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[Joseph Arthur Wilkins]

Joe headed up the steps of the owlery, feeling he really should write a letter to his parents. It was bad enough that he was going to be stuck in the castle over the christmas holidays, depriving the family farm of his valuable labour, but he also was being deprived of close kin at the time of the year when such bonds were more significant than ever. Christmas was a time to be with the people you loved, and whilst he counted a number of people in this place his friends he was not quite that close to any of them. That had been the most distressing part of this whole sorry business, and as such he felt a strong desire to at least stay in contact with his family even if he could not be with them in person.

As such, he had written a letter, a simple letter perhaps but one in which he had conveyed his feelings of love and good wishes to all at Wilkins Farm, especially his parents, and hoped that the letter found everyone well and that the place was continuing to thrive in his absence. He hoped that they were all well and that nobody at the farm had fallen victim to the sickness, but he also longed for any news from home.

He was getting ready to select one of the school owls who might be willing to send his letter, when he stopped for a moment. Was this right? Were people meant to sent letters home under these conditions. He would consider it particularly cruel if this too had been banned, only he had heard no advice to this effect either for or against. If only there was someone he could ask before he decided to forward his letter. At that moment though, he felt sure he heard the sound of approaching footsteps.

[Daniella Cruz]

After securing Cecile's letter home, Genevieve started to the Owlery. Cecile was in a state of panic, Genevieve less so. Certainly she was worried about their family, but panicking wouldn't help anyone. She fully intended to take advantage of this free morning off, which meant she wasn't going to waste it. Perhaps she would go down and say a few Rosaries or something, but worrying wasn't going to help.

She started up the steps on the familiar journey. She had written home quite a bit last year and she had also spent a lot of time up in the tower. When the weather was decent it was one of her favorite places in the castle, hardly anyone ever went up there and you could see the entire grounds of Hogwarts. It was worth the walk, not that she would ever say so aloud.

When she pushed open the door to the Owlery she wasn't surprised to see someone else in there. If anything she was surprised Joe was the only person. She would have expected more people in here writing home. "Hello," she said crossing the Owlery to where her sister's owl, Thea was perched. Thea flapped down and landed on her arm. Genevieve tied the letters to her leg with a piece of red ribbon and turned to look at Joe. She didn't know him particularly well, but he was one of her classmates. "You writing home too?" she asked. He looked like some kind of combination between worried and annoyed, not surprising all things considered. She was a little put out that she was going to be stuck at the castle, but she understood why. Complaining wouldn't make them change their minds and as much as she wanted to be home for Christmas and to see Pierre and her parents, there wasn't anything she could do, except try to enjoy the holiday regardless. Christmas was her favorite time of the year, Vieve was determined that smallpox wasn't going to ruin it for her.

[Joseph Arthur Wilkins]

As the other person entered the owlery, Joe saw that it was someone he had met in class a few times but wasn't all that familiar with, he saw her calling down one of the owls and as the bird perched on her arm it seemed clear that the animal was comfortable with her, perhaps her own owl or her sister's he suspected. Even thought Cecile was in his own house, he hadn't really gotten to know her either and he he knew even less about their pets.

"Hello Genevieve" he replied to her greeting, then went on to respond to her question "yes, just asking for any news." That was part of it certainly, news of how they were getting along was particularly important but there was more to it than that. He was desperately missing them, he had never been away from his family over Christmas before and he was longing to hear from them. He knew he couldn't see them in person with this quarantine in place but to get a message from them at least, to hear that they were thinking about him during these dark times would at least be... something.

Of course there weren't just his parents back home, there were others, many people who worked on Wilkins Farm, so many faces, so much interaction, so much opportunity for some disaster to find its way onto their land. "It is not just mother and father" he pointed out "there are others, hands that work on the farm, or customers who come to trade with us, so much coming and going... people, goods, diseases." He shuddered as that last word left his mouth, the thought alone was just too frightening to contemplate.

Perhaps the one saving grace was the fact that it was still the middle of winter, the farm was a much quieter during the cold season than it was during harvest time or lambing season. If outside contact could be kept to a minimum then perhaps that would be enough to keep the smallpox away. 'Perhaps' offered little reassurance though, he needed confirmation, he needed the people back home to assure him that they were alright and that the disease had not reached their farm, he needed a response to the letter he was still holding in his hand.

He wondered how Genevieve was coping though, was she just as worried about the situation as he was? She didn't seem it, she looked to be quite calm, even composed or was that just a front that she was presenting to the world? "How are you getting on?" he inquired.

He glanced at the owl that was perched on her arm, but he didn't make a move towards it. The owl was her own, if she wanted to help him deliver his letter that was her own choice, he wouldn't press the issue since there were a number of school owls he could use for that purpose if need be. Still, the sooner he posted that letter, the sooner he would know it was on its way back home even if that was a journey that he, himself would be afforded.

[Daniella Cruz]

((Eeep I am so, so sorry this took so long. I kept saying there was somewhere I needed to post and forgetting where.))

She nodded solemnly. If anything, Vieve was surprised that Joe was the only person up here asking for news. She had gotten herself up here quickly enough. Maybe other people weren't as concerned with their families. She didn't know. Nor did she care. She would be uneasy until this blew over, as slowly as news traveled a letter could very well arrive saying all was well when some calamaity had struck at home. She was being a little bit pessimistic, but it was hard not to be. She wished she was home for this. Not knowing would drive her mad. She would rather be in the danger herself than have to wonder about what was happening.

Genevieve nodded. "Mother, Father, siblings, and other family for me." Their cook and groom, Marie and Tobias, might as well be family and Vieve worried about them too. "But you're right, things go in and out." Her father was around the whole city in a day for business, he could bump into someone with smallpox easily. Genevieve started chewing on her lip anxiously as she tied the letter onto Thea's leg. "Where is your family? City or country?" Maybe her father would take the family out to the country house, that had to be better than  crowded, dirty London.

"As well as can be expected," she admitted. Outwardly she was calm, but inwardly she was quite the opposite. It just wasn't her nature to panic. Regardless despite her resolutions not to worry about what she couldn't change she couldn't help the gnawing anxiety that was growing. Being surrounded by panic stricken students didn't help either. She didn't go along with the crowd,  but this was a legitment worry and everyone else's anxiety was making her paranoid. "And you?"

[Joseph Arthur Wilkins]

[[Don't worry about it, I am sure we have all been guilty of the same at one time or another))

From What Joe could see, Genevieve was in the same position as himself; trapped at the school, cut off from family and loved ones. He could guess that most students were the same way, but what she was saying clearly confirmed it. As she mentioned siblings though, he decided to inquire a little further. "So, aside from Cecile have you got many brothers and sisters?" he asked. Even though her sister was in his own house, he still did not know all that much about the Bloch family.

He was a little surprised that she had asked where he lived, since he had just mentioned the farm a moment ago. Perhaps she hadn't noticed. "My father owns a farm in the Surrey countryside" he explained "and he employs a number of people to help work the fields and other essential tasks. It is a big job managing several acres of land."[/b] Yes, there were a number of people who worked the farm, and if only one of them became infected that could easily spread this smallpox to everyone else. He sincerely hoped that they could all remain untouched by it all, but until he got word from them he could by no means confirm this. "How about your own family" he replied, feeling it perfectly reasonable that he should ask her the same question.

He felt her answer to the next question pretty much summed up his own feelings too. "The same" he responded "it is this uncertainty, not knowing what is going on that is so worrying. If only I can ger some reassurance from back home, I could perhaps relax a little and try to enjoy Christmas some more. That is all I want really." Yes, that was all he wanted, all he needed. To know that everyone back home was okay so he could stop worrying about them so much. That was why he had come up to the owlery in the first place, and why he was holding the letter that was still in his hand.

[Daniella Cruz]

"We have a little brother, Pierre, then Cecile has a twin and an older brother and sister," Genvieve said. "Our older brother is off with the Royal Navy though." She didn't know where any more, he had been all over in just a few months. Part of her thought it was amazing, in theory. It would annoying to have to work that hard. "What about you? Are you the only one?" There were a few only children which Genevieve found absolutely bizarre. How could you get away with only one child? Who did the child talk to? It was the strangest thing, certainly some families had less than her own, but unless a spouse died and the one who remained never remarried it was somewhat unbelievable.

Genevieve nodded. "I love the country, it's just so much nicer than the city." Although a real farm wouldn't be fun at all. Her father had begun to grow some things on the land, but Genevieve rather suspected that was more born of cheapness and the desire to make as much money as humanly possible than the desire to work. "Was it strange for you, coming from a farm to a place like this?" Odd enough coming from a manor house in a city, it must have been even worse for other people. "London," she said. "My father is a merchant, he travels quite a bit, but we usually stay in London." Ocassionaly he would take them along on trips, particularly the boys and Cecile, but Genevieve wasn't interested. Maybe in the wizarding world she could run a business, but why would she want to? She saw how much her father had to work.

"I agree," she said. "Even bad news is better than no news. If you don't know you're stuck making up all kinds of terrible stories." Or maybe she was just pessimistic with an awful imagination. It could be. "It's a pity mail takes so long," she said taking Thea to the window and letting the bird launch into the air. She watched for a moment, until she was just a gray speck in the distance. "The kids from wizard families are lucky, they have floo powder, they don't have to wait for owls." The idea of sticking her face in a fire wasn't particularly appealing, but it would be much quicker and more efficient. Besides she could just make her sister do it.

[Joseph Arthur Wilkins]

Joe listened to Genevieve talking about her family, they seemed to be a fair sized group. He counted them up on his fingers and he seemed to come to the figure of six siblings in total although he wasn't altogether certain he had counted them correctly. "Cecile's twin doesn't attend Hogwarts too?" he asked. He had figured that since he had only come across the two girls so far that perhaps this twin was non-magical but he didn't want to just come right out and say it like that.

She inquired about his own family then, so Joe mentioned his younger sister. "My sister Mary is around 10 years old now" he explained "but so far she hasn't shown any hints of magic. She is my only sister and I don't have a brother." He hoped that Mary might be able to discover magic and earn her place at the school but it seemed that time was rapidly catching up with her.

He was pleased that she had a preference for the countryside. "I can only agree with you there" he agreed. Having lived at the farm his entire life he was used to wide open spaces, and found cities to be far too overcrowded for his liking. Even the school seemed crowded and noisy at times but it hadn't taken him long to settle and studying was just another form of work. "It wasn't so bad really" he mused "when you live on a farm you very quickly learn to knuckle down. I've exchanged milking and feeding for books and classes but it is work same as always."

He nodded when he heard that her father was a merchant, his own father dealt with such people all the time of course, there were a number of merchants that came to the farm and with their wagons and left with supplies of vegetables and other products. "Does you father deal in farm produce?" he wondered, fishing for a possible business contact and London wasn't that far from Surrey, perhaps a few days on a good horse.

He had to agree with her comments about muggles and their lack of communication. Back home, living on a farm had been quite an isolated existence. News traveled very slowly through the countryside, far less than it did in the cities with so many people coming and going but even in the cities word could not move faster than a man on horseback could carry it. "I can't say I've ever tried floo powder" he mused "but I'm kind of attached to my hair and don't want to start losing it quite yet. It sounds like the perfect way to roast your own scalp." That was what his practical mind told him was likely to happen if he started sticking his head in lit fireplaces.

The mention of owls brought his mind back to the letter in his hand. He saw Genevieve sending her owl off with her message, wasn't it about time he sent his own? He called down one of the school owls and attached the letter to the foot that it offered. "There are a few barn owls in the loft back home" he pointed out "but I doubt any of them would let me do this, they are far more interested in catching mice than delivering mail. If I tried to pass one of them a litter it'd probably bite my wrist."

[Daniella Cruz]

Genevieve shook her head. "Not a drop of magic in that boy," she said. "I think he's too unimaginative and mean." Maybe it was "magic" who had powers and who didn't, but no one who couldn't see past his own nose deserved any kind of powers, magical or otherwise. Bad enough he had them in the Muggle World thanks to their father's status. That boy certainly did not need to be unleashed on the Wizarding World as well. Unfortunately magic did see fit to drop in on plenty of mean people, take the house of Slytherin for example, but at least they seemed to have an ounce of creativity between them. She was half convinced their brother didn't even believe in magic, out of bitterness or something else she didn't know.

"She still has time," Vieve reassured him. "We have a first year girl in Gryffindor whose powers didn't appear  until she was nearly eleven, her birthday was April so she cut it rather close." Genevieve wasn't sure how often that did happen, but if it had once it could again. There was no reason to give up hope too early.

Genevieve made a face. "My father was very strict about working hard," she said. "In school or whatever we chose to do, he didn't like when we did things halfway." He would probably like Joe for that. He seemed like the type who would get things done when he had to and do them well. Vieve would get it done, eventually, but the quality of the work was another story entirely. "I suppose it is," she said noncommittally. Well Hufflepuffs were slightly crazy, what with that hard work and all.

"He has, it really depends on what he thinks will do well at that point in time." Of course there was always the plantations and the ships, but he wasn't above dealing in things at home as well. If there was potential her father was there to try to capitalize on it.

"I haven't tried Floo Powder yet either," she admitted. "Something about it just isn't appealing. I suppose if you grow up with it, it's not so bad." Unfortunately Muggle borns  had to deal with culture shock and Wizarding culture was quite shocking indeed. She for one did not trust fire, magical or otherwise, not to set her head on fire. Call it a survival method.

She grinned. "Ah yes but these are magic owls!" They looked just like normal owls to her, but their sense of direction was uncanny. "I suppose they go straight there and back, but they could get lost and we would never know it," she mused. "We assume it takes so long, but maybe they just stop along the way as much as they please and have a laugh at us, waiting so eagerly for the post to come back.." She would, if some silly human tied letters to her legs and wanted her to fly all over with them.

[Joseph Arthur Wilkins]

({OOC: I will be introducing Joe's sister in the next school year, but she doesn't display any magical talents until sometime during the Summer break))

Joe wouldn't openly refer to one of his own siblings in those terms of course, but then he didn't know the boy. "So he is going to just stand on the sidelines whilst you and Cecile stun him with your magical brilliance?" he hinted, deliberately choosing to comment only only on his lack of magical ability rather than his personality, and certainly not in an unkind way.

He nodded when Vieve remarked that his sister still had time to find her magical abilities if she did indeed have any at all, but how much time? They were in the last quarter of the school year. By the autumn it would be too late for her to come to Hogwarts even if she did do something magical. Yes she has time" he sighed "but it is fast running out. I would love for Mary to join me here but with each passing day it is looking increasingly unlikely." Even though he was enjoying his time here and making a number of friends, the school did feel more than a little empty without his younger sister walking the corridors with him.

In terms of hard work, Joe ws in complete agreement with what Gevevieve said about her father. "If it is worth doing, it is worth doing well" he quoted the old adage "if you don't do it right, you'll only have to do it over" That was how things were at home, if you did a mediocre job then his parents wouldn't accept his work and make him start from scratch, often adding additional requirements or tasks into the mix in order to teach him not to mess it up again. The alternative was that someone else would be burdened with your failed attempt and have to correct your mistakes and that would be utterly unacceptable. People had their own concerns, they were not there simply as scapegoats for you to offload your own failures on to.

Her father sounded like a truly dedicated merchant, entirely concerned with making the most out of any given deal and more than happy to diversify in order to handle whatever best favours the market. That kind of dealer was often the worst kind to work with since the negotations could take hours and the price paid was often nothing like what the poor farmer would hope for, but in turn they often earned a great deal of respect from people like his father for their dedication to the job. "That sounds like a man who knows what he wants and goes for it" he approved. Joe knew that his father had a number of trusted contacts anyway who tended to pay a reasonable price so maybe he shouldn't be so quick to introduce them.

He could certainly accept that the girl also disapproved of floo powder, they appeared to be of a like mind on that particular issue. The trouble was that without floo powder  or flying what other methods of transportation were open to him?  "The rub is without this floo powder, and without flying which I really don't like am I stuck with just my horse or are there any other alternatives?" he asked. He was more than happy on horse back of course, in fact he really enjoyed riding but magical methods of travel appeared to have one major advantage; they were faster.

He grinned at her comment about magical owls, and he did wonder what they did whilst they were carrying the letters back and forth. Did they just keep their little minds focussed on the roll of parchment they held or did they forget about it as soon in favour of any mice that happened to cross their path? At least he could be fairly sure that the letter would be delivered though, and certainly fast enough. He hadn't encountered any owls that had lost their little packages on the way. "Well, whatever they do on the way, they do at least arrive with the letter so I think we can trust them" he remarked.

Edited by Joseph Arthur Wilkins, 07 June 2011 - 11:44 AM.

[Daniella Cruz]

Vieve grinned. "Yes," she said. "He pretends he doesn't believe in magic, I don't know if he really doesn't or if he's just jealous." Either way she was glad he wasn't here. He was a snot and he would drive her crazy. Genevieve nodded, she had worried about Cecile too, but she had shown some sort of talent relatively early. Vieve still hadn't been sure it would be enough, but she hadn't been in a panic about it, more worrying when she got around to it. "Don't give up yet, it is, well magical. You never know what will happen." She certainly had never attributed her oddness to magic of all things, it was unthinkable.

She sighed, a long drawn out martyered sigh. "My father tells me the same thing." Yes, he would like Joe alright, for the virtue of hard work alone. She drove her father insane with her laziness, he was always lecturing her about it. Unfortunetely Genevieve was willing to do things the wrong way and leave it wrong, unless forced otherwise. Unless it was very important, if it wasn't perfect, well the world wasn't going to end was it? No problem.

She made a face. "Exactly." Yes, it was admirable, but it made a lot of work for her. She would prefer if he only bothered the boys about working hard, but no, he had to insist they work too!

"Have you tried flying carpets? They look nicer than brooms, Cerri has one." Genevieve hadn't gotten on one  yet, but she wished she could get her hands on one. It would still be too far to fly to Hogwarts from home, but it would be a nicer ride than a on a broomstick. "I suppose so. Not as if there's a good alternate." It wasn't like messengers were waiting around Hogwarts to carry letters home.

((OOC, sorry I took so long. Should we start looking at wrapping this up since the year's almost over?))

[Joseph Arthur Wilkins]

Vieve's twin who apparently stubbornly refused to believe in magic was so very much unlike his yougner sister. Whilst she was not yet proven to be magical she was an honest girl and did at least acknowledge its existence. He wondered how long the silly boy could keep up the pretense. "Just think how he'll react" he mused "after you've come of age and the trace is lifted. You could bamboozle him with magic until his mind boggles." His own mind had boggled on any number of occasions of course, since accepted or not, magic was still new to him. At least he had been prepared for it, or as prepared as he could be. He wondered if this brother of theirs could say the same.

He nodded at that remark about her father "Wise words, you should listen to them" was all he said on the matter though. He didn't feel like adding any more to it. More could be said on the importance of work, and paying attention to what was truly important but if this girl had managed to ignore her father's advice for so long then he doubted that she was going to listen to his own. He felt it was a shame that Genevieve took the viewpoint she did, she appeared to have a reasonable mind but if she wasn't going to apply it then surely it would just be wasted.

He shook his head at the suggestion of flying carpets. "To my mind the best place for a carpet is on the ground, under your feet where it belongs" he commented "if it doesn't have wings then it doesn't live in the skies, and I really don't trust it not to fall." Joe's was an ever practical mind, everything had its proper place and he clearly believed that carpets, just liked brooms did not belong in the air.

It suddenly occured to him that the two of them had been stood up here chatting for some time now, and he definitely heard some kind of rumbling sound at that point. "Was that your stomach or mine?" he casually asked "what say we both head down to the great hall and grab something to eat?" Joe wasn't a glutton by any means, but living on a farm he was used to being well fed and meal times were of course to be strictly observed, just like now.

[Daniella Cruz]

Vieve smiled a little. "Suppose we could. Too bad it's so far away." The Trace... it kept you from using magic at home and was horribly inconvient. Yet, the professor still managed to give them homework they "didn't need their magic for". No magic, you'd think they would at least get the summer off, but no. Seventeen seemed a long way away to Vieve, she might not like working on spells, but once she knew them she liked to use them.

Of course he would say that. Hufflepuffs and their work ethics! It probably was a good thing she hadn't been Sorted there after all, they would have worked her to death. She grinned. "Well that would seem the normal place for a carpet, but with brooms that don't clean, but fly, I hardly thing that's the strangest thing here." Vieve still saw things that were strange, but everything had ceased to amaze her like it had when she had first come to Hogwarts. Oh it was still incredible, but also somewhat believable. At the very least it was acceptable and new things popped up everyday.

She grinned. "Haven't a clue, but I agree, that's an excellent idea." It was definetely meal time and even if it wasn't her stomach and there was no proof either way. "At least the food here is normal," she said heading to the door. "It doesn't get up and dance or sing." Thank goodness for small favors. Genevieve didn't think she could take that, food was meant to be eaten and to stay still while she was eating it!

[Professor Penvellyn]

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