Eyed's of Martch Gallery Martch 23

Graphics Prompt #3

Graphics Prompt #8

Other Prompt #6

and a closeup of the tree

Vox Dulcis
Other Prompt #7

The Vox Dulcis potion is a potion that will make anyone who drinks it sing with a beautiful voice. If Pearl Dust is added while brewing, it can be made into a love potion. Effective for 6-7 hours.

How to Use: Administer 1 drop to the middle of neck, gently rubbing into skin, then take 3 sips to coat back of throat.

Vox Dulcis ART WORK IN PROGRESS

Colour: Seafoam Green

Level: Medium

Ingredients: 1 Bezoar, 6 Siren Scales, 3 Measures of Standard Ingredient, 4 Drops of Tincture of Thyme (dissolved in glycerol, NOT ethanol), 2 measures of Pearl Dust (optional)*, 1 Sprig of Peppermint

Add 1 Bezoar to mortar
Crush into a very fine powder
Add 3 measures of the crushed Bezoar to the cauldron
Add 6 Siren Scales, whole, to cauldron
Add 2 measures of Standard Ingredient to the cauldron
Add 4 drops of Tincture of Thyme
Heat to a medium temperature for 15 seconds
Wave your wand and leave to brew for 20-25 minutes
*Add the 2 measures of Pearl Dust to the cauldron (Add only if you wish to make this a love potion, otherwise you may omit)
Stir 3 times, clockwise
Add 1 Sprig of Peppermint to your mortar (cleaned of any Bezoar residue, this is very important)
Crush Peppermint Sprig gently but thoroughly
Add 2 measures of Peppermint to the cauldron
Add remaining 1 measure of Standard Ingredient to the cauldron
Stir 4 times, counter-clockwise
Douse flame and let sit undisturbed to cool for 1 hour
Wave your wand to complete the potion
Do not remove Siren Scales when bottling potion

Hufflepuff Mood Board + bonus board, Just Because
GRAPHICS Prompt #2

OOC: Face claim is Kristina Pimenova and all images were gathered from Canva or Pinterest

Everything Can Kill You, So... (A Short Story Adventure)
WRITING Prompt #7

The subject of Herman, Simon's nickname for the giant squid that dwelt within the depths of the Great Lake, had recently become a demi-obsession with AngelFyre. She had not seen him yet, but she desperately hoped to one day. Herman had been sighted in the Great Lake during one of the broom races in the Fall. The school had been abuzz for days about one unfortunate upperclasswoman's face-to-tentacle meeting during that race, so AngelFyre now knew that Herman was real.

But recently, on one of the rare occasions when sleep actually found her, AngelFyre had the most amazing dream. She and Simon had snuck out of the Common Room well after curfew and had gone down to the lake's edge. The weather was more summer-like than wintry and there was a bright, full moon reflecting on the onyx surface. He turned to her with a mischievous smile and challenged her to go skinny dipping with him.

"Come on, love. I've done it before and lived to tell the tale. Trust me," and before she could reply he was already undressing and running happily into the water. Now, as such things could easily and delicately be handled with dream-logic, AngelFyre just conveniently happened to be wearing a swim suit that was flesh colored beneath her school robes. Still, modesty prevailed and she laughed as Simon splashed around, having a grand old time. "Avert your eyes and I will join you shortly... and NO peeking!" she admonished. It amused her how much more shy her dream self was with him.

Mere seconds later, she was splashing around next to his side. An impromptu, but very hushed, game of Marco Polo ensued. She called out "Marco?" but Simon did not respond with the requisite "Polo!" Instead, she heard him yelp in surprise and there was a tremendous amount of water being displaced while a significant amount of water rained down upon her head. When she opened her eyes, her mouth must have gone slack jawed at the sight of Simon being lifted 9-10 meters into the air. Dreams being the odd bits of subconscious thinking they are, what she most took note of in the moment was that Simon, too, was wearing nude colored swim trunks, and she laughed.

He was not harmed in any way and looked to be having the time of his life. The tentacle did not have him in a grip, but was acting more like a platform for him to stand upon. Then she felt herself being lifted out of the water in similar fashion and was soon looking into her handsome dhampir's inky eyes while attempting balance on a large suction cup.

They smiled and instinctively grasped hands. "Care to take a giant leap off a giant squid, my love? 1... 2... 3...," and before they hit water, AngelFyre awakened herself with laughter.

Shelldrake's Brilliantly Terrible Idea

Poseidon was bored. He had been God of the Sea for millennia, and he had seen and done everything. In an effort to stave off his boredom and not take it out in some prankish or cruel fashion on his subjects, he summoned his magical court jester, Shelldrake, before him and bade him entertain his lord and master.

Shelldrake, while thinking on his latest assignment from the very temperamental Poseidon, ran his fingers up to his flowing beard. The miraculous beard sparkled like mother of pearl when the sun’s rays were able to penetrate the depths at certain times of the day. This was one of those times of the day.

Suddenly, a smile spread across the wizard’s face and he thought Poseidon might enjoy a no holds barred, anything goes, boxing event between Poseidon’s two Captains of the Guard…. Squidmore and Octopunkus. Shelldrake quickly conjured a large, roped arena in Poseidon’s court, and summoned the two contenders. They both arrived gloved and in different colored trunks.

Squidmore was wearing inky black trunks and 6 red gloves, a truly magnificent specimen. Octopunkus, by contrast, was wearing neon pink and purple trunks and 8 neon green gloves. He was also a sight to behold. Now, lest anyone think this was an unfair fight as Octopunkus had 2 gloves up on Squidmore, it should be noted that Squidmore was a little older than Octopunkus and heavier. It would be an equally matched battle, of that Shelldrake was certain.

Subjects of the realm were now drifting in and taking their seats. The lovely mermaids had their numbered placards ready which they would flash at the crowd between each round. The zebra fish was in the ring, ready to referee, and called the two contenders together to the center, telling them to touch gloves.. all of them... to play fair, and that he wanted to see a clean fight. He sent them off to their corners and told them to come out swinging at the sound of the Cape Cod Foghorn.

Moments later the horn blew and the two contenders weaved and dodged in the ring.

Now, in theory, this should have been quite an enjoyable match. Shelldrake NEEDED it to be an entertaining match or else he was going to have to face the wrath of Poseidon. But because the two were so evenly matched, it just kept going round after round. It reminded Shelldrake of his seemingly never-ending-matches back on the duelling team at Hogwarts in the Autumn of 2021, but I digress. There just seemed to be no clear advantage, so ennui was starting to seep through the crowd.

Trying not to panic, Shelldrake decided he would intervene and end the whole thing with a laugh, hoping that should appease Poseidon. When no one was watching him, he targeted first one and then the other with the Dancing Feet Spell. Speaking "Tarantallegra!" and moving his wand rapidly, but accurately, both Squidmore and Octopunkus suddenly started dancing in the ring.

They both had looks of astonishment on their faces, but the best part was that Poseidon and the crowd were in hysterics at the sight of the two contenders now dancing uncontrollably. Shelldrake was convinced that Octopunkus had some River Dance training in his past as the fellow definitely gave that vibe, but who could know for sure?

All was now fine and dandy in Poseidon’s realm, but the incessant pounding from the two on the seafloor was creating a seismic and meteorological event of epic proportions for the landlubbers above. Seismograph needles were scratching across paper up and down the west coast of the USA, alarming the citizenry that a tsunami may be heading their way.

Weather stations were sending out warnings to all ships at sea, and it so happened that the USS Minnow, captained by the wildly capable and creative wizard, L.ittle B.uddy Gilligan, was leaving the port of San Francisco, bound for Alcatraz.

It was not for a three hour tour. But again, I digress.

Gilligan landed on Alcatraz and ran to the most western outcropping on the island, searching for the wall of water. He was not there long when he saw it. With his wand in hand, he first targeted the area of water to his left with incredible speed and precision while simultaneously incanting "Wingardium Leviosa!"

Not surprisingly, because really, he was a wizard of impeccable skill and reputation, about a ¼ of the wall of water suddenly lifted up and hovered a few seconds before being lowered again into a state of calm. The great L. B. Gilligan cast the Levitation Charm three more times in rapid succession, thereby saving the city of San Francisco from complete and utter destruction that day, which, by the way, would also have delighted Poseidon, but I digress.

------- ----- ----- -------

The agrarian village of Snickerdoodledallywag was simply abuzz with anticipation. The residents had been preparing for the Yuletide celebration for weeks, eagerly preparing the town hall and the town square for the annual Winter Solstice dance and festival. This year’s theme was Lighten Up! Children of all ages had been making decorations of garlands and berries and dried cinnamon sticks to deck the halls, so to speak. The women of the village had been especially busy preparing all manner of sweet and savory foods for the special occasion. And the men had been doing the hard labor, of course. They had been building all the booths for the festival and setting up the very long, and heavy, family-style tables and benches for the gluttony feasting to come.

It was a happy time for all involved, especially for Selma and her father, Martinius Jacobson. Her family, like most citizens of Snickerdoodledallywag, had been working on their crafts for entry into the numerous ribbon competitions. Selma had been away at Hogwarts and was only recently back, but she had taken pride in helping her father put the finishing touches on his butter sculpture entry. Yes, I said butter sculpture. He had never won the coveted Best in Show ribbon, but he had always come in as the 1st or 2nd runner up. Those distinctions came with impressive ribbons of their own, but Martinius had his heart set on only one very particular ribbon this year, and nothing and no one was going to get in his way.

On the day of the festival, Selma and Martinius got up early to load and transport the sculpture to town. The marvelous sculpture was a life-sized, 3-D figural of a milk cow. The weather was more than cooperative as far as butter sculptures went, and there was no fear of melting on anyone’s minds. Content that all was well, Selma and Martinius started looking over the competition, feeling udderly certain he had it in the bag.

There were butter sculptures of leafless trees, telescopes, the Eiffel tower, and a bear cub reaching for a honeycomb. Each was impressive, but none could compare with the detail or sheer size of Martinius’ entry. Satisfied, he and Selma set off to enjoy the festival. They would meet up again for the judging which would not take place until an hour before sundown.

Selma found herself enjoying the day, but she also felt the hours drag by as the anticipation for her father’s victory was overshadowing everything. She had purchased a pouch of his favorite pipe tobacco as a congratulatory gift, and when it finally came time to leave for the judging, she found her father there, already waiting at his stall.

He was nervous, pacing back and forth, and he brought his pipe out of his pocket to calm himself. As he did, his book of matches fell into a full water trough, rendering his matches useless. He shook his head, muttering in Swedish, and Selma whispered to him, “No need to worry, Father. I can light your pipe…with magic.” He smiled broadly and said that he would very much like to see her “majik”. “Okay, stand right there and hold the pipe off to your side. Be very still and do not interrupt my concentration while I do this,” she admonished.

Selma slipped her wand from her boot while mind-voicing 'Incendio' a few times as a quick pronunciation practice. She pointed her wand at her father’s pipe, and was about to start the incantation just as her father’s sense of self-preservation kicked in and he asked her if this was a safe thing to do. “Of course it is. Trust me,” she said, and before he could change his mind, she spoke, “Incendio!” as her wand made the movements in the shape of a candle flame.

The brusqueness of her incantation startled Martinius and he moved his hand just as the magic set off to where the target had been. Instead of hitting the tobacco-filled pipe that was no longer in place, the spell continued beyond and hit the first thing it came to… a butter sculpture of a milk cow. Martinius turned to follow it and his jaw dropped just in time to see his magnificent butter sculpture engulfed in flames, and melting rapidly.

There were moments of silence and then more than a few mutterings in Swedish from Martinius. Selma was experiencing a whole range of emotions completely different from her father’s. Where he was in a state of disbelief and despair, she was elated and hopeful. She had successfully cast the Fire Making Spell. Her heart was leaping inside her chest, and she tried to convey this to her father, but to no avail. She put her arm around him and said, “No need to worry, Father. It will be okay.”

And with that, she pointed her wand at the now legless cow and intoned “Reparo” while sweeping her wand through the air in a backward capitalized “G”. To her father’s amazement, the cow stopped burning and quite quickly found its legs once again as the sculpture underwent an unmelting reversal of fortune. And just in time, too. The judges walked in less than half a minute after the mending spell did its job.

Selma would remember that night forever. It was her first successful casting of the Fire Making spell, yes, but better butter still, the coveted Best of Show ribbon was proudly displayed in the center of her father’s trophy case.

------- ----- ----- -------

So, an Auror Walks Into a Bank

C. K. Dexter Haven, aka Dex to his Muggle friends and family, had graduated from Ilvermorny in 2004. He had done well on his O.W.L.s and his N.E.W.T.s and had eventually become an Auror. Though he lived in the States, his aging grandfather lived in Dublin and had recently become widowed.

The woman recently deceased was no blood relative of Dex’s, however. His own grandmother had died in 1996 when Dex was 10. His grandfather was not one to be alone for long and had married two more times after the death of his first wife. Both women had been lovely and both follow‑on marriages seemed to be happy, so who was Dex to pass any judgment on his grandfather’s desire to not be alone? He certainly could throw no stones. His grandfather had had three home runs and Dex had struck out every time he had come up to bat. The auror always blamed the failures in his personal relationships on the stresses of his job. It conveniently kept him from having to look too closely at himself or his own faults.

Who needed that kind of introspection anyhow?

So, it was because he was running an errand for his grandfather that he found himself in the Bank of Ireland, not far from Trinity College. He had been to Dublin a number of times in his lifetime, and if it were possible to fit it in, Dex always liked to hit Trinity College’s Old Library and look at the astonishing illuminations in the Book of Kells. It was his plan to do exactly that when he completed his errand, as the college was just a few blocks from the bank. It would be a quick and pleasant walk, but, as the saying goes, “Man plans and God laughs.”

It was an early Monday morning, and the bank was predictably busy. Dex was standing in line after having filled out the withdrawal slip, waiting patiently to get to a cashier’s window. He would have used the ATM outside, but it was, sadly, out of order. As he waited, he did what came naturally and he surveilled his immediate surroundings.

All looked well enough at first, but then it struck him that there were two men standing on either side of the exit, and both had a focus on the man in a red leather jacket at the fourth cashier’s window. He also noted that the security guard was sitting and seemed to be bouncing a bit in his chair, with a sort of wild‑eyed gaze. Turning to look back at the fourth cashier’s window, Dex saw the diminutive man behind the glass rapidly moving his arms as if filling a bag with cash. Red leather jacket man was looking from side to side and would occasionally open the right side of his jacket if the diminutive cashier looked up.

Son of a b—. Dex was in the middle of a bank robbery.

He looked down at his withdrawal slip, then casually, so as not to arouse suspicion, reached for his wallet which was nesting in his back pocket. Just as he got his wallet in hand, he was called to the third cashier’s window. He stepped hurriedly over, got his ID card out of his wallet, and handed the withdrawal slip to the young woman behind the counter. Turning his head just enough to see what was happening at the window next to him, he determined he did not have much time.

He reached inside his own jacket and surreptitiously brought out his wand. His cashier was busy doing her job, so she took no notice of him. Dex pointed his wand at red jacket man’s back, hidden from view of the lookout men at the entrance by his own jacket, and said clearly but not too loudly, "Petrificus Totalus", while performing the precision wand movements he was known for when a duellist. In a matter of seconds, red jacket man had succumbed to a full body‑bind curse and went down to the floor.

Hard.

Knowing the Muggles around him would gravitate toward the fallen man, and thereby also give Dex a bit of cover, he immediately turned back to see that the two lookout men were confused and hesitantly making their way up to the crowd. Well, one of them was. One nodded at the other and motioned his head to the security guard, who was still seated at his desk and bouncing in his chair. As the lookout continued to slowly move forward and the other one was looking away at the security guard, Dex quickly stepped to the edge of the crowd and repeated, quite perfectly, the same incantation and wand movement on his intended target. He was rewarded with a second man down.

Now he was running closer to the second lookout guy, who had begun to turn before Dex could get as close as he would have liked. Still, he stopped and cast the full body‑bind curse for the third and successful time, and saw the final bank robber go down, unable to move.

The fourth‑window cashier who had been red jacket man’s target was now free to ring the alarm bell, so now everyone was screaming and running for the exit. Dex made his way over to the security guard and discovered he had been tied to his chair. He released the bonds, and as he was doing so, the guard told him there was something going on with his feet. He could not get them to stop moving and dancing about no matter how hard he tried. Upon answering Dex’s question as to whether the man had any neurological issues that would cause the shaking or dancing, the security guard gave a definitive “No” as his response.

Dex assured him it would all be okay and told the man to shield his eyes. He requested this not for protection of the man's eyes but more because the less that was seen by Muggles the better. The security guard complied, and Dex proceeded to quietly cast Finite Incantatem on him. Operating under the belief that the guard had had the Dancing Feet spell cast upon him, Dex noted that instantaneously his legs and feet immediately stopped moving. Because it worked, that meant one, if not all three, of the robbers were wizards themselves.

Dex quickly went back to each one, starting with the red jacket man, and searched him for a wand. Sure enough, he found a wand holster in his jacket sleeve along with an aspen wand. Searches of the two lookout men turned up empty as far as finding a wand on either, so that much was a relief.

Dex alerted the local Ministry of Magic to what had just happened, and well before the local Muggle Garda Síochána (Guardians of the Peace) made their appearance on the scene, numerous wizards had already come and gone, having dealt with the bank witnesses’ memories.

Dex did manage to complete his grandfather’s transaction but later found himself at the local Ministry of Magic, answering questions and giving his own statement of facts as to what had happened. By the time he had finished, he no longer felt like a visit to see the Book of Kells would be quite as illuminating, so he simply headed back to his grandfather’s home to fix them both some lunch.