Brand new day (Windsors)

[Deleted]

Will had gotten some rather surprising, and rather dark news. The two men who had allegedly killed his father were dumped on Scotland yard's porch two nights ago covered in cuts and bruises caused by an unknown source. Will didn't exactly mind the fact that they got what was coming to them. But the scary part, was that the information on who had killed their father had only been in the hands of him and his mother while the investigation was still going on. He hadn't done this, and he was sure his mother wouldn't order anyone to do so either, so who had attacked these two men? It was possible that they had made a lot of enemies, and someone else not related to him or his father at all decided to take matters into their own hands over some other dispute. That's what he wanted to believe, but a small part of them knew that wasn't true. A small part of him knew this was for his father.

He was planning to head to Hogwarts anyway, to invite Lucy, Susan and Edmund to the prime minister's ball, taking place on New Year's Eve night that year. He would bring special letters from home, to get them permission to come back with him that night if he picked them up at the school. They would be allowed to bring someone along with them, and Will was helping to get notes from their parents to. Either way, he had a lot of things to talk about. So, he wrote them ahead of time, and asked them to meet him in the Great Hall this Monday afternoon at 2 p.m. He waited there now. Looking up at the door constantly hoping to see his little sisters or his little brother's face coming toward him.

@edmund
@luciana
@susanvictoria
(Takes place on Nov. 25th)

[Deleted]

Susan had received Will’s note along with their talk about Isla and Casey; she knew what her brother wanted to talk about and she was very excited. Though Casey had very far to go to in the dancing department, simply his company would be enough for Susan. Will would obviously save a dance for her anyway; they had trained as dance partners since before their father had even died, so it would be a nice way to honor him.

She dressed simply today; a pair of jeans and a cream colored turtleneck with camel colored boots. She came down the staircase and into Great Hall. Immediately, she spotted Will and beamed. “Hey Will!” she exclaimed, kissing her brother on the cheek as she sat next to him. She searched his face, and frowned. “Something wrong?” she asked him, cocking her head to one side. Was someone hurt or seriously ill? Would the ball get cancelled?

@edmund
@luciana
@william

[Deleted]

Edmund got the note from Will. Months ago, he would have burned it without even reading it, but things seemed to be changing for the two brothers. In a good way. Ed couldn't help but hope that they would continue to get better, and he knew that he had to help with that. So he read the letter. It was probably a good thing, too, since Will wanted to meet with all of them.

He made his way to the Great Hall, right on time as normal. Edmund wasn't really one to show up early, but it was a rare occasion when he was late for something. Ever. He smiled when he saw Susan and Will sitting together and walked up confidently. "Hey Will," he said with a nod when he got close. "Sus." Really, Edmund probably could have hugged them or something, but he wasn't really to that point with them. Especially with Will. So he kept his distance a little bit and smiled at the two of them, not bothering to take a seat yet. He didn't ask any questions because Lucy wasn't there yet and he was sure nothing was going to start without her.

@luciana
@william
@susanvictoria

[Deleted]

Brand new day (windsors)

Lucy has been wondering about the letter from her brother ever since she received it. She know that the prime minister ball would be on the new years Eve and she knew for a fact that all if the Windsor siblings knew of it. She did ask Edmund about it and he too did not seem to know the real reason. But then again she might be used thinking the while thing. May be Peter was coming just to inform about the ball, and give their permission slips. She sighed and decided that she would have to find out by asking him rather than bothering herself. She was a little excited to see her elder brother, it was almost two months since she last saw him and was looking forward to the meeting.

Lucy as excited she was to meet her brother, she lost herself in a book. It was only when she saw that it was 2 already did she realise that she was getting late. She hurriedly made her way to the Great Hall and once again thanked that the Hufflepuff common room happened to be only a floor below the hall. She was panting a little due to the short run she made and reached the hall. She saw that all of her siblings were already present and with a cheery wave she spoke up "sorry I was caught up in a book." She relaxed herself and then reaching out she hugged Peter and with a huge smile on her face she said "I missed you Pete"and releasing him from his hug, she continued " so what's the matter?"

@william @susanvictoria @edmund

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

Susan was the first to arrive and Will stood to kiss her cheek after she kissed his. She asked if something was wrong and he gave a short nod. "It's... interesting," he answered. Then Edmund came and Will smile softly at him, sitting down upon his arrival. Ed didn't sit yet, but Will expected that. Lucy was there quickly after and Will was out of his seat again, wondering why he even say down. he embraced his baby sister and kissed the top of her head, keeping an arm around her for a moment before she pulled away. "Please, sit down," he said, looking to both Edmund and Lucy before sitting beside Susan across the table. "Well, there is good news and... strange news. First, the Prime Ministers Ball is on New Years Eve," he started, pulling the notes out of his bags to give to each of his siblings. "These are to excuse you from Christmas Break to come. Mum would love it if you were all there. And, if they can get a note too, you're welcome to bring someone with you," he mostly looked to Susan at this. "I would love it if you guys came, too," he muttered

"I'll be inviting Isla. My girlfriend," he added.

Then he pulled a file out of his bag and slid it across the table, "this is something mom and i have been working on. Trying to track down the assassins who killed dad," he said, his tone almost businesslike. "These two men were dropped off at Scotland Yard two nights ago, completely... well, they weren't dead but they were pretty darn close," he explained.

@susanvictoria
@edmund
@luciana

[Deleted]

Susan looked questioningly at Will but before she could say anything her other two siblings arrived. She watched as they greeted Will and sat down with them, waiting for what the eldest Windsor had to say. She was incredibly pleased that what he had said in their letters was true - the New Years Ball would be happening again this year! She was so excited; she already had a dress picked out and now Casey could see her in it. He was well on his way to being healed from his bout of dragon pox; he'd definitely be better by then. "Casey is coming to Hogsmeade next weekend, I'll ask him then," she said happily then smirked. "So we finally get to meet Isla eh?" she asked slyly.

Then Will got to the second reason he was there. Susan was glad she was already fair skinned because any blood in her face drained immediately. It had been just a few weeks ago that Susan had confided in Andromeda that her brother and mother had been given the names of the suspects in their fathers murdered. This was strangely coincidental; but there was no way she could have been involved. Was there? "How....what.....do they know who did it?" she whispered finally. She wasn't going to tell him she had taken the files, not in front of the younger siblings at least.

@william
@edmund
@luciana

[Deleted]

At Will's request, Edmund took a seat on the edge of the bench. He knew he shouldn't be prepared for flight, but it was habit and a hard one fro him to break, at that. He had to keep himself from groaning when Will brought up the New Years Ball. He hated that thing. This was no news to anyone in his family, but he'd really been hoping that it would not happen this year and that if it did, he wouldn't have to go. Apparently he'd lost a battle on two fronts. The thing was, he knew that he'd like the ball a whole lot more if Addi would come with him, but he was nervous that his family would make a big deal out of him bringing her. He cared for her and he didn't want his family's intensity to drive her away. That and the fact that he didn't know how to tell them he was dating someone, his best friend to be more specific. It was all sorts of complicated. And Edmund was not a fan of complicated things. However, he smiled when Susan brought up Casey. "Wait, Casey Finnigan?" he asked, a wide smile growing on his face. He knew Casey. They were good friends, though he was sure that no one in his family would have suspected that. And Will would be bringing Isla. Edmund was interested in meeting her, mostly because of what Will said over the summer.

Edmund felt his stomach plummet when Will mentioned the second reason he came, pulling out a file and laying it on the table in front of them. Almost without thinking, Edmund took the file, pulled it to him and opened it, looking at a picture. They'd been working on this and they hadn't told him? How had this been kept a secret from him? He felt the old anger, the bitterness creep up and he fought to keep it down. They were telling him now ... after the assailants were already caught. Not that Edmund would have tried to catch them on his own, but it was just so typical to keep things like this from him. After a few seconds of looking through the file, Edmund closed it and pushed it to the middle of the table, his locked jaw and the anger in his eyes the only indication of his inner anger. Anger that he was trying desperately to control. Not just anger at the secrets, but anger at the fact that just when he felt like he was moving past his father's death, more had to be brought up on the subject. Of course.

@luciana
@william
@susanvictoria

[Deleted]

brand new day (windsors)

Lucy gave a smile towards Peter and settled down on a bench. As he began to speak, she felt a little excited as she could guess the first part. But that was not what Luciana was worried of, the part where Peter mentioned strange news was what disturbed her. She was already having a bad feeling and his words are not at all helping her. She gave a smile as Peter confirmed about the ball and said "ooh that would be lovely." She took the note and tucked it inside her robes and spoke up "wait, what do you mean by Christmas break? Can't I stay here for the yule ball and then come home? Please" though she was not sure why she wanted to stay back Lucy wanted to be there for the yule ball. At his comment about bringing someone, she rolled her eyes and said "I would be bringing my pet kitten for sure. And I would dance with her like an old cat lady" and scrunched up her face before chuckling a little.

Lucy however perked up when both her sister and brother mentioned two names. She looked at Peter and said "it would be lovely to meet her. I have been waiting for a chance, how is she doing now?" And whipping her head to face her sister, she said "Susan!!! you did not mention this to me." She began to speak "who is.. " but stopped mid sentence when she heard Edmund clarify for her who Casey was "uhh never mind. It seems that I am missing a lot." She looked at Edmund and asked in a small voice "please don't tell me you are seeing some one too and I do not know of it."

Lucy straightened up when Peter was all business like. She listened to him speak and shook her head, that was new for her. She did not know about this and out of the corner of her eyes, she observed that Edmund was about to become angry and spoke to Peter "why did we not know about this?" She waited for Peter's answer before speaking once again " But then again that is not the main point, have you discussed this with anyone?" She wanted to know who targeted her father, but it was looking as though some one was trying to prevent them from knowing. Lucy was more of a calm girl but her father's death was something she still can't get her head around and was a delicate matter for her.

@william @susanvictoria @edmund

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

Susan mentioned how she'd invite Casey with her, and Will grinned. Especially at Ed and Lu's reactions about him. At Susans question, Will nodded, "yes, you'll finally get to meet her. Just go easy on her, she's never been to a ball before," he explained. Then Lucy spoke about wanting to stay for the Yule Ball and Will nodded, glad she asked. "The notes just excuse you for New Years Eve night. So you'll be able to stay for the ball, don't worry darling," he said with a grin. "Plus, that means you ladies can where two different dresses in one week. Won't that be fun?" he glanced back at Susan and gave her a wink. His sisters loved dressing up, that was sure. "The kitten... I'm unsure if that's the best dance partner but since I'm taken," he chuckled too.

Then he spoke about the assassins and all of his siblings seem to break for the moment. Susan asked if they know who did it, Lucy asked why they didn't know about the investigation, which were two questions Will was expecting so he stayed upright and calm. "We don't know who it was. We don't even know for sure if these were the men, we were just investigating them. We were going to bring you guys into it once we were more sure but now... well, it looks like someone decided to take matters into their own hands." He felt like Susan, the way she asked that question... did she have an idea? His eyes found Ed, who hadn't spoken yet. "We were going to tell you when mum felt the time was right."

@luciana
@susanvictoria
@edmund

[Deleted]

Susan smiled at Wills’ dress comment; he did know her well. He probably didn’t actually know that Susan had picked out both a dress for the Yule Ball AND one for the New Years Ball, even though he was confirming it just now. “I promise not to go too hard on her if you promise me that you’ll remind her that if she needs any help picking out a dress to send me an owl,” she told Will, wagging a finger at him. She had offered to Will her wisdom and guidance for Isla and yet there had been no word from the girl. From what Will said, she’d probably need a little help.

Susan could feel Will staring at her as he explained what had happened. Should she tell him? No, she wouldn’t tell him she’d shown the file to Andromeda. No need to arise suspicion on something that probably did not actually happen. She felt guilty though, and that she should probably tell him about stealing the file. Not in front of her siblings though; she’d pull him back after their meeting to talk to him. “What’s going to happen to these men? The ones that were beaten,” she asked finally.

@william
@edmund
@luciana

[Deleted]

Edmund wasn't really surprised by the conversation now. Talk about the Ball. Hooray. Not really; he was beyond done with this idea. He didn't want to go, even though he was absolutely certain that he wouldn't have a choice. When it came to things like this, he never did. He rolled his eyes when Lucy asked if he was hiding a relationship too. "Well if I was, I wouldn't want to tell you now, would I?" he teased with a wink, before adding, "No Luce, you're in the loop as much as everyone is, I promise." That wasn't necessarily a lie, since he hadn't told anyone about his relationship, but he still felt a little guilty. Not that his guilt showed at all. Edmund was a master at hiding his emotions, especially from his family.

This was just rich. They were planning on telling them when they knew more? Edmund didn't believe that for a second. Things that were created as secrets tended to stay that way. He would know. Edmund was a great at keeping secrets. Not that Edmund was planning on saying a word. No one at this table wanted to hear anything Edmund had to say about this and even if they did, he wouldn't tell them. They were just lucky he wasn't already gone because all he wanted to do right now was stand up and storm out of the hall. But ... he was trying to better his relationships with his siblings and he didn't want to ruin all that effort. So he sat there, not looking at anyone, not reacting at all, though that on its own was a very tell-tale reaction. Still, how could they do this to him?! Didn't he have a right to know that they were looking into his father's murder? Didn't he deserve to know what they found out as they discovered it, to participate if he felt the need? No, of course not. He was just a child still, always would be in Will and his mother's eyes, no matter if he was of age or not. It was the most infuriating- no, he couldn't think about this right now. He'd have to find Addi later. Maybe she could help him sort through his emotions because he really couldn't handle them right now. At the moment his only goal was to not cause a scene, which is what would surely happen if he stormed out.

@luciana
@william
@susanvictoria

[Deleted]

brand new day (windsors)

Lucy gave a smile as Peter confirmed about Isla, and at his request she rolled her eyes a little and spoke "oh please Peter, do we look like someone who is going to trouble her. And I assure you, she will have a great time if I have anything to do with it." Lucy was known as the caring and sweet girl for nothing and she wanted to make sure that Isla feels welcomed and would not run away at the mere sight of Peter's siblings or family. For all Lucy could guess, she seems to be someone who is going to stay with Peter. She had a grin when Peter confirmed about having to attend two balls which implied that she gets to have two dresses and she needed to hit the Hogsmeade as early as possible to get another dress. She gave a nod and said "it will be absolute fun." At his comment about the kitten, she gave a dramatic sigh and said "look at you! you are not even offering to dance with me. Now I am really intrigued to meet the one who took my place" and winked at him. She really liked her brother but at the same time she loved to tease him. Susan dodged the question and Lucy thought of asking her on a later date. Edmund on the other hand reassured her that she was in the loop and for that she gave a wide smile in his direction and said "thanks Ed".

As the topic went into the more serious ones, Lucy remained passive her face held a little worry as she listened to Peter speak. She shook her head a little and spoke up "do we know why those two were targeted? It is not a mere coincidence that these two showed up while you were investigating the assassins." She could understand that their mother wanted to keep these things hush hush, but she needed to know that they were all not kids anymore. She could see that Peter was trying to reassure them, and sighed "you don't need to reassure us.We all know how mum can get, and even after all this time she still sees us kids." She knew from Ed's silence that he was not pleased with this and hoped that he did not cause a scene in front of everyone. They can deal with anything while indoors, but the great hall was not a place.

@william @susanvictoria @edmund
I am really sorry for the late reply

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Deleted]

Will nodded at Susan, "I promise," he said. He didn't question Ed on this... girl situation. He grinned at Lucy, "I'm sure she'll love you and you'll make her feel welcome. Thanks for the reassurance," then he laughed, "of course, I'll dance with you!" he promised his youngest sister, his baby.

Of course Edmund didn't respond. Will wasn't surprised by that. He always overreacted, always. He probably didn't even believe Will. Will took his eyes off him, unable to bear the silence. He could only hope that Ed would find someone to talk to about this. He just needed to accept that it wouldn't be him. Susan asked what would happen to the men and Wills eyes found her. "I'm not sure, actually. The investigation is still going but now they're trying to figure out who did this... but they won't. For someone with a trained eye there were clear signs of magic," he explained.

Then he turned to Lucy. "I'm sure they're mixed up in all kinds of stuff, Luc. It could be anything, but the magic... that points to us," he frowned. Lucy spoke about how they knew how their mum was, how she treated them like children and Will nodded. "It's true, and with all the darkness in the magical world she's just scared. We can't blame her for that," he said, trying very VERY hard to not look at Edmund on that. "She didn't even want me to come tell you but... I did. And I'll explain to her later that it was the right thing to do. You guys can handle this," he added. Sure, he was scared, but they were smart, brave, kind and clever. The perfect team. He couldn't work through this without them.

@luciana
@susanvictoria
@edmund

[Deleted]

Susan found her hands balling into fists. So, because these men were attacked, possibly having nothing to do with their connection to their fathers’ death, their trials would be delayed. “That is unfair,” she found herself saying angrily. “Because they were beat up, probably due to starting a fight or something, they get a delay in trial? They’re still standing accused of MURDER! They weren’t killed, they probably insulted the wrong witch or wizard or something, which honestly wouldn’t surprise me. They need to pay for what they did,” she declared, her voice staying shakily level but her cheeks flaming pink. She took a deep breath, then forced a smile. “Thank you for telling us Will. I just remembered I’ve told Andy that I would help her study for our upcoming Transfiguration exam tomorrow morning,” she said, thinking of the first thing that came to mind. She moved forward and kissed her brother swiftly on the cheek before bidding them farewell. She was off to find Andy, but not to study for Transfiguration; Andy knew about Susan’s knowledge of the accused murderers of her father, and Susan needed an outsiders’ perspective on this one.

SUSAN OUT
@edmund
@luciana
@william

[Deleted]

Edmund wasn't expecting it when Will looked over at him for a bit after saying his piece. Though his emotions were tucked away neatly, Ed couldn't help but wonder what Will saw, or even what he expected to see. After growing up together and seeing all the fights they got into for situations much less emotionally straining than this one, he was probably waiting for Ed to explode. A fact that amused Edmund to no end once he actually thought of it. Still, he didn't show that either. If he started showing what he was feeling, he might not be able to stop and who knew if his mood would swing to anger after Will answered the questions their sisters were asking. He was still frustrated beyond belief by the situation and the lack of trust that Will and their mother had for the younger three siblings, but yelling at Will wasn't going to change that. So he stared impassively at the scene in front of him, waiting for something to happen that required some sort of a response from him, though he didn't anticipate his brother to give him anything to respond to.

Then Will started defending their mother and the decisions she'd made. Sure, Ed could understand what Will was saying, but there was absolutely no way that he agreed with it. Also, he had a feeling that much of it was directed at him, or at least said for his benefit. He rolled his eyes ever so slightly, sure that no one would notice because no one was looking at him. Why should they? He was behaving like a statue at the moment, asking for no attention. Will said that he came to tell them despite their mother's wishes and that he would explain his actions to her later, but one thing he said struck a chord in Ed and he couldn't let it go. "You guys can handle this." 

Fighting the frustration that was continually building up inside of him throughout the conversation, Ed looked down at the table in front of him. He took a deep breath before speaking in a low voice, "What makes you believe that now?" It was a loaded question and Will would surely see that, but Ed couldn't help but ask it. Only a few short months ago Will didn't believe they could handle themselves at the school as it was being attacked. Weeks ago, he obviously didn't think they could handle knowledge about their father's murderers. So why was he now choosing to trust them? Before Edmund could make a decision about how he felt about the whole situation, he needed to know what changed. Then he could give in to his anger and leave or give Will a chance to explain a little more. If that would help.

Susan spoke and Edmund found himself fighting a smile, mostly because of his stubborn determination to show no emotion during this conversation. She was saying lots of the things he was thinking and more. Pointing out things he hadn't thought of yet but surely would later. And she was right. Those men deserved to be punished, especially if they did kill his father. He tried to catch Susan's eye, but before he could, she was standing up and thanking Will for the information before saying she needed to leave. He watched her go before turning his attention back to his brother. Edmund was seriously close to the same point, where he would walk out, but he decided to give Will a moment to explain himself before doing so, but he wasn't going to tell him that. He waited , gazing expectantly at his older brother.

@william
@luciana
@susanvictoria (just in case you still want to see)
(ooc: haha Ed be so ticked right now ...)