Just finished reading this after 3 days of binging, and I have to say I really like it! Jacob is unique and compelling oh, and I really love how you expand on less considered aspects of Harry Potter lore. I can't wait for the next update!
 
7.6 March, 1994
[X] Yes, share your insights.


Present Date: 13th​ March 1994
Current Wand: Fagus wood, Phoenix feather core


Agonizing pain.

"Bloody bastard …" you said to no one, giving the frustration and the anger an outlet.

Had there ever been a moment you'd felt worse than in this moment? The Whomping Willow had hurt you once after which you spent a week with headaches and a head trauma. But this right now felt worse.

Not far from the trophy room, you disappeared around the corner and into a concealed stairway heading down. You left your bloody marks everywhere, even as you were trying to touch as few things as possible. Once the excitement had subsided, there was only the realization of how deep the cuts in your back felt. The wounds in your shoulders were still bleeding down into your hands and your arms were beginning to feel cold and numb. A dark feeling was brooding inside you that you had rarely felt for another person before.

Where you had known disdain and disgust for people before, rare had been the moment where you had come anywhere near to hating someone or being actually angry at them. People were not usually cause for emotion to you … but it seemed that establishing new positive memories with actual friends, had also allowed for a negative counterpart to appear within your mind.

Halfway up to the infirmary, you took a turn left and followed the corridor leading out of the castle. Neither did you want to give Montague the vindication to know that he had caused you a stay in the infirmary, nor did you want to spend any time with him in there, if Madame Pomfrey kept you over night.

It was worth the pain to not let him get any win out of this. You gritted your teeth and pushed yourself through the long tunnel to Hogsmeade. When you finally arrived, you felt as hollow as a husk but you pushed through. One step after the other.



→ - 4 Galleons, 3 Sickles, 12 Knuts

→ -1 Normal Action next turn
(Motivation block for infirmary + No Potions for treatment available in Personal Inventory)



Soon after your visit in Hogsmeade, you found yourself back in the Shrieking Shack. A small tin can laid mostly empty on the ground next to you, while you tried reaching all the cots in your back. You weren't sure as to how effective the potion would be, so you tried to put on as much as possible before you let yourself collapse on the ground.

You felt completely spent, did not feel strong enough to move for an hour. But as time passed, you started feeling the changes. The bleeding stopped the moment the lotion touched your wounds. Then a warming sensation appeared, taking the pain as the flesh on your back started rejuvenating.

You took the second vial to drink it and only when you felt the energy and warmth return to your body and limps, were you able to push yourself up. Tired and weak, but energized and in the process of healing, you climbed the stairs down to the basement.

It did register to you that a part of the furniture inside the Shack had been moved recently. A passing realization hit your conscious thoughts. It seemed that you were not the only one to know of this specific entry into Hogwarts. A problem for another day.

The walk back was taxing but doable. Soon enough, you were back in the castle, then inside your common room as you tried to stay inconspicuous. You quickly disappeared in the boys bedroom. After hiding the bloodied robe inside your trunk and a slow and painful wash down, you spent the evening sketching one or the other thing, sitting near a window. Only when the wounds on your back felt as if they had mostly healed down, did you finally allow yourself to sleep.



Present Date: 14th​ March 1994
Current Wand: Fagus wood, Phoenix feather core


Your head of house, Professor Flitwick was rumoured to be one of the the most knowledgeable Charms masters alive. The source of that rumour was a credible one, mind you – your father rarely gave out any compliments at all. But in this, you didn't need to simply believe outside sources. You had seen his skill with your own eyes in class, when he did the most wondrous of things with barely a movement of his wand. When Sally-Anne had awoken right in this office, he had shown his mastery by freeing you of your predicament after having gone through a trauma himself that had knocked him out cold.

The Professor had shown to be an incredibly gifted man. More than that, Flitwick tried teaching you and your classmates to always challenge the limits that you were setting yourself. He, just as you were, was someone who didn't think there were many things that were out of grasp.

Flitwick was a master of his subject, a better mentor than most and someone that you deeply respected. Being in his office had always been pleasant. Today was different though.

He was still watching you calmly, even after what you had said moments earlier.

Where he would greet you with a smile on any other occasion, today he was solemn and serious.

"Mr. Basques," the Professor said again, before taking his glasses off to rub the bridge of his nose. "I have and do still trust you with all issues. But with all respect, this matter at hand is not one of the topics we can simply brush aside. I need to know exactly what happened."

"I already explained, Sir" you stated.

"A 'I was there, he came in and attacked me' is not quite what I would call an adept description of the events that have unfolded, I fear," Professor Flitwick said calmly. He put his glasses back on and said: "Mr. Montague's parents called the board for action and they are portraying his son in the role of a victim. And while Madame Pomfrey has begun the process of re-growing his eye … it is not a circumstance a parent wishes on their children."

You'd stared down a few people and creatures in the past. Some of them had wanted to harm you, others even wanted you dead. It had never been a struggle before. But having Professor Flitwick watch you in such a serious manner, almost make you look away.

You nodded slowly. An Explanation then. Fine.

"I was in the trophy room," you said.

"What where you doing there?" the Professor asked.

You felt annoyed at the questioning. But you answered all the same: "Making connections, asking questions … what I always do Professor."

Flitwick squinted his eyes, before he said: "Yes, Mr. Basques. You ask quite the interesting questions at times. What kind of answer were you looking for this time?"

You were quite conscious about not breaking eye contact, which made you notice his change of expression when you answered: "I was asking who Tom Riddle is."

Both eyebrows of the tiny man rose, almost reaching his low hairline.

"That is a name, I did not expect," he said. Flitwick broke the eye contact and looked down at the table between you, before you looked behind you to check the door.

"Did you find any answers?" the Professor asked.

"I may have," you answered.

The two of you fell into silence for a moment. He noticed that you noticed him noticing … which made it clear that he didn't want to give you any information, because he wasn't offering. And it should be clear to him that you wouldn't say anymore if he did not offer information himself.

But you had won one insight: Your suspicions were most likely correct. Who would have thought that this meeting would have a benefit in the end?

"I was alone in the castle, not at the Quidditch game. As you may have noticed in the past, that is what I usually do," you offered, changing the topic back to the subject at hand.

Flitwick nodded knowingly. "Yes. This is what I told the Headmaster as well."

"And then I felt something behind my back, so I turned around and saw Montague standing near the entrance with his wand in hand. I guess he was casting the spell silently or he was whispering because I did not hear him before."

Here you saw the Professor's forehead crease.

"The last part is an assumption; I was not very attentive at the time," you said to clear his confusion. But it seemed as if he was thinking about another part of what you had said.

"You said you felt something behind your back? What does that mean?"

Ah. That.

"I felt a breeze behind me," you said, not offering up more explanation.

"A breeze coming from the entrance?" he asked, thinking about the matter. After a few seconds, he added another question: "Or was it that you felt the spellcasting itself?"

"I don't know," you answered without lying.

Another moment of silence followed your words. The tiny Professor was squinting his eyes, as if he was trying to make something out. You were not sure what he was looking at.

A familiar sensation hit your back and you turned around by reflex to see a shoe, hanging in mid-air, silently growing in size until it was as large as the desk before you.

"So, you actually did feel the magic," the Professor said, making you turn back to him to see a small twitch of his mouth as he was trying to suppress a smile.

"Very impressive, Mr. Basques. I do not know how you would develop that a skill at such a young age, but impressive nonetheless."

The sensation you were feeling subsided as soon as the shoe stopped growing. Suddenly your senses where telling you that there was nothing behind you at all. You felt like having been gifted a crude version of what Basques had been capable of.

Soon enough, the shoe disappeared and the Professor made you continue with your story.

"The spell hit me, I was thrown back into the glass vitrine and it broke away under me." Your voice was calm and void of emotion as if you were describing what you had for lunch. A fact that wasn't lost on your head of house.

"There was a lot of blood in the room. May I assume that it was partly yours?"

You did not answer immediately. The feeling was still there, that you didn't want Montague to have a win in this, no matter how small it may seem. Instead of answering, you nodded.

"Why didn't you go to the infirmary then?" Flitwick asked. A sensible question, without a sensible answer.

"I had a potion at hand to heal the wounds." You had clearly answered the 'what' not the 'why'. But you saw Professor Flitwick nod along. Neither in the past, nor in this discussion had there ever been a moment, in which you thought that he didn't get you. Not in three years of school. He, just as your parents, understood your thought processes. A rare skill that would make it annoyingly difficult for you to actually lie to him. So, you did not.

"You were attacked from behind, fell into the vitrine and hurt yourself. How did you continue from there?" Flitwick asked, instead of further questioning your motives.

"I was on the ground and disoriented, so I was too slow to react. He kicked me, then tried to insult and hex me, before I could retaliate. I blocked his attack and disarmed him," you said, going through the event without talking about the details. "I stood up, told him to stop, but he rammed into me and tried to physically subdue me and get to his wand. So, I broke his nose."

Another moment of silence. "With a spell?" the Professor asked, his face still in that serious expression as if he wasn't talking about school children fighting each other.

"With a punch," you said. "Two actually, one hit his ear."

"That is an interesting approach to things," he responded, to which you could only shrug.

"I moved back and stood between him and his wand. He tried attacking me again." And here it was, the moment of truth. There had been a dozen things you could have done without injuring him this way. But at that moment you had been angry, bleeding and tired. Even now, you found it to have been an appropriate reaction. "And then I cast 'Reparo'."

Professor Flitwick's expression did not change in the slightest. He looked at you for a few seconds, before sighing and rubbing the bridge of his nose a second time.

"Do you want to tell me that there was no other way of subduing him?" Flitwick asked.

"No," you answered.

The Professor nibbled on his bottom lip in an uncharacteristic manner. What was he thinking about?

"How heavy was your bleeding?" he asked after a while.

"Significantly," you said without offering further description.

"There is one more thing that you haven't covered yet," Flitwick said. "What happened to the wand of Mr. Montague?"

You attentively watched the man, sitting in his elevated chair before you. Would they expulse you for this? Possibly, but not likely. It didn't matter how you retaliated, you had not started the fight. Still, what you had done at the end had the same sense of gravity like what had happened to Montague's eye. But while that one could be covered entirely as an act of self-defence, you knew this one wasn't just as clear cut.

"What happened to it?" you asked again, without pushing for any fake surprise in your voice. You were not lying, but not offering any assistance.

"It was snapped in half. Quite the accident I assume."

"I did not see that," you said, again not lying. You had never looked back at it, after stomping on the wand.

Flitwick did not offer any commentary to your answer, instead moving on to the next question: "Why didn't you call for help after the attack?"

You didn't need to fool yourself into thinking that he believed you. He simply had chosen to not confront you about it.

"I don't think he'd have called for help, if I had been the one on the ground," you simply stated.

The Professor leaned back into his chair and sighed. He looked uncomfortable all of a sudden. As if he didn't know how to breach another question.

"How-" he said, before stopping himself and rearrange the words in his head. "Are you feeling all right?" he asked.

You looked at him, actually taking some time to think about it, before answering: "Yes, I am. I was angry … I still am angry. But I am fine, this does not change who I am."

Professor Flitwick relaxed before your eyes. It seemed as if he was battling a set of emotions himself, trying to fit all the responsibilities he felt for his pupils and his job into one tiny body.

"I have always given the students in my house the room they need to develop," the Professor said. "Be it strolling around after curfew, painting on walls or standing up for classmates and getting into one or the other fight."

You had quite literally stopped breathing. How did he know about the painting of all things?

Only when you realized how shocked you must have looked; did you try to force yourself into acting calm and normal. How did one even act normal? What did you do with your hands? Where should you be looking at?

"And I will not change my methods of teaching going forwards, but my students need to realize at some point that there are consequences to any actions. They may be positive, or negative, but they will follow as surely as a day follows a night." Professor Flitwick's eyes finally left yours, as he turned to his desk drawer and opened it.

"And some of my students are so bright and so capable that their actions are simply more impactful than those of others. Which means the consequences might grow in significance as well." The Professor tapped something inside the desk drawer with his finger and a tiny cupcake flew out of it, making a big circle around the both of you.

"Do you understand my thinking, Mr. Basques? Do you agree with it?" Flitwick asked, when the cupcake made for a landing and came to a halt on the desk, right in front of you. Your head of house was famous for these delicious little cupcakes. Today, for the first time it looked like a false allure.

"I do not agree," you said instead. The Professor looked surprise at your answer.

"If all we do is think about the consequences, the actions themselves become void of meaning. The significance of an action should not be the reaction of other people," you said.

Your Professor fell silent at your words. The happy dance of the cupcake in front of you subsided.

"So, you mean to tell me that you are happy with the way this turned out?" Flitwick asked. There was a new emotion hiding behind his eyes. You could not place it.

"No, I am not," you said, seeing his expression change again. "I am quite annoyed about what happened. I do not want to quarrel for the right to be who I am. But I will not back away one step, even if the consequences are hard to live with."

There was room for more words, to explain how you felt and what you were thinking. That you didn't think it would have been right for you to backdown. That Montague was simply facing what he had wanted you to … but instead, you fell into silence again.

Your respect for Flitwick did not decrease. But it seemed, as if even someone as wise as he was, did not understand every and all situations.

"Am I allowed to go, Sir? I still have some things I want to do."

Professor Flitwick looked conflicted. His eyes fell onto the cupcake before you that had stayed untouched, before he finally nodded.

You pushed yourself back and out of your chair, before heading out. His voice stopped you at the door.

"Mr. Basques," Flitwick said.

When you turned around to him, you saw a different man. Still tiny and physically weak, but of strong mind and will. A mind that would have been too large for any body, not caged nor hindered inside the small frame.

"I appreciate your development," he said. "To find yourself, you need to think for yourself. But … don't waste your time in anger, regrets, worries, and grudges."

You opened the door and stepped out into the corridor, before you said: "That is the last thing on my mind, Professor."

And with that, you closed the door behind you.


Perk improved: I love surprises II – You are quick on your feet and have developed a vague sense for intense concentration of magic. If you walk into a trap or are surprised otherwise, you get a +10 on the next roll (Up from +5).




Present Date: 18th​ March 1994
Current Wand: Fagus wood, Phoenix feather core


A few days passed and soon enough, the rumour mill hit its stride again. There were hidden looks and whispers, but this time no one actually approached you to ask anything. Not even your housemates. You were not sure about how much truth had gotten out, but you realized that their demeanour had changed. Where everything had been carefree and easy before, you were rarely left on your own now. Whenever you left the common room or a class, now more often than not, there were a few of them randomly hanging back.

Sometimes it was Anthony who needed longer than usual to pack his things after class and who then happened to head into the same direction as you did. Other times you saw Padma and Morag hurry up from their places at the table, when you left the Ravenclaw table early to head into the library. At some point in time, each and every Ravenclaw third-year had been at your back.

They didn't offer any reasoning, nor did they ask you to explain what had actually gone down with Montague. Instead they chose to live their lives as close to you as possible. So more often than not, there were a few Ravenclaw's sitting at a desk in the library near you, spending most of the evening there, only to head for the common room once you left with them. While it was obvious what they were trying to do, you somehow did not feel annoyed by it.

They did not invade your privacy, choosing to leave, if they saw you head into a hidden corridor. This had become an inaudible communication between you that you wanted some space for yourself.

It was not the reassurance of security. At no moment had you ever been afraid of anyone at school. If anyone wanted to come for you, there was nothing you could do but defend yourself. There was no room for fear. You did not want such a trifling matter to cripple your own development. Seeing them stand by your side gave you something different instead. You were … glad for having them think of you. While you logically knew that this was how other people felt and thought, you had never experienced something like this for people of your own age group. And so, with space and time, some of the anger that had been building inside your chest diminished, leaving room for a new sense of appreciation.

That warm feeling grew in intensity, when Friday arrived.

The week prior had brought with it a change in behaviour for most of the Slytherins. They were still a distanced bunch, no one choosing to interact with you anymore than had been common. But the atmosphere surrounding them had transitioned into something new - intangible to any assessment but different nonetheless. Even Professor Snape stopped acknowledging your existence at all, passing by your potion without even a comment or a snarky remark. You did not care about any of this though. The real change came on the last day of the school week.

On Friday, you sat down at your usual spot in Duelling Club. Soon after a familiar figure joined the room. You looked up from your notebook to see Tracey enter the room. For a moment she simply stood there, near the entrance. A few sets of eyes moved to her place; all of them wearing green emblems on their robes.

And then the most curious thing happened. The blonde girl took on every single one of those challenges, staring back as long as it needed until the other broke eye contact by themselves. Then she raised her chin demonstratively, her blonde hair following her quick movement just as passionate as the expression on her face. Tracey showed herself to be unequivocal stubborn and unwilling to budge even a little. Instead she passed by the few rows of chairs between the door and the stage … and sat down right next to you.

Not a single word was spoken between the two of you.

It was not needed.

And that was when you finally noticed that you were an idiot. You were brilliant, but sometimes you were surprised yourself by how dense you could be at times. Had someone asked you a few weeks prior if you had any friends in this world, you would have been hard pressed as how to answer that question. What were friends even?

Now … for the first time in your life, you realized that such a question wouldn't be hard to answer at all.



The month still has two weeks left, in which you will focus on preparing a tool to discover the depths of the Lake. For the past week you have seen your friends – wow, what a weird thing to think of them as that … friends – have been watching over you as much as they could. While you do not fear any kind of retaliation, you do appreciate the thought that there are people who are trying to be there for you. Soon you will head out into the lake and while you can't bring anyone down into its depths with you, you might want to tell someone that you were heading down. They could accompany you to the Lake and wait for you to return.


[ ] This is my own adventure
– You were thankful for their help, but there were things that you could just do on your own. This was one of them. Whatever was waiting below the sea, it was waiting for your eyes alone.

[ ] Day of Ravenclaw – You are heading out to explore the Lake. Ask your house-mates if they want to join you. Whoever might like to join, will come down with you and see you off while the group relaxes near the water. They will be pretty surprised by what you are up to.

[ ] Hufflepuff Getaway – Megan and Justin have been around for a part of the month already. They know more than most of what you do in your free-time and would not be shocked to hear that you were about to start your next adventure. Ask them to join you at the Lake and wait for your return.

[ ] A single Slytherin – Tracey and you have never verbalized your friendship. Her facing down her own house-mates to show flag was as much a sign of support as you could imagine. Your rivalry is unbroken, but it was built on mutual respect. Ask her to join you at the Lake. She will get to read some of your spell notes, while you explore the Lake. She'll be more than happy with that trade-off … even if you are not sure what kind of monster you will be creating with that.




Six-hour Moratorium! As always, please take time to discuss the chapter and the vote first.
 
Last edited:
Very grateful that Flitwick seemed to come in with the voice of reason. I wonder if there will be greater consequences we have yet to see.
 
Ant that was when you finally noticed that you were an idiot. You were brilliant, but sometimes you were surprised yourself by how dense you could be at times. Had someone asked you a few weeks prior if you had any friends in this world, you would have been hard pressed as how to answer that question. What were friends even?

Now … for the first time in your life, you realized that such a question wouldn't be hard to answer at all.
Ok Jacob, I am proud of you for finally realizing this extremely obvious thing.

Hopefully in the coming tuns we will stop the insane min max spiral and have at least a couple of personal action to socialise around hogwarts.


[ ] Day of Ravenclaw – You are heading out to explore the Lake. Ask your house-mates if they want to join you. Whoever might like to join, will come down with you and see you off while the group relaxes near the water. They will be pretty surprised by what you are up to.

[ ] Hufflepuff Getaway – Megan and Justin have been around for a part of the month already. They know more than most of what you do in your free-time and would not be shocked to hear that you were about to start your next adventure. Ask them to join you at the Lake and wait for your return.

[ ] A single Slytherin – Tracey and you have never verbalized your friendship. Her facing down her own house-mates to show flag was as much a sign of support as you could imagine. Your rivalry is unbroken, but it was built on mutual respect. Ask her to join you at the Lake. She will get to read some of your spell notes, while you explore the Lake. She'll be more than happy with that trade-off … even if you are not sure what kind of monster you will be creating with that.
About this I am fine with whatever wins... I have a small preference towards Ravenclaw or Tracey but nothing to write home sbout.
 
I am thinking a single slytherin, what Tracey did took guts, we can do something with Ravenclaw and hufflepuff in the future. We have some really good notes and if those notes include the notes on the patronous charm, well it may just save her life.
Edit: has the choice to avoid Harry deliberate or just Jacob's total disinterest in people.
 
Last edited:
Hm, that Professor Snape is merely ignoring Jacob instead of inflicting some sort of retaliation is surprisingly generous of him. The Slytherins' own feelings on the incident seem... complicated.
 
That chapter just baffled me, I don't understand the reasoning at all for the first part and it just seems to have come out of no where.

The entire sequence of events in that part was so strange, a Hogwarts student walking into Hogsmeade to buy a potion covered in blood and still bleeding? Just ... what? And I guess no one else is gonna comment on that, the residents or seller didn't react with concern at all, and no one was contacted from the narrative. Oh and it was so he didn't Montague didn't get the satisfaction of ... what exactly? Something that was apparently worse than walking into the middle of a village covered in blood?
 
Hm, that Professor Snape is merely ignoring Jacob instead of inflicting some sort of retaliation is surprisingly generous of him. The Slytherins' own feelings on the incident seem... complicated.
On the one hand, house loyalty. On the other hand, Snape wishes he could have inflicted half as much damage on the Marauders. He has a lot of consideration for victims of bullying and vicious attacks.
 
Last edited:
That chapter just baffled me, I don't understand the reasoning at all for the first part and it just seems to have come out of no where.

The entire sequence of events in that part was so strange, a Hogwarts student walking into Hogsmeade to buy a potion covered in blood and still bleeding? Just ... what? And I guess no one else is gonna comment on that, the residents or seller didn't react with concern at all, and no one was contacted from the narrative. Oh and it was so he didn't Montague didn't get the satisfaction of ... what exactly? Something that was apparently worse than walking into the middle of a village covered in blood?

Jacob has had personality developments with every new Trait. The Lupin trait seemed to have made him more stubborn as well. Has good and bad sides, I guess.
 
Jacob has had personality developments with every new Trait. The Lupin trait seemed to have made him more stubborn as well. Has good and bad sides, I guess.
I don't see what that has to do with the situation at all, as the entire narrative of the scene is strange and doesn't make sense if you go through it. It requires stupidity or nonchalance from a great deal of people, that a Hogwarts student bleeding heavily and clearly very injured garners garners zero response from anyone. There's a certain amount of absurdity that's understandable in a story, and that just goes way past it for me personally into being disingenuous.

The character motivation is equally poor given if taken at face value (regardless of whether it makes sense on its own), walking into a village covered in blood is going to garner a far larger reaction and questions.
 
Found this on Friday and read/skimmed through it all while I should have been working. Oops. Really enjoyed this.

I am thinking a single slytherin, what Tracey did took guts, we can do something with Ravenclaw and hufflepuff in the future. We have some really good notes and if those notes include the notes on the patronous charm, well it may just save her life.
Edit: has the choice to avoid Harry deliberate or just Jacob's total disinterest in people.

My thoughts were Jacob has already had moments with Megan and Justin and with the Ravenclaws. Tracey's actions were practically shouting from the rooftops when it comes to Slytherin subtlety. I honestly feel like those actions are worth trying to establish a further connection.

Hm, that Professor Snape is merely ignoring Jacob instead of inflicting some sort of retaliation is surprisingly generous of him. The Slytherins' own feelings on the incident seem... complicated.

As someone already posted above, Snape does not view bullies in a positive light, even if he is one himself. The fact that he is being neutral and ignoring Jacob is probably the most positive interaction you will get out of the man given the circumstances.
 
Hm, that Professor Snape is merely ignoring Jacob instead of inflicting some sort of retaliation is surprisingly generous of him. The Slytherins' own feelings on the incident seem... complicated.
I think the Slytherin mindset at play here is the "Stealing is fine, so long as you aren't caught." If Monty won, congrats to him from the snakes. But since he lost... his rep is down in the gutter right next to Jacob for winning the fight.
 
The entire sequence of events in that part was so strange, a Hogwarts student walking into Hogsmeade to buy a potion covered in blood and still bleeding? Just ... what? And I guess no one else is gonna comment on that, the residents or seller didn't react with concern at all, and no one was contacted from the narrative.
We don't know that it happen that way? He could have easily cleaned and bandaged himself up, and Jacob isn't exactly someone that would explain what happenef without prompting. He didn't go to the infirmary so that Montague didn't know how badly he hurt him, and to avoid further contact with him, seems pretty clear to me why he did that.
I don't see what that has to do with the situation at all, as the entire narrative of the scene is strange and doesn't make sense if you go through it. It requires stupidity or nonchalance from a great deal of people, that a Hogwarts student bleeding heavily and clearly very injured garners garners zero response from anyone. There's a certain amount of absurdity that's understandable in a story, and that just goes way past it for me personally into being disingenuous.

The character motivation is equally poor given if taken at face value (regardless of whether it makes sense on its own), walking into a village covered in blood is going to garner a far larger reaction and questions.
This entire premise is based on the huge assumption that he just walked in a store bleeding and dirty. They could have not even known he was a student if Jacob changed clothes.
 
We don't know that it happen that way? He could have easily cleaned and bandaged himself up, and Jacob isn't exactly someone that would explain what happenef without prompting. He didn't go to the infirmary so that Montague didn't know how badly he hurt him, and to avoid further contact with him, seems pretty clear to me why he did that.

This entire premise is based on the huge assumption that he just walked in a store bleeding and dirty. They could have not even known he was a student if Jacob changed clothes.

We didn't have any potions before refusing to go to the Hospital wing, so we went to town instead, lost four gallions and some change, and found ourselves with a potion in the next scene. I dont think it's terribly difficult to fill in the gaps here.
 
We didn't have any potions before refusing to go to the Hospital wing, so we went to town instead, lost four gallions and some change, and found ourselves with a potion in the next scene. I dont think it's terribly difficult to fill in the gaps here.

Yes. The wizards made a very smart move when they decided to base their currency on healing potion components :V
 
We didn't have any potions before refusing to go to the Hospital wing, so we went to town instead, lost four gallions and some change, and found ourselves with a potion in the next scene. I dont think it's terribly difficult to fill in the gaps here.
My point wasn't that he did not go to a store though. Rather, it was that he did not go to a store dirty and bleeding.
 
I am hesitating between the all alone option and the hufflepuff option. Before the last chapter I would have voted directly for the 'alone' option as it was the most in character option. However, the last chapter showed great character development towards acknowledging friends and a willingness to rely on them. In that direction, I think going with the hufflepuff option makes the most sense as they are in the know about some of our adventures.

Very nice chapter character development wise !
 
This entire premise is based on the huge assumption that he just walked in a store bleeding and dirty. They could have not even known he was a student if Jacob changed clothes.
I googled Hogwarts uniform and it is pretty much black so it is very difficult to notice that the person is bleeding as red can hide pretty well in black clothing. So it is entirely possible that Jacob did just walk into a store and bought a potion while he was bleeding and no one noticed since the black uniform absorbed the blood and hid it by being really dark to begin with.
 
The entire sequence of events in that part was so strange, a Hogwarts student walking into Hogsmeade to buy a potion covered in blood and still bleeding? Just ... what? And I guess no one else is gonna comment on that, the residents or seller didn't react with concern at all, and no one was contacted from the narrative. Oh and it was so he didn't Montague didn't get the satisfaction of ... what exactly? Something that was apparently worse than walking into the middle of a village covered in blood?
Presumably, some other Hogwarts students have also visited Hogsmeade for private medical attention before.

As for the reason, he broke Montague's wand last update to make sure Montague didn't try that again, Ender Wiggin style. Seeing him injured would run counter to that. His victory had to seem complete for that to work.
 
Last edited:
I think the Slytherin mindset at play here is the "Stealing is fine, so long as you aren't caught." If Monty won, congrats to him from the snakes. But since he lost... his rep is down in the gutter right next to Jacob for winning the fight.

This is my supposition on the idea that Montague has told the whole story of what happened to some people in Slytherin, as Draco was shown to do in the books, and gossip has spread it around the school.

The way Jacob fought probably draws mixed feelings from all the houses depending on how the story was presented to them. Gryffindor and Hufflepuff appreciating the way Jacob handled the fight at the beginning. Refusing to give up after being knocked down and kicked, throwing punches when needed, giving his opponent the opportunity to walk away. It's brave and honorable and very much in line with both the respective heroic and workmanlike ethics of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. On the other hand it's counter to how Ravenclaw and Slytherin view this kind of thing. It was brutish, simple, and stupid to their standards.

The way the fight ended and how two parted flips it around though. He won with a trick and a nasty one that put out another student's eye. He broke his opponent's wand and left him bleeding and injured until some teacher or student found him or he made his way to the infirmary. For Hufflepuff and Gryffindor this is taking an honorable fight, winning it wrong, and then not doing the honorable thing of making sure your opponent will have no hard feelings or at least not die.

For Ravenclaw and Slytherin though what Jacob did was good because he did it in a clever way, proceeded to make it so his enemy would not attempt to do it again, that he couldn't do it again, and any of Montague's allies would think thrice before wanting the same thing to happen to them. Clever if cruel I would imagine would cause some real division in Ravenclaw but Jacob is liked in his year of his house and house loyalty means that those that don't know him in Ravenclaw still side with him as the winner. I believe some Slytherin would side with Jacob because it was cruel and to the point and handled that if Montague had done the same as Jacob in using a healing potion none would have known it happened. The matter would have been settled between two pure bloods. Their standing on who is the better answered.

Instead Montague is making a big deal of it, I'm sure more than a few Slytherin wish he would have taken his beating and healing and just stayed silent. He made his play and lost. Such a thing has to be common in any high society. The smart ones, that don't just side with Montague out of house loyalty, will distance themselves from him and his family and keep an eye out for the strange Ravenclaw that is useful for getting Hogsmeade items and see if he can be useful for other things.
 
Last edited:
Presumably, some other Hogwarts students have also visited Hogsmeade for private medical attention before.

As for the reason, he broke Montague's wand last update to make sure Montague didn't try that again, Ender Wiggin style. Seeing him injured would run counter to that. His victory had to seem complete for that to work.
Not far from the trophy room, you disappeared around the corner and into a concealed stairway heading down. You left your bloody marks everywhere, even as you were trying to touch as few things as possible. Once the excitement had subsided, there was only the realization of how deep the cuts in your back felt. The wounds in your shoulders were still bleeding down into your hands and your arms were beginning to feel cold and numb. A dark feeling was brooding inside you that you had rarely felt for another person before.
This is literally how's he's described. How others viewed him, is likely to be worse after however long it took to get to Hogsmeade. The fact he got cut also means his clothes themselves would be shredded making it all the more noticeable.Going to Hogsmead for private care vs that shouldn't be remotely comparable.

When he puts the potion on himself he described himself as still bleeding.

When he went back to the dorm he mentioned his clothes being bloody, showing he didn't clean them.
 
Back
Top