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!
Richard was sitting on an old wooden bench by the front door of the Linwood farm, a plaid shawl haphazardly thrown on his shoulders as an additional layer over the dark woolen sweater he was already wearing, glove clad hands fiddling with his ivory pipe as he filled it with tobacco. Astrid had led him down the road of a rather bad habit -- smoking, though most often something that didn't make him as high as a kite. It wasn't healthy, but at this point in his life he couldn't be arsed to care. What was lung cancer when you've got scars all over and one of your hands isn't really even a hand?
He stuck the pipe between his teeth and leaned against the outer wall, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Ah, Falklands. The one place he'd spent most of his life running from now was the only place he would call home. Yes, every corner contained some terrible memory that made his mother's voice echo through his mind... But every stone was like an old friend, too.
It smelled like sheep and other cattle, the sea birds shut their beaks and stayed quiet once in a blue moon, and the islands were the wind's personal sprinting track, but it was the closest thing to a safe space he'd had in years. And today was the first proper day off from work that he'd had... Not in years, but in a few months at least. Sitting in Hogsmeade wasn't very busy, per say, but it was mind numbing. Here he could enjoy the nature in peace, smoke his pipe like a chimney...
Or, he would be able to, if his brother didn't have three daughters, each of them hellbent on turning their quiet world upside down in their own way. Isobel had brought her chap along with her, the same one whose face had been covered with blood at the Winter Ball, and by the looks on Sarah and Andrew's faces, it hadn't went well. Eveline, the youngest was a bundle of energy as almost every other kid her age. And Mia-Rose was in the age when children became the most annoying, in Richard's opinion.
And by the barking and chattering of a dog and a person, he could tell that it was the one he wanted to deal with the least.
maybe it is all a test/'cause i feel like i'm the worst, so i always act like i'm the best
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Post by MIA-ROSE LINWOOD on Feb 16, 2020 16:23:40 GMT
"Come on! Let's go, Piper!" Mia-Rose opened the farmhouse door, letting the border collie out into the yard, a blur of excited black and white. Shutting the door behind her, she adjusted her hat and pulled on her mittens, guarding herself against the biting wind outside. It might have been the summer break from Hogwarts, but down by the southern end of South America, it was freezing winter on the farm. But that was nothing she wasn't used to, and she was happy to take the dog out for a walk around the island when it seemed like she was restless enough to start knocking over furniture inside.
She wasn't alone on the porch, though, and that was what stopped her from running down the stairs after Piper right away. "Morning, Uncle Richard," she said, trying to keep her voice light. She still hadn't forgotten the letters they'd exchanged over the last year, the ones that were supposed to let them get to know each other but actually seemed proved that he was just like everyone else. And she wanted to believe he was different. That he, the only Slytherin in her family except for herself and Isobel, could actually understand her, could maybe even help her, since he was the one who'd gone off adventuring for over a decade.
But no. He still looked at her and saw a little girl who was incompetent at everything, and the thought made indignation curl up inside her. She would show him--if she could just figure out how to do it.
"How are things going in Hogsmeade right now? Anything interesting happen?" Small talk didn't come easily to her, but she didn't need to make him suspicious of her motivations.
The door creaked, the door barked and tumbled down the porch, so excited to be let outside that its back legs seemed to go right up to its ears, and Richard wondered if the pooch even had all four of them on the ground at any moment. He smiled at the dog, amused by the lack of intelligence on its face. To think a creature as silly as this was also capable of herding sheep and following every order down to a T.
Following the dog was exactly who Richard had expected - Mia-Rose Linwood, the middle of the three sisters, and, of-bloody-course, she tried to start a conversation with the older man. He only grunted in response to her greeting, not bothering to take his pipe out of his mouth or even sparing her a glance.
But she didn't limit herself to a simple greeting, instead inquiring about Hogsmeade, no doubt trying to elicit some scandalous information that she could forward to all her buddies so they'd have something to wag their tongues about back at school.
"Boring, just how I like it," he grumbled. Only half of that was true -- yes, it had been a terribly boring few months without much happening, beside some rumored werewolf sighting in the last week, but Richard didn't like it. He downright hated having to spend all day sitting in the Three Broomsticks and having to do routine patrols. Even after all that had happened to him, the man still had a hunger for adventure, and the position of an Auror wasn't able to give him that satisfaction.
maybe it is all a test/'cause i feel like i'm the worst, so i always act like i'm the best
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Post by MIA-ROSE LINWOOD on Feb 18, 2020 5:08:35 GMT
"You like boring?" Mia-Rose's raised eyebrows showed she didn't believe it for a second. There were plenty of people who did like boring in the world, but she'd heard things about Richard. You didn't disappear off to travel the world for years and years without some sort of adventure. If he turned out to be one of those people who just wanted to settle down, she felt like she would be sorely disappointed. "I don't know. If it's so boring in Hogsmeade, they'd probably let us go back for visits." She crossed her arms, leaning against the doorframe and staring out over the meadow. For all that she rather liked school, she wasn't keen on all of their rules. At least they hadn't put up a fence in front of the Forbidden Forest yet.
Piper bounded back up to the porch, wet nose poking Mia-Rose's leg as if asking why she'd promised a walk and then not walked anywhere. Scratching the dog's head, she shifted against the doorframe, thinking of the best way to lead the conversation toward what she wanted. This really wasn't what she was good at--that was all sneaking and observing, things that didn't force her to have to come up with words on the spot.
But she would never let anyone think she wasn't as clever as any other Slytherin. "There's got to be something you see walking around there. Not even your average common criminal?"
