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Tweak says, "I like pickles in my tuna!"

Jane Olivia Dorny (stutteringjane) wrote in leftbehind_rpg,
@ 2009-03-03 12:20:00

Who: Jane and Eloise
What: catching up after the summer
Where: The Hogwarts Express
When: Morning of September 1, 1997
Rating: G
Status: unfinished

Jane hugged her brother goodbye, then, dragging her heavy suitcase, found the barrier between platforms 9 and 10 and went through as quickly as possible. Her mother had, as usual, refused to come; her father was working. She didn't mind. She was just glad to be going back to Hogwarts. Even if it was empty... her eyes grew wide as she looked around, realizing how empty the platform was. Where was everyone? They couldn't all be on the train already, could they?

No, she realized as she boarded and looked for a compartment. Someone she didn't know was in the first compartment she checked, but the second one was empty. She never found one that quickly. The corridors were empty, too. She hadn't been aware of what went on over the summer, as she had to hide wizard newspapers from her mother. She briefly entertained the thought that people had run away when they learned that Snape was to be Headmaster, but dismissed it with a smile and a shake of her head. While she would miss kindly Headmaster Dumbledore, she doubted that Snape would have enough effect on her life to make it miserable, especially since she was no longer taking Potions.

The train hadn't left yet. Maybe some others would still appear. Rummaging in her luggage, she found the book she was currently reading, Emma. She found her marked page, tucked her feet under herself, and began to read.

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0ff_center
2009-03-05 11:47 am UTC (link)

From the moment Eloise stepped onto platform 9 ¾ she could tell that this year was going to be different. Everyone was quiet, students weren’t running around shouting like they normally did. It was a strange greeting for the Hufflepuff as she and her mother strode across the platform. Eloise still wasn’t comfortable with her mother bringing her to meet the train, but her father was working and they had both refused to allow her to go to the station alone. Winifred should have been at home and the girl honestly couldn’t wait until her mother was gone; she wanted her to be safe and this past summer had proved that there was going to be a lot of suspicion thrown on people’s bloodlines. Squibs were going to have a hard time, they all knew it. Yet Winifred insisted on carrying on her life with no changes.

After a quick hug and kiss, Eloise and her mother parted. She felt like the farewell had been too rushed and maybe even a bit standoffish on her part, but she just wanted her mother to go home. She lugged her trunk and owl up on to the train without the usual parental assistance and began making her way from compartment to compartment. After passing several semi-occupied ones she finally came upon one with a very familiar face inside of it. So she ended her search, stepping into the small space, not as timidly as she would if it was someone else.

“Hello Jane,” she greeted her friend, her stutter absent from her voice for the time being. She gave a smile, a real one at that, even though she wasn’t feeling particularly happy at the moment. Her eyes fell upon the book Jane was reading and that made her feel slightly better; Emma was a favourite of hers. Eliza the owl squawked impatiently and Eloise gently set her cage down on a vacant seat.

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stutteringjane
2009-03-05 12:28 pm UTC (link)

Jane looked up at the familiar voice, a smile spreading across her face as she reinserted the bookmark. "Eloise!" She put the book down so she could talk to her friend more easily. "And hello, Eliza. How was your s-summer?" It was a relief to see a face that was not only familiar but also friendly. And with so few students showing up to the train, it seemed unlikely that anyone would be joining them, so she could speak more freely than usual, knowing that she would not only not be mocked for her stutter but that it would make less of an appearance.

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0ff_center
2009-03-10 11:27 am UTC (link)

Eloise’s smile remained plastered upon her face as she was greeted by Jane. Now that Eliza was sitting in a seat she seemed at least temporarily mollified, so Eloise sat next to Jane, looking at the blonde as she asked about the summer. The Hufflepuff let out a small sigh, her shoulders slouching ever so slightly.

“Summer was…” she paused, trying to come up with the best word to describe her holiday. It wasn’t like she had really been able to sit back and enjoy her three months at home, not with Dumbledore gone and the Ministry checking up on wizarding families, checking and triple-checking bloodlines. Normally she would have enjoyed her time at home, no matter how much she loved being at school. But this year was…

“Sssstressful,” she answered finally, giving a tiny nod. Her smile had begun to slip away, leaving behind a worried look. “H-have you seen the Prophet t-toda-y?” She was referring, of course, to the appointment of Professor Snape as the new Headmaster. It should be Professor McGonagall’s job now, shouldn’t it? Why had the Ministry appointed someone as mean and biased as Snape?

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stutteringjane
2009-03-12 11:33 am UTC (link)

Jane shook her head, leaning forward. "M-mama still won't let me get a s...subscription. Why? Has something h-h-happened?" She bit her lip with worry. What could be worse than Professor Dumbledore dying at the end of last year and all the stories about the most powerful dark wizard ever to exist returning?

Not to mention the owls her mother had gotten checking up on her bloodline--it had taken her weeks to convince them that her family were wizards, and Jane still hadn't managed to find out that family's name. It sounded like a lot had happened over the summer and Jane had been cut off from it all. The same thing happened every summer, but this was worse than usual. She was seventeen and her mother still wouldn't acknowledge her as an adult, though her father seemed too happy to.

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