drlmeadowes-blog

[drlmeadowes-blog]

These exams are supposed to be notoriously difficult. I don’t think that getting complacent would be wise, especially as these are the results which will get us jobs. Hopefully.

They’ve got the words: Nastily Exhausting in the title, I doubt they’re going to be a walk through the park. And I sure do hope we pass. Can’t imagine any of us failing…

Ugh! We better not. I feel like I've been studying for ages, and I still don't know anything about plangentine or anything else about Herbology. I bet my parents probably have half of these stupid weeds in their garden, too.

Christ, it's quiet around here.

book-wolf:

#GUYS I' ALIVE AND DONE WITH SCHOOL I'M SO SORRY #convos #emm convos #james convos #remus convos

[drlmeadowes-blog]

Writing Task 001

On the 19th of August, 1977, an extreme, radical group known as the Death Eaters attacked a village of Muggles, killing close to 200 people and injuring countless others. This group, led by Lord Voldemort, has been causing trouble for Muggles and Muggle-borns for years now, but this is by far the largest and most tragic occurrence yet.

On the 20th of August, 1977, the Ministry of Magic officially announced a war against the Death Eaters. An article in the Daily Prophet included a quote from the Minister promising to dedicate the Ministry’s every resource, especially the Department of Aurors, to protecting the wizards and Muggle-borns of wizarding England.

What was your character’s reaction when they learned of the declaration of war? How did they find out? How are they affected by the war, and what, if anything, do they plan to do about it?

Dorcas peered at the front gate from under her straw hat and watched her father stride up the stone path. He was dressed in a long, black cloak despite the heat, and he was slapping a copy of the Daily Prophet against his leg. He was usually not home during the day, and Dorcas wondered what could have happened. It was probably something to do with Mother’s crazy cousins, anyway. She rolled her eyes slightly at the thought and returned to her book. Soon, angry voices floated their way across the garden. Dorcas cocked her head to one side and tried listening to her parents’ words. While she hated meddling with her parents’ business (they had a wonderful policy of mutual ignorance that worked well for all parties involved), she couldn’t help but wonder what was making her usually calm father so upset.

Once she entered the dark hall, Doe stopped. Here, her parents were slightly clearer but all she heard was “Prophet, family, ridiculous, scared, Muggles, Cillian, Aurors, help,” and none of it made any sense. Thinking quickly, she slipped between the French doors of the library and pulled them shut with a small snap. Patricia, her mother, turned almost immediately; she raised her wand to her shoulders before realizing it was only Dorcas. Patricia huffed a sigh and shook back her blonde bangs. “What do you need, Dorcas?”

“Sorry to interrupt, Mother, Father,” Dorcas said, inclining her head slightly to each of them. “I was merely curious as to why Father was home today.” Her parents exchanged glances, and Dorcas watched her mother shake her head.

Cillian Meadowes spoke then, gesturing at the smashed Prophet on the table,“We’re at war, Dorcas. There was an attack last night, and the Minister has brought us to war.” Patricia left then, slamming the doors behind her. The loud noise was lost on Doe, as a rushing sounded through her ears. She grabbed onto the table for support, then awkwardly launched herself at the Prophet, flattening out the front page. “I’ll leave you to it, then. I need to get back to work,” her father spoke into the strained silence.

Dorcas soaked up every word the Prophet had written. Two hundred people died. So many injuries. She held her breath as she read all the statistics of the attack. How could people do such a thing? How could people aspire to become Death Eaters? But once she reached the larger article, on the declaration of war, Dorcas’ temper had cooled. There was fighting to be done. Something to do. A way to change. Doe had always suspected that she wanted nothing more than to be an Auror, but now she realized it’s much more than that. She needed to be on the side of good, no matter what her parents chose.

#char devel #writing task #writing task 1