Imprisonment Private Solo

TBD: Pre-Howgrats Sixth Year - After Vale being blind.

What a mess. Actually, more than a mess. It is a nuisance of a disaster. Nuisance! Vale's brother, Raydon Ashwood, was not to become the heir to the Ashwood legacy indefinitely. Sure, Vale and her parents knew Raydon wasn't planning on sticking with the family business. But it wasn't like they knew the exact reason as to why. Vale thought he liked digging in some bizarre flower fields out in foreign lands too much to bother with something like running a business empire. Well...

Her belief changed when a bunch of nuisance-ridden Ministry Aurors raided her home. On a wonderfully bleak and dreary day. This bother had to happen right after Vale was getting too comfortable with her new lifestyle. Her mother made sure all paths were cleared for Vale to walk through inside the mansion, and her father even had to switch out furniture just to prevent Vale from smacking into a table or two once she was fresh out of the hospital. Kind of thinking about it, Raydon didn't even bother to visit her in the hospital! Well...she figured out why now.

Couldn't even read the newspapers yet about it. Apparently, he already had a long-winded and equally annoying track record building up years to come! But when she got her contact lenses, she was foaming at the mouth.

"Nature's Will Leader Caught! Raydon Ashwood Found! Multiple Members Killed!"

Vale wasn't angry or upset about her brother committing violent acts, mind you. No, he was doing them...without her knowledge! What a bastard! He knew family always stayed together to commit their most damning deeds. A betrayal, and one that caused Vale more trouble than her loss of eyesight did.

The Aurors raided their home, searching for evidence, and even broke into her grandfather's hidden office! They even took her grandfather's favorite cauldron! His cauldron! What would they need to take such an old, rusty thing? Vale had plans for that damn thing. Like...

Give her time, she'd figured something out!

They ripped everything apart. They made a mess of her mother's careful route-making for Vale to roam, and they overturned the furniture her father worked hard to position. Raydon's old room (it was already so empty) was even turned into a blank slate! Vale had to practice all over again in her roaming with her mother to become familiar with the walkways after everything was cleaned up. A nuisance!

Everything was ruined, and all because of her annoying older brother! Oh, she couldn't wait when she'd be allowed visiting time to see him in Azkaban. She had papers to write about her anger at him that he'd be forced to sit down and listen to upon her first visit.

The interviews and the constant ponderings from Ministry officials after that were just as annoying. They pondered the family for weeks after to know if they had any involvement. Vale wasn't even allowed to lie and say she was! Then, it all stopped. No more mandatory interviews from officials and no more shameless newsmen lurking to catch an Ashwood out in a public setting. Apparently, Vale's father's security was well done. Made the newsmen too scared to even attempt to step a single toe on the grounds. That alone added another interview for her father regarding whether he himself was hiding something crucial for Raydon.

It happened so fast. Raydon's trial didn't even last anymore than two weeks. The evidence too damning. Vale was jealous and was convinced he was set for some sort of death penalty. Isn't that what the Americans had? But no, he was to serve for many years to come. Maybe for life, in the deepest of holes that can be found inside Azkaban. He burned down a few homes...with people inside them. Vale was pretty sure those people weren't very much alive by then. With help from a few members too. What was his reason? Something about 'humans taking too much control of things?'

Well, Vale personally didn't see the need for a reason. He could've just said he wanted to, and she'd have been quite proud. An Ashwood carrying on the criminal legacy is an Ashwood indeed...! But he hid it all, so he can rot for the time being.

Vale's mother was torn by the news, much more than Vale's father was. (He also was in agreement! How dare he hide it from them!) But like any ol' Ashwood, they tend to get over grudges maybe quite too soon. Vale already forgot about her mountains of misshapen written letters and had them burned in the fire pit before using the ashes to place another urn up. It looks quite nice next to the urn of the ashes from when she burned down the family shed after accidentally casting magic for the first time.

Ah well, maybe next year Vale will visit her brother and see if they can play chess together. Maybe she'll finally learn how to play it properly by then. Their grandfather would most certainly be proud.
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Fearless ✳ Poison Resistance ✳ Terrible Presence ✳ Prodigal Potions Learner ✳ Restricted Potions ✳ Blindvision ✳ 7th Year Ability
Stamina 10 ✳ Evasion 12 ✳ Strength 5 ✳ Wisdom 15 ✳ Arcane 8 ✳ Accuracy 15
Note: Vale has incomplete achromatopsia, making her blind. She wears special contact lenses to help her see.