#what happens in albania stays in albania

[ace-writer-lani]

[A monster crashing into a restaurant when Solangelo are out on a date]

Nico [pulling out his sword]: Are you kidding me? I can't go one day without something trying to kill us? I did not survive Albania for this

Will [shooting the monster in the eye]: Uh, babe? Don't you mean Tartarus?

Nico: No, I mean Albania. Although, Tartarus was a close second

Will: I-what exactly happened in Albania for it to be worse than Tartarus?

Nico:

Nico: You don't want to know

[spitsonyou1]

i will someday find out what happened in Albania. nothing will stop me.

[acslytherpuff]

Cassie‘s and Sebastian‘s red string theory

(A bit of lore for understanding my ff which is coming soon! It‘s not their complete story!!)

Back then, Now and in the Future:

*reminder! English is not my first language!

- Cassie and Sebastian‘s parents were all in the same year when they went to Hogwarts. When they became friends they made a „pact“. Sebastian‘s and Cassie‘s Father were quite two of the „strongest“ wizards in Hogwarts. Cassie’s father could wield strong ancient Magic and Sebastian’s had the ability to cast strong spells without failing and being a strong Duelist. When they knew that both families had difficulties they did fight together so that they’re stronger. Their Parents always said that their first born kids should end up together because their Magic will complete each others like a Puzzle and their Blood line (it‘s just a Metapher - it has nothing to do with being pure blood or smth.) will be very very very strong.

A time after they‘ve left hogwarts, Cassie‘s and Sebastian‘s parents became pregnant at the same time period without knowing. They didn‘t had any contact after their time at hogwarts because they were to busy with their jobs and their incoming kids. Sebastian was the first born Child of the Sallow Family (he came before anne) and obv. Cassie was the first and only one of her parents. Both parents knew that when they were born that - no matter what - they would find each other.

When Cassie was three her Father died. Her Family invited the sallow‘s to the funeral and that’s were she and sebastian first met. But nobody said anything. Her mother stayed quiet on that day - she wasn‘t even saying a word. When Cassie saw Sebastian she felt like that she already knew him but she didn‘t.

Time was passing by when Sebastian‘s parents died. On this time cassie was already locked in and had no escape. When his parents died she felt his grieve even without knowing what was happening. Also when Cassie‘s mother was attending the funeral without her, Sebastian knew something was missing… he felt that.

Cassie‘s mother was the only one who survived from both families so she wanted to keep Cassie safe… safe from the people who murdered her Dad and also from Hogwarts and Sebastian. She knew if Cassie would go to Hogwarts she would get herself in danger. She and Sebastian would be a strong duo and it would be so much risk - for the two of them. So she avoided that Cassie would go … and even to meet the sallow‘s.

- Cassie was attending Beauxbatons while Sebastian was in Hogwarts but they felt like if there‘s something missing… it didn‘t felt right like the way it is. Sometimes they had strange dreams, but they didn‘t know what they should mean? … it was more like a blurred vision.

- when Anne got cursed and sick, Cassie had the feeling that she needed to help someone but she had no idea who and why… and thats when her invitation to Hogwarts came through and she left… without her Mother knowing.

- when Cassie arrived at Hogwarts and she was sorted into Slytherin, her and Sebastians first conversation was quite normal - two strangers - right? But no.. when they looked at each other it felt… right… it felt… familiar. But nobody spoke it out or gave to many thoughts into it.

- they story continues and they went to feldcroft, so Cassie could meet Anne. When Solomon saw Cassie he immediately knew who she was… he knew that face and he could feel the tension Cassie and Sebastian had.

- she was the one who was meant to be with sebastian on this journey … to save anne.

- after everything happend they didn‘t talk to each other… but everywhere she was he was too.. and everywhere he was she was too.

„I feel so far away

You always come my way“

- when Cassie was about to go to Albania she told nobody but sebastian knew without actually knowing so he was with her.

- when were they 100% sure about their feelings? When sebastian went to rethink everything after a quidditch game and wanting to give up… he saw Cassie standing there and thats when their eyes met… they immediately knew. They always knew how the other one felt just when they looked into their eyes. Without being near they had a sense of shared feelings ( example: like when sebastian was in pain - Cassie could feel it too)

-when did they knew about the red string? On their last week at Hogwarts they made a encounter with something.

[hollowed-theory-hall]

i have so many questions about horcruxes like what if horcruxes were destroyed before voldemort resurrected? will he still be immortal? can he be resurrected in this state? will that original (?) part of the soul in Albania disappear or continue to exist? can voldemort still inhabit animals/create temporary horcruxes?

Hi, I do love talking about Horcruxes (how they are made, and more).

Now, since what a Horcrux does is anchor your soul to life so you won't be able to move on. That is the only thing it ensures, the resurrection had nothing to do with the Horcruxes. I mean, Voldemort believed he could come back via the Philosopher's Stone and when that fails he goes for the resurrection ritual we see in the books. And he's right, any magic that could give him a body made for his soul would work to resurrect him from his wraith-like state and it has nothing to do with the Horcruxes.

Now, let's say Dumbledore goes and destroys all the Horcruxes before Harry starts Hogwarts while Voldy is a wraith in Albania (so before Nagini is a Horcrux, and we'll assume he deals with the Horcrux in Harry somehow). What happens to Voldemort?

I think the wraith sticks around in Albania.

I mean, the moment you die, the connection between your soul, your spirit (life), and your body is severed. Your spirit is gone, the body remains to decompose and the soul is the part we're interested in. In the wizarding world, a soul that dies has two options:

Move on

Stay as a ghost

When you choose to change as a ghost, your soul is transformed. You become a new type of being with a new kind of body and spirit. This is why the Basilisk gaze can petrify ghosts. It's a weird state that is magically alive but physically dead.

But Voldemort's wraith form is different. That is a pure human soul, without the transformed body and spirit of ghosts. Voldemort, in this state, wouldn't be affected by a basilisk gaze likely since there is nothing to affect. That being said, this isn't quite the soul that moves on to the afterlife. It was anchored and kept around when it should've moved on, it is an unnatural state that shouldn't exist. So if all his Horcruxes got destroyed when he was a wraith, I think he'd have felt the pull of the veil, but, that's what it would be — a pull. Since he remained as a wraith past the point he was supposed to move on, he would be able to stick around, I believe. As such, he would have been able to get resurrected or able to possess Quirrell or any other animal.

Though, I wouldn't call it immortal, since he isn't quite alive as a wraith. But, wraith-Vodlemort can't be killed since it has no spirit. If there is no life, it can't die. So, you'll need to resurrect him before you kill him anyway.

Now, would he have been able to make a Horcrux as a wraith-like being? Not really. I mean, I think someone else could make him a Horcrux though. Like, if Voldy possessed someone, he could make another Horcrux for himself while possessing their body, I think. But, these Horcruxes would be regular Horcruxes, nothing temporary about them. Well, maybe not regular, he'd need to change the ritual a bit, but it should be possible since his soul is there, and that's the most important part.

[dracomort]

Wait… in TTC, if Draco ever found a way to go back to the future, what would happen?

Would Draco take the chance and go back? Would he stay? Would he go back through the cabinet or an entirely new way?

Would Tom search for him in the future? Would he like… wait like a creep until Draco is born?

I always imagine a scene where Draco actually goes back to the future, stumbling out of the cabinet right into his and Tom’s old room in Knockturn Alley. Maybe after Draco disappeared Tom kept all of their stuff in that room, including the cabinet. Or maybe Voldie would keep the cabinet right by his side, guarded by Nagini, since he wants to be there when Draco appears.

Draco has never been that serious about going back to the future. You'll notice he gave up after like one day and only started looking again once he thought Tom was dumping him to go to Albania. 1997 was... not a great year for Draco. Dying was something he had come to view as an inevitability. This escape to the past is the first time in months that he's had hope for the future, funnily enough. Draco has no faith in Harry or Dumbledore's ability to defeat Voldemort. He sees him as a god, essentially. And was raised to see him that way. The only future is a future with Voldemort. And that future aint looking too great for Draco.

So to answer your question, no. Draco probably wouldn't go back to the future if he had the opportunity in TTC. And in Bluebeard or The Diadem he definitely wouldn't. He has made his peace with being in the 40s and has carved out a freer, happier life than he ever would've had in the 90s and onward, even without the threat of Voldemort.

If Draco was forcefully pulled back into the future through some sort of magic, then I think Tom would be a worse person for it. "To have loved and lost is better than to not have loved at all" is true... if you're not Tom Riddle. Especially if he thought Draco had gone deliberately and thus betrayed him. Tom's abandonment issues are strong enough already.

I don't think he'd get over Draco, even if just in a resentful sort of way. Tom isn't the type that gets over anything. Even as an old man he's still rambling about his dad. Whether that would result in him cherishing Draco or absolutely ruining his life is another matter. Again, depends if he thinks Draco left on purpose or not. Either way, he'd defs be a creep.

I always imagine a scene where Draco actually goes back to the future, stumbling out of the cabinet right into his and Tom’s old room in Knockturn Alley. Maybe after Draco disappeared Tom kept all of their stuff in that room, including the cabinet. Or maybe Voldie would keep the cabinet right by his side, guarded by Nagini, since he wants to be there when Draco appears.

I do like this idea! But ngl Tom is too cheap to keep paying rent for 50 years. Still, I'm sure he can find alternative methods.

[nico-ghostking]

ive been meaning to ask for a while... but... um-

what happened in Alabania?

-@wise-girl-official

... what happened in Albania stays in Albania

[mikimeiko]

Day -1: on the night train

(-1 because I was SUPPOSED to leave tomorrow but the stupid ferry was moved from 20 to 12 and the only way to get to Bari on time was to get the night train. The amount of money I lost because of this stupid ferry... I don't even want to think about it)

We're going to Montenegro/Crna Gora babes! Via land and sea! Passing through Albania on the way in and Croatia on the way out because the port in Bar is just open in the summer?! Ok.

Extremely stressed because this trip seems to be cursed. I have a feeling I won't be able to relax completely until I set foot in Montenegro, and that's happening on the day after tomorrow, so... 

The train hasn't even left the station yet and it's already announced 40 minutes late :(

My compartment was made up for two people, but the train manager folded up the upper bed (more space!) AND left me the second pillow <3

One thing that I like of traveling in the sleeper car is that they give you a welcome kit (slippers, toothbrush and toothpaste, tissues, soap...) and also breakfast (you can choose what between a few options)

It actually started only 20 minutes late, yay!

The train is going in... the wrong... direction?! Apparently there's a section of railway closed off, and they decided to leave and take a longer route instead of staying for longer in the station (which psychologically makes a lot of sense, and I guess they didn't think anyone would notice XD)

[bibliophilicstranger]

What if Harry let Sirius and Remus kill Peter in POA?

Trauma. At least for Harry, Hermione and Ron? Probably for Remus and Sirius as well.

If there's no Wormtail to track down Voldemort, then Bertha Jorkins lives. I reviewed GOF and Wormtail finds her before he finds Voldemort. So Jorkins lives, and Voldy stays in Albania, at least for a little while longer. Frank lives a little longer too and Moody probably gets to teach, at least for a little while. Harry doesn't have the dream of Frank being killed and he has a slightly more peaceful summer.

Now, Voldy comes for Barty Jr. in late August, after the Quidditch World Cup but before September 1st, based on the information he got from Bertha. Voldy doesn't know he exists so this doesn't happen.

However! The Quidditch World Cup should more or less happen as it did in the book. Barty had started fighting Crouch Sr's Imperius Curse on his own and the other Death Eaters were doing their own plot, so that happens as canon. Barty gets put back under the Imperius at the end. However it's not unrealistic that he might fight it off again. He might kill his father and take his wand or just slip out while Crouch Sr. is at work.

Barty would probably go after Voldemort then. Voldy wouldn't have Bertha's store of knowledge, but he'd get whatever Barty had picked up. Barty could then start the process of getting Voldy a body back.

How long that takes would set the course of the rest of the story. It's unlikely this happens in time to set Harry up as a fourth champion. So Harry doesn't have to compete in the Triwizard and Cedric lives because any attempt made to get Harry for the ritual doesn't co-opt the tournament. Who wins the Triwizard is then up for grabs. [The Dragon task is possibly quite different if Cedric is never tipped off about it ahead of time.] Krum and Fleur were impeded in the maze in canon, so it's not clear who would have won if they'd not had Barty sabotaging them.

Harry would probably get a dream if they returned to England and ran afoul of Frank later, which at least would allow Dumbledore some warning to start plans.

Harry probably wouldn't have to deal with Rita Skeeter, so Hermione wouldn't either.

Hermione might go to the Yule Ball with Krum. I think Harry wouldn't have asked anyone and he and Ron would have gone stag. Harry wouldn't have needed a date and without that push, I don't see him asking anyone except maybe Cho (and I don't think he'd have the confidence to ask her without the extra push of needing a date to open the ball with). Hermione and Ron probably wouldn't have fought over this, or at least not as much? He'd probably have still been more in awe of Krum and the "he's the enemy" thing, while technically true given Hogwarts vs Durmstrang, would be less personal as Harry wouldn't be competing, and Krum wouldn't be trying to spy on Cedric via Hermione the way he possibly could on Harry.

Honestly, it's somewhat hard to predict exactly what happens because of how many possibilities there are. Harry could be snatched out of Hogsmeade on any random visit or from King's Cross when school got out. Harry would be somewhat screwed. He wouldn't have the advanced training (though Moody's defense class run by Moody might have been quite thorough) and there'd probably not be a portkey to get him to safety. Barty seems a bit more competent than Wormtail, so he'd be a greater help to Voldy.

Voldemort might come back in a quieter way and Dumbledore might not make such public statements. Less antagonism between Dumbledore and the Ministry in book 5, plus less with Harry and maybe he never comes to Umbridge's attention. So no dementors.

Yeah, it's hard to theorize with so much altered.

I've been ignoring Remus and Sirius. What happens with them is also hard to speculate on. Snape has already shown up and been knocked out, so he's not a witness to the crime. The three kids are.

Wormtail is killed. They do it together. Then it's done. I doubt Sirius really had a plan for what to do after that. They're probably all pretty traumatized.

The kids need to be gotten back to the school. Sirius is probably going to go back on the run. He can't be cleared of a murder he just committed. They probably do something with Wormtail's body. Maybe just transfiguring him back into a rat. Hopefully Lupin remembers the full moon before seeing it.

Maybe they memory charm Snape to keep the kids and Remus out of trouble? There's no need for anyone to know Remus killed him or was in contact with Sirius. If they can't, Remus may need to go on the run as Sirius' accomplice.

Dumbledore probably doesn't get told any of it, unless he picks it up from the kids' minds. So the Order of the Phoenix when reconstituted doesn't include Sirius and also doesn't end up at Grimmauld.

Depending on what happens, Buckbeak probably dies. Hopefully no one runs afoul of the dementors and no one gets bitten by Lupin.

There's too many what-ifs for me to make a concrete prediction.

I'd love a proper fanfic with this divergence point. There are a lot of original directions to shoot off on if you wanted.

[weirdestbooks]

The Satellite Inspection (Wattpad | Ao3)

For @one-new-letter

Location: The Satellite Inspection Room, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Date: October 9th, 1951

It was the beginning of another month, which meant that Hungary and the other communist countries allied with the USSR were traveling to Moscow to meet with him for what he called an inspection. They did this on the ninth of every month, although none of them remembered how it started. 

Yugoslavia used to be a member of this group but left. That made the USSR very upset, and their inspections after that had been less focused on their physical condition and more on their mental condition.

This one was a physical inspection, which is the kind Hungary preferred. Mental inspections made his head hurt and often left him dazed and confused. The USSR said that that was normal and not to worry about it, so Hungary didn’t worry. 

Right now, the other countries and Hungary were lined up as the USSR explained the rules of today’s little contests. 

And please, my children, remember to behave. I don’t want to deal with any harmful behavior,” the USSR said. Hungary nodded at his words.

“Don’t worry, Mother. We��ll behave.” Hungary heard Albania mutter as he almost hissed out the word mother. The USSR turned around quickly, his eyes showing extreme anger. Hungary froze, fear running down his spine as he knew what would happen to Albania and the rest of them.

"Who said that?” the USSR hissed. Everyone stayed silent and still. Then, it happened.

Hungary gritted his teeth as his fa—as the USSR’s power slammed into his brain, slowly seizing control. The forceful seizure was excruciating, which is most likely what he wanted. Hungary refused to show pain, knowing that it was not allowed. He knew one of them would give in eventually and rat out the country that had hissed out the word.

Then, out of the corner of Hungary’s eye, he saw Poland straighten, and without seeing his face, Hungary knew his eyes were empty. It was the man’s curse. Being born as a puppet left his mind weaker to the USSR’s and made it harder for him to resist his control. Hungary was one of the few who lasted longer against the pain.

“Albania called you mother, my father,” He muttered blankly. Hungary barely had time to feel sorry for Albania before his mind succumbed to his father’s will.

Hungary stiffened, shaking away the unneeded thoughts he could barely remember. Hungary knew Albania, his brother, had been the one to hiss out that offending word at their father.

“Grab him!” Their father barked in their family’s shared language. As Hungary stood next to his brother, he grabbed Albania’s shoulder and arm, as his sister, East Germany, grabbed the other. Albania squirmed in their grip, but Отец placed a hand on his forehead, and Albania slowly calmed. Отец removed his hand, revealing Albania’s now dazed face.

“You can let him go now,” Отец said, much more calmly this time. East Germany and Hungary did as he commanded, and Albania sank to his knees.

“This was just supposed to be a physical inspection. But now you’re making me do this. Mongolia, my daughter, be a dear and take Albania to the other room, would you?” Отец asked. The country nodded.

“I will Аав.” She said, lifting Albania, who walked like a newborn horse, shaky and unstable. Hungary wished he hadn’t spoken against Отец, then that never would have happened to him. Her hooves clicked sharply against the ground, and Albania was lucky that his limp wings were not in the way.

“Now, for the rest of you, I’m sure I can find some nice films for you to watch while I inspect Albania. However, since Albania spoke out like this, I’ll need to check up on the rest of you first to ensure that no one else is in the process of being corrupted by capitalists. I’ll start with the one I feel is in the most danger: Hungary. So everyone go to your rooms, and Hungary, follow me,” Отец said, walking off towards the direction of Hungary’s room.

Hungary followed him, still making sure to keep his posture. But despite the fact that he knew it shouldn’t, his mind kept wandering back to Albania. There was something bad in the room Albania had been put in, Hungary thought. He knew he had been in there before, but he couldn’t remember why or what was there. 

Maybe that should have concerned Hungary, but he knew that Отец cared too much about their well-being to let anything bad happen or do anything terrible to them. He always talked about how he wanted to make sure they didn’t end up like Hungary’s estranged sister, Austria.

Отец opened the door to Hungary’s room, and the satellite obediently walked inside. The room was sparsely decorated, although there were some posters that Отец had given Hungary that were dotted across the walls. Hungary sat on the bed, hands on his knees, and faced his father. 

“You struggle too much. It’s so hard to get you under my control because, for some odd reason, you struggle against it. This is a bad thing and can lead to you being harmed in the future, something I really don’t want to happen. Do you know why it is happening constantly?” Отец asked.

“No Отец, I don’t. I know that being a communist is why I am a civilized country, so I can’t imagine why I wouldn’t want to be working with you. The only reason I can think of is that there are too many of my people who don’t like communists.” Hungary said, his voice blank. Отец nodded, looking smug. Or maybe happy. It was hard to read his face.

“The people who live in your land but aren’t communist, you really shouldn’t be calling your people. They are hurting you, trying to damage our relationship and turn you into the same kind of country the Kingdom of Hungary was. They don’t want you to be an advanced nation. Why claim them as yours?” Отец said. Отец made a point, but some parts of his claims concerned Hungary.

“But…” Hungary muttered, trailing off. Отец looked upset at that. 

“But what, Hungary?” He asked, causing a brief flash of cold and pain through the satellite’s head. Hungary lowered his head somewhat and shook it in an attempt to dislodge the feeling.

“Nothing Отец. You are always right. I will no longer call them my people and ignore their influence on me.” Hungary said. Why was he trying to question Отец? He was much older and wiser and had more experience dealing with ignorant, rebellious people. He was Hungary’s father, after all. Отец smiled at this, and the cold and pain finally ended, leaving behind a calm feeling. 

“Good job Hungary. I was worried you would be a lot more corrupted, but I’m glad you were barely being negatively influenced. It makes me so happy to see you safe like this.” Отец said, patting my shoulder. Hungary nodded.

“Thank you Отец for always looking out for me,” Hungary said. 

“It’s my job, after all. Now, I need to check up on the rest of your siblings, so why don’t you just relax here while I take care of them? Then I can get that movie for you while I de-corrupt Albania,” Отец said before leaving Hungary’s room, the door locking shut behind him.

Soon after that, Hungary felt like a weight had been removed from his head. Hungary groaned, rubbing at his forehead, where the achy pain was. The USSR’s presence in his mind always gave Hungary a bit of a headache. Hungary knew—he thinks the USSR was just concerned, but his power over it was invasive. However, the USSR only had that kind of power over a few countries, mainly Hungary, Eastern Europe, Mongolia, and all the countries that made up his Union.

According to him, capitalist countries like the USA, France, and Britain all had similar degrees of control over the smaller capitalist countries, so it’s not like it’s uncommon. 

Although…some days, Hungary had trouble believing that. He tried to push away those traitorous thoughts quickly. Sometimes, it felt as if the USSR could read his mind. Hungary didn’t want to end up like Albania. Besides, the inspection for Hungary, it seemed, was over. Hungary was disappointed he didn’t get to compete against his fellow communists in the little games the USSR always set up. 

Those were the most fun parts of these inspections, especially when Hungary beat Romania. Sure, they were to prove to the USSR that they were staying fit and good soldiers, but the contests were fun and never really felt like tests. 

Even East Germany, Mongolia, and Czechoslovakia were allowed to compete alongside them, and they were women. Although, frankly, East Germany could be pretty scary sometimes, as she was freakishly strong. 

Some part of Hungary wasn’t always happy with him coming to Moscow on the ninth of each month, but Hungary ignored it. Sure, something the USSR was a bit pushy, and his power was invasive, but Hungary still had his free will, and he wanted to be a communist.

Right?

[dailyanarchistposts]

Chapter 6. Revolution

A revolution that is many revolutions

Many people think that revolutions always follow a tragic course from hope to betrayal. The ultimate result of revolutions in Russia, China, Algeria, Cuba, Vietnam, and elsewhere was the establishment of new authoritarian regimes — some worse than their predecessors, others hardly different. But the major revolutions of the 20th century were carried out by authoritarians who intended to create new governments, not abolish them. It is now obvious, if it wasn’t before, that governments always uphold oppressive social orders.

But history is full of evidence that people can overthrow their oppressors without replacing them. To do so, they need reference to an egalitarian culture, or explicitly anti-authoritarian aims, structures, and means, and an egalitarian ethos. A revolutionary movement must reject all possible governments and reforms, so as not to be recuperated like many of the rebels in Kabylia and Albania. It must organize in flexible and horizontal ways, ensuring that power is not permanently delegated to leaders or anchored down in a formal organization, as happened with the CNT in Spain. Finally, it must take into account that all insurrections involve diverse strategies and participants. This multitude will benefit from communication and coordination, but it should not be homogenized or controlled from a central point. Such standardization and centralization are neither desirable nor necessary; decentralized struggles such as those waged by the Lakota or the squatters in Berlin and Hamburg have proven capable of defeating the slower-moving forces of the state.

A new ethos can come about in the process of resisting, as we find common cause with strangers and discover our own powers. It can also be nourished by the environments we build for ourselves. A truly liberating ethos is not just a new set of values, but a new approach to the relationship between the individual and her culture; it requires that people shift from being passive recipients of culture to participants in its creation and reinterpretation. In this sense, the revolutionary struggle against hierarchy never ends, but continues from one generation to the next.

To be successful, revolution must occur on many fronts at once. It won’t work to abolish capitalism while leaving the state or patriarchy untouched. A successful revolution must be composed of many revolutions, accomplished by different people using different strategies, respecting each another’s autonomy and building solidarity. This will not happen overnight, but in the course of a series of conflicts that build on each other.

Unsuccessful revolutions are not failures unless people give up hope. In their book on the popular rebellion in Argentina, two UK activists close with the words of a piquetero from Solano:

I don’t think December 2001 was a lost opportunity for revolution nor was it a failed revolution. It was and is part of the ongoing revolutionary process here. We have learnt many lessons about collective organizing and strength, and the barriers to self-management. For many people it opened their eyes to what we can do together, and that taking control of our lives and acting collectively whether it’s as part of a piquete, a communal bakery or an afterschool club dramatically improves the quality of our lives. If the struggle stays autonomous and with the people the next uprising will have strong foundations to build upon...[113]

[echo16reads]

What happens in Albania stays in Albania

[diedinacrash]

Here's Part 2 of Dominik's interview.

I: You always call the National team’s coach, boss. You are the only one who does that in the team, where did it come from?

D: I don’t know, I always call him differently, sometimes it's Mister, sometimes it’s boss. I mean, when I talk to him I call him MIster but when I talk about him I call him boss. Because after all he’s the boss, it is what he says, but I think he has a very good relationship with the players, and it’s very important.

I: What does Marco Rossi mean to you?

D: Well, he was the first who dared to play me in the National team, before that I played under two other coaches who didn’t trust me as much as he did, so it was a very important step for me, that…he dared to play me at the age of 17 or 18 and luckily I could stay a standard player in the team. Of course it’s thanks to me as well, but the fact that he always trusted me is his merit. And…I’d say that our relationship is pretty close, but I don’t want it to sound stupid from outside…but yeah we are close.

I: Yesterday, the recordings that were made and published by MLSZ (Magyar Labdarúgó Szövetség ->Hungarian Football Association), we can see that the way you two celebrated was very special, and you can feel how strong the connection is between you two.

D: It is really strong, I think it became so strong when we qualified against Iceland three years ago, because he wasn’t on the bench then and he wrote me a long message before the game, and I told him not to worry, we can do it and I wrote him after the game, saying “you’re welcome”. He only laughed, but it turned out good.

I: The next stop is the 0-0 against Montenegro, a college posted not long ago that we had 0.16 xG through the game. That was a very painful game, but almost everyone says that it was a key moment for the whole qualification series that we could successfully take a point from there. Do you agree?

D: That was the most important game? I don’t see it that way, but it was really important because I told the others that time as well, that no problem, there are games like this, but we knew from the beginning that it will be a one on one game. At the previous World Cup qualification, we made the mistake of going into a one on one game against Albania and lost in the last minute, we did the same at home, and lost again. But we learnt from those games, and what was important is that we realized that if we don’t push that hard we won’t have such power, but we won’t concede that many goals either. And we did just that.

I: You said that you really want to play against Montenegro, is it only because it’s a home game, and you can celebrate with more than 65 000 people, or do you still have a desire to prove yourself?

D: Both, I think it’s an incredible experience for everyone to play at home, in front of 65 000 people and…already celebrating. But I don't want any kind of celebration to happen prior to the game, we celebrated yesterday, there’s no celebration today. Today is about concentration and so is tomorrow. We can’t live from the past, even if we did qualify , we want to qualify first and if we beat Montenegro, then we’ll celebrate again.

I: Comes the summer, you sign for Liverpool under a moment, at least from the outside perspective. Who was the first you told in the National team, that you are going to Liverpool?

D: I think Schäfer, when it became certain we had a phone call and he wasn’t pleased, because he’s a United fan. He said I chose the wrong club, I said you can go to United and then we can play against each other. But yeah, he was the first, I think.

I: Did the others' opinion change about you, because you signed to one of the biggest clubs in the world?

D: No. When I did the pep talk before our game against Serbia, I tried to put it in there that I’m still the same person, I didn’t change because I signed for Liverpool. I don’t want them to treat me like a star, because I’m a player like any of them and a person just like them. I really don’t like it when someone is lifted out from the rest, yes everyone has their own character and everyone is good at different things, but we can only achieve what we did as a team. Because it’s not an individual sport, alone I couldn’t have qualified for the Euros.

I: It’s amazing how much attention you get, it’s a very rare occasion when a Ferencváros Puskás League game (Hungarian League game) has less viewers than a Liverpool Chelsea game, and because of you it happened. How surprised were you that you could burst into the public consciousness this easily?

D: I’ll be honest, I was trying very hard for people not to think that…I actually like to read the comments.

I: Really?

D: Really. For me it’s not…it doesn’t anger me, rather motivates me. You can never do good, it will be bad for someone, and I learnt to deal with this, and I can live together with this. But I tell you it motivates me, it constantly gives me motivation, that I signed there, they said I won’t play, I’ll be on the bench, etc, etc, etc. I signed there, I became a starter, I fought myself into the team, I scored, I assisted, I play great, I’m a standard player. IT’s a good feeling, but there are still people out there who don’t like it, but it only motivates me more to continue, to become better, to achieve even more, to win more trophies, to be more successful, as in me, in the club and in the National team as well.

I: When did you learn to speak English like this?

D: When…When, you know I was at Salzbourg, I started to learn German there, and when I knew around 90 percent German, I started to go to an English teacher, because there were a lot of players I spoke English to. Then I stopped taking the classes, because I didn’t really like them, it was always early in the morning. Then I learnt it from the players around me, let it be Haaland or Dabbur, they were the two I actually had a closer relationship with, and always spoke English to them. I was open, I talked even if my English wasn’t particularly great, but then they were kind and corrected me.

I: You have an interview, it was made after one of your first games, where they first pronounced your name correctly. Dominik Szoboszlai, and you did mention it there, and I read the comments under that interview, and one said ‘captain material’ even for Liverpool. Do you see yourself as Liverpool’s captain?

D: Why not? Of course, I said it a lot of times already, if I’ll be at Liverpool for the next ten years, and I have a great career, I’ll sign it right now. (Means if someone offered him a good career there he’d take it without question) And if they give me the armband at one point, I won’t refuse it because I'm immediately gonna say that it’s okay, it’s alright. It comes with responsibilities, yeah but I like to be responsible.

I: Is there anything you surprised yourself with positively?

D: No.

I: Confident.

I: Just before returning to the National team. Your dad has been asked by a lot of people about a lot of topics, even you quoted him. What did your mum do for this career?

D: She was a ‘‘background character’’. But, nothing…she always made sure I had breakfast and dinner at home, had my medicine ready, if it was cold then she made sure that my clothes were warm, so I wouldn’t be cold. Things like this. But really, she wanted to stay in the background, and she is still there until today. But apart from football, everything else is thanks to her.

I:One last question about the Euro qualification. Last time Salzburg didn’t let you go to Sofia, this time you were there. When you heard the final whistle, we talked about it at the beginning, did you only think that we had qualified for the Euros, or did you think about what our goals are out there? Kerkez said, you want to be competitive there as well. Or do you think it’s still the celebration part, the draw is on the second of December and there's no point thinking about this until then?

D: There’s still the Montenegro game, but yeah we talked a bit about it already, honestly I started to think about it when Willi (Orbán) posted that picture. Because if we look at it, whatever group we are going to be in, we have a chance to get through the group stages. This is how I approach it, this is how everyone approaches it. IT’s not important who we’ll be in the same group with, but from there all games are one on one, you either go through or go home. So I just want to enjoy it, go as far as we can, we’re at Euros, maybe in the end we’ll be the biggest surprise.

[braveclementine]

Chapter 4

Warnings: None. However, future chapters will contain sexual content so readers that are under the age of 18 may have to skip those chapters (However they are very few so those under the age of 18 can still read a majority of this book. However please keep note of the warnings).

Copyright: I do not own any Wizarding World characters that J.K. Rowling wrote. I do however own Elizabeth Kane (main character) and Trang Nyguen (best friend). There should be no use of these two names without my permission. I also do not condone any copying of this.

💙💙💙💙

𝕸𝖗𝖘. 𝖂𝖊𝖆𝖘𝖑𝖊𝖞 𝖜𝖆𝖘 𝖎𝖓 a good mood when we went downstairs. She was cooking on the stove and informed us that we would be eating outside due to such a large amount of people in the house. Ron and Harry grabbed cutlery and Trang stayed by Mrs. Weasley's side, handing her pans when she needed them. I grabbed cups so that we could fill them with drink and headed out after the others.

Crookshanks was pelting after a gnome which was laughing. It dove into a boot and laughed wildly as Crookshanks put a paw in there, trying to get it out. I smiled.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the house, Charlie and Bill were making two tables smash into each other in a sort of battle. Fred and George were cheering, Ginny was laughing, and Hermione seemed to be split in her emotions between amusement and anxiety.

Bill's table caught Charlie's with a huge bang and knocked one of its legs off. There was a clatter from overhead and everyone looked up to see Percy looking down from the second floor.

"WILL YOU KEEP IT DOWN?!" He bellowed.

"Sorry Perce." Bill said, his long locks sweeping behind him as he lifted his head again. "How're the cauldron bottoms coming on?"

"Very badly." Percy said peevishly, slamming the window shut, making the windows rattle. Everyone laughed again as Bill and Charlie lowered the tables back to Earth. Bill reattached the table leg and then made tablecloths appear from nowhere.

Trang and I set the table in record time and soon Mrs. Weasley had all of the dishes of her cooking on the tables. I put some of the food onto my plate, sitting between Bill and Trang. Hermione, Harry, and Ron were sitting across from me. Both Fred and Charlie kept shooting glances down at Bill as he chatted with me.

I picked at my food, listening, rather than talking, while eating. I was mostly listening to Mr. Weasley and Percy's conversation.

"I've told Mr. Crouch that I'll have it ready by Tuesday." Percy said- meaning his cauldron report. "that's a bit sooner than he expected it, but I like to keep on top of things. I think he'll be grateful I've done it in good time, I mean, it's extremely busy in our department just now, what with all the arrangements for the World Cup. We're just not getting the support we need from the Department of Magical Games and Sports. Ludo Bagman-"

"I like Ludo." Mr. Weasley interrupted mildly. "He was the one who got us such good tickets for the Cup. I did him a bit of a favor: His brother, Otto, got into a spot of trouble- a lawnmower with unnatural powers- I smoothed the whole thing over."

"Oh Bagman's likable enough of course." Percy said in a dismissive manner. "but how he ever got to be head of Department. . . when I compare him to Mr. Crouch! I can't see Mr. Crouch losing a member of our department and not trying to find out what's happened to them. You realize Bertha Jorkins has been missing for over a month now? Went on holiday to Albania and never came back?"

My mouth went dry. I stopped eating.

"Yes, I was asking Ludo about that." Mr. Weasley said with a frown. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat but continued to listen in, "He says Bertha's gotten lost plenty of times before now- though I must say, if it was someone in my department, I'd be worried. . ."

"Oh Bertha's hopeless, all right. I hear she's been shunted from department to department for years, much more trouble than she's worth. . . but all the same, Bagman ought to be trying to find her. Mr. Crouch has been taking a personal interest, she worked in our department at one time, you know, and I think Mr. Crouch was quite fond of her- but Bagman just keeps laughing and saying she probably misread the map and ended up in Australia instead of Albania. However-" Percy stopped talking to take a sip of wine, "- we've got quite enough on our plates at the Department of International Magical Cooperation without trying to find members of other departments too. As you know, we've got another big event to organize right after the World Cup. You know the one I'm talking about, Father. The top-secret one." Percy said in a slightly raised voice.

I glanced over at the others to see Ron roll his eyes and say, "He's been trying to get us to ask what that event is ever since he started work. Probably an exhibition of thick-bottomed cauldrons."

Harry and Hermione laughed but I just gave him a strained smile. No one knew about Bertha? That hadn't occurred to me. Did I say something? But it was a dream, not a vision. . . so. . . even though I knew it happened and Dad believed me. . . would it be evidence? But Dad was always inclined to believe whatever I said, regardless if others believed me. . .but I'd been sure enough of the dream to fake my own death, hadn't I?

"Excuse me," I muttered and I got up from the table, heading back into the house, preoccupied. The others wouldn't be in for another thirty minutes or so. Maybe I could go to Diagon Alley and get my books or something. I went up to Ginny's room and dug in my trunk for the Hogwarts letter. I hadn't opened it. I'd forgotten in my rush to get here.

I opened it up.

I only needed one new book which was The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4 by Miranda Goshawk. That was convenient. There were also dress robes but I wanted to get those myself.

I turned to go back downstairs and saw Harry there. I nearly jumped in fright. "Are you alright?" He asked. "You looked upset at dinner."

I hesitated and then said, "You had a dream over the summer, right? About Wormtail and Voldemort and an old man, right?"

Harry looked surprised, "Yeah, how'd you know? Oh, wait, never mind. Of course you know."

"I had the same exact one." I said, chewing on my bottom lip in dismay. "And Voldemort mentioned Bertha Jorkins. . . how he killed her and when Percy and Mr. Weasley were saying no one knew where she was, I realized no one else knew. Perhaps not even you because you might not remember every detail."

Harry shook his head, "No. I don't remember a lot of it. I know they were talking about killing me. I know there was an old man. . . I think they mentioned you a bit and that's it. I didn't remember anything about Bertha Jorkins, not even now when you brought up that Voldemort and Wormtail talked about her"

I nodded my head. "They also mentioned about waiting until the Quidditch Cup is over."

We started walking down the stairs in silence until we got to the kitchen. The others were still outside. "Tell Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, if they ask that is, that I went to Diagon Alley, okay?"

"Sure." Harry said, looking troubled.

A moment later I was hurrying into Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, stepping inside, and looking around. "Hello Miss Kane." She said. "Are you here for dress robes?"

"Yes please." I said. "I was looking for deep blue or purple. I don't need custom dress robes."

She nodded and bustled off into the back of the shop and came out with a variety of different dresses and put them on the rack, "Choose a couple, try them on. We're still open for twenty-five minutes."

I nodded and looked through them, surveying them, grabbed a few, and went back in the room so I could try them on. The one I decided on was a purple dress. It was a longer one and I was glad I had heels and had grown over the summer. It fit my slender frame too. It looked lovely too and I put on my other clothes and bought the dress.

"This one is a lovely dress." Madam Malkin said as she checked me out. "Have fun at Hogwarts this year dear."

"Thank you, have a nice year." I said as I headed out of the shop and made my way back to the Leaky Cauldron and then went back home. No one was in the kitchen, but not everyone was outside anymore.

I headed upstairs and hung the dress up on Ginny's wardrobe. The other three girls came in at that moment.

"Oh," Trang said. "That's a pretty dress Elizabeth."

"Thanks Trang." I said.

"We should get to sleep." Hermione said in a worried voice, "We got to get up really early for the Quidditch Cup."

I grinned at Trang, "Excited?"

She nodded, "Extremely excited."

Ginny laid down in her bed and the rest of us slept on camp beds. I fell asleep quickly, dreaming of a ball where I was dancing with Fred and then Lee then Cedric then Oliver (even though he had graduated) and then Snape who turned into Voldemort and I woke up with a start.

I looked at the clock. It was 4:45. I rolled out of bed and tiptoed around the other girls as I got dressed. I dressed in jean shorts and a white blouse. It would be cold this morning but it was only a few days into August and still very warm. I put on white sneakers. I pulled my hair up into a ponytail and then snuck out the door, carrying my peppermint box.

I went down the stairs. Mrs. Weasley was already up, making breakfast and Mr. Weasley was sitting at the table yawning. He stood up and showed off his golfing shirt and blue jeans held up with a leather belt, "Does this look like I'm a Muggle?"

I nodded, yawning myself, "Yes."

Mrs. Weasley eyed my outfit and said, "Well Muggle girls do have good fashion I suppose."

I took some of the boiling water and poured it into 6 cups and put the peppermint tea bags into each of them and then used the excess in Trangs and mine tea cups.

Mrs. Weasley bustled off to wake up the boys. Mr. Weasley was organizing a sheaf of large parchment tickets.

Mrs. Weasley came back down and started stirring the pot on the stove. I yawned and then drank some of my tea which woke me up immediately with the sharpness of the drink.

Fred, George, Harry, and Ron all came downstairs, looking bleary eyed. Mr. Weasley showed his clothes to Harry and said, "What d'you think? We're supposed to go incognito- do I look like a Muggle, Harry?"

"Yes." Harry said with a smile, "Very good."

"Where's Bill and Charlie and Per-Per-Percy?" George asked with a yawn. I slid four of the cups over to them.

"That'll help wake you up." I said with a mischievous smile. I knew how sharp the taste was.

Ron picked up a cup and doused it in a swallow- I hadn't given them much- and his face turned bright red as he choked and sputtered. "What the bloody hell was that?" He asked, his face returning to normal color.

"Are you awake?" I asked, grinning.

"Well, yeah!" Ron said, still red faced and still sputtering.

Harry, Fred, and George picked their cups up. Fred smell his. "It smells like peppermint." He said and took a smaller sip than Ron. "Oh!" Fred said, his face flushing too. "That does wake you up."

Harry and George tried theirs next. George's eyes started to water and he put the cup down, but Harry just smiled, taking a seat next to me. "So what was that?" Harry asked me. Mrs. Weasley set bowls of porridge down in front of us.

"Peppermint tea." I said, dumping a large amount of brown sugar into my bowl and stirring. "Peppermint is a stimulant. It can also be used to cure different ailments like menstrual pains and nausea and muscle and nerve pain."

Everyone stared at me except Mrs. Weasley.

"What?" I asked frowning, setting aside the brown sugar and now putting a sprinkle of cinnamon on my porridge. "We learned about that in Herbology."

George shook his head in amazement. "Well at least we're all awake now."

"Oh, and to answer your question." I continued, now pouring milk into the bowl slowly so that I put the right amount, "Bill, Charlie, and Percy get to apparate so they get to stay in bed."

"Why can't we apparate too?" Fred asked grumpily.

"Because you're not of age and you haven't passed the test." Mrs. Weasley answered. Then she bustled out of the kitchen to get the girls up.

"You have to pass a test to Apparate?" Harry asked.

"Oh yes. The Department of Magical Transportation had to fine a couple of people the other day for Apparating without a license. It's not easy, Apparition, and when it's not done properly it can lead to nasty complications. This pair I'm talking about went and splinched themselves."

I flinched with the others.

"Er- Splinched?" Harry asked nervously.

"They left half of themselves behind. So, of course," Mr. Weasley said, putting treacle on his porridge, "they were stuck. Couldn't move either way. Had to wait for the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad to sort them out. Meant a fair old bit of paperwork. I can tell you, what with the Muggles who spotted the body parts they'd left behind. . ."

"Were they okay?" Harry asked, startled.

"Oh yes." Mr. Weasley said. "But they got a heavy fine, and I don't think they'll be trying it again in a hurry. You don't mess around with Apparition. There are plenty of adult wizards who don't bother with it. Prefer brooms- slower, but safer."

"To bad we can't use magic carpets anymore." I said dreamily before spooning another spoonful of lovely sugary porridge into my mouth.

"Indeed." Mr. Weasley said.

"But Bill and Charlie and Percy can all do it?" Harry asked, interested.

"Charlie had to take the test twice. . . He failed the first time, Apparated five miles south of where he meant to, right on top of some poor old dear doing her shopping, remember?" Fred asked with a huge smile.

"Yes, well, he passed the second time." Mrs. Weasley said as the rest of us laughed.

Hermione, Ginny, and Trang were all coming down the hallway looking sleepy. Trang pointed to the last steaming mug of Peppermint tea, "Is that for me?"

I nodded.

Trang picked it up and doused half of it in one go. The others, especially George and Ron who'd had bad reactions, watched in interest. "That's lovely." Trang said with brighter eyes. "Is there anymore?"

I tossed my peppermint box at her and she got up to make herself another cup of tea. I sipped mine casually.

"Why do we have to get up so early?" Ginny asked, rubbing her eyes.

"We've got a bit of a walk." Mr. Weasley said.

I kicked George and he looked up at me. I shook my head and put my hand under the table, tapping his knee. He handed me the Toffees' and I put them in my pocket. George nudged Fred and Fred passed me his too. Everyone else missed the reaction between us.

I obviously didn't have all of them, but hopefully Mrs. Weasley wouldn't notice. I zipped my bag closed so the Toffee's couldn't escape if she did want them.

"Walk?" Harry was asking in another startled voice, "What, are we walking to the World Cup?" Trang's mouth dropped too as though she thought this might be possible and I laughed, starting to eat my porridge again.

"Silly Harry, of course not." I said with a grin. "But with so many wizards coming in from all sorts of countries, we have to travel incognito. Even Muggles notice large congregations of people going in the same direction and often have the urge to check out what's going on, whether they knew about the event or not."

"George!" Mrs. Weasley shouted suddenly and everyone except me jumped. I rolled my eyes instead.

"What?" George asked, confused.

"What is that in your pocket?" Mrs. Weasley continued. I shifted my body below the table and saw that there was a bulge in his pocket. I sighed.

"Nothing!" George said, putting a hand over his pocket.

"Don't you lie to me!" Mrs. Weasley said, pointing her wand at George's pocket and saying, "Accio."

Trang watched in interest (She loved seeing magic in action) and I watched to see how the spell was conducted. Multiple objects came out of George's pocket and into her hand. Toffees. She kept pointing her wand at them and saying "Accio! Accio!"

Even I had to admit that they had come up with some pretty neat hiding places but I'd wished they'd given me more of their toffees. I checked my bag and saw that I had about twelve or so in it.

"We spent six months developing those!" Fred said angrily as she threw the toffees away.

"Oh a fine way to spend six months!" She shrieked in anger. "No wonder you didn't get more O.W.L.s"

We departed the Burrow very soon after. I stayed back for a millisecond and said to Mrs. Weasley, "Can you use some of the gold in my vault for Ron's robes? Get them new, like Harry's?" Then, I dashed off before she could say yes or no.

Trang, Fred, George, and I were all walking ahead of the others. Mrs. Weasley was still talking to Mr. Weasley and she called after us, "behave yourselves!" Fred and George glowered.

"I still have twelve." I said brightly. "Six for each of you."

"Not much." George said grumpily.

"You could have given me more." I said sharply, though sympathetically, not wanting to be blamed for their stupidity.

"How are we getting to the cup?" Trang asked.

"Portkey." I answered.

"What's that?" Trang asked.

"It's er- a magical device that transports people from one place to another. But they have certain times they take off and usually can only be used once." I said. "They are usually disguised as things that Muggles don't pick up. You have to be touching it to be transported, so don't let go of it when we get there."

"Grand." Trang said, sounding extremely nervous that she might get left behind.

We had to climb Stoatshead Hill was a long climb and before long, I had a painful stitch in my side. My legs were getting sore too but I continued on at a steady pace. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and Mr. Weasley had caught up to the four of us by this time though I pulled ahead of the others with my impatience to get to the cup.

I ran up the last steps and saw two figures off in the distance. I went on ahead until I found Mr. Diggory and his son Cedric.

"Elizabeth!" Cedric said in glad surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"I was staying with the Weasleys." I said, blushing just slightly. "They're coming on a bit slow, but they'll be here in a few seconds."

Cedric and I hugged and he introduced me to his father who was a boisterous and round-faced man. He was holding a muddy boot in one hand.

"Over here, Arthur! Over here, son, we've got it!" Mr. Diggory called out and I turned to see the Weasleys, Hermione, Trang, and Harry make their way over to us.

"Amos!" Mr. Weasley said, smiling and they shook hands. To the rest of us he said, "This is Amos Diggory, everyone. He works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. And I think you know his son, Cedric?"

"Hi." Cedric said, looking around at everyone, laying his eyes on Trang. I felt a strange twinge of jealousy, and then pushed it away.

Everyone said hi back except for Fred and George who only nodded. George had never forgiven Cedric for beating Gryffindor in the first Quidditch match and Fred had other reasons for disliking Cedric. What those reasons were had never been fully disclosed to me, though I had my suspicions.

"Long walk, Arthur?" Cedric's father asked.

"Not too bad. We live just on the other side of the village there. You?" Mr. Weasley asked while checking his watch.

"Had to get up at two, didn't we, Ced? I tell you, I'll be glad when he's got his Apparition test. Still. . . not complaining. . . Quidditch World Cup, wouldn't miss it for a sackful of Galleons- and the tickets cost about that. Mind you, looks like I got off easy. . ." Amos said, looking at all the others he assumed Mr. Weasley bought tickets for. "All these yours, Arthur?"

"Oh no, only the redheads. This is Hermione, friend of Ron's, Trang, friend of Elizabeth's, that's Elizabeth right there though I assume you've already met- and Harry, another friend-"

"Merlin's beard! Harry? Harry Potter?" Amos Diggory said with widening eyes.

I started to giggle and turned away. Trang watched in a bit of confusion.

"Er- yeah." Harry said uncomfortably.

"Ced's talked about you, of course. Told us all about playing against you last year. . . I said to him, I said- Ced, that'll be something to tell your grandchildren, that will. . . you beat Harry Potter!" Mr. Diggory said tactlessly.

Trang's mouth fell open and Fred and George were both scowling again. Cedric looked extremely embarrassed and muttered, "Harry fell of his broom, Dad. I told you. . . it was an accident. . ."

"Yes, but you didn't fall off, did you?" Mr. Diggory roared and slapped Cedric hard on the back, "Always modest, our Ced, always the gentleman. . . but the best man won, I'm sure Harry'd say the same, wouldn't you, eh? One falls off his broom, one stays on, you don't need to be a genius to tell which one's the better flier?"

I wondered if Trang was going to be able to pick her mouth up off the floor as she looked from Mr. Diggory, to Harry, to me and back again.

"Yes." I said coolly for I too had fallen off my broom that match and had taken insult to his words. "Well I'd like to see anyone stay on their broom when a dementor makes them pass out because their parents were murd-"

"Must be nearly time!" Mr. Weasley interrupted loudly, checking his watch again. Fred and George were openly grinning now. "Do you know whether we're waiting for any more, Amos?"

Trang pulled me aside as Mr. Diggory answered him and asked me quietly, "Do people usually insult others in front of them in the Magical world?"

I shook my head. "Mr. Diggory just likes to brag about his son and speaks before he thinks, that's all."

There was a lot of difficulty trying to stand around the boot and touch it. There were about eleven of us and because we all had bulky backpacks, there was less space than there may have been. Trang's finger was barely staying on and I pushed her forward so that she had two fingers on the boot.

We stood there as Mr. Weasley counted down, "Three. . . two. . ." I checked to make sure Trang's finger was still on the boot. ". . .one. . ."

My feet left the ground and I saw Trang's mouth open in a silent scream. Our shoulders were banging together and there was a howl of wind and swirling colors. My finger was stuck to the boot, pulling me forward and with my other hand, I grabbed Trang's arm that was holding the boot, as she was trying to pull it off.

"No!" I shouted, but my voice was lost in the howling wind. She got the message anyways.

Then my feet slammed into the ground and I stuck my ground while Trang stumbled and fell on her face. Everyone fell onto their faces except Mr. Weasley, Mr. Diggory, and Cedric. I had never stuck my ground before and I found why most people fell on their faces- it was exhausting finding the energy to keep standing. Part of me wanted to fall over anyways.

"Seven past five from Stoatshead Hill." A voice said.

I looked to see two Wizards dressed inexpertly as Muggles. Trang started having a fit of giggles and hid behind me so they wouldn't see her. One wizard was wearing a tweed suit with thigh- length galoshes and the other was wearing a kilt and poncho.

I started to laugh just like Trang and turned around so that they would see us laughing.

"Morning Basil." Mr. Weasley said.

"Hello there, Arthur. Not on duty, eh? It's all right for some. . . We've been here all night, You'd better get out of the way, we've got a big party coming in from the Black Forest at five-fifteen. Hang on, I'll find your campsite. . . Weasley. . . Weasley. . . About a quarter of a mile's walk over there, first field you come to. Site manager's called Mr. Roberts. Diggory. . . second field. . . ask for Mr. Payne."

"Thanks, Basil." Mr. Weasley said and we followed him away. We were walking through a deserted moor, and there was such a thick mist, it was hard to see anything. Trang and I walked with linked arms. I really did not want to lose her here.

We said good-bye to the Diggory's at the turn and they walked off. We approached the cottage door.

There was a man there, Mr. Roberts, standing on the doorstep and looking out at all the tents. When he heard our footsteps, he turned his head to look at us.

"Morning!" Mr. Weasley said brightly. He loved Muggles and was always excited with every interaction he got with them.

"Morning." Mr. Roberts said a bit less cheerfully.

"Would you be Mr. Roberts?" Mr. Weasley asked carefully.

"Aye, I would. And who're you?"

"Weasley- two tents, booked a couple of days ago?"

"Aye. You've got a space up by the wood there. Just the one night?"

"That's it." Mr. Weasley said.

"You'll be paying now, then?" Mr. Roberts said.

"Ah- right- certainly." Mr. Weasley said uncomfortably and beckoned to Trang to follow him. I went with her. "Help me, Trang." He said, pulling out a wad of Muggle bills.

"How much is it?" Trang asked and Mr. Weasley gave her the amount. She took the bills, counted them out and then gave him the money to pay with and put the rest in his pocket.

"You Foreign?" Mr. Roberts asked as the three of us returned and Mr. Weasley gave a start.

"Foreign?" Mr. Weasley repeated, confused.

"You're not the first one who's had trouble with money." Mr. Roberts said, looking Mr. Weasley over. "I had two try and pay me with great gold coins the size of hubcaps ten minutes ago."

"Did you really?" Mr. Weasley asked nervously.

Mr. Roberts looked for change to give Mr. Weasley. "Never been this crowded. Hundreds of pre-bookings. People usually just turn up. . ." He looked back out at the tents and I shifted on my feet nervously.

"Is that right?" Mr. Weasley asked, holding his hand out for the change but Mr. Roberts didn't give it to him.

"Aye. People from all over. Loads of foreigners. And not just foreigners. Weirdos, you know? There's a bloke walking 'round in a kilt and poncho." He scrutinized us again, looking at Trang and I in nearly identical outfits except she was wearing a red blouse.

"Shouldn't he?" Mr. Weasley said anxiously.

"It's like some sort of. . . I dunno. . . like some sort of rally, they all seem to now each other. Like a big party."

A wizard in plus-fours apparated next to him and pointing his wand he said sharply, "Obliviate!"

Trang shrieked and grabbed my arm. Instantly, Mr. Robert's eyes slid out of focus and a dreamy expression crept over his face.

"A map of the campsite for you and your change." Mr. Roberts said in a softer voice to Mr. Weasley.

"Thanks very much." Mr. Weasley said, taking both of the items.

The wizard in plus-fours accompanied us toward the gate. He looked exhausted with dark circles under his eyes and his chin was turning blue from cold. "Been having a lot of trouble with him. Needs a memory Charm ten times a day to keep him happy. And Ludo Bagman's not helping. Trotting around talking about Bludgers and Quaffles at the top of his voice, not a worry about anti-Muggle security. Blimey, I'll be glad when this is over. See you later, Arthur." He Disapparated without another word.

Trang was still clutching my arm. "Is Mr. Roberts going to be okay?" she asked me in undertone.

"Of course." I said. "It doesn't hurt them, it simply removes the particular components of the magical abnormalities from their minds, that's all."

"But why did he have to forget?" Trang asked in a concerned voice.

"Muggles aren't supposed to know about our world. The only way Muggles find out about the magical world is in two ways. A) they have a magical child who's invited to a magical school or b) they marry someone from the magical world. Other than that, they aren't supposed to know." I said.

"Will they erase my mind if they find out that I'm a Muggle?" Trang asked, shivering.

"No." I said fiercely. "Don't worry about that. I have multiple tricks up my sleeve. And there is no reason for anyone to know that you aren't magical anyways. We don't just go around asking random people if they're muggles or not. You're with us, Trang. No one's going to notice unless you shout it through the magical microphone."

Trang didn't seem to relax any. I put an arm around her as we continued to walk. The sun had come out, making the clouds dissipate and we could see the tents now and thoughts of having her memory change were put out of Trang's mind.

The tents were so magical it was stupid that we even had Muggles at the front gates. I couldn't blame Mr. Roberts for being suspicious.

Trang looked around, her mouth dropped for what was probably a fifth time already and it wasn't even nine in the morning yet. There were tents with multiple floors, front gardens, back gardens, pools, and a large tent that obviously housed an Indian family. It looked like the palace from Aladdin and had peacocks tethered to the front of the tent.

"Always the same, we can't resist showing off when we get together. Ah, here we are, look, this is us." Mr. Weasley said with a smile.

There was a small plot of land with a sign in front of it that read WEEZLY. I giggled.

"Couldn't have a better spot! The field is just on the other side of the wood there, we're as close as we could be." Mr. Weasley said, dropping his backpack. "Right, no magic allowed, strictly speaking, not when we're out in these numbers on Muggle land. We'll be putting these tents up by hand! Shouldn't be too difficult. . . Muggles do it all the time. . . Here, Harry, where do you reckon we should start?"

Harry stared dully at the tents. He'd never been camping in his life. Trang moved forward and started instructing us all what to do. I gave her an encouraging smile. Mr. Weasley was a bit of a hindrance, especially when he got to use the mallet. Trang was laughing the entire time and looking very happy. I think she enjoyed being able to help.

We all looked back to see how the tents looked. I certainly thought they looked like Muggle tents. But Trang was frowning now. "How are we all going to fit?"

Mr. Weasley laughed kindly and said, "Go on ahead Trang."

Trang went into the tent and gasped. Harry and I quickly followed after her. Harry's jaw dropped so that Trang and him looked identical in awe.

There were three rooms- a sitting room, kitchen, two bedrooms, and a bathroom. The chairs were mismatched and the covers were crocheted. There was a strong smell of cats which I didn't mind, but it was a bit overwhelming.

"Well, it's not for long." Mr. Weasley said, mopping his bald patch with his handkerchief. It was hot in here. "I borrowed this from Perkins at the office. Doesn't camp much anymore, poor fellow, he's got lumbago." He picked up a kettle and said, "We'll need water. . ."

I quickly spoke, "Ron, Hermione, Harry, Trang, and I will go get water. The rest of you are going to look for firewood." The others stared at me and I shrugged, "That's what I saw when we got here anyways." I left out the fact that I hadn't actually seen Trang or I going with Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

So, everyone else shrugged, accepting my word, and the five of us headed out of the tent. We quickly looked in the girls tent and Trang, Hermione, and I put our bags down. I made a mental note to give Fred and George their toffees.

The girls' tent was smaller- kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and sitting room but the rooms were smaller. It was a good thing we didn't have more girls because there were only four beds. However, our tent was slightly cooler and there was no cat smell.

We set off across the campsite with pans and the kettle to fill them with water. The other campers were starting to wake up as well. The first to wake were the families with small children of course. For some reason, little kids weren't fans of sleep.

Trang, Harry, and I looked fascinated at a little boy no older than two, maybe three, who had a wand in his hand, poking a slug.

"Urgh." Trang complained as the slug grew to the size of a large salami. "That's disgusting."

I giggled, but privately agreed. His mother came out of the tent. "How many times, Kevin? You don't- touch- Daddy's- wand- yeecch!" She squealed as she stepped on the slug, making it explode.

"You bust slug! You bust slug!" The boy started to cry as the mother continued to scold him. Farther ahead, two twin girls were flying on toy broomsticks, only high enough that there toes skimmed the grass.

"Wow." Trang whispered softly. "Imagine if we'd had those as kids, Elizabeth."

"I had one." I said. "pink. But I didn't ride it often because dad didn't want me in the forest by myself and he never had time to watch me cause he was working so hard."

A ministry wizard hurried past us after the little girls muttering, "In broad daylight! Parents having a lie-in, I suppose-"

Adult wizards were emerging from the tents and starting to cook breakfast. A majority of them looked around furtively and conjured fires from their wands. Others were striking matches as though they thought they wouldn't work and then were so surprised that a fire was lit that they dropped the matches.

Three African Wizards were in a serious conversation and standing around a purple fire cooking rabbit. Trang stared at the purple fire with pleasure. Purple was her favorite color.

Suddenly, we were surrounded by a large amount of green. "Er- is it my eyes, or has everything gone green?" Ron asked.

The tents were covered in shamrocks, paper and real ones, so that they looked like hills that had sprung up from the Earth. We walked through and then we heard from behind us, "Harry! Ron! Hermione! Elizabeth!"

We all turned. It was Seamus Finnigan, a Gryffindor. He was sitting in front of his tent which was also covered in shamrocks. Trang seemed to be on the verge of laughing. There was a woman sitting with him who must've been his mother and his best friend Dean Thomas who was Muggle-born.

Seamus had grown his sandy hair out so that it tucked under his ears. Dean on the other hand was close to bald.

We headed over. "Like the decorations?" Seamus asked with a broad grin. "The Ministry's not too happy."

"Ah, why shouldn't we show our colors?" His mother said with beady eyes. "You should see what the Bulgarians have got dangling all over their tents. You'll be supporting Ireland, of course?" She added. We all nodded.

"Hey Elizabeth!" Dean said, "D'you know who's going to win?"

"Sure I do." I said honestly, "But why should I spoil it for everyone?"

Dean laughed though Mrs. Finnigan looked annoyed. Maybe she'd put down a bet.

We left and Ron muttered, "Like we'd say anything else surrounded by that lot."

"I wonder what the Bulgarians have got dangling all over their tents?" Hermione asked.

"Let's go and have a look." Harry said, pointing.

We made our way to the Bulgaria tents. Each one had a poster of Viktor Krum on them. They were moving, blinking and scowling. Trang looked at them, a bit disappointed for some reason.

Ron muttered something and Hermione asked, "What?"

"Krum!" Ron said a bit louder, "Viktor Krum, the Bulgarian Seeker!"

"He looks really grumpy." Hermione said mildly and Trang started laughing.

"Really grumpy!" Ron said exasperated, "Who cares what he looks like? He's unbelievable. He's really young too. Only just eighteen or something. He's a genius, you wait until tonight, you'll see."

"Actually." I said. "He's seventeen."

Ron gaped at me.

I shrugged, "What? I know my Quidditch players."

There was a line for the water and we got behind two wizards. One of them was a very old wizard, probably in his eighties or so with a long white beard, nearly as long as Dumbledore's. He was wearing a flowery nightgown. Then there was a Ministry wizard who was nearly crying with exasperation. He was holding a pair of striped trousers.

"Just put them on, Archie, there's a good chap. You can't walk around like that, the Muggle at the gate's already getting suspicious-"

"I bought this in a Muggle shop." The old wizard said stubbornly as though Muggle shops only sold clothes that were made for both sexes. "Muggles wear them."

Trang was already quietly giggling, her fist in her mouth.

"Muggle women wear them, Archie, not the men, they wear these." The ministry wizard said, brandishing the trousers in the old man's face.

"I'm not putting them on." Archie said in indignation. "I like a healthy breeze 'round my privates, thanks."

I started giggling too and soon, Trang, Hermione, and I all had to hurry out of line so they didn't hear us laughing. We only got back in line when Archie and the other wizard collected their water and disappeared. Then, we collected our water and headed back.

We walked much slower because of the water we were carrying. We saw many students from Hogwarts though we didn't talk to most of them.

When I heard a familiar voice calling for Harry, I turned. It was Oliver Wood, past captain of Gryffindor Quidditch team. He said hello to Hermione, Ron, and I and when he laid eyes on Trang, his face turned bright red and he said, "H-hello, who are y-you?"

I turned away, smiling. Aww! Oliver had a crush.

Trang's face wasn't anywhere near as red since her dark skin was hiding her blush but she said, "Hi, I'm Trang, Elizabeth's friend."

They stared at each other awkwardly for another second and then Oliver recovered and dragged Harry over to meet his parents. Then he told us all that he had been signed to Puddlemere United reserve team.

"Oh Congratulations Oliver." I said, delighted. "I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks Liz." Oliver said, flashing me a smile.

We said good-bye and were about to continue on when Oliver called Trang back. The four of us watched as she walked over, holding a pan of water. They talked for a few seconds and then she came back, a small smile on her face.

"What'd he want?" Ron asked quickly.

"None of your business." Hermione and I said together.

"My full name so he could send me an owl." Trang said happily.

We were hailed by Ernie Macmillan next, a Hufflepuff student in my house. He was especially friendly with Harry and me.

Then there was Cho Chang and Harry slopped water down his front when he waved to her. She was a Chinese girl, very pretty with long black hair.

"My hair used to be like that." Trang said, shooting Cho another glance as we moved on. "And then I dyed the ends golden."

Indeed, her hair was black up at the top but had turned Ombre gold down near the bottom.

"Where are you from?" Hermione asked in interest.

"Well my parents are from Vietnam." Trang said. "But I'm British."

I laughed. It was a bit of a joke between the two of us though the others didn't understand.

"Have you ever been to Vietnam?" Hermione asked in interest. "to visit or anything?"

"Yes." Trang said, nodding, taking off her glasses and rubbing her eyes.

"I want to visit a lot of different countries." Hermione said wistfully.

"I just want to go to Australia." I said. "And Japan."

"You've been ages." George said when we finally got back to the tent.

"Met a few people." Ron said, setting his water pail down. I set the pan down, flexing my fingers. "You not got that fire started yet?"

"Dad's having fun with the matches." Fred said with a grin.

Splintered matches lay around his feet but he looked like he was having the time of his life. I giggled along with Trang.

"Oops!" he said when he lit one and then dropped it.

"Come here, Mr. Weasley." Trang said kindly, though grinning. She took the box from him, showing him how to do it properly and then let him do it himself.

The fire was lit, finally, though it took an hour for it to be hot enough that we could actually cook on it. Meanwhile, Trang and I were swapping Chocolate frog cards and eating them at the same time. Harry looked on in interest.

"Don't you have a collection?" I asked Harry as I traded a Dumbledore card for a Newt Scamander card. I already had twenty-five of him, but I also had sixty-three of Dumbledore and this way, it evened my cards out to twenty-six and sixty-two. I liked even numbers.

"Nah." Harry said. "I don't eat enough Chocolate frogs to keep up a collection. Not that my Uncle and Aunt wouldn't throw it out immediately anyways."

"Sad." I said bluntly, rearranging my cards in alphabetical order.

Ministry members ran back and forth trying to keep things under control and Mr. Weasley kept a running commentary of who was who and what they did. Trang kept looking up, interested. "That was Cuthbert Mockridge, Head of the Goblin Liaison Office. . . Here comes Gilbert Wimple; he's with the Committee on Experimental Charms; he's had those horns for a while now. . . Hello Arnie. . . Arnold Peasegood, he's an Obliviator- members of the Accidental Magical Reversal Squad, you know.. and that's Bode and Croaker. . . they're Unspeakables. . ."

"They're what?" Trang and Harry asked at the same time in interest, both of them pushing their glasses up on their noses. Fred caught my eye and we looked away before we laughed.

"From the Department of Mysteries, top secret, no idea what they get up to. . ." Mr. Weasley said and Trang looked over her shoulder to get a good look at them.

Mr. Weasley let Trang and I cook sausages and eggs. Mostly because it was rumored that I was a good cook and Trang already knew how to cook over a fire from her many camping trips.

The sausages and eggs were done in record time just as Bill, Charlie, and Percy were strolling toward us, looking refreshed.

"Just Apparated Dad." Percy said in a loud voice and looked around to see if anyone had heard him, "Ah, excellent, lunch."

I giggled quietly as Trang served out food to everyone. The sausages were juicy and the eggs were light and fluffy.

Halfway through our lunch period, Mr. Weasley jumped up, waving a man over. "Aha! The man of the moment! Ludo!"

Ludo Bagman was wearing old Quidditch robes from when he used to play. They had thick horizontal stripes of bright yellow and black. An enormous wasp was stitched onto the front of the robes. He was powerfully built in the shoulders and legs but his stomach was bulging against the robes. His nose was squashed, most like broken by a bludger. His eyes however, were bright blue. With his short blond hair and rosy complexion- he looked a bit how I thought an American schoolboy might look.

"Ahoy there!" Bagman called happily. He was walking with springs in his steps. "Arthur, old man, What a day, eh? What a day! Could we have asked for more perfect weather? A cloudless night coming. . . and hardly a hiccough in the arrangements. . . Not much for me to do!"

Behind him, four ministry wizards were rushing toward a wizard's tent where a fire had gotten out of hand. It was bright blue and was throwing violet sparks twenty feet into the air. Trang laughed aloud and then quickly stiffled it.

Percy hurried forward at that moment with his hand outstretched. Apparently he wanted to make a good impression. I rolled my eyes. If I didn't like someone, I wasn't going to act like I did to get on their good side. I'd act just as I said.

"Ah- yes." Mr. Weasley said with a knowing smile. "this is my son Percy. He's just started at the Ministry- and this is Fred- no, George, sorry- that's Fred- Bill, Charlie, Ron- my daughter Ginny- and Ron's friends Elizabeth Kane, Hermione Granger, Trang Nyguen, and Harry Potter."

Ludo lifted his eyes to Harry's forehead, looking at the scar.

"Everyone, this is Ludo Bagman, you know who he is, it's thanks to him we've got such good tickets-"

"Fancy a flutter on the match, Arthur?" Ludo asked, waving his hand aside.

I quickly got up and went inside the tent. I didn't want to be asked who was going to win. Once the betting was over, I headed back out, sitting down next to Bill.

"Couldn't do me a brew, I suppose? I'm keeping an eye out for Barty Crouch. My Bulgarian opposite numbers' making difficulties, and I can't understand a word he's saying. Barry'll be able to sort it out. he speaks about a hundred and fifty languages."

Trang looked at me from across the fire, her mouth open. I nodded. She got up and came and sat next to me.

"Mr. Crouch? He speaks over two hundred! Mermish and Gobbledegook and Troll. . ." Percy said with admiration.

Trang giggled, "What are those languages?"

"Mermish is mermaid-" I started.

"There's mermaids!"

"Anyone can speak Troll." Fred said in a dismissive voice, "All you have to do is point and grunt." About half of us laughed.

"Any news of Bertha Jorkins yet, Ludo?" Mr. Weasley asked and I stopped laughing. Harry and I exchanged an uncomfortable look.

"Not a dicky bird. But she'll turn up. Poor old Bertha. . . memory like a leaky cauldron and no sense of direction. Lost, you take my word for it. She'll wander back into the office sometime in October, thinking it's still July."

"Yeah, yeah there's mermaids and centaurs and dragons and pixies and fairies and unicorns." I muttered under my breath trying to ignore the ongoing conversation. "Ghosts, poltergeists, house-elfs, vampires, a lot of different magical creatures."

"You don't think it might be time to send someone to look for her?" Mr. Weasley suggested.

"There's a lot of creatures that even Muggles don't know about like bowtruckles or fire crabs or acromantula." I continued hurriedly.

"What are Acromantula?" Trang asked in interest.

"Huge talking spides." I said.

Trang shuddered.

"Barty Crouch keeps saying that." Ludo said, taking a tea from Percy. "but we really can't spare anyone at the moment. Oh- talk of the devil! Barty!"

Barty Crouch apparated out of the air, wearing a stiff, impeccable suit and tie. Everything from his neatly combed hairdo to his polished shoes yelled professionalism and rule-follower. Fred actually wrinkled his nose while I thought Percy might bend over and kiss his shoes.

"Pull up a bit of grass, Barty." Ludo said, patting the ground next to him.

"No thank you, Ludo. I've been looking for you everywhere. The Bulgarians are insisting we add another twelve seats to the Top Box."

"Oh is that what they're after? I thought the chap was asking to borrow a pair of tweezers. Bit of a strong accent." Ludo said.

Trang and I laughed.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" Percy asked breathlessly, in a sort of half bow. Trang was giggling like mad.

"Oh. Yes- thank you, Weatherby." Mr. Crouch said in a bit of mild surprise, looking at Percy.

Tea spewed from my mouth as I snorted and I quickly covered my mouth. Fred and George both choked on their tea and Trang's giggles increased. Percy's ears turned red.

"Oh, and I've been wanting a word with you too, Arthur. Ali Bashir's on the warpath. He wants a word with you about your embargo on flying carpets." Barty Crouch said, staring down at Mr. Weasley as he still hadn't sat down.

"I sent him an owl about that just last week. If I've told him once I've told him a hundred times: Carpets are defined as a Muggle artifact by the Registry of Proscribe Charmable Objects, but will he listen?"

"Why are magical carpets banned?" Trang asked me in undertone.

"If a Wizard tried to sell it to a Muggle pawn shop for money- well Muggles don't think carpets fly now, do they?" I said.

"Ali thinks there's a niche in the market for a family vehicle." Mr. Crouch was saying, "I remember my grandfather had an Axminster that could seat twelve- but that was before carpets were banned, of course."

I rolled my eyes.

"Soo, been keeping busy, Barty?" Bagman asked stupidly.

"Fairly. Organizing Portkeys across five continents is no mean feat, Ludo." Mr. Crouch said in dry sarcasm.

"I expect you'll both be glad when this is over?" Mr. Weasley asked curiously.

Ludo Bagman managed to look shocked. "Glad! Don't know when I've had more fun... Still, it's not as though we haven't got anything to look forward to, eh, Barty? Eh? Plenty left to organize, eh?"

Mr. Crouch raised a disapproving eyebrow. "We agreed not to make the announcement until all the details-"

Ludo waved a hand. "Oh details! They've signed, haven't they? They've agreed haven't they? I bet you anything these kids'll know soon enough anyway. I mean, it's happening at Hogwarts-"

"Ludo, we need to meet the Bulgarians, you know." Mr. Crouch said interrupting whatever he was about to say. "Thank you for the tea, Wetherby." He pushed the tea back to Percy, untouched. Bagman got to his feet with a bit of difficulty, gold jingling in his pockets.

"See you all later! You'll be up in the top Box with me- I'm commentating!" He waved while Mr. Crouch simply gave us a curt nod and they both Disapparated.

"Wish Lee Jordan was commenting." I said mildly.

George laughed while Fred asked Mr. Weasley what was supposed to be happening at Hogwarts this year.

"You'll find out soon enough." Mr. Weasley said smiling.

"I won't." Trang said dejectedly.

"Don't worry, I'll write to you about it." I said.

"It's classified information, until such time as the Ministry decides to release it." Percy said in a stiff voice. "Mr. Crouch was quite right not to disclose it."

"Oh shut up, Weatherby." Fred said shortly.

I laughed again and then got up and went into the girls' tent to take a nap. 

⬅️➡️

[vdoesstuff]

GUYSGUYSGUYSGUYS GUESS WHAT

I MIGHT HAVE GOTTEN MY FAMILY TO READ PJO

And if I get them to read PJO, I can get them to read HOO. And If they get to HOO, THEY WILL UNDERSTAND WHY I ALWAYS SAY “What happened in Albania stays in Albania” AND MY OBSESSION WITH STARS

“My lady I can see the stars”

“Say hello to the stars for me”

*Sobbing*

And they will know the pain and pure joy that is House of Hades. (CoughcoughCUPIDI’M LOOKINGATYOUcough)

[hprecfest]

DAY 15 RECS FROM DREAMWIDTH & ELSEWHERE

Seven Drops and Asphodel Blooms (5,049 words) by wendolynStacy

Gen ||

When Harry blows up Aunt Marge during the summer, Dumbledore is much quicker to react. Snape finds him far before the Minister does, but his plan of dropping him off with a lecture and half a dozen additional summer assignments doesn't work out. In which Harry spends the summer at Spinner's End.

At The End Of The Rope (35,258 words) by Shiftylinguini

Teddy Lupin /James Sirius Potter || rec

Everyone presents in the springtime of their fifteenth year, and no one was more excited about this than James ― or more disappointed when it didn’t happen. But that’s okay, at twenty-two he’s now made peace with being an Absent Presentation, and with his conviction that no one in their right mind would want to be with or claim someone like him, least of all the person he really wants. He’s got his work and his right hand, and even if he sometimes thinks about what it would be like to be honest with Teddy about how he feels, he knows he couldn’t bear the rejection ― at least, that’s what he tells himself when he can’t get to sleep at night. But all that is tested after a run-in with an overzealous admirer and a routine Auror call-out gone drastically wrong. As James is left now presenting in full as an Omega, and bound to stay in Teddy’s presence, the careful balancing act he’s built his life around grows more precarious by the second.

The Purpose of An Editor (is to survive the Author) (5,424 words) by limeta

Abraxas Malfoy/Tom Riddle || rec

Tom Riddle does not go to Albania. Instead he becomes Bathilda Bagshot's editor.

[aijamisespava]

My Ideal Eurovision 2024

Well, we've had all of the competing songs for a while now. We've ranked them, we've pit them against the 2023 songs, we've even commiserated over the Semi-Final Running Orders.

But...there is one question that I've noticed is in most Eurovision fan's head, myself included: What if MY National Final Winners Won? And that's what I'm here to share. Below, as you can see from the title, is the Eurovision 2024 had all my National Final winners were selected.

DISCLAIMER: This is not a ranking. I'll have conclusions toward the end of the post. Countries are listed in alphabetical order. I won't change internal selections because that takes up way too much time that I really don't have. And, since this is FOR FUN, if a country has 2 songs that I liked equally, I include both. LET'S GO!

Albania: "Jetën N'skaj" by Erina & The Elementals (unknown placement) Armenia: "Jako" by Ladavina (Internally Selected) Australia: "One Milkali (One Blood)" by Electric Fields (Internally Selected) Austria: "We Will Rave" by Kaleen (Internally Selected) Belgium: "Before The Party's Over" by Mustii (Internally Selected) Croatia: "Rim Tim Tagi Dim' by Baby Lasagna (1st in NF)/"Voljena ženo" by Damir Kedžo (4th in NF) Cyprus: "Liar" by Silia Kapsis (Internally Selected) Czechia: "Red Flag Parade" by MYDY (3rd in NF) Denmark: "Sand" by Saba (1st in NF) Estonia: "My Friend" by Ollie (2nd in NF) Finland: "Dancing With Demons" by Cyan Kicks (4th in NF) France: "Mon Amour" by Slimane (Internally Selected) Georgia: "Firefighter" by Nusta (Internally Selected) Germany: "Naiv" by Marie Reim (6th in NF) Greece: "Zari" by Marina Satti (Internally Selected) Iceland: "Scared Of Heights" by Hera Björk (1st in NF)/"Wild West" by Bashar Murad (2nd in NF) Ireland: "Love Me Like I Do" by Erica-Cody (4th in NF) Italy: "Tu No" by Irama (5th in NF) Latvia: "Heaven's Raining Down On Me" by Patrīcija Spale (NQ in NF Semi) Lithuania: "Luktelk" by Silvester Belt (1st in NF) Luxembourg: "Drowning In The Rain" by Krick (2nd in NF) Malta: "Wild Card" by Gail (11th in NF) Moldova: "In The Middle" by Natalia Barbu (1st in NF) Netherlands: "Europapa" by Joost Klein (Internally Selected) Norway: "Heart On Fire" by Myra (NQ in NF Semi) Poland: "The Tower" by Luna (Internally Selected*) *I know some songs were released, but it was an internal selection* Portugal: "You Can't Hide" by Filipa (10th in NF Semi, NQ) San Marino: "11:11" by Megara (1st in NF*) *I didn't rank the NF songs since UVPSM happened in a literal blink* Serbia: "Ramonda" by Teya Dora (1st in NF)/"Duga je noć" by Filip Baloš (10th in NF Semi, NQ) Slovenia: "Veronika" by Raiven (Internally Selected) Spain: "Sé quién soy" by Angy Fernández (3rd in NF)/"Here To Stay" by Sofia Coll (7th in NF) Sweden: "Awful Liar" by Lisa Ajax (11th in NF) Switzerland: "The Code" by Nemo (Internally Selected) Ukraine: "Teresa & Maria" by alyona alyona/Jerry Heil (1st in NF)/"Dreamer" by Mélovin (3rd in NF) United Kingdom: "Dizzy" by Olly Alexander (Internally Selected)

Conclusions: Even with my NF winners, it still would have been a stacked year (bad bias joke, you can laugh now). But being honest, I think out of all of these, Belgium still would have been my winner. Serbia still would have scored well. The only threat I see to Belgium would be if Luxembourg had chosen Krick.