{Hey guys! It's just me this time. Ica is off trying to build an ancient Sumerian house out of air dry clay and Kile is shunning us for abandoning her on the latest chapter of our other story. Sorry that it took so long to update, but me and Ica got a new prodject recently for Ap World History and it's due tomarrow. Definitly NOT enough time! DO guys know how long it takes to correctly copy a historicaly accurate table full of cuneiform? No? Okay. Did I mention that someone at school got me sick, but sadly not sick enough to stay home from school? Oh well. I didn't need to. I just like ranting. Sorry. You know what? Just ignore me and get on to the story. Our other schools should be ariving by the next chapter.}
Chapter 10
Let Slip
The topic of conversation around the school during the following weeks was all about the tournament. There were rumors flying about who the Hogwarts champion would be, what the tournament would involve, and how different the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang were from themselves. Ed's favorite rumor was the one that he had started that stated that the reason that they had stopped the tournament in the first place was because there an ancient curse placed on it where everyone entered the tournament would die a slow and painful death. It had been fun watching people pale at the rumor before spreading it. It was even funnier that people actually believed it.
The other noticeable change in the school was that the staff seemed to be on a cleaning spree. Everywhere you went, there were shining suits of armor that hadn't been nearly as clean the previous day. The caretaker, Filch, could often be found tracking down students, who had brought mud in, with revenge showing in his eyes. Personally, Ed did everything in his power to avoid the man when he was like that. Even the teachers seemed on edge, often trying to calm down by taking it out on the students in a Snape-like manner.
When they walked into the great hall on October thirtieth for breakfast to find that the great hall had been decorated. There were huge silk banners with the mascot and colors each of the houses and the banner behind the staff table was the largest version of the Hogwarts crest that any of the students had seen.
The quartet sat down besides the slightly alienated, for now, Fred and George at the Gryffindor table. The twins were conversing in low voices and didn't see the quartet approaching.
"It's a bummer, all right," George said gloomily to his twin who looked equally bummed. "But if he won't talk to us in person, we'll have to send him the letter after all. Or we'll stuff it into his hand."
"He can't avoid us forever," Fred agreed, nodding his head slightly.
"Who's avoiding you?" interrupted Ron, sitting down next to his brothers.
"Having a nosy git like you for a brother," George replied.
"You two got any ideas on the Triwizard Tournament yet?" Harry asked, sitting down across from Fred. "Thought any more about trying to enter?"
"I asked McGonagall how the champions are chosen, but she wasn't telling," said Fred bitterly. "She just told me to shut up and get on with transfiguring my racoon. You know, just not in those exact words."
"Maybe you two shouldn't try to enter. What about that rumor about those who entered being cursed? It sounds like it has merit. I heard that at least half of the people who were going to enter decided not to after hearing that," Hermione said worriedly as she sat next Ed who had sat next to Harry. Ed laughed hard at that. "What are you laughing about, Ed? This is serious!"
"Sorry, Hermione, it's just that it's not that serious. I started that rumor."
"What? But-" Hermione was cut off by Ron, who hadn't really been paying attention.
"I wonder what the tasks are going to be? You know, I bet we could do them, Harry. We've done dangerous stuff before…"
"Not in front of a panel of judges, you haven't. McGonagall says that the champions get awarded points according to how well they've done the tasks." George supplied.
"Who are the judges?" Harry asked.
"Well, the heads of the participating schools are always on the panel," said Hermione, looking thoughtful. Everyone in the group looked at the witch in surprise. "because all three of them were injured during the Tournament of 1792, when a cockatrice the champions were supposed to be catching went on the rampage."
She noticed all of them looking at here and said, with her usual air of impatience that nobody had read all of the books she had, "It's all in Hogwarts, A History. Though, of course, that book's not entirely reliable. A Revised History of Hogwarts would be more accurate title."
"What about A Biased and Selective History of Hogwarts, Which Glosses Over the Nastier Aspects of School?" suggested Ed.
"Oh! That's perfect!"
"What are going on about?" asked Ron.
"House-elves, Ronald!" The group turned the girl out as she started to rant about the unfairity that was house-elf enslavement. As of late, the girl had been more and more pushy about her campaign to stop the mistreatment of house-elves. She had even been going around the common room, cornering people, and yelling at them about house-elf mistreatment. So far, the only way to escape that situation was to put a Sickle or two in her collecting tin.
Ron was staring at the ceiling and Fred at his bacon when George leaned in close to Hermione. "Hermione, have you ever been to the kitchens?"
"No."
"Well we have, loads of times to nick food. And we've met them, and they're happy. They think that they've got the best job in the world-"
"That's because they're brainwashed and uneducated!" Her next few words were drowned out by the sudden whooshing noise from overhead that announced the arrival of the post owls. Hedwig flew down to Harry and landed on his shoulder. Harry took the letter off and, checking that Fred and George were immersed in a conversation, read the letter aloud in a whisper to Ron and Hermione.
"Nice try, Harry. I'm back in the country and well hidden. I want you to keep me posted on everything that's going on at Hogwarts. Don't use Hedwig, keep changing owls, and don't worry about me, just watch out for yourself. Don't forget what I said about your scar. Sirius. How can he tell me to just not worry about him? If he's back in the country then he could be arrested again!" None of them noticed Ed quietly listing in.
"He's already here, Harry. There's nothing we can do about it." Hermione said.
"He could go back! Before he gets caught. I just got him, Hermione. I don't want to lose him so soon."
"We'll just have to trust him."
"If you love something, let it go," Ed spoke quietly, but was heard by the trio, "if it comes back, it's yours, if it doesn't, it never was."
"Have you been listening this entire time?" asked Ron.
"Yes, but don't worry. I'll keep your secret. As for some advice, Harry. It's like this one time when I got into an argument with my brother over a misunderstanding. He ran away. I could have stopped him. I wanted to stop him, but I didn't. I was worried sick, I thought that he'd finaly abandoned me forever, but he came back. If you really don't want to lose this Sirius person then trust them to do whatever it is that they feel like they have to do."
"You have a brother?" Ron asked.
"Yeah."
"Oh that's right! He-" Hermione kicked Ron under the table to stop him from spilling the beans about their copied letter that they hoped Ed didn't know they had.
"He must have been the one you were talking about when Mrs. Curtis was here, isn't he?" she covered Ron's fumble.
"Uh, yeah. I might have mentioned him during that little visit." A brown owl landed in front of Ed, startling the quartet. Ed took the two letters off the owl and read the front of the top one. "Speaking of my brother…"
"The letter's from him?" Hermione infrenced.
"Yeah." Ed opened it, his eyes scanning the coded message.
"What does that say?" asked Harry as he glanced at the letter over his friends shoulder.
"Uh, it's a code. My brother's a researcher. Some of his research is sensitive information, you know, don't want the information to get in the wrong hands kind of stuff. I guess that it's just become a habit of his to code everything he writes nowadays." It was a quickly made half-truth, but it seemed to hold up against the groups observations.
"What about the other letter?" asked Ron.
"That one's from… one of my workmates. Don't really like they guy, but he has a higher position them me, so what can ya do? I'd probably burn the thing just to spite hi. Ha! Actually that'd be pretty funny. I'd love to see the reaction on his face if I sent him the ashes."
"Why would that be so funny?" asked Hermione, trying to get the boy to keep talking. This was the most information the boy had shared with them about his personal life since they met him.
"Well, he kind of likes to set things on fire. In work, we call him the Flame." THe trio absorbed this information.
~~~~O~~~O~~~O~~~O~~~~
Ed was finally alone and could read his letters.
Dear Brother,
How are you? I hope that you haven't gotten into any fights. You know that you're supposed to be showing that country that we are ally material. Now that I think about it, it probably wasn't a very good idea for Col. Mustang to send Teacher. SHe can be pretty vilolent. I hope that she didn't do too much damage. I got to see teacher a few days ago. She mentioned that you were doing well and that she visited. If she got to then why can't I visit? I know. You keep telling me to stay home and relax. BUt really, when will you get to visit? I miss you, brother. I hope that you've been keeping up with your training. I've been keeping up with mine. If it takes me less than three minutes to beat you next time we spar then I'm going to tell teacher that you've been slacking off. I really don't want to do it, but we can't have you getting slow! Oh yeah! Winry say to keep up your automail maintenance.
As for your theory that you shared in your last letter. It seems the most plausible. I can see nothing wrong with it and it seems to cover all the angles. I wish I could help you more, though.
Stay safe. Don't go searching for danger. At least try to make some friends there, you really need some friends who are family or at least twenty years older than you! YOu really are hopeless, brother.
-Your Brother
Ed savored the happiness that the letter brought him seeing as how he would probably want to punch something after reading the next one.
Fullmetal,
Do try to get into less trouble. I still have paperwork from when I sent that crazy teacher of yours there. Really, you should have told me what she was like before hand. I seriously thought she was a good choice seeing as how good you boys are at alchemy.
Students from other schools will be arriving soon, won't they. Don't try to draw attention to yourself. We need you to keep a low cover and to be a good boy so that we can get some new allies. We need this, Fullmetal. We are surrounded by enemies on all sides and none seem to really like us. Heck, the only people not waiting for a chance to kick down our front door is Xing! Be good.
-Col. Roy. Mustang
Yup. Ed wanted to punch something. After all, if the horse was going to complain about how he was acting then maybe he should have came here himself!
{And, there you go! Not as short as last time! Okay, I relised that we forgot to do reveiws in the last chapter, so they'll be here.}
ReginaDC21 (Guest)- {You are compleatly right. Um, okay, just please have them in working condition.}
Guest- {WHY! I'm horrible at choosing! I can barly pick what I want for dinner without Ica yelling at me to get a move on. Oh, well. I'll just let one of the others pick a charecter.}
BulletWitch1985 (Guest)-{Well, Kile does. It's okay. How'd your prodject go?}
hallie4ragged- {Here ya go! Thanks!}
{Okay, I think that that's it. If I missed anyone, please point it out and I will be sure to put you in the next one! WEll, it's getting late. Night!}