With the capture of Verandi Farley and several high-ranking Trossach members, the British wizarding world has finally caught a break. The rate of rogue werewolf attacks have started dropping at a steady rate and, hopefully, things will stay that way. The Ministry is starting to loosen some restrictions, like not arresting werewolves standing on the street for loitering, however there’s still an obvious power imbalance between wizardfolk and werewolves.
The Cotswolds pack are continuing to advocate for the rights of werewolves and petitioning to change the legislation that has been set in motion by the current Minister for Magic, whilst the remaining Trossachs members are trying to stay out of the spotlight and keep a low profile… for now.
Whilst the British wizarding world seems to have calmed down, the same cannot be said for over in Northern Europe where a rebellion of magical creatures has risen. The state of things has gotten so bad that the European Ministry has enacted protocols to protect those under eighteen whilst their adult witches and wizards fight to keep control of their countries.
Students from Durmstrang have been sent to Hogwarts to keep them safe and those not old enough to attend school have been sent to live with relatives or designated British Ministry officials outside of Europe for the time being.
Will the low rates of werewolf attacks in Britain continue? How long will Durmstrang students stay at Hogwarts? Will the creatures usurp the wizardfolk in Northern Europe? Only time will tell.
SEPTEMBER 2019 It's been a very long, eventful summer in the wizarding world. A baby was stolen, several high ranking Trossach members were imprisoned, and werewolf attacks have drastically dropped as a result. What will happen now school has returned?
MAY 2019 An attempt to capture the beta of the Trossachs has been launched. Were the Aurors successful in their mission? Go read more here!
Post by MAGGIE O'CONNOR on Oct 2, 2019 4:24:45 GMT
It'd been a long week-- mostly because of the back-breaking labor, but also... Because she had been sorely looking forward to a well deserved day with her brother. After dropping off what was the last delivery of jars that'd been ordered, she made haste to get to the Leaky Cauldron. While it was a rather popular place, it was almost better that way. Most the incoming foot traffic could have cared less about who was present, making it easy enough for the red head to find a place in the back to enjoy a day with some semblance of peace.
Having no job to speak of, she was able to do a few odd and end things-- painting a porch for the neighbor a few farms over and delivering a calf. It was enough to pitch in and she kept back just enough to get her brother and her a drink. She never had much of a chance to treat him these days, but she damn well was determined to. After all that time he spent by her side in the hospital, she couldn't help but feel she needed to do everything she could to make up for all his suffering.
It was funny, almost. She was the one in the hospital, she was the werewolf, she was jobless... And yet she still felt she'd destroyed the lives around her, seldom recognizing how destroyed she was by it all. She could only see that her parents struggled, her brother buried himself and work and her care that he neglected the man he loved... She destroyed them, whether she chose to be what she was or not, and she couldn't do anything to truly make it right...
"Bráthair, " She smiled, standing from the table to hug Jack, "Please have a rest, " She remarked, gesturing to his chair as she sat back down. "How've ye been?" She asked as the drinks she'd ordered arrived to the table.
As Jack walked into the Leaky Cauldron, far far away from Hogwarts and his students, he was dressed more casually than usual in a pair of jeans, a simple long-sleeved shirt and a great big winter coat that had been gifted to him by his parents about ten years ago. The brown wool coat may have seen better days in the past, but it kept him warm and that was all that mattered. The winter wind had a severe bite to it wherever you visited in the UK.
Scanning the Leaky Cauldron, giving a curt wave to Hannah Longbottom who was busily serving people at the front counter, Jack only realised that Maggie had already arrived when he heard the word 'bráthair' leave her lips. He really did need to get glasses, considering he hadn't spotted her so close away. "Deirfiúr," he greeted back warmly, a grin breaking out across his face as he scooped his younger sister into a great big hug.
Savouring the moment because he hadn't seen her in what felt like a lifetime, Jack finally let her go after a minute or so. "A rest? From what, apparating from Scotland? I'm old, but not that old that I need to rest after simply apparating." The grin that remained on Jack's face showed her that he was merely kidding, and he took a seat nonetheless opposite her. Taking in her appearance... she looked well. A bit tired, but then again... with the state of their world right now and Maggie's tendency to work herself ragged, he could understand why. He was quite certain he had bags beneath his eyes as well.
Butterbeer appearing on the table, Jack gave the server a nod and a smile, before he turned his attention back onto Maggie and his lips drew into a more serious line, shoulders shrugging. "You know how it is, Maggie. Life as a Professor never ends, and I'm still running around like a mad man trying to make the Ministry see reason that what they're doing is wrong," he said, head shaking. "How about you? How's the farm? How's mam and da?"
6'0". IRISH. BIG HEART. LOYAL. BRAVE. WORKAHOLIC. BISEXUAL. SINGLE. distinguishing features: a big scar runs across jack's left cheek credit for award goes to ollie! <3
Post by MAGGIE O'CONNOR on Nov 8, 2019 21:00:38 GMT
She squeezed in the hug for as long as she could. It'd been far too long and she'd missed his way too much. Growing up, the pair hadn't really had a chance at being particularly close in the way most of the siblings she'd seen had been. To be fair, most were fairly close in age even with the first year's to seventh, but there was quite a significantnt age gap and for a long time there were few things that connected them beyond blood with his ambitions keeping him at a distance, or his teaching keeping them purposely distant to keep from appearing he 'favored' her while she was a student at Hogwarts. Of course, she knew better... If anything, it would've made him come down harder of her than most, in her opinion.
"I'll let ye tell it, " She smirked a bit, teasing her brother, " Y've always been old to me, " She laughed a bit, shifting in her seat a bit a she took a drink of her butterbeer. She tried to be happy, but despite her efforts this here was one of few effortlessly happy times she had. Admittedly, she was fighting depression with everything going on... She tried dating despite feeling it was bad timing, and to honest that was exactly what it was. She needed to work on herself, and couldn't drag someone through what she was going through. She needed to get a real job and she needed to focus on the issues the ministry was giving her kind.
To be honest... She was really considering doing something drastic, " The bloody Ministry..." She growled, taking an irritated drink, " The place is a fucking mess, " Maggie remarked, shaking her head, " Talking to them is 'bout like reasonin' with a gnome. But he'll, at least gnomes don't care about ridiculous politics and prejudice, " Perhaps it wasn't a bright idea to spout off about the Ministry for the prejudice gits they were, but they weren't exactly putting the 'right' in bright.
"They're good. Keepin' me busy so I don't lose my mind."
"Yeah, well. Mam and da's the one to blame for the age gap," Jack was immediately shooting back, laughing good-naturedly. "What I wouldn't do to go back to my 20s, Maggie. Life seemed a lot simpler then - or... the world did, I guess." It still had it's troubles, of course, but he'd been content. He'd been determinedly teaching at Hogwarts, working his way up the rungs, and going home on his days off to his loving partner... when their schedules didn't clash. He could remember the beginnings of his relationship with Derek vividly - waking up tangled in the blankets at noon, lazily frying up eggs and bacon for lunch, and then doing his crossword whilst Derek tended to the sad-looking plants Jack always managed to neglect. Things had been a lot easier then... until... well, until Maggie had been bitten and Jack's attention had shifted a lot more towards throwing himself into work and trying to look after Maggie. Then things had come crashing down to the ground.
As Maggie started talking about the Ministry, Jack did a quick glance around the bar before casting a muffliato spell. Better to be safe than sorry. If a Ministry official overheard Maggie complaining about them so publicly, then who knew what excuse they'd make up to drag her in? "Believe me, Maggie. I've been trying to get a meeting with someone higher up for months. You know what I got told a few months back though? They're burning my bloody letters because they're sick of hearing from me," Jack said, letting out a huff of annoyance. It was rare that he let his temper get the best of him and even now, he wasn't furious but... knowing that he couldn't help Maggie because the Ministry refused to listen was definitely grating. "Bunch of bastards, the lot of them.
Keeping Maggie busy made sense - it was really the only option to keep his sister sane. Thinking back on their letters from the last few months, Jack recalled a particular one that mentioned a break up. Probably not the happiest of topics to bring up, but he did want to keep the conversation going and not one solely focused on werewolves either. "How's the break up been going? Heard from Lizzy much lately?"
6'0". IRISH. BIG HEART. LOYAL. BRAVE. WORKAHOLIC. BISEXUAL. SINGLE. distinguishing features: a big scar runs across jack's left cheek credit for award goes to ollie! <3
Post by MAGGIE O'CONNOR on Dec 4, 2019 1:46:11 GMT
"At the rate they have us, I should be getting a little sibling by next Christmas, aye?" She laughed a bit, taking a drink as both of her hands rested at the base of her glass. "Ehh, even a bloody time turner wouldn't help, " She replied. She honestly didn't like her situation, but as far as being a werewolf went she knew there wasn't a way to change it. She just wished it wasnt such a burden on everyone else... She sighed, her eyes down on her glass, " I just wish it wasn't something that had to weigh on all of you, " She remarked.
Her blood boiled as her brother told her the news on his letters. "Are you fucking kidding me...?" She sneered as her jaw twitched. "I'm so... sick of this, " She groaned as she closed her eyes, rubbing her temples a moment before opening her eyes again, " Honestly... I'm considering reaching out to one of the packs here in the UK. I just need to do something, and you you guys can't always take care of me..." She didn't know what it all entailed, but she needed to stop letting everything dictate her life.
"Lizzy?" She was honestly surprised he was asking about her ex, " I... Haven't really talked to her much. I mean, I probably should have but... She's better off not being associated with me. With all this anti-werewolf sentiment and her being in the public eye the way she is I wouldn't want her to lose her career the way I did, " She adored Lizzy, but she really felt it was best not to get her mixed up in her messy life. She had shit she needed to fix before she could honestly be anyone's partner. "Have you talked to Derek lately?"
"Aye, mam and da are going to be sixty year old parents yet again because they're frustrated their already existing children aren't giving them grandbabies," Jack said with a laugh and a shake of his head. In all truthfulness... he did want children one day, but it wasn't on the cards yet. Desirably, he'd be in a relationship before bearing children and bringing them into the world. Maggie's words that she just wished her being a werewolf didn't weigh on them had Jack's head snapping up, eyes searching her face only to find that she wasn't looking at him. "You're not a burden, Maggie. It weighs on us because we care. I'd be more concerned if we didn't give a flying - well, you get the point."
"No, I have it on good authority that they've used my letters for kindling more than once," Jack said with a small shrug before he drew quiet. A pack wasn't a bad idea, so long as she chose the right one. "I... have it on good authority that the Cotswolds are quite a good pack to join. Teddy Lupin is second-in-charge over there, and he's a great kid. Besides, you don't have to live with them to be apart, I don't think, you just have to have the same standpoint on werewolf rights..." The words you guys can't always take care of me hit home a second later because he wanted to. This whole ordeal with Maggie being bitten... it was partly his fault in the first place. Shouldn't he take some responsibility? Help to care for her? "I support you joining a pack, Maggie, but you shouldn't join for the wrong reasons. Mam and da are more than happy to put you up, you know that. You should only join if you feel like it would be beneficial for you."
Jack may not have been in the same shoes as Maggie, but he got it. He understood why she was so hesitant to have a relationship with someone on their way to world-renowned fame - it could jeopardise Lizzy's career, especially with all these new laws being brought in... unfortunately, Jack feared that one day the words 'Human-Werewolf Relationships Forbidden' would be splashed across the front page of the Prophet. He didn't share this fear out loud though, he didn't want to scare Maggie with maybes when things may not even reach that point. "I get it," he said quietly, before grimacing. "Last time I saw Derek was... shit, a few months back now. He got up me about the winter ball attack, pretty much said I should have been paying more attention to my students... Alicia yelled at him for it, actually." With everything that had unfolded during that night, Jack had felt bad enough. What Derek had said... it had weighed on his shoulders, made him feel even guiltier.
6'0". IRISH. BIG HEART. LOYAL. BRAVE. WORKAHOLIC. BISEXUAL. SINGLE. distinguishing features: a big scar runs across jack's left cheek credit for award goes to ollie! <3