Traditions Never Die

[Jeremy Thorne]

The first week of the school year had seemed to fly by for Jeremy. With tryouts, prefect meetings, and NEWT classes, Jeremy had had little time to eat and sleep let alone do anything else. He wouldn't trade it for anything though. This was the last year he would be at Hogwarts New Zealand and Jeremy Thorne was determined to make the most of this year. He'd already devised a plan to casually bump into Kendra Snow, so that he could talk to her. It was silly, but Jeremy couldn't help him. He had an ever growing crush on the Slytherin girl. Finally able to wear something other than his uniform, Jeremy had dressed quickly in Muggle clothing [sup]1[/sup] and he left his common room. His first time was a time-honored tradition between himself and one of his oldest friends.

Stepping swiftly up to the North Tower, Jeremy tried to think back on when this tradition had begun and he could not. He could simply remember his smaller, younger self sitting on the window sill, laughing as he learned sign language or read over Sapphire's shoulder. Jeremy was eager to find out how things had gone for his friend over the vacation. He'd been out of New Zealand for a while and his dad didn't subscribe to any of the newspapers since they were available for free at work, so Jeremy knew nothing of what might have happened with that woman who'd held Saph captive. Sitting on the sill, Jeremy looked out the window towards the Forbidden Forest. Already the Deputy Headmaster had found students in the forest and deducted housepoints for it. Ravenclaw was in a bad hole thanks to that one girl, but he hoped they would be able to get out of it soon.

---

[sup]1[/sup]http://www.superiorpics.com/pictures2/6361_merrim72446.jpg

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

A rule of life was that somethings had to change. Sapphire Bookchild was an example of this. The girl who walked into the North Tower was not the meek, self conscious girl who had been nearly afraid of everyone at the school because she thought they would laugh at her. Instead she had grown into a confidant young woman who didn't seem to mind that she would always be strange and unusual. Sapphire had chosen to ware tight hip hugging jeans and a leather top that zipped up at the front though Sapphire had purposely had left it unzipped slightly too low. Her hair was wild but a controlled sort of wild that looked good. Somethings though never changed, like the fact that she met up with her best friend at the start of the school year in the North Tower.

"Well then it seems that Mr. Head Boy had found the time see me at last." She said laughing then threw her arms around Jeremy in a friendly hug. She had wanted to see his face when he heard her slight Greek accent coming from her mouth. Sapphire had of course let the entire school know that she was no longer a mute by singing for everyone down at the Entrance hall which had been fun and she had made a new friend. "Did Doodle find you with the news that Dympna had was captured and sent to Akasban? The Ministry found some of the kids but three are still missing. Or so Ruby told me once I was able to get a word out of her that wasn't a riddle." She said thinking of when Ruby had first come home. It had been as if she had refused to believe that she was free at last.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy didn't hear her coming, but that wasn't much of a surprise to the Ravenclaw. This friend's steps were usually pretty silent like the rest of her. So, when someone spoke to Jeremy and enveloped him in a hug, Jeremy was confused as hell. Surely, whoever this was that was speaking had him confused with someone else. But she said Mr. Head Boy and that's...me he realized. As the person pulled back a bit, Jeremy saw that it was indeed Sapphire. Silent, mute Sapphire who'd he had always seen and never heard. Jeremy had heard talk the other day of Sapphire performing in the Entrance Hall, but he'd been busy doing something for Professor Spenser and assumed that the students were exaggerating a bit. He sat, listening, dumbstruck as she asked him whether he'd received the owl. It seemed that Dympna had been captured and arrested. The news was music to his ears but not more so than his friend's melodic voice. He couldn't place the accent but knew it was not a New Zealand or American one.

Shaking the cobwebs out, Jeremy took in his friend's very different appearance. Sapphire was all grown up now. "You can talk? How? When?" he asked in a rush. The Head Boy was so rarely confused but this was...a miracle. It took him several moments to even remember to answer the rest of what she'd said. He shook his head. "No, he didn't. I was in between my mom and dad's places all summer so it might be that he kept missing me." He was glad to hear that she was no longer a problem.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

Sapphire laughed. She loved the reactions of those that still didn't know. "Midwinter. Woke up one morning complaining of a bug bite and haven't shut up since." She said jokingly. The day that she got her voice back would forever be recorded in her mind as well as maybe her skin because of the set of stars that she had had tattooed on her temple. When her voice came back so had her eyesight so she didn't need her glasses anymore though that had been no curse, it had been her mind trying to make not see the cruelty that was going on in the house. Sapphire happy for it but if she ever felt like looking like a hipster she would just punch out the lenses.

Sapphire shook her head, sending black curls everywhere. "No wonder Doodle was a confused ****y bird every time he came back. Even had to show him where his perch was when he came back. Also explanes why you never wrote back." She said. Sapphire had been saddened that her closest friend wouldn't even consider writing her a uninspired note but then she had been assured that boys tended to be really bad at writing back. "Well now now you know. Dympna was captured about a week before the second month of winter break, a few days afterwards my voice came back on that same day Ruby got picked up from St. Mungo's and we took her for ice cream now I made Morgan swear that she was going to wait at least an hour after she's eaten to let Ruby go into the bathroom. Her mental statues is not as bad as some of the ones that had to stay in the psychiatric ward but she's pretty bad so I spent most of my winter taking care of Ruby. Now she sent me a letter with a play by play overview of her week without me." Sapphire said rolling her eyes at the last part. She loved her little sister even though they where not really related. Sapphire would protect the girl with her life but that didn't mean that particularly liked how clingy her sister could be.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy was fairly amused by the volume of words escaping Sapphire but he reasoned that if he were in her position and had just recently regained his voice, he'd probably be a bit eager to get all of his ideas out as well. Leaning his back against the window, Jeremy simply listened and let Sapphire speak. He barely even moved, not wanting to interrupt her in the slightest. His blue eyes did take in the line of tattooing around her eye. He wasn't much into tattoos but it did look alright on her and he was sure they held some sortvof symbolic meaning for her. It was when he was looking at that that he realized something else different about her. "No more glasses either, huh?" he mentioned. Sapphire had undergone a complete makeover, it seemed.

Jeremy shifted a bit as she mentioned him not writing back. The Ravenclaw had the feeling that the owl probably kept missing him and he'd done nothing to communicate with Sapphire. It wasn't that he didn't want to. He'd just been super busy, which was no excuse of course. If he really wanted to, he could have written to her first. "So, Ruby is with you now? Sounds like your vacation was great. You got everything you could have wanted" Jeremy said, a smile crossing his face. Surely, Sapphire deserved some small measure of good luck in her life. She had not been dealt a fair deck of cards but she had certainly tried her best with what she had. He was proud of her for that.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

Sapphire used the palm of her hand to push up imaginary glasses. "Wouldn't you know it? My eye sight was completely psychosomatic. I never had to ware them in the first place but it was as if my mind wanted to stop me from seeing the things I saw. I'm lucky I didn't make myself completely blind." She said adding a tisk at the end. She tried to play off the fact that she was flattered that Jeremy had noticed that she didn't ware gasses anymore. Sapphire had had a fling over the winter break in order to prove to herself that she was in fact date-able it had been fun but in the end Alex and her had decided that they where better off as friends.

She waived off the last comment. "I'm working on it. Now all that's left is to start on my career as a comic book illustrator. I'll maybe start off working for creators of The Mad Muggle. Anyway how was globe hopping between parents. Are they compeletly evil when you mention one to the other or are your parents friends even though they are not together anymore?" She asked. Sapphire had heard of both senarios where the parents are better off living without each other to make better parents. Sapphire was still thinking about maybe figuring out where her birth parents where but she didn't want to insult Morgan who had taken her in so kindly.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy found what Sapphire was saying extremely interesting. He had never heard of anything like this happening before and wondered if there was anything in the healing book that he'd received as a congratulations for becoming Head Boy that spoke about psychosomatic issues. He nodded his agreement. Considering all she'd been through, the fact that she hadn't driven herself to think she was blind was pretty lucky. "Yeah...lucky" he snorted. The seventh year continued to listen to Sapphire speak, surprised that she was already thinking about her future career. Two years ago, Jeremy didn't really have a clue what he wanted to do, though he was beginning to think about healing as a career. Now, he was sure that there was nothing else for him to do. He knew that his friend would be a fantastic illustrator. She already was.

Shrugging his shoulders, Jeremy pondered the question. "It depends on the day, I guess" he began. "When they first divorced, they were really horrible to each other, sending howlers to each other every day. And then they got to a point where they just didn't acknowledge each other." Jeremy was only now able to speak about his parents not being together anymore. It had been a horrible experience for him, especially at the beginning just because he always felt like he was in the middle. "They were actually talking this summer though. I think my becoming Head Boy made them forget how much they hate each other" he said with an eye roll. Both wanted to take responsibility for their son becoming Head Boy much in the same way that they had when Alana had become Head Girl of Hogwarts Scotland. "Are you going to try out for quidditch this year?" Jeremy asked, a smile creeping back onto his face.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

Sapphire chuckled at this. "At least they're getting along better. Makes me wonder what mine would have been like had I been allowed to stay with them. I want to know what happened to them but a part of me is scared you know? What if I find out that they just didn't want me?" Sapphire waived the thought off with her hand. "But that's something for me to wonder on my own really." She added in a lighthearted tone. She really did wonder these things but she was sure that she could get over this fear on her own. If not she had Elvira to talk to or Ruby when she was not thinking about herself and her looks. She was sure that Jeremy was not all that interested in even more sadness in her life.

Jeremy brought up Quidditch and the smile came back to Sapphire as well. "I would love to but can't. One I'm not sure if I'm good enough to take the place of the current Keeper and two Kate and I are thinking about starting a little string quartet to play some semi-classical music that we like to play and I compose sometimes. Your still Quidditch captain still I suppose?" She asked with a cheeky grin. Sapphire could not help herself at this point but she was starting to discover that she had a thing for men in Quiddich uniforms. She had found herself more than once biting her lip when she looked pictures of the professionals in the sports sections of the Profit but at least she wasn't alone in this one. She had also found that she wasn't the only one that found Quiddich uniforms attractive.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy listened to Sapphire and nodded his agreement. He was thankful that his parents were getting along better now and hoped that it would continue. He wasn't naive enough to think that they'd get back together but he hoped that they would be friendly from now on. He could certainly understand Sapphire's concerns and he knew that there wasn't really much for him to say. It was something she'd have to work out on her own, if and when she wanted to. "I think it's normal that you're scared to find out. If you weren't, I'd be worried" he said, nudging her with his shoulder and grinning. Besides her dress, there seemed to be something different about Sapphire, something he couldn't quite put his finger on. It had nothing to do with her physical appearance either.

As she answered his question, Jeremy glanced over at her, his blue eyes curious. He had never known that she could play an instrument and wondered what other talents his friend possessed. She seemed to be good at anything creative. "Yeah, I'm the only captain for the Ravenclaw team this year. Will you at least come and cheer me on or are you going to be too busy composing music to do that?" he asked with a bit of a pout. Jeremy realized what he was doing and pulled back. He knew that some friends were flirty with each other sometimes but he didn't want to give Sapphire the wrong idea. It was just that he was so comfortable around Sapphire that he sometimes didn't realize it until afterwards. "I'll come watch one of your performances" he bribed, even though he knew he'd go to watch his friend even if she hated quidditch and refused to watch him play.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

"Afraid of what Dympna having taken all my scared away? She may have taken all my absolute terror but I still think like that somethings are scary. Like the image of Professor Styx in his under birches." She joked. Sapphire gave a mock shiver while putting her hand over her mouth to make it seem like she was holding in a gasp. Sapphire felt as if the person that had been inside her all this time was coming out now that she could talk and she was truly free. She didn't take his pout as anything ether. Sapphire and Alex flirted over letters all the time even though they had called it quits when she had to go back to school. Unless he actually kissed her anything else was just him being her best friend.

Sapphire wondered why Jeremy was surprised at all. She had been known to choose a random spot and start playing her flute. The flute had been the instrument that she had started off with but then found the cello and had picked up the piano when her sister came back into her life. She had also fiddled with the violin because of Kate. It seemed like Sapphire could pick up any instrument and know how to play after a few tries. It was skill that she planned to use as a hobby but still it was good to know that she had some sort of magic to her. "It wouldn't be a school year if I didn't go and watch you play. I will be cheering Hufflepuff on of course but if you happen to be flying I will be hoping that our team doesn't go too hard on you." She smirked at him jokingly the put her hand on her chin. "Well then I have to cheer for you know don't I. Our little quartet will need all the support it can if we want to get a spot on the Yule Ball line up." She said joking again because she always cheered for him even if she was in Hufflepuff. She just could never voice it.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

A deep laugh escaped Jeremy at what Sapphire had said. Thinking of Professor Styx in his underclothes was not something he ever, ever wanted to think about. He certainly hoped that he wouldn't bust out laughing in Defense class because he didn't think that Professor Styx would be happy to find out why he was laughing. Jeremy could only imagine how many detentions that might earn him. It took him a couple of moments for the sniggers to finally stop and he continued to listen to his friend. "Tell the Hufflepuffs to bring it on" he laughed, glad that she'd be there to cheer him on. Jeremy didn't really have anything against the Puffs, but when they were on the field, Jeremy only had loyalty to those who were on the same side as he was. He and Dymetris, one of the Puff captains both knew that they were friends off the field but on the field was another story entirely.

"Who else is going to join?" Jeremy asked curiously, hearing that it was meant to be a quartet. He thought that it would be nice to have live music at the Yule ball and hoped that they would be allowed to play during the party, even if it was only for a few songs. "You guys should definitely do it. That would be very cool" he smiled. Jeremy could imagine being at the ball, dancing with a girl as soft music played. He was determined that at his very last Yule ball that he would go with a date. Who his date would be was a mystery to him right now, but he was determined to make it happen.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

After getting their chuckles out at the completely ridiculous Sapphire kept her smile. "For now it's only me and Kate Moon but we are looking for those that are talented with the strings." She said thinking about other people who she knew played string instruments. Raff, another Hufflepuff, could play the cello and guitar she could probably bribe him into joining them by telling him that he could play something for Corsette. Sapphire knew the business of a few of her classmates because of her tendency to people watch and notice things but unlike some people she didn't like to tell the entire world about what was going on. Other than that she didn't know who they would find for the string quartet. They needed to get it together soon though. Halloween was right around the corner.


"If we get it everything settles we can even pay something special for you and Kendra if you asked her to go with you. I can almost garetee she'll say yes." She said with a bright grin. She wasn't teasing him. While others may see a bit of a one sided crush Sapphire saw different. A girl like Kendra Snow wouldn't even be giving him the time of day if she didn't like him to some degree. She wasn't the kind of girl that kept boys around her like that. Being a part Veela Sapphire could understand why that was. As for Sapphire, well she didn't really need a date if she was going to play at the ball anyway and it would fun to hang out with friends and dance with those that didn't have dates.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy didn't know Kate Moon very well because she was several years younger than he was and in a different, but he did know her twin, Sara. Sara was a pretty cool girl and definitely a great Quidditch player so he figured Kate had to be pretty ok too. He knew that the gossip magazine had written stuff about her, but considering some of the other silly articles he wasn't just going to believe anything. Jeremy was glad that another magazine hadn't come out. He really hoped that the person had graduated or transferred. "I'm sure there are plenty of people lurking about the school who play well enough to be in a group" he said encouragingly.

The Head Boy's face flushed dark red at what Sapphire said next. He figured it was pretty obvious at least on his part that he had a crush on Kendra. If Sapphire could pick up on it, it was likely that many others had as well. Shaking his head, Jeremy mumbled, "I doubt it." He didn't think she would say yes at all nor did he think he had the guts to even ask her. Jeremy wasn't like other guys he saw around the school who could easily go up to girls and sweet talk them. He was still shy, even though he'd come out of his shell more and more. And, aside from the few times they'd spoken, it wasn't like Kendra went out of her way to speak with him. They sort of just ran into each other places, or he orchestrated a run-in. There didn't seem to be any indication, at least not to him, that Kendra even thought of him as a friend.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

Sapphire nodded at Jeremy. She was sure of it too. She knew that she couldn't be the only one that was obsessed with music and art. She knew that Tara was a brush buddy as well as a good friend to her, there had to be fellow sting buddies out there too. Sapphire looked at Jeremy let out a tisking breath. "The school knows that like a Slytherin, I know which Slytherin because I'm A a girl and B your best friend. The day I can't see these things about you is the day I have to say that I don't know you at all." She said hoping to ease some of the read from his face though Sapphire found it cute that he turned tomato red like that when embarrassed. Somewhere very deep inside a part of her was screaming at her for what she was about to do but she didn't listen to it. Her love for Jeremy was greater than any selfish need. All she wanted was for him to be happy even if it wasn't with her.

"You doubt me and my deductive skills? Care to make it a bet then?" She asked as she gave him a cheeky grin. Normally she wouldn't do things like this but she wanted Jeremy to at least get the words out and see what happened. "I bet you my old flute, which mind you means very much to me and is as close to pure sliver as you can get, that Kendra will say yes to going with you as more than a friend." She said. Sapphire offered him her hand hand to see what he would do. The flute in question had been a part of her since she could remember. It was required to pick up an instrument as a part of one's education at Bell-Donna Manor partly because Dympna said that knowing how to play one showed refignment and partly because sometimes it was the only thing that kept someone like her from going off the deep end completely. Her flute had saved her from the edge many times over her life time so it was worth more than the sliver it was made of to her and that was saying something seeing as pure silver was worth quite a bit even in the wizarding world.

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy stared at his friend blankly, following her logic. He hadn't been aware that he was so transparent but it seemed that he was. The Head Boy looked down for a second and then looked back on, a faint smile on his face. If it was that obvious to Sapphire, loads of other people probably knew as well including possibly Kendra. Since she hadn't acted on it, Jeremy could only assume that she knew and didn't care. Smirking as she spoke about placing a bet, Jeremy nodded. He was certainly game for a bet even before he heard the terms. He listened carefully as she spoke and then almost wished that he had not nodded. This bet would mean that he would have to ask Kendra to the ball and Jeremy didn't think that he'd have the guts to do that. Sure, he was Head Boy and captain of the Ravenclaw team but that didn't mean that he was brave enough to do something as crazy as ask a girl to a dance. That would take a lot of bravery that Jeremy had not been known to have. Still, he couldn't back down now, could he?

"Umm...I guess we'll find out then" he said, shrugging again. Jeremy didn't want to think about her saying no because if he mustered up the guts to ask, he would be mortified if she said yes. Jeremy wondered about what Sapphire was saying. Why was she being so pushy about this? Was she over her crush of him and wanting it to be known that she was over him? Jeremy didn't know. He wasn't going to ask either, so he hastily changed the subject. "So...can you believe I'm actually Head Boy? I can't believe I'm gonna have to do a speech at the end of the year" he said, shaking his head slightly. The guy had massive social anxieties especially when it came to public speaking. He still had many months to go before he even had to think of the speech that he would have to make but he knew that he could share his fears with his friend.

Out of Character:

I am soo sorry. I could have sworn I replied to this days ago

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

Sapphire was so beyond a crush it wasn't even funny. She loved Jeremy pure and simple and because of that she was willing to go out of her way to make him happy. It would crush her to see him go though the same agony that she went though when it came to an unrequainted crush so she knew that she had to do something to make sure he at least got the curage to as. "I will be watching from the stage Yule Ball night." Sapphire said with a bright smile on her face. For all the world now Sapphire was over Jeremy though that would never be true.

Sapphire rolled her eyes at the next comment. "I wouldn't have beleved it if they hadn't made you Head Boy. Your a good student Jay. As for public speaking I would say just tapl like you would if you where talking to a friend. It may not take the nerves away but at least you won't run off stage and throw up in a flower pot." She joked. Really Sapphire had no idea what to do in front of an audience. Yes she had sang in front of people but that was different. People didn't actually listen to the lyrics except for a few acceptions. A speech people where looking for a message and she was sure that talking as if talking to a friend would help