Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
Monday Morning Sorting
8/25/05 - 8/28/05
Between small sips of his scalding herbal tea, Simon quickly scribbled an unintelligible lesson plan onto the back of an old recipe that he had snatched off the kitchen counter. Looking up from his handiwork, he regarded his barely intelligible lesson plan with a sheepish grin as he scratched the back of his balding head. It did slightly horrible, but considering it was a last minute effort, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of pride as he passed his masterpiece to Sheena for inspection.
"You're going to teach the class chicken scratch?" Roselyn asked incredulously as he poked Simon in the chest. Snatching the old parchment from Sheena, who glared venomously, Roselyn proceeded to point out all of Simon's grammatical errors, starting with his punctuation errors and ending with his improper noun usages. Turning the parchment over, Roselyn's eyes widened with each passing word - this was the recipe to her favorite dish!
"Stop giving me those looks - I know what you're thinking!" Simon grumbled as Roselyn continued to gape at the recipe. "You're all probably thinking, 'Simon really is an old fool, getting more stupid and senile by the year - how could he forget something as important as the class lesson plan?' Well, what's done is done and at least I have an outline, right?" he grinned as he snatched the old parchment from Roselyn's trembling hands. "I hope no one needs this recipe," he added as an afterthought, waving the parchment wildly in the air, "because they won't be getting it back any time soon."
"I'm going to murder you, you stupid old badger," hissed Roslyn as she gazed longingly at the old parchment, "that was my favorite recipe for chocolate flavored lasagna!"
A pregnant pause followed.
"Disgusting," cried Fatima, breaking the silence. "Who in their right mind would eat chocolate flavored lasagna? That's just plain sick."
"Obviously, Rose eats it, but I'm not entirely sure if she's sane. Lord knows how insane she is at times." snorted Simon. "And I don't see why this parchment should matter." he quickly continued, waving the old parchment in front of Roselyn's nose. "I mean, when was the last time you actually cooked your own meal? If you wants chocolate flavored lasagna, the house elves are more than capable of making it. You know, we have house elves for a reason, right?"
"As interesting as this conversation is," growled Lyon, interrupting Roselyn, who had just opened her mouth to retort that she enjoyed cooking her own meals, "someone has to go wake up the brats. It's almost 6 AM."
"All in favor of Lyon raise your hands!" grinned Roselyn, the recipe temporarily forgotten.
Lyon scowled as his lips curled upwards in disgust at the prospect of touching the slimy midgets.
"Children," sighed Fatima, sending both Roselyn and Lyon a hard glare, "simmer down." With three, clear claps, 11 house elves popped out of thin air. As soon as the house elves assembled themselves into three rows of 3, 4, and 4, Fatima softly ordered, "Go wake up the children - try not to startle them to much - the infirmary won't be open until tomorrow morning so we don't want any unnecessary casualties."
With an excited chorus of, "Yes ma'am," the house elves eagerly departed with a small 'pop'.
"Now, that wasn't too hard, was it?" Fatima asked as she picked up her small plate of strawberry shortcake. "I think we sometimes forget we have house elves for other reasons other than meals and housework."
Roselyn shrugged nonchalantly as she seated herself in the cushioned chair beside Simon. "Don't think I forgot about my precious recipe," she hissed before quickly burying her face in the Daily Prophet, which served as their only link to the outside world.
D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y. &&& D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y
A relatively young-looking elf peered curiously at the slumbering boy, who was sleeping half-way on and half-way off the bed. His body was tangled within the bed sheets, though how he ended up that way was anyone's guess. The house elf smiled softly as she hobbled over towards the green curtains that decorated the east wall. Grabbing the velvety fabric of the curtains, she gently pulled them back, allowing a stream of sunlight to pour through the ornately decorated glass doors that led to the balcony that overlooked the Black Lake, which, if possible, looked even murkier than the day before.
After tying the curtains in place, she looked back towards the bed and watched with slight amusement as the boy rolled onto his stomach and shoved his head under the volumes of pillow in an attempt to block out the sunlight. She grinned slightly as the boy snored softly - the image he made was so adorable that the house elf almost decided to let him sleep in. However, the more rational part of her mind reminded her that she would be signing her own death warrant (at the hands of Lyon) if the boy didn't get down to the Dining Hall by 7:30.
With a regretful sigh, she reached out her hand and gently shook the boy's shoulders. The boy groaned softly and lazily shrugged off the elf's hands before rolling across the bed so his back was facing the elf. The elf sighed softly before trotting to the other side of the bed so she was face to the face with the young child. She gently nudged the boy in the ribs…no response…she tried again…and finally, after what seemed like hours, the child's eyes slowly fluttered open, revealing innocent emerald-green orbs.
"Who…what?" Harry demanded blearily as he yawned. As his eyes gradually came into focus, he found himself staring into a pair of rather large, bulbous blue eyes that were flecked with spots of gold. Harry blinked once, twice, and finally, after comprehending that he was staring into a pair of unknown eyes, quickly scrambled backwards in an attempt to place as much distance as he could between himself and the unknown house elf.
Out of self-defense, Harry slashed his hand through the air and murmured a small wind charm that he had learned two years back, which sent the elf sailing through the air and crashing into the west wall with a loud bang.
The house elf immediately jumped to her feet and bowed as she apologized profusely for angering Harry. "Mazy is very sorry sir!" the house elf cried as she dropped to her knees. "I is so sorry! Mazy didn't mean to startle sir! Forgive Mazy, sir!" she bawled as she slammed her head repeatedly into the ground.
"Oh…it's all right," Harry murmured as he slipped out of bed. "You can stop hitting yourself." he stated as he looked around his room. Spotting the pair of glass doors, he quickly made his way towards them and carefully grasped the one of the marble handles, which was carved into the shape of a ferocious dragon. Turning the handle slightly to the right, the glass doors smoothly swung open with a small click, allowing a small breeze to filter into the room. Looking back towards the groveling house elf, Harry asked, "What were you doing in my room?"
"Oh, Mistress Fatima told Mazy to wake sir up!" the elf chirped as she gazed adoringly towards Harry. "Sir needs to be down at the Dinning Hall by 7:30, it is 6:23 right now."
"Stop calling me sir, it makes me sound old - I'm only eight. Call me Harry." Harry ordered as he stepped out onto the balcony.
"What is Harry sir doing?" the house elf asked curiously as she turned her full attention to pig sty that was Harry's bed. With a snap of her small, grubby fingers, the bed was magically cleaned and rearranged so that everything looked neat and immaculate.
"It's nice to be able to feel the breeze without fearing that someone would catch me outside without supervision." Harry whispered under his breath as he levitated himself off the ground so he could look over the marble railings. His eyes were immediately drawn to the Black Lake and it's inky depths.
"Sir?" Mazy asked softly as Harry lapsed into silence.
"Why is there a lake on this island?" Harry asked.
"The Black Lake has been on this island for as long as Mazy can remember." the elf honestly answered. "Even though everyone calls this place an island (because it's surrounded by water on all sides)," Mazy explained, "I knows that this island is more than enough to comfortably house several large civilization. The only reason no one has ever discovered this island is due to the strong wards placed around this haven by the exalted Protectors from Generation 12."
"Interesting," Harry whispered as his eyes glittered slightly. Slowly lowering himself to the ground, Harry stepped back into his room and closed the balcony doors behind him with a small click.
"Harry sir should clean up. Master Lyon does not like to wait." Mazy suddenly whispered as she remembered her initial task. "Master Lyon will make Mazy oven her hands if Harry sir is late!" she cried in distress.
"I'll be done in a few." Harry answered as he stepped into the adjoining room that he assumed to be the bathroom. Inside the carpeted bathroom, which was roughly twice the size of his old bedroom, he found all the essential items he needed - towels, cups, toothpaste, toothbrush, combs, mirrors, and even a small table with matching green couches.
Shrugging slightly, he quickly headed towards the shower and turned on the water so that it was neither too hot nor too cold. After he found his favored temperature, Harry quickly stripped and stepped into the lukewarm water.
Half an hour later, Harry emerged from the bathroom soaking wet, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist. Looking around his room, he was surprised to find Mazy standing dutifully beside his king-sized bed.
"Harry sir must hurry." Mazy urged as she trotted towards Harry's built-in, walk-in closet. "What does Harry sir want to wear today? Something nice for the sorting?" she asked eagerly.
Unsure of what to say, Harry just mutely nodded his head. He watched with slight amusement as Mazy pulled several beautiful, silk robes from the closet. After laying each robe gently side-by-side on the bed, Mazy stepped back and bowed her head.
"Which one does Harry sir want to wear today?" asked Mazy. "Harry sir will get more formal robes once Harry sir is sorted. Until the sorting, Harry sir cannot wear black, blue, or white."
"Why?" Harry asked curiously as he carefully fingered a forest-green robe.
"Black is the formal color of the Warriors, blue the color of the Protectors, and white the color of the Healers." answered Mazy.
"Oh," Harry replied distractedly as he picked up the green robe. "I'll wear this one."
"Great choice, Harry sir!" agreed Mazy as she carried the rest of the robes back into the closet. "Mazy will wait for Harry sir outside." Without waiting for an answer, Mazy disappeared with a small 'pop'.
D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y. &&& D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y
Harry hurriedly emerged from his room a few minutes later and nearly tripped over Mazy, who had been standing guard in front of the door. The house elf immediately dropped to her knees and apologized profusely for being careless.
"I'm fine," sighed Harry. "Come on, get up. I'm not mad. Can you show me where the Dining Hall is? I can't remember where it was."
"Yes, yes, of course Harry sir!" chirped Mazy as she leapt back to her feet. "Follow Mazy, Harry sir!" she smiled as she led Harry towards the Dining Hall. "Mistress Sheena will tell you where to go for sorting after breakfast." she explained as she pushed open the double oak doors. Standing to one side, Mazy quickly hunched her back as Harry swept past her to join his peers at the dining table.
"Hey Harry!" waved Shan as he motioned to the seat across from him. "Aaron and I saved you and Trey a seat. Though, we honestly have no clue where Trey is." he grinned as he poured himself a cup of orange juice.
"Probably drowned in the shower." snorted Aaron as he shook his head, splaying water all across the table, earning several shouts of, "Hey, watch it!"
"Or tripped down the stairs and landed himself in the infirmary." grinned Shan, catching onto the game.
"For your information, I'm very much alive - save when the blasted elf nearly scared the life out of me by jumping on my bed." groaned Trey as the Dining Hall doors slammed open. Plopping himself into the empty chair beside Harry, he continued to recount the events that morning, beginning with the damnable house elf who had no manners and ending with nearly getting lost in his labyrinth of a bathroom. "Even though I've been an orphan for as long as I can remember," Trey yawned as he helped himself to a large bowl of beef porridge, "I doubt normal people have such large rooms or bathrooms."
"Yeah," agreed Aaron between scoops of his cereal, "I mean the bed was huge too. I only took up a quarter of the bed."
Harry helped himself to a cup of milk as Aaron and Shan recounted their epic adventures that morning.
"Hey, what field do you think we'll be sorted into?" Aaron asked excitedly, abruptly changing the subject as he scooped a spoonful of scrambled eggs into his mouth. "I think a warrior sounds way cool."
"I'm hoping for Healer." stated Shan as he sipped on his orange juice.
"Why?" asked Aaron. "Nothing against healing and all that, of course."
"I don't know," answered Shan, "I guess I just like the idea of being able to save someone from death." he whispered before quickly turning his attention to Harry. "What field do you want to be in?"
"Probably either Protector or Warrior, but it doesn't really matter because we won't have a choice." answered Harry as he nibbled on the edge of his ham and cheese sandwich.
"What about you, Trey?" asked Aaron, turning his gaze to the red-head just in time to watch him fall face-first into his porridge.
Harry grinned slightly as the dining room burst into laughter.
"Sure, sure, laugh at me." muttered Trey as he scraped the residue porridge from his face, which was flaming as red as his hair.
"I hope you all had a good night's rest." smiled Roslyn, who had just entered the Dining Hall. "If everyone is done, please follow me. We will now proceed to the long-awaited sorting." Without waiting for a reply, she and her companions swept out of the dining room and headed towards the Potions Chamber, which was located beneath the castle.
With a silent sigh, Harry and the others quickly followed. Shuffling down a set of winding staircases, they finally arrived before a large set of ominous, black doors. They waited with baited breath as Sheena gently pushed the doors inward, allowing the children entrance into the massive, underground potion's lab.
"Welcome to my humble abode," smiled Fatima she set out 11 purple vials. "We will commence with the sorting as soon as Lyon closes the door." As the last student slipped into the room, Lyon slammed the doors shut with a loud clang, shaking the whole room and rattling the potion bottles. "Be careful, Lyon!" Fatima hissed as cradled her beloved potions.
Sheena, ignoring Fatima, who was lecturing Lyon on the virtue of courtesy, walked to the front of the room and pulled out a small sheet of paper. Scanning through the paper's contents, she softly cleared her voice and began.
"You will come up here when I call your name and Fatima will give you one of these purple vials. Once you drink the potion, your body should proceed to emit a faint glow. If you emit a black glow, you fall into the Warrior field. If you emit a blue glow, you belong to the Protector field. And last of all, if you emit a white glow (and yes, you will be able to see it), you are in the Healer field. Any questions?" she asked sharply before quickly continuing. "The sorting begins. Aaron, age nine."
Aaron jumped when his named was suddenly called out of the blue. Trey gave him a thumbs up as Aaron nervously trudged towards Fatima, who carefully handed him one of the purple vials. Uncorking the potion, he took a deep breath and quickly downed the whole bottle in a single gulp. A few seconds passed before his body began to emit a black glow.
"Warrior," Sheena dully stated as if the sorting was the most mundane thing in the whole world. With a snap of her fingers, Aaron's maroon robes were replaced by black robes with intricate silver linings. "Lacy will be your personal house elf from this day forward." she continued as a blond elf with small blue eyes popped into the room and bowed to Aaron, who looked slightly taken aback. "Amy, age eight."
Aaron was herded by Roslyn to the other end of the room as the pale girl with the aurora parents from the day before accepted one of the purple vials from Fatima. It took several minutes for the effects to take place after she swallowed the potion (much to everyone's impatience), before the unmistakable black glow began to seep out of her body. Aaron made a gagging face as Amy was sorted into the same field as him.
"Warrior, assigned house elf - Don." continued Sheena, who looked even more unhappy than before. "Crystal, age eight…Warrior, assigned house elf - Van."
Aaron rolled his eyes and mouthed, "Is everyone going to be a Warrior?"
Trey, catching Aaron's silent words, mouthed back, "Maybe."
"Emily, age eight…Healer, assigned house elf - Sown." announced Sheena as Emily's red robe was replaced by a white robe with delicate, green trimmings. "Harry, age eight."
Harry's eyes snapped towards Sheena, who was glaring heatedly at him.
"Come on, go." whispered Trey as he gave Harry a small push towards Fatima.
Stumbling slightly, Harry quickly regained his balance and moved forward to accept the purple vial from Fatima. Uncorking the potion, he quickly downed the potion, grimacing slightly as the tasteless liquid slithered down his throat. Before he had even swallowed half the potion, a brilliant blue glow erupted from his body, causing Amy to shriek in fright.
"Shut up, you silly girl!" snapped Sheena as the glow around Harry slowly receded, but unlike the others, did not completely vanish. "Protector," spat Sheena as Harry's green robe was magically replaced by a soft, silky, midnight-blue robe with beautiful red designs along the edges. "Assigned house elf - Mazy."
Harry suppressed a grin as he joined Aaron on the other side of the room. "First Protector so far." Aaron grinned as he thumped Harry on the back. "That was some show!" Harry just nodded his head mutely, his eyes trained towards Lyon, who was glaring murderously at him.
"Jason, age nine…Warrior, assigned house elf - Sleaze."
"Not another warrior!" bemoaned Aaron as the blond-haired boy joined his ranks.
"Katherine, age eight…Protector, assigned house elf - Dazzle."
"Yes!" cheered Aaron.
"You know her?" asked Harry, quirking an eyebrow as the blonde-haired girl stepped towards them.
"She's pretty," Aaron grinned, "but I don't know her. Well, it seems all the good luck goes to you! She's a Protector too, so you'll have a lot of classes together!" Aaron whispered excitedly. "But I'm still glad she's not a Warrior…there's too many of us as it is."
"Lance, age ten…Warrior, assigned house elf - Flake."
"See what I mean?" Aaron demanded darkly.
"Shan, age nine." called Sheena as Aaron perked at the mentioned name. A few moments passed before she continued, "Protector, assigned house elf - Blob."
"Dang, why couldn't you have been a Warrior? Now who's going to keep me company?" demanded Aaron as Shan joined them, donning the customary blue robes for Protectors. "Anyway, congratulations," he smiled, "even though you didn't get into your desired field."
"Yeah, a pity." agreed Shan. "And who in the world would name their house elf Blob?" he snorted as Aaron chuckled lightly.
"Stacy, age eight…Protector, assigned house elf - Glean."
"Good luck, she looks like a real snob - like Amy." whispered Aaron as Shan shook his head in disbelief. "What?" Aaron demanded incredulously.
"You don't even know her and you're already stereotyping her." Shan sighed as he crossed his arms across his chest. "Haven't you ever heard the saying, 'Never judge a book by its cover?' She could turn out to be a sweet, caring girl."
"You're Protectors too, right?" asked Stacy as she rounded on the three boys. "The name's Stacy - my father is an Unspeakable and my mother is a medi-witch." she said, turning up her nose haughtily.
"Not likely." snorted Aaron as Stacy stalked off towards Amy. "I'm a great judge of character."
"And finally," sighed Sheena, who sounded oddly relieved, "Trey, age nine…Healer…"
"WHAT?" shouted Trey as his brown robes were replaced by immaculate, white ones. "I don't want to be a sissy healer! I'm a guy!"
"Healer is a perfect occupation for a man." stated Fatima, narrowing her eyes dangerously, daring Trey to argue. "You will eventually enjoy the art of healing! It is a respectable profession."
Trey grumbled to himself as he joined the rest of his friends, who were all snickering, save Harry, who looked like he was trying to hide his mirth behind a façade of indifference.
"You may all follow Roselyn back to the dining room for a small snack. Your first class will start in half an hour. You have Transfiguration with me." Sheena stated before heading out of the potion's lab.
Before she could fully leave, Katherine shouted, "Please, wait!"
"What do you want?" Sheena demanded as the blonde girl smoothed the imaginary creases out of her blue robes.
"You told us yesterday that there were 12 Chosen Ones," Katherine began, "only 11 were sorted today. What happened to the last Chosen One?"
"We suspect he died before the Initiation." explained Roselyn when Sheena looked like she was about to shout, 'None of your business'. "When the Initiation began, we were sent to collect you. We located all of you by means of the blinking red dots on the Initiation maps - these dots target the abnormal energy that belongs solely to Dragon Riders and Chosen Ones. However, instead of the customary 12 dots that appear (not including ours) when Chosen Ones are selected, only 11 appeared. That leads to the conclusion that your peer either died before the Initiation or is being heavily guarded by wards even WE can't penetrate. There are hardly any wards that can fool the Initiation map, which leads us to the conclusion that the last Chosen One is dead."
"Oh, thank you." Katherine whispered softly.
"She's either real smart or real observant." whispered Trey. "I didn't even notice we were missing someone!"
"Of course you wouldn't notice." muttered Aaron as they trudged out of the potion's lab, spirits slightly daunted by the news of the death of one of their peers.
D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y. &&& D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y
Back in the Dining Hall, the breakfast dishes were replaced by large plates of assorted treats and desserts. Giving a loud whoop of joy, Trey hurriedly dived head first into the desserts and started stuffing everything edible into his watering mouth. Shan shook his head disapprovingly before cutting himself a small slice of the double chocolate fudge cake.
"Trey," sighed Aaron, draping his right arm around the red-head's neck, "you're going to die eating someday."
"Ven I vie a vapvy wan." shouted Trey, splaying bits of food across Aaron's grinning face. Aaron grin dissolved into a disgusted frowned as he tried to wipe the food particles off his face.
"You sick idiot!" Aaron groaned as Shan stifled a small chuckle. "And what the heck did you just say?"
"I think he said, 'Then I die a happy man.'" Harry replied as he helped himself to a cup of ice water. Noticing the looks he was receiving, Harry explained, "I have a lot of experience when it comes to deciphering words of a pigging idiot. I had a twin who ate just about as much as Trey."
"You have a twin?" Shan asked curiously. "Were you guys close?" he asked softly, afraid he had touched a sensitive spot. He read somewhere that twins shared a special bond…
"I had a twin." Harry responded, empathizing the word 'had'. "We were about as close as I can chuck Mount Everest." Harry snorted. "We looked and acted nothing alike. He had dad's onyx eyes, mum's red hair, and the world's largest ego." Harry spat, eyes flashing dangerously.
"Borbange vuce?" Trey helpless offered, holding up a large tank of freshly squeezed orange juice.
"No thanks," Harry declined, shaking his head. "Sorry," he murmured, "I didn't mean to blow up like that. Can we not talk about them anymore?"
"Vo?" asked Trey, blinking his eyes.
"What?" asked Aaron.
"I think he said, 'Who?'" answered Shan, who seemed to be quickly learning the sacred language of nonsense. "Harry, I know this probably doesn't mean much, but we're family…in a sort of weird, wacky way."
"Yeah," Harry whispered. "Any family's better than the one I had."
Shan looked towards Aaron for help. Aaron shrugged helplessly and looked towards Trey for advice. Trey blinked and tried to offer them sweets. Shan rolled his eyes and muttered, "Why do we even bother asking him?"
The tense silence was broken by a soft buzz, which gradually becoming louder and louder. Aaron's eyes widened to the size of saucers as little blue fairies began popping into the room.
"Wow," Trey whispered, stuffing the last piece of treacle tart into his mouth, "they're multiplying - it's an army of fairies!"
"No," Harry whispered as scared shrieks filled the dining room.
"They're Cornish Pixies!" shouted Katherine as the blue blobs began racing towards them.
"Stupefy!" Harry shouted, snapping out of his stupor. Three pixies dropped to the ground…hundreds more to go.
"The doors locked!" shouted Aaron over the loud buzz.
"Try Alohomora!" Harry shouted back as he and some of his peers tried to fend off the attacking pixies.
"I don't know how to the wandless magic!" Aaron desperately cried back. "I only know accidental magic!"
Quickly scanning the room, Harry noticed that he was indeed the only one capable of wandless magic. Everyone else was either screaming or fighting the pixies with their fists. "Great," he muttered as he performed one of the harder spells he had seen, but never tried, "Murus!" A light blue barrier erupted from his fingertips, successfully stopping the pixie attacks…for now. "Move aside," Harry bellowed as he made his way towards the doors. Pointing a finger to the doorknob, he shouted, "Alohomora!"
Nothing happened.
"Alohomora!" he tried again. The door didn't budge. Turning to face the pixies, he whispered, "The doors' locked. Be prepared to fight. My barrier is cracking."
"No, I can't fight them!" cried Amy. "They'll kill me!"
"Cornish Pixies are not dangerous," interrupted Katherine. "Just potentially hazardous in the sense that we might leave with a missing limb or two."
"Thanks for the moral support." Trey muttered darkly. "That makes me…" he trailed off as his face and body were suddenly covered with sticky, purple boils. "It's itching!" he cried as he scratched his arms and face, "and it hurts!".
"What's going on?" Aaron whispered as the rest of his peers' skin began to erupt with boils too.
"It's the food." Harry whispered with dawning realization as everyone who had eaten the desserts began to sprout purple boils.
D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y. &&& D. A. R. K. &&& P. R. O. P. H. E. C. Y
TBC
Please read and review.
Author's Note:
Thanks for the reviews so far, it's really inspiring, since this is my first real attempt at writing a story. I also appreciate the criticism - it's nice to have people point out in spots in which I can improve.
However, I don't appreciate pointless flames (which have been deleted) - I know I don't have the best grammar or the most complete vocabulary, but seeing as English is my third language, I think I'm doing okay.
Lastly, someone has brought to my attention that I have too much dialogue and not enough description. I like dialogue, so it'll be there a lot - but I'll try to add more description and personality to my original characters (but don't expect much - it's really hard to describe what I'm thinking because I can't find the right words).
Well, that's that! I hope I won't have to leave anymore author's notes because I really don't like them all that much myself. Anyway, I tried to make this chapter longer because, guess what, school started for me today. I don't know when I'll update again (depends on homework and stuff, but hopefully soon), but I will continue!