and had no intention of finding her real parents. Aboli wished she would....the Slytherin wanted to know about her mother's parents. What if she really wasn't a pureblood? Why had they given her mum up? She just wanted to know it ALL. Did they carry the gift like her mother had? Had anyone possessed the gift Aboli now carried? The inner eye clearly had an obsession with her family.

"Well...we just have to do what we can. Live day to day. Try to focus on school. We're kind of stuck, and I wouldn't recommend anyone rebel. The Gryffindors here got a death wish, they do," she sighed and rolled her eyes slightly.

Quinn paled a bit at Aboli's words. He, in fact, had been having some thoughts... not of inciting a rebellion, but something that was equally as dangerous. And stupid. But... if it could work... "Y-yeah. It seems... I don't think it would be a good idea to fight back just yet," he mumbled, picking at his shoe. "So, if there were to be talk of something..." he went on, trying his best to be seem as if it was just a passing question of little importance, "that went against..." he waved his hand in an all-encompassing gesture, "...and you were asked to be a part of it... what would you do?"

kayquilz · 02-12-2021, 12:44 AM

Aboli knew what he ask before he finished, and she could have answered, too. Because she had already spent countless nights pouring it over with herself, in her mind and in her soul. "No." Her answer was firm, and her jaw set as she glanced over at him.

"Absolutely not. It would be unwise this early on. I will do what I'm told to stay alive. For my brother, who's a third year, and my boyfriend...who...is a muggleborn. I can't go dying for being stupid." And she gave him a look. A look that said he should do the same. HE wasn't pureblood. "You need not step out line. Not with darkness in sight. There's no light at the end of tunnel." Yet. "So don't you go talking about that stuff. Seriously, kid." Her tone had gotten almost stern as she spoke.

There were better ways to cause the demise of a cause you didn't believe besides outright rebellion. At least, in her opinion.

NiallNIP · 02-12-2021, 05:43 AM

Quinn trained his eyes on his shoe as she spoke. He picked at the edge of his sole, and his brow furrowed. So... he was supposed to sit around and do nothing? While he could just up and get killed at any moment for no reason other than his parentage? No, that was... unacceptable. The more Quinn thought about it, the more he knew it was unacceptable. He could see it in his head—one of the Hoods just decides, hey, this one looked at me wrong, he doesn't deserve to live. And bam. Just like that, his life is over. As if it's nothing.

That would not be happening to him. If he was gonna get killed, he wouldn't go down without a fight—he needed to at least prepare. He needed to learn something. There was no way he would sit around idly on his hands when he could be making strides to make sure that, when it came down to it, he would have a fighting chance.

He thought all the younger years deserved one.

Quinn stood up, apparently losing interest in his shoe. "Thanks, Aboli. You've been a real help," he said neutrally, picking up his books.

kayquilz · 02-13-2021, 02:10 AM

Had she?

The way Quinn ran off, she knew he didn't like her answer. She watched him go with a neutral expression, but she could feel her insides deflating. But she had to stay strong in her beliefs, her decisions. And she had made this choice.

She gazed at the spot where he had ran off for a long while before eventually getting up to head back to the dungeons. It was comfortable down there, and so very dark.

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