Knights of Walpurgis

( Owl to Maxwell Yaxley. )

Who: Tom Riddle, the Knights of Walpurgis
What: The Knights meet
When: Friday, July 15th, 1955
Where: If I told you I'd have to kill you
Status: Incomplete, open

Tom's long fingers brushed absently along the carvings on the fireplace, waiting for the finally members to arrive and running over the night's objectives in his head. His eyes twitched towards those who were all ready present, chatting amicably and a ruful smirk grew on his lips. The gentleman's club; that's what these meetings had started out like. They were slowly but surely starting to shift towards Tom's true goals as the months passed. Their numbers were growing and Tom was becoming less of a central figure and more of a deity of sorts.

He let the smirk fade, turning to face his 'friends'. "Let us begin," he said, taking his seat.

( Owl to Sebastien )

Who: Demetrius Greensmith, and Open
What: Getting the skoop
When: Late morning, early afternoon FRIDAY July 15th, 1955
Where: The streets of Diagon Alley and anywhere you'd like!
Status: Incomplete, open


It had been threatening rain all morning, and Demetrius was not surprised to find the shops of Diagon Alley mostly empty. Umbrella kept by his side, just in case, he traveled closest to the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron, hoping to pick up at least one side of his story on this end: where the inhabitants were more likely to be pro-muggle. On his way he passed a brand new bookstore, and curious he stepped inside, drawn in by the rows upon rows of large volumes. Certainly someone who owned such a shop could only be well-read and an interesting interview?

( They had a whole section on Bali. )

The talk of the town these days has been the panic and uncertainty
many witches and wizards have felt since they heard of the unspeakable
tragedy of an innocent wizard who had been brutally murdered by his
muggle spouse who confessed to the crime. "The damage's been done,"
one lovely women outside of Flourish and Blotts exclaimed today, "the
revolt is going to be strong and everyone should prepare themselves:
know what side you're on!" Though a little batty, these words can be
nothing but the truth. As a humble and faithful servant to the public,
it has been my continued job to have your best interests in mind. At
this very moment, I can tell the public with increasing certainty that
there are strong groups at both sides of the argument ready to make
bold and daring moves if it means securing their beliefs. You can be
sure I, Demetrius Greensmith, will continue to do my utmost to detect
and uncover all rumors and secrets in the hopes that it will protect
the lives of you and your family.

Be warned that there seems to be plans in the works by anti-muggle
organizations, strongholded by a leader not yet known to the public,
that may have dire and horrific consequences. "I dun' know who 'e is,
but I can betch'a he's a right foul git of a man. Try'n ta' rid the
earth of those poor little creatures." One charming gentleman
professed to me under the cover of a fraying sun hat. I cannot help
but agree. Whoever he is, this man must be determined; already there
have been suspicious deaths close to many muggle/wizarding borders.
None of these can be linked back to our own kind, but the timing is
impeccable. One can only hope he will release an official statement of
his organization's intentions before he is accused of murder.

Also in the news today, spells holding important magical barriers in
place flickered today, leading to a few sightings of the Ministry of
Magic by muggles, as well as a a few wizarding homes in the lower
United States of America were revealed to an unsuspecting family
walking their dog. Obliviators have been dispatched and the problem
has been temporarily cleared up, while Ministry officials are
scampering to find the cause of the disturbance. "It was so quick-
just a blip in time!" One exhausted Obliviator explains, eager to
return home to his family. "All I can say is it left some damage that
needed to be fixed. What could have cause it? We don't know". The man
then hurriedly rushed off, deeming rattled and shaken by the strange
occurrence. Perhaps it's related to these anti-muggle groups we're
hearing about? Whatever the cause: you can be sure we'll have more for
you on the subject tomorrow.

Reporting for the Daily Prophet, Demetrius Greensmith.

For the latest Quiddich scores, including The Cannon's greatest
failure yet!, turn to page 3b.

For a lengthy read, flip to page 17 for Doris Robinson's essay on the
Occurances of Life-Long Curses and their Effects on the Wizarding
World.

Weather today: Warm and sunny during the morning and afternoon: expect
some light showers before dinner!

OOC Note: Since the Modlies are at Anime North, they knew there would be a possibility that they would either not have internet access, or might be otherwise preoccupied by happenings with the gathering. And so, being wonderful fore-thinkers they are, sent me the profit article to post for them if they were unable to. The deadline they sent me has passed, so I am posting it now. ^^ Yes, this means a new game day.

( Owl bearing an Invitation to Lucretia Black )

Who: Eileen Prince & Open.
Where: London, Diagon Alley
When: May 13, 1955
Status: open/ongoing
Warnings: None.

( Lalalala )

Who: Rudolph Atkins and Edric Nott
What: Getting off work, shopping, maybe having dinner and grabbing a pint
When: Wednesday, July 13th, 1955
Where: Various places
Status: Closed, ongoing

Perhaps it was the scent of the offices that drew Rudolph to that corridor at the end of every day, when the rest of the building was retiring for the night. It was high, keening, like pickling juices and bleached floors, and the colour green, which was decidedly intriguing. This was the corridor leading to the Department of Mysteries and this was Rudolph Atkins eavesdropping while a group of clear-eyed men huddled and discussed the contents of the secret rooms beyond. This was Rudy interested and intruiged and-

"Late!" Rudy hissed under his breath, glancing at his watch. He'd come down to deliver one last stack of forms and a box the size of his palm that held something curious that seemed to jump. Judging by the sounds he'd heard, Rudy reasoned they weren't beans. Like almost every day he'd stayed behind to listen (if he could) about the atrocities said to dwell in the Department of Mysteries, but hadn't caught even one word to tell him anything, and the building tension was driving him out of his mind.

As quietly as possible he tiptoed to the elevator once more and pressed the button. As he patiently waited, he regarded his small furry companion with a wry grin, "They'd have us locked away in there if they knew." he kidded, scratching the small rat on the top of it's soft white head with one finger. Finally the lift arrived, and when he finally stumbled into the atrium to meet Edric, he was very, very late.

"Sorry," he said, a slight huff in his voice, "you know they've got this secret language or something? They're talking about stuff but they have all these code words for them and it's driving me insane!"

Who: Cassius Lestrange & Antonin Dolohov
What: Cassius has a request for an old friend.
Where: Lestrange Manor, Cassius' personal office, England
When: 13th July, 1955
Status: On-going
Warnings: PG-13ish for bad language that is likely to ensue.

Cassius stood before the fireplace of his study, eyes focused on the flames. The cigarette burning half forgotten, with only a few occasional puffs taken. He had a dilemma, and he needed help to get out of it, no matter how much it irked him to do so. He had always been able to resolve problems on his own, but this was getting out of hand. At first he was fine with Eileen hiding from him, he had thought that after so long his parents would let the betrothal fade, but they have not. And now he is being told that he better get her to the altar soon and begin the process of fathering heirs, as was his duty. And that, he just would not do.

Which was why he was waiting on Dolohov to show up, at his request. Of all of his friends, Dolohov was the only one he was sure would be up to the task, perform it well, and to do it in a discreet manner. He was sure Dolohov would find what he needed to end this nonsense about him marrying Eileen.

Upon hearing his study door open her turned, hand raising to remove the cigarette from his lips. "Antonin, thank you for coming. Do you want a drink while we talk?"

Who: Tom Riddle
What: Watching a good old fashioned hanging
Where: Holloway Prison, London Borough of Islington
When: 13th July, 1955
Status: Complete
Warnings: A hanging is not pleasant.

She was quite the beauty, the papers hadn't lied, though her blood made her utterly unappealing. Tom eyes were trained on the girl as they marched her out, her face calm. The yard was silent save for the cries of the protesters outside and Toms lips curled into a half smirk as they slid the white bag over her head, fitting the noose round her neck.

A young girl started sobbing and Tom's gaze shifted to her slowly, as she clung to her mother. The girl's sister no doubt; she bore quite the resemblance. He flashed her a charming smile and for a moment her face slackened, sobbing stopping.

Then came the loud throng of the dead weight of a body pulling on the rope, and the sister screamed, Tom's face breaking into a full grin. It was a beautiful sight. The body, hanging like some sort of marionette, waiting to be brought back to life, swaying gently in a morbid dance of the dead.

They checked her to assure she was dead before clearing off. She was to hang for an hour, and slowly the people dispersed. His tongue traced along his teeth as he watched the mother lead the girl way, a predatory look in his eye. This is what comes of filth like you trying to mix with wizards. You'll all learn your place soon enough.

Silently, he slipped away from the wall, following after the young woman and her mother, a plan forming in his mind.

This morning at nine am, muggle, Ruth Ellis, 28, is to be hanged for the murder of her wizarding lover, David Drummond Moffat Blakely,25.

This verdict has brought much debate to both the muggle and wizarding world as to whether the death penalty should be retired. It has also sparked much debate as to where the woman should have been tried. The Ministry is facing much criticism for not stepping in to intervene. Currently wizarding law does not allow for intervention in cases involving muggle defendants.

Ms. Ellis, mother of two, emptied her gun (a muggle weapon) into Mr. Blakely on the evening of 10th April, 1955, killing him, and injuring one witness.

Her trial opened on 20th June 1955 in the Old Bailey’s No. 1 court, preceded by Mr. Justice Havers. The prosecution was led by Mr. Christmas Humphries, and the Defense by Mr. Melford Stevenson. Ms. Ellis was eerily calm through the whole of the trial, and while she plead not guilty when questioned as to what she intended to do when she fired the gun at close range she replied, “It was obvious that when I shot him I intended to kill him.”

Ruth was declared guilty after the jury deliberating for only 23 minutes. No other verdict could have been reached with her admission of pre meditation, and under current law a person found guilty of murder and not manslaughter must be put to death.

She has been quoted as saying, “I am now completely composed. I know that I am going to die, and I’m ready to do so. You won’t hear anything from me that says I didn’t kill David. I did kill him. And whatever the circumstances you as a lawyer will appreciate that it’s a life for a life. Isn't that just?”

Governor at Holloway was forced to call for police reinforcements because of a crowd of more than 500 who had gathered outside the prison's gates singing and chanting for Ruth for several hours. Some of them broke through the police cordon to bang on the prison gates, calling for Ruth to pray with them

There is call for the laws to be changed, either abolishing the death penalty all together or giving greater lenience for case by case judging, which would allow a person to be convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison instead of the now mandatory death.

This has brought much attention to our own penal system over the past few months. As of now our law mirrors the muggle, with a sentence of the kiss delivered to all convicted of murder. Many activist groups are now calling for this to be abolished, with a rally outside the Ministry of magic planned for this morning in support of changing these long held laws. Similar rallies have been held over the past few weeks from opposing groups, who would see Ms. Ellis tried (and set to death) here. The Ministry had not yet issued a comment, but seems hesitant to re-evaluate our current system.