#HPHM Year 1

[stupendousbookworm]

clearly its not christmas but i switched on my ipad after MONTHS and came across some ugly ass xmas art that i wanted to redraw so tee hee here you go i swear i didnt die or smth im still alive fr

[hairypotterhogwartsmystery]

Merula Is Not Actually That Evil

I recently finished Year 1 of HPHM and found many of Merula's actions to be rather unbelievable.

Kids can be awful, but I still don't think eleven-year-olds are capable of cold-blooded murder (such as the Devil's Snare Incident). The strangest thing about Merula's character, though, is that despite her track record, Jam City keeps trying to force Merula on us as a friend in the sidequests.

I didn't want to chalk it up to JC's dubious writing, and I was also inspired by the deep dives from @missnight0wl, so instead, I've spawned the theory that Merula Is Not Actually That Evil.

By the end of the first year, Merula has two "ambitions:"

1) To bully MC relentlessly.

2) To find the Cursed Vaults before MC.

Let's start with 1).

Merula is a bully---an awful, rude, reckless bully---but she's not pure evil. Most of her actions are not so much to instill fear and establish dominance (or, as I call it, MPWAH Syndrome) as they are an act of pushing people away. Merula does not find herself deserving of friendship, likely because she had a traumatic childhood that fractured her trust in people. This does not excuse for her behavior. However, I believe Merula's intentions for bullying MC + The Gang are different than what MC believes.

In their first Potions class, Merula coats MC's cauldron with Bulbadox Powder, which causes it to explode and makes Snape mad, yada yada. There are two strange things about this interaction:

1) Merula only learned of MC's identity five minutes before class, when MC stood up to her for tormenting Rowan. She kind of jumped on the "you're a disgrace" bandwagon, but didn't really say anything of note. See, Merula's original target was never MC---it was Ben Copper. This means that Merula's hatred for MC didn't appear out of nowhere---it was provoked by MC themself.

2) Bulbadox Powder isn't a potion ingredient. It's a joke product.

So Merula, who met MC five minutes ago and has only a generic hatred/jealousy of them, is also coincidentally carrying around a joke product in her pocket and manages to coat MC's cauldron in it without them noticing? Yeah, right. Merula didn't do it. Merula did not actually sabotage MC's potion. Chances are the cauldron was tampered with by some other mischievous student.

However, MC, assuming the worst about their newfound enemy, pins the blame on Merula, who, of course, denies it.

Then we have the Devil's Snare Incident, which most people cling to as a justifiable reason for hating Merula. Honestly, I did too, until I thought about it a bit harder.

I do believe that Merula sent the fake letter and locked MC in the closet full of Devil's Snare, because, well, Merula admits to it herself. However, I think she did this because MC framed her for blowing up their cauldron. Merula only says that she blew up MC's potion when MC is in the closet in order to seem more powerful and make MC afraid and distrustful of her. (See: MPWAH Syndrome.)

She also never intended for MC to die. Why?

a) She knows that MC is very good at Lumos.

b) I believe it was Merula who, in a fit of regret, alerted Hagrid that MC was trapped, and told Hagrid to go save MC. This is why Hagrid acted so shocked when MC told him it was Merula who locked them in the cupboard.

Now you might be wondering, "why didn't Hagrid just tell MC that Merula actually wanted to help them escape?"

Firstly, Hagrid is an adult, and in a position of power on campus compared to students. He understands that true disciplinary action can't happen without concrete proof (which MC doesn't have) and likely doesn't want to be the source of any gossip or rumors. Thus, he tried to de-escalate the issue instead of confusing MC with conflicting information, or encouraging MC to tattle/seek retribution.

Okay. That was a lot. In summary:

Merula's original target for bullying was never MC.

Merula bullies MC because she thinks MC wronged her.

Merula bullies MC + The Gang as a subconscious act of alienation, though she believes it to be a method of asserting her dominance.

This segues us into 2).

Why does Merula want to find the Cursed Vaults?

According to Merula, it's because of her MPWAH Syndrome.

I think this is partially the reason she seeks the Vaults. Though Merula herself may believe this is the true reason, her subconscious behavior says otherwise.

Merula's Cursed Vaults mission is very hush-hush---she doesn't want other teachers or students (such as Rowan) to find out. Obviously, this is for self-preservation---she doesn't want to get punished and expelled like Jacob---but I think Merula's secrecy ultimately proves that she isn't simply seeking the Vaults for attention and prestige. She's seeking them in order to validate her own loneliness.

Merula wants the glory of the Vaults for herself. She needs to reach the Vaults before MC, even though MC's not even in the race---MC's sole motivation for seeking the Vaults is to track down Jacob. By finding the Vaults all by herself, Merula validates the instinct within her that pushes people away. By finding the Vaults all by herself, Merula can prove that she doesn't need other people to succeed.

So why the Vaults? Why not prove herself by doing something innocuous like doing well in school? Well,

a) doing well in school is impressive, but not atypical or risky

b) doing well in school is a solitary act anyway; Merula needs to do something that would typically be collaborative on her own in order to prove herself.

c) I think Merula has a bit of a self-destructive streak. I don't have super solid evidence for this, though, aside from her pursuit of the Vaults themselves and her love of dueling.

So in summary:

Merula says she's searching for the Vaults because of MPWAH Syndrome.

In actuality, Merula is searching for the Vaults in order to justify her lone wolf/aloof personality.

Whew. I never thought I would psychoanalyze a fictional eleven-year-old from a mobile game this hard, but honestly, it's a fun exercise. Perhaps this skill will come in handy for future English essays.

Keep in mind this analysis was made only with information from Year 1. In a previous lifetime, I played up to Year 4, but I recently started anew. Feel free to spoil things in your responses---I know pretty much all the main plot points up until MC graduates.

Thank you for reading this far.

[unfortunate-arrow]

My Type? Quidditch Players

Event: Day 1 of @hphm-ship-week

Prompt: Quidditch

Penny Haywood would never have guessed that her type would be quidditch players. As a child, she’d always preferred the goofy, slightly bumbling sidekick, the funny guy. She hadn’t been big about quidditch or football or any other sport… until her first year, when she’d attended her first quidditch game and fell in love with the sport.

From that point on, Penny had developed crushes on nearly every quidditch player in her year and above. Some were short lived, like the one on Hufflepuff’s captain, Orion Amari, and on Ravenclaw’s keeper, Andre Egwu. Others lived a little longer, like the one on Ravenclaw’s beater, Erika Rath, and on Gryffindor’s seeker, Charlie Weasley. (Coincidentally, that crush coincided with Sara O’Donnell’s crush on the second Weasley brother.) There were only two that stuck for longer than a few months.

The first one was Skye Parkin. Penny had been taken with the older Gryffindor girl since they’d been casually introduced at an after quidditch party. At first, Penny hadn’t recognized it as a crush. She’d thought it was just admiration. It wasn’t until her third year that Penny recognized those feelings as a crush. However, she’d never thought about doing anything. Skye was much too well known and well, Ryan O’Donnell didn’t get along with her. Penny trusted Ryan’s judgment, almost as much as she trusted Sara’s judgment on character.

The second one, and in the end, the only one that truly mattered was Ryan O’Donnell. She had known the Gryffindor chaser since first year. They’d been friends since then too. Ryan hadn’t been a quidditch player then. He’d only been known as one of the quadruplets and as the cursed kid, the cursed Cian O’Donnell’s kid brother. She hadn’t expected to fall in love with him. And as it turned out, Ryan was everything that she had ever dreamed about in a romantic partner. Penny supposed it was his position on the quidditch team that made her realize she liked him romantically. And when they dated briefly in sixth year, Penny had pilfered on of his quidditch shirts. And if Sara had ever noticed that Penny was wearing her brother’s shirt, well, the other girl had never said anything. 

[pooks]

in my expanded Hogwarts Mystery fics, there is one theme that i particularly love to write about and it's the fond relationship between Cassidy and Percy

by the time Percy comes to Hogwarts, he keeps hearing great stories about Cassidy Mercury who protects the school from the dangerous Cursed Vaults. also she's one of the best students in her age, good friends with his two older brothers and later, she becomes a prefect.

so naturally he looks up to her.

but Cassidy wins his loyalty on one thing and that is because she saved him from Rakepick in Year 5 and 6. you read that right, Cassidy saved his life twice.

at this point, she has become like a big sister figure for him. she doesn't brush him off because he's younger, but she sits down and listens to him. she pays attention to him. she respects his opinions and doesn't make fun of him.

for example, when they first met in Year 5;

Percy: We haven't been properly introduced...I'm Percy Weasley, future Gryffindor Prefect, Head Boy and eventual Minister of Magic. Cassidy: Sounds like you have your entire life planned out. :)

we know that the Weasley siblings would poke fun at Percy for saying that, but Cassidy doesn't and respects his ambitions. she has treated him like an equal since day 1 and that's why she won Percy from the beginning.

in-game, they have gone even on adventures with Percy. like when the twins disappeared in Year 6 and we're looking for them with Percy who is, understandably really worried (caused there is a dangerous Cursed Vault at the works!) and even ventures into the Forbidden Forest with Cassidy.

and in the sidequest where there is a party in the Borrow while the parents are away on business, Percy choses to lie (it's a white lie to spare Charlie and the others from trouble) when their mum asks them if there were any trouble.

Percy: It's true! I even organized your sock drawer! (when Molly asked if it was true everyone did chores and did not do anything suspicious)

also when finding out that dark artefacts were moved to the Ministry, Cassidy goes to find Percy (and Tulip, but she isn't really fond of talking about the Ministry). the minute Cassidy asked for Percy's expertise, this is the first time we see him so openly happy and excited.

Cassidy Mercury (the MC): Tulip, Percy. I need you to tell me everything you know about the Ministry of Magic headquarters. Percy (excitedly): Merlin's bread, where do I begin?!

clearly, Cassidy trusts his judgement and knowledge more than well enough to ask him about his input and Percy becomes to happy about being important enough to be asked for his expertise. that is really heartwarming.

not to mention in that same scene, Percy agrees to help Cassidy break into the fucking Ministry because she helped him finding Fred and George.

and in my stories, Rakepick actively manipulates and endanger Percy because of his Seer abilities (yes, Percy has strong Seer powers in my fanfics, but he's not strong enough for a full prophecy). he has a bigger role in my HM stories since Rakepick is more villainous and she ends up using Percy as a leverage to get to Bill, Charlie and Cassidy.

the section below is spoilers for year 6 in my HPHM fanfiction

[in one of my fanfic stories (during Year 6), Rakepick takes him as hostage to the Forbidden Forest. Percy had, by this point, become used as a tool to "predict" the future of Rakepick and the Cursed Vaults. his Seer power (which Percy has named as "foresight") isn't strong enough for a full prophecy and Rakepick decides to use him as a bait for the Cursed Vaults.

back at the castle when the gang is preparing to infiltrate the meeting Rakepick is having with 'R' in the forest, they find out from Oliver Wood that Percy has gone missing and his "rat" is acting weird as in full panic. Cassidy then realizes that there is a connection between Percy's terrified behavior for the past months and quickly deductes that Rakepick has him.]

Cassidy saved Percy's life twice and she has promised him that no matter what happens to her or in the future, she will always return to save him. so his feelings about Cassidy is nothing but pure love and loyalty, like how a younger brother sees his big sister. with Cassidy in the picture, Percy is no longer the odd one out in his family (where everyone are paired with someone except him).

in my Wizard Archivist series, the theme of their friendship is especially in focus because Cassidy is, since before the HP book events starts, locked in a hellscape world beyond the real Cursed Vault and Percy struggles to re-open that vault to bring her home with risk for his own life. '

conclusion? Percy genuinely loves Cassidy, as if it was his big sister and she has always been there for him, wheather it's saving his life or just listening to him rambling. it's an innocent and pure love. Cassidy, who is the younger sister to Jacob and has no younger siblings, adores him in the same way.

in a way, Cassidy became a substitiute when Bill and Charlie were too busy with their lives and a source of unconditional love for Percy.

and the kicker is when Cassidy came to save him the first time, she had just smiled and told him that everything would be alright because she was there now.

thanks for coming to my TED talk about Percy and his inofficial "big sis" role model Cassidy Mercury

[carewyncromwell]

Day 1 (Quidditch) for @hphm-ship-week

x~x~x~x

"Can you give me one reason why You'd ever let me down? I won't believe it baby, but I'll try -- The truth's gonna come around...

The sky is the limit now! We can hit it on the nail, And when we do, I'll think about you..."

~"Skies the Limit" by Fleetwood Mac

x~x~x~x

In the Quidditch world, a person who can play more than one position well is a valuable thing. Oftentimes that player would be really good in their primary position while still being capable in that secondary position. Ethan Parkin, for instance, was best as a Beater, but he once took over as his team's Keeper after the first one was knocked out with a Bludger half-way through the game. In fact, all Parkins grew up learning about all four positions, even if they ultimately chose one over all the others.

A true triple- or quadruple-act in Quidditch, though -- someone who could play three or even all four positions well -- was incredibly rare. But hey, there's a reason people call Orion Amari a Quidditch prodigy.

Although on the Slytherin team, Orion played as Chaser (and from fourth year on, served as Captain), he was so adaptable and talented at Quidditch that he managed to master the other three positions as well by the time he was thirteen. This helped him with training new players as well as his more seasoned teammates. His extensive knowledge of flying and the different positions also resulted in him creating several brand-new Quidditch techniques while he was still at school -- Tossing the Torch, where a Beater threw their bat to a teammate to protect themselves from a Bludger; the Wronkski Fake-Out, a variation of the Wronkski Feint where a Seeker leads the enemy Seeker on a wild goose chase thinking they saw the Snitch to distract them and wear down their stamina; and of course his signature move, Inspired Broom-Surfing. A lot of these techniques took center stage when Orion engaged in Quidditch friendlies.

Unlike his teammate and friend Skye Parkin, Orion wasn't particular about who he played with in friendly matches, and thanks to his talent in all four positions, he also wasn't particular about which position he played. One of his favorite people to play with, however, was a person who'd once been on the Slytherin team and Orion dearly hoped would someday return to it -- Hogwarts's infamous "Cursebreaker," Carewyn Cromwell.

When Orion first met Carewyn, he'd assessed that she'd had the body type suited to a Seeker, but she quickly turned out to be a Chaser through and through. She flew in only one official match -- the first in Orion's fourth year, against Hufflepuff -- but she left a lasting impact on the team and on Orion in particular, and even with her departure after a falling out with Skye, Orion left the door open for Carewyn to rejoin his Quidditch "family" whenever she wished. Fortunately, although Carewyn was preoccupied with dealing with the Cursed Vaults and finding her lost brother, she would still try hard to make some time to play in friendlies alongside her Quidditch friends, Gryffindor Seeker Charlie Weasley and Ravenclaw Keeper and Reserve Seeker Andre Egwu. And, as you can expect, this also allowed her to fly again alongside and even sometimes against her team's Captain.

x~x~x~x

The first time Orion and Carewyn flew in a friendly match together, they were on opposing teams.

Carewyn had come with her new friend and fellow fourth year Charlie, so they joined the same friendly team. And as luck would have it, Orion ended up on the other team as their Star Chaser.

Orion's team ended up taking the lead early. Carewyn had been so startled and happy to see Orion that he took advantage of her lack of focus and -- with a broad, delighted smile -- stole the Quaffle out from under her and her fellow Chasers to score twenty points against the Keeper in the span of just five minutes. Carewyn pretty quickly got her head into the game and immediately set about taking Orion head-on. Soon they were chasing each other all around the field. Carewyn would try and fail to disturb Orion's balance, only to predict his move and block his goal before it could fly past her Keeper. Orion would try and fail to block Carewyn, only to silently sneak up beside her and swipe the Quaffle out from under her arm.

The game ended 200-100, thanks to Charlie catching the Snitch.

"Your focus has improved," Orion told Carewyn after the fact.

Carewyn gave an irritable huff. "Hardly! You outscored me by fifty points."

"Success can be proportional, Carewyn Cromwell," said Orion calmly. "It's unsurprising that a formidable Chaser would be less of a threat when playing alongside less experienced teammates."

He smiled.

"You did very well today."

Carewyn, still clearly not happy with herself, nonetheless felt the corner of her lips turning up slightly.

"...Mm, not nearly as good as you. But thank you."

x~x~x~x

The next time Carewyn and Orion collided at a Quidditch friendly that year, they were on the same team. This time, though, all the positions but one had been filled by the time Orion strolled in, so he ended up playing as Beater.

Carewyn honestly wasn't sure how Orion would do in the position. He was such a pacifistic personality, it was kind of hard to imagine him acting aggressively. But to her immense surprise, Orion showed an astounding amount of both strength and control while wielding the Beater bat. Rather than smack the balls at other players indiscriminately to knock them off their brooms, he took a very measured approach. He'd lie in wait like a wild cat and then lash out, hitting a Bludger into another player at just the right angle to hit their arm and make them drop the Quaffle. Other times he'd redirect a Bludger mid-flight and send it careening into the opposing Keeper, forcing them to dodge and in the process let the Quaffle in. The most notable moment of that friendly match came, though, when Carewyn was just about to score and Orion -- appearing seemingly out of nowhere -- flew up in front of her to whack a Bludger right back at the rival Beater who'd initially smacked it toward her. The Bludger hit the opposing Beater squarely in the chest and winded him so badly that he nearly fell off his broom as Carewyn scored.

"Score!" cried McNully from somewhere in the stands. "Ten points!"

Carewyn flew up alongside Orion, exhaling in relief.

"Are you all right?" Orion asked.

His face was calm, but his black eyes grazed her frame quickly.

Carewyn nodded. "Mm-hmm. Thanks to you."

Orion's features softened.

"Anemones sting as part of their nature," he said. "But that doesn't mean they aren't happy to know that their nature can protect the clownfish they call their friend."

Carewyn grinned amusedly. "I think that bloke's going to do a bit more than just sting, after how hard you hit him with that Bludger."

"I shall deliver a proper apology and some Wiggenweld Potion after our victory," Orion said coolly.

x~x~x~x

The seventh time Orion and Carewyn collided during a friendly -- which was also the first time in Carewyn's fifth and Orion's sixth years -- the two ended up on opposing sides again: this time with Carewyn playing support to her boyfriend Andre Egwu as Chaser and Orion opposing them both as Keeper.

Carewyn had always been a perfectionist. It's something she and Andre had in common, and when the two had been dating, this feeling was only magnified in them, as they wanted to do perfectly both for their own sake and so as to look good in front of their partner. This made it so that when Orion effectively blocked every single goal Carewyn threw at him in those first thirty minutes of the friendly match, both she and Andre were absolutely beside themselves.

"I thought," Andre huffed in exasperation after blocking his tenth goal in the span of ten minutes, "that Amari was supposed to be a Chaser!"

"Orion is many things," Carewyn said tiredly.

"Well, right now, what he is is getting on my nerves," Andre fumed.

Orion seemed to have sensed he'd gotten under his opponents' skin. He was standing in mid-air on his broom in front of the hoops, balancing on one foot and crossing his arms as he smiled wryly.

"Don't lose your center of balance, Carewyn Cromwell!" he called over, his voice almost frustratingly casual. "A Snidget can't fly as well without it."

"'Center of balance,' honestly..." Andre muttered sourly, "let me knock you off your broom and we'll see how well you can balance -- "

Carewyn, however, didn't respond -- she was too irritated to speak coherently. Instead she flew right back out onto the pitch, prepared to go up against Orion again. The Slytherin Captain watched her with a calm, nonchalant expression, not moving even as she again swept through all three of the other Chasers. She ducked and weaved, before finally getting up onto her broom herself and surfing on the back of it.

The use of his signature move made Orion beam. It threw off the other Chasers, and Carewyn moved with direct focus, right toward Orion. She feinted left and then shot right --

And Orion caught the Quaffle in one hand.

With a smile, he tossed the Quaffle off to the left, right toward his closest Chaser. Carewyn, expecting this, swerved out in front, using her feet to swing her broom around and smack the Quaffle right back at him.

It soared through the right-most hoop.

"Score!" McNully's voice rang out in the distance.

Somewhere behind them, Andre was cheering.

"YEAH! GO, CURSEBREAKER! SHOW HIM WHO'S BOSS!"

Carewyn, however, could only breathe heavily. Orion looked at the hoop and then over at Carewyn, his smile broadening.

"Well done," he said.

But Carewyn was unable to accept the praise. She glanced back over her shoulder at Andre and then at the scoreboard.

"The match isn't over yet," she said tersely.

And she flew away, leaving Orion with less of a smile than before.

Despite her best efforts, Carewyn didn't manage to score any more goals against Orion that day. The match ended with a score of 190-10, with Carewyn leaving early, unable to face Andre or her friendly teammates with how terrible she felt her performance had been.

The next day Carewyn found a short note hidden inside her schoolbag, written in very messy, loopy handwriting.

I know yesterday was unhappy for you, but please know that you made your team proud. I only wish that the team you made proud had been mine -- perhaps then my pride in you would've been easier to see. You are a brilliant player, Carewyn Cromwell. Do not be discouraged. Orion

x~x~x~x

The last time Carewyn and Orion collided at Hogwarts's Quidditch friendlies that year was right after Carewyn's OWLs. Just about all of the Slytherin team had been there that week. They'd been knocked out of the running very early on due to Orion being knocked off his broom by one of Erika Rath's Bludgers and needing time to recover. Now that they'd finished some soul-searching and team-bonding, the Slytherin team wanted to practice in preparation for the next season. As part of a training exercise for the whole team, Orion assigned his teammates (and himself) to play different positions in the next few friendly matches. The previous day Skye had done admirably playing as a Beater for her friendly team, and this day Orion ended up as Seeker, alongside Carewyn as Chaser and opposing Gryffindor's Star Seeker, Charlie.

Charlie had always been a brilliant Seeker. He'd scored the position back in his second year just as Orion had earned his own position as Slytherin Chaser in his, and thanks to Charlie, Gryffindor had won every match in the last four years excluding their finals against Ravenclaw, where Erika Rath would take Charlie out with her well-aimed Bludgers. Carewyn suspected that this may have been why Orion wanted to go head-to-head against Charlie -- if he and the Slytherin team had any hope of beating Gryffindor and winning the Quidditch Cup, he had to get a good look at Charlie and the way he played. And Orion did do a lot of observation -- not just of the Snitch, but of Charlie. He made very good use of the Wronkski Fake-Out throughout the friendly match, taking note of Charlie's agility and focus. To his credit, Charlie kept up with Orion very well, and ended up sussing out his ruse a few times when he looked around and saw nothing for Orion to be focused on. The Gryffindor even ended up ducking a Bludger Orion had smacked away from him and at Charlie thanks to his Beater "Tossing the Torch" to him with a grin akin to a Cheshire Cat's.

As Charlie and Orion played their silent game of game-worthy wits, though, Carewyn ended up noticing something they didn't. A flare of gold beside the left goal hoop.

Not wanting to alert Charlie, she instead snatched up the Quaffle, flying back toward the goal hoops. Racking her brain for an idea, she settled upon the weird one.

"If you want me, you can find me Left of center, off of the strip!"

Just about everyone was bewildered by Carewyn singing out of nowhere. Both Charlie and Orion looked at her, the first bewildered and the second merely startled.

Carewyn tried not to blink as she flew right past Orion, her eyes flitting back over his shoulder. She was desperate not to look directly at the Snitch herself, for fear of tipping off Charlie.

"In the outskirts and in the fringes -- In the corner -- out of the grip!"

Orion miraculously seemed to catch on. Unfortunately when he glanced over his shoulder, Charlie seemed to regain his focus, and within seconds, he'd spotted the Snitch too. Both of them took off like a shot from opposite sides of the pitch, right for the tiny golden ball fluttering on the far end.

Both Orion and Charlie's teammates tried to run interference. Charlie's Beaters hit Bludgers at Orion, which he dodged; Orion's Chasers, including Carewyn, tried to block Charlie, but he was just too fast. Ultimately the two ended up shoulder to shoulder as they pursued the Snitch -- they dived, ducked, and spiraled, both trying to shake the other off and catch the Snitch first.

Orion pretty soon got up onto the back of his broom and surfed through the air, up and over Charlie to try to overtake him. It seemed to work at first -- but just as Orion was about to snatch the Snitch out of the air, Charlie did something perfectly mad. Keeping the bottom of his broom under his legs so as to avoid a foul, the second-eldest Weasley grabbed onto one of the nearby banners in one hand and swung around the pillar, right in front of Orion. Orion had to quickly course-correct to avoid colliding with Charlie and falling off his broom -- and in that moment he needed to withdraw, Charlie managed to snatch the Golden Snitch himself.

Just about everyone watching swarmed around Charlie afterward to praise him for the amazing catch. Orion was gracious enough to shake Charlie's hand too, though he did exhale heavily through his smile once Charlie rushed over to talk to Andre.

"You were brilliant, Orion," Carewyn murmured. "You deserved to win that time."

Orion gave a shrug.

"Charlie Weasley is a formidable opponent," he said quietly. "He always has been."

Carewyn nodded grimly. Orion glanced at her with a small smile.

"But still, this loss has some benefits."

Carewyn looked at him curiously. "Did you figure out something useful about Charlie's flying?"

Orion's black eyes twinkled wryly. "Indeed. Our opponent has taken a leaf out of my book, in finding creative ways to subvert us. But he can still be distracted from his goal -- your singing was more than enough proof of that. We just need to consider how best to take advantage of this fact."

Carewyn smiled. "If there's anyone creative enough to figure out a way to do it, it's you, Orion."

Orion's lips spread into a smile too. Bringing his broom up and over his head so that he could rest it along his shoulders, he began to stroll off the pitch, Carewyn on his other side.

"If you don't mind, Carewyn Cromwell," he said leisurely, "how does the rest of that song go?"

Carewyn's smile spread into a fuller grin and obliged.

"When they ask me, 'What are you looking at?' I always answer, 'Nothing much -- not much -- ' I think they know that I'm looking at them; I think they think I must be out of touch,

But I'm only in the outskirts and in the fringes, On the edge and off the avenue, And if you want me, you can find me Left of center, wondering about you...

I think that somehow, somewhere inside of us, We must be similar, if not the same, So I continue to be wanting you, Left of center, against the grain...

And if you want me, you can find me Left of center, off of the strip -- In the outskirts and in the fringes -- In the corner, out of the grip..."

Years later, in the midst of the Second Wizarding War, Orion would hear the full song playing on a Muggle radio, and it sparked the first smile his face had known in months.

[londonhalcyon]

Fic Writer Interview (20 Questions)

This tag game passed by twice, once in January (because apparently this post has been sitting in my drafts that long) and again several months later, so forgive me for not remembering who to tag! These questions seem fun, so if anyone wants to join, feel free to say I tagged you!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

20 at the moment, with plenty more WIPs.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

480,895 words and counting.

3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Not counting TMW bonus content, the top 5 are:

The Mad Witch (758 kudos)

"The Scarlett Cauldron" (77 kudos)

"Fear Itself" (76 kudos)

"The Most Powerful Witch" (72 kudos)

"Piper's Best Worst Day" (57 kudos)

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to! I love engaging with my readers and other members of the fandom. Every comment always makes my whole day. Life gets busy sometimes, so I don't always have the time to respond to every single one, but I definitely see and appreciate all of them!

5. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Usually my fics have fairly hopeful endings, but "3 Years Ago," a pre-canon Murdered: Soul Suspect fic might fit the bill. Sometime in the future, it has the potential to be topped by "Will of the People," a Fallout 4 WIP that revolves around the Diamond City anti-ghoul riots.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

My Secret Santa fics, "It's Not the Fall" and "Flawed Phials," definitely have the fluffiest endings!

7. Do you write crossovers?

Nope!

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

I get rude or condescending comments on occasion from people who don't know how to hit the back button and/or are unfamiliar with fandom etiquette, though nothing actively malicious. The one time I received a transphobic/homophobic message in response to TMW it was private (if it was public, I would have deleted it; I don't give a platform to that kind of thing at all), and honestly I hope that person is in a better place now because they really didn't seem okay at the time. I'm fortunate that the vast majority of my readers and mutuals are such wonderfully amazing and kind people.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes, BUT, before you get too excited, not in The Mad Witch. Smut is by definition graphic, and TMW has a Teen rating that shall remain unchanged.

The smut scenes I've drafted so far (F/F and F/M) are for my Rosemary Reaper series (post-canon Fallout 4 WIP). Those fics will all be rated Mature, so while not overly explicit, they'll definitely be spicier than TMW. Maybe I'll share a snippet sometime if there's any demand for it.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of?? I have long since deleted my Wattpad account, so my fics should only be on AO3. If anyone ever finds one of my fics elsewhere in the wild, please let me know.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I have not, which is probably for the best. I would like to make some heavy edits to the beginning of TMW when I'm done with it.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Not a fic, though I have co-written a short fantasy story with a friend, with him writing for one POV character and me for another. We agreed on major actions and story beats, but we each kept a major secret that we didn't reveal until after we had written our individual parts. It was a lot of fun (though we were both painfully unskilled at the time).

13. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

I don't know if I really have one. I have ships I enjoy and characters I like to pair with OCs, though nothing I feel properly obsessive over. This might be a consequence of primarily writing for video game fandoms. But I do have my default game romances: Merula in HPHM, Piper in Fallout 4, Marcurio in Skyrim, etc. I'm also a sucker for unrequited love interests, like Serana in Skyrim and Aveline in Dragon Age 2. The ANGST.

14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

I never want to say never because I'm currently 83,435 words into the last fic I said I would never write. But there are two fics that I'm almost certain I will never finish, which I'm kind of sad about: my post-canon Murdered: Soul Suspect longfic, A Certain Darkness, and my RWBY OC team longfic, DSRT.

I made it just shy of 200,000 words into A Certain Darkness before I had to drop it. My writing skills ended up surpassing the progress I had made, and by the time I realized how many characters, relationships, and plot points were just straight up bad, I had written myself into a corner. I do love Joy and Angel so much, a medium/ghost duo with way more homoerotic tension than my closeted teenage self ever intended. Maybe one day I'll gut the story, drop the characters into a different setting, and make it something original. One day.

DSRT ran into a similar problem, though fortunately I only ever wrote the first few chapters. I could probably reattempt it if I really wanted, but with the overwhelming number of WIPs I already have, it's hard to imagine finding the time. I do miss my team of teenage idiots: Dustin, Saul, Rosemary, and Talos. It was supposed to have a really tragic ending too, which I don't often get to write.

15. What are your writing strengths?

I often receive compliments on how human I make my characters feel, which is the highest honor anyone could give. I've been told my dialogue frequently flows smoothly too.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Conciseness. Why is this post so long omg.

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Do it carefully and with necessity. Maybe a character is bilingual and blends languages, so it's part of their characterization. Maybe a password or spell needs to be said in another language because it's old or pretentious. It can work, but it can also be easy to mess up. I personally avoid writing dialogue in languages I don't have a good grasp of, or I try to consult other people if I do (not Google Translate, which sucks).

There's also the matter of if the POV character even understands the language being spoken. If they don't, then I don't write the language out (unless it's a phrase the character is going to learn later on). In these instances, it makes more sense to write something like, "The man muttered a phrase in a language she didn't recognize," or "She fired off something in Spanish, the words too quick to catch."

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Star Wars the Clone Wars, baby! I was like ten or eleven. Never published, but my worldbuilding for that longfic (a saga, more like) was insanely elaborate. Alas, another story for the WIP graveyard.

19. What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?

Eventually, I want to get back to my Skyrim WIP, which includes a main Dragonborn/Marcurio ship. Maybe even with a little Dragonborn/Serana infidelity on the side (which Marcurio absolutely does not deserve, the poor guy).

20. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

I mean, I have to say The Mad Witch, don't I? That fic is where my community is, where every time I post a chapter I have a ton of people who get excited about it with me. It is the story I think about constantly, that I have spent literal years writing and daydreaming about. No matter what I've written before or will write since, this will be the defining fic in my journey as a writer.

That, and I have a special fondness for "Case by Case." I just think it's neat.

[alebrije-estelar]

MC HPHM PROFILE

Basic concepts

Name: Hanna Ryuuzaki Rakepick

Nicknames: Anna (Only for her uncle)

Name meaning: Hanna = "favor", "grace" or "God has favored me" (Also, the song 'Oh Ana' by Mother Mother, I listened to 'Oh Hanna' instead of Ana and I liked it)

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Age: Depends

Birthday: October 31 (1972)

Zodiac: Scorpio

Blood status: Pure blood

Ethnicity/Nationality: Japanese-British Ethnicity and British Nationality

Sexuality: Demiromantic Demisexual

Place of birth: Luxor, Egypt

Current residence: Diagon Alley, London / Hogsmade, United Kingdom

Professions:

11 - 17 years: Hogwarts student, school of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Loyalty:

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Order of the Phoenix

Ministry of Magic (?)

Appearance

Height: 5 feet 1,811 inches

Weight: 121.254 pounds

Eyes: Gray and Blue

Hair: Orange with white highlights

Skin: Light with freckles

Clothes: Goblincore

Main clothing

More

In her bag: Wand, purse, Walkman and cassettes, notebook, pen, luncc

Face Claim: Guacamolebear (Instagram)

Voice Claim: Emily (Hazbin Hotel)

Personality

Traits

Positive: Kind, brave, adventurous

Negative: Clumsy, talkative

Likes: Exploring, quidditch, duels,

Dislikes: Injustice, boredom, sitting still

Favorite color: Orange

Favorite food: Cakes and pastries

MBTI: ENFP

Alignment: Good Chaotic

Hogwarts

Hogwarts House: Hufflepuff

Ilvermorny House: Thunderbird

Classes (OWL's/NEWS Points)

Astronomy: A

Charms: O

DADA: O

Flight: O

Herbology: O

History of Magic: E

Potions: O

Transfigurations: O

Electives

Adivination: E

Creature Care: O

Study of Ancient Runes: E

Clubs: Duel Club, Dragon and Hippogriff Club

Quidditch: Seeker

Prefect/Delegate: Prefect and Delegate

Best classes: Care of Magical Creatures and DADA

Worst classes: Astronomy

Magic

Wand

1. Oak wand with mermaid scale core, 7 inches, medium flexible

2. Ebony wood, dragon scale core, 8 inches, inflexible

Boggart

Form: Watching your friends suffer because of her

Riddikulus: “Little joke"

Amortentia

How others smell her: Raspberry jam, freshly baked cake and sunshine

What she smells: New book and tree wood/Grass and honeysuckle

Patronus

Shape: A grizzly bear

Memory: A picnic with her friends on the school grounds but deep down her parents love her, Jacob is safe and Merula and R are not there

What she sees in the Mirror of Erised: Her in an exploration uniform with Rowan

Animagus: Cocker spaniel

Skills:

Magic with and without a wand

Clairning

Legilimency

Umbrakinesis

Animated Shadow

Shadow Teleportation

Night vision

Relationships

Father: Akira “Peregrine” Ryuuzaki

Mother: Patricia Rakepick

Uncle: Ainosuke Ryuuzaki

Half Brother: Jacob Ryuuzaki

Pets: Niffler called Pallet

Rowan Khanna

Her best friend ever and ever

People thought they are dating

Rowan prevented Hanna from fighting like a chihuahua

Ben Copper

They defend themselves with each other

Penny Haywood

They love gossip

They get stressed together

Bill Weasley

Big brother figure

Bill basically adopted her one minute after meeting her

I also went with him in case of stress

She loves it so much

It's her mom

Charlie Weasley

Her friend and brother

The one who hears him talk the most about dragons

Nymphadora Tonks

SOMETIMES they make a joke together

Everything is laughter and laughter with them

Talbott Winger

Hanna's behavior towards Talbott softens her heart although she will never admit

They are very close during the holiday season because they are both alone

They have food saved for each other for their respective animagus

Chiara Lobosca

Supportive friendship

Chiara heals Hanna and Hanna is with Chiara on a full moon

Jae Kim

Hanna usually spends considerable time in the kitchens so she already knew Jae

It turns out that they are both equally unruly

They are a danger to society

Barnaby Lee

Hanna is very patient with him

Love shared by creatures

André Egwu

She is his number one mannequin and model

Tulip Karasu

Tulip is attracted by Hanna's rumors and liberal attitude

Diego Capplan

He taught her hurt lady songs and how to dance salsa

Really oblivious to his flirting

She thinks he's very sweet and cool

They have duels together very often

Liz Tuttle

M A G I C C R E A T U R E S

Baddea Ali

They like to research spells together

Love interest:

Rowan Khanna: From the beginning they were super close but MC unintentionally moved away from Rowan and it all culminated with Rowan yelling at her that he loved her and couldn't lose her, which made things awkward for a while but coming back from vacation she stood him up with a big hug

Charlie Weasley: Their relationship occurred without either of them realizing it, Charlie paid more attention to Hanna's small details and she wanted to spend more time with him, neither of them wanted to admit their feelings because they denied them since Charlie had his dragons and she I was very busy with the vaults. It wasn't until Tonks brought them together and forced them to talk about their feelings

Enemies:

Merula Synde

The damn one has been her bully since he entered Hogwarts

Their ideals and methods of resolution are very different

They are already semi at peace but they

Ismelda Murk

She doesn't like that she is so rude and blood purist

Although they are already in some peace

Background

In the years of the witch persecution, the Ryuuzaki family, trying to survive, made a pact with demons in exchange for power and surviving the magical crisis. The demons gave them the power to control the shadows and thus the Ryuuzaki gained fame as dark magicians although helping others came in their blood. Dai Ryusaki, a magician who studied the mind and Lillith ... a wielder of ancient magic came together and had a son named Ryōsuke who married and had two children, Akira and Ainosuke. Akira was the one who witnessed the imprisonment of his grandfather Dai and that made him see life differently and the second magical war made it worse so he changed his name to Peregrine, moved away from his entire family and formed R. He However, he ended up with one of its members, Patricia Rakepick, and they had Hanna, but since they were both very focused on their careers, they left her with Uncle Ainosuke. It was there when she met Jacob and they both became very close, until his disappearance.

Fun Facts

LOVES coffee but can't drink it often

It would be a danger

She can only when it is exam season

She is embarrassed to say no and that is why he ends up in a pure cursed situation

She always gives advice to others, never takes it for herself

Does not judge people, always tries to be understanding

In fact, she tried to be friends with Merula when she met her

It didn't turn out well

She is a resilient person

She has a huge heart that even if it breaks, he has plenty of love for everyone

The first years always look for her

She often gets distracted by staring at a specific point and doesn't realize it until her attention is called to it

Somewhat intolerant to cold

The girl has a hard time understanding sarcasm or hints

She is actually more Gryffindor but she stayed in Hufflepuff because of her little heart.

[marmotish]

I went down your Barnaby tag to find a specific fanart, and ended up following recommended posts rabbit hole beneath and found out:

Freyja used to be more expressive

Her cat used to be giant ginger half-kneazle named Chester, gifted by her grandma, just like her current cat whose name and coloring are different

Poor baby Roger used to be terrified of her and that still makes me laugh

man i always wondered how people found my old old hphm stuff and then i realised that recommended posts doesn’t give a shit how old your posts are… 😅 hope you found the post you were looking for!

and you bring up some interesting points there ->

1. Freyja being more expressive

before i figured out what kind of character i wanted to make, she was a lot more expressive. but then her old personality was reminding me a bit too much of another old OC, so i moved into a different direction to really kind of separate her from that.

2. Chester the Cat -> Knick(erbocker) the Kat

the original (HUGE) cat didn’t really contribute anything story-wise so I just didn’t draw it again. then thanks to an anon and my weakness for cats, it was brought back in the form of Knick - a bit smaller and a whole lot cattier. ✨

3. Roger used to be terrified of Freyja

he avoided her like the plague when they went to school together. Freyja was kind of Going Through It during years 6 and 7, and it showed. So every time she came into view, he made sure to keep well out of her way i.e. hiding.

[sunflowersxx24]

HPHM OC (1/?)

[ 1st pic contains AI Generated Images of character's first year to beyond (left-right, top-bottom)]

Name: Rachel Dawn Macmillan

Nicknames:

• Raylie

• Rach

• Raya

• Dawndelion

Birthday: November 24, 1972

Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius ♐️

Blood Status: Pure Blood

Ethnicity: British-American

Nationality: British

Residence: Godric's Hollow (England)

--------PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Hair: Golden Brown

Eyes: Hazel

Height: 5'8

Body Type: Hourglass

Skin: Fair

Scarring: Small scar on knee (got while playing outside with Jacob and her father)

--------MAGICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Wands:

1st Wand:

• 11 1/2 in

• Black Walnut Wood

• Dragon Heartstring Core

• Unyielding Flexibility

2nd Wand:

• 13 in

• English Oak Wood

• Phoenix Feather Core

• Unbending Flexibility

Abilities:

• Legilimency

• Non-verbal magic

• Wandless Magic

• Animagi

Animagus Form:

• Hawk

Boggart Form:

• Basilisk (until 6th year)

• Rowan's zombie rising from the dead (present)

Patronus: Capuchin Monkey

Patronus Memory: Playing tag with Jacob when she was younger

Mirror of Erised: Her and her family happy and complete

Amortentia:

• (smells like) freshly cut grass, sea salt, warm campfire smoke

• (smells) fresh citrus, crisp autumn leaves, subtle woodsy notes

Favorite Spells:

• "Expecto Patronum"

• "Expelliarmus"

• "Stupefy"

--------ALLEGIANCES

Affilliations/Organizations:

• Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

- Gryffindor Quidditch Team

- Duelling Club

- Care of Magical Creatures Club

• The Circle of Khanna

• The Order of the Phoenix

Loyalty

• Macmillan Family

• Rodriguez Family

• Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

--------HOGWARTS

House: Gryffindor

Clubs:

• Dueling Club

• Magical Creatures Club

Best Classes:

• Defense Against the Dark Arts

• Care of Magical Creatures

• Charms

Worst Classes:

• Divination

• History of Magic

• Muggle Studies

Electives:

• Divination

• Care of Magical Creatures

• Muggle Studies

Performance in Each Class:

• Defence Against the Dark Arts (10/10)

• Care of Magical Creatures (9/10)

• Charms (8/10)

• Astronomy (6/10)

• Herbology (6/10)

• Transfiguration (5/10)

• Potions (5/10)

• Muggle Studies (4/10)

• History of Magic (3/10)

• Divination (2/10)

Quidditch: Chaser (4th - 6th year)

Favorite Professor: Professor Filtwick

Least Favorite Professor: Professor Snape

--------CAREER

• Ages 11-18: Hogwarts Student

• Ages 18-35: Auror

• Ages 35-50: Curse Breaker

• Ages 50+: Retired

--------PERSONALITY

MBTI Type: ENFJ-A (The Protagonist)

Priorities:

• Studies

• Future Life

• Friends

• Finding her brother

• Solving the mystery of the cursed vault

• Avenging Rowan's death

Likes:

• Spellcasting

• Adventure

• Magical Creatures

• Nature

• Flying on her broomstick

• Quidditch

• Dueling

• Dragon

• Friends

• Person she fancies

Dislikes:

• Dark Magic

• Injustice

• Animal cruelty

• Unnecessary conflicts

• Prejudice

• Bullies

• Corruption/Abusers of Power

Strengths

• Adventurous Spirit

• Determination

• Quick Reflexes

• Spell Casting

• Loyalty

• Curiosity

• Care of Magical Creatures

• Bravery

• Creativity

Weaknesses:

• Impulsiveness

• Impatience

• Overconfidence

• Lack of Focus

• Risk-taking

• Carelessness with details

• Stubborness

• Judgemental

Stress:

• Academic Pressure

• Balancing Responsibilities

• Competitions and Challenges

• Personal Challenges

• Uncertainty with the Future

• Interpersonal Relationships

• Time Management

Comfort:

• Taking walks in the Forbidden Forest

• Sitting by the Black Lake

• Playing Quidditch

• Broomstick Flying

• Spending Time with Friends

• Practicing Magic

• Listening to Music

• Watching the Sunset

--------FAVORITES

Color: Silver

Food:

• Pumpkin Pasties

• Chocolate Frogs

• Exploding Bonbons

• Treacle Tart

• Dragon Steak

• Freshly Baked Bread

• Salad

Drink:

• Butterbeer

• Pumpkin Juice

Weather:

• Spring

• Snow

Hobbies:

• Exploring Hogwarts Grounds

• Broomstick Flying

• Practicing Spellcasting

• Care of Magical Creatures

Fashion:

• Comfortable Sweaters

• Light Aesthetic/Bright Gryffindor Colors

• Flowing Dresses

• Plaid Skirts

• Stylish Blouses

--------RELATIONSHIPS

Parents:

• Diane Macmillan (née Rodriguez)

• Peregrine Macmillan

Siblings:

• Jacob Macmillan

Love Interests:

• Talbott Winger (4th year)

• Jae Kim (5th year - present)

Best Friends:

• Rowan Khanna

• Charlie Weasley

• Bill Weasley

• Tulip Karasu

Friends:

• Penny Haywood

• Nymohadora Tonks

• Barnaby Lee

• Skye Parkin

• Chiara Lobosca

• Erika Rath

• Ben Copper

• Baddea Ali

Rivals/Enemies:

• Merula Snyde (R)

• Ismelda Murk (E)

• Patricia Rakepick (E)

Best Canon Friends:

• Rowan Khanna

• Bill Weasley

• Charlie Weasley

• Tulip Karasu

Best OC Friends:

• Fabi Collins

• Shawn Carter

• Brianna Greengrass

--------OVERALL

• Strength - 6/10

• Agility - 10/10

• Intelligence - 9/10

• Charisma - 10/10

• Stamina - 7/10

• Magical Ability - 9/10

• Athleticism - 9/10

• Battlefield IQ - 8/10

• Attractiveness - 9.5/10

[justonedrawer]

HPHM SHIP WEEK 2024

Day 1: Dance

I wanted to start off with a not so popular ship I loved some years ago.

The children here couldn't sleep and for fun decided to recreate a dance from the ball :3

JC did them dirty and I'll never forgive them ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ

[stupendousbookworm]

hphm ship week day 1 - dance

@hphm-ship-week

"After all these years... I finally get to dance with you."

Can't believe it takes them almost six years to actually dance together after meeting for the first time honestly, everything would have happened pretty fast if there weren't a billion misunderstandings between them.

i learnt today i'm not fast at art LOL i couldn't finish the coloring so i just left it with some black and white. i hope thats not a problem :(

[rairolin]

Today I'm going to receive my New Year's Eve's present and the mere thought of it makes me feel very festive. To share this magical feeling.. I want to gift a portrait of your HPHM MC or HPHM favourite character to one of my so-called followers.

If you want it, just write "Happy New Year" with the number of your comment under this post. For example: "Heeey! Happy New Year! I'm the 1" if you're the first one, 2 for the second and so on in numerical order.

I'm too small to gift every person a nice art (though if no one wants it is alright too, I'll proclaim myself the winner), SO at the Dec 31th I'll use a random number picker to choose one winner who'll receive the gift portrait art from me (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧〜☆

💜💕✌️🐍✌️💕💜

[unfortunate-arrow]

𝐎𝐂 𝐱 𝐎𝐂 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: A Masterlist — 1960s-2010s

An open offer for oc x oc interactions for all of my HP OCs and the types of relationships that they’re open for! This also functions as a masterlist for my Hogwarts dorms. In addition, everyone featured will only get one tag to avoid breaking the post.

Interactions for ocs born between the 1870s & 1950s can be found here.

The preference is for mutuals and the ability to slip it the (few) storylines. If any of them strike your interest, please comment, reblog, send an ask, or DM and specify with the OCs’ names.

Extra Info:

Total Number of OCs: 18

Number of OCs Open for Dormmates: 12

Number or OCs Open for Friendships: 16

Number of OCs Open for Love Interests: 1

Eras: HPHM, Golden, HPMA, Next Gen

𝙷𝙾𝙶𝚆𝙰𝚁𝚃𝚂 𝙼𝚈𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁𝚈

Huck Fitzgerald

b. november 28, 1972 | saggitarius

hufflepuff | muggleborn | irish | entp | enneagram type 6w7

in a different universe than the ruth & the o’donnells

a little more removed from the drama of ‘R’ and the cursed vaults

an orphan and raised by his aunt and uncle from the age of 5

traveled quite extensively with his aunt and uncle who are both in fields related to archeology and therefore knows how to hold a very basic conversation in a few different languages

more of a cat person than a dog person

makes friends easily, although most aren’t close friends

healer to stay-at-home dad to ancient studies professor at hogwarts

Love Interest:

Dorm: Huck | Rohan Khanna | Diego Caplan | Reid Van de Lune (kc-and-co) | Marty Raymond (@hogwartsmysteryho)

Open for: Friendships

Ruth Lyman

b. july 17, 1973 | cancer

ravenclaw | muggleborn | irish | jewish | infj | enneagram type 8w9

not involved very much in the cursed vaults, she works more as a background character like levi kidd

raised by her father and her grandmother in a bakery in dublin, ireland

a quieter soul who spends time alone but enjoys being with other people

a literature nerd

works as a tutor for the younger students while at hogwarts and for a few years between the end of hogwarts and the start of the wizarding world

a children’s book author and later, the charms professor at hogwarts

Love Interest: Conor O’Donnell

Dorm: Ruth | Badeea Ali | Tulip Karasu | Isabelle Dubois (@endlessly-cursed) | Lyse Spindle (@magicallymalted)

Open for: Friendships

Ryan O’Donnell

b. august 18, 1973 | leo

gryffindor | half-blood | irish | esfp | enneagram type 8w7

the firstborn quadruplet, although the second born child

chaotic disaster quad

most involved in the cursed vaults mystery

“i hate mysteries, they need to be solved” vibes

the rolling stones over the beatles any day

impulsive and kind and someone that you can count on

puts on a front that he’s always brave and has everything together

has a bit of a reputation for causing trouble

plays chaser on the gryffindor team and has a friendly rivalry with his sister, cara

cursebreaker

Love Interest: Penny Haywood

Dorm: Ryan | Ash Khanna | Ben Copper | Jae Kim | Charlie Weasley

Open for: Friendships

Cara O’Donnell

b. august 18, 1973 | leo

slytherin | half-blood | irish | enfp | enneagram type 8

the second born quadruplet and the third of five siblings

disaster bi quad

chaotic and messy, but she’s still put together

enjoys quidditch and skateboarding, but no other sports

plays chaser on the slytherin quidditch team and has a friendly rivalry with her brother, ryan

artist who eventually becomes an illustrator

Love Interest: Rowan Khanna

Dorm: Cara | Ismelda Murk | Merula Synde | Liz Tuttle | Semele Thorne (endlessly-cursed)

Open for: Friendships

Sara O’Donnell

b. august 18, 1973 | leo

hufflepuff | half-blood | irish | esfj | enneagram type 2

third born quadruplet and the fourth of five siblings

soft sweetheart quad

has a tendency to put others’ problems and needs ahead of her own

always willing to lend a hand, especially to her friends

would say that tonks is her best friend

worked in the hospital wing in her sixth and seventh years

was named prefect in her fifth year

not the most invested in the vaults, but she’s going to help out her siblings

healer

Love Interest: Barnaby Lee

Dorm: Sara | Nymphadora Tonks | Penny Haywood | Rowan Khanna | Chiara Lobosca

Open for: Friendships

Conor O’Donnell

b. august 18, 1973 | leo

ravenclaw | half-blood | irish | istp | enneagram type 5

youngest quadruplet and child

least involved in the cursed vaults mystery and is fully done by his sixth year

honestly, he’s usually just here because of his siblings

keeps to himself and hard to get to know

stutters and because of this, he doesn’t speak much and deals with feelings of fear, shame, and aniexty

also swears like a sailor and has no shame about it

plays seeker for the ravenclaw quidditch team

really good at nonverbal magic

architect

Love Interest: Ruth Lyman

Dorm: Conor | Talbott Winger | Andre Egwu | Victor Ketsueki | OPEN

Open for: 1 dormmate

𝙰𝙲𝚁𝙾𝚂𝚂 𝙴𝚁𝙰𝚂

Camila Valdez

b. september 19, 1979 | virgo

slytherin | half-blood | spanish | irish | american | cuban | intj | enneagram type 5w6

second of five children

attended hogwarts in the same years as harry & co.

silently beefs with draco malfoy because she thinks he’s an insufferable jerk

named prefect in her fifth year and headgirl in her seventh (much to her immense surprise)

becomes the astronomy professor in 2004, at the age of 24

is helping to raise her two youngest siblings, amada and joaquin who were both born in 2000

she’s a fair professor, willing to give out second chances to those who earn it

Love Interest:

Dorm: Camila | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: Friendships, colleagues, 4 dormmates

Nicholas Wraxall

b. february 2, 1989 | aquarius

hufflepuff | muggleborn | american | australian | mbti | enneagram type 1

hogwarts professor (still not sure what exactly he teaches, what subjects don’t have ocs?) and head of hufflepuff

orphaned at the age of 12 and then adopted by an eccentric and wealthy pureblood wizard

gained a reputation for being the weird american kid during his time at hogwarts

played seeker while at hogwarts

worked as an auror for a few years before becoming a professor

became a professor by accident

his reputation as a professor is the hot professor that half the hogwarts student body has a crush on

totally oblivious to student crushes

either teaches muggle studies or flying

Love Interest: Frances Fersen (@endlessly-cursed)

Dorm: Nicholas | Harker Hartford (potionboy3) | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: 3 dormmates, friendships

𝙼𝙰𝙶𝙸𝙲 𝙰𝚆𝙰𝙺𝙴𝙽𝙴𝙳

Finn MacKade

b. december 30, 1996 | capricorn

ravenclaw | muggleborn | irish | english | istj | enneagram type 4w3

eldest of four boys with an identical twin brother

an avid photographer who is rarely seen without his camera

plays chaser while at hogwarts

someone who is good during a crisis, but terrible at handling the aftermath

kind and trustworthy but private and introverted

takes the big brother role pretty seriously, but not always the strongest with it

becomes a professional photographer and works for the daily prophet for about a decade before moving to free lance work

Love Interest: Scotty Rosier (@drinkyoursoupbitch)

Dorm: Finn | Efesto Vecellio (@nicos-oc-hell) | Duncan Ludwig (@usernoneexistent) | Jimmy Crouch (@potionboy3) | OPEN

Open for: Friendships

Nate MacKade

b. december 30, 1996 | capricorn

hufflepuff | muggleborn | irish | english | istj | enneagram type 2w1

second of four children with an identical twin brother

soft, sweet, kind, sunshiny, big heart

massive history nerd and one of the few students who have never fallen asleep while binns is teaching

nate’s a great friend, but he doesn’t open up very much

usually wears his heart on his sleeve

often puts others ahead of himself

a bit of a people pleaser

archivist then historian and finally, history of magic professor at hogwarts

Love Interest: Nova Hartley (@gaygryffindorgal)

Dorm: Nate | Quincey Alderly (gaygryffindorgal) | Conner Everett (@amerrymystery) | Zephyr Mercury (@slytherindisaster)

Open for: Friendships

Jack Whitten

b. february 28, 1997 | pisces

slytherin | muggleborn | irish | english | estp | enneagram type 7

reckless af and a bit of a trouble magnet

dyslexic

not a fan of quidditch, much to everyone’s surprise

he likes fishing, soccer/football, and hurling… and broom racing

has an identical twin brother

his recklessness is a result of abandonment issues as his parents disappeared when he was a baby and no one knew anything about it until about twenty years later

magiopalentologist

Love Interest: Sage Carridan (@kc-and-co)

Dorm: Jack | Maxim Raeburn (potionboy3) | Levi Vecellio (nicos-oc-hell) | Isander Yaxley (gaygryffindorgal) | OPEN

Open for: Friendships, 2 dormmates

Benedict Whitten

b. february 28, 1997 | pisces

ravenclaw | muggleborn | irish | english | intp | enneagram type 6

prefers to spend his free time in the outdoors

he has abandonment issues and thus, doesn’t let himself have too many close relationships

very hard to get know

goes by “ben” sometimes, but absolutely hates being called “benny”

tends to bottle up his emotions

he ends up joining the frog choir by accident

plays seeker on the ravenclaw quidditch team

he starts his working life as an archivist before being hired as the curator to the scamamder wizarding natural history museum in london

Love Interest: Lottie Turner

Dorm: Benedict | Marco Han (magicallymalted) | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Thea Whitten

b. may 29, 1997 | gemini

gryffindor | muggleborn | irish | english | vietnamese | esfp | enneagram type 4w3

the middle of three sisters, both of whom are muggles

thea’s an avid baker

she’s the cousin of jack and benedict, whom her parents are raising

her mother passed away when she was thirteen

shows her love via flowers

she has a big heart and is soft but chaotic

she plays beater on the gryffindor quidditch team

herbologist who later owns her own florist shop

Love Interest: Noa March (@thatravenpuffwitch)

Dorm: Thea | Mary Ann Von Dynne (endlessly-cursed) | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: Friendships, 2 dormmates

𝙽𝙴𝚇𝚃 𝙶𝙴𝙽𝙴𝚁𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽

Sophie Pembroke

b. january 7, 2000 | capricorn

ravenclaw | half-blood | irish | welsh | english | isfp | enneagram type 4w5

eldest of three with a younger brother, rhys, in hufflepuff and a younger sister, emmy, in gryffindor

her mother died when she was nine and then her father had a stroke when she was sixteen

tends to keep to herself, although she doesn’t mind other people’s company

tea lover

plays keeper on the ravenclaw quidditch team

stubborn, sarcastic, and doing her best but feeling like she’s failing herself and everyone else

descendant of max pembroke through his son, harry, and william devlin through his daughter, lucy

inherited max’s cat allergy

wandmaker

Love Interest: Luke Battersea

Dorm: Sophie | Victoire Weasley | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: Friendships, 3 dormmates

Luke Battersea

b. july 21, 2000 | cancer

gryffindor | half-blood | irish | scottish | english | intp | enneagram type 5

youngest of five by quite a bit

sole survivor of the attack that killed his parents and older siblings when he was six

grief-ridden and generally kinda of angry

acts like everything is no big deal and that he’s cool with it, but really, he’s got a lot going on

grumpy old man energy

dog lover and a star wars nerd

plays seeker on the gryffindor quidditch team

obsessed with finding the truth about why his parents were murdered

great-grandson of simon battersea, through his son, oliver, and edmund kennedy, through his daughter, cecilia

Love Interest: Sophie Pembroke

Dorm: Luke | Joaquin Valdez | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: Friendships, 3 dormmates

Declan O’Donnell-Lee

b. september 1, 2001 | virgo

slytherin | half-blood | irish | english | istp | enneagram type 3w4?

eldest son and second of four children born to sara o’donnell and barnaby lee which also makes him the second oldest of the ten o’donnell cousins

dyslexic

the odd one out amongst his family

sports boy through and through

plays seeker for the slytherin quidditch team and is eventually named captain of the team

dog lover

plays quidditch professionally as a seeker for the ballycastle bats

Love Interest: Callie Black (@mjs-oc-corner)

Dorm: Declan | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: Friendships, 4 dormmates

Quinn Power

b. december 1, 2004/5 | sagittarius

slytherin | half-blood | irish | american | english | estp | enneagram type ??

middle of five children with two older brothers, kevin and jason, a younger brother named orion, and a younger sister named cassidy

a werewolf who was bitten at the age of five after his parents accidentally angered a werewolf

plays beater for the slytherin quidditch team

demisexual and biromantic

angry in general, mostly at himself

grumpy loner

descendant of minerva kennedy

career is tbd

Love Interest: Open

Dorm: Quinn | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: A love interest of any gender, friendships, and 4 dormmates

Jude Cozens

b. june 13, 2002-2005 | gemini

gryffindor | muggleborn | american or canadian | ixxx

hockey obsessed

doesn’t know who his father is

moves to the uk because his mother got married

angry about the move to the uk and very disappointed by the lack of hockey

has played ice hockey since he was little, he plays center

highly allergic to bees, so he carries an epi-pen

heterosexual

very new and undeveloped, plus his name might end up changing (previously nico, now jude)

Love Interest: Noor Verna-Dhendron (@legilimenace)

Dorm: Jude | Scott Morris (potionboy3) | OPEN | OPEN | OPEN

Open for: 3 dormmates, friendships

[helenadurazzo]

The Lord of The Underworld and His Lady of Spring Part 1

In this story for the HPHM x Twisted Wonderland AU, Vil, Rook, Epel, Deuce, Ace, Asteria, Jamil, Kalim and Helena are talking about their recent performance at a competition and their shortcomings due to be tired from dealing with an overblot in the midst of it. However as things start to look for the better, even with Grim’s location unknown to the girls temporarily, they turn south faster than one could imagine.

Asteria belongs to @princess-of-pearls-and-stars while Helena belongs to me. These stories are Inspired by Chapters 8, 9, and 10 of Book 6

One minute, they were talking about their recent concert appearance and shortcomings. The next, Ramshackle shook in a way that Helena and Asteria were both convinced the old and archaic building was going to collapse. It had been abandoned for years after all and was a wreck when they first moved in.

Epel was the first to bring the suspicions everyone was thinking into words, “Was that an earthquake?”

Rook looked out the window in an attentive way just like a hunter, and his eyes widened when he found his target. “No it isn’t, look out the window.”

Kalim rushed over to the window and followed Rook’s eyes towards the sky with his own, “What in the world!? There’s a bunch of guys flying through the air! Are they on hoverboards.”

“Technology like that means it might be related to Ignihyde.” Asteria did her best to remain calm.

“I’ve been to Ignihyde many times to watch animes with Idia.” Helena reminded her sister, “And while I believe they have a handful of these hoverboard things, it’s certainly not that many. And those don’t even look like students.”

“That’s not possible…” Vil breathed, not really paying attention to the girl’s words it seemed not that it mattered all that much. “This school has a magical barrier to keep out intruders. And it is always up as long as we don’t have a special event going on.”

“Maybe that sound was the barrier getting breached!” Jamil theorized.

“But how?” Vil reminded him, “It is complex magic.”

“Some are coming this way!” Rook called out to alert the group, “Let’s see there is one, two-!?” He then did a 180 degree turn and faced the group, “EVERYONE GET DOWN!”

Large sounds followed as figures crashed into the structure of Ramshackle. Soon enough they were all on the floor trying to get cover. Helena barely even noticed Asteria’s protective arm around them.

“Asteria! Helena!” Deuce called out first, rushing over. “Are you both ok?”

“I-“ Helena was about to respond before she was silenced by the sight in front of her. There were at least three guard looking figures in some sort of technologically advanced armor. It was a metallic grey with a couple of its accents being a glowing blue. They appeared to be quite hostile and heartless, nothing like Ortho, well, at least when he wasn’t trying to shoot the school down with a laser beam to save Idia from a crazy ghost bride that is.

Once they regained their footing, Jamil jumped in front of his Housewarden, “Kalim get back!” He firmly instructed as he looked at the guards the same way Helena did. “I’ve never seen that kind of gear before…” He muttered to himself, although Helena could just barely hear his words and assumed others could as well to some extent.

“Hepta team coming in.” One of the mysterious intruders started, seemingly alerting their master of a discovery, “We’ve got visuals on subjects D, E, and G. Moving in for capture.”

“I haven’t the faintest idea who these people are.” Vil began as he tried to examine the guards from a distance, “but crashing through windows shows an appalling lack of manners.” He turned to the rest of the group with a firm expression, “I hereby declare this an emergency! By my authority as Pomefiore Housewarden, I authorize the use of magic on the intruders!”

“Oui!” Rook seconded as the vice housewarden.

“I do the same for Scarabia!” Kalim mustered in his most authoritative voice. “Prepare for battle!”

Vil’s eyes turned to Deuce, Ace, Epel, Asteria, and Helena, “Freshmen, stay back, and do not get involved for your own safety. Heartslabyul students, call your Housewarden!”

“Yes sir!” Deuce, Ace, Epel, and Helena said in unison, however Helena could see out of the corner of her eye that Asteria was frustrated by sitting on the sidelines. But surely she knew that their magic only seemed to work half the time in this world, right?

The same robotic guard spoke again, “Subjects D and E exhibiting hostility, Subject G showing signs of retreating. Requesting permission to engage.”

“Permission granted.” A voice over the robots intercom sounded. “Execute capture plan C”

~~~

“They’re all struggling…” Epel observed as the battle commenced.

“Those oar-looking staffs can churn out spells real quick!” Deuce pointed out with a great amount of perception.

“AUGH!” Vil exclaimed as said oar-looking staff-thing shot another intense concentration of magic.

“VIL!” Rook called out as Vil collapsed on the ground, and by the looks of it, also lost consciousness.

“Subject E is subdued.” The robotic guard sounded. “Securing now.”

“GAHHH!” Jamil screamed out as the same thing that happened to Vil moments ago occurred to him as well.

“JAMIL!” Kalim panicked.

“We have also secured Subject D, all that is left is Subject G.” The robotic guard informed its instructor or head of operations Helena theorized. “Tetra team has already captured Subject F.

Once the last capture is complete we will rendezvous then return to HQ.”

“Where are you taking them!” Kalim frantically requested, “WAIT!”

“Whoa…” Ace breathed, “The housewardens and vice housewardens went down in seconds.”

“And it’s not over yet…” Asteria pointed out, “They were talking about a Subject G, perhaps that’s Kalim or Rook? But why did they stop if that’s the case?”

“didn’t they say that ‘Subject G’ was retreating? If we assume it is someone in here then it has to be one of us.” Deuce determined.

“But who would that be?” Epel pondered.

“Heck if any of us know.” Helena snapped. “We should just stay low.”

“Tetra team has regrouped with Hepta Team.” The intruders sounded again.

“What in Tarnation!” Epel exclaimed again as he looked up, “They are hauling a cage. Wait… ain’t that…”

“LEMME OUT! GET ME OUT OF HERE!”

Helena and Asteria recognized the voice even before they saw who it came from. As they looked simultaneously through the rubble and dense amounts of people. They spotted Grim, being carried in a cage with tight bars as he attempted to escape his prison. How did he end up in such a predicament after the Shrouds helped with retrieving him earlier?

“GRIM!?” Asteria called out frantically.

“Ace! Asteria! Helena! Deuce!” Grim cried out.

“We need to stop them!” Epel got on his feet, “Come on, I ain’t doing this on my own am I?”

“Right!” Deuce agreed, “Hold on Grim! I’ll save you!”

“Dude, Vil just told us to stay back.” Ace tried to remind them, “Helena has a point you know, if we fight we will loose, we should just stay low, and come up with a plan when we can have, no offense, a stronger team?”

“Don’t be such a coward!” Asteria quickly got on her feet pulling out her wand, with Helena reluctantly following suit.

“OH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!” Ace pleaded, but presumed he had no choice.

~~~

Asteria noted how the battle was practically over before it started, and somehow ending up as the last to emerge in their line of fighters despite Ace and Helena’s initial reluctance. She couldn’t doubt that it was a disturbing sight to behold.

“Argh.” Ace mumbled mindlessly. “Didn’t stand… a chance… urgh.”

“Urgh guh…” Deuce moaned.

“Dagnabbit.” Epel muttered.

Yet the only voice Asteria didn’t manage to hear, even in a soft tone, was that of her own sister. Her eyes frantically scanned the room and eventually spotted her figure. And panicked when she saw her sister not moving.

“HELENA!” Asteria frantically called out, trying to rush to her but the robotic guards beat her to it, taking her sister.

“Subject G is secured.” The robotic man sounded, “Reporting Back to HQ.”

“Lemme Go!” Grim pleaded, “I don’t want to go! Asteria!!!” He called as his paw reached out to her.

“GRIM! HELENA!” Asteria called out, practically screaming as they were taken away.

“VIL! JAMIL!” Rook and Kalim did the same in nearly identical tones to Asteria.

Rook growled then did a few meditative breaths before turning to Scarabia’s Housewarden, “Kalim, we must tend to our injured freshmen. I will take them to the infirmary.”

“But Jamil…” Kalim stammered, “Jamil’s been…”

“KALIM.” Rook asserted to get his attention. “You must calm yourself. Jamil has been abducted. You need to step up and fulfill your Housewarden duties by yourself.”

Kalim only reluctantly sighed, however it seemed to be more out of concern for Jamil than the idea of added rightful responsibility, “All right, I’ll go summon the other house “wardens.”

Ace grunted again, “…didn’t pick up…”

Asteria rushed to Ace’s side, his mumbling did not sound promising, nor did his grunting. And he seemed to be wincing from pain.

“Huh?” Rook raised an eyebrow.

Ace attempted to speak again, wincing against the pain as Asteria looked at him with widened eyes trying to tend to him and Deuce the best she could, at least Epel seemed to be in a better state, although that wasn’t saying much. “Called…Housewarden Riddle…but he didn’t…pick up…”

“Oh no!” Kalim exclaimed as realization hit his features and he turned to Rook, “Do you think?”

“There is a likely chance.” Rook determined, “We don’t have much time, we must warn whoever we can.”

[carewyncromwell]

"Consider yourself at home! Consider yourself one of the family! We've taken to you so strong, It's clear we're going to get along!"

~"Consider Yourself" from Oliver!

x~x~x~x

Behold! Here I issue a prompt to fellow HPHM players -- write a post featuring at least one (1) letter either received or sent by Molly Weasley about your MC, whether one sent by or to Bill, Charlie, Percy, or another one of her kids! If you accept this challenge, please consider tagging me so I and others can learn a bit more about your kid's relationship with our favorite ginger family! ❤️💛🩵💚

x~x~x~x

Molly Weasley was a very doting mother. Although it was understandably quite difficult to pay all seven of her children equal amounts of attention, that didn't mean she didn't try very hard to be active in all of their lives or that she didn't insist that her kids who were away at Hogwarts write to her frequently. The child who was best at keeping in touch with Molly was her oldest, Bill, but after Charlie started attending school, he wrote home relatively frequently too, thanks in large part to Bill reminding him to do so.

One of Charlie's longest letters that first year ended up being one Molly kept long after the fact. At first the Weasley matriarch kept it solely for her own reference, in case she needed to write a stern letter to Albus Dumbledore herself, but she later kept it as a memento of the very first time she ever heard the name of the girl who would become her two oldest sons' closest friend.

Mum -- You'll never BELIEVE what happened at school today! I'm just about to breathe fire about it, I'm so angry!! Okay, so you remember Ben Copper, right? He's my Muggle-born dormmate, the one who's afraid of everything. Well, lately he's been getting bullied really bad by this one girl in Slytherin named Merula Snyde. I reckon she was just being nasty because the winter holidays are coming up and all of her usual bullying targets will be going home soon, but she decided to go out of her way to corner Ben in the Courtyard today, yelling all sorts of rotten stuff at him at the top of her lungs and just refusing to let him walk away. Ben told Jae, Corey, and me afterwards a bit more of what was said, since I didn't hear all of it, but Merula said Ben didn't belong here at school with "real" wizards and called him a loser and a scaredy cat who didn't belong in Gryffindor because all he does is run away! She even called him a Mudblood, Mum! Multiple times! Fortunately right around the time Jae and I showed up, someone decided to put a stop to it. Her name's Carewyn Cromwell -- she's another Slytherin in my year, but a much nicer one than Merula. (She's Jacob Cromwell's sister, do you remember him? Bill said you and Dad read about him in the Prophet a while back, right after he disappeared.) Anyhow, Carewyn went right up to Merula and told her to leave Ben alone, and when Merula used the Knockback Jinx on Ben, Carewyn helped him up and then laid Merula out right good, saying that she was the real "loser," not Ben, and calling her a pathetic, mean-spirited bully. That really made Merula mad -- I've never seen her face so purple! So Merula tried to pick a fight with Carewyn, and Carewyn tried to just walk away with Ben, only for Merula to attack Carewyn from behind! She knocked her down face-first into the ground, with no warning! It was just dirty, Mum! But Carewyn, she was so cool, she just took some Wiggenweld Potion out of her sweater, drank enough to heal herself, and then chucked the bottle right at Merula's head like she was at the Dueling Club! (It missed, but it still gave Merula a good scare!) Then when Merula tried to attack her again, Carewyn dodged her spell and took her out with a single Disarming Charm! It was so cool! Oh, but here's what made me mad, Mum -- afterward, Professor Snape took FIFTY POINTS away from both Carewyn and Merula for "causing a scene" and said that he'd send them both along to Dumbledore for further punishment! Yeah! When it was OBVIOUSLY all Merula's doing and Carewyn was only defending herself and Ben! I checked on Ben afterward, and he looked close to tears. He's terrified that Carewyn's going to be expelled, all because she was trying to protect him. I told him no way Dumbledore would do that, but Snape was so furious, I wouldn't put it past him to lie through his ugly yellow teeth about the whole thing and get Carewyn expelled anyway! I know that's what he really wants -- everyone knows Snape hates Carewyn because of what her brother did, even though she honestly seems like a pretty cool person and a really good friend! Dumbledore won't be back until tomorrow, but I'm going to go up to his office as soon as he's back and tell him all about what happened -- there's no way he can expel Carewyn for what she did! She was brave and in the right, and she should've won points for standing up for Ben, instead of losing any! She would've, if she'd been in Gryffindor! It's not fair!! I'll write again after talking to Dumbledore...he'd better not listen to a word Snape says!! Love to you, Dad, and PFGRG -- Charlie

Fortunately Carewyn was not punished further, so Molly never had to send that additional letter to Dumbledore she'd been considering. She ended up revisiting this old letter of Charlie's again, though, when that following winter, Bill sent her another letter.

Dear Mum, The holidays are finally here! Hagrid brought in the Christmas tree yesterday, and now Flitwick is setting about trimming it with magical icicles. Still not as great as our tree at home, though -- I can't wait to get home and help you and Dad decorate it... Charlie and I are doing fine. Charlie's been kept busy with Quidditch practice; I would've thought with him only just having joined the team, the captain might take it a little easier on him -- you know, give him time to get settled and learn the ropes -- but I guess the Quidditch scene is really fast-paced. Charlie even said that they can't afford to coddle him too much, since Gryffindor's next match will be immediately after winter break. As for me, I'm keeping my grades up and earning house points as best I can. Madame Pince gave me ten points the other day for helping some first-years with their Transfiguration homework in the library, and later in the week, McGonagall gave me ten more for it herself! Do you remember Carewyn Cromwell? She's Jacob Cromwell's sister, and a Slytherin in Charlie's year. She came up to talk to me the other day on the Training Grounds and asked me for help with the Fire-Making Spell. She seems like a pretty nice girl! I'm really glad she seems okay after what happened to her brother, but I can tell she really misses him -- I kind of thought she'd have to, when I first heard about it, but I'm glad she doesn't seem to resent him at all. She says that she and Jacob were really close -- apparently it was only ever just them and their mum, since Carewyn's dad left when she was really little -- so I can't imagine Jacob would've left his family on purpose. I really hope Carewyn's able to find out what happened to him. And I hope at some point I'll get to introduce her to you and Dad too! Carewyn grew up largely in the Muggle World since her dad was a Muggle, so she knows a lot about Muggle stuff -- she was telling me about some of her favorite Muggle musicians the other day, and she suggested that you might like a Muggle named Barbra Streisand, since you like Celestina Warbeck. She also said that if Dad's interested in learning more about Muggles, she could put him in touch with her mum -- she's a Magical Historian, but she's also pretty good with Muggle history too. Oh yeah, I almost forgot -- Carewyn's mad good at dueling. I challenged her to a friendly one, just to help gauge her level and maybe give her some pointers, and she not only dodged all my spells, but took me out with a Disarming Charm so strong she knocked me right off my feet! Sure, maybe I was a little worried about going too hard on her, but I was NOT expecting that! It's a good thing that we get on -- I would not like to be on the wrong side of her! I love you all so much! Give Ron and Ginny extra big hugs for me. Charlie and I will touch base again before we set off for home next week. See you soon! Bill

Molly would soon read quite a few more letters from both Bill and Charlie that mentioned Carewyn (or "Carey," as they soon took to calling her). Once Charlie started his third year, he became closer friends with Carewyn through Quidditch friendlies, so he often brought Carewyn up whenever he wrote anything about Hogwarts's Quidditch Cup.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot -- Carey's hoping to go out for the Slytherin team! One of Slytherin's Chasers got knocked off her broom by Erika Rath during a not-so-friendly friendly match against Ravenclaw's team, and she's so bad-off she probably won't be healed in time for the match against Hufflepuff, so Carey reached out to Slytherin's Star Chaser Skye Parkin, and now Parkin's helping her train for an upcoming tryout! I don't think Carey's as excited about a Parkin training her as I would be, but she said she's grateful for her help. She said she prefers training with me and Andre, though, since we don't make her try to mount any jinxed brooms!!

Meanwhile Bill's letters would express much more concern for Carewyn's emotional well-being, not unlike how he wrote about Charlie.

The Slytherin VS Hufflepuff Quidditch match is set for Friday. I've been worried about Carey -- there's a rumor going around school that she had a meltdown after one of Slytherin's practices, which is very out of character for her. Carey's much more the type to try to put on a brave face and not let anyone see she's scared or hurting. Even so, Carey has been very quiet this entire week...even if she says she's fine, I can tell something's bothering her. I've been trying to walk with her in the halls more, to keep any more obnoxious Hufflepuffs off her back.

Charlie and Bill's letters' subject matter and tone overlapped in December 1986. When Carewyn's mother, Lane Cromwell, was forced to spend the winter holidays abroad away from her daughter, both Weasley boys were beside themselves.

Speaking of Carey, Mum, you won't believe this -- Carey's mum is stuck out of the country on this trip for the Ministry, doing research on house elf history, and now Carey's going to have to stay stuck at school for the holidays! She's trying to act like she's not upset about it, but I don't see how she can't be! Carey loves Christmas! She's been singing carols all season...

It's the most outrageous thing, Mum. I know the Ministry of Magic's assignment is important, and I know it's an important opportunity for Carey's mother...but Carey's family isn't big like ours. Carey told me as far back as she can remember, it was always just her, Jacob, and her mum, even before her dad left. With Jacob missing, her mum is all Carey has. I know they're close, and I know being apart from her mother is hard for her -- from what Rowan's told me, Carey's mum has so much difficulty being around people that Carey and Jacob used to stay at home with her rather than try to make any friends when they were kids, just to keep her company. To be apart from her mum during Christmas, of all times...I know it has to be just eating Carey up inside, Mum. Even Merula (who I still think is upset about spending the holidays alone) is doing better because I doubt she's expecting any kind of special gathering for Christmas. Knowing Carey, she's probably been silently looking forward to spending Christmas with her mother all year. And now she's left silently mourning the fact that she won't.

Molly herself even ended up expressing quite a bit of upset in her own letters back to Charlie and Bill --

What a poor, sweet girl! You're absolutely right, Charlie, she most certainly can't be okay, under such circumstances! You tell your brother to find a way to bring her on back here to the Burrow, if he can...

Bill -- bring Carewyn back to the Burrow with you. Your father and I want her here with us. Merula Snyde too, if you can -- the poor thing shouldn't have to spend a holiday alone either.

That Christmas ended up being when Molly and Arthur first met Carewyn, and they both liked her at once. Not only did Carewyn get on very well with Bill and Charlie, but she was a very polite guest who readily volunteered to help with chores and had a faint "Mama Bear" quality that could remind anyone a bit of Molly. Arthur couldn't help but tease his wife just a little about it. @department-shoe-stud

"Red hair, short stature, mothering...Molly dear, did we have another daughter and I just never noticed?"

Not that Molly would've minded. That Christmas pretty much solidified her thought process that Carewyn would make a perfect Weasley, if either Bill or Charlie ever decided to pursue her romantically. (They never did.)

One thing Bill conveniently neglected to tell Molly about was how Carewyn and he had become friends largely because they'd teamed up to deal with the Cursed Vaults. Bill did acknowledge the curses unleashed on the school by the Cursed Vaults now and again in his letters home, since he knew Charlie had already written to their parents about them beforehand, but he didn't tell Molly that Carewyn and he had broken the curses on the Ice, Fear, and Forest Vaults with help from some of Carewyn's other friends. And Bill's reasoning proved to be rather sound, because as it turned out, when Molly eventually found out the summer before his seventh year, she was not happy. It was just about the only time Bill's siblings could remember Molly ever having shouted at him.

"William...Arthur...Weasley...have you gone COMPLETELY 'round the bend?! Abusing your Prefect powers -- sneaking into forbidden areas of the school -- aggravating curses that the professors themselves have struggled to get a hold of -- and all while dragging both Carewyn and Charlie along after you, when they haven't even PASSED THEIR OWLS YET?! You are grounded for the rest of the summer for a START, William Weasley, AND IF YOU OR CAREWYN EVEN THINK OF GOING AFTER ANOTHER CURSED VAULT, I'LL GROUND YOU EVEN AFTER YOUR GRADUATION!"

Bill didn't listen to his mother. But in his defense, Carewyn was going to do anything if it meant saving her brother Jacob, and there was no way Bill was going to let her run into that kind of danger alone. And neither was Charlie, when he ended up in the position to help found the Circle of Khanna with Carewyn, Bill, Merula, and Ben to avenge the death of their fallen friend, Rowan Khanna.

Fortunately, after the Cursed Vaults were dealt with and R was defeated, Molly slowly cooled off about the whole affair. However displeased she was that her sons had engaged in something so dangerous, she was ultimately very proud of how brave they both had been. That doesn't mean Molly wasn't still a bit sad neither of them pursued Ministry work like Carewyn did. If nothing else, if Charlie was at the Ministry too, maybe he would have more of a chance to spend "alone time" with Carewyn and something more romantic could bloom! Or so Molly thought. This is why she was incredibly surprised when after the Second Wizarding War, Bill sent along this letter --

In other news, Carey has actually started dating! I'm surprised too. His name is Orion Amari -- I'm sure Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny have heard of him, since he's a Chaser for the Montrose Magpies, but he was Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team in those two matches Carey played in, back at school. I don't remember him that well aside from that, but I followed up with some old friends from school who remember him and they've all spoken well of him. I also broached the topic with Carey, and even though she was understated as always, she really wants me to meet him. I think she really likes him a lot.

To say Molly wasn't disappointed to learn Carewyn would not be marrying Charlie would be untrue. When Molly met Orion herself at the after-party for his and Carewyn's partnership ceremony, however, she had to admit, Carewyn looked so very happy in Orion's company. And well, being the OG Mama Bear, that's all Molly Weasley could really want for Bill and Charlie's best friend.

She did add a very pointed little postscript to a letter she sent along to Carewyn's mother Lane in December, though.

P.S. Thank you for the advice about Muggle dragon books. I may be eternally disappointed that Charlie never took the plunge with your dear Carewyn, but Arthur and I still want to get him a birthday gift nobody else would think of getting him.

[londonhalcyon]

I’ve been thinking about my WIPs and the future of this blog.

TLDR: 1) Nothing is changing drastically. 2) I’m still working on The Mad Witch. 3) I would like to begin a shift away from HP-related media.

I have multiple WIPs I’m chipping away at most of the time:

The Mad Witch: Temporarily stalled while I handle major life stuff (nothing bad, just a lot). The next chapter is in a tricky editing stage, and I don’t have the spoons to polish it into something passable enough to post. But no worries. This fic is my baby. I’m not going to drop my baby.

Rosemary Reaper: Rough draft is maybe halfway written—though it is truly, truly rough in a way TMW drafts can never be. When I don’t have the energy for TMW, I work on this fic since I can just write as poorly as I want. No one’s going to see the finished product for a long time, but I look forward to sharing it eventually.

“Writing on the Walls”: Anyone who’s been following me for a while knows I usually participate in a fandom event over the holidays. This year, in place of an HPHM event, I’m participating in the Fallout 4 Big Bang instead. That fic will be posted sometime in spring, so keep an eye out.

By Arrow, By Teeth: This is a new one—and an Arcane fic at that. Before you cry, “Oh no! She’s started another WIP!” I would like to clarify that I am planning one; I’m not writing it yet. As it stands, I won’t for a while. I don’t feel the need to rush, especially since I’m incredibly happy with how the series ended.

Which ties in with my next thoughts. For some time, I’ve been wrestling with how I might eventually shift my blog away from its association with HP-related media. I love The Mad Witch. I will finish it. But it’s become next to impossible to reconcile my love of the fic’s world with JKR’s ever worsening harm. After the fic wraps up, I’d like to branch in other directions.

I started the process a bit ago with Rosemary Reaper and my other Fallout fics, but those have their own separate blog, which doesn’t really affect this one. By Arrow, By Teeth is a nice opportunity to change that. I’ll continue to build its bare, bullet-pointed bones, plotting it out in as much detail as my master’s thesis, so that when I finally do write it, I can do so at the drop of a hat. The hat in this case being the end of TMW.

That being said, there’s still ~20 chapters left in TMW, so change is still a ways away. When it eventually does happen, though, I hope you’ll consider sticking around. I have some unabashedly queer projects in the works that you might just enjoy.