Letter Writing [OPEN]

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

A small shape picked her way across the Hogwart's Owlery, making her way to a tawny barn owl. The owl cocked his head to the left before recognizing the shape of his owner's sister and butting against her chest when she finally neared. Gianna sunk her fingers into the owl's feathers, scratching behind the ear as though he were a dog or cat. The owl, with the ridiculous name of Squeaky, was her oldest brother Benevuto's owl. Well, it was his only in name. Gia and her parents ended up caring for the owl more than anything. When Bene was offered the opportunity to attend Hogwarts he was huffy that he couldn't bring his favorite pig as his pet and only reluctantly chose the beautiful barn owl.

The Milwood family were Muggles, through and through. And not only were the Muggles but Gia grew up on a literal farm, complete with pigs, horses, goats, you name it. This all probably made it odd that Gianna was sorted into Slyhterin. While the attitude towards muggle-borne in her house had improved, she always felt a little uncomfortable among her peers, a little bit like a sore thumb. Still, Gia was a proud snake through and through. She was ambitious, and had high goals. She was willing to go through whatever means to be great, even if she was still a little undecided on what great would mean for her. The day Bene received his owl, Gia declared then and there that she would also become a witch, and a world famous one at that. Four years later, she did. Her older brothers, Benevuto and Leo, told her from the start that she'd be a Slytherin.

Bene finished his schooling last year. Gia's not exactly sure what he's doing at the moment, but she knew he wanted to work for the Ministry. She didn't think he had anywhere near the scores to do so, but she figured he's have a good shot at the Muggle division, considering their heritage. Regardless, he's chosen his life after Hogwarts to be spent ignoring his owl. He's more or less sent Gia or Leo mail whenever his beautiful owl finds him in an attempt to not have to care for him.

It made Gia angry, to say the least. The brunette had always had a love of animals, and she loathed her brother's irresponsibility towards those who relied on him. Especially the helpless ones. He always spouted that Squeaky was "just a stupid owl", and it always made Gianna want to kick him in the shins. In the end, Gia ended up more or less caring for the owl on top of her cat Romeo.

"You're such a pretty boy," The fifteen-year-old cooed to the owl, pulling her fingers away. The slender owl let out a hot before stretching his head forward to nip at her long hair, a sign that he wanted more attention. "Shh, shh dear. You're so needy. You'll get more loving, but first I need to finish Momma's letter."

The Milwood matriarch was a proud Italian who was used to having her family around. The woman was undoubtedly lonely knowing that her three children were away at school for months out of the year. Her mother both loathed and loved magic, adoring it's uses but also afraid of it' implications. Gia tried to write her letters as often as she could so she'd know that her children still loved and thought of her. The Slytherin pulled a carefully folded piece of paper from her robe pockets, a quill and a small jar of ink. She had already drafted some of the letter, but she found that she always had more to say in the moments before letting the letter go. How unlike email it was. The old fashioned approach was strangely comforting. Smoothing her paper against the stone window, the young woman carefully wrote out more lines to her mother. It was relaxing, the cool night air blowing into the open window, the stars shining bright in the sky. Squeaky pecked at her fingers as she moved her hands, eventually striking just write that it broke the skin, causing drops of scarlet blood to drip onto the parchment.

"Aw, come on," Gia sighed in annoyance. She used her non injured hand to gently push the bird away. "Look at what you did now, eh?"

(._. Not good...)

[Deleted]

Nigel Ravenhearst walked towards the Owlery to send a mail to his parents who were still, even though persuaded against by Nigel himself, living in Switzerland. It seems his parents were now reluctant to come back to their homeland, the memories of the war still fresh in their minds. He couldn;t blame them of course, since he might as well be in the same territory as they are. He had left the ICW contingent only because he could not take the pain of seeing the suffereing that people had. He resorted to teaching, enriching the young minds so that they would not fall into the pit falls of those in the past. Some might call him a coward for leaving, but he did not mind. He knew that as he grew older, he needed to play it safe, and teaching was a safe direction for him to go into. Plus, he liked teaching. He didn't at first, but it grew on him.

Stopping by the door, he heard a voice behind that seemed to be a girl and possibly a guy. He heard the words 'needy and loving' before sighing. It could just be a girl talking to her owl, but it could also be a guy and a girl doing things they are not supposed to do. Nigel couldn't risk it and so he opened the door and scanned the room, before sighing in relief. It was just a girl, form his own house, talking to an owl.

He looked at the girl before seeing her injured hand before saying, "Miss Milwood, do you need a hand with that injury of yours?"

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

Gianna was wiping away the drops of blood on her parchment when she heard a man speak, causing her to jump. She had only just distinctly registered the sound of a door opening, but hadn't placed much importance to it. The voice, however, caused to to whip around, instinctively reaching into her robes to grab her wand. Seeing her Head of House though, she relaxed, her face turning a deep crimson that she hoped he couldn't see in the the dark night. How stupid was she? Talking to an owl like a human, with such embarrassing words? And why did she jump? What right did she have? It wasn't like there were any Death Eaters running around anymore to harm her.

 She stared down at her injured hand for a moment, before tugging on her robe sleeve and sliding it behind her back. The brunette felt oddly ashamed over the injury. "Oh no, it's fine Professor Ravenhearst," she stuttered. "The cut's not too bad. Th-thank you though"

 The barn owl had a sharp beak, and it was bleeding more than she anticipated, but Gianna didn't want to admit that. Professor Ravenhearst somehow always put her on edge, and she guessed it was only partly the small case of puppy love she had developed his first year teaching her. She'd grown out of it before the end of the school year, but she still worried that she was obvious and somehow knew.When he became Head of Slytherin House this year she was both excited to have a nice professor to offer her and her peers guidance, but also a little uncomfortable knowing all the talks that were coming, about career and school.

 The tawny owl squawked, waving his wings wildly. For whatever reason, Squeaky wasn't good around other people, especially grown men. Gianna wasn't sure if he was afraid of a conflict, or intimidated by another male presence.

 "Shhh, shhh. It's okay."

[Deleted]

Nigel Ravenhearst smiled kindly at the girl before watching her owl try and peck him. It seems the owl was either deprived of love that he saw him as a rival for the girl, or the owl was just very protective of the girl. Either way, he didn't mind, nor care.

Watching the girl try to calm the owl down, Nigel saw that the girl's wound start to bleed more profusely than before. She had tried to hide it, but it was not successful since the blood started to drip below fingers. Nigel knew the consequences of not having the wound cleaned and wrapped immediately. It was something that he had learned whie in the ICW contingent, and he would be damned if one of his students would suffer.

Nigel took his wand out and said, "Miss Milwood, I would advise that you have that wound sealed up by me at once. Madame Eshae would have me castrated if she knew that I left a student hurt and untreated."

He joked that last part but he knew it was not far from the truth. Eshae took the care of the students seriously, and she would be very very amgry if she knew that Nigel left a girl injured just because the girl was too ashamed to admit she was hurt.

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

When Nigel drew the wand the owl abandoned his perch, flying into the night. Gianna hissed in annoyance that the bird's reaction, shaking her head. She knew the owl would be back after a few hours, whenever he flew off his anxiety, but she also didn't want to wait that long in the cold or climb the long stairs later in the night. There was nothing she could do now though, so she drew her attention back to her Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

 Slowly, she offered out her hand. "Alright. I'm sorry," she mumbled, her face pinking again. She hated the thought of getting the professor in trouble with Madame Eshae. She'd heard more than enough stories about the Hogwart's Nurse's dedication to her students and keeping them out of harm's way to know that Professor's Ravenheart's words weren't too far out there. Why, Bene stole a broom his first year, fell off of it breaking a leg and an arm. from the stories, she had laid into him viciously, once she knew he's be alright. "I'm afraid I'm not good at healing spells."

 That was a bit of a lie. Gianna just never bothered to learn any of them; she could never convince herself that she had a reason to learn them. She always considered herself to be a warrior, charging headfirst into battle.  Healers stood back, protected themselves by purposefully disengaging so they'd be ready for the wounded brave to come back. While the Slytherin was never exactly positive on what she was battling she always knew that she'd rather be active than not. Quickly she tried to recall if they had even been taught, if they were she was bound to have performed them once for an examination or two. Her mind came blank.

[Deleted]

Nigel saw the young girl think of the spell she needed to use. Truthfully, he knew that she didn't know. The spells was more of a supplementary one that most professors tend to not teach, and yet, the practical aspect of the spell was indeed very important. Looking at the girl, he knew that he was wasting time waiting for her so he pointed the spell towards her injury and said, "Episkey"

The wound started to seal up, and within seconds, there was not even a scar in place. Nigel smiled at this before looking towards the girl and saying, "Better be careful next time, Miss Milwood, owls can be very dangerous."

With the the professors started to whistle. A black owl swooped down from its perch before snuggling onto the professors' cheek. Nigel only ruffled the guy's feathers before saying, "Take this to father and mother, Mercury. They will be wanting to respond so you can stay there for a few to rest."

He tied the note into the owl's feet before letting it fly out towards the night sky. He knew the dangers of the journey and hoped that his owl would stay safe.

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

Mouthing the words of the spell, Gianna watched the wound heal itself. She tried to commit it to memory, although truthfully she'd probably forget it within the next few weeks. It was useful though, so she made a note to try to write it down. "Thank you," the brunette said, drawing her hand to her face to examine. No scar, her skin was as smooth and even colored as it ever was. She was still in awe of magic and it's usefulness, even as she's been aware of it now for almost half her life. How useful these skills were. If only she had access to these spells when she fell into the chicken wire at age six. Her back would be a lot prettier.

"I'll keep that in mind. I've been around animals all my life, though. Squeaky's bad when he wants attention though," I said, tugging on a lock of my hair. "He's my brother's owl. I would never give an animal that stupid of a name."

Silently, she watched the professor attach a note to a black owl and send her off. The fifth year didn't have much of a relationship with her professor, but she knew that she'd need to meet with him for career path discussions at some point. She'd rather get the awkwardness out of the way now, build up some useful repertoire before these mandatory meetings so they wouldn't waste time. Time at these things were a commodity, and she wanted to get the most out of it she could.

 "Who're you writing to?" she asked, a little curious. She crept a few paces closer, being sure to ignore the pellets that the many owls had thrown up. How often was this area cleaned? By whom? Obviously it had to be, or it would become a horrible mess and a health hazard. She would have hated to have that job. "I mean, if you don't mind me asking." She worried that she was being rude; her mother had always drilled into her head a mantra of  "manners, manners, manners".

[Deleted]

Nigel saw the girl approach him and asked him questions about the letter he sent with Mercury. In truth, he didn't mind sharing since it was no secret that he was a foreign student that graduated here sometime ago. In fact, some of the girls back when he was still in school used to hang onto him just because he was technically foriegn. Nigel shook his head before slowly turning towards the girl and replying, "To my parents. They seem to always worry about me so I send them weekly letters of myself."

Smiling at the girl, he continued, "I'm sure your parents are the same as well. In fact, most parents are like that, worrywarts! But, they are out parents and we must obey."

He gazed towards the sky and reminisced. how much time had he spent arguing with his parents that he should have just kept his mouth shut. His parents were the most important people in his life and if only he could redo the past, maybe he could have been a better son.

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

Gianna nodded, Professor Ravenheart's words falling in line with what one of her friends had told her when they both had their crushes on the then new teacher. He was technically a foreigner. She couldn't fathom living and working on a different country, leaving her family behind. It would be incredibly lonely. Sure her mother did it, but she left Italy to follow true love. That was different wasn't it? As far as Gianna was aware, the Slytherin Head of House didn't have a wife or children. "That's nice of you. It's refreshing to see an adult taking strides to stay in touch with his family," she said.

Again, her head bobbed up and down. "You're right on that. I was finishing a letter to my mother before you came. When my brothers and I were given out Hogwarts letters, she went off the wall worrying when Professor Noonen started to explain our world. She went ballistic when she learned about The Battle of Hogwarts," the petite girl said. Hogwarts apparently sent a professor to help Muggle-born wizards and witches prepare for the upcoming school year and to explain things to the confused parents. The Ravenclaw Head of House was that person for all three of the Milwood children, and honestly the only time she'd ever had a real conversation with her. Gianna never had an interest her subject, and she felt a little guilty about it.

 Carefully, the fifteen-year old folded her letter and slipped in back in her pocket to finish later. "I wish my older brother Benevuto knew that. Momma's been worried sick about him, and I don't think he's been to visit her since last May after he graduated." Bene was thoughtless, inconsiderate, focused only on what he wants. In that regard he was a perfect Slytherin, but he was also a coward, weak willed and dim, traits that placed him solely in Hufflepuff.

[Deleted]

Nigel listened to the girl rant on and on about her brother, which he wasn't very familiar with. It seems the boy might have graduated before he came to teach or the boy was a wallflower. He smiled kindly at the girl before nodding his head, "Yes, some children just don't understand the worry of our parents."

The professor shook his head with mirth before deciding to share one of his own experiences, "In fact, when I was just a student here, I would forget to write to my parents weekly. They would go ballistic on me when the owls come the following week, demanding that I write then twice the amount of letters that I missed to send to them. In the end, it took a howler to my face in front of my classmates for me to remember to write to my mom and dad everyweek."

"In fact, I still do it because the memory of the howler is still fresh on my mind!" Nigel laughed as he remembered that fateful day. It was embarrasing to even talk about but he knew that the child needed to be comfortable with him, especially since he was her Head of House.

Grinning, he looked at the girl before whispering, "Don't tell this to anyone, but I am still quite afraid of my mother's broom!"

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

Gianna's head bobbed up and down as she listened to the professor speak. She felt a little like a kid going to Disneyland and seeing their favorite character without their coustume on. She'd never given much thought to how her professors lived their personal lives, and it was fascinating to her to think of how he lived his life. "That's very true."

 Gianna giggled at the Howler story. She drew her hand up to tug on her hair, hoping to hide the fact that she was laughing at the Head of Slytherin. A smirk spread across her features as she remembered a girl that she didn't particular like getting a Howler for bad marks. If the thrashing from your parents weren't enough to straighten you out, then the relentless teasing from your peers would do it. What a way to air your dirty laundry, but thankfully Muggles had nothing like that. "I can't even imagine. I think I'd die of embarrassment if I ever got a Howler at school," Gianna chirped, shaking her head. Her mother was the stereotypical Italian. Impulsive, headstrong and like a firestorm. She'd send them for anything on a whim. "I'm glad my mother doesn't know about them, or she'd be buying them in bulk. Honestly, she doesn't trust anything like that. As much as she loves getting letters, the owls freak her out."

 The Milwood family was also ferociously Catholic, her mother especially. Mamma Milwood tended to buy into the notion of evil spirits and witchcraft being bad. Gianna's not sure exactly how Professor Noone got her to agree to send her children away to everything she feared and despised, but it worked and Gia wasn't complaining.

 "Oh don't worry, I won't tell," Gianna promised, miming locking her lips and throwing away the key. "Why if I were to tell that story, then you'd be obligated to send me a Howler, and no one wants that."

[Deleted]

Nigel watched the girl become much more comfortable in his presence before smiling his signature smile. His mission, now complete. He knew that the girlneeded to be at least on speaking terms with him, in fact, he wanted everyone of his students to be in speaking terms with him. It wouldn't do well for a Professor to be quite adrift with his or her students. The teacher and student relationship must be kept in shape.

The professor watched the girl seal her lips and mock lock it. He was sure that the girl would keep his secret, if not from the fear of retaliation for a Professor of hers, more importantly a Slytherin professor. He smiled as he wondered how times have changed. From the stories of his mother, Slytherin was always full of Pure-bloods. Now, the house has a healthy mixture of blood, and purists are often reprimanded, if not punished severely by him, or his colleagues.

Looking at the time, Nigel quickly put his wand away before saying, "I have to go, love. Do me a favour and don't stay up here too late or else you might just face the wrath of Professor Noone!"

Exit!~

[GIANNA LARA MILWOOD]

 

 Gianna nodded, waving a small goodbye. Beyond just manners of not telling anyone, it was also a Slytherin. The snakes stuck by their own, through thick and thin. It might be the one bond thicker than blood, if such a thing was a possibility. She'd have any of her housemate's backs in a heartbeat if they just ask it of her. Even the most annoying of first years or her closest rivals in class.

 "Certainly, have a good night, Professor Ravenhearst," Gianna said, watching him as he prepared to go. Wincing at the thought of Professor Noone finding her out to late she quickly added "I'll be off to bed soon. I'm just going to wait a few more minutes to see if the owl returns. I'll be gone long before she'd find me." Professor Noone docked points for even the smallest thing, and she was quick to reprimand even the most minor of infractions.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote][/span][/div][/font]