June 1st - June 19th
It's almost summer! The last few weeks of school have come, and students will need to study hard for their final exams! Don't let up yet, or your grades won't be what you want them to. Of course, the weather is almost perfect and pristine, in attempts to lure students away from their studies.
A Clandestine Rendezvous [2.22.09 Early Morning] ALL OoTP!
It was a brisk February morning, and Ginny found herself bundled up in several layers, including a scarf and a pair of fluffy mittens to keep her hands from freezing in the cold. It was odd to be in Diagon Alley during this time of the year, especially in the early hours of the morning on a Sunday. Luckily for teachers, they could usually slip away unnoticed from school on Sundays. It wasn't like very many of the students actually had enough incentive to come and ask about homework difficulties on the weekends. It was almost like the bell ringing at the end of the last period on Friday was the announcement of all students mentally leaving the building. Not that Ginny could criticize them for it. She had been exactly the same when she was a student. Perhaps even worse at times. But that was ancient history. It really didn't matter anymore.
Turning toward her destination, she opened the door to the Weasley Wizard Wheezes Diagon Alley location. There were few customers that early in the morning; Ginny guessed that the majority of pranksters slept passed noon in this day and age. The store was going to be manned by several employees that day, as Fred and George had informed her. They had an important meeting to attend that could possibly supply them a large contact and a hefty sum of money. So with regrets, they wouldn't be attending the first meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. Next time, they had assured her. Next time.
With a wave at the employees (who recognized her simply by the traditional Weasley red hair and freckles) and proceeded to the back room. Once in the back, she pulled her coat off, and hurried toward the back door, pushing it open so the members of the Order of the Phoenix thus far could enter around the back, just as she, Cyrus, and Kaniliel had been instructing people to do. Then they would continue into a small board room that had probably only been used once since Fred and George rented out the place in Diagon Alley. Pranking and joking supplies didn't seem to require very many business discussions, unless it was about what kind of project people wanted to see the most next, or what wasn't selling very much.
Standing away from the open door so not to be attacked by the frigid drafts, Ginny waited, watching for her new companions that would be joining the resistance that day.
Re: A Clandestine Rendezvous [2.22.09 Early Morning] ALL OoT
NPC
Forty-nine. In sixteen more days he would turn forty-nine. In a year and sixteen days, he would officially be fifty and "over the hill," at least by Muggle standars. Wizards, of course, lived longer than the average Muggle, but fifty still sounded quite old to Remus Lupin as he walked slowly through Diagon Alley. At least I'm beginning to look my age, Remus thought to himself with a wry grin. It was no secret that the werewolf had always looked so much older than he really was, what with his premature gray hairs, his shabby clothing, and his sickly appearance. But luckily, his condition hadn't worsened. Of course, it hadn't gotten any better either, though it seemed he was looking quite a bit happier than usual, which he supposed he had every right to be. Remus had always hated being alone in the world, but after the Second War had ended, he hadn't been alone. He had someone and had even gotten married to that someone and had a child, a beautiful girl he had named Lily. Lily Andromeda Lupin.
So despite his continuously disshevled appearance, Remus was looking happy for once. There was a brightness in his eyes that wasn't there before, but suited him well. It made him appear younger almost. He had spent so much time trying to convince Tonks that he wasn't the right person to marry, that he was too old, too dangerous, and too poor, but in the end, he was glad that she'd been persistant. He was glad that she'd stuck with him nonetheless. Getting married to a younger woman seemed to have almost made him himself younger. Remus had a reason to live now. Two reasons, really, and he also had two people who would love him unconditionally no matter what happened to him once a month. They loved him even though he had a monster living inside of him. Even though he was a monster. But luckily that monster had been sated, for the full moon had been about a week ago and Remus' inner wolf was satisfied. It was always the first week after the full moon that Remus always felt the best, because his wolf caused him no trouble.
Unfortunately, that didn't change the fact that Remus was still a werewolf and thus had a wolf living inside of him. As he walked through Diagon Alley, he could smell and hear everything. His keen senses seem to pinpoint things normal people wouldn't notice. But Remus had lived with this wolf for over forty years now and he knew how to keep it at bay. There were times when it caused him trouble, but usually the only time Remus couldn't hold the wolf back was on nights of a full moon, in which case he would be far, far away from any humans anyway.
The old werewolf easily found his way to the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and smiled faintly as he opened the door. The place was packed with children of all ages as usual, wide-eyed over the selection the store had to offer them. Remus found himself thinking how lucky he was that he taught at Hogwarts before the Weasley twins had opened their store. Of course, he had to admit, he probably would have been secretly amused by everything his students pulled out of their pockets. While Remus seemed like the type to be serious and studious, people often underestimated him. He had been a part of the infamous Marauders after all, and he did come up with ingenius plans now and then. The only difference between him and the rest was that he actually had a conscience. But Remus, despite having been a prefect, was still quiet mischevious and did enjoy a little harmless fun once in a while. He had a feeling that interest in causing little bits of trouble had spilled over into Lily, for she was quite the trouble-maker.
Making his way to the back of the store, Remus spied the door he had been instructed to enter and walked inside. He wasn't surprised to find it, for the most part, empty, for he did have a tendency to be a bit early. But Remus was glad to find that there was someone inside, and a someone he knew very well.
"Ginny," Remus said with a warm smile. "It's nice to see you again." He walked over and gave her a fatherly hug before stepping back and taking a look at her. She had gotten even more beautiful over the years. Remus was almost surprised how much she'd changed and silently reprimanded himself for not keeping in touch as well as he should have. He hadn't seen any of his former students in quite some time now, especially Harry. Remus had always worried about the boy, knowing it would be hard for him to integrate back into society once he fullfilled the prophecy. And just as he had expected, Harry had tried, but then disappeared. The werewolf had attempted to contact him, but the boy had hidden himself well. "How's your family?" Remus then asked. He frowned slightly, remembering Bill, but tried not to think too much of it. When Bill had been attacked by Fenrir, Fenrir wasn't transformed so Remus knew the oldest Weasley sibling would not be a full-fledged werewolf, but he'd seen the scars Fenrir Greyback had left.
Remus had scars from that werewolf on his own body.
Re: A Clandestine Rendezvous [2.22.09 Early Morning] ALL OoT
Cyrus wasn't entirely sure how eager he was to be joining this order thing. Of course he wanted to help with stuff, since he hated what was happening, but he really didn't see what he could do. It wasn't like he could predict the future for the group at will and have an advantage or a kind of reassurance. He wasn't the greatest at magic either, and in comparison to most people he was just...weak.
But he had a beater's body, so if he couldn't stun them with magic, he'd throttle them with a club. Yeah, that would work.
"Pfft," he remarked as he sauntered down the road. In all his brilliance he had left his scarf behind when he apparated to Diagon Alley, so someone was surely being kept warm by his black and red striped scarf with a little chimera head embroidered on it. Although it wasn't like it had been an expensive scarf, and frankly there were a couple of holes beginning to appear anyway.
But it had kept him warm enough.
Unlike now, where he was sort of cold. And at the moment there was no nice warm Mae to use as a coat. Bleh. At least the store that Ginny had spoken of was in sight. When he saw it he smiled a crooked grin, remembering quite a few times when he had gone in there as a boy, then again as an uncle. Now he was going in as some kind of secret rebel. My how times changed.
He sauntered through the store and went straight to the back where Ginny had told everyone to go. Unsurprisingly he wasn't the first there. She, Ginny, was there of course. Near her was a man Cyrus didn't recognize, but was at least as old as his father. He abruptly stopped in the doorway, not wanting to interrupt any private conversation.
"Ah, excuse me," he murmured, looking from Remus to Ginny and smiling. "Hey, Ginny, you're looking as carrot top as ever." He pulled off his gloves and stuffed them in his coat before going over to the older gentleman. His hands were probably cold, but he wasn't about to let that stop him from making a good impression on some guy he didn't know. He extended one of his hands for Remus to shake and grinned.
Re: A Clandestine Rendezvous [2.22.09 Early Morning] ALL OoT
Goodness it was cold! Cold indeed. Maebh felt that it was way too cold to be doing anything that had to do with going outside but she was out anyway, which was why she was glad to have bundled herself up in thicker clothes. Double socks, double shirts, long johns and jeans. She would have worn double boots if it were possible. It wasn’t until she was walking down the nearly deserted paths in Diagon Alley that she thought of just using a simple heating spell. Maebh paused to slap her forehead. Merlin on a bicycle, why hadn’t I thought of that? Am I really that stupid? She continued her walk but with a deep frown. She really ought to spend more time thinking and less time doing ... whatever it is that she did. Aside from thinking about her special someone and work Maebh hardly thought about anything else. Usually she would just end up napping. What more was there to do? She couldn’t even answer her own question. It was then that Maebh suddenly felt that she was a bit daft. What a depressing feeling. All of a sudden going back home and brooding seemed like a great idea. She could sit down and ponder just what the heck she was doing with her life. Then again thinking about it would just probably lead to her becoming depressed as all get out. “I won’t think about it then.” She said to herself.
Now what was she doing in Diagon Alley again? All Maebh knew was that it was some sort of meeting that Cyrus asked her to attend. She was hoping it wasn’t something stupid and boring. She was already stupid. She didn’t need to add being bored to the list. Maebh needed to think on the positive side of things! After all, it was Cyrus who had invited her and even though they hadn’t been ‘together’ long, it wasn’t all that hard to figure her out. Thus she figured that whatever this was would be really exciting. She hoped they had food.
“Now where was I supposed to enter?” Maebh couldn’t remember on whether it was the back or the front, so like any normal and intelligent adult would do, she took out a coin and flipped it. Heads meant that she would go through the front and Tails meant that she would enter through the back. The tall girl tossed it as high as it would go (more flipping time) and caught it in the palm of her hand. “Ah, the back it is!”
It didn’t take long for her to make a detour toward the back and by the time she reached the already open door she was a lot less pissed off and depressed than she had been a few minutes before. Maybe it was the fact that she caught view of Cyrus’ profile. Ew, what the hell is wrong with you, you retard? Maebh mentally dropped kicked herself for that lovey dovey thought. Now was not the time to act like she had been stabbed in the chest repeatedly with cupid’s arrow. Besides, there were other people in the room so she didn’t need to act like he was the only one. “Oi, red!” Maebh called out as she passed Cyrus, poking his side as she did so. “You look familiar, wouldn’t happen to be a Weasley, wouldja?” In all likely hood she was and if so Maebh had asked a stupid question. “Never mind that question. I’m pretty sure you are. Percy is a jerk and with your permission, after he’s fired from being the headmaster, I’d like to punch him in the face, like, really hard, you know?” It was one hell of a way to make an entrance but Maebh didn’t know any other method. “I’m Maebh by the way.” She jerked her head in the direction of Cyrus. “He invited me. What’s yours? I don’t want to keep calling you Weasley.”
Re: A Clandestine Rendezvous [2.22.09 Early Morning] ALL OoT
Ginny was starting to grow antsy, waiting for people to come. What if no one ended up showing? She knew she had talked to her parents and the rest of her family about attending. She had talked to Luna and Hermione, but where was everyone? They couldn't afford to be detained by people not showing up. As it was, the progress was going to be painfully slow. They had to wait to approach people until they knew they could truly, honestly trust them. If they got a bad egg amongst them, someone playing as a double agent, someone like Snape, everything would be ruined. They couldn't afford for something like that to happen again. People were already losing their lives. This was a serious issue, not some sunshine and daisy procedure that could be taken lightly, without much consideration.
Finally, Ginny heard the crunch of footsteps outside, and brought her full attention to the door as Remus Lupin stepped in. "Ginny," he said with a warm smile, stepping through the door, giving Ginny a fatherly hug that she warmly returned. "How's your family?" He questioned.
"As good as they can be," Ginny replied honestly. "You know...family barriers and such. It's...it's difficult," she said, hinting at Percy's betrayal of the entire Weasley clan. As it was, Ginny was the only one in contact with Percy. She got several letters from her other siblings telling her to give him a firm kick in the arse for them, and Ginny had to simply ignore them and pretend they had never come. It made seeing Percy occasionally (when he actually cared to show his face in public) that much more awkward. "But it's all going to pass soon. Or...I hope it is."
"Ah, excuse me," Cyrus said as he entered the room. Ginny greeted him with a smile, immensely relieved that people were starting to show up. Her worst fears had been eliminated! They at least had a three member turn out including Ginny. "Hey, Ginny, you're looking as carrot top as ever." Ginny laughed.
"I am. The world makes sense yet," she joked lightly, shivering slightly as the cold air continued to rush in from the open door. The sounds of footsteps came once again, and another person was approaching. When the woman entered, however, Ginny couldn't recall ever meeting her before.
“Oi, red!” The woman called, making a beeline toward Ginny. “You look familiar, wouldn’t happen to be a Weasley, wouldja? Never mind that question. I’m pretty sure you are." Ginny couldn't help but laugh slightly. The curse of the Weasley red hair. Made you stand out like a sore thumb. Percy is a jerk and with your permission, after he’s fired from being the headmaster, I’d like to punch him in the face, like, really hard, you know?” Ginny wouldn't lie that this woman's upfront behavior was rather intimidating, but at the same time she couldn't help but grow a slight fondness for her for it. Not very many people could be so outgoing and brutally honest. It was an admirable trait.
"Hey, we can all mob him together," Ginny replied with a grin. "Tar and feather him. See how he likes it then."
“I’m Maebh by the way.” She jerked her head in the direction of Cyrus. “He invited me. What’s yours? I don’t want to keep calling you Weasley.” Ginny couldn't help but feel accomplished. Yes, they had managed to persuade people to come for the cause, to fight beside them. Ginny had gotten Lupin, and Cyrus had gotten Maebh. So far it was a success!
"Ginny," she replied, holding her hand out to Maebh. "Youngest and only female child in the Weasley family."
"The thing about growing up with Fred and George is that you sort of start thinking anything's possible if you've got enough nerve."
Re: A Clandestine Rendezvous [2.22.09 Early Morning] ALL OoT
Kaniliel gathered her blood red cloak closer to herself as she hurried down the streets of Diagon Alley. Her large hood hid her face in the shadows, and only a few tendrils of her telltale auburn locks were visible. The sun's shy early rays were beginning to peek from the clouds on the horizon, tainting the sky a musky shade of vintage pink.
The Weasley's Wizard Wheezes had become a legend, and it wasn't long before Kaniliel turned the corner and came to the obvious building that stuck out of the woodwork like an ill-mannered thumb. The Weasleys had made quite a name for themselves, for better or worse. Apparently, the only rotten apple was Percy; surely enough, he had an important position as Headmaster, but it was popular knowledge that Kaniliel thought him a blundering moron with no academic skills whatsoever.
She lowered her hood as she entered and quickly scanned the faces. Cyrus and Ginny were already there, along with another beautiful yet scarred man and Maebh, the auror. Kaniliel knew her well, though whether the recognition was mutual she had no idea. Maebh had been responsible for the conviction of a few of her relatives, for sadly enough her entire family was known to have been in league with the Dark Lord. And it still was, but no one had any evidence of any recent illegal activities. Kaniliel had no idea how to act around the auror. It wasn't as if she was responsible for all the horrible things her family had done, since she had left her home in the middle of her studies in order to escape any implications. Still, the reputation lived on and perhaps Maebh would object to her being part of the Order of the Phoenix.
All Kaniliel could do was pretend as if she didn't have a long line of criminals and mass terrorists in her family. She went about with her usual friendly smile and greeted both Ginny and Cyrus.
"Ginny, Cyrus... I'm sorry to have tarded. The plants were demanding this morning, or I would have arrived earlier and helped you set up."
To the handsome, scarred man she introduced herself, "I'm Professor Kaniliel Hymnwood, Herbology. Pleased to meet you." To Maebh, "And I'm certain you already know lots more about me than I'd dare to believe. Nevertheless, I'm more than pleased to know we have great talent on the team."
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