The Heart of The Matter
@Thaddeus Athanatos - This letter would be sent and delivered after Christmas Break, sometime in early January 2025.Dear Mr. Athanatos,
I’m writing you because I need to tell you some important things about two of your sons. I know you may have seen my name in the Daily Prophet already. I’m really sorry about that - I never wished for Gideon’s private feelings to become public like that. I should have been more careful, considering your family’s good and well-known name.
But there’s something more I need to tell you. Your other son, Aamon, I am not sure how to put this politely. Something’s wrong with him and has been for a while. I first came across him in the Hospital Wing where he had been admitted because he had lost a hand. I never saw something like that happen to someone before, let alone a first year. I thought he might have been targeted.
Later I learned he was involved in two other incidents. One involving a girl in his year who had an inexplicable accident in his presence, the second involving the same girl but targeting him. I have learned that Aamon is haunted by dolls that look like him, but are not him. They have attempted to drag him into the Forbidden Forest and seek to do him harm. They might also attempt to harm others. I was worried and tried urging him to seek help. He did not listen. I had to intervene on his behalf because I was worried. As his father, I thought you should know. It would be most regrettable if you had to learn of this through the papers.
I know this might sound strange or hard to believe. If you could meet with me, I could explain everything better.
Your sincerely,
Finnegan Connor.
"He's a dweeby chocolate bar lip smacking nerd" - Evelynn Decipio
The Heart of The Matter
An owl would arrive, tap tapp tapping on Finnegan's window. The incessant tapping would not cease until Finnegan opened his window and allowed the dark creature that waited just outside ingress.
This owl would not arrive with the morning deliveries, a private messenger bird that arrived just after twilight. Black wings with tips seemingly dipped in liquid silver. Its strange, amber eyes would look upon Finn with a keen intelligence that suggested the bearer of the letter knew more than one might expect.
From its talons the bird would drop a long, thin silvered tube. The screw cap on the end, studded in small, sparkling gems. Semi-precious baubles. Inside the hollow tube, a single tightly coiled piece of midnight parchment. The words were legible, this was not a messaged intended to carry secrets but rather convey a message.
The owl would not wait for a response and would fly away. If the window was open, it would seem to shut behind it.
This owl would not arrive with the morning deliveries, a private messenger bird that arrived just after twilight. Black wings with tips seemingly dipped in liquid silver. Its strange, amber eyes would look upon Finn with a keen intelligence that suggested the bearer of the letter knew more than one might expect.
From its talons the bird would drop a long, thin silvered tube. The screw cap on the end, studded in small, sparkling gems. Semi-precious baubles. Inside the hollow tube, a single tightly coiled piece of midnight parchment. The words were legible, this was not a messaged intended to carry secrets but rather convey a message.
𝔐𝔯. 𝔉𝔦𝔫𝔫𝔢𝔤𝔞𝔫 ℭ𝔬𝔫𝔫𝔬𝔯,
ℑ 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔨 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔠𝔞𝔫𝔡𝔦𝔡 𝔩𝔢𝔱𝔱𝔢𝔯 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔞𝔭𝔭𝔞𝔯𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔫 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔪𝔶 𝔰𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔄𝔞𝔪𝔬𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔊𝔦𝔡𝔢𝔬𝔫. ℑ𝔱 𝔦𝔰 𝔞 𝔯𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔬𝔣𝔱𝔢𝔫 𝔯𝔢𝔠𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔠𝔥é 𝔮𝔲𝔞𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔱𝔬 𝔣𝔦𝔫𝔡 𝔰𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔬𝔫𝔢 𝔰𝔬 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔫𝔢𝔡 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔢𝔩𝔣𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔬𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔰. 𝔜𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔴𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔱𝔬 𝔞𝔠𝔱 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔰𝔲𝔠𝔥 𝔰𝔢𝔩𝔣𝔩𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔰𝔬𝔩𝔦𝔠𝔦𝔱𝔬𝔲𝔰𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔱𝔬𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔡𝔰 𝔪𝔶 𝔪𝔦𝔡𝔡𝔩𝔢 𝔰𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔰𝔭𝔢𝔞𝔨𝔰 𝔥𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔩𝔶 𝔬𝔣 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔯𝔞𝔠𝔱𝔢𝔯.
𝔄𝔰 ℑ 𝔞𝔪 𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔱𝔞𝔦𝔫 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔞𝔩𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔶 𝔞𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔢, 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔄𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔬𝔰 𝔣𝔞𝔪𝔦𝔩𝔶 𝔥𝔞𝔰 𝔞𝔩𝔴𝔞𝔶𝔰 𝔭𝔯𝔦𝔡𝔢𝔡 𝔦𝔱𝔰𝔢𝔩𝔣 𝔬𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔤𝔯𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔬𝔣 𝔦𝔱𝔰 𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔢𝔞𝔤𝔢 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔱𝔥 𝔬𝔣 𝔦𝔱𝔰 𝔩𝔢𝔤𝔞𝔠𝔶. 𝔚𝔢 𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔩𝔶 𝔞𝔰 𝔭𝔬𝔴𝔢𝔯𝔣𝔲𝔩 𝔞𝔰 𝔞𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔠𝔢𝔡𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔰. 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔄𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔬𝔰 𝔣𝔞𝔪𝔦𝔩𝔶 𝔦𝔰 𝔬𝔣𝔱𝔢𝔫 𝔠𝔢𝔩𝔢𝔟𝔯𝔞𝔱𝔢𝔡 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔦𝔱𝔰 𝔪𝔞𝔤𝔞𝔪𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔞𝔫𝔡 ℑ 𝔥𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔦𝔫𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔡 𝔬𝔫 𝔪𝔶 𝔠𝔥𝔦𝔩𝔡𝔯𝔢𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔫𝔢𝔢𝔡 𝔱𝔬 𝔤𝔦𝔳𝔢-𝔟𝔞𝔠𝔨 𝔱𝔬 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔩𝔡 𝔞𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔡 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔪. 𝔗𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔠𝔞𝔫 𝔭𝔯𝔬𝔳𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔰 𝔦𝔫 𝔞 𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔩𝔡 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔬𝔣𝔱𝔢𝔫 𝔰𝔢𝔢𝔰 𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔯𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔞𝔠𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔭𝔩𝔦𝔰𝔥𝔪𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔞𝔰 𝔢𝔣𝔣𝔬𝔯𝔱𝔰 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔪𝔲𝔰𝔱 𝔟𝔢 𝔣𝔬𝔦𝔩𝔢𝔡 𝔯𝔞𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔯 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔫 𝔣𝔬𝔰𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔢𝔡. 𝔗𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔥𝔞𝔯𝔰𝔥 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔦𝔰 𝔞 𝔭𝔯𝔬𝔣𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔡 𝔟𝔲𝔯𝔡𝔢𝔫 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔪𝔶 𝔠𝔥𝔦𝔩𝔡𝔯𝔢𝔫. 𝔚𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔰𝔲𝔠𝔥 𝔢𝔵𝔭𝔢𝔠𝔱𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔰 𝔞 𝔡𝔢𝔣𝔦𝔫𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔳𝔢 𝔴𝔢𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱, 𝔭𝔞𝔯𝔱𝔦𝔠𝔲𝔩𝔞𝔯𝔩𝔶 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔤 𝔪𝔢𝔫 𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔩𝔩 𝔩𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔬 𝔫𝔞𝔳𝔦𝔤𝔞𝔱𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔟𝔲𝔯𝔡𝔢𝔫𝔰 𝔬𝔣 𝔟𝔬𝔱𝔥 𝔯𝔢𝔰𝔭𝔬𝔫𝔰𝔦𝔟𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔦𝔡𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔞𝔰 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔶 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔢 𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔬 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔦𝔯 𝔬𝔴𝔫 𝔭𝔬𝔴𝔢𝔯.
ℑ 𝔞𝔪 𝔡𝔦𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔡 𝔱𝔬 𝔩𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔫 𝔬𝔣 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔬𝔟𝔰𝔢𝔯𝔳𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔯𝔢𝔤𝔞𝔯𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔄𝔞𝔪𝔬𝔫’𝔰 𝔱𝔯𝔬𝔲𝔟𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔢𝔵𝔭𝔢𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔰 𝔦𝔫 ℌ𝔬𝔤𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔱𝔰 𝔖𝔠𝔥𝔬𝔬𝔩 𝔬𝔣 𝔚𝔦𝔱𝔠𝔥𝔠𝔯𝔞𝔣𝔱 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔚𝔦𝔷𝔞𝔯𝔡𝔯𝔶. ℑ 𝔠𝔞𝔫𝔫𝔬𝔱 𝔡𝔦𝔰𝔪𝔦𝔰𝔰 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔤𝔯𝔞𝔳𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔬𝔣 𝔴𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔥𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔡𝔢𝔰𝔠𝔯𝔦𝔟𝔢𝔡. 𝔚𝔥𝔦𝔩𝔢 ℑ 𝔞𝔪 𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔱𝔞𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔄𝔞𝔪𝔬𝔫 𝔦𝔰 𝔦𝔫 𝔫𝔬 𝔡𝔞𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔯 𝔞𝔫𝔡 ℑ 𝔥𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔲𝔱𝔪𝔬𝔰𝔱 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔣𝔦𝔡𝔢𝔫𝔠𝔢 𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 ℌ𝔬𝔤𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔱𝔰 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔣𝔣, ℑ 𝔞𝔪 𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔱𝔞𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔪𝔶 𝔰𝔬𝔫 𝔄𝔞𝔪𝔬𝔫 𝔥𝔞𝔰 𝔫𝔬𝔱 𝔟𝔢𝔢𝔫 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔲𝔱 𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔡𝔦𝔣𝔣𝔦𝔠𝔲𝔩𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔰. 𝔄𝔞𝔪𝔬𝔫 𝔥𝔞𝔰 𝔞𝔩𝔴𝔞𝔶𝔰 𝔭𝔬𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔢𝔡 𝔞 𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔰𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔳𝔢 𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔢—𝔴𝔥𝔦𝔩𝔢 𝔨𝔢𝔢𝔫𝔩𝔶 𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔩𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔢𝔫𝔱, 𝔥𝔢 𝔦𝔰 𝔭𝔯𝔬𝔫𝔢 𝔱𝔬 𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔯𝔬𝔰𝔭𝔢𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔯𝔢𝔣𝔬𝔯𝔢 𝔞𝔫𝔵𝔦𝔢𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔰. 𝔖𝔲𝔠𝔥 𝔮𝔲𝔞𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔰, 𝔞𝔡𝔪𝔦𝔯𝔞𝔟𝔩𝔢 𝔞𝔰 𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔶 𝔪𝔞𝔶 𝔟𝔢, 𝔠𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔩𝔰𝔬 𝔩𝔢𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢 𝔳𝔲𝔩𝔫𝔢𝔯𝔞𝔟𝔩𝔢 𝔱𝔬 𝔦𝔫𝔣𝔩𝔲𝔢𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔰 𝔟𝔬𝔱𝔥 𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔫𝔞𝔩 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔢𝔵𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔫𝔞𝔩.
𝔄𝔰 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔊𝔦𝔡𝔢𝔬𝔫, 𝔦𝔱 𝔦𝔰 𝔯𝔢𝔤𝔯𝔢𝔱𝔱𝔞𝔟𝔩𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔭𝔢𝔯𝔰𝔬𝔫𝔞𝔩 𝔪𝔞𝔱𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔰 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔥𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔟𝔢𝔢𝔫 𝔩𝔞𝔦𝔡 𝔟𝔞𝔯𝔢 𝔦𝔫 𝔰𝔲𝔠𝔥 𝔞 𝔭𝔲𝔟𝔩𝔦𝔠 𝔣𝔞𝔰𝔥𝔦𝔬𝔫. 𝔚𝔥𝔦𝔩𝔢 𝔥𝔢 𝔦𝔰 𝔞 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔤 𝔪𝔞𝔫 𝔬𝔣 𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔬𝔫𝔤 𝔭𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰, ℑ 𝔥𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔫𝔬 𝔡𝔬𝔲𝔟𝔱 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔦𝔩𝔩 𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔢 𝔞𝔟𝔬𝔳𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔲𝔫𝔣𝔬𝔯𝔱𝔲𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔢 𝔠𝔦𝔯𝔠𝔲𝔪𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔢 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔱𝔦𝔫𝔲𝔢 𝔱𝔬 𝔭𝔯𝔬𝔳𝔢 𝔥𝔦𝔪𝔰𝔢𝔩𝔣 𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔱𝔥𝔶 𝔬𝔣 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔄𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔬𝔰 𝔫𝔞𝔪𝔢. ℑ𝔫 𝔣𝔞𝔠𝔱, ℑ 𝔠𝔢𝔩𝔢𝔟𝔯𝔞𝔱𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔣𝔞𝔠𝔱 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔤 𝔊𝔦𝔡𝔢𝔬𝔫 𝔥𝔞𝔰 𝔣𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔡 𝔰𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔬𝔫𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔱𝔥𝔶 𝔬𝔣 𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔞𝔣𝔣𝔢𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔯𝔢𝔤𝔞𝔯𝔡𝔩𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔬𝔣 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔱𝔲𝔰 𝔬𝔯 𝔴𝔢𝔞𝔩𝔱𝔥. ℌ𝔦𝔰 𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔭𝔦𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔣𝔞𝔯 𝔬𝔲𝔱𝔴𝔢𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔰 𝔪𝔶 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔫 𝔣𝔬𝔯 𝔪𝔢𝔡𝔦𝔞 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔪𝔭𝔱. ℑ 𝔞𝔭𝔭𝔯𝔢𝔠𝔦𝔞𝔱𝔢 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔡𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔠𝔞𝔠𝔶 𝔦𝔫 𝔞𝔡𝔡𝔯𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔰 𝔪𝔞𝔱𝔱𝔢𝔯 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔱𝔯𝔲𝔰𝔱 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔴𝔦𝔩𝔩 𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔡𝔩𝔢 𝔣𝔲𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔢 𝔰𝔦𝔱𝔲𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 𝔦𝔫𝔳𝔬𝔩𝔳𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔪𝔶 𝔣𝔞𝔪𝔦𝔩𝔶 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔥 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔰𝔞𝔪𝔢 𝔡𝔦𝔰𝔠𝔯𝔢𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫.
ℜ𝔢𝔤𝔞𝔯𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔬𝔣𝔣𝔢𝔯 𝔱𝔬 𝔪𝔢𝔢𝔱, ℑ 𝔟𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔢𝔳𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔣𝔲𝔯𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔯 𝔡𝔦𝔰𝔠𝔲𝔰𝔰𝔦𝔬𝔫 𝔪𝔞𝔶 𝔦𝔫𝔡𝔢𝔢𝔡 𝔟𝔢 𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔯𝔞𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔡. ℑ𝔣 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔴𝔬𝔲𝔩𝔡 𝔟𝔢 𝔰𝔬 𝔨𝔦𝔫𝔡 𝔞𝔰 𝔱𝔬 𝔭𝔯𝔬𝔳𝔦𝔡𝔢 𝔞 𝔡𝔞𝔱𝔢, 𝔱𝔦𝔪𝔢 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔩𝔬𝔠𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔰𝔲𝔦𝔱𝔰 𝔶𝔬𝔲, ℑ 𝔴𝔦𝔩𝔩 𝔪𝔞𝔨𝔢 𝔞𝔯𝔯𝔞𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔪𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔰 𝔞𝔠𝔠𝔬𝔯𝔡𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔩𝔶.
ℜ𝔢𝔰𝔱 𝔞𝔰𝔰𝔲𝔯𝔢𝔡, 𝔐𝔯. ℭ𝔬𝔫𝔫𝔬𝔯, 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔫𝔰 𝔴𝔦𝔩𝔩 𝔫𝔬𝔱 𝔟𝔢 𝔱𝔞𝔨𝔢𝔫 𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱𝔩𝔶.
𝔜𝔬𝔲𝔯𝔰 𝔰𝔦𝔫𝔠𝔢𝔯𝔢𝔩𝔶,
𝔗𝔥𝔞𝔡𝔡𝔢𝔲𝔰 𝔄𝔱𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔬𝔰
Reducio
Mr. Finnegan Connor,
I thank you for your candid letter and your apparent concern for my sons Aamon and Gideon. It is a rare and often recherché quality to find someone so concerned with the welfare of others. Your willingness to act with such selfless solicitousness towards my middle sons speaks highly of your character.
As I am certain you are already aware, the Athanatos family has always prided itself on the integrity of its lineage and the strength of its legacy. We are only as powerful as antecedents. The Athanatos family is often celebrated for its magamity and I have instilled on my children the need to give-back to the world around them. This can prove onerous in a world that often sees charity and accomplishment as efforts that must be foiled rather than fostered. This harsh reality is a profound burden for my children. With such expectations comes a definitive weight, particularly for young men still learning to navigate the burdens of both responsibility and identity as they come into their own power.
I am distressed to learn of your observations regarding Aamon’s troubling experiences in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I cannot dismiss the gravity of what you have described. While I am certain that Aamon is in no danger and I have the utmost confidence in the Hogwarts staff, I am certain that my son Aamon has not been without his difficulties. Aamon has always possessed a sensitive nature—while keenly intelligent, he is prone to introspection and therefore anxieties. Such qualities, admirable as they may be, can also leave one vulnerable to influences both internal and external.
As for Gideon, it is regrettable that his personal matters with you have been laid bare in such a public fashion. While he is a young man of strong passions, I have no doubt that he will rise above this unfortunate circumstance and continue to prove himself worthy of the Athanatos name. In fact, I celebrate the fact that young Gideon has found someone worthy of his affections regardless of status or wealth. His happiness far outweighs my concern for media contempt. I appreciate your delicacy in addressing this matter and trust that you will handle future situations involving my family with the same discretion.
Regarding your offer to meet, I believe that further discussion may indeed be warranted. If you would be so kind as to provide a date, time and location that suits you, I will make arrangements accordingly.
Rest assured, Mr. Connor, your concerns will not be taken lightly.
Yours sincerely,
Thaddeus Athanatos
I thank you for your candid letter and your apparent concern for my sons Aamon and Gideon. It is a rare and often recherché quality to find someone so concerned with the welfare of others. Your willingness to act with such selfless solicitousness towards my middle sons speaks highly of your character.
As I am certain you are already aware, the Athanatos family has always prided itself on the integrity of its lineage and the strength of its legacy. We are only as powerful as antecedents. The Athanatos family is often celebrated for its magamity and I have instilled on my children the need to give-back to the world around them. This can prove onerous in a world that often sees charity and accomplishment as efforts that must be foiled rather than fostered. This harsh reality is a profound burden for my children. With such expectations comes a definitive weight, particularly for young men still learning to navigate the burdens of both responsibility and identity as they come into their own power.
I am distressed to learn of your observations regarding Aamon’s troubling experiences in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I cannot dismiss the gravity of what you have described. While I am certain that Aamon is in no danger and I have the utmost confidence in the Hogwarts staff, I am certain that my son Aamon has not been without his difficulties. Aamon has always possessed a sensitive nature—while keenly intelligent, he is prone to introspection and therefore anxieties. Such qualities, admirable as they may be, can also leave one vulnerable to influences both internal and external.
As for Gideon, it is regrettable that his personal matters with you have been laid bare in such a public fashion. While he is a young man of strong passions, I have no doubt that he will rise above this unfortunate circumstance and continue to prove himself worthy of the Athanatos name. In fact, I celebrate the fact that young Gideon has found someone worthy of his affections regardless of status or wealth. His happiness far outweighs my concern for media contempt. I appreciate your delicacy in addressing this matter and trust that you will handle future situations involving my family with the same discretion.
Regarding your offer to meet, I believe that further discussion may indeed be warranted. If you would be so kind as to provide a date, time and location that suits you, I will make arrangements accordingly.
Rest assured, Mr. Connor, your concerns will not be taken lightly.
Yours sincerely,
Thaddeus Athanatos
The owl would not wait for a response and would fly away. If the window was open, it would seem to shut behind it.
Event NPC
The Heart of The Matter
Finnegan sat motionless in the window, watching the snowfall when the black owl arrived. By the third tap, Finnegan had wrenched the window open, granting the beautiful bird access. The silvery tube clutched in its talons seemed too elegant to be meant for him, yet the dark bird dropped it in his lap, and its keen eyes seemed to urge him to open it before it departed.
Finnegan reached to close the window, but it had already snapped shut. An animagus perhaps? It was not rare to see things open or close by themselves in either the muggle or wizarding world, but it was rare to see an animal do it.
He unscrewed the cap on the silvery tube, unsure who had written him. Perhaps the bird had mistaken him for some well-off student? It was not until he gingerly unrolled the midnight letter that he understood just who had been writing him back.
Only once he had checked that he was alone did he read the letter in full. It was kind and considerate, yet laden with a heavy weight of import. He re-rolled the letter, hastily stowed the tube in his bag and rushed toward the library. There he read it again, this time with a dictionary at hand. Twice more he read the letter, searching carefully for any duplicity, but finding none.
To speak with Thaddeus Athanatos was an honor, an opportunity, and quite possibly his most dangerous endeavour yet.
Mind racing, he retrieved parchment and ink and penned back:
Finnegan reached to close the window, but it had already snapped shut. An animagus perhaps? It was not rare to see things open or close by themselves in either the muggle or wizarding world, but it was rare to see an animal do it.
He unscrewed the cap on the silvery tube, unsure who had written him. Perhaps the bird had mistaken him for some well-off student? It was not until he gingerly unrolled the midnight letter that he understood just who had been writing him back.
Only once he had checked that he was alone did he read the letter in full. It was kind and considerate, yet laden with a heavy weight of import. He re-rolled the letter, hastily stowed the tube in his bag and rushed toward the library. There he read it again, this time with a dictionary at hand. Twice more he read the letter, searching carefully for any duplicity, but finding none.
To speak with Thaddeus Athanatos was an honor, an opportunity, and quite possibly his most dangerous endeavour yet.
Mind racing, he retrieved parchment and ink and penned back:
Dear Mr. Athanatos,
Thank you kindly for your considerate message. I am both relieved and honored to hear back from you.
Would it be possible to meet me in The Three Broomsticks on January 11th at noon? I would offer a sooner opportunity if I were able, but since I believe it best for our meeting to be private and discreet I cannot in good conscience ask for leave from my Professors.
You may count on me,
Finnegan Connor
P.S.
I've only started Care for Magical Creatures this September, but I must say I have never seen an owl like yours before. It seems a very intelligent creature, though I am afraid it flew off before I could give it any treats.
"He's a dweeby chocolate bar lip smacking nerd" - Evelynn Decipio