Brown is the color of chocolate and wolverines on Cascade Hall

Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau

March 23, 2012 11:59 PM

Welcome Students! Opening Feast. by Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau

The summer had brought about her quick nuptials with Jeffrey and the complete adoption to one another’s children. They were officially a family. Kiva regretted having waited so long to have a relationship with him, but she would never regret the quick engagement and wedding. It had been all so perfect. Of course, the wedding had been small. They had invited the other mothers of their play group, the one in which they had first met in, and a couple people from their places of work. Kiva had invited some of her zoologist friends as well as John Fawcett (Kiva felt they had a sort of kinship being that he began at Sonora as her sub and then took over all of her responsibilities when she left entirely) and Amelia, who was her Deputy and helped her through all the school events. It was small and simple and Kiva would have been just as happy with no wedding at all, but she was glad to have celebrated with everyone. Of course, now it was back to work.

When the first years were brought in, Kiva stood up and charmed herself to be heard over the crowd. She waited a few minutes for the returning students to settle down before she finally greeted the students. “First and foremost, I want to welcome all of our newest students to Sonora Academy and all of our returning students a welcome back. I do hope your summers were full of fun adventures, but I am happy to find that you have all returned to the school intact.” Kiva was only joking with them really. She knew that students both loved and hated returning to school. They loved it because they were able to see their friends again. They hated it because it meant that they had to do work again. She couldn’t really blame them.

“For those who do not know me, I am Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau, but feel free to call me Professor K. Our first priority for the moment is to have the first years sorted.” Kiva turned her hazel eyes to the newest group of students. “In order for this to be done, I need for each of you to step up one at a time to Coach Pierce and take a sip from the potion she will offer to you.” Kiva explained, nodded to Amelia to indicate who Coach Pierce was. “The potion is harmless. Once you have sipped it, your skin will turn into the color of the house you will be spending the next seven years in. Please note that this change is only temporary.” She didn’t want them being too scared to taste the potion. She could remember her taste and having been terrified she would have stayed that color. “Yellow is for Teppenpaws, blue is for Aladren, red is for Crotalus, and brown is for Pecari. Please, if you could form a line and begin…” She gestured for the first student to step up.

Once the sorting had ended, Kiva regained the students’ attention. “I first have a few announcements to make. First and foremost, I would like to introduce our new staff members. Professor Callaghan is our Substitute Professor, Professor Reddington is our new Muggle Studies Professor, and Professor O’Rourke, who is our new Astronomy Professor. Please show them how wonderful our school is and give them a warm welcome.” Kiva clapped after introducing each of them. She hasn’t seemed to rid Sonora of the curse of the constant stream of professors. Already the two members she gained last year have left for various reasons.

“I would like to have Rachel Bauer and Raines Bradley to please come up here and accept your new Head Boy and Head Girl badges.” Kiva called out and when both students approached, she grinned and handed each their appropriate badges. “Congratulations to you both.” She whispered to them before having them return to their seats. “I would also like to have Eliza Bennett, Kate Bauer, James Owen, and Sara Raines please come up here for a moment.” Kiva waited for the four to be standing at her side before continuing. “Everyone, I would like you to meet your newest Prefects. Congratulations to you four, please take your new badges.” Kiva gestured for the four to return to their seats. “This year’s Midsummer Event will be the School Concert. As the year continues, you will receive more information on the event and any suggestions you would like to make, please feel free to tell me or any other staff member.

“In honor of tradition, please refer to your music sheets as we begin the School Song.” Sheets of music appeared in front of the students. “Let’s begin.”

Every day we strive
Learning to survive
Life’s hardships and to solve its mystery.
Learning to defend
Our honour and our friends,
Flying high to meet our destiny
We will stand and face those who want to harm us.
We won’t let the world transfigure, jinx or charm us
I won’t fight alone, as long as you are with me.
Sonora be my home, my tutor and my spirit
Vasita quoque floeat; Even the desert blooms.

Once the song ended, the food appeared before them. A feast of great magnum. “Please enjoy the rest of your evening. When it is time to head back to your Houses, your Head of House will call for your attention and bring you to your destinations. That is all.” Kiva concluded and then took her seat at the staff table.

OOC: Welcome First years! Please do not post on any other board until your Head of House posts his/her welcoming speech. Have fun at the feast and remember the site rules. Happy posting everyone!

Subthreads:

Yellow is for friendship by Aria Yale with Melanie Lennox (and a bit of Valerie), Lucille Carey, Aria, Aubrielle Thornton, Brielle

Sitting amongst friends. by Fae Sinclair with Topher Calhoun, Fae, Phoenix Lucore

Red is such a suiting color. by Heaven Baird with Lucrezia Renaldi, Heaven

My penultimate year by Samantha Hamilton

Some well-deserved recognition by James Owen with David Wilkes, James

Pretending to be a Tepp for a day by Josephine Owen with Derry Four, Reggie Parker, Josephine, Madeline Parry

Third time's the charm by Linus Macaulay with Paul Bennett, Linus

Veni, Vidi, Vici by Jade Owen with Jhonice Trevear, Sairahiniel Light

And so it begins. by Veronica Kerrigan with Rachel Bauer

Whatever it takes by Amira Thornton with Waverly Canterbury, Amira, Amira and Clara Abernathy, Clara Abernathy

How had this all happened? by Sairahiniel Light with Sullivan Quincy, Sully, Sairahiniel (Sayre) Light , Sayre Light

Sitting. Feasting. by Nic Sawyer

Here goes nothing (Valentina) by Marcus Williams with Valentina Bentancourt, Valentina

Looking a little blue.. by Lucian D'Alesandro with Katrina (Kitty) McLevy , Jacob Rock

I think I'm going to be sick. by Ryan O'Malley with Sophie Jamison

A second Opening Feast by Thad Pierce

... by Angel Shield with Solomon Asa Davies, Angel, Angel

Another sibling free year by Gareth Whitebriar with Alexandra Devereux, Cepheus Princeton, Gareth

After the frog by Megan Brownbriar

Fabulousness has finally arrived at Sonora. by Carrie O'Malley with Solomon Bensalem

New Beginnings by Professor Alexander O'Rourke

And so it begins... by Katy Rock with Andrina Thornton

Brown is the color of chocolate and wolverines by Liam Ammon with Elijah Errant

The nervous Pecari. by Wesley Kohler with Arabella Brockert, Wesley

The Transfer. by Maximilian Joshua McLachlan with Henrietta Boxton-Fox-Reynolds, Josh McLachlan

New friends! Greetings! by Marcus Crosby

0 Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau Welcome Students! Opening Feast. 0 Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau 1 5

Aria Yale

March 24, 2012 12:00 AM

Yellow is for friendship by Aria Yale

Aria had yet to figure out her feelings towards Sonora. It was a mystery to her despite being a Half-blood. In a lot of ways, the mystery of it resembled that of what it must have felt like for a Muggleborn. Although she was well aware of magic living in her community of other Magical beings, it was rarely used. People preferred to use their hands as they felt more in touch with themselves as well as with Mother Nature. But, more so than that, Aria was born and raised within the Community. She had never left their confines and had never even considered it. Sonora and world around it was foreign to her and she had yet to understand her feelings about it.

She remembered receiving her letter in the early summer days. She knew it was coming, having seen others’ over the years receive the same letter from various schools, but she hadn’t really prepared herself for the outcome. Most of the other children opted to stay with the community and learn from their parents and live off the land. There were a few who chose the other option and went off to school. Some only lasted a year, others never really came back fully to the group after having spent so much time with others, but a rare few who chose to leave never came back at all.

When Aria’s letter came, she was both excited and a bit scared. Her parents and spent much time with the other adults to determine the best course of action and had only asked her once what her opinion was. She had wanted to go to Sonora. She wanted to know what other people were like. She had heard stories and read stories about them, but she wanted to experience it for herself. She had spent a long time explaining her thoughts to her parents and they took what she said into consideration when they brought this to the community elders for discussion. See, in the community, every major choice or decision is thought out by the elders and select few before bringing a vote with all the adults of the community. It was always a community decision and what they felt was best for all. This was the way it had always been, so Aria had to hope that the community saw it necessary for her to learn outside the walls of the community.

Thankfully, they had.

But now that the choice had been made, Aria had to figure out if it was the right one. Having gone to the wagon pick up point, Aria had a chance to look at other students and their parents. They seemed so different just on looks alone. Aria, whose head of blonde hair was like a lion’s mane with its massive unkempt curls. Within the curls were small braids, hidden unless one was looking for them. She wore loose fitted shirt over a long flowy skirt and sandals. Aria hated shoes. Usually she walked around barefoot, but she was forced to wear shoes for school. She had chosen shoes that were the closest thing to nothing that she could find. Although she knew she wasn’t dirty as she bathed regularly, Aria felt like she was next to these others who seemed so… polished. Her mother and father told her to remain true to her beliefs and that they would miss her terribly so before the wagons arrived and Aria was whisked off the unknown world.

Now standing in the hall of the school, Aria still felt the confusion that had plagued her since the community had voted her to go to Sonora. The school was beautiful (or what she could see of it) and everyone was so very different! She knew just being here was going to change things for her and she was going to learn much more here than at home, but was it really worth it? That was the real question.

Taking the potion without much concern not because the Headmistress had explained the outcome, but because Aria had no problem trying new things, she watched as her pale skin turned a bright yellow. Smiling at the wonderfulness of such a color, Aria wandered over to where the other yellow people had gone off too and to the table that was clapping the loudest. Settling into her seat, Aria waited quietly for the rest of the sorting to be completed and for the Headmistress to commence her speech. There were announcements that meant something, but currently meant nothing to Aria, and then a song (Aria loved songs!) before the feast finally began.

Looking carefully over the food, Aria selected steamed vegetables, a salad, some fruit, a slice of bread, and a glass of water (she wanted the milk, but she wasn’t sure if it was correctly pasteurized or not). The main course meals seemed to be of mostly the meat variety and any pasta would have made Aria’s stomach feel too heavy with all her nervousness. So, she kept to what she was used to and knew wouldn’t keep her stomach from hating her later on.

To be polite (her parents wanted her to be well with others while at school), Aria turned to those closest to her with a smile that might have made her yellow skin and mane of blonde curls look even more strange and greeted them, “Hello. I’m Aria Yale, how is everyone this evening?”

6 Aria Yale Yellow is for friendship 228 Aria Yale 0 5

Fae Sinclair

March 24, 2012 1:06 AM

Sitting amongst friends. by Fae Sinclair

After this summer, Fae had grown accustomed to the idea of her siblings impending nuptials. She wasn’t sure where her acceptance of said things had come from or why it really mattered, but the fact still remained that she wasn’t so angry anymore over it. She had to admit that her sister was really happy about the whole affair. As jealous as Fae might be towards her sister in every way imaginable, she could acknowledge the part of her that was envious of her sister’s love for her betrothed. Victor even seemed to have similar feelings for her sister and only hoped that they continued along this path. Fae wasn’t dumb, she knew that if she were to get betrothed, there may not be any love and she could only hope to tolerate whoever he might end up being.

As for Jaiden… well, considering he hadn’t even known he was getting betrothed, he was certainly taking it well. And, if he was taking it well, what right did she have to be so crabby about it? None, that’s what. So, Fae had fought very hard with herself over the summer to come out of this with a better attitude. It helped that Shelby had wanted to start on some wedding stuff considering they would both be heading off to school, which left very little time during their holidays to get it done. Because of that, Fae was able to spend time with her sister and work with her on planning the wedding. It was only the small stuff because Shelby wanted to work with Victor on some things so that he’s happy with the wedding too. Even so, Fae was there when Shelby tried on wedding dresses and she was able to try out some bridesmaid dresses. When it was all said and done, they had even ventured out with their mother and picked raspberries like they used to do when they were young.

Now a Fourth year, Fae walked into the hall feeling far better than she had in a while. Her blonde hair was done in soft curls that Shelby told her would get her noticed. Her eyes were lightly lined in black, her lips had gloss over them, and her cheeks lightly dusted with blush. These were only small cosmetic changes, but her mother and sister both said that they were just enough to bring out her best features and get people to notice her without realizing why. Fae felt a little silly for wearing the makeup, but she wasn’t fussing. There was no coverup or anything nearly heavy enough to cause her any mind. Some gloss and eye liner wasn’t going to make her look like a clown. Although she had sworn off heels while in class, she wore them tonight for the feast and they matched perfectly to her light blue floral just about the knee dress. She wasn’t quite confident enough to wear mid-thigh length dress like her sister wanted, but Fae thought she looked pretty nice.

Taking a moment to see if she could find Arnold in the crowd, but giving up relatively quickly since even heels did not help her height any, Fae wandered over to the Crotalus table to enjoy the first feast back at Sonora. Fae watched as the new First years were sorted, amused by some of the looks they wore on their faces. She clapped for the new Prefects (this would be more important for her next year since there was a chance she would be one of those names being called) and then politely sang quietly when the school song was brought out. This was a normal routine, so Fae didn’t really pay all too much attention to any of it and only really focused once the food came out.

Sticking to her usual meal of salmon and salad, Fae looked up and leaned closer to her friend, “Did you have a good summer?”

6 Fae Sinclair Sitting amongst friends. 194 Fae Sinclair 0 5

Heaven Baird

March 24, 2012 2:21 AM

Red is such a suiting color. by Heaven Baird

The ride to Sonora had been rather arduous and Heaven was feeling rather tired since she had travelled all the way from Connecticut. Yes, there had been schools that had been closer to where she lived, but her parents had decided on Sonora due to several factors. One was the fact that it was rated as one of the top schools so she was sure to receive an excellent education. In turn, this lead to the second reason to why this school had been picked, which was that a good education drew prestigious pureblood males and thus, females. Purebloods that her parents wanted her to make connections with. Extended further, purebloods on the west coast were more likely to be at the school that she could begin making ties with those families in particular. Her parents had already set up a foundation of ties on the East Coast and their parents, her grandparents, had made them in parts of Europe.

Finally, the staff had come in to play in their decision. Her parents were constantly worried about her. They expected her to be the perfect pureblood, but at the same time, they treated her as some invalid just because of having diabetes. It was like they thought that she was incapable of taking care of herself. She was responsible with everything else so why wouldn’t she be with this? Regardless, even though she had been dealing with it for close to a year and been taking her potions, they still acted like she wasn’t going to be able to handle it. So, when talking about schools, they had checked out the medical aspects of the staff and found Sonora acceptable for dealing with their burden of a daughter.

Either way, Heaven was grateful to be here. It meant a reprieve from her parents who were a couple thousand miles away. And now looking around the hall gave her a burst of energy. It was absolutely beautiful! She supposed that she should act like she was unimpressed in order to make some sort of impression on other purebloods, but she really couldn’t help gawking at the waterfalls that cascaded down the walls. Unfortunately, it resulted in tripping slightly over her own feet. She was wearing new white sandals with a one-inch heel that she wasn’t used to. She had never worn anything except for flats before and she longed for them right now, but her mother had insisted that it was important that she gain any advantage that she could.

She shifted uncomfortably in the shoes, as she took her place in line. It seemed that according to the Headmistress that the sorting was to begin. The pureblood was aware that this was actually the most important part of making an impression. Others would judge her based on what House she ended up in. Oh, how she hoped that she ended up in one that was worthwhile and would please her parents! Gingerly, she took the potion that was offered and drank the required amount. Like other students, her skin began to change. Hers turned to a blush before changing to rose and finally settling into a red. Okay, so that meant she was in Crotalus. She went over to the table with the other red colored first years.

While the announcements were being made, her blue eyes cautiously took in the other first years, trying to observe as much as she could, while also attempting to pay attention to the announcements. She politely clapped at the mention of new professors, which didn’t mean much to her since they were all new in her eyes. And she further put her hands together when things like Head Boy and Girl were brought about along with Prefects. Despite not knowing exactly what all of it was about, she made a mental note of each person, because being singled out by the Headmistress meant they were deemed significant. How significant and how they factored into her life was yet to be determined. Still, it was better to error on the side of caution until more information had been gathered.

For now, it was enough and she went along with the events, especially since it was time to sing the school song. All the weight of everything else lifted away, as the lyrical notes came as easy as breathing. The only time she truly felt at peace was when music was involved. Caught up, even in a school song, her fingers began to play along the edge of the table in the manner they would have on a piano. If one knew her though it would come as no surprise given how often she could be found playing. It was the one thing that her parents approved of that gave her a sense of freedom. They thought it was proper for a young lady of stature to learn how to play piano. Why she didn’t know. She wasn’t sure if they even knew. Neither played the piano and had hired a teacher, while pureblood, had cared little to inform her of societal importance of the art and had concentrated on the art itself.

When the song ended, Heaven opened her eyes, unaware that she had even closed them for a second. Looking at the world after a song was always like viewing it with fresh eyes. It never appeared quite the same. To her, it was always a little more of something – a little more beautiful, a little more sad, a little more hopeful, a little more hurtful. Tonight, it was strong. She felt strength. That even though she was far from home and among people she didn’t know, she would be strong no matter what came ahead.

It was a good thing the food appeared at that moment, because, even with a renewed sense of strength, she felt suddenly famished. With her disease, it was important for her to eat in a regiment. She had to follow strict rules when it came to eating. Checking over the menu options, she chose a salad, skinless chicken, some mixed vegetables, and some bread. She thought it looked all right and she had avoided the more tempting items that would send her system out of whack. After a few bites of the salad, her body calmed down and she glanced around to her fellow Crotali. Gathering up her courage, she introduced herself, “Hello. I do apologize for not having introduced myself earlier, especially seeing as we are now housemates. My name is Heaven Baird of the Connecticut Bairds and you might be…?”

0 Heaven Baird Red is such a suiting color. 229 Heaven Baird 0 5

Samantha Hamilton

March 24, 2012 9:22 AM

My penultimate year by Samantha Hamilton

It wasn't in the best of spirits that Samantha returned to school. The holidays had been dull since she'd developed whiplash a week in. It was more or less sorted now - still some stiffness in her neck and residual twinging pain if she tried to move too quickly - which was typical, as here at Sonora she could probably access Healing that would have fixed her up more more quickly. As it was, she'd been in her Muggle world for the past couple of months, so the doctors had recommended she take it easy and ease any pain with over the counter drugs. Hence, instead of her cheerful activity of the previous summer, Samantha had whinged her way through several weeks of being uncomfortable and playing video games. The lack of exercise meant she'd gained weight - probably not enough for other people to notice and comment, but sufficient that Samantha's wardrobe was more restrictive than usual, and that was frustrating - which was just the mouldy cherry on top of a stale cake.

Determined to make the most of it, however, Samantha returned to school in a floaty green dress that would hide her extra puppy fat, and she'd had face-flattering layers cut into her light brown hair just a couple of days ago. She'd given herself a French manicure that morning and was wearing an exciting new perfume, so all in all she was putting on a brave, if slightly fabricated, face as she walked steadily into the Cascade Hall. She watched the sorting with limited interest, though she did keep a vague eye out for the new Aladrens who were theoretically in her charge, and wasn't much interested by the new staff members. She did note, however, that astronomy was being offered again. After obtaining CATS grades that most ladrens would be proud of, Samantha did contemplate taking up this particular elective if it would be on offer to sixth years.

Finally the food arrived, and while she was happy to tuck in, she did so with the restraint of someone who has gained a few extra pounds unintentionally. She selected fish and steamed vegetables, then poured herself a glass of cold water instead of juice. If she could keep up a good diet each week, perhaps she'd reward herself at the weekend with a slice of cake and a coffee with sugar. Or maybe she could join the Quidditch team again; that would be a good way of getting in some more exercise. "Could you pass the lemon wedges, please?" she asked the person sat between herself and the sliced fruit.

0 Samantha Hamilton My penultimate year 159 Samantha Hamilton 0 5

James Owen

March 24, 2012 9:45 AM

Some well-deserved recognition by James Owen

This would be a very important year for James. He was in the top year of the lower portion of the school, or so he liked to view it. He would be one of the oldest students in the intermeidate classes (which, unfortunately, he would still have to share with Josephine for the most part), and next year he would be moving into the advanced classes. At the end of the year he'd take his CATS, the first proper set of examinations in his educational career. Study plans were already underway, and the Aladren planned to spend as much time as he could in the library.

An aspect of this year that held equal, if not identical, weight as the examinations, was the announcement of the prefects for his yeargroup. James had been trying not to fret about the scenario all summer. He had no objections to his roommate, and David was already going to be Quidditch Captain, proving he had leadership and social skills that James... didn't necessarily possess in quite the same quantity. he knew he was smart, but being smart didn't necessarily equate to being a good prefect, and while he had no objections to socializing with students in general, he hadn't exactly demonstrated his contentment to do so. In fact, his regualrly solitar behaviour might indicate an aversion to the same. So it was with baited breath that he listened out for the announcement at the start of the feast. Professor Kijewski-Whatsis wasn't especially explicit as she called him to the front of the room, but she'd also called one fifth year from each other House, and this had directly followed the congratulations of Head Boy and Head Girl, so James felt safe in his assumptions.

Luckily, he had planned for this potential outcome, and his chestnut hair was short and neat. He was wearing a very nearly new blue plaid shirt and pants that had been recently dyed a fresh shade of gray and heavily pressed to withstand the rambunctions of the wagon ride. He looked like a respectable prefect, and decided that he would do his utmost to fulfil his new role as such. It certainly wouldn't hurt future job applications if he had prefect - and, dare he assume it, Head Boy? - status to accompany his excellent grades. As for his companions, the other new prefects, James decided the staff had, overall, made excellent decisions this year. He liked Eliza a great deal; as far as Crotalus girls went she was probably the most approachable, and Kate, likewise, was one of the people amongst their yeargroup James would be most likely to choose to work with in class (Daisy was another preferred assignment partner, but she didn't have Eliza's energy and enthusiasm that he could see would be useful qualities for a Crotalus prefect to possess). He wasn't much acquainted with Sara raines, largely because she was called Raines, but as he opted to have as little to do with Pecari as was humanly possible then he didn't see this as an issue.

Heading back to his seat, James found himself in unusually good spirits. He sat down, pinned his new prefect badge to his robes, smiled at its position, and then up at the person opposite. "Good evening," he greeted pleasantly.

0 James Owen Some well-deserved recognition 168 James Owen 0 5

Josephine Owen

March 24, 2012 9:58 AM

Pretending to be a Tepp for a day by Josephine Owen

Bags packed, teeth brushed, long, thick chestnut hair pulled into a ponytail and fastened with a decorative purple butterfly clip, and Josephine was all set to go back to school. Summer had been just fine, spending time with her family, but she was starting to feel more grown up these days, and being back at school gave her a bit more independence than her home life would generally allow. She had never been an especially independent person, but she was starting to find her feet, slowly but surely. As such, when she came into the hall at the Opening Feast and felt despondent by the thought of sitting alone at the pecari table yet again, she rebelliously headed for the Teppenpaw tables instead, instinctively believing that anyone who bothered to notice her probably wouldn't care.

It wasn't that she didn't like being in Pecari - on the contrary, she had a good time in what was supposed to be the adventurous House, and she liked being able to keep a close eye on her sister - but it hadn't been all that conducive to making friends. She was in her fourth year, now, and Josephine could claim a friendship with Reggie, and that was about it. Ayita and Demetra were nice enough, but not really on Josephine's wavelength. Or any other sane person's for that matter. So it was she placed herself with the Teppenpaws, instead. They were supposed to be the nicest House, so surely they wouldn't mind her sitting there. She tried not to fidget too much with her gray cotton sundress, and happened to look up just in time to catch someone's eye. "Hi," she said a little sheepishly, certain she was about to be questioned on her unorthodox location.

Luckily, the headmistress started speaking then, and Jospehine resolutely turned her attention to the Opening Speech, and then to the sorting of the first years, and then some more speech. She applauded as politely as anyone else as her brother was named prefect for Aladren, not wanting to draw further attention to herself by cheering loudly, and she sang the school song with a fair amount of effort. Then there was nothing left to distract her, or those around her, and she sat a little nervously, waiting to see whether she would be ejected.

0 Josephine Owen Pretending to be a Tepp for a day 196 Josephine Owen 0 5

Linus Macaulay

March 24, 2012 10:12 AM

Third time's the charm by Linus Macaulay

If studied objectively, Linus' Sonoran career thus far couldn't in all honesty be marked a a true success. In his first year, he had landed himself, somehow, in a new world with new rules, and had even ended up in the House most governed by these. While nobody aside from Paul had yet to question him directly on his magical heritage (or lack thereof), Linus was certain that anyone who cared who he might be had already worked out who he was not. It hadn't escpaed his notice that some of his peers saw each other at oddly formal events over the holidays, and as Linus had never received an invitation to such, it was probably obvious by his absence from these events that he was nobody with whom they should concern themselves. This wasn't really a problem, as Linus was relatively proud of who he was in his Muggle environment, but it had made establishing his identiy as a wizard a rather more complicated affair. He couldn't just waltz in here claiming to be the best; people would doubt and question him. He was still adjusting to this concept.

In his second year, Linus had made some progress outside of academics by voluntarily assisting first years, both in classes as out, and he'd joined the Quidditch team... though admittedly his debut hadn't gone all that swimmingly, considering he'd definitely messed up at least one of Nic's saves and been partially responsbile for the total and complete destruction of one of the school's brooms. It was just as well Marissa had graduated - Linus thought he had more chance of making it back onto the team without his previous captain's bias against him.

So it was that third year had rolled around and Linus still wasn't as settled as he'd hoped to be by now. At least he wouldn't be joined by his brothers for them to witness him not being at the top of his game, which was too bad for them, but Linus was relieved. He had always enjoyed special priviledges born from being the oldest, and he intended to continue to enjoy them in solitude. magic wasn't something he was prepared to share with the rest of his family. They were Muggles; he was the special one, and that's just the way it was. He was far too gallant to say this to them, of course, but there was no denying its truth.

Preparing himself for another year of trials and tribulations, and working out how he fit into the bigger picture, Linus began to load his plate with chicken goujons and potato wedges. "Good summer?" he addressed his neighbor with a casual but limited interest.

0 Linus Macaulay Third time's the charm 205 Linus Macaulay 0 5

Jade Owen

March 24, 2012 10:52 AM

Veni, Vidi, Vici by Jade Owen

Returning to Sonora for her second year was something of a triumph for Jade. Her first year had been epic, in that she'd raised a hippogriff, not gotten kicken out of any classes despite her reluctance to actually do any work, and, oh, yes, she'd totally caught the Snitch and claimed a Quidditch victory for Pecari. She had an enojyable summer playing with the family's pets, riding the horses lept in the paddocks behind her yard, and drawing characters she'd invented in her head, most of them sea or space creatures. She was getting pretty good at drawing, and Josephine had even let her borrow the expensive colored pencils. As such, Jade should have been chipper as she bounced her way into Cascade, but that wasn't quite the word she would have selected at that time.

The wagon ride was unfeasibly long for a growing girl with a healthy appetite who didn't like to travel. Jade jupmed and jittered and fidgeted her way through the journey, the sorting, and the Headmistress' welcome. "Come on," she muttered under her breath, not caring at all that her brother had just been made prefect - if he used his extra authority to single her out she'd have to punch him.

In her distraction, Jade has already worked the small hole in her sweater cuff so it was now big enough to fit her thumb through; the dalmations motif on the front was already faded, anyway, and the cotton was beginning to trail away from the lower hem, so she hadn't really made it that much worse. It simply made the faded and torn jeans look that much more pleasing to the eye in comparison. Not that Jade cared a great deal about how she looked - the untidy mass of brown curls that were currently bouncing every which way as she jiggled about, frantic with hunger and anticipation, was testament to that fact.

Finally, eventually, food was served, and Jade ignored everyone and everything else as she began to reach for food. She began by placing a burger on her plate, then picked up a bread roll and began to eat it with one hand, while her other hand got to work adding fries, beans, rice and cheese to her plate. Then she poured herself a glass of orange juice, heartily wishing she knew how to turn it into chocolate milk, instead. "Do you know how to turn this into chocolate milk?" she asked the person next to her, round the remnants of her bread roll still in her mouth.

0 Jade Owen Veni, Vidi, Vici 221 Jade Owen 0 5

Topher Calhoun

March 24, 2012 11:58 AM

I'll call that a good way to start a new year. by Topher Calhoun

Usually, Crotalus and Pecari were the big Houses while Aladren and Teppenpaw were the smaller ones, but Topher, not too much to his surprise, had ended up in an unusual year. In his year, there were tons of Aladrens and Teppenpaws, all of whom were a little unusual just in their own rights, and only four Crotali. An all-star lineup, admittedly, but a small one: just him, Fae, Alice, and Phoenix.

On that first night, they had all been sitting together, a group small enough that they all shared one conversation, and it had turned into a kind of pattern. During the rest of the year, they might mix it up some, he and Fae in particular had different sets of friends in Aladren and Pecari, but at the Opening Feast, the four-member class of Crotalus, now the fourth year Crotali, seemed to sit together. Topher, then, found his seat, one with Fae, in accordance with the idea that they would all sit together again.

Only then did he really look at Fae, and for a moment it occurred to him to be very impressed by what he saw, but then Crotalus sensibility kicked in and kicked in hard in his head. Her friend in Pecari wasn’t much to worry about, but her friends in Aladren were the Carey twins, and he would be as surprised to find out that none of the three of them were thinking that purebloods came to school to meet other purebloods and them marry them after it as he would to hear that the revelation of his biological father’s identity would get him accepted into the society of, well, just about all Fae’s other friends. She might slap him herself if she knew he liked what he saw in a way he hadn’t thought too much about before; he knew sometimes that he was a little overly conscious about class, so it was hard to be sure how to interpret her to guess about what she thought of him beyond Crotalus unity. So, with a little effort and a little regret, he flushed slightly at the weirdness of the stuff he had almost been thinking and redirected his attention to the newly-renamed Headmistress.

He clapped for the prefects, noting that one of them was Fae’s friend Sara and that whoever was responsible for appointments in his House was either crazy or had a really sick sense of humor to give both Renée Errant and Eliza Bennett a badge this year, sang the school song a little less enthusiastically than he might have in the self-conscious awareness that he might sound like an idiot, and then looked over as Fae leaned closer to ask about his summer.

He lied without thought or so much as a sliver of remorse. “Pretty boring,” he said with what he hoped was a casual grin. “Mom and Dad were Mom and Dad, the neighborhood was still the neighborhood.” Except that it wasn’t, because Caroline Gardiner had committed the unpardonable sin of infiltrating his home territory, but he had never mentioned Caroline to his friends at school and didn’t feel like starting now. Why did she have to look so damn normal? And so much, as much as he’d freaked out and tried to deny it when Mom first brought the subject up, like him? He decided it was okay to change the subject up. “How was yours? Everybody’s engagements going okay?” He remembered that last year, she’d been kind of upset about her sister being maneuvered into that plunge, but she didn’t look remotely upset about anything this year.

0 Topher Calhoun I'll call that a good way to start a new year. 192 Topher Calhoun 0 5

Derry Four

March 24, 2012 12:08 PM

Here, you need more yellow. by Derry Four

Derry's summer had been . . . different. Not bad, really, just different. The house was smaller than the one he was used to, but it was brighter and somehow happier than the Heir's House he'd grown up in. He wasn't quite sure how a house could be happy, but this one was. Since both of her sons had been sorted into Houses with yellow as their primary color, Mom had painted several rooms in varying shades of it. The kitchen had been a light pale yellow. Derry's room was a solid Teppenpaw yellow (he'd seen the empty cans - somehow Mom had actually found 'Teppenpaw Yellow' paint) with a fluffy maroon carpet that was just fun to walk on. The main living area, too, was highlighted in bright yellow, and the whole place just seemed to glow with sunny life.

The Heir's House had always seemed kind of dark and gloomy, and Derry had never liked staying inside for very long. At the new house, it was nearly as bright and cheerful inside as it was outside. He stilled liked going outside, though, and he'd met some of the neighbor children who were muggles but very nice. He was forbidden from playing Quidditch or broom tag with them, of course, but they had a variety of broom tag where you just ran around on the ground and tagged each other that was almost as fun, and they taught him another game they called 'baseball' that his beater skills transferred over to very well and nobody even had to get hurt.

Also, he got to spend more time with Three and Ben and Gabby (he'd tried calling her Aunt Gabby at first, because she was a grown-up and it felt funny to call her by just her first name, but she was his sister-in-law, and that hadn't been right either) which was really great because it meant he got to finally know his brother as a real person. And he got to be an Uncle, which was both really really weird and really really cool.

Miss Belinda still freaked him out a little bit, and he wasn't quite sure what to make of Coach Pierce as a relative instead of a school administrator, but the only thing that was really bad about living just outside Boston now was that he couldn't just run over to Thad's house anymore.

He'd gotten to see him on the wagon ride back to the school, though, and they'd talked about their summers the whole way - Winston and Ben were compared in great detail, and Derry was pretty sure Thad had, in less than an hour, somehow sorted out the finer aspects of baseball more clearly than Derry had after three months of playing it - and he got off the wagon in a good mood. Thad was talking to him even though he lived in a muggle neighborhood. He had a happy house to go home to during breaks. Hamlet still came by to tutor him. He had a brother and a nephew. Mom smiled more than he'd ever seen her smile before. Everything important was all good.

Derry took a seat at the Teppenpaw table. He was kind of confused when Josephine Owen sat down across from him. He was quite sure she was a Pecari. Before he could point out that she'd somehow gotten lost, though, the Headmistress started talking and by the time she finished and the Song had been sung, Derry had entirely forgotten he was going to redirect her. He just piled up his plate full of food - he was starving after the long wagon ride from New England - and smiled cheerfully at her.

"Hey, Josephine," he greeted warmly, but even after singing with her, he couldn't quite shake the feeling that something was just slightly off-kilter. He'd been feeling it all summer, though, so it was easy to adapt to. "We don't see you over here too often. Trouble in Pecari-land, or just looking for some fresh new yellow scenery?"

1 Derry Four Here, you need more yellow. 189 Derry Four 0 5

Jhonice Trevear

March 24, 2012 12:30 PM

Ipso Facto by Jhonice Trevear

This year was going to prove different than her previous two, it was a simple fact. Her first two years at Sonora Jhonice had something of a 'safety net' in her cousin Andrew. They were family and regardless of the circumstances, she knew she could count on him being there if she needed him. Now she was alone. It seemed an odd thing to think while standing in a giant room filled with people, but entering the Hall is when this thought struck her. Andrew wasn't here anymore. Ordinarily she'd just sit at the table and start taking notes about the social interactions of the Careys, Brockerts, Pierces, etc. and not pay much attention to much else. She knew that she could then hunt down her cousin and share all of her theories with him. Not that he would listen, but it helped her to actually voice her ideas. Now she didn't have someone to do that with.

Sure, she was friends with her roommate Mellie, but it didn't seem like there was a whole lot there other than the roommate/Quidditch teammate relationship. There were the people she watched and took notes on, but she really couldn't have that type of a relationship with a Carey or a Pierce... unless... she just then spotted Sullivan Quincy of the California Pierces among the throngs of people. She smiled and began to move in his direction, he must not have seen her because she somehow lost sight of him as he turned to look in her direction. Some of the other people in the area were also staring at where he had been.

The Headmistress interrupted Jhonice's investigation of Mr. Quincy's disappearance and she was forced to quickly find a seat. She found herself sitting next to her teammate Jade. That was good, she would see if she could get to know Jade a little better. Unlike Jade, Jhonice had taken to dressing up a little bit more while she was at school. She was wearing a nice pair of dark blue jeans and a slightly frilly blouse that matched her school robe. Her hair was combed nice and strait, hanging just down past her shoulders. Her mother had pointed out that if one wanted to socialize with some of the families, one had to look the part.

She greeted Jade with a quick "Hi." before the Headmistress began her speech. She applauded for the new prefects and sang along with the school song. All the while watching her subjects and making mental notes on how they reacted. Then as she began to pick some food from the table Jade turned to her with a question.

"Sorry, no." She replied, "Andrew was the transfiguations wiz of the family. I prefer Charms, and unfortunately I don't think I know any that would help." She took a few bites of her own food. "So, how was your Summer? I got to play with my new baby cousin for most of mine." That was a good place to start a conversation. Conversations were so different from interviews.

2 Jhonice Trevear Ipso Facto 209 Jhonice Trevear 0 5

David Wilkes

March 24, 2012 1:15 PM

I'm glad you have it, pal (WotW). by David Wilkes

Even if, David thought, the best that could be said for his summer was that he had survived it, that was still saying something, considering his family. Grandpa’s death had set something off-kilter in the collective consciousness that half-functioned most of the time, and there had been times when he doubted, if not completely seriously, he would make it out alive. Learning that his sisters were both better marksmen than he was, that Annabeth and Selena shared an instinctive fondness for weapons and knack for aiming that none of them had ever considered before but had reason to now, had not helped in the slightest with that concern. The Wilkes family was mostly just composed of cheats and cons, but Mother came from a family with a few famously wild hares in it, including an uncle of his grandmother’s who, they said, had once shot his son through the shoulder for smarting off to him one too many times and a grandmother who herself had allegedly once stolen a cop car to chase down her second cousin’s purse thief because the incident triggered her temper. The second cousin had given her a home-made snowglobe a few years ago to commemorate the incident; on the side of the toy police car super-glued to the inside, big enough to not even easily be obscured by the glitter when the thing was shaken, Linda had crossed out whatever had originally been on the thing to write in the name of their town police department in permanent marker.

There had, though, been more to his summer than unnecessary danger to his eardrums, not least because he’d joined two library programs without telling his parents until after the fact and then lying to make them think it had been arranged long before to get away from everyone, and he was well away from his sisters and the rest of the increasingly wacko-seeming crowd (he honestly didn’t know if they were getting weirder or he was getting more normal after so much time away, but that was how it seemed either way) for most of the rest of the year, and so that was all good. He walked back into the Cascade Hall with a smile on his face, feeling like he was coming home and ignoring, for the moment, the rock-in-stomach-like sensation of knowing he was now the Aladren Quidditch captain.

Catching sight of a friend helped him out with that a bit. He had started to notice last year, in a general sort of way, that Samantha was cute, but she was looking better than usual tonight. He could feel himself turning a little red as he realized he’d just had the thought that she looked good in green, then decided this would be a great year to sit with his roommate, even though there were lots of arguments, many related directly to the upcoming prefect announcement, for doing anything but. “Hey, James,” he said as he sat down, but was saved the effort of making more conversation by Kijewski – or, as it turned out, Kijewski-Jareau; he felt truly sorry for any offspring she produced once they got to school age if they also used hyphens – getting up to start the party.

It was pretty much as expected. She expressed her pleasure that they had all returned intact, which David responded to with impromptu applause because he was glad about it too, they could still call their headmistress Professor K, the first years were Sorted, there was some new staff and then came the prefects. David wasn’t sure what to anticipate, but he clapped enthusiastically when James’ name came up, anyway. He hadn’t wanted Quidditch captain, and being a prefect, too, would probably have been more trouble than it was worth. It would have looked good on college applications, which was why he wouldn’t be displeased to get Head Boy, but it would have also been a lot of trouble, which was why he wasn’t upset about not getting it and would definitely live if he didn’t get Head Boy. Besides, James just looked more like an Aladren prefect, and he had enough sisters here that at least ~~the Careys~~ no one could, if they took a notion to object to something, object to his bloodline much.

The prefects and new Heads came back, there was an announcement about the Concert (which James, as prefect, would have to bother with while he did not; an unforeseen advantage!) coming up, and then they sang the school song. David did so with more flair than skill, then turned his attention to food and good company.

“Hey, James,” he repeated cheerfully when he was offered a ‘good evening.’ He felt like a bad actor when he said things like ‘good evening.’ He’d have to get over it someday to stay in this world, but he hadn’t yet, so ‘hey’ would serve his greeting needs for the moment. “Congratulations on the badge. You mind passing me those potatoes?”

16 David Wilkes I'm glad you have it, pal (WotW). 169 David Wilkes 0 5

Veronica Kerrigan

March 24, 2012 1:36 PM

And so it begins. by Veronica Kerrigan

Appearing ever poised, Veronica took her seat at Aladren’s table. In her final year at Sonora, it was evident that she was no longer the little girl that had started here six years ago. Her lilac dressed hugged tastefully in all of the right places. Her hair was worn in a French twist; loose tendrils framed her artfully made up face. A manicured set of nails tapped the table in boredom for another year of sorting. If she weren’t a prefect, she probably wouldn’t pay the slightest bit of attention to it since there were other more pressing matters on her mind, matters that seemed to come with being a woman. Life was no longer the simple black and white that she had once thought.

Looking over to the Pecari table, she searched out her sister. Summer had been rather nasty after she and Delilah had gotten into a fight. She hated fighting with her twin, but she didn’t know what else to do. She didn’t understand why Delilah would think she was a lesbian. Was what WAIL preached true? Had Delilah spent too many hours playing Quidditch? Was that what had happened? And on top of that, she had kissed Dulce Garcia. Why did it have to be her? On a personal scale, the girl, while fortunate in appearances, seemed to lack in the social graces. She was very odd. It had been bad enough when the two had been friends let alone making any waves with some sort of relationship.

On a grander scale, the complications were far worse. Dulce Garcia was a pureblood and from a decent family. If anything had happened between the two, both of their families would have been disgraced or a feud could have been started, which would not have served well in attempting to make ties with prominent families. Not to mention how it would have directly affected the Aladren. She didn’t need some disaster in the making to ruin her prospects of marriage. It would mean that she would have had to lower herself to either a lowly pureblood or some halfblood. Neither seemed to be a palatable solution. She would rather live by herself as some spinster before doing that.

Thankfully, no one else seemed to know about it yet, which to her, meant hope. Maybe she could convince her sister to not be a lesbian. There had to be something she could do. Maybe there was a spell that would change her back to being Delilah and not Delilah the Lesbian. Her mind was already beginning to process through all of the possible solutions. Maybe she just needed to find Delilah the right man? That could be it. Delilah just hadn’t met the right guy yet and she was feeling lonely. It was understandable with being in a school population where the choices were vastly limited. After all, Raines Bradley was the only option and thankfully, a good one, in their year and she wasn’t about to share him. No, she would have to find someone for her sister. That was the only right thing to do.

Feeling cheerful already, Veronica helped herself to a chicken salad and water. “Please pass the fruit,” she asked of her neighbor. After all, she wasn’t about to let all of her hard work be done in by the more calorie-ridden foods that floated around.

0 Veronica Kerrigan And so it begins. 151 Veronica Kerrigan 0 5

Amira Thornton

March 24, 2012 3:05 PM

Whatever it takes by Amira Thornton

Amira had spent the summer going from one doctor to another. Not all of them were for her, of course. However, some were and she had a note from her family doctor that said that she was doing fine and her head had healed even better and faster that he had expected. Amira knew that was because of all the magical healing help that she’d gotten from both her mother and the Medic. This was something she wasn’t going to tell the muggle standing in front of her. She’d gotten a severe berating from the doctor for trying to play sports at her school when she’d told him how mad she was that they wouldn’t let her play. Of course her sweet muggle doctor didn’t know anything about Quidditch, and Amira wasn’t going to try to explain it to him either.

Her bright red hair had been cut over the summer to just above her shoulders and as she had just turned thirteen she felt like she was growing up. A part of it scared her, but the rest of it made her feel all the better about herself. Since she had gotten the letter that okayed her to play again she held it tightly in her clutches refusing to let it go for longer than just taking a shower. So indeed was that paper in her clutches the whole ride from home to Sonora on the wagon.

Amira, for one, was quieter than normal. Her thoughts had taken over her mind and she wasn’t paying any attention to anyone around her most of the trip. She was sure that Arista and Addison would look out for the younger Thorntons so she wasn’t worried in the least. They pulled up to Sonora and she followed the throng of other students without really watching where she was going. The note in her grasp eased her mind a great deal and she couldn’t wait to hand it up to the Medic. She knew that she would have to wait until after the other first years like her sister Aubrielle were sorted and the Opening Feast finished, but she was so close to being able to fly again all that didn’t matter to her. She just wanted to give it to him right then and there, so her anxiety at the necessary wait caused her to sit there popping her leg up and down sitting there nearby the other Pecari’s.

Jade was sitting nearby, so was Jhon, but she wanted nothing to do with Jade. Jade had stolen her spot last year and she was still very mad about that. It wasn’t going to be a fair fight this year, that she knew. The new captain, Demelza Eagle, would rather have Jade seek, and Amira knew that. But she wasn’t willing to go down without a fight.

I am a great seeker, and I will be able to show that. I can show Mel that I’ve got what it takes. she thought as the first years came in, Aubrielle near the front. Amira waved to her sister with the hand that wasn’t carrying the most important paper of her school career as of that moment. The sisters smiled at each other and Mir waved to her as she went to get her potion.

The third year smiled as Brielle turned yellow. With a small nod of her red-head, Brielle ran over towards Arista and Addison and gave them big hugs. Amira giggled and turned back to Headmaster Kijewski-Jareau as she continued on with announcements of new staff members, the new Head Boy and Girl, then the new Prefects too.

Kiva sent the new Prefects back to their seats and told the group about the year’s Midsummer Event being the school concert. Mir glanced at Brielle and the excitement in her little sister’s eyes at that thought brought her own heart back to where it should be, and should have been the whole time.

Sheet music appeared in front of the students and like the past two years, the school song rang loud and clear around her. She sang, though not as loud as some of the others around her.

Her mind was elsewhere.

She glanced at the other Pecari’s around her, landing lastly at Jade. The reason for her anger the year before. Then she looked up towards Kiva and the other staff and she smiled. Amira was meant to do Pecari proud, and she knew it right then.

Food appeared in front of the students, a feast beyond all imagination and the students around her filled their plates. Amira, did not right away. Instead, she looked up at Jade filling her plate with food and made up her mind to get her spot back, whatever it took.

She put a spoonful of Greek Salad on her plate and some salmon that looked as if it was covered in a sweet orange glaze and she began to eat as the other students chatted and ate around her.

0 Amira Thornton Whatever it takes 208 Amira Thornton 0 5

Reggie Parker

March 24, 2012 5:33 PM

Yay, new member! by Reggie Parker

Reggie had suddenly decided to look more like a girl this year than she had in years previous. She had no idea where such a change came from and firmly believed to blame it on her Muggle friends back home. Although she had always been a dress and skirt wearer, she hardly ever did it while at Sonora. Mainly because they were constantly running around in lessons and Reggie wasn’t a silly little girl who thought it wise to do so in a skirt. So, she normally just wore jeans and sneakers. But, after spending her time with friends who always wore dresses and skirts and make up during a very peculiar summer where Reggie spent more time with friends than with her father, Reggie found herself liking the freedom of girl clothes over the restriction of jeans.

That said, her once long straight brown hair was now sporting quite a bit of layers that gave it a bounce that hadn’t been there before, her eyes were lined with mascara and her lips with a rosy gloss (her closest friend at home gave her a strawberry flavored one and Reggie couldn’t resist! She loved the smell), but beyond these adjustments, her physical appearance was the same. As for her outfit, she wore a simple white summer dress that fell just past her finger tips so that she couldn’t get into any trouble.

Her summer had been relatively eventful and she wanted to tell her friends as quickly as possible, but there wouldn’t be time before the feast, so instead she took a seat only to find Josephine taking a seat beside her. Unfazed by the appearance of a Pecari, Reggie was distracted by the Headmistress. She clapped along with the rest of Tepps when the first years turned yellow and again when the new Prefects were named. Next year was their turn and Reggie was fairly certain that she was sitting near two of them (Josephine and Derry), which was sort of cool. As soon as the song hit, Reggie knew the feast was sure to follow. Up until this moment, she hadn’t even been aware of how hungry she was.

Piling food onto her plate as though she hadn’t eaten for days, Reggie giggled at Derry’s polite questioning of Josephine’s existence at the Teppenpaw table. Having spent all of the Fair with Josephine last year, Reggie had no hesitation when she called the other fourth year her friend. She liked having her at the table. “I’m glad you’re here, Jo-“ Reggie automatically shortened her name as was habit and didn’t consider the idea that the Pecari might not like a nickname, “I had the weirdest summer and now I don’t have to tell it twice over!” She grinned at them, itching to dive right into things.

“Okay, so apparently my dad has a girlfriend and the only reason why I even know is because I called him out on it. He totally lied about it too, but then I said that I saw him with her with déjà vu feelings. Which, you know, my dad was like ‘what the heck are you talking about’ and so I said I saw him in dreams and they came true.” Reggie explained. “And you know what, he was lying over the holidays about having to work, so here I am feeling sorry for him having to work instead of be with me and he was off playing house with his girlfriend, totally rude.” Although Reggie had been angry at the time when she had figured it out, now she was just annoyed that he felt like he had to lie at all. “Anyway, it all leads up to my dad saying my ‘déjà vu’ dreams aren’t really dreams but future stuff and wanted my mom to reach out to her family, which is crazy since they disowned her because of dad in the first place.” Reggie explained with a shake of her head.

Taking a breath, she continued, “Mom came home, she never does this because work is so important, and told me how my Grandmother is a ‘Seer’ and that it’s a gift passed through her bloodline and that there’s a possibility that I could also have this ‘gift’. She owled her mother and then I get an owl from this woman who refused to acknowledge my mother let alone me for fourteen years about how excited she is to meet me and talk things over. Psh.” Reggie made a face that clearly showed her disgust of such a thing. “I refused. Why would I want to spend time with that woman? Popsicle and Mom still want me too, but I don’t see the point.” Reggie shrugged, the excitement now exhaling from her. She had told them her story. After her fight with her dad, she spent most of the summer with friends and little time at home. She sort of regretted it, but only just a little.

“How were your summers?” She asked the group collectively.

6 Reggie Parker Yay, new member! 187 Reggie Parker 0 5

Sairahiniel Light

March 24, 2012 6:36 PM

How had this all happened? by Sairahiniel Light

Sairahiniel looked around, still shell-shocked. All around her were beautiful, clear cascading waterfalls...but they were flowing down the walls. How was that possible? All of this seemed impossible. It was impossible. But here she was, having travelled with the other first-years in a covered wagon straight out of Little House on the Prairie. She looked down at her skin, glowing a rich, cocoa brown color and shook her head. This was real. But it was also impossible.

She thought back. Sairahiniel had always been a little....different. She'd assumed that it would go away, but instead things had all gotten worse. Things lit on fire when she got near; the people who made fun of her wound up chirping like birds or growing snouts; and the latest: her horrible teacher turning into a toad. She'd thought that she was going insane. Her mom was actually going to have her committed. And then the letter came.

Sairahiniel blinked when the food appeared before her, starting when she saw her brown hands reaching for the chicken. She was so used to her skin being deathly-pale, to see it as anything but ghostly was downright unnerving. The magically appearing food was unnerving as well, but she was trying to take things one weird, magical occurance at a time.

"You'll get used to it," a voice said. Sairahiniel looked up, shocked that someone was talking to her. "Things can be pretty weird here at first."

0 Sairahiniel Light How had this all happened? 0 Sairahiniel Light 0 5

Waverly Canterbury

March 24, 2012 7:40 PM

...to get what we want by Waverly Canterbury

Summer had been splendid as always, but it had been easier to part this time around than the first time. She had played outside a lot, telling so many stories to her younger sister who was going to hopefully come here in just a year! That was going to be really exciting. Another thing on Waverly's mind was a baking club that she had thought of forming here at Sonora. Of course, it would take more than just her desire for one, but she had learned so many new things over the break that she really had to start one this year or she might forget them.

The usual camping trips in the desert, baking adventures, and the like was now in the past as Waverly walked back into the familiar dining hall. It was her second year and Waverly was eager to learn more magic. Though she still delighted in it, the excitement she had first had about everything had worn off. Magic was now, simply, magic. Though after a whole summer of it, she may have practiced a couple spells on the carriage ride here. Nothing detrimental, of course.

Waverly sat down with the other Pecaris, wanting to branch out a little this year. She was really glad to have friends, but it would be nice to have more. After all, no one could have too many friends.

Waverly's brown hair had grown long over the summer, but right before school started she had cut it to a little higher than her elbow. She had plans next summer to cut it even shorter, but she liked the length now. She was even tan from all the desert adventures she had gone on with her family, and all in all felt really ready, after a summer of fun, to get back to the books.

She piled food onto her plate and smiled at the girl she had sat across from. She was older, how much older she didn't know, but Waverly didn't feel any fear in introducing herself. "Hi," she said to the older Pecari. "I'm Waverly. Are you excited for another year at school?" She wasn't sure what year this girl was, but she had definitely seen her around. She thought she was Jade's older sister, but she had some time to figure that out before asking her directly.

19 Waverly Canterbury ...to get what we want 218 Waverly Canterbury 0 5

Melanie Lennox (and a bit of Valerie)

March 24, 2012 9:14 PM

Then it's a wonderful color. by Melanie Lennox (and a bit of Valerie)

"Are you sure you are going to be all right?" Melanie asked her older sister. Valerie nodded. The older girl had been fine for the last few days even after having a rather rough summer, but Melanie was still concerned, especially after the wagon wide. Her sister had professed how uncomfortable, tired and ill they had made her for. She wanted to make sure Valerie was okay before anything else.

The Crotalus replied. "I'm fine. I promise I'll go eat something and leave when the first years do." She genuinely did seem tired after the ride from St. Louis. Melanie wasn't half as fatigued as her sister seemed. She would never consider herself "a tough girl" because that was unfeminine. Pureblood ladies were supposed to be strong yes, as in not allowing others to see their emotions and whatnot, but they were never to act like ruffians who played Quidditch or were physically violent or something. Still, she was quite a bit healthier than Valerie and appeared to be the stronger one. This meant that she needed

And because of this, Melanie sort of wanted to be in Crotalus. She went off to join the rest of the first years, while Valerie went to sit with her housemates. She accepted the goblet and took a drink. Her skin turned a bright yellow, that looked a little silly with her blue dress, but it probably would have looked just as weird with any other color.

The new Teppenpaw sighed to herself and gave her sister an apologetic look. Valerie smiled back at her in a congratulatory. It wasn't really that big of a deal. Melanie was sure that she would get along quite well with the other Teppenpaws. Everything she'd ever known about Sonora-which was a more than adequate amount-had said the Teppenpaws were the friendly one. That would be great and Melanie was sure that she and her roommates would get on wonderfully.

Actually, things might have been better if Valerie had been sorted into Melanie's house, but there was no changing these things now. Besides, from what the elder Lennox said, her roommates Miss Brianna Japos and Miss Attoria Covington were perfectly lovely girls so the newly sorted Teppenpaw was quite comfortable with her sister rooming with them. Plus, Ryan was there, and if he'd helped Valerie before, he probably would this year too. Besides, Sonora had wonderfully qualified Medic who could do more for Valerie than Melanie ever would be able to in the way the third year needed most.

Most importantly, being in separate houses was nothing compared to not even being in the same place. At least they'd be able to spend some time together now. Not that they had to spend every spare moment that way though, just that if her sister needed her, Valerie would probably come first. Still, Melanie did want to make other friends-and her mother wanted to make connections, she'd probably be just thrilled with Melanie being in a house that was at one time the lowest proportionally in purebloods.

Melanie sat down at the table and scanned her choices. She was able to eat almost anything, not on quite the diet Valerie was on, she just couldn't have very big portions of good things. She had just settled on a shrimp dish when the girl next to her stood up and spoke.

“Hello. I’m Aria Yale, how is everyone this evening?”

The first year gave Aria a rather happy smile. "Nice to meet you, Miss Yale. I am Melanie Lennox of the St. Louis Lennoxes" Okay, so the other Teppenpaw hadn't introduced herself the way Melanie was used to, but that was okay. She seemed so kind and friendly that the first year really wanted to talk to her even though she didn't think Aria was probably a pureblood but Melanie, even if that greeting hadn't been second nature to her in the first place, had to introduce herself that way because other Important Purebloods might be listening and Melanie would hate to offend anyone, especially one who might be her roommate. She had to present herself as a Perfect Pureblood Lady at all times.

She looked at the blonde. "I am doing well and quite looking forward to being here at Sonora." It was what most young purebloods wanted, looked forward to the early years of their lives. "May I call you Aria? You may call me Melanie." The Teppenpaw continued to smile at the girl, maybe Aria would be her first friend at Sonora-aside from her sister of course.

11 Melanie Lennox (and a bit of Valerie) Then it's a wonderful color. 226 Melanie Lennox (and a bit of Valerie) 0 5

Fae

March 24, 2012 9:37 PM

I like to believe that as well. by Fae

Even though Fae would say to anyone that Topher was a friend, there was a part of her that refused to acknowledge the reason why her heart beat a little faster when he looked at her or that she felt the need to straighten her posture and force her hand to stay down instead of fuss with her hair while he spoke. That part she was still struggling with. Fae needed to talk to someone about it. She had tried Shelby and her sister just giggled and told her to look pretty, but Fae didn’t know how to ‘look pretty’ and found the advice useless. Of course Fae was aware that her reactions were because she found Topher to be cute. These feelings had started last year, but she had refused to think of them, but now they were back again and sitting next to him wasn’t helping her.

Maybe she ought to talk to Sara about it. She needed to congratulate her as it was for being named Prefect and Sara seemed to have an understanding of things in a way that Alice didn’t. Sara was… human. And so, if Fae brought up her confusion about Arnold (like, why she was always so happy around him even though he didn’t necessarily make her heart race quite the way Topher did) and about Topher and how that could be problematic that could be. Not to say that she couldn’t speak with Alice about it and most likely would, but Alice was so to the point with things that Fae often felt stupid for having felt anything at all. Fae needed someone to gossip with and talk things out thoroughly, not someone who didn’t understand why it mattered to begin with.

But that was neither here nor there. She would worry about it later. For now, she had to focus only on the words Topher was saying and on nothing else. She wasn’t sure if his lack of detail was because there was no detail to give and thus honestly had a boring summer, or if he left things out because he didn’t find them necessary to discuss with her, but she was okay with that. If his summer was really so dull, she felt a little sorry for him. “Oh, they are going well, I think.” Fae said after a moment’s contemplation. “Shelby seems happy enough, at least. Victor – Mr. Stratford?” Fae wasn’t sure on the correct way of addressing her soon to be brother-in-law with others. “Seems smitten with her, but that’s hardly surprising considering my sister. She is quite lovely to look at and to be around.” Fae added to Topher since he had never met her before.

“I spent most of summer helping her plan her wedding. It was nice, actually. Well, I mean, not so much the planning part because that can be really exhausting, but spending time with her and Mother was nice.” Fae commented lightly, looking pleased. “Jaiden seems alright with his betrothal. A bit of a surprise, but he went to Eleanor’s party, so I can’t say he’s terribly upset by it. She seems like a lovely woman.” Fae took a small bite of her fish, enjoying the taste despite having had it so many times before.

“Topher, is your family betrothing you as well or are you safe from all of that?” Fae was curious to know how Topher’s family worked. If it was anything like their own or something less traditional as the Purebloods like to call it. She has never really had a chance to ask anyone before and often wondered what other lives were like.

0 Fae I like to believe that as well. 0 Fae 0 5

Rachel Bauer

March 24, 2012 9:52 PM

Merlin help us all. by Rachel Bauer

As she stepped through the doors of Sonora for the last first day of normal school she thought she would ever experience, Rachel felt a long shiver of dread run down her spine. It was as if something terrible was just around the corner, so that she could just glimpse the edge of its robe going around the corner, but couldn’t see it all the way to know exactly what it was.

Then, though, there was the babble of voices around her, and the portraits moving around above their heads, and the mosaic beneath her feet, and nostalgia hit her hard before she completely crossed the foyer to the doors of the Cascade Hall. She let her hand linger for a moment on the side of the left one, thinking of the first time she had come through here and how she had felt that night, and then she smiled and went on, trying to move on from nostalgia and into the excitement of the new year. It was her last year, but it was still a full year to spend with her friends, in her positions, doing who knew what. The whole world was spread out new before her again, just like every year, and she couldn’t make the most of it if she was spending too much time thinking back to the past.

Spotting Veronica, she hesitated for a moment, but then, with a little giddy thrill of rebellion, decided that she was the Head Girl now and could do much more of whatever she wanted than she had been able to at any point in her time at Sonora and that, for old time’s sake, she ought to sit with her best friend, just the way she had when they met all those years ago when she didn’t go to the right table after her Sorting because of her problems with her aunt. Dropping onto a seat, she said a quick, breathless, “Hey!” and clasped her hands together on the table in front of her, waiting for the speech to begin.

She sat impatiently through the Sorting, which felt as though it would never end, clapping for each new student as he or she joined his or her table and missing, even though she knew this was simpler for the poor first years, the days when it had been every man for himself. Then there were staff introductions, and then, finally, she was called up to receive her badge. Unfortunately, it was alongside Raines Bradley, but she willed herself not to register that he existed as she whispered “thank you, ma’am,” back, then paused for a moment after turning to face them to beam at the crowd and wave before going back to her seat to hear who the new prefects were.

She applauded politely for them, too, after giving Eliza a quick, assessing look, then there was just one more announcement and the school song she thought she carried off in a passable soprano, and they were released to the food. She selected grilled fish, a roll, and was considering the rest of the table when Veronica asked her to pass the fruit. “No problem,” she said cheerfully, passing it over. “So,” she added once she had, raising her eyebrows slightly for emphasis as she spoke. “Are you looking forward to starting our seventh year?”

16 Rachel Bauer Merlin help us all. 154 Rachel Bauer 0 5

Nic Sawyer

March 24, 2012 11:11 PM

Sitting. Feasting. by Nic Sawyer

The CATS results had not been the highlight of Nic's summer. He had tested reasonably well, getting almost solid Es except for the O in DADA and the P in Care of Magical Creatures. He would have secretly liked to have seen more Os, and his father had been on his case about the P, but the grades were actually higher than anyone had a right to expect from him given his report cards over the previous five years. But they were not as high as Nic thought they should be when he actually put in an effort.

For these last two years, he was going to have to try during his classes. The RATS level lessons could not just be coasted through as he'd done for Intermediates and Beginners. Not if he wanted to actually do something useful with his life. It might not be cool to be a nerd, but it was far less cool to be uneducated and unemployed, which is exactly what he would be if he couldn't pull it together for his RATS.

Though he was not looking forward to the extra work, the new year did have two good things going for it. First, he wasn't required to take Care of Magical Creatures anymore, and second, he was sharing classes with Rachel Bauer again. Though less important than the previous two items, he was also glad that sixth year did not have a major exam at the end of it.

He skulked into the Cascade Hall, hunching slightly so his six foot two frame didn't dwarf the other students quite so badly, and found a seat at the Crotalus table. He watched the door until he saw Rachel come in, and then watched her until the Headmistress started her speech.

Largely ignoring the first years as they were sorted (he had been spared the position of prefect and therefore felt no responsibility or interest toward the tiny people now changing colors), Nic again turned his attention toward Rachel until Kijewski started talking again. He was Crotalus enough to feel obligated to turn his attention back to the school's highest ranked administrator while she spoke, but he was pleased when she brought Rachel up to the front so Nic had every excuse to being looking at her as the Head Boy and Girl were awarded their badges. He spared little attention to Raines.

Rachel Bauer was far prettier.

Kijewski managed to spear Nic's attention back to her and the prefects, instead of letting it follow Rachel back to the Aladren table, by mentioning Eliza's name. He clapped as enthusiastically as he had for Rachel's promotion as the Prefect badge was given to the fifth year Crotalus. Nic had little interest in the other three Houses, but he had somehow managed to form ties to all three of his own House's prefects. Rachel was, well, Rachel Bauer, in Seventh Year. In his own year, the prefect was his roommate, Sam, and now the fifth year class would be represented by one of the few people in the school Nic actually spoke to in more than monosyllabic words. He almost considered Eliza a friend, which was not the case for anyone else in the school.

Singing was not cool unless one was good at it, which Nic was not, so he didn't even pretend to join into the school song. Then, finally, the talking was over and Nic could eat. He was in the midst of what was probably (hopefully) his last growth spurt and his stomach needed regular feedings. He'd had only two sandwiches on the wagon ride from Florida and it was well past time for another meal. He had managed to gain enough weight last year that he had ceased looking like a good breeze could blow him away and he didn't want to lose that progress. He heaped his plate full and tucked in.

1 Nic Sawyer Sitting. Feasting. 165 Nic Sawyer 0 5

Marcus Williams

March 24, 2012 11:24 PM

Here goes nothing (Valentina) by Marcus Williams

Marcus was a Fifth year now and knew from all his classes last year that this was going to be a difficult year, educationally. But that didn’t mean that he wasn’t going to allow himself some form of fun. Over the summer he had obtained another girlfriend. She wasn’t as needy as the last one, so that was pretty good and she wasn’t from the neighborhood, which meant, she was actually decent. But, despite his girlfriend being pretty cool, Marcus was aware it would never go anywhere. She was a Muggle and he was always away at school. Plus, they were only fifteen.

Right now, Marcus just wanted to have some fun at Sonora. He was tired of being by himself all the time. It was nice having Jordan around whenever he was in MARS, but she usually did her gymnastics while he played basketball. Every so often she might try basketball with him, but they were still there doing separate things. He didn’t have any roommates and he didn’t really ever talk with the other guys in his year, so Marcus didn’t really have anyone at all here at the school. He friends from home said that it was just like the Urban Suburban program only for super rich folks. They definitely wouldn’t want to associate with a guy like him. But Marcus wanted that to change.

He sat at the Pecari table when he first entered the hall, but intended to go elsewhere once all the announcements were over. Marcus listened as the Headmistress (who was now apparently married) made her greetings, watched with little interest as the First years were sorted, clapped along with everyone else for the new Head Boy and Girl, and then cheered for Eliza and Sara for getting their Prefects badges (Marcus had completely forgotten about this part, but wasn’t at all surprised that he did not get this badge himself).

As soon as the announcements were over and the feast was brought forth, Marcus got up from his spot at the Pecari table and made his way through the busy tables of new and old students until he came upon the Teppenpaw table. When he had been sitting at the Pecari table, he had been watching the Teppenpaw table, searching for a particular girl with whom he wanted to talk to. It hadn’t taken him long to find her and when he had, he felt excitement over his plans. She was as pretty as he remembered her.

He made a seat for himself beside her and gave her a smile. He had never spoken to her before, she seemed rather quiet, but that was okay with him. “Hey Valentina.” He greeted, “I wanted you to know that you are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen and I was wondering if you would like to maybe go out with me sometime?” There, he had asked. The worst that could happen was that she thought him a creep and tell him no. He could live with that because he had at least given it a shot.

6 Marcus Williams Here goes nothing (Valentina) 180 Marcus Williams 0 5

Topher

March 24, 2012 11:46 PM

This is going to be the best year ever by Topher

Topher wished he had advice to offer when Fae stumbled over what to call her sister’s fiancé, but he had no idea how that kind of thing worked even among his own kind of people and so could only shrug, sympathizing with her confusion but not being able to do anything to alleviate it. He didn’t think it really mattered, anyway; it wasn’t like he was in any position to get upset about someone using the improper form of address unless they tried to muddle up his way too complicated legal name. And even then, he could really just correct them and not get upset about it until someone just wouldn’t let it drop.

“Well, so are you,” he said automatically when Fae theorized that Shelby’s future husband might like her because she was pretty and pleasant to be around. After he said it, he caught the part where she had mentioned that Victor Stratford was smitten with Shelby because of those qualities, but he decided to assume – or maybe just hope – that she would take the compliment the way he had meant it, rather than the way it had sort of come out. It was true, anyway; he’d noticed even before he really noticed earlier that Fae was pretty, and the number of people she got along with would seem to mean that he wasn’t the only person who thought she was pleasant to be around.

Fae’s summer had been spent planning a wedding, being with her sister and mother. He had seen his mother enthuse over other women’s weddings before, so he guessed it was a girl thing and something he would never understand, but it was good for them, anyway. “That’s cool,” he said when she said her future sister-in-law seemed lovely and that her brother was getting used to her now. He didn’t think he’d ever be in a position to appreciate it, but he would guess that any time it was a surprise to find out you were getting married was something that had a good chance of not working out well. If it did, then that was just great luck on everyone’s part.

He tried not to laugh when Fae asked if his parents were going to arrange him a marriage, too, but didn’t completely succeed. “Sorry,” he said. “I just – never even thought of that before.” He honestly hadn’t. He knew of the concept, he lived in Illinois, where there were enough magical families of note that a mother who liked the society pages meant he just knew these things, but it had never occurred to him as anything that might affect him personally. “’Safe from all that’s’ a good way to put it,” he explained. “My parents aren’t that type, that’s not the kind of thing they do. They didn’t even get married until I was nearly six.”

And that was something he had never mentioned to her before, and he was Crotalus enough to think of it as something that looked bad. He loved his mother, and he would take his Beater’s bat to anyone who said anything about her, but he knew the way he had come to exist was not something that looked good. He didn’t even know why he’d admitted it, really – unless it was just, after the summer, being tired of all of it. He didn’t know. He was just waiting to see how she took it.

0 Topher This is going to be the best year ever 0 Topher 0 5

Lucrezia Renaldi

March 24, 2012 11:52 PM

I completely agree by Lucrezia Renaldi

Lucrezia was extremely excited about starting at Sonora. Even when she was so far from home and dearly missed her family, she was certain that this new experience would help her become more independent from her three older siblings. The twins had been happy to attend an all girls´ school in Italy and Carlo hadn’t minded his all boys’ school back home, but for her attending a school like Sonora sounded like a dream. There were so much things she would learn that the fact that she was thousands of miles away from her family didn’t bother her. Plus, she was the youngest one and her mother’s family had insisted on sending at least one of the Renaldi children to study abroad, and since she was the expendable one it had been decided that it would be her.

Lucrezia didn’t mind the way her family saw her, since she was used to that. It wasn’t that her parents ignored her or anything, they were actually pretty decent, but she knew her place in life, and she would do whatever her family needed of her. She didn’t have a bad childhood or anything, it had been quite lovely. Her siblings had always been nice to her, and she wanted to be like her older sisters, Alana and Aimee. The twins were funny, smart and pretty, and Carlo played with her from time to time, and it was always nice to spend time with them. Life in America was going to be different, but she was up to the challenge.

The little Italian had been staying with her very old relatives and they had explained to her everything she needed to know about Sonora. It sounded exciting, and she was sure she was going to have a great time. However, the ride was a little bumpy, but the scenery had been quite delightful. Once the carriage came to a halt, she practically bounced out of it and restrained herself from running inside the building. Everything from America was so foreign to her, and she was sure she would encounter some strange things. It was something that didn’t bother her.

As soon as she entered the Cascade Hall, a big smile grazed her features. It was amazing. The cascades made light bounce through the room and the sound coming from them was very relaxing. Lucrezia decided that she rather liked Sonora. If the rest of the school was as pretty as the Cascade Hall, she was quite sure she was going to love it just as much.

She was excited, but decorum was needed from someone of her status. She dutifully heard the Headmistress give announcements and sort them into their respective houses. She took a sip of the potion handed to her and her skin instantly turned red. Apparently she was a Crotalus. The little Italian made her way towards the Crotalus table following another red-shaded girl.

Lucrezia was eager to begin making friends and her roommates were her first targets. However, she didn’t want to scare her away, so she decided to eat something first and then start with a polite conversation. She grabbed the menu and decided to have some pasta. Yes, it was the best option by far. She grinned when her food appeared and after her first bite, the girl besides her spoke up. The new Crotali smiled brightly and swallowed her food before answering her question, “Lovely to make your acquaintance, Miss Baird. I am Lucrezia Renaldi. I come from Italy.” Lucrezia wasn’t sure how known her family was in America, but her mother’s family was really important, and she definitely needed to get up to date about the American Pureblood family. Great- Grandfather Ignatious had mentioned very few of them to her. “I am part of the Randolph family from Massachusetts.”

0 Lucrezia Renaldi I completely agree 231 Lucrezia Renaldi 0 5

Lucian D'Alesandro

March 24, 2012 11:57 PM

Looking a little blue.. by Lucian D'Alesandro

Lucian’s summer had been filled with days of exploring the local museums of Boston and nights examining the pages of a newly acquired Astronomy book. It wasn’t that his parents did not approve of his academic curiosity, but they would have preferred he focused on subjects they believed to be more useful. When both of his parents were away, Lucian and his nanny would visit the closest library where he would sign out the books that his parents suggested. What they didn’t know, however, was that the librarian often talked to Lucian about his interests. She would often allow Lucian to borrow other books without recording it. He was able to explore the world of Astronomy and music with her help, and began teaching himself the basic skills of reading music and drumming.

Lucian D’Alesandro came from a long line of prestigious Purebloods, which meant that he would have to attend an excellent school. His parent’s search led them to a choice between Sonora and a list of school that were closer to Boston. Their final decision was Sonora, not only because of its known excellence, but also because they believed Lucian could benefit from a new environment where he would hopefully make new friends. Lucian was very independent, and spent little time socializing with others his age. He wanted to have friends, but couldn’t seem to find any who shared his interests.

The journey to school proved to be fascinating, and before he knew it Lucian was standing in line for sorting and had drank the potion and turned blue. This placed him in Aladren, and he grinned because he found the outcome appropriate. His parents would be pleased, but more importantly he believed he would excel.

After taking a seat at the table with the rest of the students who turned blue after drinking the potion, Lucian focused his attention on the Headmistress who introduced herself as Professor K. He took note of the new professors names, the Head Boy and Head Girl, and the new Prefects. Then it was time to sing the School Song from a sheet that appeared in front of him. While singing, he added various beats and melodies to the song in his head. His found himself hoping there were more opportunities for him to explore music at school than there were at his home. His parents would never approve of him selecting a drum set as his instrument of choice, so his practicing time was limited.

After the song ended, Lucian surveyed the room with his green eyes. He often preferred to take in his surroundings and watch others interact before he participated. Soon it was time to eat, and with all of the food in front of him Lucian did not know where to start. He decided to try to strike up a conversation.

“Any recommendations for where to begin?” he asked someone eating nearby.

0 Lucian D'Alesandro Looking a little blue.. 223 Lucian D'Alesandro 0 5

Sairahiniel Light

March 25, 2012 12:13 AM

Veni....what? by Sairahiniel Light

"Do you know how to turn this into chocolate milk?" Sairahiniel turned to the girl to her right who was jumping around like she'd had a six-pack of Red Bulls before the wagons had come to get her. She was pretty, in a devil-may-care kind of way, with crazy brown curls bouncing every which was as she jittered and fidgeted.

"Uh..." Sairahiniel said, unsure. She didn't know how to do any official magic yet...but she had turned her teacher into a toad that one time...Gently, she placed her hand on the cup of milk, praying that it might work, praying that it wouldn't. To be honest, Sairahiniel had no idea how to handle being magical. Her mom was a Muggle. Straight up. No magical abilities what so ever and when she'd finally caught wind of what her daughter could do, she'd almost had her committed. And then the letter came. It explained everything, and gave Mrs. Light a chance to send Sairahiniel away for nine months at a time.

Sairahiniel opened her eyes, wrenched out of her thought by the opaque liquid in the cup turning rich, chocolatey brown, just like her skin had when she'd been Sorted into Pecari.

"Whoa..." she murmured, taking her hand off of the cup. "Didn't know I could do that."

0 Sairahiniel Light Veni....what? 0 Sairahiniel Light 0 5

Fae

March 25, 2012 12:55 AM

At the very least, better than next year. by Fae

Fae had to repress a sigh when Topher shrugged. There were many things that Fae didn’t like when it came to the Pureblood rules, but one of them was proper ways of introductions and names. Victor was Victor to her because that was how Shelby referred to him as. He was not Mr. Stratford. But, by society’s rule, since she was not so informal with him, she ought to be calling him by his title. And even though Fae found it ridiculous, if she didn’t follow these rules, someone might think less of the family. At least Topher didn’t seem to be judging her on her failed attempt at trying.

His compliment threw her for a moment and she found herself staring at him. She wasn’t sure if that was an actual compliment because he believed it or if he simply said it to be nice. She found that most people gave compliments when they felt the other was putting themselves down. Fae might have done so without thinking. She usually always put Shelby on a pedestal that she could never live up to. But that had not been her intentions this time. Shelby was pretty and people did love her. Fae was awkward and as her Great Grandfather likes to remind her parents, she was also unnecessary. Knowing that her face was warm, which meant she was blushing, Fae looked away and tried not to seem too pleased by it because that wasn’t always so ladylike, “Thank you.” She said quietly, looking at her food for a moment. She rarely received compliments from people outside of her immediate family and wasn’t quite sure how to respond to them. Her mother said to compliment people back, but the only one she could think of was ‘you too’ and that didn’t seem like it would help the situation.

Fae gave him a smile, knowing that the wedding talk meant absolutely nothing to him. Shopping seemed to be completely a girl thing to do and even though Fae had enjoyed the dress part, she could understand why a boy wouldn’t care either way for it, but he had asked about her summer and that was what she had done. “It is.” She agreed when it came to Eleanor. When Jaiden was suddenly betrothed, they were worried about the fiancé. But, as it turned out, she was rather nice and Jaiden seemed relatively okay with it all.

Perhaps having asked him about betrothal possibility had been a mistake if the laugh was any indication, but she honestly hadn’t known. She had no idea what other families did. What Muggles did or Muggleborns, or Halfbloods, or less acceptable Purebloods. These were not things that were discussed around her. All she knew was that there would come a day when she would be taken to a male. For a long time she had assumed all families worked this way. Fae was looking at him when he was speaking and it took a moment for his last comment to catch up to her. “Really?” She asked, perplexed by the idea of not being married but having children. It happened, obviously. She heard of scandals with various prominent Purebloods who had children from affairs, but not of two people who clearly wanted to be together and stayed together for six years with a child but with no marriage.

“I don’t know if it’s polite to say that not being a part of it makes you lucky, but sometimes I wish my Great Grandfather would forget about me. He already finds me useless. I haven’t been good enough for his tastes. But, he still wants a connection and now I’m of age for a betrothal to be formed.” Fae was no longer hungry and pushed her plate away from her. She lost herself in her thoughts for a moment, thinking of being connected to a person and then deciding that she didn’t want to think of it anymore. “Why did it take them so long to be married?” She asked him, her blue eyes looking back up at him, giving him her full attention. “I mean, I’m assuming since betrothals don’t exist for you, marriage is then something done voluntarily, why wait?”

0 Fae At the very least, better than next year. 0 Fae 0 5

Valentina Bentancourt

March 25, 2012 1:29 AM

Doers tend to receive their prizes by Valentina Bentancourt

Valentina had decided that too much work was actively ruining her none-existent social life at Sonora. She didn’t have any close friends and she barely talked to the girls in her year, and she was going to change all of that. Yes, her dance and singing practices were still going to happen right on schedule, but she would mix them with social situations and friends. Being alone just sucked. Even her mother had commented on her change in attitude and had congratulated her. Valentina was happier and even went out with some childhood friends when she went back to Madrid to visit her grandparents. She felt lighter and ready to unleash her more friendly side. She had honestly forgotten just how much fun hanging with people was, and her friends had told her that they had missed her company. It felt great to be seen as such an important person in their lives and she gratefully and happily continued to rekindle their friendship bonds.

With this new resolution she came back for her fifth year of education at Sonora with a new bounce to her step. She was going to get some friends, even if her life depended on it. The Spaniard smiled to everyone she encountered in her walk to the Cascade Hall. This new term was also the first day of her new self. She was excited and somewhat scared about it, especially because she didn’t know if the other girls would accept her after all this time of solitude.

She took a deep breath and entered the Casacade Hall. She smiled at the familiarity of the place and sought an empty seat at the Teppenpaw table. Valentina leaned on her palms while the Headmistress sorted the new students and gave the announcements. She clapped to congratulate the new prefects and head students, and silently thanked Merlin for her lack of badge. That responsibility was something she didn’t want or have time for.

Before ordering something to eat she cleared her throat and smiled to the person beside her. She wanted to be seen as approachable and friendly. After that she focused on what she was going to eat for dinner, which would consist on the must calorie-filled thing she could find. The Spaniard lived on a diet for 390 days of a year, and she wanted to indulge in something delicious to celebrate her new start. A plate of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and French fries was the thing that she was craving and for dessert there would be a chocolate brownie with vanilla ice-cream.

Valentina squealed the moment her food appeared and was about to take her first bite when someone sat beside her and greeter her. She was barely able to respond to the greeting when Marcus promptly asked her out. She blinked a few times before blushing crimson. “Thank you,” was the only thing she could manage to say for a few minutes. After she regained some composure she looked him directly in the eye, “Yes.” She smiled at him. The truth was the she thought he was rather cute and going out sounded fun. “That sounds delightful,” she answered in her accented voice. After spending her whole summer in Spain, it was thicker than usual. She cleared her throat, “Sorry. It sounds like a good time.” Valentina was used to formalities, but she rarely liked how it sounded.

0 Valentina Bentancourt Doers tend to receive their prizes 171 Valentina Bentancourt 0 5

Ryan O'Malley

March 25, 2012 8:19 AM

I think I'm going to be sick. by Ryan O'Malley

As Ryan came back for Sonora for his fifth year, he was brimming with anxiety-and not over the usual things fifth years worried about like CATS. No, this was something much, much, much worse. This was the year his sister was coming to Sonora. Ryan had been rather on pins and needles since her letter had come. Previously, there had been that tiny hope that she was a Squib but no such luck.

Carrie had, of course, been at it again, already. The ride from Colorado she had spent her time alternating between complaining about the wagon and depleting any self-esteem Ryan had picked up that she'd already not managed to get rid of during the summer. In fact, his self-worth could probably now be measured in negative numbers. Of course, eventually Carrie had had to stop berating him when Arabella threatened to chuck her off the wagon and an adult in charge had been forced to separate Ryan's cousin and sister.

Nervously, the Crotalus watched the Sorting. Surely, she wouldn't be in his house right? There was only twenty-five percent chance...well, okay, maybe a bit more that given the zero chance Carrie had of being in Teppenpaw, but still, she'd go in Aladren or Pecari, right? Granted, in the former, the first year would rub it in Ryan's face how much smarter than him she was, but she was going to do that anyway-one of the habits that Carrie had picked up from their mother was calling Ryan something that started with R and wasn't his name.

In Pecari, well, that would be almost funny, never mind Sophie and Arabella, it was a house with the fewest proper people in it. The only one Ryan could think of off the top of his head was Sara. Their mother had somehow managed it, despite the lack of common ground with the rest of the house, so maybe, just maybe, Carrie would be there too.

The blonde first year drank and turned a bright... red . All the blood drained from Ryan's face and he pushed his plate away. Just moments ago, he-like any fifteen year old boy who had traveled by wagon from Colorado to Arizona-had been quite hungry despite his anxiety and now his appetite was gone, replaced by a sharp pang in his stomach, similar to how he'd felt when he'd heard about his parents' divorce and received the accompanying Howler.

Ryan knew this was going to be a disaster. Carrie would torment him endlessly without mercy. No longer would he have that respite from her while at school. If she'd been in any other house, Crotalus would have been his safe haven, now he'd be forced to hide out in his room just like he had his whole life. If others saw how Carrie treated Ryan, they would surely think less of him. Not everyone was like Sophie, they'd see the fifth year boy as weak, bullied by his little sister and everyone there would hate him.

He needed to get out of here, out of this room. The prefects being called barely registered though he did notice Eliza had gotten it for Crotalus and James for Aladren. That was a little disappointing, Ryan sort of had wanted the position. He enjoyed helping others and maybe, just maybe, having a little bit of power would attract girls. That would never happen now, everyone but Sophie, Arabella and possibly Valerie was sure to be against him now. James probably wouldn't think Ryan was even worth talking to now that he was prefect and the Crotalus wasn't.

Still, he was sure Eliza would do an excellent job and Ryan was happy for her-and the others-in whatever part of him could feel happy at an otherwise horrible moment of his life. His fellow Crotalus fifth year probably wanted the position more than Ryan had anyway. Besides, not being prefect hardly mattered, it was trivial in comparison to having to put up with Carrie year round.

The walls were starting to close in on him. Ryan wanted to run but he was too afraid of how that might look. Still, the fifth year just couldn't take it. He slowly got up from the table in what he hoped was as dignified a manner as possible, trying to attract as little attention as possible. If anyone that wasn't Sophie or Arabella-who would know the real problem-stopped and questioned him, Ryan would claim that he had the stomach flu.

He made his way towards the exit but didn't get too far before someone approached him...

11 Ryan O'Malley I think I'm going to be sick. 176 Ryan O'Malley 0 5

Deputy Head Amelia Pierce

March 25, 2012 10:06 AM

OOC by Deputy Head Amelia Pierce

Hi, Sayre, and welcome to Sonora. It is great to see your enthusiasm, but please note a couple of the site rules. You already have a post up higher in this thread, and you can't be two places at once. Please keep to just one subthread within classes and feasts unless you specifically leave an earlier one and say you're moving elsewhere.

Secondly, Jhonice already replied in this thread, so if you did want to reply to this subthread of the Feast, you should reply to the last person who posted. Also, please note that you are an untrained first year. A second and third year who have been regularly attending transfiguration class have already stated that turning juice into chocolate milk is beyond their abilities. Even Hermoine had trouble with Transfiguration. You're not going to get it to work just by wishing.

Finally, in relation to the earlier post above, at Sonora, you write only for your own character. You should not provide dialogue that your student does not say. Leave that to whoever replies to you.

Thanks, and if you have any questions about these or any other site rules, we're all happy to answer them over on the OOC board.

Have fun at Sonora!

1 Deputy Head Amelia Pierce OOC 20 Deputy Head Amelia Pierce 0 5

Josephine

March 25, 2012 12:19 PM

Yellow me up. by Josephine

She should have realized that as the historically friendly House, it was unlikely that her Teppenpaw peers were going to throw her out of the vicinity. Instead, Derry, one of the many fourth years with which Josephine wasn't very well acquainted (and only partly because he was a Scary Pierce who'd had the potential to frown at her, though not really because he'd always seemed like a nice person, even from a distance), offered a friendly welcome and then simply asked, "Trouble in Pecari-land, or just looking for some fresh new yellow scenery?"

"Fresh new yellow scenery," Jospehine borrowed his phrase and nodded as she said it, as if the action would make the statement more poignant. She returned his smile and extended it to reggie, too, who had a great new hair cut which Josephine would have commented on if the other girl hadn't launched almost directly into a long story about her summer. Instead, the Pecari began to load her plate with lamb chops - her family couldn't afford to buy red meat - and some of the more exotic vegetables (she thought maybe they were eggplant and kale - either way they were more interesting than the cabbage and potato her mother favored) as she listened with wide-eyed interest to Reggie's tale.

"That's amazing," Josephine described Reggie's potential Seeing abilities, her food temporarily forgotten on her plate as the story had drawn her fascination. She was far more interested in the prophetic dreams scenario than her dad lying about having a girlfriend. "So you can See stuff before it actually happens? Wow, that's pretty awesome."

Reggie asked about their summers - hers and Derry's - but Josephine didn't feel that she could add anything at all that would sound remotely interesting after that epic tale. "My summer was fine," she said with a shrug. "Nothing exciting to report." They'd gone for family walks, played family games, she read books, helped out with the gardening and cooking, and spent some time alone with her crafts. It had been enjoyable for the most part, but nothing out of the ordinary. "What about you, Derry?"

0 Josephine Yellow me up. 0 Josephine 0 5

James

March 25, 2012 1:31 PM

Makes this easier by James

Although he hadn't really expected any resentment from one of the more laid back people he'd ever met, James was nevertheless relieved that David didn't seem to be holding any resentment towards him for being named prefect. "Thanks," James responded to the congratulations as he reached for the requested potatoes and passed them to David. He considered congratulating David on officially being Quidditch Captain, but since that promotion had effectively happened last year it felt a bit outdated. Instead, he reached for some pasta and asked David, "Did you have a good summer?" He knew David's family were Muggles, and that there were lots of them in confusing arrangements. He also knew that David often spent a lot of his holidays in a library, of which james could admit to being a little jealous. He did sometimes visit a library during the summer, but it was such a long way and his parents were often too busy to accmpany him that his trips there were infrequent. Luckily they did enable him to stock up on books for long intervals, and he could read them between visits. It wasn't as great as having the Sonora library just outside his dormitory whenever he wanted it, but it was sufficient to keep him sane throughout the break.

James' own summer had been much the same as usual. He actually got along much better with his family when he only had to see them for those couple of months than he could remember having gotten along with them when they were all around each other all the time. Admittedly he actually saw more of Jade when he couldn't hide away in Aladren's commons, and that meant they would argue more, but as they also spent a lot of time each doing their own activities they somehow managed to pass the weeks without causing each other any actual bodily damage. Josephine liked to see herself as the peace-keeper, and James could acknowledge the truth in that; she had far more patience than either of her siblings (though James also liked to believe he had far more patience, and every other good quality, than Jade).

While the topic of summer was sort of expected as a first conversation into the new term, James was actually more eager to talk about CATS and study schedules, and whether david had done any preparation yet. He had been known to be competetive when it came to academics, and while his chief aim was to be better than Josephine, any person he could identify as academically inferior would be appreciated, if not outwardly.

0 James Makes this easier 0 James 0 5

Derry Four

March 25, 2012 1:36 PM

Poof! You've been yellowed. by Derry Four

Derry smiled at Josephine as she disavowed any problems over in Pecari and declared she was just after the scenery change. Given how much more cheery the yellow house he'd lived in over the summer was than the brown house he'd lived in most of his life, he wouldn't begrudge her the change. Plus, yellow firsties, in Derry's opinion, were much more entertaining to look at than the muddy brown ones flocking over to the Pecari table. That could be a House bias, though.

Derry listened in interest as Reggie joined the conversation and immediately launched into a description of her summer. Despite being slightly distracted by how pretty her new haircut made her, Derry managed the appropriate sympathetic faces as she talked about her Dad's lying - he'd been mad at his mom for most of second year for the same crime, though their respective parents had had vastly different reasons and subjects for their lies.

Personally, he was of the secret opinion that telling a kid his brother was dead when he was actually alive in Boston was worse than telling a kid you were at work when you were on a date, but he didn't think Reggie wanted to hear that right now. Besides which, he wasn't really sure how he would react if Mom started dating again, so maybe it wasn't.

The other part of Reggie's story, though, seemed far more significant. Not that parental lies weren't horrible things to discover, but you eventually got over it. Not so Seer's Gifts. "If you don't want to talk to your grandmother," Derry wasn't entirely sure he would like to face Druscella again after this summer, so he felt he could understand her position on the matter, "I could ask Hamlet to ask Aunt Berta to talk to you. She'd kind of dead now, but she was supposed to have been a Seer when she was alive and so she might be able to explain some stuff to you." Though he sounded somewhat dubious about this, he did follow it up with the most solid reference of validity he knew: "Thad seems to think she's legitimately gifted." He decided not to mention that Thad also thought she was legitimately insane as well. That could come up later if Reggie took him up on the offer.

He would have suggested seeing Professor Mathers about it, too, but he'd gotten a notice over the summer that said divination classes were suspended indefinitely. Then he remembered one of the substitutes that they'd had last year, and added as an afterthought, "Or maybe you could talk to the librarian. I think she's trained in Divinations, too."

Once that discussion ended, Reggie asked after their summers and Josephine deferred to Derry. "Mine was different," he repeated the word he'd used the most often over it. "Mom and Dad got divorced last January," he said, mostly for Josephine's benefit since Reggie already knew. "So during the second half of term, Mom found a new house and decorated it and stuff, so it was all ready when school got out. Smaller than I'm used to, and way more neighbors right up close to it - I can see more houses from my bedroom window than we had on the whole of the mountain - but it's brighter and . . . and happier, if that makes any sense? I mean, it's like the homes you read about in books where the house is almost a part of the family instead of just a big fancy building where you sleep. And Mom is happier, too, which really makes a huge difference, too. I didn't even realize how much Mom and Dad fought before until coming home this summer and I suddenly didn't need to hide from it."

"It's in a muggle neighborhood, too, and I learned to play baseball, and that's really cool. Muggles really got quite clever in how they do stuff without magic." He sounded more than a little surprised and impressed by this. "And I got to spend some time with Three - uh, Derwent Pierce the Third, my brother who got disowned but not killed a long time ago," he added by way of explanation to Josephine again, "and his toddler son, Ben." Derry gave the two girls a slightly goofy grin as he finished, "It's really awesome being an uncle."

1 Derry Four Poof! You've been yellowed. 189 Derry Four 0 5

Thad Pierce

March 25, 2012 2:26 PM

A second Opening Feast by Thad Pierce

Thaddeus's summer had been much like any other summer except for one very significant change: Derry wasn't there. At first, Thad didn't think it would alter much. He preferred reading to flying on most days and there were other, smarter people to ask questions to, but within the first week, Thad had already - twice! - found himself on the verge of knocking on Two's door before remembering that his cousin wasn't living beyond that threshold any longer. By the next week, he had started remembering this fact before he walked all the way over to his friend's former residence, and by the third, he had stopped leaving his own property on aborted walks over to the Heir's House.

The Anns were no substitute, either. If anything, they made it worse. Whenever the youngest cousins had met up together, it had always been him and Four, and the Anns. When the Anns did something weird, he'd exchange looks with Derry. When Derry did something weird, he'd exchange looks with the Anns. There were no more looks getting exchanged and now there were plenty of awkward silences because Derry had always done most of the talking. He'd been the oldest and, therefore, their leader and now the usual patterns were all messed up. Even their activities had always pitted two against two and now Thad didn't have his partner. Somehow, spending time with the Anns brought out the truth into even sharper relief than when he was by himself.

Thad was . . . lonely.

It didn't get better as the weeks stretched into months either. He even tried spending time with Winston, just because Winston didn't have a double hanging around him, but Winston was just a baby and once Thad finished peppering Alicia and Wesley with all the questions he could think of about child-rearing (or, at least, all the ones he thought he could get away with before they chased him out of the house), Winston didn't really have a lot on offer to interest to a twelve year old boy.

He tried practicing Quidditch but that was worse than seeing the Anns together. Quidditch was not, and could not, ever be a solitary activity.

He wrote to Evan, and to Alicia, but letters weren't the same as seeing people his own age.

He read, but even the books weren't as good company as he used to think after three months of having little to do but read. He tried to remember what he did during the two years Derry had been at Sonora before Thad was old enough to join him, but that had been different. Then, Derry had been expected to return. Spending time with the Anns had just reiterated that he was by himself for now instead of forever. And he'd had tutors to distract him.

Next summer, he was definitely getting tutors, but he'd made the realization too late in the summer to help this year.

When he saw Derry on the wagon, he hadn't cared with the other New England families thought of him talking to his disinherited cousin (disinherited, not disowned; it was a fine but very important distinction). Thad needed to talk to somebody or go insane and Derry had always been so very good at talking.

By the time they landed in Sonora, he was feeling normal again. He waved good-bye to Derry as the split to go to their respective House tables, and Thad took a seat at the Aladren one. He applauded for Alicia's sister getting Head Girl, but had no associations to the Head Boy or the new prefects. James Owen was not on the Aladren Quidditch team, none of the five had been Library Monitors, and they were all far too old to have had any other kind of interaction with a freshly minted second year. He still clapped politely for each of them.

He sang the school song with moderate skill, and was glad when the food finally arrived. He filled his plate with foods he thought his mother would approve of him eating, and then addressed his neighbor in the accepted fashion for such occasions. "Welcome back. Did you have a good summer?"

1 Thad Pierce A second Opening Feast 213 Thad Pierce 0 5

Angel Shield

March 25, 2012 3:21 PM

... by Angel Shield

The young albino found a seat at the Teppenpaw table. Even after the carriage ride, and entering Cascade Hall he still couldn’t shake the worry that this was all some sort of dream that would vanish in an instant. All though the summer Lady Cynthia held Sonora over his head, her scathing comments on his pitiful performance, his abysmal barely passing grades, and his compete inability to function as a normal human being had rained down on him from the moment he’d handed over his grades. Angel had simply bowed his head and agreed whenever the silence had stretched long enough to require a response.

Nothing the bitter woman had to say to him indicated that he would be permitted to return. So when she grudgingly bought him his school supplies a week before the new term was to start, Angel wasn’t sure what to think. Now he was just waiting for her to re-appear and demand he return home, that it had all been some sort of cruel joke. But, as the minutes passed, the first years were sorted, and the song was sung, he started to believe that maybe he would be allowed to say.

A summer back in that house had renewed his habit of not looking at people, so he kept his ruby gaze on his plate as he reached for the spoon to scoop a small dollop of mashed potatoes on his plate. Another student, just outside his field of vision, reached for the same spoon and their hands bumped. Angel quickly pulled his hand back and waited, still not glancing up to see who he’d accidentally touched.

0 Angel Shield ... 0 Angel Shield 0 5

Topher

March 25, 2012 5:31 PM

Those CATS might be kind of a bummer, yeah by Topher

Fae was blushing, but what that meant, Topher had no idea. The only thing he knew for sure about girls was that he knew nothing, really, about girls, despite living with so many of them all year. He’d noticed that they seemed to get a little stranger every year, or at least that he seemed to have less of an idea what they thought and why they thought it, but he didn’t know if that was because of them or because of him. He just knew that she looked pretty while turning red as well as she did when she looked normal and that at least the comment didn’t seem to have been scene-causingly out of line, which was good.

Still, he was glad when they moved on to safer topics of conversation, right until he went from just opening his mouth and inserting his foot to crashing the conversation into a cement wall, or at least thinking he might have.

Topher wasn’t ashamed of his family. He loved his parents, and he didn’t really care how they’d gotten to be his parents. Sometimes, though he’d deny thinking it with a vengeance if anyone ever asked because it was ridiculously sappy and girly, he thought he might even like his dad more because of how things were, because he had, so to speak, walked into the situation of having a kid with his eyes wide open, having no illusions about six-year-olds that might make him think they were never complete brats. But he knew how Crotali thought about people like them, how people in general in the wizarding world could be kind of weird about the adoption thing, and while he hadn’t hidden it all from his school friends, neither had he ever gone out of his way to mention it, so as far as Fae knew, his parents were just his parents, like hers – an impression she had strongly enough to think that they might even be in an arranged marriage, like her parents presumably were.

For a moment, he was tempted to answer her question about why his parents hadn’t gotten married for so long with “Hippies,” but he didn’t think about it long. It would be practically an insult to his mom and his dad to say something like that, not least because he just couldn’t, no matter how hard he tried, picture Dad that way. The picture was wrong enough that he had to squint to even hold it together for a second. So instead, he said, as matter-of-factly as he could, “I’m half-adopted. Mom and Dad started dating when I was four, but they didn’t get married for a while because Mom wanted to be sure Dad was really up for the whole kid thing. And then they didn’t change my name ‘til I was seven, but Dad’s still around, so I guess he was okay with it all.”

Thankfully. Though he could remember bits and pieces of when his dad hadn’t been around, Topher couldn’t remember what it had been like, and he didn’t really want to. He was sure things wouldn’t have been as good as they were if Grace Proctor hadn’t gotten distracted and temporarily lost her left foot on Michael Calhoun’s shift at the Magical Accidents and Catastrophes office that May day all those years ago.

0 Topher Those CATS might be kind of a bummer, yeah 0 Topher 0 5

Gareth Whitebriar

March 25, 2012 5:42 PM

Another sibling free year by Gareth Whitebriar

Gareth wasn’t looking forward to next term. This summer his younger brother Enion nearly badgered him to death with questions about Sonora. He conveniently forgot how he’d once pestered older cousins just as relentlessly about Hogwarts before he’d found out that he’d be the first to attend a foreign school instead. That only added to the never ending questions. By the end of summer Gareth wondered just how much trouble he’d get into if he took Enion deep into the forest and left him there. Being the first to Sonora was a disaster because now he, well and Megs but she didn’t count because she wasn’t at his house to ask questions, was the only source of reliable information about the new school.

And next term his annoying little brother would turn 11 and tag along to pester Gareth year round. At least he still had a couple years before their baby sister joined them and added her annoyance to the mix. Last term Gareth had gotten use to being the only one around, and he was disappointed that he’d only have one term of freedom left before his brother joined him. He’d forgotten how homesick he’d felt at the beginning of last term, and after a full summer dose of both siblings Gareth was more than ready for school to resume.

Gareth made his way to the Crotalus table and found an open seat, his stomach rumbled from the long ride and he eagerly dug into a platter of roast duck. Once he had a nice portion on his plate he added a large spoon full of red skinned potatoes, some corn, and a couple rolls. That summer he’d put on another growth sprit and he still felt like no matter how much he ate he was still starving to death. His feet had apparently grown out of proportion with the rest of him and Gareth’s coordination had suffered. The second year was already living up to his family’s heritage of producing large brawny males. Well, his side of the family. The Brownbriar line tended to produce tall lanky males, and the Greens were unusually short compared to the rest of the family.

Once he’d gotten his plate situated he turned to his neighbor and smiled brightly. “It’s great to be back isn’t it?”

0 Gareth Whitebriar Another sibling free year 0 Gareth Whitebriar 0 5

Lucille Carey

March 25, 2012 5:56 PM

I like it, too by Lucille Carey

Just breathe, Lucille reminded herself as she walked, her arms held tensely close to her sides and her steps small because she was afraid of bumping into someone or falling over and being trampled by all the people if she took longer ones, into the Cascade Hall and obeyed her new headmistress’ order to get in a line with the other first years. It’s all right. It’s going to be fine. Everyone does this. It’s just fine….

She realized she had forgotten, again, that thinking that things were going to be all right only made her feel more panicky than she would anyway and stopped the litany, instead looking around the Hall and stealing glances at the other first years when she thought they weren’t looking at her. There were not as many of them as she had thought there might be, but they made up for it in variety; some of them were wearing the strangest clothes. There were some whose clothes were not much different from her own neat green dress, so new it was still stiff and uncomfortable, but there were some who looked like girls but in boys’ clothes! She didn’t know what to think about it.

As she glanced at one girl like that, she saw that the Deputy Headmistress – a very disreputable person no Carey, except perhaps that woman, would even speak to normally, but Lucille had to be respectful to here; school, it seemed, was going to be just as complicated at home, and Lucille didn’t know if that was a comforting or a terrifying thought – coming closer with her potions, and she looked up at the ceiling for a moment, collecting herself. Here it was. The Sorting. She needed to be in Aladren, it was the only House that didn’t have some kind of very negative association in her immediate family, but she would take Crotalus, just so long as it was somewhere she could be respectable….

Her turn came, and she stepped forward and took a small sip of potion before swallowing the rest of the cup and then meant to close her eyes for a moment before she looked. Instead, though, they darted immediately to her wrist, which was bright yellow.

Teppenpaw.

At once, several conflicting emotions swept over her. The first was just relief that she had been Sorted at all. Then came something like happiness, because Teppenpaw had been her father’s House, but terror struck almost as quickly when she thought that her father was a dead disgrace and that her half-sister, the one they pretended was just illegitimate but was really a half-blood, had been one, too, and that Mother was not going to be happy about this. If Dad had still been alive, then maybe it would have been all right, but Mother….

She did squeeze her eyes shut for a second then. She couldn’t help it; it was not her fault. Mother would blame her stepmother and her father, maybe, but she wouldn’t do anything in front of Cath and Dad had been dead for a very long time. It was what it was, and it was certainly much less bad than every other problem her branch had. Why, Jane Carey was in Teppenpaw, and she had gotten engaged last year, just after Lucille met her at a Christmas party. It would be all right.

She sat with other yellow girls and listened to the Headmistress to avoid looking at her new roommates. One of them, she saw, had blonde hair, too, and they were both prettier than her. Her thick, dark blonde hair and blue-grey eyes might have been all right on their own, but Mother had always said she looked too much like her father to be really pretty with her long, ‘strong-boned’ oval face and thin lips and narrow nose.

She fiddled with her hair, hanging in neat waves to her shoulders after Mother’s work with a wand that morning back in North Carolina, as they began the Feast and she had to speak with the other girls. She was still winding up her nerve when one of them, Aria Yale, spoke and the other, Melanie, answered and asked Aria to use first names. Then she blurted out, without thinking, “And I’m Lucille,” only to immediately turn, beneath the Sorting yellow, what felt like a brilliant shade of red, if how hot her face felt as she realized how rude she’d just been was anything to indicate how much blood had actually just rushed into her cheeks.

She wanted to go hide under a rock and never come out ever again, but that wasn’t an option, so she straightened her posture and tried again. “Lucille Carey, I mean,” she said with a smile. “Of the North Carolina Careys.” Her eyes flicked, for less than a second, to Melanie because of their shared pureblood style of introduction and fear that it meant Melanie would Know and tell the whole year at once, but she forced herself not to think about that. “But you may both call me Lucille.”

0 Lucille Carey I like it, too 224 Lucille Carey 0 5

Katrina (Kitty) McLevy

March 25, 2012 7:20 PM

It looks good on you by Katrina (Kitty) McLevy

Kitty’s freckles had merged into a nice tan over the summer (after more than one sunburn) and the small bouncy girl was ready for a brilliant new year at Sonora. Even though she loved summer dearly, and it had been wonderful being back among family, Kitty was hungry for all the things she would learn this year. Ooooo! I hope I’m finally old enough to see the dangerous creatures in CoMC Kitty thought with delight as she found a seat. Even a full summer of running around almost nonstop hadn’t impacted the endless reserves of energy the young girl had been born with.

She wiggled impatiently in her seat as she waited for the firsties to be sorted. When it came time to sing she sang loud and clear, loving every minute of it even though some of the other students didn’t have the best voices. It was still super fun to sing all together as one giant group and it was one of her favorite parts of the feast. Kitty had no doubt that this year would be as amazing as the last two and this time Aladren won’t lose in Quidditch! She vowed as she poured herself a glass of Pumpkin Juice.

“Any recommendations for where to begin?” One of the newly minted and brilliantly blue firsties asked just as Kitty was about to dig in to the bountiful offerings.

“Well, I always start with something I’ve never tried before.” Kitty said with a grin as she dug into a bowl full of mashed up yellow stuff scattered with odd looking vegetables. She’d always been an adventurous eater and the feast was full of things that she’d never seen or tried before. Every year there was some new flavor to explore and the muggleborn girl ate it all up.

0 Katrina (Kitty) McLevy It looks good on you 0 Katrina (Kitty) McLevy 0 5

Madeline Parry

March 25, 2012 7:26 PM

Yay for Yellow! by Madeline Parry

As she sailed into the Cascade Hall with a friendly wave for one of the portraits in the foyer, Madeline found it hard to believe she had really been at Sonora for three whole years and was now starting the work on her fourth. Sometimes it seemed like just yesterday that she had found out that magic even existed and had been escorted to a magic town to look for her supplies for a magical school somewhere in, of all the strange places that anything could be, the middle of a desert in Arizona.

That day had, if she was going to be honest about it, felt more than a little unreal. She didn’t think she had really gotten that it was real until halfway through her first year, when she left and then came back and it was still there and no one was jumping out to announce it had all been some colossal joke on either her or her and her parents. Now, though, she didn’t have any problems with the reality of it that she really knew of and was beaming as she went to join her friends at the Teppenpaw table.

She was a little surprised when Josephine Owen, from the Pecaris in their year, joined them, too, but she smiled brightly at Josephine, too, before turning to listen to Headmistress Kijewski – er, Kijewski-Jareau – tell them about the Sorting ceremony and the new staff and the new prefects and stuff. She clapped for the Head Boy and Girl, the new Teppenpaw prefect, and the new first years, and took some interest in the Concert, but was mostly just impatient for the speech to end so she could get to the food and catching up with her friends about what had been going on since they were last all together here.

“Glad to have you,” she chipped in to the welcoming of Josephine to their table when, after Derry broached the subject, the other fourth year said she’d come over for the scenery, and then came the story of Reggie’s summer. “Wow,” was all she had to say about that, at least for now. Later, of course, they would have to talk more about this, and about Reggie's makeover, but right now, that was all she could pull together, between Reggie’s dad’s girlfriend and Reggie’s mom coming out of nowhere with the revelation that Madeline’s friend might be a Seer. She felt, again, grateful for her own parents. She could guess all that would be a lot to take in, and that was being mild about it. “That’s crazy, Reg.” She was glad Derry had more helpful words to offer.

Then, though, they moved into the less dramatic territory of the others’ summers. “One of mine probably doesn’t think so,” she said when Derry said it was great to be an uncle, “but I’ve got to cut him some slack, Dad did start rambling about women’s headgear in Early Modern England during his high school graduation party. His friends were looking at us all like we were from Outer Space.” Her grandparents had spaced their children strangely and her parents had married right out of college, so two of her uncles were not that much older than her. “That was about the most exciting thing that happened in my summer, though. Dad only taught two summer courses this year, so we went to a lot of amusement parks and bookstores and stuff.” She didn’t read as much as she had when she was a first year, but there was no way she would ever tell her father that, even though she didn’t think it was really that much less. She thought it might break his heart once he convinced himself it was worse than it really was, or at least make him question her paternity or something. She felt more distant than she wanted to from her parents sometimes anyway, so while she was being a little facetious in thinking that, she did try to be as much like the Madeline they had been used to instead of…whatever she was now when she was at home and they got to see her for a while.

0 Madeline Parry Yay for Yellow! 188 Madeline Parry 0 5

Aria

March 25, 2012 8:13 PM

It is a strong color by Aria

Almost immediately, Aria felt that greeting the others had not been the best idea. The first person to greet her back had given her a long winded name that Aria did not understand the purpose of. Where there so many Lennoxes in the United States that each individual had to name their residency in order for others to know which family they were from? That seemed a bit too much. How was Aria supposed to know if there were other Yales and where each one was from to introduce herself in such a way? Was this normal? Did all people outside of the community greet others in such a way as Melanie had?

And then her next question had Aria blinking back at her as though she were a simple child. Her given name was Aria, what else should she call her? Before Aria could respond though, another Teppenpaw spoke up. At first, Aria was pleased that she only gave her name, but then almost immediately corrected herself by giving her state as well. Aria felt very off balance at the moment and she could not blame the food. The world outside of the community was strange. They wore robes that were heavy and itchy, shoes that cramped the toes, and asked for names that were not what was given to them. It was no wonder why so many of those granted leave of the community came back for good by Christmas.

“Aria is my given name. My parents wanted me to associate with the element of air. Freedom. Weightlessness.” Aria said in a tone that read that this fact should be obvious. “I would prefer for you to call me this.” She added this because she thought that if she didn’t, they would call her something else and she wouldn’t know to respond. “I am pleased to meet you both.” Aria looked at Lucille with interest. “Lucille is such an old name for someone with a young soul. Do you think it feels right on you? Or do you want something more fresh and fun like Lucy?” Aria had no idea if what she was saying meant anything to these two girls or not. What she needed was a moment to meditate and put herself right again. Balance herself out, so to speak. She would do her regimen in the morning out in the gardens they passed. It was only right to do so within the walls of nature instead of man made buildings.

“In the community, if one does not match well with their given name, they can have a chosen name in which they feel fits their spirits better. It doesn’t happen often, but it can. I am lucky to have parents who wished well for me and gave a name that I can be at peace with.” Aria nodded as she spoke as though this conversation was as normal as apple pie. “Is there a reason you specify your states when you speak? Are there many Careys and Lennoxes to make a difference? I only know the community and this is something we do not take part in.”

0 Aria It is a strong color 0 Aria 0 5

Alexandra Devereux

March 25, 2012 8:38 PM

I should have a lot of those by Alexandra Devereux

Alexandra’s summer had been, for the most part, quiet – not, overall, as quiet as the past week, admittedly, when Mother and Father had been off speaking terms again for some reason they hadn’t explained and she hadn’t cared enough to ask about, but quiet anyway – and mostly spent either in study or with the girls, which meant that she and Lissy were comparing notes on her teachers versus her close cousin’s tutors or that they were being packed up and sent to one or the other Carolina to visit with their cousins or having Lucille and Theresa come to visit them in Louisiana. Alex didn’t honestly know how much any of them liked each other, really, except for her and Lissy, but their parents were eager to encourage the cooperation which had sprung up during the last Reunion, and they all knew better than to volunteer any thoughts they had on the subject that didn’t agree with what the adults wanted to hear.

It hadn’t been so bad, but the constant traveling or receiving company had been more than she was used to, and she was glad to be back to the stability of Sonora. She – all of them, really, but she spoke only for herself – were freer at school than they could ever be at home, because everyone really only had to look out for him- or herself. There were no parents and grandparents and distant relations to please, just some professors, and professors were much easier to deal with than Careys and worse, the wives of Careys. Her father’s position wasn’t enviable, but she still thought he was better off than he would have been if her mother had been the man in their relationship. It was just simpler at school.

She clapped politely but without real interest for the various new people, including the non-Crotalus ones, and then turned her attention to her dinner, thinking about the headmistress’ new name. Jareau. It sounded vaguely familiar, but that didn’t really mean anything, since she had noticed that things that weren’t could sound familiar all the time. It probably was not a very respectable family, but Headmistress Kijewki already had all the prestige she needed in her chosen field, so Alex guessed that was all right for her, if her family didn’t object too much to it. It was most likely better, anyway, than being married to someone that you hated. If she’d had to make one, Alex would have listed something like that on her list of worst fears. The family was full of stories about how badly wrong it could go, her parents’ among them in some ways. They were a mild case, but it was still not much fun to put up with.

She began to serve herself a salad, mindful of her figure as was fitting for a lady despite knowing she would never be a beauty if she never ate again, but her brown eyes didn’t stay focused on that, instead keeping an eye on the table. Because of that, she was able to smile instead of being surprised when Gareth spoke to her, despite the way she knew smiling emphasized the size of her nose in her otherwise thin face. It would be impolite not to smile back, after all, whatever it looked like, and he’d had a year to decide what he thought of her face. When it came down to it, it didn’t matter so much what she looked like as what kind of connections she was in a position to offer, and she did a bit better in that department.

“I can’t complain about it,” she said pleasantly, finishing up the process of making her salad. “Did you have a nice time this summer?” He lived, as she understood it, overseas, so he wasn’t part of the social circle she was much able to follow the news of, if she wanted to put that much effort into it, even when they weren’t together, so she was honestly a little interested in hearing his answer. It might not be true, but then, anything that she heard about families and people here at home, even from her own relatives, might not be true, either. She thought that she could usually settle for interesting without any qualms about it.

0 Alexandra Devereux I should have a lot of those 0 Alexandra Devereux 0 5

Fae

March 25, 2012 9:23 PM

CATS and weddings by Fae

Fae felt that maybe all this talk about betrothals and marriages had been a bad idea. It began as something nice and simple with Topher asking after her siblings, but she had forced the ugly hand of the Pureblood ways and now things may be suddenly more awkward than they needed to be. Fae was going to be betrothed sooner or later, that was a fact that she could not get away from unless she wanted to be disowned. Topher was from a different sort of family where they had the freedom to love whoever they wanted and to marry them whenever they chose too.

She would never really understand why forced marriages still had to happen. The bloods of the magical were mixing daily now, no matter how much people didn’t want it to happen. If it didn’t happen than the magical race would die out. Sooner or later, connections would intertwine and there would be no one left to betroth that wasn’t already related to everyone else. She knew, of course, that such a thing wouldn’t happen in her lifetime or probably the few lifetimes that happened after, but it would happen if these rules still remained in place.

Fae listened intently as Topher explained his family life to her. She had never really thought about his father being a step-father. It made sense though, of course, now that she thought about it. How lucky though, he must be, because he knows where his father’s heart truly lays within their relationship. The man walked into the lives of a single mother and chose to stay in it. That was love. A love for both a mother and a son. Not that Fae questioned her father’s love for her or her siblings. Her father would bend over backwards to make sure that she and her siblings were as happy as they could be. Her mother too. Their love was a love from birth. A love that came naturally between parents and a child. But Topher’s step-father didn’t have to have that love for him. But he did anyway. Topher knew for sure that his step-father loved his mother and loved him too. It must be a nice feeling to have.

“Your father sounds like a very nice man.” She commented after Topher had finished explaining things to her. She could have chosen a different word from ‘nice’, but she wasn’t sure how else to say it. “It takes quite a bit of love for someone to enter into a family so willingly and without hesitation.” Fae smiled and placed a hand on his arm for reasons she could not explain. “The way you talk about him, I would have never known.”

0 Fae CATS and weddings 0 Fae 0 5

Cepheus Princeton

March 25, 2012 10:10 PM

Joining the cool kids. by Cepheus Princeton

Cepheus wasn't extremely excited to be back, but he a little relieved to be away from his family for a little while. After parting from them for school, going back and spending nearly three or so months with them was suffocating. He had had a very busy summer what with all the family gatherings and travelling he had done. He'd gone to India with his father to look over an estate they were building there, and then had been sent with his brothers to France to live with his aunt and uncle and continue his French lessons like he did every summer at the end of his holiday. Over the holiday, he'd felt so busy he had forgotten how close Rupert was in coming to Sonora.

Rup was going to be a mess here, and Cepheus wasn't really looking forward to having to get his brother constantly out of trouble. If Rupert got in trouble at school, that meant Cepheus got in trouble at home. It was quite unfair, but a burden that he supposed he was forced to bear as the eldest. Cepheus had also grown a little. It wasn't much, and he was still quite skinny and an inch or two shorter than the average boy his age, but he was twelve and growing. That was a relief. Father, being six feet tall, wanted him to hurry and grow up.

Cepheus was a little late in entering the hall. He had been lingering outside, not feeling hungry enough to go in, not wanting to really admit to the fact that summer was already over, but he was finally ushered inside by the grounds keeper. He slipped into the Crotalus table, not sitting with anyone in particular, and watched the headmistress welcome them. The opening ceremony and sorting went on, and Cepheus counted six new house members. Great. He had a sudden superior feeling to these first-years which knew only came after being a first-year himself.

Once it was over, he stood up and scanned the hall for familiar faces and then went to go sit with his Crotalus peers. Gareth and Alexandra were talking already as Cepheus approached them. "Sorry if I interrupt. Mind if I join you?" he asked politely, sitting down next to Alexandra. When he looked down to sit down, he was grateful that his blonde hair had been neatly trimmed just the week before.

40 Cepheus Princeton Joining the cool kids. 216 Cepheus Princeton 0 5

Topher

March 26, 2012 12:36 AM

Is there anything else we should look out for? by Topher

Knots of tension in Topher’s shoulders and chest that he hadn’t even really noticed were there before relaxed when Fae’s comment about his somewhat less than conventional situation at home was to say that his dad sounded like a nice guy. He didn’t even know why it mattered to him, honestly – both his parents had always said it shouldn’t matter what anyone thought about anything about him, including but not limited to them – but he didn’t want people looking down on him and his family, and it just made him mad when people implied, or even outright brought up, anything about his ‘real’ father. He could make an educated guess, based on how he and Caroline honestly could pass for siblings, but he didn’t even really know what Daniel Gardiner looked like.

“Eh, you say that because you haven’t seen him and Mom gang up on me about not living up to my potential,” he said, automatically trying to lighten the mood with a joke. “Nah, Dad is, he’s great.” He stopped there, before his mouth wandered into much more emotional territory than he really wanted it to. He was a Crotalus Beater, for Merlin’s sake. He had to keep up at least a little bit of an image.

Still, though, he thought she was telling the truth. Mom had, he knew, told his dad who Topher’s biological father was; a Canadian politician was, admittedly, easier to live with than one closer to home would have been, but there was still the fact that rich purebloods were probably a worldwide brotherhood, at least in the face of little people like him and his family. Marrying Grace anyway had essentially been Michael Calhoun, American nobody, telling the system that he didn’t care if it wanted to cause him problems. Topher didn’t know, in the same position, if he’d have the guts to do it. He had learned to work in the system, pretty much, and even usually be okay with it on an individual basis. His dad had not only had to make his peace with Mom’s past, but also with having a potentially very tenuous and maybe even bad personal relationship with the whole thing.

It made him redden again for a second, but Topher found he kind of liked her hand on his arm. “I never really thought about it any other way,” he said. “He’s just Dad. I don’t remember another one.” He decided to change the subject. “So,” he said, “anything besides wedding stuff happen in your summer? Are your parents already going postal about CATS? Mom spent half the summer talking about how I’ve got to buckle down and work hard, two years isn’t nearly as long as I think it is, yadda yadda yadda.” He grinned. “You’d never think she flunked her Potions one, but I found the evidence going through some old boxes one time.”

0 Topher Is there anything else we should look out for? 0 Topher 0 5

Megan Brownbriar

March 26, 2012 12:53 AM

After the frog by Megan Brownbriar

The summer before her second year at Sonora was one of many ups and downs. Firstly, all of the littles (her little siblings and cousins too) had bombarded the newly termed second years about their year and everything about Sonora. Meggie HATED that. From the start of the summer all the way to the Reunion of all the Briar lines, then home again, it followed her everywhere. The twelve year old girl majorly disliked everything about the questions asked, except where her slightly younger sister Nia was concerned. Anything Nia asked, Meggie answered to the best of her ability and would always do the same thing. Meggie and Nia were very close, often together in fact, thanks to the semi-closeness of their ages and genders. The Briar lines all must follow certain rules of status and behaviour for which Meggie was quite mad about, but had no way around it unless she wanted to be disowned or even worse like her older cousin. The pureblood girl that she was, wasn’t really who she wanted to be, but what choice did she have in the matter?

Secondly, her older brother, Nye, had been betrothed over the summer. He seemed to be okay with it though Owena, her older sister wasn’t too happy that she hadn’t been betrothed first. Her older brothers and sister attended Hogwarts, she was the first to come to Sonora (along with her cousin Gareth of course) which was the school that her brother’s betrothed, Nora, attended as well. Meggie hadn’t really gotten much of a chance to talk to Nora, but she hoped that this year they might get closer, almost like sisters perhaps since when they got older they really would be sisters. Meggie wondered what Nye had thought about being betrothed, so she actually asked him. She was surprised at his answer. He was okay with it and thought that Nora would make a fine wife. Nia seemed to find the romance in it all, whereas Meggie herself wanted to find the romance in it but wasn’t sure she knew how. Meggie only remembered what happened when men and women got married, had children and died from it. This was a slight hard time for her newly turned twelve year old mind. She didn’t want to see Nora die too, like her mother, and because of that she became very protective of the idea and decided to made it a point to watch out for Nora once school started.

Thirdly, their father was never home. He was always working or whatever he did that wasn’t home with his children and so he hired nannies to try to curb his young hooligans. Meggie, for one, didn’t appreciate the invasion into their home of someone who was there as a sort of replacement for their mother. So she, with Nia’s help mostly, somehow managed to get one nanny after another to leave the house in the children’s charge. One of her favorite ways of getting rid of the nannies was leaving frogs in her must smelling bed so that when she went to sleep she felt them there and ran out of the house. Meggie had laughed for hours over that one. It was wonderful in her eyes.

Fourth, Meggie decided she could talk to Nia about some of the things that had been bothering her about being a girl in the Briar lines. She even told her younger sister that she was thinking of hiding who she was and going out for Teppenpaw’s Quidditch Team anyway, even though she was a girl. After all, Teppenpaw’s Captain was a girl herself! Nia didn’t look too happy about that, in fact, Meggie noticed how worried her sister was. When Nia tried to convince her not to do that, she couldn’t help but agree not to. She’d do anything for Nia, and Nia knew it. She remembered thinking, Oh why did I tell Nia!? That was so stupid of me! but was determined not to break her promise to her sister, however unhappy it would make her.

Fifth, right before it was time for Meggie to leave to get back to school on time, she and Nia were talking and Nia started to cry. Meggie learned that her younger sister didn’t want her to leave again and suddenly she found herself wondering what would happen if she just stayed home. Gareth would have less to worry about being the boy, and she’d be there with Nia. But that’s silly. That’s not going to solve anything. she told herself as she thought of what to say to her little sister. She explained to Nia how she’d felt when their older siblings went off to Hogwarts and left her and the others behind but that they had each told her that soon she’d be going to school just like they were. Megs had told Nia that they were right, and that soon, Nia would follow Meggie to Sonora and they’d be together as often as they could be. Nia felt better and after the pair gave their hugs, Megan Aaliyah Brownbriar set off for Sonora for her second year.

She walked into Cascade Hall and smiled at the view. She thought of Nia and mentally wrote a note inside her mind to tell Nia more about the hall and its prettiness in her first letter. Meggie had promised her sister to write all the time, and a Brownbriar never went back on her promises. She sat down at a table with a bunch of Teppenpaws and smiled at them as Headmistress Kijewski spoke. Megs turned her attention to the woman standing at the front of the room as she welcomed them all. The extra last name she had didn’t phaze Meggie right away, but that wasn’t top priority in her books. What was important was taking note on what happened with the first years so she could tell Nia more about what will happen when she came with her next year. Professor K spoke to the first years and told them about the potion that Meggie herself had drank from the year before which had turned her a strange shade of yellow. She wondered what house Nia would be in and spent a good many minutes trying to work it out in her mind as first years turned colors all around her.

Once the sorting had finished, Professor K introduced some new teachers and then the new Head Boy and Girl as well as the new Prefects and Meggie smiled at each of them politely, though she wanted to clap for them all. She knew however, that was not lady-like and her father would disapprove of such loud and noisy behaviours from one of his girls. it’s a good thing Papa doesn’t know what we’ve done to the nannies… Meggie thought as she remembered the frog incident. She giggled as quietly as she could until a School Concert was mentioned. Meggie’s mind was back on track as the sheet music from the School song made their way to her. Meggie sang softly and with an air of perfection along with the rest of the school and once the song was finished food appeared before them.

Megan had been taught to eat like a lady and she waited for the others around her to grab at the food in front of them before she turned to the one spooning most of the plate of pasta onto their plates and said, “Are you going to eat all of that? Or can you please share the pasta?”

0 Megan Brownbriar After the frog 0 Megan Brownbriar 0 5

Sullivan Quincy

March 26, 2012 1:19 PM

How now brown cow by Sullivan Quincy

Sullivan returned to Sonora for his third year feeling something between dread and acceptance. He had scraped through his first two years of beginner classes and now, for his third year, the Powers That Be seemingly arbitrarily, with no consideration given to his actual skills, advanced him up to intermediate lessons. This was not going to go well.

He entered the Cascade Hall, more immediate concerns crowding over the more distant academic ones. He vainly hoped the Headmistress would forget they had a school song and that Jhonice would have transfered to a different school. A scan of the area near the Pecari tables dashed that second hope. There she was.

When an older student cut off her line of sight to him, Sully dropped to the floor in a horribly unsubtle but seeming effective attempt to escape her notice.

He scrambled along the ground, flushing in mild embarrassment as other students noticed him hiding from a girl, but it was necessary and worth it. He stole a peek back toward where he had last seen her and was relieved to find she had taken a seat with Jade. Sully rose back up to his feet and hurried to a distant seat as Headmistress K started talking. He had managed to get a spot near a group of empty chairs. Those began to fill with brown colored first years.

Sadly, the Headmistress did remember there was a song. He suspected his attempt to sing it made those around him also wish there wasn't one.

The one nearest jumped as Sully had done two years ago when the food appeared out of nowhere. "You'll get used to it," he assured her. "Things can be pretty weird here at first."

He stuck out a hand, a very muggle gesture that seemed to gave replaced the bows and curtsies still exchanged among wizards. "I'm Sully."

1 Sullivan Quincy How now brown cow 207 Sullivan Quincy 0 5

Carrie O'Malley

March 26, 2012 2:49 PM

Fabulousness has finally arrived at Sonora. by Carrie O'Malley

Carrie sniffed with disgust. The wagon ride to Sonora had not been up to her standards. How could they expect someone like her to travel that way? It made her (perfectly tailored custom made specially for her) clothing dirty and on the wagon from Colorado in particular there was a dearth of acceptable company. Carrie had to travel here with her brother and she should never have to travel with him . That was the worst thing of all. The first year was special and thus deserved special treatment and that included her transportation here.

She looked down the row of first years, wondering which of the guys would be good potential marriage material. Carrie was certain that they would all want her, but she would only accept the cream of the crop, the very best. It was, after all, what Carrie deserved. She was definitely also the prettiest girl in the group, but then how could anyone be more so than her?

Her nose wrinkled with further distaste at the mention of Amelia Pierce as the Deputy Headmistress. What kind of school allowed such a woman to rise to such an important position? Of course, aside from Aunt Lilac who was decidedly odd, none of the women working here would be at all respectable anyway, because respectable pureblood women did not work but her ? Carrie would accept the goblet from the woman but aside from that she certainly could not be expected to respect someone who was so far beneath her. After all, the woman's position at Sonora mattered little in comparison to her position in society.

The first year drank her potion and turned a bright shade of red. That meant Crotalus and he was in Crotalus. How in Merlin's good name could they be in the same house? What if people associated Carrie with Ryan? He was a blight on the respectable names of O'Malley and Brockert. Plus, her mother had been in Pecari somehow even though most Pecaris were disgustingly behaved ruffians the way Arabella was.

On the other hand, Crotalus did tend to be nearly all purebloods and considered the most proper and respectable of all houses-though Carrie had some doubts on this. How respectable could a house be if it contained Ryan and was led by Amelia Pierce? Still, at least that meant she would have place to go that was away from all the impurities allowed in to Sonora. Really, half-bloods and mudbloods should not be allowed to go to school with purebloods. They should have to go to separate schools.

Besides, this way, she could make sure to turn everyone else in the house against Ryan too. Of course, Carrie was certain they likely hated him already. There was absolutely nothing at all to like about him. The fifth year had no good qualities, and apparently, despite her aunt and uncle being on staff here, the rest of the faculty-a group of primarily nobodies themselves-saw it that way too, as his name had not been announced as prefect. Ryan might have mentioned having friends, but Carrie was certain that, like Sophie, there was something wrong with them anyway.

Now, though, it was time for the new Crotalus to meet her public. She was positive that everyone would adore her and think she was the most wonderful person they'd ever met. Carrie was sure that they would find that their lives prior to meeting her would lose all meaning just because she hadn't in them. She was certain to be the most popular girl in not just her year, but all of Sonora-after all, Carrie was already the prettiest, the two that had ended up in Teppenpaw weren't really all that pretty and neither was that one slightly older one that Carrie had spotted.

The Crotalus sat down primly at what appeared to be her house's table. "Hello," she greeted the person sitting across from her. "I am Carrie O'Malley, of the Colorado O'Malleys." Her voice clearly indicated that that meant something and if they didn't recognize her name, then they were clearly unworthy nobodies. Or even worse, they might associate her with that pile of refuse that was considered her brother.

11 Carrie O'Malley Fabulousness has finally arrived at Sonora. 230 Carrie O'Malley 0 5

Professor Alexander O'Rourke

March 26, 2012 4:32 PM

New Beginnings by Professor Alexander O'Rourke

The start of term feast had always been Alex’s favorite part of school. Granted, he always relished occasions in which overindulgence was accepted; but being a single male and a horrible cook made him particularly grateful. He’d been teaching for the past decade, not to mention the 7 years he spent in school, and all the university and student teaching after that. The start of term feast had steadily become another tradition over the years, much like any other holiday. Aside from the food, Alex also found something particularly intoxicating about the energy surrounding such feasts. Yes, you had to sit through often boring and tedious speeches, but the energy was incredible. There was a buzz of excitement from the new students, the happiness of friends reconnecting, and the spark of potential—Alex loved it all. A fresh start, new opportunities, and another chance to mold the minds of future generations.

This year, however, was a little different.

Not only was he new to Sonora, Alex was on an entirely different continent. Not exactly by choice, either. He’d had the perfect set up at home in England; dream job, a comfortable (thought often empty) flat, and a few beneficial relationships beneath his belt. That life was ancient history now, and Alex was faced with his own new beginnings. Earlier that summer, he’d packed up a few of his belongings; mostly his collection of designer robes, along with the few bits and bobs he was uncommonly sentimental about, and fled his native country.

Alex put a lot of consideration into where exactly he should land. He wanted to go somewhere warm and tropical—far away from the wet, grey English weather he’d known all of his life. He ran into a little trouble though, as the magic in certain parts of the world seemed a little darker and more ominous than what he was used to. Something Alex needed to avoid at all costs.

The United States were his best bet; the language barrier was minimal, the magical community was internationally respected, and American women lost it when they heard an English accent. The only thing he hadn’t anticipated was the harsh heat of the desert when he ended up in Arizona. In a lot of ways, Alex felt like an earthworm stranded on the pavement after a storm. Luckily for him, he was more than skilled with a wand, and enchanted his entire wardrobe with a cooling charm to make things tolerable at best.

After finding a place to stay, and procuring the position of Astronomy professor at Sonora, Alex was finally starting to feel like himself again and less like a transient. He even took more care than usual in getting ready for the feast. After all, he had an impression to make, and he wanted it to be a good one. He’d settled on immaculately pressed, perfectly tailored cream colored robes with matching trousers and a crisp light blue button down. He artfully disheveled his dark hair and made sure the first two buttons on his shirt were undone, just so he didn’t look overly put together and stuffy.

He managed to find his way into the hall without much trouble, and settled himself in a seat at what he imagined was the staff table. Before long, the hall was buzzing with the chatter of students and his fellow staff members. Alex kept to himself mostly, trying to observe more than anything. Besides, as soon as he opened his mouth there was usually an onslaught of questions, or people asking him to repeat himself, and for the moment he wanted to simply enjoy himself.

Soon the first years were brought in, and the Headmistress was on her feet to begin the festivities. Alex had never worked beneath a woman before, but from the looks of things, he didn’t imagine he would mind. The sorting was different than what he was used to, and before long a handful of strangely colored students took their seats amongst their houses. Then came the announcements. Alex was glad that a speech wasn’t expected from him, and simply nodded and rose his hand slightly as the headmistress introduced him to the student body. He wasn’t entirely surprised when no one seemed particularly interested in the new additions to the staff, but he felt that would change come their first exam.

Alex applauded as the titles of prefect and heads were given out, and only vaguely registered that there was going to be a concert at some point during the term. His stomach growled, and the astronomy professor mumbled his way through the new school song. He was glad when the food began to appear, having not had a proper meal in months. While the selection was impressive, he was once again reminded that he wasn’t in England any more. He clapped once again as the headmistress finished her speech and sat down, and set about determining what exactly some of these American dishes were.

0 Professor Alexander O'Rourke New Beginnings 0 Professor Alexander O'Rourke 0 5

Reggie

March 26, 2012 6:07 PM

Its the happiest color on Earth! by Reggie

None of them were really reacting the way she had hoped. She wasn’t so much as telling him of her possible ability as she was explaining the fact that a woman that Reggie had written off as dead was suddenly coming into her life because she simply thought Reggie was special. The woman didn’t love her mother or her and hated who her father was. This was most unsettling for Reggie. She wanted her friends to be angry with her, not excited for her weird possible gift. Well, she supposed that she could understand why they thought her gift was cool. Even in the magical world, Seers were rare and not always actually Seers. Reggie didn’t know what she was, but at the moment, it has only given her trouble.

“I’m not really sure what I see.” She admitted to Josephine and the others. “I mean, it just feels like déjà vu whenever I dream of something and then a few days or weeks later it happens. Nothing big – well, except for maybe my dad’s lies – but just enough of that feeling to know that it’s happened before.” Reggie explained. She gave a smile to Derry specifically since he had offered up his own resident Seer to help her out. “Not sure if Mom will be too thrilled at the idea of me passing up her mom for your dead relative, but I will definitely keep it in mind. If nothing else, it might mean seeing you on vacations.” She added that last part to tease him. Now that he wasn’t living on his mountain, there was a better chance of her being able to hang out with him during the holidays or summer. Like that ski trip they were discussing last year.

Josephine’s summer seemed to be much like Reggie’s normally is. This year just happened to have enough drama in it to make a good story. But usually it was just her and dad camping somewhere. This year, that hadn’t happened because she had been so made and because her mother took off work to try to convince her to speak to her ridiculous family. She was a bit envious of Josephine to be honest. As much as Reggie liked her old Muggle friends, they weren’t the same.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Reggie demanded of Derry only after Maddie had spoke of her summer because Reggie didn’t want to interupt. “You went from living on your mountain to living in a Muggle neighborhood? You learned baseball? Shoot, now we can go out in the gardens and play catch sometime.” Reggie mused. “Why did your mom choose a Muggle community instead of a magical one? Or is that where your brother and his baby live?” Reggie was curious. She would have figured that Derry and his mother would have just moved into another magical area in Boston. All this talk of relatives made Reggie wonder if she had any uncles… or aunts. She had never asked her mother before. It just… nevermattered.

6 Reggie Its the happiest color on Earth! 187 Reggie 0 5

Sairahiniel Light

March 26, 2012 8:19 PM

Nice rhyming by Sairahiniel Light

Sairahiniel looked at the boy who'd introduced himself as Sully and gave a confident smile. Time to put on a show. She'd never had problems at home, what with her razor-sharp tongue and formidable death glare that could scare the panties off of a field marshal, but being in a new place was always scary, even for "the girl who had no fear." Even so, she'd done the "new kid" dance before.

"Sully? That's a cool name," she said, blue eyes bright, like sunlight glittering off of ice. "But I bet I can do ya one better: Sairahiniel's the name, and apparently, magic's my game." She paused thoughtfully. "But I wish someone had told me the rules first. Sure would've been helpful." Sairahiniel startled again as more food appeared before her, the jump gently moving the raven hair that had concealed half of her face. She looked up, scared to see the boy's reaction to the twisting, winding three-pronged scar that ran from her right eye to her jawbone, but at the same time, her eyes dared him to make a snide comment.

Awesome, she thought angrily. This was definitely the way she wanted to start her new life.

0 Sairahiniel Light Nice rhyming 0 Sairahiniel Light 0 5

Sophie Jamison

March 26, 2012 9:59 PM

I'm not a medic, but... by Sophie Jamison

After actually getting to spend some time with her father, Sophie was almost disappointed to go back to school. It was a pleasant change to which grow accustomed, and she was going to miss him. The fifth year felt a lot closer to her dad than she had ever been before, and it was quite a nice experience. After months and months of worrying about him, he was back and more present than ever.

Still, there was to be quite some excitement this year. The blonde was the recently crowned Assistant Captain for Pecari’s Quidditch team, which was totally thrilling. Sophie was absolutely ecstatic for the season; with her and Mel in command, Pecari was definitely going to win! There was no other option! A winning trend would be set that would be followed throughout the following years, during which she would be Captain.

Of course, there was negativity to this term too. For example, the greatest source of negativity—far larger than her now-upcoming CATs—was the arrival of Carrie O’Malley. That girl was just evil. It was so weird how someone nice and wonderful like Ryan could come from the same gene pool, but obviously they took after different parents. Sophie wasn’t exactly a fan of their mother, either, and it was she that the daughter took after.

Her stomach churned when Carrie turned Crotalus red, and she could only imagine how awful her totally-just-a-friend best friend felt. She looked to him for clues into his emotional state, not really bothering to pay attention to the speech. She wasn’t terribly interested in whatever new staff was coming in this term, and she knew she wasn’t about to get Prefect. Even if she did, she didn’t want it.

Her name was not called, and she could look out for him in peace. Ryan rose from his seat and started towards the exit, and the blue-eyed girl sprang from her seat and dashed over to him. She stopped directly in front of him, a comforting smile aimed at him. Instead of saying something, she gently looped her arms around him in a hug; words were not really needed, and nor were they were strength.

12 Sophie Jamison I'm not a medic, but... 34 Sophie Jamison 0 5

Aubrielle Thornton

March 27, 2012 2:00 AM

It's the BEST color of all! by Aubrielle Thornton

Aubrielle Reece Thornton had a summer that topped all of the others she’d ever had. She’d been doing theatre for a long time, but this summer for the first time ever she managed to get one of the lead roles in one of her favorite shows of all time. She got to play the character she’d do almost anything to play, to boot. 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee came to her Regional Theatre and she got to play Logainne!

She’d even gotten into the review made by the local critic who’d said that she brought life to the stage and her talent and energy was youthful. He’d also said that he thought she had promise in her and couldn’t wait to see her in another show. The article had been, of course, ripped out of the paper and she’d folded it at once and put it in her pocket. Since the article had come out, it never left her side.

She’d been all smiles, as usual, and it seemed (to her sisters) that she’d never come down from cloud nine. Her energy could not be curbed, the other Thorntons knew that. Of course the show wasn’t the only thing that the eleven year old was excited about that summer. Aubrielle knew that she’d be able to go to school with her older sisters finally this year and that made her even more energized!

When it came time for the sisters to leave Portland, their father drove them off again as he had the year their mother was pregnant with the triplets because their mother was once again pregnant. This time, not nearly as far in, but she wasn’t feeling well that morning so their father didn’t have much choice. Brielle spent the whole ride chattering to her sisters about so many things that it (she knew) made their minds reel. None of them had the ability to even hear many of the words she said she’d uttered them so quickly. But she didn’t really care. She was FINALLY going to Sonora!

The ride felt like it took years to go just a few states, but she figured that it was just her excitement that caused that so she didn’t worry. “Are we there YET?!” she asked her older sisters exasperatedly as the wagon chugged on and on down one road and up another. Each of them in turn shook their heads no to their exuberant younger sister so Brielle pouted a few seconds before talking some more. She didn’t care if anyone heard her or not, or if she was bothering anyone. She just wanted to get to school already!

Finally they got there and her sisters left her with the line of other first years. She waved goodbye as first Amira, then Andri, then Arista, lastly Addi walked away from her. Her smile could have lit up the room with all the happiness she felt right then. Even though her sisters were leaving her there, it didn’t matter. She knew they were there, and that nothing would hurt her. A woman stood up and welcomed her and the other students to Sonora and then introduced herself as Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau and that they could call her Professor K. Brielle smiled widely towards her and waved enthusiastically. Her excitement was growing larger and larger and she bounced on the balls of her feet waiting for her turn to sip the potion from the goblet being held by Coach Pierce. She listened to what each color meant and she smiled to each of her sisters in turn before she got to the Coach.

When she finally stood in front of Coach Pierce, she grabbed the goblet happily and drank from it as fast as she could. She looked at her hand and arm and smiled wider than ever when she saw that she was turning yellow! Her eyes widened happily and she ran over to Arista and Addison. She gave them each a tight hug and smiled with more excitement than had been in her all day long. “I’m a Teppenpaw!” she screeched as she kept bouncing around the table, not sitting next to her sisters, but by a group of other yellow children. Her fellow first years, and her roommates.

Her attention wasn’t on Professor K anymore, though she knew she really should listen to her. She assumed that Addi or Arista would tell her what was said if it was important as she trusted that they knew her focus would not be had that night.

Brielle heard nothing but buzzing inside her head until she heard the words School Concert. “YES!” she said excitedly, though thankfully it came out quieter than she’d figured it would. Sheet music appeared in front of her and she happily sang with the others, glad to be singing once more.

When the song ended, food appeared on the table in front of them. “WOW!” Brielle said as her mouth dropped almost to the floor before smiling a broad smile to the other yellow first years around her. The girl next to her chose some vegetables, salad, fruit bread and water. Brielle, however, chose the macaroni and cheese that sat almost directly in front of her. It looked almost like her Momma’s and that made her very happy.

She heard the girl next to her introduce herself and the first year smiled to Aria as a girl nearby introduced herself as Melanie Lennox of the St. Louis Lennoxes. Of the St. Louis Lennoxes? she thought, guessing that this girl, like her mother, was a pureblood just by the way she’d introduced herself. This should be interesting…

Brielle listened to the conversation without interrupting quite yet. She wanted to see who her roommates would be before she scared them (if she scared them). Another blonde girl spoke fast, introducing herself as Lucille before fixing her name to include her lastname as well as where she was from. Another pureblood. Hm. We’re a nice mix… she added to herself as Lucille told them that they could call her Lucille.

Aubrielle looked from Melanie and Lucille back to Aria who started speaking. Brielle grinned at Aria, but then looked at her curiously when she spoke to Lucille. Brielle looked from Aria to Lucille and wondered what types of thoughts were going through both of their minds.

Aria asked about why the others had specified their states and Brielle waited patiently for the answer from one of them before she spoke.

“And I’m Aubrielle Reece Thornton, my friends call me Bri or Brielle. Sometimes my siblings call me B. Whichever of those you’d like to call me is fine.” she said, looking to each of them in turn. “I think this is going to be an awesome next seven years, don’t you?” she asked them, her smile broadening even more.

0 Aubrielle Thornton It's the BEST color of all! 0 Aubrielle Thornton 0 5

Solomon Bensalem

March 27, 2012 2:59 AM

It has? by Solomon Bensalem

Solomon Bensalem, was the little village’s pride and joy. He left his home with almost more fear and trepidation than he found in himself when he saw an Angel Island Speckled Rattlesnake in his path. The eleven year old boy, tall and lanky, being incredibly unused to his body since he’d begun to shoot up like a plant. That was the reason that the Outsiders had called him dopey. It didn’t matter that his hair was black, curly and in a sort of afro when school began. Or that his skin was the color of coffee with light cream in it. Or that his eyes were the same color as his skin with the exception of a few green flecks in them. What mattered was that he had to learn to help his village to grow and become better than ever one day very soon.

Solomon had grown up in a very small village on an island in the middle of the Sea of Cortez. He knew that by coming to Sonora he would have to put some of his family’s traditions and beliefs aside. This, he did not look forward to doing at all. A calm boy under normal circumstances, he always followed the rules given to him by his elders. He was not used to impromptu things as was about to happen and so he was shaking in his Grandfather’s old moccasins on the inside. He did not show his fear on the outside. The boy felt like a duck. Moving fast underneath the water, but calm and serene on the top. I’m like a duck. I’m like a duck. I’m like a duck. he thought as Tiburón, his black kitten, purred in his arms. He buried his nose in the kitten’s black fur and seemed to purr back at him. “Hello Tib!” he whispered into the kitten’s little ears.

The boy couldn’t help but have Isla Ángel de la Guarda on his mind. It was his home, after all. So when he followed the other first years into the big room he felt shock setting in. His face paled and he looked nervously around him, hugging Tib tighter than normal as a woman stood up and spoke. She was his elder, and he would listen. He had to.

Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau seemed nice enough, though it seemed odd to him to call anyone something like Professor K. But if she wanted him to call her that, he wouldn’t dare disobey an order. Sip from a potion? he thought, worry causing the specks in his eyes to almost disappear. Harmless. Okay. Thoughts rushed around his mind like the waterfalls around him and he got on the line to take his turn.

The student ahead of him turned yellow and then it was his turn. His fear almost got to him. He felt like running. Slipping his old moccasins almost completely off his feet so he could run faster, he heard a voice in his head. He could have sworn it was his Grandfather, but he knew better. It was his own conscience. Slipping the old shoes back on his feet, he held out his hand for the potion and right away closed his eyes. He took two steps and then opened them again.

Red.

I’m a Crotalus. he thought. I really DO belong here.

Once the line was all done taking the potion, Professor K went on. She introduced them to the new staff members, the new Head Boy and Girl as well as the Prefects before she told them about the School Concert. What’s that? he wondered, hoping eventually it would be explained to him.

Something appeared in front of him that had funny lines all over it as well as words and suddenly the room around him started singing.

He never moved his mouth.

The song ended and food appeared before them. The boy didn’t want to eat, instead he just stared around him until he heard someone speak across the table to him.

"Hello, I am Carrie O'Malley, of the Colorado O'Malleys."

He looked at her, half expecting to see the Angel Island Speckled Snake’s tongue come out her mouth. It wasn’t until he didn’t see it that he got the nerve back to say anything at all.

“Solomon Bensalem, of the uhm…” he started. “Of the Isla Ángel de la Guarda Bensalems?” the boy finished, wondering why she’d introduced herself that way. As he was completely out of his comfort zone, he’d just tried to copy what she’d done because he did not know any better.

0 Solomon Bensalem It has? 0 Solomon Bensalem 0 5

Katy Rock

March 27, 2012 11:26 AM

And so it begins... by Katy Rock

Katy stood amongst a gaggle of others her age, ready to become a part of their new school. Her brilliant blue eyes surveyed the beautiful and bright hall, smiling to herself as she made a mental note to suggest to her mother that they decorate their own hallway with waterfalls – there was just nothing quite like it, though a small part of her was left wondering just how many people had felt the urge the stick their tongue in the water and how many of those had acted upon this urge. Katy then pondered as to whether or not the waterfalls were even wet, or if anything would actually happen if someone went to touch it.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the loud voice of her new headmistress, Professor K-something, echoing round the room. Katy wasn’t the best at remembering names of people, but she made no effort to hide that, but often preferred to use it as a conversational piece. At least ‘Professor K’ was one she’d remember, but probably not the whole name until she’d heard it a couple of times.

Professor K was explaining the process of being sorted into houses, which Katy found great fun. The idea of turning another colour? Excellent - she was vaguely disappointed that the effects of this weren’t permanent. What a laugh that would have been in the future.

Craning her neck, Katy looked out for her brother, Jake, but hadn’t found him yet. He must have been behind her somewhere. With him living with his father – her step-dad – and Katy living with her mother – Jake’s step-mum – it had been a while since they’d last seen each other, probably a year or so at least since she and her mum had moved to Canada while Jake and his father had stayed living in England until very recently, when they’d moved to... some state, Katy did have a tendency to forget. They hadn’t been there long, after all. She was looking forward to seeing him again, he wasn’t too bad for a brother, if a little quiet.

While looking out for Jake and absent-mindedly enjoying the various reactions from other new students as their skin changed colour, it was suddenly her turn to taste the potion. She frowned a little as she considered how many peoples’ lips had touched it, but sipped it regardless before stepping to the side, allowing the person behind her to move forward.

Her blue eyes twinkling with excitement, Katy’s skin glowed the same colour. She inwardly rejoiced, pleased with her placement, though assumed she’d have felt so whichever house she’d been sorted into. Aladren sounded good, though. ‘Katy Rock, Aladren,’ she thought to herself, mimicking the way news presenters signed off, and wandered over to the Aladren table, seating herself comfortably and flicking her long brown hair back behind her shoulders.

She sat in silence for a few minutes, still taking in her surroundings, before the headmistress spoke again, introducing new teachers and prefects, and then a song – Katy raised her brow as everybody sang, suddenly feeling like she was in church or something – and then, amazingly, there was food where there had previously been none. Katy wondered why her mother didn’t use that trick for the big dinner parties they had rather than insisting that everything is prepared, cooked and served beautifully, usually by just the two of them. Shrugging it off, Katy sipped at her pumpkin juice and turned to look unblinkingly at the person sat next to her, with a friendly yet somewhat eerie smile gracing her lips.

“Hey,” she spoke enthusiastically and, with her typical blunt tone, questioned “who are you?”

0 Katy Rock And so it begins... 0 Katy Rock 0 5

Liam Ammon

March 27, 2012 11:32 AM

Brown is the color of chocolate and wolverines by Liam Ammon

The summer had come and gone faster than Liam had expected. One day there was an oddly dressed man at the door telling him he was “special”, and then the next day he was standing in line to board a covered wagon that would take him away to a magical school where he would train to be a wizard. Or was he already a wizard and just needed to hone his skills? The details were lost on the boy, but either way, Liam Ammon was very excited-- and maybe a little confused.

He always knew he was different, but he figured it was just because he liked comics, videogames, and had an unusual knack for trivia. Or maybe it was the fact that he had no sense of fashion, and his mom couldn’t quite keep him in pants that were long enough. He never imagined he could do magic. He’d read about it in fantasy books, and always thought it would be cool to be like Gandalf—but this was real. Soon he’d be able to move things with a thought, or put on firework shows with nothing but his fingertips. Maybe, he thought, he could even bring his dad back, or at least talk to him again…

Liam was over the moon about starting out on his own adventure; but leaving his family was still particularly hard. He’d watched his mother cry so many times over the past three years that Liam had tried extra hard to be good. Tears on his account were the worst. Ramona, his 7 year old sister, cried too. She kind of understood what was happening, but seeing her favorite brother leave, hurt—especially since dad never came back the last time he left. Liam promised he’d come back, Ramona put on her brave face, and as he watched his family turn into tiny specs, he could have sworn he heard his brother Marcus’ voice.

“I hope you don’t get dysentery!”

As he was marched into the hall with his fellow first years, Liam heard all sorts of things he didn’t understand. Everyone else seemed to speak like 30 year olds in 11 year old bodies, and he was pretty sure “muggle” wasn’t anywhere in the dictionary. He would, of course, make sure to check after the feast. He was also surprised, and somewhat disappointed, by the distinct lack of pointy hats. Didn’t witches and wizards wear pointy hats? Myth number one debunked! Liam made a note to himself to leave that particular item hidden in his trunk.

Usually a rather talkative child, Liam was quiet during the Headmistress’ speech. He didn’t want to miss anything, and was trying to absorb as much about his new surroundings as he could. He couldn’t help but admire the hall’s décor, but his attention was fixed on the table filled with adults.

Liam was toward the end of the line of children to be sorted. He really had no idea what any of the houses meant, or if one was better than any of the others. There seemed to be a lot of yellow girls running around, and secretly he wished his skin would turn that same sunny hue. When it was his turn, Liam only hesitated for a moment before imbibing the potion. For the first time in his life, Liam’s skin began to darken. Brown. That meant Pecari, didn’t it? Taking the lead of the first years before him, Liam made his way to the table with the other brown kids.

“I don’t look half bad with a tan.” He said with a smile before sitting down in a vacant seat, his bright blue eyes standing out strangely due to the current color of his skin. He heard the headmistress introduce a few new staff members, and clapped automatically. He wondered what classes he’d be taking, and how long it would take before he could shoot fire out of his wand. Next there were students being recognized for something, and a song that Liam stumbled through awkwardly. At long last, food began appearing in front of him, and he could feel his mouth water.

As he began filling his plate with meat products, he leaned over to a student next to him, his curiosity becoming almost too much to bear.

“What’s a muggle?” He asked, taking a bite of a drumstick.

5 Liam Ammon Brown is the color of chocolate and wolverines 37 Liam Ammon 0 5

Gareth

March 27, 2012 11:43 AM

Where you belong of course by Gareth

When asked about his summer Gareth had to suppress a scowl. The family reunion this year had been a storm of questions from the eldest down to the youngest and there was only so much attention he could divert to Meggs instead of himself. As the male, it was his duty to break down every scope and angle of Sonora’s Quidditch program to be meticulously compared to Hogwarts. That was what all the older boys wanted to know about, well that and details about the girls of Sonora and the different American bloodlines that he’d met. The younger kids who would be attending Sonora instead of Hogwarts or RMI were as bad as his brother about demanding to know everything from the statues in the Labyrinth to the size of the library. All in all it was a giant hassle and one of the benefits of next summer was the fact that it would be the Blackbriar cousins turn to be hassled over details of their new school and he could go back to relative obscurity.

“It was a bit hectic, Meggs, Megan Brownbriar and I are the first of the lines to attend Sonora so everyone wanted to know everything about it of course. My brother will be attending next term and he decided that he’d spend the whole summer pestering me with questions about the school and everyone in it.” Gareth said with a chuckle after he tried a bite of the duck. The meat had a rather nice orange glaze and he hummed in approval. “I hope yours went well?” He asked in return.

“Sorry if I interrupt. Mind if I join you?” The voice brought a smile to Gareth’s lips. He was glad that his room mate was returning this term, they got on well and it would be a pain to have to get use to someone knew.

0 Gareth Where you belong of course 0 Gareth 0 5

Jacob Rock

March 27, 2012 12:33 PM

It's the in colour this year by Jacob Rock

Jacob, known to his family as Jake, folded his arms across his chest, blue eyes staring, unimpressed, from beneath his messy dark brown hair. It wasn’t that he was unhappy, or uninterested, or lacking excitement, no – it was all these other people. Since he’d begun travelling over from California to get to the school, he had been surrounded by people. They were like the plague of the planet, he was certain. Well, some were alright. Sometimes.

He shifted his weight impatiently, never having liked being made to wait for anything, let alone to enter a room. He could see his step-sister, Katy, ahead of him. ‘At least there’s one person here who will be tolerable,’ he thought to himself as the doors opened and they were led inside the hall. He liked her most of the time, though he’d never tell her.

Listening to the headmistress, Professor Kijewski-Jareau, speak was vaguely interesting, though Jake felt he’d have preferred it if she’d written the welcome speech down and allowed them to read it while they’d waited to enter the hall. Apparently they were to drink some potion and change colour for a while in order to be sorted into their houses – at least that part sounded interesting. It was the magic that Jake had come here for, after all. He’d been raised with his father, a muggle, and Katy’s mother – his step-mother – who was a witch. His own mother had been a witch as well, but Jake had never had the opportunity to meet her as she’d passed away shortly after bringing him into the world.

He watched ahead of him as other students began changing colour, and he smiled a little to himself as he saw Katy sip the potion and turn blue shortly afterwards. As he neared closer to the front himself, he wondered what fate had chosen for him for his school life. His turn coming quicker than he’d expected, Jake glanced over to see if Katy had seen him, but she seemed to be keeping herself to herself and enjoying the ambience in her own special way. He called it ‘zoning out’ but she’d always insisted that she was ‘fully aware the whole time’. Taking the potion handed to him, Jake took a quick sip and then the room went dark, leaving him momentarily confused until he realised his brain had decided it would be best if his eyes were shut. Disagreeing with his mind, Jake opened them to discover himself looking decidedly cerulean, and felt a vague sense of satisfaction pass over him. He was going to be in the same house as Katy – small mercies, and all that.

He tried his best to ignore the singing that came soon after the sorting process, though he’d paid attention long enough before this to have picked up on the names and faces of new teachers and appointed students. All he’d really been interested in was the food, which appeared right on cue.

A boy opposite him, who was also somewhat blue, asked what to begin with. Jake surveyed the table of the wondrous spread, understanding why the boy opposite would be overwhelmed by choice. A girl, who Jake had noticed to have been singing very loudly for the school song, suggested starting with something unfamiliar, which was something Jake just couldn’t agree with. In a new place of unknown surroundings and unknown people, a familiar meal would surely settle the stomach and mind far better than something else that’s new.

“Personally,” he spoke quietly but clearly, offering his own views to the boy opposite him, “I’d start with something I already know I like,” he reached over and placed a decent lump of steak onto his plate, “because the first bite of a meal is the one I remember and a bad first bite just... sucks.”

Jake half-smiled – he may as well at least try to be friendly, at least for the first few days.

0 Jacob Rock It's the in colour this year 0 Jacob Rock 0 5

Sully

March 27, 2012 1:14 PM

I successfully completed kindergarten by Sully

Sully was not entirely convinced the new girl wasn't crazy when she declared that his name was cool. He had had too much trouble in his muggle school, where everyone knew the Sullivan twins and then though he was named Quincy and had some kind of relation to them, to think being named Sullivan, or even Sully (which had had its own tribulations after Monsters Inc came out), was remotely cool.

Therefore he had no argument when she then declared her own name's superiority, even if he did think it was kind of long and a little like what you might expect an archangel or something to be named.

"I'll keep Sully, thanks," he replied dryly. "I wouldn't be able able to spell that, and I need the extra point you get for putting your name on tests." He had, after all, never been in danger of turning blue during his own sorting.

"And," he added in response to her final remark, "I've noticed wizards are big fans of sink or swim around here. That's kind of what the prefects are around for, though. I was lucky and had my mom's boyfriend around to help sort things out after I got my letter - he's from one of the Families," Sully explained, putting emphasis on the final word so she would know it was supposed to be capitalized. "And he had a cousin who was a prefect, so I even had a contact after I got here."

"It's not too bad, though, once you've been here a while and know what's real and what's not possible even here."

0 Sully I successfully completed kindergarten 0 Sully 0 5

Lucian D'Alesandro

March 27, 2012 2:14 PM

Happy to be fashionable by Lucian D'Alesandro

Lucian watched the girl who had responded to him take some sort of yellow mashed up food containing vegetables from a bowl. She seemed quite energetic, and reminded him a little of his younger sister Alexandra, or Alex as he called her. She had spent the summer with their cousins, which was fine with him since she mostly insisted on annoying him while he was trying to quietly read. She was quite the opposite of him, and appeared to genuinely believe the world revolved around her.

Not long after the girl spoke, a boy across the table offered his opinion. His comment about a bad first bite made Lucian laugh quietly. It probably wasn’t meant to be funny, but the simple honesty of it was amusing. “You do have a good point”, Lucian replied to the blue looking boy opposite of him. “My name is Lucian D’Alesandro. What’s yours?” he asked while also taking a decent sized amount of steak.

0 Lucian D'Alesandro Happy to be fashionable 223 Lucian D'Alesandro 0 5

Sairahiniel (Sayre) Light

March 27, 2012 3:48 PM

Re: I successfully completed kindergarten by Sairahiniel (Sayre) Light

Sairahiniel grinned at his sarcasm. They might be able to get along. Plus, he didn't even mention her scar, which was more than she'd ever expected.

"You can call me Sayre. A little easier to swallow, yes?" she smiled at him, then it withered as the what he'd said really sunk in.

"Sink or swim?" she queried. That didn't sound even remotely fun. Not at all. "Contacts? Families, with the F capitalized?" Jeez, where had she landed, a magical academy or prep school? The thought of the snobby rich kids who'd turned their noses up at her her whole life made her want to grind her teeth. But, then again, Sully didn't seem to be the cookie-cutter preppy kind of kid that she often didn't get along with. In fact, he seemed cool. The sarcasm was a huge plus for him, in any case.

"And, dude, isn't this supposed to be a magic school? Isn't anything supposed to be possible? Or is that too Disney?" Sayre opened her blue eyes wide, batting her eyelashes in a hilariously over-exaggerated helpless face that she couldn't actually pull off. Eh, whatever, it was still funny. "Please, kind sir, englighen the poor Muggle-born. She is oh-so-very confused in this strange and magical world full of politics."

0 Sairahiniel (Sayre) Light Re: I successfully completed kindergarten 0 Sairahiniel (Sayre) Light 0 5

Heaven

March 27, 2012 6:29 PM

Sorry so late. by Heaven

Renaldi. Should she know that name? Was it a pureblood name? Heaven could say that she was honestly unsure. Purebloods delved into all sorts of lines and connections all across the world that it was hard to know exactly who was who at a moment’s notice, however, the delivery of the name suggested that she was probably pureblood, which meant that Heaven could go beyond polite acknowledgements and actually form a friendship with the girl. She felt that her parents would approve. Plus, they might actually know the Randolphs since Massachusetts wasn’t that far from Connecticut. They were both part of East coast bloodlines. “Nice to meet you as well, Miss Renaldi. You may call me Heaven.”

Picking at her bread, she said, “Italy must be wonderful! I have not been to Europe yet. My parents said that we might go next summer. We have relatives in England, though, I have not met them yet.” She was excited about the possibility. The last time that they had seen their relatives was when she was a baby and they came to visit so she didn’t remember a thing about it. She wondered what they were like, if she would like them, if they would like her. Plus, now that she was older, her parents thought it was a good idea to begin introducing her to various social circles. She didn’t really like being shown off that much, but she knew it was important since one day she would be betrothed to someone.

For now, she tried to at least enjoy the pretty dresses like the one that she was currently wearing. It wasn’t as elaborate as some of her outfits back home, but it was one that made her feel very grown up for her first day of school. The dress was white and was covered in small, aligned black polka dots. The waist was held high with a black tie, which matched the trim at the top. Thin spaghetti straps held it up and the bottom had a ruffled layer. She smoothed out the dress and adjusted the napkin that was on her lap, as she glanced around the room. This place was absolutely amazing. “So, what do you think about getting sorted into Crotalus? I read that it is supposed to be the house where respectable members of society go.” Her parents would definitely be pleased about that.

0 Heaven Sorry so late. 0 Heaven 0 5

Alex

March 27, 2012 7:27 PM

We're the coolest around by Alex

Alex nodded once Gareth finished telling her about his summer and asked about hers. “Tolerably well,” she said pleasantly, thinking back over it again. It wasn’t completely true, of course, but nor was it completely a lie, so she felt comfortable enough saying it. There were much less pleasant things she could have spent the past few months doing. “I was asked a lot of question, too, all over the family, even though we’re not sure who will be coming here and who won’t.”

Those who controlled her life and her parents’ had decided she was doing well enough to stay enrolled at Sonora, but had not made their decisions about the academic futures of her Louisiana Carey cousins present and future. Lissy was still at home with the tutors, and no one knew exactly what was going to happen with the few younger ones. She had gone through a year without making a scandal of herself or her family, that was true, but there were six left to go; they had better wait and see another year, just to be sure she wasn’t going to do something foolish. After all, she might have a delayed response, since she wasn’t really a Carey, but only half of one, which meant she ought to be only half as…unruly.

It had occurred to her to wonder if they had noticed that no one was really more than half-Carey, since they all had mothers, but she knew better than to ask. Her opinion was not one anyone valued at home.

She looked around the still brightly-colored first years, confirming two things she had seen, and then nodded toward the smaller, fairer-haired one. “Two of my distant relatives came here this year,” she said. “Lucille – she’s one of the new Teppenpaws – is a close cousin of mine and Theresa Carey’s, so she asked us questions a lot. We all kept traveling to each other’s houses. And one of Arthur and Arnold’s - " she was going to trust that, as a Quidditch player, Gareth had some idea of who Arnold and Arthur were - "first cousins is here, too, it looks like he's in Aladren." Poor Theresa. Her House was sticking out like a sore thumb among all the blue on the others from her branch. "He's Theresa's brother, and I think he’s friends with Lucille, but I don’t know him very well.”

She was momentarily surprised when Cepheus suddenly appeared beside her, but then she smiled and shook her head. “Not at all,” she said, gesturing to the seat he was already in. “We were just talking about how all of our relatives kept asking us questions about Sonora when we went home for the summer. Did any of yours do that?”

0 Alex We're the coolest around 0 Alex 0 5

Sully

March 27, 2012 8:00 PM

Great. Now we can make paper turkeys together. by Sully

It wasn't so much that he hadn't noticed the scar as that between growing up in Las Vegas, not know a single fact about his father, and becoming a wizard at age eleven, Sully had learned Not To Ask. It was an art form that one developed after speculating too far into the realms of Wouldn't It Be Awful If? He and his sister Karen had scared themselves stupid one time making guesses about what their father (if, in fact, they had the same one) might have been like and were too terrified to ask Mom even the most basic facts in case she might confirm even one of their wild theories.

He worked under the assumption that if there was something he was meant to know, somebody would eventually tell him. It might be after he really ought to have known it - like when he used flutterby leaves in his potion thinking they were speckled moth wings - but sooner or later, he'd be told if it was important.

Sully nodded as Sayre gave him a more manageable and pronounceable name to use. "Much," he agreed that it was easier to swallow.

Then he chocked on it a little bit as she asked her next question. "Way too Disney," he confirmed the bad news. "I mean, there's a lot they can do that normal folks can't, but there's still problems. Magic is cool but it doesn't suddenly make everything perfect." He was incapable of sounding disappointed by this; Sully had never been optimistic enough to think otherwise so it had no power to surprise him.

He couldn't quite tell if she was either. She had asked, but she did it in such a way that it was hard to tell if she was serious or not. He rolled his eyes a little at being called a kind sir, and tried to fake some kind of posh accent (failing utterly, but he didn't know enough about them to be able to tell), "Well, young padawan, the first thing you must understand is there are four types of wizard."

He coughed as his vocal cords protested the too-deep voice he was using and when he recovered, he spoke normally. "Four kinds. One is the muggleborns like us. I've only known magic exists for two years myself, so I can't promise I get everything right. We're the ones who can't understand purebloods when they talk magic. One is the mixed bloods. They've got a foot in both worlds and make great translators. That's the kind my mom is dating. The last two are the Families and the magically raised normal people. The normal magic folk won't understand you when you talk muggle, but they'll try."

"The Families . . ." he tried to figure out the best way to make her understand the Families. "They call themselves purebloods because they track their ancestry back and know they don't have muggles tainting their family trees. They try to only associate with each other, so you don't really need to worry about avoiding them since they'll avoid you. Some Families are more strict about it than others, and there are exceptions - the California Pierces, like Simon, uh, Mom's boyfriend, are a bunch of mixed bloods that the other ones don't like. But they can usually be identified by them looking rich, talking proper, and introducing themselves with a branch affiliation."

He realized, as he finished this explanation, that it didn't encompass one person. "And then there's Jhonice." He didn't look, but pointed discreetly (which, in the real world, and not in Sully's mind, was not discreet at all) in the direction he'd last seen the blond third year. "She's mostly normal magic folk except she's crazy and totally not normal. She stalks the Families and thinks I'm one of them."

0 Sully Great. Now we can make paper turkeys together. 0 Sully 0 5

Solomon Asa Davies

March 27, 2012 8:05 PM

Destiny by Solomon Asa Davies

Solomon’s voice was sweet and distant, absent from the moment, a slow steady drawl as if his voice was sleeping through the song. “... flying high to meet our destiny...” He paused over those words, running through the syllables in his mind even as his tongue curled over the following lyrics. ‘Destiny’ It was an interesting concept, one which had no place in the bayou. Destinies only existed where there was a possibility of a future, and futures only existed when there was a passing of time, but time didn’t exist in the bayou. Soft rain and sweet summer breezes draping the hot New Orleans sun. Solomon dozing on the bank, his robe open, his dark skin darkening, his dreads abused by the tugging of a playful little brother and restless cousins. No time, no future, no destiny. Only family, laughter, sleep, hot Louisiana sun and Solomon.

Sonora Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry was an unexplained phenomenon that ruptured Solomon’s life for a period of many months every year now since he was eleven. School, work, people who did not look like him or talk like him, or think the way he thought. A bewildering “reality” (he questioned whether or not it could possibly be real) of odd shapes, colors, and sizes. A place where Destiny could exist, and opportunity. Adventure, a subject that previously existed only in the scratch of his quill against sheepskin parchment. ‘What is my Destiny?’ He was thirteen years old now, marked by the increased height, the length of his dreads grown longer, reaching his shoulders, his bright blue eyes aged with at least thirteen years of wisdom, thick black glasses he didn’t actually need settled comfortably on his face. He couldn’t see what he was to be, if he were to be anything other than what he was now. ‘And what am I now?’

“...I won’t fight alone, as long as you are with me...” The words rose from his lips, transfigured into song, harmony of one voice amidst the foreign melody of the surrounding student body. Solomon felt no urge to fight anybody, had never wanted to, any inclinations of hatred and anger consumed by his characters. And besides those friends and heroes on the page, Solomon stood alone. ‘I am alone.’ The thought struck him oddly, without a definite feeling attached to the truth. He felt a little more awakened, sitting as the song ended, sinking slowly and easily into his seat. His fellow Teppenpaws settled down around him, and Solomon’s blue eyes ran them over, taking in the details slowly, carefully, observing in a way he’d unintentionally avoided before. He paid attention to chins, who had prominent jutting out of their face chins, and whose chins slumped from beneath their neck, jiggling and loose. He looked for eye color, lines in their foreheads, how thin or thick were their lips. His eyes began to wander, his mind slipping back into a peaceful fatigued song. He couldn’t focus on the irrelevant details of his present surroundings.

The smell of meat; salty, fresh and sweet. Sweet mashed potatoes, regular mashed potatoes, string beans and black beans, yellow rice and white, strips of sweet sauce covered chicken. Solomon reached his hand out, reaching for the spoon buried in the closest tub of mashed potatoes. “Pah-don meh.” He accidentally bumped hands with pale skin, moonlight shimmering off the surface. Solomon looked up, peering through the thick glasses at his housemate, a year younger than him. Angel Shield, the demon who’d stalked him all the way from the Bayou but who had since left him alone. “Ah, hullo.” A faint smile touched his thick lips in polite greeting, his eyes warming in interest at the familiar features. His mind paused its private melody, awakening from its sleep. There was nothing irrelavant in Angel’s unique features. “Anotha year.” Solomon scooped the mashed potatoes onto his plate, and then began reaching for other desirable food spread along the table. “Did yuh spend yoah somma at home?” Fiery pits guarded by rotting corpses whose stench alone warded off the bravest of souls. The heat got so intense, the oxygen depleting, smoke rising in the air to be quenched only by the sudden rain of hail and ice temporarily cooling off the hellish summer day. “Or did yuh go travelin’?” There had been strange shadows around the bayou, a sudden sound, a twig snapping that had caused Solomon to turn in his sleep, mumble and frown into the sweet smelling grass. He wondered now if that was Angel watching him all along.

0 Solomon Asa Davies Destiny 0 Solomon Asa Davies 0 5

Sayre Light

March 27, 2012 8:16 PM

I'm more of a egg-carton-caterpillar kinda gal, myself by Sayre Light

Sayre tried to hide her grin at the rush of blood that colored Sully's cheeks at the mention of Jhonice. And it didn't help that he straight-out pointed at her. Not so subtle. Clearly being discreet wasn't this boy's strong suit. Eh, now that she thought about it, it wasn't hers either.

"How can she be crazy and normal at the same time? And why is she stalking you?" Sayre asked eagerly, thirsty for info, any she could get about the new world she was living in. "And magically raised normal people? Does that mean that they're purebloods, but don't act like the kids who went to my old prep-school?" She thought about this for a minute, then made a decision. She wasn't going to let herself be intimidate by these snooty Families. Sayre set her jaw. This was going to be different. She would make it different. Besides, look at her! Already making friends. Sully seemed really cool and he spoke sarcasm - though Sayre wasn't sure that he totally grasped the fact that she was being sarcastic when she'd asked about magic making everything better. It didn't matter, he seemed willing to show her the ropes, which was good enough for her. Plus, he was in her house, so he had to be cool!

"And yo, man, high-five: Star Wars reference!" Feeling bold, Sayre lifted her hand for a high-five.

0 Sayre Light I'm more of a egg-carton-caterpillar kinda gal, myself 0 Sayre Light 0 5

Paul Bennett

March 27, 2012 9:37 PM

Is that possibly cause for alarm? by Paul Bennett

As he entered the Cascade Hall, Paul looked around carefully to see if it looked any different now that he was allegedly taller, but it looked to him just the same as it always had. He shrugged slightly and went to find a seat at the Crotalus table, not feeling very upset about this. It was his parents’ theory that he had grown a few inches since this time last year, not his, and since he was nowhere near a midget, he couldn’t say there were many things in his life he cared about less than his height except when he was right in front of his mother and she was going on about how he was supposedly growing up fast, despite him having never noticed that she, despite having been at least present for the bringing up of five of them, was really that fond of small children.

Whether she was or not, though, Paul was pretty sure he could no longer be called one. He didn’t think being thirteen was all that impressive, but it was on the way. He was not the shortest person out of first year, anyway – he thought he might even turn out to be a little taller now than Arnold Carey, if they ever stood side by side and Paul felt like making the comparison – and that was enough to content him, as long as no one else made an issue out of it, which no one ever had. He thought, as he took a seat near Linus at the table, it helped that he was in Crotalus and that he had a roommate who was a lot better than he was at being obtrusive.

After the headmistress’ speech, though, Paul wondered for a moment if things would continue on in that excellent arrangement. It was just a guess on his part, but he thought it might be a little harder to lurk in the shadowy margins of the House, unremarked on by most, when his sister was the new prefect and her enemy was the Assistant Quidditch captain and Merlin only knew at the trouble the two of them were going to cause before the year was over. He hoped he would remain where he had been, but if he was ever going to not be, it would probably be this year, he thought.

He shrugged, putting the thoughts aside, when the Opening Feast began and his roommate asked after his summer. “I suppose so,” he said. Really, his summer had just been long and boring, with lots of dull parties which came with bad food, but he wasn’t going to say that at the table, even to Linus. Others might overhear, and he could just imagine the look on Mother’s face if she heard a Bennett had been criticizing the party system. She and Father had both seemed a little more tense than their usual for the past week or so, now that he thought about it. “My brothers tried to be irritating, but Father kept me busy enough most of the time that they didn’t have much of a chance.”

He served himself parmesan chicken. “How’d yours go?” he asked, using a tone very similar to the one Linus had, though he was somewhat more interested than he sounded. Some of the novelty of having a Muggleborn roommate had worn off over the past two years, but sometimes interesting things came out of it anyway.

0 Paul Bennett Is that possibly cause for alarm? 201 Paul Bennett 0 5

Sully

March 27, 2012 9:46 PM

Those are fun, too by Sully

"Oh, my bad," he said quickly after returning the high five. She had mistaken his words to mean that he thought Jhonice was normal. This was not the case. At all. "She's not normal. That's why she doesn't quite fit into that group. See, she thinks Simon is my dad, and that I'm some kind of secret member of the California Pierces. It's crazy! I didn't even meet Simon until I got my letter. See, he's the magician at the casino my Mom dances at. And when I got the letter, she asked him if it was a hoax since he was the only magician she knew of. And now they're dating, and Jhonice is all over that. She thinks it's great that my parents are getting back together!" He shook his head in horrified disbelief.

"And just because we're both blond doesn't mean we look alike!" His voice took on a slightly desperate defensive edge for that statement. It was his only counter to Jhonice's strongest argument. After all, though the statement was true, it did not hold water in this case. There was enough of a resemblance that mistakes could be made.

He realized he was getting far too animated on the subject and belatedly toned it back down to answer the second part of her question. "And yeah, the normal magic kids won't get the Star Wars references because they don't know what a TV or a movie theater is, but they're not snobs."

"Honestly, that's really one of the hardest things to get used to here. You make references nobody gets. They make references you don't get. The pop culture is all mixed up and nobody gets all of it, even the half-bloods."

0 Sully Those are fun, too 0 Sully 0 5

Elijah Errant

March 28, 2012 12:10 AM

Two things everybody loves. by Elijah Errant

There was nothing better in the world than rice pudding. Elijah’s eyes closed, savoring the sensory experience, saliva pooling on his tongue, his whole body sensitive and highly reactive to the vanilla-creamy lumpy substance. ‘So good, so good.’ He swallowed, a thick viscous slipping down his throat, settling comfortably in his stomach. ‘More! More!’ Dark eyes flew open, dark caramel skinned hands reaching eagerly for more of the pudding, but Elijah was diverted from his quest, suddenly spying another treasure. ‘Mine!’ He began scooping out the shrimp sauce covered pasta, delighting in the sudden splatter of the meal against his plate. The noodles were thin but the sauce was heavy, pouring over the pudding flavor previously occupying his mouth. A smile spread across the twelve year old’s face, chewing and swallowing, fresh tomato-shrimp sauce painting the corners of his mouth. ‘Good to be back.’

Summer had been its usual ease of pleasant exhilaration (gripping tight to Sombra’s black feathers, the Arizona sun blinding their flight, the Grand Canyon curving and rising all around them), familial gatherings (taking a portkey to his father’s third family in Madrid, visiting his cousins in England, chatting in broken Austrian with his half-brother and his father’s first wife, relaxing on the red rug near the fire, curled up with the dogs and his sister, dozing off while protesting against his mother and grand-père that he wasn’t sleepy at all, not ever), and completing the homework he kept on putting off day after day. He still had an essay due for Charms he’d been meaning to complete. It was currently locked safely in his trunk, continuously ignored in favor of flying with Hippogriffs with the Tamers on his grand-père’s ranch, or entertaining his little sister, beating his hands on wooden drums and laughing as she stumbled through her dance.

Summer had been great, learning how to run the ranch for his eventual inheritance of it, but Elijah was relieved to be back at school. Though he’d gone eleven years without a wand, the summer after Sonora had felt unnatural, his hand not quite empty, but as if something had been viciously torn from him. A gaping wound waiting anxiously to be filled. He shifted in his seat, feeling the comforting jab of wood against his thigh. ‘How can anybody stand being without a wand?' As if peeking into his thoughts, the brown skinned boy next to Elijah leaned toward him, a drumstick raised to his lips. “What's a muggle?” Elijah blinked at him, gaze drifting toward the meat caught between the boy's fingers. “Oh, it's what your parents are." If the boy was asking, then it meant he wasn't originally from the magical world. “People who can't do magic.” The meat looked delicious. Elijah turned and reached for the plate holding drumsticks, grabbing a particularly generous helping, the bone barely holding up the meat.

“I’m Elijah,” He introduced himself, a white smile flashed over the meat he immediately sunk his teeth into. His voice held traces of his father’s native Spain and Portugal, tempered by the Arizona accent and his grand-père’s french. “Second year.” He stated this proudly, a hand extended toward the boy’s after wiping it on a napkin, meat and pasta temporarily discarded and already sorely missed. “Welcome to Pecari.” He was fascinated by the boy’s blue eyes, shimmering and striking in its contrast to the brown skin the sorting bestowed on him. Everything about Elijah was darkness, save for the bright glint in his dark eyes. His curls hung over his face, their wildness controlled by the red headband he used to keep them in place, refusing to allow them to fall into his eyes, caught in his lashes. "There are more than just wizards, witches, and muggles by the way. In this very school." He took opportunity of the boy's question to profess all he knew, reveling in the brief instance to act as mentor. "There are vampires, ghosts, ghouls, poltergeists, squibs, trolls, goblins, mermaids, elves, hags, warlocks, insanely sensitive and crazy Pecari girls, abusive professors who assign way too much homework, and the most awesome people you'll ever meet." He craned his neck looking for Demelza. "Have any questions, just come to me, amigo." Elijah grinned. "I know everything there is to know about this school. I've found every secret passageway, and I know the gardens as well as I know my wand." He nodded confidently, picking up a fork and resumed his conquering of the pasta.

0 Elijah Errant Two things everybody loves. 0 Elijah Errant 0 5

Jade

March 28, 2012 3:34 AM

Nihil Ad Rem by Jade

"Oh, hey, Jhonice," Jade greeted her teammate as she realised who it was she had addressed. Unfortunately, Jhon didn't know how to transfigure chocolate milk, either. Sighing dramatically, Jade took a reluctant sip of her juice, to discover that actually it wasn't all that bad after all. She took a larger gulp as Jhon continued talking, and the grimace she made afterwards didn't have to do with the taste of her drink, but the subject of Jhon's summer.

"Gross," Jade replied abruptly. Babies were not something she understood, even a little bit. Small kids could be funny, when they did dumb stuff without realizing it, or could be coaxed into being naughty by someone who ought to be an older and responsible cousin, but babies were boring, loud, and smelly. Luckily the grown ups didn't seem to share her opinion on the matter, and were always quite happy to entertain any new relations Jade acquired without the pre-teen having to go anywhere near the creatures for any prolonged period of time. "Can't stand babies," she added as an after-thought, just in case Jhon took the comment as an insult to her particular relative. Jade wasn't biased; all babies were gross.

"My summer was fine, thanks," she then replied to the question that had been put to her, while she began tucking into her large plate of food. "Rode some horses, tried riding some brooms for a bit, but all ours are as old as Fawcett's dentures, and I trained one of our dogs to chase the chickens," she grinned. She loved animals, almost without exception, but chickens were creepy. Not the cute little fluffy chicks that were always depicted on cards and the like, but the huge, almost-up-to-her-waist, beady-eyed-stare birds her mom kept could easily beat her in a chase, and that was creepy, no matter who you were.

0 Jade Nihil Ad Rem 0 Jade 0 5

Josephine

March 28, 2012 3:59 AM

It's a shame there isn't a purple House by Josephine

If it hadn't been Josephine's decision to sit at the Teppenpaw table (and she was fairly sure that she'd been acting of her own Free Will, and not under an illegal curse), she might have thought the Teppenpaws were putting on an impromptu an elaborate show to make her believe the most ridiculous falsehoods. Her eyes had already widened with Reggie's tales about potentially being a Seer and her Dad having lied to her about having a girlfriend, but Derry's story made the Pecari's eyebrows rise further towards her hairline.

"Mom and Dad got divorced last January," he said, and then went on to explain how his new place wasn't even on the mountain and his disowned family was there and he got to play with Muggles... none of this fit in with Josephine's preconceptions about New Hampshire Pierces in particular, and Derry's family more generally. She'd always been wary of the bigger named families, being familiar with how they looked down on families like hers who were happy to associate with Muggles and Muggleborns. Admittedly, she'd had cause to loosen her life-long values upon learning from Fae Sinclair that she didn't have control even over who she could be friends with, much less anything else in her life, and Arnold Carey had been surprisingly pleasant when Jsoephine had found herself working with him in class. Yet, even though she was no expert on society - you couldn't even pay her to read those stupid gossip columns - Josephine had heard things about Derry's family that had given her cause to believe that things like divorce just didn't happen. Then, stranger still, Derry seemed rather pleased by all these turns of events. It left Josephine's head spinning.

Madeline's contribution didn't help to ease her confusion, either. Muggle topics didn't make a great deal of sense to Josephine. She knew a little about Muggles, but had never really interacted with them, and definitely wouldn't call herself an expertt in the area. Though neither did she like to think she was ignorant - that would make her no better than the Holier-then-thou pureblood families she'd grown up prejudiced against - she was just under-informed. With any luck the Muggle Studies professor that Prof K had introduced earlier would help her straighten a few things out. Until then, she quietly ate her food, not exactly regretting her decision to move tables, but wondering how many more misconceptions she had yet to be revealed.

Determined not to be outcast from this group just when she'd started to get to know them, however, she latched onto the one topic that seemed relatively stable and familiar to her. "I'm not sure I'll ever be an aunt," she commented at what felt like an appropriate moment. "I can't imagine anyone is going to be brave enough to take on James or Jade. It would be like extreme dating," she joked, but in an 'it's funny 'cause it's true' sort of way. Her own life plan, as vague as it was, probably did include having children at some stage. Even though the thought of that right now was verging on scary, having a family of her own one day sounded like a pleasant way to have ended up.

0 Josephine It's a shame there isn't a purple House 0 Josephine 0 5

Linus

March 28, 2012 4:19 AM

I don't see it'll cause any harm by Linus

Born, no doubt, from repeated exposure, Paul was probably the person with whom Linus could converse with greatest ease amongst his peers (Sometimes the girls could be easy to talk to, but Linus had never really understood girls, and several of them in his yeargroup seemed to be less bright than average). They didn't have a huge array of shared experiences or interests, but the longer they both spent being Crotalus students, the greater their similarities became, and Linus' developing understanding of Paul's view of the world made talking to him increasingly less strenuous. For example, he understood the content of his summer to have included some of those afore-mentioned social events, none of which Paul ever seemed to enjoy, which helped a great deal with Linus' ability to tolerate his exclusion from them.

"My brothers succeeded in being irritating," Linus commented when the question was returned to him, "and my Mom seemed to think it was necessary to let them." His tone here undoubtedly indicated his own aversion to the notion. Similarly, while Linus had never out-right declared to any of his schoolmates - even Paul - that his father had died, those to whom he spoke regularly about his family had probably noticed from his routine absence in Linus' conversation that the man wasn't around any more. "Johan didn't get an inviation to Sonora and was getting worked up about being a Muggle forever," Linus added some more depth to his short story. It was insulting to Muggles, really, that Johan had made such a fuss about it. After all, there had been many great muggles, including their own father. "I'm quite glad to back here and away from all the fuss," Linus admitted, lifting a forkful of food to his mouth.

Admittedly, there were other concerns at school, not least passing his classes and not destroying himself or further school property should he wish to rejoin the Quidditch team, but there were also the Crotalus girls to contend with, each one as crazy as the next in their own separate ways. Brianna seemed to be a little less crazy than the rest, but Paul had attested to his own sister's instability, and she had now been named House prefect, so there was little hope for the rest of them. "Congratulations on your sister making prefect," Linus thought to add, after what was probably just about an acceptable delay.

0 Linus I don't see it'll cause any harm 0 Linus 0 5

Angel

March 28, 2012 9:59 AM

... by Angel

The southern flare, much thicker than his own light Georgian drawl pulled Angel’s ruby gaze reluctantly up from his barren plate to focus on the dark boy. “Hello,” he repeated dutifully, the soft word little more than an undertone to the general babble of the sea of students that surrounded them. Angel studied Sol, his red gaze trailed boldly over dark lines that had been the subject of numerous discarded sketches last term. Most caught the boy at rest, dozing in the sun, in class, in this very hall, but a few, no more than two or three managed to catch the rare instances of abrupt alertness that most often accompanied a flurry of inspired writing.

Those were some of the most difficult to discard, but they like every other were crumpled and tossed away once the sketch was finished, exposing a new blank sheet for the albino’s attention. A small scoop of mashed potatoes was added to his empty plate, followed reluctantly by an equally small portion of plain poached chicken. A glass of water rounded out the bland meal as Angel focused on the thick words that seemed to drip with hot summer, the low drone of bees, and the lingering scent of the bayou.

“Stayed.” Angel replied as he took a small bite of the potatoes and waited to see if the food would be accepted. He didn’t add the word home, though it lingered on his tongue, that small house in Washington, still wet, but a different kind of wet, humid, but not as hot, not the old mansion full of dark places and the laughter of a mad woman. No, the small overly tidy house with his sharp tongued guardian wasn’t home. “You?” He asked, even the few years spent away from Georgia hadn’t lessened the light accent, the young albino simply didn’t speak enough to loose it.

0 Angel ... 0 Angel 0 5

Kitty

March 28, 2012 10:37 AM

Me too! by Kitty

Kitty had to resist the childish urge to stick her tongue out at the blue boy who contradicted her. If he wanted to stick to the same boring old thing all the time, that wasn’t her problem. A need for adventure was Kitty’s guide to the world in everything from eating, to exploring the labyrinth even though she always got lost. Just like the feast, there was always some new and wonderful thing to see and experience in the labyrinth and she wasn’t one to let fear of a bit of bad dissuade her from exploring to her heart’s content.

She speared a large piece of very rare stake and plopped it on top of the strange mash. Even though she was now a third year, Kitty was still pretty tiny and still ate perhaps enough to keep a linebacker alive with out gaining weight. That might have something to do with the fact that the girl had enough energy to power a small village for a week and all that energy had to come from somewhere. Kitty’s toes curled in delight at the first bite, strange spices from far away lands exploded on her tongue and fought with the stake to dominate her taste buds. “Mmmmm, sooo good.” She mumbled happily as she chewed.

“I’m Kitty.” She said with a small bounce of excitement after swallowing. Cornflower blue eyes roved over the table for a moment before she reached out to take a bit of smoked something. It could have been anything really from eel to some sort of plant life, and Kitty nibbled a bit to try and puzzle out the strange food.

0 Kitty Me too! 0 Kitty 0 5

Amira

March 28, 2012 3:20 PM

And it shall be done! by Amira

Amira had seen the girl with the brown hair who sat across from her throughout the year before. She hadn’t paid much attention to her, though she was almost sure that the girl's name was Waverly. Amira wasn't completely positive of that, but she was pretty sure. The redhead noticed that the new second year in front of her had cut her hair over the summer and made it a point to tell her how nice it looked.

The younger of the two piled food high onto her plate and Mir smiled back to her. As a new third year, Amira Thornton was determined to show what she could do and she only hoped it would work.

"Hi, I'm Waverly. Are you excited for another year at school?"

"Hi Waverly! I'm Amira Thornton, I've seen you around, welcome back! As for am I excited? Sure am! Aren't you?" Mir asked her, wondering what this new year would bring them with Arista in her fifth year and Brielle being here now too as a first year. Her summer was kinda crazy and she'd known it would be with so many children. She however, was not expecting to be told she was going to be a big sister AGAIN during the school year.

“By the way, you’re hair looks great at that length!” she added as an afterthought as she caught sight of Jade again and her left eye squinted before she turned away once more, back to Waverly.

0 Amira And it shall be done! 0 Amira 0 5

Cepheus

March 28, 2012 4:43 PM

Greatness in Crotalus, I say. by Cepheus

Ah, relatives. None of his relatives had spoken to him about school in general, but were more interested in the United States. Of course, Cepheus had only been to Arizona and therefore didn't know anything about any of the other states, but he had felt like an ambassador of sorts. Or a spy. His father had been throwing around the stereotype that the States was full of muggles and muggle-borns, of those who weren't good enough to live in Europe. Now, Cepheus couldn't agree with that statement, and it had been comforting to his relatives that there were several prestigious pureblood lines.

"My relatives were more interested in the States," he said honestly. "School was secondary. A good education doesn't matter nearly as much as surrounding one's self with the right people." He smiled at his peers, an obvious compliment to them. He was paraphrasing his grandfather's favorite saying that he'd just heard over the holiday. "I didn't spend much time with relatives for them to bombard me with questions, though. Thankfully. I was in India for a part of the summer, and then France for the rest." He had stayed with his awful cousin Devon, who was spoiled to the core, and his aunt and uncle Fitzroy in France, but they hadn't been particularly interested in his schooling in America either.

"My brother is going to be attending this school next year," he told them, "so I suppose he was particularly interested. My grandfather decided it would be best for my brothers and I to receive the same schooling." He knew that Grandfather's hope for them was for the Princetons to start a branch in America. Cepheus, of course, had privately decided that he was not going to be the one to do it. "How have your summers been otherwise?" he asked.

0 Cepheus Greatness in Crotalus, I say. 0 Cepheus 0 5

Lucrezia

March 28, 2012 6:23 PM

No worries by Lucrezia

Lucrezia smiled, happy with herself that she already had a friend. “Call me Lucrezia, please.” Well, Heaven wasn’t her friend per se, but they were now on first name basis, which was a very big step for Purebloods. Plus, she was going to be her roommate for the next seven years. Her first night at Sonora had started better than expected. She had been sorted into Crotalus, which apparently was the good house for Purebloods -- Great-Grandfather Ignatious had told her so --, though Aladren was also acceptable. The Italian made a mental note to ask her great-grandparents about Heaven’s family. She didn’t want to commit a faux-pass so early in her schooling career, though by the way the other girl was carrying herself it was blatantly obvious that she had been raised in a Pureblood household.

Her dinner had been forgotten during the exchange with the other girl. However, a small rumble in her stomach made her remember that a Lady never let her stomach make gross sounds due to hunger. It was imperative to never be hungry. She took a bite of her pasta and listened to Heaven talk about her family in England. She smiled, “You have relatives in England? I do too! But I never ever see them.” She took a sip of her apple juice and spoke up again, “Italy is wonderful. I will miss it, but Sonora seems like a great place.”

“If you go next summer you can come visit me!” It was a little risky inviting someone over to her house when she didn’t know anything about them, but Lucrezia was sure Heaven would be welcomed in her house. “I can show you some pretty amazing parts of Calabria, is where I am from. I live near the Mediterranean.” She grinned already excited about the prospect of a summer with someone that wasn’t part of her family.

The Italian Crotalus took another bite of her dinner and watched Heaven, “Your dress is really pretty.” If there was something she loved was clothes, and it was thanks to her older sisters. The difference was that the clothes looked amazing on them, because they were old and had curves. Lucrezia was still a child waiting for her curves to appear. The new Crotalus was wearing a salmon summer dress, paired with golden ballerina flats and a ribbon for her head.

She smiled and looked around the table, there were other new years, and a blonde girl caught her attention. She shrugged it off and answered Heaven’s last question, “Great-Grandfather Ignatious told me that Crotalus or Aladren where the respectable options to be sorted into. I feel good about being in Crotalus, it seems like a good house, though the things I know come from him. He will be pleased,” she finished with a smile. “How about you?”

0 Lucrezia No worries 0 Lucrezia 0 5

Sayre Light

March 28, 2012 9:40 PM

Re: Those are fun, too by Sayre Light

Secret member of the California Pierces? Sayre thought to herself dubiously. Who did there people think they were? Sayre blew out her cheeks with annoyance. She had thought that it would be different here, but, she guessed, people were people, magical powers or no.

"Well I guess you do look kinda alike," Sayre mused, looking from Simon to Sully and back again. "But why don't you just talk to her, try to make her understand that you aren't his son? And what is her interest in you anyway?" Sayre kept her disappointment about the mixed pop-culture thing to herself. She was the queen of random and unusual references that Muggles didn't even get all the time. She grinned sardonically to herself, mentally readying herself for the odd looks she'd be getting all over the place here. This was going to be interesting.

0 Sayre Light Re: Those are fun, too 0 Sayre Light 0 5

Wesley Kohler

March 28, 2012 10:17 PM

The nervous Pecari. by Wesley Kohler

Wesley Kohler was nervous, more nervous then he had ever been in his life. This was the first time he was going to be away from home. The Kohlers hadn’t ever traveled in Wesley’s eleven years on this planet! The furthest they had gone from their home was to Opa’s house the next town over. Yet, here he was standing getting ready to leave for a school thousands of miles away from his Washington home! His parents had done him a vast disservice, he would probably be the only boy in his dorm homesick. They could’ve at least sent him to that camp his cousin Drew had spoken of.

Of course, it was for rich Pureblood boys, and while Wesley was Pureblooded, the his father, the Spare, wasn’t rich. He made a comfortable living, owning a Potions shop, but besides that Wesley’s branch of the Kohler’s didn’t have money to throw around on expensive camps, or broomsticks, or clothes. Wesley sighed as he looked at himself with his blue eyes one last time in the mirror.His short black hair was combed to the side, his dark blue dress shirt was perfectly pressed and tucked into his black slacks.

When it was time to board the flying wagons, Wesley’s stomach knotted up. He wasn’t afraid of flying, no he was afraid of the destination. He spent the whole trip looking at the floor, trying to relax. When they landed, Wesley hopped out, looked at Sonora and gulped. “Here goes nothing’ the first year thought and walked into the hall.

The Headmistress introduced herself and then how they would be sorted. At least it wasn’t an exam! Wesley was sure he would’ve failed an exam the way he was feeling. When he took a sip of the potion his skin turned brown. He nodded and headed over the the table where some other Brown first years were sitting.

He sat down and listened to the rest of the Headmistresses’ speech with rapt attention. He didn’t want to miss a thing. When she had them sing the song Wesley mumbled his way through it, knowing he didn’t have a good singing voice. Then suddenly, the food appeared. There was so much, anything Wesley could’ve dreamed of was there! He didn’t know where to begin! So he did the thing he always relied on. He turned to the person sitting next to them and greeted them with “Hello, I’m Wesley.”

0 Wesley Kohler The nervous Pecari. 0 Wesley Kohler 0 5

Gareth

March 29, 2012 9:15 AM

It is the greatest of them all by Gareth

“Oh?” Gareth questioned when Alex said that she wasn’t sure who would be attending the school and who wouldn’t. For a while Grandfather had debated over which branches would attend which American schools. He’d decided that the Briar lines had enough representation at Hogwarts, even though the Whitebriars had none in attendance. Then again, the Redbriar girls all went there and they’ll have no representation in America he thought, feeling a bit smug. After the whole mess with Nydia, and the healer’s declaration that any further children would end in tragedy left the Reds with no male Heir, the Whitebriars had moved up in the rankings of power among the lines. Now they were second only to the Blacks, and the Reds had fallen to third. “Grandfather has already decided where all the younger children will be going.” He added absently.

Gareth dutifully observed the first years that were pointed out, the Carey’s were an important line in America and as such it was necessary to be aware of who was entering the school. There had been some talk over the summer about the American lines and his father was beginning to look for a proper betrothal for Gareth to strengthen their ties to the new continent.

His own smile flared in response to Cepheus’s compliment. That was the reason they were being sent to Sonora after all, to make new connections to important families. At least, that’s what Grandfather said. “My brother will also be attending. Perhaps they’ll get in the same house and befriend each other. Then, maybe they won’t spend much time playing tag along and bothering us.” Gareth said. “Aside from the incessant questions it was quite restful, we didn’t do much traveling this year, just the family reunion.” He finished before taking a sip of pumpkin juice.

0 Gareth It is the greatest of them all 0 Gareth 0 5

Sullivan

March 29, 2012 12:13 PM

Are you playing echo? by Sullivan

OOC: Simon is a grown-up parent type. He isn't here. He's in Las Vegas with the rest of Sully's family. Sully was just talking about him and doing a better job of suggesting they look alike than his words would otherwise imply. BIC:

"I've tried talking!" Sully protested. He had tried, before he realized she wasn't hearing him. After that, he reached the conclusion it was easier to run and hide than get into another Am Not-Are Too argument with her. "She thinks I'm lying to protect some kind of Family secret!"

"And she has an interest in anybody with a branch affiliation. You should see her skulking around the Quidditch pitch trying to catch a sighting of the Deputy Headmistress."

He made another not-so-subtle finger point toward the staff table where the woman who had distributed the sorting potions was sitting.

"Coach Pierce, I've gathered, is some kind of big deal in a bad way to the other purebloods. Possibly because she plays Quidditch. I haven't really figured out what all of that is about. Feminism hasn't really caught on over here yet and I guess the Families don't let girls play sports."

0 Sullivan Are you playing echo? 0 Sullivan 0 5

Melanie

March 29, 2012 3:53 PM

Well, all colors have their good qualities. by Melanie

No sooner had Melanie asked Aria if she could use her first name-as it would get awkward calling her Miss Yale for the next seven years-then another girl spoke up, introducing herself as Lucille, then quickly correcting herself by saying she was Lucille Carey of the North Carolina Careys but that they could call her Lucille. She seemed really embarrassed and uncomfortable and instantly Melanie felt for her. The new Teppenpaw didn't want for anyone to feel that way.

She gave Lucille a friendly, reassuring smile and said. "It's nice to meet you, Lucille," glad to have permission to call the other girl by her first name right away. Melanie hadn't actually spent that much time even with other pureblood children in the area though sometimes her mother had set things up with them for her. Just for her and not Valerie of course. Melanie had never liked that. It wasn't that she was afraid or anything or didn't care for the other children but just her mother's attitude about it all seemed wrong to Melanie. Plus, she wanted to be there for her sister when she was ill not off cavorting with others. Not like her mother who seemed to long to do so.

Aria seemed a little confused too and Melanie felt bad for her as well, and unlike with Lucille, she was a bit worried that this might have been her own fault. She hadn't meant to make Aria feel this way. It was obvious that she wasn't a pureblood and while Melanie hadn't spent much time even with other pureblood children, she definitely hadn't met anyone who wasn't. "Aria it is then. It's a very pretty name. I like your outfit too." Melanie added."I'm sorry if I confused you."

The first year continued, considering Aria's question." There aren't a lot of Lennoxes out there really, it's just...how I was taught to introduce myself. What community is this you speak of?" Melanie was only familiar with the pureblood community, particularly in St. Louis, and not all that much so in practice. She was sort of curious about how Aria had grown up since it seemed very different. Where she came from parents wishing well for their children meant making a good marriage. Melanie didn't even know what her own name meant and couldn't imagine being called anything but that or Miss Lennox. Or maybe Miss Melanie.

Another girl joined them then, the last one that the first year had seen turning yellow, though she had spotted a boy among them as well. She hoped that he wouldn't end up feeling left out with four girls. Melanie could tell that the red-haired girl who introduced herself as Aubrielle Reece Thornton was not a pureblood either. She had never heard anyone introduce themselves as Aubrielle had. Even purebloods really didn't introduce themselves with their middle names. Her mother wasn't going to really like this. Which sort of made the Teppenpaw happy.

Furthermore, Melanie really couldn't understand why her roommate wanted to be called things that were significantly less pretty than her given name. Well, she supposed Brielle wasn't too different than Aubrielle and if the red head didn't want to be called by her full name then Melanie supposed she could call her that. She did seem really nice though. "It's nice to meet you, Brielle." Melanie greeted her.

11 Melanie Well, all colors have their good qualities. 226 Melanie 0 5

Sayre Light

March 29, 2012 6:16 PM

Possibly.... by Sayre Light

OOC: Whoops! My bad! BIC:

Sayre was really starting to worry about this Jhonice girl. She sounded like a stalker. Weird, really, really weird. "Wait, the Families have secrets?" she grinned slightly to herself. Digging those up would be a fun way to pass time when she wasn't doing schoolwork. Now she would have something to do on weekends! "That's interesting." She thought about evenings she'd spent playing detective in the old town records. She'd actually gotten good at it - in her old town the word was that there was nothing that Sairahiniel Light couldn't uncover if she put her mind to it. Which, to be honest, didn't exactly increase her standing with the townspeople.

"Wait a New York minute." Sayre said, the second part of Sully's answer sinking in. "No sports for girls? Who's brilliant idea was that?" Sayre fumed quietly. Back home, she'd been one of the top rowers in her division and had been hoping that there was some kind of crew team here in Sonora. If there was anything that Sully could've said to make her not look forward to meet a Family member any more, that was it. "That's ridiculous!"

0 Sayre Light Possibly.... 0 Sayre Light 0 5

David

March 29, 2012 6:34 PM

I like to keep things as easy as possible. by David

David had half-expected some reference to his promotion to Quidditch captain after he congratulated James on being prefect, but was honestly more relieved than anything when it did not come. The longer he could go without acknowledging that he was in charge of that bunch of lunatics, the better. They had yet to show any signs of turning on him, and the one the coach had decided to inflict upon him as an Assistant Captain was usually at least affable enough in conversation, but it still didn’t seem impossible that they were going to put aside their personal differences in the interests of a common goal of running roughshod over him on a regular basis.

“Thank me once one of the fourth years gets it next year,” he said cheerfully. “I’m kidding,” he then added, though he didn’t really entirely mean it. You deserved it, man.”

James was a much better Aladren than he was, anyway. David thought being one of the smart kids in Muggle school had spoiled him, because he found it difficult to get worked up about his academic work. It was there, he did it the night before, he handed it in and that was all she wrote. Thought went into the stuff he did on his own, out of interest; if that happened to be something they covered in class, then all well and good, but if it wasn’t, or if he just plain ran out of time after Quidditch and other stuff and wasting a good bit of it, he’d dash off something that would get the job done and then go on with his day. So it didn’t surprise him that the administration considered one of them the candidate for Aladren prefect and not the other, though he was still trying to figure out how he’d been deemed athletic enough to captain a sports team when he’d deliberately been the alternate solely to have more social time with his peers after a rather lonely first year here.

“It was okay, except for the shooting,” he said, then realized that would either not make sense or sound a lot worse than it was. “One of my grandfathers died just after I got home and left Annabeth his favorite shotgun, so Dad decided it was family bonding time and had us out in the middle of a pasture in the middle of nowhere trying to hit coffee cans every chance he got.” He grimaced just at the memory. “I’m not sure my hearing has completely recovered yet,” he added. “How’d yours go?” he asked, knowing James also had two sisters and not much money for the kinds of science camps and things David and his sisters had always filled their summers up with to avoid their relatives. His sisters were probably David’s favorite relatives, and he was sure there was not much that could change that, but he could imagine the relationship would be more strained if they were constantly together. Sonora had been better for him getting along with Annabeth and Selena, if the history of generations past was in any way a prophecy about the actions of generations future when his family chronicle suggested it was, than anything in the history of their lives, save maybe being born to a sane-ish mother in the first place.

16 David I like to keep things as easy as possible. 169 David 0 5

Marcus

March 29, 2012 7:55 PM

What's my prize? by Marcus

Marcus had said what he needed to say. He could expect a slap or for Valentina to laugh in his face or even walk away. He could expect quite a few different scenarios if he let himself think too long about it. All he was focusing on now though, was the blush she was currently sporting and thinking to himself how cute she looked when she was embarrassed. Of course, he saw no reason for her to be embarrassed because he honestly did believe she was one of the hottest girls in school (although, he would never say another girl wasn’t pretty because the girls at this school were a little bit scary). “You’re welcome.” He said lightly, still waiting for her to answer the initial question to begin with.

And then she did.

It took him a moment to register the fact that she had said yes. She said yes? She said yes! That was more of a surprise than anything else. A girl like Valentina was far too good for a guy like him. At least, that’s what he grew up being told by adults in his life. Not so much his mother or grandmother, but the other adults that he had grown up around. People from his neighborhood always had bad reputations, despite Marcus having gone to what they thought was a proper boarding school. It didn’t seem to help any when the boys he had been friends with were becoming young dad’s or joining in the gangs that his Mom was trying to keep him out of. There were a few that got out. They stayed in school and worked hard to graduate and get accepted into college. It was just the few who went down the wrong path that gave the rest of them a bad name.

It was frustrating.

Marcus did not want to always be judged based on the color of his skin and where his family lived. He was more than that. At least, he liked to think so. And even though Valentina probably came from a well off family who would frown upon the two of them, he was glad she was giving him a chance. He gave a chuckle when Valentina corrected herself. “I hope it’ll be a good time. It took all I had to even come over here and ask you out.” Marcus admitted to her, but not at all embarrassed about it. “This will be a fun year. Minus the CATS.” He added more as an afterthought than anything else.

6 Marcus What's my prize? 180 Marcus 0 5

Paul

March 29, 2012 9:01 PM

Good, because I don't want to flee to a farm by Paul

“Too bad for him,” Paul attempted to sympathize, not really knowing what the appropriate response was to someone saying his brother was a Muggle and meaning that literally instead of as a high insult. The only way that could happen in his family was if someone had a Squib child, and that would be a tragedy and a source of deep shame for the whole family; Linus’ brother being a Muggle was, if Paul understood these things at all, much more normal than Linus himself having been lucky enough to have some magical talent, so it shouldn’t have been as bad for the Macaulays as it would have been for the Bennetts.

Unless, of course, there were wizards somewhere in Linus’ family tree and he merely preferred to say his family was made up of Muggles, but the only way Paul could see that making sense was if the wizard in question had been someone of such ill repute as to make history for it, and those didn’t happen very often, and seemed to happen less often in American history than many other places. He thought it was safer and better advised to assume that Linus was the anomaly in the Macaulay family.

“I’m sure he’ll adjust,” he added. Many magical families survived unfortunate things, after all. Paul’s own father had adjusted very well to having a brother in a psychiatric facility and a sister who lived with another woman. Linus did not seem very upset, which was promising and something Paul was happy to see since they had to live together and he had little experience in dealing with people who were upset outside of his immediate family, but it was best to be polite, he thought.

The subject of siblings wasn’t quite over, though. There was still Eliza, in all her newly promoted glory, to think about. “Thanks,” he said. “She’ll probably be okay at it. She’s a friend of a date of Rachel Bauer’s, so she shouldn’t have a problem with the other prefects, anyway.” If you had to be prefect, Paul could only assume it helped to be part of the same network as at least one of the other prefects of the same House, though he thought it would be better not to be part of that network through something as transitory as a dating relationship. If Rachel and Nic progressed to regular dating and immediately had a nasty break up this year, Eliza would be in an uncomfortable position then, since the only point of contact she had with either Bauer, that he knew of, was Nic Sawyer, Sam’s roommate.

“Mother and Father will be pleased. Eliza’s the first Bennett to come here, you know. It’s a good day for us.” He looked around the Hall, his eyes pausing for a moment on a girl at the Aladren table. “It’s a better one for the Bauers, though. Much more and they’ll run this place.” He ate another bite of his meal. “Are you looking forward to the Intermediate lessons?” he asked.

0 Paul Good, because I don't want to flee to a farm 0 Paul 0 5

Phoenix Lucore

March 29, 2012 9:15 PM

Me? by Phoenix Lucore

Another year older. Another year weirder. Over the summer, he had begun to notice the female population much to his displeasure. Some would probably think he was crazy to feel this way, but then most people didn’t know what it was like to be veela. He could probably have nearly any girl he picked, but that was the problem. He would have picked her, but did she really want him too? They might act like they liked him, but that didn’t mean they actually did. It had something to do with his hormones. Additional ones were emitted from veelas that seemed to make them irresistible. He hated it. He wanted to be like a normal teenager and be able to like a girl and have her either like him or not. Unfortunately, it seemed the only girl he would ever be able to know truly liked him would have to be part veela as well. Given the size of the population, it seemed a slim chance, which was just sad.

Trying not to be distracted by his interest in the pretty girls that were at his table since they would never really like him anyhow, he turned his attention to the Headmistress. The sorting was only mildly of interest since he was not a prefect and would never be one in addition to the fact that he would probably never have a class with the first years. It was continued with the same thing as last year. He clapped for the prefects and the Heads. During which his stomach gave a plaintive rumble. Yet, there was still the song to go, which seemed to last forever. Finally, it was over and he helped himself to the delicious courses that lined the table. The food was always something to be excited about, especially now that it seemed like he could never eat enough. He helped himself to spoonfuls of this and that until his plate was piled high.

Digging in, he turned an ear to the conversation going on nearby. Fae and Topher. He felt a bit closer to Fae since hanging out with her at the Fair at the end of last school year. He had tried to write her over the summer, but nothing he had written seemed good enough and so he had just written nothing. It didn’t change that he wanted to try and forge stronger friendships since it was going to be the only type of relationships he would ever engage in. Despite being a halfbreed, as some liked to say, he had the same emotional needs as every other person. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to be like every other person, because nothing he ever had would ever be real. Phoenix wished more than anything he could be free of the chains that bound him to this half-life. Like his namesake, he wished he could fly.

Unfortunately, that was not an option and matters that were pressing were now being discussed. Deciding to join in, he said, smiling at both, “My parents are crazy about it too. Do you think that they’re going to be hard?” His parents had gone on and on about how it was important to do well to ensure that he would have a good future. He interpreted as that the only way that it would be overlooked that he was only a half wizard would be to score well on the tests. He hated the stress of it all. “My mom never even had to take them.” He laughed slightly. “You should use the evidence as blackmail to get a new broom or something.” He was joking about it and hoped that Topher took it as such since he didn’t want to offend his roommate.

0 Phoenix Lucore Me? 0 Phoenix Lucore 0 5

Derry Four

March 29, 2012 10:25 PM

You only say that because you never met an Aether by Derry Four

Derry laughed as Madeline joked that her uncles did not find being uncles as much as he'd found it. "Three works for some kind of a historical society, so he might have actually liked that story." To be fair, though, Derry's brother seemed sane enough not to want to share Revolutionary War anecdotes all the time, so Four was kind of grateful for that.

Josephine put in that she was unlikely to ever be an aunt and Derry gave her a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry. Maybe you can be Aunt Josephine to some of your friends' kids instead," he suggested, not knowing James or Jade well enough to contradict their own sister's assessment of their marriageability.

As Madeline talked about her summer, though, Derry frowned a little in confusion, "What's an amusement park?" he asked curiously.

He was a little more on solid ground when Reggie explained about her new talent. Not that he had any experience with deja vu dreams or anything, but he'd taken a year of Divination last term and Berta was purportedly a Seer, so he at least knew what dream visions were and how they didn't necessarily seem any different from normal dreams. He nodded eagerly and grinned as she suggested meeting with Berta might be a good excuse for seeing each other over break.

"Yeah," he said as she exclaimed over where he'd moved to. "It's actually on the same street as the DISCUSS house where Coach Pierce and Miss Belinda live." Melinda's twin was scary and he wasn't entirely comfortable calling her by her first name. Calling the Coach by hers was simply unthinkable.

"Three's apartment is deeper in the city proper, but there are train stations near both places. Once you go into the city, the trains go underground which was kind of weird at first but you get used to it, and it's an easy trip to make. I can't go by myself yet, but Mom was happy to go with me whenever I wanted to. He's planning to move out our way once he has enough money for a house, so it made more sense to buy ours there to start with than move when he did."

1 Derry Four You only say that because you never met an Aether 189 Derry Four 0 5

Alex

March 29, 2012 11:06 PM

Hear, hear! by Alex

“My mother’s family has been homeschooling for a long time,” Alex explained when Gareth seemed surprised that her family wasn’t yet sure who would come and who would not. “I’m a sort of experiment, to see if going out to school improves a girl.” She paused. “And makes it easier for her to get married, of course,” she added matter-of-factly. With her father’s family effectively ended by his marriage to her mother, the Louisiana Careys would see her marriage as a connection gained for themselves despite her actual last name.

Alex smiled back at Cepheus, at least partially amused by the blunt honesty of him saying that his family was more interested in him making connections than getting educated. Her mother’s family, the family, liked to stress education, at least for boys, but it wouldn’t surprise her if they didn’t really agree with Cepheus’ family, a little, deep down. The Careys loved the sense that they were somehow singular, unique, among even pureblood families, but they had to play the game, and the game was, as far as Alex could tell from her limited exposure to it, all about which incidents led to certain people getting married or becoming friends, which could lead to their children getting married.

She had to bite the inside of her mouth, then, to keep her smile from turning into giggling and in that same moment most likely losing any claim to being taken seriously she had at this table at the thought of most of the men in the family taking a deep and passionate interest in weddings. It just seemed so out of character for many of them. The essential contradiction of pureblooded life. It was a little funny.

Luckily for her, then, Cepheus was kind enough to distract her from the amusing thought with more details about his summer and his summer travels. “Lovely,” she said, impressed. France, she could perhaps manage, but she couldn’t see India, at least not any time soon.

She did laugh a little at Gareth’s suggestion that his and Cepheus’ younger brothers could play together and leave them alone in the process. “There’s times when I’m glad I’m an only child,” she remarked lightly, with enough of a smile to let them know she was teasing them rather than seriously insulting their brothers.

“I’m so glad we only have ours every five years,” she added when Gareth said he’d had a family reunion over the summer. “We had one the year before we all started school, and it was enormous. I got lost three times the first day.” And had nearly walked out a window one night, but that was another story. She still didn’t know how that had happened. “I spent most of my summer traveling between the group of cousins I made friends with at that Reunion, and Mother decided I should come to a few of her small parties. It wasn’t very restful, but it wasn’t bad, either.”

0 Alex Hear, hear! 0 Alex 0 5

Arabella Brockert

March 30, 2012 1:10 AM

I've never seen one of those before. by Arabella Brockert

The ride from Colorado to Sonora had been brutal and Arabella now truly appreciated her distant cousin Tawny who had basically left her and Ryan alone last year when it had been just the three of them. Now, Carrie had joined Ryan and Arabella instead-and she was not a welcome replacement. She had tormented her brother of course, to the point where the Pecari had threatened to quite literally throw her off the wagon and an adult in charge had had to separate them before Arabella carried out said threat.

It wasn't very ladylike, the Pecari knew. However, there was just something about her cousin that made her forget to act proper. Being a lady was a challenge at the best of times as it was just so stiff and dull but there was just something about Carrie that completely provoked the second year. Arabella wondered what it was about the younger girl that did so.

Oh yes, it was that the first year was a terrible excuse for a human being who emotionally and psychologically tortured her brother just like their mother had prior to having a restraining order put in place to prevent her from doing so. In fact, it was a matter of no small debate whether Carrie was tormenting Ryan on her own or if Aunt Pearl had put her up to it...or both. Arabella was guessing both.

Now she was seated at the Pecari table, Ryan was with the Crotali and that wretched little sister of his was with the other first years. Arabella gave the blonde girl a cold glare. The best thing would be if she just turned blue...or went into Aladren. The second year did not really feel like being thrown in jail or expelled and murder was definitely not ladylike. Teppenpaw was an impossibility and Carrie being in Crotalus was just...

...apparently happening! Arabella's eyes grew round with horror as her cousin's skin flushed a bright red. Oh dear Merlin no ! This could not be happening. She'd have rather had that dreadful girl in her own house than with Ryan. Arabella could handle her even if it would mean a lot of detentions and getting in trouble with her mother for not acting like a lady and an awful lot of work for her HoH. All better than the fact that Ryan would likely never want to come out of his room again.

Her eyes flickered over to the Crotalus table from one cousin to the other. The little bi-brat was sitting with some unfortunate first year boy and Ryan...looked like he was going to vomit and was getting up from the table. The Pecari doubted it had anything to do with Eliza Bennett being prefect either. She spotted her best friend next. Alexandra was talking to the two Crotalus boys from their year. Oh, Merlin, Alexandra was there too and Arabella certainly wouldn't put it past Carrie to go after her as well.

Next her eyes found their way to the staff table where she exchanged a brief horrified look with her uncle. Okay, people might have thought they were being melodramatic or that Ryan was-though Arabella knew her cousin and that he'd probably never admit what was truly wrong. Those people didn't know Carrie. But they would. Aside from Aunt Pearl and an occasional Dark Wizard who was even more power crazy than the average Patriarch, the Pecari was certain there was nobody on Earth more horrid and she was pretty sure that poor Crotalus first year boy was finding that out at this moment.

It wasn't really as if Arabella was afraid of her herself. She was just worried that was all. About Ryan and Alexandra and even Carrie's poor roommates. She even had sympathy for Coach Pierce, a woman widely regarded as disreputable. Nobody in the entire world deserved to put up with that

“Hello, I’m Wesley.”

"Huh?" Arabella replied. "Oh,um I'm Arabella. Brockert. Of the Colorado Brockerts." She added quickly. "Sorry about that. It's nice to meet you Wesley." It always happened. Carrie was not only a detriment to Ryan's self-esteem and mental well-being but one to her own propriety and manners. as well.

11 Arabella Brockert I've never seen one of those before. 217 Arabella Brockert 0 5

Wesley

March 30, 2012 11:35 AM

First time for everything. by Wesley

Wesley looked over at the girl who he had spoken to; she didn't look too much older than Wesley himself, so Wesley put her anywhere from second to fourth year. When she introduced herself she added that she was of the Colorado Brockerts. Did that mean she was a Pureblood? Was that how you were supposed to introduce yourself? Then again the Kohler family only had one branch; and they were from Washington. Though Opa and Omi were from Germany and had immigrated when they had still been newlyweds.

Wesley shrugged off the odd introduction and smiled his most charming smile. "It's nice to meet you too, Arabella." The fresh faced first year took a piece of chicken off a plate and put on his own. He carefully cut in to chunks before taking a bite. He was still a bit nervous about Sonora but so far, it didn't seem so bad. He chewed as he looked around feeling as if he had a bit of an attention issue at the moment. There was just too much see around here!

Wesley finally returned to Arabella. "So what can you tell me about Sonora?" he asked, hoping she would give him some tips on how to excel here at Sonora. He was truly nervous about classes, he had only ever been taught by a home school teacher, and that was only simple things like reading and writing.

0 Wesley First time for everything. 0 Wesley 0 5

Waverly

March 30, 2012 5:59 PM

I like getting things done! by Waverly

Waverly was very glad that Amira was so enthusiastic to meet her. She was even flattered that the older girl knew of her. She knew she'd definitely made the right choice sitting with her. She had even noticed her haircut! "Thanks!" she said with a bright smile. "I've seen you around too," she told her, bouncing off of Amira's enthusiasm. "Yeah, I'm really glad to be back at school too. I've been thinking of starting a baking club for whoever likes to bake or wants to learn. Do you bake at all?"

She totally sounded like a recruiter right now, but she did need people to join, and getting someone who had been at Sonora longer would be great at helping her recruit people. Of course, she'd only just met Amira officially, so she hoped her new friend wouldn't be weirded out by it.

"I learned how to bake a lot of new stuff this summer, and I can't wait to actually get this baking club off the ground. How was your summer?" she asked, unaware of Amira's glances at her roommate.

0 Waverly I like getting things done! 0 Waverly 0 5

Jhonice

March 30, 2012 6:29 PM

Umm.. E Pluribus Unum? by Jhonice

Jhonice giggled at Jade's reaction to the baby. The girl did have a point, little Giselle was cute and fun to hold and cuddle, but there were certainly times that she was glad that Aunt Gwen or her mom had been there to take the little poop-machine back. Watching Andrew try to handle his new sister was just uproariously funny. Jhonice had plans, she knew that these were very formative years for her little cousin. She would treat her properly, unlike Andrew had done with her. Then once she got a little older, she would have another assistant to help her in her schemes.

As Jade recounted her summer's adventures, Jhonice began to eat. She choked just a bit when her teammate mentioned training her dog to chase chickens. She grabbed for her drink and swallowed it down to clear her airways. "You did what?" Living in the suburbs she hadn't really been raised around a lot of animals. Before coming to Sonora her father had had a big old mastiff named Max that had followed her everywhere. He died a year before she came to Sonora. "Is that a good thing to teach dogs to do?" She really couldn't imagine Max chasing chickens.

2 Jhonice Umm.. E Pluribus Unum? 209 Jhonice 0 5

Lucille

March 30, 2012 7:24 PM

Never say 'all,' 'always,' or 'never.' It's dangerous. by Lucille

“And you,” Lucille replied politely to Melanie Lennox. If she knew, she wasn’t saying she knew, and Lucille would accept that for now.

For a moment, listening to one of her new roommates talk about her name, Lucille felt an association with weightlessness, but it wasn’t a very good one. It was a strange, disorienting, unpleasant feeling of having things tilting out of place, of not making sense.

“How nice,” she said faintly. “My parents named me after my mother’s mother.”

Her name had been a compromise, really; her parents had never gotten along very well, and everyone said their relationship had been at its worst during their marriage to each other, so they had merely found a name they nearly had in both families – the Great-Grandmother Carey who’d settled their choice on ‘Lucille’ had really been a ‘Lucilla;’ Lucille had always thought that her great-grandmother’s name was prettier than Lucille, but apparently her mother and father had thought otherwise – when they had to come up with something they could both live with to call her by. She didn’t, though, see the need to share that; Mother had taught her, eventually, that if no one else noticed that she was the child of a broken marriage, and even before that the daughter of a disgrace who had eventually become a suicide, then she wasn’t to helpfully inform them. As far as possible, they were to pretend she had never had a father.

Apparently, though, she had already said something wrong, because Aria began to question whether or not she liked her name, and would like to be called something else. “I – I suppose you can call me that, too, if you want,” she said, having a vague feeling that she was being made fun of but wanting not to cause any disturbance, to make them like her somehow. It was at least a step up from Cilly. “I don’t mind.”

Then Aria explained why she hadn’t told them where she was from, and Lucille concluded this was either a very big joke or else she wasn’t the one who was a little unusual here. She just nodded when Melanie explained how she had come to introduce herself as she did, not wanting to upset things by pointing out just now that yes, there were that many different kinds of Carey, and listened to hear what ‘the community’ was.

Then another girl jumped in and Lucille felt a little overwhelmed by the barrage of names, one of which sounded like a boy’s to her, from one girl. “Of course,” she said when Melanie said it was a pleasure to meet the red-haired girl, offering a polite smile and deciding to just not refer to this roommate as anything until her brain adjusted a little. This girl already had friends, and shared what her siblings called her with a table full of people?

When Brielle said she thought they were going to have a wonderful seven years, Lucille felt an insane desire to laugh and faked a cough instead. Wonderful? She would be lucky if she could get through the night without losing her mind if it wasn’t, if not less strange, at least quieter in her dormitory. She had been looking forward to school for years because it meant not being in her house anymore, but this was completely overwhelming, and only sheer force of habit was keeping her from showing it for the whole world to see.

“I’m sorry,” she said, getting a grip again. She was going to be fine. She was. Everyone else in the family, nearly, had done this. So could she. She just had to plan for it. “I had a tickle in my throat.” She took a sip of her juice. Just start over. “I’m sure we’ll have a very nice time. My father was a Teppenpaw, too, and he always liked it.”

0 Lucille Never say 'all,' 'always,' or 'never.' It's dangerous. 0 Lucille 0 5

Valentina

March 30, 2012 8:32 PM

I though Me was a good enough prize! by Valentina

Valentina had a very small knowledge of Marcus’ life outside of Sonora and it was due to rumors she had heard around the school. She was sure her parents would disapprove, but she honestly didn’t see anything wrong with spending time with him while she was at school. He seemed to be nice enough and he was cute. Plus, what her parents didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them. Even when her mother was fairly liberal she would frown upon someone like Marcus, but the Teppepaw had learned that judging people by how they looked or where they came from was horrible, especially because she was judged by her ancestry and lack of formal family. Why would she judge Marcus when she hated being judged because she was illegitimate? Finding out about that particular secret had been painful and horrifying.

Accepting Marcus’ invitation was an act of rebellion and defiance to everyone that had told her she wasn’t good enough because her parents weren’t together. More importantly, it was directed to her father and his lack of attention and love, because that was the root of everything bad in her life. She was the one that had to carry with the stigma of being the shameful little secret of a powerful man. Her grandmother had told her during the last midterm, and she hadn’t taken it too well. For years and years, Valentina always thought her father worked out of the country in order to provide a better life for them, but it had been all lies. And what had angered her most was the fact that Alex knew about the secret and didn’t say a word to her. To protect her he had said. A slap was the response he had gotten from his little sister. It wasn’t fair. Alex was going to get married to the woman of his life and had a good life as a Quidditch professional, and she had lived in the shadow of a horrible life while he hadn't.

She had been sulky for a lot of time, but that had changed. She wanted to have fun and enjoy life. It wasn’t her fault; nothing about her parents messed up life was her fault. Valentina smiled at Marcus, “CATS are going to be quite interesting and probably painful. I have heard horror stories.” She took a bite of her chicken. Her food was lying there and she was really hungry. After swallowing the chicken it was time to start some small talk, especially since she didn’t know anything about the boy she had agreed to go out it in a spontaneous episode. “So, how was your summer?”

0 Valentina I though Me was a good enough prize! 0 Valentina 0 5

Aria

March 30, 2012 10:46 PM

Is it? How come? by Aria

The formalities these two girls currently held made Aria a bit uncomfortable. This was not how the community was. They were a family. Maybe not biologically, but figuratively. They each had a purpose and they worked together to accomplish that. There was no need for formalities. Aria had to wonder if this was what it was always like in school. Would she constantly have to be so polite and stiff? She hoped not. Aria wasn’t made to be confined in a box. She nodded though, when Lucille agreed to be called Lucy. It just fit better to Aria. More youthful and fun. Lucille was a name for an elderly woman.

Both of these other girls seemed rather nice though, which eased some of Aria’s fears about the school. But she wasn’t sure if their sincerity was real or not. In the community, there was no reason not to be sincere. Either you liked a person or you didn’t. Although, it was rare for two people not to like each other. Mother said it was because their auras weren’t meshing well and that was why there were hostilities. But her parents warned her that outside of the community, people pretended quite a bit and it was hard to figure out who they truly were. Aria didn’t think everyone was like this, but she wanted to observe her new roommates more. “Thank you.” She said to both the compliments to her name as well as her outfit. “It’s quite alright. We are different and this is a learning process.” Aria commented, eating a carrot.

She listened quietly as Melanie explained the necessity for the stating of the state, but still didn’t really see the point to it. However, she would let them do as they wished since she couldn’t very well tell them what they learned was silly. At the question of the community, Aria paused to think of how to respond, “It doesn’t have a name. The community was started long before I came into existence. A group wanted to remove themselves from the material world and live strictly from the land. It’s a spiritual community. We are one with each other and one with Nature.”

Aria blinked when the newest member of their small chat joined their group and gave a long list of names for which she enjoyed being called. Just on her energy alone, Aria knew that this girl was a talker. This wasn’t necessarily a terrible thing. Aria knew a few people who had so much energy that they had no other way of expunging it other than by chattering it out of them. This sometimes amused Aria since she had no problem sitting quietly for long periods of time, which came in handy for Meditation time and her morning exercise. Still, out of habit, Aria gave the girl a smile. Probably not nearly as big as she gave in return, but a smile none the less. “I’m not sure. Most of those who are given permission to leave the community for school come home for good by Christmas.” Aria commented lightly.

0 Aria Is it? How come? 0 Aria 0 5

Fae

March 31, 2012 12:23 AM

This... is unexpected. by Fae

Fae gave a small laugh with Topher’s joke. She knew exactly what that was like whether he was serious or not. Her parents tried to encourage her with her school work and her social skills, but her Great Grandfather liked to remind her that she was nothing more than a connection for them to make and the only thing she was good for was to look pretty and do as her husband says. If it weren’t for her mother and her sister, Fae might have felt what her Great Grandfather said was how it was supposed to be. But with her mother having always been a strong personality of her parents and Shelby has always been a spitfire who was now betrothed to an Heir. Still, it hurt to know that he thought so little of her and knowing that her grades at Sonora weren’t helping him think differently only made it all the worse for her.

Topher switched topics on her and forced her brain to think of the CATS exams that were to be looming over them next year. She was about to share in sympathy with him over crazy parents when another familiar voice broke in. The sudden intrusion had Fae snatching her hand off of Topher’s arm as if she was caught doing something scandalous. Her blue eyes immediately went to the other blonde. The sight of Phoenix had Fae’s mind go blank and a goofy smile appear on her face. Her hands went to play with her hair, something she would never normally do and what she had restrained herself from doing just a moment before in front of Topher.

She had no idea why she was doing this. In the back of her mind, she knew this behavior was wrong. But she couldn’t stop herself. She just kept staring like an idiot at Phoenix with a smile on her face that was making her cheeks hurt and just hoping that Phoenix will look at her and smile only for her. In her confusion, Fae began to blush again. She knew she didn’t like Phoenix in that way. He was nice and he stayed with her through the Fair, and he was nice looking, but she wasn’t interested in him that way. Right?

Right.

This new revelation opened up the doors for her to control her body once more. Closing her eyes and shaking herself mentally, Fae brought herself back into the conversation. She didn’t understand what just happened or why, but she hoped neither boy noticed. How embarrassing would that be? “Your mother didn’t have to take the exams?” Fae asked, surprised by such a thing. “My parents remind me that I need to have passing grades for the exams, but they haven’t quite begun their badgering just yet.” Fae admitted to both of them. She supposed gender may be to blame for this, but she kept that thought to herself. “It could be because they are preoccupied with other things, though.”

0 Fae This... is unexpected. 0 Fae 0 5

Maximilian Joshua McLachlan

March 31, 2012 1:08 AM

The Transfer. by Maximilian Joshua McLachlan

If he had known transferring was going to be this difficult, Josh wouldn't have done it in the first place. Not that it was his choice, really. And he'd be away from his relatives for most of the year, which was good considering how he felt about them right about now. There was no way his uncle could ever redeem himself. No. Way.

But Josh wasn't concerned about that. He'd been disappointed by people before, and his family was notorious for getting away with their dark magic all over Europe, developing countries, and America. America. His new home. Just like any other place he'd moved to. Josh wasn't new to moving, nor was he new to meeting new people. He had been new to making friends, but that had been a whole summer ago. A whole summer with--

No. Josh took a deep breath and followed the rest of the first-years into the hall, sipping the potion with the rest of them. He didn't care that he might've looked ridiculous, being the only fourteen-year-old amongst a bunch of first-years, but that was the price one was forced to pay when one's uncle impressed it upon him. Not that he'd really had a choice, anyhow. His skin turned blue, and Josh looked at the other first-years with blue skin and followed them to the Aladren table, his piercing, intense grey eyes scanning his new housemates and suppressing the memories he had made with his old ones.

He sat, not caring about making friends or acquaintances of any sort. If someone spoke to him, he'd hardly speak back. He was the quiet type who acted like he had no feelings because all his life no one had cared. Now he hardly cared himself. Except--Josh felt his fist clench and hid it in his robe pocket. He would not think of it--her--anymore. He couldn't. Oh Merlin, but if he could...

Josh stopped his thoughts before they went any further and piled food onto his plate, preparing himself for his studies and the work he was going to do here. As a pureblood, as one of the McLachlans with branches all over Eastern Europe, some of Western Europe, and America, he would do his duty just the way his uncle wanted him to. He couldn't make any friends, show any emotions, nor react to anyone. He would do his work and he would have to be content with that. He'd done it before. He could do it again.

19 Maximilian Joshua McLachlan The Transfer. 184 Maximilian Joshua McLachlan 0 5

Cepheus

March 31, 2012 1:17 AM

Glad we all can agree. by Cepheus

Cepheus was very glad that Gareth had a sibling coming to Sonora as well. He didn't know if he could handle Rupert on his own, not that Rup would need much handling. Well, perhaps he was speaking too soon. His brother was an interesting type, a trouble-maker. It was his father's lack of discipline with the younger two that made them so wild. It was always Cepheus who got the brunt of their burden. It was life as he knew it and now with Rupert coming to school, perhaps if Ceph could keep him from getting expelled, that would be enough.

"Hope your brother's not a trouble-maker like mine," Cepheus said, sighing. As much as he loved his younger sibling, he was certainly a handful. "We'd have more than just 'tag' to play with them." He smiled and tucked into his meal.

It sounded like Alex and Gareth had had relatively quiet summers. Those were nice, when one could be lazy all day and not have a care in the world. "Reunions are a mess," he agreed. "You're lucky you've got yours every five years. The official one for my family is every two years and the unofficial ones are whenever my grandfather has an epiphany of some sort for the Princetons."

He didn't mind them so much, but there were several cousins and aunts in particular that he could most certainly do without. He was lucky that it was his family that got to live in the Princeton Manor where those a part of the patriarchal line got to live. That way, he never had to travel for reunions, thank Merlin.

0 Cepheus Glad we all can agree. 0 Cepheus 0 5

Ryan

March 31, 2012 3:49 AM

Somehow I don't think one would help anyway. by Ryan

Ryan honestly had no idea what to do right now. All he wanted to do was run, to escape. He didn't even want to be at Sonora anymore. Obviously, he hadn't really thought, even prior to her getting her letter that she'd be a Squib, which everyone said would have served her right though, yet Ryan had hoped that she'd be somewhere else, in Pecari or Aladren. Preferably the former, because he couldn't imagine the sort that most Pecaris were putting up with Carrie. Not that Ryan would wish her on anyone. There was nobody he hated that much.

There was no way to deal with this situation. Even if there were alternatives to staying in Crotalus-and he knew Carrie wouldn't keep to her room, she was a social person by nature and not only that, an extremely malicious person by nature who would seek to hurt him every chance she got-Ryan wouldn't want other people to know his situation. He was ashamed, deeply ashamed, of being bullied by an eleven year old girl. Just as he'd been ashamed of how his mother had treated him.

He knew he was bigger than Carrie and older and physically stronger and knew more magic and that she was afraid of breaking a nail. Also that she didn't want to touch him because she thought he was contaminated. That was probably what kept his mother from ever ever touching him ever too. The thing was, Ryan...didn't think it was right to beat up or hex a girl unless she was actually about to literally kill him or someone else. Besides, the fifth year felt their treatment of him was somehow his fault, he had to have done something wrong to make his mother hate him so much.

Still, now Ryan felt trapped, like an animal backed into a corner. There was no way to fix this, none at all. It was just how it had always been when he was growing up. When his dad had been at work and he'd been at home with his mother and Carrie during the day, hiding in his room. At least then Ryan hadn't had to leave it. Now, any time he went anywhere, he'd have to cross the common room to get there-and she'd likely turn everyone against him too. Or try at the very least.

A flood of bad memories came rushing back and Ryan felt kind of dizzy. He could practically hear his mother yelling at him and calling him things that Aunt Lisa scolded Arabella for being unladylike when she said them about Carrie. He heard the Howler screaming about how it was all his fault that his parents were divorced. How his sister always said that he ruined their family and that they'd all be better off if he was never born. They were right.

Suddenly, Ryan felt a pair of arms around him. "Sophie." The Crotalus whispered. "Let's get out of here." He wanted to leave, go somewhere where she couldn't find him, couldn't hurt him, but other than his own room-because girls couldn't go up the boys' staircase-there was no such place.

11 Ryan Somehow I don't think one would help anyway. 176 Ryan 0 5

Henrietta Boxton-Fox-Reynolds

March 31, 2012 11:48 AM

Just a regular second year by Henrietta Boxton-Fox-Reynolds

Henny wasn't unhappy to be back at Sonora. She didn't mind the place. The library was amazing and she liked her classes. There wasn't anything that she particularly didn't like, or that was particularly bad. It just wasn't really her home. Being home over the summer had been lovely. Her parents had made a huge fuss of her the whole time, not to mention that she and Charlie had their Adoption Day to celebrate. They'd gone to a museum of Muggle flying machines. It was good that Dad and Father both had a bit of Muggle in their backgrounds, so the whole world of science was open to her as well.

Settling down at the Aladren table, she kept an eye on the sorting. She hadn't made a lot of friends at all last year, but she didn't really think her dorm mates were the place to start this year, in spite of how much time they inevitably spent together. Henny was fairly sure they had different views on a number of issues, although nothing had ever been said to her face. But perhaps she'd make friends with some of the new first years, or some people from other houses during class.

One of the boys who had lined up with the first years didn't look like he should be there. He had to be older than she was. But his face was unfamiliar. In spite of not knowing anyone very well, Sonora was a small school, and she knew most people by sight. Plus someone who'd been coming here for years wouldn't make that mistake. A transfer then? Or someone who was behind for some reason. A Muggle kid whose parents had refused to accept his magi...il it had become a huge and undeniable problem. Or maybe someone who'd just been held back one or two years and was also tall for his age. The latter theory seemed unlikely, as he was sorted into Aladren, though Henny was forced to remind herself that being in Aladren was not synonymous with natural intelligence (although it often worked out that way). So long as he was dedicated to working hard and good at finding solutions, he would belong in their house.

The boy sat next to her but seemed more focussed on food than conversation. That, she was led to believe, was not uncommon amongst boys, especially older ones. However, there was no harm in trying to be friendly.

“Hi,” she smiled, “The pumpkin pasties are pretty good here,” she added. May as well try to hook him in on his most obvious area of interest.

13 Henrietta Boxton-Fox-Reynolds Just a regular second year 211 Henrietta Boxton-Fox-Reynolds 0 5

Josh McLachlan

March 31, 2012 1:47 PM

Lucky you. by Josh McLachlan

Someone was speaking to him directly, overpowering the buzz of the crowd. His sharp grey eyes turned slowly to look at her, wondering why she would bother speaking to him and not to her own group of friends. She was either an outcast or couldn't make friends. Or someone who preferred to be lonely, but that didn't explain why she was trying to spark a conversation.

She had begun with a weak topic, and Josh didn't think he could continue it even if he wanted to. Which he didn't. It was better not to make friends for reasons he would not say. He stared at her for a moment too long with his head tilted towards her slightly, looking at her through the corners of his eyes, before looking back at his food.

"Haven't tried them." He had a Scottish accent from his upbringing in Scotland, the country he had stayed in the longest, but had gained a bit of an Australian lilt as well. It was a unique and strange-sounding accent, but to Josh, obviously, it was all he knew. Europe was his homeland, at least Scotland was. That was where his family had originated from, something his grandmother had never let him forget. She had moved to America with his grandfather as a young couple to start a McLachlan branch there, but after his grandfather had died, had moved back to Scotland, her home. He wondered what would have happened to her if she had stayed in America. The thought made dark but humorous thoughts come to mind.

He took a sip of the pumpkin juice, continuously suppressing memories of his previous school. He was not usually sentimental since he'd never had anything to miss before, so it was a foreign feeling. He just had to get used to it. It was better not to feel. He was still staring at his food, eating slowly, not looking at the girl who had spoken to him, wondering if she would continue trying to make conversation or if she would be offended by his manners and never speak to him again. He didn't know which he preferred.

0 Josh McLachlan Lucky you. 0 Josh McLachlan 0 5

Topher

March 31, 2012 7:45 PM

And yet still somehow inevitable by Topher

Phoenix joined in the conversation, and Topher became aware of a rather startling change in the girl sitting beside him. Her moving away like she’d been scalded, he could understand, if not like – there had been something kind of tense there between them for a moment, and being jolted back to reality was a little disconcerting, especially when she was a Sinclair and he was, well, him, complete with the family history he had just partially revealed to her – but why did she look like she’d gone goofy at the same moment she’d looked at Phoenix? Yeah, the guy was good-looking, this was not completely a new thing, but he’d never known his roommate and Fae to have that much to do with each other.

Maybe that was just what she did when she got really surprised. Maybe? He didn’t know. Girls were weird, purebloods were weirder, and though they got along most of the time, Fae was still both.

“Yeah,” he said, accepting Phoenix’s joke as just a joke rather than a serious suggestion that he try to blackmail his mother. For one thing, he just didn’t see her being all that amused by it. His mother was usually cheerful, sweet, friendly, understanding, and otherwise the next thing to the poster child for Teppenpaw House, but she had a temper when she thought that people were trying to pull something over on her somehow. “I see that going over well. Easy as robbing the bank.” Honestly, Topher thought he might take being chased by a dragon over trying to blackmail Mom, but neither really appealed to him as a career choice. He’d have to find something else to do, he guessed.

He hadn’t really caught the detail about how Phoenix’s mother didn’t have to take her CATS, but he was curious when Fae did. That was kind of weird. He wondered if she’d dropped out or something. He made it a practice not to ask people too many questions about their families, but if Phoenix volunteered the information, he was interested to see how she had done that, even if, by the sounds of it, they weren’t going to be able to do the same thing, because Phoenix’s parents were being a pain about them, too. “Nothing’s ever as bad as parents say it is,” he said about how hard the tests would be, offering the wisdom of fourteen years of not paying too much attention, but seeing a few things along the way by mistake. “Plus, look at some of the people who’ve survived before us. Maybe your parents just see that, Fae.”

Or who knew what, her parents were purebloods and one of them was a girl so they were going to be incomprehensible by nature, but it seemed like the thing to say, anyway, so he did. They probably would nag her sometime, but in his opinion, the later parents got nervous and started doing that, the better. He could have happily gone without it, period.

0 Topher And yet still somehow inevitable 0 Topher 0 5

Henny B-F-R

April 01, 2012 2:55 PM

I believe we make our own luck... by Henny B-F-R

Henny did her best to meet the older boy's gaze steadily, although he stared at her for a tad more than was comfortable. She would have thought he was trying to stare her into oblivion, in true grumpy teenage style, but there was some hint of trying to fathom something out. Maybe he was just a bit slow... His ability to contribute to the conversation didn't rely confirm or disprove either theory.

“Where did you go before here?” she asked, helping herself to some spicy chicken, rice and carrots. It skipped several questions but that seemed the safer option. Exclaiming things like 'hey, you're not from round here, are you?' was just giving him ammunition, assuming that the theory that he was just a grumpy old curmudgeon was correct. Even if he'd been held in the Muggle world by parents in denial, that meant he would have been somewhere else before here. So at least it was definitely a question with an answer. It might not be one that the older boy was willing to discuss, but he wasn't giving her a whole load of indicators of where he wanted the conversation to go.

If he wasn't going to be friendly, that was his loss. Maybe he just (probably correctly) estimated her to be a couple of years younger than him, and didn't want to bother talking to “kids.” She did look rather girly, in a corn blue sundress and white Mary-Janes. But Aladrens should know better than to judge books by their covers. Just because someone's curly brown hair was being kept out of their eyes with grips with bows on didn't mean there wasn't a keen brain underneath. But if he didn't want to talk to little girls, then fine. She hoped he made friends in his own year in that case. But it didn't hurt to try to welcome him and be nice.

13 Henny B-F-R I believe we make our own luck... 211 Henny B-F-R 0 5

Solomon

April 01, 2012 3:35 PM

Brimstone by Solomon

He ignored Angel’s question directed at him, leaning forward in his seat, blue eyes intent upon the red. “Yuh stayed?” He repeated, low voice lowering even further, a subtle breeze of sound. “At home?” A light shatter of silverware against the plate, the sound softened by the mashed potatoes beneath. Solomon’s dark fingers dropped from the fork and knife to his lap, drifting beneath the table toward his pockets were loose sheets of parchment paper were waiting to be unraveled and tattooed with words and stories. “Whut wus it like? Whom did yuh tawk tuh?” A whole summer in hell. The experience of home must still have been fresh in Angel’s mind. Solomon wanted to know all about it now, while the tales were still quick to roll off the demon boy’s tongue. He pulled a quill slowly from his other pocket, placing a revealed ink bottle on the table beside his plate.

“Can yuh tell meh whut it all looks like?” His smile was soft, polite, but something ferocious and hungry for knowledge, for stories, brightened his blue eyes with a rare intensity. “The fires... the creatures... Him.” He wondered where in the hierarchy Angel Shield rested. Was he as young as he looked, or was he centuries older than Solomon? Was Angel the son of the King of Demons, or was he merely a common servant, for surely nothing Solomon had ever done warranted a high ranking demon to follow him. ‘And why was he sent after me?’ He hadn’t asked himself that question before, content last year to doze, only a little aware of the focused red gaze and the sounds of pencil against paper as Angel sketched.

The worst thing Solomon had ever done was run away. Six years old and furious about something he couldn’t even remember what now. Stuffing sickles and knuts into his socks and tying them with rubber bands. An old trunk taken from the attic, stuffed Every Flavor Beans, quills, parchment paper, and books. He hadn’t gotten very far when they found him, clinging desperately to the trunk of a tree, shivering in his sleep, the bayou cold in the nighttime and all he had had were niffler patterned pajamas. He dimly remembered his trunk spilling open, beans rolling down the small hill into the swamp. Was he being punished for that transgression, or... ‘Something must have happened to me there. Something I’ve forgotten long ago.’ A story wove itself into his mind. He allowed a small portion of his attention to remain on anything Angel might have said, the rest was focussed on the paper, and the quill dripping a small dots of ink.

The Origins of Roberto Del Cavalier
Solomon A. Davies

Like a dream, the memory came back to him, and with it new details sprang to mind, shadows he’d dismissed as fantasy all those years ago. Red eyes glowing in the darkness, a soft voice, accented and foreign, drifting toward Roberto, winding around trees, curling around roots until it found him. “Leave me alone!” Roberto had called out, crawling backwards through the forest, thorned branches ripping at his cloak. “Stay back!” Still the creature stalked him, its unnatural elegance suggesting foreign origins. The stench of brimstone filled the air. Roberto felt the ground shake beneath his adolescent form. “Stay back! Stay back!” His voice lost its force. “Please... please... leave me alone.” Brimstone rose in the air, stifling his nostrils. Roberto choked.

Solomon felt his breathing constrict in excitement. Where was Roberto being dragged to? The answers layed in Angel’s responses, eagerly awaited details that would fuel the novel further along.

0 Solomon Brimstone 0 Solomon 0 5

Josh McLachlan

April 01, 2012 3:54 PM

I've never had that option. by Josh McLachlan

If Josh could feel sympathy, he'd feel sorry for this girl for having to talk to him. He wasn't looking for conversation, wasn't wanting any, and yet she was still persevering. Obviously she didn't know what she was getting herself into, but then again, she probably didn't care. Her perseverance reminded him of her, but he didn't dare dwell long on the thought.

He was glad she didn't ask something ridiculously obvious like, "you're not from around here, are you?" He would have refused to answer. Even so, he took his time answering, finishing the bite he had just taken and wiping his mouth on a napkin and getting a teacup and saucer. He didn't make eye contact, focusing instead on retrieving his items. "The New Zealand Academy of Magic," he said, assuming she hadn't heard of it. Not many people had because it was a small school that wasn't known for anything in particular. It was as if someone had decided that Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, and all the islands near it needed a school and built one on a whim. It was most certainly not like Hogwarts. Similar to Sonora, or at least of what he'd seen so far, except not in such a large castle.

He poured himself a cup of tea and dropped a sugar cube in. He set a silver spoon to stir his tea for him as he drained his pumpkin juice and reached over for a biscuit. With a flick of his wrist, the spoon finished and set itself down on the table, now immobile. Josh sipped his tea and looked at the girl briefly before looking back down at his food.

Josh didn't know how to make friends. She, back in New Zealand, had been persistent enough to gain his friendship, bringing along two others that later turned their backs on him for various, valid reasons. The memories threatened to engulf him, but he was skilled at compartmentalizing his mind and blocking his memories. So he did so.

He supposed he'd better ask her name or something. He was as skilled in the art of making friends as a rock was. Small talk he could do. His lessons in etiquette hadn't entirely gone to waste. After all, he had put his napkin in his lap and hadn't put his elbows on the table once. If he had wanted to make a face, he supposed it would've been a wry one. Instead he asked, "What's your name?" Not so much in a friendly way, but in a guarded tone. His voice always sounded guarded.

0 Josh McLachlan I've never had that option. 0 Josh McLachlan 0 5

Angel

April 02, 2012 7:13 AM

... by Angel

Angel had taken a miniscule bite of mashed potatoes when weight of Sol’s regard brought his red gaze back up to be caught by the startlingly intense eyes, shades lighter than they ought to be. Soft demands rolled off the other boy’s tongue thick with the flavor of the South. The pale boy wasn’t sure exactly what Sol was after so it was difficult to give him what he wanted. Hesitant words fell awkwardly from his lips.

“I am from where many big tree, much big than here. Not many sun, dark is good not burning. Is colder than swamps was.” Endless hours of one on one tutoring with Dulce had greatly improved his ability to do assignments, but one area that was still in need of work was his ability to speak coherently. With parchment and quill he could spend hours on a single sentence until it made sense, but speaking was different. He couldn’t see the words or change them after they’d been released, they couldn’t be called back. Still, even his speech was slowly becoming more than just a handful of disjointed words tossed out in the hope that who ever heard them could piece together some understanding of what he was attempting to say.

He made a soft sound of frustration, knowing that words were inadequate to describe what Sol wished to know. When Sol brought out parchment and began his quickly drawn words, Angel gave a soft hum of agreement. That would serve far better than any words he could offer, reaching down Angel plucked the sketchbook off the ground where it had been leaning against his leg and as Sol wrote Angel drew what words couldn’t convey.

A dark forest bloomed under his fingertips, the picture was curiously abstract for one of Angel’s very literal drawings. One of his shortcomings was attempting to draw cluttered scenery that had many similar shades. Just as a tiger became confused at the sight of a herd of zebra, their many stripes breaking up the shapes of individual animals so that the tiger was left with a single mass of prey, or the fawn failed to see the stalking tiger in spite of it’s brilliant orange due to its stripes, the same was true of Angel. The color blindness caused the albino to rely on the shapes of objects to differentiate them instead of the color. Still it was recognizable as a forest, and the shine of animal eyes could be seen studding the dense foliage.

Tucked away deep between two massive trees a small cottage rested. While Lady Cynthia would deny it, her true skill rested in the art of Herbology. But she’d always felt that was too common a skill to bother with. Her home reflected this suppressed skill, melting effortlessly into the darkened woods far from the prying eyes of muggles. It was difficult to see where nature ended and the structure began. When the sketch was finished, Angel let Sol look at it before tearing it free and crumpling it indifferently. The wad of paper fell to the table and his pencil began on the next sketch.

A massive grizzly stalked lifelike across the page, its gaping maw open revealing inch long fangs with ropes of saliva dripping from them. Angel often ventured out of the house when the Lady went to work and left him alone. Once he was sketching a small stream where a young buck was drinking when the bear appeared. The massive creature had charged out of the woods straight at the rock Angel had been sitting on. He hardly noticed the danger he’d been in, instead tearing free a new page and drawing out the shapes of the strange creature before it left. Even when the bear had reared up on its hind legs and roared, Angel hadn’t flinched, too caught up in the drawing. His lack of fear, and of running had confused the beast which eventually wandered off back into the depths of the forest leaving the young albino uneaten.

That had been one of the few times Lady Cynthia struck him, she’d seen the half finished sketch and slapped him hard across the face. The Lady knew damn well that Angel only drew what he saw and if he was drawing a raging bear that was because he’d been in the presents of one. When the sketch was finished he again showed it to Sol before pulling it free to be crumbled like the last.

0 Angel ... 0 Angel 0 5

Sophie

April 02, 2012 11:02 AM

Well, I'm here to help. by Sophie

As anyone who knew her was well aware, Sophie Jamison was a fighter. Her temper often got the better of her, and it was deemed a problem, but her overall fiery-ness was something of which she was proud. She wasn’t afraid to stand up and fight for something in which she believed or someone about whom she cared. No opponent was too big or intimidating—although “big” was a relative term compared to her diminutive stature. Her protective instincts wiped out all rational thought. She would fight for her family and friends, whether they wanted her to or not.

It was that way that she could get herself into trouble. The fifteen year old was stubborn and didn’t listen to reason. Sometimes she just made situations worse, but she tried to the best of her ability despite all obstacles. All she wanted to do was protect; in that way, she was self-sacrificing. To those she cared for, she was loyal. To those against her, she aimed to be their worst nightmare.

Ryan’s problem was no exception. She couldn’t remember a time in their friendship where she could have done something and didn’t. When his mother sent him an irrational Howler filled with hatred, the blonde sent one right back at her. In the long run, it had been helpful, for when Pearl then wrote to Sophie’s father, Jacob ended up being Ryan’s dad’s lawyer in the divorce suit. It all worked out for the best, plus for maybe thirty seconds, Pearl was put in her place.

Now Carrie was at Sonora, and Ryan was in a tizzy. The Pecari’s mind swam with questions of what could she do? She needed to find ways to get at Carrie, to hurt her somehow, without getting caught and getting in trouble. How could she hurt the evil younger girl? She had time, considering the Feast was still going on.

”Sophie. Let’s get out of here.”His whisper sent shivers up her spine. Usually when those lines were in a cheesy movie, it was much more suggestive. Movies didn’t have the villains as eleven-year-old girls with less soul than a dementor from whom the protagonists had to escape. That wasn’t what people wanted to see, and who would believe it? No actress in a movie could ever do justice for just how awful Carrie O’Malley was.

“Where do you want to go?” she inquired. It was more about where could they go. Once the Feast was over, the students were free to go, but for now, were they allowed to leave? Sophie didn’t really care about rules, but Ryan might have. Still, he did seem pretty desperate to go.

“I’m really sorry about her,” Sophie added. “It’s so stupid that she’s in your House. You’re not like her. She’s not like you.” The fifth year paused, thinking. “I guess just leave your Common Room as quick as possible, okay? Where is that, anyway? I’ll wait for you right outside, since I can’t go in. If she talks to you, just keep going. Don’t even look at her.” What Carrie probably wanted most was to see the hurt on his face and have it recognized, but if Ryan did not acknowledge her, maybe she would stop spending the energy, at least a little.

12 Sophie Well, I'm here to help. 34 Sophie 0 5

Gareth

April 02, 2012 5:42 PM

But of course by Gareth

Gareth nodded with agreement. Most of the time school was perfectly acceptable for girls, but every now and then they had a rather poor reaction to it. Thoughts of his cousin Nydia who’d defied the family, gotten into Quidditch and had brought shame to her line filled his mind. She’d died in her fifth year at Hogwarts, and while it was officially reported as a werewolf attack, few believed it. Deiniol Redbriar was not a man who accepted defiance in his female offspring and though he denied having anything to do with Nydia’s death, Gareth didn’t believe it.

He was worried that school was not agreeing well with Meggs in the same way, but at least Wyn was a kinder man than his brother and wasn’t likely to do anything so extreme. He’ll probably just call her back home and have her tutored privately to get her away from bad influences Gareth thought. Of all the brothers Wyn was the softest, and he was unlikely to even disinherit Meggs for defying the family. But, it would certainly make finding her a good husband all the more difficult. I hope she doesn’t do anything foolish this year.

“Enion isn’t too much of a handful, but he can be difficult sometimes.” Gareth admitted. Hopefully he and Rupert would get along. As the eldest, Enion liked to follow him around like a lost duckling and that would be incredibly annoying in school.

“That’s not fair!” Gareth groaned. “We have reunions every year in the summer.” Because the lines were still young, Grandfather wanted to keep his eye on everything to make sure they didn’t go astray. Maybe once I’m grown and have kids of my own we can push it back to once every two or three years. He thought wistfully. He loved his large family, but having all of them together in one place was always hectic.

0 Gareth But of course 0 Gareth 0 5

Marcus Crosby

April 02, 2012 6:18 PM

New friends! Greetings! by Marcus Crosby

Marcus was so very excited to be at Sonora. In general, he happened to be an easily excitable person, but especially Sonora, he was sure, would be super fun! His cousin Sally went to school here, and Aunt Lilac and Uncle Seth both were on staff. How cool was that? While he was going to miss Mom and Dad, he could write to them about how great school was and how happy he would doubtlessly be.

The blond was very, very eager, and he gladly took the glass from Coach Pierce and sipped it. He felt a little funny thereafter, but it was probably more of a mental thing that physically having a problem with the potion. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something unusual; his skin was yellow! That was really weird! He had listened, though, so he knew that meant he was in Teppenpaw House, which was just as well, since the Head of House was Aunt Lilac.

He shuffled off to his table of new friends and listened to the Headmistress speak. He didn’t know any of the prefects or head students, but he clapped loudly and cheered anyway. Then it was time to sing, and his eyes lit up. Marcus sang proudly; he was on the weaker side as far as singers went, but he liked music and was not afraid to share the song. Merlin, Sonora was fun already!

After the song, it was food time, which was fantastic. If there was one thing growing boys liked, it was a good meal. A moment was spent in sheer joy as the variety of sensations assaulted his taste buds. Then he remembered all of the potential friends around him and turned to a neighbor. “Hi!” he said, his mouth still partially filled. He swallowed hard. “I’m Marcus Crosby. What’s your name?” Without a doubt, this person would be his first friend!

12 Marcus Crosby New friends! Greetings! 225 Marcus Crosby 0 5

Andrina Thornton

April 02, 2012 10:47 PM

Now we start... by Andrina Thornton

The Thorntons had an eventful summer, as usual. With as many children as the family had, it was not surprising to each of them that there was always something going on. With Amira, Aislynn, Audi and Ashling getting chauffeured from one doctor to another (Amira less than the others) the family spent a lot of time with either the older kids watching the younger ones or riding in the family van. Andri however got lucky. She’d invited her new friend Kitty home with her for summer for a week and her parents said it was alright as long as her parents came to have dinner with Kitty’s family. Andri’s mother was thrilled that she’d made a friend that she’d asked Arista and Addison to be in charge of the younger children so that she and Andri could go to Kitty’s house. Their mother had just told them that she was with child AGAIN so she had a small baby bump when she went to the dinner, but that didn’t stop Andri from being happy she was there. Sure, at twelve to be the fourth of almost 16 children felt nuts. But what can I do? she thought and enjoyed herself at Kitty’s for dinner.

When the dinner party was over, Kitty’s parents allowed her to go back to the Thornton’s house for a whole week! Andri was so excited that her friend would be able to meet all her siblings that her excitement came back full force from the blah-ness of the beginning of the summer. Well, to make the long story she’d tell a little bit shorter, lets just say that Andri, Kitty and Aubrielle were almost inseparable that whole week and they did as much as they could do in that time frame. But once Kitty left, it was back to the grindstone of doctors visits and watching the little siblings. Andri didn’t mind the watching of the littler siblings, it was the doctor visits she didn’t like so much.

Andri hated how sick Aislynn was and that Ashling was having a hard time understanding much of anything. The fourth Thornton child to go to Sonora couldn’t handle the fact that she couldn’t do much to help Ashling like she could do for Audi and it bothered her to the point where she wasn’t sure where to go from there.

She was happy, however, that she’d not only made a friend in Kitty, sure, but also because her cousin Clara was coming to school too. Andri wondered to herself what house she’d end up in. The whole ride on the wagon, Andri thought of who her cousin was as a person. She was almost sure she wouldn’t be in Teppenpaw like Arista and Addison, she was even more sure that she couldn’t possibly be in Crotalus. She could be in Aladren with me, maybe? Or Pecari with Amira? she thought as the Wagon pulled up to the school. She went on to Cascade Hall with the others. She watched as Aubrielle walked over to the other first years and waved towards her little sister. She spotted Clara and waved to her too. They hadn’t seen her in a little while and it looked as if she hadn’t changed much.

Headmistress Kijewski charmed herself to be heard and Andri nodded to show she had been listening. Andri watched as the welcome speech was given and as each first year stepped up to Coach Pierce. First she watched as Brielle turned yellow. She nodded and grinned at her sister. She was glad she was going to be in the house with Arista and Addi. She sorta wished she was in Aladren with her though. A few first years later, Clara turned brown. Andri smiled, knowing that meant that at least both of the first years in her family were with someone else in the family. It felt weird to her now to be in an odd house and wondered if any of the other siblings or cousins would join her in Aladren.

She watched as Brielle and Clara went off to the Teppenpaw and Pecari tables and waved to each of them, unsure if they saw her. She remembered turning blue the year before and how she’d been so excited to tell Amira that she was a smurf. And now here it was, a year later and she was now twelve years old and getting older by the day. Time flies… she thought as she watched the multicolored first years go off to join their houses. Once all new first years and a transfer student was sorted, Headmistress Kijewski said her announcements welcoming new professors, the new head boy and girl as well as the new prefects.

When the Midsummer Event was mentioned, Andri glanced at the glee on Brielle’s face and couldn’t help but giggle at the excitement on her sister’s face. The sheet music appeared in front of her and Andri sang the song as best as she could and once it was over the food was in front of them. “That’s what I’m talking about!” she said happily as her stomach growled. She was a growing girl after all, and needed her nourishment. Filling her plate with many different types of food (she was always one for trying new things) she’d never had before nor knew what they were called, she put her fork into something and put it in her mouth. She let the taste buds explode in her mouth as she wondered what this food was. Andri didn’t dislike it, she wasn’t sure she liked it either, however. As she chewed, she looked around her at the new blue first years and finished at the girl who sat next to her. The girl looked at her at the same time and the pair smiled at each other.

“Hey, who are you?”

The girl had said to her. In shock a little bit Andri looked at her and said, “Uhm… I’m Andrina Reid Thornton, who are you?”

OOC- Slight godmodding approved by Clara Abernathy's author

0 Andrina Thornton Now we start... 214 Andrina Thornton 0 5

Amira and Clara Abernathy

April 03, 2012 12:31 AM

So do we! by Amira and Clara Abernathy

Amira was thrilled that as the sorting happened before her eyes she saw her younger cousin Clara turn the same brown she had. YES! she thought to herself as she watched as Clara walked towards her and sat down beside her. With Waverly across from her and Clara next to her everything suddenly felt just right. This is the year, MY year. I will get Seeker back. I will. she thought as her eyes brightened and her smile broadened.

Each girl put food on her plate and Waverly introduced herself and asked if she was excited about school. She introduced herself to Waverly and answered her question, complemented the second year’s hair and turned to her little cousin. “This is my younger cousin Clara. New first year.” Amira said, proud of her cousin for making it into Pecari House. Now we’re SURE to win this year. Clara being here proves it! she thought as she smiled first to Waverly and then to Clara, letting their eyes meet for just a moment before turning back to a very excited Waverly.

"Thanks! I've seen you around too. Yeah, I'm really glad to be back at school too. I've been thinking of starting a baking club for whoever likes to bake or wants to learn. Do you bake at all?"

“Bake?” Amira repeated, a little bit confused as of where that came from. “Uhm. I guess I bake a little. I’m not sure I’m so good at it though. I usually just end up making a mess...” she said as she turned to Clara, wondering what her cousin thought of Sonora so far. Through Clara she spotted Jade again and her smile lessened. She hoped that Clara didn’t think that her smaller smile was to her and made a mental note to tell her later on about what happened with Jade the year before. Waverly kept talking and Amira turned her attention back to the second year again.

"I learned how to bake a lot of new stuff this summer, and I can't wait to actually get this baking club off the ground. How was your summer?"

Clara had laughed partially to herself when she heard Mir make the comment about baking. To Clara’s knowledge she had never actually seen her cousin bake. Maybe she had, Clara shrugged.

“New stuff? Cool!” Amira said, bringing her head back into the conversation at hand. “Uhm, summer was summer, I guess. Doctors visits, family time, you know, the works.” she said, turning back to Clara again as she finished, “Right?”

Clara smiled up at her older cousin and the girl who introduced herself as Waverly. She nodded in agreement. “Same old, same old,” she confirmed. She had piled some different things from the serving plates onto her own and oddly found herself picking at her food. This isn’t like me. she thought, using her fork to push stuff around. Maybe I’m just nervous. New school and all. Yeah maybe that’s it. she told herself stuffing a large forkful of food into her small mouth. She slowly started chewing, nodding periodically as she listened to the conversations around her. This place would take some getting used to. “How good a cook do you have to be to join the baking club?” she asked Waverly, glancing finally at the second year beside her cousin.

“That’s a good question Clara.” Amira said, praising her cousin’s thought which hadn’t even crossed her mind. Smiling at Clara once more before turning to Waverly to wait for her answer.

OOC: This post is a joint post co-written by both authors in order to post here.

0 Amira and Clara Abernathy So do we! 0 Amira and Clara Abernathy 0 5

Brielle

April 03, 2012 1:56 AM

I don't know by Brielle

Brielle let the others talk around her. Lucille had seemed sort of oddly removed from the way Aria had spoken of her name, but Brielle didn’t do anything about this just yet. Once their conversation kinda quieted down she had introduced herself. Smiling, told them that she thought this would be an awesome next seven years and waited to see what their reactions to her would be.

The first one to respond towards her was Melanie who’d said that it was nice to meet her. Brielle smiled towards her and nodded. Lucille added her Of course, though Brielle wasn’t too sure what was odd about this whole situation. She hoped she hadn’t done anything wrong! Lucille started coughing an odd sounding cough. Aubrielle almost felt like it could have been forced, but she’d hoped that it hadn’t been. But she’d rather it be something forced than something be wrong or her not feeling well! Brielle looked to her worriedly and she apologized and explained there was a tickle in her throat and that she was sure they’d have a nice time. Lucille also said that her father was in Teppenpaw also.

“I’m sorry you had a tickle in your throat, but I’m glad you’re okay! And its neat that your dad was in Teppenpaw too!” she said happily, forgetting that perhaps her roommates odd behaviour could be because of her to begin with.

Aria on the other hand, smiled at her. Brielle felt comfortable with Aria right away. Perhaps because they were both not purebloods as the other two were, or perhaps it was because Aria was obviously laid back, the opposite of Brielle’s ball of energy. Brielle smiled more brightly towards Aria than to the other two and she hoped that Aria had picked up on the fact that she was automatically comfortable with her, which was good for the first year.

When Aria told them most of the people from the Community for school were back home by Christmas, Brielle changed her smile into a look of shock. “But- but why?” Brielle asked, wondering why anyone would want to leave a place like this or places like it.

0 Brielle I don't know 0 Brielle 0 5

Phoenix

April 03, 2012 12:38 PM

Well, I couldn't let you have all the fun. ;) by Phoenix

Sigh. The weird looks Fae was giving him were similar to what he had been experiencing over the summer. Phoenix had hoped that she would be unaffected by the unexplained irresistibility that was all in his heritage rather than himself. He could probably say the strangest things and girls would still find him to be witty and charming. It was disgusting really. As a result, he tensed slightly, shifting his attention more to Topher, who was paying attention to Fae, which was interesting, while waiting to see what played out. Thankfully, Fae seemed to gain control of herself since she noticed the reality of what he had said rather than just to think it was simply wonderful.

Unfortunately, that put him into an awkward position. He brushed the blonde hair that hung over his face away, a nervous habit. How was he to explain that the reason that his mother didn’t have to take her CATS was due to the fact of being veela? Oh, and the fact that his grandfather had run out on his grandmother when he had learned of the pregnancy. The only thing he knew about the man was that he had been a wizard. So, his grandmother had done the only thing that made sense to her and had raised her daughter as a veela rather than as a wizard. Though, this hadn’t prevented his mother from marrying a wizard, a pure one at that. They had met at a party that his mother had crashed. Phoenix never knew why his mother had been at the party or ever thought to ask.

“Uh, my mother was homeschooled,” Phoenix replied, his brain finally coming up with a reasonable answer or what he thought was one at any rate. “So, that’s why she didn’t have to take the CATS.” It was pretty much the truth and he had heard of wizards being homeschooled. He wasn’t sure though if they had to take anything equivalent to CATS or if they still had to take them and they were just mailed. His mother hadn’t had to worry about it, because she was raised in the veela community. “My mom is probably only saying it cause my dad is. He says that they’re super important. Plus, I have to live up to the fact that he scored really well on them.” His little sister, Ephanie, got her smarts from their dad, which was probably why she was in Aladren. Of course, this wasn’t to say he was dumb. He just didn’t think he would be able to compete with nearly perfect scores.

“Topher’s probably right, though,” Phoenix said with a nonchalant shrug. “Other people have survived them so we will too. And if we need to, we can always pick Al-an Aladren’s brain.” He had been about to say Alice’s, but didn’t want to hurt her feelings if she overheard him. The girl was quite odd and he was never sure how she would react since she seemed to take everything so literally. “Plus, we can all study together. I’m sure between the three of us, we can come up with great scores on the CATS,” he continued in an attempt to be encouraging. He figured he was being cheesy and changed the subject, as he took a few more bites. “So, what do you think of the new professors?”

0 Phoenix Well, I couldn't let you have all the fun. ;) 0 Phoenix 0 5

Fae

April 03, 2012 9:35 PM

There is nothing fun about this! by Fae

Maybe it would have been better if Fae hadn’t asked him a question because the moment he started talking and she looked at him, she felt herself become an idiot again. She had no idea why her body was reacting this way or why she feeling rather fuzzy whenever she caught a glimpse of him. This was not like her at all. She knew better than to behave this way. She had struggled hard to not react this very same way with Topher, whom she knew even without admitting it to anyone else that she liked, but she was certain she did not like Phoenix in that way. Which meant only one thing…

Magic.

That had to be the reason she was acting like such a twit around him. Either someone placed a spell on her or she drank some potion that was affecting her only with Phoenix. The very thought of someone doing that to her was disturbing and could only see the reasoning for it as a way to embarrass her. Why this would be the case was beyond her as Fae couldn’t see a reason anyone would want to embarrass her. As far as she knew, she was always nice to everyone. Then again, she had thought that before and found out that Josephine hadn’t liked her at all.

Was it Josephine?

Fae’s blue eyes traveled the length of the Pecari table, but did not see the other fourth year. Instead, her eyes landed on her over at the Teppenpaw table with the other fourth years. Fae hadn’t realized that Josephine had merged into that group and found it somewhat strange. Not because Fae didn’t see the friendships as possible, but because… well, she really didn’t really know how to explain her current feelings. Either way, it wasn’t Josephine who had done her wrong. She seemed far too preoccupied.

Fae decided that her best course of action was to not look at him. Which was difficult and rude of her, but she didn’t know what else to do. She couldn’t even focus on what he was saying. “Oh…” Fae commented after a moment. “I would have thought all forms of schooling had to take the exams for standardized testing. But, I really have no idea, so I agree that your mother was lucky to never have to worry about them.” She was rambling and staring purposefully at her plate of half eaten food.

She knew they were both right, they were just tests and really, hers didn’t matter too much anyway. She was just meant to graduate and be married. Nothing more, nothing less. It looked better for the family if she had some brains in her because it meant for better genetics, but she supposed just looking pretty was enough too. “I can have Alice help us.” Fae commented after a moment. She didn’t think she’d be able to study alone with these two without people raising an eyebrow or her going completely insane. She felt that Alice would be a nice barrier for her. “She’s rather good with lessons and helps me out a lot anyway.”

At the mention of the new professors, Fae looked up to the staff table, taking in the new faces for the first time. “Three this year?” Fae asked, trying to remember. They lost two from the year before, so really, it was like only having one new one. “They look normal.” She said with an uncertain shrug. Looking normal did not mean that they were normal. “Will either of you be taking Muggle Studies?” Fae asked them. “I don’t think I’m supposed to, but I am sort of curious about what they’ll talk about in that class.” She admitted with a sheepish smile.

0 Fae There is nothing fun about this! 0 Fae 0 5

Carrie

April 04, 2012 2:11 AM

Uh, obviously. by Carrie

The first year raised one perfect eyebrow and tried to hide her revulsion when she realized who she had spoken to. The Isla Ángel de la Guarda Bensalems? Carrie had never heard of such a family and she made a point of knowing worthwhile families so she knew who was and was not worth associating with. Of course, he quite obviously wasn't even American and he seemed...in doubt of the way he'd introduced himself. That obviously meant that Solomon was just copying her.

Not that Carrie could blame anyone for wanting to do so. Of course, someone would want to copy her. Why wouldn't they want to be as perfect as her? Not that they ever could be. Only her mother was. It was like her mother was a perfect person and Carrie was her perfect child. Because Ryan certainly wasn't.

Still, it could be that Solomon came from a place where people didn't introduce themselves the proper way, as Carrie had never heard of the place he was from. It was more likely though that he was some non-pureblood trying to pretend. What if she was speaking to some halfblood or worse, mudblood ? This was precisely why she believed that Sonora should be purebloods only and they should have their own school. Odds were against Solomon being one, as this was Crotalus, but there were always exceptions.

Either way it was clear that this boy was inferior to her. Well, that was a given of course, because Carrie was superior to everyone but he wasn't even in the acceptable category of just below her. People that were worth associating with, like the Careys and Pierces. (New Hampshire only of course. Californians were disgusting mixed bloods and Bostons were disreputable beings headed by a Quidditch Coach who most likely preferred women and at the very least couldn't find a man, not even one who wasn't respectable.)

She had to find out more though. Just in case Solomon actually was wealthy, maybe of royalty. Carrie seriously doubted it though just because everything about him struck her as less, as inferior. Like just looking at him, the first year could tell he was as far beneath her as one could get without being Ryan or a muggle. Something about the other first year just seemed way third world country to her.

"I've actually never heard of that place or your family." Carrie replied, in a tone that clearly implied that she knew he was of inferior status and likely inferior blood and just pretending to be in her social class. Again, she couldn't exactly blame him. Obviously people wanted to be like Carrie, in her social class. To be wealthy and pureblood was the best thing there was, especially because that meant she would talk to them and they would have the pleasure of her company. Of course, the Crotalus could spot a faker though and she was almost one hundrend percent sure that this Solomon Bensalem was one. Then she put on a sweet tone, "Could you please tell me more about them?"

After all, he was in Crotalus. He just had to be pure, didn't he? They certainly wouldn't let a mudblood in even if they were infesting the rest of the school. It was bad enough that Ryan was in there. "Does your country practice a different sort of magic than we do here in America?" Carrie spoke someone slowly as if she were speaking to someone with metal difficulties like her brother. That was an ideal way to find out if in fact his blood was indeed dirty, if it wasn't, maybe she could treat him like some sort of servant. Like a house elf or something.

11 Carrie Uh, obviously. 230 Carrie 0 5

Topher

April 04, 2012 10:50 AM

Not even a little? by Topher

Topher had known some people who were homeschooled, since their teacher had also been his teacher when he was too young to come to school and his mom just hadn’t felt up to the task of teaching him all the basics everyone had to know herself, but he had never asked anyone if they had to take exams still, since he hadn’t even known what the exams were himself then. So he couldn’t argue for or against Phoenix’s story about why his mother hadn’t taken the exams and accepted it as it was. Maybe there was more to the story, maybe there wasn’t – but even feeling at least a touch threatened, for some reason he couldn’t quite put his finger on, by his roommate, he couldn’t help but remember that he’d never exactly spilled his guts about his full life history, either. “Yeah,” he said, glancing at Fae as she rambled and wondering seriously now what was up with her.

“My dad, too,” he contributed about Phoenix’s father setting a standard he had to live up to with his own long-distant CATS scores. “’Course, you know, he works for Accidents and Catastrophes, and I think he’s always secretly wanted me to do something like that, too, and you’d need good CATS for it.” He did not mention his parents’ apparent conviction that he was secretly a genius who was just very good at hiding it, because he guessed that was just a parent thing, because it certainly wasn’t true. He could break his back, he guessed, and get those over-the-top grades, but he was pretty sure they weren’t much use when getting them resulted in having to move to the psych ward to sip calming draughts all day, and working like that wasn’t what his parents had in mind anyway. They just thought he was a lot smarter than he really was.

He considered making a joke about how Fae could provide the introductions when Phoenix mentioned picking an Aladren’s brain for CATS advice, but wasn’t sure how she’d take it. He didn’t even know what was going on with her and the Carey twins anyway, or how on earth she and Stratford dealt with being almost in-laws, kinda. So instead, he said, “Pretty sure their only condition would be getting to break one of my arms first. You know, Quidditch and all.”

He had, after all, injured Arnold Carey a number of times – never badly enough to prevent Aladren from beating Crotalus, to his annoyance, but he had probably hit the guy the most of any Beater now playing, if his counts were any good. Plus, there was just the Aladren-Crotalus thing in general. It wasn’t the same in his mind as it had been before last year’s general weirdness, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t now even worse in the minds of the Aladrens for all he knew, and he couldn’t imagine a Crotalus Beater who presented himself to an Aladren as an ally getting a very warm reception, at least not if that Aladren was in their own year.

Studying together sounded like a proposition much more likely to work well, particularly if Alice could help them out. She was literal, and smart enough that the rest of them would probably feel kind of idiotic at the end of the study session, but he was willing to bet that they would have things right. “Aye aye, captain,” he replied lightly to Phoenix’s inspirational comments. “Yeah, we’ll do fine.” If he convinced them or himself, then that was all to the good, he thought. Mom said confidence couldn’t hurt, anyway, and he was prepared to try anything if there was a chance it would work.

He glanced at the professors. “Guess we’ll see soon enough,” he said, and nodded about Muggle Studies. “Yeah, Mom talked me into it. She says it’s important to be well-rounded.” Plus, Mom liked some Muggle stuff herself. Movies were her ‘Grace-thing,’ as she put it, something she could do sometimes just for herself. Or on a date with Dad, but he definitely wasn’t going to admit to his friends that his parents were mushy enough that they actually still dated each other. There were some things the world just did not need to know; he wished he didn’t know himself, sometimes. “I guess it’ll be pretty interesting. I’ve been to the Muggle side of town before – not for long, but I’ve been there. You can just look around quick and tell it’s different.”

0 Topher Not even a little? 0 Topher 0 5

Arabella

April 05, 2012 2:01 AM

Yes, it's quite refreshing sometimes. by Arabella

"So what can you tell me about Sonora?" Wesley asked Arabella.

The second year considered his question before deciding. Loathe as she was to admit this, it was for the best that Wesley know. She knew little about him other than his first name so she had no idea if he was pureblood or whatever. It was unlikely that he was in Arabella's social circles even if he was a pureblood because people in hers introduced themselves the way that she had. The Pecari had no problems with this after sharing a room with Jade and Waverly for a year and Wesley seemed a good deal friendlier than the former.

So Arabella decided that, regardless of the first year's background, she would give him the best advice she could give a new student. "Okay, you see that blonde first year girl over there talking to the dark-skinned boy? That's my cousin, Carrie. The best suggestion I can give you is to avoid her if at all possible. She's a monster."

She took a bite of her spaghetti. "Carrie only speaks to the very top of pureblood society like herself. Unless she finds some reason to particularly torment you. Just avoid her and try not to give her one all right? It's for your own good." Arabella added in all seriousness. Many Pecaris liked to play tricks on others, but the Crotalus first year was nothing to joke about. She meant every word she said.

Anyway, she went on. "The classes here aren't so bad. First and second years have all of theirs together, all four houses. Same with third, fourth and fifth years," which was good, while she'd have to deal with Carrie as a classmate, Ryan never would "and sixth and seventh years after CATS. After you take CATS fifth year you get to drop classes you aren't that good at."

Arabella took a sip of butter beer before continuing. "Some classes are kind of dull, like Potions, but it does sort of depend on what you like. Potions happens to be just a bit precise for my tastes. If you get a potion wrong, it can be catastrophic and there are all these essays and whatnot. Other classes are much more fun-Defense is great and Charms can be okay when he's not changing the room into The Putrid Chamber of Foul Odors. I mean, I never had to do that, it the older kids who did, my cousin Ryan told me about it." Which had given Arabella the loveliest image of her bratty little first year cousin trapped in Putrid Chamber of Foul Odors. "But one girl almost really did faint" Okay that girl might have done so in part because she hadn't been eating and had ended up doing in so at CATS, it had turned out she had a really serious issue. "Another of my cousins insists he tried to drown them."

Hmmm what else? "Then there's Transfiguration. A lot of people think the Professor is really weird-and, okay, she is." A woman who had married Uncle Seth would probably have to be for them to be a good fit the way they were."But it's not a bad thing. She's a really very kind, just eccentric. She did used to make people do things that were a bit too hard but she's changed that." Arabella decided against telling Wesley that Aunt Lilac was her aunt. It might sound bad someway even if it was pretty obvious given their shared last name that they were some how related.

"Finally, we have Care of Magical Creatures...there's a new professor, so, admittedly,I have no idea about what it will be like anymore than you do."Arabella admitted. She looked over at Wesley and gave him a friendly smile. "Anything else you'd like to know?"

11 Arabella Yes, it's quite refreshing sometimes. 217 Arabella 0 5

Henny B-F-R

April 05, 2012 2:33 PM

People who have been "unlucky" rarely do... by Henny B-F-R

Henny took forkfuls of rice and chicken, keeping half an eye on the boy next to her but not full on staring. It was a rather strange non-version of eye-contact and didn't feel entirely socially comfortable. But then, not entirely socially comfortable was pretty much the theme of the conversation. If it could be called that. She was just resigning herself to the very real possibility that he wasn't going to answer when he surprised her with a reply.

“I'm afraid I don't know much about the Antipodean schools,” she stated, hoping the confession of ignorance didn't cause an immediate snubbing, “but that sounds like it must be one of the major ones. My father's more interested in Europe - I probably know about the schools there than the other ones in America,” she half-joked. She didn't want to come across as a narrow-minded person who'd never heard of anything outside of this country. And Father was very keen on all the old schools of Europe, especially those that had produced literary greats. She smiled subconsciously, thinking about her father's quirks, reinforced by the presence of tea drinking.

“My name's Henrietta,” she replied, “though people tend to call me Henny. What's yours?” It seemed like a surprisingly normal question after the grudging start to the conversation and she wondered whether it meant something. Certainly not that he was going to gush forth all his feelings and become her best friend but perhaps the first test was passed and the initial line of defence was, if not down, at least under a ceasefire. The way he'd asked the question had sounded a little stand-offish and one could have interpreted it as having had a Pureblood tone to it, were it not for the fact that the rest of the conversation had been conducted in a similar fashion. Of course, being socially maladroit and a Pureblood were not mutually exclusive, though they tended not to appear outwardly unfriendly if they could help it until they knew your blood and rank. No point in risking offence to someone important and all that. If he wanted her surname, he could have all three of them. It usually threw people that she had so many, and there tended to be an initial assumption that she must be somewhat posh. However, once people had recovered from the initial shock of that, they quickly realised that none of them were from old families.

13 Henny B-F-R People who have been "unlucky" rarely do... 211 Henny B-F-R 0 5

Phoenix

April 05, 2012 4:42 PM

I think it's rather amusing. by Phoenix

“Really?” Phoenix asked, his interest perked, when Topher said that his dad worked for Accidents and Catastrophes. “That sounds like it would be a really cool job. My dad is a Healer, which I guess is all right, but he can’t discuss anything interesting that happens. Patient confidentiality and all.” Phoenix wasn’t really sure what he wanted to do with his life, but he knew that Healer wasn’t on the list. It was all well and fine for his dad, but it wasn’t the life for him. He didn’t want to have to stay in school that long or work long hours or deal with the stress. His dad was lucky though. He had one of the rare, cushy jobs that allowed him to set his own hours and get paid more for it. Though, he had to wonder if his father’s patients ever suffered from the fact. No, it definitely wasn’t the life for him.

Neither was Quidditch. He cringed a bit at the joke Topher made about getting his arms broken. The flying part of Quidditch was great. It was everything else that wasn’t. He had no desire to have any part of him broken, especially for something that he didn’t consider to be a worthwhile cause. It was a sport and yes, he did enjoy watching it. However, he didn’t want to say that he had gotten this scar from the time some other player hit him with a bludger. No, he wanted to say ‘I got this scar from the time that I stood up for something. I did what was right in a time of wrong.’ If he tried to explain it to someone, it would probably make no sense since he wasn’t even sure if he was making sense to himself, but he knew that he wanted to do good.

He supposed that meant he should try to do well on CATS and was glad that Topher and Fae were on board with it. Plus, Fae brought up having Alice help so that was good. He felt a little more confident that they could not only get through the CATS, but also get through them with fairly decent scores. “That’ll be great,” he said, encouragingly towards Fae. She was definitely acting weird. Maybe he should have a private talk with her? She was the only girl friend he had and he didn’t want things to get weird between them over something he had no control over. He just didn’t want everyone in the school to know, because he was afraid of being treated differently. He hated labels, all labels. He just wanted to be Phoenix, nothing more, nothing less.

Phoenix nearly scoffed as Fae’s use of the word normal. It was such a relative term. Sure, they might look normal. He looked normal, but looking normal didn’t mean anything. He looked normal and he tried to act normal, but he wasn’t what others would consider normal. In the wizarding community, some would think he was absolutely amazing for simply possessing veela genes and others would find him lower than low for being half anything less than pure wizard. In the veela community, he was looked down upon for possessing wizarding genes. It was really a no win situation and all because he didn’t fit the definition of normal. So, he wondered if they really were ‘normal’ or if there were things about them that weren’t normal. And what was it like for those that couldn’t hide the fact that they were different?

The topic of Muggle Studies brought up the entire question of being normal. Was taking Muggle Studies and being ‘well-rounded’ normal or was not taking the class normal? He supposed it was relative depending on if you were old-fashioned pure or not. “My parents didn’t really say anything about it, but then they aren’t for or against muggles. I’m not sure if I want to take it or not. I mean it’s interesting and all, but what’s the point unless you do something involving muggles? You can’t really live in their world, because you have to keep what you can do a secret. Plus, it gives you an unfair advantage.” Look who was talking. He felt like the biggest hypocrite in the world when he was keeping a secret of his own. “I guess it’s fair though to learn about muggle heritage since some of our classmates come from it,” he said thoughtfully. “I wish we could learn about other groups as well.” Would he think differently of the veela part if he knew more about it?

0 Phoenix I think it's rather amusing. 0 Phoenix 0 5

Waverly

April 05, 2012 7:25 PM

This looks like a promising year by Waverly

"It's nice to meet you, Clara! Welcome to Sonora! You'll love it." Waverly beamed at the new Pecari. She loved the first-years already and she hadn't even met them yet, save for Clara, of course. It was her older sister instincts kicking in. She noticed that Clara still seemed a little nervous, and Waverly was sure her excitement for the school (and the club) would ease her soon. Being excited about anything made Waverly pretty chatty.

Waverly had to wonder if magical people baked. It wasn't a totally unprecedented thought since most of the people she'd met here hadn't been able to bake. She hoped that the fact that no one baked meant that no one would join her club. That would have made her very sad. So she was very glad when both Clara and Amira showed an interest in her club.

"No, you don't have to know how to bake at all. I can teach you! I brought a whole bunch of recipes just for the club. It's pretty much just like Potions, except less stressful. So if you can do Potions, you can bake pretty much anything." She smiled. "I'll just need to find an oven somewhere. And supplies..." She sighed thoughtfully and put food into her mouth.

"Would you guys want to join?" It was never too early to start recruiting people. After all, she didn't want to show up to an empty room on the first day of her baking club. That is, if it ever got off the ground, or out of her head.

0 Waverly This looks like a promising year 0 Waverly 0 5

Alex

April 06, 2012 12:15 AM

That we agree easily shows our greatness and Crotalus' by Alex

Alex tried to imagine, for a moment, what would happen if the Careys came together every year, or even every two years, but couldn’t. It was possible, she supposed, they would learn their way around Virginia houses better, but it seemed just as impossible that they would all make it out completely sane after the second time. Just listening to her mother talk about it with Uncle Jack made it sound like there were more schemes afoot in the state of Virginia during the five days of the quintannual reunion than there were in the entire Cabinet government in a year. The Reunion offered many opportunities for making new close cousins and useful alliances and things, and sometimes even for having fun, but it also seemed to bring out the worst in some relatives.

“The Careys have a system for that kind of thing,” she said when Cepheus said his grandfather would summon them together for revelation. “Great-Great-Grandfather calls all the patriarchs of the branches – his brother, and my grandfather, and the acting matriarch of Georgia and North Carolina – together, or just one if that’s all he needs, and he tells them what they need to know and then they have to come home and report it to everyone else.”

She had to wonder, sometimes, if they always reported things accurately – it would be so easy to drop some small detail – but then she thought about Thomas and realized that it wasn’t very likely. Alex had never spoken to him directly, but she had seen him and heard about him, and she couldn’t imagine defying him directly that way just from that. It didn’t sound like the kind of thing that a smart person did, really. Who knew what might happen if you did? Great-Great-Grandfather was alive now, but he was really more from history, when the rules had been looser, it seemed, than they were for most people now.

She smiled slightly at Gareth’s distress. “I was about to say you should come to a Carey reunion,” she remarked, “but you have a very large family, too, don’t you, Gareth? Lots of branches and things.” She gestured slightly with her fork to encompass the idea of families structured like that. Her mother’s family, she knew, was larger than the norm, with most families having two or three branches at the most; until she met Gareth, she didn’t think she had ever heard of another as large. Maybe she had, she hadn’t memorized every family in the country, but she couldn’t remember another one off the top of her head. "I think we'd all go crazy if we had the Reunion every year."

0 Alex That we agree easily shows our greatness and Crotalus' 0 Alex 0 5

Josh McLachlan

April 06, 2012 12:20 AM

Let's pick a new topic. by Josh McLachlan

Josh was surprised to hear her use the word "Antipodean" in relation to his school. The first thought that flashed into his mind were the modern artists he had studied, but realized that she had to be talking about New Zealand in general. This was enough for him to assume that she was from the United Kingdom, or at least that area. All this went through his mind quickly as his face stayed impassive. He was always difficult to read.

He nodded, unsmiling. "The European ones always get the most attention," he replied, sipping his tea again. He hated cold tea and was always drinking his tea quickly to get it down before it could chill even the slightest bit. "On the contrary, my school isn't the well-known one." Surprise, a McLachlan didn't go to the best bloody school there was. "The biggest one in my area is near the Philippines. It's called The Aboriginal School of Indigenous Magic. That one encompasses Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, and the islands surrounding. The New Zealand Academy usually takes only Australia and New Zealand residents." He still wasn't sure why he hadn't been sent to that school, but he didn't care to dwell on it.

Henrietta. Sounded like a name for a chicken. Well, who was he to judge given the names his relatives had. It was a little surprising that she hadn't given a family name, and this was another clue for him. She was either not a pureblood or her name wasn't important enough to be stated. He didn't care either way. He wasn't here to make contacts. "Josh McLachlan," he replied, refusing to give his given name.

In the world, the McLachlans were not well-known for the good they'd done, but the trouble they had caused and got away with on account of their name and status. His parents had been killed in an attack in America six months after he'd been born and it had been all over the papers, his name included. Maximilian McLachlan was forever cursed as "the orphan boy who's parents were killed," and he'd rather not have that follow him around. Whether or not Henrietta knew of it, he'd rather she call him Josh anyhow. His grandmother had called him that first and it may as well have been his first name. If Henny asked, however, he would grudgingly give his name. Not that she seemed like she would be too interested in his family background given the fact that she didn't give her surname.

Josh knew what would come next. 'What year are you in? Do you like Sonora? What's your favorite class? Your favorite spot on campus?' The fourth-year loathed small talk and here, away from family and in the presence of a younger girl who would not give her last name willingly, he didn't want to partake in it. But he had to admit it was safer than pouring out his heart and soul to a stranger. Sitting and quietly ignoring her was also an option, but if she happened to be a part of a large, prestigious family, he didn't want to get on her bad side. Obviously his instincts were still intact. Merlin.

Josh finished his tea, feeling forced to carry on the conversation. Curse those etiquette lessons. At that moment, he hated his dead Scottish grandmother.

"What year are you in?" These general, awfully boring questions were going to be the death of him. He hardly even looked at Henny, biting instead into his biscuit and pouring himself another cup of tea after asking.

0 Josh McLachlan Let's pick a new topic. 0 Josh McLachlan 0 5

Henny B-F-R

April 06, 2012 7:08 AM

Mmmk.... Ducks. With specific reference to their fluffiness. by Henny B-F-R

“It's fascinating that that's the most prestigious...” she mused out loud. “I can't ever imagine a school that focussed on the talents of the native people superseding the settler schools in America. It's quite admirable, really.” She wondered whether the fact that Josh had been sent to the alternative, in spite of not being such a good school, meant that his family didn't have such a positive view of the value of native culture. Or perhaps he just hadn't been good enough to get in.

She had a vague recollection that the McLachlans were a magical family, and one who had been caught dabbling in the nastier aspects of things. The news of Josh's parents' deaths would have been in the papers some years before she was born and her family paid very little attention to the Who's Who of pureblood society, and so the name only stirred vague sentiments in her at best. Furthermore, it was also a family name, not even exclusive to the magical world, and his geographical distance from those incidents she'd read about suggested he might, at best, be distantly related.

“Second,” she replied, surprised as the blandness of his question. She wasn't convinced he even wanted to ask it, much less was even listening to the answer. “You?” she replied, for the sake of balance. She tried to think of some more interesting line to take the conversation down. The most obvious was why he was here but that might have been a very personal and touchy subject. “Did you have time to see anything much of America before term started?” she asked. Ok, so essentially 'what did you do over the holidays?' but it was a tad more interesting than exchanging autobiographical details, and a good deal less invasive than 'so were you expelled or are your parents having a mid-life crisis?'

13 Henny B-F-R Mmmk.... Ducks. With specific reference to their fluffiness. 211 Henny B-F-R 0 5

Josh McLachlan

April 06, 2012 4:59 PM

Ducks... by Josh McLachlan

The most prestigious in his area, he wanted to correct her, but it really didn't matter so Josh didn't bother. There were only two schools available near him: one for the prestigious families, the other for everyone else. It didn't matter, really, but one was more for academics and the other for social. Josh himself wasn't exactly sure which was which, but then again, he hadn't bothered to find out. He'd enjoyed his time at New Zealand Academy without thinking about the consequences and he was paying for it now.

Henny was a second-year. Obviously she hadn't looked his age to begin with, but that was still rather young. Memories of his own second-year came to mind, and he lazily drifted through them in his head while consciously suppressing others. Magic and school and living away from home would still be fresh to this girl, then. Josh wondered what that freshness felt like. It was as if he had been immersed in magic and living away from wherever home was forever.

Josh hated sounding pitiful even in his own head, and he shut down the thought. The first and only home he could remember had been with his grandmother in Scotland, but even that didn't count as the dictionary definition of "home." He supposed the closest then was NZA until things had gone badly there. His aunt was right. He was cursed. Or just had bad luck.

He was amused by Henny's question of whether he'd seen much of America. There was nothing to be amused about, he reminded himself, but the fact that she seemed curious enough to ask was amusing. What was there to see in America? The Statue of Liberty? The materialistic muggles? The place he'd been born and where his parents had been killed? Rubbish.

"No, I came straight from Australia," he told her, finally making brief eye contact. It was a conscious movement--though his every move was made consciously--to show her he was giving her the O.K. to engage him in actual conversation. The tiny messages that no one caught made his life more bearable. He was aware of the intricate details and movements, the tiny pleasures that made up Joshua McLachlan, and keeping secrets, knowing things that no one else noticed, was one of them.

Mentioning Australia made him think of the summer holiday he would have to endure when he was sent back. He couldn't go live with any of his American relatives, not that they'd want him anyway. His dear aunt, mentioned only in sarcastic tones, had been the one to first call him unlucky. The only one, really, who continued to do so. His other relatives weren't as superstitious.

He didn't know what else to talk about now which wasn't surprising. He disliked conversation and had made such an effort to not engage in it often that he had forgotten many of the back-up topics his tutors had told him to have. Josh looked down into his empty teacup instead and wondered if pouring himself a cup of coffee before bed would keep him up long enough. Guessing that it would, he did so. He took his coffee black, so after pouring himself a healthy cup he took a sip, breathing in the dark aroma. Fourteen wasn't too young to start drinking coffee, he decided. It wouldn't keep him from growing, that was for certain. He was due for a growth spurt soon, so said the healers back in Australia, and he anticipated it with slight dread. Growing meant outgrowing his clothes and it was a pain to constantly buy new things just to catch up with his height. He hated being fourteen. His voice had changed recently, going much lower than it had been in his childhood, but his voice still had a hoarse tone to it.

0 Josh McLachlan Ducks... 0 Josh McLachlan 0 5

Clara Abernathy

April 06, 2012 6:45 PM

Sounds Fun by Clara Abernathy

Clara was relieved to hear that she didn't have to be very good at baking to join Wavery's club. She had helped her mother bake a few times and while she had loved it she was a little afraid to try doing it again on her own. Her mother had made it look soo easy. The way she mixed up the cookie batter; adding the eggs, flour, vanilla and other odds and ends. The way she scooped them into little balls and laid them out on the cookie sheet, spacing them just so. Clara could still remember how good they smelled just before her mother pulled them out of the oven. She had tried baking on her own once a couple of years after her mom had died and it didn't go quite as well as Clara had hoped.

Clara did everything she remembered seeing her mother do, but there was just one problem. She had never asked her mother how hot the oven should be or for how long the cookies were supposed to bake. She had turned the oven on too hot and cooked the cookies for so long that they caught on fire. Her father had smelled the smoke and had rushed to the kitchen. Clara remembered her dad being rather cross with her for using the oven without supervision. When she explained she had been trying to bake for them like mom used to his expression softened some. He had kindly reminded her that mom was an adult and knew how to use the oven. She had nodded silently and continued to stare at the floor. Up until Waverly had mentioned her baking club Clara had yet to try baking again. To have someone older than herself willing to teach her was very exciting for the 11 year old.

"I would love to join," she told Waverly, her sapphire eyes sparkling with excitement. "I can do Potions, sort-of," she admitted. "The last one I did only blew up a little bit. Baking should be easier than that, right?" she asked the older Pecari. She glanced from her cousin to Waverly hopefully waiting for one of them to respond.

0 Clara Abernathy Sounds Fun 232 Clara Abernathy 0 5

Cepheus

April 06, 2012 10:54 PM

But mostly ours. by Cepheus

Cepheus would go crazy if the Princetons came around every year. It was bad enough that the patriarchs, and the occasional matriarchs, came around for meetings. There wasn't a whole lot of them that were alive still, which was at least a blessing. He could probably count them all on his fingers if he wanted to. Then there was great-grandfather's funeral that everyone in his family came to which was just a mess at his home. It was great that his manor was so large, or else he never would have been able to squeeze past people comfortably.

When Alex listed the patriarchs in her family, Cepheus had to think to remember the ones in his. There was his grand-aunt the spinster who was the grumpiest, most cynical and most feminist woman he had ever met in his short life, and she spoke for her younger sister's passive family as well as herself in Scotland. According to his father, the man the younger sister had married was of no use to the Princeton household. He didn't step up when called to. Then there was Nicholas who took care of his family all the way in Turkey, and Claude who took care of business with the Princeton branch in France. His uncle-in-law was the patriarch for the Princetons in London, and then there was his own grandfather who was the official Princeton patriarch, whom he lived with along with his parents and brothers.

That was certainly a lot of people in Cepheus's mind. "My family does that too," he told Alex, "but it always seems like so many people. And sometimes they bring their kids to visit," or their nephews and nieces, in Norma's case, "so it gets crowded really fast." He wished there was a more official way to do things. He looked at Gareth curiously. "Where are your family branches spread out?" he asked, wondering why he'd never thought to ask this sooner. He looked at Alex. "You can answer too after."

0 Cepheus But mostly ours. 0 Cepheus 0 5

Solomon

April 10, 2012 2:02 PM

A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words by Solomon

Solomon stared. Angel’s voice was broken. Sentence, grammar, and the soft Georgian inflections sounded raw as if unused for so long. He concentrated on each word wedging its way through the demon’s lips. “Yuh like thuh cold.” Solomon repeated, tilting his head in curiousity. “An’ thuh darkness.” It sounded as if Angel was describing a forest. A dark cold forest. ‘But that isn’t what hell is.’ He imagined a bayou but the water was fire, the trees were molten lava shaped into rock, the ground sloping up into a volcano in hibernation, home to the demons and the King himself. Why would Angel lie about his home when he knew that Solomon already knew? ‘Maybe... maybe... he escaped!’ The story began to rewrite itself within his mind. He bent his head, blue eyes focused on the parchment as Angel turned to his own scraps of paper, and began to rewrite.

Demon on the Run
by Solomon A. Davies

In all outward appearance, the boy-shaped demon seemed to fit the environment he’d been bred in. His eyes burned with the same flames he slept in, surrounded by the screams of tortured souls and the sleepy moans of fellow brother and sister children of the night. His skin was as pale as the moon, waxy and stretched tight against bone with no blood, no heart beating to pump color into his skin. He looked every inch the monster he was meant to be. Roberto ran from him, our noble hero, seeing no further than the eyes, the skin, and that broken southern flare, almost inhuman and shaking him to the core.

But the demon, a fallen angel, had feelings. He had desires and wishes. He longed to escape the fiery world he’d been brought up in. He longed for a world that was cold, nothing but winter’s soft powdery snow and ice drifting down the nearly completely frozen lake. He longed to see the flush of spring, with trees that reached a baby blue sky instead of rocks straining toward smog. He wished to see the children of God, animals and insects and humans. And one day, he did. He ran away.

On cue, Angel handed over what he saw during his desperate liberation. Solomon let his quill fall down, dark fingers flexing, the joints a little sore, before grabbing it with an absent nod of thanks to his demon companion. ‘Trees. It’s a forest.’ His fingers traced over the glint of eyes glowing between the foliage. He couldn’t tell if they were meant to be those of an animal or Angel himself. ‘A cottage. Is that where he lives?’ It seemed innocent, picturesque, out of a children’s tale. He handed it back and watched as Angel crumpled the parchment, destroying evidence of his home. Angel resumed sketching and Solomon leaned forward, quietly, reaching for the paper and pulling it back to his side, slipping it in his robe’s pocket while Angel continued to draw.

“Ah don’ understand.” He murmured, blinking at the sudden image of a bear flashing at him, held in Angel’s hands. “Is this... what is this?” It looked life like, its rage real. “Yuh are amazing at this.” Solomon breathed, blue eyes flickering from the bear to Angel’s red eyes and back. “Ah have words, but ah’d trade ‘em fuh drawings.”

0 Solomon A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words 0 Solomon 0 5

Angel

April 11, 2012 1:09 PM

...is? by Angel

“Ah don’ understand. Is this...what is this?” The dark boy asked when Angel showed him the bear. Angel tilted his head slightly as he studied his dining companion. Had he not wanted to know of creatures? That was the most impressive of the ones he’d seen in the forest, and had seemed to fit what Solomon wished to see.

There were others, one that might have been just as impressive but it was more subtle than the bear, a half seen shape leaping gracefully into a tree, the soft curl of a tail flicking out of sight, eyes glittering intently out of thick underbrush. Its pale fur often caught Angel’s eye as he walked, but he never saw enough of the beast to bring it to life on the page.

“Beast…” his crimson gaze returned to the drawing, finding it inadequate to show the true grandeur of the bear. “Beast of forest…much big” Words alone, even drawings could hardly convey the hugeness of the bear, the dinner plate sized paws tipped with three inch curved claws, the stink of the creature’s breath as its roar seemed to fill the world with its fury. Turning the picture back to himself the pencil again flew effortlessly over the page, a rock, and slowly he himself appeared on the page seated on the rock in front of the bear, so much smaller than the massive beast. The sketch of himself was far less than his normal drawings, his small angular face featureless. Angel didn’t care to study himself in the mirror so he couldn’t add all the careful detail his sketches usually held. Again he presented the drawing to Solomon, showing the great difference between his size and the size of the bear. “Much big.” He said again.

Angel gave a slight shrug at the compliment. “Ah have words, but ah’d trade ‘em fuh drawings.” Every broken word, each bitter fight to try and form a coherent sentence and the endless battle to write a single paragraph flashed though his mind as he pulled the sketch free of the pad and held it for a moment before moving to crumple it like the last. “Would trade…for words.” He finally said as he gave the savage beast on the page one last critical look.

0 Angel ...is? 0 Angel 0 5

Amira

April 12, 2012 1:16 AM

As long as there's no fire! by Amira

Clara had confirmed their summer and Amira nodded towards both Waverly and Clara. Mir watched Clara as she picked at her food. The third year knew that was odd for her cousin and she was slightly worried but wouldn’t say anything about that till they were alone again. She didn’t want to make Clara feel odd because her older cousin was worried. Mir put some of her food in her own mouth and watched as Clara did the same thing. Good. she thought as Clara asked how good a cook they had to be to join the baking club.

Amira praised her cousin’s question and smiled to her as she turned back to Waverly waiting for her answer. Waverly first welcomed Clara then answered the question that they wouldn’t need to know much about baking and that she’d teach them. Amira hadn’t really wanted to make a mess or anything. The last thing she needed was to mess up her chances for anything here at school. But what Waverly had said was reassuring and she smiled at the younger girl. This club was beginning to sound even more fun!

Amira watched Clara’s facial expressions, knowing she was thinking. She was sure she was remembering the little baking bit she’d tried doing once Aunt Sophia had passed away and Clara had tried to bake cookies that could have set the whole kitchen on fire. Uncle Bryan had told their mother, Alora, the story and Amira had overheard it. From then on, Amira looked out for Clara as a big sister would (as did all of the other Thornton girls). Mir wanted the best for her cousins (Clara, Dimitry and Darina) just like she did for her sisters and brother and nothing would change that ever in the whole world.

"I would love to join, I can do Potions, sort-of, the last one I did only blew up a little bit. Baking should be easier than that, right?" Clara said.

“Baking could be easier, but could also be harder if you don’t know what to put the oven on, right Clara?” Amira asked in a teasing tone. She knew her cousin wouldn’t be mad at her for mentioning it, that she was only saying it out of love. “I think it would be a nice thing for us to do together. I’ll bet we can get Addi interested too. Maybe Andri and Brielle also. You never know!” she said, smiling first to Waverly and then to Clara, squeezing her cousin’s hand to show how much she loved her and wanted her to be happy there at Sonora.

0 Amira As long as there's no fire! 0 Amira 0 5

Waverly

April 12, 2012 12:45 PM

Easy as pie! by Waverly

Waverly was delighted that her new friends were eager to join. She could feel her face flushing in delight. She had never started anything new before, much less on her own, and now having support from girls she had just met was really exciting. It was a good thing Waverly had tanned a little over the summer or the girls would see the flush in her cheeks. It was probably visible anyway.

"I'm pretty bad at Potions too," she confessed, "but it's different than baking! Baking is easier. For me, at least, and I can teach you!" She was especially glad she had remembered to bring her book of recipes. Well, not hers, but a book of recipes her mom had given to her just for this club. This was so exciting!

"I'm so excited!" she exclaimed, bouncing a couple times in her seat, beaming. "I can't wait to get it started. I still have to find out if there's an oven somewhere that I can use, or maybe...I don't know. But I'll talk to the headmistress and see what I can figure out!" She smiled. "You guys would really come?" The more she thought about it, the more work she knew she had to do. But classwork wasn't that bad. She could easily do her homework and run a club on the side! "What would you guys want to bake first?" she asked. She still had to think about the logistics of the first official baking club.

0 Waverly Easy as pie! 0 Waverly 0 5

Ryan

April 12, 2012 8:24 PM

I appreciate the thought. by Ryan

Ryan nodded. Yes, it was. That was the problem with Crotalus. There was such a...wide range of personalities. While it tended to be the least diverse in terms of blood-it was mostly purebloods-it was the most diverse in terms of types of people who got in there. For example, Eliza Bennett and Renee Errant were very very different-and Ryan himself was not quite like either of them.

There was something about Renee that reminded him of Carrie, but then...they were different as well. His sister was a girly girl while Renee was um, not. Plus, the other fifth year didn't psychologically torture Ryan on a regular basis. Neither was really a rule follower though.

Which should have kept Carrie out of Crotalus. Ryan had been optimistic about it. He really had. It had been foolish of him. The fifth year would never be optimistic about anything again. Ever. Why had he ever been stupid enough to ever let himself be in the first place? Maybe Ryan really was mentally deficient.

"I...can't tell you that ." He replied in response to Sophie asking where his common room was. Okay, so he really was a rule follower. It was just that Ryan didn't want to find out what would happen if he did break a rule even unintentionally. After all, in his experience, with his mother and sister, he got in a lot of trouble for absolutely anything and everything that they could think of. Stuff house elves did by mistake that he got blamed for-even after they confessed. Stuff Carrie did on purpose to blame on him. Stuff Carrie made up to blame on him. Stuff his mother had thought he was going to do, dreamed he did, imagined he did, or just plain for no reason at all.

Besides, Ryan didn't think Coach Pierce liked him because he couldn't fly at all. Plus he was from the sort of family that she had been disowned from. Neither of which would make things any better for him, because she probably wouldn't do anything about Carrie harassing him. Not that she'd probably like the first year either but he was certain that he was on his own.

Ryan sincerely wished with everything in him that he'd been in Teppenpaw. Never mind the HoH being his aunt, who definitely did like him-she seemed to like everyone anyway and Ryan was actually relatively good at her class-he never would have had to worry about Carrie being in there, because after his mother, she was the meanest person he'd ever met.

He paused. In truth, there was no where they could go that was safe. For now the first years had to stay at the feast until they were called by their heads of house but what about the rest of the year. MARS was no longer safe. Carrie did like dancing and singing and insisted that she was good at them, the very best. She didn't like the outdoors, but Ryan had a different foe out there-allergies. The library? Yes. "My sister thinks books are for losers. We can go to the library." He whispered to Sophie.

11 Ryan I appreciate the thought. 176 Ryan 0 5

Clara Abernathy

April 15, 2012 10:24 PM

Yeah, Yeah by Clara Abernathy

Clara rolled her eyes at Amira's remark about the oven and shook her head. Its easy to know how hot to make the silly thing when you had someone to help and instruct you. Geez, will I ever live that one down? she wondered frustratedly to herself. You accidentally set one little kitchen fire...and suddenly you can't be trusted she mentally grumbled to herself, frowning slightly. Oh well, at least the house is still standing, right? That has to count for something she thought cheerfully to herself. She knew Amira wasn't trying to be mean about her comment, she was only teasing and Clara loved her anyway for it.

Clara had little doubt that they could get Addi excited about the Baking Club, she was less sure about whether or not they could convinced Andri and Brielle that it was such a great idea though. No worries she told herself confidently. I'm sure between Amira and me we can get them to join with us she smiled triumphantly to herself and she hadn't even spoken to them yet. She continued to eat and chat with them some more about it.

0 Clara Abernathy Yeah, Yeah 232 Clara Abernathy 0 5

Solomon

April 16, 2012 11:09 PM

Not so sure about that. by Solomon

Solomon saw that Carrie raised one of her eyebrows and he automatically looked down at his old moccasins. They were ripped in so many places and his clothes were much too short on him. His trousers were between his knobby knees and his dark-ish colored ankles and his shirt kept riding up his back as he moved. One of the laces which tied the bottom of his moccasin to the top was coming unraveled in his use of them and he knew he looked a sight. Carrie had a look on her face that showed her dislike of him in her eyes already and she didn’t even know him. What does this mean? Will everyone hate me? he thought. Maybe I should just go home to Isla Ángel de la Guarda. They don’t hate me there. Just the Outsiders hate me there.

When Carrie spoke, he was half expecting the tongue of the girl to be like the one of the Speckled Rattlesnake he feared so much and backed up a little bit in his chair. The further away from the table he was, the better he felt. The girl across the table from him looked as if she was coming in for the kill. Like the snake that bit him years before. Her words stung. His family was one of the most important on the Island and each other person looked up to the Bensalem family as heads of their village. Here, it was obvious to him, it would not be like that one iota.

"I've actually never heard of that place or your family. Could you please tell me more about them?" Carrie had asked.

Solomon was not one for lengthy speeches and never had been. The lanky boy didn’t want to start that habit just then either. “We are the most important family on Isla Ángel de la Guarda.” He said in short, not adding a single word more. Who is she to think she needs to know who I am? Me. Solomon Bensalem, grandson to the most important man on the Island. Me. The one who will take after father once he takes after from Grandfather. Me. Grandson of the most important man on the Island. Who does she think she is? he thought, blinking his coffee colored eyes at her next question. Carrie spoke slowly to him. Her slow speech felt wrong to him. Inferiour and he didn’t like that one iota either.

"Does your country practice a different sort of magic than we do here in America?"

“No.” he said in short and picked up his fork, dipping it gently into the vegetables on his plate.

0 Solomon Not so sure about that. 0 Solomon 0 5

Clara Abernathy

April 17, 2012 4:51 PM

Easy as pie, huh? by Clara Abernathy

Clara smiled at Waverly's excited response to her and her cousin being interested in the baking club. She sincerely hoped that the headmistress would allow her to do it. Clara knew that she was no good at that kind of thing, but that didn't stop her from wanting to try. Not much did, much to her father's dismay. Clara certainly had a mind of her own and she tried just about anything at least once regardless of how stupid it was at times. I should probably rethink that philosophy she laughed to herself as she thought of all the times her daredevil attitude almost always blew up in her face. Despite the setbacks, Clara felt a certain freedom in it. She always did what made her happy, even if it turned her green or broke a few bones.

She nodded vigorously when Waverly asked if she and Amira really wanted to come. "Of-course I do," she replied happily, practically bouncing in her seat. "As a matter of fact I've been thinking we should make the first lesson really simple. Why not start off with Brownies?" She asked the older girl. She was sure Waverly would like the idea, maybe. Then again, maybe she had something else in mind. She would just have to wait and see.

0 Clara Abernathy Easy as pie, huh? 232 Clara Abernathy 0 5