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 DEREK VAN LEEUWEN on Jul 1, 2019 21:10:57 GMT
“See you in the courtroom, mate,” Derek grinned at the criminal that was being taken away by his colleges. His polymorph potion slowly wore off and the tall auror returned to his original state. Honestly he hated infiltration jobs but unfortunately he was damn good at them. Mostly because he knew just how criminals operate and how they started trusting someone. Not that he took any pride in that, especially considering where he gained that knowledge. At least he could do good with it now.
Watching his colleagues leave, he sat down to finish the drink. It’d be a damn waste to leave it there. The perk of undercover jobs was getting to drink while working. Until Felicity would start her third year, Derek didn’t have to be careful about being drunk in Hogsmaede. Once he finished the drink, he stood up to pay and leave when an awfully familiar face entered. Had he been sober, Derek would’ve politely greeted the man and left. However…
“Wait a minute, I’ve changed my mind. Get me another round and one for that fine bloke over there,” he grinned at the bartender before turning to the person that’d just entered. “Jack, blimey who would’ve thought you’d ever leave that mucky office of yours. Do consider me Gobsmacked,” he teased his ex and playfully hit the poor lad on his shoulder. “Why don’t we celebrate it.”
Scratching his fingers over the stubble on his chin, Jack made his way into the Hog's Head Inn, desperate for a drink to wind down after a long day of classes full of rowdy students. Today had been particularly challenging, and staying in his office, surrounded by reminders of his work hadn't sounded particularly relaxing. So out and about in Hogsmeade it was.
Surveying the bar, Jack mentally noted that it looked awfully different now it'd changed hands, however... that wasn't the only thing that caught his attention. No, it was his ex of eight years, grinning at him as bright as the sun and suggesting they 'celebrate' him leaving the office. "Coming onto me so quick, Derek? I'd say you should be ashamed but you've always been shameless," Jack quipped, an playful smile twitching at his lips. "How's things? How's work? Been getting my letters every few days, I assume."
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 DEREK VAN LEEUWEN on Jul 13, 2019 17:29:30 GMT
When the bartender handed him the drinks, Derek smiled and paid for them both. Then he pushed one of the two crystal glasses filled with brown liquor towards his old familiar. “What can I say? I know you’re a busy man, so I figured I’d go straight to the point,” he winked at Jack, raising his glass as a toast. “I chose to keep the shame for the morning after. If you know what I mean, old friend.” Derek was way drunk after his mission that involved heavy drinking. He’d definitely wouldn’t have said such things had he been sober.
The auror pulled the Professor a chair to sit on. “Life is good. Life would be better if the Ministry didn’t start ordering us to kill any werewolf we come across with during the full moon. You’d be surprised how many aurors chicken out and leave the dirty work for yours truly,” he said with a sour look on his face. Obviously he wasn’t happy with how things were currently. Derek started this job to become a better person, to be the hero for once. Yet it felt like he was doing bad things all over again as of lately. “I do, I adore your little love letters, makes me feel like a popular boy at school,” he grinned, teasing the teacher. Then his face turned a little more serious. And asked in genuine curiosity: “But honestly, Jack. What do you expect me to do with them?” His deep brown eyes looked at the other man, letting his drink stand on the table for this round.
Post by JACK O'CONNOR on Jul 21, 2019 10:37:34 GMT
Derek, always the gentleman, ordered and handed the bartender a few galleons before Jack could even dig the wallet out of his back pocket. "Ah, yes. Maybe as busy as you. I can't exactly recall the auror life being the quietest of careers," Jack said, clinking his drink against Derek's glass. Then he raised it to his lips, taking a swig and carefully considering Derek's words of keeping the shame for the morning after. "Is it really that shameful? The morning after? All I see during a 'morning after' is two adults who enjoyed each other's company the night before... maybe drank a bit too much as well, but there's certainly nothing shameful about..." Jack waved his hand between them, quite sure that Derek would pick up on what he was alluding to.
Then Derek shared something with him that made Jack uncomfortable to his very core, that the ministry were ordering him to kill werewolves during the full moon. He knew that they were playing a part in the werewolves showing up dead the morning after the full moon... but hearing that someone he once considered to be his better half was partly responsible for that... it didn't settle right with him. "That's dreadful... Derek, you..." He took a moment, shaking his head and inhaling, nostrils flaring. "Not every werewolf has a safe place to go, nor access to wolfsbane - I mean, you know how expensive it is. They're people in the morning, when they wake up. It's - fuck, I just wish this wasn't the world we live in at the moment."
Jack took the seat Derek pulled him, cracking a small smile at his joking. "Then maybe I should tell you my love letters go to Mr. Potter, Mr. Linwood and Mr. Desford too. Got all these boys on a string, I tell ya," Jack joked right back. When Derek's face grew serious and he asked what Jack's expectations were, he dragged his hands over his face, before pushing back his hair. "I... Merlin, I... if I'm silent, my voice doesn't get heard.. and I speak for so many people, Derek. It's not that I expect the auror division to turn around legislation, you guys don't have the authorisation - and trust me, Wizengamot's received lots of letters, same as Magical Beings - but... this whole situation isn't right, and I refuse to watch mostly innocent people be persecuted. I just don't know how else to fight this, I really don't, but I'm gonna have to come up with another way soon."
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 DEREK VAN LEEUWEN on Jul 25, 2019 21:13:14 GMT
“Touché. Though I always liked to think I could balance my work life and social life decently.” Or at least better than you could. But he might have been too focused on the times Jack wasn’t home that he forgot to pay attention to his own. After all being an auror while having to hide a criminal past had it’s struggles.
Oh how devilish. People always said Jack was the angel and Derek was the devil between them. The auror would very much argue that was only on first glance, or how the outside world saw them. Not that he complained, he liked seeing the little spicy side of the cinnamon. The auror smirked, a soft chuckle behind his lips. “Lievert, don’t tell me you won’t feel slightly embarrassed when you wake up and realise you’ve fallen in love with me again,” he teased the man with a wink. Playing it dirty to scare him off.
Maybe he shouldn’t have told about the werewolves. Verdomme. Jack’s expression turned and with just that the auror felt the room temperature drop. “Hey I hope you don’t think I go in there without research. I’m an auror not a bounty hunter. Like hell I’d down someone innocent,” he felt like defending himself because he noticed anger in the other man. Of course with what happened to his sister it was understandable. “Trust me I don’t like this either. But it’s a downwards spiral with both sides doing each other wrong over and over. Things need to change but what can I do? I’m just a dumb auror following orders,” he scoffed at his own words.
When they were students being an auror was considered a respectful job. At least half of the kids in his class wanted to be one growing up. Well he was one now, it wasn’t as great as he thought it’d be. Finishing his drink to swallow the bitter pill he ordered a new one. This topic definitely needed more alcohol. Clicking the empty glass on the wooden bar, he sighed before rubbing his forehead. “Every night… Every night I tell myself I could save a Dorothy if I do what I’m told.” That was how he managed to sleep; by saving more lives than taking them. Dered didn’t blame Jack or anyone for condemning him. He just asked them to understand him, not forgive him. Truth to be told he didn’t care if the fucker was a man or wolf. If they harmed innocents like Dor and Feli, he would gladly end said fucker.
Finally the mood lightened up a little. Derek gasped and held his hand at his heart, faking a shocked expression. “You dirty cheater, how could you do this? I thought we had something special.” The act was quickly interrupted by a burst of laughter. Then the light mood disappeared as quickly as it came. The now very drunk man could barely keep track of it all. His brown eyes locked on Jack’s when his hand met the man’s shoulder. “Listen, Jack. You cannot carry the entire world on your shoulders. I know you only mean well and have your heart in the right place but this shit… It’s not all your responsibility. If you keep going on like this, you’ll go mad.”
It had been years since their relationship ended, and Jack could admit his faults. He'd worked too long, too hard, over the course of their relationship. He'd neglected Derek at times and focused on work instead. It had been one of the driving causes of their break up, but... it was just Jack. He wasn't content to just sit there, and not work his way up. He'd always been ambitious, eager to succeed, and his hard work had pay off. He was now Deputy Headmaster, one step closer to become the Headmaster when McGonagall retired. But Derek was wrong about one thing - it wasn't just his fault they'd broken up. Derek had been busy too. What auror wasn't? Instead of replying, picking a fight, Jack simply hummed in response to Derek's words.
Lievert. It was a familiar name, one Derek had called him over and over again when they were together, and Jack moved closer to Derek, reaching his hand up to trail down the side of his arm. "When was the last time you saw me embarrassed, darlin'?" Jack said with a twitch of his lips, before dropping his arm to his side. His eyes swept over Derek, breathing him in. He was so incredibly fit these days, definitely more muscular than he was a few years ago. "The days of me falling in love with someone after taking them to bed are long gone... about a decade gone, in fact."
"Good. Because if I ever find out you've hunt down someone innocent, Derek, Merlin help you and the ministry. There are kids out there, ex-students of mine, and if you or anybody else touches a single hair on their head..." Jack's voice was steadily growing louder, not to the point where he was yelling, but loud enough to be firm and to be heard. He had the fact these students couldn't come back to Hogwarts on his conscience, he couldn't have their deaths either. Then Derek's next words had Jack's eyes snapping to him. "When have I ever said that you're stupid, Derek? I wouldn't, and if you're calling yourself dumb, then you're wrong. I just think there's some aurors out there who are just following orders, who don't bother to think and question before they act."
Raising his fingers to his temples, Jack rubbed circles because this whole conversation was getting to him especially as Derek explained he might save a Dorothy if he did what he was told. "I was very sad to hear about Dorothy and her husband," he said quietly, shaking his head. "They had a little one too, right? Whatever happened to her?"
Derek's dramatics had Jack huffing out a laugh, shaking his head. "Guess my faithfulness has waned over the years, hmm? Romancing all the men and the women at the Ministry of Magic, one by one. Next thing you know, every single one of them will be carrying my child," Jack joked, before the conversation turned serious once more. The presence of Derek's heavy hand on his shoulder had Jack's eyes fluttering close for a split second, relaxing into the touch. "I... can't just sit here though, be passive, wait for something to change. Shit doesn't change if you wait for it to. You have to go out and actively try to change what you're unhappy with. I have to make a difference. This... all of this is affecting too many people I care for."
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 DEREK VAN LEEUWEN on Aug 18, 2019 10:34:55 GMT
Trigger warning: there is one graphic description about a werewolf’s victim in the text.
Where had they gone wrong? Sometimes Derek wondered why he couldn’t just have accepted they were both busy workaholic adults and treasure the few moments they did get to spend together. Perhaps he had been selfish wanting to see Jack more and not allowing him to grow. Perhaps the timing had just been wrong. When they were together Derek was making the transition from mafia mob to auror. It was a terrifying moment in life where everything was uncertain and he needed constant validation. Not just on the matter if he was a good person or not. Having Jack come home, telling him that he was loved had helped him make those final steps to the right path. Had he become too much dependent on the other man back then? Now there wouldn’t be a problem, Derek was quite confident in who he was and what he did. For the most time. So in a way the break up had helped him complete who he was. He was satisfied with where he stood in life currently.
Then why did it feel so good to have his ex touch him like that? Alright perhaps he was just horny and would like to spend the night with someone he knew wouldn’t try to murder him in his sleep. How many times had he picked up men and women who were working for the enemy to catch him off guard? The auror life wasn’t much different from the criminal life. You couldn’t trust anyone except a handful of people.
Derek grinned brightly at the question. He brought his hand up and traced his fingers over Jack’s cheeks. “I clearly remember spotting a pair of red cheeks when you introduced me to your mother. I had never seen something so pure and adorable in my life, heel schattig” he teased the other man. Jack’s family was amazing, he really missed the homey feeling of house O’Connor. His eyes turned soft and gentle. “How are your old folks doing? And Maggie, is she holding up considering the current world we live in?” Derek hoped they were doing well. Perhaps he missed his ex in laws just as much as he missed Jack. He drank to the other man’s next words. Raising his drink before downing it and ordering a new one, a Manhattan cocktail. Bitter whiskey with a hint of cherry, just how he liked them. “Perhaps we’ve finally matured from giddy teenagers to bitter old men,” he joked because he pretty much felt the same. Sex had become nothing more but a lustful night of releasing all boundries before going back to work. Love was gone.
The auror had a bitter taste in his mouth and it was not from his drink. Sometimes he wondered if he really had made the transition to good or was just doing the same shit job but just for different people. “As long as they don’t go out slaughtering children when they go moon crazy, they’re safe,” he told Jack while avoiding his eyes at all cost. The mauled bodies some werewolves left behind still haunted his dreams. A young mother with her throat torn open, her dead cold eyes still emitting fear and sorry. Deep bite marks in her legs and limbs. Dried tears mixed with blood on her separated head’s cheeks. Her arms clinging on to a baby corpse which was just as mutilated as her own. Anyone who was capable of that lost the term innocent kids in his eyes. They treated people with psychiatric ailments the same. Those were still sent to jail even if they sometimes couldn’t control what they were doing.
Derek looked up to Jack and swallowed deep. He had been there before the reunion with Jack. It took a lot of training to make him numb to his own actions but it was needed. Then when he left that life behind and he got in touch with his morals again was when life started to become heavy yet meaningful. “I want to do good. But these days it’s hard to tell what is right and wrong,” he sighed, wishing the bartender would hurry with that next drink.
“That means a lot. Fuck, man sometimes I still feel like she might show up on my doorstep any day,” he mumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Ah the little one is safe and sound. Needed some therapy to progress everything but she is a happy little pirate-princess now.” The only think Derek could do for Dor was take care of Feli and make her the happiest girl in the world.
“You skank,” he gasped and held his hand on his chest. He had a hard time keeping a straight face while acting the dramatics. But he had to keep himself from bursting into laughter just a little while longer. “Please do me one favor: don’t tell me who you shagged because I couldn’t look them in the eyes normally anymore,” he begged because honestly that would be weird as heck.
“What do you want to do? Overthrow the minister and restore all laws back to what they were? Because that is one shit job nobody wants to take on. Not even a noble white knight like yourself,” Derek shook his head. Derek didn’t really have anyone he cared for except Felicity. The damage had already been done. Undoing these laws wouldn’t bring her parents back.
Post by JACK O'CONNOR on Aug 19, 2019 10:18:25 GMT
Derek's fingers ghosted over the stubbly skin of Jack's cheeks and for a moment, Jack's eyes fluttered close, leaning into the touch. It felt safe, familiar, like he'd been teleported back in time before chaos reigned down upon on the wizarding world, before loved ones of Jack were being hurt at every opportunity, before Jack felt like things were completely out of his control. But when his eyes opened and Derek's words rushed over him, he was brought back to reality. "First time I ever brought a boy home to my mam and da," Jack said fondly at the memory. He'd definitely been blushing up a storm with the way his mum had fussed over Derek, asking if her 26 year old 'boy' was treating him right. When Derek asked how they were doing however, a sadder smile floated across Jack's lips. "I think... they're stressed. We all are. We can't... we want to try and get Maggie some wolfsbane, it's just so expensive. Even between the three of us... not that mam and da make much with the farm, but... Maggie says it's okay, that she doesn't expect us to, but you can see just by looking at her that she's not doing well."
The suggestion of them transforming into bitter old men had Jack huffing out a laugh, lifting his own drink to his lips. "I wouldn't say bitter but definitely old. I think I need glasses and every time I kneel down, my knees crack something horrid," he mock-confessed, winking.
"They don't have control over themselves during the full moon, Derek. You know that," Jack said quietly. Yes, it was gruesome. He remembered... unfortunately all too well, what somebody looked like after a werewolf attack. Not just his sister, she'd come out relatively unscathed except for a few scratches and the big bite in her leg, but he was the one who'd heard the screams and went running the night the werewolf had attacked Hogwarts. He was the one who'd found terrified Teresa Nottingham and Christophe Beaumont five seconds away from being eaten, and the remains of the other students that were just too gruesome to recount. "Wolfsbane needs to become more affordable. Then those who want to control themselves can, and the others can get locked up in Azkaban. The ones who knowingly attack people, even as humans, they're the monsters. They shouldn't be allowed to roam the streets." The words 'it's hard to tell what is right and wrong' resonated with Jack because, believe it or not, he did understand. This whole situation, it wasn't black or white. It was grey.
The sign of Derek pinching his nose was all too familiar to Jack and he reached out, placing a gentle hand on the man's arm. "It doesn't sound like a lot, but I'm sure if she was alive... she'd be relieved to know that such a good man is taking care of her daughter, Derek. I know she would be," Jack said, voice full of confidence. He was glad to hear that the girl Derek had taken under his wing was doing well now. It would have been a terrible thing to try and process, even being so young. Knowing your parents were murdered by werewolves... it would have been a hard pill to swallow, growing up. "What's her name again? I can't remember. Another perk of my old age, I suppose."
When Jack was accused of being a skank, he simply shrugged with a grin on his face, something which only widened as Derek started laughing. "No, I was planning on giving you a list of names as well as an itemised list of things I did with each of them," Jack said innocently. Truth be told, had he slept with a Ministry member? Not... for a very long time, at least not knowingly. "If you sleep with any of my professors, however, I definitely don't want to know."
Become Minister of Magic? No... no, he did not want to become that. "I like being a professor too much and I have no desire to run a country, but I want to make a change somehow. Make the laws less restrictive, come up with a compromise. The way we're going with the Ministry and the werewolves right now... we can't keep it up. Pretending like they don't exist, marginalising them to the point where they're dying... it's not a solution."
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 DEREK VAN LEEUWEN on Aug 28, 2019 12:42:26 GMT
Had he been sober, Derek wouldn’t be so touchy with his ex. Under influence, he could enjoy the moment without putting too much thought into it. Jack was just another handsome man leaning into his touch, their past didn’t matter right now. His thumb gently ghosted over the ginger man’s lips. “Fuck I feel like stealing a little kiss,” he whispered and bit down his lip.
Derek laughed joyfully at the memory. “I’ll carry that knowledge with honor,” he grinned in a teasing manner. That night had been a precious one to him. Jack’s family was amazing, he was grateful he was a part of it for a while. It saddened him to know they were in a lot of stress. Derek took a deep breath and pinched Jack’s upper arm. “If there is anything I can do to help… The auror job is no treasure box but still… Even if there is no more you and I, your family was like my own. I still heckin’ love the shit out of them. Maggie is an amazing woman, I really want to help her get through it,” he told the man in all seriousness.
“Hmm yeah, you are starting to show some grey hairs too, schat,” he teased the man with a grin before cracking his neck. “Damn, man. I know what you mean. These days the healers take forever to patch up my arse. My body isn’t what it used to be even with all the work I put into it.” Somethings couldn’t be solved with weightlifting.
“Neither can people who have a psychotic attack, we still capture them too.” The auror job wasn’t as much as a healer job as they were told at Hogwarts. Law wasn’t always justice. His expression said more than words could tell. Derek was not happy and questioning his life work. But if he quit perhaps a crueler person would take his place. Besides he had played the bad guy role before. Perhaps he should go back into it. “I fully agree but there is more demand than there is supply. When that happens the price goes up. That’s simple economics. Now some argue that it is a difficult potion that not everyone can brew. If you ask me that is bull. They try to squeeze as much money as possible out of desperate people,” he growled in frustration. Derek couldn’t stand people who wagered lives for the sake of money. This was no problem he could solve, he barely passed a high enough grade to get be accepted into auror training.
A grateful smile returned to his face when Jack spoke those words. “Thanks, I really appreciate it,” Derek said, bumping his head against the other man’s shoulders. “It’d be blushing right now if I could,” he joked. “I often call her the Pirate Princess Fey,” he grinned. She was amazing perhaps without the little troublemaker, Derek would’ve forsaken this world.
“You evil man,” he narrowed his eyes and grinned. He doubted the man would do that. Jack wasn’t as much of a saint as people thought but he wasn’t a dick. “Oh, honey you’ll get the same treatment. I’ll definitely have you know,” he nudged the other man with a sly smirk.
Derek didn’t blame him for choosing his job over becoming minister. “Well, it’s the fastest way to a solution. But I understand it’s a shit future for yourself. May I ask what you plan to do instead? Because I really have no clue what I can do myself and am desperate for options.”
Stealing a little kiss had Jack tempted, but then the smell of alcohol brushed his face and along with the good memories from a moment ago, came the bad as well. The misery and pain they'd faced towards the end of the relationship, the way they'd been fighting every night, the way almost every conversation had started devolving into shouting matches. Kissing Derek was something he wanted to do but logic kicked in first. "Maybe when you're sober, Derek. Don't want you to regret it in the morning," he said quietly, breaking the eye contact and gently moving the other man's fingers away from his lips.
Jack's smile grew tight as Derek offered to help and he appreciated the gesture, he did, it just made him feel so... useless. He should be able to help his sister, he was a large reason why she'd been attacked. "I want to make her... not better, but I want to help her. But losing her job when she was one of the best healers St. Mungos had to offer, it was hard. She was upset, very upset, because she had her livelihood ripped away from her. All because she was attacked by... and it's my fault, Derek. Mostly my fault. I should have gotten to her quicker, or walked her all the way to her door. If I acted differently, she'd still be a human and be able to do what she loves."
Luckily the mood was lightened a moment later as Derek pointed out his grey hairs and he nudged the man's shoulder. "You should see your wrinkles then, old man," Jack teased but truth be told, there weren't that many on Derek's face. He'd aged well, looking a few years younger than he actually was. Jack laughed at Derek's complaining about his refractory period when it came to injuries. "I'm sure the healers are sick of seeing your arse by now."
Derek made a good point, but still... "You don't put down somebody on sight for a psychotic attack. You do if they're a werewolf," Jack murmured, shaking his head. Jack's eyebrows raised as Derek started talking about economics of all things and he wanted to ask him when he'd started working for Gringotts but then the man was growling over it. "I... it's pathetic, if you ask me. Absolutely... people's lives shouldn't be meddled with like that for the sake of galleons. People should be able to access wolfsbane so they can transform with a semblance of dignity."
"The Pirate Princess Fey, hmm? She sounds like a pretty brave kid to me being a pirate and all," Jack said. Most kids thought they were brave but somebody who'd survived something so tragic at such a young age? Definitely a brave soul if you asked him. Perhaps she'd been sorted into Gryffindor and was one of his younger students... before Jack could travel further down that line of thought, Derek was distracting him once more.
"Yes, the face of pure evil is an old, redheaded Irish bloke. You caught me," Jack said with a chuckle, before shaking his head. Derek would give him a list in return. He had no shame and that was something Jack had loved the most when they were together. He'd been a little more out there than Jackm and definitely a lot more cheeky and play. "I'd burn the list on sight, not to worry."
Minister was a fast way to solution in theory but he knew that majority of the Ministry of Magic employees leaned towards being anti-werewolves. That's how so much of the legislation got through in the first place, and simply being Minister wouldn't change their minds. "I doubt I'd get voted in anyway, Derek. I can't say I've got many friends at the Ministry, and I'm not charismatic enough to win over the public. I'd much rather be Headmaster one day," Jack said, although that was no secret. "At the moment... I don't have a plan. I need one, but... in a way, I'm hoping that by talking to the students, a lot of whom will be future Ministry workers themselves, I can convince them to choose their own stance on werewolves instead of believing everything that's shoved at them by the Prophet daily. I'm hoping by talking to current Ministry workers, I can hope to appeal to them and... at least convince a few to change their beliefs, or think them through. Maybe one day I'll be able to get through to Minister Avery too, but... I need to start small and build my way up because I can't even get a meeting with him, or even send a piece of mail. It all keeps getting returned."
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 DEREK VAN LEEUWEN on Sept 15, 2019 20:11:02 GMT
Derek sighed when Jack decided to cut the tension away. Maybe usually was a no in his books. “Jack, will you be eating home tonight?” “Maybe, if work allows it.” But work rarely allowed it. Being a Professor meant he had to dine with the residents at the school. A teacher still had tasks to do after classes were due. It was more than a nine hour job sometimes it was a twenty-four hour job. Derek learned that through experience. The auror patted the defense teacher on his chest. “Always so practical and thoughtful,” he said with a wry grin. “You’ve never been one to gamble.” Jack was no coward but he wasn’t a reckless fool like Derek either.
“Well you didn’t, Jack. That is life. Sometimes shitty things happen to good people. You are just a human. You cannot save everyone and it’s not your responsibility to do so. Try not to blame yourself too much. Maggie has nothing to gain from your quest for self blame,” he spoke from experience. Derek had a few bad years in the pocket. He found his justice by bleeding for the innocents now. “Not all hope is lost. She is still alive and has a future before her. This might sound harsh but; have you considered moving to another country with her? Only for the time being. One where there aren’t such ridiculous laws right now? There are but a few but they do exist.” Of course, moving to another country and leaving your family behind wasn’t easy. But sometimes one had to take a risk in the hope of a better life.
Sometimes he wished he could say he turned out more handsome than the guys who bullied him at school. However most of them were dead or in Azkaban currently. Life was a strange thing. “Liar. Black don’t crack. We stay young until we hit our late sixties and then poof, granny time,” he chuckled and nudged the ginger man with his elbow. Honestly Jack looked very well for his age despite the grey hairs here and there. Children did that to you, he supposed. “Well I’m sick of seeing their sour faces each time I’m brought in. They used to let Maggie take care of me regardless of the injuries. Alas they have to deal with me themselves now. I do miss the coffee and good company she brought,” he shared the memories of good old times with a sad smile on his face. Time had changed their world for the worse. The only thing that got better in time was Jack’s facial hair.
You don't put down somebody on sight for a psychotic attack. You do if they're a werewolf. Derek was glad he wasn’t drinking anything at this point or he might have choked right there. Instead he turned his face away from the other man. The darkness he’d been fighting for years returned to his eyes. Memories of horror and regret filled his head. The auror took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Jack didn’t know about his dark past. Him keeping it hidden at all costs was one of the reasons their relationship didn’t work out. Derek feared having it revealed. Jack would surely hate him if he knew. This red haired soldier of justice was too good for the punisher sitting next to him. Now they at least were somewhat friends. Jack would definitely turn his back if the dark truth spilled out. “I might if I’d save innocent lives with it,” he whispered. Because even now he considered himself to fight on the right side, he still was a soldier. Jack’s words currently were only fueling his darkness. Perhaps humans were rotten beyond repair. Their greed would consume them one day. People suffer because a handful of people live in luxury. “Ridiculous. Human lives are worth nothing more than a few galleons,” he grumbled in anger, he knew because he has been the one picking up jobs on the darker side of society in the past. Curse them all.
Darkness took place for sunshine when Felicity was the topic of discussion. Strange how easily his set of mind could be altered. “She is the best. Couldn’t imagine a world without her,” he smiled proudly. Yes, focus on the good. This world wasn’t lost yet.
“Evil is never what you think it looks like. They say satan was the most beautiful angel,” he winked. Despite the rejection he found it hard to resist. When he was drunk he liked to flirt, alright? “I’ll make sure it’ll be a howler then,” he finger gunned. Check.
Derek listened to Jack’s view on the entire matter. “Of course you can’t get a meeting with the Minister. He has people who listen to normal citizens’ complaints. I’m sure you went to those already. But I can tell you this; the Minister is blinded by revenge and sorrow. You cannot possibly change his mind. What we need to do is change the mind of the people who vote. So maybe we can fix this in the future.”
Post by JACK O'CONNOR on Sept 26, 2019 9:47:54 GMT
Guilt nestled his way into Jack's heart as Derek sighed because all these years later... he still felt bad letting his ex down. He always had, and he always would, but what he felt was important took priority. Just like it had when they were together. "I like to consider all my options, Derek. You know that. When logic goes out the window... all hell breaks lose," Jack said, returning Derek's wry smile with one of his own. When he was younger, he was more of a risk taker that was for sure. Even now, with his constant letters to the Ministry, he took risks. But they were calculated, and not wholly dependent on luck. He generally wasn't an idiot.
You cannot save everyone. It was a bitter pill to swallow, as were the rest of the words Derek said. "I want to... Merlin, I just feel so... it's not easy, not blaming yourself. Ma and da, when it happened... well, you know what they had thought at the time," Jack said quietly, the memory still vivid in his mind. He remembered clearly the way his mum had screamed like a banshee about her 'baby girl' and how 'it's your fault, Jack, you're her big brother', her balled up fists colliding with his chest over and over again. The way his dad hadn't said a word at all. That evening, after returning from St. Mungos and to the apartment he and Derek shared, Jack had crawled into bed and sobbed wordlessly into Derek's chest, hot tears staining the other man's shirt. He had 'fucked everything up' and 'almost gotten Maggie killed' and 'sentenced her to a life of rejection.' That night had been the start of everything going wrong for them, for their relationship, because afterwards Jack had thrown himself into work and finding solutions and spending almost all his spare time at St. Mungos with Maggie. But in the process, he'd forgotten the most important man in his life, Derek.
Torn from past bad memories replaying in his mind, Jack focused on Derek's next question and paused. "I... I've offered to try and fund her moving with ma and da, and for myself to move as well. I'd have to give up everything and I'm willing to but... she's not open to the idea. She doesn't want us to give up our lives for her. There's the farm and my job, I'm on the way to becoming Headmaster one day, and she's said that seeing us lose the things we love... that would be even worse than how it is now," Jack explained quietly, shaking his head. They'd spoken about this, extensively, and it just wasn't on the cards right now. Maybe one day he could wear her down into agreeing with the idea but she was too firmly against it at the moment.
Jack started laughing because yeah, alright. Derek had an excellent point. "Promise to not wear a paper bag when you're sixty-something? I need to see an old version of you," he teased, before sobering up. Maggie really was the best healer St. Mungos had to offer and he wasn't just saying that as a proud older brother. She'd aced her trainee program, finished with flying colours in fact, and that's why having her dream ripped away from her after being bitten made things even more tragic.
I might if I'd save innocent lives with it. Instead of responding to Derek's quiet whisper, Jack didn't say anything at all which, in it's own way, spoke volumes about how much he disagreed with the whole thing. He didn't need to articulate what he was thinking because Derek likely already knew.
"You're shameless, you know that?" Jack said, huffing out a laugh at the flirtatious line that Derek decided to try on him. It was so... cheesy, and yet Jack still want to... but no. He wasn't going down that path, not tonight. "Not the worst howler I'll receive in my life, I'm sure."
"I know that Maggie mentioned there's a rally coming up, for werewolves and werewolf supporters to protest the way they're currently being treated. I'm hoping that it will open some of the anti-werewolf people's eyes but I'm not holding my breath either... something big needs to happen, to make the general public see reason." He didn't know what that something 'big' was, but it would be their best chance.
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
