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!
I will tiptoe down that line but I will feel unstable
Winter was upon them and with winter came cold weather and endless complaints about said weather. The halls soon would be decorated with the frost and holliday cheer for this season. One of the people who wouldn't complain about this weather was Edmund. There was no reason for him to complain about something so obvious as the cold weather when he could simply fix his problems with warmer clothes and hot air spells.
Truth be told for a place like this where academics were above all else, Edmund found himself surrounded by chimps more than intellectuals. Surely there were a few of them here and there but none his age and none of them worthy of his time. Vivi would tell him to loosen up and have fun but that was not what this school was meant for.
Edmund was seated comfortably in a chair in the common room at the late hour of past midnight. He had found out that it was the perfect time for his brain to be able to function without the muttering children of his classes yelling at him like he was one of them. He knew his twin brother was used to that kind of behavior but Edmund surely wasn't.
Edmund ran a hand through his white wavy locks and wrote down some notes as his ears caught the noise of footsteps. When one is used to noises of the water, the silence of people sleeping and the pen hitting the paper footsteps was what threw Edmund off guard. He wrapped up some of his work and just frowned as his head slowly turned to look into the direction the footsteps came from.
Edmund wasn't scared of people, no on the contrary, he uses his charm to make sure they left him alone without hurting their feelings. He had a smile that could in his opinion dazzle many others and by using it get his own way in many things. This person though wasn't a girl, this person surely wasn't someone his age and he just let out a small sigh before turning away.
From a distance he saw the footsteps belonged to Medraut, he was an older student Edmund kind of looked up to because he was so strong and calculated. Edmund wanted to be like that when he was older so he did often went to Medraut for professional opinions and advice like a friend.
"Good evening Medraut." the boy said with one of his convincing charming smiles he used so often to get him in and out of trouble.
His father frequently boasted about the apprentices he took in the prodigal son’s absence. Without someone to bother or pester, the patriarch would have made a rapid habit of taking on student after student, each one walking away with a mixture of redeemed skills and refined prejudice. He envied those who got to work with the man who buried his mother, who set up dominos and let them fall at his leisure - but, to the same degree, he couldn’t find it within himself to argue against the practice. Family businesses needed to stay operational; Temporary occupations as designers or craftsman was the Snyder tradition in the winter seasons, extra money serving as excellent fuel for their hearth. Not to buy wood, but to act as the wood. That was the beauty of being wealthy, as far as Medraut understood it: Whereas others had to waste their time chopping wood or working longer hours, they only needed an extra hand or two in order to make up for what they’d lost in the latter three quarters, should that amount have been anything truly notable.
He didn’t like to think too much about it.
Jealousy did not fit a price.
And, thereby, it wouldn’t have fit a snake either.
Of course, one of those was a lie.
The common room had become something of a regular spot for Medraut to linger in between advances and tugged heartstrings, enigmatic eyes searching for the next victim. Twisting snakes around his finger was far harder than one might have imagined, knowing that Slytherins had a knack for cunning and coy mannerisms, but it was a pastime nonetheless; He would’ve adored the thought to go forward with a pit of vipers behind him, arms spread wide, prepared to be shoved back into his own realm by the vicious claws of a cowardly lion. He was making a cushion for himself out of his own house, in other - and simpler - words.
No one could really blame him.
If they did, he’d have to blame them too.
Entering the common room with a bit of a pep in his stem, Medraut would set his eyes on the most recent Slytherin to catch his fancy. Younger, and likely dumber, but someone to take notice of anyhow. An apprentice of his own, in one way or another! Ah, he was excited. He’d approach with a serpentine smirk, on his features, eyes alight with the mischief they could cause today. What could they do? Who could they fuck up? Both were questions that he sought to answer in one way or another. He'd give Edmund credit where credit was due - as it so often was where the younger Slytherin was concerned - in the fact that his smile was getting more serpentine with each passing day. He'd have to teach him how to add a bit more charm to the movements, if only out of perfectionism moving forward... But that was a matter for another day.
“Evenin', Edmund! How're you doing? Anyone getting on your nerves lately?”
Edmund's mind was wrapped up into many questions, many and many questions. The blonde boy was quite unsure what a boy like Medraut would want from him, a simple second year with twice the brain capacity compared to everyone else in this school. Oh yes Edmund firmly believed he was way more intelligent compared to everyone else and nothing, nothing could convince him otherwise.
Edmund watched Medraut's movements like he was a cat. His eyes barely blinking because he didn't trust anyone within a close distance from himself. He was reminded of his big sister who had always been covered in paint. One day one of those spots are still wet and when she'd hug him or touch him with the wet paint.. he shivered by the mere thought of it.
"I am doing well thank you. I have been working on my paper." he said and held up his notebook as if the answer wasn't obvious enough for Medraut to figure out. Edmund couldn't blame him, Medraut was smart but not like himself. His brain lacked the capacity Edmund's had but he had his charms and skills in his own special way.
"Everyone annoys me as you might be well aware of." he reminded Medraut but still had his charming smile on his features. "How about you? You have returned rather late? Did you get caught out there?"
