The newest batch of Hogwarts students have entered this historic school and no one knows how their future will turn out - will you be a quidditch pro or maybe a prefect? The year is now 2021, and now it's time for the next generation to make their mark. The newest batch of Hogwarts students have entered this historic school and no one knows how their future will turn out - and that is where the fun begins.
The plot will be determined by the characters of the site as of now - future plots will change as these forces weigh in on the Wizarding World, and we see where these characters take us. So join in and let your character make their mark!
Minimum word count is 200.
February was not really the ideal month to be traipsing out into the Grounds in the early evening. There had been moments during the day that Noah had seen glimpses of the sun peeking out behind the clouds, but the frost still clung to the castle windows, and there was an ever present chill in the air that you felt deep in your bones. But still, as the noise of Hogwarts at dinner roared around him, Noah had felt stifled in the Great Hall; granted, the discussion at the Ravenclaw table had been as stimulating as ever, and he'd enjoyed mostly listening to the debates happening around him. But there was something under his skin that had started to itch, and it didn't subside until he'd wrapped himself up and headed outside. Smiling to himself gently, he tugged his blue scarf around his neck a little tighter and set off to the Great Lake.
There was a little spot he knew there well - he'd retreated to it often enough over the years at Hogwarts. Not because he felt like he had to get away, so to speak - but sometimes he just liked to have his solitary moments to mull over the day, without the chatter of the rest of the school around him. These moments, of course, were always best when he was outside - where he felt like he could breathe in time with the breeze and sway gently with the trees - he always felt a little bit calmer and at one with the world when he could watch the ripples of the Lake, and take in the great expanse of the castle from his quiet little spot on the grass. He reached his destination eventually, and made himself comfortable, taking in a long and deep breath and taking in the view. Without even thinking about it, he pulled his tarot deck from his pocket, and began to shuffle them idly in his hands.
tagged: open words: 324 notes: throwing lil bb noah out into the world
last edited May 7, 2018 21:48:21 GMT by Noah B. Wood
Artemis loved her post-dinner walks. After spending an entire day inside the castle’s dreary walls, a wander around the grounds with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders and a cup of hot chocolate in hand was the perfect way to greet the evening. Very few students left the castle these days unless they had to; spring was just around the corner, but until then, the mid-February was crisp and unforgiving--and that was without the wind. Snow tumbled from a stream of thin, grey clouds, the air cold enough to evoke wispy white plumes from Artemis’ mouth with every breath she took. The sixth-year snuggled deeper into her blanket, and sighed contentedly.
Her walk would have to be a short one. There were a hundred other, more important things that needed her attention that evening. She was really just avoiding the mountain of homework that awaited her back in the common room, but for right now, in the perfect stillness of the evening, Artemis could care less about Transfiguration and Golpalott's Third Law. Right now, the only thing keeping the eagle sane was the soft way the snow fell from the sky, and the sound of her boots tracing a path through the ice-covered grass.
She was nearing the end of her route when the sight of a figure by the Lake caught her attention. Not one to miss an opportunity to further procrastinate on her homework, Artemis approached, careful to watch her step so as to not spill her hot chocolate.
“Nice evening,” she said by way of greeting. Her eyes, attracted to the absent movement of Noah’s hands, drifted downwards where she watched him shuffle his cards for a few moments, enjoying the soft silence between them. “Did you come all the way out here to do a reading?”
Her own cards were back in the dorm, wrapped in cerulean-coloured silk and tucked away in her trunk. She usually only did readings during a new lunar phase, or on the night of a festival; she never thought to take them out into the snow.
☽☾
Words: 345 Tags: Noah B. Wood Notes: procrastination is the best game
Noah barely even noticed the sound of steps nearing him, so wrapped up he was in his surroundings - taking in the beautiful sights of the Lake's gentle ripples every couple of minutes, disturbing its otherwise ethereal calm, the sting of the cool breeze against his cheek, and the calming rhythm of his hands shuffling his cards over and over. All of it together had sent him into a comfortable lull, where he was happy to just exist for a while without having to think too much - the calm and his connection with the world around him was probably doing the world of good for the cards. He hadn't particularly expected to come out here to do a reading for himself, but he supposed that now would be as good a time as any if the world wanted to tell him something.
It was only when he felt a presence standing over him that he chanced a look up, and he smiled gently at the bright-haired girl, standing out as a beacon among the cold tones of the Scottish winter. He felt warmer already. "Hogwarts is very beautiful," he said as a way of a reply - and as she gestured down to the cards in his hands, stilled for a moment from their idle shuffling, he shrugged. "I just came here for the views," he told her honestly. "But I was just thinking I might dabble in some kind of reading. The moment's kind of calling to me right now." And he may have come here for some solitude in nature, but Noah wasn't about to say no to spending some time with such a kindred soul as Artemis when nature around them seemed to call for some quiet contemplation. He shifted slightly from where he was settled, and tapped the ground next to him as a kind of invitation for her to take a seat.
Artemis accepted her housemate’s invitation without hesitation. She lowered herself as gracefully as she could manage, brows narrowed in concentration as she tried to keep her hot chocolate from sloshing over the sides of her mug; despite her best efforts, a few drops spilled onto the ground, a silent sacrifice to the floor gods.
“What sort of deck do you have?” The Sixth Year asked, setting her mug in a small snow drift at her feet. She scooched closer to Noah and rearranged her blanket so it wrapped snugly around his shoulders as well as her own. “I use Tarot of the Old Path, mostly for the vibrancy of the artwork and the way the colours and imagery cast a spell all their own. The deck I had before was alright, but it wasn’t mine in the way this one is mine, you know? The Old Path chose me. I almost didn’t have a choice.”
As Artemis bubbled over with memories, she recalled that day in the dusty old shop on the corner, remembered the way the faded sunbeams caught the dust motes hanging in the air, the way the smell of old leather and parchment had filled in her nose. Her deck had been in a pile of decks tumbling from on a towering bookshelf near the back. The store owner insisted he was moving things around, but the fine layer of dust coating the boxes told a different story. She hadn’t been looking for a new deck, not really, but there was something about the cluttered pile of dusty decks that kept catching her eye; when she finally succumbed to the silent call and wandered over to the bookshelf, she shuffled aimlessly through the decks, and saw it: a battered cardboard box with the Queen of Pentacles on the front. The moment she saw that picture, she knew there was something special about the deck in her hands. She bought it on the spot.
That had been four years ago, and there had been many an adventure between then and now.
“Want some hot chocolate? I can summon another mug, if you like.”
☽☾
Words: 355 Tags: Noah B. Wood Notes: comfy cozy and excited about tarot
Artemis was the kind of gentle soul that Noah felt instantly comfortable around. It wasn't often you'd find people like that around the castle, Noah found - so much about their environment was transient, given how they all grew and developed so rapidly and in such different ways. Everyone was always changing, and it was exciting to watch that, but because of it sometimes Noah felt like nothing was too permanent, because no-one seemed to be as fundamentally grounded as he was (and always had been). He'd been told enough times by his parents that he was an old man beyond his time, and other adults around him growing up had often commented on the fact that he seemed infinitely wise for his age, and even the excitements of childhood and beginning ravages of puberty hadn't done much to dampen his distinct demeanour. But Artemis - Noah perceived that she held onto a similarly strong sense of self, and that made him feel comfortable.
"Fascinating - but that's always the way, isn't it?" he said in reply, smiling lazily, with a little hint of his teeth appearing. "You've got to go where you're told to go," he added vaguely. He held up the deck in his hand, battered and well worn over years of use and being carried around in a teenage boy's pocket. "I have a few, but these guys are old faithful." Rider-Waite; the first set he'd over owned, and the best to try and communicate through for other people. "If I'd known I'd be coming out here tonight, I might have thought to bring down my Moon Oracle." He looked up a little, and even as the sun was setting, you could begin to see the outline of the Moon in the sky. It was comforting - especially now and here with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.
Noah only paused to consider her offer for a second - because as much as he loved the outdoors, he wasn't going to sit here in a Scottish February and say no to hot drink to warm his insides and extremities. "I would like," he said, still smiling his gentle, relaxed smile. "Thank you." He looked out again, taking in the view, and enjoying the few beats of silence between them as they sat together. Then he asked, "So what brings you out here this evening?"
“My mother has a Moon Oracle,” Artemis chimed, shuffling closer to better adjust the blanket. Both their knees and shoulders touched gently, but the sixth year didn’t bother pulling away; she felt more than comfortable sharing her space with his. “I don’t see her take it out much, but when she does, she’s outside for ages. Usually on the roof. Her feet dangle in front of the window.”
The heavy February stillness hushed the world around them. Silences rose and fell, soft and comfortable and cozy, and she was glad for the reprieve of trying to fit every moment with wasted words. The ground was cold beneath her, but not so much that she was bothered by it. The chill was satisfying, in its own way, grounding her in the moment with its icy touch.
When Noah agreed to sharing the hot chocolate, Artemis beamed. Her wand was currently twirled and tucked into a messy knot at the top of her head, and as she gave it a good yank, her hair tumbled down to spill across her shoulders in colourful waves of aquamarine and magenta. Wand in hand, she pictured her spare mug, the purple one her mother had only just gifted her at Christmas, and traced an upside-down ‘U’ in the still winter air.
“Accio mug!”
It didn’t take long for the mug to come hurtling towards them. Artemis saw it before she heard it, a violaceous blob against the drab sky. It slowed down before it reached their little spot, and she was only just able to snag it out of the air before it plummeted to the ground. With great care and attention, the sixth year poured hot chocolate from one mug to the other before handing the purple mug to her housemate.
“One hot chocolate, as ordered!”
Her smile widened. She had made it herself and was awfully proud of how it had turned out.
“I rather enjoy taking a post-supper wander around the grounds,” she answered, eyes drifting out towards the lake. “It’s so calm out here. So peaceful. Helps clear my head, you know? Shakes me loose after a day of lessons. If something catches my eye maybe I’ll paint it, but I mostly just wanted a break from school. N.E.W.T.s are crazy. Don’t let anyone try to tell you otherwise.”
Artemis sighed and twirled her wand around her hair, tucking it back into a whimsical topknot for safekeeping. She sipped pensively at her hot chocolate before gesturing to Noah’s mug.
Ravenclaw was a unique house in a lot of ways - most people seemed to be of the opinion Hufflepuff was the most diverse house, born out of the natural assumption that that was where all the 'spare' people went. Noah of course, knew this to be untrue, and moreover found that it was one of the most unified houses in their unequivocal sense of fairness and loyalty - a lot of likeminded people found their way to Hufflepuff. The same could not be said of Ravenclaw, where all manner of different minded individuals could find themselves housed. Noah enjoyed this variety for the most part - it was thrilling to see all the ways people could think and interpret - but there were the obstinate few that shared the Ravenclaw house that could tend to believe in absolutes in a way that Noah couldn't fathom. It was clear to him Artemis was, much like himself, not a part of that faction of Ravenclaws, and for that he was grateful. It tired him out to spend time around such individuals all the time, and especially now when he was trying to relax and contemplate.
He nodded thoughtfully as he let her speak, and gratefully accepted the mug of hot chocolate that was consequently summoned, poured and handed to him with a smile. He settled in and enjoyed the warmth of the drink in his grasp and travelling down his throat. He was more partial to tea most of the time, but there was something fun in switching it up to hot chocolate here with Artemis - it seemed to suit her and the mood of their conversation, somehow. He was listening dutifully as she spoke though, watching her intently as he paid her his utmost attention - he may not be so much of a talker all the time, but he knew and enjoyed listening.
"It's great," he said eventually, when she turned her attention back to him, and he took another sip to show for it. He swallowed before he continued, curious about what she might say next. "I've been very much warned about all the work to come from my sister, don't worry." He paused before asking. "Is it just the work that's a lot? I can't help but notice some of the older years are having a lot of drama at the minute. I bet being around that can be a bit exhausting."
Artemis was silent a moment as she pondered the younger eagle’s question. Her eyes wandered to the sunset, admiring the way the mountains drank the last of the daylight. Spring was just around the corner but even so, there was a crispness in the air that was both welcomed and shunned. A shiver ran through her and she snuggled deeper into her blanket, seeking solace in the hot chocolate warming her fingers.
“It’s relentless,” she admitted at last. There was a shrug in her voice that drifted into a lilting meander as she tried to put her finger on why exactly N.E.W.Ts were so utterly and completely exhausting. “There’s no escape from it. There’s class then homework then studying then sleep, rinse repeat, and there’s hardly time to breathe let alone think, and then you’re seeing Transfiguration laws in your sleep. It’s exhausting. No time to recharge your batteries. They’re running on half juice, all the time, every day.”
The Sixth Year allowed herself a calming sip of hot chocolate before continuing.
“You’re alright if you put your head down and focus on what you need to get done, but people fall apart around you all the time from the stress of it, and that’s what does it. Then you start to unwind and you don’t even realize it’s happening until you find yourself crying in the shower and you can’t stop.”
Artemis shrugged for real this time, the gesture heavy and almost sad. She swirled the remains of her hot chocolate, watching the way the dregs of cinnamon and cayenne pepper slopped against the sides of the mug, almost mixing but never quite managing it.
“It’s not all bad,” she promised with a bright smile as her brain switched tracks. “You do learn a lot, some of which is so crazy, so astronomically huge that it makes the learning of it worth it. Like how to turn yourself into an inanimate object. I never would have thought that I would be learning how to turn myself into a lamp at seventeen.”
She lifted her mug and finished off the last of her hot chocolate, her tongue stretching out to lick the milk mustache from her upper lip.
“What about you? Is there something you’re looking forward to learning?”