The entrance to the Eagletalon Common Room is simple but clever. It is but an array of ancient symbols behind a painting of a smiling owl, which you have to press in the correct order. The symbols will recognize your fingerprints and feel of your fingers to ensure that those who enter are really Eagletalon. After you press the buttons it will ask you a question, which you have to answer correctly before being allowed inside.
EAGLETALON:
We believe that knowledge is everything. We are talented and intelligent, but still fierce and will stand up for what is right. Our mascot is, perhaps surprisingly because of our name, the owl. We were founded by Minerva Eagletalon.
EAGLETALON:
We believe that knowledge is everything. We are talented and intelligent, but still fierce and will stand up for what is right. Our mascot is, perhaps surprisingly because of our name, the owl. We were founded by Minerva Eagletalon.
Haruyuki walked into the room and began to look over her notes.
ReplyDeleteAda sank onto an unoccupied loveseat with a sigh, not wanting to go to the dorms yet.
ReplyDeleteAnother new school, she thought to herself. Although she was rather proud that she'd gotten herself transferred from school to school three times, it was tiring and monotonous. New faces, new building, same social scene. Same lessons.
Same school.
Same people that would, no doubt, ignore her just the same.
That was why she turned to pranks--because the people she had pranked had noticed her but made it their mission in life to ignore her. Well, that and the fact that she was good at tricks like that. It was, apparently her calling.
So who to prank now?
~Ada
Haruyuki walked into the common room and looked up at the older new girl. "H-hi!" she stuttered, her left eye glowing slightly. "Erm-welcome to Lyreade!"
ReplyDeleteDamien walked into the common room and smiled at Ada. "Hello," he greeted her courteously. "Welcome to Lyreade. I hope you'll like it here."
ReplyDeleteAda looked up at the two others with a start. We-hell, what have we here? People who actually know how to greet a person. I won't be pranking them, I think, she thought with a small smile that grew into a grin.
ReplyDelete"Thanks," she replied. "It seems like it may be interesting enough here. Although... is there a town or something around here? I may find myself in need of... several things."
She was quite sure her grin became a devious one.
Haruyuki looked up at the older girl. "Well, erm, there's Colema! I'm not allowed to go there yet though....." She looked up at Damien expectantly.
ReplyDeleteDamien stared right back at Haruyuki. "Right, and don't try going there until next year," the head of house told her. He glanced at Ada. "I could take you to Yvalgar Boulevard and show you around," he offered.
ReplyDeleteHaruyuki went up to the dorms to do her homework. "Bye!" she called to both of them as she left.
ReplyDeleteDamien smiled at Haruyuki as she left. "See you tomorrow at breakfast!" He called after her, then looked expectantly at Ada for her answer.
ReplyDelete"That would be lovely," she replied sweetly. Then she was silent. Although she could think up perfect plans in a snap, she always found herself lost for words. It was infuriating.
ReplyDeleteDamien made his way to the couch next to Ada's and sat himself down, waving his wand at the fireplace, muttering under his breath. "So when did you get here?" He asked her conversationally, taking one of the three jugs of beverage next to him and pouring a goblet for himself. He took a second goblet, looking up. "Would you like something? There's nettle tea, pumpkin juice, and elderberry wine. I don't recommend the wine - it's late, and you want to get some sleep tonight before all your classes tomorrow. The teachers, especially Professor Farwill, won't be giving you any less homework than usual," Damien told her with a small smile.
ReplyDelete"Don't you have any firewhisky? No, I don't suppose you do..." Ada trailed off, then remembered his other question. "I got here today, actually. Umm... it's a little different from the other schools I've gone to in the past two years."
ReplyDeleteShe paused for a moment, narrowing her eyes at Damien--to scrutinize him. Then she grinned, seeing what she thought could have been trickster potential in his dark eyes. "I don't suppose you like pranks? They're the reason I've been transferred three times before... Sort of a little hobby of mine."
Damien nodded at her, not looking surprised. "I know," he shrugged, then smiled at her surprised expression. "I could see it the moment I saw you. If you want to be less suspicious, you gotta work on masking your expressions, Barrett. You're gonna have to if you're in the same class as Gwen Black," he warned her. "She's sharp. Most of her classes are 6th year ones. She just kinda sucks in Herbology, Divination and Care For Magical Creatures, but she's genius in anything else. By the way, since I like you, I'll treat you to some of my secret stash." Damien grinned and pulled out a bottle of firewhisky, throwing it to her.
ReplyDeleteAda caught the bottle one-handed and shot him a grin to match his own. "Thanks. For the firewhisky and the advice. And for your information, no one has ever took enough of a look at me to notice my suspiciousness," she told him, turning her grin into a saddish smile. "I'll have to work on actually hiding my emotions with all of you perceptive Lyreade people here."
ReplyDeleteThen she paused. "Gwen Black? As in kin to the old Black house? I used to go to Hogwarts, where Sirius Black went. I got expelled for... well, blowing up Professor Trelawney's room. That was, technically, an accident. But, dang, the look on that woman's face..." She trailed off with a chuckle.
Damien laughed. "Yeah, that's Black. Sirius' her great-great uncle. She's descended from Regulus Black," he told her. "She may look and sound like a Dracoslyther, but she's really an Eagletalon at heart." He paused. "Trelawny's still there? I thought she resigned ages ago." He shrugged. "So who's Headmaster or Headmistress now? Mcgonagall?"
ReplyDeleteAda smiled fondly at the memory of McGonagall. "Oh, Minerva. Yes, she's the Headmistress, all right. And a fine one, too. She's sort of related to me, somehow. Anyway, after the whole thing with the exploding crystal ball gone bad, she had no say in the matter of expelling me. Not that I mind. I like this place better already. And Trelawney, bless her soul, is still there. Mad as a hatter though, in my opinion."
ReplyDeleteTaking a swig of the firewhisky, she smiled at the burn of it as it went down her throat and warmed her down to her toes. "So, I just realized that we really haven't introduced ourselves yet. I'm Ada Barrett."
Damien rolled his eyes. "Of course you are. You're the only new student. Anyway," he said after a pause. "I'm Damien Kumataka, the Head of House for Eagletalon. I'm a sixth year." He glanced up the stairs to the dorms, where Haruyuki went. "And the girl who was just here was Haruyuki Akayashi, in the 2nd year. The only other Eagletalon is Akinara Natsuko, also in the 2nd year." He made a face. "Too many tiny 2nd years," he commented.
ReplyDelete"I never liked second years, even when I was one," she remarked dryly. "So where's this Colema I heard about?"
ReplyDeleteDamien grinned at her. "Oh, it's close to Lyreade. Only a ten minute walk," he told her. He took a swig of his firewhisky.
ReplyDelete"Hmm... well, that should be about perfect," the blonde said, sipping thoughtfully at her drink. "When can we go there? I have a dire need for several items that may be of use." At his suspicious look, she smiled. "Don't worry your pretty head, Damien Kumataka. I have a handle on Muggle explosives now, so there won't be any sort of... mishap like the one with Trelawney. Besides, that was third year. Old news." She paused, a thought coming into her head. Meeting Damien's eyes, she asked, "Have you ever done anything to get in trouble, Kumataka? This should be interesting."
ReplyDeleteDamien shrugged. "Sure, tons of times," he told her. "I once caught a sharptooth piranha from the Death Lake, found a way into the Dracoslyther Common Room, and put it under the pillow of one of the armchairs." He made a face. "I barely escaped the basilisk fang that was implanted in my truffle pudding the next day. I was suspended for two weeks." Damien glanced at Ada. "I was in the second year."
ReplyDelete"Second year? The year I was expelled from Beauxbatons, then. Hmm. What did I-- oh yes, I remember! That year I gave all the third-year girls elf-locks and put sleeping draught in the bouillabaisse. And then I told my friend Brigitte where the Beauxbatons palace is. That was the last straw, and so I was transferred to Hogwarts," Ada told him with a grin at the memory of the looks on everyone's faces when Brigitte had showed up at the school from the other French wizardry school. Everyone had been questioned, and when they got to her, they had had to use Veritaserum to get the answers they needed. "I was a little adventurous that year, obviously..."
ReplyDeleteDamien glanced at her. "So you speak french, then?" He smiled. "Yes. We all get our mischievous moments, some of us, especially Eagletalons, more than often. Of course, there are a special few in Eagletalon that are... even more adventurous than the others." He frowned as he contemplated the thought. "To be honest, I'm not sure why I even got appointed the Head of House," he told her. "After all the trouble I got into."
ReplyDeleteAda shrugged. "Maybe you're just a mite less troublesome than the rest. And yes, I do speak French. I speak German better, though. That's about the extent of my language abilities. Well, you know, other than English, of course." She smiled. "Do you speak any other languages, House Head? I think you'd have the heart for French or Gaelic, a stór." She paused and gave a half-grin. "And yes, that bit there was the only Gaelic I know."
ReplyDeleteDamien laughed. "I speak Japanese almost fluently. My father is Japanese. I speak french as well, but no Gaelic. Of course, I'm also pretty into Latin, which is pretty useful if you're a wizard." He grinned at Ada. "That's pretty much it, though I'm studying Mandarin as well."
ReplyDelete"Hmm. No foreign conversations for us, then. I don't know any Mandarin, and my Japanese is shaky at best." The blonde tapped her chin thoughtfully, then decided Damien could deal with her nerdiness and asked, "Do you happen to know any Na'vi?"
ReplyDeleteDamien shook his head. "Nah. I didn't think I would really use it, so I didn't bother studying it and went for Mandarin instead." He glanced at her with interest. "Do you know any?"
ReplyDelete"Ke nìtxan," Ada replied with a grin. "That means 'not much.' I'm learning. A useless hobby, but it's fun all the same."
ReplyDeleteDamien nodded. "It sounds fun. I can teach you a little Mandarin," he grinned at her. "Wo xi huan he Firewhisky. That means 'I like drinking Firewhisky."
ReplyDelete(Okay, so I'm taking German class... Most of the below is from memory, so I don't know how correct the grammar is...)
ReplyDeleteAda attempted to repeat the Mandarin and broke off laughing after her second failed attempt. "Well, if I'm getting Mandarin lessons, I ought to share my expertise as well," she told him, taking a moment to think. "Hmm... how about a little Deutsch für dich? Repeat after me: Ich heiße Damien Kumataka. Ich bin sechzehn Jahre alt, und gehe ich zur Lyreade. Ich denke, dass Ada Barrett sehr fantastisch ist."
(Oh, ok. I'm Taiwanese, so I'm basically fluent in mandarin, but my Japanese isn't all that great, though I still know a little. Ask Moonstar if you really wanna learn Japanese, she's an anime addict :D)
ReplyDeleteDamien hesitated for a second, then tried to repeat it, his accent so strong it pretty much killed the language. "Ugh," he made a face at his third try. "I'm never going to fool anyone into thinking I'm German. I only know 'nein' and 'ja'." He gave Ada a grin, then continued, "What did that actually mean, anyway?"
(Hehe.)
ReplyDelete(O shut up :D)
ReplyDelete(Nice. I only know bits and pieces of languages. A tiny bit of French, enough German for a conversation, and enough Spanish to say "Your mother is ugly"... That's about it... lol)
ReplyDelete"It means, 'My name is Damien Kumataka. I am 16 years old'--I was guessing there--'and I go to Lyreade. I think that Ada Barrett is really fantastic,'" she translated with a huge grin. "And your German isn't as terrible as my Mandarin."
(I know enough French to pretty much guess what a something reads, enough French to get around Paris okay, enough Taiwanese to know what someone's saying, and enough German to swear and call someone an ape-dick :D)
ReplyDeleteDamien laughed. "I am 16, but are you sure about the Ada Barrett part?" He grinned at her. "Anyway, that's to be expected because German and English are a lot more closely combined than Mandarin is with German." He took another swig of Firewhisky, ignoring the effects of the beer.
"True enough. And yes, I'm sure about the Ada part. You've just got too much firewhisky in your system to realize it," Ada told him matter-of-factly, hiding another grin. "I really am fantastic."
ReplyDelete"Really. Then how can you be sure that the Firewhisky is messing up YOUR system and making you think that you're fantastic when you're really not?" Damien responded, factually.
ReplyDelete"Aha," Ada said, putting up her index finger. "That is the question, isn't it? And here's your answer. You've had more firewhisky than I have, so obviously your system is more mucked up than mine. Besides, I'm used to firewhisky, so it doesn't have much of an effect anymore." She paused, a grin playing at the corners of her mouth. "I was a very bad girl, and mum always had a few bottles in the cupboard. I was curious as a child."
ReplyDeleteDamien raised an eyebrow. "Well, curious child, I have a very fast metabolism and immune system. That was proven when my mother freaked out and took me to the nearest hospital when I literally ate six plates of cupcakes and three bottles of soda. I had a bit of a stomach ache, but other than that I was fine." He paused. "And I was strictly forbidden from any sugar for five months."
ReplyDeleteAda chuckled. "Naughty child, weren't you? How about this? My first day at Hogwarts I was drunk from too much firewhisky. I was a third-year." she sighed at the memory.
ReplyDeleteThat was the day that her parents had begun ignoring her. They didn't have another child yet, so all they could do was focus their excess attention on their horrible little ankle-biters then. But now that her mother was pregnant... well, even more ignoring could be counted on for sure.
But she didn't care. Her parents had stopped mattering to her a long time ago.
Anyway, she was drunk that day because of an enormous fight with her parents. It had been one of the worst days of her life.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she attempted a smile. "Um. Anyways..."
Damien was watching her intently, his intelligent blue eyes scanning her face. He had known something was wrong when her sigh wasn't of reminiscence, but of sadness. Then when her smiled faltered and she appeared to emerge out of her memories, he knew something was up. "There's something behind that," he observed quietly. "Why were you drinking? You're someone who knows how to control yourself with alcohol. Why get drunk then? And don't tell me you were just young." He stared into her eyes so that he would know whether she was telling the truth or not.
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ReplyDelete"Ah. Well. I suppose you have those nice parents, the ones that send you letters and Christmas gifts and genuinely care about you as a person? Well, I don't," Ada told him bluntly. "They were angry with me that day because of several things-- the most important of these things to them was that I had ignored their Scottie, Liz, when she wanted me to pet her. I mean, honestly! And then they thought I was being antisocial at school because I didn't have friends that I sent letters to 24/7." As she spoke, her voice edged from calm calm to calm before the storm calm. "And then, the very last of their list of worries was that I had gotten myself expelled again. After a nice, long screaming match, they decided that they were done with me. They pay for my school supplies, and that's it. I was so furious, and so hurt, that I drank myself drunk and went to the new school in a stupor. Nobody would talk to me, no one would look at me, and so I ended up getting myself expelled. That's it," she said, glaring at the floor but not raising her voice above a calm mezzo piano. "And I was young, by the way. I dealt with stress the only way I knew how: the way my parents dealt with stress."
ReplyDeleteDamien studied here. "You had it bad back then." It was true, and he felt bad for her. But... "So did the others. Because everyone has it bad. Go ahead and call me depressing, but there is no such thing as true happiness. Because happiness never lasts. But then it would make sense that there is no such thing as true depression. Because depression never lasts, either. Why? Because nothing ever lasts. Not even life. Keep that in mind when you think about your bad memories and bad previous life events. Remember that it won't last, because nothing does." He paused, smiling softly again. "That's what I tell the little second year, Akinara, when she remembers her kidnapped little brother Mastuke. I tell her it won't last, that he'll be rescued somehow." Damien sighed and sat back. "Don't worry, Ada. It'll be over one day."
ReplyDelete"Lord, I hope so. I'm so dang tired of the crap that just happens to me. It's getting old," Ada replied with a tired sigh at her life. But then she brightened, looking up at Damien with a grin. "I have a bright side, though! I have an actual friend, finally. Thanks for that, by the way."
ReplyDeleteDamien smiled. "Old? You've gotta be kidding me. I knew this guy who had polio for 120 years. That's old. The people at St. Mungo's didn't know how to deal with the Muggle disease." He grinned at Ada's last words. "You're welcome. Thanks for being mine."
ReplyDelete(Gwen's going to die soon!!!!!! O.O In the infirmary...)
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ReplyDelete{A few months after she arrived}
ReplyDeleteAda felt so disconnected from the rest of Lyreade... she wasn't sure she even deserved to be here. As always, she was doing fine in her classes. It was just a little problem of being depressed. Her parents had forgotten her birthday again--this time because they were preoccupied with her new little sister, Mia. Although she actually had a couple friends now to help with her disappointment, it still hurt to be completely shut out by her family. At this point, Ada was considering requesting a transfer.
(I haven't been on for a while, so I don't really know what's going on... I don't know if I can keep up! We'll see what happens.)
(okay... well, i'll give you a brief overview. the prophecy is moving along well damien and shiina are in love, devin likes bryn but she doesn't like him back, damien and devin just returned from a trip to rescue Taki, shiina's little brother, from her cruel parents (who are part of the prophecy as the "bad guys". they're dark wizard assassins), damien getting injured severely. he is recovering well. that's basically it.)
ReplyDeleteDamien loped into the Common Room, a huge white bandage on his arm. He looked at Ada and suddenly remembered. "Hey Ada! Wait there, I have something for you!" He raced up to his room, holding his injured limb still all the way, and came back down a minute later holding a wrapped present and two books. "Here's your birthday present, and the two books I promised to let you borrow."
Damien hoped she would like her present- a crystal and aquamarine laid on sterling silver locket that hung on a silver chain. It was charmed to keep secrets and passwords in its green and blue depths- Damien had charmed it himself, and it had taken him weeks to find and combine the right spells. As for the actual necklace itself- he just bought it at a Muggle store back in England, but he had polished it up with magic to make it look better. Damien watched Ada's reaction carefully, looking for any hints of feeling.
Ada took the gifts with a guilty smile. Guilty, because she hadn't once visited Damien in the infirmary.
ReplyDelete"I don't deserve them," she told him quietly as she carefully opened the wrapped gift. Inside was a beautiful locket. Despite her statement, her eyes lit up when she saw it gleaming in the palm of her hand. "It's amazing," she breathed, watching it sparkle in her hand like a hawk watching her prey.
Suddenly, a memory flashed through her mind, so brief she wasn't even sure it had even really happened. Stung and startled, she dropped the locket on the floor with a gasp.
Damien looked surprised and apologetic. "Are you okay? Did you accidentally open the locket? Did I charm it wrong?" He took a step towards her in concern, his hand reaching out to her before he snapped it back, pain flooding through his arm. "Wrong hand," he muttered under his breath before looking at Ada again.
ReplyDelete"What? No, it's fine! Really. You didn't do anything. I--" Ada stopped, stooping to pick up the locket. "It's not a big deal."
ReplyDeleteDamien still looked slightly upset but nodded. "Are you sure?" He asked her, rubbing his arm.
ReplyDelete"Um... yeah. I'm okay," she assured him. "Just a little shaken up, is all. Where... where did you get this?" Ada asked, holding the chain between her thumb and forefinger, with the locket at her eye level. Her eyes scrutinized the pretty aquamarine and crystal set into the silver. "I've seen it before."
ReplyDeleteDamien gave her a weird look. "I bought it at a Muggle store in London, and then I enchanted it to store memories and secrets that only the wearer can access. Sort of like a mini pensive. I'm pretty sure it works- heck, I even tried it myself." He gave her a little smile. "And I'm also pretty sure you haven't seen it before, unless you went to that store in that exact time I went, because it was just made."
ReplyDelete"No, I haven't been to a Muggle store. But I feel like I've seen this exact necklace before!" Ada told him, refocusing her eyes on his with a frown, keeping the necklace held up between them. "Strange."
ReplyDeleteDamien shrugged. "Probably your imagination." He sighed, sitting back. "I guess you don't really like it then. Sorry. Hope you at least enjoy the books," he said, giving her the two muggle books.
ReplyDeleteAda rolled her eyes, set the necklace on her lap, and took the books. "I do like it. It's just weird, is all. Maybe you left some memories in there on accident?"
ReplyDeleteDamien narrowed his eyes. "Impossible. I'm not wearing it now, am I? So there aren't any memories of mine in there." He shook his head. "Maybe I should add a protection charm over it, just in case. Salvio Hexia, Protego Horribilis." He waved his wand over the necklace. "Right, now all hexes should be countered and most dark magic repelled."
ReplyDelete