Welcome to Charming, where swirling petticoats, the language of flowers, and old-fashioned duels are only the beginning of what is lying underneath…
After a magical attempt on her life in 1877, Queen Victoria launched a crusade against magic that, while tidied up by the Ministry of Magic, saw the Wizarding community exiled to Hogsmeade, previously little more than a crossroad near the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In the years that have passed since, Hogsmeade has suffered plagues, fires, and Victorian hypocrisy but is still standing firm.
Thethe year is now 1894. It’s time to join us and immerse yourself in scandal and drama interlaced with magic both light and dark.
George did not often make the journey to the Holyhead Harpies stadium. One too many of his sisters teammates seemed to take delight in seeing how flushed they could make him get. Plot twist: a lot in mere seconds. It made him uncomfortable so he tended to only be within any stadium when an actual game was happening. There was never much reason for him to stop by one of Gus's practices anyway.
This time around, however, he had noticed that she seemed to have forgotten the lunch box he had fixed up for her earlier that morning before he had gone to work. He knew how famished Gus got during practices and he had part of the afternoon off... so he had not seen the harm in stopping by the stadium to drop it off.
Captain & First-String Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies
29 year old Halfblood
5 ft. 3 in.
❤ Spinster
Played by MJ
142 Posts
34 Likes
Someone else had sidled onto the pitch in the middle of practice. Huh. Gus kept one eye on the hoops as the team threw increasingly hearty rounds of penalty shots for the keeper to save, but when her most recent turn was over, she freewheeled around to catch the rebounding quaffle, tucked it under her arm, and soared in a slow arc down towards the ground.
It was George. That in itself was strange, and there was a momentary swooping fear in her stomach that wasn’t just from the dive she’d done, because he didn’t often show up at Holyhead unannounced. Could something be wrong?
In her rush to read his expression, she didn’t bother dismounting yet, just skimmed the ground on her broom a little ways behind him and bounced the quaffle off the back of his shoulder, gently, just enough to get his attention as quickly as possible. “Georgie?” Gus exclaimed, a little out of breath. “What’re you doing here?”
George was getting increasingly uncomfortable in the company of Augusta's colleagues. She must have been among the group already up in the air. It wasn't like he knew the ins and outs of how these practices were conducted.
He turned when he felt something his hit shoulder and his relief at seeing his sister was palpable. It was written right across his face. "You forgot the lunch I made you," he explained, taking it out of his satchel to hand it over.
Captain & First-String Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies
29 year old Halfblood
5 ft. 3 in.
❤ Spinster
Played by MJ
142 Posts
34 Likes
Gus’ expression mirrored her brother’s relief, although in her case she was just pleased he hadn’t come with bad news. She had to grin fondly at his actual reason for coming all this way, though: she stepped off her broom properly and skidded the rest of the way over to pluck her packed lunch out of his grasp. “Aw, you shouldn’t have,” she said, with a laugh.
“Thanks, George,” she added. By now, the visitor to the pitch had gotten a few more of her teammates’ attention, and someone, from a distance, wolf-whistled when she saw it was George. Gus valiantly tried to purse her lips so as not to betray any amusement. She fancied her brother would not be... happy about that.
Captain & First-String Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies
29 year old Halfblood
5 ft. 3 in.
❤ Spinster
Played by MJ
142 Posts
34 Likes
Gus stuck her tongue out, privately delighted by that show of cheek from her little brother, although she screwed up her face as if offended. “Charming,” she said, with narrowed eyes and an evil grin, and thought she might get away with just a pinch of teasing retaliation. “He cooks, too!” she yelled up at her onlooking teammates, and waggled her brows at George.
(She didn’t like other people making fun of him, but she could, and really he didn’t give himself credit, so if anyone had to shout from the rooftops about his qualities, it wasn’t going to be him.) “I could make them fight for a taste, if you like,” she teased.
George's face went red right up to the very tips of his ears. Which, of course, made his freckles stand out even more. He coughed a little at his sisters next words. "Please, don't," he mumbled. He should have just let starve.
Captain & First-String Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies
29 year old Halfblood
5 ft. 3 in.
❤ Spinster
Played by MJ
142 Posts
34 Likes
She pressed her lips tightly together to stop from laughing at poor Georgie’s distress. A little prod was fine, but she daren’t go too far – he was a sensitive soul, and all too easy to tip over the edge. “Oi, knock it off!” she called up to her most raucous teammates, as if she hadn’t been egging them on a moment ago.
“I’m kidding, kidding,” she added, expression softening. “But hey, do you want to stay?”
George felt relieved as Gus admonished her teammates. Or at least more or less did. "I brought along my own lunch so we could eat together before I head back," George agreed with a nod.
Captain & First-String Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies
29 year old Halfblood
5 ft. 3 in.
❤ Spinster
Played by MJ
142 Posts
34 Likes
“You’re a treasure,” she said, with only fondness and no sarcasm. Sometimes she thought they’d do okay, the pair of them, whether or not their mother ever got better or (Merlin forbid) passed away. They were a team, a good one. Sometimes Gus thought her brother was probably one of her best friends.
“Come on then, let’s go sit,” she urged, nodding towards the stands. “I know where we’ll get the best view.”
