April 10th, 1890 — Wizzhard Books, Before Opening

It was difficult to keep this to herself since she'd first heard the news that the publisher was going forward with her piece, but she had managed to do so — all in preparation for this moment. She was positively buzzing with excitement as she made her way to the shop early that morning. Partly she had planned this timing to ensure that she had Zachariah and his attention all to herself, before the shop opened; partly it was out of necessity, as she had to get to work herself promptly after leaving here.

After being let in by the employee downstairs, Jules hastily made her way through the shelves until she found her brother. "Zachariah," she greeted warmly, moving to the nearest windowsill and perching herself atop it. "I'm sorry to bother you but I have to be off in a moment for the shop, and I couldn't keep this to myself another day," she explained brightly, opening her cloak and reaching into a large interior pocket to remove the copy of the journal she'd received the day before.

"The spring edition of New Research for Wizardkind came out yesterday," she said, flipping her copy open and finding the section written by Professor Marlowe Forfang. "And there's something I want you to read."

Zachariah Binns

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   Madeleine Backus

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Zach took delight in personally shelving newly acquired books. Sure, he could have sent them off by magic, but there was nothing quite as exhilarating as smelling newly printed texts. He was quite excited for their release as they were written by a Hogmeade local. Forbes had done a lovely job creating the poster to advertise it. It was in the transfiguration section that Julianna found him.

"Julianna!" He called out fondly, gently placing the books he was meant to shelve on a stool to finish after she departed. "You are never a bother," he stated, firmly, and he meant it. He would always spare a moment for his dear sister.

When he spotted the journal, he beamed with excitement. "Oh?" Eagerly, he reached out for the journal and quickly began reading the indicated section.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

Giving him a moment to read it was more difficult than she had anticipated. She had to sit on her hands to keep from fidgeting after he took it, and bit the inside of her lip lightly to try to keep from smiling as she eagerly watched his expression. Juliana had wanted him to read the entire thing before she made her announcement, but now that she was so close to being able to share the news, she felt ready to burst with it. She waited as long as she could manage, which was almost certainly not enough time for him to have even skimmed the entirety of the article. Then, her tone somewhere between the delight of a child on Christmas morning and the pride of a painter placing a signature on their magnus opus, she said, "It's mine. I wrote it."

Hopefully she'd given him at least enough time to get a sense of what it actually was. The title, of course, left no doubt as to the subject matter: On the Habits of Werewolves. The abstract and introduction lead to a very brief overview of her methodology, which was primarily a description of how many subjects she had interviewed and over what periods of time she'd been actively engaged in correspondence with them. The bulk of the article was devoted to her findings, which detailed some of the precautions werewolves involved in the study either had taken or were currently taking to keep themselves and others safe during full moons. This was followed by a rather passionate discussion section which put forth the (in some circles, anyway) radical idea that werewolves, for the most part, actually rather preferred not to murder innocents every month. That had been the easiest part of the article to write, but the hardest to edit — it was difficult to sound detached and academic about something that she felt so strongly about. The conclusion that followed was little more than a summary, and the article ended with a list of references to what little published academic literature existed on werewolves that was, in her expert opinion, not complete and utter garbage.

"What do you think?" she asked eagerly, leaning forward from her perch on the windowsill. Zachariah knew (as few others did) that she had been conducting research for years, with the goal of being published someday — but this was the first time she had told him what she was researching, so there was no telling what he would think.

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Zach wasn't a slow reader, but he could feel Julianna's eager eyes burning into him as he perused the article, which slowed his pace somewhat. Werewolves? What a curious topic! Part of him couldn't help but feel worried that his sister was about to reveal she was one, but he banished that thought, assuming she was just excited about a new finding.

He'd scarcely gotten into the meat of it before she spoke up, and he peered at her in surprise from over the top of the journal. Shock morphed into joy. If he hadn't already been standing, he would have leapt to his feet. "This is all your work?! Published! Jules, this is wonderful." Of course, he was casting judgement before he'd fully read the article, but he was just so proud that his sister's work had been published at all. He was an academic at heart, so there were very few topics he refused to engage with. Certain topics he couldn't sell at his shop, but that was mainly to keep away any uproar. He referred those customers to Gordon Gibson.

"I think I would love to read it in its entirety," he answered, a teasing glint in his eye. He would likely read it twenty times over when he had the chance! "I didn't realize this was the topic you were pursuing. What an interesting choice. Is this truly what interests you most?" The question wasn't met with scrutiny. It seemed Zachariah truly wished to know of her interest. "I do think it's wise you did not publish under your name, which is a terrible shame that has become such common practice to avoid societal outrage." His remark was laced with an odd amount of sarcasm. In his opinion, most topics shouldn't be censored to appease the sensitivities of the public.

He glanced down at the journal and started skimming once more, impressed. "How did you locate so many willing interviewees? Lycanthropy isn't something discussed in most circles."

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

The fact that Zachariah was meeting her revelation with positivity and not with doubt or criticism set Juliana's spirits even higher. She had trusted Zach, of course, which was why she'd brought this to him in the first place, but there was still the germ of worry that had been lingering in her mind. That was the reason she hadn't told him the subject matter she was writing on sooner, because she anticipated that he would be at least a little disapproving. Not in a judgemental way, necessarily, but in a protective way. Cavorting around with werewolves wasn't exactly something recommended to keep young ladies safe and sound. True, she'd been careful most of the time, but she had taken occasional risks that she knew would have made her mother's hair stand on end if she knew about them.

But it was all worth it now, to be published!

"I've been working on it for years, that's how," she explained, nearly gushing. "I've taken out ads in the papers and posted them in taverns and exchanged a lot of letters, and I even had a few real interviews," she continued. "Where we both arrived by separate doors and there was a charmed screen between us to keep either of us from identifying the other. That's the only reason I started working in the first place, you know — I had to have money to pay for it, and to compensate my subjects for their time. No one else knows, of course — I think Mother thinks I spend it all on biscuits and candy," she said with a giggle.

"And yes, to your first point; it's the thing I care about more than anything else," she continued enthusiastically. "These people I talk to are all so human, Zach, and they're never treated that way, and I hope when my research is all published, that can change. I'm not embarrassed about it in the least bit," she insisted. "I would have published under my own name, if I thought they would have given it a second glance. I don't care about how it's received," (this was not entirely true, but in the moment Jules believed it) "...but a professor has a lot more credibility than a Hogwarts drop-out."

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

Zachariah tensed slightly when it seemed her sister had conducted a few interviews in person. He trusted she'd been careful about it all and hadn't scheduled any under the light of the full moon. However, it was his brotherly duty to worry, despite his reluctance to say as much in the moment. He didn't want to ruin her excitement.

"I appreciate the precautions you have taken both for your safety and theirs," he commented, deciding it was the most tactful way to convey his feelings on the manner. "Very well thought out."

Zach's eyes crinkled with laughter, "Mother has wondered what you've been doing with it. I've suggested that perhaps you are saving up for a place of your own. I shan't tell." He had a rather gentle way of guiding their mother on to other topics of conversation without her realizing he was doing so.

His smile widened as Jules expressed her passion for the subject, his eyes lighting up much like they did when they were children and he'd been content to listen all about her day. "Yes, but I do hope you're going to be cautious about not revealing yourself. I can try and help you keep your cover by talking your Professor Forfang up as some sort of recluse."

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

"Oh no!" she said in response to his comment about their mother, though her alarm was only half genuine. "How terribly inconvenient it would be to live alone. I'll have to start talking about some other project I've been saving for, so she doesn't think I'm about to move out," Jules mused. While she understood that some people needed a certain degree of freedom from their parents at a given stage in life, she had never found her parents difficult to live with in the slightest. She pretended to be annoyed sometimes when her mother made demands on her time, particularly when they involved going to parties or other social events that she wasn't interested in of her own accord, but the truth was that this was a very small price to pay for the continued living arrangement. Generally, she enjoyed her parents' company, and they let her do more or less what she pleased with her time outside of work. Besides, if she went to live on her own, how on earth would she eat? She'd have to hire her own cook, she imagined, because there was no chance that she'd be able to put together a meal on her own — and she certainly couldn't afford that while keeping up her copious amounts of research.

Although, she supposed, there was a chance that if her research was well-received and they wanted to publish more of it, she might get some income from that. How amazing would that be, to actually be paid to do the thing she loved doing? It was probably unrealistic, since she didn't think academic papers ever paid exceptionally well even for the most profound and meaningful research, but even getting some pittance from it would be something to be proud of, she thought.

"That's kind of you," she said in response to his offer to tell people Professor Forfang was a recluse, "But I doubt it will be necessary. It's just one journal article," she pointed out. "And it's not as though the whole of society reads academic research. I don't think he'll become a sensation," she said with a slight giggle — never dreaming that by this time next month, the 'elusive Professor Forfang' would actually find himself featured on the front page of the Prophet.

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules