PROMPTS

1. Your Main Character
2. Skeletons in your closet
3. Graduation
4. Uagadou
5. Technology
6. Facing the Darkness
7. Love Story
8. Secret Tunnel
9. Spring into...
10. IC Holidays
11. Inclusivity
12. Your iNPC
13. Gargoyle
14. Destiny
15. Superhero
16. IC Family
17. Arm Wrestle with a Squid
18. Whomping Willow Dance
19. Zonkos
20. Castelobruxo
21. Besties for the resties
22. House Elf
23. Potioneering
24. Home Sweet Home
25. Tenūsa, Isle of Divination
26. Home Away from Home
27. Protector of your Dreams
28. An IC item in your trunk
29. Death
30. Essence
31. A Character's Tarot Card

YOUR MAIN CHARACTER

Roderick loved his little sister. But he often felt she was too much... person for her own good. Allow him to explain.

Astra was small, wiry. Average height, sure, but often underweight for her age. It was because she forgot to eat a solid 25% of the time, or just ate snacks when told to get some lunch. That didn't stop her personality from shining like Sirius, a.k.a. Alpha Canis Majoris, the brightest star. At every turn, she was just so authentically Astra it was hard to believe she was only one person.

Allow him to explain further. Roderick was sort of a quiet lad on the regular. He had an in-group of friends (two, really, Nico and Brian) but was generally liked by his peers due to his easy going and laid back nature. He was like a calm stream, going with the flow. Astra, however, was a raging river sometimes. She was all over, violently herself, and a lot of people didn't like that. Were even afraid. She was smart and intuitive and brutally honest. It was something Roderick was used to. Something that he loved about her, made her so uniquely Astra. His little sister.

He loved their banter and their secret jokes and staying up late in a pillow fort they'd made to keep the nightmares away. He loved it when she asked him for help with her maths or let him read her writing assignments and talked about both everything and nothing at all. He loved playing in the rain and throwing hoops at the park and sharing popcorn at the cinema. He knew she was so much person and he loved it. But others... they didn't.

∆

Hyperion loved his daughter. He had a nagging feeling she was destined for some sort of fall, like a star exploding.

She took after him, he supposed, with a sense for adventure and chase for adrenaline. That, combined with her mother's smarts and a familial penchant for trouble made for an entertaining home life. And she was such a daddy's girl.

But occasionally, Hyperion got a sense that not all would be well for his little one. She sometimes came home from school with no fire left in her and read in her room for the remainder of the day, not wanting to talk with anyone. It broke Hyperion's heart to see her like that, especially if he'd not been home recently. And it gave him a feeling of worry. Almost dread.

It made both the Auror and father in him want to snatch her up and take her far far away from whatever the danger was.

But then she would perk back up into her regular rambunctious self, darting from one adventure to the next and making him smile. Giving him hope for the future he wanted her to have. Avoiding the burn out.

∆

Aces loved her niece. She often seemed to be looking in a mirror, talking with a younger, redheaded version of herself. A sense of worry always accompanied that.

Aces had been a lot of things in her lifetime. A Ravenclaw, for one, though the house seemed ill-fitting at times. A prefect, a position she never thought she would recieve during her tenure at Hogwarts. A Quidditch beater, a position that taught her a lot about getting knocked down and getting back up. A researcher, a seeker of truth, an Unspeakable eventually. A fighter.

Aces saw herself in her niece, her namesake. She saw the same stubbornness and drive, though in proportions bigger than Aces could have ever managed. She thought back to her youth. Her youth during the Second Wizarding War. A time when she hurt, but drove herself to protect others around her. This loyalty she also saw in Astra tenfold.

Aces often remembered her hurts. Things she had done, things she has seen. The things that once hurt her so long ago now reminded her of her triumphs. Reminded her that she could've been hurt much worse.

Both aunt and niece were intuitive, sensitive to the world and yearning to understand it. This was part of the reason she'd been hurt. Her openness and pure curiosity. But, as the trend went, Astra so much more so. And Aces couldn't help but worry for the bright little starshine.

SKELETONS IN YOUR CLOSET

A secret no one ever hears
A secret that you keep
Locked away, inside your head
Resting, fast asleep

A secret blinks awake
Shifting in its slumber
A secret twists and turns
Your doubts begin to number

You're an intellectual
You are smarter than you look
You see the danger, know the risks
The risks that you once took

You see her there
You see her well
You see the one you love so dear
Embrace the fears you quell

For a moment, for a second
A secret rears its ugly head
You stifle it with excuses
You send it back to bed

A secret no one ever hears
A secret that you keep
A secret no one knows is there
A secret, not so asleep

GRADUATION

The year is 1996. The season is summer. The teenage girl smiles amidst her melancholy as she sits in the Astronomy Tower one final time, gazing into the cerulean sky.

Her blue-accented robes are crisp, neat, a severe shift from the rest of this school year, midst all the turmoil of the Wizarding World.

Her long, thick, wavy brown hair is tied back from her face, and a teenage boy twirls the end of it round his finger. He too, seems sad, but at peace.

"I don't know if I want to leave, Ray," the girl sighs, turning to the boy. "I mean, I do, but-"

"Don't worry about Seren and Hyperion, Ace," he soothes, his voice like honey. "They've got good heads on their shoulders. They'll do fine."

Silence lapses.

"You're going into the Ministry, still?" He tilts his head, clear blue eyes crinkling inquisitively.

Aces nods after a pause. "I want to know what's going on," she states with a sort of authoritative air about her. "I want to know more."

Ray chuckles softly. "Your curiosity is going to be the death of you, Astra Norrick."

The Ravenclaw simply shrugs. "'I would rather die of passion than of boredom,' to quote the great Van Gogh." She turns her hazel eyes on her companion. "You're still going into banking? Sounds boring."

Ray huffs haughtily. "I'll have you know that Gringotts is a fine place of employment for a person such as myself, looking for connections. Before you know, I'll become an accountant and have the funds of the greatest wizarding families right at my fingertips." Aces rolls her eyes. His Slytherin is showing.

A deep silence passes, for longer this time, and with a weight of melancholy both young people are contributing to. Ray tucks his arm around Aces' shoulder and she reaches up to hold his hand. "Happy graduation, Raymond," she finally whispers, watching an owl, letter clutched in hand, take to the skies, its dappled wings silent and majestic as it began it's journey. Much like these two were beginning theirs.

"You too."

∆

The year is 1997. The season is summer. The teenage girl picks up her pet lizard, Beithir, and places him on her shoulder. A fond look at her wand, before she casts "Wingardium Leviosa" on her suitcase.

She has the compartment to herself, for sentimental reasons. On her first journey to Hogwarts, she was alone. Her friends, a rather large group of fellow graduates, meet her outside and they tumble out of the train into the station for the last time.

"Seren!" a voice calls, and the slim Hufflepuff turns, a bright, bug smile lighting up her entire face.

"Don!" The young man takes long strides forward and embraces the girl, smelling of sweetness and home. Her arms tighten around his neck.

"Welcome to the graduated life," he jokes, pulling away from her after a long moment. Beithir scrambles up the man's arm and makes a happy lizard noise. The human laughs and pats the small reptile. "How does it feel?"

She shrugs. "I dunno yet. Still sort of surreal, you know?" She looks around Platform 9 and 3/4, seeing her brother and his friends bidding each other farewell, and her parents and sister near the Platform's entrance. Her green eyes drift back towards the man. "I think it'll be good, though."

His smile grows wider, and he hugs her again. "I can almost guarantee that." He takes her hand and leads her toward her family. "I've got an internship for us, in Slovakia. We're finally going to work with dragons, Sere. Can you believe it?"

Seren squeezes his hand. "Not really, no." Finally doing what she's dreamed of for so long. Finally out. Finally free.

∆

The year is 2000. The season is summer. The teenage boy holds the hands of a girl, his suitcase disregarded near his feet. They stand at the edge of the Great Lake.

"Ella, darling," he soothes, "don't be so grim." He squeezes her hands reassuringly. "Not like this will be the last we ever see each other!"

The girl sighs, seeming agitated. "I know, but- well- I don't know. I mean, a lot has happened these past few years and I don't really-"

The boy shushes her quietly and says. "Morella. All's well now. You'll have a year of peace without me terrorizing you. Don't worry."

Morella laughs. "I suppose." She looks up at the Gryffindor senior with brown eyes, eyes that hold worries they should not. "I'm going to miss you, Rion. Terror or not, you're my very best friend."

Rion smiles. "That's something I never thought I'd hear." He lets go of Morella's hands to place them on her shoulders. "But, I'd be lying if I said you weren't mine." His smile is cheeky by nature, but sincere, and he says in a soft tone, "I'll write you owls every week if Auror training doesn't kill me."

"You'd better," Morella responds, crossing her arms. "Else I'll break out of school and give you a good thrashing in front of all your Auror friends."

Rion's expression drops into mock surprise and fear, and he straightens, giving the shorter Ravenclaw a salute. "Ma'am yes ma'am!" This elicits a giggle from Morella and Rion's facade cracks a moment later. "Really, Ella, I promise. But we'll be seeing lots of each other this summer, right?"

Morella nods. "Right." She bends down and picks up Rion's suitcase, handing it to him. "Well. I'd better get on the carriages, Michelle's likely waiting for me."

"I'll see you at the train then." Rion gives a small wave before climbing into a boat with some of his fellow seniors, some friends he's had since... Well, since before Hogwarts. The friends that intend to become Aurors with him.

"Happy graduation, lads," one boy, Oliver, says. Rion reciprocates the statement, staring out over the lake for the very last time. Happy graduation indeed.

∆

Astra is writing an essay for Potions class in the study room, alongside Roderick, who is working on something for Divination, she thinks. She sighs, setting down her quill and massaging her cramped hand. "Am I too young to be hoping for graduation, Rick?" she asks, leaning back in her chair.

"You're never too young to want to graduate, Asa, trust me," he grumbles, scribbling out several words on his parchment.

FACING THE DARKNESS

As it were, there were very few things that affected the Norrick three. As it were, the brazen Ravenclaw, fierce Hufflepuff, and unafraid Gryffindor had never shied from their respective duties: to learn for the good, to care for the good, to fight for the good. For the good of the world.

As it were, the Norrick three held onto these charges from childhood into their adult lives. The brazen Ravenclaw studied what few could, death, daily. The fierce Hufflepuff cared for beasts of fire and destruction. The unafraid Gryffindor sought those who would use darkness against the innocent.

As it were, the Norrick three did not look into a part of their past. The brazen Ravenclaw did not discuss her final years of school, nor her first adult year. She did not discuss her favor for long-sleeves even in the summertime despite complaints of heat. The fierce Hufflepuff did not explain why she avoided the area of that old castle, nor why she abandoned her dream to become a healer. She did not explain why she would not even go to St. Mungo's while she lived in London still. The unafraid Gryffindor did not share why he got a new wand, nor where his old one went. He did not share why he refused to take in criminals dead even if it meant another month on the job.

As it were, the Norrick three, so full of light, were facing darkness every day. And as it were, they kept silent about it. But each knew the darkness of the others. And in a quiet sort of way, the knowing was the loudest opponent to the darkness. It was the brightest light. The Norrick three knew, and that was enough to keep them going.

LOVE STORY

A love meant to cherish
A love meant to hold
A love without strings attached
A love so bold

A love between two siblings
A love between two friends
A love between two lovers
A love that doesn't end

A love to cross the cosmos
A love to cross the veil
A love that burns like fire
Beside which passion pales

A love that disregards mortality
A love that holds strong
A love that hurts like hell itself
When the loved one is gone

A love to stretch for miles
A love of laughter and tears
A love to last through eras
Shared hopes, shared fears

A love that wants, a love that needs, a love that surpasses desire
A love that sits, a love that waits, a love that flares like fire

Agape is its name
This love that reaches all
Mother, daughter, sister, friend
Father, son, brother, to whomever it may fall

This love that hurts
This love that soothes
This love like no other

This love that wanders
This love that waits
This love for another