Archive of Five Words Stories

Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 12:50 pm

These stats were first posted by Finn BV - Jul 8, 2008 11:13 pm (#523 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Statistics for Story 82
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Potteraholic	132
Verity Weasley	118
Orion	4
Dryleaves	4
azi	57
PatPat	147
Anna L. Black	8
PeskyPixie	24
mona amon	24
Finn BV	1

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 519
Total Words: 2595
Last Submission Date: #519, July 6, 2008, 4:08 am (PatPat)
Total Time to Create Story: 5 days, 22 hours, 1 minute

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #82, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: "Dean and Seamus' Strange South American Excursion (Aventuras en Argentina)"

This story was posted on July 8, 2008. Ten writers contributed to the story, which is 2,595 words long. Two of the eight writers posted feedback.

- Finn BV, Jul 8, 2008 11:19 pm: Whew, that was exhausting. Took a long time to compile due to the length of the story and that I'm out of practice and didn't leave myself enough time to wade through all the posts. Thanks for being patient, everybody. And many many thanks to PatPat for helping with stats today!! ::thank-you smilie::

And congratulations to her too, she had a ginormous number of posts to make her the starter of the next story!

I will be active in these next stories, as it's summer for me now and I'm done with vacationing (until August…). I work now but when I get home I should be up for posting and compiling.

PeskyPixie had mentioned a little while ago about a "tripping up" type of Five Words… I don't think that would go over so well here on this thread, but I think some things you guys (meaning everyone) should look into are the "Neverending Story" threads right above the Writing Challenges on this Forum. They are similar to Five Words in that they mean communal posting, but there's no restriction on how many words you post, and the point is really to create a silly, long, epic, grandiose story. I would try it out. I do believe I'm the last person to post on the two open threads. They might be quite long for you to read through (but then again, I read all of the posts on both a long time, and it's a lot of fun), so I'm sure we could go ahead and start a new Neverending Story -- how about it Pesky? Why don't you take a look at those threads (everybody, really, they're hilarious), and see what you think?
Anyway, props to PatPat, I eagerly anticipate the next story!

- PatPat, Jul 8, 2008 11:57 pm: No problem, Finn! I was glad to help. That's an interesting idea about Neverending Story. I will check it out.

As for this story, I like how it turned out. During the writing, I was feeling like it was dragging on, but I actually think it came out pretty well. I just noticed as I was reading that we never explained about the glasses from the beginning, but, if we had, it may have turned into the next Order of the Phoenix! Anyway, that's very JKR-like! Maybe the glasses will pop up later in another Dean and Seamus story!

- Verity Weasley, Jul 9, 2008 1:18 am: Thanks Finn for posting the story and stats. It must have been a mammoth task. Well done PatPat on your phenomenal number of posts! I agree that the story turned out a lot better than I expected. It did feel as though it was taking us ages to get anywhere when we were posting, but in the end, I think it worked well. Yes, I wondered about those glasses as well

- PeskyPixie, Jul 9, 2008 2:46 am: The previous story turned out really well, especially considering how clunkily it moved along while it was being written!

- Potteraholic, Jul 10, 2008 5:21 am: I thought the 'Aventuras en Argentina' story was a hoot! The smile on my face at the start of the story turned into a grin as I made my way through the 2nd half.

Great job posting this epic, Finn, and congrats to PatPat on the number of posts and starting another story in the past. I think those are my favorite kind.

Welcome back, Puck!

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 12:52 pm

This story was first posted by PatPat - Aug 1, 2008 8:16 pm (#1104 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Potty Five Words: "Sneaking Around"

Eileen Prince looked at Severus and smiled. He looked so funny in his father's oversized coat, especially in the middle where it draped over him. He looked like a little house-elf trying to fit into an extra large pillowcase. She really ought to get him better clothes, but Tobias always snarled so much whenever she mentioned anything to do with Severus. Sometimes, she thought that he didn't love even his own son. But perhaps it most of all was a reaction against his magical abilities, which had shown themselves early.

"Mum, will the barber cut all of my hair?" asked Severus.

"No, we can't afford that. Just a trim," Eileen said. "And no shampoo either." She hated denying him such basic things, but since Tobias was always so stingy with wasting money on anything that was for Severus, she couldn't pay the full cost of a nice haircut and wash. "Hurry up now or we shall be late," she urged.

Severus looked sullen and took a small wooden stick out of the pocket of the massive coat. He pointed it at his too long hair and mumbled, "I want it the way it is. I don't want to look like Dad." Reluctantly, he went along with his mother. She took his hand, giving it a squeeze, "make sure you hold your head up straight. Otherwise you'll get a permanent slouch."

"Yeah, as if I care about that when you and Dad keep fighting! I can't stand it much longer!" He would be leaving for Hogwarts School in another couple of months. His admission letter was tucked safely inside Severus' shoe. He pulled it out every evening before he went to bed, and sat gloating over the list of required equipment. At last he'd get new clothes. Wizard ones! And most importantly, a magic wand of his own, a real wand! Although the day when he would go to school was drawing nearer it felt as though it would never get there. The days were dragging slowly, and he was getting impatient.

"What will happen if I don't get sorted into Slytherin?" Severus asked, a worried look on his sallow face.

"Don't worry. I don't care which house you are in." Eileen replied. "Why do you want to know?"

Severus shrugged, "I was reading Hogwarts: A History and it seems like the Gryffindors are dunderheads, the Ravenclaws are nerds, and the Hufflepuffs... well, they're Hufflepuffs. They're pathetic! Loyal and hardworking? How boring?!"

"I can't argue about Hufflepuffs, but Severus dear, you really can't choose, can you? The Sorting Hat decides where you belong. The Hat knows best. Now stop asking questions and go outside and play," Eileen insisted.

"But what about my hair?" Severus asked. "I don't want it to grow too long. Don't want to look odd, do I, Mum?"

Eileen sighed, thinking that her son was so completely unaware of their financial situation. "I'll cut it myself," she said.

He wrinkled his nose, distastefully, "No way!" he shouted. "I said I wanted to go to Diagon Alley to get everything for school. We can get my hair cut there, can't we?"

Eileen sighed, "I suppose we could, dear. But remember we have a tight budget, so the only new thing will be your wand. Everything else will have to be second hand. I have some of the books that you will be needing. Now, let's call Lily and see when she will be getting her school things. Maybe she will meet us in Diagon Alley," she said, smiling at him. Severus ran as fast as he could to the phone and, with trembling hands, he dialed the number he knew so well, but each time his fingers slipped on the rotary dial. He wondered if she would be able to meet them at Diagon Alley. After an eternity, a voice answered.

"Evans residence, Petunia speaking.”

"Ummm, hello, can I speak to Lily, please?"

"Who's this?"

"It's Severus."

"Severus who?" Petunia asked in a harsh tone. "Severus Snape... I'm a friend of Lily's."

"Oh, the greasy-haired kid. Why do you want to speak to my sister?"

"Could you just tell her," Severus said impatiently, "that I am going to Diagon Alley today and I wanted to ask when she was going to get her school stuff."

"I don't know what you're talking about, and you're wasting my time, you freak," Petunia said, haughtily.

Snape flushed, "You just—" he started, but the phone clicked in his ear. Frustrated, he replaced the receiver angrily and thought for a minute. "I'm going out, Mum," he called. "I'll be back soon." He hurried out the door before she could answer and ran through the labyrinth of streets and alleys of Spinner's End and across the stepping stones over the stream. He reached the little house to which he wished he belonged and saw that Lily was sitting on the front porch, watching a small, fuzzy cat stretching on the doormat. She wasn't touching it, but it seemed to be mesmerized by her, purring and pawing at her hands. She laughed and Severus' heart jumped at the sound. He called her name quietly as he came closer to the tangled hedge and she looked up, her startling green eyes, boring into his.

"Hi Severus," she cried, jumping from the porch and running to open the gate. She looked positively delighted to see him and giggled as she led him over to the porch and pulled him up the step. "I'm so glad you came. I was furious with Pet when she wouldn't let me talk to you on the phone. I got my letter!" She laughed excitedly and ran inside, dragging Severus with her. "And my supplies list. They sound so strange! A cauldron! And a book about History of Magic! And the best… a wand, a magic wand, of my own! I still can't believe it's really happening already! But you know," she whispered, conspiratorially, "Tuney was really upset, poor thing. She wants to go too.”

Severus snorted, “She's a dunderhead, a snotty stupid Muggle! There's no way…"

Lily interrupted him angrily, "She is my sister! Don't you dare speak about her like that!" Her green eyes flashed dangerously.

Severus could tell that she was upset and didn't want her to become even angrier. "When are you going to Diagon Alley to buy everything? We can go together!" he said, excitedly. "My mum and I are probably going there later. Can you come?"

Lily bit her lip and crinkled her nose, "I don't know if my mum and dad will want to go yet, though. They have been trying to cheer Tuney up ever since Professor Dumbledore came to our house to explain things."

"You mean you've actually met Professor Dumbledore?! I heard that he was a little mental. He'd have to be, taking such an unusual interest in a Dark Wizard like Grindelwald.”

Lily looked puzzled, "Who's Grindelwald?"

"Oh, it doesn't matter,” Severus explained. “Just a wizard that Dumbledore defeated. A terrible, evil wizard who did unspeakable things,” he said, though he looked fascinated.

Lily looked impressed, but also worried, “There is so much about the Magical World that I just don't know about. I will be the worst student at Hogwarts, I bet."

"Don't worry,” Severus reassured her, "you'll do fine. Loads of kids come from Muggle families and even pure-blood kids are learning all new stuff. You will probably be the smartest student in our year." Severus smiled shyly as Lily's eyes danced at his words.

"Tuney was ever so upset when she learned I was, you know, a witch,” she whispered. "She got a letter too, but she cried when she read it."

"A letter? Really? Have you seen it? I never thought a Muggle would get a letter from a wizard. Did it come by owl?"

Lily nodded, "Yes, but it pecked Tuney when she tried to pet it. It's gone now. She wouldn't let anyone read it at first."

Severus looked thoughtful. "So, you can send a letter to a wizard by Muggle post?"

"Why not?" Lily wanted to know.

"Well, the only way you can write to a wizard that I know of is by owl. But since your sister did it, I guess there must be wizards working undercover in the postal service who take care of post that's addressed to wizards… That's pretty cool!" said Severus.

"Lily!" called a voice from inside.

"Yes, Mum!" she answered.

"Have you seen Tuney? I want her to help me vacuum and dust."

"She is in her room, I think." Lily looked at Severus again. "Tuney really likes cleaning," she said.

Severus was still thinking, seemingly oblivious to the exchange, about the letter. He thought about magic and Muggles, while he was watching Lily turn her head from side to side.

"Listen, Severus," she said. “I can see that you are interested in that letter, but I don't know where exactly it is. However, Tuney would be very upset if we read it."

"It's only the envelope I want to see. I wonder if it is in her room?" Severus pondered aloud. "We could sneak in and… perhaps… look around for it."

Lily looked at him. She was curious too. Petunia was in the kitchen, which was far too convenient to ignore. Together, they stood at the bottom of the steps and commenced the ascent to the bedrooms upstairs.

Lily whispered, "Careful, that step creaks if you step in the middle. Better skip it to be sure."

Severus nodded and reached up to the stair above the creaking one with a conspiratorial grin. At the top of the stairs, they tiptoed to the door of Petunia's room. Slowly, Lily turned the handle, anxious not to make a noise, and entered. Severus followed. The room was quite large, lit by the sunshine filtering in through the salmon-coloured curtains. Everything was neatly arranged. There was no hint that a child lived there.

With grins lighting their faces they scanned their eyes over dust-free furniture and spotless carpet, but there wasn't a single scrap of paper to be found. "Let's check her drawers," Severus whispered, quietly approaching the highly polished dressing table. He looked at Lily, who nodded nervously and started to help open the drawers. A few pieces of paper lay on the bottom of the top drawer, but they were for a school project. Severus pulled out a pink singlet, giggling, until Lily snatched it away.

"Severus, we aren't here to look at Tuney's things. We're just looking for the envelope."

Severus stifled his giggle but his black eyes had a mischievous glint, and he started pawing through the contents of the bottom drawer. He stopped suddenly and pulled from underneath a neat pile of white handkerchiefs, under which was a thick, heavy envelope made from yellowish parchment. It had a purple seal depicting a lion, snake, badger, and eagle surrounding an 'H'. Green ink glittered where the address was written in a fancy lettering. Severus turned the envelope over and slid his fingers under the flap. He could feel the thick parchment inside.

"Wait!" cried Lily suddenly. She drew closer to Severus and looked at the envelope. "Do you think Dumbledore wrote to her himself?" Lily asked with shock and excitement in her voice. "Dumbledore? Open it, Sev! Let's see what is written inside."

Severus instantly obeyed and read:

"Dear Miss Evans,

Thank you for your letter. I understand your sincere interest in attending Hogwarts, however, it is my duty to only admit students who have magical talent. I regret very much that I cannot help you. I do hope that you will keep in touch with the wizarding community. Please contact me any time you wish. There is no Wizarding law that states Muggles and wizards cannot be friends. You are welcome to visit Hogwarts. We are as strong as we are united and as weak as we are divided. I hope to meet you someday. Always remember what I have told you.

Sincerely,

Albus P. W. B. Dumbledore.

Severus and Lily finished reading, looking at one another in wonder. Severus carefully folded the letter and slipped it back inside the envelope, replacing it in its original position.

"No wonder Tuney was so upset before. To be told that she has no magical talent! How disappointing!" Lily looked forlorn, but Severus had to hide a little smile. At Hogwarts he wouldn't have to share his friend with anybody.

"Let's go back downstairs and talk about when we'll be getting to Diagon Alley to do our shopping," he said, as he opened the door. Just as they were going to leave the room, they heard footsteps heading in their direction.

"Someone is coming!" Lily whispered, "We have to hide! Follow me." A large wardrobe stood next to the door. Hurriedly, Lily squeezed in behind it with Severus at her heels.

Severus asked, "Why don't we go inside this huge wardrobe?" Then he added mischievously, "We could watch your sister when she comes in."

"Shhh," whispered Lily, her finger on her lips, "she's opening the door right now." The two watched, suppressing their giggles and trying not to breathe too loudly. Petunia entered the room. She was carrying some freshly laundered washing. She stopped and looked at her dresser. One drawer was open more than the usual, acceptable amount. I always make sure my drawers and cupboards are closed before I leave the room. Someone must have been in here. She turned around on the spot, her eyes scanning the room. The two friends in their hiding place almost choked with laughter. Lily put her hand, warningly, across Severus's mouth and nose but it only made him shake harder with laughter as her fingertips tickled his cheeks.

Petunia walked purposefully towards the wardrobe. Her face was flushed. She wrenched open the door of the wardrobe and stared into its depths as Lily and Severus pressed themselves against the back wall. Petunia didn't move. She simply stood there, realizing that the hangers had been moved. She listened carefully for the slightest sound. Cautiously, Lily looked at Severus and noted with surprise that he seemed to have melted into the background. Where did he go? Her eyes wide, she looked down at herself, and realized she couldn't see herself either. She almost yelped with horror. What has happened to us? Why can't I see him or myself? Could this be a magic wardrobe like the one leading to Narnia in the books?! Maybe we are now somewhere… between worlds… Petunia closed the door with a bang and turned away, pausing again and listening.

“Severus," breathed Lily, "are you still there? I can't see you."

"I know," breathed Severus, "I can't see you either."

"Do you… think this wardrobe… is magic?"

"No, I think we did some kind of invisibility charm. It's we who are magical, not the wardrobe," he responded, proudly.

Lily gasped, "I'm a witch! I had been worried that there might be some problems but now I know I really can do powerful magic!" And she, joyfully, hugged her friend.

Severus was overjoyed, but his elation was short-lived. There was a sudden flash of brightness as Petunia opened the door of her room, staring menacingly at the source of the disturbance.

"Petunia!" called a voice from downstairs. She hesitated for a moment, then left the room, reluctantly. Lily and Severus could not believe their luck. They tiptoed to the door of the wardrobe and peeked through the keyhole. The room was empty. So was the keyhole. The two friends glanced at each other and tried to figure out how they were to get out of the wardrobe without the key.

Severus had an idea. "Listen," he said, excitedly. "I think we need to focus our magical power on opening the door. If we both try really hard, we will succeed."

Lily looked nervous, "But I thought we were too young to use magic deliberately? You said so yourself."

"I know, but we just did some really advanced magic! I think we can do it again if we concentrate really hard."

Lily nodded, taking hold of Sev's hand and closing her eyes. Severus stared at the clasped hands before he also closed his eyes and concentrated hard on trying to open the wardrobe door. He was beginning to panic slightly when, suddenly, they heard a loud click and the wardrobe door burst open. With relief, they spilled into the room, giggling and holding hands, their eyes shining with excitement. They ran to the door and were out in a flash, peeking around the corner to the hallway with the staircase.

"I think the coast is clear," whispered Lily, tiptoeing around the corner. "Come on, Sev! Don't dawdle. We have to get downstairs before anyone wonders what we've been up to.”

The two sped nimbly through the hallway, down the stairs and out the front door. Mrs. Evans smiled and waved as they strolled innocently past her and down to the gate. Lily and Severus exchanged looks of glee and anticipation. They were so gifted, and soon they would be on their way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and exciting futures. They could hardly wait.

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 12:53 pm

These stats were first posted by PatPat - Aug 1, 2008 9:11 pm (#1107 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Statistics for Story 83
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
PatPat	141
Verity Weasley	90
PeskyPixie	83
mona amon	53
Finn BV	4
Dryleaves	23
Puck	16
Anna L. Black	38
azi	1
Potteraholic	38
Orion	9
Julia H.	70
Snuffles	9

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 575
Total Words: 2875
Last Submission Date: #1100, July 29, 2008, 4:20 PM (PeskyPixie)
Total Time to Create Story: 20 days, 16 hours, 23 minutes

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #83, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: "Sneaking Around"

This story was posted on August 1, 2008. Thirteen writers contributed to the story, which is 2,875 words long. Five of the thirteen writers posted feedback.

- PatPat, Aug 1, 2008 9:21 pm: OK, everyone! Story is up. There's one problem that Finn or Kip needs to fix, since the story actually was so long it went into a third post. I didn't notice it right away so I can't fix it. But all in all, I think it came out well. We've had two super long stories in a row, so maybe we should try for a shorter one this time?

Anyway, I'll give everyone a little time to comment on this one and then I'll start the new story later this evening. Well done, everyone!

- Potteraholic, Aug 2, 2008 10:50 pm: Congratulations on posting your first official story and stats, PatPat! Love the title! Am going to read the finished story again and post some post-story comments in a moment...

Edit: Hey everyone! I'm back from my trip and back to full access to the internet (and the HP Forum) on my beloved Macbook laptop. Thought I'd celebrate with a new DIY avatar for the new story!

- Verity Weasley, Aug 2, 2008 11:22 pm: Welcome back PAH! It's great to have you back. I hope you had a good trip.

Congratulations PatPat on posting the story. You did a great job, and it was a pretty long one too. Well done!

- PatPat, Aug 2, 2008 11:34 pm: Thanks, Verity! It was extremely long! It took forever to post and then ended up going over onto a third post!

- Potteraholic, Aug 2, 2008 11:38 pm: Wow! Three posts needed for the whole story! I agree with Verity, PatPat. Kudos for keeping it all straight. And I agree with you, PatPat, I think we should really try for a shorter story since we have just had 2 long ones. Now, about the plot... as I said before, it was fun to fill-in the details of canon information and make allusions to things we knew happened in the future. I have just one tiny bone to pick.   Could we always refer to characters' mothers as Mum and not Mom, unless, of course, we are writing for Fleur or some other non-British character. I think Mom (and any American phrases in general) take us slightly out of the HP world that we are trying to create.

- PatPat, Aug 3, 2008 12:19 am: I liked how the story came out too. My only issue was Snape's mother was a little too nurturing for what we know of her. But that's OK.

- Julia H., Aug 3, 2008 6:12 pm: Hi again, everyone! I enjoyed finally reading the last (completed) story! I enjoyed taking part in writing it, too. It is great to write stories for which there is some basis in canon, providing a framework, but we can invent the details ourselves.

- PeskyPixie, Aug 3, 2008 9:01 pm: The last story turned out great, I think. Great job, PatPat. I agree that Eileen Prince was nicer than I expected, but maybe Severus had confunded her with her own wand?

And Quinn, I hope you come back. Orion's right, you have to be willful and steer around the steering.

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* Five Words - Volumes Index *

* Five Words - Main Archives *

* Five Words - Stories Index (by topic) *

Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 12:55 pm

This story was first posted by Potteraholic - Aug 8, 2008 11:30 pm (#1472 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Potty Five Words "The Crazy Mixed-Up Story of Regulus and Bellatrix (and Dumbledorish Guy?)"

Sirius lay, pouting, on his bed while an amused James sat at the foot, grinning. "Come on, it's gonna be a great party! I bet we can get Lily Evans to let her hair down for a change," he said cheerfully. "I fail to see why you are so mad."

Sirius peeped through his fringe and scowled. "I just don't feel like celebrating. My Mum has been on the warpath again with all her pure-blood craziness. I just want to leave that bloody place once and for all. I can't believe that Reg doesn't seem to mind the crazy ideas that are always spewing out of our parents' mouths."

James replied, "Yeah, and your brother does tend to follow Trixie's every move, too, like a little lap dog. It's disgusting."

Sirius agreed. "I just can't understand why he is willing to put up with nutters like her and Lucius. They drive me mad." He leaned over the edge of his bed and whispered conspiratorially, "We should try to find out what he is up to; he has been rather strange lately. More than usual, I mean." Sirius grinned. James looked at Sirius' hand, which fumbled around awhile under the mattress. A second later, he pulled out a battered old tin which he opened to reveal a collection of family photographs. Pawing through them, he extracted an old black and white photograph, which included Sirius, Regulus, Andromeda, Bellatrix, and Narcissa. Bellatrix was pointing her wand in Sirius's direction, and was that Dumbledore in the background? No, it was someone else... it was Aberforth Dumbledore, looking puzzled.

"Who's this standing behind you?" James asked.

"Him? No idea," Sirius replied. "But notice my dear cousin trying to kill me with that cold, hard stare of hers."

"But that guy looks familiar. Anyhow, where was this picture taken?" James asked.

Sirius smiled mysteriously. "Believe it or not, this at was at my parents' summer home, during a Black Family reunion. All sorts of pure-blood mania in the house... but you're right, that guy looks a bit like old Dumbledore."

James asked, "Why'd you choose to go? And what's Dumbledore's—"

"That old bloke's not important—"

“Isn't he?" asked James. "Why?"

"James, look, I chose this—"

"Sirius, mate, you're dodging an—"

"Padfoot! Prongs!” Remus ran in and stopped suddenly, surprised by the sight of Sirius' photographs. "Isn't that Dumbledore?" he asked, gazing intently at the faded photograph.

"It's a Dumbledore, not our Headmaster, though," said James. Taking the photo, Remus looked at it again. "That's Regulus isn't it?" he said, pointing. "There's Padfoot's cousin dearest, Trixie! She looks like she's baring fangs!"

"You'd know about fangs, wouldn't you, Moony?" James laughed.

“Why, yes, Prongs, my friend," said Remus, grinning, "though Trixie has larger fangs than I ever do!"

Sirius clapped him on the shoulder. "But Reg finds her sweet and amiable. Andie calls her ‘The Rottweiler’," Sirius explained, smirking. "The name is an insult to the noble hound. Trixie's more like a dragon, sitting on eggs."

James and Remus nodded. "That's no overstatement," James said. But he was still curious about the man in the background, looking puzzled. Why this particular photograph? he mused. "Why did you choose this picture, then?" he asked. "What's so special about it?”

"Well," Sirius answered, "if you look at Reg's face you can see that there is a scratch on the bridge of his nose. Where and when did he get that, do you think?" He paused. James and Remus shrugged. They did not find anything unusual about a scratched nose.

"Fell off his broom, maybe?" offered James.

"No, nothing as ordinary as that. Must have happened right before the reunion; he refused to tell anybody what happened, but I wormed some of the story out of him at last, and it seems like he was trying to figure out how to get my help first.”

"Help?" asked Remus, "what do you mean, help? He's never asked you to do anything for him before. What could you do that Kreacher couldn't?"

"Well that's just it," Sirius said, "If I had only taken the time to listen, he might not be hanging on Trixie's every word."

Remus shook his head, "No, Sirius, against Bella you never had a chance."

"So, what happened to him? Do you have any idea? You've got me interested, now."

Sirius sighed, "Well he was apparently going to the woods by himself that night. He did not say he was leaving. He just took off. He ran into Bella on the way and something happened then but I don't know the whole story. He seemed to be confused by some of the details and I was impatient so... that Dumbledorish guy brought him some mead and then he became silent and I left it at that. The goats were everywhere, that guy had brought them with him, big horned animals. And he was trying to pet one when Reg stumbled by his camp, tripping over a small kid. The goat started to charge and knocked Reg to the ground. When he tried to get up, he was headbutted by a larger goat, probably the kid's mother."

James and Remus glanced at each other quizzically. Sirius' story was hard to understand. "Goats? What do goats have to do with anything?"

"Do you want to let me finish or are you going to keep on interrupting?" Sirius said impatiently. "Reg tried to get out of telling me, but when Dumbledorish Guy, as Prongs likes to call him, brought Reg back—"

"Sorry, where were you?" Remus asked, looking completely confused. He saw the same befuddled look on James' face.

"So," James began, "Why did Regulus go into the woods?"

Sirius looked troubled. "Well, that's the part that is weird. Reg was anxious during the entire reunion and then he took off before the Blood-Purity fun and games got started. Which is weird because he really loves to show off for the family. I did not follow him at first, as I thought he wanted to be alone but then I noticed that he'd been gone for fifteen minutes and went after him."

Sirius looked uneasily at his friends. "I don't know why but I have a bad feeling, about Reg's absence. I guess it's why he's started avoiding me lately. Anyhow, he saw me coming after him that day. I yelled, ‘Regulus! Where do you think you're going?'. But he ignored me completely. I did not bother trying again."

"Suddenly, I heard something behind me and I whipped out my wand as I started to turn. Nothing. Whatever it was, it sounded like it was moving towards Reg. I thought changing into Padfoot might help to catch up quickly, but Trixie appeared out of nowhere and it was too late to transform. I watched from behind a tree and saw Bella staring at Reg with her wand out and pointed into the forest. I could see some shadows moving near the old boathouse by the lake."

"Then, the woods came alive all of a sudden as a group of small, ferocious smoke-like creatures emerged, followed by four or five masked figures. The creatures and figures encircled Reg and Trixie. Before I could move—"

"What happened?" James asked, leaning forward.

"Well, Trixie pushed Reg out of the way and he fell into the lake."

Sirius got up suddenly and started to pace the boys’ dormitory. "But what about the creatures and the hooded figures?" asked Remus.

"Yeah!" exclaimed James, "Who were they?"

"I don't know. I ran back to the others. I—"

"What?" shrieked Remus. “Your brother was surrounded and you didn't even try to help him?

"Well, I was planning on getting reinforcements when that bloke from the picture showed up."

"We don't need to hear about that guy," Remus said. "My head's still spinning from that crazy story! So what did Trixie do? Some Dark Magic, no doubt."

"Well, I know that she got rid of the creatures and people single-handedly, so she's quite powerful. Its no wonder Reg is Trixie's biggest fan! She saved his life! But I think she's milking this rescue for all it's worth. She had him de-gnoming Aunt Druella's garden for three hours and cleaning the shed!”

James exclaimed, "You're not telling us how Regulus got hurt or what happened with that old guy who was in the picture!"

Sirius sighed, "In a nutshell, Reg got hurt, Trixie came to the house as if nothing happened, and who knows who that old goatherd was!"

"Then, hmm, I could have sworn I’d seen him before. Hogsmeade!" James exclaimed.

"Yes, you're right," Remus agreed. "In that dingy pub, but you still haven't told us what he's doing in this picture!"

Sirius sighed and closed up the tin. "I think he was with Reg when he came back from the woods. It's not important."

"Yeah!" said James, looking rather relieved that the meandering storytelling was coming to an end at last. "There's just this little problem that we have," James continued.

"What problem?" asked Sirius and Remus together.

"That scratch on his nose. You still haven't told us about that extraordinary scratch he has in the picture!" James asked, rolling his eyes.

"Oh," Sirius said, "that. Well, he told me that one of the hooded figures shot a thin dart at him. He tried to get out of the way, but it zipped across his nose, making the scratch. I think it might've been laced with Confusing Concoction. Poor Reg was Confounded for hours afterwards, and I think he'll never remember the exact details of what happened.”

James scratched his nose absent-mindedly and shook his head, "Wow. That's unlucky. Learning some of Trixie's tricks might be very useful. Never mind. There's a party we need to think about, so just try and forget all about Reg and Trixie for now. Remember, Lily Evans is just waiting for you and me to show her how to have a good time!"

Sirius smiled. Remus looked curious, but decided not to pursue the topic. Instead, he announced, "The Hobgoblins are playing in Hogsmeade today. Maybe we could head down there after dinner, then go to the party."

"Yeah," chimed in James, "We just need to find Wormtail first. He's probably in the Great Hall already. He's never late for meals, is he?"

"No way," Remus answered with a smile.

After dinner, the foursome headed into Hogsmeade; catching Peter up on the crazy story he missed, when they saw a familiar face. James noticed first and grinned. "Isn't that...?"

"Yes," hissed Sirius, “it's him! And don't you say one word, or else you'll all be at the receiving end of a Bat-Bogey Hex!"

James and Remus laughed quietly and the four friends happily continued on their way.

* Five Words – Volume 8 Index *

* Five Words - Volumes Index *

* Five Words - Main Archives *

* Five Words - Stories Index (by topic) *

Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 12:57 pm

These stats were first posted by Potteraholic - Aug 8, 2008 11:34 pm (#1474 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Statistics for Story 84
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
PatPat	101
azi	6
Orion	16
Potteraholic	125
Verity Weasley	24
Julia H.	18
Quinn Crockett	11
Anna L. Black	4
PeskyPixie	32
Dryleaves	15
mona amon	7

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 359
Total Words: 1795
Last Submission Date: #1468, August 8, 2008, 4:18 AM (PatPat)
Total Time to Create Story: 5 days, 9 hours, 0 minutes

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #84, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: ]"The Crazy Mixed-Up Story of Regulus and Bellatrix (and Dumbledorish Guy?)"

This story was posted on August 8, 2008. Eleven writers contributed to the story, which is 1,795 words long. Eight of the eleven writers posted feedback.

- [/b]Potteraholic[/b], Aug 8, 2008 11:39 pm: Okay, Five Worders! The story's up! And what do you know? It was started by PatPat and closed out by her, too! Way to go!

This story seemed to be very heavy on dialog, mostly from Sirius, and very light on description, something we were getting really good at in the past few stories. It’s not one of our better stories, in my opinion. I think part of the problem may have been some confusion about what or where the focus of the story lay.

We had a couple of train- or near-train wrecks that were a bit hectic, but the key to 'surviving' them is to stick around long enough to revise your post if necessary. Train wrecks need to be choreographed so that the posts make sense, esp. those that are out-of-sequence, and it sometimes feels like you're in the middle of a traffic jam. Folks write instructional notes in their posts to help direct traffic, so to speak, so that the jam gets cleared, and the story makes sense. I think everyone who posted in this story has experienced a train wreck, and after the dust settles, we're back on track. Until the next train wreck!

Since we have a new member of the Five Worder crew — Welcome, again, Quinn Crockett! — it might be a good time to have a look at some comments about how this game has worked for the past 2.5 years, written by Finn BV, our Most Excellent Five Words Sage, creator of this wonderful writing game here on the HP FFF.

"In terms of a "long, winding, epic story," I'm okay with that, though in general I think it's best to keep things simpler -- we often get sidetracked in little details and the stories end up messy, confused and contrived by the end. I would, just from personal experience, recommend against "trying to trip people up," because that happens too often on its own anyway. But please, by all means, let's write long stories, just don't lose sight of where it's headed and if we introduce many details, don't forget those details, or we have a lot of fixing to do.

I would discourage "trip-ups," but if you turn them more into "happy interesting totally unexpected changes in the plot" that's excellent! I think I mentioned that in the header of the original Five Words Vol. I thread -- something about new characters and shifts in plot that are fun and new. But hold off throwing in something random where it doesn't quite make sense. Once again, these are just my suggestions based on 2.5+ years of monitoring the thread. I don't mean to dissuade you from having fun with the stories, but don't put something in which is just totally out of the blue and which confuses people.
~ Finn, July 1, 2008, post #130, FW, Vol. VIII

... {some folks} had mentioned a little while ago about a "tripping up" type of Five Words… I don't think that would go over so well here on this thread, but I think some things you guys should look into are the "Neverending Story" threads right above the Writing Challenges on this Forum. They are similar to Five Words in that they mean communal posting, but there's no restriction on how many words you post, and the point is really to create a silly, long, epic, grandiose story. I would try it out. I do believe I'm the last person to post on the two open threads. They might be quite long for you to read through (but then again, I read all of the posts on both a long time, and it's a lot of fun), so I'm sure we could go ahead and start a new Neverending Story... Why don't you (everybody, really, they're hilarious) take a look at those threads and see what you think?
~ Finn, July 8, 2008, post #524, FW, Vol. VIII

In terms of steering the story in a particular direction or maneuvering around the steering, when a story's focus becomes apparent, like I think it was in this story by posts #1140 - #1150, sometimes it's important to go with the flow. There can be anywhere from 6 to 15+ people contributing to a story at any given time and we've all had ideas that we've had to give up because they just didn't fit into the story as it unfolded. As Finn wrote near the end of Five Words, Vol. II, "Remember that the story might sound good at the time that you're adding to it, but it may contradict itself from earlier. Really consider what should come next." It's true that the stories are going to take directions we don't expect, but we also don't want something that leaves everyone feeling and discourages folks from posting. Divergent or conflicting plans can cause confusion, which I think was true in this story's case.

Okay, this message is l-o-n-g enough. Time to get started on the next story. In the post-DH world we live in, many HP fans have expressed satisfaction and/or disappointment with the Epilogue. One of the complaints is that we didn’t get enough (or any) information about some beloved characters. But what about those characters not-so-beloved? And now, the first five words of our next story...

- PatPat, Aug 9, 2008 12:44 am: Good story start, PAH. And good comments on our last story!

- Anna L. Black, Aug 9, 2008 1:18 am: You know, the whole story actually makes sense now that I read it without interruption Ten points to everybody's house (Then again, maybe at 4:00 am everything seems to make sense)

- mona amon, Aug 9, 2008 2:52 am: BTW, I rather liked the previous story. It was fun! I think I prefer reading dialogue rather than descriptions.

- Julia H., Aug 9, 2008 11:00 am: Regarding the last story: I often read the posts without risking to add anything because I was not sure which way we were going. I guess I am more comfortable if I can sense a general direction to head for - for example if we manage to clearly state a problem / conflict at the beginning of the story, which we know we will have to solve. But reading it was fun and you did manage to put together a coherent story in the end. Well done!

- Dryleaves, Aug 9, 2008 11:50 am: Had to come here to see the new avatar you promised, PAH.

I thought the last story made much more sense than I would have thought, as I completely lost track of events after a while when we were writing it. But for me who is rather new and inexperienced here it was interesting to see the problems that can occur when writing a story together like this. I hope I learned something from it, even if I didn't contribute very much (and caused some trouble once when I did, I am afraid...) And I think you sorted it all out well at last.

- Potteraholic, Aug 9, 2008 1:43 pm: Dryleaves, isn’t baby Harry cute? In your previous post, by "caused some trouble once", if you mean your post here, don't worry! In my following post — did you see it? — I understood what you meant.

You did manage to put together a coherent story in the end. Well done! ~ Julia

I don’t know about anyone else, but for me, it took many rereadings of the posts and the version I was compiling for the official story. Without that, I would've been confused. And I agree with your 'general sense of direction' comment. Okay, that is my last comment about the previous story. PROMISE!

- Orion, Aug 9, 2008 5:04 pm: I had problems posting, too, because I couldn't understand the story at all. The problem was also that people wrote so many comments and so much stuff in white, and when I read that all I lost track of the story and my little grasp of it vanished completely. So now I've stopped reading anything in white or I'll forget everything before! People just have to be content with what I write, we're not in school, and it's just fun. I just hope that I don't cause major confusions.

- Verity Weasley, Aug 10, 2008 12:00 am: PAH, I forgot to tell you how much I loved your title for the last story. It made me smile. The last story was so confusing, I was hoping for something that made a bit more sense this time. But alas, earwax!

* Five Words – Volume 8 Index *

* Five Words - Volumes Index *

* Five Words - Main Archives *

* Five Words - Stories Index (by topic) *

Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:00 pm

This story was first posted by PatPat - Aug 16, 2008 7:48 pm (#1982 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 BabyHarry

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 BabyHarry

Potty Five Words: "The Magical Wedding"

Dudley's wedding was a week away and Harry still hadn't bought him a present. He was rather surprised he had been invited in the first place, but it was nice of his cousin to think of him. DING DONG!

"Harry, there's someone at the door!"

To Harry's surprise, his Aunt Petunia was standing on the doorstep. "Er, hello Aunt Petunia." Harry said, uncomfortably. "Is there something wrong?"

Petunia cleared her throat and looked around nervously just as Ginny came running into the hall, "Oh," she exclaimed, stopping short. "Aunt Petunia. What a surprise! Won't you come in?"

Petunia stepped over the threshold looking slightly hesitant. Harry glanced at Ginny, his eyebrows raised, then followed her and Aunt Petunia into the living room.

"Please make yourself comfortable," Harry said, motioning to an oversized couch strewn with small pillows. Petunia sat on the very edge of it, fighting every urge to straighten the area rug under her feet. Taking a deep breath, she looked at Harry and said, "I know you have been invited to Diddy's wedding. And he absolutely insists that you be allowed to bring your... friends... Hermione and Ron and your... abnormal family as you wish."

Harry could tell that Ginny's temper was beginning to rise, so he decided to ask his aunt to watch how she spoke in his house. Ginny excused herself and left Harry alone with Petunia, and Harry had the chance to speak to her in private.

"Aunt Petunia," he began slowly. "If we are to have a conversation in my house, I think that you should respect my family and not call them 'abnormal'."

Petunia did not argue. After an awkward few moments of silence, Petunia spoke again. "As you can understand, I'd rather prefer it if you kept your children home. They might do... well, strange things that would disrupt the ceremony."

Harry was thinking hard. He could feel his face getting warm but tried to stay calm. If I could stand up to Voldemort, Aunt Petunia would be as easy as conjuring an empty plate out of thin air.

"Aunt Petunia, I have a question to ask you. When are you going to stop behaving like a right cow?" He watched her turning red, feeling fury and satisfaction.

"How dare you speak to me like that! I have never been so insulted in all my life!" she shrieked.

Harry looked at her, his eyebrows raised. "So why exactly are you here, Aunt Petunia? Let's not forget about all the occasions when you made my life miserable. Those days are gone, however. What do you want from me now?"

Petunia looked like she wanted to be elsewhere badly, preferably as far away as possible. She pursed her lips, "I just don't want Diddy's big day to be spoiled by any of your kind."

Harry had an urge to curse her, but instead he said, "Aunt Petunia, this conversation is going nowhere. I refuse to sit here and let you malign those I love! If Dudley has invited us then that should be enough for you. My children will be staying home, if you must know. They'll be spending the day with their cousins. If I were you I'd just worry about last minute preparations for the wedding."

Petunia looked slightly relieved for a while, but she pressed on. "And the dress code directions? Did Diddy explain to you that you can't turn up in those weird clothes that all of your lot wear?"

Harry sighed heavily and said, "Yes—"

Petunia interrupted him, "No pointed boots. Our guests will be wearing only the latest formal wear. I would hope that you'd honor this simple request."

Harry stood up, "Aunt Petunia, you don't think my Muggle upbringing had any influence? Besides, being married myself, I have a vague idea how a wedding is supposed to go. You probably hate that Dudley invited me, but you will have to accept it, for I've decided that he's my main focus, not you. Sorry."

Petunia got up, fuming. "Is there anything...," Harry continued, "else you wanted from me?"

Petunia fumbled with her handbag. "Now that you mention it, there is... your half brother— we have just been thinking about how we should tell you. Actually, he's more an adopted brother than a real half brother, and he's living with Aunt Irma."

"Who's Aunt Irma?" Harry asked.

"She's my cousin from Plymouth," Petunia said. "And what do you know? He just rang—,"

"He? Who?" Harry interrupted suddenly. "I don't understand what you are talking about. Could you start at the beginning? What's his name?"

"William Tetley," Petunia said in a cold voice. Harry just sat in silence for a long moment. Then his face lit up. "You can't be serious! This is impossible! Who adopted him? When did this happen? Were my parents pressured somehow? Well?"

Aunt Petunia averted her eyes from Harry as she struggled to find the words and sighed pompously, "Your father had a cousin that was—"

"Stop!" Harry commanded. "Look at me." Harry's voice dropped to a whisper and Petunia couldn't tear her eyes from his.

Unobtrusively, Harry felt for his wand in his back pocket. He had never done Legilimency before, especially non-verbally, but he had seen Snape do it and desperately wanted to know now whether Petunia was telling the truth or not. He pointed his wand, discreetly, and concentrated hard, his eyes boring into Petunia's as he thought "Legilimens!" For a moment nothing happened, but then he felt his mind teeming with Petunia's memories. He tried to sort through them, as images of Dudley, Uncle Vernon, his mother and inexplicably, Aunt Marge, tumbled into view in his mind's eye. There was no sign of any other relatives, especially this mysterious half brother. He waited, saw nothing that supported Aunt Petunia's story, and finally decided that his dear aunt was making the whole thing up.

"Right!" Harry said brightly. "Time you were leaving, I should think," he instructed, leading Petunia to the door and ushering her through it.

"But don't you want to know about your half brother?" Petunia asked Harry waveringly.

"Not particularly. Goodbye. See you at the wedding." And he closed the door in Petunia's stunned face.

A week later, Harry and Ginny dressed for Dudley's wedding. They wore Muggle clothes, but decided to wear the boots they had purchased in Hogsmeade for the occasion: black dragonhide. Harry knew that they would bother his aunt. He didn't care, either.

When he and Ginny arrived at the church, Harry immediately recognized Piers Polkiss still looking as rat-like as ever, though with much less hair. He saw Aunt Marge, accompanied by one of her bulldogs. Harry couldn't believe she actually brought a dog to the wedding. Children were running around chasing each other. "I thought children weren't invited," said Ginny, giving Harry a look.

Harry sighed, "I think she meant only our children." For a moment Ginny looked menacingly over at Aunt Petunia. "Ginny, don't!" said Harry, grabbing her arm. "We're here for Dudley and Gertrude. It's not worth it."

"Look! Ron and Hermione did come after all!" he said, pointing to an old Ford Anglia pulling into the church's car park.

"Where'd he ever find that car?" said Aunt Marge loudly. "It looks just like my neighbor's old antique. I don't think they should be allowed on the roads!"

Harry had no chance to intervene before Aunt Marge marched up to Ron, her face a fiery red. "Excuse me," she bellowed "I hardly think that car belongs at an event such as this! It's a menace and you—"

"Excuse me, but who are you?" Hermione interrupted in her most efficient, authoritative voice. She was looking at Aunt Marge with eyes full of venom. Ron stood next to her, his ears turning red.

Harry practically threw himself in front of Hermione as Marge began to puff with indignation. "Ron, Hermione! Dudley will be glad to see you."

"Dudders will—"

"That's right," said Harry smugly, "Dudley invited them here, so they'll need to say hello and let him know they are eager to meet Gertrude."

With that, Harry dragged Ron and Hermione away from a bad situation and toward the church doors. "Who in the blazes are those layabouts?" Marge said, loudly enough for everyone to hear.

Ron muttered, "Is she related to you, that horrible vision in tweed?"

Harry smirked, "Not really. She's Uncle Vernon's sister, and she—"

"Wait! That's the one you blew up in our third year?" Ron interrupted.

Harry nodded, "She hasn't improved with age either."

Hermione scowled, "Well, now I can see why you did it, back then. Do you really think Dudley will be upset about the car?"

"I doubt it," Harry grinned. "But you never know! Let's go say hello to Big D."

Ron snorted. "I can't wait to meet the woman who's mental enough to—"

"Ron," Hermione hissed, "he has invited us to his wedding, so let's just enjoy it. Although," she turned to Harry, "I just can't believe your Aunt Petunia would be so desperate to keep you away from the wedding that she would manufacture a story about you having an 'adopted' half brother! Ridiculous!"

"Yeah, that didn't really make any sense, did it?" Ginny took Harry's hand. "Let's go inside and find our seats. The four of them made their way in. Uncle Vernon was looking like a large red-faced panda with a tuxedo stretching at the seams. Aunt Petunia, on the other hand, resembled a bamboo plant, with a fluffy green dress and a hat trailing long tendrils festooned with tiny salmon roses. The bride was resplendent in a pale ivory gown that shimmered with countless sparkling beads. Harry was surprised to see that Dudley looked very nice in a well-fitting suit and elegant top hat. He'd lost some weight since his fiancée asked him to give up his daily diet of chocolates and fizzy drinks. Harry and Ginny had seen him jogging in a lurid purple tracksuit over the past few months, and now he looked like a young Ludo Bagman from his Beater days with the Wimbourne Wasps.

Ron exclaimed, "Merlin's pants! Dudley looks almost human!"

Hermione elbowed him and hissed, "Ron, be fair! Dudley's worked awfully hard to look his—"

"Blimey! Who's that d'you reckon?" Ron blurted, pointing.

"Greta Catchlove!" exclaimed Ginny, astonished. "She's a witch! Mum's got her book Charm Your Own Cheese. What's she doing here? Wait, is she Gertrude's relative? She can't be related to the Dursleys!"

Harry chuckled, "I bet Uncle Vernon would lose his blob if he knew that his new daughter-in-law has magical relatives! Greta's sitting near the bride's mother. I wonder how closely related she is to Gertrude?" Greta had clearly not taken Aunt Petunia's dress code request very seriously, as she was decked out in a flowing gown of deepest red, embroidered with gold trim on the hem. Stars and crescent moons adorned the bodice, while little gold suns hung from her ears. To top it off, a gold pointed hat dotted her head.

"No wonder Dud wanted us here!" Harry grinned, "so that Greta wouldn't stand out quite so much!"

Ron pointed to Harry's boots and smirked, "Speaking of standing out, Gladrags Wizardwear's got one less pair of Dragonhide boots, I see."

"Two," Ginny said, tapping her foot.

"Shhhh," whispered Hermione "...music's starting." Two flower girls began marching down the aisle dispersing rose petals as they walked, followed by three bridesmaids. Then came Gertrude, accompanied by an older man who must've been her father. He looked jovial, with rosy cheeks and blue eyes that glowed with pride.

The ceremony began and Petunia started sobbing as soon as Dudley began his vows. Vernon patted her on the arm, but she continued silently crying. Vernon saw Greta and glared at her. She smiled at Dudley as he finished, jauntily waving her cheese-printed hanky. A few minutes later, they all congratulated the bride and groom, and poured outside into the bright sunshine.

Later, at the reception, Harry led Ginny over to the happy couple to offer their congratulations. Dudley gave them both a big bear hug and Gertrude squealed with delight as she kissed them both, "I'm so excited to meet you! Dudley's told me all these amazing things about you, Harry!"

Harry looked surprised but smiled graciously as Gertrude turned to Ginny, "I love your boots! Wherever did you get them?!"

Ginny smiled and said, "Oh, a little place called Gladrags Wi—" She broke off as Uncle Vernon bumped into her, unceremoniously.

"What's going on? Everybody having a lovely, normal, but special, time?" he growled, glaring at Harry.

"Simply wonderful!" gushed Gertrude. "We were just about to hear where Ginny bought these marvelous boots. Aren't they fabulous!"

Vernon smiled weakly as if he were swallowing a goldfish. At that moment, Greta came up to the little group. Gertrude looked at her and planted a kiss on both of her cheeks.

Uncle Vernon stuck out his hand. "Vernon Dursley," he said, scowling. "Dudley's dad. And you are?"

"Greta. Trudy's aunt. Lovely ceremony wasn't it, Vernon? And Dudley looks very dashing in his... What do you call those robes? Trudy keeps telling me, but I always seem to forget! These Muggle terms are so odd..."

"Muggle?" Uncle Vernon exclaimed. He was quite sure he'd heard that word before and did not want to hear it ever again, especially today.

Harry, meanwhile, was trying to change the conversation, "The band's very nice, isn't it? What kind of—"

"What's that Muggle word, again?" Greta interrupted him. "It's on the tip of my tongue, really! Duxeto? Custido?"

"Tuxedo," supplied Ginny quietly, hoping the whole thing would pass unnoticed.

"That's it!" boomed Greta, "You Muggles have some interesting words. Now, I don't think I've seen anything like it in ages."

Moving closer to admire Dudley's tie, a bauble dropped into her glass of Merlot, splattering Gertrude's wedding dress with deep red stains. Greta quickly pulled out her wand and started siphoning off the miscreant beverage before Uncle Vernon exploded. His face was rapidly turning redder and he was twitching uncontrollably.

"Give me that!" he hissed, glaring daggers at the entire group as Dudley tried to placate his father. Harry grabbed Uncle Vernon's wrist.

"You!" Uncle Vernon spat, pulling his arm out of Harry's grasp. "Something [/i]abnormal [/i] always happens—"

"Dad, stop!" shouted Dudley, suprising Vernon, certainly, but even Harry stopped short and looked at his cousin in mild astonishment. Dudley was glaring at his father like Vernon's own reflection in his son's face. "You will not speak to Harry like that! He is my guest, my cousin, and my friend! In case you don't remember, he saved my life! So, start showing him some respect, or this may be the last time you will enjoy the pleasure of my company."

Vernon looked at his son, then dropped his gaze. He nodded, his jaw set. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Dudley smiled at Harry, "Today's been just magical, Harry. I'm glad you were here."

Harry winked. "Thanks, Big D."

* Five Words – Volume 8 Index *

* Five Words - Volumes Index *

* Five Words - Main Archives *

* Five Words - Stories Index (by topic) *

Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:01 pm

These stats were first posted by PatPat - Aug 16, 2008 8:47 pm (#1985 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 BabyHarry

Statistics for Story 85
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Potteraholic	161
Quinn Crocket	43
PatPat	111
Anna L. Black	16
mona amon	10
PeskyPixie	5
Verity Weasley	85
Orion	20
Julia H.	29
Dryleaves	22

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 502
Total Words: 2510
Last Submission Date: #1977, August 15, 2008, 3:59 AM (Potteraholic)
Total Time to Create Story: 6 days, 4 hours, 20 minutes

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #85, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: "The Magical Wedding"

This story was posted on August 16, 2008. Ten writers contributed to the story, which is 2,510 words long. Three of the ten writers posted feedback.

- PatPat, Aug 16, 2008 8:59 pm: And so concludes our 85th story here on Five Words. I really like how this story turned out. We got a little off track at one point, but we really pulled it together and came up with a very entertaining story. Just some suggestions for all Five Worders:

1) Cross-posts and train wrecks are going to happen. It's the nature of the beast. The important thing is to make sure you stick around long enough to see that it is fixed. They seem to get taken care of pretty quickly, so try to make sure you check your post before moving on so you know if a cross-post has happened. Out of sequence posts can be confusing, but if all involved stay calm, we get through it and end up back on track!

2) The stories are supposed to be fun. We don't want to take away from that at all. But, this is still Harry Potter. Try to stick with canon as we know it. Sometimes stories about characters that we don't know as much about are easier because we can be more creative. But, at those times that we are writing about the main characters, deliberately contradicting canon is not a good idea.

All in all, great story everybody! I will wait a little while to give everyone a chance to comment on this one. I'll start the new story tonight (Florida time).

- Verity Weasley, Aug 16, 2008 10:57 pm: Well, it's another bronze medal for me when it comes to the story stats! I agree, the story turned out very well. I think the characterisation worked well in this story, especially for Aunt Petunia. We got to see just how desperate she was to maintain the air of normality. I also think the descriptions were excellent, especially the paragraph describing the wedding party. Not a lot of action in this one, but a lovely, character-building story nonetheless. Maybe Dudley and Gertrude will have a child that will go to Hogwarts!

- Potteraholic, Aug 17, 2008 2:03 am: "Well, it's another bronze medal for me when it comes to the story stats!" ~Verity

Nice tie-in to the Olympics, Verity!

So... in honor of a new story (that hopefully starts soon: ***hint, hint PatPat***) I've got a new avatar! But first, comments about "The Magical Wedding". PatPat, love the title! And wow! Another, 3 post-er! We do like or stories sprawling, don't we? Like Verity, I agree that even though this story was not action-packed, it was a great "character-building story". The descriptions were fun to write and there is a lot to be said for taking small tidbits of canon information and letting our creative juices flow when it comes to fleshing them out! All in a very amusing tale. I look forward to the next!

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:03 pm

This story was first posted by Potteraholic - Aug 24, 2008 8:59 pm (#2466 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 HogwartsCastleLakeavatar

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 HogwartsCastleLakeavatar

Potty Five Words: "Filius the Fearless"

Young Filius Flitwick grabbed his hat and wand. He was running late for Defense Against the Dark Arts class with Professor Dippet. He had never missed a lesson once in his life and he didn't intend to start now. Rushing out of Ravenclaw Tower and down the corridor, he bumped into the Grey Lady. He shivered involuntarily as he passed through her. He dropped his wand and almost fell over. Filius was so small that ghosts didn't always see him as he moved around the place. She looked at him, haughtily and said, "Mind your step!" but he paid no attention.

Picking up his wand, Filius continued on his way, and arrived at the classroom door just as a scream emanated from the Great Hall down the stairs. Filius hesitated, then ran downstairs to investigate. When he arrived at the scene, he saw some third-years gathered around what appeared to be a crumpled pile of robes. On closer inspection however, it was actually a person lying down, completely unconscious. No one seemed to know what to do. Filius said, "What happened? Did someone get attacked?"

A worried voice said, "Er... somebody attacked them, but we don't know why. Something flashed. That's all we know."

Filius pondered on who on earth would hurt someone and walked forward to check how badly the person was injured. As he came closer he saw a spark fly from the person's wand and he jumped backwards to avoid getting singed. A figure came running from behind one of the large stone pillars with their wand ready, pointing it at the prone body on the floor. Filius raised his wand, ready to fight if it became necessary. "Everyone stay where you are!" yelled the figure. Its face was set in a determined frown, visible through the thin veil that covered its head. "I'll take care of this," whispered the veiled figure.

Filius stepped forward even as the older students shrank back into the shadows. He raised his wand and said, "Rennervate!” The prone figure on the ground stirred and rolled over on his back. As soon as the boy opened his eyes everyone gasped. No one could believe that such a tiny wizard could perform such precise, powerful magic. As they were all watching, he began to sit upright, looking groggy. The veiled figure now moved towards Filius with a nasty smile. "Rictusempra!" the young wizard cried.

The strange figure collapsed in a heap, the veil fluttering as he laughed uncontrollably. The momentary wave revealed the identity of the attacker; a Slytherin fifth-year named Maximilian Spektor. He was usually a quiet, non-troublemaking sort of fellow. Filius was surprised he would attack a fellow student. Still pointing his wand at the hysterical teenager, Filius warily circled him, pondering what he should do next.

Suddenly, a voice called down from the top of the stairs behind them. "Stop! What's going on here?" The assembled students looked up and were shocked to see the Headmaster, Phineas Nigellus Black, glaring at them. Several students scattered as quickly as they could. Filius stood his ground, looking wary but determined. The Headmaster started down the steps, a foreboding sign, because he never went near the students unless the matter in question was of the gravest concern, or he was hungry and they just happened to be in the way.

Phineas reached the little group and looked from face to face, searching with his clever, dark eyes. "And what might you, little boy, be doing here with your wand ready to duel?" he asked in his reedy, snide tone. "Students always think they are prepared for a contest, but in reality, the opposite seems to be true. The arrogance of youth may lead one to think that they are invincible and are able to conquer every obstacle they hit. I think we ought to ponder the consequences of our actions in detention. This Saturday, ten o'clock."

He smirked, turned on his heel and left. Filius could not believe this had happened. He had only been trying to help. The Slytherin student at his table in the Great Hall kept smirking at him. It would not have annoyed Filius more if he had not already had plans for that situation. He was used to people giving him a hard time because of his size.

Later, as he sat down at the table for lunch, he saw the smirking Slytherin, Maximilian, looking at him from the corner of his eye. Filius had the unpleasant feeling that the other student was watching him. The thin, brown-haired boy looked away as he cast a searching look at him. Before he left the table, Maximilian muttered, "This isn't over yet!"

What happened to Maximilian to make him dislike another student so much? Filius wondered. I’m not going to let this go on, he thought. Maximilian seemed so different from his usual quiet self that Filius became quite certain that he must have had a special reason for his actions. He decided to find out more about it and the next time he saw the Slytherin boy he tried to talk to him.

Maximilian was standing outside the boys' bathroom looking as though something terrible had happened. Filius approached him cautiously and said, "Listen, I think we should talk about what's going on."

Maximilian looked at him like he was something he had just scraped off the bottom of his shoe. After a few moments of silence he spoke. "Why are you so interested? Why did you have to butt in when I had everything under control?" The boy's grey eyes were wide and his face was pained.

Filius was taken aback. "I don't understand. What's going on with you? I was only trying to help!" squeaked little Filius. "You could've got into serious trouble! Why were you wearing that veil and why did you attack that poor student?"

Maximilian's voice shivered slightly as he said, "Okay, I'll tell you, although I don't think it's possible for you to help. That boy came to me a few days ago and—"

"What's his name?" Filius asked curiously.

"I— I don't remember exactly. Ichabod Smith, I think," Maximilian said with some hesitation. "This Ichabod chap came up to me the other day and told me that he found my omnioculars outside. He said he'd show me where they were if I followed him and did exactly what he told me to do. Well, they were a very good pair of omnioculars that my father bought me so, naturally, I followed him. We ended up in this corridor, not far from this bathroom. I thought he'd found my omnioculars somewhere here but it turned out that—"

Maximilian suddenly flushed with anger. "What's the matter?" Filius asked.

"He tricked me!" Maximilian blurted out. "He just wanted me to do his dirty work for him."

"What do you mean?" Filius asked with increasing urgency; this Smith guy sounded a bit crazy. The Slytherin actually seemed scared of him.

Maximilian turned away. "It doesn't matter, it's done," he said with finality. Filius, however, was in no mood for stupidity.

"What did he make you do?" he asked, raising his eyebrows a little.

Maximilian looked back, seemingly embarrassed. "He told me that, if I didn't steal... something... for him, he'd go to the Headmaster and tell him that I—"

"So what did you steal?" Filius cut in.

Maximilian looked a little bashful. "Don't laugh," he said, "but he told me that the Headmaster wears polka-dotted, pink frilly bloomers to bed, and he wanted me—"

"Wait, how would he know?" Filius asked, smiling.

"Know what?"

"Know that I gave him those bloomers for April Fool's Day! Does he really wear them? Who'd have thought that!" Filius collapsed in a fit of giggles while Maximilian looked on, the corners of his mouth twitching as he tried hard not to laugh. "So," he continued, "Smith wanted you to steal—?"

Maximilian stared at Filius. "Yes!" he said." And in exchange, he'd give me my omnioculars back. So I didn't have much of a choice, did I? I broke into the Headmaster's private quarters and nicked those ridiculous bloomers! Unfortunately, that idiot in the Great Hall, Ichabod Whatsit, decided that I needed to do another job for him. I could hardly believe my ears and I realized that I—"

"Wait!" Filius demanded! "The veil! Why were you wearing that?"

"Well, I didn't want to be recognized by everyone when I hoisted the bloomers onto a flagpole in the Great Hall."

"Why would you hoist them onto a flagpole?" asked Filius. He thought Maximilian was taking a big risk, as they were talking about the Headmaster's bloomers being on display in the Great Hall. Headmaster Phineas Nigellus would not be happy and would catch the perpetrator before anyone could say Hah!

"Ichabod told me to make sure they were there by dinnertime or he'd break my omnioculars," Maximilian said.

Filius almost burst out laughing. "And you're prepared to do that? Why not just tell the Headmaster what this guy was doing?"

Maximilian looked offended. "I stole his underwear! Do you think he'd understand that I had no choice?" Filius could not help agreeing that the Headmaster might not be so forgiving. With a sigh, Maximilian added, "I only wanted my omnioculars back..."

"Was that why you searched my room?" a cold voice sounded from behind them. Both turned round to see the familiar face of Headmaster Phineas Nigellus. He looked very annoyed.

"Where are my things? You know of which I speak. My favorite pair..." he said in a barely audible voice. His eyes were looking tense. "I can't sleep without them." Maximilian seemed terrified, backing away against the wall.

"Excuse me, Sir, what exactly are you looking for?" Filius asked helpfully. "It's just that we'd be glad if you were specific, to avoid misunderstandings."

"A pair of woolen undergarments," the Headmaster whispered, as he was looking intently at Filius. "Didn't I give you detention, by the way?" He lowered his voice." See that my possessions are returned to me before midnight, and we'll forget about your detention." Filius looked eagerly at Maximilian, who apparently did not know what to do. He looked panicked. After a long moment he shook his head slightly, but the Headmaster suddenly raised his voice, looking sternly at Maximilian. "I hope I have made myself clear."

He turned and was about to leave but Filius stopped him, "Wait, Professor Black, I must ask you about Max's omnioculars. It seems they've also gone missing. Rumor has it, Ichabod Smith is responsible." Filius exchanged glances with the anxious Maximilian, smiling encouragingly.

The Headmaster looked thoughtful. "You don't say. That's certainly an offense worthy of detention. Maybe we'll have a chat." He turned to go. "I'll bid you good luck. Farewell."

As they saw the Headmaster walk off, they noticed Ichabod Smith standing and smirking just down the corridor. "Now's our turn to speak to him," Filius began, "and get this over with." They set off towards the boy, who was snickering, and Filius said, "Oi! We'd like to have a word with you!"

Ichabod looked somewhat taken aback. People didn't usually confront him, especially when they were so small. "And what would a garden gnome like you want from a significantly cooler person like me?" he sneered.

"You're significantly foolish if you think you'll get away this time, Smith," Filius said calmly. "The Headmaster knows all about the omnioculars, so if you don't give them back to Maximilian—"

"Are you threatening me, Squeaky?" Ichabod said angrily. It doesn't work like that, you know."

"Well, how does it work, then, you conniving little git!" Filius said, his temper rising.

Ichabod stopped sneering. Small though Filius was, he was no pushover. He could perform magic that other students couldn't, especially third-years like him. Nervously, Ichabod raised his wand. "Right, I heard you're not bad at magic. Let's see if your dueling skills can match mine," he said loftily. "Meet me at eight o'clock tonight by the statue of the humpbacked witch on the third floor."

"All right."

"And, Flitwick, don't be late. You know I might just leave if you are."

Maximilian, who had been staring at Ichabod grimly, said, "Don't worry, Smith, he'll be there."

Later that evening, at precisely eight o'clock, Filius arrived at the designated dueling spot with Maximilian as his second. Ichabod, accompanied by a fellow Ravenclaw, was already waiting for Filius. "Thought you wouldn't turn up," Ichabod said looking down at Filius.

"Disappointed now, then?" Filius asked with unmistakable irony in his squeaky voice. "I'm ready to start if you are.” The two duelists got into position and bowed. But Filius hadn't even raised his wand yet when Ichabod shouted, "Stupefy!" Fortunately, Ichabod had miscalculated the height at which he held his wand, and missed Filius completely.

"No cheating, Smith!" Maximilian warned.

Filius began bobbing and weaving his wand intricately in the air, then said, "Wingardium Leviosa!" Ichabod's feet lifted from the floor, upending him instantaneously. Just as the conquered Smith dropped on the floor, a pair of omnioculars fell out of his pocket.

Phineas Nigellus also turned up unexpectedly. To everyone's surprise, he, laden with Honeydukes' sweets, emerged from behind the statue of the witch, looking mildly interested. "What's this? Explain yourselves!" he demanded in a commanding tone. "Though I must admit, I have a strong suspicion that I already know what you have been doing. I trust my things will be returned to me as soon as possible, Mr. Flitwick?"

"I think so, Sir," he answered. "I am just not sure where they are."

"Aha!" Maximilian shouted suddenly, reaching for something curiously hanging out of Ichabod's robes.

The Headmaster immediately grabbed the frilly undergarment and raised an eyebrow. "Well, well I underestimated you, Mr. Flitwick. Young and hotheaded though you may be, you're a skilled duelist indeed. May I therefore offer you a place on the Hogwarts dueling team? The tournament with Durmstrang is coming up. We'll certainly need you." Filius nodded happily while Maximilian smiled appreciatively, clutching his omnioculars.

Filius grinned. "All's well that ends well," he said lightly.

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:04 pm

These stats were first posted by Potteraholic - Aug 24, 2008 9:23 pm (#2468 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 HogwartsCastleLakeavatar

Statistics for Story 86
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
PatPat	35
Potteraholic	94
Quinn Crockett	6
Verity Weasley	43
rassannassar	24
azi	60
Anna L. Black	12
Dryleaves	88
mona amon	26
Julia H.	83
PeskyPixie	2

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 473
Total Words: 2365
Last Submission Date: #2465, August 24, 2008, 5:34 PM (Anna L. Black)
Total Time to Create Story: 7 days, 14 hours, 36 minutes

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #86, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: "Filius the Fearless"

This story was posted on August 24, 2008. Eleven writers contributed to the story, which is 2,365 words long. Four of the eleven writers posted feedback.

- Potteraholic, Aug 24, 2008 9:32 pm: Okay, the story's up, and in less than 3 posts! I think it was a hugely successful one! I think it's fun to write about the lesser-known, but still much-loved, Harry Potter characters and create their back stories. Since I've started my fair share of stories, I'm happy to pass story-starting honors to Dryleaves. Looking forward to your first five words, DL!

Oh, and I LOVE the bit about the Headmaster sneaking back into Hogwarts with his sweets! LOL, inspired use of canon! ~PeskyPixie

Thanks, that was my idea! That, (the bit in purple) in a nutshell, folks, is my mantra for Five Words! Sticking to canon can be very surprising and entertaining.

Now, please bear with me while I share some 'technical', for lack of a better word, post-story thoughts. "Filius the Fearless" was yet another long story. Out of the last 5 stories, 4 of them have been over 2,000 words. Just to give you an idea of how this has not been the norm for Five Words, here is a chart of Five Words Stories data:

word count in Five Word Stories

# of words	stories out of 88* so far
under 600	6/88
600 to 999	21/88
1,000 to 1,399	28/88
1,400 to 1,799	24/88
1,800 to 1,999	0/88
over 2,000	9/88

* There are 86 numbered stories, but two of them #28 and #59, have 2 versions each, hence 88 finished stories.

As you can see, the majority of the stories are under 1,800 words. The shortest stories happened in the first days of Five Words, and most of the stories fall into the 1,000 to 1,800 words range. Let's really try to write a simple vignette, as Finn suggested here in an earlier thread. This way, we'll be comfortably able to write 2 more good-sized stories on this thread before having to open a new one. Thanks, everybody!

Oh, one more thing. In the interest of saving up on our words, and having more natural sounding dialogue, I'd like to suggest that folks use contractions whenever possible in characters’ dialog (isn't, won't, can't, etc.). In my experience, people use contractions all the time in speech and only use the expanded form to emphasize something. Just a thought...

While waiting for Dryleaves to post the next story's first five words, won't you please have a think about what you can post in your post-story comments? And in the interest of saving valuable posts in this thread — there are just under 530 left — please wait until Story #87 starts to post your thoughts. Thanks. And... scene!

- Dryleaves, Aug 24, 2008 9:44 pm: It was great fun participating in this story that revealed quite a few things about the otherwise rather anonymous little Professor Flitwick and of course about the former Headmaster of Hogwarts, Phineas Nigellus, with his sweet-tooth and his very personal taste in underwear.

- Julia H., Aug 24, 2008 9:55 pm: Great start, Dryleaves!

Writing the latest story was tremendous fun. A lot of Five Worders have a flair for humorous ideas. These otherwise minor characters (Flitwick and Phineas) have indeed become more three-dimensional for me in this story.

- PatPat, Aug 24, 2008 10:42 pm: I love how this last story turned out! I wasn't able to participate as much in this one, with the storm and the start of school, but I think it turned out well! And I agree about trying to do a shorter story this time! Having compiled two that were three-posters, I can say there's nothing wrong with long ones, but short ones are equally as fun and allow us to make better use of our thread!

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:08 pm

This story was first posted by PatPat - Sep 1, 2008 11:17 pm (#2745 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Potty Five Words: "Skeeter's Scoop"

Research, Rita Skeeter thought, was for plebs and dolts. Adding whatever your own imagination could invent with the tiniest scrap of evidence was the art of reporting. Verifying every fact and figure was time-consuming and not worth the effort. She looked at Bathilda Bagshot sitting in front of her in The Three Broomsticks, having a drink. Rita drummed her polished bright red fingernails on her table, pondering the possibility of extracting some information about Albus Dumbledore from the old witch. She was quite chatty when Rita first started to ask her about life in Godric's Hollow. But as the questions became more specific, the answers became less so. The large Quick-Quotes Quill was suspended above a fresh piece of parchment, but it had not written anything down yet.

Let's seei, Rita thought to herself. What can I do to get this crazy witch to give me the dirt on old Dumby? There's got to be something that will make her talk. Rita didn’t want to offend Bathilda. Firewhisky didn’t do the trick. Maybe a spell of some sort can help me here… Rita's thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of a loud group of wizards wearing Chudley Cannon robes.

"Two bottles of butterbeer, Rosmerta! Each!" said Galvin Gudgeon, looking as if he and the others had just won the League Championships. He sat very close to Rita, saying, "Cheers!", as he clinked his bottle with a team-mate.

Rita smiled, feigning interest in the team. In reality, her eyes were on Bathilda, who was half hidden by the bright orange robes flapping all around. Rita reached across the table and tapped her on the shoulder, "Getting a bit crowded in here, don't you think? Maybe we can head somewhere a bit quieter."

Bathilda emptied her glass and nodded, "The Cloverleaf Café in Diagon Alley has some lovely pasties. I'm feeling a bit peckish. Let's Disapparate, shall we?"

Rita thought it might be wise to Apparate by side-along, but almost as soon as they arrived in Diagon Alley, she saw Bathilda walking away confidently.

"Thank goodness!" Rita sighed. "Bathilda, hold on a tick. I just need to stop at Scribbulous' and get some more Quills."

Bathilda looked at her and said, "Hurry up. I don't have all day, dear. I'm getting quite hungry."

Rita sighed. It wasn't easy "gadding about" with the old fossil. If only she could find a quick and smooth way to get Bathilda to tell her everything she knew about Dumbledore's early years.

"Have you tried these pasties? The ones at Balthazar's Bistro just aren't as good. Albus always liked the turkey-filled ones. He used to say that they reminded him of his dear mother's cooking."

Rita's ears perked up. Was the nutty witch going to slip up at last and reveal some information that could actually be useful?

"Mummy's boy, was he? Never did anything that could be considered… rebellious, perhaps?" suggested Rita, airily.

Bathilda glanced at Rita reproachfully. "Albus was never rebellious! He was a perfect boy. Why—" Bathilda was interrupted by a flurry of owls that landed, suddenly, atop their table. The umbrella almost fell on them, but Rita used a levitating charm to put it right.

"What's this, then?" Rita took a letter from one of the owls and started to read it. Bathilda, noticing the hour, announced that it was time for her appointment with the apothecary and that she was leaving.

Rita nodded and continued reading. Bathilda left. Rita was still reading when the door opened and Alastor Moody exited The Cloverleaf. Rita stared at the old wizard.

"What are you looking at?" He asked eyeing her suspiciously.

"Why, Mr. Moody! I'm surprised to see you here."

"What business is it of yours if I happen to be here, Skeeter?" asked Moody, watching Rita closely with his magical eye.

"I've heard that you were seen in the French Alps."

"Hiking, I suppose?" he answered, gruffly. "I don't know where you get your information."

"My job is to seek knowledge and enlighten others." She smiled into his grim face.

"Seek gossip and pass on misinformation, I suppose that...that...drivel fools others, but as for me, I never believe any of it. Ever."

"Really? How convenient…," Rita muttered, turning back to her letters. "You deny it all, then?"

The tiny movement Rita's Quick-Quotes Quill made almost escaped Moody’s notice; however, his magical eye was getting stuck often and needed cleaning. He dropped it casually into Rita's water glass, ignoring her look of disgust.

"Ah, that's much better now," Moody growled, popping the eye back in place. "Thanks, Skeeter," he smirked, handing her back her drink.

The Quill scurried across the parchment. Moody leaned over to read what it had written.

Uncouth Auror, Mad-Eye Moody, despite numerous reported sightings in the French Alps, denies involvement in the conspiracy against the International Federation...

“...of Cheesemakers," Moody finished.

Rita's face soured. Moody plucked the Quill out of Rita's talons and added a couple of hastily scribbled lines:

The globe-trotting wizard plans to practice his wandwork on the local flora and fauna and devote himself to skiing and eating fondue.

"Mind you, I'm not going to discuss any of this with you, Skeeter," he said indignantly and stopped writing. He lay the quill on the table and stalked off, leaving Rita to continue the article by herself.

"I'll give him 'of Cheesemakers'", she scoffed, while crossing out Mad-Eye's contribution to her article. "Where was I? Oh..."

...of Clairvoyants, whose biennial conference was taking place in Chamonix last—

Rita's quill suddenly stopped as another owl landed on the table. She quickly detached the parchment it was carrying, and read:

Dear Ms Skeeter,

As a dedicated admirer of yours, I would like to inform you that unforeseen circumstances forced the International Federation of Clairvoyants to end the Conference prematurely. This means that I won't be able to report on the planned events of the week. However, I do have some important information concerning the peg-legged gentleman. He wasn't Mad-Eye Moody after all. His identity has now been revealed as Tiberius 'Bad-Eye' Bones of Wales. His involvement in anything that may have already been reported is uncertain as yet. I wouldn't want your journalistic integrity impugned by undeserved accusations of reporting misinformation.

Yours, most ardently, T. G. Nosecester

Rita shrugged, "So Mad-Eye wasn't in France at all," she muttered to her dismay. "'Bad-Eye' Bones, was it? What are the chances that two peg-legged wizards share almost the same nickname?" As she made the letter disappear, she tried to come up with another story idea. She could not see that someone like 'Bad-Eye' would be as interesting a subject to write about as that revolting Mad-Eye with his magical eye and atrocious manners.

Rita's pumpkin pastie was getting cold. "Oh well," she mumbled, while chewing quickly, "Mad-Eye or Bad-Eye, who cares?" Rita selected a fresh sheet of parchment and started scribbling.

Uncouth Auror, Mad-Eye Moody, has recently been spotted in the Cloverleaf Café. The proprietor, Sam Widge, reported that Moody's behaviour was more alarming than usual. Recently returned from France, Moody complained to Mr. Widge about an unsuccessful attack on the local Muggle population. When asked why he was attacking a Muggle, Moody barked, "Not me, you blubbering fool! It was one of the native mountain-dwelling giants. I stopped him with the Curse of the Bogies and used a Levitation charm. It took some doing, but I managed to keep him from flattening the town." The Muggles, unfortunately, saw him as deranged lunatic.

They were overjoyed when he left and held a big party to celebrate. Yet another example of how Mad-Eye Moody can be a major liability to the Wizarding World. Keeping an "eye" on him is what the Ministry should be focused on. Instead it can't see the forest for the trees and it needs to prune some branches.

Smiling to herself, Rita put her Quill down and rolled up the parchment. Satisfied, she put it into her handbag and rose from her chair, triumphantly. Her hard work had resulted in a story after all. Imagination is all it takes, she thought. Facts are completely superfluous. Who needs them?

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:09 pm

These stats were first posted by PatPat - Sep 1, 2008 11:49 pm (#2747 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Statistics for Story 87
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Potteraholic	100
Julia H.	41
PatPat	37
PeskyPixie	4
mona amon	13
Anna L. Black	20
Verity Weasley	31
Quinn Crockett	3

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 272
Total Words: 1360
Last Submission Date: #2742, September 1, 2008, 11:55 AM (Potteraholic)
Total Time to Create Story: 7 days, 14 hours, 11 minutes

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #87, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: "Skeeter's Scoop"

This story was posted on September 1, 2008. Eight writers contributed to the story, which is 1,360 words long. Five of the eight writers posted feedback.

- PatPat, Sep 1, 2008 11:57 pm: And so ends story #87. It was nice to have a shorter story this time. We can have a good story and not be an epic! I actually like how this story turned out. It felt to me like it was dragging in the middle a little, but I think we pulled it together into a good story about Rita.

One way to have shorter stories is to try to use less words to say what we mean. I am as guilty as anyone of this. A lot of times I will use more words than necessary because I am trying to stall when I don't really know where a story is headed! However, the less we do this, the better. Not that there is anything wrong with long stories, as long as the plot takes us there. We don't want to keep going just for the sake of keeping going, if you know what I mean!

Anyway, enough talk. Congrats (again) to Potteraholic on having over one-third of the posts in this story!

Looking forward to the start of the next story! This one is going to have to be a short vignette as we have less than 300 posts left in this thread.

EDIT: PatPat, this post is number 2,753 of 3,000 maximum posts. You have a maximum of 240 posts for your actual story, which would be 1,200 words. This would hold true if no posts are either deleted or not used for the story. In other words, a short story is needed. ~Kip

- Potteraholic, Sep 2, 2008 1:54 am: Thanks, PatPat! Great smiley!

About the story. I agree, I think it turned out pretty well, but I would say that, wouldn't I, with the number of posts I contributed! I also agree with PatPat's comments about using less words, especially since this story, #88, will be the last one of this thread! After this, we will start Five Words Vol. IX!

Since this story will have to be a short one, a vignette, it would help to do a countdown announcement every 10 posts to help us stay on track and not run out of posts. We should aim to finish the story in 230 posts, by post #2980. This will leave about 10 posts for the official story and post-story comments, and some wiggle room in case a post gets deleted. But please don't delete if you can help it. If you cross-post or somehow double-post, like I did recently, stick around and try to fix it. It can be done!

So.... posts ending in 9 need a countdown note announcing how many posts are left. Look at mine below. Thanks!

One more story comment; I think it's hard to sustain a story for very long with one character either thinking or speaking to her/himself. And maybe we could have a little more action in this next story? Okay, on that note, I thought it'd be nice to write about characters we know next to nothing about. But since the Lexicon is out-of-commission, I had to look at JKR's site. I found the following 2 folks and I thought it might be fun to write about them.

- Potteraholic, Sep 2, 2008 2:09 am: And I love the title of the last story, "Skeeter's Scoop". Very alliterative!

- Verity Weasley, Sep 2, 2008 5:51 am: Well done on getting the finished story up so quickly PatPat. I agree that it can be quite hard to keep track if there is too much internal dialogue, but we managed it OK. We never did find out what happened at the Clairvoyant's Conference, but the characterisation of Rita was very accurate, I think.

- Potteraholic, Sep 2, 2008 9:28 am: Now that the Rita Skeeter story, 'Skeeter's Scoop', is finished, it would be great if other folks besides the current compilers commented on it. [Added: Thanks for your comments, Verity!] Here's a comment that Finn, the creator of Five Words, posted after the end of our 'Dean and Seamus in Ireland' story (bold emphasis mine):

One thing: we do have a slight aversion to "non-posts" (posts without five words) in the middle of stories, but please feel free to post non-posts after the story has ended (even if it's before it's posted) and especially in this interim period between stories. We need to comment on ourselves; it's part of the editing process. If you haven't gotten to comment by the time the next story starts, go right ahead and post it at the bottom of your next post, which should also contain five words. ~ Finn, Feb. 29, 2008

Sorry to be a 'nudge' about this; if folks could make a habit of making post-story comments in the future, that would be great! Thanks!

- Anna L. Black, Sep 2, 2008 10:33 am: Previous story comments: The characters (Rita, Moody, even Bathilda) were very canon-like, especially Rita. The story itself was actually two small stories combined (the Bathilda part and the Clairvoyants conference part). At first it seemed strange to me to just change direction like that, but in fact, it makes a story somewhat more believable - it's like the first part is an introduction, getting to know our main character better. If the second part was a bit longer, it'd work even better.

The second part was a little less "believable", IMO, as we kind of crammed a lot of info and details, without explaining too much. But still, the final result is a very nice story!

- Julia H., Sep 2, 2008 3:19 pm: Hi, everyone! It would have been fun to learn what happened at the Conference of Clairvoyants but maybe that's another story...

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:12 pm

This story was first posted by Potteraholic - Sep 20, 2008 12:16 pm (#2982 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 Daisy_10

Potty Five Words: "Daisy’s Dilemma"

Daisy Hookum asked her husband to stop de-gnoming the garden. She needed Tilden's help to get rid of a boggart in the guest bedroom. Daisy was perfectly capable, but she had recently given up doing magic.

Tilden entered the kitchen. Before he took another step, she stopped him and pointed to his boots. "Please take those off. I don't want to wash the floor again... Poor Muggles! Now I understand how much trouble they have in their everyday life!"

Tilden ignored her. "I'll deal with that, don't worry," he said calmly.

"You’ll ruin my project," Daisy said impatiently. "Remember, dear, authenticity is important. I can't use magic and it wouldn't be right if you did either."

"You'd better use a Muggle way to get rid of that boggart, then!" Tilden declared, returning to the garden.

What would a Muggle do? Daisy wondered as she followed her husband. Do they know what a boggart is? She didn't like to argue with her husband but boggarts were no picnic, especially when there wasn't any magic involved. Perhaps the inventive mind of a witch could find a non-magical method of removing it. Perhaps she could just get another opinion. That's it! she thought, I'll ask the Muggle neighbors how they clear wardrobes of boggarts. She looked around, wondering where she'd put that pheletone thing Muggles used instead of the fireplace, but was distracted by the unmistakable sound of a car pulling into the driveway.

She hurried to the window. A smartly dressed man unfolded himself from the front seat of a small, bright red Volkswagen and went up to the front door. Daisy answered the doorbell, feeling very excited. "Hello, Mr. Greene. How very nice of you to deliver my new car so soon!" she smiled and invited the salesman into the house.

"Would you like some tea?" she asked, after he sat down on the sofa. He accepted then looked around in interest. A photograph on the mantelpiece caught his attention. A picture of Daisy and her husband waving, actually waving, from inside the frame. He blinked and looked at the photograph again. They did wave. His face reflected such confusion that Daisy had to ask him if everything was all right.

"Is that some new technology?" he asked eagerly. He was usually well-informed on technical innovations, but he hadn't heard of this one.

"Why, no," Daisy said, nonchalantly turning the photograph to see the date written on the back.

"1989," she said. "It was taken then..."

"But the picture is moving!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Look!"

"Oh, " Daisy said, remembering that Muggle photographs did not move.“ I think it must be the way the light hit the—" she was suddenly interrupted by a loud creaking sound from the direction of the bedroom.

"What was that?" the salesman asked, looking a little worried. He stood up and took a step towards the door.

"Mr. Greene, where are you going?" Daisy was just asking when the creaking got louder and she instantly realized that it was the boggart.

Mr. Greene moved toward the sound and before Daisy could stop him, he ran right up the stairs. She followed him. "Don't worry, that's nothing but an open window swinging in and out.” But Mr. Greene didn't listen. He just continued hurrying toward the door that was rattling. Daisy moved quickly and pulled the rug out from under his feet. Whump! The poor salesman fell like a sack of potatoes. She jumped to the door but it was too late. Mr. Greene was staring with horror as it, BANG!, suddenly opened. He quickly pulled himself together and backed away down the stairs.

"Mr. Greene, I'll be right back. I just have to fix something," she said.

"I'm..," he replied, interestedly, "...handy at making repairs. Just show me what it is and I'll help you."

"Thank you," she said, hesitating. She was not sure what to do. Would a Muggle be able to see a boggart? Better not chance it. "I think I'll just get my husband to do it, perhaps he could—"

"Nonsense!" Mr. Greene interrupted. "I saw him when I arrived. He was too busy chasing away rabbits or something. They looked quite large, too."

"Rabbits? Oh, I see what you mean..."

"Please, let me help you," he insisted and walked into the room quickly. Daisy didn't bother to stop him. Muggles could be fascinating studies. He strode toward the wardrobe. When he reached it, its door suddenly burst open and he stepped back to see what was happening. A swirling mass of white vapor emanated from the wardrobe, before the curious, helpful car salesman. For a moment, he only stood there, unperturbed, thinking a cloud of ordinary house dust had floated out. But then, he jumped in shock, realizing that it was forming into a hideously grotesque clown, with enormous, madly staring eyes, a lopsided mouth, laughing maniacally, and a bulbous red nose. He watched the bizarre apparition with fear, his mouth gaping in a silent scream. Daisy waited. What would he do? she wondered to herself. Mr. Greene backed away slowly. "Mr. Greene! Simon! Please, do something! You must render it harmless!"

Simon stopped cowering and feebly tried punching the clown, who was laughing madly, indifferent to the blows, which seemed to just bounce off it. Realizing his strategy was not working, Simon decided to look for a weapon. A wooden chair, off to one side, caught his eye. He grabbed it by the arm and thrust it, as if it were a lance. The chair just sank into the boggart causing no harm whatsoever.

Simon dropped it, turned around, apparently looking for help from Daisy. She tried to encourage him. "It's rather ridiculous really, isn't it?" she smiled. "It looks exactly like a silly jack-in-the box, its crank missing, the box dented." She started laughing, hoping that Simon would do the same but he just looked horrified. He stared wildly at Daisy, then turned on his heel and left the room. She wasn't surprised. She had just remembered that Muggles needed a ...psychotologist to help them subdue a boggart. Poor Mr. Greene would probably need one. She sighed. Now that the boggart was out, something had to be done.

Daisy could hear pounding feet outside the room. The familiar voice of Tilden asked, "What's going on? I saw a man run out of the house, white as a sheet. Oh," he added as he saw the boggart, which was now morphing into a large flying locust. Tilden's hand was shaking a little as he raised his wand and tried to think of a funny side to locusts. "Riddikulus!" he shouted and the boggart dissolved into nothingness.

"Tilden!" cried Daisy with relief. "It was Mr. Greene, the Muggle. He insisted upon fixing the door and then the boggart escaped."

"Well, he couldn't fix boggarts," he said, "but at least he gave it a go."

Daisy smiled. "Fancy a drive?"

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:14 pm

These stats were first posted by Potteraholic - Sep 20, 2008 12:26 pm (#2983 of 2991) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Statistics for Story 88
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Potteraholic	52
PatPat	14
Verity Weasley	34
Anna L. Black	6
Dryleaves	54
Julia H	65
PeskyPixie	2
freshwater	2
John Bumbledore	1
Puck	1

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 231
Total Words: 1155
Last Submission Date: #2979, September 19, 2008, 12:12 PM (Julia H.)
Total Time to Create Story: 17 days, 10 hours, 18 minutes

**Please note that the actual time it took to create this story was about 9 days shorter than the amount posted above. The time discrepancy occurred when World Crossing experienced server problems from approximately September 2, 2008 10:29 pm to September 11, 2008 7:06 am.

These post-story comments were collected by Potteraholic, but were not posted in a 'post-story comments post' before the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum' site closed on April 15, 2011. So they are being posted now, here on forumotion.

Post-Story Comments for Story #88, Volume VIII,
Potty Five Words: "Daisy’s Dilemma"

This story was posted on September 20, 2008. Ten writers contributed to the story, which is 1,155 words long. Four of the ten writers posted feedback.

- Potteraholic, Sep 20, 2008 12:29 pm: Okay, the story's up! Congratulations, Julia! Looking forward to your idea for the first story on the new thread!

Speaking of which, I'm still waiting to hear from Finn about doing just that, so we'll have to sit tight for a while this weekend before Five Wording again! Let's use the rest of this thread for post-story comments, shall we?

It was good to see that we were able to pick up the story quickly right where we left off after the World Crossing server issues were resolved. Well done, everyone! Hopefully, now that the two Forums are back up and running, more folks will return to this game we all love! On that note, Welcome Back! freshwater and Puck! And maybe we’ll even see some more posts from John Bumbledore, too?

BTW, sorry for not having the story posted earlier. The story and stats were ready, but I didn’t have the energy to write this post-story post last night. (I realized I had to refer to the World Crossing malfunction somehow, among other things.)

Now, about the story... I really liked it. We’ve had some fun writing about Muggle and wizard interaction with this story and the one about Dudley's wedding. Maybe it's a subject worth exploring in the new thread? While we had to get to the end of this tale quickly, I think we pulled it off well. It flows well with the rest of the story, and it's good to remember that everything doesn't have to be explained; as readers we can infer logical conclusions from what is written, right?

Okay, looking forward to hearing what the rest of you Five Worders think! Let the post-story posting (and the closing-out of this thread) begin!

Edit: As I prepare a post to start the new thread, in case Finn is busy, I noticed that we have developed quite a penchant for writing longer stories recently. This thread has the least amount of stories than the other ones, with just seven. Perhaps we should work on this, too?

- Julia H., Sep 20, 2008 3:26 pm: Thanks, PAH! This will be the third story that I can start and this is the second time that I have actually contributed the highest number of words in a story! OK, so either you, PAH, or Finn will start the new thread (*** sighs with relief ***) and I will only have to post the first five words when the new thread is open. Good.

The story was fun. Muggle - wizard interaction is always a good source of comedy. I admit I like taking part in writing longer stories but this time the pressure of having to limit the number of our posts has been an additional challenge. (Additional because there is always the basic challenge of continuing the story not only in terms of ideas but also in terms of language. I always feel I have to be very careful: for example, you guys can any time post the first half of an idiom that I may not know or recognize at once but if I want to continue the sentence, I'll have to realize that it can be continued in one way only... Or I should realize perhaps. It is fun.)

I'll consider the question of an avatar or a different color. Verity has already suggested that Dryleaves and I may be twins, which would explain why it is difficult to keep our posts apart. Perhaps we should have the same avatar... (OK, I understand that you want us to wear sweaters with either a large D or J on it.)

- Dryleaves, Sep 20, 2008 5:22 pm: Congratulations, Julia!

I liked this story. As it is a short story it is important that it is kept well together, and I think we did that, but still it contained a lot of funny Muggle-wizard interactions and misunderstandings. I think the question about Muggles and boggarts is an interesting one, as boggarts kind of exist in the Muggle world. We came to a reasonable conclusion, I think.

I also liked the characters. In a way it seemed as if Daisy had done very little research before starting her Muggle project, but she was curious and understanding. Mr. Greene was rather cute (and a bit annoying, perhaps) in his curiosity and his insisting upon helping Daisy.

I'll consider the avatar question as well. I guess I have to find a good one and then actually make it appear on the screen... It would be rather fun if Julia's avatar was a sweater with a J and mine a sweater with a D... (But it would probably not help solving the problem of our posts looking too much alike...)

- Verity Weasley, Sep 20, 2008 9:52 pm: I agree with the posts so far. This was a fun story to participate in and I think we did well with it, especially considering the long hiatus in the middle when nobody could post. I admit I had to go back to the beginning to remind myself what the characters' names were.

As Julia mentioned, it was an additional challenge to wrap it up in the number of posts remaining. I think we did well with that, but it would have been fun to see Daisy driving!

Julia, on re-reading this story I noticed that Daisy invited Mr Greene in for a cup of tea. Would that have anything to do with your riddle? (Clutching at straws here!)

- Julia H., Sep 21, 2008 7:12 am: Verity, no, Mr Greene's tea (did he ever get to drink it?) has nothing to do with my riddle but there is an important component shared by this story and the riddle-related part in HP.

***Waiting excitedly for the new thread to appear.***

- Potteraholic, Sep 21, 2008 1:13 pm: Dryleaves, great avatar! And thanks for your post-story comments Julia, Dryleaves and Verity. Hopefully we'll hear from some others before too long, before the new thread goes up, which will happen in a few hours. So Julia, I hope you can wait just a little while longer!

I'm hoping that North American Five Worders will check this thread out on a lazy Sunday morning, and post some comments, too.

- Dryleaves, Sep 21, 2008 2:09 pm: Thanks, PAH! I'm not good at finding pictures, so maybe I'll change my avatar later. But I like this one as it is a picture of the flower my oldest daughter is named after.

- Potteraholic, Sep 21, 2008 3:26 pm: Okay, folks, Potty Game: Five Words Vol IX is up! I can't believe I did it! But I really miss seeing Finn's avatar on the header page. It's going to take some getting used to.

So Julia, just click the link above and start the 89th story on the shiny new thread. I can't wait to see what your, and the new thread's, first words are!

There's still room here for others to post their story and thread comments. Please wait for Julia to post her first five words before posting on the new thread. Thanks!

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Potteraholic Sat Aug 06, 2011 1:29 pm

This page contains a list with links to all the stories written in Volume IX.

Five Words Stories - Volume IX

• Click on Story #89 (26 September 2008) for "A Second Chance"

• Click on Story #90 (2 October 2008) for "Remus' Revelation"

• Click on Story #91 (9 October 2008) for "Jocunda Sykes: Aviatrix Extraordinaire"

Happy Birthday, Five Words!

• Click on Story #92 (16 October 2008) for "The Secret Past of Dean Thomas", Three Year Anniversary Special!

• Click on Story #93 (29 October 2008) for "Dagbert and Rosie's Hair-Raising Halloween"

• Click on Story #94 (3 November 2008) for "Minerva and Augusta's Defiance of You-Know-Who"

• Click on Story #95 (10 November 2008) for "Dumbledore and Snape: A Tale from the Afterlife"

• Click on Story #96 (21 November 2008) for "Sprout and Malfoy: Two Peas in a Pod?"

• Click on Story #97 (29 November 2008) for "Tales of HRH: Hermione Remembers When..."

• Click on Story #98 (8 December 2008) for "Tales of HRH: Ron's Long-Held Secret"

• Click on Story #99 (20 December 2008) for "Tales of HRH: Harry Strikes While the Iron is Hot"

• Click on Stories Stories #97, #98, #99 (29 November - 20 December 2008) for "Tales of HRH: A Miameron" to read this trio of stories all in one post.

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* This volume's stories, stats and post-story comments archived from WX by Verity Weasley; formatted/posted by Potteraholic

Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:29 pm

This story was first posted by Potteraholic - Sep 26, 2008 9:10 pm (#357 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 HogwartsExpressavatar

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 HogwartsExpressavatar

Potty Five Words: "A Second Chance"

"Your potions master, Dumbledore!" Alastor Moody roared. "Why did you hire him? I'm absolutely appalled!" Dumbledore did not answer. He looked at his friend and sighed.

"Alastor," he said, "there is something you must know, and that is, I have a very good reason for trusting Severus Snape."

Moody shook his head. "I must tell you, as a friend, that it will be a total impossibility for you to convince me or the wizarding community of Snape's loyalty." Dumbledore was silent. The two men sat facing each other over the desk in Dumbledore's circular office. The late summer sun was casting long shadows across the floor. Fawkes, the phoenix was slumbering on his perch, watching the wizards silently; the Auror's fierce eyes stared critically at the old Professor, who leaned backwards in his chair, looking grave. They had been discussing this matter before and now that Snape's past was once again brought up by investigations, Moody had no choice but to accept that Snape had to be questioned. That Dumbledore claimed to fully believe in Snape's trustworthiness was the most puzzling part.

Moody decided to stop arguing with his friend. He needed to talk to Snape. He stood up stiffly and left. Where's that Death Eater?

"He'll come here if I send for him, Alastor," Dumbledore said. "But you may find him—"

"Reading my mind again, Albus?" Moody growled, turning. Dumbledore had followed Moody out of his office.

"It wasn't difficult, you know. Your face says exactly what you think." Dumbledore smiled and handed Moody a Sherbet Lemon. "If you can wait a moment I'll tell Severus that you wish to see him." Moody begrudgingly accepted the offer and returned to the office, sitting on a chair. Dumbledore waved his wand and a floral teapot with three cups landed gracefully on the desk. He raised his wand again and a silver-white figure quickly emerged. It was a phoenix, spreading its wings proudly as it was flying out of the window. "Now we only have to wait for Severus. You can ask him about anything but I must warn you not to approach him with prejudice. Severus is a young man with a wounded soul, who has suffered greatly in the past and..."

"He's a Death Eater!" Moody interrupted.

"One who risked his life for our side, Alastor, remember!" Dumbledore looked agitatedly at his friend. And he deserves a second chance." He paused. "We all deserve one."

"You're naïve, Albus," Moody said. "That's your problem. You think all people are basically good. But some just aren't. Plain and simple."

No sooner had Dumbledore poured the tea than they heard someone knocking at the door.

"Enter," called Dumbledore. Minerva McGonagall strode into the office.

Seeing Dumbledore's visitor, she said, "Oh, excuse me, Alastor."

Moody was silent but Dumbledore smiled warmly. "Minerva, what can I do for you?" He gestured to a chair and waited. McGonagall cleared her throat and said, "Professor Dumbledore, I wondered if you could speak to a journalist from the—"

"Journalist?" Moody interrupted. "Don't talk to any journalists! They must be ignored, that pesky Skeeter, and the others."

"Minerva, I'm busy at present, but if you care to deal with it, I'll leave it to you."

McGonagall nodded. Snape entered the office, his black eyes sweeping past her as she left, then he turned toward the two wizards sitting by the desk. He knew at once why he had been summoned but his face was unfathomable and his voice revealed no emotion as he addressed Dumbledore. "You wanted to see me, Headmaster?"

"Yes Severus, please take a seat. My friend Alastor Moody would like to ask you a few questions. I suppose you know he is an Auror." Dumbledore's blue eyes were piercing Snape as though they could see everything that was in the depth of the young wizard's soul. Snape sat down silently, secretly wishing he could be in his office alone.

Moody cast a disapproving glance at the young man, then spoke. "Your name has been mentioned in the—"

"This isn't a formal interrogation," Dumbledore said.

"All right!" growled Moody. "So, Snape, tell me about your Death Eater ...past."

"It's in the past," Snape said wearily. "I regret the mistake I made. I proved my loyalty to the Headmaster. Spying on the Dark Lord is something I do willingly." He waited, his eyes on the Auror, watching him intently.

Moody blinked. "That's all very well, but why did you join the Death Eaters in the first place?"

Snape shifted uncomfortably but Dumbledore answered for him. "That's neither here nor there, Alastor. I have already made that clear. Perhaps this meeting should end." Dumbledore rose quickly and Moody knew that there was no point in asking any further questions. "Severus," Dumbledore said, "I need you to talk to Hagrid about some powdered unicorn horn. He'll be on the grounds now."

"Certainly, Headmaster," replied Snape, as he rose and made his way to the door.

Moody followed him out of the office. "Remember, Alastor," intoned Dumbledore "the matter is closed."

Moody did not answer. Snape was already turning the corner when Moody caught up with him. "Relax, I'm not going to continue the interrogation but I must admit I am curious about your extraordinary story."

"Extraordinary?" questioned Snape, 'I'd hardly call my 'story' that.'" He felt in his robes for his wand, just touching it to reassure himself it was there. He was rather angry but not surprised at Moody's eagerness to discover the truth. However, his secrets were to be shared with nobody, least of all with a nosy Auror. "Don't let me keep you up," he said, the sarcasm palpable. "This business with Hagrid has nothing to do with Death Eaters, so I doubt that our little chat should interest you." Snape stepped outside of the castle.

"See you soon, Snape," Moody growled, limping away.

"It was a pleasure," sneered Snape in reply. The young wizard turned toward the forest, where a couple of trees already had bright yellow leaves. He first went to Hagrid's hut but not finding anyone there, he continued along the forest, looking for him. Many different sounds emerged from the forest, sounds Snape had heard before: creaking, rustling noises, birdsong, the sound of running water far away.

But suddenly, this harmony of familiar sounds stopped. The silence was deafening. Snape stopped, too, in surprise and listened. The next moment something crashed through the undergrowth. It was a Quintaped. How did that get in here? Everyone is in danger with this beast running loose in the forest. The Quintaped suddenly changed course and headed towards a human figure Snape hadn't noticed before. It was the new DADA teacher, Artemis White. What's that dunderhead doing out here? She has no business being out here. She couldn't handle that creature!

"ARTEMIS!!! BEHIND YOU! RUN!" Snape started running towards his colleague, who was wandering along, totally oblivious to the danger. The beast was advancing along the edge of the forest, its clubfooted legs splayed out beneath it. A most ungainly creature, it was far more dangerous than it looked. Its low-slung body was covered in reddish-brown fur, but its usually thick coat was patchy and bloodied. A menacing growl rumbled from its mouth, finally alerting Professor White to its presence. Snape reached her just as the Quintaped crouched, preparing to attack.

"STUPEFY!" he yelled, aiming his wand at the beast. Professor White appeared to be rooted to the ground. The Quintaped faltered, but continued advancing towards the petrified professor. Almost at the front gate, Moody realized he'd left his walking stick in Dumbledore's office and turned back. The air was suddenly filled with the sound of screams and strange grunts and growls. He saw flashes of red light and rushed over to investigate the source of the disturbance. Snape was firing stunning spells while trying to shield a terrified woman from a snarling five-legged creature.

Moody whipped out his own wand and fired more stunners. The double attack seemed to be wearing the animal out but it was continuing to attack. Snape yelled as the Quintaped jumped at him, tearing his robes with its claws. Another flash of red light narrowly missed Snape, who shouted, "Back away! Confringo!"

Moody and Professor White jumped back while the Quintaped was thrown to the ground, unconscious. Snape also fell and his arm landed on a large stone and broke. Professor White ran over to him, wailing and crying. Snape struggled to his feet, muttering angrily as he picked up his wand and took a few steps toward her.

"You saved my life," Professor White stammered gratefully. "Let me look at your arm! I can't understand what that beast was doing here. They are normally only found on The Isle of Drear."

She took his aching arm into her hands, despite his protestations. "Careful!" hissed Snape as she pulled up the sleeve of his left arm. She was gentle in her movements, though, when she saw his forearm, she started and let out a gasp.

"You're... a Death Eater?" Snape flushed with shame.

"It's all right, Professor White," Moody said suddenly. He limped towards them. "Professor Snape is on our side." Snape looked at him, stunned. "He has demonstrated his allegiances tonight," Moody continued. "What happened to you..."

He was suddenly interrupted by Hagrid's relieved cries. "There yeh are, Quincy. I've bin lookin' fer yeh everywhere, naugh'y, naugh'y boy!"

"Hagrid!" Moody exclaimed. "Are you responsible for this? Don't you know how dangerous all your beloved monsters are?" Hagrid looked sheepish, stooping to retrieve the still unconscious creature.

"Sorry, Professors," he muttered, backing off a little, "I know he gets a bit excitable if he's teased, but there's—"

"A bit excitable! He nearly had us for dinner!" Snape bellowed. "Now take that creature away before I decide to research its use as a potion ingredient!"

Hagrid turned and went back to the Quintaped. "Come," he murmured and lifted it carefully. "I'll take yeh home." Hagrid walked slowly away, carrying the groggy beast slung across his back.

Professor White was having difficulty mending Snape's arm, although she was very skilled in performing hexes. "Madame Pomfrey will be able to fix it," she said. "It will be safer if you let her take care of it. I'll go with you." Snape accepted her offer and they started to walk together towards the castle.

Moody was watching Snape, deep in thought. Dumbledore may have a point about that one. He might indeed deserve a second chance. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on him in the future. Constant vigilance! thought Moody.

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:33 pm

These stats were first posted by Potteraholic - Sep 26, 2008 9:27 pm (#359 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

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Statistics for Story 89
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Julia H.	112
Potteraholic	77
Dryleaves	65
Verity Weasley	71
Snuffles	2
azi	5
mona amon	19
PeskyPixie	1
PatPat	1

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 353
Total Words: 1765
Last Submission Date: #353, September 25, 2008, 10:59 PM (Verity Weasley)
Total Time to Create Story: 4 days, 7 hours, 13 minutes

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:34 pm

These post-story comments were first posted by Potteraholic - Nov 24, 2010 6:55 am (#2920 of 2960) [Edited Dec 21, 2010 1:49 am] on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

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Post-Story Comments for Story #89, Volume IX,
Potty Five Words: "A Second Chance"

This story was written from September 21, 2008 to September 25, 2008. Nine writers contributed to the story, which is 1,765 words long. Five of the nine writers posted feedback.

- Potteraholic, Sep 26, 2008 9:33 pm: There was some discussion/debate about the exact time frame of this story and some of its plot details, but we managed to write a cohesive well-constructed story despite the different perspectives and understandings we brought to our five word contributions over the course of writing this story, in an unbelievably short time, too. Well done to all of us!

The length of this story is more typical of Five Words stories in the majority of the other threads, and I think this is a practice we should continue.

For those who, noticed, yes, I changed some of Hagrid's dialogue. Words like 'ya' became 'yeh', etc. I consulted the Lexicon to get his dialect as close to canon as possible.

- Julia H., Sep 26, 2008 10:18 pm: This was a special story for me because, as I said, I find this "missing part" of the HP saga (about Snape's "reintegration" - well, sort of - into the wizarding community) quite intriguing.

- Verity Weasley, Sep 26, 2008 10:35 pm: Reading through the last story, I thought it turned out really well. It read quite smoothly and everything made sense. I don't really think McGonagall added anything to the story. Those few lines could probably be cut without losing anything relevant. But I guess that happens with five words. Sometimes a character is introduced but then doesn't really go anywhere. And when I got to Hagrid's dialogue, I immediately recognised the more correct form that you changed it to PAH. When I posted some of his speech, I put 'ya', but I knew that didn't seem right. I also knew he wouldn't say 'you'. The number of times I have read Hagrid's dialogue, I should have remembered it was 'yeh'. Thankfully, you did PAH! And once again, an inspired choice for a story title!

- Potteraholic, Sep 26, 2008 11:40 pm: And re: the title, thanks, Verity! It seemed the only choice to me. About your comment: I don't really think McGonagall added anything to the story. Those few lines could probably be cut without losing anything relevant. But I guess that happens with five words. Sometimes a character is introduced but then doesn't really go anywhere.

I only introduced Minnie McG because of this previous comment you made whilst Five Wording: Who could it be? It can't be Snape yet surely. Remember, you can't Apparate into Hogwarts! (My inner Hermione coming out!) I thought, I better not mess with canon, so followed your suggestion. Ah well! Minnie will just have to wait for another story, won't she?

- Verity Weasley, Sep 27, 2008 1:07 am: I know I inadvertantly brought about that Professor McGonagall hiatus in the previous story with my comment. At the time, it hadn't occurred to me that Snape might already be at Hogwarts. For some reason, I just assumed that he would be elsewhere. Anyway, I guess there could have been some interaction between the characters that added to the story, but as it was, Minnie left when Snape arrived. That's the nature of Five Words, I suppose.

- Julia H., Sep 27, 2008 4:45 am: Last night I wanted to say but forgot (I was sleepy) that I like the title, too! Very appropriate! I liked the way you presented Hagrid. It seemed totally authentic to me. BTW, I think this time we managed to keep all the characters in character. (I remember in another Snape-story, he was a bit out of character, as readers remarked.)

There were only two questions that remained unanswered for me: Did Moody find his walking stick after all or did he discover he did not really need it? (He even jumped once!) What was the unicorn horn business? Snape totally forgot about it, which is not surprising under the circumstances. (He might just have to start looking for Hagrid again.)

- Dryleaves, Sep 27, 2008 12:22 pm: On the last story: I agree that McGonagall didn't contribute much to it, but at least she didn't ruin it. I think the story as a whole was well-composed and I don't think our timeline problems showed in the final version. And I liked the title too. I'm always curious about what the title of the story will be.

- mona amon, Sep 27, 2008 1:24 pm: I thought 'A Second Chance' turned out very well. Nice title, BTW.

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:35 pm

This story was first posted by PatPat - Oct 2, 2008 12:49 am (#702 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

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Potty Five Words: "Remus' Revelation"

A coward... he fumed, Disapparating quickly. His lack of concentration caused him to arrive at The Burrow, instead of his own flat. Remus Lupin stood for a moment, composing his thoughts. He could see Arthur through the kitchen window and wondered if he could sneak away without being noticed. However, Arthur happened to look out and spotted him.

"Remus!" he cried, "What a pleasant surprise! Come in. Molly's got some freshly baked scones and a pot of dirigible plum jam. Kettle's on. Won't you stay for tea?"

"Well, actually," Remus hesitated. He felt terribly lonely and his argument with Harry had upset him so much that he didn't feel like going home. He had news of Harry, Ron, and Hermione that he knew would interest Arthur. Nobody waited for him to answer, but Arthur threw open the door and quickly ushered him into the house.

"Remus! How are you? How's Tonks?" Molly asked.

"She's all right," he mumbled. She hugged him warmly, with tears in her bright brown eyes. "You look so thin! Come in! Have some tea. Sit down."

It was such a friendly invitation that he couldn't refuse, and the teacups were already floating towards the table. He sank miserably into a chair and watched as the teapot came drifting over, too. He didn't know how conspicuously unhappy he looked until Molly said: "Remus, something's wrong, we can tell. Do you have bad news for us?"

"No," he said, trying to smile. "Everything's fine." He paused. "I saw them. They are quite safe. The... twins? How are they? What—"

Molly's teaspoon fell clattering on the floor. "Fred and George are working on a new… project," Arthur began.

"Really? What is it?" Remus asked with interest. He needed to occupy himself with something to avoid thinking about Harry's words and Dora's pregnancy, his own fears.

"It's called Potterwatch," Arthur continued excitedly.

"Potterwatch?" Remus muttered slightly puzzled. "What is that about?"

"It is a radio station that tells the truth about the current situation." Arthur sipped his tea. "But what were you saying? Did you see the kids? What did they say? Where are they?"

Remus looked uncomfortable, but forced a smile onto his face. "They're at Grimmauld Place. They seem well protected. Mad-Eye's enchantments are keeping Snape from entering the house, so no worries there. They're getting on with their plans, I think." He took a sip of his tea, trying not to sound bitter.

Molly, who had been listening intently, asked in a worried voice: "Have they been eating properly?" Remus didn't know what to say, so he just nodded his head, silently. "And these plans," Molly continued, "did they say what they were going to do next?"

"No," Remus replied. "They didn't." Molly looked away, disappointed.

Arthur looked curiously at Remus, sensing his unwillingness to discuss the matter. "Remus, would you like to hear more about Potterwatch?" Arthur asked, changing the subject.

Remus nodded. "When did it start?" he asked, grateful for the momentary distraction. "And who else is involved?"

Arthur leaned forward, a gleam in his eye. "You remember Lee Jordan? The twins' friend from Hogwarts?" Remus nodded. "Well, he does a broadcast from different places so they can't be tracked. Everyone who's on air will use a different codename to identify themselves. George is Rapscallion, Fred's Rapier, Lee is River,—"

"And I can be… Romulus!" Remus interrupted. "I'd like to join them. If they need me..." Remus's voice faltered and he stared into his teacup.

"Of course they need you," Arthur said encouragingly. "Anybody would be glad to have your dulcet tones speaking to everybody."

"What about Nymphadora?" Molly asked. "You could add a fresh perspective, as a father-to-be."

Remus added in a serious voice, "I don't have the faintest idea what a father-to-be would suggest in these difficult times."

"Yes, you should probably stay with Nymphadora and protect her," Molly said. "She will need a lot of support now."

Remus didn't reply. He just sighed in a resigned manner and glanced out the window. In a trance, he remembered the day Dora told him she loved him more than anything and that she didn't care what other people would think or say. His heart sank as he thought of the fact she was ostracized because of her love and his condition. He felt so guilty for wanting to leave her and never see the baby they were having together. He was convinced that the best thing he could do would be to stay away from Dora, but now he was second-guessing this decision. Harry had been quite right, much to Remus' dismay. Standing up, he donned his cloak again. Just then, Fred Apparated into the field next to the Burrow, then bounded over the garden gate and into the kitchen.

"Remus!" exclaimed Fred. "How are you? Have you heard anything about Harry and the others?"

Remus nodded, "Yes, I have actually just come from seeing them. They're fine. But Arthur was just telling me about your Potterwatch idea. I would like to join you if you'll have me." He added, quietly, looking hopeful.

Fred clapped him on the back. "Absolutely! We'd be honored to have you as part of our team. We need someone who can give our listeners expert advice about protecting oneself against the Dark Arts and Death Eater attacks."

"I can certainly do that!" Remus agreed. "When and where will the next broadcast be?" He grinned for the first time in days. He was looking forward to doing something useful at last. "I've thought of my codename already. It's Romulus."

"Nice one," Fred said. "I'm Rapier, so they'll get the point of my words."

"Very clever," Remus laughed.

"Now, before you two get absorbed in your plans too much, you both need a good square meal, and Remus, perhaps you should let Fred tell us what news he has for us," Molly finished. She pushed Fred into a chair and placed a steaming cup of tea before him.

"Thanks," Fred said. "I wonder if you've all heard that the chief Death Eater is using the Ministry to discredit Harry by suggesting that he had something to do with Dumbledore's death?"

Arthur nodded gravely. "Yes," he said. "They have been feeding stories to the public about him. The Daily Prophet is under the Ministry's influence and gladly spreads these stories."

"The compulsory registration of all Muggle-born witches and wizards—"

"Compulsory registration?" Remus interrupted.

"Oh, yes, I've just seen it in the Prophet. What next?" Fred wondered. "We've got to inform everyone about the truth Let's go, Romulus!" Fred was impatient. "George is waiting for me in Dalton-le-Dale. We are going to broadcast our next Potterwatch report from there."

"Did you leave Stonehenge then?" Molly asked.

"Yes, it's too risky to stay in one place for long," replied Fred. "So, Romulus, George'll be chuffed to have you on board! Do you think we could get going soon, though?"

"Absolutely! Ready whenever you are! Just lead the way!" They waved good-bye to Arthur and Molly, hopped over the garden wall and Disapparated. When they landed in the clearing, George appeared, accompanied by Lee Jordan.

"Remus!" they both shouted in unison, wringing his hand.

He laughed, "Call me Romulus, Rapscallion."

"Okay, Romulus, the broadcast is in one hour. We'll be setting up over here in this abandoned mill. River," George motioned to Lee, "will start with a wrap-up of the week's major events. Then, details of the Ministry's actions against the Death Eaters and You-Know-Who."

"What if Death Eaters hear the password? Then they'll be able to hear everything," Remus said.

George grinned. "It wouldn't do them any good. Anyway, it's very unlikely that they'll figure out the password since it changes after every program."

The four wizards entered the mill. Shabby though it looked from the outside, it had been tidied up on the inside, and magically altered so that it was both spacious and equipped with everything they needed. In the middle of the floor sat a large box.

"This is it!" Lee announced. "Our transmitter!" They gathered around the box and Fred showed Remus how it worked. Fifteen minutes later, they were ready to start. Lee was singing the theme song when the transmitter's lights glowed green signaling the start of the news reports. "Good evening, witches, wizards, Muggles, house-elves and other magical and non-magical beings. We are joined tonight by a new, fearless, truth-loving reporter, who'll work tirelessly to protect Muggles and all Magical mischief-makers everywhere! So, Romulus, what would you like to say to our listeners?"

Remus began, "Harry, if you're listening, I want you to know that I thought about what you said to me. I regret that we left things that way. You were right. You're wiser than me."

"What else would you say?" a puzzled Lee asked.

"We are all behind you and know you're doing your best to end this," Remus paused, unsure of what else to say.

Sensing this silence could last a while, Lee motioned to George, "Now is the time for you to do your thing, Rapscallion," he announced quickly.

"Thanks, River," George said and swiftly took a sip of water from his handy dandy expanding water bottle before starting his report. "Muggles need to be on the lookout for unusual behavior of their wizard neighbors. Death Eaters attack anyone that amuse them."

"You'll be safe, then!" Fred teased. "But for the rest of the news I will hand over to River."

George turned to Remus and said, "Remus, it sounds as though you and Harry had some sort of exchange recently. Can you tell me any more about how he and Ron are doing?"

Remus smiled, "He, Ron, and Hermione are all right. They're taking care of some things that Dumbledore wanted done. And they don't want anyone to join them. Harry made it clear that they didn't want my help, but he thought I should take care of my own family. And he was right."

George nodded, clapping him on the shoulder, "Good for you, Remus. You've made the right choice."

"I just wish I had figured it out sooner," Remus admitted with a sad smile.

George smiled, "Better late than never, old boy. Cheer up!"

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:37 pm

These stats were first posted by PatPat - Oct 2, 2008 1:16 am (#704 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

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Statistics for Story 90
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Julia H.	58
Verity Weasley	82
Potteraholic	91
Swedish-Short-Snout	2
mona amon	10
Dryleaves	21
PatPat	39
freshwater	9
Quinn Crockett	14
legolas returns	15

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 341
Total Words:: 1705
Last Submission Date: #701, October 2, 2008, 12:12 AM (Potteraholic)
Total Time to Create Story: 5 days, 1 hour, 54 minutes

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:39 pm

These post-story comments were first posted by Potteraholic - Nov 24, 2010 6:55 am (#2921 of 2960) [Edited Dec 30, 2010 2:45 am] on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

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Post-Story Comments for Story #90, Volume IX,
Potty Five Words: "Remus' Revelation"

This story was written from September 26, 2008 to October 2, 2008. Ten writers contributed to the story, which is 1,705 words long. Six of the ten writers posted feedback.

- PatPat, Oct 2, 2008 1:31 am: I'd say this was one of our medium stories. It was a good plot, but we got tripped up a couple of times with canon and trying to keep to individual ideas of where the story should go. We all have our own ideas, but it is the nature of Five-Words that the story rarely goes in the expected direction. The key is to relax and have fun! As always, we managed to pull together a story that seemed to drag in places and make a nice little tale.

One comment: Please make sure you read the comments at the end of posts. Sometimes they indicate that the story is finished. If you have an idea for a better ending to a story, that's great! But, please post an explanation of what you are thinking so others can follow. Also, bear in mind that compiling takes a lot of time and effort. (It's not as easy as it looks!) Please be sure that you really feel more is needed to further the plot of the story before making additions. Remember there's always another story to tell!

- Potteraholic, Oct 2, 2008 8:27 pm: Wow, the 90th story! In 3 years! The anniversary of Five Words here on the Harry Potter FFF is coming up next week. That averages out to about 30 stories per year. Not bad for people creating a story by posting in from around the world and different times of the day over the course of some days, a few weeks, or even, *** gasp***, over a month!

I agree, PatPat, about the story having a good plot, but having places that dragged a bit. I think, sometimes, we describe things that don't need to be described in much detail which can be easily inferred by a casual reader. And re: having our own ideas for the story, yeah, I guess we all have them, but it's true, we have to give them up sometimes, for the greater good. I encourage folks who have a particular vision for how a story should go to the new Writing Contest, #50 (a momentous number). The theme is Quidditch, which at first thought, might not be your thing, but Uncle Brad, who's in charge of this particular contest, has provided lots of scope and breadth for this topic. Who knows, you might find something you like?

- Dryleaves, Oct 2, 2008 9:01 pm: Some thoughts on the previous story: I didn't contribute much to it, as I was visiting my parents and didn't have as much time as I usually have, and I didn't have my books, so I couldn't look up all the Potterwatch things I wanted to look up. I think Remus' sadness was very well portrayed in the story, but I had maybe thought the revelation would be more dramatic. Still, all revelations aren't, and I think the story showed how his thoughts went and how he came to his final decision.

- Verity Weasley, Oct 2, 2008 9:52 pm: Well done PatPat, you did a great job with the compiling, especially after those last few posts were added on the end. It was a pleasant story to be a part of. I think the characterisation of Lupin was very authentic. His revelation wasn't dramatic, but it doesn't necessarily have to be, to fit his character. He tends to be thoughtful and I think just mulling something over for a while is the sort of thing he would do. The story did take an interesting turn, and I think we probably didn't do Potterwatch justice, as part of Lupin's story, but it can always be revisited in the future!

- Quinn Crockett, Oct 2, 2008 10:15 pm: I think my only comment on the previous story is that I don't feel we had Molly and Arthur and the twins show much (if any) concern for what was happening with, especially, Ron (and Harry and Hermione too). At one point we even have Arthur completely changing the subject! We also had them immediately accept Lupin at face value (that he's not an impostor) which was a bit out of character for Arthur, in my view. But I actually really liked they way the story turned out. Bravo, everyone!

- Julia H., Oct 3, 2008 5:03 am: I would comment on the previous story but I see what I would say has already been said by others. I agree with most of the comments above (including the ones about PatPat's work!)

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:40 pm

This story was first posted by Potteraholic - Oct 9, 2008 10:40 pm (#1038 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 Jocund10

Potty Five Words: "Jocunda Sykes: Aviatrix Extraordinaire"

Jocunda's transatlantic flight was scheduled for the next morning. She was checking her broom carefully. A small compass was attached to the polished oak handle, but some of the tail-twigs were out of alignment. Jocunda first tried to straighten them before resorting to clipping. Her time was limited and she still had to pack some gifts for friends in Aix-en-Provence and double-check her map. She'd never used a Muggle map before. It would've proved challenging, if she had not put a spell on it so that it could magically indicate the route with flashing lights.

She had been criticized by many in her community for this trip. Her father was absolutely against it. He often traveled by Floo Powder, but felt that broom travel was far too insecure.

"Why would anyone want to perch on a stick like a fwooper? Why would they risk frostbite?" he used to ask her whenever she spoke about her plans. She, however, only laughed and said, "Even Muggles fly, Dad."

The Daily Prophet had asked for a pre-flight interview and the reporter would be arriving in a few minutes. Jocunda did a few final adjustments, then set the broom aside to prepare for her meeting. She hoped it wouldn't take too long, as she had invited a few friends to celebrate her transatlantic adventure with her. The food had been specially ordered from a famous restaurant called Witches' Wishes. It provided all sorts of delightfully delicious and widely popular savories, beverages, and desserts. There would be music and dancing but Jocunda would have to leave early to prepare herself. Fortunately, her best friend Elvendork had organized everything for the party, so she didn't have to.

A man suddenly Apparated next to her. She started and shrieked in surprise because he'd Apparated right inside her living room. Bad manners! she thought, as he bumped into the bag she had packed for the trip. "Please be careful, Mr...?" she said.

"Skeeter, Reginald Skeeter. But you can call me Reg," he said with an oily smile.

"Pleased to meet you," Jocunda replied. She didn't like the looks of this reporter, but she had already agreed to the interview so she politely gestured to the squashy sofa in front of the fireplace. "Shall we start?" Jocunda asked, warily.

"Certainly," Reginald began. "Tell me, what made you decide to attempt such a dangerous undertaking?"

Jocunda sighed. She had been talking to her father about her decision and was ready to put the subject to rest. "Let's just say that boundaries are there to be crossed, aren't they? And why should Muggles have all the fun? If Lindbergh and Earhart can do it in their clumsy metal contraptions, why can't I do it on my trusty Oakshaft 79?" She folded her arms across her chest and stared at him defiantly.

"Right," he said, "and how did you train for flying such a great distance?"

"I think that's a fair question Mr. Skeeter. I have been training for over a year flying every weekend. I travel mostly at night, but I have been including some midday flights at high altitudes to prepare for all different weather and take advantage of thermals and jet streams."

Reginald didn't have the faintest idea what Jocunda was talking about. He sneered and said, "There must be something else for an attractive young witch such as yourself to be doing with your time! Like starting a family. Is there a young man for whom your heart beats passionately? One who'll be waiting for you, longing to take you home safely?" He leaned towards her, smiling his oily smile.

Jocunda leaned back. "I can't see what relevance this is. I'm sure your readers would be more interested in hearing about my plans for my transatlantic flight."

"Miss Sykes, our readers will be fascinated by every aspect of your extraordinary life."

Just then the doorbell rang. "Are you expecting someone?" Mr. Skeeter asked.

"Just my friend Elvendork," replied Jocunda and stood up, grateful for the opportunity to drop the conversation. "I must end now, Mr. Skeeter. I have to let Elvendork in. We have discussed the topics that the readers of your paper need to be informed about so, good day," Jocunda said, curtly.

"Elvendork?" pressed Reginald. "Is that a young gentleman? Are you involved?"

"Mr. Skeeter," said Jocunda, "I must ask you to leave now." She steered him toward the door, just as a pretty young witch pushed it open and stepped inside. "Oh good, Jocunda, you're here. I . . ." Elvendork stopped at the sight of Mr. Skeeter, who looked disappointed.

"Mr. Skeeter was just leaving," Jocunda said to Elvendork, pushing Reginald through the door.

"Good-bye, Mr. Skeeter!" Elvendork slammed the door and turned to Jocunda. "Are you ready for the party? It's going to be magic! I've got all your favorite music here and all the Quidditch team members are coming. Everyone's really excited."

"Excellent!" Jocunda exclaimed in a ‘bouncy on the spot’ voice. "I want to see all of them before I go. They all helped me become the broom virtuoso that I am today!”

"If you don't say so yourself!" laughed Elvendork.

"Modesty does not become me. You know that, Elvie!" The two women giggled amiably as they began bustling around the room preparing for the party.

A moment later, Elvendork turned to her friend. "Have you finished all the preparations for your trip?"

Jocunda nodded, "Almost. I just have to check my goggles carefully. I've put an Impervius charm on them but it keeps wearing off after a couple of hours. If this spell doesn't stick, then I might have to try a bubble-head charm instead. At least the weather is looking good right now."

Elvendork nodded, "Yes everything looks great. I know you'll be absolutely fine." She smiled encouragingly, before returning to the party preparations. Just as Elvendork finished arranging the table, the doorbell rang again and made Jocunda jump for joy. A minute later, the room was filled with her friends, talking and laughing excitedly. A large, burly young man named Karl Broadmoor picked Jocunda up and swung her around.

"Jo!" he cried. "What an adventure!" He had a deep voice, and even deeper brown eyes, which were now looking directly into Jocunda's.

"Put me down, silly. I need to finish tonight in one piece, or you will have to fly across the Atlantic for me! And I won't allow that to happen." Karl looked sheepish as he set her down gently, but Jocunda laughed and cuffed him lightly on the shoulder. Loud music came from the Wizard's wireless and they all started dancing and singing along with the popular song, 'Love Casts Its Spell' by the 'Wacky Wizards'. Jocunda and Karl started doing a complicated dance that made the couple look like a pair of prancing bumblebees.

"You're the jarvey's jumper, Jo," sang Karl as he spun her around again, grinning broadly.

'...with a swish and a flick, your heart takes flight; with a shower of sparks, into the night and love casts a spell on you and on me...'

"This is a cracker of a song!" Karl said, looking sheep-eyed at Jocunda. "It'll remind me of this evening ...forever."

"Honestly, Karl, I'm just flying across the Atlantic! I'll be back before you know it." She disentangled herself from his embrace. "Let's go join the party. I'm starving!" She led him to the table where the delicious smell of roasted goose beckoned, in addition to fat, crispy Cornish Pasties, roasted potatoes, and treacle tart. Jocunda piled her plate high with some of everything then sat down to eat.

"Careful, your broom may not be able to budge if you keep eating like that!" Elvendork joked.

"It's a good job you're doing on that treacle tart, Elvie! Your broomstick might actually snap if you try to fly anywhere on it!" Jocunda fired back, chuckling.

Elvendork glanced across at Karl, who burst out laughing.

"Touché!” she said, smiling. Then she held up her glass for a toast and waited for the assembled guests to be quiet. "All joking aside, this party is in honor of our wonderful and dedicated friend, Jo. She's been training for this momentous occasion for many years and tomorrow wizards and witches everywhere will know her name. Tomorrow she will attempt to make history. But whatever happens we'll always be proud of her. To Jocunda!" Elvendork concluded.

"Jocunda!" chorused the guests, raising their glasses in unison. Jocunda blushed as she raised her glass in turn. A few tears shone among the smiles, then everybody emptied their glasses.

A couple of hours later Jocunda realized it was time for bed, and said goodnight to all her guests. Karl gave her a goodnight kiss. "'Night, Jo."

The next morning, Jocunda wasted no time in bed. She got up early, got dressed, and ate breakfast. After once again having checked all her equipment, she prepared to Apparate to Dover, from where she would begin her flight. The weather was unusually good. No clouds could be seen, which Jocunda thought a good omen. In eager anticipation, she Disapparated, and arrived in John O'Groats, overshooting her target. Steady on, Jo!” she chided herself. Focus! She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Right, I suppose I better get back to where I'm meant to be. Setting out from here seems appropriate since I'm about to set out on the longest journey of my life, so far.

Returning to her scheduled departure point, at the opposite end of the country, she prepared to fly over the English Channel. Donning a pair of goggles, she got on her broom, and looked up at the sky. John o'Groats to Dover, she thought, ironically. I've gone from coast to coast in Britain and now I'm going across the ocean to another coast, far away.

Snapping out of her reverie, Jocunda flew into the sky.

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:42 pm

These stats were first posted by Potteraholic - Oct 9, 2008 10:51 pm (#1040 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Statistics for Story 91
ordered by first contribution to the story

User	# of Submissions
Potteraholic	78
azi	3
Dryleaves	39
Verity Weasley	98
Quinn Crockett	33
legolas returns	5
PatPat	43
Julia H.	29
Snuffles	1

The user in red is the rightful starter of the next story. They are welcome to pass on the privilege to the user who posted the second most number of times, who may in turn pass it to the user who posted the third number of times in the story, and so forth.

Total Submissions: 329
Total Words: 1645
Last Submission Date: #1034, October 9, 2008, 2:00 PM (PatPat)
Total Time to Create Story: 6 days, 5 hours, 33 minutes

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:46 pm

These post-story comments were first posted by Potteraholic - Nov 24, 2010 6:55 am (#2922 of 2960) [Edited Dec 21, 2010 6:33 am]on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Post-Story Comments for Story #91, Volume IX,
Potty Five Words: "Jocunda Sykes: Aviatrix Extraordinaire"

This story was written from October 2, 2008 to October 9, 2008. Nine writers contributed to the story, which is 1,645 words long. Six of the nine writers posted feedback, as did 1 non-participant.

- Quinn Crockett, Oct 9, 2008 11:42 pm: Great work everyone. My only comment is that we have her agreeing to the interview about her flight, but then right away we have her thinking something like, "she thought she'd put the matter to rest". So why did she bother agreeing to the interview? Know what I mean?

But I really like this story a lot. It could have gone so many directions. I hope we revisit Jocunda soon.

- Potteraholic, Oct 10, 2008 5:17 am: I liked the story a lot; not having a lot of canon to stick to gave us lots of opportunity to be creative. LOL, we still managed to get confused along the way, but nothing that detracts from the flow of the final story, I think. And about Jo wanting the interview to end quickly, she might have only bedgrudgingly agreed to it in the first place. That's the cool thing about Five Words, the different interpretations that arise from a reading of the same 5 words by different people.

I also loved the little details of the HP-world that we included: the oily reporter, Reg Skeeter (Rita's predecessor ), and Karl Broadmoor, a Quidditch player quickly come to mind. And I agree, it would be great to have another Jocunda story one of these days! I'm all for writing stories about characters we know next-to-nothing about but who must undoubtedly be interesting folks if JKR saw fit to create them in the first place!

- Finn BV, Oct 10, 2008 6:05 am: I enjoyed reading the Jocunda Sykes story. First of all, great pick for a subject matter. I too love those stories that explore new territory. I think also the length of the story was appropriate. It was a nice little moment in her life… it didn't go on forever. I didn't read post-by-post, just the summary, so I don't know how it progressed, but it was very well tied together, I thought. Good work!

- Verity Weasley, Oct 10, 2008 7:29 am: I was in a bit of a rush when I posted before so I didn't have time to make post story comments on our previous story. I'm really just echoing previous comments, but I agree it was fun to write about new characters. I thought the interview was handled quite well and merely reflected Jocunda's discomfort with Reg and his particular line of questioning.

- Julia H., Oct 10, 2008 6:18 pm: I like the whole story as it is and it was fun to participate in writing it. (I could contribute very little this time, which was an inevitable change after having the highest number of posts twice! You know, sooner or later, you have to start doing other things as well.)

- Dryleaves, Oct 10, 2008 7:56 pm: I think others have said what I wanted to say about the last story, but I must say that I really liked the character of Jocunda and agree with those who thought they wanted to see more of her. I think she is a witch who is very likely to seek new adventures.

- Julia H., Oct 10, 2008 8:39 pm: Re: Jocunda: I would really like to see her transatlantic flight in one of our stories.

- PatPat, Oct 10, 2008 9:38 pm: Regarding the last story, I like the way it turned out. The stories about lesser known characters are always a lot of fun because we don't have to worry as much about contradicting canon. I don't think we need to worry about details like the interview. It's so interesting to see how different people interpret the same things! That's one of my favorite things about Five-Words!

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:48 pm

This post was originally made by Finn BV - Oct 10, 2008 4:08 am (#1045 of 2998)

Potty Game: Five Words!

Almost to the hour, the "Potty Game: Five Words" is turning three years old — October 10, 2005, 2:17 am, according to current forum time, though with all the changes in the forum clock since then it actually occurred on late October 9. Since our existence, we have had dozens of members of the Harry Potter Lexicon FanFiction Forum partake in this simple yet endlessly enjoyable game. In the game, there are no boundaries, save that you must add five words, no more and no less (though there are always mistakes ), to your post that continue the story told through other members' five words. Strung together, the five words will make a much, much longer story.

Please take some time to reminisce about the history of the Five Words from our 1-year birthday celebration of October 9, 2006. This little tidbit, once again, is STILL true, to the best of my knowledge (Potteraholic may correct me on this one): We invented the "Potty Five Words Crown," given to the poster who held the record for most number of posts in a story; the crown, I believe, is still currently retained by Tazzygirl (Kristina), with a thrilling 176 posts in the story "Just Another Week at the Ministry" on April 23, 2006.

I have already expressed my thanks for Tazzygirl, Potteraholic, PatPat, and Kip Carter in an earlier post, but once again, their continued devotion to the game is invaluable and makes me love this Forum. I hope everyone understands what a vast amount of work it is to compile a story — typing it up, checking for grammatical and spelling errors, counting words, tallying statistics, formatting correctly. These people are the best!

And now, as we become nonegenarians in terms of number of stories, I invite each and every one of you to take the opportunity to play some ultimate Five Words: for this entire story, instead of posting five words, post... (drumroll, please) FIFTEEN WORDS! Wow, wasn't that exciting, five more words from the old birthday celebration, and it's going to make statistics even more of a nightmore, but hey, I'm not in charge of that anymore! (Just kidding PAH.) Actually, it is going to make statistics easier, because instead of making the word tripling exclusively for today, it's for the entire story. However, I advise to all that we keep this story slightly on the short side in terms of posts, because it's going to get three times as long in the same amount of time.

Think of everything you can do with fifteen words! The possibilities to steer a plot are endless. But, please, before, hitting "Post Message," count your words to see if they add up to fifteen. Like, double check. It will help.

Let the festivities begin, and thank you for staying by Five Words!

—Finn BV, October 10, 2008, 4:08 a.m.

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Potteraholic Sun Aug 07, 2011 12:51 pm

This story was first posted by PatPat - Oct 16, 2008 12:54 am (#1179 of 2998) on the World Crossing home of the 'Harry Potter Lexicon Forum'.

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 BlackGoldHPavatar

Archive of Five Words Stories - Page 11 BlackGoldHPavatar

Potty Five Words: "The Secret Past of Dean Thomas"

Mr. and Mrs. Granger were arguing over their copy of Dental Health Monthly when there was a knock on their front door. "Who could that be, Egeus?" Portia asked.

"I'll get it," he responded. He opened the door to see Michelle Thomas, their new neighbor looking very distressed. "What's the matter, Michelle? You look like you could use a cup of tea."

"Haven't you got anything stronger?" asked Michelle, stepping over the threshold. "I could use a brandy, quite honestly, after the day I've had." Egeus showed her to the sitting room, where he poured her a cup of brandy.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Well, I've just received a letter from my cousin Dean— I think your daughter Hermione knows him? Anyway, he wants to know if I know anything about who his father is. Well I really don't know what to tell him. I know the truth but I didn't know if his mum wanted him to know. So I decided to visit his—"

"Just a moment" interrupted Portia, laying a gentle hand on Michelle's wrist as Egeus handed her a piece of parchment covered in neat, curly handwriting. It was Hermione's latest letter from Hogwarts. The snowy owl which had delivered it was now perched on the mantelpiece.

"This just came from our Hermione as well," Egeus began.

"We're rather worried ourselves" Portia added quietly. "It seems a war is going on in the wizarding community and the Minister of Magic is having difficulty dealing with it properly."

"Sounds like our Prime Minister, Michelle said. "Politicians! What do they know about…"

"It seems," Portia interrupted her, "as if they had lost control completely. The accidents our papers write about are also the consequences of the wizarding war. Hermione said that the Brockdale Bridge and the hurricane were the work of Death Eaters." She looked at her husband. "That's what they're called, isn't it?" she asked him, curiously.

He nodded soberly, "Yes, dear," he shivered. "Not a very nice name, is it?"

Michelle looked from one to the other. "Well this makes it even more difficult to decide what I should tell Dean about his father!"

Portia nodded, sympathetically. "But perhaps it's better if he knows the truth," she advised. "Would it help to have someone else there as moral support when you tell him that his father was a wizard? We could join you, couldn't we Egeus?"

"If you think that would be helpful to Dean, I'd be very grateful for your presence," sighed Michelle. "I'll call him to let him know I'm coming."

"There are no telephones at Hogwarts, dear," Portia replied. "But this Hogwarts owl is still here."

"Didn't Hermione say there was a Hogsmeade weekend coming up soon?" Egeus asked. "You could plan to meet Dean then."

Portia nodded, "Yes that's a wonderful idea!"

"I guess I could do that" Michelle replied thoughtfully. "But how will I get there?"

"We'll all go. It would be lovely to visit Hermione, and see the wizarding village! I'll send this owl back to Hermione and see if she can tell us how to get there. She'll figure something out. She's good at that sort of thing," Portia declared.

Three days later, the three of them waited nervously for the Knight Bus at the designated spot. It arrived on time. They boarded, paid the fare with coins left over from their last trip to Diagon Alley, and found themselves three squashy armchairs on the top deck. Once seated, they went over their plan. "Hermione will meet us in The Three Broomsticks with Dean at eleven. Then she's going to show us around the village once you have had your talk." Portia said, quietly.

Michelle nodded. "I hope Dean doesn't get too upset when he hears the news." Just then, the bus gave a sudden lurch and jumped from their quiet suburban street to a road in London outside a small grubby-looking pub. All three fell from their chairs as the bus stopped short in front of The Leaky Cauldron. Most of their fellow passengers departed and a few more got on. Picking herself up from the floor, Portia dusted off her clothes and then helped Michelle up as well. The pimply-faced conductor motioned them to sit down. Michelle announced, "They should really put some seat belts on these armchairs. "

"I know what you mean, dear," agreed Portia. "Egeus and I considered wearing gum shields but that would just make us look ridiculous."

"I doubt you would differ much from the other passengers," whispered Michelle conspiratorially, nodding her head towards a pair of wizards nearby. Each of them wore a black cloak with a hood that almost completely covered their faces. "There must be a Grim Reaper convention going on," she mumbled. Portia looked out the window and bit her lip to keep from laughing.

Finally disembarking in Hogsmeade, the three Muggles made their way down the High Street, looking for The Three Broomsticks. They stopped from time to time to gaze at the wonders of the street that assailed their eyes everywhere they looked. They, in turn, were also attracting a few stares from wizards and witches who had noticed their Muggle attire. Some of the shops seemed to be closed or going out of business. The three adults cast increasingly anxious glances everywhere and Portia suddenly exclaimed, "Look! I think it's there!"

The entrance of The Three Broomsticks was crowded with Hogwarts students, but Michelle and the Grangers managed to squeeze through. They spotted Hermione and Dean immediately, seated at a table with a dark-haired bespectacled boy and a gangly youth with flame red hair. Hermione jumped up when she saw them and waved them over. After introductions all around, Michelle sat next to Dean. She wondered how she was going to broach the subject of his father in front of all his friends. But she needn't have worried.

"Let's go to Zonko's, Ron and Harry," Hermione said, motioning the two boys to follow her. She kissed her parents and left the inn. Dean ordered his cousin a butterbeer and waited expectantly for her to tell him what she knew about his father. He was wondering why Mr. and Mrs. Granger were with her. He hadn't realized his cousin knew Hermione's parents.

"It's good to see you," he said, smiling at Michelle. "How are you, Mr. and Mrs. Granger?"

Michelle didn't smile back. She was too busy concentrating on what she was about to say. "Dean, you wrote to me recently and asked me about your father. Well, I have some information for you about that. I'm worried about how you are going to react to the news though." She faltered, while Dean looked at her curiously.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure I can deal with it, Michelle. I'm nearly of age, after all."

Michelle nodded and began explaining. "Your blood status isn't what you think it is. You're not 100% Muggle. Your father was a wizard, although your mother never knew. He was recruited by Death Eaters—"

"Wait!" Dean interrupted. "How could Mum not know that my Dad was a wizard? I always thought I was Muggleborn!"

Michelle nodded, sadly, "Yes. He never wanted his family to know about his background. Thought it'd be too dangerous for you and your Mum," she paused for a minute, taking a deep breath. "Apparently, he was killed when he refused to cooperate with the Death Eater's plans to torture his Muggle neighbors. My brother overheard my Gran reading the letter, from the Ministry of Magic, which explained the circumstances of his death. She was reading it to my Granddad twelve years ago. I didn't tell anyone about this. My brother and I agreed that we had to respect your father's wish. But he's your father, and as you say, you'll soon be of age..."

"Thank you," Dean said. He was rather pale. "So he didn't just leave us then. All this time I've been thinking he just left us..." He broke off and stared into the distance. He had secretly hoped to see his father one day even though he had felt angry and disappointed with him. Now he knew he never would. He was trying to picture this unknown man, his wizard father, a Death Eater, a victim of the first war that was now rearing its ugly head once more. He took a deep breath and asked, "So, he was a Death Eater, then?"

"He never joined," Michelle explained, "although they were apparently interested in him very much. They tried to force him to do all sorts of things he didn't want to do."

"He must have known something important if they wanted him to join so badly," Dean said slowly. His eyes narrowed. "Maybe he was good at some particular kind of magic and the Death—"

"There is no point thinking about it now. We will never know," Michelle interrupted.

Portia felt it was time to put in a word. "Dean, I'm sure you'll want to understand him. Remember he was a brave man, who died refusing to help the dark forces that were sweeping through the country."

Dean nodded. He was still trying to absorb the information. "But...," he hesitated, "I don't understand why he didn't tell Mum that he was a wizard." He sat quietly reflecting for a moment before suddenly exclaiming, "But how do you know so much—" He broke off suddenly as a commotion erupted near the entrance. Some Hufflepuffs and Slytherins were in a heated argument over last week's Quidditch game. The Slytherins were getting nasty, as usual, and the noise caused Michelle and the Grangers to look up in alarm.

"You ‘Puffs shouldn't even bother to come out onto the pitch!" a Slytherin declared.

"Oi, that's enough!" demanded Rosmerta, the innkeeper.

"Gran knew everything," Michelle confessed. "She just didn't—" She broke off as a group of Slytherins approached the table.

"What is this, Rosmerta?" one of them exclaimed. "Muggles in the pub! You are really lowering your standards!"

"Out! Don't come back until you've learned some manners!" Rosmerta announced.

"Gran knew?" Dean asked, totally oblivious to the presence of the Slytherins. Michelle glanced nervously at the group. "Don't worry; they're leaving. Go on."

"All I know is, Gran knew everything. But a couple of years ago, before she died, she told me. She didn't want to take the secret to the grave. She thought perhaps one day you would be curious and want information about your father. So she told me exactly what I've told you." Michelle paused. "I think you have a right to know."

"But Mum...what about—"

"Dean, look, I've told you everything. It's sketchy, I know, but it's all Gran managed to tell me."

"But what about Mum?" Dean said again. "Doesn't she have a right to know as well? He was her husband and she had a child with him."

Michelle hesitated. She looked at the Grangers, who were watching the teenage boy with great sympathy. "After all this time, I'm not sure that it would make any difference," she said. "But I'll tell her, if you want. It'll probably be best coming from me, rather than you."

Dean nodded, absentmindedly taking a swig of butterbeer. "Let's go outside," he said.

"A splendid idea!" Egeus agreed, relieved that Dean and Michelle's conversation had finally resolved itself. "Hermione said to meet her and the others out front when we’re finished," he added.

They all got up wearily, eager to escape into the bright sunshine. They saw Hermione standing outside with the two boys. They joined the group and began strolling down the street. Dean felt the fog of many years of uncertainty finally lift and disappear. "Michelle, thank you for explaining all of this to me. It does help to know that Dad didn’t desert us," Dean said. "Now, I can make my peace with him."

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